LETTER FROM G. V. STEWART.

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume XIV, Issue 1824, 11 April 1885, Page 2

LETTER FROM G. V. STEWART.

London, Feb. 7, 1885. The Kaikoura having brought me last week letters and newspapers from Nevr Zealand fully ten days in advance of the incoming 'Frisco mail, I avail myself of the Saturday half-holiday to jot down a report of some of the exoiting events of tho last few days, First and foremost is the fall of Khar» toum, and with it, we fear, tho loss of its heroic defender General Gordon, who will hand down to posterity a name immortalised by his bravery and devotion to the cause entrusted to hia charge, but a victim to a weak, vacillating, imbecile, and tergiversating Government. It would be impossible for me to describe the excitement that this sad event has caused, not only in London, but throughout the entire breadth of the land and on the Conti* nent. The leading Press in Paris refers as follows to this sad oatas* trophe: — "The National thinks that the Soudan campaign is only now commencing, and though it regards the continuance of the maroh to Khartoum as a folly, acknowledges that a retreat of the British army would be the signal for a revolt at Cairo, and for the renewal in India of the masj sacroa of 1857. It believes in the joint of Italy with England, and half anticipates that the Cabinet will be immediately upset by an explosion of popular -indignation." The Francais, the Duke deßroglie's organ, is still more explicit :— " One single man bears the whole weight of the responsibility for all the faults which have led to the disastrous situation in which. England is now placed. It is he who, to close the mouth of indiscreet questioners in Parliament, sent Gordon to Khartoum, then Graham to Suakim too late to save the Sinkat garrison, and recalling him at the moment when he had, by^TKj victories, opened tha road to Berßw; it is he who voluntarily delayed, month after month, General Wolseley's expedition, though it was clamoured for by public opinion ; it is he who, after having at last demanded of Parliament the necessary authorisation and credits for this campaign, and after having obtained them on the sth of August, yet procrastinated, and waited till the 22nd before availing himself of them. Lord Wolseley, however, urged, and hid from no one that time was precious ; that hours were of consequence, with the falling of the waters of the Nile and the arrival of the torrid season in the Desert ; that the exhaustion of the resources Gordon might have found at Khartoum had to be taken iuto account, as well as the more than doubtful fidelity of the population, and the advance of the Mahdi. Events have proved Lord Wolseley to have been right. What would the situation have been to-day if Mr Gladstone, instead of sacrificing seventeen days in the I '■' A--.- .y.-' -V. A..- .aj

month of August to the fer^iversntumf--of hia mind, had given General Wolseley those seventeen days whicli be lost m his last procrastinating irresolution. A journal has proposed that "when Mr Gladstone takes a seat in the House of Lords he should adopt the device <To 6 late.' The entrance of Mr Gladstone into the House of Lords, that is to say his resignation to make room for a Ministry of action, appears to be the general wish of the country." If your readers will bear in mind what I have been writing on thia subject for the last eighteen months, they will find that my anticipations have been justified by the sad event ; but they were only such that any man could foresee who took the trouble of paying the slightest attention to the matter. When at the annual Lord Mayor's banquet given to Ministers in 1883, Mr Gladstone then stated that the Government intended forthwith to remove the troops from Egypt, the announcement was received with au ominous silence, if not with manifestations of dissent. The work of withdrawing our military was shortly after oommenoed, but shortly afterwards reinforcements were dispatched upon an extensive scale, transports were secured, and no amount of expenditure was spared, resulting in the victories of General Graham and Admiral Seymour at Suakim. But these victories were not followed up; the pathetic appeals for help by General Gordon were disregarded ; our pusillanomous Government preferred to trust to the chapter of accidents and to the hopes that something would turn up, and to divert the public mind from the affairs of Egypt entailing disgrace upon the prestige of England ; tho franchise agitation was started; the rails intended for the stragetic railway across the desert from Suakim to Berber were sent on to India, and matters were allowed to drift till publio opinion once more came to the front. The Times and leading papers of various political opinions urged our lethargic legislators again to some decided action, then of a sudden all was changed ; our arsenals or stores resounded with the din of military preparations ; Sir Garnet Wolseley was despatched with all the available forces at our command, but, as usual, insignificantly small for the work to be accomplished. The route by the River Nile was adopted by which our unfortunate soldiers and sailors have been compelled to force their way through cataracts against the swift stream of the Nile, under the "burning sun of an equatorial climate, through a country almost destitute of provisions ; and after all this labour, borne with the unflinching resolution of the British soldier, to find themselves at the gates of Khartoum "just two days' too late." Lord Wolseley's force (as I have already stated inadequately small) is now divided into three divisions. Tho hoadquartors and base of operations are at Korti with Lord Wolseley with about 2,000 men; General Earle is combating the rapids and the falling Biver Nile with about 9,000 more, and will have to fight hia way past Berber, which is strongly fortified, before he can join the third portion of the expedition with General Stewart on the Nile near Metemneh, which place is 115 miles south oi Berber. We are all familiar with the old story of the "Bundle of Faggots." The danger is that the Mahdi, flushed with success, having secured the steamers, ammunition, and cannon of poor Gordon may sweep down on General Stewart's small force at Metemneh, only 95 miles down the river from Khartoum, and either overpower him by tho superior force of numbers or force him to submission either by starvation or cutting oif his supplies of' ammunition. However, let us hope for the best, and look to the brighter side of tho oase. The Government is at last thoroughly aroused to action. They have telegraphed to General Lord Wolseley to draw a blank cheque upon the military and financial resources of the oountry. ARectdmg (matter continued on fourth pagtj .

STEWAET

Popular feeling— l should rather say popular frenzy— has driven them out of their lethargy, and at last they appear to be awake to the condition of affairs. A treaty, or rather a diplomatic understanding, has beon arrived at with Italy, and 35,000 Italian troops are to be despatched to Suakim, while communications are daily exchanged ■with the Government of India with a view of sending some Sepoy regiments to the same quarter. Thus has our present miserable Government once more accepted and endorsed the policy of the great and noble Beaconsfield which they so strongly denounced when in opposition, and are eating humble pie by this contemplated movemert of Indian troops. In fact. 1 do not see how Lord Wolseley is to Iving "back his troops unlees he remains at Khartoum till the rising of the Nile, even should he capture the place ; and where will he get provisions or renew his supply of ammunition in the meantime. There is no help for it but to send out a second expedition to rolieve Wolseley, who was sent out to relieve poor Gordon, who now lies the fallen victim to a Government that has brought disgrace and dishonor on the prestige of the British nation, It is sad to contemplate on this disastrous affair, and to think that had the relieving force but reached Khartoum but two days earlier the greatest hero of the present century might have been saved. It is still more painful if we reflect that poor Gordon may have precipitated his fate by his self-denying devotion in sending those of his steamers from Khartoum who arrived at Metemneh upon the very nick of time to assist the small handful of troops under General Stewart, who might have been otherwise overpowered at that place after the battle Abu Klea.

o'donovan e,ossa. m It has been said that "those who live by the sword may expect to perish by the sword," but unfortunately in this case the miscreant has for the present at all events escaped that doom assuredly awaits' him at the hands MHvßome of his own /accomplices in his ■Jwork of murderous warfare against the P7 laws of humanity and society, entailing j the destruction;' of property and injury, / if not deatl^f of unoffednding women ■' and the Ryitish public. TheJL'inerican Government is now grorajCg alive to the fact that the time isjjtfne to crush down this " varmint," $«a special measures dealing with this „ nuisance have been introduced into the

United States legislature. More severe remedies will probably be adopted in this country, and it has been suggested in many quarters to make dynamite conspirators guilty of high treason if convicted, and let them pay by their "wretched necks for the outrages upon society and the peaceful citizens of Great Britain. It is satisfactory, how- -.. -ever, to reflect that the police haye a clear case against an Irish American —Gilbert, alias Dalton, alias Cunningham — who is at present in custody, having been captured almost redhanded at the recent outrage at the Tower, while a second accomplice, who has given the name of Burton, has also been arreßted within the last few days, and in his possession has been found an American trunk supposed to be the property of Gilbert, that disappeared most mysteriously from the lodgings lately nccupied by this wretch. Within the last two days circumstances have come to the knowledge of the police which will in all probability lead to a further charge being p\feferred against Gilbert for being concerned, if not actually causing, the explosion on the Underground railway on the 2nd of January. It will be remembered that on the occasion of the explosion the from which the dynamite was dropped was going towards Gowerstreet. Almost immediately afterwards an explosion occurred. The police took possession of the platform at the station, and awaited the arrival of the train, on the arrival of which tho carriages were cleared, and in as many cases as possible the names and addresses of travellers were taken. Attention was particularly drawn to three men who had travelled in the guard's brake-van, and they were suspected of being the perpetrators of the outrage. By some means, however, thoy succeeded in escaping, but not before an opportunity had been given to the police nnd the guard of scrutinising the travellers. As a consequence a sergeant of police and the guard of the train attended at Bow street Police ■" Court on Monday, and at the conclusion of the prisoner Gilbert's examination he was placed among a number of, *TTther men in one of the rooms adjoining the court. The guard of the train very carefully examined each person placed before him, and pointed out Gilbert as being one of the suspected men who travelled in the guard's brake. The sergeant of police entertained a similar belief. During the scrutiny the prisoner betrayed signs of great uneasiness, holding his head down, and keeping his hat well over his eyes. He appeared to attempt to evade recognition. What is considered to be a most important link in the hitherto weak chain of evidence against Burton, the second prisoner under arrest, was, it is stated, obtained on Thursday by the Criminal Investigation department. Amongst his luggage has been discovered a plan of the buildings com| prising the House of Commons and its surroundings. The suspicious trunk found at Burton's lodgings which is said to have been previously in the possession of Gilbert, is of such a peculiar make that it could scarcely be passed without attracting attention. In length it is about 24 ft, and it is of a yellow colour, vanmhed. The top is made of tapered ribs, as though off a barrel. Besides being straightened with various ribs/it ia also bound with a number of light cramps at the cor- 1 L 1

ners, which are chased with small ornamental designs. Among the various philanthropic suggestions to relieve distress among the working classes it is contemplated to establish

A MONT-DE-PIETE POH LONDON. An English " mont-de-piete " is about to be established in London. The great utility of the mont-de-piete in Erance, Germany, and Italy has suggested that some steps should be taken here to aid the poor and working classes in this particular, so that they may be enabled to borrow the money they need on easier terms than they are at present able to do, and with a view to save their property for them in the event of their being so unfortunate as to be unable to redeem it at the stipulated time. A.s it is a philanthropic institution, the interest to shareholders is not to exceed five per cent, per annum. It is proposed that the first establishment be opened in the East of London, and others in the west, north, and south, at as early a date as possible. Should the proposed company be liberally supported, it is intended to extend its operations to Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, and other great centres of industry. A " mon-de-piete " is a pawn depot, where small sums of money on ihe security of pledges, at a rate of interest barely sufficient to cover the working expenses, are lent. It is of Roman origin. Considering that pawnbrokers are at present authorised by law to charge a rate of interest amounting to about 25 per cent, on the poor and needy. The above suggestion will, it is hoped, help to obviate much misery and distress.

GOLD PRODTTCTTNG

While we hear from New Zealand of the diminished yield of gold from our several mining districts^ it will be seen from the figures published this year by Mr Valentine, of Wells, Fargo, and Co.'s Express Company, relating to the production of gold in the United States, that the same complaint reaches us from America for 1854.. They indicate that the gross yield of the mines of the North American Continent west of the Missouri river, and including Mexico and British Columbia, for that year was £17,000,000, of which about 30 per cent., or £5,251,000, was gold, and 54 per cent., or £9,100,000, silver, the balance being copper and lead. Mr Burchard, the Director of the United States Mint, usually places the total yield of gold rather above Mr Valentine's, partly because the latter's figures do not include the production east of the Missouri river ; but, whatever total be taken, the general conclusions deducible are indentical. Gold is decreasing in yield, and silver continues to increase. Thus in the five years ended with 1879 the United States Mint computation of the gold yield aggregates fully £42,000,000, while, for the five years ended with 1884 it is not much more than £32,000,000. The New York Chronicle thinks these figures untrustworthy; but those of Mr Valentine, which include the great bulk of the total production, have never been seriously disputed. Thoy tell substantially the same story, only that the total production of the United States alone, and west of the Missouri river, is shown by them to have been less than £40,000,000 for the first five years of the decade ended with 1884, and little more than £20,000,000 for the second five years. There can be no reasonable doubt, then, that the gold supply is falling off in that quarter, and it is doiug so just when the demand for it, whether as coinage or in the arts, is on the increase. Other producing countries tell the same story, so that, whereas the entire gold supply of the world averaged £28,000,000 per annum a quarter of a century ago, and £25,000,000 fifteen years ago, it has not in recent years averaged moro than £19,000,000. Many people, seeing these figures, are apt to dredict disastrous consequences as likely to flow from the curtailment thus exhibited ; but that does not follow, although one consequence, no doubt, will bo an impulsion of the poorer communities towards silrer as a medium of exchange. Even now, it should always be remembered, in dealing with a subject like tins, that the annual yield of" gold is far larger than it was before the era of the Californian and Australian discoveries, whilo the economy in the use of the metal as a medium of exchange, is also enormously greater than it was as recently as twenty years ago.