COLONIAL ITEMS.

Press, Volume XLV, Issue 7172, 6 October 1888, Page 5

COLONIAL ITEMS.

{per press association.] Received October oth, p.m. London, October 3. The cruisers for the Australian Naval Squadron will be launched in April, and fitted out by September. The Admiralty have expressed their willingness to keep the whole of them if the colonies axe not satisfied with the ships. The meeting of the shareholders of the Bank of Australasia was of an excited and prolonged character, lasting four hours. The report was adopted after a very bitter and acrimonious discussion, aud a motion was adopted rescinding the grant of £1500 per annum for five years to the family of Mr Parkes, late manager. The motion was carried by a large majority, but if the decision of the malcontents is upheld, the Directors threaten to resign. Received October oth, 1 p.m. London, October 3. Lord Knutsford states that the Chinese Prohibition Bill remains in abeyance, and he hopes' that a friendly settlement of the difficulty may be arranged without involving the introduction of drastic law. He also states that the protectorates over Karatonga and all the islands of the Herrey Group were established in compliance with the request of the New Zealand Government. Bishop Reunion, of Adelaide, when preaching at Hal ford, said colonial legislators were able men, but devoid of the underlying principles of religion necessary to steadiness in times of political excitement. He quoted as an instance the Divorce Bill, passed by the New South Wales Parliament by a narrow majority. The Crown, he said, had boldly taken exception to the Bill and he prayed the Imperial Government would maintain its refusal