DIARY OF THE WORLD'S NEWS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 229, 20 June 1908, Page 10

DIARY OF THE WORLD'S NEWS.

— 9 WEEKLY SUMMARY BY MAIL. Tiio following weekly summary of the world's news is taken from the "Daily Mail" Overseas Edition of May 9:— MAY 1. . Castle Buddenburg, in Westphalia, one of ! the most iainous estates in the Ilnine Valley, has bean tho scene of an'extraordinary murder, followed bv suicido. The Baroness *\ enda von Ruexlooen, a young bride, married only a few months, shot and killed her husband and then fired two bullets into her own body, inflicting wounds from which aho subsequently died. Jealousy is said to have been the cause of the tragedy. The murdered nobleman seems to nave had a strange' foreboding of his end, for on 1 }' a few hours before he died ho executed a will bequeathing his lands and moneys to his brother, a lieutenant in the Prussian Guards. The crime took placo about an hour after midnight, following tho baron s return from a visit to a neighbouring nobleman; Ho entered his wife's boudoir, whore she was awaiting him, and a ■ violent altercation broko out. Finally, the baroness fired with an automatic pistol at her husband. ■ The baron's cousin, Barou von Poseck, was the first to bo aroused by the shots, and when he rushed into the corridor the baron fell reeling into his arms gasping "Tho woman has shot me. Those were his only words before ho bled to doath. While Baron von Poseck and the servants were attempting to staunch the baron's wounds, more, shots rang out from the boudoir. ■ Tho' baroness had turned the pistol against her own breast, lodging tw° bullets in the region of the heart. ; The mamago of tho young couple in Berlin last November was one of the social and military events of the sea-

According to the "Berliner Tageblatt," it is rumoured in diplomatic circles in Berlin that Great Britain has not yet abandoned her endeavours to arrange an international understanding for tho limitation of armaments. Tho journal reports that while Great Britain does not intend to issuo invitations to a conforence immediately, endeavours continue to bo mado -towards the attainment of this aim. Tho death has occurred at Budapest of General, Stephei* Tuerr, at the age of eighty-six. As an Austrian lieutenant ho deserted to the Italians, and in 1849 was , condemned , to death in his absence, and hangod in effigy. u 0 was afterwards ono ?i n• • c. f supporters. Ho was in the British, service in the Crimean war. The marriage of Prince August Wilhelm of Prussia, fourth son of tho German Empcror, to Princess Alexandra of Schleswig-Holstein-Senderburg-Glucksburg has been fixed for October 22, tho birthday of the jLmpress. MAY 2. M. Delagrango, the aeroplanist who holds tho record for tho largest flight, met with a serious accident while lie and Mr. Farmah were attempting at the Issy drill ground to win tho £400 prize for the aeroplane which succeeds in staying in tho air for ntteen minutes. M. Delagrango was making an excellent flight when, in endeavouring to turn sharply at the southwestcornor, his machine was carried in tho direction of a crowd of about 2000 spectators,, who wero standing on the - banks of the military trenches that run along the side of the grounds. M. Delagrango endeavoured to bring tho aeroplane to a stop before reaching the crowd, but tho wind carried, tho apparatus just over the *hoads of the spectators, who scattered in all directions. M. Dolagrange switched on us ignition _ again, hoping to rise to a height sufficient to clear the crowd. But the aeroplane, instead of going up, made a suaden plunge downwards, and the forepart dashed into tho £ido,.of one of tho trenches. Tho entire front part of'the machino was completely " wrecked, while . tho right-hand side or thq main piano was smashed and the propeller bent up as though it were'tin.

A Teheran (Persia) telegram states tiiat reports from i Ivhoi, Salmas, and Urumiah announce that the Turkish Kurds -havo Killed over -000 persons, destroyed a number of' villages, and earned "off much property, sheep, and cattle. They now threaten tho above-mentioned 'cities. The /eheran anjumens, Or political clubs, and the Press accuse the Government of culpablo negligence and inactivity. They blame the Government for not'having taken steps months ago when -the disorders began, and when the authorities could easily have quelled tho disturbances with a Email forco, whereas now a largo body of troops will bo required. A telegram from Oldonburg announces tho engagement of Prince . Friedrich of bchaumhurg-Lippe. to his deceased wife's sister Princess Thyra, daughter of the King ?io?T- arit - t nllc . e friedrich married in 1390 Princess Louise,' sister of Princess " lonrP'iJ^ 0 pf in April, iyub, leaving three children; 1

MAY 4. » The centenary of the rising in Madrid against the French on May 2, 1808, was celebrated by a requiem Mass for those who fell in Jio War of Independence, which was attended by King Alfonso and all tho members of the Royal family with tho exception of Queen Victoria Eugenie. There was a procession of school children,= who nurched past the stand which whs occu- ; pied by members of the Royal family. King Alfonso, carrying tho little Prince of Asturias, left the stand'and made his heir kiss the flag of tho brigado of waifs and strays. Tho crowd's enthusiasm over this incident knew no bounds, and they cheered tho .King and the Prince again and a"ain Ihe Infnnte Marie Theresa and tho 111fnnto Carlos also made their children kiss the flag amid the continued cheors from - tho people. According to a Homo telegram the marriago ■ of the Duke of the Abruzzi, the cousin of • the King of Italy, to Miss Elkins, daughter of the U.S.A. Senator, will take place in September' on his promotion to the rank of rear-admiral. Miss Elkins has abjured Protestantism, and has been a Roman Catholic for over a month. America has been furnished with yet another object-lesson in tho folly pf- tolerating "firotraps" in big towns by tho total destruction of the Aveline Hotel at Fort Wayne, with the loss of thirty lives. Of the seventy-four guests who were sleeping i when the hotel caught fire, not one escaped without injury. In an instant all tho means of exit by way of stairs and elevators were cut off, and tho guests men and women, wore compelled cither to leap from the windows or to remain and be suffocated to death. When, after much delay, the fire brigade arrived, every window was crowded with maddened ■ panic-stricken people. Ladders were raised' and somo thirty persons reached safety with their aid. Tho coroner has declared that there was a' neglect of proper pre-' cautions,- and that the building was constructed with gross disregard of ail proper ' rules. [t is reported that tho "slump" in the American diamond market is at an end. The U.S.A. imports of diamonds during April wore, roughly, double those during February.

MAY 5. !n St. Petersburg and Tsarskoo Solo every house was decked with flags of Swedish blue and yellow intermingling with tho Russian white, bluo, and red for the wed- ' ding of Princo Williclm of Sweden, King Gustaf's second son, and' tho Grand Duchess Mario Pavlovna, daughter of tho Tsar's uncle, the Grand Duke Paul. Tho ceremony at Tsarskoo Selo was conducted with more gorgeous pomp than has been seen m Russia for manT years. Tho Tsar and all his Royal guests wero in brilliant attire, and tho hundreds or ladies of the ■ Court wore the beautiful historic old Russian drosses, tho long trains embroidered ■ with gold, and the quaint headgear from 1 which tullo reils floated to their heels Many wore magnificent necklaces of priceless pearls and diamonds. The dazzling- ] uniforms of officers of,a hundred regi- i ments gavo added beauty to tho sceno en- . acted at the Imperial Palaco of Tsarskoo Solo. ,

" 1 In view ;of the fact that the Bill for increasing tho subsidy to the North-German Lloyd ' Company for its services in tho South Seas and the Far East was only passed by the Budget Committee by a '■ niajoHty of one vote,-it was not surpris- ' Jite that, when the second reading of tho Bill was taken by the Reichstag, various amendments wcro proposed. The debate filially Resolved itself i into a discussion of a . proposal that the North-German Lloyd Vur i rc ' cas .°il from, the obligation to estabhsli! a ; service' between German New Guinea and Singapore, and that tho proposed additional 1 grant in aid of the so- , Anstr.-.lian-Jf.pMiese line should bo reduced from £25,C00 to £11,500. The Jjill- originally .proposed that an additional £25,000 should be granted in sup. port or the .Australian-Japanese service, and £13,500 out of tlie total'subsi- , dies already payable to the company should be diverted for the benefit of the resumed semco between New Guinea and Singapore. After considerable discussion, tho proposal to grant, an additional subsidy . of only . £11,500 was finally adopted, and . be second reading of tho Bill was carried ■in tho amended form: A Petersburg states that at Bykhoff, m tno (government of Moghileff, fcirjr-boatj crowded with 150 peasants, including many children, returning from church, capsized wliilo crossing tho Dniepcr. Only thirty of those on board-wero saved, though tho accident occurred only ■ sovonty feet from tlio river'bank. By order of tho Kaiser; it is suggested, thn Alsacc-Lorrame-"Journal do Colmar," a bi-weekly paper .in tho French ■ language, has been authorised to publish daily. A Ministerial ortlmanco has' also been pro- . mulgafced permitting tho "use of French in all public meetings. These liberal measures' taken by Count Wedel. the new btattjaltor, ,aro (juite in'consonance with' the high character for juiStico and imparw tiality which the ex-Ambassador at Vienna brought with hini to..;his new post." ' * MAYO. \ At Kill-Davil Hill, near Caro. Una, our correspondent was privileged to witness the first successful test flight of : ifeu'n cro ,P lane iwenied by -the famous Wught Brothers, of Dayton, Ohio. With the machine undor perfect control; the two ' ™tors, Messrs. Wilbur, and Orvillo n right, Hew a distance of a thousand fast m a light north-easterly wind. Starting easily along a railway 300 ft. long, the aer£ plane driven by an engine of 20-h.p„ quickly attained a velocity of twenty-fivo miles an hour,'when it suddenly lbft tho tracks and rose like a bird in the air to an elevation of 20ft. from the. ground. " After travelling at. that height for\i-dis-tance of a thousand feet the inventors Im^^ edl with the machino' without ' the slightest difficulty. _ The flight , was made for'the purpose of testing a new steering contrivance, the adaptability of - which' 'was ue* known. The contrivance proved satisfactory, but, tho adjustment requiring'a slight alteration, the two brothers decided'to discontinue the flight. The inventors intend to carry out an endurance-flight from KillDevil Hill to Cape Henry,-a distance of' seventy-five miles, and back. The famous blue Hope diamond has been purchased for £80,000 by a dealer in Paris, ™ ls understood to represent the Sultan of Turkey. Tho stone, which weighs only 44J carats, is unique in" colour and shape,' and has a remarkable history. There is little doubt that it is a r.ari of tho Tavernier blue diamond, brougTit to Europe from India in 1642 by that romantic traveller Joan Baptiste Tavernier, Baron d'Aubonne. It was purchased from him by the; Grand Monarque, Louis XIV, anfl remained among the French Crown jewels luntil the Involution, -when it mysteriously - disappeared. No more was heard of th'e aem until 1830, when, cut to its-present shape,' it came—, • howor whence is unknown—into the hands ' of a London dealer; who sold it to the late Mr. Henry TJi'omas Hope for £18,000. Subsequently the -gem was sold to' an Amencain firm for £28,200,' and taken to Philadelphia, 1 . ' This' American firm placed it for/sale with the Paris dealer's, 'from whom tha Sultan's representative purchased ' ' • MAY 7. Ihe German Emperor, accompanied by the

iianpress, arrived at Vienna •to lead tha German and Princes in congratulate ' mg the aged Emperor Francis Joseph on the diamond jubilee anniversary of liis accession. Assembled in the Shoenbruun Palace were Emperors,, two - Kings, three reigning Princes, five roigning Grana Dukes and Dukes, and numerous mombers of the Austrian Imperial Family, Tha gathering included the Emperor- Francis ; Joseph, the German Emperor and Empress, • Prince_ August William of Prussia, Princess Victoria Louise of Prussia, the King of Saxony, tho King of . Wurtemburg, tha Prince Regent of Bavaria, the Grand Dukes • : of Baden, Oldenburg, Saxo-Weimar, and : Mecklonburg-Sc'hwerin. The reigning Princes of Schaumburg-Lippe and Lippe-Dct-mold, the Anhalt, .tho Mayor of Hamburg,, representing the Hansoatio , cities, tlio Austrian Archdukes Franz Fer- : dinand, Leopold Salvator, Friedrich Joseph Ferdinand, and Joseph and the Archduchesses'. At noon precisely .tho: wholo party wore conducted bjvthe Court Chamberlain to tho Marie Antoinette room, where tho Emporor'Francis Joseph awaited them. The chamberlain closed the' folding 1 doors, nrf one being permitted ,to witness tho ceremony of congratulating the "aged , • monarch upon attaining the sixtieth ; year - . of his reign. Tho Emperor Williamy ■ ad- , dressing the Emperor Francis Joseph, spoko as follows"Your Majesty, it is . by the high decree of divine grace and providence that we are assembled to-day ■ around tho person of your Imperial Royal and Apostolic Majesty. Sixty years, two generations of men, your Majesty has devoted in never-tiring zeal and most faithful and noble fulfilment of duty to the wel- ! faro and prosperity of your peoples. ' Far and wide, beyond tho borders of the Monarchy, the world bows in respect and admiration before the venerable form of your Majesty. Your Majesty 'sees hero t lire a generations of German Princes gathered about you, and among them 110110 to whom your Majesty has not been an exemplar before he was himself called to tho, discharge of his high office. Wo, then, the . true friends and allies of your Majesty, have hastened hither, and with us her Majesty the Empress-Queen my consort, to bear testimony to the deep reelings or close friendship and devotion which wo entertain for your Majesty. With overflowing hearts wo offer our-homage to tha noble rulor, the true ally, the mighty guardian of pcaeo on whose head we illvoko tho richest blessings of God's prqvidence." The Emperor Francis Joseph re. plied: "Your Majesty, this oroof* of a friendship which I hold most dear, which will be one of the most precious recollections of my life, has touched my heart most; joyfully, and 1 beg you to. accent my deepest and warmest -thanks for it. In this act of cordial attachment, which affords me tho utmost gratification, I may, I think, discern a solemn manifestation of the monarchical principle, to which Germany owes her power and greatness. Aus-tria-Hungary's strength also, lies in this principle, and ( from tic true and unchanging love of my people I have always derived fresh confidence to-do justice to the arduous duties incumbent upon me." Clear,

bright weather prevailed at night for tho serenade at Schoenbrumi. Over eight hundred people, representing the who!"'aristocracy, wore in the royal park to listen to the 7000 singers.