THE ENGLISH MAIL.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXIV, Issue 3389, 27 May 1868, Page 3

THE ENGLISH MAIL.

Thi arrival of H.M. s. 'Bosario' hat pub us in posieision of the English news, which we published yesterday in an extra. Had it not been for the opportune departure of this vessel, we should probably hare been at a disadvantage similar to that of last month, unless the ' Novelty' had made a rapid passage. , The news altogether is not by any means sensational. The moat important item has reference to the question of the dis-establishment of the Church of Ireland. The position of Prime Minister of England, .which Mr. Disraeli now holds a'ter a long and eventful career, is one which, we imagine, he will not long preserve. Mr. Gladstone's opposition will, to all »ppearance, be too strong for the present Premier to withstand* The question on which the respective parties were to try their strength was that of the dis-establishment of the Church of Ireland. After a preliminary skirmish on the endowment of an exclusive Uoman Catholic University, and other measures of presumed improvement, the challenge of battle was thrown down by the leader of the Opposition in the following words — " The time for disestablishing the Church of Ireland has come." This was followed by notice of three resolutions to the following effect :—•' l. That the Church of Ireland should ce*»e to exist as an establishment, due regard being paid to vested rights. 2. That no new personal interests shall be created by the exercise of any public patronage. 3. That the Queen be ai-ked to place at the disposal of Parliament her interest in the temporalities of the Irish sees and other dignities." Wba'ever has been, ere this, the result of the debate on these rtsolutions. their importance cannot be questioned, whilst the debate itself was expected to prove, as well it might be, one of the most brilliant that have ever been heard in the British House of Commons. If Mr. Gladstone has boon able to affirm them by a majority of the House, then Mr. Disraeli will, either have to relinquish his position, attained after so many weary years of incessant political life ; or, as is more probably the case, he will dissolve the House, and talc* the opinion of the country upon the question. What that may be it is hardly difficult to foretell. In any case, Ireland seems now to be, in, a fair way of obtaining from the, English nation some amendment of that policy which has •ver characterised the dealing of England with the sister island. The probability of, an amicable settlement of the question of the 'Alabama' claims is matter for congratulation, i The .spirit evinced in the -jdebate on this subject was creditable to the British parliament, and has called fo-th a display of that friendly feeling, which, in spite of all the American bounce, is really felt by ,the vast majority, of the , citizens of the TTmted States towards the parent country. In European news there is not much that calls for comment. Prussia has not.yet satisfactorily settled her accounts with the ex-King v of _ Hanover, and France , has experienced, some little difficulty in the .matter of , the, recent Conscription Bill, ropular feeling against it having been manifested in » «ry .significant manner in one or two, of the provincial towns. Turning to America, we have a, grand spectacle— the, impeachment of, the ,^ead of the State for acts dqne^, as affirmed, contrary to what is called the Tenure of Qffice Act. TpA trial came on before the ,Pen«t« on jfcbe 23rd -March. President J«>b noon's coun'se', consisting of A,ttorney-General Staubery} .Judges, Bl»ck,^Ne^on» and Curtis, and $he Hon. ,Wi W. , M. ' Evarfo , filed .*Q answer,, jdenying , all the impeachjnent charges • and , the , of tl^pMgenj^VWil»Te4fil94 t I^pMgenj^V Wi l»Te4fil94 At^' ,S«mrming

the charger The trial w»3 to commence on Mmcb 30. Though the Senate is notoriously hostile to the President, there c»n be no question but that the trial, -which will probably be a long one, will be fair, for the spectators cm be considerfd as nothing, less than the whoa word. Ifc would be futile to attempt to say how ib may be decided; but, if agninst the President, ib can, according to the American Constitution, only result in the removal of Mr. Johnion from the office he holds. The Abyssinian expedition has nude further progress, and the next advices were expected to contain intelligence of some decisive action having taken place. King Theodore is reported to be entrenched, and ready for battle, whilst our troops were impat ently demanding an opportunity of measuring < strength with their opponent?. The captives were, according to latet-t accounts, still ali/e ; how long tbe same good fortune would attend them is problematical. | One of tbe mo«t gratifying items, of intelligence by this, mail is that relative to the Bafety of Dr. .Livingstone, Sir Roderick jMuroliison having received a letter from Zanzibnydated Febmary 4, announcing the arrival of a messenger with despatches fiom that illustrious traveller, tie wai at the latest accounts at the north-west; of Lake .Nyauza. The whole story of his death seems to have been invented by the natives who had accompanied him, a mask for their cowardice. The famine in Algeria seems to have attained frightful proportions ; and though the statements appear to be exaggerated, there is doubtlew great lois of life, and all the efforts of the French Government to alleviate the distress seem to be unavailing. In what may be termed the domestic news of Great Britain, we are glad to find that Feninninn bus nearly exhausted its impotent strength. What effect the news of the* attempted assassination of his .Royal Highnets the Duke of Edinburgh may have on the intended vinit of the Prince of WaX s to Iren land it is not for us to say It may prevent it, but we rather imagine tbe British Government will be strengthened in their desire to see it carried out. There appears to be great increase in crimes of the most serious class, seveial convicts being under sentence of death for the expiation of their offences ag-dnxt the law of Ireland. ■ Mr. Gorst, of Waikato celebrity, < in bis place in Parliament asked several questions of the Under Secretary of State for the Colonies relative to New Zealand matter?, bub was unmistakably snubbed by that gentleman in his answer.

The s.s. 'Tauranga,' from the Thames, arrived this morning at three o'olocW. On Monday last .his Excellency the Governor and Lady Bowen, accompanied by Mr. A.. Lempriere, Private Secretary, and Maj>r Heaphy, V.C., visited the Provinoial Museum, and the Council Chambers. The party were conducted over the different depart 1 ments by Captain Hutton, and Mr. O'Korke] M.G.A. The vice-regal party afterwards proceeded to the Hospital, where they were received by Dn T. M. Philson, Provincial Surgeon, Her ladyship minutely inspected the various departments ; and, while expressing her, satisfaction with the arranger ments made for the comfortof thepatienta, intimated her opimou that the building was not suitable to the requirements of a, Provincial Hospital. Bis Excellency alsoappeared to be pleased with the healthy and regular appeal ance of the institution, and wrote a few commendaioiy remarks in the visitors' book. It will be seen by our A ustralian telegrams that a parcel of New Zealand flax sold at Melbourne, on the Bth instant, realised £30 per ton. We are informed that Mr. Robert Graham has resigned his seat in the House of Kepiesentatives as member for Franklin. It will be teen by reference to our advertising columns that Mr. W, Bucklaud is {already in the field as -a candidate for the vacant seat. The following is an extract from a private letter received yesterday from Tauranga, dated May 20th : " 'J here is no newa here. All is very dulL We do not g^t settled as we ou 3 'ht. Rumours of the most extravagant nature are too rife with us to allow anyone to nettle in the out-districts with comfort. We are now told that in the months of May, and June all our frontier from Oropi ti» Whakamarama is 'kati.' Our own natives don't understand it any more than Europeans. Lota of grumbling is heaid about the leasing of land : and Te Poheka (Fox), on behalf of tbe Ngati^ikiao.has issued a notice, warning Europeans not to be foolish * and give money, either by nay of lease or purchase of land in the neighbourhood'of Maketu, Te Pai-anui, Te .Puke Rangiuru, 1c Kaharoa, Kai Kokopu, Patiaugi, and Te Hakaateaira. Rather wait until it has been decided by the Native Lands I ouit : then do you lease, lest you be perplexed.' I only hope that sums of the A raw*, may not come to blows amongst themselves. This ill feeling has lately been stirred up bitterly : jealousy of leasing, aud of being ousted of what th>-y believe their own, by the Native Land Court, is the principal reason." We would call the attention of members of the Auckland Rifle Volunteers to tbe annual inspection of "Volunteers which is fixed for 11 o'clock this morniuL', and to which all members are ordered to attend, under a pena ty of £5. We presume this does not refer to those members of the corps ut present located at the Thames diggings. If so, we thmk the infliction of such, or, m fact, any fine, would be most harsh and arbitiary, inasmuch as no provision appears to have been made, as in the case of the Naral Volunteers, for bringing them up to town free of expense ; and members at the diggings do nut caie to leave their occugatmn* for several days, at considerable cost and great persoual inconvenience, even though they have a fine of £5 held in terrorem . over their head*. The band of the Royal Irish, under the direction of Mr. Qniun, will perform in the Domaiu this afternoon, at 3 o'clock (weather permitting). The following is the programme : — March ; overture, »"Stadella," Flotow ; waltz,. " Mo rg-nblatter," Strauss; selection, " Traviata," Verdi; quadrille, " Alfred," Bergmann ; galop, " Orpheus," Offenbach ; •" God save the Queen." The presentations on March 17th were about 250 in number, the names having been previously left at the Lord Chamberlain's office, and submitted for her Majesty's approval. Amongst them were Sir George A. Arney, Chief Justice of New Zealand, by the Duke of Buckingham and Chandos ; and MajorGeneral Carey, C 8. , on return from commanding troops in Australia, and on appointment to command a brigade at Aldershott, by the Duke of Cambridge. The Key. T. HamerMwill deliver a- lecture on astronomy, in the ;Parnell Hall, at 7 o'clock, this evening, illustrated by illuminate*! diagrams. Last night a meeting of the Catholic community wai held at St. Patrick's Ball, Hobson -street, at which the Vicar-General and the whole of the Auckland Catholic clergy were present, together with a large number of th" inhabitants interested iv the subject of education at Cat b olio schools. The meeting lasted for nearly four hours, and was of f a somewhat stormy character. The question discussed was as to the management of parochial school*, — che clergy contending for power to veto any arrangement of the laity, who were to collect money, and have the general supervision of the schools, subject to the approval of the clergy. To this the laity objected, and. the whole of last eveuing was consumed in tbe discussion of the question. When the report was put to the meeting, asking it to approve the action of the committee in wishing to have the management of the money to be collected for the support of Catholic schools now Government aid is done away with, the Very .Rev. Father McDonald (who occupied the chair) eaid that he had no power t<> give up his undoubted right in the matter, and that he .altogether dec ined to do so — whereupon the meeting broke up, having come to 90 decision. Three drunkards were yesterday fined at, the Police Court in the u^ual penalty, heveral rate cases, were ■et d'Wn for hiring, but none were gone iuto, v the sums having either been paid or judgment deferred. Dr. Selwyn, the recently-appointed Bishop of Lichfield, will leave London for "his ty ew Zealand diocese in July; He holdi both bishoprics at present, and will continue to do so until his successor in the colonial diocese is appointed. At present there is ho' endowment 1 The diocese of Licbneld will be placed in commission during Bishop Selwyns absence, which must necessarily extend over several months. At a congregation at Cambridge, on February ,27, Ralph Kicbardson, Trii.ity-hall, ww allowed ',by special grace to incept in Arts in his absence,, h? being resident in. New Zealand. ! Consequent upon the inquiry into the oircumj stances' under which a copy of the statement made by OTarrell, who >vas executed for his murderous attempt upon the life of the Duke of Edinimrghwwaß obtained from th« gaol, and placed in the hands of Mr. William Macleay, the Rev. J. Dwyer, Roman Catholic Chaplain of the gaol, has been suspended by J the Government.— Sydney Morning Herald', May*. , •

The colonial wool producing interest is threatened with a new competitor in the English markets. It appears that among tho measures mggeated to tbe Chinese Government has been one for the improvement of the breed of sheep in Mongolia, and the quality of their wool, by the introduction of meriting. China proper is supplied with ghtep from the flocks of Mongolia. Most of the native Mongols who are not priests are shepherds ; and the Chine* c colonists who are gradually nettling in Southern Mongolia are nearly all agriculturists. But the Mongols bestow little care on their flocks, and great, numbers of their ■heep are said to perish every winter j nevertheless, tbe supply is to plentiful that the price of a live 1 sbeep at Tientsin, after it has been brought a journey of 200 miles, is only 24 dollars, rr 10s. The sbeep are good, hut their wool is coarse. The best sheep of East -Mongolia have their wool very much mixed with hair, and many of them seem to have nothing but coarse hair for a covering. The wool fetohes nearly 7d. per lb. 1 at Tientsin. It is manufactured by tbe Chinese, into frit,, to be made into caps and stockings and a very coarse kind of cloth of a shaggy surface laid on a fabric of cotton and wool mixed, as coarse almost as sacking, The best of th» wool sent to England has beeu found only fit for coarse blanketing. The wool from Selingin-ki, in Liberia, is much superior to the South Mongolian wool. The, merino sheep were introduce*! into Siberia by the JRussian Government about 30 years ago, and the sheep are said to be thriving : the improved quality of wool shows how the flocks have profited by the importation. — ' Australian and New Zealand Gazette. When (says the S. A. Chronicle) we gave our invitation to the publio to come an<i neeithe opening of the preserved meat at the Advertiser office, we had no idea that it would have excited so mnch attention. At 11 o'clock a large number of gentlemen— b»nker», merchants, aud squatters — met together, and in their presence a lix-poundtin of mutton, prei-ervtd under Ritchies process, was opened. The lid of the tin was taken cemp.etely off, and tbe contents emptied out into a dish. The meat— a leg of mutton — was found to be perfectly fresh and sweet, It was free from that peculiar insipid taste which so generally characterises tinned meats. In fact, if it h»d been placed on the table without anything being said an to its preparation, no one would have supposed that it was preserved meat, All tbe gentlemen prevent tasted it, and all testified to its excellence. There can be no doubt that Mr, Ritchie has discovered a process by which mutton can be preserved in a superior manner, and this ought to be turned to account by our squatters. We have an immense quantity of good mutton wasted here every year, which might find a market in England. But, *s was pointed out by Mr. Bright, our squatters should be prepared to make some sacrifice in order to get the meat fairly before the English publio. Butchers' meat in England is now at famine prices for working people, few amongat this class can afford to p»y ttnpence or a shilling a pound for it, but if our whole, some meat were placed in the London markets and ■eld, say, at sixpence or sevenpence a pound, without bone, as it would be when preserved by Ritchies proces*, it it only reasonable to expect that it would be eagerly sought after. To make sure that it is really the body of the Emperor Maximilian which has been brought from Mexico, the coffiu has been again opened ; and there can now be n>» further ground for the rumours which have been circulating to the contrary. A letter from Vienna describes the appearance of the body : — _" '1 he face ia of a dark br- wn colour, and tbe skin shines as with a polish, caused, no doubt, by a var-nish-like coating which has been applied to it to ensure preservation. The mouth is slightly open. The eyes have been replaced by others of glacs, which, if I recollect rightly, are of adiflvrem oo lour to tho<e of the Emperor. They were taken from a figure of the "Virgin, because probably there were no others at hand. Ihe forehead has lost much of the hair that originally covered it, and at the sides of the head — at the temples — where tlie bullets entered, are small patches of velvet. The beard, which the Emperor wore long and full, is in perfect preservation. It has been combed downwards in a broad line ; while the deceased, when living, always had it divided, so that it formed a point on either side. 'I he body is dressed in a black jerkin, the upper part of which is trimmed with velvet. The trousers are of dark grey cloth. On tbe hands are black gloves, and the feet are covered with varnished boots." We are enabled to give a distinct dental to the statement that Sir James Elphinstcne has been appointed Governor of Tasmania, a rumour which, for some unexplained cause, has obtained currency , during the la~t few days. The truth is that the Government of Tasmania is not yet vacant, and consequently no appointmeut has or could have been been made to it. The .comments, therefore, which have been made on this subject aie not only superfluous, but premature — Australian and New Zealand. Gazette.-?-^ » - -■> ■ The reason for planting is now close at hand, and we would again urge upon our fellow settlers, more especially those residing in the country, the importance of planting upon their land «s many trees as they possibly can. We would urge it on the ground of humanity — that the spectacle may no more be seen of a poor horse or other animal shivering under the influence of a piercing souther, and with no better shelter than that afforded by a wire fence. On the ground, also of picturesque beauty ; and here we would express a hope that, sooner or later, our little town will follow an example set it by Geelong, and have rows of trees on either Ride of its principal streets. But, more particularly, on the ground of the important influence upon climate exercise! by i the multiplication or diminution of trees. We all ! know how exceedingly dry the seasons here have been for some years back ; and there can be hut little doubt tbatthe processes of fellingtimber and draining swamps, which have been going on without ceasing, have been* main cause of so u>. fortunate a state of things. Some time since we read a report by Dr. Mueller, F.R.^., the Government botanist at Melbourne, in which he showed that the prosperity of the whole country was maiuly dependeut on the multiplication of trees. He very forcibly remarks :—: — " In Australian vegetation, the colonists possess the means to obliterate the rainless zones of the globe, to spread woods over their deserts, and thereby to mitigate the distressing drought, and getrid of the fearfully bot and dusty wind which at present brings misery whenever it blows. How much' lasting good might be effected by the mere scatttering of seeds of^ our drought-resisting acacias, eucalypts, and casuarinas, at the termination of tbe bot season, along any watercourse, or even along the crevices of rocks, or over bare sands or hard clays, after refreshing showers ! Even the rugged escarpments of the desolate ranges of Tunis, Algiers, and Morocco might become wooded; even the Sahara itself, if it could uot be conquered, and rendered habitable, might have the extent of its oases vantly augmented ; fertility might be secured ag»in to the Holy Land, and rain to the Asiatic plateau, or the d-sert of Atacama." Need we say, after quoting so high an authority, that tbe fir»t duty of eveiy settler is to plant trees, and the more the better ? In due time, the country will reap the benefit, and each individual will abare in the general prosperity which could not fail to follow upon such genial seasons as we enjoyed in former years. — Hawke's Bay Jfferald.