THE SAN FRANCISCO MAIL.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 5353, 10 April 1879, Page 2

THE SAN FRANCISCO MAIL.

GENERAL STJMMARf tfO M&UCSt 17. It is believed iri Paris that M. Waddington cannot remain Premier^ M. Fourton is mentioned as M. Waddington'a succes- ; sor, but the opinion is gaining ground that j Gambetta must assume the Premiership. The operati j es' at Blackburn are greatly incensed at the proposed reduction of wages. Troops, consisting of husssars and some corps of infantry, were held in readiness at Preston on Friday . and Saturday the 14th and 15th of March. A Cairo dispatch sayu that the Khedive has informed the B'riti&b Gonsnlthat he. apprehends a disturbance Unless . the Cabinet is remodelled. The New York Tribune, says that a recent statement- of the Pacific Mail Company showed a debt to the Panama Company of 2,039,441 dollars, and that the Panama Company are pressing the Steamship Company for money. The marriage of Prince Arthur to the Princess Louisa Margaret of Prussia took place in London on March 3, in St. George's Chapel, Windsor. The procession . from Windsor Castle to St. George's Chapel- was divided into three parts. On the arrival of- the guests at the west entrance of the chapel they were received by Lord Steward, the Yioe-Ghaniberlain, and conducted to seats upon a dais. Her Majesty's trumpeters at the west entrance then announced the arrival by a flourish. The Queen's procession was composed of three carriages, in the last of which, a landan driven by four ponies, were Hef Majesty, Princess Beatrice, and Prince Albert Victoria of Wales. The other carriages were occupied by members of the Royal suite. The marriage ceremony was performed by the Archbishop of Canterbury, assisted by the Bishops of London, Winchester, and Oxford. The others within the chancel at the time with the officiating clergy were the bride and bridegroom and their respective supporters, viz., the Crown Prince and Prince Frederick Charles for the bride, and the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Edinburgh for the bridegroom. The Queen, Princess Beatrice, Prince Albert Victoria of Wales, the Princess of Wales, Prince George of Wales, and the bridesmaids were at the western portion of the dais, with the Vice-Chamber-lain and the Lord Chamberlain on either side. The other Royal personages seated at each side of the altar. The body of the chapel was occupied by about 150 persons, including Ambassadors and Foreign Ministers with their families, members of the nobility, and distinguished soldiers and sailors. The Queen commanded that a sketch scene should be taken. The marriage ceremony took place about one o'clook. The bride was given away by her father. At the conclusion of the service the choir sang the " Hallelujah Chorus," andMendellsohn's "Wedding March" pealed forth as the bride and bridegroom left the chapel, and while along the walk a salute of guns announced the termination of the ceremony. The Royal Family and guests left the chapel in the reverse order to that in which they entered. All the royal personages returned by the Queen's entrance to the castle, where the registry of the marriage was signed in the green drawing-room, and duly attended by the Queen and other distinguished personages invited to attend for the purpose. In the quadrangle opposite the principal entrance to the castle there was a guard of honor, consisting of the seoond battalion oi Coldstream Guards, mounted. The presents were displayed in the white drawing-room of the castle. The scene in St. George's Chapel was very brilliant. A great calamity has befallen Hungary. Owing to heavy rain, the snow about the sources of the Theiss and Maros and along the course of these rivers melted and they filled and overflowed, submerging the City of Szegedin, built at their confluence and many populous towns «and villages. The final catastrophe was partly anticipated for some days, and on the 10th March it became certain. On that day three dams protecting Szegedin from the overflow of the Theiss burst. Five thousand men were to set to work on the remaining dyke. Martial law was proclaimed, and every man was summoned to work on pain of death. The night set in at Szegedin on the 10th of March with a heavy storm. The water had forced its way under the embankment, and it wanted a very few inches to break over. Refugees from the flooded country flocked into the town, increasing the horror of the situation. The neighboring village Dorozema, of 400 houses, was totally destroyed, the inhabitants taking refuge on a hill. After another fearful night the water broke through with immense force at 3 a.m. of the 11th, carrying away part of the railway station, the embankment, and the rolling stock. In three hoxirs the town was many feet deep in water, and terrible suffering commenced. Shrieks and cries from thousands went up. The houses went crashing ir'co the flood by scores, in many cases carrying the inmates with them. There was no gas, the works being 15 feet under water. A boat was going to save a large house full of people, when a fearful crash carried with it the whole living freight. The scene was simply heart-rending. Eighty thousand people were out of house, and home. This was the state of affairs early on the morning of the 12th, the large dykes protecting the back of tho town having then given way. For a short time the embankment of the railway checked the flood, but it succumbed at last, despite of every effort to strengthen it during the day. The scene defied description. The flood with a terrific roar rushed from two sides over Szegedin and the town was in fact destroyed. Two-thirds of it was submerged, including the citadel, post, and telegraphoffice, whole, rows of buildings fallingtogether. The orphanage and the synagogue . were destroyed. All the inmates of the former were buried in the ruins. Two manufactories took fire, tho ii: habitants flying to New Szegedin and the more elevated parts of tho town. An official telegram confirms report of the terrible destruction of hundreds of houses. It states that the removal of tho inhabitants is proceeding without disorder, the dam.B being cut in I

several places to allow the water to run . . off. The municipality of Pesth is makingevery effort to send assistance to Szegedin. Accommodation for the! fugitives! has been provided in the barracks and . ■ public buildings in Pesth. One hundred] square miles around Szegedin is flooded/ The Government has sent 40 r OOO florinsfor the relief of the inhabitants. ' " The London Daily News published the 'I following respecting the condition of the towji of Szegedin on the evening of the 12th :— " Since the last telegram the waterhas risen in the town five feet, the ; situation becoming- worse and worse ; ,60,000 persons are without cover over them. It [is feared that the loss of ]ii& has been very great,' and will increase* during the night." Ample provision- o£ ! boats had been made throughout' the; town, but the irruption of water was so< sudden that the workmen had barely time!to escape. Tne Hungarian Government sen* 200,000 florins for the relief of the- ; sufferers^ On the 13th relief parties were-. ! actively working to succour survivors. ! The following 1 bulletin sent from the 1 doomed city pa the evening of the ISifo ' detailed' the 1 situation :— " The danger fa ' Szegedin is increasing. The rescuing boats continually strike the ruins, so that in many cases the rescue of the sufferers is impossible. One boat capsized, by which seVeft women were drowned. A ■ violent storm is raging, the water is con- ; tinually 'rising, ailff now it is two' feet | above the level of; the Theiss. ;Theun- _■*> sutfmerged area- has been reduced' tp,6oO square ifleires, which is continually b^ing; decreased. At the first irruption^ 35> soldiers were drowned. The State railway .carried grattctoiisly 10,000 ; fugitives yesterday. It is impossible; toestimate the loss of life as nnmbers have been buried under the ruins. The houses were built of sun-dried bricks,. | and soon collapsed. After the first inritsli oi 'the flood the work of reiaoving" the sufferers was proceeding with greafr ardour. The sensational stories of'hundreds having been buried in' the "syna-\_ gogue and military hospital are without foundation. At noon on Thursday j' the 13th of March, there were' still '.'.people on the roofs of houses and in tfees.. Some persons died from exposure. vSr . numbw of incendiaries have 'be'en arrested. - ' - -\-. >.;.',?;<' A telegram from Vienna dated March 6th, states that a thousand persons are. still surrounded by water at Szegedihy ,an& tna'isix steamers and 20 tugs had left Pesth for Szegedin. , ... A telegram from Pfcsth of March 14,. states that the Government Commissioner . • at Szegedin reports that " he xoxredthrough the submerged streets, and. • found three-quarters oi* the town in , ruins, and that if the water remained a few days longer scarcely 200 houses / would be left standing. The burgomaster estimates that several thousand persons have been drowned. He attributes the disaster to to indolence of the* inhabitants,, and to the fact that the v Government Commissioners concentrated!, all their efforts on strengthening: "the , ; dams, and not on preparing for saving life. ' ' .:,;■ //•; The Emperor Francis Josef 'will forego his visit to Pesth to receive congratula- „ . tiong on the occasion of his silver wedding. . He desires ' that the money intended- for , the festivities shall be distributed among; thesufferersbytheflood. The Emperor andi Empress altfo give 40,000 florins from-., their private purses. The Lord Mayor of London at ther e- , quest of the Austrian Ambassador, 1 has opened a subscription for the relief of Szegedin. . . # ;■; A correspondent . ■at Szegedin telegraphed on Thursday, the 13th of March, that a thousand people were starving. The correspondent passed in one of the; relief boats 400 persons who had takem refuge in a church, but the boat was 1 , unable to afford them any help. Theres were hardly any serviceable boats available. In a school-house 1500 people had taken refuge, and were without food. Large numbers of boats that were proceeding to aid the submerged city had been stopped by a storm which had cw off communication by the river. "White the fearful storm was raging, the vast lake round the remains of the town was tossing like a sea. The inhabitants, who had not yet been taken away, were crammed in the citadel, in the upper stories of a few houses, and in railway waggons. On March 14 the river Maros was rising rapidly, threatening New Szegedin. The numerous villages in the vicinity were crowded .with refugees; anarchy and confusion reigned in the neighboring country because of the insufficient number of troops. Several incendiaries were summarily executed. A despatch from Vienna of Maroh 14 x states that the authorities at Szentes, Vasarhely, and Czongrad, which; towns contain an aggregate population of 80,000 persons, have telegraphed to-/ Pesth for aid. \ .Jr A telegram from Pesth, dated Marc T # 14, states that a north-easterly stotf f drove the waves across the /iykes protecting Czongrad, which contains 16,000 inhabitants, and Jthe town was partially inundated. The people Iwere actively repairing damages, and the place may perhaps escape, as the storm; has ceased. ■- Szentes, a town of 26,000 inhabitants, was engaged in a similar struggle with the waters. A telegram from Pesth, dated March 14, stating that the whole country below Szegedin and Temesvar is strewn with caravans. All the villages and boroughs hospitably opened their houses and stores to the refugees. The railway trains yesterday took- to Temesvar 5000\fugitives. The telegram says; — " Engineers and soldiers are busy with pontoons and boats, there being still great need for them. Szentes is now the only place in danger. The Emperor went to Szegedin this evening. An official statement shows that of 9*700 houses at Szegedin ajfl except 261 have been destroyed. Most of the buildings destroyed were of ,the lower classes of the population." A despatch from Vienna says rtf is thought that 6000 persons were drowneti. The lowest estimate fixes the drowned at 2000, but many persons believe that 4000 perished, as the gale prevented the majority of the people leaving on the first alarm. On Marchll, the lastreinforcements for South Africa left England in the steameis. Adean and Prussian. In the House of Commons, the motion of Sir Wilfred Lawson, declaring that the inhabitants of the various localities should have the means of restraining by some efficient system of local option the issue of liquor licenses, was rejected by 252 to 165. Daniel Eeddin, the released fenian, died at Kingstown, Ireland. The British steamer Severn, from London for Quebec, ran down, off Dungeness, a pilot cutter having twelve pilots and a creAv of eight on board, ten pilots and five of the crew were droAvned. The French Atlantic cable is broken 161j£miles from St. Pierre Miguoien, in 500 fathoms of water. The Garonne burst an embankment at Cenon'la Bastide, and extensive floods occurred at Bayonne, Tarbes, and Bordeaux. The newly elected French Budget Committee being all in favor of .the conversion of the five per cent, rentes has caused heavy stock operations* small holders of these bonds throwing them in a panic on the market. M. Leon Say, the Finance Minister, was called upon to declare the intentions of the Government regarding the conversion of the five per cent, rentes, but he remained silent for several days, although the credit of the Republic was seriously imperilled. Rothschild's having bought immense quantities at greatly deprecia" ted rates, M. Leon Say at last declared against the conversion/, and prices instantly rose, thus netting- to the Rothschilds a large sum, o| m,on.ey|

The Paris papers charge corruption against Leon Say, who was at one time a clerk of the Eothschilds, and a partner, in several of their speculations. The scandal created immense sensation, and public feeling was greatly excited against the Minister. A deputation of protectionists waited' on M. Waddington. They spoke in favor of protection for the cotton, linen, velvet, metal, and shipping industries, but, deprecated protective duties on wheat. There have been tremendous storms in the south of France, where hundreds of people are thrown on public charity by the destruction of their houses. • In Spain a tempest lasted four days, and there was much damage and loss of life. Several villages and farms in Navarre and Asturias were destroyed. The North German Gazette denounces, the invented reports attributing to the Emperor remarks unfavorable to President Grevy and the new order of things in France. • Apprehensions exist in official quarters in Germany at the Parliamentary successes of the Left in France, and at the approaching return of the Communists, who are expected to join hands with the German Socialists. Bismarck, replying to a deputation of Alsatian members of the Eeichstag, who presented a petition for the extension of self-government, admitted the justice of their claim, and intimated that further concessions might soon.be expected. In consequence of the favorable interview with Bismarck the Alsatians are preparing to introduce a motion in the Eeichstag that Alsace and Lorraine bo constituted a Federal State. Herr Eottschei', a staunch Protectionist, will be selected for the influential office of Secretary of the linperial Treasury. The Alsatian Parliamentary Committee unanimously adoped a resolution expressing a hope that Alsace and Lorraine may obtain a separate constitution as a Federal State, having the seat of Government at Straaburg, and a representative in the Federal Council. The Lorraine members refused to adhere to this resolution unless it- was further stipulated that there should be no Prince as Governor of the new State. As this amendment was taken into consideration the Lorraines left the room prior to th'o vote. Bismarck has proposed to give Alsace and Lorraine a Special Cabinet, and to make the vote of the Provincial Assembly decisive instead of merely consultative. All the groups in the Eeichstag, except ' the centre, have resolved to support the bill for the further organization of Alsace and Lorraine, which Bismarck is abont to introduce. ' The Government Tobacco Bill proposes a duty of seventy marks on foreign, and an excise tax of fifty marks on native tobacco. The Tariff Commission resolved to increase the duties upon rice and meal, which are now one and one half marks for each, to two marks for rice and three marks for meal. The duty on meal is increased with the view of restricting American imports. The Imperial Government has proposed a duty of five pfennigs per cwt. on coal, and it will probably be adopted, as it is considered sufficient to close Germany against British coal. The memorial tablet on the house where John Keats the poet died in Eome, was unveiled in the presence of the principal English and American rosidents. A despatch from Eome, dated February 25, gives a terrible account of a heavy storm that prevailed throughout Italy. The sea inundated a large portion of Venice. In the Plazzo San Marco the water was 30 ' inches deep. The coast from Genoa to Naples was strewn with wrecks. Parma, Placenza, Milan, and Florence were damaged by the storm. The English steamer Silistria was wrecked at Palermo and IS people were drowned. There has been an eruption of ashes from Mount Vesuvius. A later despatch from Eome, dated February 27, states that in the interior of Italy the storm was equally violent. At Puzzuoli, near Siens, the campanale of the church was blown down while the people were at mass, killing two priests at the altar and three other persons, and wounding 24. A similar catastrophe occurred at Aonture, where the vault of the church yielded to the force of the storm, and killed a priest celebrating mass, and injured a number of the congregation. At Eome the force of the wind was unparalleled. The Vatican organ, the Voce Delia Verita, gives great prominence to the following : — " Several liberal papers have reiterated, the statement that the Pope, in consequence of pressure from Cardinal Manning or the French Bishops, has changed his policy, and ranged himself behind a non possicmus, respecting the vindication of his temporal power. We are forced to most decidedly contradict this fiction. The Pope, in no other way than did his predecessor, has protested, and will protest till such provisions are made as right and reason require, for the dignity and liberty of the Holy See." Mr Gladstone was not invited to the Duke of Connaught's wedding. This omission excited much comment on political circles, as Lord Granville and Lord Hartington received invitations. The international walking match at Gilmor's Gardens, New York, for the championship of the world and the Astley belt, excited a great deal of interest. The competitors were O'Leary, the champion, Eowell, an Englishman, and Innis and Harriman, Americans. O'Leary broke dowu through illness on the third day, but receives £200 of the gate money, which amounts to £10,200. The official Bcore at 10 o'clock at night of the sixth day was — Eowell, 500 miles 80 yards ; Innes, 475 miles ; Harriman, 450 miles, 3 laps, and 140 yards. Harriman was the greatest favorite. He was badly distressed. The other men were in good form. The enthusiasm was intense. The attendance of ladies and persons of social distinction was large. About 11 o'clock at night of the sixth day a lady presented Harriman with a large floral basket. Rowell, who was walking at a brisk pace some distance behind, soon came abreast, and taking one side of the basket walked with Harriman around the track for the cabin of the latter, where the basket was deposited. The incident elicited thunders of applause. Eowell, the winner, was tendered a large crown o? flowers of laurel. 'On the crown were two English flags, and surrounding these there were stars and stripes. Eowell did not receive the tribute, and his trainer placed it at his head-quarters. When Innes finished ho was enthusiastically cheered, and congratulations were showered upon him from all quarters. The latest instructions sent from Constantinople to Mukhtar Pasha authorise him to offer Greece half the territory she claims. The Viceroy of India arrived at Lahore on March 16. The highest authorities say the natives of India will not believe iv the British success unless the troops | advance on Cabul. General Brown's division is concentrated at Jcllalabad, in readiness to advance if necessary. It is asserted that the manner of Yakoob Khan's envoy, when communicating with Major Cavagnari, was almost defiant. Definite terms have been sent to Yakoob Khan, who has not had time to raply. The Portuguese explorer Pinto has arrived af Pretoria, South Africa, with eight followers, all that remain* of the 44 with whom he set out. Pinto was obliged to fight his way thaough the native tribes. It is stated in Vienna that Austria has instructed her representatives abroad to support the arguments and complaints contained in Lord Salisbury's recent ' note. The Cape Argus published the followjn ff from its correspondent in the field ;— ,

" The Zulus now desire peace on terms consistent with tribal independence." Prince Louis Napoleon and retinue sailed in the steamer Danube from Southhampton for the Cape on. February 27, to join the British military forces in South Africa as a volunteer.. The Prince, in a letter announcing his intention of joining the British forces at the Cape, says, "For the last eight years I have been the guest of England, my education was completed in an English military school, I have strengthened niy ties of friendship with the English army by taking part in its annual manoeuvres, and now the war at the Cape having assumed a more serious character, I could not refrain from' sharing the dangers and fatigues, of the troops, among whom I have so many friends. Moreover, the time spent in witnessing this struggle of civilisation against barbarism will i not be wasted for me." Fighting in Afghanistan continues, the falling snow favoring the hostile tribes and embarrassing the English. It is thought that Kussia has disclaimed any designs on Mero and Herat for the purpose of inducing England to recall her advance in that direction. It is believed that Russia has, ulterior views, especially as General Kaufmanu's command is being increased by 25,000 men. It is stated that after the death of Shere AH at Mazari Shereef, a bloody conflict 'broke out among the followers of the various pretenders to the Afghanstin throne, and the partisans of Yakoob Khan were victorious. It was reported that Yakoob 'Khan and two other pretenders have taken refuge at Herat, The official report of Dr Javorsky would go to show that Shere Ali died a natural death. No autopsy was made. The Ameer died on the 21st of February, after two days of agony. Immediately after the Ameer's death massacres were . b.egun. by the . civil parties, led by ' Yakoob Khan.