CALAMO CURRENTE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XX, Issue 6817, 22 September 1883, Page 1 (Supplement)

CALAMO CURRENTE.

The »de& of tho great Palestine Canal appears to have received a vigorous stimulus, jl Les3eps has had his way with that of Suez. His monopoly iu the isthmus is admitted, and English interests there must regain subordinate to the will of the enterprising Frenchman. This has brought the alternative scheme into prominence, and the Puke of Sutherland is at the head of tho band of. capitalists who .are bent on the enterprise. It is understood that the Sultm, who refused hie sanction to the survey of a railway line through Palestine, has expressed his willingnees to have a canal constructed, and if proper concessions are obtained, a few years hence may possibly see colonials enjoying the pleasure of eteaming up over ihe waters of a great inland sea, with the sacred hills of ancient Israel in full view to right and loft. It is known that the surface of ths Dead Sea is over twelve hundred feet below the level of the ocean ; that a level wfldy or valley only a few feet over the level of the sea intervenes between tbe head of the Gulf of Akaba, the eastern fork of the Red Sea, and the edge of the huee depression leadiDgto tbe Dead Sea. The cutting of a canal through this wady would permit the entrance of the waters from the Gulf of Akaba, where they are believed to have flowed in aues long ago, flooding tbe great depression in which are the Dead Sea and the Jordan Valley, and creating an inland sea over two hundred miles in length, and from ten to fifty miles in width, extending as far up as the Sea of Galilee, which is itself over five hundred feet below the level of the Mediterranean. A further canal of some twenty or thirty miles in length across the level plain of Esdraelon would connect tiiis inland sea with the Mediterranean in the Bay of Acre. With cuttings, therefore, of less than half the length of the Suez Canal a sea-way would be opened of some two hundred and thirty miles in length, four-fifths of which would be of such width and depth that steamers of any tonnage and in any number could proceed on th; ir way at full speed. This is to be borne in mind when comparing the greater length of this sea-way of two hundred and thirty miles with the hundred miles of the Supz Canal. Through the latter, as is well known, two days are ordinarily consumed by a steamer in passing from Suez to Port Said, whereas from the head of the Gnlf of Akaba—itself much nearer to the Red Sea, than is the head of the Gulf o( Suez—a steamer going for four-fifths of tha way at full speed could cover the distance, in probably hr.lt the time, to the Bay of Acre, on the Mediterranean. In facilities, there fore, for speedy transit, and consfqu.-utly in attractions for shipping, the Palestine Canal would have manifest advantages over that of Suez ; while the actuil cutting, being only half the length, the cost of construction, after making allowance for compensation for land covered np by water in the Valley of the Jordan, would probably not be so great. The results of this engineering work, if carried out, will be smewhat startling. Some of the glens will take the wate-s up to the neighbourhood of the walls of Jerusalem, imd the sacred city will be seated by the side of the greatest thoroughfare of commerce in tbe whole world. The creation of sun.h a great inland sea will necessarily modify the parched climabS of Palestine, and not improbably the Syrian derert, and as far as the valleys of the Euphrates, once occupied by teeming populations. Dews and rains will give verdure v: the parched sterility of the hills of Palestine, and make that deserted land fit foi the suppert of millions of inhaMtavts. ''he waters of the Dead Sea. wlier* life is unknown, would be "healed," according to the words of Ezekiel : "And there shall be a ■very great multitude of fish, because these waters shall come thither," aud "fishers shall stand upon it from .Fngedi even unto Eneglaim"—which are situated on the south-west and north-east borders of the Dead Sea—"they shall be a place to spread forth nets." As?ociations with the scenes of sacred story might in some respect be rudely shocked. Jericho would disappear, and, like the Cities of tbe Plain, be found beneath the waters of tbe Dead Sea. The interesting Valley of Jordan, for five or six miles on either side of the stream, ■would be submerged ; the village of Capernaum, so clothed in sacred memories, would be blotted out, and the Sea of Galilee itseif, swollen in volume beyond the shores that saw so many never-to-be-forgotten incident?, •would be but a part of the great, inland sea. But, if " British interests" demand the sacrifice, sentiment and sympathy, however hallowed, must yield up sime of the objects of their reverence, and we may live to see the electric wire encircling the moun'ain Horeb, and to hear tho weird wail of the foghorn ringing round the hills of Bashan. It is always a delightful thiog to see the members of the dark skinned races following in the foitsteps of civilisation; and it is doubly pleasant when they approach us so nearly as to manifest the v.ry foibles of our higher and more cultured nature. Thus one touch of nature makes the whole world kin. The following notice appears iu a Queensland journal published iu "the laud where the sucar cane grows," aud where the dusky Kanaka in his temporary exila toils in hope of returning to his native land, there to spend the evening of his days among his friends and tribe, " where the feathery palm treesrise," in isles " amid glittering seas :"— BIRTH. YARKOWA.-On the 11th August, at Katon Vale Dlantition, Mrs. SitJo*n Long i arrowa. of Aola, of a I son. Both doing well. South Sea Island papers pleise copy. And why not? There is joy in the house of Yarrowa. The proud anel happy fathers bosom swells with honest pride at the increase of hia olive branches ; an 1 why shoulu hs not invite his friends and compatriots to participate in hia joy in his distant native isle, even as Brown, Jones, andKobinson, in the exuberance of parental happiness, desire to publish their joy afar, saying " Home papers please copy ?" Iu the one case and in the other there is equal likelihood of the request being complied with, and the exhibition of the same subtle sentiment and aspirations by Mr. Yarrowa and Mr. Brown, or Jones, or Robinson, merely shows that human nature i(i everywhere the same. That is a grim story that was told the other day of the Oami-.ru's experience in recruiting " voluntary" labour in the South Seas. Seventy-five recruits had been got on board, when tbe vessel was found to be on fire. It had been fired by the recruits, who, 6howing tigns of bting "troublesome," were put under armed guard. Then forty-eight recruit* wero added at another island, and the eame evenina a canoe came alongside filled •with their friends, who proc-eded to pass tomahawks and axes to their companions en board. Then messengers from shore came and said they had been invited by the recruits on board to join them in a simultaneous attack on the vessel and on the boato ashore; and a "doublearmed watch was set." Then, at midDkht, one recruit rushed on deck and sprane overboard, and " the rest of the recruits with a yell made a rush for the deck, and they were forced back at the point of the cutlass," and "after a desperate fight the runaway was brought on board. Then, after several similar rencontres, the vessel away, and "all hands were armed day and night for over sixty days, tbe natives being sullen, brutal, and obstinate in conduct the whole time on board.' And this is "voluntary" enlistment of labour under the flag of England ! The story is told with a candour and naivete that show there is nothing unusual in the occurrence, save in the severe trials the poor recruiting agents had to undergo from the unreasonable conduet of these " sullen, brutal, and obstinate" islanders who were being taken away from their peaceful island homes to servo the stranger in a far-off laud. The danger of beioc burned to death, of rushing on the "cutlass point," was not sufficient to quell tho love of home in the breaeta of these "sullen, bruta', and obstinate" creatures, who in their ignorance were incapable of realising and appreciating the blessings of that higher civilisation to which they werebeinghumanely introduced. And this is done under the Chiistian flag of England, that blessed land of liberty where, let the slave but t uch its sacred strand, and his chains are smitten from bis limbs for ever, and the cannon of an empire are between him and slavery. These "voluntary " exiles, to whom their sorrowing friends swarmint; round the ship handed -axes and tomahawks, who were forced below

and battened down, hive as warm domestic attachments as any of ub who, on bended knee, give thanks that we are British freemen, and devoutly pray for the spread of our civil iaation among the dark places of the earth. "Sullen, brutal and obstinate" though they were, they were thinking, perhaps, of their wives and little children in that little inland fading away behind the horizon. A few of them will return, the rest will siuktn and die among th« sugar canes, "sullen, brutal and obstinate" to the last. We read, with sorrow, of the sufferings of the slaves in the bid old times, the capturing of villagers on the coast of Africa, and the horrors of the middle passage, bnt this little story of the Oamaru may take its place beside the most thrilling chapters that tell of man's inhumanity to man. With what a curious quizzical look the girls must be watchiog the contortions; of the Board of Education, wrestling with that toughest of subjects, female dress. The air of knowing-all-abont-it which the members assume, the dogmatic theories which they propound, as if it was reserved for them to solve the knottiest question that ever tortured the intellect of men since time began— all this must be "awfully jolly" and funprovoking to the mirth-and-laughter-loving creatures who are the objects of so tender solicitude. Had the Board consisted of a bocy of old bachelors, their attacking the mbject would have been as natural as anything. Bnt for experienced family men to have one remnant vestige of belief that their opinions could affect one hook or button, one lace or plait in the get-np of the female form divine, passes all understanding. Of the tout ensemble our poor dull sex may form an estimate; it is our privilege to behold, admire, and adore ; of ultimate results we may judge, and be satisfied that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed lik- one of these ; but to iuterfere with dotails is an impertinence and an intrnsion, in which One of <>ur coarse and vulgar naturo only makes himself infinitely ridiculous. And how the members of the Board aro floundering among high-heeled boots and thin boles,and garters (oh fie), and corsets, and even the giils' back hair cannot escape their profane tomb. Fools rush in where angels fear to tread. It is true, aud to the credit of the Board be it recorded, that one gentleman has a proper sense of the position, and said he : 'felt some delicacy in speaking on the matter." But Mr. Hobbs has only just returned from Wellington, and the modesty comes of associating with members of Parliament. As for the others, they have no delicacy at all. One of them —and he the champion of the rights and liberty of the girls—thought tlie best thing would be to get their hair cut uhort. Let him try it ; just let him try it 1 Not even his championship of stays will save him. Mr. Buckland says only one in a hundred ladies lace too tight. How does Mr. Buckland know ? In whac way has he made the computation? Will he of his own knowledge declare that this is so—that ninety-nine ladies are just comfortable, and that he has fouDd only one among all that crowd an offender against the canons of health ? Or is it merely hearsay, and of no more value than the other random shots of the Board, who, tampering with mysteries, are merely darkening counsel with wi-rds without knowledge? Let the girls please themselves, for they will do tbat whether you will or not. Their own fubtle instincts are a surer guide than our blundering theories as to what attracts the eye, and best contributes to the development of sympathetic accord. Poor Cetewayo has found that uneasy is the head that wears a crown. When doing the sights of London amid all the pomp and pageant presented by his keepers to expand his intellect, and give him a just conception of the might of England and the blessings of civilisation, his heart still longed for his rude kraal in Africa ; and when he pasted on the Libels on his bi xes, "KiDg Cet -wavo, Zululand." his heart bumped with pleasure at the thought of his return to royal dignities in his own land. But he has had a rude awakening, for he little reckoned of the intrigues tbat would be set in motion to surround his return with troubles, and the power of misrepresentation that would be used to embroil him with his English friends and prop up the shaky little thrones of John Dunn and his brother kinglets. For this, it is as clear as sunlight, is the meaning of the row. One time it is said he is defeated and slain, again he is allying with the Boors to ravage Zulu 1 and, and then he is report- d defiant to the British power, aud even the canard is set abroad that he has been called on by the authorities of Natal to surrender, or a British force will be sent into Zululand for his capture. All this is simply the intrigue which was sure to surround his return, in the interests of the wretched system that had been set up by Sir Garnet Wolseley. Nobody could have expected that a border ruffian like John Dunn would have yielded the position without embroiling the chiefs and people with the restored King, or that the miscreants who roam about the borders of savage life and civilization would willingly see the hops of their gains gone without a struggle. This is to be borne in mind in reading any news from Zululand, and that anything about Cetewayo, his objects, and his movements, comes to ub filtered through the aggregated scum and scoundrelism of South Africa. The coming visit of King Knlakaua to the colonies is an event of no common interest. He is the first crowned head that ever visited our shores, and even though his skin is dark, he is a right royal personage, and ought to receive a right cordial welcome. It is only two years since His Majesty returned from an all round-the-world tour, having been received by all Powers, civilised and uncivilised, as a monarch, even the Mikado of Japan having entertained him as a brother with every demonstration of fraternal regard. It is not, therefore, a mere nigger king, a kind of shoddy monarch, that we shall have to entertain, bnt a ruler of dignity and worth, a constitutional prince, who has ruled his own little kingdom worthily and well, winnißg not only golden opinions, but even an affectionate loyalty from his subjects—white as well as black. His territory is not an extensive one, but there is kept up rigidly all the State formality and Court etiquette that betit an independent sovereignty,and the brilliancy of a Court ceremonial at Honolulu is something to be remembered with delight by everyone I who has seen it. Besides, His Majesty | aspires to head the confederacy of the Pacific Islands, and the fact that New Zealand has a rival in Hawaii, in its aspiration to be the central point around which Oceania is yet to revolve, should give dignity to the reception accorded to the King of the Sandwich Islands, There is another reason, too, for a friendly welcome which must not be ignored ; for His Majesty ha 3 extended hospitality to a large number of colonists from New Zealand aud the sister colonies to whom our laws have been inconvenient, and Hawaii being within easy reach, and not having an extradition treaty, that pleasant little kingdom has become the happy rendezvous for quite a little colony of colonials, who live in calm security under their own vines and fig trees without any to make them afraid. From all theso circumstances, it is to be hoped tbat when His Majesty reaches our shores we shall give a right royal welcome to the King of the Cannibal Islands. Pollex.