ITEMS BY THE SUEZ MAIL.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXI, Issue 4885, 17 November 1876, Page 3

ITEMS BY THE SUEZ MAIL.

GENERAL.

The Executive Committee of the Farm Laborers’ -Union have commenced the, purchase of land in small plots for garden purposes for the benefit of its members. ; ,

A co-operative, colliery in Derbyshire, purchased twelve , months ago for £60,000, baa failed, and two hundred men have had notice to leave. , .. . _ i Messrs.-Manuel and Sons, large cabinetmakers, of Sheffield, have discharged all Union hands. -

i At Dundee several large factories have closed, throwing out over 2000 hands, i The? strike of colliers in South Derbyshire continues. ’■

! Five hundred makers of wrought-iron chairs ip the Cradley district have struck on the : wages question. Three hundred shipjoiners : at Southampton have gone out for an advance, A barge, costing £2300, has been specially constructed for the conveyance of the 81 -ton gun from Woolwich to Shoeburyness. The orane by which it is hoisted cost £BOOO. The gun itself has absorbed £IO,OOO, and the gunpowder for proof experiments £2OOO. The first firing at Shoeburyness was successful. Mr. Whitehead, inventor of the celebrated fish torpedo, who has extensive works in Austria for its manufacture, is now in England trying to induce our Government to adopt, some improved torpedoes. Each torpedo costs £4OO. Austria and Sweden have invested £20,000 in these formidable projectiles. A fatal boat accident occurred at- Helford. Two daughters of Colonel -Duff were cruising, accompanied-by a boatman, when the boat upset. The young ladies swam ashore, but the boatman was drowned.

! By the upsetting of a boaton Loch Quoiob the rival brewers, Bass and Alsop, who were out fishing, narrowly escaped drowning; • They owed their safety to the presence of mind of a fisherman named Anderson.

. The eldest son of Professor Rogers, and captain of the Westminister School, committed suicide at Oxford on the 11th. The Professor and his daughter were travelling on the Continent at the time.

: Owing to a tidal wave -of extraordinary height at Boulogne on the 18th, two young Englishmen were drowned while bathing. 1 j Two' Englishmen, named- Johnson, father aind son, perished by an -avalanche while crossing from Italy to Switzerland.: Two attendants, after having been (snowed up for 1 24 hours, were rescued. - . i Edward Barnard, the missing tourist, who had been lost and searched for in vain for an entire : month, was found- on September' 19, near the Pillar Rock; at. the head of Ellerdale. He was lying on the smooth grass, his head resting on his left-hand, and his countenance .peaceful. He is believed to have died from Heat stroke or heart-dlsea'ae. -A-cairn has been erected to mark the spot, ; Owing to the fall of about 60ft. of the tunnel now being built under part of Hounsditch, for the extension of the Metropolitan railway to Aldgate, numerous workmen were’ buried beneath the ruins, and four perished. , During ai thunderstorm at Windsor on the 7th a meteoric stone fell above the castle, and, .exploding, carried away a portion of l the 'parapet in the military knights’ iquarters. On an occasion while crowds were watch’ing the sports of the swimming club at Portsmouth, by the snapping of a sloping footway to. the pier about fifty persons were precipitated into the water 20ft. deep, and the pontoon on which the footway rested filled and sank. All were rescued alive;. . ! ■ The Dominion Government of Canada having failed to fulfil its artangeinents with British Columbia by the construction of An intercolonial railway, the citizens have signified tbLord Dufferinthat they are no longer under . an obligation to join the confederation/. - - The Queen and Court are still at Balmoral, where frequent carriage- excursions in the neighborhood are made. | On the 9th her Majesty visited the Rrincess of Wales at Abergeldie Castle, | On / the T Bth, while" driving through Ballater, the Queen had a providential escape from injury; threatened by the sudden fall of one of her carriage horses, and the fright of the others. !

INDIA AND CEYLON. • Colombo, October 20. | There is a great scarcity of food in some parts of India—in Bombay and Madras especially. Six millions of people in the former presidency: are threatened with famine. Relief works have been commenced. There Have been graii Hots in Madras. : The Duke-of Buckingham; "on his visit to Rangoon, encountered a cyclone, in the steamer Tenasserim, in the Bay of Bengal. He is now en route for Colombo, to inspect the 1 breakwater works, and confer with Governor Gregory about a grand plan' for connecting the Ceylon-and India railway systems. It is proposed to construct a steam railway ferry aorosa Adams-bridge Reef. In this way a large passenger traffic would be served and produce from Southern India could be shipped at Colombo".:;-It'is doubtful if the Madras breakwater will be a success, and-so railway communication would enable goods for Madras in stormy seasons to be landed at Colombo and carried across; by " rail. : The Ceylon authorities 1 are very favorable to the project, j Sir Wm. Gregory is" likely to visit-Victoria-and New South Wales early next year, before resigning-the Government of Ceylon. - { It is rumored that a cable is to be laid-be-tween- Galle -and-Australia direct, or via Java. The Ceylon Government is ready to give every facility. ' > ■ - . - I -The ‘Australian -mail steamers have begun calling regularly at Colombo. , . , j Sir Stephen Hill and Sir, W.-Pope Hennessy - 4re spoken o{ for the next Governor of Ceylon." Neither is -likely to-be 1 appointed. ■ ! The question between Bishop Ooplestone : and"the'church mission clergy is still unsettled; It is to 1 be referred to a Pan-Anglican synod.'" ;" - ■ : '• .S' I The -Imperial assemblage ut Dalhi is to bo co'mmemorated' by a medal. 1 The Viceroy’s Cashmere trip is abandoned, : The peace negotiations between Egypt and : Abyssinia appear to have failed, for it is stated -that Massowah has been . captured -Iby theAbyssinian* ! army, 1 and that ■ two Egyptian steamers have been seized. .Troops hkve been .despatched from Suez for Massovfah.-, j The disease-among-hdrses-is extending';' 1500 have clied at Cairo; andj76o‘o’atAbarsich.

I THE MELBOURNE CUP. '' I The following detafled account'of the rim*’ ning for the Cup is taken from the Melbourne Argus “ The horses were sent away at the fiUt attempt to ■ a fine start, the’ field going almost level 1 for nearly 200 yards. Then : Southern Cross with Irish Stew drew-out in front 6n the inside; Sultan and Timothy in the centre, and Aldinga; Kismet;- and Sterling :on' the outside. ‘ At the stand Janitor was : leading, Aldinga was close upon, him; Sterling, Spring-Jack, Timothy, and Torchlight were following in that order. . The followed in a close body,--with The Deer in the rear. The horsee.„sw:ept. round the turn in a dense cloud of dust, and fir some time the colors «f the riders could übt be seen,Aldinga was leading wheh , they [; were clear of the turn, Spring Jack was running a close second, with Timothy well up, the three-singlingrout from the others. Pride of the Hills, Sultan, Disraeli, Sibyl, and Feu d’Artifice were at.the head of the second .division. Before they" reached rail-, r way bridge.. Spring Jack went to the front, and at one..time was fully four, .lengths iij front ; Aldinga was second, Pride of the Ifills had. nin up to third place, Sibyl, Glen'garry, Timothy, and Impudence were following in that order. Then came a close'cluster, with! aj good number of horses straggling behind. At the tar turn Spring Jack was still leading, and going,at a great .pace; Irish Stew had taken second "place, Aldinga was third, Sybil, Glengarry, and . Timothy:, coming next; Impudence, Sterling, and Feu'd’Artifice were showing in the head of the cluster that fol-: lowed. Spring' Jack; led past the sheds, Irish Stew was running a close second, Sibyl had taken third place, Feu; d’Artifice, who had, come up, was next. Impudence, Timothy, Sterling, and Aldinga were coming after in that order, Spring Jack then retired from the front, and Irish Stew, for a, little while held. the lead,; closely, pressed by Sibyl, who soon brought him. tothe whip. As they rounded the turn ; into the straight. Impudence came round on the. outside, Timothy, Briseis, Aldinga, and Sterling showing close behind the leaders. In the straight Briseis came- up, with Timothy running her close. At the distance Brisejs had him beaten. ‘ Sibyl then challenged Timothy, and passed him, but ! was beaten comfortably by. Briseis, who passed the post half ,a length in front. Timothy was a close third, Impudence fourth, Emulation, who finished well; was fifth. Then came a cluster, among of which were Irish Stew, Sterling, Imperial, Pride of the Hills. Clifton broke down badly, and could hardly hobble back into the paddo.ck. Time; 3m. 36Js.