NEWS BY THE MAIL.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 3659, 27 October 1873, Page 5 (Supplement)

NEWS BY THE MAIL.

We make the following extracts from the Home News and European Mail:—

NEW ZEALAND HONOURS AT THE VIENNA

EXHIBITION.

The following is a list of the awards to New Zealand at the Vienna Exhibition :—

Medals for Progress.—Cunningham, Christchurch (oatmeal) ; Cornelius Thome (fabrics of various materials).

Medals for Merit.—Government of New Zealand (illustrations of the geological and mineral formations of the country) ; J. G. Bluett, Canterbury (cereals); Dumerque and Place, Waikato (New Zealand flax) ; C. Goulter, Blenheim (New Zealand flax) ; Government of New Zealand (collection of timbers) ; Canterbury Meat Preserving Company ; W. T. Caulkwell (malt whisky); G. Pannell, Canterbury (flour) ; Reeves and Co., Dunedin (peppermint liqueur); A. J". Burns and Co., Otago (woollen goods) ; Agent-General for New Zealand (samples of phormium and manufactures thereof); Colonial Museum, Wellington (Maori mats); George Graser (- —) ; Webley Bros., Nelson (tweeds); Dr Walter La wry, Buller (for his work on "The Ornithology of New Zealand "); Dr William Lauder Lindsay (for scientifically arranged collections, illustrative of the resources of the Colony).

Honourable mention—Mr G. A. Anstey, Parnassus, Nelson (wool); R. Chinery (New Zealand flax); P. Cunningham (cereals) ; Agricultural Society of New Zealand (cereals); W. 11. Lane, Christchurch (cereals); J. and T. Meek, Otago (cereals); J. H. Rogers, Canterbury (flour) ; J. N. Tosswill (wheat); W. D. Wood Canterbury (wheat); Boenicke, Otago (glue); Brown and Campbell, Auckland (kauri gum) ; Coornbes and DaLdy, Auckland (kauri gum) ; Henderson and M'Farlane, Auckland (kauri gum); Luke Nattrass, Nelson (kauri gum) ; Owen and Graham, Auckland (kauri gum); R. Walker and Co ; Auckland (kauri gum) ; A. Dornwell, Auckland (meat); J. Gilmore, Christchurch (hams) ; Canterbury Flax Association (rope) ; Bevan and Sons, Wellington (sail cloths and twine); James Brogden (collection of New Zealand birds) ; Auckland Patent Steam Rope Company (cordage); W. Cook, Nelson (mats) ; Grant and Co., Otago (cordage) ; T. Lennon, Canterbury (cordage) ; W. T. Lockhart (silk nets and twine); Simons and Malcolm, Nelson (door mats) ; Webley Bros., Nelson (tweeds) ; T. WilsoD, Canterbury (leather) ; Robert Graham (Maori carving) ; Seufferfe, Auckland (Maori carving); Tarahora (Maori mats). AXCSIiO-COLONJAL ITEMS. " Anglo-Australian '■' writes that a< there is coma probability of .Mr W. G.. Grae«, th«

champion, cricketer, settling in Australia. To which Colony of the • group' he intends to proceed, however, I have no means of judging. They lie all before him in their exclusive attractiveness, and whichever Colony he may elect to proceed to will gain a genial and educated citizen,"

It is announced that the Directors of the National Bank of New Zealand, Limited, have appointed Mr W. J. Steele, for many years connected with the Bank of New Zealand, and now Secretary of the New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company and the Dunedin and Port Chalmers Railway Company, to be their London Manager, in place of Mr Alexander Grace, resigned through ill health.

The Danish emigrants -who were kept under observation "during the month of August as '• suspected " of cholera, have, with four exceptions, been furnished with a clean bill of health by the port medical officers. A clearance for the entire party, consisting of 74 men, women, and children, was obtained on August 16th, and the transhipment was safely and quickly effected afc noon, the emigrants being placed on board a steamship bound for Plymouth, whence they embarked for New Zealand. During the period erf isolation they have been most assiduously attended by Dr Whitcombe, surgeon to the Corporation Hospital Ship Rhin, and the New Zealand Agency has, under his directions, supplied all necessariea. The eminent Cotswold Hill breeders were represented at the Oxford August Ram Fair, and iiumerous purchasers entered an appearance from Cambridge, Norfolk, Leicester, and other distant counties, the continent, Australia, and New Zealand, for in our antipodean dependencies the names of spirited English sheep breeders have become familiar as household words. About 800 rams were penned, every one being in fine healthful condition. Every animal submitted was transferred to a new owner, and more could have been dis* posed of had they been offered. A few averaged £3 ss, but the highest average was accorded to Ml- Gillett, Cote House, Fanog-Aon,-far 35 Oxfordshire Down shearlings, being £15 19s 3d j the next in succession being his Grace the Duke of Marlborough, for nine sheep of the same age and class, which averaged £14 lls 6d. Mr J. Roberts Caswell House, a very old breeder of this valuable class of stock, averaged £14 6s 3d for 40 Oxford Down shearlings. The annual Lincolnshire ram sales took place during thd last week in August, and on the whole the " long-Woolled ones " realised higher prices than evei\ It will be of interest to colonists to hear that some of the very best of the lots offered have been secured for New Zealand, the which Colony was represented by Mr Thomas Russell of Auckland, Mr Porson of Canterbury, and Mr Smith of Napier. Mr Fisher, of Adelaide, was also present at some of the sales, but hitf name does not appear on the list of buyers. At Mr Dudding of Panton's sale, Mr Russell purchasedthewinner of the firstprizeas shearling at the Royal Agricultural Society's show last year for 200 guineas. He also purchased for 100 guineas the winner of the first prize shearling at the Hull show of the present year, In addition to these purchases, Mr Russell became the owner of nine ram* for £476 3s <sd, beinj? an average of nearly £53 each. Mr Smith, of Napier, purchased several valnabl* rams at the same sale At the BisCftthorpe sale Mr Russell bought thirteen-rams for £447 ; Mr Sharpe, of New Zealand, securing a pair for sixty-five guineas. The whole of these sheep will be shipped in the Elizabeth Graham, expected to sail on Sept. 15, and we may *aHy congratulate the Colony on their possession should they arrive. TICHBORNIANA. The Claimant, in a recent public speech* stated that the amount of money spent in his prosecution had reached nearly £27,000. The "very latest" report respecting the fate of Arthur Orton is to the effect that Dr Kenealy has in reserve four aborigines who will swear that they ate Arthur Orton the day after the Claimant sailed for England. On August 28, during the time the Court; of Queen's Bench had adjourned for luncheor, the wind, which had been blowing very hard all the morning, became a stiff gale, and a sudden gust snapped off, at about 10 feet from the ground, a large and lofty tree which 3tood near the entrance of the Middlesex Sessions House. It fell on to the foot pavement in the direction of the Buxton drinking fountain in Great George street. Two of the jurors em° pannelled on the Tichborce trial, and an: other gentleman, who were just returning to Court from a neighbouring restaurant, had scarcely cleared the spot, having passed under the tree, before the heavy trunk and ponderous branches of the old elm fell crashing to the ground. Thus the Tich-. borne trial narrowly escaped being brought to a sudden and most unfortunate termination. Another gentleman passing, the tree to windward, and a shoeblack who was near it plying his vocation, also experienced a. narrow escape. A large crowd speedily collected, and it was discovered that the tree was "rotten to the core." HOLYHEAD HARBOUR OF REFUGE. The Prince of Wales and the Duke of Edinburgh (the Home News says) have attended a most interesting ceremonial, the " inauguration of Holyhead Harbour, as improved and extended." This is a magnificent national work. It has cost a million and a half, and never has money been better laid out, A mountain has been cast into the sea, or nearly, and a colossal barrier has been reared against the ocean. This work will last, it may be believed, "till the crack of doom." It has been accomplished by Mr Hawkshaw, the celebrated engineer, and will transmit his name to all time—it seem 3 hardly worth his while to accept a proffered knighthood. The weather was not very favourable for the ceremony, the wind being exceedingly strong, and it being difficult for the Princes to attend at once to their dignity and their hats ; but all went off well, and a fleet of powerful vessels thundered out such salutes as have never before resounded through the Welsh mountains. COMING MARRIAGES IN HIGH LIFE. The following nuptial engagements are ppoken of in high life :—Between Miss" Agnes Gladstone, eldst daughter of the Right Hon. W. E. Gladstone, and the Rev. Edward C. Wickbam, headmaster of Wellington College; between the Hon. Mary Plunkett, eldest daughter of Lord Dunsany, and Mr Chambre B. Ponsonby, late of the 10th Hussars; also between Viscount Walden and his cou?in, Miss Julia Mackenzie, daughter of Mr Mackenzie, of Seaforth. In connection with the approaching marriage of the Duke of Edinburgh, it is stated that the Czar will leave St. Petersburg shortly for a series of military inspections in the south of Russia. His Majesty will subsequently proceed to Livadia, where all the members of the Imperial family have assembled to receive the Duke of Edinburgh in the course of the present month. His Royal Highness will remain at Livadia until October, will then return for a short time to England, and will arrive in St. Petersburg during the month of December. The nuptials of His Royal Highness with the Grand ! Duchess Marie will be celebrated in St. ! Petersburg in January, 1874. The members of the various naval clubs in London have assumed the initiative with a view of colI leeting sufficient funds wherewith to present His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh with a testimonial befitting his rank on the occasion of his marriage. A committee has already been formed. EXECUTION OF A BLIND MAN. Laurence Smith, a blind man, was cxc» cuted on August 16th in Cav*n gaol for the murder of a farmer named Lynch. He was twice tried for the crime. On the first occasion the jury disagreed, but at the lasii I assizes he waa convicted and sentenced to ba ! executed. An effort was made to procure I a remission of the sentence, the fact of his blindness exciting some sympathy for him, but in the opinion of the Government the case was not one which would justify the extension of the royal clemency. The scene at the execution was rendered more painful bj a mishap. After fch« drop fell the man rs- : #eived a great check and <»ni« to the ground

on ]>?>•, feet, the ropH being too long. Hi^ ii>;ck was broken by the fall, and for some ser.iHuirf he writhed convuisively, until one of the Kom.in Catholic clergymen who attended him, with great presence of tnind, directed the executioner to pull up the rope. He was raised a few feet and died immediately. ATTEMPTED ESCAPE OF THK BANK FORGERS. A daring attempt by the forgers on the Bank of England to effect their escape from justice was defeated. It appears that the detectives, finding that the brother of the Bidwells and a cousin of Maedonnell's were constant in their attendance during the first three days of the trial, felt it their duty to watch them, and they were astonished to find that they were joined by two of the warders of Newgate, who held private and earnest conversation with them. This, of course, tended greatly to arouse the siispicions of the officers, but fearful of being recognised, they employed other persons to watch the parties, and they were followed in every direction. It was, of course, a very difficult operation to get near enough to hear what was said, but it appears that while the turnkeys and one of the relatives or the prisoners were riding on tr.e knife-board of an omnibus an agent of the detectives was riding with his back to them, and he was able to hear sufficient of their conversation, which left no doubt that *'something was up." This led to inquiry by the sheriffs, and the discovery that a large sum of money had been paid to the warders who were to have been on duty, for the purpose of letting the prisoners oub of their colls; and the whole plan was arranged^ and no doubt an attempt would have" been made to carry it into execution but for its timely frustration. There would have been considerable difficulty in setting the prisoners at perfect liberty, even after they had been let. out or their cells, bus the rumour is that if once the project had been put into execution the parties would not: have scrupled at to violence if any of the other warders who had charge in different parts of the gaol, and who alone stood between the prisoners and liberty, had remained faithful to their duty. TERRIFIC THUNDERSTORM. A very severe thunderstorm passed over London on August 24, which also seems to have extended pretty generally over the eastern and midland countiea. In the dis%rict between Peterborough and Newark about the same time, the storm was most fierce. The lightning was both in sheets and in forks, the latter being generally of an intenso white, but sometimes red, while the former whs of a very pale blue. The rain fell in torrents, but the thunder peals were infrequent in comparison to their terrific ro&ft At Watfordj Bushey, Heßael Hampstead, King's Langley, and the surrounding places, for more than an hour tangents of rain fell, accompanied by darkless, vivid lightning, and exceedingly heavy thunder. This was preceded, for the most part, of the, afternoon, by a perfect hurricane 'of .wind and intense heat. After the rain had subsided the lightning continued for three or four hour 3, presenting a grand sight. The crash was followed by a partial clearance, the stars scintillating a great deal. Soon afterwards, however, another and a much longer and more violent storm came on, and continued with more fury and grandeur throughout the entire night. At Preston and in the neighbourhood the thunder was so loud that bouses shook aa if taoved by an earthquake, while the lightning struck several, ouildings, causing chim-ney-stacks and walls to fall, and setting fire %o one house, and that,, singularly enough, a public house. A lai'ge chimney belonging to a factory w&S Split by the electric current Sroiii the summit almost to the base. At Leamington, and over the whole of central Warwickshire, the heavens Were ablaze for hours, so vivid and incessant was the lightning. Trees were torn up by the roots, and the trunks shattered into fragments. The counties of Mayo and Armagh, in Ireland, had a similar visitation, with some curious effects. A baker was looking at his watch, when the lightning flashed, and the case was emptied of its contents. Houses were struck, a horse was killed, trees were uprooted) the telegraphic wires damaged, a fishmonger's wife was rendered senseless, and, 'not to omit another class of sufferers, one canary bird was killed in its cage, while several more had their legs broken. At Edinburgh there was very vivid lightning and a deluge of rain, and a farmhouse at Beechwood Mains, on the Corstoi-phme road, was found to be on tiro. An old lady (Mrs Denman) and her maid were the sole inmates, and a little before'midnight the lightning struck the chimney over the maid's bedroom, and the masonry fell with a heavy crash through the roof. The lady and her maid were with difficulty rescued by the farm servants, the bedroom soon became gutted, and the drawing room caught fire. There was no available water ; the furniture was mostly removed, but a great deal of jewellery and family heirlooms are said to be destroyed. The scene was awfully grand, the night being very dark. The lady and her maid, wrapped in blankets, sat on the lawn surveying the destruction of their property and refusing whelfcer. GENERAL NEWS. The fisheries on the west coast of Ireland hava been very productive this summer. The Foresters' Fete at the Crystal Palace took place on August ID, and was attended by nearly 70,000 persons. . The Itev. Br Johnston (U.P.), of Limekilns, Scotland, was presented on Aug. 28 %vith a purse of 1000 guineas. " The School for Scandal" has been played for upwards of 350 nights at the Vaudeville Theatre, London, and is still attracting overflowing houses. Montgomery, the Newton-Stewart murderer, was hanged at Qniagh on August 26. He showed every symptom of penitence prior to his execution. Six of the workmen employed at the Tay bridge were drowned on August 26, by the water bursting into the cylinder in which they Were at work.

A commission, composed of cardinals and bishops, has been, formed at Rome to revise the manuscript of the " History of the Coun* cii of the Vatican," as far a 8 the definition of the dogma of infallibility is concerned. There is a great demand for female -workers in Fife and neighbouring counties. Women have in numerous instances refused 3s per day and rations to go to the harvest, and have demanded an additional 6d, which has in almost every case been granted. Mr Disraeli has agreed to deliver his inaugural address as Lord Rector of the Glasgow University about the middle of November. It will be remembered that the address ■was last year indefinitely postponed in consequence of the death of Viscountess Beaconsfield.

Exactly a week af fcer the disaster at Wigan Station a precisely similar accident occurred to a train travelling from Bury to Manchester. At Miles Platting a carriage struck the facing points and overturned itself. Eight persona were seriously injured, and one of them has since died.

The autumn manoeuvres have been brought to a close. Some suffering was caused by the unfavourable weather. The experience of the present manoeuvres is that intradivisional sham fights are more interesting and ins tractive than fights in which one division is pitted against another. W. Mercer, M.A., incumbent of St. George's Church, Sheffield, died at his residence in Leavygreave on August 21. As the compiler of " The Church Psalter and Hymn-Book" the deceased was well known, for the book passed through several editions, and was very extensively used not only in \ ISngland, but in the Colonies. \ The dedication of the War Monument on 2nd was the occasion of the most \npoaing military demonstration seen in 'etlin since the triumphant return from Wee in 1871. The festival was exclusively \ssian, but it drew together all the most \iant and famous soldiers who have helped Vispicuously to make the history of the Pftecade. . •\f sportsmen had not already been sufficl\ cast down by the discouraging reports

from the moors, the opening day of the sooting season was most unpropitious. Rain fell during most of the day in many districts, and sportsmen generally did not venture out till after twelve o'clock. The heather was in a very sloppy state, hence the dogs could not be cot to Work satisfactorily. A band of pilgrims, fully a thousand strong, left London on the Ist and 2nd September, in order to join in a pilgrimage to Paray-le-Monial. They all of them bore upon the left breast the badge of the Sacred Heart, and on the day before their departure Archbishop Manning preached an appropriate sermon to them. Mr Coot, the excursionist, had charge of the travelling and lodging department. The band included several passengers of note, and the Irish element was largely represented. Accounts of the harvest from all parts of Ireland are in general most favourable. Some fears were expressed lately about the potato crop, but they have since subsided, and the markets show no sign of uneasiness respecting its soundness. The other crops look healthy and abundant, and all that is^ wanted for them is a continuance of fiiie ripening weather such as appears to have^now set in. Reaping is going on in the districts about Dublin and in the south. In the north the late rains have caused some heavy floods, and considerable damage has been done in the county of Fermanagh to the outstanding hay crop, which it iv the habit in this country to leave too iong in the fields, and also to uncut crops. A terrible disaster has occurred at Bueto Arsizio, in the province of Milan. In the "Via Santa-Croce existed a house belonging to the church of that name, and which had remained empty for a long time, the last tenant having left, refusing to pay any rent, as it was insecure. The cur&, Father Biotti, being unwilling to spend money on the place, and desiring to turn it to account, opened it m a school for the religious instruction of young girls. On the evening of August 17, about 100 of these, of from 15 to i 8 years of age, were assembled on the first and second stbreyS. All at once the floors gav9 way, and the unfortunate pupils fsll in a heap, mingled with the beams and rubbish. . Six were taken out dead and some twenty more seriously injured. The priest, to whose cupidity the accident is attributed, immediately took to flight, but a warrant for his arre&t has been issued.