BRITISH AND FOREIGN. LONDON, September 4.

Otago Witness, Issue 2426, 12 September 1900, Page 16

BRITISH AND FOREIGN. LONDON, September 4.

Wheat at Mark Lane is 6d dearer on the week. The monthly supplies of copper totalled 26,940 tons; the deliveries were 25,678 tons; the present stocks are 30,175; and the quantity advised from Australia is 2525 tens. A congress has bsen opened at Huddersfield representing trades unionists to the number of one million and a-quarter. September 5. Lord Wolseley is engaged on a drastic inspection of--the- British coast defence", with a view fo aff elaborate reporu September 6. A shipment* of • unfrozen beef from., the Argentine, in' 'cli&inbe'rs the air of which had been sterilised, proved a failure. Lord Ampthill has been appointed Governor of Madras/ ■ In consequence" of" the" plague at Glasgow France requires vessels hailing from ports in the United Kingdom to have a clean bill of 'Health. The Trades Unionists' Congress at Huddersfield, by a small majority, carried a resolution that the South African war is cruel arid unnecessary. The Trades Union Congress rejected Mr Ben Tillett's motion in favour of the constitution of a judicial compulsory Arbitration Court, with power to enforce awards. Ben Tillett's arbitration motion was negatived by an immense majority. ! The Duke D'Abruzzi's ship has returned j to Norway. She left Christiania in June of last year. The ship was specially con- j structed on the model of Nansen's, with the intention to journey towards the North Pole, making Franz Josef's Land the first objective, and afterwards, if the conditions were favourable, to establish depots and make the attempt v/ith dog?. In the event of that proving impracticable the expedition was to confine itself to the exploration of Franz Josef's Land. ! The Stella Palore was embedded in the ice for 11 months. The expedition, reached 86deg 53min. north latitude, beating iSTansen, whose most northerly • point was 86deg 14min. A Liverpool firm is shipping one million tons of coal to Bordeaux and Marseilles. Lieutenant-colonel Brake, with 1000 men and two guns, attacking the front and j flanks, defeated 3500 Ashantis at Ojesu, a j Fetish town in the bush, near Kumassi, j killing 50 and wounding many. Ojesu was destroyed. Many Lse-Metford and Martini rifles were found. Colonel Brake was slightly wounded, and 29 of his men were wounded and two killed. The flying columns have had a good effect in inducing the tribes to submit. September 7. Through a fire in an outfitter's shop at Tunbridge Wells, Kent, the manager (Mr Tatham) and his three daughters perished in the flames. The key of the escape door was missing. Madame Icaceseu, an Austrian, and the lady champion swimmer, attempted to swim the English Channel from Calais to j Dover. She failed to complete the distance, but swam for 20 ,miles, and was in the Avatcr for 10^ hours. Towns' is the favourite in the sculling match. The betting is 12 to 4 on. ■ The Bank of Australasia have declared a dividend of 9 per cent., added £40,000 to the reserve fund, applied £20,000 to the reduction of premises account, and carried foiward £12,575.

Ice in Table Bay pushed the Stella Polare, the Duke d'Abruzzi's Arctic exploration ship, on to the land. Three of the crew who were sent to establish depots disappeared. The expedition had to live on «iogs and bears for over 100 days.

The Chancery Division of the High Court of Justice has granted an injunction restraining the Amalgamated Society of Railway Seivants and their secretaries (R. Bell and J. Holmes) from watching and besetting " blacklegs " in connection with the late Taft" Vale railway strike. The society intend to appeal. September 8. The warship Archer has completed refitting, and has sailed for Australia. Mr J. F. Hogan, member for MidTipperary, is a passenger by the Papawa to Australia, to act as the Daily Chronicle's federation commissioner. Dr Brummond Morier, of Adelaide, has been appointed Australian representative on the committee to reorganise the British Medical Association. The Daily News understands it has been determined to dissolve the British Parliament in the last week in September, if, as is expected, decisive news is meantime received from South Africa. ; September 9. ' There .are two fresh cases of plague at Glasgow. The Board of Trade returns for August show that the imports increased by £1,403,661, and the exports by £2,726,085. Mr J. M. Sinclair, the Victorian agricultural representative in London, who reported in 1895 in favour of the establishment of grain elevators in Victoria, has paid a second visit to the United States. He now reports that his previous views remain unaltered. The only difference he found since his first repfirl is that the cost had been slightly reduced in some States. Mr H. C. Copeland, in the course of an address at the International Exhibition of Confectioneis and Bakers, at the Agricultural Hall, predicted that New South Wales in 1901 v ould export 50,000 tons of flour. PARIS, September 4. The Czar has presented President Loubet with the Order of St. Andrew and an autograph letter of felicitations, expressing regret ' that the Czarina and himself were unable to visit the Exhibition. September 5. News has been received that yellow fever in Dakar, a French colony in Senegambia, has reduced a rcgimWt of marines from 1800 to 568. September 6. The French steamship lines are reducing the number of voyages and laying up a portion of their fleets owing to the dearj ness .of coal. • September 8. M. Picard, Commissioner-general of the Paris Exhibition, seized the opportunity of a visit of delegates from the British Chambers of Commerce Congress to make a striking demonstration. He arranged allegorical groups, carrying the French and British flags, the orchestra playing " God Save the Queen." CONSTANTINOPLE, September 7. One hundred and eighteen arrests, including tM'o State officials, have been made here on a charge of plotting against the Sultan. BELGRADE, September 9. Owing to ex-Queen Natalie sending through the post office an open post card grossly insulting the King and Queen of Servia, King Alexander has announced that all attempts to undermine the position of the Royal house will be punished like treason. .WASHINGTON, September 6. The United States Government have appointed ex-Presidents Benjamin Harrison and Grover Cleveland as representatives on the Board of The Hague International Arbitrators for the settlement of international disputes. September 8. The Government have informed the Canadian Postmaster-general that the Philippines are regarded as American lemtO22£*

September 9., Ex-President Cleveland has finally declined the position of arbitrator on the" International Bureau of Arbitration at The Hague. NEW YORK, September 10. A hurricane raged on the coasts of Louisiana and Texas. Many wrecks occurred. Bridges at Galveston and on thei mainland were destroyed. Loss of life is reported.