BRITISH AND FOREIGN.

Otago Witness, Issue 2664, 5 April 1905, Page 26

BRITISH AND FOREIGN.

LONDON, March 28. Mr W. E. Gerald Loder has succeeded the Hon., A. E. Fellowes as Junior Lord of the Admiralty. The Prince of Wales has been appointed Grand Master of the Order of St. Michael and St. George. The Poplar borough rate is now 12s in the pound, the highest in the United Kingdom. It is dsie to the poor and education needs. Mr Pierpont Morgan, Mr Vanderbilt, Mid four others have each given £20,000, • which has completed! the sum of £200,000 i .- required to found an American Academy -o£-Arts in Home. - "Replying to Dr Macnamara, in the House of Commons, Mr Bromley Daven- ' port (Financial Secretary to the War Office) stated that the War Office possessed- the name 'of the Australian and Tasmanian contractors supplying jams to South Africa. Some of the tins contained only 12oz, some contained 16oz, and the " bulk either 14oz or 28oz nominally. In ' all cases the War Office had received the fall quantity paid for. The South African authorities, under a misapprehension, sold the jam by net weight, treating the tins as containing full pounds.

March 29. Mr Kinloch Cooke, before the Colonial Institute, advocated the emigration of State 1 children through the intervention of a State department acting in conjunction with fcfie colonial authorities. In the House of Commons Mr Joseph .Walton's motion condemning Mr Balfour's policy of fiscal retaliation was carried Hem. con. The Unionist Government members absented themselves. Mr Asquith complained ■ that the Government -mocked and flouted the House - of CommoEs. The need for retaliation ■was absolutely unproved. Air James, the "Westralian Agentgeneral, lectured before the Society of Arts on • Australasian manufactures. He _said he was confident that without a great departure from the existing tariff there •was ample room to divert- to Britain many millions of imports now obtained from foreign countries. It was imperative that the Motherland and the colonies should meet with an anxious desire to serve the Umpire as a whole, and willingness to co-operate should, after full consideration, show the need for a readjustment. The French fleet visits Spithead this ~ summer.

March 30.

-. The Hon. A. Lyttelton, Colonial Secretary, cabled to Lord Milner that the Government recognised the greatness of his " services in confronting with steadfast cour-

*ge the issues ol the war and the scarcely Jjess momentous problems ensuing on peace. jfis arduous, unflagging labours had laid - leep and strong the foundations of a urited South Africa. The Government /egretted his health had suffered, and earnestly hoped that after a rest his splendid talents would again be available for the Empire.

In connection with the disturbance in Crete, Prince George of Greece (the High Commissioner) warned the Cretans that the powers had directed foreign contingents to restore order. He appealed to the revolutionaries to submit within 56 liours. The rebels number 800, half of them, being armed. The people are' unsympathetic.

The Daily Mail states that the new Transvaa-1 constitution lias been signed in London.

Lord Reay, speaking at the National Liberal Club dinner, declared that a Liberal Government would not find it difficult to establish cordial relations with Russia. March 31. "Lord" Kelvin lias undergone a serious operation.

Lord Stanley cordially congratulated Mr Hennik-er Heaton on the fulfilment of his postal dream of penny postage, and recognised "that his untiring advocacy had greatly contributed towards its achievement.

llie Board of Trade returns for the fear show that the United Kingdom's trade in 1904 was £781,858,000. Germany's £573,174,000 and the United States' £5±z,845,000. Great Britain's exports increased £1,018,000, Germany's £7,893,000, and the United States'" declined by ,£6,646,000.

The convicted aliens in Great Britain last year numbered 4397, an increase of 298 on the previous year.

April 1. The surplus on the year amounts to £1,864,839, chiefly the result of economies. April 2.

The British revenue for the March quarter is £56,933.000. Customs contributing 58,422,CQ0, Excise £8,869,000, and stamps £2,270,000.

The first letters bearing penny postage to Australia were . despatched by Mr Henniker Heaton to Lord Northcote (Governor-general of the Commonwealth), Mr Reid (Federal Premiei), and others.

The Allans' turbine-fitted steamer Victorian made a successful Atlantic "voyage. The absence of vibration was noticeable.

During the Kaiser's visit to Gibraltar the 'cruiser Friedrich Karl collided with the -British battleship Prince George. The 'former was slightly damaged 1 , and the latter somewhat worse, with the result that she had to be docked.

Reuter's Agency states that the Duke of Connaught, when visiting Brest in Januaiy, mooted the orojposal of the friendly meei-

ing of the two navies. Brest is the site now chosen.

The Daily Telegraph states that a French squadron visits England during the Cowes yachting week.

Apiil 3.

King Edward leceived Earl Sel'oorne at a farewell audience on the eve of his departure to take Lord Milner's position as High Commissioner of South Africa.

PARIS

March 29.

The French cardinals have protested to President Loubet against the separation of the Church and State as a breach of the Concordat, and as certain to result in religious persecution.

March 30.

A ti'ain was derailed at Secaux. Several carriages caught fire, smd three persons were killed and six injured. BERLIN, March 30.

Baron yon. Richtofen announced in the Reichstag that the United States and Britain were willing to compensate German settlers in Samoa to the extent of 40,000 dollars, where 112,000 dollars were claimed.

Count .yon Bulow, replying to Herr Bebel, said the Kaiser long ago declared that Germany sought no territorial advantages in 'Morocco, but intended to protect Germany's very considerable economic interests, and maintain an open door and equal rights to all traders. He therefore intended to enter into communicatio/i with the Sultan forthwith.

MADRID, March 31.

The famine in Andalusia affects 1,000,000 persons. Many have died from starvation.

The bread riots in Xeres and Antequera are spreading.

ROME, March 28.

The Pope has preconised (formally approved) Bishop Higgins, who was transferred from Rock.hampton to Ballarat.

A Papal allocution expresses deep regret at the proposal to rescind the pact between the Vatican and the French Government.

Mr Henniker Heaton has received many j congratulatory telegrams from chambers i of commerce and other bodies in the | Motherland and Australia on the establishment of the penny rate of postage from the Motherland to Australia on the Ist April.

WASHINGTON, March 30.

The Opposition Senators charge President Roosevelt with ensuring the maintenance of the. status quo in San Domingo ■while awaiting the Senate's ratification of the treaty.

NEW YORK, March 29

President Roosevelt proposes, at San Domingo's instance, to appoint an American to collect the Customs, retaining 55 per cent, for the liquidation of San Domingo's debts. ,

Gesler Rousseau states that he manufactured infernal machines for the Cuban insurgents, designed to explode the Spanish warships. His Cuban confederate blundered 1 in the darkness and destroyed the Maine. He then committed suicide.

March 31.

The police at Brooklyn raided a house suspecting that a prize fight was in progress. They found a prayer meeting proceeding, with a prominent sportsman leading a glory song.

A removal of the carpet revealed the existence of a chalk ring. This led to a search being instituted, with the result that two battered pugilists were discovered in a cupboard.

April 2

The Venezuelan Court has decided that the French Cable Company forfeited its concession through failing to fulfil

the stipulations.

OTTAWA. March 28

Mr Sifton, K.C., Minister of the Interior, has accepted the amended clauses in the Education Bill applying to the new provinces.

[It was recently cabled that Mr Sifton and two other Ministers had resigned office owing to their objections to the establishment of separate Catholic schools in the two new provinces. Sir W.- Laurier, the Premier, threatened a dissolution if there were further resignations, but subsequently modified the_ original educational clauses in the bill conferring autonomy on the new provinces.]

March 29.

Senator Power denounced in Parliament the abandonment of Halifax and Esquimault as naval stations, on the ground that it tended to sever the ties of Empire. The Hon. R. W. Scott (Secretary of State) endorsed the statement.

CALCUTTA, March 30

Mr Hewett, a member of the Vice-regal Council in India, foreshadowed an early reduction of rates on private telegrams between England and India to 2s and for press messages to 8d per word.

Lord Curzon states that during the last seven years 13 millions sterling of taxation have been remitted in India.

Mr Louis W. Dane, who is at the head of the mission that left India for Cabul in January last, is returning, having concluded an agreement with the Ameer.