BRITISH AND FOREIGN.

Otago Witness, Issue 3148, 15 July 1914, Page 22

BRITISH AND FOREIGN.

LONDON, July 6. Ncavs from Skagway (Alaska) states that the gasolene launch Superb, when carryingsome Americans to uuneau to celebrate the Fourth of July, capsized in a storm. Thirteen of the occupants were drowned. Six others clung to an overturned coat and were afterwards rescued, On Degree Day at Leeds University the students assembled in the gallery and pelted fashionable ladies’ hats and dangled spring onions in their faces. Distinguished visitors were “ held up,” and the cnancellor and mace-bearer were enveloped in a blanket. The professors were rescued amid wild disorder. Mr Mallaby Deeley, who recently bought Covent Garden Estate from the Duke of Bedford, has transferred it to Mr Joseph Beecham and Mr Alexander Ormond, a Manchester stockbroker. At the Central Criminal Court a verdict of “Not guilty’’ was returned in the case of Crosland,' the author, w'ho was charged with conspiring with Lord A. Douglas in a false accusation against Mr Barr, author, and executor in Oscar Wilde’s estate. The operation on Colin Bell, the Australian boxer, has proved - satisfactory. July 7. The combined Empress of Ireland relief funds total £BB,OOO. The Scottish coal-masters have decided to lock out the miners whenever the proposal to work only four days a week is carried out. Mr Mackenzie attended a deputation to the Board of Trade to-day in support of a British Empire trade-mark. A series of towers armed with quickfirers, for defence against aircraft, are being erected around Portsmouth Harbour and elsewhere on the British coast. Mr Austen Chamberlain has resigned his seat in Parliament for Worcestershire East and will contest West Birmingham. The imports for the quarter ended June 30 decreased £37,477, the exports £2,963,592, and the re-exports £212,317. The Union Bank has declared a dividend of 10 per cent, and a bonus of 2 per cent. There was added to the reserve £30,000, and carried forward £45,510. July 8. Mr Harcourt, in reply to Mr Ginnell (Independent Nationalist member for Westmeath North), said there was no reason to believe that any natives of Ocean Island had died of starvation, or been imprisoned for theft, or deprived of their lands, or flogged for non-payment of taxes. . The Pacific Cable Board has resolved to abolish the present delay in handling

week-end cable letters, which will be delivered as early as possible on the Monday. The Eastern Extension Company has agreed to the same course. ‘ The Hon. T. Mackenzie gave a luncheon in honour of the visiting Maori chiefs at the British Empire Club. The Colonial Secretary (Mr Harcpurt), Lord Islington, Lord Bryce, and several prominent Australians were present. The late Mr Charles Grant Tindal, of the Australian Meat Company, left English personalty valued at £220,109. This will be distributed among the children, who also receive the land and stock in Australia. Owing to slackness in the cotton trade the Master Cotton Spinners’ executive suggests the curtailing of the output by onefourth until the end of September. The P. and 0. Company has placed a contract with Harland, Wolff, and Co. for building a 13,000-ton steamer on similar lines to the Maloja. In the House of Commons to-day Mr Runciman introduced the Rural Housing Bill, which provides for the expenditure of £3,000,000. It is Unlikely that it will pass during the present session. July 9. The London Bus Company is stationing a score of interpreters at the busy street intersections for the guidance of foreigners. The South Polar Times, an interesting ! record of Captain Scott’s expedition, lias been published. It indicates a warm spirit of camaraderie among members of the expedition. The output is limited to 350 copies. Anthony F. Wilding, the champion - lawn tennis player, of New Zealand, summoned for driving a motor car in a dangerous manner at Hammersmith, was ordered to pay costs. j July 10. -! ; The Maori chiefs will return to New | Zealand by the Otway. I , A representative Church Council consist- , ing of member's of the two Houses of the - Convocation of Canterbury and York, by , over a two to one majority, granted women the right to vote and sit in paro- < chial councils. 1 Admiral Sir Percy Scott, replying to ] criticisms on his pronouncement, adheres < to his statements regarding the domination ] of submarines. He declared that “little j navyites ” must not think that submarines will cheapen defence. On the con- ] trary, a greater number will be required, ] and they will enormously increase the ex- , £ pense. 1 i Mr Philip Snowden, Independent ! Labour M.P., and his wife have sailed for i Canada. They will visit Neiv Zealand, t and address temperance meetings, as well t as study social and economic questions. i

The Marconi Company’s net profit for the year was £122,003, as compared with £413,000 for the preceding year. A dividend at the rate of 17 per cent. on. perference shares, and 20 per cent, on ordinary shares, has been declared. The amount carried forward is reduced by about 50 per cent. Captain Cook’s letters and diary were sold at auction for £IO7O. In the House of Commons Mr Asquith, in reply to a question, said that at the Imperial, Conference to be held in 1915 doubtless opportunities would arise for the consideration of any suggestions that might be made regarding the dominions' desire for a fuller share in discussing the affairs of the Empire. In the Semphill divorce case the petitioner gave evidence that the parties had lived for two years in furnished houses in Australia and afterwards Portsmouth and Malta. In April she received <© letter from the respondent stating that he did not intend to live with her any more, and also giving certain information which confirmed her worst fears. An hotelkeeper deposed that Semphill and a woman were staying at his place for four days. July 12. The News of the World states that the Duke of Bedford received 2J>- millions for his London estate, and that Mallaby’s profit was £IBO,OOO and Beecham’s £70,000. The latter sold the property to Ormerod for 2| millions. Replying to an Indian deputation, the Secretary for India (Lord Crewe) said that the Government, in fairness to the British taxpayers, who were largely paying the expenses of the Empire, were unable to exempt India and the colonies from the clause in the Finance Bill taxing incomes derived from property abroad. Mr J. S. Barrett (manager for the firm of A. and F. Pears, Limited, and the originator of the system of advertising which that firm introduced), who recently died, has left estate valued at £405,564. At the official inquiry into the loss of the Hull trawler Angus evidence was given that a bottle had been picked _ up on the Norwegian coast in the handwriting of the second engineer, which read:—“All hands. Collision with foreign barque. Sinking.” A select committee of the House of Lords has endorsed the Bill passed by the House of Commons making motor buses specifically contribute to the cost of road maintenance. The Union Bank report shows deposits £23,538,534, cash investments and remit- I tances £12,770,974, bills £16,306,478, new 1 shares fully paid up £400,000. The pre- I mium on these last has been added to the

reserve. A dividend and bonus are now payable on the new shares. Mrs Rebecca Clark, aged 110 years, the oldest inhabitant of England, died through shock sustained during a thunderstorm. Although the fact has been advertised extensively, the War Office has on hand 50.000 unclaimed African war medals and 200,000, clasps. Mr Albert Hodges’s design has been selected for the Scott memorial. A picture owned by a Chester tradesman proved to be a Michaelangelo, and he has received an offer of £IO,OOO for it. July 13. The Times’s preliminary report on the British wheat crop is 95.1, as compared with the decade average of 91.38. Barley and oats are slightly below the average. Beans are 94, as compared with 91.34. A poor hay crop is predicted. Sir A. Conan Doyle, interviewed alter his visit to Canada, declared that Canada’s needs were farmers and farm hands and 100.000 women. Co-operation between existing committees in Canada and Great Britain might lead to the establishment of an enormous matrimonial agency, greatly benefiting both countries. If the superfluous women were sent to Canada, the Motherland might keep the farm hands for herself. ' - PARIS, July 6. A murder has been traced under dramatic circumstances. A builder named Croulard, living at Champigny, disap-' ,-peared last week. A friend of Croulard, named Oost, actively assisted in the search, and led Croulard’s dog past a rubbish heap. The dog later returned to the heap and unearthed Croulard’s mutilated body. Croulard’s watch was found amongst Gost’s belongings. Madame Croulard planned the murder of her husband. Cost, Madame Croulard, and an accomplice named Lamy have been arrested and have confessed to the crime. July 8. The £32,000,000 loan has been subscribed fortyfold. The feature of the flotation is the number of small investors who have participated in the allotment. The submarine Calypso, at Toulon, collided with the submarine Circe. The former sank, and two of her crew were drowned. July 10. The Suez Canal Company has decided from January 1 to increase the maximum draught of vessels passing through the canal to 30ft. In order to raise fresh revenue, the Chamber of Deputies is considering the feasibility of creating alcohol and petroleum a State monopoly, BERLIN, July 8. At Spandau a live wire snapped, and a

group of workmen hurried to the spot. One of them proposed that they should have an electric shock. Ten of them joined hands, and one seized the end of the broken wire. All fell to the ground, five being killed and two seriously injured. July 9. The weight of the machinery caused the collapse of the top storey of the Knorr brake factory at Lichtenberg. The machinery fell through four floors, wrecking the building. Five workmen were killed and five injured. July 10. Johann Waltz, a well-known caricaturist, has been sentenced to a year’s imprisonment at Leipzig for inciting class hatred and libelling the authorities. This refers to his Christmas book for children,, wherein he glorified past rulers of Alsace at the expense of the present authorities. \ July 13. Half a million inhabitants of Berlin started their holidays within the week, that being 100,000 more than during the same week in 1913. Three hundred special trains were run. MADRID, July 12. A bull-fighter was about to kill a bull in the ring, when the animal suddenly rose, knocked his sword high in the air, and the sword point descending gashed a spectator’s throat, killing him.' Luir Freg, a prominent bull-fighter, was fatally gored in the chest. VIENNA, July 12. The sudden departure of Colonel Basaroff, Russian Attache, is regarded in some quarters to be connected with Pohl’s and Blimenthal’s arrest. Rumours connect him with the disappearance of plans for fortifications at Conighberg. Although it is semi-officially denied that he is implicated, he is widely believed to have been recalled. The Austro-Hungarian Government has restored the Canadian Pacific Company’s emigration concession, withdrawn in 1913. BUDAPEST, July 12. Kranseinsky, a railway cashier, embezzled £2OOO, and went to Canada. He was unable to find work, so he decided to return to Europe. He sailed in the Empress of Ireland, was wrecked, but clung to a boat and was rescued. Being penniless, he was sent to Europe at the expense of the authorities, and thence returned to Hungary, where he was arrested. ROME, July 12. Mrs Carter was fined £B4BO for secretly exporting Tiepolo’s “ Loves of Armido," which she purchased for £12,000. ST. PETERSBURG, July 7. Forest fires are extending over wide stretches of North-east Russia and are assuming alarming proportions. An enormous quantity of corn has been destroyed. Troops have been mobilised to combat the forest fires. A huge expanse of ground at Archangel is a mass of flames, and 100,000 acres of peat bog at Orsha is burning. July 12. General Stoessel,' the defender of Port Arthur during the Russo-Japanese war, is dying of paralysis. He is unable to move or speak. TANGIER, July 12. A gang of brigands held up a motor car containing 10 persons near Ujuda. They murdered four and wounded one of the party. A brigand was killed. WASHINGTON, July 9.

Four separate revolutions are raging in San Domingo, and the United States authorities are considering the advisability of intervention, as the Borda-s Government is unstable. Much fighting is going on, and warships have been despatched as a precautionary measure. The American plantations are imperilled. , July PA Congress is considering a plan for granting a larger share of autonomous government to the Philippines by establishing a popularly-elected Senate to replace the Philippines Commission, which would be thereby abolished. NEW YORK, July 8. When shown an English newspaper despatch, after attending a Progressive meeting, Mr Roosevelt, commenting 'on Mr Savage Landor’s renewed attempts to discredit his discovery of a new South American river, said; “ Landor is a perfectly preposterous absurdity. No serious scientist thinks of attempting to accept him as’ anything more than a buffoon as an explorer.” July 7. Three men and women Anarchists were killed and six other occupants were injured in a tenement building explosion on the east side. The building was wrecked through the premature igniting of a bomb which was in course of construction, but it prevented an outrage which the terrorists, who are known as “ Reds, 5 ’ were contemplating, probably on Mr Rockefeller’s estate at Tarrytown. July 8. The Progressives are endeavouring to induce Mr Roosevelt to accept the nomination for the New York State Governorship. Mr Roosevelt declined, but it is understood he is likely to reconsider his determination. July 9. Forty convicts incarcerated at Blackwall Prison mutinied. They hurled dishes and furniture at warders, four of whom were seriously hurt before the outbreak was suppressed. July 10. Mr Field, editor of a San Francisco magazine, Mr Fowler (the aviator), and two others have been arrested on a charge of disclosing military secrets. Mr Fowler aeroplaned over the Panama Canal forts, and

wrote an article pointing out the inadequacy of the defences against air attack. Mr Field published the letter, and the Department of War ordered the arrests. It will be the first prosecution of the kind ever heard in America. ■ July 12.

Berkmann and other Anarchists addressed a crowd of 10,000 persons. He declared that dynamite equalises all men. Banners were displayed setting forth that Capitalism is an evil and Anarchism the The Government is said to be losing £500,000 annually through diamond smuggling, which is carried on by means of secret agents on the Continent and in England. From recent disclosures made by a jewellery firm now in bankruptcy, the detectives calculate that £IO,OOO worth is monthly smuggled into the States across the Canadian frontier. The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has decided that the acceptance of fees for Christian science treatment is illegal SEWARD (Alaska), July 10. All the volcanoes in the Alaskan Feninsula are active. Katinas is throwing out lava and dust, and discolouring the sea for 100 miles around. Mounts Sishaldin and Bavlof are venting pumice in huge quantities. OTTAWA, July 9. Labour bodies throughout the dominion endorse the Government’s decision to deport unemployed Ukranians who have been less than three years in Canada, owing to the condition of the labour market. Mr Waters (president of the Dominion Trades Congress) states that dishonest immigration agents and transport companies induce hundreds of unsuitable persons to enter Canada, and secure bonuses by representing them as agricultural labourers. July 10. As a result of the Manitoban elections the Eoblin Government has been returned to power, with a reduced majority. The chief issue before the electors was the proposed abolition of the bar, the Liberal Opposition undertaking its abolition if returned to power. The Liberals have a largely increased representation. For the first time in the history of Canada the emigration records have exceeded those of immigration. Hundreds of European labourers are returning to their homes, and the Government has ceased advertising for immigrants. It has instead issued a warning that only settlers with money intending to go on to the land will be welcomed. ST. JOHNS, July 9. The Duke and Duchess of Connaught are visiting Newfoundland. In an address of welcome presented to them the fact was emphasised that this was the first important Royal visit for many years, and the hope was expressed that others would follow. CAPETOWN, July 13. The newspapers, irrespective of party, eulogise Viscount Gladstone’s sagacity, courage, and tact. Throughout his Gover-nor-Generalship the circumstances were Unique and full of difficulty. SHANGHAI, July 12. An explosion underneath the sleeping quarters on the Chinese gunboat Tungchio, off Kianguan arsenal, killed 35 cadets The cause is a mystery.