MAIL NOTICES,

Colonist, Volume XL, Issue 8861, 10 May 1897, Page 1

MAIL NOTICES,

To Motueka— To-day, at 10.15 a.m. To New Plymouth and Auckland — Per Mabinnpua, to-day, at 1.30 p.m. To Tahiti, Baratonga. — Jteij Mahinapaa. To-day, at 1.30 p.m. To Golden Bay — Per Lady Barkly, today, at 5 p.m, To Samoi, Honolulu, Amerioa, United Kingdom, Continent of Europe, West Indieß, eto, via Sm Francisco, due London June IG— Tutsday, May 11, at noon. OvEBLAND MAILS To West Coast — Mondays aod Thursday* at 3.45 p.m. To Motueka— Moh lays Wednesdays, and Fridays, at 9 a.m. To Golden Bay— Every Wednesday, at 9 a.m. To Havelock, Blenheim and Piston — Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fiidays at 6.30 a.m

bury, where a young girl was killed by a worse than brute.

From afar, too, the news of the month has been of a stirring nature. Other murders have been reported from Australia similar to those perpetrated at the Blue Mountains, and to answer the charge of committing which Butler was arrested at San Francisco, and has been conveyed back to New South Wales. Drought has proved ruinous to many in the Australian Colonies. A day of humiliation and prayer for rain was observed, and though it has fallen in parts, from other places Wails of distress come that cold weather has set in, and that before rain came to give the grass a chance of growing.

According to news reoeived by cable tbe isolation of Britain and tbe threatening aspect of affairs in connection with the Transvaal has given cause for uneasiness, but latest intelligence indicates that some arrangements have been made that seem calculated to relieve tbe high Btate of tension that has been apparent.

The war between Greece and Turkey hes natorally engrossed attention, and been a leading topic of conversation-. It was recently pointed out in a leading Home papsr that immediately prior to the outbreak of hostilities on the Macedonian frontier the popular opinion in Greece was that a proclamation of war would compel the six great Powers to adopt a neutral altitude, and thus it may appear that the oombined efforts to avert tha outbreak of war were overruled by the power of destiny. The same journal, the ' London Times,' stated that it was recognised by tbe Greeks that the state of affairs in Ore'e did not constitute a sufficient pretext for the declaration of war, inasmuch as Colonel Vassoa occupied the island in time of peace, bat, . it was asserted, a more valid exouse for hostile action could be found in the refusal of Turkey to concede to Greece the territory aasigaed to ber by the Conference of Ambassadors in Berlin in June, 1880 The writer in the ' Times ' thuß continued : " The frontier line originally saggeated in the thirteeoth protoool of the Berlin Treaty was adopted by the Conference, ths boundary ex ending from the moatn of the river Ealama, opposite the town of Corfu, to the point where tbe cbaiu of Olympos touches the i&gean sea, the lake of Janina and tbe town of Aletsovo being thus inoluded in the Hellenic Kingdom. The Power?, however, failed to enforoe their decisions upoo tbe Porta, and Greece, notwithstanding her protests, was obliged to aooept the present frontier under the Convention ratified in Constantinople in August, 1881. It must be admitted, our Athena correspondent says, that with regard to this settlement of the frontier, Greeoe has legitimate grounds of complaint, not only against Turkey, but also againßt the Bowere."

Bot Bhort of men and money au! apparently with troops illdisciplined as well as with few generals capable of conducting a campaign there is little wonder, seeing that the hopes of raising a revolt in Macedonia failed them, the Greeks have been driven back, till their only hope seems to be in sueing for peace. That it should have been decreed that Turkey should prevail against even the weakest champion for Liberty seems inexplicable unless it is that those who bave by their inaction been accessories to the deeds committed by the one Power in Europe that has dared to pursne a policy of bloodhsed and outrage are to be further tested, or that the force of the beast is to beoome paramount.

It is perhaps open to doubt whether the laudab'e efforts to establish an Australian Federation have been materially advanced by tne reoent Convention tbat eat at Adelaide. In those Colonies, the representatives of wbioh were selected by the publio vote, the great question at iaeue was evidently brought olosely home, and dearly the work of the Convention wai more intantly regarded by those people. The bone of contention was, however, as to whether the smaller States, or Colonies, Bhould be liable to be overruled by tbe larger ones. Of course the danger was f rea en from the first, and we in New Zealand, who recognise that centralism has materially in offered with the enterprise and the expansion of some of the old Provinces, can well fesl that the fears of the leEssr Colonies are by no means without foundation. However, it haa to be recognised that srength cornea from unity, and we may hope that difficulties may ne overcome, and that a sense of justioe will keep selfishness in oheok, and prevent the weaker suffering. It should be regarded that sometimes it is even wise to make great saorifioe for the sake of uoity against a oommon adversary.