NEWS BY THE MAIL.

Wellington Independent, Volume XXII, Issue 2589, 26 October 1867, Page 6

NEWS BY THE MAIL.

Fbom our files of English papers, to August 26th, wo take the following fuller details of important events than have already been given in the telegraphic summary :— GENEEAL NEWS. The Lancet, in speaking of the health of the Queen, says : — " It is right to be known that her Majesty, with the greatest desire to fulfil all those duties which appertain to her dignity or her hospitality, is occasionally prevented from performing them by bodily suffering of a character most dilncult to be borne." In reference to the late visit of the Empress of the French to her Majesty, the Monlteur of July 31 has the following :— " The Empress returned from her excursion to the Isle of Wight, where her majesty received from Queeu Victoria the kindest and most affectionate welcome. France and England have witnessed with pleasure this fresh proof of the friendship of these two Sovereigns, whose lofty qualifications have inspired both nations with a lively feeling of respectful sympathy." It is said that one o\ the motives of the journey of the Empress to Osborne was to induce the British Sovereign to make an excursion (o the Continent. It is also said that the mission of her majesty, Eugenic, was to communicate to Queen Victoria some letters of the Emperor Napoleon 111. and the Emperor Maximilian, calculated to throw a new light up.?n the matter so sadly terminated at Queratero, and to dispel any prejudices that may have been entertained in England respecting the part ula} r ed by the imperial government throughout this incident. Bcrczowski is to be transported to New Caledonia. The Glowworm says the Sultan spent no less than £3<1',000 during his stay in this country. The Pasha expended during the same time upwards of £11,000. John Bull states that Lady Dudley's house was left in a fearfully dirty state by her Eastern visitors ; but it is said that the Viceroy gave her ladyship a necklace of diamonds worth £20,000, to add to her already not small stock of jewels. The London Gazette, of Aug. 23, contains the following :— " The Queen has been pleased to appoint the Eight Hon. the Earl of Belmore to be Governor and Commander-in-chief of the colony of New South Wales." Mr Charles Dickens is stated to be in a critical state of health, and his intended voyage to America is probably prompted more j by consideration for his physical well-being ' than anything else. Eminent surgeons have ! recommended change of air and scene, and cessation from literary labor for some time to come. The Prince Imperial's education is now going, to enter a new phase. The emperor having decided that ho should henceforth, as was the case with the sons of Louis Philippe, follow the lectures that are delivered at the different lyceums in Paris, the lad will have to live in common with boys appertaining to every class and rank, and if he is not obedient or attentivo to his lessons, ho will be punished just like any other collegian. Pittsburgh, says the Neio York Times, has enjoyed the spectacle of a " balloon marriage," like that of two years ago at Central Park. The alderman who performed the ceremony tcol< the precaution, in addition to his personal ballast, of having the balloon strongly secured by a cord 100 feet high ; and after he alighted the happy couple went off on a bridal tour 2000 feet above the earth's level. What is the object of these aerial weddings ? Do they add to the solemnity of the rite ? Do they make it more " ethereal "by going up in the air ? Is the marital knot stronger when tied in a balloon ? We have now had two balloon marriages ; the next thing in order is a balloon funeral. An article published in the Nazione of Florence having been considered by Ricciotti Garibaldi as offensive to the honor of his father, has given rise to a duel with swords between M. RaimonJa Brenna, editor of that paper, and the son of the leader. M. Brenna was* wounded in the forehead, and his adversary received a sword point in the left arm. It has been affirmed in some journals, and denied in others, that tho Archduchess Sophie of Austria, mother of the Emperor Maximilian, has become mad from grief at tho loss of her son. The truth, it appears, is, that her reason has not given way ; but she is overwhelmed with sorrow, exclaims repeatedly, " O, my poor son !" and in piteous, accents cries again and again to tho people about her, " O, tell me that he is not dead ! Tell mo that it is all a hideous dream !" Dr. H. J. Blanc, one of the captives in Abyssinia, writing from Mngdala on the 30th April, tells a story of a little excitement which enlivened the monotony of life in captivity. On the 6th two prisoners in that place, Abyssinians, one who had killed his mother by accident and had not been tried, and Lij Barid, the son of a great Shuni of Tigrd, managed to open their chains, dressed themselves in women's clothing (in that country only a long shirt"), and taking advantage of the market day when all the servants go down to tho market-place they succeeded in getting out. The young murderer having contrived to get off both rings ■walked faster than his companion, and passed the gates without suspicion. Lij Bane" was less fortunate. He could only open one ring, and was therefore obliged to fix the chain on the other log by means of a piece of cloth. A young warrior, seeing what appeared to bo a good-looking young girl, approached to try on her his powers of fascination. While looking to' sco if the ankles corresponded in elegance to the brightness of the eyes, he was somewhat surprised by seeing a leg completely bandaged. A few yards further, a puff of wind throwing up the shirt exposed to his horror-struck gaze the unmistakable < rings peeping here and there through the folds of the bandage. He called some soldiers at a distance, and with their help recaptured the prisoner. It is needless to say how brutally he was treated, kicked and beaten until i his life was almost to bo despaired of. The ] woman who gave him her shirt was literally < cut to pieces, having received more than 200 < lashes on her bare back. I A terrific fire broko out at Bordeaux at < eight o'clock in the evening on August 3rd, i preceded by an explosion of petroleum simi- i lar to that of a powder magazine. More i than 80 persons were blown up, all of whom i arc more or loss seriously wounded, 33 work- i men were carried to the town hospital, and j 12 others to tho military dispensary ; 10 fire- > men, 12 soldiers, and 10 sergeants do ville < are despaired of. Amongst the dead or s wounded must be reckoned the captain and i commander of the gendarmie, as well as the j chief commander of the fire brigade. The i work of destruction appears to have gone on i with unwonted rapidity. The splendid re- t coptiou which the inhabitants of Bordeaux i wore preparing for the King of Portugal J cannot fail to have a gloom thrown over it i by this deplorable event. The Mayor of the t

town has organised a subscription for the sufferers, which must soon assume a national character if we may judge by the sympathy which the short telegraphic account of the disaster has everywhere excited, especially in Paris, where, besides the Mires,- Pereires, and other bankei'3, there are so many Bordelaise in the highest classes of the commercial world. THE DUKE OF EDINBUBGH AT EIO. Rio de Janeiro, July 23. Her Majesty's ship Galatea, commanded by his Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, entered this port on the 15th instant. Upon crossing the bar the frigate hoisted the royal standard, which was immediately sainted by the forts and the men-of-war with yards manned. His Highness the Count d'Eu and the Brazilian Minister for Foreign* AiFaii's immediately went on board to visit the Prince, and the next morning his RoyalHighness went to visit the, Emperor at the- • Palace of St Christopher, On his return,, the Prince received at the City Palace, whereapartments had been prepared for him, a deputation of the British residents of Rio do Janeiro, who presented an address. His Royal Highness replied in the following terms : — " Gentlemen, I thank you for your kind address of welcome to me on my arrival hare. I Feel very sensible of your attention, which,, however, does not only address me, but expresses those true feelings of loyalty to a your sovereign and her throne, and of attachment to your native country entertained by all Englishmen. Thanking youonce more for your good wishes, I assure you I shall not fail to inform the Queen of the SLMitiments you have expressed towards he£ Majesty and the family." On the 18th, the Prince and the Count d'Eu visited the naval arsenal, and examined the five iron-clads which are now building and the dry dock at Cobras Island. In theafternoon, his Majesty the Emperor visited, the Prince on board the frigate. On the following evening, Mr Thornton* her Britannic Majesty's minister at the court* gave a grand ball in honor of the Prince, afe which their Majesties the Emperor and Empress, and the Count and Countess d'Eu, were present, besides the Ministers of State, many officers of the army and navy, and Brazilian and foreign reside^JJ The impe*rial family and the Prince only retired between, two and three o'clock in the morning. On the 20th the Prince dined with the Emperor at the Palace of St Christopher.. The Ministers of State, Mr Thornton, and the English, French, and American admirals, were also honored with invitations. Last night the British residents of Uio de Janeiro offered his royal highness a splendid' ball at the magnificent rooms of the Gassino... ' The imperial family honored the ball with, their presence. His Royal Highness twicedanced the Scotch reel, the first time with Mrs Thornton and the second with Mrs. Guuninu. The Prince retired at half-past three o'clock in the morning, and the impe--rial family immediately after, amid enthu«siastic cheers. The ball broke up at four o'clock. This morning the Galatea left for the Capeof Good Hope. THE QUEEN'S SPEECH. The followiug are the most interesting: paragraphs in the Queen's speech :— The communications which I have madeto the reigning monarch of Abyssinia, with a view to obtain the release of the British subjects whom he detains in his dominions, have, I regret to say, thus far proved ineffectual... I have, therefore, foundit necessary to address to him a peremptory demand' for their imme«diate liberation, and to take measures for supporting that demand, should it ultimately be found necessary to resort to force. The treasonable conspiracy in Ireland, towhich I have before called your attention* broke out in the early part of the present; year in a futile attempt at insurrection,. That it was suppressed, almost without; bloodshed, is due not more to the disciplined valor of my troops, and to the admirable conduce of the police, than to the general loyalty of the population and < the absence of any token of sympathy with the insurgents on. the part of any considerable portion of my subjects. I rejoice that the supremacy of' the law was vindicated without imposing on me the painful necessity of sacrificing a. single life. The act for the union of the British North American provinces is the final accomplishment of a scheme long contemplated, whereby those colonies, now combined in one dominion, may be expected not only to gain additional strength- for the purposes of defence against external aggression, but may be united among themselves by fresh ties of mutual interest, and attached to the mother country by the only bonds whick can effectually secure such important dependencies — those of loyalty to the Crown and *■ attachment to British connection. I have had great satisfaction in giving my assent to a Bill for Amending the Representation of the people in Parliament. I earnestly trust that the extensive and liberal measure which you have passed may effect a durable settlement of a question which has long engaged public attention ; and thatthe large number of my subjects who will be for the first time admitted to the electivefranchise may, in the discharge of the duties thereby devolved upon them, prove themselves worthy of the confidence which Parliament has reposed in them. THE MEETING OF THE EMPEBOBS AT SALZBUBG*. The Emperor and Empress of the French arrived at Salzburg at 445 p.m., on Aug. 19, from Chalons. They were received by the Emperor and Emnros3 of Austria, the Archduke Victor Louis, and the' civil and military authorities. The sovereigns on meeting exchanged cordial salutations, and the imperial party were welcomed' by the crowd with enthusiastic cheers. After the reception afc the railway station their majesties left in an open carriage for the imperial residence. Concerning this meeting the Moniteur dv Soir of August 21 says : — " The language of tho two sovereigns towards each other has been most affectionate,, and their interviews have been of a particularly intimate and cordial nature. Publicopinion in Austria has been touched by the delicate and noble thought which prompted the journey, and has rightly seen in it, nofc only homage paid to the memory of a prince who was an object of regret , to the whole svorld, but. also a proof of the high esteem md friendship existing between the ' twomonarchs, of which they have given evidence." And the ordinary newspaper advices from Salzburg to tho same date say "that the lesire felt by both the emperors for the preservation of peace will be manifested by an invitation to the other European powers to join in an agreement which had been entered into between the two sovereigns for the setr tlement of certain questions. The basis of . this agreement is believed to be the maintenance of the treaty of peace signed at Prague.. [t is added that tho question of South Grernany has been maturely examined by the ;wo sovereigns, who agreed in disapproving:.

tho entry of the Southern States into l! North ' German Confederation. The affai of the Danubian Principalities were also co sidered. The necessity for peace was reco aiised. The Emperor Francis Joseph, on preser. ing Prince Metternich, Austrian Minister the court of the Tuileries, with the order oft] Golden Fleece, eulogised in presenco of tl whole court tho services he had rendered tl State by re-establishiug a good understan ing with France. The Emperor Napole< expressed aloud to the Emperor Franc Joseph his thanks for this declaratio This incident created quite a sensatu among those present. THE SHEFFIELD SAW-GRINDERS 1 UNION AX £"SOADHEAD. — EXTRAORDINARY. RESOLI TIONS. A correspondent writes from Sheffield c August 13 '.—Yesterday afternoon a nume ously attended meeting of saw-grinders wi held in the Temperance, Townhead stree Sheffield, to consider the advisability of c: pelling Broadhead and Crookes from tli union in consequence of the crimes of whic they had confessed their guilfc. The condiu of these men was debated at great lengtl and an intensely disgusting sympathy wa shown towards them. Many of the speakei appeared to consider that their horrible deed were necessary to protect trade interests, an thnt the union ought not to desert them fo what they had done. Of course the mectin was a private one, and the arguments of th speakers— if they could support the villan >ova system of outrage and intimidation b. "anything deserving of the name — was losi; t the world, but the resolutions are sufficient!; •clear and are disgusting in the extreme. W< are assured that they wei*e adopted with onb two dissentients. The first resolution wiii as follows :— " That this meeting refuses to make vie tims of any of the members of the society o saw-grinders, by expelling them on accouni of their connection with the outrages re< -cently inquired into at Sheffield. The Exami ners' report furnished to the Commissioners in London, makes reference to perpetrators ; accomplices, accessories, and, indeed, the whole society of saw-grinders, as promoters, -encouragers, and conniversat theacts named; consequently, we decline going into an} r justification of these things being done, beyond asserting that they are but the effect of a cause — viz., the want of some properly regulated legislative measures, binding men in some degree to what is honorable, just, and good. We, therefoie, considering well our present position, decline to disgrace ourselves as cowards by deserting the men who have taken upon themselves the task- of risking their lives and their liberties for what they believed to be the good of the institution, •and whose acts the Examiners have placed to the account of the whole society, as well as to their actual perpetrators and accessories. And further, this meeting begs to say it is a libel both upon this society and Mr Broadhead when it is asserted that the latter Las been reinstated as a member, because he was never expelled." The statement had been made that Broadliead had been re- appointed secretary. After adopting almost unanimously this "resolution, which really vindicates the conduct of Broadhead and his hirelings, and renders the other members of the union accessories to their murders, at least after the fact, the following was passed as a " serious recommendation" to other trade societies : — " That tins meeting hopes, and earnestly recommends to all this society's members, and the members of all other trades' societies, that they do now abstain and desist from all acts of rattening, intimidation, outrage, and violence, having full confidence from what "Was expressed by the Examiners in Sheffield, at the inquiry, that it is the intention of tho Legislature to give the labor question that consideration to which it is entitled, and trusts its deliberations will be so wisely directed as to remove the causes for these illegal acts being done, and by legislative measures afford more satisfaction to both employer and employed in their connection with each other." The effect of these resolutions must be to compel all other societies not to recognise in •any way whatever the saw-grinders of this town, and we are assured that no sympathy has been extended to them by any local union. THE CRETAN INSURRECTION. Trieste, August 17. The removal of the Cretan families from the island by French, Russian, and Italian vessels continued. The insurgents still held out, and the Turks had withdrawn from Sphakia. Omar Pasha was greatly dissatisfied at the removal of tho Cretan families, and had asked permission to leave the island and return to Constantinople. Constantinople, August 20. Official advices received here from Crete by the last Austrian mail steamer state that the Union, a Greek blockade runner, had been unable to land her cargo on the Cretan coast, the Greek volunteers, who were assembled there in large numbers and wished to re-embark, having stopped tho unlading ; eighty of them, having managed to get on board, forced the Union to carry them to Syra. The Cretans did not wish for any more Greek volunteers, in consequence of the crueHies and robberies thej r committed. Constantinople, August 24 The Turkish cruiser Izeddin, after a desperate engagement with tho Greek blockade runner Arcado, in Cretan waters, drove her ashore and destroyed her, .with great loss of life. The Izeddin arrived yesterday with the news, and to repair damages. RIOTS AT PENANG. There were riots at Penang on Sept. sth. The residents in the town of Penang were alarmed by the fighting of two hostile classes of Chinese. The military took control of the town, and the crews of the merchant vessels in the harbor guarded the barricades and guns, and after four days order was apparently restored, but a series of fierce combats afterwards occurred, extending over six days. A great number of houses in the Chinese quarter were sacked and burned. When the fire-engines were sent to play on them, the mob fired on the firemen, and several fell victims. The estimated number of lives lost is 600. On receipt of news at Singapore of a second outbreak, the Governor called a special meeting of the Legislative Council, end a bill was passed for the better preservation of the peace. The Governor has proceeded to Penang in the colonial steamer Peiho, accompanied by H.M.S. Rifleman, to adopt strenuous measures to repress the riots. Quiet, however, was restored before his Excellency arrived, It has been ascertained that fighting men were imported by members of the societies at feud with each other. No attack wiu directed towards the Europeans. The expedition to the JSTicobars, under taken with a view to test the truth of th( rumors that a number of Europeans wen tkere in bondage, has returned without re Suits. On its arrival at the islands, tho boat: of H.M.S.S. Wasp and Satellite were de

he spatched in the direction 01 me vmufjcs aiuu H Irs the shore which wero found deserted, the in- ' natives having penetrated in the jungle on g- * seeing the steamers. As it was not con- { sidered prudent to expose our men to conit- ! coaled attacks, after burning a few villages at' the expedition returned, bringing with them lu- ' a girl of apparently European descent. ' he : The Government of India has determined he ! to cut off the Nicobar Islands frou all comd-! raunication with the Burmese coasts until the on I perpetrators of the outrage on the ship jis ' Wallash Islem are surrendered. n * ' THE OKISSA FAMINE. — A MILLION AND A-HALF :>n OF PEOPLE STAItVJED TO DEATH. The Calcutta correspondent of the Times fI) writes on July 2nd : — lf we remember that v'u ' the famine is going on in Orissa, the deaths in the first fortnight of June being 179, we >n may proceed with some confidence to gather r- up the results of this terrible visitation in j is Behar, Bengal, and Ganjam, as well as j t. Orissa, in 1866. For Behar we have Mr j c- E. V. Cockerell's report, which is very severe ie on the officials. For Ganjam we have a h report by a young civilian in the district, jfc admirably drawn up. In these two provinces 1, famine raged only for four months, beiug is worst in Behar in August, and in Ganjam in \s July. In Orissa it reached its maximum of Is intensity, judged of by the number fed in d October, IS6G, or one year after the first ,r deaths from starvation, and after Mr Barlow g had in vain called for the importation of rice c into Pooree. Taking, then, the result of i- these three reports, we find that the great y famine of 186(5 affectedanareaof 77,418 square o miles — nearly the area of Great Britain — and y a population of twenty millions. The deaths c were 1,350,000. I have added 150,000 for y the hill districts of Orissa, of which Mr s Campbell's Commission professes total iguoranee, but which must have suffered more . terribly than the plains, for there was no f relief there, and hundreds poured into Balat sore from the hills only to die. The area . and population severely and intensely . visited by famine was not quite half the 3 above. In Orissa, Chota, IN ag pore, and Midnapore, for instance, the Commission > represent the famine as " severe" among a population of 1,845,6<16, and over au area of '■ 7173 square miles ; aud as " intense" among ! 2,062,725, and over an area of 12,126 miles. [ The native deputy magistrate of Pooree had a case reported to him by his subordinates in July— a Hindoo had cooked the body of a child he had found in the river. A Cuttack deputy magistrate repeats Mr Ravenshaw's ■ story of the idiot cannibal. Most important of all, however, is the testimony of the llo.v. Mr Miller, a missionary of Balasore. lie saya :— '* Nothing that I have ever read has enabled me to conceive anything equal to this famine. I havft known no instance of the Hindoos eating dogs, or cats, or cows, but they did eat their own children when they were dead. I heard a well authenticated instance in which a mother and sou were found eating a dead child."