MAIL ITEMS.

Waikato Times, Volume XXVI, Issue 2121, 11 February 1886, Page 4

MAIL ITEMS.

The San l(1rl (1 r inci-.cn *' Xews Letter," of •-^•ho I6t!i Januuv, says :— Among all the miinei'Dti", \ahmblo and delightful islands {jvtijttt epcist between this port and the Australian contin-ut, perhaps the only ones that are valuable to this country lire tho group known as Samoa. This group consists of . aeven islands winch arc tortile in tho extreme, and stand rijjlit in the track of the steamers which sail hence to Australia. They pins between them through a channel about 14 miles wide, the island of Savaii being on one sid>', and tluit of Tutuila on the other. Tho latter has a harbour most conveniently situated, that has hardly a superior in the world. It is entered between two high peak* on either side that cannot be mistaken by the tn.trinor. The entrance once parsed a sheet of water is presented that is like an inland lake. It is deep enough to float the largest vessel up to it* vrry shores. One of our Australian steamers might lie close to it-> banks, and be loaded with oranges from trees that grow right down to the water's edge. This harbour is called Pango-Pango. Some twelve years ago the News Letter gave admirable engravings of it, taken from 6ever.il points, and these were copied into German and English illustrated journals. It was then made apparent how valuable the island* were, and how ■uitable the harbour of Pango-Pango was for a coaling station for the United States vessels. We did our best to have it secured for that purpose. At our instance, Commander Meade was sent with the Narragansett to see about the matter. Unfortunately he fell in with adventures, and was wrongfully advised. He made a treaty with a chief who had no power to make it, and he paid fur our ripht to use the harbour with muskets and ammunition that were immediately used in a tribal war. in which the chief with whom he had dealt fell, and so our negotiations came to an untimely end. At XJ polo, another and the beat known of the islands, there was » con■iderabta white settlement, at which the English were the most numerous and the most financially prosperous, with Americans lagging a long way behind. There were there consuls of these respective nations. For a tune the Steinberger episode interfered with things, but that .filibuster being removed with the consent of all p.itfcies, and by the aid of a British sloop-of-war, the native king was acknowledged, and a council of advice was established, consiati/tg of < the consuls of the three nations named. This arrangement was informally indorsed and approved by Germany, Great Britain and the United States, and has been continued in operation with more or less satisfaction for the last eight or nine years. Tho amount of land claimed and occupied by Messrs Godefroy of Hamburg, and managed by the German * consul, Mr Webber, has always been a bone of contention that has more than once threatened^ break out into open warfare. That land claim is repudiated by the native king and by tho British consul, the Rev Dr. Turner, who w«s born iroon the islands, and as a loyal and devoted Samoan, and as a trusted and belo\ed missionary, i.s a power who m.iy not be ignored. The American consul is so often changed, and knows so little of Samoan affairs and traditions, that he is only valuable as a make- . weight to the bide to which he leans. In " this condition of aifairs Mr Webber has succeeded in inducing a (German ship-of-war to interfere, but we think his action will b9 repudiated, and that the original rule of the kincr and the three consuls will be resumed. If the advice of the News Letter had been taken the Samoan group would have been, for commercial purpuses, American twelvo years ago. A report recently made by the United - ( Status Consul at St. Petersburg states that from 1820 to 1850 Russia ranged first among goldj producing countries, yielding at the time of the di-co\ery of the gold mines in America and Australia 12.7 per cent. ; from 1801 to 1870, 14 per cent ; and at tho present time, about one-fifth of the world's production. A table showing the total production of all the gold-bearing districts in Russia for various periods, shows that from the year 1814 down to 1880, the total production amounted to -32,718,000 ounces.— Science Monthly. It is not generally known that the Pope is a poet, but as a matter of fact he is an expert Latin versifier, and he has just presented Prince Bismarck, through the German Ambassador at Rome, with an elegantly bound copy of his latest volume of poems, " Noyissima Leonis XIII. Pont. Max. Carmina." Long before his elevation to the chair of Peter, Cardinal Pecci was well known as one of the best classical scholars in Italy, and his poems are- Mid to show such a mastery of Latin that quite modern turns of thought have obtained a classical tinge. — Court Journal. THE ICELAND PARLIAMENT. We were fortunate enough to be in ' Reykjavik during the sitting of the Ale- ." thing, or Parliament, which met of old in ' the world-renowned' plain of Thingvalla. The Parliament House is a substantial edifice, built of lava, abundance of which may be had just outside the town, where the ground is" thickly strewn with loose blocks of volcanic rock. Tho entrance is by a commodious hall, with seats at each side, and a staircase of iion and wood in front. As we reached the first landing, a centlomau, whom wo afterwards recognised in the Presidential chair, of the "Comrifons, /came forward to meet us. Speaking iri French, he asked if we were jEnglfeh inert,' and, • then" courteously confaucted us into both Houses. At business was about to commence, he had soon to leave us, but he first showed us to the Strangers' Gallery. This resort is open to the public, anJ on both occasions when we visited . it, we found it completely filled, chiefly with - natives, both male and female. The Upper and Lower Houses are very much alike. Each consists of a room of about forty feet by thirty, carpeted, and neatly painted. Opposite to the Sti angers' Gallery aits the Piesident The Governor, distinguished by his gold lacp, has a chair a little to his right. Immediately in front of him ire the reporters, and outride them, ranged in a scnu-ciicle, are the members of Parliament, the Government, of course, on the President's right, and the Opposition on bis left. The electors, that is, all men who are of age and pay taxes, send up thirty representatives. These thirty then select si* out of their own number to sit in tnts Upper House, and the King of Denmark nominates six in mo. Thus tho Lower House cwibiat? of twenty-four members, and the* Upper of twelve, who ate presided over by the Luther in Bishop. The King retains a. veto on all bills, and, I believe, he does not scitiply to use his light. He also appoints the Go\ernor, and ;is the Governor cannot be in two places at the same time, the sittings of the two Holies are not simultaneous. The Commons sit first for an hour or two, and then the Upper House takes it turn.— Month. The Popo must have a somewhat hard heart if the statements in the Independence Beige about lu^ amusements are correct. It i» asserted that t mio l.ukf, which have been blinded by icd-hot needles in older to improve their noti>, .no kept m casre^ -which are concealed amo itj t'-io J.a-icl thickets in the garden of the Vatican. Nets and snares aie placed sill round, and the wild larks which .ire .it ti acted by the singing of the imprisoned birds are caught in large number:., and when this amiable game is -over, the Pope bim.-ulf examines the traps, •nd with his own holy fingers wrings the - necks of the birds v\ htch ha\ c been caught. If this story bo fiction, it ought to have been contradicted before this ; but if it be tuie, his Holiness richly deserves to be — prayed for. The French fisheries do not seem to be in a very flourishing state, to judge from the official report of last year's trade. There were 87,000 men and 30,000 vessels engaged in it, and the \ alue of the fish taken was $17,500,000, which was a falling off of §3,850,000 a» compared with the previous year, although 4,900 more men were employed. The sardine fishery has also seriously diminished, and so has the Algerian coral fishery, which used to be *e"ry valuable, but it has been much injured by the recent discovery of extensive coral beds off the coast of Sicily. Since the siege of Paris, in 1870, tho consumption of horseflesh has gradually increased there. Recently high pontifical mass was celebrated in Copenhagen for the fiist time since the days of the Reformation, such a service having heretofore been forbidden by law. Tho Catholics in Denmark now number about 3,000 souls, with 2b' priests, of whom seven are Danes. Prince Bismaick, on his recent birthday, received a telegram from seven Wurtemberger", nil born, like him, in 1815, who wished him long life. Princo Bismarck telegraphed back hia cordial thanks and greeting to his "dear septuagenarian contemporaries," nuking them to renew tho solution ten years hence. Three years ago the farming of the amber fishery was let out hy the Prussian povernment to parties u L h.> * i ked it with |o much, , cure uncl *wjc^ht thati

the State's share of the increased yield for 1883-4 was 170,000 murks, nearly 300,000 marka for 1884-5. and bids fair to be still laiger for tho piutout twin. '" Poor's Railroad Manual,'' imports an onorinoiM decrease in the gloss earnings, amounting to more than £50,000,000, a falling off from 1883 of I) par cent. Tins is dcemod phenomenal, in view of the fact tii.it >teadily xiiicw 1877 the gross earnings of the toads have increased, having nearly doubled in the seventeen vcuih puor to 1884. Ruffler, in Vanity Fair, h«iys : — A pathetic incident ocuuned the other day in connection with the death of Stnwart, the lion-t.uncr, at Paris. Stewart was in p.ijse.siion of an old and favourite lion, which was in tho habit of living with him in hi* room, iimteari of being confined with the other beasts. The animal was discoverod stretched lifeless across the dead body of his master, and as he was otherwise in a perfectly healthy condition, it is supposed that he died through Hheer grief. There ale at present at the various German Universities no fewer than 157 professors between tho ages of seventy and ninety. Of these 122 deliver their lectures as usual. The oldest is the veteran Yon Ranke, the historian, who is now in his ninetieth year, but is not considered fully equal in vigour, memory and other faculties to Prof. Elvenish, who is thirty-nine days his junior. THK DYNAMITERS. There is something singular and inexplicable in the case of the bo-called dynamiters, which is calculated to confuse the keenest of observers. If these men were really engaged in manufacturing bombs with which to destroy property and life, it is monstrous and absurd that they should be charged with no higher or graver offence than that of violating a little city ordinance against the storing of explosives without a license. If their intent was that which it is said to have been, their crime merits the severest penalty known to the law short of death. The human mind fails to realize * crime more dastardly than that which it is alleged they were contriving. The deadly use to which dynamite can be put, and the devastation which it* use is likely to create all around, are things that make one shudder at the mere contemplation of them. The bombs for secret and deadly purposes were being manufactured is proven, for they were captured and produced in evidence. So also was a pamphlet directing how they should be manufactured and secretly employed. So also was a list of citizens who were to be removed by their mean*. The strangest fact of all is that the accused themselves admitted, and boasted, and even testified to the criminal intent with which the whole business was entered upon. j Contriving and compassing death and destruction, they are only charged with a paltry misdemeanour, and meanwhile they were allowed to go on as if nothing had happened. They hold secret meetings with their co-con-spirators, collect money for secret purposes and vaunt themselves as if they were engaged in the most laudable enterprise in the world. All this is strange, indeed, and we confess surpasses our understanding. If there was ever anything serious in this business, the action of the policp and the prosecuting officers becomes absolutely inscrutable. It seems as if there were some designing intiigues involved somewhere. There are ways that are dark and tricks that are vain thiit are practised by other than the heathen Chinee. This matter, however, is too grave to be trifled with. The public hay c a right to know what is at the bottom of it.— S. F. News Letter. The British Parliament opened on Tuesday last, and the work of swearing in members and organising the House of Commons hu3 consumed the time up to the hour of writing. The Queen's speech will probably be delivered at the begi lining of next week, and then the actual work of the session will commence. Up to the announcement of the ministerial programme, as contained in the Sovereign's address, all discussion is necessarily ot a speculative nature. However, it may be said that the reported Conservative remedy for the Irish emergency, ia a system of enlarged powers of local government wuich is to extend to England, Scotland and Wales, as well as to Ireland. As outlined, the schemo provides for the election of a "County Board," which shall manage the individual affairs of each county, and be uuder the control, to an extent, of a "Central Council." The scheme has a crude look about it, and bears the ear marks of an expedient to placate the P-arnellites (which it will utterly fail to do) rather than a statesmanlike plan for the improvement of sometbiug, which, after a conscientious examination, has been found to be defective. There seem to be good grounds for believing that unless some unexpected developments occur, the Liberals, under the lead of Gladstone, will avoid for the present any serious conflict on the floor of the House with the presetit Ministry, more especially in regard to Irish affairs. This is a wise policy. Gladstone, as a Liberal, recognises the right of the people to rule, and he appreciates the fact that Parnell and his eighty-n'ye adherents represent an element of dissatisfaction. Precisely what that dissatisfaction amounts to, and whether it is reasonable or unreasonable, cannot at present be told because Parnell and hia Parliamentary adherents, who are its cboseu mouthpiece*, decline to let it be known. They deal in generalities, and prate about "Home Rule," oppression, etc., which may mean anything and may mean nothiug. By refraining from any positive movement at the present time, the Liberals will probably compel this dissatisfaction to emerge from its noisy retirement and declare its wishes and purposes. Then it can be dealt with satisfactorily. If its wishes and purposes are reasonable and founded on justice, they can be satisfied ; if they are not reasonable and founded on justice, then the whole movement could be crushed out of exigence, just as infinitely greater movements have been crushed out of existence before now. Philip Callan, the ex-Home Rule member of Parliament, is said to be preparing an address to the British House of Commons, praying that body not to allow Col. Nolan, Calkin's successful competitor, at the late election, to take his seat on the grounds that the petitioner's defeat was accomplished by slanders and intimidation of voters by Parnell, Dillon, O'Kelly and Mr Harrington. Callan beasts that if he succeeds in establishing his allegations against Parnell the latter will be disqualified from sittiug in the Hnuse of Commons for seven years, and, besides, be subject to tine and imprisonment. Those who kuow anything of Parnell's disreputable methods, will not be slow to believe these charges true. The emeute which broke out at Carthagena, Spain, is but the first impression of a feeling of unrest which has prevailed throughout that country since the death of the late King Alfonso, and which is liable to continue to pieynil and to give expression to itself in this way for an indefinite period, during the Regency. The trouble with the Spaniards lies in the fact that in their own lethargic way — particularly among the lower classes— they havo a hankering after Republicanism ; and yet they ure almost utterly ignorant of the real meaning of that term. The line which separates liberty from license is unknown to them. The violent acts of the commander of the German wnr-ship Albatross, at the Samoan Islands, were over-bearing impertinences, which practically are of no great moment at present, but which may possibly be made the basis of important claims heieafter. The true inwardness of the matter seems to lie in the fact that there is a German land-grabber on the Islands, who as»erts a title to large quantities of real property, which title is not recognised by the King and his chiefs. The commandor of the German . ship cv idently landed his armed force, and pulled down the Samoan flag with a view to giving this man's claim a "boost." That is all there is in the matter at present.

Unless a Rome correspondent be at fault, the Italian nobleman who married the stepdaughter of Bonanza Mackay has already spent the fortuue which went with the bride. TnERE are, thia year, 92 packs- of foxhounds in England and Ireland, 14 pack* of stag-hounds, 133 of harriers, and 17 of heagles. The 7o couples constituting the Duke of Beaufort's pack of hounds consumo annually about 40 tons of meat, three tons of biscuits, and 150 horses. Yes ! It is certainly true. Ask any of your friends who have purchased there. Garlick and Cranvrell have numerous unasked for and very favourable commendations from country customers on their excellent packing of Furniture, Crockery, and Glass, Ice. Ladies any gentlemen about to furnish should remember that Garlick and Cranwell's is thk Cheap Furnishing Warehouse o Auck. land. Furniture to suit all classes ; also Carpets, Flcor Cloths and all House Necessaries. It your new house is nearly finished, or, you are going to get married, visit Garlick and Cranwell. Queen-street and Lome-street, Auckland. TntendmrptirrhMerscan hfcTtaratalon* !•* urn»