News of the Week.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XIII, Issue 27, 30 October 1885, Page 9

News of the Week.

Fbidat. Just as the A raw* was on the point of sailing from Auckland «a Wedaesday evening a cariosity dealer named James Glenny w« disposing of curios to the firemen in the 'tween decks, when he was suddenly seized by a number of firemen in a dark corridor and heW till he was robbed of a watch, greenstone, gold, and quartz of the value of £30, In the darkness he could not identify the assailants, and as the officers could not trace the property the vessel sailed. Archie Macdonald, the prospector for the Wanganui Gold mining Company, returned yesterday from the King Country. He repoito teeing likely country at Bangitoto, but could not w.iit to prospect thoroughly, as the survey party wanted to go ou. He reports f uhy to the association on Monday. He found tne Natives all through very friendly, and did not meet with any opposition. One hundred thousand trout ova. a present from the Lake Acclimatisation Society to Wellington, have been successfully placed in the Masteiton hatching-bores. This is the largest shipment to the North Island ever attempted. Thay were brought by Mr. Mackia from Queenstown to Masterton in tnree days. In consequence of tne success of previous lectures throughout the Colony, Mr. G. A. Sala has relinquished his intention of seeing the Melbourne Cup race, and will again go North. From this he goes to the West Coast, afterwards visitiog the chief towns in the North Island and Hot Lakes district. M. Henri llochefort demands that M. Jules Ferry be impeached in connection with tne conduct of affairs in Tonquin during dm administration. Mr. Goschen, in his electioneering campaign, is vigorously combating the policy of the Radical party. Troops for service in Burmah have received orders to embark with the least possible delay. The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sir Michael Hicks-Beach, addressing a public meeting at Fork on Wednesday night, stated that he was hopeful of a peaceful settlement of the Bulgarian difficulty. He added that the European Powers would protect Constantinople from foreign aggression. Saturday. An unusually large brill was caught off New Brighton yesteiday morning, and presented to Sir J, Vogel by the fisherman. In accepting the fi9h Sir Julius expressed an opinion that a society should be formed in New Zealand similar to the National Fisheries Association of England, to deal with the Government on one hand and the trade on the other, in order to place the fisheries on a thoroughly satisfactory basis. He also advocated the formation of aquariums in the principal towns of the Colony. It is understood that the Government intend to promote Colonel Whitmore to the rank of brigadier or major-general. This has been considered only right, as commanders in other Colonies are generals, and have not, "taken altogether, as many men uuder their command as Colonel Wnitmore. The majority of the Great Powers have agreed to the proposed conference on the Houmehan question, and the first sitting ot the conference will take place on the 26th October. Ten thousand troops have emb irked for Burmah under the command of Major-general Prendergast, V.C. The reply of the German Government to ths representations of Spain on the subject of the former Power's occupation of the Caroline Islands has been officially published. The reply does not discuss the previous claims of Spain, bui narrows the affair dowu to the question of priority of possession, dating from August last. Monday. A shocking shooting affair occurred at Blenheim on Saturday morning. A boy aged 14, son of a merchant's clerk named Wmstauley, pointed a loaded carbine at his brother, a lad of 10, who waß lying in bed. The elder boy was unaware that the piece was loaded, but it went off, and bib brother s brains were blown out ou tue pillow, death, being mstantau.ous. The aff ur viaa puiely a misadventure, The boys were both cadets, aua had be^u <tt slvirniiahiug dn.l tne previous day, and the elder one had inseueda piece of lead lulo bis carbine for practice at shooting at a mark. He was handling the carbine in his bedroom showing his brother how to drop on uue knee to resist cavalry, aad the weapon was resting on the floor ai half-cock, \vuen it accidentally went off, witu tue fatal result already Uesenoed. At the inquest, j, veiiiCt o£ • ..UcidjUi il deal .i ' wis leturued. A little boy named James Adam?, aged 11 years, was isillei at -Kilda on Saturd-iy afternoon (says the Otago DxiUf Tunas) uuder circumstances which have not up to the preset be in explained. Tne lad lived with hts pait_ntt; ia Cashel biieet, Si. Kilda, and by iv« mother's statement left the house on Saturday afternoon to play about the place. No one wa-3 with him thvn, and there is uothin^ to show that anyone was uear him at tue time of his death. At about half-past 4 o'clock, within twenty miuutes or hali-an-hour of his leaving home, a child told Mrs. Adams that the deceased was lying in an open space near the house bleeding. He was discovered on an unfenced section nearly opposite his home, auda few feet ofi the main road leading irom. the Bay View Hotel to the St. Kil U Hotel. The lad only breathed a tew times, and then died in his mother's arms. Dr. (Joughtiey was summoned, and subsequently, at the request of the police, made a post mortem examination, the detailed result of which has not transpired. It is known, however, that the cause of death was a rifle bullet, which has entered the right temple, penetrating the skull and brain. The bullet has nut passed entirely through the head, and must therefore have been considerably spent. Some rifle practice was going on at the Mussel burgft. range on Saturday afternoon, but people tiring at the butts would aim in an opposite direction. The unfortunate lad wps touud at nearly 1000 yards from what would be the ordinary firing-staud, and nearly 2000 yards from the butts. It remains, of course, to be

C n e^»^f whether any person returning from the range recklessly tL s? mi? % ffSF*,}" weapoD - An ill( * ueßt i 9 &be hekl at »d«^^t; ft 6 ^ ra tbe p° int wm Lord Randolph Churchill. Secretary of Stale for In iia addressed a public meeting at Birmingham on Saturday n-Vht. In the cours» of bis speech he state* that war between' England and Bnrmab would probably result in the British annexation of that cju.i rv or at any rate m measures of a somewhat similar character • .t he t , Em Per°r Francis Joseph received the delegations respecting the Roumehan question on Saturday. In his address to them he dwe t with emphasis upon>the triple alliance and on the unanimity displayed by the European powers in their desire to restore the statw quo is the Balkan Peninsula. It is currently reported that the Servian forces have already invaded Bulgarian territory, and that a hostile encounter is imirinent. Tuesday. At a meeting of the committee of the East and West Coast and Nelson Railway League, held at Christchurch yesterday, it was resolved that the league recommend cooperation between the people of Canterbury, Westland, and Nelson to secure the construction of the line by the Government simultaneously with the Northern Trunk and Otago Central, and advocate the extension of tbe membership of the league to all parts of the Colony, with a view of securing political support to those members who will advocate the completion of the trunk railway system and the subsequent cessation of further borrowing for public works until the whole railway system has become selfsupporting. Some prospectors on land beyond Kauria Point, near Wade Auckland have, it is said, discovered payable gold in the sandstone it t, I Ban , k of New Zealand 8 aßß *y of a parcel showed 3oz of gold and 2oz of silver per ton. It has been decided to forward 20 loads to be treated by La Monte's process. The projectors are confident the ground will pay, as there are millions of tons of sandstone in the hills in front 500 feet high. Gregan, one of the first Waneanui prospectors, has received a telegram from a Hauraki chief offering him permission to prospect luhua, and he has decided to accept the invitation. The Bishop of Wellington has been requested to preach the sermon in connection with the opening of the Plenary Council, to be held m Sydney on the 13th of next month, uuder the presidency of Cardinal Moran. J News is to hand thai; Servian troops have occupied a Bulgarian customhouse situated on the frontier between the two countries Lord Randolph Churchill, in his speech at Birmingham contended that a repetition of the New Guinea affair would cause Australia to secede from the Mother Country. Lord Harrington disputes the right of Australia to complain in the matter of NewGuinea, and also protests against the statement that war between England and Burmah will probably result in the annexation of the atter country. In the case of the boy Adams, supposed to have been shot at St KUda, near Dunedin, it transpired at the inquest that his death had been caused by a blow from an iron pin which another boy was swinging at the end of a rcpe. A verdict of accidental death was returned. Wednesday. Mr. G. A. Sala, writing in reply to a letter signed •• Bohemian '' which appeared in tbe Cb istchurch Ttlegmph, explained hi 3 action in connection -with the Yorick Club. Melbourne, as follows •— •• In the first place, strictly speaking. I have Dover written to ' one of the Home papers ' calling the members of the Yonck Club Melbourne 'a set of cads.' I wrote a private note to Mr. Henry Labouchere' M.P., the editor and proprietor of Truth, in which I alluded to the mcomprebensively disgraceful conduct of certain 'cads' connected with the Yorick Club, Melbourne, in striving to injure me in my lecturing tour through the Colonies. Mr. Labouchere, by some strange inadvertence, seems to have treated my private note as a public communication, and I am very glad that ne has done so, since 1 have now the opportunity of vindicating my action \\i;h record to the Yonck Club. The statement that 'towards the small hours ' I sent the club a note saying that I was ill and could not attend their dinner, is simply a cowardly and calumnious falsehood. Before eleven in the morning of the day in question I wrote to the recretary of the club to say that I was snffering from a severe at f ack of bronchitis, and would be unable to attend the dinner. Before V> o'clock the secretary had an interview with me in my room at Menzies' Hotel, and heard from me in person the expression of my regret that T was unable to come to dinner. I may just add that for more than 15 years I have been a periodical sufferer from bronchitis and spasmodic asthma. There is not the slightest need for me to dwell in detail on the systematic calumny and misrepresentation to which, ever since the period of the abortive dinner, I have been exposed at the hands of certain 'cads' connected with the Yorick Club, Melbourne. ' Information from Burmah states that the war against tbe Burmese will be commenced on November 11, unless King Theebau makes submission before that date and agrees to the ultimatum of Mr. Eernaid, the Commissioner of British Burmah. Two hundred and fifty Japanese arrived by steamer at Cooktown J hey have been engaged to work on the sugar plantations in Northern Queensland in lieu of Polynesian labourers, who are now unobtainable. The town of Sennaar, on the Blue Nile, has been captured by the rebels, against whom tbe Egyptian garrison have held the town for a considerable time past. The reported crossing of a body of Servian troops into Bulgarian territory is denied. The rumour is believed to be unfounded. The attitude of Greece is now less warlike. Thursday. It is currently reported that a revolution has taken place in MandaUy, and the Burmese King (Theebaw) has been murdered by his subjects The report, so far. lacks official confirmation,

Lord George Hamilton, First Lord of the Admiralty, announces that it is intended during the next two years to construct nine ironclads, having a combined tonnage of 80,000 tons. The French Government are in receipt of dispatches from General De Courcy, commanding the forces in Tonqnio, announcing that his troops have succeeded in capturing the Black flag stronghold of Thau Mai, completely dispensing the enemy and occupying the position in force.

In regard to the Roumelian difficulty, King Milan, of Servia, has intimated that he will be content with the restoration of the status qvo ante. Skirmishes have taVen place along the front-er lino between the Servian and Bulgarian troops. Diplomatists anticipate very little good will result from the conference of the Great Powers on the Roumelian question.