13. A special edition of the Dublin Gazette revoked throughout Ireland the summary powers conferred by the Crimes Act, except in the county Clare and certain baronies in counties Donegal, Galway, and Tipperary. A fire broke out in the wealthy Greek monastery of Simon Petros on Mount Athos, by which the building was completely destroyed and damage done to the extent of 40,000%. 14. A terrible accident occurred at Mönchenstein, near Basle, where a bridge over the river Birse gave way under the weight of an excursion train. Upwards of seventy persons lost their lives, and as many more were severely injured. 15. In the House of Commons the Secretary of State for War expressed the regret of H.R.H. the Prince of Wales for not having required Sir William Gordon-Cumming to submit his case to the Commander-in-Chief. -The Irish Land Purchase Bill, after a prolonged debate, read a third time, and passed by 225 to 96. An agreement signed at Washington between the Governments of the United States and Great Britain for a close time for fur seal fishing in Behring Sea, "with a view of promoting the friendly settlement" of pending questions. - The Select Committee of the House of Commons, to which, after its second reading, the Bill of the Manchester, Sheffield, and Lincolnshire Railway was referred, declared the preamble of the Bill was not proved, implying thereby that neither the St. John's Wood nor any alternative site for the London terminus of the line was acceptable. 16. Sir Charles Dilke presented with an address of congratulation, signed by 10,000 of the inhabitants of Chelsea, on his approaching return to public life. At the Cambridge Congregation honorary degrees were conferred upon the new High Steward, Lord Walsingham; the Marquess of Dufferin and Ava; Sir Alfred Lyall, K.C.B.; Sir Archibald Geikie, F.R.S.; Professor W. Flower, C.B.; Dr. Elias Metschnikoff, Mr. Lecky, and Herr Dvorak. The southern half of the town of Seabright, New Jersey, including two hotels, a church, the post office, many summer residences, and all the business houses, destroyed by fire, of which the damage was estimated at three and a half millions of dollars. 17. The centenary of the birthday of Michael Faraday celebrated at the Royal Institution, the Prince of Wales presiding. Lord Rayleigh delivered a lecture on Faraday's connection with the institution. At the Oxford Commemoration honorary degrees were conferred upon the Duc d'Aumale, the Lord Chancellor (Halsbury), Right Hon. A. J. Balfour, General Sir Donald M. Stewart, Hon. Samuel Way (Chief Justice of South Australia), Dr. Jebb (Professor of Greek at Cambridge), and Mr. Briton Rivière, R.A. 18. In the House of Commons Mr. Buxton carried, by 202 to 186 against the Government, an amendment on the Factories and Workshops Bill, raising the age of "half-timers" from ten to eleven. The Bank of England reduced its rate of discount from 3 to 4 per cent., the reserve standing at 19,435,6971., or 46 per cent. of the liabilities, and the stock of bullion at 27,844,0577. 19. The Eastham section of the Manchester Ship Canal, about four miles in length, flooded and made available for traffic. The Hon. and Rev. Augustus Legge, vicar of Lewisham, nominated Bishop of Lichfield, and Rev. Prebendary Forrest, vicar of St. Jude's, Kensington, appointed Dean of Worcester. A rising of the Assyr Arabians took place in Yemen, the insurgents inflicting a serious defeat on the Turkish troops of the district. 20. The following civil list pensions were granted during the year, commencing from the date of the fifty-third anniversary of the Queen's accession: Miss Ida Bingham, daughter of Colonel C. Bingham, R.A. Misses K. and F. Sullivan, daughters of Dr. Sullivan, Queen's Col- Miss A. C. Macdonald, sister of Colonel A. Macdonald Miss Iza Duffus-Hardy, daughter of Sir T. D.-Hardy £ 100 100 50 100 75 150 50 50 100 80 100 100 100 Dr. R. F. Weymouth Mr. Harrison Weir, animal painter Mrs. Bristow, widow of Mr. W. H. Bristow, geological survey 45 A fire broke out at Messrs. Tussaud's waxwork exhibition in Regent Street, completely destroyed its contents, and seriously damaged the surrounding property. The Prince and Princess of Wales went to Eastbourne to formally open the new children's wing of the All Saints' Convalescent Home. The Regent and the Senaputty of Manipur found guilty of waging war against the Queen, but acquitted of the charge of abetting the murder of the British residents and others. 21. A collision took place on the Lough Swilly Railway, about two miles from Londonderry, between an empty excursion train and a military train conveying the Donegal Artillery Militia to Letterkenny. The engine-driver and stoker of the excursion train were killed, and about fifty of the soldiers were injured. The first section of a new railroad in Tonquin opened, passing through the district of Hu Long Ling, formerly infested by pirates. Balloon accidents took place at Paris and St. Petersburg. At the former a squall of wind carried the balloon against a chimney, and seriously injured the two occupants of the car. At the latter place the balloon escaped whilst being filled, suddenly carried up four men, and then burst, all the men being killed in the descent. 22. The Queen, with several members of the royal family, were present at the marriage of her godchild, Miss Ponsonby (eldest daughter of Sir Henry Ponsonby), at the Guards Chapel, Wellington Barracks. 23. The Emperor of Austria arrived at Fiume, and was received with great enthusiasm by the natives, and warmly greeted by the British fleet, which had been ordered to rendezvous there in honour of his visit. Serious riots took place at Bordeaux, arising out of the strikes of the tramcar men. The police were driven back by the mob, and it was some hours before Hussars could clear the streets. Several persons were seriously injured, and, after one or two rescues, about 100 strikers were conveyed to prison. At a general assembly of the Royal Academy Mr. Frank Dicksee, A.R.A., was elected a full Academician. 24. In the House of Commons the Free Education Bill read a second time by 318 to 10 votes. The foundation stone of the Church House, to be erected on a site near Westminster Abbey, laid by H.R.H. the Duke of Connaught. The ninth jubilee of the foundation of Eton College-the annual celebration of June 4 having been omitted-marked by the consecration of a new chapel, an open-air thanksgiving service, and the opening of an exhibition of Eton relics and portraits. 25. A thunderstorm of unusual severity passed over both Wales and Lancashire, setting on fire buildings, hayricks, &c., and causing the death of nearly twenty persons. In central Germany, on the banks of the Rhine and Moselle, and in Switzerland, rain fell in great quantities, carrying away buildings and bridges, and greatly impeding locomotion. The French Chamber, by 439 to 104 votes, refused to ratify the Brussels Convention for regulating the Slave Trade on the East Coast of Africa, ostensibly on the ground that under it the right of search would be revived, although all the other European powers, except Portugal, had given their adhesion. - The Prince of Wales, after attending the meeting of the Royal Agricultural Society at Doncaster, went to Rotherham to open a people's park, purchased by the Corporation. The marriage of Mr. C. S. Parnell, M.P., and Mrs. O'Shea took place at Steyning, near Brighton, before the district registrar. 26. In the House of Lords, after two evenings' debate, the Irish Land Purchase Bill read a second time without division. The seventeenth celebration of the Handel Festival at the Crystal Palace concluded with the performance of " Israel in Egypt." -The steamship Normandy, running between Dieppe and Newhaven, went ashore in the fog on the rocks off Beachy Head, but was floated off a few hours later by the tide, having sustained no damage. 27. Violent scenes provoked by the ultra-Radicals at the last sitting of the Italian Chamber, in consequence of the President having ruled that an interpellation of Admiral Brin, an ex-minister, on the Triple Alliance should have precedence. The sitting was twice suspended in consequence of the disorder. The South Wales tin-plate manufacturers decided to suspend work in consequence of the large out-put which had been made in anticipation of the effects of the M'Kinley Tariff. Upwards of 20,000 working men were put out of employment by this decision. 28. The German Emperor during his journey down the Elbe, on board the Colva, formally ratified a treaty for the Renewal of the Triple Alliance for a further period of six years, the Italian Prime Minister referring to the fact in his closing speech to the Senate. 29. In the House of Commons, Mr. H. Fowler's instruction on going into Committee on the Free Education Bill to subject all schools to local control rejected by 267 to 166 votes. 1 The following announcement was placarded: "New Tipperary. To be sold by private treaty, in lots to suit purchasers, four streets, one mart, and one weighing machine." The Queen came to London to act as sponsor at the christening of the infant daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Fife, which took place at the Chapel Royal, St. James. Whilst cruising among the Pacific islands and practising gun drill, a 6-inch breechloading gun on board H.M. cruiser Cordelia exploded, killing two officers and four men and wounding seven others. 30. The German Emperor and Empress visited Heligoland, and discussed with the military authorities the various plans for fortifying the island. The Queen conferred a peerage upon Lady Macdonald, the widow of the Canadian premier, Sir J. Macdonald. The Oxford and Cambridge cricket match resulted in the victory of the latter by two wickets. The following were the scores : JULY. 1. Trieste and Fiume ceased to be free ports, their customs duties being assimilated to those of Austria-Hungary. The German Emperor and Empress arrived at Amsterdam, where they were received with many signs of rejoicing and great cordiality by the Dutch people and the two Queens. A terrific tornado, accompanied by thunder and hail, passed over the Crefeld district of Germany and Brunswick, wrecking houses, fields, and forests. Many of the inhabitants were buried under the ruins of their houses and several drowned by the rapidly swollen stream. : - A Brazilian tourist, Senhor Jardin, who had made the ascent of Vesuvius during its increased activity, was suddenly enveloped in the smoke and fell into the crater, his companions narrowly escaping a like fate. The President of the United States issued a proclamation admitting Great Britain, France, Belgium, and Switzerland to the benefits of the New American Copyright Act. 2. The Bank of England reduced the rate of discount to 2 per cent., the reserve standing at 18,245,2117., or 434 of the liabilities, and the stock of bullion at 28,254,2017. The City Treasurer of Philadelphia, whose defalcations amounted to more than 2 millions of public money, lost in private speculation, sentenced to fifteen years solitary confinement, and to pay a heavy fine. 3. A disastrous collision took place at Ravenna, Ohio, between the Erie express from New York and a freight train drawn up at the station. The engines, which were piled up over the carriages, ignited the woodwork, and many passengers were seriously burnt, in addition to those injured by the collision, whilst thirteen people were killed on the spot. On the Kanawha and Michigan Railway, near Charleston, West Virginia, thirteen people were killed and sixty injured by the collapse of a trestle bridge previously injured by fire. A force of 800 infantry, 200 cavalry, and two guns, on the urgent representation of the British Ambassador at Constantinople, despatched to recover an English girl, Miss Kate Greenfield, who had been carried off by the Kurds on the Persian frontier. After much negotiation, Miss Greenfield declared to the British Consul that she had willingly left her home and accepted Islamism. The troops were thereupon withdrawn. 4. The German Emperor and Empress, accompanied by a large suite, arrived at Port Victoria, where they were received by the Prince of Wales and conveyed to Windsor, where their arrival was heartily greeted by a large assemblage. The annual cricket-match between Eton and Winchester, played at Eton, resulting in the defeat of the home eleven : |