Rensselaer Republican, Volume 27, Number 29, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 26 March 1896 — FOREIGN [ARTICLE]

FOREIGN

• George E. Wilson, who says he embezzled $230 from the Armour Company, of Chicago, has given himself up to the London police. The French Minister for Foreign Affairs, M. Berthelot, announced at a Cabinet council that he had asked the British Ambassador, the Marquis of Dufferin, for Information regarding the proposed advance of British Egyptian'troops up the Nile and stated that he had pointed out to the Ambassador the serious conseqUeuees of such an ad vance. The British steamer Matadi, which sailed from Sierra Leone Feb. 6, has been totally destroyed by an explosion of gunpowder. Some of her passengers and crew were saved. The whole fore part of the Matadi was blown into the air, and, forty persons were killed, including a missionary named Hawk and his wife. It has been learned that the explosion oc- ' eurred at Boma March 7. Boma or Bomma is on the Congo River, only about fifty miles from its mouth. Twenty of the Mntridi’s crew, two passengers, jand sixteen native laborers were killed. Sixteen of the crew escaped without serious injury. The Matndi had on board ten toils of gunpowder, a auantity which sufficiently accounts for the (j*sa s ft*bus effects of the explosion. The mails and the specie which were qn board were saved. The victims of the accident were asleep at the time of the disaster. The officers of the steamer escaped. Evidences of great activity, political and commercial, in the affairs of Japan, China and the countries of the far East come to the legations in Washington. As a result of Japan’s prosperity, brought about by the successes in the war with China that.country has not only determined to largely augment her navy, but also to establish commercial steamship lines connecting the United States with Japan. The Japan Steam Navigation Company is preparing to enter this new fielftTrunning between San Francisco and Yokohama, in competition with the Pacific Mail and Oriental and Occidental lines now controlling this trade. An important consideration in projecting the new Japanese line has been that of railway connection east from San Francisco, but in the event of a determination of the Pacific railways not to give the same rates as those given to the old steamship lines, which are branches of the railways, it is said the Japanese company, supported by ample subsidies from the Japanese Government, will be prepared to run at a loss in order to establish a foothold. The Cuban insurgents have dealt Spain a crushing blow. Trustworthy information has been received at New York from Havana that the battle fought a few days ago in Pinar del Rio, which the dispatches sent out with the sanction of the press censor described as a Spanish victory, was in reality a lamentable defeat for the forces of Gen. Weyler. This news reached Havana Thursday and wns sent to New York in a brief cipher cablegram. The source of the information leaves no doubt of its reliability; The Spanish officials will not permit the report of insurgent suceess to be sent out of Havana. It is expected that the details of the battle will be smuggled over to Tampa and there put on the wires. The late press dispatches from Havana say that officials now admit that the battle was a fiercely contested one and that it was attended with serious consequences to the Spanish. It is the firm opinion in New York among persons informed of events in Cuba that the Spanish cause is lost. It"is also believed, despite denials, that this last defeat will so- add to the dissatisfaction .against Gen. Weyler that either his designation or recall will soon follow. The socialists of Rome turned out in force to welcome hack to Rome and liberty the leader of thqir party, Giuseppe d,e de Felice. • De Felice is a Sicilian and was formerly a member of the Chamber of Deputies. Eariy in 1894 he wgs arrested on the charge of plotting with the exiled anarchists Cypriote and Sig. Casilli, another deputy, of planning a revolution which had for it# ultimate aim the overthrow of the monarchy. They succeeded in causing Serious uprising in Sicily and other parts of Ifyt^y,„ip which considerable blood was shed and much property was destroyed. De Felice and

about forty of Bis companions were tried and sentenced to varions terms of imprisonment, and while in prison several of them were re-elected or elected members of the Qhamher of Deputies. Atyong the former were De Felice, Bgrbato and Bosco. But on July 18 last the Chamber of Deputies annulled their elections on the ground the men wete convicts. The socialists, however, took the ground that as the prisoners were sentenced by a military tri: buna! for offenses Of a purely polißcar'nature they were not convicts in the proper sense of the term.. It was expected De "Felice, Bosco and Barbato would appear in the Chamber of Deputies when the , new cabinet made its first appearance before the house and claim their rights as deputies.--——— - 1 Paris dispatch: Tie French Government gives evidence that the announcement made by M. Berthelot of the remonstrance he had offered against the Egyptian campaign up the Nile in a conversation wiih the Marquis of Dufferin has been taken much more seriously than it was prepared for., The outbreak of approval from the French press and thq people and the popular clamor for even more decisive measures of protest seem to have alarmed the Government and awak, ened an apprehension that it is being precipitated into a position of hostility to the plan of Great Britain, backed by the approval of the Dreibund, which might entail Jhe gravest consequences. The enthusiasm awakened in France, in fact, seems to enter more into the apprehensions. of the French minister than the irritation abroad. As a consequence step# have been taken to dull a little the seem, ingly sharp edge of the communication made to the British Ambassador by M. Berthelot, the minister of foreign affairs. The following explanation, with its distinct tone of deprecation, is made semiofficially. “Fance intended unequivocally to. intimate that she did not intend to ignore the matter. But this* in no wis# implies a hostile attitude. On the con, trary, they think that, in view of the mutual friendly relations, frank and outspoken language will contribute to the removal of misunderstandings.” The Italia of Rome Thursday, comment, •mg upon the British-Egyptian advance up the" Nile, said: “The Egyptian advance on Dongola is a great advantage to Italy. Italy, however, has been of great service to Great Britain in affording her a pretext for showing* Europe that the time to speak of the evacuation of Egypt haa not yet arrived.” The statement of the Italia seems to contain the political situation in a nutshell. The anti-Egyptian expedition up the Nile is a decided advantage to Italy. It will check the swarming of the dervishes 1 toward the Italian territory; it may prevent the fall 61 Cass.nla, and it will enable theTtalinn army in Africa to recover from the shock and disorder which followed the battle of Adowa; it will enable the Italians to relieve and reinforce their garrisons and obtain much’ better terms from King Menelek should it be found in the long run advisable to bring about “peace and honors.” The British advance has also solidified the dreibund, even if it has not cemented a quadruple, alliance (which' is most seriously discussed at Rome); it has strengthened the badly impaired credit of Italy and has enabled her to assume her place among the powers at a time when her enemies were predicting that the dreibund would be dissolved and that Italy would be deserted. Finally the advance of the Anglo-Egyptian troops up the Nile has restored confidence in Italy and it has strengthened the foundations of King Humbert’s throne, which were rudely shaken by the Adowa disaster and the popular outbreaks which followed throughout Italy. , I——