The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1876-02-26 00:00:00

THE PRINCE OF WALES IN INDIA.

the experiments tried within the last feW months, in order
that it might be seen Whether this title was or Was not the
best wcapon in Europe. Ile pointed OA that it had been
selected after most careful inquiry, and after a proper trial
had been made of its capabilities.

• Lord Cadogan promised to inquire whether tha Reports
referred to could be produced.
On the motion of Lord Hampton, an address was ordered
to he presented for an amended Return relating to Churches
built or restored at a cost exceeding £5OO since 1540.
Their Lordships then adjourned.
In the HMO OF CoINONS, Ifr. Whitbread moVed his two
Resolutions on the Fugitive Slave Cifoulars, which declare
that a slave once admitted to the protection of the British
Flag should be treated as free while on board Her Majesty's
ships, and that an Address be presented to the Crown pray-
ing for the revocation of all Circulars and Insiructions con-
travening this Rule. lie disclaimed at the outset any desire
to make a Party question of it, or to exculpate one Govern-
ment at the expense of another. He maintained as the
reason for, his motion that the conjoint effect of all the
Circulars and Instructions made it imperative for Parlia-
ment to intervene and lay down a clear line of policy. As
to slaves taken on board on the High Seas the law had
never been doubted ekcept by the First Circular, and.
he confined himself, therefore, mainly to the recep-
tion and treatment of slaves on board Her Majesty's
ships in foreign waters. Under the first head he maintained
that the Circular surrendered the exterritoriality of our
public ships, and he entered into a minute verbal criticism
of the Second Circular to show that at every possible point it
leaned against Vat) side of freedom. Admitting that domestic
slavery must be attacked as an institution and not by regula-
tions merely affecting individuals, he asked for a return to
the old system, by which the discretion of commandefs of
our ships should be unfettered. Who, he asked, had called
for the Circular ?—to which Mr. Hardy replied "Lord
Northbrook ; " but Mr. Whitbread preferred to believe it was
,the lawyers who wanted a Circular to save themselves
trouble. A Royal Commission, he believed, was quite un-
neeessary ; and if the Government found themselves hampered
by their lawyers he appealed to the independent members to
, assert our traditionary anti-slavery policy.

•
Mr. Hanbury moved as an Amendment, that it is desirable
to await further information from the Report of a Royal
Commission as to past Instructions to Naval Officers, the
international obligations of the country, and the attitude of
other countries in regard to the treatment of domestic
slaves received on board national ships, After bearing
testimony to the moderatioa with which Mr. Whitbread had
dealt with the question, he argued that we should not
act solely on generous impulses fanned by Party animosity.
He gave up the First Circular altogether, but with regard
to the second he maintained that it went further in
favour of the slave than the Instructions of preced-
ing Governments. In fact, the Government could
have gone no finther, hampered as they were by
International Law and the proceedings of their predeces-
s )rs. The only occasion on which Fugitive Slaves had
actually been surrendered was by order of some Leader of
the Party opposite. To illustrate this he read despatches
from Lord ralmeraton and Lord Clarendon, and he par-
ticularly referred to the Instructions of 1a35, and the Act
passed Oy the late Government in 1873, which had swept
away all the machinery for compensating the slaveholder
and providing for the slave. In the present state of Inter-
national Law and the existing Instructions it .was. not pos-
sible to decide off hand, and a Royal Commission was
•absolutely necessary to enable the Government to act effi-
ciently and justly.

' Mr. Forster admitted that Lord Clarendon's Letter, which he
much regretted, made it impossible for the late Government to
treat this motion as a Party attack, and for that reason there
could be nothing humiliating in the present Government
accepting Mr. Whitbread's Resolution. It laid down a
principle to which nobody could object, and the Commission
was quite unnecessary, for all the information it was to ob-
tain was already well known. As to the attitude of foreign
nations, he could see no reason why it should affect eur
action. Moreover, the Commission would be dangerous,
because it would prevent the Circular being withdrawn,
and its Report would fetter the Government in their ulti-
mate action.

The Attorney-General explained that when the Law Officers
were first consulted on the subject Sir J. Karslake and Sir It.
Baggallay were in office, and in forming their opinion they
had the assistance of Dr. Deane, the Standing Counsel of the
Foreign Office. Subsequently be was consulted, and gave his
adhesion to the legal doctrine laid down in their letter. Sir
John, therefore, defended.the First Circular and the legal doc-
trines on which it was founded, and controverted the popu-
lar notion about the deck of a British ship being British
.ground, on which the action was based. If it was good for
Fughive Slaves it was good for escaped felons, and there
was so much difficulty and so many Inconveniences about
the policy rec,mmended in the motion that it ought not to
be adopted without inquiry. The Second Circular, no doubt,
was more fAvourable to the slave, but he riaiculrd the sug-
gestion that either was intended to serve the interest of the
slave trader.

Sir John Hay, Mr. Ashley, Mr. Morgan, Mr. A. Mills, Mr.
W. Holm., and Mr. Ri chic having addressed the House,
Sir 11. James, in defending the late Government from the
counter attacks of Mr. Hanbury and Mr. A. Mills, admitted
that Lord Clarendon's Letter was tot consonant with the
Resolution, but that, he maintained, was an argument why
the Ministerialists should join in the Resolution. But there
was this distinction, that the Second Circular was a proclama-
tion to all the world, while Lrd,Clarendon's Letter was never
seen by the Law Officers nor any member of the Cabinet. As
to the Act of 1873, the present Government, not having
objected to it, were responsible for it as private
members. Acknowledginr; the manliness with which the
Attorney-General had defended the First Circular, lie pointed
out that he was already answered by Lord Cairns and Mr.
Disraeli, and if it was right the Second Circular was a gross
breach of International Law. But, under any circumstances,
It contained obligations in favour of slaveholders which we
were not called on to sanction. He admitted that the ex-
territoriality of a ship of war was, subject to qualifica-
tions, but though international courtesy might call upon the
captain of a ship to assist in carrying out the law of a
place he never could be asked to enforce a condition so
abhorrent to this people as slavery. That was the object of
the Resolution,—that we should not be compelled to enforce
slavery. There was no law at all in the Second Circular,
and no doubt purposely. bir lilenry touched next on the
policy of the Circular, compared it with the more humane
and liberal instructions as to political refugees, and pre-
dicted that whatever might be the result of the vote the
Circular was dead from this moment, and never could be
acted on.

Mr. Hardy remarked that Sir IL James had not denied
that.the Second Circular was in conformity with the law,
and it was the law which the Government had to defend.
Arguing in support of the Circular, Mr. Hardy maintained
that the exterritoriality of a public ship was not perfect,
quoting "Historicus" in illustration of the nuisance
public ship acting on the contrary assumption must be-
come, and pointing out that a desire not to offend is
an important part of our relations with foreign coun-
ties. He cited also Dr. Lushington to show that we
had recognised domestic slavcry. Further than that
the Act of 1873, passed by the late Government, actually
recognised and compelled the surrender of slaves ; but the
Resolution, which laid down no definite rule at all to guide
Naval Officers, would not in the least touch the slaves who
were dealt with under that Act. To the question, Why was
the Circular issued? he replied by quotations from the
recently-issued Parliamentary Papers, illustrating the con-
fused state of things in leirtsian Gulf, and the absolute
necessity for giving specifill ections to our commanders.
We were bound in this ter, he urged, by Treaties,
by International Law, and by Acts of Parliament, which
could not be set aside by a Resolution of the House of
Commons. The Royal Commission would inform the public
mind of the difficulties which lay in the way of the imme-
diate extinction of slavery, and would show that the Govern-
ment, in taking this step openly and above board, had acted
in the interests of personal liberty, and had done th—eir duty
as Englishmen and English Ministers.
On the motion of Mr. Herschel], the Debate was adjourned
until Thursday night.
The LI ouse adjourned at a quarter past twelve o'clock.

In the HOUSE OF COMMONS, Feb. 23, Mr. Fawcett gave
notice that on the motion for going into committee on the
Commons Bill he will move a resolution m an amendment to
the effect that in the opinion of the House the Bill does not
give adequate protection to the interests of • the rural
labourer, and does not provide proper securities against
the enclosure of those commons that it is desirable to keep
in an unenclosed condition for the use and enjoyment of the
people.

Captain Nolan moved the Second Reading of the Electora
County Boards (Ireland) Bill, which he explained was a
measure designed to remove certain grievances in re-
gard to County Boards in Ireland. In that country the
Sheriff summonses any twenty-three persons he chooses
residing in the county to form a Central Board to decide
all questions of county policy and local taxation. He
contrasted this system with those of our Colonies and of
foreign countries, where, instead of being left to the
Sheriff, the Boards in counties or departments, or divi-
sions of the country corresponding to them were to a great
extent elective. This system he wished to apply to Ireland.
The Bill was founded on the machinery of the Town Com-
missioners' Act and the Ballot Act. These were three im-
portant principles in the Bill; the first was that ail the
members of the county boards were to be elected ; the
second was that no one elector should have more votes than
another; and, lastly, the voting qualification was not less
than £lO.

Mr. Kavanagh moved that the Bill be read a second time
this day six months. He contended that the present system
had worked well, and that there was no necessity for the
change proposed by the measure before the House. The
preamble of the Bill was objectionable, and conveyed the
impression that the ratepayers had no control over the
county expenditure, which might appear to some to be
theoretically correct, but which was practically wrong If
any anomalies in the present system, which he admitted
was not absolutely perfect, required removing, it could be
better dome by another measure which stood on the paper
for consideration to-day than by the Bill before the House.
After remarks from Mr. O'Clery, Mr. Conolly, Mr. Butt,
and Mr. Mulholland, the O'Conor Don denied that the grand
juries of Ireland had any power to levy taxation, and op-
posed Captain Nolan's Bill.
Mr. S. Moore, Mr. Dawning, Mr. Macartney, and Kr.
Whalley having also addressed the House,

Sir M. Hicks-Beach doubted whether Parliament, in
dealing with this question, would rashly sweep away a
system which, however unsatisfactory in theory, had proved
useful and beneficial in action. Those who had charge of
local affairs in Ireland had proved themselves pure and
efficient, and he reminded the House that if they made a
clean sweep of the grand juries so far as fivancial affairs
were concerned, and transformed those affairs to county
boards, those boards would have no more control over taxa-
tion than the grand juries had at present. He was quite
ready, however, to support the Bill cl Mr. Kavanagh,
which would deal more satisfactorily with the question
than the present measure, and would place the control of
financial matters in the hands of boards which would be
identical in character and composition with the highway
boards of England and Wales. The proposal of Captain
Nolan was an endeavour to amend the system at the wrong
end. It was universally admitted that the system re-
quired amendment, and that it should be amended so as to
secure a real representation both of owners and occupiers.
That was his own wish, and he had hoped that he
would have been able to deal with the question him-
self this year in the lines he had indicated, but as it was Mr.
Kavanagh's Bill should Wave his hearty support, though he
would not pledge himself to all its details. That Bill,
instead of attempting to sweep away a system which Was
old, which was popular, ad the continuance of which was
recommended by the highest authorities, dealt only with
.those points of the subject required to be dealt with, and
secured to the cesspayers a voice in the management of their
county finances.
Uaptain "Nolan triefly replied, and offered to withdraw
his Bill in favour of one introduced by Mr. Butt • but the
speaker pointed out that that Could not be done unless the
amendment were first withdrawn.

• Mr. Kavanagh refused to withdraw the amendment.
'The debate was continued by Mr. Stacpoole, Mr. 11. Her-
bert, Mr. O'Sullivan, -Mr. Beresford, Mr. Callan, and Mr.
French, and the second reading of the Bill was then nega-
tived without a division.
Mr. Butt then moved the second reading of the Grand
Jury Presentments, Sze. (Ireland) Bill.
Mr. Kavanagh moved its rejection, and the House at once
divided :—For the Bill, 153; agb.inst, 181; majority, 22. The
Bill was therefore lost.

The other business was then disposed of, and the House
ad j(4urued.

NONSENSE FOR NONSENSE.—Suvaroff, the half
road-, half-savage Russian general, used frequently to
11.4 c the young officers and soldiers the most absurd
quetions, considering it a proof of smartness on their
part if they gave a prompt reply, and hating above ,
all things I don't know 'as an answer. He one day
went up to a sentry, and, as the man presented arms,
Suvaroff said, "Tell me how many buttons there are
on the uniforms of 50,000 men?"—" I can't say," re-
plied the soldier, very naturally; upon which the
. marshal, according to his custom, began to abuse him
and rate him for his stupidity. The soldier, however,
knowing Suvaroff's character, took courage, and said,
"Well, sir, perhaps it's not every question your ex-
cellency could answer yourself; for instance, there are
my two aunts—would you please to tell me their
names?" The man's quickness atoned for his impu-
dence in the eyes of the general, and the soldier was
made a corporal next morning.

The following are extracts from the interesting letter of
the Special Correspondent of The Times :
MIINDIAGHAT, Feb. 20.
"The short march of to-day brought the Prince of
Wales to the limits of Ifritish India and to the frontier
of Robilcund Bast, and the shooting excursion in
British territory has terminated. The results did not
answer expectations, but a comliination of circum-
stances led to disappointment. Royal tigers have
wills of their own, and will not be driven like tame
animals, and so it happened that when the most
likely spot was select( d by the most experieiiied
person for tigers to come' they went some °flier
way. Tue season has not yet commenced. It is
too early. The tigers are on the move all over the
country, and have abandoned their usual haunts.
It is poor consolation ti be told that a month later
many will be shot where now deer wander unmolested.
This last week was indeed a decided improvement on
the former, but it was not all that could be desired.
At the risk of repeating what has been rent through
other channels, I will recapitulate what was done. It
must be remembered that for tiger shooting a sports.
man must abandon all other game. Not a shot, must
be fired, and the less ambitious sportsmen were
generally rather pleased than otherwise when they
were told off for general shooting. This, however,
they rarely enjoyed, for it happened almost invariably
that as they formed elephants in line and spread over
the country, some villagers appeared with the news of
tiger close at hand, and then there was a halt, a con-
sultation and order of battle, a beat through swamp and
jungle hour after hour, till the declining sun warned the
hunters that it was time to form column of march
towards their next camp. There has, however, been
a considerable amount of game killed, from bears and
deer of various kinds down to florican, partridge, and
snipe, and the two large and two small tigers to be
mentioned hereafter. The life for those who enjoy
perpetual change and unrest, especially on elephant
back, is interesting, and is certainly healthy, and
hope that lives eternal in the human breast animates
them with a prospect of good sport to-morrow to atone
for the small luck of to-day.
"On Monday, St. Valentine's Day, the Prince's
camp at Tendab, where his Royal Highness arrived on
Saturday, was broken up and moved to a nullab, while
the shooters, divided into four parties, were despatched
in different directions. The Prince took with him
Lord Alfred Paget, Lord Aylesford, Lord Charles
Beresford, Major General Probyn, Mr. Knollys, Mr.
Rose, of the 10th Hussars, Mr. Hall, and your Corre-
spondent ; and the party, led by General Ramsay,
moved across the open country with 52 elephants in
line, killing boar, deer, and partridge till we reached
the edge of the jungle, where it was expected to
find tigers. The grass was high and thick, and pro-
gress slow. Towards the end of the beat there was
agitation among the elephants and excitement among
the occupants of the howdahs. The jungle evidently
held large game, and presently sight was caught of two
dark forms for a moment, but it was some time before
one of these became visible and was fired at and killed.
It was a fine sloth bear, 6ift. long, weighing 2501 b.
Presently a beast rushed from the front. Mr.
M'Donald called out 'Tiger gone back,' and the
elephants came into line and beat the jungle once
more. The Prince was placed in the middle. In two
or three minutes the elephants near him gave way to
some animal, and from the edge of the jungle, looking
across a small rivulut, I saw another bear between me
and the Prince, crouched as if listening. It ran
forward. The Prince fired and it dropped, but got
up again and rushed out of the jungle, charging at
elephant in its way. Several shots were fired as it
scrambled into the rivulet, and as it mounted near the
bank it gave a whine or moan and rolled over, struck
by a fatal ball from the jungle, It was another sloth
hear—a female of extraordinary size and weight.
These creatures are exceedingly fierce and mischievous
and Mr. M`Donald had official knowledge of eight
persons having been killed in two consecutive nights
by one of theft: The jungles, however, yielded no
greater game, and General Ramsay said, with some
trace of humour that would have boded ill to one of
the genus, The niggers are beating us.' The other
parties were not more successful. . . .
• "On the 15th of February the camp was moved to
Ooncha Gong. The Prince with General Ratnsay
and party went.off again after tigers, which were con-
fidently expected to be found in certain jungles.
Another party, under Sir Samuel Brown, was formed
for general shooting. While enjoying very good sport,
two villagers ran across with positive news of tigers,
and showed a calf killed the previous night near at
hand, but in a swamp of extraordinary depth. Lord
C. Beresford and I were sent on to guard the exit. We
waited an hour, but there was no sign of the others:
We heard much shouting, and went to ascertain the
cause, when we found General Brown's elephant had
sunk in a deep hole, from whic‘a it was only extricated,
after much time and hard work, utterly exhausted.
Another elephant met with a similar misfortune. This
was unlucky, because a tiger was heard, and his foot-
prints'were seen just before us. Thebeat wascontinued,
but the brute had been alarmed, and got off. Lord C.
Beresford, en route, gotat a crocodile lathe swamp, and
a large bear was seen by the beaters, which hastily de-
scended from atree at the noise of shots fired atmonk eye.
Search was made in a tremendous nullab, under Mr.
Colvin's direction, for the bear, and for a reported
leopard, but all in vain. The Prince came in to the
camp later with a tigress, which had been found
with three cubs in thick grass just as she had struck
down a deer. The honour of killing her was divided
between Lord Carington and Major-General Probyn,
as the Prince would not take credit for his
shot, which struck the tigress in her first bound.
She measured eight feet and a half, and was very
lanky—a milch tigress. The Prince's party also
killed a fine sloth bear. On going up to her, two
cubs were found near the body. The animals charged
the elephants and men viciously, but became quiet
when they were put up with their dead mother on a
pad elephant. They are now doing very well. The
tiger cubs got away. A mailed anteater, or mania,
was also brought in alive. It could only be uncoiled
by pouring water on its scales. There were deer and
sundries to boot _ _

February 16.
"Our elephants are becoming quite familiar and
friendly. The Prince's is a remarkably fine creature,
of great height, and has a very fine, easy gait for an
elephant. The Prince gives her bread, cakes, fruit,
&e., every morning, and the animal makes a salaam
with its proboscis when his Royal Highness comes out.
of his tent. But with all their amiable and excellent',
qualities, and some very bad ones, elephants are not
easy in their paces, and when travelling in howdahs'
loses the charm of novelty—as it does verjoebeedily—
it is only the excitement of sport which eilables frail
human nature to encounter it-cheerfully. -J:A howdah;
is like a small Hansom cab without hood or wheels,
with the driver's seat behind, instead of above you.
You sit in front, with a gun-rack on each side. To most
of the party troopers of the Central India Horse have
been told off as shikarees, to load, look Out, pick up
game, clear guns &c. but the Prince always takes
Mr. Robertson behind' him in the howdah. To-day
there was a short march to a new halting-place at
Sassoonah, six miles off, but General Ramsay decided
on a wide sweep to beat the jungle where the tigress
was killed, to see if the tiger had come to visit his
mate although he does not care for his young ones.
The whole party, with one or two exceptions, went on
this beat. It was nearly one o'clock before the line of
elephants-70 in,number—was formed outside a swamp
which presented unusual difficulties the water being
3ft. deep, with mud-holes, &c. The reeds and grass
of the jungle were fully 29ft. high, so that one
could not see' his neighbour's head, though all stood
up in the howhahe. The Prince's elephant nearly
stuck several times before the beat was over, but
on coming out into the clear grass, no tiger had
been found. This beat lasted three-quarters of an
hour. The line was re-formed for a second beat, which
lasted till three o'clock, but the tiger was not at home.
General Ramsay was much disappointed at this ill-
luck. After lunch the elephants formed for general
shooting homewards, but the country was under cul-
tivation in parts, and the elephants were not permitted
to go over the fields, so the bag was small. A tedious
journey was made homewards. Towards dark the
horizon was glowing with innumerable camp fires, for
nearly every native has his own cooking-place. Several
rivers of respectable size were forded on the way. It
was quite dark when the Prince reached his camp at
Sassoonah. The tents were pitched in a beautiful tope
of mangoe and other trees, such as old Native Rulers
caused to be planted all over this region, a work of
true charity, affording welcome shelter to the way-
farers. . . .
"February 18.
"The whole of his Royal Highness's party left the
camp together, General Ramsay leading them, with
confidence of success founded on recent reports, to
an immense extent of prairie by the banks of the
river Deva. All members of General Ramsay's de-
partment with him in the camp joined, and there
was an immense array of elephants, which formed a
line of more than 610 yards closely packed. The
Prince generally occupied the centre of the line which
advanced with its flanks slightly thrown forward, guns
being sent on ahead to guard passes, Before leaving
several of the suite visited the shrine of Nanuck Goroo,
and found there several ascetics and pilgrims, who never
y.
yecplail
elephants
eatldnioktbelstio khdmseiadbt
crossedrsent
dhohet
ytoßhbf
peroelayaDa Royal
keale
svre
gahTeoh,
swarmingoor
nvie nertgrhapoe
ra%
eruwt
dried-up
tki; ka
quicksand,
u begandlc2.,
duck,
%tell
e,tirahei
Ihnae,
which were
to b,wi
nf_nitasaa, doneim4dyiooi
sn.e
animal
ntx
idinmaadmirably,sgaatntle hdr o
otmanner
see acrrnsaaGn: ejeaeon;
t: re ad
by
a sa y sand snipe. Ground so extensive required careful beat
Lieutenants,iof Major-
General
ge,le ap nh dapn
Bas
and
cthatthe
e i at
onlyr inwasarmy
dimanpgoesrßibwrea's bf the tiger, if he were there; breaking
through. -It was near two O'clock when the elephants
gave notice of something unusual in front; The line had
contracted towards the village of Mahoma Pore Boreea,
forming a kind of loop, with the Prince in the centre,
near a small nullah and cleared space. Suddenly the
-grass on the left moved, and a tiger bounded in the direc-
tion.of the Prince. It appeared certain that he would
have a shot, and, to give him a chance, thoee who saw
the tiger b-st called out, . "Do not fire." but
just at that moment some one fired on the Prince's
left from the other side- of the loor, and the tiger
bounded back before .the Prince could see 'it well
enough to shoot. The-betagt• charged right on to the
line of elephants to withiaia few feet of Major-General
Probyn, receiving fire from: "the howdahs as it went,
and r9lling over on the grass in its dying agonies.
cerbeYd s.
moved wwhaos
mA cv aeuat itohues
grassappr oaascihd
ew aa en
cti. a ap•
all over. A splendid male tiger, 101 t. Jong, beauti-
fully marked, lay stone dead, shot threeigh the back
of the neck and head. • It was stapp,ond by some 'of
the party that they SAW a 'tigress.' gbing away, but
Mr. Macdonald, who says he knows every, inch of the
jungle, thinks they were mistaken. ,However, the
line was reformed, and the beat contiauW ,wiahout
success. Tnere was a very. high viingla 'l4 the duet
and heat were troublesome.s,,lcpcMclea, and, 'dark
when the Prince arrived at Katteema. ver7 one felt
disappointed that he had not had the 'opportunity
which ought to have been his of the first shot at the
tiger, and General Ramsay was the more so because it
was the last day of his *eoting excursion. . . .
"February 19.
_ _ _

"The meeting between the Prince of Wales and Sir
Jung Bahadoor to-day was very interesting. Tents