The Sun.
London, England, 1868-05-05 00:00:00

now.

CORRESPONDENCE FROM ABYSSINIA.

The latest correspondence from Abyssinia is contained
in the Daily News. The date is Talanta Plateau, April
9, the day before the battle in which the Theodore was de-
feated. The writer says :—" During the last two days
the staff have been engaged in a reconnaissance of
Theodore's position, of which a tolerable view may be
obtained from the point *here the King's road leaves
the crest of the Talanta plateau to descend towards
the Bashilo River. Standing hero the beholder's
mind and eye are at first bewildered by the maze
of mountains, plateaux, and ravines, which fof
some time appear to be inextricably entangled upon the
opposite side of the stream. The chaos may be, however,
partially resolved by. patient peering through a telescope.
Only small portions of the muddy Bashilo can be seen
',clew, but three very distinctly marked watercourses run
into it from the south, and afford a clue to the topography
of the district on its left bank. The centre of the three
ascends in a tolerably straight line until its termination
becomes a ravine in the breast of a mountain, the
crest of wl•ich is nine-and-a-half miles distant. This
mountain appears to be theee-cornered. The eastern ex-
tremity is the highest, and, from the position at which I
have supposed the spectator to stand, bears south by about
30 degrees eact ; to it we have given the name of Salasee
(the Trinity), one properly bel,Mging to a small church
perched upon it. The southern end, of which only a
little can be seen from the King's road, is Magdala;
the western one is as yet without A designation.
Theodore's road follows this same centre ravine for
about three miles, and then climt s a spur tending
westwards, or to the right ; the top of the spur is
fiat, and forms the Faali plateau. After traversing this
plateau, and going for a short distance directly south or
straight up the slope, the road turns east, and passes out of
sight over the ridge connecting the Salasee and thewestern
extremities of the mountain, seeming to make for
Magdala. A sing of precit ices, in which there is apparent
only a single break, encircles the Salasee summit, which
is capped with a flat rock about 400 yards in diameter.
Theodore does not appear to have himself made use
of the rock, which is supposed to command and to
be welt within artillery range of Magdala ; but to
prevent our occupying it he has pitched his camp within
the circle of cliffs which, 200 or 300 feet below and 500
yards distant, form a border round Salasee. With a good
glass the white and the brown ridged tents of his men Can
be seen by hundreds on Salasee ; the majority of an
Abyssinian army are generally accommodated in small
grass huts, but the distance is too great to distinguish
these. The watercourses to the right and left of the
middle one are said to curve back, particularly the right
or western one, and turn in rear of the Salasee-Magdala
mountain ; they include a Whole series of flat-topped
hills. To view Magdala itself well it is necessary to
seek a more westerly position on the Talanta plateau,
from which a fair view can be got of the north-west of
the Amba. Very near the top it is encircled with a
continuous line of fresh precipices. A second row can be
seen beneath, but it is does not apparently go quite round;
on the top of the hill and on lower terraces are large, well-
built houses with thatched conical roofs. There are also
trees, and altogether Magdala is, next to Chelicut, the
most comfortable-looking village we have seen. On the
top of the upper precipice is a black line, which looks like
an earthen parapet. No other trace of artificial fortifica-
tions, and no guns have as yet been made out there or at
the camp."

The Belfast papers mention that the Rev. Dr.
M'Cosh, one of the Queen's College professors, has,
without any application on his part, been unanimously.
elected President of Princeton University, United
States, and has just received a telegram announcing
the fact.

In consequence of no application for a commuta-
tion of sentence having been made by Messrs. Sullivan
and Pigott, the press prisoners, nor any promise given that
they will respect the law in future, the Lord-Lieutenant
of Ireland has announced that he is unable to comply with
the memorial from the Corporation of Dublin soliciting
their release.

The correspondent of a New Yolk paper says
that Ju: r .z, the President of Mexico, celebrated his birth-
day on the 24th of March, at Chapultepec, a suburb of
the city of Mexico, under the shadow of a grove of
cypress trees, the favourite sleeping-place of Montezuma.
One of these cypresses was an old tree in Montezuma's
g ime. Chapultepec was a favourite spot also of the
Emperor Maximilian.

MURDER AND ATTEMPTED SUICIDE IN DEVON-
HIRE.—On Monday morning a farmer, named John
Strickland, living near Hayle, killed his child, a little girl
three years old, by cutting her throat. He afterwards
attempted suicide, and made a dangerous wound in his
own throat. It appears that the wife of the unfortunate
man is now lying dead, and her property reverts to her
children by a former marriage, This, it is supposed,
preyed upon his mind and led to the murder and attempted
self-destruction.— - Western Morning Neto%

THE ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATION OF THE DUKB
OF EDINBURGH.—On Sunday a pastoral from Cardinal
Cullen was read in all the Roman Catholic churches in
Dublin, in which reference was made to the late attack on
the Duke of Edinburgh. His Eminence denounced the
act in the strongest terms, pointing out the peculiar
atrocity of it as directed against a popular and unoffending
young prince. He emphatically condemned all secret
societies, and warned his flock to abstain from joining
them on pain of incurring the censure of the Church of
Rome.

TRADES UNIONIST IN TIMIDATION. —A day Or two
ago, at the Bolton Police•court, James Bleakley was
charged with endeavouring by threats and intimidation to
compel Patrick Owen to leave the employment of Messrs.
Thomasson and Sons, cotton-spinners. It appears that
there is a dispute in the trade in the locality, and it was
an object with certain parties to keep men from working
for Messrs. Thomasson. The prosecutor stated that the
prisoner had threatened that he should be killed and have
his back broken if he did not leave off working for the
firm. The prisoner was sentenced to a month's hard
labour.

THE ROYAL VISIT TO LEEDS.—In connection
with the inaguration of the Grand National Art Trea-
sures Exhibition at Leeds by the Prince of- Wales there
are to be public and private entertainments and festivities.
The ceremonial will probably be arranged for Tuesday,
the 10th instant, and on the evening of that day the
Prince and Princess will attend a grand ball to be given
by the mayor (Mr. Andrew Fairbairn). Their Royal
Highnesses will accept the hospitalities of Templenewsam,
the seat of Mr. H. C. M. Ingram, which is situate a few
miles east from Leeds, and is surrounded by an extensive
park and pleasure grounds, finely shaded with patriarchal
woods. The noble families of Lennox, Irwine, and Hert-
ford have resided at Templenewsm. It contains a small
but very choice gallery of paintings.

THEODORE AND THE FRENCH GUNMAKER.—TIIO
Memorial de ice Loire gives some particulars respecting a
French gunmaker, named Bourgaud, who was for some
time in the service of King Theodore, but whose fate seems
at present uncertain. He formerly carried on business at
St. Etienne, and ten years since conceived the idea that
he might open a profitable-trade in Abyssinia. Proceeding
thither he was warm'y received by the King, and treated
with distinction, and is even said to have been made a prince.
But when M. Bourgaud desired 0 leave, he discovered
that to get into Abyssinia was easier than to get out of it.
The Negus found him too useful,•from his special know-
ledge of arms, to part with, and he was retained in a sort
of honourable imprisonment. Three years elapsed, and
his wife, despairing of his return, decided on going with
their children to Magdala with a view of bringing him
back to France. They also were well received, but were
likewise prevented from returning to Europe. What has
become of M. Bourgaud and his family is not yet known.

CONFLICT WITH A BURGLAR. —A desperate en-
counter with a burglar is reported from Sedbergh, on the
borders of Westmoreland and Yorkshire. It appears
that a }light or two since a man named James Bracken,
residing at Pedgecroft, near Sedbergh, whilst asleep
in bed with his wife, was aroused by the latt'r, who said
there was a light in the house, and she thought somebody
was in it. He immediately got up, and, without dress-
ing, ran down stairs, when he beard some person go out by
one of the back windows, and, running to the door, saw a
man leave the yard and hurry towards an adjo!ning field.
Bracken followed in pursuit, overtaking and collaring the
fugitive, whom he endeavoured to arrest. A struggle
ensued. The burglar drew a large knife, and made a
furious but happily fruitless attack ul on Lis captor,
endeavouring to stab him ; but Bracken seized the fellow's
hand, and at the same time tripping up his heels, threw
him to the ground. The villain, however, succeeded in
getting up, when he again made at P•racken ; but he
failed in his murderous attempt, was again knocked down,
and losing the knife in the struggle that ensued upon
the ground, was overpowered. He was then secured, and
after considerable difficulty was dragged to the police
station, distant nearly a mile and a half. All this time
Bracken was undressed, nearly naL e 1 in fact, for his shirt,
the only garment upon him, was torn into shreds ; but, for-
tunately, he was uninjured. The prisoner is a negro; and
powerfully math,. He was subsequently taken before the
Rev. G. Platt and Mr. Thomas Wearing, and committed
for trial at the next Leeds Assizes. The magistrates warmly
commended the- courage and determination displayed by
Bracken.