New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1885-11-18
ENGLAND;s LATEST w.AI..

EENG'ELAND's LATEST w.ar.
England Declares War Against Burmah.
Il and its Bloody, Monstrous Monarch
Theebaw.
british cabinet council was held at the
official residence Of the first lord Of the.
treasury on the 10th inst. The reply Of
King Theebaw to England's nltimatum
having been read, the cabinet declared var
against Burmah, and q formal declaration
OF war, with the queens sanction.
has been issued. The French gov
eminent and the Burmese minister
resident OF Paris have been notified.
All foreign subjects remaining in Burmah
are required to come into the British lines.
The British army OF invasion is advancing,
5000 strong, the greater portion being in
steamers. The first military operations
will be the bombardment by the ironclad
tlotilla OF the military forts.
Inc immediate procuring cause OF the
declaration OF war was the refusal Of
King Theebaw to withdraw his decree
ievying tax of $1,25O,OOO on the
Bombay & Burmah Trading company for
alleged failure to observe their contract in
connection with the lease of a large area OF
teak forests in Burmah, and his refusal to
receive a British resident with guard and
commissioners to investigate the differences
with the Bombay company. A war will
necessarily result in the annexation of Up
per Burmah, for a protectorate there would
be out OF the question. The British govern
ment might place on the golden throne"
the !Mingohn prince, who has a better title
to it than Theebaw; but British inter
ests could not be SO well consulted
by such an arrangement as by direct anexa-
ton. There is another Burmese prince liv-
ing on pension OF 600 rupees month
from the British government, at Calcutta,
but he is described as the worst type OF Bur-
man. andis hated at Mandalay. As Lord
Dutterin has been told by Lord Randolph
Churchill, who is secretary OF state for In
dia, that he had better settle the Burmah
business in his own way, with Churchill's APP
prevail Dufferin has ordered I'm ad vapce, and
as Burmah will be subjugated, the British
government will willnot take any more risks
and will probably attach Theebaw's ter
ntory as far as the region of. the Shan
tribes at least, to British India. The Shan
tribes are, indeed, reported to be DESTROYS
OF British rule, and if the whole region is
that OF British India, and the proposed
railroad to Chinese territory will probably
be built. But upper Burmah will not be
taken without a struggle. Sixty miles
from the British frontier station of Thayel-
myo, on the Irrawaddy river, ia Minh-la,
where Theebaw has a fort built by
an Italian officer, which could,
with proper ordnance, do some damage;
but it has only a few guns mounted. Again,
fifteen miles below Mandalay are several
forts commanding the river, but they are
not considered by British officers OF great
Importance, and can be shelled from a
point two miles off with destructive effect.
Theebaw's guards, ten or fifteen thousand
in number, would not stay for the Smelling,
and if Mandalay falls Burmah is an
easy prey to Gen. Prendergast, who
has 10000 men, several gunboats
and sufficient artillery for the job
in hand. With Theebaws subjects longing
to gut rid OF him, and the independent Shan
tribes ready to welcome the English, there
does not seem to be any prospect OF long
continued resistance by Theebaw, whose
crimes have stamped him as monster of
iniquity. The portion ofBurmah occupied
and an. exed by the British since 1925 has
rich and very productive in tropical pro-
ducts. Native Burmah is in area about
1872 1000 square miles, and has popula-
ton OF nearly 100000. Theebaw's
revenue is about IS, 600 900, and he rarely
goes out of Mandalay, his cap
ital. Theebaw was nurtured in an at
nosphere OF lust and devitry, and has
continued to minister to his passions as
the sole end OF existence. His country is
noted for it's teak forests, and as teak is
used exclusively for shipbuilding in that
quarter, the forests are especially valuable.
Theebaw claims that the Bombay company
owes it's laborers on the leased teak lands
tbs sum OF 81 900, 600 for wages; but this
is a megatherian pretense, as the loborers
themselves make no such claim. It has
been suspected that the French emissaries
put Theebaw up to make this bogus claim
to injure British interests but since the
late French elections the French govern
lnent has disclaimed any attention of sup.
planting English enterprise in Burmah.