The record-union., 1897-12-12
Salisbury Holds -Four Cabinet Coun-
ellis the Past Week.
4 Multiplicity Of Urgent Matters Calling fof
a Settlement.
English Likely to Have Further
Trouble With the French in the
Upper Nile Regions, Notwith-
standing Reports That France
Had Agreed to Accept the Sat
uation.

LONDON, Dec. 11.-CCopyrighteo
1897 by the Associated Press. )-f our
Cabinet Councils in a week are caicu-
lated to arouse comment, but II nlust
be admitted that the Marquis OF oal-
isbury and his colleagues have nul-
tipliclty of matters more or less urgent
ly calling for settlement WIN
France trying to fitch slices of African
territory which Great Britain is III the
habit of calling her own, and Germany
Joos aning the ''cinch" Albion mas al
ways claimed to have in China, Whlle
Great Britain herself is trying TO graz
a. little more country at various otIer
points, and with the preparation OF the
Legislative programme, the Ministry
has no lack of worries
The announcement which the 81
James' Gazette" made on Wednesday
last .authoritatively' that the BRUSH
Government does not expect any 1ur-
ther trouble with France regarding the
Upper Nile regions France agreeing 10
accept the situation, is unconnrmed ana
probably unfounded. as there is no
lack of evidence that France IS dello-
eratelv pursuing the task of selzlng
the upper waters of the Nile ABOVE
Khartoum thus cutting the British line
of communication between Cape Town
and Suez and the powerful Colohlat
party in France threatens TO upset the
Melina Cabinet should it recede from
this enterprise.
All Of the forces of General Sir Will
lam Lockhart, the British commander
on the Indian frontier, have been WITH
drawn to the Bara Valley for the Win
Ter. rhUs the largest and best equipped
force ever assembled in India has
failed ana the whole work viii have
TO be repeated in the spring About
! 400 officers and men either killed or
wounded, and three millions Of rupees
spent in loss, and British prestige
weakened on the frontier, are the deb
its against which a few mud nuts and
sangers blown up, and probably several
thousand natives killed, are the only
apparent credits.
Ru.nors too precise to be guesswork
are current to the effect that the Earl
of Elsin early next year VIII retire
from the Viceroyalty of India. and be
succeeded by Lord George Hamilton.
whose Indian Secretaryship Will be
filled by Lord Lansdowne, the present
Secretary of State for War. This will
be a good party move as it would en-
able the Marquis of Salisbury to place
at the head of the War Office a skilled
man of business. who would satisfy the
taxpayers as well as the army, and ma
terially smooth the path for the in
tended poular demand for military re-
form 1t is intimated that Joseph
Chamberlain may be transferred from
the Colonial to the War Office, his
place being given as a sop to the Mar
quis of Londonderry. whose Kicking
qualities are not appreciated by the
Ministry.
Lieutenant r. T. Peary. the American
explorer, has taken the town by storm,
though he arrived here unheralded.
The newspapers, geographers and sci
entists are at his disposal. AS lead
ing geographer said 10 a representative
of the Associated Press, Lieutenant
Peary has won all our hearts by his
mod esty, courtesy and learning. We
put him on the same plane as Dr.
Nansen, and have the utmost conf
dence in his plans. on Tuesday Lieu
tenant and Mrs. Peary dined with the
Harmsworths. and on Wednesday the
ADiO0Sl
John Hay, and Mrs. Hay gave dinner
On their honor. The Lieutenant lee
tured at Newcastle on Thursday. and
on Friday he lectured at Edinburgh,
where he met with an enthusiastic re-
ception from the Royal Scottish Geo
graphical Society. and was presented
with its medal. Sir Clement Markham.
President of the Royal Geographical
Society, viii give banquet in Lieuten-
ant Peary's honor on December 18th.
The Saturday Review says: There
is a tinge of hero worship in the recep-
tion accord d to Lieutenant Peary which
surpasses the reception of DR.. Nansen
This is as it should be. Peary is of our
race and speaks our tongue. and tits only
fitting that we should feel more warm
ly for him than for foreigner. More
over, the desperate courage shown by
Lieutenant Peary is almost unparalleled
in the splendid record of Arctic explora-
fion''
Colonel Hay has done a great deal
more here than people think" said one
of his friends recently. He has de-
clined over fifty invitations to make
public speeches since he arrived in Eng
land" Judging from the praise Law
1Slsu on MS purely literary Spetcn al
the Omar Khayim Club on Wednesday
he VIII find it more difficult than ever
to decline these invitations.
On Friday afternoon Colonel Hay hac
q long conference with the Marquis OF
Salisbury at the Foreign Office on tbs
subject of Behring Sea. The interview
was amicable on both sides. but moth
ing definite was arrived at Later IN
the afternoon Colonel Hay and Mrs
Hay proceeded to Windsor, where they
received special marks of attention. Tht
United States ambassador and his wife
dined at the Queens table. Colonel Hay
sitting next to her majesty. She was
most kind and cordial. the conversation
lasting an hour. After dinner the Queer
, conversed with Mrs. Hay in the sams
cordial manner.
A snap shot of the family group while
the Car and Czarina We're at Darn
stadt, showing Emperor William witt
his arm resting .affectionately on tbs
cars shoulder. has furnished Ger
man photographers with a picture which
&c selling freely. The Berlin PHOTOGRAPHER
has skilifully detached the German
emperor and the Car from their sur
roundings, and has made it appear thai