Nelson Chronicle, Colne Observer, and Clitheroe Division News. — 1899-06-30 (Nelson, Lancashire, England)

NOTES ON NEWS.  GENERAL DE GALLIFIRT, the new Freed Minister of War, enjoyed his culminating glory— his military apotheosis, so to speak—at Sedan, where the command of the 4th Reserve Cavalry Division devolved on him after his leader had been shot through both cheeks at the commencement of the great cavalry charge. And as at Waterloo the desperate charging of the Scots Greys extorted from Napoleon the repeated murmur, '.l4tiels beaux ehevaux gris!" so the forlorn-hope attacks of Galliffet's grey Chasseurs d'Afrique at &dam moved Xing William to the exclamation, " What :•plendid fellows ! "  THE Germans ever had the hightest admiration end respect for Galliffet, and when the cavalry hero attended the German manteuvres one autumn in the eighties by special invitation of the old Emperor, he was treated with the most exquisite jourtesy and consideration. His Majesty placed him on his right hand at table, and felt inclined to repeat (he remarked later) what Frederick the Great. once said to the Austrian Marshal Dann, on meeting hint after the Seven Years' War. The marshal was for taking his place at table opposite the King, but Frederick exclaimed, No, that will never do; come and sit beside me; I know only too well what it is to have you on the other side.'  AT last, it seems, there is a fair chance of bull fights being put a stop to at Arles. The last which took place there, the other day, led to so strong a protest on the part of the majority of the ladies present that it will probably be a long Limo before another exhibition of the sort will take place in the ancient arena. It seems that :in this occasion no fewer than three horses were done to death in the most horrible eircumitances. Madame Frederic Mistral, the wife of the famous poet, rose in her seat and loudly denounced the spectacle" as inhuman and barbarous in the extreme." A few years ago she would have been hissed, but now she was applauded to the echo, and as a result nearly every woman immediately afterwards left the arena.  M. HANOTAUX the former French Minister for Frcign Affairs, has been replying to a eorrespon:kilt who wanted to know the most suitable field ler an intending emigrant. M. Hanotaux advises his correspondent to go to Canada, which he describes as a country with a temperate climate, an important community of the French race, and a humane Christian faith which encourages mutual help. Of exclusively French colonies M. Hanotaux has little to say that is encouraging to emigrants. their climates are generally severe; they are too young; they offer no immediate employment for labourers, and whoever goes to them needs a. certain amount of capital. It is not so in Canada. , There a man can get work, and soon develop into a landowner. Finally, M. Hanotaux refers to Canada as •• a country which, although politically •:eparated from us, is always dear to us, and upmid,, on American soil the pride and honour of lhe French name."  SINCE the days when a German professor evolved a camel from his inner consciousness there has been no more singular spectacle than that presented by the Hague Conference solemnly condemning a Dum-llum bullet made at Tubingen. A military correspondent writing from Milan, states that considerable discussion has bc-en excited there by this action of the Peace Conference, as early in March the Italian Government accepted from a prominent officer in its irmy a design for a bullet precisely similar in construction to the Dun-Dun. Machinery has been installed at the Milan Arsenal for the 2onetretion of bullets according to this degigu, which is expected to give a velocity and an effective force much greater than the bullet now in use in the Italian service. Every endeavour, tt is to be added, is being made by those responsible for the man facture of the orginal Dum-Dum to obviate all reasonable objection to its use, and the new missile for the LeeMetford rifle has been submitted to a anal series of experiments at the great Indian factory, According to the information to hand from India by the Latest Mali, this bullet has given absolute satisfaction to the India experts. It is held to be ass effective as its predecessor, and does not possess the envelope which gave rise to Professor von BriMs denunciations evoked by its Tubingen substitute.  PEACE seems to have come suddenly to Samoa. The Commission has cut the Gordian Knot, and abolished the Kingship entirely. Henceforth there can be no rival claimants to the throne, no usurpers, no nominated monarchs, and no independent armies. We do not say that this is logical or strictly just; but it is decidedly the best. The COL/111118bi011 has acted much in the spirit of the schoolboy who, having a sum on his slate which he could not solve, got rid of the difficulty by sponging all the figures out. The Commissioners went out to settle the rival claims of Alalietos, Lulu and Alataafa. One candid opinion is that the supposed Usurper '. was a bolter man than he who was constituted the King, and that the natives themselves would have been satisfied hail Mataafa, a brave old warrior nod a true patriot, been permitted to rule them. But Maloof& had certainly broken faith with the European authorities, and had committed acts which made it altogether undesirati:e that he should be placed in a position of rcsponsibility. This is why it is best to get rid of the problem by abolishing the native throne. I leneeforth Samoa will be ruled by the white races, English. American. and German, who, we trust, will not set the natives a bad example by quarrelling with each other.  THR Academy calls attention to the fact that the house in Cromarty where Hugh Miller was born is fit.t falling into ruins for want of attention. The circumstance reminds our literary contemporary timt the house is worth preserving, for it was built by Hugh Millers great-great-grandfather, John l•etides, the buccaneer, associated with whose life is a happy romance. John loved a pretty girl, Jean Gallia, but his suit was rejected. On the wedding night be ' .  iii.appea-red, and it was reported that he had committed suicide. Tradition adds this graphic touch ti the story, that Jean, looking through the window, saw lights on the firth. which she was told were boats looking for John's body. Jean's married life was unhappy. and her husband drank himself to death. Many years afterwards Jolla rearned a wealthy man, aid married Jean out of her poverty. It turned out that he had boarded smuggler on the night of the wedding, and had made a good thing out of the buccaneering, and he built the cottage, now so badly to need of repair, with Spanish gold.