from which post he had only recently retired. Dr. Carruthers also edited a standard edition of Pope, with an attractive memoir of the poet, and made many other valuable contributions to English literature.

28.-Died, at his residence, Pembroke Lodge, Lord John Russell, (Earl Russell). His Jordship's health had somewhat improved for a day or two previous, but a change set in about two o'clock in the afternoon and from that hour he gradually sank. Earl Russell was born in August, 1792, and was thus within a few months of completing his eighty-sixth year. He was the third and youngest son of the sixth Duke of Bedford, and when only twentyone years of aged entered Parliament, in 1813, for the borough of Tavistock. He afterwards represented Huntingdonshire, Bandon, the undivided county of Devon, South Devon, Stroud, and finally the City of London, which constituency he represented for twenty yearsnamely, from 1841 until 1861, when he was raised to the peerage. Lord John Russell was twice Prime Minister-July, 1846, till February, 1852. And November, 1865, till June, 1866.

30.-The Prince and Princess of Wales gave a banquet at Marlborough House to the Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Germany, followed by a concert.

31. In reply to Earl Granville, Lord Beaconsfield states, that her Majesty's Government felt that they were but expressing the general feeling of the nation in offering that the interment of Lord Russell should be public, and that his remains should rest beneath the shadow of the venerable Abbey near which his youth was educated and the greater part of his distinguished career was passed. Almost within the last few minutes, however, he had been informed that Lord Russell's widow declined this public mark of veneration in consequence of the expressed declaration of the will of the deceased earl that he should be buried with his ancestors.

the death of one of its most respected members, Mr. Russell Gurney, was shocked by the sudden death of another member, Mr. Wykeham Martin, in the library, and unanimously agreed to a motion for immediate adjournment.

31.-Disastrous collision between two German ironclads, the Grosser Kurfürst and König Wilhelm. Accompanied by the Preussen these two vessels left Wilhelmshaven on the 29th ult. for Plymouth on their way to the Mediterranean, and arrived off Folkestone about half-past nine on the morning of the 31st. They were proceeding in two columns, the König Wilhelm and the Preussen forming the port division, and the Grosser Kurfürst the starboard division; the latter vessel being about one or two ships' length from the König Wilhelm. While advancing in this order, the squadron met two sailing vessels, to avoid which the Grosser Kurfürst had to give way, and consequently ported her helm. The König Wilhelm, which was steering parallel with the Grosser Kurfürst, endeavoured to pass the sailing vessel, but finding there was not time, put her helm hard-a-port, and came into collision with the Grosser Kurfürst, which, having resumed her original course, was now lying right across the bows of the König Wilhelm. The König Wilhelm, which is armed with a ram, struck the other vessel between the main and mizen masts, and inflicted upon her such injuries that she sank in about eight minutes, with all on board, in 15 fathoms of water. The König Wilhelm and the Preussen lowered their boats and rendered all possible assistance in saving the men. boats on one side of the Grosser Kurfürst had been swept away in the collision, and those on the other side could not be got at, as the vessel had turned over on that side. Fortunately, the Folkstone fishing-fleet happened to be passing, and picked up eighty-five of the survivors. The total number of the Grosser Kur ürst's crew was 497, of whom 216, including the captain, were picked up, but three afterwards died from exhaustion. The König Wilhelm received serious injuries in the collision, and her captain at first thought of beaching her. Finding, however, that her pumps kept the water under, he made for Portsmouth, where the vessel was docked.

The

June 1.-Lord Penzance pronounces judgment in the Court of Arches in the proceedings instituted against the Rev. A. H. Mackonochie, vicar of St. Alban's, Holborn, for disobedience to previous monitions of the Court. The judge said the defendant had been twice previously suspended, and therefore more stringent measures must now be taken. He suspended Mr. Mackonochie ab officio et beneficio for three years, and condemned him in the costs of the application.

1.-Died suddenly, in the United Service Club, from syncope of the heart, induced by the upsetting of a cab, Sir Frederick L. Arthur, Bart.

2.-Another attempt to assassinate the German Emperor, two shots being fired at him from the second story of a house when driving along Unter den Linden this (Sunday) afternoon. About thirty small shot struck the Emperor in the face, the arm, and in the hand. The would-be assassin was at once, apprehended, but before he was seized he fired several times at the persons who attempted to enter his room, severely injuring one man, and inflicted a serious wound in his own head. The exasperation of the populace was intense, and the police had to protect their prisoner from the crowd. His name was Carl Nobiling, a Doctor of Philosophy and Scientific Agriculture. He turned out to be the son of a military family and well connected. His manners were those of a highly cultivated gentleman, and he appeared to have had ample resources at his disposal. His brothers were in the army, and his sister a Protestant Sister of Charity in the Elizabeth Hospital at Berlin. Nobiling stated that for the last eight days he had had the intention of shooting the Emperor, as he considered it would promote the welfare of the state were its head to be removed. The semiofficial papers asserted that there was reason to believe he had accomplices, and suggested that the shooting of the Emperor was assigned to him by lot. Next day (Monday) he had an interview with his mother, and, according to a statement published in the North German Gazette, she, among other questions, asked him, "Did the lot fall upon you?" To this question he replied by making an affirmative motion of the head, and exclaiming "Ach Gott!" Messages of sympathy with the Emperor were received from all the crowned heads of Europe. The condition of the Emperor occasioned considerable anxiety. The pellets in his wrist being lodged in close proximity to the artery were not extracted for fear of weakening his Majesty by excessive loss of blood. Immediately after the attack his Majesty was reported to have expressed a desire that the Crown Prince (then on a visit to the Marquis of Salisbury) should be appointed Regent, or should be at least invested with partial power. The Crown Prince was reported to have manifested some unwillingness at first, but after protracted interviews with Prince Bismarck consented to assume the control of public affairs.

3.-Invitation to the Congress at Berlin issued by the German Government. Count Münster wrote :-" The Government of his Majesty, in giving this invitation to the Government of her Britannic Majesty, understands that in accepting it, the Government of her Britannic Majesty consents to admit the free discussion of the whole of the contents of the Treaty of San Stefano, and that it is ready to participate therein. In the event of the acceptance of all

the Powers invited, the Government of his Majesty propose to fix the meeting of the Congress for the 13th of this month. The undersigned, in bringing the above to the knowledge of his Excellency the Marquis of Salisbury, has the honour to beg his Excellency to be good enough to acquaint him as soon as possible with the reply of the British GovernLord Salisbury replied on the same

ment.

day accepting the invitation on behalf of the British Government for a discussion of the stipulations of the preliminary treaty conIcluded at San Stefano between Russia and Turkey.

3.-Lord Salisbury announces in the Lords that the German Government had issued invitations for a Congress to be held at Berlin on the 13th of June for the discussion of the stipulations of the preliminary treaty between Russia and Turkey, and that the English Government, together with the foreign Powers, had accepted the invitation. Lord Granville said he was glad that the treaty was to be discussed in a Congress, but as he understood the Foreign Secretary and the Prime Minister were to attend the Congress, he expressed objections to such an arrangement, which would compel the absence of those two important Ministers from the deliberations of the Cabinet in London, and he asked whether there was any precedent for the proceeding. Lord Beaconsfield said the decision of the Government on the subject had been arrived at after long deliberation. He frankly confessed that he was not aware of any precedent; still, in this matter the Government must not be guided merely by precedents, but other circumstances must be taken into account. The Government felt that a great responsibility rested on them, and they were quite prepared to take its burdens. A similar discussion took place in the Commons.

The remains of Earl Russell interred in the family vault at Chenies, near Rickmansworth. Government, with the approval of her Majesty, expressed a wish that the late Earl should have a public funeral in Westminster Abbey, but Lady Russell thought herself bound by the positive directions of the Earl's will to decline the offer. Lord Russell's intentions were thus worded: "I wish my funeral to be as simple and as inexpensive as possible, without any hired mourners. I wish my body to be interred in the family vault at Chenies." The procession, which started from Pembroke Lodge, Richmond Park, at a quarter to six in the morning, was of the plainest description, consisting only of a hearse and four horses, followed by his lordship's two private carriages and a mourning-coach with four horses. funeral was intended to be private, but a notification that the church at Chenies would be open to all comers caused both the nine and ten o'clock trains from Euston to Rickmansworth to be filled with passengers. The

The

Queen, the Prince and Princess of Wales, and King Humbert, sent messages of condolence to the family of Earl Russell.

3. The remains of the late Duchess of Argyll removed from Westminster Abbey and taken to Wemyss Bay, on the Clyde, on their way to Killmun, the ancient burial-place of the family. A private funeral service was held in the chapel of St. Faith previous to the removal of the remains, Dean Stanley officiating.

4. The usual motion for adjourning the House over the Derby Day was made by Mr. Chaplin, who spoke of it as a "time-honoured custom which had been followed with the general consent of both sides, at least since 1847. The motion having been seconded in an amusing speech by Mr. R. Power, Mr. Assheton objected to giving up a working day for the purpose of taking a holiday at Epsom, and denied that anything in the nature of "time-honoured custom "" was involved in the question. The Chancellor of the Exchequer said that he should vote for the motion, and explained that if there had not been a divided opinion on the subject the proposal would have best come from him as the leader of the House, but in the absence of a general agreement he felt that it was better left in the hands of private members. Mr. Sullivan-who compared the adjournment in the present state of Europe to Nero fiddling over burning Romeand Mr. Blake, opposed the motion. division the House decided in favour of an adjournment by 225 to 95.

On a

The Porte issues a memorandum giving a history of the negotiations which preceded the conclusion of the Treaty of San Stefano. It stated that the Russians brought forward their propositions separately and with ". 'permanent pressure," and that the resolutions taken were adopted by the Turkish representatives "blindly and hastily." Once during the negotiations the Grand Duke gave an order for his army to advance on Constantinople, and although he revoked it next morning, the threat was renewed on each subsequent occasion that any difficulties were raised by the Turks. On the anniversary of the Czar's accession, the Grand Duke demanded the acceptance within an hour of several important remaining articles of the treaty.

Anglo-Turkish Convention signed at Constantinople by Sir A. H. Layard and Safvet Pasha. The document was not made public until July 8th, and consisted of the following articles :-I. "If Batoum, Ardahan, Kars, or any of them, shall be retained by Russia, and if any attempt shall be made at any future time by Russia to take possession of any further territories of his Imperial Majesty the Sultan in Asia, as fixed by the definitive treaty of peace, England engages to join his Imperial Majesty the Sultan in defending them by force of arms. In return his Imperial

Majesty the Sultan promises to England to introduce necessary reforms, to be agreed upon later between the two Powers, into the Government; and, for the protection of the Christian and other subjects of the Porte in these territories, and in order to enable England to make necessary provision for executing her engagement, his Imperial Majesty the Sultan further consents to assign the Island of Cyprus to be occupied and administered by England.II. The present Convention shall be ratified, and the ratifications thereof shall be exchanged, within the space of one month, or sooner if possible. In witness whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have signed the same, and have affixed thereto the seal of their arms. Done at Constantinople the fourth day of June, in the year one thousand eight hundred and seventy-eight.' There was an annex to the Convention containing certain details respecting the occupation of Cyprus, and stipulating that if Russia restored to Turkey Kars, and the other conquests made by her in Armenia during the last war, Cyprus would be evacuated by England and the Convention of June 4 be at an end.

6.-Died, aged 88, Rev. Robert Stirling, D.D., an ingenious mechanic, minister of the parish of Galston, Ayrshire, who had been for several years the oldest minister in the Church of Scotland.

7.-Explosion in the Wood Pit, Haydock, near Wigan, involving the loss of many lives. The pit consisted of two mines--the Ravenshead and the Florida. There were over 200 men working at the time of the explosion, eighteen of whom were in the Ravenshead mine and the remainder in the Florida. The eighteen men in the Ravenshead were got out immediately after the explosion, but one of them died on his way home, and the others were much affected by the after-damp. two mines were connected by a tunnel, and it was in the workings beyond this tunnel that the explosion occurred. Gangs of explorers went down at once, and found dead horses and men on every side, fearfully burned and mutilated.

The

8. Lord Beaconsfield leaves London to attend the Congress. Travelling by easy stages, the Prime Minister arrived at Berlin on the evering of the 11th, and was received at the railway station by Lord Odo Russell, Herr von Bülow, and all the members of the British Embassy. Lord Odo Russell conducted the Prime Minister to the Kaiserhof Hotel. The Marquis of Salisbury, who did not leave London till the evening of the roth, arrived two hours after his chief, and was received at the railway station by all the members of the English Embassy. His lordship went to the residence of the British Embassy. Count Schouvaloff arrived the same evening, and by Wednesday all the representatives of the Powers invited to

the Congress had arrived except the Turkish delegates, who were detained by bad weather in the Black Sea. The Earl of Beaconsfield shortly after his arrival at Berlin paid a visit to Prince Bismarck, and remained with him for an hour and a half. On the 12th, the Crown Prince received the Plenipotentiaries, who spent the greater part of the day in receiving and paying visits. The arrangements of the Hall of Congress and the adjoining rooms were all completed during the day. The delegates were to sit according to the alphabetical order of the French names of the countries they represented. In order that the strictest secrecy with regard to the proceedings might be secured, the men employed in printing reports of the sittings were selected from the staff of the private court printing office, and specially sworn to secrecy.

8. Concluded at the Central Criminal Court, the trial of the seven persons charged with conspiracy and fraud in connection with the Albion Assurance Company. The jury found the prisoners Wood, Northcott, Thomp son, and W. Shaw, guilty of conspiracy and obtaining money under false pretences, Slinker of conspiracy only, and George and Thomas Shaw not guilty. They recommended Slinker to mercy. Mr. Justice Hawkins said that he concurred in the verdict of the jury, believing that the Albion Assurance Company was a fraud from the commencement, and never intended to be a genuine business. He sentenced Northcott, Thompson, and Wood to five years' penal servitude, William Shaw to two years' imprisonment, and Slinker to nine months' imprisonment with hard labour. The trial had been protracted over ten days.

The great bridge over the Sutlej, at Adamwahan, opened with much ceremony, by Col. Sir Andrew Clarke, on behalf of the Viceroy.

9. The Emperor William reported to be making satisfactory progress towards recovery from the gunshot wounds inflicted by Nobiling. His Majesty left his bed for the first time to-day.

Mr. Edward Spender, founder and chief proprietor of the Western Morning News, drowned with his two sons while bathing at Whitsand Bay, near Plymouth.

11.-Count Aubriet de Pévy, a French nobleman, commits suicide by drowning himself in the Thames at Windsor.

Glasgow Apothecary Company's premises, the largest in Scotland, destroyed by fire.

12.-Died, aged 59, George, ex-King of Hanover, cousin to her Majesty Queen Victoria. He succeeded his father Ernest Augustus, on the 18th of November, 1851, and his dominions were annexed to Prussia by a decree dated the 20th of September, 1866. Since his deposition his Majesty for the most part lived in Paris.

Died, at New York, aged 84, William

He

Cullen Bryant, a popular American poet. had been assisting on the 30th ult. at the unveiling of a monument erected in honour of Mazzini. During the proceedings he remained uncovered, and it is thought the sun affected his head. In the evening, while accompaning General Wilson to his residence, Mr. Bryant fell on the steps unconscious.

12.-Termination of the Kaffir rebellion. A despatch from Lieutenant-General Thesiger of this date states that the war may now be considered at an end, and though elements of disturbance might exist for some time, these could be efficiently dealt with by police patrols. For some time back the native chiefs had suffered successive defeats, four of them were killed, and others surrendered or were captured. An amnesty was proclaimed and a free pardon offered to all the Kaffirs, with a few exceptions. The expenditure on account of the war was estimated at 150,000%.

13. The French Academy fill the up vacancies caused by the death of M. Thiers and M. Claude Bernard. M. Thiers' seat was disputed by M. Henri Martin, the historian and senator, and M. Taine; M. Claude Bernard's by M. Renan and M. Wallon, the latter a senator, known as the "Father of the Constitution." M. Martin defeated M. Taine by 18 votes to 15, and M. Renan received 19 votes against 15 given to M. Wallon.

14.

The Globe publishes in a late edition, an Agreement between the English and Russian Governments, purporting to have been signed at the Foreign Office in London on May 30, and leading to much comment both in this country and the Continent. The Agreement was divided into two parts. The first gives the points upon which an understanding has been established, which is to serve as a mutual engagement for the Russian and English Plenipotentiaries at the Congress. the second part the points are stated which the British Government reserves to itself to lay

In

before the Congress. Questioned on the subject in the House of Lords, the Duke of Richmond and Gordon, in reply, said that the statement in the Globe had been obtained by some one who had access to confidential papers, and its publication was therefore unauthorised and surreptitious. The statement was not complete as an explanation of the policy of the Government, and it was therefore inaccurate. The fullest information would be given at the proper time, and in the meanwhile he appealed to the House to support the Government in declining to answer particular questions on the subject.

15.-Died, aged 74, Sir Thomas Duffus Hardy, Deputy Keeper of the Records and one of Her Majesty's Commissioners on Histori. cal Manuscripts.

18.-Died, H. W. Bolckow, M.P., first mayor of Middlesborough when it was incorporated in 1853, and its first member of Parliament when enfranchised in 1867.

Debate in the Commons on Disestablishment in Scotland, Mr. W. Holms calling attention to the relative position of the various religious denominations in that country, by moving for a Select Committee to inquire into the operation of the Patronage Act of 1874, and how far the people of Scotland were in favour of maintaining the connection between Church and State. Mr. Gladstone said the Patronage Act had opened the question of Disestablishment, and a large proportion of the people of Scotland had pronounced in favour of it. It was by the opinion of the people of Scotland alone that the question must be decided; and while professing that he himself had formed no opinion on the subject except that a Church could not be called national which was the Church of a minority, he complained that the friends of the Church of Scotland had offered no argument for justifying her continued existence. Mr. Cross characterised Mr. Gladstone's speech as an echo of Lord Hartington's at Edinburgh, which without committing him to any opinion of his own, invited the people of Scotland to get up a cry of Disestablishment, of which he could take advantage, and he protested warmly against such a line being taken by men in the responsible position of leaders of a party. If no arguments had been offered in favour of the Established Church it was because it had not been attacked by the motion before the House, which was for inquiry. To this the Government could not consent, holding it to be entirely uncalled for. The debate was adjourned without a division.

Sir A. E. Middleton, finds that the presiding officers have in several cases omitted to mark the ballot papers with the official stamp as directed by the 24th rule contained in the first schedule to the Ballot Act, and that in consequence of such omission nine votes given for Mr. Grey, and three votes recorded for Mr. Ridley, are void, and Mr. Ridley had therefore a majority of legal votes.

18.-Earl Granville presides at a banquet held in Cannon-street Hotel to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the repeal of the Tests and Corporation Acts. The company numbered about 300, and included several members of the House of Lords and about fifty members of the House of Commons. Among the toasts drunk was "The revered memory of Earl Russell," in proposing which Lord Granville said it would interest some to know that on the last day Lord Russell's mind was equal to anything like conversation with his family, after several simple and touching allusions to his approaching end, he said, “I have committed many mistakes, but my object has always been the public good.' Lord Arthur Russell, in responding to the toast, stated that her Majesty had testified her sense of Earl Russell's services by granting to Lady Russell the residence in Richmond Park for the remainder of her life, which otherwiseafte his death would have reverted to the Crown.

19.-Official despatches laid before Parliament respecting the death of Mr. Ogle, the correspondent of the Times, whose dead body was found in a mutilated condition. on Mount Pelion. Mr. Fawcett, the British Consul-General at Constantinople, who was sent to Volo to inquire into the occurrence, drew up a report dated May 8, in which he expresses the opinion that the deceased met his death by a gunshot or bayonet wound while retreating with the Greek insurgents; that he was afterwards mutilated, his head being cut off by Turkish soldiers; and that his great imprudence made it extremely probable that such a casualty would happen to him.

The Scotch Episcopal Diocesan Synod of Glasgow and Galloway meet to consider a recommendation of the College of Bishops to the effect that a Metropolitan should be appointed for the Scotch Episcopal Church. The Synod adopted a resolution that it is inexpedient to make the appointment at the present time.

21.-The Lord Chancellor calls attention to the state of Intermediate Education in Ireland, and concluded by presenting a bill on the subject. The very efficient system of primary education, his lordship said, had gone far to dry up the resources of the intermediate schools in Ireland, and as that was the result of the action of the State, the Government now proposed that for the purpose of carrying on intermediate education Parliament should devote