The Express. — London, England, 1847-04-13 00:00:00

UNITED STATES. By the Princess Royal, arrived yesterday in th e Mersey, we have accounts from New Orleans to the 6th of March—three days later than the latest advice' rxei•-ed by vay of New York . The oxlypaper ight by the Princess Royal is a New Orleans Picayeane, of the 6th, but there aro private letters to the Eith. The Picayeume contains an account of the action at Brazito, on the 25th of 11..cember, but no addition to the intelligence previously received from the coast of Mexico. I'he captain of the Princess Royal states that great excitement prevailed in New Orleans at the time of his sailing, in consequinco of various re ports of battles between General Taylor and Santa Anna, and of the hourly expectation of intelligence respecting the movements of the force concentrating to attack Vera Cruz. The following is from the private letters of a commercial house in Liverpool: New OILLEANS, MARCH B.—The correspondence, per cambria, with Liverpool, &aid to 4th Feb., were received here en the cveniug of the 3rd inst. ; the immediate effect was to drive flour down to 54 d 01.., at which price 30,000 were sold, and prices are now a trifle higher. Corn, which had previotely ruled at 93 to 100 cents, went down to 80 to 8.5 teat. Cotton, despite the unftvourahle accounts, has admired, and the following receipts, here and at Mobile, sow make a &crease in the Gulf ports of 200,000 bales. Middling cotton is quoted at 91 to 10 cents. Freights Id. sad 9,. 9d. for Hour. Exchange, 3to 31 per cent. By the ship Speed, arrived at Liverpool yesterday, we have Savannah papers to the 12th f Mardi. They too are tilled with the details of the affair at Brazito. In the Savannah market corn continued in fair demand ; freights, both foreign and domestic, were extremely ; the rates to Liverpool were nominal at 54- for square and round bales; exchange and sterling bills run for 60 days at 34 per cent. In the other southern markets nothing of moment had been chronicled. CROAILING. — IInGer tn:. head, the e ' en , /ors Journal or Commerce says :—" The first groan in regard to the nest crop *logien, comes to us through the Fort Gaines (Geo.) Volunteer of the Gth inst. It states that the fly which gene• rates the cateroillar has already midi/ its appearance in that vicinity—en alarming indication that the crop may be cut short . ' DZFARTL I RR or Minstontatra.—The ship Ashburton eland Tuesday at Boston, fur Canton, and was to sail the Ent fair wind. The following go out as passenger, in the Ashburton :—Rev. Mr. Toby and wife ; Rev. Mr. Shuck, wife and two children ; Rev. Mr. Johnson, Rev. Mr. Junes, Rte. Mr. Spalding, Mr. James H. Andreas, of Salem ; Mr. Dodge, of ditto. NIAGARA Woltz Ban:mg.—lt is ►tated in the Rochester Be: were, that the Niagara Suspension Ridge Company will shortly proceed to the erection of a wire bridge across the Niagara river—the Queen's assent having been obtained. The whole of the stock, 200,000 d 01.., has been taken— one half in Canada, and the remainder in New York and thin city. Zhc eoun. The Queen and Prince Albert took their menstomed early walk yesterday is the vicinity of Windsor Castle. Thear Royal highnesses the Prince of Wales and the Prin. ems Royal visited the Royal School, near Cumberland Lodge, yesterday forenoon. bier Maje+ty and Prince Albert, accompanied by their Royal Highnesses the Prince of Wales, Prince Alfred, the Princess Royal, the Princes Alice, and the Princes; Helena, and attended by the suite, left Windsor Castle a little before 3 o'clock yesterday after noon fur town. The august party occupied five carriages and four, and was escorted from the Carle to the Slough nation of the Great Western Railway by a party of Life Guards. A special train conveyed the Royal party to the Paddington terminus, from whence the Queen and Prince Albert. the Royal children, and the ladies and gentlemen of the Royal Suite proceeded in five carriages and four, escorted by a party of Lancers to Buckingham Palace. where they arrived at four o'clock. Her Majesty and her Royal Consort were received at the palace by the Master of the Horse, the Vice Chamberlain, Lord George Lennox, and Captain Francis Seymour. The Queen and Prince Albert honoured the per formance of the French Plays with their presence yesterday evening. Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Gloucester visited her Majesty the Queen Dowager yesterday at Marlborough House. Colonel Anson had an interview with Sir George Grey yesterday at the Home-office. The Marquis of Donegal had an interview with Lord John Rowell yester day, at his official residence in Downing.street. The Rev. Dr. Clam., of Edinburgh, and Mr. Crawford, W.S., had an interview yesterday in Downing street, with Mr. Hawes, Under Secretary for the Colonies. AMATEUR PERFORMANCE, ST. JAMF-I'B TYIEATRE, FOR THR BENEFIT OF THR IRISH AND SCOTCH.—We under. stand that her Majesty has retained her box for the amateur performance at the St. James's Theatre, on the 27th inst. Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Gloucester and her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge also intend to honour the performance with their presence. COURT OF COMMON COUNCIL-HEALTH OF TOWNS._ Yesterday the proceedings of court were opened by the reception of a report from the City Commiasioners of Sewers, strongly condemnatory of the goy, roment monitory measure, in which it was proposed that a deputation should wait on Lord John Russell to request that the City of Lon don should be exempted from the operation of the bill. NATIONAL EDUCATION. The Court then proceeded to discuss the plan proposed by government of general education. The question was intro duced on a former day by Mr. FRANCIS BENNOCII who said, it was now his duty to introduce to that honourable court a motion of sur passing interest—one which related to a matter in which were involvedithe happiness of millions, and the success and the continued prosperity, he believed, of the empire. The motion which he had to propose was:— flat the state of education in Gnat Britain and Ireland is ore lewdly dcficii at and .ameotably defective. That the eaistence of so much ignorance is a reproach to the nation, and greatly to be de. placed ; inasmuch, as poverty, destitution, misery, and crime are, Nast the consequeme of it, seldom found dissociated from it. As the mew hitherto employed for the increase of knowledge among the people have proved insufficient for the necessdhes of the popula tion, the WiltillClE of the state becomes an Imperative necessity. It Is not only an act of justice and mercy, but also to the interest, safety. and security of society, that no subject within these realms dionk longer continue without the opportunity of mental =Light lament, ass mesas of morel elevation and mental improvement. That as humble address, based upon the foregoing considcmtioon, br M anned to her Majesty the (poen, prating that she will be graciously pared to exercise every legitimate influence vested in the crown to lane forward in peril:anent such measures as shall provide for the peeve education of the people. The motion, Mr. Bennoch continued, divided itself into three parts—first, the deficiency of education ; next, its defee liveuess ; and, lastly, the consequences of this deficiency and defeetiveness, and the necessity for the adoption of some dif ferent system. To prove the deficiency of education, he should refer to reports, and other documents of unquestionable data. In 1833, he found that the population of this country was 14,400,000—that there were 300,000 of the population be tween the ages of five and fifteen—that there were 1,200.000 day scholars between those ages, 2,400,000 attending no day sehool—tkat 1,548,000 attended Sunday-scheols, 548,000 only being in the habit of attending day-schools. The re salt came to this, that out of that number, 1,000,000 were fivaday-school scholars, 1,200,000 day, and that 1,400,000 win in total ignorance, without an stem of education. This above one-thud went to day-schools; lees than enethird to Sunday.sehouls, and mere than one-third of a 0 the children of this Tut empire, between the was of five and fifteen, are without any means of education whatever. (Loud cries of "Hear , hear.") Bat gm reports peblished in 1844, proved that the state of Wu cation, et that time, was worse rather than better. That wee the general character of education. The particular character ores somewhat more remarkable. In his estima tion, statistics proved everything ; but some were of opinion that anything m i g h t b e proved by statistics; but here they were undoubted, u they were collected by parties employed by the government, and by educational societies ; the results thus collected demonstrated, that instead of showing the darkest side of the picture, the actual state of things, pre vious to these inquiries, bad beennsuch under-rated. In Man duster, there were 50,000 children between five and fi ft een, 10,000 of whom attended day schools, 23,000 Sunday, and 17,000 attended no school at all. Salford was the same. Liverpool wee worse, as fully one-half were without the means of education. Hull, Tork, and Bristol presented the seise results, and were all equally bad. The hon. and Rev. Baptist Noel made a private inspection of several sehools, in order to ascertain whether the government reports were, or were not, correct, and he found that 50 exaggeration had taken place, and that the 'tate of education nu ss had been represented. Mr. Bennoch read a number of other extract., showing the same result. With respect to many of the rural districts, from a return pub lobed by the Registrar-General, it appeared that only one half of the people married could sign their name.. Some People might say that this arose from timidity—(isughter)— Is people in such a situation were apt to get exceedingly nasals ; but why they should be timid and nervous in the Met honourable sit of their whole lives, he was wholly at a be to know. (Laughter.) It also appeared that 8,000,000 of the population could not write, end that 5,000,000 could not read. Then, with respect to the schoolmaster: it had beet shown and proved by competent authorities, that the are of the rising generation wee, in the majority of cases, confided to those who had failed in all other pursuits ; and that the schoolmaster was the lowest, instead of being the blithest and most respected, person in the kingdom. (Hear.) The greatest number of schools in the large towns were day end dame schools, but from certain reports which had been published, they would perceive bow monstrously defective was the system of education pursued in them. It would be almost superfluous in him in that court to refer to the oils which arose from a want of education, but his lordship and the gentlemen of the Court of Aldermen who bad held the office of sheriff, had, in that capacity, and as uagirtrates, been in the habit of visiting the criminals of the metropolis, and had no doubt found that ignorance and wretchedness and crime went hand in hand. The judges re ferred to it ; and Mr. Serjeant Adams came forward with his monthly report lamenting the amount of juvenile crime, end his inability to remedy the evil. In the valuable report of the Briti s h Foreign School Society for 1845, he found that we -third of the criminals of Berkshire could not read that is Cambridge and Stafford, one:half could not read ; in Den bigh, two-thirds were in a , similar condition ; and that the half of thine of Essex were totally ignorant. In Hereford, eat of 3.95, only one could reed well ; and in Sussex (one of those delicious sequestered agricultural districts), out of 877. 141 did not know their Saviour's name; 498 knew it and n 0.9 mi.idoreo,ily u tu.d and „ th 3o tn only in etnnexion with an oa th ; ' ',flan ef his his, ; and oily 1 in 14, oc Le, had the faintest glimmer of the Christian taitk. They had tried punishments of various kinds, in order to det..r persons from the commission of crime, but they had signally failed, and he hoped that they would now take more religions means, by the aid of education, to improve the condition of those unhappy persons. As a proof of how much more expensive the punishment of crime was than its prevention, he might refer to the fact lately stated by the magistrates of Liverpool, that they selected at random 14 criminals, whose ages varied from 9 to 14, whose ag gregate commitments amounted to 133 times ' or 91 times each, and who had coot th e country Seel. 11.-8891. Is. for punishing 14 criminals, or between 701. and 80!. each, whereas by a properly organised system of education, the common interest of the money would have educated 30 or 40 children. (Loud cheers.) This money was spent in punishing, not in reclaiming, because they had each been repeatedly punished. Then the question woes, would education deter trim crime? (Hear, hear.) Was education the cause of crime, or was its want the cause ? The argument that men of education had become criminals was nu reason against the education of the people. He granted that such things had happened, but still that did not prove that it was not the duty of every man—the duty of the nation—to give every man the means of advancing himself in the world. Because a man was born poor, was that any reason why he should nor rise in the social scale, that he should not have the means of elevating himself? He con tended that the most important means to that end was edu cation. But how was this to be done ? We ate the neces sity, but we are overcome by the difficulties which surround it. Could they overcome it by voluntary contributions, which some people considered the great panacea for the ig norance of the people ? Two opinions prevailed—one that it was sufficient, and the other that it was not. But if volun taryism was sufficient, how was it that one-third of the population were in Cimmerian darkness? Certainly, if it eras sufficient they must have sadly neglected their duty. Voluntaryism was a beautiful system, but what did it do? It certainly contributed largely in various ways; but the voluntaryism of the state was tar more Important ; for aid by the state was but another form of contributing money from the some source. Voluntaryism did not punish criminals, it did not fight their battles, it did not provide for the poor. When it did all these things, then be should con sider that voluntaryism would be enabled to (divide the people. (Cheers.) There were probably many gen tlemen in that Court, who had not had any large sums of money expended upon their education. (Hear.) Yet there were many who were without education, so far as the schoolmaster was concerned, listening and taking a part in tOe discussion of this great question. Thus severe! who bad been thus situated had become re presentatives of the city of London; but had they re =Lined totally ignorant, they would not have been called to fill so honourable a post. Was there a man there who could not read and write? (Yes.) Some gentle man said yes, but he never bad the misfortune to meet with one who was so ignorant. He could not understand any means that could be brought to promote education efficiently without the assistance of the state. Could the state educate, was one question, and how educate was the next. He could prove that the state could educate. Even despotic nations had shown that they could educate their people ; but a free country possessed an additional advantage, as it could edu cats and consolidate its power. In Germany and Prussia education was compulsory. In America it was not so ; but it was made very attractive. In America it was stated as a general rule, that in those states in which education was promote d by the government, the moot was done by the people; and that " wherever the government extended education, the people were found anxious to avail themselves of it; where then now is little or no legislative effort the amount of instruction is as small ea was compatible with any degree of diffusion of know ledge." That fact showed more forcibly that the aid of the government was required than anything he could urge if he were to speak for a month. Those states which did not receive much aid were exceedingly ignorant. In New Y..rk education was progressing favourably, as one-fourth of the population was receiving instruction, and for a man to have a child growing up without going to school was considered the greatest scandal that could attach to him. But if all be had stated was done in America, I why could it not be done in England? It was said', here that the assistance of the state would do away with ' the independence of the people. Was it more destructive to independence to look to the state for education, than to feel that we depended upon private bounty or public charity for it ? Many of those who were educated in charitable in stitutions, found that a kind of stigma attached to them which often lasted to the day of their deaths. He was re proached with it. The state, therefore, was the proper and only means by whose aid a national system of education could be carried out, and the state was now desirous to do it. (Hear.) He regretted that one of the greatest obstacles raised to the scheme was religion. Religious difficulties were the only obstacles now placed in the way of the govern. ment. (Hear) The episcopal church would have no educa tion unless it was placed upon or supported by religion. The dissenters would have no state support, and other seats opposed it for similar reasons ; so that between them all the nation would suffer, unless the government had the determi nation to go fully and fairly into the question, in defiance of such opposition as that with which they were me naced. The flowing tide would be stayed, if not rolled backwards for fifty yeses. Could it be (or the interest of religion that a scheme in which the happiness of the rising generation was involved should be destroyed ? It could not be. Perhaps the best system to adopt would be a system of perfectly secular education, making the parents responsible ' for the religious instruction of their children, not that he was opposed to say system of religious education, but be was anxious to Amin knowledge for the people almost on any terms. (Cheers ) No compulsion by the state could make a person change his religion. A remarkable instance of the tenacity with which persons adhered to the religion of their forefathers was to be found in the last report on education in Ireland. Several children of Roman Catholic parents were educated in a Protestant school, and in the Pro testant religion ; but when they left they went back again to the Roman Catholic faith. Ile thought he had maintained the principles which he enunciated at the commencement of his address, and that the scheme of the government was likely to prove most advantageous —it was the best and most comprehensive that could have been adopted, in his opinion, under the circumstances — (hear, hear)—and a considerable degree of excitement had been occasioned with respect to it. He thought there had been a considerable degree of crude, hasty, unreasonable calumnies east upon it. If he had any objection at all to the government plan, it was this—that it did not go far enough. But he wished to have it tested as proposed, and no doubt the experience which would be obtained would enable them to materially improve it. Some said that it was unconsti tutional, but be was at a loss to know what could be unconstitutional in giving the representatives of the people —their representatives—the control of education. Then it was said to be sectarian. How could it be secta rian, when it supported alike every religious belief, and every religious denomination? If it applied only to the Established Church, it might be called sectarian, and it would deserve the same character if it applied to the dis senters; alone; but as it applied to one sect as much as to an other, he thought it was about the best scheme that could be adopted. " But it is inquisitorial," said a third party. Why ? Wherever public money was applied to a public purpose, there must be public inspection. Private charities privately administered, were too frequently seats of corrup tion; and public money, if privately expended, might be expended improperly, and diverted to corrupt purposes; but here government inspection world keep the fountain clear, and prevent any misappropriation for the future. But ano ther party objected to it, on the ground of centralisation— centralisation, the bane of Europe, the curse of France, and the misery of civilised world. Centrelisatien wielded by a despot was unquestionably bag, as he might attempt to curb the will and thoughts of his subset i hut centralisation in the British remnant was awatrthmition, in point of fact, in the people ter ht ties ease of these schools, in spection waddling le keep the rbeisietraliss of the funds pure and just, and mope' these intrusted with them, and to whom they were paid, to do their ditty. With centralisation, if abuses crept into the administration if the funds, they would be immediately known at head quarters, and the per son who had saisconducted himself would be at once super seded. To his mind a centralisation of this kind possessed much beauty, and formed one of the most important princi ples in the government plan. Another great advantage was' the establishment of normal schools, because by their aid they would be enabled to do away with that obnoxious clam to which he had referred, who, without requisite knowledge, pretend to teach the children of the poor ; and in their place they would have men with young blood in their veins, anxious for the work, and determined to perform it thoroughly, and not half. They would get rid of the half stupid, lame, blind, and frequently immoral old men and women, who had set themselves up as teachers. (Hear.) Besides, they would know, if they dis charged their duties properly, that their old age would be spent in comfort. Much had been urged against the plan which the government bad proposed for the support of the schoolmasters when they relinquished that employment; but it wee most important that a teacher should know that he would not be allowed to die from starvation when his facul ties failed him. Then, again, he considered that instead of the whole scheme enabling the government to tyrannise over the people, that it would have a directly contrary effect, and would place a gnat deal more power in the hands of the people. (Cheers.) The highest class would at the proper time receive their due reward as teachers, whilst the second class pupils would become important public functionaries. Thus, in stead of government situations being bestowed upon those who had' no claim to the gratitude of their country, they would be given to those who had earned a right to hold them. It was, as he had said a very important matter that the tenches of this country should take their proper posi tion, as he considered the teacher was more entitled to respect than the warrior whose conquests over foreign p na ro ti f ox io lr o ur t t he gre w a h t . a l d . ran t. tag r es w to . th h i i s gh on er untry. th. The profession o( the schoolmaste r was higher than the minister of religion, because the success of the subse quent labour of the minister depended much upon the perstructure raised for him to work upon by the superstructure In every point of view he saw great beauty in this scheme of education proposed by the government. Another easily r i i l m y important than i tpointwls, that an educated people were ignorant people. With educe. men tion, one might appeal to a MA's semen, to his intellect, end to his moral feelings ; but without education one could not app eal to him save through the in fl uence of me re physic al power. Corporal punishment would be the way they could teach him to do his duty. But by edu cation one might appeal to his cultivated faculties, and through them, possibly, soften and reclaim. They should then see none of those extraordinary proceedinge, such as took place some thirty years ago in the Midland Counties, where men associated and went about in mote to break machinery—those marvellous instillment' by which they were now supported —as they thought would interfere with their individual labour—instead c' now looking upon them as they did as the most important advantages re lea iby his country. rSthin W4s own moeriencele I:sew at the same period, that se r vi ng men in tngland would not go into the service of a man who kept a thrashing machine, because they said it took away their labour, and the labour of the neighbourhood. At the same time they could not get a man in Scotland to go to a situation where there was not a thrashing machine—the one cites of men, he regretted to say, sunk in ignorance, and the other, he was proud to say, having the means of edu cation which he was desirous that every man in England should possess. It was this that gave Stetchmen the power of managing business, whilst the !sheering men in Eng land and Ireland were compelled to be slaves; not that they had less power, but because they had has knowledge, It was probable that whilst he was addressing the council, there were hundreds of thousands rotting in their gaols who, had the government in years past faithfully done its duty, would have been gaining an honest livelihood, addiag to their comforts and respoetability, and increasing the wealth of the nation. It was, indeed, a lamentable thought, that much of this arose from the opposition of those who entertained strong religious feelings on the matter. He could not conceire anything more extraordinary. They had all kinds of benevolent and religious institutions; they had ministers in all parts of the globe,—and each of those so cieties had his support according to his means—but to give a tract to a child, or a bible to a man, without affording them the means of understanding them, was a grom insult; it was as bad as binding a man's eyes and bidding him beheld the glory and beauty of the universe. —(Hear.) Ile trusted that education would be taken as the basis of all endeavours In humanise and christianise the whale country, and that every EllgliSh• WWI would feel that it was a part of his birthright to be educated. It was a melancholy thing to think that reli gious differences should fetter thought ; but Le confidently trusted that that court would unanimously declare its opinion that no child within these realms should be without mental enlightenment as a means to moral and physical im provement. That was the first motion he had submitted to the court, and perhaps he might not have discharged his task so well as others more experienced wouli have done. (Hear, hear.) He had only to add his gratitude for the patience and kindness with which they bad listened to him. He concluded by proposing the first clause of his motion, end leaving the remainder of it to be dealt with as the council might think fit, and returned his seat amidst general cheering. Mr. T. Werra seconded the motion. Ignorance was, in his belief, the most fertile source of crime. The awful his tory of prisons proved that indisputably. 0(252,000 persons who were committed to prison in the space of ten yearn, 229,000 were uninstructed, 1,085 had gone beyond the elc military degree, and 22,000 could merely read and write. It was said that such a fact showed the ignorance of the vicious. He contended that it proved the viciousness of ignorance. The backwardness of Eneland in educating the population was a disgrace to the country, and he hailed the government system as peculiarly calculated to remedy the alarming evils resulting from such neglect. Mr. Pewraress said, that if Mr. Bennoeh happened to be longer acquainted with the court, he would have found it to be unnecessary to give so long a lecture upon education: he would have known that the many motions made in it for the promotion of education had been supprirted most vigorously, and that all its members were upon all occasions anxious to have the deficiency supplied. He could not, how ever, agree in the opinion that the deficiency was as great as had been represented. All experience had shown that the grossest exaggerations had been made. In fact, education ex isted nearly in proportion to the extent of the pepulation. (Hear. hear.) If gentlemen would take the trouble to inquire they would find that numbers of schools were adapted to the accommodation of more children than attended them. It might be taken as a general rale that parents wished to have their children educated. What then was the reason that the schools were not crowded ? Why, because of the poverty which existed. The poor were unable to put clothes on their children suitable to attendance at school. The rate of wages was so low, that even food could not be supplied. That such was the case in England as well as in Ireland, there could ho no doubt, and it was the duty of the government to effect, if possible, an altera tion in the labour market, as infinitely better calculated to benefit the population, than their system of education. An improvement in that respect would comprehend the education of children. There was another important effect to be pro. duoed by leaving it to the people to educate themselves. He meant the preservation of their independence. (Hear, hear.) That independence which sprang from the voluntary principle ought to be cherished by every government. In fact, a little more justice and a little less charity were re quired in the treatment of the poor. Independence, which was the foundation of all our enjoyments, was perilled by the interferecce of the government. Deputy &revues and Mr. Bowen spoke in favour of the government measure. Mr. K. TAYLOR. remembered when Lord John Russell said, in the Guildhall, that it was the intention of the government to bring forward a system of education as soon as possible, immense cheering proceeded from the very persons who were now exerting themselves to overthrow the measure. (Hear, hear.) He moat warmly approved of the whole system to be introduced by the bill, by which the voluntary principle would be vigorously sup. ported, and a due inspection would be made into the manner in which the money was expended, by men of first-rate qua lifications. lie trusted that the corporation of London, which was distinguished for its love of civil and religions liberty', and which never failed to give from its funds to aid the education of people of all religions, would not hesitate in supporting the administration in so benevolent an effort to serve the humbler classes. An objection was taken that the greatest portion of the money proposed to be advanced by the government would go to the established church. It was right that such should be the ca e. (Hear, hear.) Zeal and activity would secure the largest share. (Cheers.) The government were assailed on all sides by petitions, got up against a plan, in carrying out which they deserved the sup port of the whole of the community, especially of these who were bound, from all previous experience, to support them, but who now opposed them. Mr. Taylor then described the narrow-minded views entertained by the Church of England in former yearn, and contrasted them with the liberality of opinion now generally r xpressed by that church, and aban doned by the old advocates of toleration, and concluded amidst loud cheers. . . . Doctor LYNCR was agreeably surprised and delighted at seeing so fine a field-day for the support of education, and so little chance fur these who opposed it. He considered that great praise was due to her Majesty's ministers for pro pounding so noble • plan for providing amidst the unexam pled difficulties which surrounded them the means of a sound moral education for the children of all classes of the commu nity, without respect to creed, sect, or party. (Hear.) They pursued the proper course to ensure the happiness and to elevate the condition of the labouring classes. The long and exaggerated sentences which they heard about inter ference, tyranny, poison, were mere bugbear*, mere poetic hyperbole, calculated only to frighten children. Mr. WIRE said that all the arguments used in favour of the government measure were grossly fallacious, and all the statistical details were just as fallacious. He considered the interference of the state as not only unneceesary, but as cal culated to strike a blow at the independence of the people, about whose education the government never threw away a thought until they had educated themselves. (Hear, hear.) It was the object of the government not to make theple religious, but to keep them in subjection. Mr. W ire, in compering the population of other countries with that of England,insisted that this country was more intelligent than any other on the face of the earth. He deprecated the idea of giving to government functionaries such a super vision as the inspectors were to have, and of their establish ing an indefinite influence and patronage ; and be contended that the whole plan was part and parcel of the atrocious sys tem of centralisation which was now, unfortunately, so prevalent. Mr. Ds 'EMIT objected to their meddling with ques tions of a political nature, such questions not coming within the province of the corporation. But he objected to the proposed resolution on other grounds. If passed, he doubted whether there were two members of the council agreed as to the mode in which it ought to be carried out; and if it were merely proposed for the purpose of giving the cor poration an opportunity of expressing an opinion upon the subject of education it was unnecessary, be cause that opinion was to be already found in their records, and in their votes of money for the education of chil dren of all religious denominations. He believed that it was proposed for the purpose of strengthening the hands of the government towards effecting the establishment of state education in opposition to, and be might say, to the destruc tion of, the voluntary system, under which so many thou sands were now being educated in the country ; and by which the Bible and Missionary Societies had been enabled to carr, abroad more education than the government, with all their machinery, could hope to effect in • century. As for making the government plan of education compulsory, he considered such a thing both monstrous and impossible. For instance, —say to a Dorsetahire labourer, with 84. • week, that he must send his child to school, and his reply would be that he could not afford to do so, for that he required him to work. If not compulsory, the same objection would operate against it. What then was to be done? Why, this—that before they thought of educating the peo ple through the medium of the state, they should first endeavour to improve their physical condition, so that they might be raised above the position of paupers who had neither food nor clothing. It was said that educa tion, if good for one, was good for all. He denied that. If so where were they to stop ? (" No where.") Would they carry Instruction in mathematics and the sciences to the tail of the plough ? (" No.") Then where would they draw the line? If education was good for all, because good for one, it must be good for all in its higher branches and to its greatest extent—(" No, no")—and before they could hope to extend such a system of education they must better the con dition of the people. He referred to several papers to show that crime sprung more frem poverty than from want of educatiin. He instanced • school with which he was con nected as a proof of the nature of the voluntary principle; spoke of other schools as affording room for the exercise of that principle, owing to the paucity of children attending them, and was proceeding to touch upon the subjects of the poor-law and the sanitary condition of the people, when loud and repeated cries of " question" gave rise to an irregular and noisy discussion, coding in a motion " That the Court do adjourn," which, being negatived, Mr. Actorwrox said the question involved in the motion before them simply was, whether they did or did not agree in the proposed government plan of education. (Hear, hear.) He was surprised at seeing that motion opposed by a gentle man who had heretofore, upon all occasions, shown himself the warm advocate of education, without reference to sect, to party, or to particular schools. He was surprised to find him ROW throwing down the very idol that be had himself raised up and worshipped. (Hear, hear.) And what were THE EXPRESS, TUESDAY EVENING, APRIL 18, 1847, the grounds of his opposition to the plan of the govern ment ? Why, thee it would destroy the system of voluntary subscription for the nuintenanee of schools. Never was there a greater fallacy! (Hear, hear.) The object of the government was to aid that system by giving assistance to sch •ols means, _d 'rived ;re •cs sole tary contri'.utions, were insufficient. (Hear, hear.) Tbey all knew that ap peals were frequently made from the pulpit on b• half of schools so circumstanced. His friend who had spoken last had himself a school, in which he was schoolmaster, inspector, everything, even a father to the children (laughter)--and if at any time he should find his funds inadequate for the maintenance of that school, be would only hove to apply tothe government, under their proposed plan, in order to have the deficiency made good. lie knew not what it was that gyre so much alarm to Mr. Baines and the dissenters, who seemed to increase their opposition to everything coming from the Church of Eng land in proportion as they found that church becoming snore tolerant and liberal. According to the minutes of council the school committees were to hold in their own hands the power of determining all matters of discipline, of deciding upon the course of instruction, of selecting and dismissing the teachers, Bee. He could not see hew any honest dis senter could object to that— (hear, hear)—and if the dis senters as a body were sincere in their wish to educate the people they ought to hail inch a measure as a blessing to the country. (Hear, hear.) Mr. De Jersey spoke of some schools having bat few pupils. Perhaps that was owing to the inadequacy of the masters, who sometimes required as much teaching as the scholars themselves. (Laughter.) But in the parish of Barbican, not far from that gentleman's neighbourhood, out of a population of 18,000, there were not in 1834 three hundred children re ceiving instruction. In fact, the voluntary system had never been able to supply one-tenth of the peopl e with @due ition and were they, out of compliment to that system, and in or der to give his friend Mr. De Jersey and others all the eclat of educating one-tenth of the people, to leave the remaining nine-tenths without a n y ed uca ti on a t a ll ? (Hear, hear.) One of the parochial schools of London was some time ago in such a state of destitution that a ball was got up to bene fit it; an application was subsequently made to that court to pay the expenses of the ban, and in favour of that application Mr. De Jersey voted; and yet he now objected to receive aid from the government on the ground indeed that it would destroy the independence of the children. He hoped, however, that the government would not be deterred by such reasons from persevering in an intention which did them honour. (Hear, hear.) Mr. Cask believed it to be the duty of a paternal govern , went not to force a compulsory measure of education on the people, but to afford them the means of being educated; and when he considered that in Lon lon alone there were 150,000 children without those means, he could not refuse his support to the measure of the government. In some of the details of that measure much impravement might be made, and if a committee were framed to consider and point them out, he was sure they would be amended by the go vernment. The present lamentable state of education in this country was a reproach to the government, and he re joiced they had taken up the question again, for it was evident that the voluntary principle was a complete failure, and utterly inefficient to meet the wants of the nation, however usefully it might have worked in particular dis tricts. (Hear, hear.) Mr. PRENDERGAST quite agreed with the last speaker, that the government would seriously consider any alterations proposed in the measure; for they had caused the minutes of council to be widely circulated with the express object of eliciting every possible information on the subject, whether for or against their plan. Nothing could be more unfair than to call that plan an attack upon the voluntary prin ciple. In his opinion, it relied too much upon that prin. c4ile, for it required that for every 6d. advanced by the go vernment Is. should be obtained from voluntary cone ributions. (Hear.) It, moreover, threw the whole power of the plan into the hands of the people themselves; and for the first time made the voluntary system effective. He was not surprised that a man like Mr. De Jersey, who belonged to a section that was opposed to the march of mind amongst the people, should object to such a plan; but very much surprised indeed was he to see it objected to by Mr. Wire, who had preached so long and so well on the side of the people. And yet the opponents of that plan had not dared to assert that the machinery of the present system was capable of effecting great good. They merely said that, if they were left alone, the time would come when they would have a good system. But how many pee le were to remain in ignorance, and how much crime might be committed on account of that ignorance in the meantime ? Mr. Baines, in his book, said, in reference to the government plan, that it was obvious that the school masters and future teachers under that plan would be nearly as dependent upon the inspectors as the slaves of the United States were upon their masters. Such was the nature of the arguments, if such they might be called, which were em ployed by the opponents of the plan. Mr. Baines, in the same worthless book, insinuated most uncharitably that in spectors might report that pupil teachers had not answered as well as they really had, thus rendering it necessary to be in favour with the inspectors in order to ensure success. At what aloes must he have been when he descended to such an objection ! As for Sendsy-schools, they were of little good without daily ones. Opposite the names of prisoners at the assizes he had frequently observed—not that they could neither read nor write—but that they could do both " imperfectly " showing that the imperfect education they had received had had ao moral or useful effect upon their minds, and that they might as well have been utterly ignorant. Now, the object of the government by their proposed measure was to improve that system, so as to render it sufficiently " perfect " to elevate the character of the people. The question was an English one '• se such, and not in a sectarian light, he hoped they would view it. (Hear, beer.) Mr. ASKIIRAT considered they theuld be guided in their decision by the course which the established church had al ready taken when entrusted with the education of the peo ple, and with an extensive pant for that purpose—a course which showed that it had not done what was expected to have been done. Out of a grant of 30,000!., 27,0001. had got into the hands of the state church, and one-tenth of the grant only into that of the dissenters. He could look for no better result under the proposed plan, and on that ground he opposed it. It would place an enormous amount of patronage in the hands of the government in the way of pensions to masters and pupils, and apprentices, which, particularly in Ireland, would enable them to keep the people where they were, at the starving point, but, at the same time quiet—because when they pensioned a ebild they secured the family, and so on. All this was to be effected through the established church, and until they got rid of that church he did not think they would do anygood. He did not object to tho measure on any narrow or sectarian ground, but upon the broad ground of its being opposed to the principle of religious liberty. If those who supported it wen the friends of civil and religious liberty, as they pro fessed to be, they would be just as anxious that an atheist should enjoy his belief as they theirs. Suppose, then, we had an atheistical government, the chief priest, the lord pre sident of the council, and all regularly sworn to that creed, and that they appointed the friends of that creed to be magistrates all through the country, would those who now supported the government in their plan of education say that the priests of that atheistical creed were the parties who ought to have the education of a great proportion of the people? He did not think they would, and yet they blamed the dissenters for entertaining a similar feeling towards the est,bliahed church. Mr. King, having addressed the court in favour of the voluntary principle, which he mid would be destroyed if the government measure were adopted, Mr. Wins attempted to speak on the same side, bat was objected to u having spoken already. After a noisy contest on the point, the Lord Mayor decided that the debate, being a new one (the " court," and not the " debate," haying been adjourned on the last occasion) every gentle man had a right to be heard. Mr. Lowe then moved that the debate be adjourned, and the question being negatived, he briefly addressed the court in favour of the voluntary system, which he regarded as more effective, by the very nature of it, than any the state could invent. Mr. HALL followed on the same side, observing that he should prefer seeing the intended sum of mousy given to the people for clothes and food. Another attempt to speak on the part of Mr. Wine, gave rise to another contest, which, like the rest, terminated in a motion for adjournment. This time it proved successful, and the debate was accordingly adjourned to Thursday next. DINNER TO LORD TORIONOTON.—The chairmen and directors of the South Eastern Railway gave • splendid banquet last evening to his Excellency Viscount Torrington, who starts by the first India mail for Ceylon, to which colony he has just been appointed governor. Mr. Mac- Omor, chairman of the company, presided. About one hun dred gentlemen sat down. After the usual loyal toasts, the chairman gave " the House of Peers," o that if ever there was a time when its members bu : T o i l be endowed with " grace, wisdom, and understanding," it was at the present crisis of affairs, when parte of the kingdom were enduring such severe sufferings, and it was now the duty of esesy man to give them hearty end disin terested support. The Attorney-General, in returning thanks, was quite certain all must be convinced that gush ten were earnestly striving to carry out measures most con ducive to the welfare of the country. The sole aim of government, in its official appointments, was the nomination of the most fitting persons, and the appointment of the noble man whose departure they had then met to commemorate, bore out this assertion. It must be pleasing to most of those to remember that Lord Torrington lac ks habits of business chiefly in his connexion with the §cuth-Eastern Railway Company.—The chairman, in pro posing the health of Lord Torrington, observed, that in the commercial enterprise through which he had made his ac quaintance, he had been able, and gratified, to witness the noble lord's enterprising mind and active talent. The noble lord had gained much popularity in the county of Rent by the benefits he had conferred upoe the agricultural interests of the county, and it was to be both hoped and ex pected that he would gain the same popularity in the country where he wee going.—Lord Torrington, in return, could only sure them that the gratitude he felt would be long engraven on his memory. He looked back with pleasure to his oonnexion with the South. Eastern Railway Company, which connexion had been entered into with no speculative views, but solely for the future benefits he might be able to render his country. He hoped to return to that oonntry with the credit of having fally carried out the views held by her Majesty in appointing hint.—Sir Edmund Filmer returned thanks for the health of the House of Commons, every member of which, he could with justice eay, desired above all things to do their duty to all classes. Although gratified at the appointment of Lord Torrington, they could not but regret his departure.—Lord Torrington proposed the health of the chairman, and alluded to that gentleman's unremitting attention to the welfare of the community at large, through the medium of the South- Eutern Railway.—The chairman, in returning thanks, said that communication with Dover merely, he hoped, was the smallest benefit that would accrue to the country from their rsilwar. He looked forward to a communiostiew through the 80 - nth-Eastern Railway. with Marseillea.Conat;ntinople, and even Ceylon itself —The Attorney-General returned thanks on behalf of the Bench and the Bar, who, he could with sincerity say, tally deserved the compliment done %them in having tk. boa/elm 'rut. ?e, and the apps •,.hatienot all classes, which was the chief reward they looked forward to is all their labours.—Mr. Alderman Lucas returned thanks for the Lord Mayor and aldermen of London, and remarked that if the landed and resident gentry of Kent —and himself among them—had not opposed the scheme, there would have been a direct line to Dover years ago. He now put in his recantation.—The chairman, in proposing the prosperity of Ceylon, said that he fully expectvel that, under the rule of Lord Torrington, that colony would soon assume a position of importance it had not hitherto attained A railroad was now being projected there under the auspices of the noble lord. The last toast was the Viscountess Tor rington, which was received with more enthusiasm than any of the evening. MISS HER,CIIEL.—THE GLOBE OF TUE MOON.— Sir John Herschel has communicated to the Athenneurn the fallowing correction of certain particulars stated in a para graph relative to Miss Caroline Herschel, his aunt—which has been going the round of the papers, and was quoted in our column last week April S.—Permit me to cornet an error in the article in your 0 Weekly Oorsip" of hut week, p. 366, respecting my venerable re lative, lilies Caroline Herschel, who (as is correctly stated; is reeidest In Hanover, where ate has recently completed her 9;th year,- distin mgatted by the favour of bar govereign and the condeseer,ding knid nem of the amiable prince and princess royal. Though still In prow_ session of all her faculties, however, she is quite incapable of astro nomical observations; nor has she meetly, or at any time, constructed a globe of the moon. model in relief to which allusion is probably made —• beautiful and admirable work—is the production, out o(Niiss Herschel, but of another Hanoverian lady, Madame Witte. This exquisite production—unrivalled in accuracy of reproentation as in delicacy of execution exhibited to the British Aasociation at Camteulge, and sulasequenUy to the Royal Astanaornical Society of Lambe', to the unbounded admiration of all who beheld it. It it infinitely to be regretted that so fine a work should leave this country, as it most shortly do, unless Dome fortunate combination of circumetances should secure it a place in one of our national or academic collection.—J. F. W. Haaweat. _ Loos oe THE TWEED.—S ir,—Haring perused the short article in your paper of Saturday relative to the me lancholy low of the Tweed, I feel an interest in communi eating to you the result of my own experience sea traveller in the same latitudes, and which will be found to have some bearing upon your observations. I was a paesenger to Vera Cruz by a " sailing vessel " from London prior to the esta blishment of "steam communication," and reached the Gulf of Mexico in the month of December, during the height of the "Norther " reason (which lasts nom October to March in.clusive). A Ncrther sprung up, and lasted for some days, during which we were without a sight of the sun ; it cleared off, and we found ourselves carried by currents some thirty to forty miles out of our reckoning, and in imminent danger. On my return, prior to the establishment of the steamers, I embarked at Vera Crux in the month of July, the meat favourable season for the navigation of the Gulf, on board a United States mail packet, commanded by one of the most experienced captains iu the Mex'can trade ; our destination was New York, and in the Gulf of Florida we sighted a light-house, wbick by the reckoning we were held to be fifty miles from. Such experience therefore leads me to view the Tweed's diluter as one which might occur without any fault attaching to thew in command. The great strength of the carrents during the " Norther " season, and their varia tion both in force and direction, render it impossible to pro vide against them by calculation; whilst the captain's diffi culty is generally increased during the prevalence of the " Norther" by the impossibility of getting an observation of the sun. In offering these observations, I by no means underrate the urgent necessity for a searching inquiry into the facts of a case involving such vast loss of life; and to render such inquiry the more effectual and satisfactory I should like to see the whole evidence submitted toe jury of merchant captains, experienced men in the navigation of the Gulf of Mexico. :7 A Suasousea. FALL DOWN A WELL—Yesterday morning, a man named Henry Basing, aged 22, proceeded to the residence of Mr. Cooper, at Greenwich, for the purpose of bricking up a deep well in that gentleman's garden at the rear of the ' dwelling-house. The wall was upwards of forty feet deep, and quite clear of water. The men commenced their laboun, and after they had lowered a quantity of bricks and mortar the man Basing attempted to be lowered down by a rope from the spindle at the top. He bad proceeded about three yards when the rope suddenly snapped and precipitated him to the bolters, of the well. An alarm having been raised, a large body of persons congregated round the mouth of the well, and atter several minutes the poor fellow was rescued by a chair being lowered to the bottom. He liras in a ' dreadful condition when brought to the surface, bleeding from the nose and mouth, the left collar bone fractured, dis location of the shoulder joint, fracture of the left leg, toge ther with contusions and lacerations of the faee and body. Mr Sutton, surgeon, was called in, who advised his removal to Guy's Hospital, whither he was taken in a cart. He is lying in a very precarious state. FIRE3.—AT THE NEW SMALL DEBTS COURT, EDGEWARE•ROAD.—Last night, at a few minutes past 10 o'clock, a fire broke out in the New Small Debts Court, 112, Edgeware-road, near Chapel-street. The first discovery was made by the police constable on the beat, who immediately raised an alarm, and sent a messenger for the engines. The two parish engines quickly arrived, and there being an abundant supply of water, no time was lust in setting them to work ; but such a powerful ascendancy had the flames previously obtained, that before a drop of water could be discharge', they were to be seen issuing through the win dow, and roof with such fury as to threaten with destruction the whole of the surrounding property. The engines of the London brigade, from Baker-scot and Ring-street stations, were the next that arrived, closely followed by several others. The fire continued to burn upwards and downwards, so that it was not until nearly 12 o clock that it could be subdued. By that period the whole of the upper portion of the build ing was destroyed. The backs of some of the houses in Chapel-street are damaged, but fortunately not to say great extent.—lN SHOREDITCIL Last evening, shortly before six o'clock, an accident of a very singular character, I and which occasioned considerable excitement in the neigh bourhood, took place in High-street, Shoreditch, nearly facing the Eastern Counties Railway terminus. It appear, that a number of men were engaged in unloading a waggon filled with puncheons of turpentine. One of the immense casks bad been attached to a crane belonging to Means. Oabey and Wells, wholesale oilmen, and had been drawn up some distance, when by some mishap the hest of the pantheon came out, and the whole of its contents fell to the ground. A lad who was standing by, was in the act of lighting a cigar with a Inciter match, which coming in contact with the turpentine, the whole of the 120 gallons became ignited, and the flames role in one immense sheet upwards of 20 feet, setting on fire the shop front and side doors of the defunct Parcels Post depot. At the same time the sheet of flame was drawn under the archway at the side of Messrs. Gabey's oil stores, sad fer some time it was feared that those premises would have been destroyed. A number of the inhabitants and several of the men employed on the premises rendered essential aid and succeeded in getting the fire extinguished, but not until considerable damage was done to the premises numbered 223, and the whole of the turpentine destroyed. Such was the alarm created in the district, that merengen were despatched in all directions for the engines. Mr. Braidwood, the superintendent of the brigade, and Mr. Fogo, the foreman of the A section, quickly ' attended with four engines, but fortunately their services were not required. INQUESTS YESTERDAY. THE FATAL CASE OP BURNING Irian LUDOLTZ-111LL.—By Mr. Payne, at the', Blue Last, Broadway, Ludgate-hill, on the body of Eliza beth Maxwell, sged forty-four, who was burned to death at her residence, No. 6, Broadway.—Barbara Hill said that the deceased was her sister. About half past six o'clock on Saturday night she sent witness to eager& Hall, Bride-lane, to see if her husband was there. She returned in about a quarter of an hour, and on entering the room found the de ceased lying in front of the grate, and on going to feel for her found she was roost dreadfully burned over the head, face, and neck. When she went out deceased appeared very weak and odd in her manner, as if she bad been drinking. In answer to the coroner, witness stated that de ceased was in the habit of eating very little, but drinking a great deal. She could not tell how the occurrence took plant-o.omo Maxwell, a tailor, said that he saw his wife alive for the last time on Saturday at noon. She was then sober, but unwell. She had been ill for some months.—Mr. John Richmond, the landlord, said that his impression was that abe was intoxicated, and fell into the fire. Verdict, "Accidental death." Set- CIDS AT ROTHERNTTEE TROY PECCNtAaT DIPTICVL- rtes.—Before Mr. Carter, at the King's Paves, Lower Rotherhithe, respecting the death of Mr. Wm. Butt, aged 46, of No. 363, Rotherbithe-wall, who committed suicide.— Elizabeth Bury said she bad been in the deceased's service about eleven months. He was a cheesemongcr, and formerly carried on a very lucrative business. Witham for some time past had observed a great change in his manner, which she attributed to pecuniary difficulties, arising from his trade having seriously fallen off daring the last few months. He was a man of sober habits, and very kind in his disposition towards his family. On Friday morning last the deceased came down from his bedroom and proceeded into the shop, where he paced backwards and forwards in a very singular manner for several minutes. About seven o'clock he went up stain again, and when witness entered the kitchen, which is situated on the first-floor, she discovered him suspended hy a rope, which had been fastened to a hook in the ceiling. He was black in the face and quite motionless. Witmer in stantly raised an alarm, when Mrs. Butt and the shopman ran into the room, and the latter cut him down. He fell into his wife's arms but seemed dead. Two Burros' were im mediately sent for, but all efforts to restore life were useless, as the deceased had been dead some minutes. He had effected has purpose by standing oa a washing-stood—The deceased's brother-in-law stated that deceased had not been in his right mind for several weeks, which came on owing to his being unable to meet the heavy demands of his creditors. He had been pressed very much for the income-tax by one of the parish officers, and he (the deceased,) was fearful of an execution being put in for the amount. On the previous night witness had an interview with the deceased and promised to assist him with getting tome cash, but when witness reached the house on Friday he was dead. Other evidence having been taken the Coroner remarked on the melancholy nature of the case, after which, the jury returned a verdict of "Temporary Insanity."--.SunDere DEATH AT OODITO'S BREWIllitY.—By Mr. W. Carter, at the Waterman's Arms Tavern , Belvidere-road, Lambeth, relative to the death of Joseph Soden, aged 64 Tears:—Thu deceased had been in the service of Messrs. Gaoling and Co , the brewer', for many years, but latterly he had been in the receipt of a pension from the firm, owing to some injury he had sustained while in their employ. The deceased resided on the premises with his wife, and on Friday last, whilst standing in the kitchen he was suddenly seised with an epileptic fit, and fell to the ground, whore he was subse quently found by hie wife. Mr. Carruthers, the surgeon, was ailed in, but the deceased expired shortly afterwards from the effects of that fearful malady. The jury returned a verdict of " Death from natural causes." IRELAND. DUBLIN. Aran. 11. Belfast, the chief seat of bisiitrasle and msnutac tures, shares in the general distress to an extent for hicl, you will b prepared. Wh a thAt emporium of commercial and manufacturing prosperity contains a population of 15,000 destitute, subsist.ng by local benevolence, how dreadful mud be the con dition of other districts without opulence, trade, or employment ? " - It - will scarcely be credited," says the report of the Bel fast Soup-kitchen Committee, just issued, " that the re are in a town like Belfast, the seat and centre of wealth and manu factures, to be found a vast number of families, pro!. tb4 not over. estimated at 1,000, who bare neither bed nor bedding of any description, whose only couch is a heap of Intl y straw, and who are without any artiste of furniture whatever." Could there be possibly borne so strong a direct testimony as this furnishes of indirect evidence as to the overwhelming misery of the rest of Ireland— where wealth is not and, manufactures are unknown. The committee, amongst other labours, undertook to re-whitewash the dwellings of the poor and distribute among them straw as well as soup. Excellent though M. Soyer's soup may be for stomachs containing a basis of solid food, as a dietary for an entire people, even accompanied with a biscuit, it is regarded with much suspicion. Dr. Aldridge, an eminent chemist, has delivered a very telling lecture at the Royal Dublin Society against the geuc ral ap plication of a vegetable soup,—such as Soyer's, in sub stance, is; for the meat only fulfils the ditty of the " hammy knife," and gives a poor relish. Dr. A. showed from analysis that the soup prepared in the parish kitchens was better and cheaper, though cod ing more nominally, because more nutritious. A very distinguished authority in support of these views has Mst appeared. The celebrated physician, Sir Henry arsh, has published a small but conclusive pamphlet in which he says, if soup diet be relied on to any considerable extent, the population will be carried off by dysentery. THIS LAW OF Exconna.—M. Jullien who has been enter taining the citizens of Dublin for the few last nights, at the - Music-hall, Abbey-street, has fallen into great disfa vour with our population. On Friday night Herr Pischek with M. Jullien, was called on to repeat a song. The I leader refused to permit him—the audience got angry, and the maestro called them "a sixpenny mob." They reta listed by groaning, biasing, and finally broke some of the I benches. Last night the " sixpennies"—by the b., the ad. mission is a shillicg—mostered in great force, and though M. Jullien was all submissivenc-aas to encores, yet As he dal not apologise he was attacked. A rotten err{ war broken upon hie forehead, and, as he turnrd round, au orange struck him on the cheek. Some of the disturbers ere re moved by the police, aad quiet was restored. ektAND CANAL COMPANV.— Stated half-yearly meeting on Saturday, at their offices, William-street—Chairman, Mr. John Barton. The report refers to the condiiiou of the works, which are generally satisfactory ; to the losses in trade, arising from the destruction of the potato crop, and the great interruption of the navigation durifar Ot^ winter and spring by frost, from which cruses from 3,0001.:o 4,0001. of revenue were lost. The report also adiverte to the increase of the passenger trade, arising from the tendency to emigra tion; and states, that the company has entered into a con tract with the Cashel Railway Company, which wid enable them to remove their packet atatten to Satins, nineteen miles west of Dublin ; the passengers to come 011 by rail. The kill for constructing a rail on the canal bank has been abandoned. STATE OT THE COENTET.-Mr. Henry Carmody, of Limerick, who acted as agent to • lady in Clare, was wounded near Killaloc, on Wednesday last. The Leal viper sta es his ease to he hopeless. Two persons whu o ere with him at the time of the attack were wounded also. —Seven men and one woman have been arrested for the plunder of Mr. Lahiff sheep, neer Gort, but only one of the sheep have been recovered. The who'e numbir plundered, it now appears, was lii.—ford Monteagle has piireh^ste, for the use of his Limerick tenantry, a cargo of It sa seed ; his lordship having determined to encourage amon o uit them the growth of flan. SCOTLAND. EDINBURGH. Arun. 10. The meeting of the Edinburgh Town Council at which the education scheme was discussed was thinly attended, and the majority was, in consegcence, only one; but it him now been ascertained that had all the councillors been present, the vote would have stood 20firr to 12 against. The Glasgow meeting held yesterday evening, ended in the adoption of resolu tions against the scheme, moved and seconded by two ministers of the secession church. The lies. Mr. D'Orsay, amidst much uproar, moved an amendment, which was lost, greatly, it is to be feared, from the confusion engendered by the introduction by some Chartists of a second amendment, that no education scheme should be carried into effect until the working classes were enfranchised. The sectarian rivalries in connexion with the Aberdeen industrial schools which was alluded to in • former communication, has ended in the disruption of the Female School of Industry. According to the Banner, the Free Church party have commenced an institution of their own, and have carried with them 57 of the 59 pupils attending the original seminary. The severe weather recently experienced in this country, assumed the character of a gale or hurricane in various parts of the provinces. The ferry-boat between Burntisland and Granton had her funnel blown down, and was so disabled as to prevent the passage from being accomplished. A pilot-boat was also upset in the Firth of Forth and a boy drowned. At Glasgow the Clyde was in a fearful state of com motion, and boats were forced from their moorings and driven upwards in spite of the current. Inthe city a wall was blown down, and several persons were, in the course of the day, knocked over by the sudden squalls. At Gourock-bay, near Greenock, several vessels drifted from their anchors, but were assisted into the harbour without material damage. At Montrose a turret of the church-steeple was blown away, and so were several factory-stalks. Further north the Aberdeen steam-boats could not land their Elgin goods and passengers, and had to carry them to Inverness. These, as yet, appear to be the extent of the calamities, and they are worthy of notice more for the wideness of surface over which the storm pre vailed than for any very destructive intensity in given localities. The green crops are not yet so far advanced as to have sustained any damage. A deputation of Free Church clergy and laity have had an interview here with the Lord Advocate, on the subject of quoad sacra chapels, i.e. chapels of ease erected by voluntary effort, in connexion with the Church of Scotland before the recent disruption took place. The Free Church party hold that these edi fices were mainly built with their money, and that, de jure, they ought to be theirs. They are still in possession of many of them, and, unless special legislative interference takes place, which is not likely, the law processes presently going on will inevitably result in their expulsion.----An other deputation, of a different character, waited on the Lord Advocate from Glasgow. Its object was to confer with his lordship on the five acts to be intro duced by him for the abridgment, simplification, and economisation of the title deeds of heritable subjects in Scotland held in property and mortgage. The Glasgow reformers, although approving of the new acts, did not think they went far enough. The Edin burgh lawyers will doubtless think they go too far, and, as Reuben Butler's grace was thought toe short by David Deans, and too long by Captain Knock dunder, and was thence concluded by the author of " Waverley " to be of proper dimensions, so, in like manner, the Lord Advocate has, in this instance, most probably drawn the correct diagonal line between two conflicting classes of dissentients. - A correspondent of the Kilmarnock Journal asserts that the general assembly of the chnrch of Scotland, sanctioned, in 1810, a system of registra tion of births, deaths, and marriages, substantially the same as the Lord Advocate has pro posed to intro duce, with the single exception that the parochial schoolmasters, instead of being excluded, were arbi tarily named as the registrars. . . At yesterday's meeting of the Highland Society, a communication was read from Mr. Mitchell Wester Alves, nn the dibbling of seed corn. Mr. Mitchell expressed his belief that the process of dib bling iced corn, though not advantageous in ordinary years, was of muck importance at the present crisis, and might be made available in modifying the existi ng distress, parties lazly in Ireland, as well through a saving of food, as by employment of labour In Ireland there are upwards of 300,000 farms of about five acres each, and 250,000 more of fifteen acres each or under, besides those of larger dimensions to which the process could not be so well applied. Now, if one-third, or say 500,000 acres of the five-acre farms, cud one-third of, or say 1,600,000 acres of the fifteen-acre farms, making 2,000,000 of acres in all, were dibbled, the results would be as follows:—The soil in Ireland being fertile, and the climate more genial than Scotland, the dibbling might be performed 4 by 4 inches apart, which would take about one bushel of seed per acre ,• 2,000,000 of acres would take 250,000 quarters of seed, and supposing the ordinary broadcast system required five bushels per acre, the saving of grain would be 1,000,000 of quarters of grain, and which, at the present prices, would be upwards of two mil lions of money. The number of hands employed would be 1,000,000 of men and 4,000,000 of wemen and children for two weeks ; and calculating the men at ss. a week, Is. more than what is allowed by the Board of Works, and four 1 ~,;' ) I