The Press. — London, England, 1855-02-17 00:00:00

LORD JOHN RUSSELI'S EDUCATION BILL. THIS bill, which was read a first time in the House of Commons last week, contains twenty-two clauses, of which the following is a brief abstract :—The councils of Enghsh boroughs are empowered to submit schemes for the promotion of education in such boroughs (by means either of new or existing schools) to the Education Committee of the Privy Council, with an estimate of the expense thereof. Two-thirds of the members of such councils must be present at the meeting to be specially summoned for the pur pose fourteen days previously. If the scheme be ap proved by the Education Committee, it may be carried into effect, with or without alterations. The expenses are to be defrayed out of the borough funds, the rate not to exceed Bd. in the pound annually. The act may also be adopted by parishes situate without boroughs if two-thirds of the ratepayers vote at a public meeting in favour of such adoption. If the scheme be rejected by the ratepayers, it may not be again proposed for the space of three years. Where parishes adopt the act, the scheme may be submitted for approval to the Education Committee in the same way as by the councils of boroughs ; the expenses to be defrayed from the poor rates. In all schools es tablished under this act the Holy Scriptures are re quired "to be react therein," but not so as to be used as a " school lesson book ;" and no Roman Catholic or Jewish children will be obliged to be present at the reading of the Holy Scriptures. Another clause pro vides that the children of Dissenting, Roman Catholic, or Jewish parents shall not he taught any catechism, nor required to use any liturgy, nor ob liged to attend at church or other religious obser vances. The management of schools is to be vested in the councils of boroughs and vestries of parishes subject to Government inspection, and the rights of trustees or visitors. The Education Committee may at any time revoke any order approving any scheme under this act, and so shut up the school disapproved. The committee must, at the same time, state its reasons for so doing. THE BANKS OF ENGLAND AND FRANCE. THE annual statements of business done by the great national banking establishments of England and France have been published within the last few days, containing the detail of operations during the entire year 1854. From the accounts of the Bank of England, it appears that— The amount of all Exchequer Bills, Treasury Bills, or other Government securities purchased by the Bank, or on which any sums were lent or advanced by the Bank, during the year ended the sth of January, 1855, included the following sums—viz., in the quarter ended the sth of April, 1854, 3,711,2011. ; in the quarter ended the sth of July, 790,0001.; in the same quarter, 5,852,0481. ; in the quarter ending the 10th of October, 500,0001.; in the same quarter, 4,029,289 ; and in the quarter ending the sth of January, 1855, 2,460,582/. All these advances were made on the growing produce of the Consolidated Fund. There were also advanced on Exchequer Bills two sums of 1,750,0001. and 800,450/. All these amounts were paid off during the year, except 235,9001., which remained undischarged in the hands of the Bank on the sth of Jan uary last. The balance issued for the payment of dividends due and not demanded, and for the payment of lottery prizes or benefits not claimed, amounted as follows--viz., on the sth of April, 1854, to 1,099,20 X, of which 990,9531. was advanced to Government ; on the sth of July, to 1,079,1641., ",1641. - advanced to Government; on the which 913,2981. was sth of January, 1855, was advanced to the he Bank of England above quarter-days to 0 ,7881. respectively. expenditure of the sum of the Commissioners for shows that the greater " cash received at that nearly all of in the purchase of receipts were appro- Consols and 24,9211. ..s done by the Bank particulars for the year The total of the operations of the establishment a mounted to 3,888,000,W0f., to 3,984,000,000 f. in is 1853, and 2,541,000,000 f. in 1852, being a diminution of 76,0:;0,0ti0f. as compared with 1853. The discount ac commodation in Paris and the branch banks amounted to 2,842,000,000 f. in 1841, but reached the sum of 2,944,00;),000f. in 1854, being an augmentation of 102,000,000 f. in favour of the latter year. The account current of the Treasury, which had fallen to 24,000,000 f. on November 8, 1854, had risen to 222,000,000 f. on the 17th of January, 1855, and was 184,0,!0,000f. on the 24th of January. This augmentation was the natural conse quence of the snbsoription to the late national loan. The metallic reserve - the Bank - year by a sum S finished 7,300,000 f. The operations of the branch banks present a satisfactory result, as they are greater in their aggregate than the amount of business at the main estab. lishment in Paris. The operations of the branch banks amounted in 1852 to 1,305,000,000 f., in 1853 to 2,098,000,000 f., and in 1854 to 2,101,000,000 f. The six in which the largest amount of business was done are, Marseilles, 277,000,000 f. • Lyons, 210,000,000 f.; Bor deaux, 179,000,000 f. ; Line, 151,000,000 f. ; Valenciennes, 127,000,000 f.; and Besancon, 107,000,000 f. On the other hand, four have not covered their expenses—namely, Amiens, which has a loss of 38,2881.; Rochelle, 24,884 f. ; Toulon, 12,486 f. • and Avignon , 1,375 f. These four have been recently established. LORD CARDIGAN AT NORTHAMPTON. Ox Thursday week Lord Cardigan was honoured with a sort of triumphal entry into Northampton, and afterwards made a speech in reply to an address presented to him by the corporation. The speech was of a very similar character to that delivered at the Mansion-house. Alluding to a passage in the address in which he was congratulated upon his return to England, he said :—" No doubt it is most agreeable to mix with oue's relatives and friends in the country, and with one's neighbours in the county, but at the same time, whatever pleasure I may de rive from it, I must say that had it not been for circumstances, arising partly from ill health, over which I had no control, I should not have deemed it my duty to leave the seat of war at this time, although, perhaps, my remaining there would have been almost useless, for 1 had nothing left to com mand. (Hear, hear.) I still think that, unless some such reasons as I am about to assign could be urged—incapacity arising from ill-health amongst the number—every general officer is bound to re main with the army as long as there is an army to commaud—(cheers)—and I am prepared to say further, that if my services are again required they shall be perfectly available. (Loud cheering.) In the meantime I have been promoted to a situation — Inspector-General of Cavalry—in which I hope to be able to render considerable service to the army by repairing the losses and restoring the dilapidated condition of the cavalry—being, in short, intrusted with the preparation of all cavalry recruits for the army." (Cheers.) Respecting the fatal " order," Lord Cardigan remarked:—Though I do not pretend to more sentimentality than other men, it seemed to me at the time, and still seems, that the loss was so certain and serious, and the advantage to be gained by the attack so slight, as to make it a matter of deep regret that the order was given. (Hear, hear.) I received the order, however, to attack, and, although I should not have thought of making such an attack without orders, and although I differed in opinion as to the propnety of the order, I promptly obeyed it." (Loud cheering.) ST. CROSS HOSPITAL. THE following scheme for the future government of this establishment, respecting which so much dispute has arisen in various forms, has been settled under the authority of the Master of the Rolls : In this scheme the present income of the hospital is estimated at 1,8001. a year, and, prospectively, when the present life leases of the great tithes of the various parishes which belong to it expire, its income will be SPOOL a year. The government of the hospital is to be vested in fifteen trustees, chosen from the respectable inhabitants of the city of Winchester and its neighbourhood. A master will be appointed, who is to be a clergyman of the Church of England. He is to be chosen by the Bishop of Winchester for the time being, and subject to his canonical jurisdiction. His salary will be for the present 250 i. a year. He is to be the incumbent of St. Faith, the parish in which St. Cross is situated. He is to reside in the hospital, perform daily service in its church and two full services on Sundays, and bury the hospital brethren and the inhabitants of St. Faith, who are interred in the churchyard of that parish without fees. There is to be a receiver of thekrevenue of the hospital, who is to be appointed by the trustees, and is to be paid five per cent. of the revenue of St. Cross. A porter is to be appointed at a salary of 501. a year. He is not to be a brother of the hospital, nor to receive rations. He is to keep in order the church premises and grounds. The question of fees for showing the hospital is to be left with the trustees. The brethren are to be at presen' thir teen in number; they are to receive Ills. a week, and daily rations of meat, bread, and beer, but their extra allowances on gaudy days are to be abolished. The trustees have the power to commute the allowances to the brethren by a money payment, not exceeding 401. a year for each brother. The daily dole of bread and beer to all strangers applying at the porter's lodge, and the doles of bread now delivered at the gates of the hospital on certain festivals of the year, are to be abolished. A Biu. for abolishing the duties on flour and the tonnage dues has been introduced in the Legislative Chamber of the Netherlands. The loss of the Trea sury, which will amount to five millions of guilders, will be partially compensated by an increase of the property tax, and the excise on sugar and spirits. IN order to provide means of subsistence for the destitute, 5,860 labourers have been constantly em ployed during the present inclement season on the railways in progress in the provinces of Lombardy and Venice, and along the Tyrolese limes. SAttntDAY, Voiitical a 0 tiitntral. MISS CATHERINE HAYES had arrived in Calcutta at the date of the last advices. She had come up from Sydney, to which place she crossed from America, and was going to give a few concerts in Calcutta before proceeding to Europe. THE Leader states that Miss Martineau is so dangerously ill as to leave no hope for her recovery. "Her disease is enlargement of the heart; the end may come at any moment." MR. THOMAS UWINS, the accomplished Royal Academician and keeper of the National Gallery, was lately seized with an illness which for some days threatened his life. A favourable change has since taken place, however, and hopes are entertained of his recovery. A MINOR REFORM has been effected by the House of Lords. The public papers of that body are in future to be sold to the general public without the formality of a peers' order. A GOLD MEDAL OF THE SECOND CLASS has just been conferred by the French Government on Capt. John Jones, of the English brig Enterprise, for having lately assisted some French sailors whoSe vessel had been wrecked. M. VARNAVAS PANGALOS, the oldest of the patriots who struggled for the independence of Greece, and one of those who sacrificed a large fortune to the cause, has just died at Athens at the extraordinary age of one hundred and eleven years. A GRAND BALL took place at the Hanover-square Rooms on Monday night, in aid of the funds of the " Sosiete Francias de Bienfaisance," an institution for the relief of distressed Frenchmen, " strangers and sojourners" in London. Despite the state of the weather, and the intensity of the cold, the rooms were very well attended. THE official returns of the receipts of the various railways in France for the year 1854 have just been published. For the first quarter, they amounted to 40,136,365!. ; for the second, to 45,556,500 f.; for the third, to 55,013,528 f.; and for the fourth, to 55,828,404 f.; making a total of 198,534,803 E, to 165,928,586 f. in 1853. The increase for the year is consequently upwards of thirty millions. The receipts per kilometre have increased from 41,712 f. in 1853 to 45,025 f. in 1854, giving an increase per kilometre of very nearly 8 per cent. LORD JOHN ilvsszu. has accepted the duties of British Plenipotentiary in the conferences and negotiations about to open at Vienna, and will pro ceed in a very few days to that destination. It is stated that Mr. Hammond, Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, will accompany the mission. LORD GODERICH ' according to the Times, will suc ceed Mr. Lowe as Secretary to the Board of Control. Mr. Lowe resigned office upon the accession of the present Ministry. No appointment has been yet made in the room of Mr. Peel as Under-Secretary for the Colonies. The Globe denies the statement that Lord Wodehouse, at present Under Secretary in the Foreign-office, was to succeed to Mr. Peel's appointment in the Colonial department. A Coma OF DIRECTORS was held at the East India house on the 7th inst., when Major-General Sir Henry Somerset, K.C.8., was appointed Commander in-Chief of the East India Company's forces on the Bombay Establishment, and second member of council at that presidency. ON the nomination of his Royal Highness Prince Albert, Lord Dundonald was recently elected an Honorary Elder Brother of the Corporation of the Trinity-house. THE prospectus of the " Bank of London " was issued on Tuesday. It appears that, the capital has been reduced to 600,0001., instead of 1,000,0001, as first proposed. It does not appear that the promoters contemplate the introduction of any new feature into banking operations. THE great Paris houses affected by the sale of the exclusive right to engrave the Valais de L'lndustrie, have combined to oppose this arbitrary, and, they assert, unlawful proceeding. This protest is signed by such men as Susse, do., and is, therefore, likely to have some effect. It is proposed to bring the matter before the tribunals. The preposterous nature of the present claim of the Palace Company would, if made good, lead to endless law suits. A FRENCH COMPANY has offered, it is said, to raise in France a legion for the service of the English Government. The company engages to supply from 10,000 to 25,000 men within the shortest possible time, half the number that may be agree d upon to be ready in fifteen days at the utmost. In order to effect that undertaking it requires that it shall be permitted to recruit in France all who according to the recent law of emigration are in the free enjoyment of the right to quit France for America or any other part of the world they please. It is stated that the English Government is disposed to entertain the propositions of the company, and only awaits, to enter on its execution, the assent of the French Goverament. of which 979,1641. was advanced to Go )oth of October, to 1,013,2931., of wh advanced to Government: and on the Ott to 1,068,081/., of which 913;293/. was Government. The sums left in the consequently amounted on the ahoy 108,256/., 100,0001., 100,0001., and 152,7 t Au account of the receipt and expendi 2,794,722/. during the year 1854 by the ( the Reduction of the National Debt shoe portion of the receipts accrued from sundry times from the Exchequer," and this cash, or 2,773,6971., was expended Exchequer Bills. The rest of the re priated to the purchase of 2,9741. Co Reduced Annuities Consolidated. The official resume of business d 4 of France gives the following partici; 1854: qnence or 1.110 metallic reeerve of the Bank amounted, on January 1, 18.54, to 299,000,00 K, of which amount 109,000,000 f. were in silver, and 190,000,000 f. in geld. On the Ist of Jan- uary, 1855, the amount wes 384,000,000 f., of which 183,300,000 f. were in silver, and 180,700,000 f. in gold. The reserve in gold has consequentky increased during the year by a sum of 71,700,000 f., while that in saver has di.