The Sun. — London, England, 1862-06-23 00:00:00

To HOTEL-KEEPERS and OTHERS.—To be LET, with early posse , st - m, an excellent COM MERCIAL and FAMILY HOTEL. well situated in a fashionable and populous town in the West of England. The business is very good, is highly remunerative, and can be well recomme•nded. —For particulars, apply by letter to Mr. G. 11. Watson, .care of Messrs. Waterlow and Sons, 24, 13 irehin-lane, London, E.C. R OYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF ENGLAND-1P62. GREAT AGRICULTURAL SHOW of HORSES, CATTLE, SHEEP, PIGS, and MACHINERY, in BAT TERSEA PARK, LONDON, JUNE 23, to JULY 2. TERMS OE ADMISSION. TO-MORROW, June 24 Machinery Yards.. Half-a-Crown WEDNESDAY, „ 25.. WEDNESDAY, „ 25 .. Cattle Yard (day on which the Judges award the prizes) One Sovereigii N.B. Persons who pay the Half-a-Crown Admission into the Machinery Yard can pass into the Cattle Yard on paying' the additional 17s. 6d. THURSDAY, June 26, ENTIRE SHOW 1 Five Shillings (Live Stock, Machinery, Jr,c.) FRIDAY, June 27 .. .. Half-a-Crown SATURDAY „ 28.. MONDAY, ~ 30.. TUESDAY, uly 1 .-. WEDNESDAY „ 2.. :: One Shilling - • Members Free. 11 Open each day from 8 in the morning till 8 in the evening, except last day, when the Yard will be closed at 6 o'clock. On THURSDAY, FRIDAY, and SATURDAY, June 26, 27. and 28, there will be a PUBLIC EXEIIBITION of STEAM CULTIVATORS at %% ORK, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., near Farningham Station, in Kent, a distance of 24 miles from the Victoria Terminus of the London, Chatham, and Dover Railway. _ By order of the Council, H. HALL DARE, Secretary. W S. WOODIN'S CABIN ET of CURIO • SITIES—NewIy Polished and Re-Iined—POLY GRAPHIC HALL, King William-street, Charing-cross, Every Evening, at eight (except Saturday), smith new characters, music, songs, and dances. The scenic llustrations and effects, entirely new, painted by and under the direction of Mr. William Callcott. Morning Performance, Saturday, June 28, at 3. Stalls, 38. ; area, 2s. ; amphitheatre, Is. Box-office open from eleven to five. Mr. Woodin as Mr. Sothern, of tho Haymarket, in his celebrated character of "Lo r d D un d rear y, Morning and Evening. MR. and MRS. GERMAN REED. with Mr. JOHN PARRY, will give their NEW ENTERTAIN MENT, " i he Family Legend," by Tom Taylor, Esq.. and Mr. John Parry's Musical Narrative of a Colleen Bawn, every evening (except Saturday), at 8. Morning representa tions Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, at 3.—Royal Gallery of Illustration, 14, i; egent-street. Unreserved sets, ls. and 2st ; stall s, 3s. • stall (spring) chairs, Cs. Secured in advance, without fee at the Gallery ; and at Messrs. Cramer and Co.'s 201, Regent-street. Notice.—The extra morning representa tion will be continued every Tuesday at 3. ARGYLL ROOMS. Great Windmill-street, Haymarket. —GRAND CASINO FRANCAISE.— °Pen every Evening for Promenade and Dancing, with the celebrated Band of 50 performers. Conductor and Principal Cornet-a-Piston, M. BoULCOURT.—The new Imperial Qua drille, Valse Cotillion, and L. Mosca's Peep o'DayValse will be played nightly. A new Convo cation Salon has been added to the above Establishment for Reading, CON:, and Refreshments. — Admission ls. — Manager, M. Grenet. ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION FOR THE PRESERVATION OF LIFE FROM SHIPWRECK, (Inoorßorated by Royal Charter). PATRONESS —Her Most Gracious Majesty the Queen. PRESIDENT —Vice -Admiral his Grace the Duke of Northum- berland, 8.G., F.R.S. Baring, Esq., M.P., F.R.S., P.P. DErirry-CnAinmAx—Thomas Chapman, Esq., F.R.S., V.P. APPEAL. The Committee of Management have to state that, during the past two years, the Institution has incurred expenses amounting to £28,650 on various Life-boat Establishments on the Coasts of Eng'and, Scotland, and Ireland. During the past two years the Life-boats of the rescuing Life -boat Institution have teen instrumental in the Crews of the following Vessels:— Schooner Ann Mitchell, of Montrose Schooner Jane Roper, of Ulverstone .. •• 6 Brig Pallas, of Shields .. .. .. .... 3 . 9 Ship Ann Mitchell, of Glasgow .. .. ... 5 Smack John Bull, of Yarmouth .. .. Schooner Catherine, of Newry • • • • 4 Barque Niagara, of Shields .. .. .. .. 11 A Barge of Teignmouth •• Brig George and James, of London ... 8 . 6 Brig Zephyr, of Whitby • • • • • • Coble Honour, of Cullercoats • • •• .. 3 Schooner Eliza, of North Shields 7 Barque Oberon, of Liverpool .. 15 .. 9 Brigantine Nancy, of Teignmouth .... .. _ Smack Wonder, of Teignmouth .. • . Brig Scotia, of Sunderland .. .. • • ..g Sloop Three Brothers, of Goole .. .. .. Sloop Charlotte, of Woodbridge .. - •• 5_ Brig Ann, of Blyth •.. • • • • •• • .• 3 8 Sloop Hope, of Dublin •• • •• • . Schooner Druid, of Aberystwyth .. • • 5 Barque Vermont, of Halifax U.S. .. .. .. 16 Schooner William Keith, of Carnarvon •• 2 Brig Flying Fish, of Whitby • • . 5 Smack Elizabeth Ann, of Lyme Regis .. • • 3 Steam Dredge, at Newhaven .. •• 9 Schooner Admiral Hood of Rochester' .. ••6 Schooner Susan and Isabella, of Dundee .. •• 5 Schooner Rose, of Lynn • • •• •• Brig Prodroma, of Stockton • • '• 11 Brig Eliza, of Middlesborough •• •• •• 7 Brigantine Preto, of Konigsberg .. • • • • 6 Brigantine Diana, of Fredrikshamn .. •• , Brig Gloucester, of South Shields .. .. 7 Brig Lovely Welly, o f B en h am 6 Brigantine Nugget, of Bideford Schooner Prospect, of B erw i c k • • • • 5 Sloop Thomas and J ane, of St. IveS • .. .. A Fishing-boat of Whitb urn 3 Brig Arethusa, of Blyth Schooner Dewl Wyn, of Portmadoo Flat Cymraes, of Beaumaris •.. .. ••• • . 2 Schooner William, of Morecambe .. .. .. 5 Smack Gipsy, of New r y •• •• •• •• 4 Schooner Margaret Anne, of Preston .. .. 4 Brig New Draper, of Whiteh aven .. 8 .. .. S chooner William. of Liverpool .. .. 5 L ugger Nimrod, of Castletow n •• •• 3 13 .,.,rig Providence, of Shields .. .. •• •• 8 nrig Mayflower, of Newcastle 8 Schooner Village Maid, of Fleetwood .. . 4 ... Ba rque Guyana, of Glasgow . •• — l9 ' Brig i Roman Empress, of Shields .. .. .. 10 - ` - ' 2. San Spiridione, of Galaxide .. .. .. 2 Schooner Voador du Vouga, of Vienna _ .. 8 French Brig La Jeune Marie Therese .. .. 6 Barque Perseverance, of Scarborough . • •• 5 . Scho oner Elizabeth, of Bridgewater . 4 • • _ 17 S hip Danube, o f B e lf as t • 4 • •• •• Scho oner Hortensia, of Hanover .. • • 4 • • Scho oner Oregon, of Stonehaven • • • • • • ' Brig St. Mi c h el, of Morons . • • • • • • • 8 S p a nish Barque P r i mera de Torreviega(saved ves sel and o ne of the crew) • • • 1 • Scho oner Hurrell, of P enzance (saved vessel and • • • • crew) .. .. _ 4 Brig Ae • Pl Yinouth • (saveci • vessel and Crew) 8 crew) Schooner Bets Of y, of P e t erhead (save d vesse l a nd .. • • 6 . .. Barque Frederick, Of Dubli • • • •• • • 1 Barque Peace, of London n • . • • • • .* 2 Lugger Saucy Lass, of L owesto ft •••• •• .. 11 Schooner Fly, of Whitby (saved vessel and crew of four hands) .. • • • . • 4 S mack Adventure, of Harwich;; • • .. 10 Pilot cutter Whi m, of Lowestoft • • .. - 7 • • Barque Undaunted, of Aberdeen .. • • Wrecked boat on Blackwater Bank, on the Irish • 1 : coast, saved one man •• • • • • - Schooner Skylark, of Folkestone • • • ' 6 Brig Lively, of Clay, Norfolk .. ••• • • • • 5 5 Barque Robert Watson, of Sunderlan •• d : • • • A Schooner Auchincruiv ,e of Grangemouth .. •• - Schooner Friends, of Lynn „„ 4 Schooner Eliza Anne, of Dub • • •• •• • . : n Brig Content, o f S underland Smack Ellen O wens, of Cardiga • • • • • Galliot Epimaehus, of Am s terdam . • • • .• • • s' • • • • - Total 4.: For these and other Life-boat services the Institution has voted £1,893 as rewards to the crews of the Lifeboats. It has also granted re wards amounting to £. , 515 10s. for saving 873 sh ship a wrecked of per B7l personsb shore- boats and oth er means, mak total the last two years. s aved from a w a t ery grave during The number of lives saved by the Life -boats of the Society, and other means, since it s formation, is upwards of 12,200; for which sbrvices 82 Gold Medals, 704 Silver Medals, and. £15,250 in cash have been granted as rewards. The Institu tion has also expended £57,200 on Life-boat Establishments. now The public cannot bu thet s ympathise with the v i gorous efforts being made by Society to save the lives of Ship wrecked Crews. Their help was never more needed than at the present time, when, through the extraordinary exertions the Society has made within the past few years, it has now One Hundred and Twenty-one Life-boats under its man agement, for the maintenance of which, in a state of thorough efficiency, a large permanent annual income is absolutely needed, it its humane mission is to be perpetuated. The Committee gratefuliy ributio ns a cknowledge the following con M e r zt ? the Queen Her Maj Clark, Clerk, Colonel, RA . •• :: ... : annualannual 10 0 8 • 0 0 Cotton, Sir St. Vin t"R ari .' • . COUtts and essrs '— • ::: Castle . annual 11 0 Digby, G. W., Co., k gq ., sh • 4 Bankers ••• •• don. 25 0 Erie. Lord Chief Justice annual 10 0 0 Fanshawe, Vice-Admiral Sir . i . .. annual 50 0 Harvey, Rev. G. G. and Mrs. " R ' 6 ' l3 * • • 2d don . 1° 1° 0 Lambton, Messrs. W. It & Bankers.. • .. de. ,_ . n. 25 0 0 Lanesborougb, the Earl of C 0.... nkers .. don . 2 1 0 o Martin, Sir Henry, Bart. .. •• •• annual 5 g 0 o Moore, Rev. G. B. • • • . .... ' • 7t h don. 10 0 0 lobartes, T. J. Agar , Esq. , M.P. .. • • don, is 15 ' „ Smith, Mrs. George , Gre enwich .. •••• annual 50 0 ' Stirling, Col. Sir Anthony , K.C.B. .. .. annual 3 0 0 Donations and Annual Su' scriptionswillbe thanken 2 0 r e_ 0 ~ ceived by the Bankers of the Institution, Messrs, illis 1 Percival, and Co. 76, Lombard - street; Messrs. Coutt s a r a Co., 59, Strand; Niessrs. flerries, Farquhar, and Co., 15,aLf James's -street, London ; by 2,1 the Bankers in t he unitei Kingdom ; and by the Secretary , Richard Lewis, E NE at the Office of the Institution, 14, J ohn-street, Adelphi, 10n. don, W.C. Payments maybe made by Cheques or by Post-office Orders crossed), to Messrs. Wills, Percival, and Co., or to the Secre tary. DR. "WATSON (OP THE LOCK DISORDERS. ELF-TREATMENT SIMPLIFIED, DEBILITY AND SECRET through IpLIFIED , HOSPITAL) ON NERVOUS fETEIL an d uRI . NO3 all MICR aid of the TEST-TUBE, MICROSCOPE, I' generative system, in" disorders of the nervous, sexual, and power, noctur eluding sPermatorrheca or seminology, loss of othe when employed for nervous special diagnosig in nal and diurnal wasting's, and withering he Ecole de tissues, P ar i s , and Melicine, Rouen, National Academy of Sciences, `"" iIY Dr. Vb r ATSON, Member of t Presented to Fellow of the Imperial Institute of Prance, &n. "Nervous Invalids," with a viewof superseding dangerouson medicines and expensivedent post free d consultations. , .. l ee Be - receipt ot two stamps, by Dr. Watson, 27. Alfred-plac e , a , till ford- square, London. C onsultations daily from eleven__ Bed two, and six till eight, on all those ailments and infirmities peculiar to youth, manhood, and old age, and which tend to embitter and shorten life. For distinzulshed qualifications vide diplomas. AN ImpoRTA DISCUSSION.—The "Times," the "L ancet," N T and other leading journals have been lately canvassing the social considerations in volved in " the amount o f death and disease caused by vice., ' Somea nte resting statistics are brought to hear upon the inquiry but it would greatly add to their value if they in cluded the facts respecting the origin, the ravages, prevention of that SPECIAL vim which wars more than any other against the welfare of societystroying the happi and the ness and disappointing the object of matrimony, us der mining the constitutions, blasting the prospects, embittering and shortening the lives of its victims, and spreading desola tion through families. The seessential particulars relating, to this great social evil (the betting snare ot i nexperienced youth an curse of m aturity), together with ample instructions forremoving Its and recovering health, vigour, and all the ennobling effects, bein i • vile of our ,con Treatise Dr. LA'MET'S pm] p,. RESE RVATION, ' a N sand n ervou "SELF-P t of which the 00th le o Physical Debili I'm and 39. cornation has just been published by 1431 11, or in a Co.,eealed en l ' London stamps' s., ve ope for 20 sent post free for h . o.f t rke„ avm, or 20 years devoted himself Dr. LAWERT, ~ branch of practice, may be consulted daily, entirel to this or by correspondence, at his-residene, either personally No 37, BED F O R D -SQUARE, Lon,ago. N°. 21,835 PUBLICATIONS. NEW NOVEL by the Author of " MARGARET AND HER BRIDESMAIDS." Now ready at all the Libraries, in 3 vols., THE LADIES OF LOVEL-LEIGH. By the Author of "MARGARET AND HER BRIDESMAIDS," &c. Hurst'and Blackett, 13, Great Marlborough-street. Now ready at all the Libraries, in 3 vols., OWE N : A WAI F. By the Author of "HIGH CHURCH" and "No CHURCH." "There is a great deal to be liked in this book. The writ ing is clever and pleasant, and the tone is good."— Athen mum. Hurst and Blackett, 13, Great Marlborough-street. A NEW NOVEL, by the Author of " ADAM BEDE," will be commenced in the July number of the CORNHILL MAGAZINE. Smith, Elder, and Co., 65, CornhilL THE PRESENT DISTRESS IN TRADE fully explained in J. GROSSMITH'S " GOVERNMENT UPON FIRST PRINCIPLES." The cause is there predicated of the monetary difficulties ex perienced in 1860. The Crisis is at hand. Anxiety in busi ness has now become the grim torture. Purity of motive. intelligently exercised, must animate all Governments, or all is lost, All denominations of Constitutions are carefully examined in J. Grogsmith's "Government upon First Prin• ciples." Kent and Co., Paternoster-row. EXETER HALL TICKET OFFICE, Open from Ten o'Clock To-morrow (Tuesday) morn ing till 'Ten o'Clock at ni, ht. Intending Visitors to the HANDEL FESTIVAL will save themselves trouble by purchasing Tickets beforehand. Exeter Hall, 23d June, 1862. ROYAL FREE HOSPITAL, Gray's-inn-road. The numerous and urgent appeals which are made for admission by the homeless and destitute sick render it im perative on the Committee to entreat the continued bounty of the affluent and humane to enable them to persevere in the extensive system of relief afforded by this Hospital. During the past year, in addition to 1,190 in-patients, no 1 ess than 50,496 out-patients received the benefits of this Charity. Since Christmas two additional wards have been opened for the reception of in-door patients. - - Contributions are received by the Treasurer, Edward Mae 4.erman, Esq., Nicholas-lane; and at the Hospital. STANFORD S. SMITH, Sec• ()STEC , EID ON: V What is it? See Patent, March 1, 1812, No. M.— GABRIEL'S Self-adhesive Patent Indestructible MINE RAL TEEN! and FLEXIBLE GUMS, without palates, springs, or wires, and without operation. One set lasts a lifetime, and WARRANTED FOR MASTICATION and ARTICULATION. Purest materials only, at half the usual cost. Messrs. GABRIEL, the old-established Dentists, 27, HARLEY-STREET, CAVENDISH-SQUARE; 34, LUDGATE-HILL, LONDON ; 65, NEW-STREET, BIRMINGHAM; and 134, DUKE-STREET, LIVERPOOL. INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION, CLASS 17. One visit only required from country patients. Gabriel's Practical Treatise gratis. Consultations free. Just published, price 28., free by post, 2s. 4d., ON SPERMATORRIICEA. By F. B. COURTENAY, M.R.C.S.E., . And formerly Surgeon to the Metropolitan Infirmary for the Cure of Strictures of the Urethra. " The aim of the author is to present a common-sense view of the Causes, Nature, Consequences, and Treatment of this Disease, as also to free these questions from the Professional Fallacies, the Popular Delusions, and the exaggerations of Quackery by which they have hitherto been surrounded, to the destruction of the health and happiness of thousands. These objects are discussed in a common-sense and highly practical manner."—Medical Circular. London : H. Bailliere, 219, Regent-street.: JOZE AU' S COPAHINE MEGE,—Copaiba and t-/ Cubebs are doubtless the best remedies, but are of a re pulsive taste and odour, and occasion collicky pains, nausea, and gastric disturbance. M. Jozeau has succeeded in render ing them perfectly innocuous by increasing all their curative properties. It has been adopted by the Paris Academy of Medicine after more than a thousand trials in Paris and the different London hospitals, viz., St. Thomas's, Guy's. and St. Bartholomew's, under the care of Messrs. Lloyd, Poland, and Legros Clark.—(Lancet, Nov. 6, 1857). The Copahine, which is in form of a pretty pink sugar plum, effects a cure in about six days. 100 Capsules, 4s. 6d.; post free, ss. 2d.— At G. JOZ EAU'S, French Chemist, 49, Haymarket, London; 22, Rue St. Quentin, Paris; and all Chemists. TRULY EFFICACIOUS AND MILD.— Dr. SCOTT'S BILIOUS and LIVER PILLS, pore oared without any mercurial ingredient, from the recipe of Dr. Fcott, of Bromley, went, will be found invaluable to all who suffer from bilious and liver complaints, indigestion, wind spasms, giddiness, dizziness of the eyes, &o. For habitual costiveness, as a family aperient medicine, and as a purifier of the blood, they are truly excellent; mild in their opera tion and grateful to the stomach, they create appetite, pro mote digestion, and strengthen the whole nervous system. Sold by W. Lambert, 20, Jermyn-street, Haymarket, London, and by most druggists, in boxes, is. lid., and three times the quantity in one, 2s. 9d. Be sure to ask for Dr. Scott's Bilious and Liver Pills. The genuine are a square green package, with " William Lambert," engraved on the stamp. GIVEN - AWAY TO NERVOUS SUFFERERS. HENRY SMITH, M.D., of the University of Jena, has just published, for the benefit of Nervous -ufferers, a FREE EDITION of his valuable work, THE WARNING VOICE TO YOUNG MEN (120 pages). A medical work on the cure of Nervous Debility, Loss of Memory, Dimness of Sight, Lassitude, Indigestion, Dislike o Society. Spermatorrhcea, Local Weakness, Muscular Re axation, Languor, Listlessness, Depression, &0., which, if neglected, result in consumption, insnity, and premature death; with plain directions for perfect restoration to health and vigour. - The book will be sent, post free, secure from ob ' 'ervation, to any address, on receipt of a directed envelope and two stamps. Address, HENRY Snirru, M.D., b, Barton nescent, Tavistock-square, London, W.C. RICH FAMILY MEN ON THE RAILWAYS. The railway companies, if they are to be insurers, may naturally ask at least to be told what it is they are insuring. Is this the father of a family that they see before them, or is it not ? Are they guarantee ing a bishop's venerable life, and all the prospects of ecclesiastical emolument which his younger sons and son-in-law naturally enjoy; or are they gua- ranteeing simply a rural dean ? In carrying Caesar, are they carrying Caesar and all his fortunes, or are they carrying the fortunes of a dozen little Caesars besides ? It is not fair that they should not know all particulars about their travellers before hand. It is an awkward matter to have to carry rich people who have children. There are some Dukes so wealthy that they ought to go in Duke boxes by themselves. If Caractacus is sent by rail, he has a special compartment for his peculiar use. Everybody, from the engine-driver upwards, is aware that the train which holds the horse that won the Derby must not be trifled with. No similar precautions are taken to preserve the precious life of—let us say—the Marquis of Westminster. He walks in, purchases his ticket just like anybody else ; and the company will never be a whit the wiser until an accident happens in a tunnel, and the shareholders have to pay for injuring a millionaire. Surely the company have aright to complain of being kept in the dark in this way. They would be glad to put something additional on the ticket of so valuable a passenger. If all was open and above board, the dis tinguished nobleman whose name we borrow for pur poses of illustration, would be obliged by law to say at once to the superintendent of the station, " I am the Marquis of Westminster ; I pay extra like a man : and lamto be kept with care, edge upwards." It might be the company's interest to give him a special train with extra buffers. Sooner than have anything like a really expensive accident, the Secre taryof the Board would perhaps, prefer to go down and attend to th e switches on the dangerous part of the line hims elf . h Nor would it be easy to be over anxious oven i n family. Providing ioa for little orphans is extremely expensive, a n d bachelor who, by so d o i ng, in Englishman has a right to for an expensive and iesa t s e et l mean disguise of a r l e e e t: bi t e h r e es c p o o m n p s a ib n i y lit i y n . Nobody, indeed, Should be allowed a ticket who had not got his marriage settl ement to show, or ralergman of his at least a certificate from o e t mak e much parish, to say that it would th n et delicacy and dif ference to anybody if he was ki ll e d. a rail way Unless the present system is reformed, it will be almost possible for any mulled man o f feeling to bring himself to entercar riage. He will always be reproaching himself that he is exposing the .company to risk of which they are not forewarned, and for which they have not bargained. If they had known all, it would have been their duty to te ll off a porter to look after him, to label him carefully, and to take him dow n the line with caution and by the most punctual trains.—London Review. ACCIDENT AT HUN GERFORD MARKET.-0 . n Saturday, whilst some workmen were emp lo y ed in removing some of the buildings for the Charing - cros s Railway a por tiGn of the walls of the Old Music Hall gave way, and buried three workmen and a boy beneath it. One, Michael Sullivan, on being taken, out was quite dead. Jones and Sampson, the two others, and the boy, whose name is not known, were extricated alive, but so frightfully injured that they lie in Charing-cross Hospital with but faint hopes of recovery. ~/ -- ~ ~ , , . 1 .. , , \ 4. , A e 4 'AL Pi - ' 410 ~. 4 s,! VI" ~ . (air • iit ,„ . , ~,,,,..._.. ...k o, i f) < A , 0 4,- -1 ~ '4,.(f1• e.-.„,,,p 1. -- ,e 4. ,t:vie. , #,lii k , ' ...„,, ',1y. 0 .1 1 ' koi mio. _ , so • ..., " is , ~- ~,*;,;x, 11.4 a ~ .t:7\ , ' . 0 - ‘ I ' 1411: : :;;In ' 4llllll ' 1..7 .. 's Ct v : :" \\,,, ',/ --..' 'k cl , .', if Dli 1 - ?'7F4 l - " ' ' '..;- -1 ' i.''' , e 4l --•..., 11 (YET . ‘ lAO 4 \ a ' ..„. . . -''- ?r&-;\- THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, JUNE 23, 1862. LITERATURE. Female Life in Prison. By a Prison Matron. Hurst and Blackett. We have rarely met with a more striking exem plification of the venerable adage, "Truth is stranger than fiction," than in the work before us, which gives a woman's experience and estimate of her sex when hard( ned in crime, dead to reason, and un shackled by self-control. That the theme of the book is in one sense a sad one the title above is sufficient to imply. Nevertheless, it is rendered extremely interesting by the handling. The whole of the inner life of a prison is put before us ; the influence of confinement on the different characters of the inmates is shown, some of the defects of the exist ing system are pointed out, and certain valuable suggestions are made for improvements. But al- . though the "Prison Matron" has retired from ser vice, the work' is not written in a captious spirit, or with a desire to magnify abuses ; on the contrary, merits are stated as fairly as defects, praise is given where due, and the tone of the work is thoroughly honest and impartial. The prisons described are Millbank and Brixton, with both of which the writer appears to be thoroughly conversant, though the details concerning Millbank are, perhaps, the most ample, this being the prison to which offend ers are first sent—then, if their conduct be good, they are transferred to Brixton. The first opera tion to which the prisoner has to submit on arrival is that of having the hair cut, to which most of them strongly object, but it is, in the writer's opinion, a test of character. One woman will be resigned to her fate on the instant, and, with a Socratic stoicism, will compress her lips and submit herself to the shears, and march away to her bath afterwards in a business-like manner. A second will have a shivering fit over it, a third will weep passionately, and a fourth will pray to be spared the indignity, and implore the matron on her knees to go to the lady-superintendent and state her case for her. Some women are impressed with the idea that coaxing will go a long way towards softening the matron's heart, or at least obtain a variation in the rules, and a less length of hair from their heads ; and consequently bestow many " my dears," and " God bless you's" on the operator. The greatest trouble in my experience of prison life was with an old woman of sixty years of age, and with about the same number of grey hairs io her head. She was an old prison• bird—had spent two-thirds of her life in prison, and was as vain of her personal appearance as any girl of seventeen. " No, Miss 8.," she said to the operator, after catching sight of the scissors, and drawing herself up with the haughtiness of a duchess—" not this time, if you please, Miss B. It can't be done." But Miss B. replied that it could be done, and was abso lutely necessary to be done before the prisoner left the room. "Things have altered a little, Miss 8., since I saw you last, I can assure you. You've no power to touch a hair of my head, mum." " How's that ?" "'lf you please, mum, I'm married," and the old woman regarded the matron with undisguised triumph. " And what's that to do with it ?—sit down—you really must sit down." " What's that to do with it I" shrieked the old woman, indignantly, "why it's my husband's hair now, and you daren't touch it, according to law. It belongs to my hus band, not to me, and you've no right to touch it. Lord bles you, the Queen of England daren't lay a finger on it now." And the old woman's staunch faith in the laws of her country to protect her grey hairs, would in any other place, under any other circumstances, have been supremely ludicrous. Argument with her was useless—she did not see that anything more was required after an expression of her opinion —she would not object to the bath, because the law had nothing to say in the matter of baths to married women, but her hair couldn't be touched by any mortal power. When there were signs of being uninfluenced by her eloquent expositions, she demanded to see the governor —he knew the law, of course—and when her hair was cut to the statutable length, she vowed to make a full state ment to the directors, on the next board meeting, and please put her name down to see those directors at once. Such an infamous violation of the laws of her country she had never been a witness to in her time And strange as it may appear, the plea of marriage has latterly been very often urged by prisoners, under the same circumstance. " It's their husband's hair" has now be come a constant reason why the rules of the prison should be waived in their particular case. And when it is not urged as a plea, women, whom a repetition of crime has brought back to the old quarters, generally offered, as their first piece of information, that they have been married since their last incarceration. There is a peculiar craving to be considered an " honest married woman," and the husband, more often than otherwise, is alleged to be in the army—probably out of compliment to the military character of the governor and his deputy. Althoughlthis operation may be, as the writer says, " essentially necessary for cleanliness," there can be little doubt that it has on some prisoners an injuri ous mental effect. They regard it in the light of a mutilation ; one prisoner was delirious for a day and a night after the operation ; and the writer admits that she is " inclined to think that there are really a few who are more sullen, more doggedly obsti nate, or more ferocious, according to their respective natures, from the moment their locks of hair are strewing the floor of the reception room," and we suspect that this has something to do with the fits of extreme violence called " breaking out," to which some of them are subject. So different is the mo notonous prison life from that to which they have been used, that they welcome, as a relief, even a change for the worse. Thus a prisoner will smash the windows and furniture of her cell, tear up her blankets, and then be carried kicking and scream ing to "the dark," as the place of punishment is called, just by way of a change. These dark cells have, the writer says, " been long secretly acknow ledged failures, and a fitting and proper punish ment for these troubled spirits might be thought of with advantage by the directors. Confinement in these cells is an objectionable punishment; it affects the prisoners' health; it has never worked any good, and it has done much moral, physical, and even mental injury. It has always represented, in my eyes, a relic of the old barbarous times, the little-minded style of punishment, as childish in one sense as it is cruel in another." It seems to us tolerably clear that, if the aim of prison life be to reform, as well as to punish, the present system re quires modification. Its extreme monotony pro duces a revulsion to extreme violence. There is no safety valve. Nay, the monotony affects even the matrons themselves. Thus, "one matron who has since left the service—a matron of a somewhat impul sive disposition—once told me in confidence, and with a somewhat comical expression of horror in her countenance, that she was afraid she should break out herself, the temptation appeared so irresistible. " I have been . used to so different a life—father, mother, brothers, and sisters, all round me, light hearted and happy—that it's like becoming a pri soner oneself to folio w this tedious and incessant occupation. I assure you, Miss —, that when I hear the glass shattering, and the women scream ing, my temples throb, my ears tingle, and I want to break something—dreadfully." Still, admitting that the monotony and confinement is after a time unbearable to those who have been used to a life of freedom and licence, the writer emphatically states that some of the female prisoners are irre• deemably bad, far worse than the male. Thus— " In the penal classes of the male prisoners there is not one man to match the worst inmates of our female prisons." Again—" Amongst a certain class of women it appears as much a necessity to act in a manner utterly at variance with common sense and decency as it is to breathe and live." Of these characters we offer the following sample-- Towers was a woman sentenced to four years' penal ser vitude, for stealing from the person, I believe, and her in troduction to Millbank Prison was a sad day for the prison officers. Not that she was the most violent woman who ever entered, for physical reasons hereafter to be mentioned, but that she was more untruthful, malicious, lewd, and horrible than even a prison matron had met with hitherto. It is with some reluctance that I approach her character, but it may be interesting to students of human nature to have an outline of this specimen—albeit it is impossible for a woman's pen to fill the shadings in all that depth and in tensity necessary for a truthful portraiture. There is much prison detail that is unapproachable; and ai r ano h m a , t—_ , the story of Towers's prison life cannot be dwelt on in all its horrible minuteness. Two men, whose minds loved to grope in dark places, might have been glad of such an ec centric character for a story or romance—Edgar Allan Poe from her and Eugene Sue. Towers was not more than three or four and twenty—in tha • n nßon-bookg I believe her age is registered as less made one shudder to Millbank s whe . n " she first entered Prison. Phy ist might have guessed much of her character ceunte ance—it was so disproportionate and ye volting. A like her; a n d white-faced ape would have _been something was a look in her black eyes which limbs by some early accident had to be carried into prison . Towers was t a e cripple, and criminal propensities. The loss of h Ilse of her no check upon her Tower been bad—even the prisoners ; er e's, a word, was all that was horrified at her. 1 t She's like the devil hiss e elfisn't she, miss?" . one pri soner, who was not noted for good behaviour, remarked once. now Oho reached Brixton, save on medical grounds, I have ever been at a loss to discover ; but certain it is that to Brixton Towers was conveyed in due course, and carried from a cab through the prison-yards to her particular cell. In that cell she was accustomed to lie on her bed for several days together, refusing to get up—alleging, with the most awful oaths, ter inability to move; praying, with a horrible earnestnese, for further calamities to fall upon her ; and blindness, leprosy, and 50 other ills to seize those who worried her to rise. In my experience I do not re member Towers going once into the airing yard by her free will, or by compulsion; there was a morbid satisfaction in remaining in bed, in using every endeavour to make her self ill, by refusing food, and even by injuring herself. Blaspheming and singing were her two principal employ ments ; if needlework were given her, she would tear her work to pieces, and swallow her needle to horrify the matron. She was taken to the refractory cells at times,but her crippled condition rendered her transfer thence an almost instantaneous process ; and her schemes for removal and self-damage were horribly ingenious. She was partial to secreting a piece of glass about her clothing, opening her veins with it, and allowing them to bleed silently, giving no hint of what she had done. It was only her gradual faintness that gave the alarm, and brought relief to her, otherwise she would have bled stoically to death in her bed. And this not once or twice, but in a general way, however closely watched. It soon became absolutely necessary to have a special cell, and two women constantly to attend upon her. Even with these precautions, Towers would manage to secrete her store of glass, or pieces of jagged pebbles, inside her bed; and it became often necessary to remove her, without any warning, to another bed, and carefully open her own, and take all her store of dangerous materials therefrom. But, by some mystery never solvable by prison vigilance, the glass or the pebble was always available and ready to be produced from her bed, or pillow, or even her back hair,for the horrible gash which blanched the faces of her watchers. If she was anxious to proceed to the infirmary, some such scheme she would always adopt, despite the vigilance of her officer; and in the infirmary she would continue the practice till her life has been despaired of. Towers always rallied, however, and allowed herself sufficient time to recover some of her old strength before,in a business-like manner, she would proceed to hack at her veins again. By way of change she would sometimes pow der the glass and swallow it, and bring on internal hemorrhage—a practice adopted by more than one prisoner at both Millbank and Brixton. In her cell; as in her infirmary, Towers knew no cere mony, and scoffed at all respect for time or place : her principal amusement in either was lying on her back, and yelling, at the top of her voice, Dick Turpin's supposed song of " My bonny black Bess." " Then while I've a bottle, what can I do less, Than drink to the health of my bonny black Bess ?" became as familiar to the ears of the prison matrons of Towers's ward, as to any lover of Bacchanalian songs at a low beer-shop. She had some talent for extempore ballads also—neither appropriate, select, nor decent—in which the names of her officers were brought in, and much violent language added by way of spice to the composition; but the effort was not well sustained, and she slid back into " My bonny black Bess" after a while. Sometimes she would lie in bed, and scream for help, till assistance arrived, when she would struggle into a sitting posture, and fling every available utensil in her cell at the light, or the heads of the officers—she was not particular— accompanying each effort at damage by an oath, or an ex pression that made the blood run cold. There were times when Towers could be persuaded or ' humoured into quietness, but the extent o f h er goo d be haviour was uncertain, and always wound up with one of her extraordinary feats. Despite the inability to make good use of her limbs, she was ingenious enough to " break out ;" when she was considered safe and quiet for the night, and too weak to do much mischief, she would wriggle out of bed, shuffle herself to the cell walls, to which she would cling with one hand and smash the glass with the other, shrieking like no human being all the while. She had her own peculiar way of standing on defence when the men were sent to remove he r—a vicious style of butting with her head, for which, be fore her ha bits were known , the guards were un p r epared, and lost their teeth and re ceived black eyes in consequ ence . I n the infirmary she would suddenly drop from her bed, and, with an eel-like writhe, make for the bedside of other prisoners, and the basins that might be there, which she would smash with demoniac satisfaction. Attached to the infirmary are three cells for patients refractory even in period the i of rm h a e r r y il w ln as eas or convalescence; their and T a o n g d er t e h , e s one hab i m ta o ti s e t n re d m uri ot n e gthe from and at all hours of the day and night would that abomin able refrain of " drinking to the health of my bonny Black Bess" ring out and keep the sick women restless. "Oh I how I do wish th at cussed To wers was dead I" fhave heard an invalid exclaim, as she turned restlessly in her bed ; but Towers continued to live and open veins with impunity, and sing "My bonny Black Bess" at the top of her voice, to the imminent risk of breaking a vessel. It became at last necessary to construct a special "con valescent cell" from an unoccupied room amongst the dark cells ; and here Towers, with two women prisoners ever on watch, struggled against death and mocked it, and yet lived. One of the modes in which these women are employed is that of slop-making for the large city firms with whom the Government enters into con tracts, and against this system the writer very pro perly protests, as it is impossible to imagine one more unjust to the honest and industrious poor, and it is only wonderful that it could ever have been tolerated. The writer says— I have been often tempted to wonder if the workhouses would be always full, if women would have to hesitate at all between the parish and the prison, if Government made no contracts with the slop-houses and the whole sale firms, and competed not so closely—so cruelly— with the honest and hard-working poor. There will be living illustrations to Hood's " Song of the Shirt" to the end of time, if some better and more just system be not presently adopted. I cannot think it fair or humane to take contracts from such firms as Moses and Sons, and others, at a price with which no woman who has a rent to pay and a home to keep can possibly compete. Prisoners, especially female prisoners, should do prison work, army work, the binding of the prison books—even the printing of the innumerable forms might possibly be taught them—but no work beyond Government work, for the sake of those who desire to live honestly and resist temptation. I am conscious that I am not the first to raise my voice against this system ; but the matter has long since dropped, and the system is at work still. It is a system morally and radically wrong, and will fall some d Go ay, vern- even if the nation has a small extra tax to pa If Y ment would put the question to that nation, I think its heart is large and sound enough not to shrink even from that ordeal, for the sake of the poor atoms struggling to be honest, and for the sake of Him who blessed them. In one year, by one female prison, and for one firm alone, forty-three tthousand, seven hundred and twenty-eight shirts were made ; and the work is still done on as large a scale, and thus diverted from its proper channel. But while the bulk of the work is devoted to the characteristics of the prisoners, the writer does not fail to draw attention, and with reason, to the hard ships of the class to which she belonged. Some of them enter too early (under 21) for the kind of duty for which they are required; the number of matrons compared with that of prisoners is too small, whilst the hours of duty are decidedly too long. But the writer shall state the case herself: — A few more matrons on the staff at Millbank and Brixton Prisons would obviate this unnecessary slavery, and not add a costly item'to the balance-sheet of prison govern ment. lam assured it would be a saving in the end, for some of the best officers in the prison fall ill after four or five years' service; some break up and die; and their places are hard to fill, and time is lost in teaching the new assistants who arrive and are put upon probation. Fourteen hours a day for seven days in the week—for Sun day is not a day of rest for prison matrons, save when it is a Sunday's leave of absence—fourteen hours a day, Chris tian ladies and gentlemen, o f u nceasing vigilance, with a mind ever strung to its ighest degree of tension, and a body that is expected to be übiquitous. Of the extra duties of removing a prisoner to refractory cells—of the extra attention likely to be bestowed upon a matron by a vindic tive prisoner, in the shape of a pewter pint on the back of the head—of the nights when the past day's excitement, like the Thane of Cawdor, " murders sleep"—of the sud den rousings by the night officer, to see to a woman in some particular ward to which the matron belongs, I say nothing—events foreign to a day's routine happen almost every day, and they add to the fatigue and anxiety of these constant workers. Call it only fourteen hours a day, say that only fourteen hours a day are expected of a prison matron—and an increase thereto is a glaring exception to the rule—is the rule just, humane, or politic ? I have seen women off duty on the twelve hour nights fling themselves exhausted on their beds, too tired to take advantage of the fresh air outside which they are at liberty to seek ; I have known young women enter full of health and strength, and depart from the service in a few years, aged and anxious-looking, with no strength left for any new employment ; I have known others die. It is a service that makes its officers old before their time, and undermines their constitution ; it calls for reformation • it must obtain it in good time , i f those who have affered will only honestly speak out. It is like no other service under heaven; and a little thought amongst thedirectors—thought ful and kind-hearted men too I—one little dash of the pen from the Secretary of State, and the Exchequer would be but a few hundred pounds poorer in the year, these Government employees spared much ill-health, and the Government itself benefited by their longer service and greater energy. That this work will be extensively read, and that its influence will be decidedly beneficial, we have not the slightest doubt. It is temperately written, is full of interesting matter, and the aim is a most audable one. Walter Langley ; or, the Race of Life. By the Hon. Charles Stuart Saville. 3 vols. Hurst attorney, nam ed Ma cpherson, is f orced to en ter the family of the Dow ager Lady Forestdale her, takes her w ith him to India , and they are and Blackett. This novel has the merit of being readable, and the plot delineate s the stru ggle for precedence at c ollege and in after life be tween Walter Lang le y , nephew of the E arl of Forestda le , and Lor d Wood mount, that is on every o nobleman's son , aonf in which struggle victor. It appears that Pauline Worthi n g ton, Walter's m ot her, havin g lost all her prope rt y through the dishonest y of a ras callyaa g overness, wher e the y o ung lord att em p ts her virtue, but h is brother, Colonel Lan g le y , rescues married at sea. But the colonel is shortly after killed. The baggage containing the marriage cer- tificate is carried off, and th© vessel in which the ceremony was performed is lost with, as is supposed, ad on board. Thus Walter is open to the stigma of illegitimacy, but the Earl of Forestdale, repent ing of his former evil attempt on his mother, gene rously acknowledges him, and pensions the widow. But young Lord Woodmount gets possession of the secret, and, stung by envy, taunts his cousin, pro vokes a duel, is wounded, and Walter is forced to fly. On board the vessel in which he takes refuge he fortunately meets with one of the witnesses to his mother's marriage, and discovers that the chap lain who performed the ceremony also survives. The blot on his birth is thus removed. Lord Wood mount is accidentally killed, his father dies of grief, and Walter marries the lady of his heart, and comes into the title and estates. Several minor stories are introduced, and form by no means the least interesting portion of the work. THE NAVY. We have received the following letter from Malta, dated June 17 :—The Peninsular and Orien tal Company's steamer Valetta, after waiting for the Ellora, due here with the Bombay mails on the 12th inst. from Alexandria, went out in search of the missing ship on the morning of the 15th inst. She returned the following morning without hav ing seen her. All anxiety, however, was brought to an end this morning by the appearance of the vessel herself, in tow of the English screw steamer Juno, belonging to Messrs. Wilson, Sons, and Co., of Hull. The Valetta was again despatched to assist in towing her in. It appears that the Ellora, when about 458 miles from Malta; had her screw propeller and a portion of her main-shaft carried away. This happened early Gin the morn ing of the 11th inst., and on the 19th she was over taken by the Juno, who towed her at an average rate of five knots until within sight of Malta, when she gave up her place to the Valetta. " Mr. Gibson, Government Inspector of Tele graphs, and Mr. Preece, engineer of Messrs. Glass, Elliot, and Co., who lately returned here from visiting the stations at Tripoli and Bengazi, left in the Vectis on the 16th, accompanied by Mr. Col let, engineer of the same firm, for the purpose of inspecting the Alexandria station. From the tests recently made it is satisfactory to learn that the cable is not only in excellent working order, but that it has considerably improved since it - was first laid down. It is now, 1 am informed, capable of transmitting messages with greater rapidity and with a decreased battery power.. Mr. Colquhonn, her Majesty's Consul-General at Alexandria, arrived here in the Valetta on the 14th inst-, on his way to England, on leave of absence. " The following is an extract from a letter dated Corfu, the 12th inst.:—The Marlborough, 131, ar rived here from Argostoli on the 6th inst. The Queed, 86, arrived the same morning from Trieste, whither she had conveyed their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Their Royal Highnesses landed at Trieste on the 30th ult. The Surprise gunboat came in on the 9th inst., from Malta, with despatches for the Com mander-in-Chief. She leaves to-day on her return. Several Turkish transports have passed here lately with stores,&c, for the Turkish army in Montenegro. The Lord High Commissioner is now making his usual annual tour of these States, and is at present at Cephalonia. The Queen leaves to-day to accom pany his Excellency in his visit to the Southern Islands. The Marlborough also goes to sea to-day to exercise her crew." The Osborne paddle yacht, Master Commander G. K. Bower, arrived at Portsmouth yesterday, on her return from service in the Mediterranean, in at tendance upon H.R.H. the Prince of Wales. An order has been received at Portsmouth to fit the Asia, guardship of the reserve at that port, with a baking oven on the French plan, with a view of trying to issue fresh bread to the seamen. The Hector iron frigate, building at Glasgow,and ordered to be conveyed round to Portsmouth, when launched, to be fitted for commission, will have lower masts and a bowsprit of iron. Her other spars and yards are now being prepared at Portsmouth. Her boats and anchors and chains will be precisely similar in size and number to those supplied to the iron frigate Defence. The Sultan target ship at Portsmouth is having 10 armour plates of various sizes and from different makers bolted on her sides alongside Portsmouth dockyard, in readiness for the next testing day, which is expected to be about the end of the week. The Hazard sailing sloop, fitted with Coles's cu pula, has been brought into Portsmouth harbour at the conclusion of the experiments from the two Armstrong guns in the cupola, under the supervi sion of Captain R. S. Hewlett, C. 8., commanding the gunnery ship Excellent. The guns were fired at 18 deg. of elevation, and also with 5 deg. of depres sion, the vessel being heeled over to 5 deg. The re sults have been satisfactory in the highest degree. The Rosario, 11, 670 tons, 150 horse power, at tached to the first division of the Chatham Steam Reserve in the Medway,is ordered to be immediately commissioned, with a complement of 130 officers and ,men, including Marine Artillery and Royal Marines. According to orders received at Chatham she is intended for home service. In accordance with orders received at Chatham Dockyard from the Admiralty, the preparation of mast and mast gear for line-of battle ships is to be suspended until further orders. The various ships directed to be repaired are to be completed as speedily as possible, and those below the class of frigates first. The following appcintments were made at the Admiralty on Friday ;—Commander J. S. Graham, to the Rosario, commissioned; Lieut. Thomas G. Price, to the Rosario ; G. P. Burney, master, to the Rosario ; Reginald H. Lloyd and Oswald B. Niven, midshipmen, to the Rosario ; William Richardson, surgeon, to the Rosario ; John Mulvany, assist ant surgeon, to the Rosario; Charles J. Curd, paymaster, to the Rosario; William E. Allen, assist.- paymaster, to the Cumberland; John E. Charlton, assist.-paymaster, to the Formidable ; Thomas Goodman, assist.-paymaster, to the Hawke ; and James A. Perkins, clerk, to the Rosario. On Satur day :—Lieut. Charles U. Hoare, to the Excellent ; Lieut. Thomas W. Oliver, to the Dauntless ; Lieut. William Gregory, to the Edinburgh ; Reginald Charles Protheroe has been nominated to a naval cadetship ; the Rev. William Deardon, chaplain and naval instructor, to the Magicienne ; William H. Sisson, acting-assist.-surg., additional, to the Narcissus ; E. R. D. Mayne, master's assist., to the Chanticleer ; Thomas E. Ash, master ' s assist . , the master's as is .., Rosario ; W. R. Stevens, . t to the Shannon ; G. Tucker and A. 11. Miller , . chief engi to the veers, to the Black Prince; Edwin Pearce, W. ine J. jeress,sor, Burgess, and H. Sau.ndesrsa, neang Ist Black Prince ; J. C. Prince; J. E. class assist. - engin eers, to the Black Turner and G. W. Hancock, 2d class.-engineers, to the Black Prince; R. Potam and W. R. Maoavoy, acting 2d class a ssist.-engineers, to the Black Prince. THE ARMY. The examination of candidates for admission to the Royal 11.1.ilitary College at Sandhurst will com mence at Chelsea this morning before Lieut.-Gen. Kin°flys, vice-President, and the memb ers o f th e Council of Education for the Army. A u order has been received at Chatham from the Horse Guards, directing that leave of absence is to b e granted to the non-commissioned officers and men of the various corps comprising that garrison, at the discretion of the General in command of the district, to enable the troops to visit the Interna tional Exhibition. In consequence of the complaints which have been made to the authorities respecting the description of l 7, ‘;e.) . - "-- - '.."--.-• - . ' . -4 — • - - . . . . ..., ..,.' • ..,..- e-tr,: i ' 1 4- s . ~ .. ~.1 4. .„. , '3:4' 9,1'.' I'RICE .4d. STAMPED ....sd. grate used in the barrack-rooms at Chatham and other military stations, a notification has been ad dresed to General Sir J. F. Burgoyne, G.C.8., In spector-General of Fortifications, and to command ing Royal Engineers both at home and abrond a n nouncing that a committee has been appointeda; th e War-office to inquire into the preFent pattern of barrack grates. Commanding Royal Engineers are directed to give their attention to a consideration of the suitability of the existing grates, in order that they might be prepared, after the ensuing winter, to assist the committee with their opinions, with a view to the removal of every reasonable objection. Commanding Royal Engineers are re quested to keep in view that any open fire grate adopted in barrack-rooms must combine, in a man ner consistent with sanitary requirements, the two essential objects of ventilation and economy of fuel. OFFICIAL REPORT. COLLISION.'-BARQUE STIRLINGSHIRE AND PILOT CUTTER PRINCESS. Greenwich Police Court, June 17, 1862. My Lords,—ln compliance with your lordships' instructions, I have, with the assistance of Captains Harris and Scott, as Nautical Assessors, made in quiry into the case of the collision between the barque Stirlingshire and the pilot cutter Princess on the morning of the 22d of May last ; and I have the honour to report to your lordships the evidence, together with the opinions of the assessors and my self, as to the causes of the collision. The Stirling shire is a barque of 365 tons, and was commanded by Charles John Grimmer, who holds a Board of Trade certificate of competency, dated Ist May, 1851. The Princess is a pilot cutter of 51 tons, be longing to the Corporation of the Trinity-house, and was commanded by Francis Atherden, who has been 25 years in this service, and during five years of that time in command of pilot cutters. The collision occurred three or four miles S. and by W. of Dover, about thirty minutes after midnight of the 21st of May, and was attended with the very serious consequences of the loss of two lives, besides great damage to the cutter and the imminent peril of all on board. The Stirlingshire was on her voyage from Trinidad to London, ane was propeed• ing up channel, under foresail, double reefed fore topsail, whole mainsail, and maintopgallantsail. . She had taken on board a Deal boatman off Dungeness to bring her into the Downs, there being no licensed pilot to be met with at that time. The Princess was beating up to her station (the Eastern Station) between Dover and Folkestone, having 14 Trinity pilots on board, in addition to her own crew of six men, besides the master. The night was clear, and the wind moderate, till about midnight, when it became squally. About the time the collision took place the barque, having previously taken in her mainroyal, was in the act of clewing up her maintopgallantsail, and the cutter, having pre viously taken a second reef in her mainsail, was in the act of taking a reef in her foresail, having hove to on the port tack, and lowered the sail for that purpose. At this time the course cf the barque was N.E. by E., the wind being W. by S., and the cutter was heading N.W., westerly. The night, though squally, with rain, was yet so far clear that a ship's lights might have been seen from a half to three quarters of a mile off. A collision under such circumstances can only be accounted for by an ab sence of proper lights, or of a proper look -out on one or both of the vessels, and several witnesses from on board each of them have been examined as to this point. Their evidence, as is customary in such cases, is of a very contradictory nature. The master of the barque, the second mate, and two apprentices, and the Deal boatmen who were on board of her, all agree in swearing that her side lights were in their proper places, in the mizen rigging, and in proper condition ; whilst, on the other hand, the master and two seamen of the cutter, and three of the pilots, all concur in swearing that they saw no side lights in the barque, though they saw a bright light which she was carrying on or under the cap of her bow sprit ; and they add, that as they get on board the barque, between the main and mizen rigging on the starboard side, from the cutter, they must, they think, have seen a green light, had there been one there. From this strong negative testimony, coupled with the evidence of what was said by the master of the barque in answer to observations made re specting his lights, it is impossible to give entire credit to the statements of the crew of the barque with regard to the state of the lights. It is admitted that a short time before the collision the lights had been taken into the deck-house to be trimmed, and the probability is, that this was done just at the time of the collision. At all events, no doubt can exist in the mind of any one reading the evidence en thin point that the side lights on board the barque were not visible in the manner required by the Admiralty:regulations, and that this neglect directly tended to produce the collision, for which the master of the barque is therefore responsible, under the provisions of the statute, as for a wilful default. It may be here observed, that under any circumstances, the removal of the lamps for the space of three or four minutes each, as is stated, for the purpose of trimming them, thus leaving the ship during that time without lights, is itself a neglect of the Admiralty regulations and of the Statute, and may be the cause of serious injury; nor can it be said that carrying lights nearly on the gunwale, in the mizen rigging, is a strict compliance with the Admiralty regulations, as it is obvious that, so placed, they cannot show a light " right a-head,”as the beam of the vessel or some other object must intervene. Besides the question of side lights, the ev id e nce ev idence discloses two other subje cts for animadver sionue —viz., his carrying a b ri g ht light on as to the conduct of t he master h e berg . and the speed, " seve n or eight knots an nist hour b at the least," at which the vessel was going' the collision. With re g ard to his a c t ar t r h y e i t n i g nie th o e f bright light, besides being, by the . 295th section of £2O, is made a case of wilful rec e t a ly leu th la e t c e a d us t e o the Merchant Shipping Act, su d b e j f e a c u t lt to h a y penalty of section, in the event of its causing evidence sloosfsa.rTahsoutoght he evidence in this case hardly goon esta blish that this bright light was s ight undoubtedly was di erions evil, as, to a certain extent, it c e ol v l e is r i y on s he master of the cutter in this seems to have misled t o p f r o t d h u e c instance. The pilots do not appear to notice this breach of the regulations as they ought to do. In stead of allowing it to be used as a signal for a pilot, it ma y be advisable that the pilots should be directed to point out the irregularity, and make an entry in their log of the name of the ship, so that the offence may be punished, or some other steps taken to enforce the observance of the law. With regard to the last point —vi • z., the speed at which the barque was proceeding—that is a purely nautical question, and the opinion of the assessors upon it is expressed in the following words of Capt. Harris : —" Under the circumstances of wind, weather, and position, his vessel being then off Dover, the master was not justified—and not having a responsible pilot on board—in proceeding through a pilot station, and the track of vessels to and from the Downs, with his ship under so little command, that when a light is seen he was unable to avoid a collision. He might have proceeded under easy sail, and might have rounded too for a pilot. He neglected these pre cautions, and incurs, consequently, the responsibi lities of his act." In conformity with this opinion, in which I fully concur, I am justified in pronounc ing that the improper speed at which the barque flag time of suffered to proceed before and at the was directly the collision , was a default of the master se of life. con t r ibuting to the results of dama g e and r o ceedings In conclus ion, I trust remark that thteo p have been part of the cutter appea r on the e xposed as the ent i re ly free from blame, and that, constant risk persons engaged in this service are o • ' ed by the imprudence of being run down or mills or inattention of those in c harge of vessels in P lace themselves in order whose track they must ‘,„ leytorm their a 11.REA11:11 7 211 ER. A Ell' s PAP-Ett.' , , ----, - z - - 7 1 : - F.,7, •-• \ \':i,-" . , • ‘,....,it4 „, , , ;-- ~ ,* r i' •• e , i 01 th ONOt 'l/4' to p „ay, it quence that they should-be protected frottriskAina so be encouraged to approach without apprehension any vessel that may require their asiiistance. I forward the certificate of the Master of the Stirlingshire, herewith.—l have, &c., JAMES TRAILL. NV e concur. HY. HARRIS, Nautical assessors. ROBT. SCOTT, The Lords of the Committee of Privy Council for Trade. PROPOSED FORT BEHIND PLYMOUTH The :Defence Commissioners' report to the Secre tary of State for - War, with reference to the pro posed fort behind Plymouth Breakwater, is as fol lows "In compliance with the instructions contained in your letter of the sth inst., we have carefully considered whether it is advisable to proceed with the construction of a fort inside Plymouth Break water as recommended in our report of Feb. 7,1860. " The question referred to embraces two conside tions—lst. The necessity of placing a fort on or near the breakwater for the defence of the anchorage. 2d. The position in which such a work should bo placed. , w© point " With regard to the first would ob serve that although the works at Pi kl c ecombe, Stad don, Drake's Island, and the citadel bring a heavy fire to bear upon the channels leading to Plymouth Sound and Hamoaze, and command a certain portion of the Sound, a great pert of that anchorage is not covered by the fire of those works, except at long ranges. A fort either on or near the breakwater will to a great extent supply this deficiency, whilst at the same time it will bring a fire to bear on any ships that might take up a position outside the breakwater for the purpose of bombarding the dock yard, or firing into vessels at anchor in the Sound. A fort so placed would also be in the best position for supporting floating defences, and for affording protection to any of our sea-going fleet seeking re fuge under its guns. " With respect to the second consideration, the choice seems to be limited to three positions-Ist. A fort might be placed on each end of the breakwater. 2d. It might be erected on the breakwater near its centre. 3d. It might be placed in a suitable position inside the breakwater. " Each of these plans has been already carefully considered. The first has much to recommend it. Forts on each end of the breakwater would bring a closer fire to bear on each channel leading to the Sound, and would command a large'portion of the anchorage by a cross fire. "It will be seen from the report of Messrs. Walker, Burges, and Cooper, engineers of Plymouth breakwater, addressed to the Under Secretary of State for War, and dated June 21, 1861, that before the recommendation of this commission was acted upon this proposal was fully investigated. "It appears that it would be necessary to lay the foundation of the eastern fort at low water neap tides, and that of the western fort at half tide level, spreading them considerably to distribute the weight of the superstructure over a large area of the breakwater, and, in some places, extending the base below low-water mark. Moreover, the heavy seas which set in during southerly gales would break with great force against the walls of the forts, and thus produce increased ac tion upon the existing foreshores' by the recoil of the waves, rendering it necessary to secure the foot of the present paved slope by a buttress work of granite masonry dovetailed together vertically and horizontally. The expense of constructing foundations in the sea would, there fore, not be avoided by adopting this proposal, whilst the lower tier of guns in the works would lose muck of their efficiency, even in moderate weather, owing to the wash of the sea up the gentle slope of the exterior side of the breakwater, the top of which is very little above the level of high water spring tides. But the great objection to placing forts on the break water is, that the limestone rubble, of which it is chiefly composed, cannot be depended upon as a durable foundation for a superstructure of far greater weight than it was originally calcu lated to bear. This is shown by the subsidence which has actually occurred to the works of Cher bourg breakwater. These objections to the erection of a smaller fort at each end apply with greater force to placing a fort on the centre of the break water, its breadth being insufficient to receive the whole of the foundation, which would therefore be partly on the rock inside and partly on the break water ; the difficulty of construction would thus be much increased, as the same mode would not be the most efficient for both portions, and the danger of subsidence of that part on the breakwater would still remain. " The site that has, therefore, been chosen for the erection of the work is on a portion of the Shovel Rock, inside and a little to the westward of the centre of the breakwater, and as close to its inner slope as practicable. The rock is comparatively level at this spot, and is covered with a thin deposit of fine silt. It has been carefully examined in a diving bell, and it has been found to be in every respect suitable for the foundation. " The outside of the fort will be within GO yards of the breakwater, its area will be less than half an acre, and from its position it will n ot interfere with the anchorage of a single ship. On this point we have obtained the evidence of Commander Aylen, s Would s swing the anchorage of ships of war, being so close i foss n o the Queen's harbour master Plymouth, who states that the site pro posed is not available to the breakwat er that it would be unsafe t o place a ship in such a positionthat h e over it. It also a ppears in his evidence th at a portion of the north front of the fort may be made available as a coa ling depot, in which case one at least of the coal hulks now moored in the Sound might be dis pensed with, and the moorings she oc • occupies be ap propriated to one of the ships of the fleet. t , The expense of the foutid • ation of a work in the position we have recommended • will be less than that of the two on the ends of the breakwater, and all danger of subsidence will • be avoided ; from its position it will be protected from the wash of the sea ; so that the lower tier of guns may be placed as low as the top of the breakwater will allow ; and. and communication with it will be practicable in all weathers. " On consideration, therefore, of all the circum stances, we are of opinion that a work behind Ply mouthbreakwater is necessary for the defence of tho Sound, and that the site on which it is proposed to erect it is the best that could be selected. have, fie., " HARRY D. JONES, Lieut.-General,' GEO. ELLIOT, Rear-Admiral, members F. ABBOTT, Major-General, of the A. COOPER KEY, Capt., R.N., Royal J. H. LEFROY, Colonel, R.A. Commission. JAS. FEROUSSON, RICH. COLLINSON Capt. R.N. Associated e J . S T . GEORGE, Colonel, R.A. , Moin r a WM. S. WISEMAN, Capt. R.N., H. D. HARNESS, Colonel, R.N.: ; L i eut.Clß E WM. F. DRUMMOND JERVOIS,O • • .9 and Assist. I.G.F. SecrotarY• PROGRESS OF HULL.—Some interesting results are disclosed in some statistics just prepared with respect to the progress of the town and port et Hull. In 1861 the population was returned at 109,000, and this year it is esti mated at 110,800, while in 1836 it was only 65,000, the in crease in 26 property rate able last year was X 238,504, aad in 1836 £176,559, showing g and dust :05,8cOle0a.raTnchees an increase of £61,945. In 1860 the tonnage of the shipping entering the port WaS 833 , 633 tons, as compared with 798,217 tons in 1860, against 421,938 tons in 1836 ,190,044 tonsyienarsl::: an increase of 376,279 tons. In 1860 the tonnage , showing subjected to dock dues was 1,215,203 ton of thevessels only 535,022 tons, showing an increases' and in 1 837 it was or 133 per cent. In 1836 the area of 680,181 tons, 23a. Or. 33p., while now the areaof of the docks was 40a. Sr. 28p. ; and the area of dock accomodation is Dock is 17a., and the increase the proposed new West In 1860 the number of steam to the Victoria Dock Ga. 1,182, with a total tonnage -vessels entering inwards was with a total of 716 steamers age of 350,932 tons, as compared 225,110 tons in 1855 ; of an aggregate burden of outwards in 1860 and the number of steamers clearing tons, ,F 3 was 1,191, of a total burden a 364,290 1 , 212,086 tons has mat A p • comparedin n with 772 of an aggregate burden of 1855. The sanitary condition of the popu lationerially improved of late. Parliamentary return shows that 8,897 sheep were killed by dogs within the consta bulary districts in Ire,. land in the year ending Ist Januarh 1862. 5 _~ -.,