The Sun. — London, England, 1859-04-12 00:00:00

ROYAL PRINCESS'S THEATRE. Under the Management of Mr. Charles Kean. THIS EVENING, will be produced Shakspeare's historical play of KING HENRY V. King Henry V., Mr. C. Kean; Chorus, Mrs. C. Kean. THEATRE -ROYAL, HAYMARKET. Lessee, Mr. J. B. Buckstone. THIS EVENING, will be produced a new Comedy , en . %Med EVERYBODY'S PRIEND. Mr. and Mrs. Charl es Mathews. After which, A GAME OF SPECULATION. Mr. Affable Xlawk, Mr. C. Mathews. And THE GALICIAN FETE. Commence at 7. NEW THEATRE - ROYAL, enjAD ELPHL S o l e Proprietor and Manager, Mr. B. Webster. MASKS AND FACES ; Triplet, Mr. B. Webster ; Quin, IKr. P. Bedford ; Sir Charles, Miss C Selby ; Ernest, Mr. Bil lington ; Peg Wofßington, Woolgar ; Mabel, Miss H. Oimms. A Web , TBilliH PRETTY GIRLS OF STILBERG. Kr. Beß.ster, E isse ngton, Eburne, Ms Wocilg,ar, Keeley, And Arden. To be followed by THE MILLINER'S HOLIDAY. Mr. V. L. Toole, C. Selby, Billington, Misses Woolgar, Keeley, and K. Kelly. 'Acting Manager—Mr. Wm. Smith. Doors open at a quarter-past six—Commence at seven. Box Ciiice open from 10 to 5 —no charge for booidng. No fees to !servants permitted. A registry kept of all articles found. • ROYAL STRAND THEATRE. Lessee and Directress, Miss Swanborough THIS EVENING, VANDYKE BROWN. Mr. J. Clark, Sind Miss M. Ternan. After which, the new Extravaganza, KENILWORTH ; or :Ye Queene. ye Earle, and ye Maydenne To be followed by I'LL WRITE TO THE TIMES. Commence at 7 o'clock. ASTLEY'S RO YAL AM PHITHEATRE, Westminster -road. Lessee and Manager. ........ Mr. William Cooke. THIS EVENING the performances will commence with new grand Drama, entitled THE THREE MUSKE TEERS, in which Mr. R. Phillips and the company will ap pear. which, the matchless and unrivalled SC ENES IN After "THE CIRCLE, i n t ro ducing the great Star Riders and Miss Ymily Cooke, Madame Blanche, Madame Bridges, Madlle. Fieurette, and Madame Francisco, being the greatest amount of female equestrian talent ever seen in one night in any theatre. Grotesques—Messrs. Hemming and Thorne. To conclude with A THUMPING LEGACY, Miss M. Jackson. The splendid romance of IVANHOE ; 'or, The Knights Templars, is in active preparation, and will be revived with extraordinary magnificence. ;Dress Circle, 4s. ; Boxes, 3s. ; lery, Pit, 2s, ; Gallery, is. ; Upper Gal 6d. Private Boxes, £4 4s, £2 2s, and £1 ls. Commence at Seven : Carriages at 11. Stage Manager, Mr. R. Phillips CANTERBURY HALL, Westminster-road. --, Proprietor —C. Mowrox. The üblic is most respectfully informed that the FINE ARTSGALLERY, in connection with the above Hall, IS NOW OPEN DAY AND NIGHT, from 11 o'clock a.m. until 12 o'clock p.m. The New Gallery contains an extensive Collec- Jon of Pictures, by Ancient and Modern Masters :and is also devoted to Arts, productions generally. The Proprietor feels he may confidently assert that, viewed altogether, the exist ing Music Hall, the New Fine Arts Gallery, and the recently added Ante-Hall, will present an attraction which, whether as regards the architectural beauty of the structures them selves, or the varied and hitherto unattempted combinations within, will be found to be wholly without parallel in the Kingdom. The Musical. ENTERTAINMENT commences as usual at seven o'clock. In addition to the usual entertainment, the SAUVLET FAMILY, of Amsterdam Eight in number, whose varied Instrumental performances have created so marked a sense don in the princial cities and towns of the Cntinent, will oerform every Evening at Nine and Eleven o'cloock. THE WEATHER.-SUN OFFICE, APRIL 12. THERMOMETER, IN THE SHADE. 60—highest since noon yesterday. 42—lowest this morning and during the night. 63—this day at noon. BARoxErzn , -29 . 69. W.N.W. ; light, with fine weather_ On Friday next the Chancellor of the Exchequer will make his statement respecting the Foreign relations of the country, and. the Earl of MALMES BURT will also enter into full explanations in the House of Lords on the same evening. Nothwith standing the announcement of the Pays of last even- ing that " the difficulties which obstructed the assembling of the Congress have been definitively removed, and that the Powers have agreed on con ditions, under which they will disarm simultane ously, and that thereupon Austria had given in her adhesion to the Congress, which would meet in a few days," we fear that the authentic information afforded to both Houses on Friday next will not be of quite so satisfactory a character. Austria, unable, in the most propitious times, to keep her expenditure within her income—incapable of contracting a loan on any Bourse or Exchange in Europe—is now in curring the most reckless expenditure, for which she will have to pay heavily at some future time ! Animated by an intense hatred of Piedmont, and an inflexible resolution neither to conciliate her Italian subjects—who by treaty stipulations have been handed over to her tender mercies—nor to abstain from her unwarrantable interference with other Italian Statess, she braves every danger rather than concede what justice and policy alike demand. FRANCIS JOSEPH is headstrong. He stands upon his dignity, will " do what he likes with his own," and treats the remonstrances of other Sovereigns with the most contemptuous indifference. He will not go into Congress unless Sardinia, in the first instance, places herself at his mercy, and consent to become an Austrian province, like each of the other Italian States, in order to gratify his pride and vanity. He has troops assembled on her frontier ready to invade her soil at a moment's notice. He has fortresses bristling with ordnance, on which he can retreat in the event of any repulse, and find shelter from "any pursuit. Would he desire that the Piedmontese, abandoning every manly attribute, should seek protection in their weak and defenceless condition, rather than in the patriotic determination to struggle to the last in defence of their native land and its free in stitutions ? Should he do so, he unquestionably reckons without his host, and will be obliged to meet the consequences of his grave mistake. But he could not have supposed that any such result was even possible. He had made up his mind for war, and was determined to bring lit about per fas aut nefas. But, although Austria is greatly to be censured for her recent conduct, neither France nor Pied mont can be exonerated. It was. Louis NAPOLEON, who on the Ist day of the year hurled the first firebrand, and VICTOR EMMANUEL speedily fol lowed suit. Other nations do not bear " bluster and bunkum" quite so well as England. We are accustomed to the boastings of our transatlantic co usins. We do not not think every ill-considered word ox sentence a casus belli, or that the rashness of a Monarch or his Minister is to produce a vast expenditure of blood and treasure by the people. It would be well if, i n the words of the ballad 4, Those who made the quarrel were the only men to fight." We should have no objection to see a triangular duel between Louis N APOLEON, F RANCIS JOSEPH, a nd VICTOR EMMANU EL , but we certainly do not wish to see the peoples involved in the conflict, nor Europe to have the other nations of dragged into the vortex. " Quid quid delirant re ges aehivi" is a time-honoured adage, and plectuntur unfortunately it is as well-founded at the present time a . s when Troy was environed , and Greeks and Trojans met in daily encounter outside its walls. It seems more than probable that Sardinia will be the first sufferer—that she will be made the cockpit in which France and Austria will decide their mutual disputes and jealousies. We regret that it should be so, for Sardinia was a faithful and efficient ally in the Crimea. Her gallant soldiers fought side by side with our own, and gained the g ood will which unflinching bravery and effective discipline is sure to receive. as a c onstitutional Besides, we sympathise with her t q of the u ite so king dom, and altho u g h she could no firnilyr resist the demands of the EMPEROR , s " A . • 0 • 4111 **4. DIE ) 136 "1" l' • .0414. THE SUN. TUESDAY, APRIL 12, 1859. French with respect to the freedom of the press as we were enabled to do, we must ascribe that partially to her want of strength to resist the gigantic force which he could bring to bear against her, and in some degree also to the hope of winning him over to her designs against Austria, or at all events to enter into an alliance offensive and de fensive, which would ensure a powerful protector at all times, and under any circumstances. Whatever may be the result, we trust that Great Britain may keep herself out of the scrape, and observe the most perfect neutrality. None of the parties come into court-with clean hands. None are deserving of support which would lead to the ex penditure of English treasure, and, what is far more important, of English blood. Of course, Ministers will be willing to do all in their power to avert the outbreak of hostilities, or will be prepared at any moment to mediate between the opposing parties, when media tion is possible, or when there is any probability of its producing favourable results. But they must not permit England either to be dragged or to drift into war. Let the belligerents take their own course if they will not listen to judicious and pru dent advice. But eight hundred millions of our national debt stands forth as a gigantic monument :o warn us from unnecessarily intermeddling in the affairs of other nations, or engaging in any contest in which the honour or safety of our native land are not in some degree concerned. Now that the great Reform question is placed .'or a time in abeyance, we seize the opportunity for directing the attention of our readers to a kindred subject of reform, which involves the happiness and prosperity of all classes, high and ow, of her MAJESTY'S subjects. It will be remembered that we gave a full report of an admirable lecture recently delivered by Sir A. ALISON, at the City Hall, Glasgow, at the request of the Council of the United Trades, on " The Currency Laws, and their effect on the Profits of Trade and the Wages of Labour." We are glad to find that this able exposition of the evils of the present monetary system has been widely circulated throughout Scotland, and has attracted the attention which it so amply merits. It has, consequently, called forth a vituperative and very flippant article from the City writer of the Times, who took occasion, last week, to attack Sir ARCHIBALD and the working classes of Glas- gow, 3,000 of whom received his address with warm acclamations of approbation. The Times writer assails Sir ARCHIBALD as an opponent of Free Trade. But whatever his opinion - - on that question may be, Sir ARCHIBALD now comes forward in a candid and manly manner to express his views on things as they are. " I take Free Trade," he says, " as the settled, fixed policy of the country. I argue upon it as such ; and what I say is this, that you must make your currency laws similar in a certain degree to your corn laws, or the country will be ruined." But what right has the Times writer to call himself a free trader ? He supports free trade in corn and other commodities, but does he support free trade in the most important of all things— money ? Not at all. He supports the most gigantic monopoly in the kingdom, that of the Bank of England. He supports the ab surd monopoly which PEEL'S Bill of 1844 gave to the existing banks of issue, accord ing to which no other bank, however large its capital, or respectable its partners, can issue a single note, because it did not issue notes in 1844. He supports a currency restricted, limited, con tracted, and monopolised in every possible way that the perverted ingenuity of the money-mongers and "hard calculators" could invent. Why, the Dutch merchants in Sumatra, who were accustomed to destroy half their crop of spices in order to enhance the value of the remainder, were better Free-traders than the Times or the " hard calculators," who deprive the country of half its money, and then grumble that even that portion is left to save the nation from absolute bankruptcy ! We remember well the howl of a disappointed usurer uttered by the Times during the panic of 1857, when Govern ment interposed at the eleventh hour to save the nation from a state of barter, and enable the Chan cellor of the Exchequer to collect his taxes and pay the dividends. Amidst the general consternation and ruin the " hard calculator" of the Times gave utterance to sentiments such as these :—" Had not," he said, " the Government letter appeared, no doubt money would have been worth 20 or 30 per cent., owing to the general panic which would have been created." But, pity my misfortune ! says this patriotic Free-trader, Government having, when gold leaves the country, restricted the paper currency by act of Parliament, to such an extent that in consequence I might have bought " sugar, silk, and all sorts of articles at a vast reduction," —lo ! merely to save thou sands of merchants from unjust ruin, hun dreds of thousands of working men from the poor-house, and the nation from bankruptcy, I, the " hard calculator," am deprived of the results of my "patient inquiry and reflection," and, after all, cannot buy my " sugar, silk, and all sorts of articles" at more than a trifle below their prime cost ! Here is an enlightened political economist, a large-minded, disinterested public instructor ! Can we wonder that our friend the "hard calculator," whose mag nanimity is only to be equalled by his powers of language, regards with wonder the hearty enthu siasm and warm approval with which the working men of Glasgow hailed the noble•spirited and states man-like exposition of their distinguished and estimable neighbour and friend, Sir ARCHIDALD ALISON, and fails to recognise in him " a particular iiminary or a good patriot." The Times' objection to Currency Reform is the very trite and worn-out sophism which has been used in all ages by the supporters of abuses. The country, it says, has increased in wealth end population under the existing currency laws, there fore do nothing to amend or improve them. We should not notice such an argument as this, if we did not find it adduced by many persons besides the Times, who are too indolent or prejudiced to investigate the question of Currency Reform. What the argument amounts to is just this : trade and commerce have increased since Peel's Bill of 1819 was passed, therefore do nothing to prevent a re currence of monetary crises and panics which paralyses trade and lays commerce in ruins. The population has increased largely within the last 40 years, therefore do nothing to reform the evils of a monetary system, the direct effects of which are to reduce g re atest distress eat masses of the population to a stat e of the g every few years. It is quite true, indeed, that since the termina tion of the great French war this country has made rapid strides in civilisation and wealth. But we Say that the commencement of this great national i mprovement was a consequence of the enli g htened syst em of currency which WILLIAM PITT intro duced in 1797 . We had then a paper currency for commerce capablere required . of expansion our dome s ti c c i rculation adequate to t h e wa nts of the people,and As taxes x a as s w expandingwere in trade and- creased to meet the exigencies of the war, the cir culating paper medium was • increased, so that by a proportionate rise of price in all commodities the SUN, LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, APRIL 12, 1859. OLI producer was enabled to recover from the consumer his fair amount of taxation. The working man's welfare is t ,ound up with that of the producer ; and, as every producer produces much more than he consumes; , it is the producer's interest to obtain a good pric( for his products. If a man produce 100 articles, .and consume 10, a fall in price on each article of 0; tie shilling causes him to lose £5 and to save 1C s. In a highly-taxed country a low range of prices is, therefore, injurious to the pro ducer and to th e working men whom he employs. It is even more injurious to the working man than to the master producer. For with low, unremu nerative prices th e wages of the working men are more than proportionably reduced, and thus the ' tax which ought to fall on the consumer is ground out of the working man. The paper money system, which prevailed from 1797 to 1815, was unaccompanied by the viollent expansions and con • tractions of the present system. The rate of dis count was, therefore, much more uniform, and the ; monster evil of panics was unknown. PEEL knew that it was impossible to return to the obsolete and barbarous system of a metallic currency. But in his Bill of 1819 he went as far as he dared in this direction. He crippled and fettered the enlightened and beneficial paper money system, which he could not destroy. What have been the results ? We challenge the T i nes to prove that the results have not been most disastrous. In 1816 the proposition made by the Bank to return to cash payments,by contracting its issues, produced dis tress, which Mr. TIERNEY said " had never been equalled. in this country since the Norman con quest." In 1819, after the passing of PEEL'S Bill, monstrous distress and ruin ensued. In 1825 came the panic which swept away scores of banks and thou sands 'of merchants, and filled the country with pauperised operatives. The distress which con tinued through the succeeding years mainly led to the passing of the Reform Bill. Then in 1837 and 1838 came great monetary pressures, with their attendant evils. These evils PEEL admitted when he introduced his bill in 1844 to prevent them. In 1847 the bill was put on its trial, and proved a decided and contemptible failure. The country paid the price of the blundering statesmanship of PEEL and OVERSTONE and the panic mongers. But a most unexpected ally came to the rescue of the bullionists. Gold was discovered in immense and un precedented quantities in California and Australia. Now then, said the Peelites, there is an end of the paper money system. Then in 1857 comes a mone tary crisis, if possible, worse than the former ones ; and again is the ridiculous and impracticable Bank Charter Act abrogated by the Minister's letter. We are now only slowly emerging from the evil consequences of the last panic, and the financial difficulties which are pressing us on every side must be attributed very considerably to the same cause. Now, it must be remembered, that during the last forty years we have enjoyed an unusual pro portion of years of peace, that science has effected infinitely more for the progress and prosperity of the nation than ever occurred in a similar period, that steam navigation has assisted to develop the gigantic resources of our colonial possessions, and railways at home have given an impetus to trade of which our forefathers could not have .formed the slightest conception. Remembering these things, we say that there must have been some extraordinary and fatal blunder in modern statesmanship to counteract all these causes of general and permanent prosperity. We agree entirely with Sir A. ALISON that the currency system is principally to blame for the distress, ruin, crime, pauperism, and forced emigration, which we have witnessed so often during the past forty years. And we say, moreover, that the gleams of prosperity which we have enjoyed are to be attri buted principally to PITT'S paper-money system, which PEEL could not entirely subvert, though he did his best to do so. We think Sir ARCHIBALD quite right in affirm ing that the future destiny of England depends on the reformation of the existing most pernicious system, and we hold his arguments to be as much sounder than those of that " particular luminary," the Times' writer, as the instincts and aspirations of the distinguished historian of modern Europe are nobler than those of the usurer and the "hard calculator." We will add a few words relative to the Western Bank of Scotland affair. The Times abuses Sir A. ALIsON as upholding a system of fraudulent bank ing. He does nothing of the kind. But he says, very justly, that the Bank Charter Act, which obliges the Bank of England, when gold flows into the country,.to make money so plentiful that it be comes a " drug" in the market, and discounts decline to 1 and 2 per cent., does in effect tempt men to speculation and foster overtrading and bad banking. We have seen this in the gambling in American mines, in the railway mania, and recently in the proceedings of such institutions as the British Bank of London, and the Western Bank of Scotland. The great primary cause of the evil has been, in all these instances, the same, and that cause is the unwise, unjust, and ruinous monetary system established by PEEL'S Acts of 1819 and 1844. CITY ELECTION. Between eleven and twelve o'clock today, about 150 gentlemen met to receive the report of the progress made with the requisition inviting Lord Manley and Mr. T. Baring to stand for the City. COLERIDGE KENNAItD, Esq., having been called to the chair, stated that the signatures to the requi sition, and the promises of support, were of a highly gratifying nature—the respective numbers of the former being, for Lord Stanley, 2,023 ; and for Mr. Baring, 1,950 ; and he had no doubt that if the signatures progressed in an equal ratio success would be certain. Mr. G. F. YOUNG urged on the meeting the expediency of not confining themselves to a struggle of a strictly Conservative character, but to•solieit the support of all electors who can appre ciate the merits of a rising statesman, " the future Prime Minister of England," and the honest worth of the " foremost Merchant Prince of the World." The proceedings shortly afterwards terminated. We have reason to know that the statement which appeared in a contemporary relative to an expected visit to London by Lord Cowley is altogether without foundation.—Herald. Their Royal Highnesses the Duchess of Cam bridge and the Princess Mary, accompanied by Baron Knesebeck, left St. James's Palace, yesterday, for Cam bridge Cottage, Kew, for a few weeks. The Prince Nicolas Repnine has arrived at Long's Hotel, from Paris. The Duke of Rutland comes to town to-day from Belvoir Castle, where his grace has been entertaining a select circle. _ _ The Duke and Duchess of Manchester will leave town on Saturday for Kimbolton Castle, for the Easter holidays. The Earl and Countess of Craven and family will leave town on Saturday for Ashdowne Park, Berks, where they intend to stay, until after Easter. The Earl and Countess Delawarr will leave town on Friday for Beckhurst Park, for the Easter holidays. The Earl and Countess Fitzwilliam have left Grosvenor-square on a visit to the Duke and Duchess of Beaufort, at Badminton, Gloucestershire. The Earl and Countess of Suffolk have arrived at Farrance's Hotel, Belg,ravia, from their seat in Wiltshire. The Dowager Countess of Meath has arrived at Claridge's Hotel, from Sennicotts, near Chichester. Viscountess Palmerston has issued cards for an assembly to-morrow evening, at Cambridge House. Lord and Lady Cranworth will leave town early next week for their seat, Holwood, Kent. Lord and Lady Calthorpe and family will shortly leave town for Elbeshani Park, Hants. Lady Rolle has arrived at her residence in Upper Grosvenor-street, from Bicton, Exeter, for the season. Sir Alexander and Lady Malet have returned to Frankfort from a visit to Lord and Lady Brougham in Grafton-street. _ Sir Charles and Lady Lamb have arrived at the Clarendon from Beauport, Little Sussex. _ _ 'RE. On a very simple basis Mr. Tom Taylor has con structed a very pleasant little comedy, entitled " Nine Points of the Law." Mrs. Smylie (Mrs. Stirling), one of those fair, clever widows who have broken many hearts in real life, and still more on the stage, is the occupant of a genteel messuage or tenement, to which Mr. Edmund Ironside, a burly northern manufacturer (Mr. Addison), has the legal right. Woman's fascination is to prove more power- Accounts, from Marseilles state that wine has advanced in price in that city, owing to the intelligence from Languedoc that some injury had been done in the vine yards by frost. COLLIERY STRIKE AT HUNWICK, NEAR BISHOP AtiCKLAND.—The whole of the pitmen, employed at the Newfield and Binchester collieries, Hunwick, near Bishop Auckland, the property of Mr. R. W. Jackson, of West Hartlepool, to the number of about 300, struck work on Wednesday last, in consequence of an alleged breach of contract on the part of the owner. They state that the measure tub by which their coals had previously been mea sured had been removed and a larger one substituted, there by entailing upon them a greater amount of labour than was anticipated when they entered upon their engagement. Summonses for desertion were immediately taken out against magistrates in and around Thursday. day. Gout, TheThegreatest bench three of tne number, John Hardy, Thomas Hardy, and George Boothwright, and the charge was heard before the Bishop p m A en u t prevailed cklantl committed them for seven days. An open air meeting was subsequently held in the town, at which strong dissatisfac tion was manifested.—Manchester Examiner. SOLICITORS' BENEVOLENT ASSOCIATION.—The friends and supporters of this association for the relief of poor and necessitous attorneys, solicitors, and proctors in England and Wales, and their wives, widows, and families, last evening celebrated their first anniversary by a dinner at the Albion Tavern, Aldersgate-street. The Lord Mayor presided on the occasion, and was supported by upwards of 100 members of the legal profession. Although the society had been but recently formed, many benefits had been already conferred by it upon men who had become reduced from a state of affluence to that of abject destitution. The Lord Mayor, in the course of his address to the meeting, expressed a hope that the society would be hereafter as pro minent for its bevevolence as its members were acknow ledged to be useful by their services to the general well being of the community. The subscriptions amounted to upwards of £9OO. Messrs. Ransford and Young were pro fessionally i spent engaged,b y and gave grea t en j o y men t t o an even ing t h doable pleasure of a good dinner and the consciousness of contributing to the aid of a good cause. DARING THEFT OF £175 FROM A BANK COUNTER.—On Friday afternoon Mr. Forrester, baker, Gordon-street, proceeded to the Royal Bank, shortly before the time of closing, to lodge a sum of money. Having counted out £175 in large notes he placed them in a bundle on the telling-table, and was about to count out some small notes to make up the sum he wished to lodge, when a party asked him if he could give him a £5 note for five £1 notes. This he was about to do, when, on turning round, he saw, or thought he saw, a hand hastily drawn from the counter, and when he looked more particularly, found to his surprise that his bundle of £175 had disappeared. He then observed a smart little fellow hastily leave the bank, whom ho at once suspected of the theft, and whom he immediately followed. On getting to the street, h ow ever, the fellow had tu r ned the corner before Mr. For rester could give the ala rm , The daring thief consequently es caped, but we hope only to be captured. Informa tion was at once given to the police, but as yet we have not heard of any traces of the rascal having been found. — Glasgow Journal. EXPLORATION OF THE AUSTRALIAN RIVERS.— According to the last ad v i c es from Australia , Capt. Cadell by whom the river Murray to Albury, and the river Mur rumbidgee to Gundagi (from 1,800 to 2,000 miles from the m outh of the Murray) was opened up, had successfully availed himself of a favourable opportunity for exploring the Darling. On the 24th of January last, in his steamer Albury, accompanied by Richard M'Don nell, Governor of South Australia, and party, he ' left Morundee, on the Murray, and a short dis• tance above Lake Victoria the Darling was entered. With but little difficulty the steamer reached a point above Mount Murchison, that being the verge of the country that is stocked. As the water in the river was falling rapidly, it would not have been safe to ascend further ; but at a future period Captain Cadell hopes to take his st t o me ourke.r up to the junction with the river Barwan, above Fo B When Captain Sturt and Sir Thomas Mll itche visited the Darling near Mount Murchison, they found it almost ee a chain of water - holes. The Albury got back to Moorund on the 15th of February, all well. THE COST OF A Kiss.—The case of Dawson v. Cooper, which was tried at the Liverpool Court of Passage, on Saturday, excited considerable interest. It was an action to recover damages for a kiss, given under the following cir cumstances :—lt appeared that some lawsuits were pending at the time, and that the defendant, who is an attorney, was engaged against the plaintiff. On the 24th December last he called at the public -house then kept by the plaintiffl about and w hilst there kissed the daughter, a nice -looking gir 15 years old. She immediately told her mother what had occurred, who rebuked the defendant for what ho had done upon which he asked where the mistletoe was, and kissed her, too, remarking that it was the sweetest kiss he ever had, to which she answered that it might be the dearest. The daughter was called, and stated that she told her mother " a dirty old Jew had kissed her." She slapped his face several times for taking the liberty. Mr. Brett made a humourous speech for the defence, in extenuation of his client's conduct. Mrs. Cooper's curls, he said, tickled the defendant's cheeks, and, poor man, the temptation was too strong for him, _especially as.it wa s Christmas-eve. The learned Assessor summed up, and the jury returned a ver dict for the plaintiff, damages £s.—Lirerpool Albion. DEATH FROM HYDROPHOBIA.—An inquest was held at Wolverhampton on Friday afternoon last, before Mr. Coroner Phillips, on the body of Thomas Price, a labourer at the Swan Garden Works in that town, who had died a few days previously in terrible agonies. During the paroxysms he repeatedly charged his wife with having ad • ministered poison to him, and this, notwithstanding the marked character of the symptoms exhibited by the unfor tunate man, was considered to render an inquest necessary. The post mortem examination, however, fullly cleared the poor woman of participation in her husband's death. Price was a great dog fancier, and had doubtless been inoculated with the fatal virus by some one of his canine pets, but neither he nor any of his friends seemed to have any recol lection of his having been bitten, or of any of his dogs hav ing become rabid. The jury found that the deceased had died of hydrophobia.—Manchester Examiner. MADAGASCAR SNAKES.—There are also serpents in the island of various kinds; but the largest are not olsonous, though they will bite severely if assailed or irritated. M. Provint told ism e that on one occasion, when he was travelling in the country, having risen from the mat on which ho had slept during the night; he went a short distance, and having . directed his servant to prepare the mats for resuming the journey, was called back by the man, who on rolling. up the mats, discovered an immense in a ci rc it e serpent, seven o r ei g ht feet lon g and as thick in the body as an ordinary w ine-bottle. It was coiled up e xactly in the spot w here he had been lying, to which had pi obably been attracted by the warmth. He said he was startled at the sight of such a monster, and called to the natives to destroy it, but, instead of this, the people took a piece of stick, and just guided its head towards the long grass and b ushes, sa y in g , " Go y ou away, go." They seemed to regard with a sort of superstition, almost amounting to dread, all serpents, crocodiles, and other dangerous replies, which they scrupulously avoid injuring, under an apprehension of experiencing retaliation, either from that identical reptile or from some other of its species, at a future time. The only serpent which I saw was a small one, between three and four feet long, of a light yel low or straw - colo ur, and beautifull y mared with trans verse stripes of brown ; but I was told the reptile was not venomous. The gentleman under whose mats the immense serpent had coiled itself while ho was sleeping also told rue that, when passing through the dense unfre quented parts of the forest in the interior, he met with large serpents which, when he has come suddenly upon them, had appeared irritated, and had raised themselves up several feet as if to resist his progress, till he attacked them with a spear.-'Elba's Madagascar. THE AMENDED OATHS ACT.-0110 of the acts which received the Royal assent on Friday was to settle the form of affirmation to be made in certain cases by Quakers and other persons by law permitted to make an affirmation instead of taking an oath. Instead of taking the oath pre scribed in the Act of last session (21st and 22d of Victoria, cap. 48), the persons alluded to are .to make a solemn affirmation in the following words :—"I, A 13, do solemnly, sincerely, and truly declare and affirm that I will bear true allegiance to Queen Victoria and to her will be faithful against all conspiracies and attempts whatever which shall be made against her person, crown, or dignity, and I will do my utmost endeavour to disclose and make known to Queen Victoria, her heirs, and successors all treasons and traitorous conspiracies which I shall know to be formed against her or them, and I will be true and faithful to the succession of the Crown, which succession, by an Act en titled, ' An Act for the further limitation of the Crown and better securing the rights and liberties of the subject,' is and stands limited to the Princess Sophia, .Eleetress of Hanover, and the heirs of her body, being Protestants, hereby utterly renouncing and refusing any obedience or allegiance unto any other person claiming or pretending . a right to the Crown of this realm ; and I do declare that no foreign prince, person, prelate, state, or potentate bath, or ought to have, any jurisdiction, power, superiority, pre eminence, or authority, ecclesiastical or spiritual, within this realm." EXTRAORDINARY CHARGE OF POISONING.—On Saturday morning, at the Liverpool police-court, before Mr. Mansfield, two youths, named Thomas Hayes, 15, and Henry Peel, 15, were brought par' detective-officer Car lyle, on a charge of having put a lge quantity of chromate of potash, a. dadly poison, into the holy water font at the Catholic church in Blackstock-street. The case excited a great deal of interest, and the court was crowded by persons from the locality, as it had caused an unusual amount of ex citement in the neighbourhood. Both prisoners were in the employment of Mr. Tyson, an extensive soap manufacturer, in Blackstock-street, and it would seem that chromate of potash was used in the manufacture of soap, and that the prisoners had taken a quantity of that poison and put it into the holy-water font. When they were arrested on the charge, Hayes confessed that lie had done it. Mr. Mans field said he understood that holy-water was merely used for making the sign of the cross on the forehead, in reference to the baptismal vows. Mr. Russell said it was used for that purpose, but many also put it to their lips. He would show that by mixing the poison with the water it would burn the forehead and lips, as it was a corrosive poison of a deadly nature. The charge having been proved by the evidence of several witnesses, Mr. Russell said he understood that the boys were respectable in their sphere of life, and bore a good character. l'N either he nor those who instructed him had any wish to have th em punished severely, but only desired t hat others might bo warned against doing similar acts. Mr. Mansfeld said it a ppeared to him to be a confederacy fur the purpose of anno ying and insulting the congregation who went to the chapel. Peel said llayes told flint to do it. Hayes said he only did it to daub the hands and fore heads of the people, not knowing that it was poisonous. hoped tw o it suretiesu g h et : . c b h e , 0 f t to abstain l() res respectively, v m e insulting t o keep eep Mr. Mansfield said the prisoners had done a very improper and wicked act. Their conduct had boon very gross in deed. In order that it might be a caution to others, as he congregations, he ordered both the prisoners to find bail, in p a e n a n e annoying n n a th n e d be of good behaviour, or else • - for six to be imprisoned esoh months. A DANDY.---Touching dandies, let us consider, with some scientific strictness, what a dandy specially is. A dandy is a clothes-wearing man—a man whose trade, office, and existence consist in wearing clothes. Every faculty of his soul, spirit, purse, and person is heroically consecrated to this one object—the wearing of clothes wisely and well ; so that, as others dress to live, he lives to dress,--Carlyle,; 111. than the law, and when Mr. Ironside arrives, swelling with his sense of right, and expecting a shrewd disputant, - he finds such a perfectly unre sisting creature that he don't know what to make of his position. He came for a verbal fight, but there is nothing to hit, and when Mrs. Smylie asks for a week to settle her affairs he grants the delay without hesitation, and in trusts further negotiations to his lawyer, Mr. Cunninghame (Mr. H. Wigan). With the " professional gentleman" Mrs. Smylie becomes the type of a strong-minded woman, and by the blaze of her charms and the depth of her legal knowledge so utterly overwhelms the doomed pettifogger that he loses not only his heart but his sense of rectitude, and betrays certain weak points of his client's case. The end of the contest, as might be expeeted, is brought about by a mar riage between Ironside and the. widow, this catastrophe being preceded by a skirmish of generosity, in which Mrs. Smylie refuses to take advantage of the weak points revealed by the treacherous lawyer, while Ironside resigns his pretensions to the estate by means of a dQed of gift. A filibustering gentleman of Central Ameri can experiences, who aspires to the hand of the ,widow, and is played by Mr. G. Vining, is intro duced as a contrast to the more disinterested manu facturer, but he rather adds to the length than increases the strength of the piece. Mrs. Stirling has long been renowned as an admirable representative of those fascinating ladies who, when the charm of girlhood has passed, rule the world, partly by the force of developed beauty, partly by tact ; and she did herself full justice as the lady exulting in the "nine points of the law." Mr. Addison, whose worth has been known in a much shorter time, probably surprised many of the audience by the perfect manner in which he played Ironside. Nothing could be better done. There was the downright blunt man, sound at heart, uncouth in manner, forced, in spite of himself, to bring his best side outwards, and fidgetting not a little with hands, legs, and fingers while the pro gress of conversation was going on. The little grotesque lawyer, by Mr. H. Wigan, was an excel lent "bit" of character. For a very pretty drawing-room, garnished with pictures, and backed by an extensive country view, the audience are indebted to the pencil of Mr. Telbin. In this elegant apartment the dramatis persona fought their battles, and a complete suc cess was attained. During Passion-week the theatre will become the site of Mr. and Mrs. T. G. Reed's popular enter ! tainment. 11E.RR OTTO GOLDSCHMIDT'S CONCE.R7I Herr Otto Goldschmidt, a pianist of remarkable talent, and an excellent musician—husband, more over, of the famous Jenny Lind.—gave the first of an announced series of matinees musicales, atWillis's rooms, yesterday afternoon. Herr Goldschmidt played Mendlessohn's " Variations Serieuses " as a solo piece, and took part with Messrs. Sainton, Schreurs, and Piatti in Mozart's pianoforte quartet in E flat ; with Signor Piatti in Beethoven's sonata in G minor, op. 5 ; and with Messrs. S. Pratten, Crozier, C. Harper, Schreurs, Piatti, and Ho well in Hummell's septuor in D minor, op. 74. In each and every one of these Herr Goldschmidt displayed executive talent of a high order, informed by such pure and classic musical sentiments as can only be acquired through careful study, and a sympathetic appreciation of the best models. -Herr Goldschmidt was warmly applauded in all his efforts by a nume rous and fashionable audience, amongst whom, our readers will not be at all surprised to hear, was tho great Swedish Nightingale herself. LATE E W THE CALCUTTA AND CHINA • MAILS. MARSEILLES, TUESDAY MORNING. The Nepaul, with the mails from Calcutta and China, arrived at Marseilles yesterday at 8 p.m. The mails left for London at 10.30 p.m., Passengers are to remain in quarantine 15 hours. The Indus left Malta for Southampton at 4 p.m. on the Bth inst. The following telegrams have been received at Mr. Reuter's office : BERLIN, MONDAY. The official Prussian Gazette (Preussische Zei !any) publishes a leading article, of which the following is a summary : During the last few days uneasiness has taken possession of the public mind at the news that the assembling of the Congress has again become doubt ful. The anticipation of a near and dangerous crisis, which that news arouses, has increased public fears. Without wishing to maintain the ground lessness of the intelligence, we nevertheless believe ourselves permitted to assume that in spite of the serious turn affairs have taken, the efforts of the mediating Powers are not yet to be regarded as terminated ; and, indeed, a step of a meaiatorial nature has just been taken by the Prussian Govern ment. Keeping in view the repeated declarations of France, of a peaceful tendency, the hope still remains, that mediation in the impending diffi cult questions may possibly .be proceeded with. In the meantime the country, with provident regard for coming emergencies, may be strong in the consciousness that, above all things, its Govern ment has, during the negotiations for mediation, neglected no steps which could enable Prussia to fulfil the duties imposed upon her by her position towards Germany and Europe. Government may hope to meet with the confidence of the coun try, and may entertain the expectation of find ing, on the part , of her Ferman federal allies, a similar confidence, animated by similar endeavours. PARIS, MONDAY The Pays of this evening states that, if the in formation it has received be correct, the difficulties which obstructed the assembling of the Congress are definitively removed. The Powers are said to have agreed upon the conditions under which they will disarm simultaneously, and thereupon Austria had given in her adhesion to the Congress, which would meet in a few days. The Pays publishes this news under reservation but believes it correct. VIENNA, APRIL 12 The official Austrian Correspondence ( Oestreich ische Correspondenz) publishes an article, of which the following is a summary . Austria has given undeniable proof of her love of peace by the manner in which she met Lord Cow ley's mission, and afterwards by accepting the pro posals for a Congress. Willingly would Austria make sacrifices in order to preserve peace, but she cannot do so merely to grant others delay before the commencement of war. The disarming of Pied mont has been stated as a preliminary condition, which condition was supported by England ; whilst Austria, on the other hand, proposed a general dis arming as the first act of the Congress, thereby adding a fifth preliminary point to those already proposed. France did not think it possible to make Piedmont disarm alone, and Austria, therefore, proposed a general disarming before the Congress began, in order to ensure essential guarantees for the main- tenance of peace. The article concludes thus :—" How could it be thought possible that Austria would join the Con gress unless substantial proofs were given that the spirit which actuates her prevails also in all the other Cabinets." BERLIN, TUESDAY, April 12. The Archduke Albrecht, of Austria, arrived here this morning, at a quarter-past past five o'clock, from Vienna. His suite is composed of four superior officers. He was received at the railway terminus by the civil authorities and the Commander-in-Chief of the army of Berlin. The Archduke afterwards repaired to the royal palace, one wing of which was put in readiness for his Imperial Highness. FRANCE. PARIS, MONDAY. The Ak,hbar of Algiers publishes the following letter addressed by the new Minister of Algeria and the Colonies to the prefects and the generals com manding divisions in Algeria : "Paris, March 26. "The Emperor, in calling me to the honour of directing the Ministry of Alg er i a an d the Colonies, has given me the mission of continuing the work so auspiciously commenced by his Imperial High ness Prince Napoleon. To that difficult but honour able task we must devote our exclusive attention ; and it is in order to accomplish it that I now claim your co-operation, and appeal to all men of sound purpose. Algeria, conquered by our glorious army, pacified by its intelligent perseverance, now offers to colonisation and civilisation an opening which is too vast and attractive to permit that France should do otherwise than introduce there her activity, and transform it into one of the elements of her power. The Emperor was of opi nion that the moment had arrived to extend to Algeria a portion of the benefits of our home organi sation, and that the most powerful encouragement that could be offered to Frenchmen desirous of transporting there their fortune and industry would be to show them that they and their families would, to a certain degree, find there an entire image of their native country. Such was the generous and fruitful idea which dictated the decree of the 24th June last. That idea will animate us all, for lam aware of the desire of the civil and military autho rities to co-operate with devotedness in the grand work in which France is engaged in Algeria. ' For my part, I shall labour without cessation, and shall be happy to submit to the Emperor the progress that may be made, and the names of the men to whom it will be due. • " Count DE CHASSELOUP-LAUBAT." BOURSE, April 11.—A rally has taken place to day, especially in Threes and the Austrian shares, owing to the report that the Austrian Cabinet has agreed to disarm and take part in the Congress, on condieion that the disarmament shall be general. Threes have been done at 67f. 25c. to 67f. 75c. ; Mobilier 667 f. 50c. to 700 f. ; Austrian, 510 f. to 526 f. 25c. ; Lombardo-Venetian, 485 f. to 510 f. ; Orleans, 1,240 f. to 1,255 f; Lyons, 825 f. to 830 f. ; Eastern, 620 f. to 630 f. The following were the closing quotations : . 41 per Cents. .... N 75 I Credit Foncier 640 Do. end month .. 95 ! Belgi an 41 •. ~ _ 3 per . Cents. ...... 67 451Piedmontese (5) • • 75 75 Do. end month.... 67 25 Roman B6 Bank Shares...... 2800 Austrian — Credit Mobilier .. 690 Spanish Threes .44 75 Do. Account ..... 677 50 Home Debt — RAILWAYS. Cash. Account Orleans Northern 905 .. 905 New ditto. 785 .. 780 - Lyons and. Mediterranean B3O .. 822 50 New ditto Geneva' Midi — • • Southern Western 537 50 .. 632 50 Eastern Grand Central Sardinian 390 .. —[— Austrian Exchange on London, at sight, paper, 25f. 71c. ; money 251.2±c. ; three months, paper, 24f. 90c.; money, 24f. 90c. - "-- • • - - .. 512 50 CHRISTY'S MINSTRELS. The public will be happy to learn that this vocal troupe of Ethiopians, after a successful tour through 1 the provinces and part of the Continent, have again returned to London, under tho auspices of Mr. Mitchell, of Old Bond-street. Their first concert took place last night at the St. James's Hall, to a crowded and fashionable audience. While Dr. Wylde and his cohorts, instrumental and vocal, were performing the overture to " Medea," and the other pieces comprising the second concert of the New Philharmonic Society, in one part of the St. James's Hall, another portion of that magnificent building resounded with the strains of "Hoop de doodum doo" and similar ele gant compositions of the same school. But, after all, " Hoop de doodum doo" has some sort of merit. Certainly it cannot be charged with that want of form which is the chief accusation brought against Schubert's recently-produced Symphony in C. The form " Hoop de doodum doe" is exceedingly simple, arid might at once be understood by those who find Schubert quite unintelligible. It com mences with a prelude for the banjo so/us; formed on the motive of the air itself. The theme —like the principal melody in the second move ment of the Symphony in C—is repeated over and over again, until at last we almost feel inclined to accuse the nigger composer Of riaucity of ideas. Suddenly, however, the singer begins. He utters words worthy of an original English opera, for they are utterly destitute of meaning. The same curious tune which we have already heard fifteen times on the banjo is heard fifteen times more from the lips and throat of the sable vocalist. The audience is delighted,and when the song is at an end the captivating air is heard once more on the banjo by way of finale. The executant is a true comic artist; of this there can be no doubt. It is as certain as that the succession of sounds which he pro, duces has no resemblance to music. Neverthe , less, the so-called " melodies" of the niggers are infinitely preferable to the vapid sentimentalities furnished to the Ethiopians by Yankee composers. There is something peculiar and characteristic about the yelping of a nigger with which any one may be amused for a short time; but feeble love songs, sung by black men, are uninteresting, and, if intended to be serious, laughable. The pro gramme of last night included all the best known pieces of the Christy Minstrel repertoire. The arrangements were admirable under the care of Mr. Mitchell's active superintendent, Mr. •Nimmo. LIEUTENANTS AND MASTERS IN THE NAVY.—A Lieutenant in the Royal Navy, in a letter to a contempo • rary, says—" According to your journal of the Bth, Sir Charles Napier is reported to have said that he trusted the house would do nothing more in the shape of retire ment for naval officers, as it had done enough already.' Sir Charles is in the receipt of £1,066 per annum in the shape of half-pay and good service pension, he can there fore conscientiously say that the country has done enough for him; So may the remaining flag •officers and captains say. But what is the position of the lieutenants ? The greatest prize those on the half-pay . list can possibly look for is that at the age of seventy-six they may obtain the sum of £156 per annum. Before the house does anything more in the shape of retirement for the flag and captains list, it will be well for them to see what ought to be done for the lieutenants and masters." It appears that the question of postal communi cation between the mother country and the Australian cblonies was discussed by the Legislative Council of New South Wales on. the 3d and 10th of February. Mr. Monte fiore, the active supporter of the Panama route, moved that the New South Wales Legislature should decline to enter tain any postal arrangement which did not include that line of communication as a part of the general scheme, and ex plained the reasons for expecting it to prove the quickest, while from Sydney, being the nearest port of arrival, it would be especially favourable to the interests of that place. In the course of the debate it was again elicited that Now South Wales would contribute largely to a second, or bi monthly mail via Panama, in addition to the contribution' she now gives of £50,000 yearly towards th e monthlym a via Suez ; and several speakers dwelt on th e f act of the line l via Suez having been rendered less adequate than ever for the requirements of New South Wales s i nce the alteration of the route by the substitution of Mauritius for so that the colony neither had that which they Ceylon would be the most speedy communication Great withcensul Bri tain,nor the rapid intercourse with India which had partly made for the want of it. Mr. Monteflore's motion, mo difiedy in form, was carried ; and the proceedings of the Home Government, not then known in Sydney, seem to promise the eventual realization, of the deaL -, ed Plan. THE EAST. ConstantinOple journals and letters to the 30th ult. have reached us. The creditors of the Civil List have given in their answer to the proposals which Riza, Pacha had submitted to them with reference to a settlement of their claims. These proposals embraced three categories of payment — namely, one by which the claims in question should be cut down at once to 70 per cent. of their nominal amount, of which 20 per cent. should now be paid in cash and the remaining 50 per cent. in a year ; a second, by which the sums due should submit to no present reduction, but be paid in five yearly in stalments without interest, and a third, that they be paid in ten yearly instalments, with 6 per cent. interest till finally liquidated. The dele- gates who attended for the various parties inte- rested demanded permission for each to make is own choice of the three _methods proposed; this was granted, and the interview ended by a large majority consenting to accept one or other of the forms of the Paella's offer. A minority declined to avail themselves of any of the three, but insisted on prompt and full satisfaction of their claims. On the occasion of the approaching de parture of Mr. Cumberbatch, her Majesty's Consul- General, who, it is believed, will not return to his post, but receive an appointment elsewhere, the English and lonian merchants of the place deter mined on presenting him with an address, expres sive of their high personal respect and esteem. The address terminates with the request that on his his arrival in London, Mr. Cumberbatch will sit for his portrait, to be placed in the new Consulate. A letter from Tokat,in Asia Minor, contains the following : " The American Missionary Establishment hero buildings having been consume property of a Turk, has met with a severe loss, tdhe by fire. mission buildings were originally the merchant, who sold them t Swiss Mission. by butrrhe They wereoccupied many years at ago the otitmh eeAmericano purchased.th accident)y three missionaries, the Rev. Messrs. Van Lennep, Winchester, and Pettibone, the two former with their families ; and a portion of the buildings was also used for a theological school, in which native Protestant young men were being educated for the holy office of the ministry. The fire originated in the basement storey of the main building, though by what means It is not known. There are strong sus picions that it was the work of an incendiary. Most, if not all, of the timbers in the lower part of the build ing were of pitch pine, so that the flames spread. with very great rapidity. Mr. Van Lennep, being at the time suffering from fever, was only able to escape, with his family, without saving an article of his things. His furniture, clothing, and library are all lost, as we infer from the information we have received, and some valuable manuscripts and drawings also, which can never be replaced. It is understood that most of the things belonging to Messrs. Winchester and Pettibone were saved." A Smyrna letter of the 25th says : " A few weeks ago, an Alsatia n ' co lporteur' landed in Smyrna with his wife and child, and. took up his lodging in the quarter inhabited by the Maltese. Early one morning, the body of this man was found in a blind alley of the Jewish quarter, in a sitting posture, the head nearly severed from the body, and the arms and. hands gashed in several places. A Greek butcher, who was seen running from the spot by some of the - Jewish women dwelling in the neighbourhood, has been denounced as the murderer by them, and he on his part charges them with the crime. On the person of the Greek was found a large knife, and certain blood stains, for which he accounts in a professional point of view ; he does not, how ever, account in as satisfactory a manner for the fact of his running away from the spot upon which the murder, if murder it be, was committed. On the other hand, the old story of the Jews employ ing human blood in their Easter ceremonies is renewed by all our gobe-mouches,' who do not understand that the myth is trumped up every year in the East for the purpose of extracting a round sum from the unfortunate Israelites. My own opinion of the whole affair is, that there has been no murder committed either by Jew or Greek, but that the Alsatian in a fit of despondency, to which he had by the statement of his wife given way for several preceding days, committed suicide. The antecedents of the Greek are most decidedly in his favour ; nothing in his previous conduct is known that lead one to infer him capable of such an atrocious deed, and it would be ridiculous to suppose that some half dozen Jewish women, never at the best very temperate characters, should at tack a lusty and strong man in open day for such a preposterous purpos e as t h e one assigned." A Berlin letter, in the German Journal of Frank fort, says :—" The Sardinian Cabinet has defini tively declined to accede to the demand of Austria relative to disarming, although England and Prussia declared themselves ready to guarantee Sardinia, in case she should disarm, against any attack on the part of Austria. No resolution has yet been come to on the proposition made to Austria and Sardinia to withdraw their troops from the frontiers. To arrive at an arrangement, it was lately proposed to evacuate the frontier districts for a less distance than the ten leagues at first pro posed ; but it is not known whether this proposi tion has been accepted. Generally speaking, serious doubt s are entertained of the success of the negotiations on the matter." .LITERATURE,.LITERATURE,I The Handbook of Dining ; or, How t o Di n e. Theoretically, Philosophically, and Hi s t or i c ally man and Co. considered. By L. F. Simpson, M.R.S.L. Long Man has long been distinguished as " a cooking animal," and there appears to be little chance of his especial characteristic being lost, if we may . judge by the important letters lately published in the Mies, written by suffering and sapient beings who bemoan th e m i sery of eternal " dim soup, boiled turbot, chickens and ham, roasted haunches, common-place blancmanges, and vulgar plum-pud dings. We confess that we have always held the " stomach" in great respect, and considered its de mands as being paramount, especially with the " superior set." Breeches pockets are buttoned up in the face of charity—electioneering interest doh' gedly withheld, and stern reserve kept sullenly 1 11 the ascendant, until steaming viands and flowing beakers have exerted their magic influence over tongues and hearts, and set the frozen rills of Inman feeling gushingly free. Sir loins, wild ducks, truffles, port, and diamond' studded champagne have wonderful effect in quickening benevolence, inspiring patriotism, and sharpening wit; but much as we know of thin mighty subject of "gastronomy," we scarcely imagined it to constitute such a deified and engrossing theme as it evidently does. Men seen to think more of their dinners than women of their dress; and it may be a question whether to disap' point a country gentleman of his grouse and claret , or a city alderman of his turtle and punch, would not insure a worse state of temper than the crush' ing of a young lady's best bonnet, or the non' fitting of a ball-dress. A " spread," a " tiffen," " supper," a " wincing," or any recherche meal of luxurious temptation has ever been found to carry great weight with " men," inclusive of Dr. Johnsoof who revelled in an unknown quantity of lobster' sauce poured over his rich plum-pudding ; and the great Napoleon, who fumed and stormed because he posed could of t h not b e e l s o e i r n v s e d o fwith his certain singing favourite book before us is chiefly based on the " Physiologic g d a u la G x o y iLt,' B ' of that particular star" i n t h e cu i si ne birds. sl' e T ° 11 1i1 ; rillatSavarin—and contains very little of fresh interest or information, with the exce ption_ of the declaration that it is a " great disaster" fer bodies to be thin, and accordingly we meet with th e following rules to be observed by the unhaPri feminines who are not beautifully round in form 4, E a t a quantity of fresh bread —the same day's bakia ---and do not throw away the crumb. ,g Before eight a.m., when in bed, take a basin of soul/ (potage au pain or aux pates), not too much, or, if you Pre ter it, a cup of good chocolate. " Breakfast at eleven. Fresh eggs, boiled or as poache a t pets pates, cutlets, or anyt hi ng else; but eggs are essent i • A cup of coffee will not hurt. " After breakfast, take a little exercise. Go shopping' or call on a friend, sit and chat, and walk home again. " At dinner, eat as much soup, meat, and fish as you lic e ) but do not omit to eat the rice with the fowl, macarowt sweet pastry, creams, &c. " At dessert, savoy biscuits, babas, and other farinaceou s preparations which contain eggs and sugar. " This diet may seem limited, but it is capable of gi variation, and comprises the whole animal kingdom. " Drink beer bypreference ; otherwise Bordeaux, or ivP' from the south of France. "Avoid acids ; except salad, which gladdens the beat, Eat sugar with y our f ru it, if i t admits of it. Do not ra, baths too cold ; breathe the fresh air of the country as ' 3l 7 ) t as you can ; eat plenty of grapes when in season ; do fatigue yourself by d anc i ng at a ball. "o to bed at eleven o'clock ; on extra nights be 11 1134 by one. ' If this system is boldly and exactly adhered to, failings of nature will soon be supplied ; health and bes" will be the result. v(0 14 "We fatten sheep, calves, oxen, poul c, era „ v . oysters, whence I deduct the general m axi m Pc e 7,ll thing that eats can be fattened, provided the food is " and suitably chosen.' " On the whole we cannot compliment the an•tr re of this bo o k on th e wor th of his p ro d uc ti on . 1 . 4 a is little o f or i g i na l ma tter in it t o en li g hten, t a much that is trifling and silly ; but perhaps it "": 0 concocted on the principle of Peter Pindar's viz" , ---merely to "sell." J