The Sun. — London, England, 1869-03-30 00:00:00

-OF TEE PUBLIC. JOURNALS. The Times asks what will the historian writing a genera- tion hence say of Lord Stanley's inaction ? The Opposition Avlicy must be sought for from three men. Mr. Disraeli 4 1 Tade4 the exigencies of the occasionwith paradoxes which 'relied nothing and conceal nothing. Mr. Hardy olamoronsly . contends for resistance till the end comes and he and his party sink overmastered. Lord Stanley is the third man of the Opposition, and from him we get— silence. England cannot afford to lose Lord Stanley, and the danger of becoming tied and bound in the chains of a hopeless position would seem to be never so great as now. There is no man in the House of Commons whose judgment is more sound, more honestly formed, more impartial—no man more free from the mists Ho f prejudice and the heat of passion. Lord Stanley's earlier career, however, was conspicuous by nothing so much as b? its evident proofs of political courage. One of his first acts in Parliament was to speak and vote for the total abolition of church rates when the maintenance of church rates was the distinctive feature of Conservatism. We shall not willingly believe that this courage has wholly dis appeared, although we are being reluctantly dragged to this conclusion. The vote of Wednesday morning was alaother circumstance binding Lord Stanley to an associa tion altogether unworthy of him ; and, unless the false act be quickly undone, it must leave him hopelessly enthralled. We deceive ourselves in thinking we may always regain our freedom at a wish after we have consented to years of bondage. Lord Stanley has but to look at the leader of ;the party among whom he is ranked to be convinced of Mat error. There he will see great genius doomed to ste rility, the most vivid powers of perception and intelligence resulting in inaction, a will all but indomitable curbed and powerless by a series of concessions to the temptations of circumstance. The Post observes that although we have no carnival in this country, we contrive to ammo ourselves after the fashion of Englishmen at Easter. It is in the eyes of fcreigners a curious fashion. We are, perhaps, slow at receiving ideas of pleasure, our laughter may be out of time, and the tendency of our excitement may be to bru tality. The truth is, however, that in the countries where holidays are enjoyed with temperate equanimity, and where there is none of the drunkenness and boisterous mirth through which they have come to ,he regarded almost as evils in this country, every Sunday is a holiday : and in that sense, and in that sense only, can the question of religion, which is commonly interpolated, be considered as not irrelevant. Since holidays are connec' ed with holy days, with the festivals of the Church and the events they commemorate, it is inferred that our dulneo s arises from living, as we are supposed to do, under the shade of an unsentimental reli gion ; and although the inference is far-fetched and absurd, it is indisputable that where the Church permits and the Government encourages recreation on the day of rest, public decorum is better respected. Whether the arrangement is moral in itself, or practically conducive to morality, is, however, by no means certain ; and indeed it would appear that the abatement of nuisances which, as it were, stare us out of ~countenance, contributes not a little to the mass of vice which is barely screened from observation, or thinly plated with gold. It is true, therefore, that if we look at our Easter holidays as they are kept by the working classes from a continental point of view, something may be dis cerned-which we would like to have changed altogether ; but it Isiah° true that if we want continental refinement, we must,adopt the manners and customs from which it is acquired, and give up feelings and convictions which are deep-rooted in the national heart, and which have formed and moulded our national character. The Herald is apprehensive that the proposed conces sions to the Waves of India in reference to the Civil Service will ga beyond the bounds of prudence. To aug ment the new appointments to an extent sufficient to give general content would be impossible, even though the entire service were placed at native disposal. And what would be the result of giving up the service to the natives in any considerable degree, say to the extent of enabling it to exercise any strong countervailing influence to our own ? Was the rule which we supplanted so much supe rior in justice, in humanity, in care for the political freedom, social advancement, and material progress of the peooe to that which we have substituted as to warrant recurrence to such a retrograde policy? Were the natives of_lndis as fit for the work of government as ourselves,we should certainly never have been able to monopolise it, and find ourselves in the position of considering how far they shall be admitted to a share in the administration of their own affairs. The Standard says the Beefsteak Club is gone ! It is to be formally dissolved this week. That pleasant little company, consisting of an exclusive twenty-four, is to melt away, and its goods and chattels—its furniture plate, oil portraits, and prints —are to be sold by public auction. How many will regret the end of a history once so triumphant ! We go back unavoidably to the past ; we see ancient figures ; we listen to uncommon gossip ; we live in a different life, and see persons as they are not seen now, in the old doings, habits, and rules of the Beefsteak Club, which used to meet so familiarly in a room at the back of the Lyceum Theatre. At present the club is merely a convenience. But we cannot part with our good old friend, the Beefsteak Club, without a reminiscence of it. A peer of the realm, calling upon a famous actor, found him, not rehearsing, but cooking on a gridiron, in the immortal Professor Wilson way, a dinner of beef. Forthwith, he said, let an association be founded to cultivate and perpetuate this neglected art. Of course the hint was taken. Fox, Sheridan, and Brougham sat down at that simple table with the Duke of Norfolk. However, it is vanishing ;it is being sold up ; and it will presently have no better claim to existence than the Reform League. For, in fact, that kind of life has long gone out from among us. The modern club is not what the former clubs used to be. It does not take up a man's life as they did ; it represents a totally different social aspect. Of course there are still " Bohemians" and " Scribblers," " Savages" and " Hooks and Eyes," but these are merely nominal. They willnever have their histories written ; and if they expire, as they do, for all the world knows to the contrary, every day, they will not deserve an epitaph such as may be written on the tombstone of the Beefsteak. POLITICAL POTATO-DIGGING, Among the stories current with reference to the last West Gloucestershire election, we have been told the fol lowing, which is perfectly authentic. A very active legal agent, on the Liberal side, started to bring a man to the poll. The agent found the elector, a poor man, in his garden. At the moment he was engaged in digging potatoes. " Come along," said the agent ;" we want you to vote for Kingscote and Marling." " Well," said the elector, " I must finish digging these potatoes first, and if you want me to go along, you had better help me." The agent was a man of all work, so, taking a spade, he very ably and adroitly assisted the voter in his work, taking some thing like from twenty minutes to half an hour to finish the job. " Now, come along," said the man of law chuckling over the delight with which he would tell of his achievement in the committee-room. "No," said the elector ; "I might better have left the potatoes in the ground than dig them up and leave them exposed ; you must help me to put them away." This was more than the agent bargained for ; but, having gone so far, he deter mined he would not lose his man for want of going a little further So he set bravely to work. At length this was completed, and the two started for the next polling-pl ace. " I feel uncommonly hot," said th e e l ector, as they pass e d a public-house. " After all this work, would you not like a little drop ?" " Oh, by all means," said the agent. "C ome in." So in they went, and had a good drink, for which the agent, of course, paid. "For whom did you say I w as to vote ?" "Of course for Kingscote and Marling," was the reply. " Well, I don't know that," said the other, to the utter discomfiture of the agent ; " I always have voted blue, and I feel as blue as ever ; but I'll think on it, and by the time we reach the booth I'll have made up my mind." The rest of the .walk . was spent by the man of law in urging the political pre-eminence of the Liberal side over the Conservative ; but all to no purpose, for when the . all-important question was asked of the elector by the deputy-sheriff, he gave the name of Colonel Somerset The agent was crestfallen ; all his glorious vision of triumph had departed in 'a moment ; the crowning narra tive which he meant to tell of how he dug and housed the potatoes, and made sure of his man, before an admiring committee, vanished ; but he bad taken too prominent a part in the affair not to be obliged to give an explanation, and thinking candour and frankness the best in the mat ter, he plainly told how he had been outwitted- by the "blue clodhopper," who made him dig and house pota toes, and find drink for two into the bargain, and all for nothing, or (as he considered) worse than nothing.—The Gardener's Magazine. Tl.e AlcAtelte.wr Exam'ncr says that no contain: - tion of the teported to k avo ecettrrtd last week has teen received from its accredited a Lit, t ;l3 district. From a careful examination of cettaiu detuments and envo lures which 1.1, , .v0 reached it, however, that ;carnal hal no uht that tlio reForts were tho results of a fooli,l and not very ereditaLl2 freak. —A mcssa,e from T ILE FLOODING OF THE OUSE. St Germaine says : "At four o n INTonday afternoon, in consequence of an unusually high tide, nearly fifty feet of the east bank of the river Ouse split and subsided into the river close to the sluice of the St. Peter's Drain, and abo u t half-a-mile from St. Germain's Church. Great fears are entertained that when it is high water, at eight this evening, the tide will come through . tke Preach all 4 fl oo d illo PAUPER NURSING. _ ~_. _. The gnsidians of the poor of St. Pancras having referred to the consideration of a committee the present system of nursing the out-door poor, the committee reported that, in their opinion, it is highly desirable that the out-door sick poor should be properly nursed by efficient persons, but they do not see how, having regard to the size and population of the parish and the large number of sick persons in the receipt of outdoor relief, it would be possible to provide a sufficient staff of nurses to attend the sick in their own houses. The committee are, however, informed that there are chari table institutions in the parish where in special cases of sickness ladies in connection with the charities under take the duty of nursing, and they recommend that appli cation be made to these institutions to know whether they will extend their operations to the parish sick, upon the guardians assisting the funds. The guardians have adouted the recommendation of the committee. ILLEGITIMACY IN SCOTLAND. ---e ------- The annual report of the Registrar-General on the births, deaths, and marriages registered in Scotland during 1868 (published yesterday) shews that of 115,673 births 11,266, or pi per cent. of the whole number were ille gitima'e. As usual the proportion of illegimate births was greatest in the rural districts, averaging 10'3 percent. while in the towns it was 9'3. The people in the north eastern division seem to have been the greatest offenders against the moral law, the proportion of illegitimate births there having averaged 15 . 2 per cent. At Wrigtown it reached 16 . 4, and at Banff 171 ; but Kirkcudbright has achieved the highest distinction in this respect, the figures being 17 - 3. The north-western and northern divi sions make a less discreditable appearance, the returns being respectively 6 . 1 and 6'3 per cent. Of the children born during the year, the proportion of the sexes was 1051 boys to 100 girls. THREATEiVIA G NOTICES. --60- 'reatening notices, which the local journals call "awful and impious," are being served on landlords and tenants in the county of Westmeath. The following are specimens : ADDRESSED TO A LANDLORD. "Notice.—March, 1869.—Sir, you have let to a heretic, or Protestant, a farm in this part of the country, but he shall never put his foot upon it, or he will never leave it alive. We will never allow a heretic to live amongst us. So if he puts his foot on these lands he will be shot dead. The ball is ready for him. This is r o idle threat, so help me God.—ONE OF THE Pat PLE..' ADDRESSED TO A TENANT FARMER. " Notice.—March, 1869.—Sir,—Take notice you mint give up the lands belonging to . If you do not you may prepare your coffin, for you shall be shot before the end of this month (Morel). The bullet is pre pared for you. Therefore prepare for ETERNITY, as nothing, not even GOD IN HEAVEN, CAN SAVE YOII. The land belongs to the people now. Give it up and save your life—ONE OF THE PEOPLE." EXECUTION AT MANCHESTER. Easter this year with all its merriment and jollity does not pass off without its tragedy. On Monday 'morning, Michael Jackson, aged 24, was hanged by the neck until dead within the walls of the Manchester Gaol. The unfortunate wretch having had a public house dispute with a man named Kurney, had allowed his angry passions to get the better of him, and stabbed Patrick Kurney so severely that he soon afterwards died. For this he was sentenced to be executed, the jury recom mending him to mercy. Every attempt was made to procure a reprieve, but without success. Neither jury recommendations nor local petitions were listened to, and on Monday the law took its course. The execution was private, the first of the kind which has taken place at Manchester. Six reporters only were present, besides the regular officials. Calcraft was the executioner. The culprit was penitent and resigned. He was attended to the drop by the Roman Catholic chaplain of the gaol, the Rev. Mr. Clarkson. He struggled power fully for some time after the drop had fallen, but was soon quiescent. His body was cut down and buried in the usual way. The prison philanthropist, Mr. Thomas Wright, on Sunday had an interview with the then condemned, now deceased, murderer. THE NORWICH WIFE MURDER, The trial of William Sheward, charged on nis own con fession with the murder of his wife, at Norwich, in June 1851, commenced on M, nday before. Mr. Baron Pigott. Mr. O'Malley, Q.C., opened the case for the prosecution at great length, calling attention to the inexplicable disap pearance of the prisoner's wife, the prisoner's own con fession, and the other strange circumstances of the case. A great deal of evidence was given for the prosecution, beginn . ng with that of Davis, the police-inspector in London, ti whom Sheward ir ale his confession last January. The labourers and others who found pieces of a human body at Norwich in 1851, were then questioned, and Mr. Nicholls and Mr. Dalrymple, the surgeons, who examined the fragments, gave ther evidence. It will be remembered that the remains were said to belong to a much younger woman than the prisoner's wife, who was 54 at the time of her disapearance; but the medical evidence on Monday, stated that the woman whose remains were found, might have been 54. The evidence for the prosecution was not concluded when the court rose. Every place was occupied, and the prisoner, who has been very ill, remained seated during the day. THE COLLIERY INUNDATION.-THAK WS• GIVLVG SERVICE. , The twelve miners who were rescued a week ago from their terrible imi riscnm nt in Lock's Lane Pit, were so far improved in health on Sunday as to be able to attend Divine service at Brierley Hill parish church. The build ing was crowded with people. We noticed with regret that many of these men, whose praise has been sounded throughout the laud, were suffered to remain standing during the greater part of the service. Prayers were read by the Rev. Mr. Sillitoe, curate, and appropriate allusions to the occasion were solemnly de livered and reverently listened to. This was the case to a marked degree when the reader arrived at the thanksgiving prayer. Before this was given the whole of the rescued miners were announced to be desirous of returning thanks to Almighty God for their late deliverance, and all the congregation were requested to join in repeating the prayer, and after going through this and the remaining portion of the Church service in an earnest and impressive manner, a special sermon was preached by the Rev. Josiah Stone, vicar. He selected for his text the 40th verse of the 12th chapter of Matthew—" For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly, so shall the Son of Man be three clays and three nights in the heart of the earth." In the course of a very appropriate and affecting discourse, the rev, gentleman referred to the recent miraculous deliverance from the Lock's Lane Pit, which he said might be regarded almost as of the nature of a resurrection. In a very earnest peroration, the rescued men and boys were called upon to acknowlege their obligations to God, and to devote the lives which had been spared to His service.—Birmingham Gazette. A sad accident occurred at the New Palace Cub house, in King-street, St. James's on Monday. Some workmen engaged in repair:ng the house rested their ladder on a bale ny ova w.y beneath it, and ladaer and workmen fell to the ground. One man was seriously in jured, and is in St. George's Hospital. The rest were able to Le Sent ho:ce. ANBY NKE A —CTAlOtNtheqeeAds Assizes Tit the SOClETYBarnsiey OperativeAasims y Brickmakers' Society sued t h e Barnsley g C BARS. pa,ny for £B7ls. upon a d epos i t note to g orn. this effect : " Barnsley, 24th June, 1868. Received from the Barns ley Operative Brickmakers' Society £B7 ls. lid., for which we are accountable." The sum originally deposited was £lO7 I.s. Rd., and then notice was given to the bank not to pay to anyone. There had been a quarrel among the members, and after the quarrel the society applied for the balance, but the bank refused to pay it unless the original depositors, some of whom had seceded from the society, came all together for it. Three of those parties, named C ave, Thompson, and Bake, insisted upon it that the bank should not pay. The plaintiffs' case depended upon the fact that all the nineteen members of the society as at present existing were the plaintiffs, but the defendants had in court three of the original depositors, who protested against payment to the plaintiffs. Mr. Seymour argued that the accountability was to the society, and that the three dissentients to the payment were no longer mem bers, and had no locus Clan*. The judge said it was a pity that the depositors bad not appointed two or three trustees, and agreed that the money should be paid to them ; but now he was very much afraid the only persons who could legally sue were the members of the body at the time the contract was made, and the money ieposited. The society was not a corporation, although they called themselves by a particular name, and the money was deposited by particular parties.—Mr. °venni] [defendant's counsel): We have offered if they will appoint new trustees to pay to those trustees.—The Judge : I think the bank should pay, and the plaintiffs give an nderunity.—The judge directed a nonsuitovitfi libeit i tto kfUgiatialagkay THE SUN, LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, MARCH 30, 1869. 211 E ROUTES 70 CHINA. (From the Anglo-American Times.) The article in the Economist of last Saturday on this subject would have been good had it only been all true. Were it not for a little mistake of over ten days in the time of the Peninsular and Oriental Company from Southampton to Hongkong the argument would have been perfect, but it is as tonishing how so trifling an error vitiates all ; for the heading of the table, " via Marseilles and Bom bay," is a mere imaginary road. The question is whether on the opening of the Pacific Railroad the transit from Europe to Eastern China, Australia, and New Zealand, will not pass over that route, changing the direction from east to west. The Economist thinks not, because the time is not short ened, atleast notfurther than this, that the San Fran cisco boats and the Peninsular and Oriental Co.'s boats, whose passengers left England together, would arrive at Shanghai about the same time. Were this true, the Economist would have made a strong point, although we are prepared even then to show cause, as in former articles , why the route through the United States should still be preferred. But the Economist has made an extraordinary mis take for a journal devoted to the facts and figures of commerce. According to it the time by the Peninsular and Oriental Company's steamer is 39 .days to Hongkong, but the time from South ampton to Victoria, that is from port to port, the only fair mode of reckoning is given in the time table of the company itself at 50 days. The steamer which leaves Southampton at 2 p.m. Jan. 4 is due at Hongkong on the 25th February ; that leaving on the 4th Feb., is due on the 26th March ; the 4th March one should arrive on the 25th April, and so on. The steamers which start on the 20th Jan. ought to get to Hong Kong on the 11th March. From this time six days may be deducted for the passenger route, allowing carpet bags only via Marseilles making the run for the mails at the quickest 44 days ; but we maintain the calculation ought only to be made on the through route for valuable cargo and for the mass of passengers, or, as we before observed, from the En glish port to the Colonial port. The Economist rightly estimates the time to Yokohama across North Ame rica at 38 days and between that city and Hong kong the boats of both companies intermingle on waters common to each ; we may, therefore, take the passages between Yokohama and Hong Kong as the same. The question then is decided by the time each takes to reach its first port iu Chinese waters. If the American steamer takes 38 days to land the passenger from London in Yokohama, and the Peninsular and Oriental Company can land its passengers in 39 at Hong Kong, it follows that they t o Japan p , a a ' i n ll and d el t l h e e r s m ho e u et id ab g o o u b t y m th id e w A a m y traveller to Hong Kong by the Mediterranean and American r ihceanne hence the the Red Seas. This is substantially the conclusion arrived at by the Economist, and it would be fair if its statements were correct. But supposing that by the most hurried carpet-bag line the time to Hong Kong is 44 days, and to Shanghai 48 by the Pen insular and Oriental Company, while to Shanghai it is 43 by the American line, it follows that the travel ler from London to Shanghai gains by the Eastern road five days iu time over the Marseilles route, and eleven over that by Southampton. If this be true, and the figures are taken from the Time-Table of the Pepin sular and Orient Company, and from the Eco nomist, as regards the Western real, then the great commercial organ is altogether wrong, and ought to write another article to correct the erroneous impression it has created. Even the Daily News gladly picks up whatever tends to take the crow out of these Yankees; but neither the one nor the other paper would wish to disseminate any thing not strictly true. We admit that the pasen ger via Marseilles will be able to reach Hong Kong quicker in a Peninsular and Oriental Company's boat than if he put himself into a North German Lloyd or Hamburgh and American steamer at South ampton. But, when the through route is complete— as it will be thissumtner—the American s eatner from Southampton will probably land him in Hong Kong before the Peninsular and Oriental Co.'s steamer sail ing on the same day from that port. This, as a matter of speed, would give the traffic of Chinafrom Shang hai as well us of all Japan to the American highway, and enable it to compete with the Peninsular and oriental company for the ports south of Shanghai. The Economist consi.Jers that the time on the old road is more capable of being accelerated than on the new ; that it has the advantage of more fre quent coaling stations, reducing the bulk of fuel relaired for the Atlantic and Pacific steamers. We grant this; but experience has shown that for safety, comfort, and economy there is nothing like big ocean fleets. They may not answer for the navigation of narrow straits and the frequent calls in shallow harbours, but we consider that the open sea and the large boat more than compensate for numer ous coaling stations. There are two main advantages connected with the American road which the Econo mist bat lightly touches on . From London to Shanghai, through the United States, the latitude of the Medi terranean is maintained after New York is reached. Those who have endured the stifling heat of the Red Sea, and know the discomforts arising from cli mate between Suez and Hong Kong, can appreciate the value of maintaining some euch latitude as the 40th parallel. The passenger who steps from the steamer at Alexandria into that at Suez walks from the comforts of civilization into the discom forts of barbarism ; but there is no such change along the American road. It is difficult to decide whether the New York boats or the San Francisco boats are best found, and the through cars of the union Pacific Railway will be moving hotels, wherein the passenger will live as luxuriously is he would in a steamer, only that he passes over land instead of over water. The other relates to the transfer of baggage and cargo. The Pacific Mail vessels take in their cargo a t H ong Kong, at Shanghai, and Yokoha ma , transferring it into the cars of the Pacific Railroad at a pier of San Francisco, and from a pier of New York into the English steamers, will be the only other transship ment. What may be the Peninsular and Oriental Company's changes from Yokohama t o H ong Kong we do not know ; but the steamer from Hong Kong is bound to Bombay, and transfers its China cargo to the mail packet for Suez in the open harbour of Galle. At Suez it in thrown into a small tender, and carried miles to the wharf, and again in Alex andria the steamer being anchored in a bay instead of lying in a dock. Putting aside all other routes discussed by the Economist but that across the con tinent to San Francisco, for none of them threaten a revolution but that, and putting aside also the imaginary route via Bombay, our table from port to port is this : By P. Sr O. Co. By P. M. Days. Days. Southampton to Hong Kong 5O ... 47 71 Shanghai Yokohama 59 ... 38 The passenger by Marseilles can deduct six days from the Peninsular and Oriental Co.'s time, and wehave reason to believe that this table then substantially shows the comparative time. Surely the Economist does not suppose that a traveller would land in Bombay, and proceed via Allahabad to Calcuttta by way of reaching China, except a tourist on a journey of amusement. For eight months the beat of the line is frightful ; the expense would be over whehning ; the discomfort intense ; and what the time would be we cannot tell, as we never heard of any one who went such a journey. LONDON COFFEE AND EATING-HOUSE KEEPERS' BENETOLENT AssociATlON.—Thomas Scambler Owden, Esq., Alderman for Bishopsgate Wurd, has kindly con sented to preside at their anniversary dinner, on Tuesday, April 27th, at the London Tavern. William Ropes, a venerable Boston merchant., has just died in that city at the age of 84 years. His was among the oldest and most noted firms in the Russian trade, and on his first establishment of that connection in five •:n St. P e tersburg 1.832,_ he re sided ab:oto t en and five in London. At that time to supply the want of religions advantages in St. Petersburg ho hired- a hull where every Sunday he wad sermons, off,red prayer, and san g; and the American and nearly all the English resi dents attended. Though a supporter of Orthodox Con gregationalism in Boston, in his latter years he was a corn =w• tof the Episcopal Church. ean I)UNVILLE and Co., Belfast, are the largest holders of Whisky in the world. Their Old Irish Whisky is re commended by the medical profession in preference to French Brandy. Supplied in casks and cases for home use or exports tion. Quotations on application to Messrs. Dunville and Co., Belfast; or 4, Beaufort-builiiings Strand, Loudon; DUELLING IN ITALY. (FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.) FLORENCE, MARCH 23. The parliamentary sitting of Thursday last was looked forward to with considerable interest in consequence of the feeling lately aroused by the three fatal duels which have taken place at Bologna, Turin, and Faenza. An interpel lation on the subject had been announced by General Bixio, and an additional piquancy was imparted to the incident by the fact that the offi cer i n ques ti on i s hi mse lf celebrated for the number of hostile meetings in which he has been engaged as principal. It must be admitted that the gallant officer, not usually remarkable for moderation, tact, or prudence, acquitted himself of his delicate task with no little credit to his moral courage and good feeling, and came out of the discussion with flying colours in com parison with his adversary, the Minister of Grace and Justice. He stigmatised the practice of duelling as worthy only of a barbarous state of society, and condemned the uniform neglect of the Italian authorities to apply to it the penalties prescribed by the existing laws. The Minister's reply was somewhat evasive, and General Bixio declared himself dissatisfied with it ; upon which the former, piqued into a certain amount of personality, expressed his regret that his opponent should speak of him as approving, in any sense, of the practice, remarking that he had never fought a duel in his life, and was not certain that other members could say the same. The General seized this opportunity of making his recantation, acknowledging that he had, unfortunately, been engaged in many affairs of the kind, and adding, " I confess frankly that I did wrong." The subject has been post poned until the counter proposal of Deputy Macchi—to repeal all penalties against duelling—shall come on the tapirs. The fact is, that although the existing laws are not severe, and prescribe nothing heavier than imprison ment for homicide in a duel, the magistrates cannot be got to enforce them, and the only effectual remedies are to be sought in the action on public opinion of an enlightened journalism, so as to invest the practice with the ridicule which now, happily, attaches to it in England, and, per haps, in the institution of some kind of tribunal of honour, such as exists in Prussia. This tribunal, however, unfor tunately serves rather to decide whether a duel is abso lutely inevitable than as a court of final resort. With regard to the proposed financial scheme, the pro visions indicated in my last letter are gaining confirmation daily ; and I am in a position almost positively to assert that a general domestic loan does not enter into the com binations which Count Cambray Digny has at present in view. M. Joubert and others, the representatives of the new negotiators, are now here, and it is in this direction that we must look for the proposed solution of the diffi culty, which is, indeed, a serious one, and takes the Government and the nation, as the French would say, " by the throat." The Estimates remaining unpassed are those of Public Works, Public Instruction, Foreign Affairs, and the Department of Finance. The Army and Navy Estimates have passed. In the former case there is an increase over last year of between one and two millions, in spite of many economies. This is chiefly attributable to the introduction of breechloading arms, and an augmentation in the pay of officers. Three millions in excess of the Government estimate for the navy were proposed by the parliamentary commission, but, in consideration of the increased army expenditure and the 4iniversal cry for economy, part only was carried. The present naval force of Italy consists of 22 armour plated vessels, 22 screws, 22 paddle steamers, and 6 sailing vessels of war of all classes. The contract which existed between the municipality of Florence and Messrs. Laidlaw and Co., of Glasgow, for bringing into the town the water of the river Sieve, has just been cancelled by mutual agreement, and the lawsuit which had been commenced between the parties is thus disposed of. Whether or no it he true, as the munici pality allege, that Messrs. Laidlaw's pretensions were exorbitant, is a matter of comparative indifference to the Florentine householder. Not so the loss of the Sieve water. That which we now drink is execrable when not filtered, and good bye to the peace of mind of him who reads or listens to what the learned have to say about its composi tion. All the wells, especially in the new and fashionable quarter near the Lung Arno, receive infiltrations from the river, and, independently of any other substances in solution, there is an immense deposit of lime, which must in the long run be prejudicial to health. Optimists, how ever, say that it is all a matter of fashion, and that their forefathers have drank whatever there is that is unwhole some, and have, nevertheless, been a long-lived race. MISCELLANEOUS NEWS. now to be found in the Irish Chancery Records. Even supposing the list to be authentic, however, Dr. Brady contends that it would supply no - proof that all the peers who were present in the 1560 Par liament voted for the Reformation. If all the nobles voted for it, why, he asks, was that Parliament broken up ? The Loftus MS. says that Parliament was dissolved on the Ist of February "by reason of aversion to the Protestant religion and their ecclesi astical government." THE VOLUNTEERS. Apropos to the Volunteer Review at Dover, Lord Ranelagh writes a letter to the papers, repeating his memorable assertion that the volunteers are a sham. Partly by his exertions (he points out) a force has been raised in this country, "formed out of the t~eNb aunt mum, patriotic or her sons, - which force wants nothing but organisation to turn it into an efficient auxiliary army. But this very organisation it lacks, and it is, therefore, a failure for all prac tical purposes. But what organisation shall be given to the volunteers ? Lord Ranelagh would think the application of the present army system to them as making matters rather worse than better. The regular army, no less than the volunteers, is most unsatisfactorily provided with stores. The Crimean War shelved nothing so strongly as the facility which existed under the present system for a breakdown in the commissariat department. So that if we are to change our volunteer system, or want of system, we must do the same for the army. Lord Ranelagh denounces the army reform of the present Government. He declares that the volunteers want " organised trained command," which, from what we can gather from the letter, means officers taught in the regular army. " The short-sighted policy of what is called army reform has recently, by its ill considered retrenchments, in effect so reduced the esta blishment that barely sufficient officers are left for the command and direction of the regular army. In war efficiency there would be at least none left for either the militia or volunteers. I calculate that from 1,500 to 2,000 officers would be required for a work ing staff for the volunteers alone. It is in time of peace that men should be trained for the art of war, and this applies as much to commanders and their staff as those commanded." For the settlement of the whole matter Lord Ranelagh pleads for a com mittee, undertaking to Prove before it that the volunteer corps may be turned into an efficient army without any additional outlay in the matter of com mand or staff. THE OPPOSITION A2s - D THE BILL. Easter brings no cessation of political rumours. What will the Lords do With the Bill ? is still as much as ever the one subject of discussion. The London correspondent of the Manchester Guardian says that the honester and stuyider section of the Conservative party (which is by far the more nume rous section) are furious at Mr. Disraeli's cynicism and Lord Stanley's silence. They are still resolved to fight, and have committed their cause to Mr. Hardy in the Lower house and the Duke of Marlborough in the Upper. The Duke has on this account put off a visit to the Continent, just as Lord George Bentinclt postponed his attendance at r iblewmarket twenty years ago. If Mr. Disraeli and .cord Stanley d o no t join in this movement they will jeopardise their position materially. It is well known that they ardently desire the bill to pass, because so long as the question is kept open the Liberal party must be in the ascendant, but they cannot well avow this motive. The Bishop of Oxford is believed to be averse from a too prolonged defence of the Irish Church, lest it should lead to an attack upon the English. Ile is, moreover, very sore against Mr. Disraeli for throwing him over last year, and preferring the mediocre Bishop Jackson to himself. Bishop Wilberforce's influence at Blenheim is very great, and it is therefore possible that the Duke of Marlborough may be deterred from carrying resistance to an extremity. Moreover, it is believed that no one save the . Earl of Derby could ever induce the peers to throw out the bill ; and Mr. Disraeli's speech (which was, of course, made after due consultation with the ex-Premier), indicates that even the political Rupert shrinks from such a. desperate conflict as that. Of course much will depend upon circumstances ; and should the com mittee upon the bill reveal any disaffection and cliques among the Ministerialists, the peers will treat the bill in a way that they would not have ventured upon had it come up to them with the united support of the Liberal party. The Conservative papers announce a " great demonstration " in London against Mr. Gladstone's measure, which is to take place on April 27, in St. James's Hall. As the arrangements are said to be not yet made, the announcement would seem to be somewhat premature. It is rash to prophesy a " great meetinc , before it is decided who is to speak. The only thing known is that the Earl of Harrowby is to preside. His lordship is a highly respectable nobleman, but his eloquence is not of a character to attract overflowing audiences. A QUESTION FOR ANTIQUARIANS. The queation as to whether any of the Irish spiritual peers assented to the Royal Supremacy Acts is being debated between Mr. Charley, M.P., and Dr. Maziere Brady. Mr. charley wrote to the Times a few days since respectin g a passage in his speech on the Irish Church Bill, and cited a list of the spiritual peers who assented in Parliament to the Irish Royal Supremacy and Uniformity Act of 1500. Dr. Brady writes in answer to this, that no such list is known to exist, but that the list Mr. Charley quotes was for some time regarded as a list of the Peers and Commoners in the first Parliament of Elizabeth. Its spurious nature has, he Duna ,fully_proved,_ .ansi—tha. uctt LORD STANLEY. Lord Stanley is paying a visit to Scotland this week. He was last autumn elected Lord Rector of Glasgow University, and is now about to be installed and to deliver a rectorial address. Afterwards he is to be entertained at a banquet ; but as the Conser vative party is very small in Glasgow (it mustered 7,000 votes fewer than the third Liberal candidate at the general election, in spite of the min or it y clause) it has been wisely determined that the ban quet shall not have a political character. This deci sion will, moreover, spare Lord Stanley the unplea santness of having to speak on the Irish Church question, a matter on which he has nothing to say that would please his party. A HINT FOR " DOD." " Dod" still describes Mr. Gladstone as a." Liberal- Conservative." At first sight this would seem to be an error, arising from carelessness in neglecting to make an alteration which events require. l3tit we notice that Mr. Gladstone's son, who did not enter the House until long after his father became a pronounced Liberal, also calls himself by the same colourless, meaningless title. Moreover, Mr. Gladstone still gives his clu b address as the Carlton. This reminds us of an incident which happened when he joined the Aberdeen Administration. Being one day at the great. Tory Club, an impertinent young man asked him " When are you going to take your name off the Carlton ?" To which Mr. Glad stone replied, with ready severity, " when my Lord Derby takes hie name off Brooke's." However, the answer has proved not quite accurate. Lord Derby has ceased to be a member of the Whig club, Mr. Gladstone remains a member of the Tory. EASTER SERVICES IN THE LONDON CHURCHES. The London . churches were thronged on Easter Day. At those churches where • the ritual is more elaborate, large numbers of persons were unable to obtain admission. In some there were no fewer than five celebrations of the Holy Communion, beginning at 5 a.m. The earlier celebrations which were all " plain," that is, without music, :lid of the most simple ritual, were attended by the largest number of communicants. At St. Alb., i Holborn, the bell tolled sixty-eight times after tue consecration prayer, for some reason as yet unex plained. At some of the churches noted for pulpit eloquence there were sermons by the chief preachers of the day. Dean Stanley preached twice at the Abbey. Mr. Liddon wound up this season's special services under the dome of St. Paul's. These will now be succeeded by the services in the Abbey. Mr. Liddon's sermon lasted an hour and a half, just twice as long as it ought to have been. It is much to be lamented that this great preacher should be more and more falling into the error of delivering these gigantic discourses exhausting alike to him and his hearers. At All Saints', Lambeth, the Rev. F. G. Lee ignored the recent judgment, and in defiance of the law and of the understanding with his diocesan, had a most elaborate ceremonial, in which incense and lights were used the elements were elevated, and the celebrant prostrated himself. At St. Mary's, Moorfields, A rchbish op Ma nning preach ed, and speak ing of the Real Presence, said there was no need for him to argue-upon it, for there were persons outside the) Church who believed it as much as he or his hearers could do. He added, " These persons robed themselves in the vestments which the priests of the Church are robed in when they approach Him ; they sang the same hymns as those used in the Catholic Church; they offered Him fragrance and all the homage of their hearts ; but still they had Him not. He (the Archbishop) loved these Deonle ror the love they had for the shadow of our Lord. He would do anything to reconcile them,. but would not depart from the truth to meet their views." DR. CU3IMING ON EARTHQUAKES. Dr. Cumming, who may be described as the pulpit Braddon, has been commemorating the most joyful i festival of the Church year by a sermon on Earthquakes, calculated to send nervous " females" into hysterics. He referred to the feeble and scarcely perceptible shock of earthquake in Lancashire as proof of an approaching " tremendous change," and said that the daily papers were " the most splendid commentary on the Book of Revelations." The sensationalist divine further remarked that even journalists said the present state of things could not continue much longer. As to "the present state of things," there never was a time when politics were so little convul • sive as they are now. Thirty years ago the Luxem burg question, the Turco-Greek question, the Franco-Belgian question, and the Spanish Revolution would every one of them have led to a war. All these are events of the last twelve months, and yet, though there are large armies in existence, trey don't fight, but the " unestions" are solved over a. grppu-baize table. As to the earthquakes, Dr. Cumming will find, if lie refers to any book of reference like Haydn's " Dictionary of Dates," that for more than 2,000 years earthquakes have been shaking the world, and that even the great catastrophe in... South. America last year has bird many a parallel, ES in Syria, A. D. 742, when 500 towns were destroyed, and the loss of life surpassed all calculation ; as in Catania, 1137, when 15,000 persons perished ; in Cilicia, 1208, when 60,000 persons were swallowed up ; in Naplas, 1456, :when 40,000, and in Lisbon, 1531, when 80,000 persons suffered a like fate. Even these were surpassed more recently. In 1667 there was a succession of earthquakes at Schmaki, which lasted three months, and engulfed 80,000 persons ; in 1693 more than 100,000 persons were destroyed in Catania and Sicily. Then came the turn of Asia. In 1703 Jeddo, in Japan, was destroyed, and with it 200,000 persons ; in 1731, 100,000 were swallowed at Pekin. In fact, the eighteenth century was one long succession of these calamities. They extended through Southern Europe, North Africa, the whole of Asia, and the West Indies, and from September 1693 to February 1797 about 640,000 persons are known to have perished, besides the " thousands " and the "many thousands " who are spoken of and not enume rated. Probably not fewer than three-quarters of a million of persons were thus destroyed. Again in the seventy-four years from 1783 to 1857 the kingdom of Naples lost 111,000 inhabitants out of a population of 6,000,000. And yet, because a few houses are shaken in Lancashire, Dr. Cumming must frighten his hysterical hearers into fits. But then some persons like to be frightened. It is a kind of mental dram-drinking with which they can not dispense. It is worth noting that earthquakes in England are by no means the novelty which some persons sup pose. Lincoln was severely visited in 1142 ; in 1274 Glastonbury was destroyed; in 1580 part. of St. Paul's Cathedral and of the Temple Church fell; there: was a smart shock in London in 1750 ; and there were shocks in various parts of England in 1852, 1860, and 1863. THE SATTnIN CASI. Miss Saurin is not alto,. otter satisfied with the verdict she obtained in het- ...tons suit against the authorities of the Bull Convent. She wants more than the Court• of Queen's Bench would give her. According to •the Daily News, Miss Saurin has filed a bill in Chancery against the whole of the nuns in the Hull Convent, with the view of compelling a distributibn of its property. It is very likely that the sum which, under an equal distribution of that property, would fall to Miss Saurin's share, would exceed the amount. £3OO, which she paid into the Dublin Convent when she was professed, and the return of which was awarded to her by the recent verdict. The Daily _Yews, with questionable discretion, recommends that the con vent should immediately pay over to Miss Saurin the largest amount which she could receive on any pos sible division of the estate. But is the Court of Chancery so very sure to give its decision for Miss Saurin P The other decision has yet to come under the review of the full court at Westminster. THE RIGHTS OF PEDESTRIANS. The Times has been conducting a discussion within the '.ast few days on the perils of London streets. One of its correspondents raises, and settles to his own satisfaction, an interesting question. It is a theory that the pavement in towns belongs to the pedestrian, the road to the cabman or carman. Is this so P The correspondent says No. "No matter whether a pedestrian be old or young, rich or i poor, the road is as much his as the pavement s ; And whether he be a reckless old gentleman slowly irossing the former, or a more provoking young errand-boy dodging under the noses of horses, the driver is bound to pull up and use his utmost endea vours to prevent injury to his fellow creature, regard less of every other consideration." Generally in crossing a street it is the walker who defers to the driver. But according to this theory the position should be reversed. Apropos to the subject of pedes trians' rights, we may mention that a London vestry has determined to put a stop to the increasing prac tice of turning the pavement into advertising boards. PLATING WITH FIREARMS. Itis the height of bliss with youth to do something dangerous—to go within an inch of an accident and to escape it after all. Nothing is more charming to the typically venturesome boy than to be allowed to play with a gun. Perhaps hunting is enjoyed partly for the same reason. But the danger is _ not always avoided. Three baronets, we were lately reminded, have recently fallen in the hunting field. Three accidents have occurred within the last few clays fooin carelessness in handling guns. There is one case which occurred at Exeter. An apprentice, trying to rid his master's gun of a piece at ramrod.. fired_ it _._ into__.t l W street ; the contents of the barrel - entered the brain of a passing labourer, killing him instantly. At Doncaster, a boy of 14, after several hours' enjoyment with a gun out of doors, returned home, began 'oad ing it in the kitchen, when it suddenly went off, and so injured a servant girl that she is not likely to recover. And at North Shields, a schoolmaster, whose goods were under distraint for rent, and whose house was besieged by bailiffs and a large crowd, fired his gun out of his bedroom at random to frighten the people away, and shot a youth, 17 years of age, who was in the crowd. He also is unlikely to recover. A GALLANT POLICEMAN. The general idea of a policeman is in some way associated with slinking round corners and avoid ance of crowds. But now and again one comes across some gallant deed performed by members of .the force. One such has just been performed at Liverpool. Seeing a bundle thrown over a wall, Police-constable James thought something was the matter, and waited. In a minute or two a man leaped over the wall. 'He was immediately seized by James, who proceeded to take his prisoner in the direction of the bridewell. He had gone only a few yards when the ruffian took a large iron "jemmy " from his pocket, and dealt the officer a tremendous blow with it over the right eye. The blow was so violent that the officer was stunned for a second or two. He, however, still retained his hold of the man, and closed with him. The fellow, however, had at first the advantage, for, taking a short h o ld o f th e " j emm y "— a formi dab eiron weapon, about 2ft. in length and about 4Th. in weight—he continued to strike a succession of heavy blows. James drew his staff, and a terrible struggle ensued. The officer dealt several heavy blows on his adversary's head, arms, and body with his truncheon, and the thief returned the blows with his " jemmy." The noise aroused several people in the neighbourhood, but they were afraid to interfere. But James held on and fought bravely u n til he became nearly inseusible, when, happily, help arrived in the shape of an inspector. We commend the casa to those who have to administer patronage. THE TREASURES OF THE DEEP. A curious story is told of the wreck of 1131.5. Entine, which foundered off the sand banks on the coast of llolland in 1799, with an immense amount of specie on board. She had £1,500,000 of subsidiary money for the English troops then serving under the Prince of • Holland. She had also on board assign ments of specie for merchants and bankers at Hamburg, and the Crown jewels of Holland, which had been reset in this country. The Lutine encountered a fearful storm, and foundered, with the loss of all hands. One man was picked up but sur vived only a few hours. The Dutch Government offered £B,OOO for the recovery of the jewels, and a company was formed in England to search for the treasure which had been hidden by the shifting sand. They soon recovered about £lOO,OOO, of which the Dutch Government claimed £BO,OOO as royalty. Subsequently the sand . buried the wreck and stopped operations. Since then other companies have been formed, but have successively failed, though ROO,OOO more was recovered at intervals. The bulk of the treasure still remains in the keel of the ship, which lies embedded in sand. It Is proposed to endeavour to regain it, and Lloyd's, it is said, intend to apply to Parliament for necessary powers. The Dutch Government have resigned all claim to the wreck, and it is thought the best plan will be to construct large iron caissons, such as were used for constructing the piers of Blackfriars Bridge, and sink them into the sands. It is thought that operations will be commenced next summer. GUTTER CHILDREN. Miss Rye writes to the Times on the subject of the emigration of our street children to Canada and the Western States of America. Last year she visited America, and was able to judge of the success of Mr. Meter's scheme on behalf of the city Arabs of New York. The idea has crossed her mind that the same thing might be attempted for the " gutter children "of our great cities. Miss Rye asks if there is anything she introduces them to in America which► can be worse than that to which they are doomed if left where they are now ? Fully convinced of the Lnportance of the mission, she is prepared to start with a party of children for the West about August. The matter was pressed upon her attention by both press and -people in America, and they declared that they wanted the raw material from which our criminals and Mag dalena were manufactured. As there are more resources for the boys, and more means of occupa tion, Miss Rye proposes to take only female children from 5 to 10 years of age, and these will consist of orphans, deserted children, and foundlings. A thou sand pounds will be required to start this work properly, and she commends it to the notice of the public, from whom she ventures to ask for help FOREIGN NOTES FRANCE AND BELGIUM. Pending the solution of the railway difficulty between Belgium and France, the official papers of both countries exhibit great uneasi...a na to ago pro.pecb of a. satisfactory agreement. The Belgian papers are almost unanimous in stating that the Cabinet of Brussels will not allow its deci sion to annul the contract between the Great Luxemburg and the French East Companies to be subjected to any examination or discussion, and that the subject is not even to be broached. If the French Government harbour any idea of over-riding the law of Belgium, it will be disap• pointed. This is very plain writing. On the other side, the Patrie, a Paris semi-official paper, gloomily states that the views of the two. Governments are still as wide asunder as the poles. The French Government has not only determined that there shall be , a Belgian question, but it seems resolved to keep it open. GERDIANY. North Germany is rapidly taking high rank as a manu facturing country. In the production of coal—the alpha and tho omega of manufacturing prosperity—it is now second on -the list of European nations. In 1850 it was only fourth, producing not more than one-ninth of the quantity of coal raised in England. Now it is second, and produces nearly one-fourth as much as England. THE LUXEBIBURG FORTIFICATIONS. Prussia is seriously dissatisfied with the state of affairs in Luxemburg. The demolition of the fortress is being effected so slowly that Count Bismarck has addressed a complaint to the Government of the Duchy. The Prussian Minister very justly urges that the decision of the London Conference is not being carried out. A Prussian officer arrived at Luxemburg a few days ago, and demanded that an engineer should be sent with him to inspect the works, but the Grand-Ducal Govern ment declined. The officer, however, paid a private visit to the fortifications, and notified to his Government that three large works still remained wholly untouched. At the present rate the progress of demolition will hardly be completed in ten years. One writer recently stated that the entire sum spent in carrying out the decision of the Conference was thirty shillings a week I The matter has been brought before the Luxemburg Assembly, and it has been suggested by several deputies that the work ought to be hastened. INDIA. Shere Ali, Ameer of Affghanistan, and Lord Mayo, Governor-General of India, have met at Umba la, and thus our new policy in Central Asia has been fairly inaugurated. Great prep ara ti ons h a d b een ma d e for this interview. Eight thimsand European and Indian troops were gathered together to do honour to the Ameer. Camps had b( en formed and no less than fifty wells dug . to furnish water to the assemblage. At Uinballa, Shere Ali will receive a far more decisive impres sion of British power in Asia than at Peshawur, where it was at first arranged that the interview should take place. The Indian Daily News remarks :—" The meeting will be a ratification of those unwritten terms of mutual reliance which the interests of both nations have created ; and while Shere Ali will depart assured of support, the British will have secured in him the only one gua rantee needed of the impregnability of the north-west frontier." The Nizatn of Hytlerabad, who, like the Begum or "opal, was one of the firmest of England's native allies, died of heart disease on the 26th of February. His career was in no way distinguished ; he lived in close seclusion and quiet ; but his relations with the British Government were conducted with exemplary prudence. He has been succeeded by his son, an infant, a brother of the late Nizam being appointed guardian. Some excite ment was created respecting the choice of a guardian, and troops were called out in apprehension of a disturbance, but tise " succ" lion" seems to have passed off quietly. The recent attack by the BLz'mtes on a tower at Kohat has been p un i s h e d. On the 4 of February an e x p edi. tion of 400 m en a tta c ked a number of villag es belonging to that tribe, and inflicted severe loss upon the marauders. The troops had two men killed and twenty-five wounded. TWA' OBAN. INSUBRECTION. The effect of this interference is becoming more and more manifest. It is clifficult--almost impossible, indeed —to ascertain the exact position of affairs ; but, giving the Spaniard s th e full benefit of recent triumphs, and espe cially the last victory, it is still clear that the position of affairs i s n ot wholly satiefc.ctory. Whilst the rebels were hr..Rieving Puerto Principe, General Lesca, attempted three times to relieve tie place, but it has oozed out that he was beaten on each occasion. He is nnw reported to be in a dangerous position. Admiral Hoff, who commands the American squadron off Cuba, says that the revolt is making progress —Spanish bulletins notwithstanding. And well it may. A complication with Spain is a not improbable result of the impartial and neutral attitude of the American people towards Cuba. The recognition of Cuban independence has been openly advocated in the House of Representa tives. The American press almost unanimously urges this vms 21 .. 4, 41,§:211.3 of public sympathy are 19 ,T - ~... '' palpable that much uneasiness Ms been causes at the Spanish Embassy. Senor Roberto, the new Spanish Minister, arrived at New York a few JO ago, and the Times correspondent believes that he will make a formal complaint on this subject. The Spanis h officials at Washington say tliat as far back as December a series of expeditions began to be fitted out at vain ° American ports in aid of the insurrection, and others ar° projected. Some have alreadybeen successfully landed in Cuba. Complaint is made chiefly against the law officers at New York and New Orleans, and for m onths the Spanish Legation have been gathering evidence of these expeditions, and can submit a formidable array of testimony of these acts of aiding the enemy. The arras captured from the insurgents in battle bear .American trade-marks, and charges are even made that the mail steamers clandestinely engage in the profitable traffic. In short, the Americans are deliberately committing every offence which, justly or unjustly, they charge agai nst England. More than this, the Times correspond ent believes that Spanish protests will not be of the slightest avail. CONGRESS. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATEVES. On the 4th the House was called to order by ;I[r• M-Pherson, the Clerk of the list House. Mr• Woodward offered a resolution referring the return of the Twenty-first Pennsylvania District to thb Election Committee, but it was decided out of order, as was a resolution to place the name of Henry D. Foster on the roll. Mr. Brooks, of New York, made the point of order that the Clerk had not called the names from Georgia and Louisiana• The Clerk overruled the point, and Mr. Brooks appealed, but the Clerk refused to entertain the appeal. A scene of great noise and con fusion followed, Mr. Brooks insisting upon his right to the floor, and the Clerk direct , ing the election of a Speaker to be proceeded with ; the excitement extending to the members en both sides. Finally, Mr. Brooks gave way, and Mr. Blaine, of Maine, was elected Speaker, he re ceiving the votes of the Republican members. The House then adjourned.--On the sth Messrs. Van Horn and Dyer of Mobile, Harm - mill of Maryland, and Winchester and Rice of Kentucky, were sworn in. The papers of the M tryland and KentackY Representatives thus admitted were referred to the Election Committee, as were the papers of the Georgia Representatives, who were not sworn in• The case of Covode v. Foster of Pennsylvania was similarly referred, and the time for taking testimony in the case of Taylor v. Reading was extended sixty days. The House then elected all its remain ing officers except Chaplain, and adjourned until Tuesday.—The House having reassembled on the 9ch March the resignation as a member of Mr. B. B. Washburne, now Secretary of State, was pre sented. Rev. G. Butler, of Washington, was elected Chaplain. Mr. Maynard offered a resolu tion directing the Election Committee to investi gate the Congressional election in Louisiana, which was adopted. Mr. Kelley re-introduced his bill for a new nickel coinage. Resolutions were adopted providing for a Select Committee on the census, one on retrenchment, and increasing the number of the committees on pensions and Pacific Railroad. Mr. Boutwell offered a resolu tion, which was adopted, re-establishing the Com mittee on Reconstruction. Mr. Butler, of Musa chusetts, offered a bill repealing the Tenure-of-Otlice Act, which was passed—yeas 143, nays 16. The negatives—all Republicans—included Schenck, Jenckes, and Farnsworth. The House adjourned until Friday. Why does not Parliament follow the example set by Congress, which the Neu) York Tribune thus de : scribes :—" Congress does not always take all the excel lent advice it receives from the newspapers —more's the pity !—but it lays hold of all the newspaper men it can find for its high offices. Having already Mr. Schuy ler Colfax, a Western editor, for President of. the Senate, and Mr. Gorham, formerly connected with, the California press, for its new Secretary, succeeding Mr. Forney, editor of two papers (with Mr. Blaine, a Maine editor, for Speaker of the House, and Mr. M‘Pher son, a Pennsylvania editor, for its clerk, and with any number of other journalists in prominent positions in or about either house), the Senate has finished the journalistic organization of that body by the choice of Mr. Anthony, editor of Providence (R. I.) Journal, for president pro tent . pore. Their appreciation of the profession being thus made known, will not Congressmen take the example of the gentlemen whom they delight to honour, make few and abort speeches, attend promptly to their business, git through with it as soon as possible, and leave the Ameri can Eagle to Mr Pogrom and his brethren of the stump?" Dating the year 1868 the total number of books pliblishoein the United States was 1,918. Of these 1,430 were original American works, 359 reprints of English books, and 109 translations and reprints of Conti!,ental books. Classified, they make 'the folo wing exhibit : Theology '261, fiction 310, history 171, poetry 127, law 108. arts, sciences and tine arts 116, year-books 134, medicine 101, travel 82, trade 41, education 71, juvenile books 233, and 155 miscellaneous books that do nut legi timately come under any of these divisions. The AmAr;,-an Bible Society printed and put forth from its publication office 1,200,000 copies of the Bible during the year. . _ Messrs. Collins and APLeester give the tables of the publications in the United States, and from nem we learn there are 5,734 periodicals, and upwards of 6,000 printing offices in the country. Five hundred and forty two daily papers aro published ; 4,425 weekly, and 277 monthly, 56 tri-weekly, 63 semi-weekly, 46 semi-monthly, 297 monthly magazines, 4 bi-monthly, and 24 quarterly : Of course New York has the greatest number, being 670 newspapers. Pennsylvania comes next with 495, then Illinois with 415, Ohio with 377, Indiana 269, Missouri 240, lowa 228, and then Massachusetts with 219. Nothing shows more conclusively the increase of population in the West. The United States Tariff now under consideration of Congress contains the following :—" On all books printed and manufactured prior to the year 1850 five cents per pound ; provided that no more than five copies of any book shall be imported in any one invoice. On all Bibles and Testaments, the value of which is less than five cents each, ten cents per pound. On all books in the English language, bound, stitched, or in sheets, printed since the year 1849, of which editions are printed in the United States, and all printed matter. not oth rwise provided for, 25 cents per pound." The 62;000 Chinese in California are nearly all enrolled in six clubs, corresponding to the six districts from which they came. When an immigrant ship arrives the agents of each club go on board and take charge of those who come from their district. The immigrant is boarded and lodged until he finds employment. All Chinamen who are sick or in want are also provided for by the clubs. There is an outbreak against Chinese labour in Oregon, and a woollen factory com pany at Oregon city has been threatened with dire calamities if they persist in hiring any Chinese opera tives. The steamer which arrived from Hong Kong on the 23d of February had on board 400 Chinese women. The Chinamen armed to secure possession, and the . Chief of Police took measures to prevent a riot. The Chinese companies are anxious to prevent immoral immigration, but have lately been foiled. The women were taken from the steamship China, guarded by the police, to places desig nated by the head men ; and, as efforts were made to seize some of them, a general fight was only prevented by the police, though a fray did occur, and some people were wounded. (ADVERTISEMENT.]—Avoid Medicines: they always aggravate chronic complaints: but Du Barry's delicious health-restoring Revalenta Arabic& Food, which yields three times the nourish ment of the best meat, saves 50 times its cost in other remedies, and invariably restores perfect digestion, strong nerves, sound lungs, healthy liver, pure blood, refreshing sleep, functional regularity, and energy to the most disordered or enfeebled. We extract a few out of 68,000 cures ;—" The Pope's health restored by Du Barry's Food. Cure No. 68,413. "Borne, July '2l, 1866. —The health of the Holy Father is excellent, especially since abandoning all other remedies, he has confined himself entirely to Du Barry's Revalenta Arabica Food, of which he consumes a plateful at every meal. It has produced a surprisingly bene Mal effect on his health, and his Holiness cannot praise this excel lent food too highly." From the " Gazette du Midi, July 25 Cure No. 53,216, of the Marchioness de Brehan, of seven years' liver complaint, wasting away, debility, nervousness, with a nervous palpitation all over, bad digestion, constant sleeplessness, and the most intolerable nervous agitation.." Cure No. 1,771; Lord Stuart de Decies, Lord Lieutenant of Waterford, of many ' dyspepsia. No 19,832: " Fifty years' indescribable agony years from dyspepsia, nervousness, asthma, cough, constipation, flatulency, s pasms, sickness, and vomiting.—Maria Joly."—Cure No 46,270: Mr. James Roterts, of Frimley, Surrey, of 30 years' diseased lungs, spitting of blood, liver derangement, and partial deafness. Important Caution. —Beware of the many unsavoury and more than sloppy imitations to which, without r,uthority, Baron Liebig's name is most audaciously attached. In tins, at ls. 14d.; 1 lb. 2s. 9d.; 2 lbs. 4s. 6d.; 5 lbs.lls.: I'2lbs, 225. ; 'e 4 lbs, 40s, —Also Du BARRY'S REVALENTA ARABICA CHOCO LATE POWDER is packed in tin canisters; for 12 cups at 25., for 24 cups at 3s. 6d., for 48 cups at 65., for 288 cups at 305.. for 576 cups nt ß f A r n ee ßy of nu carriage in in ndECn a at 55s.—being ab out one penny per cup. The 30s. and 555. tins 0 g . 1 , a England 0 7 n 7 t receipt Regent are Order. se don; and all Grocer s an d C hemists. o-fstPreoest OOffi ceocue Births. LUARD —On the 27th inst., at Herstmonceux, Sussex, the wife of Colonel R. Luard, of a daughter. NORTH—On the 28th inst., atThurland Castle, Lancashire, the wife of North North, Esq., of a son. Marriages. BALL—.CuANE -On tho 27 t h i nst., at St. Ann's, Brook field, Highg a t e - r i se, George, third surviving son of F. Ball, Esq., of Aylesbury, Bucks, to Jane, eldest daugh ter of Charle s C rane, Esq., of St. Alban's House, High gate-road. LUND - TEMPSON -On the 27th inst., at Lee Chapel, C. H. Lund, of Skipton, to Amelia Fry, daughter of the late Rev. T. Titnpson, of Lewisham, London. Deaths. BARER —On Easter Day, at Streatham Rectory, ne ar El y, the Rev. Henry H. Bztber, aged 94. BOOTE —On the 28th inst., Mr. Thomas Boote, of Grace church-street, aged 59. Booth _On n the 28th inst., at Prince's_park, Liverpool, Henry Booth, Esq. London : Printed and Pablished by WILLIAM ANDREWS, of No. 112, Strand, Printer, at r ice Sow Oalc3, [lc 2 , st ran d , the Precinct !of the Savoy .7.n the Count, or Itiddiell 2 x;""TtlegiaY, Match UO, 1869. INAII This celcbr it 'Pure, IY Sold in Boit the Agents in 1 8, -G-R ' Obsorvf7 thd htin's LL Whii 4[U,TU.) ' 14, IttiSSE 111jVAN - CES hold or Lease able weekly, 3 Forms frce or FA S TUSSA Attractive. Portrait Modo on F. Adrni d. Open fro ROYAL Easter Hell First appeart Re-engagel Barnes, the Bella. with a N.B.—\fias Glasgow. No alterati stalls, is.; car Mr. I place on Wei ARGY EVE! Rooms havol and Co. Th an attractive Dance Music littaies; THE at Lunch ORI GIN AL A. sill Very Fine I OM Crushe( Shipping) Sparkling ( lery, Qual Sample c bottles She: pne: B . Consignee celebrated 1 Bordeaux ' Whiskies, also be see number of of others wi SCIENI n RNA kJ and sortment licks, InkF &c., in Ita shire Spat TENN A./ W.C., Lox Mrl Ter MINER A of Lyell'e tate the GEOLOG guineas PF PRAM M INER A 149, Strai THE Offices The In Fire Reve The mod( Bonus for value as render th leave is g thirty da3 KIN( st. APPE A.l pe nse s. SEAM k-) off G Neicns, The re( £879 less SUBS( Williams the Secre street, Lc Qualifi Governor VAT Under the whereby Girls of a' the kbigd. The Obj lish educe and lam' wise pro , suitable s The Co entirely e Office, ORI Lii me For t destitutA and of prosper( One I stitutiot Incre endowe assistan Subs( Institut its pecu The Becreta Bank lane ; a HEALT J) U Cur Stuart ford :- food.- Watei Cut from flatul( of Ly _ vogs 1 Cm pews T h , b., 9 Pati Offic( Cul servo anise arrs tin ea enps about free b it also Grum 'Kew