The Sun. — London, England, 1860-05-02 00:00:00

seamen, as recommended by the commission, ready to be placed in efficient ships at the several ports, instead of the present block ships, thus constituting a reserve of ten sail of the line, ready for any emergency ; that th e number of naval volunteers, now under 1,000, should be completed as soon as possible, and the other recommendations of the commission complied with ; and the house is also of oi.inion that the bounty for able seamen ought not to have ':, en lowered till the nnmber wanted was complete. The I on. and gallant admiral recapitulated the arguments which he has so often of late sought to impress upon the house with reference to the manning of the navy and the providing of an efficient reserve. He thought the short-service pension men ought to be allowed to enter the new corps ; and that it would be prudent in the Admiralty to make it worth the while of sailors who were entitled to the pension to come forward and claim it. A great deal might be done to prevent the frequent breakings of leave, and the discontent which so often prevailed. Let the Admiralty give orders that when ever a ship came into port the men should be paid their wages; or at least such part of it as they might choose to ask for, and should be allowed at once to go on shore. They did not like to be kept on board with their money:in their pockets. They were often called reckless, but it was the Government system that made them so. When the army was paid once a month there was much more de bauchery amongst the troops than there was now that they received their pay daily. In former days he had seen seamen receive thirty or forty or even fifty pounds the day before, or on the very day they sailed. He had even known them to throw their money overboard, be cause they did not know what to do with it. (A laugh.) During the two years he commanded the Channel fleet there had been no discontent, because whenever he came to port he did not let his men go on leave by driblets of 20 or 30 per cent., but he let a whole watch go at once, and for forty-eight hours. No wonder when one captain let a whole watch out on leave, and another only gave a similar privilege to 30 per cent. of his crew, that there was discon tent. He (the gallant admiral) had been charged by the noble lord (Lord C. Paget) with causing dissatisfaction among themen ; but he had not caused so much as the noble lord. On the contrary, hardly any improvement had of late years been effected that did not originate with him (Sir C. Napier) ; and it had generally taken the Admiralty a quar ter of a century to carry it into effect. The noble lord had done what no secretary of the Admiralty, whether in the ser vice or a civilian, had ever done before him—he had said that corporal punishment should be abolished. He (Sir C. Napier) had always contended that it was impossible at once to put an end to it ; and he had stated as much to his con stituents, though they hooted him for it. The contrary de claration of the noble lord had tended to produce more dis content than anything which he (Sir C. Napier) had done. What he had always laboured to effect was to improve the condition of the seamen; satisfied as he was that that was the true policy. The noble lord's speech had been hawked and placarded about the seaports, but it had only been laughed at. Seamen were told that they were noble, min, jolly fellows, only they were so suspicious, and above all so suspicious of the Admiralty. If that was so, what was the use of telling them that the Channel fleet was complete, when they knew perfectly well that neither the fleet nor the reserve was any thing like complete ? What possible effect could it have b_ t to make them think that the board were again trying to bamboozle them, and so to increase their suspicions ? He thought that the regulations of the Government, with re gard to the pensions of warrant officers, were such as were disgraceful to the Chancellor of the Exchequer. His hon. friend the member for Portsmouth and himself were con stantly receiving letters from the widows of warrant officers complaining that whilst if a man died in 1859 his widow received no pension, yet if he did on the Ist of January, 1860, the widow received a pension. He next came to the case of the naval coast volunteers, upon whom the ' report said no great reliance could be placed. But there was a method of making these naval coast volunteers useful. There were several blockships along the coast which were totally unfit to join the fleet. Out of these coast blockships he would take the masts, yards, &c,, and allow the volun teers to practice on board of them, so that in case of an emer gency they might be able to make them a place of rendez vous. He also proposed that these ships should be called by the names of the ports where they were ,lying; thus the volunteers could say they belonged to a particular vessel, and the system would tend to combination amongst the vari ous members of the body. He then came to the question of the Merchant Seamen's Fund. He would net weary the house by reading what the report said on this subject; but he must observe he did not find that any steps were taken for the raising and regulating of this fund. Another recom mendation of the commissioners was that the right of ad mission to the hospitals should be held out to seamen. But before they talked about admission into Greenwich Hospital, the hospital must be reformed. A commission had lately sat on the subject, and whether the Government were ashamed or not of the report, he (Sir C. Napier) did not know. At any rate it had not yet appeared. The coast guard reserve was no doubt a great relief to the navy, pro viding as it did a sort of retiring service for seamen, with the privilege of living on shore. But there were various other things which might be done at the same time. There were places in the Custom-house, as those of tide-waiters, occupations on board lighters in the dockyards, and others, the names of which. he did, not know, which ought to be reserved for men who had served in the navy. He now wished to speak of the great propriety, when a ship reached home, of not restricting the men, who had been absent from their friends some three or four years, from leave, whilst officers were freely allowed to go home. This was an evil very easily remedied. He also particularly de sired to call the attention of the Secretary of the Admi ralty to the following circumstance. On Saturday last, as he was passing a union workhouse, he saw some junk which was being brought into the workhouse for the pur pose of being picked. He asked leave to examine it, and what was his surprise to find that it consisted of bran new rope, like the shears of a three•decker, which he did net believe had been used once. It had not the least rub or wear upon it. Some of this rope he had taken care to forward to Admiral Graves at Portsmouth, and he hoped that the offi cer who furnished it would be discovered and superseded instanter. (Hear, hear.) Of course he (Sir C. Napier) could not say if the same new rope would be returned ; but this was what he had witnessed. He also thought that some thing must be done with regard to the increasing practice of breaking leave amongst seamen. At present offenders of this sort were punished in such a way as to involve the punishment of their comrades also. He would condemn these offenders to a week's imprisonment with hard labour. He was averse to flogging except in extreme cases, and he objected to the men being sent to the county gaols at Exeter, Winchester, and elsewhere, for they often came out worse than they went in. There ought to be prisons built on pur pose for offending seamen at the various seaports. He un derstood, however, that the Admiralty were shortly about to issue a new code of laws. He hoped this would be pub lished as soon as possible. He was quite sure that if, when a man deserted, he was tried by a court-martial, and, if found guilty, transported to one of the penal colonies, there would be very little desertion and very little crime of any sort. He begged the Admiralty to take one step further, and not allow a man to be flogged, except under sentence of a court-martial. He himself had established some such court on board his vessel. He used to throw open the cabin doors and allow any one to enter, and the proceedings were conducted with as much solemnity as possible. He thus be came his own judge, jury, and executioner. He believed that, unless the men were better paid, the service would never be improved. The Admiralty must give the market price for labour, like every other employer. He had before advocated the better payment of the petty officers, and he now said the same of the seamen. With regard to the petty officers, he would say that, whilst a captain had the power of disrating a petty officer without a court-martial, the offi- POST-OFFICE INQUIRY. cer had not sufficient power over the men, and when dis- Sir S. NORTHCOTE asked the Secretary to the Trea- missed he was a discontented man. On the other hand, if awry whether the commission of inquiry at the Post-office he were tried by a court martial consisting of captains of had terminated its labours, or had been dissolved; and, if the fleet, as the other officers were, and the utmost solemnity so, for what reasons ? were given to the trial, it would be much more effective. Mr. LAING said that the inquiry had been suspended for With regard to the recruiting of the fleet, however, it ap e short time, but had been resumed, and the committee peared that the Ganges was 10 weeks in obtaining 428 men; was now sitting. and the Renown took 17 weeks to get 653 men, and others REVISION OF THE FRENCH TARIFF. in a similar proportion. During the whole of this time offi- Mr. HENNESSY asked the Chancellor of the Exche- cers' pay was running, at a great expense to the country. quer, whether Mr. Ogilvie, of the London Customs, who He had some letters from sailors themselves which showed had been selected to assist in the revision of the French what was their feeling. One said that there were plenty tariff, as stipulated under the treaty, was the officer of that of seamen afloat who would be willing to serve if proper name who, a few years ago, was engaged, under the direc- remuneration was given. The Government had rights over tion of the present Chairman and Board of Customs, in the waterinen and lightermen on the river, but they were getting up the prosecutions for alleged frauds against the never called on by the Admiralty. Let a plan be adopted for various dock companies of theport of London: Whether Mr. drilling them on board ship, and they would be obliged to Ogilvie was employed in revising the British tariff which has come forward, as their privileges depended on it. There just been abolished, and which was based upon the prin- were blockships at Liverpool and Harnich, and none at all ciple of levying duties by specific rates; and, further, if on the Thames, where a complete ship's company might le there was any objection to the reports or statements made, obtained for nothing. He was anxious to see the navy on a former occasion, by Mr. Ogilvie, to the Board of Cus- popular, and to be this, it ought to be put into a proper toms, or any member of it, or to any person connected state. The navy might be made so popular that instead with the Government, in opposition to the abolition or re- of the Admiralty begging for men, men would be beg-. duction of the wine duties, being presented to this house. ging for employment. Ptivato shipowners and the great Mr. LAING asked the hon. member not to press his steam companies had no difficulty in manning their question until the Chancellor of the Exchequer was pre- ships with choice seamen ; it was only the Admiralty that sent, as his right hon. friend had a statement to make rela- had any difficulty. The Secretary to the Admiralty said tive to Mr. Ogilvie. they had got choice seamen ; but ho did not believe they SAVOY AND THE CONFERENCES. were of that character. Strict discipline must be kept up; Mr. S. FITZGERALD drew fhe attention of the noble the men must be treated with justice, but punished severely lord (Lord J. Russell) to a statement alleged to have been . when they deserved it; they must be ruled with an iron made by the Under Secretary for Forel-cis Affairs in an- Land in a velvet glove. (Hear, hear.) They should be ether place, to the effect that the conference relative to the treated with consideration and indulgence when well be annexation of Savoy to France was postponed. 1 hayed, but any breach . of discipline should b e severe l y Lord .T. RUSSELL said that lie understood his noble P unished ' friend (Lord Wodehouse) Lad made a statement, but not f Sir J. ELP lIINSTONE considered that the present that the conference was to be postponed. Nothi ng . cou ld machinery for the management of the navy could be modi be done in the matt er until after the nreetineOf the Sar.. fled with great advantage. He could not help thinking dinian Parliament; a n d if there was any adverse vote, then- , that placing a reserve force of 60,000 men under the control eff course the conference would not be proceeded with. of an over-worked department of the public service—namely, NAVY MANNING COMWISSION. ,'the Board of Trade, was not a judicious arrangement. lie Sir C. NAPIER moved that an humble. address be ore- . thought they should endeavour as far as possible to pre sented to her Majesty, expressing the regre t t of this house , *ate harmony between the navy and the mercantile marine, that, instead of a reserve of 70,000 men contempLitod by the , anif he strongly approved of the r ecommen d a ti on Manning Commission, th ere on l y existed 6,362 Coastguard. : of the establishment of school ships. By carrying out that men, including officers, 1,900 district ships' companies,- recommendation they would be adding yearly t o th e serv i ce 1,400 re venue men an d 600 cruizers' men, and 15,000 or 2,000 or 3,000 boys, who were becoming men, and receiving $.900 coast volunteers not to be depended upon ; and, an education of a character such as sailors had never oh as Z vote of this house had unanimously decided' tained before to qualify them for their duties. The hon. that the report of the Manning Commission ought to be baronet also drew a tt en ti on t o the hard s hip s i n fli cted on carried , out, the hou se p rays h er Majesty will give direc- ' the wives of sailors who were not entitled to their pensions tile Coastguard should be completed to 12,0G0 I tons that 4 tnless their,husbands had filled the full term of 10 years, `: (Continued from our first page.) it would supply the country with seamen capable, in periods of emergency, of immediately manning 20 sail of the line ; the duty of protecting the revenue in such a case being tem porarily cast upon the militia, who might have a few Coast guardmen to direct them. Important, however, as was the formation of proper reserves, it was as nothing in compari son with the maintenance of a standing fleet of well manned aad well-officered ships, which would constitute the nucleus of a larger fleet in the event of war. He trusted, therefore, that the public would be contented to pay such an amount of money as would insure for the service of the State a powerful Channel and Mediterranean fleet. With a permanent peace establishment of not less than 60,000 seamen and marines, together with the reserve which they might now hope to possess, he believed the coun try might be regarded as reasonably safe. It was most important for the British sailor to remember that if he did not wish to "see the press-gang at work, he must enter these reserves ; for the eountry must be de fended at any hazard. Their lordships must unite with classes in defending it, as they were bound to do ; and they must be ready to share the hardships and dangers to which they subjected the people. The seaman who did not wish to be impressed must voluntarily undertake the duties which the State now asked him to perform upon terms easy in themselves and highly lucrative. The retaining fee and pension offered to naval volunteers were great advantages to hold out to men to defend their wives, their children, and their home. Lord STANLEY of ALDERLEY thought the increase of the marines was a most essential part of the plan for man ning the navy. The commissioners who had sat on that subject had recommended an addition of 6,000 men to that admirable force, who, being organised and experienced in gunnery, were ready to go to sea at a moment's notice, and were as fit for service as any seamen who could possibly be detained in times of sudden emergency. He trusted, there fore, that the recommendation of the commissioners on this point would be fully carried out by the Government. Lord COLCHESTER thought the house must have been extremely gratified with the clear and satisfactory account given by the noble duke of the means that had been taken for forming an efficient reserve. There was an impression in the navy that naval officers were never to be permitted to fill the office of the First Lord of the Admiralty, and he was therefore glad to hear the noble duke express an opinion that members of the profession ought not to be excluded from such appointments. Unpopular as the notion of im pressment might be, the Government ought to have the legal power of compelling seamen to serve in cases of actual war. He hoped the measures adopted to secure an efficient reserve would prove successful ; but he was afraid their authors were too sanguine. No doubt, many men would accept the bounty, but would they be forthcoming when re quired' It was easy to "call spirits from the vasty deep," but would they come when called? (A laugh.) He did not mean that the men would be unwilling to serve the country, but they might be absent on trading voyages when wanted. The noble duke admitted the necessity of having the supe riority on the breaking out of a war; in fact, if the enemy had the superiority for six weeks he would capture all our homeward-hound merchant ships, and instead of the men serving on board the fleet, they would be carried to French prisons. This was no new opinion of his ; he bad stated it in that house now morn than 20 gears ago, at the time of the Syrian war, but he was happy to know that the state of things was now very different. It was absolutely necessary, however, that the country should have the power of com pelling the service of those seamen who, notwithstanding every proper inducement was offered, would not come for ward voluntarily. The main prejudice was not to compul sory service, but to its indefinite period. The Duke of SOMERSET in answer to his noble friend had meant to state that the number of marines was origi nally 15,000. The late Government provided for raising them to 17,000, and the present Government to 18,000, but he thought it undesirable to raise more than 16,000, know ing the time it took to drill men and the importance of hav ing them well drilled, and fit to go on board ship. If there were too many raised at a time there might have been some neglect as to the men selected, and the proper time would not have been taken to drill them. There were now on shore 6,000 marines—the number which the commission had re commended that we should have in order to put on board in case of any emergency. (Hear, hear.) As to impressment of course that power belonged to the prerogative of the Crown. That power he was sure no advisers of the Crown, whoever they might be, would ever recommend the Crown to use, except in the case of such extreme necessity that he would not anticipate it. (Hear.) The Earl of SHREWSBURY and TALBOT thought the country owed a debt of gratitude to his noble and learned friend for having brought forward this question, and he congratulated their lordships on the fact that the debate had taken place without any symptoms of party feeling what ever. He thought the statement efthe noble duke at the head of the Admiralty must be most satisfactory to the country. He thought the training-ships for boys most important,and he hoped no time would be lost in carrying the recommen dations of the Commission with reference to that subject into full operation. With regard to impressment he quite agreed with his neble friend below (Lord Colchester). That power must remain with the Crown, although it was only to be exercised on a pressing emergency. The LORD CHANC.ELLOR—AIthough impressment has been for a conshlerabla time disused, there cannot be the slightest doubt that the power still remains with the. Crown. It could only be taken away by the Legislature. It has not been taken away; it therefore remains in full force. I trust nonecessity will ever occur fur calling it into exercise; but if the necessity occurs there can be no doubt of the reality of the power. (Hear, hear.) Their lordships then adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS.—(YESTERDAY.) The SPEAKER took the chair at four o'clock. PRIVATE BUSINESS. The Commercial Docks Act Amendment, Finn Valley Railway, and Milford Haven Railway and Docks Bills were considered and ordered for third reading. The Dublin and Drogheda Railway, and Waterford and Limerick Railway Bills were read a second time. Mr. WHITESII)E moved that, in the case of the Dub lin Corporation Water (No 2) Bill, the examiner of peti tions for private bills have power to hear parties upon their former memorials, in reference to the matters referred to him by the order of this house of the 30th day of April last. After some conversation the motion was agreed to. PETITIONS. Several petitions were presented in favour of extending the jurisdiction in bankruptcy cases to county courts ; in favour of legalising marriage with a deceased wife's sister; in favour of increasing the remuneration paid to medical officers of poor-law unions, Scc. COURT OF CHANCERY (IRELAND). Sir E. GROGAX asked the Attorney-General for Ireland if the Government intended to introduce a bill into Parlia ment during the present session, or to take any steps, to carry into effect the recommendations of the commissioners relative to the abolition of the payment of fees in the offices Gf the Court of Chancery, Ireland ? Mr. DEASEY said that it was not intended to introduce such a bill this seseren. • STADE TOLL. Mr. FENWICK asked the Secretary of State for Fe reign Affairs whether he was prepared to lay upon the table of the house the correspondence that.had taken place be tween her Majesty's and other Governments, with refer ence to the abolition of the Stade toll ; and whether he would state the exact position of that question ? Lord J. RUSSELL said that he was not at present pre• pared to lay on the table the papers alluded to by the hon member. u.rt As representing a seaport town he could speak from per sonal experience of some of the evils of the existing system. Lord C. PAGET thought that the practice, in which the hon. and gallant member indulged almost weekly, of bring ing before the house a recapitulation of details as to the discipline and management of the fleet in one stereotyped speech, was not conducive to the interests of the service for which the gallant member professed great anxiety. (Cheers.) He would not enter into all those details, but would endea vour to inform the house, from official sources, of the ac tual position of the reserve and the fleet. With regard to the motion, he believed it was founded on many misconcep tions, and he should therefore ask the house not to agree to it. The first part expressed "the regret of this house that, instead of a reserve of 70,000 men contemplated by the manning commission, there only exists 6,362 Coastguard men, including officers, 1,900 district ships' companies, 1,400 revenue men and 600 cruisers' men, and 6,000 or 6,000 coast volunteers, not to be depended upon." He thought that was offensive to the seamen of the country. (Cheers.) The coast volunteers were enrolled for service on the coasts, and not for foreign service, which was a very different thing. He maintained that they wore to be de pended upon, and that the contrary assertion was offensive to the seamen and the public. (Cheers.) The Commission on Manning the Navy recommended various improuements in the position of the men with regard to pensions, pay, provisions, and clothing, many of which had already been effected. The commissioners then recapitulated their pro positions for the service of the country, and to those points he wished to limit his observations. They proposed that there should be reliefs in the home ports to the number of 4,000 men. Every gentleman connected with the Admiralty was equally as desirous as the commissioners to see that car ried out, and he believed that this year, supposing they got all the men for whom Parliament had ♦oted the money, _ _ _ there would be a considerable number of reliefs in the home ports. (Cheers.) As to the Coastguard, to which the hon. and gallant member next referred; he stated the other day the amount of that invaluable force. In the Coastguard there were 6,862 sailors, officers, and boys. It might be said that the number did not represent the true strength, because the officers were included, but men without officers were a mere rabble, and in a reserve force there must be a "Lumber of officers corresponding with the number of men. (Hear.) There were nearly 7,000, besides 476 Marines, who were attached to the Coastguard, and, in spite of anything which might be said to the contrary, he maintained that in any emergency it would be found to be a most invaluable force. (Hear.) There were besides 1,381 civilians, about whom he would only say he believed that they would, if neces sary, do good service. The gallant admiral said it was de sirable that the Coastguard should be increased to 12,000 men. He agreed with the gallant admiral, and knowing the extreme value of that body, the Admiralty were daily increasing the numbers. It was not the work of this par ticular Board of Admiralty ; but for years it had been a rule that whenever a man-of-war was paid off every seaman who had served seven years, with a good character, was allowed to go at once into the Coastguard. The result was to increase the Coastguard, but, at the same time, to lesson the number of men fit for petty officers. They could not eat their cake and have it too. If they would have a nu merous and efficient reserve of Coastguard they must take the best men from the fleet. (Hear.) With regard to the blockships, the Hastings at Liverpool had been replaced by the Majestic. Again, at Portland, where there was a good harbour, the Colossus, or a sister ship—an 80-gun ship— would be placed there. But there was expense attending those changes, and he wished the, gallant admiral would always mention the cost when he alluded to those notices. (Hear,) There was besides great difference of opinion as to the policy of placing seagoing ships as Coastguard ships. (Hear.) The gallant officer desired that the Admiralty should be able to put men on board their ships, make them ready for sea in cases of emergency, and that the ships should be in good order and prepared to fight the enemy next day. Well, the Admiralty had just had a proof that, without making this change, ships might be made available in a few hours. Not many weeks ago it was decided by the Admiralty to place the Majestic at Liverpool, instead of the Hastings, and orders were accordingly sent to Liverpool that the crew of the Hast ings should proceed to Sheerness, and that the men should take possession of the Majestic and proceed to sea. The men left Liverpool at 8 o'clock one night, and having reached Sheerness went on board the Majestic, and were ready for sea the next afternoon. The next point to which the gal lant officer's motion alluded was the number of the naval volunteers, and he stated that the number, now under 1,000, should be completed as soon as possible. He must first of all say that the gallant officer was incorrect in his figures. The naval volunteers did really amount to 1,000; and, con sidering that the force had been scarcely more than two months in existence, he thought the progress made satis factory. He did not believe that a great volunteer force could be raised suddenly. Seameh's wages were now £3105., and there was a great scarcity of men ; and as a great force could not be got suddenly, the Government must be satis fied with a gradual progress, if made on sound principles. The suggestions which had been made by the members for Oxfordshire, Northumberland, and others, had not been neglected, and shipping masters had been consulted with respect to them. (Hear.) The hon. and gallant admiral, among other proposals, recommended that instead of paying the men at the end of the quarter in which they were en rolled, the Government should pay them on enrolment; but he had received a letter begging that such a plan might not be adopted, as it would disgust the good men who honestly came forward, for they knew that others would ask to be en rolled for the sake of getting Ll 10s., would get drunk -•n the money, and disgrace the rest of the force. With respect to the short-service pensioners, the gallant admiral asked why they were not allowed after a short service of 10 3 ears to go into the reserve, joining the naval volunteers, instead of being kept in the ship. Such A proceeding could not be adopted without damaging the fleet. If all the men of 10 years' service in the fleet were invited to join the volunteers, what was to become of the fleet ? There would be no sea men in it. The country had got a young fleet, and he was about to show the house what the Government had clone within the last year in creation of a fleet ; and, so far from the state of things being matter of regret, it was a subject for congratulation that in so short a time so many men had been raised for her Majesty's service. He had stated what had been obtained in the coastguard. The commissioners recommended that there should be a body of marines on shore amounting to 6,000. This was not included in the gallant admiral's view, because that gallant officer's object was to show the poverty of the nation's forces, and the gallant officer had entirely overlooked the fact that the body of marines on shore amounted to 6,178, being greater than the Commission recommended. With respect to the short service pension marines the same argument held good as with respect to sailors, for, if all the marines who had served 10 years were to leave for the purpose of joining the re serve, the best men would be lost to the active service. No doubt, in some years hence, when this matter was on a good footing, and the men could be spared, it might be de sirable to have recourse to the short- service pensioners. The number of men enrolled in the Royal Naval Volun• tcers from the Ist of January, 1860, to the 30th of April, 1860, was 894 ; and the number of applications await ing verification of service before the grant of certifi cates was 83, making a total of 077 men ; and he had since seen a return, according to which the number was stated to amount to 1,000 ; and there were now on the re- gisters, available for immediate service, 7,015 Royal Naval Coast Volunteers. These were very, important points ; but the most important point of all related to the boys ; for, let what would be done with the reserve, the means of enabling the country to have a really efficient navy must depend upon educating the boys. (Hear.) A statement for the years 1857, 1858, an d 1859 wou ld s h ow _ _ _ the increase which had been gradually taking place in the establishment of the boys, as the Governments of the day perceived the necessity for an augmentation. In 1857 the number of boys was 1,898, in 1858 the number was about the same, but in 1859 the number had increased to 5,147. At the present time we had no less than 8,535 boys. (Hear, hear.) Opinions might vary as to the percentage of boys which it was desirable to have in the fleet,,and he did not think that point was yet satisfactorily ascertained. It was still under the consideration of the Admiralty. The per centage at present of boys was about one-sixth, but some authorities thought it ought to be as high as one-fifth, However that might be, the fact remained that we had at present 8,500 boys, who would become in a short time first rate seamen. The hon. and gallant admiral had talked of the impossibility of getting mon for the navy—that our ships were under-manned, that the men were discontented and were unhandsomely treated. The answer to that was, that in the whole Channel fleet, consisting of 12 , sail of the line and three large frigates, there was only a deficiency in warrant and petty officers and able seamen of 377. (Hear.) In the Mediterranean fleet, of about the same strength, the position was almost precisely similar, and a 'draught of about 150 men were on their way out to fill up those vacan cies. Those facts did not justify the gallant admiral coming down to the house and asking for a censure upon the Go vernment, past as well as present, for not creating a re serve as fast as his imagination led him to believe it could be create I. The next point he would mention was as to training ships, for it must be borne in mind that a naval reserve could not be kept up solely by the pay allowed to those who entered it. Training ships were a most impor tant portion of the scheme, and he would state what had been done in that matter. For the naval coast volunteers there was the Hastings at Liverpool, which had been transferred from the Coastguard, and the Castor at Green hithe. Those ships were fitted up as complete men-of-war with bedding utensils; boats, &e., because the men lived on board during their month's drill. There was also the the Brilliant in the City Canal, which was not so fitted up, because the men only went on board during the day, and there was the Trincomalee fitting to be sent to the north of England. A smaller steamer, the Weser, was also being got ready to take men to the mouth of the Thames in order to practise firing at targets. Those training vessels were only in addition to the innumerable guns and batteries all over England. For the training of boys one line of battle ship was fitting at Devonport, and she, no doubt, would be the forerunner of others. (Hear.) There were also the four brigs—one at Cork, two at Ports mouth, and one at Devonport. He thought he had shown by the facts he had adduced that tho Admiralty had endea- voured to increase our naval reserve, and by promoting the introduction of boys to create a nursery for seamen. There was only one other point to which he felt it necessary to refer, and that was in relation to the latter portion of the; hon. and gallant admiral's motion, that " the house is also of opinion that the bounty for able seamen ought not to have been lowered till the number wanted was complete." He (Lord C. Paget) thought he had already answered that opinion, as he had shown that our fleets were only a few men short of their proper complements, and the deficiencies were only such as the ordinary casualties would create ; that we had a vast number of boys who were growing into good sailors; that they were daily entering seamen suffi cient to fill up any vacancies that might exist; and that therefore it would have been unwise and unnecessary to continue the payment of a large bounty. (Hear, hear.) He demurred to the proposition of the gallant admiral that bounties were good things, and, indeed, he regarded the system of bounties as an unwholesome one. (Hear, hear.) He admitted that last year there were strong reasons for the course which the right hon. s,3;entleman opposite (Sir J. Pakington) took in offering a large bounty, which certainly did enable the country to obtain a good many men. (Hear, hear.) The present Government had lowered the bounty because they thought the offer of a large bounty was, in ordinary circumstances, an objectionable system. He be lieved it had been one of the causes of that craving for leave which had become apparent among the men, because they had their pockets full of money, and were always wanting opportunities for spending it, and, therefore, ho held the opinion that the offer of a large bounty, except under pecu liar circumstances, was unwise and detrimental to the pub ; lie service. He thought he had proved to the house that the Admiralty had not been unmindful of their duty, and that . . it was their continual study to improve the condition of the navy, and therefore he hoped the house would not agree to the motion of the hon. and gallant admiral. (Hear.) Sir J. PAKINGTCN agr eed with the noble lord that he motion of the gallant admiral was too extensive and peculiar, and his speech too general, to make it an easy task to follow him. With respect to the last portion of the mo tion, he doubted whether it was framed in accordance with the rules of the house, and whether the Speaker could put a motion which commenced by an address to the Crown and concluded with a resolution. He was glad, however, to hear that the Admiralty had decided to lower the bounty, as he did not consider it was desirable to retain the bounty system as a permanent system. (Hear.) His sincere belief was, that under the peculiar circumstances that existed last year, the late Government were justified in taking the step they did take, and the noble lord had very frankly ad mitted that he took a similar view. But the adoption of that exceptional course last year did not at all imply an approval of a permanent system of bounties, and ho had felt some apprehension lest the present Government might intend to continue that system. He had heard with great pleasure what had been said by his noble friend on this subject, and thought the Government had acted with great propriety in referen le to it. At the same time, while he could not concur in censuring them for what they had done, he was glad that the gallant Admiral had brought this motion forward, because the practical ques tion which he had submitted was one of -great interest to the house and the country. 'What were the exertions which the Admiralty were now making to attain the all important object of a permanent and reliable naval re serve ? That was the point for consideration, and the gallant Admiral's motion had elicited from the noble lord a statement which would, he thought, give much satisfaction. (Hear, hear.) With regard to the maintenance of reliefs at the various ports, there was no subject on which the late Board entertained greater anxiety. The Committee on Manning the Navy and the Royal Commission had made a wise recommendation on this point, and he was very glad to hear from the noble lord that if the numbers voted by Parliament were completed, there would be in the ports somewhere about 4,000 men available for immediate service afloat. (Hear.) He did hope the successive Boards of Admiralty would never lose sight of this point, and that the House of Commons would never hesitate to grant every year the necessary funds to prevent the disgraceful spec tacle of men-of-war lying in harbour for months before they could complete their complement of men. (Hear, hear.) With regard to the coastguard he understood the noble lord to say that, the Royal Commissioners having recommended the raising of this force to 12,000 men, the Admiralty were now aiming to procure that number. The estimates did not so provide, because, no doubt, they could not expect to obtain so many men in the present year, but he understood it to be the intention of the Board ultimately, and as soon as they could, to raise the force of coast-guard to 12,000 men. (Hear, hear.) Then came the question of the Royal Naval Volunteers, New, it might appear a trifling matter, but he would ask whether the Board were doing well to retain that name. We had already the Naval Coast Volunteers, and would it not be better to have a distinct title for each, and to call the new force by the very intelligible name of the Royal Naval Reserve? (Hear.) The mainpoint was how soon this would become an effective and an available force. He did not despair of seeing the number of men who came forward considerably increased, and he trusted that the Admiralty would spare no exertions to complete the number. The noble lord had spoken of the scarcity of seamen as cm reason for the slow increase of this reserve force. It was most undesirable, both in the interests of the Royal Navy and of the merchant service, that such a scarcity should exist, and, with a view to supply the want, he quite agreed with the noble lord as to the great importance of increasing the number of boys in the service. (Hear, hear.) Whether the proportion of boys to seamen should be one- fifth or one sixth he would not venture to say ; but it should be remem bered that whatever abstractedly might be the desirable proportion, it must be difficult, if not impossible, to fix that proportion with precision so long as the House of Commons were in the habit of voting at the request of the Govern ment a fluctuating number of seamen each year. However this might be, the surest way of maintaining the navy was to train up men fur ourselves, and always to take care to have a large number of boys in training. (Hear, hear.) From the latter part of the speech of his noble friend he hoped it might be inferred that the Government intended to carry out the whole recommendation of the Royal Com mission on this subject. (" Hear," from Lord C. Paget.) He was glad to hear that cheer, and wished also to know whether the recommendation respecting schooiships would be followed. This recommendation most wisely went far beyond the requirements of the Royal Navy. The Commis sion contemplated the training of boys, so as to supply the merchant marine also, and no part of their report was sounder and more judicious. It was to be hoped that, as the result of the measures suggested by the Commission, cor dial relations would be established between the two ser vices, so that merchant seamen might be led to enter the navy freely in times of emergency. Altogether he gladly aceepted the noble lord's statement that the Admiralty were doing all they could to insure the efficient manning of the navy, and the formation of a reserve which should be in stantly available in case of need. (Hear, hear.) Sir M. SEYMOUR said there could be no doubt, either there or elsewhere, as to the great importance of carrying out the recommendations of the Royal Commission, be cause nothing could be of more vital importance to the people of this country than having an ample add effi cient naval reserve in the time of need. lie had been much gratifiedby the statement of the noble lord, because it had shown an intention on the part of the Government to carry out the recommendations of the commission in a manner which would be satisfactory to the house and to the country. He must say that with our voluntary system we laborered under great disadvantages as compared with other nations where compulsory service was the rule. We stood alone in our arrangements in that respect, having as it were a free trade in seamen. One by one the proclamations and orders in council by which our seaman were prohibited from serving other Governments had been withdrawn or fallen into disuetude. Our navigation laws had been swept away, under which a numerous and hardy race of able-bodied sea men had been bred as apprentices in our coasting trade ; and the whole tendency and character of modern legislation had been such as to diminish our command of able-bodied seamen for the navy. (Hear.) At the same time our com merce had not declined, but increased, our colonial interests had not diminished, but increased in importance, and, in case of any hostilities at home, he was at a loss to under stand how we were to find sufficient numbers to meet the emergency. We certainly had not a sufficiently large re- serve at present, and he would only express his most earnes hope that the Government, by carrying without delay the recommendations of the commissiou into effect, would thus secure the interests and maintain the honour of the country. Mr. CORRY said that last year he had been accused of " rushing into vulgar expenditure ;" but his principle was, that no expenditure should be incurred that could be pos sibly avoided. The changing of these block ships every tkreo years was wholly unnecessary, and he was therefore opposed to the waste of public money which such a course would occasion to the extent of £128,000 every three years. The best way to deal with the block ships would be to let them die a natural death, and not replace them as they wore out. He hoped th• gallant admiral would not divide the house, but if he did he should vote against the motion. Admiral Sir G. PECHELL urged the expediency of training boys for the navy, as such an arrangement was more necessary now than ever. Admiral WALCOTT concurred in the necessity of main taining the navy in the highest state of efficiency, but he thought there were many alleged grievances enumerated by the gallant admiral which would be far better left to the consideration of the Admiralty and the ship's officers than brought so frequently before Parliament. He agreed in the remarks of his hon. friend (Mr. Corry) respecting a uniform system of leave. If habits of care and forethought were cultivated in their sailors, they might rely upon it they would not long have to deplore those scenes of de bauchery and dissipation which were so disgraceful on the part of the British sailor. If they once permitted any in subordination in their fleet there would then be an end of their utility and prowess as a maritime nation. He could not agree in the propriety of increasing the coast guard to 12,000 men. He hoped the Admiralty would introduce into the navy 3,000 or 4,000 boys annually, but they should take care that too great a proportion of boys was not introduced into each ship. For the manning of the navy they must trust to themselves, and not rely on the mercantile marine in time of peaco. It was a subject for congratulation that they had 24 sail of the line, quite independent of frigates, ready in case of any emergency. ' Sir H. VERNEY said that from his own experience he could bear testimony to the efficiency of boys on board ships, and he read an extract of a letter from a naval officer which suite confirmed this view, When shire were paid off the men were dispersed, and we lost their services when they were required again. This did not occur in the army, and ought not to occur in the navy. (Hear, hear.) Mr. BENTINCK suggested that the motion of the gal lant admiral should not be pressed to a division, although the house should be indebted to him for bringing the matter under consideration. Ho (Mr. Bentinck) thought the time for discontinuing the bounty was when the number of men required had been completed. It was premature to discontinue the bounty until the required complement of men had entered the service. As to the coast guard the house was not aware of the value of their services. In 1859, in 11 stations they had saved property to the amount of £791,000, and 1,243 lives. (Hear, hear.) As to manning the navy there could be no difficulty if they followed the example of the mercantile marine, namely, to pay the market price. It was an unwise and injudicious parsimony which prevented the Admiralty from obtaining an adequate supply of men. (Hear, hear.) Mr. WILLIAMS was of opinion that if flogging in the navy were abolished any number of men required might be 'easily obtained. Sir C. NAPIER replied, and in doing so complained that his observations had been perverted by the noble lord (Lord C. Paget), and that the same course had been pursued by the noble lord on former occasions. He concluded by ask ing leave to withdraw his motion, which was withdrawn accordingly. BERWICK-UPON-TWEED ELECTION. Mr. PEEL, as chairman of the Berwick election com mittee, moved an address for a commission of inquiry into the bribery alleged at that election, and that the concur rence of the Lords be requested in presenting such address. He detailed the circumstances adduced before the commit tee, which led to the conclusion that bribery had been com mitted. The inquiry before the committee was incomplete; it was only carried to the extent necessary for the purpose of the petition, and it was for the house to decide whether it would carry the inquiry any further into the stato of a borough long notorious for corruption. It was only by the issue of a commission that the deeply -rooted habits of the voters could be eradicated. He did not anticipate that the inquiry would be either long or expensive, as the place was not large nor the circumstances complicated. Mr. D. COUTTS MAJORIBANKS, one of the mem bers for the borough, said that he had stood under an ex press declaration that he would not spend a single shilling in any corrupt act. That pledge he had strictly kept, nor had he been ever asked to break it. His elections had cost him in each case very moderate sums. Berwick had during the last year been very sorely tried, and not fairly used ; still he should feel it his duty to vote for the motion, satis fied that the circumstances would, as far as he was con cerned, bear the strictest investigation. Mr. MACAULAY objected to a commission,being issued for the mere purpose of satisfying the curiosity of the com mittee as to the conduct of the individuals on the list in question. Lord R. CECIL, as a member of the committee, observed that it had not been proved that the person offering the bribe was not an agent of the candidate. All the machinery for corruption was to be found in the place, which was a pre sumptive proof of its prevalence. Mr. E. JAMES likewise supported the motion, which was opposed by Mr. LONGFIELD. Mr. COLLIER said that previous commissions had been of essential service, and that the Electoral Corruption Com mittee had drawn its most important information from their reports. Hitherto they had always issued commissions on the report of committees, and if they now retraced their steps they would never have another commission. Mr. M. SMITH said the evidence of bribery was not sufficient to justify the commission, which, in all proba bility, would lead to nothing. Mr. BRIGHT was willing to take the opinion of mem bers of the committee, and to support the commission. If it did not issue, they would be in a worse position than if the Corrupt Practices Act had never passed. He believed that great good had resulted from previous commissions, speaking from his own knowledge in the case of Wakefield. Mr. MALINS opposed the commission, as leading to no result except needless expense. The ATTORNEY-GENERAL protested against the low view of the question when thus taken on the ground of expense. He advocated the commission, adding that there ought to be a distinct understanding that its report would be acted upon. He pledged himself, so far as his own office was concerned, to take all possible measures to give it due effect. Lord PALMERSTON declared that he could not be lieve that the house would hesitate in a case of such noto rious bribery and corruption. He denied the commission would lead to no result. The mere exposure of gross de linquency would act as a preventative to future offences. The house, he insisted, would shrink from its duty if it re fused to appoint this commission. Mr. WHITESIDE inquired why the Attorney-General was silent on a similar case of the Galway election ? That learned gentleman had promised much for the future, but said nothing as to the past. The practical question was, if this commission would have more important consequences than its predecessors, which had no consequences at all. Sir G. LEWIS, adverting to an observation that one of the persons implicated in the Wakefield case had been re tained as a magistrate for the borough, said that if the al legation were proved against that person he would be re moved from the commission forthwith. Mr. S. ESTCOURT was favourable to the issuing of the commission, and hoped that it would shadow forth the course which they ought to pursue in consequence of such inquiries. Should these lead to no result, it would be use less to appoint commissions in future. The motion was then agreed to. Mr. PEEL followed up this motion by another, that the house direct the prosecution of one of the witnesses before the committee for perjury. This motion was also agreed to. Mr. CARDWELL obtained leave to introduce a bill for taking the census of Ireland. ATTORNEYS, SOLICITORS, PROCTORS, AND CERTIFICATED CONVEYANCERS BILL. The house went into committee on this bill. Mr. LOCKE moved the omission of the word " manag , ing" in clause 4. After some conversation the word " managing" was struck out. Clauses up to 18 were agreed to. On clause 18, which empowers attorneys, solicitors, and proctors to act as justices of the peace in certain cases, a discussion arose as to the expediency of not conferring such a power within a certain area. The SOLICITOR -GENERAL said it was desirable that the administratio n of justice should not even in appearance be exposed to suspicion, and that if it were in any consider able number of instances to happen that gentlemen occu pied seats on the judicial bench within the area to which their practice in their profession extended such a result would not be unlikely to be brought about. No one, of course, supposed tbat the exclusion of those to whom the bill related from the bench of justice would be advocated on the ground of any personal unworthiness on their part as a body to hold such a position. Mr. MOWBRAY suggested that his hon. and learned friend should withdraw the clause. After some discussion the clause was negatived, without a division, and the CiLURNIAN was ordered to report pro gress. ECCLESIASTICAL COURTS JURISDICTION BILL. This bill passed through committee. The Common Lodging•houses (Ireland) Bill was read a third time and passed. REPRESENTATION OF THE PEOPLE BILL. Lord PALMERSTON fixed this bill for Thursday next, when he hoped it would pass through the second reading ; but, at all events, on Thursday night ho should feel it his duty to take the sense of the house if a further adjournment should be moved. The Reform Bill would take precedence of other ordeis on Thursday. Mr. lIENNESSY inquired whether the second reading of the Irish Reform Bill would be taken before the commit tee on the English Reform Bill ? Lord PALMERSTON said he would consider that matter. The Customs Bill was read a third time and passed. The house adjourned at five minutes past 1 o'clock. [ A DVERTISEMENT.]—HoIIoway's Pills are renowned as safe and salutary remedy for indigestion, liver complaints, and all manner of eruptions and skin diseases. Pains in the stomach after eating, evictatiens of wind, pains in the back, aching of the right shoulder, weakness, languor, and tawny hue of the skin, all disappear under the purifying powers of these admirable pills. They contain no ingre dient which could by possibility hurt the feeblest frame. They effect a momentous change throughout the system by thoroughly expelling all impurities, and imposing on every organ its natural functions. Many testimonials of their efficiency can be produced, the latest of which has been for warded by Edward Smith, of Newport, Monmouth, who was cured after wasting under dyspepsia 15 years. [ADVERTTSEMENT.}..TO they hectic, the consumptive, the dyspectic, the emaciated, and th e d e bili tated, Du Barry's delicious health-restoring Revalenta Arati , :a Food restores sound lungs, perfect digestion, refreshing sleep, and ner vous and muscular energy without any of the uncertainties, annoyances, and ruinous expenses incurred by medicines, cod liver oil, or visits to distant climes. We quote a few of the many thousand cures effected by this delicious food. Cure No. 39,618—Dr. Wurtzer, of consumption. Cure No. 54,812—Miss Virginia Zeguers, cured of consumpti on , a ft er her medical advi sers h a d abandoned all hopes of recovery. Cure No. 3,9o6—Thirteen years' cough, indigestion, and general debility have been removed by Du Barry's excel lent Food. James Porter, Athol-street, Perth. Cure No. 51,618—Miss ()Allard, 17, Rue du (fraud St. Michael, Paris, was in the last stage of consumption, of which two sisters had died, and given up by her medical attendant, when, as a last resource, her father gave her Du Barry's Revalenta Arabica, and in about three months she was perfectly free from cough, expectoration, nocturnal perspirations, and every other symptom of this dreadful disease, and is now perfectly well. Cure No. 46,270—. Mr. James Roberts, timber merchant, of thirty years diseased lungs, spitting of bl oo d, li ver d erangemen t , par tial deafness. Cure No. 52,087 Field-Marshal Duke of Plusknow, of gastric inflammation of the stomach. [n tins, at Is. 6d.; lib., 35.; 21b., ss. 9d.; 51b,, 125.; 121 b., 265. The 101 b. and 121 b. tins carriage free, on receipt of post office order. Du Barry and Co., 77, Regent-street, London; Fortnum, Malian, and Co., 182, Piccadilly; Abbis, 60, Gracechurch-street ; 4, Cheapside ; 63, and. 15,0., Oxford street; 330 and 451, Strand ; 49 and Gil, 13ishoisgate street ; 85, Tottenham-coigt,road. Also at Dublin, Bewley :and Draper ; at Eumburgh, Raimes and Cc.; at Liverpool, Nixon and Thew; at Manchester, Sharp an t Scott; at York, Rairnes, Blanchard, and , C o ,: ; nt ; Soutk ampton, Randal lag.d SQ4 SPORTING INTELLIGENCE. CHESTER RACES,—TursDAY, The Grosvenor Stakes of 10 sovs each, h ft, with 50 added ; three-yr-olds, fist 121 b; four, Bst 71b ; five, 9st llb ; six and aged, 9st 31b; certain penalties and allowances. Grosvenor Course, about a mile and a quarter. 9 subs. Mr. W. Day's The Promised Land, 4 yrs, Bst 121 b (inc. 51b extra) (G, Fordham) 1 Mr. T. Parr's Avalanche, 3 yrs, 7st (including 51b extra) (Challoner) 2 Mr. Copperthwaite's Rising Sun, 3 yrs, 6st 121 b (Robertson) 3 Defender and Jack Spring also ran. Betting-5 to 4on The Promised Land, 4to 1 agst Ava lanche, 5 to 1 agst Rising Sun, 8 to 1 agst Defender, 10 to 1 agst Jack Spring. The Promised Land led from start to finish, and w9n in a canter by two lengths; the second beating the third a like distance; half a length between the third an _1 fourth ; and a length between the fourth and fifth. The Palatine Stakos of 15 sovs each, 5 ft, with 50 added, for three-yr-olds ; colts, Bst 71b ; fillies and geldings, Bst 31b; certain penalties and allowances; second to save his stake. From the Castle Polo, once round and in. 10 subs. Mr. Eastwood's Butterfly, by Turnus, Bst 41b (Aldcroft) 1 Mr. J. Whittaker's First Lord, Bst 71b.... (J. O s borne) 2 Mr. Ingham's Od o , B s t 101 b (in. 31b ex.). . (U. Fordharn) 3 The following also ran :—Curlew, Trovatore, and Hare bell. Betting—G to 4 agst Trovatore, 3to 1 agst Butterfly, 5 to 1 agst First Lord, 6 to 1 agst Odo. First Lord and Trovatore kept close company until enter ing the Dee side of the Course, when Odo went up to him and soon deprived him of second place. On making the last turn Trovatore was beaten, and Odo and Butterfly went on in close pursuit of First Lord. From that point the race was left to the first three, who ran home abreast, Butterfly getting the better of it opposite the Stand, and winning by half a length ; a neck between second and third ; two lengths between third and fourth ; Trovatore and Harebell close together several lengths off. The Wynnstay Handicap of 100 love, added to a Sweep stakes of 5 sovs each. Extra weight for winners. The second to receive 20 cove out of the stakes. Three quar ters of a mile. 33 subs. Mr. W. Day's Traducer, by the Libel, 3 yrs, Est 81b - (J; Adams) 1 Sir H. des Voeux's Comforter, 4 yrs, Bst 81b (in. 81b ex.) (Fordham) 2 Hon. C. 0. Powhetes La Hollandaise, 3 yrs, 6st (Grimshaw) 3 The following also ran :—Swale, Man Friday, Brocke - tina, and Spicebox. Betting-5 to 4on Traducer, 4to 1 agst Spicebox, 6to 1 agst Comforter, 8 to 1 agst Man Friday, 10 to 1 agst La Hollandaise. Traducer made play ; Comforter took second place at the distance, but failed to reach the favourite, who won by a length ; bad third. The Mostyn Stakes of 10 soya each, for two-yr-old colts, Bst 71b; fillies and geldings Bst 31b. Winners extra. Second to receive 20 sous from the stakes. Three-quar ters of a mile. 16 subs. Mr. Saxon's Big Ben, Bst 121 b (in. 51b ex.) (L. Snowdon) 1 Mr. W. Thomas'§ Dictator, Bst 71b Mr. T: Parr's Kildonan, Bst 71b (Clements) 3 The following also ran :—Folkstone, Longshot, and Flirtation. Betting-7 to 4on Big Ban, sto 1 agst Longshot, 6to agst Dictator. Dictator made play with Longshot and Big Ben second and third. At the Grosvenor turn the favourite took up the running, and won by a length, the second beating the third by a neck ; a good fourth. The Chesterfield Stakes, a Handicap of 10 sovs each, with 100 added; for three-yr-olds ; certain winners extra; second to receive 25 sovs out of the stakes. Once round and a distance. 30 subs. _ _ _ Mr. Barber's Ben Webster, sst 101 b (Entwistle) 1 Mr. Gibbs's Golden Pippin, 7st 61b (Perry) 2 Mr. Hargreave's Horace, Est 121 b (Bullock) 3 The following also ran .—Allington, Baron Munchausen, Tommy Noble, Homeward Bound, Maid of Orleans, Crim Tartar, North Lancashire, and Libellous. Betting-9 to 4 agst Ben Webster, sto 1 agst Horace, 6 to 1 agst Libellous, 7to 1 agst Golden Pippin, 10 to 1 agst North Lancashire, 100 to 8 agst Allington. After three or four false starts, occasioned principally by the impatience of Tommy Noble, the lot got away, Ben "Webster making all the running, and winning by three lengths ; bad third. YORK SPRIN Acceptances for the Great miles. 70 subs., 35 of N Age st lb Underhand .. 6 9 2 Newcastle Hepatica .... 5 7 12 Tunstall Maid , ... 5 7 11 Physician Defender Herne Gladiolus . 4 7 5 Shafto Satellite Prince of Denmark 5 7 0 Marine The Squire 4 6 9 The Brewer Birmingham 4 6 9 Vixen 5 6 8 Cock-a-hoop 4 6 8 Souvenir Acceptances for the Flyinc , D mile and a half. 32 sub ' s, 11 G MEETING. Northern Handicap. Two rhora pay 6 soya each. Age st lb Pax 4 6 5 Flitch 5 6 5 Apollyon .. Secret Treasure Stockton 3 5 12 Tyrant Sparrow Hawk 3 5* 9 Weatherbound Chance Shot 3 5 8 Widgeon First Lord 3 5 5 Her Highness Horace 3 5 2 Optimist 3 5 0 Ben Webster . 8 4 13 Feodorowna 3 4 13 North Lancashire 3 4 12 )utchman's Handicap. One 6 of whom pay 6 soya each. Age st lb Independence Herne 5 8 8 Ticket of Leave Birmingham 4 7 13 Vixen.. Age st lb Flash in the Pan... 4 7 1 First Lord Grenadier Sutton Plumper 3 6 3 Tom Prologue North Lancashire 3 6 2 Bankrupt Paleface . Basilisk . 4 7 6 4 7 2 4 7 1 HEALTH OF LONDDURING TH. WEEK. il (From the Report of the Registrar-General.) The deaths in London in the week that ended last Saturday were 1,268, showing a slight decrease on those of the previous week, and a more consider able decrease on those registered in the earlier half of April, when the weekly number was above 1400. The air continued as cold as it had been in the pre vious fortnight, the wind blowing from the north east. In the ten years 1850-59 the average number of deaths in the weeks corresponding with last week was 1,075, but as the deaths of last week occurred in an increased population they should be compared with the average raised in proportion to the in crease, namely, with 1,183. From this comparison it appears that the deaths now returned are more numerous by 85 than they would have been if the average rate of mortality had prevailed. There were 20 deaths from small-pox in the week. The weekly mortality from this disease has not in creased within the last month, and it is less than it was during the first quarter of this year. Measles, however, exhibits an increase, the deaths from it having been, in the four w ee k s o f A pr i l, 20, 21, 33, and 37. Three children belonging to two families, but in one house, 3, Railway -place, Limehouse, died on the 19th and 23d of April from measles. There were 33 deaths from scarlatina and 9 from aiph theria. Two children died from the last-mentioned disease at 6, Charles-street, Dawnham-road, Isling ton. A boy died at 5, Harvey's -buildings, Charing cross, of scarlatina maligna ; and his death is chiefly attributed by the medical attendant to impurity of the air in the room occupied by the family, owing to its proximity to a nuisance. Phthisis, or consumption, was exceedingly fatal ; the deaths from this disease were 198, while the corrected average for corresponding weeks is 163. A hundred persons in the period of life 20-40 years were its victims last week. The increased mortality of phthisis has been remarked in previous returns. Of eight persons who died by suffocation, six were children, and one'a young man, aged 17 years, all suffocated in bed. A labourer's son, aged 11 months, was scalded, in consequence of his mother, when in a fit, falling with him ; the daughter of a porter, aged 2 years, was scalded by sucking hot water from a kettle ; and the son of a labourer, aged 15 months, was scalded by upsetting a pan. Also two children were burnt by means not stated. Of six nonagenarians who died in the week, one was a man, aged 91 years ; the rest were widows, aged respectively 90, 94, 95, 97, and 98 years. Last week the births of 914 boys and 885 girls, in all 1,799 children, were registered in London. In the 10 corresponding weeks of the years 1850-59 the average number was 1,650. At the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, the mean height of the barometer in the week was 29 855 i n. The mean daily reading was above 30 in. on the last three days. The barometer fell to 29.56 in. ' on Monday, the lowest point in the week, and rose to 30.19 in.—the highest point —on Saturday. The mean temperature of the air in the week was 41.2 deg., which is 6.6 deg. below the average of the same week in 43 years (as determined by Mr. Glaisher). The mean daily reading was always below the average ; and on the first three days the depression below the average was from 8 deg. to 11 deg. On Sunday the wind was in the north west, on Monday in the south-west, thereafter in the north-east. The thermometer in the shade fell to its lowest point on Sunday, namely, 28.5 deg. ; it rose to its highest, 58.3 deg., on Saturday, the range in the week was therefore 29 8 deg. The mean daily range was 18.0 deg. The difference between the mean dew-point temperature and air temperature was 5.5 deg., showing the dryness of the air. The mean degree of humidity was 83, com plete saturation being equal to 100. The mean tem perature of the water of the Thames was 46 . 9 deg. On Sunday a thermometer on the grass fell to 22 deg. On Saturday the thermometer in the sun rose to. 104 deg. Me amount of rain was 0.45 in , which fell on the fi rs t th ree days, chiefly Tueseley., on which very unseasonable day there were also snow, sleet ? 4124 hail. Saturday was fine. MURDEROUS ATTACK ON A MAIL DRIVE_R. Considerable sensation was caused in Rochford, and also in Rayleigh, on the morning of Thursday last, the 25th ult., from its being stated that Mr. Chapman, the landlord of the King's Head Inn, and contractor of the mail, had been fired at on his re turn journey from Ingatestone. It appears that on the mail cart reaching Rayleigh about half-past one in the morning, it being very dark, in a narrow part of the road, near Mr. Grout's farm, a gun was fired from a field by the road side, and the horse at the same moment suddenly stopped, turned round and backed into the ditch, when a second discharge from a gun was fired, apparently close t 3 the driver. Mr. Chapman jumped out to the horse's head, when the animal immediately sprang forward, drew the cart out of the ditch, and started. Mr. C. was for tunately enabled to get in again and proceed on his journey, and reported the matter to the police at Rayleigh. On arriving at Rochford he delivered his bags, and met Mr. Akers, inspector of police of that town, in the street. Mr. Akers immediately drove to the spot, accompanied by Mr. Chapman. On arriving there, they found two waggon ropes, or a rope tied twice, one part of which was broken, and the other on the ground, suspended to elm trees on each side of the road. Mr. Akers took pos session of it; and also found some brown paper wadding from a gun. Suspecting a party at Rayleigh, Inspector Akers proceeded there, and took possession of the man's shoes, which, on comparing them afterwards in a field next the spot, were found to cor respond with the footprints. The man's name is John Philbrook, who was formerly driver of the mail, but was discharged some time ago by Mr. Chapman. He has been apprehended. The police Cotained a clue to a gun having been lent to a young man, William Britton, a carrier, who lives with his mother, at Rayleigh. They searched her premises on Saturday, when a gun was found con cealed in an out-house, under some hay and straw, awl on searching further a powder-flask was found. The ramrod of the gun was a home-made one, and on comparing the end of the same with the wad ding, it fitted exactly. This man has also been ap prehended. On examining the cart, on the side of the panel, just under where Mr. Chapman sat, there was found a considerable quantity of shot, some of which passed through the cart and lodged in the opposite .side. The ho rse M r . Ch apman was driving was a very fast one, travelling at the rate of 12 miles an hour; from the impetus caused by the speed at which it was going, and from the collar striking one of the ropes, it broke it. The prisoners were taken before the Rev. W. Twyne, at Rayleigh, and remanded till to-day (Tuesday). The post-office authorities despatched Sergeant Robinson, a detective officer, from Scotland-yard, to assist Sergeant Akers. It is very seldom Mr. Chapman drives himself, and this renders it evi dent that the attack was planned.—. Essex Herald. C'OUNT'RY MARKETS, LIVERPOOL—MAY 1. We have had a fair attendance at this day's market, but the consumptive demand for wheat is still only on a mode rate scale ; prices at a reduction of ld to 2d per cental on wheat, M per sack and barrel on flour, and fully 6d per qr on Indian corn, compared with Friday's currencies. Oats and oatmeal have been without animation at the late rates. Beans, peas, and barley as before. The day is warm and sunny. BRISTOL-Mjy 1. At our market we had a fair attendance, but holders re fusing to give way in prices, little or no business was trans acted. NEWCASTLE-UPON TYNE—MAY 1. The market is affected by the fine weather, and there is a slow trade in wheat at Saturday's rates. Flour difficult to ssn, but steady. Barley unsaleable. Oats quiet, but held at full rates. Beans and peas in retail at Saturday's rates. LEEDS-MAY 1. At length we have fine weather, which has its usual effect. With a small show of wheat millers act very cau tiously; holders, however, show great firmness, conse quently little business takes place, and prices are unaltered from Friday. Barley as of late. Beans held for more money. Oats and other articles quite as dear. Arrivals this week : Wheat Barley Oats Rapeseed Beans BO Linseed Flour • 714 qrs. 1,195 saoks. Averages for the week : Wheat 4,467 qrs., at 53s Old Peas Beans 8ar1ey......... 264 438 Oid Oats Bl — 27 s DV Rye • —B 03 SHEFFIELD-MAy 1. A fair attendance, and trade dull ; wheat declined 6d per load. Oats is to 2s per qr higher. Red wheat, per load of 3 imperial bushels 19s 6d to 21s Od White ~ ~ 2ls Od to 22s Od New red ~ 7, l7s Od to 18s Od New white ~ 77 lBs Od to 19s 6d Beans lBs Od to 20s 6d Peas, per qr. 17 77 42s Od to 50s Od Grinding barley, per qr 33s Od to 353 Od Malting ditto, „ 3Bs Od to 43s Od Oats 26s Od to 34s Od Millers' prices for flour—ls 11d, 2s Od, and 2s 2d per 141 b. NORWICH CATTLE-APRIL 28. This morning our market exhibited a very tolerable show of good store cattle, comprising Scots, Devon; short horns, and a few Irish. A slow trade was effected, on very poor terms, and there was also a tolerable attendance. Fat beasts a large show, and sales brisk. Scot; 4s Od to 4s 6d ; shorthorns, 38 6d to 4s ; I r i s h, 3 s Od to 3s 6d ; Devon; Os Oct to Os (estimated weight when fat). Sheep—There were good supplies of sheep in the pens. Fat sheep, 7s 6d to 8s per stone ; prime, 9s 6d to 10s. Pigs—A fair supply. Store pigs 26s to 30s ; fat pork, 7s 6d to 8s Od per stone. - BT LIST. tiers are despatched by morning mails. Nest DESTINATIONS. Despatch Port of Mail of Mails. Despatch. due. Australia and Mauritius, via Southampton May 12, 31 Southamp. May 10 Ditto, via Marseilles Bahamas and Havana via New York May 12, E Liverpool.. May 10 Canada, &c. (by Canadn. pckt ) May 2 , E Liverpool.. , May 2 Cape of Good Hope, Ascen sion, and St. Helena May 5, E Devonport 'June 1 China, Penang, and Singa pore, via Southampton May 4, 3lSouthamp. May 2 Ditto, via Marseilles Gibraltar, via Southampton.. May 4, M Southamp May 2 Honduras and Blewfields .... May 17, M Southamp May 14 India (Calcutta) and Ceylon, via Southampton May 4, M Southamp. May 2 Ditto, via Marseilles May 10, E .. May 13 India (Bombay), via South ampton May 12, M Southamp. May 10 Ditto, via Marseilles May 3, E , May 4 Lisbon, Brazils,Bue nos A yres, and F. Islands ............ May 9, M Southamp. 5 Lisbon, Vigo, and 0p 0r t 0.... May 7,M Southamp. May 1 Malta, Egypt, and Aden, via Southampton .............. May 4,M Southamp. May 2 Ditto, via Mar se ill es May 3 E_May 4 Mexico and Havana Newfoundland May 5 , E Liverpool... United States and British N America (by British packet) May 5, E Liverpool., 'May 2 Ditto (by U. S. packet) West Coast of Africa, Ma deira, and Teneriffe May 23 E Liverpool.. May 10 West India, California, Vene zuela, Chili, Peru, Grey town, New Granada, &e. , May Southamp. May 14 The Progres de Lyon contains the followiing note :—" M. de la Rochefoucauld, who has offered this Pope 12 rifled cannon for his army, has asked permission of the Minister of War to purchase them in the French arsenals. Marshal Randon has replied that it is impossible for him to grant the request, inasmuch as the Government neither gives nor sells cannon." The Mysterious Power of the Mr.gnet is most boentifully developed by Mr. P. M. HERRING, of 32, Basisghi.ll-street, in his Patent Magnetic Brushes evil Combs, whidtt are the remedy for , grey hair, weak or fallir ig, hair, neuralgia, nervous headache rheumatism, stiff Joints, .Ec. His Teazl e Brushes for cloth, velvet, Ace., are admiral )1e ; they not olaly cleanse but preserve the fabric In a rienaPkable manner. The publie are oestiosed against counterfeits.--[Aovr.] BITITHS. lI4ADINGE.—On the 29th ult., at 11, Queen's-terrace ; Queen's-gate, ti iscounte,ss Hardinge, of a daughter. MAxtoNE.—On the 30t/ , ult., at Perth, Mrs. Maztone, of Cultoquhey, of a daughter. M ARRIAGES. RAITNEY—HASTINC,s.—On the 30th ult., at St. Gee irge's, Hanover- Temple, barristwe-at-law, to Emily Ellen, only dau g ht er square/ Alexander Dauney, Esq., of the Middl e of John Hastir ars, Esq., M.D., of Albemarle-stre e t, 1.1.nd Weston -grove„ 'Surrey. WATLING-1V 'ATLING.—On the 30th ult., at Tredingtont, Henry W. at/ing, Esq., to Emily, eldest daughter o.f the Rev. C. H. Watling, 8.D., of rector of Tredington, Worcester shire. DEATHS. HATFIELD.. On Cho 26th ult., at Santry, Huntingdon shire, john Hatfield, Esq., aged 70. MANSITELD.—On the 20th ult., at Laugh= House, Port land place, Frederica, Countess of Mansfield, in her 87th Yer.r. Ito: CND.-0n the 28 th ult., at Brighton, John Round, Esq., aged 78. WATSON.--On the Let inst., at Manor House, Homerton, Edward Watson, :Msg., Lloyd's, aged 79. WHITB.—On the It&th ult., at Lyons, Louisa Mary, wife of Colonel Henry I►a,lrytnple White, C. 8., aged 25. LONDON : Printed and Published by MURDO YOUNG, of No. 112, Strand, Printer, at The Sun Office, No. 112, Strand, in the 3 ?reeinot of the Savoy, in UV) county of Middlesex, Ive c - 1 4e5 d ay , May 2, 1860. FOREIGN MAIL PAC. In the following table E signifies that le' by evening mails from London, and M