The Sun. — London, England, 1858-09-14 00:00:00

THEATRE -ROYAL, HAYMARKET. Lessee, Mr. J. B. Buckstone. THIS EVENINGI will be performed THE WAY TO KEEP HIM. Messrs. Buckstone, Howe, and Farren ; Mrs. 9, Sinclair. After which, THE DAUGHTER OF THE GUADAL QUER. Pere& Nene. Followed by A WICKED WIFE. Miss Reynolds. To conclude with A KISS IN THE DARK. Commence at 7. ROYAL LYCEUM THEATRE. Manager, Mr. Edmund Falconer. Client Success. The New Comedy of EXTREMES ; or, Meit_of the Day. Supported by Mrs. A. Mellon (la te Miss Wodlgar), Mrs. Weston, Miss Kate Saxon, Messrs. Emery, J. Rogers, E. Falconer, and Barrett, EVERY EVENING. To conclude with the New Farce, entitled TOO MUCH FOR GOOD NATURE. Messrs. Emery, J. Rogers, Mrs. Weston, and Miss Kate Saxon. Doors open at half-past 6, to commence at 7. Box-office open from 11 to 5 daily. ROYAL STRAND THEATRE. Lessee and Directress, Miss Swanborough. THIS EVENING, NOTHING TO NURSE ; Mr. Swan borough, Mrs. Selby. After which THE LAST OF THE PIGTAILS ; Messrs. C. Selby, J. Bland, and J. Clarke, ikc. Followed by A ROUGH DIAMOND. Miss 3L Oliver and Mr. Faradic. To conclude with FAMILY JARS. Miss E. Wilton. Commence at 7 o'clock. CANTERBURY HALL, , Westminster-road.— OPEN EVERY EVENING.—The following: Company of Vocalists are engaged for the performance of Selections 1 rom all the popular OPERAS, MADRIGALS, CHORUSES, GLEES, DUETS, &a, :—Miss Russell, Mrs. Badsey, Miss Brunell, Miss Rayy, Madame Bartoletti, Miss Montague, Mrs. Lawrence, and Sirs. Anderson ; Herr F. Jonghmans, Mr. Renshaw, S. Jones, J. Barker, W. 3lelling, Senor Antonio, E. L. lime, Mr. Badsey, Se nor Ti ro ll, Mr. Cozens, Mr. Bell, Mr. Barnard, and Mr. St. Albyn. Mr. John G. Forde and E. W. Mackney. Pianoforte, Mr. Cecil Hicks—Harmonium, Mr. Courtnay—Director, Herr F. Jonghmans. Commence at 7 precisely. Suppers, &c., until 12 o'clock. NOTICE.—The Proprietor 'begs respectfully to announce mat in the month of October, A FINVARTS GALLERY, now in course of construction, will be thrown open in con. flexion with the above Hall. THE WEATHER,.-SUN OFFICE, SEPT. 14. THERMOMETER, IN THE SHADE. 75—highest since noon yesterday. 69—lowest this morning and during the night. 70—this day at noon. BAROMETER-30'20. Wtrat, North-Easterly ; light, with fine weather. We have frequently had occasion to notice the rapid development of political liberty in our Aus tralian Colonies, and to point to the success there of measures against which all kinds of imaginary cavils are raised here. And the inhabitants of these colonies being to such a very large extent Englishmen, who have but recently left their mother country, and who carry with them all the views and habits of those they leave behind, we have justly thought that a fairer example to argue from could not well be furnished us than that of Aus tralia. With Englishmen, however, the connec tion has always been very intimate between com mercial enterprise and political freedom ; indeed, it has been the same in most countries ; and we are therefore not surprised, when the commercial ad vances of Australia are placed before us in the dry statistical form, to find that they are almost some thing miraculous. The piecemeal accounts which we receive from time to time have indeed prepared us for the totals, but the results are such as will strike most of us as marvellous at least. It seems that, by order of the Governor, the Itegistrar-General has published a complete sum mary of the progress and statistics of Victoria, rom the year 1851, when Victoria became a dis tinct colony from New South Wales and gold began to form a part of the exports of the colony, to the year 1857—a report comprising almost everything, beginning with telling us of extent of territory and range of temperature, and ending with telegraphs and . railways. It is, in fact, a Conspectus Victorice for the six years referred to, and is certainly calcu lated to make the Victorians think something of themselves. We do not remember that any colony of our own, nor even California itself, has advanced so rapidly in all that constitutes the most valuable growth . of a new country. To begin where the report begins, we find " am- pie room and verge enough," not less than equal to that of England, Wales, and Ireland combined, 90,000 square miles of territory-, and that in a cli mate so suitable to European constitutions, that its mean temperature is not quite ten degrees above that of Greenwich, and the difference.of extreme temperatures, the chief point for weak constitutions, also less than with us. The severe and damp cold of our winters, too, so fatal to weak lungs, is un known, the lowest mean monthly temperature being about fifty degrees of Fahrenheit. The rapid increase of population under the gold. mania is, of course, what we look for ; yet it is sur prising, even though expected. In 1851 the popu lation amounted to 77,345 persons ; by the end of March, 1857, it had increased to 410,766 persons. Of these 109,000 were distributed over the rural districts, and 166,550 belonged to the gold-fields. The result is that in seven years the population has increased sixfold. The increase, it is to be ob served, promises to be steady and progressive, since during the last three years the proportions of deaths and births present,_ perhaps, one of the most marvellous on record. There have been respec tively for the three years—Births, 10,210, 12,799, and 15,937; against deaths, 6,572, 5,760, and 6,521. The immigration of nearly five-and-thirty thousand Chinese, consisting almost entirely of males, is a subject of annoyance, and special taxes are laid on them to discourage them ; the immigra titn, on the whole, for the six years, has amounted to 441,811 persons ; but the return, or counter emigration, in the same time, has been consider able, amounting to 176,455. This consists in great Part of persons who have returned home to enjoy the independence they have achieved, and also of many wl2o have failed to succeed, or who have left for other parts of Australia itself. However absurdly agriculturists here may dread the collection and publicati 6n of the statistics of their business, it is just the reverse in Victoria, and the consequence is that the colony knows what it is doing in the most essential department of human industry. We had not expected that cultivation had made such progress—Australia and sheep runs being naturally associated in our minds. Yet it seems that in March of this year the land under crop was 237,729 acres, producing nearly two mil • lions of bushels of wheat, nearly as many of oats, and a full proportion of barley and potatoes, with six or seven thousand bushels of Indian wheat ; while the average produce per acre considerably exceeds, in some cases almost doubles, that of the corn-growing states in North America. In 1852 there were only about fifty-seven thousand acres under cultivation. The progress of agricultur e has surpassed considerably that of population, and if it continues, which seems likely, the country will soon not only supply its own wants, but become an exporting country also. The value of last year's crops, at the prices ruling in the colony, was up wards of £3,000,000. The quantity of live stock, the strength of agriculture, is enormous —nearly five millions of sheep, with more than six hundred thousand horned cattle; and in all kinds there has been a large increase during the last year ; no apprehension exists, therefore, of al diminished supply of animal food. The increase in horned cattle alone, in the preceding year, was between eighty and ninety thousand, and of sheep nearly two hundred thousand. These facts are especially interesting, as iatogethor negatiying the '.-- , IL: a, ,%, ,',"A'' . . i • % 9e 1 1 ".- , ,,, , 4 ',..„,.. , r-... A t 7 .„.r . *:•:. ";;,' ,Ut i olli t ' '7 ...,,, i ..t... ..,,,:r . - Z.1 . V•V... . ali rk ( 1., ~,, _____ k t\ ~ r. :,, _ i • nr. .:• . %.'" . ,i , ' • ~.• jiiiii,,,' 1, /r 0 T it.Z4l,, • ' ,'' Xt' ~ , ir' "' • .. 'At° THE SUN. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 1858. supposition that agriculture would be sacrificed to gold diggings. The public works of what may be called the in fant colony are worthy of its vigorous growth. One short railway, from Melbourne to the sea, is already paying a dividend which will make the mouths of our poor shareholders water—fourteen per cent. net ! It is to be hoped that it_will not ruin itself by " extensions." Forty miles of a rail way are already completed, between Melbourne and Geelong,► leaving eight more to be finished ; and lines have been laid out to the gold fields, one of which joins the great river Murray, which is the boundary between Victoria and South Australia, and part of New South Wales, and the grand chan nel of internal traffic. The lines are constructed under Government superintendence, and there is we presume, nothing wasted in parliamentary expenses, or excessive price for land, or by oppos_ ing unfair competition. The electric telegraph has stretched itself 701 miles, at a cost of £70,000, through cities, forests, and unsettled pastoral dis tricts. The waterworks lately finished, and so much needed at Melbourne, comprise an area of thirteen hundred acres, and will contain about seven thousand million gallons. Their total cost has been £664,452, and they seem likely to yield a good revenue. The commerce of Victoria is now prodigious for the size of the colony. To our best customer — America—our exports amounted, in 1857, to X18,760/812; but America has twenty-three millions of inhabitants. To Victoria, with only half a million of inhabitants, we sent £6,630,000 worth of our productions. The whole of our own colonies in North America take from us more than two millions less than Australia. Of course gold has much to answer for in this truly wonderful com merce, about eleven millions per annum having been exported for the last three years ; but wool, we are pleased to see, continues to increase. In 1857, the exports of that article amounted to 17,176,920 lbs., valued at:£1,335,642. In 1851, the quantity was nearly a million pounds less, and its value less by £601,024. Ilides and leather have also increased in value from £11,380 in 1851 to L 190,746 in 1857. Such arc some of the principal facts in this remarkable Report. Those relating to Banks, Savings' Banks, Education, and Religion are also in their way equally interesting. In the Savings' Banks, the deposits of 1,208 persons in 1851 amounted to £46,444 ; in May, 1858, the deposits of 7,124 persons reached the sum of £425,766. Whether we look at the population, the good order, the public works, or the commerce of Victoria, it is beyond doubt one of the marvels of modern colonisa tion. Why are the East Indies such an entire and disgraceful contrast ? There are great differences of course ; but the greatest difference in regard to the two last points is the government of the leaden Company, and that of free Englishmen—the dis couragement of coloniSation by the close monopoly and the encouragement of it by the self-governed Victorians. The country is at present regarding another phase in the inevitable monetary cycle. There is now money in abundance for every legitimate claim, and that at very moderate (perhaps too moderate) rates of " interest," or " discount." It is well to bear in mind the distinction between the phrases " interest" and " discount," for the absur dity of the present monetary code is thereby powerfully illustrated. " Interest" is something paid on a loan for a protracted period— A mortgage forms, perhaps, the best example , " Interest," properly so called, seldom varies more than one per cent. On first-class mortgages it may vibrate between 3i and 4 per cent. On others which, although equally secure, are not quite as perfect, 4+ or even 5 per cent. may be given in "hard times." Taking the average, it may fairly be esthnated that the limits, with few and rare,excep" tions, may be taken at between 4, 31, and 4+ per cent., while under similar circumstances the rate of " discount" will vary at the Bank itself at from 2 to 10 per cent, and out of doors at from 11 to 20 per cent. But in the funds the fluctuations of interest are still less. The Three per Cents. have never been lower than 87 during the greatest intensity •f the recent panic. No man could, therefore, obtain more than £3 Bs. per cent. for his money, if seeking a permanent investment on Government security. These facts prove, beyond the possibility of doubt, the absurdity of the OVER STONE theory that the panics were created. in con sequence of the deficiency of capital. No. Even at our most trying periods there was a plethora of capital. It was the circulating medium that was wanting—the measure and representative of value could not be obtained for temporary use save on exorbitant and ruinous terms. Now these evils were altogether avoided in the olden time, before the currency quacks were per mitted to carry their vicious theories into operatic*: For a century and a quarter before 1844 the rate of discount never varied more than between 4 and 5 per cent., with the exception of a few months in 1838-9, and that, be it remembered, took place un der the Act of 1819 —one only less prejudicial to the best interests of the country than that of 1844. Before that year these violent alternations were practically unknown. Commercial operations had not then degenerated into gambling speculations. By honourable industry and unblemished integrity men were certain of realising fair remuneration for their exertions, and every labouring man was cer tain of receiving " a fair day's wages for a fair day's work," if only willing to earn them. But all these blessings were changed into curses by the enact ments of 1819 and 1844. Money was at one time a drug in the._ market, obtainable on any fair security, at the easiest rate of interest. Before the obligations incurred under that state of affairs required liquidation, everything was changed. It was not merely that money had ac quired a double or even fourfold value, but it could scarcely be obtained on any terms. Men perfectly solvent, if a little time were npt allowed to realise ort The compulsory B p a tu n s k o ru ry pt ey, their assets, were compelled either to appeal to the Cu or to wind up under inspection. realisation deteriorated their pro perty and blighted their future prospects. There was no further hope,and much of the commercial demorali sation, against which so many complaints have been preferred, may be ascribed to the practical operation of the currency laws. When the're is a reasonable chance of emerging from difficulties, and main taining a high commercial position, men will be little solicitous as to the propriety of the means adopted, or even the risks incurred, in the attempt to keep their heads above water. There could be no more auspicious time than the present for introducing a sounder and better sys tem, one that preserves an equable rate of " discount" a s we ll as of "inter es t," an d consequently maintains the value o f " "legal tender Money at such a price as would be fair both to debtor and creditor. Give one his full demand without oppressing or ruining the other. The requisite alterations in the law could not be carried into effect at a time of general distrust and panic. The really national notes threshold,u r ld be depre ciated, and the difficulty on the very 'slim, men were not XePACIAWO Qr reasoning, ;night rnE SUN, LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, SEPTEMBER 14, 1858. be fatal to the project. But it would be inaugu rated under very different auspices—when the coffers in Threadneedle-street were filled to repletion, as will shortly be the case— when the bullion in both departments exceeds £20,000,000 and the reserve of notes £12,000,000, or about three tiifies flie amount required for the business of the banking department. This is the time when the matter can be fairly considered, and justly decided, without either fear or favour, preju dice or affection, and this is the time when the monetary reformers should set themselves to work earnestly and zealously, for the purpose of destroy ing the monster grievance that has so seriously affected the welfare, happiness, and prosperity of the industrial population of the country. LATEST NEWS. INDIA AND CHINA. The Peninsular and Oriental Company have re ceived the following telegram : " MARSEILLES, MONDAY. " The Vectis, with the mails from China, Cal cutta, Bombay, and Mauritius, arrived at 5 p.m. The mails will leave for London at 10 p.m. " The ship and passengers will be two days in quarantine." FRANCE. PARIS, MONDAY EVENING. Political discussions seem completely abandoned for the moment by the Paris journals. The Moniteur of to-day publishes the concession of mines in New Caledonia. M. Henri de Pene, the contributor to the Paris Figaro, who was so dangerously wounded by Lieu tenant Hyenne in the duel near Versailles about four months ago, has taken up the pen again, and writes a letter to the Brussels journal, Le Nord, from the baths of Nauheim in Germany. M. de Pene states that he has completely recovered from his wounds, and is now restored to perfect health. A Paris letter in the Nord of Brussels has the following :—" Lord Palmerston, during the last days of his residence at Paris, saw more than once , Lord Cowley, Lord H Lord d Stratford en B aßaron en de e e Redcliffeßothschild, and M. Thi ers . M. Thiers came up from his retreat at Franconville, where he is completing the last two volumes of his. History of the Empire, to see the ex-Minister. At one of their meetings at the Hotel Bristol, Lord Stratford de Redcliffe was present, and the conver sation having turned on the state of Turkey, M. Thiers asked Lord Palmerston if he thought the ' sick man' was about to die. The English states man replied, according to his custom, by plea santry—' I was one day walking in the streets of London,' said he, when a person told me that m y pocket-handkerchief was hanging out of my pocket, and that I should lose it ! Thank you, sir,' I answered, but I believe that unless some one pulls it out it will not fall ! Well, Turkey is in the same position—if she be not thrown down she will, I am convinced, maintain herself perfectly !" A Paris letter in the Journal die Havre says : " Lord Stratford de Redcliffe, in reply to a ques tion as to the length of his stay at Constantinople, said that he did not think it would exceed a week, and that he should not have gone back at all if it were not to obtain some important papers which he had deposited in a place of safety. In diplomatic circles it has been remarked that Lord Stratford de Redcliffe did not make a single diplomatic visit during his stay at Paris." BOURSE, Sept:l3.—The market at the opening was rather flat, and prices slightly declined, owing to large realisations ; the tone of the Bourse continued, however, favourable, and money abundant for in vestment in good securities. Threes, after having been done at 72f, 80c., rallied to 72f. 90c: ; Mobilier varied from 927 f. 50c. to 937 f. 50c. ; Austrian, 692 f. 50c. to 695 f. ; Orleans, 1,407 f. 50c. to 1,412 f. 50c. ; Northern, 977 f. 50e. to 980 E ; Eastern, 752 f. 50c. to 755 f. ; and Southern, 592 f. 50c. to 597 f. 50c. The market became rather heavy towards the close, when the following were the last quotations :- 41 per Cents. .... 96 75 Credit Foncier 660 Do. end month 96 Belgian 41 lOO 37 3 per Cents. 72 50 Piedmontese (.5) Do. end month.... 72 75 Roman 92 50 Bank Shares. 3150 Austrian Credit Mobilier .. 930 Spanish Threes Do. Account ..... 930 Home Debt 4O RAILWAYS. Cash. Orleans Northern Account. .. 1412 50 975 New ditto. BlB 75 .. 820 - Lyons and. Mediterranean 8:52 50 .. 847 50 New ditto - -- • • Geneva 645 .. 64.5 Midi 597 50 . . 515 7-- Western 640 . . 645 Eastern Grand Central Sardinian . Austrian. 467 50 . 467 50 690 - .. 682 50 SPAIN. The 11Iadrid jmirnals of the 9th state 'that Gen. Prim, who, in addition to the military experience gained in the civil wars, took part in Omer Pacha's campaign on the Danube, is to be appointed com mander of the expedition against the Riffs. They add that the expedition is extremely popular throughout the country, the atrocities of the pi rates having long excited the indignation of the people, and even been made the subject of songs, plays, and novels. The Espana, whilst thanking the French Emperor for having approved of the expedition, expresses the hope that Spanish troops will be also engaged in it. One of the journals says that the Queen desired that the name of O'Donnell should be given to the ship of the line launched at Ferrol, but that the President of the C ounc il d ec li ne d t h e honour. It is stated th a t , w hil s t i n some parts of the country the elections excite so little attention that it has been found almost impossible to organise committees, in others they have created as much enthusiasm as those of 1854. Letters from Barcelona state that the workmen have for the most part returned to the mills, and that public confidence is completely restored. They also state, on what they represent to be undeniable authority, that Captain-General Dulce has declared to the Government that he does not see any necessity for prolonging the state of siege in Catalonia, which, with short intervals, has lasted upwards of 20 years ; also that trade is improving, authority re spected, and confidence in the Government com plete. He is of opinion, however, that it will be best to go on with the present system of trying highwaymen by martial law, instead of by the civil and offers batter gua rantees that bandits will not escape . courts, as it is more speedy, It appears to be the less useful to enter into discus sion relative to the ministry established on the 16th Oct., 1855, for the internal affairs common to the whole monarchy, that the King has thought proper to suppress that ministry by an ordinance of the 29th July last. Moreover, the King's Government can completely adhere to that supposition of the committee as regards the patent of the 23d June, 1856, and the articles 1 to 6 of the ordinance of the 23d June, 1856, it being fully understood that in so doing no prejudice be done to the tenour of the latter articles, in so far as they repose on preceding laws and rules ; in this respect it will suffice to recal as an example that Art. 1 refers to the law which regulates the suc cession to the Crown, Art. 2 to the rights and duties of his Majesty as member of the Germanic Confederation for the Duchies of Holstein and Lauenbourg, &c. As, besides, the King's Govern ment has perceived, in the form of the confidential communications indicated by the last federal reso lution, a step towards the negotiations, properly so called, which he proposed in his declarations of the 26th March and the 15th 7uly last—which nego tiations are still, in its opinion, the sole means of coining to a satisfactory arrangement—it has au thorised its representative to make to the united committees of the Diet, in case he be invited, the confidential communications which arc possible in the present state of things on the manner in which it understands the definitive regulation of the con stitutional situation of the Duchy of Holstein and the Duchy of Lauenbourg in the Danish monarchy." ANOTHER ANGLO-AMERICAN ENTER PRISE: OVERLAND ROUTE TO THE PACIFIC. On the 10th, of July last a large meeting of citi zens was convened in the House of Representatives at St. Paul, Minnesota, to discuss the project of a northern route to the Pacific. A report of a com mittee was read, several speeches delivered, and a series of resolutiols adopted. The first resolution reads as follows : " Resolved,—That the citizens of Minnesota, =in common with the states of the north-west, are deeply interested in a connection between the nor thern lakes and the Pacific Ocean and if sec tional counsels shall prevail at Washington, ex cluding the great national highway between Lake Superior and Puget Sound from its equal and just recognition by Congress, then we congratulate the citizens of the lake states, that by . co-operation with our Canadian brethren, an international route through the valleys of the Red River of the North, the Saskatchewan and the Colutzbia, is not only practicable, but will develop the most valuable portions of the North American continent into powerful and populous states." This is rather a significant declaration, and we see no good reason why it should not at a future time, not very remove, be realised. It is quite cer tain some means of expeditious communication across the continent between the two oceans is a desideratum which the social, political, and. com mercial developments of the age must soon and inevitably achieve ; and it is just as certain that no single connection of the kind will satisfy the exi gencies of the time, and the rapidly expanding em pire that is growing up and spreading itself out over the whole face of the North American section of the hemisphere. The Congress of the United States has been strangely insensible to the immense and urgent importance of this subject, and with the present and long-to-berprotracted controversies and jealouses which divide the North and South—the free and the slave States of the Union—in the councils and action of the Federal Government, we fear that the question of opening the desired com munication with the Pacific by railway, will con tinue to be wrangled over and deferred by Congress for an indefinite period. The only alternative, therefore, will be the independent action of the people of the northward, the middle, and the sou thern departments of the Confederacy, and the city of Minnesota have very distinctly and boldly de clared their purpose to. take their interest in this matter into their own hands, provided the further delay of just and liberal legislation at Washington drives them to that extremity. Nor does their manifesto contain any vain boast when we consider the manner in which they propose to carry it out. Affirminc , in more explicit terms the intention of the resolution we have quoted above, a Mr. James Taylor, in a very forcible and intelligent speech to the meeting at St. Paul, used this emphatic lan guage _ _ "`hut if the determination to exhaust the diplo macy and treasury of the country in spasmodic attempts to sectionalise this vital subject is per sisted in, Minnesota, at least, has only to reach a friendly hand across her northern border to extri cate herself from 211 the consequences of congres sional injustice. 'We have come to know the people of Canada—equally American citizens with our selves—at least under the auspicious influence of reciprocal trade and future identity of interests, if not of political association. English capital also, sensitive to the immense benefit of attracting the boundless transportation of the north-west over the public improvements of British America, and fully conscious that the Canadian railroad system can never be carried to the north of Lakes Huron and Superior, crosses the Detroit river, builds a road through Michigan even at this season of financial depression, and will yet co-operate with the citizens of Wisoonsin and Minnesota in a connection with British America at Pembina. Thence to Van couver,' will be the watchword of progress, con tinental in the grandeur both of design and result. The time has long passed when the danger of future wars with England will deter from undertaking and consummating such an inter national enterprise. If, in the late war with Russia, a secret compact mutually exempted from its hazard the British and Russian fur trading posts on this continent—if we have at this moment an agree ment with Great Britain that neither Power shall exceed an insignificant number of guns on the great lakes, and if the telegraph, when successfully sub merged on the Atlantic plateau, is unquestionably to be neutralised during the accident of international hostilities—surely an emigrant route in the first in stance, and the railroad soon thereafter to succeed the waggon or mule track, may be safely entrusted to the guardianship of peaco and civilisation. No other guarantee of protection is needed than the en lightened intelligence and moral sensibility of the Anglo-Saxon communities, only separated by an ocean." —Philadelphia Evening Journal. DRU.RY-LANE THEATRE The " Fyne and Harrison management" has once more settled within the spacious and noble walls of Drury-lane Theatre, and the season of 13 weeks, of which the particulars have been circulated in a handsome glazed prospectus, emulating the aristocratic documents of a like character issued from the Haymarket and Bow-street, commenced last night. The opera lighted on for the occasion was, as might be supposed, the successful product of the previous season, Balfe's "'Rose of Castille," and that the choice was no ill judged one was made pretty evident by one of the most thoroughly well-filled houses it is possible to see. The cast of the parts was in every respect the same as on the first production of the opera, save that Don Pedro was sung by Mr. F. Glover, and not by Mr. Weiss ; but this was no novelty, for the substitution had already been occasionally resorted to. Both Miss Pyne and Mr. Harrison were in excellent voice, and their exertions fell on no ungrateful soil, but were returned with a harvest of "encores," which it would be needless to particularise. It will be enough to say that the Muleteer's song in the first act, the ballad of the " Convent cell," and the laughing duo and trio were among them, and that generally the encores of last season are the encores of this. At the close of the first act the manageress and manager, whose reception on their first entrance had been of the warmest description, were recalled and subjected to a salvo of bouquets--a ceremonial which was repeated at the fall of the curtain. Not to the hero and heroine of the opera alone were the honours of the evening due, a fair share of which must be reserved to the experienced and skilful conductor, Mr. Alfred Mellon, and the admirable corps of instrumen talists under his command. The opera was followed by the National. Anthem, sung by the entire company. One of the solos was sung by Miss Rainforth, whose name is identified with the early glories of the " Bohemian Girl," but whose pleasant voice has not resounded in London for some years. She sang with her accustomed taste and much of her former sweet ness. For the sake of the past, and for her present merits, Miss Rainforth is a welcome addition to the company. A ballet divertissement, wherein Mdlle. Zilia Michelet, from the Grand Opera in Paris, Mdlle. Pasquale, and Mdlle. Morlacchi, distinguished themselves by some very graceful and, as respects the first-named, finished dancing, completed the night's performances. The house, as before-mentioned, was most satisfactorily replete, and that so many and such enthusiastic patrons are ready, at the first bidding, to come forward and support English opera is a favourable augury of the success which awaits the " Pyne and Harrison management" in the future. ALHAMB_RA PALACE. The utmost success continues to attend the performances of Wallett's celebrated equestrian troupe, Each afternoon and evening the magnificent building is thronged with de lighted audiences, who testify their approbation by the loudest applause. Ono of the great attractions appears to be the daring ascent, by Madame Delavanti, of 200 feet of the Atlantic telegraphic wire. Without exception, we think this the most remarkable performance we ever remember to have witnessed, and the fair artiste well deserves the ap plause that always follows its accomplishment. It has always appeared to us very difficult to introduce novelty into " the arena," as poor Andrew Ducrow loved to call his circle ; but Mr. Wallett has succeeded in accomplishing this desideratum, and each act here performed seems to rival its predecessor in gracefulness and beauty. In addition to the talented company of equestrians, a host of acrobats ap pear, whose gyrations, added to the witticisms of Wallett, the great Shaksperian jester, invariably elicit unbounded applause. We can confidently recommend a visit to the Alhambra. His Excellency the American Minister and family returned to town on Friday last, from Tunbridge. Wells. The Duchess Dowager of Hamilton, who has been suffering from severe indisposition for some days past, is, we are glad to learn, somewhat better: The Duchess of Wellington arrived at .Apsle . y House, yesterday, from his grace's shooting quarters in Norfolk. The Marquis of Lansdowne has arrived at In- Verary Castle, on a visit to the Duke and. Duchess of Argyll. The Marquis and Marchioness of Ailesbury are expected at their mansion in Pall-mall, in a few days, from the Continent. The Earl and Countess of Craven are passing the season at Ashdowne Park, surrounded by a select circle.. Viscount and Viscountess Doneraile have left Claridge'sdlotel for Park Hill, Rotherham. Count and Countess Strogonoff and family have arrived at the Clarendon Hotel, from the Isle: of Wight ; Count and Countess Orloff have left the same establish ment, for Paris. The Duke of Cambridge arrived on the 10th at Berlin, and after breakfasting at the English Embassy, proceeded, immediately to the palace of Remplin, in Meck lenburg. Prince Alfred, second son of the Queen of Eng land, arrived at Berlin on the 10th, to visit his sister, the Princess Frederic -William. The Noterdliste of Rouen says :—" A few days since Marshal the Duke of Malaicoff applied to the muni cipal authorities of Maromme for a copy of the register of his birth. The document was most probably required for his approaching marriage." A telegraphic despatch from Athens announces the death of M. Mavrocordata, who played an important political part in Greece, and was at one time Minister. THE MANCHESTER POST-OFFICE SITE. A crowded public meeting of the merchants and other in habitants of Manchester was held yesterday at the Town hall, Sir James Watts in the chair, to express an opinion on the propriety of placing the new Post-office on the site of the Queen's Theatre, and not in the place selected by Government. Mr. J. P. B. Westhead, M.P., Mr. Edward Potter, Alderman Bancroft, Mr. R. N. Phillips, M.P., Sir John Potter, M.P., and other gentlemen addressed the meeting, and a resolution in favour of that site was carried by a large majority. THEATRICALS IN. CANADA.—Mr. and Mrs. Chas. Matthews have recently been performing at the City-hall, Kingston, to numerous and fashionable audiences. The acting of the latter as Lady Teazle seems to have delighted the Canadian critics, who regard her as worthy of " the talent that has decidedly placed her at the head of her pro fession in the United States." Mr. C. Matthews has been no less successful, apparently, in winning the approval of his audiences. At the conclusion of their Kingston engage ment, Mr. and Mrs. C. Matthews, after a brief seaside rus tication, will, the British Whig states, return to Ensland. Since last summer his performances number 246, while the extent of his theatrical peregrinations reaches 16,000 riles. THE GREAT EASTERN STEAM SHIP.—It is already well known that the proprietors of the Leviathan or Great Eastern steam-ship have for some time been in difficulties, so great as to prevent them from finishing the vessel. At length, however, an arrangement has been made which affords a prospect of this great national project being ultimately carried to a successful issue, though by other parties than the present proprietors. A company has been formed in the City to purchase and finish the vessel, and work her between London and America. This association is called the " British and American Great Eastern Steam Navigation Com pany." It has been got up by a number of commer cial gentlemen, one of whom is M r . H ug h es , the late superintendent of Messrs. S co tt Russell and do.'s yard, and, in fact, of the building of the Leviathan throughout. After a series of negotiations with the original company, arrangements have been made for the purchase of the ves sel for £2.50,000, being less than one-third of the amount she has cost, viz., £BOO,OOO, and less than the materials would fetch if the vessel were broken up and sold by auc tion in " lots." The company has been registered under . the Joint-stock Companies Act (1856-57). The advertise ments will appear in a day or two. The capital is fixed at £500,000, in shares of 10s. each, of which 2s. 6d. to be paid on application, 2s. 6d. on allotment, and the remaining ss. in instalments at intervals of two months. It is intended to finish the vessel between this and the spring, and if there is any time to spare she will be used for the purpose of exhibition. It is then proposed to place heron the route between Liverpool and Portland, United States, the port to which the Canadian mails are at present carried, and thence by rail to Toronto, Ottawa, Quebec, and the other British settlements in North America. THE DARK ARCHES OF THE ADELPIII.—SOMe few weeks since the daily press gave to the world an exposure of the frightful condition of the extensive subterranean passages which are known as the " Adolph' arches," and the strong feeling which was excited at the time brought about an altered state of things, which tended very much to the ad vantage of the inhabitants. The police authorities, with an alacrity and determination which were highly praiseworthy, resolved that the horrible scenes which were constantly witnessed on Sundays—the great gala days of this sink of profligacy and filth—should no longer prevail, and for a time their exertions wore completely successful. There was none of the rioting and blasphemy which had for so long a time previously disgusted and appalled those who resided in the neighbourhood, and although there was free ingress and egress, with regard to the arches, for those whose tastes dr business led them that way, everything was conducted with order. Temporary success, however, appears to have satisfied the police, and they are suffering to grow up a state of things in all respects as wretched as that which not long ago they so satisfactorily put down. The present state of the Adelphi and its black arches, on a Sunday afternoon, is as great an abomination as can possibly exist in London. It may safely be affirmed that for open violation of the decencies of life it is not equalled by the most depraved a Ad e e . Iphi A , vechildren Avery slight e addition ddi varioustjon to part of the eas t ern end a the metropolis. I n mo s t places where suc h a state of things exists, • grovit.op men and women are the p r i nc i pa l actors in the se4f, ivhilo. in the ixed p up, howe ver , w i th a due proportion of thieves of *natural' g th a e ge s s tre e n:th grega of t he t po lice, ni and a little atience, would serve e ff ec t ua ll y to west this frightful an 14914 Mii9ll§ RUSSIA. A St. Petersburg letter, i n th e N ew P russ i an Gazette, says :—" It is whispered here that the Emperor waits for a report from his brothers, who are engaged in inspecting the army of the Caucasus, to come to a definitive resolution as to the continu ance or cessation of the war in those regions. In comparing the blood which has been shed, and the millions expended, with the advantages gained, the latter bear no proportion to the former." GERMANIC DIET. The following is the official extract from the minutes of the sitting of the Germanic Diet on the 9th :—" In execution of the resolution of the 12th ult., relative to the constitutional affair of the duchies of Holstein and Lauenbourg, the Danish representative has made the following declaration: —After his Majesty's Government had expressed in the sitting of the 15th July, and in view of the Federal resolution of the 20th August last, relative to the affair of the duchies, its intention of tempo rarily considering the general constitution of the 2d Oct., 185:5, as being no longer in force for the duchies of Holstein and La,uenbourg, it was re quested, by a resolution of the High Assembly, on the 12th of last month, to explain itself in a more precise manner as to the question whether, with the constitution of the 2d Oct., the Danish Govern ment also meant to put out of force for the duchies the Royal patents of the 16th Oct., 1855, relative to the establishment of a Ministry for the internal affairs of the duchy of Holstein. At the same time, the King's Government was requested by the said resolution of the Diet to make a confidential com munication as to the manner in which it intended to settle the constitutional affairs of the duchies of Holstein and Lauenbourg. On the first point, it has been already remarked in the report of the 29th July, which preceded the last federal reso lution, that the Royal Government expressed in its declaration of the 26th March last its intention to enter into negotiations with the States on the disputed provision of the constitution of Hol stein, as well as in the ordinance of the 23d June, 1853, and that consequently there was every reason =to suppose that the provisions relative to th 3 gene ral constitution would be extended to the laws and Ortlinancea which ire is 3lecoory relation with it. TILE ENGLISH AT BIARRITZ. Among the sojourners at Biarritz may be seen many English as well as Russians and Germans. Some of these gentlemen seem to have visited the place for the purpose of displaying queer coats and impossible pantaloons, making their appearance each day in a garment more and more " stunning " and outre. A young Englishman especially dis tinguishes himself in this respect, and one wonders where he ever contrived to find the stuffs out of which he has had the extraordinary clothes made that he daily produces. All day long he effectually succeeds in attracting more than a usual share ofpub lic attention, and seems but the more happy from the fact. I have, says a correspondent, the honour of stopping at the same house as this distinguished personage, and find daily amusement at mealtime in noticing his manner. He is evidently thoroughly the cockney, and looks with suspicion upon French politics and French food. He utterly condemns, when first arrived at the table, all that he sees, and audibly refers to a London tavern and beefsteaks. Still he has bathed, inhaled the healthy sea breeze, and has consequently got an enormous ap petite. Little by little his scruples seem to vanish, and at last he goes in with a relish that is quite refreshing to see. But the appetite satisfied, he again has recourse to his eve-glass, and again his comments are, to say the feast, not flattering. And so on each day he finds fault, and then eats and drinks to find fault again. As for the young ladies that claim Old England as their home, I can say better things for them. They run about the cliffs gay and healthy, and looking most captivat ing in their light summer dresses, and hat and feathers. These same hats are, by-the-bye, much worn here ; in fact, they are the fashion now, as the Empress always has one on. The gentlemen call them " Come and kiss me if you dare." CRYSTAL PALACE.—The comet has been particu larly noticeable from the grounds and terraces of the Crystal Palace for the last two evenings. Last evening the pecu liar clearness of the atmos_phere tempted a party of astrono mical enthusiasts to spend some hours in observations on the top of one of the Water Towers: Nothing could ex ceed the favouring circumstances under which their obser vations were made, and, should the present favourable weather continue, they anticipate repeating and confirming their calculations. CHANGE IN A BANKING FIR:II.—A circular has just been issued by Messrs. Pease , of Hull, bankers, of the firm of Pease and Liddell, announcing that Mr. G. W. M. Liddell, and Mr. William Liddell have ceased to be part ners in the banking establishuient carried on at Hull, under the firm of Pease and Liddells, and at Beverley, under the firm of Marshall, Pease, and Liddells, and that they have taken into partnership Mr. Francis Hoare (brother of Mr. John Gurney Hoare and Mr. Joseph. Hoare, of the firm o f Barnett, Hoares, and Co., of London, bankers), and Mr. Arthur Burton Pease • and the banks willhe carried o n a t Hull under : the firm of ? " Peases, Hoare, and Pease," and Dcycriey uuder twit of Pewee, INVULNERABLE SHIPS. The following letter has been addressed to the editor of the Times : Sir,—l have seen an article in your paper of the 25th on the subject of the vaisseau belier (ram ship), about to be built at Cherbourg, and said to be the invention of the Emperor Louis Napoleon. As the description of this vessel is thus made public, and exactly corresponds, even in name, with that pro posed by me during the late Russian war,. I can have now no hesitation in giving you the following details upon the question. On seeing the steam shot-proof batteries built for that war it struck me, as I have no doubt it must have struck many others, that if the Russians were to construct secretly at Cronstadt or Sebastopol three or four vessels upon the same priniciple, but adding to their invulnera bilityand weight strength and speed, these vaisseaux beliers would be able to sink by a blow several of the allied line-of-battle ships, if unprepared for this mode of attack, and so give the Russians a fatal numerical superiority over us. Having received permission from Sir Charles Wood to communicate to the French Minister any suggestions on the naval campaign then going on, I wrote both to M. de Pcrsigny and to Sir Charles Wood, warning them of the possibility of such a danger occurring as that which I have just described, and calling the vessel the " shot-proof steam ram." I refer you for further details to the accompanying document, the substance of my communications with Sir C. Wood on the subject. As the Emperor Napoleon gave the first hint of the vaisseau belier by sug gesting the shot-proof steam battery, his Majesty is therefore the cause of depriving Cherbourg of much of its menacing character as a military harbour, and of making, probably, the noble ships we have seen assembled there under both flags worse than useless for futlire wars. The two classes of vessels cannot be used together. I am, Sir, your obedient servant, ' G. R. SARTORIU, Vice-Admiral. London, Aug. 30. " London, May 14. " Allow me to bring to your notice an engine of war which would not only set our lame Steamers at liberty to carry out the so-much-required troops to India, but which must prove far more efficient for home defences than any vessel of the present construction. " ~ The project I shall now lay before you was first communicated to the Admiralty during the Rus sian war, and again more in detail in March, 1857. Its practicability is borne out by the opinions of the majority of our most eminent civil and military engineers, machinists, and shipbuilders. The fre quent instances of vessels- being run into by steamers, the destructive effects of the collision upon the vessel receiving the blow, the compara tive immunity of that which gives it even when the latter has been the smaller and the lighter, and the practicability of rendering vessels shot-proof (as tested during the war in the case of the floating batteries), suggested to me the possibility and desirableness of constructing a vessel combining the qualities of the shot-proof battery with those of the rapid steamer, whose invulnerability, handiness, and strength should enable her to expose herself with impunity to the guns of the most heavily armed man-of-war, and who by her weight and speed might run into and sink any ship. " This war engine, which I shall call the steam ram,' would require but a very small complement of men,—not more, perhaps, than one-sixth that of a ship of war of the same tonnage, and might be built in any form adapted to the service, and upon any lines best calculated for speed and quickness of turning, with ample engine power to overtake any ship however perfectly built upon the present con struction. My notion is that the steam ram should have stem or stern (for each is either) of the same form, and at each end a massive projecting prow or rostrum by means of which the blow is to be given, the projectionbeing sufficient to protect the rudder from injury, and the prow having shoulders to pre vent the possibility of its too deep insertion. The extremes being of the same shape, there would be a screw propeller at each end, thus doubling the means of propulsion, whether for backing, going ahead, or turning ; moreover, the vessel would be less likely to be disabled. " The object for which she is most expressly designed is, that of crushing in the side or bow of an enemy by her beak ; but she would also be formidable in disabling a retreating enemy by destroying the rudder. The deck may have three towers for the purpose of navigation and observa tion when in the presence of an enemy, and also to eject boiling water on an enemy's boarders. I believe that not only can the requisite speed and handiness be obtained, but so much more as to leave the vessels I contemplate at liberty to carry a few guns of heavy calibre, so enabling them to act against towns and batteries, as well as by their proper action to destroy ships afloat. " There need be no limit to size or tonnage, but in my opinion 2,500 tons would be the most effec tive and convenient. A steam ram of that size could have at least 20 guns of the heaviest calibre, from which might be fired not only solid shot, but percussion shells and (to timber vessels the still more dangerous missiles) shells laden with molten iron, which explode on striking the vessel. The shell becoming red-hot in the transit, and the molten iron running about the deck or between the timbers, sets fire to the ship, or whatever com bustible matter it meets with, while upon the steam ram no shell makes any impression. The spaces required for all the appliances and appurtenances of these shells is about 10 feet square, and can be so secured as to preclude all possibility of danger to the ship using them ; at the same time that a steam ram is sinking a ship by a blow she may be also firing at any vessel within her range. Mr. Perkins informs me he can fit the principle of his steam gun to shot of any size. French and English ex periments have repeatedly proved that the 68- pounder shot fired against the 4-inch iron plate at 400* yards, although making a deep * dent, never goes through, though the plate cracks and pieces fall off after repeated shots. It must be remem bered that in these experiments the shot is fired in a manner most favourable for the action of the shot ; but in actual service, the shot striking the steam ram would be more or less oblique, and glance off.t Steel plate is found to have a power of resistance over the best iron plate as six to four, consequently without having more weight, a third more protec tion is given by the use of steel plate. " Every one accustomed to the use of artillery at sea knows how few shots can take effect when both parties are in rapid and eccentric movement. If the ship should haul up to get her broadside guns to bear on the attacking steam-ram the latter re ceives the fire on her fest point—her! bows, the shot glances off, and she rapidly closes. If the ship runs and fires her stern guns, the shot still glance harmlessly off, while those from the steam ram (shot or shell) are doing their work with full effect ; therefore either by her fire or her blow the enemy must be destroyed. The defects of the cracking and ultimately falling off of the bits of broken plate, the result of repeated blows on the same place, can be guarded against by various means; among others by the very simple one of casing the iron or steel side with strong planking. " Let us suppose a fleet of our ships of the size of our Wellingtons and Alberts conveying large bodies of troops met by only two of these steam rams, the latter, to make the work shorter, and surer, reserving their attack until the darkness of night. The steam-ram, comparatively low in the water, and masts lower down , eff ects a rapid and almost unperceived approach, the first intimation the larger ship would rec,ueinvecoouflatlbiee proximity fired, or that g her enemy, and before a man,an, i d h s e im st u ea ta m nc r o a u m s N i V s it u h po t n he u c s ry r o sh f ip the b l e o 3 O r k he o r u h t her side, bow, or stern would be crushed, no lives could bersaved under such circumstances, and the entire dispersion or destruction of the whole convey becomes inevitable. "Imagine one or more steam-rams provided with heavy guns or projectiles entering Portsmouth, Plymouth, the Thames, or any other port of the British islands, what precaution_gould be taken or what mode of defence extemporised against such a force ? Having suggested the feasibility of an attack upon our ports and harbours by such vessels it may be well to remark that all the parts may be secretly prepared and rapidly put together. Simul taneously with a declaration of war these vessels might be devastating our coasts, destroying our military and commercial n av i es , and burning our maritime cities, unless we are prep are d w ith s i m il ar el the m. , engines rroa t l o o n id ie p et ro a l i i i x d it i y 7 havel t entered into any obviously required details, but I believe none exist which any intelligent sailor or constructor could not readily supply. Nor do I presume to think that I have devised the best form and disposition for the vessel, it being enough for my purpose to show that the conception and execution of so for midable a machine is perfectly simple and prac ticable. Moreover, the change is inevitable ; the employment of shot-proof batteries and the result of collisions between steamers and other vessels must lead to a combination, which is too simple and " In the Portsmouth experiment the steel used was too brittle and only three inches thick, and did not stand as well asthe iron. Sheets of iron and sheets of steel may be rolled together, one cogive strength, the other tenacity." t "The experiments just made at Portsmo4th, hayo beeA within 100 yards, aucl WLt OA game result," . self-evident to be long confined to one mind or to one nation. _ _ " I have not thought it necessary to show by es timate or argument that such a vessel as above de scribed may be built and maintained in active ser vice at less expense than a ship of war of the same tonnage and ordinary construction, not only because it is obvious, but because, were it otherwise, the steam-ram must be preferred as an engine of war to vessels of the present -form; as they would be perfectly useless when opposed to it. They ought 01 , to have fore and aft sails for cruising or steadying the vessel, and the masts must be made to lower down on tabernacles when required. " The adaptation of the description of war en gines above described will necessarily produce the following inevitable results : " 1. It renders all timber-built vessels utterly useless for war, except as transports, or packet, or messenger vessels, which could trust to extraordi nary velocity for safety. " 2. An invasion of the British Islands is next to an impossibility if protected by such vessels. " 3. In combination with the Electric Submarine Telegraph, these vessels render all the expensive coastworks, military and naval, now in progress, almost, if not altogether useless, and demand a. totally new system for coast defences. "4. To avoid the wholesale destruction of life otherwise inevitable . (for these vessels, which by their construction, mode of fighting, and limited space, cannot make prisoners) an international law would require to be acknowledged that would regu late the mode of treating and considering their cap tures. " All the causes which have heretofore led to the supremacy of the British on the ocean are equally effective in the new system as in the old. " 6 G. R. SARTORIUS, Vice-Admiral. " You can easily conceive how comparatively unimportant Cherbourg become as a military port if attacked by vessels of the class here described. The breakwater having deep water close to it the fortifications built on it could be thrown down by laying ships loaded with powder close under the ports and exploding them. But these observations are for ourselves. " September 10. " G. R. S." DOCK EXTENSION ON THE LANCA SHIRE SIDE OF THE MERSEY.. After a discussion of unparalleled duration, the dock board resolved last March, on the motion of Mr. Rankin, the chairman of the works committee, that, as soon as convenient after the session of Parlia ment just now ended, it would resolve itself into a committee for the purpose of considering plans of dock improvement and extension on the entire pro perty of the trust, on the Lancashire side of the Mersey, and the time and order in which it is de sirable those improvements should commence, due regard being had therein to the financial condition of the trust. The latter words of caution were inserted to meet the objections of Mr. Bushell, who feared. the prudence, and questioned the necessity, of going to Parliament for powers to make more docks on the Liverpool side, when Birkenhead would eventually add 100 acres to the dock space of the port, nearly doubling the existing area ; and whilst the surplus revenue of the trust would be so small as not to warrant a large expenditure on the Lan cashire shores. Mr. Bushell, at that time, indicated that the best mode of relieving the pressure on the Liverpool docks was to secure an extension of the Customs working hours ; to limit more narrowly the lay days of ships in dock, and to facilitate the loading and discharging of vessels. Already Mr. Bushell has secured a committee to investigate the question of an extension of the Customs hours ; and it is generally thought that, so far as duty paid goods are concerned, an extension of the working hours will be conceded by the Board of Customs. This will necessitate the employment of more officers at Liverpool ; and we learn that that will not entail further expense on the country, for it is contemplated dispensing with the services of one landing surveyor, two landing waiters, and some clerks, in the establishment at Hull, where the quantity of free goods is enormous, whilst that of duty-paid goods is comparatively small. But though an extension of the Customs hours might do a great deal towards alleviating the pressure on the Liver pool docks, and though Birkenhead may, and pro bably will to a great extent participate in the ship ping of the port, yet it should not* be forgotten that hitherto the trade of the Mersey has increased at the rate of five per cent. annually, doubling itself every fourteen years. Mr. Rankin estimates that it will go on increasing at the rate of 3 per cent. annually, and that it will double itself in 20 years. With the opening up of China, and the dis covery of gold in British Columbia, there must be an immense increase in trade, 'and probably Mr.. Rankin was not too sanguine in his estimate of the future. Within the last fortnight several applica tions for dock accommodation for the . railway and canal companies have been made to the dock board ; and thus, taking all circumstances into account, it is not unreasonable to suppose that the commercial public will approve the resolution of the board to give, this very important subject their serious consideration. Mr. Hubback, admitting that the crying evil at present was the want of water on the Liverpool side, whilst at Birkenhead there is to be six feet more water than we have here, rejoiced at the prospect of the completion of the Birkenhead works, so that large vessels arriv ing in the Mersey at neap tides will be able to dock and discharge their cargoes immediately- But he pointed out the great fact that the cost of land belonging to the trust, and paid for, on this side of the river, andnot yet appropnated, amounted to half a million sterling, and then asked whether this . was to lie dormant, bringing scarcely any revenue, . until the Birkenhead docks were com pleted. Mr: Eyre Evans, who has been a bene factor to the port in his unflinching efforts to con nect the warehouse and dock systems, is an earnest advocate for a dock on the Harrington estate, and. will doubtless, on Thursday week, when Mr. Rankin's motion' shall come forward for dis cussion, enforce the prudence of acting up to an act of Parliament already in existence for the construe tion of a dock on the Harrington property - - :Mr , ' Mackay, until recently a member of the board, drew attention to the fact that what was wanted at this port was deep water accommodation, and said no doubt his firm would send their large Australian fleet there, which would save an enormous expense at present incurred by them in loading the ships in the stream. Mr. Arnold confessed himself no great advocate for Birkenhead ; but when he found that there was to be more water there than at Liver pool, by six feet, lie was constrained to admit that it would be a reflection on the community upon this side if they did not avail themselves of that accommodation. On the other hand, Mr. Smith contended that the question was a merchant's ques tion, for that, where the best market was, there would the ships go. At the same time he professed. himself no enemy to Birkenhead, and desired to see the Birkenhead docks constructed as speedily as possible. Mr. Laird, however, took a different view of the matter, and contended that'no new docks should be constructed in Liverpool, but that the system of working the existing docks should be improved. To show that Birkenhead was increas ing in value as a shipping place, and in answer to the assertion that trade could not go there, he said :—" In 1851, the coal trade done there was 70,000 tons; in 1857 it was 214,000.. The mahogany trade for the last seven years was 100,009 tons, of which Liverpool had 60,000, and Birkenhead 40,000 tons. The railway traffic in 1849 Wag 73,000 tons per annum, and last year it was 695,000. I merely name these facts to show that with all the disadvantages of Liverpool, as a com peting port, the trade of Birkenhead has steadily gone on increasing, according to the average of the docks we learn,s nowe maybe n The be, decisionv e e nearly ly y m u a as on hmn guidedu eh as ir .i a upn b ky a the: knowledge o Liver pooltedlogn of the extent to which firms now using the Liver pool docks may transfer their ships to the deep water docks at Birkenhead. Mr. Inman, agent of the very splendid line of screw steamships to the United States, told the dock board, last March, that he could not go to Birkenhead with his ships ; and he had it from the lips of Mr. M'lver, of the Bri tish and North American Royal Mail Steam-packet Company, that the ships of that line would not go to the Cheshire docks. In this Mr. Inman was con firmed by Mr. Rounthwaite, but we have heard, on what would be • considered unquestionable au thority, that the Cunard steamers will go to Birkenhead, when the deep-water en trances are completed, in preference to using the Sloyne, where, of course, they are much more liable to receive injuries than they would be in dock. It is hinted, too, that the Australian trade will go to Birkenhead for the same reason, and that the heavier grain-laden ships from the. United States will follow ; for it is a notorious fact that the New York liners, when unable to dock for want of water, lie in the river, and the cargoes re ceive considerable damage. Lack of railway accommodation has been urged against the Birken head people ; but we hear that in the next session they are going for the construction of a line round the docks and a branch line at Helsby, which will reduce the distance between Birkenhead and Man chester by ten miles. There is a very large number of considerations entering into the settlement of this question, and as these are not yet fully de veloped, it would be unfair to prejudge the ques tion. And all that we can do is to bespeak, for a question of such magnitude, the calm, careful, and deliberate consideration of the dock board, than which, probably, there is no body in the town more competent to treat the matter on broad comprehen sive principles, and to give a just, wise, and eu" lightoncd clecitiicon.--.Daly kVA Per hole con don Inn] e`•e. tO ne Co ha on de] tal fes des at rat into mei be : mai pro bees shol : Agr • 3 pe] Indi Ditt Ditt Ditt Con Exo Ditt Ditt Ditt Bra: Grey Me 3 Pen RUE San Spa: D Spa: Tur Ven do., An do., load full arc play I thal lb.,