The Sun. — London, England, 1858-10-18 00:00:00

THE NAVY. ePreparations are in active progress for launching the 91 gunship. Edgar at Woo%rich. The bulk head'ef the Mulling slip under which she was built his been removed, her anchors shipped, and most ample preparations have been carried out for the aeeqlmodation of visitors. A platform has been erected under the stern of the vessel, where the eirentony of naming will take place, for the assem blage of about 1,000 persons. The launch is to take place on the 31st instant. ,Thesteam - -vessels Locust, Lieutenant-Commander J. B. Field; the Lizard, tender to the Waterloo, Lieutenant-Commander Edward E. Maunsell ; the Myrtle, Master-Commander William S. Bourchier ; aid the Monkey, Second Master in command Reu ben Harvey, on Saturday morning embarked the North Cork Rifle Militia at the ordnance camber at- Sheerness. There was a dense log at the time, and the vessels had not proceeded far, when a col lision took place between the Lizard and the Wild fire (Admiral's tender). by which both vessels received damage. Neither of the vessels would have left until the clearing up of the fog, had it not been for the necessity of the Cork Rifles being at Strood station in order to save the train for Alder shott that night. They succeeded in arriving at the Strood station at about 11 a.m., • when the Rifles proceeded to Aldershott. The Monkey after wards brought 120 Royal Artillery from Woolwich for duty at Sheerness garrison. The gunboat Biter, X. Blair Grove, Lieutenant- Commander, and the gunboat Leveret, Annesley Denham Lieutenant in command, arrived at Sheer ness on Saturday at 7.30 p.m., last from Hull, both these vessels having been cruising between St. Abb's Head and Hull for the protection of the British fisheries. We are informed that the greatest unanimity prevailed between the French and Eng lish fishermen, each party having held inviolate the convention between her Majesty and the Emperor of the French as it regarded their fishing grounds. During the fishing season from 250 to 300 French fishing vessels have been at work at the same time and during the whole season onlytwoFrench luggers have been taken into a British port for violatin t ,c the con vention. On the Biter and Leveret leaving the station Lieutenant-Commander J. Blair Grove, senior in command, received a letter in the name of the Eng lish masters and crews of the fishing vessels, thank ing him aid Lieutenant Denham, their officers and crews, for the services they had rendered them during the season. During their cruising these vessels have experienced very severe weather. The Prussian frigate Gefion, 44, Captain Donner, from the eastward, arrived at Plymouth Sound on Thursday, and was saluted by the Citadel and by the flag-ship Impregnable, in Hamoaze. On Fn day, the birthday of his Majesty the King of Prus sia, she hoisted the national flag at the main, a compliment which was observed by Admiral Fre mantle's squadron and all ships in commission in the port. At 12 o'clock they greeted the flag with a Royal salute. Mr. James Ward, chief clerk in the Storekeeper's office at Sheerness, has been superannuated on £340 per , annum, his full-pay being £450 as a first class clerk. . Her Majesty's steam-vessel Teazer, Lieutenant- Commander Charles J. Wrey, from the West Coast of Africa, was on Saturday inspected at Woolwich by,Commodore Shepherd, when the crew were put through the usual exercise at quarters. The Com modore expressed himself highly pleased with the neat and orderly state of the ship throughout. The ship's company were in a tolerably healthy condi- A,couple of men were removed to the Royal Marine Infirmary, suffering from the fever peculiar to ifiiit station. The Teazer is to be paid off about Friday next. During her three and a half-years' commission on the coast of Africa she has hoisted three pennants. The Teazer has captured three valuable prizes in Slavers. In consequence of - the disturbances at Sheerness, the-Bustler, Master-Commander Syndercombe, was on, Saturday ordered to drop_ down to the Royal Arsenal Pier, at WoOlwich, in readiness to embark a company of the 12th - battalion Royal Artillery for the reinforcement of that garrison. The orders were, however subsequently countermanded. The extraordinary perfection attained in locomo tive steam power, as evinced by the success of Bray's traction engine, in daily operation in Wool wich Dockyard, has attracted a high degree of in terest. A number of five-horse power engines, pos sessing extra speed to the one new in use, are in course of construction by Messrs. R. and F. Hughes, of New Cross, for Keyham and other yards, as well as one for Barcelona of 8-horse power, one of equal power for Western Australia; one for agricultural experiments in Leicestershire, one for a mercantile firm in the city, and others for the Cape of Good Hope, South America, &c. THE AB3IY. -Major-General Peel, Secretary of State for War, is expected to visit the camp at Colchester in the course of the present week. Orders were issued on Saturday for alternate companies of the different regiments of Guards to proceed monthly to the'eamp at Aldershot for rifle practice. On Saturday orders were issued for further rein forcements of draughts of regiments serving in India, to the number of 1,200, to be held ready to embark the first week in November. All these troops will proceed to India via the Cape of Good Hope. Detachments left the camp at Colchester last week to the extent of seven officers and 356 rank and file for service in India. The destination of the d3tach ments is Calcutta. The-draughts were drawn from the following regiments :—Two officers and 40 rank andfile, sth ; one officer and 23 rank and file, 6th ; one officer and 60 rank and file, 34th ; 25 rank and file, , 37th ; 20 rank and file, 38th ; two officers and 60 rank and file, 54th ; one officer and 50 rank and file, 56th ; 38 rank and file, 88th ; and 40 rank and file, 91th. The entire battalion of the Chatham division of Royal Marine Light Infantry were on Friday marched to the square at the rear of the barracks, agreeably to garrison orders for the purpose of wit nessing the infliction of corporal punishment on Private Samuel Smith, attached to the 25th com pany, who had been tried by district court-martial and found guilty of the serious offence of having assaulted a non-commissioned officer of the battalion by striking him a violent blow in the face with his clenched fist, and afterwards breaking out of Melville Hospital, in which he was a prisoner patient awaiting his trial by court-martial. The Court found the prisoner guilty, and, in considera tion of his general character having been bad since he has been in the division, sentenced him to re ceive 50 lashes;:and also to be imprisoned in the military prison at Fort Clarence for 84 days. The battalion having been formed into a square, the sen tence passed on the prisoner was read to the troops by -Adjutant Elliot, when the prisoner wa s imme diately fastened to the halberds and the punishment inflicted in the usual manner. Tne prisoner was afterwards removed to Melville Hospital, and in a few days will be sent to Fort Clarence to undergo the remainder of his sentence. The infliction of corporal punishment is of very , rare occurrence in the Chatham division of Royal Marines. Clif Saturday morning a telegraphic message from the Admiralty was received at the head-quarters of the . Chatham division of the Royal Marine Light Infantry, directing the immediate embarkation of the - detachment of officers and men ordered the pre vious day to be held in readiness to proceed to Sheerness. Within an hour after the receipt of the order the required number of officers and men marched to the dockyard, preceded by the divisional band, and embarked on board two steamers that had arrived from Sheerness for their conveyance. The number of Marines that left head-quarters were 8 sergeants, 2 buglers, and 190 rank and file, to gether with the following officers, viz. :—Li eu t.- Col. W. H. March, Captains G. B. Heasby an d J . H. Parry, and Lieutenants W. Taylor, A. C. J. M‘Meekan, J. R. Mascall, and J. Cairncross. The sum realised by the grand military bazaar which was held at Chatham garrison on Thuriday and Friday, in aid of the funds of the Association for Improving the Condition of the Wives and Families of Soldiers and Sailors, exceeds £3BO, which amount, after deducting the expenses in curred, will be handed over to the committee of the association. Since the hop-picking and harvest operations have been brough . t to a close recruiting is proceed ing very briskly in the several recruiting districts, the number of men enlisting being at the rate of about 1,500 per week, which number is steadily in creasing. Blueing the past - week nearly 300 recruits have been received at Chatham alone chiefly from the London, Bristol, and Liverpool dis tricts, the whole , of whom have been draughted into the East India di spots attached to the three batta lions of infantry at that garrison. The recruits are for the most part a finer body of men than have been enlisted for some time past, and will make excellent troops far India. MILITIA. n The Lancashixe Militia Artillery, stationed at , A o sPort, iS undo m orders to proceed to Dover on Monday next. The Hamshi I re Mi l i t i a Art ill ery, s t a ti one d at Gosport, will pri )ceed to Plymouth on Monday next, 4nd will be reigaced by the Waterford Militia Artillery. NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE PROMOTION OF SOCIAL SCIENCE. LIVERPOOL, OCT. 16. This morning the concluding meeting of the con gress was held in the Concert Theatre—Lord J. RUSSELL presiding. The noble lord announced that the Lord Chan cellor of Ireland had not been able to obtain the Government document necessary to his leaving Ire land in time to attend the meetmg, but he had sent his paper, which he (Lord John) would now read. The paper was read as follows : THE IRISH LORD CHANCELLOR'S ADDRESS. ' a.. . In proceeding to open the section of jurispru dence, I have gratefully to acknowledge the honour conferred upon me by the committee in selecting me to be president of this, the first department of soeial science. The place which has been assigned to jurisprudence cannot but magnify mine office; it assuredly furnishes a conclusive and crowning tes timony in favour of a separate and responsible de partment of administration for the affairs of public 4 ustice. You are aware of the address to her Ma jesty the Queen, which, by the judicious and effi cient support I received from the noble lord, the president of this association, was caried in 1857, by a unanimous resolution of the House of Commons, and to which a very favourable reply was promptly returned to the house—a reply most gracious and truly responsive, but there the movement ceased. Lord Bacon has wisely observed that " propositions have wings, but operation and execution have leaden feet." We must melt them, if they will not move. The same great authority has said that " the establishing of good laws makes a whole nation to be a well-ordered college or foundation." It is there fore a matter of great public consevence that our laws should be kept in harmony with the progres sive spirit of this free nation ; they ought to bear the impress of the age in which we live, and be truly worthy of the public justice of a wise and un derstanding people. The progress of a people in the great onward movement of humanity might be supposed to lead to the reduction rather than to the increase of their laws ; it might be expected that men would be constrained by laws written in their minds and hearts, so as to dispense with many po sitive commands and prohibitions. Thisis relatively true. But, on the other hand, the conventional ar rangements of a growing civilisation call for the frequent interference of authority, and in meeting the demands of new CombinatiOns of society, and in adapting the ancient laws to the growing wants of an inventive age, a great work is to be done in the department of jurisprudence, a work worthy of being well and. wisely done ; not to be done at any time under sudden pressure or impulse, for then it may ' be ill-considered and improvident; nor ever to be done in the niggard spirit of a stingy concession, for then it may rather minister to discontent than to social improvement. It must be done generously, efficiently, and responsibly. The present chaotic condition of our laws, I must, at the outset, say is a grave reproach to so great a nation. In saying this I do not mean to suggest that we have not good laws ; on the contrary, I am satisfied that we have many which are not unworthy of their connec tion with that universal law so beautifully described by . Hooker—" Her seat is in the bosom of God, her voice the harmony of the world." And let me say further, and I say it with a thankful and hopeful spirit, that in the last 30 years much, very much, has been done in the great work of law amendment; in the repeal of obsolete and apocryphal enactments ; the improvement of judicial procedure, both by in creasing the speed and reducing the cost of obtain ing justice ; in the establishment of local courts, and the awakening public attention to the gradual im provement of our entire system of jurisprudence. Much of this has been brought about by the energy of those master spirits (I speak both of the living and dead), not ministers, but high-priests of justice; men who, in the good providence of God, have been raised up from time to time, and have imparted liv ing power and loftier views, and clearer intelligence to public opinion ; to that which, in the end, must test and discriminate, and separate the true from the false, reject what is unsuited for immediate use, but absorb what is in keeping with the Sensus Com munis-7-that nourishes the real life and accords with the inherent laws which govern the progressive de velopment of society. Of these master-spirits one is here amongst us, Henry, Lord Brougham ; and if I say of him in this place what I have said of him in the House of Commons, it is because this is stereotyped in the deep conviction of my heart. He has sped his eagle flight against the dazzling blaze of science with an eye that never winks, a wing that never tires, an eye not dim, nor his natural force abated ; with - all the honours of his long and useful life, in which he has won so many battles in the cause of jurisprudence, we have him now, with the unabated energy of youth and the natural expe rience of age, helping forward the work of this great National Association, Prcesentes tibi viventi, largimur honores. The business of this section is directly connected with the improvement of our laws—their amendment, their administration, under our judicial system ; and as there are certain subjects of great practical importance which have obtained, as I may say, a right of pre-audience, I think I may properly and with advantage proceed to direct your thoughtful attention to one or two of these that are peculiarly interesting to us at the present time. In the last session an act was passed for constituting in Ireland the new court, to be called the Landed Estates Court. In the year 1849, under the auspices of our noble pre sident, the Encumbered Estates Court was estab lished. In 1852, the present Lord Justice of Appeal, whose practical wisdom and sound sense may well be classed with a high order of genius, came to the conclusion that it was not only anomalous but un just to withhold from a decretal title in the case of a sale of land under the order of the Court of Chancery, the conclusive character which has been given to a sale under the order of the Encumbered Estates Court. A bill was subsequently introduced by the present Attorney-General for Ireland and myself to give effect to this opinion, which has had to go through the stages and seasons of seed time, growth, ripening, and reaping—but at last, the recent act of the Attorney-General for Ireland —" monumentum sere perennius"— hasprovided " a local habitation and a name" for a court in which every owner of land in Ireland may have his title certified and. made indefeasible. An admirable code of procedure for the working of this court has already been prepared, and I believe it will furnish a satisfactory solution of the difficult question which has for some time attracted public attention, viz., how to simplify the transfer of land, with complete security of title, and without disturbing the settled foundations of property. This is a subject upon which we can now happily bring together the teaching of knowledge and the testimony of expe rience. We have thoroughly tested the working of the system now stereotyped in Ireland, and we have the valuable and elaborate report of the recent commission for England, which was presided over by my esteemed friend and colleague, Mr. Walpole, under whose watchful superintendence and by whose assiduity the report was completed. In deal. ing with the laws of property in a country whose social system is consecrated to order and freedom, we must proceed with cautious circumspection. It is', doubtless, an easy matter to talk vaguely on making land a commercial commodity, and dealing with broad acres as with bales of merchandise. The practical solution is quite another matter. The question was put to Lord St. Leonards when he at tended as dwitness before a committee of the House of Commons, of which I was the chairman. He was asked by a very zealous reformer, " Why can't you deal with land as with railway shares ?" "So you may," replied his lordship, " if you choose to ignore all the uses'of land in our social system, blitifthese are to be presorved,the difference and the difficulty exist in the distinctive nature and use of the things compared." In truth, the common course of society fuinishes the most intelligible explanation. When itidustly or providence has accumulated capital, an investment in land is generally sought, not for commercial gain, but for social repose—for the position and the privileges whi c h belong to fixed property. Land has its local limits ; it is not capable of extension. Comm its Commerce is co-exte ns i ve with the wide world. Land has its system of tenan cies, its various easements, subordinate estates and interests, its incumbrances and charges, its local duties which accompany its acquired rights. Its code of laws is more or less incorporated with the delicate arrangements of family life. Is there any subject which ought to be touched with a more cautious hand ? Can we then preserve the settled uses of property, and yet provide liberally, in the present exigencies of society, for the wants which arise out of the c h anges w h ic h naturally, if not ne cessarily, result from the increase of commerce and the growth of manufacturing industry ? Can this be done safely and satisfactorily ? Tne legislature has already conceded to railway companies the right to purchase land, and render their title indefeasible by lodging the purchase money in a eourt of equity. The notoriety of the transaction and the supervi sion of the court were supposed to be a sufficient security for the rights of persons not p r i v y t o th e sale. Public convenience thus required, and the Legislature thus conceded, what has become a Par liamentary title. Again, in Ireland it became a mat ter of great public policy to have encumbered estates purchased by solvent proprietors, who might be ex pectedrght s oftoproperty, discharge and therefore it was of great con se -pence in each case of a sale to clear the title and free the property from its charges. This led to the gradual formation of a su it a bl e p roce d ure , by means of which titles were subjected to a sufficient scrutiny, to enable the final conveyance to be made with an in defeasible title, and this has been f oun d t o b e as sa f © 'in practice as it was desirable in theory. The con- e 1! T. o'N THE _SUN, _LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, OCTOBER 18, 1858. veyance is simple in its form and conclusive in its essence. The actual working of the system was the subject of special inquiry before a very competent commission of learned men of both countries, and afterwards before the select committee of the House of Commons in 1856, by both of which it was re commended that the principle and the procedure should be extended to the sale of unencumbered estates. One further step was needed, namely, to include the case of persons not seeking a present sale but to whom it might be a benefit to obtain a judicial declaration of good title, which might be registered, and so made indefeasible. This step has at last been taken by the recent act. This class of titles will be subjected to the same process of in quiry and to the same publicity as in the case of a sale ; and although this was considered by some as a bold advance, yet, when it is remembered how the former act was. evaded in order to bring unen cumbered properties within its operation, in order to obtain a benefit which adds about 4 years' pur chase to the marketable price ; when it must be ad mitted to be essentially unjust, and therefore im politic, to depreciate to this extent property not actually in the market, but the owners of which may at any time have occasion to sell or to mort gage, when the delay in obtaining an indefeasible title might not only be inconvenient but injurious • and as evasions by colourable sales to trustees with secret trusts would be resorted to to bring cases within the letter of the act, it may be now conceded that the plain, straightforward course was the best, to include all withm the plain:provisions of the new law. By the imposition of a very moderate duty, regulated according to a graduated scale, a fund will be realised, which, together with the in vestment of other moneys that would otherwise be unproductive, will render this court not only a per manent boon to the landed- interest, but a benefit instead of a burden to the consolidated fund. This has grown out of a kind of bankruptcy code for landed estates, and this naturally leads to the subject which has specially , occupied the atten tion of this section, I allude to the proposed amendment of the English bankruptcy law. It does seem to be most desirable to attain to the utmost practicable uniformity in the laws of com merce, and to begin with the attempt to assimi late the commercial law of the United Kingdom. It may be that this must await the formation of a department for the affairs of justice ; and for the present we must make the most of the materials at our disposal. In bankruptcy we have a sepa rate code in each of the three countries. I am happy to say that the new code recently constructed for Ireland works satisfactorily. In the last report of the Chamber of Commerce of the City of Dublin it is stated that the new law, " under the able and judicious administration of the court, has proved of the most important advantage to the public. Under its operation the expenses of bankruptcy have been considerably lessened, the proceedings of the court have been expedited, the power of the selfish cre ditor has been curtailed:;" and the report adds that just provision has been made both for relieving the unfortunate and punishing the dishonest and reck less trader. There are still difficulties to be over come in checkmating fraud and contrivance, and calling in aid the intervention of official duty where private interest cannot be brought into efficient ac tion. But as we must proceed upon the facts of your own actual requirements in England, and as I am rather disposed to be a listener than a lecturer on the English code, with which I am not familiar, I will reserve for the discussion to-morrow such hints as have been supplied by the very competent and esteemed judge of the Irish Bankruptcy Court, whose administration of the bankrupt law for so many years has so much contributed to its efficient working. I come now to a subject in which I have for some time felt a great interest—the consolidation and amendment of our criminal laws. Commission after commission has reported, select committees have inquired, a code has been digested, bills have been proposed—a succession of dissolving views before Parliament and the country. But I am bound in common justice to say that much has thus been done in preparing and providing, in separat ing and classifying most valuable and available materials, which are now ready for the builder's use. A great work had been done by the late Sir R. Peel in reducing to order and system the chaos of criminal law. His acts for England were followed up by corresponding acts for Ireland, with fewer variations ; and the criminal statutes of a later period are generally imperial. It is of the very highest policy to assimilate the law of England and Ireland to the utmost practicable extent ; and as the legal scavenger and the rubbish cart must be freely employed m cleansing and clearing the statute book, for Ireland as for England, it is not too much to expect that any plan of consolidation and amendment which Parliament may adopt and the country may sanction will remove all the rubbish, and make use of the best mate rials which can be selected from the statutes of either country, in order to construct an imperial code for the common benefit of both. In thus deal ing at this time with the construction of the code of criminal law, we may test the practicability of further assimilation. It may become a question for Parliament to decide, by resolution or otherwise authoritavely, in which form the work should be done to render it finally acceptable. Some earnestly contend for repeating in the new law the very words of the old enactments, with all the jargon of the Old Bailey. Others more rationally suggest that a new code should be framed, in the most exact but plain language ; what was doubtful should be made clear, what was defective should be supplied ; and, for this purpose, we should turn to account authentic judicial decisions ; in a word, that we should avail ourselves of all the light and all the information within our power to command, and use our best efforts to make the law consistent with' the present state of opinion, and to have ex pressed with grammatical accuracy, and as a model for the consolidation and amendment of the entire of our statute law. I must say, I am entirely of this opinion, and am prepared to defend and to enforce it whenever called upon to do so. It is high time to be- delivered from the bond age of such mischievous, because unjust, classifica tion of crime as felony and misdemeanour, and all the kindred verbiages. Why should we have the most important differences in the procedure for the trial of a felony, which is in substance a misde meanour, and of a misdemeanour, which is in sub stance a felony, if by these terms we designate the essence of the crime ? And if we do not, why is the obsolete and unjust distinction to be perpetuated ? Instead of these let us have a sound and rational classification of punishments ; and here we are re quired to make up our minds upon a very solemn question, which now awaits decision—whether we are to retain on the statute book, as a punishment of any crime under the degree of treason, by which human life is not murderously taken away—whe ther we are to continue in this class of cases the punishment of death ? I cannot touch upon this topic without a feeling of deep thankful ness to God that so much of our law that was once written in blood is in the course of being gradually replaced by a humane reformatory system. There is, perhaps, no point of comparison between the past and the present more interesting to those who mark with gladness the progress of society, than the change in the moral sense—the public conscience in reference to the punishment of death. The sacredness of human life is of the es sence of religious truth. The unnecessary retention of the punishment of death in any one class of crime is not only a foul stain upon the statute book, it is constructively, at least, a capital offence in the Le gislature itself. There may be—l believe there is a voice within—which in the case of a clear convic tion for wilful murder ratifies the sentence of the law, and recognises expiation in the capital punish ment. But where life has not been taken—where the intent has been frustrated by providential inter ference—it is an intimation to us that human justice is to be so far moderated by an overruling Providence, and we should follow the merciful sug gestion. I believe that such a view, if adopted in our laud, would be consistent with the profound convic tions of the wisest and best of our people, conducive to public morality, and expressive of the attainment ' of another stage in the march of civilisation. If, then, this question of classifying punishment were decided, and the appropriate class allocated to each specified crime—and if the work of consolidation and amendment would embody the conclusions of Parliament on the classification of crime and punish ment, and the new law be framed after the manner I have already suggested—l do not believe that the apprehension would be realised which some enter tain, that the controversy on the new phraseology would in effect defeat the project. I think this is a libel on the Legislature, and I would add that if this limited project could not be thus completed, I would altogether despair of any general assimilation of the law of England and Ireland, and of any amendment of the statute law of either country that would satisfy public expectation, or be in any sense worthy of the occasion. But I am not disposed to take a desponding view of a work which has become national. We have had of late years a great im provement, wisely though tardily effected, in the procedure of the superior courts of law and equity. It is, doubtless, easier and safer to remodel the remedies which a system of laii admits, than to in terfere with the rights which it confers. This species of reform comes into speedy and general operation . without disturbance or confusion. It is about 15 years ago, when I was engaged in arguing a case at the bar of the House of Lords, and in speaking of a decision of the very eminent lawyer then Lord Chancellor of Ireland, I said it was made in the hurry of the Court of Chancery. Lord Brougham replied, " We never talk of the speed of a broad wheeled waggon." At present how great is the change which has been wrought. Properties which, under the old system, must have_been devoured by the delay and expense of a cumbrous, stall-fed sys tem, may now be administered without any unrea sonable delay, and at a moderate cost. And it is well that this most beneficial change has been set on foot. It is not as yet matured as I could wish it to be, for I confess I heartily desire to see the High Court of Chancery worthy of being regarded as the inner shrine of the sacred temple of public justice, and not the byeword for costly, vexatious, and ruinous litigation. The blind idolatry of technical procedure, the false worship of our superior courts, roused that impatient and indignant zeal which smashed the ancient tables of the law ; but this has ended in the destruction of the idols and the reno vation of our judicial system. We are at present dealing in each country with an improved but dis tinct system of procedure. That such a distinction should. be permanent cannot be rationally contended. I look forward, therefore, with hope that, at an early day, we may . frankly compare notes, and con struct one system, in which we may . thenceforward • have a common interest, and which, I trust, may soon be watched over by a department common to both countries. Much has been done, much is under consideration; but the work is great, and we must not expect to be able to sow with the one hand and reap with the other. There is one department, which, of itself, might well claim the undivided attention of the most diligent and thoughtful—l mean the lunacy and minor department of the Court of Chancery. Whether any man should be allowed to have a private asylum for making money by the custody and maintenance 'of lunatics, where, generally speaking, his interest is not on the side of duty ; where the continuance, not the cure of the afflicted and helpless being under his charge, is for his pecuniary profit ; where inspection cannot sufficiently secure the parental care which the state owes to those who cannot be entrusted with their personal 'liberty ; where the withdrawal of a license may rebuke the offender, but cannot provide a remedy for the unhappy vic tims of the offence ; whether it is not the responsi ble duty of the state to interpose its authority where' private interest is not only insufficient but adverse; and whether in every case whete personal liberty is interfered with there should not be the means for promptly bringing the matter under the notice of responsible authority, and making ade quate provision for the future custody and treat ment (if necessary . ) in a _public institution. These are grave questions—well worthy of the deliberate attention of this association. There is another sub ct vitally connected with all that we can hope for in the improvement of our jurisprudence, and that is the subject of legal education. Improved proce dure—amended laws—mnch to be valued though they be, yet if we do not secure the moral elevation, , the trained capacity, and the love of justice in those who are to administer these laws. we deprive them of their living power, and they, take no root in the respect and the affections of the people. Why, may I ask, why should not the profession of the law be dealt with as other professions ? Why should not the proper qualification be required, and the suitable education made compulsory, in order to obtain the status of a barrister ?. And when ob tained, why should preferments be set apart for the barrister of six years' standing, or any longer period of more seasoned incompetence ? Some years since it was said, in the presence of a Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, that " there was neither 'honour nor honesty to be found in the country." An old sagacious physician who was in the room observed that that was going a little too far. " Perhaps," said he, " there is no great market for the articles—for, surely, supply will soon . meet . demand." In the several inquiries on education, , military, medical, and the commission- on the inns of court, there will be found a concurrent testimony in favour of laying the foundation of a good liberal education before the work Of special instruction should begin.. This instruction is not education; and, without educa tion, it is but handicraft. I must not be tempted to poach on the manor of Mr. Cowper ; .but I know he will net object .to my recording the heartfelt pleasure with which I paid the testimony, that it is our interest, not less than our duty, to educate a man for • his own sake, as a moral, intelligent, accountable, and immortal being ; and the more careful this training and teaching, the more com plete this education, the more certain the success of special and subsequent instruction. If, then, the progress of education would be ascertained by periodic tests ; if university degrees were made a plain reality, and not a pompous fiction ; if the inns of court would (as I have reason to believe they will) secure the required qualification before they admit to practice_; and if the policy of the public service were such as to encourage and reward merit, doing justice to those who devote themselves to the administration of justice—then might we reason ably expect to have men worthy of that profession which has given to the county its Hale and its Somers, with Holt and Mansfield, with Bushe and Plunket, these lights of other days, illustrious men, who have left behind them a track of glory which has not ceased to shed its lustre on. the 'profession which nurtured their genius and their virtues. The country is deeply interested in surrounding the profession with all the security which can be afforded by liberal education and enlightened policy. On the moral results may much depend the pure, dignified, and impartial administration of justice, and with this are bound up the order, the freedom, and the maintenance of civil society. Is: is not, then, without reason that juris prudence has been placed at the head- of the sections of this association. Why should not it alio have a separate and principal depart ment of administration ? How otherwise can we collect, and record, and make timely use of the practical suggestions which com e f rom th ose w h o are engaged in working the laws ? How can we bring public opinion. steadily to bear in judicial procedure without regular judicial statistics ? How is our code of judicial decisions to be maintained as part of a binding system of law, if these decisions be not authenticated, reported by responsible offi cers, and -published under responsible authority ? The suit between A Band C D invol ves a decisionin which *the public is a party deeply . interested. But there is no public pFovision made for an au thentic report of such decision, or that it should be dealt with otherwise than as the private litigant— the casual, perhaps incompetent reporter, or the speculating publisher may secure. If th ere were a department of council with the Chancellor at its head, and, under this, a secretary for the affairs of justice, with a seat in the House of Commons, and a staff sufficient to enable this. department to super vise the administration of public justice in the United Kingdom, with a view to the amendment of the law, and the exigencies of public justice, there would be, to use the words. of the late Lori Lang dale, a very busy and most valuable department. And, if the legislature might require the occasional assistance of such a department in aid of current legislation, it could be given without in any degree interfering with the constitutional freedom and accustomed privilege of any. member of either house of Parliament. Nor is -there a session in which examples of imperfect or erroneous enactments could not be found, to prove the need of some such protector of the public, who suffer frequent injus tice under the present system. I am not disposed to indulge in any visionary expectation of a perfect system of laws, or that we can by any contrivance secure absolute purity of administration. " Human institutions," says South, " cannot wholly be con structed. on principles of science, which is proper to immutable objects. In the government of the visible world, the Supreme Wisdom itself submits to be the author of the better, not the best,-but of the best possible in the:subsisting relations. Much more must all human legislators give way to many evils rather than encourage the discontent that would lead to worse remedies." But the use of timely remedies is a standing duty. The continued neglect of functional irregularity leads to chronic disease and organic disorder. All analogy and all experience, from the pruning of the tree to the re pair of the building, teach us that the conservative spirit is necessarily remedial, and that the demands of time cannot safely be postponed. " Time," says Sir Matthew Hale, " is the wisest thing under hea ven. He that thinks that a state can be exactly steered by the same laws in every kind, as it was two or three hundred years since, may as well ima gine that the clothes that fitted him when he was a child should serve him when he was grown up as a man. The matter changeth the custom, the con tracts, the commerce ; the dispositions, education, and tempers of men and societies change in a long tract of time ; and, so must their laws in some measure be changed, or they will not be useful for their state and condition." The living law must not be left to perish in the arms of the dead. Law is a rule of present obligation, and the statute book should therefore be cleared of all that is not now proper to bind the free citizens of this generation. Some laws have been but the scaffolding of our social system ; the removal of such cannot weaken the foundation or shake the superstructure. Others have lost the sanction of public opinion, and a law which cannot be enforced without offending public feeling ought not to be retained. Again, there are laws which are now happily superseded by the improved intelligence and moral. convictions of so ciety, laws which may perhaps:have aggravated the evils which they. were called on to remove, for these could not yield to higher influences ; moral evils pro perly require moral remedies. Thus is there a great work of reconstruction, in which we are called upon to proceed as wise master-builders, with the caution of men who profess to honour -jurisprudence as the chief department of social science. Ignorance or empi ricism, with a rude or unskilled hand, might level in an hour the work of a century ; but we seek for sound experience, the test of free discussion, the approval of practical wisdom. It is in this spirit —thus led by the hand, with an honest desire of keeping pace with the progress of enlightened opinion—that I have advocated, and still advise, the formation of a department of jurisprudence, like that of education. " Learn to be just, just through impartial law, Far as ye may, erect and equalise ; And what ye cannot reach by statute, draw Each from his fountain of self-sacrifice." This is the work of social science—a work emi nently Christian. The Divine founder of our pure and practical religion, the greatest yet the lowliest of beings, was the gentlest, and the kindest, and the best, and they who would follow Him need not turn from the path which leads to the social wel fare of others, nor reject the agencies which we here seek to invigorate and improve. This co operation in duty may help . to soften the severity, to subdue the pride of opinion, and nourish the spirit which should ever urge us to love our neigh bour as ourself. In this season of prosperity, in this time of peace, how thankful am I to have the privilege of uniting with the elevated peer, the en lightened commoner, the sagacious statesman, and the thoughtful scholar, upon common ground for the common weal, under the blessing of God, pub licly and solemnly invoked. The future of Eng land, which Niebuhr rather supposed than pre dicted, was this : no longer to try to domineer over the continent of Europe, but to busy herself with the nobler work of social reformation. One of her own great poets has assigned to her the lofty mission to teach *e nations how to live. Another —the purest, most thoughtful and tender-hearted —has recorded the triumphs of her social industry in words which are associated with all that sur rounds us in this great community : " At social industry's command How quick, how vast an increase! From the germ Of some poor hamlet, rapidly produced, Here a huge town continuous and compact, Hiding the face of earth for leagues— " Hence is the wide sea peopled ; hence the shore Of Britain is resorted to by ships Freighted from every climate of the world With the world's choicest produce. Hence that sum Of keels that rest within her crowded ports, Or ride at anchor in her sounds and bays ; That animating spectacle of sails, That through her inland regions to and fro Pass with the respirations of the tide Perpetual, multitudinous ! Hence a dread arm of floating power—a voice Of thunder, daunting those who would approach With hostile purposes the blessed Isle; Truth's consecrated residence—the seat Impregnable of Liberty and Peace." Lord BROUGHAM—Though it is not usual to come to any resolution on the reading of an address, I think on account of the absence of my noble and learned friend, the Lord Chancellor of Ireland, we ought to break through that rule in this instance in order to testify the great gratification we have all of us, I am sure, derived from the reading of this add ress, in which it is difficult to say whether we most admire the great eloquence of the execu tion or the true, sound, enlightened, and learned views of the writer. I hardly remember-anything proceeding from any branch of the profession, and more especially from the highest seat of justice— the woolsack itself—which has struck me with more admiration or impressed upon me a deeper debt of gratitude to the author ; and therefore I beg to propose a resolution testifying our regret at his absence—a regret rather increased than diminished by the admirable and useful paper he has contri buted, because it shows how much valuable assis tance we have lost by my learned friend's absence in the business of 'the section over which he was to have presided. Mr. COOKSON seconded the motion, and bore testi mony to the valuable aid the Lord Chancellor of Ire land. had rendered as a member of the commission on the sale and transfer of land in Ireland, upon which he (Mr. Cookson) had acted with him. Mr. G. W. HASTINGS read the. report of the council of the results of the Congress, which had been agreed to at their meeting that morning. On the motion of Mr. W. COWPER, seconded by Dr. FARR, the report was adopted. Lord BROUGHAM referred to the great services rendered by the officers of the association, and especially by Mr. Hastings, their very able, talented, and energetic secretary. He (Lord Brougham) had been referred to as the founder of the association, but he believed that it was in the mind of Mr. Hastings that the felicitous .idea first originated. When that gentleman called upon him first upon the subject he had great doubts of the success of the project, but those doubts were alto gether removed when he considered the matter further, and he had consented to be its president— a position which he had been desirous of abdicating; and though they would not allow him to do so now, he hoped they would allow him, before another year came round, to abdicate in favour of his noble friend the chairman. Amongst the many advan tages the National Association was calculated to confer, not the least was the communication it established between the upper and the working classes. This had commenced auspiciously at the present meeting in Liverpool, and he hoped it would be continued by the working men forming from amongst themselves a social science committee. The noble lord also observed that the association were deeply indebted to- the press, especially that part of it, viz., the cheap press of Liverpool, which was more directly the means of conveying a record of their proceedings to the working men, for the accuracy and fullness with which the proceedings had been reported, and included that body in the vote of thanks. The Earl of SHAFTESBURY seconded the motion, and, in reference to the second part of the noble and learned lord's proposition, observed that during his life he had been brought very much into contact with the members of the Twess—with those who filled the high offices of editors and managers, and also those who discharged the responsible and one rous duties of reporters ; and he could bear testi mony to their activity, intelligence, and faithful ness. The skill, the readiness of apprehension they evinced, the way in which they caught the slightest expression and transfused into their columns not only the words, but the very spirit of the speech or the debate, must rank amongst the greatest efforts of the human intellect. (Cheers.) But, great as was their ability, they were still more to be praised for their fidelity. (Hear.) Take every public meeting, take the debates in the two houses of parliament—and the speeches made on great public occasions elsewhere—how often did it occur that a single mistake was made ? ( Hear.) And how much less often did it occur that a mistake was wilfully made ? He would venture to say that, taking the whole year through, thei e were not two wilful mistakes to be found—so great was the in telligence and so Feat was the fidelity evinced. In a mixed constitution such as ours we were all deeply indebted to the press for it was of the utmost im portance that faithful should be transmitted through the press to the public; By means of that agency what was spoken from the public platform was in effect spoken to millions of people, and if he might be excused for doing so, he would remind the editors and conductors, the great giants of the press, that they had the greatest engine in their hands ever wielded by man since the creation— they had in their hands the greatest power of doing evil. They had, consequently . , resting upon them the greatest responsibility, and he knew no one single thing of a subordinate character for which as Christian men they ought more to pray day and night than that the conduc tors of the press might be animated by a true, a high, a holy spirit, and governed by a desire to _advance the temporal, the moral, and the spiritual welfare of all their fellow-creatures. (Cheers.) That being the case, a free press, instead of proving in the least degree a vexation and an annoyance, was, without exception. the greatest blessing that could be conferred on any people, without which there could not be a free people, and with which, if allowed to spread itself far and wide, in the course of a short time there would not be an enslaved people on the face of the earth. (Cheers.) Lord J. RUSSELL, in putting the resolution (which was unanimously carried), bore testimony to the very valuable services of Mr. Hastings, and expressed his entire concurrence with what had been said with regard to the press. Mr. HASTINGS acknowledged the resolution in an appropriate speech, in which he referred to the valuable aid he had received from Mr. Melley, the indefatigable local secretary, and the other local officers, but for whom the meeting at Liverpool could not have taken place. Thanks were afterwards voted to Mr. George Melley and the local officers, to the:Mayor and Cor poration of Liverpool for the use of the hall, to the inhabitants of Liverpool generally for their assist ance, to the several presidents of departments, and to Lord John Russell, as the chairman of the meeting. In acknowledging the compliment paid to him, the noble lord said it was extremely gratifyini. to him—when some p eo pl e seeme d t o think that *?121 his great age he was altogether worn out and in• capable of exertion—to find himself co mplimented upon his energy by a still hal e and energetic noble friend friend (Lord Brougham) near him, who said he had known him from a boy, and by another learned friend (Professor Pillans) who stated that he re membered when he (Lord John) first entered the university—that was when he was about 17 years of age. (Cheers and laughter.) In the evening St. George's Hall was converted into a banquet room—and a more magnificent dining hall there is not in, the kingdom—'Perhaps in the world. Its noble 'and lofty proportions, its highly-enriched and ornate style of architec. ture, its warm colouring heightened by the beauti- fully polished granite eoluinus which support the arched and many pannelled rooms, render it, espe cially when lighted up, peculiarly adapted fes. tive purposes. At the banquet of last night there were 400 persons present, many of them ladies, the e council having wisely resolved that the ladies, who had rendered such important aid in the compara tively dry work of the sections, were entitled to share in the more agreeable business of the closing festivity; and their presence, dressed in every variety of female fashionable costume, in which the florid head-dress now in such general favour was co rao n dn sp d ic t the fnsa ir. — the roses, the fuchsias, and camelias, and lady-grass which were entwined in wreaths brows seated at the table, harmonis ing prettily and gracefully with the embellish ments of the prandial board. The spacious gal leries, which had been thrown open to the public, on payment of an admissionfee of hal f-a-crown each person, were cr owd e d,the principally of the fair sex. There wasabras being s band : occupants the musicians being e, d wh o appropriate ladadamateurs—the volunteered airs in theirthe Workmenintervals services a — can w te eh fac p t l o a ry y te sp d e wi ech th es t;he n who between alalternated r the na a party of glee singers, in band the musical duties. of th e chair, supported by Lord Brougham wa s Lord J. Russell, the Earl Carlisle, the Earl of Shaftesbury, Lord Sandmoni).,Mr.th e Monckton Mimes, M.P., Mr. W. Brown, oo mß d r. T. B. Horsfall,lderman m 3 . 21 1.: Penn sylvania, Sir Harry Varney, M, p,, of ~A M r. Hanbury, liste r l . l, Mr. W. Tite, Turner,M.P., s 1 irm r J . ra. J m a C h r e m s e s s i ts e ll t po C. Hastings,Turner, the Rev. p h erwh en e r , Sir J. K. Shuttleworth, Mr. Archdeacon Jones, Mr. G. W. oard, ch a i n e d f Heath, Mr. Hadfield, M.P., Mr. Cowan , 4 1r -p . Ed w. ivr Wood, M.P., Mr. Akroyd, M.P., and t he '' —l. ' members of the Town Council, Dock B other local bodies. The usual loyal toasts were given and enthusias tically honoured. In proposing the House of Lords, Lord BROUGHAM said—When I look around this great hall, a sight presents itself I believe wholly unexampled in this country. (Hear, hear.) A sight so magnificent in every respect to the outward eye, and to the inward contemplation, it never certainly has been my for tune to see. And yet, forgive me if I add, contrary to the maxim, that " comparisons are odioils; and that other maxim, that " the absent are generally in the wrong,", forgive me if I add that all I see here around me, great though the impression is, deep as that impression is and striking as the view present ing itself physically and morally is, it is nothing equal to the sight I saw last night at the amphi theatre in this your town. For, surrounded as lam by dignity and respectability that command obser vation, by a constellation of beauty that wins ad miration, I confess that I still feel nothing equal to that feeling with which the sight of last night in spired me. (Hear, hear.) There we assembled under ' the same roof from 4,000 to 5,000 of the working men of Liverpool--the very sinews of the strength of the community--that part of the community without which all the rest would not only be as nothing, but I may say, literally speaking, mus t cease to exist. (Hear.) And - any set of men on the one hand more zealous for the good work in which they and we are all now engaged, but onthe ' other hand more , rational, more temperate, more decorous in their demeanour, I never saw in a n y place, be it a court, or be it a . senate, in which it has been my lot to be. And it was not for the want of capacity to debate, for we were addressed by two persons, one of them a working man, and the other an employer of working men, and by the working man in as good *a speech as I ever heard. (Hear, hear.) I find that those men who are deeply impressed with the great importance of this movement, feel that it is for the benefit of all classes—their own included—(hear, hear) —and I have had a communication an hour before I came here which shows their determination to help us on to the best of their ability in carrying into effect our great plans of public improvement. I have a letter from a young man who says that he signs his name without any Oat of arms. There was an illusion last night to armorial bearings, and he said, "My quarterings are neither griffins nor lions, but a jack-plane, an axe, and . a saw"—(hear, hear)—aild he- proposes as a communication be tween his body of working men and our body of ' the National Association, that there should be a committee of working men, a social science corn- mittee of working men, to communicate with the general committee of our Social Science Associa tion. Most entirely am lof his opinion. The best answer I can give is to say that we entirely accept his proposal, and hope and trust, even before we leave Liverpool, they will have formed a Social - Science Committee of Working Men to co-operate with ours. -Now, one word as to the general suc cess of this association. I find that last year, at Birmingham, the number of admittances into our association at the end of the meeting did not quite amount to 800 ; here they amounted to 1,200 on Monday morning, ,before we began, and they are now 2,000. This is a proof of progress. (Hear, hear.) I, however, greatly grieve to find—an in timation having been given at the close of the last year's meeting that any institute in this country, either as mechanics' institute, or 'prentic library, or any other such institute in the country, that de sired to be an• incorporate member of this associa tion, might do so upon the same payment as any ordinary individual—that, either from inadver tence, or from not understanding the drift of the proposal, hardly any of those bodies in the country have come to join. us. From the letter I have just referred; I hope that that apathy and indiffer ence exist no longer. Upon the subject of the toast the noble learned lord said—The Holise of Lords is of the most essential service in the mixed con stitution of this country, and to dispense with it would be to alter the constitution. (Cheers.) There may be some who think that we • should be better without a House of Lords ; an d in off eon- Com their view, uponthe principles followedin other co un t r i es, s th ti e t y ut m io a n y , wbeitahbloenityo osntreike chamber—ao utane no wform () House mons, without an hereditary chamber. That may be a very good constitution, and well adapted for some countries ; but it would not be the constitu tion of England under-which we have so long lived and flourished, and we should have reason to regret - the day when so fatal a change in our constitution was made. Ours is a mixed monarchy. We have a Crown, not elective, but hereditary. And why ? To avoid the 'greatest of all curses—eternal civil war every time there is a vacancy in the Crown. (Hear.) Set against this all the objections that can be made to hereditary monarchy, and in this one great and precious andinviolable security, that hereditary rule prevents disputed succession, which means civil war, you have a complete answer and defence. But people may say, why shouldwe have an hereditary aristocracy ? Does it follow that be cause they succeed to others by birth they are en doWed with the same qualities their founders had 7 But that is the case in every branch of the commu nity. Take the example of property. Does it follow that when a man succeeds to the property of his father, w hether in land or in t r a de ac q uired, or in any ot her: way, does it follow that he has the qua lities which his father had, and which enabled him to gain that property ? Yet nobody denies that the right of property ought to give a man the power of disposing of it, and that if he makes no will the law ought to dispose of it for him. (Rear.) But the use of a hereditary peerage is manifest, and is most material. If you only had two chambers—the Heise of Commons elected by one qualification, and the House of Lords elected upon some other qualification, it would only be that the bills that pasted through the House of _Commons, through their various stages, then would have to pa ss g through so many more sta g es of wh at would be really another branch of the House of Com mons ; and'there w ould be no possibility of bett er inquiry, of greater deliberation, of g reater security adding of agains t error, than the re woul d be in • two or three stage s in the llmise of - Commons- The - true course is that which ou r • constitution . t a kes, to have all t hat comes from . .the House of Commons scrutinised by a body, and authority H to Lords, which owes its place an a totally diffe rent p rinci p le fro m the principle of election, and thus-you have a security against error I have seen u. errors might have in stances u i n es which i n thes s uch e lower w frightful e r h ose been committed b y the House o f L ords, if they had adopted m erely as a matter of course House of Commons sent u Ile h. what the an alblunders frightful errors as wo uld, if anything could have done to the House of Commons and it, put an end not of the Lords. (Hear.) These errors rarely are committed ; but that they rarely are committed, an d is owing to there being two cham bersare never fatal, appqmted upon a different qualification and thority to different sources of appointment. lam sure that I need hardly . . add that, although the House of Lords has occasionally differed with the rest of the country upon one or two Minister remark able occasions—one while I was a Crown, upon the Reform Bill—y etthe of the Lords invariably came in, sooner or later, to the general opinion of their fellow-citi zens, cer tain modifications and exceptions,i izens, with the whole, very likely their h and that, upon benefit rather than an injury. holding out was a there - appeared differences Thus, even when cileablef the - House- of Lords which seemed irrecon- It still less neeess °ids proved its usefulness. aryfor me to say that the House of ommons is necessary to the constitution because the constitution without the House of Commons would be very • , like the play of " Hamlet " with the part of Hamlet • a' (Lau gh ter.) ht ) The Earl of C omitted. ,—aug e .. er., . thanks , and Mr. I. „,,,.., ARLISLE return no d - s umes, M.P.f, acknowledge d. the next toast, viz., the House of 'Commons. • • Lord J. RUSSELL gave , c The Health of Lord Brougham," which was drunk with honours; and the noble lord, having briefly spoken his acknow ledgements, gave " Success to the National Asso ciation for the Promotion of Social Science." Lord J. RUSSELL, in returning thanks on behalf of the associatson, pointed out its peculiar uses in reference to questions of domestic policy and legis lation. They did not enter into competition with the older association, whose object was exclusively the development of science, their purpose being the solv ing of certain political problems of great interest and to advance the social welfare of the community. Several other toasts were given, and at a late hour the company separated. Whether as regards the additional strength which has been gathered in the number of new members and associates enrolled, the variety and scope of the subjects dealt with, the practical bearing of the discussions to the purposes of social improvement, or the high rank and character of the most promi nent leaders, this second congress of the association must be pronounced a decided success. The selec tion of the great shipping port of Liverpool as the locale of the meeting was a happy one. On the one hand, the raigratoly character of a large portion of its population, whose occupation renders them prone to excesses when the strict discipline of the ship ceases to act upon them, necessarily exposes it to many social evils from which towns differently cir cumstanced are comparativoly free ; and on the other hand, the public spirit of its wealthy inhabi tants, which had already induced them to counter act the effect of those evils by a liberal expenditure of public and private means, pointed it out as a most promising field for such an association to work upon. In every part of the town evidence of this public spirit meets the eye. The public buildings, amongst which St. George's Hall, with its law courts, the library and offices ; its noble, gorgeous and exqui sitely proportioned meeting, banquet, or concert hall, as the case may be ; its beautiful little theatre or small concert room, as it is called—the most ele gant apartment of the kind in England—stands unrivalled alike for its grandeur of design and its practical adaptation for the purposes for which it was erected—the drinking fountains which are to be met with in almost every street, and which have been provided by the munificence of a single indvi dual—the ample supply of pure water and excel lent sanitary arrangements—all testify to the desire of the merchant princes and opulent tradesmen of Liverpool to improve the condition of the people. In such a community the objects which the Na tional Association have in view were certain to meet with sympathy and support ; and the result of the meeting has been to lend an impetus to the movement which gives promise of germanence and prosperity. COUNTRY MARKETS. ROC HE STER---0 ur. 16. The supplies of grain brought forward to-day were not large, and scarcely any improvement, has taken place in prices, which remain nearly the same as reported last week. There was a brisker demand for wheat for seeding purposes, which slightly improved the tone of the market, good sam ples of white being done at the full rates of last week, and in some instances is per qr higher. For inferior sorts last week's prices were barely maintained. A slight advance was obtained on good malting barley. Grinding sorts in limited request. Oats a sluggish demand. White wheat, new, 42s to 46s Barley, grinding.. 28 s t o 34 s Red do. 39s to 43s Oats, old, .. , . 23s to 27s a Old white 42 s t o 46 s N ew d o —s to ---s R B e r d le d y o ; * malting„ ..33995s to 43s 44335 s I P B e et ri tzs . . 40s to 44a 42s to 44s • . CHELMSFORD—OcT. 15. The supply of wheat was tolerable. Barley of superior quality made recent rates ; inferior lower. There was not much variation in the prices of other sorts of grain. Wheat, white 46s to 48s Peas, Partridge ..45s t o - 47 s red 40s to 43s White 42s to 44s , Barley 35s to 41s Boiling ......43s to 49s Chevalier to 41s Dun 45s to 47s Grinding 29s to 33s Beans, Tick 39s to 41s Malt 70s to 73s Harrow Ticks 39s to 43a Chevalier 72s to 73s Mazagan 37s to 40s Oats 26s to 36s NORWICH—OcT. 16. At the market this morning there was a slow trade . , and prices much th e same as last week for the best qualities of wheat. Inferior sorts were difficult of sale, at an advance of Is per qr. In oats, beans, and peas little doing. Wheat • 4os to 44 8 O ats.... 25s to 28s White • .47s to - 49 8 B eans 'Barley .35s to 36s Peas Flour, 29s to 2 0 s 6d per sack LEICESTER--Our. 16. At to-day's market there was a moderate show of wheat, which moved off quickly at an advance of is per qr. for the finer sorts of red, while the best white made 2s per quarter more, with a good inquiry for it. Oats and all kinds of spring corn had a fair sale at full prices. Wheat, white 46s to 50s Beans, Mazagan..4Bs to 51a red 408 to 448 Middle & small —s to —s Barley 3ls to 42s White peas 4ss to 46s Oats 358 to —s Grey.. —s to --s YORK—OCT. 16. In our market to-day there was a good attendance of buyers, and English wheat sold readily at fully the prices of last week, and in some instances at rather - more money. Good malting barley commands extreme rates. Oats sold at about last week's prices. . No change in the value of beans and peas. CAMBRIDGE-0 CT. 16. There was only a moderate quantity of wheat on offer this morning, and on all good saleable descriptions there was an improvement of is per qr. Flour has advanced 6d per sack. Bailey and oats were is per qr. lower. DUBLIN—OCT. 15. We had a comparatively small supply of 'grain to-day. Wheat and barley met a ready sale at the quotations of Tuesday, and oats 6d higher. A few retail transactions in Indian corn, but scarcely one in foreign wheat. Wheat, white 22 6 to 24 6 Do., red 2l 6 to 22 6 Do. new Barley Oats Do., black ll 0 to 13 0 s. d. s. d. Do., new ll 3 to 12 9 Bere Rapeseed Oatmeal l3 0 to 15 0 Bakers' flour 14 6tolB 6 Indian cam STRANGE YANKEE RUMOUR ABOUT FISHERMAN. —One of the American sporting papers of latest dates (September) mentions. that a rumour .was afloat in New York, that Fisherman had been purchased by a sporting gentleman for immediat e . transmission. to the United Statea. We are enabled, positively to contradict the report, on the best possible authority, and bur Atlantic friends may rest assured that, as regards Mr. Parr's horse, he has ' got other fish to fry."----.Era. ORIENTAL WIT.-.:-AIOUng man going' a journey, intrusted a hundred deeners tO anold man; when he came back, the old man denied having had . any money deposited with him, and he was ' had up' before the Kazee. " Where were Yon, young :man, when you delivered this money ?" " Unde r a tree." ." Take nay seal and summon that tree," said the jud g e: • " • young man, and tell the tree to conic hither, and the . tree w ill o b ey you w h en you show it my Seal.' The young man went in wonder. After he had been gone some time the Kazee- said to the old man, "He is long—do you think that he has got there yet ? " No," said the old man ; " it is at some distance ; he has not got there yet." " How knowest th ou, old man," cried the K azee , " w h ere t h at • tree, ? " The young man returned and said the -tre‘would not come. ‘.`, haa been here, you ng Man, and givenlia evidence --the money is thine." ''''' • [ADVERTISEMENT,]:--:Rarey's Ilerse and Cattle Improv ing Food is equally adapted tO 'improve' the 'Stamina of ill conditioned Horses,l Cows; 'Bullocks,' CalYeS; Sheep, and Pigs. It causes no Odra 'expense,.as it contains far more and better nourishment' thanits' cost of ',lid.. per feed sup ' plies in corn and hay ; 'hate 'ensures an actual saving in the keep. But i tsprineiparadvantages are agreat improve went in the digestive fthietions; the stamina and general condition of horses eti blirig 'them to perform far more labour wi thout - getting'distrefssed. • •It - imparts new vigour to sick, debilitated, or ad apparently worn:-cut horses, and it puts rapidly the fineAt flesh - on• cattle generally, and im proves the milk in cows, as It 'enables 'them 'to extract tha entire nourishment out - of everything they feed on. Rarey and Co., 77, Regent's • Quadrant. Piccadilly, Louden. Packed in tin,, of about 00 feeds, 11s. ; in casks of about 450 feeds, 50s. ;of about 1,000 feeds,' 'being about ltd. - per feed, - • • • • • • BIR. T .S.• BARBER.—On the 16th inst., at Stanley House, Addison. road, Kensington, Mrs'. 'George Henley Barber, of a son. HIGoINsoN.—On the 15th inst., at Porchester-terrace, the lady of Sir James Macaulay Higginson, K.C.8., of a. son. ORD.—On the 16th inst., at 39,'Grosvenor-square, the wife of the Rev. J. A. Bladicett Ord, of a son. SMITH.—On the 15th inst., at Laura-place, Clapton, Mrs. Henry Smith, of a ion. MARRIAGES. DAY—PLATT.---On the 14th inst., at St. George's, Han over-square, Wm. Day, Esq., of- Queen-street, Mayfair, to Rose Angelica, third dau g ht er o f Samuel Platt, Esq., of Hyde - park-gardens, and Belmont, Wimbledon-park. WHATMA.N—DEw.—On the 14th inst., at Eversley 2 Rants, Charles Mann Cornwallis Whatman, of Sa lisbury/ Wilts, Esq., to Charlotte Emma, daughter of Lieutenant Dew, R.N. DEATH.S. BE I a N t T e r L A i t u . —t - ° C n ol t . cliAlL"n-Itli• John Bentham, a, and formerly 52d Light Infantry, aged 59. BAYLY.—On the 15th inst., at Small-heath, near Bi nn ing. ham, Thos. H. Bayly, ]sq., bar rister-at -law, son of the h m e 9t R h . in L s ti t.; ca t ui T r o e r late Rev. Dr. Bayly, of Mitllnvest, Sussex. FAILEINGTON. — On the 13th inst, at Leamington, Major- General-J. J. Farrington, Bengal Establishment, aged 68. OrLEY.—On the 15th inst.., Charles Wm. Oxley, of Clap ton and Nichr:las-lane, aged 58. ROBBINS.--On the 13th inst., at . Shropham Vicarage, Nor folk, the Rev. Henry Robbins, M.A., of Wadham Col lege, Oxford, aged-38. STONE. —On the 15th inst., at Arona, Piedmont, Charlotte Wilson, wife of Henry Stone, Esq., of the Inner Temple, aged 25 ; also, on the llth i ns t., H arry H o lb er t , on l y son of the above, aged 16 days: ' • LONDOX : Printed and Published by MURDO YOUNG, of No. 112, Strand, Printer, at The Sun Office, No. 112, Strand, in the Precinct of 'the Savoy, in the county of Middlesex, Monday, October 18 3 1868. Sec — ti or tru f tattled Pon to INT So kstabl Grace. Society gtanclii or grac the me th offi TI SLR` SUR) E, Iv% Re "Amine John F. C )Ni T' Of sl 818 til Fo table office Pa , of Sn ham, the; ham, of tei Th ber, . S `Par• Arm T~~ Ba TIE Th, Cott M AR Corn / teed tow n ditiot 11181 Cidenl tog e ti Pr o p, apply Comp 7, 13 A I Princi illif evt. IE.N Lieut. swy n Witth A.e; Other Sal Inain terest Part World Nav the or Poii any ti: and a Noy Rev Prof Zressi The 'I Ma ro tak e i oUt it 1818 1841 1848 18M The Inter 11 2 ~atr, P a t el Ph Ivats t doses etc. Or to And fi tidiv bIS( ric E eff ec t etitir And 1310 4 60 10 of a ,