The Sun. — London, England, 1859-09-15 00:00:00

THE EXPLOSION ON BOARD THE GREAT EASTERN. THE ADJOURNED INQUEST. WEYMOUTH, SEPT. 14. To-day, at two'clock, the adjourned inquiry into the cause of this melancholy disaster was resumed before Mr. Henry Locke, the Coroner for Dorset, at the Town-hall, Weymouth. The investigation appear,c!d to excite no great amount of interest, and the court was almost empty throughout the entire proceedings. Mr. Joh.o Scott Russell, in compliance with a wish expreosed by the Coroner, came down from town to attend the inquest. Mr. Jan acckson, foreman to Mr. Russell, and 'under whose sui lerintendence the machinery of the paddle engines 1, vas fitted, was also present, and Mr. M'Lennan, ti'e chief engineer of the Great Eastern. The attnidance of Captain Harrison, who, of course, has invortant duties to perform on board the ship, was disnensed with by the Coroner. Mr. Newman (of Fresiifields and Newman) at tended to watch the case' with Mr. Scott Russell. At the commencement of the proceedings Mr. Leverson, the solicitor to the company. said he wished to correct an error w -hich bad appeared in some of the papers to the effect that he (Mr. Lever son) had stated at the previovs inquiry that Mr. Scott Russell had had ample notice to attend the opening of the inquest but had not done so. In fact, what he had stated was exactly the reverse — namely, that Mr. Scott Russell had had no notice of the inquiry; that he was at the give in London, on the company's business, and could.. not possibly have been in attendance. After a few words from Mr. Scott fLussell, who explained the cause of his unavoidable tAbsence, The Coroner said that, on the opening of the in quest, he at once considered that it was a ca se which ought to be adjourned, in order that the jur v might have the assistance of some of the surveyo - ro from the Board of Trade. He had accordingly corzunu nicated with the Board of Trade, and received a letter in reply the previous day, which stated that it was impossible that Captain Robertson, the Sur veyor-General, could attend the inquiry before Sa turday next. He therefore thought that, under these circumstances, it would be most advisable that the jury should have the benefit of the experience of these officers, and, with their permission, he would adjourn further proceedings till Satur day morning at nine o'clock. He (the Coroner) trusted that both the company and Mr. Scott Rus sell would be ready on that occasion with any evi dence which could throw the smallest light upon the causes which had led to so disastrous an acci dent. One of the jury said that they hoped every effort would be made to discover the man who had turned off the cock or valve which led from the standpipe into the stokehole. Mr. Scott Russell said it would be proved by wit nesses that the cock of the valve was open on Tues dayy, and when the vessel left the river on Wednes da. Mr. Leverson intimated that the company were in no degree responsible for what had taken place, and the evidence adduced had established this on the company's behalf. He had no desire to call further evidence unless wished for by the Court. The Coroner said it was most likely the jury would like to examine Mr. M'Lennan, the chief engineer. The inquiry was then adjourned till Saturday morning. The interest evinced by the public in this part of the country in all relating to the ship seems as great as ever. During all yesterday, though it blew a l severe gale from the south-west, accompanied by heavy rain and sometimes thunder, the steamboats bringing visitors to the vessel were densely thronged. Nearly 6,000 persons paid their half crowns to go on board, and promenaded the deck all day, defying the squalls of wind and rain with an endurance worthy of a better cause. The scene of the explosion, as far as it could be viewed from the deck, is the great centre of attraction, and as the monstrous fragments of ironwork have now been got up from the stokehole and placed on deck, enough evidence is given of the fury of the explo sion to satisfy the most eager curiosity. Mr. Not tidge, of the London Stereoscopic Company, who has been on board from the first time of starting, in order to get good pictures of the vessel, has photo graphed this mass of ruins most successfully. From these pictures the public will be enabled to gain a fair idea of the force of the explosion and the sweeping destruction it occasioned. Owing to the haste in which the account of the catastrophe was necessarily written, f omitted to mention that in the morning following the occurrence a subscrip tion was raised among the visitors on board for the benefit of the sufferers and their families, and £124 colleoted in the course of a few minutes. Since that day several benevolent persons have forwarded small sums to the ship to be applied to the same charitable purpose, and this, with the sale of photo graphs, which were given for the purpose by Mr. Nottidge, have swelled the sum to nearly £l4O. The repair of the damages inflicted by the ex plosion has already commenced, Mr. Scott Russell having contracted to restore the whole for £5,000. If it. should turn out that either of the forward boilers has been injured, £5,000 will scarcely suffice for the entire restoration. From the fact of there having been no escape of steam from either of the boilers at the time of the explosion, when there was a pressure on each of 221 b., it is believed that they have escaped without material injury. The mere joinery of the cabin fittings and the redecora tion of the grand saloon can, and doubtless will, soon be completed. With the ironwork, however, it is a different affair. All this must be executed in Lon don from the working drawings of the vessel and sent down piecemeal by rail to Weymouth, where it can be bolted together an board the ship. Mr. Scott Russell's contract is to finish the whole ship in her former state as she left the river within three weeks. (From the Morning Post.) There has been a sort of tendency for some time past to mystify the public by spurious scientific twaddle. It matters little what the occasion— from the poisoning of an individual to the bursting of a funnel-casing one beaten path must be pursued for gaining public acquiescence in a dogma, or leading judgment astray from the safe ground to which plain common sense would have led it. By this time every London newspaper has had some account of the calamity on board the Great Eastern. In the hurry and anxiety of writing on the spot trivial errors of description may have occurred, and it would have been hardly fitting to scrutinise the scientific accuracy of a mere para graph at any time. When a leading contemporary, however, affects to throw light on the catastrophe in all the dignity of a long article, set up in large type, it is as well that the public should not be misled. Such a journal yesterday made a discovery of great scientific importance. It is no less than this —superheated steam (by which readers are to understand steam heated up to a minimum of five hundred pounds pressure to the inch) is resolved into oxygen and hydrogen gases ; which gases, in their turn, on being brought into contact with a mere hot iron (without flame, be it understood), immediately combine, with explosion. Anything more utterly absurd would be difficult to conceive, and might be safely left to the derision of every dabbler in science, from mechanics' institute-men downwards. We advert to it as illustrative of a peculiar type of judgment aberration very preva lent now-a-days, and perhaps best termed scientific bamboozlement. Why, in the name of Archimedes, should our contemporary go so far out of hie way to make the astounding physical discovery signalised yesterday in large type, to the end of explaining' a calamity (an accident, mark, we do not feel justified in call ing it), when the origin, the progress, and the finality of that catastrophe lie within the compass of a nutshell ? Why, indeed, but this ; somebody (we know not who, and. had rather not know, for then we could not be so outspoken)—somebody does well to prate about abstruse physical conditions, however silly and impossible, causing, to the best of his ability, the wordy gossip to go forth, in order to turn the public aside from the real point at issue, and to prevent their asking, with sharp, clear vo i ce —Whose duty was it to see to the efficiency of the mac hinery before the st ar ti ng o f t h e G reat Eastern ? That is the first question to be propounded. It is a simple question, and should elicit a direct answer. Who furnis hed the donkey engines ? is the next question. Direct replies having been elicited, short work might be made of the examination. There is only one veiled secret in the matter, only one, and that is not a philosophical secret. If our c ontemporary has made the discovery that super h rated steam be spontaneously resolvable into its constituents, oxygen and hydrogen, the two recom bining under the contact of mere hot iron, we would suggest the British Association, now sitting, or the It( vs-al Society, as a fitting place for publishing it, an a gaining acquiescence. The publ ic don't want to connect that discovery with the blowing up of the Gr at Eastern's funnel-casing in any sense. They watit to know, in the first instance, on whom the rPsponsibility of superintending the machinery of that :me mnificent but ill-used ship devolved. They want to know, in the second place, whether bursi itw sooner or later would not be the inevitable re sult of stopping the stand pipe as it was stopped, and isolating the water in the funnel-casing from all c, om narmication with the boiler. Granting this (and there is no disputing it), there rests on some one, NN Te ki low not whom, a fearful responsibility. It is n of ilifficult to recognise in the progress of this matter the influence of two separate tendencies. One, to make things pleasant as between the com pany and the public ; the other, to promote confu sion, by importing extraneous speculations into a matter which is clear to ordinary common sense. Explosion under the conditions given was sooner or later inevitable. It was a preventible calamity, which some one ought to have prevented. The public voice demands his name. Half a dozen human lives are already at his door, and but for the merest chance, it might have been half a hundred. 7HE NAVY. The difficulty hitherto experienced in converting the ordinary cast iron gnus into breech loaders has at length been surmounted by Mr. Warny, the in ventor of the new breech loading percussion can non, which during some recent trials at Chatham discharged 20 shots per minutes, who has just suc ceeded in attaching a wrought iron breech to a cast iron gun, the first attempt of the kind which has as yet proved successful. The gun experimented upon consisted of the ordinary cast iron barrel, weighing about 401 b., which having been rifled, Mr. Warny attached his breech loading invention to it ; this gun being also fired by percussion, as is the case with Mr. Warny's ordinary breech loading cannon. The breech is provided with a lever fixed at the end, which by one movement lubricates the cham ber, primes the nipple, and closes the breech. By an exceedingly simple contrivance the breech can be almost instantaneously detached from the other portion of the gun, so that in the case of a sudden surprise by an enemy, these guns can have their breeches removed and be rendered entirely unser viceable. During the trials made at Chatham yes terday to test the newly finished cannon it was ascertained that with a small charge of gunpowder the shot could be thrown 4,000 yards, or upwards of two miles, while by slightly increasing the charge a range of 5,000 yards was obtained, the gun throw fstg a shower of balls at the rate of 10 per minute, a i -apidity of firing which the inventor is able to ma l t - stain as long as the ammunition lasts, the cur rent Of air admitted each time the breech is opened the gun becoming heated and expand prevem,ing rug. Mr. Warny has expressed his readiness to take any ordincry metal or cast iron gun now in use, and to convert it into a breech loader which shall be capable of thcscharging from 10 to 20 shots per minute a distance of at least three miles, the barrel being previously rifled. The screw frigate Ariadne, 32, with engines of 800-horse power, has arrived in harbour at Chatham, from Deptford, in tow of the Wid geon and Bustler, paddle-wheel steamers, to be com pleted and prepared for sea. She was yesterday taken alongside the sheer hulk, for the purpose of having her masts put on board, and, as soon as this operation has been completed, she will be taken into the large new stone dock to be rigged and brought forward for commission with all possible despatch. In consequence of the serious intelligence just received from China and the recommencement of hostilities in that country, the Government have decided on despatching several additional steam frigates and corvettes, together with a :sufficient number of sailing frigates, to augment the squa dron now in the Chinese waters. It is also ex pected that a force of 1,000 • additional Marines will be despatched to China, the divisions at Chat ham, Portsmouth, Plymouth, and Woolwich being able to give that number of men. The names of the ships that are to be ordered to China from the several stations are expected to be announced in a few days. The Duke of Somerset and the other Lords of the Admiralty left the Osborne yacht in Hamoaze at 11 o'clock on Tuesday morning, and went at once to the office of Admiral Superintendent Sir Thomas Pasley, in Devonport Dockyard, where they continued some time, and then, accompanied by Sir Thomas Pasley, Mr. Brown, master attend ant, Mr. Elliott, storekeeper, Mr. Peake, master shipwright, and the various officers of the estab lishment, proceeded to inspect the building slips, boathouses, smithery, enginehouse, shops, &c. No. 1 slip is occupied by the new screw steamsloop Phoebe, 10 guns, which is about one quarter built : there are no men on her now. No. 2 is unoccu pied. No. 3 has the Narcissus, 50 (same class as the Liffey) ; she is planked and partly caulked, and preparations are making for her launch, which is intended to take place this year. No. 4, the Jason, 20, half built and planked, will also be launched this year. No. 5, the Gibraltar, 101 (same class as Conqueror), in frame; one-fifth built ; will be finished in 1860. Special atten tion was paid to this ship by their Lordships. Alongside the jetty is the Lion, 80, and Revenge, 91, both fitting for the third division, steam ordinary. In dock No. 4, the Royal William, 120, recently cut down and altering to a 90-gun screw; her stern frame is up, she is almost ready for planking, and may be finished in February next. No. 5 contains the sailing frigate Phoebe, 50, pulled apart for a screw, to carry 50 guns ; she will be lengthened altogether 60 feet—viz., 33 feet 8 inches by the bow, and 26 feet 4 inches by the stern; the artisans are very busy on her, and she may be finished in 1860. On completing this portion of their duties the Lords of the Admiralty, at half-past two, went on board their yacht, and about an hour afterwards landed again in the dockyard, and, walking through the tunnel, entered the steam-yard at Keyham, where they were received by Mr. Biddlecombe, Assistant \faster-Attendant ' • Mr. Trickett, chief engineer of the factory ; Mr. Townsend, civil engineer ; Mr. Foster, surgeon ; and Capt. Robinson, of the steam reserve. Their Lordships sat in the board-room for about an hour, and then went through the factory and the buildings in course of erection. In Keyham yard, fitting for the second division of steam ordi- nary, are the Windsor Castle, 116 (which their Lordships visited) •, the Sanspareil, 70 ; the En counter, 14 ; and the new steamsloop Greyhound, 17. The paddle-wheel steamsloop Centaur, 6, is repairing for the third division. The paddle-wheel steamvessel Prospero is shipping new boilers ; and the screw steamsloop Curlew, 9, is under repair. Last year about £50,000 was voted by Parliament for the extension of the works ; of this £25,000 has been expended in the purchase of land. The Government contemplates making a further pur chase, and Mr. Townsend has surveyed some con tiguous land belonging to the trustees of the late Sir John St. Aubyn, with whom they are in treaty. Their Lordships continued some time at this point. In consequence of the comparative smallness of the amount at command no very great progress has been made in the works. The north storehouse, for a rigging-house and store, is completed. New masting shears, 110 feet high, made of wrought iron, and capable of lifting 40 tons, have been erected on the edge of the basin. The iron workshops constructing between the docks for the carpenters and joiners are progressing. Several weigh-bridges, two of which are capable of weighing each 40 tons, have been fixed ; some of Taylor's traction engines are being tested in the yard ; and one of Armstrong's hydrau lic lifts will shortly be attached to the Cove stores. The Lords of the Admiralty dined in the evening with Admiral-Superintendent Sir Thomas Pasley, at his official residence in the dockyard. The Goliath, 80, line-of-battle screw steamer, has been towed from Chatham to Sheerness by the African and Adder steamers, and will be attached to the second division of the steam reserves at that port. The Charybdis, 21, screw corvette, was undocked at Chatham yesterday, and will be attached to the second division of the steam reserve in the Medway, The paddlewheel steam sloop Virago, 6, Com mander Dunn, got up steam on Tuesday morning at Plymouth, and went to sea. It is reported that she will communicate with the fleet either to de liver despatches, or to convey instructions for the ships to repair to the Sound. The screw steam gun vessel Pioneer, 6, Corn inander Reilly, has been removed from the basin in Devonport Dockyard to her moorings in Hamoaze, and has received her powder. It is reported that the Pioneer, with seven others which are named, will proceed at once to China. Yesterday orders were received at the Royal Naval Rendezvous, Tower-hill, to enter able and ordinary seamen, landsmen, petty officers, and . artisans for the ships now fitting for the reinforce ment of the fleet in China. In order that the ships of war ordered on the China station may be manned with all expedition the Coastguard are to be called on to volunteer. Her Majesty's steamer Sea Mew, Commander Broad, has gone round to Fleetwood and the East coast to receive such men as will join. ' Yesterday a large draught of men arrived from Greenock, at the receiving ship off the Tower, whence they will be draughted to Portsmouth and the stokers to Sheerness. Great improvements are ordered to be made in the fortification s at Dover Castle, the parapets of tho Citadel are to e b o e ve r r a e i d sed ;a a y be built, an ro d. ad constructed ; the new dv magazine z n military e s to fosses and ditches are f to be widened and deepened, and a sum of .£150,000 ' e xpended m . placing Dover Castle in an efficient state of defence. The Akbar troopship was yesterday towed into Portsmouth harbour from Spithead, and berthed alongside the Pitch-house jetty, in readiness to em bark her troops this morning. The entering of seamen for the navy still proceeds at a steady rate at Liverpool. A few days ago a draught of 35 volunteers was forwarded to Sheer ness, and another batch of about 20 men was sent to the same destination yesterday. Mr. J. B. Ricards was yesterday appointed sur geon to her Majesty's ship Simoom. THE SUN, LONDON, THURSDAY EVENING, SEPTEMBER 15, 1859. LAUNCH OF THE GALATEA. WOOLWICH, Sept. 14.—Another important addi tion was made to the royal navy this day by the launch of the Galatea, screw corvette, of 26 guns and 800 horse power. Sho was laid down at this yard in February, 1857, and has been constructed on the most approved principles of modern naval architecture. The following are her exact dimen sions : Length between perpendiculars .. 280 ft. Oin. „ of keel for tonnage .. .. 245 ft. Bin. Breadth extreme .. .. .. 50ft. Oin. „ for tonnage .. .. .. 49ft. Gin. 91 moulded .. .. .. 48ft. Sin. Depth in hold .. .. .. .. 19ft. 4in. Burthen in tons .. .. .. 3,202 , At half-past one o'clock the gates were opened to visitors, and many thousands flocked to the building-slip to witness the proceedings. Ample accommodation was provided by means of seats erected on each side of the vessel, and a plat form at the bow was fitted up in a superior style for naval and military officers, and those provided with tickets. The band of the Woolwich division of Royal Marines was in attendance ; and amongst those present, in addition to Commodore Superin tendeni the Hon. J. R. Drummond, were Vice-Ad miral Sir M. Stopford, Admiral Sir James Gordon (Governor of Greenwich Hospital), Col. Stransham (Commandant of the Royal Marine Light Infantry), numerous officers of the Royal Artillery and Mili tary Train Corps, Mr. Alderman Salomons, M.P. &c. A novel feature in the present launch at this yard was the introduction of hydraulic pressure for the purpose of easing the ship on her launching ways, and thus affording a propelling power OD the removal of the dog-shores. Four hy draulic rams, manufactured by Messrs. Huxham and Brown, of Exeter, were used, two being placed under the cutwater, and two at the sides of the vessel. At 20 minutes to three o'clock the work of removing the timbers and dog-shores was completed under the superintendence of Mr. Turner, master shipwright, and the ceremony of christening the vessel was performed by the lady of Vice-Admiral the Hon. Sir Montagu Stopford, K.C.B. Imme diately afterwards, the hydraulic machines were applied, and the splendid vessel, with her decks covered with visitors, glided gracefully off the slip on which she was built into the Thames, amidst the cheers of thousands of spectator•, the band per forming the " National Anthem." After the launch —which was in every respect perfect—the Galatea was removed into the outer basin, where she will be fitted with her screw machinery, manufactared by Messrs. J. Penn and Sons, of Greenwich. An accident of a serious nature occurred during the pro ceedings to one of the spectators, a private of the Royal Marines, who foolishly mounted the tall hydraulic crane on the wharf, and received severe injuries on his head by falling from a considerable height. He was immediately conveyed to the in firmary. The Allding slip from which the Galatea was launched is to be cleared forthwith, for the pur pose of laying down a new screw-frigate, to be named the Bristol. PAY AND POSITION OF INDIAN OFFICERS. The following letter appeared in a contemporary Sir,—As great ignorance is daily exhibited on this subject, perhaps the following may interest those who have relatives in the service, and serve to explain the origin of that crying evil, " debt," which so deeply excited Sir C. Napier's attention, and which at present literally overwhelms vast numbers of Indian officers, especially in the junior ranks. In India the pay of both services, Queen's and Company's, is nominally of precisely similar amount, but, in consequence of deductions for funds, expen sive fatigue duties with native troops, increased ex pense of maintaining regimental institutions with an average complement' per corps of only 1 com mandant, 1i captain, and 81 subalterns, the pay of the Indian regimental officer is actually less than that of the Queen's officer, whose more rapid pro motion also gives him immense advantages. The Indian officer, after fifteen years' tropical service, becomes a brevet captain, but does not ob tain any increase of pay. On the contrary, he is compelled in his ordinary routine to perform the additional duty of the higher ranks on the pay of tilt subaltern. When on furlough this discrepancy becomes still more glaring. The Indian Army List prove that Bengal alone contained in 1855 (after some seven teen consecutive years of war) nearly 350 officers on the active list, who had actually served from fifteen to twenty-three years in that tropical cli mate before attaining the subordinate rank of regi mental captain. But for the evidence of the Army List these facts would be incredible. These brevet captains—men who have fought through half-a-dozen tropical campaigns—receive when on furlough only Gs. 6d. per diem, which is reduced by fund and other deductions to an annual income of exactly 106/. The Queen's lieutenant of seven years' standing, who may never have left England, or have seen a shot fired, receives 7s. 6d. per diem, or per annum, 136/. The Queen's lieutenant of seven years' standing thus receives considerably more than the Indian brevet-captain of from 15 to 20 years' tropical ser vice, and who, moreover, is generally a married man approaching his 40th year. Had the celebrated Hodson (who was a lieu tenant, and in his 37th year at the siege of Delhi, and who had fought in seven general actions), chosen to return home on furlough, his pay would have been exactly 1061. per annum, or less than 6s. a day. The Queen's lieutenant, in addition to the receipt of higher pay than the Indian brevet captain, is also provided with coals, candles, quarters, servant, mess. If he be on leave, he can fall back on the regimental depot. The fact is, however, that the pay received by all regimental officers in India, whether Queen's or Company's, is greatly exaggerated, more especi ally in the case of the junior officers in the local army. The Indian officer is an ensign up to his " fifth," a lieutenant up to his " fifteenth," and a captain up to his " twenty-eighth" year of tropical service. (See Army Lists.) Ensigns, pay at is. 10d. per rupee (average for the last 15 years), from first to fifth year of tropical service, 2251. Lieutenants, from fifth to fifteenth ditto, 2801. , . Captains, from fifteenth to twenty-eighth ditto, 4601. This pay, how ever is a deception ; being in a great measure made up of allowances for items, which in England are supplied by the Government. Thus the numerous military stations of our vast empire have been built with money borrowed at 15 to 20 per sent. by the officers of the Indian army ; and whenever these stations are abandoned, or the garrisons reduced—as was the case at Kur nal, Loodianah, Ferozapore, &c.—no compensation whatever is granted for the total loss of property which ensues. The officers' annual disbursements are as follows : Subalterns on an average pay for quarters, which if small are unhealthy, from 45/. to 351. Maintenance of camp equipage, tents, &c., break ages, marching expenses, loss by purchase and sale of furniture, from 35/. to 25/. The Company's officer has ever to be prepared for solitary detached duty," and therefore must of necessity keep the number of servants sanctioned, or rather enforced, by caste and custom, 50/. Every Indian subaltern is also, nolens volens, com pelled to keep a horse, not only for preservation of health, but due performance of military duty in a tropical country and with native troops—purchase and keep, with saddlery, 35/. The above compulsory outlay (for items which in England aro supplied by the government or are unnecessary) reduces Indian pay to the following limits : Ensign, from first to fifth year of tropical ser vice, 801. Lieutenant, from fifth to fifteenth year of tropical service, 135/. . _ _ Captain, from fifteenth to twenty-eighth year of tropical service ; 3151. Half batta further deprives the captain, lieute nant, and ensign of 501., 401., and 301. per annum, at a moment when they can least afford the loss. Owing to increased exposure on duty consequent on the paucity of officers, the regimental officer rarely escapes sick leave every " third" or at most "fourth" year; and each journey to the hills costs, including house rent, travelling, and loss of allow ances, from 601. to 80/. The Indian officer generally, but not always, obtains the command of a company as a subaltern ; and this allowance (451. per annum), though pre carious, in some measure enables him to meet the extra expense of messing, clothing, payment for steps, half batta, &e., but his pay is not withstanding undoubtedly less (when his expenses are considered) than that received in England. .The.chief grievance of the regimental officer is, that he is compelled to perform lip to his 35th or 40th year of age, and in a tropical country, the addi tional duties of ensign, of lieutenant, of captain, and even of field officer, on the regimental pay and rank of a subaltern. This of itself is virtual supercession ; but it is also notorious that the Indian regimental officer is openly and avowedly superseded en masse, not only by the Que en's officer, but also by the huge " absentee st iff" connected with the Indian service. The whole: tale grants of brevet rank to absentee staff officers (.sacked by staff pay) have turned the Indian seniors ty service into a mere mockery. The line officer—v l / 4 those promotion is ruined, and whose military career is destroyed by staff absenteeism, is openly and habitually superseded by staff officers of subordinate regimental rank, officers who in num ber literally vie with their regimental brethren. Many appear to confound the regimental and staff services together, apparently forgetful that the vast majority of , officers must ever remain with their regiments, and :must be ever dependent on their regimental prospects. A glance at the Army Lists will prove that it any officers who have passed the highest examinations never obtain staff through out their Indian. career; while the vast majority of staff officers are therein shown to have merely passed the inferior and almost nominal examination called the P. H.,.a labour of at most three months. The staff, as a gradation service, must be obtained early in life, and the examinations being " non-com petiv3," and in many cases almost nominal, " inte rest" necessarily carries the day. Those who poin t to our Nicholsons, Chamberlains, &c., forget that these celebrated men, who were originally nominated to the staff as young ensigns, are representatives not of the " line," but of a favoured body of some 700 staff absentees, mostly selected from the Bengal army whilst still in the junior ranks of the service. The qualifying exa mination, called the P.H., being quite a recent re gulation, the vast majority of these officers were therefore selected before they could possibly have given any proofs of peculiar merit. On the con trary, the Army Lists prove that when Lord I)al housie's order respecting the qualification for staff was first issued, nearly 300 out of the 550 staff absentees had not passed any examination in the languages which required the opening of a book. (See Army Lists of that period.) Young staff officers thus selected are granted opor tunities which are wholly denied to their regimental brethren; whose career is separate and distinct. The Indian civilian of 14 years' standing is com monly in receipt of company's rupees 2,250 per mensem, besides allowances for marching. The regimental officer of 14 years' standing is a lieutenant of rupees 250 per mensem, and has no allowance for marching. Lord Ellenborough declares that luxury is un known in India, and is opposed to a reduction in the salary of the civilian. Yet the military man, eternally on the move, existing on " one-tenth" the civil scale of pay; and therefore exposed to debt and difficulties, is pointed out as an example of the ruinous effects of luxury and extravagance.—l am, Szc.„ A REGIMENTAL OFFICER OF 8.N.1. COL. NORTH, M.P., ON MR. BRIGHT ..IND MILITARY DISCIPLINE. BANBURY, TUESDAY. The annual meeting of the Banbury Agricultural Society was held this day. In the afternoon the members dined in the market-room of the Red Lion Hotel. Colonel North, M.P., occupied the chair, and there were also present Sir C. Douglas, M.P,, the Rev. H. Holbeach, the Mayor of Ban bury, Mr. H. Norris, Lieut. Brickwell, &c. The usual loyal toasts having been given, The CHAIRMAN proposed " The Army and Navy." He said he was satisfied from what he knew of the good qualities of the army—their gal lantry in the field, their admirable conduct in quar ters, their love of their Sovereign, and their devo tion to the country, that they were worthy of the estimation in which they were held. Speaking, as he did, in a county which furnished so many men to the military service of the country, he trusted that they would allow him to refer briefly to a speech in reference to the army, recently de livered by Mr. Bright at Huddersfield. (Cheers,) The greater portion of the speech in question was purely political ; but there were some passages in it in reference to the management and discipline of the army which ought not to be allowed to pass by without notice. If at any other time the remarks of Mr. Bright would admit of pal liation, they were most unfair and improper at a moment when, from day to day, it was impossible to say whether every man in England might not be called upon to stand forward in the defence of the country. (Hear, hear.) With regard to Mr. Bright himself, he would simply repeat an observation which he heard Mr. Roebuck make in the House of Commons—viz., that although Mr. Bright, when upon his own dunghill at Birmingham, roared like a lion. when in the House of Commons he was mild and gentle as a sucking dove. (Laughter and cheers.) Mr. Bright, in his speech at Huddersfield, began by saying, " I am, very thankful that I am not able to speak to you on this question of the army with the authority on minute matters of a military man, but I can tell you this, that over the £12,000,000 that are expended by the Horse Guards, Parliament has almost no control whatever, after it has voted the main sum." Unfortunately, every thing that was found fault with in reference to the administration of the military department was im mediately saddled upon the Horse Guards. Per haps they would like him to describe what the Horse Guards really was. The Horse Guards consisted of the Commander-in-Chief, the adjutant-general, and one quartermaster-general. The duty de volving upon the Commander-in-Chief was the superintendence of the whole army; the duties of the adjutant-general were confined to the discipline of the army ; while the quartermaster-general re gulated the movement of troops and supplied camps and barracks, but neither of those officers had the power of spending one single sixpence of the £12,000,000 referred to by Mr. Bright. (Cheers.) Indeed, upon one occasion his Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge himself stated that he had over and over again recommended certain improvements in the barracks as calculated to ensure the health of the troops, but he was utterly unable to carry out his recommendations, because the money neces sary to enable him to carry them out was refused. (Hear, hear.) Now, he (Col. North) could not con ceive what good object could be gained by continual attacks upon the Horse Guards, and though he would be the last person to deny any man the right of canvassing the acts of public officers, he thought that any person who did so, especially if he hap pened to be a member of Parliament, possessing ample opportunities of gaining accurate informa tion, should at any rate state both sides of the ques tion with impartiality and fairness. No man knew better than Mr. Brignt that the Commander-in- Chief and the Horse Guards had no power over the 12 millions which he accused them of expending. The sole person who had authority over the money was the Secretary of State for War. (Hear.) It so happened that the last Secretary for War was a soldier, but, generally speaking, he was a man who knew nothing of a soldier's duties, and could not tell whether a soldier wore his pouch over the right shoulder or the left. (Hear.) Of course that remark would not apply in the case of Mr. Sidney Her bert, as that right lion. gentlemen had brought for ward many measures which had proved most ad vantageous to the service; but, generally speaking, the Secretary for War was a civilian, and had alone the control of the 12 millions of money referred to by Mr. Bright. (Hear.) The hon. member for Bir mingham, in his speech at Huddersfield, went on to say, " The Horse Guards is a department almost separated from Parliament, and uncontrolled by it; and it is the universal opinion, confirmed by every fact that ()ernes to my knowledge, that the I forse Guards management of that £12,000,000 and of the vast forces under its direction, is a manage ment where interest aid jobbery reign supreme, and where the interest of the nation at large and fair dealing to all applicants for preferment are very little considered." Now, with regard to the control of the army, the direction of the forces devolved upon the Duke of Cam bridge, and he believed that very few men held the opinion of his Royal Highness which Mr. Bright appeared to entertain. (Cheers.) There was not a man in the country who had more at heart the interest of the service, or who was more thoreughly acquainted with the duties of a soldier from those of the Commander-in-Chief down to those of a lance corporal, and he (Col. North) be lieved that there was not a man in England, except Mr. Bright, who would presume to say that the management of his Royal Highness was a manage ment, " where interest and jobbery reign supreme, and where the interest of the nation at large and fair dealing to all applicants for preferment are very little considered.' If ever any man had de voted his whole energies to the improvement of the con-iition of the army it was his Royal Highness the Duke of Cam)ridge, and it was most un fair that such an attack should have been made upon him by Mr. Bright. (Hear, hear, and cheers.) The lion. member for Birmingham went on to say —" In a free country like this I wonder that cer tain things are permitted which now exist. I have been engaged for the last two months in procuring the discharge of a soldier, if I may call him so, for he is not a man, nor indeed a young man,'but a boy, who was only 14 years and a month or two when he was entrapped by the recruiting sergeant. It has taken the father of that boy, I believe, since April or May to procure his discharge, rod it has only been obtained at length on account of the ur gent remonstrances that I made ; for memorial after memorial has gone to the Horse Guards, and to his Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge, which memorials have been replied to in the usual fashion, nearly meaning this—' We have got your son in our barracks ; he has taken the oath ; he has taken the shilling ; and, be he man or boy, we will keep him there !' Mothers, for there are mothers among you, think of a boy, 14 years of age, being ' met in the streets by one of these unmitigated scoundrels, and being asked' Are you wanting a job ?" What do you want me to do ?' says the boy, Oh, come and be a soldier.' But lam too little.' ' No, you are not; you are just the right height.' Well, but lam only 14.' Never mind, say you are 184 and it will be all right." Now, having once procured with great difficulty the discharge of a young soldier, he (Col. North) had been consider ably-astonished at this statement, and made some in quiry respecting it, from which he found, that the boy went to a sergeant of the 3d Regiment, and offered to enlist. No conversation took place, but he received the shilling, was taken before the surgeon, who passed him to the officer superintending the recruiting district, and ultimately he joined the re giment, The day after the enlistment the father and mother of the lad abused the sergeant for enlist ing him, but never asserted for a moment that he was a boy only 14 years of age. The testimony of the military surgeon who inspected him was that his height was Mt. 43in., his weight 1201b5., and that he measured 32 inches round the chest, so that at all events he must have been a most precocious boy of 14. (Laughter.) The Commander-in-Chief could have had no interest in detaining the recruit, except as the guardian of the public interests. Dur ing the Russian war he (Col. North) had had occa sion to apply to the Horse Guards for the discharge of a boy who had been enlisted under age, and he found great difficulty in obtaining it, simply on public grounds, but the moment he produced a cer tificate of birth, showing the real age of the boy, be was at once handed over to his parents. (Hear.) All he could say was, that from the knowledge he had of the character of his Royal Highness the Com mander-in-Chief, if there had been grounds for re fusing the discharge of the boy referred to by the hon. member for Birmingham, neither the urgent remonstrances of Mr. Bright nor anything else, would have influenced his decision. (Cheers.) With regard to the term " unmitigated scoundrels," he (Col. North) could only tell Mr. Bright that if he referred to the non-commissioned officers of the army, they were no more unmitigated scoundrels than he (Mr. Bright) was an unmitigated scoundrel himself. (Laughter and cheers.) Their respectability as a class, their devotion to their Sovereign, and, their gallantry upon all occasions had secured for them the respect and esteem of the whole country. (Cheers.) No regiment could exist without its non commissioned officers, and instead of being unmiti gated scoundrels, they formed one of the most effi cient branches of the service. (Hear.) Adverting to another subject connected with the army, Mr. Bright said—" But have you not seen within the last day or two what they do with their recruits when they get them ? Have you read in the papers the account of the brutal flogging of one of these young recruits down at Woolwich ? I am afraid to read the extract that has been sent to me by some gentleman who wished particularly that I would refer to it on this occasion. There were two soldiers, but of one of them it is stated his back when they began with him was covered with a mass of red inflated boils, which bled profuselrat every stroke, and reddened the ground under his feet. " Now the officer who commanded at Woolwich was General Sir R. Dacres, a most humane man, and certainly a person who could not be accused of un necessary harshness. The recruit's name was Davis. He enlisted on the sth of March, 1859, and absented himself from the regiment on the 23d for three days. He was tried for the offence, and being a young recruit, was sentenced to a moderate punishment, but on the 31st of March he deserted again, and was not brought back for some months. He was again tried and sentenced to receive fifty lashes, and to be imprisoned for 84 days ; but from feelings of humanity, Sir R. Dacres remitted the imprisonment. The man, on being taken down from the halberds, after receiving his punishment, to show his contempt of the authorities, began to crow like a cock, and the moment he came out of hospital he deserted for a third time. It was for that third offence that he had been recently flogged, and every one of the military surgeons who had examined him declared that the statement of Mr. Bright was false. The punishment of flogging for desertion in the army had only been lately sanctioned by Parliament in the Mutiny Act, and it was absolutely necessary, because during last year alone there was no less than 11,000 deser tions, and it must be borne in mind that every sol dier cost the country for his kit and his bounty alone £6 18s., independently of which, a large ex pense was incurred in drill. With regard to thepunish merit of flogging , he had no hesitation in saying that it was a degrading punishment, but it was intended to be a degrading one. No doubt it was a severe punishment, and he himself had seen both officers and men faint while it was being inflicted, and if Mr. Bright, or any other man, would provide an effectual substitute, hehad no doubt the whole army would gladly receive it. (Hear.) As to the opinions of Mr. Bright with regard to the officers of the army, the officers of the army cared very little for anything he might say. (Laughter and cheers.) In conclusion, ho begged to propose " The Health of the Army and Navy." Several other toasts having been drunk, the pro ceedings were brought to a close. BRITISH ARCILiEOLOGICAL ASSO- LI 4 TION. NEWBURY, WEDNESDAY. The members of this association, joined by a number of the local gentry having a taste for archaeology, began yesterday morning the series of excursions which had been arranged for the week. The neighbourhood abounds with objects of historic interest, and it will require from six to seven hours each, day to get through the programme before the assembling of the congress in the hall in the even -1 ing. Archaeology has found many votaries in the ladies, and some of them have evinced a consider able acquaintance with localities and events which occupy a conspicuous position in the histcry of the town and its environs. The excursionists were ready by 10 o'cloCk, and the cavalcade of open and close carriages, char-a bancs. and other vehicles, quite astonished the quiet inhabitants of Newbury, many of whom could scarcely imagine that their town and neighbourhood would ever have been visited by such a number of celebrated antiquaries and archaeologists as are now temporarily sojourning here. T.; e first place visited was Wash-common, about a mile from the town, where two battles were fought during the civil wars of Charles I. More than two centuries ago, this month, the first engagement took place, the King commanding the Royalists in. person, an the Earl of Essex the Parliamentary forces. The excursionists next proceeded to the park of the Countess of Craven, at Henstead, where are some mounds of interest in relation to former struggles. Avignon, a parish about six miles south west of the town, was afterwards reached, and the church and vicarage were greatly admired. The former, in the interior, is a very curious specimen of Saxon architecture. As the weather changed to rain and hail, with a bitterly cold wind, the caval cade made for Shaw-house, the residence of Mr. Henry Richard Eyre, who gave all a cordial wel come, and invited them to partake of his hospitality. The encampment at Speen and Speen Church could not be reached, as the weather would not admit of the parts' travelling any longer. In the evening the Congress was again held un der•the presidency of the Earl of Carnarvon. A paper on the legends of Wayland Smith, prepared by that celebrated antiquary Mr. Thomas Wright, NA as read. This was succeeded by one from Mr. Pettigrew•on the• death of Lady Amy Robsart, at Cuinnor, in 1560. Mr. Pettigrew sought to show that most of what had hitherto been written in re ference to this subject bore more the character of fiction and romance than real historical truth, and that Ashmole had so far imbibed the prejudices of the people that he asserted all as facts without be ing careful to test their accuracy. He read the letters whica passed between Lord Robert Dudley and his cousin Blount, with other extracts from ancient documents, and argued from them all that the death of Lady Dudley was an accident, and that Lord Robert had not incited any person to poison her, nor, in fact, was poison administered to her. A careful review of the whole facts, he stated, had led him to the belief that no murder had been per petrated, and he rejoiced in taking a step to rescue the character of Dudley from the stigma of having been connected with the commission of so foul a crime. Mr. Blundell did not sympathise in the views of Mr. Pettigrew, and regarded the letters which passed between Dudley and Blount as being what, in his profession, was. technically called showable," and made too much of a case. They proved more of the guilt than the innocence of Dudley. The sentiments expressed by Mr. Blun dell were warmly approved by the visitors, while a small portion only were in favour of the views enunciated by Mr. Pettigrew. This morning the excursionists started off to visit the once famous Roman city . of Silchester. .The Congress will assemble again in the evening, when other papers will be read. [ADVERTISEMENT.] —Holloway's Ointment and PHIL... Dysentery—Diarrhcea.--Daring the summer season these diseases exact numberless victims from the thoughtless of my age or either sex. The first derangement of the stomach is neglected, and first irritation, succeeded by inflammation, soon extends to the bowels. In some severe cases medicines, given internally, only aggravate the malady ; what a bless ing is it, then, that Holloway's ointment, rubbed externally over the abdomen, can arrest and cure the complaint ; after being rubbed the abdomen should be loosely swathed in flannel to afford support and uniformity of temperature, FatinaceouS food alone should be taken. Whenever prac ticable, Holloway's pills ro . should be a d m i n i stered in appro priate doses, unless increased irritation follow their use, when the - cure can be accomplished by the ointment, This table shows a very striking contrast in the increase of the supply of flax as compared with our other raw materials during the last quarter of a century, and if the comparison had been carried further back, the contrast would have been found to be still greater. In broad terms, the supply of cotton, wool, silk, and hemp may be said to be three times greater now than it was in 1833, and in each the steady and rapid increase during the last fifteen years raises a fair presumption that we are fairly in the way of providing year by year in creased means of sustaining those gieat branches of industry. But how striking is the contrast in respect to the supply of flax ! No doubt, as is the case with wool, enly a part of the supply of flax is imported, part being grown at home. But there is no doubt that while the home growth of wool has greatly increased, that of flax has diminished during that period, in spite of the efforts of the Irish Society, and of the annual prizes distributed by means of a grant by Government from the Irish reproductive loan fund. The truth is that more valuable crops have taken the place of flax at home. And it is perhaps one of the causes of the stationary supply of flax that we have relied mainly upon the old European sources where the land has every year become more and more appropriated to the growth of grain and other products for the food of the increasing population. And this theory is borne out if we only refer to the sources from whence the main increase has taken place in the other arti cles of raw material. In the case of cotton, new states in America have been "cultivated, and a great extension has taken place in India. In the case of wool the increased supplies have chiefly come from the new fields of Australia, India, and the Cape of Good Hope. In the case of silk the increased supplies have come from the new sources of China and India; and in the case of hemp the increased supply is almost solely from India. Contrasted with these striking facts, the supply of flax is confined almost to the same s ources that it was a quarter of a century ago. The supply of flax in 1833 and in 1858 was as follows : Russia and Prussia, Holland Belgium Other counties 1833. 1858. cwts. cwts. 924,240 .... 1,027,632 79,949 ... • 110,231 89,628 .... 96,98.5 35,815 .... 49,057 Total 1,129,632 1,283,905 There is, perhaps, nothing else connected with English trade which shows so stationary and stag nant a character. Let us just see what change has taken place in the other articles, in the quantities imported from our growing Indian empire alone. IMPORTED FROM INDIA. - 1833. 1858. Cotton lbs. 32,755,000 132,720,000 Wool 3,721 17,333,000 Silk Hemp and jute .. cwt s 3 4 , 000 ' • • • 839,000 Flax •••• Here we have a s t r iki ng example of the manner in which the great increase has taken place in the import of those articles from the newly-opened fields of India alone, Were'we to carry the comparison to China, Australia, and to South Africa, the oontrast in the several articles would b© still greater. But why has India done nothing for flax and our linen manufacture ? Is it because it possesses no capa bilities for its production ? Not at all. The linen manufacturers may have been slow to appreciate the fact, but if we are to judge by a deputation—the deputation which note long ago waited upon Lord Sanley—they are at least in part alive to it now. The subject of the production of flax in India engaged much of the attention of the Committee of the House of Commons which sat upon. Indi an colonisation during the last two sessions of Parlia ment, In their report they say;--' ( Great complaints of the want of a supp,ly of flax are made b 7 the acc ount closed o r working short time. linen manufactwers of this country. M any m ill s are on this. It i s stated in the evidence that, with a good sup ply, we might double our linen trade. There ap pears to be a promise of an abundant supply in the Punjaub. But the right mode of preparing the flax is not understood. It is considered that an agent might be advantageously sent out on the part of the Flax Association, to guide and superintend the la. boar of the natives. It is said that their attention has been hitherto directed to the production of the seed rather than to the improvement of the fibre. For the export of flax, the rising port of Kurrachee would have the advantage over- St. Petersburg of being open throughout the year. Of this and other products of the soil, it is stated by severarwitnesses that the best mode of dealing for a European is to buy the article from the natives instead of cultivat ing it ourselves." Let those who are interested in the linen trade carefully peruse the evidence given by Sir J. Lawrence before that committee on the 12th of July last, and they will at once discover thi means by which the evil of which they complain may be rectified. ,The Government have already in dicated the facilities by which a great trade may be conducted cheaply and rapidly by means of rail ways and the Indus to the rising port of Kurrachee , and from thence the freight would be nearly as cheap as from St. Petersburg. The way is clearly pointed out by which this anomaly of stagnation in British trade may be overcome. The Government is not slow to do its part ; let us see that the enter prise of Belfast, Leeds, and Dundee does the rest. Let them take an example from Manchester. 'COLLISION AND LOSS OF LIFE A2' SEA. Capt. Murphy, of the barque Return, which ar rived at Greenock on Saturday from Quebec, nar rates as follows a collision between his vessel and a French fishing schooner, whereby two of the crew of the latter lost their lives : " The Return left Quebec for the Clyde on the 18th of August. On the morning of Friday, the 26th, she was off the Green Bank of St. Peter's, on the Banks of Newfoundland. The weather was very thick, and there was a strong breeze, the ship going ten knots on the-port tack, carrying all sally with lights up. The starboard watch had just come on deck at four a.m., when a slight crash was heard, and a mast and sail were ob served coming right over the lee bow. Thought it was part of the ship's own gear which had broken down. Heard a voice cry out, and on look ing over the fore chains saw a man hanging on the lee fore bowline, with heavy clothes and sea boots on, but before he could be reached he dropped off, and was lost. The cries of the others were also heard, and the ship's helm was put hard down, and she was got up in the wind. The boat was got out with all despatch, and three men and a boy were picked up. The vessel run down was a French fishing schooner, of about 30 tons. She was a ten der to the French brig Granville, of St. Malo. The • crew of tbe schooner consisted of five men and a boy. Those saved were Louis Raoul, maste r ; Eugene Roussel, Armadie Busson, boy, and another man, name not given. Those lost were Jean Mar e Mounae and Joseph Baslete. It appeared that the four who were saved were all below at the time 01 the collision, but had managed to scramble lift! deck ; and it is supposed that the two men 10 7 were on the watch on deck, and who have perished, had fallen asleep. One of them sank beside the "master just as the boat which picked the latter UP was nearing him. When struck, the schooner aP: pcared to be on the same tack as the barque, but closer hauled in the wind. She' was right on the barque's lee bow, and was cut clean in two, the on e part passing the barque on the one side, and other part on the other. In the course of the sam e morning, shortly after the disaster, the Return spoke another French schooner lying at anchor on the eastern edge of the Banks of Newfoundlan d, and put the master of the lost vessel and one of the men and the boy on board. , The remaining man , Eugene Roussel, has been brought home with the Return. On the 28th the brig Eugene, of Gra n " ville, was spoken, out of provisions, and the Retur n gave her a barrel of bread, getting some fish in el" change." COUNTRY MARKBTS. NEWARK.-SEPT. 14. --- There was a fair show of wheat to-day, which sold wel l at an advance of is upon late rates. Little barley on offer at previous prices. The trade in oats was slow, and itt 11 prices were barely realised. Beans in small supply, Au" at barely late prices. White wheat, new, 42s to 46s Barley, grinding.. 28s to 301 Red do. 4le to 45s Oats, old, .. 285 to 311 Old white 44s to 483 New do 24s to 31 , 1 , 1 Red do.. 40s to 44s Beans. 47 3 to uu° Barley, malting.— 363 to 435 Beans, new —s to -*1 HULL-SEp. 13. At our market to-day we had a verysmall supply of Eng' Bah wheat, which was cleared off at fully is to 2e per qr. above last week's prices for both new and old ; foreign of fine quality held for a similar advance , which checked busi ness. Barley for malting in good request, but grinding parcels met a slower demand, at lower rates. Oats were neglected, but prices were not lower. Beans and peas were a slow sale, and prices in favour of buyers. Wheat.... Old white per qr. 46s Od to 48s Od Old red New white .. ~ New red .... , • Dantzic, Konb , &c. old white 48s Od to 50s Od Dutch, Belgian, and French 46s Od to 488 u 0,.., Baltic and Hamburg, red to to 40s s s odw Ua ... St. Petersburg and Riga, old. 40s Od to 42s Ua ,..3 Barley.... English malting Grinding 3os Od to 32s Saal and Oderbruck Holstein and Danish 3 os O d to 31w ( )a Grinding Oats English, old .... 2 2 6 4 e s 0 0 d d t t o o 2 2 9 6 s s 0 4 Archangel and Riga, per st.. Os lid to 11 ,L Swedish and D an i s h 0;11a to Osl l o d " Friesland and Dutch' Beans ....English, old, per qr. ~, New pigeon. 4os Od to 42s r', New tick.......... - 398 Od t o 408 LPL` ri Egyptian ad Peas Foreign break ers Grin ding Tares ....Winter —s Od to --El ~, Indian Corn Linseed, feeding Oa crushing Linseed cakes (Hull) £8 12 6to a n L A 0 Foreign 715 oto 8 7 6 Rape cakes 6 415 oto 411 0 Bones 415 oto u MARKET HARBOROUGH—SEPT..I 3 . There was a moderate show of w h ea t, which met sll° to demand, at about forme r rates. White wheat, 47s ; red, Ms to 42s per 36 stone. Barley in limited i o tities at former terms-36 s t o 42 5 . O ats were a fair 8 465; from 20s to 26s per 24 stone. Beans (old), at as W new, —s to —Byer 38 stone. MELTON MOWBRAY—SEPT. 13. _..to There was a fair show o f w h eat to-day, w i t h a 112°c1_6724 business at the annex e d prices :—White wheat, ne w od Od to 458 Od ; old, 44 s Od to 47s per 36 st. ; beans , 30 0 to 54s Od per 38 s t. ; b ar l ey, 38s to 44s Od per qr. ; oats, 3a to 355; new, 24s to 27s per 24 st. DUBLIN—SEPT. 14. Our market was brisk, with a large supply of new s' ttr er and we note the prices of best wheat as fully Od t!enitui from last market. Oats were a slow sale, and noin l s ad unaltered in pri ce . M a lti ng b ar l ey was i n f a i r r equelt , oo t also bere t at Friday's currencies. Indian corn wa° without inquiry. - - s. d. a. d. Wheat, white 22 0 to 23 0 Do., red 2O 0 to 21 6 Do., new Barley Oats Do., black l4 0 to 15 0 s. 0. o g Do., new 11 0to 1 : 0 Bere . Rapese e d 20 0t022 6 Oatmeal l2 6to l e t 0 Bakers' flour Indian corn - a Ito" The electric t e l egrap h to M e lb ourne all . r ein laide is in con s t an t use, and affords a remune ratill. for cea nue. Indeed, the amount of business transacted bas d w ire• on the governm en t th e a b so l ute necess i ty o f a sec° erld Wires to Bathu rs t an d t o M a i t l an d were i n progre s ' o ' r tant will shortly convey messages between those 1111 P towns and the Australian metropolis. BELL.a—moeisißtheell,lE3tshqins. BIRT HS. t.aat alu, gph Devonshire-plane, rshire-plalet tile e i : O a f CLARKSON.—On the 14th inst., at Woodford, Horace Clarkson, Esq., of a daughter. said , COOPER.—On the 13th inst., at Thames Dittos, Mrs. Henry Cooper, of a daughter. 14 41° DOWN.—On the 13th inst., at Rose-hill, D o rking, the of James Dundas Down, Esq., of a son. M MR, RIAG ES. ir lill JACKSON—JOHNSON.—On the 14th inst., - 3 13)2 House, Robert Edmund Scoresby Jackson, Elji z sbet'' F R.C.S.E., 18, Queen-street, Edinburgh , t° Whyte, only child of Sir Wm. John son , of ICir" — t i a eXt DAVIES—CnomrToN.—On the 13th i ns t,. L lun n s a viet Church; Pembrokeshire., the Rev. J. Lew . ,,ear l , — e lde.; rector of Christ Church, St. M ary l e b one , to itiswienW daughter of the Hon. Mr. Justice Crompton, of 1.4 nen House, and Hyde -park-square, London. DEATHS. vir r eills ll3 ' CIINLITTE.—On the 10th inst., a t Acton-park, —B. - j oists General Sir Robert Henry Cunliffe, Bart., C. Army, aged 75. (w ive, OREIVE.—;O3I the 13th inst., suddenly, Mr. Tboti. W a ter of the firm o f G re i ve an d G re lli er , B e l v edere-roa d, • 100-bridge. 8 09 10 HANCOCR.—On the 12th inst at his residen ce, Villa, New-road, Hammers mith, Thos. llaneoci" aged 75, jobi l HIGELATT.—On the 16th July, at Dugsh aie, India' Sharp Highatt, aged 30. vica ge, 1 9,1: H ar ormswearx.—On the 12th inst., at the , r gala' borough, Albinia, wife of the "Rev. George 41 ' . worth. Kemp Stlirge°l4 STURGEON.--On the 13th inst., James Esq., Springfield Lodge, Dorking, Surreys. round stiebely STTEBEL.—On the 11th inst., suddenly, Sigi Esq,, of 30, Gordon-square, aged 69. --- n — VOI II4Gt LONDON : Printed and Published by Su Office , No. ll of softrNanod. the Str e =Pre%ini , in t n 2 th Middlesex, Thursday, September 1b, y1,4 leu 7 * Pr o ta e t Sart oB'a°te co ' 00 THE SUPPLY OF RAW MATERIALS FROM NEW SOURCES. (FrOM the Economist.) FLAX. We have often dwelt upon the great importance of a good supply of the raw materials of our chief manufacturing industries, as lying, in point of fact, at the foundation of our mercantile superiority, and we have even ventured to express an opinion that the opening up of new colonial possessions is more important in this point of view than as forming new markets for our manufactures. The whole tendency for many years past of our producing ca pabilities has been to cheapen the processes, and at the same time to increase the applicability of our productions to the wants and tastes of mankind, and constantly, therefore, to bring within the range of our trade larger portions of the human race. To this end the mechanical and scientific genius of the counLry has been upon the rack for many years past. and in no small degree has it succeeded in its objects. Every cheapening process or invention has had the effect of enlarging the consumption of the articles upoa which it has been exercised. But, then, it must be obvious that this result cannot be attained, which is the only one in'which the public are interested, unless the supply of the raw material can' be correspondingly increased. No matter what im provements may be made in order to cheapen the processes of the cotton or of the iron manufacture, if no more cotton or iron ore could be obtained. The only effect in that case would be, not to cheapen the article produced to the consumer, but to increase the prices of the limited quantity of the material from which it was made. No doubt the general effect of such increased prices would be to give rise to new efforts to produce more, and, un less the means of production were absolutely and strictly limited, an increased supply would follow. But what we wish to impress upon our readers chiefly is the fact, that it is only in proportion as that increased supply keeps pace with the cheapen ing inventions and improvements of the times, that their advantages will be felt by the public. But, again, an increased supply of raw material derived from new countries and different climates, besides the beneficial consequences which it exerts directly in the manner referred to upon our manu facturing industry, has another and almost equally important effect. Every pair of hands which is employed in a distant country to produoo and pre pare raw materials for our manufactories, is crea ting a new customer for the goods produced, not unfrequently from the very article he is producing. It is thus that at once a new want is created, and the means of gratifying it. The rude domestic manufactures of foreign countries give way before the cheaper and better supplies from England, and it becomes more profitable to sell the raw material than to manufacture it. The freight of the raw material to England, and the freight of the manu factured article from England, are far more than compensated by the mechanical advantages avid ma nufacturing skill possessed by England. It is thus, in fact, that an exchange of mutual advantages con stitutes the real basis of all permanent and free interchange ; and it is because the natural course of this process is interfered with by protective restric tions and governmental regulations, that they be come so injurious. . It is these considerations that explain the con stant cravings of our manufacturing population for a larger supply of raw material, and that renders it so necessary that every means should be taken that lie within our reach to accomplish that object. And from what we have said, it will be obvious that it will be in those branches of manufacture, with regard to which improvements have been most rapid, that this craving will be most urgent. The branch of manufacture in which cheapening pro cesses and general improvements have proceeded with greater rapidity than in any other is the cot ton trade, and it has doubtless been for this reason that, notwithstanding the great increaae in the supply of cotton, we seem never to have had enough. And it is no doubt also the considerations to which we have adverted that have secured to the public the advantages of the improvements which have been made, exactly in proportion as they have been accompanied by, a correspondingly increased suy ply of the raw material. No doubt mechanical skill has done much in all branches of our trade, both to improve and cheapen the production; but in all branches the public have not equally reaped the advantage. We have been led to these observations chiefly in reference to the stationary condition of the supply of one of the most important raw materials of our manufactures for many years past, we allude to flax, as the basis of our linen trade. Notwithstanding the great improvements which have taken place in flax machinery the supply of the raw material seems 4' have been nearly stationary for the last quarter of a century—a fact which strikingly contrasts with the supply of the other raw materials of, our leading manufactures. The following shows the quantity of each of the leading articles of raw material im ported in 1833 (twenty-five years ago), and in each of the last fifteen years, in order to show the pro gress each has recently been making : RAW MATERIALS IMPORTED. Cotton. 'Wool. Silk. Hemp Flax. and Jute. lbs. lbs. lbs. cwts. cwts. 1833 303,656,837 38,046,037 3,434,560 527,459 1,129,633 1844 616,111,000 65,700,000 4,100,000 913,000 1,583,000 1845 721,979,400 76,800,000 4,300,000 931,000 1,418,000 1846 467,856,000 65,200,000 4,400,000 882,000 1,147,000 1847 474,707,00 62,500,000 4,100,000 811,000 1,052,000 1848 713,020,000 70,800,000 4,400,000 845,000 1,463,000 1849 755,489,000 76,700,000 4,900,000 1,04,000 1,806,000 1850 663,576,000 74,800,000 4,900,000 1,048,000 1,822,000 1851 757,379,1 00 83,300,000 4,600,000 1,293,000 1,194,000 1852 929.782,000 93,700,000 5,800,000 1,068,000 1,408,000 1853 895,278,000 119,300,000 6,400,000 1,237,000 1,883,000 1854 887,333,000 106,100,000 7,500,000 1,210,000 1,303,000 1855 891,751,000 99,300,000 6,600,000 1,267,000 1,293,000 1856 1,023,888,000 116,200,000 7,300,000 1,502,000 1,687,000 1857 969,318,000 129,700,000 14,000,000 1,400,000 1,866,000 1858 1,034,342,000 126,700,000 6,200,000 1,624,000 1,283,000 1