The Sun. — London, England, 1846-12-07 00:00:00

che r to, i ....id osrro . e cha nce o f our re d empt i on , an d how much we y 1 1 11 . 1 ,, teed, In heart an d i nte lli gene o, reso l u tion and natien,! , , Liu)t . , talent, and of labour, befo-e we can advance in i tn lT.h which has b-en tr”cAl for us. It is rare, lac is 2"lge, for men to unite so many ; it bi,!lorinus destiny in life to be rawier the otessivg and acing necessity of acquiring them." [The speaker, titi r : ll udillg to himself and the peculiarities of his po bitt°„,,-"" saying a few words on the d , ffletilt;es and • feu with which that pos'Aion is surrounded . , thus '1 1 1 1 .5 1 e (1 3 :- o "That which God has &creed in his will be accomplished. Let us bow to his will, that with timorous or incredulous weakness, but de e n anon to th r humility of heart, that confiding resign their chestternal counsels which elevates our souls to Power." 11 COURT CIRCULAR. zo ite,e, regzenci Queen and Prince Albert, attended by the Royal to Osborne House at a quarter before 0 clock on Friday afternoon, from Arundel Castle. their Saturday her Majesty and her Royal Consort took li.1:18tial walks in the pleasure grounds, and the Royal Yeti took their accustomed airings. Ot pxlav morning their Roal Highnesses the Prince ?ri„ a `" , Princ e Alfred, the y Princess Royal, and the 'f e ss Alice walked and rode on the sea-beach. o %s en t e i r p M liesty and Prince Albert, and the Ladies and Whi - ., n1 ; el ! or the Court, attAaded Divine service in tier Church yesterday morning. /iii t ed Ro yal liighnnss the Duchess of Cambridge no s it 'ller Royal Highness the Duchess of Gloucester C o ; li k , r daY at Gloucester House. t : ‘ ,"'ned deputations of merchants and others in -1-,Wel„,-" in the reduction of the duty upon tea, from elt e : t rol. Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Blackburn, Man ' and Norwich, had an interview with %dB t Russell and the Chancellor of the Exchequer la 1) 1- „ ti n ru11 3 . at the official residence of the Noble Lord ~'"fro° , „— , f fig - s treet. The deputations were composed of n. t he town of Liverpool, Messrs. William Eat le, T. Ltiecirall, and J. Bromley Moore ; from the town of Of BC Messrs. H. Stansfield and Scarlet; from the town it na7L kblir o , Messrs. Montague, Fielden and Pilkington, qty of tu r. l city of Edinburgh, Mr. W. Law; from the 1144 i s las gow, Messrs. John Scott, Andrew Jamieson, teth w *,..aglinton• from the Liverpool Association of the 100, on the ' duty on tea, Messrs. Christopher Raw ' Rathbone, and James Stearns; from the • "416 East India and China Association, Messrs. tl'o tt• i ; 1, 41 Potter, Henry Winch, and Edward Brodribb; 4 nber Manchester Commercial Association, Messrs. Ito% Gardn er , Leopold Reiss, and William S teuart ; tos te :" o Glasgow Merchants House, Chamber of Com ' Bcott A East India and China Association , Messrs. J ohn the b&ndrew Jamieson, and Rolert Eglinton; from the Chamber of Commerce, Mr. C. Halliday; ?es t L "" e , Merchants and Manufacturers of Norwich, 1.- v ,„"• W. Robberds and Willett; from the Liverpool ` lloP ra ll s — s II ", Association, Messrs. John Lockett and sir J o h "nee f- - „ n Hall transacted business on Saturday at the eol °- t he Board of Trade. ' 111411).40nel Campbell had an interview with Earl Grey on Bi r l t i at the Colonial-office. ks ton enry Pottinger left town on Saturday for South , tp. T ; enlbark for the Cape of Good Hope. t bq4eo,"i?wring, M.P., and a deputation respecting ot o n 4 ' 11 401 194 an interview on Saturday with Lord J Sir ta 4111 eG rge Grey left town on Saturday for Sandon /4 1.4 e seat of the Earl of Harrowby. foreht;Tioha Rus sell l e f t town on Saturday afternoon ith wood. J l4 V,.udinial Committee of the Privy C ouncil sat on 1 1: 11 4 67 , and resumed the hearing or an appeal from ‘ 14 441 3 , - "i i " Gordon v. Horsfall." Mr. Wigr am, Q ueen's *eh h s Mr. Rennals, and Mr. Turner, Queen's cou nsel, At t e r& The case was adjourned; ty oets a Chapel Royal St. James s, yesterday, d the las were read by the R , v. Dr. H. Dakins , en t e kettoh t , A b Y the Rev. Dr. Wesley. The sermon was o_l4 rrePare ye the way of the Lord" (Wise). Sir George Of 8_ Presided at the organ. The Duke and Duchess Thtilutherland, the Marquises of Anglesey, Granby, and iato lu , °ll ci, Lords Sandwich, and W. Graham, were g the nobility present. M A GA ZINES—(CONTINUED) , 314GAZINE, An Elegiac Ode to Thomas liood is prefixed to the Df.cember nuinbcr. . it has some merit. The tragedy of " Avenger "is continued, as is likewise the story of " Blmche Neville." Beyond these contribu tions the magazine is an oda podrida of miscellaneous scraps in prose and poetry, some of them good, and others execrably bad. One of them is entitled, "A Though:," to this effect— " Ceti , e, to murmur, hapless whims, Throw that sigh away, Think if caring much won't win her, Caring little may I" Surely the editor has forgotten the most inimitable of the delicious songs of old—Sir John Suckling; surely he has not observed before that the above is a direful parody upon this exquisite and valve ditty—a ditty none the less beautiful for being familiar to many— .6 Why so rile :Ind wan, fond lover ? Prythee, why so pale ? Hill, when looking well can't move her, Looking ill prevail? Prythee, why so pale ? Why so dull and mute, young sinner? Pr) thee, why so mute? Hill, when speaking well can't win her, Speaking nothing do't? Prythee, why so mute ?" The invitation from this is most manifest. Mr. T. Jones manages, again, very adroitly to ruin his noble sonnet to December, by the most ill-judged alterations. DOUGLAS JERROLD'S SHILLING MAGA ZINE. _ _ Where tarries the cab driver ? We have missed him from the stand for months past, and we almost despair of ever meeting with him again. Can it be that Juniper Hedgehog bath resigned the whip for the razor, and turned from cab-driver to barber, giving oral instead of epistolatory information to his fellow creatures ? But although Juniper Hedgehog no longer enlightens us, we have still the history of St. Giles and St. James. The 34th chapter of which commences the present number. Capstick, who through the remonstrances of Bright Jem, begins to have an inkling that Snipeton has made a tool of him in the affair of the representation of Liquorish, goes up to the cottage at Hampstead to satisfy his doubts; he arrives there just as St. Giles has returned with the account of the abduction of Clarissa by Was and Tom Blast, and is present when on first learning the in telligence, Snipeton grinds his teeth, howls his curses, and, in very impotence, works his hands like a demon balked of his revenge : " And now is Snipeton widowed. Yes : with a living wife, damned to worst widowhood. It would have worn and tortured the spirit within him sometimes to wander from the desk to the churchyard, and there look down upon Clarissa's grave. To have read, and read with dreamy, vacant eyes, the few tombstone syllables that sum up —solemnly brief—the hopes, and fears, and wrong!-, and wretchedness ; the pleasant thoughts and aching weariness that breath begins and ends. Cla rissa, wife of Ehernzer Snipeton, died —.' Words to dim a husband's eyes ; to carry heaviness to the heart ; to numb the soul ; and for a time to make the lone man, with his foot at the treasure-holding grave, feel the whole world drifted from him, and he left, landed on the little spot he looks on. And then breaks small, mourn ful music from those words : pleasant, hopeful sounds, that will mingle her name with his ; that will make him own the dear, the still incorporate dead. The flesh of his flesh, the bone of his bone, is lapsed into the dis grace of death: it is becoming the nourishment of grass; and still his heart yearns to the changing form; still it is a part of him; and his tender thoughts may, with the cotEned dead, love to renew the bridal vow the dead ab solves him of. And Snipeton, his wife in her winding sheet, might so have solemnised a second wedlock. For surely there are such nuptials. Yes; second marriages of the grave between the quick and the dead, with God and his angels the sole witnesses. " And Snipeton was denied such consolation. His widowhood permitted no such second troth. Living to the world, his wife was dead to him; yet though dead, not severed. There was the horror: there, the foul con dition of disgraced wedlock : the flesh was still of his flesh, cancerous, ulcerous ; with a life in it to torture him. By day, that flesh of his flesh would wear him ; by night, with time and da rkness lying like a weight upon him, woula be to him as a fiend that would cling to him; that would touch his lips; that would murmur in his ear. And let him writhe, and struggle, and with a strong man's strong will determine to put away that close tormentor, it would not be. The flesh was still of his flesh, alike incorporate in guilt and truth." " St. Giles and St. James" is followed by a graphic description of the Night Fair in Alexandria, evi dently from the pen of one who hs been long resi dent * in Egypt. " Fables for Foolish Fellows," and " Pearls for Popish Places," are continued. Angus Reach contributes a paper on " Our Statues and their Wardrobes," which commences thus : " There is one dress for the people of the nineteenth century, and another dress for the statues of the people of the nineteenth century. Flesh and blood wear Erg lish costumes—stone and bronze, Roman. Coats and trowsers are quite good enough for actual breathing humanity—togaf , and buskins must be employed to set off its more valuable and honoured effigies. A man is not felt to be degraded by a waistcoat and a standing Rood thee enou gh greatest shirt collar—a statue is. The statue being the more costumier...xatisdthing a o n f y t t h h o in t g wo fs c g) g re h ate fo s r t c a a n re e s x o is f ti t o h g e original—hardly anything is good enough for a metallic portraiture. The tailor is thought to be sufficient t o clothe the man—the artist must drape the statue. Happ y statues—miserable men 1 Who would not be bronze rather than human—sculptured by man rather than formed by Nature?" lie suggests, and very properly suggests, that we should dress the statues of Englishmen as English men. Of course there will be a great outcry among the "high art" people against this sacrilege, but we value truth above high art, and if high artists cannot sculpture statues in modern costume, doubtless low artists will be found who can and will do so, and who will do it tastefully, picturesquely, artistically, and drive from the field the herd of mere imitators, who, to hide their want of original genius, cant of " classical taste," and drivel oceans of nonsense about "high art." We he also in this number some passable poetry, and some good reviews of new books. CHRISTOPHER 1 P ADPOLE IV . By Albert Smith art. . - The tenth chapter opens with a description of the approach of Hickory and Christopher to Liverpool : " The calm and soothing twilight of spring eventide was gliding slowly onward upon the earth as Hickory led the donkey, upon which Christopher was seated, along a rude bridle -way towards the last halt he intended to make on their journey. " They w ere travelling along a bold to heathedland had , on tone he ridge of which their p ath lay. Hithery g for some little distance over broken ground, encumbered with huge blocks of stone, and dug into deep quar ries and pits that it required some little caution to avoid in the failing light; but now they had arrive It d was t a beaten track, and all was smooth b efore them. n ot yet so dark that Christopher could not observe the extensive panorama around him, although the horizon was already veiled in shade. But his atten tion wasp rincipay at tracted b a swarm of lights that he was looking down upon o . n his rlght, the like of which he had never be- tore witnessed: gleam " d T hoe, r a o y se , , one eight abovean and e twinkling, until dis tant and the faintest appeared to mingle with the p eeping stars that one by one were coming o ut in the blu e air. ev e t n h ein most the last Their reflection gleamed and quivered in a great water that flowed between them and the headland ; and they spangled the banks in long array, until they got so hazy at the far-off points, that they only caught the eye at intervals. But they were not all stationary. Upon the shore, and on the water, they moved along, crossing; and re-crossing one another, and mixing with the gene ral mass, until all appeared to be endowed with bewil- dering motion. That's a larger mine than we've got,' said Chisto , topher, as he looked in wonderment at the illumination, his only idea of a number of lights being connected with toe working of the miners. ' " 6 It isn't a mine,' replied Hickory, as you shall see to-morrow. That's a great town, and those are the lamps. It's Liverpool.' They put up for the night at the " Ring o' Bells," a t Ridston, where Christopher is u nfo rtunately recog nised by a " miner," who gives information of his whereabout to Hockey. The next morning Hickory and Christopher go to the docks to meet buddy, who has come to Liverpool by water. Poor Christopher gets confused and bewildered in the docks, and no wonder, tor— " One had only to look upon the goods debarked under the sheds to see what wonderful journeys the ships had made. Strange logs of wood—of grain and colour un known at home —were pitched down in heaps. Odd out landish packages, too, were there, marked with mystic hieroglyphics, as if the artist had learned his alphabet from the bottles in chemists' windows, or the curious diagram—which some people pretend to understand—in Moore's Almanac. Further on were drums of figs, enough to have supplied all England with dessert for a l year, including Lord Mayor's Day, t which festiva such unwonted numbers of. dishes always figure in the long lists of eatables that everybody knows, but nobody reads—tight little band-boxes of seed and-sugar-bags, seen singly at reputable grocers, but here stocked in piles that an ordinary siz , d man might not look over. Bales of matting like enormous first-bJrn-baby pin• cushions ; or rather, as such would appear in the Poly technic microscope, when the ingenious gentleman who lives all amongst the oxy hydrogen gas and dissolving. views in his vivid sentry-box, shows you the triumph of nature over art as exhibited in the leaf and bit of cam brie. Strange casks which might contain fish, or treacle, or pickles, or anything else a vivid imagination chose to fancy in them. Hid , s of supposed wild beasts, looking like diseased do-.+r-mats : skins of animals as unknown as the wondrous Liver—the bird from which the town takes its name, and who has never been n see en except on the corporation seal, but is supposed, ie dark ages, to have paired off with the Dodo upon sotnu in teresting division of the globe generally. Every thing lying about was odd, and new, and foreign. Even the carts that carried these things away were like non 2 others in England : for they were very long—tile) would have done for large gang ways at steam-boat piers—aud had only two wheels, so that eireu thing bad SP ORTING INTELLIGENCE. Not 1N ,2 9-I ANCHESTER FRIDAY.-‘‘ t e than half a dozen members present, and not one The kub EPSOM SPRING RACES. hd 450 t leri ptions to the Metropolitan Handic a p Fund ex titat so ot It is certain, therefore, that the bonus will be at INTELLIGENCE EXTRA. • 11111 Fin ` 4I TTERICK BRIDGE RACES, 1847. Y Stakes of 15 soya. each, 10 ft ; for three yrs old til e /dr. 4 11 fillies, Bst 31b. One mile and a ha lf. e Vox' s b f Benina, by Record—Mr. Cookes_on__nrs. hitt,/ 'a tnart—Alr. S. L. Fox's b f Chapeau Roug J B tl • • • 04, 8t0 nfringe—Lord Glasgow's b Jaques's f o A nt l e a n e t r — ma 2t n l . ; o r e ught e , b t Little Nell—Mr. Jaclue e h - ,a.l3tain Harcourt's br f Illerdale—Mr. E. R. T he Sho rt : %nit, by 151etal. c olts, a Sweepstakes of 10 sous. each, for two ru y CsMn rs in o . ld ; ost 51b • and fillies Bst 21b. The Straight _ r ' b ' . iiinntraetio e halvington, bro to Thirsk—Mr. Jaques b t n, Ks to Di thong—Mr. S. L. Fox's br cby eAlsmasr ik_e_iitLiiirit , s ot L l Mistake— P Mr. Cookson's ch f Camphm . or bl c Otterburn, by di the Doctor, out of Char 831eiklam's ch c Given a e, by Stockport, out of tort° • 13 1 1, 1 ' ;---Mr. R. D. Shafto's ch by Velocipede, out of . 'Au t• e dam —M T O'Brien's ch cby Lrymus, out ot Ak a-I %—Mr , S_ et phe . n' b Master - Arthur, by Sheet Itethor, out Of Rattle n c7 's s dam—Lord el Glasgow's ch f by of iPoo Platoff—Ar. E. R. Clark's b c by Touchstone, out b e beeePtion—Sir J. Ge ra rd's Lu cy Ashton—Mr. B. Green's . T he lanweli. by Delirium. °N'erl aet Ity Hetman Platoff— nt ft, for two yrs 01(F. haM P a gile Stakes of 20 Bove.. gat. ach , If If ten subscribers, the colts, Bat 41b, and fillie Nampagne Course, about six se eped to save his s take; 4! k. Bap s r b c Bilvingto n, brother to Thirs k—Mr. Hessel "es bl Plenipotentiary, out of Toy—Mr. Jaques's f by • , 1 1 c Refe e, by' plenipotentiary—Lord Glasgow's bfby Dm John—Mrr. Me-Octant's br or bl Otterburn—Mr. Gray's br or bl f sister to Intrepid, by Accident—Lord Eglinton's eh f sister to Sir Henry, by St. Martin—Mr. Pedley's br Lady Mary, by Lanercost—Mr. R. D. Shafto's ch f by Velo bcipede, out of Porto Bello's dam—Al r . T Dawson's br c Liston , y T 11! Doctor—Mr. E. R . Clark's bc . by Emilius, out of Variation—Sir J. Gerard's Matadore—Mr. B. Green's b t Chaff, by Pantaloon —Mr. B. Green's b c Beverlac, by Hat laau Platoff—Mr. O'Bri en ' s c h c b y Emilius. The Claret Stakes of 10 sovs. each ; for three-yrs-old colts 71b ; fillies, Bst 31b. Or. Lane Fox's b c Wildboy, by Delirium, out of Yo_u e n r g . Jaques's ch c Sir Martin, by St. Martin—Lord F b fby the Provost, out of Miss Whip—Mr. S L I tt br c Executor—Mr. Meiklam's b c Bannockburn— ' L i r ' w. D. C oo k ns b c Deloraine— Mr. O'Brien's br c T he 14. 18era tar—Mr. S. Hawke's ch c New Era—Mr. Harland's NGlenwet, by Lanercost, dam by Tarragone—Lo.rd one b c Eryx—Captain Pott's b c St. Oswald by St. thi, e lt) out of Ari Out of Bessy el—Mr. E. R. Clark's bc by Muley Winton. a. N Re r UG APPOI. las to .Majesty 's stag TlN bds meet the first NTMENTS hunting day, al o:o l eath—at hds., Thurs., Cross Albans'-road; Sat., Swines (' y to I L Lcrakes hds., Tues. Skimming Dish Gate; Thurs. , t o ente Village • Sat., By ' field Toll-bar-10 1 A. Sat„ r ' s l o t t edesdale's hds., Wed., Barton Gate ; Fri., Eyford , ut hlawn Lodge -10 4 . ha t B t ar i a tHt arewood's hds., Wed., Sutton Mill ; Fri. , Bicker etevel lli nn • nd hds., Merton. "LnKton hds • Tues , D a lby Bush ; Fri., Caulkley. Vill. urw orth ds.,h " Thurs ~ Tues Worsell Toll-bar ; Sat. , Hurworth 11 014 . 1° I •da-, Wed., Skipton Bridge; Fri. , Tho r p e Perrow ,rll ` 47a eininty hds., Wed., Whim House ; Fri., Hart— tat,lddyard's hrrs., Tues., Stainton ; Fri. , Trenholme °' 41 4,7 an d Ainsty , Tues., Acaster ; Thurs., Alne Hall : neato Striven -40'A• * hds . ., Tues., Stow Wood; Sat., Newnham, Lo r a alliegford-10 nll l2 L °n Wale's hr rs., Tues., Shenley ; Sat., Nash Com ,No "Cator-; 0. h hrrs., Wed., Coombshead Gat e Cross; Sat. G1 3 , 11 ; 1 -4 pb°nrne's hrr.s., Fri., Berwick Common-711. r's Farm 14.4 4 4 hrrs., Wed., Great Mill; Fri., Jointe rs Lo r d srson's hds. Wed., Angorta ; Fri , Eading " a .) Silt utl ' a rnlaton's hds., Wed., Salcey Lawn , Sir He arW k ken Park-11. raorowthY Seale's lids Tues Morley Toll Bar ; Fri ., Stall Fri., Brad. Pa c l er4 R P ! Ytehl. 4 ., g ! h e ds., W e d. Maunder, ; Sat., Throcking—* L w is Wed.,K lmarsh ; Fri., Dodford V•llage • in S . y to 11. to 10. hd Cmmon—Sat., Nash 11 ; Inta7dalaire 11 4., T s U ' es., o Pank's Bridge; Fri., It% ormelow F a don uds,, Wed., Woodburn ; Sat., kennel -10 . b evo Tues, Kigan Bridge ; Fri., Trewithen Cross. r ,,ea Thurs. Haccomb-11. ulht:`"Ldgeshire hds"., W ed, , Ickwell Green ; Fri., Caxton k r. ‘-10 3 / 4 c o , Brand's lads., Fri., Selsoe. Airs Berkshire hds., the first open day, at Tulney- 10 Ch i ghton hds., Thurs., Hemnlaington, near Stagley ; Sat., lir: o eal eY Village— lotA. en R othschild's staghds., Thurs., Halton-11. 111 • ennstabl ' ta hd et Wed at West Newton ••••• 6 gs me b 14 01 d. Tickton ; Tues., Boswick ; Thurs., 8; '„,"rpe; Sat.., Holm . e River Head--4 to 11. ' l: 4B4l l:k : er a:tt r o e : s hd : Mon hds., Mon., Weston ; Wed., Lobster 1,01., Scamston Bridge-10/. Zjid,2 Bentinck's hds., Mon., C ar l e t on -le-Morland ; Tues., Vla t Z. I nn ; Wed., Fiskerton Long Wood ; Thurs., Norton Bad Fri•, Branston Wo u d ; S a t., Stapleford Moor- 11 . tildfrworth hds, Tues., Marr Village ; Thurs., Carlton Snaith ; Sat., Ackworth Moor Top-10i. AT T ,'" LIFE AND TIMES OF SIR CHRISTOPHER 1 new work, by Sir N. Harris Nic olas, is atr :"eti this day by M r . B en tl e y, of New Burlington be r,._,", ( Publisher in ordinary to her Majesty,) and may trii t 'Q of all booksellers, in one volume, Bvo., with p?r titten%Pri,ea 15s. bound. Mr. Bentley will also publish 1 4 ,tne present mon th the following new works:— Ace - Canoe Voyage to the Minnay Sotor, by G. H. butitther st enhaugh, Esq., 2 vols. Bvo., w ith l'lLl c e.,.price 28 s . b oun d ( on th e 10th inst.) 3. The of ti;: ° .,,erlea of the Ingoldsby Legends, with a Memoir Itith - H Barhatn edited by his son, one vo H. by Leech and George Cruikshank, ii l °s. 6d. (o n the 15th inst.) 4. Mr. Howitt's 1 1 1 !! and Haunts of the British Poets, two vols. 8 .. v , e ). : 14,, llustrations, price 30s. (on the 18th inst.) 5. _ t ki Ta of the Life of General Pere written by himself, i t' vols. post Bvo. (on the 21st inst.) ZAZ I d NIT ATIoN OF THE BROAD GAUGE TO CHEL- D r , ti.."‘• --The broad gauge to Cheltenham, so long and so long delayed, is at length in course of 2124110E0n. It is intenole . ii that the work shall he car fe t tk ° _ 7l With the utmost e•lerity ; so that ' h e a un g e :, Whole, mending a temporary statio n i n S t . ...0 14 4ttare, may be expected by the end of January. m papa; THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY MORNING, DECEMBER 7, 1046. to be balanced in them : and if this were not done, they t threatened either to lift the horse up into tLe hair, like a harnessed Pegasus, or press him to the ground beyond all chance of progression, except he had been trained at Astle 's to approach a conquering King upon his kn , :es. "Few shops the lines of wareli. - Aises that rose along the road bordering the docks ; and when they did, they were for the sale of articles c-f stern nautical use—ropes and sail-cloth, and tough biscuits : outlandish habits of oil-skin, optical instruments, and spirits. At the dock-gates were stalls of humbler merchandise — cheap braces and small mirrors,-superannuated apples and results of unpromising confectionary. In this new world, Christopher had not eyesight enough to gaze in wonder on the novelties that burst upon him at every step. But for Hickory's guidance, he would long ago have tumbled amidst some of the piles of strange mer chandise that rose everywhere right in the way of the passenger." He is soon, however, awakened from his dream of wonder, for, from behind a bale of merchandise, Hockey emerges, and seizing Christopher bears him off, in spite of the remonstrances of Hickory, to one of those subterranean dens of iniquity which are to be found in such abundance in Liverpool. Their ad ventures there furnish the subject of another chapter, which concludes the present number, but betv‘een the two is interpolated a third, which is devoted to a de scription of the sayings and doings of Sprouts and Bessy Payne, during the day's excursion to Hampton Court. The description in this chapter of the jolly man and of the cross old lady, and indeed of the whole of the van party, is most graphic. THE COMIC HISTORY OF ENGLAND. Part VI. By Gilbert Abbott A'Beckett. Merrily does Mr. ATeckett laugh his way through the reign of Edward 111. in this number, and mar vellous is the manner in which, in his merriest moods, he keeps to the truth of history, and dresses Clio — in the costume of Thalia. Take as a specimen his description of the battle of Poictiers : "On the 19th of September, 1356, the battle began with a duet played by two trumpets—one on each side— but this did not last long, for neither party desired to listen to overtures. The French commenced the at tack, but they came to the point a little too soon, for :hey actually ran upon the arrows of the English bow men. The Constable of France tried to inspire courage into the troops on his side by roaring out Mountjoy ! St. Denis !' but a stalwart Briton, telling him to hold his noise, felled him to the ground. A strong body of reserve, who carried their reserve to downright timidity, fled without striking a blow. They had scarcely drawn their swords, and received the word of command to " cut away," when they did literally cut away, and having cut refused to come again. John of France flourished his battle-axe with ferocious courage ; but at last he received two tremendous blows in the face which brought him to the ground. His son Philip, a lad of sixteen, fought by his side, encourag ing him with cries of 'Give it 'em, father 1' which aroused the almost ex hausted John, and caused him to recover his legs. Every kind of verbal insults was offered to him by the enemy, and particularly by the Gascons, who indulged in a great deal of their usual gasconade. Stand and surrender 1' cried a voice, to which John replied, If I could stand I would not surrender, but I suppose I must fall into your hands.' With this he tottered into a circle of English knights, by whom he was nearly torn to pieces in the scramble that arose for the royal captive. Some among the crowd of his victors endeavoured to induce his Majesty to place himself under their charge, and one or two began to talk to him in bad French, when Sir Denis, a real Frenchman, who had been dismissed from the service of his own country and entered that of England, addressed the monarch politely in his native tongue. John was in the act of offering up his glove to this gentleman as a token of surrender, when the royal gauntlet was torn to pieces by the surrounding knights, who all wanted to have a finger in it. Every one was eager to claim the French monarch, who seemed on the point of being turn to pieces like a hare by a pack of ill bred hounds. `I took him,' exclaimed fifty voices at once, when the Earl of Warwick, rushing into the front, thundered forth in a stentorian voice, Can't you leave the man alone and drawing John's arm within his own, led off the conquered King to the camp of Ed ward. Warwick took little Philip by the hand, and presented father and sen to the Black Prince, who re ceived them with much courtesy. Ile invited them both to supper, waited on the French King at table, and soothed his grief with probably such kind expressions as Poor old chap I' Never mind, old fellow l' and other words of respectful sympathy." ALMANACK FOR THE MONTH. We are sorry to find from the preface that this is to be the last number of this monthly repertory of fun. The success of the work has been great, but Mr. A'Beckett fairly tells his readers that having " something else to do he cannot cater for their en tertainment in this shape any longer." We hope, however, that his collaborateurs will continue the almanack, and, although unable to continue the duties of editorship, he may perchance occasionally contri bute some "quips and cranks" which will "set the table in a roar." THE COMMERCIAL MAGAZINE. The present number fully sustains the high charac. ter which this magazine has already attained as a va. luable repertory of commercial statistics. THE PLOUGH. Although this publication commenced commenced with unusual promise, and although a year has now elapsed since its first appearance, that promise has been fulfilled. the work is a creditable organ of English agricul ture. In intelligence,• in its editorial management and correspondence, The Plough is worthy of all commendation. GUIDE TO THE TURF, OR POCKET RACING CO3IPAI'ION. By W. Ruff,for 1847. What Mr. Joseph Deacon Hume was, and what Mr. J. R. Porter is to the statistics of trade and com merce, that is 111 r. Ruff to the statistics of racing. The present number of the guide contains the nomi nations for 1847 ; the entries for the great stakes for 1848, alphabetically arranged and indexed ; a record of the races of 1846 ; the laws of racing ; the Derby, Oaks, and Leger lots ; with a list of the winners of those races from the commencement. In fact, it is impossible to require any information on the subject of racing, which is not be found in " Ruff's Guide." THE. ANNUALS. ACKERMAN'S FORGET-ME-NOT for 1847. The first of the annuals bids fair to be the last. Almost all " its lovely companions are faded and gone," but the Forget-me-not still lives; as it pre ceded, so it survives them. The present is truly a most beautiful volume; but, beautiful as it is, for us it has rather a retrospective than an intrinsic value. We welcome it, we gladly welcome it—not so much for what it is, as fur the thoughts which it inspires. Accustomed to encounter it year after year, we look on it as an old friend, " applealing "—to quote the beautiful lines of L. E. L. inscribed on the title page : " Appealing, by the magic of its name, To gentle feelings and affections kept Within the heart like gold." Of the individual merits of the present volume we need say little. The days of the annuals are gone by. An elegant volume of fanciful illustrations and improbable tales is valuable rather as a vestige of what has been ; it possesses an hereditary claim to our regard. Indeed we might almost compare this very volume to some ancient aristocrat, remarkable only for his former celebrity and his glittering adornments, really insignificant a mon g our humbler ari stocrats of mind, and yet nevertheless, an object of interest and attention. Perhaps we are speaking too censoriously of our old friend—let us briefly con-ider its attrac tions. The tales, and the poetry, and the engravings, for the most part resemble the tales, poetry, and en gravings of most annuals ; as such they will no doubt find r and satnornythebry by Miss l P iz a a r h d e o t e h , Gonatt, " The Good 'Angel," are greatly superior to their compan ions ; both are beautiful tales—the first ,iiatmild an a y admirers. Mor ti e is rendered attractive by the noble character of its heroine; the second by the good moral and good ad ___e vice which it contains. One of the engra vings " Th Two Suitors," represents two ladies _ the in a garden - amining a letter; the expressions mf ile beamin in that countenances,of more especially the roguish f r itously conve g yed. The the younger one, is very me-not for 1847," is of ex binding . ceeding beauty, we might almost say that its outward and such an as• of the " Forget- a appearance is its greatest at traction , d y work, would not in this case be necessarily eroga d: sertion, though in general litt le comp l ntar to a tory to its inward merits. The gre en morocco bin d ing is of the most delicate hue, and on it is entwine a graceful and luxuriant wreath of garden flowers. From a little poem entitled " The Hunting of the Lady Maude," we transcribe a verse, the latter lines of which convey a beautiful idea— " 01 scare not from his green recess The shy and graceful deer! Break not the forest silentness With sounds of strife and fear! The joy of every living thing In river, field, or grove, Is Nature's glad thank-offering Unto the God of love!" DARING ATTEMPT AT BURGLARY AND MURDER AT SOUTH SHIELDS —On Sunday, Mrs. Cabey, who keeps a public house in Union alley, South Shields, was awoke about six o'clock by hearing a noise down stairs. On going to see what was the matter she saw a man at tempting to get in by the bar window. She immediately screamed, when a fellow who was standing outside pulled out a pistol and deliberately fired at her, wounding her in the shoulder. They then decamped. The neigh bours were alarmed, and on ascertaining her condition, procured the attendance of a surgeon, who, on examin ing the wound, pronounced it to be not of a serious cha racter, but asserted that if she had been struck a little lower down, it would in all probability have proved fetal. As the tallies did not get into the house, of course they Jai not receive the booty. Some tellows who were seen stdkirq:; about on the previous evening are suspected. One man is in custody, but as yet nothing positive has transpired.—Sunderland Herald, EFFECTS OF RAILWAYS UPON AGRICULTURE. The following are extracts from the evidence of James Smith, E-q , e f Deanston), given before the Select Committee of the House of Commons on Railway Acts Enactments—the minutes of the testimony adduced be for , which Committee have just been issued, pursuant to an order of that House, dated the 25th of August last. The extracts in question relate to the fffects of the fa cilities afforded by railway conveyance to agricultural improvement : Have you had occasion to consider the facilities afforded by railway conveyance to agricultural improvements ? Yes. I have. Will you state generally what you consider has been the result ?—I have observed upon those lines that have been in existence for some years, over which I have had occasion to travel, that a very great agricultural im provement of the lands in the neighbourhood has been the result, arising mainly from the cheapness and facility of transports ; and I have drawn out some tables to illus trate that. I have one table taking a farm or 200 acres and a six course shift ; the committee are aware that there are different shifts of rotation, and that some lards suit best to be cultivated upon oi:e. and some upon the other. I have taken this farm upon the six course shift., which is most suitalle for the bulk of the medium land of Englar d and Scotland ; I have supposed that farm to be in most full cultivation, thoroughly improved, and to be both arable and pasture. I have taken the quantities of green and dairy produce and cattle, and every thing which I can conceive will be exported from that farm ; and it amounts to 148 tons. I have then taken away the imports, consisting of store cattle to be fed, lime and other matters, such as guano, and the different chemical manures which are now being intro • duced ; and also seed, because the shifting of seed in a good farm is always attended to ; and I have supposed that this weight shall be transported upon an average 15 miles, which I thick is a very low estimate. The quan tity imported will be 197 tons ; making altogether, of imports and exports, 346 tons 14 cwt. That is all for 15 miles ?—Yes. Then I have taken the expense of transport by railway at Id. per ton per mile; on some railways it is considerably higher, and on some lower, but in the present advanced state of railways we may fairly assume that to be the general rate. For the produce transported, and the manure brought to the land ?—Yes ; taking it upon the average that I have taken, and also taking the number of persons that will travel to market, and in ♦arious ways, at Id. per mile, the whole amount of charge of carriage for imports and exports is 401. Bs. 9d. By the old mode of convey ance the expense would have been, assuming 6d. per ton per mile for the goods, which I find to be as low as you can carry it by the old mode, 1421. 16s. 3d. That is for the same distance?—Yes. On what principle do you assume 6d. to have bees the charge by the ordinary roads?—l speak from my own experience of thirty years. I have had a great deal to do with carting, both for agricultural produce and manufacturing produce, and I have found that I could never get it done under 6d. a ton in England; it costs rather more than that. In giving an account of the produce of a farm, you deduct for home consumption?—Yes, I do. amount to more than one-third of a penny for five hun dred miles, so that you may have meat nearly as cheap in London as you have it in Inverness. There is another great advantage arising from this easy and cheap mode of transit; which is, that the little country butchers who purchase lots of cattle and sheep for the consumption of the town or village in which they may live, always find among those lots a few that are of too good a quality for the consumption of their particular district; and if they are enabled to send them to a great distance to a more wealthy part of the country, they not only supply those rich communities with the superior article that they want, but they can supply it at a cheaper rate; and again, this enables them to sell the medium and inferior animal at a lower rate to the consumer in the country; so that the rich population of towns are benefited, and the poor of the district where the animals are killed are very much benefited. Is there not a demand :in large towns for picked joints ?—There frequently is, and I know, from the in quiries I made in Yorkshire for the Direct Northern Railway, that the butchers are contemplating, when that railroad communication shall be worked out, to send the surplus of their better joints to the London market, which will enable them to sill the inferior parts to the working classes at a lower price. In short, quick conveyance enables them to dispose of the whole animal in the best market ?—Yes. By the former mode of conveyance there was no pcs • sibility of carrying killed meat any great distances ? It was quite impossible. There is another t reat advan tage in killing the animal in the country districts ; the offal or inward parts of the animal are available to the working classes of the district, and there is an immense quantity available for manure, which when brought to those large towns is a nuisance ; in the country it is of great value. Have you anything to add in explanation upon the points upon which you have row been examined ? I have several tables to give in illustrating the different points upon which I have been examined. I have no doubt that railroads will do more for communicating intelligence amongst the general community than even the press has done, inasmuch as seeing a thing is much more than hearing of a thing, and there will be much greater progress made in the diffusion of improvement by railroads than by any other means. reason, THE 'IES (From the Examiner.) The question of reforming the duties on tea is at pre sent under agitation by the commercial community throughout the country, and began on the 28th of last month by a great and enthusiastic public meeting at Liverpool. The history of the tea duties, or as much of it as is useful, is easily told. Under the monopoly the, public tax was an ad-valorem one of 100 per cent., with a favour of four per cent. for the consuMption of the poor. On the abolition of the monopoly, thirteen years ago, this was replaced by a duty rated to the value of the different teas by classes. Against this rating the tea trade mutined, and forced on the Government the exist- ing system of an uniform rate, against which the tea trade is again in a state of mutiny with a good deal more The fixed duty, which has now been in operation ten years, is 2s. 2id. per pound on teas of all, or any quality, and is equally imposed on poor bohea, as on sup'erfine gunpowder, or superfine flowery pekoe—equally on the consumption of a washerwoman and the luxury of a fine lady. The value of the lowest bohea is 2d. a pound, and that of the finest gunpowder or pekoe 4s. 6d. a a pound, or seven-and-twenty times as much ! The fine lady ought to pay righteously, twenty-seven times the tax which the washerwoman pay; but the law makes her pay just the same sum. She pays 2s. for her 4s. 6d. worth, and the washerwoman 2s. 24d. on her two pence worth ! The washerwoman's tax, rate' on the value of her consumption, exceeds 1,309 per cent., and the tine lady's is under 48 ! The public tax now paid by the washerwoman is near fourteen times as much as it was before the abolition of the monopoly—and that paid by the fine lady is less than one- half what it was then ! This, with a vengeance, is placing small-beer and im perial tokay on a fiscal level. The result of the levelling has been that the 10,000,000 lbs. of bohea consumed by the poor, eleven years ago, have been well nigh kicked out of the market altogether, and that there is not now, nor has there been for some years back, a stock of bohea in the kingdom that would suffice for a year's consump tion of the washerwomen of Marylebone. All this comes of a Government listening to evil advisers ! Of the speakers at the great public meeting at Liverpool, by far the most enlightened sentiments were expressed by Mr. Brown, the new Member for Lancashire, and they were such as show very clearly that the electors of Lancashire have made a good choice. Mr. Brown showed from one of the lectures of Mr. Bamfield, that the poor who were consumers of Tea amounted to 10,300,000 —the middle-class consu mers to no more than 4,500,000, and the wealthy con sumers only to I,2oo,ooo—and he asked if it was to be endured, however convenient to the merchant and the Custom-house, that the poor and rich should pay the same specific duty. We are sorry to be obliged to say that Mr. Brown stood alone in the expression of this generous, righteous, and politic sentiment. Ile was loudly cheered, but no man backed him, and after a great exhibition of statistic knowledge and much talent, the meeting came to the most lame and miserable conclusion of demanding a swingeing reduction in the duty—a reduction of one from 2s. 24d. to one of " one shilling"—thus leaving the ruinous principle untouched, and throwing the whole onus of an enormous defalcation of revenue on the Go vernment. We shall show how the proposed tax would operate, in case the Government, which is not credible; should be so simple as to adopt it. The lowest priced Bohea is worth 2d. a pound, and the proposed tax is an ad-valorem duty of six hundred per cent. on it. The highest Bohea is worth 4d., and the tax is here three hundred per cent. If the poor should be driven to 6d. tea, the tax is still two hundred per cent. The tea of the middle classes may be taken at Is. a pound, and they pay only 100 per cent. ; but this class also drinks tea at Bd., so that the poorest of them will be charged 150 per cent. The tea of the wealthy may be taken at 2s. 6d., so that the wealthy are to pay but 40 per cent. ; but the upper classes also consume teas worth 4s. a pound, so that the most luxurious of them shall only pay 25 per cent. By this pretty invention, originating with the en lightened town of Liverpool, from which we had hoped for better things, every man and woman is to pay taxes in the inverse proportion of their means. The 12,300,000 of poor, from two to six. fold as much as the 4,500,000 who are in easy circumstances, and from five to fifteen fold as much as the 1,200,000 that are luxuriating in wealth. With such a placard in their hands, Liverpool is going to stir up the country, and enlist the sympathy of the millions! And of this clumsy piece of empiricism, the Govern ment is to be made the scape-goat. The present con sumption of tea is about 44,000,000 of pounds, and the revenue which it yields is 4,800,0001. By the adoption of the "one shilling" duty, the immediate sacrifice of revenue will be the appalling sum of 2,600,0001. — more than a moiety of the income tax : and to re-esta blish it, the consumption must rise to ninety-six millions of pounds,—that is, must be doubled, with a surplus above the doubling, equal to the consumption of the United States of America I That a very considerable increase of consumption will be the result of the mere rude process of reducing the duty without adjusting its incidence, is certain ; but, striking at the very sources of consumption, the con sumption of the masses, that the increase will be such, within the lives of the present generation, as to cover the existing revenue, is what no reasonable man can hope for. It is in vain that the speakers at the Liverpool meet ing appealed to the increase which had taken place in coffee and cocoa from reduction of duties. The fact is that the increase in these articles has taken place at the expense of tea, just as the consumption of hyson and pekoe has been quadrupled at the cost of Buhea and Twunkay. The duty on cocoa is 2d. a pound, or one thirteenth part that on Bohea. The duty on coffee is 4d., or less than one-sixth part of the Bohes duty. Can any one be surprised, then, that the two first commo dities should have greatly increased, and that the last should have nearly disappeared altogether. In an article like tea, where a commodity of the value of small-beer stands at the bottom of the scale, and one of the value of first growth Burgundy at the top of it, and in which the range comprehends at least sixty varie ties, it is obvious to common sense that any other prin ciple of assessing the duty than an ad valorem one must be fraught with inequality and injustice, and equally in jurious, in the long rum, to the consumer, the dealer, to commerce, and the Treasury. The experience of the last ten years ought to be a warning to all future times. The injurious specific duty has taken the place of the in jurious monopoly, and consumption and revenue have moved at a snail's pace under both, barely keeping pace with increase of population. We must hear no more of specific duties on tea. " The trade" must alter its tactics. At present, it is pursuing that course which, Adam Smith says, merchants sometimes followed in the olden time, when they became the most suspicious councillors of a government. THE CURRANT TRADE. Public attention has of late been directed to the im portations into this country of many articles of food, the magnitude and variety of which are both striking and curious. The following statement of the immense and unparal leled importation of currants within the space of nine weeks, with some account of the growth and production of an article which is so especially patronised and used by the British public, will probably prove interesting, nut only to the consumers of plum buns, puddings, and cakes, but also to the , wholesale and retail grocers, the merchants who buy and import, the shipowners, the cultivators of the fruit, and, in short, to all parties con cerned, which, without any licence of pen, must embrace nearly every individual in this country. The growth of currants is almost entirely confined to the Morea (and merely to that part of it situated between Patras and Corinth) and to the lonian Islands of Zante and Cephalonia, only about one cargo being grown in Ithaca. A small quantity is also produced near Smyrna and in the Lipari islands, but the quality from the two last named places is very inferior. Currants, which are in fact grapes, grow in bunches, some of which weigh two pounds, on short standard trees, planted at regular intervals, in vineyards, which, of course, vary in extent. The crops are generally ripe by the end of July, when the bunches are carefully cut from the trees, and spread on the ground in a part of the vineyard which has been properly prepared. The intense heat of the sun, in the month of August, in Greece, suffices in a few days to dry and convert the luscious small grapes into currants, no other process being necessary to render them fit for packing and shipment than merely placing them in sieves and throwing them up into the air, to divest them of the stalks. The drying time is one of great anxiety to tht grower, as, in the event of rain falling while the fruit is on the ground, it causes much deterioration, and re d u ces its market value. It has been observed that scarcely ever have three yearly crops been secured with. out rain damage to one of them. The crops being stored in magazine:, the next business is the fixing a first price between the growers and the export mer chants, which, within the oldest memory, has almost always been a matter of much difficulty and delay, owing to the growers invariably asking very high prices, while the merchants endeavoured to obtain the fruit as reasonably as they can. Sooner or later some bu) er and seller fix a price for a cargo, when the market opens, and prices rise or fall according to the demand. For many years previous to 1818, the currant trade of England was almost exclusively in the hands of two Hull houses, but after that period it became gradully more divided, so that at present not only are a great many English merchants and wholesale grocers engaged therein, but also Greek merchants, and even the growers themselves, have become importers on their own account. Within the last thirty years, the fluctuations in the price of currants have been remarkable both at the places of growth and in England. In 1820, the price at Zante was as high as 92 Spanish dollars per mile, or 1,0001b5., while in 1831 it was as low as 15 Spanish dollars per mille. In 1821, in London, the wholesale price of currants reached 1151. per ton, which is believed to be the highest rate they have ever realised, while in 1843 they were sold as low as 401. per ton. Within the last twelve years, the duty on currants has been twice reduced by the British Government—in the first in stance from 441. 6s. Bd. per ton to 221. 3s. 4d., and next., from 221. 3s. 4d. to 151. per ton, which, with the addi tional five per cent. imposed on duties by Lord John Russell, and which has not been removed, makes the present duty 151. 15s. per ton. A very considerable revenue is annually derived by our Government from the duty on currants, and which has increased since the reduction in duty, the consumption in the United King dom having materially increased. Although the con sumers in this country have certainly benefited by the reduction in duty to a certain extent, the cultivators of the fruit abroad have been much greater gainers thereby, MINING IN SPAIN. Therefore upon a farm such as you have stated, there would be a saving of 1021. 7s. 6d.?—Yes. Then taking that at twenty years' purchase, it will give 2,0471. 103.; if you take it at thirty years' purchase, it will amount to 3,071/. ss. Have you given the supposed rental of that farm? — No, I have not; the rental would be about 4001. This expense, then, would be in addition to the rent? —Yes. And the same farm which without a railway would be only worth 4001. would be worth 5001. after a railway was established?—Yes; 10s. an acre more. You have stated the advantage which a particular farm would have in being able to send its produce to market by railway, and bringing back manures; will you state what is the advantage in respect to stock in particular? —The advantage in respect to stock is very great indeed, both in bringing lean stock from the district in which it is reared to the richer district in which it is fed, and also for the transmission of the cattle, when fed, to the market for the consumer. Are you able to show to what extent that works?—l have some statements here upon that subject; the rate hitherto charged by railways for the conveyance of stock is pretty nearly the same per mile as the expense of driving, and where the great saving occurs is in the condition of the animals, especially in fat stock ; the loss from driving them being equal in the case of fat bullocks on a drive of from 60 to 70 miles to the whole expense of the transport; it is at least 5 per cent. upon the value of the bullock. The advantage as regards the conveyance of the pro duce is an advantage of so much per ton?—Yes. Was rot the use of manures imported from abroad limited to certain distances from the ports?—Certainly, either from the ports, or from canal communication. The introduction of railways enables them to be sent to much greater distances at the same cost? —Decidedly. In that way districts which were not able to profit by those manures are now able to do so?—They are. In consequence of the introduction of railways, have not there been manufactories established in different parts of the country for the manufacture of sulphuric acid for the use of agriculture?—Yes; there has been a very extensive introduction of artificial chemical manures in consequence of the facility of transport, and I have no doubt that it will very greatly increase. What manures do you principally allude to?—I allude to Liebig's chemical manures. I have not myself, in my experience, found any great efficacy in those manures; but there arc other manures which have been found very efficacious ; there is the urates, prepared from urine; there is bone dust; there is rape cake, and nitrate of sods; and there are mixed manures, consisting of seve ral ingredients, chemically combined. Is not the use of sulphuric acid for agricultural pur poses considerably increasing?—l think it is; it is very much used for dissolving bones. May not railroads be used to carry manures from towns to a much greater extent than was formerly the case?—Certainly. And in that way the waste that now takes place will hereafter, it may be hop e d, b e prevented?—To a consi derable extent. - Have you consid ere d to w h at ex tent railways may be made useful for the purpose of mixing soils?--Yes, I have. Will you state y our op i n i on upon that subject? — The transport of earth s f or m i x i ng so ils, if the roalroads could carry them to the immediate ground where they were to be applied, would be of very great advantage; but the difficulty of availing yourself of the benefit of railways for the transport of soils is, that the soil must be refilled, in most cases, into common carts, and carted to a considerable distance. Railways would be useful only in cases where those earths could be easily obtained? —Exactly. Take the transport of sea sand?—Sea sand in Ireland is carried thirty miles up the country in little carts, and is found to pay the farmer for the carriage when applied to clayey and mossy soils. And therefore if the charge made for the conveyance of earths was very low, should you think that in that par ticular case the calcareous sand from the sea shore might be carried profitably for considerable dis tances into the interior?—l think so; and in many instances where there are moors and waste land, it would be well worth the while of the proprietor, having a railway passing through that district, to construct a tram railway from the railway on to the moor or waste land. Is not nitre also, and lime, in certain districts, used, which might be transported with advantage to great dis tances ?—Yes. You are aware of the improvements which have taken p l a ce in agricultur e , by t h e i n troduction of those foreign c h e mical manures ?—Yes. Is not the utility of them as stimulants limited to a short period ?—Bone dust, which is brought very ex tensively from the continent of Europe to this country, i s a very permanent manure. Guano is less permanent, but it has this advantage, that it enables the farmer to grow an extended breadth of green crop, for the feeding of cattle and sheep; and if the green crop is grazed, he is enabled to increase the produce of his farm. But that requires to be renewed at short periods?—lt requires to be renewed at shorter periods than bone dust, but it has established extra stock manure upon the farm. But would altering the earths be a permanent im provement of the soil ?—lt would: a great deal of mossy soil, if you lay on even half an inch, in some cases, of sand, or more, especially alluvial soil, it will render that ground productive for many years. Is it necessary, in order that these manures may be made extensively useful, that the charges upon railroads should be very low ?—lt is. You have given a calculation of the benefit to a farm on the supposition that the rate per ton shall be Id. : what would the advantages be, supposing the rates were to be reduced to one half or one quarter ?—There can be no doubt that a IGw rate of charge would very greatly tend to the increased consumption of manures, and to the transport of earths for agricultural purposes ; that would give a much increased produce to the land, which would enable the agriculturist to furnish his commodity at a lower rate; that again would increase the consump tion in large towns; and in manufacturing populations it would also increase a greater traffic upon the railways, and enable them still further to reduce their rates ; and as the heavier articles are more consumed by the work ing classes, it would add very much to their comfort ; and there are great tracts of country which would be cu ltivated to much advantage if favoured w ith r ailway co mmunication, which are now allowed t o li e compa ratively Loiokn b g a r therefore, en to those res u l ts, ought not rail roads receiving. high profits t o b e obliged to exten d branches laterally to districts which want of communi cation has left in com p arativ e unproductiveness ?—I s o t cc a u d r v r a e n d ta t g o e me if,by so that should be divided as regar d s ra il wa ys that there might b e systems of ra il wa y s upon this point, that some public autho rityestablished for t hose different sectio ns , according to t heir respective wa nts. A system so establis hed wou ld be en abled to provide branch railways into districts which could not of themselves afford to pay for a railway; they would be enabled to do that, because this branch, though in itself, would pay as it did not pay part of a general system, in consequence of the addition a l t ra ffic that it wou ld bring upon the line. Referring again to the benefit to agriculture from the introduction of railways, and consequently, of cheap conveyance, can you give the committee any particulars of the advantage of the transport of the carcases of animals, as compared with the old system ?—Without a railroad it is impossible to transport fat cattle any greater dis tance than from 50 to 70 miles, without very great dete rioration, but railroads will afford the means of trans porting t h ose cattle 300 or 400 talks with great ad vantage, and in carcases they may be transported 700 miles; and in that way meat may be brought from the most distant parts to populous districts at a very smll additional expanse, which, with the expense for trans porting either beef or mutt= in the carcass, doee not Many of our correspondents, J. G. among the number, have evidently mistaken our remarks upon mining in Spain, in our papers of Nov. 7th and the 28th. On re ference to them it will be found that in favourably noticing the Asturian Mining Company, we referred solely to their Cinnabar mine, La Eugenia, as being likely to handsomely remunerate the shareholders, and as having already ore discovered to the extent of several thousand pounds, upon a trifling outlay of 2,700/. We never went so far as to imagine, much less to express, that the produce of the Cinnabar mine would pay com mon interest upon the capital of the company, as exhi bited in the extraordinary accounts inserted (against the wishes of the directors) in our last week's publication. From those accounts it would seem that from deposits on shares and loans, the capital already raised and ex pended amounts to 74,8881. 1 ls. 6d. Out of this, the sum of 51,7661. Bs. 3d. has been spent upon iron works, which, as yet, have made no returns; and, judging from other mines abroad are, to say the least, of equivi_cal ♦alue. These works, however, and this expenditure have been the pet concerns of the directors, whilst the Cinnabar mines, the only things of value they have, were (according to their own report) thought unworthy of their notice. Thus the interests of the shareholders on the Company were upon the eve of being wrecked, had we not called atten tion to them in our article of the 7th ultimo. So much for ourselves. In vindication of the part we have taken in discussing the matter, with regard to the future pro gress of the Company, it certainly, if we may judge from the "confessions of the board," requires practical men of business to govern it, and should not be allowed to remain under the sole influence of men who prefer remaining in doubt, to taking the trouble to arrive at truth. Botallack Mine, Nov. 17. Dr. £1,288 15 4 525 16 5 To labour cost Merchants' bills £1,814 11 9 By balance in purser's hand last account £427 5 9 Copper sold, less dues 359 18 2 Tin sold, less dues 413 6 2 Sundiies 1,2 1 14 Balance agst adventurers £612 17 8 Since the meeting a part of the reserved tin has been sold at 405. per ton advance, to pay off the balance, leaving 1,400/. in stock to the end of August. There is a discovery of ore in the 125-fathom level end, 3 feet wide, from which. in a few days, 30 tons of copper ore were broken. —Railway Herald. DRAMATIC INTELLIGENCE. The alterations in progress at Covent-garden Theatre in anticipation of the new operatic experiment, are upon the most extensive and novel scale, so that if that noble edifice is ever again to be adapted to the purposes of the national drama, it will cost a large sum to restore it to its propriety. It may be remembered by some few of our older ply-goers that as the house was first con structed under the orders of Sir R. Smirke, by means of certain recesses and apertures (which obtained the name of pigeon •holes), it was capable of holding many more spectators (auditors they could hardly be callcd) than att,rwards ; the area was reduced for the benefit of hearing the actors, but it is now to be enlarged even be yond the original size, so as to afford much more room than was ever before• contemplated. For musical pur poses this may not be so objectionable ; and as there is to be a ballet (which we prophesied some months ago, for without it there was not, in our opinion, the remotest chance of success), it signifies comparatively little how far the persons are removed, as long as they can get a sight of the stage. It is the present intention of the lessee of Drury-lane to produce Balfe's new opera, " The Bondsman," on Monday, 14th inst. We have not heard who is the authrir of the words, but we believe that they will be found to be by the same managerial dramatist, who has of late years furnished the librettos of most of the new musical productions at this theatre. The pantomime, now in active preparation, has been invented and written by one of the sons of the late Thomas Morton, in his day so successful a dramatist. Young Morton was the author of both the last pantomimes at this house ; and, if we are not mistaken, of one at Covent Garden, while it was in the hands of Madame Vestris, all of which had an extraordinary run. Wallace has composed a new opera, which has been accepted at Drury lane, and which will follow Balfe's unless the success of the latter should render any other novelty this season unnecessary. We hope that it may be so. The Keeleys have recently renewed their term at the Lyceum at an advanced rent, and a building, which two or three years ago, instead of yielding a profit was a charge to the proprietors, is now let by them at a very remunerating price. This beneficial change has been accomplished by the skill and talents of the present lessees, who this sea son are about to try the, to them, new experiment of a pantomime ; but, as may be imagined, very unlike the common-place performances usually given elsewhere at Christmas. We need scarcely say that Planch6 is the writer and compounder of the new fairy tale in preparation at the Haymarket to gratify the younger (and indeed older) visitors of our theatres at the approaching merry season. No man produces this species of exhibition with so much tact, and evinces such nice discrimination in his burlesque between wit and the approaches to vulgarity. The boundary is narrow, and, as most of our authors of this class are aware, is easily overstepped.—Sunday Paper. EXCLUSIVE DEALING AT HONITON.—We regret to have to report a case of exclusive dealing, which shows that a remarkable spirit of bigotry still lingers in this fair county. A Mr. Joseph Lang has lately taken off the grocery business, formerly and for many years con ducted by Mr. Pidgeon. Mr. Lang is a very respectable man, and the quality of his goods is said to be of the highest order. Among those people in the neighbour hood who used to deal with him, was Mrs. Simcoe, of Wolford Lodge, wide w of the late General Simone, and mother of the excellent young ladies whose zeal and talent as stonemasons were recently noticed in the Western Times. and have since been duly eulogised by Punch. Mrs. Simcoe dealt with Mr. Lang tome weeks ; but the week before last, she sent her bailiff to him to say "she could not deal with him again, and she the more regretted this because his goods were of such excel lent quality, that she had never been better served in her life, but her conscience would not allow her to support 000 schismatics. rffdTtcehrffeh Christian s taken duty. We have no doubt that the gentlewoman, iu issuing this cruel mandate, felt . that she was doing an act of service to Heaven, and setting a worthy example to the neighbours, who in some measure look up to her, from her position and profession of piety. But if the upper class has learnt so little of the spirit of Christianity as to entertain such views and to be animated by such feelings as are displayed here, we . hope that any Govern ment measure of education which shall be proposed, will have a special reference to their benighted and pitiable condition ; as their example may have such a pernicious effect upon the poor, who habitually in this country look up to th . e el; .pfrmorriecuahahknn—edyobfws among uecaht weather povertyne rts , ht instances nesue duringbep sep e i oenqrf being ct i tl h t ha e ese s s esapst ignoranceaa. i _s - et fied, are, generally speaking, far beyond the influence of such degrad ing notions. We shall have to reverse the highertsociety, w iand lT t WEATHEß.—The and eEsl orders, b Wesitern Times. week has been particularly fine and open for the ad vanced period of the year. On Sunday se'nnight a frost set in, which continued up to Saturday evening. During Saturday the frost was not so severe as on the previous days, but the roads round town were rendered most slippery and dangerous by the large quantity of rhinr,' frost that had settled on them during Friday night, atiii which was not dissolved in the shade. At eight o'clock on Saturday morning, the thermometer, which on the previous evening was down to 26 degrees, had risen to 31 degrees, showing oily 1 degree of frost; and at twelve o'clock at noon it was up to freezing point (32 de grees); but at six o'clock on Saturday evening it had fallen 2 degrees, with the wind S.S. W. The ice on the ornamental waters in the Regent's and St. James's Parks, as well as on the Serpentine and the Long Water and Round Pond in Kensington Gardens, not being more than an inch thick, is stul most danger( us, so that t.kat ing has not yet commenced. Late on Saturday night a thaw took place, with a mizzling raw. and during the last three years haverealised , such profits as to lead to the cultivation of further tracts of land for currant grounds. During the official year of 1845, the actual consumption of currants in the ITuited Kingdom exceeded in quantity any preceding year, and it was an unprecedented fact that when the first cargo of new currants reached London in September last, there were no old currants on sale in first hands, the stock of old at that period usually averaging nearly 2,000 tons. From the 22d of September to the 25th of N.ivember, forty-four vessels have arrived in London alone, with entire cargoes of new currants, the total quantity of which cannot be less than 7,000 tons. Of these vessels, 43 were British and 1 Greek. The quickest passage was made in 29 days, and the longest in 77 days. The price opened, on the 22d of September, at 565. per cwt. for Patras currants, and on the 6th of October at 545. per cwt. for the first arrival from Zante. Since then the prices have continued very steady at 565. for Patras, and 555. for Zante and Cephalonia fruit. Quite a new feature in the trade was that sevtn or eight of these car goes were sold by the Greek consignees .to London P:rocers end speculators while they were afloat, to be de livered on arrival. Neverthc les= there must be at least 3.000 tons of cur rants now in London for sale, part of which will no doubt he put up to auction. With the forty-four car goes already arrived, and af. w more on the age to London, there can be no fear of a scarcity Of cm rants, even for the most inordinate wants that may arise !or Christmas. A great many cargoes have also reached Liverpool, Bristol, and other outports. The total crops of currants this season in the Morea, Zante, Ccphalonia, and Ithaca, are estimated to hsve rc a lised 49,000,000 weight, or about 21.875 tons. This ic the largest total crop of currants ever before produced, and it is stated that about three-fourths of it would come to this country. The general quality, owing to rain damage, is not fine. It is a singular fact that the craln tries which produce this enormous quantity of currants do not themselves consume a hundred tons. What would the poor Greeks and lonians do if Jahn Bull was by any chance to discontinue the use of currants? Why, they and their Goveinment revenues would be ruined, as the growers could not find any other market for all their produce, and the treasuries would be minus the chief source of their assets, the duties levied amounting ; to about 18 per cent. on the export value. THE FROZEN SHIP. One serene evening in the middle of August, 1775, Captain Warrens, the master of the Greenland, a whale ship, found himself becalmed amongst an immense number of icebergs, in about 77 deg. of north latitude. On one side, and within a mile of his vessel, these were of immense height, and closely wedged together, and a succession of snow covered peaks appeared behind each other as far as the eye could reach, showing that the ocean was completely blocked up in that quarter, and that it had probably been so for a long period of time, Capt. Warrens did not feel altogether satisfied with his situa tion; but there being no wind, he could not move one way or the other, and he therefore kept a strict watch, knowing that he would be safe, so long as the icebergs continued in their respective places. About midnight the wind rose to a gale, accompanied by thick showers of snow, while a succession of tre mendous thundering, grinding, and crushing noises, gave fearful evidence that the ice was in motion. The vessel received violent shocks every second, for the haziness of the atmosphere prevented those on board from discover ing in what direction the open water lay, or if there was actually any at all on either side of them. The night was spent in tacking as often as any cause of danger happened to present itself, and in the morning the storm abated, and Captain Warrens found, to his great joy, that his ship hadinot sustained any serious injury. He remarked with surprise that the accumulated icebergs, which bad on the preceding evening formed an impene trable barrier, had been separated and disarranged by the wind, and that in one place a canal of open sea wound its course among them, as far as the eye could discern. It was two miles beyond the entrance of this canal that a ship made its appearance about noon. The our shone brightly at the time, and a gentle breeze blew from the north. At first some intervening icebergs prevented Captain Warrens from distinctly seeing any thing but her masts ; but he was struck with the at' ange manner in which her sails were disposed, and with the dismantled aspect of her yards and rigging. She continued to go before the wind for a few furlongs, and then grounding upon the low icebergs, remained motionless. Captain Warren's curiosity was so much excited, that he immediately leaped into his boat with several sea men, and rowed towards her. On approaching, he observed that her bull was miserably weather-beaten, and not a soul appeared on the deck, which was covered with snow to a considerable depth. He then hailed her crew several times, but no answer was returned. Pre vious to stepping on board, an open port-hole near the main chains caught his eye, and, on looking into it, he perceived a man reclining back in a chair, with writing materials on a table before him, but the feebleness of the light made everything very indistinct. The party went upon deck, and having removed the hatchway, which they found closed, they descended to the cabin. They first came to the apartment which Captain Warrens viewed through the port-hole. A tremor seized him as he entered it. Its inmate retained his former position, and seemed to be insensible to strangers. He was found to be a corpse, and a green damp mould had covered lila cheeks and forehead, and veiled his open eye-balls. La had a pen in his hand, and a log boek lay b(1, re him, the last sentence in its unfinished page ran tlitu;;— " Nov, 14, 1762. We have now been enclosed in the lee seventeen Gays. The fire went out yesterday, au . our master has been trying ever since to kindle ii, again, without success. His wife died this morning, There is no relief—" Captain Warrens and his seamen hurried from the spot without uttering a word. On entering the principal cabin the first object that attracted their attention was the dead body of a female reclining on a bed in an atti tude of deep interest and attention. Her countenance retains d the freshness of life, but a contraction of the limbs showed that her form was inanimate. Seated on the floor was the corpse of an apparently young man, holding a steel in one hand and a flint in the other, as if in the art of striking fire upo❑ some tinder which lay beside him. In the fore part of the vessel several sailors were found lying dead in their berths, and the body of a boy crouched at the bottom of the gangway stairs. Neither provisions nor fuel could be dis covered anywhere ; but Captain 'Warrens was prevented, by the superstitious prejudices of his seamen, from examining the vessel as minutely as he wished to have done. He therefore carried away the log-book already mentioned, and returned to his own ship, and immedi ately steered to the southward, deeply impressed with the awful example which he had just witnessed of the danger of navigating the Polar seas in high northern latitudes. On returning to England he made various inquiries respecting vessels that had disappeared in an unlsnown way, and, by comparing the results of those with the in formation which was afforded by the written documents in his possession, he ascertained the name and history of the imprisoned ship and of her unfortunate master, and found that she had been frozen thirteen years pre vious to the time of his discovering her among the ice. —Westminster Review. Not one railway plan has been deposited this y ear with the clerk of the peace for Newark, and on.ty eight for the county. Last year there were betw'een thirty and forty. ST. lvEs.—Upwards of fifty pieces of mahogany have been brought into this port by the pilot boats, at.d from the appearance of the wreck the portions found are supposed to have belonged to a Fretch vtssel, of about 200 tons. — Wept Briton. NARROW ESCAPE FROM DROWNING.-011 Friday afternoon, between two and three o'clock, as a man of the name of Gillham was proceeding up the river in a boat, when off the Penitentiary his hat fell overboard, and while endeavouring to reach it, he overbalanced himself, and fell into the river. A waterman of the name of Freeman immediately went to his assistance, and succeeded in getting him into his boat in less than two minutes from the time of his immersion. He was con veyed to a public-house near Vauxhall-gardens, where every attention was paid to him, and in less than two hours he was enabled to return to his home. CCRATES.—There is a story extant in the diocese of Exeter that the Bishop has been working with great anxiety to introduce tractarian curates wherever he could find an opening. it is said that Dr. Barnes, of Colyton, wishing to appoint a curate, was met by an answer from the Bishop that he could not think of licensing a curate from any other diocese, as there were plenty of excellent men unemployed in his own, and it is said further that he has thrust a tractarian upon Dr. •Barnes. Two other beneficed clergymen, one of them an archdeacon—in fact the first three letters of his name are John Moore Stevens, thus runs the rumour—finding that they had power to employ a curate for three months without a licence, determined not to be circumvented by their.respectable diocesan, to appoint their curates for that period, and so re-appoint. The Bishop then met them in a very handsome spirit, and saved them the trouble of walking straightly by the law, by appointing n h s e t a c n l t men being d o e f s t i r h e e d— nu n m e b i t e h r e o r of f the the unemployed curates i n i about whom the Bishop had manifested so much anxiety— f ro w m a y s w e h o i n c s h i s te w n e t w l e i a t r h n h i t s h oa ffit e t e h ._ e o w l d e s gentlemantern Times. i not al The Bestwall and Swineham estates, close to the borough town of Wareham,which for some time have been announced for sale in our paper, were on Thursday last submitted to public competition at the Auction Mart, by Mr. Robins, and, after much opposition, were kr', eked down at 12,700 guineas, the Earl of Eldon being declared the purchaser. It may be in the recollection of our readers that these farms were selected by" the late Sir Claude Scott, Bart., to develop his system of practical agriculture, and where he succeeded in proving that ca. pital, industry, and skill would surmount every difficulty, and render farming the most profitable of all employ. ments. THE LATE CONFLAGRATION AT NEWFOUND-. LAND.—The Court of Common Council have given OA sum of 3151. towards the public subscription raised few the relief of the sufferers by the great c4nflagration which occurred on the 15th of July last, at St. John's, Newfoundland. The amount already collected amounts THE NEW-CUT.-011 Thursday after noon o THEne& r nearly FIRE 0 1 / N . several men belonging to the Fire Brigade were busy searching among the ruins fo r the remainder of the sovereigns alleged t o h ave been lost in the fire. During their search they found a cat which had escaped from the flames by creeping into an empty cistern. They also found upw ar d s o f 45 sovereigns. Mr. Ferguson had in sured the life of the poor little dwarf, but not to a large amount. Morris, one of the firemen, met with a severe accident, by a piece of burning material falling upon hie head and severely burning him. He was taken'to the ,hospital.