The Sun. — London, England, 1852-02-03 00:00:00

EXTRAORDINARY ACCIDENT AT THE ROYAL ARSENAL, 'WOOLWICH. Yesterday an accident occurred at the Royal Arsenal, which might have been attended with awful consequences. It is invariably the case on the receipt of new guns from contractors to test them by an extra charge of powder, varying according to the size of the gun and description of ordnance. In compliance with this regulation, a detachment of gunners of the Royal Artillery attended at the proof butt, in the Royal Arsenal, and under the usual superintendence loaded four 56 pounder guns, lying on the ground atla short distance from the butt, with a charge of 281bs. of powder to each, and, after the wadding, added a 56 pounder solid shot to each. The time selected for proving guns is always at 12 at noon precisely, when the whole of the workmen in the arsenal have left their work to proceed to their dinners. The process of testing the guns is very carefully conducted, port fires calculated to burn four or five minutes being supported by clay over the vent of each gun, and the whole ignited by one man, who has ample time to retire three or four hundred yards before the firing takes place. Oa the arrangements being made for firing with the four 56-pounder:, one of the guns, whose port-fire had communicated to the charge before the others, burst in the act of firing, and one of the pieces struck one of the wher guns and turned it right round, the muzzle bAng then, instead of nearly due east towards the mound, due west in the direc tion of the town of Woolwich, and in an instant afterwards the 56-pounder shot was fired, proceed ing at a tremendous velocity given by the great cbcsrge of p ow d er over t h e h ouses i n t h e li ne o f .High -street, and only at a very little elevation above, starting and causing the horses returning from their work at the dockyard to rear and refuse to proceed, and astonishing the numerous workmen going home to dinner with its whizzing sound. The shot passed on a little to the south of the tall chimney at the sa w and struck the chimney of the residence Of Mr. Macdonald, master attendant at Woolwich dockyard, and a few yards further knocked down the beck drawing-room chimney of Mr. Morgan, the store receiver's residence, at the same time knocking down a large portion of the parapet of the building, scattering the bricks in all directions, and, ultimately, feel on the roof of a detached part of the house where the shot was found. Had the shot gone ten yards further, and the distance where it fell from the place where it was fired is fully a mile and a half, it would have fallen on a dense crowd of dockyard workmen at that moment leaving the yard for dinner.. Mr. Budd, one of the inspectors of the dock yard police, had a narrow escape from being injured by one of the pieces of scattered bricks, as it entered the open door of a greenhouse he has on the top of his house, and broke off a piece of a shelf by the great force with which it struck ; Mr. Budd had not left the spot the distance of a foot when the brick entered. The scattered bricks ascended and broke numerous chimney pots on the tops of the adjoining houses, and several windows in the lower parts of the dwellings, and the inside of Mr. Morgan's residence was covered With soot and pounded bricks which came down the chimney. The spot was visited by hundreds during the afternoon, all congratulating each other that no Personal injury had been sustained by the accident. HONESTY. A FRAGMENT. I tell you, Sir, that Honesty is nought But a mere word bandied by men's lips; It is a quality that does insure Hate's venomed arrows, and affords a prey For human bloodhounds to hunt down to death. There have been honest men—there may be snob. Some have been bold enough to breathe aloud Their own peculiar homage to the God Who formed at first, and who at last shall judge: They did avow their faith with steady zeal, Nor let their breast be warped by bribe or threat. What were the guerdons of such honest tongues? The chain, the rack the fagot and the stake; And the sharp crackling of consuming bones, Commingled with the yell of saintly fiends, Served as encouragement to speak the truth. Some have been honest—rarely, strangely so, In that Elysium of craft—a Court. With most presuming speech the patriot one Has offered stern advice to sceptred fools, Serving a people rather than a King. And what the thanks he gained? A traitor's name At least; perchance the secret poison-cup Or public scaffold, teaching senators A glorious lesson in our worldly book. Go, face the hungry lion in his path, Tread on the serpent in his torrid coil, And less of risk will wait upon such deed Than on the effort that shall seek to tear The specious mask from gilded roguery. Oh! 'tis a goodly thing this Honesty! An estimable feature in a watchdog, And there repaid and valued; but the man taltes up c an d our for his standard word, Scorning the Proteus shapes of mean dissemblanoe, Awho cts just as wisely as the soldier does draws his sword and flings away his shield. Try ye how uncloaked Honesty will thrive With close and_kindred friends or passing strangers: Confess your errors with a ready grace; Own you have sins, and tell how Passion throbs With earnest joy at some forbidden shrine; Proclaim how dark Revenge excites your soul; Betray the latent spring of selfish Pride That moves the blazoned hand of Charity. Publish the flaws and blots that " flesh is heir to;" Speak out, appear the chequered thing you are, And see if Mercy will befriend your cause, Or any voice commend your guileless tongue. No, no. The herd around, who hide, perchance, More guilt under more cunning, will pounce down, Like hu ngar y hawk s upon a wan d er i ng bi r d ; They will condemn the heart that's frank enough To speak its folly, and yet babble forth "An honest man's the noblest work of God." ,° ll , Honesty! thou a rt i n d e ed a gem vf matchless brilliancy, but he who wears thee Finds the pure jewel is a target mark Per every bolt that worldly knaves can shoot, Till, worn and harassed by the goading strife, lie throws the lustre from his struggling breast, 41 4 walks the road of life like all wise men, A flattering trickster. He must learn to look All smiles and courtesy to those above him, Be their ways good or evil. He must give ,T,he band o f f r iendship where h e ma y d esp i se; Z O O the rich fool, and meet the titled villain br , W ith enlogistic greeting and glad aspect; Veer with opinion's compass, let it point wherever it may, and mouth soft eloquence In praise of even that be inly loathes. ' 'is sad, but 'tis most true, that Honesty 48 like the phantom sprites in grandams' tales, Ruch oftener prated of than seen—and 'tis As true and sad, that it is safer far T 0 sin, lik e Lucifer, in wily guise, Th an simply err, and tell the wrong we do. ELIZA COOK. TO TEE EDITOR OF THE SUN. S lRth e ,—;The extraordinary profits declared by many of ,lathed ending life offices, more particularly those esta within the last fifteen years, have tended very Zerially. to entitle those institutions to public favour ih . s u support. If a new office can effect this it is easy to .ligine what might have been done by the older and l i , Q ro powerful companies, many of which, a few years Joe. obtained Acts of Parliament, enabling them to k "Pt the bonus system with regard to future assurers, ii,eut, the large number of pre-existing policies being, in ‘, the assurances of individuals, through whose instru 41e4tality those offices attained their high position, are !Xcluded from any share of profits whatever, whilst tact is notorious, that many of tho latter have paid the in m s beyond the amonnt of the sum insured. v ou t : Pologixing to you for requesting the favour of .7 insertion of this letter lam not without hope that many of established' our readers, holders of policies in the old '', atibrnitting of, and concur i oft 'es, will recogn ize the propriety their claims, to profits, to the directors of those and other similar circumstanced corn. P %l lies, which, althoug originally proprietary, without profit s entered ne w , areof their assured kt e &e aawcaerrdtiani certain them peri 0 d t . o_ i suc ham am, Sir,. , AN INSURER. Th~ Op aMENTS OF TRANSATLANTIC STEAM-SIIIPS.— „tededßoyal Mail steam-ship Canada, Lang N ew York, c ommander, pith from Liverpool at 3 r.M. on Saturday, for 1)2. "e usual mails, a large cargo, and upwardsl of forty \N„--'engers. The United States mail steam-ship eat Atlantic, commander, with advic e s f rom N ew Y or k 25th to the , nu ) 4l ay be expected to arrive at Liverpool on nesaa) tilt, wYlie rning next. The screw steam-ship City o Glasgow, phis ° l3 . cornt ednesdanandeY next r will sail from the M erse y f or Philadel- W. u edfor -..E AT WELLINGTON BARRACEM— Yesterday Chesterd held an inquest at th e Artillery Arms, Ro- Pri v 'row, Westminster, on the body o f G eorge Ridley, a 3 , 4ltr ate in the Ist Battalion of Grenadier Guards, aged 39 who com m itt e d su i c id e by s h oo ti ng hi mself with a Q, on Saturday morning last. Colonel Begot and Cap- Bonataiu l3 Oll (adjutant of the regiment) were in attendance. Uw e ?f the deceased's comrades were examined, and proved th e aneut half-past seven o'clock on Saturday morning last, r at e Were in their quarters with deceased, preparing for pa keoei T bsY were all so much engaged with their accoutre- , scd d e that they did not observe what each was about ; but fiti l „, 24l Y their attention was arrested by the report . of . the fell „, of deceased's musket, and the deceased immediately one 1 1 the ground dead. There was some shoemakers' wax ooe shed to the trigger of the musket, with a large loop at ate", into which the deceased must have put hia foot th_ standing UP, with the butt-end on the floor and h i : nciluzzle to his mouth, set off his firelock, and caused 4 nO th by those means. Verdict— , " Temporary in- C IUT Nt n Ahl, FEB. 2.—V o l un t eer i ng h a s opened in is ta . b arn Barracks for the depots of the Rifle Brigade, her lici l e eB tYa 97th and 69th Regiments, and upwards of 300 th evo offered for the home regiments. It is expected that eeer.l.unteeri9g will become general in Chatham. Several_ es in parties have recently been sent to different locali liio±u E.ngland and Ireland. The depots of the 97th and the 13rigade, lately sent out on the recruiting service, have clin etailed. On Friday morning _ a at 20 .. k number of labourers were Ainnr on . he Birmingham line, at the Sudbury station, „ th e eight o'clock A.m. up-train arrived rather suddenly -1,0,ne men got out of the the knotked down and paced over a H was cOnyeyed tr in excepting one, uiai TonlitY GQllegol LlQapite, e nale lit 02944 • THE PRIVY COUNCIL; Her Majesty held a Privy Council at half-past I two o'clock yesterday afternoon. It was attended by his Royal Highness Prince Albert, the Lord Chan ! eellor, the Earl of Minto, Lord John Russell, Sir George Grey, Earl Grenville, Earl Grey, Sir Charles Wood, Sir Francis Baring, the Earl of Carlisle, the Marquis of Clanricarde, the Right Hon. Fox Maule, Lord Seymour, the Marquis of Westminster, the Marquis of Brenda!bane, and the Duke of Norfolk. The Right Hon. Henry Lord Cowley (her Ma jesty's ambassador to Paris) and Mr. Justice Patteson were, by command of the Queen, sworn of ber Ma jesty's M os t H onoura bl e Privy Council, and took their places at the board. The list of Sheriffs for England and Wales was ' pricked for by her Majesty. The Queen's Speech on opening of the Session of Parliament was arranged and sgreed upon. The Hon. William Bathurst was the Clerk of the Council in Waiting. The Queen gave audiences to Lord John Russell, the Right Hon. Fox Maule, Sir George Grey, Earl Granville, and Earl Grey. Her Majesty was at tended by the Treasurer of the Household, the Vice- Chamberlain, the Comptroller of the Household, the Marquis of Londonderry (Gold Stick in Waiting), Lord Byron (Lord in Wating), and Sir Edward Bowater (Groom in Waiting). COURT CIRCULAR. The Queen and Prince Albert, attended by the Viscountess Canning, Lord Byron, Colonel the Hon. C. B. Phipps, Sir Edward Bowater, Lieutenant- Colonel Biddulpb, Colonel the Hon. Charles Grey, and Lieutenant-Colonel the Hon. A. Gordon, left Windsor Castle at five minutes past twelve o'clock yesterday, for the station of the Great Western Railway in Windsor, where a guard of honour of the Grenadier Guards was on duty with the band of the regiment. Her Majesty and his Royal Highness left by a special train, and on arriving at the Paddington ter minus proceeded to Buckingham Palace. The illus trious party occupied three of the Royal carriages, and was escorted by a detachment of the Bth Hussars to the Palace, where they arrived at six minutes be fore one o'clock. The Queen and Prince Albert were received at Buckingham Palace by the Master of the Horse, the Lord Chamberlain, the Vice-Chamberlain, Lord George Lennox, and Colonel Wylde. Her Majesty and his Royal Highness Prince Al bert, attended by Viscountess Canning, Lord Byron, Colonel the Hon. Charles Grey, and Lieutenant- Colonel Hon. A. Gordon, honoured the Princess's Theatre with their presence last evening. Colonel the Hon. Charles Grey has relieved Lord Alfred Paget in his duties as Equerry-in-Waiting to the Queen.- Dispatches from the Governors of the North Ame rican provinces were received at the Colonial-office yesterday. Dispatches were also received from the Governor of Malta. POLITICAL BANQUETS. The Marquis of Lansdowne, as President of the Council, gave a grand Ministerial banquet last evening at Lansdowne House, to a distinguished circle of Peers, supporters of the present Government. Covers were laid for forty in the state dining-room. The guests were the Duke of Norfolk, the Duke of Bedford, the Lord Chan cellor, the Marquis of Anglesey, the Marquis of Bread albsne, the Marquis of Westminster, the Marquis of Normanby, the Marquis of Clanricarde, the Earl of Car lisle, the Earl of Craven, the Earl Grey, the Earl of Yarborough, the Earl of Albemarle, the Earl of Bess borough, the Earl of Strafford, the Earl of Zetland, the Earl Minto, the Earl Granville, the Earl Fitzhardinge, the Earl Bruce, the Earl Waldegrave, Lord Camoys, Lord Elphinstone, Lord Hatherton, Lord Mont eagle, Lord Foley, Lord De Manley, Lord Col borne, Lord Carrington, Lord Beaumont, Lord Portman ' Lord Lilford, Lord Erskine, Lord Saye and Sole, Lord Cremorne, Lord Wodehouse, and Lord Leigh. The Noble Marquis was assisted in the honours of the table by his son, the Earl of Shelburne, and his son-in-law, the Hon. J. K. Howard. After dinner her Majesty's gracious speech on the opening of the session of Parliament was read by the Noble Pre sident to his assembled guests. We are sorry to say that Lord Lansdowne was suffering severely during the even ing from an attack of gout which came on a day or two since, and which prevented the Noble Marquis from at tending the Privy Council at Buckingham Palace yes terday. Lord John Russell gave a full dress Parliamentary dinner party last evening at his official residence, Down ing -street, to the following distinguished circle:—The Right Hon. tho Speaker, Sir R. William Bulkeley and Mr. Bonham Carter (the mover and seconder of the ad dress), Lord Seymour, Lord Alfred Paget, Lord Marcus Hill, Lord Edward Howard, the Right Hon. Sir G. Grey, the Right Hon. VV. G. Hayter, the Right Hon. Sir Charles Wood, the Right Hon. Henry Labouchere, the Right Hon. Sir Francis Baring, the Right Hon. M. T. Baines, the Right Hoe. Sir William Somerville, the Right Hon. Sir David Dundee, Hon. E. Bouverie, Hon. W. Cowper, Hon. General Anson, Lieutenant-Colonel Hon. Robert Boyle, the Attorney-General, the Lord Advocate of Scotland, the Solicitor• Genera/, the At • torney-General for Ireland, Admiral Berkeley, iSir W. Gibson Craig, Mr. Frederick Peel, Mr. Bellow, Mr. Rich, Mr. C. Cornewall Lewis, Mr. T. Elliot, Mr. James Wilson, Mr. Parker, and Mr. R. W. Grey. The Earl of Derby entertained a distinguished party of Peers last evening, at his mansion in St. James's equate'. The guests were confined to Opposition Mem bers of the Upper House, and among those present were the Duke of Richmond, the Duke of Beaufort, the Duke of Montrose, the Duke of Northumber land, the Duke of Cleveland, the Marquis of Exeter, the Marquis of Salisbury, the Earl of Eglinton, the Earl of Cardigan, the Earl of Lonadale, the y, the Earl of Luca n , th e E ar l o f t a h l e lesb Earl of Wilton, the Earl T a lb ot , t h e E ar l oke, the Earl o f Wi nc hil sea , t h e Earl of Glen gall,ofSandwich, the Earl of Enniskillen, the Earl Delawarr, the Earl of Hardwicke, - Viscount Combermere, Viscount Strangford, Lord do RO9, Lord Redesdale, Lord South- - ampton, Lord Colchester, and Lord Saltoun. Lord Lyndhurst, the Earl of Desert, and two or three other peers were prevented attending by indisposition. The Noble Earl's table presented a munificent display of gold and silver plate. In the middle was a superb gold centre piece, presented to his Lordship's father, as Lord- Lieutenant of Lancashire, by the deputy lieutenants of that county, and upon the table were three beautiful pieces of racing plate won at goodwood and Doncaster by the gallant Canezou. A desert service of the most superb description, manufactured by Messrs. Danie ll, of New Bond street, and purchas e d out o f t h e G roa t Exhi bition by Lord Derby, was used on this occasion for the drat time and very greatly admired. There will be a grea t meeting of commoners — mem b ers o f t h e N o ble Earl ' a party—at his mansion this morning (Tuesday). _ DEATH OF AIMS ANNIE ROMER. We announce with sincere regret the very sudden and untimely death of a young dramatic artist and vocalist— one of the members of a family celebrated for their musical talents—and who has been for some fears back a rising public favourite both in London and in the pro vinces—Miss Annie Romer. The lamented young lady in question was a pupil of the Royal Academy of Music, and gave early and unmistakeable signs of future emi nence. Her voice was a pure and fresh soprano of large compass and finely sympathetic powers, and an early appearance u p on t h e stage showe d t h a t Miss A. Romer possessed dr amat i c talents of a d ec ided cha racter. During an engagement at the Princess's Theatre, in Mr. Maddox's operatic management, Miss A. Romer made a very favourable and prominent impression, the sweet and pure qualities of her voice and the simple naiveté of her style being equally noticeable. Her dra matic talents attracting the attention of Mr. Macready, she more than once sustained the female parts at per formances at the country residence of Sir Bulwer Lyt ton, and when the amateur performances were got up for the Shakvere-house Fund, Miss A. Romer filled the principal female character. "Thou Mr. Webster getting together his present operatic. company, she was a member, but afterwards accepted a more prominent engagement at the Surrey during its recent successful musical campaign, where one of her last characters was that of the Princess in The Huguenots. Miss Annie Romer —we have retained her stage appellation—had clever nmarried not above a twelvemonth to Mr. William Brougb, the e ld er o f th e b ro th ers whose exceedingly burlesques have rendered their names so well known. - Tan NEW SECRETARY AT WAIL—We are enabled to announce that the Right Hon. Robert Vernon Smith has been appointed Secretary at War, in the room of the Hon. Fox:Maule, appointed President of the Board of Trade. Mr. Smith is representative for Southampton. He was a Lord of the Treasury from November, 1833, to November, 1834; was Secretary to the Board of Control from April, 1835 to 1839, and was Under Secretary to the Colonies from 1839 to 1841. —Herald. generally reported and T HE N EW Jo D oz.—l t was accredited in Westminster -hall yesterday afternoon, that Mr. Crompton, of the Northern Circuit, has been appointed to succeed Mr. Justice Patteson in the Court of Queen's Bench and , wa s sworn in a Privy Councill or yesterday. Mr. Crompton vacates the jndgeship of the Passage Court, at Li v erpool, which he h as for s o me t ime filled to the satisfac tion of the suitors. Mr. Justice Patteson was only a " stuff gown" at the time ed or, to to th os e e ß a en l c o h g , al a t n e d rm it , is worthy of remark t has not " taken silk." th h at at h h e is w s s o s cc ra es is s es of Leeds to prepare for th e taken by the Liberal burgess R EPRESENTATI ON OF LEEDS.. — Steps are b e i ng and up to the present time those wards to select candidates, anticipated dissolution. Meetings have been held in th e likely to be p u t i n nomination are Mr. J. G. Marshall , one of the pr esent mem b ers, an d M r . Jo seph Sturge, of Birming ham, the reje c t e d can did a t e o f l as t election. The Conserva tives, on th e ot h er hand do not appear disposed to yield their positi on w i thout a struggle, and it is confidently stated in some qu ar t ers that they will not only b r i n g forward )Ir. W. Beckett, the present Conservative Member, but unite with him Mr. John Gott, one of the most esteemed and re spectable manufacturers and merchants in Yorkshire. A DISGRACEFUL CIRCUMSTANCE,—A abort time ago, we are informed, a poor woman named Jackson was de livered of a still-born child at NV haplode Drove. The clergy man demanded 9s. 2d. fees, and the sexton Is. 6d., for the interment of the same. The poor man was not able to rase this amount; so at midnight he interred his child in a recently made grave. The circumstance being made known, the sexton, with his iron " grave-taster," proceeded to search for the morsel of humanity : he found it, took it up, and it was placed for one night in a closet in the churchyard. Afterwards the child was taken and placed before the poor man's door, accompanied with a most unchristian note. The, child had been interred about eight weeks I—Stamford Mercury. S UN, LONDON, REFORM IN PARLIAMENT. A public meeting of the inhabitants of St. Mary lebone was held at the Court House, in Marylebone lane, lest evening, for the purpose of considering the best means of advocating the principles put forward by the National Reform Association. There were present Sir B. Hall, M.P., Lord D u dl e y C. St u art, M.P., Admiral Napier, Rev. Mr. Burns, Sir John Hare, &c. The chair was taken by Surgeon Pritchard, chair man of the committee of the Reform Association, in the absence of Mr. Hume, M.P., who sent a note of apology, on the ground that he should not be able to arrive in London in time for the meeting. The Hon. Gentleman expressed a hope that the proceedings would be characterised by unanimity and zeal on the part of the inhabitants of St. Marylebone, and added that he had reason to fear that the proposition of her Majesty's Government, on the question of reform, would fall far short of what was demanded by the in terests and wishes of the people. The CHAIRMAN, in opening the proceedings, said that he would read to the meeting a statement of the principles of the National Reform Association. They were to the following effect :—l. Such an extension of the franchise as will confer the right to be regis tered as an elector upon every man of full age, not subject to any legal disability, who for twelve months shall have occupied any tenement or portion of a tenement for which he shall be rated, or shall have claimed to be rated, to the relief of the poor. 2. The adoption of the system of vote by ballot. 3. The limitation of the duration of Parliaments to three years. 4. Such a change in the arrangement of the electoral districts as shall produce a more equal ap portionment of representatives to constituents. 5. The abolition of the property qualification for members of Parliament. He called upon them to hold fast by these principles, and not to allow themselves to be deluded by the cry of invasion which had been re cently got up in order to blind the people and draw them away from their true interests.—(Hear, hear.) As they would no doubt be anxious to hear an ex pression of opinion on the momentous question of Parliamentary Reform from their representatives, Sir B. Hall and Lord D. C. Stuart, he would introduce those gentlemen at once, as they would be obliged to leave in a short time to attend a similar meeting to the present in St. Pancras parish. Sir B. HALL (who on coming forward was received with loud cheers) returned thanks to the meeting for breaking through the usual routine of business, and allowing him to say a few words at that period o f the proceedings. He should best discharge his duty to wards them by confining himself to the great prin ciples embodied in the propositions of the association, and he felt assured that, unless those who owned themselves to be the Liberal Members of the House of Commons were united in one common object, they would stand but little chance of a good. measure of reform in the present session. —(Hear, hear.) It ge nerally happened that when an important Bill was about to be proposed by Government, some one of its organs put forth an article in the shape of a feeler, in order to test men's minds. Now, if they were to be lieve that the principles of the new Reform Bill were contained in the leading article of the Times news paper on Saturday last, he was:sure that that measure would fall very short of what the people desired. Of course he knew nothing of Cabinet secrets; but if they were told that the county franchise, which was now 501., was to be reduced to 201, and that the town franchise was to be reduced to 51., and that this was all, then it would certainly be a very meagre measure of reform.—(Cries of " Hear, hear.") Those who had interested themselves much about the Reform Bill, and about the working of the pre sent Act, would have observed that one of the greatest evils connected with the representation of the people, even under the present franchise, was the system of registration. He would take his own case as an in stance of the evil. He had occupied a house at the beginning of the last year, but as he could not put it on the registry last November he should be obliged to wait until next November, so that he must wait for nearly two years before he could obtain a vote for Westminster. Now his idea with regard to re gistration, which was a very material feature of the association, was this, that they ought to have a more frequent registration.—(Hear, hear.) That was a point which bad not been generally dwelt upon, but which ho thought was very well worthy of attention. He had already given an instance of the evil of the present arrangement, but if there were a more fre quent registration, all qualified persons would come into possession of the franchise sooner than they did at present.—(Hear, hear.) That was only a question of detail, though it was an important point of detail. The principles of the association, as be found them stated on the card in his hand, wore very fair, very just, and very honest, with regard to the people at large.—(Hear, hear, and cheers.) It was said that the meetings of the metropolitan districts gave a tone and temper to those of the provincial districts. Now why should not they, representing the inhabitants of Mary lebone, assembled as they were in meeting on the eve of one of the most im portant sessions that would ever be known in the history of the nation—why should they not put forth a declaration, and call upon the liberal constituencies throughout the kingdom, if the reform measure of the Government should fall far short of those resolu tions, to set aside all private considerations and feel ings of their own, and unite with them in the metro polis for the purpose of compelling the Government of the day to give them such a measure as would be practicable and just ?—(gear, hear, and cheers.) Perhaps some of them would have seen by the papers that he had been recently engaged about the repre sentation of a borough with which he had been con nected. He knew that borough as well as he knew themselves, and he had been with them now for fourteen years, and he would say that unless t h a t borough—and it was only one of many i n the same position—obtained what was re quired by the second of their principles, namely, vote by ballot, it could not possibly send a person to Parliament who really represented the people.— (Hear) When he had asked an elector in that borough for his vote, he replied, "I am anxious that you should succeed, and I would give you my support if I could, but, sir, I dare not do so. lam a tenant of such a person, who is hostile to you, and I must, therefore, beg you not to ask me to support you. Depend upon it that if I did I should be immediately turned out of my holding." —(g ear , hear.) That was quite a common reply—it had been frequently made to him ; and he believed that thousands of votes were placed in precisely the same circumstances. — (Hear, hear.) What he chiefly desired to avoid in any Bill that might be brought forward was this— namely, that they should not have a number of miser able disgraceful little boroughs continued.—(Hear, hear, and cheers.) Some of these had become noto rious. He had had the misfortune of sitting upon the St. Albans Bribery Committee and no one, except the candidates, knew what was the villany and cor ruption of that borough. He should like to see that place struck out, and deprived of the power of having even any representation of the people.—(Hear, hear.) If he should be told that the representation might be kept, but that it should be amended by the addition of agricultural electors, he would say that unless they would give him vote by ballot, Lord Verulam or Mr. Edwards might purchase the borough at the next elec tion.—(Hear, hear.) Therefore this was an essential point ; and though he thought it was generally im portant to choose a man for his character, and to rely upon his honour and character to do what was right and equitable, rather than upon his pledges, yet he believed it was now come to this, that unless a man would promise to vote for the ballot, he was wholly useless to be returned to a seat in the House of Commons.—(Hear.) He could say this without its being supposed that he was putting it forward as a claptrap, for he had now been in Parliament for twenty-one years, and he had invariably voted in favour of the ballot, because he believed that it was essential to the interests of the people.—(Hear, hear, and cheers.) With regard to the more equal distri bution of the electoral districts, he himself might be put in an unpleasant position, for it was just possible that he might have to part with some portion of his constituents. But he must not look at the matter in that light; he thought that the metropolis ought in justice h t e e n e have t h a l e h o a rugre of r t n r u i a m l b o e u r of an h r e e p h r u e d s e u n o t adt doubt v u e h s t , that he should be able to obtain a seat in Parliament from them by whom he had been so long known and tried.—(Hear, hear, and cheers.) Lord D. C. STUART, M.P., who was received with loud applause, said that he rejoiced to hear of the number of meetings that were being held on the sub ject of Parliamentary Reform, because he was sure that if those meetings did not take place, the real wishes of the people of this country would not be understood.—(Hear, hear.) Many persons did not believe that there was a great desire amongst the people for an extension of the suffrage. He had heard the assertion made, and in a Ministerial house, toe. an nd, wentb that et been nai into.---(Hear, t t huo i an f_ ty t you (ph ;a; es daoren. went tp etw hear,u d a s ehbdeo wished t and noo in ndr refo rm.s ir s n h c cai society ey o CocillaTti never came to rvet y epor o l yuft town, Laughter)—for if a person should . go into that sort o soci society, to that o sw large hich he bodiesw as o p f r o t td e to say i he h was ad mitted,l find that there was one universal wish and d e : h d e em N e v n ti ( o l o u n fo n ( r i l reform.—(Hear, hear.) The principles Reform Association were exceedingly rationaelnrirde complete otf e feel lnd sanguine an a p d ro b p e e si r o , n 7d lle he eo g n a f v e e ss t e h d em hi thath s e did n that the Reform Bill t o w hi ch the country was looking forward would be of a satisfactory descrip tion. He might be doing an injustice to those who were at the helm of Government in saying so, and he should be happy to have the • opportunity afforded to him of withdrawing the statement. But he feared that the sort of reform which it was in tended to give them would be a very poor beverage, and such as would not suit their stomachs. But he should vote for any Reform Bill that might be brought EVENING-, TUESDAY forward. He had always done so; but at the same time ho was free to confess that though he might vote in favour of something far short of what he believed to be needful and desirable, yet he would accept no thing as a final measure.—(Hear, hear.) They had done with such nonsense as that; but they would take whatever they could get, in order that they might be able to go on to obtain that which the people had a right to.---(Hear and cheers.) What he wanted was a real, not a sham representation of the people, and those who wished that the people should be completely and fully represented must vote for the ballot.--(hear, bear, and cheers.) By that test he would try all reformers ; those who were not for the ballot were not real reformer,. They might wish the people to appear to be represented, but in reality they desired that this landowner or that millowner, and not the people, should return Members to Parliament.—(Cries of " Hear, hear.") Give him all the rest of the demands made by the association, and they would be incomplete and imperfect without the ballot. He could not say that he had always voted for the ballot, for he confessed that he had been for merly opposed to that mode of voting, on the ground that a man ought not to discharge in secret a great public duty. But reflection and consideration had slowly but surely brought him to the conviction that without the ballot there was no real representation. —(Hear.) Let them take care that in any measure that might be passed by the Legislature the ballot should be at all events included.—(Hear, bear, and cheers.) The Noble Lord, in company with Sir B. Hall, then retired from the meeting. Mr. CHARLES FREETH moved the following resolu tion : " That the Prime Minister of the Crown, having sig nified his intention to introduce a measure of Parlia mentary Reform during the ensuing session, the people should lose no time in giving an effective expression to their wishes; and this meeting would therefore declare that any measure which does not extend the franchise to every occupier of a house or part of a house, protect the voter by the ballot, shorten the duration of Parliaments, re-arrange the electoral districts, and abolish the Mpro perty qualification required of embers, will fail to sa tisfy the just expectations of the people, be effectual in preventing injustice and intimidation at elections, and will not effectuate a full and free representation of the people in the Commons House of Parliament." .1. Admiral NAPIER seconded the resolution. He had always been a free-trader and reformer, and he re mained so still ; but be confessed that his views were more enlightened on those subjects than they were seven years ago, when he would not have been pre pared to go so far as he was at present. He was now ready to assert that any measure of reform would be incomplete without the ballot. — (Hear.) There was a reform in one matter which had not been men tioned, by which more money was taken out of the pockets of the people of England than by any other means—he alluded to the naval estimates.—(Hear, hear.) Last year these estimates amounted to nearly 6,000,0001., and at the present moment we had only one fully-manned ship of war on the English shore, and she was about to be sent to the Mediterranean. The country was not protected at present, but that was not the fault of Abe people, who paid their tore', but of those who managed their money —(Hear, hear.) He was not a rich man, but be would give 5001. to be in Parliament during this session in order that he might show the helpless w state in which the country was placed a t present, and its liability to have a descent made upon it by Louis Napoleo n .—(H ear , an d No, no.) P ersons m i ght say "No;" but after the manner in which Louis Napoleon had treated his own country, it was im possible to say.what attempt be might not make upon us, assisted with an army of 400,000 men.—(Hear.) Sir J. HARE spoke to the resolution, which was put and carried u nan i mous ly; as was also th e f ollowing, which was proposed by Mr. P. Graham, seconded by Mr. Mitchell : "That theMombers for the borough of Marylebone are hereby respectfully requested to use their utmost endeavours to obtain a reform of the Commons Rouse of Parliament, and to impress upon the House the str ong desire that exists in the parish for such reform, in ac cordance with th e p r i nc i p l e s of the N . ational Parliamen tary and Fina nc i a l R e f orm A SS OCIatIOII. , The meeting was afterwards addressed by the Rev. Mr. Burns, Mr. Yates, Mr. Smith, and other speakers, and a petition to Parliament was agreed to. The proceedings terminated with a vote of thanks to the chairman. THE NATIONAL LAND COMPANY. __Yesterday a mee ti ng i n this matter was h e ld in ice-Chan ce ll or Ki ndersley ' s co urt, b e f ore M aster y in Chancery Humpbry, M.P. for the general exami nation of M r .P ergus O' Conno ; the directors and other." to inquir e i n t o t h e managemen t an d financial transac tions c onnec t e d w i th the company ' s a ff a i rs un d er the Act company, of Parli amen t passe d to di sso l ve the to dispose of th e l an d s an d property b e l ong i ng to it, and generally t o w i n d up i ts a ff a i rs . Th e h our fi xe d tor the meeting was ten o'clock, at which time all parties, with the exception of Mr. O'Connor, who had been sum mone d, were present, an d some twenty minutes elapsed before that gentleman, accompanied by his soli c it or , a p peare d and took his seat under neath the woolsack. The court was extremely crowded throughout the day. Mr. Roxburgh, who appeared as counsel in support of the official manager, commenced the proceedings the o with a short history ofcompany's operationF, ob jects, and pr esen t sta t e of affairs. It was started in 1845, wider the titl e of the " Chartist Co-operative Land Society," to purchase land and locate members, upon such terms as might enable them by moderate industry to live in comparative comfort and inde dendence. The titl e of th after wards changed to th a t o f the undertaking was "N a ti ona l Land Com pany." A number o f estates e made, and member s located, Were bought, allotments and a large n umber branches were e s t a bli s h ed kingdom. The object of in various g parts of the of th e xamine the originators elid e Present inquiry was a with reference to the accounts,directors of the scheme application of the moneys received and the amount and company, to put the afficial on account of the information to enable him to manager iu possession of Parliament.° of the Act of carry out the provisions of Mr. Goodchap, the „Since the appointment court, that gentleman and manager of the his solicitors, Messrs. Tucker and Sons, h a d estates, and had obtained gon ove r all the as possible, but this was found as a personal as m e uch information to be of so deficient a description that parties became absolutely examination of the had been subscribed and n ecessary. A large sum five different estates expendedamounting i n the purchase of estates were the Herringsgai to 100,000/. These the O'Connorville estate, el or, as it is now called, Minster Level estate, the Ln Rickmansworth; the at Snig's End, and the Great wbands estate, the estate ascertain object now was to the Dodford estate. The re ceived, how, where, and by whom, amount of money to its ultimate application, an , and with reference c r d en -s with this view he pro posed to examine Mr. :or in detail. Mr. O'Connor was then worn and examined for nearly five hours, but as hi s evidence was principally a recapitulation of of that gi ve before the House of Commons Committee on etheseorencasion of their inquiry into the matter , it is unn3a to repeat it here. He deposed that he did not kn ow received on behalf of the com how much money was 1846, but stated several ti , _Patty between 1845 and of these transactions gi z i r rer that the accounts f, appeared at intervals in the Northern were Star , and recently iu the Daily News. There of these matters in the l odcre _, no doubt, entries pany, the directors of sa hi n ' h ' s , of the Land Com neverne would trust with anything, and they had defrauded the com pany of a farthing. He had never seen these books. He was now a creditor to the C ompany to the extent of 7,505/. It appeared in the haderse of the evi dence that some of the esta tes been sold since the Act of Parliament prohibiting the diosal of them passed; and he (Mr. O'Connor) by Lord Campbell and Sir J. Pollo o , had been thath e e told ha d a right to sell them, and put all thet Money in his pocket—though he believed that declaration was then was before the Act passed. Witnes s at Whaeseexereised in the ex amined as to the general powers th alled upon to purchase and sale of lands, and produce receipts and vouchers for could not ; invariably referring the Coe same, but questions being put, to an account urt, these the money on transactions he had published in the Da i l f o Y News and Northern: Star. H e was also questione d as to the particulars of the res p e ctive allotment s on th e various estates, but he ga ve no definite information on a ma jority of them. When the Land and Labour B an k was proposed in connexion with the La he protested against is, and the bank ad Comp any , h ad new failed, owing 4,0001. - Mr. Roxburgh—Can you inform us, Mr. O'Con nor, how it was that portions of the Great estate that had been sold by you do not app Dodf or d was required in the schedule to the Act aPPear, as ment ? Mr. O'Connor--I think it is thereof Perna- Mr. Roxburgh—You had better look at the Act This is such a gigantic scheme that we h 8 all get con fused if we are not careful. Mr. O'Connor—lt is a gigantic scheme, sir, and I have been greatly confused by it. Mr. Roxburgh—lt would appear, from the various accounts to the House of Commons, that you have re ceived 16,000/. on account of the company Since I dare lB4B ? i l Mr. O'Connor—Yes, more than that, Mr. Roxburgh—Well, what have you say. clonehave with it ? Mr. O'Connor—All the accounts been published in the Daily News and Northern , Star. Mr. Roxburgh—But we cannot find any materials in them to test the correctness of the statements they conta . n. Mr. O'Connor—lt is published :word for word in the D a il y News. I got the particulars from the passbook of th e Gloucestershire Bank. 1 may state, in this movement spent 150,0001. have, I to im prove and elevate the condition of the people, and au) abused for it, whereas if a middleman or a nubleman 'had done it, it would have been very different! If Prince Albert had t buil these cot. FEBRUARY 3, 1852. tages and 'coated these lands, there would have been offices to promote them in every street in London for the benefit of these poor people, under the patronage of the philanthropic prince; but now, if my Lord or Lady Ninccmpoop happens to be driving through these estates, and the daughter in the carriage happens to say, " Lor, mamma, look at those beautiful cottages," the anxious parent Pulls down the blinds, exclaiming, " My dear, it was that ruffian Feargus O'Connor built them." (Loud aughter.) Mr. Grey, who at the instance of the House of Commons reported on the accounts of the company, has a " sofa full" of receipts and vouchers, and might sit on them.—(Laughter.) You are ask ing me the most nonsensical questions, and I know what you want is to juggle me. The remainder of Mr. O'Connor's evidence was given in such a semi-serious but insulting manner as to call frequently for the marked reprobation of the Master, whom he turned to on one occasion with the utmost nonchalance, and asked to have a " pinch of snuff," a wooden box full of which he throughout the day drew supplies from, using it every now and then as a tatoo on the table during the pauses between question and answer, at the close of many of which . he deliberately shook his fist at the Learned Counsel, exclaiming loudly, " You ruffian." He did not know a man of the name of " Cotton," but knew a man named " Worsted ;" and asked the Learned Counsel if he meant " Piddlecomb" for " Biddlecomb." The Learned Counsel (at four o'clock) must be hungry, and if be liked he would order him a mutton chop.-_ (Laughter.) This was all that he (the witness) on one occasion had one day at O'Connorville, when he stuck it on the tongs and fried it for himself. The Master—Will you be good enough to look at these ledgers, Mr. O'Connor, to refresh your me mory ? Mr. O'Connor (balancing a ledger in his arms, amid loud laughter)—But just look what thundering books they are ! The Master—Thundering or not, you must do it. Mr. O'Connor—Oh ! you can get it from the Daily News and in the Stars.—(Laughter.)—All I received and paid. The Master—We must put you to the trouble of looking at these books. Mr. O'Connor—Oh ! dear, I could not look at them.—(Laughter.) Mr. Roxburgh—We shall require you to-morrow. Mr. O'Connor—l cannot be here. I must be at the House. Mr. Roxburgh—l think you will find that the summons of this Co urt has precedence over the House of Commons. Mr. O'Connor—Have you done with me? Will you let me go ? You have been examining me nearly five hours. Mr. M`Grath and Mr. Doyle tell me that the directors have all the books showing the wages and other matters paid. Mr. M`Grath is one of the most amiable men in the world—(Laughter)--and he tells me all the books have been given up ; and M‘Grath is one of the most honest and independent men. Mr. Roxburgh—We are all independent men. Mr. O'Connor—You are not an independent man. You are a ruffian.—(Sensation and laughter). The Master here interposed. Mr. O'Connor, laughing—Oh no, he is a jolly fel low. I make him laugh. You know he wants to juggle me. You've examined me five hours, and have not asked me a single word connected with the Land Company. Have you done with me now ? Mr. Roxburgh—No, nor am I likely just yet. It may be a long time before. Mr. O'Connor—Oh, my God! Oh dear, oh dear ! Will you have a pinch of snuff ?—(Laughter.) The Master—Allow me to look at that book. Mr. O'Connor (lifting it up)—Oh dear, oh for ! Now, have you anything more to ask me? He's been at me five hours. I'll take a hatchet and cut your head off.—(Laughter.) The Master—Did you take any entries from this book to make out the account you have alluded to ? Mr. O'Connor—No, M 4 Grath tells me you have the books with all the wages paid ; and he is one of the most amiable, and upright, and honest men in the world. The Master—We shall have another opportunity of judging of his amiability. Mr. O'Connor—Don't bother me any more, you old ruffian (understood to be directed to Mr. Rox burgh, who was about to resume his questions); ex amine M'Grath. Come up M'Grath now, and be ex amined.—(Loud Laughter.) Come up M'Grath. Mr. Roxburgh—None of the books we have show the expenditure. Mr. O'Connor—Hold your tongue, you ruffian. — (The witness here directed first one fist and then ano ther at the Learned Counsel, and was about to direct also one of the smaller ledgers at him.) The Master (with remarkable mildness)—Really, Mr. O'Connor, you must not do that. The Master here retired into one of the side rooms, followed by the Learned Counsel; and in the interim Mr. O'Connor, addressing some one in the crowd. exclaimed, "Here, now, do you get on the bench." On the return of the Master and Mr. Roxburgh, Mr. O'Connor, addressing the latter, said, " Ab, you ruffian ! will you have a pinch of snuff?" and, on the Master taking his seat, " Silence, Gentlemen, for the Noble Lord." Mr. Roxburgh—Have you any books at all? Mr. O'Connor—None. The Master—Did you ever have any ? Mr, O'Connor—l never had any. I cannot come here to morrow ; I must be at the House. The Master—The Speaker will he ready to excuse you, if there is any necessity.—(Laughter.) Mr. O'Connor—Will you excuse me ? The Master —No, I cannot excuse you. Mr. O'Connor here laughed outright. The Master—l adjourn these proceedings until to morrow, when Mr. O'Connor and all parties must be present. Mr. O'Connor (putting on his bat, and retiring laughing)—Oh dear, oh dear ! The court then closed at four o'clock, it being arranged that Mr. O'Connor should today be exa mined on the accounts as published by him in the Daily News and Northern Star, and thus terminated the first day of these extraordinary proceedings. A large crowd of people followed the witness into the Lincoln's Inn courtyard and through Lincoln's Inn-fields. DEPARTURE OF THE ORINOCO STEAM-SHIP SOUTHAMPTON, MONDAY.—The 0613000 steam ship, with the usual West India and Me x i can mails, in charge of Lieutenant Heathcote, R.N., Admiralty agent, left her moorings in the river this afternoon. The Orinoco, which is another of the splendid steam-ships recently built for the Royal Mail Com pany, having been so fully described in the London, and provincial journals, renders it unnecessary to re peat her description here. It would not be ami ss , however, to remark that she is nearly as long as the unfortunate Amazon, with an additional foot in breadth of beam. She was constructed by those emi nent builders the Messrs. Pitcher, of Blackwell; her engines and machinery being supplied by Maudslay and Sons. She is a complete specimen of what a steam-ship ought to be of her colossal dimensions; and every nautical man who has inspected her de clares her to be as fine a vessel of her class as was ever turned out from a builder's yard. After receiving her mails this afternoon, at three o'clock, the Orinoco slipped from the buoy, and at once proceeded on her voyage, attaining a good speed immediately the engines were put into motion, in creasing it every revolution of her ponderous wheels; indeed, she appeared to work as smoothly as if the machinery had been in use for some time. It is fully expected she will make a good and quiok pas sage out. The Orinoco has been supplied with a sufficient number of life-boats, in case of emergency, two of which have been placed forward. She carries out upwards of eighty passengers, the greater portion of whom are gentlemen. There are besides on board a company of Cornish miners, sent out under the aus pices of the Ave Maria Gold Company to Chagres, en route to California, by the Isthmus of Panama. She has also a full cargo of Manchester and other goods, and a very large quantity of quicksilver and specie. Captain Chapman, who has so long commanded the Tay steam-ship of the Royal Mail Company, has been 'selected to take charge of the Orinoco. He was to have commanded the Amazon, after her first voyage, had not that unfortunate ship been destroyed. She is also manned with as fine a set of officers and crew as ever left this or any other port. A large party of the directors of the Royal . Mail Company came from town to witness the sailing of the Orinoco. The Trent, Captain Clark, with the West India mails, is expected on the sth or 6th inst. The Royal Mail Company's steam- Tay, Capt. alup . _ . Moss, will leave on the 9th with the Brazilian mails. --- , MUSEUM OF PRACTICAL GEOLOGY.—LTOVERNMENT I 1 SCHOOL or MINES AND Or SCIE NCE APPLIED TO THE 1 Axis.—We are happy to see that a series of lectures to working men, illustrative of the collections in the m useum, are about shortly to be commenc ed. The series will corn. mence on Monday next, and w ill be continued u p on eac h successive Monday during the session. The followin g are the subjects announced, with t he names of the lecture rs : Glass and its composition , by L y on Playfair, Fits. • w h y A . fossils are co ll ec ted and exhibited, explainmedy by Ed ward Forbes, F.R. S. ; photography and its applications, by M . mode of Robert Hunt, keeper of m inin g records; on th e utility of - geological maps, by A. C. Ra msa y , F.R.S. • on the occurrence of metals in n ature, b y W. W. Smyth. iron, by John Percy, M.D.. F.R S. The lectures •; on given on each evening at eight o'clock ; and as they will be tended for working men only it will be necessary are in who apply for admission to show that they for those artizans. Admission cards may, be obtained at the are really daily, from ten A. 31. to four r.m, and on blondsathe museum Fri days, from six to eight r.m., on paymentof ys and fee of 6d. for the whole cousre. The le a registration ac commodate only about 450 persons, and lecture theatre will already, applications have been made for the larger we believe, tickets. proportion of the Th e Sheffield Times states that M. Thier week the guest of Earl FiwyfithitDA iiii 4 a was last toult9n4 THE ARMY. AMMUNITION FOR PORTSMOUTH. One mounted n on - commissioned officer, 1 trum peter, 12 mounted gunners and drivers, with 4 wag gons, each drawn by 6 horses, and having 1 non commissioned officer and 6 dismounted gunners as an escor', under the command of Lieutenant Strover, of the E Field Battery, left the Royal Arsenal at 8 o'clock A.M. to-day for the Bricklayers' Arms Rail way terminus with ammunition to be sent by train to Portsmouth. 1 RECRUITING FOR THE A RMY. Instructions were forwarded from the Horse Guards tor day to a number of line regiments to send out recruiting parties to enlist men for the immediate augmentation of the army, it hiving been resolved by Government to increase the number of men in the regiments of the line to the extent of 5,000 as early as recruits can be obtained to make up that number. It is also fully expected, as we originally stated, that when the army estimates for 1852 8 are brought before Parliament a vote will be called for of an addi tion of 10,000 men, and that the other 5,000, or nearly that number, will be added to the Royal Artil lery and Cavalry Regiments. NAVAL INTELLIGENCE. PORTSMOUTH, MONDAY.—The Britannia, 120, Cap tain Goldsmith, flag of liar-Admiral Dundas, has taken on board her powder and shells at Spithead to-day. The Victory, 104, Captain G. B. Martin, C. 8., flag of Admiral Sir Thomas Briggs, G.C.M.G, was paid six months' wages to-day. The Hydra steam-sloop, Commander Be!grave, has shipped her powder and shells in harbour to-day. SnEEnisEss, JAN. 31.—H er Majesty's ship London, 90, Captain the Hon. M ontagu Stopford, h as b een removed abreast the t ow from the flag-n-pieship'sr. moorings to th ose i mmed i ately Her Majesty's ship Waterloo, 120, flag-ship of Vice- Admiral the Hon. Josceline Perc y, Commander-in- Chief, will come out of the basin on the approaching spring -tides, and be moored off the north end of the dockyard. She is reported to be complete in her fittings by the Bth proximo. The Myrtle paddle-wheel steam-vessel, 50, Mr. W. S. Bourchier master, proceeded to-day to Chatham, re turning in the afternoon with money, in charge of Mr. D. Morgan, Chief Clerk in the Pay-office, for the use of the dockyard. The Goodwill, Government lighter, Patrick master, arrived late last evening from Chatham, with stores for the dockyard, and is alongside the wharf unloading. The following gentlemen have been selected by the Board of Admiralty for the purpose of testing the merits of ships' anchors:—Mr. Duncan Dunbar, chairman, and Mr. Anthony Ridley, deputy-chairman of the Local Marine Board; Mr. William Drew and Mr. W. S. Lind say, member of the Local Marine Board; Mr. George Marshall and Mr. William Phillips, shipowners; Captain C. Hope, of the Monarch, Superintendent of the Dock yard; Captain the Hon. Montagu Stopford, her Ma jesty's ship London ; Mr. J. Aylen, Master -Attendant of this Docky ar d ; an d Mr. JamesTorken, of her Ma jesty's ship Waterloo. They assembled at the Dockyard on the 27th ult. (being conveyed to this port by a steamer placed at their disposal) for the purpose of consulting on the tests to be applied . to the various anchors now in use. After a deliberation of more than two hours, various re solutions were agreed to, which have been submitted to the Lords of the Admiralty for approval. The visit, although official, was strictly private; hence the parti cular tests to be adopted have not been made public. The trial of the anchors, which is not, it is said, to take place until April, is expected to continue several days. APPOINTMENT. Mr. H. W. Row!stone, paymaster and purser, of the Wolverine, 12, coast of Africa, to the Gladiator, 6, paddle-wheel steam-vessel, 430 horse power, Cape of Good Hope. The officers and ship's company of her Majesty's ship London were inspected yesterday by Captain the Non. Montagu Stopford. The Adder, paddle-wheel steam-vessel, 100-horse power, James Watt master, arrived yesterday from Portsmouth, with engineers and seamen-gunners for the Horatio, 24, screw steam guard-ship, Captain the Hon. S. T. Car neg i e . Af ter putting them on board the Hora tio s hulk, she proceeded to Chatham. The difficulty of procuring first-rate seamen for oar ships has for some time past been a matter of regret, and in none of our outports has it been more felt than at this. On the p a yi ng o ff the Ganges last week a large portion of the crew ( nearly 300) volunteered for her Majesty's ship London, whose complement as an ad vanced ship is only 350 (more than one-half of which are marines), and from the circumstance of there being no vacancies in her for able seamen, not one of them could be entered. With the exception of a few who have joined the Horatio, these men have been allowed to dis tribute themselves to find employment in other quarters, instead of being retained, as common prudence would dictate in the present state of affairs, in our own service. APPOINTMENTS. WOOLWICH, FEB, 2 .—Ganners—John Powell to the Seringapatam coal depot, at the Cape of Good Hope; Samuel Satterly to the Tortoise, 12, store-ship at Ascension. PROMOTION. Lieutenant Frederick Woollcombe (1846), serving as Flag-Lieutenant to Rear -Admiral Reynolds, C. 8., on the south-?ast coast of America station since September, 1848, to the rank of Commander. Commander Henry Baker (1850), who was Master of the Gorgon steam-sloop on the south-cast coast of Am - - rica station when that vessel was saved from being a total loss, and for which he was made a Lieutenant, in addition to receiving a handsome reward, and subse quently promoted to the rank of Commander, has just completed a course of study of steam at the factory at IVoolvvich Dockyard, and was examined on Fridry last' by Mr. Charles Atherton, chief engineer, and on passing received his certificate. Commander Wm. Morris (b, 1846), having completed a course of study of marine steam-engines, was exa mined by Mr. Atherton on. Saturday last, and on pas sing received his certificate. Lieutenant M'Arthur, of the Portsniouth division of Royal Marines, embarked on board the Tyne store-ship at Woolwich on Saturday last, to take charge of the Royal Marines detachment previously embarked for the Island of Ascension. The Resistance troop-ship Master-Commander Brad shaw, was inspected to-day by Mr. Watts, Assistant- Inspector to the Surveyor of the Navy, and Mr. Chat field, assistant to the Master Shipwright at Woolwich dockyard, and is reported to have ample accommoda tion for 640 troops on board. The Resistance will be ready for further service in about a week from this date. The Monkey steam-vessel left Woolwich to-day for Brighton, having on board Mr. Peake's life-boat, to try experiments with her on the sea off that coast. Letters have been received at Woolwich from several of the crew of the late Reynard steam-sloop, lost on the Patros Islands, in the Chinese sea, the Woodbridge, a London merchant ship in which they embarked at Sin gapore, having arrived at the Cape of Good Hope after a passage of two months and five days from the former port. During the voyage the Woodbridge in a gale lost her maintopmast and fore and mizen topma s t s , kill ing two and sever e ly b ru i s i ng seven o th ers out of her crew of sixteen employed to navigate he.r i The officers, engineers, and seamen of the late Reynard are all well, and expect to arrive here in about three weeks, when they will be borne on the books of the Fisgard flagship at Woolwich until further orders. EXPLOSION OF GAS IN EDINBURGH. A very alarming explosion of gas or foul vapour, ac cumulated under an unknown covered well at the head of the Cowgate, took place on Thursday afternoon. Above a dozen labourers had for some days been em ployed in making a side-drain to connect with the co vered sewer which runs down under the Cowgate, and on Thursday forenoon, while excavating for the purpose, they unexpectedly came upon a smoothed stone which evidently formed part of the wall of some arched vault or drain. Curious to know the purpose of this subter ranean masonry, they formed an aperture by removing the stone, which was above a foot square. A foul gaseous vapour gradually issued forth, and the interior was so dark that they could make nothing of the use of the hollow cavern. After allowing the foul air, as th e y believed, to exhaust, the foreman incautiouslyprocured a light, and the curiosity of the labourers was so excited that they crowded together and crouch e d down with their faces to the aperture. The conse quence was that the moment the , anadoo three above ree o r t h spark was applied the gas under the arch and aperture exploded with terrific violence four men were dreadfu ll y scorched by the instantaneous flash, and forcib l y t hrown to the opposite almost buriedosite side of th e drain in which they wer e intrenchedl and by the fall of a heap of earth that had previously been thrown up on either side in cutting for the drain. Most providentially no serious injury was sustained by an y o ther individual from the falling the dislodg e d s t ones or earth, but an intense alarm Nof was created in the neigh bourhood by the report, which resembled that of a heavy terious cannon. arch inclose It turned ouf,woenllexamination, that the mys d a and about 12 or 15 f eet b aodf.ll°lltessbathsanev2idBenfetleyt been in g he noute jogiab of use, and broad its exist ence was not known of i n neighbourhood. The foreman, named John Par ker, and a labourer, were so sev e r e ly b urn t an d b ru i se d, that they h a d to be conveyed t o t h e R oya l I n fi rmar y ; and although theirare entertained condition was at first considered dan gerous,ouranetntertained of the recovery of both. — Edinburgh CV, OLUNTEER RIFLE CORPS.—A coreplete outfit for a super i or order of V o l un t eers can b e obtained, according to an advertisement lately inserted in the p u blic journals by Messrs Nicoll, army clothiers, 114, 116, 118, 120, Regent street,, for the moderate sum of eight guineas , at the same timeits comfort, usefulness, and appearance will content the w ell - to - do re s id en t o f any town or por t in this kingdom. It may consist of a dark Been military frock-coat and epau lettes, trousers to correspond, a foraging peaked cap with a military badge and band, a sword-belt and plate, with am munition pouch, &c. ; together with a rifle guaranteed by the makers of her Majesty's ordnance for safety and efficiency (at 1,000 yards), being copied by the one now in use by the Chasseurs de Vincennes (a correct model is at thi s moment in Messrs. N.'s 'possession). The side arm proposed is a sword which, like that of the above French corps, is capable of being fixed and used as a bayonet. For villages, &c., on the sea coast, where even the moderate expense now de scribed may be met with objections, an outfit can be supplied for five pounds, including the above rifle— a military blouse (or over-garment), with cap, belt, ammunition pouch, &c. — Morning Post. AUSTRALIAN AGRICULTURAL COMPANY:The divi dend declared at the annual meeting of the Australian Agri cultural Company, held on Friday, was V. is. per share, free from income-tax, at th e rate o f 3 per cen t. upon the a mount of paid-up capital. The report and accounts which were unanimously adopted, exhibited generally favourable results, the Surplus available for dividend being 11,495/. IIIURD_ER BY POISONING. LEWES, MONDAY EVENING. --This day an inquiry was resumed at Chiddingley (a small village some eight or nine miles distant from this place), before. Mr. Gell, one of the county coronere, and a respect able jury, of which the Rev. Mr. Vidal was foreman, concerning the death of an agricultural labourer, named William French, who appeared to have died from the effects of arsenic. The deceased, wh o was about 35 years of age, had been married nine years, and with his wife Sarah Ann French, lived in the above village. He was generally considered a sound, healthy man ; but a day or so previous to the 7th of last month he was taken suddenly ill, and died on that day. The suddenness of his death induced the Coroner to hold an inquest on the body, and there being no reason to suspect at the time that any un fair treatment had been pursued towards the deceased, a verdict of " Died from natural causes" was re turned. Circumstances, however, subsequently came to light which led Mr. Flannagen, the superintendent of the constabulary of this district, to institute further inquiries, and the result was the apprehension of the widow of the deceased. The Coroner forthwith opened another investigation, and elicited very im portant information in respect of the fate of the de ceased. It appeared that in the same house where the Frenches resided lived a couple named Felling. On the evening of Wednesday the 7th, Mrs. Felling, as she was in the habit of frequently doing, went in to see Mrs. French. She saw French, asked him how he was, and he said he was better. Later on the same night, about half-past eleven, Mrs. French rapped two or three times ache partition which di vided her apartments from those occupied by the Pellings, and said, " Mak e as much haste as you can." Mrs. Felling got up, and on Mrs. French lee ting her in, she observed, " I think my husband is gone." She seemed much alarmed an d Felling, who is a shoemaker, went for the aid of Mrs._Funnell a neighbour. Mrs. French then stated her husband was first taken ill after Christmas eve, and that he vomited; She also added that he was labouring under a rupture. The examination of the women Polling and Funnell brought out the fact that a young man of the name of James Hackman had often been seen at French's house. He was generally seen there in the evening, and the last tiae he was noticed there, prior to the death of FrencE, was on Tuesday the 6th. The next time he was seen was on Thursday, the day after the deceased had expired. Hackman had often been observed there when French was at home, and it did not appear that French had com plained of Hackman's visiting his place. Hackman one evening called upon Mrs. Funnell and wished her to go to deceased's house, as Mrs. French bad fainted. A variety of evidence was gone into as to the treatment of the deceased, and it seemed that he had complained, as far back as Christmas, of pains in the bowels; and some medicine was supplied him at the surgery of Mr. Holman, of East Hoithly It was evident, however, that the ill ness w hi c h en d e d in his death was of a sudden character, as his brother, who worked upon the same farm with him, was not aware of his indisposition until between 12 and one o'clock on the morning of the Bth, when he was called up, and went and found him dead. The wife said that he was unaccountably sick, and that he was ruptured. The brother had not heard that he was so before, and he asked her how he ;went off. She said he turned in his bed and said, " You are my wife, baint you ?" and then died. On the Mondayprevious to his death Mrs. French w a s me t by a woman name d S a l e, and she said that she bad been that way (the way that led to the church) once too often. Sale asked her whether that was when she went to get married, and she answered " Yes." It was mentioned that she was apparently in a jokin g moo d during the con versa ti on, and perhaps it may be here well to remark that they seemed generally to be living on good terms together. With respect to her apply ing for and procuring arsenic, some rather strong and probably conclusive evidence was adduced. On th e day before French died she is described as baying visited the shop of Mr. Uriah Clark, of Dicker, and asking him whether he sold arsenic. She stated she wanted it for a farmer. She, however, was told that it was not kept there, and she went away. Naomi Crowhurst, the wife of Owen Crowhurst, a farrier, at liorsebridge, deposed that about three weeks ago, in the beginning of the week, she recollected seeing Sarah Ann French, the widow of the deceased, come into her kitchen to see her servant, Harriett Wilmshurat. When she came in she asked for two pennyworth of arsenic. She (Mrs. Crow hurst) at first said she had not got any, and then asked her what she wanted it for. Mrs. French re. plied she was overrun with mice. After some fur ther inquiries, however, and being cautioned as to how she left it about the house, she was served with a small parcel of white arsenic. Mrs. Crowhurst did not weigh it, but wrote the word " poison" upon it, and told her to be very careful, as many people might mistake it for megnesia, and that several people had been poisoned by it. She replied, "Oh ! has there ?" She tendered one shilling its payrgect. She was charged 3d. f or th e pac k et, and recelved back the change. On the 27th inst. Mrs. Criw burst saw Mrs. French at a public-house called The Gun. At that time she was dressed as a widow, and it was suggested, in order that there should be uo mistake about her iclevitification, that she should dress herself in the apparel she had on when she procured the poison. She did sc, and Mrs. Crowhurst reeog nised her as the person who had purchased the arsenic, as she had stated. Mrs. French remarked that she bad never seen her before, but the servant, Harriet Wilmshurst, was called, and she confirmed in every respect the testimony of her mistress. She also had no doubt of Mrs. Fren c h b e i ng the Pe who was supplied . with the packet On Mr. kuperintendent Flannann, of arseni c. ofconstabulary,arrest ing purchased de any superintendent t he in her life, but that ,her late husband had thers e o e nß e uPe she stated that she h a d n arsenic destroying mice. The superin tendent halfpennyworths at Mr. Nokes' s , d sbe had heard the rum our l b s o s u t g c h h t r t i w st o mas, for tendent said he suppose added elf an y po ison he found in him he must have is remarked that she had, and w as very low at Christiania expected coming in, and she had about his 'death. bhe taken it himself, " as said that he had not been come from chapel; t a e bo e u h t ee s r om up e h b i i s lls sp h ir. e its.sthbmee had attended by any medical that he was t k He, was better with vomiting and aftere in i Y he bower . on Sunday night, Y on Wednesday be died examination of the body, and little better, buton that night. walllar. Holman, the surgeon, spoke of the result of on Monday, worse o p n ain Tuesda _Air. Alfred S . Ta ylor, the eminent professor of chem i str y of Guy's Hospital, deposed to making the the. ost mortem s usual analysis of the contents of the stomach, and f i n di ng arsenic in sufficient quantities to cause death. The inquiry had not terminated when our re port left. gAs asstt pLNNTIcrrEc.. J. 0,1 os abn Osborne's sPORTING INTELLIGENCE. 3 2 t to o G rr LINC OL N nL TRIALLSH v gs...hTEA.:K:EEe Sheriff--take n ff nir t . a k e e_'s Lady Agnes—taken 9to 2 agst Mr. I he 3 to 1 agst Mr. 6 to 1 agst Mr. Inman's Mai l d nt of Lincoln LINCOLN N g g jL,5,8 Mar i a STEEPLECHASE. 36tonk LINCOLN HURDLE RACE. 2 to 1 ags t M r. Martinson's View Hallos 3 to I agst Mr. E. Jones's Melford LINCOLN TWO YRS OLD STAKES. 5 to 2 agst Mr. Mare's t out of Horton Yates's dam 3 to 1 agst Mr. Wright's Broughton to 1 agst Mr. E. R. Clark's Poetess METROPOLITAN HANDICAP. Offers to take 20 to 1 about Hesse Homburg CHESTER CUP. 17 to 1 eget Mr. Martinson's Nancy—take 18 to 1 25 to 1 agst Mr. S. Stanley's Confessor —take 30 to 1 30 to 1 agst Mr. Parkinson's Grand Duke—taken 33 to 1 agst Mr. Greville's Ariosto—taken 33 to 1 agst Mr. Greville's Scarecrow—taken 33 to 1 agst Mr. Merry's Ringleader—taken 33 to 1 agst Mr. Saxon's The Black Doctor—taken 35 to 1 agst Lord Waterford's Cockcrow—taken 40 to 1 ag st Mr. Wilkinson's N eas h am — ta k en 40 to 1 agst Mr. J. Osborne's Iklerry Bird—t freely 40 to 1 agst Mr. J. Pillin g's High Sh er iff—t freely 50 to 1 agst Duke of Bedtord'a Hesse Homburg—t 50 to 1 agst Lord Eglinton's Hippolytus—taken ~ The only bets against N ancy were 2,00 0 to 100 aid 900 to 50. Her admirers, however, were as numerous and eager as ever, insomuch that after the first half hour 17 to 1 was the highest offer. Of the other animals quoted, Ariosto, Grand Duke, Confessor , Cock g ro w , Merry Bird, Hi g h Shea:lff, Neasham, and H i ppolytus, were most in request. DERBY. 8 to 1 agst Mr. Merry's Hobbit) Noble—taken 12 to 1 agst Lord Zetland's Augur 14 to 1 agst Mr. J. Stanley's Orelio—taken 15 to 1 agst Lord Eglinton's Claverhouse—taken 20 to 1 agst Ld. Ribblesdale's Lapidist—taken freely 20 to 1 egst Mr. Stebbing's Alfred the Great —taken 20 to 1 egst Sir R. Pigot's Ftlius—taken and after wards offert d 25 to 1 egst Duke of Richmond's Homehrewed—take 30 to 1 30 to 1 agst Mr. Dorrien's Chief B aron Ni cholson t o e nt lea b d ein m : 50 to 1 agst Lo rd Exeter's Ambrose Th e t r ansactions on the above rac e,• h heavy, showed a g reat steadin ess in t he wthtre favourites and Alfred the Great, and a marked improvt went in Lapidist, Filius, and Homebrewed. DISCOVERY OF GOLD AT OIFORD.—Some twenty years ago a learned and eminent physician (Dr. Bourne) died at Oxford, where by a long and successful practioe he a massed a large fortune. Th e house in which he resided, until a few weeks ago, has been in the occupation of the family; but the execut ors h aving sold the house, it Was requisite to have an auction to dispose of the furniture Previously to that takin g p l ace the executors wen t over it, and in a wardrobe, which it is believed has never been opened since the physician's death, they found a cabi net, which, to the agreeable surpr i se of those patient, contained nearly 60() gaineai. 1 X C 8 of ly