The Sun. — London, England, 1848-01-04 00:00:00

1' WE _V g.kory pubtwity had been Oven ea the proetvedlogs, both by advertisements in the public press, by notice on thechurch doors, and he was happy to say although In the first instance there may have been some opposition to the object proposed, that thi- objection Lad now quite disappeared, and as for the society re presented by Mr. Griffith, even this opposition was very slight now. This society held a general meeting with a view of opposing the diversion of the old road, but the members almost unanimously came to the conclusion that the new road proposed by his Lord ship would be not only an improvement to the neigh bourhood, but a decided advantage to the public at large. He therefore now moved the Court to confirm the proceedings, and next session they would apply for a general order to close the path. Mr. Iturcu expressed his opinion that the present path was by far the best that could be devised. The Court confirmed the proceedings of the past session. SURREY SESSIONS.—(THIS DAY.) The first general quarterly sessions for the county of Surrey was this day held at the Court house, Newington. Mr. Puckle, chairman, the Earl of Lovelace, Lord Louvain, Colonel Chatloner, Mr. Freshfield, Mr. Briscoe, Mr. Austin, Captain Parrott, Mr. Nicholson, Mr. Curling, Mr. Penryn, Mr. Johnstone, Mr. Locke King, M.P., and numerous others, took their seats upon the bench. The calendar contained the names of 59 prisoners of whom there were that could Neither read nor write Read or read and write imperfectly 37 Read or read and write well 3 Superior education The various reports from the surgeons, chaplains, and governors of the various gaols and houses of cor rection in the county were read and confirmed ; as were also the reports of the various inspectors of weights and measures. Some discussion took place upon the report of the treasurer of the county, with respect to the mode in which the various disbursements had been made to appear in the accounts presented to the session. PROPOSED COUNTY RATE. Mr. FRESHFIELD, in moving the county rate for the year, said the committee appointed to inquire into the rental of the property of the county upon which the assessment was to be made, under the late Act of Parliament, had made their inquiries, and the result of their labours had, he considered, been most valu able. It appeared that there were 69 parishes in the county, which had returned a sum of 109,3011., upon which they were willing to be assessed over and above the amount to which they were already assessed. In 23 of the parishes a reduction had been made in the amount of the assessment. The committee had endeavoured to equalize as justly as possible the amount of assessment in all the parishes, and he thought that they were entitled to the confidence of the magistrates for the manner in which they had performed their duties. The Learned Gentleman concluded by moving that the proposed county rate presented at quarter sessions upon the 19th of October last by the committee appointed to prepare a fair and equal county rate under the Bth and 9th Vic., c. 111, be allowed and confirmed. Mr. JOHNSTONE seconded the motion. He thou,ght that the assessment made was a very fair one. 'lhe increase in the present assessment over the old one was 237,877/. In the thirty parishes which had objected the increase made in the assessment had been only 39,0001., which was a very small portion out of the whole assessment. He thought that the better course would be not to refer the matter back again to the committee, but to allow these parishes which thought they had grounds of complaint to appeul in the usual manner. Should the Court de cide to act upon the old rate there would be a direct money loss to the country of about 1,6001. In answer to a question put by Mr. BRISCOE, Mr. JOHNSTONE said that in the assessment which had been made care had been taken to exclude from it all woods, plantations, and manorial rights. Mr. AUSTIN moved as an amendment that the pro posed county rate be referred back again to the com mittee until the various appeals had been heard and disposed of. Captain PARROTT seconded the amendment. Considerable discussion took place upon the ques tion. The original motion was however agreed to by a large majority, and the Court proceeded with the other business before it. THAMES.—(THIS DAY.) Edward Griffiths was charged with having bur glariously entered the premises of Mr. James Hip thorpe, a gentleman residing at No. 5, Grove terrace, East India-road. Mr. Hipthorpe stated that he retired to rest last night, about half-past ten o'clock, previous to which he locked his area gate, and also the house door, him self. This morning, about three o'clock, he was awakened by hearing a noise, as of some one moving about in his kitchen. He immediately arose, went down stairs, and saw the prisoner standing by the kitchen door. Directly he caught sight of witness he smashed the window, dashed through it, and en deavoured to effect his escape. A' policeman, however, who; happened to; be passing on the other side of the way, observing his hasty exit, instantly pursued him, and, after a desperate struggle, with the assistance of another constable, he was eventually secured. Police-constable K 94 examined Mr. Hipthorpe's premises. He found that the prisoner had forced open the doors and window with a large iron bar (produced), and a pair of folding doors in the parlour had been " prised open." The bar had been taken from the iron railings in the front of the house. In his defence Griffiths declared it was only a lark, he being tipsy. Mr. YARDEEY committed him for trial. THE DOUBLE SUICIDE IN MARY- LEBONE.—(INQUEST THIS DAY.)'-- An inquest was held this day, at noon, in the Fitzroy Arms, Clipstone-street, before Mr. Wakley, on the bodies of Alexander Thomas Williams and Susanna Williams, who kept the Star coffee-house in Cleveland-street, and of whose double suicide we gave yesterday an account. The deceased lived on the most affectionate terms; the husband was thirty one years of age, and the wife twenty-four. It ap peared that he had been subject to headache since his return from India, where he served some time in army. He was about to advertise his business for sale this week, in consequence, as a witness said, of the hardness of the times. The house was closed at twelve o'clock on Saturday night, and nothing was, up to that time, observed peculiar in his manner. At a quarter to one, Henry Mathews, a carpenter, who lodged in the house, was attracted to the bed room of the deceased, by the screams of the wife, and seeing the body of the man hanging, he made an alarm, which brought a policeman and others to his assistance. The body was taken down, and whilst Mr. Hatfield (the surgeon), with Mathews and the policeman, were engaged in endeavouring to resusci tate the still warm body, other persons found Mrs. Williams in the shop with her throat cut, and a bloody razor lying near her. She was still living, and seemed to possess her senses. She made a gurgling noise, attempting to speak, and struggled up on her feet, when she instantly fell forward and ex pired. Mr. Hatfield left the husband's body when he heard ofther case, and proceeded to sew up the gash, when he found that life was extinct. The jury found " that Alexander Williams com mitted suicide, but that there was no evidence as to the state of his mind at the time. That Susanna Williams committed suicide, being at the time in a state of delirium, occasioned by the shock which she received on seeing the body of her husband suspended in the bedroom." THE CONVICTS SALE AND AMOY. These two wretched men, who are ordered for execution on next Monday, had, as far as M'Coy was concerned, nearly presented a different termination, in consequence of a most murderous attack having been made on him by his equally guilty companion. APCoy, it will be recol lected, made a confession, and which it appears created a deep f ee ling of revenge in the mind of the other. From what has transpired, it appears that a few days since, and previously to the execution being fixed on, Sale, on leaving his cell, bad, by immense exertion, forced out of the place in which he was locked up a portion of an iron bar, which he secreted about his person, and with this deadly we apon he went to the day - room. Shortly after m,C o y was brought in, and while he was in the act of washing. himself, Sale went behind him and struck his co pan ion a terrific blow on the head, which instantly felled him, and before the turnkey could render the slightest aid he was knocked down. Fortunately th e turnkey w as enabled to c r y out mur d er, an d r i ng the bell, which brought some of the other turnkeys to his aid. Sale swore that he would murder the first that attempted to seize him, and that he was determined to h ave m.Coy's life. The men, however, rushed on him, and after a short but severe struggle they ov er p owere d Sale, air! h e was placed under control. On examining his cell to ascertain how he had obtained the piece of iron, it was discove red tha t he had, in the course o f th e night,' forced it out of the wall near the cupboard, and had succeeded in removing so me o f the bricks, no doubt, under the impression that he should have been enabled to effect his escape. Since the time of the order to carry the law into effect, they have been placed in different rooms , and six men—namely,one in the d a y and two of a night, are in constant attendance, and will c ontinue so until they are delivered up by the Governor into the hands of the Sheriffs on Monday morning next. INDISPOSITION OF THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTER _This venerable and di s ti ngu i shed prelate has nuaT• time b een labouring under indisp os i t i on • short for some and whic h, w ithin the last few d a y s , has been aggravated somewhat by a slight attack o f i n fl uenza. We are state that at n o ti me has the attack happy, to been sufficiently severe to confine the Archbishop to his roo m; and the an swer to in quiries at Lambeth Pal ace mor ning was '° that his Gr ace was b etter to day." pr• F e rguson is i n daily att en d ance on daY• • • "44 Grace, but no danger le ap prehended. 1 . .itat3400„4 ittql) LititTit rstrritAi 131tVaSEL1, DEC. 11.—The Chamber of Represen tatives terminated in its sitting to-day the general discussion on the budget of war, and passed immedi ately to the discussion of the articles, which were suc cessively adopted, without any other amendments than those presented by the Minister of War himself at the commencement of the sitting. By virtue of these amendments the budget has sanctioned a reduction of 162,000 f. The whole of the budget was adopted by a ma jority of 61 to 10, and one absentee. Several Members declared that they gave their vote for the budget for the army for 1848 with the express intention that this vote did not in any way prejudice the question of the reduction of the expenses on the budgets which have yet to be presented. M. Van Huffel, M. Dedecker, and M. Lesoume, expressed themselves very clearly upon this point. In the absence of formal propositions, it was impos sible that the discussion of the budget of war should have any other result than the present. Those lion. Members who impressed upon the Government the necessity of seriously adopting economical plans have discharged their duty. The public now intend to avail themselves of the legal method which is open to them for sending in petitions. The Chambers have adjourned to the 18th January. Before separating the Chamber voted the provisional credit for th© departments of Public Works and Justice. From the Ist of January the former republic of Cracow will be assimilated with the other districts of the empire of Austria with all that concerns its political administration. The Imperial Commissioner, Count Deym, has caused an important ordinance to be published at Cracow, which prescribes the admi nistration and organization of the new district. THE HAGUE, DEc. 30.—The official journal of this day publishes the following royal decree : " We, William 11., &c., " Seeing the report of our Minister of the Colonies, under date of Nov. 12, 1847 (secret), our Council of State (advices of Dec. 7, 1847, lib. C), with ulte rior report of our Minister of the Colonies, under date of the 16th of this month (lib. B, No. 43, and secret), have decreed and do decree : "SINGULAR ARTICLE. " Articles 70 and 71 of the registration concerning the direction of the government of the colony of Suri nam are suppressed and replaced by the following disposition : " Commerce and navigation in the colony of Suri nam are open to all nations with which the kingdom of the Netherlands is in relation of amity. " Special decrees will regulate the conditions of the admission, and the amount of duties to be taken. Our Colonial Minister is charged with the execution of this decree, a copy of which will be sent to the Council of State. " The Hague, Dec. 17, 1847. " WILLIAM. "To the Minister for the Colonies, J. C. Baud.." This decree is accompanied by a disposition from his Excellency the Minister of the Colonies, stating that the royal decree shall come in- force on the Ist of May, 1848, and that after that date the tariff of the export and import duties to be introduced into the colony of Surinam, as far as concerns the ships of foreign nations, shall be based in such a manner that it shall double the dues levied on Netherlands vessels.—Dutch Papers, Jan. 1. FATAL ACCIDENT ON THE SOUTFI•WESTERINI RAILWAY.---ROMSEY, JAN. 3.—As the half-pmt nine o'clock A.M. passenger train from Southampton to Sa lisbury was passing over the wooden bridges or viaduct, about a mile from Romsey, yesterday (Sunday morning), the engineer, named Middleton (one of the most expe rienced on this line), saw about thirty men at ballast work, filling a number of carriages with gravel to repair the road which the late heavy rains had greatly injured, and misplaced the rails—noticing full a quarter of a mile before ho reached the place where they were at work, that some of the men were not on the side they ought to be to avoid danger, he began to whistle, which caused many of them to get out of the way, three running across within five yards of the front of the engine, at a time when she was going at full speed, two of whom were knocked down, and but slightly injured; the third, named Bungay, was struck with the buffer, it is supposed either on the back or shoulder, by which he was driven on the iron rail, the engines and carriages passing over his legs, cutting one off about the knee, the other near to the groin, killing him almost instantaneously; his fellow-workmen picked him up, and there being an en gine on the spot, the body was taken to Romsey. Bungay had only been a few weeks on the line, previously work ing as a farm labourer at the village of Whitenip, near to Romsey. He has left a wife and fire children totally unprovided for. CASE or SIMONDS.—We are informed that Mr. T. H. Boykett has been retained for the defence of this new church-rate victim. The trial is expected to take place in the course of the present week.—Patriot. The Exeter Gazette excuses itself from publishing President Polk's Message on the ground that, "it measures fifteen feet three inches in length of an ordi nary newspaper column." FIRE.—DISTRESSING CA sE.—Yesterday morning a fire broke out, about five o'clock, in a small house situate No. 3, Labour-in-vain•street, Shadw•ell, a neigh bourhood very densely populated by the poorer classes, among whom the greatest alarm and confusion was created. It appears that the house where the fire ori ginated was occupied by Charles Harrison, a labourer, whose aged wife had been bedridden for the last nine weeks. Yesterday morning, during Harrison's absence at work, his wife managed to crawl down stairs to her daughter, who is a widow, with three young children. Soon afterwards the front room above, which the old woman had quitted a few minutes previous, was dis covered to be on fire. The neighbours, with praise worthy zeal, rushed into the house, and, having first removed the old women, her daughter, and two of the children from the house, proceeded to the room above, where another child was lying on a bed in the apartment fast asleep, with the flames all around it. The child was roused, without sustaining any material injury, and the fire was soon extinguished by the alacrity of the neighbours, before the parish and brigade engines ar rived. The furniture was partially destroyed, and the immense quantity of water thrown into the house to subdue the fire rendered it totally unfit for occupation. The poor family who inhabited it have been totally ruined by the disaster, and are now without a home or furniture. ROYAL MASONIC INSTITUTION.—A quarterly gene ral court, of the governors and subscribers of this insti tution, which was establishes in 1798, for the purpose of educating, clothing, and apprenticing to trades the sons of indigent Masons, was held yesterday evening, at the offices of the charity, 7, Bloomsbury-square. B. B. Cab bell, Esq., M.P., treasurer of the society, presided. After the transaction of the usual business, the vacancies, which amounted to seven, were filled up, and there being no other business, the court separated. LONDON COFFEE AND EATING HOUSE KEEPERS' BENETOLENT A SSOCIATION.—Yesterday evening a meet ing of Ihe members of the above association, founded for the purpose of relieving aged and decayed members of the trade, their widows and orphans, was held at the Freemasons' Tavern; Mr. G. Chislett, president, in the chair. The report stated that the institution, which has been established ten years, is increasing in prosperity. The male and female pensioners each receive 131. per annum. The balance -sheet ending July last showed the receipts, from all sources, to be 2621. 16s. Iod., while the expenditure amounted to 2721. 12s. The funded capital of the society amounts to near 2,0001. CALEDONIAN RAILWAY. The inspection of this line, previous to the opening, commenced on Thursday morning by Captain Simmons, R.E., Government in spector, accompanied by Mr. Collester, resident engi neer, Mr. Sinclair, locomotive superintendant, and the several assistant-engineers. They passed over the whole of the Edinburgh line to Carstairs, from thence along the line towards Glasgow to the junction with the Wishaw and Cohness Railway at Gariongill, and along the latter railway to Motherwell. The inspection was resumed yesterday morning from Carstairs southwards, along the main line to Beattock, from whence Captain Simmons would proceed to London and make his re port. From the state of the line it is hoped that the inspector's report would be favourable. Some days, however, must elapse before it can be known to the officials of the company. The sanction from the Railway Commissioners is, therefore, Row all that intervenes to prevent the directors from naming a day for the opening. —Scotsman. WILD NUTMEGS.—Directions have been issued by the Customs' authorities to the principals of the de partment throughout the kingdom, to admit all parcels of wild nutmegs, out of the shell, at the duty. of sd. per lb. from the present time. THROWING AT A RAILWAY TRAIN.—On Wednes day afternoon the window of a first-class carriage, in the 3.30 up railway train, was broken, near West Ferry, by a missile, supposed to be a turnip. most maliciously thrown. One of the passengers, o young gentleman, had his face cut by the shattered pieces of glass. Two individuals were afterwards identified as the persons who were present when the missile was thrown, and one of them as the actual culprit. Th e y were a t once con veyed to Paisley, when after examination by the Sheriff, the man who threw it was fully committed to take his trial. They gave their names as Black , and said they belonged to Greenock.— Gl asgow Constitutional., A patent has been tak en out i n America for dis pensing with sewing in the mar.ufacture of s hi r t s , co ll ars , and linen articles. The pieses are fastened together by indissoluble glue. COUNTERFEIT COIN. Large quantities of base silver coin are now in circulation, especially five-shilling pieces, which are so admirably executed as t o p rec l ude j detection, unless by very competent udges,—Jai rm i ng . ham Gazette. BUSINESS OF THE WESTMINSTER COUNTY COURT. —The number of causes entered in the Westminster County Court, during the nine months it has been es. tablished, up to and inclusive of the 31st ultimo, amounted to no fewer than 13,394. Of this number upwards of 12,000 have been heard and decided. At the first opening of the Court the Learned Judge, D. C. Moylan, Esq., sat but four days a wee k, but the business became so heavy that soon after he was compelled to sit every day. During the last week the number of causes heard each day averaged from 120 to 130. A Constantinople letter, of the 15th ult., states that in the preceding week there were but a very few cases of cholera in that city, but that, according to letters from Aleppo, the disease was prevalent in the Diarbeker. It Was also said to hays made its appearance at itarrasah. ___orultsnAv 4vrNnkrn, ON 0 - _ TRE MA GA ZINEg. BLACK:I . OOD. Among the many thousand readers of " American Notes for General Circulation," it cannot be for gotten that Mr. Dickens has occasionally evinced no small inclination to aid in the establishment of an international copyright, and that, in doing so, he has often hurried into disputation, and sometimes soared into eloquence. One letter of his, addressed to poor Tom Hood, as editor of the New Monthly, was pub lished, if we recollect rightly, in that magazine, shortly after his return from the United States, and maintained, with considerable vehemence, the injus tice of that unnatural system which defrauded the English, while it led to the destruction—because it tended to the enervation—of the authorship of the Americans. in Parliament, Sergeant Talfourd, the alter ego of "Boz," has raised his rhetorical voice against the old ruinous system, and out of Parliament agita tion has not been wanting to effect, if possible, its annihilation. Hitherto the crusade against literary pirating has been energetic, but hitherto, also, it has been all talk. A publishing firm in Edinburgh has at length acted, and their efforts give every promise of being eminently successful. The attempt to which we are alluding—made through the instrumentality , of Blackwood' s Magazine—is altogether of so inge nious a character, and augurs such golden results to writers and publishers on both sides of the Atlantic, that we shall transcribe the account of it contained in the number for January. It will prove, we are satisfied, an anecdote worthy of preservation in the History of Literature, and must (to quote the slang dictionary) be regarded as nothing more nor less than " a capital dodge." Here then is the amusing incident recorded in the Note entitled " Blackwood and Copyright in America." " The publishers of the magazine had for many years been aware that a cheap American reprint of the work was in regular circulation to a very large extent, and they were naturally desirous to put an end to such an injustice. While they were turning their attention to the subject, they received in the early part of the past year a communication from an American gentleman, suggesting, as an effectual means of redress, the insertion in the magazine, from time to time, of an article from a native or a naturalized citizen of the United States, who would establish a copyright in his own person, or that of an assignee, and thus either protect the whole work, or compel the publishers of the pirated edition to reprint it in an imperfect form, such as would materially check their success, and, in either way, break up the system. " The tone and talent of this communication seemed to the publishers to recommend their correspondent as himself well qualified to lead the way in this most righteous enterprise, and the result was, the appearance in the October number of the article " Maga in America," which has been highly relished on both sides of t`ie Atlantic. Of this article a proof was dispatched to Mr. Jay, a solicitor of eminence in New York, who, with the utmost promptitude, registered the copyright in his own name, and, presenting himself to Messrs. Scott, the reprinters, inquired if they were about to publish the magazine, as usual, that month, as he thought it right to inform them that, by so doing, they would be placed in a delicate position. On hearing an explanation, Messrs. Scott were considerably taken aback, and, although unwilling to acknowledge that the game was up, they seemed to have a painful conscious ness that. such was the case. The negotiation terminated in the mean time, in their agreeing, after various letters, and not a little conversation, to pay a sum as copyright, before they issued the October number, and a like amount for each succeeding number, until a further arrangement were made. It would have been very easy for the proprietors to have brought the reprinters under heavy responsibilities, by giving them no hint of their movements, and allowing the October number to be pub lished as usual, when Messrs. Scott would have become liable to a severe penalty for every copy sold. This was not done, as no blame is attached personally to Messrs. Scott, who have merely acted under a bad system, in which any one publisher might think himself free to seize an advantage which was open to all." The credit of this clever device is attributable in three quarters—to the ingenuity of the American Contributor, to the decision of Mr. Jay, the solicitor, and, in a particular manner, to the enterprise and co operation of the Messrs. Blackwood. We are rejoiced that active measures like this have been adventured upon, as they must ultimately give recompense where recompense is especially due. Another paper from the pen of the same trans-Atlantic correspondent enlivens the new number of Blackwood. It is a caustic notice of the state of "The Periodical Literature of Ame rica," and discloses the diseased and unhealthy condi tion of the reviews and magazines printed in the United States According to this contributor, the principle causes of this unsoundness in the tone and quality of the periodical literature of Brother Jona than are—the system of gratuitous writing, the un certainty of payment when payment is promised, the villanous system of partisanship, and the cheap re prints of the choicest of European publications. To those who object in Coto to magazine writing as light and superficial, he speaks thus : " First. Do you see any prima facie improbability in supposing that a man may write a very good essay, who could not write two good volumes octavo; or a racy and interesting sketch, who could not put together a readable novel; or a few graceful poems, without having matter enough for a volume of poetry ? " Secondly. Is a treatise necessarily profound, because it is long ; or superficial, because it is of practicable dimensions? " Thirdly. When you use the term superficial,' do you really behave and mean to imply that periodical writers are in the habit of discussing subjects which they do not understand? Would you say, for instance!, that Macaulay's reviews denote a man ignorant of his tory, or that Sedgwick knows less geology than the man who wrote the Vestiges of Creation,' or that Mitchell knew less Greek than Lord Brougham?" Of the first and last contribution for January—the first being a retrospect of " Thirty Years of Liberal Legislation," and the last being a stricture on " Ireland and the Ministerial Measures " we may take occasion to speak elsewhere. Their tenour can be conjectured. In the article inscribed " Switzerland and Italy" there are sentiments which have caused us as much sur prise as they have pleasure, appearing as they do on the Conservative pages of Maga. While sympathy is expressed for the Catholic cantons of the Sonder buiid, it is also expressed—and that, moreover, in earnest language—for the popular movement in the Roman peninsula. After alluding to the prolonged prostration of the Italians, Blackwood observes :—" A new spiritual chief ascends the throne at Rome, by accident rather than by design—[shall we not rather say by the express design of a Superior Agency ?: 1 , — he pronounces a few magical words, and in an instant the sacred fire of liberty, and the desire of resisting foreign oppression,'pervades the whole land." At the same time that full justice is done to the King of Sardinia and the Grand Duke of Tuscany, for the part they have takm in these transactions, the writer distinctly remarks—" To Pius Is., and to the noble conceptions of his prudent mind, the whole of the recent movements in Italy may be fairly attributed." This should never be forgotten by those who give credit to every idle rumour wafted to us from the shores of the Papal States. if Cardinal Ferretti has proved a brilliant promoter of the popular cause as Secretary of State, he was made Secretary of State in the room of Lambruschini by Pius IX. If Gioberti can agitate in behalf of democracy, Gio berti was recalled to the Eternal City by Pius IX. Whatever may be the future results of his Pontificate, the first year of the reign of the reforming Pontiff must ever ensure for him the goodwill and gratitude of those who are sincere in their devotion to the cause of civil and religious liberty—witness his famous amnesty, witness his institution of the national guard, witness his disbandment of the Swiss soldiery, wit ness his beneficent measures in reference to the Jews of Rome, witness his emancipation of the press, witness his establishment of re presentative legislation in the municipalities. These deeds crown him , a ith a nobler crown than the triple diadem of the tiara. When speaking of the civil war in Switzerland Ebony becomes jocular. He has been alluding to the elements of tranquillity for which the Helvetic republic is peculiar : " And yet, of a sudden, up rises a storm; the Fede ration splits; and, before men can come to comprehend what the mountaineers are quarrelling about, swords are drawn ; shots are fired, a couple of towns are captured, and the war is declared at an end almost before it was known to have commenced. It has been like a drama at the opera. Scene, a rocky district, with a town in the distance:enter a chorus of peasants, who sing about liberty. Alarums: a band of soldiers rush in and drive them off the stage. Grand cantata of the president— and the curtain falls. Some connoisseurs in the boxes call for the manager, and ask when the opera is going to begin, as they wish to intervene: the manager enters from the side-door, bows humbly, and intimates that they may have their tickets returned if they please, the I play being over. General disappointment!" There is a charming little sketch, called " Some thing like a Country House," painted in the style of Watteau. " Evenings at Sea" are continued with the autobiography of a surgeon. " Flechier's Chronicle of Clermont Assizes" is a deligiatful reminiscence of the eloquent prelate, who is chit fly memorable for his funeral oration on the Great Tu.'enne. It is fol lowed by a curious and most entertain,'og memoir of "Don John of Austria," the illegitimate' son of the Emperor Charles V.; and that again by 44 A Night's Peril," a paper for all who can relish the m As the commencement of a new year Blackwood is large in promise,—and, as far as the monthly' instal ment is concerned, it is anything but smell in fulfilment. BENTLEY'S MISCELLANY- The article in the present number of Bentley which will be looked to with the greatest' interest is undoubtedly the one entitled, "Government Defence of the Country," by James Augustus St. John. Mr. St. John is one " Qui mores hominum multorum vid'it et urbes;" he has not merely travelled through, like Mr. Cobden, but he has sojourned in Prance and the various coun tries, European, Asiatic, and African, which are washed by the Mediterranean, Baltic, and Oerman Seas, and, therefore, we should 141ve ninth greater • weight to the opinion of Mr. St. John on this subject than to that of Mr. Cobden. In considering the various articles which have of late appeared in diffe- I rent journals on the possibility of a French invading army being landed on our shores, and on the relative military and naval strength of France and England, Mr. St. John says— " The best thine., however, is to state, as far as pos sible, the exact truth, and neither to overrate the power of France, nor to underrate our own. Supposing our military strength to be equal to our population, and the extent of our territories, France would be a mere pigmy in comparison with us. Her population does not exceed 1 thirty-five millions, while ours falls little short of two hundred millions, that is to say, comprises one-fifth of the population of the globe. But no idea of our mili tary strength can be gathered from this view of the matter. Our empire is scattered in patches over both hemispheres, divided by oceans, and impressed in diffe rent places with a different character by the combined influences of climate, race, language, and religion. France is one compact unity, or nearly so, for all she possesses external to tier own shores is of comparatively little value, and would inevitably be shorn away by the first stroke of the sword of war. Iler military e%tablish - inents, therefore, lie neatly all within a moderate dis tance of the capital, and may easily be wielded by the central Government, whether for offensive or defensive purposes. And what, then, is the real force of France? It h a s confidently bee❑ :Anted in the newspapers that it amounts to three hundred and fifty thousand men, in the highest state of discipline, animated by the worst feelings of rancour and hatred against this country, and inured to the most merciless cruelty in the wars of Africa. This view of the matter may suggest erroneous conclusions. The French army nail dly consists of about 325,000 men, of which from 110 to 120,000 are required for the pacification and defence of Algeria. Twenty or twenty five thousand men are distributed through the other French colonies in Western Africa, the Antilles, and the Pacific, so that a large reduction must be made from the formidable round numbers with which our popular speculators have hitherto dealt. Still the force of France is very great, and, in the estimation of military men, more than sufficient to invade England in her present state of comparative defencelessness. " Much stress has, moreover, been very properly laid on the character of the French soldiers. They are not what they were in former days, the representatives of the civilization of the kingdom, but a fierce, immoral, reck less horde, approximating more nearly to savages than any other troops in the world. This has been rendered indubitable by the history of their campaigns in Algeria, where they have been guilty of more and worse crimes against humanity than any other army whose exploits are on record. Burning villages, massacring the inha bitants, shutting men up in caves, and roasting them there alive, with every other excess which villany can conceive and brutality can execute, have been their habitual achievements. And yet they had nothing to retaliate on the Africans. Neither the Kai)) les, nor the Arabs, nor the Moors had humiliated them at Waterloo. Abd-el-Kader had not marched to Paris, or transported Napoleon to St. Helena, and kept him there in imprison ment till his death. Consequently, what they have done in Africa must have proceeded from the natural prompt ings of their character. It would be altogether different in England. They would here hays. much to revenge, since they could not fail to discover at every step trophies snatched from them on the field of battle, bitter mementos of defeat, the flags of their ships of war, mag nificent pieces of artillery, and statues and monuments erected to celebrate victories over them. In our public records they would find the proofs of a thousand other facts and circumstances calculated to excite their fury. What, therefore, the weak and defenceless portion of the population of this empire might expect to meet with at their hands, can scarcely be imagined even from reflect ing on the mysteries of the caves of Dara, or the infa mies of Otaheite. Whatever the most degraded passions, lust, cupidity, or revenge, could conceive or perpetrate, would unquestionably be accomplished. On this point there can be no mistake. " It appears to be generally admitted that France has now at her disposal an army of one hundred thousand men for offensive purposes, and that she possesses the means of transporting nearly half that force by steam from her own shores to ours in the course of a single night. An officer of the highest rank, who visited the camp at Compiegne, and carefully examined the condi tions of the French army, confirms the popular report that it is in the completest possible state of efficiency; that its artillery practice is most exact and admirable, that it is familiar with all our most recent improvements in gunnery, and that, in spite of an external varnish of politeness, the spirit by which it is universally pervaded is that of most deadly hatred towards this country. For a long time the French Government has been moving up its forces towards the north, where they are kept in for midable masses, almost within sight as it were of the shores of England, at Cherbourg, St. Melo, Brest, and other ports, where an ample supply of war steamers is in constant readiness to transport them wherever their services may be required. " On the subject of the steam navies of France and England much too little information is popularly pos sessed. If collected together, our steamers would no doubt suffice to defend our sores from the attacks of the whole world. But, in point of fact, where are they? Scattered over every ocean and every sea, protecting the tracks of commerce, or overawing the pirate and the slaver. Com paratively few are retained at home, while those of France, constructed and maintained purely for purposes of aggression, are kept perpetually within call. Among these, there are sixteen immense steamers, each capable of serving as transport to fifteen hundred soldiers during a short voyage. Other and smaller war steamers, acting as the satellites of these, would divide the remainder of the invading army between them, so that a vast flotilla, with artillery, horses, and men on board, might be pushed over in twelve hours from the coast of France to our own." The Ministers, it is said, took into their most anxious consideration the letter of the Duke of Wellington to Sir John Burgoyne. To his honour be it spoken, Lord John Russell was not one of the Ministers to whom the representations of the Duke were made in vain. " They hesitated long before they could determine whether it would be most de sirable to make a large addition to the regular army, or to organize an immense militia, or to adopt the middle c ourse o f re l y i ng par tly on soldiers of the line and partly on what may be strictly denominated a domestic force. After mature deliberation they would seem to have given the preference to the course last mentioned." So far this is well, but it is not enough. We should wish to see harbours of refuge constructed on every part of our coast where they are needed, which would be useful to our commerce in time of peace, and which in time of war would be our best defences against invasion—harbours in which large fleets, whether of ships of war or of merchant vessels, could lie in safety. Never was the time so opportune for this construction as now. The railway companies are everywhere suspending their opera tions—thousands of navvies are and will be thrown out of labour, and will have to be maintained out of the poor-rates until they can procure employ ment. Surely it would be infinitely better to employ these men in the construction of harbours of refuge than to maintain them in idleness in the union work - houses. We have accumulated wealth by our industry —it behoves then that we should by our energy de fend it from th ose w h o wou ld ro b us o f i t . And if we are not prepared to do so, we shall be treated like bees, and destroyed for the sake of our stores by those who have long desired to plunder and ruin our hives of industry and commerce. The novel of " Captain Spike" is approaching to a conclusion. In the present number there is a terrific description of the escape from the Swash of Spike and the crew of the brig, and of the chase by the boats of the Poughkeepsie. The boat of the S wash is so deeply lanen, that Spike and the boatswain, and three others, agree to throw their companions overboard by a ruse, and the two blacks, the Mexican captain, Mrs. Budd, and poor Biddy, fall victims to this diabolical scheme. Jack Tier swims to the boat of the Poughkeepsie, on board which he finds Mulford and Wallace. A struggle ensues among the miscreants on board the Swash's boat, in the course of which all fall overboard except Spike and the boatswain. The men on board th e P oughkeeps i e fi re, an d k ill t h e boatswain, and wound Spike, and take him prisoner. wr e have two excellently-written biographical s ketches, one of Sir H. H ar di nge , th e o th er o f Si r Sydney Smith, both illustrated by well-engraved portraits. A continuation, by Mr. Warren, of his i n t e resting voyage upon the River Amazon ; a most am using account, by Captain M'Quhae, of her Ma jesty s ship Daedalus of a visit to Raja Brooke, of ' 's ar awak (illus .) trated by an engrav i ng o f t h e Bunga lowthe Raja 0 f ; a laughter moving story, by A. E ld er , of the rd ventures of a lucky grocer, who had 60,00 01 . left him, which is illustrate) by Leech in his qua intest style; and a var i ty o f ot h er amus i ng li g h t reaidng.Bentley begins the new year well. FRASER. Fraser opens with an address from the new pro on rietor, Mr. J. W. Parker, announcing the principles w hich the magazine will henceforth be conducted. Its earlier numbers were, he admits, disfigured occa sionally by an excess o f bi tterness and levity of tone which h a ve gradually di sappeared, leav i ng its rac i ness as pe rfect, and its force of argument as vigorous, as ever they were. We hail this candid admission as a uaran t e e that for the f uture t h e " slashing" style will be abando n ed b y Fra ser . Another pledge, which we al so hail with satisfaction is, that henceforth each separate number of the magazine, though dove tailing w ith those that c ome b e f ore an d follow after, will a s much as possible be rendered a complete work in i isc if—a pledge which u e believe will be rigidly kept, as Regi na has ever been honourably distin guished from the great ninjority of her metropolitan contemporaries by her comparative freedom from the abominable nuisance of continuations. The series now commencing, however, is distinguished by one feature entirely new ; the last ten pages of the present Ilirqber are devoted to a record of the principal events whic%s hjtve occurred during the preceding month, both at home and abroad , and jud g ing from th e ir con. tents, it evident that th e su b scr ib er w ill, a t the end of the year, find himself in the possession of a well-digested, admirably-condensed annual register. This revivai of the practice of the magazines of the olden time is worthy of commendation. The January number opens with an article on the state of the `manufacturing poor. y t hich is well worthy the perusal A vARY 4. 184.. of those who think that nothing goad can come out of Lancashire. Let those who have been accustomed to consider the factory girls as over-worked slaves, immoral and debauched beyond the possibility of reclaiming, read the following description of a factory at work : " But let us go down into the shed ' (shade), where these threads are woven into cloth. What a magnific?nt sight ! Wo enter a room, the end of which we can hardly see—it is so far off. It is on a ground floor, and has no building above it. The windows are placed in the roof, that the hands' may have more light for their work. A truly //tees a non lucendo derivation for the term shade ! Within it there are three or four hundred women, managing seven or eight hundred looms. Women do you call them ? They seem to be young girls. It is the circumstance of their having pinafores tied round their throats that suggests the juvenile ap pearance ; bat they vary in age front fifteen to forty, as you will perceive, if you mark them closely. Each is engaged on her work: there is no laughing, or giggling, or child's play. Perhaps one here and there, recognis ing her minister,' may convey the intelligence to her neighbour with a nod and a smile; but she becomes very demure again when she fancies she is observed. She probably begins to smooth her hair with the comb she has always near her, or to tidy some portion of her dress ; for most of them have a proper sense of their becomings.' But why is she stopping her loom ? Some thread has been broken, or some bad work made, during her absence of mind, and it is to be svt right. The thread is pieced, a rod is touched, and the shut:le rattles on again, as if it w ere alternately shot from side to side out of two fifty-pounders. Every thing is as orderly and neat as it can be, where there must neces sarily be particles of dust and cotton flying about. The ventilation is on the beat prirciple, and the temperature not more than 65 deg. If there be a smell, it is the healthy one of oil. Such an employment for ten hours is not too fatiguing. The effort consists in mental attention, and in remaining long upon the legs. See that woman—a book is lying upon her stool—she can take an occasional glance at some anecdote or narrative while her looms are going. Another, you remark, has her knitting by her side. These are very expert wearers. And, as you are a disciple of Lavater, do you not think that the intelligent eyes and interesting faces around you will bear a favourable comparison with those of your London Graces ? But how is this ? The din of a thousand shuttles is yet ringing in our ears, but every loom is still in an instant. It is now one o'clock; the pinafores are thrown off ; the shawls and bonnets hastily put on; and all the 'bands' are moving out in one continuous stream. Come along with the crowd : there is no rude remark to be heard ; a mercurial boy or two may, perhaps, be talking louder than would beseem the deportment. room of a fashionable academy—that is all. The dense mass separates into its component parts as it reaches the street, to collect again at the same place about two o'clock." Then, again, with regard to crime, the statistical tables compiled by the Rev. John Clay show that while in Worcestershire the proportion of criminals to the population is 1 in 343, in Gloucestershire 1 in 364, in Shropshire 1 in 447, in Somersetshire 1 in 451, in Lancashire it is only 1 in 453; and this supe riority of the great manufacturing over the great agricultural counties is thus satisfactorily accounted for by the writer of this article :—" Where persons," says he, " are engaged in any well-regulated occupa tion from morning to night, there may be much ig norance, but there is little leisure for crime. On the other hand, where men are employed, as they term it, `at a loose end,' the temptations to evil are greatly increased." We rise from the perusal of this article quite ready to join in the writer's exclamation, " A noble county is that of Lancaster ;" and we thank the author of this admirable paper for having thus come forward to rescue the inhabitants of this noble county from the calumnies of puling sentimentalists, who fancy that because an operative lives in a house in stead of a pigstye, sleeps in a bed instead of on straw, works under shelter instead of being ex posed to all the inclemencies of the weather, and earns from 18s. to 20s , instead of from 7s. to 10s. a week, that therefore he must be discon tented, weakly, and vicious. This is followed by an article, entitled " Modern Condottieri," being a spirit-stirring account of the exploits of the foreign Algerine legion in Spain under the command first of the jobbing Bernelle and his no less jcbbing wife, then of the stupid Bedeau, and lastly of the gal lant and chivalrous Conrad who was killed at Bar bastro, near Saragossa, just as he got off his horse to place on it a wounded man who had been badly hit by his side. After his death the legion was disbanded, having been reduced in two years from 7,000 soldiers to 380 men, the greater number of whom were crip ples—a sad exemplification of the fact, that it is a Spanish principle of action to pay their mercenary troops as little as they can, and to make them fight as much as possible, working them to death as hack masters do cheap horses. In "The Literary Circles of the Last Century" we find much amusing gossip about Mrs. Montagu and her friends, and in the article entitled "The King of Bavaria, Munich, and Lola Montez," much that is new and much that is true, about, perhaps, the most remark able monarch of his day, and his still more re markable female Prime Minister, for such is Lola Montez to the King of Bavaria, rather than his mis tress. An unfair course, says this writer, has been pursued towards Lola Montez by her political enemies. She would herself have no hesitation in saying that the Jesuits were the prime movers in all these cases, and certainly it is true, no gentleman, no man accountable to society would have resorted to such unmanly proceedings. The object of the authors of the monstrous, ridicu lous, and absurd calumnies, of which Lola Montez has been the object, has been to work upon the poeti cal temperament of the King, by exhibiting his fair ally in a ridiculous and disgusting light ; for as the writer justly observes, " the moral indignation, of which there was so much displayed in these at tacks is unfortunately a sham. It was not that the King of Bavaria had a mistress which offended these calumniators, but that he had an ally in Lola Montez who had the courage and the influence to open his eyes to the monstrous iniquities perpetrated in his name, and by which he incurred the odium." A former mistress of the King was not only tolerated by these persons, but patronised many years, because she made her influence subservient to their party pur poses. The bull-dog, of which so much has been said, is a quiet English animal, and not a bull-dog at all; and if she has on some occasions exhibited the natural resentment of a high spirited woman, it has only been in cases where she has been grossly in sulted by men of position in a manner which the lowest bully in England would consider unworthy of bis sex. Her house, which is a perfect bijou, was built under her own eye, and is unique in its simplicity and lightness. She is elegant in her manner, cultivated in her tastes, and has a great respect for England and the English. She has a strong mind, and has very clear ideas on foreign politics, and her novel and powerful m o d e o f express ing them has a great influence on the King, who has also a comprehensive mind, and snore than all, she is incorruptible. She has refused the most tempting offers which have been made to her, either to quit the country or to abuse her influence over the Sang. She is regarded by the members of the Royal Family rather as a political character than as the King's favourite ; and the Queen of Bavaria, to whom the King has always paid the most scrupulous attention, has voluntarily stated that should the King desire the presentation of the newly-made Countess at Court, she would offer no obstacle. We have, besides these articles, a well-written paper urging the immediate necessity of adopting measures for our national de fence, and another on the Hampden controversy, in which the writer finds grievous fault with all parties. It is difficult to say to whom he deals out the hardest blows—to the Prime Minister, the Bishop elect, or the remonstrant Bishops. mutually explained themselves his encouraging himself whenever he stopped at a hard word, while reading, with " Now my lad ! With p. wifl !" or, " Ed'arcl Cuttle, ste..dy !" and his deli b ilt having made over his watch, spoons, and sugar-tongs " jintly," are all in character, Captain Cu'tle is , henceforth in the Buz Gallery. Florence and Walter are affianced, and their betrothal is beautifully told. No news is heard of Elith or of Carker ; and the con dolence of Mrs. Chick, of Cousin Phoenix, and of Major Bagstock, is repelled in succession by the merchant. Mr. Dombey is still too proud for sympathy. " The tree is struck, but not down." Even Lucretia Tox is obliged to evince a surreptitious interest in his calamities by stolen visits to the horrible Pipchin. There is throughout an evident tendency towards the " wind up" or eclaircissernent. DOLMAN. There is a good deal of rollicking humour in " The Adventures of a Schoolboy ;" the contribution is evidently written by one not very long since emanci pated from the forms of Eton or Rugby. The "Mixed Marriage" is pursued with considerable point in re ference to a rather dubitable phase of social morality. In the biographical paper on the Right lion. Richard Lalor Sheil—being the fourth instalment of the series of " Sketches of Irish Agitators"—there is a somewhat curtailed and confused account of the part taken by that distinguished orator in the famous meeting, on the 24th of October, 1828, on Penenden Heath. Even to the assertion made as to the:manner in which Mr. Sheil's speech appeared in our own columns, we can only give a partial corroboration. A new historiette is commenced with some promise, under the rather formidable, but attractive title, " The Golden Age of Merry England ; or, the Days of the Virgin Queen." The critical notices towards the end of the number will be peculiarly interesting to the general reader, and the Catholic intelligence, by which it is followed, will have its usual value in the estimation of the subscribers to the magazine. DOMBEY and SON. No. XVI. By Charles Dickens. As the heading to the forty-ninth chapter announces it, " The Midshipman" certainly does make " a dis covery." Walter Gay comes back ! safe and sound. The manner in which Captain Cuttle breaks the intelligence of his return to Florence is peculiarly characteristic of that " ancient mariner." Captain Cuttle, indeed, is the feature of the number. In his sentimental mood he speaks of Sol Gills's " nevy" men tioning Mr Pombey's daughter," with his faceglisten ing with doo, like a new blowed rose, at dinner.' In his more solemn and impressive manner, he recounts the dangers of the deep, " when you drive, drive, drive through the storm and dark, as if you was a driving, head on, to the world without end, evermore, amen, and when found making a note of." His disap pointment when Florence comes out of the haber dasher's shop with only a little parcel, instead of being followed by a porter staggering under a bale of goods—his wiping his head with the blackened toast on his hook ; in a fit of delirium, when Florence greets Walter with an embraoe--his log in upon them like an amiable warming-pan, when they have HO TV/ TT'S JOURNAL. Without question the best contribution in the part for the present month is the poetical one by William HaHingham on "Frost in the Holidays." It reads almost hke one of Long-fellow's. here is one verse, as bracing and true as half an hour's exercise on the Serpentine : "The lake is like glass!—hurrah! hurr,ih On with your skates without delio ! Off we shoot, and poise, and ss heel, Arid swiftly turn on the scoring heel; And our flying sandals chirp and sing Like a flack: of swallows upon the wing." The second volume of this journal of literature and popular progress is just completed. THE METROPOLITAN MAGAZINE. In his dissertation on " The Literary Forgeries of Chatterton," the editor displays a full appreciation of the poetic genius of this most extraordinary and un paralleled mortal. To our thinking, however, he altogether misapprehends the personal character of Chatterton. Ile has not read his history rightly, or he would see in it the narrative not only of the most precocious intellect ever vouchsafed to human being, but of moral excellencies of an exquisite beauty— excellencies which were only extinguished in the delirium of poverty, abandonment, despair, and famine ! The other articles are meritorious. COURT CIRCULAR. WINDSOR, MONDAY.—The Royal Family took walking and pony exercise this morning on the East ern Terrace and slopes. His Royal llighnoss Prince Albert enjoyed the sport of shooting this morning, accompanied by his Serene Highness Prince Lowenstein, and attended by the Marquis of Abercorn, the Marquis of Ormonde, Mr. G. E. Anson, and Colonel Seymour. His Serene Highness Prince Lowenstein, and the Marquis and Marchioness of Abercorn, took their departure from the Castle to-day. His Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge enjoyed the sport of shooting, yesterday forenoon, in Richmond Park. Her Royal Highness the Duchess of GloucestEr visited the Princess Sophia yesterday. The Commissioners for the Reduction of the Na tional Debt had a meeting yesterday, at the Treasury. The Commissioners present were the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Lord Langdale, Master of the Rolls, the Governor of the Bank of England, and the Deputy-Governor. Mr. lligham, Secretary and Comptroller-General, was in attendance. Mr. Justice Wightman had an interview with Sir George Grey yesterday, at the Home-office. The Chancellor of the Exchequer and Lady Mary Wood arrived in town yesterday, from the seat of the Duke of Bedford, Woburn Abbey, Bedfordshire. The Right Hon. Baronet and Lady Mary left town in the afternoon, on a visit to the Marquis and Marchioness of Lansdowne, at Bowood Park, 'Wilt shire. Dispatches for the Governors of the West India Colonies, and for the Governors of Gibraltar and Malta, and also for the Lord High Commissioner of the lonian Islands, were sent off from the Colonial office, on Saturday evening. FRENCH PLAYS. M. Paul Bocage, the celebrated author, actor, and manager, of the Odeon Theatre, made his debal here last evening, in the character of the Due d'Albu querque, in his own play of Eehec et Mat. lie is a tall, majestic-looking man, with a brilliant eye and expressive, and mobile features, impassioned when ne cessary, but always dignified. In a word, a French Kemble. The play itself is an elaboration of Don Ccrsar de Bazan into five acts, substituting a high-minded, dignified, loyal, Castilian nobleman, for the vivacious scapegrace as the unfortunate per son upon whose wife the King has cast loving eyes. The Due saves his own honour and his wife's aid the King's by his dignified and cautious conduct ; and in all these scenes he found a fitting representa tive in M. Paul Bocage. Antigone is to be produced here to morrow with Mendelssohn's music. M. Bocage sustains the character of Cr eon. We expect great things from him. The house was full, and was most fashionably attended. OLYMPIC THEATRE. Mr. Gustavus V. Brooke made his debut here last evening. This gentleman had been so outrageously bepraised by his provincial friends, and his approach had been heralded by so many puffs preliminary, that we were prepared to be disappointed with him. For once, however, we have met with a man equal to his fame, and willing and gladly admit that Mr. G. V. Brooke is quite worthy all the eulogiums which have been: passed upon him. Mr. Brooke's first entrance created an impression in his favour. He has a tall commanding figure, and a face evidently handsome, in spite of the disfigurement of the dark hue, which gives somewhat of grimace to every marked movement of Othello's countenance. His voice is of excellent quality—deep and sonorous, and this quality is never lost, however strong the utterance of passion. The first two acts rather gave the notion of an eloquent declaimer, than of a man of fire and passion. The reading was excellent ; the voice well modulated, the emphasis carefully adjusted. An air of commanding dignity was spread over all this earlier portion of the performance, and the only fear was, that the whole would prove too quiet and measured, and at last seem monotonous. A well conceived display of indignation at the brawl in which Cassio is involved led to a con trary supposition ; but still the third act was anxiously expected as a test. Through this great ordeal of the third act—of the dialogue with lago—Mr. Brooke passed most triumphantly. Here he showed that he was a man, not only of form, but of sub stance. His bursts of jealous passion came down with terrific weight, and whether he soared on the wings of rage, or sank exhausted be neath its force, all was fresh, energetic, and genial. There was nothing in his points to suggest a reminiscence of other actors. Indeed, in the ordinary sense of the word, he can hardly be said to have made a " point" at all, of such a continuous, sus tained character was his acting. And be it remarked, that the correctness and sound judgment which were visible in his earlier speeches did not forsake him when he abandoned himself to the more violent outbursts of passion. As he preserved his voice, so likewise did he preserve his head, however great the storm of emotion. But if we would mark the most striking features of Mr. Brooke's representat i on of of Othello, we would indicate those passages in which the under-current of grief i s forced up into the midst of jealous rage. Lines, and parts of lines, which he de livered, were in this respect exquisitely touching, and evidently resulted from original conception. The excla mation, " Damn her, lewd minx, oh damn her," when he gave an expression of sorrow to the repetition of the curse, is a remarkable case in point. Ind ee d , a ll the mournful side of Othello s position he had conceived with great delicacy. The break of th e vo i ce i nto weeping at the words " Othello s occupation 's gone," and, above all, the deep anguish when he said, " Fool, f oo l, fool," after the discovery of th e v ill any t h at had been practised upon him, were touches of the deepest pathos. In Mr. Brooke we possess what we have long wanted on the stage, a gentleman of power, of taste, and of elocution, who has an ear to appre ciate the rythin of blank verse, and who de claims beautifully not in the hop, step, and jump, and pause . style i n w hi c h " great tragedians " have of late years c h ante d t h e poetry of Shakspere, lle is intense without ma nner i sm , an d can b e impas sioned without going through a series of poses plastiques. He was admirably supported by Stuart, whose lago ;is the best on the stage, and by Miss Stuart, who made a most interesting Desdemona. Mr. Brooke was called for at the conclusion, and re ceived with the greatest enthusiasm. Such a success has not been achieved for years. The house was crowded. DEATH OF THE DOWAGER COUNTESS OF CLAN.. CARTY.—We regret to announce the death of the Dow ager Countess of Clancarty, which occurred on Thursday, at Garbally, near Ballinasloe. DEATH OF MRS. HASTIE.—We are sorry to notice in our obituary to- day, the death of Mrs. hustle, the venerable parent of the Member for the town. Mrs. Hastie's family was the Steuarts of Alderston, in the county of Haddington, and she was aunt to the late Mr. Robert Steuart, fur two or three Parliaments represen tative for the Haddington Burghs, and one of the Lords of the Treasury.— Glasgow Saturday Post. HARMONIC HALL, SOUTHWARK BRIDG Several benefits have recently been taken at this unique place of entertainment by local philanthropic societies, for the distribution of bread, coals, &c., to the de serving poor, during the winter months, and it is satis factory to add, they have been productive of great advantages. Last evening a new pa n t om i m i c repre sentation, called the Devil in London, was produced by the manager, Mr. W. Warde, and the several hits at the follies of the day elicited much applause from a crowded auditory 1 as also did the effective singing of mr. Pearce, in Dibdin's naval melodies, and Mr. Temple in some characteristic country songs. f IRELA.I,I . ~.~tr! ';1 , " Till '. - . 7 1'11Y IN Tiir, i .UT D BUN, Li:. j 1 . 1111 CVC n:Lg ;:r di;:ary Gazette was issued from Da!ilin Castle, eontsining ten proclamations, affecting the following counties and buronies—viz., 1. The whole of the county Tipperary. 2. The whole of the county Limerick. 3. Baronies of Upper and Lower Bunratty, Clonderlaw, Inchiquin, Islands, and Upper and Lower Tulla, in the county of Clare. 4. Baronies of Orrery and Kilmore, in the county of Cork. 5. Baronies of Athlone, North and South Bailin tobber, Ballymoe, Boyle, and Roscommon, and the parishes of Crieve, Kilmacumsev, Kilcola, and Kline maugh, in the barony of French Park, county of Roscommon. G. Baronies of Glenahiry and Upperthird, in the county of Waterford. 7. Baronies of Ball 3 brit, Clonlisk, Eglish, and Garrycastle, in the King's County. 8. Baronies of Clonmuhon, Tuliyhunco, and Upper Loughtee, in the county of Cavan. 9. Baronies of Carrigallen, Leitrim, and Mohill, in the county of Leitrim. 10. Baronies of Ardagh, Granard, and Longford, in the county of Longf These new proclamations—as appears by the fol lowing copy—require all persons (not being justices of the peace, or persons in her Majesty's naval or military service, or in the coast-guard service, or in the service of the revenue, or in the police or consta bulary force, or special constables, or pensons duly licensed to kill game, or persons to - whom any license shall have been granted under the Act), to deposit their arms in certain depots, appointed in each dis trict, under a penalty of imprisonment for two years with hard labour. " NOTICE. " BY THE LORD-LIEUTENANT OF IRELAND. " CLARENDON. " Whereas by an Act passed in this present session of Parliament, in the 11th year of her Majesty's reign, entitled 'An Act for the better prevention of Crime and Outrage in certain parts of Ireland, until the Ist day of December, 1849, and to the end of the then next session of Parliament, it is amongst other thing enacted, "That from and after the day named in the proclamation in said Act first men tioned, it shall be lawful to and for the Lord- Lieutenant, or other chief governor or governors of Ireland, by notice to be published in the Dublin Gazelle, and posted in manner in said Act men tioned, from time to time to require all persons (not being justices of the peace, or persons in h er Majesty's naval or military service, or in the coast guard service, or in the service of the revenue, or in the police or constabulary force, or special con stables, or persons duly licensed to kill game, or persons to whom any license shall have been granted under said Act) residing or being within any county, county of a city, county of a town, barony or other district named in said proclamation, or any part thereof respectively, on or before a day named in such notice, to deposit or leave at a place or places to be named in such notice, or at the nearest police station or barrack, any gun or guns, pistol or pistols, or other fire-arm or fire-arms, or any part or parts of any gun, pistol, or other fire-arms, or any sword or swords, cutlass or cutlasses, pike or pikes, bayonet or bayonets, or any bullets, gun powder, or ammunition which he, she, or they may have in his, her, or their custody, power, or pos session.' " Now notice is hereby given, that we require all persons (not being justices of the peace, or persons in her Majesty's naval or military service, or in the coast-guard service, or in the service of the revenue, or in the police or constabulary force, or special constables, or persons duly licensed to kill game, or persons to whom any license shall have been granted under this Act) residing or being within the district included in the said proclamation, on or before the Bth day of January, 1848, to deposit and leave at the police baarracks, in the town of Athlone, Athleague, Roscommon, Tulsk, Strokes town, Elphin, and Boyle, within the said district, or at the police-station, or barracks nearest to his, her, or their residence, all and every gun or guns, pistol or pistols, or other fire-arm or fire- arms, and any part or parts of any gun, ,pistol, or other fire-arms, and any sword or swords, cutlass or cutlasses, pike or pikes, bayonet or bayonets, and any bullets, gun powder, and ammunition which he, she, or they may have in his, h e r o r th e i r custody, power, or possession. " And whereas, by our proclamation, by and with the advice of her Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland, bearing date at the Castle of Dublin, the 23rd day of December, 1847, we declared that from and after the 29th day of December, 1847, the said Act should apply to, and be in force in, the baronies of- Athlone, North and South Ballintobber, Bally/me, Boyle, a-id Roscom mon, and the parishes of Crieve, Kilmacumsy, Kil cola, and Kilnamanagh, in the barony of French Park, in the county of Roscommon. " And notice is hereby further given, that every person who, after the said Bth day of January, 1848, shall knowingly have in his or her custody, power, or posse.sion, any gun, pistol, or any other fire-arm, or part or parts of any gun, pistol, or fire arm, or any sword, cutlass, pike, or bayonet, or any bullets, gun powder, or ammunition, contrary to the provisions of said Act, will be liable on conviction thereof to be imprisoned, with hard labour, for a term of two years " By his Excellency's cominand, " WM. M. SOMERVILLE. " Dublin Castle, Dec. 30, 1847." THE SPECIAL COMMISSION. DUBLIN, JAN. 2.—Chief Justice Blackburne and Chief Baron Pigott leave Dublin to-morrow morning en route for Limerick, and will be received at the Ballybrophy station by a troop of the Queen's Bays, with mounted police, and escorted therefrom to the city of Limerick, arriving there the same evening. Their Lordships will open the special commission on Tuesday morning in the County Court-house, both judges presiding together on the bench. The Attorney-General, the Solicitor-General, Mr. G. Bennett, Q.C., and the lion. J. Plunkett, Q.C., will attend to conduct the cases for the Crown. Mr. O'Hea is expected to appear as principal counsel for the prisoners. The calendar presents a fearful array of crime. Subjoined are the principal cases for trial:— Michael Howard, murder of Johanna and Corne lius Hoorigan. Michael O'Brien, Michael Madigan, and John Shaughnessy, murder of Edmond Kenny. Andrew Dee, murder of Edmond Murphy. *William Ryan (Puck), murder of John Kelly. William Frewen, Thomas Frowen, and John Proven, harbouring Ryan Puck, by which he for some time evaded apprehension as a felon. Thomas Ryan and Patrick Ryan, murder of llo nora Ryan. John Renehan, Michael Kennedy, D. Ryan, Thomas Fitzgerald, James Doyle, William Quin, Michael Donnelly, and John Gorman, murder of John M'lnerny. Michael Hickey, conspiring to murder John M'lnerny. James Skeahan, murder of Ralph Hill. Ellen Quaine, Daniel Qu a i ne , J ames Q ua i ne, Thomas and :Vary M‘Namara, aiding and assisting Thomas Skeahan in the murder of Ralph Hill. Patrick Richardson, being of an armed party that fired at and wounded John Staunton. John Alolony, shooting at Michael Carroll. Joseph Carroll, shooting at John Molony, and John O'Brien, Denis Ryan, being of an armed party who fired on the police and wounded head-constable Sullivan. Patrick Sweeney and Edward Broderick, soliciting Maurice Flanagan and others to murder John Don nelly. John Coleman, Patt Long, and John Supple, being of an armed party who attacked the house of Denis Shea for fire-arms. Cornelius Tracy, Patrick Ahern, James Healy, Michael Gleeson, John Walsh, Michael Falvey, David Connell, John Bourke, Thomas Hoare, Cornelius Daly, and Thomas Walsh, riotous assembly in arms, and driving off cattle belonging to Mr.; Robert Fetherstona, the Rev. George Massy, and :the Roy . James Ryan, parish priest. John Ryan, Roger Ryan, Thomas M'Cormack, and John Fogerty, murder of Daniel Dillon. Thomas Lyons and Patrick Bourke, conspiracy t o murder John Ryan, and accessaries to the murder of Honora Ryan. - Michael Holahan, IVliiteboy ism. David Tierney and Thomas - Nagle, concealing in their houses Maurice O'Donnell, charged with White boyism. DEATH OF DR. CROTCH.—One of England's moat eminent musicians has been gathered to his fathers, namely, Dr. Crotch, who died on the 29th of December. at the residence of his son, the Rev. W. R. Crotch, master of the grammar school at Taunton, aged 72. A MURDERED CHILD FOUND IN A RAILWAY CARRIAGE.—Last evening, Mr. Payne resumed the in quiry on the body of a child, unknown, fuund in a second-class carriage at the South-Eastern Railway Station, London bridge, on the 24th ult. Mr. Pettigrew, surgeon, said ho had made a postmortem examination of the body, and ascertained the cause of death to be suffo cation. There were the marks of a cord, which had been bound over the mouth and round the head so tightly as to leave a deep furrow. All that was known respect ing the body was, that the carriage in which it was found was near the engine, and had come all the wily from Folkstone. Mr. Mead, the summoning officer, had made inquiries along the line for a description of t.lhe passengers in that carriage, but had learnt nothing sat *- factory. The Coroner said as it was a clear case of murder, that it was advisable to adjourn again in • the hopes of finding the guilty parties. The inquest 1 , MS again adjourned for a fortnight. 1 ............,„ : , 4 , - , 0, ..~ astvA