The Sun. — London, England, 1865-09-21 00:00:00

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE EDINBURGH AND GLASGOW. The half-yearly general meeting of this company was held on Tuesday, in Glasgow ; Mr. P. Black burn, the chairman, presided. The report, an abstract of which has appeared in The Sun, was taken as read. The CHAIRMAN, in moving the adoption of the report, said it was the last occasion on which they would meet as a separate body. There was a steady increase in the revenue, and for the past half-year it was larger than they had yet had. The net in crease was £17,025, and he believed that the work ing expenses had not been increased unreasonably, considering the increase of the traffic, and the in creased cost of the plant and rolling stock. All those who travelled to Helensburgh must have ob served that the trains were much more safe than they used to be, and a great deal had been done to put the line in the best order. He was happy to say the accounts had recently been adjusted to the satis faction of this company and the North British Rail way Company. There had been some misunder standing on the part of the public, and of some of the shareholders, as to the position their company took in the united company. They were to receive a preference dividend of 4f per cent. before the North British stock, but they were not limited to 41 per cent., because when the North British dividend ex ceeded 3 per cent. the Edinburgh and Glasgow share holders were to Participate in the increase till they got 5 per cent. and the North British 3i per cent. They then paused at 5 per cent. till the North British got to 4 per cent., when they would both rise in the same proportion, always keeping 1 per cent. above the dividend on the North British shares, so that their interest in the prosperity of the united com pany was very strong, and he had every hope and belief that the united company would be more pros perous than either of the two companies could pos sibly have been separately. (Hear, hear.) Mr. H. DUNLOP seconded the motion for the adoption of the report. Mr. CLOUSTON asked if they had got intimation of an interdict before the Court of Session? The CHAIRMAN said he had, about half an hour before, received a printed form interdicting payment of any sum under the proposal to make compensa tion to the company's servants. The case had been so far heard before Lord Curriehill. After some discussion, it was agreed to receive the report without adopting the clause in it as to compensation. The CHAIRMAN said they now came to the prac tical point, which was " that the • sum of £ll,OOO be paid in consideration of the services, and as com pensation for the loss of their situations, to the after named servants of the company :—Mr. Latham, general manager, and Mr. Jamieson, secretary, £9,600 ; Mr. Thomson, superintendent, £l,OOO ; Mr. Tawse, accountant, £5OO ; Mr. M'Gregor, chief clerk, secretary's office, £500." Now, there were two questions which came up under this reso lution. The first was one of principle—namely, whether, under such circumstances as the winding up of a company or the stoppage of a company the servants losing their situations were to have any compensation at all. The second question was what the amount of the compensation should be. There might be some of those who took advantage of the second point—the difficulty of specifying a sum—to get it settled that there should be no compensation at all. But any shareholder who held such an opinion should announce plainly that it was his opinion that, however long might have been the services of a servant, and whatever sacrifices a man might make to serve the company for the best period of his life, if circumstances over which he had no control, or circumstances at which he had assisted for the benefit of the company, operated to his dis advantage, ho was to receive nothing from those who had been his masters, and whom he had served so long and so well. If that was the opinion of any shareholder, let him say so publicly and before the world ; but he did not think many would venture to do so. But the other was the more difficult point —the amount of compensation. They had a pre cedent in this case. Mr. Latham and Mr. Jamieson were joint servants of the Scottish Cen tral and Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway Com panies during the ten years they worked together, much to the advantage of their company ; and the Caledonian and Scottish Central, in winding up the affairs of the Scottish Central, agreed to pay to those two gentlemen six years' salary, as compensation for the loss of their offices. Now, What were the directors of the Edinburgh and Glasgow to do ? Were they to take a less rate, and say that these parties—the Scottish Central and Caledonian—went beyond the amount, or were to follow the example of these companies, and because they had been generous should they be generous too? He con fessed that his own opinion was in favour of deal ing fairly and liberally with those gentlemen who behaved remarkably well to the company. After some further observations he concluded by moving the resolution. Mr. CLOUSTON was desirous that the interdict should be read. Mr. JAMIESON, secretary, then read the applica tion for interdict, which craved that the respondents should be " prohibited and discharged from voting, paying, or applying the sum of £16,000 of the moneys, funds, and revenues of the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway Company, or any part of those moneys, as a donation or present to the officials of the company." Lord Curriehill's interlocutor pass ing the interim note of suspension, and ordering it to be served upon the respondents, was also read by the secretary. The CHAIRMAN said they were interdicted from voting the money in the meantime. (Hear, hear.) As they were thus put under the necessity of post poning this vote for a fortnight, until they gave their answers to the interdict, and had the matter cleared up, he thought it would be better to with draw the resolution, and adjourn in consequence of the interdict until such time as they were free to act as they liked with their own money. After some observations from Mr. CROSS and Mr. WEIR, The CHAIRMAN—The following is the resolution which the directors thought might be proposed : "Any holder of ordinary stock who intimates that it is his desire not to contribute any part of this payment, shall receive the sum he so holds back, in addition to his dividend, if he intimates this to the secretary in writing on or before the Ist of October next." Mr. CLOUSTON thought it would be less invidious to say that every shareholder willing to contribute his proportion should say so. The CHAIRMAN said they had proxies to the amount of half a million from shareholders willing to adopt the whole report as it was. Mr. ROUGUREAD said if it were confined to only those willing to pay, the interdieteouldberemoved, and in that case it would prevent another meeting. A very long discussion ensued, in the course of which Mr. A. ORR EWING moved that a committee c five shareholders be appointed to consider th e gees_ tion of compensation, and to report to an adjourned meeting. On a show of hands the amendment was rejected, and Mr. Clouston's motion was carried ; but as a poll was demanded, the chairman said he was sure the majority would be for Mr. Ewing's amendment. He therefore declared the amendment carried, and the meeting adjourned. MONMOUTIISIIIILE, The half-yearly meetiug was held yesterday at the offices, Newport ; Mr. C. Bailey, M.P., in the chair. The CHAIRMAN moved the adoption of the report (an abstract of which has appeared in The Sun. Ile said that the increased working expenses arose through the, additional cost of repairing engines and waggons Their law charges were also a little heavier. They had had a heavy Parliamentary campaign in the last Session, and, with the excep tion of one bill, they had been successful. The Blaenavon and Pontypool scheme was defeated, and if it had passed he did not think the promoters would have found the capital. The Pontypool, Caer leon, and Newport Bill was obtained, buthe did not think the project would affect this company much. The traffic on the line was increasing in the most satisfac tory manner, and the prospects of the company were good. A large company contemplated sinking to the lower coal measures at Aberbeg, and a large amount of additional traffic would eventually flow from this source. He concluded by congratulating the shareholders on having a 6i per cent. dividend. Mr. BATCHELOR seconded the adoption of the report, which was agreed to. A dividend at the rate of 61 per cent per annum, payable on October 5, was unanimously declared. Mr. WHITTAKER suggested that steps should be taken to get the stock quoted on the London Stock Exchange. The CHAIRMAN and Mr. PHILLIPS explained that the matter had been under the consideration of the directors, and they had no doubt that the stock would shortly be quoted. The meeting was then made special, and resolu tions were passed authorising the directors to sub scribe £20,000 toward the undertaking of the Alexandra Dock Company ; Mr. E. J. Phillips being nominated a director to represent the Mon mouthshire Company at that Board. A vote of thanks to the chairman brought the proceedings to a close. niE SUN, LONDON, THURSDAY EVENING, SEPTEMBER 21, 1865. power, £177,220; repairs and renewals of carriages and waggons, £60,545; traffic charges (coaching and merchan dise), £329,678 ; rates and taxes, £46,466 ; Government duty, £19,608; compensation for personal injury, &c., £8,351; compensation for damage aid loss of goods, £721; legal and Parliamentary expenses, £12,383; and miscel laneous, £23,451. On the Preston and Wyre section the working expenses of the year were 429,808, made up thus : —Maintenance and renewal of way, £6,501; locomotive power, £41,862 (returned as the mileage rate at which engines and carriages are found by the Lancashire and Yorkshire) ; traffic charges (coaching and merdandise), £8,376 ; rates and taxes, £1,022 ; Government duty, £1,367 ; and miscel laneous, £673. Finally, we may observe that the part of rolling stock possessed by the company at:the close of 1863 was 380 locomotives, 1,171 carriages used for the con veyance of passengers only, 282 other vehicles attached to passenper trains, 10,622 waggons of all kinds used for the conveyance of live stock, minerals ; and general merchan dise, and 18 other carriages and 'waggons ; making the very considerable aggregate of £12,323. This plant re ceived some additions in 1864, and that it is intelligently may be seen in the fact that the company is now earning a rough traffic of £lOO to £llO per mile per week. The expenditure made for additional land, buildings, and plant during the three half-years ending June 30, 1865, and also for new lines during the same period, was as follows : be the last inflicted on your grace concerning Mar riages over the Border and Across the Water.' " The last letter published is an ominous one. It is from the non-resident vicar of Sculcoates, and is thus communicated to the Archbishop by Mr. Bon nin himself : "My Lord Archbishop,—l have this morning re ceived a letter from my vicar, the Rev. Wm. Preston, informing me that he is in communication with your grace respecting the withdrawal of my license, pre viously to giving me the usual legal notice for leav ing this curacy. I have simply acknowledged the receipt of his letter, and forwarded him a copy of the entire correspondence, printed by me for distri bution among my friends, a duplicate of which ac companies this note.—l have the honour to remain your grace's very obedient servant, T. S. BoNNIN." The Stock of Cotton in America. Mr. Edward Atkinson, of Boston, has written a a second letter to Mr. Bright on the subject of the American cotton supply. He says : " I have reason to believe that the estimate of the agents of the government who had have been sent out to take charge of captured cotton would not lead to the expectation of over one million bales of old cotton, including the cap tures at Mobile, Charleston, and Savannah, and about 500,000 bales of new crop. My own estimate, obtained from our business agents, would lead me to expect as much as 1,250,000 bales of old cotton, but much less than 500,000 bales of new, the cultivation of the new crop planted during the war having been entirely dis organised by the sudden collapse of the Confederate rule. You are aware that I believed in and dreaded the existence of a much larger quantity of old cotton. I dreaded the effect of very heavy receipts in November and Decem ber, both upon the future cultivation in this country and elsewhere. I now feel very safe against any great depres sion.- The abrogation of the extra tax of 25 per cent. and the restoration of trade to its normal condition gave immediate confidence to spinners and consumers of cloth, and enabled us to absorb the late tolerably heavy receipts without any very great fluctuations in price. I estimate our present consumption at 10,000 bales per week, and at that we cannot supply the demand for cloth even though we are making excessive profit. Scarcity of operatives prevents a rapid increase. If the supply of American cotton shall prove to be only one and a half million bales from September 1,1865, to September 1, 1866, and the price shall be at or about twenty pence in Liver pool, we shall retain more than one-half for consumption North and South." Half-year ending Land, Bce, New lines. June 30, 1864 ... £66,990 ... £86,733 Dec. 31, 1864 ... . 4 2 M 5 ? ... 188,835 June 30, 1865 • 125,46 G 149,866 The total amount thus expended for additional land, buildings, and plant in the 18 months was thus £320,802 and for new lines £425,434. Of the £320,802 expended for additional land, buildings, and plant, the; last item ab sorbed £139,662 ; but it is clear that the most reproductive of all capital expenditure is that made for additional plant. The permanent way has for someyears engaged the serious attention of the management, as owing to the increased weight of the engines, carriages, and waggons, and of the loads moved by them, the wear [and tear of the rails is very great. The directors have come to the conclusion that in localities where the traffic is heavy steel rails have many and decided advantages over common iron rails, lasting much longer and in the end proving cheaper. Acting upon this conviction, they have directed steel rails to be laid down at all those places where an ordinary rai would bo worn out in less than two years' time. The differ ence of the cost of these steel rails as compared with iron rails has been charged, we believe, to capital. The perma nent way generally appears to be liberally maintained, the expenditure on this head in 1863 being at the rate of £387 per mile per annum. This is a matter, it may be parentheti cally observed, of great importance to investors, as perma nent way has been before now allowed to deteriorate in other lines in order to squeeze out a few shillings more di vidend for the time being. The new lines and extensions which the company has been prosecuting during the last 18 months have been the following :—Oldham, Rochdale, &c., Salford, Junction, Bootle and Aintree, Meltham, Dewsbury, Shawforth, Blackburn and Chorley, Victoria Station, Bes wick, Heckmondwike, and Methley. The line for connect ing the Salford and Victoria stations at Manchester is now opened for traffic ; and the Methley, of the capital of which the Lancashire and Yorkshire hold one-third, is also ready for the circulation of trains. Tho construction of the branch from Rochdale to Shawforth has been postponed in conse quence of the extreme difficulty experienced in obtainin g possession of the land at reasonable rates ; the works have, however, at length been let. The company failed in the past session to obtain powers for the construction of a highly-important line to connect its system with the Great Eastern. This line was strenuously opposed by the Great Northern, and on its defeat the Lancashire and Rorkshire abandoned the project, while the Great Eastern has since come to such terms with the Great Northern, as regards running rowers and traffic facilities, as will obviate the necessity of another application to Parliament on the subject. It is difficult when we begin to speak of these giant railway undertakings to know where to stop, so multifarious are their interests and so wide-spread their ramifications. We must, however, suspend our review of the Lancashire and Yorkshire at this point. Now that the great steam-engines of Lancashire are again beginning to put forth their full strength, and the manufacturing popu lation of the county are permitted to toil with their full vigour l now that the docks at Liverpool are beginning to bo choked with cotton, and the mills inland resound with the clank and roar of active industry, we may expect to see this great company regain its old prosperity, and its ordi nary stock dividends approach the maximum of 8 per cent., to whicb„we believe, they are restricted. The shareholders may congratulate themselves that their enterprise pene trates into Yorkshire as well as the great neighbouring county, as the steadiness of the woollen trade in 1862 and 1363 compensated in some degree for the depression of the cotton manufacture. But, whatever may be the temporary difficulties with which the Lancashire and Yorkshire has to contend, it must always be regarded as a fine enterprise. Its lines have cost, in round figures, £50,000 per mile, but it now remunerates fairly the capital engaged. If we should witness a period of commercial ease and progress, tho re turn upon the £12,000,000 of ordinary stock will experience a corresponding expansion. Mr. Atkinson encloses two letters from one of his correspondents, sent out to the cotton states to procure information bearing upon the present and future supply of cotton. In one of these letters it is stated that there are about 40,000 bales of cotton in Augusta, Georgia, and that " the estimate of the new crop is not to exceed 10 per cent." The writer says the negroes won't work on the planta tions, but crowd to the towns. In the second letter, which is dated Macon, Georgia, August 21, the writer says : " I am more and more persuaded that the day for large crops of cotton at low prices has passed for ever. Cotton will be raised, but not as before. For instance, the women who used to work in the fields now follow the men to the cities, and the men support them there. It is all humbug to talk of the negroes starving ; everywhere I hear nothing but complaints because the supply of labour is insufficient, and this while not one plantation in ten is half worked. The whole of the South is to be re-built and re-furnished, and until it is the negro will find an abundance of labour without working the fields. Everywhere I find Northern men; in all of the out-of-the-way places they do almost all the business. I find the impression among the planters is that, while emancipation will not permanently injure the border states—Missouri, Kentucky, Virginia, North Caro lina, Tennessee, and Arkansas—it is total and irremediable ruin to the other states ; at least, so they all express them selves, almost without exception. Many are removing to North Carolina, or some other border state. I found the quality of the cotton at Augusta superior to any I have yet seen. Its superior condition is doubtless owing to the greater care it has received in storage. The quantity of cotton in Macon to-day is from 30,000 to 50,000 bales. The amount in the district tributary to Atlanta is some 25,000 bales, as nearly as I can make it. This includes the whole district of country to tho northward of Atlanta, which does not border on the rivers ; also the countries about the headwaters of the Chattahoochee and those immediately to the south of the city, say 30 counties in all. This district of country has been drained to a very large extent of its cot ton. Here at Macon the cotton compares favourably with that at Augusta, which is to say it is in much better condi tion than that I have seen elsewhere. Some 18,000 bales have been sent away since the Federal occupation, of which 7,000 or 8,000 have gone down the river to Darien." 'rlio following is an extract from a letter from the South, published in the Scotsman: " You are a;vare that the specie hi tbo uouutiy, when the war broke out, was loaned to- the Confederate Government, to enable it to purchase vessels, arms, and other munitions of war in Enropo. Large quantities of cotton were also placed to the credit of Government by shipowners of the country, on which security the Confederate States Go vernment issued many millions of dollar bills, premising to redeem them in specie six months after peace was de clared, and the independence of the States had become Zan fait accompli. As you know, we were defeated, and that moment Confederate money became not worth the paper on which it was written. Every one held it, and nothing else, and consequently every one was peculiarly ruined. Well, in those circumstauces,every one who owns any pri vate cotton is making strenuous exertions to get it to New York and to Liverpool while the present high prices con tinue; and this is what makes all cotton firms in the South so very busy at this particular time. Our rivers, too, are very low ; and as our railroads have all more or less suffered from the ravages of contending armies, there is a greater de mand for transportation than supply ; and there is, in a word, one continual hurry and rush from morning till night, and on till morning again, everywhere. Of course, in this race, the smart and the strong go ahead ; the timid and the dull go to the wall, and stay there. Ordinarily, the busy part of the year is begun in November, when the cotton crop is gathered in, and ends in March, when the last of it has been brought to market. From March to November it is considered so unhealthy in all the cities of the Gulf of Mexico—of which this is one—that all business is suspended, and thoso who can afford it go north. Those that remain are generally decimated by yellow fever, &c. This Sear, however, it is different: none have money, all want to procure it, and most aro sacrificing health in its pursuit. This year's crop will not be gathered till Novem ber, and is, besides, a very small one, as all our land was sown in corn for the maintenance of our armies. The cotton whence our business is now derived haS been on hand since the war began, with the small additions that have been yearly made since. This is, however, I fear, a very dull topic for you ; but cotton is such an engaging, fascinating business, that I am quite engrossed by it. I talk of cotton, speak, think, and dream of it. In this part of the world every one more or less is temporarily afflicted with a mania popularity entitled cotton on the brain.' . When we were in Montgomery, the capital of this state, in March last, Nelson's division of Federal cavalry fought and defeated my regiment, the 65th Alabama In fantry (we were only 1 to 7, though). Before they could take possession of the captured city, we set fire to and burned two large warehouses, containing together 45,000 bales. This cotton in Liverpool would at this day realise the pretty little sum of £2,700,000." The Rival Ministers. -s-- The Hull Packet states that a very amusing cor respondence between the Rev. T. S. Bonnin, curate of Sculcoates, the Rev. J. Byron, rector of Killing holme, and the Archbishop of York, has just been published. Sculcoates Church is the place most generally favoured by those happy mortals who are desirous of being joined in holy wedlock. And, as Sculcoates owns a population of some 50,000 in habitants, it is scarcely likely that Mr. Bonnin, who has to discharge unaided the clerical duties of the parish upon a miserable stipend from the non-resi dent vicar, can personally ascertain the truth of the declarations of those who, professing to be residents in the parish, require the banns of marr i ag e to be published in his church. It seems that some short time ago a certain Henry Morton and Harriet D. Sharpe, parishioners of Killingholme, had the banns of marriage published, and were duly married in Sculcoates Church. Whereupon the Rev. Mr. Byron wrote a remonstrance to Mr. Bonnin, and threatened a report to the archbishop. To this letter the curate of Sculcoates gave a characteristic reply, saying, among other things : " It is doubtless true, that from time immemorial Sculcoates Church, simply from the convenience of its locality, may have of ten proved a facilus descen sus matrinzonio, in cases when from various reasons, whether legitimate or not, privacy may have been specially desirable. And it is from a presumed in difference on my part to the prevention of such marriages that I have been frequently taken to task, often in not very courteous language, by more than 50 fat incumbents in Holderness, the Fends, and the Wolds ; their complaints, as in your case, in variably culminating in a proposed invocation of the mitre ; to say nothing of a recent instance some miles beyond Lincoln, reaching its climax in a pro mised roar from the throat of that sucking dove, Convocation—in order to reduce me to their notions of canonical obedience. Now, without entering upon the merits of these grievances, let it suffice, once for all, to state that neither pastoral staff held in terrorem, nor roar, nor repetition of polite hint once already received of three months' incarceration as the due desert of my lack of vigilance in repelling other men's ewes and rams from my fold, shall ever compel me, week after week, as an ecclesiastical de tective, bull's-eye in hand, to patrol this parish, from the Wilberforce Monument to the Stoneferry Waterworks, and from the river Hull to the Ceme tery, in order to ferret out some possible William and Mary who may prefer the alternative of com mitting sin within the vicinity of their own." As, perhaps was to be expected, Mr. Byron, after this letter, did complain to the archbishop, who wrote to Mr. Bonnie, telling him that he had acted contrary to the law as laid down by Lord Eldon in not making proper inquiries, and asking him if he intended to resign his curacy. Mr. Bonnin replies to the archbishop in a style which will make the hair stand on end of half the curates in Yorkshire. He has no intention of resigning his curacy, he says. As to Lord Eldon, it shows how intense historical evi dence is that nobody doubts his existence. Hehopes that the celebrated description of a curate as "a man who excites compassion, a learned man in a hovel, with sermons and saucepfins, lexicons and bacon, Hebrew books and ragged children," and " the man of purple, palaces, and preferment letting himself loose against this poor man of God," is' a thing of the past. He protests against being selected as an exception to all the rest of the Hull clergy to make inquiries which nobody else does make, and he thus concludes : " Considering, then, the incessant claims made in large towns on a clergyman's time—the repose he needs in keeping himself abreast with the demands of each returning Lord's day—the visiting the sick, and other pressing duties --your grace, I think, will pause before imposing upon him an additional task, the results of which are both uncertain, and entirely, if attained, incomme nsura t e w ith the toil expended in order to realise them. The only alternative re maining to your grace is to urge upon your town clergy, as gentlemen and men of honour, to guard as far as possible against all ecclesiastical irregularities, and resolutely henceforth to turn a deaf ear to all unworthy petty complaints from a class of men who can surely console themselves under their little village grievances by good port, comfortable recto ries, pretty wives, fat ponies, an easy life, hunting, fishing, and shooting, instead of reporting' them to your grace, and thereby giving rise to such a profitless correspondence as this, which I hope may THE DEMAND UPON ENGLAND FOR CAPITAL.— England has now more than ever to supply the whole world with capital. We have the pick of the trade ot the world, and its consequent profits, and we cannot employ those profits better than by stimulating the industry of our customers by wise advances of funds. We not only thus sow the seeds of more extensive trade, but we enable our population to acquire the luxuries of civilisation in increased profusion. At the present moment it is a most satisfactory sign that, although loans are wanted from us in nearly every region, they are all for the purpose of increasing the productions with which we are to be supplied. The Viceroy of Egypt wishes to obtain £3,000,000, but it is entirely to keep up and ex tend that remarkable development in the industry of the country which has been facilitated by the introduction of English machinery, and the labours of English and French engineers. Cuba seeks £400,000, to give increased effici ency to her already profitable railway system. Greece, it is said, is at length, seriously contemplating some arrange ment of her dishonoured debt, in order to obtain £1,500,000 to enable her to reclaim some of her richest lands. Spain and Austria are alike eager to draw upon us for industrial purposes, and aro prevented only by the remembrance in this country of former breaches of commercial good faith as regards the former, and want of confidence, caused by the prohibitive system of the latter, both of which evils, it may be hoped, are destined speedily to disappear. In Italy, from cne end of the country to the other, there aro schemes of improvement that might well attract unlimited attention were it not for the danger of the present debt and ex penditure of the State, caused by the maintenance of the army. In the Danubian Principalities the opportu nities aro equally abundant, although capitalists will prudently want to see something more of the work ing of the new Government before committing them selves there to any important extent. As regards the 'United States, the need for capital is such as has never been paralleled, since there is the waste of four years' wild destruction among 25,000,000 of the Anglo-Saxon race to be repaired at a rate which, to satisfy the impatience of the people, must be little short of magical. Brazil and the Argentine Republic may seem to constitute exceptions to the pacific character of the purposes for which loans are required, their immediate needs having arisen from the war with Paraguay. But that war is almost a commercial war, and its success will have the effect of opening up to trade one of the richest regions of South America, a region accessible by the finest rivers, inhabited by a naturally vigorous, although ignorant, population, and which for more than 30 years, under the rule of the Dictator Franci, and his successors, Lopez and his son, the present ruler, has been sealed in utter barbarism.—Travers's Circular. Naval and Military Intelligence. The iron-clad frigate Bellerophon, of 16 guns, upon the trials of which the future construction of the British navy so much depends, had steam up for the first time late on Tuesday, and yesterday steamed out to the Nore and back for the purpose of affording the engineers who have built her engines (Messrs. Penn and Sons) an opportunity of turning her engines round for an hour or two preparatory to taking the ship upon the measured mile to-day, and likewise for the purpose of affording Mr. Reed, the chief constructor of the navy, who was on board, an opportunity of making a preliminary trial of the balanced rudder with which this ship is fitted. Messrs Penn were represented in the trial by Mr. Matthew, and the run was attended by most satisfactory results. Although this was the first time of steam being admitted to the powerful engines of this ship, which are fitted with surface condensers and all recent fuel-saving appliances, the ship, as soon as she was clear of the sand-banks off Sheerness, started off at a speed of nearly 14 knots, and after running for two or three hours returned to the har bour to await the full speed trials of to-day. The action of the new rudder was most remarkable, the ship turning completely round at high speed from one direction to the opposite one in 1 minute 48 seconds. The Helicon, paddle, improved despatch vessel, Commander Morgan Singer, was placed in dock yesterday at Portsmouth to clean her copper, &c., and prepare for her trial with the Salamis in the Channel. Both vessels will now start under equal conditions, the Salamis having been docked very recently. The Vimiera, sailing convict ship, belonging to Dunbar and Co., of London, yesterday received on board at Spithead 95 convicts from the convict prison at Portsea, and afterwards sailed for Port land and Plymouth to fill up her complement from those prisons previous to finally sailing on her foreign voyage. The engines of the Valiant, screw iron frigate, on the trial of the ship and her machinery in Stokes Bay, on Monday, gave an indicated horse-power of 3,560, or nearly five times their nominal power, with a maximum number of revolutions of the engines of 61. This gives a fair promise that when the Valiant is commissioned and brought down to her load water-line she will prove to be the fastest vessel under steam of her class. The Florence Nightingale, a vessel built by the Engineering Shipbuilding Company at Millwall for the special conveyance of invalids from the Solent to Netley Hospital, has been received by the autho rities of Woolwich dockyard for inspection and approval prior to being sent to Portsmouth for ser vice. She is iron built and is flat, drawing only 2ft. of water. She is masted and rigged fore and aft, so as to preserve a steady buoyancy, and is hand somely fitted up, in accordance with the purpose for which she is intended. There are cranes to lift the invalids on board when in their cots, and below easy chairs, sofas, &c., of the most approved form. A new steam launch, fitted with machinery by Messrs. John Penn and Son, of Deptford, yesterday went down the river from liroolwich on trial. Her steam power is of eight horses, and speed about seven knots. The trial was satisfactory. She is intended for the flagship Bristol, now being fitted at Sheer ness for the coast of Africa. The screw steam frigate Arethusa, 35, Capt. R. J. J. G. Macdonald, from Portsmouth, which arrived in Plymouth Sound on Tuesday, was removed yes terday into Hamoaze for the purpose of being docked and having her bottom examined, preparatory to another trial with the Constance and Octavia. The screw steam troopship Dromedary, Com mander J. H. Allard, from Sheerness, which arrived at Plymouth on Tuesday, has been filled up with coal, and now awaits final orders for proceeding to her station, the West Coast of Africa. Col. Borton, C. 8., commanding at Colchester, has appointed Major Anderson, 56th Regiment, Capt. Grain, R.E., and Surg. Nellie, 17th Lancers, a per manent garrison sanitary comniittee, in accordance with a circular memorandum lately received from the Horse Guards. Capt. Hill, of the Ist, is ordered to proceed to India ; Lieut. White, of the 6th, is to join the service companies ; and Lieut. Lambard, of the 54th, is to join the depot until the arrival of the service companies. The time-expired and invalided soldiers brought to England in the ship Louisa, the arrival of which at Spithead has been announced in The Suit,iwere yesterday disembarked from the ship and forwarded to their several destinations—the invalids to the Royal Victoria Military Hospital at Netley, and the time-expired men to their regimental depots. The Louisa afterwards sailed for London. The Orontes; screw troopship, Capt. li. W. Hire, is under orders to sail from Portsmouth for China. She will call at Plymouth Sound with supernumerary naval officers and seamen 'for ships on the China station. Officers ordered a passage in the ship, we are requested to state, should be on hoard on the 25th inst. The following appointments have been made at the Admiralty :—Commander W. A. Gambier, to the Formidable, for service in the Bristol ; Com mander R. A. E. Scott, to the Research, vice Wilmshurst, appointed to the Fisgard, for service in the Prince Albert ; Commander Arthur J. Innis, to the Alert, vice Majendie, promoted; Lieut. P. E. Luard, to be lieut. and commander of the Havock gunboat, vice Barkley, promoted ; Lieut. Malcolm M‘Neile, to the Greyhound ; Lieut. Walter B. Bridges, to the Helicon ; Sub-Lieut. Gerard N. Noel, to the Basilisk ; Hussey C. Vivian, naval cadet, to the Constance ; Corbet C. Edwards, assist.-paymaster, additional, to the Octavia ; Chas. W. King, assist-paymaster, to the Narcissus ; Allen C. Dennys r acting second-master, to the Vic tory, as supernumerary ; Reginald F. Yonge, master's assistant, to the Terrible ; Francis Pow lett, iancaonab master's assistant, to the Helicon ; John H. clerk, as supernumerary, to the Royal Adelaide ; Joh n S. R amsey an d R eg i na ld C . Hod deassist - clerks, additional, to the Octa v ia ; W. Brown, chief engineer, to the Basilisk ; G. F. Boothe, chief engineer, to , the . Greyhound ; William G to r th ey e h ß ou as n ile ri‘ t oc l;, ,es i n e s h , r o d or W rc eGnigbisnoene,re:itgci)n the, °Pfirst class assist.-engineer, to the P M'Garallan and W. N. Taylor, first-class Henry G. John ss s is to t i .- engineers, to the Basilisk ; acting second-class assist-engineer, t o t h e Grey ' hound. The following appointments have been made in the Royal Naval Reserve :—To be Sub-lieut. Alex ander APPetrie ; to be Hon. Lieut., Richar.l Frankland. ADVERTISEMENT.' - Holloway's Pills. The Body's Bulwark.—Nine-tenths of the maladies afflicting adults depend upon a disordered state of the stomach. Holloway's pills correct the symptoms of indigestion by acting healthily on the gastric juice and wholesomely exciting the liver. They dispel flatulency in incipient indigestion, and overcome heat, distension, and pains attending more ad vanced or neglected cases. These pills invigorate and soon restore the dyspeptic from the great and sudden depression of strength always accompanying stomach disorders or biliary derangement. They beget cheerfulness, vigour, and happiness. In rectifying disorders of the digestive appa ratus these pills prov e th em selves the pro m ptest preven tives of di sease . Th ey ra i se a b u l war k again st all ap proaching maladies, and preserve freshness, health, and life. Great English and French Railways. THE LANCASHIRE AND YORKSHIRE. This important system has been struggling during the last three years with many and great difficulties, occasioned by the pressure of the American war ; and perhaps no other European railway property was so seriously affected by that terrible convulsion, unlesi indeed it was the Western of France. The shareholders of the Lancashire and Yorkshire have shown, however, great and deserved confidence in the undertaking, and the ordinary stock has always been at a respectable premium, even during the last four trying years. Now, however, that the terrible civil warhas at last ceased in the United States, Lancashire has regained a large mea sure of her old industrial activity, and the Lancashire and Yorkshire has profited in consequence, and may be said to be enjoying a renewed lease of prosperity. The original undertaking, which constitutes the basis of the present Lancashire and Yorkshire enterprise, was the Manchester and Leeds, but an amalgamation with the East Lancashire, and leases and other arrangements with the North Union Preston and Wyre, &c., have placed a considerable extent of railway under the control of the Lancashire and York shire Board. The Preston and Wyre section, we should state, is leased to the Lancashire and Yorkshire and London and North-Western, but is worked by the former company, which was conducting traffic upon the following length of way at the dates indicated :—Dec. 31, 1862, 403 miles (378 miles double and 25 miles single) ; Dec. 31, 1863, 410 miles (385 miles double and 25 miles single) ; and Dec. 31, 1864, 410 miles (385 miles double and 25 miles single). The traffic acquired, the working expenses incurred, and the profits realised upon this mileage in 1862, 1863, and 1864 were as follows : Year. Revenue. Expenses. Profits. 1862 ... £1,732,122 £846,003 ... £886,119 1863 1,845,016 860,583 ... 984433 1864 2,027,692 ... 835,098 1,192,594 In 1861 the profits were returned at £1,034,012, and we believe they even exceeded that amount in 1860, when the industrial life of Lancashire appears to have attained its maximum development ; but in 1863 and 1864 the net re venue again displayed great buoyancy, and this probably will witness a still further increase of revenue. The pro fits realised represent very accurately the general course of Lancashire affairs in 1861, 1862, 1863, and 1864 ; and it is satisfactory to note that the ground lost in 1862 was in a great measure recovered in 1863, while 1864 pretty well made good all previous shortcomings. We believe that as regards the figures given above for 1864 an addition of about £7,500 ought to be made to the amount set down for working expenses-and a corresponding amount deducted, of course, from net profits-for the company's shares of re sponsibilities incurred in connection with the North Union, of which it has a joint lease in conjunction with the London and North-Western. We regret that we find it necessary to speak with a certain vagueness on this sub ject, but the accounts immediately available for 1864 afford no positive information on the subject. We may safely set down, however, the net profits for 1894 at about £1,100,000, and accept it as a fact that the position of the system at the close of 1864 was about as good as it ever had been. In the first half of 1864 the rough revenue increased to the extent of £122,506, and the traffic continued to expand until October, 1864, when a certain gloom again stole over Lancashire ; nevertheless, the second half of 1861 yielded on the whole an additional rough receipt of upwards of £60,000 as compared with the corresponding six months of 1861. In the first half of 1865 the traffic revenue, in cluding the receipts of the Preston and Wyre section and the Manchester, Bolton, and Bury Canal, amounted to £1,012,344, as compared with £986,057 in the correspond ing half of 1864, showing an increase of £26,287. This re sult was satisfactory, so far as it went, but the increase was not sufficient to provide for an augmentation of £28,359 in the workini expenses, and of £13,904 in the fixed charges on capital at present unproductive ; and the balance avail able for dividend on the ordinary stock on June 30, 1865, was reduced to £337,072, as compared with £368,127 June 30, 1861. The additional working expenses and fixed charges for the past half-year amount to £42,263, whb, added to the balance available for dividend on the ordinary stock, would make up a total of £379,335. It may appear at first sight that there is an awkward difference between this sum and the total of £368,127 previously indicated as available for June 30, 1864; but the apparent discrepancy is explained by the fluctuations in the balances carried forward. The dividend paid upon the ordinary stock for 1861 was 5-1- per cent. ; for 1862 . (when the cotton famine was felt in its full force), 3i per cont. ; for 1863, 41 per cent. ; and for 1864, 5i per cent. For the first half of 1865 the dividend was at the rate of 51 per cent., as compared with a rate of 54 per cent. for the first half of 1864, show ing a falling off, from causes already indicated, of per cent. The increase in the working expenses arose princi pally in the cost of fuel, repairs, and compensation, which last item, by the way, presents an increasing gravity to railway proprietors. The cotton crisis prevented, in the case of the Lancashire and Yorkshire, the rapid increase in the capital account witnessed during the last three or four years in other great English railway companies. Without taking account for the moment of the capital engaged in leased lines, we find that the amount of capital raised by shares and loans by the Lancashire and Yorkshire at the close of 1861 was £19,272,706; at the close of 1862, £19,790,778; at the close of 1863, £19,913,571; at the close of 1864, £20,255,371; and June 30, 1865, £29,677,839. The entire additions to capital in the 42 months comprised be tween December 31, 1861, and June 30, 1865, would thus appear to be £1,405,133. The amount of ordinary stock in existence at the close of 1861 was £12,093,594 ; of preference stock, £2,631,943; and of loans £4,527,169. The corresponding totals June 30, 1865, were :-Ordi nary stock, £12,093,594 ; preference and debenture stock, £3,751,305 ; and loans, £1,829,940. No additional ordinary stock was thus created, in the 42 months ending June 30, 1865 ; but preference and debenture stock was issued to the amount of £1,102,362, while additional loans were contracted to the amount of £302,771. With regard to the loan capital, a very largo amount appears to have been borrowed within the last 18 months, the amount out standing December 31, 1863, having bean returned at only £4,096,371. Tho share and loan capital of the North Union, leased jointly to the Lancashire and Yorkshire and the London and North-Western, amounted at the close of 1863 to £1,143,212, so that the capital represented by what is popularly known as the Lancashire and Yorkshire rail way may be stated roughly at between £21,000,000 and £22,000,000, to serve interest upon which profits are now annually acquired to the amount of about £1,100,000, although in the exceptional year, 1862, the net revenue fell considerably below that standard. Following the example of the London and North-Western, it will be seen that the Lancashire and Yorkshire directors have always had a very large amount of ordinary stock in existence, although during the last two or three years the proportion of ordinary capital to the whole amount raised has been declining. It is something, however, in a £21,000,000 con cern to be able to point to a solid £12,000,000 of ordinary stock, and that stock, too, at a premium of 20 per cent. We hare sketched in fair, rough, broad outlines the po sition of the company at the close of June, 1865 ; but if we go into details as to the traffic we must stop short at tho close of 1863, although it is important to remark that in 1861 the traffic increased to the extent of about £lBO,OOO as compared with 1863, the largest share of the augmen tation being contributed by goods. Considerable as was the increase in the revenue of 1864, it did not fully represent the increase in the actual number of passengers or weight of merchandise conveyed. To review now in detail the treffic of 1863-The number of passengers conveyed in that year over the Lancashire and Yorkshire proper was 16,210,097 (against 15,010,539 in 1862). This great circulation may be discom posed ay follows :-First-class, 1,882,836.; second-class, 3,684,549; third-class, 10,642,712. The number of holders of season or periodical tickets was 2,385. The passenger trains also conveyed in 1863 1,592 carriages, 5,531 horses, and 31,312 dogs. The total receipts from passengers in 1863 wore :-First-class, £141,920 ; second-class, £130,789; third-class and pailiamentary, £332,347; and periodical tickets, £22,246. The accessory receipts of the quick trains were £48,196, and £5,590 was derived from the-cOnvey ance of mails, making the total earnings of the coaching department during the year £741,107. Turning now to the slow train service, wo find that the number of cattle con veyed in 1863 was 190,602; of sheep, 494,136; and of pigs, 60,154. The quantity of coal and coke transported was 2,112,764 tons, and of other minerals 805,440 tons. The quantity of general merchandise conveyed was 2,586,420 tons (against 2,415,185 tons in 1862). The revival of Lan cashire industry in 1863 was forcibly reflected in the con veyance of 2,112,764 tons of coal, while in 1862 the corre sponding total was only 1,914,412 tons. The earnings of the slow trains were-from live stock, £25,906; from coal and coke, £141,237; and from general merchandise, £870,011, making an aggregate of £1,037,154, while in 1862 the cor responding total was only £975,052. The number of pas senger trains run in 1863 was 205,695, and of goods trains 132,259; and tho total distances traversed by the former were 3,405,257 miles, and by the latter 2,876,238 miles. The average faros charged in 1863 were-first-class, 1.58 d. per mile; second-class,l.3ld. per mile ; third-class, 0.76 d. per mile. These detailsrefer exclusively to the Lancashire and York shire proper, but it may be well torecall some of the results established on the Preston and Wyre section. Upon this line 602,038 passengers were conveyed in 1863-96,543 first-class, 155,376 second class, and 350,119 third-class; there were, besides, 1,452 holders of season and periodical tickets. The movement of live stock comprised 15,410 head of cattle, 2,315 sheep, and 8,031 pigs. The quantity of coal and coke carried was 97,305 .tons; of other minerals, 74,118 tons ; and of general merchandise, 72,318 tons. The total distance traversed by 19,604 trains was 185,749 miles. Tho passenger fares cliargod wer e ra th er l ower th an on th e general system-th e thi r d -class charge, for instance, being only at the ra t e o f 0.6 d. per mile ; and the receipts from passengers wore-fi rs t c1a55,.£9,271 ; sec on d c l ass ,£lo , o36 ; third class, £13,738 ; and and dTiltne es ai a l c s c pr s o o d ry uce r d ece2t o s o, o m f t a l k m in q g uic t l h e e tr tr a o i t i a is l periodical tickets, .E 1,438 ; or r w e 3e v 4r e e n 4£2 u B3 e : f 6n r o o 2a m 'lla. coaching for the year £37,485. The receipts from live stock were £498; from coal and coke, £4,771; from other minerals, £7,092 ; and from general merchan dise, £16,909 ; making the slow train revenue of 1863 £29,270. With respect to working expenses, we may note that they amounted in 1863 to £830,782 on the Lancashire and Yorkshire proper; that total being made up as follows : -Maintenance and renewal of way, £152,359; locomotive SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS. TimEs.—The trial of John Currie for the murder of Major De Vere has failed to throw any new light on the motives or circumstances of that atrocious crime. The coroner's inquest had already elicited all the material facts of the case, and they were such as to render a conviction inevitable. Never perhaps was there less room for doubt or extenuation, never was the task of a prisoner's counsel more hopeless, and never hasthe sentence of death been pronounced on one less deserving of compassion. It will be re membered that Currie was a private in the Royal Engineers, quartered at Brompton Barracks, near Chatham, and that his victim was a first captain in the same corps, and instructor in field fortifications. Since Currie had joined the regiment, on Sept. 1, 1864, he appears to have been several times on the black lists. Though one of his officers testified on the inquest that he was a sober and well-conducted man, it was shown that he had been four times under punishment for " exceeding his pass and returning drunk." At all events, while under file instruction, he more than once got into trouble for his idleness an 1 sulkiness under reprimand. On one of these occasions his sergeant reported him, and Major De Vere ordered his working pay to be checked for a day, whereupon Currie doggedly refused to work, and for that offence sent by the colonel to the cells, and put through a course of extra work. It was then doubtless that he meditated the cowardly vengeance which he afterwards executed in cold blood. On the 11th of last month Major De Vere was standing with other officers on the parade ground of Bromp ton Barracks about 1 o'clock in the afternoon. Currie was in wait for him at the open windo w of his own barrackroom with two loaded rifles. Presently - Major De Vere moved a few paces away from the rest to give some orders, when Currie took a deadly aim and shot him through the back. The major lingered for 11 days, but died on the 22d from the effects of the wound. Immediately on the shot being fired Currie was taken into custody, admitted that he had done it, and pointed out his rifle just discharged. His manner in addressing the officer who questioned him was respectful and perfectly collected. On being asked by a comrade what made him do it, he calmly replied, " Why wouldn't I do it ?" adding that Major De Vere was a rogue, a tyrant, and a thief in his heart, and that he had scrupulously singled him out, so as to injure no other officer. He has since expressed no contrition, but, on the contrary, entire satisfaction at his deed, and re ceived the news of Major De Vere's death with the utmost unconcern. In fact, his conduct from first to last has been that of a deliberate and self-pos sessed murderer, looking before and after, but with much less regard for his own safety than for the destruction of his enemy. - It is shocking to realise such a state of mind, and more shocking still to be compelled to doubt whether it is by any means un common. Aristotle, in distinguishing the passion of hatred from that of mere anger, remarks that the latter aims at inflicting pain only, while the former desires nothing less than the annihilation of its object. It is to be feared that the worse of these two feelings is no stranger to a great many minds, though held in check by powerful restraints. Avarice, lust, envy, or revenge, are all equally capable of producing it, and there are probably thousands who, without having the nerve to commit murder, are nevertheless murderers in their hearts. What Mr. Sleigh calls by a figure of speech " an uncontrollable morbid impulse," that is, an intense and imperious longing to put some obnoxious person out of their way, is felt by all these people, but it is not really " uncontrollable," for it is in fact controlled by the fear of the gallows. The difference between their mental condition and that of Currie, so far as appeared from the evidence, is simply that his love of life, being less intense than in most men, was not quite sufficient to overbalance his vindictive instinct. He fancied he had been harshly treated by Major De Vere, and brooded over it to desperation. Whether he had or not, and whether, as was sug gested at the inquest, Major De Vere was too severe a disciplinarian, hardly affects the question. No one can go through life without experiencing numberless wrongs, both real and imaginary, and resisting many " uncontrollable" temptations to retaliate for them. Indeed, it was rather Mr. Sleigh's object to discon nect the crime of Currie from the alleged tyranny of the Major, since the admission of a malicious motive would have militated against the theory of morbid impulse. As, however, there was not the faintest proof or presumption of any insanity in the prisoner, or any peculiarity about the act except its careful premeditation, he might as well have advised his client to plead guilty. In this case it is hardly probable that a single voice will be raised in favour of commuting the sentence. The most zealous oppo nents of capital punishment recognise certain mili tary offences as au exception, at least when com mitted on active service. It is not very easy to reconcile the principle of this exception with the assertion, so often made in the same quarters, that death is not the most deterrent of penalties. Still it is worth something as a testimony to the necessity of enforcing discipline in our army a t any cost. Perhaps old officers, both naval and military, are predisposed to detect degeneracy in the British sol diers and sailors of our own day. Perhaps they too easily forget the mutinies and half-mutinies of for mer times, the complaints which have never ceased to cause anxiety at the Admiralty, and the com ments of the Duke of Wellington himself on the behaviour of those Peninsular troops who were ready to "go anywhere or to do anything." Still, it is vain to shut our eyes to the statistics furnished by the calendar at each successive assizes, and to the still more formidable increase of " military - murders." At Winchester, for instance, it has sometimes happened that two-thirds of the whole number of prisoners tried wore her Majesty's uniform ; in other words, that a few thousand men, who ought to be under strict surveillance, have committed more serious crimes than all the other inhabitants of Hampshire. This seems to prove either that a large proportion of the worst characters enlist, or that they are sadly deteriorated by the service. Whether the present state of the army be due to the materials whence it is drawn, or to some less obvious fault in the system, we cannot pretend to say. It is for the Horse Guards and the War-office to probe the evil to its source, but the public, who pay many millions fora force numerically small, have a direct interest in the efficiency of its discipline. 'They will never be secured by rendering the Mutiny Act more strin gent, or by enabling such assassins as Currie to be tried at once by a court-martial. Such changes may or not be desirable, but they are not recom mended by our recent experience of military jus tice. Moreover, there are many men who would prefer to be shot by their own comrades to con fronting a crowd on a scaffold. What is really im portant is, that conviction and punishment should follow close enough on the crime. The act under which Currie was transferred, on the application of the Secretary for War, to the Central Criminal Court has done much to abridge the interval which might otherwise elapse. His execution will be a warning to mutinous spirits less reckless of conse quences than himself, but executions alone, how ever numerous and exemplary, will never restore a healthy tone of subordination to the ranks of our army. Post —" The Women of Mississippi," to the number of about four hundred and twenty, have taken a step which seems likely to bring to a crisis the fate of Mr. Jefferson Davis, the ex-President of the late Southern Confederation. They have asked for him that which he has not yet asked for himself —a free pardon at the hands of President Johnson. Now that this petition is presented the natural won der is that nothing 9f the kind was presented be fore. But better late than never, and better that a few hundred ladies should appeal to the President, even though in vain, than that he should either linger in jail prostrate in strength and spirits for an indefinite period, or be hurried to execution through the mockery of a trial, without one word of remon strance or appeal from those whom he served so well, and in whose cause -he risked and lost every thing. We confess that we are not sanguine of the success of the petition. Nothing could be easier than to put off such an appeal without an absolute or ungracious-looking refusal. A few careful words of assurance that in the treatment of Mr. Davis the interests of justice and the United States should be tempered with mercy would commit the President to nothing, and leave the fair appellants nothing to complain of. Unfortunately for the cause of the petitioners the person with whom it rests to grant a pardon is not easily accessible to the motives which the ladies have urged. They rest their case upon a few very simple and obvious points. Mr. Davis, they say, had always been a prominent poli tician. There had long been " sectional strife fos tered by extremists both North and South," and when this came to a crisis how could Mr. Davis re fuse the call of the almost united voice of the South ern people to preside over their councils ? He only took in war the prominent position he had always held in peace, and though the fortune of war has gone against him, yet as the Southern States have returned to the Union, and Mr. Davis himself is ready to accept loyally the issue of the struggle, he ought not to be visited with the vials of Northern wrath. Such is the plea of these ladies of the Mis sissippi, and it is one which the whole civilised world will endorse, with the exception, perhaps, of Mr. Bright, who does not seem to think that an Ameri can President can do a wrong or unwise thing. The truth is that the execution of Mr. Davis for the part forced upon. him by the course of events in the South would scandalise the world. Scarcely less scandal ous is the treatment which he is now undergoing. People , on this side of the Atlantic who earnestly desire to see every spark of feud or strife stamped out, and the. return of b ro th er l y feeling and federal unity brought about as speedily as possible, ask con tinually on what conceivable ground of common jus tice or political expediency the treatment of Mr. Davis is justified ? Is it intended to wear him out by the rigour of prison discipline? Is he to be kept in a state of abject, unworthy misery merely to gratify a vindic tive passion on the part of the Northern populace? is it that the President himself gloats over. the subjuga tion of the leader of the vanquished Confederates , and feels a low pleasure in harassing him with petty mortifications, and in prolonging the terrible sus pense between life and death ? Is it that this broken down man is to be left to eat out his own heart ill almost unendurable confinement, in order that secretly inflicted misery may terminate that life which could not, without eternal disgrace to the Union, be taken by the public executioner ? It is not from any personal feelings towards the Presi dent that these questions are asked on this side of the sea. Englishmen watch with the deepest interesb the proceedings of the United States Government. Aud when one mail after another comes, and still no news of trial or of pardon ; and only reports of wilder clamours for the prisoner's death, and of clumsy and ill-disguised touting for evidence of his knowledge of the design on President Lincoln's life, people here are driven to ask for reasons, and then such questions as we have asked above rise to every one's lips, and men tax their ingenuity to justify conduct which is utterly repugnant to our notions of law and right. This Mississippi memorial again turns all eyes on the prison of the ex-President, and raises a new feeling of anxiety for the result. But if the Chief Magistrate has not the public spirit or the mercy to set free this broken-down son of an evil fortune, are there no large-hearted men in the Northern States who can see what is magnani mous, and can say so ? In a question which so much concerns the honour of human nature as well as of a great Government, ought the first appeal for generous conduct to come from a few women It is not from the South but from the North that appeals for the life of Mr. Davis should emanate. The States who have conquered, who have regained that which was their darling position—an intact Union—who have at length trodden under foot and stamped out the disaffection of the South, it is for them to suggest that it is nobler to pardon a vanquished enemy, ready to return to his allegi ance, than either to hang him for treason, or pro long his imprisonment in a state of misery and torture which is more like the cruelty of the nations of antiquity than the justice, not to speak of mercy, of an enlightened and powerful people in the nineteenth century. To us it seems that the Legislature of the United States has a great duty in this matter. If there is a spark of generosity in Congress, some one will lift up a voice for Davis. No doubt, in the eyes of Northerners, his crime is great, and we must make allowance for the strength of their feelings and the energy of their hate, but there is such a thing as magnanimity. There is a mercy that becomes the throned monarch better than his crown, and is more patent for healing strifes and winning loyalty, and reclaiming revolted citizens, than all the fire and sword and confiscation which the unchastened revenge of brutal mobs maY, scatter far and wide. If the President of the United States be well advised. he will at once let the world see that he forgives the past and has no misgivings for the future by ordering Mr. Davis's release upon his taking the ordinary oaths of allegiance. But if not, it is for all generous men, both in North and South, to make their voices heard in behalf of the only course that can be adopted without discredit to a great nation. COUNTRY MARKETS HULL.—TUESDAY. At our market to-day a steady trade was done in foreign wheat at a slight reduction on last week's prices. There was a fair show of Bnglish wheat, which the growers held firmly at last week's quotations. The best samples of nevi barley were in request, and made full prices. In beans, peas, and oats no change. The price of linseed advanced' English old white wheat, 43s to 48s ; old red, 38s to 4 45 * Barley, chevalier, 28s to 325. Oats, Russian, 22s to 2 4 , 5 ' Beans, new English, 42s to 435. Peas, English blue, 3 05 to 36s 6d ; grinding, 35s to 35s 6d per 36 stone. LYNN—TUESDAY. We have had another week of uninterruptedly fine weather, with light winds from the south-east. The at tondanceat this market to-day was not so good as of late; there was only a moderate show of old and now wheat, the condition of the latter was much improved, and the trade ruled firm at last week's prices. Beans and peas without alteration. • New wheat, 42s to 50s ; new red, 38s to 40s; old white, 18s to 52s ; eld. red, 45s to 47s per 36 stone. Barley for p m e a r lt g i r n . g, 0 28 a s ts, to 22 3 s 2 t s o ; 2 s i e s co pe nd. r .try 24 , 38 3 3 s o t s o t e o . r d ß i n e Iri s: 2 1 a4rsgteo, 26s to 40s ; small, 42s to 44s per 38 stone. MELTON M 0 WBRAY.—TUESDAY. About the usual quantity of wheat, which sold at prices before quoted. Oats and beans in tolerable supply. White wheat, 44s to 50s ; red, 40s to 47s per 36 stone• Barley for malting, 33s to 358 per qr ; feed, 26s to 31s per 30 atone. Oats 20s to 30s. Beans, old, 39s to 50s; 1 101 —s to —s per qr. S ALISBURY.—TUESDAY. At to-day's market the attendance of farmers, millers* and dealers was larger than for some time past. The OP: ply of both old and new wheat shown was in excess of last week. Holders asked the same money as before, and prices had a down Ward tendency. Old the same as a week ago, secondary less firm. The transactions in barley were con fined to grinding sorts, at former rates. Oats little change' Beans and peas cheaper. The following are the quotations :—Wheat realised from 36s to 508 ; barley, 26s to 36s ; oats, 22s to 30s ; beans, 4 0 5 to 50s ; and peas, 34s to 42s per qr. Tares, from 6s to 3d per bushel ; Best b r ead, 12d ; household ditto, I . lu per 81b loaf. Flour, 32s to 38s per sack. NEWCAS TLE-ON-TYNE.—T UESDAY. The supply of grain from the country was fair, but there were small coastin g an d mo d era t e f ore i gn arr i va l s . 3111 11 °' showed very little disposition for business, and holders being unwilling to press sales of old wheat at a further re duction, little was done at unaltered rates. New wheat 1: per qr. lower. Grinding barley dull at late rates ; malt is higher; beans and peas firm; oats is lower. COAL MARKET. Price per ton at the close of the market. s. ( 1 . s. d. 19 Carway and Duffryn South Hartlepool thHalepool ............ 2g 6 3. Malting 24 0 E Holywell Main l6 0 South Kelloe ......... 20 66 Hetton 2O 6 Heugh Hall ............ 1 9 a Pensher Primrose ~. 18 9 Staffordshire ............. 1 6 ''' Ships at market, 15 ; sold, 13. Foreign Mail Packet List. MAILS DUE. Australia and New Zealand, via Southampton Sept. 18. Ditto, viii Marseilles Oct. 13. Brazil and Cape Verde, by British packet Oct. 4. Ditto, by French packet Cape of Good Hope, Ascension, and St. Helena Sept. 21. China, Penang. and Singapore, via Soulhampton Sept. 1 8 . Ditto, via Marseilles Sept. 26 Faikland Islands Gibraltar, via Southampton India (Calcutta), and Ceylon, via Southampton Sept. l a ' Ditto, via Marseilles India (Bombay), via Southampton. Sept- 25. Ditto, via Marseilles Sept. 1 9 . Mauritius, via Southampton Oct : l °. Ditto, via Marseille 3... Newfoundland .. , Sept- 27 ' Portugal .. ....0ct. 4. Ditto, by private ship to Lisbon.. . United States and British North America, by Bri tish packet Ditto. by United States packet, via Southamp ton - Ditto, via C:rk •... + 22. Ditto, by Canadian packet, via Londonderry..Sep- - West Coast of Africa. Madeira, and Teneriffe . Oct. It West Indies and Pacific (except Bahamas, Cuba, and Mexico Sep t. " g ' Bahamas, via New York. 000 2 7• Bermuda, ditto - Sept* ~, Cuba and Mexico Sept - 4 CONSCIENCg MONEY.—In the report of the Il M fl e Revenue Commissioners just issued, it is stated that 10 ": 4 , writing their report, 1,000 guineas was paid by one vidual as " conscience-money" for unpaid income tB- 1 4 in a former year they received £ll,OOO on the Saul ° count from one individual. Births. BrnivELL.— On the 18th inst., at 91, Onslow-square, '— Kensington, the Lady Selina Bidwell, of a son. DECKWORTIL—On the 18th inst., at Puttenham 1 1 ° 1 ' 9 the Hon. Mrs. W. Arthur Duckworth, of a dauglite ri t. DOUGLAS.—On the 17th inst., at Walm er , th e wife of Ile Henry Douglas, Bengal Army, of a daughter. Marriages. 1 6 .1.11' GORDON—LEFEVRE.—On the 20th inst., at St. Mart 4ll l -,j e at• the-Fields, the Hon. Arthur Hamilton Gordon , "`" n " r ge, Governor of New Brunswick, youngest son of G.S.„„Thly, fourth Earl of Aberdeen, K.G. K.T., to Rachel Psi eldest daughter of Sir John G. Shaw efevre, 1 C 2 . .,1; THOMPSON—TISLEY.—On the 19th inst., at St. G° s 4 Hanover-square, Charles William Thompson , x b illio Charlwood-street, west, Beigrave-road, to ClS t ra Do o " youngest daughter of Samuel Tisley, Esq., of stan's west, London. Deaths. N.B. GRANT.—On the 17th inst., at Elchies, MoraYs'- - James William Grant, of Elchies, aged 77. HoLE:—On the 17th inst., at Dotheridge, Alwingt oll ' von, Lewis - S. Hole, Esq., aged 65. ffi lle" ; HOARE.—On the 15th inst., at Wolvey Abbey, ne w ' ley, Leicestershire, the Rev. Charles Alexander aged 39. org i°l Mundy.—On .the 18th inst., at Brighton, Harriet ao wife of Colonel Pierrepont Mundy, R.A. Affitil e' r WREFORD.—On the 15th inst., at Greenwic b, Wreford, Esq., Retired Principal Purvey or to P. 2 46, Forces, aged 73. of . PEACHEY.—On the 17th inst., Mr. James Pe ache y% St. Paul's-road, Canonbury, and late of 38, ci°' street, aged 72. . ...............--,......................... -- 7 _ - _-- ---- - -- — NC S ' London : Printed and Published b y WILLIAM ANr). .„fRE lg. of No. 112, Strand, Printer , at Tim: SUN 010 0, `‘ . .f: t v Of Strand, in the Precinct of th e Savoy. in the Co"' ' 11Liddlesex.—Thursday, September 21, 1565. P,- pr( Ili tur po: S MA DA Pre, Pia( Rue] the of 1 th. I ba bee of t ha N Mr