The Sun. — London, England, 1848-12-19 00:00:00

WPME, qs that e KIN° nt, says ne, that that a or the fade of mation, ffect, as Austria ,NT. OF a d s pro • 1 of fnr• xt, upo P ness. )r, Lord ts belog for the ,ck Rod' ;o sure' ar the ead, and y several Member, Irliamout le, gajestyli ared the k!bruarf, ingV. DAY) ly in th, his trios corrupt - ov. last. ge. and fir' ad called se, stated lefendia' S of q il 5 Withat , ars up oo d severlq t h e Lora .er that b° Tewton , • o any on e use. Vi r * . F octObe r garB, pOUnUt Witne ss his 01 0 bill. 0 0 gather to rs there , fore they 98., an d Bs bad no -house to muse five tiler per' quartero prisoner ass. lie Witness the pri that be ounter of box Was rom the attemp t emptillP ishMe3l4 IMMO ° lirecti oo lave four )ved coy n Dover , gor th guns 16 lba. ( 00$ of more IS 50oeiw re at firrs t the ens men, the ifficultiO (weather rmidable El of nest t TOP im Gibb , IT abou t nd while h e pit hi ell to the lan fort! ,nstants' „ og led. other 0 'Menge,' ruescisi weather, 414 MONEY and COMMERCIAL NEWS CITY, QUARTER TO THREE. There was an extensiv , demand for Cotton at Liver pool yesterday, so that saies t, the extent of 1,200 bales had bee❑ made, including 3,000 taken by speculators. Rather better prices were being paid tor American and Surat; other sorts wert. anchanged.—Theiltailway Share Market was good, a large business being done, and better prices paid. From the proviraxis generally we have encouraging reports again, and there is much buoyancy of feeling. The statement made at Manchester to a special general meeting of the shareholders in the Bank 9f Manchester, affords creditable: evidence of the 4udgment of the committee appointed to investigate its affairs. The estimated surplus is expected to be realised, and a dividend of Bs. is declared on every share, or an offer is made to purchase the same at 155. per share Whether, hereafter, the business of the Bank will 1.1 resumed, is left for future considera tion. The advicer from the Continent are of a satisfactory character generally. At Hamburgh on Friday last there was some demand for public securities at the rather lower rates current. The inquiry for bills on Lon don was :Ain maintained. The Berlin Bourse was rather better on the 14th instant, having partially ret.ocered the decline occasioned by the orders for the sa!s of stock received from the provinces. At Frankfort, on the 12th inst., the Bourse was scarcely :o good. Dutch Funds are reported firm from Amsterdam under date of the 17th inst. The East Indian accounts read favourably, and the markets generally, although not exhibiting extraordi nary activity, were in a healthy condition that promises well for the future. There has been a some what increased demand for money at Bombay, but even this was not expected to last. Ono thing the na tive merchants and speculators began to discover, as we always expected they would, viz., the price of rice has been run up too much on their side to suit the home market. We have now such abundant supplies of produce from all quarters, and are likely to receive such steady additions thereto, that ad vanced values appear to be out of the question. Cheap staples will alone command a market, and extended consumption dt pends thereon. Great complaints are made in these accounts of the state of trade between Singapore and Siam. Formerly several ships were engaged in the traffic, and now, it is said, not one ship finds employment. An urgent re monstrance has been prepared by the members of the Singapore Chamber of Commerce, praying for the in terference of Lord Palmerston. After the material rise of yesterday, and the " rush" of buyers, for no other term will so well express the ex citement that prevailed, a reaction was to be anticipated. There must be an end of buying as well as of selling, or rather a temporary check. Nothing, however, can be said to have changed in regard to the general character of the market, or the circumstances ea'culated to influence it, and especially if we ascribe importance to what occurs in France, where a good Ministry seems to have been formed, and the Five per Cent. Rentes have risen 2 per cent. in consequence. Consols, which yesterday afternoon touched 88 g, being done at both those rates, although they closed at only 884 -a-, have this morning ranged from 88i to 88, and are non 88 to /. The New Three-and-a Quarter per Cents. have been 881 to 1. Bank Stock is 190 to 192. Ex - chequer-bills are 403. to 435. premium. The Foreign Securities have been very good, though slightly lower in some instant. s. Spanish Five per Cents. have been quoted 13 to 13i, and the Three per Cents. 271 to I. Portuguese Four per C. nts. have been marked 25 4 1 to Mexican Stock is 221 to Dutch Two-a-Halt per Cents. have been 49 to 4. A large business has been done in Railway Shares, and for the French lines, at greatly enhanced rates, the inquiry is must active. A few of the English lines which rose most yesterday are more in favour of buyers, and we may include Great Northern, North Stafford, Great Western, and Midland in this remark. North- Western are higher again. ONE rttlcF;ts OF filtintSti FUNDS ("CLOCK. CLOSING RICES. Bank Stock 8 per Cent. Reduced Arms BB% A,' 88 88 New 3% per Cent. Ann 5....... ...... 884 i% x i 58% Long Anna. to expire J an. 1860 Ditto, Oct. 10, 1859 ..... „ 8% 8% India Bonds, 1,000/. Consols for Account 88%%% 88 88% 88 1 / 8 Exchequer Bills. 240. & 2d. 1,000/. March ... 4O 43 p 43 p 1,0001. June 3B 41 p 41 p 5001. March. 4l p 41 p Small, March .. .. 41 44 p 44 p Small, June PRICES OF FOREIGN FUNDS omit CLOSING O'CLOCK. /.EKES. Chilian Bonds 6 per Cent B5 86 86 Grenada Bonds, 1 per Cent. Mexican, 5 per Cent. 1846 2 2 14 22:34 Ditto, Account Peruvian Bonds, 6 per Cents — 41 Portuguese 5 per Cents. — Ditto, 4 per Cent — 25 Ditto, Account 25% % 25% Spanish 5 per Cent. 1840. Ditto, Account Ditto, Passive Ditto, 3 per Cent ...... 27 1 / 2 % 27A Venezuela Bonds, 2% per Cent... Ditto Deferred 4% Dividends on the above payable in London. Dutch 2% per Cent., 12 Guild. Ditto, Account 4 9 14 49 49 Ditto. 4 per Cent. Certificates 74% 74% PRICES OF BUSINESS DONE CLOSING RAILWAY SHARES. PAID. AT ONE O'CLOCK. PRICES. Aberdeen 5O . ... Amber. Nott., Boston, and Eastern Junction 4% ...... % Ayrshire and Galloway.. 7% Belfa s t & County Down 19 ...... Birmingham and Ox ford Junct., calls duly aid, or with a guaran. 20 Do,withoutg u a r a e t e e 20 . Birming, Wolverh'ton, and Dudley, calls duly pd, or with guarantee 10 ..... Do. without guarantee 10 Birming.,Wolverh'pton, and Stour Valley 13/, 145... .. ......... ... Birkenhead, Lancashire, and Cheshire Juno.— 10 ...... Boston, Stamfd & Birm. 5 ... .. Bristol and Exeter 9O ... .. 55 Ditto, Thirds ..... 27 1 / 1 — Buckinghamshire... 141.4<. Caledonian Ditto, Half Shares .. 8..!! I — Do. New 101. Pref..... 5 ... 5 1 % Ditto,Clydesdale J unc 50 Chester and Holyhead... 50 Ditto, Preference l5 Clarence Do. Ist Class, 6 per Ct. 10 Do. 21 Class, 5 per Ct. 10 Do. Government Loan, 4 per Cent. Direct London & Ports mouth Dublin and Belfast June. 35 ...... Dundalk & Enniskillen 20 ...... East Anglia, 251., L. & E. and L. and 11...... 25 ...... Do., 181., E. & H.... 18 •• • •• Do., 3/. 10s. Eastern Counties........ 20 12 1 4 12 12 1 / 8 ... Do. New Guaranteed 6 per Cent. . ..... 10 ...... 11 . Ditto, Extension, 5 per Cent., No. 1 6/. 13s. 4d.... Ditto ditto, No. 2 61. 13s. 4d... % p par Do. North. & Eastern 50 Do., 5 per cent. Do. Quarters 121 .4 — • ..... ••• ••• • Do. New 34 Baatern Union, Class A (late E. U. Shares) 25 Diito, Class A, ditto.... 1 Ditto, Class B (L and B.) 2O Ditto, Class C, ditto... 20 . Do. Scrip (6 per cent.) 10 ...... Di' 20 17% Jitto, ........ Ditto (C. & E.) guar 5 per =L..— 2 I,E ... East Laaeashire Ditto, New Ditto, New Quarters 6 1 4..... Do., 6 per Cent. Pre ference Quarters ... 6 1 A ...... Last Lincolnshire 25 261,x _ ..... ~.., Edinburgh and Glasgow 50 ...... Ditto, Half Shares ... 20 .. Edinburgh and Northers 25 Ditto, Newport Exeter,Yeovil, & Dorch 2 Glaugow, Dumfries, and Carlisle Glasgow Kilmar & Ayr i 0 .... - Do. Preference Consul. Great Northern Do., - 1 / 2 A Deferred ... 12%...... 4% 5. ....... Do., 1 / 2 B 6 per Cent. guaranteed ... ..... 6% ...... 4% 1 4 Do. Extension 2% — •... .-- Great South. and West. (Ireland) ....... 421/2...... —23% ..... ...... 23% Great North of England.loo ......229 Ditto, New, 401 4O Ditto, ditto ... 25 Ditto, New, 301 3O - Ditto, New, 151 l4 .. .. ••••••••• ...... ' Great Western 9O ...... .. .. .. ...... Ditto, % Shares 5O ...... 45% ••• Ditto, 1 4 Shares Ditto, Fifths ... 20 Ditto, New 171........ 13 ... - 10% Huddereeltand blanch. 30 Ditto, Thirds Hull and Selby .. Ditto, Half Shares ... 25 ...... Ditto, 1 4 Shares Lancaster and Carlisle 5() ...... Ditto, Thirds Lancashire & Yorkshire 93 Ditto, ditto Ditto, % Shares Do. Quarter Shares... 17% — ... Do. Fifths... ......... ... 10 Do. Sixteenths 6 l /4 Do. Thirds (Reg.)..... 13 ..... 4% Do. New, Gua. 6 per ct. 5 ...... 5%733 Do. Liverp. and Bury 43 ...... .. . Ditto 1 ,4 (late Hud dersfield and Shelf.) 43 Do.(Waketield,Ponte tract, and Goole) Do. (W. Riding Union) 7 .. ••• —• •• • Do. (Preston & 1 , 1 yre) 25 Do. 1 4 Shares ( A)... 94 — Leeds and Bradford Leeds, Dewsbury, 50 . Do., Half Shares 25 . •. ..• Do., (blue) Scrip.-- Le ~ds and Thirak Ditto, New ...... ••••••• 35 Do., Prefer., 6 per Ct. 3% .. Liverpool, Crosby and Southport 3 tt 21% 1% 5j 5 1 4 V/4 12, 11% % P Par 17% 26i 1% - 8% 79% 45 17 1 17% 1 THE SUN, LONDON, Li carp., Manch star, and Newcastle Junction... 2%...... London & Black wa11...13/. 6s. 8d.... 5% 5 5 Do. Extension ... ... 22 %... London, Brighton, and South C0a5t......... 50 Do. Guarant. 5 per ct.., 9 Do Pref Con 5 per ct 50 ... ..• Ditto, ditt0...... • 1852 50 ...... Ditto, New 51., guar. 6 per cent. London and Greenwich 12/15s 4d... Ditto, Preference... 18/ 17s 2d... London and N. We tern 100 124 123 124% 122 1 ,E 122 Do Quarters (L. & B.) 22 Ditto, New Diito,Fifths ..... .. .. 2 ...... 6% 6 5% Do. 40/.Shares(L.M.) 25 — Do. 101. (M. & B.) A. 9 Do. 10/. (M. & B.) B. 9 .. . Do. 101. (M. & B.) C. 1 ..... 3% 3 Lend. & S.. Western Do. New 501. ... ..... 42%.. Do. New 40/ _ _ Do. Tenths (Consol.) 50 . Ditto ditto ~... .... 40 Ditto. Thirds.. ...-131. 6s. 8d... 4 3 / 4 dis 4 3 / 4 dis. Do.. New Scrip, 1848, P,ef. 7 per Cent. on Deposit, and 5 per Cent. on Calls: London, Salisbury, and Yeovil .. ........ 1 1 4 Londonderry&Coleraine 28 3 / 4 . — „,., — Londonderry and DIMS.. killen 27%...... ... ..... ~... ..... Lowestoft (4 per ct.) Ditto (6 per ct.) Manchester,liuxton,and Matlock. 51.inchester, Sheffield, and Lincolnshire ...100 Do. Quarters(No, 1) 18 Ditto ditto (No. 2)... 25 Ditto ditto (No. 3) ... 114 — ..... ••••• ••• - Ditto, New 101. Pref... 10 Ditto, Gt. Grimsby ... 40 Ditto ditto . ......... 13 —....— ......... — Ditto ditto Ditto Sheffield and Lincolnshire l5 . ... Do., Grimsby Dock... 20 Do., Manchester and Lincoln Union..... 41.25. — Midland —1(10 84 1 ,4 83 ..... 83 Do. Consolidated Pref.loo Do., do., 604 Shares... 20 ... Do. Birm., and Derbyloo 13, ). Consol. Bristol and Birming., 6 per ct.... 100 120% 121% l2O Ditto,Brist. & Glecstr. 38 Ditto, ditto ..... ....... 141. 185..... Ditto,Leieest.& Swan n ington, 8 per ct.guar.100 Midland Great Western Irish 45 — Middlesbro' and Redcar, 6 per cent. guar. IQ ewcastleand Carhsle...loo ~.... — Do. Quarters 25 ... Nuwmarket ........ . .. 20 • .... I.* ..... Do. Extension .........21. 12e.... • •••• Newport, Abergavenny, and Hereford Newry and Enniskillen 7 Newry, Warrenpoint, and Rostrevor .. 20 Norfolk 100 Do. New 20/. Do. Guaranteed 5 p ct. 20 Do. Guaranteed 5 1 / 2 p. 5 Do. do. Waveney it al. 2 ...... N o rthern Counties Union 4 ...... N orth British ........ ... 25 ...... 16 y 4 Ditto, Halves .. Ditto, Quarters , 6 1 - 35 (2 61,4 Ditto, Extension O% ... SlA t Ditto, :fhirds:.... .. 4 1 North & South-Western 2 — NorthiStailordshire North Wales . 3 l /2 North-Western .... Oxford, Worcester , and Wolverhampton ...... 60 Reading, Guildford, and Reigate .. Royston and Hitchiu ... 2 ...... ...... " .-- Scottish Central ' . 24 % Scottish Midland 25 Ditto, New ••• ••••..•••• Sheffield, Rotherham, Goole (Nor. Div.) .. 7% — ... __ Do. do (Sou. Div.) "' 4 —......— Shrewsbury and,Birra— 9 _ Ditto ditto. Class B. 5 Ditto, New Guaranteed 6 Shrewsbury and Hereld. 2 ••„.„ Shrewsbury & Chester ( Nor. W. Min.) Ditto Halves ... ditto Bi n .•_. -- ....» — Ditto Oswestry ... .. 17% . _ 1 .. ... Ditto New Do. 8 per Cent. Pref lO - Shropshire Union South Devon 5O ...... Do. Preference South Staffordshire 6% — _ _ -- • _ S,uth Eastern Do.. No. 1 24 Do., N 0.2. .. 22 Do., No. 3 ....... ...... 25 ...... 16 15% Do., No. 4 Thirds Z... 10 South Wales ...... 28 South Yorkshire, Don caster, and Goole Swans. & Loughor & Ca _ moron's Stm. C0a1.... 6 raw Vale Extension ... 8 - Thames Haven Dock and Railway 17% ...... Vale of Neath . .. Waterford and Kilkenny 17% — .. — Waterford and Limerick 47% - .... ... ... .• • •,.. • • the Shipwash Sand; a cask belonging to her, marked Pheenix, has been picked up. INVERKEITHING, DEC. 16.—The Industry, from Burnt Island to Leven, ran on Inchgoure last night, and remains, having received considerable damage. KIRKALDY, DEC. 16.—A schooner belonging to Perth, from Stettin to London, ran on the sands botween Petty• car and Burnt Island last night, during a gale from S.S.W.; crew saved. LIMERICK, DEC. 16.—Tho Rapid, of Newport, broke from her moorings at the quays, and driving against the brig James Orr, bound to .Liverpool, carried away her quarter. Coax, DEC. 16.—The Nonentune, this morning, drifted on Casking Bank, but is expected off next tide without damage. MILFORD, DEC. 16.—The Incentive, of Plymouth, drove on Angle Point yesterday during the gale, and will have to discharge part of cargo. MUMBLES, DEC. 16.—The Bohnelina Mean, from Car diff to Nantes, drove on the Head, striking heavily, and making much water. The Kitty, of and for Youghal, from Newport, drove on the Head, unshipped rudder and sunk; the leakage has been stopped, and she is now afloat. PENZANCE, DEC. 17.—A piece of a deck supposed to have broken away from the vessel which sank near the Wilkie Sands, 14th inst., has been towed in here, it has round skylights, with companion before it amidships ; greatest breadth about 20 feet ; the chain pipes were well secured with tarpauling, and on removing them wheat was found beneath ; decks iron fastened ; the heads of the nails secured with round wood plugs ; there was a small square hatch abaft the skylight, the water way painted lead colour, and inside the companion a wainscot. A water-cask, marked " Wearne, St. Ives," has also come on shore at I'orthaven. Mem. The James Wearne, Mathews, of St. Ives, arrd. at Falmouth, from Alexandria, 26th ult., and sld. 3d inst., for Limerick. The vessel reported yesterday as due from Nantes at this port, is the Josephine, of Rouen, which arrd. at St. Ives, 15th inst. STRANRAER, DEC. 17.—A vessel, bottom upwards, was passed by her Majesty's mail steamer, 15th inst., be tween Donaghadee and Port Patrick. A mast of a square rigged vessel was driven on shore in East Tarbet Bay, 15th inst. The rigging, sails, with part of mast, spars, &c., of a square rigged vessel have been washed ashore in Float Bay. MARKET NEWS.-(THIS DAY.) COLONIAL. SUCAR.—The market for British Plantation conti nues firm, and 500 hhds have been sold, at an advance of 6d per cwt, since this day week. The public sales have comprised 4,000 bags Mauritius, and 3,200 bags Bengal; the former sold with spirit at full rates, but the latter brought an advance of fully 6d. The prices ranged as follows:—viz., Mauritius low to good brown 28s to 32s 6d, and 33s to 36s for grey and yellow, of similar quality. Bengal, Benares, brought 40s 6d to 42s for good to fine white, and 37s to 42s for grainy yellow. Privately an improved demand has existed for fo reign, chiefly for speculation, and sev era l parce l s on the spot have been sold at higher prices. The principal alterations comprise 600 tons of low yellow Manilla at 32s to 32s 6d, duty paid, and about 3,000 bags China at 12s 6d to 13s 6d entered. The quantity of British Plantation landed in the port of London, from the Ist January to the Ist instant, 88,542 hhds 15,504 tierces, against 96,024 hhds 13,451 tierces at this time last year. The deliveries have been larger this year. The stock is 30,623 hhds 5,993 tierces, against 27,776 hhds 3,745 tierces to the corresponding period of 1847. _ COFFEE.-- - 960 bags Plantation Ceylon was all realised at fully previous rates. The stock of British Plantation in the port of London on the Ist instant, was 2,817 casks 3,597 barrels and bags, against 2,561 casks 3,332 barrels and bags at this time last year. RUM.—The ituantity landed in the port of London from the Ist of January to the Ist instant was 31,194 puns 8,353 hhds, against 27,706 puns 8,092 hhds at this time last year. The deliveries for home consumption have been larger this year. The stock has also increased considerably. • RICE.-2,700 bags Bengal at auction was only partly sold at 108 6d to 11s fur good mid white, being again rather lower. SALTPETRE.—Of 2,750 bags Bengal at auction, only 1,800 bags, refraction 9} to 2 3 1 per cent, were disposed of at 25s 9d to 27s 6d, which is an advance of 3d per cwt, the remainder being withdrawn at relatively dearer rates. SPICES.-1,700 bags black Pepper realised 2id to 3id for half heavy to good shot kind Malabar. TALLOW.—P.Y.C. is 43s 6d to 44s per cwt on the spot, and Town 455. TEA.—There is a moderate demand, and the deliveries are good. HAT MARKETS. SMITHFIELD.—Meadow Hay, 21 85 to 31 13s; Clover ditto, 31 lOs to 41 14s ; and Straw, 11 2s to 1/ 8s per load. A fair average supply, and a sluggish demand. CUMBERLAND.—Meadow Hay, 21 108 to 31 15s ; Clover ditto, 31 lOs to 41 12s; and Straw, 11 3s to 119 s per load. Supply tolerably good, and trade dull. WHITECHAPEL.—Meadow Hay, 21 8 s to 31 13s ; Clover ditto, 3/ 8s to 41 16s; and Straw, 114 s to 1/ 9s per load. Trade dull, at the above quotations. Waterfd,Wxfrd,Wicislw, and Dublin Wear Valley 6 per Cent. Guaranteed ... .. ...... 50 Do. do. do. ... 25 Do. do. do. ... 10 ..... ... ..... , — West Cornwall .... West London Do, Do. Ist Class ... 20 Do. Do. 2d Class 20 — W hitehaven & Furness 14 Windsor, Staines, and South Western ..... ... 9th Wilts, Somerset, & Wey mouth 4O lurk, Newcastle, and Berwick. .... .. Do. Original New and Berwick .. ...... ... .. 25 ..... 26% .... ... 26% Do. Extension No. 1. 15 Do. do. No. 2......... 16 Do. G.N.E.Preference 8 York and North Midland 50 Ditto), Preference Do. East and West Rid ing Extension ...... 25 . FOREIGN RAILWAYS. Anglo Italian (late Ita lian and Austrian). ... 5 Boulogne and Amiens... 20 Central of France (Or lileans and Vierzon) ... 17 Ceylon Demerara l5 ... Dendre Valley 4 Direct lionibay and Madras _ ss. . ... Dutch Rhenish ......... 7%..... .' East Indian 3 14 **** *** **** Great Indian Peninsular 1 4 — *** .., ••.• • Louvain ala Sambre ... 7% _ Luxembourg 7 ...... Ditto . ........... Madrid and Valentia... 2 Namur and Liege ...... 20 ... .. _ — Northern of France.... 12 Orleans and Bordeaux... 7 ...... 3;4 LA% 3 !,‘ Paris and Lyons ll ..... Da. Do. . Paris and Orleans ...... 20 Paris and Rouen ...,..... 20 ...... 19% 20 1 4 ... Paris and Strasbourg ... 9 Rouen and Havre Sambre and Meuse 2O ...... •• _ _ Strasbourg and Basle ... 14 Tours and Nantes -- JOINT STOCK BANKS. Colonial 25 - ------ MINES. Australian - 1- LLOYD'S SHIPPING.—(THIS DAY.) LONDON, DEC. 19.—Wind N.E., moderate breeze, and fine. DEAL, Dec. 18.—Wind S. to S.S.W.—Arrd. Arno, Winden, Buenos Ayres. Arrd. from the River, Sym metry, Young, Hobart Town; Alliance, Campbell, Cal cutta; Penelope, Hind, Tobago. Arrd. from the River and sld. George Ann, Brown, Pernambuco, but since put back. Doyen, DEC. 18.—The Bornholm, of Rennebank, w,as passed 3d inst., in lat. 44 N., lon. 39 W., abandoned, by the Goethe, arrived oft Dover. KILRUSH, DEC. 17.--.. The New Liverpool, of London, has put in here with cargo shifted and pumps choked. PORTSMOUTH, DEC. 18.—The Suckers, Neilson, from London to St. Vincent, has put in here with loss of stanchions, rail, covering boards, and sails torn, &c., having been in contact with a large ship off Beachy Head. ILFRACOMBE, Dec. 17. The Anna, of and for Jersey, and the Blomidon, of and from Plymouth, were in contact near this place to-day, when both vessels sank; crew saved. DUNDEE, DEC. 16.—A small sloop has sunk in the outer harbour. The Maxwell schooner was driven on the beach 15th inst., and is much strained. SCARBOROUGH, DEC. 16. —The Tamar, of Goole, from Middlesborough to Boston, got on a sunken rock near this place to-day and sank; crew saved. LIVERPOOL, DEC. 18.—Wind S., fresh .— Sld. 17th, Templar, Ca lcutta ; Queen, Africa • Huguenot, New Orleans; Harvest, Baltimore • Henry ,Baltimore; Juan ita, Philadelphia; Olive, N ew York; Senator, New York. 18th. Sir Thomas Gresham, Bombay; Fanny, Port .au-Prince; Evergreen, Savannah; Granada, New Orleans; Judah Jouro, New Orleans; Chatham, New Orleans; Margaret, New Orleans; British America, Mobile ; Woronoco, Baltimore ; Thomas Bennett, Charleston; Creole, New York; Venilia, St. Stephen's, New Brunswick; Othello, Newfoundland. Put back, 17th, Ceylon, for Jamaica, leaky; Alice Wilson, for New Orleans; Jane, Philadelphia, decks swept, and one man overboard. SHEERNESS, DEC. 18.—Sld. Sauroos, Koster, Batavia. LONDONDERRY, DEC. 17.—The Grace Darling, Dorun, from New York, got on the rocks at Greencastle yesterday. HARWICH, DEC. 18.—The vessel reported yesterday as the York, on shore on the Pye Sand, proves to be the Norfolk, of and from Southwold to London. She has since become a total wreck; crew, part of materials, and about 200 quarters of malt, saved. A foreign schooner, supposed to be wheat laden, is reported to have sunk off STORM AND LOSS OF LIFE. GLastaow, SATURDAY.—This city and neighbourhood I was visited yesterday by a storm ot wind and rain, which was more fatal in its results than any similar visitation which has occurred within the period of our recollection. At an early hour yesterday morning, the wind began to blow in strong and fitful gusts. The day continued stormy throughout, and between four and seven o'clock in the evening the wind blew a perfect hurricane. One of the most distressing circumstances in connexion with the storm occurred about five o'clock in the afternoon, at which hour two men were killed, and a third dan gerously, if not fatally, injured. Under the Paisley-road, near Greenlaw-place, runs the General Terminus and Glasgow Harbour Railway. The road at that spot is carried over the line by a bridge, flanked on either side by a stone parapet wall, nearly breast high. For greater protection to the public, the company recently fixed on the top of the parapets in question large plates of cast iron, about three feet in height, half an inch thick, and secured to the stone-work by strong iron bolts. The place being peculiarly exposed to the wind, which blew with terrific fury down the gully formed by the line of excavation, the surface of the iron plates acted like a lever upon the stone-work, and at the hour already mentioned, the whole south parapet gave way, and fell forward upon the road. Most unfortunately, at this moment, three young men, carters, in charge of two vehicles, were crossing the bridge, all of whom were in au instant felled to the ground, and buried among the ruins. With some difficulty the unfortunate men were extricated and carried into the toll-house. Their names are Hugh Cavan and Matthew Cavan, brothers, and James WlCaught, all of whom belong to Linwood. The first named is the survivor of the party. The storm ap pears to have raged with the greatest fury in the southern district ot the city, as the dismantled condition of many tenements in that quarter sufficiently shows, and several very narrow escapes were made while the storm was at its height. At the harbour, the seamen belonging to the diff,rent vessels were engaged during the gale in taking e ttl happyin jury, to beyond what was occasioned by the grinding o f their learnthat precautions the even v t es d s a e m ls a s g u e s . ta a i l n id ed we m a a r t;ri none of sides against one another. About eleve n o 'clock it began to rain heavily, and the storm abated. The electric tele graph wires were so deranged by the storm that th e y ceased to work.—North British Mail. STORM.— The cold and boisterous weather we have experienced fur some weeks past, underwent a most agreeable change on Thursday, which was as mild and beautiful as a day in spring. Yesterday, however, mat ters returned to their former state; and we were visited in the afternoon and evening with one of the severest storms from the west, that we have had during this very tempestuous season. The wind blew in sudden and fre quent gusts, and with such vehemence, that chimney cans and slates innumerable were precipitated from the houses, so that it was not without considerable danger that people traversed the streets in the evening. This was especially the case in the High.street ; but, so far as we have learned, we are glad .to state that no acci dent occurred. We pnderstand that a mason's shed was overturned in Picardy-place, and that some wooden palings were ,displaced in Brunswick-street and Bee cleuch-street. A large number of the street lamps were also deprived of their tops, and the gas extinguished in various parts of the city. The storm appears to h ave raged with considerable fury in the country, for we lear n that, a large number of the electric Telegraph Company's poles on the line of the Edinburgh and Glasgow Rail way were blown down, and it is reported that, from the number of them lying across the rails, one of the trains was in danger of being thrown off the line.—Scotsman. CORK.—Yesterday (Friday m . orning) our city was visited with a storm, exceeding in severity anything of the kind that has been felt in the south of Ireland for several years previously. At five o'clock, A.M , the violence of the wind had reached its greatest height, and up to nine o'clock, it had not abated in strength. The body of w a t er i n t h e r i ver , w hi c h h a d been graduallyin creased by the heavy rains and the mountain floods, swelled to su c h a h e i g ht on F r id a y m orning, that it over flowed its bank s , and at half-past eight, the hour of high tide, the whole of the flat of the city was inundated. The fury of the storm an d th e great amoun t of rain which had fallen suggested to many of the shopkeepers and others the propriety of preparing for the approaching flood, and they removed their goods and furniture from the ground-floor to the upper stories; but others, with less forethought, neglected the necessary precautions, and consequently sust a ined mu ch damage to property, forin many of the shops and warehouses the flood had risen to a height of three feet. We have, however, heard of no casualties having occurred. The roof was almost completely blown off a house on Sullivan's quay to the carriage -way beneath; but though several persons were passing at the time, all fortunately escaped unin jured. A stack of chimneys which fell in Fishamble lane did considerable damage to some of the opposite houses, smashing windows and shutters. One of the large elm trees on Grenville-place was completely shattered by the storm; and a huge tree near the gate of Dr. Power's residence, on the Thackrock-road, within half a mile of the city, was torn up by the roots. — Southern Reporter. JosEru ADY AGAIN !—The public are cautioned against the rc newed attempts at imposition by the noto rious Joseph Ady. This morning Alderman Woolmer received one of his epistles referring to his having ob tained 10,0004 for Sir Herbert J. Fust, and offering, for a remittance of l/., to interfere in a similar case, " only not so much money." Any hopes of advantage through this source are altogether illusory.—Exeter Gazette. Proceedings are in hand for levying a distress on what is commonly called Mr. Feargus O'Connor's estate at Minster Lovell, for arrears of tithes, Mr. O'Connor neglecting to pay them. It is said the property of every tenant is liable to be taken.—Oxford Chronicle. TUESDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 19, 1848: DICKENS'S CHRISTMAS BOOK. THE HAUNTED MAN, and the GHOST'S BARGAIN. A Fancy for Christmas. ,By Chores Dickens. After an interval of twenty-four months. Mr. Dickens has bestowed upon us, at this festive season, another of his Christmas stories. lie is always wel come to us, and more so than ever, if that be possible, at Christmas. The green covers of his serial fictions are as pleasant to our eyes as the crocusses of spring, or the roses of summer, or the mulberries of autumn. And equally agreeable to us—out of our affectionate recollections of the " Carol"—are the little crimson books emblazoned with golden branches of the holly and the mistletoe, which have for five winters ap peared amidst the glooms of December, and spoken to us in a voice so dear and grateful to our ears as the voice of Charles Dickens. We have intimated, in the whisper of a parenthesis, that the pleasure with which we greet even the,e little Christmas tales by Boz, arises exclusively from our remembrance of the " Carol." We say rightly ; the thought of that exqui site book would put us in a good humour whenever it might recur to us in a moment of dejection ; and, assuredly, the recollection of it must prove amply sufficient to make us look with kindly interest upon any subsequent narrative from the same eminent hand, coming under the same attractive guise, and coming, too (be that never forgotten I) at Christmas. Even when most disappointed in our expectations as to the merits of the story-teller, we shrink from the distasteful duty imposed upon us by criticism — that of quarrelling with his production. We shrink from it, because we call to mind that beautiful ejaculation in the " Christmas Carol " For they said it was a shame to quarrel upon Christmas Day; and so it was, God love it! so it was." Our predilection makes us disposed to welcome Charles Dickens on our Christmas hearth, as the honest folks of Bagdad were wont to welcome the good fairy—with a benediction! When we see the dainty little book lying before us after perusal we experience a sort of remorse, by anticipa tion. We ask ourselves, as Pope did in his " Imita tions of Horace"— " Who breaks a butterfly upon a wheel?" Nevertheless, we shut our eyes to all partiality. The truthfulness of the reviewer looms upon us in a man ner altogether imperative. We sit down to examine the midge with a microscope, and to dissect its fibres with the keen and inexorable edge of criticism—our sternness of temperament not unlike that dis played on loftier occasions by Brutus and by Manlius. Grateful to Mr. Dickens for the tears and laughter drawn from ou r i nnermos t " heart of hearts" by the subtle intonations of his genius, we are not the less resolved to weigh accurately in the balance, the merits and demerits of each of his subsequent productions. " The Haunted Man " will rank not an inch higher than " The Chimes," " The Cricket on the Hearth," or " The Battle of Life"—and those three, as every reader in the United Kingdom knows, never attained any very remarkable elevation. The four stories will be viewed as nothing more than four pretty little fictions, to be glanced through overnight and to be forgotten by the next morning. In none of them are the extraordinary powers of Mr. Dickens, whether in style or naturalness, whether in the sad or in the humorous, revealed with their light of his u nques ti ona bl e wonted vigour. The genius only glimmers out here and there, feebly and at remote intervals. As in, ,. the appeal o f Will F ern ; as in the crooning of Tilly Slowboy; as in the comical ways of Cle:nency . ew corne ; or—to come at last to the volume which is this very day p u bli s h e d —as in the capital portraiture of Johnny and the Moloch ! The conception of. the plot in " The Haunted Man" is perhaps its highest excellence. The construction of the narrative is comparable, indeed, to that which conduced to the transformation of .Ebenezer Scrooge from a curmudgeon into a philan thropist. Redlaw is the man who is haunted, and haunted too by the " awful likeness of himself !" John Leech has embodied the thrilling fancy ofthe author in a masterly woodcut (p. 34), which is the very epitome of Redlaw's contemplative and saturnine character. Tu explain the working of the plot in a few sylla bles :—Redlaw (a renowned chemist, who lectures on anatomy and medicine to a class of students in the theatre of an old college) is haunted by his own shadow. He repines perpetually at the recollection of his miseries, and at last demands from hi s g h os tly visitor the privilege of losing all remembrance of his sorrows, wrongs, and troubles. The spectre com plies. Redlaw is deprived of his memory, and finds by experience that the loss of that faculty is a curse rather than a blessing. As the ghost vanishes, the chemist hears its voice ringing through the darkness—. The gift that 1 have given, you shall give again, go where you will. Without recovering yourself the power that you have yielded up, you shall henceforth destroy its like in all whom you approach." Out of this comes all the confusion and interest of the tale. And cut of the gentleness of Maly—the only one who is spared by Redlaw the diabolical influences of his presence —comes the un ravelment of all the difficulties, and misunderstand ings, and contradictions of the plot. The work is divided simply into three chapters, the first being " The gift bestowed ;" the second, " The gift dif fused ;" and the third, " The gift reversed." That is briefly the scheme of the narrative. It is admirable for its originality, and thrice admirable for the holy truth it inculcates. In a particular which must often have bewildered the minds and darkened the consciences of the reflective, it will tend in,a noble and bewitching manner to" re• concile the ways of God to man." It proves by example, as well as by precept, that God is good in giving us the memory of our afflictions—" that me mory which was the memory of Christ upon the cross !"—r. 184. "May I tell you," says Milly (p. 177), " why it seems to me a good thing for us to remember wrong that has been done us ?" " Yes." " That we may forgive it !" Further on she asks Redlaw, in the event of his re covering his lost f acu l ty, " Would i t not b e a bless. ing to you to recal a t once a wrong and i ts f org i ve . ness ? Again, we repeat, the principle instilled by the volume is exquisitely beautiful. It is calculated to render the reader happier at Christmas. 'Whatever faults we discover in the story, and th ey are ne i t h er f ew nor insignificant, are co nnected solely with the manner of its composition. When we find "Boz" beginning a chapter, for example, i n t h i s wise ( p. 52 ) — " A small man sat in a small parlou r , partitioned off from a small shop by a small screen, pasted all over with small scraps of newspapers" —we marvel whether he mistook this threadbare trickery of language for the humorous. Why the mos t w r e tched hack of all the comic scribblers of Holy well-street, of Grub street, and of Catnach's has used almost these very identical words over and over again usque ad nauseam. Or when we hear Mr. William Swidger dinning into our ears perpetually, "Th at ' s exac tly w h at I say myself, Sir" (a phrase wholly devoid in the abstract of the sma ll est vestige of drollery), we call to mind the agonies of wearisomeness with which we at last came to regard the habitual saying of even Mark Tapley—" There's some credit in being jolly under such circumstanc es ." Mr. Ph i l i p S w i dger is also an intolerable bore with his long, garrulous sentences always ending._" And I'm eighty-seven." Other blemishes we shall not t arr y over , b u t t urn rather to the more felicitous passages of" The Haunted Man." Foremost then amongst them come Master Johnny Tetterby and the immortal Moloch. The first description of the couple is given after the ac count of the other small fry at " Tetterby and Co., Newsvenders :" " Besides which, another little boy— the biggest there, but still little—was tottering to and fro, bent on one side, and considerably affected in his knees by the weight of a large baby, which he was supposed, by a fiction that obtains sometimes in sanguine families, to be hushing to sleep. But oh! the inexhaustible regions of contemplation and watchfulness into which this b a by' s eyes were then only beginning to compose themselves to stare, over his unconscious shoulder! " It was a very Moloch of a baby, on who se i nsa ti a t e altar the whole existence of this particular young brother was offered up a daily sacrifice. It s p ersona lit y may be said to have consisted in its never bein g qu i e t, in any one place, for five consecutive minutes, and never going to sleep when required. ' Tetterby's baby' was as well known in the neighbourhood as the postman or the pot-boy. . It roved from door -step to door-step, in the arms of little Johnny Tetterby, and lagged h eav ily at the rear of troops of juveniles who followed the turn biers or the monkey,. and came up, all on one side, a little too late for everything that was attractive, f rom Mon day morning until Saturday night. Wherever childhood congregated to play, there was littl e M oloch making Johnny fag and toil. Whenever Johnny d es i re d t o stay, little Moloch became fractious, and would not re main. Whenever Johnny wanted to go out, Moloch was asleep, and must be watched. Whenever Johnny wanted to stay at home, .Moloch was a wa k e, and wanted ' to be taken out. Yet Johnny was verily p ersua d e d t h a t it was a faultless baby, without its peer in the realm of England, and was quite content to catch meek glimpses of things in general from behind its skirts, or over its limp flapping bonnet, and to go sta gger i ng about a ith it like a very little porter with a very large parcel, which was not directed to anybody, and could never be deli vered anywhere." It was a peculiarity of this baby," says t h e aut h or further on, " to be always cutting teeth. Whether they never came, or whether they came and went away again, is not in evidence; but it had certainly cut enough, on the showing of Mrs. Tetterby, to make a handsome dental provision for the sign of the Bull and Mouth. ' All sorts of objects were !repressed for the rubbing of its gums, notwithstanding that it a l ways carr i e d, dangling at its waist (u/tic/i Was immediately under its chin), a bone ring, large enough to have repre sented the rosary of a young man. Knife-handles, umbrella• tops, the heads of walking-sticks selected from the stock, the fingers of the fsmily in general, but espe cially of Johnny, nutmeg-graters, crusts, the handles of doors, and the cool knobs on the tops of pokers, were among the commonest instruments indiscriminately ap plied for this baby's relief - . The amount of electricity that must have been rubbed out of it in a week, is not to be calculated. Still Mrs. Tetterby always said it was coming through, and then the child would be herself ;' and still it never did come through, and the child conti nued to be somebody else." Johnny proves in truth to be a daily sacrifice to this blessed infant; and in testimony of it we see him on one occasion, after carrying the Moloch round to be kissed by the family, stagger across the small parlour with " hardly breath enough left to get back to his stool, crush himself again, and pant at his relations!" 'Dolphus, the newsboy, is a worthy brother of Johnny and Moloch. lie enters the shop, dripping. " ' Are you wet, 'Dolphus, my boy ?' said his lather. Come and take my chair, and dry yourself.' " No, father, thankee,' said Adolphus, smoothing himself down with his hands. I an% very wet, I don't think. Does my face shine much, father?' " Well, it does look waxy, my boy,' returned Mr. Tet terby. "'lt's the weather, father,' said Adolphus, polishing his cheeks on the worn sleeve of his jacket. What with rain, and sleet, and wind, and snow, and fog, my face gets quite brought out into a rash some times. And shines, it does—oh, don't it, though!' " Master Adolphus was also in the newspaper line of life, being employed, by a more thriving firm than his father and Co., to vend newspapers at a railway station, where his chubby little person, like a shabbily-dis guised Cupid, and his shrill little voice (he was not much more than ten years old), were as well known as the hoarse panting of the locomotives, running in and out. His juvenility might' have been at some loss for a harmless outlet, in this early application to traffic, but for a fortunate discovery he made of a means of en tertaining himself, and of dividing the long day into stages of interest, without neglecting business. This ingenious invention, remarkable, like many great disco veries, for its simplicity, consisted in varying the first vowel in the word paper,' and substituting, in its stead, at different periods of the day, all the other vowels in grammatical succession. Thus, before day light in the winter time. he went to and fro, in his little oilskin cap and cape, and his big comforter, piercing the heavy air with his cry of Morn-ing Pa-per I'. which, about an hour before noon, changed to ' Morn-ing Pep per which, at about two, changed to Morn•ing rip per !' which, in a couple of hours, changed to Morn ing Popper I' and so declined with the sun into 'Eve ning Pupper l' to the great relief and comfort of this young gentleman's spirits." The account of the breakfast of the little Tetterbys would be inimitable but that it had already been done so well by Dickens in his picture of the Toodles in " Dombey and Son." Here, however, is the pas sage : " The little Tetterbys were not habituated to regard that meal in the light of a sedentary occupation, but dis cussed it as a dance or trot ; rather resembling a savage ceremony, in the occasional shrill whoops, and brandishings of bread and butter, with which it was accompanied, as well as in the intricate filings off into the street and back again, and the hoppings up and down the door steps, which were incidental to the per formance." Milly's exclamation throughout the close of the last chapter, " Oh dear, oh dear, here's another of them Oh dear, here's somebody else who like's me !" is a repetition of the reiterated simplicity of Dot Perrybingle. A nameless little barbarian brat of a boy figures in the narrative, and is only ageeeable inasmuch as he gives occasion for an eloquent and im passioned apostrophe in behalf of the miserable chil dren who are nurtured in the ragged schools. Edmund Longford the student, his lady-love, George Swidger, and the reprobate who ruined the domestic happiness of Redlaw are only so many picturesque dummies. The whole interest of the narrative is absorbed in the proceedings of Redlaw himself, of Sophia and Adolphus Tetterby, together with their peripatetic offspring, Mr. William Swidger and his buxom little wife Daly; but beyond all of them, to ourselves at least, Master Johnny and " the Moloch of a baby !" The book—which is gracefully illus trated by John Leech, by Clarkson Stanfield, by Frank Stone, and by John Tenniel concludes with a Christmas dinner in the large ban quetting-room of the old college, at which, of course, Johnny and the Moloch arrive " all on one side and too late" for anything but the chesnuts. Although we cannot speak in very eulogistic terms of " The Haunted Man," we, in consideration of his former writings, felicitate Charles Dickens upon the indis putable fact that he has no occasion to exclaim, with the gentleman in the ruff and pointed beard, " Lord, Keep our Memory Green !" tions with reference to uture appointments to the Ex cellent gunnery-ship at Portsmouth, but which, it is hoped, will not be enforced. OBlTUARY.—Assistant-Surgeon William C. Torrance (1845), of the Royal Naval Hospital, Port Royal, Jamaica, died at that establishment on the 24th of Oc tober, aged 26 years. He was eldest son of Collector Torrance, of the Excise, Greenock. NAVAL FORCES IN THE HOME PORTS. Now that Sir Charles Napier's squadron have taken their departure, the following is the strength of our naval forces at the home ports: — Beginning with Deptford we shall find that there is not a single pendant flying. There is not an apology for a man-of•war there. Woolwich is almost as deficient of seagoing ships; for besides the Fisgard, 20, commodore's ship, with a com plement of 106 officers and men; the Black Eagle, Ad miralty steam-yacht, complement 38, and a solitary steam-tug, there is only the Tenzer, 3, screw-gun-vessel, complement 38, Lieut. Commander Selwyn, in com mission. Chatham presents us with the PoictifTs, 10, ordinary depot-ship, complement 290, as the only representr.tive of the active forces of the navy, if we except the Fear less, steam-tug. Sheerness, one of the principal and most important of our home ports, has not a single seagoing ship in commission. All that are there are the Ocean, 46 guns, flag-ship, complement, 160, and the Wellington, 10, depot-ship of the ordinary, complement, 270. The only vessel fit to perform any service away from her mo:ir• logs is the Wildfire, 6, steam-vessel, with one gun and 24 men—the admiral's tender, or yacht. Now that the Ganges has left for Cork, there is not a single ship at that port in commission, either fitting for sea or pre paring to be paid off. Portsmouth—th e rendezvous of our home strength— has only one steam-vessel in commission, the Devasta tion, 6, Commander Johnson, that can be called " ready for sea;"—that is, the only vessel that could be dispatchd on foreign service. The Blenheim, 56, screw. guard ship, Captain Austin, C. 8., is here, but not " ready for sea;" but her complement, 265, with, we believe, 100 supernumeraries, could be made available for any of the advanced vessels. The Superb, 80, Captain Purcell, is fitting, and has nearly all her complement—that is, only her advanced complement of 469; but she is not avail able for sea service, nor is she likely to be, from the extensive defects which are daily being di,covered in her, in spite of the paint and putty. The Victory, 22, complement 174, is the stationary flag-ship; the. Exce llent, 48, complement 692 (less about a score of vacancies for officers not filled up), is the stationary gunnery ship; the Illustrious, 10, complement 416, is the depot ship of the ordinary. Then there is the Rolla, with the 200 apprentices; and the F a iry, R o y a l yacht-tender; the Firequeen, steam-tender; the Myrtle, steam-tender; and the Echo, steam-tag—and a e had almost forgotten the Bee, steam-tender, and the Fanny and Portsmouth, admiral's yachts. Devonport, the no less important and westernmost port, has less force in its neighbourhood than Ports mouth. There is not a single man-of-war lying in that noble, capacious, and safe anchorage—the Sound. The Caledonia, 120, Captain Carter, advanced line-of-battle ship, is in harbour. Her complement is 540, but of these some 82 or 100 are in the Racer at Lisbon. There are two of the Falmouth packets refitting—Penguin and Express, 6 guns and 40 men each, and there were also the Llewellyn, 2, Holyhead steam-packet, 35 men, and Confiance steam-tug, with some 20 or 30 men; but these are all the vessels that could be put to sea on an ewer• gency. Besides the above, there are in commission at Devonport the San Josef, 14, flag-ship, complement, 160 ; the Agincourt, 10, depot-ship of the ordinary, comple• ment 416 ; the Nautilus 6, wi►h 200 apprentices ; there are also the Sylph tender, that has not been to sea for a great many months, and the Netley tender, that has done a great deal of work, but is now to be put out of commission. We have thus given the entire naval forces at the home ports, and from these lists our readers will be best able to draw their own conclusions as to the amount of efficient force which could be made available. We will, however, only add one remark—namely, that the Cale donia, at Devonport, could be got to sea only by lock ing up the ships in ordinary to take care of thetuselvts, and drafting the shipkeepers, with the few boats' crews, from the depot to make a respectable complement of hands for her. _ _ There are some very able and good men, petty officers and A.B.'s, on the books of the flag-ships at the ports, but most of them are on their six weeks leave, and few only are available.—Heruld. APPOINTMENTS. Master—James G. H. Thain (1845) to the Penguin, 6, packet-brig, at Devonport. Midshipman—C. Hawkins, to the Shearwater, steam vessel, on the coast of Ireland. Master-Assistant—R. B. Richards, to the Teazer, screw gun-vessel, at Woolwich. Boatswain—James Maynard, to the Agincourt, deck ship of Devonport ordinary, vice Downs, appointed master rigger at Portsmouth Dockyard, vice Andrews, appointed boatswain of Devonport Dockyard; vice Chatfield, superannuated on 951. per annum, after nearly ten years' service in the dockyard. SIR CHARLES NAPIER'S SQUADRON.—PORTSMOUTH, MONDAY.—We have a fine breeze from the south to east this morning. No doubt the ships of squadron got a good offing last night, in which case this would be a leading wind down Channel. The Ganges, 84, Captain H. Smith, C. 8., manned by her advanced complement, 496, and with a draft of sea men riggers from the Poictiers and Wellington, to a,sist in the navigation, sailed from the Nore, on Sunday, for Cork, where she will remain until further orders, but with all her provisions and stores on board for her full complement of 750, ready to proceed to sea at the shortest notice on making up her crew. The Formidable, 84, will :be the next advanced ship commissioned at Sheerness, to supply the place of the Ganges. The Formidable has been in dock above a twelvemonth, the workmen having been employed on her only at intervals. She will be ready now in a few days, but as times go it is altogether uncertain when she will hoist the pendant. The Nile, 92, has been undocked at Devonport, having had her copper examined, cleaned, and repaired, and has been removed to her moorings among the advanced ships. The Fairy, screw-tender, went to Osborne from Portsmouth early yesterday morning, and conveyed the Prince Albert on his promised visit to the Excellent. The Camel, lighter, Faber master, left Devonport for Dartmouth on Sunday, with the necessary gear for raising the schooner Marianne, of that port, laden with Indian corn, &c., now sunk in the harbour. The Tortoise, lighter, left Devonport on Sunday, with stores for Pembroke. The Cadet, convict•ship, left Plymouth on Saturday evening for her destination. RAILWAY INTELLIGEZCE. OPENING OF THE TORQUAY EXTENSION OF THE SOUTH DEVON. Yesterday the public opening of this extension line took place with great eclat and public rejoicing. The weather was moat favourable, and thousands of the in habitants were abroad to be spectators of the first steam caravan careering through the valleys and ravines of that picturesque neighbourhood. At five minutes past twelve a special train left the Exeter station, containing Sir J. Y. Buller, M.P., chair man of the Bristol and Exeter Railway; Sir J. Duck worth, M.P.,Sir T. D. Acland, M.P., with the direct o r s , Mr. John oolcombe (banker) chairman; Col. Harris, Dr. Dliller, Mr. Pratt Barlow, of the Great Western Railway; Mr. Tothill, Mr. Buller, Mr. Jones, Mr. Brunel, the eminent engineer; Mr. G. Carr, the secretary, and others. The train, which also contained a large number of the gentry of Exeter, was decorated with flags and ever greens, and so were the stations along the line. Mr. Mart ley, C.E., the head of the locomotive department, drove the engine; and upon it were Mr. Margary, the resident en gineer; Mr. Herbert Clarke, chief superintendent ; Messrs. Harrison and Dowley, the constructing engi neers; and Mr. Hennett, the contractor. As the train proceeded at a rapid pace to Torquay it was cheered by several thousand people; in fact nearly the whole length of the line was hedged in by the inhabitants of tho dis trict. On arriving at the Torquay terminus the directors were met by a procession, consisting of the commission ers, principal tradesmen, townspeople, and coast-guard, with bands and banners. Amongst the gentry were the Rev. Archdeacon Froude, Rev. Dr. Sutherland, Mr. Vivian. and a large number of the fashionable frequent ers of Torquay. The procession got into marching order at the Royal Hotel at about half-past ten, and consisted of upwards of 1,000 persons. The shops were closed, and business was entirely suspended. The pro- cession arrived at the terminus at twelve, when Sir J. Y. BULLER, M.P., for the southern division of the county, who spoke from the centre of the platform, briefly addressed the assemblage, congratulating them on the events of the day. The Hon. Gentleman con cluded by presenting an address from the inhabitants of Torquay to the directors of the South Devon Railway. Mr. J. WOOLCOMBE (who succeeds Mr. Gill, 11 .P , as chairman of the board of directors) ack now l e d ge d the presentation of the address. The directors had, in common with other railways, had to encounter difficul ties, and he could assure all those who were insereste d in the welfare and working of th e S outh Devon line, that the parties who at present had the management and care of the undertaking were no t appalled by the diffi culties before them, and wou ld not blench before any kind kind of obstacle. They w ou ld pursue a firm and tempe rate course, and they h o p e d to merit that public appro bation which was al ways readily accordedto a gene rous, deliberate, a n d caut i ous policy. The Hon. Gen tleman concluded amidst loud cheers, which were fol lowed by a ren e w e d round for Sir J. Y. Buller. The line, the works of which have been in hand since the commencement of 1847, is nearly six miles long, and turns off at a distance of 214 miles up the main line at Nev ton Abbot, in the neighbourhood of the river, and is expected to prove a valuable auxiliary to the main line. It is at present what is called a single way, but will be doubled to accommodate the traffic. It has been built by Mr. Brunel for the moderate sum of 80,0001.; there being no expensive engineering works. It terminates within little more than a mile of the heart of Torquay, into the centre of which it will be speedily extended. There is a station at a place called Kingskersall, midway between Newton and Torquay. Nearly 2001. were subscribed to carry out the enter tainments of the day. The poorer portion of the inha bitants had distributed amongst them in the market place bread and meat, &C. Trips were made throughout the day to Newton and back, and in the evening there was a sumptuous dinner at the Royal Hotel, and a ball in the assembly rooms. The opetiing of yesterday places Torquay within one hour's ride of Exeter, and .5i of London. LONDON AND SOUTH- WESTERN.—THE FARES. A meeting of parties residing in the suburbs along this line of railway was held at the Hero of Waterloo Tayern, Waterloo-road, yesterday, to take into cansideration a I projected alteration in the fares of the company. Mr. GIFFARD, having been called to the chair, said that he supposed every gentleman was acquainted with the objects for which they were called together, which was to consider the effect of a projected alteration in the fares. The company had lately announced their inten ticn of issuing season tickets at the rate of 21. 10s. per mile—which was certainly some boon to first-class pas sengers, but no corresponding boon was offered to second class passengers—indeed, on the contrary, it was re ported that the company were about to raise the price of the return, or day tickets. On other lines issuing season or annual tickets, the general prices charged were 11. 10s. per mile fer first-class passengers, and 1/. for second-class; but here, in addition to the price per mile being so much higher than the average, it was proposed so to alter the price of the return tickets that, instead of an allowance of one-third being made, there would be only an allowance of one-sixth, so that those who at present paid 2s. 6d. fare would have to pay 2s. I Id. or 3s. Mr. GUY argued that, taking into account the casual ties attending human life, the amount proposed to be charged for annual tickets was too' high ; and that the conteuiplsted alteration in the return tickets was unjus tifiable, and injurious to the owners 0). property along the line. It had been stated that on the line .being opened to Waterloo-bridge, no additional charge was ta. be made; but the fares had been twice incr ease d s ince the, event took place, without any corresponding advantage ea.:ru ing to the travellers, and it was now proposed to make further increase in the rates. He was confident that they must make a stand against these repeated alterations ; they would not only obtain no redress, but have no secu rity that the company would not funher increase their fares. The speaker then urged upon the gentlemen present, whenever possible, to patronise any ether mode of traffic open to them, and stated that already a new omnibus had been started from Kingston, which, with those previously on the road, were crowded . daily. He begged to move a res olution to the elect, that the South-Western Rail way Company, after obtaining the support of the public and causing capital to be laid out on suburban property ; had unnecessarily raised the established fares on the line beyond an average amount. of what was considered fair, which alteration must prove injurious to the shareholders, the public, and the holders of property on the line. He had formerly been a large shareholder in the railway, but had sold out on the fares being raised, and he would not be a proprietor again until they were placed on what he considered a fair footing. Mr. HALLETT seconded the resolution, which was carried unanimously. A series of resolutions were then carried, to the effect that 30s. per mile for first, and 20s. per mile for second class.was a fair average charge for season tickets ; and as the South- Western Company charged so much more they ought not to interfere with the second-class day everyttcke s o htehra means the ean smeeting travelling pledged where practicable themselves to promoteif the directors would not consent to more reasonable charges; and that Messrs. Mallison, Giff ar d, Devonshire, Lee,s and Guy, be appointed a committoe to communicate with with them on the subject. The meeting concluded by passing a vote of thanks to the chairman. MANCHESTER, SHEFFIELD, AND LINCOLNSHIRE.— WICKER VIADUCT.—The last stone of the last arch of this magnificent work was laid on Tuesday last by Dr. Bartolome, one of the directors, in the presence of Thomas Blake, Esq., another director, and of Messrs. William Wilson, the resident engineer, li. Gainsford and 11. Hinde, solicitors, T. D. Jeffcock and W. Fowler, land agents to the company, Mr. Shortridge, the con tractor, and some other gentlemen connected with the engineers' department. The centre key-stone of the great or centre arch, weighing upwards of a ton, was lowered from the crab, and permanently fixed in i ts place by Dr. Bartolom6, one of the original promoters of the Sheffield and Lincolnshire Junction Railway, of whiCh the Wicker Viaduct is the commencement. We understand that this splendid viaduct contains more cubic yards of masonry than any other work in this country, our largest cathedrals and even the new Houses of Par liament not excepted. We belive that the first engine will pass over the viaduct this day.—Sheffield Times. GUILDFORD TO GODALDIING BRANCH OF THE SOUTII WESTERN RAILWAY.—The inhabitants of these WO towns are greatly disappointed at the workmen being withdrawn from this four-mile branch line for the pre sent, as it is only sixteen days since those living in and around Godalming had a public meeting to congratulate themselves, and thank the directors for going on with the same, when the works were put a stop to in many other places; now they are doomed to suffer a similar delay and disappointment, yet it is hoped the progress of these works will not be impeded beyond February next, such having been announced by those well acquainted with the proceedings of this company. KNIGHTON.—In consequence of the recent opening of the line of railway from Shrewsbury to Ruabon and Chester, considerable quantities of good coal find their way from thence even into this valley. The advantage of a line of railway from Shrewsbury to Ludlow and Hereford, can scarcely be estimated.—Hereford 7 imes. EASTBOURNE.—The rails were laid down and com pleted on the site of the intended terminus, and on Wednesday last, the 13th, the ballast engine, No. 102, came in with colours flyii g. A temporary station will shortly be erected, but the transmission of passengers will not take place till early in the spring. The Hail sham branch is proceeding rapidly, the rails now being laid three quarters of a mile from Pulegate towards that town. — Sussex .Express. DUNDALK AND ENNISKILLEN.—A trial trip was made on that portion of the above railway between Dundalk and Castleblayney on Wednesday last. We believe that those present were perfectly satisfied with the manner in which the work had been completed. This railway will be ready for opening about the same time as the Dublin and Belfast Junc tion.-Newry Examiner. PATENT IMPROVEMENT IN STEAM-ENGINES. The Warkworth Harbour Commissioners (consisting of the Hon. Capt. Frederick Grey, R.N., John Forster, Esq., Richard Robson, Esq., &c.), and Edward Western, Thomas Brown, George Remington, and John Reming ton, Esqs., &c., having recently met at Amble, pro ceeded to inspect the working of a new ten-horse engine, recently erected at the harbour for the purpose of dis charging ballast. The engine (says a correspondent) is upon a new construction, and involves a principle in mechanical engineering never before attained ; for although it does not come under the class of rotatory steam-engines, there is no crank, no piston rod, and consequently no connecting rod. We quote the descrip tion given in the Mechanics' Magazine of Saturday:— " These improvements consist, first, in converting re ciprocating rectilineal motion into rotatory motion secondl.), in converting rotatory motion into recipro cating motion ; and, thirdly, in a mechanical arrange ment for reversing the action of engines. Upon the revolving shaft is fixed, at right angles, a lever ; to the end of which, and on the sides, are attached two small blocks. On the sides of the lever which carries the blocks are two metal plates, each containing two slits, one hori zontal, the other vertical, and intersecting each other at right angles to the centre of the plates. The revolving shaft passes through the vertical slot, so that the plates may travel freely up and down over it. The blocks, which are somewhat longer than the breadth of the ver tical slot, is placed in the horizontal slot; and supposing the lever to be upright, slightly deviating from the per pendicular, which is parallel to the vertical blot, and that a downward motion is communicated from a steam engine to the plates to the full extent of the vertical slot, the result will be, that the blocks will travel from the centre to the end of the horizontal slot; thus the the lever will assume a position the reverse of the one in which it was first placed; and thus the main shaft will have made one half of an entire revolution. The dead centre is then overcome by a fly-wheel, or, in the usual way, by two fly wheels, and an upward motion given to the plates, whereby the revolutiOn of the main shaft is completed, and the lever brought back to the first position, ready for the second operation." The engine erected at Wark worth Harbour has but one cylinder, which is placed horizontally, the main working shaft passing through the transverse axis, and through the slot or opening a the plates, as above described. In this case the plates are inside the cylinder and to each end is att ac h e d a piston, with metal packing, so as to fit and work in the cylinder steam tight; and the steam is alternately ad mitted between the pistons and the ends of the cylinder, giving motion to the plate to which they are attached, and consequently rotatory motion to the shaft. The cyl littenhhndeege piston spindlehi s itfsoronlms i swt i hlh n 2ei c e i h chne e en : hta i rer n esr " d oe i fs a Tt m thhh e eee t emebr entire oiztkehsshe; lengtha shrift at e nvtedor oft t h ehe 6 i e n e c n h t e r s e i t I :. i f the st rok e engineo exclusive of th e fl y - w h eel, is 4ft. 2in. of and the breadth 3ft., so that the whole occupies but little space compared to the engines at present in use. Although this was the first engine ever erected on this new principle, the trial was most successful, realizing the full expectation of the Patentee (G. Remington, Esq., C.E., of Warkworth), and gratifying all who have witnessed its performanoe. The principle upon which it is constructed is well adapted for all purposes; and where saving of space and weight of machinery are important, as in steamboats, it cannot fail to come into general use. It is also well adapted to give action to the shaft of the screw propeller, without the intervention of pinion and other gear—an object much to be desired. It is also well adapted for locomo tive engines, as the crank is entirely dispensed with. Indeed the invention puts the steam engine in its sim plest and most useful form; and there will be consider able reduction in the first cost, having fewer working parts of maintenance. It exhibits the simplest mode of converting rectilineal reciprocating motion into rotatory motive. yet attained.—Gateshead Observer. AN INDIAN PRINCESS ABOUT TO VISIT QUZIN VICTORIA.—There are in New York two interesting young Indian girls, one of the Mohigan tribe, about twelve years of age, and the other a beautiful maiden of seventeen, a Princess of the Chippewa tribe, with jet black hair, three feet long, who has arrived here with a view of visiting England to pay her respects to Queen Victoria, whom she appears fully resolved to see before she returns to her native place.—New York Paper. The Bishop of London, it is stated, has just had a case of some importance referred to him. It is alleged that a clergyman who officiates at a fashionable church in London, long rerparkable for its forms and cere monies, advised one of his congregation who was abo u t to travel to communicate with the church of Rome whilst absent from England. This advice has been sub m itt e d to the bishop as highly reprehensible, and the decision of the diocesan is looked f or with great interest by the Rev. Gentleman's congregation. , It was one of the laws of Lycurgus that no portions should be given with young women in marriage. When this great lawgiver was called upon to justify this en actment, he observed " That, in the choice of a wife, merit only should be considered, and that the l aw was made to prevent young wo men being c h osen for their riches, or neglected for the ir poverty." NAVAL INTELLIGENCE. PORTSMOUTH, MONDAY.—A very novel and, to all appearance, a very efficacious contrivance for the pre servation of life from shipwreck or other casualties and disasters at sea, was exhibited here this morning by Mr. Alfred Hely, the patentee of the invention, which is called a "catamaran." This invention consists of cy linders, or bags, of a flexible waterproof material, filled with any article or substance of a less specific gravity than water, as hammocks, clothes, provisions, valuables, stores, and such like, which, being lashed to spars, cap stan-bars, &c., are or can be speedily combined into a raft, or float, drawing only a tew inches water when launched, not liable, in consequence of its flexible nature and open structure, to be swamped, capsized, or stove in; and capable of carrying one man with 30 days' provi sions per cy linder, or, in round numbers, 2501 b. dead weight, at the rate of 641 b. per cubic loot of water dis placed. This catamaran, which may be constructed in ten minutes by thirty hands taught the mode of putting it together, was about thirty feet long by eight feet wide; she carried a lug-sail, and was steered by an oar over the stern; independently of which she carried two lee boards, about six feet long by three feet wide, thrust down between the cylinders, one forward and the other aft, which answered the purpose of a sliding keel, and kept her to windward. This apparatus was launched this morning at Gosport at 8 o'clock A.M., and was mounted by the inventor and patentee, a coxswain and four men, and worked out to Spithead, where she was anchored at 10 o'clock, the wind southerly, and awaited the approach of his Royal Highness Prince Albert, who had previously appointed that hour and place to inspect the invention. At eleven o'clock the Fairy Royal yacht, Commander Crispin, arrived and bore up for the spot; the anchor was hove up, and the catamaran was pulled alongside the Fairy, which stopped to receive her. The Prince came forward to in spect the apparatus, and had the invention explained in detail by the inventor, when the Prince requested him to get up sail, as he would then have au oppor tunity of seeing the catamaran again on his return from Portsmouth. The yacht then proceeded, and the catamaran went on to Osborne, having previously borne up to Hyde to land the visitors who accompanied her in a pilot-boat to witness the experiment. At this time Rear-Admiral Prescott, C. 8., in his yacht, went out and sailed round the catamaran. The Fairy came into this harbour, and at 11.30 A.M. the Prince and suite went on board the Excellent gunnery-ship, Captain H. D. Chads, C.B. His Royal Highness was received on board by Admiral the Hon. Sir Bladen Capel, K.C.8., the Com mander-in-Chief; tied Captain Chads, who presented the chief executive officers of his ship (Commander Howlett, First-Lieutenant Hodgkinson, and Gunnery Lieutenant Wolridge) to his Royal Highness, who then inspected drawings of fortifications presented by Captain A. R. Savage, R.M.A., having examined which, the Prince walked round the ship to see the men and boys at their instructions; he witnessed several shots from the 10-inch revolving gun at the 800-yard target, and also the boys firing from Cook's platform; he then walked round all the docks and heard men and boys repeat different parts in detail of gunnery exercise, taking a book himself to judge of their correctness; he visited the ward-room and gun-room, and then pro ceeded to the lower deck to witness the guns cleared for action and fired at targets 800 yards distant. The deck was cleared, ports down, and guns housed for sea, and the first gun (which was the officers' gun) fired within a space of time somewhat less than two minutes; two broadsides of shot followed, and one broadside of shell (metal fuzees), which passed through and burst round the target. Commander Hewlett then exercised the men at manning and arming the ship and the scaling ladder exercise, &e. The Prince remained on board nearly two hours, and witnessed everything as practised in one of our most important national establishments. His Highness took the deepest interest in every movement explained to him of man-of war discipline, and himself ran up one of the scaling ladders to witness and experience the effect of the effort ; made a mod minute examination of the books in the school-room; put many most pointed and pertinent questions touching the object under in spection, and appeared to take great interest in all that related to the tuition and welfare of the men and boys. If the Lords of the Admiralty paid one tittle of the at tendon at their periodical visits to the ports the Prince Consort did this day, and inquired as much into the sub jects cursorily passed by them, there would be consider ably more benefit accrue to the service and to the Ex chequer than such visits will ever yield as now con ducted. Before leaving the ship the Priace expressed most warmly to Captain Chads the pleasure he had afforded him, and begged hi m to g ive the ship's company a holiday. On arriving at Osborne the Prince again re-appeared in the Fairy, and landed on the Pier under Osborne, and the catamaran tacked , and in order to save the tide, as the wind still continued foul, was towed to the mouth of thi s harbour by her tender , after which she proceeded to Gosport-beach, and was taken to pieces, having been afloat about nine hours. She behaved at sea remarkably well during her passage out and home, and in every way sus tained the character of seaworthiness and efficiency which she exhibited on her voyage from Dover to Bou logne and back in June last. The spars, sails, &c., for the exhibition of this admirable invention were furnished by the kindness of Admiral Superintendent Prescott. The Earl of Auckland returned to the Admiralty to day from Bowood. Commodore Henry Eden will return to Woolwich Dockyard, from leave of absence, and relieve Capt a i n Fitzroy in his duties of Superintendent on Tuesday n ex t. We have heard that it is likely Lieut. Dirom (1841), a very excellent officer, late of the Albion, will be the Flag Lieutenant. Commander Gennys will not be appointed to the Cen taur steam-frigate, fl.ig ship, for the coa s t o f Africa, as t hat gallant officer is ineligible, from n o t having served one year in command of a sloop, or as Lieutenant in c ommand of a brig, or as First Li e ut enant, or as Gun nery Lieutenant in any ship in her Majesty's service. Master Frederick R. Sturdee (1843), who has been prevented from taking an appointm ent b y su b poena o f the Attorney-General, he being required as an essential witness on the part of the Crown in some slave-trade causes, will most bu appointed Master of the Centaur, for further s erv i ce on t h e coast o f Af r i ca , s hould his presence in England be no longer necessary. We have heard of some new and unpalatable regula- 4 i '"~;