The Sun. — London, England, 1865-03-03 00:00:00

IMPERIAL P AR,TATA KENT HOUSE OF LORDS—LAsT EVENING. The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack at Ave o'clock PRIVATE BUSINESS. The West Cork Railway Bill and the Kingston and Eardisley Railway Bill were read a second time. THE CIVIL BILL COURTS PROCEDURE (IRE LAND) BILL. This bill was read a third time and passed. THE BRITISH MUSEUM. Earl STANHOPE presented a petition from the trustees of•the British Museum stating the utter inadequacy of its present space for its rapidly growing collections. He would call attention to the matter on a future day. Their lordships then adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS—LAsT EvENm. The SPEAKER took the chair at 4 o'clock. PRIVATE BUSINESS. The Tay Bridge and Dundee Union Railway Bill, and the West Kent Railway Bill were read a second time. THE MALT TAX. Sir E. B. LYTTON presented petitions from several farmers in Herts, praying for a repeal of the malt tax. Sir F. KELLY and other lion. members presented peti tions to the same effect. THE SEWAGE OF THE METROPOLIS. Mr. AYRT ON presented a petition from certain in-- habitants of Bow in favour of an inquiry into the best means of utilising the sewage of the metropolis, SHEEP (IRELAND). Sir F. HEYGATE moved for a return of the number of sheep supposed to have been killed by dogs in each con stabulary district in Ireland, from the Ist day of January, 1865 ; and the number of cases, if any, in which the owner of the dogs has been discovered, and made amenable.— Ordered. ___ - THE ARMY. Mr. FORSTER moved an address for return showing the total number of battalions of infantry in the British army, the Indian local European army, and the embodied militia (exclusive of the Foot Guards and colonial corps), . . with their distribution at home, in the colonies, and in India, from 1863 to the present time (in continuation of Parliamentary paper No. 85, of session 1863). —Ordered. THE BRITISH MUSEUM. Mr. WALPOLE presented a petition from the trustees of the British Museum, praying that the house would take the means, and with as little delay as possible, of provid _ _ ing increased accommodation in the British Museum, in order that the petitioners might be released from the tract which they had undertaken. The hon. and learned mem ber also gave notice that on an early day he would draw the attention of the house to this subject. BOROUGH FRANCHISE EXTENSION BILL. Mr. COLLINS asked the hon. member for Leeds whe ther it was his intention to proceed with the second reading of the Borough Franchise Extension Bill in the week fixed by law for holding the courts of quarter sessions through- out England and Wales. Mr. BAINES said that ho would postpone the bill from the sth April to the 3d of May. LIFE INSURANCE. Mr. AYRTON asked the Secretary to the Treasury, with reference to the memorandum prefixed to the tables framed under the act 27 and 28 Vic., c. 43, for effecting in- surances on lives, whether the statement that a person in suring his life for £2O will be at liberty to increase the amount insured from time to time up to £lOO means that such increase shall be made at the option of the assured, without his producing on each occasion of increase satis factory proof that his life and occupation are as healthy as they were at the time of the first insurance. Mr. F. PEEL said that tables on the subject were before hon. members, and every information would be afforded on the part of the Government, in addition to what was already supplied. STATISTICAL TABLES RELATING TO FOREIGN COUNTRIES, Mr. WHITE asked when the statistical tables relating to foreign countries, pvescribed on the 25th July last, would be distributed to members. Mr. M. GIBSON said that the documents in question would be before the house in two or three weeks. TAXES IN EUROPE. In reply to Mr. WHITE, Mr. LAYARD said there had been considerable difficulty in obtaining these returns, but they were now in the hands of the printers of the house, and would shortly be in the hands of hon. members. ' SCOTCH JUDICIAL STATISTICS. Colonel SYKES asked the Lord Advocate whether, in the annual report of Scotch judicial statistics, he would adopt the English and Irish forms to facilitate com parison. The LORD ADVOCATE said that in some points the forms alluded to would not be applicable to Scotland, but the subject would be enquired into. STAFF COMMANDERS OF THE NAVY. Sir L. PALK asked if it was the intention of the Go vernment to remedy the complaints of the masters and staff commanders of the navy, as regarded their present rank, pay, and allowances. Lord C. PAGET said that he was not then prepared to state the course which the Government proposed to adopt in reference to this matter. GOVERNMENT ANNUITIES. Mr. SALT asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he intended to take in order to bring the new regula tions with respect to the purchase of Government annuities and of payments at death prominently before the notice of those persons for whose benefit the regulations had been framed, &c. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said the Government was anxious to afford any information to those interested in this subject. The tables and regulations had been drawn up in great detail, but they could be easily procured and at a small expense. ARMSTRONG GUNS. Mr. LAIRD asked whether her Majesty's Government were aware that Armstrong guns were being manufac tured by the Elswick Ordnance Company for foreign go vernments ; and, if so, whether permission to do so had been granted to that firm by the Secretary of State for War. The Marquis of IIARTINGTON said it had been de cided, after enquiry, that the Government had no power to prohibit the manufacture of these guns for foreign coun tries, but they were not in possession of official information of their being sent to foreign countries. THE ROYAL SOVEREIGN. Mr. LAIRD asked the Secretary to the Admiralty if he had any objection to lay upon the table copies of any re ports made by Captain Sherard Osborn, R.N., on the vari ous trials of the Royal Sovereign during the time she was in commission ? Lord C. PAGET said he had no desire to withhold any information on this subject, and during the discussion on the navy estimates he would be happy to supply any such information as hon. members might require. However, he strongly objected to the system of laying the reports of officers employed by Government on the table. THE GALATEA. In reply to Sir J. PAXINGTON, Lord C. PAGET said that yesterday the Admiralty had re ceived a telegram stating the loss of her Majesty's ship Galatea, but it appeared from subsequent information that, although there had been considerable loss of life, the vessel was not lost. The loss of life arose from some of the crew of the vessel having been sent to rescue the persons who were in danger under the circumstances with which the house was already familiar. ARMING OF HER MAJESTY'S SHIPS. On the motion for going into committee of supply on . the Navy Estimates, Mr. M. BAILLIE moved that a select committee be appointed to inquire whether her Majesty's ships were at present armed in a manner suited to the necessities and requirements of modern warfare. The hon. member having drawn attention to the impo r t ance of this subject, said that from experiments which had been made, it was evident tha t the present arming of the ships of the royal navy was not in an efficient state. In fact, her Majesty's ships were not In a position even to contend with other countries on equal terms, far less to do so with advantage. Inquiry had been restricted to the relative merits of the Arm strong and Whitworth guns, and therefore it was not a matter of surprise that they had been excelled by other countries whose range of energy was no t so limited, and who were disposed to avail themselves of every discovery of science in regard to the arming of the navy. The Royal Sovereign was Only In experimental ship, and was a failure. Having referred odifferent calibres of the guns which had been ap proved by the Admiralty, he contended that there had a great failpre in that department of the executiv e in reference to , that subject. He called attention to the result of these experiments in ordnance, which had been sanctioned by the Admiralty, and said that the blame to Sir did not att ac h William Armstrong, who was com pelled to supply his guns to Government order without having been able to subject them t o an e ff ic i en t test. o It was fortunate that our failure on this point had been developed in cont ac t with the Japa nese i ns t ea d o f some great naval power, which latter case th e resu lt m i g ht have been most disastrou s to gentleman on our prestige an d i n t erests as a maritime power. The h then traced the prog ress of gunnery improvement gen in France, and Russia ; pointed out the shortcomingsngland, Ame r i ca , ow n Government in conducting exPerimenteand of our ing inventors, and remarked that this country,encourag being in the van, was following in the wake oohr instead of maritime Powers. That was a position which wegreat ought not to occupy, and he warned the house, by the example of Denmark, of the fate that might befall a gallant 'lllPle people through the neglect of a Government. Sir J. HAY seconded the motion, and bore his testimony that our ships were so badly armed that they could not be regarded as competent to defend themselves against the navies of Europe or Anterica. He argued that the broadside principle must be discarded, and that if England would contend successfully upon the seas with other Powers she must do away with the rules by which guns were brought into play that were of insufficient weight. He also called attention to the recommendations of the Ordnance Com mittee, which he complained had not been carried into effect. The Marquis of HARTINGTON contended that the inquiries so recently and fully made renderad it unneces sary to appoint a committee to reopen the subect. In fact it could only be attended with putting otT the question for another year, which was the worst thing that could be done. The question was eminently a scientific and practical one, not at all suited for a committee of that house, and if an inquiry were entered upon the committee would find them selves at once involved in a multitude of questions with inventors. Moreover, he denied that the statements of the hon. member justified the appointment of a committee. The labours of the Ordnance Committee were now approaching a close, and although he did not imagine that it would be able to decide every disputable point, it would be most premature to embark largely in a system of construction or rifling until it was known what the views of that committee were. The adoption of any particular system for the navy would involve the adoption of the same system for our land defences, and of course entail an immense expenditure. They could not, therefore, proceed too cautiously or cir cumspectly. With regard to the guns possessed by other countries, he doubted if those employed in the American navy were better than our own, whilst their rifled guns had proved a complete failure. The French navy-were more dissatisfied with their ordnance than we were with ours; for they had not even made up their mind as to what was the proper gun. And as to Russia, although she was not very communicative, there was no reason to suppose that she was ahead of us. He could not see, then, considering our resources as a manufacturing country, and that we were constructing guns as fast as they were required, that there was any ground for serious alarm. General PEEL admitted that the navy was not efficiently armed, but objected to the appointment of a committee, because he believed the members of the House of Commons were utterly incompetent to decide which was the best gun for the service. Mr. BENTINCX, Sir F. SMITH, and Mr. PEACOCKS, sup ported the motion. Lord C. PAGET said —lf he thought a committee of that house would assist in getting the very best gun for the navy, he would certainly go into the lobby with the hon. gentleman ; but he had seen enough of committees to know that, with the very best intentions, they would rather retard than assist in so important a matter. A misunderstanding existed as to what the First Lord of the Admiralty had stated with respect to his re sponsibility in arming the navy. What he had adverted to before the committee was that the War Office were then carrying out certain experiments, which could only have been carried out under the authority of the War Office, and therefore he depended upon the War Office for car rying out those experiments ; but when once they had got a gun the Secretary for War was prepared to supply any gun which the navy asks for. He would not go into de tails as to the range of the 110-pounder, but it would be perhaps interesting to the house to state what our posi tion was now. He demurred to the position of the Iron Plate Committee that nothing less than a 12-ton gun would be available against armour-plated ships. Experi ments which were constantly going on proved conclu sively that the 6i-ton rifle guns, of which upwards of 200 were now being made for the navy, would pierce the Warrior through and through at 200 yards. That was a gun which could be carried in our broadsides. The time might come when they could carry 12-ton guns all round a ship, but we had not arrived at that point, so that to order a large number would be a piece of folly. They had made a requisition to the War Office to supply the navy with as many 12k-ton guns as they could carry at the present time. They were preparing 12-ton guns for the Royal Sovereign, which has two already, for the Prince Albert, the Minotaur, the Agin court, the Northumberland, the Bellerophon, the Scor pion, the Wyvern, and also for the Warrior. If they asked him whether they were now in a satisfactory state with regard to the armament of their ships, he had no hesitation in saying that they were not. But there was a committee going carefully into the question of rifling. He admitted that the French system of rifling possessed great advantages, but he knew of no report which justi fied the conclusion that the French system was better than the shunt system. He thought it very probable that such would not be the fact. 12-ton, very useful 0-ton, and 6-i-ton guns were being manufactured, but it would net be wise to rifle them until the best system was decided on, more especially as rifling could be performed very rapidly. As an evening would be devoted to naval con struction, he would not then go to the comparative merits of the turret and the broadside system. In conclusion, he would appeal to the hon. member for Inverness, as a friend to the navy, not to press his motion for a committee, be cause, instead of accelerating what he desired, it would only retard it. The house then divided, when the numbers were— Ayes Noes Majority ' ... The amendment was therefore negatived. NAVY PROMOTION. 22 -35 Sir 11. VERNEY directed attention to the evidence given before the committee on navy promotion and retirement in the session of 1863, on the subject of reappointing to the office of chaplain-general of the navy ; and in support of which appointment the hon. baronet quoted the opinion of the Bishop of London. Sir J. D. HAY remarked that they had already a naval bishop in the person of the hon. member for Pomfret (Mr. Childers); but, with all respect for the hon. gentleman's epis copal duti:s, he would prefer a chaplain-general. (Hear.) The subject then dropped. THE REFITTING OF SHIPS. Mr. SEELY rose to call attention to the apparently excessive cost of fitting out, refitting, and repairing certain of her Majesty's ship; and to other items in the dockyard accounts that appeared to require explanation. He did so because it appeared to him those ships had cost more than other similar ships, and because he thought the Secretary for"the Admiralty should have the opportunity of contra dicting or explaining the statements he was about to make. It appeared from the returns that the Falcon, a ship carry ing 17 guns, 751 tons, and of 100-horse power, cost in re pairing in the year 1864 the sum of £26,642. (Hear.) The cost of building that ship by contract would not have been more than £2l per ton, but, giving the Government £2B per ton, and calculating the engines at £55 per horse, which was he thought rather more than the Government would pay, he found that if they had bought a new vessel of the the same tonnage as the Falcon they would only have paid £26,528. The next vessel to which he would refer was the Lion, a vessel of 488 tons, and 60-horse power. She cost in repairing £17,653. She would have cost, if new, accord ing to the same rate of £2B per ton and £55 per horse, £16,964. Her hull cost in repairing £15,000; if new, it would have cost £13,664. (Hear.) The next vessel was the Wasp, of 974 tons, and 100-horse power. She cost in repairing £32,000. She would have cost if new £33,772 ; -but he would also draw his hon. friend's attention to this, that in the years 1860-1 that vessel cost £8,442, so that with the cost of 1863-4 that vessel cost £38,919. If built new, she would have cost £32,772. The Sharpshooter, which cost £18,249 in repairs, would have cost if new £19,694. Here, too, was a statement he could hardly un derstand. The engines of the Sharpshooter cost in repair ing £9,249. They might have obtained new engines of the highest class for £5,616. (Hear, hear.) The next vessel was the Salamander. Sir J. PAKINGTON—When were they built ? Mr. SEELY—The Wasp was built in 1850, the Falcon in 1854. The Salamander cost £22,728 in repairing, and she had cost £10,950 in 1862-3 ; but if new she could be bought for £34,000. The Bulldog had a tonnage of 1,124 and a horse power of 500. Well, the repairs of the Bulldog for 1863-64 cost £33,700 ; for 1861-62, £2,092 ; and for 1860-61, £10,518. At the same time, in these calculations a great many items were omitted which ought to have been charged. For example, the wages of the artificers were charged, but the pensions which ought to be allowed to them were not. Again, the wages of the foreman and other workmen in the dockyards were not included in these accounts of the cost of building and repair- Well, it was for the e country to press upon i t w n h g h e a A e t h d i m t Ps h ir in . Admiralty t r h e e all n y ecessit did Lentgiv t e i h n tu g rn a truefor account oi it c ow o na n lsy ve 4 r s si a o pet n ear of cbe3 t nr im t.t b h ei o . In the - r A b o n ao d tk excess seetsos wasthe v A e dm th i e ra r lt a y te n th ex e t if effected at con versionsin- stead of these conversion s b e i ng effectedvalante. lsT 4-ipe ew r above the rate-book value, h e found weretheyt a leind n e a a 15 per cent. above the rate-book val ue . Bu of timber in the different dockyards had at the cost of the lowest yard, no less a savingbe £55,496 a year would be secured. Probably it might the than been made be re plied to him that they had not the same appliances, the same machinery, in all the yards. But why had not they ? In two years £2,782,910 had been voted for repairs and improvements in machinery ; and why was not a portion of that large sum dedicated to enabling the country to save the sum of £55,000 in each single year? He would next refer to the stock accounts. According to the returns of the Admiralty, he calculated that between the years 1848 and 1864 no less than £3,762,281 was added to the stock accounts. Nell, they might naturally ask where those stocks were. He believed the stock of materials now on hand might be assessed at £5,000,000; but if that were so, could any one accustomed to business suppose that in 1848 the stocks amounted to but £1,250,000 ? Really the state of the accounts was most unsatisfactory. There was not an Admiralty reformer that had spoken out more clearly than the noble lord the present Secretary to the Admiralty, and there was not a member of that house or a man of business in the City who had a more complete conception of what was needed in this matter than the noble lord ; and yet there they were, five years after the noble lord's speak ing out, with ou t h av i ng ma d e any progyess. If the noble lord had us e d hi s power as S ecre t ar y to the Admiralty, and had given orders to any professional accountant in the City, h o account touolf the would very y money soon b received havereceived ythe a department. debt o debtor and B credi tor ut in deed, he need not have gone to a professional accoun , taut ; all that he had to do was to go to his own accountant, Sir Richard Broacsy. Sirnichard Bromley had a clear con ! e w e p a t l i k o e n n o f T ti what t oot of wthaented' b one. He thought that a and so also had Sir Baldwin evil bo was that the system was a bad counts, but a board would board might give them better ac be unable to give them things at a fair cost. Not one of the Lords of the Admiralty knew what a thing ought to cost—(hear, hear)—nor did the superintendents of the different dockyards, of whom, however, he wished to speak with the greatest respect. What was wanted was fitness in the various offices ; but if they looked simply to political patronage, and not to put ting into office the parties best able to discharge the duties required of them, so long would these conversions of tim ber be executed at a much higher rate than was neces- nary, and so long would there be accounts like those to which he had drawn the attention of the house. Mr. CHILDERS said that with regard to the appoint ment of a chaplain-general for the navy, he hoped the house would pause before they created a new office of that kind. At present a naval chaplain was intended to be the friend and adviser of every one on board his vessel, both officers and men. There were reasons, which must be patent to every one who considered the freedom of opinion in the Church of England, why it would be inexpedient that all chaplains should be selected by one clergyman. The ap pointment of a chaplain-general would be attended with inconvenience and danger, and it would not be palatable to the great body of naval chaplains. With respect to the figures quoted by the hon. member for Lincoln (Mr. Seely), he would take the case of the Falcon. According to the hon. member, the expenditure on the hull of that vessel was out of all proportion to what it ought to have been. Now, he found from the returns entitled " Navy ships, 1863-4," that the expenditure on the hull of the Falcon during that year was £14,000, in addition to a certain pro-. portion of general incidental expenses charged upon the whole ship. Taking that proportion, he might say that the total expenditure on the hull was £2l or £22 per ton, whereas his hon. friend allowed that £2B or £29 would not have been too much. Then, again, the amount expended on the hull of tho Bulldog, a ship of 1,124 tons, was £15,000, including a fair proportion of incidental expenses. That, then, only came to £l3 or £l4 per ton. The sum expended on the hull of the Salamander was only about £ll per ton. His hon. friend had asked why ships of that class were repaired. The answer was that if new ones had been built we should have had to wait nine months or a year longer; and besides at that time the great force of the Government was applied to iron ships, which made it more advisable to repair these wooden ships than to construct new ones. As to the conversion of tim ber, it was impossible to have uniformity in the rate book, for this reason—that in some dockyards the price of rough timber was much higher than in others, and therefore a considerable loss resulted from its conversion, though it should be borne in mind that if this loss took place in a dockyard it was counterbalanced by advantages which that particular dockyard might possess with regard to the low price of coal, &c. For ifistance, in 1863 the price of Eng lish oak was £8 19s. at Devonport, £7 12s. at Portsmouth, and £6 15s. at Sheerness. It was obviously impossible, therefore, to establish a uniform rate. With reference to the rate book, he would only say that the rules as regarded the conversion of timber had been found very arbitrary, and it was intended to substitute one uniform rate instead of the five or six different rates that now existed. The variation with reference to the expense of materials would continue, but the effect of the proposed arrangement would be to place the accounts for the conversion of timber on a more satisfactory footing than heretofore. The next subject re ferred to by the hon. gentleman was the discrepancy between the financial account and the amount of labour, and he com plained that the two did not balance. It was quite impos sible that the cash account could balance with the stores in the yard; but if they analysed the accounts closely, the dis crepany would not appear so great as stated by the hon. gen tleman. The finance accounts would show a considerable excess over the expense accounts ; or in other words, they had purchased vastly more stores than they applied to the building and repairing of ships. It was impossible to bal ance these, for until the present year there had been no valuation stock account taken; and it was therefore out of his power to say the stock for 1860 or 1861 was so much, and the difference would be the difference between the bal ance properly adjusted of the accounts of cash and expen diture. The stock valuation account would be taken and continued in all former years, and by that means it would be possible to produce a proper balance-sheet from year to year. That system came into operation in the present financial year, and when the house went into committee on the estimates he would take the opportunity of stating in what way the accounts of the dockyards would be kept, so as to show at the end of each year a strict commercial balance-sheet in addition to the ordinary manufacturing accounts of the different ships based upon the principle of cash. (Hear.) Under this system, the business done in the dockyards would be conducted upon the same principle as if it were done by a private establishment. (Hear.) He did not regret the speech of the hon. gentleman, and he had done his best to state what the result of the new arrange ments would be ; and, for his own part, he thought the more discussions they had the better. TREATMENT OF PRISONERS IN NEWGATE. Mr. LOCKE called the attention of the house to the man ner in which prisoners were detained in Newgate whilst under remand, and asked the Secretary for the Home De partment whether it was proposed to take any steps for affording them better treatment. The hon. member said the case which formed the subject of his motion arose out of a charge of conspiracy and larceny brought against two gentlemen by an insurance office; and what he had to com plain of was that those parties, before any charge of guilt was established against them, were subjected to degrading treatment. They were not criminals, but were con fined in prison for the purpose of being brought before the magistrates to have the case tried, and yet they were made to clean their own cells, were not allowed knives and forks at their dinner, and could only see their friends through a double grating, with a gaoler standing by. Although in the eye of the law innocent, yet they were treated in prison like felons. Mr. Sergeant Ballantine, who appeared for the defendants, complained of the dis graceful treatment to which they had been subjected, and the statements of the learned gentleman were not denied by the counsel for the prosecution nor by the sitting magistrate, Alderman Stone. In point of fact, the alderman charged upon the Home Secretary all the evils of Newgate, and put the right hon: baronet upon his de fence. The state of things which was admitted on all hands was this. The right hon. baronet admitted everything in his answer to him a week since. He said, if those persons had been coerced illegally they had their remedy ; but it appeared from Mr. Alderman Stone's statement that it was not the fault of the City, but of the right hon. baronet the Secretary of State. Was the right hon. gentleman aware of the way these things were done throughout the country, and did he intend in the bill he had introduced to provide a remedy ? Mr. TORRENS called attention to the treatment of per sons charged at police stations, giving an instance of two persons named Hall, who were kept all night in wet clothes, from the effects of which one had died within twelve hours from bronchitis. He hoped the right hon. gentleman would take some steps to remedy such cruelty in the future. Sir G. GREY could not give any explanation on this matter, because no notice had been given of its being in troduced. If such notice.had been given, he had no doubt a sufficient answer would have been forthcoming. With regard to the matter referred to by the hon. member for Southwark, he knew nothing of the merits of the case. He had had no complaints whatever, either from the persons themselves, who were still, he believed, under remand, or from any other persons in Newgate, of any illegal or even harsh treatment to which they had been subjected. If he bad, he should have addressed the only persons who were competent to remedy the complaints, viz., the visiting jus tices of the prison, who were the aldermen of the city of London, and have required them to make a report upon the matter. The house then went into committee of supplyproforma, and immediately resumed. COURTS OF JUSTICE BUILDING BILL. This bill was read a third time and passed. COURT OF CHANCERY IRELAND (No. 2) BILL. COURT OF CHANCERY IRELAND (No. 3) BILL. These bills were read a second time. COLONIES MARITIME DEFENCE. Mr. CARDWELL moved for leave to bring in a bill to enable the colonies to make better provision for their own maritime defence. The main object of the bill he ex pinined to be to extend the principle on which the Royal naval reserve was organised to all the maritime colonies of the empire, and to enable those colonies to train, under the same conditions as the Royal naval reserve, all their sea faring population. There is another purpose of this act. The colony of Victoria desired to have, and in fact had at present, a ship of war. At present, however, that vessel was not entitled to the privileges of a ship of war, as it was not under the control of the Imperial Government. This bill would enable a colony in time of peace or war to place a ship or ships under the control of the Lords of the Admiralty, and thereby to acquire for such ship or ships the rights and privileges of a public ship. The bill would also enable the maritime inhabitants of several colonies, or even of the whole of the English colonies and depen dencies, to be united i n t o one b o d y f or th e d e f enc e of the British empire, or any of the colonies. In answer to Mr. W. MILES, Mr. CARDWELL said that the bill contemplated nothing being done except at the expense of the colonies. The bill was then brought in and read a first time. The house adjourned at five minutes past eleven. A NEW KIND OF CONSCIENCE MONEY.—STAF FORD-HOUSE, March I.—The Duke of Sutherland acknow ledges the receipt of a £5 note from ---, " returned per. centage."—Times. LADvErnsEmENT.3 7 -liolloway's Ointment and Pills.— Constant Success.—No diseases are more trying;;;l; temper and more exhausting to the constitution than the pains in the muscles, caused by exposure to wet or cold. Wherever the seat of the suffe, ing, it win be only neces sary to foment the affected part with warm water, dry thoroughly, and immediately rub in Holloway's inestim able ointment to obtain ease. Gout, rheumatism, neuralgia, and tic-doloreux are soon relieved and ultimately cured by the use of this unequalled unguent and by Holloway's purifying and operative pills. Under this judicious treat ment the afflicted parts soon cease to ache, and shortly re gain their natural feeling and appearance. These remedies are invaluable for curing spinal affections and nervous dis- eases. THE SUN, LOiWON, FRIDAY EVENING, MARCH 3, 1865. Railway and other Companies. GREAT WESTERN. The half-yearly general meeting of this company was held yesterday at the Paddington station,—Mr. R. Potter, the chairman, presided. Mr. F. G. Saunders, the secretary, having read the notice convening the meeting, the report, which has already appeared, was taken as read. The CHAIRMAN, in moving the adoption of the report, said that the most prominent feature in it was that the gross receipts for traffic during the past half year showed an increase of £135,000 as com pared with those for the corresponding period of 1863. The most disappointing matter was that out of that increase they were only able to offer the shareholders an increase in the sum available for dividend of £30,000, and in offering them that amount he would explain how the remainder had been expended. He might mention, however, that _ _ _ _ _ the dividend for the year 1863 amounted to £2 7s, per cent., and for the year 1864 to £3 2s. 6d. per cent. (Hear, hear.) Now one of the largest items of increased expenditure had arisen from interest charges, £16,000 for the six months ending Jan., 1865, as compared with those for the same half year ending Jan., 1864. Of that sum £7,000 was for interest on the increase of capital expended, and there was a sum of £4,000 for capital expended on the Aberdare branch of the Newport section. He might tell them that there was not one farthing of interest on capital.that had not been charged to re- venue. They had been as severe on revenue as possible, so as not to increase the capital of the com pany in any way that could be avoided. (Hear.) There was a charge of £5,000 for an increase of the interest owing to the charges for higher rates of money that had prevailedduring the last six months, and, looking to the large amount of floating debt, he did not think that the increase of £5,000, owing to the increased rates, was more than could have been reasonably expected. Another large item of increase in expense was £lB,OOO for additional rent-charges for lines leased by this com- pany, as compared with those for the corresponding period ending Jan. 31, 1864. Several new lines had been opened—the Tenbury and Bewdley, and the extension of the Wycombe from Thame to Oxford and Aylesbury. The Tenbury and Bewdley was a line over which the London and North-Western could get access from South Staffordshire and Man chester to South Wales. In a year or two that was likely to be one of the most profitable lines they had. On the first opening of lines the expense of working was considerable as compared with the receipts. The line from Thame to Oxford and Aylesbury was carried out when the West Midland were projecting an independent line to London for themselves, and it now furnished a second line to Oxford through Buckinghamshire. Those lines had been worked during the half year without yielding any profit to the company. The Hampstead and City and the Colebrookdale branch had been opened for traffic eexpenses, duringes theye ha h l fear. - With regard to the locomotive had exceeded by £8,200 those for the corresponding period, but the charge per train mile was less than for the same half of the preceding year. The additional mileage run by the trains during the past half-year was 700,000 miles, which also tended to increase the expenses. The same might be said of the item for carriage and waggon expenses, which had shown an increase of £7,800. In the carrying account there was an increase of £19,000, and in the general charges of £12,000. Those items of increase had been partly caused by additional expenses, and were partly necessitated by a desire to provide for the convenience and safety of the public. They had been compelled to increase their staff and to reduce the rates charged in consequence of the strike, and they had thus obtained a carrying traffic between Staffordshire and South Wales, which he hoped would recompense them by the interchange of new traffic. There was not sufficient rolling stock or adequate siding accommodation at many places on their system, but when those were provided the pre sent working expenses, in some respects, would be diminished. They had made traffic and other ar rangements with the Vale of Neath and the Metro politan Railway Companies, which he trusted would be beneficial. That made with the Vale of Neath Company would give them access to the Aberdare coal district and to the docks at Swansea, which would save them much expense in working the mine ral traffic. They had placed, Mr. J. Williams, the general manager of the Vale of Neath Railway, at the head of the Welsh district, and from his perfect knowledge of the requirements of the trade, and other circumstances, the new arrangement would be beneficial to all parties. The arrangement with the Metropolitan would give the Great Western access to the heart of the city of London, and bring them into communication -with the " Inner Circle line." The long traffic from Bristol, Birmingham, and other places would be developed by means of quick trains running into the Finsbury station, and also the sub urban traffic would be brought into operation. The present station at Farringdon-street, which now covered about 3i acres, would be leased to the Great Western at a certain rent for a goods station. This would save them four miles of cartage, and enable them to carry and deliver a certain description of goods traffic that they could not get before: He trusted they would unanimously approve those ar rangements. (Cheers.) During the half-year they had entered into an agreement with the London and North-Western for the joint possession of the Shrewsbury and Welshpool Railway, which had been heretofore worked rather against the interest of the Great Western Company. They had also agreed with the South-Western Company for a joint lease of the Weymouth and Portland line, which, he hoped; would be opened for traffic in a few weeks. They hid also agreed with the Metropolitan Company to take a joint lease of the Hammersmith and City line, on the principle of allowing a rebate on four miles of the Metropolitan and one mile of the Great Western, equivalent to a fixed guarantee of 5 per cent. for the first year, rising for four years at the rate of 2s. 6d. per cent. until it arrived at 5i per cent., which was to be continued for 999 years. This would give them an outlet for their minerals, and tend to develope the traffic on the main line. The Board had appointed Mr. Young, one of the members of an eminent firm, to conduct their law and Parliamentary business for a stipulated amount, and he trusted that in future there would be a saving under that head. They proposed to raise £1,000,000 more capital for the purpose of satisfying the public requirements and to accommodate the increase of traffic, to construct and improve stations at Slough, Reading, and other places, and to provide additional rolling stock. They proposed to interchange traffic with the South Eastern and Brighton Companies, and to take the express lines on one side of the new joint station to be built at Reading, so as to avoid accidents. The workshops at Swindon would be enlarged to meet the requirements of increased traffic, and to keep their working stock in efficient repair. They proposed to lay down the narrow gauge over the Hereford, Ross, and Gloster line, which would complete their narrow gauge communication from South Wales to Birkenhead. The outlay on those facilities and improvements would be most productive to the company, and would yield 20, 30, or 40 per cent. He then explained that the by-law which had been agreed upon two years ago for preventing the for mation of any extension lines without the permission of the shareholders could not be •acted upon to the letter, as they were often surrounded with speculative competitive schemes. While the directors were will ing to carry out the spirit of that by-law, they could not, in the interests of the company, be bound by the letter of it. They had agreed t 9 form, in con junction with the Midland and Bristol and Exete r Company, a joint station at Bristol, as the present one was quite inadequate to accommodate the traffic. There was a new line proposed from the Midland Railway at llendon through Buckinghamshire to the East Gloucestershire Railway, which was a specula tive, needless, and injurious scheme, and he had confidence in the wisdom of Parliament that they would reject it. With regard to the Government commission to inquire into the working expenses of railways, the directors would endeavour to further their object and furnish them with every informa tion in their power. He hoped that it would be so composed as to fairly represent the vast mass of capital that had been expended on the railways, and that the commission would also inquire into the causes and effects of the action of Parliament gene- rally on the railway system, and as to how an eco nomical and beneficial state of things could be esta blished for the future. He had no doubt that the traffic on the company's line would go on increas ing, and if the proprietors would give the directors the means of carrying it on in a proper manner he had no doubt the result would be satisfactory to the proprietors. A period when the receipts were increas ing was the time of all others to economise the ex penses. He could assure them that the promotion and advancement of every officer in their service would depend on the vigour and prudence with which he economised every item of expenditure in his department. He hoped, therefore, to see a complete system of economy pervading every de partment of their great undertaking. (Hear.) Mr. W. FENTON, deputy chairman, seconded the motion for the adoption of the report. Major COURT thought the directors ought to have stated in their report the amount expended on the Vale of Neath line, and the grounds upon which they recommended the amalgamation with that company. Mr. DELAHUNTY called attention to the ener getic manner in which the London and North- Western Railway Company were endeavouring to secure the whole of the Irish traffic. He contended that the southern portion of that traffio belonged to the Great Western Company, and that proper means should be immediately adopted to secure it. Lord R. CECIL was glad to say they had now a very efficient Board, and a very able chairman, and he thought that fully justified the shareholders in supporting the Board in every way they could. He should like to know the amount of the Parlia mentary expenses during the past half-year. _ _ Mr. Marriott said that the London and North- Wester n were not satisfied with getting their fair share of the Irish traffic, but had taken steps in the north and south to secure the whole of it. Mr. TAYLOR stated that he found from the ac counts that the legal and Parliamentary expenses paid by the company during the hall-year amounted to £35,000. Mr. ADAMS, a candidate for a seat at the Board, said he thought the present directors had had a very fair trial, and that the result of their operations had disappointed every one in the room. The increased traffic for the past half-year had cost 50 per cent. to work it, while for the corresponding half-year it had been worked for 25 per cent. of the increased receipts. He was quite as confident as ever, if the undertaking was properly managed, that in the course of five or six years it would yield dividends•of 8 per cent. on the ordinary stock. Mr. GILES thought the chairman and directors were fully entitled to their confidence. With re gard to the by-law, it was all very well at the time it was passed, but he believed that in the altered state of things it was impossible to carry it out with advantage to the company. The scheme for con necting their line with South Wales by crossing under the Severn by a tunnel was far superior to that of another company for carrying a line over the Severn by means of a high-level bridge, at three times the cost of the tunnel line. The C AIRM AN replied to the various observations, apparently t) the entire satisfaction of the meeting. He stated that they were on the most friendly and and amicable terms with the London and North Western Company. The directors had under con sideration the organisation of a better service be tween South Wales and Waterford, for the develop ment of the southern portion of the Irish traffic. The Course adopted by the Midland Company in respect of the East Glocestershire scheme was un- justifiable, under the authorised agreement with the Great Western. The Vale of Neath Company were not to have less than £85,000 a year, 5.0625 per cent. of the joint traffic. The amount of their capital had, therefore, nothing to do with the arrange ment, which itwas believedwould prove a very bene ficial one for them and the traders in the district. Resolutions were then unanimously passed adopt ing the report and statement of accounts, declaring a dividend at the rate of 3+ per cent. per annum on the Great Western consolidated stock, at the rate of 2 per cent. per annum on the West Midland (Oxford) stock, at the rate of 1:1 per cent. per annum on the West Midland (Newport) stock, at the rate of 5 per cent. per annum on the West Midland (Hereford) stock; and atthe rate of 34- percent. per annum on the South Wales consolidated stock, leaving a balance of £6,087 ; re-electing the retiring directors—viz., Mr. Bodenham, Mr. Brown, Mr. Dillwyn, Mr. Hamilton, Mr. Michell, Mr. Ogilvy, and Mr. Walpole ; em powering the directors to raise £1,000,000 by the issue of shares or stock in such manner and on such coudi tions as they might think fit ; approving the bill now before Parliament for granting further powers to the company, and authorising the directors to proceed with it ; and approving and confirming the agree ments with the Vale of Neath Railway Company, the Metropolitan Railway Company, the Hammer smith and City Railway Company, and the London and North-Western Railway Company for the joint ownership of the Shrewsbury and Welsbpool Rail way. SAMBRE AND MEUSE. The report of the directors states that it is pro posed to make a dividend of 4s. per share payable on the Ist of April, provided the requisite number of shareholders and amount of capital be represented at the meeting to be held in Belgium on the 22d instant, RAILWAY BILLS. Yesterday the case taken by the referees was that of the Chichester and Midhurst Railway Company, who seek to make two lengths of line—one of nine miles from their Midhurst station to a junction with the direct Portsmouth line of the South-Western at Ha,slemere, and the other of 27 chains in continua tion of the first to the Midhurst branch of the South-Western at Midhurst-common. The oppos ing petitioners were the London and South-Wes tern and Brighton Companies. The committee then intimated that they would report the case to the Select Committee, stating the facts upon which their opinion for or against the bill is founded. ANGLO-INDIAN TELEGRAPH. According to a telegram received yesterday from the company's agent at Constantinople, the line of the above company was in efficient working order, and messages could therefore be forwarded by that route via Constantinople. THE Two " MISS BROWNS" AT CRACOW.—I remember, during the recent insurrection in Poland, attending as knight-errant upon two Miss Browns at Cra cow. I don't know which created most sensation—Mdlle. Pustoveytoy, Langiewicz's female aide-de-camp, who was captured on the day of their arrival, or my two charming compatriots themselves. It was a refreshing sight to watch them, in little pork-pie hats and tucked-up skirts, paddling about the muddy streets of Cracow, and one that cheered the hearts of the poor people they came to comfort. And then to go with them through wards of wounded youths, and see the presence of the "Englishwoman" would cause the wasted features to light up with a glow of gratitude and pleasure, and how the poor lads would look with ' wonder and astonishment at these two unprotected beings who had come all the way from England for no other pur pose than to minister to their necessities. Depend upon it "the Englishwoman abroad" is a glorious institution Why, she even sometimes penetrates to places where the Englishman has not been seen, and then, what is the impression she leaves on the inhabitants ? They say, of course, "If England produces this sort of woman, what splendid fellows the men must be !" She does more to maintain the prestige of the British empire than all our iron-clads put together, for she is clad in the triple panoply of virtue, benevolence, and pluck. I was knight errant to the Miss Browns when they were iu the middle of a forest surrounded by Cossacks, distributing pro visions to an insurgent band, which they were visiting at the peril of their lives ; and their presence so affected the rugged chief of the band, and the presence of the rugged chief of the band so affected them, that they all went together, and in the energy of their enthusiasm they dis tributed among his men every disposable ornament they had about them, down to their hair-pins. Don't you sup pose, as I stood looking on with glistening eyes, that I felt proud of my countrywomen ? and don't you suppose that the remnant of those two hundred reckless spirits, who are now in exile in Siberia or elsewhere, when they hear the name of England, will associate that country in their minds with two rather young women in pork-pie hats, such as they had never seen before, who fed them and wept with them, and, perchance, tended them when they were wounded ? Mayhap a stray Briton, pushing his ex plorations years hence into Asiatic Russia, will be asto nished at the overwhelming civility of some poor lonely exile, and little think he owes it all to the Miss Browns.— . Blackwood's Magazine. SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS. TIMES.—The House of Commons, by rejecting last night Mr. H. Baillie's motion for a Select Com mittee on-the arming of vessels of war, declares not so much that it is satisfied with what has been achieved, or that it has implicit confidence in the wisdom of the Navy and Ordnance authorities, as that it cannot expect much benefit from a renewed examination of the subject by a section of its. own body. It is undoubtedly a good thing that the Battle of the Guns should be fought now and then in Par liament. A healthy criticism keeps all parties, whether inventors, naval architects, or officers, in due activity of mind and energy of purpose. ven a little captiousness and undeserved fault-finding may have its uses, so that it be not overdone, and the country so often assured of its inferiority to foreign nations that at last it ceases to take note of any warnings whatever. Such a debate as that last night is to be expected. We might almost predict from the nature of things that it should be of periodi cal recurrence. Mr. Baillie had got up the subject well and made a telling speech. This, however, was not difficult, for it is inevitable that there should be much to say, and that some of the proceedings of the Admiralty should afford an opportunity of easy victory. How could so vast a change be introduced Into the navies of the world without scientific mis takes, falsified calculation, blunders, and extrava gance ? Only ten years ago there was not an iron clad vessel on the sea. The earliest attempts in this new construction were only made towards the close of the Russian War. In that great contest full reliance was placed on wooden line-of-battle ships, which, with the new appliance of steam, seemed to furnish the most perfect machines for naval warfare. During the few years which have elapsed a revolu tion greater than that caused by the introduction of steam itself has taken place. The increase of the defensive power of vessels has necessitated a complete change in the offensive weapon, and this in turn has reacted on naval construction, even so far as to make it likely that the very principle of broadside firing will be abandoned. The last few years have been a time of incessant inquiry and incessant im provement, but improvement bought, it must be confessed, at an immense cost of money. It is easy to show what ought not to have been done, how this course was hastily taken, how that course was too timidly abstained from; but the conclusion at which those who have watched the various controversies have for the most part arrived is, we think, not so despairing as that of Mr. Baillie. That gentleman makes the most of the early shortcomings of the Armstrong gun. It is beyond a doubt that the 110- pounders manufactured some time since in large numbers, and distributed among her Majesty's ships, were in great measure unsuccessful. They were, in the first place, made not to be used against iron plated ships, of which only a few specimens then existed in the navies of the world, but against wooden vessels. Nor had they been sufficiently tested, particularly with regard to their capacity of bearing rapid firing. Why, then, were they sent on board the Queen's ship, it will be asked, at a time when it was known that wooden ships were likely to be superseded by stronger vessels, and without those experiments which ought to precede the use of a new invention ? The answer is, that the Admiralty thought it necessary, at a time of unusual political complications, and when the employment of new inventions was producing extraordinary results on the other side of the Atlantic, to arm as many ves sels as possible with the most powerful gun which was then in its possession. This was unfortunate, it must be admitted ; but when are the consequences of panic and hasty preparation other than unfortu nate? The navy was supplied with guns of untested and, as it turned out, of deficient construction ; it is for the most part these guns which have given rise to the complaints which come home from Japan, and have been rife in the Channel fleet, and they must be considered as already superseded. Yet it would be wrong to conclude from these mistakes that the country is behind foreign nations in its ar maments. The later guns of Sir William Armstrong —the 9.32-inch shunt gun and 6-ton 7-inch—have, according to Lord Hartington, been fully successful against iron plates, while the improvements which have been made in the construction will prevent a, recurrence of the accidents which attended the use of the first issue. At any rate, we have now guns which are capable of penetrating any plates which we possess, and any that our neighbours are likely to possess. The long rivalry between Sir William Armstrong and Mr. Whitworth has, we think, led to improvements which will enable the country ultimately to possess a gun superior to any that exists among foreign nations. The merits of the two systems may, we hope, be combined to some extent, and, even if they be not, the Govern ment is at liberty to patronise either or both, and to arm its ships wherever it can find the most t ffi cient weapon. As for the American guns, the most vaunted of them is confessed to be a failure. The Parrott gun was the only rifled gun in the American service, and it was relied on by the Federal Go vernment to do the chief work in the reduction of Fort Fisher. Admiral Porter, however, has re ported that almost every one of the Parrott guns in his fleet burst in such a manner as to inflict injury upon the men who worked them. Then is there anything in the principle of the American guns which we should imitate? The most trustworthy men of science in this country think not. Instead of guns sending enormous shot at a low rate of speed, it is better, in the opinion of English artillery and naval judges, to have smaller shot propelled at the highest possible velocity by large charges of powder. This is the principle which is now being worked out in this country, and it will give us, we trust, a gun which will overmatch anything our neighbours can produce. There is no reason why the Government should not go on with its experiments ; and it is far better that the Ordnance Committee should continue their labours, testing each detail, and endeavouring by degrees to perfect the instrument they are at work upon, than that a Committee of the House of Commons, the greater part of whom would be com paratively ignorant of the subject, should sit to decide on half evidence, and urge the Government to some hasty decision. We believe there is no ne cessity that large numbers of guns should be at once manufactured, with the almost certain result of another great waste of money w h en a newer principle is discovered. The true poli c y o f th ose concerned in the defence of the country is simply to go on improving and experimenting, so that when the tune comes we may know what is the best weapon to employ. The engineering and manufac turing power of this country is so immense that we never need fear being left b e hi n d i n th e race o f pre paration. But it would be even better to incur some small degree of this danger than the certainty of constant waste and the mortification of seeing the finished productions of one year laid aside before the close of the next. POST.—We are setting to work in earnest to make u p for our inferio r it y t o th e pa t r i arc h s . W e are try ing to beat them in invention as much as they beat us in longevity. The problem of the day seems as though it were to accomplish in 70 years what was formerly accomplished in 900. To solve this the telegraph comes to our aid, and a very great feat the telegraph has just accomplished. A message has reached London from Kurrachee in eight hours and a half, on the opening of the Indo-European line by way of the Persia n G u lf. For all purposes of com munication this amounts to an annihilation of time and space. We ought, at this rate, to accomplish a great deal more than our ancestors. The old patri archs, we suspect, knew very little of distant lands, and had still less communication with them. But whatever were the limits of their geography, they were doubtless slow enough in their movements. Time was, however, not of much moment to those who had their millennium upon earth. It was, per haps, for the intervening generations between those days and these, that the thing came hardest of all. They were equally without the longevity of their predecessors and the invention of their descendants. They truly must have found life a dream. It was to them an unsubstantial reality, in which one gene ration sowed the seed and another plucked the fruit. We all know the traditionary meaning of the pro verb, " an East India voyage : " It meant something like Vasco di Gama's expedition round the Cape. If you got to India in six months, you were lucky. A year of the fortune-hunter's abbreviated life was spent in going to look out for his fortune and in coming back after he had obtained it. A year was, within the lifetime of men still living, the usual time within which English merchants commonly expected to get an answer by return of post to let ters addressed to Calcutta. What would have be come of the cotton trade of our own days under such circumstances it is hard to imagine. Cotton growers and merchants would have been trading blindfold. Even with the rapidity of communication with India we have had lately the mercantile difficulties caused by the distance between Liverpool and Bombay have been very great. Over and over again large commercial houses have been brought to the brink of ruin by the sharp oscillations of price that an apprehended termination of the American war has given occasion to. But if India is to remain a com petitive country of supply, it is of the utmost im portance to her that she should have prompt intelli gence from the country in which the demand lies. The completion of the Indo-European Telegraph is therefore a work of great commercial as well as of great political importance. It is hard to say in which point of view this achievement has the greater signi ficance. The political results attach to us in respect of other countries than India ; for the complete line puts Constantinople, as well as London, in commu nication with Kurrachee, and gives us nearly the same means of what is transpiring throughout Western Asia, from the Bosphorus to the Persian Gulf, that-we have of learning what is happening on the mouths of the Indus. Besides this, the Pe ll " tical advantage of placing the Indian Government in such almost instantaneous communication with us, is inestimable. Before long, in all probability, the route from Kurrachee to Calcutta will be as complete as that from London to Kurrachee already is. It is difficult to measure the difference that this would have made to the Indian authorities if tjl e , o same communication had existed in the critic al p ert of the mutiny. What additional confidence ww' not have been created among those who were co n ducting the heroic defence of the British d omini• on in India, could they have known of the gig antic preparations which we were making for their succo. ~ in sending out, though not ourselves a great ta . ry Power, a far greater force than any other pa' on had ever sent across the seas before. For the t future this event will rank among th e most iraPor tantof those that have helped to consolidate our a ll , thori▪ ty in Hindostan since the suppression of tn.ie muti▪ ny. But the commercial results of this work wll.l. probably be of hardly less importance than the pc% tical . results, though they may be somewhat lest obvious and striking at first sight. In the fir s . I place, they will always be in action. Corarcerefila .advantages are in their nature being continua-Li: in course of realisation ; while great political au_ vantages arising from rapid communication :11! chiefly reaped upon great occasions not veil fr e e (juently happening. But besides this, online/v. inits present stage is a thing depending not nler co . ]) on supply and demand, but on more artificial trivances than were prevalent in the ruder tradlnF of former times, such as the variations of ex change ; Mr. Goschen, in his able work on that subject, b d shown very clearly that it is becoming more n x _ more the tendency to assimilate all t h ese foreign ex more changes in one common European exchang e • bring the centres of Indian commerce within a communication of London will soon be found eq es valent to rendering English and Indian exchxn.gto one and the same. But we need not go further 1,'30 these commercial calculations. By the by we s'„,r.. no doubt see the telegraphic communication so tu Z ; ,, tended that the Chinese trade will b e brought wI;C the same compass as the Indian. Simul taneou t; with the completion of this triumph in the East, we Great Eastern is shipping her mighty cable, anu...„ may cherish the hope that before the coming °Xi, i mer s over it will be successfully l a id across tile 1 , 0 lantic, and the New World be 'brought under tit, same centripetal influence as the East Indies • that attempt should be crowned with the trai▪ n); that its supporters anticipate, the year 1865 ma one fairly classed as a new annus nzirabilis. t au t most important sense our scattered and 01,`,;0 colonies will be brought around us ; and Nve tl . that the closeness of their material communtea--, • will serve for a pledge of their internal harnao4 with us. COUNTRY MARKETS BIRMINGHAM—THURSDAY. f heat, At this day's market there was a fair supp l y ° Wflig which found buyers at the currency of this day iJ. Fine barley unaltered ; secondary only taken in and held for quite as much money. Beans is dearer, peas were scarce. r ed, 3s Currencies :—English wheat, white, 40s to 44s ; to 41s per 36 stone. Malting barley, 28s to 34s ; gr; s per 22s to 25s per qr. Oats, 24s to 30s ; Irish, 195 30 stone. Beans, 38s to 42s ; and peas, 38s to 40s Per BURY ST. EDMUND'S—WEDNESDA Y. 1- ket ' 0 ; There was a good supply of wheat at this ratl r , 1 . , oh day, but it was affected in condition by the weak bar' met a dull sale at last week's prices. A. f u ll supPv ley, which met a dull sale at is less money. O a r oil Talavera wheat, 43s to 47s ; red ditto, 340 to Big; 25s to 358; secondary ditto, 24s to 268,per qr. Averages :—Wheat, 944-1 qrs., 37s 2d ; ba rley ' 201 qrs., 29s 9d; oats, 40 qrs., 20s 7d. AER—T HuRsDAY The trade M continues to T he characterised • by in a ' , „ t tivit hio and no change of moment in value has occurred stwThest' day se'nnight. At this morning ' s, market E n g bs d came to hand in bad condition ; best samples sol ut o u t er and we make no alteration in the quotatio ns, b 2cl pe r sorts were quite neglected. Foreign wheat ld t°„tioe cental lower. Flour in slow demand, without snoiall in value. Oats and oatmeal in retail. Beans fair' corn unchanged. • . . EDINBURGH—WEDNEsPAY. d un At our market there .was a good supp-1 of Y , ratet; of wheat, which sold slowly, and prices were at th e last week. Os l d tiP. Wheat on the top, is Od up average , 7 d ep• Barley on the top, is 6d up .average, 08 i d tip. Oats on the top, 2s Od up average, Beans on the top, Is Od up ayerag l i o s 7d iip. , Average prices. Wheat, 35s 7d I Oats, ......... 20s 4d Barley, 26s 6d Beans,. ....... 36s Od 0 .0, Town-made flour sells as follows :—White, 36s 0d; e superfine, 34s 6d ; superfine, 33s ; fine, 31s 6d. Total supply and sales. Wheat Barley O9 1386 qrs ............ sold 1 , Oats 2420 qrs ............ sold 163 D Beans 1209 qrs ............ sold 81 243 qrs ............ sold 201 GLASGOW—WEDNESDAY. Wh ey W et 6 This day's market was fairly attended. Wh eg ro i3CP limited demand at 6d per qr under last week' e u , s i fece and flour was more difficult to sell. Barley an oat' unaltered ; beans in favour of buyers. Foreign Mail Packet List• 21. Australia and New Zealand, via Southampto n. • • • • 4 " -- 15. Ditto, via Marseilles .......................... Oar' 6. Brazil and Cape Verds, by British pac..et ......... ]!4:r• _• 0 Ditto, by British packet . .......... rr• ;1. Capea ki of Ditto, Good . China, Penang, and Singapore, via Sou hal3lPtil via .................... P . and Hope, Ascension, and St. . . . . . Helena.n.....amfaar. 154: • Gibraltar, via Southampton ******* Idar' India (Calcutta), and Ceylon, via Southampto n " gar. Ditto, via Marseilles ............ • -- •• • . India (Bombay), via Southampton ................ .gar. Ditto, via Marseilles ..................... • • .gar. Mauritius, via Southampton ..................... gar. .7 Ditto, via Marseil e 3... ................... go, I': Newfoundland .................................... g o. o• Portugal •••• •• — ..... ••••• Ditto, by private ship to Lisbon... ..... . • • • • ;* United States and British North America, bY l3rj . - lifar• I tish packet ....... .. ........ • • Ditto, by United States packet, via Southapir - •• ton • 0000000 •••• 000000000000000000 0 O O 3. Ditto, via Cat 00000000000000000000 0 5, Ditto, by Canadian packet, via Londonderry' West Coast of Africa, Madeira, and Ttneriffe 00000 West Indies and Pacific (except Bahawas, Cob ih e it r. 1 ; and Mexico ........... ......... .................. Bahamas, via New I ork. ........................... mat. I, Bermuda, ditto .................................... Cuba and Mode() . .... - -- ----- THE LOST FOUND.—Very greatrejoicigtt:f place l on the Tyne on Wednesday upon the re ceiP- n e6 telegram which had come from China with the i p a g T 3Li o h a f i n s o f r r fi e t n d' h e a to of Sunderland , abotutthe' clipper rived months Shanghai.ship Manfred, of Sunderlafld 11 hO about nine months ago for that part of the WO rived at Shanghai lost ; in fact one of the insurance ve re n o d ti t o hat she and her crew were all right was like airebeeo mourn n ed from the dead, as the fate of the crew low lover over by their friends. The vessel was elljle voyage. not er A COAL'S ACCOUNT OF ITSELF.—" I ca_,, ll I 0 4 actly lunebhdfsaedrthlnaabeend We d ,dnrowarg: ,hi:1,0,i,: h i lif::::::fee:.: remember," he went on to say, "h" fOa formed, family(a e n x d ce i p t t isfroamvetr7llaitrigone—but foras Ithhearaveeinr_iben,i,ettlero:li7lei°soeScilne,T44, Staffordshire, Lancashire, SouthuiVales, New are Pfeil land, and indeed in most parts of the country) , tea tiro well agreed upon the point, I may take it for P.' be lie' the account is tolerably correct. You will scarcel)rd o ,ll l ° l me when I tell you that the ancestors of myse lf, gil s teni l ki a kith and kin, were trees—nothing more nor 1 000 th3l3 a 9131' n leaves, which the rays of the sun had rielAeoctrille, o made green, and it almost makes me believe in tb ° ,:t he b ; f metempsychosis, to find myself giving out tl o f feJ which the rays of the sun stored in the lealles ore forefathers—so much so, that a celebratedupin eugillesrg'sCefehillep,' Stephenson by name, actually called us , bottleu 0,10 A If you don't believe it, examine me closely tli h r- t 9 1 1 ; microscope beoo when I have finished giving out 1111 00ea Ivic me a cinder, and you will find, by treatins or e ° nitric acid in a particular way, not only the etrliertioul'if the tree, but will also be able to tell from ' 6 ' l ' 4 Ft' class of tree I descended."—Once a Week. ____.......____%''' Births. gon of inst., 4° En.—On the Ist at Park-road, Stoke Novi° 0 i Mrs. Henry Boyer, of a son. the 0 CLARK.—On the 28th ult., a t Twickenh am ' 4 ' 10 3 Alfred Clark, Esq., of a son. -0 0 11 P DENNY.—On the 2d inst., the wife of F. over-park, Peckham, of a son. ALEXANDER—SOMERS. M —On inst., viol Apo:r e t ol d: o, lr only son of the late Mr. Louis Alexander, o ' . SO' town, to Esther, second daughter a G eorge , yo Esq., of King-street, Finsbury St. V i - • GRAHAM—LITTLEDALE.—On the 28th inst., at s , •son I , e , Cheltenham, Captain William Graham , :1 1 ,f t ,r . 1 C °l) Major-General Joseph Graha to Florinda '-r, ,-- 4 a eldest daughter of Wm. Dawm'son Littledale, -.--. BoYLE.—On the Ist inst. ' : it e t aMtahrt o rough C °llege' tile re ilter Edward Colquhoun Boyle, M.A., ag ed ge rt 27. '' CIIRISTIE.—On the Ist inst., at Ho ddesdon, ..00, Christie, Esq., aged 73. l itatito b A. ff. SENHOUSE.—On the Ist inst., at Seasca le, 'ii nt. P 'Ae o SlMClimins.be— de Fleming Senhouse, KC• 11 .1 d 82 ' ~, r e daughter of the late Admiral John Maulen "v' e re ' "to derick Walter Simms, Esq., lateT:orrn rolnantd,hoE2l7izthabientsht,.w, at 50, of the late ~aa,:na elder the Government of India, aed 63. A WM' Si° •01 , SWINY.—On the 27th inst., at Alne, Shaplan- Esq., aged 75. isnugl tall* ;co r London :Printed and PubllBhedhy%6Ll,lll4sll)llB; of No. 112, Strand, Punter, at THE S v l4 o . l . ice dlO ty Strand, in the Precinct of the Savoy' , in th e e, Middlesex.—Friday, March 3, 11305. Th, Th, Th h T, Th`, Sot di