The Sun. — London, England, 1866-02-12 00:00:00

,sirous.of a ffording of the of the powers oet and - ~1 emainD, , nc e of dug UP ,s spared ) f a mous nsidered Novel. , at gas" ingliac° genera as, from le said to y apprO .. reV ififi' o f 03 01 about of Ind ad' )f letters ill of the that also e inborn a truth, any su ch tic sYru e hero— n sought rather+ u poll it s ed W 35 ng diffi of ad" , _ 'bile the as s 9 f 3l * fallow 7an t hat leach "--- ardivarl d by t he h as been n plishe d Len fr° lll iicn ° f himself Dle an a " erto un ct ere a " the 11°- war- ivenes s. ttenti°' .ecouut- • -to tqui" warbled troub le. broken . • • ra othe of tio Lytto n thereti co so stall" iisa tiou , e , long st o°/11 cool; used o ion (f a thes7 but tall`'' Ictier . t 1355 It 11'.8 sliolli j Wid er i s, the Tore, in ter 3ll P The i frOn l SS, will CO an d Oi ll° l litioll`l' that thought of Zavier de Maistre, where he speaks of our bed, as witnessing alike our birth and our death—" It is a cradle scattered over with flowers; it is the throne of love; it is a sepulchre !" And let it here be said that quite as subtly interfused and as inextricably blent together as are those constituent elements of the Impas sioned and Appalling in Goethe's " Bride of Corinth," there are intertwined and intermingled in Sir Buiwer Lytton's " Death and Sisyphus" those if it be possible yet more widely contrasting con stituent elements of the Terrible and the Hu morous I And all the while, in very despite of the essentially pagan character of its theme, the poem itself has—permeating it throughout—a profound, consolatory, and elevating philosophy, one, it might even be said, harmonising in its general spirit with some among the diviner truths of Christianity ! The influence of it, as indeed of the whole book of which we are fain to regard it as perhaps the noblest portion, is serene and puri fying—appealing, as it does throughout, to our tenderest sentiments and our loftiest sympathies. Having said which in regard to it, we cannot but reflect that the book presents altogether a strange and even startling contrast to the last work of any importance emanating from Sir Bulwer Lytton's indefatigable imagination. There, in that latest fiction of his, we seemed to breathe the close and at times almost mephitic atmosphere of the chemical laboratory. Here, on the contrary, it is as if the thymy slopes of Olympus were under our feet and around us the air of Thessaly. Otherwise to express it, it is as though the galvanic battery, the crucible, and the furnace, having been trifled with for a while, were thrown aside by this Dreamer of Dreams for the " chorded shell" upon which his fingers move as deftly at mo ments as those of the old Milesian Poet and Musician Timotheus—not the favourite of Alexander, but the beloved and admired of Euripides. t, ' s w • tffil rt ........ 1., 0 ,„ eirtuk ..„..2, .L. THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 12, 1866. SHARE MARKETS,—This Day. ORDINARY SHARES AND STOCKS. share/ Railways. . la l Closing Business 1 1 "--- Price. i clone. naltaol anu Exeter Ualedonlall C am brian Cork and Bandon Cornwall Dublin & Belfast June Dun„Perth, & Ab.Junc &London, scrip Certi 1)0. Glasgow & S. Western Great Eastern, Ord. stk. Do. E. Angl. st. No. Great North of Scotland , Great Northern A stock Do. B stock. v 3 95 29 *3O 70 80 13 15 4i 5i 68 70 70 72 114 116 39 40 6i 7i 1281 129 146 117 Do. lew, is. at 25 prr. GtS. and IV. of Ireland Gt. IVeste n -Original 1) .S. V4l. Rail gua. 92 91 58) 59 , Do. South Wales . Do. W. Mid.—Oxtorc 59 61 39 41 35 37 101 103 121 122 9 91 94 98 35 37 Do. Newport - Do. He•eford Lancashire & Yorkshire Landon and Illaickwall Lon., lirish., & S Coast Lon., Chat., and Dav,-r Do. Metrop. r.x. A Lon. & North Western Lon. & South Western Man., Shet., & Lincoln Nietropolitan. Do. New 126 )2611 94 t 5 69 59i 136 138 3 lip 1 10 93 10 Do Extension...... Metropolitan District, Do - do. do. Do. and bt. John'aVV'd Mid and Do. £9 Share Do, liirmin & Derby %lid Kent . 124 125 16 121 93 95 North British Do. Ed., Pth , & Dun Nth. Eastern—Berwick' Do. G.N•E purelia.st Do. Leeds ..... Do. York DG. Carlisle ..• ... Do. :gook. & Darling. Do. do. 1860-01 North London 58 59 7 28 111 113 72 73 106 107 37 38 10 11 pl 121 126 1,) 2 2il 2 24 77 79 ' 11 12 147 149 64 66 112 114 Do. do. 18f,4 Do. .to. 1865 North Staffordshire N. & S. W. Junction Scottish Cuntral i Scot. N. E Aber. stock o. Scot, lStid. st Shropshire Union 6outh Devon • 'ouch E stern Staines, Wok., & Wok Taff Vale Do. C Vale o► Meath Waterford & Kilkenny Waterloo & Whiteha West Cornw ill P too fit 'OSSEI JION~ 5S 60 99 101 id ip 7 7* 10 11 20i 10 (00 100 100 100 all 100 100 75 80 96 98 65 70 100 102 100 101 102 103 95 4s 87 89 68 70 60 53 60 62 53 66 48 51 44 47 40 4! 37 41 102 103 P 39 i 7 64 IzBi- 4 146 k 8 4 C 8 1 9 111} 72} i 100 7it 1(21 3 2} 47 91 Si 50 19 I 3k MARKETS.---This Day. MARK LANE. The wheat trade in the country markets held on Satur day was very quiet. Dry samples, being scarce, changed hands at full prices, but damp produce commanded very little attention. Good and fine malting barley sold steadily at quite late rates ; otherwise the spring corn trade was quiet on former terms. In flour about an average business was transacted at late prices. On the continent the wheat trade is very quiet at about previous quotations. Oats are firm and in request for ex port, but other articles are a slow sale. At New York the trade for wheat and flour is firmer, the result of an increased demand for the Southern States. The arrival of English grain, &c., up to our market last week were but moderate. The imports from abroad con sisted of 13,200 quarters of wheat, 5,840 barley, 17,393 oats, 2,028 rye, 1,520 beans, 254 tares, 19,090 linseed, 38,552 rapeseed, 13,421 maze, 3,754 sacks, and 1,866 barrels of flour. _ _ _ Fresh up to our market to-day the arrivals of home grown wheat were very moderate, the bulk ofi the pro duce being in bad condition. The few dry samples on the stands changed hands at the prices of Monday last ; but for damp produce there were few buyers, and sales in con sequence were with difficulty concluded, at irregular prices. At the close of the market a considerable proportion of the supply was left undisposed of. A fair average supply of foreign wheat was on offer. There was a steady demand for dry Gherke wheats, and such commanded full prices. For other descriptions the trade was quiet, but without leading to any quotable change from Monday last. Floating cargoes of grain were in but moderate reques t at late rates. There was a falling off in the supply of English barley, the quantity on the stands being very moderate. The trade in consequence, though quiet, was somewhat more active, and prices ruled firm. For grinding and distilling barley there was a fair demand at full quotations. About an average business was transacted in malt at late rates. The market was moderately supplied with oats. In most descriptions a fair average business was transacted at last Monday's currency. Thera was a good supply of beans on the stands. The trade was dull, and in some instances prices declined to the extent of is per quarter. Peas, tho supply of which was but moderate, sold slowly at late rates. Most descriptions of flour were in moderate demand at previous quotations. CURRENCY PER IMP. MEASVRE. Wheat—Essex and Kent, red, new, per qr. 39s to 46s Do., old 46s 51,, Do., white, old SIB 5 s Do., new Norfolk and Lincoln, red, old s —s Do., ner - s Talavera, new s2s 608 Rye— Barley—Grinding Malting 3os 388 Malt—Suffolk and Norfolk Brown Kingstown and Ware Chevalier 66s 67s Oats—Yorkshire and Linoolnsh., Feeding 20s 26s Potato Yonghal and Cork, black 2OB 26s Cork, white 22e 278 Scotch, Feeding 2ls 26s Beans—Tick , 39s 428 Pigeons ... 46s 505 Peas—Grey, new Maple White Boilers Flour—Town-made, per 2801 b • 43s 46s Suffolk 328 345 Stockton and Norfolk American, per barrel 26s 31s MONEY MARKET illustration, we will give yet another passage from that same at once intensely rhetorical and highly dra matic poem—the closing passage of all, leading Zaraides and his warriors down the "Secret Way" into the banqueting chamber of the beleaguered King Omartes—at the very moment when Argiope (at the instance of her father) is about, cup in hand, to selectfrom the assembled chiefs the future partner of her throne and life, with whom she is to escape from warlike durance along the Secret Way into the guardian solitudes of the Scythian wilderness. Argiope, more than ever we may fancy " shame faced and blushing to be born so fair," has but just discovered, upon the unlooked-for entrance of Zariades, the mysterious lover whom she has hitherto only beheld in her dreams : She passed along the floors, and stooped above A form, that, as she neared, with arms outstretched, On beaded knees sunk down And took the wine-cup with a hand that trembled ; form of youth—and nobly beautiful As Dorian models for lonian gods. "Again !" it murmured low, "0 dream, at last ! at last ! how I hate missed thee !" And she replied, "The gods are merciful, l ee Ping me true to thee when I despaired." But now rose every guest, Rose every voice in anger and in terror ; Por 10, the kneeler lifted over all The front of him their best had fled before— " Zariades the Mode ! " Rang from each lip : from each sheath flashed the sabre Thrice stamped the Persian's foot : to the first sound Ten thousand bucklers echoed back a clang ; The next, and the huge walls Shook with the war-shout of ten thousand voices : The third, and as between divided cloud Flames fierce with deathful pest an angry sun, The folds, flung rudely back, Disclosed behind ono glare of serried armour. On either side, the Persian or the Scyth, The single lord of life and death to both, Stayed, by a look, vain strife ; And passing onward amid swords uplifted, girl's slight form beside him his sole guard, Re Paused before the footstool of the King, And in such tones as soothe The wrath of injured fathers, said submissive— " I have been guilty to the gods and thee Of mau's most sinful sin,—ingratitude ; That which I pined for most Seen as a dream, my waking life rejected ; l'Tevr on my knees that blessing I implore. Give me thy daughter; but a son receive, And blend them both in one As the mild guardian of the Scythian River." The mode in which the development of the plot is wrought out, in which it is ravelled and then un ravelled to the climax of this bewitching incident, we have PUrposely refrained from in any way indicating preferring rather to leave the fairy windings of the labyrinth to be revealed by the clue vouchsafed to the reader's hand by the fabricator alike of clue and labyrinth. Constructed though the varied stanzas in this volume are upon principles of rhythm which are accurately enough defined by Sir Edward Lytton, as exceedingly simple in them selves, the charm of the novel experiment in English poetry thus adventured upon lies especially in the fact, the perfectly indisputable fact as it appears to us, that no such scheme has ever before been applied to the purposes of narrative. Suggested by, rather than imitated from, the metres actually in use among the ancients, the various metres, or some, at least, among the various metres here contrived by Sir Bul wer Lytton may be said, in the strictest meaning of the Word, to have been by him actually in a manner invented ! They are no mere echoes caught up by him and adroitly imitted. It cannot be said of the author of these " Lost Tales of Miletus," that like the untutored " Oread's Son," of whom he sings, h e can be in any way described as one merely— " Breathing a soul into the hollow reed !" It is rather as though, while— • • • • there flashed into his hand A shell-like instrument with golden strings— • a r • Carelessly he swept the chords, and the lyre spoke ; spoke as if all the thoughts, Passions, and powers, and dreams, Coiled in the brain or smouldering in the bosom, Bad found long-pined-for egress—As a bird Caged from its birth content, abruptly hears One on wings poised in heaven, Blending with days, its own melodious gladness. And yet after all has thus been said, there is never theless one other adventurous employment of his mas tery over the world of harmonies , I..t.ent in tbo s old.n stri ngs of that shell-like instrument that we cannot ua t regret hi s never h av i ng onc e attempted, his having, in truth, throughout the volume, purposely abataned from attempting—a circumstance arising either, we presume, from an over fastidiousness or f rcuu a lack of temerity : the avoidance, we mean, th roughout the whole volume of any one at tempt to employ the hexameter per se, or the hexameter alternately with the pen tameter. Sir Edward Lytton in a manner "cases himself no doubt towards the close of his prefatory remarks, for inasmuch as he has, in point of fact, intentionally avoided both hexameter and pentameter. But he so excuses himself we cannot but t hink inadequately. " For certain kinds of poetry," he says, the hexameter, when in the hands of a blaster, is, no doubt, admirably well suited." Why not i n this? Why not in the hands of this master of many metres ? For—frankly let us say at once— We - fail to recognise the force of his assertion when he observes that " Neither the hexameter nor the alternate hexameter and pentameter would be ap propriate to my mode of treating these stories, in Which, for the most part, I have sought to bring out dramatic rather than epic or elegiac elements of interest, not without aim at that lyrical brevity and compression of incident and description, which is less easily attainable in the metres referred to than ill composite measures of shorter compass and mid more varied caesura." Again, we must needs protest that we altogether fail here to recog nise the force of the argument thus emphatically insisted upon. The very reference made imme ulatelybefore this to Whewell's charming translation the " Herman and Dorothea," to say nothing whatever of theprior allusion.to Longfellow's " Evan gelilie," defeats, as it appears to us, Sir Edward's argument as directed against the employ -4%U of the hexameter in narrative poems, no mat tar of w h at length or brevity. Dramatic force and i j ric al compression, as it seems t o us, are h ar dl y 'eaa attainable in the rhythmic flow of the hexameter wand certain are we that it would have proved e a ° ha Sir Bulwer Lytt on ' s own h an d s i f he had l adventured upon this one additional experiment h' th en in any one of the rhymele ss s t anzas h e 8 here contrived for his own immediate Plir l 3 nne so very ingeniously. Extending to no Ore than eight poems in all, " The Lost Tales of 1‘1 ,,, i1et118 7" as they are here recounted, are as widely t'atrsted in their character as well could be. To ° Only would we take excention as of compara _ivelY inferior excellence—the remaining six having c p aeh of them exceptional merits peculiarly their own. Would e nthralling interest and dramatic power we F or still give the palm to " The Secret Way." l'o°r delicate and refined graces of fancy, graces 14 13 2arkable for what may be termed their contem plative L i ve and introspective suggestiveness commend the Legend of Sicily. For the rare ingenuity b l ' e need in th e i n t r i ca t e e l a b orat i on of the plot of ehalf-forgotten story the meed of comme n d a ti on (I ga to " Cydippe or the Apple." For a sweetness brnie mus ical as is A po ll o ' s l ute " to that mournful legend tra at hed anew as from the mystic reed over the en poence to th e G rotto of Pan at Ephesus, in the brief p2 l , dedic a t e d to the history of " Corinna. " Be vtlCl all the seven compan i on poems, however, com the d rise within the compass of the vo l ume —b eyon d ha, nt. al l, in originality, in po w e r , i n th e tereing memory of it when once mas accod - "we would, u p on ma t ure cons id erat i on, r d Poethe high es t pra i se o f a ll to t h e remar k a b le 5i5,711,1, com memorative of the mythical story of it.' " Death and Si s yph us " i s th e titl e o f ti oila pad it is extraordinary if only for this excep se 8111 , 4. 7 480 u—that it com bi nes i n so v i v id yet subtle a manner the Humorous and the Terrible. able i t , In this respect it is alone compar " 1 - 10 rr, °:° the Voluptuous Way to th a t won d rous com bi nat i on a_, olu ptuous and th e P a th e ti c , o f L ove iu 7 in " The B r id e o f C or i nth " of Goethe, which the thought of Zavier de Alaistre is reali sed in creatures of blooming flesh and blood, almost eatures bey er i at on beautiful and loathsome, ti the power of utterance— HER MAJESTY• OSBORNE, Saturday. The Queen drove out yesterday afternoon, ac companied by Princess Helena. The Prince and Princess of Wales, with the Countess of Macclesfield and Major Teesdale in waiting, attended Divine service at the Chapel Royal, St. James's, yesterday. The Communion Service was read by the Rev. the Subdean, the Rev. J. V. Povah, and the Rev. Dr. Vaughan. Anthem—" I have set God" (Gold-win). Sung by Messrs. Barnby, J. Foster, M. Smith, and Lewis Thomas. Mr. Goss presided at the organ. The sermon was preached by the Rev. Dr. Vaughan from Isaiah, ch. xxi., verses 11, 12. Parliamentary Banquets. The Earl and Countess Russell entertained the Earl of Minto, Viscount and Viscountess Amberley, Lord and Lady Dufferin, Lord Eliot, Hon. Henry Cowper, M.P., Mr. George Trevelyan, Miss Peel, Mr. Fonblanque, &c., at dinner, at their r es id ence in Chesham-place. The Right Hon. the Speaker gave his first Par liamentary full-dress dinner on Saturday evening last to the following noblemen and gentlemen : The Right Hon. the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Marquis of Hartington, Lord F. Cavendish, Right Hon. Viscount Castlerosse, Viscount Enfield, Lord C. Paget, C. 8., Right Hon. Sir George Grey, G.C.8., Right Hon. Edward Cardwell, Right lion. W. Cowper, Right Hon. C. P. Villiers, Hon. F. G. Baring, Right Hon. Milner Gibson, Right lion. William Monsell, the Judge Advocate-General, Hon. T. Austin Bruce, - Right Hon. G. J. GOschen, Hon. Henry Brand, the Attorney-General, the Lord Advocate, the Attorney-General for Ireland, the Solicitor-General, the Solicitor-General for Scotland, the Solicitor-General for Ireland, Mr. Childers, Mr. Layard, M.P., Mr. W. E. Forster, Mr. gt.,...fela, Gvivuer --- xungsetne, Mr. Dodson, Mr. Graham, Rev. Charles Merivale, Chaplain ; Mr. Alfred Denison, the Secretary. The Right Hon. B. Disraeli gave a Parliamentary dinner on Saturday evening, at his residence, Gros venor-gate. There were present the Larl of Tyrone, Viscountßoyston, Lord Eustice Cecil, the Hon. Frederick Stanley, the Hon. Gerard Noel, the Hon. Thomas De Grey, Mr. Baillie Cochrane, Colonel Loyd Lindsay, Mr. Guinness, Mr. Graves, Mr. Walsh, Mr. Robertson, Mr. Hodgson, Mr. Eaton, Mr. Williams, Mr. Campbell, and Mr. Walrond. SURREY THEATRE.—That the unwonted depres sion of Miss Avonia Jones on the first performance of "East Lynne " on Monday last may be duly explained, we are authorised to state, what is not generally known, that the lady, though she has never changed her profes sional name, is the widow of Mr. G. V. Brooke, whose sad fate in the London must be familiar to all our readers. CRYSTAL PALACE.—The last " spiral ascent" of the surprising globe-roller, Senor Ethardo, was made on Saturday; at least his last performance for the pre sent. Mr. Manns previously gave one of his excellently arranged concerts, including selections from Mendels sohn's " Lurley," Vincent Wallace's " Lurline," and Silchers part-song " Lurley," with Madame Rudersdoff, Mr. Wilbye Cooper, and Mr. Patey as principal vocalists. The palace was illuminated at dusk, and upwards of 6,000 visitors bore witness to the attractions of a Crystal Palace Saturday. PASTORAL BY ARCHBISHOP MANNING.—Dr. Manning, the Catholic Archbishop of Westminster, issued his Lenten Pastoral yesterday. It was read pub licly in all the Roman Catholic places of worship in the district of the metropolis under his spiritual care, and treats particularly of the " three evangelical good works — fasting, alms, and prayer." At one part of the address the Archbishop writes:—" Signs of evil are everywhere. The words spoken on the first day of this year by the Sovereign Pontiff warn us of the perils which hover about his sacred presence. No two nations of the world are in amity; between almost all a secret and in tense animosity exists. Mutual resentments and defiance keep old wounds open. Sedition is undermining every people. The modern spirit of nationality is bearing its own fruit. It has been used as a lever to wrench fragments from the unity of the Church, and to overthrow the government of the Vicar of Christ: it must now be ex tinguished within our own borders. All the States of the Old World and the New seem to be sick at heart ; and there is little wisdom in rulers, and little confidence in the power and stability of Governments. Besides all this, the hand of God is visible in shadow. A murrain wastes our herds, destroying and tainting the food of man, and a pestilence which walketh in darkness, for no man can discern or contfol it, hangs over us, suspended for a mo ment, to descend upon us unless God avert, when winter is gone. Add to all this, the sins of this land, past and present, against the faith and the church of Jesus Christ, 'etgainst His precepts, and the honour of his Blessed Mother ; the multitudes who are dying every day out of the fold of salvation, without sacrament or pastor; the millions who lie in the unconsciousness of spiritual death, corrupt and corrupting one another ; the monsters and portents of crime committed day by day among us ; and, lastly, our own unworthiness of all great graces. For it is time that judgment should begin at the house of God.' The sins of Catholics aro darker than the sins of other men, for their light is greater, and the grace they have re ceived is enough to make them saints." PEACOCK AS A WRITER OF FICTION, says the Athenaeum very charmingly, is too little known by the readers of our generation ; but Shelley's executor, the author of "Headlong Hall," " Nightmare Abbey,' " Maid Marian " (with its charming lyrics), " C - eotchet Castle," " Melincourt," and, the other day, "Gryll Grange," —the friend and collaborator of Bentham, and Mill, and Grote, must not pass to his rest, at the patriarchal age of eighty, without a tribute to his racy wit, his quaint read ing, and his quiet command of mother-tongue. Rated among novelists, Peacock, in one respect, counts for little. He never tried for plot; he had small descriptive power. Rated as a satirist who shot Folly as it flew, and could exhibit the philosophies and paradoxes of the time with an epigrammatic keenness, and withal a genial recognition of all that is best, highest, and most liberal. he demands no common praise, and will hold no common place whenever the story of ultra-liberal literature shall come to be written. One brief, whimsical volume comprises the best of his novels; but there is more in that book than in the seventy volumes of those prolific folk who lay stories—six a year— as fast as circulating-library readers will devour them, to be forgotten as soon as devoured—[ls the Atheneum tnink ing of Mr. Anthony Trollops?]—Peacock's tales will be returned to. They are, in rionio sort, already classics. AND COMIEROIAL INTELLIGENat TWELVE O'CLOCK. The Money Market is active, and for the moment the tendency is not, as was expected, easier. The rates for first-class bills continue to range from 7i per cent. An amount of bar gold equal to £21,000 was taken to the Bank on Saturday. The half-yearly report of Barned's Banking Com pany recommends a dividend of ss. per share, free of income tax, being about per cent. per annum from the dates of the calls. The half-yearly report of the European Bank recommends a dividend of 6 per cent. From the manufacturing districts the accounts for the past week have generally been favourable. At Manchester moderate transactions have been effected in both cloths and yarns, and a slight recovery has taken place in prices. The woollen trade of Leeds, Bradford, and Huddersfield has continued seasonably active ; while at Birming ham, Sheffield, and Wolverhampton there has been increased activity in most departments, owing to large orders for home requirements and for ship ment, chiefly to America. Two O'CLOCK. According to Reuter's telegram the French Three per Cent. Rentes were quoted at 68f. 77c. Inanimate With a more confident feeling the Funds and other Securities have improved. The amelioration is not of magnitude, but it denotes a better tone, though the transactions have continued to be of a limited character. Consols are i higher at 864 87 for money, and 871 for the Bth March. The New Threes and Reduced Annuities are 861 87 ; Exchequer Bills, 7s. to 2s. dis ; Bank Stock, 247 ; India 5 per Cents, 1021 ; ditto Enfaced 5 per Cents., 101. The quotations for Foreign Stocks generally share an upward tendency. Turkish 5 per Cents. are 38k 4; Mexican, 21f 22 ; do. New, 19 4 ; Greek, 13 4 ; Spanish Passive, 27 4 ; the Certifi cates, 154 16 ; Italian, 604 ; the Confederate Loan, 44 54 ; Brazilian Scrip, 4 14 prem. ; and Egyptian Railway Scrip, 4 4 prem. United States Government 5-20 Bonds are 674 ; Erie Shares, 514 52 ; and Illinois, 744 4. Business in the Railway Share Market has been inactive, although, in some instances, prices are a shade firmer. Great Eastern have improved 4, and Great Western and Manchester, Sheffield, and Lincoln each 4. In the Foreign and Colonial lines there is not much variation, but Grand Trunk of Canada have advanced 2 per cent., to 49 50. Bank and Miscellaneous Shares remain very dull. London and County are dealt in at 794 ; Alliance at 264 4 ; Hudson Bay Company at 164 174 ; Joint Stock Discount at 44 g ; and Overend, Gurney, and Co., at 194 4. Charles Lafitte and Co.'s shares are quoted 3 34 prem. BRITISH FUNDS—CLOSING PRICES. GOVERNMENT FUNDS. 3 per Cent. Consols Do. Account, March 6 B7 3 per Cent. Reduced B6l New 3 per Cent B6i 7 New 2i per Cent. Jan. 1894 Do. 5 per Cent. Jan. 1873 A.nnuities, 30 yrs, expire sth Jan., 1880 Do. for 30 yrs, expire sth April, 1885 — Do (Red Sea Telegraph), Aug., 1908 — Exchequer Bills, £1,000,3 per Cent, 7 2 die Do. £5OO 7 2 die Do £lOO and £2OO , 7 2 dis Bank of England Stock, 5 per Cent INDIAN GOVERNMENT SECURITIES. radian Stock, 10k per Cent., AprillB74 208 10 Do Account Do. 5 per Cent. July, 1870 Do. 4 per Cent., Oct. 1888 Do. Certificates — Do. Enlaced Paper 4 per Cent — Do. 5 per Cent., Jan. 1872 Do. 5f per Cent., May 1879 — Do. 4 per Cent., Aug. 1866 — Do. Bonds, £l,OOO — Do. under £l,OOO FOREIGN FUNDS—CLOSING PRICES. Austrian Bonds, 5 per Cent, 1859 Brazilian 5 per Cent — Do. 44 per Cent., 1852-58-GO Do. 1863 Do. 1865 74/ 5 Do Account — _ Buenoseri, -,..z. r :.i Ayres 6 per Cent B2 Do. Account Do 1 per Cent. (Deferred 3 per Cent.) (Milian 6 per Cent — Do. 41 per Cent — Colombian 6 per Cent. — Juba, 6 per Cent. Danish 3 per Cent., 1825 Do. 4 per Cent., 1863 — Do. 5 per Cent., 1773-77, £25 paid — Danubian Principalities Do Account - Equador New Consolidated, 1 per Cent Do., Provisional Land Warrant — &gyptian 7 per Cent — "Do Second Issue — Do £lOO Bonds Do. 1864 92i Do £lOO Bonds '3reek 5 per Cents., 1824-5, ex Coupons Ili Do. Account Do. Coupons Do. Account uuatemala 5 per Cent. — talian 5 per Cent, 1865 Do Account Do. Maremmana Railway — Slexican 3 per Cent ' Do. Account 21i 2 Do 1864 — Do 6 per Cent. Anglo-French — Alontevidean 6 per Cent, £3O paid 51 oorish Imperial 5 per Cent New Granada — Do 2 per Cent — Do Deferred Do Land Warrants (Hectares) Do. 6 per Cent, 1864 — Do Guaranteed, 4 per Cent — Peruvian 5 per Cent., 1865 Do. Account Do 3 per Cent. (Uribarren) — Do 41 per Cent., 1862 +Portuguese 3 per Cent., 1853 Do 3 per Cent., 1856, '7, '9, '6O, '62, '3, 451 Do. Account Russian 5 per Cent., 1822, £ St 9ll Do 41 per Cent. 1850 Do 41 per Cent., 1860 Do 3 per Cent. 1859 ••• Do 5 per Cent. 1862 9Ol 11 Do 5 per Cent. 1864 94 Sardinian 5 per Cent Do Account — - Do £ICO Bands Do. 11 per Cent — Spanish 3 per Cent Do. Account Do New Deferred — Do Account Do Passive 261 1 '7 Do Account 24 '7l Spanish Cert. of Coup not funded l5l 116 Do Account l5l 1 161 Swedish 4 per Cent. — Do. 41 per Cent. 1864 T arkish 6 per Cent. 1854 Do Account Do 6 per Cent. 1858 Do Account Do £lOO Bonds Do 6 per Cent. 1862 Do Account — Do £lOO Bonds Do 6 per Cent., 1863 — Do 5 per' Cent., 1865, paid up Scrip 3Bl 1 i 1 Do Scrip, £35 paid Do Account Do. 4 per Cent. Guaranteed — Venezuela 3 per Cent. Ditto account Do 6 per Cent., 1864 36 Dividends on the above payable in London. Austrian, 5 par Cent., Ex. 10 Florins 4+ per cent., Ex. 25f. Dutch •zi pa , . Cent., Ex. 12 Guil 6l Do 4per Cent. Certificates 96i French Ratites 3 per Cent. Italian 5 per Cent., 1861, Ex. 25f. Do Account THREE O'CLOCK. Consols for money Do. Account B7} A RICH BALE OF COTTON.—Many cotton bales' arriving in New York have to be overhauled, dirt and stained cotton thrown out, and then rebaled. The other day two labourers in discharge of this duty found in one of the bales $27,000 in gold. One of them proposed to the other to divide and keep mum, but the other said he would report to the boss. The purchaser of the cotton claimed the gold, and the seller claimed it because the cotton was not delivered, and for other reasons, and probably the court will decide to whom this rich mine belongs. The purchaser gave the two labourers $4OO each in green backs. AID TO THE OREGON RAILROAD. —Recently Representative Bed well introduced a bill granting lands to aid in the construction of a railroad and telegraph lino from the Central Pacific Railroad, in California, to Portland, Oregon, and which will probably soon bo favourably re ported on by the Select Committee on the Pacific Rail road. The bill also authorises the Puget Sound and Columbia River Railroad Company to construct a road to unite with others on the Pacific coast. The usual grants of lands and other privileges are conferred. Atlantic &St. Lawrence Born.,Baroda, Cen.ln. gu. 5 percent... Do. F shares Buffalo & Lake Huron Do Preference Buff.,Brant, & Goderich 6 p.c. .872-3- .• • ...• • Calcutta & S. E., Rm 'are Town & Dock, gu Demerara, 7 p.c. per. p; Nast. Bengal, gu., 5 do East Indian, gu. 5 p.c. Do. J Extension !grand Trunk of Canads Do. Equip. Mort, Bonds 1 charge 6 p.c Do. Ist .'ref. Bonds Do. do. deferred Do. 2d Pr, f. Bonds Do. do. deferred Do. 3d Pref. stock Do. do. deferred Do. 4th Pref. stock •• Do. do. deferred Gt. India Pen. gua. sp.c. Gua. 5 per cent Do. New gua. 5 p. c t. South of India gua. 5 per cent D . 41 per cent Do - .3reat Wes. of Canada.. Do. New .. Do. 6 p. c. Bds. pay. 1873 Do. 51 do. pay. 1877-8 Indian Branch, limited Madras, gua. 5 p.c Do. 41 do Do. 44 do Do. Filth Exteusiou Relb. Cor. 6 p. c. Buds. & Hudson's Bay N. 61.C' da, 6pc Ist pi. be Scinde A Do. Delhi Do. do Do. Puniaub Do.lndus St .Flo COLONIAL GO VER British Columbia, 6 per' cent., Yee..7l, 1 572 .... Can.Gov.6 p.o.Ja..tJuly 1877-4 Do. 6 p. c. Feb. & Aug Do. 5 p. c. Mar. & Sept Do. 5 p. c. Jan. & July, Do. 5 p o. Inscribed sk Cape G.Hope, 6 p.c. 1873 , 1890-19 0 0 Do. do; It4Bo-9 Do. Jan.&July, 1890-9 Do. 5 per cent. 15 April' and ►5 Oct., 1900 Ceylon, Nev. 1868, 6 p. Do. 1878, do Mauritius, fi p. 0, 1873, Jau.and July Do. In7B 188 , , May t 5, Nov. N.B.Gov.6p.c.Ja.&•luly N. S.W. Gov. 5 p•c.,186t , Do. 5 p.c. 18;1 to 1871. Do. 5 P.c. 18138 to 189. New Zealand, 6 p. cent Do. 5 per cent Nova Sc , tia Gov. 6 p. a sterling, 1875 ,Queensland Gov. 6 p. c IS. Aus.Gov. 6 p,c 1868-t , I Do. 1878 & upwards Vic,Gov. 6 p.c. Ja Jz July Do. do, A pril & Oct BRITI Cam. Consul. Cold, lim Chiverton Clifford A malgamated Devon G. Cons. (Tavist Orakewalls East Bassett (Mogan/. • East Caradon East Carn Brea East Grenville East Gunnislake .. East Love.l E. W'l Russell (Tavistk Gam. & StA übyn(G wen. Great L ocey, limited Great South Tolgus Great Wheal G. Wheal Vor (Heist GrenviLe erod's F00t..... Ringston :owns Margaret (Uny Lelant Marke Va11ey.....,,,,, lwyndy Iron Ore, tin, New Setun North Roskear .... . . Bassett(lil ogan North Wheil Crotty ' Prosper I inited..... Pr vidence Uny „ S. Caradon (St. Cleer) Suuth Condurrow S.Wheal Fran. (Illogan stray Park . ... Tin Cr0ft,,..,, Vigra and Clogan, lim West Bassett (Mogan W. Caradon (L,skeard West Chi ver ton ..... West Seton. .... . Wheal Bassett 'lllogan Wheal Buller (Redruth Wheal Mary Ann (Men. Wheal Seton iWheal Trelawney (Lis ictEl4 katioicit; ti (Great Western Orig. 11i per cent:pt, , 40) LINES LNASKI) AT FIXED RENTALS . Midland, Bradford Pref. Stock, glo r'URNIGN RA IL WAYS. golf' and San Francisco ,li.n.) gua. 7 per cent.. 15} Belgian Eastern Junction, 1; Namur and Liege, gua. s per cent. pf., 191 1 iittoman (Smyrna to .Aid►u), 9 F►►itH:t►;N Chontales Gold and Silver Mining, 4; 5 Frontino and Bolivia. Gold, to St. John del Itey, 11111 ., 531 1 DOCKS. London and St. Katharine, 74 BAN lih. Albion, F Atli lim.. 26 I Anglo Austrian, 7 , Anglo k gyptian, lim. , 1 2 1 I Australasia, 71) Rank of Egypt, 32 Chartered Um of India, London, and Chinn, 45 City, lyi Consolidated Bank, lim., 91 English and American, si Eag ish Joint Stock , lim., Wt. guropean Bank, 1im., 12 :1 / Hindustan, China, and Japan, film., Ditto, issued at 2 pm.. Ditto. new, 17 Imperial Ottoman. 3 Ditto, new, 12 i Land Mortgage Bank of India. Him ' .. 4 London and Brazilian Jim.), Ditto, new. 71 London Chartered Bank of Australia, 221 London and County, 70' London Joint Stook, 474 London and Westminster, 96 Metropolitan and Provincial Bank, Ma., 151 i National Provincial of England. Ditto, d and 3d issue, 45 Oriental Banx Corporation. 52 Scinde, Punjaub, and Delhi. lira.. si Standard of British South Africa, 14 Union of A ustralia, 521:1 Union of London, 53:# BIISCELLANEOUB. Atlantic Telegraph, 8 per cant. gai t ., 3 21. Bombay Gas, lirn, 5 i Ceylon Company, 91 China Steam hip and Labuan Coal Company, 2} f City of London Real Property, lira., 4 Credit Fancier and Hobilier of England, 84 8 Crystal Palace, 6 per cent. perpeti. deb., 109 East Indian Land Credit and Finance, lira , 5} Egyptian Corn. and Trading, u m ., q 5 Electric Telegraph. 149 English and Scottish Marine, Um., 3 Fairb ,irn Engineering, 6 Fore-street IVarehouse, lira., 10f Gen. Credit and Fina . nee of L )naou, itm4, 51 Hudson's Bay, 17 Imperial Mercantile Credit Mao., lira., International Financial society, Joint Stock Discount. lim., 4f London Financial Association, lira 124 14 London General Omnibus Company, liui . 3 f London and Glasgow Engineer' , g and Iron Ship, Bra. 11 National Discount Company. Overend, Gurney, and Co., 111 n., Peninsula and Oriental steam, Ditto, new,s .4 N Smith, Knight, anal Co., lim., 13} South African Mortgage and Investment, lim., Universal Marine, Insurance, thu g 34 Lipper Assam Tea, 55 57 73 74 8 0 147 150 3 4 1 101 103 51 63 93 100 91 93 161 )61 41 4 112 01 84 d 6 1 hd 9i 101 90 92 86 88 64 66 8 . 62 98i 99i 98 99 i l' i 93 99 METROPOLITAN CATTLE. The show of foreign stock on offer here to-day was rather extensive for the time of year; but its general con dition was very middling. The demand was heavy and the quotations had a drooping tendency. The arrivals of beasts fresh up from our own grazing districts, as well as from Scotland, were considerably on the increase, and in prime condition. All breeds moved off heavily, at a decline in the quotations of 2d per 81bs, and a total clearance was not effected. Prime Scots and crosses sold at from 4s 8d to 4s 10d per 81bs. The supply from Ireland was very moderate. From Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, and Cambridgeshire, we received 2,300 Scots, short horns, and crosses ; from other parts of England, 1,000 various breeds; from Scotland, 960 Scots and crosses ; and from Ireland, 200 oxen and heifers. The supply of English sheep was only moderate. The quality of each breed, however, was prime. The mutton trade was very inactive, and last week's prices were barely supported. The best Downs and half-breds in the wool sold at 6s 4d to 6s 8d ; out of wool, 5s 2d to 5s 4d per Sibs. There were a few lambs on offer; they realised fully 8s per 81bs. Calves were in short supply and sluggish request, at barely late rates. The demand for pigs was heavy, on rather lower terms. Per 81b to sink the offal. - aaii d 1 sded & Crse. inf. beasts... 3 4 3 8 Pme ors-wool sheep 5 8 6 2 Second quality do ..3 10 4 2 Prime a'thdown a 0.6 4 6 8 Prime large oxen ..4 4 4 6 Large coarse calves.s 0 5 6 1 Prime Scuts, .te....4 8 4 10 Prime small d0......5 8 6 0 Crse. and inf. sheep. 4 0 4 8 Large hogs .4 L 4 0 Second quality do ..4 10 5 6 Small porkers 4 8 5 0 Lamb....os Od to O. Od. Suckling calves, 19s to 21s; and quarter-old store pigs, 28s to 33s each. _ _ _ Head of stock on sale. Total supply. Foreign supply. Beasts 5,30 Beasts 1385 Cows. .. Cows. Sheep 20,930 Sheep Calves l2l Ca ves Pigs 375 Pigs Tho total imports of foreign stock into London, last week, amounted to 6,816 head. In the corresponding week in 1865, we received 5,127 ; in 1864, 5,173 ; in 1863, 2,458; in 1862, 837 ; and in 1861, 3,691. IMPORTS INTO LONDON LAST WEEK. Beasts. Sheep. Lambs. Calves. Pigs. Aalborg ....... 4 ... 6 ... ... ... 8 Antwerp - ••• 1843 ... ... 45 ... Boulogne 6l ••• 544 ••• - ••• '--- ••• -- Bremen.— .... _ Gothenburg 217 ... ... ... 39 Cadiz — ••• ••• ••• ••• Calais.. — ••• - ••• - ••• - ••• Dordt. Dunkirk — ..• ... ... ••• Delfzyh Hamburg Harlingen ...... Oporto — ••• ... ..• -- •.• -- Ostend — ... 107 ... ... 2 ... Rotterdam 526 .., 2223 ... .... 255 ... 315 Tonning Total 1,340 ... 4,848 271 862 The yearly comparison of weekly imports is as follows : Beasts. Sheep. Lambs. Calves. Pigs. 1865 1864 llO2 ... 3481 ... 477 113 1863 A statement and comparison of the supplies and prices of fat stock exhibited and sold in the Great Metropolitan Cattle Market on Monday, Feb. 13, 1865, and this day, Monday, Feb. 12, 1866. Per 81bs. to sink the offal. Feb. 13, 1865. Feb. 13, 1866. e d s d od e d. Coarse and inferior boasts 3 Bto 4 2 3 4to 3 8 Second quality do. Prime large oxen 5 0 5 2 4 4 4 6 Prime Scots, &c. Coarse and inferior sheep Second quality do. Prime coarse-woolled do. Prime Southdown do 6 0 6 2 6 4 6 8 Lambs Large coarse calves 4 4 5 0 5 0 5 6 Prime small do. Large hogs Neat small porkers 4 2 4 8 4 8 5 0 Beasts 4,550 5,340 Sheep 15,800 20,930 Calves Pigs - SvrruEs ON SALE, Feb. 15, 1864.—Beasts, 8,690 — sheep, 14,650—calves, 212—pigs, 420. - • Feb. 16, 1863--Beasts, 4,210 --sheep, 15,760—calves, 117 —pigs, 310. NEWGATE AND LEADENHALL. The supplies of wheat on sale aro moderate. For most qualities there is a fair demand, at the annexed quota tions : Per 81b by the carcase. cl Inferior beef 3 0 8 4 Middling do. 3 8 3 lo Prime large do 4 0 4 2 Prime small do 4 4 4 6 Large pork 3 10 4 10 Lamb, Os 0, d s d Inferior mutton 3 6 3 10 Middling mutton 4 0 4 6 Prime do 4 8 5 0 Veal 4 0 6 4 Small pork 5 0 5 6 Id to Os Od. BOROUGH AND SPITALFIELDS. These markets are well supplied with potatoes. For good and fine samples the trade ruled firm, at full prices ; but for inferior produce the demand is in a most inactive state. The imports into ondon last week warn unim- portant. . Kent and Essex regents Scotch do. 4os to 90s „ Yorkshire do 6os to 955 , „ Flukes Ths to 105 s „ „ Rocks 45s to 60s „ TALLOW. The tallow trade is steady to-day, at 46s 9d for P.Y.O on the spot. Town tallow commands 45s 3d net cash. Rough fat is selling at 2s 4d per 81bs. Particulars. 1863. 1864. 1865. 1866. Stock this day 47,215 62,845 48,039 42,593 44s Od to 40s 9 d 41 s 3 d 46 s 9 d to Price of Y4C4 ......... —s Od —s Od 418 6d —s Od Delivery last week 1,575 1,630 2,005, 2,525 Ditto from June 1 62,412 55,076 69,734 81,977 Arrival last week Ditto from June 1 71,322 80,074 72,752 92,087 Price of Town BOROUGH HOP. For the time of year the demand for hops for home con sumption is tolerably active. The export inquiry is good, and prices of all descriptions of produce rule firm. The import into London last week was 114 bales from Ham burg, 17 from Bremen, and 79 bales from Rotterdam. New Mid and East Bents Bos to 190 s per cwt. New Weald of Kents New Sussex Yearlings loos to 140 s „ KENT SECU 94 96 93 96 93 96 79 81 73 SO 101 103 104 106 104 106 101 103 90 92 101 103 106 1.8 IC2 IC4 103 tO5 103 ICS 1 61 189 U 3 Y 5 92 94 87 89 100 102 82 84 c 8 100 N 100 104 106 - - 105 106 NES. 9 10 15 17 570 500 1 18 2 9 6 7 4} 41 3b 4 1 3 30 : 5 7 20 21 11 2 34 3C 32 3} 31 40 4e 5} 5} 6 7 4 44 2k led 40 60 J 13 15 g L 37 39 410 430 2 11 8 22 9 11 19 20 4 6 3 4 8 10 79 82 190 200 95 1( 0 27 3') 3 5 210 23 , i 7 18 321 126 5; 61 9f I 9i 60} 1371 81 7 1 981 1214 1 i ITIES. SEEDS Linseed and rapeseed were very firm, but in agricultural seeds very few transactions took place. Linseed cakes moved off freely, at full prices. Cottonseed cakes, how ever, were a dull sale. WOOL. Owing to the renewed activity of the Liverpool cotton market the wool trade has exhibited more steadiness, but transactions have not been augmented in any material Prices, however, rule firm, and without quotable change from last week. Since the close of last sales the arrivals of wool have been, as far as the Cape and Australian colo nies are concerned, 37,706 bales, viz., 1,642 bales from Sydney and Queensland, 12,185 Port Philip, 1,216 Adelaide, 196 Van Diemen's Land, 366 New Zealand, and 22,094 bales from the Cape of Good. Hope. Current prices of English wool per lb. Fleeces —South Down h oge t s s d sdl 81 1 9f Half-bred do 1 11f 2Of Kent fleeces ll4 2 Of South Down ewes and wethers 1 7 110 Leicester do Sorts —Clothing Combing THIRD EDITION. SUN OFFICE, 7 o'CLocK. TATTERSALL'S—This Evening. LINCOLNSHIRE HANDICAP. 7to 1 agst Copenhagen (offered) 100 to 8 agst Mephistopheles (taken) 20 to 1 agst Caithness (taken) 20 to 1 agst East Lynn (taken) LIVERPOOL STEEPLECHASE. 15 to 1 agst Laura (taken) 25 to 1 agst Innellan (taken) CITY AND suBuRBANT. 25 to 1 agst Copenhagen (taken) TWO THOUSAND. sto 2 agst Lord Lyon (taken) 7to 2 agst Student (taken) 12 to 1 agst Janitor (taken) 40 to 1 agst Duke of York (taken) DERBY. 6to 1 agst Rustic (offered) 11 to 1 agst Student (taken freely) 20 to 1 agst Auguste (taken) 25 to 1 agst Janitor (taken) 50 to 1 agst Laneret (taken) 100 to 1 agst Duke of York (taken) 100 to 1 agst The Peer (taken) SPORTING INTELLIGENCE. —This Day. BIRMINGHAM RACES-MIS DAY. [BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.] WARWICK HUNT. Tiger Brandy Wine 2 Oliver - Seven ran. ERDINGTON PLATE. Benazet , Ace of Hearts Ten ran. VICTORIA CLUB BETTING-THIS DAY. LINCOLN HANDICAP. Bto 1 agst Copenhagen (taken) 100 to 8 agst Saccharometer (offered,) 100 to 8 agst Mephistopheles (offered) 11:10 to 7 agst Gemma (taken) 16 to 1 agst V aniant (taken) 16 to 1 agst Treasure Trove (off—take 20 to 1) 16 to 1 agst Pantaloon (taken and offered) 20 to 1 agst East Lynn (taken) LIVERPOOL STEEPLECHASE. 100 to 6 agst Laura (taken) 20 to 1 agst Cortolvin (taken) 25 to 1 agst Innellan (taken and offered) 30 to 1 agst Thomastown (taken) NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 10 to 1 agst Mail Train (taken) CHESTER CUP. 500 to 15 agst Sandal (taken)] TWO THOUSAND GUINEAS. sto 2 agst Lord Lyon (offered) 7to 2 agst Student (off-4 to 1 taken freely) DERBY. 20 to 1 agst Auguste (taken) 25 to 1 agst Janitor (offered) 50 to 1 agst Strathconan (taken freely) IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT HOUSE OF LORDS-THIS EVENING. The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack at five o'clock. THE CATTLE PLAGUE. The Duke of BUCCLEUCH presented petitions from the Scottish Farmers' Club, praying for compensation to far mers in cases where it had been found necessary to de stroy cattle, and foi the adoption by Government of vigorous measures to arrest the further progress of the cattle disease. RAILWAY COMPANIES BORROWING POWERS. The Earl of BELMORE asked whether it was the in tention of the President of the Board of Trade to intro duce any measure to give effect to the recommendation of the selet committee of that house, in 1864, on railway com panies borrowing powers ; whether if such a measure should be introduced, it would be framed so as to meet the case of the obligation of joint stock companies generally. In consequence of the anomalies that existed, a commission was appointed which sat for two sessions, and which made some valuable recommendations, on which a bill WAS founded which passed through their lordships' house. It was read a first time in the House of Commons, but re jected in consequence of some defects relative to the re gistration of debentures, which it was contended would give a certain class of shareholders undue advantages. He thought that the objections to the bill had been fairly stated in the other house. After some further observa tions he concluded by impressing on the house the im portance of the subject. Earl RUSSELL said that the President of the Board of Trade had given great attention to this subject, but the G overn ment had not yet prepared any bill in reference to it. Lord OVERSTONE said that under the circumstances it was desirable that the President of the Board of Trade should give the matter his most serious attention. (Hear.) The Earl of CLARENDON said that he concurred in what had fallen from the noble lord who had just addressed the house. THE BRITISH MUSEUM. Lord HOUGHTON asked Government whether they intended to introduce any measure respecting the adminis tration of the British Museum and the disposition of its contents. He alluded to the rumours r e lative to the prin cipal librarian, and said his resignation must necessarily lead the great alterations in regard to this great national insti tution. There were also rumours of proposals having been made to her Majesty as regarded alterations in the present constitution of the governing body of the British Museum. He did not wish to cast any aspersion on the trustees, who, he believed, were a most honourable body, but at the same time it could not be denied that the present administration of the British Museum was not popular, and therefore it was desirable that there should be some modification of the existing arrangements so as to meet the requirements of the public in a more satisfactory manner an at present. Earl RUSSELL said that some suggestions . had been made to the trustees of the British Museum, with a view to the introduction of improvements, but 4 wasinot the.m tendon of Government to introduce any bill on the subject at present. the resent Lord TATJN libtarian. 'I TIN expresse d his approval of p Other noble lords expilsod themselves to the effect that the subject should receive the 111ost careful attention. The house then adjourned. HOUSE OF COMM"ONS.—s EVENING.) The SPEAKER took the chair at four o'clock. PRIVATE BUSINESS. Mr. SCOURFIELD c alled the attention of the house to the mode of transacting and t h e amount of private busi ness before the house at the presen t moment. He thought it absolutely necessary that some improvement in the machinery of the house was required. Mr. WILSON-PA TTEN said the great event was the number of continuation bills which were presented this session, but he did not think private bills ought to be dealt with in any other than the usual manner. There were 633 private bills to deal with, and therefore he thought the Court of Referees ought to be strengthened. If an additional Court of Referees was appointed, he thought it would be highly advantageous, as two Courts could sit at the same time instead of only ono as at pro sent. UNDUE RETURN. A petition was presented complaining of an undue re am for Maidstone. REGISTERED VOTERS. Mr. BAINES moved for returns of the number of per sons on the last register as voters in the represented cities and boroughs of England and Wales in the right of being freemen, scot and lot voters, or of other ancient rights, who occupy premises of the gross estimated rental of £6 and under 47 ; of £7 and under £8; of £8 and under £9 ; of £9 and under £lO a year ; and of the same class of voters who occupy premises at £lO gross estimated rental and upwards, and those who occupy premises below the gross estimated rental of £6 a year.—Ordered. REPRESENTATION OF THE PEOPLE BILLS. Mr.. LOCKE KING moved that the undermentioned bills be reprinted, viz., " A Bill to extend the right of Voting for memb ers o Parliament, and toAmend the Laws relating to the Representation of the People in Parliament, 1852 ;' "A Bill further to Amend theiLaws relating to the Representation of the People in England and Wales, 1854;" " A Bill to Amend the Laws relating to the Representation of the People in England and Wales, and to facilitate the Registration and Voting of Electors, 1859;" and "A Bill further to improve the Laws relating to the Representation of the People in England and Wales, 1860." Ordered. CATTLE PLAGUE. Mr. AYRTON moved for a copy of the report of com- MiliS/QA ordered by the Government of Bengal to inquire ~~ into the cattle plague which broke out in Calcutta in 1864 —Ordered. METROPOLITAN ASSESSMENTS. Mr. LOCKE moved for returns from each parish and extra-parochial place within the Metropolitan area under the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Board of Works, of the assessment upon which such parishes and places were assessed to the property tax, schedule (A), police rate, county rate, and poor's rate, for the years ending Lady day 1864 and 1865 ; and, from the city of London of the assessment upon which such city was assessed to the pro perty tax, schedule (A), and the consolidated rate, for the same years (in continuation of Parliamentary paper, No. 321, of session 1864). Ordered. THEATRICAL LICENCES Mr. LOCKE asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his attention had been directed to the present state of the law as to the licensing of theatres and other places of amusement in the metropolis ; and whether it was his intention to bring in a bill on the subject? Sir G. GREY said his attention had been called to the matter, which was a very complicated one, and principally retained in old and obsolete statutes. The Under Secre tary of State intended to move for a committee to consider those laws, and that inquiry had better take place before any alteration was attempted to be made in the law. The committee would be moved for on au early day. a POOR IN THE METROPOLIS. _ _ Viscount CidI4I3OURTE TsiTeli;eFresident of the Poor-law Board whether it was his intention to introduce any measure for more effectually securing the execution of the laws relating to the poor in the metropolis? Mr. VILLIERS said it was the intention of the Govern ment to introduce a bill on the subject. The measure was founded upon the report of the committee appointed in the last Parliament. SUEZ CANAL. Mr. SANDFORD asked the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the award of the Emperor of the French in the affairs of the Suez Canal had been definitively accepted; and, if so, whether her Majesty's Government adhere to that award, and whether they would lay the papers relating to it upon the table of the house ? Mr. LAYARD said the award of the French Govern ment was not yet complete, and therefore he could not at the present moment give the hon. member the information he required. THE ELECTION FOR KING'S COUNTY-BREACH OF PRIVILEGE. Mr. AYRTON called attention to what he considered was a very grave breach of the privileges of Parliament. The rights of members elected to seats in that house had been greatly violated, and some very stringent notice ought to be taken of the matter. At the last elec tion for the King's County, at which there were throe candidates, and for which the returning officer made a return that Sir Patrick O'Brien had been selected, it afterwards turned out on the poll books being counted up that the election had fallen upon Mr. Pope Hennessey. That gentleman was prevented taking his seat in the house in consequence of his name not baying been re turned at the top of the poll by the Under-Slieriff of the county, xvho acted as returning officer on the occasion He characterised the blunders committed by the returning officer as a disgrace to a schoolboy, and the extent of the evil, he said, could not be fully imagined, because, through the mistake of a returning officer, it was possible for a Prime Minister to be kept from taking his seat in con sequence of the blunder of one of the returning officers. He moved that the Sheriff for King's county be called to the bar of the house, and be examined with respect to the mattter. The motion having been seconded, Sir P. 0. BRIEN pledged his honour as a gentleman, that he believed that he had a majority of votes on the occasion of the last election for the King's county. He would say no more, but leave the house while the matter was under discussion. _ _ _ The ATTORNEY-GENERAL thought the house ought not to agree to the motion of the hon. member, because there were rules laid down for their guidance, which it would be unwise to depart from. In the matters of disputed elections a petition was to be presented and recognisances entered into, and then a thorough in vestigation was made into all matters connected with the said election. He did not think it would be advisable that this practice should be altered and its place taken by an examination viva voce at the bar of the house. He thought after an hon. member of that house had pledged his honour that he believed he had been duly elected, the hon. mem ber for the Tower Hamlets would withdraw his motion. Mr. AYRTON said, after the declaration of the hon. member, he should not persevere with his motion. The motion was then by leave withdrawn. THE CATTLE PLAGUE BILL. Sir G. GREY, in rising to bring in this bill, said it was unfortunately but too true that the cattle plague had be come so prevalent that some action on the part of Parlia ment was urgently and immediately required. The right hon. gentleman having alluded to the various efforts that had been made to stay the plague without success, said meetings had been held all over the country, and one of the last resolutions passed at the Council of the Royal Agricultural Society, and which had been placed in the hands of the Government that day was that, "no method of dealing with the cattle plague at the present time will be of any avail unless it provides for the immediate slaughter and burial at lest 6 feet deep of all cattle suffer ing from the disease ; making compensation to the owners in such mode and extent as shall be considered advisable." That was the opinion of various important bodies, amongst which was the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scot land ; and as all efforts to arrest the progress of the disease had signally failed, and all suggestion had failed to effect a cure, it appeared to the Government that the only way of stopping the dangerous disease was the immediate slaughtering of all animals affected with the terrible disease. (Hear, hear.) It had been strongly urged on the Government that during the exist ence of the cattle plague all imported cattle, sheep and swine should be slaughtered at the port at which they might be landed, and that their dides, skins, and fat be disinfected there, but he might as well mention that Ireland would not come under the general bill, but would be dealt within a separate measure. The bill of the Government directed that the local authorities of counties and boroughs should at once order that all animals affected by the dis ease should be slaughtered, and that adequate compensa gi.o.o bu 8 . van. whaula bialowor• ie.:- animals affected in comparison with those not at present visibly so. The scale of compensation would be two-thirds of the value of the animals slaughtered. [LEFT SPEAKING.] LAW INTELLIGENCE.—This Day. COURT OF QUEEN'S BENCH. (Sittings at Nisi Prins before the Lord Chief Justice and a Special Jury.) CAMPBELL V. LORD WENLOCIC. The hearing of this case was resumed, and the following witnesses were called for the defence : Benjamin Kearsley said that he had been em ployed on different occasions by Lord Wenlock to work at houses which he had taken from time to time in London, and was engaged in taking down bedsteads at 49, Eaton-place on the 28th of April last. He found 16 bugs in the front attic at the head-board. He sent for Mr. Abbott, and during the absence of his messenger he killed seven more bugs. A housemaid of Colonel Campbell's was at work in the house, and she admitted to hitu that the room had not been cleaned for three or four months before. He sent for some water and soda, and found afterwards between 20 and 30 bugs. There were enough of the vermin to infest a whole house in warm weather. He put up the bed that came from his lordship's house in Yorkshire, which were quite clean and packed in clean matting. H e examined them carefully. Ellen llardcastle said she was one of the house maids in Lord Wenlock's family. She went to the house in Eaton-place on Saturday, the 22d of April last. She slept in the back attic, and something bit her during the night. She struck the light, but could find nothing. The next night she slept in the back room below, but was not disturbed then. Tho day before she was with Mr. Abbott in the best bed room where the four-post bed was, and while the bed was being cleaned something was brushed on Mr. Abbott's face. He put his hand to his head and killed abug. He handed it to her and said is not this a new thing ? (Laughter.) On the Friday after she was in the front attic with Mr. Abbott, he killed about 18 or 20 bugs. The next day she found five or six bugs on the floor crushed. 2 The witness was cross-examined. He understood that bugs took three weeks before the birth, and 1 1 weeks before they became an insect. when ß b By th u e gs L la o i r d d th C e h ir ie e f gg J s u . Justice--He -- 1 laugh.) h d . ) Henry Tiffin—He was a professor of naturalll:l not know philosophy with respect to these insects. (Laughter.) He made it his business to destroy them, and he was considered efficient. Bugs increased very rapidly. If the weather were warm eggs were laid in June or early in July. After the eggs were laid the bug came out of them in about a fortnight. (Laughter.) One bug could produce as many as 90 during the season. Bugs travelled about the house, and on one occasion he had seen a troop of 15 walking leisurely up stairs. (Laughter.) Mr. Bovill—l suppose they walk down stairs also ? Witness—Oh, yes. Mr. Bovill—Up stairs, down stairs, and into my lady's chamber. (Great laughter.) This closed the evidence for the defence• His lordship having summed up, The jury then retired, and after an absence of one hour and 40 minutes, returned a verdict for plaintiff for 500 guineas, the full amount claimed. --- The Fatal Accident on the Great Western Railway. INQUEST TIIIS DAY. BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH. LEAMINGTON, Feb. 12. An inquest was held at the Town-hall this day evidence, the deathjury ; returned an dthat on the body of D aniel Giles, who was killed on a no blame whatever the Great Wester n Railway, near Leamington, on Saturday. unAanfitinermills verdicteari hearing gihe "Accidental of , A attached to any of the com pany's servants." 100 100 2 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 SH DI 2.1.0 295 2.14.6 3} 2.14.0 8.3,6 3.9.0 In I 982 2 105 j; 20 1