The Sun. — London, England, 1870-01-03 00:00:00

THE CONSERVATIVE LE. A DER. The Globe accepts Lord Derby as the future leader of the Conservative ;arty as an arranged matter. Speaking of the changes which the old year produced, and those which the new year will bring, our contemporary remarks :—" Contrary to widespread anticipations and expressions of mistrust in quarters where strong faith Might have been looked for, Conservatism has not died or even put on symptoms of exhaustion and decay. The passing of the great Reform Bill of 1867 was not the flash of an expiring flame, but the development of a new life with fresh energy and enlarged capacity for action With the new life of Conservatism came the new leader, a er r man acknowledged even by his -assents to be cf surpassin,g power, unfailing resource • and mature judgment, he became our dictator for the critical epoch, our general for the new campaign. 31,-. Disraeli received the leadership cf the Conservatives from the late Lord Derby, the noble champion of that age which possessed some of the defects as well as the virtue 4 of chivalry, at the eventful ne raent when the new vitaliie , of the ;arty was bursting into Reties). Tile present' Eal I e f Derby Las many qualities which render hire, perhaps, oven more capable than was hi.; gallant father, of com batting effectually the si irit cf revolution whieh the Radical propaganda is endeavouring to force upon the nation. Working as he will, thoroughly in harmony with our present chief, he will assist Air. Disraeli in showing to the country at large the difference between prejudice and principle—between the principle of loyalty and order, which would gladly help on every constitutional development of national growth, but cannot at a blow divest itself of all love for our ancient institutions, our ancient rights, and our national religion—and the prejudice which would obstruct all, oven salutary reform." The London correspondent of the Leeds Mercury says the Conservative leadership is still an open question. Lord Salisbury will not join with Mr. Disraeli. It is possible Lord Cairns will hold office for a few months, as many of the peers are opposed to the Earl of Derby. But in the end the choice will lie between Lord Derby and one of the dukes, who are not the least docile members of Mr. Dis raeli's team. It is difficult to understand how there can be any hesitation in the choice—always supposing it to be true that Lord Derby has signified his willingness to accept the leadership if it is offered to him. THE GALES-SHIPWRECKS AAT GREAT LOSS OF LIFE. Informaticn has been received of many shipwrecks and loss of life during the severe gale which commenced on Thursday. The Louis and BuOnie, French brig, of Nantes, drove ashore on Friday at Bridport, while on a voyage to Dun kirk, and speedily went to pieces; two men were washed over board and drowned, but the remainder of the crew were saved. The Austrian brig Novo Pluto struck on the Green ground near Swansea, and soon afterwards foundered, taking down with her several of the crew. The vessel was on a voyage to Falmouth from Kustendjie. The schooner Hermes was totally wrecked at the entrance of the River Esk, while the wind was blowing a hurricane, and six poor fellows were drowned. A large vessel is reported 10- - ;t, with all hands, near Castletownsend and at Kinsale, near Barry's Cove, the Quebec vessel Edna, bound from Montreal to the Clyde, drove &shore, and nine persons, including the master and his wife, were all drowned. The Prussian brig Konigsberg 13 a total wreck on the Cornish coast, near the Land's End. All the crew, with the exception of one, were saved. A. schooner, the name of which has not been ascertained. !went down with all hands between the North Stack and the breakwater at Holyhead. An ineffectual attempt was in :de by a steamer to tow the ill-fated vessel into the harbour, but the tow-rope broke, and it is stated it was Impossible to renew communication. Among the other vessels lost was the Ann, cf Ipswich; the brig Anne, of South Shields ; the brig Delegate, of London ; the schooner Margaret Jane, of Dublin; the brig Betsey, of Falmouth; and the brig Ballab, of Bilbea. Two large steamers, each of 4,000 tons burthen, are now being built on the Mersey for the National Steam ship Company. They will be the largest steamers in the world, with the exception of the Great Eastern. The Telegraph denies as absurd the rumour mat the Commissioners for the Bridgwater and Beverley elec tions have recommended the disfranchisement of those boroughs. Ele:Aim Commissioners, it appears, have no authority for doing this. The Dundee correspondent of the Pull Mall Gazette telegraphs that a serious collision has occurred to day at the Forgandeury station of the Caledonian Railway. year Perth the mail train from London ran into a Glasgow train. Two men were kill( don the spot, and twelve other persons were injured very seriously. At present the ac cident appears to have Leen occasioned by mere careless- ress. The London correspondent of the _Teed; Merettry confirms the surmise of cur own correspot.deut that the letters on the Contagious Diseases Act, by "An English woman," - which have been appearing in the Daily News, are by Miss Martineau. Our correspordent's statement that in fluence has been used with the Cabinet by certain influential . members of the Ladies' Association to prevent the exten sion of the act is also confirmeY. The Sporting Life states that Mr. Bruce, the Home Secretary, in answer to the memorial sent to him for a re mission of the punishment awarded Dr. Shorthouse, has written to say that he has "failed to discover any sufficient grounds to justify him in advising interference with the sentence." The Doctor has been very ill dining the past week, suffering from bronchitis and occasional fits% Sir Joseph Hawley, having discovered the actual Writer of the article entitled "Sir Joseph Scratcltawley," and also satisfied himself that Dr. Shorthcuse did not write the article, has (according to the Sussex Express) instructed his solicitor to intimate to the Home Secretary a williegeess that the sentence should be remitted. TOILTUILIN PRISONERS.—It appears (says the Pall Mall Gazette) that the practice of torturing prisoners in order to make them confess, which has been abolished by meat civilised nations, still exists in Switzerland. M. Borel, member of the Assembly of Lucerne, has proposed that information should be asked from the Federal- Council as to the torturing of a prisoner in the Canton of Zug. The man in question was accused of theft, and acknowledged to the criminal court that he had appropriated the missing articles, but he refused to admit that he had stolen them, and insisted that he had accidentally found them. The court then ordered further inquiries to be made. "From the 26th of October to the 10th of November the prisoner was put on bread and water diet; but he made no confession. . . . Thumbscrews were then applied to the prisoner, but still he made no confession. Six blows were next given him with a stick ; he writhed and groaned, but declared he could say nothing more than what he had said already, upon which six more blows were administered. "If you kill me, Mr. Judge, I cannot say anything else.' The prisoner was then brought before the court, and once more earnestly questioned, bu he adhered to his former statement. Upon this the pri soner was again placed on the ordinary prison diet." FRIENDLY SOCIETIES AND MEDICAL FEES.—A. singular agitation, which in its results is likely to have an important influence on friendly societies throughout the kingdom with respect to the medical fees paid for attend ance on th e i r mem b ers, has just been brought to a conclu sion at Prest on . A few weeks ago the gentlemen com posing the Medical Society in that town resolved to raise the rate of remuneration for attendance upon the members of sick and friendly societies from 2s. to 3s. per head per year. This resolution created an immediate antagonism, and several meetings of deputies from the various clubs have since been held, whereat the proposed increased fee was warmly discussed and resisted. It was stated that many of the members, being in three or four societies, paid as much as 6s. and 88. per year to doctors; and that, taking the average, 58.6 d. per member per year was raid, instead of 25., as had been represented by a writer in the Lancet. The desirability of forming a "medical union" was discussed, and at length agreed to; but the members of the various lodges of the Independent Order of Odd fellows, Manchester Unity, numbering about ",r,OO, seceded from the general body, and resolved to appoint their own medical officer. The other friendly societies, comprising the Druids of the Preston and Kirkham districtA, the Foresters, Ancient Shepherds, Free Gardeners, Mechanics, Sons of Temperance, Painters, Joiners, Smiths, and P.echabites, numbering altogether nearly 3,000 mentbers, have gone a step further and formed an " Amalgamated Friendly Societies' Provident Dispete . ary," have taken reemisCs for a 'medical hall" in !1•::; street of the :own, and 11:1vc appointed n evc &nits this " ' - )8, (- rorn which it appears that any mull . ..Tr el the above mentioned friendly socif..ties will be entitled to first class medical treatment and proper medi cines for himself and wife on payment of id. —1 one chili; Id.; wife and three chil a IlTe children, f.:(1. ; wife and seven per week per child for more than seven 16 years of age. The general public :j on payment of wo‘kly coLtributions ' those above specified. It is the th.ten successful. of which ihrkg is no doubt :rs, to "erect a medical hall," and -heady been entered into for the pur -4.1 the very centre of the town for ro aGters cf f:cir per week; wife and dren, ILd.; wife and ' ea,2id.; andil , 8 : n and under •4, be achnitte:. • •XeC23 cf lon. if member • 'O.-1 311SCELLANEOUS THE HOtSE OP LORDS. The rumour first given currency in an Trish Con servative journal to the effect that Lord Bessborough has resigned his seat in the Government, is confirmed by the Pall Mall Gazette. The excuse for this step is his lordship's failing health, but it is generally believed that . his resignation is partly due to the Land Bill about to be introduced. It will be remeru bered that the other Liberal whip in . the House of Lords—Lord Foley—died recently, so that two vacancies remain to be filled up. It is understood that the Earl of Cork and the Duke of St. Albans are to be the new whips. Although we ifre within five weeks of the meet ing of Parliament, the Conservatives are still without a leader in the Upper Chamber. According to the Pall Mall Gazette, neither the Duke of Marlborough nor the Marquis of Salisbury have consented, or are likely to consent, to lead the Tory peers. Our contemporary suggests that Lord Cairns should still b 3 riTognised as leader—if he will consent to continue in the office. It is well known that he is not alto gether acceptable to the party ; but as another great Irish question has to be settled, the Conservatives may do worse than discuss it under the direct guidance of a keen lawyer. The Glole apparently cnisiders that the new leader is positively chosen, .for it spoke on Saturday of Lord Derby as the future head of the Tory party. NOMINATION DAY AT LONGFORD. The mob at Longford on the last day •of the year shewed that they understood the whole art of managing nominations. The uproar was so grea t th a t nobody could hear a word of the speeches, and the show of hands proved nothing, save that, being in favour of Mr. Greville Nugent, the Liberal, it showed that the intimidation of the Fenian element was less effective than in Tipperary. But what can be. the use of a ceremony which affords a crowd the oppor tunity of making unlimited disturbance, confines the doings of the candidates to dumb show, and ends in the reading of the Riot Act? If anything were needed to demonstrate the utter uselessness, and worse, of the nomination farce, these Irish elections certainly supply the required testimony. This is not the first time the county of Longford has distinguished itself for rioting at elections. The Daily News points out that similar scenes as occurred on Friday were witnessed at the last contested elec tion which. took place in the county. This was in March, 1862, when Major O'Reilly defeated Colonel Luke White on his appointment to a Lordship of the Treasury. The attention of the House of Commons was afterwards drawn to the violence by which this election was characterised.. _ _ _ . The Irish " national" papers are chiefly occupied with this contest, and denounce " clerical spoon feeding" in political matters. The Weekly Xen - 3 suggests as a motto for the polling on Tuesday next, " fespectyour clergy: but love your country, and vote for John Martin." The Irishman and the - Flay write in the same strain, of the influence of the priesthood in the election. "A change fro►n landlord tyranny to clerical despotism," says the Irishman, "is not desirable." The supporters of Mr. Greville are con fluent of success. ITEMS OF SERVICE NEWS. The items of service news this week are exceed i.igly scarce. Perhaps the most important is the announcement made by the Army and Navy Gazette that the long-expected scheme of naval retirement has received the last corrections of its author, and now awaits only the customary formalities before it is made public. Our contemporary believes that, in regard to this measure, there has been a desire on the part of the Admiralty not only to satisfy the service, but to do justice to the country.—ln Army matters the most noticeable announcements are that recruit ing has to a great extent been stopped. No more staff officers of pensioners are for a time to be ap pointed.—A system of torpedoes is being arranged under order from - the authorities by " some of our most experienced officers." Admiral Sir Watkin Owen Pell having been on the retired list, no vacancy is caused by his death. The naval victualling de partment is just removed from Somerset House to Whitehall. OUR. IRONCLAD FLEET. The new ironclad ram Rupert, now being laid down at Chatham, is intended to be the most for midable ship, either for offensive or defensive pur poses' possessed by any naval Power in the world. Her dimensions will be .very moderate-250 feet long, extreme breadth of beam, .53 feet, with a mean draught of 22 feet 0 inches, and her burden 3,159 tons. She will be able to attain a mean speed of twelve knots per hour. Her two 18-ton guns are to be carried on a single revolving turret; they will be placed nearly eleven feet above the water, and, therefore, capable of being foujht in any weather. The ram-bow is spear-shaped, which will enable the vessel to attack ironclad ships at their most vital part—that ie, on the weak side plating below t'io armour. She will have two light masts only, and a few small fore and aft sails, as she is intended to move only on her engine power. The construction of the Rupert is to be pushed forward as rapidly as the resources of the establishment will permit. THE VOLUNTEERS. The re-organisation of the volunteer force is attract ing very general attention. On the whole, Mr. Cardwell's proposals are favourably criticised. Espe cially is commendation bestowed upon his suggestion that the amateur should be brought into more inti mate connection with the regular soldiery by put ting the former under the district military officers. But the increased capitation grant—or rather the conditions attached to it — r are very variously criticised. Some volunteers are represented ai very dissatisfied in respect to it. The Secretary for War promises to increase the grant to every volunteer who attends company and battalion drill and fires sixty rounds at the butts. The total discontinuance of the 30s. grant is, there fore, expected, and the Broad Arrow believes that a hint has been given that every volunteer will have either to earn or pay the money. This plan, it is feared by some, will reduce the numbers of the force. That such will be the case is by no means shewr, and Mr. Cardwell's defenders urge that it is better to have a small efficient than a large untrained army. THE REVENUE. Of course there is no ground for alarm at the revenue returns—quite the reverse. The sum total shows a decrease, as compared with last year, not because of any falling off in the national prosperity, but because several important taxes have been re pealed or reduced. The nine months already expired of the current Financial Year shew a decline in the gross revenue to the amount of £2,343,617: This is accounted for by the reduction of the property tax, which accordingly falls off to the extent of above a million, the repeal of the shilling corn duty, which reduces the Customs' receipts by £351,000, and the repeal of the fire insurance and other duties. It was expected that the decline would have been greater, and it is satisfactory to find it so little. THE CONSERVATIVES AND THE BALLOT. An article which appears in Saturday night's Globe on the Ballot marks very distinctly the change which has come over the Conservative party upon this subject. The hatred of secret voting is no longer apparent. "It doesn't much matter either way," says in effect our Conservative contemporary. At the same time it does matter very much whether cor ruption is to go on, whether Bridgwater, Beverley, Totnes, and other towns are to become centres of a traffic in votes, and the country districts are to produce electors who are totally subservient to their landlords. And the Globe admits this. It dceares, moreover, that it would hail any schema " the Ballot not excepted," which would prevent oppression and bribery ; it has no idea that it would exercise an injurious effect upon "the party." Yet the Ballot is not to our contemporary's mind. Again are put some objections to the adoption of the scheme, but by no means in the same spirit as of old. The " determined opposition," the bitterness of spirit, the hatred of the change which was formerly so strongly marked in Conservative articles on this subject are all gone. The Globe evidently thinks the Ballot is not far off. . THE " IRISHMAN ' S " RETROSPECT. Following . the example of many of its contempo 7 raries, the Irishman reviews the events of the past year in its own approved style. With 1809, we are for our told, " ends the seven centuries since the landing of the Ann•lo-Norman, and a new day shall begin native land with next year." Heaven is boldly assumed to be on the sido of the Fenians, and the downfall of " the proud, the tyrannical, evil-doer," is predicted with a confidence which de rives s u pp or t no t mere l y f rom Holy and the Writ, but from the " lively and reassuring " proofs which are to be seen of the growing embarrassments of the British EMpirc. There is the IZA Inver affair; there is O'Neill's threat of another invasion of eatilda; Anstralia talks of settinir up housekeeping for itself; the Maories are " carrying on the war against the English invaders with a vigour which a:loyds the latter very little hope of life ;" and in India the want of bread is leading to di:.7afrection. It would be cruel to seri:finis...! this catalogue of dangerous symptoms too closely—enough that "in is way it is consolatory to those evil-disposed persons who fancy the world could move on very comfortably without the incubus called the British Empire." THREATENED AGRARIAN OUTRAGE IN WALES. If a Welsh paper is to be believed, the Principality is becoming a:lected with one of the most promising signs of Irish disaffection. According to a Carmar then paper, a threatening letter, written in Welsh, has been sent to the successor of a tenant who was recently evicted for refusal to fulfil an agreement requirin ,, an advance of rent, in pursuance of a valna 'inn of the nrouertv he held. The document. which THE SUN, 'LONDOY, MONDAY EVE)!ING, JANUARY 3, 1870. is in the possession of the editor of the Carmarthen Journal, is said to be a scandalous production. The writer gives a warning that " Old l3ecca," alluding to the Rebecca Riots, is not dead, but sleeping. We, says the Viper alluded to, warn him in turn that the power of the law is not weaker than it was thirty years ago. sired-to reopen negotations atter - crib rormation of tue 'Cabinet, biit the Emperor declined to make any chan g e, saying he had perfect confidence in a Mi n i s t r y witlollivier and Magne. Count Montalembert has written a letter, in which he says that this pacific and voluntary renunciation of personal power on the Em peror's' part is a great and glorious action—without example in history. REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY. NAVY DEPARTMENT, Dee. 1, 1869. Sir,—l respectfully submit the following report of the Navy Department, and the branch of the public service under its supervision, during the last year. NAVAL FORCE IN MAUCH, 1869. '• When my immediate predecessor caine into office on the 9th day of March, 1869, the navy of the united States con sisted of 203 vessels of All classes and in every condition. These measured 183,442 tons and were calculated to carry, when in commission, 1,366 guns, exclusive of howitzers. Of these ships 151 were wooden and 52 were ironclad or monitors. Of the wooden ships 32 were sailing vessEds, 53 were steamers, with some auxiliary sail power ; 44 were steamers without any efficient sail power, and 22 were without sail power of any kind. The ironclads are all steamers, relying wholly on steam under all circumstances. Remainder of Navy not in commission consists , of 46 ironclads laid up at various stations, 36 having been con demned as unfit for service and ordered to be repaired ; 26 of these have never been in commission. There are also 22 vessels on the stocks, and 66 vessels laid up in ordinary. There are five cruising stations—North and South At lantic, Pacific, European, and Asiatic. The fleets on these were composed of 43 vessels, of which not over 18 were in condition for real service ; acme have been condemned as unseaworthy, and almost all requi, ed considerable repairs to bring thorn to their most efficient state. The efficiency of this small force, moreover, was much lessened by the fact that most of them were steamers, with out adequate sail power. The practical disadvantages of relying wholly, or even largely, on those for cruising ves sels will be easily seen ; their complicated machinery,worn by constant use, is exposed to derangement on foreign seas, more easily disabled in battle or storm ; and, what is even more important, they afford no school of seamanship to officers or men. Lounging through the watches of a steamer, or acting as firemen or coal-heavers, will not pro duce in a seaman that combination of boldness, strength, and skill which characterise the American sailor of the elder day; and the habitual exorcise by an officer of a com mand, the execution of which is not under his own eye, is a poor substitute for the school of observation, promptness, and command, found only on the deck of a sailing vessel. Besides, few war steamers carry coal for more than tea days' use, and as a large portion of even this time must be con sumed in seeking a new supply, the disadvantages as well as the great expense of cruising under these circumstances are apparent, particularly on foreign stations, where our depots are necessarily few and the cost of fuel enormous. Our effective force was still further reduced by the fact that our monitors and iron -clads, laid up since the war, had received in the meantime little care. They were found, when the attention of the department was directed to them, in . a state of rapid deterioration, hulls, turrets, and machinery, the most costly and powerful, exposed without care . to the action of the elements, were fast losing their value ; and of the whole fleet of monitors, relied upon by the country for defence, not one could have been ready in time to resist a sudden attack. A board for the "inspection of steam machinery," of which Rear-Admiral Goldshorough was President, was constituted by Mr. Boric, and from their report it will be seen that many other of our vessels are entirely unsuited for naval purposes. These statements, I may be permitted to say without im puting blame to any one, exhibit our navy at a low ebb ; a condition, the cause of which may doubtless be found in the vast expenditure of material during the great war; iu the exhaustion which followed it ; and in a sense of the burdens it had imposed, affecting alike the department, Congress, and the people. With such material in this condition the department, at the commencement of the administration, found itself charged with the duty of maintaining the naval power of the .Government in every part of the world ; required to protect, on every sea, the interests of the dominant and responsible nation of the Western Continent, whose boundaries stretch to the shores of either ocean, whose people aspire to rival those of the whole world in every field of enterprise, and whose government is pledged to the interests of freedom, civilization, and progress; and at the same time to be prepared with reserved power and the means of applying it, available in every emergency for defence and aggression. To restore cur small force to an effective condition, the Secretary availed himself of the best ability at command, and reorganized the material of the Navy. Work was re newed vigorously at all the Navy Yards; ships in ord:- nary were - put in service, and those in commission repaired. All the steamers susceptible of it, which have been re paired, have been given full sail power, and rerigged so that without interfering with their effectiveness under steam, they aro now independent of it, and able to cruise wherever required without consuming- their coal, which is thus reserved for times of necessity or danger. The ship rig, considered the most efficient for cruisers, has been already given to forty vessels of this class, which have been or are now being altered. The success of those which have been completed, includ ing among their number, as marked instances, the Severn, Juniata, Mohican, Nantasket, Reason, Lancaster, and Swatara, has illustrated the wisdom of the plan. Many of our foreign coal stations have already been discontinued, and orders have been issued to the commandants of the squadrons, directing them not to permit the consemp lion of coal for any purpose which could be as welt per formed under sail, and requiring a report to the depart ment of any deviation from the general rule, with the rea sons for it in each instance. The result has already been a largo saving. Several of our most effective cruisers have consumed no coal since the receipt of the order. It can ba shown by figures, that this system of giving and requiring the general use of full sail power, besides its effect to make sailors of both officers and men, will, on the vessels intended to be kept in com mission (calculating that they cruise but two-thirds of the time), make in the item of coal alone, as consumed under the old system, a saving of more than two millions of dollars per annum. Our monitors and ironclads were also placed in the hands of the mechanics and put in thorough repair. Four of the largest. have gone into commission, as part of our available cruising force, and the rest aro kept, at small expense, in complete order, so that the whole fleet can be ready for service in a week's time. Since the Ist of March, 1869, no less than 80 vessels of every class have been repaired or altered, or put in pro cess of replir at the various navy yards, yet the books of the Treasury will show a decrease in the expenditures of the department for that time, an compared with the corre sponding period of 1868, of $3.521,822 92. The North Atlantic squadron consists of 12 vessels, mounting 76 guns, and is commanded by Rear-Admiral Charles 11. Poor. It cruises in the West India waters, and its commander has been directed, whilst preserving strict neutrality between the contending Powers in Cuba, to prevent no injustice to citizens of the United States, to prevent interference with our commerce, and at once to repel and punish disrespect to our flag. The South Atlantic squadron consists of four vessels, mounting 43 guns, under Rear-Admiral Joseph Lanman. It is recommended that this fleet bo increased on account of the Paraguayan war. The Pacific fleet, under Rear-Admiral Turner, consists of 14 vessels, mounting 129 guns. The European squadron, under Rear-Admiral Radford, consists of 6 vessels, mounting 106 guns. The Asiatic squadrons contains 10 ships. carrying 72 guns, under Rear-Admiral Rowan. Three of these vessels, however, are unseaworthy. Such is the condition and employment of our navy at the present time, differing from what it was at the com mencement of this Administration only in the advance of the ships and material on hand from a state of deterioration to a condition of efficiency and improvement. This, while it was all that the department could do under the present authority and appropriations, is by no means all that I conceive to be necessary for the safety of the great interests involved, or even for national defence in time of danger. The service needs, and the postion of our country requires, a groat increase in the effective force of the navy; not so much in the number qi the ships that constitute it as in the number and character of those em ployed. I recognize the necessity for close economy in expenditure under the present circumstances of the coun try, but the naval expenses make but a small part of the national appropriations, and the true wealth of the coun try will not be increased by - neglecting the means of na tional safety and honour, nor money saved by refusing adequate protection to commercial enterprise. Our best monitors would, if brought into action, be powerful against anything that floats, but these are steam batter es, not seagoing cruisers. Some of them have illus trated by successful experiment their capacity for a sea voyage under favourable circumstances; and the depart ment has, for want of any more available force, lately put some of them in commission for duty on the home or North Atlantic station, but they could not be used with advan tage as cruisers on foreign stations. They require several vessels to accompany them, and, being entirely without sail-power, must be towed as soon as their coal is exhausted. They would be always dangerous to health in tropical seas; • and with broken or disordered machinery they would be hell less in mid-ocean. They are valuable for auxiliary defence of our own shore; .but should not ba relied upon beyond them. A cruising ves sel, suitable for our requirements, should be able to depend upon her own resources without looking for aid other than that she carries within herself. She should have ample steam power to carry her rapidly in chase or in action; and should possess at the same time the qualities of a first-rate sailing vessel, able to keep the sea at will without consuming her coal. She should carry a broad side battery of heavy guns, and be herself impervious to the heaviest ordnance afloat. England and France, rivalling each other iu ingenuity, energy, and liberality in this direction, have both suc ceeded in constructing some beautiful specimens of iron clad sailing vessels, with auxiliary steam power, effective for every warlike purpose, and able to keep the sea under all circumstances. They have high speed, and one of them would be a terrible foe for a squadron of wooden vessels. In the meantime we have built no ships of that kind, but we-have watched with interest all the naval experiments of Europe, and, familiar with their details and results, we know their strength and their weakness. Under these conditions we can be sure that every step we take is a wise experiment of a real improvement. The time has come, I think, when we should begin to use the knowledge we have been seeking ; and I therefore ear nestly urge the propriety of commencing at once the build. ing of sea-going iron-clads, suitable to cruise on foreigt stations, and able to protect our commerce and vindicatt our principles in any emergency. We should aim to haw one or more of these ships on each foreign station, and to be prepared with the necessary . reliefs. This will ulti mately require no less than ten in all. These, with some additions to cur wooden vessels, and the refitting on the plan adopted, and the proper employ ment of such effective ships as we now have, and with our monitors and torpedoes for harbour defence, will give us the nucleus of a navy, not i n d ee d proport i oned to our com merce or approaching the force of other maritime powers, but sufficient to command respect abroad, and to afford time, in case of sudden war, to organise and supply the forces of our country and the energies of the people. Home defence is also important. Our monitors are a ready ant effective means of harbour defence, but unless completely invulnerable they are coin piratively useless, and must therefore keep ptve with the improvements in ordnance. Most of them are capable of bearing the addi tional armour necessary to give the strength recoil ed, but this will, of course, require a new and considerable outlay of money. The report then refers to the use of "torpedoes" as a means of home defence, and to the encouragement of a class of merchant ocean steamers adapted to naval pur posee as the means of promptly augmenting the naval force in time of war. A comparatively small force of this kind, appropriately armed and let loose on the ocean, under the command of bold and intelligent officers, would be a dangerous foe to the commerce of any country. Our own was substan tially driven from the sea by two or three roughly equipped vessels, much inferior in power to those of which I have spoken. Thus it will he seen that, in giving up this field to the occupation of other nations, and yielding to them tho commercial advantages which naturally be long to our own position and resources, we at the same time relinquish our own weapons and arm our possible enemies. We are looking with confidence for a large increase in the commerce of the East, which will rcquire a correspond ing increase in the present means of rapid transportation on both oceans; and, in the interest, simply of the naval establishment and of so much of the national defence as depends upon it, 1 earnestly urge that measures be taken, at this juncture, to induce our own merchants and ship builders to enter into this field of enterprise. Inducements should be held out to those who are willing to undertake it, to build steamers on plans approved by the Navy Department, subject, in case of necessity, to be taken by the Government at an appraisA value. The naval yards of the country are generally of small capacity, and ill adapted to meet the requirements of modern naval construction. There are seven yards, not more than four being capable of fitting out over two or three vessels at one time. More docks are wanted ; in all the yards there are but three. The report then treats on the subject of timber lands, and the necessity of protecting those reserved by the Government for the use of the navy; to 'the Naval Academy, where the total number of midshipmen is 248, and the number of graduates last year was 75; to the necessity for some well-defined system to create a good class of petty officers and seamen; to the inconvenience experienced by restrictinc , the number of men in the na vy to 8,0(10; to the proposed ' intetoceanic canal; and to the proposed advisory board of experts for the bureaus. The subject of relative rank in the various corps'of the naval service is one of much interest and some difficulty. Some of these corps are dissatisfied with their position under the law as it now stands, but there is no power in the department to change this, even should the propriety of such action be admitted by all. Rank can.only be fixed by law. This subject, involving at the same time so many considerations of discipline, efficiency, and feel ing, is now pressing for wise and dispassionate legisla tion, having in view only the best interests of the ser vice. A board composed of officers of high rank and long ex perience, representing equally the various personal in terests involved, has been constituted by the department to consider and report some proper system for the regula tion of this matter. Pending the report of this board I desire to express no opinion on the subject-mater of their consideration. Should they be able to arrive at a proper conclusion ' the result of their labours will be at once com municated to Congress for their information. Much injustice to the many distinguished officers on the retired list is now done by the operation of the Act of March 2,1867, requiring the advance of all officers on that list, as their respective grades on the active list are pro moted. Many officers, retired years ago on account of their health, or for the good of the service, are now regularly promoted under this law, and take rank with those who have gone on the list disabled by service or covered with honourable wounds. Some of those formerly retired, by long service in other times, or gallant conduct during the late war, well deserve the honours of their profession ; but it is not so with all. Promotion for distinguished bravery has hitherto been confined to a single class of officers. This is not as it should be. Distinguished gallantry and goad conduct in battle should be held to entitle any officer of any class who exhibits it to promotion in his corps. There were 2,906 persons ou the naval pension roll on November Ist, receiving a total of $391,099 10c. annual relief. The total estimated expenditures of the Navy Department for the year ending June 30, 1871, are $28,205,671 37c. The apprentice system is regarded as having failed to accomplish the object desired, because toys are entered with the idea of becoming officers, and after the number allowed by law have been selected and admitted into the Naval Academy the others become dissatisfied and use less. The chiefs of the bureafis of navigation, and equip ment and recruiting, harmonize in opinion that the law in relation to apprentices and minors should be amended. The marines aro often called on to assist the civil autho rities in the principal cities, and on several occasions during the present year have been thus used at New York and Philadelphia. The Secretary concludes by expressing how much we are indebted to the practical wisdom of his predecessor, to the chiefs of the several bureaux, and to the energy an•t ability of the distinguished officer detailed for his'assist ance by the President. GEORGE M. ROBESON, Secretary of the Navy. PLAN OP NAVAL ESTABLISHMENT IN TIME OF PEACE.' The most efficient organization for a navy of the size and with the duties of our own would be iron vessels, for coast defence, averaging each 800 tons 4O First-class armour-plated vessels, for foreign service, averaging each 3,000 tons First-class wooden vessels, to act as flag-ships, not to exceed, eaoh, 3,500 tons lO Second-class wooden vessels, averaging, each, 2,000 . . tons 20 Third-class wooden vessels, averaging, each, 1,000 tons 25 Fourth-class wooden vessels, averaging , each,6oo tons 55 Wooden storeships, averaging, each, 500 tons 6 Wooden receiving-ships, of 1,333 1-3 tons each 4 Tiaining and practice ships, averaging 2,200 tons . Wooden gunnery ships, for the training of "seamen gunners," 1,500 tou; Sailing wssols to form a coast squadron, in which ap prentices will be trained, averaging, each, 1.200 tons 8 Receiving-ship for apprentices, averaging, each, 1,200 tons This force would amoult, in all, to 186 vessels, 21 less than we now have ; and most of the vessels for the coast defence, and a considerable number of the wooden ships required for the various services, are already on hand. NAVY OF ENGLAND. By the last British naval list Ships of war, floating batteries, receiving ships, train ing ships, in service 17 0 Steaw screw gunboats Total In commission, or building, heavy armour-plated steamships, averaging 3,500 toes each (largest 6,000 40 tons) Tons. Whole tonnage of the British navy is Whole tonnage of the navy of the United States is 186,5 52 Proportion of the naval tonnage of the United States to mercantile, nearly l- 21 Proportion of naval tonnage of Great Britain to mercantile — Proportion of naval tonnage of France to mercan tile .. END OF THE BANKRUPT MILLENNIUM, The bankrupt millennium closed amid a scene of remarkable excitement on Friday. The last day on which debtors could of their own will seek the assistance of the court was marked by a frantic rush to take advantage of the boon. Three . hundred 'petitions were filed at Basinghall-street. The crowd was so great that many unfortunates dreaded being left out in the cold, and as hour after hour passed away, the excitement became feverish. Charges were made upon the doors, and ultimately some of th e parties anxious to "get through " sought to (rain admission by the windows. Inside, the members n of the bar and the solicitors practising in the court paid a farewell com pliment to Mr. Commissioner Winslow, after the hard day's work was over. Mr. Lawrence, on behalf of the solicitors, expressed the opinion that it was a lament able waste of judicial power to deprive the principal commercial tribunal of the country of Mr. Winslow's services. The learned Commissioner has officiated in the court for twenty-eight years. Similar farewell addresses were given in the country courts. "ie number of petitions presented during the month of December has been more than twice as great as in the corresponding period of 1808. TIIE NEW ACT. The law of bankruptcy established by the Bank ruptcy Act, 1849, and by Lord Westbury's Act of 1861 expired on Friday, and on the following day commenced t' , e new system created by the Act of last session. The new court will have to deal with a vast amount of business. Taking into calculation the number of last exami. nations and discharges adjourned to a fixed day or sine die, as at least 500 in each of the courts of the three late commissioners, this will give a total of 1,500 cases but to this list must be added about 1,200 new cases, only a few of which have passed beyond the meet ing for the choice of assignees. This would give about 2,700 cases to be wound up after the Ist January, 1870. Besides this, there were at least 16,000 cases of old bankruptcies in which points may at any moment arise requiring the determination of the court. The Chief Judge took his seat on Saturday at Basinghall street to determine a few preliminary questions, but it is not likely that he will occupy his official court in Lincoln's Inn until the first day of Hilary Term. IMPRISONMENT FOR DEBT. The new Act for abolishing imprisonment for debt came into force on Saturday. Shortly after mid-day the keeper of Whitecross-street released ninety-four debtors from custody. Only forty-one remain on county-court commitments, penalties, and orders of payment by magistrates. Ono person, named Bar nacles, had been in gaol for twenty-seven years. He went out on Saturday staring about him in amaze ment. RAILWAY PROSPECTS. Railway affairs are looking up. It is agreed on every hand that the prospects of almost every species of property are better now than they have been for some years past. The Railway News notes that out lays of capital—the great drawback to the progress of almost every company—have well-nigh ceased. Almost all the leading companies are applying for power to abandon the construction of lines which they had previously obtained power to make, but which, on calm and mature reflection, are now considered to be unprofitable. Concurrently with this cessation of capital expendi ture is an increase in the gross receipts. In some cases this advance is very great. Over and above these influences, is that of better management, less litigation, and economical improvements in the manu facture of railS and carriages. On the whole, the Railway News thinks the present price of almost all the leading railway shares below their real value. Herapath expresses the same opinion. RAILWAYS AND THE PUBLIC. About eighteen months a2,-o a great outcry was raised by the inhabitants in the south of London through'the raising of the fares on the metropolitan extension line of the London, Chatham, and Dover Railway Company. Meetings were called, .protests signed, and general indignation expressed against this additional tax on the suburban residents; but the company was obdurate, and refused to give way. No change in the receipts was observable for some time ; recently, however, dwellings have become vacant, house property in the south of London has become depreciated in value, and the consequence is that the railway company have now discovered the mistake they made in forcing thousands of persons to reside on cheaper lines. With the commencement of the new year they have reverted to the old thrill' charges, by which means they hope to increase their traffic receipts, and at the same time raise the value of house property to its former status. THE "PALL MALL GAZETTE." Tho Pall Mall Gazette has made its first appear ance as a morning journal. It quite attains unto the expectations formed of it. The size of its page is somewhat smaller and less cumbrous than that of the ordinary newspaper, and it makes up for this loss by the number of As pages—sixteen on Saturday. It is exceedingly well got-up—well printed on really good paper. The news is just that which is wanted: not so scanty as some of our metropolitan contemporaries give their readers, and yet well summarised and varied. The price—twopence—shews a revolt from the tra dition that all new-started journals in this ago must be issued at a penny; and in no sense is our contem porary conventional. It forsakes the old style en tirely, and launches out with a plan of its own. Of course, in principle the Pall Mall - Gazette will be, as of old—in theology very " advanced " indeed ; in social matters aristocratic ; and it will probably retain much of the too-evident sneerino• tone in which it follows the Saturday Review. But all who wish well to a good newspaper must hope it will be successful. THE DAILY PAPERS-OLD AND NEW. The Daily Telegraph,' commenting. upon the decease of the Morning Herald, remarks that this death of old journals brings forward the curious fact that, contrary to expectation, the repeal of the taxes on knowledge has not increased the number of daily papers in London. The united circulation of all has, of course, increased ; but " counting morning and evening papers together, we believe that fifteen years ago there were as many distinct newspapers pub lished every day in London as there are now." Our contemporary overlooks the fact that the great change which has been wrought with respect to the number of journals haS taken place in the provinces. CONSTRUING AT THE " TIMES " OFFICE. The English version of the Latm Sentential Bull, which was published the other day in the Times, seems to be a remarkable specimen of Latin con struing. Several sentences are converted into utter nonsense. In one clause suspension is denounced apinst all who shall presume to receive any degree of holy orders from heretics, schismatics, excommuni cated persons and the like ; but a <<i tinction is drawn between wilful offenders and those persons who unwittingly take such ordinations. The Times' translation gives the denunciation, but omits the exception, besides blundering in some of the details. In another part of his rendering, the translator talks about "those chapters and convents with a church and a monastery" as if there were chapters and con vents without churches: The proper translation is " chapters and convents of churches and monas teries." And so on with much of the rest. NOT A CLEAN SUAVE. A. "respectably-dre7sed" man' applied on Friday at the Greenwich Police-court for assistance under peculiar circumstances. He had been the victim of a joke, which, though old, never fails to give satis faction to its perpetrators. He and four others had been sp3nding Christmas week in the most approved style at the house of a friend ; and the other night, after ho had gone to bed, a barber had been engaged to shave him on one side of his face, leaving a _profit sion of beard and moustache on the other. It was impossible, moaned the victim, for him to return to his employment. .Could he have a summons ? The advice of the magistrate was not encouraging. He re commended that the best thing the complainant could do was to shave oil the remainin ,, hair and make himself presentable in public. Ile could have his remedy by civil action against the barber who had disfigured him. But how about the " friends " who had engaged the barber ? INTERNATIONAL YACIIT RACE. The long dispute between Mr. Bennett, of New York, aneMr. Ashbury, of Brighton, respecting the proposed ocean yacht raco has at length been settled in a sensible manner. An unconditional match across the Atlantic between Mr. Ashbury's Cambria and Mr. Bennett's Dauntless has been arranged. The race is fixed for the -ith of Jule next. Mr. Ashbury says that on the arrival of the (Jambria in New York he will endeavour to regain the Cowes Cup won in 1851 by the America, and now held by the New York Yacht Club as a challenge cup against the world. THE NEW FRENCH MINISTRY The first Constitutional Cabinet has been formed in France. It is a night Centre Ministry, and though not particularly good, is better than was at first announced.' M. 011ivie,r takes the portfolio of Justice . ; M. Chevalier do Valdrome, the Interior ; M. Gaudin, Foreign Affairs; M. Richard, Public Works ; and M. Louvet,. Com merce. The other posts are retained by their Present hold ers . The correspondent of the Pall Alan (.; awe.: says that the ,i,eft .Cont=f-, de- DISARMAMENT. Notwithstanding the various denials of the Times', Berlin correspondent's statement about proposals for disarmament, that authority still maintains that there was foundation for his welcome announcement. The proposition that the great Powers should disarm was actually made by France, though nothing came of it. The Berlin Post says that the French Ambassadors at the different European Courts were instructed to moot the idea of 'reducing the standing armies; "We are given to understand that not only General Fleury, at St. Petersburg, but also M. Benedetti, at Berlin, have made confidential communications to this effect.' The IVeser Zeituny's Berlin correspondent says that France expressed her readiness to consider pro posals. The Golos of St. Petersburg and the Czas of Cracow speak of the matter in similar terms. The Times' correspondent adds that General Fleury was sent as French Ambassador to St. Petersburg for the express purpose of broaching this disarmament schenr, as well as to improve the relations between Russia and France. He failed, however, as the recent public interchange of courtesies between the Emperor Alexander and King William sufficiently proves. THE SPANISH CROWN. The Politica of Madrid makes the important state ment that General Prim has received a written despatch conveying the King of Italy's refusal to the proposed election of the Duke of Genoa as King of Spain, and stating that the Italian Ministry is unanimons on the point. The Go vernment papers, of course, say nothing about this momentous despatch ; but it is remarkable that a public announcement of the kind should not have been mentioned in Reuter's Telegrams. Is the Spanish Government at its old game of bulling news? TIIE RED RIVER REBELLION. The New York papers bring some little intelligence respecting the Red River rebellion. According to the latest accounts, Governor M‘Doun•all was enlisting a body of whites and Indians to attack the rebel posi tion, which was defended by 400 men. Governor MPougall has not called on Canada for troops, but relies on the loyal people of the territory to quell the outbreak, and thinks they will do it without blood shed. FOREIGN NOTES. TIIE CECUMENICAL COUNCIL. The Times correspondent says that the Council would do nothing up to Tuesday the twenty-eighth, and after that day it may possibly have done everything. It will 'proceed to vote upon any number of the proposi tions now before it, but it is impossible there can be any kind of deliberation or any process like that which is ordinarily carried on at Council. The Opposition cannot act for various reasons. and its only strength is derived from the fact that it represents public opinion. It is said that we must not criticise Councils, but in this case no consultative opera • tion at all is going on, and it does not appear that there will bo any. A man in this Coun cil is but a counter in a game, and the regulation and conduct of the whole affair, fully just,ifics the saying of our own Church about the Council, that "some have erred." The special correipondent of the Spectati». thinks that the selection for the episcopate of men wanting in bade pemlence of character has been so carefully made that a sere majority to the Court of Rome has been securedia the essem bly. It is, however, significant for the future that the greatest opposition to Roman despotism has been found among the French and German nations who aro the most intellectual a; well ai the most Catholic. Great difficulty exists in bringing into combination the various elements of opposi tion that are disseminated. The bishops laboured under great disadvantlges for union, owing to diversities of tongue and of habits. The defection of Schwarzenberg will probably cause the collapse of the opposition move ment, and the Jesuits are likely to have their own way with the bishops between glittering benefices and specious promises. The few who do not conform to their require ments will remain the proscribed forerunners of opinions that belong to the future. GARIBALDI AND TILT 3 ANTI-COUNCIL. Garibaldi has written an indignant letter respecting the dissolution of the Neapolitan Anti-Council by the Italian Government. Garibaldi speaks of the assembly as "an illustrigus reunion composed of the heads of human intelligence, whose lights confound the rogue and the impostor." In conclusion, he says thlt in the whole course of his life, when he has received a blow on his shoulders he !ins always endeavoured to return it in full face, saying, with Alfieri, "What one endures, one merits." The Constitutionnel comments severely on this letter, and says that its appeal to violence comes ton late. The hopes of the " International Committee of Revo lution" had some foundation, but now snch menaces are merely ridiculous. GERMAN CONVENTS. The report of the Commission on Convents has just been published at Berlin. The Commission considers that it is the duty of the Government to apply to religions societies and congregations the same restrictions imposed by law on other incorporated societies. The Commis sioners also advise the Government not to grant rights of corporation to orphanages, hospitals, and edu cational establishments founded by religions societies, so that by means of strict surveillance the direction or administration of such establishments by members of religious orders may be prevented. ROUMANIA. The inhabitants of the Danubian Principalities are anxious to change the name of their country into the simpler and more national appellation of Roumania. There seems to be no possible objection to its substitution for the unwieldly formula of the United Principalities of the Danube, and we find that Austria has already given her consent to the change, and has advised the Porte. to accept the-new title. One of the principal difficulties of the Cabinet of Bucharest is the' question of the Jews, which has given rise to a very stormy debate in the Cham ber. The Roumanians regard the increasing numbers of the Jews with as much displeasure as the Australian - settlers formerly looked upon the Chinese, and they are anxious that ,the Government should take active steps to retard the invasion. The Government have very decidedly refused to do this, declaring that the Chamber itself must take the initiative in such a measure, since the Ministry neither could nor would do so. POLISH DANCES. The Director of Police at Warsaw has put up a notice in the dancing-rooms, forbidding the repetition of any dance irhatever. The custom being that Polish and Russian dances should alternate; the public, composed chiefly of Poles, were in the habit of encoring the former, especially the Mazurka, and the authorities have 'construed this prac tice into a political manifestation. DIPLOMACY IN 1822. A letter from the American statesman, John Quincy Adams, has been lately published in the United States, giving an account of the secret negotiations between that country, Great Britain, and France in 1822 respecting Cuba. Mr. Adams was Secretary of State under President Monroe from 1817 to 1825, and was familiar with all the diplomatic transactions of the period. In 1822, when the Spanish Cortes was overthrown by the invasion of a French army, the people of Cuba feared a negro insurrection, and desired a Protector. One party was in favour of adhering to Spain, another for obtaining the protectionof Great Britain, and the third and largest desired annexation to the United States. This party sent a secret agent to President Monroe pro posing that the Cubans should declare the island indepen dent of Spain, and that the United States should admit them to the Union under a Constitution similar to those of the Southern States of the Union, with an understanding that the territory should ulti mately be divided into two. President Monroe replied that the friendly relations between Spain and the United States would not permit him to sanction anyrevolutionary movement, but if Great Britain or Franco should attempt to occupy the island, the States might interfere. At the same time, Mr. Canning, the English Minister proposed that by a mutual understanding tetween the British, French, and American Governments, Cuba should be left in the possession of Spain. This plan was agreed to by Mr. Monroe. Subsequently the Cubans made submission to Ferdir.ald, King of Spain, and tho island was pacified, nothing being known of the nego tiations till 1336, when Mr. Adams disclosed the secret. THE LATE GOLD FIGHT IN NEW YORK. A writer in Fraser's Magazine, who seems to be well in formed, statei that the "Ring" who planned the great manoeuvre made a great deal of money ; but the greatest gainer was Mr. Vanderbilt, against whom theirattacks were largely directed. The various speculators who were engaged in the desperate struggle offered their railway shares at any price in order to secure funds. Vanderbilt bought them.up at low quotations. When the panic ceased, these .shares rose to a high price, and Vanderbilt cleared a large fortune. He acquired the mastery of three more railways, and now owns not lover than six lines— that is, he possesses so many shares as to be able to control the pr.- perty at will. _ . . - MERCANTILE AND NAVAL TONNAGE. There were belonging to the United States on the Both of June, 1868 : Tons. Registered sail vessels 1,310,344 Registered steam engines Enrolled and licensed sail vessels 1,929,798 Enrolled and licensed steam vessels ... .. 977,916 Total 4,440,027 To which add tons remaining of old measurement of registered sail vessels • 33,449 Total 4,473,476 The tonnage is classified as follows : Atlantic and Gulf Coast-19,467 vessels of all kinds 2,974,974 Pacific Coast-904 vessels Northern Lakes-5,365 vessels 695,601 Western Rivers-2,382 vessels 28,118 vessels 4,3 [8,307 Whale Fishery.- 238 vessels Cod and Mackerel Fishery--Enrolled vessels over 20 tons, 1,467 vessels Licensed vessels under 20 tons, 748 v esse l s 2,215 vessels Grand total " 4,473,476 TONNAGE OF AMERICAN VESSELS ENTERING FROM AND CLEARING TO FOREIGN PORTS DURING THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 1868. Countries. Entered. Cleared. Russia on Baltic and White Seas ... 7,217 5,804 Asiatic Russia ... ... ... 1,036 Total .. 6,840 Russian North American possessions prior to cession to United States... 3,385 3,633 Prussia - 806 Sweden and Norway ... 3,953 - Swedish West Indies ... - 133 Denmark ... 436 Danish West. Indies... ... 11,768 18,747 Switzerland ... 2,327 995 Hamburg ... - 1,894 Bremen 30,971 31,586 Holland 4,305 5,991 Dutch West Indies... .. 9,159 5,135 Dutch Guiana 2,240 1,247 Dutch East Indies ... ... 3,873 4,988 Belgium ... 9,746 12,417 England _ _412,718 416,271 Scotland _ 9,800 , 11,236 Ireland 1,705 14,468 Gibraltar 1,413 9,943 ••• ••• - Malta 326 ..• ••• Canada 1 084 943 1 , 094 , 173 Other Br. Nor. Am. poss. on Atlan. 246,332 263,881 British Am. poss on. Pacific ... 63,548 75,352 British West Indies ... 63,370 65,978 British Honduras ... 8,679 8,757 British Guiana 11,401 12,905 British possessions in Africa ... 4,277 7,108 British East Indies 29,u78 18,900 Australia 9,962 21,169 . . France on Atlantic ... ... 61,923 114,513 France on Mediterranean ... 11,553 23,948 French North American poss. ••• 317 French West Indies ... ... 3,334 11,726 French Guiana ... ... ... 447 540 French possessions in Africa ... 3,505 2,244 Spain on Atlantic ... ... ... 11,481 19,140 Spain on Mediterranean ... ... 16,499 9,591 Canary Islands ... ... ... 285 2,741 Phillipine Islands ... ... ... 18,894 2,539 665,210 648,481 Porto Rico ... ... ... ... 47,367 44,421 Portugal ... ... ... ... 2,476 5,695 Madeira ... ... ... ... 703 1,825 Cope do Verde Islands ... ... 2,820 1,484 Azores ... ••• ••• ••• _ 1 , 17 6 2,505 -,.-- Italy ... ... ••• ... 26,213 19,228 Sicily ... ••• ... ••• ... 33 ,930 3 557 Austria , 718 Turkey in Europe ~,, 1,088 2,225 Turkey in Asia ... ~, ... 3,005 2,369 Egypt ... ... ... , 377 Liberia .'" • • • ... 2,846 3,246 Other ports in Africa .., ... 5 , 357 3,382 Hayti. ... ... ... 12,9 . 49 14,643 San Domingo . . ••• ... ... 3,710 360 Dioxin° ,44 749 59, 332 ... • Nicaragua 37'953 34,084 Costa Rica *** 612 Guatemala ... *** ". 372 41 Honduras .„. *** *** *'** 212 U. S. of Columbia • ••• •:287,216 316,7 69 Venezuela ... •• 2,764 2,417 Braz 1 55,695 50,439 Uruguay , 4,653 21,435 Buenos Ayres or Argentine Rep'c... 15,845 15,543 Chili ,„ 4,093 7,636 P e ru „, 28,248 21,704 Ecuador ••• ••• 116 116 Hawaiian Islands ... 1.9,483 21,3f,C Other Islands on Pacific 2,003 5,338 Ch ... 15,093 39,381 Japan ... 29,220 38,509 Other ports in Asia ... 728 __. Whale fisheries 19,061 16,738 Total 3,550,550 3,717,956 Mercantile tonnage of France is 2,000,0(10 tons. Mercantile tonnage of England is 5 ' 779,000 t ons . The French navy cousists.of 430 vessels, di v id e d as follows : - Steam vessels 331, with 76,130-horse pawor ; sailing vessels, 99. . • Of • these, launched but still unfinished, 7 steam- vessels, 710-horse power; 31 steam vessels on stocks, 13,405 horse power. This fleet is suhivided into new fleet and old fleet. New fleet has 314 stetun vessels ; sailing vessels, 70 ; and is di vided into— Armoured ships of every class. 5O Wooden fighting fleet screw vessels Steam flotilla • 9O Transport fleet 75 Training ships for officers and gunners 2 Added this year: Four iron-plated corvettes, one iron plated coast-guard ship, two training ships. This represents the real strength of the French navy The old fleet is rapidly being transformed or going out of the service. The Whole tonnage of the French-navy is 469,000 tons. i;OURSE OF EXCHANGE. Amsterdam, -.. Short ... It 18i ... ii 19 Do Rotterdam — ... 12 1-1 ... 12 11 Antwerp — ... 25 37/ ... 25 42f Brussels — ... 25 371 ... 25 42/ llamburgh — ... 13 10} ... 13 11 Paris Ditto Marseilles Frankfort-on-the-Maio ... 1201 ... 1201 Vienna — ... 12 65 ... 12 70 Trieste — ... 12 G 5 ... 32 70 Petersburg Copenhagen.. ......... Berlin Madrid.. Cadiz — ... 49 ... 49-k Leghorn Milan — ... 26 75 ... 26 771 Genoa .. — ... 26 75 .., 26 771 Naples Palermo — ... 26 75 ... 26 77 Messina Lisbon — ... 51i ~ 52 Rio Janeiro — ... ... New York ..... Oporto — ... 511 ... 52 ELECTION NEws.—General Reynolds has re. jected the votes of two counties in Texas, and has au nounced that Davis (11 Idical) has been elected Governor . Wo are surprised at this news by telegraph, as the report by mail was that Davis had been elected by a majority of 2,000, and we can only conclude that vote was so close as to necessitate some such action to secure the election for the party. • The Conservatives have, however, secured a majority in the Legislature, and there will he some gentle persuasion required before they pass the Fifteenth Amendment. The President, on the 10th Dec., nominated Wilson Shaffer to the Governorship of Utah, and B. F. Potts, of Ohio, to be Governor of Moutau s in place of Ashley. The Kentucky Legislature, one second joint ballot, Dec. 16,:elected Stevenson to be U. S. Senator. The vote stood—Stevenson, 117 ; Finley (Rep.), 10 ; Spaulding, 5 ; John C. Breckenridge, 1. Mr. M'Creerf withdrew from the first ballot. John White Stevenson, son of Andrew Stevenson, of Virginia, some twenty years ago Minister at the Court of St. James's, is Goiernor of the State, having been elected by a majority of 100,00 0 votes, being a Democrat and a great favourite in Ken' tucky. BUDGET OF PERSONAL.—The Roman Catholic American Archbishops Spalding and M'Olosky are to be made Cardinals, and the Times writes as if the next Pope will be the English Archbishop Manning. —Mr. Benje.' min S. Lyman, of Philadelphia, has been appointed by Nfr. Thornton, on the recommendation of Professor Henry, to survey the petroleum regions of India, and to make boring§ there similar to the Pennsylvania oil N.; ells. It is said that Senator Sprague, of Rhode Island, has a two days'speech on the finances and things in general, which he will do' liver at the earliest opportunity.—Bonner's horses are said to be worth $200,000, a fortune in itself.—Susan B. say§ she "can have Susan Anthony on her tombstone; and net relict of some fool of a man."—Brigham Young recently lectured the sisterhood on table matters, advising them to avoid a multiplicity of dishes, and rely on "Johnny cake.'' —General Fremont and wife have taken apartments for the winter at the new Arlington House, in Washington, where the General intends to reside, in order to-superb" tend the passage through the Senate of his Memphis and El Paso Railroad 13i11.—Admiral Dahlgren owns coal laud§ in Ohio, and is out there looking after tlem.—Nathaniel Hawthorn's widow lives at Dresden.—Senator Sherrnse contemplates a Southern tour.—Cassius M. Clay ha, re' turned to Kentucky to live, and is vigorously at work or' ganizing the Republican party of that State.—Mr. Dawe§ and his family, Mr. Washburn of the Greenfield district , and Secretary Boutwell and family, are living for the winter at the house of Mrs. Rives ()LT welfth-street,Washington! It is rumoured that Sir FrancisHincks, the Finance Minister , proposes to Impose a duty on American grain and coal, and a general reduction of the free list.—Pere Hyacinthe left New York on the 11th ult., and arrived this week el Brest on his way, it is said, to Rome. He contemplatese longer visit to the United States, which he left abrupt with unfulfilled engagements.—Dr. Oliver, formerly of Birmingham, England, agent of an Emigration Cos? pany, was killed at Charlottesville, Virginia, by George Ayers, whose daughter Le had seduced. Ayer§ has been lodged in the Charlottesville Gaol.—An Awe' rican party, consisting of two ladies and two gentle' mon, wero dining in a restaurant at Baden-Baden' A Russian Prince, out of "pure cussedness," we suppose , wanting to pick a quarrel with the gentlemen, purchase ( ' two bouquets and sent them to the ladies by the waiter. The gentlemen glanced pleasantly at the Russian Prince, and returned him by his messenger two napoleons , whereon the baffled Muscovite retreated in discomfiture. Mr. Greeley, with his usual straightforward way, sustaie§ the deathbed marriage, declaring that it was proper 10 give the woman a legal right to be a mother to Richard' son's young and doubly orphaned family, and to be called by the name of him who, for her sake, was so foully mur dered, rather than that of a stealthy, cowardly assassin.'" A member of the Tennessee Legislature proposed to Sel l the portrait of General G. H. Thomas, placed b 3 the State in its library, a proposition defeated by a large majority General Thomas on this wrote to the Speaker of the House to ask him the cost of the painting, as b ° desired to refund the money as well as to re turn to the Legislature the gold medal voted by 01 1 predecessor, in commemoration of the Union victory Nashville, in December, 1864.—General Butler is re ported to be buying arms in large quantities from the Washington Government, but for what object is uly known.—Cornelius C. Donohue, of Titusville, Penn' sylvania, has obtained a verdict in the Supreme Cour t at Buffalo of $30,000 against the Erie Railway fo r injuries suffered at the Mount Hope disaster.—Mr. F. 8 ' Hays, President of the South Pacific Railroad, was ill Frankfort a few days since.—R. N. Rice, for more WO 20 years the popular General Superintendent of the Michigan Central Railroad, is at the Charing-cross Hotel' —Paul Weber is at Darmstadt, in Germany; F. C. W e lsbt at Frankfort-on-the-Maine ; and Healy is in Rbme. LADVERTISEMENT. I—Holloway's Ointment and Pi 115..." Never at Fault.—ln all irritations of the skin, sores, ulceroo burns, and scrofulous enlargements of the glands, 11011 0• way's Ointment presents a ready and easy means of cure+ which never disappoints the most favourable expectations' it manifests a peculiar power in restraining inflammation, rnir n i v o i removing s s or tagnationcooling the blood, an d c h ec ki ng all a unhealthy discharges; whil s t th us actilig e c o l oca lly, the Pills are no less remarkable for their power improving the general condition and habit of body, whic h renders the cure complete and permanent. Under the genial influence of these potent remedies the puny infant becomes the robust ckild, the pale and emaciated regal ° , colour and rotundity, an d th e d yspept i c ea t s f ree l y w i t hout fear. bilious, —Consumption, and all nal/0111f [ Wiens, stomach, ani II var complaints in every stage are o , l ' 's aggravated and acc3l3rAted by drugs of eve , y description, " I t ' s , perfeAly curable by Du BARRY'S health-restoring Revalen Arabica Food, as proved by thousands of cases which had be e t considered hopeless; such as indigestion (dyspepsia), coug,:, asthma, consumption, habitual constipation, diarrhoea, all gaSlr: derangements, Inemorrhoids, liver complaints, flatulency, net vousness, biliousness, fevers, sore throat, diphtheria, catarrh! , colds, influenza, noises in the head and cars, rheu mat i sm, gou t ' impurities, eruptions, hysteria, neuralgia , i rritab i lity, sleepies! ness, acidity, palpitation, heartburn, headache, debility, cramP o ' spasms, nausea and sickness even in pregnancy or at sea, ing fits, bronchitis, scrofula , tiehtness of the chest, pains at tb. pit of the stomach , and between the shoulders, &c. We quote • few: -The Pope's health restored by Du Barry's Food. Cure 1 4 ; 68,413 R o me,. July 11,1866. The health of the Holy Father excellent, especially since, abandoning all other remedies, he IA; confined himself entirely to Du Barry's Revalenta Arabica Fel of which . he consumes a plateful at every meal. It has produc e , s a surprisingly beneficial effect on his health, and his HOW: 4 cannot praise this excellent food too highly."—From the GaZe,„'',, du Midi, July 2i. Cure No. 46270. Mr. James Roberts, dint, merchant, of Frimley, tiurrey, of thirty years' diseased lubg spitting of blood, liver derangement, and partial deafness. - Ca d N 0.1,77 . Lord Stuart de Decies, Lord-Lieutenant of Nitaterfo l ' ' ,1 1 0 of many years' dy s p eps i a. —N o. 4 9, 83 "Fifty yea rs ' i n d es crW able agony from dy s p eps i a, nervou sness, asthma, co ug h, co stipation, flatulency, spasms, sickness, and vomiting. AU"' Jolly" Important Caution.—Beware of the many unsavouryand more than sloppy i m it a tions to which, without au thority; Baron Liebig's name is most audaciously attached. In tins, at s d; Ilb 2s 9d; 2lb 4s 6d; slb Ils; 12 lb 21; 24 lbs 4 Also u BARBY's RD NALRN TA RABICA CHOCOLAI 77, liegent per cup. The 30s and 55s tins are PoWDRit is packed in tin canisters : for 12 cups at 2s, for 24 co% , on receipt of at 3s 6d, for .8 cups at Gs, for 2:,8 cups at 30s, for 576 cups at 6', —being about one penny BARRY Dl7 BARRY and C o ' , 1 " . Post eet ,Offlceo London ; r d e d all r e Grocers carr a n g d e Chemists. in En g l an BIRTHS. ELGICE-0n the 15t1iNov., at Bombay, the wife of Colone l Eigke, Royal Artillery, of a daughter. SHIPLEY— On the 27th Dec., at the Chateau de Betbusif Lausanne, the wife of Colonel R. Y Shipley, 0.8., O f daughter. MARRIAGES. STRONG—EDGELOW - On tho 28th Dec., at Teignmoutli, Devon. Robert Dundas Strong, Esq., to Caroline, eldt daughter of Thomas Edgolosv, Esq., of Thorn Pa r " Teigumouth. WOODCOCK —PEAKs—On the 29th c., at Allesloy, wickshire, Edward llolmo, oldest ton of the lot° Edwar d Woodco;:k, ESq, of Springfield, Wigan, to Emily Afarif youngest daughter of A. 11. Pears, Esq., of Allesley• DEATHS. DA.RBY —On the 30th Dec., at his residence Dorset-ro d ' Windsor, Williain Darby, Esq.. J.P., aged ' 65. Mutsu —Oa the 29th Dec, at Greenhithe Josep h , Kent Mai sh, Esq., Pay mas t er R oya l Navy, aged 74. , London : Printed an d P u bli s h e d by WILLIAM ANDEBI9S, ' of No. 'l2, Strand, Printer, at TBK SON Office, IN O. 112, Saito' in the Precinct o f th e S avoy, in the County of M i d dl e seS• - ‘ Monday, January 3 1870. I