The Sun. — London, England, 1870-04-06 00:00:00

CAUTION. MOSES and SON A 2, 4• beg to inform the Public that thoy h av e ado p ted and registered a TRADE MARK, consisting of the words " The Standard," with the initials "E. M. & S." underneath, and that henceforward every at ticle of clothing manufactured by them will have a label or ticket attached to it, with the said trade mark printed thereon. All persons are hereby cautioned against imitat ing the said '1 rade Mark. For trades and addresses see following advertisement. *THE APPAREL OFT PROCLAIMS THE MAN." BEST MATERIALS, BEST STYLES, BES r WORKMAN:IIIP, and LOWEST PRICES, at E. MOSES and SON'S. Every description of Clothing ready-made or made to measure, for all ages, all occasions, and all classes, at E. MOSES and SON'S. For the convenience of Lsdies accompanying their Sons there is a separate department for Boys' Clothing, and it is furnished with a splendid assort ment of Suits, Ov , rcoats, and Clothing for all occa sions, including all the favourite designs and the most fashionable materials. Orders by Post are attended to with care and punctuality, and the easy and accurate system of self-measure introduced by E. MOSES and SON enables them to guarantee a faultless fit. Any article not worn or injured will be exchanged, or, if desired, the money will be returned. All Goods are marked in Plain Figures, from which no abatement can be made. The Stock of Hosiery and Drapery, Hats and Caps, and Boots and Shoes, is unequalled for mag nitude, variety, and cheapness. A very large assortment of BLANKETS, from ss. 4d. the pair. Complete Outfits for all climates, with every re quisite for the viyage. , List of -Prices, with Rules for Self-measure, Pat tern, and Fashion-sheet, gratis and post-free. E. MOSES and SON, Ready made and Bespoke Tailors, Habitmakers, Woollendrapers, Hatters, Hosiers, Boot and Shoe Manufacturers, and General Outfitters for all classes. E. MOSES and SON'S Est blishmente are closed every Friday evening at sunset, when business is resumed until eleven o'clock. The following are the only addresses of E. MOSES and SCN LONDON: CORNER OF MINORIES AND ALDGATE. NEW OXFORD-STREET, CORNER OF HART-STREET. CORNER OF TOTTENHAM-COURT-ROAD AND EUSTON- ROAD. Country Branch: BRADFORD, YORKSHIRE. NOTICE AND CAUTION. MACNIV . EN ANI) CAMERON, Proprietors of the renowned Waverley, Owl, and Pick wick PENS, beg to intimate to the Trade that the NILE,PEN is patented, and that the Name and Trade _Mark "Phaeton" are registered Several parties who infringed our rights have by the i aw Courts of England and Scotland been found liable in heavy damages. A Reward will be given for information of the manufacturing or of the vending of spurt ms imitations. 717 JOURNALS have recom mended these Pens to their Readers; see Blackwood's Magazine for May, 1870. Standard says: "The Waverley Pen is a treasure " Sun says:—" they create both wonder and delight." Sold everywhere, Is. per box. By Post, ls. Id. MAC , WEN & CAMERON, 23, BLAIR-STREET, EDINBURGH. AGENTS—MILLINGTON & HUTTON, LONDON; and Dumdum GREEN & CO. 21, WALL-STREET, NEW YORK. Shippers supplied by the Patentees. 'ELECTION OF CHURCHWARDENS.-TO THE PARISHIONERS OF ENGLAND and WALES. The Easter Vestries will shortly be held You are invited to elect only such Churchwardens as will act upon the principle that all Parishioners (poor as well as rich) are equally entitled to the use of their Parish Church. This is the principle of our Ancient Paro chial Law. and is also in accordance with the Teaching of the Gospel. On behalf of The LW' DON FREE AND OPEN CHURCH A'SOCIATION. . . ALiliElYiiiio*LEY, Chairman of Sub. Committee. S. R. TOWNSHEND MAYER, F.R.S.L. . Papers on the subject may be had gratuitously on application to the Resident Secretary, 75, Norfolk-street, Strand, W.C. ( - 1 UARDIAN FIRE AND LIFE OFFICE. Established 1821. Subscribed Capital Two Millions. 11, Lombard-street, London, E.O. DIRECTORS. CHAIRMAN—WiIIiam Steven, Esq. DEPUTY-CHAlRMAN—Frederick 11. Janson, Efq. Henry Hulse Berens, Esq Richard M. Harvey, Esq Hy. Bonham. arter, Esq J. G. Hubbard, Esq Charles Wm Curtis, Esq G. J Shaw Lefevre, Esq,M.P Charles F. Devas, Esq John Martin, Esq Francis linrt Dyke, Esq Howland Mitchell, Esq Sir W. R. Farquhar, Bart j•inies Morris, Esq James Goodson, Esq Abraham J. It obarts, Esq Archibald Hamilton Esq Henry Vigne, Esq Thomson Hankey. Esq SECRETARY—Thomas Tallernach, Esq ACTUARY—Sams. Brown, Esq. N.B.—Fire Policies which expire at LADY DAY must be renewed at the Head Office, or with the Agents, on or before the 9th of April. The Government Duty is totally abolished. - - - Prospectuses and Forms of Proposal, with statemen` of the Asset• and Liabilities in the Life Branch, free on application to the Company's Agents,or to the Secretary. JOHN GOSNELL and CO.'S CHERRY TOOTH PASTE is greatly superior to any tooth powder; gives the teeth a pearl whiteness protects the eramel from decay, and imparts a pleasant fragrance to the breath. Price is. 6d.— Bed Bull Wharf, 93, Upper Thames-street, London. NOTHING IMPOSSIBLE. A GUA AMARELLA restores the Human Hair A to its pristine hue, no matter at what age. • ' JNO. GOSNELL and CO. have at length, with the aid of one of the most eminent Chemists, succeeded in perfecting this wonder ful liquid. It is now offered to the public in a more concentrated form, and at a lower price. Sold in bottles, 3s. each; also Is., 7s. 6d., and 15s. each, includ ing brush. Red Bull Wharf, Angel-passage, 93, Upper Thames-street, Lon don, E.C. - T HEATRE ROYAL, HA YMARKET. Sole Lessee, Mr. Bnckstone. THIS EVENLNG, at 7, AN ALARMING SACRIFICE. Mr Buckstone, jun., and Miss F. Wright. After which, at 7.40, OUR 'AMERICAN COUSIN: Characters by Mr Sothern, Mr Buckstnne, Mr Chippendale, Mr Braid, Mr liogers; Mrs Chippendale, Miss F. Wright, Miss F. Gwynne, Miss C. Hill, &c. Concluding with MY WIFE'S MOTHER: Mr Chippendale, Mr Howe, Mrs Chippendale, &c. Box-office open daily iron Ten till Five. THEATRE ROYAL, ADELPHI. Sole Proprietor and Manager, Mr. B. WEBSTER THIS EVENING. at Seven o'clock. MY PRECIOUS BETSY: Messrs J. G. Taylor, C. J. Smith; Miss Eliza Johnstone. After which, THE PROMPTER'S BOX: a Story of the Footlights and the Fireside. Mr B3njamin Webst r, Mr Henry J. Byron. Mr J. D. Beveridge, Mr R Phillips, Mr C. H. Stephen son, Mr J. G. Taylor, Mr C. J. smith, Mr A shley, Mr W. H. Eburne, Miss Furtado, Miss Levis, and Mrs Alfred *, ellon. To be followed by WHITEBAIT AT GRKENWICH: Messrs J. G. Taylor, C. H. Stephenson, Ashley; Mrs Leigh Murray, Miss Lennox Grey. Box-office open daily, from 10 till S. No fees for booking Flaces can be secured a fortnight in advance. ROYAL PRINCESS'S THEATRE Lessee and Manager—Mr. Benjamin Webster. THIS EVENING, at 7, YOUR LIFE'S IN DANGER After which, PAUL LAFARGE: Messrs. J. Rouse, W. Rig nold, Geo. Belmcre, Vollaire ; Mesdames it. Leclercq and Le thiere. With A DARK NIGHT'S WORK; Messrs W. Rignold, G. Belmcre, H. CrePin ; Misses It. Leclercq, Barnett, &c. LYCEUM THEATRE (under the management of Messrs Mansell (elegantly redecorated by Macintosh). THIS EVENING, at 7.30, SAMPSON'. WEDDING. Aft r which at 8.39, CHILPERIC, by Herve: M. Marius, G. Vincent, Odell, Angyalll, 11. Rowland, Aynsley Cook, and 11. H.rve ; Me,dames Romanelli, L. Wilson, and Emily Muir. I) OYAL STRAND THEATRE. 1 Sole Lessee and Manageress, Mrs Swanborough. THIS EVENING, at Seven, WIDOWS' WEEDS. Messrs _Crouch, Turner, and Mesdames E Button and Anstiss. Followed by SIR GEORGE AND. A DRAGON. Messrs. James, Terry, Fenton; Mesdames Santley, Dashirood, Goodall, Hughes, Anstiss. and Metcalfe. And A FISH OUT OF WATER. THE LAIEST EDITION of " TIIE SUN " supplied as soon as published, every Evening, by S. WILSON, newsagent, and special agent for the North-western District, 24, Delancey-street, Camden town, N W SPURTING. —JOHN ROBERTS supplies the LATES 1' EDITION of " THE SUN" as soon as pub lished.-4, Bath-street. City-road. E.C. THE "sUN" NEWSPAPER. G. R. GLENIE, Sporting Library, 4, Connaught-terrace, Edgeware -road, delivers the LATE JOITION of "THE SUN " as soon as published. TE SUN. LATEST EDITION to he seen in the Coffee Room, at 'he "Southampton Arms," igh street, Camden-town, where all Sporting and Politica events are freely discussed. LATEST or SPECIAL EDITION of "THE SUN" every Evening, at Eight o'Clock, at Mr. Rosa ars', "The Black Cap," High-street, Camden-town rrlIE LA I'EST EDITION of " THE SUN." J. lIJLAIES begs to Inform his friends and,the public generally that he supplies the LATEST EDITION of "THE $ tIH " as soon as publishol.—No. 10, Hampstead-road, N.W. r u HE LATE EDITION of " THE SUN " at Mr. BEAUMONT'S, "The Wellington," Wellington-street, Strand. TIIE LATEST EDITION of " THE SUN " L be seen Every Evening by 810 at Mr. ROBERT MEACOCK's, Britannia, Kensal New-town. THE SUN.—LATEST EDITION to be seen every Evening, at Eight o'clock, at Mr. GILL3IAN'S, " The Wheatsheat," High-street, Camden-town. THE LATEST EDITION of " THE SUN " supplied as soon as published, containing all the LATEST NEWS Lnd SPORTING INTELLIGENC K, by H. W. HARRIS, Newspaper Agent, 4, Blackfriars-road , London. THE LATEST EDITION of " THE SUN " supplied, as soon as published, Every Evening, by W. SMAND ER (late Brooks), Newspaper Agent, o. 4, Old Cavendish street, Oxford-street- THE LATEST EDITION of " THE SUN " may be seen at Eight o'clock every Evening at Mr. B. NEWPORTS', the Oxford Arms, High-street, Camden-town THE LATE EDITION of "THE SUN" at W. SMITH'S " Camden Stores," 78, Park-street, Camden. town. THE THEATRES, &c. ADELPHI.—At Seven, My Precious Betsy. The Prompter's Box. Whitebait at Greenwich. HAYMARKET—At Seven. An Alarming Sacrifice. At 7.40, Our American Cousin. And My Wife's Mother. LYCEUM—At 7.30, Sampson's Wedding. Chilperic. OLYMPIC—At Seven, Little Emily. The Princess PRINCESS'S—At Seven, Your Life's in Danger. Paul Lafarge. A Dark Night's Work GAIETY—At Seven, Young Hopeful. Uncle Dick's Darling. The First Night. QUERN s—At Seven, Quick March. At 8.15, 'Twixt Axe and Crown ::TRAND—At Seven, Widow's Weeds. Sir George and a Dragon. A Fish Out of Water ST. JAMES'S—At Seven, She Stoops to Conquer. At 9.15, La Belle Sauvage. An Unhappy Pair PrzNoz Cr WALES'S—At Eight, School. Dearest Mamma. Quite by Accident GLOBE—At Seven, Whitebait at Greenwich. At Eight, Philomel. The Goose with the Golden Eggs WOODIN'S CARPET-BAG AND SKETCH BOOK, Egyptian Hall, Picca dilly, every Evening (except Saturday) at 8; Saturday Mom n -111.18 at 3. Admission, is, 2s, 3s. CHRISTY MINSTRELS. St. James's Hall, Every Night, at 8; Wed nesdays and Saturdays, at 3 and 8 all the year round. MADAME TUSSAUD'S EXHIBITION, Baker-street, from 11 a.m. till 5.30 p.m., and from 7 till 10 p.m. Admission, is.; extra rooms, 6d.. ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS, Regent's-park, Open dailyfexcept Sundays). Admission. Is.• on Mondays, 6d. Children under twelve, 6d. • „AA* : 47...0rk milk-, 334 LONDON, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 6, 1870. THE Reformed Parliament has had to deal with questions of exceptional magnitude. Until the last two years the Legislature was engaged chiefly iso adapting well-established ideas to the various wants of the community; but so soon as it became certain that the working classes would be called upon to a share of political power: a new set of problems arose, requiring legislation of a much more comprehensive character. National Education, the Disestablishment of a State Church, and the establishment of a peasant landed proprie tary are problems whose solutions have been forced upon the present Ministry and Parliament, with an urgency that admits of no delay. In solving the first of these the Legislature had the advantage of a mass of information collected in that facile princeps of blue books, the Report of the Royal Commission on En dowed Schools. This Commission was fortunately appointed some time ago in anticipation of the Edu cation Bill, the result was a report—the most exhaus tive and the most masterly ever presented to any legis lative assembly. Unfortunately there has been no such interval of preparation with regard to the land problem. In this, as in the question of education, the Government has sought to obtain information from foreign countries. But the persons charged to supply it have not been selected for that purpose, and it must be confessed that they do not always appear competent to give it. Morover, the blue book of MO pages, now before us, and which contains the first instalment of information, bears every mark of extreme haste. It was not until the end of August that Lord Clarendon issued his circular asking her Majesty's diplomatic represen tatives abroad to reply to his queries with respect to the land tenure of the countries to which they were accredited, and the earliest of the replies is dated only two months later. Of course the authors of the reports are not responsible for the numerous printers' blunders which disfigure the bulky volume. As a specimen of typography it is utterly discreditable. Of editing there is none, and the only clue given to guide the reader through this wilderness of information is contained in about twenty lines. In fact, with one notable exception, Mr. Haulm- Gastrell's report on the land-tenure of Prussia, written within two months of the receipt of Lord Clarendon's circular, yet containing a complete social history of Prussia—a veritable marvel of industry and research—this blue-book will not compare for a minute with the report of the Endowed Schoh Dommissiol. Unfortunately. thouall the Laed. Tenure tic:port exhibits signs of haste in every page, it comes too late to be of much service in the settlement of the Irish Land Bill. The broad features of that measure have been settled, and M.P.'s can hardly, in these days of morning and evening sittings, be expected to digest so very tough a morsel as this Blue-book. The public must look to their newspapers rather than to their representatives for an analysis. The reports are thirty-six in number; but as s3veral.refer to the same country—there are thirteen sent from different parts of the United States, for instance—the number of countries reported on is much smaller. The following are included in the first volume :—Belgium, Denmark, France, Greece; Hansa Towns, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Prussia and the Sorth German Confederation, Saxe-Coburg Gotha, United States, and Wiirtemberg. These countries repre sent different conditions of society. There is Greece, for instance, where agriculture is despised, and where as a consequence, it is in the lowest possible condi tion. There is Belgium, where the land is infi nitely subdivided, and the extreme limit of the petite culture has been reached. There are the United States, where there is a boundless extent of land and where the small farm system would be a waste of labour. And there is Prussia, which has gone through a social revolution within the present cen tury, completely transforming. the relations which used to . exist between the soil and those who culti vated it. With such a variety of conditions, it would be manifestly absurd to lay down any rule with respect to the division of the land which would be applicable to every case. 'Where the fee-simple is not more than the annual rental in other countries, the small culture system would be out of place. Man is not made for the land, but the land for mail. and the only consideration which need influence him Is that of raising the greatest amount of produce with out impoverishing the soil. In America, with an illimitable tract of virgin land before him, he will break up fresh ground every year. In Belgium, where land is sold by the yard, he must resort to very possible means of restoring each year that which he takes out of the soil. Of course, these different conditions produce very different social :exults. In France, where the petite culture is in full .orce, it is a moot question if subdivision has not oeen carried too far. In that district of Belgium (mown as the Pays de Waes, the most densely peopled in Europe, there is no doubt that this is the case, but there the land . is not she property of the cultivators, and g_i9 landlords ARO aavantage ox tne Keen competition sor 'arms to un up the rents to an extortionate figure, to refuse all leases, and to evict without due cause. The con ,equence is that in this district, though far before Ireland in its agriculture, there is nearly as much distress. In other parts of Flanders the tenant farmers are far more happily circumstanced. They possess a fair amount of capital, and cultivate the land in an intelligent manner. Although they have no leases and no agreement for compensation for improvements, they usually receive some allowance. In another district of Belgium, the Pays de Herve, near Liege, the land hunger is so strong that the small purchaser will ouy at a price that will give him no chance of making more than 2 per cent. on his capital. A nectare (21 acres) of land sold in small allotments will fetch 15,000 francs (p 000), whereas a piece of land 10 hectares (25 acres) in extent, will, if sold in Jne lot, not fetch more than 10,000 francs (4.00). En that country there exists a custom called mauvais gre. Formerly, the landlords on tetting a farm exacted a sum of money from the incoming tenant before allowing him to take possession, but would not refund the money on the tenant leaving the farm. The outgoing tenant, feeling himself aggrieved, caused outrages to be per petrated upon his successor on the farm, unless the successor would repay the amount. This custom led to such serious crimes, including frequent assassina tions, that it became necessary to legislate against it repeatedly. Remembering the emphatic manner in which the present Liberal Government has repudiated fixity of tenure, it is worthy of note that this mode of holding is by no means unknown on the Con tinent. It is found, for instance, in countries as far apart as the lonian Islands, where it is called emphytensis, and Portugal, where it is known as emphytentas. So far as the latter country is concerned, the tenure seems to be of very respect able antiquity. It originated in the arrangement made by ancient Rome, under which settlers in a con quered country were allowed to farm lands without any fear of eviction so long as they paid the vectigal, or State rent. There are other customs more universal than this. No where, we believe, is any difference made between the succession to land and the succes sion to personal property. The English law of primogeniture is found nowhere but in Britain. On the death of an intestate his land is divided equally among his children in nearly every country of Europe. In most countries the power of bequest is more or less restricted, and in none would a testator be permitted to leave all his land to one child. Another point on which Europe is united, is simplicity of transfer. There is none of the countries mentioned in this report where there does not exist a register for the recording of all transfers and mortgages, which register is the only legal proof of ownership required. It remains to be seen how much longer we will consent to being behind such countries as Greece and Portugal in these matters. There is but one other point which we can mention on the present occasion. An attempt on the part of a State to purchase land in order to become the landlord signally failed. The experiment was tried in Belgium; leases were given for thirty years, and though every inducement was offered to tenants on condition that they would carry out the works of irrigation, and though tenants in numbers offered themselves, who considered themselves as pensioners of the State, they refused to do their allotted work, misappropriated the State subsidy, and at last the Government was glad to sell by auction for £l,OOO an estate which had cost £10,405. The purchaser evicted the idle tenants, and now finds his invest ment remunerative, as lie well may, considering the price he paid. The experiment will scarcely inane() the British Parligment to adopt ➢ir. Belght's scheni. HER MAJESTY. WINDSOR CASTLE, April 5. The Queen, accompanied by her Royal High ness Princess Beatrice, walked and drove in the grounds this morning. The other members of the Royal Family also went out. The Princess of Wales drove out yesterday. LATEST INTELLIGENCE. (REUTER'S TELEGRAMS.) SPAIN.- MADRID, April 5 (Evening). The insurgents at Barcelona having cut the tele graph wires, no news has been received from that city. It is only known that barricades ha►'e been erected at Garcia, a suburb of Barcelona. PORTUGAL. LISBON, April 5. The public adjudication of concession for the con struction of telegraphic lines between England and Portugal and Gibraltar took place yesterday. The Minister of Public Works announced that the con cession has been definitively granted to M. Jules Despecher, the representative of the Falmouth, Gib raltar, and Malta Telegraph Company. BELGIUM. BRUSSELS, April 6. The Etale Belge of to-day says that it appears that Holland has forwarded a note to the Belgian Cabinet, commenting upon the bill now before the Belgian Parliament, increasing the duty on alcohol, as an attack upon the strict execution of the treaty of commerce concluded between the two countries. The paper asserts that the Belgian Government in reply has declared that the trea'y cannot prevent Belgium from modifying her customs duties. FRANCE. BOURSE, April s.—Three o'clock—The market closed as follows Bank Shares 2815 :__: Ital 4 an Fives 55 90 Austrian Fives Ottoman Loan Do. Debt 47 20 Spanish Threes Home Debt — Deferred — Cash Orleans Western Northern Strasburg Lyons and Mediterranean Southern..... 6 -221 Sardinian Austrian BOO per Cent. 3 per Cents 73 85 End of month 73 65 clredit Mobilier 270 Transatlantic 192 50 Credit Foncier _1260 Paris Gas 1780 Suez Canal 265 Lombard North of Spain Saragossa Roman 467 k AUSTRIA. VIENNA, April 5. The report of the Anglo-Austrian Bank for the year 1869 shows a net profit of 7,192,625 florins, equivalea to 54 per cent. on the capital of the com pany. At the general meeting propositions will be made for the appropriation of the profits, and the increase of the capital by the.issue of new shares. AMERICA. (Per French Atlantic Cable.) NEW YORK, April 5. COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE. CLOSING PRICES. Goad closed at 1111 ; the highot , t quotation during the day was 1121 ; the lowest, 1111. Sterling Exchange on London 5-20 U. S. Bonds, ISB2 1885 • lOOl 1867 10-40 „ 1901 Illinois Erie Cotton—Mid. upland Petroleum—Standard White Flour—Extra State, $1 50e. to $5 10e. Corn—Old mixei, $1 9c . According to Messrs. Moffatt, Davidis, and Co.'s report t he receipts of cotton at all ports, for the last four days, have been 24,000 bales. Shipments to England, 9,000 bales ; to France, 8,000 bales ; and to the Continent, 7,000 bales. Middling Upland, 10 7-id., cost and freight per steamer. THE UNIVERSITY BILLIARD MATCI-L The annual meeting of the representatives of the rival Blues round the board of green cloth forms one of the features of the boat race week. To-nigh, at eight o'clock, the double match is to ba played at St. James's Hall, the competitors being—for Oxford, Messrs. J. Lascelles (Pembroke), and F. Haygarth (New) ; for Cambridge, Messrs. H. A. Richardson and F. Edwards (of Trinity). DESTRUCTION OF THE BOYS' HOME REFORMATORY AT WANDSWORTH. This morning a fire happened in the Boys' Home Reformatory, situate on Wandsworth-common. It commenced, it is believed, from the wilful act of some of the boys, in the workshop, a building 190 feet long. The workshops were quickly in a blaze from. one end to the other, and the flames seized upon the Wesleyan Chapel on East-hill, and could not be extinguished un►il the ifistitution was destroyed. THE CHARGE OF COWARDICE AGAINST A COASTGUARDSMAN. The Admiralty have given their decision in reference to an inquiry recently held at Padstow into certain charges brought against Mr. Tregiddo, the chief officer of the Coastguards at New Quay. The Austrian barque Suez was wrecked in Watergate Bay last December ; and Mr. Bryant, the receiver of the wreck at Padstow, charged Mr: Tregiddo on that occasion with (among other allegations) not assisting him iri the execution of his duty, with cowardice at the time, and with breach Of duty in not attempting to get evidence against the water men prosecuted for obstructing Bryant. The Admiralty, in their decision just given, fully exonerate Mr. Tregiddo from all blame. There is no foundation for the rumour of the Lord Chancellor's retirement. The - remains of General the Hon. Charles Grey were removed from St. James's Palaco to-day and conveyed to Howick Castle for interment on Friday next in the family vault at St. Michael's, Howick. Lady Herbert of Lea and Lady Mary II Tbert arrived at Lisbon at the end of last week, in consequence of the alarming illness of her ladyship's son, the lion. Regi nald Herbert, R.N. Mr. Herbert, who had been in a pre carious state from measles and congestion of the lungs, is pronounced out of danger. A conference was opened this morning at the rooms of the Society of Arts, John-street, Adelphi, with reference to the representation of the Fine Arts in the forthcoming series of annual international exhibitions, the first of whioh is to be held at Kensington next year. His Royal Highness Prince Christian; presided. Sir Alexander Milne will not resign the Mediter ranean command on promotion, but will remain out at least until the expiration of the usual summer cruise. The death is announced this morning of the Hon. and Rev. William Wodehouse, youngest son of the first Baron W odehouse, and great uncle of the present Earl of Kimberley. The annual changes of quarters of the Household Cavalry Brigade ars being made to-day. The Ist Life Guards remove from Regent's Park Barracks to Knightsbridge and Hyde Park Barracks. The 2d Life Guards remove from Hyde Park to Windsor ; and the Royal Horse Guards from Windsor to Regent's Park Barracks. The four-oared race of the Beaufort Boat Club, from Putney to Battersea-bridge, has terminated in favour of A. Salter, W. Heuches, F. Berry, W. Laws (stroke), R. Laws (cox). The modern French comedy-drama, entitled "Frou Frou," which in Paris and New York has filled the theatres for months, will be produced at the Olympic Theatre-on Sa turday, April 16. The trustees of the Georga Hudson Annuity Fund have invested a further sum of £7OO, in addition to £4,000 originally converted into a life annuity for Mr. Hud son. Upwards of £6OO per annum is now s:cured to that gentleman. The telegraph wires between Limerick and Ennis were maliciously cut near Clare Castle yesterday. The ob ject of the act is not known, and no arrest has yet been made. The very extensive Distillery now being erected at Belfast, with all recent improvements for the manufacture of Irish whisky, by Messrs. DUNVILLE & Co., who have gained a world-wide celebrity for their fine old Irish whisky, is to be called "The Royal Irish istillery." HIGH WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE. Morning. Evening WEDNESDAY TituRsDAY ,40 miu past 5 0 min past 6 FRIDAY ... .. ......... .15 miu past 6 4O miu past 6 SATURDAY.., 5 min past 7 40 min past 7 SUNDAY 10 min past 8 52 min past 8 MONDAY 35 min past 9 20 my' past 10 TUESDAY 2 ruin Past 11 42 min past 11 MR. CHARLES DICKENS AND THE NE WSVENDORS. The annual dinner' in aid of the funds of the News vendors' Benevolent and Provident Institution was held last night at the Freemasons"favern. Mr. • Charles Dickens presided. A fter the usual toasts were given and responded to, The CHAIRMAN, in proposing the toast of the even ing, said:--Ladies and Gentlemen,—You receive me with so much cordiality that I fear you believe that I really did once sit in a Lord Mayor's coach. (Laughter.) Permit me to assure you, in spite of the information received from Mr. Alderman Cotton, that I never had that honour. Furthermore, I beg to assure you that I never witnessed a Lord Mayor's show except from the po:nt of view obtained by the other vagabonds upon the pavement. (G rear laughter.) Now, ladies and gentlemen, in spite of this great cor diality of yours, I doubt if you fully know yet what a blessing it is to you that I occupy this chair to night—(more laughter)—because, having filled it on several previous occasions for the socie,y on whose behalf we are assemblel, and having said everything that I could think of to say about it, and being, moreover, the president of the institu tion itself, 1 am placed to-night in the modest posi tion of a host who is not so much to display himself as to call out his guests—perhaps even to try to induce some among them to occupy his place on another occasion. And, therefore, you may be safely sure that, like Falstaff, but with a modification almost as large as himself—(laughter)---1 shall try rather to be the cause of speaking in others than to speak myself to-night. Much in this manner they exhibit at the door of a snuff shop the effigy of a Highlander with an empty mull in his hand, who having apparently taken all the snuff he can carry, and discharged all the sneezes of which he is capable, politely invites his friends and patrons to step in and try what they can do in the same line. (Loud laughter.) It is an appropriate instance of the universality of the newsman's calling that no toast we have drunk to-night—and no toast we shall drink to-night—and no toast we might, could, should, or would drink to-night, is separable for a moment from that great inclusion of all possible subjects of human interest which he delivers at our doors every day. (Hear, hear.) Fur ther, it may be worthy the consideration of every body here who has talked cheerfully to his or her neighbour since we have sat down at the table, what in the name of Heaven should we have talked about, and how on earth could we have possibly got on, if our newsman had only for one single day forgotten us. (Hear, hear.) Now, ladies and gentlemen, as our newsman is not by any means in the habit of fargettiug us, let us try to form a little habit of not forgetting our newsman. (Hear, hear.) Let us remember that his work is very arduous; that it occu pies him early and late; that the profits he derives from us are at the best very small; that the services he renders to us are very great ; that if he be a master, his little capital is exposed to all sorts of mis chances, anxieties, and hazards ; and if he be a journeyman, he himself is exposed to all manner of weathers, of tempers, and a.l manner of difficult and unreasonable requirements. Let me illustrate this. I was once present at a social dis cussion which turned upon the question what was the most absorbing and the longest-lived passion in the human breast. A daily editor of vast expe rience and great acuteness, who eves one of the company, considerably surprised us by saying with the greatest confidence that the passion in question was the passion of getting orders for the play. (Loud laughter.) There had recently been a terrible ship wreck, and very few of the surviving sailors had escaped iu au open boat. One of these on making land came straight to London, and straight to the newspaper office, with his story of how he had seen the ship go down before his eyes. That young man had witnessed the most terrible contention between the lowers of fire and water for the destruction of that ship and of every one on board. He bad rowed away among the floating, dying, and tue sinking dead. Ile h id floated by day, and he had froz n by night, with no she:ter and no food, and, as he told his dismal tale, he rolledhis haggard eyts about the room. When he had finished, and the tale bad been noted down from hie lips, he was cheered and refreshed, and soothed, and asked if anything coil Pd be done for him. Even that master passion was so strong wi,hin him that he immedia:ely replied he should like an order for the play. (Roats of laughter.) My friend the editor certainly thought that was rather a strong case ; but he said that during his many years of experience he had witnessed an in curable amount of self-prostration and abasement having no outer object, and that almost invariably on the part of people who could well afford to pay. (Great laughter.) This made a great impression on my mind, and I really lived in this faith until some years ago it happened upon a stormy night I was kindly escorted from a bleak railway station to the little out-of-the-way town it represented by a sprightly and vivacious newsman, to whom I pro pounded, as we went along under my umbrella, what was the one all-absorbing passion of the human soul. He replied, without the slightest heeltattion, that it certainly was the passion for getting your newspaper in advatice of your fellow-creatures—(laughter)-- also if you only hired it to get it delivered at your own door at exactly the same time as another man who hired the same copy four miles off ; and, finally, the invincible determination on the part of both men not to believe the time was up when the boy called. (Laughter.) Ladies and gentlemen, I have not had an opportunity of verifying this ex perience with my friends of the managing committee, but I have no doubt from its reception to-night that my friend the newsman was perfectly right. Well, as a sort of beacon iu a sufficiently dark life, and as an assurance that among a little body of working men there is a feeling of brotherhood and sympathy— which is worth much to all men, or they would herd with wolves—the newsvendors once upon a time established the Benevolent and Provident Institu tion, and here it is. Under the Provident head, certain small annuiti s are granted to old and hard-working subscribers. Under the Benevolent head, relief is afforded to temporary and proved distress. Under both heads, I am bound to say the help rendered is very humble and very sparing, but if 3 ou like it to be handsomer you have it iri your power to make it so. Such as it is, it is most gratefully received, and does a deal of good. Such as it is, it is most discreetly and feelingly ad ministered ; and it is encumbered with no wasteful charges for management or patronage. You know upon an old authority, that you may believe anything except facts and figures--(a laugh) but you really may believe that during the last year we have granted £lOO in pensions, and tome £7O in tempo rary relief, and we have invested in Government securities some £4OO. Now, ladies and gentlemen, that the ;newsman's work has greatly increased, and that it is far more wearing and tearing than it used to be, you may infer from one fact stated in Mit chell's "Newspaper Press Directory," that during the last quarter of a century the number of newspapers which appeared in London had more than doubled, while the increase in the num ber of people among whom they were dissemi nated was probably beyond calculation. Ladies and gentlemen, I have stated the newsman's s:mple case. I leave it ire your heeds. Within the la-t year the institution has had the good fortune to attract the sympathy and gain the support of the eminent man of, letters I am prow I to call my friend, who now re presents the great Republic of America at the British Court. Also it has enrolled upon its list of donors arid vice-presidents the great name cf Longfellow. I beg to propose' to you to drink " Prosperity to the N ewsvendors' Benevolent and Providentlnstitution.' (Cheers.) The toast was duly honoured, and followed by the . toast of "The Lathes," proposed by Mr. CIIAS. DICKENS, junior. Subscriptions to the amount of £550 were an nounced in the room. CENTRAL CHAMBER OF AGRICULTURE. TUESDAY. A council meeting of the Central Chamber of Agricul ture was held at the Salisbury Hotel, Salisbury - -square, Fleet-street, this morning. The chairman of the council, Colonel Tomline, M.P., presided. . _ The CHAIRMAN, in opening the business, said that they were constantly increasing in numbers, yet they had prac tically done nothing. They were endeavouring to accom plish three most important and difficult tasks—to obtain freedom of trade in agriculture, equal rating and representation, and taxation in the shape of county financial boards. These were the three points which they were seeking to obtain. But they had not ad vanced one step. A short time ago their Minister in China carried out a treaty with the assent of the Government, and brought it home with the idea that it could not possibly be objected to. It took away all the transit duties in China, but added 2i per cent. to the import duties into that country, and Lord Clarendon wrote a paper in favour of it. But one or two Chambers of Commerce who did not approve of it, took steps actively to oppose it. They went to the Minister, and, in spite of the assent of the Gevernment, and the long and able paper of Lord Claren don in its favour, they gained their point. That was what he called action, and formed a striking contrast to that which they had done. When they went home, they would do well to reflect on the reason of such rapid success and the cause that they (the Chamber of Agriculture) had not yet obtained such success. Mr. PELL, M.P., brought up the report of the Com mittee on Local Taxation, which stated the various steps which had been taken since the last Council meeting. It also expressed the great regret and sympathy of the com mittee at the sad event which had caused the absence of Sir Massey Lopes, chairman of the committee. On the motion of Mr. READ, seconded by Mr. RUSSO', it was agreed that a petition, signed by the chairman, should be presented to Parliament in favour of the deci mal system in weights and measures. A vote of thanks was given to the Chambers which have lately given increased subscriptions to the Central Chamber. Captain CRAGIE re - -opened the discussion on the subject of the Elementary Education Bill, which stood adjourned from the last council meeting. He said that the bill did not now stand in the position in which they left it on the last occasion. It had passed its second reading. Therefore, the principle of the measure had been approved by the House of Commons. Not only had the principle been approved, but there had been a promise of very int' portant amendments on the part of the Government , and various suggestions thrown out which migh t be agreed to in committee. Then they had to look at the state of public business, which was so con gested, he heard, as to render it in some degree doubtful whether the bill would pass into law this session. After Some criticisms on details, Captain Cragie moved a resolu tion to the effect that the actual attendance of children at schoolbetween the ages of 10 and 12, as approved in a resolu tion passed at the last meeting of the Council, wouldbebest obtained by requiring a certificate of efficiency from every child employed in agriculture. He thought there ought not to be a hard and fast line as to the number of atten dances at school. It did not matter how the child acquired the standard so long as he did acquire it. The Rev. Mr. BOTFIELD seconded the resolution, and a discussion followed, which was generally in favour of the proposition. Mr. GARFIT moved as an amendment—" That the Council considers that no compulsory attendance should be required after ten years of age, and that after a certi ficate of proficiency in reading and elementary writing at any age no further attendance should be required." - Mr: HERMON BIDDELL seconded it. The members who spoke expressed different views as to the advisability of compulsion in elementary instruction. Upon a division 18' voted for the amendment and S against it. It was accordingly declared to be - carried. Professor BUND moved the adjournment of the discus' sion on the subject, which was carried. The next business was—" That in the opinion of this Council the application of capital to agriculture is die" couraged by the following causes :-1. The undue a mount of local taxation upon capital invested in land and its im provement. 2. Uncertainty of tenure. 3. Absence of compensation of unexhausted improvements. 4. Unneces sary restrictions upon courses of cropping. 5. The over preservation of ground game." - After some discussion it was decided to take the ques tions seriatem. Mr. WHITAKER said that the great object of this association and of the Agricultural Chambers throughout the kingdom, was to endeavour to get rid of the in creasing burdens which were being placed on real property. This first resolution—" The undue amount of local taxation upou capital invested in land and its improvement"—affected alike every man who held real property. He begged to move its adoption, and would conclude by recommending that the Local Taxation Committee should receive greater support. Mr. GENGE ANDREWS said he thought this was the question in which the country and the Central Chambers took the deepest interest. By reducing taxation they would extend the area of land which could be cultivated. Under the present system the- occu pier was greatly interested, collaterally, although in the abstract the tax was solely on the soil. The heads of the Poor-law expenditure, which, he con tended, were imperial charges, and not merely local, were:--For the relief of the poor, £6,959,840 ; payments towards county, borough, or police rate, 2.511,511; con stables expenses, and cost of proceedings before justices, £38,132; registration fees, on account of the Regis tration Act, 274,239 . ; vaccination fees, £44,8 15 ; parliamentary municipal registration, 239,63 7 . Highway Board expenditure, £595,699 - proceed ings at law and equity (lawyer's bill), 226,99 9 surveys and valuations, £54,522 ; other expenditure nP discriminated, £559,779 ; total, £10,905,173. Receipts iii aid from the Consolidated Fund, £388,523 net am0unt5; 210,516,650. The county expenditure in 1864 amounte to 1,958,981. There had been an increase of expen diture in the three years between 1864 and 1867, under the he ad of county expenditure of £552,530. Professor W. BUND suggested as an amendment, that the resolution should read " the undue and uncertain amount of local taxation upon capital invested in' th e improvement of land. . The original resolution, however, was carried on division. • Mr. RUSSON proposed clause 2 and 3. Mr. LEMAN seconded the resolution.—Mover and seconder agreed that if they had a proper compensatil for unexhausted improvements, they would as soon sPe l , • money on improved cultivation without a license, as sviv'' one. Captain CRAGIE moved as an amendment the omissi °ll of the words in clause 2—" the certainty of tenure and in clause 3, after the words "absence of, ' the inserti on of the words "of leases or well regulated systems o ' . the compensation for unexhausted improvements. Mr. GENGE ANDREWS seconded it. Mr. WHITAKER suggested, as a poor landlord, that ther consent of the landlord should be obtained in writing f° the improvements before they were made. The amendment was lost by a large majority, a nd 0 0 resolution agreed to. Clause 4 was carried without discussion. Clause 5 01 passed in a like manner. A vote of thanks to the chairman closed the business. INDIA. BOMBAY, April 5 Exchange on London, 6 n,onths, Bank bills, 1.11 13-16ths ; 4 per Cent. Government Securities, 95i ; 5 per Cent. do , 107 ; 5f per Cent. do., 1121. A CHARGE OF FALSE IMPRISONMENT.—An action has been brought at the Kingston assizes, by a porter, in the employ of the London and North-Western Railway Company, to recover damages for false imprisonment. He was employed at the Camden station, from which a bale of scarlet cloth was stolen, in October, 1867. No information was received respecting the missing cloth until last November, when two detectives went to the plaintiff's house, and instituted a search. They found three yards of scarlet cloth in a box which the plaintiff said he had bought from a man in the street. He was charged with having property he could not properly account for, and was locked up, but was eventually discharged. There were other circumstances which made the story still more confused, and the jury returned a verdict for the plaintiff. Damages one farthing. CHARGE OF MURDER.—William Naylor, bobbin turner, Bradford, has been tried at the Leeds Assizes for the murder of his grandchild, and found guilty, but being held not accountable for his actions on the ground of insanity, he was ordered to be detained during her Ma jesty's pleasure. CHARGE AGAINST AMERICAN OFFICIALS.—EarIy in March two brothers named Gale suddenly left Batley, near Leeds, and sailed for Boston. Immediately after wards it was alleged that they had forged cheques in the names of certain business acquaintances to the extent of about £4,000, and a telegram was sent to the police at Boston to apprehend the fugitives on their arrival. , They were taken, and have now been brought back to England. The prisoners say that when they landed at Boston they had £530 in gold in their possession, but the American detectives disclaim all knowledge of the money, and it cannot be found. It is said that the custom-house officers and the American detectives were the only persons who had access to the baggage. •EVIDISCE OF II ECOGNITION.—At the Gloucestershire Assizes a rough looking fellow named Gough has been in dicted for housebreaking and maliciously wounding, at the house of Colonel Seaton, of Chelten ham. Fanny Stock, the housemaid, was entering her room at night, when a man, whom she recognized as the prisoner, stood before her, and said " Halloa I" and then, knocking the candle out of her hand, hit her on the head with some instrument, and sent her rolling under the bed. She recovered consciousness, and ran out covered with blood, when she met her master, and the prisoner then disappeared. At Gough's lodgings was discovered a hat, which Fanny Stock almost swore was the one her assailant wore when he knocked her down, and she readily picked him out from seven or eight policemen dressed as labourers at the police station. The prisoner's counsel argued, at great length, that the evidence of re cognition was not to be trusted, and called witnesses to prove that the man was at his lodgings card-playing lowing the whole of the evening in question. The case lasted several hours, when the jury acquitted the prisoner, and said they believed the witnesses for the alibi. LOCAL TAXATIOF. • HOUSE OF COMMONS, TuEsDAY. The Select Committee on Local Taxation-resum ed their sittings this morning, the Right. Hon. Mr. Goscheos the President of the Poor Law Board, in the chair. Mr. H. C. Belve, a magistrate of Liverpool, chairing' of the Water Company, and who had been a member of the Liverpool Corporation for fifteen years, besides hold' ing many other important public offices, was called, and described the various kinds of taxes levied in Liverpool , the assessment of which, he said, was mostly based up oll the poor rate. There was no borough rate in Liverpool , all the expenses of the Corporation, the cost of male taming the mayoralty, royal entertainments, and the paamidoluitted t of theono_ o less than private property of the c orporation , N b v e h i amounted £150,000. Speaking a t s h : large owner of property, h e was i n f avour o f a lt er i n g incidence of local taxation by dividing the rate betwe e d the owner and the occupier, and that plan had been adoP te ,.. in Liverpool in resp ec t t o t wo o f th e ra t es —th e w ater r at e and improvement rate—with great success. Each those rates was divided between the landlord and th tenant, and the system was one which gave every satisfs' e. tion. He saw no reason why it should not be further O c c i tended. He was himself a very large owner of property, an was extremely well satisfied with the working of the systeol? and he had no reason to believe that his tenants were no"" With respect to the assessment of the property, he thoug ht , it convenient to have one fixed method of assesl o ment, and on the whole approved of the 130 1 afforded by the assessment of the poor-rat e ; It would, of course, be very convenient to he' l l o a settled mode by which all rates on property could calculated so as to get rid of the complicated eYst e which at present existed throughout the country. e i On the conclusion of Mr. Beloe's evidence the committ adjourned. The High sheriff of Devon has received a writ W I the election of a representative for the eastern division ° f the county. Saturday next is fixed for the nornination . Several students from the School of Naval Arel li ; tecture are to undergo a six months' course of practiu°- study in iron shipbuilding at Chatham Dockyard. A great fire occurred at the. East-end of Lon d on on Monday evening. The premises of a large firm of la factors were destroyed, the damage amounting to 24 0 ,u v Count Bismarck, it is stated in the German paPe l 4 intends to propose a bill making it obligatory upon the railway companies to provide fourth-class carriages for tn. benefit of working people. Devonshire possesses endowed charities wil lch according to a parliamentary return, have a gioss agqi gate annual income of £45,568 2s. 2d., of which 2 12,1 are for educational purposes. Messrs. Newton, Chambers, and Co., of the Tha n ; cliffe Collieries, have already paid £1,130 for the s ervic e o. of extra police employed for the preservation of the po. c . • The firm mot§gits against% . - 7 -, - 6'14 .011 r IRLOIEIs .29 %k it tr a • %l b rin Tar