The Sun. — London, England, 1855-04-02 00:00:00

DRIIRY-LANE.—Lessee, Mr. E. T. Smith.— which the chief amounts are received—in that of Reduced Prices as usual. 1854 only 99,3021. was realised ; while, pro- THIS EVENING, Will be presented a GRAND PROVE s:ADE CONCERT. The bably in consequence of arrears from the previous Musical arrangements w.ll Include the whole of the Popular Mu is from Meyerboer's Opera L'Etoile du Nord, executed by the Opera quarter, 194, 897/. was obtained. There is, Band of 103 Performers and 60 Chorus. therefore, nothing to boast of in the quarter's ROYAL PRINCESS'S THEATRE, OXFORD-ST REET. Under the,Management of Mr. CLuaLs.3 KEAN. ON EASTER MONDAY Will be performed LIVING TOO FAST. To be folowed by THE CORSIOAN BROTHERS. Principal eharacter by Mr. C. Kean. To conclude with (first time) a Romance, in two acts, entitled THE MULETEER OF TOLEDO ; or, King, Queen, and Knave. ASTLEY'S ROYAL AMPHITHEATRE. Lessee and Manager, Mr. Wm. Cooke. Mr. William Cooke begs to acknowledge one of the most successful seasons of the Royal Amphitheatre, and announces that on EASTER MONDAY there will be produced an original Equidrama, to be called, THE FIELD AGAINST THE FAVOURITE; developing events of peculiar character and general interest ! Novel SCENES in the CIRCLE, and a variety of amusements, will 1 end their aid to the evening's entertainment. Box-oftlce open from Eleven till Four. Stage Manager, Mr. W. West. Acting Mana3er, r. W. 11. Cooke. Equestrian Director, )lr. W. Cooke, jun. NATIONAL STANDARD. THIS EVENING, Mr. G. HODSONT, the celebrated Irish Comedian, will give his popular Musical Entertainment, called MY IR:SII PORTFOLIO; or, Geme from the Emerald Isle; with Imitations of Henry Russell, 31. Robins, &c. the wonder of the world, Wellington Young, her Majesty's Royal Conjurer, will appear in his Grand Soirees m agiques. Madame Elster, the greatest Tight-Rope Dancer in the world. M. Delevenlle and Pupils' Grand Drawing-room Entertainment. Lapong and Son in La Perche. Morgan's Disselving Views, &c. ROYAL STRAND THEATRE. 'Under the direction of Miss Rebecca Isaacs. THIS EVENING, The WIZARD of the WORLD will appear in his Magic Salocn, with a variety of amusements. To be followed by THE BARBER OF CADIZ, introducing the Drury-lane Ballet COMf any. HIGH WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE. Tam DAT —Morning 4 min.after 2 j Evening 19 MITIAft. 2 To-Motaow-- Morning 36 min.after 2 j Evening 49 min.aft. 2 TEE WEATHER.--Strx Ornu, April. 1. THZVONETZR, 13 THZ SHADS. 48—highest since noon yesterday. 32—lowest this morning and daring the night, 46—this day, at noon. BAROMETER, 30'33. WIND, N.E.—Light breeze. In the morning there was a slight fall of snow. APRIL 2. 47—highest since noon yesterday. 30 —lowest this morning and during the night. 43 —this day at noon. BAROMEns, 3013. WIND, E.—Light breeze, with fine cold weather. in crease. , '~~~ +- 1131, :: LONDON, MONDAY, APRIL 2, 1855. The new style financial year, which, according to the Act of last session, terminated on the 31st March, instead of on the sth of April, having been brought to a conclusion, we once more have the Revenue Returns to inspect and criticise. In the present instance both terms have been abridged by five days. The account for the re duced term of 85 days show that 15,021,276/. had actually been received, being an average of 176,720/. 18s. per diem, so that but for the change there would have been au addition of 883,6041. 10s. to the returns for the year and quarter. Due allowance has, however, been made for this alteration, inasmuch as the receipts of the corresponding year and quarter were only made up to the 31st of March in last year. Al though some confusion has for the time being been occasioned by the alteration, it may be re garded as a valuable improvement in bringing the accounts cf incomings and outgoings to the same Period. Previously, the expenditure was only reckoned to the end of the month—that is, 31st March, 30th June, 30th September, and 31st December, while, on the other hand, the receipts were taken to the sth April, sth July, 10th October, and sth January, by a whereof, a gross de lusion was practised oz. • 2 community, there be ing a deficiency of days in each of three quarters, and ter j s in the fourth, the Sep tember qi Henceforward the national .salassee g l!‘'P L ii be correctly balanced to the -san s one of the many fallacies, put forth _ . 'Official authority, will be removed. The receipts for the year, of 360 days, and the quarter of 85 days, exceed those of the corres ponding periods last year by 6,312,6241. and 4,384,3081. respectively. These might be, and have, by many of our contemporaries, been re garded as eminently satisfactory results. Looking, however, to the increased taxation that has taken place during the past year, we cinnot take quite so favourable a view thereof. We know that in the first budget—that of the 6th of March—the then Chancellor of the Exchequer estimated the revenue—with the doubled income tax for half a year—at 56,600,0001. sterling. Two months afterwards--on Bth of May—when asking for the continued duplication of the Income Tax, during the War, and increased duties on malt and spirits, and the cessation of the gradual reduction on tea and sugar, be calculated on obtaining from these various sources 6,850,0001. additional, making a grand total for the year of 63,450,000/. The actual receipts have, however, been but 59,469,1541., or 3,954,8461. less than the esti mate. Considerable allowance must, however, be made for taxes as yet in arrear, and which the Right Hon. Gentleman declared might probably be the case to the extent of nearly four millions. It is, therefore, but justice to say that the pre vious calculation has been pretty nearly realised in the gross amounts, although there have been considerable variations in some of the details. Looking to the particular items, we find that in the Customs there has been an improvement in the year and quarter of 295,725/. and 221,0601. respectively. Mr. GLADSTONE'S estimate was at the rate of 700,0001. per annum, but, as the changes which he proposed did not come into operation until the July quarter, we could not reasonably anticipate the full ext en t th ereof already—the improvement for which mor e th an realises his hopes is in sugar and tea. Now, these are the very articles where there had been gra dual reductions which were arrested by the Right Honourable Gentleman ; and in these the revenue obtained the benefit of these reductions in conse quence of an increased demand—a striking proof that it is not the heaviest duties which are most rc i'llittive to the revenue. The raise Returns afford additional corrobora tion to the 0 40 , m3 the year and principle. The improvement on czixArt e r lia(i been 211,284/. The 1 , 077 ,5761. '"ti• ated improvement for the year in the the deficiency is .2 Ma y l ' l ldEg lu ct was 2,450,000/ so that earl y u 5001. How has this occurred From th e d i .' rei , ai 4l of malt and spirits, or at least :bed consumption paid duty, owing t o th e a , " of that which has been well ascertained that anyina.derdi unitional It has edition is invariably attended vs - ith contraband articles. Mr. GLADS T the tax e:issze:l,activity in of this probability by ourselves, R ' warn e d 8 by others. H e di sregarded the well as salutary leases i ng, and behold th e result ! The consumption of malt in the ter m ending sth Ja nuary, 1854 , , was 41,992,178 bushels ; in that ending sth January, 1855, 36,812,727 bushels only. These figures speak for themselves, and require no arg u . guments to deduce the inevitable conclusion. In Stamps the increase on the year is 176,1311., and on the quarter 54,9441., while in taxes there is a decrease on the year of 1 05,5581. Both these Variations may be ascribed to the stringency of collection rather than to any alteration in the amounts payable, which cannot greatly change. Th e June- and Septemb er quarters are those in The Property Tax is that in which the great change took place, the improvement for the year being no less than 5,137,3341., and that for the quarter being 3,798,6121. As we have already stated, however, it was estimated to produce for the year 12,889,0001. ; whereas 10,515,369/. only has been rea lised. As we cannot judge of the amount of outstanding arrears, it is manifest that we are still in the dark respecting this all-important item. In the Post-office, thanks to the efficiency of one of our best public servants—Mr. ROWLAND Nun—there is an improvement on the year of 230,1561., and on the quarter of 45,9221. The outlay in adding to the postal facilities being— like money spent in advertising—more than re turned, by enhanced profits. In Crown Lands there is a deficiency on the year of 123,3161., in consequence of the large receipts in the July quarter of last year, but an improvement on the quarter of 1,0001. ; while in Miscellaneous there is a decrease of 375,4261. on the year, and of 44,1091. on the quarter. Such is the state of the ordinary revenue, on which we have something yet to say—and all we can say is, that while it gives no occasion for any extraordinary exulta tion, there is none for depression of spirits. The people feel these increased burdens ; there is less consumption of the comforts of the million, but our resources are still elastic, and we can do far more if necessity should arise, and that extra funds be required for the vigorous maintenance of the just and necessary War in which we are engaged. Various and conflicting reasons have been as signed for the journey of M. DROIIYN DE L'HUYS to Vienna. It is positively asserted in some quarters that the participation of the French Mi nister in the Conferences is likely to tend to a pacific solution of the existing difficuties ; that M. DE BOURQI7ENEY has not exhibited a suffi ciently conciliatory manner ; but from too ri gorous an adhesion to his instructions had given offence to the Russian and Austrian Diplo matists. Should these statements, unfortunately, prove well founded—should greater concessions be contemplated, and a discreditable and tempo rary " truce"— ffe shall not term it " peace"— be patched up, we shudder to think of the results, which will be fully as injurious to France as to England. We, however, hope better things from our mag nanimous and chivalrous Allies. We are there fire disposed rather to credit the opposite version, also in circulation, and to believe that the im portant step may be occasioned by a desire to keep the English Plenipotentiary up to the mark, and to counteract the symptoms of yielding already displayed by Lord JOHN RUSSELL. This view of the case is Srengihened by the hasty journey to England of M. DROUYN DE flltrys—his prolonged conference with Lords PALMERSTON, LANSDOWNE, and CLARENDON, and subsequent audience by her Most Gracious MAJESTY. If the necessity had arisen from any deficiency on the part of M. DE BOURQUENEY, that would have been under his own control, he could himself have supplied an ade quate remedy. He would have required no com munication with the English Government to do so. It is therefore more than probable that the neces sity has arisen from the too complying disposition of Lord J. RUS S ELL, who has so frequently yielded to pressure at home that he is quite accustomed to the operation. Something also may be attri buted to the already ascertained duplicity of Aus tria, and the propriety of having the very highest French authority, save that of the EMPEROR, ready to pronounce on any alternative that may arise. The second view of the case receives additional corroboration from the very significant report that recently appeared in the books of the Viennese Police—" Lord JOHN RUSSELL has walked arm in arm on the Glacis with Prince GORTSCIIAKOEF." Now, while repudiating the feeling which induced the illustrious ProxwicK to dilate with great ab horrence on the cold-blooded villany with which Mr. Sergeant BUZFLT; the counsel for Mr:. BARDELL, presumed to tell Sergeant SNUBBIN, his own advocate, that it was a fine morning —we cannot help thinking that such dis plays should have been avoided. In all such matters :appearances should be kept up. A very powerful effect .might, and very probably has been produced on Austria by the announce ment. The probable conclusion would be that there was some underhand or secret negotiation going on, in which the Representatives of Eng land and Russia were trying to arrive at a conclu sion without consulting the other parties to the Diplomatic Conference. We have no doubt that Lord J. RUSSELL was very innocently betrayed into the indiscretion, but still it was an indiscre tion, and one of a very grave character, which a Plenipotentiary entrusted with such important and responsible duties should carefully have avoided—not, as we have stated, for its results so far as he himself was concerned, but for its pro bable effects on Austria. We must again, then, repeat the warnings which we have so frequently uttered against any undue dependence on the co-operation of that slippery Government. As we have already pointed out, we have only sayings, but no doings, to rely on. It is notorious that the German policy—that at least of Austria and Prussia has been strictly selfish —and now that the points in which Austria is chiefly, if not exclusively, in terested, have, to a certain extent, been conceded by Russia, we can look for no further assistance at her hands. We do not believe that Russia ever centemplated a bona fide or lasting peace. The navel interpretation given to the Third Point proves this almost beyond the possibility of doubt. It was, however, desirable to supply a plausible excuse for Austria, and this has been afforded by the pending Conference. Should the treachery of Austria become apparent, the presence of the French Minister may terminate the diplomatic farce. To his Imperial Master the destruction or cession of Sebastopol is even more important than to ourselves. He should, therefore, firmly reject every substitute, and press for that which can alone be deemed a satisfactory solution of the difficult problem. Should this not be promptly achieved a fifth point may be added, and the re establishment of Poland be henceforth regarded as an indispensable condition to any treaty nego tiateas' the Western Powers. The hints of the British p remie r have excited hopes which we fervently trust " 41°111 d willju" yet be realised, and for which aces. n alY vsubmit to any further sacri- A striki ng e inataeor worse, o f which our rulers are ca 0f the l a dente and want of honour Pa a nd of si gna l impu on. sian offi cer, sad that omeer the part of a Prus a •gp . come to light. L as t year, while has just "'"ormi was pottering at the head of affairs, and Prussia was playing catspaw to Russia, the Prince Vox RAD .armed with a Ministerial introduction, presented himself to the Hero of Aliwal, and was permitted to accompany Sir HARRY in his review of a number of militia regiments—Sir HARRY embracing the opportunity to pay a most flatter ing compliment to the Prussian army, somewhat at the expense of the French. The presence of the Prince occasioned surprise at the time, con sidering the position occupied by Prussia, and the fact that our raw militia was then almost our only military defence ; but the expression of that feel ing was stayed by the indignation felt at the want of good taste displayed by Sir HARRY. Time passed on ; and where and how should the nonchalant PrinceVoN RAnziva turn up ? Why, actually before Eupa'oria as the Russian General-in-Command ! So, from these and other circumstances, it would appear this princely Prussian rascal deliberately threw himself on our hospitality in order to be tray us ; and having closely inspected, as we have no doubt he did, all our defences, and ascer tained our weak points, posted off with his infor mation to the enemy ! There is no difficulty in stating what the Prince is, but really we are puzzled to determine whether the Minister who gave him access to that information—threw open our citadel, in fact, to an enemy's spy—is a traitor, a fool, or both. THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY .EIr_ENING, APRIL 2, 1855 COURT CIRCULAR. The Queen held a Privy Council at three o'clock on Saturday afternoon, at Buckingham Palace. It was at tended by Prince Albert, Earl Granville, Lord Presi dent ; the Duke of Argyll, Lord Privy Seal ; the Mar quis of Lansdowne ; Viscount Palmerston, First Lord of the Treasury ; Sir George Grey, Secretary of State for the Home Department ; the Earl of Clarendon, Se cretary of State for Foreign Affairs ; Sir Charles Wood, First Lord of the Admiralty ; the Right Hon. R. Vernon Smith, President of the Board of Control ; Earl Spencer, Lord Steward ; the Marquis of Breadalbane, Lord C)amherlain ; and the Duke of Wellington, Master of the Horse. • The Right Hon. Dudley Earl of Harrowby and Hon. Edward Pleydell Bouverie were by command of the Queen sworn of her Majesty Most Hon. Privy Council, and took their places at the Board accordingly. Her Majesty in Council was pleased to appoint the Right Hon. E. P. Bouverie Vice-President of the Com mittee of Council for the consideration of all matters rela.ing to Trade and Foreign Plantations. Mr, C. Greville was the Clerk of the Council in Waiting. Earl Graaville had a❑ audience of the Queen, and re signed his seals of office as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. The Earl of Harrowby bad an audience of the Queen, and was sworn in Chancellor of the Duchy and Counts Palatine of Lancaster. Her Majesty delivered to the nob!e earl the seals of the Duchy and County Palatine. Mr. Fre&rick Dawes Danvers, Clerk of the Council to the Duchy, assisted at the ceremony. The Earl of Clarendon, Viscount Palmerston, Sir G. Grey, and Sir Charles Wood had audiences of the Queen. Her Majesty was attended by Lord Ernest Bruce, Vice-Chamberlain ; Viscount Drumlanrig, Comptroller f the Houßehold ; Earl Somers, Lord-in-Waiting ; and the Hon. Mortimer Saukville West, Groom-in-Waiting. Her Majesty and Prince Albert went to the Crystal Palace at Sydenham on Saturday morning, accompanied by the, Duke of Cambridge ar.d the Prince of Leiningen. and attended by the Duchess of Atholl, the Hon. Fora Macdonald, Major-General Bouverie, and Capt. Du Plat. The Du c h ess o f K ent v i s i te d the ' Queen at Bucking ham Palace. Her Majesty had a dinner party in the evening at Buckingham Palace. The company included the Duchess of Kent and the Duke of Cambridge, the Prince of Lein ingen, the Maharajah Daleep Sing, the Earl of Harrow by, Lady Fanny Howard, Madame Tricoupi, the Earl and Countess St. Germans, Earl and Lady Constance Grosvenor, the Right Iron. Sidney and Mrs. Herbert, Sir John Login, Col. Ridley (Scots Fusilier Guards), Major Oliphant (Chairman of the East India Company), and the Gentleman in Waiting on the Duke of Cam bridge. The band of the 2d Life Guards was in attendance in the Palace, and performed during dinner. Yesterday the 'Queen and Prince Albert, with the Prince of Wales, the Princess Royal, Prince Alfred, the Princess Alice, and the Prince of Leiningen, attended Divine service in the private chapel in Buckinzham Palace. The Hon. and Very Rev, the Dean of Wind sor officiated. The Duchess of Kent visited the Duchess of Glou cester on Saturday, at Gloucester House. Prince Ernest of Leiningen arrived at Clarence House, St. James's, yesterday, from Portsmouth, on a Tisit to the Duchess of Kent. CABINET COUNCIL.—A Cabinet Council was held on Satnrlay afternoon et the Foreign•nffice, Downing street. The l!lioi,ters present were Viscount Palmer ston, the Lord Chancellor, Earl Granville ' the Marqui, of Luisdowae, the Duke o f A rgy ll , Sir George Grey, the E:•r1 of Clarendon, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sir Charles Wood, the Right Hon. Vernon Smith, Sir W. Molesworth, and Viscount Canning. The Coutfcil sat two hours. A deputation from the Burial Boards of St. Maryle hone, St. Pancras, and Islington, had an interview with Sir G. Grey on Saturday, at the Home -office. The de putation consisted of Sir B. Hall, M.P. (Marylebone), Mr. Alderman Challis, M.P. (Finsbury), the Rev. Thos. Dale of St. Pancras (vicar), Messrs. John Flathr and Henry Farrer (churchwardens of St. Panqras), Messrs. Robert Furness and William Durant Cooper (St. Pan cras Burial Board), Mr. William Anderson (Islington Burial Board), Mr. John Layton (clerk to the Burial Board, Islington), Dr. Sayer, Messrs. J. H. Harlowe, and F. H. Bridgman and Mr. W. E. Greenwell, clerk to the Burial Board (deputation from St. Marylebone). A deputation consisting of Mr. Forster, Mr. Swanzy, Mr. Sewell, and Mr. Blanksom, had an interview with Sir G. Grey on Saturday. Despatches were sent from the Colonial-office, on Se tur.!ay, to the Governors of the West India Islands. CRYSTAL PALACE. --Her Majesty and his Royal Higness Prince Albert, accompanied by the Duke of Cambridge and the Prince of Leiningen, visited the Crystal Palace en Saturday morning. Her Majesty was attended by the Duchess of Athol and the Hon. Miss Macdonald, and General Bouvorie and Captain Du Plat were in attendance on the Prince. The Royal party were received by Mr. Laing, the chair man , an d ot h er directors, a n d were conducted' through the palace, with the improved appearance of which her Majesty expressed herself greatly pleased. In the course of the visit the Queen made some purchases of jewelery and bronzes from the stalls of Messrs. Rudolphi and Barbedienne, in the Foreign Court. After the departure of her Majesty, Prince Albert and the Duke of Cambridge were con ducted by Sir Joseph Paxton into the grounds, where they remained until half-past 1 o'clock. Lord Aired Paget, Equerry to her Majesty, has been selected by the Queen, to be Lord in Waiting to the Emperor of the French during his visit to England. Lady Hartopp and Miss Anna Maria Hartopp have left the Clarendon Hotel for Four Oaks, Birmingham. Sir Robert and Lady Gerrard have left the Claren don for Roehampton. The Right Hon. 13. and Mrs. Disraeli left town on Saturday for Hughenden Manor, Bucks, where they will remain during the recess. THE MARQUIS OF DONEGAL—It is, says a Belfast paper, the intention of the Marquis of Donegal to take up his residence, if not permanently, at least for a time, at Ormeau. THE VIENNA CONFERENCE. —It is confidently as serted that the purport of M. Drouy n de l'Huy's visit to England was to protest against the course Lord John Russell was pursuing at the Conference, as yielding too much ; and that he was proceeding to Vienna with a strcng assurance that the English Plenipotentiary should receive instructions not to assent to any propositions unless they were fully in accordance with the views of our ally, and likely to be productive of a lasting peace.—. Mo ening Herald. The following entry appeared in one of the recent re turns made by the Vienna police agents to their supe riors. " Lord John Russell has walked arm-in-arm on the glacis with Prince Gortschakoff." FURTHER MINISTERIAL APPOINTMENTS.—The Earl of Harrowby has been appointed Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, and will be sworn into office this after noon. This, with Mr. Bouverie's appointment to the Vice-Presidency of the Board of Trade, and Mr. Brand's acceptance of the Junior Lordship of the Treasury, leaves but one office --the Colonial Under-Secretary ship —vacant in the Administration. Mr. Brand will undertake the English department of the Treasury, Lord Monck succeeding Mr. Fortescue as Irish Lord. APPOINTMENTS. —Mr, George Young has been ap pointed Commissary Clerk at Perth. Mr. John Pyeris, promoted from Second Clerk to Chief Clerk at Thames Police-office. Mr. B. F. Bowdler, from Assistant-clerk at Bow-street, is to be Second Clerk at Thames Police d° cc.— Observer. THE GUARDS FOR THE CRIMEA.—This week 1,200 of the Guards will embark for the seat of war. These will be composed of 300 from each of the four battalions of thethree regiments. NEW Yong.—The commercial advises from New York on Friday give very satisfactory accounts of the stock and money markets ; but much of the improve ment having been caused by the news of the death of the Emperor Nicholas, sonic reaction, analogous to that which took place on this side, will probably be reported by future packets. The greatest rise had been in rail way bonds, several of which had advanced 2 or 3 per cent., but all descriptions of securities were well sup ported. The cotton market had likewise been rendered firmer. There had been no diminution in the abundance of mosey, as the banks were still increasing their loans and discounts. The heavy amount of specie shipped by this packet, 320,0001., and the fact of the rate of ex change having gone up to a point to indicate the proba bility of further large remittances, were calculated, how ever, to excite caution. Letters from Panama received or. this occasior. state that her Majesty's steamer Virago arrived at that port from the Mexican coast on the 24th of February with nearly a minim )f dollars or England LATEST NETS. THE CRIMEA. MARSEILLES, SATURDAY, MARCH 31. The Sinai, which left Constantinople on the 22d of March, has arrived. Despatches for the Government left at 2 p.m. BALAKLAVA, MARCH 20. The Russians still occupy the ambuscades, which the French attacked on. the 17th and 18th without success and with loss. Reinforcements of 15,000 Russians arrived a SAastopol on the 18th. On the same evening 15,000 Russians crossed the Tchernaya, and advanced on Baidar. For the last three days the Russians have ceased firing. The Russians and the Allies are occupied in in strengthening their positions. The morale of the army is excellent. Sickness is on the decrease. Provisions are abundant. KAMIESH, MARCH 20. Advices from Perekop of the 17th announce the death of Prince Menschikoff. ST. PETERSBURG, SATURDAY. General Osten=Sacken writes from the Crimea that in the night of the 23d, and early morning of the 24th, the garrison of Sebastopol made a powerful sortie for the purpose of putting a stop to the works of approach made by the Allies near the Kamschatka lunette. This operation, adds General Osten-Sacken, resulted to our advantage. Our men succeeded in destroying the works executed by the French during the last few (lays. The loss on both sides was considerable. Two French officers, one a colonel and the other a captain, fell into our hands, together with an English captain. VIENNA, SUNDAY. To-morrow the Conference meets again. M. Drouyn pie Lhuys is expected to arrive on Wednesday next. The Dowager-Archduchess Maria Dorothea died at Buda yesterday. ELSINORE, SUNDAY. The first four ships of the British Baltic fleei arrived here this afternoon. KIEL HARBOUR., SUNDAY. Nothing but ice is in sight. Letters from Bessarabia, received by private persons at Galatz, confirm the intelligence that orders have been given by the Commander-in- Chief of the Russian army of the South that, in the event of an invasion by the enemy, all the inhabitants are to retire beyond the Dneister, after setting fire to all their produce as well as all the towns and villages, T - FIE SIEGE OF SEBASTOPOL. (From a Second Edition of the Morning ilerald.) ENGLISH CAMP, SEBASTOPOL, MAncu 18. At about half-past eight last night the whole of the allied camp was alarmed by a tremendous tiring of musketry in the direction of the French trenches. The firing, wh....n was caused by an attack made by our Allies on the enemy's infantry pits, mentioned in my letter of yesterday, con tinued for upwards of two hours, and was at one time so hot that all expected a general action was about to take place. Even after the real nature of the fight was ascertained, both English and French troops remained under arms for some time, since, as the French were ag tin detected in their attack, a strong sortie was anticipated upon their works. I stated yesterday how continually the French were galled by the fire from these rifle pits. This annoyance increased to such au extent during yes terday that the French engineers determined to attack•tbem forthwith. For this purpose, soon after it was dark, 300 volunteers from the French sharpshooters, with about 200 from the Infantry of the line, and seven officers, were selected. They remained under cover till eight o'clock, when the night being windy and pitchy dark, they cauti ously advanced to the attack. The rifle pits are be tween 60 and 70 yards from the French parallel, yet the French had scarcely ad vance d ten paces when a Russian sliouted out something, and in a minute afterwards a smart fire was opened from the pits. The French instantly threw themselves down, and availing themselves of th e i nequa li ties of' the ground began their advance until within a sufficient distance to make a dart at the enemy. The sudden discovery of their plan appears, however, to have disconcerted the French, who straggled far in the darkness, opening their line so wide that some part of them were advancing upon points where there were no riflemen, and only deep ditches and stockades. This error, with the repeated words of command which were given in order to rectify it, enabled the enemy to fire with much accu racy in the direction of every sound. The French, consequently, suffered smartly in their ad vance, while the enemy were enabled to concen trate their strength upon the threatened points. The French, notwithstandin g these difficulties, managed to come within twenty yards of their antagonists, and the firing was hot on both sides, when the order was given to our allies to rise and charge. All instantly rose and made a dash in the darkness, at where the flash of rifles was thickest, and in spite of a heavy volley continued their ad vance. The officers gallantly led the way, followed by the volunteers, and closed with the first line of pits. From these some of the Russian riflemen sprung out to take shelter behind the second line, while others remained at their posts and defended themselves with their swords to the last. This resistance, however, was in vain. In a few minutes the French had completely captured the first row of pits, and were engaged with the second and third, when some unaccountable confusion arose among them, and by the time it was rectified the enemy's fire was so steady and so hot that they were com pelled to give ground before it. Their officers in vain tried to rally their men, who had fallen into dis order ; before such a fire it was almost impossible, especially as it was evident that the numbers of the enemy were momentarily increasing. A retreat, therefore, became necessa r y, and the French accord ingly r e ti re d i n the same manner in which they advanced—skirmishing and fighting from stone to atone. - They did not, however, fall back upon their advanced tren c h, as on the first' symptoms of their having experienced a repulse a strong reinforce ment of 800 men Was despatched to their assis tance. This additional force joined the first attack while retreating from the rifle pits, anc a renewal of the attempt to capture the position was instantly determined on. The French accordingly made a stand, and began a steady continuous file fire upon the line of pits, which the enemy returned as hotly. So close and incessant was the rattle of the mus ketry, that it aroused even the troops at Balaldava. The assemble() blew in the English and French camps, and the divisions rapidly got under arms, as, from the continued rattle, a general engage ment was exp ec t e d . The 2dDivision moved to wards the brow of the hill, so as to be ready to support the French and the Inkerman batteries. The Light Division advanced, and took ground to the left, so as to support the new 21-gun battery, and cover the Woronzow road, up which it has been lately expected that a powerful attack would be made. The Third and Fourth Divisions were also under arms, and remained in readiness to support any threatened point with their field batteries. The other divisional batteries acted with the Se cond and Light Divisions. Lord Raglan and staff turned out with their horses, but only remained at head-quarters in readiness for wh a t e V er m i g h t . a Use. In the French camp there was the same activity. All their divisions turned out, and, closing u to their batteries, formed, with the English, a perfect line round the south of the town. The musketry had now lasted nearly an hour and a half. Very few heavy guns were fired by the enemy, as the French and Russians were much too close to.permit of its being done with safety to their own troops. Our allies had meanwhile con tinued their advance until close upon the pits. The flashes of musketry, extending ever nearly a mile, were incessant, and every five or ten minutes the explosion of a long gun in the batteries dimly lit up the whole scene, and showed the heavy masses of smoke which hung over the place of contest. All this time the English troops were quietly waiting for their turn to begin, as of course they were un acquainted with the nature of the French attack, and were looking forward with confidence to an other night battle of Inkerman. Suddenly the French musketry ceased, and. with loud vivas they advanced to the charge. In another second broad heavy streaks of flame, followed by a stunning crash, showed that the enemy were then in overwhelming numbers, and had drawn up re serves of infantry under their batteries, and in rear of the pits. The time which the contest had lasted had thoroughly alarmed the whole Russian garrison of Sebastopol, and muck of its strength was con centrated round the threatened point. The French, as I have said, dashed in upon the pits, but, before they had moved ten paces, received a heavy volley from the troops in the rear of them. Still they pressed forward to where the holes were occupied by the rifle men, engaging in bayonet contests with their occu pants, while the Russians behind were discharging deadly volleys into their ranks. Nevertheless, so impetuous was the French onset, that within a minute they again captured the first line and the greater part of the second line of pits, and bayo netted their occupants. But by the time that this was effected the heavy volleys of the Russian in fantry were telling severely, and the officers saw that, with the small force at their command, it was in vain to persevere any longer. After a brief but desperate struggle, therefore, they agai n commence d their retreat. As they did so, the enemy yelled and shouted like demons, and the shouts were taken up and echoed and re-echoed along the whole extent of the Russian lines, while, emboldened by the success of numbers, the enemy's infant r y a d vance d i n pur suit of th e French. However, this last was a step for which our gallant allies were by no means pre pared. Of themselves, from prudential motives, they had retired before superior numbers, but to be driven in by the enemy was another affair. As the Russians advanced, therefore, the French quietly retired, firing a little into the enemy and gradually closing up until their would-be pursuers were close upon them, then instantly facing round, fired one heavy volley, and charged with the bayonet. By this coup the enemy's infantry was driven back with severe loss, though not sufficient to deter them from again attempting to close with our Allies, who still were falling back upon their advanced parallel. Into this the Russians, who were about 2,000 strong,made a serious attempt to enter also, bui such a close and continued fusillade was kept up by the defenders, that the enemy were thrown into disorder, and rapidly retreated to the cover of their own batteries, which opened fire heavily. The French then discontinued their at tempts, and the cannonade gradually ceased at about half-past eleven. According to general report the French lost in these attacks, no less than 2 officers and 29 men killed, and 3 officers and 133 men wounded. Of course, there is no means of ascertaining the loss of the enemy, but it must have been little short of that of the French. Had the same amount of skirmishing taken place in the day, the loss would have been a thousand killed and wounded on both sides,. but skirmishing i n th e d ar k no t one shot in ten tells. The French officers behaved on this occasion with the most daring courage ; and it is generally said, that had some of the troops supported them properly, the forts might have been captured on the first attack. One French officer received a sword cut from a Russian, which cut through his shoulder slantwise almost down to the spine, so that he died in a few minutes. Our division remained under arms until past eleven, when, all being quiet again, they returned to quarters. Early this morning the Russians commenced the day by throwing bombs into the French advanced parallel, from which -the attack of last night was made. The French returned the fire smartly for about half-an-hour or so, when the cannonade on both sides slowly slackened down and ceased en tirely. From Gordon's Battery we threw a few shells among the Russian infantry pits in front of the enemy's advanced work on Gordon's Hill, but they appeared to be deserted. Emboldened by the success which has attended the formation of this advanced work on Gordon's Hill, the enemy are again attempting to throw up another in advance of the Barrack Battery and flank ing our left attack, and some of the new Fi ench Works on that side. Very few traces of broken ground are yet to be seen, though there is still quite enough to show the intentions of the Rus s;aus. If they succeed in carrying out this battery an mounting it with ordnance, it wiil not only give considerable trouble, but be a most extraor dinary feature in this most extraordinary siege, for then the enemy will have turned Alio tables and 1)3 literally advancing their parallels and batteries against our works. MARcti 19. Again last night the camp was kept rather on the qui vice by a heavy bombardment, which the French maintained upon the suspected advanced work to which I alluded at the close of my letter of yesterday. It now appears that the Russians are fully bout on establishing au advanced bat tery on this spot, and from the commanding and important nature of the position, the French spare no efforts to hinder its completion. Llst night their out picquets and volunteers discovered the party hard at work, and a strong mortar battery was immediately opened upon the intended posi tion. In the course c.f two or three hours up wards of 200 10 and 13-inch bombs were dropped upon the place, and the enemy, after suffering se verely, were compelled to fall back. After the working party, had retired the French still con tinued their practice, and threw shell the whole of the night. At daylight this morning all the para pets (which were only partially finished) were com pletely destroyed, and the ground ploughed up all around the spot. When the working party retreated • the enemy's batteries opened upon the French mortar battery, but without effecting any damage worth speaking of, and after maintaining an irre gular cannonade for nearly an hour, discontinued, and left the field to the French. Our Allies are much nettled at the repulse which they met with on the night before last at the rifle pits, but still speak with determined confidence as to the result of their next attack. No one can surmise when this next attack will be made, but from the harassing fire which the enemy's sharp shooters keep up night and day, it cannot be lone deferred, and the sooner it is made the less the French are likely to suffer. Another 13-inch mortar was mounted on our right attack yesterday. It is placed in a peculiar position, apart from the other mortars, as it is in tended for immediate use. This morning it opened fire, and commenced throwing shells among the Russian rifle pits round Malakhoff Tower. Soon after it had begun the Russian soldiers swarmed about the earthworks opposed to us, and wherever man n y ri o t a dropped un ff til earth works occasionally throw a few shells, but w w o e u re ld th sh ie n k w es . t s T he h l e ls a w un er s e i d n ro m p without producing any results calculated to hinder our fire. For the first hour or so after the mortar opened the Russian riflemen laid close in their pits, but after some 30 or 40 of them had been blown up, pits and all, they commenced run ning back to their batteries in twos and threes, so that all their holes were evacuated before two in the day. After accomplishing this, the mortar was employed in throwing occasional shells into the town and earthworks until near dark, when the firing ceased. Yesterday evening a long train of waggons, about 450 in number, entered Sebastopol from the north side. These are presumed to contain ammu nition, of which, beyond all doubt, the Russians must now bo getting short. It would seem quite incredible to your readers if I was to state the enormous amount of powder, shot, and shell, which the Russians are computed to have fired away since the commencement of the siege. During the last few days that the enemy have been firing, not more than one shell out of three has exploded. Many of the others have been picked up, and in stead of the usual metal fuse used all over Europe, they have fusees made of pieces of alder wood bored out and roughly fitted into the shell. The shells also have been found to contain very little more than one half of their proper burst ing charge. With such examples as these therefore, before our eyes it would not be thought credulous to believe that at last the enemy are getting short of ammunition. At the same time it must be re membered thst if the waggons which entered yes terday were really laden with powder it would give the garrison an ample supply for the next month to come. All to-day the enemy have been extremely busy in the advanced earthwork on Gordon's Hill, and it is evident from the bustle going forward there each night that they are either mounting it with guns or sapping down towards our trenches—per haps both. But no matter what the object which the Russians may have in view ; both English and French engineers are decidedly of opinion that the work must be taken immediately, and at any risk. This time the Freneh will not form the attacking party exclusively ; in fact, only two battaions of Zouaves will assist the English division of infantry which may be selected fur the work. According to some the Light Di v i s i on i s to have the honour of capturing it, and according to others the 3d The latter is most pr o b a bl e , as up to the present ' the 3d division has not been seriously engaged in any great exploit. Of course, no day is fixed for the attack, and the time will be kept a profound secret until the moment of at tack. From the strength of the work and the care which the enemy seems to take about its preservation, the attempt to storm it is likely to be one of the most severe and bloody episodes of the siege, and may even bring about a general action. But taken the work must be, and the English are determined to do it or perish in the attempt. All the divisions claim the honour of having been selected for the task, but up to the present there is no ground for believing that any has been named. The same unc er t ain ty prevails as to the time of the attack, but it is improbable that it will be deferred longer th an f our or five days, Or so. As regards Balaklava, it is rumoured that the Russians intend making regular approaches, and besieging our heights, as they would a regular fortress. This, of course, is a mere on chit, an very unlikely to be true. Our troops ou the Balaklava heights are in splendid condition, and beyond all description anxious for a brush with the enemy. The usual Cossack picquets remain about the plains, but there is no appearance of more than 200 or 300 men being in the neighbourhood, or even towards Tchurgoum. The Marines and Rifles on the heights on the extreme right are in splendid order,' and each hut and tent has its own little garden of crocuses and snowdrops around it. The camp is quite a model in its way. Some tremendous earth works have lately been added to the defences en this point, and to-day, by means of the buffaloes, a long 56 cwt. 32-pounder was drawn up the ascent and mounted in a most commanding position. Two more will be placed to-morrow And the day after. These long heavy guns are all which were required to make this part of our defences perfectly impregnable. Balaklava itself is lately much im proved. Nearly all the houses in the village have been pulled down, and the rubbish and stones heaped over the filthier parts of the town. • In place of tl#se houses our neat huts have been erected on the heights over the harbour. The railway is progressing with truly railway speed. The stationary engines are not yet at work, but, by means of the trucks and horses, immense supplies of shot and shell, with provisions of all kinds, have been collected at a depot half way be tween this and head-quarters. In the course of another month the whole line will be completed. The harbour of Balaklava is, if possible, in a state ten times worse than ever. Each ship moors and remains where she can or where she likes. Seven days ago there were upwards of 190 sail of steamers and sailing vessels, public and private, in this little harbour. At pres -nt there are about 150. The precautions lately taken against the out break of fire are now entirely relaxed, acid the fate of the whole expedition is; as it were, abandoned to mere chance. The Medina arrived at Balaklava this afternoon. Among other news, she brought intelligence of the gunbt , at Swallow and two others having been hotly engaged with the enemy's batte ries off Kertch, in which contest the Russian town is reported to have suffered to some extent. The Cormorant and Albatross, of the Cork Steam-ship Company, have been ordered home, and, according to our ordinary method of working, it will require nearly half-a dozen vessels to do the work of these two, as they were beyond all doubt the hardest-wcrked and most useful vessels which ever entered the transport service. Mr. Filder, in particular, is likely to miss much the services of the Cormorant, which was the best cattle-ship on the station. The Jason has gone to Genoa for Piedmontese troops, and the Medway follows her to-morrow on the same errand. The Manilla has gone to Eupa toria with shot, shell, and wooden huts; and will receive in exchange a portion of the surplus Tartar population of that town, who are to be brought down here and emp!oyed in scavenging and road making. MARCH 20. All last night the French batteries fired heavily upon the spot which the enemy have selected as the site for a new earthwork. Last night two French soldiers deserted from Balaklava to the Cossack picquets. They were seen passing the plain, and were fired upon, but escaped without injury. An hour afterwards a Russian deserter crossed to us, and was- pursued to within 600 yards of our lines by the Cossacks, who escaped again in the darkness. No movements of importance are stirring, though very possibly before next mail the attempt up on the Russian advanced work will have been by our men. FRANCE. (FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.) PARIS, SUNDAY EVENING. _ _ _ M. Drouyn de Lhuys returned to Paris at ten o'clock yesterday morning. He will probably start for Vienna to-morrow, but the exact time of his departure is not yet fixed. The Prussian envoy Baron do Wed 11 had a pri vate audience of tho Emperor yesterdaY, to take leave. He left Paris for Berlin last evening, to obtain fresh instructions from the King of Prussia, and expects tie return in a few days. I am inf irmed that the Russians hava established two fortified camps, each of 30,000 me n —th e one between Mittau and Riga, and the other between Revel and Narva, to defend' the Baltic provinces. The leading departments of the Paris journals, as if by common accord, are one and all vacant of poli tical discussion, and are occupied, so far as polti cal matters are concerned, solely with the custo mary references to the events and reports of ti. day, with but slight comment. The' Moniteur 'contains the following despatch from Admiral Bruat " ON BOARD THE MONTEBELLO, KA.MIESHI, MARCH 20. " Various nocturnal engagements have taken place on the left and on the right of our troops. On all points our soldiers have mainttined their incont.)st,tble. superiority over the Russian troops." The Yerite of Lille states that the military admi nistration has determined on not continuing to purchase in the interior of the country the wheat required for the army, but has. entered into con tracts for supplies from Algeria, Portugal, and Spain. This measure will, it is expected, cause a reduction of prices in the provincial markets.. The Russian General, Baron de Budberg, who was charged with the mission of announcing the death of the Emperor Nicholas to the King of the Belgians, left Brussels on Thursday for Hanover, where he is also charged to fulfil a similar mission. The following private telegraphic despatch has been received here : " MADRID, 30th.—The, Government will make the bill for restraining the national guard a Cabinet question. The committ©e is favourable to the bill. M. Pacheco's gracious reception as Amba3sador from Spain by the Popo has produced an excellent effect. here." BOURSE, MARCH 31.—CLOSING PRICES. Cash. fr. c. End of Month. 4i per Cents 95 • 91f. 55c. 3 per Cents 7O ' 69f. 75c. Credit Mobilier BlO Roman Credit Foncior — Austrian Belgian Fives — Spanish Threes 36 Piedmontese B5 75 Home Debt — RAILWAYS—FOR CASH. tr. c. fr. c Orleans .. .... Western — Rouen Cott() , 617 50 Strasburg Mediterranean 992 50 Havre 570 Northern ...... ...... 867 50 Cherburg RUSSIA. A ukase of the Emperor Alexander, just pub lished, grants fresh privileges to the tradesmen and manufacturers established at Sebastopol, Eupato ria, and Yalta. It permits them to exercise their callings in all the other towns of the Crimea, and releases them from the payment of certain corpora tion dues during the continuance of the war. The last accounts received from Finland, are to the 16th. The young heir presumptive to the throne of Russia, the Grand Duke Nicholas, has been named Chancellor of the University of Hel singfors. At Abo, Helsingfors, and all the towns on the coast, from Wiborg to Tornea, measures have been taken to render the navigation in- their neighbourhood impossible to the allied fleets. The inhabitants have also formed themselves into rifle corps, armed with double-barreled weapons. POLAND. • A letter from Warsaw of the 25th ult., in the Danube, says : "The number of men obtained in the kingdom of Poland by the four levies made since the commencement of the war is estimated at 60,000. The levy in the eastern part of the empire, which was termitated on the 15th, took ten men out of every 1,000 inhabitants. In timcs of peace—for example, in 1850—only two men in 1,000 were called on to serve, and Poland only gave 4,980 recruits, 514 of them being Jews. But in the annual levies of 1852 and 1853, as many as seven men is 1,000 were taken. This proves that the Russian armies do not exist only on paper, as some persons pretend ; and, besides, the period of service is very long in Russia. It is not doubted that when the militia shall be organ ised—that is to say, in the month of May—Ru , sia will have 2,600,000 men under arms. As was to be fore seen, the death of the Emperor Nicholas has strength ened the national sentiment and increased the religious fanaticism of the Russian people. The proof of this that very warlike addresses are sent from every quarter to the Emperor, The corps of th e G uar d s and Grrena• diers ar.) very anxious for war ; and the soldi rrs ',,, i : genera openly ex p ress th e i r sent i ments i n the sad sense." PRUSSIA. ~e • A letter from Berlin, i n th e H anove r Gazett says The missions of MM. Wedell and Ijsedelli vrere closed by the death of the Emperor Nicholeh and that event caused the former to return ino 3 ,e; diately t o Berlin to seek for new instructions. "" it was at t h at moment difficult to know the effecteo', which the death would produce, it was decided to let the negoti at i ons drop for a -moment, and M. ae Wedell only returned to Paris to take leave of the Emperor Napoleon as required by etiquette. The negotiations between Paris and Berlin wer e, hp,. ever, not broken o ff , but only adjourne d —the ac" quired results bei ng maintained, th e protocol 0, and the Pruss ian Government consenting to sign December, but the quest i on of participation o. ` Prussia in the Conferences remaininu in suspe nse. Since then, the affair has entered into a new phase' which appears to be that of indefinite adjournuleu t : Less importance is now attached to th e negotiat l °, ll ; from the fact that the hesitation caused by td „; death of the Emperor Nicholas has been increaseu t by the Pacific hopes given by the Conference 3 Vienna." THE MEDITERRANEAN. SOUTHAMPTON, SATURDAY, MIDNIGHT The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigat. n t ' Company's steamer Tagus, Captain Joy, has Ju g arrived here with the heavy portion of the E .. , 28 ' India mails, in charge of Lieutenant Bolton, R. 04 Admiralty agent. The Tagus left Alexandria on the 10th, Mal ta the 16th, and Gibraltar the 23d of Maich. Owing to excessively bad weather, she put into Lisb° a on the 26th for coals. The Tagus brings 105 p 4 senors, and on freight 40 chests of oranges, F L ., boxes of lemons, 214 b a l es o f silk, 30 cases of Ca s. : o mere shawls, 104 bar re ls o f currants, and 21 ' packages of general merchandise. Among the passengers by the Tagus is CaPtl i . i° Dacres, who comes home to assume the supen u i tendence of the Ad m i ra lt y pac k e t department!' Southampton, in the place of Captain Craiglef R.N., who is chairman of the Transport Board. Her Majesty's s hip s C ey l on, C a c l o ps a nd Trit°, ° . were at Malta ; the V engeance an d liecla at a l t u e r.tltar. On the 15th ult. th e T a gus spoke t'', 4 steamers Valetta and Euxin e ; an d on the 2 9 ' d the Madrid, off Ushant. The Peninsular Oriental Company's steamer Iberia arrived at bon on the 26th ult. r b. Accounts from Gibraltar are to the 23d of 0.4. -Rx-.- , r c he The weather had been most tempest uo us. ' o r wind, which continued to blow strongly for "n al three days, increased to a tremendous gale ' t i e d W.S.W. on the night of the 21st ult., accomP 3ll ,,t with a very heavy sea, which caused a very gr' l /0 deal of alarm among the shipping in the bay. 0 . consequence of the violence of the gale no an i a g ance could be rendered to those vessels requ' r ' b i it. Great exertions were made from the eher e i es launches putting off with an c h ors an d chain cab i , hut with little success. Mr Perrin, owner of 5 Biitish barque Emma Godwin, one of the vel e il which received seri ous d amage d ur i ng th e gale, o f overboard and was drowned. Two of the crevy nd the Portuguese b arque Progressista—one 1 33312 a to a boy—received severe injuries, and were tak e list the hospital at Gibraltar. The following is of the casualties which occurred during the. aft noon and night : Tae British barque Economist, Thomas master; with a cargo of coals from Cardiff for Consta b ri pa nople, dragged from her anchorage, an d toticw' the ground off the Jettee. • ter, The British barq ue H opewe ll , C amp b e ll was- e a from Malta, i n b a ll ast f or Newcastle, was wrelha off the Old M o l e H ea d , and i s full of water• i ,„re master and crew su c cee d e d i n gett i ng o n 01.- safely. unt ird The British bri g Z ep h yr, P atterson mas t e r, us - ,.„ re from Gibraltar to Barbadoes in ballast, on si . '" off the bathing place, behind the Devil's Tongl ie 'F, The Portuguese barque Progressista, of Cayado master, from Ri o Janeiro, with a Ca r t' coffee, on shore off the Watering Place. „ m it, The American brig R. Patterson Onzw h - re Durante, in charge), lad en w ith coa l, o n likewise at the Watering Place. ile6 • The French schooner N a p o l eon , f rom Mosel lost an anchor and chain. Nei The American barque Velocity, from Orleans, lost an anchor with JO fathoms of eba" . :h The Prussian brig Stad Ba r th e , f rom I v i ca , salt, dismasted. the Oldenburg brigantine Senior, from Ge l3°ll dismasted. The British barque Edward Bilton, from °, 31 :3 thagena, has been in contact w ith th e Spanish OIL' Comeicio, and sustained damages. The Spanish brig Comercio lo s t an anc h or Ll O chain, and was supplied with others from the shore' The British brig Robert 'and George, Forema n master, lost a boat. The British barque Endymion, J. Pearson Ws ter, lost two anchors durine , the night. 9.0 311- chor and chain were supplied from the shore. The British larque Emma Godwin Richard Ideates master, having run foul o f her Majesty s , ship Vengeance, had her miz e n mas t carried aw 3 ," and sustained other damages. 'ng Her Majesty's ship V engeance , which waslY l or at anchor in the bay, was compelled to strike 1110 f topgallantmasts i n consequence of the severitY the gale. In addition to the above list 010 5115 . ties, the British b r i gs D ove and Petre l and brig3oo,. tine Robina h a d eac h l ost an anchor. The a verian schooner Di e d er i c h l ost her stern b oa t 09 e , otherwise sustained daniage. The barque fl e a well and brig Zephy r were both being disms 3l ,",.". of their rigging, & c ., as t h ere seemed no pro bab lll ' of getting them afloat again. Exchanges at Gibraltar were quoted for bill s :9111. . London at 90 d a y s a t 51 t o 511 ; Paris ditto , 9 36c. ; Marseilles , sf. 37 e . ; Genoa, sf. 4° " Spanish pillared dollars, 5 per cent. premium. PORTUGAL. SOUTHAMPTON, APRIT. 1' r of our coil ho we lett h e ave dates fro: pondent contains the following :s— -tlts,oe u s l t e ea 2 m 7t e h r o T it a . gu T s Lis ß b y on cc Th e Tagus, with the Alexandria mails, put t o this port for coals yesterday, and i s a d ver ti s ed leave at six o'clock this mornin g , so t h at mer en , tile letters had to be put into th e B r i t i s h post - C O° mail bags last night at nine o'clock. (6 We have bad a renewal of storms and hea l rains, which have been very prejudicial to farn3 o generally ; 15 vossel s h ave put into the Tagus ing the last five days. A mong them I find t P " , Agnes Jermyn, from St. Lucia for Cork ; the An; gelina, from Napl es f or Li verpool ; the lonia, fr,„', °. Zante for Hull ; th e S arah King, from Mogativ; for London ; th e All egro, from Seville for Line r: pool ; all mor e or l ess damaged. The Frolic steamer Newton i s th e on l y foreign vessel of 1"/°', now in this port. ".There has been a little excitement in Por tti ; guests politics since last packet, and it apre 3 " likely' to end in the Duke de Saldanha's from the WarDepartmeist in favour of the Viscouli. de Luz, the Duke resnainingP res id ent o f the Colt cil and Command er -i n -Chi ef, although it is diflicile, to conceive how he can' properly f u lfil th ose fa%, tions when hi s s t a t e o f h ealth i s said to disablp from continuing to act as Minister of War. " I am told th e e l ectr i c telegraphs is now rea l ly to be established between Lisbon and Oporto, a well as to the Spanish frontier. "This not being a regular packet, only fel!' (4; change operation s t oo k place, at 541 for thr ee months, on London." IRREGULAR MARRIAGES IN SCOTLAND.—On 03 far day an important bill, brought forward by Mr. ITO,- lam, ;11:P., was pri n t e d b y order of the House of C' l ,; mons, to impo se further restrictions upon irre g ular marriages in Scotland. It declares that great evils bn i t arisen from the practice of persons resorting to tlv i e part of the United Kingdom called Scotland fo; t il t! purpose of there contracting irregular marriages, an such marriages th oug h val i d are prohibited by the 13 s,f of Scotland, and render the tarties contracting theni liable to penalties, but the penalties have not bee r ' found sufficient to prevent the recurrence of such pr*s tices. It is therefore proposed to enact, that from An., after the p ass i ng of the act if any man and wows' shall in Scotland make any dec'aration or promise in tended by them to constitute an immediate actual marwitt: riage, or s h a ll go th rough any form or do any act the like intent, not being a public regular marriage n e i i cording to th e l aw o f S cot l and, thereupon they shall each of them be liable to forfeit 101. upon conviction , and in default of payment to i mprisontnent pot exceeding one calendar month. If any person shall receive moue); or any valuable cons id eration for acting as a witness It, such irregular marriages, or give A certificate, h e (hall be liable to fo r f e it 10/ . for the fir-it offence, a n d i n de; fault,'one month's imprisonment, and for any subsequent; offence to a penalty of 501., and in default to six m onths imprisonment, " with hard labour." Tit LATE FEARFUL EXPLOSION AT THE POBTSDMOET 0 Inspector Stroud breathed his last on FridayAnothermorning, state man, na me d Syd en h ain , i s i n a most dangero ng ; and it is not unlikely that three or four other?' n e'w lying with b ro k e n arms a n d l egs, may be cut off 11! the prime of life, because a report of an escape of go.° cannot be rec e ived by the cl er k o f the works, unless hi' receives the Fame through an official channel, which would take hours to accomplish, and during which excusable delay a second accident might occur equal frightful in offVot.