The Sun. — London, England, 1849-12-04 00:00:00

COMMON PLEAS.-(THIS DAY.) It was ex (Sittings in Banco.) pected that the Court would have pronoun& d Judynent iu certain cases, which have long stood over, particularly in the case of Morgan v. thp Earl of Ale - r- Fp" l ,, ven nY, but the suitors were disappuiuted, for in !mese° the Court gi ve judgment The CAS:I of 'Morgan v. the Earl of Abergarenny is one of considerable interest, not n the -41 3 , to the parties, tilt the legal profession at large, question involved in it being whether th« deer in a park Which were bequeathed as chattels by a will passrd Pers ' ) llalty under the trill, or were pin of the free ,andphold therefore belonged to the heir-at-law. The 7: B° wa; originally argued before the Court about two ,; eirs ago, and af:erwartle, in consequence of the r!- srlstruction of the Court, it was re argued, and now it court over for judgment. Since the second argument the 0, 113 has undergone a further mutation, Sir Thomas th be t and Mr. Sergeant Talfourd having bean elevated to ar , e l l- I,'neli by the death of Lord Chief Justice Tindal -- ,'-ir• Justice Coltman. ea " Leapt proceeded to hear the 'arguments in the ?f . Barnes and Troup, vu a motion to make a rule u I ' l ' new trial absolute, but it involved no feature of Ptlbbe interest, the qu e mitm only having reference to the fairness of the charges in an architect's bill. SURREY SESSIONS.-(THIS DAY.) (11,forb TIIOMAS PUCKLE, Esq., and a Bench of Magistrates.) er k T ar Y 20, • Wasindicted for stealing a silk hand ,,ehtef and t our shillings, from the person of William uo nd, at The ngs.on. prosecutor a•atcd that on the evening of the 16th nit Al ar r went into the Crown public-house, in the t r , et- Place, Kingston, whero he met the prisoner, and „ . st ed her to some beee. Oa 'leaving the house the Inelioner followed him, and, , at a little distance, she fo tt _ n ag"d to steal his handkeruhief and money, and be " he could prevent her 'she . passtd the property to a , s h a ~ 0 ran past. He however, kept hold ot her until meetnart came up, when he gave her into custody. th ln def ence the prisoner said she went to a dance at 1 1 0 Crown, end the prosecutor asked her to dance with . He was, however, so clumsy that be threw the re ;nole company into cmfusion by his outlandish ,L ai euvres.—(Lau4atcr.) She advised him to leave itie room, and when they got to the bar the prosecutor 1811 _,ed her to go a little way with him. She con s e n t e d, 1 7 1 n because she would not go down a dark lane with Itn, he gave her into custody. T he jury found her Guilty, and the Court si-nteneed h er e. t three mo4t e hs' . :bard labour . at Brixton House of m al aria Clark 29, for stealing a shawl from the shop to It le red Wilkinson, linendraper of Lambeth, was sen- L'e d t o th ree months ' hard labour at Britton. th, e ha rles rrk,.2l, was indicted for stealing a victorine, h c , i t' r uPerty ofßobert Aldis, a lisendraper. carrying on pr 14;1 8 . 5 in High street, Peekharn. BQ4 'Mtn Gardiner, shopman to prosecutor, said the °,ner entered the shop with some wadding on the ate of the 5,h i n stant, and after he left he missed a ? ri ue, which was afterwards found on the prisoner. ( Ifeace, the prisoner said the victorina adht red to hO:, B4 ding as he was leaving ihe shop, and as soon as 4 "tained the fact he returned and was given iu'o i tt le • jury instantly AceinTed him. - - - A ( ?I'V-STREET.—(THIS DAY.) eb o middle-a ge d man mined William Hickey was t , i ;ea und er the following circumstances:— so n ,„ leh nol Taylor of No. 10, George-lane, deposed that St. d i , u l a Y, June last he was at his tea in Church-lane, gei n ,„"" 5 , when h e h ea rd a row in the street, and on lo e k 4 out to see what was the matter he saw two men I,3scd together and to all appearances fighting. Olte %b p a tall men with a kind ot smock frock on and tt g ot trhwas risoner at the bar. lie interfered and th e e man with the smock frock away to the bottom of At" ac $ where he saw the man whose name was th, n -l a rt ilY Put his hand to his side under the frock, and figg r aw it oat covered with blood. While they were to t i' s g he saw a knife in the prisoner's hand fastened say t e e „.nd of a chain or a piece of string, and heard him bo r e alsearthy " if you do not get away from me it will Worse for you. Wit'''. JA RDINE—What beCame of the wounded mai ? s i a : Bs " - -lie was taken to the hospital. No Jartnitts—Did you •ake him here? Witness— ita"ir• I never heard ow' hang more of him till the otor came (4 Ife tl e next morning! thi nk ' JAnniNE—Was he thank? Witness—l do not he J was. x te , • ARDINE—Wht has become of Macarthy ? Wit q!:"--1 don't k now . ne I speetorvated that ho was dead. W r it; jA RDINP--Have y ou seen Hickey since that day? i t o--N .o not until.tbis morning. JanorNE—Pid you know him before? Witness— k; he liv e d i n our neighbourhood. jsainiNE-L-You beard nothing of it afterwards 4.,`un insp ec t or c a me f or you ? Wi tness —N o; a man tii' ed Healing was - Charged, and I came forward to prove at • lt was not him. 'h It Was stated that the prisoner bad been non cat b jhlus since tile day in question; b ,'"'rgeant-Major ParkiLson, of 'the E a st India Com ;et 41 3 .'6 wrier), deposed tha. the deceased was one of his lj ti rl ilts, and on the 7th of t June last he saw him at the t versity College Hospital, when be was suffering , from b q 8 , 1) in the right, side, just wider the heart. bo se- G '. ; e ,, 4 lY he was - renioved to the barracks at Knights ,W4gt, where, from inforreation he had received, the T he believed he had since died. ne prisoner was retnanded. till Friday next. COURT CIRCULAR. OSBORNE, MONDAY. 4, C : e itlnt 'l Cornwall, E querr y t o her late Majesty the l est Il i Dowager, arr i ve d a t Osborne at six o clock of th "'HI afternoon, with the melancholy intelligence e d ivent r ince demise of her Majesty! Queen Adelaide, which nas caused the deepest bffliction to the Queen 1: lier AT • take the ir -- -liesty and his Royal Highness did not T h en' usual walk 3 this mornieg. Pri uce o f Wales and younger members of the tn a Fa mily walked in the grounds of Osborne. r a i i : 4, Alfr e d P age t an d C o l one l Bouverie have th e lild Colo ne l th e H on. C. G re y an d Lieut.-Colonel que en ll * A- Gordon as Equerries in Waiting on the and Prince. '4O L C ou .. , ord s of her Majesty's most lion. Privy 0% 461 had a meeting yesterday, at the Council L iin e s e a , Whitehall. There were present the Marquis of (Lil - r w rie (Lord President), the Earl of Minto ' ri vY Seal), Lord John Russell (First L ord St ate 4 Treasury), Sir George Grey (Secretary of Q O4 ~,for th e H ome D epar t men t), Vi sco unt Palmer- Gre„‘',., e eretary of State for Foreign Affairs), Earl W en ' Pecretary of State for the Colonies), Sir Charles (00 (Chancellor of the Exchequer), Lord Campbell (.;ttrpeellor of the Duchy of Lancaster), the Earl of Por e l :, l (Chief Commissioner of the Woods and at-V s ), and the Right lion. Fox Maule (Secretary -4lteraar)' t , An Order in Council was passed for an A r i u , ll in the Form of Prayer, omitting the name 4 1r. 6 e ts ulide the Queen Dowager in the Litany. Itaie Arles "Greville was Clerk of the Council in 1 ,, tem, - (1 a umet Council was held at three o'clock yes tem-Y4 afternoo n ; at the Foreign. office. It was at the e ' by Lord John Russell, the Lord Chancellor, G • l arquis of L ans do w ne, the Earl of Minto, Sir coi n r eYi Visc oun t P a l mers t on , Earl Grey, the Chan ,1 0 1; 4 4 1 the Exchequer, Sir Francis Baring, Sir I * n tiobbouse, Lord Campbell, the Right lion. H. hj°Licher e , the Earl of Carlisle, and the Right TPox Maule. h e Council sat two hours. Leolurnittee on 'Education of her Majesty's e e , i _t"nourable Privy Council held a meeting at the m ue .. ii- officeyesterday, which was attended by the t 14 1 1 (3 , — , 4- resident of the ouncil, Lord John Russell, Q r , tiarl of Minto, the Earl of Carlisle, Sir George / e l , and the Chancellor i of the Exchequer. a o h Wakley, M.P., had an interview Lord . 1)„ Russell ''yesterday, at his official residence in A einv-street. S deputation from the British and Foreign Sailors' 89wtY, consisting of Mr. George Gull, Rev. John 14 ° ° 4 1 Dr. W. B. Reid, Captain Cook , Mr . B ond, and. Mr. Nuscutt, the Secretary, had an inter theith the Right Hon. H. Labouchere yesterday, he Office of the Board of frade. Su:, Earl and Countess Grey had a dinner on ee in "aYl at thsir r es idence in Belgrave-square. The Lo consisted of the Marquis of Lansdowne, de "(I Lady John Russell, Count and Countess iahault, Earl of Minto, lion. Mc. and Mrs. Fox 7 1 e, and th e lion. 11. Grey. p ot t r . Countess Grey had afterwards a small evening UN- C` .IVERSn'Y INTELLIG- NCE. to . I "RIDG E , D EC . 3. The Vice• Chancellor begs re:n°lnl the members of the Senate, that he has Mast er u the f o ll ow i ng comm unication from the lof Tri n i ty C o ll ege : 151 . wish to offer to the University two prizes of in , s ea eh) to be g i ven ever y y ea r, so long as I hold gh ai rsent professorship, to the two persons who T ph s how the greatest proficiency in Moral Philo inY, in the e xam i na ti on f or th e M u ral Sciences the.; appointed to commence in 1851, provided au, cleat the judgment of the examiners, they possess merit. At th (Signed) " W. WiiEwitu.." i nst e Congregati on on Wednesday next, the sth U } f 44 t, the foll ow i ng graces ( w i t h o th ers ) w 1. ., 1 be red to th e Senate : b That th e t wo pr i z . s a b ove d escr ib ? d b e accep t e d 1 th?, 'University. 2 'That the Vice• Chancellor be authorised to corn olTucilleate the thanks of the Senate to the Master of i nitY College for his munificent offer. fa 1-VIELANCIIOLY SUICIDS.—Mr. Tredwell, d i rrll 6 er, destroyed himself on Sunday morning list, by b%„ "ft i r g i ng a gun, loaded with bits of glass, through his f e u ,e'3. It appears that while his wife Was Omen , fur „ minutes in the dairy, he put the butt ot the gu,a against the salt-box in the kitchen, resting the muzzle h _ rpii stomach; he survived only a few minutes. He been in a low desponding way for some tior., and, t although a man of substance, thought he should come w ain; but h e was at Buckingha m mar ket on Satur t3') mid appeared much as usual,— Oxford Journal. THE SUN, LONDON, AMERICAN NEWS. [A summary of the following intelligence, received by Elt ctric Telegraph, appeared in our paper of 3 esterday.] LIVEN, COL, MONDAY. By the Royal Mail steamship Cambria, Captain Shannon, we have advices from New York to the 20th, Boston to the 215 , , and Halifax to the 234 ult. respectively. The America, hence, arrived at New York on the 18th, and the Caledonia at Halifax on the 23d ult. The West India Mail steamer Great Western ar rived at New York, from Bermuda on the 14th ult., with a Ppecie freight of 10 ; 500 dolls. It was reported that this route would be abandoned at the close of the year, on account of the limited passenger traffic. Political affairs remained without change, hut a variety of rumours prevailed of an alteration in the Cabinet by the retirement of Mr. Clayton, and the appointment of Mr. Clay as Secretary of State. It was also rumoured that Colonel Webb, of the Courier and Enquirer, had received the appointment of Minister to Austria. Mr. Clayton, the Secretary of State, is now said to have got into a dispute with the Government of Sweden. Mr. R. W. Walker, a representative to the Ala bama Legislature, from Tuskegee, had given notice that he would early in the session bring forward a Bill authorising the State to purchase 100 negroes to be sent to California to work in the gold mines, the profits of their labour to be devoted to the pay ment of the public debt of Alabama. - The Washington correspcndent of the Baltimore Sun, referring to the forthcoming session of Congress, sass— _ _ "I am at liberty to say that on the first day of the session notice %ill be given in the Senate of a Bill to establish certain territories, to provide for the adinisiion of California, the cceation of a new state-in Texas, and the adjustment of the boundary between Temas and New Mexico. The Bill will provide for the estxblialimeut of the territory of Deseret ; also for the territory of South California ; also for tne territory of California north of 36 de g . 30 mio. The -Bill will provide that the territory of North California shall be admitted as a state into the Union ; and at the same time it will-pro viae that a portion of Tex" south of 36 deg. 30 min., shell be permitted to form a alto constitution, anti. tAtt the question of boundary between 'Texas and New Mexico shall be submitted to a board of commis sioners, &c." Advices from Nicaragua communicate the intelli gence of the ratification by both Houses of the Legis lature of the contracts with Mr. White, representative of the Ship Canal Company, and of the treaty of al liance, friendship, commerce, navigation, and protec tion concluded with Mr. Squier, the Minister from Washington. The Government had also negotiated a treaty ceding to the United States the Island of Tigre, in the Gulf of Fonseca, which was to be im• mtdiately taken p9ssession of by an American squadron. • The following is Mr. Squier's official Circular : " liz.gatign of the Ualted States, in Central America, Leon de Nic .ragua, Sept. 28. "To • " Sir,—l have the honour to inform you that the Island of Tigre, in the Gulf ot Fonseca, has been ceded to tha United States of North America by the Republic of flonduras, for the time pt nding constitutional action upon an existing convention between the two Republica, , and that accordingly speedy posausion will be taken of the same upon behalf of the United States. The exist ing port and other regulations of the island will he con tinued until °there/is° orderer!. I have also the honour to ad-I that the United States has acquired interests in the Western Islands end coast of Honduras which vrgl not permit her to look with indifftrence upon any mea sures which shall afftet the present order of things in that quarter. " I am, Sir, with high c _insideration, " Your obedient servant, "E. GEORGE SQUIER." The New York Herald, referring to the cession of this island, says— " This bay is the nstural outlet for the proposed ship canal via the Ssn Juan river and the lakes _Nicaragua and Leon. Tigre Island is only important as command ing the bay. The treaty is a favourable piece of evi dence in support of the opinion that General Taylor will not surrender an iota of the grounel which he has taken in the Nicaragua controversy with Great Britain. What ever may be the disposition of Mr. Clayton to a compro mise, it is not probable that General Taylor will assent to any arrangement which would invalidate the treaty with Nicaragua, and the rights of the parties in it to the protection ot the Government. It is probable, however, that the dispute will be subm'tted to the Senate for its advice, though we do not apprehend that it will advise an acknowledgment of the claims of Mr. Chatfield." We have advices from the city of Mexico to the 20th of October, which state that Volcara had raised the standard of revolt in favour of Santa Anna in Concula. The insurrection, however, had been sup pressed, and the leaders executed. From Canada we have no important intelligence. A telegraphic communication, dated Montreal, Nov. 19, says— " Serious troubles have taken place in the mining dis tricts on Lake Superior, arising out of the difficulties be tween the Chippewa Indians and the Government. The Indians can muster 1,000 warriors. One hundred soldiers, with artillery, have been ordered from the nearest station to the scene of hostilities. The military department are making formidable preparations." The British American League at Toronto had passed a resolution denouncing the annexation move ment by a large majority. A memorial has been forwarded to the Home Ministry on the subject of a reciprocal tariff between the United States and Canada, signed by several men of influence in Ca ' nada, among whom are large lauded proprietors and agriculturists. A terrible steamboat disaster occurred at New Orleans on the evening of the 15th ult. The steamer Louisiana, when about leaving her wharf for 6t. Louis, burst each of her boilers, and was shivered to atoms by the explosion. She was crowded with passengers. Two other steamers, which had just arrived with a full freight of passengers, were lying alongside, and were badly injured. It was feared that at least 260 lives were lost, beside many wounded. Fifty bodies were recovered the day after the catastrophe. The captain of the Louisiana had been arrested and held to bail, and the whole affair would be made the subject of a rigid inves tigation. The following is from the New Yerk Herald : NEw ORLEANS, Nov. IG.—A terrible steamboat explosion occurred in ra last evening. The 'steamer Louisiana, bound to St. Louis, when about starting from her wharf, burst both her boilers, shattering her to atoms, and also badly injal ing the steamers Storm and Bostona, that were lying alongside. The Louisiana was crowded with passengers, as were also the other two, which had just arrived. It is supposed that altos gether,ll6o lives were lost, besides many wounded. Already fifty dead bodies have been recovered. The Levee is strewn with the dead and dying, and hundreds of our citizens are around the melancholy scone, rendering all the assistance in their power to those in whom a spark of life remains. Dead bodies, legs, arms, and heads, are scattered in every direction, and the sight presented is most awful. It is at present impossible to ascertain the names or number of those who are lost. As soon as they can be collected, I will forward you another dis patch. NEw ORLEANS, Nov. 17.—Captain Kennon, of the steamer Lsuisiaua, has been arrested and held to bail in the sum of 8,000 dolls. The explosion having been attri buted to carelessness, a searching investigation will shortly take place. Many more dead bodies have been found. The number of killed, it is believed, will reach 200, besides many dreadfully wounded. The flags of the shipping are all at half-mast. BALTIBIORE, Nov. 19.—1 have forwarded a dispatch to Now Orleans for the names, as far as can be ascer tained, of the persons who were lost by the dreadful calamity on the evening of the 15th, but have not yet received them. I understand, however, that they wore mostly emigrants, on their way to settle in the western country. ANOTHER .STEAM-BOAT EXPLOSION AND LOSS Or LIPE.—NEW ORLEANS, Nov. 18.—The steamer Belle blew up last evening between this port and Mobile, by which the engineer and several hands were killed, and several others more or less wounded. The packet-ship Tuscarora, Captain Towley, from Liverpool to Philadelphia, went aehore on Friday morning, the 16th ult., about one mile south of Indian river, and within 40 yards of the beach. She sailed from this port on the 13th of October, and had between 400 and 500 passengers, all of whom were saved by means of ropes passed to the shore. The latest accounts state that the ship had bilged and had ten feet water in her hold. After cutting away the main and inizen masts the crew abandoned the ship, saving themselves by means of a rope fastened to the foremast. COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE. (From the Courier and EnqUirer.) NEW YORK, Nov. 20.—Money is Tate abundant, and the banks are in a sound and wholesome condition. The bulk of the paper discounted by them dues not average over 70 days while the amount maturing is constantly at this season eqnsl to the demands upon them to dis count. Tho tendency of foreign exchange is down. wards, as the annexed quotations indicate, putting a stop to the exports of specie:—We quote first-class bills on London, 109 to i; Amsterdam, 40 to 1; Bremen, 78i to ; I'aris Fives, 26i to 5; Hamburgh, 358 to 1. Cotton — The sales since oar last, per Hibernia, 14th inst., amount to 3,40 bides. Teo market, which was dull prior to the receipt of the America's ad vices, became subsequently depressed and unsettled, holders evincing much anxiety to realise even at a loss of two to three dollars per bale ou their late receipts from Savannah and Charleston, thus far a decline of only h to a cent, has been established. We have no later table of receipts and exports than that advised, but we know that the receipts continue heavy at the southern pert, , , and that the determination of the planters is to realise. Bread stuffs-I'x . %Illogic the demand is steady, with sales of Genesee, at 115 e. to 120 c. Ohio is held at 105 c. to 112 c.; Canadian in bond, 106 c. to 108 e.; common and inferior viestern, 60c. to 90c., according to quality. Rye is held at 60 to 1 c',:nts; barley is less plentiful, and brings 60 to 61 cents. Indian corn has declined a trifle. Flour has remained in a dull state for the com mon and inferior kinds. Good Michigan, 5 to 12 ; Ohio, 5 25 to 75; fair Genessee, 5 121 to 6 25; Southern kinds, 525 to 44 for Brandywine, Baltimore, George town and Petersburgh City. Rye flour sells at 87} to 91; and corn meal, 3068 to 3121 for Jersey, and 325 for Brandy wine. Freights are dull, though rates are to Liverpool for coqon, 7.32 d. to id. per lb.; flour, Is. Gd. per barrel; grain in bulk, 3id. to 4d. per'bushel; for corn and wheat refpectively to London, Is. 6d. per barrel. For flour and other articles in proportion. To liavre—Cotton, c. per lb. NEW ORLEANS, Nov. 18.—The week later news by the America has completely unsettled the market for cotton, and but little disposition is manifested to operate. It was offered on Saturday at a quarter decline, but the transactions were extremely limited. THE PENINSULAR MAIL. SOUTOAMPTON, Dec. 3.—The Peninsular and Oriental Company's steam-ship Pacha, Capt. Weeks, arrived here at elven P.M. The freight of the Pacha consists of 11 packages of specie, 556 boxes of oranges, 16 ditto tangirenes, and cargo comprising 69 boxes of eggs, and 12 packages sundries. Her dates of sailing were—Gibraltar, Nov. 25 ; Lisbon, 29; Vigo, Dec. 1 ; Oporto, Nov. 30; 26, &c. Stations of her Majesty's steam ships—At Lisbon, screw-steamers Arrogant, 46, llogue, 56, Encounter, 14. Conflict, Scourge, steamer, and Leander, frigate. The quarantine is reduced to three days from the south, and should the packet of the 7th produce a clean billl of health, she will be admitted to free pratique at Lisbon. Ships Spoken with on the Voyage—Exchanged signals with Company's ship Sultan, Dec. 1, lat. 45 deg. 20 min. N., long. 7 deg. 30 min. W. Off Cape St. Vincent, November 27, passed a screw•steamer, supposed to be the Earl of Auckland. CALEDONIAN AS Y LUM-COR POR AL PUNISHMENTS. TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN. Sea,—At a meeting of the guardians of the Cale donian Asylum, which was held on Thursday last, the 29th ult., a resolution was moved by Captain Lamont, that corporal punishment ought to be utterly abolished in the institution. The Gallant Captain stated that, from his long experience in the navy, as well as from his intimate knowledge of the charitable institutions of the country, he well knew the evils resulting from flogging. Mr. Strickland seconded the resolution, "upon the broad principle of proilioting a love of justice among Mk n, and of assisting that glorious consummation, when an appeal to the better feelings and to the judgments of young persons should be deemed pre ferable to a resort to physical suffering." Mr. hector Rose, a magistrate for Middlesex, strenuously opposed the motion. " Whipping," said he, " in cases of tender age was authorised by the law of the land as a mode of punishment." I attended the meeting, and heard and saw Mr. Hector Rose, and I venture to state that I am at a loss to characterise the speech which he made in support of corporal punish ment and the remarks which he thought proper to make on the conduct of the parents of the children. Mr. Rose, from his remarks and attitude, seemed prepared to " whip universal nature." I pray that I, or any little bays or little girls, be preserved from corning before him in his magisterial capacity, or, if we do—woe betide us I Dr. Cumming opposed the motion, and asked " what was it proposed to substitute, supposing corporal punishment to be abolished ?" Captain Lamont named several, such as " depriva tion of indulgence, confinement, and, finally, expul- sion." Dr. Cumming—" A good whipping would be better than all put together." The lion. Fox Maule " wished it to be distinctly understood that the question on this motion regarded the punishment with a rod for ycung children, and was totally different from the question of flogging adults. Ile might advocate, as regarded young chil dren, following out the authority of ' he who spareth the rod spoileth the child.'" Here, then, we have Mr. Rose, a magistrate, re presenting justice; Dr. Cumming, representing reli gion ; and the Hon. Fox Maule, one of the Ministers of the Crown, and Secretary-at- War—a most powerful and formidable combination of what may be termed "justice, religion, and the force of arms,"—strenu ously upholding a system which is coeval with our history. Hence it may be considered that the lash is part and parcel of our common nature ; but every in telligent being and every well-regulated mind must be aware that the torture of the lash is associated with despotism and tyranny; and because, as it is said, the custom is as ancient as the bilk and as universal as the sand of the sea shore, it ought not to be abolished. I differ in opinion with any man or class of men who thinks that corporal punishment ought not to be abo lished, because, as Captain Rose says, " if they went to Eton and Harrow they would find that the chil dren of the highest nobility got a monstrous great flogging when they deserved it. He knew he did when he was at school.—(Laughter.)" This observation reminds me of what Colonel White, of the Hussars, in the notorious Hounslow flogging, said. I will place in juxta- position what the Secretary of the Ragged Schools says—" Our Ragged School system is one of love, kindness, and affection, and anything I like corporal punishment would ill-accord with these." I So that the poor little ragged boys of London can be trained by " love, kindness, and affection ;" and, according to Mr. Rose, the sons of our nobility " get a monstrous good flogging when they deserve it." We are told that God is love—but Dr. Cumming is for " a good whipping." I am afraid that I have already trespassed too much on your valuable space, but as one of your readers who has read:from time to titne:in,the articles which appeared in the columns of yourjournal, the horrid, brutal, and inhuman description of what Haynau has been doing with that noble but unfortunate people, the Hunga rians, as you raised your voice in exposing cruelties which were perpetrated in Eastern Europe, I hope that I am not asking too much for the assistance of your powerful aid in endeavouring to remove from the statute-book of this country one of the last relics of barbarism-namely, the torture of the lash, or cor poral punishment. I am, Sir, your obedient servant, A GIFARDIAN. THE GUARDS. TO 7'HE EDITOR OF THE SUN. trust that the pithy letter in this day's Times, on the subject of the Guards, will not escape your notice, and that you will comment on the scandalous system which sends a lieutenant-colonel of fourteen years' service in St. James's to command a regiment of the line in Ceylon, where the other lieutenant-colonels are officers of 30 and 40 years' hard service. LOOK UPON THIS PICTUIIH S lsth Befit. Col. Drought, 36 years service. AND THAT. CA 37th R9gt' A Skelly, 23 years. Cul. Milman, From the Guards to the 37th Regt. 14 years' service! ! Braybrooke, 37 years. Ceylon j Col. Cockrane, Rifles. A 42 years. Col. Simmonds, 44 years. Surely no captain of the Guards under 20 years' service ought to be permitted to receive a lieutenant• colonelcy in the line, or, better still, let the officers of the Guards be colonels or generals, or field-marshals if they like, but " let them," as the late Lord Erskine proposed, "be a distinct body from the line of the marching army, and as their services are totally dif ferent, let not their rewards clash with each other. Let not the safe silken service of a Court, however honourable, supersede the hazardous and laborious duties of the camp." What can a young man reared in the Guards, with only fourteen years' service, know about the com mand of a regiment of the line; and must it not be mortifying to the veterans of the army to see a mere youth thus brought among them on a p it ? Eventually all the elevated posts in the army mast be filled by Guardsmen, owing to the rapidity with which, in the first instance, they obtain the rank of lieutenant colonel, and in the second, tint of colonel regimentally; and except the Line look to it in time, they will find boy Guardsmen brought to command them, thereby utterly destroying all their prospects of promotion. Trusting that the Commission now sitting will not allow the unfair advantages enjoyed over the Line to escape their notice, 1 remain, Sir, your obedient servant, A MAJOR OF FORTY YEARS' SERVICE December 3, 1849. DEATH OF EBENEZER ELLIOTT.—Died, on the Ist inst., Ebenezer Elliott, the " Corn-law Rhymer," at his residence, Argilt-bill, near Barnsley. his illness has continued, more or less severe, for many months ; yet up to the last few weeks his powers of mind were active and clear, so much so, that he was engaged in correcting for the press an enlarged erlition of his works, now publishing by Mr. Fox. borne of his sweetest lyrical effusions have been the production of this period of bodily affliction. He has left a wife, five sons and two dsughter4.—From a Correspondent. One to-day is worth two to-morrows.—Eliza Cook's Journal. LONDON COFFEE AND EATINGHOUSE-KEEPERS' BSOCl.lTloN.—Yesterd 4 y evening a meeting of the members and committee of management of the above society, Mr. French iu the chair, was held at the Free ' mason,"favern, for gencr.l busines% The report stated that the society was making fair progress amongst the members of the trade. The capital fund invested amounting to nearly 2,300/, the. amount of pensionary relief distributed to the male and female pensioners has during the past year kept pace with the income deriv able from invested stock. The usual routine business having been concluded, the meeting adjourned. NAVAL INTELLIGENCE. THE ARCTIC PROMO [IONS. The following limited prr•motions have been made of officers who were engaged in Sir James Ross's Arctic expedition in search ut Sir John Franklin :-- Lieut. Robert John Le Mcsurier APClure (1837), first lieutenant of the Enterpribe, to the rank of co►ii mander. Lieut. Melville George Hope Warrender Ross, (1842), first lieutenant of the Investigator, to the rank of commander. Mate—Samuel G. Creswell (1848), of the Investi gator, to the rank of lieutenant. Clerks—James Biggs (1841), acting paymaster and purser of the Enterprise, and J. E. Gilpin (1844), clerk in charge of the Investigator, to the rank of paymaster and purser. Commander M'Clure is an old officer, and since his appointment to the Enterprise, more than forty lieutenants have been promoted, and of these more than nine-tenths were his juniors in standing, as lieutenants. the promotion cannot, therefore, be called that of advancement for his late perilous and responsible service AS first lieutenant of the Enterprise. Commander .I\l'Clure had, moreover, served in Sir J. Back's expedition to the Arctic regions. lie passed his examination as a lieutenant in 1830, and after serving seven years as a mate received his commission. As a lieutenant he served in the Hastings, than in the Niagara, on the lakes of Canada, 1838-39, when he had the daring, end (shame to the English Govern ment) the misfortune to cap!ure in a night expedition that notorious freebooter " William 'icily." To his honour be it said, Captain Sandom, then in command, supported ilia officer, and showed his appreciation of his gallantry by appointing him to the superinten dence of the dockyard ; hut subsequently he was re moved to A seagoing slip, lie aftemards served as first lieutenant of the Pilot, 16, Commander Ramsay, on the .North American and West India station, and from 1342 to 1846 was in command of the Rom ney, receiving ship, at, the Ilavanash. He next served for some time in the Coast-guard, and was se lected by Sir James Ross as his first lieutenant for the Enterprise. Commander Ross passed his examination in De• comber, 1837 ; was promoted in 1842, on returning ;rem service in the Cleopatra, 26, oil the North Ame rica and West India station. As a lieutenant he served in the Columbia, steam-vessel, surveying in the Bay of Fundy from 1842 to 1848, and on his return to England was selected for first lieutenant of the Investigator. Lieutenant Cresswell was appointed to the Investi• gator in May, 1848, and no less than 80 mates have been promoled since that period. Of this number about 30 were junior, as mates to Mr. Cresswell. Paymaster and Purser Biggs, although acting in tielt rank in several ships successively, has been al lowed to become the tenth only in seniority on the list of eligible and ineligible clerks, many juniors having been promoted since his appointment to the Enterprise. Mr. Biggs was appointed by Sir E. King from the Rose to be acting paymaster and purser of the Clio, 18, when she was ordered from Brazils to China, where she was engaged at the taking of Woosung, and in all the operations on the Yang. tsi-Keang till the treaty of peace at Nankin. During this service Mr. Biggs received a serious hurt in the performance of his duty. Subsequently, when the Clio was ordered to convey Major Rawlinson en route to Bagdad, Mr. Biggs accompanied Clpt.tin Fitzjames, Dr. Sloane, and Mr. hicks (then mate), to that far famed city as an escort, and were absent from the ship (in the Persian Gulf) far about a month. Mr. Biggs, frem the Clio, next joined the Spiteful strata-sloop as acting paymaster and purser, and served in that ship for more than three s ears in the East Indies, in the course of which period the steamer hoisted the flag of the Commander-in• Chief, and was engaged in the operations against the Borneo pirates, where Mr. Biggs had the commissary's office of providing for the troops and seamen of the expedition up the river to the attack of the city of Borneo. Thus we have shown that the above officers have fairly earned their promotion, independently of what they deserve for their late service in the Arctic expe dition ; for by their standing and services they could not have been passed over, had they never served in the Enterprise and Investigator; and it only fair to them that their commissions should be dated back, or that the senior and "acting" officers should have that privilege accorded to them. We have, then, yet to learn what acknowledgments a generous country are about to confer on th e officers who were engaged in Sir James Ross's ex pedition, for this special service, beyond the functions of one lieutenant and one clerk. Belonging to the Enterprise we find there were the following officers : Lieutenants F. L. M'Clintock (1845), so promi nently mentioned in Sir James Ross's official report, and W. 11. J. Browne (1848), Dr. John Robertson (1834), a highly respected and able officer, who had before served in an Arctic expedition ; Second• Master Stephen Court, and Clerk E. Whitehead : and in th e _ . Investigator, Lieutenants F. Robinson, (1844), an old experienced officer, and John Barnard ; Surgeon Robert Anderson (1846), the naturalist, and one of the most active, energetic, and efficient officers in the expedition ; Assistant Surgeon E. Adams and Second- Master John H. Allard. _ _ Surely from the above officers—eligible, worthy, and deserving as they are—the Admiralty might select a few whose promotion would mark the coml• try's appreciation of the hazardous service which they were dispatched by the Admiralty to perform.— Herald. We are happy to say we hear that Rear-Admiral Superintendent Prescott, C. 8., was much better yesterday. Captain Henry James Matson has bean appointed to study steam, at the factory, Woolwich. The Commander-in-Chief at Portsmouth, Admiral Sir Bladen Capel, accompanied by Captain Chads and the 11 ig-lieutenant, Mr. Cochran, went out to Spit head in the Myrtle, and mustered and inspected the Eurydice, 26, Captain Anson. The crew were prac tised in various acts of seamanship, and their quarters and gun exercise, but they did not fire at a target. The Admiral was on board for about three hours. So soon as he left, the Eurydice discharged her powder, and was towed into harbour, where she will dismantle and prepare for paying off. The Constance, 50, Captain Courtenay, is ordered to be paid off at D‘vonport on Saturday next. The Pbconix, 50, is ready for the pendant at Sheerness ; but the Arethusa, 50, will not be ready at Devonport for a day or two. They have been too busy there with the Indefatigable. Another mail arrived at Devonport, on Sunday morning, for the Hound, 8, Commander C. Patten. The weather was foul all day, blo wing hard from the south-west, but she was to put to sea early on Mon day morning, weather permitting. The Amphiun, 30, screw-frigate, having been tried in Sheerness basin and reported complete, the Ad miralty have ordered her on a trial cruise, for a week, in the North Sea, the Dasher, 1, steam vessel, Lieu tenant Commander Parks accompanying her. The 1:11oratio, screw-frigate, was undocked at Chatham on Friday, and on Saturday morning was towed by the Monkey and Adder steam-vessels to the East India Docks, to have her machinery put on board. The Tiger (steam -sloop, we presume), of 1,220 tons, was bated out of dock at Chatham, on Satur day. The following are her dimensions, as built : Length between perpendiculars, 205 feet. Length of keel for tonnage, 180 feet 51 inches. Extreme breadth, 35 feet 11} inches. Breadth for tonnage, 35 feet 7i inches. Breadth moulded, 34 feet 11-1 inches. Depth in hold, 24 feet 6 inches. Burden in tons, 1,220 52 94. Draught of water forward, 8 feet 6 inches. Aft, 9 feet 64 inches. Broke in launching ith of an inch. The Stromboli, 6, steam-sloop, Commander Lord A. Beauelerk, arrived at I):,.vonport on Saturday evening, with TlON•raised men from Ireland. The Elfin and Fairy steam-tenders go daily to Osborne, returning at night to Pur:-Fnouth harbour. DOCKTARDS.—The officers of the respective dock yards have orders to report on the system of contract work, now that it has been in operation two years, and to state their opinion whether it is best to continue it, or to revert to the old system or any other. Mr. William Aylward, late master shipwright's assistant at Devonport yard, has been superannuated on a pension of 3001 per annum. TUB COAST OF AFRICA. ASCENSION, OCT. 31.—Her .11.1aesty's steam frigate Centaur, 5, Commodore Arthur h anshawe, C.B. ; the Tortoise, 12, store and guard ship, Captain Hutton; and the Flying Fish, 12, Commander Patey, are here. The Centaur arrived on the 12th, when she found the Tortoise, Pluto steam vessel, Lieutenant Joliffe commanding, and the store-ship Adventure, at an chor; the latter have both sailed, the Adventure for England, and the Pluto, on the 18th, for the sou'h squadron. She has had some of her officers changed, as it appears there were numerous complaints. Mr. Moorman, who was mate of the Pluto, goes home, and is replaced by Mr. Shewell, mate of the Centaur; her assistant-surgeon, Dr. Corbett, is appointed to the Snap tender, and Mr. Walling is appointed his suc cessor in the Pluto. The Centaur on her way across chased and captured a schooner about 200, miles from the coast; she was named the Velox, was under Bra zilian colours, fully equipped for the slave trade, but had no slaves in. The Centaur has undergone a complete refit and alteration; she is now rigged as a ship, and has been given larger spars ; her fore and main-topgallant masts have been lengthened, and the alterations made are expected to improve her sailing qualities considerably. The Flying Fish, with the mails and dispatches for September, came in last night. She reports the northern division as healthy. There are no changes there. She is expected to re turn to the north coast, and the Commodore will go hence to the Bights of Benin. The Bonetta will take 119140 the Deteraber mail. The Kingfisher, 12, Commander Harvey, cruising in the Bight, captured a shyer on the 4th of Septem ber, after a chase of six hours. They met with determined resistance from the captain and crew, numbering in all 26 hands ; 130 shot were fired into her, which almost riddled her blow and aloft, before she would strike. They gave her name the Paqueta de Luch, built at Portugal ; it was her first trip, and in a few days she would have shipped 600 slaves. The number of shot fired so entirely destroyed her that she was burnt on the. following day. Her crew were Owed on board the Rattler, to be landed at Whydab. Information has been given that a vessel of similar build will leave Rio every 15 days for that part of the coast for souse time to come. The Kingfisher had fallen in with the Bonetta and Rattler : all well on board. TUESDAY EVENING DECEMBER 4 1849. THE PACIFIC SQUADRON. VALPARAISO, SEPT. 30.—0 n the 24 inst., the Asia, 84, flag of Rear-Admiral Phipps flornby, C 8., arrived from Callao, leaving that place without a man- of-war. The Amphitrite, 26, Captain T. R. Eden, arrived from Oahu (Sandwich Islands) on the 24:h. She has been expected for some time, as she was required to go to the coast of Mexico to collect freight. Little time was given her, for on the 28th she was dispatched fur the above purpose, and may be expected back in March or April, when she will sail for England with the freight collecttd She had a long stay at the Sandwich Islands, and her officers spoke in th 3 highest terms of the kind reception they met with there. The Gorgon steam sloop, Commander Paynter, sailed for Central America on the 10th of August, and may he expected here in January. The Inconstant, 36, Captain Sheppard, which arrived here on the 9th of August from San Francisco, sailed for the same place on the 20th of August. She brought a very trifling freight—about 26,000 dollars only. Much regret was expressed by the officers,and much discontent by the men of this ship, in having to return to a place where all leave and recreation was " tabco'd." The Driver steam-sloop, Commander Johnson, was sent on the BAt of September to search for the wreck of the Queen Pomare, an English ship of 800 tons, laden with guano and cocoa, hound to Cork, and said to have been stranded in the early part of June last. She was bound on the beach off Point Cucahue, about 20 miles to the southward of Curcoosdo Mountain, in lat. 43 deg. 29 min. south, long. 73 deg. 4 min. 30 secs. west, a total wreck, with masts gone, back broken, half her decks and the entire stern gone. From facts collected at the Island of Chiloe, it appears extraordinary how this vessel was lost, and the most extraordinary part of the story is, that the captain or master of her declared he navigated her up to lat. 45 deg. south ; so by this account she must have drifted upwards of 100 miles, the wind at the same time blowing on the shore. The Driver returnedito Valparaiso on the 21st, under sail, showing most excellent qualities in that rrrpect. the squadron is distributed thus :—The Asia, Driver, and Cockattle3 tender, at Valparaiso ; In constant, at San Francisco; Daphne, at the South Sex Islands; AmphitritA, en route to San Blas ; Champion and Gorgon, on the crest of Mexico. All well, THE WEST INDIA EQUADRON. JAMAICA, Nov. 6.—The AN r cliesley, 72, flog of Vice-Admiral th(3 Earl of Dundonald, G.C.13., is expected here in January. Trincomalee, 20,'Capta;n Warren, is expected here daily from the northward. The Sappho, 16, Commander Mitchell, arrived here two days since from the Gulf of Mexico, where she has been stationed for the last four months. She was employed a great portion of that time on the coast of Yucatan, in which there is a civil war raging, the natives having suffered from their masters (the Creole Spaniards) the greatest oppressions and cruelties. It is likely the natives will gain the upper hand, and if the white population is not assisted by other powers with money and force, they will be extirminated. From a constant state of warfare the country is in a wretched condition. The Sappho has been very sickly. She has been visited by yellow fever, and has lost seven fine healthy men. Amongst the number dead is the second lieutenant, Mr. Dashwood. Many others have been sent to the hospital. The Sappho arrived here with no other commissioned officer than her commander, and he has had his arm broken and wears it in a sling ; for a long time she has been without officers, all having been sent to the hospital or died. She sailed from Cuba about three weeks since ; the inha bitants there were on the foi vine about a hostile aggression on its shores, a report to that effect having arisen, the aggressors being the inhabitants of the United States. It is openly said this power can possess itself of the island at any moment, and that there is a great feeling in favour of that Republic amongst the coloured population ; that even many thousands are enrolled and secretly sworn to favour any landing of an expedition from America. Mr. Palmer, midshipman of the Sappho, having passed his examination before the commander, the latter gave him an acting order as lieutenant the next day, which I believe, as senior officer in the Gulf of Mexico, he was empowered to do. Mr. Palmer has been the only one assisting in the duty of the ship for some time. WOOLWICH, DEC. 3.—The Enterprise and Inves tigator are ordered to have their defects made good at Woolwich with the least possible delay, as their services will be again required to proceed for the relief of Captain Sir John Franklin and the offi cers and crews of the Erebus and Terror. The Athen&eun, in some recant remarks, observed that it was singular the Esquimaux should, in the rude sketch furnilied to the whalers, have repre sented one of the vessels on her beam-ends, and was desirous of ascertaining if any of the vessels under Sir James Ross was in that position during any period of their voyage. On making inquiry, we find that in no instance during the period they were amongst the ice did the inclination of either the Enterprise or Investigator exceed from 10 to 15 deg.; and, consequently, the vessel described by the Esqui maux must have been one of the vessels of Sir John Franklin's expedition. lloward R. Banks (1843), appointed Surgeon to the Terrible steam-frigate at Woolwich, has taken up his commission and joined the vessel. The convict-ships moored opposite the dockyard since the breaking out of the cholera are ordered to be taken back to-morrow to a station opposite the Royal Arsenal. THE COLLISION ON THE MANCHES TER AND SHEFFIELD RAILWAY. Surrri fiLD, DEC. I.—Thomas Owen, late an engine driver in the service of the Manchester, Sheffield, and Lincolnshire Railway Company, was charged yesterday before the borough magistrates with hav ing negligently caused a collision on that lisle, thereby endangering the lives of several persons, and occa sioning a loss of property to the extent of 1,0001. It appeared that on the afternoon of the accident the defendant left this station with a goods train, and it was part of the regulations that such a train should not travel at a greater rate than fifteen miles an hour, and on nearing the Woodhouse junction not more than eight miles. It was alleged that he was going forty miles an hour, although such was pot satisfac torily proved. At the time, however, he was coming up, another goods train was being shunted on to the up line. The driver of the latter said he saw defendant's train coming down on the sante line of rails as he was on, at the speed of between thirty and forty miles an hour, and, by turning on the steam, endea voured to get out of the way. He had scarcely got a speed of five or six miles an hour, a distance of about 100 yards, before the defendant's train overtook him, and a fea rful collision ensued. On the part of the defendant it was urged that he was not going more than fourteen or fifteen miles an hour, and but for the imperfect character of the breaks, which worked stiff, the collision might have been averted. The Bench, therefore, fined him 101,, or two months' imprisonment. DEATH OF TITS QUEEN DOWAGER. TUB THEATRES.—The following is a copy of the official communication received in the course of yesterday by the lessees of the several theatres, musical and dramatic " saloans," within the jurisdiction of the Lord Chamber lain, and licensed under his authority : " Lord Chamberlain's-office, Monday, Dec. 3, 1849. "Sir,—ln consequence of the death of her Majesty 'he Queen Dowager the Lord Chamberlain requests that the -- Theatre will be closed this evening, and also on the day of the funeral of her Majesty. " To the manager of THE QUEEN DOWAGER.—From the fact of the absence of all official information during yesterday, in reference to the particulars of Mourning to be worn for her late Majesty, Queen Adelaide, much surprise was occasioned in the neighbourhood of Regent-street, by the great number of carriages in waiting at the Messrs. Jay, which induced the notion that those gentlemen pos sessed information of an exclusive character. Upon inquiry, it appeared, that although the commands of the Court were not in a sufficient state of forwardness for official announcement, its intentions were very closet, arrived at, from the particulars of large orders received from the Court itself, and the Household of her late Majesty. FIRE AT TUB NEW lIUMMUMS HOTEL.—Last evening between four and fire o'clock, considerable alarm was caused in the neighbourhood of Covent garden, owing to thn sudden outbreak of a fire in the Now Hummums Hotel, situate in Great Russell-street and Tavistock-terrace. The flames commenced in the fourth floor front. With all possible expedition infor mation of the outbreak was sent to the fire-stations, and in the course of a few minutes the engine of St. Paul's, Covent-garden, arrived, followed by others from the Chandos•etreet Brigade, High Holborn, the West of England, Farringdon-street, and Watling-street. The firemen, with the aid of a plentiful supply of water kept on the top of the premises, confined the flames to that portion of the building in which they commenced. Mx. Rockley, the proprietor of the hotel, was insured in the Sun 'ire- office. BEST ROOMS. BY ELIZI COOK. Among all the follies prevalent in the middle classes, that of sacrificing family comfort and convenience to the absurd desire of having a " best room," is one of the most ridiculous. Let it not be inferred that we consider gcod furniture, elegant curtains, and hand some carpets as superfluous luxuries for ropie in piebian state—far from it. Consistent taste and pru dent display are to be as much admired in the house of a commoner as in the saloons of a nobleman ; but when a room is tet apart in a small domicile as the mere receptacle of company, and all in that room held sacred to frigid ceremony and ostentatious pretensions; when the chairs are cased in Holland jackets, and the carpet puts on its pinafore of the same material for months together, when the apartment is literally " shut up," indicating that family comfort lies dead within it, then may the " best room" be condemned as worse than useless. For cur own part we think there is something per fectly terrifying, in ,being asked into a fine, stately drawing-room—the polished bars shining with un natural brightneaf,---Hthe fire-irons arranged in stiff angles, eVidently never apPidpriated to their purpose —the tables most geometrieally studded with glossy, unread volumes of rubbish, 'and the besilked and betasselled sofas, looking as if they were intended for anything but sitting on. We give an involuntary shudder as we are left to gaze upon costly chimney• ornaments and japanned screens, while the lady of the house is, most probably, making a rush to execute the metamorphose of dress and cap. We would much rather have been introduced to the common parlour, where we should have beheld some signs of social vitality and thawed ourselves into good-humoured cheerfulness; but then and there we might have seen a basket of stockings and socks undergoing the pro ergs of repair, the youngsters might have been lugging the chairs about, and left a tailless horse and wheelless cart in the foreground. We might have formed suspicions that bloaters had been among the matin condiments, and oh! most dire of all! we might have found the mistress in a somewhat rumpled morning wrapper and a " fright of a cap ;" still we should greatly prefer the risks of breaking our neck over Noah's ark, sitting down on a heap of undarned hose, and encountering a fifth-rate head-gear, to the petrifying, spirit-damping fifteen minutes we are often sentenced to in a "best room." Wry trying things are these " hest rooms," espe cially where the lady proprietor is " excessively particular," and walks round it with her laced cambric, which she insinuates into every crevice, to ascertain if the unhappy housemaid has done her duty efficiently. Heaven preserve us from a hostess who is devoted to a " best room !" The children, if there happen to be such huma nizing things in the establiihment, look upon the walls with a sort of religious awe. They never " play" in the " best room ;" they never dream of clutching at the splendid bell rope; they never have the most remote idea of making Lord Mayors' coaches of the embroidered footstools; they rover think of playing at "80-pcep" behind the richly fringed damask drapery; they never dare to speculate alto whether, with a stint pin, they could pick out the eves of the queer little man on the Indian card-box; mirth and rnischief are thoroughly mesmerised, and the little darlings Fit or stand as though their life tide had been suddrnly manufactured into the "best starch." And let us confev, that we experience no inconsi derable sense of misery ourselves in such a situation. It may be that a trace of the gipsy blood is in our veins, or that some natural disqualification for " gen tility," equally ignoble, marks us, but we certainly are never quite comfortable in a room that is only occupied on " grand occasions." We remember being once put into a " best room," in order that our devotions to Apollo might be undis turbed. It was, doubtless, a considerate and gracious condescension on the part of our entertainers, but never shall we forget the shudder that came over us as the door closed, and we stood alone amil all the " pomps and vanities" of a domestic Iceland. The room was large enough for all needed comfort and agreeable " elbow space," but perfectly apoplectic with upholstered repletion. Every article of furni ture was mathematically placed; every chair and ottoman was as p:im and proper as a row of young ladies during the first hour of an evening party. The chandeliers and candelabras were " done up " in sombre-looking garments, and the curtains and sweeping draperies assumed the same sullen frigidity. Not a tint of the carpet could be seen, scarce a ray of light was admitted through the closely-blinded windows, and we stood transfixed between a gorgeous " console" in book muslin, and a grand " divan in a brown Holland " Taglioni," with our inspiration oozing out rapidly. IVe had conceived a notion of some " Stanzas on the Autumn Sunshine," but as we glanced around on the formal arrangement of disguised splendour, we lost all the elixir of poetry, and became as bard, worldly, and common place es a penny-piece on a bar counter; our copybook (we always indite in a copy book, gentle reader) was flung down on the richly inlaid table, with an air of offended pride and wounded sensibility. How could we gather " thoughts that burn," in the vicinity of sofas that looked liked sepulchre stones ? or find " words that breathe," where everything was close, muffled, and choked? No ! our spirit revolted, and we stood in sulky silence, remembering with invidious contrast the snug family apartment we had occupied the day before. That coney room had its well-worn carpet; its broad, soft, old-fashioned couch; its chintz covered, really easy chairs ; its cheerful bit of fire, though it was only the end of September ; its ancient fender, on which you might put your fe e t ; its friendly looking woollen table cover, with a gain or two of ink and wine on it; its quaint old pictures of a venerable grandfather, in a snuff-coloured coat and powder, and a respected grandmother, in ruffled sleeves and "toupee," and had its mantelpiece loaded with china shepherds and shepherdesses ; and above all, it had its pleasant little bay window, where a pet myrtle was supported by a couple of choice geraniums. We had been quite at home in this cotey room, and had managed to get through a very fair "effusion," despite the thousand and one interruptions we were liable to. It is true, that a privileged spaniel and pugnacious kitten startled us every now and then with symptoms of " fire-eyed fury ;" that a mysterious discussion was ever and anon resumed between three wool-working girls, on the point of " shades in Berlin ;" that a stalwart youth broke up a sublime line in our third verse, by hunting in a corner closet for a shot-belt; and that a curly-headed urchin in petticoats, whose respect we had lost for ever by allowing him to bowl us out at cricket, had the impertinent audacity to peep over our shoulder and stigmatise certain inspired hiero glyphics as being " very funny." Yet we got on famously, for we were happy and content with social homeliness about us ; and were we to undertake an Epic to morrow, we would prefer attempting the glorious task amid a confusion of household noises in a "family parlour," especially including t • start kittens and impertinent children, to working at the same in a solitary " best room," where the warmest strings of our harp must turn into stalactites. We confess we have a strong natural predilection for the " free and easy" mode of existing; and some how we find, that people who pride themselves on " exclusively best rooms," generally expect a degree of ceremonious caution and physical restraint to be exercised in these said rooms, which materially interferes with our simple notions of happiness. We observe that these rooms are generally only in " use" on some specific occasion, when those invited are scarcely as cold and stiff as those who invite; and many a time have we oscillated between a smile and a sigh, to see the " lady of the house," who was really a very amiable being in the " general parlour," grow into something of a strange and fish-like cha racter, as she strained herself into a bearing and tone which she thought adapted to the "best room." How we have pitied her as we have seen her give the last becoming arrangement to her rich satin dress, and with a step of nervous anxiety enter the sacred pre• cinct to see if all were right, previous to the recep tion of the illustrious Browns and the wealthy Joneses ; and let us add, we have mischievously en joyed the agony expressed in her face, when some thoughtless young man, in his utter listlessness of yawning vacuity, has rested his heavy head, most redolent of " bear's grease," on the splendidly-papered wall. Spirit of Christian Benevolence, forgive our wickedness; but we thought it a just punishment for setting up idols, that could not he approached with confiding worship. We have seen much to confirm our affection for " common sitting-rooms," and have a vulgar propen sity to nestle ourselves among every day chairs and tables, where a litter or a noise may be made at plea sure ; and one determination, founded on suffering experience, we mean religiously to .abide by, which is, that whenever we indulge in the poetic improba bility of having a house of " our own," be it in Port man-square or Pump-alley, there shall be no " best room" in it.—Eliza Cooks Journal. EXTRA TRANSMISSION OF NEW,PAPERS PER I HAIL.—The Post-office autliutities contemplate, after the s:h of January, rendering the five o'clock P.m. ex press train en the North-Western line available for the postal transmission of newspepers. At present letters only are forwarded in the Pest-office department of that conveyance.— Weehly Chrunie'e. [ADVERTISEMENT. ]—ililious Complaints, Indiges tion, Flatulency, and Affections of the Liver may be Cured by Holloway's Pills. _s ym ptoms indic a ti ve o f t h ese di sor d ers are a feeling of nausea, distension and spasmodic pain in the stomach, sense of oppression and sinking after eating, want of appetite, heartburn, langour, dejection of spirits, and general debility. The removal of the cause of complaint is the most i m portant step, for which have recourse to Holloway's Pills, as they possess such cleansing and renovating properties that the action of the liver is speedily corrected, the redundancy of bd.s carried off, the stomach strengthened, the spirits revived, and the patient is restored to perfect health.—Sold by all Drug gists, and at Professor Holloway's Establishment, 24.1, Strand, London. SOIREE A T THE LANCASTER dECLIAI.CICS' INKTUTION. (Abridged from the Lancaster Guardian.) 01 Tuesday evening this long expected festivity took place at the Assembly Rooms. The proceed ings consisted of three portions :—A promenade tea party; a public meeting; and lastly, a bail. The doors were opened soon after half- past five, and company began to arrive at a few minutes before six. Among the company present we observed the following :—James Heywood, Esq., M.P., in the chair ; Thomas Greene, Esq. M.P.; Rev. James .spinal ; R. Greene Bradley, Esq. ;'J. S. Harrison, Dq.; John Armstrong, Esq ; Dr. De Vitre; H. Gregson, Esq. ; C. T. Clarke, Esq.; Rev. W. IL Herford ; W. 'Jackson Esq ; H. Gandon, E.q.; Hugh Baldwin, E sq . ; T ' Thomas Baldwin, Es.q.; Mr. John Manners, Mr. W E i s l g li . at A n i. l p lr . o , o r d o s s . e JAMES HEY wooD, and said that it gave him very great pleasure to attend the meeting, and especially at that time, because, it app eare d to him that the difficulties which had hitherto beset Mechanics' Institutions were over. The prejudice against them which had existed for a certain period had passed away. At no time had so much attention been paid to public education as recently, but it had hitherto been considered chiefly with reference to the working classes. Attention would, he be lieved, be shortly directed more to that of the middle classes, and especially to the ma nagement and direction of the Grammar Schools. He sincerely hoped that this scheme could be realized. —(Applause.) The speaker then gave some interesting details of his visit to America last year. He had been much pleased with the state of education. The schools were well managed and well supported. Some of the most eminent men there took an active interest not only in the promotion of their welfare but in the actual ma nagement of the educational movement. If this was the case in England a larger number of persons would be educated. He was convinced as a part of the educa tional movement, that the Mechanics' Institutions were doing good service, and he hoped that they would continue to do so and increase their sphere of useful ness. He had been making some inquiries about the state of their library, and he thought that he could help the committee in that department. He had found that they had no complete copy of Sir Walter Scott's Works, and it was his intention to present them with one.—(Loud cheers.) The Chairman concluded, by again expressing the pleasure he felt in being present upon that occasion, and sat down amidst hearty plaudits. He called upon Mr. Harrison to read the report. J. S. HARRISON, Esq., then cams forward and read the report from which it appeared that the affairs of the institution were in a very satisfactory state. Mr- Canis. JOHNSON, jun., proposed the adoption of the report, &c. Mr. C. T. CLARKR seconded the motion. T. GREENE, Esq., M.P., proposed th© following resolution :—" The Lancaster Mechanics' Institution has developed, and is developing, the mental energies of a large portion of the labouring and middle class youths, and therefore is worthy of support." The Rev. JAMES Asrtrzeir., Rector of Althorpe, Lincolnshire, then spoke as follows :—When the angry poet sought to break his victim on the wheel of his bitterest sarcasm, he wrote — "She taught the child to read, and taught si well, That she herself, by teaching, learn'd to spell." Now, in connexion with such meetings as this, I am never invited to attend one`of them, but I approach ie, without hesitation, as one of the learning teachers or teaching learners so fiercely denounced by the noble bard. For I can safely say that I never yet listened to the proceedings elicited by such occasions without acquiring many points of information of which I was ignorant before, gleaning new ideas which had never previously struck me, and carrying away many seeds of wisdom, and much food for thought and contem plation. We assemble as a mutual improvement class of a larger growth, to give and take according to our several capabilities. Moreover, I never attend a meet ing of . this kind without wondering within myself, es I gaze upon the intelligent countenances which sur round me, what would have been the aspect and pros pects of the world at the present time if the art of printing had never been invented. Long ago did Horace sing that there were many mighty kings and heroes before Agamemnon, but that they lacked a Homer to proclaim their praises end immortalize their names. And, even so, before that glorious discovery to which I have alluded, not only what " village Hampdens," as we have been told, but what village Shaksperes, what village Miltons, what village Bacons, what village Stevensons, Wattses, Ark %Tights, and Herschels, may have perished in the bud, unnoticed and un known ! What big thoughts conceived by big hearts may never hve struggled to the light ! What mighty secrets of improvement may have been buried with the minds which gave them birth ! What splendid developments of intellect and noble aspira tions of genius may have " wasted their sweetness on the desert air," and have been lost to mankind for ever! Writers of history have speculated on what would have been the state and face of things now if Hannibal had marched upon Rome immediately after the battle of Canrae if Julius Caesar had never been born, if Charles Martel had been defeated by the Saracens, or if John Sobieski had not raised the siege of Vienna. They have calculated, too, how the tide of events down to the present time has been affected by the victories of Nebuchadneziar, Alaric, and Attila. One curious inquirer, indeed, has so far refined upon all the rest, that he has told us that, if Cleopatra a nose had been a quarter of an inch shorter, Antony might have been the Emperor of Rome, and changed the whole destinies of the world. But of this lam certain, namely, that, as it has been said that the greatest stand ever yet made for civilisation was the inkstand, so the inventor of the printing press did more to change the current of human affairs and to stamp them with a new cha rrcter, than all the great and mighty names above mentioned put together, the royal nose included. They only gave an impress, a bias, and a turn to things material. He opened the channels of thought and intelligence pent up before. They, most of them, forged chains for the body. He was the Wilberforce, the Clarkson, who emancipated the mind, that ruler of the rulers of the earth, who gave wings to words, substance to ideas, and made the chambers of the brain no longer chambers of the dead, hut of the liv ing, of intellect called from slumbering stagnation into vitality, no longer confined to the educated few, but transfused, as so much new blood, into the veins of the masses, and animating or to anima's 6e whole body of the people. Immediately after this great discovery had been made, we are told that the age of pamphlets, those arrows of the rapid press, commenced, by some called " a weighty branch of intellectual commerce," by others denounced as " new unfounded little books," and the work was carried on so vigorously that a minister of despotism in those days was soon driven to exclaim, "Either we must put down this or it will put down us." But these were mere skirmishers in the van. A more serious " battle cf the books" followed, and so the war of light against darkness, of knowledge against igno rance, has gone on until we have reached the point at which we stand, with such a present in our grasp, with such a future in our hopes. Only a day or two ago, as I was reading " Printing and Stationery " written over a shop window, I could riot help gallop ing the hobby of my imagination on this very subject. It is wonderful, I thought, to consider how much depends upon one little letter in the spelling of a word. Change but one vowel in all this, take away an e and substitute an a, and how does it read ? Printing and stationary I But no• thing has been stationary since printing was in vented, and nothing can he stationary while it abides with us. It is the moving power. On ! on ! For ward ! forward ! It lets nothing rest. It gives the impulse to progress. It is the lever of improvement. It finds wings for words, for thoughts, for principles to career and circulate through the world. On ! on Forward ! forward! It carries the human intellect from hill to hill, and from valley to valley, through every difficulty and over every obstacle, as the mighty Missionary of mind, it advances in its glorious work, darkness fleeing away as it appears on its illuminated track, even as the night clouds are scattered as the orb of day mounts above the horizon. But let as dwell for a moment on the present results of educa tion. They are great and satisfactory. Only some two weeks since, on Lord Mayor's Day in London, the French Ambassador, speaking of what he had seen in the procession of the morning, observed, we have seen a countless population exhibit the leading points of the English character—an instinctive mode ration coupled with the pride of strergn—the respt of order combined with the love or liberty. Well may the British empire boast o f its material power; but there is a more effective grandeur in these high qualities, which enable a nation to tower to steer aitbsowvevaltlhtrhoeugsthortmhes Opfolciotincflalicttienmgpeeslet , m a e n n d ts, to keep a steadfast eye on the beacons of peace and civilization. This was indeed an eulogy worthy of a people who boast that Alfred was their king a thousand years ago, and who at the present time hallow his honoured name as " a household word " more fervently than ever. And while we do not shrink with ary mock modesty from accepting such an eulogy for our countrymen from the illustrious foreigner who pro nounced it, to what moving cause in operation shall we ascribe the fact that they deserve it ? For my part, I attribute it at once to the working of educa tion, to our schools, and to those universities of the people, our Mechanics' Institutes, which, having helped to rock them in their cradle, I rejoice to see in the fulness of their manhood's strength. There are insects, which, it is said, take their colour from that of the bark of the tree on which they live. And I am quite sure that an improved love of law and order is, generally speaking, the moral colour derived from awakened and spreading in telligence. But let no member of this Institute misunderstand me. General results do not establish `T