The Sun. — London, England, 1834-01-07 00:00:00

THE AFRICAN EXPEDITION. Mr. Laird, who was associated with Lander in bis ex pedition to the Niger, and has just returned to England in the Columbine, brings with bim accounts from Lander, then at Atta, to the 21st of July last. The following, as regards Lander, is the substance of his information. His trip up the river from the mouth of the Nun (in a canoe) occupied him thirty-two days. He met Mr. Laird and Lieut. Allen, who had imagined he was either dead or bad returned to England, descending the river with the steamer on their way back to the coast. This was on the 12th of July. Lander immediately arranged that Mr. Laird should return to the coast in the Quorru, and send back to him some part of the cargo from the Columbine; while, with the iron steamer, be would himself push on to Rahbah and Boussa. He seems determined further to distinguish himself- by discovery, and by the establishment of a commercial intercourse with the natives, in which be bad confident hopes of being successful. Mr. Laird, during his sojourn in Africa, suffered greatly from fever. For several months he was confined to a miserable hut, till some of bis bones had actually penetrated the skin. Linder expected to be in England by Christmas, so that his return may daily be looked for. PHICES OF STO,•.<•: TH. S sank Stcez 213% 13 3 per Cent. Red. 3 per Cent. Cons. ...... -8831% 3 4 3% per Cent. 97% Ditto Red 97•74 %%N geve:3 4 per Cent. 96% 7 3 Der Cent. Ann. 1726 - I per Cent. IRS Bank Long Ann. to expire Jan. 5,186 P l7 Oct. 10, 1859 - Jan. 5, IRO Jan. 5, 1880 -, April 5, 18F0 -1 Jan. 5. 1870,-- - PRICES OF FOREIGN FUNDS Austrian Eonds S3y4 S Belgian Bonds C 6 1.4 77 Ditto Account c344...1 Brazilian Bonds 67!6 Ditto Account 67 1 4 3ueno7 Ayres Bonds — Dial Account 21 1 ,( 2 Chili. n Eonds .. att.) Account ;6 Colurnbirn Eontl - 191,4 THIS DAY AT ONE 0 CLOCK. Peruvian Bonds . 94 , 4 Portuguese Bonds rlA 6% Ditto Account 57 Ditto New Bonds 56 Ditto Acconnt 5 6%74 ?nr:ian Bonds lO2 Ditto Bonds, 1622 lO3 ?u - ,i_n Bonds, 182 lO4 niL;o Account. lO4 Ditto 111 _103t4 Ditto Account - Spanish Bonds, 1821 °Vic, q Ditto r - me-, IE2 ; ...... 2214 IS f nitro Ace. 23% au() Aek , mnt V% Ditto Bondi, 1623 "2l a ni - h Flr. , . 13t4 Ditto Account EiL:o Accrun; 73% Frcnch Bente-, sp. c. —f —c. (iree% Bond '.. .-- Excin,n;e ...... —f —c. 1:•t:o Eor ci - - n' F.:' : o ACCOJi`;' - ', ----...- EnCI , L.IISe —f- —c. tif•nzic- i F ine .51 1r cnt.29 1 4 Dutch, 2.1 p. c 5O 49?; Ditto .".ccoi - i U. o. 6 pet - .2 - '1 • ''3‘' Dit'o, sp. c. 95 5 ,004 E::•:13 A eclon' gS% : Di".:o Account 95%% Sic: - .13 - it..in .., ~...,....., ..... 89 French scrip Oki pm. PRICES OF SHARES THIS DAT AT ONE O'CLOCF. Prig. Per Share. Alten Mining Corenany lL'i 8 , ,4 Anglo M , :ix. Min. .;,:ii. (ins. z.,; V. li_r ),ClOO P.olanos itiinir; Company -C I 'l Brazilian Mining Ccmpany 4LS Brazilian Imn. Pain. Co. (in. at V. pre.) Li. l Ditto Net - lola] C!..14 Ditto St. John li),1 Rey Cata Eririca Mining Company 3',4 Pritish l!on Mi.ninv Company £so Columbi. n Mining Co. 'i•s ~ !t s'. pm.) 51% Ensl•sh Mining Compriy 1214 General Al in' - oct Ameca - ',:ion l2 Hibernian l'iiin;rig Co. £lo Mexican Mining (',o Real del Monte Min:ng C 3.... (unreg.) -- ! ruled Mex. Min. C). (Ls. et 2.?. em.) 40 Ditto New Scrip 5 Alliance Fire Insurance Comp lO Protector In itnnce Comp. Australian Co. Canada Company l7 General Steam Navi.wlion Co. l3 National Provincial Balk of England 5 Rio Doce Provincial Bank of I reland 25 Arrived. 62V4 7 25 9 6Y 0i 30 25 4 I 12 14 3 / 4 11% XI 5 6 IN 4U 1% 39 N M Due. (Arrived. Due. 0 America 0 1 Hamburg 1 0 Brazil O Buenos Ayres 0 0 Jamaica 0 O Cartliagena 0 0 Leeward Islands ... 0 1 Dublin 0 , 0 Lisbon 0 O Flanders 0 I 0 Malta 0 1 France 0 , 0 Sweden O Guernsey &Jersey.. 0 ; I Waterford 0 HIGH WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE TO-MORROW. Morning ...46 minutes after 0.1 Evening...l4 minutes after 1. .-ve:.? ,7 4 ,- - 1 4i1::e ' f, GERMAN PAPERS. PESTII, DEC. 24.—Foreign journals affirm that his Majesty the Emperor, King of Hungary, had required from Hungary a levy of 25,000 men, and that Dalmatia is to be incorporated with Hungary. The first statemeut is wholly unfounded, and the latter is not likely to be realized, at least for the present. The project for the improvement of the administration of justice is now under discussion in our Diet, and this affair proceeds much more rapidly than that of the rela tions of the Lords and the peasantry which has not yet received the royal sanction. It is even doubted whether this sanction will be given, because the many amendments made by the Diet have so altered the law that not above half of the benevolent intentions of the Government would be fulfilled by it. By way of interlude, the states have made another attempt to force on the Government the Hungarian language, which is unknown to the majority of the nation, and which it certainly will not suffer to be imposed on itself, but this attempt was defeated by the calmness of the Chamber of Magnates, for which the friends of civilization are indebted to it; for, we repeat it, the German language alone can be in Hungary the vehicle of communication with foreign civilized countrie.— Nuremburg Correspondent, Dec. 30. SWITZERLAND. —The Duke of Calveles is now an un welcome guest at Sion in the Vallais. He requires that in the Swiss troops in the Neapolitan service, there shall be a reduction of the pay, by one-third, and that the total number of officers shall be reduced by a fourth. The Council, of course, will not hear of this proposal. Affairs in the canton of the Vallais are in a very unpleasant state, a repetition of the scenes that took place in April is feared at Martinach and the neighbourhood. The burgomaster of the Grison., Max Ru. V. Sans Soglio, is at Vienna, to obtain the speedy ratification of the treaty of Milan of Sept 23, or if possible something still more fivourable. This convention secures the sum of two millions of lire of Milan, to those who have suffered by the confiscation in the Valtelline. VIENNA, DEC. 21.—We learn the Professor Seballer, has made by order of the Emperor a statue of the famous Andrew Hofer, which is to be set up in Innspruck. It is now completed, and may be seen in the Atelier of the artist.—Frankfort Papers, Dec. 31. We are requested by a Correspondent to state that the Mr. Coveney, whose name figured in a police report in a case of forgery, is not the Mr. Coveney who is, and has been for the last twenty years, a member of the 1-I,ymarket Theatre, and whose eldest daughter is a cele. brated singer. This correction will appear very super fluous to those who are acquainted with the respectable gentleman alluded to, but it is rendered necessary, from the circumstance of its having Leen state] that the person named Coveney in the police report had kept a tavern in the neighbourhood of the theatres, Mr. Coveney himself having formerly kept the Wheatsheaf Tavern i❑ the Strand, which was pulled down for the new improvement.. Mr. Kennedy has resigned his place in the Treasury, and his seat i❑ Parliament, on account of ill health. We have reason to believe that Lord flowick will succeed Mr. George Lamb as Under Secretary at the Home-office. This appointment does not oblige a Member of Parliament to vacate his seat, so that there will not he a new election for the county of Northumberland. LORD JOHN RUSSELL AND THE DISSEN TERS.—A good deal of intere-t having been excited as to what was the answer of Lord John to the deputation of Dissenters at Plymouth, who waited on his Lordship for the purpose of staring the grievances under which they laboured, we have much pleasure in being enabled to aiti•fy public cu. iosity. We are told that his Lordship's answer was, lint he would willingly co-operate with them in regard to registration of births and marriages, but the other points required consideration ; he could not agree to any principle subversive of an established church.--. Western Time Sir John Soane, who has contributed more liberally to the encouragement of art than any other private individual in the king.lom, offered to subscribe 1,0001., and the E.rl of Egremont 2,0001., towards the purchase of Sir Thomas Lawrence's collection of draw ings by the old masters, for the purpose of placing them in the new National Gallery ; but the example of these red and substantial patrons has not, we regret to say, been followed. Sir Edward Bauchere Hartop is about to form a matrimonial alliance with Miss Gent, daughter of Mrs. General Gent. Mr. Hartop, who is the possessor of a large domain in England and Ireland, and a mansion near Blelton Mowbray, is the eldest son of Lady Palk by her first husband, Mr. Hartop, who was prematurely cut off a few years after his marriage. A pretended anecdote of Ankerstrom, the reputed assassin of Gustavus of Sweden, and Mr. Wood, the Proprietor of a Hotel in Psnton_square, coupled with a splendid apostrophe of the author about the fate of an empire havirg been decided by the goodeature of a coffee-house keeper, has lately gore the round of the newspapers. In the article in question it is stated that Ankerstrom was a guest of Mr. Wood, to whom he owed a debt of fifteen pounds, and that the assassination of Gustavus took place shortly atter Ankerstrom left London, which he could not have done if Mr. Wood had not generously assisted him in his difficulties. The truth is, that Ankerstrom never was a guest of Mr. Wood, and that Mr. Wood had never seen him. The only p , r son connected with the conspiracy against Gustavus, with whom Mr. Wood Las bad any acquaintance, is a Col. K—, a Swede, who became his guest long after the murder of the King of Sweden. This Col. K— is now in the service of Dun Pedro. Mr. Wood is indeed his creditor, not to the extent of 131. 'merely, but of se veral hundreds; and but for the good nature of the Hotel, the Colonel would not have had the power of vi siting Portugal. The whole story, however, as regards Ankerstrom is a fiction. It may be added .that Cul. K—. has frequently decia:ed to Mr. Wood and others that Ankerstrom was not the actual assassin of the King, but that the murder was perpetrated by another person, who is still living. Ankerstrom, who was one of the ce:nspirators, bed too much generosity to make any attempt to save his own life by betraying the mm who committed the murder. THE NEST IN DIES AND A NIERICA.-- Lientenant Colonel St. Clair's "Narrative of his Residence in the West Indies and America," in two volumes octavo, with numerous beautiful illustrations from drawings by himself, we are requested to sta'e will be published on Tuesday next, by Mr. Bentley, New Burlington.street. The public are recommended to give their immediate orders to their respective booksellers, to insure the delivery of early copies of the work. Agents for Scotland, Messrs. Bell and Bradfute, Edinburgh ; for Ireland, Mr. John Cum ming ; it may also be obtained of all the principal booksel lers of the empire. At present there are 100 inmates of the Birmingham workhouse fewer than during Christi() S last year; and about 1,000 less our-poor relieved by the overseers —Birmingham Journal. The Patriote Suisse of the 24:h December, quoted by the Constitutionnel, states that the petition to the King of France, signed by 108 Polish refugees in Switzerland, praying for permission to reside in his do minions, had been most favourably received, and that they would be permitted to join their countrymen in the different towns set apart for their residence by the French Govern ment: this was made known by the following announce ment from the French Embassy at Berne, dated December 23 The French Ambassador begs to notify 'lO the Poles who signed the petition to the King of France, requesting permission to enter France, that the Govern ment of his Christian Majesty has accorded their request; and that such Polish refugees are consequently requested to present themselves at the French Embassy, that they may receive their passports, and money sufficient to defray the expenses of their journey." LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, JANUARY 7, 1834. The Paris Papers of Sunday which arrived this morning state that a letter had been received from Toulon, announcing the arrival of the French corvette, Emulation, from Smyrna, with accounts that twenty British line-of-battle ships were expected in the Levant. The news from Spain is not very important. A new insur rectionary movement had taken place at San Felipe, in the Province of Valencia; but it was put down by the peasantry of the neighbourhood before the arrivarof the QUEEN'S troops, and one of the Carlist Chiefs was shot. CARLOS VIT.. TORI A, the ex-Governor of Morello, and a friar named ROGER, had been executed. It was reported in Bayonne that EL PASTOR had been shot in the neck by the Carlists in a reconnoissance. It appears, by letters from Madrid of the 25th ult., that a rumour was prevalent there that Don MIGUEL had placed 3,000 men at the disposal of Don CARLOS, who was about entering Gallicia. We doubt this rumour. MIGUEL has not 3,000 men to spare, and if he had, CARLOS would not have courage enough to head them. In Paris, a report was current on Tuesday, that the POPE had formally refused to acknow ledge Donna ISABELLA as Queen of Spain, and that he had, in concurrence with the other Italian Governments, demanded the withdrawal of the French troops from Ancona. This ru mour is, probably, not unfounded. The debate on the Address of the Chamber of Deputies was again adjourned to yesterday. During the discussion there was much warm language; hut it was generally expected that the result would be satisfactory to the Ministers. We have at length one instance of the mag nanimity of the Emperor of Russia. The Berlin State Gazette announces that he par doned, on his Saints' Day, fifty Poles, who were implicated in the last revolt. When the British and French Governments, too weak or too indifferent to the cause of humanity to protect the Poles against their oppressors, requested as a favour that the Emperor NICHO.• LAS would be merciful in the exercise of power, the reply was, that although the Elt,l-• PEROR had been compelled to use severity in the repression of revolt, yet no sooner should the war with Poland be at an end, than he would astonish the world by the extent of his clemency. We have waited nearly three years for the promised dis play, and at length come the welcome tidings that the vulture of the North has stopped short in the career of massacre. But we are anxious to know something of the circumstances under which this dispensation of mercy has taken place. Who are the Poles who have been pardoned ? Are they poor obscure peasants, whose immola tion would be beneath the dignity of the EM PEROR, or are they distinguished patriots, whose pardon would indeed be an act of magnanimity? Probably when the facts shall become known we shall have little cause to admire the Emperor of RUSSIA for this display of clemency. Besides, even supposing that the facts be really of a na ture to blunt in a slight degree the indignation, and for a moment soften down the horror ex cited by the general acts of NICHOLAS towards Poland, can we forget that there are at this mo ment many thousand Poles, whose only offence was patriotism, condemned to labour for life in the mines of Siberia, where they are deprived of every thing that makes life worth preserving --that in the dockyards of Cronstadt there are some hundred noble Poles now toiling in chains, after having been basely betrayed into the hands of the Russians, by the Government of Prussia—that the soil of Poland is still red with the blood of her, murdered sons, and that the estates of all who have been so fortunate as to escape to a land of refuge have become the prey of the execu►ioners of their kindred ? Can one solitary instance of clemency, like that related by the Berlin State Gazette, make us forget these things, even though it should not be the mere effect of policy ? When the thousands who are in slavery and exile shall be suffered to return to Poland, there to enjoy liberty and pos sess their rightful property—when the religion of the Poles shall be respected, and their na tionality be restored, then, indeed, we shall be disposed to believe that the Emperor NICHOLAS has become repentant of his conduct towards Poland. We have rceeived Frankfort papers to the 31st ult., and have given extracts in another column. They are not important. The pamphlet published by the authority of the Government, or at any rate with its sanction, entitled the " Reform Ministry and the Reformed Parliament," has at length produced a reply from some writer who styles himself " An Op position Member." The Ministerial manifesto made the Government out to be faultless, the 'le plus ultra of perfection, in whom even the Irish Coercion Bill, the rejection of the ballot, the defeat of triennial Parliaments, the maintenance of the corn laws, the defence of the most wretched system of taxation ever imposed upon a country, became virtues of a high order. The author of " The Protest" before us exaggerates as much on the other side. To give him credit, you must believe that Ministers are downright idiots, that they have done nothing for the country, and will not attempt to do any thing for the country. This is absurd as well as un just. We are not thick and thin partisans of the Ministry, and never have been ; but although we have thought them miserably mistaken in their conduct on several important measures, we have always been ready to support them both against the Tories and those unwise Reformers who fancy they can advantage their cause by linking themselves with the opponents of all Reform. With this proviso we are bound to say, that there is much in the pamphlet before us which it may be for the interest of the Ad ministration to consider. They may be assured that such an abortion of a Church Reform for England, as they have given reason to suppose they will bring forward, or such another puerile plan for settling the question of English tithes as they produced last year, or shuffling upon the question of doing away with Septennial Parlia ments ; or playing fast and loose with the Corn Laws, will inevitably damn them beyond redemp tion. As this pamphlet may by possibility have a certain degree of popularity, we must take this opportunity of saying a few words with reference to one or two points on which the " Opposition Member" either speaks in ignorance or from prejudice. He speaks in ignorance when he refers to the object and effects of some of the reductions of taxes which have lately taken place. He asks who has benefitted by the " remission of the duties on cards, dice, and leather ?" Now in spite of the manner in which some tradesmen endeavour to keep up the old prices, we say that the many cheap shoe shops seen about the metropolis, are proofs that the public derive, or will derive, all the benefit arising from the repeal of the duty on leather. With respect to the duties on cards and dice, they were not lowered to afford relief to card players, but because the duty was before so high as to occasion numberless forgeries of the stamps, and an evasion of all duty, proceedini: to an extent almost beyond relief. The conse quence of the reduction of the duty on cards, we understand, has been that forgery and smuggling, with respect to them, has been almost, if not quite extinguished, while the revenue has suf fered nothing. Again, on the subject of the remission of the candle and soap duty, the writer says, " the poor man who goes to rest with the sun feels no relief, nor yet the tradesman in the middle ranks of life, to whom the difference could not, at most, have been more than twopenca a week, even if the tallow-chandler had not swallowed it up for himself; nor less is it the same with the duty off soap." This, as well as some matter we shall notice presently, rather induces us to think that the " Opposition Member is better acquainted with rural than town life. " The poor man who goes to rest with the sun," certainly feels no relief from the remission of the candle duty ; but there are poor men, who, instead of going to bed with the sun, have to toil on at their looms half through the night. With respect to the charge against the tallow-chandler, the least inquiry the country gentleman may please to make will satisfy him when lie comes to London, that there are tradesmen all over the town who give the consumer the full benefit of the remission of the duty. Again, among some silly twaddle about the reduction of the duty on advertise ments, the writer says, " Many of the news papers that have had the good fortune to obtain the most extensive circulation, are found to charge for advertisements precisely as before, and thus they may be enabled to profit by the Budget to the amount of several thousands per annum." He is as ill informed with respect to the effect of reducing the advertisement duty as upon the other financial topics he has handled. We believe that all the newspapers without exception, but certainly the Times, which has " the most extensive circulation," have reduced their advertisement charges by the amount of duty taken off. Our reason for saying that we suspect the writer of this pamphlet is a country gentleman is the irraclicable prejudice he manifests on the subject of the corn laws. He admits that the evils of the corn laws must be acknowledged, but adds " it is as clear that any alteration in them m us t a ff ect not on l y every landowner, but also every farmer, labourer, and tradesman of the agricultural district." Here the cloven foot peeps out. It is the constant attempt of the enemy to make the farmer, labourer, and trades man believe-that they will suffer by the repeal of the corn laws. They will do no such thing. They will, every man of them, have their situa tion improved by the enlargement of the field of production. The labourer will have better wages, the farmer, as a capitalist, will have a higher interest for his capital, and the tradesmen depending upon them proportion ably benefit. The claim the writer makes to have the landowner placed on an equal foot ing as to taxation with the agriculturists of the Continent, before a repeal of the corn laws, is monstrous proceeding from any one, but from a man who says that " the people, and especially the middle classes, have long since felt that every tax that has been imposed, and almost every tax that has been remitted, have been im posed or remitted for the benefit of the wealthier classes," it is absurd. MEETING of SH IPOWNERS.—(THIS DAY.) A meeting of the Shipowners' Society was held to-day at the City of London Tavern, for the purpose of receiv ing the report of the Committee, and other business. At one o'clock, G. F. Young, Esq., M.P., took the Chair. The CHAIRMAN, in accepting his nomination to the Chair, assured the meeting that at all times his humble ser vices were at their disposal. The duties of Chairman at a public meeting were merely to arrange the order of the pro ceedings, and to see that the business was conducted with regularity ; but, considering his situation in reference to that committee, the report of which they were met to receive, lie hoped he should not be considered as stepping aside if be prefaced the business by a few introductory observations.—(Hear, hear.) The annual meeting of the shipowners bad always been considered of the highest importance, from its being composed of gentlemen who were practically conversant with all the important and intricate details connected with the shipping interest, and therefore it was an occurrence at which they had an opportunity of considering all those details, and of expressing their opinion respecting them. Would that the expression of their opinion had gone back for a greater number of years ! Would that the expression of their opinion had been attended with greater success ! Would that they had not occasion to meet with feelings of gloom and despondency, but instead thereof to have well grounded expectations of future prosperity ! But bad as was the present condition of the shipowners it would have been touch worse were it not for the unwearied efforts of a comparatively few individuals, who, through evil report and good report, had for many years past exerted themselves in favour of that policy which was not only suited to their own interest but to the interests of the nation, with which it was so closely identified.—(Cries of " Hear, hear.") It was to receive the report of that portion of individuals they were to-day called together. It would not become him to anticipate the details of that report, but he could not help reverting to one particular part which had occupied a great share of the pub:ic attention. He referred to the Parliamentary inquiry into the state of the British shipping interest, which took place in the last session of Parliament. lie was the more impelled to advert to it because it related to the evils and ruin which that investigation exhibited. It was well known that for many years past there had been reiterating complaints which in his conscience he believed to be just, and that they had demanded, but in vain, a solemn investi gation into the truth of them. The meeting would re• collect that on the former occasion they had passed a re solution to the effect, that without insisting on the par ticular causes which had led to such a state of ruin and distress, they solicited most earnestly an investigation for the purpose of inquiry into the state and prospects of the British Shipping Interest. That inquiry was at length granted, and he hal before him the published evidence which was then taken. The ship owners had been year after year maligned and misrepre sented, and particularly the manner in which they sought to attain their objects, he was convinced was wilfully mis represented. They had been charged as monopolists, and as persons regarding only their own interests, and disregarding those of the nation. He denied the assertion. Had their details of distress ever been denied ? Let any man read carefully and emphatically that pea of the evidence which related to the shipping portion of the question, and he would feel convince.; that the statements which had liith , rto be en made by the recognised organs of the Shippt ri4 Society were true to the very letter. They presumed not to the knowledge of statesmen, nor to the policy by wh.ch this mighty empire should be governed ; but that policy being assumed, and indeed ad mitted, that an extensive naval power should be maintained, and could only be maintained by upholding a national met cantile marine, legislative measures should be resorted to for the accomplishment of that object. To attain it by the op-ration of the registration and navigation laws, the British shipowners were exposed to most severe restrict , ons.—( Hear, hear.) What they always claimed was to remove those burdens or give them protection. Every year's experience lied proved to him more and more that the position he had laid down was correct ; and until 1 e was convinced, either in o. out of Par liament, to the contrary, he ‘eotild never lessen his efforts to ebtain what he considered an indisputable light. ;le then adverted to a point of inquiry before the House of Commons, respecting which he said, that hiniself and those shipowners with whom he associated, had been attacked by a. foul and abominable calumny. lle alluded to a document in the Ed in burg/5 Review, in which it was stated, that those who were so very loud in their demands for a legislative investigation, had opposed the m ;king any report upon the evidence given before the Commons' Committee, and he declared that it was not true. —(Hear, hear.) He explained that certain reso lutions were proposed in the Committee, which he did no' consider were borne out by the evidence and, therefore, he conceived it best merely to place the evidence before the House of Commons and the public, leaving them to judge of the real causes of the present depression of the shipping interest. The Honourable Gentleman, after a few observations, con cluded by requesting the Secretary to read the Report. The Report, which was of very great length, was being read when our reporters left. DAY AT ONF O'CLOCK. New 5 per Cent. India Stock Ditto Bonds 23 25 pm. South Sea Stock Old Annuitie. ... New Ditto 3 per Cent, Ann. 1751 Ex. Bills, £1,0r3 ...... 46 47 pm. Ditto Ditto Small Ditto Commercial Ditto Adver3 - zd pm. 'l32nk for Account India .cr Account ,Con 3. for Account 90%%14 TILE cJI,DS'.--',THIS DAY.) CITY, TWELVE O'CLOCK. The only arrivrls this morning are a Hamburg mail and the express from Paris. The letters from Hamburg state that there is an advance in price, both at Hamburg and in H ,Hand, on sugar and euffee. At Paris and Madrid various reports were in circulation of Don Carlos and Don Miguel having entered Spain with from 10 to 12,000 men, going to make a dash on the capita'. This is doubted, as the recent arrivals from Portugal would have mentione I so important an event; for so large a force could not be assembled on the frontiers of Portugal without its being known at Lisbon ; besides, the telegraph from 13 iyonne would have given the information to the French Government. We hear that the account of Dan Miguel purchasing three American shipi is not correct, and that Elliot, his Admiral, is at Paris trying to raise money. THE FUNDS. Consols, which left off yesterday at 904 a for the Ac count, opened this morning at the same price. Since which some large sales have been made, and Consols have receded to 90* 4. In the Foreign Market little doing as yet ; prices much the sa:re as yesterday. HALF PAST ONE. We have accounts from Berlin of is recent date, and on which great reliance may he placed, stating that the King of Pi ussia has come to a determination not to join Russia in a continental war, hut strictly adhere to the mainte nance of the pace in Europe; accordingly he has sent an e xpress to the Emperor of Russia with his determination. Consols continue at 904 sellers for the Account, with little or nothing doinz at present. The Foreign Market is also void of interest.—Dutch Stock 50, sellers ; Portuguese 561 1; Spanish 238 i• .771 REE 0' CL OCK . Consols for the Account, 90'A . An illuminated clock has been put up in the Town-hall, Borough ; the Bridge House Estates Com mittee giving the clock, and the Phceoix Ws Company lighting it fur the public free. MATRIMONIAL STATISTICS.—In Glasgow, in 1821, 1 out of each 100 inhabitants took a wife; in 1831, 1 out of each 105 did likewi•e ; and in 1833, I out of each 80 tasted the realities of wedded bliss. In the New Town, Edinburgh, 1 out of each 131, and in the Old Town, 1 out of each 190, inhabitants were married ; little more than half the number in Glasgow. We would humbly recommend that the fair Elinhurgensians do not permit this state of things to continue, but should forth with institute a committee of inquiry, before which all obstinate bachelors should be hauled over the coals.-- Scotsman. FINE ARTS. FINDEN'S GALLERY OF THE GRACES. PART X. The present number of this graceful work consists of three lovely female portraits, of which the most beautiful, and the most highly finished as a work of art, is the one entitled the Passion Flower. The illustrative verses affixed are from the pens of the Rev. Lisle Bowles, Barry Cornwall, and Professor Wilson. LITERATURE. SHAKSPEARE'S PLAYS, 6-c. Voz. XV. LONDON, 1834. Mr. Valpy has here brought his edition of Shakspeare to a close—and cheap and complete it is, profusely illustrated with outline engravings, and having the rare recommendation of a copious index. The present volume contains Shakspeare's Minor Poems, which are well known by name ; but, we suspeCt, have been little read by the community. Of these the longest, the most im passioned, and the most poetic, is " Venus and Adonis," which contains, here and there, pas sages of such transcendent beauty as our grea t dramatist scarcely surpassed even in his happiest plays. We may mention, as among the most brilliant of these, the description of the horse— inferior only to that sublime sketch of the charger in Job—the coming on of evening, with the fare well kiss of Venus to Adonis ; the highly-wrought comparison between love and lust ; and the la mentation of the goddess over her dead favourite. The subjoined lines are exquisitely tender and felicitous in expression : " She looks upon his lips, and they are pale ; She takes him by the band, and that is cold ; She whispers in his ears a heavy tale, As if he heard the woeful words she told ; She lifts the coffer lids that close each eye, Where, lo ! two lamps, burnt out, in darkness lie." It is a curious thing that all the editions we have ever seen (the present among the number) give the closing couplet in the above passage, as follows : " She lifts the coffer-lids that close his eyes, Where, lo I two lamps, burnt out, in darkness lies — thus making Shakspeare mar the beauty of the stanza by a glaring violation of the very first principle of grammar. We have taken the liberty of making the poet write at least correctly, and we hope we have not much injured his description by our amendment. " The Rape of Lucrece," as a whole, reads heavily, and has one strange defect, namely, that it is too didactic and moralizing. Tarquin discusses matters with Lucrece, previously to his effecting " his diabolical purpose" (to borrow a newspaper phrase) with as much collectedness and parade of logic as if he were discussing the doctrine of original sin ; and she replies with all the point and force of a Madame de Stael. This is the only work of Shakspeare which wears the aspect of pedantry, and, as such, is an undoubted curiosity. The " Sonnets" are many of them exquisite productions ; but some few are remarkable for nothing but quaint, fantastic trifling. Still the young poet who desires to accomplish himself in his art, will do well to read them with a ucntiun, for they abound in happy turns of expression, and bhow what forcible, picturesque power a well-chosen epithet possesses in the hands of a master-mind. Shakspeare's epithets are nowhere more charac teristic or felicitous than in his Sonnets. They light up a whole stanza like a burst of sunshine. You never find them misplaced. We will instance a few :—" All-eating shame"—"Win ter's ragged hand"--" gracious light of day"— " pupil pen of youth" " easy-cushioned age,"—most expressive of Shakspeare's social turn of thought—" now stand you on the top of happy hours"—" maiden gardens"—our great poet is fond of associating his ideas with images of love and beauty—" gold complexion of the sun"—" antique pen of time"—" love's fine it"—" tanned antiquity"—" coward conquest of a murderer's knife," &c. We might multiply instances of' apt, pictural epithets like these, till our " line stretched to the crack o' doom," but we content ourselves with giving merely a whet to the reader's appetite, in the hope that he will procure the book, and finish the dainty repast that Valpy has here set before him, at leisure. A COLLECTION of DECISIONS in the COURTS for REVISING the LISTS of ELECTORS. By W. F. A. DELANE, Esq., of Gray's Inn, Barrister-at-Law. This is an admirable collection of decisions on the elective franchise, by M. Delane, the barrister. He has thought proper in his preface to apologise for the reports being confined to cases decided in the counties of Berks, Middle sex, Kent, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, the cities of London and Westminster, and the boroughs of Abingdon, Bedford, Finsbury, HarWich, Lambeth, Leicester, Marlow, Marylebone, and Petersfield ; but when it is considered that fran chises of all descriptions, agricultural and manu facturing, rural and urban, must necessarily have been decided in the places and counties enume rated, the apology was quite needless. The collection cannot fail to prove highly useful to every professional man concerned in registering voters, or interested in establishing claims to the elective franchise, and as such we strong recom mend it. Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Kent and the Princess Victoria, have notified to the Managers of the Victoria their intention of honouring the Theatre with their presence tomorrow evening. DUTCH TRADE.—The number of ships that arrived in Amsterdam in 1833 was 2,374, being 128 more than in 1832. The price of silk, it appears by recent ac counts, Las risen considerably in Italy, in consequence, it was stated, of an English company having made purchases to a considerable amount. Commerce in general was in an active state, and fast recovering the check , it .tperi enced from the late disturba , ces in the Papal dominions. Intelligence has been received of the death of Abbas Mitza, the son and design ited heir of the King of Persia, who was marching at the head of an army to put down an insurrection of one of his brothers. This event will occasion many speculations, and possibly some distur bances, in the East. EDUCATION IN AMERICA.—In the year 1830 there were in the state of Nt-tv York 440,000 children between the ages of five and fifteen ; and tf,e Superintendent of Common Schools reported to the Legis lature 400,000 as being at school ; whilst, for thesame year, in Kentucky, only 33,000 were found at schoo,, Out of 100,000 and upwards of the same ages. S HIPP'S G INTELLIGENCE-(TIIIS DAY.) FROM LLOYD'S, DEAL, JAN. 6.—Wind S.W., fresh.—At noon passed through to the westward, the City of Londonderry steamer. The Wilhelmina, for Surinam, and leveret small ve.sels, remain wind-bound. PORTSMOUTH, JAN. 6.—Wind S.S.W., hard gale.— Arrived from the River the Dawson. Dawson, for Singa pore ; and Claudine, Walker, for the Cape and Madras. PLYMOUTH, JAN. s.—Wind W.S.W., moderate. Fat:swum, JAN. 5 . ---Wind S.W. to W.S.W., mo derate. DUNDEE, JAN. 4.—Arrived the Nimble, Andereon, from St Peter sburgh. SUNDERLAND, JA x. s. —Arrived the John Frederick, Guest, from St. Petersburgh. A LDBOROUGH, JAN. s.—Arrived the Royalist, Elliot, from Sr. Petersburgh. BRISTOL, JAN. 6.—Arrived the Duke of Wellingtop, Thompson, from Michael's. LIVERPOOL, JAN. s.—Arrived the Esk, Dain, from Buenos Ayres ; Emulous, Scott, from Laguna; Hamil ton, Bill, from New Orleans; Ranger, Patrick, and Selina, Luckie, from St. Petersburgh. WATERFORD, JAN. 4.—Arrived the Martha Pope, Jones, Royal Eagle, Allen, Menapea, Moyse, and Libera tor, Angel, from London. LIMERICK, JAN. 4 . —Arrived the Hebe, Hannington, from London. COWES, JAN. 6.—The Charles Eaton, Moore, for New South Wales, in being towed into the harbour, grounded, and remains. The Mediterranean packet, Playe, has come into the harbour to repair. &too, JAN. 4.—Arrived the Betty, Mars, from St. John'q, New Brunswick. Several bales of cotton were seen floating the 10th ult., in lat. 41. long. 43., by the Maria, arrived here. The Bolivar, of Aberdeen, has been got off, her rudder shipped, and has not received damage in her hul'. The Di Ina, Campbell, is expected to float off after discharging part of her cargo. The Helen, Smith, from Westport to Hull, was driven would be totally wrecked—part of the car go save d. on shore the 29th ult. near Arisay, an d i t was feared POOR LAWS. The following circular has been extensively dietri buted : TO THE CHURCHWARDENS, OVERSEERS, &C. Gentlemen,—The circumstance of Commissioners hav ing been appointed by Government, a few months ago, to obtain information relative to the administration and ope ration of the present pcor laws, affords a hope that the period is not far distant when some decisive measures will be adopted by the Legislature, in reference to those laws. At the same time, past experience has sufficiently shown the folly of exoecting Government will voluntarily remove long established evils, particularly when of a complicated character, if those upon whom they press are silent under the burden. Influenced by this conviction, a number of the rate-payers of Shepton Mallet have formed themselves into a committee for the purpose of awakening public attention to the im portance of pressing upon Parliament, when next assem bled, the necessity of giving to the subject alluded to its earliest and most serious consideration. That committee, however, instead of taking so promi nent a part, would have been much more happy in being called upon to follow the judicious suggestions of some more able and influential body ; but as, in the opinion of its members, too much time has already been spent in de claiming against the evils which the poor laws have pro duced, without any general, or well directed effort thus to step forwards in a cause, which they believe to be identified with the future prosperity of the country. Without pre suming, then, to force up in others the adoption of their own peculiar sentiments relative to those evils, or to their remedies, they would respectfully but earnestly entreat Those parishes in particular, which are sustaining more than tbeir fair proportion of the burden of the national pauperism, not to allow another session of Parliament to pass over, without petitioning the Legislature to devise some more equitable mode of relieving the poor than at present, and, if possible, also to devise such measures as shall put a check to the progress of pauperism itself. The statements contained in the Report of the Poor Law Commissioners are not only of a serious, but of an appalling kind. They fully demonstrate that pauperism is rapidly on the increase; that it is demoralising the lower orders of the people, and, consequently, producing crime; that it has already depreciated property to a vast extent, and that, if the present system is allowed to con tinue, it will soon render, in some parishes, the name of proprietor merely nominal. Such being the case, every individual who is capable of sympathising with the op pressions and distresses of his fellow members of the community, and every individual whose views are not c mtsacted within the narrow circle of his own present interests, must be desirous of seeing an immediate and comprehen,ive change in the system, now in operation, for meeting the necessities of the poor. There is reason fur believing that Government itself is desirous that such a change should be effected ;—bur, as no great alteration can be made in established systems, without interfering either with individual interests or prejudices, it is desirable that the question should be pressed forwards by the voice of the public, and that Government should not be left entirely to its own inclinations. The individuals, Gentlemen, who have thus presumed to address you, would, in conclusion, earnestly beg to recommend for your perusal, a work entitled, "Extracts laj l e ia st v y e 's co P m oo e r u L m a i from the information received by hisN Commissioners," should it not already Law your notice ; and also a letter, by " 2Equitas," just pub lished by Longman and Co., London, and addressed to Rigkt Hon. Lord Althorp, on the injustice and ether evils of the present poor laws, and recommending a na tional consolidated rate in place of the present parochial system. Signed on behalf of the Committee. G. F. BURROUGHS, Chairman. Committee-room, Shepton Mallet, Dec. 17, 1833. P. S. Any communications addressed (post paid) to the Secretary of the Shepton Mallet Poor Law Com mittee, will receive the most prompt attention, and any information relative to parishes in your neighbourhood which may be highly rated, will be particularly accep table. The mail between Vienna and Constantinople is now interchanged four times a month instead of twice as former'y. tt o hu n er d e o d n o;obrys a and ow d f asy d e v r o o ef v r aeglruepat Ladies'with favour)easat establish ments, hos! TRICKERY IN EDUCATION.—About seven years since the Rev. Mr. came from Ireland, hired a eat conseque nce s n offeringchaisestointloe: new principle of mnemonics, of which he was the in ventor; stating', that unless they availed themselves of his services on that morLing they would inevitably lose the benefit of his important aiscoyery, which, from the extra ordinary facility it gave pupils g h m o ee r na s in the acquirement of all kinds of k n ovvledge, would render their school celebrated and c onspicuously noticed above all others. In one week he realised upwards of 1001., purchased a horse and chaise for himself and son (who accompanied him), and took the whole round of schools in the vicinity of London, making for many months not less than 301. per day, as be himself informed me ; after which he travelled through Engler(' with great success on the same scheme. His lecture was given at per head for each pupil, in one class, which oc cupied about one hour in delivering; after which he sold each a book, containing the principles of his discovery, for 2s. 6d. The extraordinary gullibility of the wistet English heads is strikingly exemp lified in this career ; he carried with him testimonials obtained within the short space of one month of the efficacy and the utility of his system from all the first-rate classical schools within twenty miles of the metropolis, including the genuine signatures of the most celebrated men now known in the art of classical tuition. A short time before be quitted England be called on a gentleman who kept a large s cholastic establishment, and proposed to advance a sum of money for hi s b rot h er, if t h e gent l eman w o uld a dmit him a partner. As the proprietor of the school had, on a form e r occas i on , spo k en ver y di s paragingly of this Irish charlatan, he expressed his surprise that he should h ive selected him for such an intended favour. " That," said the Irish adventurer, "is answered I y telling you that I have a very high opinion of your got d sense in seeing through my humbug ; and also a favour able impression of your integrity, because when I offered you a liberal allowance cut of the money to be charged to the pupils you refused to allow me to waste their tithe.'' said, when in Englan d, that no thing surprised him so much es to 1 , au , that any of the natives were afflxt,d with di,ease ; being asked why, " Because," be replied, " I ob,rrved you have a cert a i n cure f or a ll in dailies." This was a pointed sarca sm on E ng li s h credu lity. In this dty his astonishment would b e excited to find any lacking wisdom, seeing academies and seminaries ;,, l a rge letters on every tenth house; besides the host of aupere9liglitened men who are going about to perfect pupils in ad languages in twelve lessons, &c. &c. I re peat that there is not in any trade, calling, or art, so triehery and sa indling as in the school business o I,iis country , —Fraser's Magazine.