The Sun. — London, England, 1861-01-01 00:00:00

THE IN lUNCH OF THE WARRIOR. (From 2 1> e Times.) The ' auc '3essfill laun c h of the Warrior may be though ,t Go open a 'new chapter in the history of the B this/ Navy.. We cannot, indeed, regard the theca ,y of iron - cr.sed ships as absolutely established, but thereiscertAinly sufficient reason for concluding - Oust such fab 'ries must hereafter enter largely into the compos'ition of our national marine, and repre see t a mos' s important element of our naval strength. l'erhaps in the end they may be classed simply as Illoatinp; batteries for the defence of our shores; perlial,,s they may be found more available for more dista'at service ' • but to some ext en t it ma y f a i r l y be presumed that ships of war will in future be prof..ected by armour exactly as they have come to be ioropelled by steam. Iron may not entirely super sex wood, any more than steam has superseded malls, but in oneshape or other it may be confidently expected that the new system will last. The par ticulars of this remarkable event we have already recorded, and weLave put the public in possession of the principal details connected with the structure itself; but there are two points of the subject which deserve furtlier notice in these columns. 'file War rior is not the first iron-cased frigate that has been laurinhed, but she iy the largest. The former of these 'facts expresses a very familiar feature in the Advainistration of our Navy, the latter indi cates a material reform. We are. always behind iri the work of discovery, and 'are v3ven slow in applying the inventions of others. We had exactly the same opportunities as the A.ench in this matter. We constructed our 110 '40 eg batteries for the Russian War just as they did ; we saw, as they did, the actual results of the es-peiiment. The difference between us was that /they availed themselves of the lesson with true practical wisdom, whereas we did our best to ex plain the lesson away. We spent infinite time and pains in endeavouring to convince ourselves that iron armour was no protection to a ship's side, and when, after a dozen shots, we had succeeded in piercing a 4-inch plate, we chuckled over the ex ploit -without remembering that 11 shots out of the „I 2 had been repelled. We asked ourselves simply - whether iron-cased ships could be rendered impreg nable, and, having contrived by indefatigable exer tion to provide a negative answer to the question, we - were in a fair way of dropping the subject if our neighbours had not set us a different example. It, was precisely the same thing in the case of steam Instead of sails, and of screws instead of paddles. 'Our authorities are so terribly anxious to find out the weak points of a new invention that they over look its real strength. They ascertain to their own satisfaction that the scheme is not perfect, and then dismiss it ; whereas, upon a fair balance of advan tages and disadvantages, it might have been found decidedly eligible. There is always something to be said against a novel theory, but if we had listened exclusively to such predictions we should -never have had gas in our streets or locomotives on our railroads. It is no matter of wonder, therefore, that the Warrior should make her appearance only some four months after " possession of the seas" had been taken by the Glorie. That is a very natural expres sion of British usage in such matters, but what is by no means so ordinary an afair is the powerful character in which our first iron frigate has ap peared. In the present generation we have, at any rate, unlearned one of our national faults. From the first days of modern shipbuilding our vessels of every rate were uniformly smaller than those of similar rates in rival navies. At the beginning of the Revolutionary Wars a French 74 was usually about one-fifth larger than a British 74 ; and so universally did a similar feature prevail throughout our fleets that James, the naval historian, speaks of the " contracted size" of our ships and the " re duCed scale" of their complements as national cha racteristics, to be explained by some broad refer ence to policy or principle. It was certainly not from want of better models that we persisted in these customs, for the Spaniards as well as the French set us an example of more sensible archi tecture; but the old fashions kept their ground as long as we were on the winning side, and would have flourished perhaps undisturbed up to the present day had it not been for the rough lesson administered by the Americans. In the short war with the United States we found, to our cost, that big ships were very likely to beat little ones, and that when a frigate was built with th© dimensions of a 74 she became pretty nearly a match for the 74 in action. That lesson was not lost upon us, and the capture of the Pre sident was the great event that revolutionised our system of shipbuilding. From that time we h ve kept well abreast of every rival in the dimensions of our vessels. We did not imitate the questionable models. of the Merrimac and the Niagara, but neither the Americans nor the French hove outstripped us of late in the power and size of wir men-of-war. The Duke of Wellington was fully as strong as the Bretagne, and was launched three years eariier ; the Orlando and the Mersey arc the most formidable frigates afloat; the Ariadne and the Jason are unmatched in their respectiVe classes ; and now the Warrior, in speed, capacity, and armament, has outdone the Gloire. The Great Eastern has so n -staled our concep tions of magnitude that even the dimensions of the Warrior seem moderate in cawarison ; yet the engines and coal alone of the new vessel are almost equal in weight to the entire tonnage of a British three-decker in 1815, and her armament is equally extraordinary. If it were not that she combined in herself illustrations of defensive and offensive power together, we might be at a loss to imagine what fabric could resist her attack. As it is, we are left equally at liberty to wonder whether any attack could overcome her powers of resistance, and the great problem of warfare seems to be rendered more insoluble .than ever. On which side have the resources of modern ingenuity been mosteffectively displayed? Which are we to regard with the greatest surprise,—the Armstrong 100-pounders dealing death and destruction at three miles' distanc.) or the tremendous ribs of iron and teak, impene trable to the heaviest bullet ? The whole achieve , meet seems really to ex pli-ss a emitradietion. We have been at work neon it slip which no projectiles are to he capable of darna l! ing, mid we have armed her with fzu TIM ' whieh no ship to he capable of r.-sisting. Boo:, we been mast successful in the means of attack or in those of (1( fence ? Does the reality lie in the armour or the armament ? Both can hardly be so powerful as we think, but the combinations of the two has veil us, beyond doubt, the most formidable ship of war ever yet seen. The cost of this terrible machine is proportionate to its power. It will certainly not he less thin whereas the cost of our lareesS s ips of t:u line has hitherto been but about half that sum On this point, however, there is remit for consider • Ltb!e r:ya , -Fnrance. It does not foliuw that the :e::.:;. - t:gite charge of the Nsvy will he increas_-d 1) cause the charge is greater in particular ships. On the contrary, it has been found by experience that in proportion as single vessels are made more powerful arid expensive the number of vessels de clines. IV have now as strong a fleet as we ever had, but it (-nsists of many fewer ships than were afloat 50 ` - er rs ap. - o To put the ease in a practical emit, we may conipari,• the actual expenditure upon the Navy in two years of war—in 1813 and in 185. In the former period a ship of war cost very much less than in the latter, and yet 'it was the expensive period of the two, f the Navy I nure Estimates were then nearly £22 ,000 ,()ef) whereas in 1855, the heaviest year of the Russian War, they .wers bat £19,000,000. It is clear, there fore, that what we spend upon, single specimens we may saro in nu an hers, and the fact may lead us to contemplate even a fleet of Warriors without much aliirm. -_-.. t" Fr om the Morning Herald.) The Warrior is launched. The great iron monster which was designed to eclipse the vessel of which the French Government is so proud is at last a float ing fact. The Warrior is the largest fighting vessel that was over built, being t wo - t hirds of the length of the Great Eastern, and in shape not unlike her 420 feet long, 58 feet wide at the beam, and carry ing 36 guns tif the heaviest calibre, she will prove, if maraigeable, quific, and invulnerable, a tremen &loci engine of offence.. In the hnilling oft his ship and others like it the new theory of the necessity of iron plating to the protection of a ship's side against modern artillery bas been acted upon. Plates of wrought-iron of 4 to 5 inches in thickness, have been found to resist the impact of the solid shot of a 68 pounder, even when aimed from very near. This has been known for years past, and it is some time since it was first proposed to construct invulnerable vessels by coat ing a ship's side with such a layer of iron. The Emperor of the French constructed floating batteries on this plan in 1855. They were used with effect in the bombardment of Kinburn, but were found ex tremely unwieldy and unmanageable in a heavy sea. There were still two questions for naval archi tects to solve, even supposing the value of iron plating admitted. The first was, could a perfectly seaworthy and fist ship he built with this iron mail This posaility has been Icing stoutly denied. The iinrnense accession of weight given by the iron must proportionately increase the displacement, render it difficult to carry a heavy armament, or enough coals, make her unmanageable in a heavy sea, slow at all times, and sure to sink if a breach were made in her.sides. So it was argued by the iron ones. of wooden ships as preferable' to ones. Trovvercr, there were naval architects who declared themselves ready to overcome all these difficulties ; the Emperor of the French, while we Were furling, was building a mail-clad vessel, The question 'Of weight was simply a matter of ealcula ,lien, and some of the other objections to the new plan were set aside by the results of ex, erimentes made by the Admiralty, The second question to be answered was, had we arrived yet at the maximum of invulnerability ? It was soon found that the plan of coating a Wooden vessel with iron would not answer at all against heavy metal. Though the t Bspound shots directed against the mail of the Trusty and the Sirius only made a dent in the iron itself, the concussion to the framework of the ship was more serious in its results than if the shot had entered the side. The beams and framing were so broken and splintered that the vessel would have soon sink if not taken into dock. So an iron skin to a wooden ship was not the desideratum. But it was found that iron supported by iron gave the maximum of invulne rability desired. Perhaps the long bolt of a Whit worth 68-pounder gun might pierce such a plate so supported if aimed at it from a short distance, or striking repeatedly on the same spot. But this is a danger to which the new ships are not likely to be exposed, and it is considered by those who de signed the Warrior that the 20 inches of fine teak wood interposed between the 5-inch plates and the iron framework will render her sides impenetrable to all engines of war. With her magnificent engines of 1,250-horse power, it is calculated that the Warrior will steam 14 knots an hour; whereas the Gloire is said to accomplish but 131. Should this be so, the builders of this ship and the Admi ralty will have reason to be proud of her. To Sir John Pakington is due the honour of having initiated this great experiment in naval defence; it therefore fell to his lot to christen the vessel on Saturday. Of course many critical eyes Are already busy in pointing out the defects of this fine ship. The enormous weight of her casing is such that only the lowest row of plates was rivetted on before launching. The rest will be fixed when she lies in the Victoria Dock. It was thought that the strain on her sides would be too excessive when she was out of the water. Some immediately ask, what will then become of her when she rolls in a heavy sea, lifting a whole broadside above the wave ? La Gloire is said to roll so much that the water comes into the ports when the weather is stormy. Yet, with a weight of 1,000 tons in armour plates alone, it is said by others that the defence is insufficient. The plates extend only five feet below the water line, and Mr. Whitworth boasts that he can penetrate the side of a vessel at a much lower point than that. The 213 feet of the broadside bear 5-inch plating, but the bow and stem, more than 100 feet each, are more thinly cased in iron of 11 inches. The interior is divided into water-tight compartments, and it is said that if a bow and stern were entirely shot away an im pregnable floating battery would still remain. But we fear that in a feu d'enfer sufficient to do such damage as this some shot would enter a port-hole, or otherwise find means to cripple the hull, even if its plates held out. We believe that the upper deck has been much strengthened recently, and made more capable of resisting vertical shells or red-hot shot. Further, the ports, which are now 4 feet square—very dangerously large—are to be dimi nished to 2 feet. One more fault is, that the• Wa rrior has no special protection against boarding, and may thus be carried by an enemy superior in fleet ness and numbers. All reflection on this matter convinces us that vessels of this stamp are, after all, but an experi ment, which may or may not succeed. The seagoing properties of the mail-clad ship have to be ascer tained, and then her power of fighting, which can only be definitely settled in actual war—unless, in deed, we are prepared to risk a million of money, and moor the Warrior at Spithead as a target for the inventors of rifled ordnance, and other projec tiles. Some day, for all we know, a means of pro pulsion may be discovered that will send a ball through everything. By that time we shall, no doubt, be a head of the French, as we are now, having spent some 30 or 40 millions in mail•clad vessels. They will then be useless, and much more useless than wood ; but so we shall go on. When the screw was invented sailing ships were consi dered out of date ; if the impregnable succeeds, the poor wooden walls will be discarded in a heap. We must certainly not be distanced by the French in shipbuilding. And yet, just at present, the matter is so entirely an experiment that we are almost glad that our Government is only building four of these ships, two of them smaller than the Warrior. The French talk of building 16 ; but they would do well to wait until the theory of protection by iron has been more thoroughly tested than it yet has been. Those who looked at the elegant lines of this majestic ship on Saturday must have experienced a feeling of something like jealousy when their memo ries reverted to the beautiful frigates and three deckers which they had gazed on with such triumph. at Spithead or at Cherbourg. No more shall Bri tannia quell the floods with the " thunders from her native oak," that her sons boast of in their songs, if this usurping iron monster is to take the place of our " Dukes," " Royal Alberts," and " Earyaluses." The newly-hatched fledgling, already so big and so masterly, looks in our navy yards like a young cuckoo that is reared in a hedge-sparrow's nest. Like it, the Warrior bids fair, if a success, to destroy its feebler companions. When we think of our 70 line-of-battle ships, and how grandly, by exertions that seemed superhu man, we have distanced the French in the deve lopment of our steam navy, it is a sad thing to have, after all, to go back to our starting point, and commence the race anew. We do trust that these iron ships will not prove so incontestably superior to the wooden ones as to put our magni ficent navy altogether out of the field. if it shall prove that wooden vessels, on their part, possess certain advantages which the iron ones cannot attain to, the case will not be so bad. GALLAN7 LIFEBOAT SERVICES. A gentleman writing from Ardmore, on the coast of Waterford, thus details the gallant ser- . vices of the lifeboat at that place, belonging to the National Lifeboat Institution : " Ardmore, Dec. 26. ‘` I beg to communicate a circumstance, which I am sure will afford all supporters of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution sincere pleasure ; the lifeboat of its branch here being, under Di vine Providence, the meads of saving from a wreck that occurred in the hay this morning, it-yen men of the schooner Diana, Willi pm :Niathreich, captain, rrom Bordeaux, laden with wheat and brandy, uck on a low ra-t of mos in this bay, about G1(1 yards from higtt-water mark; the wind blow a whole gals from- the siAith-east. Between 10 and 11 o'clock . a.m., the tide being full out at the time, the coast-guard, under the superinten dence of chief boatman Halse, promptly fired off rockets to the vessel, but unfortunately they fell short of her. The lifeboat was then called for, when the two .first men who volunteered to go in her were Mi chael Twiney and James Fletcher. Mr. John Roderick, a young gentleman on a visit here, an , :. nephew of S. Bagge, Esq., also came forward im mediately, and in a short time a volunteer crew; composed of the following . men, had . the boat launched and went in her:—Mr. Roderick Halse, chief boatman ; Sheppard, boatman ; • Stewart, commissioned boatman, coast-guard ; Michael Twiney, James Fletcher, Garret Keane, Corbert; coxswain of the life-boat. They proceeded to the wreck under the management of the coxswain, Corbert, and !retiring could exceed .the steady cool ness, daring intrepidity, and utter abnegation of self, that actuated this crew in the,,performance of what they considered, a sacred duty, and heroically they went forward in the face of a . sea that might `have daunted Many a stoat heart. The boat twice tilled with water, but soon emptied herself, such being the force and' fury of the waves, which broke at the same time clear over the wreck. After having made several attempts to near the vessel, they found it utterly impracticable to reach her with any hope of saving life. In the meantime they observed that the crew had attached a rape to their own small boat, and had cast it adrift so as to reach the shore. This small boat swamped before it reached the shore, hut three •or four men rushed out in the surf to their necks and caught the rope and hauled her in. Then the lifeboat returned, brought back, with skill arid j udgment, through a surf and sea that I ha ve scarcely seen equalled after a residence of 22 years. The warp , of the rocket apparatus was then got to att ach it to the rope from the vessel (here it was that the skill and judgment of chief boatman liaise, and commis sioned boatman Ste Wart, were app ,aren t) /* The ropes were then made fast and secured to the lifeboat, and at a given signal from the shore to the wreck, the crew of the latter hauled away at the rope, and the life-boat was directed to the wreck, the men on shore bolding s teadily their rope. Never was beheld anything m ore fear ful th an th e attempt of the unfortunate crew to Trop into the lifehqat when she g o t t o th e vess el ; the sea running mountains high, and the tide corn ' ing in 'fast; one by one, at imminent risk, they literally were tumbled into hei, and one poor fellow got a severe contusion of the shoulder from a fall into the boat. Seven men were now in the lifeboat, the remaining man was left behind, whether from timidity on his .own part, or the lives of the rest being in the balance, for I do believe, had the rope not been cut b y them a t the moment it was, th e y would have bee n lost, the boat was so fearfully knocked about by the sea, striking the vessel every instant. The men from the .shore, the instant they THE SUN, LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, JANUARY 1. 1861. saw the ittSe clit and the lifeboat free, hauled away cith a will, and in a brief space we had the heart- I felt satisfaction of beholding seven men rescued from a water - grave, " The tide coining in fast, and the sea, if possible, greater. the wreck, after a little while, drifted in nearer to the beach, and when from 200 to 1100 yards distant, the remaining inan filmg himself off the wreek-, on It small raft, and enLa.Vonrecl td reach the shore, which he happily did, by the assistance of tile() men, who deserve the especial notice of the Lifeboat Institution. The poor sailor , :;`as evidently exhausted, being tossed by the our in !lis anxiety to retrt4nhis raft, when two men, commissieted boatman Stewart, followed by the conVvain of the lifeboat Corbert, rushed into the surf, caught hold of him, and bronght him in Rafe; a third man, named. Foley, also aided in bringing him in, When all composing the crew I have named evinced such skill, forethought, steadiness, and humanity, it would be invidious indeed to make any seleet e ien et draw comparisons, but I cannot heir, particularising on this occasion, where there was such evident risk of life, the clear thoughtfulness, prompt decision, and intrepid con duct of coxswain Corbert, chief boatman liaise, commissioted boatman Stewart, and Mr. John Roderick, as deserving of all praise. I should remark that the Rev. Mr. \Vale, the Roman Catholic clergyman ot the parish, exerted himself her." e lua s b e le aid in making e people particularly, en andshe shore efforda render Ives usefttl. All themselves spoke in admiration of the lifeboat, and expressed the greatest confidence in Fthwe, NEAR YORK, Dec. 30.—During a heavy gale of wind this morning the brig Gloucester, of South Shields, coal laden, from Shields to South ampton, ran ashore in this hay. The lifeboat of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution was imme diately manned and launched. She soon reached the wreck, and took from her, to their great joy, the crew of seven men, who were afterwards safely brought on shore. The lifeboat behaved very well on the occasion ; and her transporting carriage, sent here by the institution about a week ago, answered admirably. The vessel had since broken up completely. About six weeks since this valu able lifeboat was also instrumental in saving the crew of six men, of the brig Flying Fish, of Whitby, which was totally wrecked during a heavy gale of wind, in this bay. FOWEY, CORNWALL, Dec. 29.—We to-day, for the first time, practically tested the utility of our new lifeboat, the Catherine Rashleigh, belonging to the National Lifeboat Institution. She behaved most admirably in one of the severest gales we have had on our coast for a long time past. Early this morning the Coastguard discovered a schooner at anchor in the middle of St. Austell Bay, the wind blowing a perfect gale from S.S.E., making all the western part of the bay a lee shore, and without the possibility of the vessel running any where within the bay for shelter, or attempting to weather the Gribbon so as to reach Fowey Har bour. She laboured heavily at her anchors. The gale continuing to increase, the sea running high, and the vessel pitched still more heavily, we decided to launch the lifeboat, which, amid the cheers of the villagers, dashed over the foam■ crested waves in gallant style. Her progress was watched with great anxiety as she stretched across the bay in the teeth of the gale and piercing showers of sleet, until the dusk prevented any fur ther observation. The lifeboat, after great diffi culty, reached the vessel about 5 p.m. She proved to be the Liege, of Goole, in ballast, bound for Charlestown, in the bay. The poor fellows were glad to see the lifeboat, but declined then to aban don their ship. The boat returned to the shore at 6.30 p.m., when she was again put on her carriage and made all ready, and the crew remained in the boat-house during the night. This morning (Sun_ day), the wind having changed, the vessel was found to be out of danger. and I in Thee." But the power and economy of this unity imperiously demand that all the faithful dis persed over the,diffeeent parts of the globe _should he united and joined to the Roman Pontiff, the Vicar of Christ on earth, as the members to the head. It is for this reason thet Jerome, a Father of the Church, has written, to Damascus, our predecessor of holy inenioty—" I am united, to your Holiness by the Consiiinnion of the See of Peter.; I know that the Church is built on this rock ; aced that whoever shall eat of . the lamb out of this hoese is aircifarie." What injustice does the author of the aforementioned pamphlet not do to the most illustrious French nation in believing that that nation, the most attached to Catholic unity, could let itself be drawn into schismatical et-el - Jr§ ! Whitt boldness thirst tot that writer have who dares hope to detach froth obedience end faith to the Holy See the clergy of that nation, • and, above all, the illustrious bishops who count among the hilinbet of their predecessors St. Ireneus, Bishop of Lyons, Who has Written these words — It is necessary that the whole Church, that 15 to eay, the faithful of all places, should turn towards the Roman Church, as being the principal Church" —these bishops who, by word and writing, have not ceased to combat for our rights and those of the Holy see, and have vindicated the With out letting themselves be moved ,by any fear, without regard for any peril! Certainly ) they have not neglected any ote as i o n of furnishingus with proofs of their attachment. l,Ve catitibt but give well-merited praise to them and to the other bishops of the universe for their pastoral zeal, their vigilance ) and their firmness; and, although we know them to be spontaneously most itealotts for the defence of the Catholic faith, we cannot re strain ourselves frem exciting, in these days of iniquity, a zeal—which is so much the greater as assaults of the enemy are becoming more impe tuous—to oppose to them more firm resistance, and to exhort the faithful to take care of the tricks and snares employed by most audacious's:nen to tear them from the bosom of the Church. In this condemnable pamphlet the author and those who partake of his opinion have dropped the mask, and unveiled the plan they are pursuing to overturn the civil authority of the Holy See; yet they have no other end but to sap the foundations of our holy religion. We groan to see these wicked men going to spread the doctrine through the pro vinces unjustly taken from our government, as well as through the other countries of Italy. Be hold the end of these translations of the sacred books, everywhere scattered to corrupt thelfaith— this host of most shameful books, made to poison the morals of youth—of this licence without rein, of this contempt for the Church, trampled under foot, of this violation of sacred immunities, of the removal from the authority of the bishops of the education of youth, and of the inspection of doctrine and morals. To the same end tend those men, super intendents of instruction, who hold opinions hostile to the Church ; this decree, published in Umbria, ordering the expulsion of reli g i ous congrega ti ons from their convents, the annihilation of collegiate chapters, the aboliti on o f b ene fi ces o f every kind, and the occupation, by a supreme injustice, of the property of pious associations. It is to attain the same end that they have cast into prison ecclesiastics and even bishops, among whom we have lately seen our venerable brother the Archbishop of Urbine, who has been conducted t o p r i son i n th e m id s t o f soldiers. Another venerable pastor, cloth e d w ith the dignity of cardinal, IFirmin, was taken from his see, and prevented from all contact with the flock confided to his charge. Many bishops of the king dom of Naples were either cast into prison or were obliged to take to flight. It is, also, the same ten dencies which make them erect Protestant temples in many cities of Italy, and erect public schools, in which they teach doctrines the most pernicious and hostile to the Catholic religion. Finally, the same end is assigned to the decree promulgated in Um bria, by which the sacrament of marriage, declared great by the Apostle, is submitted to purely civil forms, which remove marriage from the ecclesi astical authority, and which are combined with the intention of making a civil institution, and, whish is most displeasing to God, of transforming it to a legal concubinage, to the great injury of souls. Conformably, then, to the duties of our apostolic mission, we reprove and condemn, we declare null and void everything committed against the rights of the Church and its patrimony, against the per sons of those consecrated to religion and against their property. And where, indeed, is the man who will not de plore with us the disorder which has seized upon both public and private affairs, the terrible agita tion which reigns throughout Europe, the revolt which rages like a fire from Heaven from end to end of Italy ? Considering these numerous and deadly wounds inflicted on religion and on the city itself, we are forced to cry out with the prophet, " The earth is infested with its own inhabitants, because they have transgressed the laws ; because they have falsified the right and torn the eternal pact." This miltitude of evils can only be attri buted to those who, styling themselves the promo ters of public happiness, have, in order to extend their power in Italy, laid a sacrilegious hand on all laws, human and divine; and who have left in their track but ruin and desolation through their impious fury. May they, returning to sentiments of honour, at length understand that without religion there is no longer any protecting refuge for society, that religion is the sole desirable bondlof nations, and if they proceed so far as to burst this bond peace and secu rity would be ever banished from the world ; may they be convinced that the Catholic religion is one, that it is it alone that disseminates virtue, especially those virtues which make man attached to man, a good citizen in a tranquil and prosperous kingdom; in fine, may they remember that the Apostolic See has never shown itself hostile to the true and solid happiness of peoples, but, that at all times and under all circumstances, it has made the happiness of all the chief aim of its labours. History is open to all—let it be consulted. Has it not been the See of Peter which has civi lised barbarous nations by teaching them the commands of the true religion, allaying strifes in the world, everywhere introducing civilisa tion and refinement? Was it not the Papacy which founded those charitable insttutions where the poor found his daily bread, where the sick re covered their health ? Was it not also the papacy which, addressing itself to peoples and to kings, has promulgated and established, even in the midst of the greatest political perturbations, the principles of justice and of honour ? Yes, we repeat it, this See has rendered the greateet service to humanity, and there are in existence numerous monuments of its wisdom ; and history, which has enrolled them, even in our own days, will not fail in its task for the future. But our paternal heart has not forgotten the evils by which the Church in the East is afflicted, evils which only the palm of the famous martyrs, whose blood the land of the East has drunk, could demand. We wish to speak, venerable brothers,. of the kingdom of Corea, of the Ctinese empire, and the countries bordering on the tropics, where torments and punishments of all kinds have not been able to shake the confi dence of the Christians in the faith of Jesus Christ. We wish to speak of the kingdom of Cochin China and Tonquin, where thebloodthirsty cruelty of the infidels has sworn the annihilation of the Christian name and renewed the infamous per secutions of the first years of our era. Will it be necessary to point out to you the col leges, the convents, the temples, the public and private buildings razed to the ground or delivered up to the flames ? Will it be needful to exhibit the torments which were experienced by the Faithful of every age, of every sex, of every condition driven front their homes, despoiled of their wealth, drag ging out a wretched existence from hiding-place to hiding-place, or groaning in dungeons, exposed without relaxation to the impious fury of the im placable enemies of the Church, Oh! these chil dren of our holy Mother, who suffer with hope and resignation all punishments for the honour of our Divine Master, will possess the part of the glory of the olden rnertyrs of the faith. The pitiab!e situa tion of the Christians in Syria does not less deeply touch our soul. These unfortunate people, who have escaped with difficulties from the massacres which have decimated their numbers, are a prey to a continual fear of seeing full career given once more to the rapacity and cruelty of the infidels, by the retreat of the military forces of Europe. In order to aid as far as possible those great miseries we have wished, despite of the state of our treasury, to transmit to the Christians in Syria a considerable portion of the sum which the piety and liberality of the Catholic nations have presented us wile: And we profit by the occasion which is here offered us to render public and solemn homage to the touch ing example of the charity which our welsbeloved children have recently given, when they opened their purse to the affiliated poor, their bretaren in Syria, and to rejoice within our soul at proving once again that that virtue has not declined which the Divine Redeemer of the world has given as the principal mark of the Christian religion. We have just exposed the state of affairs, sacred and pre lane, in calling your attention to the subjects of affliction and to the causes ofjoy which it presents to us. This state, venerable brethren, inspires as with well-founded fears, it agitates us deeply, Elul fills our soul with sadness. We do not doubt that yon wbo are called to par take in our mission took also your part of the great affliction which has overtaken us. But, let as not become disheartened—let us, on the contrary, raise up each day_ our eyes Ut,1,1 hearts towards that celestial mount whence true succour must ar rive to us. God will be ever with his Church ; He will eeme not to be with His humble servants. Full of strength from en high, we will never fail in our apostolic ministry, and neither shall there be fear capab e of making us despond, nor misfortunes sufficient to make us doubt ourselves and him who has sent them to us. May the innocent blood of the Christians expended on the Eastern soil mount towards the Lord as the odour of an expiatory sacrifice, and may He turn aside the calamities to which we are so long a time a prey and those whieh still seem at this moment suspended over our heads ! May the Lord, through the intercession of the most blessed Mother of God, ever Immaculate, and at the prayer of the happy Apostles, Peter and Paul, accord victory to His Church over her enemies ! May the Lord arise to judge the world ; may He repulse and disperse with His avenging arm the enemies of His name, who plot the ruin of religion, and who make the exter mination of the Church the object of their dark intentions ; or, rather, may He and those whom we invoke with fervour, grant to our supplications that Divine grace may descend upon them, and the Infinite Mercy make them re-enter the path of justice and of truth! ALLOCUTION OF POPE PIUS IX. The following Address was pronounced in Secre Consistory on the 17th of December, 1860 : (Translation.) Venerable Brothers,—The Church, from its origin assailed by fierce and continual tempests, is in our day the sad object of the attacks of enemies so great and so numerous that their hatred, long since exist • ing, their rage, swollen to its height, appear to be let loose all entire against our Pontificate. There is no need, venerable brothers, to repeat one by one the sad and cruel events - which have come to pass within a few years, and the recollection of which fills with anguish our heart and yours. We cannot deceive ourselves that, without pre judging the impenetrable designs of God, no bounds have yet been placed to calamities so great. I❑ fact, we have to deplore the invasion of perverse doctrine which, sprung from the principles of the disastrous Reformation, has acquired almost the force of public law, on the one band by the perversity of impious men, who pro claim themselves the sons of the Church, and whom we must call the sons of darkness, and on the other hand by the firy of the Pagans, which, in the lands of the East, has burst forth with such vehemence as to cause the massacre and extermination of the faithful. In truth, it is impossible not to deplore in how many countries of Europe have penetrated the most pernicious errors on the power and rights of the Church. In one they labour incessantly to invali date the Concordats concluded by the Apostolic See on ecclesiastical matters; in another they de vote all pains to prevent for the future the conclu sion of Concordats with the view of regulating the affairs of the Church, or at least that the civil au thority should interfere for the conclusion of such treaties. We have experienced all these recent contrarieties, venerable brothers, not without seri ous regret. During the last year, as you know, while fulfilling a duty of our Apostolic charge, in order to improve the condition of the Church in the Grand Duchy of Baden, we concluded a treaty with his Serene Highness the Duke of Baden, and after its ratification we waited, as was just, until it should be executed. But, in presence of the opposition given by the Chamber of this Duchy, an edict was published by the Grand Duke in virtue of which the Concordat lost all its force, and a law was substituted for it which is in the highest degree contrary to the liberty of the Chinch. This state of things, as we know, is the result of the false doctrine .ofthe Pro testants, who think that the Church is a sort. of corporation (collegiunt) existing in civil society, enjoying no right with the exception of those which are gninted to it by the civil power. But who does not understaud how much such a conception differs front the truth?- In reality the Church has been instituted by its Divine Founder as a true and per fect society, which is not circumscribed by the boundaries of any State, or subject to any civil power, and which exercises its power freely, and for the salvation of men, in all quarters of the world. In truth, those solemn words addressed by Christ our Lord to his Apostles have.no other significa tion :—" All power has been given to me in heaven and on earth ; go and teach all nations, instructing them to observe all that I have ordained to you." Inflamed with these words, the heralds of the Gospel, the Apostles, despite of kings and princes who opposed them, despite of threats and punish ments, exercised courageonSly the ministry which had been imposed upon them. We, also, most anxious for the preservation of the salutary rights of the Church. no sooner learned that it was attempted to invalidate the Concordat in question than we sent letters to the Grand Duke, exhorting him to remove that scandal ; and we have given the necessary orders to the Cardinal charged with foreign affairs to remonstrate with the Go vernment of Baden, in. order that the Concordat should he put into execution, as of right. But, as all our endeavours and all our anxiety have come to nu result, we have deplored in your midst, as is our duty, -that that Convention had been abolished, contrary to all the laws of justice, and without the consent of the other party, and we have protested, within the limits of our power, against the rights of the' Catholic Church and of the Apostolic See being violated— outrageously annihilated. We have ordered that. these protestations should be transmitted to the Government of Baden, and we have prescribed to the Bishop of Fribourg the conduct he ought to pursue to the midst of these difficulties. We could not sufficiently recommend to that illustrious chief and his clergy to protect with censtancy the liberty of the Church, and we have full confidence that they will not fail even in circumstances the most critical. While a lively grief had seized us on account of the state of the Church, anew placed in peril in the Grand Duchy, another source of grief, produced by a most infamous pamphlet lately published in Paris, has come to add to our sadness. In that publication there are so many things so completely opposed to truth, so many absurdities and contra dictions combined by the author, that it is more fit ting to throw aside and despise it than to refute it. What is, however, intolerable is the audacity and inipiety .of • this writer, who. not having feared to attack the Civiland Ecclesiastical Principality of the Roman Church, has endeavoured to contrive a par ticular Species of Church, to be founded in the French Empire, and organised so that it should be removed from the authority of the Sovereign Pon tiff and completely separated from it. But what else is this than to overturn . and •rend the unity of the Church ? Behold the words which Christ our Lord hai &Idiessed tolfie "Faber on the necessity of this . uuity I pray not only for them, but also for those who shall believe in their words, that all may be one, as Thou, my Father, Thou art in me MURDER 1N GLASGOW. About One o'clock On StlaaY morning a fight , seems to have bean going on an the west side of High-street, Glasgow, Ohdft distance froZ the Cross, between two men, one named Wm. Clark, alias Neil Coyle, the name of the other being tl kno*h. Cloyle was knocked to the ground once or twice, and a young than flamed John Gall, who does not appear, from anything itd have been able to learn, to have been in company with either the one party or the other, but merely one of the crowd, stepped out to take Coyle's part, saying it was a shame that he should be so used, and that he was not getting fair play: Ile then tarried to Coyle, and putting his hand an hia ahotddet and clapping him advised him to go home. Coyle; Without any previous notice, turned abruptly round, tind, lifting his hand, Was seen by the bystanders to strike Gall with considerable fort , e about the belly. Gall im mediately doubled up, and cried c - Ot, " I am stabbed; ' for God's sake go f)r a doctor !" He tiitt; vrith his hand on the wound, ran down the street, thron'gh ' the arch under the Cross steeple, and catching a lamp-post at the corner of the street, swung round it once, and then fell flat on his face. The aid of I)rs. Chalmers and Tinlayson Was promptly procured, and these gentlemen immediately ordelied the wounded man to be removed to the Royal In firmary, where he expired about four o'clock on Sunday morning. It was found that deceased had received a blow with a sharp instrument in the groin, which had severed the femdral artery, and resulted in his bleeding to death. Immediately after dealing the fatal blow Coyle made of down Salt market, followed by a number of the crowd. He ran up close No. 18 of that street, where his further progress was obstructed by an iron gate, which was locked, and he was then apprehended by- two con stables. The close was afterwards searched, and a clasped knife, much stained with blood, was found within a yard or two . of the spot where Coyle was arrested. He is a returned convict, and has only been at liberty some three months after having un dergcne seven years' penal servitude. His charac ter and nature may be guessed when we state, that while he was undergoing that sentence he was the terror of all in any way brought into contact with him, both wardens and fellow prisoners, Since his apprehension Coyle has maintained a dogged silence, not dropping one word either as to his guilt or innocence. The deceased, who was 23 years of age, was an engine-fitter to trade, and was a quite, sober, inof fensive youth, and not given to interfering in street brawls. He resided in Clyde-street, Anderston, with a widowed mother, of whom he was almost the sole support. --North British Mail. THE EXTRAORDINARY A 2 TEMPT AT N URDER IN DUBLIN. The Freeman's Journal of Saturday contains the following additional details of this extraordinary affair:— " In connection with local affairs in Dublin, since the murder of the Italian boy and the trial of Spollen for the assassination of Mr. Little, nothing has excited such an amount of general and painful interest as the attempt which was made on Thurs day evening to deprive an unoffending man of his life, for the purpOse of gaining possession of some -.CB or £9 worth of wearing apparel. This was a thing so foreign to Irish crime, which is generally characterised by the wild justice of revenge,' that even the slowest of comprehensions could perceive that a foreign agency was at work when murder was sought to be carried on with profit, and re duced to the system of a mercantile speculation. All Dublin was alive yesterday to the horrors con tained in the narrative, which was given in the Freeman's Journal, of the most diabolical attempt ever placed on record in this country of a conspi racy to make an ordinary transaction of mercan tile business the means by which murder and rob bery could be perpetrated. Men and women were to be seen in groups in the streets discussing this occurrence, happily novel in this country. Per sonages in high places wondered at the terrible daring of the scheme, which only failed in its perfect success by the fact of the associates of a juvenile assassin failing to be present to assist him in the atrocious deed. It has been already stated that if the porter (Mulholland) had arrived at the time when he was expected, his quietus would have been made, and his body would have been paved into the pit prepared for it.' Fortunately for himself he lingered on his way, and thus escaped the doom of being too early.' " For some time past a number of the English swell mob have attracted the attention of the detec tive police. These parties have been closely watched, but notwithstanding the vigilance of the police, a number of portmanteaus, travelling bags, &e., be longing to persons passing to and from England, have been stolen. Railway companies attributed to foreign imported genius' the loss of a great deal of valuable property, which loss should justly be attributed to a looseness in the transit manage ment of luggage traffic. During seine months past the losses sustained in this way were so many and so great that the police were induced to exert all their energies to discover the plunderers, but were quite at fault in trying to account for the cumber of railway robberies which were reported to have oc curred. Ordinary up and down trains, mail trains, and express trains, were closely watched with lynx eyes; hut it was forgotton that the dexterous thief could dress himself as like a gentleman as possible, swagger on a platform, or appear hurried and ex cited on the street-way as if urged on by honest business, at the same time his object being to seize upon and carry off the luggage and goods of un wary travellers. At length a number of fast' looking individuals, dressed extravagantly in the prevailing mode, and wearing a quantity of showy trinkets, excited the suspicion of the ' detectives,' and, as has appeared from the police reports, several of them have been arrested, and a large quantity of valuable property traced to their poisession. A young man, the son of a respectable trader in the city of Dublin (the name it is advisable to suppress for the present), was remarked to he frequently in the company of those parties. But the parents of this young man being known to be so respectable and above all reproach, he was not suspected of being in collusion with the dubious persons. In quiries were instituted into his character and ante cedents, and it transpired that he had received a liberal, even a collegiate education, and had been destined for a profession. This fact, in addition to other circumstances, disarmed all suspicion. This was the young man who hired the stable off Black ball-parade—who dug the grave, and at tempted to murder Mulholland. This young man was of studious habits, and was wont to pore over the romances of Dumas and Sue in secret, even ,on the roof of the house where he dwelt, in order to escape detection. Doubt less, imbued with the prurient ideas of this school of vicious romance, he received the notion of esta -1 blishing a novel system of murder and robbery, perhaps incited by his cosmopolitan acquaintances. The stable was hired by this young man through the medium of a go-between' in the person of a boy who has been arrested, and is now in police custody. The honest, industrious father of this youth repudiated him, but his mother, influenced by kindly and maternal feelings, sought to reclaim him, and one of the things which led to the dis covery of his perpetration of the diabolical attempt to deprive a fellow-creature of life was a kind and affectionate letter, written by his afflicted mother, in which prayers for his conversion were more apparent than blame for his previous misconduct. The poor mother besought this misguided young man to abandon his evil courses. She told him that his father's house was open to him if he entered in a proper spirit. The poor woman, well knowing that her handwriting would be recognised by her unhappy son, did not affix her signature to the letter, which was discovered in the morocco-leather pocket-book, wherein were also found the gun powder and percussion caps intended for the de struction of the victimi On this letter being shown to the afflicted woman she admitted at once that it was written by her hand, and had been addressed by her to her unworthy son. Two pawn-office duplicates were also found iu the stable, which, in conjunction with other testimony, placed beyond doubt the identity of the assassin, who, it is stated, "laB spent no small part of his life in America and , in England. On the alarm being given on Thurs- ' day night of the attempted murder, Mr. Superin tendent Ryan, of the G division, proceeded without a moment's delay to organise a series of cordons of police around every passage or outlet through which the culprit could escape from the city. Men were placed at every railway station and at every steamer about to start, either from the North-wall or from Kingstown, during the entire of yesterday, but it is feared, from the fol lowing circumstance, thl;t the assassin has gained an Alsatia' amongst his English confederates. Shortly before the mail-boar started from the pier at Kingstown, on Thursday evening, the coal trimmer, who had been engaged in coaling the steamer about to start, saw a young mft,rushing down near the St. George Yacht Club-house . ; An the direction of the pier. He was deadly pale, and in a state of great excitement. He inquired if a steamer was about to start for England. He was answered in the affirmative, and, from the descrip tion given of him by the parties who saw him, there was little doubt that he was the person who had fled from Dublin after having failed in his projected attempt at murder and robbery. The electric wires have been actively at work in the service of the police, and, doubtless, during the course of this day or to-morrow, the inventor of one of the most terrible and villanous schemes for the perpetration of a series of murders and robberies in the centre of a populous city, will be in the hands of justice to answer for his misdeeds." POLICE INTELLIGENCE—Dec. 31. SOUTH WA RR.--SKITTLE dressed young fellow, of rather gentlemanly ap- pearance, who gate the name of Joseph Hobbs, vtas charged with being concerned, with two others not in custody, in defrauding Samuel Bell of four sovereigns and a valuable gold watch and chain under the following circumstances : _ The prosecutor, a simple-looking man, said that in July last he kept a beershop in Harper-street, New Kent-road, which he had a desire to get rid of. About the 6th of that month the prisoner came to the bar, and, witness served him with a glass of ale. While he was drinking it he asked whether he wanted to part with the house, and on being ansvveted in the affirmative, he told him that he knew of a tnistomer, and he could introduce him to the party if he went with him. Witness consented, as he believed the - prisoner to be a respectable man, and they went to a beethouse in Long-lane, Ber mondaey. He (the prisoner) said that the party was not there, - when he quitted that place and went to another beerhottse at Star-corner. They entered the parlour and had some ale, the prisoner telling him that the party would be sure to meet them there. While they were there two men entered—one like a- sailor, and the other had spectacles on. They had some ale, and one of them said he was a good shot with a rifle, and be would not mind shooting with anybody for a£s note. The one with spectacles on said he had just come up from the country, but he would bet him anything that he would hit the bull's eye 18 times out of 21. A bet was made for five dozen of stout, and they asked witness to go with them to see fair play, and help them to drink it. Prisoner advised him to go, saying he would be sure to sell his house for him. He consented to go with them, and after traTersing several streets they passed through the turnpike, and went into another beer house, in which was a skittle-ground. Witness ex pressed his surprise at this, as prisoner said that the rifle gallery was there, but in explanation he said that the house had been altered since he was there last, and he advised a game of skittles. It was ultimately arranged that he and the prisoner should play against the other two men, and in a very short time witness lost four sovereigns. After that they played several games, and he staked his watch and chain, and lost them. He played £5 against his watch, and £5 against the chain. Mr. Burcham asked if the prisoner lost as well as he did. Witness replied that he did, and apparently paid over money to the others, but he suspected that it was all flash money, and that they all acted in con cert to defraud him. As soon as he had parted with the watch and chain, the other two men left the ground, and the prisoner said he suspected they were skittle-sharpers, and he would go and stop them. He also went out, and witness 65119 nothing more of him until Saturday afternoon, when he met him in the Borough, and as soon as he saw witness he took to his heels, but the constable pursued him and took him into custody. The prisoner here seemed anxious for the appear ance of his solicitor, whom he hati sent for. Mr. Burcham said that if the prosecutor had not more evidence against him, there was nothing that he could interfere with. He asked the prosecutor if he had related all the circumstances to him ? _ _ _ Complainant replied that he had, but if he was remanded for a few days, no doubt his companions could be apprehended. The prisoner was known to be a notorious skittle-sharper. Mr. Burcham told him he could not remand the case under the circumstances, as it was similar to four men playing at whist, and two losing. He must, therefore, discharge the prisoner, but he should caution him to be careful or he would be caught in his own net. WESTMINSTER.— MORE MILITARY OUT RAGES.—George May alias Harris, and William Wheeler, privates attached to the Military Train, were charged with the following various offences : Henry Emmons, 15, Leader-street, Chelsea, tripe dresser, said between half-past 11 and 12 on Satur day night Harris came up to his shop, dashed his hand through a pane of glass, and took out from the window a piece of glass which he threw to Wheeler, who then also broke a square of glass. Prosecutor followed them to the house of a neigh. bour, Mr. Valens. _ _ Alfred Valens, 80 Leader-street, Chelsea, grocer and cheesemonger, said that shortly before twelve on Saturday night he heard cries of " Murder," and immediately afterwards Harris made his uppear ance, took up a large piece of bacon, and wantonly dashing it into a case of eggs broke about 200, to the value of £l, and the prisoners also broke two squares of glass. They then laid hold of prosecutor, and Wheeler held him while Harris struck him repeatedly, calling out " Kill the ; dash the front of his about four years ago Harris came to his shop and obtained some bacon for which he refused to pay. The neighbours on that occasion punished him severely, and one of his comrades received 14 days' imprisonment ; asd Harris referring to that, said on Saturday it was his turn now, and he would murder every one. _ _ Alfred Jones, 20, Leader-street, oil and colourman, proved that the prisoners also visited his shop, and, breaking the windows, threw out into the road and destroyed £2 worth of starch, washing powder, &c. William Lucker, shoemaker, in the same street, also proved that they broke his windows. Mr. Paynter asked if a woman was present who had been assaulted by Harris. The police intimated that she was not, but A witness stood forward and said she had been seriously assaulted without any provocation what- . - ever, and Police constable Connell said Mr. Valens had bled copiously from the effects of the punishment given by Harris. It having been intimated that Harris had fre quently been in prison under the name of May. A constable from Shooter's-hill station (h divi sion) produced a warrant for his apprehension for manslaughter, signed by the coroner for Kent. They were remanded till Thursday. SMASHING EXTRAORDINARY.—Jane Dyer and Simm Connor were prosecuted by the Solicitor to the Mint for wholesale uttering of - counterfeit coin. It appeared from the evidence of Henry Leeson, barman to Mr. George Eason, the Queen's Head, Marsham-street, that the prisoners came in together on the 22d ult, for some beer, and Dyer afterwards called for some gin and tendered a bad shilling, which was detected, and she was seen to take out another, upon which a policeman was fetched. Dyer then held her hand out to Connor behind her, but the barman placing his hand there, received a glove, which was afterwards found to contain 16 counterfeit shillings and a counterfeit half-crown. They were committed for trial. FATAL RAILWAY ACCIDENT AT KIDDERMIN STER, YESTERDAY.—An accident of an appalling kind took place near the Kidderminster station of the West Midland Railway, by which a platelayer immediately lost his life. A fast train leaves Worcester at 10.25 a.m., Only stopping at Kidderminster for passengers booked to the north. Yesterday morning the weather was rather misty, and it was perhaps owing to this cause that the accident occurred. Thomas Smith, the platelayer in question, was on the Hoo Brook viaduct, a mile south of Kidderminster, when this train came up. He was evidently aware of its approach, for he had signalled to another man on the line below him to get from between the metals. He himself, however, neglected to do so in time. The consequence was that the front part of the engino caught him, and he was hurled on to the line. The train immediately passed over him, cutting off his head and one of his arms, and otherwise mutilating his body in the most frightful man ner. The train was proceeding at the rate of about 3 5 miles an hour at the time of the accident, and was pulled up about a quarter of a mile from where it occurr ed , Death was, of course, instantane ous . An engine was sent from the Kidderminster station to pick up the poor fellow's remains, and they have been removed to an inn, where the inquest will be held, , L---- ---' .1 _ SIIIPPING , S TA l'iV i 7108. Messrs. Cunard, Wilso.l.. and- , 20. have issued the following annual circular :- " Liverpool and Londe it' f %hambers, Exchange, ~ Liverpool, A tee. 31, 1860. " Sir,—The sales - . of sailing i , hips at our port may be reported as fullyr equal tot lose in 1859, but we mar l are unable to quote any d advance in prices. In one or two excepti on al ca .we have obtained as much as L 9 per t o n register fq r very superior new British colonial-built ''easels, el assed A seven years; toted at from £8 to but the general price may be 41 £8 15s. per ton, a" 'shown by 4 he sales of 15 .view vessels during the vast mouth. T. he prices of Brith , sh... built high-classed vessels are sts.' ll lower than for some years past ; ata.K this, vrith tL'e high price of labour and material, hai ; caused ma.ny builders - 4 to , cease building for the market, and to lay down vessels only that have p reviously ban contracted.. for. Iron shipbuilding; it ; increasing, though gene rally only to order, and. a toderate''sized iron vessels.. suitable for China and the West Coast of America.. ar tt much inquired after.. Th e sales of such vessels dung the year produce sin, average rate of £l5 per ton, i builders' me.asuremi sot ; jind at this price we are still enabled to effect coo,fracts for vessels to be built by eminent builders, el, assed A 1, 12 years, at Lloyd's, with a complete EE% '-. India outfit. There are now 61 vessels l'or sale in I, his port; the greater number of which are colonial-W. , ilt, and their aggre gate tonnage is 29,408 W a g, I, Ting 12 ships and 8.480 tons less than on the 314. Dec., 1859. We shall have a larger supply of tie*' tonnage [from t he colonies, but only , a small propos •tion can arrive before August or September, and N Ye‘ ,do not appv hen d the whole will be more than nec&sary to meets the losses of the year and the rapidly .expanding trade of the country. Vessels from four .*o ten yearn old, both British and colonial-built, that h,,ave not yet lapsec: from their original class of A is are al ways in demand, and for those of a low, lr lass, suitable for carrying timber or cotton (o f which there are ver7 few for sale), there are, parti. tularly at this season, numerous buyers at advanced 1 vices. The steam tonnage . of the , United Kingdom*. has, within the hint five years, increased in a n 'tuck g reater proportion th an that of sailing vessels, and. in a much greater r atio than that of any ot,lier nation. While at thie end of 1855 it amounted to 88,956 tons, it imereas ed in 1859 to 389,515 to' ts, being about 35 per cent. more. There is app t rendy a tendency to substitute the rapid and corn:- paratively eertain power of steam for the more um certain power of wt . :n(3, and this tendency will be- - come stronger, should the 'various experiments fen economising fuel prove to be as successful as they are expected. A large business has bean done in_ the sale of steamers . .during the year; several im portant sales having' been made on foreign account. For the trade of our c ountry there has been a good demand, the increased traffic of some of the leading railways having indua ed an opposition by screw steamers, whereby both ,Purchasers and charterers have; been brought into tt'le market. With regard to the value of steamers fe r e mp lo y ment, we ma y quote the rates at which w.O have chartered steam ers during the year, which 'vary from 19s to 23s per ton gross per, month, on the Government form of: charter, and from 13s to 15s 6d per ton in cases. where the charterers pay all expenses, the boats being insured at the cost of the owners. For one very fine screw steamer we obtaii teel 16s 8d per ton." 1 , .../ 1• % COUNTRY MA BE ..ETS. - COLCITh.ISTER—DEc. 29. A short show of wheat, in good condition, and buyers still evincing more eagerness to purchase. Best wheats in brisk demand, and prices may be quoted at 2s above late rates ; inferior .samples were at fovmer quotations. Fine malting barley in improved demand, and is dearer. In ferior sorts unaltered, with a fair trade. Wheat, white ... , 60s to 68s Beans, Mac&agan.. 36s to 425 red 44s to 60s I Middle & small 44s to 50s Barley . 40s to 50s I White peas . 48s to i2s Oats 22s to 288 Grey.. 42,3 to 48s NORTHAMI'TON—DEc. 21. At this corn-market to. day wheat was in n adling sup ply, with a fair demand, prices ranging from 64s to 68s for white, and, 52s to 60s for red. In barley a good business malting 401 to 445, grinding 32s to 35s per qr. Data in small supply, and prices as before—quoted at 24s to 38s pet 24 stone.. Beans, old, Ms to' 565; peas, 44s to Ms. Rye, 37s toy t2s ; malt, 68s to 72s ; flour, 33a to 31s per sack CHELMSFaItIi—DEc. 28. A fair supply of wheat was brought into the market to day, and best samples realised is to 25 over former curren cies, inferior ls. Fine barley iii request for malting, and is up. Old beans and peas the Ulm dearer. Wheat, white.... 43. to 64. I Yea k i, Partridge 431 to 44e red...... 525 to 64s WlAte 43e to 465 Barley Chevalier ....365 to 465 Dun... 395 to 42% G r i n di ng 31s to 385 Beans, Tic •• • • 388 to 463 Malt 61510 67. H arr ow Lclui 395 to 490 Chevalier 64S to 690 Mazagan.......325 to 435 Oats .. 26s to 31s KIRK ALDY—Dme. 29. We had a large supply of barley to-day, but R.lnall of oats and wheat. Salim were ready, and prices were le over late rates. Wheat Barley Oats First.... 364 40d 32s Od 23s Od Second . . 56s Od 42s Od 28s 6d Third .. 66s ed 46s Od 30s Od T o y, at the close of the market COAL MARKET—Dm. 31. trrtoes of Coal pksr . d • 8. d. 8, Davison's West Hart- , IHastings Hartley ....17 6 ley ....17 6! Buddle'sWest Hartley 17 6 • --- Holywell 18 6 liet.ton 24 0 Byass's Bebside West Belmont • 23 0 Hartley —l7 3 South Durham. 22 6 Wylam.... 19 6 IV:eugn Hall 24 0 Ships at market, 2 , .'-'; sold, 15. Walls End. .711 E MAIL.S. MAILS DUE. nstralia, Ceylon, and Mauritius (via .South ampton) .. Jan. 18. Do. (via Marseil:es) Jan. 12. Brazil and Cape Verde „.. Jan. 4. Buenos Ayres, Monte Video, &c. .. • Dec. Bahamas and Havana (via New York) .. Deo. —• Cuba and Mexico .. • . Dec. 29' Canada, &c. (via Galway) Dec. Cape of Good Hope, &c. Feb. 1. China, Penang, and Singapore (via S'ampton) Jan. 2. Do (via Marseilles) Jan. 12 Gibraltar (via Southampton) Jan. '2 India(Calcutta), Ceylon, &c. (via Southampton) Jan. 2. Do. (via Marseilles) Jan. 12. India (Bombay), (via Southampton) .. Jan. 10. Do. (via Marseilles) Jan. 4. Lisbon .. , • • • .. .......................Jan. Malta, Egypt, and Men (via Southampton) .. Jan. 2. Do. . (via Marseilles) .. Jan, 4. Vigo, and Oporto .. Jan. 1. United States, California, &c. Jan. 31. Western Coast of Atrica, Madeira, Teneriffe .. Jan. 14. West Indies and Pacific, Carthagena, Cuba, &c. Dec. 29.. NOT SO FAR WRONG,—A schoolboy being asked% to define the word "admission," said it meant "sixpence. " Sixpence," echoed the schoolmaster, " what sort of a definition do you call that ?" " I don't know," replied the boy, "but I'm sure it said so on the bill at the show in the fair." " Yes," said another boy, " and children half price." THE FROST IN TnE LAKE DISTRICT--..KESWICK, - Dec. 29.—During the week the frost (severer than it has been known for the last 20 years) has been most intense in this vicinity. Skiddaw, Saddleback, the Catbells, and the amphitheatre chain of mountains visible from Keswick are shrouded in snow and ice, and the whole extent of 17Pes wentwater Lake, which is three miles long and one and a half in breadth, congealed by the frost, presents the appear ance of a vast marble floor, offering an arena for skaters which the members of the Skating Club would be delighted to find more south. From Friar's Crag to beyond Lodore, the cascade immortalised by Southey, the petrified stream has beau thronged, and on Friday and Saturday quadrille parties tripped on the lake to the accompaniment of the brass band of the Skiddaw Grays Rifle Corps. On Winder mere, which is also a pathway of ice, a melancholy accident happened on Friday. Robinson Martin, a young man 18 years of age, the son of the landlady of the Stag's Head, Bowness, and Thomas Benson, were crossing the lake from Bowness to the ferry, when, venturing on some new ice, where a boat had been drawn the night previous, they fell through and were both drowned. Benson has left a wife and family to mourn his untimely end. BIRTHS. CAR MICHAEL.—On the 27th ult., at Caatlocraig, P 0 1 ' 10 0 - shire, Lady Gibson Carmichael, of a BOIL ' COOTI4 —On the 23d ult., at Florence, the wife -of Byre Coote, Esq., of West Park, Haute, ofs.a Ro yal Navy, of the wife of the Fsirony...—FiOn gethraeld29Ath. Foley, Captain t c Lz t m ai i u ngton , daughter. „ r,s• M A RRIA” the 27th ult., at Twi c k en - BRADSITAW — HALKETT. — Oni,; ( ., of LilIC Ol llB4llll, to Twicken ham, Thomas Bradshaw,ot. the late Colonel Frederick Emily Isabella, only Guards. Halkett, Coldstream —finithe 26th ult., at the British Lega tion,PORTAL—DAUBUZ. George Raymond Portal, rector of Turin, the Albury, Surrey, 'Helensit' Mary Charlotte, widow of the ,q., of Killiow, Cornwall, and late William niece of his ExcellencyVa Sir James Hudson, K.C.B. I)EA1'IIS. Ews .—On the 30th ult., at Auerley Villas, Penge, " --I = ey , George Andrews, sq., late of Friday-street, city, a.lic. ed 2 0 3. i n the 29th ult., at Bath, Riehd. E s q., R.N., aged 75. PENNELL,—On the 29th ult., at East Moseley, Surrey, Wm. Pennell, Esq., aged 96. PEGLER.—Oa the 28th ult., at Islington, Stephen Pegler, Esq., aged 76. LONDON : Printed and Published by MURDO YOUNG, of No. l:2, Strand, Printer, at THE SUN Office, No. 112, Strand in the Precinct of the Savoy, in the County of Middlesex Tuesday, January 1, 1861. I I