The Sun. — London, England, 1861-12-27 00:00:00

THE SUN LONDON, FRIDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 27, 1861. AMERICA. LIVERPOOL, DEC. 26. The steamer North American, Captain Borland, 'which left Portland on the 14th inst., and called vff Londonderry last night, has arrived here. The City of Baltimore, from New York on the 14th, is also off the port, but, at the present w r iti ng no papers have been obtained from her. Our latest New York journals are consequently those of the 13th inst. They were actively canvassing English sentiment upon the Trent affair, as shadowed forth in the papers taken out from South ampton by the Hansa, on the 28th ultimo. The Anglo-Saxon, with additional details, was overdue at Portland; and the Europa, with the instructions to Lord Lyons, would probably reach Halifax on the 14th or 15th, as she passed Cape Race on the 13th at eleven a.m. The weather at the time was heavy, and her news could not be obtained by the news boat of the Associated Press. The New York Herald talks largely of "British bluster," and of the " sober second thought," and predicts that the British Government will lay to heart the recommendations of the Peace party. The New York ?imes also argues that after the first outburst of indignation in England a reaction had set in, it being almest unanimously acknow ledged by the English journals that America had the law on her side. The Times concludes as follows ; " There will, undoubtedly, be a good deal of genuine smarting under what may be looked upon as an insult and an injury. Let us allow something for this. It is just to leave a margin for feelings natural to a proud and imperious nation. Local sentiments and associations are always more potent than general convictions. But, making due allowance for this, we take final stand on the acknowledged rectitude of our position. If popular passion is to be allowed to contravene a right in the law of nations, we accept any issue that may result. Of course, the status cannot be restored, the rebel emissaries can never be surren dered. But if there be any ground of complaint, arising from any irregularity in our procedure, there will be perfect readiness to make all due reparation. lire have committed ourselves to nothing that hin ders our doing so with entire dignity. If England meets us in the same spirit, there will be no chance of our quarrelling over Messrs. Mason and Slidell." The New York World says Americans can afford to be unmoved spectators of the bluster of the Eng lish populace and press, inasmuch as they have right on their side. It concludes as follows : "Although nothing serious is likely to grow out of this transaction, it is to be regretted that the English press is inclined to make it the occasion of exciting an embittered popular feeling towards this country. It will be more difficult to preserve amic able relations between the two countries after a transaction which so touches and irritates English national pride. But the English Government has too much prudence to drift into war on an inconsi derate popular excitement, which ceuld have no existence but for popular ignorance of the legal questions involved.' The Journal of Commerce says : " We regard the news from England as decidedly satisfactory. We have accounts of only one day's occurrence after the arrival of the La Plate ; but that day affords abundant evidence that the English people will recognise the law of the case as laid down by us, and that, while we shall hear of consi derable excitement, we shall have no trouble from the Mason and Slidell affair. The people talk, but the London Times—the great leader of the anti- American interests—gives up all idea of founding a quarrel on it, and concedes the American right." The journal then reviews the arguments which were being advanced in England, the Liverpool indignation meeting, &e., and concludes by expres sing its satisfaction with the appearance of affairs, and reiterating its belief that no one need apprehend future trouble. The New York Herald says " The Canadians are becoming excited about the chances of a war with the United States, and a general call to arms seems to be the order of the day. Volunteers are being drilled with greater exactness and constancy than heretofore, and certain of the storekeepers, especially those of Montreal, have agreed to close their stores at one o'clock on Saturday afternoons, to enable their young men to have extra time for military duties. The Seden tary Militia are to be called out, and one journal intimates that nearly 200,000 men could be raised in a very short space of time. Regular troops are marching from one part of the provinces to another, and a party of sappers destined for Toronto arrived at Quebec, having marched between that city and Halifax, Nova Scotia, overland, in ten days and two hours. Gen. Williams, of Kars, and his staff, have been engaged inspecting the old, and in superin tending the erection of new fortifications along the whole Canadian frontier, and left Toronto on the 10th for Montreal. Lieut.-Col. Robertson, however, remains to superintend the erection of the new works of defence at that place." The _Richmond Enquirer says that the Southern Congress, while in session, passed a bill admitting Kentucky into the Confederacy. The admission is complete, as commissioners were appointed at Rus sellville, and empowered to act in behalf of Kentucky. A bill has been introduced into the Confederate Congress, prohibiting the importation of negroes from Africa, The Alabama House of Representatives has passed a bill legalising the suspension of specie payment by the chartered banks of the State. The report of the superseding of General Price by General Heath is denied. The Governor of Mississippi has made a call upon the inhabitants for arms. A St. Louis telegram says :—" The Mississippi and Missouri Rivers have been placed under mili tary control and surveillance, and no boat will be permitted to take freight or passengers except those authorised and commissioned by the proper military authority. " Late news from Price's army place him still at Osceola, with 10,000 or 15,000 men. He has 53 cannon, and lately received 2,500 new tents. His men are well armed and clothed." A Cincinnati despatch states the town of Nash ville, Tennessee, was in a high state of excitement on the 6th and 7th inst., owing to an attempt being made to draft citizens into the army. The indigna tion of the people 11',12 intense. A riot broke out in the MI Ward, and four policemen, who attempted to quell the mob, were shot dead. The mob rushed to the Capitol to attack Governor Harris, fled to Nietophii4. The p;.peri:on the next day annoonced that he had g:me thither on lmsiness. The hospitals at Nashville are filled with the sick. The number was estimated at from 8,000 to 10,000. The p reva ili ng diseases were smallpox and pneumonia. The troops from Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi suffered most. LIVERPOOL, THURSDAY. The City of Baltimor e i s in the river. Papers just received. The Neu, Fork Journal of the 14th contains p' th e following disp a t ch, dated W ashingt", " Our Government entertains the fullest contia 11 cc that the natural but temporary indi g natio n m anifested by portions of the English pe o p le in reference t o t he seizure of the traitors, Mason and Slidell, on board of a British vess e l, will scon be allayed, and that upon calm reflection and a complete understanding of the facts and the law, they will rise above the dictates of passion and prejudice. Tho Pre sident and Cabinet are agreeably surprised to-day at the mild tone assumed and the sensible view taken of the sub ject by the Thunderer,' and expressed by the speakers at the Cotton Mart meeting, as announced by the arrival of the steamer Hansa from Bremen. They perceive in these indications an appreciation of right and a sense of justice of the act, which must overcome all the prejudice which at first caused the affair to be regarded as an outrage on the British flag. The danger of an interruption of the amicable relations subsisting between this Government and Great Britain is daily decreasing. The immediate prospect of the sumption of the exportation of cotton, under the auspices of the Federal Government, cannot fail to produce a reac tionary feeling towards the United States among the British masses ; and the candid acknowledgment of English jurists that Commander Wilkes only did right in boarding the Trent corre an d wresting the rebel commissioners will give a et tone to public feeling there on the subject." The New p ork Herald of the 14th thus repre sents the [Situation at that date : ‘ . 3 , rhe °facia to .me late brillisarteinof General Harvey Brown relative t at Fort Fiekens is a pain, sue cinct, and soldierly statement of the whole affair, and con firms it as an undoubted victory for the Union arms. Fort Pickens remains unhurt. Fort M'Rae was sadly st attered by our fire, and the town of Warrington and put of the Pensacola Navy Yard were burned. Only six m( nin Fort Pickens were hurt. General Brown has sugges cd in his re port several points gathered from his experien 'e in this ac tion. One is that James's rifle projectiles are ecmparatively useless, that the Parrot gun is much preferable, and that if he had had the latter piece at the fort he would have utterly demolished the enemy. He further says, that gunboats drawing only six feet of water, and armed with rifled guns, can do more service in these waters than a 40 gun ship or such vessels as the Niagara and Richmond. Sailing ves sels he declares utterly worthless in enforcing a blockade. The conduct of our soldiers:and sailors during the two days' hard firing receives the warmest encomiums of General Brown. " A delegation of the Irish Brigade had an interview with the President, and presented a memorial, signed by every officer in the brigade, requesting the appointment of Colonel Thomas Francis Meagher—who had raised all the regiments and organised the brigade by his personal exer tions—to the rank of Brigadier General, 4, Intelligence from Frankfort, Ky., reached Cincinnati yesterday that the Union men were in hourly expectation of an attack by a force of rebels numbering from 8,000 to 15,000 men, while only 5,000 Union troops were there to resist them. General Thomas was pressing on to take the rebel Zollicoffer in the rear ; but from reports just received that the latter was retreating, after some short picket fight ing, it was feared that General Thomas would not succeed in outflanking him. General Crittenden was said to be at Cumberland Gap with 15,000 men. The rebels have taken possession of the town of 0 wensville, Bath aunty, and after driving out all the leading Union men completely de vastated the place. " Our news from Missouri is interesting. Twelve of the mortar boats attached to the Mississippi Union squadron left St. Louis for Cairo on the morning of the 10th. There are in all 38 of these boats to be attached to the flotilla. " From St. Joseph, Mo., Dec. 12, we have intelligence that General Prentiss' command was to move from Platte city to Richfield on the 11th. A rebel camp, numbering 3,000 is repotted near Albany. " A rumour reaches us that the rebel government had decided to send to Europe Messrs. J. C. Breckinridge and Hunter, of Virginia, by the Cunard steamer Canada, from Halifax, the name of the former traitor being substituted for that of Pierre Soule—which was mentioned before in the same connection ; but that our Government having been informed of this intention, warned the agents of the lino against conveying the rebel emissaries, and that passage for these individuals was accordingly refused. This report comes to us from Halifax, and it is stated that Mr. Cunard denies that he has received any such warning." The following additional despatches had been published : " Mr. SEWARD TO MR. ADAMS. " Department of State, Washington, July 21, 1861. "Sir,—Your despatch of June 28 has been received. " I have already, in a previous communication, informed you that this Government has not been disturbed by the action of the British authorities in sending three regiments into Canada, nor by the announcement of the coming of British armed vessels into American waters. These move ments are certainly not very formidable in their proportions, and we willingly accept the explanation that they proceed from merely prudential motives. " Doubtless it had been better if they had not been made. But what Government can say that it never acts precipi tately, or even capriciously ? On our part the possibility of foreign intervention, sooner or later, in this domestic disturbance is never absent from the thoughts of this Go vernment. We are therefore not likely to exaggerate indi cations of an emergency for which we hold ourselves bound to be in a measure always prepared. "Another subject which, according to your report, was discussed in your late interview with Lord J. Russell, de mands more extended remarks. I refer to the portion of your despatch which is in these words His lordship then said something about difficulties in New Granada, and the intelligence that the insurgents there had passed a law to close their ports. But the law officers here told him that this could not be done as against foreign nations, except by the regular form of a blockade. He did net know what we thought about it; but he had observed that some such plan was said to be likely adopted at the coming meeting of Con gress in regard to the ports of those whom we considered as insurgents.' " Much as I deprecate a reference in official communi cations of this kind to explanations made by Ministers in Parliament, not always fully or accurately reported, and always liable to be perverted when applied to cases not con. sidered when the explanations are given, I nevertheless find it necessary, by way of elucidating the subject, to bring into this connexion the subject of a debate which is said to have taken place in the House of Commens on the 27th of June last, and which is as follows : " ' Mr. H. Berkeley asked the Secretary of State for Fo • reign Affairs whether her Majesty's Government recognised a notification given by Senor Martin, Minister Plenipoten tiary to this Court from the Gradian Confederation, better known as the Republic of New Granada, which announces a blockade of the ports of Rio Hacha, Santa Maria, Sava nilla, Carthagena, and Zaporte, and which Government did her Majesty's Government recognise in the so-called Gra nadian Confederation.' " Lord John Russell said, ' The question is one of consi derable importance. The Government of New Granada has announced, not a blockade, but that certain ports of New Granada are to be closed. The opinion of her Majesty's Government, after taking legal advice, is, that it is per fectly competent for the Government of a country in a state of tranquillity to say which ports shall be open to trade and which shall be closed ; but in the event of insurrection or civil war in that country it is not competent for its Govern ment to close the ports that are de facto in the hands of the insurgents, as that would be an invasion of international law with regard to blockade. Admiral Milne, acting on instructions from her Majesty's Government, hes ordered the commanders of her Majesty's ships not to recognise the closing of their ports.' " Since your conversation with Lord John Russell, and also since the debate which I have extracted occurred, the Congress of the United States has by law asserted the right of this Government to close the ports in this country which have been seized by the insurgents. " I send you herewith a copy of the enactment. The connecting by Lord John Russell of that measure, when it was in prospect, with what had taken place in regard to a law of New Granada gives the remarks which he made to you a significance that requires no especial illustration. If the Government of the United States should close their insurrectionary ports under the new statute, and Great Britain should, in pursuance of the intimation made, disregard the act, no one can suppose for a moment that the United States would acquiesce. When a conflict on such a question should arise between the United States and Great Britain it is not ersily to be seen what maritime nation could keep alosf from it. It must be confessed, therefore, that a new incident has occurred increasing the danger that what has hitherto been, and, as we think, ought to be a merely domestic controversy of our own, may be enlarged into a general war among the great maritime nations. Hence the necessity for endeavouring to bring about a more perfect understanding between the United States and Great Britain for the regulation of their mutual relations than has yet been attained. " In attempting that important object I may be allowed to begin by affirming that the President deprecates, as much as any citizen of either country or any friend of humanity throughout the world can deprecate, the evil of foreign wars, to be superinduced, as he thinks unnecessarily, upon the painful civil conflict in which we are engaged for the purpose of defending and maintaining our national au thori y over our own disloyal citizens. " I may add, also, for myself that however otherwise I may at any time have been understood, it has been an earnest and profound solicitude to avert foreign war, that nl , ll , liar emphatic and semetimpP, r p r i- o pc. I Made against siiv t.t.). 1,1 rProglliti,ol insilt.;_,Tlts by tho ..)1 , 1*11101,11( I f ( :CPO N , rite in now; .and- [invoke on the part of the -British Uoverupient, as I propose to exercise on my own, the calmness width all counsellors ought to practise in debates . which involve the peace•and happiness of mankind. " The United States and Great Britain have assumed in compatible, and thus far irreconcilable, positions on the subject of the existing insurrection. " The .United States claim and insist that the integrity of the Republic is unbroken, and that their Government is supreme so far as foreign nations aro concerned, as well for war as for peace, over all the States, all sections, and all citizens, the loyal not more than the disloyal, the patriots and the insurgents alike. Consequently they insist that the British Government shall in no way intervene in the insurrection or hold commercial or other intercourse with the insurgentS in derogation of the Federal authority. " The British Government, without having first delibe rately heard the claims of the United States, announced, through a proclamation of the Queen, that it took notice of the insurrection as a civil war so flagrant as to divide this country into two belligerent parties, of which the Federal Government constitutes one and the disloyal citizens the other; a n d, consequently, it inferred a right of Great Bri tai 4 n , to t i stand t m i n y a p n u a r t p t o i attitude of otfhithis time neutralityto vindicatebetw een thethemp.os i noorfisGirteamt y u ritapurposen thatto t a t s ttenpt ttoiosnhoofwthtoe the e ited States,Government posi tion is indefensible. t " The question at issue concerns the United States pri marily, and Great Britain secondarily andincidentally,lt is, as I have said before, a question of the integrity, which is nothing less than the life of the Republic itself. " The position which the Government has taken has been dictated, therefore, by the law of self-preservation. No nation animated by loyal sentiment and inspired by a gene rous ambition can over suffer itself to debate with parties, within or without, a policy of self-preservation. In assum ing this position and the policy resulting frcm it, we have done, as I think, just what Great Britain herself must, and therefore would do if a domestic insurrection should attempt to detach Ireland, or Scotland, or England from the United Kingdom, while she would hear no argument nor enter into any debate upon the subject. Neither adverse opinions of theoretical writers, nor precedents drawn from the practice of other nations, or even, if they could be, from her own, would modify her course, which would be all the more vigorously followed, if internal resistance should for tify itself with alliance throughout the world. This is exactly the case now with the United States. " So, for obvious reasons, I refrain from argument to prove to the Government of Great Britain the assumed error of the position it has avowed. " 1. Argument from a party that maintains itself to be absolutely right, and resolved in no case to change its con victions, becomes merely controversial. 2. Such argument would be only an indirect way of defending our own posi tion, which is unchangeable. 3. The position of Great Britain has been taken upon the assumption of a certain degree of probability of success by the insurgents in arms ; and it must be sooner or later abandoned, as that probability shall diminish and ultimately cease, while in any case that circumstance does not affect our position to the policy which we have adopted. It must, therefore, be left to Great Bri tain to do what we have done—namely, survey the entire field, with the consequences of her course deemed by us to be erroneous, and determine as those consequences develope themselves how long that course shall be pursued. " While, however, thus waiving controversy on the main point, I am tempted by a sincere conviction that Great Britain really must desire, as we do, that the peace of the world may not be unnecessarily broken, to consider the attitude of the two Powers, with a view to mutual forbear ance, until reconciliation of conflicting systems shall have becsrme in every event impossible. " The British Government will, I think, admit that so soon as its unexpected, and, as we regard it, injurious posi tion assumed in the Queen's proclamation became known to us, we took some pains to avert premature or unnecessary collision, if it could be done without sacrificing any part of the sovereignty which wo had determined in every event to defend. We promptly renewed the proposition which, fortunately for both parties, we had tendered before that proclamation was issued, to concede as one whole un divided sovereignty to Great Britain, as a friend, all the guarantees for her commerce that she might claim as a neutral from this Government as one of hor two imagined belligerents. It seems to us that these two great and kindred nations might decline to be dogmatic, and act prac tically with a view to immediate peace and ultimate good understanding. " So, on the other hand, it is my duty to admit, as 1 most frankly do, that the directions given by the English Go vernment that our blockade shall be respected, and that favour or shelter shall be denied to insurgent privateers, to gether with the disallowance of the application of the Rebel Commissioners, have given us good reason to expect that our complete sovereignty, though theoretically questioned in the Queen's proclamation, would be practically respected. Lord Lyons, as you are aware, proposed to read to me a de spatch which he had received from his Government, affirm ing the position assumed in the Queen's proclamation, and deducing from that position claims as a neutral to guaran tees of safety to British commerce less than those we had, as I already stated, offered to her as a friend. I declined, as you have been advised, to hear the communication, but nevertheless renewed through you, as I consistently could, the offer of the greater guarantee before tendered. " The case then seemed to me to stand thus:— The two nations had indeod failed to find a common ground or prin ciple on which they could stand together ; but they have succeeded in reaching a perfect understanding of the nature and extent of their disagreement, and in finding a line of mutual practical forbearance. It was under this aspect of the positions of the two Governments that the President thought himself authorised to inform Congress, on its com ing together on the 4th of July last, in extra session, that the sovereignty of the United States was practically re • spected by all nations. " Nothing has occurred to change this condition of affairs, unless it be the attitude which Lord John Russell has indi cated for the British Government in regard to an appre hended closing of the insurrectionary ports, and the passage of the law of Congress which authorises that measure in the discretion of the President. " It is my purpose not to anticipate or even indicate the decision which will be made, but simply to suggest to you what you may properly and advantageously say while the subject is under consideration. lst,—You will, of course, prevent misconception of the measure by stating that the law only authorises the Presi dent to close the ports in his discretion, according as he shall regard exigencies now existing or hereafter to arise. " 2dly,—The passage of the law, taken in connection with attendant circumstances, does not necessarily indicate a legislative convicticn that the ports ought to be closed, but only shows the purpose of Congress that the closing of the ports, if it is now, or shall become necessary, shall not fail for want of power explicitly conferred by law. When, on the 13th of April last, disloyal citizens defiantly inaugurated an armed insurrection by the bombardment of Fort Sumter, the President's constitutional obligation to suppress the in. surrection became imperative. " But the case was new, and had not been adequately provided for by express law. The President called military and naval forces into activity, instituted a blockade, and incurred great expense, for all which no direct legal pro visions existed. He convened Congress at the earliest pos sible day to confirm these measures, if it should see fit. " Congress, when it came together, confronted these facts. It has employed itself less in directing how and in what way the Union shall bo maintained, than in confirming what the President had already dono, and in putting into his hands more ample meant and greater power than he has exercised or asked. " The law in question was passed in this generous and patriotic spirit. Whether it shall be put into execution to day or to-morrow, or at what time, will depend on the con dition of things at home and abroad, and a careful weighing of the advantages of so stringent a measure against those which are derived from the existing blockade. " 3dly,—You may assure the British Government that no change of policy now pursued, injuriously affecting foreign commerce, will be made from motives of aggression against nations which practically respect the sovereignty of the United States, or without due consideration of all the cir cumstances, foreign as well as domestic, bearing upon the question. The same spirit of forbearance towards foreign nations, arising from a desire to confine the calamities of the unhappy contest as much as possiblo, and to bring it to a close by the complete restoration of the authority of the Government as speedily as possible, that has hitherto re gulated the action of the Government, will continue to con trol its counsels. " On the other hand, you will not leave it at all doubtful that the President fully adheres to the position that this Government so early adopted, and which I have so con tinually throughout this controversy maintained; conse quently, he fully agrees wish Congress in the principle of the law which authorizes him to close the ports which have been seized by the insurgents, and he will put into execu tion and maintain it, at the hazard of whatever conse quences, whenever it shall appear that the safety of the nation requires it. "I cannot leave the subject without endeavouring once more, as I have so often done Me: e, to induce the British Government to realize the conviction, which I have more than once expre:,secl in this correspondence, that the policy of the Government is one that is bared on the interests of the greatest importance and sentiments of the highest vir tue, and, therefore, is in no case likely to be changed, what ever may be the varying fortunes of the war at home, or the action of foreign nations on this subject, while the policy of foreign States rests on ephemeral interests of commerce or of ambition merely. The plicy of these United States is not a creature of the Government, but an inspiration of the people, while the policies of foreign States aro at the choice mainly of the Governments presiding over them. If, through an error, on whatever side, this civil contention shall transcend the national bounds and involve foreign States, the energies of all commercial nations, including our own, will necessarily be turned to war, and a general car nival of the adventurous and the reckless of all countries, at the cost of the existing commerce of the world, must ensue. Beyond that painful scene upon the seas there lie, but dimly concealed from our vision, scenes of devastation and desolation which will leave no roots remaining out of tvi i th - Orrat Britain, A, it et', cur srtitlA ,it. poir .4 H.M.S. SIAIOOM IN A MONSOON.—The following is an extract from a letter from a non .commissioned officer of the 60th Rifles in China to his friends in Glasgow : "H.M.S. Simoom, Hong Kong, Oct. 28, 1861.-1 wrote you before we left Ticn-tsin, saying that we were coming down here to stay till the end of the year, but instead of that we are to leave this in the beginning of next month for home in the Simoom. She is a very fine ship. We left Tien-tsin on the sth instant, and came down the river in a gunboat. We were all night in the river, and went on beard the Simon' the next morning. It was very cold, and rained continuously. We sailed on the 7th, and had a very nice passage up till the 11th. when it began to blow very hard, the sea rolling very heavy, and tossing us a good deal about. It continued up till Sunday the 13th, when they tried to turn the ship, or as sailors say, ' wear ship.' She then heaved on her side, turning everything that was lying loose all to one side of the ship. The tables and forms which were fastened went also. She did not right again for some minutes. At this time one of the ship's officers was thrown overboard, but he happened to catch hold of a rope that was hanging outside the vessel, and was pulled in cone the worse for his ducking. The storm continued up till Tuesday morning, the 15th, when it abated. We picked up the crew of the H. H. Chandler,' that, was wrecked the day before ; all hands were saved. She had left Hong Kong a few days before, and was caught in the storm and got wrecked. We arrived in Hong Kong the next day, and anchored off the town ; all our regiment is aboard, except l ea— o vb l eo : T rachyrdnedlta; ge. on leave.ashore hero Ther e t o a r l 150 that aro to go in some other vessel. We are not al lowed u E l,c e L h a A t . 8 0 ' n e t o it o r i l fi r L a a ' nyDfEo v 1 ; t obguetthtleareraet stout t e 7 s as o many men Roberts,Ar T s such h tohk a e, longAw wife Dovoyage."firaAT surgeon Battle, Sussex,LEWES.at has been brought to a ebro by Mr. Kell, coroner for the R a p e o f H astings. Mr. Watts , who . made ' the post mortem examin a ti on , stated that death ensued from effusion on the pericardium, and the jury returned a ver dict accordingly, adding that the conduct of the husband, Mr. Roberts, was highly censurable. - THE NA VY. The Lyra, 7, screw, Commander Alexander, has commenced dismantling in Portsmouth harbour, for paying out of commission. The Pandora, 5, screw, fitting at Portsmouth for service in the Mersey, yesterday bent sails, took on board her mooring anchcrs, chains, and buoy (which will be laid down for her use in the Mersey), spare sails, warps, tarpaulins, and other service stores. She also received her two 25 pounder Armstrong guns, with their equipment. A party of 40 men are expected to arrive at Portsmouth to-day from her Majesty's ship Majestic for the purpose of navi gating the Pandora round to Liverpool. Another party of men are also expected from the Majestic to take five of the second class reserve gunboats in hand, and fit them out for special service in the Mersey. A like party of men will also proceed to an eastern port to fit out five gunboats for coast service. The gunboats of the first class reserve at Portsmouth, officered and manned from the ships in harbour, and which form the advanced portion of the newly formed gunboat flotilla, are held in readiness to proceed to their destination—the coasts of Ireland and Scotland, on roceipt of sailing orders. The Balaklava, Ordnance screw transport, has arrived at Portsmouth with a heavy cargo from Woolwich, including eight 100- pounder Armstrongs, which have been specially sighted for service on the Warrior's main deck, be fore and abaft her armour plating. The ordinary mode of sighting the Armstrong gun renders it totally inapplicable for service through the ports of her main deck, owing to the narrowness of the ports, and the distance at which the sights are fixed from the centre of the line of metal. The Resistance, 22, iron screw frigate, at Chat ham, is now to be prepared for the first division of the steam reserve, Admiralty orders to that effect having been received yesterday. Although pierced for 22 guns, she will only be armed with 16 of the heaviest calibre, consisting of two 100. pounder Armstrong pivot guns on her upper deck, and two 100-pounder Armstrongs and 12 68-pounder 95- cwt. cast-iron guns on her main deck. At no former period, not even during the busiest portion of the Russian war, has more activity been observable in all the departments at Chatham Dockyard than at present; every mechanic and workman connected with the establishment, numbering in the aggregate close upon 4,000 hands, being fully employed, and the resources of the seve ral departments taxed to the utmost. The chief object of the officials is to get those vessels out of hand which are required for immediate active ser vice, including the Defence, 22, iron steamer; the Galatea, 26, 800 horse power; the Rattlesnake, 22, 400 horse power ; the Pylades, 22, 400 horse power; and the screw gunvessels intended to be sent to the principal ports of the kingdom. Every exertion is devoted to the completion of the Defence, the inte rior of which presents a most animated scene from the number of hands employed about her. It does not, however, seem at all probable that she will be got to sea till towards the end of next month. The intention of having four masts on board has been abandoned, and it has been decided to rig her for three masts, the mistake in that respect made with the Warrior being about to be repeated with the Defence, which will have to trust more to her sailing powers than either the Warrior or Black Prince. The Galatea is now completely rigged. This fine frigate, the tonnage of which is greater than that of many of our line-of battle ships, has been fitted entirely by the seamen, marines, and riggers belonging to the Defence. It is not yet known whether she will be commissioned, the Admiralty awaiting the news from America, but whatever the result she will be placed in the first class steam reserve, and as she is fully equipped, and the greater portion of her stores are on board, she will be ready to proceed to sea within a few hours after hoisting the pennant. The Galatea will leave Chatham harbour for Folly Point on Tuesday next. The Rattlesnake is to be ready for sea on the 16th January, and from the progress already made in her there is little doubt she will be completed by the date named. Her recent trial trip, which, so far as speed was concerned, was exceedingly satisfac tory, again demonstrated the fault observable in most of our 21 gun corvettes, such as the Orpheus, the Orestes, and others, of being down so much at the head, which renders them so uncomfortable to those forward. To remedy this as much as possible all her shot and shell will be stored, as far as practicable, aft. She will pre sent the novel appearance of having four catheads, rendered necessary to admit of the working of her Armstrong guns on the upper deck. The Royal Oak, 61 gun iron-plated screw frigate, constructing at Chatham Dockyard, is making very satisfactory progress, and the enormous teak plank ing on which the iron slabs will be fixed is nearly half completed. The slabs of iron which will form her covering are all of an uniform thickness of 41 inches, each plate being about 12ft. in length by 3ft. in width, and of the average weight of 4 tons. In order to do away with the necessity of fastening the armour-plates to the vessel's sides by means of iron bolts driven into the planking, by which it is calcu lated the timbers and planking will be very consi derably weakened, a plan has been submitted to the Admiralty of fastening eech plate on an entirely new principle, by which, although not a single bolt will be required, the plates will be held together more securely and solidly than under the old pro. cess. From the superiority of the plan proposed it will be adopted on tlw Royal Oak and the other vessels of her class building at the several Royal dockyards. Each of the armour-plates, before being rxed in its place, will be required to be bent to the shape of the portion of the frigate's side to which it w ill b e attached. To obviate the necessity of bend ing the huge plates hot, by which enormous fur naces would require to be erected adjoining the slip on which the Royal Oak is building, it is intended to bend each plate cold. To accomplish this, how ever, the most powerful hydraulic machines will be required, and some idea of the tremendous force necessary for this operation may be formed when it is stated that the machinery to be erected for this purpose is calculated to exert a pressure of some thing like 2,000 tons to the square inch. Her Majesty's paddle steamer Virago arrived at Falmonth on Tuesday for the purpose of taking in tow the Spider gunboat, which had been damaged by collision with the brig Alliance, and conveying her to Plymouth, whither they both proceeded on Wednesday morning. 11 cr iklqinty'tg steam screw corvstto RAtellite, 21, Capt..roltti:am, sailed lw Rio de .I,oiciio from Fal mouth oq Tuf.-415.1 , afternoou. 'rite following Appointments were made yester day at the Admiralty :—Lient. F. W. Egerton, to the Stromboli ; Lieut. Robert Pitman, to the Bac chante, additional for disposal; James Robertson, promoted to Master, and appointed to the Scourge; J. R. Abbott and John Hall (B), acting second class assist.-engins., to the Cumberland, as supernumera ries; W. P. Davis, acting second class assist.-engin. to the Indus, as supernumerary; W. T. Ray and I'. S. Blyth, acting second class assist.-engin., to the Fisgard, as supernumeraries ; W. APE wing and It. S. Lee, acting second class assist.-engins., to the Asia, as supernumeraries. EDMOND ABOUT ON PRINCE ALBERT S DEATH AND ENGLAND'S MO URNING. The brilliant French writer, M. Edmond About, is at present a contributor to the feuilleton of the Constitutionnel. We translate from that journal of Tuesday the following passage, which bears his signature " Have you remarked that phrase in the official publication of the English Government after the death of Prince Albert—' It is expected that all persons will assume a decent mourning?' " How much is said in a few words ! A whole treatise might be written on them. The Queen of a great nation has just lost her husband, and she hopes that in her three kingdoms every person will assume decent mourning. This is neither a decree, nor an ordinance, nor a command sent down from on high; it is a simple appeal to public sympathy, and at the same time a reminder of a social obligation. There is in the formula a mingling of dignity, confidence, and familiarity. You feel, from the very first word, that the dynasty which speaks is in the most cour teous, if not the most intimate relations with its subjects; that no one disputes its rights; that it has no declared enemies in the nation ; that it may rely on all occasions upon that loyalty without meanness which the English display with a sort of coquetry. You perceive a Queen who reigns and who does not govern ; a people which manages its own affairs, and fears all the less to be humble and submissive because it is sure to remain free; a coun try of tradition, of decency, and of decorum, go verned by manners even more than by laws. " We of course are proud of being French ; that is all settled. But there must pass away many years before our political manners are elevated to the high tone of those of England. Nothing is more unequal, more capricious, less logical, than our relations with the men who govern us. The French people conduct themselves towards monarchy as towards a mis tress. We embrace it, we beat it, we put it out of doors—we seek it out next day and cliii g around its knees. Yesterday we could find no name foul enough for it ; to-day we flatter it, not without blushing at our present baseness and our past vio lence. It is a question of passion and temperament. We adored Louis XIV. as a god, yet we flung mud upon his funeral cortege. There was too that bon homme of a king whose hand we clasped between both our own, full of respect for his coiffure and of admiration for his umbrella, yet he had to fly in the midst of hootings, honest man though he was in his own person. With what acclamations did we not deafen Lamartine upon the Place de Motel. de ' Ville ! Apollo himself descending upon earth to bring us harmony could not have been more wel come. Fourteen years after this splendid triumph Apollo pines in hunger, and the generous little jour nals follow him with the bitterest cries. " I have already assisted at some ovations, politi cal and otherwise. These blustering scenes fill me with a profound sadness. It is not jealousy—of that you may be certain. No ! t pity the recipient. I should rather see for him tue tokens of a decent' approbation, as they phrase it in London. He would then be exposed to less terrible reactions. " Suppose that our old ancestors had not left to us the Salic law, and picture to yourselves a Queen of France, young and fair, choosing for her husband a foreigner who would not be King. What a deli cious dream for this young Prince ! but also what an awakening after the honeymoon of his popula rity ! What pamphlets, what couplets, and what caricatures ! One of two things must happen— either this unfortunate man must shamefully fly to escape from our popular injustice, or he must try to crush our ill-will and to overthrow our laws. Prince Albert, for whom a decent mourning has just been asked and obtained yonder, has never been placed in this dangerous alternative. The nation received him politely, not as a stranger but as a guest; he rendered to England courtesy for courtesy ; he gave to the Crown numerous heirs, and created a family truly royal. Modest and deli cate, he kept discreetly within the pale of politics; his dearest study was the education of his children; in his hours of leisure he encouraged art and indus try so well that, after having lived more than twenty years near the throne, without ever having been popular, in the French sense of the terrible word, he dies regretted and esteemed by a great people, and his funeral is honoured by a decent On the part of the authorities the greatest energy still continues to be displayed for the relief of the late inhabitants, and I must particularly note the de voted sympathy which Torre dell' Annunziata has shown towards the poor fugitives, whose number I have not exaggerated. 'I he Exmouth, which was ,out under sail last Wed nesday to exercise the men,. went out, as I have already told you, yesterday to practice the Arm strongs and the other guns. The distances were 1,000 and 1,800 yards, and the firing was admirable, for, though the target was only a small flag, it was knocked to pieces. She now lies under my windows, but it is to he hoped will go into the Mole soon, as the south-west era are ter from pleasant here. Another frigate, and that belonging to the Italian navy, went out also on Tue sday to try her engines. She is now the Re Galan tuomo, but under the Bourbons was the Nemarca. kshe is a "converted" vessel, but I believe that the experiment has proved her rather a failure, and that 'or the future she will be reserved as an " instructiell" vessel, Her engines are far too weak, the funnel is I:,laced in the back part, up towards the stern, and see did not make more than four miles an hour. Con siderable activity is displayed in the dockyards, especially at Castellamare, where they are "con verting" two other frigates, the Etna and the Gaeta, and, indeed, another, the name of which I forget. Vesuvius has recruited successfully for Naples, and many strangers have arrived to see the sight, but, on the whole, the season will be bad. I am glad to report greater security in our streets, and would counsel Bologna to adopt the same mea sures which have been tried here. There has been no difference in the excesses committed in either place, but our National Guard, who do not fear being called thieftakers, patrol the city at night, and do good service. On Thursday night they arrested 17 thieves in a magazine on the Marina, concealed among fagots, and, on turning them over, found b number of stilettoes, crowbars, false keys, and stolen property. In the present state of the country the Government cannot do all; the people must help themselves, and the National Guard of Naples are entitled to great honour for the manner in which they have aided the levy, and in which they now guarantee our first necessity—public security. I fear to extend my letter, but one word about Borjes, who must not be confounded with the galley slaves and thieves who still afflict the country dis tricts. I have reports before me of his last adven tures, which read like a romance, but they are too long for your columns. All died with dignity. After passing two hours in a chapel, they were led out for execution. After embracing the Spaniards, who were 11, Borjes said, " Our last hour has come, let us die like brave Spaniards." Nine men were placed in line, Borjes among them. He repeated with a loud voice a litany in the Spanish language, to which the others responded, took off his scapu lary from his neck, holding it in his hand, and in a few moments all fell dead. Nine others were then led out ; two were Spaniards, and one, turning towards the public, demanded pardon for the evil he bad done. The seven Neapolitans beat their breasts. Many valuable papers have been found, among them instructions from General Clary, his private diary since he landed, and a letter from some lady in the Faubourg St. Germain. From his own notes Borjes was evidently disgusted with the brigandage prac tised by the defenders of Francis 11., with the cowardice of his chiefs, and, too late, was aware of the lying misrepresentations of which he and so many others have been the victims. " Langrois is an imbecile," be writes ; and again, " On the 25th of October Croceo and Langrous did not hear a ball whistle. I, with my men and two of the band of Croceo, sustained the whole combat. Crocco is a monster and a villain, whose only thirst is for murder and pillage." Borjes when taken was endeavouring to cross the frontier to have an interview with Francis 11., and to explain the truth of the situation. THE ARMY. A draught of the Army Hospital Corps, consist ing of three non-commissioned officers and 24 men, will leave headquarters, Chatham, this morning, and proceed to Woolwich, where they will embark on board the steamer Calcutta for Canada, to join the detachment of the Army Hospital Corps pre viously despatched from Chatham. The sth company of Royal Engineers, under the command of Capt. Gosset, will leave Chatham this morning for Woolwich, where it will embark with the other troops proceeding to Canada. The A battery, 4th Brigade Royal Artillery, will leave Christchurch, Hants, this morning, for the Camp at Aldershott. The horses and drivers will make a three days' march between Christchurch and the Camp, the remainder of the battery pro ceeding direct by railway. - THE CHANCELLORSHIP OF THE UNIVERSITY OF r CAMBRIDGE.-01MBRIDGE, Dec- 26.—1 t is announced this evening that the Duke of Northumberland has with drawn, so the Duke of Devonshire will come in without opposition. mourning." kTATB OF NAPLES. A letter from Naples, dated Dec. 21, says—The state of Vesuvius must be my excuse for so shortly again encroaching on your columns. Let me, how ever, condense my information as much as possible. The mountain has been in a state of greater or less agitation all the week ; but on Tuesday we had an other eruption, equal in magnificence to any I have yet witnessed. It was beginning when I despatched my last letter; as, however, the day wore on it in creased in power, and the same wonderful and beautiful effects which I have already described were again observable. At every shot that was fired by the mountain there rose a cloud of ashes in the form of a pine -tree, 'which filed off to the south as another shot was fired and another cloud arose. As the heavy-laden clouds escaped beyond the power which had expelled them, and as the aqueous va pour was condensed, we could see at intervals showers, nay stormsof ashes f illinglike avalanches on land and sea and still the black gorgeous masses roiled on towards Capri, obscuring the coast which lies opposite to Naples. Thunder and lightning, or the roaring of Vesuvius, and electric lights, were frequent incidents in this awful scene; the latter, shot up from the mouth of the crater to the summit of the dark cone, played about its involutions, and revelled, as it were, in the li cence of freedom—the daylight could not obscure its brilliancy. Towards sunset we marked that effect of colour which is only to be seen in southern latitudes, for then the mass of dark cloud which hung over Vesuvius and the entire bay was lit up with the most delicate roseate tints. Then came on gray eve and darker night, rendered still mere so by the electric flashes which continued to dance above Vesuvius. On the next morning I went down to Torre again. Alas ! it is a city on crutches ; many cripples have fallen, and many are falling. Profes sor Palmieri, the great Vesuvian authority, confirms the report of the elevation of the soil, and "hopes that the proprietors will not rebuild until the de pression which may be expected has taken place." Yet, with a fatuity which appears like madness, the people aro with difficulty held back from returning to their perilous a Yvellirrp, Tt 'l3 the fact that nen, 'ella Mat inora has bt trt to/Tilled to station soh dun thcri, tu pro int item all I call gather, the mountain was split from top to bottom, the fissure reaching far into the sea. Iu a few words I will show this. There are 11 craters above Torre del Greco, all emitting sulphurous vapours, and the largest is from 70 to 80 feet deep and 100 feet wide. From this point on the Bth inst., after heavy rumb lings and heaving of the surface, the ground was split open, and a fiery fissure was made almost to the outskirts of the city, through which the same unseen power passed, opening the streets and lay ing bare some parts of the former buried town, and then running into the sea. All this is evident to the eye. You see the fissures in all directions, and walk daintily at times lest you fall in, or lest some rickety building may come down. Yesterday the Exmouth, which went to try its Armstrongs, returned by Torre del Greco, and made the circuit of a whirlpool, now formed, which must be about 360 feet in diameter. It was boiling violently, and emitted a strong sulphurous odour. A boat 30 feet in length was let down and sent into the centre of the whirlpool, when it was turned ra• pidly round by the volcanic force beneath. The sounding gave 23 fathoms of water, and the plum met brought up sand and sulphur. From a part of the circumference a tail, so to call it, about 60 feet in width, runs away in the direction of Sorrento and is of a beautiful light green colour. All the water here was tepid, had strong sulphurous smell, and many fish have been destroyed. The precise elevation of the soil on which Torre stands is 1.12 metre, and I may observe that the gases which are emitted on land are stronger than those at sea, so much so that one man was killed on Wednesday, and several of my friends nearly fainted from paus ing near them. It is unnecessary to say that the principal element developed is carbonic acid gas. • The students in using their sticks (which they habitu ally carry) against the soldiers and police picked out—pro perly enough—the officers, and beat some of them yery severely. POLAND. The following is a copy of the " Narrative of Facts" which M. Voiekoff, the Marshal of the Mos cow Nobility, has been called upon to lay before the Emperor, and which, it must be observed, is signed, not by all the nobles studying at the University, but only by those who were personally injured by the soldiers or police in the disgraceful affair of the 24th of October. The following is a translation of this important document : " On the 12th (24th October) the students of our University were subjected to the most dreadful vio lence and insults from the police and gendarmerie. Personally aggrieved by this we come forward to your Excellency, as the representative of the no bility to which we have the honour to belong, to explain the circumstances and to beg of you to lay before the Emperor the unlawful conduct of his police, and to make him acquainted with the facts as they really happened. With this object we sub mit to your Excellency the following short narra tive, for the truth of which we pledge ourselves. " The closing of the St. Petersburg University was the first cause of the misunderstanding which ended so tragically with the catastrophe of the 12th of October. It produced the turbulent scenes of the 27th of September, which were followed by the closing of the two first classes of the Juridical Faculty. Afterwards a morn reasonable course of proceeding was adopted, and a petition to the Em peror resolved upon, praying for the opening of the St. Petersburg University and the alteration of several of the harshest of the new regulations which had caused great excitement among the students. After long deliberations, the scheme of a petition was approved by the students and by the superior officials. The latter held out the hope that it would be accepted through the influence of the curator, who was absent at the time, and that the high authorities would intercede with the Emperor for the fulfilment of its prayer. Relying upon this, the students ceased all agitation, and began to col lect signatures to the petition. Just then, Nicho las Vassilievitch Issakoff, the curator of the Moscow educational district, arrived, and refused not only to sign the petition, but even to read it. This re fusal caused renewed irritation among the students, which they manifested in a thoughtless and abrupt manner. On the night of the 11th a great number were arrested, and among them many who had taken no part in the meeting of that day. On the morning of the 12th of October the students as sembled, as usual, at the university, when suddenly the report was circulated that during the night about 20 students had been arrested in their lodg ing and withent came. All were seri:mily grieved by thi• ! n rw., . I *na the, stitdontF : do,iring to know the reason and all the particulars of the occurrence, began, little by little, to collect in the courtyard of the University, when each new-comer brought fresh information about the event. There were altogether about 400 present. They went to the curator to beg that he would tell them the cause of the arrests, but he refused to give any explanation on the subject. While the students were standing, deliberating, in the court-yard, not knowing what steps to take, an order arrived from the General Governor to send him a student named Gisemski. Some of those present called out, Let us go with him, and ascertain the fate of our comrades ;' when the whole body, without reflecting on the conse quences, proceeded towards the General Gover nor's. This was very imprudent, but no one thought that it would be looked upon as a demon stration.' Knowing the kind sentiments of the General Governor towards them, which had been manifested not only in words but also in deeds, and remembering that only a few days before he had prevented the police from molesting them on the occasion of their visit to the tomb of Professor Granoffsky, the students felt convinced that as long as they conducted themselves peacefully and made no noise or disturbance, the police would not inter fere with them, they resolved, therefore, to go to the General Governor's and to proceed there in the most orderly manner. No sooner had they left the court yard of the University than the police and gen darmerie, who had been concealed in the Excise house, followed them. The students walked with all possible order up the Makhovaia and the Iverskaia, and none of the authorities, either of the University or of the city, asked them to disperse; nor did the police attempt to impede their progress. At last they reached the Iverskai square and stopped before the house of the General Governor. Four students were sent in to inquire the reason of their comrades hav ing b ee n a.rrested. While these four were waiting to see the General Governor. the police and gen darmerie, wif 0 had been walking behind, came on to thesquare aid proceeded to surround the students on three sides. They then made a mo vemen t t o cu t them off from the General Governor's. Thestudents, who until now had remained perfectly quiet in front of the house, awaiting the return of their deputies, perceived that they were b. ing hemmed in. Un willing to be separated from their comrades, who as they supposed were laying their petition before the General Governor, they resolved not to suffer this, and said so to the officer commanding the gendarmerie, who was trying to force his way be tween them and the building. The officer, not wish ing to be subjected to personal inconvenience,* now that the gendarmerie were about to fall upon the students, retreated a few paces, and then cried out " Seize them, beat them." Upon this :signal the gendarmerie and police attacked the etudeots and proceed to maltreat and arrest them. A great disturbance ensued. Some of the students ran awe some submitted ; the r ema i n d er; i rri t a t e d by h of the police, who had n o t o nce t a b ) r - n , ality given them n otice to disperse, resisted the onslaught Now came for\ - vard infantry and cavalry, who hitherto had been concealed in the Tverskoi police station ; and, at the whistle of the khazalst, porters and peasants, who had been told beforehand what to de, rushed out of the courtyards, and with oaths and shouts, fell upon the fugitives. The students were now hunted through all the streets of the city. Wherever a student's cap was seen the police and gendarmerie fell upon their unhappy victims and illtreated them in the most inhuman manner. The gendarmerie pursued them at full gallop, seized them by the collar, or by the hair of the head, and, continuing to gallop, dragged them after them, with their legs and feet be ating on the stones. The re port was circulated am ong the people that the g,aihst the Emperor and. wanted to kill the General Governor. students had revolted a " ' What? against the Emperor !" cried the people. We will tear them to pieces.' _ _ " A report was also spread that the students wished to re-establish serfdom ; and many were assured that they were Poles who had risen against the Emperor; and pursued them on that account- At last the disturbance was at an end; and the , students, either scattered or surrounded on all sides by the police and gendarmerie, many of them wounded, were dragged to the Tverskoi police station. There was not room enough inside for the prisoners, whose number amount( d to 400. They were accordingly driven into the courtyard and there surrounded by police and gendarmerie, who were afterwards replaced by infantry and a, squadron of cavalry. Then only were seen the traces. of the energetic conduct of the police, resorted to without any cause on the part of the students. Beaten, with torn clothes, there they stood, and the groans were heard of those who were lying wounded. Besides the students who were taken in front of the General Governor's house, besides those who were caught in the streets and on the Boule vards, many persons had been arrested who did not belong to the University at all, and some of these had even received wounds. Although many of the students were released a few days afterwards, several dozens are still in the police-house. " In terminating our narrative of the lamentable events of the 12th (24th) October, we humbly beg your Excellence to lay before the Emperor this our true statement of facts, signed by 20 students be longing to the nobility of Moscow, who on that day suffered insults from the police." f Inspectors or superintendents of house porters. COUNTRY MABEL A )S. - iL NEWARK—DEc. 24. White wheat, new, 60s to 63s Barley, gTinding 29s to 318 Red do. 55s to 51s Oats, old, .. oos to 354 Old white 6oa to 63s New do 23 , to 27s Red do. 46s to 56s i Beans. 45s to 475, Barley, malting.— 328 . t0 39s ) Beans, new.. , 44s to —a Peas, 48s to 545. EDINBURGH GRAIN—DEc. 25. Wheat on the top 3s Od down .average Os 3d down.. Barley on the top 6d down . average Os ld down. Oats on the top Os 3d up average Os 3d down. Beans on the top Os 6d down average Os sd. up. Total Supply and Sales. Wheat ... 762 qrs Sold 495 qrs Barley... 1817 qrs Sold 984 qrs Oats 1456 qrs Sold 1020 qrs Beans l5B qrs Sold 73 qrs Averages per Imperial quarter. Wheat.... New wheat -12ths Barley 1 12 7 11-12ths Oats 1 6 4 5-12ths Beans .. 2 4 5 11-12ths CORK—DEc. 24. The following were the quotations this morning :—RA wheat, 22a Od to 29s 6(1; white, 2.5 a Od to 32s Od; barley 11s Od to 19s 6d ; oats, Ss Od to 14s Od. lELD—DEc. 24. - ket to-day, and high prices DERBY SMITH: There was but a email m, were obtained Beet 6d to 61d Veal 74d to 8A Mutton . 7d to 8d Pork Lamb Od to Od Rough fat, 4s 8d per stone. Hides, 3d to 41d ; calf skins, 5d to 6d. FOREIGN MAIL PACKET LIST. MAILS DUE. Australia and Mauritius, via Southampton. Jan 18. ' via Marseille's Jan. 12. Brazil and Capo Verds, by British packet. Jan. 4. Cape of Good Hope, Ascension, and St. Helena. Jan. 1. China, Penang, an, Singapore, via Southampton. Jan. 2. via Marseilles Dec. 27. Falkland Islands Gibraltar, via Southampton .... India (Calcutta), and Ceylon, via Southampton J an. 2. _._ via Marseilles.... Dec. 27. India (Bombay), via Southampton via Marseilles Jan. 4. Lisbon Malta, Egypt, and Aden, via Southampton . Dec. 26. via Marseilles Dec 27. Newfoundland ..Dec. 25 Oporto and Vigo . Dec. 21. U.,S. and British N. America, by Brit. packet.... Dec. 25. by U.S. packet.... by Canadian packet. Dec. 25. W.C. of Africa, Madeira, and Teneriffe Jan. 10. Bahamas, via Now York Jan. 16. Mexico ....Dec. 30. All parts of West Indies, including Chili, Peru, } Dec. 30. California,and British Columbia.. DESTRUCTIVE FIRE. Yesterday afternoon, shortly after 2 o'clock, a fire involving the loss of consi derable property broke out on the premises in the occupa tion of Mr. Pattenden, boot and shoe manufacturer, Brid ort-plat.c, Ifoxton. Although Esvcral pot-trial enginca rot ir..att:" 4 2"::c the ~ . ..f.nntr. cf the tircmen. 'were unavailing to do more than confine the fire to the premises in which it originated, and in an incredibly short space of time the whole of the stock in trade, household furniture, ire., were consumed, the building being, in. fact, completely gutted At the time of the occurrence Mr. Pattenden and the whole of his family were from home. The origin of the fire has not at present been ascertained. BIRTHS. CIIANDLEIt.—On the 24th inst., at Blackheath, Mrs. John Chandler, of a ;on. GILES.—On the 19th inst., at The Oaks, Wimbledon-park, the wife of Alfred Gil s, Esq., of a daughter. OLIVEIL—On the 24th inst., at Sydney House, Tunbridge wells, the wife of Captain W. B. Oliver, R.N., of a daughter. MARRIAGES. ELLIOTT— CILASTELAIN.— On the 24th inst., at Saint George's, Ilanover-square, George Elliott, Esq., 8.A., to Maria, widow of the late A. de Chastelain, Esq., of Church house, Merton, Surrey. ILDERTON—ROBINS.—On the 21st inst., at St. Mary Ab bot's, Kensington, Henryli. Ilderton, solicitor, of 12, Fen church-street, to Harriet Mary, fourth daughter of the late Thomas L. Robins, Es 1., of Oxford, Captain Royal Nary. DEATHS. BENNETTS.—Ou the 24th inst., at Islington, Mr. James Bennetts, engineer at the Times office, aged4s. BAINES.—On the 23d inst., at Boultwoods Stisted, Essex, John Fuller Baines, gentleman, aged 70. BENIGN.—On the 20th inst., at Slines Oaks, near Croydon Edmund B. Benyon, Esq., J.P., aged 56. HOWELL.—On the 19th inst., Sydney Howell, of 8, Glou- cester-street, Pimlico, aged 42. MAYHEW.—On Cnristmas-day, Thomas Mayhew, Esq„ Fairfield House, Saxmundham, Suffolk, aged 71. OXESHA3I.—On the 26th inst., at 4, Chester-terrace, Re gent's-park, Samuel Oxenham, Esq., aged 76. LONDON : Printed and Published by MURDO YOUNG, of No. 112, Strand, Printer, at Taz SUN Oboe, No. 112,8traud, ii the Precinct of the Savoy, In the County of Middlesex, Wriclay, December 27, 1861. ; • - r'ff • j t .~ J