The Sun. — London, England, 1854-12-26 00:00:00

4 I kj K - ' f';'( .) 7' G r 1 Yesterday being a holiday, the cotton and rail way markets at Liverpool were closed. The overland letters from India are expected to be delivered here on the 28th inst. The ship Phoenician from Sydney brings dates of August 26, and 5,250/. in gold. There is nothing of mercantile interest in the Continental letters. The accounts from New York by the steamer Africa are to the 12th inst., and are by no means of a reassuring character. The firms which have recently suspended payment have brought down other establishments, and the banks, which from their number, have been compelled to enter upon such a race of competition, and to foster mercantile enterprise to an extent verging upon speculation, have in turn experienced the severity of the pressure and the weakening of public confidence. That much of the reaction in the United States is due to the war must be palpable to all, although the defi cienc3- in the corn crops is an accessory cause. The relations of America and Europe are now so inti mate that however neutrality may be supposed to shield a country from danger, it is certain that it can not protect it from pecuniary loss. The idea has been a favourite one until within the last three months, that America had very little sympathy or concern with the gigantic struggle that is being carried on, but the rude monitors of dear money and failing banks has taught the contrary, and the Message of the President, redolent as it justly is of national prosperity, does not conceal the prejudicial charac ter of the interruption to peace. That there is anything iu the commercial position of the States to excite serious apprehension or regret we will not pretend to assert. They are substantially rich, thriving, and happy, and with a Government exchequer so amply supplied individual suffering L t. must certainly subside. It is to our side of the 1: Atlantic that more of the inconvenience will now 20 be transferred. The rate of exchange on bankers' P t ! bills had fallen ere the steamer left to 108 to 1081, St. and private bills were done as low as 106 to 1061. lg Making every allowance for the mistrust which has 126 created such a wide difference in the quotations for st 50 . drafts upon England, we must accept the fact 40 as one of a nature to check the exportation of specie 25 from New York as a matter of pro fi t , th ough we 2sst. may yet find bullion coming over as upon former 8121 occasions with a very depreciated exchange, solely St: from the difficulty of obtaining good bills. Then 50 as to the future, the sudden turn in the tide which 40 has just occurred must be due partially to artifi- 6 , cial circumstances. The pressure for money 2r in America induces all who have credits here, Vs whether against shipments of cotton or corn, to draw much sooner than they otherwise would do, and the liabilities which, under more normal condi tions, would be distributed over a longer period, become crowded into one much shorter. It follows necessarily that, when discharged, there will be a rebound, and that the exchange will advance as rapidly as it has fallen, and in the meantime a cau tious policy is indispensable. We notice among the failures that of an extensive dry goods' house at Boston, J. W. Blodgett and Company. The liabilities are stated at 2,000,090 dollars, and they are brought down by numerous smaller suspensions at the south. The firm did a good business with Canals. Three or four savings banks at New York had stopped, and the Cen tral Bank was unable to go on. A slight insight into the cause of this we obtain from a local jour nalist, who observes : " The Clearing House closed up another bank to-day. The Central Bank failed to make good its account this morning, and was therefore suspended. This concern has been putting up an elegant marble building on the corner of Broadway and Chamber-street, at an expense of about one hundred thousand dollars, equal to about one-third of its capital, and the probability is that it will, when com pleted, be occupied for some other purpose than that ori ginally intended. About a year ago, new banks were created at the rate of one per week, they are now suspend ing at about the same rate. We shall soon get back again to the old number. Bill holders of the Central Bank need be under no apprehension regarding their value. The re turns of this bank for the week ending the 9th instant, were as follows :—Loans, 301,172 dols. ; deposits, 186,249 dolts. ; circulation, 83,733 dols.—Specie, 22 , 405 dols. About Stocks and Shares the following informa tion is given " New York central stock still rules above the market value of the bonds, but it probably will not continue so long. The difficulty of getting large quantities of the stock when required, in consequence of its general distribu tion, deters sellers from putting out large contracts, and prices are therefore sustained much beyond its actual value. Holders are waiting patiently for a dividend. Their patience will soon be exhausted, when we may look for a greater supply of stock on the market. It was a long time before holders of Erie Railroad stock believed that investment was not the best on the list, and those who would not sell at 80 or 90 percent. have since sold at 40 and 50 per cent. It will be just so with New York Central. It will go down as fast as Erie, and ultimately reach as low points. It is now the highest railroad stock on the market, and it is the most inflated, overgrown corporation in the country. Its capital, funded and floating debt, amount to nearly forty millions of dollars, and will soon exceed that enor mous sum. It must break down from its own weight, and when it does collapse it will leave a sad wreck behind. From the time of the consolidation it has been going ra pidly to decay. Under the different companies the dif ferent stocks were kept at a premium, and large dividends paid, in some way, but since the amalgamation the ten dency has been downward, and the entire concern has be come dilapidated and diseased. Since the consolidation, twelve millions of dollars have been added to its indebted ness, without anything to show for it, and the roadway and rolling machinery are in such a condition that an ex penditure of from three to five millions of dollars will be required to place them in decent condition. The opinion is rapidly gaining ground that the New York Central 100 Railroad Company never will pay another dividend above two or three per cent. per annum from its net earnings." 100 In the funds there is scarcely any business doing, 29 the attendance in the Stock Exchange being al- 2 ways limited during Christmas week. Consols 20 have been marked 91i to g. Exchequer Bills aro no 4s. to 75., and India Bonds 9s. to 12s. premium. Bank Stock has been firm at 209. The New 3 100 100 per Cents. have been quoted 912 to 91i, the same 100 as Consols. Foreign Securities have been rather flat gene- 120 g rally, and more offered. Spanish Threes are 38a, 20 and the Deferred 181 to 2. Russian 41 per Cents. 5 are 871. Turkish Stock is 742 to I. The Deferred 20 Venezuela Bonds are 9 to 1. 4 The following are the nominal prices of foreign stocks :—Grenada Deferred Bonds, 5 to 6 ; Mexi can 201 to 21i ; Peruvian, 68 to 70 ; Ditto 3 per Cents., 48 to 50 ; Portuguese 4 per Cents., 41 to 43 ; Russian 5 per Cents. 97 to 99 ; Ditto 4l per Cents., 87 to 89 ; Spanish New Deferred, 181 to 19 ; Ditto 3 per Cents., 381 to 391 ; Ditto Certifi cates, 51 to 54 ; Ditto Passive, 41 to 41. For railway shares there is very little inquiry, but the quotations are generally firm. The foreign lines are merely nominal. The Cobre Copper Company's shares are higher, and also the Brazilian Imperial. South Australian land shares are steady. Banks are about the same, and also Crystal Palace. BRITISH FUNDS THIS DAY AT ONE O'CLOU . (From the OOlcial List.) Business done Bank Stock . . 3 per Cent. Reduced Annuities.... ......... . 91i 1 New 3 per Cent. Annuities India Bonds. £lOOO ... , ~, Ditto, under £lOOO 9 Consols for Account, 10th January Exchequer Bills, 24d. 21.000. Exchequer Bonds 1858, 3i per Cent. — Ditt o 1859, „ 99i 13 PRICE OF FOREIGN FUNDS AT ONE O'CLOCK. Peruvian Bonds, 41 per Cent. 691 'Portuguese Bonds, 5 per Cent Ditto, IS4B, 3 per Cent 3BA Russian Bonds, 44 per Cent Spanish Bonds, 3 per Cent 384 Ditto New Deferred, 3 per Cent. lBi a Spanish Committee Cert. of Coup. not fun. N p c Turkish Scrip, paid up in full Ditto for the Account ...... 741 i i Venezuela Bonds, 3:) per Cent................ — Ditto Deferred, 1 per Cent 9i 9 Dividends on the above payable In l HA LP ontioa -P AST T IVO. Consols NEW BIILLET.—Mr. Win. Palmer, of Feltwell, in this coun ty (says the Nor folk News) ha s j ust invented a ball a suitable both for small guns and cannon, which he de- 100 scribes as far more deadly and destructive in its effects then any yet in use. He says "It cuts, wounds, and lacerates in such a manner that it is scarcely possible that any animal balm should live after having bcen struck by it. A hat would fit a common gun—say five eighths of an inch in diameter—expands on leaving the gun to four inches, and the instant that it touches 1010 anything, cuts in all dire ctions. A cannon ball on the 2 same principle would cut a space of at least two feet. The invention has been tried several times in small guns, 25 and it does not appear to affect the flight of the ball in 25 the slightest degree. It would be a very destructive 50 shot in a regiment. Va t". 1.. Utd PA 1 (SATUR DA Y. R : 'W AiAthwAr. Ciin•iinc Prices on Saturia.. on Saturday. 20 - 4} - 5 8 - 84 13 - 12 16 - 17 7 - 6 - V 5 601 - 61 14 - 15 9 - 11 ..• - .. 4 - 3. Gi - 7i 14A - 1.55, 23 - 20 20 - 22 70 - 71 53 - 55 is 204 67 - 69 89i - 90 77 - 79 123 - 125 90 -92 70 70,1 58 - 62 72 - 77 6 - 8 6 - 8 72/ -73 j -- 5j 7i 841 106 -l&7 100 1001 d d cl 1 - 83 84 19 • 8 11 9 Bdi 23 - 24 6S 69 41 - 42 ; 1 , 1 par 10} —9.; —2/ 49 - 51 31 ... 32 8 10 11 - 6A 73 •-• 7'4 7 - 6 E I 121 12i 52 -- L 3 - F 4 par 2r 4a 4 3 43(1 6 - (1-11,1 31 - 32 60 - 62 8 - SP 44 - 46 ll - 13 581 - 59 j 28t - 291 - 35 - 37 3 --31 s 6l 176 4 -- 4 20- 6 7 6 - 7 - 1, 1 4 - 1$ -- ...C+ d— i P - P 3t - 318 42 - 1 - - ~ ...... ••• 8 - 7 ~ - ... 9 7d 10 81 1 P - !par I P 161 -17. E ~. ...- .... .. ... id iP 2 d par 2 d par, 2 d -- par ... dis 3 - 31 - 2t 6 -1p i d par 6i - 7 34 - 3~; -- RA - 94 19i - 19] 46 48 38 40 ••• pm 201 4 id iP 2.1 lid 71 . Aberdeen.. .- •, A mbg.. Nottrg. Bost and 'Eastn. all Belfast & Ballymena. I all Birming, Wolverh. Stour Va11ey........ 29;1 Sirkenlld, Lancsh. & Cheshire Juliet all Do. Chesh. & Birk., £5O and ,025 Cons. 19 Do £2O .. 30 Myth & Tyn 3 erigina £25 (issd. at £45 •100 Bristol and Exeter... 100 Caledonian 21s. Carmarthen and Car digan all Chester & Holyhead all Cork and Bandon._ all Cork, Black, & Pass 16 Cornwall 1i Orloff Junction 45 Dublin&BelfastJune all Dundee Perth &Aber deer Junction all Do. New 100 East Anglian all Eastern Counties..... 100 Eastern Union, A Stock 100 Do., B. Stock 86 Do., New A,......,, 100 East Lancashire 100 Ediuburgh & Glasgow 9:k Edinb. and Peebles 100 - Ediu. Pr Lb & Dundee 1 Forth & Clyde June. 100 . Glasgow &S. Western 100 Great Northern 100 Do., A. Stock 100 Do., B. Stock ,a9O Gt. Sth. &West.(lre.) 100 Great Western 100 Do. Stour Val. Rail Gua. Stk all [rich South-Eastern all Lancaster & Carlisle 14i Do., Thirds 4 Do. New Thirds_ _ 100 Lancash.andYorksh 19A Do., Fifths 114 Do., Wst. Riding Un all LivCrshy.&Soutlipt all London & Blackwal 100 Loud. Bright k S.Cst. 100 Loud, and N. Westn. 12 Do. Fifths 1 D0.101.5h.,M&8 21 Do. Eighths 100 London andS. Westn 42i Do., £5O 34' Do., £4O all Lndndrry& Coleraine all Lndndrry. & Ennis:h. 100 VKanch.Sin,f.& Linda 4 4 1./0., Man. & Lin. Un 100 Midland 100 ' So. Birmng. & Derby all ldidld. G. West. (Ire, ) 221 Do. Half Shares all Newcastle & Carlisle 5), Newmkt.BuryExten 21 Nwpt.Aberg. & Hrftl 8 Newry & Enniskillen all Newry WaiTenpoint and Rostrevor 100 Norfolk 3 Nortlin.CountiesUn 100 North British...., alli North Devon, No. 1 all Do., No. 2 all Do., : i t A Deferred all Do., B Guarantee , Ll , 0 N. Eastern—Berwick 20 Do. do. Extension 13 Dodo. G.N.E. Purch. all Do. Leeds 100 Do. York all North London 8i Do. New £lO ';.&S.Wstrn.,Hamp stead., and City Jia., 171! North Staffordshir all North Western._ all N. &S. Westrn, June. 1 Nuneaton, Hinckley and Leicester 100 Oxford, Worcester,& Wolverhampton 6 i'ortsmouth 100 Scottish Central 100 Scottish Midland all ihrewsby. & Herefd it Shropshire Union Do_ A B, C, & paid up at per C,C9 ill South Devon 00 loath Eastern ell south Wales 5 4. Yrksl2. & Riv. Dui 5 Do 8 itaines, Wok &Web 11 tockton & Darliu ~.61 Stockton & Hartlepl. 100 . Calf Vale 9 Do. £lO shares. 100 Do. Prof., No. 1 21 Mimes Haven Dock and It d 1 way all Vale of Neath all , raterfd. & Milk envy all Waterford&Limerick is West Cornival. . 3 Nest End -of London and Crystal Palace all West London Ills. Wimblecln & Croydon all Antwerp&Rotterdam :3:1 Belgian Eastn. June. 8 Beziers to Graissesen, 2s. Bombay, Baroda, and Central India.Seril ... Central of Italy all Demerara 14 Dijon andßesancon 10 Dntel , 'Rhenish all Eastern of France 10 Do. New all East Indian 2 Do. Extensio-1 an Do. 4?, p. c. Bds., pay convertible all Do. do. 00., '59, do 10 Gd. .innet. of France 121 Gd. Tk of CanaclaA is.' all Do. do i.ll Do. St. Lawrence & At'autic do. all Do. Cert. of Deben., con. into Stir. till '63 all Do. Comp. 6p. c., do. 10 Gt. Central of Franc , all Gt. Indian Peninsula 1 Do. New 5 per cent. all Gt. Western of Canad Shares all Do. Bds., payable's7, with option till '55 all Do. do., '62, p. '56 . all Do. do., '76, p. '6O all Do. do., '73, without option all Hamilton & Toronto all Do. 6 per cent. 11 Lake Const. & Basle all Lucca & Pistoj a 5 p.c. pref 12 Great Luxembourg Constituted Shares all Do. Obligations 0 Lyons and Geneva 12 Lyons & Mediterran 163 Madras 2 Do. New :31.A Maria Antonia all Do. do. New 2 Melbourne Dk. & Ity. all Namur & Liege (with interest) all Do. (ex interest) all Northern of France all D 0.201. Shs.late Char leroi and Erquelines guar. 3g p. c. & red. at 22/. dor. 88 yrs. from 1 Jan. 1854 all Do. 201. 3 p. c Bile. (ftny.B.&Ams.Shs.) all NorwcgianTrunkPref 14 Paris and Lyons all Ditto Bonds all Paris and Orleans.... all Paris and Rouen._ 10 ParisCaen & Cherbrg. all Rouen and Havre..... 20 Royal Danish 3 Royal Swedish all Sambre and Meuse._ all Do. 5 p. cent. Pref. 10 Southern of France 14 St. Andrew's and Quebec (A) all West Flanders all Do 5A per c. Pref 12 Western of France Wost. of Switzerland all Wiesbaden 20 Zealand FOREIGN. ••• ..." ... - pm ... - 3i - 4i - sir 1 16i -17 i JOINT-STOCK BANKS. a lAlletraia Sia, all British Colonial Bank and Loan Company all British N. American 5 Chartd. Bank of Asia 2 I Chrtd. link. of India, Australia, & China 25 Colonial .............. 20 Commercial of Loua. 10 English Scottish and Australian all Loud. Chart. Bk. of Australia . 20 London and County 10 London Joint Stock 20 Loud. & Westminster 35 National Provincial of England 10 Do. New 22!- ; National of Ireland all Now South Wales..., all Oriental Bank of Corporation. 25 Provincial of Ireland all Do. New 1 Royal Australn.Bkg & Gold Imp Co all South Australia all Union of Australia 2 i Do. New It ITtihn of Loudwa..... Id• --- ••• —/d 3 2d 21. - 22 li = " 40 38 - 40 ••• 41 - 43 - 08 - 70 ... .y, 25 St. 20 St. 20 20 10 10 20 St. St. [0 St. 10 St. 25 20 20 50 20 10 5 20 20 10 20 40 20 20 50 20 25 THE RtrN9 LONDON,TITESDA LLN LEA6ED AT FIX MD It.ENTALS. RAILWAY*. Leasing Company, led :Ord tnd Bletchley 3lickgllamsh. Clydesdale Jc. E. Lincoln gr. 6 per cent. 1 Glas. Barr. & Neils. Direct Do. New...... London & N. We..t. t. Nrthn. Caldonian. Glstr.d; Dn. Fr artlpl. Dk. Railway (lull & Selby Do. Shares. Do. Shares. Lou.& Greeuw Do. Pre:erence L0n.,Ti1.,& S. Lowestoft gr. 4 per cent. Do. 6 per ct. Manch. Bxtn and Matlock Aiddlosbro' & Redcar Bradfd Northern and Easternsp.c. Do. 6 per ct. Do. Fixeds p Vrest. & Wyrr Gt. Westn kYk. Nev. & E3rw. Y. &NM, Do S. Eastern Peto & Co. gorfolk, L. & N. IV Midld, Stekton Darliugt. E. Count Do Do L. &N.W & LnSak Do Do. 4 shares. Royan.:-. Shef. Roth am:. Gooleg.s p.c. Stallorash. Wear Valleygi 6 per cent... Do. Gt Northr, Lancash Yorksh. 'M. MCteat - .3tockt. Darlingt VVilts&gomrst ltWestn. PREFE Clastn2 Price on Saturday. ENCE SHARES. 97 - 100 94 - 96 6i - 6i - I - r 121 - 134 •nr I elatd d I It. 100 WO 4. too 5 I all :5 all 5 all all all 5 all .22 all .2i all `,O all .0 all St, 'OO all I 1 all 0 all i 0 all o all it: 100 5 18$ 2 9A i 0 all 5 all a. 100 St. 100 Aberdeen 100 Do. No. 2,7 p. c 30 lllythaudTyne lOper c. pref. (issd. at 500 1.00 Bris. & Ex. 4p. c. St. 5 Do. 4p. c. Shares 100 Caledonian £lO all Chester & Holyhead Guar. 5i per cent all Do. do. Pref. No. 2 all Do. do. Pref. No. 2 all Cork &Bandons all Dundee Perth &Aber deen Junction all EastAnglian (£3los) 6 per cent all Do. (£5) 7 per cent 2 Do. (e 7 17s) 7p. c all Eastern Cour :ies Ex tension, 5 p. c. No. 1 all Do. No. 2 all Do. New 6 r. c. St. 4,11 Eastern Union, Scrip Guar. 6 per cent... all Do. 51., 10 ner cent. all Do. 101.. Debentr.Sh all Do. do. 4 per cent... 100 East Lar cash. 6 p.ets. all East and West York shire June. Fifths all EdinbPrth.&Dandet 4 per cent. 1.00 Glasgow &S. Western Guar. 5 per cent 100 Great Northn. sp. c 100 Do. sp. c. Redeem., at 10 p. c. prem 100 Do. 4.!, p. c 8? Gt. N. of Scot. Ist Pref all It. Southn. &Westm. (Ireland) Eighths) 7 Do. 4 per c. Pref. St 6 It. Westn. (Berke & Hants Ex. 5 p. c) LOO Do. eon. reC . p.c 100 Do. eon. roe_. 4p. c 100 Do. irre.o, 4p. c. all Do. Bil .r . Prcf. Sh all Do. Chester Sp. c.P.S. all Da. do. 5 p. c. do io Do. Birm. Gua. Stk. all Do. Chcs. Gua. Stk., all Do. do. do all Do. do. do 6 Lan. & York. F.£2(' LOO Do. 6p. c. Stock 100 London and Brightol Guaranteed 5 p. c 100 Do. Pref., sp. c. St. 100 Do. New Guar.6 p. c. 100 Lon.&N. W., Coy. & Nuneaton 5 P. ct 5 London &S. Wester/ Con. Thirds all f,ondonderry& Coler Shares all Lon dy. & Ennis. Sb all Aan., She., & Lin Shares, No. 1. all Do. New, £lO 4 Do. £6 all Aarypt . & Carl. 4 p c all Du. 41 per cent 10:, Do 100 - Aid. Consol.6 p.c.St. 100 Do. Consul. Bristol & Birm. 6 per cent.... 11f, Do. Pref. 4,i per eel' , 10 Norfolk Debenture . 100 Do. Pref. 4p. c. Stoel 100 Do. 5 p.c. Ext 100 Do. 5i per et. pref 100 Do. Way. Val. sp. e 1 00 North British 1(,0 N. E. Berw, 4 p.c. P. 5 Do. do. ...... •13 Do. Leeds 6 p.e :No.l 9 Do. do. Quarters 4S 10 Do. York H. & r. all North Staffordshire 100 Oxford, Worcester, Wolverh.£ls,6lo.c all Scot. Cent. , New Pre! 10 Do. 5 per cent all South Devon 04. fixed, 4i per cent all 3. Eastern (Reading Ann.) of £1 Os. 6d. 1.00 Do. 42 per cent all S. Yorksh.4p.c.Guar all S Wales Cue. 4p. C all Do. do. 4 1 p. c.... all Stockton and Dar lington, 5 per cent 5 Do. do. do. all Stockton and Hartle pool, guar. 5 p. c. till Ist July, 1856 4 Waterfd.&Kilk.6p.e. MINES. all Agua Fria all Anglo Austrin. Gold all Anglo Californian - 6 - I Australian all Australian Cordillera all Australian Freehold all Ave Maria all Baden (Gd.Daeby of, all Bhenarvon Iron and Coal 13.5 British Iron :.5 ,Brazilianlmp.(issued at i!,5 pm all Do. Comes & Cuialm 15 Do. St. John Del Rey 4 CArsons's ; Clarendon Cons. Min Co. of Jamaica • all Cobre Copper 1 Colonial Gold all Copper Min. of Eng all Do. Pref. 76 p. cent. 16 Copiapo ....... • all English and Austin. Copper Smelts flo Fortuna all General all Gt.NuggetVeinßeg. 4 Groat Polgooth all Liberty all Linares all Nfariquita 9 Mexican&S.America all New Granada all New Linares Mining and Smelting C 0.... all Nouveau Monde all Pontgibaud Silver Lead Min. & Smelt 1 Port Philip all Quartz Rock all tthymney Iron all Do. New :Santiago de Cuba all South Australian rin Ctoft all United Mexican all Waller all West Mariposa 12s. Worthing Mining 01 all lAustniia Yuba MISCE: all Xubin Coal and Iran 17 Australian A gricult. 4 kustralsn.Pcific.Mail all Nustraln. Royal Mail 5) 2 Berlin Water Works 40 Brit. American Laud 1 Brit. & Coln. Smelt;. _ _ _ and Reduction Co. 32A Canada 1)0 Canada Gov. 6 p. et Jan. and July 1 all Crystal Palace all Crystal Pal. of France 5 Eastern Steam 21 El ectric Telegraph(A) all Electric Teleg. of Ir. 14 Gen. Steam Navigat. all General Screw Steam 10 [rich Beetroot Sugar 10 Magdalena St. Navin. all Mcditeran. Elec. Tel. all Nat. Pat. Steam Fuel 5 Netherlands Land -1 N. S. W. Coal & Intcrj Steam Navigat. Co. all N. B. Australasian... 12. Nrth. of Europe Steam all Peel Rr. Id. & Minrl. all Peninsular& Oriental 45 Do. Do. all Portland 'lron Co 60 Royal Mail Steam Al - Scot. Austral. Invest. all South Austral. Land all Submar. Telegraph , Do: Registered ,lan Dieuat )8 Lau. awilneo on Satur las. GRATUITIES FOR TILE RUSSIAN NAVY. <..~. (Front the St. PctcrAurr! Journal.) The 'active part which the aiiors of the Black Sea take in the clef ice of SeLo!“onul leads inevitably to losses which Russia feels deeply, and therefore every day her sympathy for these brave sailors, and particularly for the wounded, are displayed by numerous, gifts, which are sent from all directions and throngh every channel to the Ministry of Marine. Its order to insure regularity in the reception of these offerings, special arrangements have been made by order of his Imperial Highness the Grand Duke Constantine, Grand Admiral of the Em pire. In future these gifts will be received daily at the. Commissariat Department of the Minister of Marine, and information respecting them will he immediately given to his Imperial Highness, who will make a report upon the subject to his Majesty the Emperor. As to gifts of property or of money, they will be transmitted without delay to their destination. Independently of this measure adopted at St. Petersburg, orders have been given to the Admiralty Commissioner at Moscow to receive gifts of a similar kind, that is to say, for the wounded of the fleet of the Black Sea, and to send them weekly to the Crimea by the post. To judge by the nature of the articels daily received, it is evident that the donors have entered into the most minute details re specting the wants of the wounded, and that they have consequently displayed wonderful discernment in the manner in which !key have made their offerings. On its part the Administration of the Fleet employs all the means in its power to succour the wounded and to assist the families of those who have been killed. With this object, independently of the local measures adopted a long time ago, a superior functionary, the college councillor, M. Kryloff, has been sent to the Crimea. His mission is, 1. To visit in the peninsula all the wounded seamen, from the Admiral to the lowest sailor, and the families of the victims. 2. To collect exact and detailed information as to the locality where the wounded was received, the time when received, and the nature of the wounds, the present state of them, and the place where the wounded now are. To inform him self of their wants, of what they may desire for them selves or their families, and of the progress of their tr e atment and the nature of their wounds,' &c. 3. To inquire of the families of the killed respecting their position, their necessities, their wishes, &c. 4. To de clare to all, in the name of his Imperial Highness, that all will be done for them that can possibly be done. 5. To transmit from time to time to his Imperial Highness all these particulars, either by the post or by couriers. 6. To follow with solicitude the progress of the treatment adopted towards the wounded. In short, 7thly, to take charge of letters from the latter, and to send them to their relatives and friends. Besides this, there have been sent to Prince Menschi koff eat of the sums subscribed by private benefactors, 8,000 silver roubles, to be distributed among the wounded. A portion of these sums, arising from private benefactions, has been applied to defray the expense of se iding to flea Crimea 60 Sisters of Charity, who will devote themselves to the care of the sick. IT.HE FOREIGN LEGION. BERLIN, Dec. 23.—1 t has already been stated in The Sun that the project of organising a foreign legion in and by England had created great sensa tion and anxieties in Ministerial quarters at this place and elsewhere in Germany, and that every possible measure would be adopted to thwart and counteract the project. The stringent laws con nected with Prussia's military organisation and landwehr system render these obstructions the more easy, and these again are facilitated by the hold which local and general police agents exercise over the personal movements of all, and especially over the inferior classes. Spener's Journal of this morning has the following on The subject, founded upon an article of a Ministerial paper : " As regards the proclaimed intention of the English Government aise ke a ep f t u l t i e ei i reye well upon those who 11k legion, the authorities , 4 1 . l berequired to ess to recruit men for foreign military will e itabu stion raise service. According to all calculation, this will be pre vented on the grounds of our lives, as the criminal code menaces with severe punishment both the recruiting and the aiding or abetting the same, even when the object is to engage non-military persons for the service of not inimical Powers. Every Prussian, accord ing to our military code and the law of domicile (indi gence), renders himself guilty of a misdemeanour who quits Prussia without leave, if lie do so between the ages of 17 and 25, with the intention of evading his duties in the standing arniy—as, according . to the last mentioned law, each Prussian, on accomplishing his seventeenth year, is bound, on demanding permission to be released from the circumscription of Prussian sub jects, to obtain a certificate from the district substi- tat) committee (that is, the mixed military and civil committee for the -periodical inspection and enrol tnent of recruits), to the effect that he does not make the demand in order to escape his military obliga tions. Persons who quit their domicile without leave, and do not present themselves to the district com mittee, lay themselves open to suspicion of this intent. Relief men (recruits liable to service), and reserve men (those who have served three years actively, and must pass two years more in reserve before drop ping into first-class landwehr), are punishable as deserters ,if they quit the country without l ea ve. This, according to the Correspondence Bureau (says Spene;), is the point of view which will he acted upon accordin g to circum stances, and which may be carried out without reserve, as the penal stipulations connected therewith expressly relato in part to times of peace, and are laid down corn pletely independent of all external political relations. " MARKET N#W's-/ THIS IM Y.) HAY 2d.AKIS.ETS. SHIVIFIELD. — Meadow hay, 2/ 15s to 4/ 15s ; clover ditto, 3/ Os to 511.5 s ; and straw, 1/ 2s to 1/ 10s per load. A moderate supply and a sluggish demand. CUMBERLAND.—Meadow hay, 2/ 16s to 51 OA ; clover ditto, 3/ Os to 5115 i ; and straw, 11 4s to 11 104 per load. Both hay and straw moved off slowly, at late rates. WIIITECHAPEL.—Meadow hay, 2118 s to 41 15s; clover ditto, 3/ Os to 11l N; and straw, 1/ 4s to 1/ lth per load. Trade rather dull. 130 ROUGH IIOP. The hop market has not been very active for the past week, although the general currency for all good samples rersain• firm at fully recent quotations. Last week's im ports of foreign hops into London amounted to 197 bales from Antwerp, 697 from Ostend, 161 from Hamburg, 23 from Calais, 177 from Rotterdam, 19 from Dunkirk, 25 from Bremen, and 320 from New York. New Mid and East Kent pockets, 15/ 15s to 221 Os : Weald of Kent ditto, 1510 s to 161 lOs ; Sussex ditto, 141 lOs to 151 lOs per cwt. LLOYD'S SHIPPING-(THIS DAY.) LONDON, Dec. 2(l.—Wind thi s day at Noon, S.W. ; light DovER, Dec. 25 . —Wi nd, W. Arrive d—F re d er i c k Wilhelm„ from L on d on, for St. Übe ' s—ono of t h e crew breeze, with flue wea th er. hurt ; lEolus, Grimsby, leaky ; Malvina, Copenhagen, for St. Croix. Sailed—London, for London. Off Port— Elizabeth and Emma, from the Coast of Africa, for Ham burgh. DEAL, Dec. 23 —Wind, N.W. by W. Arrived—Violet, from St. Michael's. Arrived'from the river, and sailed-- Islander, for Barbadocs ; itlatilda, St. John's, Newfound land; Adelaide, (s s, transport No. 138), Constantinople ; Dwvereux, Cardiff: Sailed—Cornubia, for New Zealand ; Chimera, Calcutta ; Naiad, Falmouth ; Staghound, Cal cutta ; Lady Kinsale, Calcutta ; George and Aloys, Car diff. _ Dec. 24—Wind, moderate. Arrived—Malabar, from Cal cutta; Kossuth, Calcutta • St. Abbs, Calcutta ; Strath fieldsaye, China • Saxon, Colombo ; Duke of Portland, Co lombo ; Stratford, Mauritius; Rawloy, Callao; Hydaspes, Callao ; both for Leith ; Rhine, New York ; Addison, Quebec, for N ewcastl e _ ; a three-masted schooner, St.; Michaels ; Compeer, Terceira; Jessie Benefield, Palermo San Salvadore du Ilharo, Almeria., with loss of anchor: and 30 fathoms o f chain has been supplied from hence' H.M.S. Hague, Baltic, and passed' to the westward • Han nab and Eleanor, Noah • Gleniffer, Shields, for Aden. PORTSMOUTH, Dee. 25.—Wind, W. Arrived—Sarab Richardson, for Ancona ,• H.M.S. Nile, from the Baltic ; Oscar (s s, N o . 158) London, for the Crimea ; Mary Fairleo, Sunderland for the East Indies, with pumps choked and very leaky, having experienced very severe weather ; British Merchant, Havre, for Newport ; Syl phide, London, for Constantinople, with considerable damage ; Linsella, London, for Naples ; Lady Blaney, do., for Callao Parkfiekl, do., for Moulmein ; Parsee, do., for Rangoon ; Orient, for Constantinople ; H.M S. Impe rieuse, Balti c ; Euphrates, London, for Auckland ; Ade laide s), do., for the Crimea ; Mary Gillespie, Shields, for Malta ; Princess of Prussia, from Shields, for Car thagena. Sailed—Northumberland, for New York. PLYMOUTH, Dec. 24.—Wind, W. Arrived—Rose, from Quebec ; Ann M‘Lester, do. ; Pomona, Memel, for Cardiff, with l oss o f ru d er; Fleetwood, Clyde, for the Mauritius, had lost a boat and gaily; Mariner, Hartlepool, for Genoa. Zailed----T,ord Nelson, for Constantinople. DARTMOUTH, Dec. 26.—Wind, W. Arrived—Osbert, from London, for Barbadoes, with loss of anchor and forty fathoms of chain in the Downs ; Sir Robert Peel, Ex mouth, for St. -Übe's. (PER ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.) LIVERPOOL, Tuesday, 11.10 a.m. Wind, W.N.W. • fresh. Arrived —R evenue , from Now Orleans; Oriental, do Governor Langdom, Mobile Off Port—Jeremiah Thompson. QUEENSTOWN, Dec. 23. Wind, W.N.W. Arrived —T orrenc e, f r om Constantinople ; Reciprocity, Prince Ed war d' s Island; Breadalban©, Quebec; Oliviera, St. Michael's. A. French officer in the Crimea mentioned an anecdote of a little deg who came from the Inkerman side of the valley, and pulled the soldiers' coats so much that a party was sent with him, and they followed him to a wounded Russian (his owner), who had been lying concealed by the brushwood since the battle. A.. respectable and well conducted officer of the Water ford and Limerick Railway, named Thomas Barry, was d‘;capitated on Friday night by the train, while running v.ut to give a signal near the Ballysiman station. The Red Jacket, Captain Miilward, belonging to Messrs. Pilkington and Wilson's " White Star" line of Australian packets, took her departure on Saturday for Melbourne, with 350 passengers and 1,500 toes of mer chandise on freight. Her cabins are quite full, but she goes out short of her usual ymplenrnt of intermediate passengers, in consequence of the high rates of passage being asked by th e o w n ers, and the consequent scarc ity a th t e tl; l i i s gh p e a e r t t r ic a u te la s r ha se v a ilg season. The paidhe freight to secure its carriage is very l arge — by the ship. The passengers were inspected on Friday by the Government emigration officer, and appeared to be of a far Letter class and inore.rFspectable than are usually to be met with on board emigrant vessels. 91 I 21 61 li Ilk I 2 90 92 I St. 70 25 GO ex arra 1 St. 20 83i 10 20 23i 41 5 10 68i St. St. 311 I St. St. St. 581 I 12 25 die I 20 - 12! 25 25 10 St. 20 20 20 2k 25 17 50 1 1 40 5 3 St. 21 25 95 - 100 98 - 100 130 - 135 103 :16i ~. --- • • • 13 -13 i 23 - 24 11 -11 i 21 - 2i ii 7- . 6 5: - 59 fio li 2' 2~a 30 - 31 92 - 94 GO - 65 ..Z~ U 3 -115 j 107 - 109 99 - 101 6 - 6A 91 - 96 89 - 91 91 - 9i -10 k 16 -17 10 - 10 k 71 - 73 181 - 191 - 131 - I , IA It - 133 135 ••• ."". “. 2i- 3f - iii L 33 135 i i ld $7 -90 104 - 105 100 - 102 90 - 92 3 - 3i 1 ::: ia 111 - 113 11 - 13 id per 22} 21 05 EX) 15 18 a IF' - ]i 1 di. i - 1 1 -- A i - ii Is tl I - i 5 7 7 2i 3 11 30 32 Ad par 46 —. 48 50 55 par 2p l 14 16 1 par iP 14 16 i ... 9 $ - 7 - 7 i i i - i 15 - 16 k - i i i 23 - 25 6 - 8 1 - 3i 1 - li 1 - 2 2 - 3 -- ••• '''' ••• 36 - 37 ii : ia 3.6 .09i - Ile 1 31 - 34 ivi = iii ••• ••••• ••• 4 14 ••• .....' ••• i .... 1 ;21 2: ii 2 - 2i 61 -- 63 18 - 28 37 - 39 - 1 4 - 1 12i I pm 113 k 1001 2i Td THE CONDUCT OF PRUSSIA. (F;'oim t7te 0020it2ttionnel.) The Cabinet of 'Berlin, which had constantly postponed the moment when it would be neessary to give its final decision on the question of the East, is said to have asked France and England to con clude a special treaty with Prussia. M. de Man teuffel hopes for two advantages from that course —one, to gain time ; and the other, to elude such of the engagements of the treaty of Vienna as would place Prussia too much in suspicion at the Court of Russia. But it will require only a few hours for M. do Usedom to comprehend that his mission must inevitably fail. Prussia complains that when she is invited purely and simply to ac cede to a treaty which she has not been called on to aid in drawing up, she is driven to the rank of a secondary power. Whose fault is that ? Have England and France held apart in the Eastern question ? Is it not Prussia who has remained in arrear of Austria ? What can Prussia complain of which she has not to blame herself for ? Has she not refused to adopt the part which belonged to her in Germany in the war of the East ? Has she not by her tergiversations, subtleties, and choppings-about lessened her importance by show ing that she was feeble and fearful ? And if the war disquiets her, when it menaces to extend, ought she not to reproach herself for having con tributed to keep it up by giving the Emperor of Russia, by her hesitations, a dangerous confidence.? Let Prussia, therefore , blame herself for the situa- tion in which she is placed. That situation as yet only interests her in her pride of a great power ; but if she does not hasten to get out of it by adhering simply to the treaty of Vienna, she may soon have to look to herself as an independent State. Perhaps a prompt and vigorous resolution. of Germany could still put a stop to the develop ments of the war. Let Prussia not allow that last chance of quiet that remains to her to escape, for if the war goes on, it must extend, and once that it has extended it will become impossible to escape its grasp by a chimerical neutrality. If M. de Usedom, as is announced, is to visit Paris on leaving London, the spectacle which strikes him in England will strike him in France. France, who had no idea of war, and who wished for peace, has not merely her interests to protect ; she has reverses to avenge. She was thinking merely of the peaceful and fruitful struggles of industry, when Russia came imprudently to arouse her old military instincts and to remind her that she had to exercise against her terrible reprisals. As the Emperor Nicholas has 'thus offered of himself an occasion which she did not call for, but which she accepts resolutely, of effacing the remembrance of 1812, it is not she who will be wanting in soldiers or who will calculate her sacrifices. And even if she had not the immense resources of which she dis poses, she would not hesitate for a moment. What then must it be, when everything concurs to render the struggle more easy and success more certain ? According to the news from St. Petersburg to Warsaw, the Emperor Nicholas is collecting con siderable forces and is fanaticising his people. Let it be so ; but let him not forget this, that since he has placed arms in the bands of the France of Napoleon 111. she will not lay them down until she has avenged the France of Napoleon I. THE TREATY OF 2d DECEMBER. (From the Siecle.) We have not seen, like many optimists, a progress towards peace in the treaty of the 21 Dec., but we have welcomed it as giving a possibility of carrying on the war under better conditions. The Emperor of Austria, by engaging himself not only to occupy the Danubian principalities, but to guarantee them against the return of the Russian forces, and that without throwing any obstacle in the way of the combinations and movements of the French, English, and Ottoman troops in the oc cupied territom ies, has made a step in the Western Al liance. Every act which draws Austria closer to us na turally removes her from Russia. But does it follow that we think that power, which is so cautious, will on the Ist January find itself engaged with us in a defen sive and offensive action ? We do not believe it; but it is already something—it is a great deal to have drawn it into a treaty which it cannot abandon without flatly declaring itself our enemy. The time of protocols has passed away ; and when, after the delay agreed on, Aus tria shall declare that her new efforts have been without effect, and that-Russia refuses to accept the guarantees demanded, the Cabinets of London and Paris will only have to propose to the Emperor Francis Joseph the most efficacious measures for obtaining the object of the alliance. We are of the opinion of Lord John Russell — we think that, according to the terms of the treaty, Austria, without failing in her plighted faith, can accept or refuse action in common on the basis which must be already settled between England and France, if the Cabinets, as we willingly admit, have had the most or dinary foresight. But we object to the last remarks of the same minister ou the subject. We believe that he has gene too fir. It is impossible that France and Eng land do not intend to diminish the territory of Russia. Responsible ministers are not always obliged to say all they think, but they should never make use of imprudent language. If Austria has not engaged herself, there is an obligation arising from the treaty of the 2d Decem ber which has an incalculable value—and that obliga tion is that she cannot honourably b.oome the ally of Russia. Cunniug, may ba employed for a time in diplo macy, but at length the moment arrives far speaking explicitly. If Austria had only desired to give time for the Czar to make more efficacious preparations than he had done, she would have played for a great stake. The force of France and England is not only in their brilliant soldiers and their brave sailors, but in a reserve which they ought in our opinion to have made their advanced guard—that of oppressed nation. alities which are only waiting for a signal to rise. There is also in the treaty a very serious engagement ; Austria, like the other two Powers, cannot enter into any ar rangement whatsoever with Russia without having de liberated in common. Except by an odious act of trea son, it is impossible for Austria to have a secret under standing with the Czar. Thanks to the progress realised in Europe during the last sixty years, there is not a Go vernment which is not obliged to count with public opinion—that superior power which every day extends the limits of its empire. We have, no doubt, reason to fear diplomatic lukewarmness and but we have little dread of treason. There is in the present state of things an element which diplomatists and party men seem never to take into account, and which, however, is not without importance—we mean the pride and obsti nacy of the Emperor of Russia. We cannot be lieve that the monarch, who is the most powerful in Europe by the extent of his territories, and the number of his subjects, can accept all the public humiliation which flow from this treaty of the 2d December. What ! can the Czar of All the Russias— after having been forced to raise the siege of Silistria, and to recross the Pruth—after sustaining grave checks on the Alma and at Inkerman, after having had the most magnificent of his ports almost blocked up with his own vessels, and the fortifications of Sebastopol de stroyed—having, too, one of his most powerful armies, at the head of which his sons showed themselves in the saddest position ; what, we say, can it be supposed that the Czar can abandon the fruits of a century's policy, can consent to lose his prestige, which is his greatest force in the East, can avow himself vanquished without making the most supreme efforts ? No ! that is impossible ! No one who thinks it can know the conditions of existence of powerful potentates—or can be well acquainted with the human heart. The Em peror Nicholas cannot either accept the conditions of peace offered him by Austria ; lie cannot do it without gaining a great victory, or being completely defeated. 'We must expect then a terrible conflict, and let us have the courage to prepare for it. But there is no time to lose. We must summon subjected nations to liberty and independence ; if the West re mains undecided, it will be outstripped by Russia. Such is the position in which we now are. Events have precipitated the crisis. There can no longer be a ques , tion of a circumscribed war, of what is called a political war ; but it must be of a war of equilibrium in Europe, of a war for remedying all the injustice which has been so imprudently committed for nearly a century. Only a few days now separate us from the period allowed to Austria. It is at that moment that light will be made ; it will enlighten all the world. The security of a day will not suffice for the numer ous interests that have been compromised by the am bition of the Czar ; we must then exact guarantees which shall for a long time, if not for ever, preserve Europe from such misfortunes. We will not at this moment discuss one by one the different guarantees which should be obtained. But, first of all, we de mand that a barrier should be raised between the savage ambition of the Czars: and the western part of Europe. That can be done by giving satisfaction to the national wish expressed at each meeting of the deputies of France under the reign of Louis Philippe. Heroic Poland must, so to speak, arise from the ashes of Se stepol. LIBERTY OF COMMERCE IN FRANCE, Great sensation Gays Galignani) has been caused at Nantes and in the neighbourhood by the Govern ment having caused nine merchants of that city to be Prosecuted for having entered into a coalition for rais ing the price of salt meat sold to the Government. The trial has just taken place before the Tribunal of Correctional Police of Nantes, and has occupied several days. The indictment set forth the following facts : The Minister of Marine, in April last, made known in different sea ports that ho should require a large quan tity of salt meat for .he navy. In August be demanded a t Nantes tenders fo r t he supply of 800,000 kilogram me s ; only twe tenders were made—one at 145 fr., the other at 132 fr. 50c. the 100 kilogrammes. The Minister thought those prices exerhitant, and refused to accept them. Shortly :after he demanded tenders for 600,000 kilogrammes, but only one offer was made, and that was at 137 f., 50c. the 100 kilos. He refused to ac cept that also. Ho made a third attempt to obtain 200,000 kilogrammes in Lur lots at a reasonable rate ; but again he . only . received one offer which was at 127 f. 50 c . This likewise was rejected. At the time these sums were demand° d from the government, the salt meat was sold in the markets near Nantes at 70f. the 100 kilos. After the failure of the third attempt, the salters sent two delegates to confer with the minister, whe did not disguise from them that he had pressing need of supplies, and he attempted to come to an arrange ment with theca ; but r: as unable to do so, on account of the high prices they demanded. On this, he said that iesteal of acrd iief to dealers he would establish a special agency at N :rites for the purchase of salt meat, but they attempted to dissuade bins from doing anything of the kind, and represented that they were paying 100 f. for the 100 kilogrammes, though in point of fact the price was far inferior. The minister charged two dealers, named Wilson and Larglais, to buy meat for his de partment, and th e y w ere able to do so at 85f, the 100 kilogrammes —a rise in prices having taken place ; but no sooner had they commenced operations than prices shot up rapidly to 871., 88f., 90f., 92f., and at last to 100 f. Not only was such a sudden rise totally unexampled, the ordinary variations in price being if. or 21., but there was nothing in the state of the market to call for it. On this an investigation was made, and it turned out that the rise was occasioned by the fraudulent manoeuvres of the accused. The accused vehemently contended that they had not done anything that was not warranted by the liberty of commerce ; but nevertheless a prosecution was instituted against them. Evidence was then given in support of the indictment, and it proved clearly that in order to stop the purchase, through Messrs. Wilson and Langlais, and to compe the Government to pay more than a fair market prices the accused had, either verbally or in writing, recom' mended the holders of salt meat with whom they were accustomed to deal not to sell at less than 100 f. the 100 kilos.—a price much superior to the legitimate mar ket price ; that, as an inducement to the holders to insist on that price or to keep back their stocks, they had pro mised to pay them 100 f.; and that so clear was it that they had acted illegally, that a fall in prices took place immediately after their proceedings were discovered, and a prosecution was commenced. A number of letters in which their schemes were fully revealed were besides produced. The accused, being interrogated, contended that the rise was occasioned by the supply of salt pork not being equal to the demand, and that they bad to submit to it, instead of occasioning it. The public prosecutor, in a long and able speech, maintained that they had undoubtedly been guilty of a coalition, and that they deserved severe punishment. A number of counsel were heard for the defendants ; they laboured to prove that the accusation was unfounded. The trial ended by one of the accused named Philippe being acquitted, he having been absent from Nantes at the time the frauds were perpetrated, and his partner having acted in his name. All the other accused, whose names are Dupont, Quemet, Bardon, Rondonet, Levesque, Cornillier, Canaud, and Martin, were declared guilty, and were severally sentenced to a month's imprisonment and 2,000 f. fine.—One of the Paris papers, in giving an account of this case, contrasts the conduct of the con demned with that of certain English tradesmen who have generously offered supplies to the Government feu the war, without profit, and have even made large dona- Coes. The contrast, it declares, is not all creditable to the patriotism of Frenchmen. THE ATTACK ON PETROPAULOVSKL The following interesting letter has been re ceived by a gentleman in Plymouth, from an officer of one of her Majesty's ships in the-Pacific : " H.M.S.—, at sea, lat. 49 N., 177 W., Sept. 19, 1854. " My dear Parents—Since my last letter to you from Callao we have been continually on the move. I have not set my foot on shore since. We went from Callao to the Marquesas Islands, and not finding the squadron there we sailed immediately for Honolulu (Sandwich Islands), and arrived on the 22d of July, having made our 18,000 miles since leaving Plymouth. Here we found the English and French squadrons, consisting of President (flag), Amphitrite, and Virago (English); Forte (French flag ship, 60 guns), two smaller fiigates, and a brig; commenced watering the ship and getting ready to sail ; all hands in good spirits, hearing we are to go to Petropaulovski (Kan's chatka), a Russian place, in search of the Russian frigates, a distance of 4,000 miles. After a few days at sea the Amphitrite and a small French frigate left us to protect the merchant vessels on the coast of America. We have had a very miserable passage ; nothing but thick fogs since to the northward of 30 N., a very ha rassing time, keeping company with the squadron in fogs —we were three days off the island, in sight of it, but could not get in. Our admiral went in to reconnoitre the day before the squadron, so en the 29th of Au gust we all sailed in with a fair wind; no sooner did we near the town than three batteries opened fire on us. Being rather late to commence action, we hauled out ofgun-shot, and anchored for the night, the Virago keeping them in play with her long Tom. Everything was all arranged for us to go in next morn ing. The Virago came Alongside of us, with the French frigate on the other side, and the President astern. The anchor was just out of the ground when the signal was made from the President to the squadron to anchor im mediately. What the matter was no one could answer. Here comes thefatal blow. Our admiral had gone into his quarter-gallery and shot himself with a pistol, for what no enecan tell ; so all operations were put a stop to for the day. He lived a few hours, and quite sensible to the last ' • all he said was, Whst have I done this for, my brave men?' You can easily imagine what a state of confu sion it threw us all in. Now the French admiral takes the command, and all was arranged to go in the next morning, so the Virago came alongside as before, and in we proceeded. Directly we were within gun-shot, the three batteries opened fire on us, and we all commenced in right good earnest ; the shot, whist ling through our rigging like peas, cut a good deal of our gear away. \Ve soon silenced a little fort that was annoying us very much, raking us, and pitching the shot just in our cutwater. We landed the marines and spiked the guns. We commenced action at nine a.m., and kept up firing till three p.m., before we silenced the-other two batteries ; we had not time to go in further, for a strong breeze sprung up, and we saw inside the harbour, snugly moored, the Aurora frigate and a corvette ready to give it us as soon as we open ed them out, so we hauled out for the night without any hurt, with eight shots in our hull, and the French and Pre sident the same. The next morning we found the black guards had built up all the forts again, so the old French admiral held on till the 4th of September before we went at it again, the ships taking up another position to day, with 700 men ready to land immediately the bat teries were silenced. At half-past eight the men landed —a great many never to return. They had scarcely been on shore five minutes before they were shot down like birds by the Rus-ians, from field-pieces on the top of the mountain. They were on shore one hour, and during that time out of our three ships 107 were killed and wounded. Oh, what an awful sight it was to see poor fel lows who, an hour before, were all alive, lying dead, some with legs and arms off, others with beads off, nearly all shot about the head and shoulders ! Our Master-at- Arms was the first shot dead (with five shots in him), two senior serjeants killed, and 16 men ; and 22 men wounded, five of whom have since died. Our two marine officers wounded, cne very severely, shot about the head and face. Our senior lieutenant and a mate were slightly wounded. The President lost about the same number ; her captain of marines was shot dead and left ashore, and about three of her lieutenants wounded. The French lost about the same, but out of the crew of the brig 65 landed, 37 were killed and wounded. The French frigate's masts were cut up a good deal. Thank God we have come out clear, but not without a slight crack ; a 32-pounder shot canoe through our quarter, a splinter bit me on the leg, and the purser on the arm. \Ve picked the shot out of the wood; it was not six inches from me, quite close enough to be pleasant. We found the place too much for us ; it is full of guns, and in such a snug place that you can't get in, so the old Ral gave it up till we could get a stronger force. We are now on our way to Vancouver's Island to water, being now on short allowance. We are all sick of this station—nothing but sea ; the shortest cruise you can take is 3,000 or 4,000 miles, then you get to some savage place. The China station is a king to it. We have not had a thing washed since we left Rio, so a rough-dried shirt is a great luxury ; on salt provisions, and likely to be so for the next two months. I hope, if we go at it next year, we will have a strong force with us ; but we must never attempt to land sailors—they don't understand it. Our fellows behaved like bricks—they fired remarkably well, and very cool ,• took their time, like firing at a target, and made all their shots tell. I send you a plan of the place, so you can imagine what a nest of guns it is. We hav d e fired better than half of our powder and shot away, an have no place to get more, there being no stores of any kind on the station. If they have Crenstadt fortified like this place, and fire as well, they will give us a job to take it. I hope the Admiralty will send out sonic young admiral. The nice old men are very well in peace, but to lead you into a snare, and then go and shoot themselves, is not exactlty the style. It's very bad having Frenchmen with you ; you can'tunderstand them, and their ideas of warfare aro different from ours. They leave us shortly, and go to San Francisco. We join them after watering, and then I believe go to the Sandwich Islands. We hare not heard from England since May, so we are quite out of the world. It will be a long time, I am afraid, before I shall hear from you, trusting I may come out of the next affair like this. We took two Rus sian vessels outside the harbour, the schooner we burnt, and the ship with stores is on her way with us ; she is a vessel of 800 tons, worth about 10,0001. • it will be rather a sell for the Russians at Petropaulovski our takinc , their vessel with their winter stock of provisions on board.. I pity any poor Russians we come across, for our fellows will show them no mercy. We find that all their men-of-war have stowed themselves away in snug har bours, and fortified the entrances, so they will be frozen iu all the winter. We are now fifty men and marines short of our complement. I don't know where we are to get more. I hope we will be complete before we begin our next year's expedition. We have taken several officers prisoners, one of them a colonel, and another a captain of engineers, just out from St. Petersburg; they appear rather disgusted to be nabbed just arriving at their place. We have been rather unlucky with our killed, for they were the flower of our ship's company."' VALUE OF LAND IN MELBOURNE.—The price of towlt land is almost beyond credit. There is no limit to t'a e extravagant opinion that buyers and sellers entertain c. f its value. Innumerable instances might be quoted. It t one case, a house purchased for 2501. lately fetch( 41 12,0001. Another offered to Government for the use ,3 f the military officers fur 3,0001., a month after wlni I valued at 5,0001. They still hesitated, and the price gradually rose to 6,0001., which sum Government &e -choed giving, having about that time received iron bar racks. As another instance, Government have lo 2.t desired Degrave's fine blue-stone store, and have ma de many liberal overtures, but without tempting the pr,‘- prietor , to sell. They at last asked him to name a pric 9 —a final figure—in order that they might settle tilt affair one way or another. He meditated awhile, awl then, as his ultimatum, named 85,000/. _ ---- - _ ..--.......,....................- --......................... ~ ,, , v..on; 7'llE POST- OFFID ' SERVielf drr.sesp.A 1 , 7 , :b UNIT Et) STATES. - - ,- - - 77 , e , -..--- - 9, , ,:_,;:= • - --.- The United States P. etmaster-Generalreseinunal "Red ' : i s •' ' port, delivered to Congress with th e President's Mee- - ' ' ;' .•` - A - - sage is, as usual, an elaborate d ocumen t. Its static- :: ss tics aid elucidations exhibit in a strong Wit the social 's. •'- -s' intellectual, and commercial progress of the great Res- public. According to the Report, during the last year-. upwards of 1,200 new pest-offices have beirkestabi lished. The total increase in the mail route service'ie 1,500,000 miles. The increase of railroad mail route service is 2,500,000 miles. The mail services on coaches and in steam boats has decreased. Every state and territory in the United States have been surveyed, and post-office facilities duly apportioned to them. In Cali fornia, the mail route service has been increased 68,000 miles ; and in Utah 26,000 miles. Disputes still exist between the United States Post-office and the railway companies —the former complains that it pays more than first-class freight for the conveyance of the mails. It has no objection to pay first-class freight, accord ing to the bulk of the mails, the speed they are conveyed, and the accommodation required. The Great Western Company of Canada carries the United States mail for 6/. a mile. Much inconvenience and expense are incurred by the American Post-office de. pertinent, owing to speculators without capital bidding for and obtaining the eonveyance of mails, for the pur pose of selling the contracts to others. The letter cir culation system in the United States Post-office is to be assimilated to that of England. Hitherto Ameeiceall postmasters have sent letters to what forward offioss they pleased, to be resorted, and sent on to their desUs . nation ; but, for the future, proper forwarding offices will be established for every post office in the States. p p e o n st d a i l ture revenue about is about , is 0 This is th e most gigant i c an d u seful reform that has ever been att empted in the A mer i ca n Post-office. The 50 ' about 7,000,000 dollars, and the dollars.ex -oaoox:iniouof d The increasers, thef re venueo dollars, pthosetawlhroelveeonfue fromtheincr u e e a w se ep h a as pe a r r a ise a n ad fr o p al s al letters, ph le fora and in crease during 1854 is attributed to th e activity of b us i ness operations'. Nearlyhas decreased. It is calculated that the revenue of the Post-office the department for 1855 will be about 10,000,000 dollars, and that the expenditure will be the same. Although prepayment of postage is not compulsory, yet dur ing tho last three years there have bees i ssue d an d sold postage stamps and. envelopes of five and a-half millions of dollars value. The report recommends a still further extension of the prepayment, in order to check postmasters' accounts more effectually. It recommend.' from th e English on e, and will be more effective. also a plan for registration of valuabl e letters. It is dif ferentlt provides tha,‘ receipts shall be given for valuable lettere be kept for refere nee at the o ffice for malng , that the e separate when posted, anel that duplica tes of these receipts shall ii full address of such letters shal l be entered on a t post bill, which shai'l be copied at large upon a n accoun to be kept of registered letters sent. This post bill is to be forwarded in a sealed envelope, separate from the package of letters to wlnich it relates, and its receipt at the office of its destination is to be acknowledged by a duplicate thereof returnti to the office of mailing, marked correct or otherwise, as it may be found on comparison. It provides that at ths large offices valuable letters shall be received at one win dow only, and that the receiving clerk shall check therm to the register clerk, and he to the mailing clerk. It is, i n short,§designed to fix responsis bility and to furnish i tse ins which do not ne n" exist for tracing a missing letter ' from the point of its resseption to that of its disappearance. T. carry this plan ittto effect it will be required that ns 'w and expensive blanks' be pre. pared and distributed, an 'd that an increase& clerical force be employed in the p r . Incipal post offices. The English registration f leis 6d.; it is proposesi that the American fee stall be 24, l. The cost of the Ala eri can ocean mail packet service is 400,0001. a year. This includes the ocean mail packs t service between /st - ew York and England, Havre, B r , smen, and Aspinwall ; b e tween Astoria and Pai.ama ; between Charlestowes and Havannah ; and between ne w Orleans and Vera Cruz. The report recommends, if s ehe packet contracts are not abolished, that the Governm ent should re g ulate ' the passenger fares, to prevent the evil effects of the monopoly which the contracts giVe to companies. It laments that Collins's, the American lite° , is more costl y than Cunard's B r iti s h line ; but it admits that the Ame rican steamers carry the mails quicker than the English ones. The negotiations with Great!: Britain respecting the transit charges on correspondence' passing between the United States and France throug h England have failed. Upwards of six years ago a postal convention was agreed to between the United States and Great Britain, by which certain postal rates Vivre fixed on cor respondence passing to or from the United States and other countries through England. Froiet this arrange. ment French correspondence to and front the United States was excluded. The excluding cause Nvas objected to by Mr. Bancroft, but the British .Government stated that it was necessary to prevent comfelaint from France, and it was then agreed to. The report says that Mr. Lawrence, who succeeded Mr. I:i.secroft, found the statement of the British Government to be incorrect. The United States claim that French and American correspondence shall pass through England, in closed mails, for 63c1. an ounce, the name as 18 charged for British and Canadian correspondent e in . transit through the United States. Lord Palmereon, however, in 1851, insisted upon charging a shilling %in ounto for the transit rate, and Sd. an ounce for the A%:• la,ntic rate. Until recently, the English Government charged 20d. an ounce oil letters from France, conveyed to New Yerk in United Stites' packets, by which letters received in America from France, in Collins's steamers, had to be charged double sea postage. Now, however, the Atlantic rate is not charged oil correspondence from France, conveyed by sueh steamers ; but still the transit rate through England is such, that the postage on a letter from Franco for America, comes to 3d. more by Collins's steamers than by Cunard's, which induces the French public to prefer sending their letters by the British Atlantic packets, to the injury of the American ocean postal revenue. The report announces that letters are conveyed now between New York and Port Philip in Australia, Havana, and Nassau, and between New Orleans and Havana, for an ocean postage rate of one penny the half ounce ; that newspapers are conveyed between those places at one farthing each, and pamphlets and magazines for one halt-farthing an ounce. A postal convention between the United States and Mexico is on the eve of completion, which provides for the exchange of dead letters, and a reduction of postage on letters between the two countries. THE NEW POSTAL CONVENTION WITH FRANCE. The following is the new 1)0,0.1 convention between France and England, concluded Dec. 12, 1854 : His Majesty the Emperor of the French and her Ma jesty the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, alike animated by a desire to improve the means of correspondence by letter between the two coun- tries, have named as their representatives—[Here follow the styles and titles of M. Drouyn de Lhuys and Lord Cowley]—who have agreed on the following articles : Art. I. The postage to be taken in France and Algeria on paid letters addressed to the United Kingdom and Ireland, as well as on unpaid letters coming from the United Kingdom and Ireland, shall be as follows— namely : ... On paid letters, 4Cc. for every 72 grammes, or fraction of grammes. And for unpaid letters, 80c. for every 7i grammes, as fraction of grammes. Reciprocally the postage to be taken in the United Kingdom and Ireland on paid letters addressed to places in France or Algeria, as well as on unpaid letters sent from France and Algeria, is fixed thus—namely : For every paid letter 4d. for every quarter of an ounce, or fraction of a quarter of an ounce. And for every unpaid letter, Bd. for every quarter of an ounce. orb ctdon of a quarter of an ounce. Art. IL —e price according to which the French Post-office shall k9ep accounts with the British Post office for paid letters addressed to Great Britain, and delivered by the French bureau d'echange to the British bureaux, as well as Par in.paid letters coining from Great Britain, and delivered. by tue English to French bu reaux d'echange, shall be as follows : 1. For paid letters destined for Great Britain, 600. m f orernr netueßsn,atiisd l e tter s hou weight.nee g net weight. from Great Britain, a p t e2r l f 3 . oA 2O gn c dr a . per Reciprocally, the price at which the British Post office shall charge that of France for paid letters des tined for France and Algeria, delivered by the British to the French bureau d'ecbange, as well as for unpaid letters sent from France and Algeria, shall be 1. For paid letters destined fur France and Algeria, if. per British ounce net. 2. And for unpaid letters from France and Algeria, 2f. per 30 grammes net. Art. 111. The expense of carrying by sea the letters contained in the despatches which the respective bureant d'echange shall reciprocally transmit by the commercial packets navigating the channel, shall be borne half by the French and half by the British P os t- o t.Soe. The captains or owners of these p ackets will be paid at the rate of a penny or 10 centimes the letter. Art. IV. The terms on which journals, gaaeftio , Pe' riodical works, sewed volumes, pamphlets, catall,„" music, prospectuses, or advertisemects, printed, I ‘l3O - or autographed, may be exchanged between the two countries, shall be th e sub j ect of a special le sigree. rnent, which itself shall be based on the principof compulsory pre-payment, and of the abolition isf the right to levy a charge on the recniver. convention, whic is to be con% _Art. V. The present co sidered as additiona l to that of April 3, 1843, shall be ratified as soon as possible, and shall come into union on the Ist of January, 1355. CHURCH-BATES (L ON DON). —A. return of chum:kraal made or refused in the respective parishes of the 36 re gistration districts of London comprised within the Bills of Mortality during the years 1851, 1852, and 1853, was issued on Friday, on the motion of Mr... Ne w. degate, M.P. It hence appears that several rates were granted in public vestries during the periods in question, that in two parishes only kit we underst and the answers to the questions aright) was a rate una sked for under a fear that the vestry would refuse it , and that in three parishes only was a ra t e ac t u ally refu sed. In the parishes without the walls there is no C3BO of such refusal ; in the out-parishes in Middlesex and Surrey one case of refusal, and is the parishes of Westminster only one case. In many cases the repairs of thochurch are otherwise pro vided for than rtes. A. woman w ho had stolen a la-east of mutton from the shop of a butcher at Manchester, when taken before a m7.gistrate the other day, assigned as her reason for corn. r Yitting the theft, that she had had some angry words ' with her husband, and that she "did it for vexation. 1 She was committed for trial at the sessions. j 38 9