The Sun. — London, England, 1863-06-12 00:00:00

SEA —V I'Ll 0 \Vs .inJ CO., Shiphrolt , rk, 127. Fenchurch-Qtre,t, , require MTDSITTRNIEN cud FOUR. Rrst-tlass rl',ZENTleitl , in an A 1 cli; per India- Tan. 1,50 , t one . emn;ra moderate, returne in nap„,s. lso stout Lads, Without premium, for other ships. Wanes t 35, SEA. —MIDSHIPMEN required for .plendid ships for Australia and India. Premium, oto 60 guineas, may he paid in two instalments. Appr en tic e s also :wanted, with and without preminm.—Apply to W. Slither tard. ship and passage broker, 11, Fen church-buildings, by 107, Fenhurch-stree. Established 1851. EA —VAC kNCIES for MIDSLIIMIEN c , nd APPRENTICES in first-class London shippin firm. Premium moderate. Al o Y pprenti 'es without prEmiuna.— bplY to SIMMONDS and Co.. SS. St. Mary-at-hill, East eap, E.C. Third c..fh-_•ers and Stewards wanted. A TLANTIC AND GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY. (NEW YORK DIVISION.) COUPONS DUE let July next will be PAID, in London, at the Cons lidated Bank (Limited), 4, Lombard-street, Lon don, at the rate of 4.. to the dol:ar. London, No. 2, Old B.oad-street, June 9, 1863. EAST AND WEST INDIA DOCK COM PANY.—The Court of Dire'tors of the East end West India Dock Company hereby give notice, that the Transfer Books of the said Company will be Shut on Saturday, the 20th day of June, and Open again on toriday, the 3d day of July, 1863, - • By order of the Court, GEORGE COLLIN, secretary. East and West India Dock House, Billiter—quare, sth June, 1-t3. A.D. 1720. ROYAL EXCHANGE ASSURANCE CORPORATION (Established by Charter of his Majesty George the First) FOR SEA, FIRE, LIFE, AND ANNUITIES. Offices, Royal Exchange, London. Branch Office, 29, Pail -mall OCTAVIUS WIGRAM, Esq., Governor. G EO RGE PEARRES BARCLAY, E sq ., Sub-Governor. Sir Joni.; HENRY PELLY, Bart., Deputy-Governor. DIRECTORS. Henry Bainbridge, Esq. Wilmot Holland, Esq. Robert Barclay, Esq. Earl of Leven and Melville. John Garratt Cattlev, Esq. Chas. Jno. Manning, Esq. Mark Currie Close, Psq. Henry Nelson, Esq. William Davidson, Esq. The Hon. Josceline W. Percy. Thomas Dent, Esq. Charles Robinson, Esq. Alexander Druce, Esq. Samuel Leo Schuster, Esq. Fredk. Jos. Edlmann, Esq. Eric Carrington Smith, Esq. Riversdale W. Grenfell, Esq. William Soltau, Esq. Pobt. Amadeus Heath, Esq. Joseph Somes, Esq., M.P. Wm. Tetlow Hibbert, Esq. William Wallace, Esq. Jas. Stewart Hodgson, Esq. Chas. Baring Young , Esq. Medical Referee, SAMUEL SOLLY, Esq., F.R.S. NOTICE.— fhe usual fifteen days allowed for payment of FIRE PREMIUMS falling due at Midsummer will expire on 9th July. FIRE and LIFE ASSURANCES may be effected with this Corporation on advantageous terms. In the Life Department, assurances are granted with par ticipation in Profits, or, at lower Premiums, without such participation. The - Reversionary Bonus on British Policies has averaged nearly 2 per cent. per annum on the sum assured. E qu i va l e nt reductions have been made in the Premiums payable by persons who preferred that form of Bonus. The divisions of Profit take place every Five years. Any s um not exceeding £15,000 may be insured on one Life. This Corporation affords to the Assured— Liberal participation in Profits—with exemption from the liabilities of partnership. A rate of Bonus equal to the average returns of Mutual Societies—with the guarantee of a large invested Capital Stock. The advantages of modern practice,—with the security of an Office whose resources have been tested by the ex perience of nearly a CENTURY AND A HALF. The Corporation have always allowed the Assured to serve in the Militia, Yeomanry, or Volunteer Corps within the United Kingdom, free of charge. ROYAL EXCHANGE, LONDON. ROBT. P. STEELE, Secretary. TO CHRISTIANS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD.—An ADDRESS from the CHRISTIANS of ALL DENI , MINATIONS in the CONFEDERATE STATES of AM• RI A, signed by ne rly One Hundred Ministers of the G, sp.l, in THE INDEX of June 11.—Pub -11-hed every Thursday, at 13, Bouvelie-street, Fleet street, E.C. Price6d. THE CZAR'S DREAM. by " JOHN DAVIS." with Aniicipations of Bibury and Sloe bridge, by " BEACON" late of lie Ps Life); and all the Soo , ling 'News of the Week see THE SPORTINi , GAZET CE (Limited) of SATURDAY, June 13, the only p per that prophecied Ma caroni and Lord Clifden first and second for the Derby, Queen Berika for the Oaks, and the Ranger for the Grand Prix de Paris.—Price 3d ; Stamped 4d. Office-14. York street, Covent-garden; and to be had of all newsagents. THE ADELAIDE (NOR 1 1-1 ARM) PORT AND RAILWAY EXTENSION AND LAND COM PANY, SOUTH AUSTRALIA (Limited). Capital £420,000, in 20,100 shares of £2O each. First issue 10,000 shares. Depo-it, 10s. per share, and 10s. on allotment. Calls not to exceed £3, at intervals of not less than hree months. A portion of the capital reserved for the Colony. Five per cent. per annum guaranteed during the construction of the works. Payments will be received in advance of calls. DIRECTORS. - George Lathom Brown(, E347 (Director of the Cape Town Dock and Railway Company), Old Broad-street, London. Lord Robert Cecil , M.P., 11, Duchess-street, Portland-place. London, W. Frederick Doulton, Esq., M.P. (Director of the London and Colonial Bank). Manor lions , Dulwich. John Henry Harrt.on, Esq. (Messrs. J. H. Harrison and Co., Australian Merchants), Gresham-street, London. W. J. Marshall. Esq. (Messrs. Wilson, Bowles, and Co., Mer chants), 9, Mincing-lane, London, E.C. Alex.nder M'Arthur (Messrs. W. ani A. M'Arthur, Australian Merchants), 46, Moorgate-str , et, London. Georg( Peacock, Esq., Australian Merchant, 1, Lime-screet sq-are, London Albert Pelly, Esq. (Messrs. A. Pelly and Co., Merchants), Finch-lane, London, E C, Henry Spicer, Fog (Messrs. E. and H. Spicer, Merchants), London and Adelaide. Lo CAL BOARD. Hon. John Baker (late — lrem - 1;;i : of. the Legislative Council), A delaide. Hon, George Hawker (Speaker of the Legislative Assembly), Adelid e: Captain Lips . )n, R.N. (late Harbour 'Waster), Adelaide. Bon. Col. u'Halloran (Member of the Legislative Council), . . Adelaide. Hon. • hos. Reynolds, M.P. (late Chief Secretlryl. Adelaide . , Bon. Abraham Scott, tI.L.C., sier hint, Adelaide. BA&KERS. Messrs. Barclay, Bevan, '1 ritton, and Co., Lombard-street, London. South Australian tanking Company, Adelaide. BROKERS. Messrs. A. Scrutton and Son, 81, Old Broad-street, London. SOLICITORS. Messrs. Phillirs and Son, 11, Abchurch-lane, London. SECRETARY—W. H. Payne, Esq. Offices-36, Old Broad-stre t, London, E.C. PROSPECTUS. I. This company is formed fo the purpose of affording more convenient accommodation for the shipping and com merce of the colony of South Australia under the following circumstances : 11. The colony of South Australia, with its mineral and agricultural products, is admittedly rich 1,. all things which Can tend to create an extensive and prosperous trade with other countries, and n , thing retards its elevation to the highest paint of commercial prosperity so much as the want of convenient and sufficient accommodation for the shipping resorting thereto. 111. 1 hat portion of the Port of Adelaide to which the abfpping at present resorts is about seven miles rom the city of that name, and situated at the extremity of an arm of the sea, which after leaving the point know n as th e North Arm oe omes a na• row and tortuous channe , , two miles and three quarters in length, o fficult to navigate withou grounding, and except at flood tide and with a favourable wind inacces sible to vessels without th expense of a steam -tug ; this ter urinates in shoal water, wher e vessels are 0, owded t gether, for the most part around, subject t t all the risks of broken , rips, broken backs, and cot.fiagra• ion—nor can tiles.- disad vantages and ris s be remedied at the present still ping place, as the water is shoaling up every year, and with a 1 the I re sent heavy and constant expense in. rred in dredging can not be sufficiently deepened for vessels to lie afloat. (See Appendix.) IV. The serious and important nature of this question has freguentlyengaged the attention of the Colonial Government and Parliament, and it may be sate y affirmed that the effect of the testimony of successi e Governors and other authori ties, colonists and shipping masters resorting to the port has down to the present day b, en condemnatory 41 the Present shipping place and in tavour of the North A m, as affording the requisite facilities for accommodating a large amount of shipping of any class, and of becoming,, as originally in tended, and still desired, the permanent purt for Adelaide. (See Appendix.) V. Air. the North Arm is a magnificent sheet of deep 'water land-locked, forming a natural basin of great extent, with smooth water and of easy navigation for vessels of the largest burden ; and the site selected by the Company, unlike the adjacent land, is elevated above the highest flood, has deep water in immediate proximity to the shore, and an abundant supply of fresh water, with a frontage to the harbour of over 3,000 feet in length fbr wharf purposes, and of over 1,500 laterally, immediately abutting on the site re served for Government Graving Docks. VI. An adv-ntageous arrsngement has been made with the proprietors of Vie land required for the purposes of the Company, by which nearly two-thirds of the purchase money will be taken in eferred shares, to remain in the hinds of the directors, on terms securing to the shareholders a priority of dividend to th e extent of per cent., till the profits yield sufficient to pay that amount of dividend on the aggregate of the paid-up capital and deferred shares. The remaining one third is to be paid i n cash, at pe rods favour able to the shareholders. The property secured is about 700 acres (extending* from the river across Letevre's peninsula, about one mile in breadth to the Gulf Anchorage), to be con nected with the western bank by means of a steam floating bridge, and the Company has also arranged to purchase on favourable terms additional land on the we-tern bank oppo site the site already secured, with a view to bring ng both sides of the harbour within the sphere of the Company's Operations. VII. It Is intended to construct upwards of 2,000 feet of wharf frontage at once, •ahere vesseis of the largest tonnag may lay alongside, and to erect wharves, warehouses, and other conveniences, affording ample accommodation to the shipping resorting to the port. Also an extens on of two miles of railway to complete the line already laid down by the Government, from the city of Adelaide to the North Arm, and a short. line of four-and-a-half miles to the DIT-Creek Station, on the Great North and Murray River Railway, thereby effecting a saving of 19 miles of cat riage between the great producing districts and the port of the c010n3,. 'JILL As proving the opening afforded for additional ship accommodation by the increasing prosperity of the colony, the commercial returns show that the exp iris and imports for the year 1850 amounted to £1,416,389, that of 1860 to £3,423,107, and that of 861 to £l,O -3,165, the w h ar f d ues upon which amount to upwards of £30,000 per annum. ix. The frontage of the proposed wharves, extending for upwards of half a mile, where vessels drawing upwards of 20 feet of water can come alongside at low water, offers such superior aevantag,es as must obviously secure a larze propor tion of this business, and thus a very large return to the shareholders, as by colonial law the wharf due, for all goods landed are levied according to regulated tariff. Other impor tant sources of revenue are suppled by . the rental of commo flt -us warehouses inc luded in the estimat es, 'he aggregate rental of which cannot be estimated at , ess than £12,000 a Year ; also by the railway s, land population operations of the company wi!l atract to their property. N. The cost of the undertaking, inclAingt ay hepurchaseof the la n d, th e cons truction of wharves,, railway communica tion, and the e'ection of ware houses nd accommoda tionoethoesr above-mentioned, has been carefully red, and7iti mated by the late aptain o or s om, C.F.., at a &um within the first isshe of the company' , capit al. It is also estimated that tht whole of this amount will not be required for tw years Responsible cont motors are prepared to execute the works within the estimat . Any f ur ther capital will o nl y be raised as the i ncrease o f business and the advantage of the company rtqu'res. XI. The proprietors of the land will place in the possession of the directs rs s curities to pa y percent rer annum on the paid-up capital until the able 'he directors to commencewras are e s b o usiness of th' Company. XII. The direst rs advanta! es offered desire to draw attention to the im or tautntdhethpereostfiencLilinddocerutmakenintgs, Con fidently refer to the map a in the appendix, which embraces the site of the Company's property, as estabiishinr , th r a opos , ,cl works. said .et th remunerative character ot, t h e p neeessity for. and the highly Prospectuses, with maps an e d at th , brokers, rebliritors, and Of l 3 ;Cdixes. can be obtained Com pany's offices, 36. Old Broad-street, !-onseeclorneYaEr.sC. FORM OF AMICATION FOR at the To the Directors of the Adelaiele_lorallort a h B An . " %rt nd Rail wayp ny, South Australia Extension and Laud e; (Limited). Gentlemen,—h e aving paid to your hankers. li e..,. that you Bevan. and Co., the sum of £ , I herebyr eq -- u ;' t "arolay. will allot me shares of £2O each i n the Adelaide (north Arm) Poet and Railway Extension and Land Company, South Australia(Limit- d) ; I hereby awe to accept such sh pursuant to the articles of association, or any smaller num.: ber that may he adotted to me, and to pay the calls on t e shares allotted. And I request you to place m y name on t h he register of sharehoideM—y a Gentlemen, your obedient servant, Usaal Agiiature Dame in full Address in full Date ..... rau•sger/RewArw,lY N°. 22.139 T MRS. BROTHERTON'S NOVEL. Now ready, at all the Libraries, in 3 vole., REsPECIABLE SINNERS. By MRS. BROTHERTON, Author of "Arthur Brandon." "A very attractive novel."—Sun. Hurst and Blaekett, 13, Great Marlborough-street. Now ready at all the Libraries, in 3 vols. , T HIRD EDITION 0 LOST AND SAVED." By the Hon. MRS. NORTON. " ' Lost and Saved' is a novel of ra e excellence ; fresh in its thought , artistic in its groupirr, shrewd and übtle in its character-painting, and uith a brave soul speaking through it. It is Mrs Norton s best prose work; and, dis tinctively original, as every work of tue genius must be, its place is beside the best contemporary fiction."—Examiner. Hurst and Blackett, 13, Great Marlborough-street. ,_ 05_.,'.., ei,... " ...:.___,.3*.,, 0 ::,,,...... _ _. _. -- . . _ •• •--v.•,-.. . - , • .1....rz e - ~,A1 , ) k.. .„ qZ IS ' i 9.1J1 • Ar.._ A- 1 1, /, , 11 & 1114- 11N61 .\ 1 4 ... 1:: ' •-' ' . 0 1 ' '\'t . - 'qt . .'"* , isle - , ' .>, i , M' , ~' , -N, N.hai t ., .4d . ) , ~., ......* 1 --,),11 -• v ."-- . I - '-' - 07 • 4 . ; - ' __?.----,,-. _i I i'--- , - , 4=i ;ti . , , 't(f." - , '.€:,., K_ ,_ ~ •,,,,, ~ • , ...- .I . . . ~ ' ' -::,- . ... • ..A. ' ' ,- •., . ' te.....! .. .27. 1 N ' - . ,-, I, , __...),,. Aiitt_c, t . , -- 1-7, , -.,, , , v_ , -. ~i .f, fL _ , ..... r • + . : 1-,\...,,-_ , , ~, _ „• _ DI, 4' . 4, 7 9 14 tO = ' - +.1,0'.,,,,..,,r ,, #, ' DROIT. d'U • \\~' ~. ~,... ....-, i ...__-,-,, 4,-. , ~. .. divip p. ...,, . • .f. • i. ~..'... .. . • " ,,-1 / 4 ~ ,ri... ~. ~~ Second Edition, Revised and Enlarged, with numerous Illustrations, X 2 10s. 6d., ELEMENTS of CHEMISTRY, Theoretical And Practical. By WILLIAM ALLEN MILLER, 31. D , 1.R.5., Professor of Chemistry, King's College, Loudon. PART L—CEIitMICAL PHYSICS. 1 , s. 6d. IL—INORGANIC CLIE •%1 IsT tz Y. 20s. „ III.-O.s.GANW CHEMISTRY. 20s. London: Parker, Son, and Bourn, West Strand. THE SECOND EDITION. 7 3IR.. HENRY KINGSLEY'S _ .., NEW NOVEL, AUSTIN ELLIOT, Is now ready, 2 vols., 21s. Macmillan and Co., 23, Henrietta-street, Covent-garden ; and Cambridge. Now ready at all the Libraries, crown Bvo., price 65., BEAUTIES OF TROPICAL SCENERY, and Ot er TROPICAL POEMS. With Notes, His torical and Explanatory. By the Author of "The Nuptials of Barcelona." ' " This work contains many beauties."—Morning Post. "A volume of word pictures."—Observer. "Ills descriptions make the reader's mouth water for the luxuries and charms of both sea and land in those parts."— Era. "They offer an enticing picture."—Parthenon. London: Robert Hardwicke, 192, Piccadilly. Now ready at all the Libraries, A NEW NOVEL, BY THE REV. J. PYCROFT, Author of " Twenty Years in the Church," DR A GON'S TEETH 2 vols., post Bvo., cloth boards, price 21s. L. Booth, 307, Regent-street, W. T HEATRE ROYAL DRURY-LANE, JUNE 31, 1P63. 1 Grand MELANGE DRAMATIQUE will take place in AID of the FUNDS for a NATI O NAL METROPOLITAN MONUMENT to Sif AKESPEARE, under the immediate Patronage of their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Prin cess of Wales, before wnom 60 eminent artistes will have the honour of appearing . . —Hon. Sec., Mr. Adolphus Francis, 43, Cumberland-street, Hyde-park. S. THALBERG'S FAREWELL. THALBERG'S FAREWELL MATINEE in London, at the ANOVER-SQUARE ROOMS, on MONDAY next, June 15. • Stalls, 21s. ; family tickets, to admit four 3 guineas ; unr e _ served sects, 10s. 6d. ; to be had at the libraries and musi c _ sellers, and of Mr. Fish, Hanover-square dooms, Where the plan of the seats may be seen. HALF CROWN TICKETS for TO-M ORROW ' S GRAND CONCERT at the CRYSTAL PALACE.— Re,,erved Stalls and GaLea Season Ti..kets at 2, EXETER HALL. Open until Eight o'clock This Evening. NO. 2. EXETER HALL.—ARTOT, PAR EPA. DELLE SEDIE, rtaccA, and LOTTO, at TO MORROW'S CRYSTAL PAL CE CONCERT. Half-Crown Tickets up to Eight o'clock To-Night. The rice of Tickets To-morrow will be Five z•hillings. A few Reserved Stalls Half-a-Crown. Apply early. SAWYER'S FAMOUS LONDON DINNER FOR THIS DAY. At 2s. 6d. each Person. SOUPS. Asparagus. Julienne. FISH. Mackerel, Maitre d'Hotel. Fried Fillets of Whitings. ENTREES. Grenadin an Petit Pois. .14:scollops of Mutton, sauce Tomate. JOINTS. Roast Beef. Roast Mutton. SWEETS. Tapioca Puddings. Lemon Jellies. Cheese and Salad. An extensive and carefully selected stock of FRENCH, RHENISH, MOSil LLE, and other WINES, imported ex pressly for the London Dinner. THE LONDON, 191, FLEET-STREET. THOXF O R D, 0, OXFORD STREET. Every Evening will be performed Selections from the following Operas : Verdi's LA FORZA DEL DESTINO ; and Flotow's MARTHA. Supported by Miss Russell Miss Townley c; Messrs. Albert, Green, Bernardi, finish, Kimberley, and W. Evans, with full band and chorus. Conducted by Mr. Jonghmans. Drew Dean's Flute Solos UNSWORTH, the modern Demosthenes. Eugene, W. Randall. J. Hutilhenson, awl the mat venous ARTHUR and BERTRAND. " These two Parisian clowns have carried the art of tumbling to apparently the highest pitch of perfection, and it is impossible even for the most staid of visitors to avo'd being amused by their origin , 1 gambols. They elicit shouts of laughter and applause "—Times, April 7, 1863. CANTERBURY HALL AND FINE ARTS GALLERY. NOTICE. • ENTIRE CHANGE OF ENTERTAINMENT. This Evening the Marvellous ARTPITR. and BERTRAND, the Two Fren h Clowns. ARTHUR LLOYD'S bur for 'esque Drama, arranged expressly hm. A. B. HOLLINGSWORTH'S new Comicalities, SAM COLLINS, with new gongs UNSWOR IH, the "elebrated stump Orator. EUGENE, and G. HUTCHINSON. GRAND SELECTIONS fr , in OPERAS, GLEES, and CANTATAS. Principal Artistes -Miss Russell, Miss Townley ; Mr. Green, Signor Runali. and Sivnor Tivoli. Conductor, Mr. Jonehmans. A dmission -Hall, ed. ; stalls and balcony, is. ROYAL AT,II AM RA PAL ACE.—lmm enRP Success of the Great Spanish Gymnasts, the RISARELIS. -ROYAL ALITAMI3RA PALACE. This magnificent Building. the Best Ventilated slid Coolest Place of Resort in London, t. OPEN DAILY from Twelve to Five FREE OF CHARGE. The Choicest Wines and Refreshments. ARGYLL ROOM S.—JULLIEN'S PRI , MENADE CONCERTS. NnTICE.—Dori g the Week the Selections will be—" Der Frieschutz "—" a Forza del Destino "—" Il Trovatore " "Don Giovanni," &o. LEVY, the great wonder on the Cornet-a-Piston, plays from half-past Nine to Twelve. Admission, is. 29, GEORGE-STREET, HANOVER-SQUARE. THE LONDON ANATOMICAL MUSEUM, containing 1,200 Models, Natural Preparations, Monstro sities, &c., illustrating every part of the Human Frame ; also the Moving Anatomical Dying Zouave, Julia Pastrana, &c. Admission, One shilling tor Gentlemen only), from 10 till 10. Lecture at Four. Illustrated Catalogue free for two stamps. Address the Secretary, as above. M R. T. CARRICK begs to announce to his Artist Friends and the Public, that his Photographic 14 .stablehment, 32, Regent-street, Piccadilly-circus, is now in lull operation. Cartes de Visite, 10 for ins. 6d ; 21 for £l. Miniatures on Ivory, Marble, and the Photographic base in his former qtyles. T HE best, T ROUSERS for gentlemen to wear are those made by ELSTOB of 60, New Bond-street. They are neither so low in price as ' to necessitate their being carelessly put together, nor so dear as to gain only the wealthy as purchasers. "In media via tutissimus ibis." ELSTOB'S TROUSERS, TWENTY-ONE SHILLINGS PER PAIR. HOME and FORWGN INQUIRY OFFIE.— Confidential inquiries and legal investigations ri vatel instituted with the utmost fidelity and despateh P , 1.1 Ell2land and all parts on the Continent, by Mr. POLLAKY, 14, George-street, Mansion-house, E.C. THE FARMER'S BAROMETER, 513 5; new Instrumen‘ , , by l\ egretti and Zambra, wa a cor rec tly indicate whether t h e Ba ometer falls for Rain or lb; Wind. Particulars by enclos -street a incr stamp.-1, for ; 57, Cornhill ; 122, Regent. ANEVER FAILING REmEDL- Ur. SCOTT'S BILIOUS and LIVER (ILLS, pre ,reel without any mercurial ingredient, from the recipe of Dr. 'ott, of Bromley, .bent, will be found invaluable to all who uffer from bilious ,nd ever complaints, indigestion, wind, pasms, giddiness, Izziness of the eyes, &a For habitual ostiveness, as a family aperient medicine, and as a purifier the blood, they are truly excellent; mild in their opera 'ion and grateful to he stomach, they create appe ite, pro mote digestion, and strengthen the whole nervous system. Sold e _ by W. Lambert, 8, King William-street, Charing-cross. L iadon and by input druggists, in box es,ls. l i d, t and three timed the quantity in one_, 2a. 01 Be ogre to ask for Dr. Scott's tend Bilious nd Liver Pills. The genuine ere a s q uare pt imp. P ac kage , with " William Lambert," engraved on the 4UN, LO (N, FRIDAY EVENING, JUNE 12, 1863 SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS. TIMES.—Tree proposed purchase of• the site and buildings of last year's Exhibition en behalf of the Government has already created so much attention, and been made the subject of such violent and per verse misrepresentation, that we think a consider able service may be rendered to the cause of truth and justice by a fair and dispassionate statement of the numerous transactions and the discordant views and motives which have brought things to the pecu liar position in which they now stand. The surplus attained by the Exhibition of 1851, amounting to about £150,000, was invested by that Commission in the purchase of the Kensington Gore estate, to be held and disposed of by them for the purposes of art and science. Upon a portion of that estate was placed the iron shed which was originally built as a receptacle for the undisposed of objects of the first Exhibition. On one side of this unsightly, but cheap and convenient structure, have risen, on the same estate, the buildings in which are contained the Pictures, Museum, and Schools of the Depart ment of Science and Art. To the north-west of these have been erected, on the same estate, the ar cades and conservatory of the Horticultural Gar dens; and south of those gardens lies the land on which was erected the Exhibition Building of last year, with the exception of the two annexes. In the spring of last year it was thought proper that a building should be provided for the reception of the Natural History collections of the British Mu seum. 'We have often explained in these columns the necessity of such a step, and shown how grie vously the main objects of the Museum are defeated by the manner in which its specimens are crowded together or piled up in vaults, unseen, unknown, and unregarded. Whatever may be the result of the discussion of next Monday, we are convinced that nothing could give so great an impulse to the study of natural history as the exhibition in a suit able building, with proper amplitude, of the animal and mineral kingdoms. The first struggle was to retain these collections at Bloomsbury, but that appears now to he given up, and the question has narrowed itself to a choice of the place to which these collections are to be removed. Not only had the Commissioners of 1851 lent 164 acres of their lend for the purposes of the Exhibition of 1852; they were also bound to the pro moters of that Exhibition to leave the land free for the purpose of all future Exhibitions. It was therefore not competent for them last year to offer any portion of the 164 acres to the Govern ment for the reception of the Natural History col lections of the British Museum. Last year's pro posal was that Government should buy the five acres comprised in the western annexe, and upon them shond erect a building for the reception of the Natural Hlst ory collections, the whole estimated to cost about £700,000. The House of Commons rejected this proposal, partly on the ground of the uncertainty of expense, and partly, it may be presumed, because even the large sum so demanded would not supply the wants of the Government. Since then those wants have been more carefully examined. We require at once a large acreage for the Natural History collections and for many other purposes. The Patent Museum, which has a fund of £13C4000 for the purposes of building, is incon veniently crowded into a portion of the iron shed irreverently styled the " Brompton Boilers." The most interesting relics, which . future generaticns will make pilgrimages to see, are huddled together in a most discreditable manner. The first steam engine and the first locomotive are treated with as little respect as if they really were what they appeal—nothing but ricketty frames of rusty iron. The Geological Museum has outgrown its elegant residence in Jermyn-street, and must either be ex tended by buying or leasing, at the public expense, some of the most valuable houses in London, with one front in Jermyn-street and the other in Picca dilly, or find a reeling place elsewhere. The National Portrait Gallery, the Vernon pictures in the South Kensingte!Museum, and the magnifi cent - collection of pribts hid away in the British Museum, all need exhibition. These, omitting many minor particulars, are our immediate and pressing wants. The question is, bow shall we supply them? The Commissioners of 1851 have undertaken to answer this question. As last year's Exhibition left no surplus, the Commissioners of 1851 re ceived back the land which they had lent dis charged of the covenant to preserve it for the purposes of future Exhibitions, and covered with the building, which the contractors who had erected it were bound, upon receiving notice, to take away. The land of the Commis sioners on which the Exhibition building stands is estimated to be worth at least £15,000 per acre. This land they offer to the Government for £6,000 per acre. That is, they offer for £lOO,OOO that which is now worth £250,000, annexing to their offer only the condition that the land should be applied for purposescontemplated in their charter —that is, for purpose of science and art. The MI acres may be obtained by the public for the same sum as two acres contiguous to the British Museum. The motives by which the Commissioners are actu ated are plain enough. They have the alternative of disposing of their estate to the Government for the purposes of science or art or of realising 'the property, and thus possessing themselves of half a million of money, in the disposal of which they would doubtless find more difficulty than a Chan cellor of the Exchequer does in the disposal of his surplus. On the other hand, the object of their charter is accomplished if they can dispose of their land so as to promote the interest of art and science, however much below its value that land may be sold. They naturally think that nothing can be done more suitable to the purpose of their incorpora tion than to gather in one spot as many collections as possible illustrating the works of nature and of man, to rescue from oblivion and decay so many valuable and beautiful objects, and to meet for a time at least the perpetual demand for further apace. The Exhibition Building is the property of the con tractors who built it, but for the purposes of valua ble ownership it can only be considered as a mass of brick, wood, iron, and glass, They must remove it if required, and, as it mast be taken to pieces in order to be removed, the workmanship goes for nothing as an element of value. The contractors are to receive £BO,OOO, and this sum represents, we believe, very accurately the value of the materials over and above the expense of pulling them down and taking them away. The cause of the cheapness of this offer is not, as has been said, the worthless ness of the buildings, but the fact that they exist only on sufferance .. There are, besides, refresh ment-rooms, erected by the Commissioners on the north side of the Exhibition, which are to be sold for £20,000. Thus, by a curious conjuncture of circumstances, the public are offered for £200,000 land which could be sold immediately for £250,000, and buildings the actual cost of the erection of which only last year was. £250,000 more. But it would be ridiculous to assert that the Exhibition Buildings,would in their present condition be fit for the purposes which we have mentioned. The flooring, as everybody knows, is temporary, and the glass roof must be replaced by something more sub stantial. The glass domes also, generally and justly condemned by public taste, can hardly be allowed to remain as they are at present. The brickwork is, we believe, thoroughly solid and substantial. After the flooring and roof have been renewed it will be necessary to divide the building by interior walls, so as to separate one department from another. When this has been done something will be de manded to relieve the extreme plainness of a build ing neither ill-planned nor ill-proportioned within, but totally void of the least semblance of ornament. For these purposes £284,000 will be required. So t possession—andf o h ra acres , t a have covered eruendd theer t h a t with off half e buildings offer, a f wn a ve pasr adaptedyl million,e sh e 00 , rr o t f e t oi n 2moo t e oue ring into time—of n l l e t6 s sl s , than we were asked to pay last year for five conti guous acres and the buildings upon them. This is the question which the House of Commons will have to decide on Monday. We have taken some trouble to ascertain the facts of this rather complicated case, and we believe they may be thoroughly relied on. We cannot doubt that the proposal i 3 eminently economical. If it is rejected, it must be on the ground of taste—a subject to which argument is prover bially inapplicable. We only hope that it will not be rejected under the idea that the expenditure can be saved, and that no alternative proposition need be contemplated. If we do not provide for our col ul e n d e i s o s n swteh meanus, we e t u m e u l s e t r i s fi e e e e k t o h u e t j s e o w m e e l t o o t h t e h r e s c e ll a s e k m e e t We do not press the proposition of the Government on the acceptance of the public; we only say that those who 'eject it should be prepared, among other reasons for its rejection, to prove that they can offer u u s su s r o p ro s e t t h e e in v g la b e e e t t o e f r. . DAILY NEWS. —The naisag muchhti in the wretched faction which statesmen t Berlin . may learn, cplac e ondu c l a t i t s from rd s w o h h a e t t took heir cdoeuperetrcyateeds it b t y i st by y e tghree atitoConservative o those ealritje liberal they in P p r e u o s p s l i e a coalsno tdheespHisoe.udseanodf o f The which p this ed will observe that the men they permit to progressiven o t bear thepr inciples mention. govern th e m are degrading their country abroad as thoroughly as they are enslaving it at home. The observations which the Earl of Carnarvon made on the behaviour of M. de Bismark and his colleagues with respect to their Convention with Russia, express with accuracy what English men of all classes and all parties say and feel. It plainly appears from the explanations given to our Minister at St. Petersburg, and from all we know of the state of things in Prussian-Poland, that the Convention with Russia was neither an act of good neigbbourship required by a powerful ally, nor a necessary measure of self-defence, but simply the expression in its foreign policy of that blind and fanatical fear and hatred of free institu tions which constitutes the whole statesmanship of the Prussian Government, and which at home is seen in the suppression of the Parliament and the press, and even of the right of petition. Lord Car narvon observed that the only explanation of the origin of this Convention was a jealousy or fear of the establishment in Poland of some Government constructed on free principles with a liberal consti tution ; and he most truly remarked that " this con duct is alienating from Prussia the sympathy of those nations which acted with her in former times, and carries her back in her policy not by years, but by generations." But if the policy of the Conven tion was despotic, the low cunning, the conceal ment, and prevarication with which its execution has been attended is still more despicable. Truth and frankness constitute the one virtue of which absolute governments are capable, but to neither of these has M. de Bismark the prudence, much less the grace, to aspire. The Prussian Minister being asked, on behalf of the Queen's Government, for information on the subject, untended to excuse himself by the unwillingness of Russia ; but the Russian Government has assured us that it had no objection to show the document apart from the strong wish of Prussia. Next, M. de Bismark pre tended, and for a moment induced our Government to believe, that the Convention had become a dead letter; but after this it was treated as a living reality in the Prussian Chamber; and the Queen's representative sent word home that it was still sub sisting. In February M. de Bismark produced and read to our Minister at Berlin a paper purporting to be the Convention, which subsequently turned out to be nothing but a draft. At a subsequent in terview the Convention itself was read, as was again believed. But here again equivocation and conceal ment were resorted to, for, as was discovered at St. Petersburg, there existed a " secret article," of which no hint had been given by the Prussian Minister. As Earl Russell was compelled to ob serve, "there has been every kind of contradiction and concealment wtth regard to this Convention." A Government capable of such conduct destroys that confidence which is of the essence of friend ship, and Prussia is at this moment at once the most exposed and the most isolated State in Europe. HERALD.—According to the latest accounts Vicksburg had not fallen. The attempt to storm had signally failed, and the coup de main was to be converted into a regular siege. It the town is as well fortified and provisioned as it is said to be, the Confederates ought to have ample time to relieve it and drive Grant's army once more to its gun boats. The Federal army is said to number 60,000 men, and reinforcements are reported to be con stantly arriving. The Confederate garrison is at the outside 15,000 strong. There are long lines to defend, and many batteries to man ; there is an active and enterprising enemy to watch. Still Vicksburg was not invested on the Warrenton side. The assailants were evidently notieclined to throw out their left at too great a distance from the friendly stream of the Yazoo. And if it be true that Johnstone had already collected 15,000 men near Jackson, and that Confederate forces were marching from all quarters to his aid, we are likely very soon to hear that the siege has been raised. What is to be feared is that reinforcements wiil not be forth coming. Nothing but the absolute want of men can justify the smallness of the force with which the 'defence of the state of Mississippi has been con.' ducted. General Grant's army was, no doubt, overwhelming in point of numbers. But this must have been perfectly well known to the Confede rate Government ; and we are rather inclined to attribute the numerical inferiority of the Confede rates at Vicksburg to the urgent needs of their position in Tennessee, South Carolina, and Virginia than to want of foresight. General Johnstone is stated to heve promised 100,000 men within a certain interval. Half that number will drive every Federal soldier out of Mississippi ; and we know no quarter in which a decisive success would be of more vital importance to the South than at Vicks burg. Another fortress might rise up in the course of a few months, rivalling Vicksburg in its natural strength. But it is not to be doubted that the capture of this town, which President Davis h as distinctly pointed to as the key to the defence of the South-West, would be a tremendous triumph to the es ar party in the North, and would more than compensate President Lincoln for bis ill success on the Rappahannock. We await the result with some confidence. Things look well for the South. The great hope of the Federals evidently lay in the suddenness and rapidity of their blows, and this hope has failed them, General Johnstone is not the man to give them another chance. ------- POST.—As the debate shortly to be resumed, any Ivor: fortifications is very fresh matter that would tend towards the mare complete elucidation of the problem of " Ships v. Forts" would be acceptable. With this object in view we have examined the accounts received on the arrival of each fresh mail from America, but have been unable to discover any indications of a renewal of the threatened attack upon Charleston being likely to take place. And trom the lengt'i of time that has now elapsed since the first announcement by the New York journals of the intended repetition of Admiral Dupont's ex periments, we may consider this prospect at an end, or only to be placed on the same list as the other aggressive movements announced for the purpose of concealing Federal disasters. The minds of the most experienced tacticians have long ago been satisfied that it is impossible for any fleet of ships, wiihout the cooperation of an army, to effect the reduction of a properly defended seaport ; and as the only ground upon which it was attempted to reopen an argument upon this well-established point was based upon the alleged superiority of attack sfforded by Captain Ericsson's turret ships, we are compelled, under these circumstances, to fall back upon our ,past experiences of the performances of these vessels in order to show how little reason there is for assuming that any alteration or delay ought to take place in carrying out the syst em o f defence laid down for the protection of our dockyards. In the first place it will be necessary to separate two points which many persons are apt to contuse. First, the application of steam power to ships has enabled vessels to run the gauntlet of the guns of a fort with more or less impunity. But the ex pectations that had been formed, in the second place, upon iron plating have not been altogether attended with the results which were anticipated. Vessels are not enabled to batter down the fortifi cations which they can so easily run past in conse quence of being armour-plated. Captain Ericsson has clearly failed to establish the claim of invul nerability for his iron-clad vessels, and the asser tion that no lives were lost on board of them during the period of their recent engagements was a state ment furnished from a Federal source of which we have no positive means of ascertaining the truth, and can only put down the alleged immunity of life upon that occasion as something marvellous considering the damage which was in flicted upon these vessels, the sides of which, it was admitted in many instances, were pierced through and through by the steel-headed bolts and other projectiles launched at them. The loss of life which may place on b oar d th ese vessels howev t e a r, e a n ffect th e ma i n po i nt at issue, rests upon the ackn ow l e d ged fact of r wd m ho aieesy which rests t , have taken these vessels having been withdrawn from the attack in a sorely discomfited state after an engage ment which lasted only 30 minutes. Let us com pare for a moment this account with what we know of the performances of wooden ships. The Aga memnon at Sebastopol remained at anchor exposed to the fire of Fort Constantine for four hours, and the damage to the fortifications of Sebastopol by the combined fleets was far greater than the damage inflicted by the American iron -clads on the defences of Charleston. It must not be supposed that, in citing this particular case, it is our intention to assert that wood is a substance better able to withstand the effect of shot than iron. The failure of Capt. Ericsson's vessels, when brought to the test at the !ate bombardment, was chiefly owing to the mis taken principle of their being armed with few guns for the business they had in hand, and not to the material of which they were composed The evi dence given by Capt. Hewlett before the commis sioners appointed to consider the defences of the 'United Kingdom on the subject is worthy of notice. He was asked if he would prefer to man 20 guns with fully trained crews, or 40 guns with half the number of willing but untried men. His reply was in favour of having the greater number of guns. Tie fault of overcrowding small vessels with nine and twelve.pounder popguns was found in the last 'American war to have been a great blunder, but to run into the opposite extreme of reducing the arma ment of larga vessels to only two or three monster guns will, we feel assured, turn out to be a still greater mistake. It having been proved that any vessel propelled by steam, and more especially if plated with iron, can with impunity run past a battery, the system of defence which, under these circumstances, appears the most natural and ad visable to adopt is that of making the channel through which the vessel has to run the gauntlet as long as possible, with the object of keeping the vessel exposed so much longer to a destructive fire, To accomplish this it is necessary to have an ex tended system of advanced works covering the ap proaches of an e x p ose d har b our like Portsmouth. If with what we now know of the capabilities of attack posessed by armour-plated steam-vessels, we were going to construct an entirely new dockyard, it is only reasonable to conclude that we should select a site as much inland as possible. Ports mouth, however, is our chief arsenal. Immense sums of money have been expended upon the place, and it is our duty, therefore, to do the best we can to make it secure. The advantages of increasing the capabilities of Chatham with a view towards lessening the importance of Portsmouth is a matter also worthy of the highest consideration. When the works are completed at Portland we shall be in the possession of a far more commanding position in the Channel for the location of a fleet than any point which we possess at the present, and with the increased advantage of having no building yards and other establishments that require protection. Portland is essentially fitted to become a war port. Naval stores of every description can be accumu lated in an impregnable fortress, and supplied to ships with the greatest facility by means of a rail way communication from the crest of the hill to a fort at the extremity of the breakwater. If the advice of an old and experienced officer of engineers had been followed in the Crimea, we might at once have occupied ground which it required afterwards much blood and treasure to secure. Let us profit by past experience, and not neglect to take advan tage of a point situated in the centre of the only line of attack upon which an enemy could have any reasonable hope of obtaining success. We can imagine the President of the Southern Confederacy, or the National Government of Warsaw, feeling relieved when their generals succeed in placing their foes upon the edge of a shallow river, and can understand how they must envy the natural posi tion of defence of which we, in our insular position, are in possession ; but that is no reason for our neglecting to take such measures as will prevent the lessons of our past his . ory being repeated in the present ay. The Prince of Wales at Merchant Taylors' Hall. The grand banquet of the 11th June, on the ex• amination of the school by the President and Fel lows of St. John's College, Oxford, is regarded as the chief annual event in the register of the Mer chant Taylors' Company ; and it is, besides, an occasion of marked interest in civic annals. This year the great festival of the livery of Merchant Taylors has derived additional public interest from the fact of his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales being present as the chief guest. It is generally known that, as the great Whig company is that of the Fishmongers, so the Merchant Taylors' enjoys a reputation for oli fashioned Toryism ; but a more valid appeal to the Royal sympathy and regard would be, that the excellent school maintained by the company sends many scholars to Oxford. The occasion of the Prince's visit was the presentation to his Royal Highness of the freedom of the guild ; and this ceremony took place in the Picture Gal lery overlooking the'ancient hall in Threadneedle street. * The Prince of Wales arrived at half-past six, and was received at the entrance by Mr. T. B. Spence (the master), Messrs. Alfred S. Pigeon, Ttiomas B. Pugh, Chas. Rickards, and Richard B. Boyman (the wardens), and Mr. Samuel Fisher (the clerk to the company), and conducted along the corridor and up the staircase to the Picture Gallery, which over looks the ancient hall, where he was received by a distinguished body of honorary members of the company, by the Court of Assistants, &c. His Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge was present at the ceremony of presenting the freedom. The Prince of Wales was accompanied by the Earl of Mount Edgecumbe, Major-General Knollys, and Col. Keppel ; the Duke of Cambridge was accom panied by Col. Tyrwhitt. Mr. FISHER the clerk, proceeded to read the re solution of the Court of the 22d December last, con ferring the honorary freedom of the company upon his Royal Highness ; after which the clerk admi nistered the oath in the customary form, much of whose meaning is obsolete; calling on the Prince to swear fealty to our Sovereign Lady Queen Vic toria, and further adjuring him to be good and true unto the Merchant Taylors of the fraternity of St. John the Baptist, in the City of London, to be obei santoble departi ng to the wardens, and not to conceal any foreigner using the handicraft of tailory or merchandise, neith n e n r r to entice withdraw n se c r r vanttill reaasny reas o nable man's appren ticemay be made. These quaint obligations having been duly subscribed by the Prince of Wales, whose signature was added to an illustrious list of royal names, including that of his revered father, his Royal Highness was presented by the Master with a magnificent casket in ebony and gold, with the arms of the company on the top and the Prince's on each side, containing a copy of the resolutions beautifully illuminated upon vellum, and was ad dressed as follows : " May it please your Royal Highness—As Mas ter of the Merchant Taylors' Company, it is my pleasing duty and high privilege to present to your Royal Highness the honorary freedom of the ancient corporation, and to express our dutiful acknowledg ments for the distinguished honour which your Royal Highness has conferred upon the company by becoming one of its members. Your Royal High ness will pardon me for reminding you that from a very early period this company has been honoured with royal patronages. King Edward I. granted a license which recognised its existence as a guild. King Edward 111. granted its first charter, and tes tified his regard for the company by becoming the first of its royal members. His grandson, and successor, King Richard 11., and all the Sove reigns of the houses of Lancaster and York (excepting Edward V.) became honorary free men of the company. They also con firmed its charter and extended its privileges. King Henry VII. re•incorporated the company under its present title, and presented the new char ter to the master and wardens from the throne. He afterwards conferred upon them the great honour of presiding as master at a festival held in their hall. At a subsequent date King James I. was entertained by this company on his accession to the English throne, and his Majesty's two sons, Henry Prince of Wales, and Charles Duke of York, afterwards King Charles 1., were enrolled as honorary members ; and it may be interesting to your Royal High ness to be informed that the National Anthem was composed expressly for the occasion, and performed for the first time in Merchant Taylors' Hall. King James 11. and Prince George of Denmark were also honorary members of this ancient fraternity. At a much more recent date the company had the privi lege of admitting to its honorary freedom their Royal Highnesses the late Dukes of York and Cambridge, and the great captain the illustrious Duke of Wellington ; and the entertainment given on that occasion was honoured wit h the presence of Royal your Royal Highness's grandfather.his Highness the late Duke of Kent. At a still later period the company had th e distinguished honour of being permitted to confer its honorary freedom . on your Royal Highness' s beloved and lamented father, his Royal Highness the late Prince Consort, whose untiring exertions to promote in every way the wel fare of his adopted country call forth the warmest gratitude —whose thoughtful and earnest words, spoken here and elsewhere, have left a deep and lasting impression, and whose memory w ill ever live enshrined in the hearts of a grateful nation. With these precedents on record, and influ enced by the feelings expressed in the resolution which has just been read, the Master, PRICE.-- -..4d. STAMPED ....sd. Wardens, and Court of Assistants ventured to offer for your Eoyal Highness's acceptance the honorary freedom of a corporation venerable for its antiquity, distinguished for its loyalty, and eminent tor its usefulness in dispensing its noble charities, and promoting education based on sound Christian principles. The gracious condescension with which your Royal Highness was pleased to intimate 3 our acceptance of the freedom was gratifying to every member of the fraternity —on whose behalf I leg leave to tender to your Royal Highness their most grateful acknowledgments, and to solicit permission to enrol the name of your Royal Highness among its illustrious honorary members, and to welcome your Royal Highness to its hospitalities as a citizen and merchant tailor." His ROYAL HIGHNESS made the following reply : —Mr. Warden and Gentlemen,—lt is with a real pleasure that I have come here to take up my free dom of the Merchant Taylors' Company. The his tory of the princes of Eogland who have become freemen of your ancient corporation has increased my ambition to follow their example. Were another motive wanting, it would be supplied by the revered and dear memory of him whose words on a similar occasion you have heard in this room where 1 now address you. The wealth and respectability of the Merchant Taylors proclaim the wisdom with which its affairs are administered, and its widely-extended charities the spirit in which its wealth is used. The history of its educational establishments tells its own tale of the success which has attended the liberal principles and sound basis on which they are formed. Mr. Warden and gentlemen, I am proud to belong to a company which thus nobly works for the benefit of the human race, and I esteem it a honour to have my name enrolled among the freemen of the Mer chant Taylors' Company. The ceremony of admitting his Royal Highness to the freedom of the company having terminated his Royal Highness, accompanied by the honorary members and the master wardens and court of as sistants, repaired to the drawingroom and joined the many distinguished guests there assembled. At the banquet, which was shortly afterwards served in the hall, an extraordinary magnificence was observable. The display of the company's famous resources of hospitality was carried to its utmost height ; and the massive wealth of decora tion was crowned with flowers of the choicest kinds, in a profusion scarcely to be imagined. The Master Warden presided, having on his right hand the Prince of Wales, and on his left the Duke of Cam bridge. The toast of " Her Majesty the Queen" was drunk with great enthusiasm ; and The MASTER WARDEN then said—This is an eventful day for the Merchant Taylors' Company. The heir apparent to the throne of these realms has honoured this ancient and loyal corporation in be coming one of its honorary members, and has, with gracious condescension, accepted the invitation of the master and wardens to honour the entertain ment with his company on this occasion. I feel that in his Royal Highness's presence it would ill become me, to say more than to ask you to join with me very heartily in drinking the health of their "Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales," assuring them of our loyal and dutiful re gard, and of our earnest prayers that they may long be blessed with a continuance of every earthly hap piness, and dwell in the hearts and affections of the British nation. (Great cheering.) The Prince of WALES said—Waster Warden, your Royal Highnesses, my Lords and Gentlemen, It would ill become it I did not in a few words re spond to the hearty and cordial manner in which you have referred to my admission as a member of your ancient corporation. I have in an other place alluded to the noble hospitality of the Merchant Taylors' Company, but I am now enabled practically to bear testimony to the splendid entertainment which has been so liberally dispensed in this hall, and of which I shall ever retain the most lively as well as the most grateful recollection. (Loud cheers.) The next toast was "Their Royal Highnesses the Duke of Cambridge and the Crown Prince of Prussia, Citizens and Merchant Taylors, and the other illustrious branches of the Royal Family." This was succeeded by " The Army, the Navy, and the Volunteers," coupled with the names of the Duke of Cambridge and Duke of Somerset. His Royal Highness the Duke of CAMBRIDGE said—Master Warden, you have done me the honour to propose my health in a double capacity, first as a member of the Royal family, and next as the head of the army. You have also requested me Ito return thanks for the volunteers. As a member 'of the Royal family, I beg to assure you that we are deeply sensible of the kind feeling which is mani fested towards us on all occasions like the present one. As regards the army, let me say that I am convinced that the best and surest mode of securing that peace which is so beneficial to the whole world, and to no portion of it more than this great empire, is to maintain the efficiency of the services over one of which I have the honour to preside ; and I can assure you that nothing more stimulates the exertions of that service than the kind and liberal manner in which the toast is always received in every assembly of Englishmen. (Cheers.) As to the vo lunteers, I am proud to think that I am myself the head of one of the volunteer corps of the City of London. lam happy to say that the most cordial feeling of friendship and fellowship exists between the army and the volunteers; and I trust that year after year their value and importance will be in creasingly manifested. Let me, in conclusion, congratulate the Merchant Taylors Company on having now added to the list of its members the name of the Prince of Wales—a compliment, the 'acceptance of which evinces his Royal Highness's wish that the old institutions of the country might continue, including those noble guilds at the hos pitable board of one of which we have this evening the pleasure of meeting. The Duke of SOMERSET briefly returned thanks for the Navy. The MASTER WARDEN then proposed "His Grace the Archibishop of Canterbury," who acknowledged the compliment in a short speech of thanks. _ The next toast was " St. John's College, Oxford, and the President of the Senior Fellows thereof." The Rev. Dr. WINTER, President of St. John's College, returned thanks. The MASTER WARDEN then proposed " The Hono rary Members of the Company," name of the Earl of Derby, which wma:ne received with much cheering ; the other n ames the Duke of Northumberland, t Marquis f li be coupled w ith the Chelmsford, Lord n u io o d Sas. being bury, the Earl of Elgin , L May it ease Clyde, Sir The Earl of DEIRI ir John Lawrence, and ord General Sir George Po Warden, my pl Lords your and Royal Highne ss, B as Y ter said— Gentlemen, Ihvae been an honoraryvelearnt,ifldid member of this notknowitbe fore, since iha illustrious company, that the first and principal duty is strict, immediate, and unquestioning obedience to orders, and consequently, although amid the illus trious names which have been read I know not why mine should have been selected as that of the per son who was to return thanks, I do not hestitate for a single moment to obey the order which I have received. None can feel more warmly the compliment which you have been pleased to pay to me amongst the rest ; but I have considerable difficulty in returning thanks on the present oc casion, because I have so frequently expressed ray gratitude in this room for similar kindness which I have received. Indeed the task is more difficult on this occasion than on any other, because I am for cibly reminded of memorable occasions on which I have received marks of kindness and consideration, and on which I was not merely permitted, but re quired to touch and to enlarge on topios from which I am wholly debarred from alluding this evening. (Hear, hear.) It is obvious that on this occasion it would be wrong to touch in the slightest degree on any political question. This is forbidden by t he --:: ~~ ,:--,-----..•---ivie NEWsp 21..,,-- ~., ..k, - 4' ~,,,,„•:_ ~ , -- '' . 3 .'- - * 44*' t 1 ' t , -iD - - :g, , -5-.- M 4 - 1, ..,_ „,,, AI a s mixed character of the assembly which I address, by the presence of many from whom I differ in their political opinions, but for whom I entertain sincere regard and friendship; and above all by the pre sence of the illustrious Prince who has this day honoured us by his compary and membership ; for although no man can take a greater interest than his royal highness in the affairs of this country, yet from his high position he stands above, and must at all times be kept separate from, all political coe neetions and all party considerations. Yet so much I think I may say on the present occasion without hurting the feelings of any one, that there are topics on which in the present day there are no differ ences of opinion. Indeed, upon most of the political topics the differences which separate us are differ ences rather of degree than o f principle ; and w hil e we are all—some faster and some slower. some more ,cautiously and some more eagerly—anxious to im prove and amend the institutions of our country, we ere all, with the exception indeed of a compara tively insignificant fraction, disposed to rest every improvement and every adaptation to the spirit of the age upon our old, honoured, and valued institu tions. (Cheers.) It may be that some of these valued institutions are at present unavailable for the purpose for which they were origina ly in tended. God be praised that these companies are no longer called upon to perform those valuable ser vices; and to discharge those important functions by which in earlier and less happy days they ren dered great benefit co the country. (Hear, hear.) There is no need now for the guilds of London to stand up to defend the privileges of the people against the encroachments of the Crown. There is no need now for the interference of the guilds of' London as the guardians of our infant commerce, no need for the nursing, if I may venture to whisper , the word, the protecting—(laughter;—and if I may also add, the monopolising, of the trade and com merce of the country. (Cheers and laughter.) That infant commerce has now outgrown the necessity of being sustained by means of nursing —(hear, hear) —and whether to assist the commerce of the coun try or to resist the encroachments of the Crown, guilds are no longer required, or indeed able, to perform the ancient functions by which they for merly rendered such great service to the country. (Cheers.) indeed, I may say that unless it be the Goldsmiths' Company, there is now no one company in London which has any real practical connection with the duties of the trade which they originally , represented. Yet I do not believe the most ram pant utilitarian would propose or suggest to any one the idea of dispensing with the great and valuable guilds, although their original functions may not now be performed by them ; feeling, as all must do, that if they do not now discharge those func tions, they perform others hardly less valuable, and, moreover, that they remain as a standing monu ment of the honour which this country has always paid to its commercial interests—a proof of the vast extent of prosperity which those interests have at tained, and a proof also that those who are connected with those interests have not merely known how to make their own fortunes by successful industry, but have nobly and generously expended the riches which they have acquired. (Cheers.) Amid the alterations made in the superstructure the buttress may no longer be required, yet the buttress remains not less an ornament to the building—an ornament which antiquity has reflected upon modern times. ',Cheers). There is no man, however high his sta tion may be, however distinguished may be his position—l will not except even the illustrious Prince who has this day done us the honour of be coming a member of this company—who may not well be proud of being associated with a company so distinguished as the present ; a company which is distinguished, not only by its splendid hospitality —a hospitality which is not merely a vain show, or an empty profession, but which serves the practical purpose of bringing together in social intercourse classes of the community which might otherwise see little of each other—but, far more than that, a com pany which knows how to make such a noble and generous use of its wealth, which subscribes so liberally to the charities of this country, and which has done so much by its example and its means to maintain and uphold in this land the great funda mental cause of moral and religious education. (Cheers.) In the name of the honorary members of this company, including, I am perfectly confident, the illustrious Prince himself, who has this day been enrolled, I may say that we feel it the highest honour to be associated with a body so distinguished as that which I have the honour to address ; and that we are deeply grateful for the invitation to be present this day, and for the kind manner in which the toast has been proposed and received. (Cheers.) The next toast was the" House of Lords." The Duke of RICHMOND returned thanks. The Prince of WALES said—l have now the pleasure to propose a toast, which I am sure re quires no remark, it is "Prosperity to the Merchant Taylors' Company," coupled with the name of the Master. The MASTER-WARDEN returned thanks. The next toast was " The Colonies of Great Britain," coupled with the name of the Duke of Newcastle. The Duke of NEWCASTLE, in responding, said he was glad that the colonies had not been overlooked on that occasion. They were, he believed, actuated by a feeling of thorough loyalty towards the throne, and he declared there was not one of them that did not desire to remain attached to this coun try as long as possible and to adopt its institutions. It was remarkable that events had recently occurred in two of those colonies which those who had de voted attention to them would a short time ago have believed to be impossible. One of them had by its voiee of the legislature already adopted universal suffrage; and the other, one of the Aus tralian group, had already taken steps for the same purpose. These appeared to him sure indications that the loyalty of the colonies to the Crown of England was based on a thorough conviction that by adopting the institutions of this country they would best promote their own happiness. The next toast was " The Judges of England," for which Lord Chief Justice ERLE returned thanks. This was succeeded by " The Merchant Taylors' School," for which the head master, the Rev. Dr. HESSEY, responded. The next toast was " The House of Commons," coupled with the name of Mr. Disraeli. i 1 1 r. h i n responding, said he could th a t the House of Commons did not look upon comp liments of that kin d on assure DIeSR ss E e L m i, bly such occasions as mere matters of routine, but accepted them as expressions of respect and sympathy consecrated by generations which had preceded them, and hallowed by the history of an ancient nation. Corporations were not the least inconsiderable securities they possessed for that public liberty which was perhaps the peculiar privilege of this country. They per mitted the aggregate of individual sentiment to as sume, when it was necessary, the massive and ma jestic form of public o • pinion, which controlled and regulated the course of public affairs, They indeed in tim es o f trouble and perplexity something around which men might rally. But .11 it must be more gratifying than usual to the House of Commons to have had its health pledged in the presence of such illustrious guests. The Prince of Wales, however exalted his position, was, it should be recollected, a Member of Parliament. (Hear, hear.) He had taken his hereditary seat in the senate of this country : there he had learnt the course and conduct of legis lation, and there, if imperious duty prompted him, he might legitimately express his opinion by his voice. His Royal Highness had that day taken up the freedom of the company, but the country recol lected that he had before, in the House of Lords, taken up the freedom of his country. These public circumstances were to the people of England a source of proud satisfaction. The people looked upon them as a guarante e for the future welfare of Eng land, they looked upon them as a source of proud satisfaction to the illustrious Prince himself, and as the best security for the happiness of the country. (Cheers.) The last toast wE s " The Visitors," for which Lord STANLEY returned thanks. The band of the Coldstreams, under their leader Mr. Godfrey, played an excellent selection during the dinner; and a selection of vocal music was after wards performed under the direction of Mr. Donald King, who was ably assisted. Mr. Harker offi ciated as toastmaster.