The Sun. — London, England, 1854-01-04 00:00:00

ASTLEY'S EUROPE'S NATIONAL A NIPIIIT HEATRE. Lessee and Manager, Mr. W. Cooke. GRAND JUVENILE NIGHT on THURSDAY, JAN. 5. Crowded houses nightly to witness the unequalled Attractions. The most gorgoous and successful Pantomime ever produced in this Theatre. THIS EVENING, JAN. 4, (And during the week, Thursday excepted) The New Grand Equestrian Chinese Spetaele, entitled " THE WISE ELEPHANTS OF THE EAST; or, THE MAGIC GONG — In which the wonder of wonders, Mr. W. Cooke's performing Ele phants will appear. Followed by a series of novel and brilliant scenes of Equestrian ism in THE ARENA by talented artistes. After which, a New Grand Equestrian CHRISTMAS COMIC PANTOMIME, written expressly for this Theatre, by Mr. NELSON LEE, entitled BILLY BUTTON'S JOURNEY TO BRENTFORD ; or, Harlequin and the Ladles' Favourite. New scenery, dresses, decorations, and appointments, magnificent Car of Industry, &c. Harlequin, Mr. H. Hemmings ; Columbine, Milne. Christine; Pantaloon, Mr. Lehman; and Two Clowns, Mr. C. Adams and Mr. Croueste ; Sprites, Masters Gee and Bra.lbury. Box-office open from Eleven till Four. Stage Manager, Mr. W. West. DAILY WEATHER TABLE. WEDNESDAY, JAN. 4, 1854. State of the wind and weather at each of the following places at nine o'clock yesterday morning. The stations are arranged in order of latitude. FOLKESTONE—E., gentle breeze --overcast. TUNBRIDGE—S.E., calm—overcast. STROOD—N., gentle breeze—overcast. HIGH WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE. THIS DAY —Horning 33 min.after I Evening 55 min.aft. 5 To-llonnow—Morning 18 min.after 6 I Evening 43 min.aft. 6 THE WEATHER.—Soar OPTICE„TAN. 4. THERMOMETER, TN THE SHADE. 39—highest since noon yesterday. 34—lowest this morning and during the night. 38—this day at noon. BAILOMETER, 28 . 98. During the night London and its vicinity, for many Miles round, has been visited with the heaviest fall of snow since 1838—a fall that has delayed the mails and im peded the general traffic on the river and railroads. ~i r 1 1 a ~''~~ ~' ~~ ~ /;r 0.1 1 / 1 , !REAM ROYAL DRURY•LA`IE Lessee, Mr. E. T. Smith. THIS EVENING, JAN. 4, Will be performed the entirely new Drama of interest, entitled TUE BEGGING LETTER. To conclude with KING lIUMMIN'GTOP ; or, Harlequin and the Land of Toys. The New Drama having been received with universal approbation • Will be repeated every Evening until further notice. THEATRE ROYAL, HAYMARKET. Uader the management of Mr. EncYstone. THIS EVENING, JAN'. 4, Will be performed THE HOPE OF THE FAMILY. Characters by Messrs. Chippendale, Compton, Buckstone, and W. Farren ; Airs. Mrs. Fitzwillfam, Miss E. Grey, &c. After which, the Grand CHRISTMAS PANTOIVIIME, call , d HARLEQUIN AND THE THREE BEAR ; or, Little Silverhair and the Fairies. Columbine, Miss M. Brown ; Harlequin, Mr. J. Mars all : Pantaloon, Mr. W. A. Barnes; Clown, Mr. H. Marshall. ROYAL PRINCESS'S THEATRE, OXFORD-STREET, Under the Management r)f Mr. CUARLES KEAN. THIS EVENING, JAN. 4. Will be performed the Tragedy of HAMLET. Principal charac ter by Mr. C. Kean. After which will be presented the new Grand CHRISTMAS PAN TOMIME, entitled HARLEQUIN . AN THE MUER AND ILLS MEN; or, Kin 4 Salamandar and the Fa!ry of the Azure Lake. Harlequin, Mr. (lorinaclt ; Clown, Mr. Huline ; Pantaloon, Mr. Paulo; and Columbine, Miss DesborotK;ll. LYC FX 51 T lIEAT RE. Under the Management of Madame Vestria. THIS EVEICD:4'G, JAN. 4, Will be performed A BACHELOR. OF .ARTS. Characters by Messrs. C. Mathews, F. Matthews, and Ea!ter ; Miss F. Hughes. After which, "an original Fairy Extravaganza, called ONCE UPON' A TIME THERE WERE TWO KINGS. Principal cha racters by Mr. Wright and Madame Vestris. To conclude with PATTER VERSUS CLATTER. THEATRE ROYAL ADELPHI. Proprietor, Mr. B. Webster.—Directress, Madame Celeste. Bare Christmas Amusements—The Great Attraction of London— " One of the Sights of London"—The Sea of Ice and Marvellous Adelphi Effects in the exciting new Nautical Drama of " THE THIRST OF GOLD," every Evening—A new Grand Fairy Spec tacle, NUMBER NIP. THIS EVENING, J. 414. 4, Will be presented the highly Popular New Nautical Melo-drama, In five tableaux, with new scenery, the Sea of Ice, &e., new dresses and appointments, called THE THIRST OF GOLD ; or, THE LOST SHIP AND THE WILD FLOWER OF MEXICO. Principal characters by Messrs. B. Webster, Keeley, Paul Bedford, 0. Selby, Parselle, Marsden, &e. ; Madame Celeste, Mrs. Leigh Murray, Miss F. Maskell, &c. ; with an entirely new grand specta cular legendary Christmas piece, in two act.;, with new scenery, dresses, machinery, and appointments, called NUMBER NIP, or THE SPIRIT BRIDE. Principal characters by Madame Celeste, Mrs. Keeley, Miss Woolgar, Miss M. Keeley, Miss Cuthbert, Miss C. Harding; Messrs. Paul Bedford, J. Rogers, Romer, G. Lee, &c. ROYAL OLYMPIC THEATRE. Lessee and Manager, Mr. A. Wigan. THIS EVENING, JAN. 4, To be followed by THE CAMP AT THE OLYMPIC. Charac tars by Messrs. A. Wigan, F. Rob.on, Morton, and Galli ; Mes dames A. Wigan, Stirling, P. Horton, Chatterley, &c. Followed by THE WANDERING MINSTREL. After which, a new historico-geographical CHRISTMAS PAN TOMIME, called HARLEQUIN COLUMBUS; or, The Old World and the New. Harlequin, Mr. F. Moreland; Pantaloon, Mr. W. Rochez ; and Columbine, 3llss Wyndham. STR.t..ND THEATRE. Sole Lessee, Mr. F. W. Allcroft.—Directress, Miss Rebecca Isaacs. THIS EVENING, JAN. 4, Will be performed LA SONNAMBULA, To be followed by THE IRISH TUTOR. After which, a new grand Comic Christmas Pantomime. entitled HARLEQUIN AND KING NUTCRACKER ; or, The World of Toys. Clown, by the inimitable Fie - more ; Harlequin, Mr. Bologna; Pantaloon, Mr. Griffiths ; Columbine, Miss Goward. Stalls, 55.; Boxes, as. ; Pitt, 25.; Gallery, Is. ; Private Boxes, 11. Is., to be bad of Mr. Allcroft, 15, New Bond-street. ~T LONDON, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 4, 1854 A snowfall so dense as to delay the mails and otherwise generally to impede the traffic by rail road comes to us as seasonably as the prospect of a European War at the commencement of the New Year comes to us, in the strongest signification of the word, unseasonably. An artificial scarcity arising from the dearness of provisions —doubt on the Stock Exchange interrupting the course of rational speculation—labour stopped in the heart of winter throughout some of the most populous districts of Lancashire—suspicion as to Court in fbrences of a most unconstitutional character— "confusion and disorganisation at the Horse Guards —a chaotic Parliament and an unpopular Adminis tration ; such are the sources of anxiety at Home, now that 1854 has opened with the dawn of January. Abroad, the prospect continues to be about as sombre and melancholy. Scarcely anywhere can we recognise indications less deplorable than the presages of a general war —a war involving in it the destinies of the prin cipal races of Christendom. Austria remains as dubious as she has ever been heretofore. Prussia still coquets with the supreme absolutism of St. Petersburgh. France betrays, through the by no means inaudible avowals of her EMPEROR, a re solve to tolerate no longer the lawless designs and arrogant policy of the Russian AUTOCRAT. Meanwhile the Turks are more than ever infuriated by the timidity of their allies, and the detestable cruelty of their assailants—the Muscovites, on the other hand, being more than ever inflamed to a lust of battle, and a passion for bloodshed by their recent and reiterated successes over their Moslem neighbours. Precisely at this juncture the inti mation vouchsafed to the people of England through the organs of the Coalition, by way of solace, or encouragement, is actually to the effect that Peace depends now entirely on—What ? Listen !--" The will of the AUTOCRAT." What a solid foundation this for hope as to the speedy restoration of the world to tranquillity ! Everything reposes now on " the will of the AUTO CRAT." Not on the Four Powers—the Allies of Turkey —they have transmitted their final propo sitions to Constantinople. Not on Turkey her self—sloe has accepted those propositions frankly and readily on two conditions , namely, on the understanding that the integrity of her empire is to be guaranteed, and that the twin provinces of 1101 110-Wallachia are to be evacuated. The final decision, therefore, has to be awaited, not from Stamboul, or from Paris, or from Vienna, or from Berlin, or from the sacred precincts of Downing-street but from St. Petersb u rgli. In other words, Europe is meekly to listen for its doom from the magnanimity, the wisdom, the justice, and the moderation of the CZAR. What a prospect ! How exhilarating— THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, JANUARY 4, 1854. how propitious—how manifestly prophetic of an Arcadian reconciliation ! The• magnanimity of the CZAR—we have seen its scope in the mi-sion of MENSCHIEOFF, its effects in the bloody and smouldering ruins of Sinope. His wisdom—we may ' appreciate it now from the policy which has plunged him into the perils of a struggle with the united Powers of the European Continent. His justice —it is beheld clearly enough in the seizure of the Principalities. His moderation —it may be recognised in the nature of his de- I mands and the manner of their enforcement. And upon this magnanimity, wisdom, justice, and moderation, we are expected to build up a fairy palace of hope for the incoming of a spurious po litical Millennium. Castles in the air were no thing to it. Now, remembering all this, may it not reasonably enough be questioned whether the ABERDEEN Ministry has really proved such an enormous blessing to the com munity? May not this query be put to our selves and to the country without necessarily im plying that we are in any way factious in our an tagonism to the Government ? It is to be hoped so—for otherwise we must risk the chance of being thus unpleasantly designated. We can't, for the life of us, remain silent while Aberdeenism is being eulogised as a boon to England—watching it, as we have done, closely during a deplorable career of twelve months, and seeing it, as we have seen it, impelling the nation deeper and deeper as the time advanced into the Slough of Despond. Here is 1854, not a week old, and Europe trembling on the verge of a general warfare—and this mon strous evil mainly, if not exclusively, attributable to the fatuity, and weakness, and indecision of the ABERDEEN Coalition. It is a farce to talk of this as in any respect an exaggeration. Had Eng land acted spontaneously eight or ten months ago with the vigour she will now be compelled to display in spite of herself—we should never have heard even of the passage of the Pruth, much less of the occupation of Moldo-Wallachia, or of the burning of Sinope, or of the prospect of a speedy war for entire Christendom. Wherefore, we by no means regard our present Ministers as men who have deserved well of the country. We consider them to have displayed, during the year in which they have unfortunately held office, a temerity as criminal as their incapacity (in spite of their being All the Talents) has been al togethe unparalleled. Nearly two months since, speaking of the un fortunate dispute then and still depending between the masters and operatives in the manufacturing districts, we said "if the question were merely one of wages, the parties might be suffered to fight it out among themselves." We pointed out, how ever, that " such was not the case," and that it was obvious that the " so-called rights of labour' could be regarded as neither more nor less than an invasion of property, not merely on that of mill owners and. factory proprietors, but of every des cription ;" that "those who were then bearing the brunt of the encounter were but the vanguard ;" and that " should they be driven back and be de feated, the main army must inevitably be engaged, and that at very serious disadvantages." From these formidable facts, we arrived. at the conclu sion that it would be "far better to sustain and assist those engaged in the struggle, and to pre vent the opponents from effecting a footing within their lines than to purchase a temporary exemp tion at the expense of far more serious efforts on a future occasion." Tho accuracy of our state ments and conclusions have since been fully and completely verified. The scarcely-assumed dis guise has long since beau flung aside. It is too palpable to admit of dispute or difficulty that the question was not "merely one of wages," but that the organised movement which had taken place was the result of a deliberate determination to place " the destinies of trade" under the control and management of a clique of mischievous pro fessional agitators, whose sole object was to live in idleness by sowing discontent between the employers and the employed, and reducing the former to the condition of mere cyphers in their own establishments, the veriest serfs to the Cow- ELLS, GRIMSHAWS, SMITHS, et hoc genus omne, who are assuming the direction in the struggle. This intention has now been openly avowed. It required no express acknowledgment to show the motives of the malcontents. These were depicted in colours too vivid to admit of doubt or miscon ception. Their " overt acts" established the ex istence of the wide-spread and elaborately organ ised conspiracy. But it was by no means so clearly established that other trades and other dis tricts would lend "material assistance" to the "turn outs," so as to give occasion for a general conflict be tween labour and capital. A vigorous exertion would in the first instance have placed the " difficulty" in due course for an equitable and satisfactory arrange ment. Nay, more, a decided demonstration would have sufficed. Had the millowners and factory proprietors throughout Lancashire distinctly and unequivocally expressed an unflinching determi nation to sustain and assist the masters of Preston, of Wigan, of Bacup, Burnley, Accrington, and the other districts where hostilities had either commenced or were impending, matters would speedily have been arranged, the absurd preten sions would speedily have been abandoned, and the untenable demands based thereon withdrawn. The masters in each locality were, however, left to fight their own battles. No pecuniary assist ance was tendered no indulgence shown by those who, although not directly en gaged, were not very remotely interested in the struggle. The " pound of flesh" was in, many instances—we freely admit that there were many honourable exceptions—taken from the belligerents, from those who were at the moment fighting the battles of their exacting cre ditors. No direct money contributions were re ceived or even offered. There was nothing to show that any aid would be afforded to the " van guard" actually engaged in the struggle ; and this unaccountable apathy and indifference was con tinued notwithstanding the large sums levied in Bradford and other districts, and the men supplied not by cotton spinners only, but by numerous trades totally unconnected with the points of con troversy. At troversy.t length we find that the other master manu facturers have been aroused from their sluggish insoueeance. They at length perceive the neces sity of organised resistance, and of meeting the combination of the hands with a. counter-com bination of the employers. But though the mere annunciation of such a determination would have afforded a satisfactory solution of the important problem if put forward at an earlier stage, it may not now be sufficient. It is no longer a cotton-spinners' question—other trades have embarked in the controversy, supplied the "sinews of war" to the combatants, and held meetings to tender their active co-operation. The result is but too powerfully perceptible. We find Mr. GRIMMIAIV, on Saturday, announcing " what the trades of London have determined to do, should the masters again adjourn ?" It appears that the new parties to the contest (the trades of London) will not let them go to work for three months after that. The interpretation of this injudicious boast is simply, that all who douot immediately suc cumb are to be crushed, root and branch. It will not suffice if they make submission—abject and unconditional submission : even after that they are to be kept for three months—not at " hard labour," but with closed doors and rusting machinery. Will other capitalists submit to this without some corresponding exertion on their part. If they do, they will richly merit ' their impending fate. They have been too long inactive. Let them at length, even at the ele venth hour, exhibit some degree of energy ; and they may render the interference of the Legisla ture unnecessary, and avert a contest of which it is impossible to foresee the result. COURT CIRCULAR. WINDSOR, JAN. 3. There was no addition to the Royal dinner party yes ;erday. The Queen and Prince, attended by the Viscountess Jocelyn, Colonel Bouverie, and Lieut.-Colonel F. Sey mour, left Windsor this morning, at 10 o'clock, for London, by a special train of the Great Western Rail way. _ _ . The Royal party drove from Paddington to the E)chi 'bition of the Photographic Society, in Suffolk-street. Her Majesty and his Royal Highness also visited the Duchess of Glocester, and the Queen returned to the railway station and arrived at 'Windsor at ten minutes before 2 o'clock. The Prince proceeded from Glocester-house, to Mr. Bailey's studio, in Newman•street, to inspect the cast for the statue of Lord Mansfield. His Royal Highness afterwards honoured Mr. Bell's studio, at Kensington, with a visit, to see his cast for the statue of Sir Robert Walpole, both of which are about to be executed for th Houses of Parliament. The Prince called at Buckingham Palace, and returned to Windsor at a quarter past 4 o'clock. The Earl of Listowel has been succeeded by Lord Byron as Lord-in-Waiting, and Major-General Berke ley Drummond has relieved Mr. R. Ormsby Gore as Groom-in-Waiting. CABINET COUNCIL.—A Cabinet Council was held yes terday afternoon at the Foreign-office, Downing-street. The Ministers present were the Earl of Aberdeen, Lord Jobn Russell, the Lord Chancellor, Earl Granville, the Duke of Argyll, the Marquis of Lansdowne, Viscount Palmerston, the Earl of Clarendon, the Duke of New castle, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sir J. Graham, Sir Charles Wood, the Right Hon. Sir Sidney Herbert, ar.d Sir William Molesworth. The Council sat three hours and a half. The Postmaster-General had an interview with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on Monday at his official residence in Downing-street. The Marquis of Lansdowne arrived in town on Mon day night from his seat, Bowood-park, Wilts. Viscount Palmerston returned to town yesterday morning to attend the Cabinet Council from his seat, Broadlands, Hants. Sir Charles Wood has returned to town from his seat, Hickleton-hall, near Doncaster. Despatches were received yesterday at the Colonial office from the Governors of the Cape of Good Hope, the Mauntius, and Gibraltar. Despatches were sent last evening from the Colonial-office for the Governors of Hong Kong, Ceylon, and Australia. COPENHAGEN UNIVERSITY.—The lectures at this uni versity will henceforth be delivered in the Danish, in stead of, as hitherto, in the Latin tongue. THE NEW GOVERNOR OF VICTORIA.—Sir Charles Hotham, the recently-appointed Governor of Victoria, intends leaving England for Australia by the General Screw Steam Company's steamer Crcesus, which will sail from Southampton on the 10th inst. The Crcesus is a new vessel (2,500 tons), and this will be her first voyage. RAILWAY MAILS.-At a meeting just held at Stoke upon-Trent, on the subject of postal communication in the potteries, information was received to the effect that the Post-office authorities had made arrangements for running a day mail through the Potteries with the new year, and that the offer of the North Staffordshire for conveying the night mail was under the consideration of the authorities. LONDON SOCIETY FOR TEACHING THE BLIND TO READ. —A special general meeting of the friends and sub scribers to this institution was held yesterday in Avenue road, St. John's-wood, for the purpose of electing three children from a long list of candidates. Mr. Steedman presided. The report stated that the institution was founded fifteen years ago, for the express purpose of de velopinc, the physical, intellectual, and moral powers of the blind, b and thus rendering them independent and use ful members of society. By the assistance of the legacies bequeathed to the institution, which have been scrupu lously set apart for the purpose, the sum of 1,5001. (five years ago borrowed on mortgage to complete the build ing) has been reduced to 5001., thus relieving tile society of no less a sum than 501. per annum for interest. The completion of the Bible on Lucas's system bas.now_been accomplished ; and, by an adaptation of the system to musical notations, through their master, Mr. Wood, they have embossed a volume of several tunes for the use of the blind. Having made large grants to indigent blind and charitable institutions, and owing to the high price of food, they commence the year in heavy debt, and earnestly appeal to the benevolent for increased funds. There are now in the school nearly fifty chil dren. The election having been proceeded with, the meet ing separated. THE LONDON DOCK COMPANY.—At the half-yearly meeting of the London Dock Company, held yesterday, John Cattley, Esq., in the chair, Mr. Powles (the secre tary) read the report of the directors, from which it ap peared that the number of ships which had entered the docks within the six months, to the 30th of November last, was 646, measuring 207,248 tons ; for the corres ponding period of 1 852 the number was 711, measuring 228,551 tons. The amount earned was 250,6091. 7s. 2d., and for the corresponding period of 1852, 235,8991. 168. 4d. The expenditure was 151,875/. 17s. 11d. ; and for the same period of 1852, 140,2211. 14s. 4d. The balance standing to the credit of the profit and loss was 261.743/. 18s. 10d. A dividend of 21 per cent. for the half-year was recommended, and that a sum of 10,0001. be appropriated towards the new works. The Royal Assent had been given to the new bill, and ar rangements had been made for the purchase of the lands. The chairman having briefly remarked on the favour able condition of the company's affairs, the report was adopted unanimously. THE FISH MARKET AND THE FROST.—III conse quence of the intense frost which has now prevailed for several days, the fish market at Billingsgate has been supplied in a very limited manner. Yesterday almost all the fish which arrived in the market was by rail, and that supply was limited in the extreme, and the prices asked were exorbitant, cod-fish being charged from 15s. to 255. The only fish vessel which took a berth at the market pier was an oyster-boat, all the others, including the Dutch eel vessels, having been obliged to keep in the Pool, and most of them were compelled to dry and:cook their fish, in order to make it saleable, for, by keeping it, the fish would have become unsaleable. The regular fish dealers, as well as the itinerant ones, were, in con sequence, much disappointed, and, as might be expected, their customers expressed great dissatisfaction. RELIGIOUS WORSHIP.---There was yesterday published a Parliamentary volume containing a report and tables concerning religious worship, as exhibited by the census of Great Britain, 1851. The volume has reference to England and Wales. It appears that there are in England and Wales 35 different religious communities or sects —27 native and indigenous, and 9 fo reign. The latter include all the bodies which have assumed any formal organisation. There are, it is stated in the report, in addition, many isolated congregations of religious worshippers adopt ing various appellations, but it does not appear that any one of them is sufficiently numerous and consolidated to be called a "sect." Taking the population of England and Wales at 17,927,609, there was present at the most numerously attended services on Sunday, March 30, 1851, the number of 2,971,253 members of the Church of England, 3,110,782 Protestant dissenters, .249,389 Roman Catholics, and 24,793 of other bodies. Of all denominations the number returned as present on the Sunday mentioned is 6,356,222. THE CITIES OF LONDON AND PABIS.—The Lord Mayor has received an answer to the address presented to the municipality of Paris, recording the reception of the Lord Mayor, aldermen, and common council of the city of London in the year 1851. The document, which is framed and emblazoned in the most splendid and tasteful manner, acknowledges, on the part of the Pre. fect of the department of the Seine, and the members composing the municipal body of the city of Paris, the courteous address forwarded through the medium of her Majesty's Ambassador at Paris, and, after express. ing satisfaction at this new. proof of the close union which exists between England and France, conveys the assurance :that the municipality of Paris, like that of London, appreciates the benefits of the happy brotherhood which peaceful competitions tend to establish between civilised nations. This document is dated "August 13, 1852," and is accompanied by a note, dated the "17th of December, 1 853," from the present Prefect of the Seine, the receipt of which was acknow ledged on the 22d of f December last by the Lord Mayor, who expresses an earnest hope "that the reciprocation of kindly feelings, which were cemented by the Great Exhibition of 1851, may long be cherished by two such powerful and distinguished communities as the cities of Paris and London." THE CALORIC SHIP ERICSSON.—The problem as to the success of the Ericsson approaches a solution. The engine is now so nearly completed that a trial trip will probably be made next Tuesday or Wednesday, and Mr. Ericsson is in the best spirits, such as confidence of suc cess inspires. We learn from one of her principal owners that e xperiments already made show that the desired amount of pressure may be easily obtained, and a full reliance is entertained that the ship will attain a speed equal to at least nine miles an hour, which will be a rate entirely satisfactory. We also learn that it has been determined to place the Ericsson on the route between New York and Havre, as an independent steamer, to replace the temporary vacancy occasioned by the destruc tion of the Humboldt.— New York Journal of Commerce. A FARCE OF " HONOCR."—A duel was arranged to come off near Eltharn on Tuesday last, between a mili tary officer and a naval officer from Woolwich, who were said to have quarrelled about a female. The se conds, however, having more common sense and discre tion than the principals, brought the affair to an ar rangemeent by proposing that each of the belligerents should present himself before the young woman for her to make choice between them. It is whispered that she was so prudent as to reject them both, as they deserved.--8014 Eastern Gazette. MONEY MARKET AND COMMEBCIAL INTELLIGENCE. CITY, TWO O'CLOCK. The sales of cotton at Liverpool yesterday were estimated at 6,000 bales, 1,000 of which were taken on speculation. The market closed very firmly. The sales comprised 250 Pernam and Maranham at bid. to BW., 30 Bahia at 6id., 600 Egyptian at 6d. to 10d., 300 Surat at 2id. to 40., and the, re mainder American. Railway Shares were flat. The official statement of the exports for the eleven months to the sth ultimo, gives an increase of more than 15,500,0001. compared with the like date of 1852. Among the various colonies which are putting forward their claims to the attention of emigrants, Van. Diemen's Land, or with its more modern name, Tasmania, is becoming more conspicuous. Now that transportation has ceased, there is really no cause for reservation on the part of public writers in supporting the pretensions of that' favoured island, nor will a slight examination fail to show that there is ample room for a large ad ditional population. The Lieutenant Governor, long as he has obstructed the best interests of the colony by his obstinate advocacy of transportation, and his attempt to introduce the Norfolk Island desperadoes among the general settlers, has been awakened at last to a sense of his duties now that convict labour is no longer obtainable. In an excel lent official document, the capabilities, climate, and commercial advantages of Van Diemen's Land are fully explained ; and we may remark that, although there is no gold production, the emi grant of steady habits will find other and more certain sources of income entirely compatible with the location in a particular town or district of a family accustomed to English habits and society. Of the climate, the Lieutenant-Governor writes that it is most favourable for European constitu tions, neither hot nor cold in extremes. There are 13 million acres of Crown lands unappropriated out of the 16 millions which the island contains. There is an extensive line of coast with good inlets for any amount of shipping, and with excellent facilities for transporting produce from one part of the island to another. The following brief outline will give an idea cf the general character of the country : "Ibout 40 miles from the west, and the same distance from the north coast, a table-land of about 3.4 million acres in extent rises about 3,000 feet above the level of the sea. On this elevated land are numerous lakes, which form the heads of the principal streams flowing to the south, the west, and the north ; and from it a spur or mountain range runs in a direction a little to the east of south, and, separating the valley of the Derwent from the Gordon and iiuon rivers, has hitherto proved an almost impassable barrier to the progress of the population towards the west coast. " A mountainous range of less decided character, and broken through at one point by the valley of the south Esk, separates the central and more settled districts from those on the cast coast. _ _ _ "The principal part of the population of the island is thus, at present, confined to a narrow strip of land be tween these two ranges of hills. "The means of communication are of a better descrip- tion than are to be found in the other colonies of Aus tralia. A good turnpike road extends from Hobart Town to Launceston, a distance of 120 miles, and this traversed by coaches at the rate of ten miles per hour : the traffic being sufficient at present to support two day coaches and one night coach each way. " From this road others branch off at different points, leading to the principal townships or villages : upon some of these are regular conveyances for passengers : and every effort is making to extend and improve the means of internal communication. " It has been stated that nearly 3,000,000 acres of land have been alienated by the Crown. A large por tion of this, especially that in the more central part of the island, is occupied as sheep runs. In the neigh bourhood of the towns, however, much land has been brought under cultivation; and the returns of 1852 show a total of 123,983 acres under the plough. "The larger portion of the land to the west of the Tamar, and between the lofty plateau before alluded to, and the sea, is covered with a forest of heavy tim• ber, but the land is of the best quality ; and the timber in consequence of the demand which exists in Victoria for building and other purposes, is most valuable, and Jepays by its sales not only the whole cost of clearing the land, but also the purchase-money of the land itself. "There, is a similar district, though not perhaps so extensive, on the west shore of D'Entretasteaux's Chan nel, at the south side of the island. The timber, which is of a better quality than that on the north coast, is. owing to the facility afforded by the sheltered inlets of the channel, brought to market more readily, and there fore more cheaply and profitably. Little is yet known of the land to the westward of the dividing range of hills.' The Foreign Exchanges yesterday afternoon were very firm, and in some instances there was an im provement. Paris, 25 271 to 321 ; Antwerp, 25 171 to 20 ; Amsterdam, 11 151 to 16 ; Ham burgh, 13 41 to 5 ; Frankfort, 1188 to 118/ ; and Trieste, 11 42 to 48—all for 90 days' paper. The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company's vessel Ripon, which leaves Southampton to-day for India, 47;c., has on board 235,9901. in specie, of which 28,4201. is in gold, and the rest in silver. The gold per Tartar has arrived at the Bank, and became deliverable yesterday. There has been a heavy market again for public securities, rather from the absence of business than any other cause, and this prevents any marked variation in prices. Consols for the opening have been done at 93i to I. The Now Three-and.-a-Quarter per Cents. have been as high as 941 to and are now 941 Exchequer Bills keep firm, at 70. premium. While political matters continue so unsettled they will be pre ferred as a temporary investment. Bank Stock has declined to 2161 and 215. Foreign Stocks are very dull, and prices merely nominal. Spanish Three per Cents. have realised 44g. Brazilian New Four-and-a-Half per Cent. stock is worth 93. Danish Five per Cents. have been quoted 102. The Railway Market has been unusually quiet, and prices are about the same as they closed yes terday. French Shares have been heavy likewise. In the Australian and other Gold Mine Bank and Land Companies' Shares, there have been scarcely any transactions. BRITISH FUNDS THIS DAY AT ONE O'CLOCK (From the Official List.) Business done . BanVtock ..... ..... . 216) 15 93i :4 3 per Cent. Reduced Annuities •• - New 31 per Cont. Annuities 94. Long Annuities, Expire sth Jan., 1860 .•• 5 1 India Bonds, £lOOO Ditto, under £lOOO 1 p Consolsfor Opening 18th Jan. Exchequer Bills, ld. £lOOO PRICE OF FOREIGN FUNDS AT ONE O'CLOCK Brazilian Bonds, 5 per Cent. . .............. Ditto New, 1852, 4A per Cent ............. 93 Danish Bonds, 1825, 3 per Cent ............ Ditto 5 per Cent Spanish Bonds, 3 per Cent ............... 44$ Dividends on the above payablein London. HALF-PAST TWO. Consols for Opening 18th January 93i x d i i i MADAME TUSSAUD'S EXHIBITION.—This popular Ex-. hibition has been visited during the past week by thou sands of all classes, to view the highly interesting models contained in the establishment. The group consisting of her Majesty and young family appeared to attract the chief attention of the visitors, although a large pro portion paid great attention to the valuable collection of relics of Napoleon the First ; and, indeed, notwithstand ing these reminiscences of this wonderful man have been some years exhibited, yet the attraction continues two fold, and the number of persons increases considerably every year, so undying are the memorials of the great. PROPOSED NEW RAILWAY DOCKS.—An extensive wet dock, of 23 acres, in connexion with the various lines converging at Newcastle, is proposed to be constructed on the north bank of the Tyne, with a deep water en trance of 23 feet. A similar wet dock is also proposed to be established in connexion with the railways at Maryport. ACCIDENT AT THE HOUSES OP PARLIAMENT. —Yes terday morning a serious accident occurred to Thomas Morton, at the new Houses of Parliament. He was engaged outside the building, when he slipped on some snow, and fell through a skylight a depth of twenty feet. He was picked up in a state of insensibility, and con veyed to Henry Hoar's w2xds, Westminster Hospital, where he now lies in a most precarious situation, owing to the severe injuries he received in the head and back. Not the slightest hopes are entertained of his recovery. ISLE OF 11IAN SAVINGS' BANK.—The trustees of the Isle of Man Bank for Savings, in Douglas, have guaran teed any deficiency which may arise in consequence of the fund being deposited. in Messrs. Holmes's bank. Manx Jountal. RUNCORN.—Runcorn, on the Cheshire shore of the Mersey, the terminus of the Bridgewater Canal navi gation, has two churches, one chapel of ease, nine dis senting chapels, four public schools, town-hall, foresters'- hall, town offices, post-office, bank, two hotels, four teen public-houses, fifty-four beer-houses, a goodly num ber of beautiful mansions erected in various parts of the town and its suburbs, a splendid pier and pro menade walk, docks, and the most extensive line of locks in the kingdom. THE STORM OF LAST NIGHT. One of the most severe snow-storms we have seen. in London for several years visited the me tropolis at a late hour last evening, and continued without intermission until an advanced period this morning. The wind whistled and howled Turin ; the who - le night, at times blowing <a )erf,:ct barri cane ; and as the snow fell fast and thickly, it wa':: scattered about in all directions with such violence that the police could not perambulate their beats, and they and other midnight wayfarers were com pelled to seek shelter under arches and porticos for several consecutive hours. Not a crevice or corner where the wind could penetrate has been left without a deposit of snow, and it has been drifted with such force that the entire fronts and sides of many buildings are encrusted with the virgin white substance, thus presenting a very pretty, and, to Londoners, almost a novel appearance. In some parts of the metropolis, espe cially in the outskirts, the snow is several fe e t d ee p, and traffic is almost at a stand still. Even in the main thoroughfares there is an extraordinary di minution in the number of vehicles. Not one half the usual army of omnibuses is to be seen, and cabs are scarcely to be had at any price. Many of the latter are drawn by a couple of horses, some in tandem fashion, so great is the difficulty of loco motion through the streets. " Cabby," of course, expects something more than his 6d. a mile under such circumstances, and it would almost be impos sible to resist the extra demand, for his red, half- frozen face, and his perspiring and struggling horses, which cannot move a leg without slipping almost as many feet backwards, speak eloquently on his behalf. In every neighbourhood the houses have, for several days past, been besieged by mobs of men and boys, with spades, scrapers, and brooms, with offers to clean your door and pavement, and as the police regulations in regard to this are now strictly enforced, their services have been generally accepted, and, as the Americans would say, a pretty considerable harvest of coppers has been reaped in this manner. Their tariff of charges very naturally augments with the depth of the snow ; and, to-day, for what they formerly did for a penny or two pence, they readily obtain treble those sums. An other way in which these poor fellows turn an honest penny at this inclement season, is by the sale of water, the frost having cut of the ordinary supply in our cisterns and buts, and persons find ing it convenient to pay a few pence for carrying pailfuls from the nearest of the conduits which are now placed in every street by the different water companies. In consequence of the letters by the general post not having been delivered until very late in the day, the mail trains were no doubt im- peded by the accumulation of snow on the railways. The northern mails did not reach London until eleven o'clock to-day. It is now something like fourteen years ago since anything like so heavy a fall of snow occurred in London, and then, if we recollect right, the Tories were said to have lost the election of Speaker through some of their body having been. delayed by the snow on their journey up to town to vote for their favourite candidate. LAW INTELLWENLR----(THIS DAY). sc,coN DA c,• -z (Bufore Mr. Sueoltiary Potter.). iitisil V. STEELE. The plaintiff in this actioi. is a tishmorger in Norton Folgate, and !,a licemtd victualler and land lord of the Rye House Tavci'n, lioddesdon,,llert;, and the action was brought co r,!cover tho unit 156., the balance of au account fir fish supplied. Defendant pleaded that he was not indebted. The plaintiffs solicitor said he could not conceive there was any real defence to the action, as defendant had made two payments on account. It was, however, just possible that a question might be raised, as tim business was carried on under the name of Bateman and Co. ; but it was a common occurrence in London, that where a business had been established the original style of the firm was kept up. In this instance it it would be clearly shown that defendant dealt with the plaintiff, and all the invoices were in plaintiff's name. The plaintiff was called, and proved taking the first order from defendant in person, and also a request to send, according to order, either by defendant's servant or by railway, and in the latter case he, defendant, would pay the carriage, and the goods were accordingly sent. Further evidence was given to show payments made on account. Defendant's attorney, after putting a few questions, said that all he appeared for was to object to the allowance of costs. The jury gave a verdict for the amount claimed. The plaintiff's attorney then applied for a certifi- cate, that it was a case which ought to have been brought in the superior court. The Learned Secondary said that the question had better be decided by one of the learned judges ; but if it was a question as to distance, where the parties resided, he certainly had no power. The plaintiff's Attorney submitted, under the 12th section of 13 and 14 Viet., and also by the 128 section, the court had full power. In this case the whole cause of action arose in Norton-falgate—the goods were or dered there, and they were sent by the railway at de fendant's own risk, the cause of action was, therefore, complete in London. The Learned Secondary—Yes, it was complete within the jurisdiction of the y Shoreditch County Court. Plaintiff's Attorney—But I have to contend that the plaintiff was not bound to take proceedings there, the delays of county courts are serious. The Learned Secondary—ln my opinion, these sort of cases, where the debts are small, are very fitting to be tried in the County Courts—there is nothing in this case to have interfered with its having been in the County Court of Shoreditch or in Hertfordshire. You had better go before a Judge at Chambers. The case thus concluded. CRIMINAL COURT-(THIS DAY.) (Before Mr. Baron Platt and Mr. Justice Williams.) MANSLAUGHTER. Thomas Gustave Brunell, 22, Andes Akala, 30, and Give Gustave Koonholm, three Russian sailors, were in dicted for the manslaughter of Thomas Brosnahem. Mr. Bodkin and Mr. Clerk conducted the prosecu tion ; and the prisoners were defended by Messrs. Clark son, Ballantine, and Parry. Mr. Bodkin opened the case to the jury, and admitted in the outset that he thought the evidence would be found of a too conflicting character to justify the con viction of the prisoners. It appeared that some time ago the prisoners belonged to a Russian ship lying at Deptford ; and one evening, while they were there, they went on shore. In the course of their rambles they came up with some women who were in company with the deceased ; and one of them having spoken to the women, an altercation took place, which resulted in a fight between the deceased and one of the prisoners. The deceased was several times knocked down, and during the scuffle he received a wound from a knife, which eventually proved mortal. While in the hospital he identified Brunell as the man who inflicted the injury upon him, but afterwards, when Koonholm was produced before him, he was equally positive in declaring that his was the hand that struck the fatal blow, and therein was the discrepancy in the evidence to which the learned counsel had already adverted. In law the three prisoners could not lie held jointly liable for an act done by one under the circumstances just described, and the learned counsel thought it would be a waste of time to go into the evidence without first t iking the opinion of the judges upon the state of the facts he had ventured to open to the jury. Mr. Baron Platt did not think the facts disclosed were sufficient to make out a case of manslaughter against the prisoners, as there was nothing to show that they had conspired together to do an illegal act, while the evidence was equally defective in fastening the fatal injury inflicted on the deceag ~(.1 on any one of the prisoners. Mr. Justice Williams concurred in this opinion, and no evidence being offered against the prisoners, a verdict of not guilty was taken under the direction of their lordships. The prisoners had originally been committed on a charge of murder, but the grand jury ignored that bill, and substituted the present one for manslaughter. BAD NEWS FOR THE MILLION.—This morning there was a general rise of a halfpenny on the 41b. best wheaten and seconds bread, and coals advanced 2d. per cwt. in many places. DESTRUCTION OF THE LANSDOWNE ARMS, ISLINGTON, BY FIRE, THIS DAL—This morning, at half-past one o'clock, a fire of a very rapidly destructive character, attended with great loss of property, broke out at Mr. William Belton's, Lansdowne Arms Tavern. No. 10, Old Paradise-row, Islington. It appears that the police on duty discovered the flames raging in the lower pint of the building, and immediately raised an alarm ; but such strong hold had the fire obtained, that the building was shortly in one entire mass of flames, and it was with gi eat difficulty that the inmates escaped. The reflection of the fire was the medium of alarming nearly the whole of the metropolis, and without loss of time the London Fire Brigade engines from Watling-street, Farringdon street, and Whitecross-street, were quickly on the spot - ; but, owing to the heavy snow and the hard frost, the supply of water from the New River mains was ex tremely late. The fire at this period assumed a most frightful aspect, and the destruction of every house on that side of Paradise-row appeared inevitable. The fire men set tolwork in a most praiseworthy manner, but not withstanding they were unable to get the mastery over the flames until it had communicated to Messrs. Ash well and Paul's, silk dyers, John Jones, dairyman, and not until property valued at some thousand of pounds was destroyed. The cause of the fire is unknown. The different parties are all insured. ANOTHER FIRE IN CHEAPSIDE.—This morning . be tween one and two o'clock. a fire broke out on the pre mises of Messrs. Hobb, lock manufacturers, which at one time threatened distruction to the whole of the building. The origin of the fire was the blocking up of the flue. The premises are insured. THE OBELISK AT THE ELEPHANT AND CASTLE, WAL WORTH.—Yesterday the workmen of Mr. J. Hook, the contractor, cleared away the old obelisk which has stood so long opposite the Elephant and Castle, Walworth, a smalier one having been placed near the site of the late turnpike. It is supposed that this alteration will less impede the traffic than before, the new obelisk only partially obstructing one road, while the other obstructed the whole of the six roads; but it is doubtful whether the change will be thought satisfactory by the pedes trians, who availed themselves of its aid in crossing so crowded a thoroughfare. FATAL ACCIDENT ON THE MIDLAND RAILWAY.—An accident, by which a poor old man Darned Thomas Mid dleton, between 70 and 80 years of age, lost his life, occurred on Monday morning, between the Maegots• field and Bristol stations of the Bristol and Birmingham branch of the Midland Railway. The deceased, who was very deaf, was crossing the line as the train was proceeding at full speed. The driver did not observe him in time to pull up ; he was knocked down by the buffer of the engine, and the whole of the train passed over him, mangling his body in a dreadful manner. This is the second accident of a similar character which has occurred within a week at the same spot. ACCIDENT ON THE ST. HELEN'S AND RUNCORN GAP RAILWAY. —On Monday afternoon a very serious col lision occurred on the above line, by which several passengers sustained considerable injury. The late severe frosts having rendered the utmost caution neces sary, the 12.40 p.m. train, with about 30 passengers, from St. Helen's, was a few minutes behind its time in reaching the Oak Tree station, where the Runcorn line crosses the St. Helen's ; and just as the passenger train from the latter place reached the crossing it ' was met by a luggage train proceeding to Parr. The engine driver of the luggage train, which at the moment was descending the incline, upon seeing the passenger train, instantly endeavoured to stop the engine, but, owing to the slippery state of the rails, the break would not act, and a violent collision occurred. The engine of the luggage train struck the other engine, shattering it almost to p ie ce s, causing a great concussion of the carriages, and severely wounding several passen ger:4/Th° Rev. Dr. Burton, of St. Helen's, sustained a severe injury to his nose, which, it is feared, lie will en tirely lose. A young lady sustained a severe contusion in her lip, and was taken to the hotel, where she had a succession of fits. One man who was in the act of taking a pinch of snilf when the collision took place, and his teeth striking against the carriage, had two of them knocked into his snuff-box. Both engine , drivers escaped unhurt. ^it,. 41'j PR.TNCE ALBERT. ---~-- (Rom the ilfordi v Herald.) The letter which we fei: is our painful duty to yeAter(7ay, On the subject of his Royal Highness the Prince Albert, has produced, as well it mignt, a profound sema,tion in the country. There exists not in that country bosoms more pro funnily toed than our own ; for his Royal High ness hiniseq we entertain a sincere respect in his private and domestic character ; but even if his Royal Highness understood our institutions as they are understood by the people of this country, if he employed the influence which he must unavoidably possess in fostering, improving, and strengthening those institutions, we should not the less deplore that departure from the spirit of the British con stitution which the letter which we inserted yes terday discloses. We assure his Royal Highness, with sincere attachment to his person as the Con sort of our Queen, that the main foundation of the popularity which he has hitherto enjoyed has not so much arisen from his zeal for art, his valuable labours in creating the Great Exhibition, from his anxiety for the improvement of the condition of the labouring classes, but from the general, although mistaken, belief entertained by the public, that he carefully absthiaed from all meddling iu political matters. We implore his Royal Highness to ponder well on the disastrous consequences which must result to himself from the prevalence of a contrary belief. The people of this country are disguited with the way in which onr policy in Eastern matters has been conducted. All earnest Protestants are in dismay at the undue encouragement to Popery which is given in all quarters by those in office, and the dis favour shown to Protestant interests. Discontent prevails as to internal management of the army. Alarm is felt that designs are abroad, not to improve the Universities, but to change their whole system so as to bring it nearer to a German model. Alarm is felt that the French alliance is destined to be broken up, and that those in office lean to the old absolute Monarchies on the continent, with Russia at their head. Alarm is felt at the prospect of a demo cratic Reform Bill, and. that alarm is not quieted by reflecting on the apparent contradiction between love of Holy Alliance principles abroad, and the favouring of democratic principles at home. It is felt that " history is philosophy teaching by ex ample," and it is not forgotten that democratic power is the almost invariable forerunner of abso lute power. All these are matters which weigh heavily on the minds of Englishmen, in this dark hour of their national progress, and all these things are beginning to be traced, whether rightly or wrongly, to the hand of him who is now suddenly supposed to be an active and constant interferer in an our political affairs. We most respectfully implore his Royal High ness to reflect on these matters, to consider the position in which he is placing those nearest and dearest to him by the course which it is feared tilat he is pursuing. He must well know whether the letter in our yesterday's impression contains the truth or not. If it does, we implore him to dismiss such men as Chevalier Bunsen and Baron Stockmar from his counsels, and to call to his aid honest Englishmen, who understand the fair workings of the British constitution. He will then learn, that however the inflence may be used, influence obtained in the manner pointed out in that letter is in itself at variance with the spilit of the constituion. Let him be assured that the late Sir Robert Peel understood that con stitution far less well than his predecessor, Lord Melbourne. Let him not think that he will find. shelter under the authority of that name. Every month that rolls by serves to dissipate the delusion that Sir Robert Peel was a great or a generous statesman—and his Royal Highness may r.nt assured, that whatever may be the value of Sir Robert's opinion, it will never suffice to persuade the people of this country that there ought to exist an irresponsible influence, controlling or intercept ing the cemmunication between our British Sove reign and her confidential servants. THE WEATHER AND THE PARKS. PARTIAL STOPPAGE OF THE RIVER TRAFFIC. The coldest night experienced in this country for many years was on Monday, when the thermometer fell to 15, being one-and-a-half degree lower than it was last Thurs. lay night, when the mercury indicated 16 Fahrenheit. At half-past eight yesterday morning, the glass was quite as low as on the preceding night, but during the middle of the day the quicksilver rose as high as 30, and in the evening at five o'clock it stood at 31, but shortly after that hour the mercury again fell to 20. The barometer at the same time stood at 29.19. The wind blew tre mendously stiff in the early par& of the day from east to north-east, but between seven and eight in the evening it veered towards the south-west, an indication of a change soon taking place in the weather. The different parks were visited during the day by several thousands of sliders and skaters. The Serpentine in Hyde Park had the appearance of a fair, or the celebration of some public festival, for the footpaths were crowded, and a countless number of carriages, filled with members of the aristocracy, lined the roads where a view could be obtained of the evolutions of the skaters. A great dif ference took place yesterday in the Serpentine, to what has previously been performed on that river since it has been frozen over, for instead of gentlemen skating over the ice with lightning-speed, and tripping others up, and severely injuring th,em, the skaters have par celled out the frozen surface, and parties of from 12 to 20 keep certain portions for their own amusement. A. number of men with brooms and shovels were employed in scraping and sweeping the ice, so as to allow the sliders and skaters to pursue their exhiliarating exercises on the ice. The consequence was, that the greatest or der prevailed during the day, and no accident of any par ticular account occurred, although the number of sliders and skaters is reported to Mr. Charlier, as being 12,000. The members of the Skating Club mustered strongly, and amongst those present were the Reverends Messrs. Antrobus and Crake, and a large number of noblemen, and Capt. Peale, the inventor of the ocean floats for saving life from shipwreck. Mr. Superintendent Wil liams, on finding that the ice in the other parks was likely to blow up fro-a the accumulation of foul air under the surface, had the same thing done as he did i n the Serpentine on Sunday, viz., having holes cut through the ice at the distance of 200 or 300 feet apart, so as to allow the air to escape. In former years the ice exploded on account of the foul air, and made a noise like the discharge of a park of artillery. The Round Pond had 3,000 skaters and sliders on the ice, including several members of the Skating Club, but no accidents occurred during the day. The Long Water in Kensington Gardens was frozen over to the depth of 71 inches, and 5,000 gentlemen and a number of ladies amused themselves by skating on this part of the park ; but fortunately the only accidents that occurred were from persons falling upon the ice and severely cutting their heads. St. James's and also the .Regent's Park were patron. ised by about 14,000 persons, who took up their positions on the ice. The foot promenades were likewise crowded by spectators, but, with the exception of a number of persons falling receiving severe head cuts, no accidents took place. The River Thames yesterday was so crowded with what is termed "drifting ice," that all the steam-boats were obliged to cease running. The coal-barges, in order to paSs through the Pool to get into the Thames, were obliged to have two or three additional hands to navigate the craft, and also to keep fires constantly burning on board to prevent the hawsers from freezing. The Lambeth Water Company had nearly every street furnished with stand-cocks, so as to afford the inhabi tants of the district supplied by this company with plenty of water, as scarcely any householder has been able, on account of the pipes being frozen, to get a supply for several days. A very singular accident took place during the day in the Waterloo-road. One of Messrs. Meux's four-wheel waggons was proceeding along, and owing to the slip pery state of the road the waggon ran against one of the lamps opposite St. John's Church, knocked it down, and hurled a man who was passing at the time on his back. He was picked up by Mr. Adamson, the coro ner's off►cer, but was so injured as to be obliged to be removed to his house. The waggon was stopped as soon as possible, but was forced to be left opposite the West of England engine-house. THE PRESTON STRIKE. PRESTON, TUESDAY. Messrs. Birley, Brothers (an extentive firm in connexion with the Masters' Association) have published a placard, giving some particulars with regard to the origin of the strike in refutation of the address to the British pub lic by the "Preston Lock-outs." The firm speak only of facts of their own experience, and thus conclude : —" The operatives have by their extensive combina• tions made it not a local, but a national question, and the masters, with the full determination not to be beaten, have followed their steps, without however degrading themselves by having recourse to a simi lar system of coercion and intimidation, which is daily practised towards, the operatives of other towns, in procuring funds to sustain and prolong the present strike. In conclusion we can only state for ourselves, that deeply as we regret the present dispute with our operatives, we will never submit to be dictated to by a set of men' totally unconnected with us, what wages we are to pay, nor allow them to interfere in the slightest degree with the management of our mills. The wages paid, and the general treatment of our operatives, have, until the present dispute, invariably provided us with a sufficient supply of good hands, and in the face of this, the fact of our mill having been one of the first to be attacked by a strike, sufficiently proves to us that the movement was not one for wages only, but involved a much deeper-laid scheme, and the real question now at issue is, Who is to be master ?' " WHY MASONS SHOULD WEAR THE MOUSTACHE.—In the Anatomical Museum of the Edinburgh College are the lungs of a mason who died at the age of 45, of phthisis. The air passages, as shown by the dissection, were lite rally blocked up with fine particles of dust—the accumu lation of many years. We were glad to see on our visit to two or three different builders, that the London ma sons are now growing their be , trds pretty generally, that the fashion is gaining ground, and will soon, in all pro bability, become universal. The simple action of the moustache in such cases is that of a respirator, or, more correctly speaking, a species of sieve, for intercepting the passage of the dust! Besides the respirator having the effect of keeping the lungs clear of foreign particles, it has also the great advantage of preserving a steady and equable warmth around the orifice of the air pas sages. But we have lately dwelt so much on this natural sanitary agent, that any further enlargement would seem out of place.--The Builder. TRADE AND NAVIGATION RETURNS. The official trade and navigation returns for the month, ending Dec. 5, have been issued. The declared value of some of the principal exports, compared with that for the same articles .during the cor responding month of last year, was as follows :- 1852. 1853. Baer and Ale £72,208 2107,922 Coals and calm 92,088 ...,., 135.641 Cotton manufactures 2,045,735 Cotton yarn Earthenware 92,171 Haberdashery and millinery... 361,359 Hardware and cutlery Linen manufactures Linen yarn Machinery Metals 837,422 ..... 1,239,883 Silk manufactures Silk thrown Snap Wool Woollen manufactures Woollen yarn The comparison of imports for the 11 months is as under : 1R52. no. 37,493 1853. 49,310 Oxen . Sheep.. Wheat no. 19:,771 qrs. 2,820,100 Bar] ey O:Lts .qrs. 57 ,085 ..qrs. 9:6 249 799,065 948,615 Flour cwt. 3,‘ 51,081 Coffee Cocoa.. Flax . Currants . „ . lbs. 51,3 6,818 lbs. 5,80,608 Guano ..cwt. 1,270,309 ..cwt. -290,313 .tons 118,604 187,367 97,578 Hemp cwt. 988,761 Oil, palm cwt. 420,218 Potatoes cwt. 455,871 . , Bacon, pork, and beef....cwt. 262,677 Silk, raw lbs. 4,833,932 Rum proof gallons 4,952,352 ...... 3,915,828 Brandy proof gallons 3,127,306 Geneva proof gallons 158,369 Tlmber loads 1.795,873 bacco lbs. 25,331,709 iue gallons. 5,375,334 Cotton cwt. 7,032,503 Sheep's wool lbs. 78,119,928 103,364,235 The total ileclared value of all the exports amounted to 7,628,7601., which, as compared with the like month in 1853, shows an increase of 1,595,7301. RAILWAY TRAFFIC RETURNS. LONDON AND SOUTH-EASTERN EAILWAY.—Traffio re turn for the week ending Doc. 31, 1853 £15,594 10 10 Corresponding week last year 15,076 12 5 Increase in 1853 £sl7 18 5 LONDON, BRIGHTON, AND SOUTH COAST RAILWAY. — Traffic return for the week ending Dec. 31, 1853 £10,531 0 7 Corresponding week last year 9,971 2 8 Total of the half-year to this date, 1853 369,755 9 10 Total of the half-year to this date, 1852 336,538 611 GLASGOW AND SOUTH-WESTERN RAlLWAY.—Traffic re- Larn for the week ending Dec. 31,1853 £1,876 17 3 OoiTesponding week last year 4,754 9 10 Increase in 1853 2122 7 5 BELGIUM.—Tiie official journal publishes a decree o the King, dated the 31st December, suppressing the im port duty on foreign coal. MORE DESTRUCTIVE FIRES. Yesterday afternoon, between 1 and 2 o'clock, a fire, which at one period ihreaten.id most serious consequences, broke out on the premises of Mr. Crane, oil and colourman, situate at the corner of Ryder's-court and Lisle-street, Leicester square. The flames commenced from some unexplained cause, in the basement floor, in which a valuable stock of oils and other goads were deposited. The engines of the Lyndon Brigade and West of England quickly attended, and two of the powerful machines were set to work ; but the fire could not be got out until the flames had penetrated into the grand cigar depot of Mr. Micholeske, No. 21, in Ryder's-court. Fortunately, the damage done at each place, although considerable,will not prevent business from being carried on as before. Both sufferers were insured. A fire broke out, at a late hour on Monday night, on the premises of Mr. J. Coles, No. 1, Brett's-buildings, Hoxton. The building was occupied as a trimming manufactory. The flames when first discovered were raging in the ground-floor, and so rapidly did they extend that at one period there seemed not the least chance of saving any portion of the pro perty. The engines of the London Brigade were soon on the spot, and a plentiful supply of water haviv been obtained from the mains of the East London Company, the engines were set to work ; but the fire was not sub duel until the premises were partially destroyed. The loss will fall upon the London and British Empire Mutual Fire Offices. ACCIDENT AT THE SOUTHAMPTON DOCKS.—Yesterday morning, between five and six o'clock, the various per sons in and about the v:cinity of the docks were some what startled by a loud crashing no s., and upon discovery it was found to be caused by the failing of the i mmens e "shears" (or in plainer terms, " crane"), which were erected at the south side of the docks for the purpose of raising boilers in and out of ships, &c., and other dead weight. So strong was the constin.etion of this machine, that as much as fifty tons could be raised at one time by its beautifully constructed levers. The exact cause of the accident has not yet been satisfac torily ascertained, but it is conjectured that the foundation could not have been sufficiently strong to bear its itnmen- e weight. In its fall it carried away a very large porti in of the dock wall adjacent, and had it not happened that the shears fell inland, and not into the dock, there is little doubt but that the Peninsular and Orieeltal Company's steamship Madrid, which has been undergoing repair for some time pa 4, and which is placed directly beneath them, must have been partially, if not wholly destroyed, as well perhaps as some lives have been sacrificed. The "pair of shears" was erected some few years ago by the Dock Company at an enor mous expense, and from their now damaged appearance there is no doubt that they must be replaced by new ones, which will incur an expense of some few thousand vuunl-3. The noise of the crash was heard for more than a mile distant. u ~,; . l~~~t,