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

FA _FELLOWS and CO., ShipbrokerP, 127, Fe nchurch-street, E.C. require MIDSTITPMES and FOUR Firdt-class APPitEN'TICES in an A 1 clipper India rt. 1,501 tons. Premium moderate, returned wages. 0 stout L a d s, w i thout premium, for other ships. Wages .E 35. S E A. — IVIIDSHIPMEN required for splendid zu i np s hiPs for Australia and India. Premium, 50 to 60 Wanted' nifty be paid in two instalments. Apprentices also 0 - ,.eu, with and without premium. —Apply to W. Suther o"' ship and passage broker, 11. Fenchurch-buildings, by Fenchurch-street. Established 1851. S EA. —VA C kNCIES for MIDSHIPMEN and APPRENTICES in a first-class London shipping firm. A rcan um mod Prate. Al- o apprentices without premium.— ,PPly to SIMMONDS and Co., 38, St. Mary-at-hill, East e"aP, E.C. Third tifficers and Stewards wanted. ATLANTIC AND GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY. (NE C OUPONS DUE Ist W July next will be PAID, in London, at the Cons lidated Bank (Limited), 4, Lombard-street, Lon on, at the rate 01 4-. to the dollar. London, No. 2, Old Broad-street, June 9, 1563. AST AND WEST INDIA DOCK CONI PANY.—The Court of Dire^tors of the East and West India Dock Company hereby give notice, that the Transfer Books of the said Company will be Shut on Saturday, the ,°th day t o June, and Open again on Friday, the 3d day of " I . II Y, 1863. By order of the Court. GEORGE COLLIN, Secretary, East and West India Dock House, Billiter—quare, sth June, 1-63. A.D. 1720. ROYAL EXCHANGE ASSURANCE CORPORATION ( Estiblished 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. GEORGE PEARRES I 3 ARCLAY, Esq., Sub-Governor. Sir JOHN HENRY PELLY, Bart, Deputy-Governor. DIRECTORS. Henry Bainbridge, Esq. Wilmot Holland, Esq. Robert Barclay, Esq. Earl of Leven and Melville. 'ohn Garratt Cattle", Esq. Chas. Jno. M an ning, Esq. !Bark Currie Close, Esq. Henry Nelson, Esq. William Davidson, Esq. The Lion. Josceline W. Percy. Thomas Dent, E sq. Charles Robinson, Esq. -Alexander Druce, Esq. Samuel Leo Schuster, Esq. Fredk. Jos. Edlmann, Esq. Eric Carrington Smith, Esq. Ri versdale W. Grenfell, Esq. William Soltau, Esq. l'obt. Amadeus Heath, Esq. Joseph Somes, Esq., M.P. Wm. Tetlow Hibbert, Esq. William Wallace, Esq. Jas. Stew art Hodgson, Esq. Chas. Baring Young, Esq. Medical Referee, SAMUEL SOLLY, Esq., F.R.S. NOTICE.— l'he usual fifteen days allowed fOr payment of FIRR PRENIIIIMS falling due at Midsum'rer will expire cn ')th 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. Equivalent reductions have been made in the Premiums Payable by persons who preferred that form of Bonus. The divisions of Profit take placo every Five years. Any sum 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. Sorate of Bonus guarantee to th average returns of Mutual cietieswith the 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. THE ADELAIDE (NORTH ARM) PORT AND RAILWAY EXTENSION AND LAND CO3l - SOUTH AUSTRALIA (Limited). Capital £400,000, in 20,000 shares of £2O each. First issue 10,000 shares. Deposit, 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. George L DIRECTORS. athom Brownu, Esq. (Director of the Cape Town Or dßobert Cecil, M.P., 11, Duchess-street, Portland-place, London W. l'rederick, Doulton, Esq., M.P. (Director of the London and Colonial Bank), Manor lons Messlwic. J Henry Harri-on, Esq. (s. J. H. Harrison and Co., ~,,Australian Merchants), Gresham-street, London. " J. Marshall, Esq (Messrs. Wilson,.Bowlese and Co., Mer ,ebants), 9, Mincing-lane, London, E.C: • ' -n on Alexander M'Arthur (Messrs. W. ani A. M'Arthur, Australian Merchants), 46, Moorgate-street, London. Georg, Peacock, Esq., Australian Merchant, 1, Lime-street- Rq are, London. Albert Polly, Esq. (Messrs. A. Pelly and Co., Merchants), Finch -lane, London, E C, Ilenry Spicer, Esq (Messrs. E. and H. Spicer, Merchants), London and Adelaide. LOCAL BOARD. Hon. John Baker (late Member of the Legislative Council), A delaide. Hon. George Hawker (Speaker of the Legislative Assembly), Adelai e. Captain Lipson, R.N. (late Harbour Master), Adelaide. lion. Col. O'Halloran (ilember of the Legislative Council), Adelaide. Hon. hos. Reynolds, M.P. (late Chief Secretary), Adelaide. lion. Abraham Scott, M.L.C., "filer hint, Adelaide. BAft KERS. Messrs. Barclay, Bevan, I ritton, and Co., Lombard-street, London. South Australian Banking Company, Adelaide. BROKERS. - - 211 essra. A. Scrutton and Son, 81, Old Broad-atrcet. London. OLITRS. Messrs. Phillips and S Son, C 11, O Abehurch-lane, London, SECRETARY—W. H. Payne, Esq. Offices-36, Old Broad-stye; t, London, E.C. PROSPECTUS. I. This company is formed for the purpose of affording more convenient accommodation for the shipping and Com erce of the colony of South Australia under the following nge.s eurastanc es : L The colony of South Australia, with its mineral and nglricultural products, is admittedly rich 1- all things which can tend t o crea t e an ex t ens i ve an d prosperous trade with -qAes countries, and is , thing retards its elevation to the '.uest point of commercial prosperity so much as the want c onvenient and sufficient accommodation for the shipping e nr s tlng thereto. 0,1" s that portion of the Port of Adelaide to which the n g at present resorts is about seven ro the cit °l that name, and situated at the extremity of miles an ar m m of they tea, which after leaving the point known as the North Arm o Mes a nas row and tortuous channel, two miles and three quarters in length, d .fficult to navigate without grounding, "d except at flood tide and with a favourable wd inacces sible to vessels without th expense of a steam-tug in ; this ter- Initiates in shoal water, where vessels are crowded ti gether, lor the most pa r t as round, subject to all t h e r i s k s o f broken!s, r i b s, broken backs, and conflagration —nor can these disad vantages and rigs s be remedied at the present shipping place, as the water is shoaling up every year, and with ail the pre sent heavy and constant expense incsrred in dredging can not be sufficiently deepened for vessels to lie afloat (See Appendix) IV. The seri ous and important nature of this question has f requentlyengaged the attention of the Colonial Government and Parliament, and it may be safely 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 been condemnatory of the present shipping place and in favour of the North Arm, as affording the requisite tacilities for aoc6mmodating a large amount of shipping of any class, and of becoming. as originally in tended, and still desired, the permanent port for Adelaide. (See Appendix.) V. As the North Arm is a magnificent sheet of deep I '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 d eep 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 for wharf purposes, and of over 1,509 laterally, immediately abutting on the site re served for - Government Graving Docks. VI. An aclvsntageous arrsngement has been made with the proprietors of t' e land required for the purposes of the Company, by which nearly two-thirds of the purchase nioney will be taken in eferred shares, to remain in the h suds of the directors, on terms securing to the shareholders a priority of dividend to the extent of 5 per cent., till the profits yield sufficient to pay that amount of dividend on the aggregate of the psid-up capital and deferred shares. The remaining one third is to be paid in cash, at pe iods favour able to the shareholders. The property secured is about 700 acres (extending from the river across Lefevre'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 t he western bank oppo site the site already secured. with a view to bringing 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, ts here vesseis of the largest tonnage may lay alongside, and to erect wharves, warehouses, and other conveniences, affording ample accommodation to the shipping resorting to the port. Also an extension 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 Dry-Creek Station, on the Great North and Murray River Railway, thereby effecting a saving of 12 miles of carriage between the great producing districts and the port of the colony . VIII. As nroving the opening afforded for additional ship accommodation by the increasing prosperity of the colony, the commercial returns show that the exp r s and imports for the year 1850 amountei to £1,416,389. that of 1860 to £3,423,107, and that of 861 to £4,0'3,1e5, the wharf dues upon which amount to upwards of £30,000 per annum. IX. The frontage of the proposed wharves, extending for upwards of halt a mile, where vessels drawing upwards of 20 feet of water can come alongside at low water, offer s suc h superior se lvantages as must obviously secure a large 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 suppie db tintae, ,he aggregate rentalythii e co of mmo di us warehouses included i n the estimates, rental of which cannot be estimated and ethatee,r rentals, s than4"rhicha Year ; also by the railways, land, Wi ll accrue from the large population which the operations of the company wi'l atract to their . property. 41 X . The cost of the undertaking, inclssdrinariwtahyeepoutnrcmh le land, the onstruction of wharves, uanseicao! revised, and esti tien, and the e eetion of warehouse carefully other accommoda tion above-mentioned, has been _ mated by the late aptain aloorsorn, the first iss se of the company's capital. . L. Eit, is a lso m e m sti m m l a th te in d that the whole of this amount will not be required for tsr s y ea rs. Responsible contractors are prepared to execute the works within the estimat . Any further capital will only be raised as th e i ncrease of business and the advantage of the company requires. XL The proprietors of the land will place in the possession of the directors s curities to pay 5 percent. tier annum on the paid-up capital until the works are so far completed as to en able the directors to commence the business of the Company XII. The dire et rs desire to draw attention to the . trent advents: ea offered by the and con fidently refer to the map and t present undertaking, which embr h a e im or in the appendix, property, as establishing the official documents set forth ces the site of the Company's_ necessity for, and the highly remunerative character of, the p r oposed wo r k s. Pro with maps n at th- spectuses brokers, , solisitors, and a ppendixes. secretar y ndixes. can be obtainel on dotiz at the Com- A pany's offices, 36, Old Broad -street, FORM OF APPLICATION FOR 'C' To the Directors of the Ad e l aide (North ArAis:"EPOrt said Rail- A • way Extension and L an d C om (Limited). South ustralia Gentlemen,—Having paid to your bankers. Messrs. Barclay, , I hereby request that ou Bevan, and Co., the sum of £ shares of' £2O each in the Adelaide (North will allot me Arm) Port and Railway Extension and Land Compan Australia(Limit- d) ; a ,cl I hereby agree to accept suctirisollth pursuant to the articles of association, or any smaller 'mutt_ lser that may he adotted to me, and to pay the calls on th e shares allotted. And I request you to Place my name on the register of shareholders.—l a Gentlemen, your obedient servant, _ Usual signature Name in full Address in full Ditte IN°. 22,139 AIRS. BROTHERTON'S ,\EW NOVEL. Now ready, at all the Libraries, in 3 vols., R E bPECTABLE SINNERS. By MRS. BROTHERTON, Author of " Arthur Brandon." "A very attractive novel."—Sun. Hurst and Blaekett, 13, Great Marlborough-street. Now ready at all th e Lib r aries, in 3 vols., THIRDEDITION o. " LOST AND SAVED." By the lion. MRS. NORTON. " Lost and Saved' lb a novel of ra e excellence ; fresh in its thought, ar ti st i c i n i ts grouping!, shrewd and subtle in its character-painting: a nd with a brave soul sp eaki ng . through it . It is Mrs: Norton s best prose work; and, dis tinctively original, as every work of true genius must be, it s place is beside the best contemporary fiction."—Examiner. Hurst and Blackett, 13. Great Marlborough-street. Second Edition, Revised and Enlarged, with numerous - Ill us trations, £! 10 8 . Od., ELEMENTS of-CHEMISTRY, Theoretical and Practical. By WILLIAM ALLEN MILLER, M.D., F.R.S., Professor of chemistry, King's College, London. PART L—CHEITICAL PHYSICS. 1( s. 6d. IL—INORGANIC CLiE rt IsT Y. 20s. „ CIIEMISI'RY. 20s. London : Parker, Son, and Bourn, West Strand. TIIE SECOND EDITION.-MR. HENRY KINGSLEY'S NEW NOVEL, AUS TIN ELLIOT, Is now ready, 2 vols., 218. Macmillan and Co., 23, Henrietta-street, Covent-garden ; and Cambridge. Now ready at all the Libraries, crown Bvo., price 65., BEAUTIESOF 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."—sObserver. _ "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 21a. L. Booth, 307, Regent-street, W. TO CHRISTIANS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD.—An ADDRESS from the CHRISTIANS of ALL DENOMINATIONS in the CONFEDERATE STATES of AXIERIc A, signed by ne ,rly One Hundred Ministers of the GA.spel, in THE INDEX of June 11.—Pub liekhed every Thursday, at 13, Bouverie-street, Fleet•street, E.C. Price 6d. THE CZAR'S DREAM. by " JOHN DAVIS," with Anticipations of Bibury and Stoc , bridge, by " BEACON" (late of Bell's Life); and all the Sporting News of the Week—see THE SPORTING GAZETTE (Limited) of SATURDAY, June 13, the only p per that prophecied Ma caroni and Lord Clifden first and second for the Derby, Queen Bertha 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. THEATRE ROYAL DRURY-LANE, JUNE P, 1P63. Grand MELANGE DRAMATIQUE will take place in AID of the FUNDS for a NATIONAL METROPOLITAN MONUMENT to S H AKESPEARE, under the immediate Patronage of their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Prin cess of Wales, before whom 60 eminent artistes will have the honour of appearing. -Hon. Sec., Mr. Adolphus Francis, 43, Cumberland-street, Hyde-park. S. THALBERG'S FAREWELL, STIIALBERG'S FAREWELL MATINEE • in London, at the I: ANOVER-SQUARIG ROOMS, o n MONDAY next, June 15. Stalls, 21s. ; family tickets, to admit four , 3 guineas ; unre. served Bests, 10s. 6d. ; to be had at the libraries and music sellers, and of Mr. Fish, Hanover-square Rooms, where the plan of the seats may be Been. HALF-CROWN TICKETS for TO-MORROW'S GRAND CONCERT at the CRYSTAL PALACE.— Reserved Stalls and GniLea Season Thkets at 2, EXETER- Ii ALL. Open until Eight o'clock This Evening. NO. 2. EXETER HALL.-ARTOT, PAREPA DELLE SEDIE, FRICCA, and LOTTO, at TO. MORROW'S CRYSTAL PALACE CONCERT. llalf-Crown Tickets up to Eight o'clock To-Night. The 7 rice of Tickets To-morrow will be Five A few Reserved Stalls Half-a-Crown. Apply early. SAWYER'S FAMOUS LONDON DINNER FOR THIS DAY. At 2s. M. each Perscn. SOUPS. Asparagus. Julienne. FISH. Mackerel, Maitre d'Hotel. Fried Fillets of Whitings. ENTREES. Grenadin au Petit Pois. Escollops 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, EHENISH, MOSELLE, and other WINES, imported ex. pressly for the London Dinner. THE LONDON, 191, FLEET-STREET. THE OXFORD e,OXFORD STREET. _ _ Every Evening will be performed Selections from the !ollowing Operas : Verdi's LA FORZA DEL DES nNo ; and Flotow's ➢ZARTIIA. Suprorted by Miss Russell, Miss Townley, Arc.; Messrs. Albert, Green, Bernardi, finish, Kimberley, and W. Evans, with full band and chorus. Conducted by Mr. Jonahmans. Drew Dean's Flute Solos LNSWORTH, the modern Demosthenes. Eugene, W. Randall, J. Hutchenson, and the marvellous 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 avoid being amused by their original gambols. They elicit shouts of laughter and applausV—Timcs, April 7, 1863. CANTERBURY HALL AND FINE ARTS GALLERY. NOTICE.- ENTIRE CHANGE OF ENTERTAINMENT. This Evening the Marvellous French ABU wns.R and BERTRAND, the Two Clo ARTHUR LLOYD'S bur es Drama, arranged expressly for him. A. B. HOLLINGSWORTH'S new Comicalities, &o, SAM COLLINS, with new Songs. UNSWOR'TH, the celebrated Stump Orator. EUGENE, and G. HUTCHINSON. GRAND SELECTIONS from OPERAS, GLEES, and CANTATAS. Principal Artistes Miss Russell. Miss Townley ; Mr. Green, Signor finnan, and Signor Tivoli. Conductor, Mr. Jonghmans. Admission--Hall, 6d. ; stalls and balcony, is. ItOYAL ALHAMBRA PALACE.—lmmense Success of the Great Spanish Gymnasts, the RISARELIS. ROYAL ALHAMBRA PALACE. This magnificent Building, the Best Ventilated and Coolest place of Resort in London, Is OPEN DAILY from Twelve to Five FREE OF CHARGE. The Choicest Wines and Refreshments. ARGYLL ROOM S.—JULLIEN'S PROMENADE CONCERTS. NOTICE.—Duri•g the Week the Selections will be—" Der Friesobutz "—" ' a Forza del Destino "—" Ii Trovatore " " Don Giovanni," &e. LEVY, the great wonder on the Cornet-a-Piston, plays from half-past Nine to Twelve. Admission, is. 29, GEORGE-STREET, HANOVER-SQUARE. SHE LONDON ANATOMICAL MUSEUM, containing 1,200 Models, Natural Preparations, monstro sities, ac., illustrating every part of the Human Frame ; also the Moving Anatomical Dying Zonave, Julia Pastrana, &c. Admission, One shilline 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 P. stab ishment, 32, Regent-street, Piccadilly-circus, is now in full oper a ti on. Cartes de Visite, 10 for 10s. 6d ; 21 for £l. Miniatures on Ivory. Marble, and th e Photographic base in his former styles. T HE hest TROUSERS for gentlemen to wear arc 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 FORW.GN INQUIRY OFFICE.— Confidential inquiries and legal investigations pri- Vatelv instituted with the utmost fidelity and despatch. in Enaland and all parts on the Continent, by Mr. POLLAKY, 14, George-street, Mansion-house, E.C. THE FARMER'S BAROMETER, 50R. a n ew Instrumen' , , by Negretti and Zambra, wilccor rectly indicate whether the Barometer falls for Rain or for Wind. Particulars by enclosing stamp.-1, Hatton-garden ; 57, Cornhill ; and 122, Regent-street. A N EVER FAILING REMEDY. — Dr. SCOTT'S BILIOUS and LIVER PILLS, pre tired without any mercurial ingredient, from the recipe of Dr. cott, of Bromley, Kent, will be found invaluable to all who uffer from bilious and Liver complaints, indigestion, wind, spasms, giddiness, dizziness of the eyes, &c. For habitual ostiveness, as a family aperient medicine, and as a purifier 1 the blood, they :Ire truly excellent; meat in their opera :ion and grateful to he stomach, they e appelte, pro soltde,digestion, and strengthen the whole nervous system. London NV, Lambert, 8, King William-street, Charing-cross. t i me rn.a'nd by most druggists, in boxes,ls. and three Seett'stliße quantity in one, 2s. 9d. Be sure to ask for Dr. p Woos and Liver Pills. The genuine are a square 1 7"C 4 ;: r. aekage, with " William Lambert," eng on the 7 7; ./. J , NEWSPAPER _ —, '' -f a 4., c2,* , ,, i. T - ,' - f 4 ' , r ‘ . tft e ' ti .40 '471 . , . \ e p a c 11 - S .. , - ---v - i-. • , m_,,,_ .._.t.. -.4\ 41 . 111 1 . • 774 ~. sf., ) -, ~ , t • QUI ' kit 170 ' I IV- A t, - ~,., ~.4 , ,,,..;.--• _...: 'l t4 . 4. - I. ."49"%Pirtir- ' 'lf , l i wir . 4 )6 ' \ ' IE. ' —.— It s 4 1 ' , • * _ 4 4 K .... : .1 . 4 f, Is - ,.,,,, :, ,,,i," . - DEorr• • , 1_ j . ' it ~ • . yo e , il , d. ' "' D is' ~,,re...._. mixed character of the assembly which I by the presence of many from whom I dill: political opinions, but for whom I ente rtaL. regard and friendship; and above all by th, sence of the illustrious Prince who has this A. honoured us by his company 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 con nections 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 of principle ; and while we are all—some faster and some slower. some more cautiously and acme more eagerly—anxious to im prove and amend the institutions of our country, we are 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 originuly in ended. God be praised that these companies arano 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- PR1CE.....-..4d. STAMPED ....sd. Wardens, and Court of Assistants ventured to offer for your Royal Highness's acceptance the honorary freedom of a corporation venerable for its antiquity, distinguished for its loyalty, and eminent for 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 teg 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 England 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 affairkare 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 whibh 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 en 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 if 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 honoar 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 to 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 mania 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, lam 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 Archibiehop of Canterbury," who acknowledged the compliment in a short speech of thanks. The next toast was " Ste 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 with the being rary Members of the Company," coupled . h much cheering ; the other names mentio.n name of the Earl of Derby, whic h was received ev.it - of Sails the Duke of Northumberland, the Marquis Lord G Chelmsford, ner al Sir George Lord bury, the Earl of Elgi n, Clyde, Sir John Lawre nce, and e Pollock. _Ma it it please your m y principal 1 o r d s d a u n t and The Earl of DERBY said been an honorary member of this be fore, since I have immediate,ighnessi and unquestioning obedience to illustrious company, have N b u e u e been can selected feel as ni o t r h e a t w o a f r t in h l e y orders, and consequently, although amid the illus trious Masterth at the Warden, first and Gentlemen, I have learnt, if I did not know it tißsriosoyturasintf:ames which have been read I know not why per son who was to return thanks, I do not hestitate for a single moment to obey the order which I the compliment which you have been pleased to pay to me amongst the rest ; but I have considerable haveißine should received. difficulty in returning thanks on the present oc casion, because I have so frequently expressed my 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 topics 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 y the 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 e xtent 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, 1 may say that w© 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 voice 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 Mercha nt 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. s aid he could Mr. DISRAELI, in respon din g , assure the assembly th at the House did not look upon compliments of th suc h occasions as m ere matters of routine, but acce pted them as expressions of respect and sympat h y c onsecrated by generations vnich had preceded them , a nd hallowed by o a f t C k om in m d a s Commons the history possessed for that public liberty which was perhaps securities not the lea st inconsiderable t h e peculiar privilege of this country. they They per m° of t e a d n the ancie nt aggregate n nation. of individua l n were sentiment ie. Corporat i o ns to as sume, when it was necessary, the massive and ma jestic form of public opinion,which I controlled and regulated the course of public affairs. They were indeed in times of trouble d an perplexity something around which men might rally. But it must be more gratifying than usual 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 Highncas 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 count ry. These public circurestances were to the people of England a source of proud satisfaction. The people looked upon them as a guarantee for the future welfare of Eng land, they looked u pon t hem 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 was " 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 warde performed under the direction of Mr. Donald J. who was ably assisted. Mr. Harker offi. ciated as toastmaster. THE SUN, LONDON, FRIDAY EVENING, JUNE 12, 1863, SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS. TMES.—The proposed, purchase .. of the site and buildings of last year's Exhibition on behalf of the Government has already created so much attention, and been made the subjtxt 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. Oa one side of this unsightly, but cheap and convenient structure, have risen, on the same estate, the buildir.gs 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 unregaracd. - 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 arc to be removed. Not only had the Commissioners of 1851 lent 162 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 'or the purpose of all future Exhibitions. It was therefore not competent for them last year to offer any portion of the 161 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 should erect a building for the reception of the Natural History 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 £130,000 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 generations 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 appear—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 resting place elsewhere. The National Portrait Gallery, the Vernon pictures in the South Kensington Museum, and the magnifi cent collection of prints hid away in the British Museum, all need exhibition. These, omitting many minor particulars, are our immediate and pressing wants. The question is, how 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 0,1300 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 161 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 space. 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 must 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 _suff erance . ,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 ridicfiloUs 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 sointial. The glass domes also, generally and justly condemns d by public taste, can hardly be allowed to remain as they are at present. The brickwork is, we believe, thoroughly solid and substantial. After :he 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 that we have the offer, if we please, of entering into possession —and that in a very short time—of 16i acres, covered with buildings adapted to our wants, for a sum under half a million, or £200,000 less 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 lections thue, we must seek out some other scheme, unless we mean to sacrifice the jewel to the casket. We do not press the proposition of the Government on the acceptance of the public; we only say that those-who reject it should be prepared, among other reasons for its rejection, to prove that they can offer us something better. DAILY NEWS,—The wretched faction which usurps the place of statesmen at Berlin may learn, from what took place last night in the House of Lords, that their conduct is as much despised and deprecated by the great Conservative party in this country as it is by the advocates of those liberal and progressive principles of which they in Prussia can not bear the mention. The Prussian people also will observe that the men they permit to govern them 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 neighbourship 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 ductis 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, pretended to excuse himself by the unwillingness of Russia ; but the Russian Government has assured us that it had no objection to show the .doeuinesit 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 with 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. If 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 not inclined 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 has d" tinctly pointed to as the key to the defence of t ceSouth-West, would be a tremendous triumph to t e as ar party in the North, an d would more than com p en sate President Lincoln for his ill success on the Rappahannock. We await the result with some confidence. Things look well for the South. The great hope of the Fed erals evidently lay in the s uddenness and rapidity of their blows, and this hope has failed them, Gener a l J o hnstone is not the man to give them another chance. POST.— As the debate upon fortifications is very shortly to be resumed, any fresh matter that would tend towards the more complete elucidation of the problem of " S Ships v. Forts" wou ld be acceptable. With this object in view we have examined the accounts received on the arrival of each fresh mail from America, but have be en un able to discover anyindications of a renewal of the threatened attack upon Charleston being likely to take place. And from the length 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, without the co-operation 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 afforded 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 system of defence laid down for the protecti on of our dockyards. In the first place it will be nec essar y to se p arate two points which many persons are a p t to confuse. 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 armo ur-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 or may not have taken place on board these vessels does not, however, affect the main point at issue, which rests upon the acknowled ge d fact of 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 late 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. The fault of overcrowding small vessels with nine and twelve pounder mous was found in t he last 'American war to have been a great blunder , b ut to run into the opposite extreme of reducing the arma ment of large 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, circumstances, appears the most natural and ad the system of defence which, under these 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 exposed harbour like Portsmouth. If with what we now know of ciao 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 neglectine to take such measures as will prevent the lessons of our past history being repeated in the present c: 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 old-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, Thomas 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 sant to the wardens, and not to conceal any foreigner using the handicraft of tailory or merchandise, neither to entice nor withdraw any man's appren. tice nor covenant servant till reasonable departing may 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 comp an y 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 resence of on that occasion was honoured with the p father his Royal your Royal Highness's grand left t At a still later Duke of Wellington ; and the entertainment given Highness the late Duke of Ken . to honorary freedom on being permitted to confer i ' beloved and lamented father, your Royal Highness s late Pri onsort, whose his Royal Highness the every way the wel period the company had the distinguished honour of fare of his adopted country call forth the warmest gratitude—whose thoughtful and earnest words, precedents on • record, and spo a deep and lasting unt k ir e i n n impression, and whose memory will ever a r t n i d o ns to pro elsewhere,m o e have n a ve live enshrined in the hearts of a grateful nation. influ enced by the feelings expressed in the resolution untiring e e r x e e ,whlch h4O just been read, the Master, With these