The Sun. — London, England, 1863-01-09 00:00:00

THE WAR, IN AMERICA. (From. the Timer NEW Corr Yespondent.) ORK. DEC. 26. The more the circumstances connected with the late break-down and reconstruction of Mr. Lincoln's Cabinet are considered, the closer resemblance do they bear to a theatrical performance, got up to dis tract public attention from matters of more perilous concern. Nothing emit(' have been more successful if Mr. Lincoln and Mr. Seward had pre-arranged it for the purpose. The piece was well timed, and all the actors thoroughly understood their parts. The blood-stained heights of Fredericksburg and the humiliations of defeat were forgotten amid the be wilderment with which the people watched the de velopment of what a French dramatist might have called " Le Secretaire d'Etat ; une Comedic de Trois lours," or which an English playright at this Christmas time might have produced under the title of "Father Abraham ; or, Harlequin, Secretary of State, and the Wonderful Storm of Greenbacks." The plot, though not elaborate, abounded with un expected situation. It opened m 3 steriously with a secret conclave of midnight conspirators, composed of senators, headed by Mr. Charles Sumner, the Abolitionist, all bent on dictating to the Great Abraham the choice of his servants, and in sisting on the " decapitation" (the American slang for dismissal) of one whom they accused of no longer losing the ,6 Genius of Africa" (represented by a his buxom negress), with th e t ru th and ferv our of early days, when he swore in her behalf to wage an " irrepressible co n fli c t," and whos e destinies were to be governed by a " higher law" than the law and constitution of his native land. One of the conspira tors proving false c rept stealthily away,and informed ary of the senatorial attempt against his head. The wily Seward, nothing daunted, deter mined to be beforehand with his foes, and, slicing off his own head with the most perfect grace and nonchalance, presented it to father Abraham. Then making his way to a trapdoor leading to the lower regions of ignominy and disgrace, lithe, lustrous, and many-coloured as harlequin, be sprung with his head in his hand through the aperture in a blaze of blue fire, followed by the more ponderous form of Secretary Chase, also headless, and scattering shreds of paper on every side in a regular snow storm, such as is seen in theatres, each flake being a promise to pay, and the whole fall representing the famous " billion" of dollars of Mr. Thaddeus Stevens, the Chairman of the Committee of Ways and M eans . When the wonder and expectation of the spectators were at the height, to know whether Abraham the Magician intended to accept the double self-sacrifice to the " Genius of Africa," and when all the little boys in the crowd were straining their eyes to catch a glimpse of General M'Clellan, and of the block, the axe, and the executioner who was to perform the act of decapitation on the dis agreeable and greatly hated War Secretary, and on the sober and respectable General Halleck, who had never fought a battle except in the law courts of Ca lifornia, but who knew so well how to prevent his subordinates from achieving the victories which were beyond his own reach, the jocular Magician waved his hand, and, with a " pleasant imperiousness —telling at the same time a funny story about some old woman of the West—replaced the head of Mr. Seward on his shoulders, commanded both him and Mr. Chase to emerge from the trap, shake hands with and embrace their colleagues, go back to their desks, and save the nation as effectually as they had saved it before. Here there was another blaze of light and a grand flourish of trumpets, amid which the t Genius of Africa" was transformed into a living resemblance of Mr. Horace Greeley, who loudly proclaimed that the defeat at Fredericksburg was, on the whole, a " gratifying circumstance," and that it— Was better to have fought and lost Than never to have fought at all." By this time the hisses began to preponderate over the applause, but the play being at an end the cur tain dropped. The object of the managers had been accomplished. The sad story of Fredericksburg had become old and stale, the edge of its horror had been worn off, and the most buoyant, hopeful, and elastic-minded people in the world had re ' covered their usual serenity, and went to their ordinary daily business as pleased as Mr. Micawber, and equally certain that something would soon " turn up." The Americans are in the habit of saying that no one can understand them but themselves ; and after such a butchery as that at Fredericksburg it is ex tremely difficult to understand the manner in which it is treated by the President, by General Burnside, and by all the friends and supporters of the Admi nistration. The President, in his address to the army, is so encouraging as to say that the attempt was not an error, nor the failure other than an acci dent ; and, moreover, that the number of dead and wounded was " comparatively small." General Burnside is equally hardy. He quietly assumes the whole responsibility both of the attack and the failure, denies that his army is demoralized, and offers to resign a position for which he admits that he is not qualified, which he accepted against his better judgment, to replace a General far more com petent than himself, and who, he thinks, ought not to have been removed. The President, apparently of Mr. Horace Greeley's opinion that no great harm had been done, except in the loss of life, quietly or ders him to keep his place; and the Republican party, instead of venting their natural indignation against the mingled inefficiency and temerity of Mr. Lincoln and the ar Department, and the Generals whom they employ, stirs np the eternal question of the Southern negro, while the Northern negro (poor pariah and outcast) is starving in the streets, and gets up a Cabinet imbroglio upon the collateral issues of Abolitionism. The committee appointed to inquire into the causes of the failure at Frede ricksburg—the most disheartening that has occurred during the war—simply hear what Gen. Burnsid e Gen. Halleck, and others have to say for themselves' and send in their report without blami ng any b ody ' some of the Generals, however, are not quite so lenient, and General Franklin expressly states that the failure at - Washington to send on the pontoons which General Burnside ordered and expected was the cause of the whole disaster ; while General Hooker as positively affirms that General Halleck promised to send them in three days, and did not send them for ten, during which interval Frede ricksburg, which might easily have been carried by a coup (le 1116 in 9 had been rendered impreg nable. Yet good Mr. Lincoln is satisfied, and steady General Halleck holds on to his posi tion like grim death, strong in the support of the ultra-Republicans of New England, and only blamed by the great bulk and body of the fernocra tie people in the Middle and Western States, who grieve, and groan, and shake their heads, hopeless of any remedy until the ballot -box shall give them ' a chance, two years hence, of electing a Democratic President. But so rapidly do events move, and so slight are the impressions caused on the American mind by the gravest occurrences, that this stun ning defeat is well nigh forgotten in New York, and the disgrace all but forgiven. Could this be the case in any other country in the world ? The people are so easily depressed and so easily elevated, and entertain so little vin dictiveness, that there is scarcely anything they will not forgive in their own rulers or in foreign nations. Indeed it may be doubted whether there is anything which they will not forgive except the greatness of England, which they hold to be unpar donable, and which they are determined to resent. It is easy with such a people to assume responsibi lity, for no penalties are likely to be exacted. At least, such seems to be the opinion of General Burn side, as well as Mr. Lincoln. Possibly a few more disasters such as that at Fredericksburg may pro duce a different feeling. The camel's back is so heavily laden that the last exasperating and fatal i feather may light upon it much sooner than is anti cipated, and when that happens it may turn out that the responsibility so easily assumed may be very difficult to escape, and may fall with more crushing weight than has ever been known in the history of this Republic. At present there is a lull in the storm. Rumours of approaching disaster grow louder in the South west, but as they are as yet confused end contradic tory, and may happen to be baseless, p u b lic at tention fixes itself upon Washington and the policy THE SUN, LONDON, FRIDAY EVENING, J which the President may think it wise or expedi ent to pursue on the Ist of January in reference to the emancipation of the slaves of rebels. If he modify his first ill-omened proclamation or drop all action on the question except that promised in his Message to Congress, he will cast himself loose from the more violent of his Republican friends, but he will gain the support of all moderate men in the Conservative party. If, on the contrary, he persist in his proclamation, and thereby do his ut most to light up the flames of a servile war in the South, he will turn against himself the whole feeling of the Middle and Western States, and for feit the confidence of everybody but the fanatical preachers, the strong-minded women and the puri tanical tyrants of New England and -Western New York, a loud-talking but a numerically weak sec tion of the com mun ity. Persons claiming to on o r be in o Mr. Lincol n ' s con fid en ce assert th at he is the anti-slaveryquecsitaimonat;iotlloVbhuet will tha t nothe e only will l not go withdraw his p: o emancipationinl States,of the slaves d in i tt,h the, n lo d y ailncalus d w e he el t las granting com pensation i rr n h t e he 7 r one lbn n case, of o tbu_ day with holding it in the other. as serts in its Washington correspondence that on Wednesday last Mr. Lincoln, in the course of con versation, declared " that he would not withdraw his New Year's Proclamation of Freedom, if he could—and that he could not, if he would." If such be Mr. Lincoln's policy, he will assuredly end the war by it. The independence of the South will be come a fait accompli, by the refusal of the Northern people to lend themselves to the coutinuance of a struggle which they will then know to be hopeless, and which they will denounce as alike cruel and unjust to the South, and fatal to the peace, happi ness, and prosperity of the North—that never could expect to Hy° on terms of amity with a Confederacy in which they would have striven to excite the most diabolical of all wars—a war of races and of slaves against their masters. It is just possible that Mr. Lincoln may be as rash in this respect as his Aboli tionist friends assert ; but the probabilities are, notwithstanding the confident predictions of the theorists of the press and the pulpit, that he will hesitate, amid all his assumptions of responsibility, to assume so fearful a responsibility as this, and quietly suffer the Ist of January to pass without any mention of the subject; adjourn it, in fact, sine the, and fall back on gradual emancipation in or before the year 1900. The special Register of the United States army, Regular and Volunteer, has been officially made up to the Ist of August, and has just been published. According to this document the Yolunteer army in cludes 40 majors-general, 200 brigadiers-general, 3,132 surgeons and assistant-surgeons, 10,280 cap tains, 43,640 sergeants, 85,600 corporals, and 873,000 privates. The statement that such a force is in the field is not credible, though it is not at all incredible that the Government provides rations for such a multitude and owes the " greenbacks" to pay them. There is no such army in existence, and the Government knows the fact. The dead, the wounded and the sick—the twice and thrice en rolled—the deserters (supposed to number at least 100,000), and a host of parolled prisoners, all figure on the list. If a census could be taken in one day, it would be found that a discount of 40 or 50 per cent. would have to be deducted, to reach the exact number of available heroes, American, Irish, and German, who are engaged in this stupendous war. Perhaps, however, the Federal Government is not acquainted with a circumstance that is notorious in Maryland and Pennsylvania, if not in New York— that the forging of Confederate paroles is a regular and highly lucrative trade in the Border States— that immense numbers of them are sold to the Federal troops at 25 cents each—and that armed with these, I duly bearing the names of the battles in which they were supposed to have been captured, the Union soldiers depart from the battlefield to the farm, workshops, or offices, which they deplore they ever quitted. If the Government would but take stock of the numbers of really parolled Union soldiers, and compare the result with the numbers of those who possess apparent proofs of having been captured and released on their word of honour not to bear arms again during the war, it would perhaps find as many men as would compose an army of twice or thrice the numerical strength of that which has been sent to New Orleans under Gen. Banks. But the statistics of the War-office are on a level with the finance of the Treasury, and it will not do just now for the Government to admit that either can be in error. Though the subject has not yet been publicly mentioned, a great naval expedition of iron-clads has been silently prepared to attack Charleston, in South Carolina. Some of the vessels have already started to rendezvous at Port Royal. The expedi tion is to be under the command of Commodore or Admiral Dupont, and will in all probability be on a scale of magnitude sufficient to decide the great pro blem of the efficiency of iron clad ships against iron clad ships, as well as against stone walls. The de fences of Charleston have not been neglecte3, and are known to be off a scale commensurate with the importance of the position. It may be taken as cer tain that every resource of military and engineering science has been employed to defend the approaches and the harbour of that city. Forts, chains, sunken vessels, and torpedos have all been brought into re quisition, and two, if not three iron clad rams of the most powerful construction will dispute the pas sage with Commodore Dupont whenever he shall be ready to make the attempt. i The Falmouth correspondent of the New York Iribune writes on the 24th ult. : " Whether or no the chief officers in command of the Army of the Potomac have received any instruc tion from the still higher powers that ' winter quarters' is now to be the order, none but them selves can positively :say ; certain it is, that the soldiers are everywhere acting upon the supposition that the ' rebs ' are to be permitted peacefully to enjoy their occupation of the Fredericksburg heights for some time yet. Everywhere is heard the sound of axes cutting down the sparse pine and cedar, and still scantier oak trees, that make up the thin forests of this part of the Old Dominion. Every where goes constantly on the work of build ing log huts, of putting up turf chimneys, of ceiling up and roughly flooring the interior of huts, and of erecting stables for officers' horses ; in short, all things show that the men have resolved to make themselves comfortable in their present quarters for the rest of the winter. From head-quarters, too, come floating certain straws which are universally accepted as significant of the direction in which the official wind is blowing. Many officers having com mands, and many other staff officers indispensable in case of a renewal of active operations, are said to have procured leaves of absence for a length of time that will enable them to spend the holidays among their friends at home. For the soldier there is no leave of absence, no visit with friends, except such vicarious visiting as may be carried on in the guise of cheery, comforting letters, which are, let us hope, more plenty at this time of year than any other—for the soldier there is little Christmas cheer ! ' hard tack' and ' salt junk' taste no different on Christmas-day than before or after, and if he can get a cant een o f w hi s ky to m ake an evening toddy he is only too happy. Let us not be too hard on him, for even suc h a ce l e b ra tion is better than none. I have, h owever , seen p i nne d on one or two tents a sprig of holly, in h um bl e remem b ran ce of the holi day whi c h s h ou ld d raw all men closer t o gether, and when loving kindness should rule over all the earth. General Hooker's central grand division, I with which my duties specially lie, is encamped in the same position, or very nearly so, as it occupied before crossing the river—,the officers, like all the others, those who can, getting leave of absence ; the men, like all the others, those who must, stay ing in camp, and making themselves as eom fortable as possible for the rest of the winter. No movement, and no present signs of one. The only thing that I observed that might pos sibly be construed into an indication of a speedy advance in some direction was a simultaneous move ment of the pontoon trains ; but it appeared to be o nly in obedience to an order of General Woodbury to concentrate the trains, that they may be put in perfect order, and be ready the minute they chance to be called for. There being in camp a rumour that J, E. B, Stuart wets about making another ' raid by crossing the Rappahannock somewhere near • Deep Run, I went out of my special dominions, in vaded the territory held by General Sumner's grand division, and took a 20 mile ride up the river to the United States Ford and thereabout. I found the fordsaptlicgkueatredd by some of the regiments of ed and the shores of the river Gene ralvigi- lantly Pleasanton's cavalry brigade." Another correspondent, writing on the 25th ult. from Tobago, on the Rappahannock, 30 miles below Fredericksburg, says Since my last visit to Port Conway the fleet has been increased from five to nine of the largest gun boats floating upon inland waters. The guns they carry are all of the largest calibre, and have been thoroughly tested in many engagements. General Lee, either fearing so formidable a foe or desiring to capture them all in some bold night attack, con centrated a large force near Port Royal, and a few days after the battle brought two batteries to bear upon them, supported by at least one division of in fantry. The weather at the same time turning ex cessively cold, Capt.M'Kray, commanding the fleet, fearing that he might be frozen in, and be in danger of attack from the greatly superior force of infantry, fell down the river 10 miles below Port Royal, to Tobago Bay, where the river is very wide and is seldom frozen over. He is now where his transports can easily reach him throughout the entire winter, and also where he can be of service to General Burn side whenever it is thought best to again move the army. The rebel force, stretched from five miles above Port Royal to Tobago Bay, is variously esti mated at from 10,000 to 20,000. The troops are nearly all from North Carolina, and under command of one of the Hills, but which one I have been unable to learn. These rebel generals, I have been informed, have changed their commands lately, so that it is quite difficult to tell exactly where they are. When I left the right wing the day before yesterday I was told by a deserter that they were in front of General Sumner. To-day I have been told by one of the same trustworthy persons that they are in front of General Franklin's extreme left. It is but of little consequence, however, who com mands these übiquitous fellows, so long as it is cer tain that they are always in front of somebody and ready to fight upon the first good opportanity. Having successfully repulsed the attack upon his centre, General Lee now, undoubtedly, contemplates a movement on his right, near where General Burn side made his first feint. Rebel pickets, thinly posted, extend as far down as Urbana, and under cover of the night cross over to the side and exa mine our lines. Night before last, information was received from a trusty black, who came over the river on a frail raft, that the rebels contemplated another dash upon a squadron of the Bth Pennsyl vanian Cavalry, who now guard the extreme ad vance on the left. Major Kenan had his men pro perly posted, and would have captured the whole party had not some of them, without orders, fired their guns before the party were fairly within range. Upon discovering that their enterprise had been divulged by some one, they sprang to their rafts and boats, and reached the other side with a loss of but two or three, who were seen to drop in the river. Four thousand cavalry, now guarding the river from six miles below Fredericksburg to Tobago Bay, are subsisting entirely upon the rich ' planters in the valley. Not an ounce of food of any kind has been brought to them from the depot at Falmouth. Men and horses are living upon the very best the valley can produce, and I doubt if there is a table in New York on this Christmas-day covered with a greater variety of dishes than many beneath the tents and booth huts of our cavalry offi cers. The sailors, too, upon the gunboats are really getting tipsy on the domestic wine they have ma naged to get hold of by some underground trans portation." On the 24th another skirmish took place on the Blackwater, four miles above Franklin. The Con federate pickets were driven in, but the Federals, finding a considerable force behind, had to retire. The Cairo correspondent of the Chicago Times, writing on the 20th ult., alludes to the critical posi tion of the Federals under General Grant : " Your readers would be astounded with the an nouncement that the rebels had made their appear ance between Hurehaldt and Jackson, thus threaten ing our rear, and temporarily cutting off tho com munication with the army of General Grant. Such is the fact, and should not have surprised us. It is however, a matter of more wonder that all this should have been accomplished without being anticipated and met by our troops. The state of affairs, as nearly as it can be ascertained from Columbus, is this :—A force of cavalry, some say a mere guerilla party, others an army of 15,000, has succeeded in cutting the telegraph wire scuth of Humboldt, burning a bridge on the railroad, and causing a very general panic throughout the section of country be tween there and Jackson. There is a very easy solution of this affair. General Morgan, of the rebel cavalry, after the capture of our forces at Hartsville, Tennessee, was next heard of in the vicinity of Columbia; next we hear of rumours of an advance on Fort Donnelson, and finally they approach Jack son, having in the meantime crossed the Tennessee river. Jackson is a fortified position, garrisoned by a considerable force of troops. Cotton bales, of which there was an abundant store, were, we under stand, being transformed into barricades. A very considerable opposition may be expected if Morgan should attempt to seize the place. General Grant's forces have not as yet refused to fight, and fight nobly, whenever they have been attacked. General Davies, whose command fought so nobly at the last battle of Corinth, is in command of Columbus, and new troops are daily pouring into that town, An offensive movement from the direction of La Grange and Columbus may soon be expected against the in vaders. The only means left in our hands is, how ever to chase them beyond the river with infantry in light marching order. Cavalry we have not enough of. The Tennessee is rising, and must, if watched, prove a serious obstacle to Morgan's return. Our particular weakness at this time is, that any point of the road above or below may be suddenly attacked and destroyed. It must not be supposed that this raid will produce any derangement of the plans of Gen. Grant ; it is, in fact, hardly worth his notice. There will be no turning of his whole army buck. It will, for a few days, cause some delay in getting supplies to the front. Luckily we are not entirely dependent upon that line. In a pinch, provisions can be taken, either from Memphis or Friar's Point, to the army overland. The roads are bad, and this fact leads us to another conclusion, which should have been reached long before. The line of com munication is too long. From Columbus to Oxford is 200 miles—to Grenada 240. This is, in point of time, convenient—it is accomplished by the tele graph. It costs thousands to guard its entire length, but it enables us more firmly to hold the territory ; and, above all, it is a grand avenue for the procur ing of cotton; but it is too long. History seldom records so large an army hanging to its support by so long and slender a thread. The obvious way out is, th u t s o s fi h n o ih r s te n t h t e h e road e fro of m l a n M d e co a o p ai h m i s u t n o i G a t r i e o n n a d b aand y , 140 miles. Of the river we have absolute control." Later accounts show that the movement towards Jackson was a feint to divert attention from Holly Springs, which was seized by the Confederates, the Union forces being dispersed or destroyed, and the Government property burnt. From Arkansas we learn that Col. M'Cullough was ordered to march with 8,000 men of his com mand from Brownsville to Vicksburg, reached Little Rock on the 10th ult., and was then ordered to proceed with his command to reinforce General Hindman, at that time pursued by General Blunt. ‘Callough had j oined Gener a l Hindman s C i o n l c o e ne t l h l e i battle of Prairie Grove, intelligence of which could not have reached Confederate head quarters prior to r Cullough's advance. The Helena, Arkansas, correspondent of the New York Times asserts that the Federal General Hovey has been selling captured negroes to the planters in exchange for cotton. The Richmond Inquirer of the 20th ult. has an editorial criticising the movements of General Burnside, and representing the impossibility of the Union Army of the Potomac reached Richmond by way of Fredericksburg.. It says,— " Should it cross and compel Gen. Lee to retreat, it will have the passage 01 our rivers—the MAO,. pony, South Anna, North Anna, and Chickahominy —to effect before it reaches Richmond, and a line of 80 miles to defend and keep open in its rear. At any season of the year such a feat would be imprac ticable. To attempt it now, with Lee's veterans dis puting every inch of ground, would be an act of madness. To cross lower down the Rappahannock would be more difficult, for no railroad would then furnish supplies t o th e Federal army, and there are none in the exhausted country through which th ey would have to pass. At Port Royal the river is three times as wide as at Fredericksburg, the hills on the south side equally as high, and a creek im mediately above and one just below the town. It is a cal de sac which, if the Federal army enters, it may never escape from. Throughout the whole length of the Rappahannock either there are hills extending to the river, and forming bluffs which render its passage by an army impracticable, or hills of great height a short distance from the river, which, occupied by our army, will prevent, as at Fredericksburg, the advance of an invading enemy. Burnside cannot advance, nor can he winter his army where it now is, for the Potomac and Rappa hannock, three winters out of four, freeze up so as to prevent any other navigation than that by steam boats. The army would starve long before a suffi cient number of such boats could be collected and brought into service, so as to furnish its supplies. It often happens that even these iceboats cannot force a passage up or down those rivers. Burnside cannot advance nor can he stand still. Can he re treat? The Potomac is tempestuous, and its Vir ginia shore everywhere shallow. It Would require three weeks' time to convey his army, its waggons, horses, and stores, by transports to Washington; for they are scarce of such vessels on the Potomac, and have found it difficult even to transport sup plies to the army. Besides, the river will probably freeze up and prevent this mode of retreat. If the retreat is conducted by land to Alexandria, Lee will harass his rear, and perhaps greatly damage or destroy his army before it reaches Washington. Yet we believe this retreat by land is his most feasi ble mode of escape, and that he will be compelled to attempt it." RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE. ANUARY 9, 1863: Telegraph Routes to Australia. (From the Brisbane Courier.) In the present advanced state of telegraphy, when we hear of our Yankee friends carrying a wire up in a balloon, and signalling from the clouds the movement of a hostile army, and when the extension of the mysterious agency of communication is be coming a subject for consideration in all civilised countries, we are not surprised to find the project of connecting Australia with Europe once more mooted. By the mail just arrived we learn that a deputation had waited upon the Secretary of State for India, Sir Charles Wood, " concerning the esta blishment of telegraphic communication between India and China, and India and Australia, via Singapore," the proposition being that the Indian Government should give a subsidy towards the sec tion of the line between Rangoon and Singapore, contingent upon the successful working of the cable. The reply of Sir C. Wood was, we are told, suffi ciently definite, the right hon. baronet stating that he should feel it his duty to recommend the Indian Government either to carry out the work at its own cost, or assist a private company in constructing the line, as soon as he was assured that the sections beyond Singapore was in a state of actual forward ness, or certain to be completed. The promoters of this new scheme are said to re present forty banks and firms trading with China and Australia, and their objects appear to be to establish telegraphic communication between India and Australia, and India and China. This would enable us, supposing that instantaneous communi cation were once established between this country and India, to obtain intelligence from Great Britain in sixteen days, and this interval of time should be shortened to as many hours when a submarine cable has been successfully laid between Aden and Kur rachee. We cannot, however, express our approval of the route proposed by the promote-s between Java and Brisbane. From Singapore, via Batavia to Cape Sedano, at the eastern extremity of Java, a telegraph line is already con structed, and it is proposed to carry it from thence (Cape Sedano) to Brisbane, a distance of 3,024 miles, by submarine cable, touching at Coepang, Port Essington, Cape York, and Cleveland Bay— at each of which places it is proposed to erect stations. The distances between these points are severally as follows :—From Cape Sedano to Coe pang, 590 miles; from Coepang to Port Essington, 525 miles ; from Port Essington to Cape York, 635 miles; from Cape York to Cleveland Bay, 619 miles; from Cleveland Bay to Brisbane, 655 miles. This portion of the line—from Java to Brisbane—is esti mated to cost not less than £1,100,000, but it is calculated that 40,000 messages will be transmitted annually, or 55 per diem. To maintain the cable in working order, it will be necessary to keep a steamer on the route, constantly engaged in effect ing repairs when necessary, but the promoters seem to be sanguine that very little difficulty will be ex perienced in this way, the soundings taken having shown that the different lengths of cable can be laid on a soft and uniform sea bottom, seldom exceeding 50 fathoms in depth. The British, Indian, French, Dutch, and Australian Govern ments have all promised to assist the scheme by subsidy or otherwise, and it is anticipated that the cable between Java and Brisbane could be laid in about two years after the letting of the contract. Although we are glad enough to see the project of an Anglo-Australian telegraph line being once more brought prominently before the notice of British capitalists, we beg to dissent from the opinion that the best route has been chosen, or the best plan devised. We have long thought, and have more than once expressed the opinion in these columns, that the establishment of telegraphic com munication between this colony and India might be made subsidiary to the settlement of the country, and it will be unwise in the promotion of an Anglo- Australian telegraphic scheme, to overlook any plan for carrying out their object which seems to promise to be less expensive in the first instance, less likely to be costly in working, and more calculated to pro mote the general benefit, than the sable now pro posed. These desiderata would, we think, be at tained were the wire landed at Port Essington, and carried thence to the site of the proposed settlement nn the Albert River. and from thence, crossing the Flinders near its mouth, to Port Denison. The extension of our present telegraphic line to Dalby is already provided for by a parliamentary vote, and its further continuation to Gayndah, Gladstone, and Rockhampton becomes a mere question of time. Thus far the line would of course be constructed and maintained at the expense of the colony, and in the course of years its extension to Port Denison would assuredly come to pass; but as the pro moters of the Anglo-Australian line are pre pared to spend upwards of a million in skirting our northern and eastern coast with a submarine cable, they might possibly be induced to enter into negotiations with the Queensland government for constructing the line overland from Rockhamp ton or Port Denison to Port Essington. The only cable then required between this continent and Java would be about 1,100 miles in length, and might be laid down in two sections—from Cape Sedano to Coepang, and from Coepang to Port Essington. The undertaking would be none the less national because the wires ran across Queensland instead of round it, and our older and wealthier neighbours would doubtless be as willing to subsidise the for mer as the latter project. Queensland would cer tainly derive an immense advantage, and she would have to contribute accordingly ; but for years to come New South Wales, Victoria, and South Aus tralia must assuredly be the principal supporter of the wire, and it is only natural to suppose that they would be prepared to contribute towards the main tenance of that portion of it running through the unsettled country. The march of the enterprise has already led to the extension of the boundaries of a squatting district to within 300 miles of the head of the Gulf, and long before the two years stipulated by the promoters have elapsed, the plains of pro mise will be parcelled off into sheep walks. As the pioneer squatters force their way into the wil. derness, they will undoubtedly demand from the Government the protection to which they are en titled ; end what is to prevent the preservation of the telegraphic wires from being made a part of the duty of the protective force Stations might be established, at convenient distances apart, along the whole route, and nothing would more tend to the rapid settlement and civilisation of that part of the colony, which is now almost a terra incognita. We trust, as the Queensland Government will assuredly have received some official communica tions on the subject, that they will, in replying thereto, give the preference to the overland scheme,' and recommend it to the nutice of the promoters of the undertaking. We have reason to believe that his Excellency Sir George Bowen is greatly in fa vour of carrying the wires to the Gulf; and we can not imagine that any one, after intelligently consi dering the relative merits of the two schemes, would give the preference to the long stretch of submarine cable with which it is proposed to girdle our coast. A Trieste letter in the .1 4 rankfurter Journal says :—" The first merchant steam-vessel built here has just been completed. It measures 1,000 tons, and has been constructed by M. Tonello, who has the intention of building five others still larger, and competing with the English line of steamers between Liver pool and Trieste. M. Tonello affirms that there are few maritime places in Europe where the construction of ves sels can be carried on at less expense than at Trieste." The Journal du Havre states that two of Admiral Fitzroy's meterological despatches were posted up at that port on Tuesday, announcing high southwest winds for that day, accompanied by rain, and for Wednesday winds varying from west to north and east, with a little snow. The journal adds that as those predictions are cal culated for England, and as the columns of wind seldom occupy a greater breadth than 30 or 40 kilometres, they may not prove entirely correct on the French side of the Channel. [ADVERTISEMENT.] —Holloway's Ointment.—Bad legs, wounds, ulcers, and all descriptions of sores are cured by the proper and diligent use of this inestimable preparation. To attempt to cure bad legs by plastering the edges of the wound together is a folly, for should the skin unite a baggy diseased condition remains underneath, to break out with tenfold fury in a few days. The only rational and perma nent treatment, as indicated by nature, is to reduce the in flammation in and about the wound, to sooth the neigh. bouring nerves, to cool the heated blood as it courses along its vessels, and to render the thin watery ichorous dis charge consiste n t an d healthy. Holloway ' s Pills should be taken to purify the blood and expel the obnoxious humours from the syetera, NEW BRUNSWICK. AND CANADA. An extraordinary meeting of this company was held yesterday of the office, Whitehall, for the purpose of receiving a report from the directors and committee of co-operation appointed on the 6th Nov., and of considering the propriety of pass ing a resolution to the effect " that the company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same." Mr. F. Edwards was in the chair. The report stated that the committee had had an interview with the Railway Commissioners of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, and the commit tee were of opinion that the prospects of this company's line of railway, or some part of it, be coming ultimately a portion of the intereolonial railway, were fair and reasonable, but as the td m i ee o ls n a y t o h f ms, , at the e t i uweg. company sm u u l pe d ah: measures question of route cou ld not be settle d f or many i e m as p u o r s e s s i balse the e t h p e r e m s e e n a t n d t iiffimceutlo. imperatively preservation of its pro outstanding liabiliti es o f the company , the com mittee found that to meet the debenture coupons due on the Ist proximo the sum required was £3,000. There were acceptances out to the ex tent of £20,150, £3,000 of which being for a por tion of the money raised and lent to the contractors to pay their workmen, was accepted at the particu lar request of the Governor of New Brunswick. There were other debts, amounting to £39,161, making a total of liabilities of about £63,000 due. The whole of this sum was not wanted immediately —but as the first issue of debentures had been ex hausted, and there was no balance at the company's bankers, there were no means of meeting that por tion of the necessities which was urgent and of suffl. ciently large amount to piece the interests of all the parties in a very dangerous position. The above sum did not include any further provision for the completion of the line, nor for current expenses of the Company, nor an 7 interwa: hcynnd that due on the Ist inst., nor any sum for additional rolling stock, which the committee believed to be absolutely necessary for the due development of the traffic. It appeared to the committee, therefore, that unless those difficulties were met by prompt action, steps of a very disastrous character to the property of the company might be taken by credi tors. The committee therefore recommended the formation, if practicable, of a new company t 3 con nect the line with St. John, and also with Calais, in the State of Maine, such company to be formed on the basis of absorbing this company by purchase. The committee had reason to believe a plan of that sort would meet with favour from the New Bruns wick Government. As the exigencies of the com pany would not admit of delay, it was obvious that immediate steps must be taken to secure in the in terim protection to the property of the company, and with this view the committee recommended an immediate voluntary winding up of the present company, and the appointment of a voluntary liqui dator, with power to sell the line to a new company or otherwise, and in the meantime to protect the themighta hruevqeuinarea.delnheituhge property of all parties (including those who might e su ve p p p t ly of promptly adopted, the committee had reason to the debenture holders for holding over their cou ponshope that some arrangement might be made with for a time. plant), e a c s om o m cc e a n si d o a n tions The CHAIRMAN stated that the committee had had several conferences with the directors, and that Mr. Field, one of their oldest shareholders, would move the first resolution. Mr. J. FIELD moved a resolution to the effect that it had been proved to the satisfaction of the meeting that the company could not, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it was advisable to wind up its affairs. Mr. MAUDSLEY seconded the resolution. Mr. BURTON, the solicitor to the company, ex plained that it was the only course they couid adopt, as one of the contractors was endeavouring to ob tain power to wind up the company's affairs in a hostile manner, and he (Mr. Burton) believed the contractor would not succeed if the meeting passed the resolutions that would be proposed for their adoption. A long discussion ensued, in the course of which Mr. CONYBEAME moved an amendment, which was negatived, and the motion was adopted by eight against four. Mr, MAUDSLEY explained that the largest share holders were also holders of debentures, and if they did not act all together, there was not the slightest hope of saving anything for the share holders. Mr. FIELD said that if they could raise £lOO,OOO they could pay off their liabilities and provide £20,000 for rolling stock. Mr. Handfield, the secretary, and Mr. Adron, of Gresham-house, were appointed liquidators for winding up voluntarily the affairs of the company ; and a committee was appointed, consisting of 12 shareholders and bondholders, with power to add to their number, and to act with the liquidators in winding up the company's affairs, _ _ _ Mr. CONYBEARE protested against the appoint ment of a committee so constituted, and the pro ceedings terminated. MARKET HARBOROUGH AND MELTON MOWBRAY. This line is proposed to run from the Medburn bridge station of the London and North-Western Railway to the Syston and Peterborough branch of the Midland Railway at Melton Mowbray. The estimated cost is £250,000. OKEHAMPTON AND LIDFORD. This Proposed line is to run from Okehampton to the Launceston and South Devon Railway, near Lidford, and to cost £160,000. Importing tea without colour on the leaf prevents the Chinese passing off inferior brown leaves as iu the usual kinds. Iforniman's tea is uncoloured, therefore always good ?like? )Sold in packets by 2,280 agents, MR. GLADSTONE ON SICILY. In our Tuesday's impression we gave a brief outline of a lecture delivered by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Boys' National School-room, Hawarden, in the course of which he gave some account of a tour made by him in Sicily, with his ascent of Mount Etna, in 1838. The follow ing is a fuller report of the right hon. gentleman's address:— Mr. GLADSTONE was received with loud and continued applause, and having addressed the audience as friends and neighbours, said that he very cheerfully undertook the task of delivering a lecture on that occasion; at the same time he must trust to the indulgence of his audience, as that was merely an attempt on his part to construct a lecture from a little black book he held in his hand, containing what was jotted down during his tour in Sicily,and from Mr. Murray's handbook, The whole would be very inartificial, for though he could not say that he was unaccustomed to public speak ing, he would say he could not give very good accounts of his own travels. First of all he would introduce the island of Sicily, which lays at the foot of Italy, was one of the most southern points of Europe, and had a climate partaking both of an European and African character. He was not aware that the dimensions of the island had ever been rigidlytaken, but the latest survey showed it to be 200 miles in diameter, that was from east to west, and 120 in its greatest length from north to south. That island had been long known to the world, having been described 3,000 years ago in the works of Homer. Its fortune had been very peculiar. No other place had passed under a greater number of the governing nations of the world than that. Its first inhabitants were called Sicilii ; these were succeeded by the Greeks, under whom it became more powerful than at any after period of its history. It was said that the population was as great as eight millions ; ho wever that might be, there was no doubt that its productiveness was very great. It had in it seven cities, each of which was a great State. Its fertility was so extraordinary that during the Roman periods it was reckoned to be the granary of Rome. From the Greeks it passed to the Carthagenians, and from them to the Romans. After the Romans, the Vandals got possession of it; after the Vandals the Goths held it, and from them it passed to the Saracens. It afterwards became a part of the Byzantine empire, and finally the Normans possessed it. Its modern history was not less remark able, for it had since been in the hands of all the dominant states of Europe. Germany has held it. France and Spain had possessed it ; recently it was in the hands of the English, who, he was glad to say, had left a good impression there, and still enjoyed popularity with the inhabitants. (Applause.) He was not aware of any other State with respect to which it could be said that it had passed under so many masters. Though Mount Etna was the chief object of interest in Sicily, it was cer tainly not the only one. The ruins it contains were of themselves sufficient to give great interest to the island. These, however, did not form the object of his visit in 1838, as his great ambition was to go up Mount Etna. In that year his eyesight became unequal to his work ; he was recommended to travel, and he accordingly selected that island as the object of his journey, which was performed in company with a friend. The route chosen on going from Naples was that usually taken by those travellers who wish to know something of the country, which unfortunately had hitherto remained very little known. One main reason for this had been political. The island was at the time he visited it in a very discontented state, and those who then ruled were not anxious that many foreigners should make their way into it. That state of things was now changed, and the in habitants were the reverse of what they were at the time of his visit. Having explained on the map the general con formation of the island, he proceeded to make a few obser vations on its great natural richness, showing that it ought to abound with everything, and be one of the great gardens of Europe. Everything it produced was excellent, and it was as well suited to produce cotton and rice as wheat, for though cotton and rice were tropical plants, the climate was perfectly suited to them. No Englishman could travel there without being struck with the fine quality of the soil, but it was sad to observe that there agriculture was now more backward than it was 3,000 years ago. Virgil came out as the first writer on agriculture, and the description he gives of it in his day would be applicable to Sicilian agricul ture of the present day. In order to give the English far mer an idea of the way in which it is carried on, he related an anecdote of a certain proprietor, who wished to make some improvements in agriculture, and for that purpose purchased a number of English made ploughs, but he found that they did not act as he had expected, and they were abandoned for the following reason :—A small shrub, called the palmetto, grows in Sicily, which has rather tough roots, and if the top is out off it will revive again. The people consider it too much trouble to dig up these roots, and the result was that a team of 40 or 50 oxen may be seen going round the bunches of palmetto, carefully avoiding them, and nowhere cutting more than two or three inches into the soil. The English ploughs were found to cut much deeper —far too deep for the proprietor referred to,as they constantly tore up the roots, and would not go round the palmetto shrubs. There were no roads,except in two or three favoured spots,the island generally being totally unprovided in this re spect. On one occasion,when he and his fellow-traveller were making their way around the coast,they met the King—not the gentleman who is now piningin exile,but his father—who was making a tour around the coast, The road just there was in such a fearful state that,in order to prevent his Majesty from sinking,the people spread a quantity of straw over it,and thus rendered it paseablo for the moment. Another kind of road there was the bed of a stream. We had such roads occa sionally in England, but the worst of them could give but a faint idea of the wretched state of the Sicilian roads. At Palermo they experienced a very disagreeable effect from a wind which comes from the deserts of Africa, and seems to destroy the muscular force of the body, impressing one with the belief that one's limbs do not belong to one's self, but to somebody else. With respect to the means of loco motion, he observed that the relative position of horses and mules was reversed in Scily. The price of a mule would be £4O or £5O, whilst that of a horse would be about half the money, which in that country was considered a very large sum. They were obliged to ride about 12 hours a day upon these animals, and very uncomfortable work it was, as all parts of the body were continually creaking and rubbing against one another. These things were very inconvenient at the time, but they were all forgotten in the retrospect of a journey. One very peculiar thing in connexion with these mules was, that you could never acquire any kindly feelings towards them, or induce them to become friendly towards yourself; you could do nothing but punch and beat them the whole way. Whenever complaint was made to the guide about their slow progress, the only reply would be that it was their own fault, as they did not lay on the animals suffi ciently. The superior guide they had with them made use of a very peculiar instrument—a sort of fifth finger, which came out of his hand, and was dug into the animal's side. The reason of his using this sharp point was to avoid the exertion of muscular force which would have been necessary had he employed a blunt instrument. Having described the ruins which they passed on their way to Catania, he re. marked upon the feeling which at that time existed between the people and the government. When they arrived there they found that the town had suffered severely from the ra vages of cholera, and the people were firmly impressed with the belief that the King had procured it, and that the only way to escape its influence was to murder persons of high rank. They exonerated the priests from any participation in this act, as many of them died of cholera themselves. That was a very ludicrous fact on one side, but a very melancholy one on the other, as it was impossible to conceive anything more illustrative of the bad government under which they lived at the period than that such a belief should have ob tained. Having made a few observations upon the manner in which volcanic mountains are formed, he proceeded to de scribe the appearance of Mount Etna. The mountain was divided into three, or rather four regions: the lower was the cultivated region, the second was the region of wood, the third that of snow, and the fourth was the cone, When he ascended on 31st October a portion of the last winter's snow remained in the fissures, but the internal warmth of the cone was sufficient to prevent its lying on the surface. Travellers generally proceeded from Catania to Niaolosi, and there passed the night; their object being to reach the moun tain top at sunrise. That time was chosen for a threefold purpose—to obtain the view from the mountain top, to see the shadow of the mountain itself, and thirdly, to ob serve any volcanic action which might be going on. The I hon. gentleman here described the situation of the moun tain in relation to the surrounding eminences, and having extinguished the lights, he endeavoured, by means of a simple apparatus, to convey to his audience some idea of the wonderful manner in which the shadow is projected by the rays of the rising sun into an elongated angle, extending to a distance of 100 miles or more. On their way up the moun tain they stopped first at Nicolosi, and were there told to rest themselves, as they would have to climb during the whole of the night. While lying in bed trying to sleep, but quite unable to do so, he was pleased to hear what he con sidered to be the thundering of the mountain. It seemed to be a low dead noise, and appeared to be near his head at the time. Next morning he informed the people of the inn that he had heard the thundering of the mountain, but he was greatly disappointed and somewhat mortified when in formed that he was mistaken; that the stable was immedi ately at the head of the bed where he had been endea vouring to rest, and that the sound was merely the stamp ing of the mules. Having rapidly sketched the ascent from Nicolosi, he observed that at the cone of Etna there were three separate points of interest. One was the great crater, which was a mile in circumference, and looked as if a con siderable piece of I he mountain top had been sliced off; the second was a smaller crater, which stood on the lip or southernmost corner of the great crater ; and the third was the highest peak of the mountain, and stood to the north east. The smaller crater was in such a state of extreme activity that it became impossible to ascend the cone by the usual path. It shot forth great masses of lava, 20, 50, and 100 pounds in weight, to a great elevation, and these falling on the sides of the crater, rolled down, and rendered it im possible to get up that way. , A path was, however, open on the south-west side, which they took, but found very great difficulty in climbing up the hard surface. On reach ing the top, an enchanting scene repaid their labours; they saw the two craters in action. and could not but admire the great diversity which existed between them. The great crater appeared like a large soup plate, continually filling with lava, swelling onwards from the centre and approach ing the lip of the crater, continually bulging more and more, until at length the protuberance became so great tha it tore itself off from the rams and fell over upon the side of the crater, exposing to view a great mass of r ed-hot lava. The smaller crater emitted greater columns of smoke, and ashes rushed up frog the bowels of the earth. T'he lava was not purely liquid ; was simply a heat ed solid. Seeing this great mass open, he det t Jmined to test whatits real hard ness 'vas. Picking up with both hands a fragment of stone, 40 or 501bs. weight, he flung it v . ith as much force as h e could at the lava, and one side of it C . nly:sunk in. They still wished to reach the peak, but the quesi!on was how ? They were going along the west side - of the great uter, and were near the corner. The heated lava was too near to allow there to go close to it, and there was precipitous ground upon which they did not like to tread. The only course open for them was to walk over the lava, and as it w.:ls very hard, though filled with cracks and fissures, they dete:mined to do so. As they walked they poked their sticks int:o these fissures and brought them out igeited. For some reason or another, the hour he prized most wtO that on the top of Mount Etna; it was the greatest physical delight and en joyment he had ever experienced ; a state of excitement and pleasure which, after the lapse of 24 years, he was at a loss to understand. The peak was reached in safety - , but it was found to be full of little reefs filled with sulpilurie vapours. The right hon. gentleman then road an extract from the " Virgil " of Dryden, who had himself placed on record a most admirable description of the various phenomena observed on a visit to Mount Etna. They were detained ten days in sight of the mountain, and looking back from time to time they saw the progress of the swelling of the lava. Within two days after they had left the mountain, it was carried over the lip of the crater towards the north end. This could not be observed in the daytime, as the lava was exteriorly of a brown colour ; but in the night time they appeared like huge tongues of Ere reaching out from the mountain side and gradually length,- ened from day to day. On going along the coast of Cala bria, they for a length of time continued near the sea, and: always saw these tongues of fire; but they must have been. frozen, and rendered harmless long before they got near then cultivated region. He should not suppose that any erup tion from the central crater would be dangerous, as it had such a great distance to flow before it could do any harm;; and, in the length of time which would elapse, it would be come cold. The eruptions of Vesuvius would be more dan gerous than those of Etna, as the lava has such a short distance to travel before it comes upon cultivated ground. At length they bade Etna farewell, though with great re gret, and travelled from Messina to Naples in that most miserable of conveyances—a mail coach—not one of those which run at the rate of 12 miles an hour, but a great wooden house placed upon the axles, without springs, and jolting along at the rate of three or three and a half miles an hour. They arrived at Naples more dead than alive ; and if the hour on the volcano top was one of ecstacy, the moment they got to bed at Naples after their fearful jolt ing was one of daylight. In bringing his lecture to a con clusion, Mr. Gladstone remarked that Sicily was a coun try of very great interest, and he had more pleasure in taking it for the subject of his narrative because he believed it would soon see a new and brighter future. COUNTRY MARKETS. 1 , - MANCHESTER-JAN. 8. This morning at our market there was a firm sale for best English wheat, at Is to 2s per qr advance on the cur rencies of last week, and American advanced ld to 2d per 1001bs. Flour moved off slowly. Oats the turn dearer, and oatmeal 6d per load up. Indian corn and beans were unchanged. BIRMINGHAM—JAN. 8. English wheat was sold at 48s to 56s for white, and 40s to 54s per 36 stone for red. Barley, new malting, 35s to 42s per qr; grinding, 24s to 28s Oats, old, 25s to 30s per 30 stone ; Irish, 23s to 255. Beans, 40s to 44s per qr. Peas, 40s to 48s per 36 stone. PLYMOUTH-JAN. 6. White, 56s to 608; red, 54s to b6s per qr ; Dantzic, 57s to 588; American 51s to 55s ; Spanish, —8 to —s ; Rus sian, — s to --s. s.Barley at previous rates-34s to 38s per qr for malting ; grinding, 27s to 288 ; oats, 23s to 27s ; and beans, —s to —s; flour, 38s to 41s Od. EDINBURGH GRAIN-JAx. 7. A good supply of farmers' wheat to-day, which brought Is to 2s advance on the prices of this day week, with quick sales. Wheat on the top 4s Od up .....average 2s 6d up. Barley on the top 3s Od up... .average is Id up. Oats on tho top Os 6d up average Os 6d up. Beans on the top 4s down average 2s lid up. Total Supply and Sales. Wheat ... '9B qrs Sold 662 qrs 8ar1ey........1384 qrs Sold 1256 qrs Oats Beans B3 qrs Sold 63 qrs Flour sells as follows :—Whites, 47s Od ; extras, 44s 6d ; superfine, 42s Od ; line, 39s Od. DERBY SMITHFIELD-JAN. 6. A moderate supply of fat beasts to-day. There was a large attendance of buyers, and higher prices were asked. The demand for best kinds wE.s good. Sheep were scarce r and sold well. Pigs in better supply. Fat calves were ra ther scarce. -- ---- --- Beet 6d to 60 Veal . 7d to lid Mutton .. Lamb .—d to —d Rough fat, 4s Od per stone. Hides, 3d to 4td; calf skins, 5d to 6d. Foreign Mail. Packet List. MAILS DUE. AuKzalia and Mauritius, via Southampton ..Jan. 18. via Marseilles Jan. 12. Brazil and Cape Verds, by British packet. Feb. 3. Cape of Good Hope, Ascension, and St. Helena.. Feb. 1. China, Penang, and Singapore, via Southampton. Jan. 18. via Marseilles Jan. 12. Falkland Islands .. Feb. 3. Gibraltar, via Southampton .. Jan. 10. India (Calcutta), and Ceylon, via Southampton Jan. 18. via Marseilles Jan. 12. India (Bombay), via Southampton Jan. 10. via Marseilles Jan. 20. Portugal.... Feb. 3. Malta, Egypt, and Aden, via Southampton Jan. 10. via Marseilles Jan. 12. Newfoundland Oporto and Vigo .. U. S. and British N. America, by Brit. packet.... Jan. 15. . , 'by U.S. packet by Canadian packet Jan. 16. W.C. of Africa, Madeira, and Teneriffe Jan. 10. Bahamas, via New York Jan. lb. Mexico.. All parts of West Indies, including Chili, Peru, I Jan. 13. California, and British Columbia.. A MMIDRED AND SEVEN YEARS OLD.—A lady residing at Cheltenham has received a second donation of £5 from her Majesty the Queen, for an old man of 107 years old, named Wm. Purser, a native of Redmarley. but now living in Cheltenham.— Worcestershire Chronicle. THE TUSCARORA AT MADEIRA.—The Tuscarora has been entertaining the English residents at Funchal. The Ruby, a British steamer, suspected of hav ing Southern consignments on board, had put in with damaged boilers, and on Thursday, the 18th ult., her com mander invited a few of the residents to take a short sea trip in her, in order to test her abilities with one boiler only. The Tuscarora, which had been keeping a sharp look-out upon her, thought she was going to make a run for it, and and when the Ruby weighed anchor and started on her trip the Tuscarora followed her as closely as she was able. The Englishman, however, beat the Yankee hollow, steamed pleasantly round the island, and anchored in the bay again. The next day the Ruby slipped her cable and got away to sea at a splendid speed, this time unmolested by the Fede ral commander, who was probably quite satisfied with his defeat of the day before. Two more English steamers were in the bay, and to these the Tuscarora now directed her at tentions. She kept within hailing distance of them the whole of the afternoon, and had got everything ready to slip away at a moment's notice It was known on shore that the Englishmen intended making a start that night if every thing were favourable. The night was intensely dark, but tolerably fine, and at about 11 o'clock the three vessels were seen nestling closely to each other with their lights up, but as still and as quiet as it was possible to be on board ship. At half-past 11 o'clock a slight commotion was ob served on one of the English steamers, and in another mo ment the cables were slipped and all three were off. The Englishmen went away in contrary directions, the 'Tusca rora following one of thew ; and in this manner they steamed out of the bay, the flash of the Yankee's gun com manding the fugitive to heave to, being the last that were seen of them. The Tuscarora has not yet returned to Fun chal, but it is supposed that both the English steamers have got clear away. Births. PORTAL.—On the 6th inat., at Compton Verney,Warwick, the wife of Lieutenant-Colonel Portal, sth Lancers, of a daughter. _ SALT.—On the Bth inst., at 9, Russell-square, the wife of Thomas Salt, jun., Esq., M.P., of a son. THORNHILL.—On the 7th inst , at Rushton, the wife of C. Thornhill, Esq , of a son. Marriages. JONES—ATSINSON. — On the 7th inst., at Walton-on- Thames, William Price Jones, M.D., Loud., of Surbiton, to Sophia Caroline, younger daughter of the late William Atkinson, Esq., of Notting-hill, and Aldersgate -street. OLTVER — M 4 LAREN.—On the 7th inst., at Newingtert House, Edinburgh, John Scott 01 ver, Esq., to Cathe rine, daughter of Duncan M'Laren, Esq. Deaths. KINGDON.—On the Bth inst., at Abbey-wood, Kent, Wm. Kingdon, F.R.C.S., of Bank-buildings, Lothbury, E.C,, aged 74. MLENDIE.—On. the 6th inst., at Hedingham Castle, Essex, the Rev. Henry Lewis Majendie, vicar of Great Dunmow, aged 67. . _ OITES.—On the 6th inst., at Bath, Captain Wm. Coq.' Oates, aged 73. CLUTTON.—On the 4th inst., at Chorlton, near Malpasi county of Chester, Thomas Chorlton Glutton, Esq., aged 78. _ _ CHEARNLEY.—On the 4th inst., at Salterbridge, Capp°• quin, co. Waterford, Richard Chearnley, Esq., J.P•/ D.L., aged 55. London : Printed and Published by WILLIAM ANDREWS, of No. 112, Strand, Printer, at THE SUN Office, No• 112, Strand, in the Precinct of the Savoy, in the COtintY 01 Middloex—Friday, January 9, 1863. 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