The Sun. — London, England, 1864-04-11 00:00:00

General Garibaldi, Oa Saturday the Chamberlain of the City of London (Mr. Scott) proceeded to the Isle of Wight to inform General Garibaldi that the Court of Common Council had passed a resolution conferring upon him the honorary freedom of the city, and to learn from him the day which wool be most convenient to him to appear at Guildhall to receive the compliment. The result of the interview has not yet tran spired, but as impression obtains among the civic authori ties that the ceremony will take place towards the end of the present week—it may be on Thursday. The presentation would beyond doubt have taken place in the Guildhall itself, as being by far the most appropriate for the occasion, in consideration of the large number of people it is capable of accommodating in comparison with the Council Chamber ;but at present the hall is undergoing - _ a thorough repair, and its whole interior is occupied with scaffolding, so that it cannot be used for the purpose. The Council Chamber will not hold more than about 350 or 400 People at the utmost, and, as there are upwards of 200 Cora 3nou Councilmen, all of whom are sure to be present, and each will probably bring a lady on the occasion, it is 6ear that but few or none of the general public can be present at the ceremony. Ordinarily, the Common Council so far xecognises the privilege of strangers to be present at their deliberations as to provide for their accommodation in a gallery at one end of the chamber, but it only holds about 49 or 50 people. That being so, the necessities of the case point to the Egyptian-hall of the Mansion-house as the proper place for holding the ceremony, next to Guildhall itself, both because it is capable of holding about 1,000 people, and of its being easier of access than Gaildhall on an occasion of a public pageant, and when crowds of people will probably throng the streets through which the procession will pass. It rests, however, with the Lord Mayor to say whether he will, under the ercumstancss, allow that part of his official residence to be reed for the ceremony. On the occasion when M. Kossuth walt to Guildhall to receive the freedom so dense was the crowd which had collected in the open space in front of the entrance to the building that it was only with the greatest difficulty, a:td at some risk to life and limb, that a passage could be made ;:tito the hall for the distinguished visitor and his suite. Assuming the use of the Egyptian-hall to be granted, the narrow gone of the Poultry —a place always of great peril to a crowd—would have to be traversed by the pageant before it could reach the Mansion-house, and there aright also be a repetition of the tumultuous gathering in front of the official residence of the Lord Mayor, from which so much danger was apprehended on the entry into London of the Princess Alexandra, unless, indeed, Colonel Fraser, the City Commissioner of Police, could make arrangements for lessening the pressure. Her Majesty's paddle steamer Fire Queen, Staff Com mander Paul, the steam yacht of the Naval Commander-in- Chief at Portsmouth, Vice-Admiral Sir Michael Seymour, js.c.B., was despatched from the harbour early on Saturday morning to Cowes, in charge of Captain Scott, Aide-de- Camp to the Queen, and Flag Captain to Sir Michael Sey mour, in order to convey General Garibaldi, his sons, and suite across to Portsmouth on a visit to the dockyard and shipping . . The Fire Queen returned to Portsmouth from Cowes at 10 45 a.m., and the General, accompanied by his sons, Mr. Seeley, M,P. (of Brook-house, Isle of Wight), Colonel Chambers, and other gentlemen, disembarked from the Fire Queen in the Admiral's barge, which was in wait ing for the purpose, under charge of Flag-Lieutenant Sey • mour, and landed at the King's-stairs of the dockyard, -where he was received in a semi-official, but most cordial, manner by Vice-Admiral Sir Michael Seymour and Major General Lord W. Paulet, C. 8., attended by Captain Cald well, commanding the steam reserve and acting second in command, in the abssnce of Rear-Admiral Superintendent G. Elliott; Captain Key, C. 8., her Majesty's ship Excel lent ; Captain J. Seccombe, her Majesty's ship Duke of Wellington ; Captain St. Johrf Paulet, aide de camp to Major-General Lord Paulet; and other officers, military and naval, and a large number of ladies and gentlemen. As Garibaldi and his friends stepped on shore there was no difficulty of reoognition, for, independent of the well-known noble features, while all in his suite wore plain morning dress, the hero himself geed among the group conspicuous in his famous red shirt and white capoot, and at once became the observed of all observers. Returning the kindly salu tations of Lord Paulet and Sir Michael Seymour, and also that of the other officers and the crowd of ladies and gen tlemen at the landing place, Garibaldi, accompanied by the admiral and general, with their staffs, moved forward through the crowd with a quiet dignity that for a few moments chained the tongues of all present. It was only far a very few moments, however, that this respectful, but almost oppressive silence lasted. A half quavering exclama tion from some of the ladies present was caught up by the gentlemen, and, communicating like an electric shock to the crowds of mechanics and others employed in the yard, who had now collected in large numbers round the place of de barcation, hearty, ringing cheers told again and again of the welcome accorded to the hero of Italy. As the visit could but be, under the circumstances, a very short one, it was only the chief objects of interest that could be hurriedly ikispected, and the steps of the party were at once directed, under Admiral Seymour's guidance, to the Royal Sovereign turret ship, lying alongside the dockyard jetty and within some 50ft, of the Victoria three-decker, fitting out as flag ship for the Mediterranean, the first a mere long, low raft upon the water, carrying cylindrical turrets, pilot-house, and smoke-tunnel along its naked deck—a thing of ugliness to the eye under ordinary circumstances, but no doubt of marvellous beauty for purposes of war ; the second the very beau ideal of a three-decked screw steamship, towering in all its magnificent beauty, but remarkably suitable far pur poses of cmtlaistion, or as the grave for a thousand seamen under the influence of an enemy's shells. In crossing the caisson of No. 1 dock, on his way to the Royal Sovereign, General Garibaldi exhibited considerable interest on having laer Majesty's yachts, the Fairy and Rfin, then lying in dock under repair, pointed out to him. Like all other ves sels under repair in dock, there was nothing very interest ing in their appearance ; but it was the fact that they were and had been for so long a time the favourite yachts of the Queen of England that evidently excited the General's at tention. The Royal Sovereign attracted a good deal of attention from the General and his friends by the novelty of her turret arrangements and general equipment, and Garibaldi himself exhibited great interest in the endeavour to make himself conversant with everything brought under his.notice, and especially with the method of revolving the turrets and of working the large guns, with which they will be armed, the latter being shown with the 10.5-inch, or 150-pounder smooth-bore gun, mounted in the foremos turret. From the Royal Sovereign the party proceeded to Ihe block manufactory, where the beautFul machinery de !lamed and erected by Mr. Brunel many years ago may still be seen at work, and still astonishes every one by the marvellous beauty and rapidity of its work. A cursory view was next taken of the smithery and steam factory, the steam basin and docks, and of her .lajesty's paddle yacht Victoria and Albert, uedergoing re pairs in the basin. The general and suite, with Admiral Seymour and Lord W. Paulet and suites, next emb irked on beard the gunnery ship Excellent, Captain A. C. Key, C. 8., where the crew were beat to quarters in the ordinary manner, and a broadside of shot fired at a target at 1,000 yards distance, and the target knocked over, and then a broadside of shell at 1,250 yards, with, of course, the same result to the target,. The Armstrong 110-pounder rifled breech -loading gun was then brought into play, and fired independently at a target at 2,600 yards distance with shot, -with equally satisfactory results. The 12-ton smoothbore gun, one of the guns intended for the Royal Sovereign, was nest manned with a crew of 21 men, and was handled with wonderful steadiness and ease, considering its great weight, and excellent practice was made with it. The average time between the firing of each round was only two minutes. The firing concluded with practice from the 7-inch Arm strong shunt gun, which has been termed on several occa sions " Admiral Frederick's gun," but with no other reason -than that the gallant Admiral has taken a great interest in this particular gun, believing it to be well suited for naval purposes, and has suggested certain improvements in its equipment, which have been carried into effect. Shot weighing 981 b were thrown from it with 201 b powder at a target at 2,600 yards distance, and the practice was beau tiful. General Garibaldi had displayed the keenest interest and admiration of the drill and practice made with the guns throughout, and his enthusiasm, expressed more than once in the warmest terms, reached its culminating point on wit teeming the practice made with the last mentioned weapon. The General, having expressed his thanks to Captain Key and the officers of the ship, prepared to return to the shore, — ars matter of no small difficult y, for the Excellent had by ties time been boarded by enthusiastic hundreds in boats from the shore, who were determined that, come what might 132 it, they would shake hands with, speak to, or shout for the man they had come to see. The Admirers barge was at length reached by Garibaldi, his sons, and f • nends, and the officers accompanying them and - who had received them on landing, and, proceeding to the ydmiralty-bons©, the whole party were entertained at lun cheon by Sir Michael Seymour. After luncheon Garibaldi re-embarked on board the Admiral's bargo and proceeded to Southsea new pier, Where he landed, and entering Sir Nichael Seymour's carriage, which had been sent round for the purpose, was driven off to visit the widow of an old friend with whom he was on ,terms of intimate friendship in Portsmouth some years s ince—Mr.:Thomas White, of the patent slipway, who was accidentally killed a few p l c nths since while superintending the execution of some pub: is works under contract with the Portuguese Govern ment. Thi s tribute of private friendship pa id , G ar ib a ldi, his sane, and his friends re-embarked on board the Fire Queen, at fou r p.m., a nd left for Cowes an d Brook-house. It we be many years before Garibaldi's visit of Satur dip will fle forgotten at Portsmouth. We and erstand that General Garibaldi, accompanied by his sons and a very limited suite, will arrive at Stafford house, St. James s, between half-past three and four o'clock to. day, and during his sejour in the metropolis he will be the guest 01 the Duke and Duchess of Sutherland. lW e are informed that the General will stay a week at Stafford house. To-morrow the General will go with the Duke and Duchess of Sutherland and a select company to lunch with the Duchess (Dowager) of Sutherland at Chiswick. The Duke and Duchess of Sutherland give a grand an t( rtairament on Wednesday evening at Stafford• house.llA illiant evening assembly will follow the banquet. Via col vat and Viscountess Palmerston, the Earl and Countess of Derby, Earl Granville, the Earl and Countess of Cla rendon, the Duko and Duchess of Argyll, the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Mrs. Gladstone, and above 40 per sonages of the highest rank, without distinctiou c f party, are invited to meet tho gallant General. Naval and Military Intelligence, THE NAVY. The Star Department transports Bcmarstmd and Petrol sailed from the Ordnance wharf, Chatham, on Saturday, for Folly Point, with the remainder of the shot and shell and the lower deck guns for the line of battle screw steamer Bombay, 400 horse power, Capt. C. J. Campbell, now being prepared for sea. In addition to her 32 pounder and other maindeck guns, the Bombay, on Saturday, shipped 11 of the 10 inch 95cwt guns, for throwing hollow shot, and 12 of the 68 pounder naval smoothbore guns, together with two 110 pounder and eight of the 40 pounder rifled Arm strong guns. She also received on board 60 tons of 10 inch hollow shot, and 8 inch and 32 pounder solid shot from the Gun-wharf. On Saturday the first portion of the iron-clad frigate Bellerophon was laid in No, 2 dock at Chatham dockyard, under the superintendence of the officials connected with the master shipwright's department. Nothwithstanding the delay experienced in laying the keel of the Bellerophon, consequent on the dock not having been ready earlier and the new iron caisson at the entrance not fixed in its place until a few days,since the preparation of the keel plates and the iron frames for the frigate has been in progress at Chatham dockyard for some months past, and, with the exeeption of fitting, a considerable portion of the keel of the iron frigate may be said to be completed. In the construc tion of the Bellerophon an entirely new system, introduced by Mr Stansfeld, is to be carried out, whereby the exact cost of every portion of the vessel will be ascertained, sepa rating the actual cost of materials from the amount paid fer labour and workmanship. In order to ascertain the value of the materials used every single piece of iron re quired for the ship is ordered to be weighed before it is sent down into the dock, and an accurate account kept of its weight and cost. To facilitate this operation, which unless properly managed will entail considerable loss of time, us it already throws an additional amount of responsibility bn the junior officers employed in superintending the construction of the frigate, two enormous steelyards have been erected on each side of the dock, and these, being worked by steam power, will enable every single piece of iron, from the smallest keel-plate up to B.ton armour plates, to be expeditiously and accurately weighed. A number of additional mechanics will be placed on the Bellerophon this morming, but the bulk of the workmen who will ultimately be employed in building that frigate are detained on board the iron frigate Achilles completing that vessel for sea. ' The Nile, screw line-of-battle ship, Captain Barnard, the late flagship of Vice-Admiral Sir Alexander Milne, K,C.8,, sailed from Spithead en Saturday afternoon for Devonport, where she is ordered to be dismantled and paid out of com mission. Sir Alexander Milne's flag was hauled down at sunset on the previous day. The following appointments were made on Saturday at the Admiralty :---Rear-Admiral the Hon. Charles G. J. B. Elliot, C. 8., to be commander in chief on the south-east coast of America, vice Rear Admiral Warren, whose period of service has experied ; Lieut. Henry Land, to the Hima laya; Sub-Lieut. Edward F. Keppel, to the Bombay, Augustus Brecklebank and W. M. C. Maturin, nominated to naval cadetships. THE ARMY. Orders have been received at the camp at Colchester directing the following detachments to proceed from that station to the Hythe School of Musketry on Thursday : One sergeant, one corporal, and four privates of the 4th Depot Battalion; one sergeant, one corporal, and four pri vates of the 9th Depot Battalion ; and two sergeants, two corporals, and four privates of the 10th Depot Battalion. Testimonials have been presented at the camp to Quarter master Sergeant Delany and Colour-Sergeant Lloyd, on their retirement from the service, Quartermaster-Sergeant Delany has been appointed to the charge of the industrial school school at Walthamstow. RUSSIAN ARMOUR-PLATES. On Saturday afternoon the first of a series of enormous iron bars, ordered to be rolled by the Millwall Iron Company for the Russian Govern ment for the construction of a powerful iron fort at Cronstadt, was rolled most successfully in the pre sence of a large number of visitors. It is now some years since efforts have been made to induce our own and various Governments to sanction the adop tion of iron instead of granite in important land forts; but it is only recently, and since the con struction of the ironclads have proved the value of the system, that the proposal has been entertained. Armour-plates of immense thickness are now being made at Messrs. Brown and Co.'s Works at Sheffield for the Belgian Government, to be used in the construction of some additional iron defences at Ant werp. France, it is said, intends similar works on all the more important points of Cherbourg's sea defences, and now Russia has ordered the materials for an iron fort at Cronstadt. The enor mous advantages which iron possesses over stone, not alone in its utter impregnability, but in allowing the guns the widest range while limiting the open ing of the embrasure to little more than the width of the muzzle of the ordnance, has long been seen, and the general adoption of iron for land defences has only been checked by the difficulties of manu facturing sueh enormous masses sound throughout. But, with the experience gained in the manufacture of our armour-plates, the great foundries through out the kingdom are improving every day, and con tracts are now eagerly sought for which, four years ago, every firm would have refused, as requiting manufacturing impossibilities. The bars rolled at these works on Saturday, however, were in advance again upon what has been hitherto done, and the result was looked forward to with some doubt, for each bar when delivered was to weigh six tons, to be 15 inches square, to be tongued and grooved in the roiling, and to be perfect in its soundness throughout. The furnaces were opened at 3 o'clock and the immense mass of metal was drawn forth on to an iron truck, heated to a brilliancy that was almost binding in: ; its intense whiteness, and in stantly changing the temperature of the vast fac tory to a scorching sulphurous heat that was insup portable. Directly it was out, workmen, shielding their faces as they best could, swept :,he impurities from its surface with long brooms soaked in water, but which eevertheless lit like tow the instant they came in contact with the iron, which was sparkling like a gigantic firework. It was then let down the incline to where the rollers, turned by one of the largest fly-wheels in the kingdom—mere than 100 tons weight, and nearly 401 t. in diameter—we s waiting to crush the mass into its required form. This was the critical moment; for au instant or two the rollers failed to grip it, but at last they caught it, and the whole machinery moved slower, as amid loud cheers frem the workmen they began ,o wind it in. As it was slowly crushed through, the refuse melted iron was squirted out in showers in all directions, and as the mass emerged from the rollers on the other side it lit up everything with a bright, lambent flame, said to be caused by the pres sure to which the bar was subjected. This was only the first roll, but it had to be passed through three times to reduce it to its proper thickness. It was toot, however, as in the case of ordinary armour plates, a mere question of reduction, as these bars have to be rolled, tongued, and grooved to fit into each other. Thus in the rolling they have to over come all the peculiar difficulties of their construction almost in two operations, which must be done while is in a half melted state, or the whole is spoilt. The bars, as we have said, are 15 inches square, but each of these presents a most difficult section. In the fi r st place the lower part of the bar has a projecting rib, and in the upper part is a groove, corruspond ing in size with the rib on the lower half, so that the projection of one bar may fit into the groove of the one beneath, thus making a solid dove-tailed wall of iron. Beyond these, also, is a rid at the back of the bar, formed to dovetail again into projecting masses of iron in the rear supports of the fort, and in the process of rolling all these departures from a plane and smooth suthca have to be formed, and to be formed with so much accuracy that each part fits into the other without the necessity cf any machine Planing of surfaces. To give to the mass of metal the required section the rollers of the mill are grooved where the raised surface is required, and sunk to produce the projecting ribs. It took three rolls on Saturday before all was finished, and at the completion of each the workmen, who seemed in tensely interested in the success of the experiment, cheered 'loudly. The last operation was effected by lifting the bar into a bed, so to speak, made be tween two masses of iron, and then passing over it an enormous iron roller, which removed the curved form the bar had received in passing between the rollers. Now that the success of the first bar has been achieved, the rolling of the others will go on every day until the whole order is completed. When the fort is erected in Russia it is intended to test its powers of resistance with a gun throwing a shot of a thousand pounds weight, which is in a short time to be cast in Prussia for the Imperial Govern ment. In the calibre of its ordnance Russia seems making a great effort to keep ahead of the rest of Europe, and is most liberal in its orders for the largest guns in any country which will undertake to manufacture for it. But in the calibre of its ordnanc3 Europe is now as it ever has been far be hind America. At Pittsburg, in Pennsylvania, a 50.t0n gun has just been successfully cast for the United States' Government. This monster piece of ordnance, which is stated to be perfect in its cast ing, is to throw a solid 20 inch shot weighing 1;600ib. After the rolling of the bars on Saturday the visi tors were conducted over the whole of the extensive smithries, machine shops, and shipbuilding depart ments of the company's works. The Northumberland, iron-clad frigate, the fine model of which formed so prominent a feature in the late Exhibition, attracted considerable attention, and especially her enormous sternpost —one forging of more than 60 tons weight. An ironclad cupola ram, in course of construction for the Italian Government, was noticed on account of the intense ugliness of its outline and the for midable offensive qualities of. its projecting beak. The immense iron c(,lumns for the new Blackfriars bridge, and the cylinders used by the engineers of the London, Chatham, and Dover Railway in build ing up the piers of the bridge, were also shown to the visitors. Some of the iron plates rolled at the Millwall Works, classed A 1, and which have been fired at in some of the experiments, showed, by the deep indentations on their surface, how perfect had been their manufacture and how great their powers of resistance. Mr, Glaisher's Eighteenth Balloon Ascent from Woolwich Arsenal, April 6. TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUIT. Sir,—The balloon left the earth at 4h. 7m. p.m, ; in three minutes it was I,oooft. high, and moved very evenly upward, at the rate of I,oooft. in three or four minutes, to the height of 11,000 ft. at 4h. 38m.; it descended at the rate of 500 ft. per minute) till we were within 1,500 ft. of the earth at 4h. 59m. ; we then descended very slowly, were I,oooft. high at 51. 4m., and reached the ground at sh. 18m; We were accompanied by our friend Mr. F. Norris, who has been up with us on several occasions. During the whole day the sky was overcast, and the wind was from the S.E. ; on leaving we at once crossed over the river to Essex; at the height of 500 ft. the air was very misty, and the view very limited, but Woolwich Dockyard, the town of Woolwich, the river under us, the numerous ship- ping, with so many upturned faces from their decks, formed a very pleasing and interesting sight. The mist increased in density as we rose. When at 2,500 ft. we entered a dense white cloud, and shortly afterwards lost sight of the earth; at 3,500 ft. there was a very thin fine rain ; at 4,000 ft. the clouds were less in density, and there was a great increase of light ; at 4,boOft. we saw the sun faintly, but there was more cloud above; at 5,000 ft. the sun cast a faint shadow, but we were still in cloud, which decreased :.in density as the balloon rose. When at B,looft. high we felt the wind press against us with a sensible pressure, and interred that there was another change of the wind, but we had no means whatever of determining the direction from which it came; the mist again increased till the height of 9,000 ft. was reached ; we here heard a train and supposed we were over the Chelms , ford lino of railway. At the height of 9,500 ft. the sun shone very brightly, and it was quite warm ; at 10,000 ft. we were entirely out of cloud, and there was a sea of white cloud dazzling in its brightness, extending without a break or irre gularity in its surface as far as we could see all round—that is, for more than 100 miles on all sides. Near to us on the cloud, on the side opposite to the sun, was a bright oval halo of immense extent, in the centre of which was situated the shadow of the balloon and car, but without prismatic colours ; this all appeared to revolve with us, for it was constant, and we knew we were turning round by the su❑ now shining at our backs and then in our faces ; at the greatest elevation (11,000 ft.) there was perfect repose, the sky was without a cloud, and of a beau tiful deep blue. We were, however, quite baffled in our attempts to determine our direction, as we could not see any inclination in the grapnel line. Mr. Coxwell had been watching the weather all day, and once during a break in the lower clouds he had sent up a pilot balloon, which had moved to wards the east when at a high elevation, and, con necting this with the current we had met with, he had begun to fear that the railway we had beard might b 3 the Southend railway, end, if so, we were drifting out to sea. He therefore determined to take a dip downwards without delay, before attempt• ing a higher elevation, so that if we found ourselves over water we might have gas enough to keep up for some time. We began the dip downwards, the sky continued of a deep blue, the air free from-mist, and the sue hot, till we approached the height of 7,000fc. and at 6,000 ft. we lost sight of the sun, and were in a dense white cloud at 5,500 ft. high ; when at 3,000 ft. fine rain fell and we caught sight of the earth at the height of 2,500 ft. ; we expected to find ourselves over Essex, but hills and a beautiful tine dulating country presented themselves, and it was evident we were at fault. _ _ • Mr. Coxwell then decided upon anchor:tag, and we did so on the outskirts of a pine plantation, near Sevenoaks, in Kent, on the estate of the Marquis Camden, and we found the direction of the wind here S.E., the same direction as at starting. The temperature of the air was 46 deg. on leaving, at the height of I,oooft it was 411 deg., at 1,500 ft it wis 40 deg., at 2,000tt, 37 deg.; at 3,000 ft it was 34 dek; from 3,500 ft to 4,000 ft there was no var:a tion from 33 deg.; this was the lowest temperature met with; at 5,000 ft the temperature increased to 36 deg., and did not change for 500 ft, then decreased to 34 deg. at 6,500 ft, at which point it turned to increase, and was 40 deg. at B,oooft ; it decreased to 34 deg. again at the height of 9,000 ft ; it then increased, on leaving the cloud below, to 36 deg. at 11,000 ft, and rapidly to 46 deg. while between 10,000 ft and 11,000 ft high. The highest tempera ture observed was at 8,600 ft, on descending, when it was 47 deg.; from this point the temperature de clined, on descending, to 40 deg., at 1,500 ft high, being nearly the same as on ascending, and to 46 deg. on the ground. The temperature of the dew point, or that tem. , perature at which water, in the invisible shape of vapour, is deposited as water on substances of that temperature, was 7 deg. below that of the air on leaving the earth, and this difference was the same up to 2,000 ft. It then decreased to 1 deg. on enter ing the cloud, and was from 1 deg. to 3 deg. while in the dense cloud. On leaving it at B,ooolt this difference suddenly increased to 10 deg., and varied from 14 deg. to 24 deg. between the heights of 8,000 and 11,000 feet, and decreased on again en tering the cloud to 5 deg. and 6 deg. There were 21 grains of water in a cubic foot of air near the ground, about two grains in the cloud, and about one grain only above the cloud. The humidity of the air, therefore, increased from the earth to the centre of the cloud, where it was all but saturated, and decreased rapidly above the cloud, where it was very dry. No ozone was detected by Schonbein, MofLt, or Lowe's papers during the whole time the balloon was in the air. The lines in the solar spectrum were very nume rous and well defined. The spectrum itself was very long. The goat was very uneasy, and continued bleating till we passed through the cloud and into a warmer atmospheae, when it was quiet and happy. This ascent was i nten d e d t o h ave reac t e d to five miles high, but in ascending from London or Wool wich, MI. Coxwell's tactics are put to the severest tests, especially if the sky be overcast as it was on this day, althou g h th e v i s ib le mass o f vapour fl o ated away in a north-westerly direction ; yet some indi cation during the day led Mr. Coxwell to conclude that there was an upper westerly current, and it was this induced him to descend. It is impossible to say how far we went into Essex, where we re-crossed the Thames, or how far we penetrated into Sussex, or if we reached Sussex at all; but it is certain that THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, APRIL 11, 1864, when we were first seen below the clouds we were coming as from Hastings. Had we mounted five miles high withant the pre• cautionary dip we might, and probably would, have found ourstAves over the middle of the Channel without the power of re-ascending or keeping the balloon from the water. In case this had happened we had prepared ourselves with Stewart's life belts, admitting of quick inflation and admirably adapted for their purpose. Mr. Caswell, on learning the place of descent, did not consider under the circum stances that it was prudent to re-ascend, and he resolved to empty the balloon at Sevenoaks. The results of this ascent aro remarkable. They establish the prevalence of totally opposite currents of air within two miles of the earth, as also tempe ratures of the air actually warmer than on the earth at heights exceeding B,oooft, where usually the temperature is from 30 deg. to 40 deg. lower than on the earth, constituting the results of this ascent as differing from all others, and as one by no means unimportant in the series. Lae exact place of descent was Wilderness-park, on the property of Marquis Camden, who was pre sent, and to whom our best thanks are due for kind assistance: The descent was so gentle that not an instrument was injured. JAMES GLAISIIER. Blackheath, April 10. Great Robbery of Gold Bars—£3ooo Reward -_-~_. On Saturday all the metropolitan bankers, bullion dealers, and money changers, were served with a printed notice by the City detective force, at the instance of the Salvage Association, Lloyd's, offering £3,000 reward for such information as may lead to the recovery of 63 bars and 11 boxes of gold, valued at £so,o:fi, stolen from the treasure in the sunken steamer Golden Gate, off Manza nillo, near San Francisco. The bills contain an accurate description of the bars and boxes, with the mark and num ber of each bar, the name of the assayer, weight, and value. Twenty-five were assayed by Messrs. Hewston and Co., 16 by Messrs. S. Molitor and Co., 8 by G. W. Bell, 5 by Messrs. H. Harris and Co., and the remainder by Messrs. B. C. Gevasey, Greenwood and Newbain, Rodens and Ruhling. There is also one bag of foreign coin missing, and several express parcels containing bullion. The Golden Gate was an American steamer, and was wrecked in July, 1862, when a great loss of life took place. The total amount of gold and specie on board was about £450,000, consigned to several firms in New York, London, and Paris. and the whole of it was insured. The underwriters, on hearing of the wreck, dispatched a special agent to the scene of the wreck to recover, if possible, the treasure. After conside rable exertions a large amount of the gold was discovered, but owing to the dangerous character of the currents and climate a great many lives were lost in the enterprise. Several expeditions went to the wreck ; some failed, and others were unsuccessful, and the gold in question was re covered by one party, who immediately decamped with the valuable store. It is stated, however, that one of the gang has been arrested. The gold when shipped on board the Golden Gate was packed in boxes, and marked thus :—F. A. S., No. 454; Lazard Freres, No. 217; B. D., No. 12; H. L. and Co., Paris, No. 141; J. A., No. 28; B. and Co., Paris, No. 4; A. G., No. 1, It is believed that much of the gold has already arrived in London, and that some con signments are expected, Several Fires and Great Loss of Property, On Saturday and yesterday several fires took place in different parte, some being as far as six or seven miles from the others. One fire happened at 2 in the morning in the premises of Mr G. H. Attwood, wholesale clothier, 27, Turnpike-road, High-street, Stratford. The family and servants had re tired to rest, when a constabla noticed a flame in the front shop, He alarmed the inmates and sent off for the escape and fire engines, several of which quickly attended. The flames, however, soon fired the whole of the building, containing about a dozen rooms, and filled with a costly stock in trade, and were attacking No. 28, belonging to Mrs Wayland, a milliner, and No 20, belonging to M H. L. Wayland (private), when plenty of the East London Company's water having been procured the firemen went resolutely to work, but the fire could not be extinguished until the building and the two adjoining were seriously da maged by it, The loss will fall upon the Sun and Ulobe Fire offices. Another fire occurred on the premises occupied by Alt. J. Shean, a marine store dealer, 51, Great Alie-street, Good man's-fields. The alarm having been given by the police, Conductor Wood attended with the Whitechapel Royal Society's fire escape, and found an aged female, of 78 years, on the landing, whom he succeeded in bringing down in safety. The steamers by Shand and Mason attended, and a bountiful supply of the East London Company's water procured, but in spite of which a building of two floors, used as stores, at the rear of the dwelling, was burnt out and the roof destroyed. A fire, which at one time threatened vary disastrous re sults, broke out from some unknown cause in the premises belonging to Mr. J. Hatton, a cornchandler and seedsman, situate at 26, Little Portland-street. The flames when first discovered were raging in the provender lofts over the stabling, Brigade and other engines attended, and the fire men., aided by 60 hired auxiliaries, managed to get the mas tery over the fire, but not until several loads of hay and straw were destroyed, and the building seriously burned. A SHIP ON FIRE AT BLACKWALL.—About a quarter before one o'clock a.m. on Saturday, a telegraphic message was received at the chief station in Watling. street, tat a ship was burning in Messrs. Wig ram's Yard, at Blackwall. Capt. Shaw gave orders for the engines to be despatched from sundry stations, and also started himself, as did the Duke of Sutherland, Lord Richard Grosvenor, M.P., the Hon. Stuart Wortley, Hon. Captain Howard, and a powerful body of firemen, as well as the land steamers by Shand, Mason, and Co. Upon reaching Blackwall, Capt. Shaw found that the outbreak had com menced in the large ship under repair named the Princess of Wales, Capt. Head, of the Hudson's Bay Company, of 590 tons register, which was burning furiously between the nfidships, This large vessel was lying in Messrs. Wigram's dry dock, and a fire raging amongst such valuable property and in such a confined place caused great excitement to prevail, and the floating engines of the East and West India Dock Companies were brought alongside the ship, as well as one of the private engines belonging to the firm. These ware followed by numerous other engines. The whole of this force was called into operation, and floods of water discharge] upon the flames, but being con fined below the hatchways it was a work of no little diffi culty for tue firemen to reach the seat of the conflagration, and it was found absolutely necessary to scuttle the ship Large portions of the ship are destroyed, and she is officially reported as being severely damaged by fire and the attempt at scuttling. The origin of the misfortune could not be learned. - STEAMSHIP COLLISION AND LOSS OF LIFE.—On Siturday the particulars were received of a collision which took place in the East Swin between the Florence Nightingale and the Admiral, iron screw steamers, resultin g in the immediate foundering of the former and loss of two of her crew. The Admiral was on her way to Newcastle, from London, with passengers ; and the Florence Nightim. gale, a new and powerful steam collier, was on her way from Sunderland to the Thames, freighted with 600 tons of coals. Between twelve and one o'c lock in the mornin g of the 7th, weather fine, the vessels were p roceedin g in opposite directions through the E ast Swin, between the Gunfleet and Sunk Sand light ship, when the Admiral struck the Florence Nightingale just abaft the main rigging on the port side, with such force as to cut her down to the cabin-house on deck. The ship immediately began to sink, and in less than six minutes went down in deep water. Most of the hands succeeded in getting on board the Ad miral. The scream s of t h os e on board could be heard as the vessel we n t down. The Adm iral's boat p icked u p one poor fellow, but two others Pe rished. The Admiral sus- borrowers of o w f h s o ew ha in v g e 3 b ir e a e c n ni i n n e t s h w e weekly as i i h ll a d b o it w o e f il pa t y o i a n p g ply at once tained serious damage. a m n a d on b ine ecom cl e ub m s e . m 3 be y rs s :f I they will not only save the mach i ne s in the world.mem rsE v ar er e y einn 'dolVlZrs. Watts and Co.'s Sewing , 10 and k, m m o o n st ey ee t l h e e b y ra n t o e w a fsoeowliisnligly throw away, but at the same time secure to themselves the possession of one of the best and f b o u r i m m a i t n i g o s n , given on aLpopnidicoanti,olnv;.co.r, by letter addressed, with a stamped envelope, to 3lessrs• Watts and Co., 12, Beaufort in every stage, are only ag gravated vEnT Eu NI. —C n ura P " nervous, bilious, soiled [r. dailyibsetwEeen.3lo anods4 ; Saturdays, ay al s l liver, and stemach complainta, s thousandshealth roe; casestor ing which /Ad and accelerated by drugs of every description, but perfectly curable by Du Barry' Arabica Food, as proved byßevalenta llama considered hopeless. We quote a few.—Cure No. 62,914. Miss Lange, 18 years of age, cured after the medical men had abandoned all hopes of her recovery from the last stage of pulmonary consumption. w io fearful cough, expectoration, exhaustion, spitting of blood, Perspiratioza, hollow cheeks, emaciated to a skeleton. She is now, thank God, a perkolly healthy, blooming, fleshy gdrl.—N• Lange, Commissaire de Mine. Cure, No. 48,270. .51r. James Roberts, of Frim ley Surrey, of thirty years' diseased lungs, spitting of blood, liver derangement, and partial deafpess•—Cure, No. 47,121. Miss Elizabeth Jacobs, of extreme nervousness, indigestion, gatherings, low spirits, and nervous fancies.—Cure, No. 51,816. The Rev. James 'l'. Cam>bell, Fakenham, Norfolk, of indigestion and torpidity of the liver, which had resisted all raedlcal reatment. In tins, 11b, 2s 9d; 21b, 4s 6d; Sib, lie; 121 b, 222; 241 b, 40s. Barry du Barry and Cu., No. 77,, Regent-street, London ; also Fortnum and Mason; and all grocers and chemists in every tQW4 9i 1110 trklited Kingdom. [ADVERTISEMENT.] ..-. Holloway's Pills.--Thess cele brated pills are especially useful in preventing the ill effects of luxurious living. They purify the blood, cleanse the stomach, gently stimulate the kidneys, and act as mild aperients. Without some such corrective as Holloway's pills the festivity of one day often debars us from all enjoy ment for a week, A f e w doses of this purifying medicine set the foulest stomach right, restrain biliousness, steady the circulation, give strength to the muscles, and compo sure to the brain and nerves. The pills 'are incapable of doing mischief to the most delicate constitution. When the system has been enervated by over indulgence, or ex hausted by mercurial preparations, these pills are excellent restoratives; they expel all poison, acid enrich the blood. - SPIRIT OP THE PUBLIC jOITRNALS, THE SATURDAY REVIEW ON THE SHAKSFERE TERCENTENARY DEMONSTRATION.—Tee late of the Shakspere Memorial is the lest and drollest effort of the spirits of malicious fun. Why should this whole affair have corn?, in every particular, chap ter and veree, to such condign and total grief? There is nothing at all absurd in the notion of get ting up a National Shakspere Monument. On the contrary, it is a thing to be done. Even a Shakspere Festival has its precedent—a sufficiently absurd one, it is true—in Garrick's Stratford Jubilee. A Tercentenary glorification has been tried so often that we almost condone its absurdity from the fact that it is only a stupid plagiarism. In itself, even the formation of the London Shakspere Committee was not absolutely ridiculous. Mr. Dixon has won a name in literature. Mr. Halliwell, the co-secretary, though not without his fopperies, is a man of great, if queer, reading. In the antecedents of even the London Committee there was nothing on which to anticipate its ridiculous break-down. We are not going to repeat its history. It has disappeared, vanished, exhaled. Like Aubrey's ghost, " being interrogated, it made no answer," but, un like brey's ghost, it has left neither " a curious perfume, nor a melodious twang." The London Committee collapsed in a wrangle, a fiasco, a break-down, so thorough, so in geniously comical, so total, and so absurd, that we can only account for its ignominious death on the same theory under which we subscribe to the Stock well mystery. Tho Devil, or at least an imp, was in it. A superhuman, or infrahuman, agency is necessary to account for a catastrophe so mis chievously nonsensical and ridiculous. The London Shakspere Memorial, however, did not stand done. There was a Stratford Memorial Committee, and something at least of the public confidence which was alienated by the sayings and doings of Messrs. Dixon and Halliwell gravitated to Stratford. At Stratford there has always been a semi-religious fanaticism about Shakspere, and nobody very seri ously objected to an extravagant outbreak of it. Besides, there was every reason to believe that the malignant influence at work had been exercised by the completeness of the London failure. No Puck could be frolicsome or tricksy enough to lead his victims, if he could find them, a second witches' dance through bog and briar. Besides, the respec tables and the dignified mustered in strength and dulness round the Stratford Committee. However, it very soon became at least a suspicion that " the strange doings" were about to be repeated. It was like the old ghost story which relates how a family fled from a haunted house, and how, half way to the new residence, a gibing voice, in mocking tones from the midst of a feather-bed, shrieked out, " Ha' you're flitting are you; I'm flitting too." Puck has certainly gone down to Stratford. He will not leave the Shakepere Memorial while there is breath in it. What but the old inspirer of Messrs. Dixon and Halliwell could have dictated the Strat ford programme ? What mundane wit could have suggested a Banquet and Handel's " Messiah," a Miscellaneous Concert and " Twelfth Night," " Hamlet" and a Fancy Dress Ball, together with such a gallimaufry as Shakspearian Readings (of course by Mr. Bellew), excursions, and exhibitions of actors' portraits, and could call all this a Na tional Shakspere Festival? The witch cauldron in "Macbeth" and its weird cooks must have been at work at this strange bill of fare. " Twelfth Night" and the " Messiah"—that is, " Comfort ye my people," and Sir Toby Belch—bat the absurdity so closely trenches on the profane that we decline to pursue the nauseous parallel. This only we must, in the interest of decency, observe, that if the " Hallelujah Chorus" can by any stretch of imagi nation be deemed suitable to a bhakspere Festival, then a fancy dress bell, with its Debardeurs and Pierrots, is very much oat of artistic and dramatic keeping. But this is not all. The same ludicrous fatality attends everything connected with this outbreak of the Lues Shaksperiana. It infects all who are connected with it. There is an Executive Committee to whom the monument is entrusted. Of the monument we have always had but one opinion. It is a very proper thing ; and the choice of the memorial was entrusted to men in whom, or in many of whom, artists might place great confidence. We can say nothing as to the knowledge of art possessed by the Duke of Manchester, but Mr. W. Cowper's official position justified his place on the Committee. Sir e e eeph Pexton once stumbled into a single great success jn design. Mr. Tite and Mr. Donaldson, as Presidents of the Institution of British Architects, justify the choice made of teem, Mr. Beresford Hope and Mr. elaclise represent very creditably art in its amateur and in its practical form. Yet what but the envious instigation of the ancient and unappeaseable spirit of mischief could have induced these gentlemen to clog their proposal for the monument with the outrageously absurd provision, to use their own wonderful language, that " the monument should embrace a bronze statue, placed under a decorative canopy, in the style of the poet's period ?" What on earth do they mean by a moon. ment embracing a bronze statue ? and what is the style of the poet's period ? If they or their trea cherous prompter mean architectural art as prat:- tissd in Shakepere's lifetime, do they mean the de caying Gothic of Elizabeth's time ? or the halting Tudor ? or the brainless Jacobean ? DJ they not know—if they do not, let them go to Queen Eliza beth's monument in Westminster Abbey, and they may perhaps learn—that of all caricatures and de basements of art, of all senseless and barbarous mix tures, " the style of the poet's period" is the very ugliest and most abomilable ? But so it is. There is a fatality about the whole thing. The Shakspere blight infects all that it touches. Nine pod tetigit, he, the malign spirit, makes a mess of. There only remained the theatrical portion of the celebration. It seemed impossible to spoil this part of the Festival. To be sure, the plays offered at Stratford were like the sermons appraised by Cowper's tithepayers—plaguy dear. To ask the most devout of Shakspere'a worshippers to pay els. in a Stratford barn for what they could get for 53. in a London theatre, was a bold attack on the faith and fervour of the holy pilgrims. Bu it passed. And even the unlucky Phelps affair was beginning to be forgotten, though it showed that spiritual wickedness was at work in Warwickshire as well as in London. It argued something at least unhu man to set Mr. Bellew and Mr. Phelps by the ears ; and Puck must have laughed in his sleeve, if he has any, when " the foremost man in his profession claimed the right to play Hamlet on this occasion," and indignantly exclaimed " that he had been in ' stilted by the Stratford Committee asking Mr. Fechter to play Hamlet." But even this was got over somehow or other, and everybody thought we had come to the last disaster. For the London Committee to have stumbled over the Thacke ray difficelty, and for the Stratford Com mittee to have floundered into the Phelps trouble, ought to have satisfied the most spiteful or evil influences, and hope began to whisper that all was at last smooth, at least in the Stratford Green Room. The 'limes has for a whole mouth adver tised, "Tuesday evening, Twelfth Night ;' Wed nesday evening, Hamlet; Thursday evening, As Yon Kike It;'—reserved seats, 21. e." We :lid not like it at all. but we euhmitted ; when 10, at the eleventh hour—nay at a quarter to twelve—on April 4 (the Festival being to come off on the 231), the crowning trouble is announced. Mr. Feel:ter follows Mr. Phelps's example, and retires in grievous dud geon. There is to be no''. Hamlet" after all. So that at last Mr. Phelps's divine wrath is appeased, and on the foremost man in his profession will not be in flicted the indignity of seeing, or hearing of, " Ham let" presented at the great " Stratford-on-Avon Tercentenary Festival" by a Mossoo. More over, by a just Nemesis, the indignity which was offered to Mr. Phelps has been repaid twofold o Mr ' Fechter ; at least so be tells us, for there are accusations end reerimi eations on both sides. " Dr. Flower, M.D., Hon. Sec," announces that " Mr„ Fechter has broken faith with the Commit tee." Mr. Fechter, through his friend" H. Barnett, Esq."—for, as Warren kept a poet, so actors nowa days keep a Secretary—on the other hand complains that the Stratford Committee has forced him to the painful necessity of abandoning " Hamlet" by pass ing a resolution (which was a sensible one enough, and only desired Mr. Fechter's guide, philosopher, and friend, Mr. Bellew, to mind his own business) " giving the force of truth to the false and unge nerous statement spread about by one of your mem bers, and published by unfriendly papers, namely, that Mr. Fechter by under-current and trickery ways' forced oa the choice of his Hamlet." To all which Dr. Flower rejoins be:professing his " entire ignorance of any resolution—in fact, we are quite ee e loss to know to what resolu • Lion you refer.; or who are the members of the Committee to whom you refer." We think that we can clear up the mystery. The " spirits" have been at it again. The imps of dark flees, who have all along had a spite against the Shakspere Festival, have crowned their malignity. They passed the mysterious resolution ; the Eng lish of the alleged "under -current and trickery ways" is thoroughly elfish and diabolic. They have slily punched Mr. Phelps into heroics, and secretly pinched Mr. Fechter into aulks. It's all their doing. Nothing elres . can account for it. 4 series of etch blunders, a succession of such misfortunes, a con sistent course of such mal-adroitness in London and Stratford, theatre u„,t ?_. mittee and out of Commiti monument, in com ee, in promise and, as it now seems, in p er f ormance, could only la_eye , been originated by Satanic malevolence and Satanic skill. No mortal proflciancy in blundering could have achieved this sublime and superb triumph of failure. The whole history of the Shakapere Ter centenary Festival combines,ln the true Shaltspe- farce. rian spirit, the most awful tragedy and the liveliest THE EXAMINER ON THE DUKE OF NEW CASTLE.—There is but one teeliug of regret at the retirement of the Duke of Newcastle, who has won a high place in public rF spect by sheer force of character and conduct. Few men, indeed, have gone through so trying an ordeal as the Duke of Newcastle went through unscathed and with honour. He was hardly judged for the faults in the management of the Crimean campaign, and was blamed for what were really defects of a sys tem. He had the mortification of being set aside as incapable—a sore mortification indeed to a man with a due share of the pride of intellect. But during the time that he took his seat in the House of Lords as one who had been tried and found want ing, never did he manifest any resentment for the hard measure he .had received, never did he evince any pique, or seize on any of the many opportuni ties that offered of recrimination, He was tco high minded and just a man to be swayed a h7ir's breadth in his public conduct by any personal con • sideration. He acted as if he had never been ag grieved, never had had a slight put upon him, never had felt the smart of an unmerited mortifi cation. He bore fortune's buffets as one in suffer ing all that suffered nothing, like the man Hamlet wore in his heart of hearts. We hardly know of another instance of a man in similar circumstances, wh put himself so completely beside himself, if we may express it, as regarded past grievances, look ing to nothing but present duty. How excellently he acquitted himself of his charge in Amsricl, we need not call to mind, nor how efficiently and con scientiously he discharged the duties of his teface. Nor need we say how affectionately he is regarded in private life, where his frank, unpretending man ners and cordiality made themselves most pleas ingly felt. Heartily do we trust that the duke's retirement will only be temporary, and that re stored health will soon give back his services to the country. THE LONDON REVIEW ON HER MAJESTY'S LATE PRONUNCIAMENTO.—An article appeared the other day in the Times which it would be affectation to regard otherwise than as a direct expression of the sentiments of the highest personage in the realm. The mode which her Majesty has adopted in com municating with her people is undoubtedly unpre cedented; nor can we conceal from ourselves that it is one which might be fraught with serious incon venience. Bat under the peculiar circumstances of the present case, we are not disposed to press any objections which we may entertain to so direct an appeal from the throne to the nation. Her Ma jesty may well feel that the criticisms to which her personal conduct has been subjected require a more personal reply than can be afforded tb rough the me dium of her constitutional advisers. We are therefore more disposed to accept with gratitude the gracious assurances of the Queen, than to cavil at the chan nel through which she has seen fit to convey them. We have no doubt that the people will do full jus tice to the spirit which animates what we must describe as the Royal message, and that they will readily respond to the demand which it makes upon their forbearance. With great good feeling her Majesty expresses her hearty appreciation of her subjects' desire to see her. And although not directly, she impliedly contradicts the assertion that she has laid out for herself any scheme of seclusion, by the assurance that " whenever any real object is to be attained by her appearing on public occasions, any national interest to be promoted, or any thirg to be encouraged which is for the good of her people, her Majesty will not shrink, as she has not shrunk, from any personal sacrifice or exertion, however painful." At the same time she reminds us of that which ought to have been lost sight of, that she has now to perform—alone and unassisted—other and higher duties than those of " mere representa tion ;" and she remonstrates gently, but firmly, against being asked to expend on state ceremonies the health and strength which she requires for the discharge of "other duties which cannot be ne glected without serious injury to the public inte rests." She promises, however, that she will do what she can to meet " the loyal wishes of her subjects, to afford that support and countenance to society, and to give that encouragement to trade which is desired of her." We should enter with infinite reluctance upon any discussion of assurances graciously vouchsafed by the Queen to the solicitude of her subjects. But we are relieved from the performance of so embArrassing a duty, by a conviction that it is quite sufficient to express our perfect confidence that her Majesty will not have thrown herself in vain upon " the kindness and good feeling of her people," and that she will not find on their part any desire to exact from her more than she finds herself able to perform. THE SPECTATOR ON THE COMING CONFERENCE —The chances of an acceptable peace as the result of the Bluish conference grow less us the meeting draws near. The great Powers are all in one way or another e;:pressing their " views," and the effect of the expression is to show that the hope of agree ment among them all is of the faintest kind. Earl Russell, in his despatch of March 9, not only avows that the idea of Great Britain is to maintain the Treaty of 1852 through a " personal union" between Denmark and the Duchies, but bids the Danes re member that although "he does not pretend to dictate," they may, if they are as obstinate as Eng lishmen would be, obtain worse terms than that. The German Powers assent to that view, but de mand in addition that the united Duchy of Schles wig-Holstein shall possess an equal vote with Den mark upon all matters affecting ttie whole monarchy, in other words, that Germany shall govern the policy o f D l i e hi a e, peninsula, and islands all toge ther. M. Drouyn de Lhuys, on the other hand, in a despatch dated 20th March, announces Isis mas ter's opinion that " it is impossible net to recognise the obstacles to the precise and exact execution of the Treaty of 1852," and that it is needful to ap peal to the political " higher law," the law which condones all breaches of faith among nations and between nations and their relers---universal suffrage. Finally, Russia don't publish despatches, but asks amidst the cannon for a Danish princess as wife for the future Czar, strong evidence that the idea of the Romanoffs is not to dethrone King Christian alto gether ; Denmark, in fact, Wants to keep Schleswig as a dependency. Germany wants to seza Schles wig and make Denmark a dependency ; England wants to take Schleswig from both and give it to King Christian ; France wants th referred to a mljority of the moste whole question ignorant of all the parties concerned andßussia wants any arrange ment which will most effectually enable her to menace the independence of Sweden. All these con. flicting interests, and ideas, and purposes are to be thrown into a vat together, and E ,r 1 Russell hopes by diplomatic chemistry to obtain some solid and useful outturn. He may, brut we venture to affirm that it will only be by precipitating a resi duum the stench of which will not be pleasing either to him or to the v.-orlcl. It is not hard to perceive which of the hall dozen plans suggested will be the one adopted more or less reluctantly by the Conference. It is that proposed by the only Sovereign who c - in if he pleases at once arrest the march of the German armies, who wields the force of Sweden and Italy as well as that of France, and who has a pressing motive for wishing that contracts should be only respected when both parties are willing to keep them. The Elect of December is consistent when he demands that the classes whose vote released him from his oath should release Europe from its obligations, no other power save Denmark is likely to hold out long, and as for Denmark, vce victis is the secret thought of most of one's deareet friends. France cordially endorses a Principle under which she can annex Belgium and could only lose Algeria; England obviously will accept any proposal which ensures even temporary peace, would, we verily believe, submit the whole matter to the arbitration of Pekin, if only the can non could then be compelled to cease firing ; Ger many feels secure that the Schleewigers will vote for the "superior nationality," which is one day to be united, and free, and respected; and Russia only asks that she may be the protectress of the divided, powerless, and contemptible morsels of Scandinavia. The Danes, of course, must give way, for doctors do not ask the consent of the animals whose vivisection is , 6 profitable to science," and they may even in their despair consent, for at least the plan rids them of the chance of " personal union" which is for them the most ruinous of all the devices Earl Russell and the professors have as yet schemed out, and leaves them thou g h power less and ruined by exactions freemen still. There may be pea ce , but at what a cost to Europe and the world! The system of public law which, however imperfect in itself, has enabled one quar ter of the world to keep up a continuous political advance will have been overthrown. Any power has henceforward only to pour immigrants into a neigh bouring province, then excite them to rebellion, and then declare that treaties cannot be carried out, and the only appeal will be the will of the ignorant masses of the people. France may seize Belgium, Russia all provinces inhabited by S,o aye, Italy Dal matia and half the Tyrol, and Greeee the fairest sections of the Gctoraan dominions, with no other consequences than ratification by vote, No mai' Power has any longer a right to exist, and "- smallest segment of a people, so th.e some speciality of rac- nose ph., _ • u have but ~;;quires a moral right to . - worthless compact among nations whi c h di p lo matists were wont torespect as European order. If the Germans in Schleswig can justify the con quest of Danes by Germans, why should not the Frisians in Schleswig vote their section over to Russia, or Dalmatia declare herself Italian, or the Czechs of Bohemia assert that their true kinship is with the Poles, or the people of Cornwall announce that they intend henceforward to be goyerned only - by descendants of Llewellyn ? It wi!l not do to assert that strong governments would deal with revolt without calling in the rest of the world, for Deng mark is only too eager to accept that very principle, that doctrine of non-intervention which only five years was reckoned almost a political evangel. Let but the Germans retire, and with absolute freedom, a freedom so complete that Danes were denounced within the capital itself without the police trying to interfere, there will be as little disorder in Schleswig as there now is in Wales. All territorial arrangements, and politics have no other basis, rest henceforward on the simple right of mili tary power, diplomacy becomes a system for ex' citing fractional populations to discontent, and treaties ere degraded into documents which, not to overstate the case, are "incapable of precise and exact execution," and may be set aside by any aggregate, however small, of ploughmen's vo tes. That is the pleasing result of a diplomacy which in terferes nominally to protect the ancient allies of the British people, and the conditions we forced on those allies, but is really guided by a determinati on that England shall not wait a year to reduce th e duties on sugar. If that is the result which t he people of this country at heart approve, there is nothing more to be said, bat in that case let us a t least reap the benefit of our quiescence, and cease to spend thirty millions a year in order that the world may have one organised " Power" strong enough when the hour comes to strike a stroke for the right. Thirty millions a year on armaments, and we cannot venture to say that Prussia shall not try her Ile° artillery upon the defenceless town of an ally ! That is what the Prussians are doing, not in Asia, where though the moral guilt is the same violent wrong is no breach of the tacit contract among nations, but here in the Europe which with unconscious irony we call civilised. There is not the smallest military reason for destroying Sonderborg, which ties as much out of the way of the enemy as Kentish Town out of the road of a foe attacking Hampstead from the north. The people in it have not only done nothing to injure Germany, but Germany is actually bombarding them out of the fullness of her national love, killing women and children in order that the men may Le free of the Dance who are fighting for them all. The single reason. is to try the force of the new artillery, to ascertain accurately whether shots frrom a certain ( devil' will destroy in a staffi.Aent manner. When an Asiatic prince buys a sword be sometimes tries its temper by hacking up a fat slave, and Englishmen scarcely believe while they a venge the atrocity. The Prussians are killing victims by the hundred in order that the survivors may 1 1 able to vote that they love the Prussians best, and even that bizarrerte of murder stirs us up only to shrill womanish abuse. The Germans, we doubt not, will be shelling Sonderborg while Europe le, debating how Sonderborg can moat freely vote itsel f cordially German. COUNTRY MARKETS. -11 . YORK—SATURDAY. There was a seasonable show of wheat at market Oa day, and prices were the turn in favour of buyers. Wheat, red 378 to 39s Oats.... White do .408 t0*458 Beans 9 03 Barley .26s to'32s Peas —s ss Malt, 58s to 60s per qr.; rye, 28s per qr. .; :: fl 3l2B our ttt l o°o to 30s per sack. GRANTHAM—SATURDAY. Old white wheat, 43s to 46s ; red, 41s to 43s per 3 6 st' new white, 42s to 46s ; red, 40s to 425. Malting barley33s to 36s per qr ; grinding, 28 s t o 30 s ; oa t s , o ld, 23s t 7 265; new, 20s to24s ; beans, 34s to 365; old, 35s to 40s. LEICESTER—SATURDAY. New white wheat, 42s to 455; red, 40s to 42s per 3 0 stone. Old red, 38s to 42s per 36 stone. Barley, maltin, c ,g° new, 32s to 36s per qr.; grinding, 27s to 28 s ; old oat 25s to 28s; new oats, 2ls to 23s per 24 stone. Beano, old, 40s to 42s per 38 stone ; flour, 268 to 32s per 20 gone. NORWICH-SATURDAY. - • There was a good supply of wheat, and prices We t° about is per qr cheaper than on this day se'nnight, millers not being free buyers. Fine barley scarce, and prices nil' altered ; other sorts dull. White wheat. 44s to 47i 1 Red wheat 40s to 4 9 Malting barley ...35s to 378 1 Chevalier barley 33s to at! Distilling do 29s to 30s 1 Oats.. 24s to 26' Flour, 27s 6d to —s 0(1 per sack from the miller NOTTINGHAM—SATURDAY. The chow of wheat was limited, but samples were In aft condition. The deliveries of barley still decrease. °3 ' in tolerable supply to-day, at late rates. Beans were ' .131. —White wheat, from 42s to 47s ; red wheat, 39s top . Barley—malting, 30s to 37s ; grinding, 27 s to 30s. „,r. old, at 24s to 30s ' Od; new, 19s to 265. Be a n s sold aO. • to 43s per qr. ; new, 34s to 365. Flour, fine, 28s to 30s; super, 32s to 370:per 20 stone. • DUBLIN—FRIDAY. The market dull for al: kinds of grain, with a tolerable attendance. Sume inquiry for Indian corn for shipment t° outports. Flour no inquiry, di s. d. s. (I. 0. d. s' o Wheat, white.. 24 0 to 26 6 Oatmeal lO otol 3 0 Do., red .. 21 6t021 0 i Beans .. ..... --- 0 to "".. 0 Do., new .... 0 to 0 i Bere - 0 Barley Oats Do., black — 0 to .- - 0 Indian corn .. 27 oto 2° Foreign Mail Packet List. MAILS DUE. Australia and Mauritius, via Southampton n lg. Apr..- ?, ' via M arse ill es .. April 1 Jrazil and Cape Verds, by B r i t i s h pac k et. May I"9a Cape of Good Hope, A scens i on , an d S t. Helena..Aol A:8: China, Penang, and Singapore, via Southampton. Apr?; ! i `g, via Marseilles ...Apia" Falkland Islands Gibraltar, via Southampton April 5 India (Calcutta), and C e yl on , v i a S out h amp t on April : 1 ,, via Marseilles April 11 India (Bombay), via Southampton April * IPI, , 4 - via Marseilles April Portuga1.... \lalta, Egypt, and Aden, via Southampton April l via Marseilles April I :, Newfoundland .. April Oporto and Vigo .. U. S. and British N. A.marica . ,.by Brit. packet.... April by U.S. packet.... by Canadian packet. Apr!: 1 0, W.C. of Africa, Madei ra , a nd Teneriffe .. Api , Bahamas, via New York M iIY 6 -.' Mexico - ' •••• April F All parts of West Indies, including Chili, Peru, 1 A p rill s Caliti;zzia, and British Columbia. THE LAST NOBLE ACT OF THE ITAL I4I GOVERNMENT to Garibaldi is the rest ora ti on of his °— ~ 6 money. EXPERIMENTS WITH MR. MACKAY'S GREAT 01//4 NEAR. LIVERPOOL.—The success of this gun was to a e t c ; tain extent demonstrated on S a t ur d a y l as t b y som e Par s experiments on the Cresby S an d s , near Li verpoo l. It "to intended to have thoroughly tested th e gun , b u t ()vita the unfortunat e s t a t e o f th e wea th er t h e exper i men ts Pr o per were not carried out. A thi c k h aze preva il e d a long to coast, and hence it was not only difficult to distinguis h f , targets, even at 300 yards distance, but also highly &al l , ous, inasmuch as pede s t r i ans were cont i nua ll y u pou, t , o beach in the line o f fi re . Th ere were t i mes, howeve r, $ llP : f ;the fog was parti a lly lift e d , and during one of these tilt;',o vals six shots were fired at a wooden target (placed et , h 0 yards) for the purpo s e o f o bt a i n i ng t h e range. Four of ~ ‘ 0 shots,struck the target, but t wo were rather wi d e of 7 r mark. The initial velocity obtained was 16.40 fee t 0 % 0 second, which is considerably hi g h er , we b e li eve, dash :hi velocity of the Armstrong sh o t, an d a b ou t equa l to f l e 68 pounder old ordance at 200 y a rd s di s t ance . • six shots had been fired at the wooden target the erg ments were postponed until the first fine day, owing to 0$ density of the fog, Had the weather been fine a te rg or i repiesenting the side of her Majesty's ship Agih e° 0 would have been experiment e d u p on . This targe' , 4 strengthend by extensive backing and wooden Pile ° gr. props driven into the sand to a depth of eight feet, Ye t c o Mackay is confident that his gun will shatter it to P ie her e Th 3 experiments attr ac t e d cons id era bl e i n t eres t, and t was a good attendance of scientific and other spectator Births. of wife DYSON—On the 7th inst., at Rothl e y T emp l e , the Major Dyson, of a son. ti e MOLBYNS —On the 6th inst., at Niddrie House, 1 1 Hon, Mrs. de Moleyns, of a son. wife of WHITE,—On the 9th inst., a t 77, E a t on - p l ace , . 1, Lieut.-Colonel the Hon. L u k e Whi te, M.P., °". stillborn. Marriages. BRAMSTON — THORNHILL—On the 7th inst • , at Stoie.,„loo Piccadilly, Lieut.-C o l one l Bramston, Grenadier eldest son of T. W. B ramston, Esq M.P. 0 ,„"i i llorn . Essex, to Hono r i a L ou i sa, d aughter O f the late,• hill, Esq , of Fixby Hall, Yorkshire. pica°, HUGHES — KRAEum2R—On the 7th inst at v, — ~13012 , 0 5 -P Piccadilly, Captain Sir Frederick Hughes, of •Pn a te TT . co. Wexford, to Emily, eldest daughter of thy Kraeutler, Esq. 4 inst , PORD—On the St A.PPLE Deat hs. , 0 kl ~ a t a ey-ro r Appleford, aged 43. CHAFFER, ~: —On the 9th inst the Rev. Rio* d Chs iff n -Pt A., curate of St. Philip,'' Bethnal of tYI ) fever, taken in the discharge of s.' -• gr een ' ,d 37. GRAVES. --On the 9th i s duties, og-Li.,,,,iiesof Mrs. R. Graves, a ' llst. - "i n, i usi- - Palmer's-gre KNlGHT.—O"r'''' ,at ° '. ,-u BC, i ellt rh . g ly -Um — .. cue 6th inst ,at Hainault 140115, - ,_.,,, _.., John Knight, Esq . of St. George s ~ formerly aged 72. Lieu t,.0 n eral MANSEL—On the Bth inst , at Sandgate, 1 "" -t.- e R. C. Mansel, K.H., aged 76. Great p SPENCE—On the Bth inst at Hastings, 0-Sain' Esq., of Messrs. Henry . Spence and Ce., Helen's, London. ark-stre ets a r k-stre et, S/tivrß—On thiner'LlYue-r-- Bright Smith, Esq., aged 34. London : PrlnZed and Prbiished by WILLIA3I A IN v..-- I %lSt of No. 12, Strnd, Per, at SN Offlee " 4 o t " Strand, in the n Precinct rint of sa,roy, U the c 01 0" Bliddleoex.-L-ALQudith AFTiI 1 1 , Us"!