The Sun. — London, England, 1839-10-15 00:00:00

EV_ENING - EDITION. - - EXTRAORDINARY AND DETER MINED SUICIDE. On Monday afternoon last, an inquest was held at the Red Lion Inn, at «orsbrough Bridge, before Thomas Badger, Esq.,Coroner, and a highly respectable jury. on view of the body of John Perks, only eighteen years of age, son of Mr. Perks, (of the firm of Wood and Perks) glass manufacturers, Worsbrcugh, who had come to his death by his own hands, under the follow ing melancholy circumstances. It appeared from the e vidence adduced on the inquest, that the deceased was seen by his sister to leave his father's house on the pre vious Friday evening, about seven o'clock, and in conse quence of his not returning home the same night as usual, the family became alarmed, and search and inquiry were immediately made after the deceased ; but no tidings could be learned of him till his father, on Satur day afternoon, accidentally opened his box in his bed room, wherein he found a letter written by his son, of which the following is a copy " Friday, Oct. 4, 1839. " Dear Father, Mother, and Friends,—When you ead this, I shall be no more, for feeling a disease from which I shall never be freed, I am resolved to put a period to my existence. You will find my body at the low side of the bridge at the reservoir leading to Mr. Attenborough's. Dear father, do not grieve for mg, I pray you, for you would not have had me much longer if I not committed this act. You will find twelve shillings in my purse which you will please to pay to the writing master ; two and sixpence for my mother which 1 owe, and one of my watches for Richard, and the other for Thomas, my brothers. My books, &c. at your disposal. So conclude and remain, your unfortu nate son, "JOHN PERKS. " I now trust my soul to the disposal of Heaven—l now go to commit the direful deed of self destruction —toren o'clock at night. " My last prayers arc for your welfare, which 1 hope will be accepted at the hand of God, if not, those for myself, but I hope and trust to meet you in another wocld." Search was instantly made in the Worsborough re servoir, near the place described in the letter. A large crow; with chalk was made on the bridge, and in the water many feet deep near the bridge the body of the deceased was found, with a dreadful pistol wound im mediately under the right ear. In the pocket of the deceased was found by Mr. Cooper, of the Worsbrough works, another pistol loaded with ball. The witness, who took the body out of the water, stated his opinion to be, that the deceased, at the time he committed the dreadful act, must have sat on the bridge wall, and, on the pistol being discharged, must have instantly fallen into the reservoir, as he found some marks of blood on the centre of the bridge wall. Several witnesses were examined on the inquest as to the state of mind of the deceased. His parents de posed, that, from a child lie had been subject to low ness of spirits, and was nervous and melancholy, often sitting up studying over his books and papers ; that when they resided at Dudley they were obliged to call medical aid to their son ; and, since he came to Wore brough, he had been attended by Mr. Smith, surgeon, of Barnsley, who was particularly examined by the Co roner and Jury as to the state of mind of the deceased. Ile stated that he had frequently attended the deceased during the last four years. At times he could scarcely gat any answer from him, and, at other times found him quite hypochrondriac, melancholy, and not himseif, and he felt persuaded that the deceased, at the time he committed self-destruction, was not of sound mind. The Jury, after hearing all the evidence adduced on this painful inquiry, returned a verdict, " that the de ceased destroyed himself while labouring under tem porary insanity."—Doncasler Gazette.: SPIRIT of the PUBLIC JOURNALS. FROM THE MOANING PAPERS Or THIS DAT. (From the Morning Advertiser.) The recent polemical exhibition between the Bishop of Exeter and the Rev. Mr. Head is an incident of too much importance to be passed over with a cursory no tice. It is one which has an intimate bearing on the interests of evangelical truth ; but that is a point of view in which it would be foreign to the objects of a political journal to consider it. We shall merely re mark that Mr. Head's refutation of the preposterous dogma of the apostolical succession of the clergy of the Church of England—a dogma which is exceedingly current among Churchmen at the present time—was as triumphant as the friends of truth could desire. Were the columns of the .Iforning Advertiser the proper place for the discussion of such matters, we should have asked Dr. Phillpotts and those who, like him, claim for the clergy of the Church an apostolical succession, in what precise respects they consider themselves the successors of the Apostles ? Is it only in the authority of their office ; or do the present clerical race of claimants to the character consider themselves the suc cessors of the Apostles in humility, self-denial, zealous labours for the conversion of the world, and in the holiness of their life and conversation ? If such be the notions of the Reverend Gentlemen, headed by the Prelate of Lxeter, all we shall say is, that those no tions are peculiar to themselves. Dr. Phillpotts, the successor of the Apostle Paul ! Well, really, the very idea, as they say in Ireland, beats Banagher. Cobbett used to describe, in his own graphic way, the expression of surprise which escaped the country people who witnessed the exploits of the Learned Pig ; all the learned pigs in the world would not by their deiais, however marvellous, excite in us a tithe of the surprise which we should feel at any one's seriously asserting that the proud political Prelate of Exeter is the " apostolical" successor of the Apostle of the Gentiles. But we promised not to dwell on the super lative absurdity of the apostolical succession dogma. We shall quit the subject altogether, with a brief allusion to a very characteristic circumstance which oc curred in the course of the " exhibition" between the haughty Bishop and the humble clergyman whose mis fortune it is to be under what is called Dr. Phillpotts' "spiritual jurisdiction." Mr. Head was anxious that the collision scene should take place in the church in which the imperious Bishop delivered his politico religious tirade. Ia other words, Mr. Head was desirous that his reply to his Bishop's rebuke should be made in the same place and before the same audience. But the autocratic Prelate, the haughty servant of a mild and indulgent Master, determined it should not. He " descended from his throne"—so we are assured by the reports of the proceedings—erected for him for the occasion, in the immediate vicinity of the altar, and walking in the pride of majesty along the passage to the door, an nounced to Mr. Head, that if he had any thing to say in answer to the rebuke administered to him, he (the Bishop of Exeter) would hear it in the--In What place do our readers suppose ? We are sure they would never guess. Dr. Phillpotts graciously in formed Mr. Head, that he would condescend to hear him in the inn ! A rather odd and out-of-the-way place, one would think, for discussing the essential truths of the Gospel, and some of the more knotty points of divinity. Whether it was that the Rev. Prelate thought that he had been too long in the church already, or that he felt irresistibly appetized for dinner, or that he has some pe culiar partialities for hotels, it is impossible to say ; but so it was ; he would remain no longer in church, but proceeded in breathless haste to the inn, where, after plentifully regaling himself with the good things of Boniface, in the shape of an excellent dinner and wines, he invited Mr. Head to the discussion of *heir differencea Aa affer.dineer consideration of such topics as the apostolical succession of the Clergy—the reiative authority of Church and the Bible, and the obedience due by an inferior clergyman to his Bishop— wae not very likely to be followed by sound conclusions. Mr. Head very properly refused to enter the arena, under such circumstance, with his Bishop, remarking that as he (Dr. Phillpotts) had refused to discuss mat ters in the church, he (Mr. Head) would not enter on their consideration in a tavern. And so the matter ended. Every successive day the Church must more and more feel the necessity of praying that she may be saved from her friends. (From the Morning Herald.) 1' is amusing to trace the sell-contradictory mo d es i n `s a eel the Corn-laws are assailed by the advocates of fr •;-• rade. On no point are the " philosophers" more decidedly at war, than in regard to the influence which i the Corn-laws exercise on the market value of labour. It one time, we are assured, that the framers and sup- P ,w rs of the Corn-laws have deceived the Jabots:dug peer, in maintaining that these laws preserve the ge f eree rate of wages at a high level of value. At another time the chief char to w hide is levelled against the Corn laws, is, that they constitute the sole reason why labour is dearer in England than on the Continent ! It might be serviceable to the cause of truth that the li opponents dbfor 0: English agricultur e should be, co ming into court for th e purpose of of giving cope evidence, ee to ag re e together as to the c h ara ctertheir testimony. vital The disagreement which exi sts on points, n ought at all events, to have the effect of abating the tone of confidence, in which both sectrions opinions the Of th e two Tenisousen, Anti-Corn-law party indulge! to which we have alluded , our Contemp orary inclines to the latter variety. Th e sionahliosih 1 ibou ris d, that the Corn-laws are the so le caus e why dearer than Polish : ~ But in what does the cost of cultivation d e vsactelencoortnis,itsitie?pr\iNc'ee ans wer the price of labour , the price of of everything in which labour is employed that the culti vstor has to buy. And why is labour higher priced hire than abroad :1 Because earn is dearer. Why is corn dearer? Simply because the Corn-laws make it so. is they were not in existence corn would be about the s ame price here as on the Continent. Thus the high price of corn caesei by flirt Corn laws is an effectual bar to profit able agricultural improvement. Now as we cannot possibly exclude at all times the cheaper-grown corn of the Con tinent, would it not be for the interest of the farmers, and ultimately for the interest of the landlords, to allow corn to he grown here, by the abolition of the Cern•laws, as eccaply as it is grown on the Continent ?" The Cern-laws, then, on the admission of our Con temnorary, increase the labourer's reward ; and the fact i , the labourer's reward is high, is made the chief ground of complaint against the Corn-laws. But this, surely, is a very strange position to be taken up by The Sun ! Why does not our Contemporary at the same time, make it a ground of complaint, that our traders possess large capitals ? The complaint would be, at least, as reasonable as that which he does urge in refer ence to the high wages of our labourers! But the high price of corn, we are assured—in other words the high rate of wages in this country—constitutes " an effectual bar to profitable agricultural improvement." How high wages can, on such an assumption, constitute a more effectual bar, than low wages, to agricultural improve ment, it might puzzle our Contemporary to ex plain. It is his specific argument, — that the price of labour is regulated by the price of corn. The facility of producing corn, therefore, will not be increased by lowering wages—because The Sun tells us that corn will fall in price as labour shall fall in price. Unless, then, our Contemporary be prepared to contend, that falling prices are the chief inducement to increased pro duction, he will scarcely reach his conclusion, by the or dinary processes of logic ; and if he shall be disposed to maintain such a position, then he must devote his energy to the overthrow of the prevailing error, that rich customers are better than poor ones ! Let the in fluence of the Corn-laws, as expounded by our Contem porary, on the condition of farmers be carefully noted ! " A great outcry is made against the farmers for not raising wages corresponding to the price of corn, and in many districts they have raised wages. But whether they raise the wages of their ow n men or not, they must pay the higher wages and increased profits which are given to all the artisans and masters whose services they require, whether directly or indirectly. The consequence is, that they are now cultivating their fields at an expense tanta mount to wheat at 70s. a quarter. They must realise that price or a greater price next year to cover their expenses, and obtain the ordinary profit. But either an abundant harvest, or the admissicn of foreign corn, should their own crops be short, would prevent their realising such a price, and thus the high cost of cultivation caused by the Corn-laws, while it is impossible to exclude foreign corn, and impossible to prevent an abundant harvest, will in fallibly cause agriculture to be an unprofitable occu pation." Our Contemporary, it will be perceived, commences this last paragraph by expressing a doubt as to the truth of the position which he had, in the former pa graph unhesitatingly asserted. ." A great outcry is made against the farmers for not raising wages corres ponding to the price of corn." Why, unless The Sun be altogether in error in this matter, the farmers can exercise no choice in the case. The Sun previously laid it down that corn is dearer in this country than on the Continent, for no other reason, than because labour is dearer in England ! The expression of a doubt on the point is, therefore, on the part of our Contemporary, an abandonment of all his previous reasoning on the question. It is exceedingly difficult, however, to discover on what intelligible grounds our Contemporary objects to the Corn-laws. These laws, he declares, raise the wages of agricultural labourers to the level of the in creased price of corn. The Corn-laws, moreover, se cure " higher wages and increased profits to all the ar tisans and masters," with whom the farmers deal—in other words, to all classes of artisans and traders : why, then, are the Corn-laws objected to? According to our Contemporary's exposition of the working of the Corn-laws, they press with severity only on the farmers themselves. Since, however, the farmers do not com plain of these laws—laws which impoverish only them selves—enriching at the same time, as our Contempo rary proves they do, all the rest of the community : why are not the agriculturists left in the undisturbed enjoyment of their illusion on the subject ? (From the Times.) We had occasion, during the discussions on the two Jamaica Bills, to express our own opinions on the in temperate tone which pervaded the printed despatches of Sir Lionel Smith, then the Governor of that colony. Lord Stanley, in the debate on the first Bill, and Lord Lyndhurst, in the debate on the second Bill, pointed out those inconsistencies and contradictions into which this Governor's want of temper and prejudice had betrayed him. We had hoped that Sir Lionel Smith would have quitted the island without giving further cause for serious complaint against him. We are disappointed. We have read a written reply given by him on the 28th of August to an address of certain members of the Baptist Society. The whole reply is very unbecoming a Go vernor. He ought to discourage rather than promote the feeling of irritation and distrust which the address excites, The Governor surely ought not to pass over even in silence general attacks on the existing institu tions of the colony, and general charges against any class of inhabitants. Still less ought he to indulge him self in such attacks. But there is still a graver charge against Sir L. Smith. In his written reply, he has spoken of repeated threats of assassination, with the view, as he insinuates, of deterring him from doing his duty to the emancipated population. When were these threats given ?—by whom ? How comes it that conduct violating the respect due to the representative of the So vereign, menacing the good order and peace of the com munity, and evincing a degree of disorganization most frightful to contemplate, was never communicated to the public until Sir L. Smith is on the eve of his de parture? We have been informed that neither to his Attorney-General nor to any gentleman in the island did he ever intimate that a single threat had been used. The first intimation is in a public address on the eve of his departure, that he had received repeated threat: of assassination. Surely the Governor ought not to have locked this up in his own breast, but have imparted it to the legal advisers of the Crown, in order that prompt and effectual means might be taken to punish the delinquent. But in common justice Sir L. Smith ought to have shrunk from giving utterance to an imputation that the whole community was capable of participating in such an atrocious act as the threat of assassination, when by his own previous silence, if any single threat were ever uttered by any single individual, he never deemed it of sufficient moment to communicate it to the law officers of the Crow o, or take any measures by which it might be ascertained whether any person participated in that threat. We need scarcely say that no man in his sober senses possessed of common charity can for a moment entertain a suspicion that there was the slightest pretext for making this most unfounded imputation. (From the Morning Chronicle.) In the subscription for extending the operations of the British and Foreign School Society, we observe, with much gratification, the name of her Majesty con nected with the donation of 1001. for the special purpose of aiding in the formation of a normal school, and also with the munificent subscription of 1001. per annum. The friends of education have not forgotten, nor ever can forget, the services rendered to this, as indeed to so many other philanthropic institutions, by her Majesty's illustrious father. The influence of his active support and personal exertions was most valuable. All who are interested in the promotion of public instruction, will rejoice to see her thus treading in his steps, and doing honour to his memory, not only by such sacrifices as that recently made, of 50,0001. from the Privy Purse for the extinction of his debts, but by the liberal patronage of objects that were nearest to his heart. In this act her Majesty shows that her rejec tion of the remonstrance of the anti-education Peers and Bishops was not merely official. It indicates that her personal feelings accorded with the counsel of her responsible Ministers. The calumnious and disloyal faction, that where it gives one cheer for her Majesty, roers out nine for King Ernest ; the faction that wanted to transform a minority into a majority by making her its slave, and constraining her to falsehood ; the fac tion that hates popular education, and hopes to flou rish by fomenting all intolerance, may howl at this well-timed generosity ; but the public will appre ciate its merit, and accept it as an additional omen of a beneficent and prosperous reign. The liberal contribu tors to the extension of the British and Foreign School Society have consulted the best means for the efficiency of that institution in their proposition for a normal or training school. No improvement can ever, according to our apprehension, render voluntary societies an ade quate substitute for a truly national system. The common argument against voluntaryism in religion has fifty times the force as applied to education. There can be no substitute for schools planted by the State all over the country, proportioned to the population and wants of the different localities, and their efficiency secured by a judicious admixture of governmental pa tronage and popular control. But during the ad mitted impracticability of such a system, and pending the preparatory measure adopted by the Government, ,ve are right glad to see one of the existing voluntary societies disposed to take such a step as that now con templated. It is the best mode in which it could co srete Tne immediate good will be great. More instruction will be afforded, and to a larger number ; a superior race of teachers will be produced ; and this eventual good will be yet greater. (From the Morning Post.) The courtser Radicals, calling themselves Whi gs , who belong to the present Administration, have never been able to make a decent defence for their conduct in making the will and authority of the Sove reign the main prin ci p le of Government. There is a manifest and glaring perfidy in this which , it puzzles even their powers of impu dence to excuse. 'I 'hat the public men, or the party, that fOr thirty years were perpetually magnifying in speeches , a nd toasting in convivial assem blies, the principle of the sovereignty of the people—that they should now exult in lording it over the people by means o f power derived directly fro m t h e Sovereign, and by means of that power alone, is certainly as gross and flagr an t an example of selfish and perfidious abandonment of principle as can be found in the worst annals of civilized mankind. Some of the more paltry and per severing parasites of the Ministry have indeed go ne so far as to say that th oug h th e Whig's made it a first principle to oppose the wishes of the Crown when those wishes were not conformable with the interests of the people, that is no reason why they s o ho te u il l e dn p ot avail th emse l ves o f t h e w i s h es o f th e Crown wfhn eoe. those pl wish Vtl es as ar y clevereconformablethto be u with s the interests re and, at all events, imme nse l y impudent. May we venture to ask who the judges a re to b e of le hat -was the w t?re s conformable f o o f rin T a or bi v e with the interests of the people govercicent, and what is co n f orma bl e with their interests' THE SUN, Li at the present time ? May the people themselves be per mitted a voice in this matter—the " sovereign people"— no longer toasted, by the bye, at Whig dinners, at least in Englaud—or mw.t a certain set of exceedingly en lightened and marvellously modest persons, calling themselves Whigs, be the sole judges? How is the nation to decide what is for the people's interest, and what is impudently, selfishly, and falsely assumed so to be ? It is very convenient for the Whigs to say that when the Tories were entrusted with the Royal autho rity the wishes of Royalty were inimical to the interests of the people, and were therefore fit to be resisted ; but that when Whigs are similarly entrusted, the wishes of Reyalty are conformable with the interests of the people, aad therefore to be universally respected and implicitly obeyed. All this is easily said by Whigs who are mad with vanity and the enjoyment of power ; but where is the man of common sense who can listen to such consummate impudence without scorn'; (From the Globe.) A letter from the Committee of Privy Council on Education to a clergyman of the Established Church, who applied to their Lordships for information on cer tain particulars, has been forwarded to us for insertion. This letter explains the mode on which their Lordships have determined to conduct the inspection of schools connected with the Established Church, the promoters of which may accept portions of the Parliamentary grant; and is therefore so important in the information it con veys, that we hesitate not to give it prominency in our columns : " Committee of Council on Education, " Council-office, October 5, 1839. " Reverend Sir,—The Lords of the Committee of Council have had under consideration your letter of the Ist October, in which, referring to my former communi cation, you inquire whether some or all of the inspectors to be appointed to visit schools will be clergymen; and if not, whether they will at least be members of the Church of England; and you observe that as religious instruc tion must necessarily form the chief part of the education of your school, if that instruction and the dis. ciplinc and management of the school be withdrawn from the cognizance of the inspectors, there would be litlte else to which they could direct their attention—the Lords of the Committee of Council of Education direct me to assure you that it is intended to appoint one or more inspectors specially to visit the Church of England schools ; that no person not a member of the Church of England will be appointed to discharge this important duty ; that it is their Lordships' wish and intention to select in preference (other qualifications being equal), clergymen •f the Established Chnrch to inspect schools connected with the Church; and that their Lordships will be solici tous to appoint as inspectors persons whose character shall be a guarantee of their conduct, both to the Established Church and to the public at large. " With respect to the latter part of your letter, which relates to the limitation of the inspector's powers, I am directed to state to you that the points to which it adverts had already received the serious consideration of the Committee ; and that the disadvantages which may arise from excluding the religious instruction from the super vision of the inspectors have not escaped their Lordships' attention. The Committee have been anxious to give to promoters and managers of schools the fullest possible as surance that in accepting the public money, coupled with the condition of inspection they will not incur the slightest risk to the full integrity of the religious principles upon which the schools are established; and for this object the above-mentioned limitations are necessary. It does not, however, appear to the Committee that there is anything in these conditions to prevent the promoters and managers of any school from obtaining from the inspector an examination into, and a report upon the religious in struction which may be afforded therein, provided that a requisition to that effect should previously be presented to him by the Clergyman, Committee, or other person under whose superintendence the religious instruction is ordinarily afforded to the school. " With respect to the general management and discip line of the school, the inspectors will be instructed to inquire and report, but not to interfere or to regulate. " I have been instructed to add that you are quite at liberty to make public use of this letter. I have the honour to be," &c. &c. The absence of all interference in the management of the Schools, and of all examination of the method of imparting religious instruction, seems to us so calcu lated to disarm the fears excited by the numerous mis representations of the intentions of the Government, which have for various purposes been circulated, that its publication will, we do not doubt, effect the removal of these apprehensions from all who are not willingly deceived. The advance of national improvement, as respects the management of the schools, can only proceed, pari passu, with the spread of information on this subject ; and to this and the establishment of a system of inspec tion, by which the wants of the promoters of schools may be made known, and their exertions encouraged by the diffusion of useful information, must contribute— perhaps not in so powerful a degree as the sanguine promoters of primary instruction may desire—but cer , tainly so as to prepare the way for the realization o their hopes. (From the Courier.) The justice and generosity of the grand measure of emancipation do not rest on the contracted rules by which Mr. Scoble would square and pare down its magnificent proportions. The twenty millions are there in evidence that it was no huckster's affair of profit and loss. That splendid gift was in the nature of an atone ment and peace offering. What sacrifice more sublime and self-denying was ever offered up on the altar of national repentance ? We believe that with the few wants of the negro race under such a climate, it is vain to expect the perform ance of distasteful work beyond the average amount of subsistence required, and the example of St. Domingo corroborates this opinion. Lord Stanley, the able and conscientious statesman who planned and carried through the great measure of emancipation, would perhaps have hesitated to have awarded twenty millions sterling of compensation to the West Indian proprietary, had the suspicion crossed his mind ever so slightly that the freed negroes were to remain still the ad scripti glebe', the serfs of the soil, bound to toil and expected to produce as much as ever. That result may yet be arrived at with increasing civilization, leading to new and increasing wants under continually progressing changes and advances of society. In the meantime the Colonies, and Colonial Proprietors, will do well to persevere in their projects to promote immi gration from all parts of the world upon equitable princi ples, and with liberal provision. This, with the progres sive increase of an easy and well-satisfied population, indigenous and attached to the soil, must in the re gular order of nature gradually effect the cure for pre sent disappointments. (From the Standard.) This, so far as the general principle goes, is plau sible enough ; and so far as his conduct may have entitled bins to the character of a good peace officer, Admiral Fleeming (had he net been disqualified by the number and value of the appointments which have already been bestowed upon him) would have been as eligible for Greenwich Hospital as any other candidate whose services have been of the same description. But it will not surely be denied by our hard-run Contemporaries, that those men who, besides being " thorough seamen," have not only seen longer and more severe service, but have earned a title to the grati tude of their country by the number and brilliancy of their exploits, have a far stronger claim to reward than he can possibly exhibit. But the very negative merit which the apologists of this atrocious job have attributed to their fortunate protege, are, unhappily for him, so general in the British navy that it would be difficult to find half a dozen officers in the higher ranks of the service who cannot fairly lay claim to it. To escape censure in the performance of that routine duty, which must devolve upon every British sailor of Admiral Fieerning's rank ; to see that the rations provided for the men under his command are sufficient, and of the proper quality ; to be " courteous," " bland," and even "friendly," to those about him (under circumstances but little calculated to ruffle the evenness of his temper), are all virtues of that negative kind which are aitiong the easiest and more gratifying portions of the duty which devolve a upon a naval commander. Not to have attended to matters so indispensable to the maintenance of nautical efficiency would have deserved the penalty provided for disgraceful neglect. of duty; but to have es caped the censure with which such neglect is usually visited can never be assigned as a sufficient pretext for one half the good things of which Admiral Fleeming has already been the recipient ; much less for an appointment which ought to have been consecrated to the reward of an officer to whom the country really owes something. Were the I.2alance of services rendered by, and benefits conferred on, Admiral Fleemin g , sum med up, the account would, even a month ago, have presented an awful balance against him. A correspondent sends us the following :—" M. Jaudon's arrangement has been completed we under stand for some days past. The whole loan was imme diately subscribed for, and he might have increased the amount, but the sum raised is sufficient to discharge all his obligations in Europe. We were misled, it appears, in stating that this loan was obtained under the sanc tion of Baring and Co. ; they, in common with others, are probably subscribers, but the bonds are, as securi ties, placed in the hands, not of Barings, but Denison and Co., who are Mr. Jaudon's bankers.—Evening Paper. Two nights since, at a late hour, a gentleman was attacked at the corner of the rue Pierre Sarrazin and the rue de la Harpc, by five men, who beat him cruelly, and robbed him of his purse and watch. An inhabitant of the street, who was awakened by the cries of the victim, put his head out of the window, and m naced the thieves, upon which they took to flight, with the exception of one, who was taken into custody b• some national guards.—Galignani. AN ODD FrsH.—Mr:Filgate, a shoemaker at Egham, has upon three several occasions, while fishing in the Thames, near the weir, hooked a fine trout ; but each time the fish broke his tackle, carrying away Ira set of hooks. A short time since be was again angling in the same spot, when he a fourth time hooked the identical trout, but more fortunately succeeded in land ing it, when he found his three sets of hooks fixed to i ts j aws . The fished weighed upwards of 71b. CHARACTERS OF M. L AFITTE AND M. CHARLES DUPIN. (Fro :1 coon's Eludes sur les Onteurs.) M. LAFFITTE. Is there a greater citizen than M. Laffitte ? Is there a Minister who has entered upon busi ness with more devotion and sincerity, and who has left it with purer hands, and a heart more truly French ? Is there in the world a better hearted man ? How many Kings have abused the facile temperament of this good and amiable character ! What an agreeable voice ! What animated gossip ! What a varied, abundant, Inn pid, and lively flow He has the enthusiasm of a young man for all that is true and good ! Then he unites to Court graces (i. e., when the Court had graces) the simplicity and bonhommie of a merchant Is it not better to hear for a hundred times, MM. Laffitte and Dupont, substantial, full, and lucid as they are, than so many long-winded orators and provincial advocates, who pull out their watches and discourse for the hour together, for getting that speech was not given to man that he might fabricate mere words, but that he might con vey ideas ! The private life of M. Laffitte might serve as a course of morals shown in action. His public life might serve as a course of politics for the use of people who, though able to conduct themselves, harness themselves broken-backed to the King's heavy chariot. M. Laffitte has a genius for finance, which is still more uncommon than a genius for eloquence. He has solved the problems of the conversion of annuities, banks, and sinkin g funds, with a neat ness of expression which adorns science without concealing it. His speeches on the budget are models of theoretical exposition, and his discus sions are models of the deliberative kind applied to the management of figures. Under the Restoration he established public credit, and he now established private credit, being unwilling that a single day of his noble life should pass away without his con ferring some benefit on his country. The character of M. Laffitte is republican at bottom ; not that he believes the present possibility of that form of government, but he thinks with La fayette, Arago, and Dupont de l'Eure, that the Europeans are tending towards it, and that it will be one day the highest expression of the most ad vanced state of civilization. His mild soul, which, might even be thought weak, can offer resistance and strengthen itself at present junctures. He struggles courageously against dangers, meets them with energy, and over comes them by decision. Ingratitude, from whatever quarter it may come, fills him with a noble disgust, and the oppression of liberty, under whatever pretext, fires his indig nation. Then words escape him which it seems none but a giver of crowns and founder of dynasties like himself can utter ; and the Minister who is called on to hear or to reply can only lower his eyes and blush. M. Laffitte has borne reverses with the same serenity as good fortune, and his fate has been to find ingratitude both in the highest and the lowest places. No man of our day has been more magni ficent, for after opening his house to all the pro scribed, and his purse to all the unfortunate, he ended by bestowing a sceptre. Who presided in the Chamber of the 29th of August ? Who was the soul, the chief, the conductor, of the Orleans party ? Who was in league with Lafayette ? Who brought together the Valais Bourbon and the Hotel de Ville ? Who, in a word, conducted and terminated the whole affair, but M. Laffitte ? Yes, it is M. Laffitte who picked up the crown of y i n °. in the public way, and France, which was l placed it on the head of Louis Philippe. The laws of September stop me just as I am about to paint —. Another day, M. Laffitte, I will finish your portrait. M. CHARLES DUPIN. The manufactory of St. Gobain has lately cast an enormous plate of glass in a single piece, which is 195 inches high by 138 broad. A single sheet of paper of the smallest dimensions would more than suffice M. Charles Dupin to write in a fine close hand, without leaving space or margin, every one of his reports. They say it was he who furnished the model for Perryan pens, which are made of fine well-tempered steel, which never want mending, and with which one may write from the dawn of the day to sunset without losing a minute. We are also assured that the hand-press, not being rapid enough to follow him, the steam-press was in vented for that purpose. Thanks to N. C. Dupin for having been the cause of this discovery ! And truly the steam-press has not been ungrateful, for, since the time of its invention, it has worked almost for him alone. Now, pray don't tell M. Charles Dupin that erudition is not always argument, and that when on the subject of the American indemnity, he might save himself the trouble of talking to us about the Doges - of Venice, the Suffetes of Carthage, the Se - nate of Rome, the Cortes of Spain, and the Great Turk. Do not tell him that words arc not ideas, that one might put in 10 pages what he puts in 100— that you do not know the navy budget any better because he says how many nails and pegs there are in the sides of a ship, how many fibres of flax are requisite to form large cables, and how many grains of salt are necessary to powder sailors' biscuits. Do not tell him that he, who is a phi lanthropist, should have a little more pity for the poor compositors of the Royal Press, who ex haust their cases, pass sleepless nights, and are visibly wasting away, that they may bring to light the lucubrations of his brain, printed on fine China paper. The current of his wandering eloquence is too strong for him ; he cannot re strain it, but must talk, - talk, talk. He has an itch for quarto pages, and must print, print, print. M. Charles Dupin accumulates words which are unproductive to us, and offices which are productive 'to him. He is in France almost e verything that a man can be. He holds the office of Engineer, the office of member of the Admiralty, the office of Aca demician (this last double), the office of Professor of the Conservatoire, the office of Councillor of State, the office of Peer of France, the office of per manent reporter to the navy budget, and, further, has the office of fastening crosses to his buttonhole, besides the office of Baron, haul Baron. In the colonies he is a delegate, without work, but not without appointments. In Sweden he is a knight of the orders of the kingdom ; and travellers who come from Italy say that the Pope reserves for him, in pelt°, the Cardinal's hat, on account, you must know, of the famous sermon on bishops which he so admirably preached. I do not even despair of his being one day raised to the dignity of Saint, that he may accumulate the joys of Paradise, together with the joys of our val ley of tears. Besides this baggage of crosses, dignities, chairs, offices, diplomas, mantles, ribands, swords, Perryan pens, galloons, uniforms, bank bills, money bags, and trinkets of all sorts, with which M. Charles Dupin goes enwrapped. decorated, loaded, and en cumbered, and which are dangling and draggling from every part, he has his books, his manuals, his maps. his plans, his manuscripts, his projects for bringing the sea to Paris, where it is to appear neither more nor less than it does at the Havre, and his studies on Demosthenes, who, by the way, was not the most long-winded of orators. The electors said to M. Dupin—" Speak, and you shall be a Deputy, but be sure to speak !" Then the Ministers said—" Hold your tongue, and you shall be a Peer I" Here was an embarrassing situation " Hold your tongue I" The poor man was in torture. I would not, however, speak too ill of M. Dupin the savant—in the first place, because I should laugh at savans with a very bad grace, not being the least afterofon all, one myself ; and , i n the second p lace, men of equal merit with M. Du pin are but rare in any country. I should not, entre sous, for my co,vn part, have any objection to accumulate not only as many offices, but also as much knowledge , a nd I would willi n gly l eave off being Ti mon tob-become M. Charles Dupin. How ever, I would muc h r ather be his brother. e - Sir E. L. BUINVCI'S new five-act play has been received by Mr. Macready, acce pted by M r. Webster, and was read in the Haymarket Theatre on Saturday f or t h e first time. M any o f t h e sce nes are laid in Devonshire and Cornwall, a n d w ill g i ve Pliihips a fine opportunity t o display his hi g hl y cu l t i va ted talent in the sceni c depart ment. The pl a y w ill be put into active prep ara ti on im mediately, a n d brought out a s soon as circumst ance s . permit —most likely early in the ensuing month. The enterp r i s i ng l essee has a large stake in its success —a stake amounting positively to several hundreds of pounds. THE DUKE OF YORK'S SCHOOL. The Lord Mayor and the Lady Mayoress, ac companied by the Lord Mayer elect, on Thursday visited the Royal Military School at Chelsea. Colonel Williamson, the commandant, Luguard the adjutant and secretary, the chaplain, the sur geon, and other officers of the establishment, re ceived the company at the entrance and conducted them throughout the various departments. Miss Williamson joined the Lady Mayoress, together with a party who were invited by the Commandant. The boys were examined in both schools by the chaplain, and they acquitted themselves most admi rably. Some of the smaller boys were employed at needle-work, others at shoemaking, tailoring, and a (treat variety of trades. When a regiment is in want of recruits a notice, it appears, is placed in the school-rooms, and any boys above fourteen years of age who may wish to go into the army are al lowed to join that regiment. For those who prefer trade or other occupations situations are provided, and if their conduct merit reward they are at the end of a certain number of years, upon producing certificates of good behaviour from their employers, publicly rewarded in the chapel of the institution. There is no compulsion upon any to become mem bers of the military profession. They are princi pally orphan children, whose fathers have lost their lives in the service of their sovereign, or are on foreign duty, their mothers being dead. There are two bands of music composed of boys from seven to fourteen years of age. After having been examined in their school, the boys, 350 in number, from five years old to four teen, all dressed in military uniform, with their flags flying, drums beating, and full band playing, proceeded to the parade, where they marched in military order before the party, and saluted as they passed. Having performed all their evolutions, and the parade having concluded, the boys went through the course of their gymnastic exercises till the beat of drum summoned them to dinner, after which they again mustered on parade, when Colonel WILLIAMSON, the Commandant, ad dressing the Lord Mayor, said that the Institution had been honoured by visits from Emperors, Kings, Queens, Princes, Potentates, and Rulers of all sorts and degrees ; but although situated near, and connected as this Institution was with, the City of London, it never before was visited by a Chief Magistrate. The whole establishment, consisting of quarter master, steward, sergeant-majors, quarter-master sergeant, sergeant-assistants, sergeant-porters, pio neers, corporals, drum-major, the masters, task masters, matrons, nurses—all made their appear ance attired in their official dresSes. The boys composing the band, in their full dresses and fea thers, elicited great applause from the visitors. His Lordship then requested that the Colonel would allow the boys a half-holiday, an indulgence which was readily conceded ; and when the tidings were communicated to them by the Adjutant, the band struck up the national anthem, and the joyful little army gave three cheers and continued cheer ing till the carriages were out of sight. ALLOWANCE TO CORONERS. The attention of the Justices of Westminster having been called to the allowance for mileage claimed by the Coroner for that city, they resolved a short time since to take the opinion of the Attorney-General on the subject. A case was submitted to him accordingly, and the following is an extract from it, and the opinion of the Learned Gentleman thereon. Both case and opinion were read at the meeting of the Westminster Magistrates held on Friday last. The case, after setting forth the Act of 25 George 11., c. 29, states :—" The Coroner for 'Westminster has heretofore claimed, and been allowed, the sum of nine pence by way of mileage for every inquest, although he has travelled only half or three-quarters of a mile ; and in like manner double that amount although he has travelled less than two miles, viz., one mile and a half or one mile and three-quarters ; but doubts have lately arisen whether the Coroner is entitled to any allowance for travelling except for every mile com pleted. " On behalf of the Justices of the Peace for West minster, the Attorney-General will be pleased to ad- . vise— " Ist. Whether, under the first section of the 25th George 11., cap. 29, a Coroner is entitled to mileage except for every complete mile travelled by him from his place of abode to take an inquisition on view of a body not dying in gaol or prison ? _ _ . " 2d. Whether the second section of that Act can be considered as extending to Coroners for cities ? " 3d. Whether, under the last-mentioned section, a Coroner is entitled to any mileage in addition to such sum, not exceeding 205., as the General or Quarter Sessions shall award him for taking an inquisition on view of a body dying in gaol or prison ?" OPINION.-1 am of opinion that, in point of law, Coroners under the 25th Geo. 11., c. 29, s. 1, are only entitled to mileage for every complete mile travelled by them ; they are not entitled to be paid as for a whole Mile for travelling a part of a mile, and there is no pro vision for making them compensation where they travel only part of a mile. " 2d. I think the second section of the Act extends to Coroners of cities ; and " 3d. I think that under this section Coroners are entitled to mileage where they travel a mile from their abode, to take an inquisition in a gaol, beyond the sum allowed them for the inquisition by the Quarter Sessions. " Temple, July 27,1839. " CAMPBELL." MR. WAKLEY'S INQUESTS.—In the course of an inquest held on Saturday, Mr. Wakley entered into a long comparative statement of the number of inquests held by the late Mr. Stirling, Mr. Baker, and himself, which did not differ materially from the account given by Mr. Kensett at the meeting of the Marylebone Board of Guardians. The Hon. Gentleman then adverted to the Hendon case, and in answer to the question of a juror, as to whether any ulterior proceedings would be taken in it, said most assuredly there would ; but his predecessors had been so lukewarm as to the privileges of the office that their practice did not afford him a pre cedent as to the course he ought to pursue. In conclu sion he adverted to a recent case of a child found dead in Marylebone, in which no post modem examination took place, and said that were the mother to be at any time indicted for its murder there would be uo evidence against her ; whereas had the body been examined that would have been afforded ; or if the lungs were found to be resembling a lump of liver she would be instantly acquitted. He said he trusted the good sense of Eng lishmen would soon get the better of such prejudices, which tended to the public injury and caused the laws to be disregarded. _ _ . _ MR. BAKER'S INQUESTS.---On Saturday Mr. Baker took occasion, in the course of an inquest held before him, to advert to some recent statements on the subject of Coroners' duties. " I know," said the Hon. Gentleman," that Coroners ought not to intruda them selves unnecessarily into families ; but I also know that I cannot be too circumspect and careful in the dis charge of my duty as a sworn officer of the Crown, to faithfully watch over the proceedings of my Court. It has been said that Mr. Wakley's charges are less than mine ; but the fact is, that many of the witnesses ex amined before that gentleman arc in good circumstances, and do not, in many eases, take the fee allowed them, whilst in my district the contrary is the case, from the poverty of the parties. In this very parish (continued the Coroner), containing a population of 75,000 per sons, I only held eight inquests in one year. I shall, however, be very happy to fall into any better system than that which I now adopt ; but, depend upon it, the moment you stifle inquiries of this sort, that moment will you open a wide field for the commission of crime. The Coroners' expenses for this large county are, after all, but a small sum in comparison with the amount ex pended in lunatic asylums, &c. In conclusion, I would draw your attention to one most important fact, namely, that the justices who are now finding fault with the extra expenses are the very parties who assisted in placing on a dditional fees." THE BLACKING CONVICTION.—Since our last publication we have been informed that the devout and Pharisaical Mr. Bryan, of Six-hills, who prosecuted his servant boy for cleaning his own boots on Sunday morning, keeps a public-house, and actually has the profanity to sell ale every Sabbath-day, for worldly gain, without scruple or remorse. How this sanctimo nious individual could think, under such circumstances, of proceeding against his servant, will appear strange to some of our readers, though not to us. What his thoughts were on the day in question, as he safely but toned up in his breeches pocket the unhallowed gains of the morning, and duly closing his house according, to law, walked off to Church, and in the plenitude of his self-righteousness, resolved to punish the boy for pre suming to break the Sabbath without his permission, we cannot tell ; but " Bryan's Sabbath Meditations among the Barrels," or his " Soliloquy on the awful sin of disobedience in Servants," would be works of in terest to the public. We have received for the boy 21. 2s. 10(1. ; the punishmmt inflicted by the Magis trates was 40s. and costs.—Leicestershire TILE DUKE OF NORTIIUMBERLAND.—The master mariners of the port of Newcastle, with other admirers of his Grace the Duke of Northumberland for his truly generous support of the many c haritable and other institutions throughout Great Briuin, have re solved to erect a statue to pepetuate the memory of t hat respected Nobleman at Tynernouth. A subscrip tion list has been commenced, and nearly 1001. have a l r eady been subscribed.—Durhain Advertises.. PERSECUTION OF THE FREE LABOURERS IN JAMAICA. (From the Barbadian of August 28.) Six of the labourers concerned in the late riot at Spring-hill had been sentenced at the Quarter Ses sions of the Peace—three to two years' imprison ment in the Kingston House of Correction, and the other three to twenty months ; but a doubt had been raised as to the legality of this sentence, the Kingston House of Correction, being a parochial institution, and not open for the reception of pri soners from other parishes. The Governor, it is said, cannot transfer these convicts to any other prison, so that they are likely, after all, to escape. Without intending to extenuate the offence of these people, who certainly deserve punishment for resisting the process of the law, however satisfied of . . its injustice—we must state here, in undisguised reprobation of the villanous conduct of their supe riors, that they did riot refuse to pay rent, as was lyingly stated by the hireling Press of the colony. They had all paid proper rent--that is the head of every family for the house and ground occupied, and that the levy which they injudiciously resisted, was for rent charged against their wives I I The Colonial Reformer states : The facts appear to be these.—the men had been paying half a dollar per week for rent of house and ground since November last year, and justly supposed this was the full amount that would be claimed. At the eud of six months, however, or rather at the end of twenty-four weeks, a charge was trumped up against the wives, not for house rent, but for rent of grounds, at the rate of is. Bd. per week—this amounted to 40s. on each wife. For this sum the parties were sued at Buff Bay, and judgment okained—by whom awarded we know not ; but by whomsoever, there can be no doubt but that they are morally answerable for all that has hap pened." The case of these people, as regards this villanous exaction, is not a solitary one ; and deprecating, as we do, all resort to physical force in such cases, we repeat, what we have before observed, that it would not he surprising were the whole population of the Colony to rise en masse to resist it. Take the two following cases, which we select from several reported in the Colonial Reformer, and tell us with what reason the Jamaica planters can complain of dissatisfaction and insubordination among the labourers : _.. " George Fleming, the overseer of River Head, brought a charge for rent against Talbot White, a labourer on the estate. The account set forth that three weeks' rent was due for occupation of house and grounds :—for the first week, 3s. 4d. ; for the second week, 3s. 4d. ; but for the third week the sum of 6s. Bd. was charged ! " Mr. Fleming, on being sworn, stated that the de fendant Talbot White is himself rent free, as he works on the estate five days in the week—but the present charge is for rent due by his wife, who has not been working five days in the week according to the rules of the estate! " Alexander Gordon, a head man on the River Head —proved that the wife of the defendant has no ground of her own=that she works her husband's ground— that sometimes she works for the estate four days in the week, and sometimes five, but never steadily— that some time since she sat down, owing to her having pickaniny. " The overseer, Fleming, was here asked by Captain Kent if the people had given their consent to these terms ? in reply he stated that he could not exactly say that they had agreed to them, but they had been told they would be charged so ! " It was shown that the wife was prevented working in the field, during the time so charged, by the sickness of her child !" The Court gave judgment in this case, Captain Kent dissenting. " Margaret Burger was sued for two weeks' rent due to River Head Estate, one at 3s. 4d. the other at 65.8 d., the latter item altered by direction of Mr. Wright to 3s. 4d. " George Fleming, overseer, states that the charge is made against defendant, because she does not work on River Head—she comes from Manheim, a neighbouring estate—has no ground of her own on River Head, but feeds out of the ground of the man she comes to see (that is, her husband) ! " Defendant declares she hrs neither house nor ground on River Head—is a stranger—and only goes there occasionally to see her husband—all her children are on Minheim, where she wis formerly an apprentice. " Captain Kent declared he could not admit the ha bility of defendant to any such charge. But Major Baines and the local Magistrates gave judgment against the defendant !" A labourer on Bushy Park had set fire to and destroyed upwards of two hundred acres of canes. He is said to have been instigated to the perpetra tion of this offence, " out of revenge for his grounds having been destroyed by the estate's cattle, for which he could obtain no redress." The few labourers who happened to be upon the estate at the time (it being Saturday) promptly gave all the assistance in their power to arrest the flames, and but for the interference of the Magistrates and constables on the spot would have taken the pu nishment of the offender into their own hands. ST. KITTS.—The Ist of August was observed here in a manner creditable to the labouring classes. The Advertiser says : " Not a single case of drunkenness or disorderly conduct has been reported on the part of the labourers ; who, for the most part, returned to their work on Fri day morning, and are conducting themselves, so far as we can ascertain, in the most satisfactory manner. It is now, we believe, universally admitted that the hap piest results have flowed from the total abolit i on of slavery,—an admission which speaks higher pr . aises than we can bestow, on the foresight and energetic wisdom of those distinguished individuals und er whose imme diate auspices the grand experiment was determined on,—we allude of course to their Excellencies Sir Wil liam Colebrooks and Sir Henry 111‘Leod." en...IVAA, 71ff TWICI9 CYMREIGYDDION DINNER AT ABEIWAYENNY. The Dinner of the Cymreigyddion-y-Fenni, took place on Wednesday last, and went off with great spirit. Sir Charles Morgan, Bart., presided, supported by Sir Benjamin Hall and Chevalier Bunsen, on his right and left. We observed, at the principal table, Sir James Hamlyn Williams, Esq. ; Philip Jones, Esq. ; Pro fessor Lypsius; J. E. W. Rolls, Esq. ; Johns, Esq. (barrister) ; Rev. J. Price (Carhuanawc) ; Rev. W. Williams (Caled fryn) ; Lieutenant Ernest Bunsen ; M. H. Bunsen ; Parthner, Esq. ; Rev. J. Jones (Tegid) ; Rev. J. Evans; Rev. A. Hughes, &c. &c. The Rev. J. Jones officiated as vice president. The ex cellent Baronet of Tredegar, accompanied by Sir Ben jamin Hall, and a distinguished party, arrived at four o'clock from Llanover, in three carriages. On alight ing, the well-known Per Had, was greeted by the strains of two harpers, placed under the archway of the hotel, who played a welcome, accompanied by that de lightful Cambrian songstress, Morfydd Glan Taff. The room in which the dinner was laid was tastefully deco rated with festoons of laurel, the cypher V. R., com posed of Dahlias, being placed over the president's chair. At 4 o'clock the company sat down to a good dinner consisting of soup and salmon, Welsh mutton and veni son, game and poultry of all sorts, tarts, &c. &c. After the discussion of the dinner, the cloth was removed, and several spirited responses to toasts were delivered. Tue Merlin concludes its report of the proceedings by say ing—" We trust Cymreigyddion Societies may all go on and prosper like the Cymreigyddion-y-Fenni, where the innocent and laudable desire of keeping up and en couraging the good remains of old Wales ;—whether music, or poetry, or woollen manufactures, brings to gether such a party of the good and the rich, and the high and the humble, as we saw dining together, under Sir Charles Morgan's auspices, at this festival, where the reverse of public dinners, on ordinary occasions, was seen where persons meet to eat, but here they dined- to meet, and the dinner, good as it was, was quite second ary to the excellent spirit, mirth and animation that pervaded every individual, where much was said, but little drunk, and every man felt in harmony with his neighbour. May such a spirit, and these interests, long continue to bless Gwent and Morganwg. The proposition made by M. de Tiny to the Chamber of Deputies, towards the close of last session, relative to the abolition of slavery, , was referral to a 1 Committee, of which M. de o queville was reporter. The report could not be got ready . before the Chambers were prorogued, and the conclu , sions come t o by t h e Committee have remained hitherto unknow n . Th e followin g , however, are now circulated a s th e resolu tions adopted:--1. In the session of 1841 a Bill s h a ll be brought in for fix in g the period at which there shall be a general and simultaneous abolition of sl avery i n all the French colonies. 2. This Bill shall d ec l are the amou nt of the indemnities due in consequence of the measure, and ensure the reimbursement to the State, by means of a charge upon the wages of the new-enfran chised slaves. 3. The Bill shall also lay down the bases of r egulations for insurin g a cont i nuance of labour by the enfranchised slaves, fcr enlightening and moralising them, and preparing them for habits of free labour. MEETING OP PARLIAMENT.—Some appre hensions existed three weeks ago that Parliunent might be assembled in November to legislate on the currency question, but the improved prospects of the harvest seem to have put to rest the fear of a resort to one and two pound notes, as well as to an'inconvertible paper currency, and we have reason to believe that the next Session will not open till February.--Leeds Mercury. NEWLY-INVENTED LIFE-BUOY. (From a Correspcndent of the Times.) We have at all times great pleasure in being the channel of communication to the public of disco veries or inventions calculated to lead to the happi ness or to relieve the sufferings of our fellow-men ; and in this spirit we have on many occasions called the attention of such of our readers as reside at those parts of our sea coast which are the scenes.of frequent shipwreck to the importance of Captain Alanby's apparatus for saving the lives of mariners. It is not, however, of that admirable contrivance that we wish now to speak, for indeed its merits are sufficiently known, but to a very clever invention of Captain Henvey, of the Royal Navy, which, if used along with Captain Manby's, may be of the greatest service. It is a life-buoy of the simplest but most efficacious description, and one which, as we have been assured by competent authority, has already proved useful in practice. This life-buoy consists of a light wooden frame, and in shape of a horse-shoe, but sufficiently wide to admit of a man's body, and rendered buoyant by plates and discs of cork attached to it. The hinder pert is open, but the front is fashioned into the shape of a beak, for more readily cutting the water. The ‘‘ Lincolnshire Association for the Pre servation of Lives in Shipwreck," whose exertions in this benevolent cause . have already been the inerns of saving so many seamen from a watery grave, having satisfied themselves of the utility of 'Captain Henvey's invention by trying one which that officer presented to them, lost no time in or dering three more ; and we understand they have it in contemplation to combine the use of these life-buoys with Captain Manby's apparatus, in 'such a way that the lives of mariners, and of passen gers on board stranded ships, they hope, may be saved, when, by all the means heretofore used, nothing could be done to relieve them. A word or two will make this plain. By means of Captain Manby's apparatus, a cord attached to a shell, forced from a howitzer, is thrown over the wreck, and then the crew, by getting hold of the cord, are generally enabled to pull a boat to them from the shore. But cases sometimes occur in which the ship is so placed, or the sea is so high, that the boat is either swamped or dashed to pieces ; the night closes in upon the sufferers, and all perish. Now it seems quite possible that in many cases, where no boat could live, a series of Captain Henvey's life-buoys might be drawn off and made use of in succession till every person w as re moved from the wreck. Cases, too, not unfre quently occur in which the life-boat from the shore is enabled to get within a few yards of the ship , but, owing to the agitation of the water in the inter vening space, both crew and passengers are los t in the attempt to traverse this fatal gulf. It has bee n suggested, and we speak professionally when we say there is good ground for the hope, that by help of Captain Henvey's life-buoys many p e rsons might be saved who would otherwis e be drowned in li attempting to reach a boat so circumstanced. f e- It has also been sugges t e d t o us that these buoys might with ad van t age t o the ca use of bn ina. nity, be carried onboard all coasters and other s vessels in winter when most exposed to shipwreck. But we confess we are not prepared to go a long with this suggestion ; not but what a life buoy mus t be useful in such cases, but the chances of ship wreck are so exceedingly small, and the cast of a sailor's mind so essentially improvident, that we should feel utterly hopeless of any attempt made to induce either him or his captain or his owner 10 provide his vessel with any such apparatus. It is a very different affair, however , to work on the good sense and benevolent feelings of those. public spirited institutions, the professed object of which is to provide a means of escape for those who certainly will never dream of providing such means for themselves, but who, nevertheless. have very strong claims on our sympathy. For the rest, it is but justice to Captain Henvey to say, that his motives in this matter are quite pure—that he has not descended to the quackery of a patent for his invention, and that lie generously offers to explain its principle to any persons interested in such mat ters; or, if it be wished, he will have any number that may be required constructed, and tried under his own eye, at such cost as will jus t cover th e expenses. Captain Henvey resides in Guernsey, I A w e are and a post-paid letter so addressed wo uiu, that well assured, meet with every attention fro m ingenious and generous officer. SUMMARY OF MATHEWS' ACCIDENTS. There seemed indeed a fatality attending all inY husband's movements from home. How many severe and dangerous accidents did he encounter in the c ourse of his life! First in Ireland, in 1794, he was almost drowned, (I might almost say actually, for he suffered all the pains of such a death,) and was taken out of the water in a state of total insensibility. In 1801 a heavy platform fell upon him while acting. and he was taken off the stage as dead. In 1803 he was violently thrown from his horse at a review, and was threatened with dangerous consequences ever after. In 1807, on shooting-party, his gun burst and shattered his hand , and he was many weeks after under a surgeon s care. ' In 1814 he was thrown out of his tilbury , an d become lame for life. In 1817 another horse fell going down a steep bill in a tilbury, and Mr. Mathews was t hrown over the animal's head, and severely cut and bruis ed. In 1827, while in a floating-bath at Brighton, the " life-preserver" turned round and forced him upon his face, in which position he must have been suffocated had not a gentleman witnessed the accident, and rescued him from his danger. In the year 1829 the roller of the drop-scene on the Plymouth stage fall upon his head while " At Home" there, and he was taken up to all appearane dead, and remained many minutes in a state of insensibility. Four years after this, precisely the same accident occured at the Devonport Theatre, and with the same results. In 1833, while returning from an evening walk, a large dog ran between his legs, and knocked him down with a violent shock. The acci dent again placed him under a surgeon's hands. few weeks after, while recovering from his hurt, an ther dog threw him off a garden-seat, and painfully in jured his hand and wrist.—Lifr of Mathews. SINGULAR APPLICATION.—On Monday " W widow of a man named Moses Pasfield, who was trans' ported to Van Diemen's land about eight years since: applied to the Chelmsford Magistrates to be permitt.,a to swear an affidavit that she was the convict's •wife' The woman said that she had received a letter froul to Andrew Jolemy, Esq., of the above-named colony, whom her husband had been assigned on his landingd there, to say that by his good conduct he ha d acquire fifty acres of land, which he had farmed during t he time he was alive, and that on his death he had left will bequeathing property to the amount of u pwards 0 _ 300/. to his wife, which Mr. Jolemy wo uld send 01ei to her on his being assured that she wa s now alive. The affidavit was, of course, permitted to be sworn. Essex Herald -- wo od POWERFUL MUSICAL BOXES, in Iv aili , cases, 12 inches lOng by five inches wide, each playing four r ar o with the mechanism finished in a very sup erior manne 'sgoe offered for Five Guineas each. Also a few of the description, larger sizes, at the following prices:— Six Airs £7 70 1 Eight Airs extra, 14 0 Eight Airs ... 8 1 8 6 large ... ......... Xl4 4 , 4 0 Three Overtures.. I'Gold_ At T. COX SAVORY'S, Working Silversm t, D o ors smith, and Watchmaker, 47, Cornhill, London (Seven from Gracechurch-street). .00° N. 13. The small Musical Boxes, 34 inches long, c shell selling in tin cases, price 19s. each, or in cowl:J( ol6°u , cases 255. each. be h" A ' Catalogue containing a Li s t o f th e Music ni a l a nswe r gratis, or can be forwarded by p os t as a s ingle letter In a tea post-paid application. ___—, __.... BIRTHS. On the 13th in s t., a t Vinters, in Kent, the lady o f Charles James Whatman, Esq., of a son, still-born. 'grs• On the Gth inst., at the Vicarage, Chievely, Berke, E. Robinson, of a son. ds, ar On the Ilth inst., a t B e df or d-row, ME.• H • Edw a son. On the 12th i ns t., at Gower-street, Bedford-square, th e 144 of William Weld Wren, jun., Esq., of a daughter. _ f j o nrY On the 12th inst., at St. John's-wood, the lady 0' Young Hulbert, Esq., of a son. MARIED. On the 10th inst., at Beauma ß Wa ris, les, Hugh Beaver,tctf of Glyrigarth, Anglesea, to Isabella Janet , third daug.6lllietrierure) Sir Duncan Campbell, Bart ., of Barialdiu e and Argyleshire. lED. On the 11th inst., Mary D , the wife of William Hooper, of Finchley. 4 HoOlunortnh,em4atnhyiynesta.r,s aMmr.emWbiellriaomf thWeilLliaomndso,nopfrCetsrss.tle-street, late of On the sth inst., at Hastings, Miss Mary Page, Stafford-row, Bucking ham- g ate. at a ver 1 On the 7th inst. , at Rathmines, near Dublin, y_ ad. eg van ced age, Captain Festus Kelly, formerly of the Oth H me nt of Foot. On the 7th inst., in the prime of life, Samuel under"' , of Morton, near Gainsborough. wife On the 10th inst., at St. John's-wood, Charlotte, the, 36. of On the Criehlow, Esq., of the Island of Barbadoes, age' 1 On the 11th inst., Louisa Dorothea, youngest daughter: T. C. Whitmore, Esq., N.Y., aged one year and eight rnont On the 11th inst., at Stamford-hill, Mrs. Elizabeth Hrden' aged b 2. On the 11th inst., Ann, the wife of Mr. Richard Moser , ° f Iligh-street, Southwark, agekl 47. OVN G ' " London: Printed and Published by AIURDO i n the No. 11 2 , St rand, at The Sun Office, No 112, Strr' county of Middlosex.—Tuesday. October lb, i 1