The Sun. — London, England, 1868-12-21 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS, In commenting on the full text of the President's Message, the Times remarks that the extraordinary announcement that the Senate had refund to allow the President's Message to be read assumes a different cna• racter when the real circumstances of the case are explained ; and the resolution affirmed by the House of Representatives, protesting against repudiation in any form, far from being an idle assertion of the honesty which men of honour could not suppose would be impugned, was, though vague in expression, yet a justifiable, we may almost say a necessary, reply on the p art of the Legisla ture to the sentiments which had been addressed to them. The Message, it is explained, was read to an end in the House of Representatives. In the Senate it was partly read, but as the whole Message was a bitter attack upon both branches of the American Legislature, it was moved, after listening to the greatar patt of it, that the further reading of the Message should be dispensed with. More moderate counsels, however, prevailed. Mr. Wilson, of Massachusetts, one of the strongest Republicans in the Senate, confessed that he thought the Message " dis respectful and untruthful, and the acrid outpouring Of a disappointed bad man ; . . but he was still the President of the United States, and had Bent in his annual Message, and it would be better to read it." This sound advice was so well received that the mover of the resolution for dispensing with the reading of the rest of the Message asked leave to withdraw his motion, and it would have been withdrawn bad not Mr. Cameron, Mr. Lincoln's War Secretary, revived the flame. A fresh debate ensued, until at last a senator suggested that business would be facilitated by an adjournment, which he proceeded to move, and his motion was carried by 2G to 22. In regard to President Johnson's views on the subject of the national debt, as given• in the text, it is remarked that it would only be but charitable to suppose that the Presi. dent did not understand what he was writing ; indeed, if he did, why did he stop half way? Let us imagine a person who holds a bond of the United States for 1,000 dollars. It is an obligation to pay the bolder 1,000 dollars at the end of twenty years from the date of its issue, and in the meanwhile 6 per cent., or sixty dollars, in gold annually for interest. Mr. Johnson tells this person that he has already received a larger amcunt than was originally given for the bond ; and if the holder were to reply that he bad only bought the bond a day before, the President would, perhaps, rejoin that it was so much the worse for him, but that some one had received from the United States in respect of the bond more than had been originally given for it, The Post remarks that the first cannon shot fired in anger in the East has fortunately led to no imme diate disaster, and it is yet permitted to us to hope that peace may be maintained. Hobart Pasha having folk, across the Enosis, surprised her flagrante delicto in armet blockade running. She not only paid no attention to hit signals, but actually fired into him, and then, availing herself of her exceptional speed, sought safety in the harbour of Syra. Here the Turkish admiral blockaded her, and, being heavily reinforced, he might have claimed her surrender or laid the town in ruins; but on the arrival of a Greek frigate, accompanied by a French vessel, negotiations were entered into, and Hobart Pasha, very wisely and diplomatically preferring to appeal to international law rather than proceed to violent action, however justifiable, permitted the Enosis to be convoyed to the Piraeus, there to await the result of judicial investigation by an impartial tribunal. Speaking of the cause, or causes of the quarrel, the Post goes on to say that some will have it that the Porte is the catspaw of Count von Beust, who, later, is to plunder Turkey of the Dantr bian provinces. Others see in the whole affair the direct and obvious action of Count Bismarck, who is, of course, at the bottom of every plot ; and others, again, still more wise, recognise the handiwork of Napoleon, anti argue elaborately that the volcanic movement in the East may serve as a pretext for an eruption on the Rhine. Prussia, however, It is asserted, has nothing whatever to do with the quarrel, and Napoleon, also, is exonerated from all blame in the disturbance, which is said to arise solely from the restlessness of the Greeks. The Star cites the Maniteur as the authority for the report that the difficultyis to end peacefully, but goes on to state that Turkey and Greece are still at arm's length, or at ultimatum's length, and the Great Powers who, we are assured, are united in their efforts to conciliate, have to accommodate a difference, of which this little sea fracas is only a first and small result. In defence of the rule that members accepting office under the Crown ought to seek the approval of their con stituencies, the Telegranb lIU VW - OW(1 (Ind Irnu cols ancient safeguard of the English common weal are either cunning or ill-informed. Such people are ignorant of the circumstances which have occurred in the past to make this proceeding no vain precaution—and equally ignorant of the combinations and political incidents which might render it a happy barrier to abuse in future. But they are cunning —and cunning in a very sinister way— if, knowing enough of the past to forecast the future, they secretly desire to rob the people of a power which might prove to possess incalculable value at critical times. The result of the appeal at the present crisis is known beforehand, and Ministers are promised a cheap and easy return. The Standard is very sore on the score of Lord Mayo's and Colonel Wetherall's fitness for office being disputed, and gives some severe strictures on the comments of the Liberal papers. It is remarked that Lord Mayo and Colonel Wetherall are to be disqualified because their political opinions are not those of the Ministry which is in rower. As to the public interests, they cannot have Buttered, for the best of all reasons, because neither of the two officers have had an opportunity of proving either useful or useless in their respective offices. They can only be unfit because of a foregone conclusion formed by their political adversaries of their unfitness. But the force of this dis qualification depends altogether upon the justice or other wise of that opinion. It is probable that Mr. Gladstone thinks himself a better judge of what is best for the country than Mr. Disraeli—that the Duke of Argyll is convinced that he knows more about India than the Earl of Mayo. But this is only an opinion, after all, of . the parties chiefly concerned in giving it. In an ablpwritten article on the dangers of the season the Daily News remarks : There are certain classes to whom the season of Christmas and other holiday periods are times of considerable risk as well as of enjoyment. The pleasures of the poor are not unattended with draw backs almost as compensatory as those of the rich, and Brown, the carpenter, who exceeds upon gin and goose in the bosom of his family on the 25th of December, and who may get drunk on boxing-night, is made to feel the bitterness of dissipation as keenly as the revellers at the West-endwho mqy be induced to make nights of it during this festive week. But the greatest danger, it is pointed out, besets the class of •milliners and ahoprls who have leisure at this season, and who seek for excitement. It points out that Christmas is the time during which the flirting toilliters are brought nearest the verge of destruction. The theatres are tempting, even the Music-halls possess attractions, and these girls desire not only the delights of theatre or music hall, but the companionship of men who can pay for their admission and treat them to a better style of conver sation than the wearisome vulgarity of the cad from the counter. - The Heralel says the annual report of Colonel Hender son, the Inspector-General of Military Hospitals, for the year 1867 presents us, we regret to say, with a very unsatisfactory account of the state of crime in our army. Drunkenness, with insubordination arising from it, and desertion, which in most cases may be attributed to over indulgence in the use of spirituous liquors, appear to be the principal causes for which soldiers are subjected to punish- m ent ; and the statistics embodied in the report bring to notice some facts of a very unaccountable nature, which are well worthy of a special and minute inN estigation. The aggre gate number of committals to the military prisons, which amounted in 1859 to 6,343, in a force composed of 105,245 Men, are returned as 5,666 in a force of 80,907 men in 1863 ; and in 1867 they had reached by gradual progression to 6;674 in a force of 83,231 men. Army reformers will not be cheered by the causes assigned for this increase of crime, for it goes on to say that there can be but little doubt that this remarkable increase of crime may be attributed to the a dd i tional means which the augmented pay affords the soldier of indulging in his vicious propensities, as well as to the total abolition of corporal punishment, which acted as a far more powerful deterrent from misconduct than imprisonment, which is regarded by the more depraved as but an agreeable release from the performance of duty. SCIUn Mdlle. Sehno:der is going to Egypt! Not fewer than 7,000 fellabs are engaged in building a theatre on the Esbekich, opp4liite to Sliepperd's Hotel, at Cairo. The teinple will soon be reared, and Mane. F'chneiderwill then salty forth t , )resnnie Cleopatra's sceptre. She is to reeeivt, .t 2,0 0 for fifteen representa tions, a subvention of 1.!5,0‘,:0, and carte blanche for the engagement of a troupe. SAINTLY —Of all the objectionable forms of sentimentality, the following is one of the most nauseous examples. A certain lady orator, in enumerating the good deeds of a teetotal convert, an artilleryman in the Crirman war, stated that, while serving his guns under fire, " his heart was full of peace and joy." This is thus commented on by a writer in the Saturday Review: — "The notion of a gunner getting a good 'lay-on' with his piece at a dense column of Russians, and feeling his heart full of 'peace' and `joy' as he mowed them down, is pro , bably unique among the records of Christian heroism." CTEreER POLICE CAPTURE AT SHEFFIELD. In Sheffield a very clever capture has been made of a notorious character named John Moore, who had been long suspected by the police, but whom they had failed hezetofore, with all their efforts, to bring within the grasp of the law. For some time he carried on business in Broad-lane, ostensibly as a dealer in earthenware, but in reality as a dealer in spurious coin, many of the "smashers " who purchased from him being detected and punished. It was shrewdly suspected that he also acted as a "fence," and, in fact, he was much " wanted " by the police. Acting on " information he had received," Detective Officer Carswell hunted out the suspected criminal, and found him residing in a court at Redhill. On entering the place it did not at first seem likely that the officers would find any proofs to criminate the wily rogue, but on mere chance Detective Carswell opened an oven door and dis covered two moulds for casting counterfeit coin. In a moment he had the handcuffs on Moore's wrists, and the search that was immediately made will furnish proof enough to stop the rogue's career for some time at least. Such, at any rate, seems to be the criminal's own view of the case, for he remarked that he was "done for at last." LAW AND POLICE. ARSON. —A somewhat singular case of arson was tried on Saturday at Maidstone Assizes. A youth, named Saunders, aged 17, had been in a training ship at Greenhithe, and having had a few days' leave of absence returned to his old bad companions, sold his clothes, and commenced wandering about the country. In a half-starved and desperate condition he craved food at a farmer's near Maidstone, and on being refused, avenged himself by setting a light to a waggonfull of wheat left by the harvesters ready to be carried. The waggon and corn were wholly consumed. The prisoner received an excellent character from the captain of the training•ship, but Judge Channel sentenced him to seven years' penal servitude. PROBATE.—The protracted will case, Hunt and another v, Anderson, which has occupied the Court of Probate for so many days, was brought to a conclusion on Saturday. The jury intimated that they had heard sufficient evidence on the issues before them, and a verdict was taken for the defendant, on the ground of the incapacity of the tes tator, the pleas of undue influence and fraud having been withdrawn. The Queen is about to clothe Mr. Digby Wyatt with the honours of knighthood. Two more election petitions were presented at Dublin on Friday—one against the return of Mr. Weguelin for Youghal; the other against tho return of Mr. O'Beirne for Cashel. Bribery and treating are alleged in both in stances. In tho case of Cashel, tho petitioner, Mr. Mun ster, the defeated candidate, claims the seat for himself. As the Charleville and Kilwallock police were scouring a district of the country round the latter town a night or so ago, " in search of Fenians reported to be drill ing,' the pistol of one of the policemen accidentally want off and shot a comrade who was crossing in front of him at the moment. The Weekly Register has authority to deny the statement that unexpected difficulties have presented them selves respecting the Catholic cathedral in Westminster, and that the project is likely to bo abandoned for the present.' The site for the cathedral has been secured, and the Arch b'shop's house, as well as the schools, will be commenced upon soon after the new year. A man has been apprehenLd on suspicion of being the murderer of Annie Houghton. A number of col liers employed in a mine near the Ackhurst-hill farm (the scene of the tragedy) have boon brought into the presence of the surviving girl, Catherine, and sho identified one of those men as the murderer of her sister. He was at once taken into custody. At the Liverpool Assizes, on Friday, a collier's widow recovered £lOO damages for herself, and £5O each for her two children, for the loss of her husband, who was killed by the negligence of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway Company, in not fencing a a part of their lino near Chorley, whereby ho and a horse belonging to his father-in-law were killed. At a meeting lately at Ripon, under the presi dency of the Bishop of the diocese, to consider the best mode of providing a permanent memorial of the late Archbishop Longley, who for twenty years presided over the diocese of IL was resolved to place a winnow ,n the west front of the cathedral, end a subscription was entered into to de• fray the cot It is s'Ated that marriages have been arranged be tween Mr, George Stewart Forbes, son of Sir Charles Forbes, of Newe, and 111.1a3 Dudley Ward, daughter of the lion. Mr. ncl Mrs. Dudley Ward, and niece of the Earl of Dudley; tween Lord Ernest Vane Tempest, second son of the Marquis of Londonderry, snd Miss Maly Towns •.:end Hutchinson, second daughter of Mr. Thomas ilutchin- The police have succeeded in discovering more of the missing property which, it is alleged, the prisoner Thomas Searle has stolen from the Rotherham Post office. Amongst the articles found in his lodgings were sc me microscope•, magnifying glasses, and a large quantity of pill boxes, &c. Several parsons have applied at the Rotherham Police-office and identified some of the property. THE STICKNEY MURDERESS.—We hear that the female prisoner, Priscilla Biggadike, has conducted herself with great decorum since the trial, though there are as yet but few symptoms of penitence. On being informed by the governor of the Castle that Monday, the 28th inst., woald be the day of her execution, she merely expressed surprise at its being so soon, and that so short a time was left her.—Lincoln Mercury. The attendance at the funeral of the Rev. Dr. Cooke at Belfast was very large. The procession extended to a length of two miles. Nearly all the publio boards and institutions of the town were remounted. Every religious denomination took part in the ceremony. The pall bearers were the Mayor of Belfast, the Lord Primate, the Bishop of Down and Connor, Mr. M'Clure, M.P., Mr. John ston, M.P., and Mr. O'Neill, M.P. The shops were closed, and business was almost wholly suspended. MR. BRIGHT ON THE WINE DRINKING HABITS OF LADIES.—At a meeting of the United Kingdom Band of Hope Union, Mr. Whitbread, M.P., said he travelled a few days since with the President of the Board of Trade (Mr. Bright) by rail, and the right hon. gentleman, speak. ing of the temperance movement, and his own attachment to it, said he felt certain it would make great progress in the country. Mr. Bright said he found that ladies took a great deal more drink than they ought. "I am shocked," said Mr. Bright, "to see the excessive use of wine by ladies." - TEE FIGHTING WOMEN OF ZENANA. —lite woman's rights movement seems to have extended itself in a very inconvenient manner to the farthest East, So at least the unlucky Rajah of ;feypore must be of opinion. There has occurred of late so much insubordination among the female members of his family that he found it necessary to put a special guardian over them, by name Futteh Singh. This man kept a strict watch upon the doors, and otherwise was so industrious in the performance of his duty, and placed so many restrictions on personal freedom, that he raised a rebellion among the gentle recluses. One day they all set upon him, gave him a "good beating," abused him to their hearts' content, and wound up with breaking one of his arms. There were two thousand women attacking him all at once. Poor Singh! TRIFLING WITH CHLOROFORM.--Another case of death produced by the self-administration of chloroform for the relief of pain has been reported in the daily papers. It has now often happened that persons have inhaled chloroform after' having laid themselves down in bed, and have died, not from the direct effects of the anaesthetic, but from suffocation, due to the position assumed during anaesthesia. It cannot be too strongly impressed upon the public that the self-use of chloroform must always be highly dangerous, and can scarcely ever be justifiable. We fear that a custom has sprung up of permitting patients labouring under painful diseases of an intermittent kind to take chloroform when paroxysms occur ; and we would strongly urge that the dangers of such a practice are too great to be incurred on account of any considerations of convenience.—The La ncet. IMPERIAL VISIT TO QUEEN ISABELLA. The Emperor, Empress, and Prince Imperial of France paid a visit on Friday to Queen Isabella at the Hotel du Pavillon do Rohn. About three o'clock their Majesties arrived, ac::ortipanied by two chamberlains and as many ladies 4,f honour. At the foot .of the staircase the Queen, King-Consort, and Prince of the Asturias, with their suites, received the august visitors. Th e whole party at once proceeded to the Spanish apart ments, the King giving his arm to the Empress, Napoleon 111. to the Queen, and the two Princes behind. The visit lasted about three-quarters of an hour. On the Emperor and Empress withdrawing, the Spanish sovereigns conducted their visitors to the bottom of the staircase. When half-way down, his Majesty of France stopped, and said to the Queen, "I beseech you to come no further." But her Majesty insisted, and even went to the door of the imperial carriage. Then the Empress suddenly advanced to the Queen, and, embracing her, said, "A Dios, mia cara amiga 1" Shortly after tho Spanish party returned the vita at the Tuileries.— Galignani. riflE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, DECEMRO' MISCELLANEOUS NEWS. THE ADMIRALTY. The change of Government has thrown the Admiralty into quite a muddle. When Mr. Disraeli resigned Sir John Pakington was making arrange ments with regard to the head of the Arsenal and the new Ordnance Select Committee. These arrange ments are now all likely to fall through. And the new Government have set themselves to work to re model the department. According to the Army and Nary Gazette the arrangements for the reconstruction of the Admiralty are not yet finally completed. The board as at present shadowed forth will consist of Mr. Childers, M.P. ; Vice-Admiral Sir Sidney C. Dacres, Senior Sea Lord ; Vice-Admiral Sir R. S. Robinson, Second Sea Lord ; Lord John Hay, Third Sea Lord; and Mr. Baxter, M.P., as Secretary. There will be a fourth lord, usually termed " civil,' and Mr. Romaine will continue to act as Second Secretary. The Gazette does not appear to have heard that Mr. George Otto Trevelyan has been appointed Junior Lord of the Admiralty. But though Sir John was interrupted in his arrangements, he had evidently never anticipated having to present the estimates to the House. The preparation for these is generally begun early in November. But what with the elections and " other considerations," he never commenced the estimates at all. TheA).nly and Navy Gazette on this subject remarks: " Mr. Cardwell and his assistants will have hard work to make up for lost time as regards the prepara tion of the ordinary estimates, without bringing about the great and difficult changes indicated by club rumours. These statements, consequently, rest only on conjectures as to the course which will probably be taken by the new occupants of the War Office." every case without except ._nro juries who tried the Fenian prisoners in Ire Roman Catholics, princiyallv of tly. • ..—, were ion—the majority I_ - .._. middle class—a of t : 4O 1 strong proof that Fern_fn .`• 18 7, Alan never any hold on the portion of the Irish c om m un ity. fill t e t n is tia3 very class of the commu n ity that is now inost prominent in petitioning for th e re l ease o f r ß e u a t lly i,t il the meii whom their former verdicts condemned, and it may from this be inferred that they no longer entertain the smallest dread of the Brotherhood—a sentiment that must be now be pretty general throughout Britain. _,., 21, IE6B. THE WRECK OF THE HIBERNIA. (From the Anylo-American Times.) The loss of one of thegreat passenger steamersply ing between New York and Great Britain is an event too important, touching us too nearly, to pass un noticed. The Hibernia of the Anchor line left New York, Nov. 14, for Glasgow, with 74 pas sengers and a crew of 59. On the 24th she was within seven hundred miles of Ireland, and la bouring in a heavy gale when the accident happened, which sealed her doom. The shaft of the screw broke, while the screw hung on and beat in the stern posts, making a leak so for midable that it was found impossible to keep the ship afloat. Next morning when the day broke there were ten feet of water in the hold, and as the ship was gradually settling down—the boats—five in number—were lowerel, which was done by orders. Officers and seamen were told off to each boat, and the passengers divided amongst them. The boats were provisioned and supplied with fresh water, and a few minutes after seven o'clock they pushed off from the sinking ship. Ten minutes later the Hibernia went down, stern foremost, and the heavily laden boats were left alone on the ocean. With one, the struggle was soon over, for in a few minutes after, the boat under the command of the chief mate capsized, and 33 persons were drowned before the eyes of the others, who were help less to assist. In the evening, the captain's boat, in a very leaky condition, was picked up by the Star of Hope on her way from Quebec to Aberdeen. Her captain appears to have acted cre ditably, for she was kept cruising 30 hours to find the missing boats, and of the three unaccounted for she was successful in picking one. Of the remaining two but one reached the coast of Donegal, with three survivors, under Mr. Davies, the second officer. It requires no great effort of imagination to depict the horrors suffered by these unfortunate persons thus drifting in mid-winter for hundreds of miles over a stormy ocean to be cast on the shores of Ire ' land. On the day the ship sank two of the passen gers jumped overboard, and thus perished. Next day another died, and on that following, two women and three children. The boat afterwards capsized, and sixteen others were drowned. For four hours she lay bottom upwards, when the three sur vivors managed to turn her over and get in again. These few words convey a very in adequate idea of the horrors endured. • Ship wreck assumes different aspects ; there is the hurl ashore on the crest of huge breakers—the seething, maddened sea leaping in foam, and dash ing with a violence nature only can withstand on the rock-bound coast—then there is a cry, and amidst the smash all life is gone, save, perhaps, that of some stranded wretch cast like a chip on the beach, and left insensible by the receding side. That is the battle of shipwreck—short, sharp, and decisive ; dying in the whirl of excitement, and with the imagination fascinated by the horrors of the scene. But far more agonizing is the great ship in mid ocean hopelessly sinking with her living burden. Even the struggle to avoid the land can scarcely equal the yearning for a look on earth in the hearts of those thus doomed to a grave which forbids even the chance of being thrown ashore for Christian burial. Around is the endless line of the tossing wa ters, without a living thing to break it save perhaps the sea-bird's wing, while inch by inch the vessel sinks, the last moments allotted now seeming to fly, now hang in unutterable sloth. There is some thing unspeakably awful in thus waiting for a sure doom, this drawing on of fate, hour by hour, while the vessel rolls and plunges; the sea and the appear ance of the ship little marking the change. 'The gay transport has become the sepulchre, and the fellow-passengers, separated from mankind, are now numbered among the dead within this tomb, while yet in health. There is none of the strife for life when the heart in its excitement battles against its end, the imagination not being racked by a full, long, and horrified gaze on death; it is a dull, leaden, crushing attempt at passive resignation, realizing in all its amplitude that one word—Despair. Out of ten men three cannot endure it, and BYRON never wrote a truer couplet than this in describing the shipwreck of Don Juan— " And some jumped overboard with dreadful yell, As eager to anticipate their grave." In the London it is said passengers loaded their re volvers, though we know not if they used them ; many, rush into drunkenness ; others, unable to stand the mental strain, break into madness; most endeavour to make their peace with GOD, but not a few burst into imprecations in the bitterness of their hearts, and die raving against their CREATO R. On board the Evening Star the scene described was marvellous ; the cabins became strewn with the finery on which the hearts of the unfortunate women then bound to New Orleans were set, and they decorated themselves, heaping on their jewellery, as if in caricature of the occasion. The imagination more readily pictures the suffering when the ship is dashed to pieces on the rocks than the ship slowly sinking at sea; yet, it is the short, sharp death against death by slow torture. It is true that the boats remain.; and sometimes, though not in the in stance of the London, there is still a struggle for life, with hope yet in Pandora's box. Supposing, as was the case with the Hibernia, the ocean permitted the launching of these craft, those only who know can tell the horrors which follow even the successful opera tion. There is the cockle-shell dancing on the spray, below the huge water-logged, heavily rolling ship, now cast up to the davits, then far beneath, now driven on with a surging wave till jerked back by the painter, then crashing into the ship's side, threatening in her mad, restless action annihilation to herself. The passengers get in and the ship sinks in a few minutes, as did the Hibernia—then, let our readers try to picture what the position is. The world appears to have sunk with the vessel. All eyes till then rested on the great object which can alone attract them. For a moment she steadies, then lurches heavily astern, down goes the poop and up rises the bows, as if making a last appeal to HEAVEN, and in a moment more, the boats are all alone on the wide, wide sea. Perhaps some may think who have often traversed the ocean that they can conceive the position, that they can in a certain degree realize the thoughts, but the change from a great ship to an open boat in a storm on the Atlantic can only be known to those who have experienced it. Now, the passengers are looking abroad from the crest of a wave with the round line of the horizon near them on every side, and they gaze over nothing but a tossing, angry, and jumbled sea. A moment more, they seem about to be en ' gulphed, for the water on all sides is toppling over them; before, a big wave is rolling swiftly away, be hind a big wave is rolling swiftly up—to the right is an irregularity on the one before or the one behind, with a similar projection to the left, giving the im pression that the boat is in a hollow, an ocean lake encircled with sea mountains, a notion scarcely to be dispelled that the water is closing to swallow all up. There is a noise of a falling mass from the jerked-up wave, which turns brilliantly green'as its ridge curls between them and the sky, and on rushes the billow, leaving behind a seething white creamy foam; again they are on the rushing crest, the sea all white around, and spray dashing in drenching showers, with green water leaping over the gun wales as it hurries by, the dull monotonous wash, be ing incessantly heard of that already shipped. But however awful without, the case is ever worse within the boat. Women and children lie huddled at the bottom, the rain falls in bitterly cold showers, and the salt sea is splashed in bucketsful over them. Then arise the wailing of the young, the moans of the old, and a leaden despair is stamped on every face. Literally it is leaden, for the countenance assumes another complexion as well as another expression. 'I here is the change from irritation into madness, and a maniac threatens instant destruction to the fra'l craft. There is the cry for water, the irresist ible attraction to drink of the sea, the recoil from the salt ; and that greatest of agonies, the thirst which makes men mad before they die. Then the strong contrast, as if some had the nature of angels, and others that of fiends; self-abnegation in its noblest form, and selfishness in its vilest shape. Can we wonder in such a scene that despair enters the heart; and resigning the last hope, men jump over board, eager to anticipate their fate, unable to with stand t he longing for the crisis—Lost! or Saved! We give this slight sketch not to excite sensational emo tions, but to awaken people to a terrible reality. The sentence pronounced on the passengers and crew of the Hibernia, many, to an agonizing death—all to great loss and suffering—might first have been pre vented ; next, mitigated. A water-tight bulk head near the sternposts where such an accident is likely to occur would have saved the ship from sinking ; and where passengers have to taketo boats, STONER'S Life-preserving Apparatus is the true resource—the old plan which worked so badly in the case of the Hibernia being really obsolete, for though these boats answer for harbour purposes, they are next to worthless at sea for saving a crew. THE FOREIGN CARRYING ?RADE OF AMERICA. We have to thank the Hon. FREEMAN 11. MORSE, United States Consul at London, for a copy of his Report on the Mercantile Marine and Commercial Policy of Great Britain, to which we alluded in our last issue, though we confine our remarks to its bearing on the United States. This paper, dated Jan. 1, 1868, was furnished to Congress in answer to a resolution of the House of Representatives, and ordered to be published. The statistics have been gathered with great industry, and the remarks are conceived in a fair spirit, the conclusions being justified by the facts submitted. Although Mr. MORSE is evidently impressed with the effect on the shipbuilding of his country—of the change in ma terial from wood to iron—yet he attributes the marked decline to the privateers, " which should have been outlawed by all maritime States instead of being protected by some of the most powerful." The total tonnage of all maritime nations, sail and steam, he estimates in 1861 to have been 17,235,949, of which 5,539,813 belonged to the United States, 5,895,369 to Great Britain. and 5,800,767 to all other nations. This showed the English to own rather more than a third, the United States rather less than a third, and all other maritime nations about a third. The United States employed 2,642,683 of their tonnage in international traffic, and Great Britain 3,179,628. In 1865, although the coasting ton nage of the American marine had considerably in creased, the registered tonnage employed in the in ternational trade had fallen to 1,602,525, being a loss of 10 per cent., which Mr. MORSE attributes, mainly to the devastation of the privateers. In the same period the British tonnage engaged in the foreign carrying trade bad increased to 4,500,000, and this disproportion continues and even increases to this date. It is interesting to trace in this able paper the rise, the cause and the course of the Ameri can Foreign Carrying Trade, and the action thereon of the Confederate cruisers. The exports of the United States prior to the war gave more employ ment to shipping than those of any other nation, being mainly composed of the raw, bulky materials, cotton, grain, provisions, lumber, &c. It is clear that the vessels employed in their transport from the States could not all receive return cargoes, con sidering, that what other nations exchanged were for the most part costly manufactures, small i❑ bulk. The ships then sought employment from foreign port to foreign port, and were often thus profitably engaged for years before they returned to the United States. The average annual export taken for the period between 1856 to 1860 of cotton,tobacco, rice, wheat, corn meal, &c., aggregated 1,200,000 tons, calculated to be a seventh of the bulk carried in international sea traffic. Allowing 1,000,000 tons of this to American vessels, there would be left 1,645,628 tons for employment in the Foreign Carrying Trade, transporting cargoes "from foreign ports to foreign ports, for foreigners; to be used by foreigners." At that time American ships were preferred, British merchants often select ing them for employment between ports of the British Empire, for they were celebrated for their beauty of model and construction, and their consequent s -tiling qualities, and for the order in which they delivered cargoes. The ships of the Union then b.?re the American flag to all climes and nations. At sea it was everywhere met, and generally flying over a craft of remarkably fine construction. Whenever a vessel passed another in an ocean race it was the Stars and Stripes that floated from the gaff of the swifter, and this marked superiority spread everywhere the prestige of the Republic. Mr. MORSE considers that in conceding to the Conn federates the belligerent rights of the sea, when they had not a solitary war ship afloat, in dock, or in process of construction, the great blow was dealt to the American Carrying Trade. Commerce is very sensitive, and although the United States could protect its coasting trade, after extra risks were thrown on its international trade, it rapidly sank. " From the appearance of the first corsair in pursuit of their ships, Ame rican merchants had to ply not only the marine but the war risk on their ships. After the burn ing of one or two with their neutral cargoes the shipowner had to pay -the war risk on the cargo as well, and even then neutral vessels were preferred." Nothing remained but to take such profitless busi ness as offered, or dock the ships, with the conse quent expense and deterioration, or sell them out right, or put them under foreign flags for protec tion. Besides those destroyed by the privateers many were sold to foreigners, and when sales could no longer be effected, except at great sacrifice, numbers were placed under foreign flags. At the end of the war the diminution already noticed had taken place, while even the export and import car rying trade of the Union was fast passing to fo reigners, a transfer aided by a heavy tax on all the materials for constructing ships, which threw an additional burden on the American shipbuilder in favour of the foreign competitor. After remarks which we have thus summarized, Mr. MORSE touches on the subject of the application of iron to the construction of ships, and the substitution of steam vessels for freight as well as for the passen ger trade. The remark with which he prefaces this portion of his Report leads us to believe that he agrees in no small measure with the cause we lately advanced for the decline, Pk. he says :—" But while the rebellion was the direct and sole cause of our present restricted commercial position, it is well we should now understand and keep in mind the fact that there were causes at work which lay fur ther back, imperceptible to many, yet surely at work before Southern discontent had ripened into rebellion, and which even now are more seriously felt than is supposed, and which will in time, if we do not prepare to meet them, have a more enduring effect on our mercantile marine than even the pira tical cruisers which the rebellion brought forth." In our opinion, Mr. MORSE attaches too much weight to the work of the cruisers and to the tre mendous efforts of Great Britain to maintain mari time supremacy. To these he gives the first place, and next to the change from wood to iron, and from sails to steam, in accounting for the rise of England's mercantile marine and the decadence of that of America. Doubtless the Navigation Laws of the United States told against the nation and aided the Confederate cruisers, for there was nothing of pliability in them, nothing whereby a shipowner could secure himself against the tem porary derangement caused by the piratical attacks. Those who, unable to sell their vessels to foreigners, transferred them to the protection of a foreign flag, were denounced, as far as we can recollect a late debate in Congress, as little better than trai tors, while they were prohibited from replacing those vessels on the register of American ships. Crude false notions, such as dictated this, pre vented the revival of the American Carrying Trade, combined with the change of material in construc tion and the propulsion of ships. It is evident that Mr. MORSE would modify the laws of the United States which affect the building and register of vessels. He would remove all imposts on materials for the construction of ships, and more especially, to encourage the building of iron vessels he would annul all taxes on iron plates, on the pieces of the frames for iron ships, whether rolled into angle iron or other parts ; indeed on every kind of iron necessary to complete the vessel, which now, it must be ranembered, is often metallic from the keel at least to the cross-trees, mists and standing rigging, as well as hull. Even more neces sary„ in our opinion, as regards immediate value, is a measure also advocated by the Consul, and one we have long urged—that American citizens be permitted to purchase foreign-built steamers. Our English readers perhaps may not be aware that such vessels cannot be placed on the national re gister, but Mr. MortsE limits this concession to steamers of not less than 2,000 tons burden, which may be immediately required to put on any esta blished and regular line between the United States and any foreign country, and we have nothing to say against the qualification, as it really meets the necessity. Foreign-built vessels would be excluded from the coasting trade, yet American merchants would be placed on an equality with foreign mer chants in establishing ocean lines between Ame rica and foreign ports. glance will show our readers bow impossible it is for wooden vessels, whether sail or steam, to contend against iron is the long run. Experience has proved the absolute superiority of iron in all respects over all other substances. This is most marked in durability, for iron ships have been running more than 26 years, yet time has not been reached in which to test their wear. With care they may be kept good for 50 years, and perhaps for a century. When new, if good, LLOYD classes them A 1 for 14 years, and afterwards they may be continued in that class for an indefinite time if the materials and workmanship prove up to the mark. All parts above and below water are protected from corrosion, and the bot toms from barnacles and seaweed, by apply ing a composition like paint with a brush. The colt of keeping the iron ship in re pair is infinitely less than for the wooden —hence, when one of each is launched, the economy of the iron ship is beyond dispute, and the question then lies in the comparative outlay in building. Here are Mr. MORSE'S figures—" A new iron ship can be bought in England in complete order ready for sea with stores on board for about £l5 10s. or $75 20c. per ton, not much over the price in gold of wooden ships in the United States at this time." In that sentence alone Mr. MORSE tells the real cause of the decline in the shipbuild ng trade in the United States. To remedy an evil, the first necessity is to understand that evil, and although it may appear more romantic and senti mental to attribute to the sea-rovers the destruction of the vast carrying trade, the rise and prosperity of which Mr. MORSE has so graphically described, yet it is more practical, and therefore wiser, to ad dress ourselves to the real point. If Americans are again to compete for the carrying trade of the world, they must turn their attention to the manu facture of iron steamers. Let Congress weigh this fact, which really lies at the bottom of Mr. MORSE'S Report, and we venture to assert, that if he furnishes another on the Ist of January, 1869, that that fact will run through it from bottom to top. There is another paper on seamen to which we cannot her o further allude than to remark on the immediate necessity for Congress to supply a school for sea men. Until shipbuilding under the new conditions can be carried on successfully in the United. Stat es, American merchants should be permitted to pur chase and register ships for employment in their foreign carrying trade, or, when by their wonderful national adaptability Americans can compete suo cessfully in such construction, it will be found that the race of "sailors" has died out. This subject is of national importance, and should not be neglected by Congress, for delay only adds to the difficultie s of the remedy, and it is a grave responsibility for . those in power to allow the habits of a section 01 the nation to change in a direction inimical to the national interest and destructive to the futu re safety and glory of the Republic.—Ang/o-Americ an 7 lines. MONEY AND BUSINESS. (From the IVew York Tribune, Dec. 2.) Gold opened at 1351, sold at 1341 to 1351, closing e t 1351 to 1351. The clearings at the Gold Exchange Bad were $45,799,000, and the balances $2,242,675 74 The Sub-Treasury gold was awarded at 134.75. Government Bonds opened dull and steady, with a good demand for in" vestment. Coupon 6 per cent., 1881, sold at 1141 ; 1865, 1071, '67's, 1101. The market was very quiet an d devoid of speculating feeling, but has a very firm appea r " ante with few bonds offering. The amount of bonds takes from the market is very heavy; one house sells from $400,000 to $1,000,000 in small lots daily, and the deman d was never better. The amount of currency bonds that can be issued to the Pacific railroads is limited to $60,000,0 00 ; of this amount $44,000,000 have already been issued, leaving but $16,000,000 more; they now sell at 99 to 991, and are in good demand, selling as fast as issued to the companies. They are used by the National banks, to it large extent, as a basis of their circulation. There was 6 good demand for bonds for shipment, and several round lots of '67s were taken for Cuban account. At the close the market had a more active appearance, with few bonds offer ing. State bonds wore dull. New Tennessees sold at 68 t ° 681. Virginia 6 per cent, new, 57; ex-Coupons, 56. North Carolina 6 per cent. sold at 651 to 654 ; new boucle, 631 to 631. Louisiana 6 per cent., 63. Railway boae(!' were dull. Pacific Mail was weaker; opening at 11111 selling at 1151, and closing at 1161. American Exchange Bank sold al 113 ; Bank of Commerce, 124 ; Bank of Nert b America, 110 ; Ninth National Bank, 112. Railvrai Shares opened dull, and lower. New York Central, being an exception, opened at 129, selling at 1 24 1284, 1291. St. Paul Stocks were weaker, the C°T mon selling at 671, and the Preferred at 851. fl ea ": ing declined 1 per cent. Rock Island, 1 per pent. Fort Wayne, I per cent. Morris and Essex sold b e; tween the calls at 90. Chicago, Burlington , a° Quincy, 172. •At the one o'clock board the m arket was strong on New York Central, which advanced to 1 29 ' The balance of the list was dull and steady. At the Second Board New York Central continued active, at 1311, and after the call advanced to 1331. At the las t Board New York Central sold at 1331. Erie was active' opening at 37i, advanced to 41, reacting again, in a fe• moments, to 381. The balance of the market improved After sympathy with the sharp rise in these two stocks. the Board New York Central sold at 1331 ; Erie, 381; Toledo, 1021; Rock Island, 1071. At the close ti l d e market was firm. Government Bonds close strong a° active. Money is steady at 6 to 7 per cent. on call, with little business done less than legal rates except upon Gove ril ment bonds. Sterling Exchange is dull, and steady at quotatioeS• London, 60 days, 1091 to 1091 ; London, sight, 1091 t° 1091 ; Paris, long, 5.171 to 5.16 1; Paris, short, 5 . 1-5 to 5.131; Amsterdam, 41 to 411 ; Frankfort, 401 to 41; B rea men, 781 to 781; Berlin, 711 to 711. The transactions at the office of the Assistant Treasu rer were as follows :—Receipts for Customs, $254,00 0 ; r e- si ceipts for gold notes, $ 492,000; total receipts, $ 1 , 702 ' 4 , - 0 30 cents; total payments, $1,281,302 96 cents; $87,989,772 83 cents. The Chicago Republican of Monday, Nov. 30, 60 1 Money matters are without essential change from Is' week. The demand has been steady, but only those are entitled to favours have been accommodated, and eu v then when money was wanted for legitimate business P ur. ' poses. The supply is better than at this time last we e '' because bankers have not advanced any funds where til l ' could avoid so doing, as an active demand is anticipate.. from the packers at a very early day. So far this ands, class of borrowers have not been urgent in their deamode; but the weather is now favourable, and nearly 01 /li n t houses have commenced operations. Quarter -day is e very distant, and there is but little disposition to lend d: less circumstances favour a sure return of the moue/ dl vanced previous to Jan. 1. Rates of interest remain s tet' and firm at 10 per cent. per annum. Eastern Exchange 0 - scarce and wanted, and rates are very firm at 75c. pretelu between banks. Considerable currency has been expreeser to New York, owing to the scarcity of exchange. 131/0° the counter bankers' bills are taken at par, and p rode" / : 0 and shipping bills at 1-10 discount. The selling r ate 1-10 premium. Births. GENESTE —On the 13th inst., at Rock Glen, Clifdeniiter. wife of Commander Louis Gene s t e , R.N., o f a claug 11, HoABE—On the 18th inst., at 75, Harley-street, 31r- Hoare, of a son. - 0 110 01 PELLEW —On the lath inst., the wife of Henry E.. , e- Esq., of a daughter. Marriages. NA7.OR—COLE—O n the 16th inst. , at Runcorn,Ch e9- tbe Sidney Geo. N ay l or, of Clapham, to Blanche Alice, youngest daughter of J. Cole, Esq., late of Portsru ° TH OMAS — WALLACE—On the 17th inst., at Boulogne -6 to Mer, Edgar Hastings Thomas, Captain Madras S• u Ziki Christian Jean, eldest daughter of Alex. Wallace, late of Calcutta. Deaths. de o ARCIRR -On the 17th inst. , at 21, Pl i lli t nore-P r i ..oo o Kensington, Kiuglake, infant son of o' Archer, Esq., R.S.A. , 4 . BOULTBEE—On the 18th inst., at Springfield, lir" t r t beel shire, the Lady Elizabeth Margaret Ferrars 13 011 ,' widow of the late J. M. Boultbeo, Esq., and &Aug'' . George, second Marquis Townshoud. Tr tie KIRK- On the 19th inst., at 6, Victoria-road, West stead, Charles F. Kirk, aged 67. a tl lIENNEY—On the 17th inst., at Hill Villa, Lea nu ",,fie John Henney, Esq., late of the Bank of England, "a 78. --...----- , London : Printed and Pablislied by WILLIAM" so tOf of No. 112, Strand, Printer, at TRH SUN No ti 0' Strand, in ths Precinct of the tio Toy, in the C 4ui ILitidleeez.—Monday, December xl, 1868. A NEW PEERAGE. Now that a Liberal Government is in office, a rumour which obtained currency four yea' s ago is again revived, to the effect that a peerage is to be given to Colonel Myddelton Biddulph, the late member for Denbighshire. The gallant colonel first entered the Rouse in 1830 as member for Denbigh borough, and sat for the county from 1832 to 1835, and from 1852 up to the late election. He was then defeated by Mr. Osborne Morgan, a more advanced Liberal, with whom Colonel Biddulph refused to coalesce in order to eject the sitting Conservative member, Sir Watkin Wynn. The result of the contest was that Sir Watkin headed the poll, Mr. Morgan being a bad second. The late member, although he has occa sionally voted for the ballot, did not entertain strong Liberal opinions, and formed one of the Cave in 180 G. ELECTION PETITIONS The withdrawal of the petition against the three Liberal members for the City of London carries its own condemnation with it. There can scarcely be a doubt that the petitiOners never intended to go on with the case, the petition being presented only to serve as an annoyance to Mr. Goschen, as was plainly shewn by the conduct of Mr. Goldney in the House of Commons on Tuesday last. It is stated by the Post that the petition was lodged as a precautionary move in case one should be sent in by Baron Rothschild against the election of Mr. Bell. This statement, it must be confessed, does not agree with the facts already made public. From the moment the poll was declared, the Liberals never held out any threats that they would contest the right of Mr. Bell to take his seat. On the other hand, the Conservatives, as soon as it was known that they had succeeded in returning only one of their men, raised the cry that their opponents had been guilty of unlawful practices, and that many who had voted for the Liberals as liverymen again polled for them as householders. It is to be regretted that the £l,OOO necessary to carry on the petition was not deposited; we should then have been able to judge whether the charges had any foundation. Vhe Conservative ournals announce that the petition at Rye, against \lr. Stewart Hardy, the eldest son of the ex-Home Secretary, has fallen through. Ireland is likely to have a large share in extra parliamentary work. In addition to the petitions already mentioned, one has been presented against the return of Mr. O'Beirne, the Liberal member for Cashel, Mr. Munster claiming the seat. En passant, it may be stated that only one petition has up to this time been presented from the Principality, viz., for Brecon. DEATH OF ANOTHER M.P. The death of another member of the new House is announced. Sir Thomas Gresley, who went to Mr. Mundy's, Shipley Hall, in order to celebrate the Con servative victory in South Derbyshire, was taken ill a few days since, and died on Friday afternoon. The deceased baronet was the eldest son of the late Rev. Sir William Nigel Gresley, and was born in 1822 . Ho was educated at Rugby, was formerly a captain in the Ist Dragoon Guards, and at one time A.D.C. to a former Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland. The victory in South Derbyshirewaa one of the most prominent which the Conservatives gained in the counties during the late elections. The former members, Mr. Evans and Mr. Colvile, sought re-election as followers of Mr. Gladstone, and were opposed by Sir Thomas Gresley and Mr. Smith, who advocated the mainte nance of Church and State. The light was a tough one, Lut the Conservatives won, the numbers at the close of the poll being—Gresley, 3.612; Smith, 3,680; Colvile, 3,378 ; Evans, 3,349. It is probable that the Liberals will endeavour to regain their lost vround. THE JUSTICESHIP OF APPEAL. According to the Solicitors' 'Journal, Lord Hatherley, on behalf of the new Government, has addressed a letter to Lord Cairns, pressing him strongly to accept the vacant Lord Justiceship of Appeal in Chancery. In doing this, it is stated that the new Lord Chancellor has represented to the noble lord that such an arrangement need not in the slightest degree interfere with Lord Cairns's pre sumable hostility, in the House of Lords, to the policy of the Liberal Government. Our contem porary, while unable to offer the slightest conjecture as to the answer which will be returned, thinlis that it would be very desirable to have Lord Cairns again upon the bench in the equity courts. In the event of his declining to fill the office, the vacant seat would, as we have before stated, be probably filled by Vice-Chancellor Giffard. THE RE-ELECTION OF MINISTERS. The opinion expressed by many Liberal journals that the Act of Anne requiring Ministers to seek re-election should be dispensed with, is combated by a legal journal of high standing. Our contemporary says it may be granted that the utility of the Act is not often seeninpractice, but considers that the value a law is not to be measured by the likelihood of its being transgressed. It is a matter of constitutional importance that we should b e governed by the statesmen of our choice, although, perhaps, some equivalent to the present law might be enacted which would pre serve its advantages while avoiding its inconve niences. For example, re-election within a certain limited time after an original election might be rendered unnecessary. The period between the issue of the writ and the day of election might be reduced, and the ceremony of nomination dispensed with. The Solicitors' Journal thinks that c h anges such as these would mitigate the annoyance to the candidate and loss of time to the public, and at the same time would preserve to us that benefit of the law, not indeed needed at the present time, but of which we may at some future time require the protection. MR. LAIRD AND THE AMERICAN AMBASSADOR. Mr. John Laird, of Birkenhead, writes to the Times to correct the impression that Mr. Johnson sought his acquaintance at the time of the Liverpool banquet in October last. The first overtures were made by Mr. Laird, who proves it by publishing the correspondence. He wrote to Mr. Johnson to invite him. He recognised the Ambassador's exertions to promote friendly relations between the two coun tries, and stated that if Mr. Johnson thought such a visit would be prejudicial to his mi ss i o n, sh i‘ ed ir. hi L m ai t r o d re d fr e a si i r n ed fro t m o a s ec ee ep a tin l g ast t in he g invita tion.ehe wish ed between the two countries and wished for an oppor tunity of expressing th ese wishes personally. Mr. Johnson thanked him in reply, accepting the invita tion with pleasure if his engagements permitted. He said : "My mission to England is not to do or refrain from doing anythin g which m a y serve t o promote or continue any ill-feeling between any portion of her Majesty's subjects and the citizens of the United States ; but, on the contrary, to endea vour by all proper means to extinguish such feeling. Notwithstanding, therefore, that you sympathised with my Southern brethren during our late civil war, I shall have much pleasure . in making your t p h e a r t so n na o l w a , ctqhuoai:atarnbceeinagndmi,ner,hyeariou n s g in f e r e o r i e n .ly y 7 o , y o urself e to lf see a lasting peace between our two eou . nt . rie . s.. The North and the South are now one, and it is . difficult to sympathisers should o understand not forget their h y differencest he ii• cause no longer thstir exists. There is resp ective onlyoe n roeb th u e ck e , the dying embers of the feud. RELEASE OF THE FEN TAN PRISONERS. This subject, remarks the Daily News, must shortly be brought before the attention of Govern ment. Ireland is decidedly somewhat in earnest in regard to the matter, and during the recent elections many of the Liberal candidates were called upon to pledge themselves in favour of supporting a demand for a general amnesty. Influential petitions have been already signed very largely, and more may be looked for. It must not be supposed that this demand in favour of the Fenian - prisoners arises from any sympathy with the views they advocated, still less that the conduct of the misguided men is approved of in any way. Irishmen in general look upon the Fenian :-.'entiment as now dead, or at any rate as dying, and hence come to the conclusion that, as a question of sound policy, it would be well to grant a general amnesty. It is worth while remembering that in almost every case—indeed. it may be said in OVEREND, GtrILNEY, AND CO. AGAIN. It was bad e lough to be ruined in fortune, and subjected to bitter commercial degradation—and all this the unfortunate, or, as some may no doubt think, the culpable directors in the above unfortunate concern have already suffered. Worse, however, remains to be encountered. Some time ago certain shareholders in the once flourishing and eminent bank applied for a criminal summons against the directors, and lodged information before the Lord Mayor in justification of their application. This summons has been at last granted, and is made returnable on the Ist of January next. The pro ceedings, it is true, may lead to nothing, but the mere fact of their having to appear before the chief magistrate of the city , on such a charge will be keenly felt by men who once stood so high in the estimation of their fellow citizens. Some excuse must, however, be made for shareholdershaving resorte,dto so extreme a measure, for the men whom they accuse have caused more misery than results from scores of crimes, and if there be really any ground for believing that the law has been infringed by the persons accused, there can be no reason whatever why high station in the commercial world, or misfortune affecting their owli pecuniary interests, should shield them from the consequences of acts which have proved so ruinous to thousands. LITERARY PENSIONS. Are literary pensions granted on any system ? If not, the Queen's Bounty seems rather to be running to waste. There was, for instance, announced some time back a pension of £lOO a year to Mr. Neilson, a " gallery" reporter of the Times. But he was still at work, and gaining a competence. The proprietors of the Times very properly interfered. Then there is Mrs. S. C. Hall, whose husband is still in full work. On what principle is . ,RlOO a year given to her ? Gerald Massey writes, compiles, and lectures as well as ever, and yet he is thought worthy of another hundred. The correspondent of the Elgin Courant gives us "the other side " :—" There is old Janet Hamilton, the Coatbridge poetess, as wonderful a woman as any in Scotland, put to one side with a miserable £5O of a gratuity ; and she, 75 years old, stone blind, and a true poetess ! There is poor old Murdo Young, our countryman—once a power as editor of the Sun, a prime mover in the Reform and Anti-Corn-Law battles—a man who has spent and been spent in literature ; and now at 85 he is dependent on the casual earnings of his girls as magazine contributors, and the poor broken-down old man himself is trying to earn something by elaborating a new system of shorthand. Why should not he be a pensioner ? Then there are the widow and children of poor John Macintosh, from Inverness, living in abject poverty." Surely to those who want it money should be given. lIIGUER FEMALE EDUCATION. It may be doubted if anyone has done more harm to the progress of female education than Miss Becker and her friends. The idea of the women of the future becoming " Bloomers " and " mothers of the modern Gracchi " is so exceedingly distasteful that any and every kind of progress is in danger of being scouted. And yet a high-class education does not include female suffrage, female barristers, or even female doctors. It is not, indeed, necessary that one should believe in the intellectual equality of the two sexes to advocate a higher class of female education than at present prevails. Two " men of mark " have this week pronounced in favour of such higher teaching. To take the " man of title " first, the Earl of Portsmouth, speaking at a middle-class school at North Tawton, Devonshire, complained of the absence of schools for the education of girls of the middle class. There were schools for boys now being established almost daily, but girls seemed almost forgotten. He did not see why this was so, and hoped it would soon be altered. Canon Girdlestone distributed the prizes at just such a school as his lordship had wished for—the Ladies' College, Bristol. In his speech the rev. canon declared that in his opinion the tales which were told as to the intellectual inequality of the sexes were nonsense. He fully believed that women had minds as intelligent, as strong, as those of his own sex, and were consequently as thoroughly capable of receiving the highest measure of education that could be imparted. And very energetically did he advocate that a high education should be provided for the " fair sex.' But he was very severe upon the notion of "women taking the places of men." He declared it impossible and impolitic that they should do so. I , ATIIBIL IGNATIUS. Mr. Lyne has been giving a lecture upon " The Christianity of the Low Church Party." The purport of it was that there was no essential difference between High and Low in the Church, or even between Roman Catholics and Dissenters : they all held the cardinal doctrines of the Faith, the belief in the Unity and Trinity and the Atonement, and they all accepted the canonical books. He claimed liberty for all in other matters. He was himself a free-thinker outside the Scriptures and the creeds of the Church, but he was not a free thinker as to the truth "once delivered to the saints." H e maintained that the objections to the High Church practices were through misap prehension. He defended some of these, and was called upon by some gentlemen present for scriptural to meet him at a them. H e acknow ledged The Rev. C. P. M`Carthy challenged some of whichlll Mr. Ly ne h a d fitting r . Ly n timehe 'es and n i d e w cu s y , place and s pti pt discussr proposed o s and a hymn was monk, with an s d u e a n l g t w i l t t h sa them. p t yH that then atth i p s r a y y o e d u g earnest desire for Church work, cannot find some way of drilling himself to .march with his brethren and agree with his bishop. He certainly cannot be called a bigoted High Churchman ; but if he thinks the crude, half -formed theories of his youthful mind will settle the difficulties which have disturbed Christendom from the Apostolic) age till now, and may continue to divide it till the millennium, he has much, mistaken his abilities and his mission. CHEAP INTEItNATIONAL POSTAGE. Some twenty years ago there was a considerable amount of enthusiasm on the subject of the " Ocean Penny Postage." Seeing how great a success had been achieved by the adoption of Rowland Hill's plan in Britain, many persons were sanguine that the system would be extended to international T P h o e s r ta e g i e „s " however, no occasion letters. But we seem still a long way off from of which little has beent h the " h O e a c e r a d n a P t Penny for despair, for we really would appear to be making some approach to the desired change. A postal convention has just been concluded between Britain and the United StateS, which will come into operation on the Ist of next month, and which may certainly help on the movement for cheap inter national postage. Under the new arrangement the postage of letters to the States will be reduced by one half ; that is, letters under half an ounce will be charged sixpence instead of a shilling as at pre sent. Books ) parcels, and samples will also be favoured by a large reduction. The convention is to last for one year only, when the question of a further reduction will be considered. Despatches of mails will, we expect, be more frequent, and as communi cation is sure to increase under the liberal rates of postage, there really is, as we have already said, some reasonable ground for hoping to see in time a general low rate for the sea carriage of letters, and such gene ral matter as passes through the hands of the Post Office authorities, even though we may not attain to the minimum which has for nearly thirty years prevailed-in this country. TUB GALLOWS. Priscilla Biggadike, the Stickney murderess, is to be executed on the 28th inst. There can be little doubt that she murdered her husband, but there can be equally little doubt that she was condemned by a jury which had hardly made up its mind. The jury recommended her to mercy because they were not satisfied with the circumstantial evidence. This was, at any rate, the statement of the foreman, though some of his colleagu es repudiated it. If this foreman had found another juryman as addleheaded as him self, or if he had been a little more obstinate, she might have been acquitted. Is it desirable that the wretched woman should be executed by a " fluke?" THE METROPOLITAN RAILWAY. - --- 7 - The " inner - circle " o f th e Metropolitan Railway is rapidly approaching another bran c h o f the line will b e opene d to West minster Bridg e , w hi ch will start from t h e new station completion. In a few days at Brompton, and go through the aristocratic neigh bourhood of South Kensington, Pimlico, and St. Jamcs's Park. There will also be a station at Sloane square, Chelsea, one of the most populous centres in the suburbs of London. A soldier who served under the first Napoleon at Waterloo has just celebrated his golden wedding at-New Haven (Connecticut). V c DTERTISEMENT. :I — IIOIIOWay'S Ointment.—Medicinal E acy.—Paily experience confirms the testimony borne to the benefits effected by Holloway's remedies in all de scriptions of disease which can assail mankind, either at home or abroad. In cases of glandular and other com plaints arising from hereditary taints, the use of these healing and purifying remedies is always followed by the most gratifying results. The ointment must be well rubbed upon the skin as near as possible to the aching or ailing part; and the pills should be taken every night in alternative rather than in purgative doses. These excel lent medicaments will then act in unison, quell the local mischief, re-establish purity and order through the system, and spare unmerited suffering and untimely death. Yea Iles dig her' yeti U/ WI Gi th, an ne Cal rhi ral he, toy fitE Oa ( the