The Sun. — London, England, 1847-08-30 00:00:00

!ranger to his clients, who therefore could not have any Laterest in rescuing him loim clstutly of 1 ' 1 " Stable. dTbe defendant positively denied being found in the wect position as that d esc ribed by the constable. He f o a t.attking his way home, when the constable came up tal and told him "it was quite time he was at ' 4440 H e said th at h e should go when he liked. The constable then pushed him i n t o th e m iddle of the street, 'packed hi m won the leg. He cried o, when the ants, Mileham and Hi ham, who had previously T h en the constable's conduct, came up and spoke to him. e tt e° csequsnce was they were also taken into custody. r.Brzionalt said with res p ect t o th e charge against convey, and w i t h out casting any imputation upon the Vieti astable's statement, h e did not f ee l j us tifi e d i n c on .t was np tin, but as regarded th e o th er t wo , he must say tine e Very dangerous thing to set up as constable aid e of the peace, and interfere with the police. H "leught it wholly unwarrantable in them asking the " am_. ngt4 le What cha rge h e h a d got, an d t h at t h e y h a d tea altogether very unadvisedly, but as there had ,flo real violence, and as they had been sufficiently iritl aue d by being l oc k e d up , h e s h ou ld di sc h arge them that admonition. WORe o , „ 4„ RIP-STREET.—( THIS DAY.) .u e ,,„ ensto4 Scanlen, was charged, with another, not yet . in robber _named Andrew Comfort, with the following It a g e PPetirs that they were yesterday engaged by Mr. ii ( Q e ' e tt,r, tailor, of No. 126, Long-lane, Finsbury, at his ef i n the manufacture of three black coats for some %via customers, who were this morning to attend a hbuitlerai. Mrs. Seymour, who had been left at home Qr husband, to take charge of the premises, had ill ort ie e , , in the afternoon, to leave the house for a ShP"led. She was absent about half an hour, but ertbreeturn the dishonest snips had disappeared, and eth er I n the three garments mentioned above, and oh._ articles also. Information of the robbery was at In ' orn Eiveu to the police, and Dennis Seanlen was this fot ik i% captured. None of the property has been Sew tli ttti en was remanded for a few days, in the hope th e the interim his companion would be found, and se ttle trac e of the stolen property would be obtained. Is T HAMES.. -(THIS DAY.) _„ Field I nts eh ' a Young man of rather genteel appearance,. latne'aizrgeeddwii.itah grossly insulting a respectable married prosee ' .. Y . ! ry Power. another femaletla stated, that yesterday evening, with she itrit, f riend, she was returning home, and as the P680 .'4 110 8 ' f ew door s f rom her own residence, she saw ...roman he ,„' w ho was stopping and insulting every 4Uc l' u lluegf — " e t. She endeavoured to avoid him, but he ducted h ller, threw hi s arms round her waist, and con %lea, Inself mo st grossly. The witness screamed and 'eith th l ,n red disengage herself, when he assailed her ell ed to e v —° " foul and disgusting epithets, and threat- Th e -n eck her into the gutter. , constable who took the prisoner into custody,.ll %er e° , rrchorated the evidence. Prisoner was quite he bad prisoner, sli The ghtingly, said—" Oh. he didn't think t pne so far as had been represented." 44 st h ad t_IDLEir observed, that his conduct from first to 1, 114 d his de en disgusti ng an d cowar dly in the extreme, AST cp ze anour in the dock was most unbecoming. ere I N 7 i gh time such brutal and atrocious outrages %Wt. a stop to Ile should fine him 51., or one n'thee naPrisonment, with hard labour. , 14 „ 18 1 se e p „, ris _;cer, who had evidently not anticipated ' l 4 seemed quite astonished as he was led away to the LATE FEARFUL .4414 BO 41' EXPLOSION 'lll t I'l l " INQUEST.—(THIS DAY.) 'Nil ,- Q ue st on the body of the unfortunate suf °l)ellea'll t he recent disaster on the Thames, was 1 the - to day at ele ve n o'clock, in the Board-room aNtt o * a ,, s t • Martin's workhouse, at the rear of the Al l et "' Galler y, b efore M r. B e df or d an d a special .c 't th e 'seventeen, selected from the neighbourhood bs„,,u4ies wee It will be recollected that five :1 7'40 4 , i : 6 found. The names of the unfortunate Ali 11 -4° J ohn Littleton, about 32, costermonget ; te„, -acid body had been, -1 0//e i t eY, 19, engineer (whose NI ' here from the dead-house in the Waterloo 1 ,„„ • ; Tho us"eh Shade 14, call-boy; John Blunt, %g t er ; and Aber.tr- George Shute, aged about 30 Ili Smith and Mr. Nicholson, gentlemen It Na tta w ith the boats, attended; as also . did Mr. t4 1 „„sall i i , eb arobers (the counsel), and Air. Dakes, tl,e , h 7elte t • e- 4 1' r t° the company. Mr. Le Breton, . "a f - 01 7,!he Parish, also attended. The arrange t c o "' c onvenience of the press were excellent. A ges a n u tt having been formally opened, M a r. -41t4t1,!les, l ihendraper, of the Strand, was p "Nina iti, The iur , 1 11. v lit th Y .4ving viewed the bodies, three of which t:li4 ne workhouse, and two at the hospital, to tb NdOk o te• e je. Aka addressed a few preparatory remarks dial tt the • Il 'Y ' Ile said, no doubt his mind, and the cot iv , Jury, had been depressed by the serious the sarp ri ,.°h they had met to enquire into. It was had excited 46,,Pahli e ' i ng that such an occurrence t t 4 4 lied mind, neither was it surprising . that opi e veen set forth in the public prints and . else- N ' it atl th t tod Pa o)- • a Charges had been made against the b ., 0 ; th : WWI which of course the jury had nothing atd ;-,3;111. mu disregard all the reports which had ap tikteleell't he column s of the newspapers, and all the 4 e ~eur , .,B w hich had been published with respect l _ to til o s"' le -ne e• The inquiry might invo ve efaterhOliries of the kind involved —criminally t t s ' 4 e, lo s l t ,9f others, and that alone, independently Wa t t' C o ?' l ife Which had been occasioned, must Prs - areg ar 4 d tstigati on one of a most serious nature. ,heat e otir I the nature of the evidence he was at the -le i nn e unacquai n t e d, but he assured them t ost ~,itury y sho u ld not b e c l ose d t hi s d ay , un l ess e27,lllwitl;°°lusive evid ence s h ou ld be brought for get:4op• respect to th e causes which had led to the 11441°'' etthreltibted "e3r -,,e1. a egt should have the evidence of men reputation in the branch . of science tep ti Nthi ll ~t° locomotion by the aid of steam. He t. th e - :lto tVrther to say than to request their a A : -evide nce which might be adduced before t ler 4 Jl2t Yrae eu 4 suggested %tu„.._ o 4 th e . that if there were any gen- Voi th e JurY connected in any way i t .e Ai Y should withdraw. with the tli o lUi red if°tru coincided in the suggestion, and s Y ? (:4211 4 ta t e re were any gentlemen connected with e omp k , ° Akin s e Th e X th ree an:l he performed some work for the Pla ced "deit oa weeks ago. Ix Ta %O l t inquired if he had requested to be ~,t 1 : . ue l , t: Jury p d ri it e Coa7s said h e h ad. I I!) Ni t Il ea said-1 thinkyou had better with -44* a g • t° til-delicacyof 11 enkios the inquiry. Tho foll owia accordingly withdrew. , , .__ e a ._ tau kk_g:. Witnesses were then examined . llai o wnt- ard',7 4 e said he lived at 11, Rose-street, call- litet t tltiat e oa i,a,rld that he was the father o the 00 e 4er. -8e y, ?!, who was fourteen years of age re ke r °Pany sin h ad been employed on the boats of months fl 'nta t - 0 ,ast Christmas. He had had him !ver y , „," a ge. 11; 4kti t to the Cricket about three . !v er y Of -- iit r4i ng, but . 7, 45 in the habit of seeing him IA the t i occur re - „ - s' e did not see him on the morn- Was wh i n t r• Il e 8;e:11 consequence of being in bed 114peeritilt his de ii 3' ea ills t i t e nsibi hi m after the accident, but he Lad fre ln the time of the accident eatifi ed hie sou a , Is 110 statement to make with re kr y w ith hi' 3 ~,1 "e believed his son was perfectly 111 R y . "11"---Whace. vi ttie o s ur sot ac) f at Was the cause of your remov- Nit s-- --I h ad " /;orn the Ant to the Cricket ? The tv , \ve il tr er h; eated ill°l removed as I thought he was bY those' and 1 th b o y the persons who were placed aoc c he Was , 118 ' 1.4 he would be better treated li a li sr 4 Ly ed ~lilaced under in the Cricket. de li c e ad, sti plunt, o f xi tn 4 3 cl a (4 he W as ..- 1 ; t 0 2 , Tallick-terrace, Vaux - sty Jo gi n watchmaker, and that . the Ilai ' excep t t ,_ nt was his son. He had nothing r. t oati e ,, „ veth -.• that e very means were taken to restore ~o - --- er,,,. ,- L a a n t she iciv'e,Llttletou said, she was now a widow, %I d ' J ehu i t ., at INT °• 6, 13loo msbury-street. Her.hus ",,Myker Yttlet oo , was aged thirty-three, and was kleo r . N ) ge SiUlte • t eilie l!hd that be said he lived in James -street, Mile it Ni Q _ 41 14 si,e__,was a painter and glazier. The de titti ~ and tw :a was his only son, and that he had R ent 5,,„,,,, , 'undren. He was a general dealer, ao tl try Vollrenty-four and a half. 4 b liuek l e l of 104 Golden-lane, St. Luke's. l'et e l vi ts in e ?: _Was his nephew ; his age was eighteen. haoirig hn:_cniPloyrnent as an engineer, and was I,`:4othinZuutv from repairing a small engine. He :I' o si c B°4 More to say, except that he should like iie wh en hquestiocs of the engineer and of Mr. % at t • 'lm o ,: .;.N.rus examined. w, ilt be reeid -° l l , , ocker said he was a tailor, and Lair.% 1)0 4 4' at No. 23, Maddox-street. He then ast tine the Cricket about five minutes before e ri he w ent n on the morning of the occurrence. atu:ho w n alk cieicistto sir) bo ard he looked about him. He anr_he p etern of the boat and took his seat d id ii a f t ;"' 'ram the boiler. He was rather than t p rocee r_, waitin g a few minutes, that the boat pe, ll sual. Thereuon its voyage —it was much longer se - 'Ol4 on board` was a considerable number of t l Ythere wer a e rci--r nore than two hundred. Should f s i t l le bo ut. n early one hundred in the after-part he thuan quiver"lad at about five minutes, when 'tit ''er. 0111beedliZellai I T - ° a % th s feet—a sort of trembling t he w took the ti Y after the deck was blown - - Qees, with a terrific explosion. 13, hole of direction of the after-part of the boat. le y; thi nk _ ‘3 3 ! th e h a , part was driven away—he did he si t t w... 4 ,ipgle foot remained. The seat on which ... e s had I :' '"lown from under him. A parcel which ‘ 4 tl 6 1,7:. his hand, and his hat, were blown away, ... WOllll Cie( ' °I I the hip and shoulder, The steam struck him on the face like a slap from a hand. W' an th e 4- 4. earti eloarcd aww faani that all the persons he had noticed on the seats had been carried away—some were hanging by the sides; and he assisted a lady who had called loudly to him for assistance. The Echo, a Richmond boat, came from the middle of the river and took some of the passengers off. A gentleman with a white head cried out that his leg had been broken. He looked down into the cabin and heard a noise like the howling of a dog. Assisted to get a man from amongst the timbers whose mouth and forehead were bleedir g. He was doubled up like a drunken man. There was no one on board con nected, with the company to render assistance. Saw neither the captain nor the engineer on board. Ex amined the place from which the boiler had been carried, but found no one there. He apprehended that the boat was waiting for the captain, as it was ready to start and had its fair complement of pas sengers. By the jury—Was in the habit of going down Duke-street to the boats. On the morning in ques tion he met persons coming from the boat, and he ran down the pier and got on board without loss of time, as he thought the boat must be about to start, as they were not in the habit of stopping long after landing. The boat was not aground, because he felt the stern part sink after the explosion. Travelled frequently by the boat's, and was often in the habit of. standing by the engines and admiring them. A Juryman said the time of the occurrence was about the period when the parties connected with the boats breakfasted. When the statement was read over to the witness he added to it, that the parties connected with the boat came down to it to inquire into the cause of the explosion after it had happened. Mr Archibald Henry Hamilton was next examined. He said he was a reporter, and that he lived at No. 6, Francis-street, Waterloo-road, and that on Friday morning he went on board the boat at about twenty 'hree minutes past nine o'clock, and took up his po ition in the fore part of the vessel near the windlass. About two minutes after, whilst talking to a fo reigner, he experienced a sort of oscillation in the vessel. In a moment after the explosion took place, and he was thrown on his face. The boat was not aground. The captain was not on board, because he af terwards heard him put the question to Mr. Gilleto, the superintendent of the boats, " How long do you suppose I have been on shore ?" He knew the super intendent, and spoke to him ten minutes after the occurrence. He did not look into the engine-room, but he saw neither the engineer nor stoker on board. Saw Redgrave taken out. He thought the last wit ness was mistaken, as there appeared to him (wit ness) to he no more than from 120 to 140 persons on board. The deck was not overcrowded. There were few on that part of the deck on which he stood. Did not notice the after part of the boat ; there was plenty of room. Passengers were coming on board when the explosion took place. The CORONER said he did not intend to take further evidence with respect to the explosion. He wished now to have evidence of the parties who as sisted in conveying the deceased persons from the boat to the places where they now lay. George Silverton said he resided at 13, George street, Adelphi, and that he was a fisherman. He was standing at his door at the time of the occur rence, and when he saw and heard the explosion he ran down to the boat, and with the aid of the captain extricated the boy Shade from the bottom of the boat. He was lying in the after-cabin, and was almost covered with fragments of wood and water. Pulled him out by his arms, and took him into the office ; afterwards took him on his shoulders to the hospital, and assisted to undress him and put him to bed. He was living at that time, and at the time he left him, but he was unconscious. Immediate attention was rendered to him. Had seen the engineers, but noticed nothing remarkable in them. Knew the engineer, but he never spoke to him about tho engines. As sisted in extricating an elderly gentleman with white hair from the broken fragments. (We believe this is the person whose leg was amputated ) By Mr. Montague Chambers—The call-boy might have been blown up and fallen where he found him, or he might have fallen through the deck, the middle of which was entirely broken up. The Learned Counsel said he merely asked the question in order that the jury might not form an erroneous opinion with respect to what the unfortunate youth was doing at the time of the occurrence, that they might not consider that he was neglecting his duty. Some discussion here ensued on the application of Mr. Noble to inspect the engines and fire-place of the boat. The CORONER said he could not then give him an order.--he doubted whether he had power to do so, but no doubt the company would offer the relatives of the deceased parties every facility for that purpose. On inquiry it appeared, from the statement of the superintendent of the boats, that the ill-fated vessel was in the custody of the police, and that he had re ceived directions from the company to permit no one to see it without an order from them. Mr. Knight (a juryman)—Do you mean to say that the jury may not see it without the permission of the company, if they think proper ? Mr. Montague Chambers—l (litre say the company will afford the jury every facility for inspecting the boat, and also the relatives of the deceased parties. There is no doubt about it. Mr. Knight—l do not claim to inspect the boat either by favour or affection, but by right. The superintendent promised the coroner to allow the persons, related to the deceased, to see the boat, and the matter dropped. (The inquiry was being proceeded with when our report left.) EMBARKATION OF TROOPS FOR INDIA. On SK turday morning nearly 200 men embarked from the Custom-house quay, Gravesend, on board two ships, for conveyance to Bombay, viz., the Mary, of London, 560 tons burden, Captain Thomas Grant, and the Ilindostar, 500 tons, Captain C. West. The former ship received on board a detachment of the 10th Royal Light Dra goons, consisting of 110 men, with lour women and eight children, and the following officers:—Captain Methuen Stedman, Lieutenant R. E. Blake, Cornet Robert Clements, and Cornet Edward Stacey ; these troops arrived from Maidstone. Also embarked with them a draught from Chatham garrison, consisting of 66 men of the 78th Highlanders, with one officer, Lieu tenant Thomas James D. Reed. The ship Hindostan received the following draughts from the provisional battalion at Chatham garrison : 177 men of the Ist battalion of the 60th Rifles, 26 men of the 86th Regi ment, and eight men of the 78th Highlanders, with a proportionate nu.nber of Women and children. The fol lowing officers also embarked : Captain H. Bingham and Lieutenant R. T. Eustace Robertson, 60th Rifles, Lieutenant S. L. A. Messiter, 28th Foot ; and Ensign Duncan D. Grahame, of the 78th Highlanders. The whole of these troops were inspected previous to their embarkation by medical officers appointed for that duty. THE POLISH IniaLs.-13y accounts from Berlin of the 20th, we learn that only 24 out of the 254 poli tical prisoners who are to be tried, had been interro gated. If this slow rate of proceeding should continue the trials will occupy nearly nine months.. NEWS FOR NANCY.—Matthew Irvine, of Hebburn, an ingenious mechanic, has made a small steam engine to rock his child's cradle. The length of the engine and boiler is 161 inches. FEARFUL GUN ACCIDENT AT BATTERSEA.—Yes terday afternoon, between the hours of four and five, an accident of a most fearful character happened to a man named Francis Jardin, aged thirty-fire, under the sub joined circumstances :—lt appears that at that hour the I unfortunate man was in Battersea fields with a party of gentlemen, shooting, and Jardin was in the act of load ing a rifle for one of the parties, which suddenly ex ploded, and he was shot in the hand, thus causing a severe fracture of the metacarpal bone of the first finger, besides injuring his face. He was soon taken to a sur geon in the neighbourhood, and subsequently to the Charing-cress Hospiial, with the bullet remaining in his hand Mr. G. M. Young, the house surgeon, who saw him upon his admission, considered that the process of amput:aiuu must be adopted. MARLBOROUGH- STREET POLICE- COURT.—The alte rations which have been going on for sinle weeks past in this Court are now completed, and many of the iiisad vantages which existed in the previous arrangements have been remedied. The ventilation, the hearing, and t he general aceomtuodation are greatly improved. BRISTOL SUGAIL..MARHET, AUG. 27.—We have had a good business doing in raw sugars this week, at full pri.;es, and the market closed with more firmness than has been perceptible for some time past.—Bristol Mer- cury. WIDDICOMIIE AT EN —On Saturday, the 21st Holborn, Mr. M E r. hz W th icl et i h icom E b i e d , e o e f , A August, etiey at A ea S St h A i t n h d e r ti e t w r p o l f ac t e w , H en o ty lß: s r i n x . dauDghutTecrHof CATTLE. — r A .J. s E m d a d l e i n ' v n e f ss E e l l ) ; teeitwCheL tramhasaries, the ar rived b at t r th t e h u e onlyßree, Brunswick, e m k ed t e Wharf,J o B n DpruetcdeheepeorrtheFilluanshdi,tigail withawh2iel she h 5 were landed on board,latidedinp perfect to s their destination.afetyandingoodcondition, and were delivered a t once A general reduction of gamekeepers has n made on the Duke of Buckingham's manors in Around Stowe no less than sixteen have been dismissed, Bucks. and two only retained. A number of " watchers are out of commission. The venison from Stowe Park is in the course of sale, and the leverets on the estate are sent to market. GALLlClA.—According to a letter from Vienna, of the 20th, the intelligence from Gallicia was unsatisfac tory, great agitation reigning in the province and at Lemberg. The priest, who was to have been executed, has had his sentence commuted to twenty years' im prisonment in the fortress of Kufstein. QUARANTINE.—The select vestry of Liverpool have resolved to discontinue the quarantine regulations, as fax as the Irish are concerned, the improved health of the town having warranted them in so doing. The several rumours respecting appointments to the bi,hopric of Manchester are unfounded. No ap pointment can take place until the arrangements fur the constitution of the new see shall have been formally announced in the Gazette,—Observer. THE SUN, T E GREAT BRITAIN STEA;idEFt, AFLOAT! (FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT.) This immense vessel, which has lain stranded at the head of the fatal Bay of Dundrum, since Sep tember last—now about eleven months—is at last fairly afloat, and in a position from which, with the appliances at the command.of the engineers superin tending the operations for floating her off, she may now be removed at high water of an ordinary tide. This we consider one of the greatest triumphs of engineering talent, as applied to the raising of a stranded ship, which are upon record—not even ex cepting those used in floating the Gorgon steam frigate at Monte Video, and which had engaged the mechanical skill of the most eminent engineers at the various Government dockyards. Our readers are aware that Mr. I. Brunel, jun., was the engineer who first undertook the task of rescuing the Great Britain from her perilous situa tion. It was necessary to preserve her from the risk of breaking up under the terrific surge which rolls into the unsheltered Bay of Dundrum, from the Irish Sea, when the wind blows freshly from any point from E. to N. or N.N.E. In order to accomplish this im portant object, he caused a substantial breakwater to be erected, about a pistol-shot astern of the steamer, to seaward. This barrier, which was upwards of 150 yards in length, was formed of several rows of piles, the trees for which were furnished gratuitously by Earl Roden, from his plantations at Ravens dale, on the opposite side of the Bay. The outer row was composed of pliable piles of green or sapwood (an improvement upon the original plan suggested by Captain Claxton, who has been actively engaged during the operations in directing them, on behalf of the owners of the Great Britain). This had the effect of resisting the most violent assaults of the surf, the green timber yielding to the advancing wave, and rebounding by its own elasticity as it receded. Between the inner rows of piles, immense bundles of faggots, formed of brush wood, substantially bound together, and loaded, or moored, by vast quantities of stones, served to " deaden" the billows as they rolled in among them. This invention proved eminently successful in saving the vessel from what, at one time, seemed inevitable destruction—so much so, indeed, that when her bottom was examined, after the first attempt to float her had been made, her hull was found to have suf fered no other injury than three perforations, of no serious importance, caused by fragments of rock torn off in passing over a reef in the furious gale of April last. The exquisite symmetry of the noble vessel's "water-lines" remained as perfect as on the day when she was floated out of the building-dock on the Avon. It is known that, during the springs of last month, the gigantic ship, under the directions of Mr. Bremner, of Wick, to whom the operations for float;ng her had subsequently been entrusted, she was raised entirely out of the sand in which her keel had been imbedded, by means of great caissons, or " camels," as they are termed by shipbuilders, sus pended over rows of piles driven into the beach from the vessel's bow to a point about midships, and de scending by means of chains and blocks as the tide rose, and the steamer floated. The actual impulse was given by powerful levers, acting on fulcra under the bilges, and worked by capstans and other pur chases on the vessel's deck. All these appliances, however, had been cleared away, previous to the tide of Wednesday night last, preparatory to the final attempt to remove the vessel from the shore, where, for upwards of a month past, she had been resting upon two ridges of stones under the bilges, which permitted the workmen effectually to repair her bottom. On the flowing of the tide on Wednesday night, floating operations were commenced, by means of anchors laid out astern, and the warps attached to which were hove upon by the vessel's windlasses a:,d capstans. These were so far successful as to move the ship about three fathoms farther to seaward, in which position she was permitted to remain until the following day. The Birkenhead, iron steam frigate, of 1,400 tons and 600-horse power, had come down from Kingstown early in the week to act as a tug when required ; and the Scourge, steam-bomb-ship, of 400 •hone power, which had formed one of the royal squadron in her Majesty's excursion to Scot land, had also been dispatched to the Bay of Dun drum, and anchored about a mile and a half to the south-eastward of her stranded sister. A large num ber of the crews of those two steamers were aboard the Great Britain, and very efficiently contributed to the success of the experiment. Mr. Bellamy, Second Master Superintendent of Portsmouth Dockyard, and a strong detachment of riggers from the dockyards both of Portsmouth and Plymouth, were also on board the Great Britain, and rendered good service. On Thursday recourse was had to the steam power of the Birkenhead; but, owing to the failure of the floating apparatus in two large lighters alongside the Great Britain, and to the lowness of the tide, which, owing to a northerly wind that had prevailed fur some days, did not rise so high as had been expected, all the efforts made to remove the vessel were entirely unsuccessful, she not having been towed out even, one foot. On Friday, at the flowing of the tide, about twenty minutes before noon, the final experiment to float off the ship was made, and, we have the highest satisfac tion in stating, was attended with the most complete success. Two " b. , , , 5t bowers " had been laid out a cable's length astern, and, in a idition to these, two strong warps had been spliced to those of the Birken head. By heaving on these the mammoth steamer was towed out to seaward upwards . of eighty fathoms, and into snug moorings, from which by this time she has probably been safely disengaged, and floated on her way to the Mersey. The ship, everything con sidered, made very little water—not we should say more than six inches an hour—a leakage which was easily kept under by ten out of the forty pumps which had been provided to meet any possible emer gency, and some of which were of the most powerful description. On the entire success of the • attempt becoming manifest to all who were aboard, and to the crew of the Birkenhead, three cables' lengths astern, the jovial tars of the latter manned the poop, and evinced their gratification at the great event by several rounds of hearty cheers, which were duly acknowledged by their shipmates, as well as by the Scourge's, and all the persons, officers, and foremast-men aboard the Great Britain. On the suggestion of Capt. Claxton, wine was then produced, and, the day being the anni versary of that on which the steamer was "christened" by his Royal Highness Prince Albert, the healths of the Queen and her Illustrious Consort, of the Earl of Roden, Lady Matilda Montgomery, Capt. Claxton, Capt. Caffin, of the Scourge, &c., &c., were given, and enthusiastically received. The Great Britain was, at the close of the opera tions, left, as we stated, in a position of perfect se curity, from which, although she can be removed with any height of tide, it was deemed expedient not to tow her away until a further examination of her bottom had been made. THE GREAT BRITAIN AFLOAT.--We have received by express from Dundrum, the gratifying intelligence of Mr. Bremner's success, in setting afloat the Great Britain steam-ship. This magnificent vessel was got off the strand yesterday (Friday), and now lies in deep water, where she will remain a few days to com plete her appointments for the passage across the channel.— Ulster Gazette. The following is a copy of a private letter which was posted at Lloyd's this morning (Monday):— " Belfast, Aug. 28, 1847. "Dear had the pleasure to-day per post, and now:beg leave to inform you, of the Great Britain steam-ship having arrived here this afternoon in tow with her Majesty's steamer Birkenhead, being rather leaky, to proceed to Liverpool. Captain Chxton ex pects she will be in a fit state to proceed to Liverpool in a day or two. " I am, dear Sir, yours truly, (Signed) " N. FITZSIMON. " P. J. Reeves, Esq" . MIDDLE Row, HoLßoux.—We are distressed to find that the foundations are being put in for rebuilding one of the houses in Middle .row. Can nothing be done (the Builder very properly asks) to prevent the perpe tuation of this gr , ut obstruction in such an important thoroughfare as Holborn ? LONDON, MOND Ay EVENING-, THE THAMES HAVEN DOCK AND RAILWAY COMPANY. The half-yearly general mei,ti:.g of the proprietors of this company was held on Saturday, at the Guilihall Coffee-house, Gresham -street. IV. Chadwick, Esq., chairman of the company, presided. After the usual preliminaries, The SECRETARY read the report, which stated that the company was making purchases of land required for the dock and railway. The cottages requisite for the labourers and mechanics e mployed on the works had been put in r e p a ir, and had been let at a remunerative rate t o res pectable tenants. It also stated that such a vigorous opposition was offered to the Bill for th e branch line from Ilford to Southend, introduced by the Eastern Coun ties Company, that it was not carried last session. From the financial statement, it appeared that the re ceipts amounted to 29,1361. 4s. id., and the expendi ture to 8,2191. 3s. ld., leaving a balance in hand of 20,917/. is. _ _ The CHAIRMAN was happy to say that it would not be necessary for the directors to make snore than one call this year on the company. They had purchased the Oil Mill Farms and the adjoining lands, in the parishes of Fobbing and Corringham, at prices almost unequalled for railway purposes. He believed the amount agreed upon was 251. per acre, and it would be necessary to construct a dock of 10 acres only. With respect to the Eastern Counties Company, they certainly did not succeed to the full extent of their wishes; but, as the report stated, they had prevented that company passing their Bill last session. As they were a young company, it was thought advisable to enter into a treaty with the Eastern Counties Com pany, but as the negotiations were still pending, they must excuse their going into details at present. He would move that the report be received and adopted. After some conversation relative to the claims of Mr. Hennick on the company, and to the relinquish ment of certain shares, the resolution was put and carried unanimously. Thanks were then voted to the Chairman and the other directors, which were acknowledged by the Chairman. The meeting then separated. LONDONDERRY and COLERAINE RAILWAY COMPANY. The fifth half-yearly meeting of the shareholders of this railway company took place on Saturday, at the company's offices, in Church-passage, Guildhall, for the purpose of receiving the report of the directors, the statement of the accounts of the company, and also for the transaction of the ordinary affairs of the • company. J. G. Frith, Esq., took the chair shortly after twelve o'clock. _ The usual preliminary proceedings having been gone through, and the minutes of the last meeting having been confirmed, The SECRETARY read the following report, which, after a short discussion, was adopted unanimously : " Your directors have to report, that since your last half-yearly meeting, your works have made very con• siderable progress, though not equal to what might have been expected under more favourable circumstances, for although the progress has been equal to the means pro vided by the shareholders, yet, in consequence of the falling off in the payment of the late calls, the number of men employed thereon has not been increased to the ex tent they might have been. " The continued delay in completing the powerful dredger, by means of which the formation of the outer embankment will be so greatly facilitated, will also partly account for that portion of the work not being in a more advanced state; but the assurance of your engineer, who is superintending its completion, that a very short time will now put it into effective operation, induces your directors to believe that for the future more rapid pro gress may be considered as secured. " Your directors see additional reason to regret the default in payment of the late calls, as it serves to retard the steps which they purpose taking, for borrowing under the powers ofeheir Act, when half the capital has been paid up. To place the company in this desirable position, it will be necessary, as intimated to you at the last meeting, to make a further call of 21. 10e. to cover the deficiency arising from the forfeited shares and the arrears of calls. " The assistance rendered, in the past session of Par liament, by her Majesty's Government, to such Irish railway companies as were legally in a condition to borrow, gives your directors every reason to hope, that in the coming session, a similar course will be pursued towards such companies as are entitled to aid. In such case the double character of the security offered by your undertaking will suffice to procure for it a participation in the benefit. "Tour directors, in accordance with the resolution of the last half yearly meeting, have urged the pap - refit of calls in arrear, and with considerable success, although some few shareholders have been unable to meet their calls. In a company whose shares are generally so well held, your directors feel that it would not be justice to those who do pay up. that others much in arrear should be allowed to retain their shares ; they have, therefore, felt it their duty to forfeit 365 shares, upon which the third call has not been paid. This forteiture is now submitted for your confirmation. In a few other cases notices of forteiture were served ; but your directors, acing a disposition to pay, and believing that by a judi cious forbearance, the amount due may be secured to the company, have forborne to press the confirmation o the forfeiture at this meeting. " The directors would have it distinctly understood that the forfeiture of shares does not release the pre. vious holders from liability to the calls made up to the date of such forfeiture, and their best attention will be given to enforce the payment of such calls, so far as after due consideration the circumstances of each case will be found to admit. " The urgent requisitions of those residing in the district have induced your directors to give further consideration to the subject of forming, without delay, the portion of the line from Londonderry to Newtown- Limavady, and they are confirmed in the opinion pre viously expressed to you, that it is most advisable to open this portion of the line as soon as possible. The alte rations of the line adverted to in their last report have been further considered, and the local feeling consulted with reference thereto. The directors have no longer any hesitation in recommending that they should be carried out. The Railway Commissioners will require that this change should be sanctioned by Parliament, notwithstanding that the consent of the landowners to the same may, it is believed, be obtained. " The working of the railway from Londonderry to Strabane has had the effect of fully satisfying your directors that the traffic upon your line will be much larger than was originally hoped for. In proof of this they may state, that the tolls upon Derry-bridge have been supported by the two great lines of traffic, from Strabane in Tyrone, and from Newtown -Limavady in the county of Londonderry. Since the opening of the rail way to Strabane the traffic from that quarter has been diverted from the bridge, yet the toll receipts have only fallen off one-twelfth, indisputably proving the extent of traffic proceeding from the district traversed by your live. " Your directors, in recommending the early opening of the line to Newtown-Limavady, are also influenced by the consideration that if its formation be longer de layed, a portion of the traffic legitimately belonging to it may be diverted to other railways now in course of const ruction. They feel, too, that by the suggestion now su bmitted for your approval, the cost of your undertak ing will be lessened, and the completion of the embank ment hastened, by affording to the contractors greater facilities for procuring stone, which being carried over your line, and charged as goods' traffic, would add to its receipts. " Should the above recommendation meet your ap proval, your directors, in taking measures to have it carried into effect, will at the same time be enabled to apply for powers to have your shares reduced from 501. 0/. to 25/. each, a change which , in the present condi of monetary affairs, will contribute to the welfare of tl.e company, and to the individual convenience of the share holders. " The progress in the cultivation of the land alread y rec l a imed in Lough Foyle, similar to that now in course of reclamation by your undertaking, fully justifies the opinion at first e ntertained as to its value; establishes indeed, the value b e y ond the first estimates upon which your directors made their calculation. " Your directors re fer with pleasure to the proceed ings of the Royal Agricultural Society of Ireland t , at this its annu al meeting. held at Derry, in the early pac of month, upon which occasion some ot its members visited the reclaimed - land, and were highly gratified with its field Embankment. bein condition, and the proofs of its productive powers." The following is the report of the engineer of the company with respect to the progress of the works upon the line : " This portion of the work g pushed for day and night; owing, ward vigorously, both however, the to the soft and yielding nature of " Contract No. 1. bottom, the rate of progress, latterly, has not been as great as I could have wished. This difficulty has now been surmounted, and we are working on favourable ground; and I trust henceforth that a steady and satisfactory rate of progress —Longis now will be maintained in the construction of this embank ment " The contractor has lately purchased a second loco motive for this portio n of the work. " River Roe Embankment. " The embankments for the continuation of the Roe River are partially employed for a distance of one mile and a half from the shore. lam bound to say more work should have been done here; and I h ave been urging non the contractors the necessity O. e putting a larger number of men on this portion of the work. " The contractors allege the difficulty of bringing in a sufficient supply of s tone when the wind is easterly; I have, however, pointed out a method of obviating this difficulty, which will now be acted upon. A locomotive will be there in a few days, when the work will be pushed on both day and night. Contract No. 2.—Downhill. " The only works of magnitude on thii contract are the tunnels, being in the aggregate about 1,000 yards in length. They are both through, and this section of the line could be completed, if necessary, in a very bhor space of time. " Contraet No. 3.—Derry, " Almost all the work is completed on this contract, the Only parts remaining to be yet done are the cutting through 11‘Clintock's Wood and the embankment across Rosse's Bay. There has been some difficulty in getting posses ion of land for procuring stone for pitching the slopes of the latter, which ha; been the cause of delay. " In conclu.ion, I cannot too strongly urge the ad 'vantagts to be gained by constructing, as soon as pos- AUGUST 110, 1847. sible, the line: to Newtown-Limavady ; a pl en tif u l an d certain supply of stone will then be always secured from Carrickhugh Quarries (which are on the line of rail way), for pitching the slopes of the outer embankment westward of the Roe Mouth. Much inconvenience and delay is now experienced by the contractors being obliged to bring st,J:.e over from Moville ; and indeed in bad weather the supply from that aource is wholly cut off. " When the dredger is at work, which must now be very shortly, 1 anticipate the Moville Quarries will not produce stone more than sufficient for pitching the slopes of the outer embankment, formed by means of that machine, and of necessity quarries must then be opened up for the supply of a sufficient quantity of stone for pitching the slopes of the outer embankment westward of the Roe river, and I sea no means of procuring an ample and certain supply of stone otherwise than by constructing the line to Newtown-Limavady, and open ing up the Carriekhugh Quarries as before mentioned." From the statement of the general accounts and receipts of the company, it appeared that from its formation the receipts were 196,9571. 17s. 3d., and the expenditure, 193,2291. Is. 4d. It also appeared that the receipts since the last half-yearly re• port were 58,6471. 16s. 4d. ; the expenditnre, 58,5591. 14s. 4d. ; and the balance in the hands of the bankers of the company, on the 31st of July, was 3,7281. 15s. 11d. The SECRETARY, in answer to a question from a proprietor, stated that since the 31st of July, up wards of 6,0001. had been paid into the hands of the company's bankers for calls, and that a sum of up wards of 40,000/. was now due in respect of them. A resolution, declaring 365 shares forfeited, was unanimously agreed to ; as was also a resolution call ing upon the directors to enforce proceedings for the recovery of calls against parties that had not paid them. The directors that went out by rotation were unani mously re-elected. Thanks were voted and carried to the Chairman and directors, and the meeting separated. AMERICAN AFFAIRS. NEW YORK, AUG. 14.—During the last three or four days this city has been inundated with rumours in relation to General Scott and his command. It has been confidently stated that an action had taken place between his army and the troops of Mexico, near that city, in which the latter had been defeated and completely routed. It is further stated that General Scott, after the action, had received Mexican commissioners, who in due form had surrendered the city to the conquering General, he pledging himself that the private property, &c., should be respected. He entered the city, it is said, on the 17th of July. Another account states that no opposition was made to his entry. It is reduced to a certainty that the date cannot be correct. In fact, although the rumour is received from different quarters, yet, as no details are given, its accuracy is generally doubted. The account most direct is from a letter written by a lady in Mexico, dated the 17th of July, to a gentleman in New Or leans, in which she says—" General Scott, at the head of his army, is now marching into the city." It would be a waste of time, if nothing worse, to attempt a repetition of all the rumours that are con stantly received from Mexico ; and perhaps my opinion on the question of peace or war is more fre quently given than is necessary; but, witnessing as I do daily the anxiety that is evinced here to learn the opinions of those who are supposed to watch the movements of the hostile armies, I have thought that some of your readers might wish to know whether your correspondent had changed his view of the question, which for more than a year he has con tended presented no aspect but that of unrelenting warfare. On the 31st of July, by the Richmond telegraph, we were informed that Mexico had ap pointed commissioners to negotiate a peace. I ex pressed to you my unbelief of this tale. The result has proved that I was correct. In one particular, and in one only, all parties seem to concur, and that is—Mr. Trist's mission has totally failed, notwithstanding the friendly interference of the British Minister, which was volunteered. In my letter to you of the 15th June I predicted that such would be the result. It is now said that General Scott will probably be authorised to negotiate, while another section of the party in power speak of Mr. Buchanan, the Secretary of State, as the individual who will be charged with the negotiation, so soon as Mexico is prepared to receive him as Envoy Extra ordinary for the special purpose. But, in judging of the prospects of peace, we must look back and inquire what are the difficulties to be overcome, and what the probability of success. I will only refer to two or three points, early assumed by the President and his followers, viz.:- Ist. That the boundary on the Rio Grande must and should be arranged according to the will and pleasure of Mr. Polk. 2d. That California, New Mexico, &c., should be transferred to the United States for a mere nominal sum. 3d. That the American claims for spoliation on their commerce should be paid. 4th. That the Mexican Government should pay all the expenses incurred by the United States in prose cuting the present water. sth. That the American Government would hold, and continue to hold, until the preceding stipulations were complied with, all that district of country which their army might conquer. Now, it is not my intention to enter into a discus sion of these or any other points of difficulty. I present them merely to show that there are difficulties to adjust, and sacrifices to be made, before a treaty of peace can be concluded, and, permit me to add, not less important measures to be adopted before it can be ratified by the Senate. There is the preliminary question—ls the territory, which may be acquired by conquest or by purchase, to be con sidered a slave-holding territory, or is it not ? This question will be warmly debated, both in and out of Congress, and may convulse the Government to its centre. Some time ago I referred to the then existing diffi culties in California. Since that period these difficulties have been greatly increased, insomuch that the present situation of the territory is adisgrace to the American Government, which has assumed the control of it, and appointed officers to manage its affairs, whose duty it is to execute the laws in such a way as best to promote the happiness and welfare of the people. The consequences have been of a most disgraceful character. Colonel Freemont has been arrested by General (now Governor) Kearney, and ordered to the United States to be tried by a court martial. It is stated that the Secretary of the Treasury, Mr. Walker, has made an arrangement with Messrs. Rothschild for all the specie the United States may require in Mexico. The specie is to be furnished when required, and draughts on the Treasury to be given for the amount supplied from time to time. Interest to commence when Messrs. Rothschild have notified to the American Government the amount supplied. This will probably prove a convenience to both parties, and will certainly relieve, to a limited extent, the heavy draughts upon our banks for specie to carry on the war with Mexico. In a former letter I expressed an opinion that the Whig party would probably have in the next House of Representatives a majority of 10 or 12 members. Owing to the unexpected divisions in str on g Whi g districts in Kentucky, two Locofocos have licceeded, where large Whig majorities voted for different can didates, both of which were defeated. I yet believe,ho%sever, that there will be a Whig majority in the house of eight or ten. —Times. A GENEVESE TRAVELLER. CAPE OF GOOD HOPE. We have received further advices from the Cape to the 17th June. Heavy rains had set in. Ii the neighbourhood of Uitenhage such incessant rains had not been experienced during the last twenty-seven years. On the 9th June the post rider was unable to cross the Krotnrne river, and only came over on the afternoon of the following day at the peril of his life. At Gamtoos river the current was so strong that the ferry boat had to lie idle during sixteen hours ; and at Langekloof the river was so high that the post boy was prevented from continuing his journey. We have intelligence from the N. E. boundary to the end of May. It is to the effect that the emigrant Jack Kock has taken the field, it is supposed, against the emigrants at Windburgh, who are favourably disposed towards the British. Captain Warden has already marched against him, and a force of 150 Griquas were to leave Pbillippolis immediately to strengthen Bloem Fontein, which it is thought might be devastated during the absence of the military. The inhubitants of Fort Beaufort have presented an address to Sir Henry Edward Fox Young, the new Lieutenant-Governor of the eastern districts, congra tulating him on his appointment, and requesting him to turn his attention to the judicial institutions of the colony, to which his Excellency was pleased to make a gracious reply. DESTRUCTIVE FIRE. CHELMSFORD, SATURDAY NIGHT. —This afternoon a terrible conflagration took place about two o'clock, in the immediate vicinity of the Chelmsford Railway station. It appears that a large quantity of hay had been collected by several persons in the town of Chelmsford . , !And cedeplae in ricks on a piece of waste ground adjoining t ailway, amounting to several hundred ponds in value. About the time stated, so me sparks falling from the funnel of the down two o'clock train to Colchester on to the hay ricks, they imm ediatel y ignited, and in a very short tim e the whole was in flames. The engine of the Economic Insurance Company was brought to the spot. Before five o'clock the entire was consumed. IMPORTATION OF CATTLE INTO BELGIum' An or dinance just issued by the Kin g of the Belgians pro. longs, until the Ist of March next, the entrance of cattle into Belgium free of duty. The frontiers of Luxem bourg are exempted from this measure. *1 THE DUKE DE PRASLIN. The following gleanings from various seurces have been obtained since our last : The examining commission yesterday continued its operations.. Further searches were made, and additional letters were found, written by the Duke de Praslin to Mdlle. Luzy-Desportes, or by her to the Duke, of such a nature, it is said, as to have rendered necessary a further examination of Mdlle. Luzy- Desportes. Among the seizures at the Chateau de Vaux, a voluminous correspondence of the Duchess appears. The letters addressed by her to her husband are filled with th e noblest sentiments. Nothing can be more touching than the expression of her re proaches to him, which are at the same time tempered by testimonies of strong affection. M. Legonidec, the examining magistrate, brought from the Chateau de Vaux, 'where he had been to make a search, a sample of a white substance, which seemed to be arsenic, and stated that he had left at the Chateaux a very large quantity. The Chancellor immediately issued a commission, addressed to the Procureur du Roi of the Tribmial, at Melun, who, in virtue thereof, seized, and transmitted to the Court of Peers the whole of the substance in question, and a phial containing a considerable quantity of lauda num. The white substance was given over to Dr. Orfila and Dr. Tardieu to be analysed. The following account is giv;ri by the Presse of the visit of the cure of St. Jacques-du-Haut-Pas to the Duke de Praslin :—" This priest was sent for on Tuesday, at nine in the morning, by the Chancellor, and at once went to the prison of the Luxembourg. It is not true, as several journals have stated that the dying man was unable to speak two words in succes sion. The cure remained with him till half-past 11 o'clock, and returned again at 2. The sufferer re ceived him with readiness both times. After again conferring and praying with him, the cure adminis tered to bite the sacrament of extreme unction in the presence of Duke Pasquier, who knelt beside him, and was deeply affected. When the priest was about to leave him, the Duke de Praslin took his hand and said with emotion, How much good you have done me !' He then requested him to leave the crucifix. In another half hour he was no more." We read in the Droit :—" The Duke de Praslin had' made his will, and before his death stated that it would be found in his portfolio. He has appoined two of his daughters legatees of the whole of his personal property, expressing his confidence that they would make an equitable distribution of it. After several legacies to different members of his family, he be queaths an annuity of 3,000 f. to Mdlle. Luzy. " In speaking of the large fortune of Mme. de Praslin (says the Constitationnel), we do not fix it sufficiently high. One of the journals states that the notary of that lady, at Paris, has said that her fortune, coming from her mother, and from the legacies made to her since her marriage, now amounts to a capital of 10,500,000 f." The Gazette des Tribunaur, in announcing the ar rival of Marshal Sebastiani, states that, after having alighted for a moment at the hotel of his brother (General Tiburce Sebastiani), he went on to his own hotel, accompanied by his physician, where he entered the ground floor, and coming to the door of his daughter's apartment, stopped for a moment, and wept bitterly, after which he went up to his own apartment. At nine o'clock every morning mass is said at the Madeleine for the repose of the soul of the Duchess de Fresno. The relations and friends of the de ceased attend in great numbers, habited in deep mourning. The following details of the interrogatories to which Mdlle. de Luzy-Desportes has been subjected are given by the Patrie, as having been obtained from a person on whose information it places reliance. We cannot, of course, guarantee their correctness : " Questioned on the 19th August by M. Broussais, Juge d'lnstruction, at the moment at which she had been locked up in the Conciergerie, as to how she had learned the horrible event, she replied that it was M. Remy, professor of literature to the Mademoiselles de Praslin, and his wife, who came to tell her of it. They found her so much agitated, that they took her to their residence, Rue de la Ferme des Mathurins, where she remained until eight o'clock in the even ing. It was there that a police-agent went to seek her. To the demands of the magistrate as to the serious wrong with which she had to reproach herself towards the Duchess de Praslin, for having attempted to deprive her of the affection of husband and her I children, Mdlle. de Luzy answered, No, Sir, never, never ! On my entrance into the house of the Praslins, the Duke and Duchess were already on bad terms. The Duke desired to direct the education of his chil dren alone, at least the Duchess told me so. Mme. de Praslin added, after having talked to me for a long time on this pretension of her husband, that it would be to the Duke that I should have to give an account. The Duke, on his part, told me the same. Three governesses had succeeded each other in the house in the course of some months—the Duchess could not agree with any of them.' Mdlle. de Luzy added, that M. de Praslin first told her that she would reside alone with the children in a part of the hotel, that she would take her meals alone with them, and that she would allow them only to see their mother. Mdlle. de Luzy refused to consent to these proposi tions, and declared that she would not accept the situation that was offered her. The Duke then de cided that the governess and the children should take their meals with the family, but that the children should remain under her exclusive control and direc tion. Mdlle. de Luzy ascribes all her differences with the Duchess to an ex-governess. This governess , pretended that she kept the children from their mother. At a later period, during a stay at the Château of Vandreuil, where Mdlle. de Luzy was with the Duchess, the latter took part in the readings and direction of the studies of her eight children. On his arrival, the Duke having learned this, was very dissatisfied, and ex pressed that dissatisfaction somewhat strongly, where upon the Duchess abstained. At the Château de Praslin, where the governess and the eight children lived entirely apart, except as regarded the meals, which were taken en famille, Mdlle. de Luzy denies that she ever endeavoured to keep away the children from their mother. I was perhaps greatly wrong,' said she, 'to accept that position, but I never wilfully endeavoured to pain the Duchess.' Mdlle. de Luzy confesses that at times the Duchess expressed senti ments of jealousy towards her, but which, she says, had not the least foundation in the world. Still generally the Duchess was on good terms with her, without being .affectionate; and that often caused her to forget her injustice. Mdlle. de Luzy had no fortune—no friend at Paris. She was obliged to keep to an acquired position, with se much the more resignation that the Duke had promised her, she says, to give her a pension, if she should have the courage, in spite of all the mortifications she was called on to endure, to finish the education of his three eldest daughters. She calculated that the amount of the pension, when the education should be once ter minated, would be 1,500 f. per annum, or 500 f. for each of the young ladies. We are assured, as we have already said, that Mdlle. de Luzy has declared in a formal manner that the Duchess never expressed to her the least suspicion of an improper connexion be tween her and her husband. The Duchess may have said that to others,' she added, but never to me,' Iwo years ago, when in Corsica with her pupils on one of the estates of the Marshal Sebastiani, a journal published that she had taken to flight with the Duke de Praslin. In consequence of this she resolved to leave the house immediately ; but the Marshal, father of the Duchess, opposed this, repre senting that such a measure would be a co',firmation of' the rumour. The Duchess showed great coldness and dissatisfaction at seeing Mdlle. de Luzy abandon her determination and remain in the house. How ever, this seemed gradually to wear away ; and, espe cially within the last year, the Duchess has become kind towards her. 111dlle. de Luzy adds that she was thunderstruck when, in the month of July last, a priest, a friend of the family, told her that her pre sence in the Praslin family was a cause of trouble,h: and thst she could no longer r lie m To fee? question which aros e from th e e ea f a a u s h t e s d which t accused the Duke of having the death of his wife, Aldlle. de Luzy that w t h b o at e i t s ia n ld ot r t , h ot e case ! It is imp ossible b ea r to see one of his children s uffer No! do not tb ex at i ; t g s ra a ve su e s h p a i r c g u e m s which will not b e j ustified ! No . . , As she spoke a te ri ll se ur but t h a t say it s a rather that You there say she i fell on her knees, clasped her hands, and bent her h e ad to the groun d. Oh!' she resumed, oh ! tell m e, gentlemen, I beg of you. But no ! if you told me, I would not believe it, no, never !' She then paused and pressed her forehead with her hands. It is impossible !' she continued. My conscience tells me that he did not do it !—But if he did it, oh God why then it is I—l alone who am guilty I I who n myself misfortune, t i o st . m or ytu lotne , r misery, After loved the children so much, who adored them !—I a h n Sv d e k b n e e e w n notcowardly hw o to dreadedg another pause she proceeded That is all my crime —Write it, sir!' she added, looking fixedly at the magistrate—' Yes, writ e it! H e must have demanded that unfortunate lett er w hi c h was to vouchfnr my character ; she must h ave re f use d it, and Oh yes! It is I—lt is Il a one who am guilty ! Write it ! write it " By order of the Queen, a funeral service for the repose of the soul of the Duchess de Praslin:has been performed in the chapel of the Château of Eu. The Pattie states that M. Allard, chief of the po lice de surete, declared in the most positive manner, when interrogated by order of the Chancellor as to the circumstances under which the Duke de Praslin obtained access to the means of self-destruction, that the Duke was never for a second out of his sight, and could not have poisoned himself in his presence. A similar declaration was made by the police agents who were in attendance. The same journal gives the following respecting the examination of Mdlle. de Luzy " She has been twice taken before the Chancellor cries." ' - 5.4F7 - and the committee and interrogated. The m heard her replies agree in considering h er a V7 o siv l2 r° superior talent. Her language is most remarkable in form and substance. Impossible to write it down,' said a competent judge, M. Cousin; nothing can be more .clear and brilliant.' Her name is Henriette de Luzy-Desportes, aged 37, teacher, born in Paris, and residing at No 9, Rue du Harlay in the Marais, in Mwiame Lemaire's boarding-school. She entered the Duke de Praslin's family ill May - 1, 1841. She was before that at Lady Hislop's at Chaelston, in England. Her salary was 2 , 400 f. a year, besides being fed and lodged. An under governess shared with her the care of the education of three of the daughters and of a little boy of the Duchess's. The other sons were placed under M. Boussu, professor of the College Bourbon. She has, it is said, protested energetically against the suspicion of a culpable intercourse with the Duke. She was dismissed by the Duchess on July 18, in the evening, just as all the family were on the point of leaving for the country. She was greatly grieved, as she was anxious to preserve her place as a provision for the future. She had no other resource than an old grand father, who treated her harshly. She was anxious to remain in the house, where she could be comfortably beingot seenffc h e d t T she h t e dr i a s t shi s ai a nt i d s hme t o h er that than hd s ahmne much wthic deniesce,n sincehhe a av r having noetDscahhzeNik.mladey.ren liked her, and she appeared at ,dealnPt of the crime which he had committed. She could not believe that he was the murderer of his wife." We also read in the Pairie : " No authentic and precise account of the wounds and contusions received by the Duchess has yet been published ; but the following details, the accuracy of which we can warrant, will be read with interest. From the neck downwards to the feet, both before and behind, her body was covered with clotted blood, and the following wounds were found in different parts of her person, viz., eleven on her head, five of which were deep and large; the fractures of the skull indicating that the four first must have been inflicted with extreme violence by some sharp-edged weapon. The torn parts of these wounds prove that they must have been given by some one standing above her while she was in a recumbent position, with the face turned towards him. These blows must have been given by the murderer while she was still asleep. There are five excoriations of the nose, the left eye,_ the lower lip, and the chin, which ar e th e e ff ec t o f strong force used upon these parts, and the marks of the nails are to be observed. Four large wounds were in the neck made with a weapon which was both pointed and sharp,but neither thecarotid artery nor the innerjugular vein was divided, as several journals have announced. On the two hands, the abdomen, and the chest, there are ten wounds more or less deep. The thumb of the left hand was nearly severed at the joint. Thus, more than thirty severe wounds are apparent on the person of the unhappy Duchess de Praslin. There are besides many bruises and livid spots on the limbs. At the same time, it is certain that her death was the consequence of the haemorrhage from the wounds on the head and neck. The number and situation of the wounds and their nature attest that her death was preceded by a long and violent struggle; and the state of disorder in which the chamber was found leaves no room for doubt on this point. It is also certain that the Duchess cried out several times, and lived a long while after receiving the first blows. It is believed that the wounds in the front of the neck, and particularly that which extended across it under thejaw, were given while she was in bed, and that the murderer pressed hard with his hands on her mouth, imprinting his nails, in order to stifle her The Chancellor has adjourned to Monday the sit ting of the Court of Peers. The object of this delay is to afford time for the report of the medical man charged with the post mutton examination of the body of the Duke de Praslin. Marshal Sebastiani arrived on Thursday at his hotel in the Rue du Faubourg St. Honore, overwhelmed with the dreadful calamity that has befallen him. His brother. General Se hastiani, is constantly with him . Soon after his arrival he was visited by two of the King's aides-de-camp, who, in the name of the King, the Queen, and the whole of the royal family, ten dered their consolations. The Marquis de Choiseul Praslin, brother of the Duke who committed suicide, and the Duke d'Albufera, Peer of France, a near relation, received the news of the catastrophe abroad through the journals. They had just arrived at the Hague. They set out immediately for Paris, where they arrived yesterday. The body of the Duke de Praslin has been interred at the cemetery of Mont-Parnasse. On Friday morning at one o'clock the ordminateur of the Pompeii Funehres, with the requisite number of men and carriages, arrived at the prison du Luxembourg. On the summons of the Chancellor, the Prefect of Police, Colonel Pozac, Military Commandant of the Palace of the Luxembourg, M. Elouin, Chief of the Municipal Police, M. Monvalle, the Commissary of Police of the quarter, and M. Trevet, director of the prison, the body was placed in presence of the above named persons in an oak coffin, and then conveyed to the hearse from the chamber where it had been placed. The minutes of this proceeding were then drawn up by Nl. Monvalle and signed by himself, Colonel Pozac, and MM. Elouin and Trevet; after which the hearse, followed by two mourning car riages containing those functionaries and the em ployes, proceeded to the cemetery where it was lowered into the grave which had been prepared to receive it. Another minute was then drawn up, and the interment was concluded by half. past two. THE RIVER PLATE. The Rattler steamer, which arrived at Falmouth yesterd.y morning at nine A.M., brings advice! from the River Plate to the 15th of July, and from Rio Janeiro to the 23d. The blockade on the river had been raised in consequence of the refusal of the Monte Videan Government to accept the armistice proposed by Lord Ho wden. Oribe had accep - ed the terms proposed by the plenipotentiaries of France and England, on the condition that during the armistice the town of Monte Video should be supplied with 1,500 head of cattle per month, the price to be decided hereafter, and that all the ports under blockade should be raised. These terms, on being sent to the Monte Videan Go- vernment, were refused. " During the past week," says private correspon dence of the 9th, from Monte Video, " we have had several changes in the military corps, from which the very worst results are apprehended. Garibaldi and Thiebaut now take the lead, and hold respectively the highest military appointments. The former is an Italian ; the latter a Frenchman. Garibaldi is named commander-in-chief of the garrison, and Thiebaut co lonel of the Italians, Basques, and French, so that we pTehoeps lareThese i n nowge promotionsnae the r t al, aar are mercy e o r tt c ha y o they all a f r well this foreign though looked tuponrabble. eproyn y im politic on the part of the Government at the present crisis." Rivera, by the last accounts, was on the island of Gorriti, with but a few followers, the greater part of the garrison of Maldonado having deserted from want, no provisions having been sent them by Government. On the ilth we had a change of Ministry, which ffi now composed o f th e P ac h eco p a rty, w hi h c a h v c s aus al ed so been many changes in the the disturbance s in April, 1846. Theredepartment,Garibaldi ldi last of which is the resignation of mander of the garrison. military _ G ar as c o t mbe. have advices from Buenos By the Commodore d we have they are superseded by Ayres and Monte VI It was thought impossible the government of loans after August, and Video to raise further Monte d that the Italian auxiliaries would the residents feared the news brought by the e Rattler. for plunder the town. All the merchants had in conse quence p ma de prep for embarking at a moment's not , ce. Th e Rattler found on her artival at Rio de Janeiro her e esty's ships Fisgard, Racer, Se agu ll, an d Cres ert he Fisgard left Valpar aiso on t h e :2 0t h o f May. it i‘ , l and aj two American frigate s . When she left, the Ccllingwood was at Callao ; the Commander-in. Chief at Panama, in the Grampus. The Juno left Valparaiso fur Callan on the 30th of May. The Modeste and Cormorant (filg-lieutenant acting) were hourly expected at Valparaiso; Con stance at Mayattan; Carysforton the coast of Mexico. Squadron In the Riv , -r Plate—The Raleigh (Com m,,dore), the Eagle, and the Firebrald; the Alecto, the Harpy, and the Lizard, at Monte Video. On her way to Bu enos Ayres, the Kestrel. At Buenos Ayres, the Grecian. At Colonna, the Satel lite. At Maldonado, the Comus. the East Indies, Video, for the Cape of Good Hope and her Majesty's ship M e lampus sailed from Monte on July 11. The Rattler left Rio on the 23d of Jul y , and took in coal at Fayal, whereshearrived cn the 20th following vessels :—Aug. Q ; August. She spoke thee ofL Southampton,;tvheessel telegraphed their n'Ambers in passing ondon, in let. 16.50 INT .s ohne. s 0 ship 3, V barquePet, of Scarborough, f rom Malta to Cork, in let. 46.48 , lon. 13.38 \\r The :—The barque Duchess of Nort v .iumberland, A ug ust 9, in lat. t l 12 1 N.,10n 25 • W ; August 25, the barques Sir Jo se p h Bankes and Champl a i n , i n l a t. 46.50, lon. 13.50 W., outward b ound. 27.30 W. -------= Her Majesty and her royal suite will remain in Scotland for a fortnight or three weeks longer. Lord Palmerston, who is now in town, will leave on Thursday to join the royal party, as Secretary of State in attend— ance, in succession to Lord Grey. Sir George Grey is, expected to arrive in London from the north on Thurs day next. —Observer. REPRESENTATION OF TAUNTON.—The statement , of a Bsth paper of a vacancy in the representatior j , of Taunton to be caused by the elevation of Mr. L Abou chere to the peerage is incorrect —Observer. ..rhe Scotch bench of bishops has lost one. .of its members. Dr. Moir, diocesan of Brechin, a gimt'leman of much amiability, died last week. Ho was or Joined fifty years ago, and consecrated in 1837. s , ~ ' M T ,~~~~'