The Sun. — London, England, 1847-06-28 00:00:00

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Osborn, a young man very respectably con nected, Was charged before Mr. Bingham with being found on the premises of Mr. Hollock, gold laceman, No- 4, Old Bond-street, under suspicious circumstances. It appeared that the complainant, after the fatigues of the week were over, always made it a practice of going into the country on the Saturday evening„ and return ing on the Monday morning to business. Latterly his suspicions were excited that all was not as it should be, Itind from certain information which he received he was determined to watch the actions of his servants. On Saturday evening last he left his residence as usual, but, instead of going into the country, he went to the station, and, having procured the asAistance of a constable in private clothes, re turned to watch his residence. After looking out for some time, they saw a man knock at the door, which was opened by one of the servants, who admitted him into the house. The complainant then went and rang the bell, and after being kept at the door the servant made her appearance, evidently surprised to see her master so suddenly return. Complainant asked the servant the reason she was not in bed, and the answer being so unsatisfac'ory, he taxed her with admitting a man into the house. She stoutly denied the assertion, but in the mean w hil e t h e cons t a bl e had been searching the premises, and the result of his search led to his finding the Mena:int in the dust-hole. As there was a deal of valuable property on the premises, the conl- V.ainant, for his own safety, gave the defendant in ch arge. The defendant denied being in the house for an im proper purpose. He had been paying his addresses to the servant for two years, and had been in the habit of going to see her every Saturday evening. His father was a builder, and he could assure the magistrate that kke !lore a respectable character. Mr. BINGHAM, after advising the defendant to be more careful in future, discharged him. THAMES.—(THIS DAY.) Nine Lascar seamen, belonging to the ship Anna Robinson, now lying at Gravesend, were placed in the dock, charged with drunkenness and desertion. It appeared that some disputes had arisen between these men and the master of the ♦essel respecting wages, and on Saturday the men applied at this court for a summons against the master for the amount they claimed, but as, from their own statement, it was shown they had signed articles for a voyage from Madras to London and back again, Mr. Ballantine refused to grant the sum mons, informing them they could not claim any wages till their arrival at Madras, and the consequent termi nation of the voyage. This morning Captain Augustus Munro, master of the Anna Robinson, attended and represented to the magistrate that the desertion of these men was a matter of very serious importance to him. His vessel had left the docks, and was now at Gravesend, ready to go to sea, end should these men be left behind, to say nothing of the expense and inconvenience to which his owners would be subjected, he himself was, under the company's charter, personally liable to a heavy penalty for each rnan so left behind. As to the money they claimed, if be was to meet their demands they would only abscond, and the ship, which was now ready for sea, be detained for an indefinite period. Mr. YARDLEY said he apprehended the principal ob ject of the master was to obtain possession of the men, and directed Inspector Bilston to afford Captain Munro the assistance of the police for that purpose. The men, when they got outside of the Court, became very riotous, and positively refused to go on board. One nia.n, who appeared to be the ringleader, was very refractory, and endeavoured to excite the others to per sist in their opposition, and Captain Munro was com pelled to ask the Magistrate to have him locked up. Mr. YARDLEY said the master was entitled to assist ance to convey the men on board, but he (Mr. Yardley) could not punish them. Captain Munro—Then I shall be compelled to take him on board in irons. On an inspection of the ship's articles, it seemed by an error the voyage had been made to terminate at London instead of Madras, and consequently the Magis trate could not interfere farther; and it was finally un derstood that the captain was compelled to consent to the demands of the men, the ship being under the im perate necessity of sailing immediately. THE BRAZILS. FALMOUTH, JUNE 27.—Her Majesty's packet Crane, Lieutenant Lewis, arrived this morning with ]Brazil mails, having left Rio Janeiro on the sth of May, Bahia on the 14th, and Pernambuco on the 20th, bringing on freight 40,0001. and the following passengers :—Mr. Southam, Mr. Lott, Mr. Schmidt, Miss Verran and Mr. Dalboussiere, from Rio ; Mr. Winter, from Bahia ; and Mr. White, from Pernam buco. The Crane left at Rio Janeiro her Majesty's ships Curaeoa and Comus, the latter having arrived from the River Plate (bringing dates from Buenos Ayres to the Bth of April, and Monte Video to the 16th) on the 29th of April. This packet brings little news of any importance. The Emperor had returned to Rio in good health, and his speech at the opening of the Chambers bad given satisfaction. Her Majesty's steamer Rattler, with Lord Howden on board, arrived at Rio on the night of the 9d of May, and sailed again on the evening of the 4th for the southward. His Lordship landed, but not in an official capacity. It was stated the steamer came in for coals. An interview had taken place at Bahia between Lord Howden and the French Envoy, which latter had put in there for coals. Freights had again Edvanced, and 70s. to 80s. had been obtained. Coffee is in demand, but the arrival of the new crop is slow. The prices are—superior, 38000 to 35200 Good, Ist, 2d, 25500 28550 Sugars are flatter, 3sooo white, and 25100 brown. Arrivals continue to be comparatively small, as usual, in this season. There has been an improvement in stock of to 1 per cent. in general, and of 1 to l h per cent. in pro vincial, both being firm at these quotations. Exchange on the Crane's departure 27k. Some business done at 27k. MONEY MARKET. Advices from Hamburgh to the 22d inst. again report money more easy, the rata having receded to 41 per cent. Owing to this circum stance, and to the s upply o f p a p er b e i ng li m it e d, ex change had risen for three months' bills to 13 61. Ad vices from Riga, dated June 17,quote bo a considerable 39ic to presumed, 9 to decline in exchange (owin g , i t is to further arrivals of silver, the price bein g Flax and hemp remained without change. In grain a . little more had been doing, and oats were in demand. The number of ships arrived was 1,535, of which 936 had sailed. From St. Petersburgh the dates arc to the 14th of June, but they bring no quotation of exchange. Corn was dull, with few transactions. The latest re port from the Amsterdam Bourse notices a rather firmer Market for Dutch and Portuguese Securities, both of Which had lately been more freely purchased. Spanish Was flat, owing to a cessation of aotive operations. The rate of exchange upon England quoted in letters from Gibraltar, dated the 12th inst., is 49i. Spanish pillared dollars were selling at 11 to 2 per cent. premium. The Pate of exchange at Malaga, on the same da y , was 50. MUTILATED BODY FOUND IN THE THAMES. — On Saturday morning, about ten o'clock, as a fisherman was on the river near Westminster -bridge, he discovered something floating with the tide, which induced him to l'evv to the spot, and he was surprised at finding part of the body of a man in a dreadful state of decomposition, and almost in a state of nudity. With assistance he got it to the dead house in High-street, where it was found to be the body of a man who had been in the water ap parently about eight or nine months. The left leg from the knee was quite gone, while the ribs were also bare, and the cheat could be seen through. Whatever clothe mg the deceased might have had was gone, except a Piece of old shirt and a boot, the other having probably gone with the leg. It is impossible to account for the body being in such a state of mutilation, for it is seldom they remain for such a length of time in th e water as this has evidently done, and there is not the slightest clu e as to whom the party may be. LOSS OF A PICTURE OF NELSON.—Prior to the battle of Trafalgar, Lord Nelson presented to the Nelson Hotel, at Milford Haven, a fine full-length por trait of hi mse lf ( sa id t o b e the only one for which he e'er sat), by Leonardo di Paluzzi, en condition of its not being removed, but to remain an heir-loom of the house for ever. About two years and a half kto the painting was taken away, in order to be sent to London to be cleaned, and it has not been returned to the hotel to this day, to the pecuniary in inn, o f Mrs. Pritchard, the worthy hostess of the hotel, ;I: i tid to the gr ea t di s appointment of persons visiting the u infor mation. Can any of our correspondents give any infor mation respecting this picture, so as to lead to its resto ration ? The Cambrian. tragical event (says the Constitutionnel) took Plac e a few days past, at the country house of M. 11., 'ether •in-law of M. Jules Janin. The place of concierge ttld garde ner was fill e d by a man who had formerly _een in the ar m y, an d w h o , with his wife and daughter, Thabited a pavilion at the extremity of the park. The I ° 9n g woman w as remar k a ble for her good looks, and had been d« minded in marriage by a man named Boulay , bat the arents in accord with the daughter, had re fused the application. Boulay, finding his suit rejected, had become sombre and melancholy, and was heard to utter threats of vengeance. Mme. J. Janin and her I .."." ) u tn r arrived last week at their country seat, and were Ililtiosual attended on by the young girl, when three dote ps suddenly reached their ear. A sad presentiment struck the girl, and crying out, "My father, my he t er," she ran to the pavilion. There were found a gardener and his wife lying dead, and not far from t hem the body of Boulay, who, having shot the old Cou ple, bul blown out his on brains. RO ME. The Pope's edict for the creation of a Council of Mi nisters is put lished. It is dated from the Quirinal, June 12, and contains, among others, the following articles: "1. A council of Ministers is instituted. It is com posed of the Cardinal Secretary of State (for Foreign and Home Affairs); of the Cardinal Camerlingua (for Commerce, Agriculture, the Arts, &c.); of the Cardinal Prefect() delle Acque e Strada (Public Works); of Mgr. the Governor of Rome (General of Police); of Mgr. the Treasurer-General (Finances); and Mgr. Presidente delle Armi (War). " 2. The Cardinal Secretary of State is President of the Council. Councils are to be held at the residence of the Cardinal Secretary of State whenever the Sovereign does not preside. The chiefs of the Tribunals may be called to Council, and those among them who are Cardi nals shall have the right of voting on questions on which they have been called upon to deliberate, " 5. The two substitutes of the Secretary of State may attend the Council, but shall have no right of voting. " 6. The council shall be assisted by a prelate as se cretary, but without a right of voting. " 7. The Secretary of State is the centre of all affairs treated by the different ministeries, the organ of the publications of laws, and of the communication of ordon nances issued by the Sovereign, as well as of the reports addressed to the Sovereign upon remonstrances made against the acts or decisions of the different administra tions. " 14. The Auditor of the Chamber and the Governor of Rome shall cease the judicial functions, civil, or crimi nal, hitherto exercised by them, or by other functiona ries in their name. The Treasurer shall also cease to exercise the presidency of the Cameral Congregation for the decision of administrative differences, and of the Criminal Tribunal of the Chambers. " 28. Every Minister shall present to the council the budget of his department, which before it is taken into consideration shall be submitted to the examination of the Congregation of Revision. The Treasurer-General shall place the necessary funds at the disposal of each Minister. "29. The ordinary meetings of the council shall be held once a week. They shall be called at the request of the Cardinal President, or by order of the Sovereign. " 30. The deliberations of the council shall remain absolutely consultative until they are approved by the Sovereign." The Pope has appointed to the command of the gend armery of Rome Prince Gabrielh, a distinguished officer, who, in the rank of captain followed the Emperor Napo leon through the Russian campaign. HER MAJESTY'S THEATRE. Saturday was a night of triumph for the Deesses de la danse, who appeared in a new divertissement entitled Les Elentens, which equals the glories of the Pas de Quatre or the Pas des Deesses. The earth is re presented by four nymphs, Mademoiselles Cassan, James, Vonore, and Thevenot. Fire, by Mademoi selle Carlotta Grisi ; Water, by Mademoiselle Rosati, who enters upon the scene attended by Dolphins and Naiads, and Air by the graceful and sylphlike Cerito, The " Pas of the Elements" is a marvel of choerogra phic excellence. It is commenced by Carlotta Grisi and :Cerito, then follows a pas seul by Rosati, in which she exhibits the most graceful poses imaginable, and concludes by a dazzling series of twinkling steps executed as Rosati alone can execute them. Car• lotta Grisi then dances a pas with the most piquant air imaginable, concluding with some astonishing tours de force, which are tours de grace also, and then Cerito comes bounding—the very soul of exuberant joyousness. Thus element strives with element, neither surpassing the other but each triumphing in turn until the curtain falls. The applause at the fall of the curtain was most en thusiastic. Never has a more splendid choerographic triumph been achieved, even at this theatre, and the " Elements," with " their Ruler " Perrot, to whose genius we are indebted for this brilliant divertisse ment, were called for, and rapturously applauded. ST. JAMES'S THEATRE. On Saturday morning a private performance took place at this theatre in the presence of the Queen, Prince Albert, the Prince of Wales, the Princess Royal, and the Princess Alice—the royal children being specially invited by Mr. Mitchell to a series of juvenile entertainments, countenanced by the gra cious patronage of her Majesty. The illustrious party arrived at the theatre about half-past two o'clock, and were ushered into the royal box, which, together with the entire tier of private boxes, was prettily festooned with artificial flowers. The Queen of the Belgians occupied a seat by the side of her Majesty, and the Duchess of Cambridge, accompanied by the Princess Mary, paid the royal group a short visit during the progress of the performance. The performances commenced with the first act ofthe Gamin de Paris, after which the musical performances of the little Turners, who made their debut here about twelve months since, and who are much improved. Mdlle Badenan then danced a pas with castagnettes, and the two pigmies, dressed in the rococo style, danced a stately minuet with the most amusing gravity. Then came a human Mercury—a gentle man whose usual mode of locomotion seems to be in a rolling ball. The Ethiopian Serenaders followed, and the performances of the Bedouin Arabs con cluded the morning's amusement. The Royal chil dren seemed delighted with the entertainment, and were loud in their applause. The house was quite full of noble and fashionable vi sitors, to whom invitations had also been given by Mr. Mitchell, and the array of bonnets which met the eye, as it ran over the pit, presented a most beautiful coup d'cril of fancy colours. The Marchioness of Douro, Lord Alfred Paget, and Colonel Bouverie attended the Royal party. Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge and the Princess Mary were also present, attended by the Baroness Hammerstein and Mr. Edmond St. John Mildway ; and her Royal Highness the Duchess of Gloucester, attended by Colonel Liddell. There were also present the Baron and Baroness Rehausen, Mr. and Madame Van de Weyer, the Duke and Duchess of Northumberland, the Duchess of Sutherland and the Ladies Gower, the Duchess of Cleveland, the Duchess of Norfolk, the Duke and Duchess of Bedford, the Marquis and Marchioness of Dou glas, the Marchioness of Ailesbury, the Coun tess of Chesterfield, Countess Lieven, the Countess of Norbury and the Ladies Toler, the Countess of Howe, Countess of Lichfield, Earl and Countess of Craven, Countess Hood, Countess of Mount Edgcumbe, Countess of Eglintoun, Countess of Blessington and the Misses Power, Lord and Lady Brougham, Lady Laura Mey rick, Marquise de Lousadi, Madame Reille, Ladies Agnes Duff; Lady Dinorben, Lady Yarde Buller, the Ladies Bentinck, Lady Stratford Canning, Viscount and Lady Marian Alford, Lady Charlotte Guest, Lady Morgan, Lady Charlotte Balfour, Lady Louisa Trench, Lady Rendlcsham, Lady La wley, Lady Meux, Lady Throckmorton, Lady Fitzroy Kelly, Lady and Miss Macdonald, Miss Talbot and party, Mrs. Maberly, Mrs. Tabor, Madame de Lautour and party, Mrs. Milner Gibson, Mr. and Mrs. Foley, Hon. Mr. Fitzgibbon and the Misses Fitzgibbon, B. Lindo, Esq., G. Clarke, Esq., Mrs. llolford and party, Mrs. Portal, Mrs. Gladstone, Mrs. Baillie, &c. ROYAL ITALIAN OPERA.—Her Majesty, his Royal Highness Prince Albert, their Majesties the King and Queen of the Belgians, and their Royal Highnesses the with Marchioness h e e h i i r o p n; se Duke and Duchess of C am b r id ge, honoured the Royaleres Itanlcie. ll an Opeerraon :MajestySaturday a attendeds evening by last tl of Douro, Lord Byron, Lord Alfred Paget, Colonel Bouverie, and Major Moerk er k e; h er Majesty- the Queen of the Belgians, by th o Countess Vander Straten; en their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, by Lady Charlotte Lister, Baron Knesebeek, Mr. Ed mund Mildmay, Mr. Henry Lyster, and Sir William Davidson. There were present—the Hanoverian Min ister, the Duke and Duchess of Beaufort and Lady Blanche Somerset, the Duke of Montrose, the Duchess of Grafton, the Marchioness of Anglesey, the Marquis of Worcester, the Countess of Kinnoul, and L. Hay, the Countess of Orford and Lady Dorotl Wftipole, the Earl of Cardigan, the Countess of Glengall, Earl Granville, the Earl f Euston, Dowager Countess of Essex, Viscount Combermere, Viscount Templetown, Viscount Clifden, Viscount Dupplin, Viscountess Dillon, and the Hon. Miss Dillon, Viscount Maidstone, Lord and Lady Carrington, Lord Manners, Lord Forester, Lord Suffield, Lord George Manners, Lady Lyndhurst and the Hon. Miss Copley, Lady William Powlett, Lord Archibald St. Maur, Lord Bruce, Lord Henry Lennox, M.P ; Lord Compton, Lord and Lady Alfred Paget, Lady . Adelaide Paget, Lady Harriet Bagot, Lord F. Gordon, Lady Palmer, General Sir W. Anson, Bart., and Lady Anson, the Right Hon. Sydney and Mrs. Herbert, the Hon. Mr. Upton, the Hon. J. Fortescue, the Hon. Sir E. and Lady Butler, the Hon. Colonel and Mrs. Fitzgibbon, the Hon. P. Barrington, the Hon. Mrs. Vaughan, the Hon. C. Neville, Sir C. and Lady Cecilia des Vceux, Sir W. and Lady Molesworth, Sir W. Abdy, Bart., Sir A. Clifton, Bart., Sir W. M. M Stanley, Bart.. and Mr. and Mrs. J. Stanley, Sir J. S. Hippesley, Bart., Lady Macfarlane, Lady Meux, Lady Jodrell, Lady Thorold, Baron Lionel de Rothschild, Sir Anthony and Lady Rothschild, Sir P. Broke, Bart., Sir A. Aston, Sir H. Lushington, Bart., and Lady Lushington, Sir R. L. Blosse, Bart., Sir H. and Lady Robinson, Sir 0. Wake man, Bart., Sir E. S. Stanhope, Bart., Sir W. Medly cott, Bart., Sir C. Ibbetson, Bart., Mr. R. Neville, M.P., Mr. H. Baring, M.P., Mrs. H. Baring, Mr. G. W. J. Repton, M.P., Mr. Dennistoun , M .P., and Mrs. Dennis toun, Mr. C. P. Leslie, M.P., Mr. E. Strutt and Miss Strutt. INFANT ORPHAN ASYLUM, WANsTzAD.—Yester day morning a sermon, on behalf of the funds of this truly charitable institution, was preached at the parish church of St. Bride, Fleet-street, by the Rev. Henry Melvill, D.D. The Rev. Gentleman warmly and elo quently 'advocated the cause of the charity, until the establishment of which no asylum for the infant orphan was in existence. There are at present 260 inmates of the institution, to which 50 additional children will be elected on the next half -yearly -ye2r y ballot on the Ist of No vember. The sum collected amounted to 781. 6s. The prospects of the charity appear to be highly cheering, and it is hoped that the committee will be enabled to extend their efforts on behalf of the fatherless and help less infant. ATTEMPT TO MURDER A GAMEKEEPER.- 011 Saturday information was received by the police, that Joseph Wall, who in February last, made a most deter mined attempt to murder Abel Martin, one of the Earl of Granville's gamekeepers, had been captured by John Richardson, one of the Shropshire constabulary, and lodged in Shropshire gaol, to await his trial for the capital charge at the ensuing assizes. TirE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, JUNE 28, 1847. cessity of a national system of education. The new Parliament have all the materials for the erection of a noble structure. narrative of the first journey of the kind, these two volumes by Sir George Simpson command a very considerable share of attention; nor are they, with the exception of certain indications of monomania, in regard to the Emperor Nicholas and Siberia, of a character unworthy of a very general and distin guished approbation. NARRATIVE OF A JOURNEY ROUND THE IV ORLD. Two Vols. By Sir George Simpson. Often as this terraqueous globe of ours has been circumnavigated, it remained for the Governor-in- Chief of the Hudson's Bay Company's territories in North America, Sir George Simpson, to be the first individual who should travel round the earth overland. The narrative of this remarkable journey is contained in these two handsome and interesting volumes. Sir George announces on the title-page, that his pere grinations were as far back in date as the years 1841 and 1842 ; and he apologises in a manner for the tardy appearance of the work by telling us in rather indifferent grammar, in the preface, that his numerous occupations, of an offi cial character, have heretofore "precluded hiin from bestowing an earlier and requisite attention to the sub ject." Although we cannot accompany the author in all the sentiments expressed by him during the course of his lucubrations, we are perforce carried along with him in imagination during the whole of his curious progress through Europe, America, and Asia, fas cinated by th e b on h omm i e o f hi s s tyl e and allured by the singularity of his proceedings. For example, we are lothe to hearken to his extravagant eulogiums upon the Imperial monster of the North, whom he mentions in this wise : " The present Czar's personal qualities, physical, and intellectual, and moral, must induce every man's judg ment to acquiesce in the homage which his feelings are constrained to pay. Nicholas," he continues, " is uni versally allowed to present the noblest mould of form and feature, to be the ablest and most laborious sovereign of the age, and, what is higher praise than all in an indi vidual of his exalted station, to set before his people the brightest exampl e o f a ll t h e domestic virtues." At first such egregious toadying of a man univer sally execrated by civilised nations is incomprehen sible, but a cursory g lance at a map of North America will speedily explain the enigma ; it will demonstrate the wherefore of such unexampled civi lity on the part of the Governor-in-Chief of the Hudson's Bay Company, by revealing the contiguity of their magnificent possessions to the enormous ter ritories colonised by the lieges of the Emperor Nicholas. Sir George Simpson seems generally to keep what is termed in sea-faring parlance his " weather-eye open." Even in his dedication he evinces a wholesome reverence for their High Mightinesses, the Directors of the Hudson's Bay Company. And upon a precisely similar, and ex ceedingly comfortable, and decidedly accommodating principle, he becomes the earnest panegyrist of his Imperial Majesty the Despot of all the Russias. Not only this, but he degenerates into the extenuation of the preternatural cruelties perpetrated in the icy wil dernesses of Siberia ; nay, he proceeds to such outrage ous lengths in uttering encomiums on the very pater nal Government of St. Petersburgh, that he holds up the system of banishment into Siberia as one emi nently in accordance with the dictates of wisdom and philanthropy, and rather serving as a model for imita tion than otherwise. Protesting, therefore, in language as emphatic as we can just now select against this miraculous malversation of truth, and expressing our abhorrence alike of the man who wields the sceptre of the infamous Catherine with such congenial brutality, and of the system by which he consigns so many thousands of our fellow-creatures to the lingering agony of expatriation in the wintry wastes of Siberia, we turn from this disagreeable portion of Sir George Simpson's narrative to the pleasanter passages, in which he depicts his wander ings and ponderings in many remote quarters of the globe. At the outset we cannot resist expressing our admiration at the inextinguishable good humour of our author throughout the whole of this remarkable journey. When other men would have become soured by the petty calamities incident to the tra veller, he continues the same blithe, cheerful, viva cious being he proved himself to be on starting. The hobbles resulting from insufficient conveyances, from lumbering carriages that refuse to budge an inch further through the mud, from restive horses that suddenly, in the very crisis of a roadside dilemma, throw up their heels, snap their reins asunder, and gallop "over the hills and far away," from ignorant guides, uncleanly lodging, and unpalateable fare, only prove fresh provocatives to the f ace ti ousness of Sir George Simpson. Instead of bewailing the incon veniences attendant upon his out-of-the-way pere grinations, he seems, on the contrary, to have revelled in the consciousness that a thousand casualties were perpetually conspiring against his comfort. Sir George displays a wonderful aptitude for seeing things in their ludicrous light, and he avails himself of this capacity upon every reasonable and unreasonable oc casion. Besides this, he is a keen observer of animal and vegetable nature—of the picturesque in scenery, and the characteristic in town life and village life. His chapters flow, one after another, each presenting a different spectacle to our con templation, like the sliding glasses in the galantee-show. Every page, moreover, reflects upon its surface, so to speak, the trees, and the waters, and the mountains, and the houses, and the human beings actually seen by the writer as he proceeded onwards, as vividly as on the disc of a camera obscura. A better idea, however, may be afforded of the character of the work under consideration by giving a condensed description of the route taken by the traveller, than by referring to the prominent features of his narrative, or the most conspicuous characteristics of his style. Having embarked on the 4th of March, 1841, at Liverpool, on board the British steamer " Caledonia," of 1,300 tons, and 450 horse power, Sir George Simpson proceeded in a westerly course from the mouth of the Mersey. After encountering a variety of adventures, such as only occur to voyagers on the tempestuous Atlantic— catchingranreci, Pre sident" a glimpse of a whale, getting involved in the same disappeared,hurricane mistakingi n w h i c h t a h fi e eunfortunate r " and a star for a " revolving light"—they entered the harbour of Halifax on the 18th of March. On their very ide n t' ' way thither they had passed by the Great Bank of Newfoundland. From Halifax they "steamed'' on to Boston, where they disembarked from the " Cale donia," and, leaving that pleasant city with as much dispatch as possible, proceeded by railroad first to Lowell and then on to Nashua. Nashua is described by our author as one of the most precocious towns in that most precocious of all civilised countries, America, having sprouted into maturity with the rapidity of a mushroom. Thence he hastened forward by a coach and-four to Vermont, and, exchanging that convey ance for a sleigh, clattered on towards Montpellier. The party, however, were not destined to reach that assemblage of villas without a preliminary stoppage on the road, in consequence of the vehicle sticking perversely in the mud, and the horses bolting no less perversely, and defying their pursuers until after a " chase of several miles." On leaving Montpellier they at once crossed into the Canada territories, reach ing Montreal by passing over the ice of the St. Law rence. Their journey then appears to have assumed a rather formidable character, seeing that they had to travel slowly up the river in canoes, stopping now to dine, now to bivouac, and now to diverge through the thickets around the portages—a portage being that portion of the banks which is situated between the summit and the bottom of a cascade or a rapid. Arrived at Lake Superior, Sir George expatiates at some length on the riches imbedded in the vicinity of the Thunder Mountain, were the soil is prolific in its deposits of copper, tin, gold, and silver. Leaving Fort William behind them the travellers paddled up the river Kaministaquoia, - passin g severally through the Lake la Croix, Lake la Pluie, and the Lake of the Woods. Here they pressed forward to the Rat Portage, to Fort Alexander, hard by Lake Winipeg, to Assihiboine river, and onwards across the gigantic prairies, by Fort Ellice, Fort George, Kootanie Fort, and Fort Colville, until their arrival at Fort Vancouver—a spot latterly invested with extraordinary interest, be ing situated on that river Columbia in the Oregon territories so long disputed by England and America. Sir George Simpson had in this manner crossed the American continent by a road of five thousand miles in the brief period of twelve weeks. Instead of being exhausted by this enormous distance, he made eccen tric excursions first northwards to New Archangel and Sitka, in the Russian territories, and then south wards to Port St. Francisco, to Monterey (since then the scene of a battle), and to San Barbara, in Cali fornia. From the latter harbour he made an elliptical course, touching at the Sandwich Islands, and re turning to the Russian settlement at New Archangel. Thence he moved directly across the Pa c ifi c , pas sing the extreme point of the promontory of Kam stchatka, entered the port of Okotsk. The narrative at this point is so wonderfully dismal in the depicted cold ness and desolation of those northern regions, that we shall content ourselves with a mere enumeration of the • • and principal stages of his subsequent journey. Having boated up the river Ok o t a , h e went on horseback, through pine forests, to Yakutsk, downwards by the Lena (one of the vastest rivers in the world), passing by the gold country near the Yenisei, and reaching the capital, Krasnoiarsk ; thence to Tomsk, to Omsk, to Tobolsk, and to Ekaterineburg, in the centre of the Uralian mountains, where there are in abundance amethysts, diamonds, topazes, gold, silver, iron, and platina, principally the property of M. Yaltovleff and Count Demidoff. Lucky Demidoff! lucky Yakovleff! the silver spoons in your mouths when you were clothed in swaddling garments must have been encrusted with precious stones, and as large as soup ladles ! On to Kazan, on to Novg oro d ( w h ere is the largest fair in the world), on to Moscow (the phoenix of cities), on to St. Petersburgh, d own t h e gulf of Finland, down the Baltic to Hamb urg h , an d then to London, where Sir George Simpson arrived just at the close of the October of 1842, having jour nigd round the world, overland in the won d er f u ll y short time of nineteen months and twenty-six days ! Wonderfully short, however, it cannot long continue I to be regarded, seeing that steam promises soon to render the route a trip of comparative facility. As a EXHIBITION OF PICTURES AT WESTMINSTER HALL. Government is at length eliciting the artistic genius which has hitherto remained comparatively dormant among our fellow-countrymen. The screens in West minster Hall sufficiently testify that the munificence of the Legislature has not been misdirected. Only one question forces itself upon us as still problematical, after a prolonged inspection of the paintings—What will the State do with the intellect it has thus summoned into development? Will it, like the fabricator of Franken stein, abandon the spirit it has evoked at the very mo ment when the power and ambition of that spirit is attested? We cannot think that this generous movement will be productive of such miseries as a conclusion like that would necessitate. There is a glorious but mournful warning on the wall—No. 15—one of the latest, and certainly one of the best of poor Ilaydon's—" The Banishment of Aristides, illustrative of the Injustice of Democracy!" With that visible manifestation of the woes incident to the atelier before us, we cannot dream that the Government will encourage merely to forsake. From the multiplicity of the productions suspended in Westminster Hall, one hundred and twenty distinct paint ings, it would be impossible to give an accurate analysis of the merits of the collection from the recollection of a single inspection, and within the compass of a single notice. The remembrance of a first visit to an exhibition so novel and so copious in pro mise as the present, is necessarily one of the most embarrassed and confused that can be conceived. Sup posing due attention is paid to each individual composi tion, the recollection of the whole would necessarily be a combination of excellencies and blemishes, of incidents and emotions, of hues and distances, and groupings and passions. Bearing this in mind, we principally confined our attention to those pictorial creations the predominant talent of which has been in a very signal manner pro claimed by the combined judgments of the Marquis of Lansdowne, of Sir Robert Peel, of Samuel Rogers, of Richard Westmacott, of Richard Cook, and of William Etty. Looking then to these directly, we were irresist ibly reminded of the proverbial impossibility of making any selection of this character in such:a manner as to sa tisfy any single individual,with the exception, of course, of the successful competitors and their particular friends. Taste is so variable in its nature, so diverse in its mani festation, and so impossible to reduce within arbitrary rules, that its definition has baffled even the astuteness of Alison. It has even pronounced its own fickleness by merging into the adage, chacun a son gout—that adage, moreover, showing in a remarkable manner that each man has son gout—his particular taste. Art, how ever, is anything but simply a thing appreciable by what is commonly called taste. Taste cannot make an exe crable picture a masterpiece, nor distort a masterpiece into a monstrosity. The genius of art appeals irresis tibly to persons of all imaginable tastes (so-called), though it appeals to them undoubtedly through an ex traordinary number of different channels. Still wherever the genius of art is imprinted:upon the canvass, there, be certain, is attracted the admiration of those who are competent to appreciate the productions of that art; and precisely from such a consideration are we prepared to express our supreme astonishment at the classification of the nine pictures to which prizes have been awarded. We are amazed at the particular classification, and we are satisfied the public will be amazed likewise. Fore most among the " Premiums of Five Hundred Pounds" is No. 17, " Burial of Harold at Waltham Abbey," by F.R.Pickersgill. Supposing the visitor were taken blind fold from the entrance-gate of the hall, and relieved from the bandage opposite this Prize A, No. 1, we do not hesitate to say, that his surprise would be that the pic ture by Mr. Pickersgill is considered by the Fine Arts Committee as the best painting in the exhibition—nay, we do not hesitate to say that his predominant sentiment would be a sentiment of disappointment. For a moment we do not deny that the " Burial of Harold" is clever—comsummately clever—but we do assuredly protest that in our estimation it is very far indeed from being the masterpiece in the exhibition. The grouping is anything but graceful, presenting as it does the curve of so many buttocks around the corpse of the slain monarch; and, saving the sombre green of the female dress and the glittering mail of the soldier, the colour is feeble. Immeasurably beyond this in point of subject in point of inspiration, and in point of drawing, is the painting by G. F. Watts, No. 28, " Alfred inciting the Saxons to prevent the landing of the Danes, by en countering them at sea." The vestures of the great kings as he steps upon the plank of the galley, seem to be caught up in the storm of heroism, and the Saxons respond tojthe trumpet tones of his voice by their daring visages and the appropriate energy of their movements. The conception is grand and truly historical, but the colouring is miserably deficient. No. 31, " The Battle of Meanee," by Edward Armitage, is a spirited battle scene, suggested by the school of Horace Vernet, but for anything in the shape of poetry, of ingenuity, of truthfulness to nature, or of power in the portraiture of passion, it is a blank. Very different is the 11th pic ture as marked in the catalogue, " Edward' Generosity to the People of Calais during the Siege of 1346," by Paul Falconer Poole. The incident chosen by the artist is one of the noblest in the history of our common country. Edward 111. and the Black Prince are represented in the centre of the pic ture distributing alms to the poorer inhabi tants of Calais who have been thrust out of the city gates, to the number of seventeen hundred, by Jean de Vienne, the Governor. The composition of the entire picture is masterly, and domestic passion shines out :conspicuously in the different groups. The whole is conceived in the loftiest style of art, and the combination of colour is marvellously beautiful. J. Noel Paton has a dainty and imaginative picture (No. 24), " The Reconciliation of Oberon and Titania:' it is swarming with invention, both bewitching and fantastic. Another noble limning is that of " Wisdom" (No. 95.) by James Eckford Lauder. Several of the unrewarded paintings struck us as:evidencing superior ability. Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge, ac companied by the Princess Mary, and attended by the Baroness Hammerstein and Mr. E. St. John Mildmay, honoured the exhibition of oil paintings, in Westminster Hall, with a visit on Saturday afternoon. Her Royal Highness was received by Mr. Eastlake, who accom panied the illustrious party through the hall. Among the nobility and gentry who attended the private view were his Grace the Duke of Wellington, the Duke and Duchess of Bedford, the Duke and Duchess of Northumberland, the Duchess of Sutherland, the Ladies Caroline and Constance Leveson Gower and the Hon. Miss Ellis, the Marquis of Lansdowne, the Mar chioness of Ailesbury, the Marquis and Marchioness of Westminster, the Marquis and Marchioness of Exeter* the Earl and Countess Craven, the Countess Dowager of Morley, the Earl and Countess of Morley, the Earl of Rosebery, the Countess of Pembroke and the Hon. Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Herbert, the Earl and Countess of Leven and the Ladies Melville, the Earl Compton, the Earl Fortescue, the Earl of Wilton, the Earl of Ripon, the Countess Waldegrave and Lady Laura Waldegrave, the Earl Granville, the Earl of Powis and Lady Lucy Herbert, the Earl and Countess of Shelburne, the Coun tess Grey and Miss Copley, the Earl of Minto and the Ladies Elliott, the Countess of Selkirk and Lady Katherine Douglas, the Earl and Countess of Elles mere, the Earl of Clanwilliam, the Countess Cowper, the Earl Waldegrave, Viscount and Lady Ma rian Alford, Viscountess Canning, Viscountess Jocelyn, and Lady Ashley, Viscount and Viscountess Brackley, Viscountess Mahon, Viscount and Viscountess Folke stone, Vi sco unt and Viscountess Palmerston, Viscount Anson, Viscount Ranelagh, Viscount Jocelyn, Viscount Morpeth and Lady Mary Howard, Lord and Lady Col borne and the Hon. Miss Colborne, Lady Holland, Lady Frederick Bentinck, Lord Robert Grosvenor, Lord and Lady Wharncliffe and the Hon. Miss Stuart Wortley, Lady M. Pleydell Bouverie, Lord Ashley, Lord North wick, Lady de Dunstanville, Lord Harry Vane, the Ladies Mary and Elizabeth Waldegrave, Lady Sher brooke, Lady Caroline Lascelles and Miss Lascelles Lady Wenlock and the Hon. Mrs. Stuart Wortley', Dowager Lady Wharncliffe, Lady Dover, Lady Wil loughby D'Eresby and Lady Carington, Lord Glcnelg, Lady John Russell and Lord Ribblesdale, Lord and Lady Dalmeny, Lord Seymour, Lord de Manley, Lady Fuller, Lady Hume Campbell, Lord Holland, the Ladies Elliot and the Honourable Mrs. Elliot, Lady Catherine Cavendish, Lady Louisa Pennant, Lady Louisa Tenison, Lady Jane Ogilvy, Lady William Powlett, Lady and Miss Parke, Mr. Baron Parke, Honourable Captain Devereux, R.N., Honourable H. T. Liddell, M.P., Honourable C. Howard, the Honourable Misses Baring, Honourable Mr. and Mrs. Leslie Melville, Honourable Mr. Warrender and Miss Warrender, Honourable W. 0 . Stanley, Hon. George Herbert, Hon. Mr. and Mrs. J. Talbot, Hon. Mrs. Gurdon, Hon. E. Phipps, Hon. Mr. and Mrs. Hely Hutchinson, Hon. Mr. and Mrs. George Clive, Hon. Mrs. Lechmere, Hon. Mrs. Cunliffe Oflley and the Hon. Miss A. Crewe, Hon. Mrs. Villiers, Hon. W. Cooper, Hon. J. S. Wortley, Right Hon. E. Strutt, Right Ron. T. D'Eyncourt, Right Hon. E. J. Stanley, Sir R. B. Phillips, Sir James and Lady Graham, Sir Alexander and Lady Duff Gordon, Lady Davy, Sir W. J. Newton, Sir Frankland and Lady Lewis, Sir Ed mund and Lady Head, Sir A. F. Barnard, Sir J. Beau mont, Lady Inglis, Sir Stratford and Lady Canning and Miss Canning, Lady Morgan, Lady Bell, Sir George Shee, Sir H. Willoughby, Lady Clerk and Miss Clerk, Lady East, Sir Robert and Lady Price, Sir William and Lady Heathcote, Sir J. M. Brackenburg, Sir Adolphus and Lady Dalrymple, Sir Edward Cust, Sir W. Middle ton, Sir Denham Norreys, Sir William Allan, R.A., the Bishop of Winchester, the Bishop of Madras, his Ex cellency the American Minister and Mrs. Bancroft, the Right Honourable the Speaker and Mrs. Shaw Lefevre, Mr. and Lady Theresa Lewis, Madlle. Jenny Lind, Count d'Orsay, Mr. Alderman Moon, the O'Conor Don, M.P., Mr. Bodkin, M.P., Mr. Baillie, M.P., Mr. Chute, M.P., Mr. R. M. Bellew, M.P., Mr. Stafford O'Brien, M.P., Mr. Hume, M.P., Mr. W. Hutt, M.P., Mr. Wat son, M.P., Mr. Henley, M.P., Mr. Denison, M.P., Mr. Christie, M.P., Mr. Q. Dick, M.P., Mr. R. Vernon Smith, M.P., Mr. A. Hope, M.P., Mr. Ricardo, M.P., Lieutenant -General Ellis, Major-General Bowles, Col. Deuglas Pennant, Captain Napier, R.N., Rev. H. Mil man, &c. COURT CIRCULAR. The Queen and Prince Albert, the King of the Bel gians, the Ladies and Gentlemen of the Court, and the domestic household, attended Divine ser►ice yesterday in the private chapel, in Buckingham Palace. Prayers were read by the Hon. and Rev. C. Leslie Courtenay. The sermon was preached by the Rev. Mr. Liddell. Their Royal Highnesses the Duchess of Cambridge and the Princess Mary visited their Majesties the King and Queen of the Belgians yesterday, at Buckingham Palace. Their Royal Highnesses the Prince of Wales, Prince Alfred, the Princess Royal, the Princess Alice, and the Princess Helena, took their usual airings yesterday, in the royal gardens. The Queen and Prince Albert went, on Saturday morning, to the Royal Academy to inspect the marble statue of her Majesty by Gibson. Her Majesty and his Royal Highness were attended by Lady Caroline Cocks, Major-General Bowles, and Lord Alfred Paget. The Queen and the Queen of the Belgians, accom panied by Prince Alfred-and the Princess Alice, took an airing on Saturday in an open carriage and four. Lord Alfred Paget, Equerry in Waiting, attended on horse back. His Royal Highness Prince Albert rode out on horse back on Saturday, accompanied by his Royal Highness the Hereditary Grand Duke of Saxe Weimar, and at tended by Colonel Bouverie, Equerry in Waiting. Prince Albert visited her Majesty the Queen Dowager, at Marlborough House. His Majesty the King of the Belgians held a diplo matic levee on Saturday, at one o'clock, at Buckingham Palace. It was attended by Count de St. Aulaire, the French Ambassador, Count de Noailles, Secretary, and Monsieur de Rabaudy, Chancelier of the Embassy ; Count Dietrichstein, the Austrian Am bassador ; Baron de Cetto, Bavarian Minister Baron do Moncorvo, Port uguese Mi n i ster ; Count de Kielmansegge, the Hanoverian Minister ; Baron de Hugel, the Wurtemberg Minister ; Chevalier Bunsen, the Prussian Minister ; Prince Lowenstein, Secretary of Legation, and Count Redern; Le Commandeur Marques Lisboa, Brazilian Minister ; and M. Piexoto, Attache to the Legation; Count de Reventlow, the Danish Mi nister; Col. Iturregui, the Peruvian Minister; Prince Cal limaki, the Ottoman Porte Minister; Mr. Bancroft, Ame rican Minister; and Mr. J. R. Brodhead, Secretary of Le gation; Count Schimmelpenninck, Netherlands Minister; and M. Stratenus, Conseiller of Legation; Senor I. Isturiz, the Spanish Minister, and the Chevalier Pedro rena, Secretary of Legation; Senor Mora, the Mexican Minister, and M. J. de Lizardi, Attaché to the Legation ; Baron de Beust, the Saxon Minister; Mr. Colquhoun, Diplomatic Agent for the Hanse Towns; Count Adrien de Revel, the Sardinian Charge d'Affair6s; Baron de Rehausen, Swedish Charge d'Affair6a; M. de Koudriaff sky, and Baron de Nicolay, Secretaries to the Russian Legation. The reception was also attended by M. Van de Weyer, the Belgian Minister • Mr. Charles Drouet, First Secre tary of Legation ; M. Delepierre, Secretary of Lega tion ; Mr. Castellain, Consul for Belgium ; Count de Lalaing, and le Vicomte de Yonghe. The diplomatic corps having assembled in the library, their Majesties the King and Queen of the Belgians entered the apartment, when their Excellencies were severally presented by M. Van de Weyer. The King was attended by Major de Moerkerke, Aide-de-Camp ; and the Queen was attended by the Countess Vanderstraten, Dame du Palais. The Countess de St. Aulaire, wife of the French Ambassador, and the Countess Dietrichstein, wife of the Austrian Ambassador, were presented to her Majesty the Queen of the Belgians on Saturday. The Queen and Prince Albert, and the Queen of the Belgians, accompanied by the Prince of Wales, the Princess Royal, and the Princess Alice, honoured the performance at the St. James's Theatre, on Saturday afternoon, with their presence. The royal suite con sisted of the Marchioness of Douro, Lord Alfred Paget, and Colonel Bouverie. Her Majesty and Prince Albert, accompanied by their Majesties the King and Queen of the Belgians, honoured the performance at the Royal Italian Opera House, on Saturday evening, with their presence. In attendance were the Marchioness of Douro, the Countess Vander straten, Lord Byron, Major de Moerkerke, Lord Alfred Paget. and Colonel Bouverie. Her Majesty the Queen Dowager and his Royal High ness the Hereditary Grand Duke of Saxe Weimar, at tended Divine service, yesterday, in the Chapel Royal, St. James's. The prayers were read by the Rev. T. Helmore, and the Lessons by the Rev. J. C. Haden. The sermon was preached by the Rev. Dr. Wesley. The chant and service were by Sir George Smart. The anthem was "In thee, 0 Lord" (Weldon). Sir George Smart presided at the organ. The Bishop of Norwich, Clerk of the Closet, attended. The Queen Dowager was attended by the Dowager Lady Clinton and Earl Howe. Among the nobility present were Ladies St. Germans, Wilton, Fortescue, and Ebrington ; the Duke of Beaufort • the Marquises of Anglesey and Ormonde ; Lords Bandon, Fortescue, Wilton, St. Germans, Ebrington, and Falkland. The Duke of Wellington, the Duke and Duchess of St. Alban's, and Sir Fred. Trench attended the early service in the Chapel Royal. The Rev. Dr. Wesley officiated and preached the sermon. His Royal Highness Prince George visited her Ma jesty the Queen Dowager yesterday at Marlborough House. _ _ His Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge attended Divine service yesterday in Grosvenor Chapel. Their Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge and the Princess Mary attended Divine service yesterday morning in St. Michael's Church, Chester-square. Baroness Hammerstein and Baron Knesebeck were in waiting on the Royal Duchess. Their Royal Highnesses the Hereditary Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of Saxe Weimar honoured Viscount and Viscountess Palmerston with their company at din ner on Saturday, at their residence in Carlton-gardens. His Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge honoured Viscount and Viscountess Palmerston with his company iu the evening. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, attended by Baroness Hammerstein, Baron Knesebeck, and Mr. Edmund Mildmay, honoured the performance at the Opera House with their presence on Sa turday j e talia veni n ng. The Committee on Education of her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council held a meeting on Saturday, which was attended by the Lord President of the Council, Lord John Russell, the Earl of Clarendon, the Earl of Minto, the Earl of Auckland, Viscount Mor peth, the Right lion. Sir George Grey, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and the Right. Hon. T. B. Macaulay. Mr. Kay Shuttleworth was in attendance. Sir R. Ferguson had an interview with the Earl of Clarendon on Saturday. Mr. Wyse had also an interview with the Noble Earl. The Marquis of Salisbury had an interview with Sir George Grey, on Saturday, at the Home Office. The Chairman of the Customs had an interview, on Saturday, with the Earl of Clarendon. HER MAJESTY'S THEATRE.—His Royal Highnes s Prince George of Cambridge honoured the performance s at her Majesty's Theatre on Saturday evening with hi s presence. The Queen's box was occupied by a party o f the royal household. There were also present—the Prince Louis Napoleon, the Conde de Montemolin, at tended by Don Juan de Montenegro and Don Francisco Merry, his Excellency the Comte de St. Anlaire, the Count Louis de Noailles, Baron Nicolay, Count Strogonoff the Marquis and Marchioness of Donegal, the Marquis of Huntley, the Marquis of Ailesbury, the Marquis of Douro, the Earl of Lonsdale, the Earl and Countess of Sheffield (who occupied her Majesty the Queen Dowa ger's box), the Earl of Munster, the Princess Juka Gagarin, Count de Barke, the Prince Troubetshoi, Lord Templemore, Mademoiselle Olga de Lechner, Lord and Lady Charles Wellesley, Lady Quentin, the Count de Revel, M. C. de Koudriaffsky, Lord Otho Fitzgerald, the Lady Clementina Villiers and party, Lady Hastings, Lord Ernest Bruce, Lord Southampton, Lord Gardner, Lord Harry Vane, Lady Howard, Mr. Broadwood, M.P., Mr. Barry Baldwin, M.P., the Right Hon. the Lord Mayor, Lady, and the Misses Carroll, Sir H. Webb, Sir W. and Lady Fremantle, Sir R. Howard, Mr. Bridgeman, Hon. Miss Irving, Mr. T. Duncombe, M.P., Colonel Wildman, Mr. Bateson, M.P., Hon. General A. P. Upton, Hon. G. Byng, Mr. H. Baring, Sir G. Womb well, Major Baring, Colonel Bowers, &c. THE ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS, REGENT'S PARE.-- The third promenade of the season at the Zoological Gardens, Regent's Park, was well attended on Saturday. The stillness of the day gave great effect t o th e very ex cellent select ion of music performed by the band of the Grenadier Guards. Much has been done of late to make these gardens attractive, both on the promenade and on ordinary days. In the former a great improvement has been effected by the substitution of one large band for two or three small ones. The public, who can only hear one at a time, are much the gainers by the cha nge. The efforts of the present man agement are unceasing to ob tain the rarest and most ?urious animals which our com merce brings constantly w i t hi n the reach of science; and their endeavours are nobly seconded by the liberality of their chairman (Lord Derby), himself the possessor of the finest zoological collection in the world. FATAL ACCIDENT WHILST BATHING. —Last even ing between six and seven o'clock, a youth, named Alfred Hurley, residing with his parents at No. 14, Lawrence terrace, Vauxhall-road, was dro wned whilst bathing in the river off Thames Bank. It is supposed he must have been seized with the cramp , he being an expert swimmer, as he suddenly sunk when about thirty yards from the shore, and was not seen to rise again. The drags were procured, but the body has not been recovered. LITERATURE. THE PRACTICE of the COUNTY COURTS, under the 9 and 10 Victoria, chap. 95. Third Edition. By John Jagoe, Esq., Barrister-at-Law. There is, perhaps, no subject on which sound and accurate information is more urgently required by the public, than that relating to the operation and mode of working of the new Act for the Recovery of Small Debts throughout the kingdom. A most important alteration has been effected in the law. New tribunals have been constituted, to which questions respecting almost every cause of action not exceeding 20/. in amount must be submitted. A new code has been established, by which the great majority of the affairs of daily life will be affected ; proceedings will, of course, become more frequent in proportion to the fa cilities afforded. Legal practitioners cannot be con sulted without a heavy fee, for which, in many in stances, no allowance can be made. It, therefore, becomes a matter of general importance, and of deep interest, that some competent person should interpret the new provisions of the law—should simplify and free them from legal technicalities—and should present them in such a shape that they may be intelligible to the many, and enable even those most ignorant of law to acquire a knowledge sufficient for their guid ance, to learn what is required of them, by what means they can enforce payment of their just de mands, and how they may be enabled to resist un founded claims. Mr. Jagoe, who has already attained a high character as a legal writer, has accomplished this task; but he has done something more. He has produced a work which will be equally acceptable to the legal practitioner, and to the public in general ; to the professional, and to the unlearned reader, while its great accuracy and perspicuity, its admirable arrangement, and collection of cases on analogous statutes, which may form precedents for, and guide the decisions of, the new courts, its copious index, affording the greatest facilities for reference, will re commend it to the former; its great simplicity and clearness will make it most useful to the latter. The appendix contains the Act itself, the rules of practice for the courts, framed by the Lord Chief Baron and his judicial brethren, and the several districts into which the country has been divided, while the trea tise itself contains the law of contract, tort, and evi dence, as applicable to actions in those courts, em bracing all the subjects within their jurisdiction. "Each chapter," as the author correctly states in his preface, "is in itself a separate treatise, giving the proceedings and proof for plain tiff and defendant, from the entry of the plaint to the iudgment." In selecting the cases cited, Mr. Jagoe has not restricted himself to those reported in this country ; he was aware that a code, in many respects , similar to that recently introduced, has existed in Ireland for many years ; that the Civil Bill-law, as it is termed, has been administered by men of standing and ability ; and that the more important topics have been dicided by the highest legal authorities appeals, on certain conditions, existing in every case, to the going judge of assize, by whom, if there is any serious difficulty, it is reserved for the consideration of his judicial brethren. Mr. Jagoe appears to have studied those decisions with assiduity and effect, and to have culled from amongst them such as appeared to have reference to the queS tions likely to be mooted before the new tribunals. The important and much disputed point of the right of a creditor to bring several actions against his debtor at the same time is discussed, and the decision of the Bristol judge, Mr. A. Palmer, in that respect, would appear to be justified upon the authori ties produced, whatever may have been the intention of the Legislature in framing the law—whatever may be the sound policy that should prevail— the judges have only to interpret the law as it exists on the face of the statute, and to bring to their aid the lights which are afforded by the recorded opinions of eminent men, who have brought their learning and experience to bear on a similar question. " Splitting demands" was prohibited by the Irish statutes in nearly the same language as in the present Act ; and the decision of the Lord Chief Justice of the Queen's Bench in that country (Bushe), was in accordance with that of the English Chief Justice (Lord Tenterden), who in the " King v. the Sheriff of Hertfordshire," reported in 1 Barnewall and Adol phus, p. 672, decided " that the two items formed per fectly distinct debts, that when the defendant incurred the debt stated in the first item the plaintiff might have sued for it in the County Court, and his having incurred another and distinct debt with the plaintiff afterwards, should not have the effect of depriving plaintiff of his remedy in the County Court for the first debt, and if he might still have the remedy for the first debt, he has it of course for the second also." From the above and the other cases cited, Mr. Jagoe comes to the following conclusion : " The principle deducible from these cases is, when the division is the result of mutual stipulation it is valid; but if the division be ex parte and arbitrary, the plaintiff shall not be permitted to split the demand to bring it within the jurisdiction of the court. If the considera tion for the action be single and entire, it cannot be divided ; but if separate and distinct, several actions are maintainable." The chapter on arbitrations and the various forms in serted in reference to that mode of settling disputes will be found most useful for those who are willing to refer matters to the decisions of their neighbours and friends. It contains, also, in addition to the forms prepared by the Judges, no less than sixty new forms, prepared with much care and accuracy for the use of the officers and practitioners of the courts. The general observations on the statute and prac tice of the court, at the end of the volume, refer most ably to the policy of the law, and offer valuable suggestions for its improvement. The recent case of Thomas Kinning, who was discharged from cus tody by the Court of Common Pleas, in the beginning of the present month, on the ground that a debtor should have notice before he was committed, is given at length, and its applicability to the present Act is argued by Mr. Jagoe. He says— " We shall consider how far the foregoing decision on the repealed statute is applicable to this Act. Section ninety-nine leaves the judge no discretion, and if it stood alone he should either commit or discharge the defend ant ; but section 100 enacts, that the judge has power, whether he shall have made an order for committal or not, to rescind or alter any order previously made (meaning the order of the court upon which the sum mons issued), and to make any further or other order for the payment of the debt forthwith, or by instal ments, or in any other manner which he may think reasonable and just ; but if an order was made for the , payment of a debt by instalments or otherwise, after an order of commitment was made, the party could not be committed without a new summons served on him, and making the inquiries directed by section ninety-nine, which is evidently what the Chief Justice of the Com mon Pleas meant by notice to the defendant ; there is no power to make an order in the alternative, that if the debt or instalments were not paid that the defendant should be committed,' and no order can be made, altered, or rescinded without sufficient notice to the defendant. The decision in Kinning's case, and the able observa tions of the Chief Justice, apply with equal, if not greater force, to this than to the former statute." 'We are glad to find that the merits of Mr. Jagoe's work are appreciated, as it has already attained a third edition. We shall, however be surprised if it does not run rapidly through many other editions, and attain the extensive circulation and popularity it so fully merits. REMARKS ON EDUCATION IN 1847. By the Hon. Amelia Murray. Condensation is an art in literary composition which is now-a-days—namely, when most required from the extraordinary multiplicity of publications —very little understood. Hence we may literally say of this miniature treatise by the Hon. Amelia Murray— duplex libelli dos est. It is useful as a brilliant ex ample of the advantages and beauties of condensation ; it is useful as a token that the cause of education among the poorer classes is a cause which finds sym pathy—and what is more, ardent co-operation—i n the highest circles of the community. The lady who has written this practical plea for the poor is one who has mingled in all the gaieties and magnificence of the Court of Victoria ; her book is even, in a particular manner, on the title-page, "dedicated, by permis sion, to the Queen and the Prince Consort ;" her book bears about it the atmosphere of Pimlico ; her book has received the distinguished approval of the most ac complished of foreign monarchs, King Louis Philippe. And yet this little book, penned, as it were, under the shadow of Buckingham Palace, associated with the name of our Sovereign, and carrying with it the prestige of a commendation from the Tuileries, is one of the homeliest books we ever saw. Its argu ments are profound, but they are conveyed in the language of the most singular simplicity. It speaks the words of wisdom, but the wisdom is like the lispings of a child. Since Mrs. Champone wrote her incomparable letters, we do not remember a volume of similar dimensions so filled with home truths. The Hon. Amelia Murray has studied the exigencies of education with an intense longing for the spread of knowledge among the people. Government and po pular opinion are conspiring for the realisation of her wishes, and the wishes of all similar philanthropists. But while others have contented themselves with wishing, like the married couple in the story book, who longed for the black pudding, the Hon. Amelia Murray has been acting for the promotion of her favourite project. The appendices to the brief work before us are, perhaps, its most valuable contents, showing as they do the necessity of instruction as a preventive to crime, and the blessings that are inse parable from secular and religious tuition. When we see the highborn thus striving to promote the welfare of the lowly, the noblesse struggling for the amelioration of the tier etat, we are, indeed, justified in being sanguine as to the future reserved for our selves and our posterity. Already we have had the utterances of the Parliament, of the Cabinet, of the Press, of the different religious bodies in the empire, of private individuals, and of public assemblies—we have now in these clever " Remarks on Education," by the Hon. Amelia Murray, the utterances, so to speak, of the Palace : all are unanimous upon the ne- INCENDIARY FIRE AT COTON NEAR CAMBRIDGE. CAMBRIDGE, SUNDAY EvEignie.-_Last night, just before midnight, the greatest consternation was caused in the picturesque and usually quiet village of Coton, two miles and a half from this borough, on the road to St. Neot's, by the outbreak of a fearful fire upon the extensive premises belonging to and in the occupation of Messrs. Reynolds and Sons, farmers. From the fact of the homestead being placed upon a hill near to the vil lage church, the spire of which may be distinctly seen from the roof of St. John's College, in Cambridge, the rising of the flames was most clearly perceived by watchmen patroling the outskirts; and as soon as the information could be conveyed, the circumstance of the outbreak was made known to the principals at the several fire offices. The engineer connected with the Phoenix Fire Office immediately ordered' post horses and two postillions to take over the engine, which he accompa nied, attended by a body of firemen. So rapidly was the machine conveyed to the scene, that in twenty minutes subsequently to the start being made the men were upon the spot. At this moment the appearance of the flames was fearful in the extreme. A large stack of beans, con taining about 120 loads, was on fire throughout. Imme diately adjoining this there was a stack of straw, a n d within a distance of a few yards stood a granary or barn (thatched), not less than 150 feet long ; an extensive range of stabling, in which there were eight or ten valuable horses, with harness cc , mplete ; a large yard, fully furnished with hay, fodder, and materials for bed ding the cattle ; and a stack of old wheat, containing about 200 quarters. In addition to these buildings, upon the opposite side of the yard stands another barn, fully stored, and the dwelling-house of the proprietors. Most providentially, notwithstanding the great bulk of the flame, the wind was westerly, and not at all violent, so that the stream of fire and shower of sparks was blown in the direction of an open lane immediately opposite to the burning ricks ; but so slightly away from the thatched barns, that it required al) the care and atten tion he firemen could command to prevent the bulk of the property from becoming ignited. Other engines having by this time as rived, the utmost efforts were made by the firemen, tiie resident gentry, and the neighbours, to obviate this calamity; and, upon per sonal inspection of the ruins this day, our reporter is able to state that the destruction of property is happily confined to the entire demolition of the stacks in the outer yard, the most valuable of the stock and effects having been saved. It is with regret we have to come to the fact that there can be no doubt of this calamity having happened through the act of some vile incendiary. Sufficient proof of this is in the hands of the proper parties, and this morning (Monday) inquiries will be instituted for the purpose of fixing the case upon the actual delinquent. Just now, therefore, it is premature to say more. Both the senior and junior gentlemen on the farm are most highly spoken of in the neighbourhood, and by parties working on the farm, as friends of the poor and needy; and it is only justice to say that no pains were spared by the labourers present at the fire to extinguish it as soon as it was possible. The parties, it is said, are insured. The affair has caused great sensation, it being seventeen years since the last fire (an incendiary one) occurred in this parish. DREADFUL EXPLOSION at WEST HAM, BY GUN COTTON.—LOSS OF THREE LIVES. On Thursday morning, about eight o'clock, an explo sion of gun cotton took place at the Congreve rocket manufactory of Mr. R. F. Wade, West Ham, Essex, which was attended by the destruction of a large portion of the factory, and the loss of three human lives. The premises, which were divided into several apart ments for the manufacture of the explosive gun cotton, are situated on the marshes between West Ham town and the River Thames. The three deceased men, Michael Garey, Henry Tuft, and Robert Redford, were employed in filling a rocket, eighteen inches long and two inches and a quarter in diameter, which was made to contain 121bs. weight of the material. Layers of the cotton are put into the rocket, and are compressed in it by means of a monkey, a piece of wood which is raised by a rope, when in falling, by pressure, it compresses the cotton in, the rocket. Mr. Brady, the superintendent of the fac tory, had been in the room just before, and had not l e ft a minute when the explosion took place, and he was almost stunned by the report, which was distinctly heard two miles off. On recovering himself he found the gable , end of the factory blown away, and the interior in flames. At the same moment he saw Henry Redford coming out of the moat, into which he had been hurled by the force of the concussion, and is a distance of nearly twenty feet from the building. He walked into a house adjoining, and went to bed. Mr. Brady hastened to put crut the flames, which were making much progress, and, having succeeded, he looked about for the other men, when he discovered Michael Geary shockingly disfigured in the moat, and life quite extinct. The other man, Henry Tuft, was found near the building, also dead. Redford was shortly afterwards removed to the London Hospital, , where he died on Friday. INQUEST ON THE SUFFERERS. The inquest was held before Mr. Lewis on Saturday afternoon, at the White Swan Tavern, West Ham Ab bey, Essex. The following evidence was adduced John Bragby said that he was in the employ of Mr. R. F. Wade. He was the foreman, and superintended the making of the rockets. On the morning of Thurs day last, witness and three other men had been engaged charging a rocket with gun cotton. It was what is called a 12-pounder. It was commenced on Wednesday morning, and occupied the whole of that day, and was ' being finished when it suddenly exploded. Witness hack just passed into the yard when the occurrence happened. How, or by what means the accident occurred he was at a loss to tell. He immediately ran into the place, when he found the floor on fire, and one of the men lying quite dead. The two others had been blown into the moat at the side of the factory ; with his assistance, Redford got out of the ditch. Witness then got a couple of buckets of water, which he threw on to the fire and extinguished it. The other man was found in the ditch quite dead. Redford was removed to the London Hospital, where he had since died. A juror inquired whether or not the work was consi dered extremely dangerous? Witness —So far from being considered dangerous, I should have no fear of going to work in the same place to-morrow morning. I have made the rockets by myself, and have held them between my legs while I drove the cotton down. Another juror—But did you never have another acci dent at the same factory? Witness—Yes; two men lost . their lives twenty-three years ago, but it was not occa sioned by an explosion of gun cotton. Mr. Wade, the proprietor of the factory, was next examined—He said every precaution had been taken for the safety of the men in case explosions should occur. Stalls were made for the men to run back into after the monkey was raised and whilst it was in -the act of falling. He could not account for the disaster. In answer to a juror, witness stated that it was pos sible some foul air might have got into the case and caused the explosion. _ After some discussion, the jury not being satisfied that every precaution had been taken, adjourned the in quiry in order that they might obtain the opinion of some scientific gentleman. COURT OF CHANCERY. TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN. d before e er t e he af ord no c w ha L6 ei c l a o us r o e n s w ap h p ic4ha fro ve m be th e . n e Lordship's judgment. Some of these causes , were he ard V he i Sa ce r hancellor and Master of the Rolls, waiting for his by his Lordship twelve months ago. Surely this is state of things which ought not to exist. It is misfortune enough to be involved i❑ a Chancery suit, with all the delays, expense, and anxieties up to the hearing, which, as the Court is now modelled, leaves suitors a very long way from a decision. After the hearing, in a large majority of cases, there is an appeal from the Vice-Chancellor or Master of the Rolls to the Lord Chancellor, with an enormous outlay in fees to counsel. Harrassing and distressing as all this is, both to mind and pocket, borne it must be; but even then the unfortunate suitor (for it is a great misfortune to be a litigant even if successful) is not at the end of his trouble and anxiety, being compelled to wait with " hope deferred," his prospects ruined, and his family brought to beggary, because the Lord Chancellor finds it convenient to do anything rather than deliver judg ment. No one can, or does complain of any want of in dustry, talent, or integrity, on the part of the Noble and Learned Lord who now fills the office ; but doubts are reasonably entertained whether the Learned Lord considers it to be quite as important a part of his high office to determine as to hear causes. Certainly he cannot be aware of the ruin he entails upon litigants and their dependents by his delays i n giving judgment. Besides the delay, there is the chance of the argu ments of counsel being forgotten, and, upon resuming the consideration of a case argued many months ago, a judge can only refer to it from the pleadings or other documents in his possession. What, therefore, is the use of heavy fees to, and long arguments from counsel, if the latter are all to be thrown over, as must be the case, if the judgment is postponed even for two or three months only ? and how utterly useless where judgment is postponed for ten or twelve months, or a longer period, as is the case in several instances now before us. It seems to me to be the duty of the judge (I say it with all possible respect), to determine causes as they are heard ; no t to suffer an accumu l at i on of causes for judgment, which must be embarrassing to himself, and detrimental to suitors. It is to be hoped, th a t hi s Lordship will turn his attention to the subj ect, and not rise unt il judgment is given in all th e causes already heard. I am, Sir, y our o b ed i ent servant! R. —A -.AMWA Y COLLISION AT NXITCASTLE..NEWCASTLE.— An alarm mg collisio n occurre d on Friday morning near the southern terminus of the Newcastle end Berwick Rail way, happily, however, w ithout producing any serious injuries. The terminus is employed for the Tynemouth branch as well a s for the line northwards, and trains run to and from the former place nearly every half hour. A train starts for Morpeth at a quarter before eleven A.M., and the carriages were being drawn from the sideway, to be thence taken to the station, when, just as th e y en tered the main l i ne, the Tynemouth train c ame u p o n t h e same line, being then due. Although the " break" had been applied to reduce the speed before reaching the station, it was found impossible to prevent a collision which took place between the engines of the respective trains, and was sufficiently violent to do injury to both. Some of the Tynemouth passengers and one of the stokers were the principal sufferers, but fortunately only to the extent of a few bruises. THE IRON TRADE.—BIRMINGHAM, SATURDAY.— From what has transpired in Birmingham and Wolver hampton during the past week, it is not probable that there will be any change in the price of iron at the ar proaching iron-masters quarter-days. The demand is still good, and it is thought best to leave well alone.