The Sun. — London, England, 1847-04-10 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON AND NORTH-WESTERN RAILWAY.' A special general meeting of the proprietors of this com pany Was held yest er d a y, at th e E us t o n Staeion, for b! Purpose of expre ss i ng t h eir approva l o f a number of inns now pending in Parliament,.by which it is pro ti';'d to authorise the London and North-Western IWay Company either to contract or to become the :uses or pr o p r i etors of, or to cor.tribute towards the for mation of, the railways therein mentioned. The chair was taken at one o'clock by G. C. Glyn, Esq. , lam of the c ompany. chair The SECRETARY having read the notice convening the lusting, The CHAIRMAN said—Gentlemen, you are aware that thi s meeting is called in compliance with the standing orders of Parliament to ask for your final sanction to the I lem ures now b e f ore th e H ouses o f P a rliament. The hat read sounds a long and formidable one, but , in point o f fact, I s h a ll b e able to reduce it to a very short corn s • . 3 By looking at th e li s t o f Bill s read to you by my ti e en u Mr. Creed, it appears that the different measures ...re alluded to, when put in that proper shape which I ! newels they should be on the present occasien, are either h i ne wals of the Acts brought forward by the directors the last s ess i on o f P ar li ament, an d w hi c h were then either lost or withdrawn, or branches or amendments conn ected with the severa l A c t s thin obtained. In point o fact, the diff erent sc h emes that the dirt ctors have to Pro pose naturally di v id e themselves into three classes — those to which I have reerred, and which constitute the m'Rest portion, viz., amendments of the Acts of last :V i sion, and Acts w hi c h were withdrawn or lost, and there is only one undertaking, or rather a lease, which ihe directors are now about to intro l ace to the meeting. • a m anxious to put these things before you in this way, 1 :1 order that you may not charge us with any attempt o lead you on to that length which the lengthy enumera tion of the Bills might lead you to suppose. The first Bill with whi c h we b ig i n i s merely the renewal of an Act passed last session for making a line from S:. Alban's u ts Luton. Thi s B i ll was l os t i n a Committee of the ' l ' u " of Commons, the Committee preferring the rival scheme of the London and York Railway, which *pi ultimately lost in the Committee of the House of Lards. The directors have brought the Measure forward in the pre-ent session in ten " of an agreement with the London and York Company, in whose favour certain clauses will be i ntroduced regulating the traffic of the London and pork Railway upon that line . —Jlear, hear.) The S econd Bill is one which is almost identical with the one Which was also lost in the last session—it is a Bill to make a railway from the London and North-Western Railway near Bletchley to Newport Psgnel, Olney. end Wellingborough. The present scheme will elf ird rather more convenience than the former one, in consequence of the line preparing to Welling borough. I might go on with a great many more; but as the Bills must be all read as they come before you, in order to be submitted to you, I think it will be better to reserve any remarks up in them until inch time as the several Bills are brought under your consideration. lam anxious, considering the state of the money market and the general position of commer cial affairs, to add a few words, in order that you should not think we are undertaking any projects with rashness, or without a full consideration of all the bearings of the questions. It is quite true that there is at pres.rit a monetary pressure upon the money market, but the directors do not consider that of itself affords any reason for not proceeding with such measures as the directors think calculated to promote the interests of the company, and which have already resolved your esucti. n and approval ; and I, in common with your other directors, believe that the pressure upon the monetary c, , nc9rns is only a momentary !one, and that by the time the Bills shall have received the sanction of the Legislature, and we shall be prepared to carry them out, it will have passed Off, and I tr us t t h at we s h a ll t h en b e p ! ace d i n a p os i t i on fuU to perform the duty which we feel that we owe both to ourselves and to the public without any serious Pressure.—(Hear, hear.) I shall now proceed to read the names of the several Bilk, and put them to the meeting, and should any hon. proprieti r feel disposed to Jety questions, or require any intbrmation upon the -14 t of any f the Bills , I shall be happy o to afford the same. The following Bills were then read to the meeting, and unanimously agreed to without discussion:— : A. Bill to empower the London and Nor th-Western " . " *ilw ay Company to make a railway from the London a nd N ort h-W estern R a il wa y, near Watford, to St. Albans, Luton, and Dunstable." :A Bill to emp ower the L m don and North-Western it Way Company to make a railway from the London an dNorth-W es t ern R a ilway, near Bietchley, to Newport 4- agnel, obey, arid Wellingborough." '" A Bill for making a railway from the Northampton nd Pet er b orough Branch o f t h e London and North- I re stern Railway to the town of Banbury , to be cal l ed The Northampton and Banbury Railway,' and for other purposes." _ _ _ Bill to authorise the consolidation of the Oxford 1111 d Bletehley and the Buckingham *and Brickley June- It_ w l es Companies, and to authorise an Px:ension of their to Batibur) and Aylesbury, and an alteration at Oxford." . A Bill fur making a railway from Cheltenham to Pin the London and North- Western Railway at Tring, rith branches therefrom, to be called ' The London, Ox ford, and Cht ltenham Railwa).' " A Bill to empower the London and North-Western Railway Company to make certain branch railways and extensions from Ii: nilworth to Bt-rkswell; and from Leamington to Warwick; and to widen the line from Leamington to Coventry, all in the county of Warwick, and for ether purposes." " A Bill for enabling the L indon and North- Western Railway Company to make certain branch raffle ars from the Coventry and Nuneaton line, to the Mount Pleasant and Victoria Collieries, in the County of Warwick, with Power to the London and North-Western Railway Company to admit certain parties as shareholders in their undertaking. and for other purposes." " A Bill to enable the Coventry, Nuneaton, Birming ham, and Leicester Railway Company to sell and transfer their railway, works, and interests to the London and North-Western and Midland Railway Companies, or either of them, and for other purposes." " A Bill to empower the London and North- Western Railway Company to make a branch railway from the London and North Western R iilway, near Atherstone, to the Midland Railway, at Whitacre, in the county of Warwick." " A Bill for enabling the London and North-Western 41 ' 14 ilway Company to make a branch line of railway from Portobello to W o lverhampton, and for other purposes." " A Bill to authorise a certain alteration in the line of the Birmingham, Wolverhampton, and Stour Valley Railway, and to amend the Act relating thereto, and fur other purposes." " A Bill to enable the Birmingham, Wolverhampton, and Stour Valley Railway Company to construct branch railways to Stourbridge, Dudley, and other places, and for other purposes.' " A. Bill to empower the London. and North• Western Railway Company to enlarge their stations at Liver- Pool and Crewe, and for other purposes." " A Bill for enabling the London and North-Western Railway Company to make a railway from Birmingham to Lichfield, with branches, and for amending the former Acts relating to the said company." " A Bill to empower the Lund in and North-Western Railway Company to make divers branch railways in the county of Lancaster, and for other purposes." .„.." A Bill to authorise the Right Honourable Francis Egerton, Earl of Ellesmere, to sell, and the Lon don and North-Western Railway Company to pur chase, the estate and interest of the said Earl in the kanchester, South Junction, and Altrinchana Railway." "A proposed Bill for constructing a railway from Gloucester to Hereford, with branches therefrom, to be called The Gloucester and Hereford Railway,' and to transfer to such railway company The Herefordshire and Gloucestershire Canal Navigation,' and for other Purposes connected therewith." "A Bill to incorporate the lluddersfiPld acid Man chesterl Rail wa y an d C ana l C om p an y, an d th e L ee d s , -Dewsbury, and Manchester Railway Company with the London and North-Western Railway Company." "A Bill for making branch railways from the Great Western Railway, and from Hammersmith, to join the West London Railway, for widening a pertion of the West London Railway, and for extending the same so as to join the London and South• Western Railway, in the parish of Saint Mary, Lambeth, in the county or Surrey." A Bill to authorise a lease of the undertaking of the Shropshire Union Railways and Canal Company to the London and North - Western Railway Company." The CHAIRMAN said that the Bills in the list which he had alluded to as being of the s-cond class were the London, Oxford, and Cheltenham Railway, and also the project, which was merely a continuation of it, the Gloucester and Hereford Railway. and Canal Purchase Bill. These undertakings were brought before them ao fully at the last general meeting, that it would not be necessary for him then to occupy the time of the meeting by any further explanations of them. The committee Which had been appointed to further its interests was proceeding satisfactorily, and though it was for Parliament to decide between it and its rival projects, Yet they would go into committee with confidence and every expectation of success. It would be in the re collection of the proprietors, that in August last they had had before them the project for enabling the Co. ventry, Nuneaton, Birmingham, and Leicester Railway Company to sell and transter their works to the London and North-Western and Midland Railway Companies, or either of them. He had at that time informed them that he did not know whether the line purchased would be carried on by the company, and e ven then it could not be considered, as settled project of • the company. With re gard to the Bill for enabling the Right Ilonourahle Francis Egerton, the Earl of Ellesmere, to dispose of his interest in the Nlanchester, South Juncion, and Altrin °lam Railway to the London and North-Western Com- P t uY, that was unopposed by the parties interested, and the only capital required would be 12.500/. The next Project in the list to which he would refer was one which was brought before them at some length at a °rimer meeting—it was the one connected with e leasing of the undertaking of the Shropshire Union Railways and Canal Company to the Lou °U and North-Western Company. It was a very lar ge undertaking, and one which had been Inaturel considered by the board . The consideration cad enab y led them to arrive at the conclusion that there would be no difficulty to frame proper terms. They had U ndertaken to lease it at th,i rate of one-half of their dividend. From all that they had been able to ascertain upon the question, those terms were very fair to both Parties. Tho capital for which they would be an swerable under the lease was 3,300,000/. A stecific arrangement had been made for the division of the profit s a ft e r a cer t a i n ti me . There was one Bill in he list, and only one, which was an entirely new pro iuuts and which had never before been presented to the lagtice of the proprietors. It was the Bill for the iticor poration of :he Huddersfield and Manchester Railway and Caf.al Company, and the Lueth, Dewsbury, and Manchester Railway Company, with the London and North-Western Railway Company. The terms were to be sev:ai tenths o: tire nail err by the 14:olieon North-Western Compan, and the am , vnt of capital re quired was 1,2S0,00('1. lie held in his hand the traffic returns, and, as represented in them, there would be a considerable surplus over the probable rent. He always thought that such :figures as were there given were to be received with a certain degree of deduction; but the scheme had been carefully considered by their colleagues in the north, who had gone through the ne cessary calculations with accuracy , and he might say with pertinacity; and they had arrived at the conclusion, that the terms which were offered were in a.emselves fair, namely, 7-10ths upon the dividend. lie had gone through all the sub j. cts and all the business which was for their contil, ration for that day. awl in concluding Iris state ment, he could only express his regret that it was found necessary to summ,n them so frequently. A vote of thanks having been given to the Chairman and directors, the meet.ng separated. LONDON BOTANICAL SOCIETY. A meeting of the above Society took place last night, at the offices of the Society, 20, Bedford street, Strand ; E. Doub►.edgy, F.L.S., in the chair. An interesting paper was read on the Potato Disease, by W. Taylor, F.L.S., on which a long discussion arose, the substance of which was that in the au thor's opinion, the disease arose princ;vally from at mospheric changes, which had taken place during the last two years, which had caused a peculiar efflu via to arise in the air. The " celluliferous," or the cells of the bulbs, become impregnated with this noxious vapour; and, consequently, the cellular tissue became ruptured and overcharged with a mass of inorganic matter. Several specimens of plants were submitted for the inspection of the members. A portrait of Mr. G. E. Dennes, the Secretary, was presented to that gentleman by the Society, for his zeal and efficiency in forwarding the objects of the society. THE BIRMINGHAM ATHENIC INSTITU FE. On Tuesday evening the members of the above so ciety, with their friends, assemb ed at their rooms, in Great Charles -street, to celebrate their filth anniversary of the institution. The apartment was tastefully fitted up fur the occasion, and, when the company assembled. presented a gay appearance. Lord John Manners, who came to Birmingham specially to attend the festivity, presided as Chairman, and after the repast opened the proceedings with three hearty cheers for her Majesty, which were warmly responded .to by the company. Mr. Davinsox then read the report, which detailed the progress of the society, and the advantages which it had conferred upon the members. Mr. NEWTON, one of the early founders of the institu tion, moved the adoption of the report. Mr. BEDDOWS moved the thanks of the society to Lord John Manners, and the other donors of hooks. Lord JOHN MANNERS then rose and said, it became his pleasing duty to return thanks for the kind manner in which they had received the proposition of the two mem bers who had lest spoken. The present, as they all 'thew, was the fifth anniversary of the institute, and niewith staeclieg the very candid report which they had heard, containing, as it did, the difficulties which the institution had had to contend with, he was then proud to say that on no previous occasion did they meet under more fa vourable or gratifying c ircumstances.—(Applause.) Time, which tests all things human, and destroys so many, had had a fair opportunitl ofdestreying them, bad their views been wrong arid their ends visionary ; but after many days spent in manly games, and evening recreations, they were then met to celebrate the fifth an niversary of their society, and he thought he might say boldly they could look forward to that institution for a long course of years as one affording means for manly enjoyment, recreation, and amusement to at least a large portion of the youths of Birmingham. They were assembled there that evening with feelings of pleasure, arising from the present enjoyment and with feelings of hope for the future, and he was convinced that in saying this he expressed the feelings common to all. They were grateful far what the society had achieved, but above that common debt, owed by all, he Mt a personal debt of gratitude to every member of the institute, for he never could forget the kindness which he had received from them. Suffice it to say the presents which he had re ceived from them, and which had been so beautifully prepared, and expressive of their native industry. had been deposited by him, with great pleasure and pride, in a cabinet in the principal room which her most gracious Majesty—(Applause)—had occupied when she honoured Belvoir Castle with a visit. He assured them that no man ever kept the sword of the greatest warrior with more pride, than he would keep the product of their labour and proofs of their unmerited kindness. With respect to the books which had been presented to the Institute, he was only sorry they were so few, and he now hoped they would permit him to add a few mere to their number.—(Cheers.) He was very anxious to ren der them every reasonable encouragement, because he knew there was a founded. n for the principles on which the institution was based. When their society was originated the public mind was not quite so ripe for such institutions as at the present, and he thought they must all have had no inconsiderable gratification in witnessing whit had been accomplished in other places, which had not been quite so fortunate as their own. They could now point to numerous other instances in which great social improvements hail been successful. In autumn he attended one of the largest assemblages that ever took place within doors, in Manchester, upon a subject which brought together 5,000 people. The object was to secure for the journeymen, labourers, mechanics, and people employed in all the various trades of Manchester. time sufficient for study, amusement, and relaxation, which it is well known they so much required.—(Hear.) In one of the great rooms in London, he had the pleasure of being present the other night, when the journeymen of the metropolis came together, to say they wished to par ticipate in those enjoyments which the people now de clared to be their due. It was to his mind a most grati fying coinciderce, that upon that very day, what he hoped might le , called the. best crowning majority in fa vour of the Ten Hours Bill, bad been proclaitred— (Cheers)—and as they had now just done so, did the meeting in London rise as one man and cheer the suc cess of that measure. He need not remind them of the public baths and walks which had been thrown open for the people. They were well aware great efforts had been made in that direction, and still greater were in contemplation. The last measure introduced, with the merits of which he was net yet acquainted, was a scheme for the sanatory improvement of the people. Thus, those great social questions now occupied that position in the public mind which he and his friends of that so ciety believed they ought to have, and it was under these circumstances they were now met to celebrate their fifth anniversary. When they first met they were sneered at and he was soundly abused. He thought, however, that they did not care much about these sneers, and he could assure them that he did not feel any great annoyance at the abuse.—( Applause.) They should not, however, in future hear of much more sneers or abuse, and if they should, they would still continue to enjoy their manly games, pursue their philosophical studies, and that room would continue to witness their labours and feats of ability ; the ladies would occasionally partake in the merry dance, although the philosophical gentlemen of the day might turn up their noses at what they in reality did not understane. He should depart from that room still more impressed with the heaviness of the English character, and convinced that the union be tween the two great classes of their common country might be made most effectual in the promotion of good. If the example they set was more generally followed, a great change would ensue; and he shouid conclude those brief observations by expressing his hearty hope that the good example that they had set would be followed in every great town in the kingdom, and that before long their native country would again enjoy in reality the appellation of " Merry Old England," which it once so justly possessed. After several other resolutions had been proposed and carried, one of thanks to the Noble President of the In stitution was carried with great cheering, after which Lord JOHN MANNERS rose and returned thanks. The company, after enjoying themselves till an ad vanced hour, separated, highly delighted with the enter , tainments of the evening. • PROPOSAL OF SIR JOHN Ross TO NE AC II THE NORTH POLE.—The follcwing is an extract of a letter from Captain Sir John Ross, R.N., to Captain W. H. Smyth, R N., President of the Royal Astronomical So. cietv :—‘• Sir,—l beg leave to submit the following plan and proposal to the President and Council of the Royal Astronomical Society for their consideration :—The measurement of an arc of the meridian has long been a desideratum, and the failure of every attempt that has been made at Spitsbergen for this desirable object, as well as the attempt made to reach the North Pole, has been because the summer has been selected for that pur pose, whereas the spring should have been the sea son chosen, namely, the months of April and May for both services, but which could not be put in execution by the means hitherto adopted. I hare now to inform the President and Council of the Royal Astronomical Society that I have submitted a plan to the Admiralty for carrying into execution these double and desirable objects, by wintering at Spitsbergen, and employing my officers and crew mid* r the direction of the talented son of the celebrated Pro fessor Schumacher, whom I have engaged for this pur pose ; while, at the proper season, it is my intention to attempt to reach the North Pole on sledges drawn by Swedish horses, being a modification of the plan pro posed first by Dr. Scoresby, and of which that highly talented and well.informedindividual has given his mhst unqualified approbation. And, from the year's expe rience I have had iu Sweden in that mode of travelli,g, I can safely assert that there is no other officer in the navy that possesses these advantages so necessary to complete success, of which neither Dr. Scoresby nor myself have the smallest doubt. I have made this state ment in the hone that, when duly considered by the President and Council of the Royal Astronomical Society, they will be pleased to signify to me their opinion on the importance of the objects in question, and such a recommendation for it s be, ng p u t int o ex ec ution as they may think fit." —Cambridge Advertiser. NIGHTLY SHELTE R FOR TIIE HOUSELESS POOR Thursday the e , intnittee of the above association made a report of the number of unfortunate individuals who have sought shelt er d ur i ng the inclemency of the past . winter their three asylums, situate in Playhouse yard, St. Luke's ; C r ! ass n on , e-street, East Srnithfi,lol ; and in Upper Oale•stre,,t, Murylebotie. Ups:ards of 120,000 men, women, and children have received shelter, and above 300.000 rations of food were distri buted amongst them. The asylums will close on Monday next. THE RECAL OF SIR E. WILMOT. TO THE EDITOR OF THE TIMES. SlR,—The public were some time since informed of the recal of Sir Eardley Wilmot, Bert., from the Go vernment of Van Diernen's Land, but apprized only by the announcement in the Gazette of the appointment of his successor. They are at length, through the instru mentality of Lord Stanley, favoured with the means of judging, to a certain extent at least, of the justice or otherwise of his Excellency's recal, by the publication of the correspondence between the Secretary of State and Sir E. Wilmot. This so called correspondence, so far as it goes, can hardly be considered satisfactory, confined, as it is, to the public dispatch and a private letter of the same date, addressed to Sir E. Wilmot by Mr. Secretary Gladstone, announcing the former's sud den recal, and stating, for the first time, in the same document, the reasons assigned for this determination. No decision which affects the rights and privileges of any individual can be satisfactory which lacks the quality so essential to the spirit of justice, embraced in the maxim, "Audi alteram p Irtem " The dispatch announces, as is usual in such docu ments, that " it has become the painful duty of tie wri ter to apprize his Excellency, that her Majesty is please d to dispense with his future services, and that hfr Ma jesty's Government had been induced to tender the ad vice which induced this recal, not on account of the in competency, real or alleged, for the ordinary duties at tached to the chief executive officer:: of the depend. n cies of the Crown, but from a regard tee the special exi gencies of the particular colony over which his Excel lency had been appointed and had undertaken to preside, and to the very def ec tive manner in which, according to thejudgment of her Majesty's Government, those exie gencies had been met by him." Heretofore the assignment system had been established in this colony, under the reasonable hope and expecta tion that if any latent seed of morality or repentance rested in the mind cr disposition of the convict, it would be more likely to germinate and bear wholesome fruit when nurtured and encouraged by contact with, and example ot, those untainted with crime, than by herding criminals of every grade in such close contiguity, if not irresistible confederacy, as to render almost a miracle the escape of one individual so placed and associated from the darkest abyss of moral contamination and in famy. The former system had its day, and it was determined that the latter should receive a trial. The dispatch now before us too plainly shows how prolific the new system has been of all those frightful evils so naturally to have been anticipated as its fruits. This latter system came into operation shortly after Sir E. Wilmot assumed these duties, justly denominated by the Minister " an arduous task ;" the worst results followed, and there is sufficient in the dispatch to show that they were duly announced to the Home Govern ment—not, I presume, in a spirit of dictation, which would ill become the character of the Queen's Viceroy, but by " transmitting to the proper cptamer the most hor rible and revolting accounts of the state of morals among a portion of the female convicts." His Excel lency did not impertinently intrude his convictions on the subject of this horror-working system upon the authorities by whom it was maintained; he did not say, " Give up this new (angled and demoralizing experiment which has worked so much evil, which has placed the• convict population beyond the reach of moral example or influence; abandon the tithe position you have taken in the science of moral regeneration ; return to that wholesome system of assignment, which was not only promised to the early settler as an eneouragement to Embark his fortunes it this distant climate, but which has proved the happy and fruitful source of moral amendment, as attested by the existence of a large sec tion of the present trading and agricultural portion of the community over which I preside, who have been snatched from vice and contamination by the healing influence of that system which you have thus aban doned.' I have reason to believe that these were the' sentiments of Sir E. Wilmot, though not put forward after this ootrusive and dictorial fashion. Sir E Wilmot is n..t accused of : "inCompetency real or alleged." "He had been appointed," says the Mi nister, " to carry out a system brought into use for the purpose of affording a solution to one of the most diffi cult oi social problems—a system adopted with a view not to econnoical but moral porpo•es, and whilst sepa rating ti, convict from the veneral community, yet to ne aralize by discipline, and by religious and humanizing influences, all those dangers which arise from the close juxtaposition and constant intercourse of criminals among tht,m,elves." Truly a very " arduous task I" We accuse you, says the Minister and sole judge in this case, and therefore we condemn you of not having applied your mind with due diligence and with earnest concern to the government and improvement of that portioa of the population under your charge. We accuse you or not having demonstrated that the absence of successful results must be ascribed to the inherent defects of thv system, and not to the apsthy and neglect of those to whose charge it bad been com mitted. Of all this we accuse you, not from official reports, but from "rumours" and from evidence "frag mentary and Indistinct ;" and la,tly, we promulgate these accusations for the first time in the selfsame document which seals your condemnation and punishment. And, now, to turn to the letter which accompanied this di spatch, and which is as follows : "Downing-street, April 30, 1846. " Sir,—l have now to Oischarge a duty still more pain ful and delicate than that of addressing you in a public dispatch to communicate to you your recal from the wi ininls,ro.tion of affairs in Van Diemen's Land. " Adverting to the fact that this veal rests upon the allegation of a failure on your cart wi;h respect to special and peculiar duties only, which attach to the care of a 1-wrtal colony, but not to that of colonies in general, you may feel some surprise at the circumstances that I have made no allusion to the possibility of your employment during the ordinary term of six years. " I should have felt authorised to express a willingness to consider of any favourable opportunity which might offer itself for such employment, had it not been for the circumstance that certain rumours have reached me from a variety of quartfts relative to your private life, to the nature of which it is perhaps unnecessary that I should at present particularly allude. " Had these rumours been slight. and without pre sumptions of credibility, I might warrantably and gladly have passed them by. Had they, on the other hand, taken the form of charges or of information sup ported by the names of the parties tendering it, it would have been my absolute duty, independently of any other reason for interference with your tenure of office, to refer the matter to you, and at once call upon you for yt u , exculpation. But they occupy anlintermediate pisition. Presuming that I have been justified in re fraining from bringing them under your notio3 up to the present time, I feel that it would be impossible to recom. mend your resumption of active duties under the Crown in any other co.ony until they are satisfactorily- dis posed of. To found proceedings upon them against a person haling office appeared to me a very questionable matter, but I think it quite unquestionable that they roust be taken into view when re-appointment is the matter issue.. " I know not what your views and wishes on that sub ject mad• be. I should not have entered wantonly and ne4 dlessly on such a topic as that to which I now refer. My reason for doing so ,without waiting for any request from you for re-employment, is, that I think that some favourable intimation on that head would have been your due had no obstacle intervened, and I have, therefore, found myself bound to account for the omission from my dispatch of this day of any such intimation. " I have, &c , " W. E. GLADSTONE." Now, throughout this dispatch and the accomp tnying letter, it appears that an far from any inquiry or expoi tulation having been made in reference $ the all ged errors and omissions contained in the former, or in reference to the anonymous rumours alluded to in the latter document, the accusation and condemnation were simultaneous. The verdict is pronounced, in the first instance, without hearing the defence, and, when all the damning and ruinous eff cts have been felt and suffered, the accused is humanely permitted to Veld in denial or witiaation. _ . Will n, .t these circumstances render it a 5t , 07,, " pre sumplions" indeed, on the part of the writer of this letter, that he had been justifii. d in refraining from bringing the charges preferred against the accused under his notice prior to the announcement of his irrevocable decision upon them ? or, is the tenure of office in her Vliiesty's colonies a thing so frail and unsubstantial that it may be at once aryildated by the breath of scandal or by anonymous rumours, fabricated and concorte.l in a community proverbially tainted by the under-current of that jea:ous, envious, and designing Si Aliter which has been the downtal tif more than one hotwursb'e indi vidual, as well as the bane and curse of that community? Can that deci ion be satisfactory to a British public which is arrived at in defiance of all those rules of which they boast as the palladium of British liberty? I need but to revert to the principle involved in ihe decision of her Majesty in Privy Council last year, in the case of " Mr. Justice Willis in appeal against the Governor of New S iuth \Vale , ," who had thought proper to suspend hint from the exercise of his judicial tt nations without having called upon him for his defence—a principle which treated the act of the Governor in so doing as an outrage upon the rule by which even the criminal is entillewl to be heard before condemnation—an act which annihilates the cherished maxim " AUDI A I,TF RAM PARTEM." COURT-MARTIAL.—The sentence and finding at a district court-martial, by which a non commissioned officer of the 95th Foot was tried at the Wellington Barracks some days since, on charges preferred by his commanding officer, were on Thursday issued from the llorse Guards. The prisoner, Joseph Coates, a lance sergeant of the regiment already mentioned, was charged under the Articles of War, with having absented himself without leave from the recruiting party to which he had been attached at Feversham, li. nt, and having proceeded to D , eds, in Yorkshire, where he gave himself up to a sergeant of the 30th Foot. The charge having been proven, the priqmer was sentenced to three months' confinern.-nt in the Military Provost, Fort Clarence, and to be reduced to the rank and pay of a private soldier. The finding was confirmed by the Commander-in- Chief, &c. ACCIDENTS AT STEPNEY FAIL —Oa Wedneday afternoon two accidents of a serious nature occurred in Stepney Fair. A man named Henry Padley, of Sea l Tight-street. Bethnal -green,entered one of those danger ous machines called a swing, in a state of intoxication, and whit' the swing was ascending he was thrown out an d pitched on his head. He was rendered insensible, and conveyed to the London Hospital in a very pre carious state. A young woman, named Jane Field, residing in Virginia -tow, Bolinal green. wis -rated iu fine of the " wrrygo-routuls;" w!,il it was inn toll play she was thrown ~ f 1 with great violence. head was cut in a most frightfut manner, and oled profusely. :The was also removed to the same hospital, and it is feared • to will not recover. LONDON, SATURDAY 111 : ORNIN - Gt, APRIL Ib s 1847 CAPE OF GOOD HOPE. think that the parties who have been engaged either in promoting or opposing any private Bill, and who object to the charges of solicitors or agents, should be at liberty within six months from the termination of the session of Parliament in which such Bill may have passed, or within six months next after the Bills of such solicitors or agents shall have been de livered to the parties, to apply in writing to Mr. Speaker, who shall then give the requisite orders for the taxation of such charges. " Your committee also think that the parties should have power to obtain from their agents and solicitors the delivery of their bills of charges within a reason able time; they recommend, therefore, that at the ex piration of six months from the close of any session of Parliament. it should be open to any party who has not received the bill of charges to be claimed from him for service in respect of any private business in that session, or of proceedings preliminary thereto, to apply to Mr. Speaker ; that Mr. Speaker should have power to give such directions ai he may think fit with respect to the time vtithin which such Bill shall be delivered ; that Mr. Speaker should have power from time to time to alter such directions. and to enlarge the time originally directed, or, under special circumstance., altogether to relieve the agent or solicitor from the operation of the rule, if he shall see fit to do so ; and that, subject to such discretion of Mr. Speaker, the original direction shall he conclu sive, and the agent or solicitor failing to comply with the same shall have no power of recovering his charge against the party. " Your Committee is further of opinion that the costs 4nd expenses attendant upon Bills promoted or opposed by corporations, and public bodies, how ever constituted, in trust for and on behalf of the public, should in all cases be taxed. " Your Committee, therefore, have requested their chairman to ask leave of the House to bring in a Bill to carry those purposes into effect. " FORMATION OF COMMITTEES ON PRIVATE BILLS. —Your Committee having taken evidence as to the present working of Committees on Railway Bills, and finding a general approval of their efficiency, are of opinion that all Committees upon opposed Private Bills should be appointed and constituted in the same manner as Committees upon Railway Bills. " Your Committee having had before them the Bill intituled ' A Bill for consolidating in one Act certain Provisions usually contained in Acts for Paving, Draining, Cleansing, Lighting, and Improv ing Towns,' referred to them by the House, are of opinion that the measure is not of a character to be satisfactorily considered by them, and they have, therefore, requested the Chairman to submit to the House, whether the order of reference may not be discharged." I(From the Shipping and Mercantile Gazette.) We have received advices from the Cape of Good Hope many days later than previous accounts. They announce the arrival at Cape Town of Sir H. Pottinger. The Haddington, steamer, witi the High Commissioner on board, arrived in Table Bay on the 27th of January, and having been duly sworn into office, he immediately proceeded to busi ness, by issuing a proclamation, which we give below. The state of affairs on the frontier is represented to he anything but satisfactory. It will be seen from the extracts, which we give below, from our Cape contemporary, that three officers had been murdered by the Kafirs. The subjoined letter from our cor respondent at Cape Town will be read with interest : "Cape Town, South Africa, Feb. 2, 1847. "Sir,—lt is impossible to arrive at anythin:: like a satisfactory account toe the state of things and parties on the frontier, so much party spirit seems to exist for and against the late Government measure, and such diversity of opini - in as to what has been done, sod what ought to be done; at a time, too, when but one common feeling ought to pervade the minds of the whole cum munity of colonists in the Graham's Town and frontier districts, that it appears anything but creditable to subjects dependent upon the protection of the British Crown. " The recal of Sir Peregrine Maitland, the resignation of Sir Andries Stockenstrom o 4 his fipp )'ntment as com mandant neral of the Burgher Force of the Eastern Districts of the Cape Colony, in consequence of some political dissension ; the sudden departure of Sir P. Maitland, es commander-in-chief, from the scene of action, before the arrival of his successor, and the devolving of the entire command on Colonel Somerset, K.H.—tended not a little to increase the deep dejection which prevailed in the m nds of those in Cape Town more immediately and directly . interested in the issue of affairs on the frontier. But, early on the morning of the 27th of January, it was announced that the Peninsular and Oriental Com pany's steamer Haddington, had arrived in Table Bay during the night, having on board Sir H. Pottinger, Bart., and suite ; also Lieutenant General Sir George Berkeley, K C. 8., Commander-in-Chief of the forces. His Excellency landed under the usual salute, at eleven and proceeded to the Government -house in Sir P. Maitland's carriage. The streets through which he passed were thronged with spectators ; , and the cheering was deafening. He was immediately sworn into office by his Honour Sir John Wylde, Chief Justice, and he immediately proceeded to business, by issuing the fol lowing proclamation : " Her Majesty has been graciously pleased to appoint me to be her High Cemmissioser for the settling and ad justment of the affairs of the territories in Southern Africa, adjacent or contiguous to the eastern and north eastern frontier of this colony, and to authorise and en join me to take all such measures, and do all such matter and things, as by me may be lawfully and discreetly done, for preventing the recurrence of any irruption into the said colony of the tribe inhabiting any of the territories aforesaid; and for maintaining the said colony in peace and safety from invaders, and for promoting as far as may be possible the good order, civilisation, and moral and religious instruction of the tribes aforesaid. Sir Henry would hold a levee on form Wednesday,hiajudgment d 3 g d ni F e ti e t thereby. braary. and, it was expect ed, almost d irectly proceed with the new commander of the force s to the frontier, toseeand to hear for himself,and We make the following extracts from the Cape of Good Hope Shipping and Mercantile Gazette of the 21Ith of January : " We are gratified to announce the arrival, on Wednes- day last, of our new Governor, Sir Henry Pottinger, and the Commander of the Forces, Sir George Berkeley. This arrival, so long and so anxiously looked for by the colonists generally, will, we trust, be productive of last ing good to this continent. From the extended powers with which we believe that Sir Henry has been invested as her Majesty's High Commissioner for the adjustment of affairs with the native tribes, and from his well-tried and known ability, we are led to expect that our relations with the natives on our eastern and north-eastern border will be placed on a sound and solid basis. But we would advise our fellow-colonists to wait with patience the development of any plan which may be sug gested, even though it may not be exactly the one to which they are most attached—remembering that car rying nut the object proposed is attended with difficul ties all but insuperable, and requires all the ability and all the calm consideration which any man can bring to it. We understand that his Excellency intends pro ceeding to the frontier almost immediately. c. The intelligence from the frontier brought by this week's post is not of great impo tance. It appears, how ever, from the accounts given by the local press, that there is still much of an unsatisfactory and unsettled character in the state of our Kafir neighbours. The most painful occurrence since our last is the melancholy death of three officers, killed by the Kafirs, and the acci dental death of two of the Mounted Riflemen, and Ser geant-Major Ritchie, of the 7th Dragoon Guards. The following are some of the particulars extracted from a letter, and inserted in the Graham's Town Journal:— "We have nothing hut disasters of late. While we were out towards the T'Somo, Colonel Somerset sent out a party of 200 men to hold the Kei wilt. These, finding themselves getting short of supplies, sent a patrol to get cattle for slaughter. After marching for some time, on reaching the summit of the Kei hills, some cattle were seen about two miles a head. Three officers and four Hottentots galloped off in pursuit, and succeeded in reaching the cattle, the infantry follBWing slowly behind. The latter saw the former plainly bringing on the cattle, but there were several h allows or necks to pass through, in which stood thick clusters of thorns. On gaining the first of these the infantry heard sharp firing and proceeded onward, but on reaching the spot found only a horse and three or four Kafirs dead, but neither the officers nor cattle. 'The) returned the Rifle e cam ß p ri o 4a n d e e a:te a r n t a he m o r t . he e r h t e h t e:::::c 7 d 3 a: same evening. Two of the Hottentots came into and a party was sent out in search of the missing party. The three officers —namely, Captain Gibson,. Dr. Howell, were found killed, but the Hottentots have not been discovered. On Tuesday we got down to the Kei Drift, but the river was too much swollen to cross. On Wednesday it subsided a little, and on Thursday we crossed the cavalry, wetw eah infantry, in er which S ergeant -M a j or Ritchie, 7th Dra goon Gua r d s , t wo C .M.R. and two horses we re drowned. Two mul e waggons were also washed aw ay. The guns, and all 6 having,Othe O 0 no e f , ree of dh cattle a,e exceptbwieernheeoleeuct., w o , on the ha v otherhave had side. Besides ENCOUNTER BETWEEN SET TLERS AND BLACKS IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA. On the 19th August we were enabled to furnish a brief account of a collision between a small overland party and a tribe of blacks on the hanks of the River Murray, in which rencontre a man belonging to the overland party was 61* n. We are enabled more fully to state the par ticulars. Mr. Thomas Johnson, the "one armed .man" formerly mentioned, long resident at YAS3 in New South Wales, and to whom 14 horses and 51 head of cattle of the overland herd belonged, has been kind enough to furnish us with the following interesting recital. The . party of six, including the narrator, Henry Jervis, George Jervis, John Jones, George Bridges, and Herbert Elder, were travelling in charge of cattle, horses, and a provision dray, belonging to himself and Elder, and bound to Adelaide, when on the morning of the 27th of June, 11. Jervis and G. Jervis rode away from the party, and were expected to return in vain all that day and night. On the 28th the reduced party encamped at a place called Mount Dispersion, whence they could . hear the sound of an encampment of blacks at some distance off, on their line of march. On the following morning Johnson intimated his desire to George Bridges that they should not proceed until his father - in - law, Henry Jervis, - and his brother-in-law, George Jervis, .had re joined them. Bridges said he would net wait, and "hoped they would get a good starving, as they had no business away." They started accordingly, and soon arrived at the blacks' encampment. Four or five natives only were perceptible, and these they passed. without speaking to. They travelled three or four miles along the bank of the Murray, followed by the blacks, the river being on one hand, and a thick scrub on the other. On crossing a creek, they stopped for a few minutes to see what the blacks were following them for. In a little time they started again, when the blacks cooeyed, and there arose forty or fifty more from the bank of the river and the creek, making a terrifying roar or shout. Upon this Elder, Bridges, and Jones took their arms, and stood alongside the dray; Mr. Johnson was with the cattle in advance, and all he could see, on looking round, was, that the blacks with their spears and war implements had advanced to within about ten rods of the dray, where they maintained their terrifying roar without advancing nearer. Mr. Johnson walked from the cattle towards the dray ; but before he could reach it Jones had fired a shot, which, however, he said was an accidental one. Bridges having expressed his determination to proceed, Mr. Johnson returned to the cattle, and caught his horse, which was the only one saddled. By this time Elder had joined him alongside the cattle, which some dogs belonging to the blacks were attacking ; but they were not got rid of without scat tering the cattle. Ott looking round towards the dray, Mr. Johnson saw Bridges handing some beef to the blacks, and observed that as he turned from them they speared him in the back acd under the right arm, and he fell to the ground. Elder and Jones were no longer visible, and he concluded they had been speared too. Mr. Johnson rode a little way to the right, and could then see the blacks had full possession of the dray. He now saw an unarmed black coming towards him, but seeing he was followed by two others with a spear each, he turned his horse's head to cross a creek; but before he had accomplished the passage, a spear passed over his head and lodged in the ocposite bank. Thence he looked again, and saw the former contents of the dray upon the ground, also the speared man, whose dying groans were audible, but could see nothing of Elder or Jones. Mr. Johnson, being utterly at a loss to determine what he could do, remained where he stood for some time ; and having prayed to God to direct him, he resolved to retreat to a station forming by Mr. Ross, fifty or sixty miles further back than where he and his companions had encamped on the previous night. He was proceeding on his journey in that direction, when he heard a noise behind, which alarmed him much ; but he was agreeably surprised at being overtaken by Elder and Jones, whom he had given up for lost ; but who had succeeded in catch ing two of his (Johnson's) horses, and had taken a like determination with himself, to retreat towards Mr. Ross's. They, too, had given up Mr. Johnson for lost ; but meeting with the track of the mare he was riding, rightly concluded he had escaped, and that they might overtake him. Having agreed to go back to Mr. Ross's station, they had ridden only two or three miles in that direction when they met H. and G. Jer vis, who said they had lost themselves ; which was almost impossible, as they had the river on one hand, and a beaten track on the ot.ter. On b ing told that their relative (Bridges) had been killed, they wanted Mr. Johnson and the others to turn back ; but as they had only one gun between them, in the hand of' Jones, the proposal was declined, and they all agreed to go back to Mr Ross's together. That night they passed in the bush, on the bank of the Murray, without food or shel ter, and on the following morning, having caught their horses, they mounted and rode as hard as they could towards the station of Mr. Ross. Most fortunately. on their way they fell in with a Mr. Maury and a Mr. Cart wright, with their party, provision dray, and cattle, and got a present supply for their wants. Having learned that Mr. Tooth's party was coming behind, Johnson and Elder went to tn• et them, and upon asking the assistance ' of Mr. Tooth's superintendent, Mr. Newman, the ser vices of an armed and well-mounted man was granted, and Elder was left with Mr. Newman. The armed man, who had served in the British cavalry, and was very properly called " the trooper,* carried his musket in " a boot," acd bad plenty of ammunition. John son, too, was furnished with a brace of pis tols. When they got back to the encampment of Messrs. Maury and Cartwright, they found George Jervis, and learned from him that his father, ac companied by Mr. Maury, Mr. Cartwright, Mr. Ross, a Mr. Walker, and two or three other gentlemen, accom• panted by two blacks, and all well armed, had just gone oft tor the scene of the murder and dispersion. Mr John ,am and the trooper determined to overtake them, and did so after about four miles' travelling. They journeyed together all that day, and e n cam p e d on t h e bank of the river at night. Next morning they set out again, and reached the place where Bridges was murdered about half an hoar before miet. One of th e d ogs lef t w i t h the dray was still there; the two leading bullocks were missiniz but the other four were found entangled in the scrub; and it was now time to eneamp for the ni g ht. I n t h e morning . (July 3) a ll th e party went to look for the Forams of poor Bridges, except Jervis, who r de out in search of the dispersed cattle. After some time they found a clay mound, which was removed, and a little below was discovered the naked body of the murdered man, covered first with long grass, and then with pieces of wood, the clay being put over all. On taking up the body it was found to have been speared through and through. After giving H. Jarvis an opportunity of seeing the body of his son-in-law, it was again interred in aneth,-r grave. After this, the kind gentlemen as sisted in recovering the dispersed cattle, and succeeded so well, that Mr. Johnson recovered all his horses (14). Next morning he returned with the party to Mr. New man, who kindly undertook to supply him with provi sions, to attempt the recovery of his remaining cattle, and to conduct him to Adelaide with his own party. To this gentleman's kind assistance he was indebted for the recovery of all his cattle, except five, and for the benefit of a safe convoy as far as the settled districts on this side of the River Rufus.—South Australian Re gister. PRIVATE BILLS, The following are the principal porti ons of the Second R eport o f the Commons ' Select Committee appoint e d " to continue the Inquiry i n t o the Private Business of th e H ouse, the expenses attending the obtaining o f a ll B rivate Bills, i nc l u ding all the ex penses of the opponents as well as the promoters of Bills, and the taxing of expenses relating thereto," just printed by order of the House Your Committee have made considerable progress in their inquiries ; and having obtained full informa tion on the subject of fees paid to the House, on the taxation of costs, and the formation of Committees on Private Bills, have agreed to the following report upon these points, reserv i ng the ot h er s ubjects of their inquiries for a fut ure report : FEES OF TH E H OUSE. It aP PearS that the fees consist of a great v ar i ety o f sma ll items, charged on every stage of the proceedings on Private Bills. There fees are so complicated as not to be easily understood, either by the clerk who has to collect them, or by the parties who have to pay them. " Since of late years all the officers of the House have been remunerated by fixed salaries, and all fees have been carried to the credit of Commissioners appointed by Act of Parliament to receive them, there are now no persons individually interested, as for merly there were, in the number or amount of these fees. The House, therefore, is perfectly at liberty to make any alterations regarding them which it may think fit. " The subject has been for some time under the consideration of Mr. Speaker, and by his desire Mr. Dorington, the Clerk of the Fees, has laid before the Committee a table of fees, constructed upon a diffe rent priciple, by which it is contemplated to abolish the present. system of charging a great many small 'ees on the various proceedings of a Bill, and to substitute a few larger fees, to be charged on the principal stages—viz., one tee on presenting the petition for a Bill, one on going into the Committee on the Bill, one for each day in Committee, and one tn each o f the an d readings regat i o n f n s ther and these suggestions Bill, with other minor alterations ) have received the decided approbation of your Committee. Your Committee " Your Committee have also called for an estimate of the fees to be collected under the proposed new scheme, and of the income likely to arise from such fees, calculated for an amount of business annually th t on such a scale as, with the assuaied a mount of business, to product., as to rie n that at that a of t ehe fees yearbel fixed x 4 e 4 d . nearly as possible, t h e amount .received in orditta-y equalreco years. They, therefore, submit to the House, that Mr. Speaker be requested to cause to be prepared a table of fees based on the principles above stated, with a view to such table being adopted by the House, and brought into operation, either from the commencement of the. present session, or as soon as may be. —Y "TAXATION OF Cos Ts. our Committee have taken evidence upon the subject, and are satisfied that no time should he lost in establishing an efficient taxation of Parliamentary costs and charges in ac cordance with the o pinion above expressed. In order to effect this object, it will be necessary to pass an Act in the present session, enabling Mr. Speaker to appoint a taxing officer or officers, who shall have all the powers possessed by the taxing masters of the Court of Chancery, and shall examine and tax, as well all preliminary expenses__ incident t o applying to Parliament for Private Bills, as all charges for soliciting or opposing the same. " Your Committee are of opinion that the fee to be charged upon the taxation of cost s should be as moderate as shall be compatible with the due per tornince of the duty : and further, that every facility should he nfforded both to the promoters and oppo nents of Private Bills, or par!tes liable to pay such cost s , for obtaining the relief which such taxation will afford. " In accordance with this view, your Committee Songs, insulting to the King of the French, having been a great deal circulated of late in the wine shops of the Barriers, the police ascertained from a drunken man, who possessed . a copy of one, th a t th e y were sold by a man named Guitton, and a negress named Barbet, who frequented such places under the pretence of selling nuts. These persons have been arrested, and a number of the songs were found in their possession, as was also a hat or individuals of glod standing in ,ociety. The songs which bad been circulated were all in manu script. The German newspapers state th t Professor Schonbein, the inventor of the cotton powde r , h as dis covered a new composition which produces the same effects as the inhalation of ether, without causing danger. The nature of the new invention is no t de scribed. MAIDSTONE FARMERS' CLUB_ . the health and comfort of the publ . SUBSTITUTE FOR, ANI) PREVENTION OF at which the most adequate surejtc, oe DISEA - eE IN, J'OTA eoEs. provided was one of the most tr . • ternOunt in (Fr.,in the Maidstone fournll) comparson w:•11 the blessing it conf and the At the menthly meeting of the Maidstone Farmers' event of tire, the importance of havin siaterin every at war in every place av a ilable, wes''' matter if the at the Mitre Inn, on Thursday evening last, which the attendance was more numerous than usual, highest moment, and one which demande Illeyr9nlPt an interesting conversation took place on the above attentimn of every member of society. &lecturer, important subject. The cultivation of root crops was in conclusion, quoted the opinions of several writers the subject under discussion, but as its consHeration of eminence as to the vast importance of the matters was not concluded, but adjourned until the next to which he had referred, in connexion with the meeting, we defer the general report till then. Just comforts, the health, and the well-being of society, as the meeting was about to separate, and trusted the facts which the narrow limits of a . Mr. E. P. HALL begged to call attention to a mat lecture had permitted hi m t o b r i ng un d er ; their at ter of some consieerable importance, particularly at tension, vi.ould not be I , i o t , h u i i m e t he tl - e ,e rs ir .) effect in aiding the present moment, since now was the time when the great cause of sanatory reform, w hich was now alone it could be of any practical utility. During the happily in progress.— ( whole of the proceedings, although the subject was the The CHAIRMAN said, that after the able disecurse cultivation of roots, no one had mentioned that im- which had been delivered l:y Dr. Gavin, it might op important root the potato, in the cultivation of pear unnecessary that anything more should be added; which so serious a difficulty had arisen. Ilis but as the matter was of much importance, he should object in rising was to mention a substitute tor be glad to hear any gentleman who had any infor the potato which had been recently much recom- mrion to communicate, or who had any opinion to mended, in crder to ascertain before the club sepa- offer ft r their consideration.—(Hear.) rated, whether any of the inewbers could support that Mr. Geonee said that the object of their me( ting rye )mmendation, or discourage it, from the result of that evening was: one i,f tie on which the public their own experience. lie alluded to the Jerusalem seemed to require a red deal ~tit' information, and artichoke, the proeer sea so n fo r pl an ti ng w hi c h was w hi c h was a vast deal t o much negl ec t e d b y them. now rapidly passing hy. Mr. Hall then read the Any frivolnus sutj"ct would find ready attention, and following statement:—" The Jerusalein artichoke is vet what euestien so much concern, d ti.e well-being, a very productive and v4luaele vegetable root, re- the health, and the heepuiess of them all, as the one sembling the potato, and m a y b e cultivat e d i n th e they h a d th a t ev ening under discussion ?---(Hear.) same manner. The tubers should be planted six- He had listened with much interest to the excellent teen or eighteen inches apayt, in rows three lecture which had been delivered to them ; hut there feet apart. The price of the seed is about 4s. per was one subject which had not been adverted to, and Winchester bushel. At a time when the potato was .to which he conceived the attention of the public not very extensively cultivated, this root was pretty should be incessantly directed—he meant the exist largely used as food for man. Few plants are more ence of burying-places in the very heart of this hardy, and they will succed in almost any situation, immense metropolis.—(Hear, hear.) Having been and will com e u p, year a ft er year , w i t h out p l ant i ng, hi mse lf t h e w i tness of scenes i n t h ose places of as enough tubers are accidentally left in the ground so demoralising and so destructive a character, to stock it. A patch of ground should be set apart he could not help, at the present moment, al for the growth of this root, as there is an objection to lading to this horrible grievance, closely connected its introduction in a regular rotation. Kade states as it was with the question of the public health. that' a square patch of Jerusalem artichokes in a gar- He complained that Lord Morpeth had not in den was still productive, at the end of 33 years, throve:. eluded this frightful evil in the nuisances which he big out stems from 7 to 10 feet in length, although proposed to remedy in the Bill he had recently intro the plant had neither received any care nor manure duced, and he feared that the Noble Lord had allowed for a very lasig time.'" Mr. Tweed, of Woolwich, in- himself to be deterred from effecting so great a good formed the council of the Royal Agricultural Society of by the influences which they all knew could be England, that he grew 32 tons per acre from a piece brought to bear in such a case. With the people he of ground (unintentionally) manured with stable dung. was referring to, vested interests were of much more They were twice hoed, and the stems ran twelve feet importance than the improvement of the public high. On a piece of ground which was not manured health.—(Hear, hear.) Mr. George then referred to the crop was only four tons: Mr. James Gwillam, the state of the grave-yard in the parish of St. Anne of Hartlebury, says on this subject—' I last year (Soho, as we understood), and although he believed grew, upon one perch of ground, four bags per acre. that things were much worse in this respect in some The roots were sound and large, and an excellent other parishes, yet he could not help saying that it substitute for the potato; and as so many unfavour- was frightful to contemplate the spectacle that was able accounts are daily received of the existence of almost daily presented to the eye.—(Hear, hear.) the disease this favourite vegetable has been pre- He found upon inquiry that every spot of ground in viously affected with, I strongly recommend the cul- that grave-yard was turned over once in every three tivation of the Jerusalem artichoke. What I have years, and before it was possible the bodies that had disposed of has been at the ratio of 15s. per bag, or been interred could be in a state of decomposition,- 251. per acre. I have also been informed, but do not (Hear.) Within less than two months he bad ascer speak from my own experience, that it is a very nu- tamed that twenty-eight bodies had been interred, tritious food for hogs and store pigs, and when ground and the coffins were sunk only a few inches under may also be given to horses with success." Mr. Hall ground. Before it was possible decomposition could concluded by saying, if any member had tried this take place the bodies were removed and a pyramid root perhaps he would favour the meeting with his formed of them as a means of making room for fresh opinion as to its suitability as a substitute for the interments.—(Hear, hear.) He declared it was hor potato. rible to think of such things being permitted to Dr. PEOMLET said the Jerusalem artichoke was a occur in this city, and he urged upon every man to plant which had excited more attention among che- exert himself to the utmost to put an end to this mists and botanists than almost any other. Boussin- state of things so injurious to public health, and to gault mentioned that it derived the whole of its public morality, and so contrary to that respect which nitro fen from the atmosphere, and that although should be paid to the dead. ammoniacal manures were useful as a stimulus, yet The CHAIRMAN briefly expressed his acquiesence in it did not take a particle of ammonia out of the soil, the sentiments which had been expressed by the last so that large crops might be grown of it, without at speaker. all impoverishing the land. It was not so nutritious A vote of thanks was then passed to Dr. Gavin, as turnips, its nutritive qualities being about the for the able lecture he had that evening delivered ; same as potatoes—namely, about two per cent. It for which honour the Doctor briefly returned thanks, was, therefore, a very good subtitute for the potato, And a similar vote was also passed to the Com without robbing the land as the potato did ; for, in mittee of the Western Institution, for giving the fact, it had the opposite effect, and it was well known gratuitous use of the lecture-room. that land which had grown artichokes year after year Thanks were next voted to the Chairman for his was in a better state afterwards than it was at first. excellent conduct in the chair, and the 'meeting Mr. BARTLETT said he could bear testimony to the broke up. longevity of the artichoke. He had attempted to clear a piece of' ground from it, and for this pur pose tried to kill it with gas lime, but could not. It grew very luxuriantly, and was a very delicious vegetable. Mr. HATCH said he once grew a very small quan tity, as an experiment, and found he could never get rid of it Mr. SAxnr wished to know the relative nutritive value of wheat at 60s. a quarter, and potatoes or vegetables of that kind at 3s. a sack ? Mr. WHITING said, the properties of wheat and potatoes were altogether different, and did not admit of comparison. In wheat, nitrogen and gluten formed the principal constituents, supplying food for the flesh and bones. Potatoes supplied food for respira tion, the carbon they contained being consumed in the lungs. It would be impossible to sustain life with potatoes alone. They must be used with milk, or some such ingredient, in order to become a substitute for wheat. It was necessary to have both, or some thing answering the purposes of both, in order to keep up a proper supply of warmth and nutriment, one being quite as essential to the body as the other. Mr. DAVIS (Linton) begged to state that cottagers in that neighbourhood had been supplied with arti choke seed by Lord Cornwallis, as a substitute for potatoes. He would also observe that he had been very successful in growing potatoes. There was a great prejudice against this vegetable just now, and many thought that it was hopeless to attempt to grow it, but he had last year grown a large crop, and the best sample he had ever seen, on Coxheath, by putting into the drills a great quantity of lime. The lime was put in seven inches deep, covered in, and never touched afterwards, except to keep the weeds under, and the crop was most excellent. The sort was regents—the soil sandy. There had been many of the nobility visiting at Earl Cornwallis's during the winter, and they all acknowledged they had never tasted any like them. This statement excited, as may be imagined, very great interest, and we earnestly hope, that under Providence, the remedy mentioned may be found generally efficacious in restoring to us this useful and delicious vegetable. As to the Jerusalem artichoke, we may add that the seed tubers may be purchased for Is. per gallon, and should be planted immediately. HEALTH OF LONDON ASSOCIA- TION, On Wednesday evening a meeting was held in the theatre of the Western Literary and Scientific Insti tution, in Leicester-square, to hear H. Gavin, Esq., M.D., F.R.C.S.E., one of the members of the Health of London Association, deliver a lecture " On the ne cessity of remedial measures to improve the health of London." The meeting was convened for eight o'clock, and shortly after that hour Mr. Rogers was called to the chair. MORTALITY IN EDINBURGH AND LEITH. Dr. Stark's report, which we have just received, contains the return of the mortality in this city and Leith for 1846, and also for the first two months of the current year. Last year the number of deaths in Edinburgh amounted to 4,887, of which 2,252 were males, 2,342 females, and 293 still-horn, being an increase of 865, or 22 per cent. over 1845. During the same period the returns from Leith represent 412 males, 389 females, and 64 still-born. Total 865. This is an increase of 319, or 58 per cent. above 1845. The reason of the great increase of mortality during the past year is ascribed, by the report, prin cipally to atmospheric influences, arid which is evident from the fact that all the towns where returns are kept show a similar increase. The mean monthly alternations of temperature were seven degrees more during 1846 than 1845, the sultry days of June and frosts of December (neither of which extremes were known in 1845), making this palpable increase. The great evaporation caused by the heat occasioned more rain, while the humi dity of the atmosphere increased the virulence of the fulsome vapour emanating from sewers, stagnant waters, &c.; and these, by weakening the human system, tended to increase disease, and consequently mortality. These causes did not result in any epi demic disease which might account for the great mortality, but acted nearly in a ratio in all dis tempers, excepting intestinal complaints, which in creased in fatality, especially about the middle of August. That the favourable sanatory state of Edinburgh had a marked influence on its compa rative healthiness is shown from the per centage of increase in mortality in Leith being so much greater than in this city, which is high situated, clean and well drained, while Leith is notoriously otherwise. Thus, while Edinburgh showed only an increase of 22 per cent., Glasgow was 40, and Leith 58 per cent. more than in 1845. The average life of males last year was 28 years ; females, 32 2.3 showing a mean age of 304 years. The average life of married persons proved to he 654 years, but of unmarried persons above 22 years, the average was 43 years—showing a difference in favour of married persons of 144 years. Married male persons, on tin average, at 57 1-3; females, 57 2-3. Unmarried males above 22 died at the mean age of 38 2-3, thus losing by remaining unmarried on an average 18 2-3 years. Unmarried females above 22 died at the mean age of 474, thus, by remaining unmarried, losing about ten years of life. Thus, as the report adds, " married life, therefore, so far from tending to shorten life by the superadded dangers of child birth, &c., tends undoubtedly to prolong it." Of the different classes of society, gentry and pro fessional persons died on an average at 434 years ; merchants, master tradesmen, and clerks, at 364 ; artisans, servants, labourers, and paupers, at 274 years. The report then remarks, that by proper recau tions the excess of mortality in the lower classes might be diminished at least to that of the merchant class. It also states, that the reason the public are burdened with the maintenance of so many destitute children, is because of the premature death of their parents. Statistical accounts of the comparative mortality cf oneot h e o r f t t o h w e n h s t e h e h s e t n c , if i t e n d o t to the s how ve r t y h at healthiest in Great Britain, and that the proportion of deaths of children is less in this city than in London, Liver pool, Glasgow, &c., while the proportion of deaths above 60 exhibit a corresponding increase over these towns. These facts are of course the clearest demon strations of a healthy locality, and although a marked increase has taken place in the mortality of the past year, the per centage has been much less here than elsewhere. The CHAIRMAN addressed the meeting at some length, on the paramount importance of improving, by every possible means, the health of London, as no thing but the strictest attention to cleanliness, the possession of good air, and a plentiful supply of pure and wholesome water, could preserve- from all the aggravated horrors of disease the many thousands who were congregated together in this vast metropolis. He trusted that the importance of the subject would be duly estimated, and that the truths which would be stated to them this evening would have the effect of thoroughly awakening their attention to a full sense of the dangers which surrounded them, so that at their next meeting, which he hoped would be more numerously attended, they would be prepared to act with energy and vigour in carrying out the measures of the health of London Association. The Chairman concluded by introducing Dr. Gavin to the meeting. Dr. GAVIN said, that in accordance with a request which had been made to him by the Secretary of the Association, he had prepared some remarks on the subject which the association were zealously engaged in promoting, and he trusted that he would be able to induce the public to aid them in a matter of the very highest importance. He then proceeded to refer to the necessity for remedial measures, which was too obvious to the most cursory observer to require him to do more than simply to call attention to the facts which the reports of the Government Commissioners and others had, from time to time, communicated to the public; and he might observe that no public grievance affecting the public health was more deeply felt than the want of an adequate supply of pure and wholesome water. The lecturer then referred to several statistical returns of the deaths in various towns and districts, as illustrative of the influence of existing nuisances upon the public health. H e _ also contrasted these with similar returns made parishes in s a th p e pea m re e d tro b p y holits,e ns amongre lativegrievtiunrgthefromp ty n m the gentry, and the trading and labouring classes. He then pointed out that to the want of fresh air, to the confined condition of the habita tions of the poor, and especially to the workshops, in which so large a portion of their time was necessa rily passed, the great mortality that prevailed among the working- classes was necessarily to be traced. He next adverted to the very defective state of the sew erage of the metropolis , and referred espec ially to the immense outlay which had been use le ss ly incurred in the city of 'Westminster, under the superintendence of the Commissioners, who were, under the present system, an irresponsible authority. The frightful consequences which resulted from the defective state of the sewerage, and the horrible nuisance of cesspools, sere most extensively evidenced by the mortality of those districts which were most exposed to those sad evils. In connexi,n with those things, he might re fer to the lamentably bad state of the ventilation in the houses of the lower classes. The supply of pure water, too, at a cheap rate, was one of the things indi spensably necessary to promote The following abstracts from the report shows re. spectively the mortality of the first two months of 1847 : "During January the mortality of Edinburgh, excluding 31 still births, amounted to 506; that of January 1845, being 329 ; of January, 1846, being 382. The mortality of Leith during January, 1847, excluding five still births, amounted to 96 ; that of January, 1845, being 64; that of January, 1846, the a mortality ountedt of o 426: Edinburgh, that excluding of being 62. "During a b r i y ; ths, m February, 1845, being 327 ; that of February, 1846 , b e i n g 327. The mortality of Leith d ur i ng F e b ruary, e xcluding nine still births, amou n t e d t o 92 ; that of February, 1845, being 34 ; th a t o f F e b ruary, 1846, Dnrin g3BF February, being 46. " Tile report attributes the increase over the same months of preceding years chiefly to the unusual pre valence of easterly winds, aged people being the greatest sufferers. For example, the average monthly deaths of persons above 60 was during last year 78, but during January 1847, 130—February, 120. It concludes by the following statement : " It is apparent that the increased mortality of the month of January and February of this year is not owing to the prevalence of epidemic diseases, nor can it be traced to any connexion with dearth of provi sions or general distress. The whole excess of deaths is, on the other hand, satisfactorily accounted for by the increased number of deaths from diseases of the respiratory organs, and from old age—two classes whose mortality is greatly regulated by the severity of the weather."—Caledonian Mercury. The Dissenters of Bristol have purchased the Etns man•of-war, for the purpose of a floating chapel, and on Thursday evening last it was formally opened by a num ber of ministers. Several sailors were present, and just before the proceedings were concluded, after an allusion had been made to a collection, a thorough Jack Tar sprung up, and pulling Out his purse, pushed his way towards the chairman, handed it to him, exclaisliar. "Here's a shot for your looker."