The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-01-01 00:00:00

THE BATTLE OF LIFE. HAVE you chosen your buckler, and weapons of war, And proved that their temper is true ? Have you fluttered your banner, and dreamed that the car Of triumph is ready for you ? It is well to be hopeful and well to be brave, But best to be true to yourself; And to know that Life's glory, however we rave, Disdains the sole worship of pelf. Oh, how strange is Life's Battle, where we have to fight Where victims to weakness of soul Are bewildered by phantoms deluding their sight, And luring from victory's goal. Do you know how these phantoms may ever be told From Chiefs to whom honours belong? 'Tis because that mean banners they ever unfold, Yet gild them to dazzle the young! Never trust for a Leader the selfish or vain, Or him who would blister his lips With a falsehood, although he might, jesting, explain 'Twas only truth's partial eclipse. Never list to the whispers of those who advise That virtue will sink in the race, And that they in the world are the happy and wise Who rest from their wearying chase. Obi, the soul is an armoury, where weapons of fight Dwell silently stored in our youth : Let us choose there a banner emblazoned and bright With Charity, Justice, and Truth ! Let us plant on our turrets, and clasp to our heart, Defend it with peril of life, Whether be it our duty and true soldier's part To act, or endure, in the strife. Let it be for a trophy, or be for a shroud, But still to the banner keep true; And, whatever sour fortune, there sweeps from the crowd The car of the Victor for you! LITERA_TURE. The History of England from the Accession of James the Second. By Thomas Babington Macaulay. Vols. 111. and IV. London : Longman and Co. Ingenious and suggestive have been the means which from time to time have been adopted to excite and maintain public curiosity and expectation in regard to the two volumes of the History of England which have just issued from the literary nest of Mr. Macaulay, after a tedious incubation of seven long years. The result of those artificial stimulants which have been so skilfully applied from time to time—the applica tions increasing in strength and frequency as the interesting period for hatching the literary chicks approached its consummation—has been a furore of popularity such as to have no parallel in literary annals. For a large, indeed for probably the larger portion of these ingeniously-contrived schemes for catching the breath of popular favour, Mr. Macaulay may not be responsible ; the good fortune of their skilful application being all with which he is concerned in the prolific broadcast of their sowing. Still, as their effect must necessarily be in a great degree to disturb the balance of public judgment in relation to the merits of the work, they cannot with safety be left out of view in an endeavour to estimate the value of that history which has been so pompously heralded. The period of our history embraced in the two volumes just issued by Mr. Macaulay extends from the proclamation of William and Mary to the peace of Ryswick, in 1697 ; that is, a space of time about eight years in duration, viz., from the 23rd of December, 1688, to the 10th of September, 1697. Within this limited time of action, many important events took their origin, and many principles were laid down which have exercised a permanent and salutary influ ence on the institutions and the progress of the nation. In dealing with these the historian had a task to perform, calling for the exercise of the highest qualities of mind. To trace effects to their causes, where harmony and power were to be evolved from the prostrating influences of faction, and where stately order was to arise out of the chaos of revolution, required the calm judgment and keen scrutiny of the philosopher: to unfold the course of events as they successively present themselves in the turmoil of party conflict called for the exercise of patient industry, aided by sharp sagacity, an d gu id e d b y i n fl ex ib le impartiality. The antecedents of Mr. Macaulay were ...not favourable to the expectation of a display of such qualities in him, and the publication of his history has justified the hesitation of those who doubted his pos session of the requisite qualifications. In the volumes before us we find the laboured com position and the fertile fancy which distinguish their author as a brillia n t p o liti ca l essa yi s t, an d mark him as a skilful as well as a graceful gladiator in the literary arena of party warfare ; but we desiderate in their carefully-elaborated pictures that breadth of intellectual comprehension which suggests to the mind of the reader the idea that it has been prepared by one who, having explored the subject to its furthest depths, measured its length and breadth, and minutely examined its individual features, has extracted the essence of each element, and recompounded the scene, the circumstances, and the actors, in one homogenous and impartial whole. His story is eloquently told ; his pictures are carefully studied, and finished with minute attention to detail; the lights are strongly marked, and the shadows studiously balanced ; the colours are laid with an attentive eye to harmony and power of effect : but we instinctively feel that the whole is too much the result of study ; the very elabo ration suggests the suspicion of something being carefully put out of view ; the setting of the scene Yeflects the artifice of the dramatic mechanician ; the very eloquence suggests the pleading of the advocate imperfectly acquainted with his brief, and but half con vinced of the justice of his cause. The epigrammatic point of Mr. Macaulay's style hasbeen a frequent subject of remark. It has been inordinately admired by one class of readers, and unjustly condemned by another ; the ground of offence to the latter being, chiefly, the painful frequency of its repetition. The value of antithesis as a weapon is great in skilful hands, and in its use Mr. Macaulay is an adept ; like other adepts, however, he is prone to too ostentatious a display of his accomplishments in wielding it, and frequently elaborates trivial affairs into important matters, that he may give a popular conclusion the coup de grace with the sting of epigrammatic bitterness. He informs us, for instance, in illustration of the petty nature of those intestine feuds which for so long a period dis tracted the Scottish Highlands, that " grave writers tell of the victory gained at Inverlochy over the rebels. But the peasants who dwell near the spot speak more accurately. They talk of the great battle won there by the Macdonalds over the Campbells." In this and such instances he uses his weapon with dexterity, and displays its power and his own skill with merited success : but when we come upon page after page elaborated with a similarly ostentatious sententious ness, the artifice becomes too palpable, the cooking too obvious, the condiments too offensive, and the dish is rejected with a feeling of satiety if not of loathing. The space at our disposal forbids anything like consecutive extracts, and such we shall not attempt to give ; but the period treated of is so fertile in sub jects of abiding interest, that desultory quotation may not only be readily tolerated, but even advantageously employed : and availing ourselves of that conviction, we present our readers with Mr. Macaulay's version of TOITRVILLE'S DESCENT UPON DEVONSHIRE. Tourville had, since the battle of Beechy Head, ranged the Channel unopposed. On the 21st of July, his masts were seen from the rocks of Portland. On the 22nd, he anchored in the harbour of Torbay, under the same heights which he had, not many months before, sheltered the armament of William. The French fleet, which now had a considerable number of troops on board, consisted of 111 sail. The galleys, which formed a, large part of this force, resembled rather those ships with which Alcibiades and Lysander disputed the sovereignty of the 2Egean, than those which contended at the Nile and at Trafalgar. The galley was very long and very narrow, the deck not more than two feet from the water's edge. Each galley was propelled by fifty or sixty huge oars, and each oar was tugged by five or six slaves. The full complement of slaves to a vessel was 336 ; the full complement of officers and soldiers 160. Of the unhappy rowers sonic were criminals who had been justly condemned to a life o f h ar d s hi p an d d anger; a f ew h a d been guilty only of adhering obstinately to the Huguenot worship; the great majority were purchased bondsmen, generally Turks and Moors. They were of course always forming plans for massacring their tyrants an d escap i ng f rom servitude, and could be kept i n order only by con s t an t s t r i pes and by the frequent • infliction of death' T horrible fo rms . A n Englishman, who happened to fall in with about twelve hun dred of these most miserable and most . desperate o f h uman beings on their road from Marse i lles to join Tourvill e , s squad ron, heard them vowing that, if they came near a man -of-wa r bearing the cross of St. George, she would n ever aga i n see a French dockyard. In the Mediterranean, galleys were in ordi nary use ; but none had ever before been seen on the stormy ocean which roars round our island. The flatterers of Lewis said that the appearance of such a squadron on the Atlantic was one of those wonders which were reserved for his reign ; and a medal was struck at Paris to commemorate this bold experiment in maritime war. English sailors, with more reason, predicted that the first gale would send the whole of the fair-weather armament to the bottom of the Channel. Indeed, the galley, like the ancient trireme, generally kept close to the shore, and ventured out of sight of land only when the water was unruffled and the sky serene. But the qualities which made this sort of ship unit to brave tempests and billows made it peculiarly fit for the purpose of landing soldiers. Tourville determined to try what effect would be produced by a disembarkation. The English Jacobites who had taken refuge in France were quite confident that the whole popula tion of the island was ready to rally round an invading army; and he probably gave them credit for understanding the temper of their countrymen . Never was the re a greater error. Indeed, the French admiral i s said by t ra diti on to have received, while he was still out at sea, a lesson which might have taught him not to rely on the assurances of exiles. He picked up a fishing boaf, and interrogated the owner, a plain Sussex man, about the sentiments of the nation. `Are you,' he said, for King James ?—` I do not know much about such matters,' answered the fisherman. ` I have nothing to say against King James. He is a very worthy gentleman, I believe. God bless him r---` A good fellow I' said Tourville : ' then I am sure Sou will have no objection to take service with us.'—` What!' cried the prisoner ; ' go with the French to fight against the English ! Your honour must excuse me : I could not do it to save my life.' This poor fisherman, whether he was a real or imaginary per son, spoke the sense of the nation. The- beacon on the ridge overlooking Teignmouth was kindled : the High Tor and Causland made answer; and soon all the hill topg of the West were on fire. Messengers were riding hard all night from Deputy Lieutenant to Deputy Lieutenant. Early the next morning, without chief, without summons, 500 gentlemen and yeomen;armed and mounted, had assembled on the summit of Haldon Hill. In twenty-four hours all Devonshire was up. Every road in the county from sea to sea was covered by mul titudes of fighting men, all with their faces set towards Torbay. The lords of a hundred manors, proud of their long pedigrees and old coats-of-arms, took the field at the head of their tenantry, Drakes, Prideauxes and Rolles, Powell of Fowels combo and Fnlford, Sir Bourchier Wrey of Tawstock Park and Sir William Courtenay of Powderham Castle. Letters written by sevei?lef the Deputy Lieutenants who were most active dunng this anxious week are still preserved. All these letters agree in extolling the courage and enthusiasm of the people. But all agree also in expressing the most painful so licitude as to the result of an encounter between a raw militia and veterans who had served under Turenne and Luxemburg ; and all call for the help of regular troops, in language very unlike that which, when the pressure of danger was not felt, country gentlemen were then in the habit of using about 1 standing armies. Tourville, finding that the whole populatiou was united as one man against him, contented hi mse lf w ith ' sending his galleys to ravage Teignmouth, now a gay water ing-place consisting of twelve hundred houses, then an obscure village of about forty cottages. The inhabitants had fled. Their dwellings were burnt : the venerable parish church was sacked, the pulpit and the conimunion table demolished, the Bibles and Prayer-Books torn and scattered about the roads : the cattle and pigs were slaughtered ; anda few small vessels, which were employed in fishing or in the coasting trade, were destroyed. By this time sixteen or seventeen thousand Devonshire men had encamped close to the shore ; and all the neighbouring counties had risen. The tin-mines of Cornwall had sent forth a great multitude of rude and hardy men mor tally hostile to Popery. Ten thousand of them had just signed an address to the Queen, in which they had promised .to stand by her against every enemy ; and they. now kept their word. In truth, the whole nation was stirred. In the spirited narrative above quoted we have a fair specimen of the feeling which to the present hour pervades the British people ; in the simple and em phatic patriotism of the Sussex fisherman, an example of the spirit which still animates the inhabitants of these islands. The following picture is drawn and painted in Mr. Macaulay's most imposing style. It may be called IRELAND AFTER THE DEFEAT AT LIMERICK. The sails disappeared. The emaciated and broken-hearted crowd of those whom a stroke more cruel than that of death had made widows and orphans dispersed to beg their way home through a wasted land, or to lie down and die by the roadside of grief and hunger. The exiles departed, to learn in foreign camps that discipline without which natural courage is of small avail, and to retrieve on. distant fields of battle the honour which had been lost by a long series of de feats at home. In Ireland there was peace. The domination of the colonists was absolute. The native population was tranquil with the ghastly tranquillity of exhaustion and of despair. There were indeed outrages, robberies, fire-raisingo ; assassinations. But more than a century passed away without one general insurrection. During that century, two rebel lions were raised in Great Britain by the adherents of the House of Stuart But neither when the elder,Pretender was crowned at Scone, nor when the younger held .his court at Holyrood, was the standard of that House set up in Con naught or Munster. In 1745, indeed, when the Highlanders were marching towards London, the Roman Catholics of Ireland were so quiet that the Lord Lieutenant could, without the smallest risk, send several regiments across St. George's Channel to recruit the army of the Duke of Cumberland. Nor was this submission the effect of content, but of mere stupe- 1 faction and brokenness of heart. The iron had entered into the soul. The memory of past defeats, the habit of daily en during insult and oppression, i had cowed the spirit of th e un happy nation. There were indeed Irish Roman Catholics of great ability, energy, and ambition ; but they were to be found everywhere except in Ireland, at Versailles and at St. Ildefonso, in the armies of Frederic and in the armies of, Maria Theresa. One exile became a Marshal of France. Another became Prime Minister of Spain. If he had staid in his native land he would have been regarded as an inferior by all the ignorant and worthless squireens who, drank the glori ous and immortal memory. In his palace at Madrid he had the pleasure of being assiduously courted by the ambassador of George 11., and of bidding defiance in high terms to the am bassador of George 111. Scattered over all Europe were to be found brave Irish generals, dexterous Irish diplomatists, Irish Counts, Irish Barons, Irish Knights of Saint Le w is an d o f Saint Leopold, of the White Eagle, and of the Golden Fleece, who, if they had remained in the house of bondage, could not have been ensigns of marching regiments or freemen of petty corporations. These men, the natural chiefs of their race, having been withdrawn, what remained was utterly helpless and passive. A rising of the Irishry against the Englishry was no more to be apprehended than a rising of the women andichildren against the men, These quotations must not, however, be taken as illustrations of the general sentiment which pervades Macaulay's history. The besetting sin of the author is the partisan hue which he casts over all actions and circumstances. Men of his own political opinions are all heroes, oracles, demigods ; their opponents are mercenaries, fools, and traitors—physically wretched and intellectually contemptible. The motives of the one are pure, disinterested, and patriotic—their actions the result of wisdom, if successful ; if unsuccessful, they have been thwarted by a combination of circum stances too powerful to be resisted by forethought, sagacity, or patriotism : of the other, the springs of action are invariably the most sordid selfishness, and their guiding principles unreasoning folly or vindictive recklessness. Their successes are trivial, and entirely the result of accident. Such a style of composition may indeed display the capabilities of the orator, and give indications of poetic fancy, but it is not suited to the grave dignity of history, and is at variance with that spirit of truth which confers on historic inquiry its chief if not its only value. ,A ready dexterity in the production of glowing, though truthless, pictures, is an indispensable qualification in the successful par tisan, but it is fatal to the effort which seeks a reputation more lasting than the ephemeral applauses of the giddy multitude. Hogg's Instructor. Edinburgh : James Hogg. The December number of this periodical forms an admirable closing one for the year. Its contents are, as usual, varied and interesting, opening with a well written essay on the " Writings of W. M. Thackeray." To appreciate the value of this essay, it is not indis pensable to agree with all the conclusions arrived at by the writer, some of which, indeed, we are decidedly inclined to question. " The Wonders of the Deep- Coral and the Coral-makers" is a paper of great merit, and still greater interest. To the young it is calculated to be of great value, awakening as it must do, in the uninformed mind, a lively feeling of the omnipotence and wisdom of the great Creator of the universe. The other papers are likewise interesting and instructive. VARIETIES. Ax auctioneer does as he's bid, the postman as he's di rected. T'wan damps trade, as t'grocer said when he wor watterin, hiz bacca. WIIT does a donkey like .thistles better than corn ?—Be cause he's an ass. IMPORTANT TO :LADIES.—Just imported, a prime lot of Bath Chaps, very rich, but not too fat. A QUESTION FOR NATURALISTS.—Which can smell a rat P the man who knows the most, or he who has the most nose ? "THE world," says a French wit, "is peopled with tools. He who would avoid seeing one must lock himself up alone, and break his own looking-glass." HAPPY LAND.—An ingenious youth said he should like to go to school in Scotland, because he understood it was the Land of Cakes.—Punch's Almanac. AN indignant poulterer vehemently denounces Mr. Can telo's egg-hatching machine, as " A piece of most detestable chickenerie."—Punch. WHAT, is the difference between tacks and tax F—The one is intended to keeep us up at the heel, while the other tends to keep us down. A JOSE OFF HAND.—Why do the police damage a watch if they find it in the hands of a thief? Because they always stop it.—Punch. HINT ON EVENING PARTIES.—A young lady, after danc ing all night and several hours longer, will generally find, on consulting the looking-glass, that the evening's amusement will not bear the morning's reflection.—Punch's Almanac. THE DAUDANELLIS.—A consequential young gentleman was asked in company if he had ever seen the Dardanelles " Oh, yes," he immediately replied. " I saw them last week at Mrs. A.'s, and they are really very charming women !" A TEACHER had been explaining to.his class the points of the compass. All were drawn up in frant towards the north. "Now, what is before you, John ?" " The north, sir." " What is behind you, Tom ?' "My coat tail, sir," said he, trying at the same time to get a glimpse of it. SOUTHEY ON STYLE.—" Ours is a noble language, a beauti ful language; I can tolerate a Germanism for family sake; but he who uses a Latin or French phrase where a pure old English word does as :well, ought to be hung, drawn and quartered, for high treason against his mother tongue." NoxreE.—lf the young ladies at No. 10 do not, within four and-twenty hours from the publication of this notice, remove their piano from the wall it now standt against, the old bache lor at No. 9 will have an extra-sized brass-knocker fixed on his side of the partition, and will engage a retired postman to perform a regular accompaniment to their mtge.—Punch. REASONS FOR WEARING A MOUSTACHE.—We have been able to draw up a table of the different reasons for wearing a moustache. We have questioned not less than 1,000 persons so adorned, and their answers have helped us to the following result :—To avoid shaving, 69; to avoid catching cold, 32 ; to hide their teeth, 5; to take away from a p rom i nent nose, ; td avoid being taken as an Englishman abroad, 7 ; because they:are in the army, 6 : because they have been in the army, 221; because Prince Albert does it, 2 ; because it is artistic, 29 ; because you are a singer, 3 ; because yon travel a deal, 17 ; because you have lived long on the Continent, 3 ; because the wife likes it, 8 ; because you have weak lungs, 5 ; because it acts as a respirator, 29; because it is healthy, 77 ; because the Young ladies admire it, 471 ; because it is considered " the thing," 10 ; because he chooses, 1. It will be seen from the above table, that not one person confesses to " Vanity " being the motive. The majority of persons wear a moustache be cause they imagine in their conceit that it becomes them, but how rarely you meet with a person who has the courage to admit it P—Punch's Almanac. THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD. T ITE WAR. For some time, in many parts of the camp, we have had to send to great distances to water our horses, and to greater for drinking water for ourselves. The Highland Brigade will henceforth be spared this difficulty. The Artillery (a detach ment) adjoin the Highland camp. The other day, a man of that corps, using a pickaxe, struck a stone, which splitting, allowed a jet of water to spring heavenward, and with such force that the astonished gunner received at once a very su perior style of shower bath. Bemoving the broken stone, an excellent supply of beautiful mountain water was discovered, rushing out from and over a well, and in quantity sufficient to supply the whole division. It appears that Liprandi, before quitting this ground, cunningly blocked up the well and flow ing stream, not only at the source, but for some distance, and more cunningly led the water underground by an artificial channel into a neighbouring marsh ; so that, but for the acci dent of the pickaxe above-mentioned, our troops would have had all the winter to have sent far for water. They have it, now, close at hand; and, in fact, it is now believed that other sources of water have been also concealed, inasmuch as near Balaklava heights one fountain only was at first found when the departure of the rearguard, the Cossacks, allowed us to take up the enemy's ground. These Russians are ever full of "dodges." lam to pitch my tent to-morrow close to this new watering place at Kamara. From my new position, which I visited yesterday, I can with a good glass even see the Rus sians fix bayonets. We can't get up to them, and they are far too wise to come down to us just yet. They will fail to capture our Christmas" puddings. RUSSIAN ATTACK AT UIIKUSTA. In reference to this affair, which has been technically de scribed by Marshal Pelissier, the Times' correspondent, writing from the camp before Sebastopol, on the 11th of Dec., says : The monotony of life in this huge military colony has been broken slightly by the appearance of the Russians on the heights of Urkusta, and by some demonstrations of an inten tion on their part to try the strength, of the French positions on the Baidar Valley. It would be of great consequence to them, and of some detriment to us, if they succeeded in re stricting the ground covered by our outposts, which now affords fuel to the army and food for cattle, and it is not at all impossible that, whenever the state of the country admits of the movement of materiel, theattempt of Sunday last will be repeated on a larger scale. As the French have retired in the presence of winter, the enemy have thrown forward their ad vanced posts at Koluluz and Markul to the north-east, and from Aitodor and Ozembash to the north of Baidar. Sunday morning was dark and drizzly, and the previous night had been wet and stormy. The Russians, with their usual feline aptitude for surprises, crept round the little village of Baga in the dark, and just at the dawn rushed in upon the small party ,of French which occupied it. For a time the surprise was complete; but our gallant allies soon got together, and at the point of the bayonet, after a smart fusillade, drove out the enemy, who had many horsemen with them. In the pursuit of the Cossacks, our allies managed to capture some 40 horses, for the former gentry fled by a road which in old times was good enough for a run, but they were astonished to find them selves stopped by a deep scarp at a pretty spot where a wall of rock closed the road at the right-hand side, and a precipice formed the left-hand boundary, so they had nothing for it but to dismount and scramble across, leaving the horses, accoutre ments, and all to their fate. In the affair the French had one officer mortally wounded, seven men killed, and 13 wounded, and the Russians are said to have left 70 dead on the ground, and 20 men prisoners in the hands of the French. These are the numbers reported by rumour, but an exact statement will no doubt appear in the official despatches. The same writer, under the same date and locality, says, in respect to THE LAND TRANSPORT CORPS AND THE ROADS : The enemy fire upon the town most pertinaciously and futilely, for they do not in the smallest degree hinder the execution of the works in which we are engaged, nor do they prevent the accomplishment of the duties of the garrison. Their fire is especially directed upon the docks, and it is not to be wondered at if some few casualties have been caused by it. - All attempts to reply to their works appear to have been abandoned by the Allies. Although the heavy rains and storms which prevailed. last week have ceased since Sunday, the country is in a very heavy state; and as the French roads have failed, and have become in a very bad condition, an immense increase of traffic is thrown upon our roads, as the French cut in upon them whenever and wherever they can, while the duty of repairs falls exclusively on our army. This is scarcely fair, especially when the French do not permit our land transport to use their road to Kamiesch. It is no exaggeration to say that the traffic of French and Sardinians on the roads from Balak- lava to Kadekoi, is as heavy as our own. V Under present cir cumstances, Colonel Wetherall, the director-general of Land Transport Corps, has felt himself obliged to lighten the burdens on the corps as speedily and as much as possible, and in compliance with his recommendations orders have been given to suspend the carriage of hutting materials to the front, so that many thousands of men will have to pass the winter under canvas, unless the huts be sent up before the bad weather sets in with severity. In fact, mules and carts were fast disappearing. I have been told that of the former not less than one thousand two hundred have perished, or have been destroyed since the rains began, and I should be afraid to repeat the number given to me as that of carts, &c., broken down. The English pack saddles are described as being of most inferior construction and materials, and the carts and waggons are simply disgraceful to the contractors. Colonel Wetherall has called a board to inquire into the con dition of carts, waggons, harness, pack saddles, and horses and mules, with a view to condemning such as may be unfit for use, and to supply others, so as to be in an efficient state next spring, when the campaign opens. Not only is the carriage of hutting suspended, but officers are obliged to carry up the forage for their bat animals and horses from the divisional and other depbts ; and those who have gone home on urgent private affairs, and have left horses for the public service, on the condition of the issue of rations of forage to them, are in formed by a general order that such issue will be suspended after the Ist !ofJanuary. The railway will be handed over to the commissariat on Monday next, and meantime the accu mulations of stores at the depots are fast disappearing. Gen. Windham proposes large alterations in the whole transport service, and next year it is not improbable that the corps will consist of nearly 20,000 men, and 20,000 mules and horses. The recruiting officers might advantageously exert themselves to procure a better class of men than those recently sent out. The conduct of those just arrived in the Ripon ha; been very discreditable on the voyage from England. On Monday there was a high mass performed on board the French flag-ship for the soul of Admiral Bruat, at which many English officers attended. The decease of the admiral has been learned by our navy with sincere regret. - PROPOSED FUTURE OPERATIONS. Some officers of high rank stated in my presence the other day (says the correspondent of the Morning Herald), that the best plan to beat Russia would be to burn and blow up all on the south side, fall back upon and hold Balaklava and Kamiesch ; embark the spare troops for NicolaielY, the Danube, and Asia Minor ; move down against the north side from Eupatoria ; keep the fleet, especially the gun-boats, moving (some few blockading Sebastopol) ; and then, said they, Russia must give in, for we shall stop all her supplies, prevent a concentration of her troops, and, if she will fight in the Crimes, meet her in the open field (instead of behind earthworks), when, as at the Alma and Inkerman, we can beat her, hand over hand. Be this as it may, we all out here want to see parliament meet, if but to prevent ministers from patching up a sudden and unsatisfactory peace. THE RUSSIAN FORTIFICATIONS ON• THE NORTH SIDE. A letter dated the 7th December, from before Sebastopol, and published in the French papers, gives the following account of the fortifications which the Russians are now executing on the northern side of the harbour : I cannot say what advantage the Russians expect to derive from all the works which they are constructing on the north side of Sebastopol, but they are certainly most actively engaged on them, and their is not a hillock, a creek, or any position, however insignificent it may be, that is not secured by a battery, a fort, or a redoubt. I will endeavour to give you some details of these works, beginning at Fort Con stantine' at the entrance of the port. The summit of the Plateau Constantine is now covered by a fortification to which it wouldsbe difficult to give a technical name : it is a pile of batteries and counter-batteries, of cavaliers and redoubts united together, and to Fort Constantine, by numerous covered ways. In the rear of Fort Constantine is a small bay, in which there are several large storehouses. There are two batteries at the bottom of this bay, and the Russians are now engaged in constructing a third. After Fort Constantine comes Fort Catherine, constructed, like it, of granite, with a double row of casemates and embrasures. It has been strengthened by fresh earthworks, and the upper part, that is, to say, the terrace, is filled with guns en barbette and heavy mortars. This fort is in the form of an oblong square, with the corner opposite the port rounded off, whilst the other corner on the same side is flanked by a large crenelated tower. The part towards the land is defended by two strong towers, large ditches, and a horn-work situated on a small tongue of land which runs out towards the port. Two earth-works, having each fifteen guns, have been thrown up on the right and left of the fort. A little above this fort, on an intermediate planteau, is another strong battery, and on the summit of the plateau is a large construction, which serves as a sort of advanced work to the citadel. Between this fortification and those mentioned at the commencement of my letter, there is a redoubt mounted with guns of very heavy calibre. After Fort Catherine, there is another point on which. the Russians have cut out in the earth and rock a series of fortifications on a most gigantic scale; the whole point being, in fact, metamorphosed into a eitadal. There appeared to be here several rows of batteries, then barracks for the troops, and then more batteries. In the rear of this point may be seen some small clusters of houses or stores, and some small vessels lying on the shore. The beach is defended by a strong battery, which extends all round the bay, as far as Fort vernaia, which is of itself an assemblage of batteries placed THE communications from the British camp in the Crimea continue to be meagre in facts and almost barren in incident. In the absence of warlike operations, speculation as to the future course of events, and criticisms upon past adventures, form the chief topics for discussion among the correspondents of the daily journals, and thus incidentally afford proof that matters go on favourably with the troops. The correspondent of the Morning Herald, writing from the heights of Balaklava, on the 11th December, says : I must honestly confess that I have little news as to the incidents of the camp to report to-day. Men might have faced the elements during this week, but horses could not; that is, day after day. And during the bad weather it was, of course, impossible for troops to do anything. Even the " riled" Russians somewhat stayed their fire from the north side. Thus I have nothing important to record. I left Se bastopol a few days since, intending to return, but the rain has not only detained me here, but kept my servant weather bound in that roofless city. Confined to hut or tent, I only learn that Captain Shervington (46th), the provost-marshal at Balaklava, has ordered all canteen-keepers to bury their broken bottles, and not, as they have done, to leave them on the sward, whereby many valuable horses have been seriously tut and injured; that officers " absent on urgent private af fairs" are to have the forage for their horses stopped; and, in short,l scarcely remember anyrnore news, except that a famous stream of water has been discovered at Kamara. The last is important and deserves notice. He continues in reference to this DISCOVERY OF WATER : one over the other, and defended on the land side by a large ditch To the right of Sievernaia are some sunken steamers, and then another village or collection of barracks and store- houses protected by two batteries. All these are commanded by the citadel, which haS been so much increased that all that formerly existed is now concealed behind the immense work recently executed. As I have already mentioned, the activity of the Russians is most surprising. Every day, bodies of from 2,000 to 3,000 men leave the citadel and proceed to their work. For some days past they have been occupied in raising some of the sunken vessels, but whether this is done for the purpose of getting timber, or with other intentions, it is impossible to say. They have still some fishing smacks and some smaller boats, and they frequently make use'of the latter in the night to come and reconnoitre our works. Last night they availed themselves of the darkness, and came within half a cable's length of Fort Alexander, or rather our batteries on that side. At the cry of " Qui vice !" from our sentinel, they:moved off in haste. It is really difficult to imagine what can be the object of the Russians in erecting such masses of batteries. Is it to occupy their soldiers and give them confidence, or mask some other movement? Time alone can unravel the mystery. On our side, as you may suppose, we do not remain inactive ; strong batteries are being established to play on the Russian works. THE SURRENDER OF KARS. TERMS OF CAPITULATION. The Journal de St. Petersburg of the 18th December publishes the official act of the surrender of Kars. It precedes it with the following letter of Vassif Pasha, the commander-in-chief of the army of Anatolia, dated the 14th (26th) of November, giving full powers to General Williams to negotiate : Most eminent, most worthy, sagacious, and most noble General Mouravieff 1., His Excellency the Ferik Williams Pasha, a dignitary of the great English power, being in this country, is appointed by us and provided with full powers to negotiate the evacua tion of Kars ; this letter is written by me to inform your Excellency of the circumstance. The 15th of Raby-el-Aouel, 1272. Sealed with the seal of MEHMED VASSIF PASHA. Act of the Surrender of the Town and Fortress. of Kars on the Stipulations agreed upon between the Commander-in- Chief of the Army of the Caucasus, Aide-de-Camp General Mouravieff, and General Williams, Commissary of Her Majesty the Queen of England, the 13th (25th) of Novem ber, Head-Quarters of Tchiftli-Kaya. Art. 1. Surrender of the fortress with all its materiel in tact. The guns surrendered are not to be spiked ; the stores and arms are to be given up in the same state as they are actually in ; the ammunition, powder, arsenals, deposits of military clothes and stores are to be given up as they stand in the official returns up to the day of surrender. Nothing is to be detracted or taken from the archives. On evacuating Kars the 'troops are to leave posts, each of three men and a corporal, at the following points :—at each fort, redoubt, or battery-armed with artillery ; at each powder Magazine, arsenal, or military depot, hospital, archives, trea sury, and mosque. Commissaries shall be appointed by the Turkish authorities for each part of the materiel, as the treasury, arsenals, artillery, hospitals, provision stores, and archives, charged to hand over the same to commissaries ap pointed for that purpose by the commander-in-chief of the Russian army. Immediately the troops have left the place, the above-men tioned posts are to be relieved by Russian posts in the presence of the above-named Turkish commander and of the newly appointed Russian commandant. The Turkish soldiers are to give up their arms and accoutrements to the Russian posts, and, under fhe orders of their commander, are to march to wards the Madly redoubt, to await instructions for their fur ther movements. The remittal of the above-mentioned ar ticles by the commissaries is to take place the day after the evacuation of the place. Art. 2. The garrison of Kars surrendering prisoners of war, with the commander-in-chief of the Turkish army, and all the military authorities, will leave the place with the honours of war, and deposit their arms, flags, &c., in a spot agreed upon previously, whence they will proceed to the destination indi cated to them by the Russian commander-in-chief. As a tes timonial of the valorous resistance made by the garrison of Kars, the officers of all ranks are to keep their swords. All the troops forming the garrison of Kars, except those actually in hospital, from illness, are to leave the fortress in full uniform, with drums beating and colours flying, having first discharged their muskets, and are to assemble at 10 a.m. near the ruins of the village of Goumbet. They are to deploy in a single line, in columns, by battalions. The artillerymen are to form separate columns by regiments. The Rediffs, Lazes, and Bashi-Bazouks are to form separately, at half a verst distance from the other troops. The garrison are to pile their arms, flags, and accoutrements, and to form in the pre ceding order in front of the line of muskets.. The Mushir Commander-in-Chief of the Army of Anatolia is then to wait upon the Russian Commander-in-Chief, and hand him the muster-roll of his troops and a report of all the materiel stipulated in the act of surrender. Delegates of the Russian army will then call over the muster-roll and enregis ter the officers and men of the Turkish army, for which object the Turkish authorities are called upon to present the regis ters of their respective commands. The enregistration finished, all the prisoners of war, headed by their officers, will proceed in columns to the bridge of Tchiftli-Kaya, where they will be met by the Russian troops appointed to serve as their escort. The Turkish troops mentioned in the subjoined articles as having permission to return to their homes will take the Tamra road, under an especial escort, and will halt for the night near the village of Kotanly ; they bind themselves to respect the inhabitants of that village, and not to commit any excess. The column will continue its march the following day in the same order, and halt for the night at the village of Tosanly. On the third day, when they shall have reached the foot of the Saghaulong, the Russian troops will stop and the Turks continue their march across the chain of the moun tains. In the direction of Erzeroum the Turks engage themselves not to enter the village of Bardours, occupied by militiamen of the Russian camp. The Turkish stragglers who, within 24 hours of the last day's march, should not have crossed the Saghanloug will be considered as prisoners of war. In evacuating the town and fortress of Kars the military authorities of the Turkish army engage themselves to leave there a sufficient number of medical men and nurses to take care of the sick left in the hospitals until their recovery. Art. 3. The private property of members of the army of every kind is respected. Each individual belonging to the personnel of the army is authorised to sell his property or take it away, at his own cost of carriage. Art. 4. The Militia (Rediffs, Bashi-Bazouks, and Lazes), their number having first been accurately ascertained, will be allowed to return to their homes. The Rediffs, Bashi-Bazouks, and Lazes in hospital will have the same right under the same conditions, as soon as well enough to leave. Art. 5. The non-combatants of the army, as scriveners, interpreters, and nurses, are allowed to return to their homes as soon as their number has been accurately ascertained. Art. 6. To Gen. Williams is reserved the right of designat ing at his choice in a list, which must be previously submitted for the approval of Gen. Mouravieff, a certain number of per sons, to whom permission will be given to return to their homes. Military men, subjects of one of the belligerent Powers, are excluded from this list. Art. 7. All persons indicated in Articles 4,5, and 6, en gage themselves by their word of honour not to bear arms against His Majesty the Emperor of all the Russias during the whole duration of the present war. Art. 8. The inhabitants of the town throw themselves upon the generosity of the Russian Government, which takes them under its protection. Immediately the troops have given up their arms the in. habitants of the town are to send a deputation, consisting of the principal inhabitants of the place, to give the keys to the Russian Commander-in-Chief, and to trust themselves unre servedly to the generosity of the august Sovereign of Russia. Art. 9. The public monuments and buildings of the town belonging to the Government are to be respected and left intact. It being the principle of the Russian Government to respect the customs and traditions of the people subjected to its Go vernment, and especially the buildings devoted to worship, it will not allow any damage to he done to the religious monu ments or historical souvenirs of Kars. Signed and approved by W. S. WILLIAMS, Major-General. Colonel de KAUFFMANN, Chief of the Military Chancery of the Commander in-Chief of the Army of the Caucasus. REPULSE OF THE RUSSIANS. The 2lfoniteur of Thursday publishes an official despatch from Marshal Pelissier, descriptive of an engagement between the French and a party of Russians on the 7th ult. The fol lowing letter, written by a French officer, dated Sebastopol, 9th ult., gives an account of the same engagement : Yesterday morning at break of day 2,500 Russians, hoping to surprise our 6th battalion of Foot Chasseurs, encamped at Ourkust, on the site we occupied previous to our last retro grade movement, descended from the positions of Kaden Otar and Kerner Tcherme into the plain. A patrol of the 4th Re giment of Chasseurs d'Afrique fortunately perceived their movement; and.lost no time:in apprising the nearest corps of the approach of the enemy. In a few moments the whole of our first division was under arms and prepared to meet the Russians. The sth battalion of Foot Chasseurs, under the or ders of Commodore Gamier, who received five dangerous wounds at the first attack upon the Malakhoff on June 18, as • sisted by a few companies of the 26th Regiment of the Line, commanded by M. Richebour g , bravely stood their ground, and the assailants, deceived in their expectations, precipitately retreated, leaving 200 men on the field of battle, with 20 pri soners, among whom were two officers. It is to be regretted that the nature of the ground prevented us from pursuing the enemy in his retreat, Our loss does not exceed 18 or 20 men, and an officer of the 26th Regiment, who was so dangerously wounded that he is not expected to survive. The recent surprise of a post of eight men we had at Kaden' Otar no doubt en couraged the Russians to make this attempt. TELEGRAPHIC REPORTS. MARSEILLES, DEC. 25. The accounts from the Crimea are to the 9th. Several sus pected dealers have been expelled from Balaklava, and had taken refuge at Kamiesch. The weather was very bad in the Black Sea and in the Me diterranean. Twelve merchant vessels, belonging to different nations, had been lost at the Sulina mouth. The garrison of Kutais had evacuated the citadel and retired to Gori, situate at the entrance of the defile of Georgia. The Press d'Orieni states that General Williams, as well as the other English of f icers who were at Kars, will remain prisoners of war, but that one of the conditions of the capitu lation was, that the Poles an& Hungarians should preserve their liberty. The latter have arrived at Erzeroum with General Kmety. General Mouravieff has, it is said, sent a column on Akhaltzik. A part of the garrison of Kutais has gone to Gori in order to defend the passes which command the entrance into Georgia. Selim Pasha, with 12,000 men, is still at Trebizonde, waiting for the arrival of the Egyptian division. Accounts from the Crimea state that the banks of the Tchernaya are still flooded. The heights of Mackenzie are surrounded by strong gabionades. The Pasha of Rhodes has received the Cross of Grand Officer from King Leopold. A letter from Constantinople, under date of the 18th of December, says :—Omar Pasha was on the Siva on the 30th of November. His army was encamped, stopped by heavy rains. VIENNA, Dec. 27. Advices from Trebizonde of the 11th of December state that Omar Pasha has established his head-quarters at Redout lialeh. PARIS, Thursday Night. Intelligence has been received here that Count Esterhazy, the bearer ,)f the propositions for peace, has arrived at St. Petersburg from Vienna. -- BERLIN, Thursday. The preparations making by Russia for the next campaign do not favour hopes of peace. The reinforcements for the 11th Russian Division now in the Crimea are concentrating in the south, ready to join their regiments at the first n o ti ce . The effective of the reserves in th southern provinces amounts to about 80,000 men. On the other hand, it is stated here that the corps of 10,000 Sardinians to cooperate with the allies in the Baltic is to be newly raised, and not taken from the contingent in the Crimea. It is denied here that the Austrian propositions demand the destruction of the Russian fortresses on the Black Sea, but simply that she is to have no ships of war there. The submarine electric cable between Varna and the Crimea is stated to be broken, and it is stated that three or four months must elapse before it will be again in operation. TRIESTE, Wednesday. Accounts from Trebizonde, of the 11th, state that the British ambassador at Teheran had broken off all relations with the Persian government in consequence of some personal offence. It was thought that the affair would be terminated by a reparation on the part of the latter. HAMBURG, Friday. A despatch received at St. Petersburg from Prince Gortscha koff, and dated Dec. 23, states that two sotnias of Tscherno morish Cossacks attacked and defeated a strong squadron of General Vivian's Anglo-Turkish cavalry on the 16th instant, near Kertch, capturing the commanding officer and 47 men. IT is contemplated to prolong the railway from Vienna to Raab as far as Balgrade, in Servia, thence to Constantinople. Tun Castle-hill House, at Winchester, has been taken by Government, to afford additional hospital accommodation for the troops stationed in the garrison, until the new hospital is built. Ir is intended to remove the examination of the accounts of the Commissariat officers to the department of the War Minister, under whose supervison they will, when the arrange ments are complete, be in future audited and passed, instead of by the commissioners for auditing the public accounts. INCREASE OF THE SARDINIAN An3tr . .—A letter from Paris states that the Piedmontese Government is preparing additional forces to take part in a fresh campaign. General Durando, Minister of War, has, it is said, given orders to have a corps of 10,000 men got ready without delay, destined, ac cording .to some, to reinforce the army in the East, and according to others, to form part of an expedition to the Baltic in the spring. AMERICA. ARRIVAL OF THE AMERICA. Br the arrival of the British and North American Royal Mail steamship; America, Capt. Harrison, which reached the Mersey yesterday morning, at two o'clock, we have telegrahic intelli gence from York to the 20th, and from New Orleans to the 19th ult. Her letters and journals are from New York to the 18th, and from Boston to the 19th December. The America has brought specie to the value of 08,149 on freight ; she has also brought 135 passengers. The United States Mail steamer Baltic arrived at New York on the 13th, and the British and North American Mail steamer Asia, Captain Lott, arrived at Halifax, on the 18th. The sixty-fourth ballot for the choice of a speaker having failed to turn up a majority of the house, Congress is still un constituted, and the President's Message cannot be delivered. The New York Herald says :—" Our despatches from Washington contain important intelligence, received at the state department from the. American ministers at London,. Madrid, and Copenhagen. The letters of Mr. Buchanan cor roborate the statement, published several days ago, that the British government had declined giving any further explana tions. with reference to the questions which have recently formed the subject of discussion between the representatives of the two countries." The Washington correspondent of the Herald says :—" This sentiment is not intended to convey hostility on the part of Great Britain ; but it applies as a fixed determination not to make further apologies, those already made being deemed all that the case called for." The same journal adds:—" The President has issued two proclamations —one against the Nicaragua filibusters and the other announcing, that. Ne wfoundland has complied with the p r o v i s i ons o f the reciprocity treaty with the British North American provinces, and .will hereafter participate in its tenefits."—ln another article, it says :—`• Now that the war rumours have passed away, and Englishmen and Americans have ceased to think about cutting each others throats, it is curious to note what share iu the blisiness of embroiling the. two countries properly belongs to the leading statesman of each. It so happened, curiously enough, that at the time the misunderstanding. took place the leading statesman in Great Britain was a thorough poli tical adventurer, who has held all sorts of offices, and pro fessed all sorts of principles for the sake of office and power, namely, Lord Palmerston while the leading statesman in thi s country, was Mr. Marcy, of all American politicians the one to whom the epithet of adventurer most appropriately belongs, and the one who has shown most conclusively in the course of his political career that his ideas never rise above the spoils, and that he too is ready at any time to form part of air ad ministration with men of any, every, and no principles at all." It is stated that the President will recommend in his mes sage the purchase of the rights and possessions of the. Hudson Bay Company on the north-west coast of the continent of America, an offer of sale havingbeen made to the Government of the United States. The navigation of the north river (the Herald says) may be considered as closed for the season, although for several, days to eome boats may make their trips to Albany. About Troy the river is entirely blocked with ice, and the steamboats have consequently been withdrawn. At Albany, on Friday, there was considerable floating ice, but not enough to prevent the large passenger boats forcing their way through it. The Washington Union says—"We are informed that a person who desires to remain unknown had addressed to the chief of the Russian legation a cheque for $4OOO, to be trans mitted to his government. The unknown donor, Who only signed the initials M. Y., states in his letter that, full of ad miration for the gallant defence of Sebastopol, he sends this liberal sum of money to be distributed among the widows and orphans of the Russian soldiers who fell bravely fighting for their homes against foreign aggressors. From Port-au-Prince we learn that the fever was still raging, the crews of the vessels in port suffering most severely. In Cuba there had been a grand religious celebration, with the view of impressing more firmly on the public mind a belief in the doctrine of the immaculate conception. The sugar market was active. Freights were dull. Health of Havannah good. The accounts from Curacoa state that a drought of two months' duration had seriously affected the salt yield of the island. The misunderstanding between the merchants and the United States consular agent still continued. The news from Mexico is to the 9th ult. Affairs were in a very unsettled condition. Great excitement had been created by the discovery of a conspiracy to make General Uraga pre sident. Several arrests had been made. Colonel Robles had been appointed minister to the United States in place of Gen. Almonte;who, it is said, will proceed to England as minister plenipotentiary. SOUTH AMERICA. The news from Venezuela is to the 7th of Nov. The assembly met at Caraccas on the Ist, and elected Senor Ber mudez president by a large majority. The cholera was raging with great virulence at Valentia, but at Laguayra and Carac cas it had considerably abated. We have news dated at Valparaiso, October 31; Lima, No vember 10; and Paita, Novemb er 15. Th e re p u bli c o f Chile continued peaceful, and its resources are being rapidly de veloped by a contented people. Manufactories were extending. From Lima we have a report that Arequipa and some of the southern cities of Peru had declared in favour of General Vivanco. Mr. Compton, British consul at Islay, was dead. In Bolivia the Avila revolution had been put down, and the country was again quiet. Trade was much more brisk in Valparaiso. During the month of October Peru had exported 28,272 tons of gttano. Our Callao correspondent, writing on November 10, gives a heartrending account of some of the horrors inci dent to the Chinese labour slave trade. An American ship had recently arrived in port with a cargo of such miserable beings, and it was found. that as many as 201 of them had either died from sickness or committed suicide during the voyage. Four thousand persons had been carried off in the province of Pataz (Peru) by an epidemic classified .by the physician as a.fever of a new type. (Later by Telegraph.) NEW Thus, THURSDAY, 20, EVENING.—Asia's news from Europe has had no effect on this market, so far as cotton is concerned. Breadstuffs of all kinds have, however, declined. Money to-day was easy.. Exchange on London, 109. NEW ORLEANS, 19th.—The Asia's advices have advanced cotton ic. Sales to-day 24,000. Middling, 9c. Freights to Liverpool, fc. WAsumarox, 19th.--No election yet of speaker. COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE. NEW YORK, 18111 DBC. MONEY has become extremely abundant on call loans. There were a few negotiations for large amounts, at a fraction under 7 per cent. It will be noted, however, that first-class paper was still difficult to negotiate under 10 to 12 per cent. The Bank statement showed a slightincrease of loans for the past week, with a falling off in specie and deposits. In the Stock Market there was more activity, with a slight advance in price. The demand for exchange on Europe had been mode rate; rates, however, were firm. We quote':—London, 1081- to 109; Paris, 5.171 to 5.211; Amsterdam, 411 to 411 ; Bre men, 781 to 78-I. COTTON.—The demand has been only to a very moderate extent, and prices were without change. The sales were esti , mated at 5,000 bales. Uplands : Very ordinary to middling, 7c. to 91c.; ordinary, B i kc. ; low middling, sie.; good usid dling, 9-Ic.; fair to good fair and good, 10e. to 1 0 Ic. and 10 c.; middling fair, 9 , 1 c. ; fully fair, 101 c. Mobiles, Louisianas, &c.: Ordinary to middling, 81c. to 9/e.; good ordinary, BiC.; low middling, 91c.; good middling, 10e.; fair to good fair, 111 e. to llic. : middling fair, Ric.; fully fair, llic. ; good and fine, Die.; to 12 *c. Mr. W. P. Wright, in his circular of the 18th ult., states that the receipts at the ports this week are the largest on re cord, being 144,000 bales, against 125,000 bales during the cqrresponding week of 1852. The total is still 20,000 bales behind that year, although 400,000 bales in advance of last year. It is reported the frost. had done little or no injury, and cotton had made to the top of the plant, as well as p) the end of the branches. The prevailing estimate in the south is now, and has been for the past two or three weeks, 3,500,000 bales. BREADSTUFF& —Yesterday. there was more anxiety to sell, and our. quotations show a reduction in prices during the week of 18.1 e. -to 26c. per barrel. Wheat was in fair demand for -shipment at last week's prices :—Southern white, 215 c. to 220 c. ; western white, 215 c. to 220 c. ; western red cad mixed, JANUARY 1, 18 6.,1 • 195 c. to 205 c. ; Canada, 216 c. to 220 c. Indian corn was 10 ot 2c. per bushel lower ; barley, 122 c. to 130 c. per 48 lbs. „d e PRovisioNs.-New mess pork was dull • sales were in 4 tit at $l9 to 519,622 ; prime, $17,872 to $lB. ' Beef was With° l 4 alteration ; the demand moderate. Butter had an uP r li o , we F re ß asking rates tendency ; New York State ranges from 25c. to 29c. ; 18c. to 21c. Cheese firm, at previous rates. much :cet offering. ten 1 :-- ere To w" Liv n e o r t pool lb., 9•32 • flour per barrel, 45.; rosin ditto 4s. to 45.6 d• ; goods, dieese, &c., per ton, 30s. to 40s. • grain, per ; Du e l 11d.; beef, per tierce, 78. 6cl. to Bs. To London : Cheese , I; ton, 40s. to 455.; flour, per barrel, 4s. 6d. • rosin and turPett, time, per 280 lb., ss. to Os. 6d. • heavy goods, oil, &A, i C)s 4 455.; beef, per tierce, Bs. 6d. to' 95.; grain, per bushel, ' To Havre: Cotton, square bales, per lb., lc. to lc. NAVAL STORES. -The market was inactive. ,1 er e TOBACCO. - Domestic was quiet, although firm, an - doing in Spanish tobacco. squaTrhee bfalllesZ.lfil),,gr (Later by Telegraph.) NEW YORK, DEC. 18, 6 P.M.—Ashes—Small farket ati $7,50 for pots, and $8,50 f or pear l s, C ot t on -3 changed; sales 2,800 bales, i nc l u di ng 2 , 200 b a l es in tr y from other ports to Europe. Flour—Common and ni`;;;; n : grades have declined Os. to 121 e. ; sales 9,000 brls. ? 7 1 - 0 00 Wheat steady ; a moderate demand for export ; sales, f c e bushels, at $1,90 to $1,95 for 3filwaukie clear, and s l .P l ' 9 sc, red Ohio. Corn h eav y ; sa l es, 30 , 000 b us h els, a t 20c. to for for new Southern yellow and white, and 97e. to 98 l'a u ll Western mixed, in store and delivered. Oats plenty and Pro , at 48c. to 52c. for State, an d 52 c . t o 54 c. f or Western- to to visions—Pork dull and droopin g; sa l es 350 b arre l s , at ' , ,200 19,25 for mess, and $17,50 for pri m e ; b ee f dull, s a ' e 'o for barrels, at $9 to $lO f or coun t ry pr i me, and $10,6 2 to SIQ an d ditto mess ; 100 barrels we st ern b ee f h ams so ld a t $14, 5 ° , 1 1 11 1,000 tierces Ohio prime mess beef at $22. Cut meats ,ej , and drooping. Butter and cheese quiet; prices une lWi 'dli NEW ORLEANS, DEC. 12.—The sales of cotton to-day up 11,500 bales. Prices have declined ic. We quote taid di ha 6r' at Sic. to Bic. Flour, $8,50 per barrel. Sterling evi l 8.; per cent. premium. DEc. 13.—Our cotton mar k e t i s unc h ange d i n ever. ,, re ' spect. To-day's sales foot up 11,000 bales. AUSTRALIA. ARRIVAL OF THE DONALD M'KAY. THE royal mail ship Donald M'liay, Capt. Warner, bel calz• ing to the Black B a ll li ne o f A ustral i an packets, arr i v ed ° o Friday, from Melb ourne , f rom w hi c h port she saile d 00 the 3rd of October. roll" of She had on board 104,000 ounces o f go l d, of t h e about £416,000, and 260 passengers. tb The Champion of the S eas , w ith th e E ng li sh mails o .• i e sth July, arrived at Melbourne on the 26th of September. 11 : e mail ship of the 20th of June had not arrived. The Defence, and Western Bride, from Liverpool, and tl e e , Lord Warriston,from Greenock, had also arrived at Melbouril In its summary fo r E ng l an d , th e Melbourne Argus sag' --- t We firmly believe th a t we h ave seen t h e worst, an d , ,t l5 O , henceforth, for a lon g ti me t o come, we shall be enable ° e transmit accounts of a gradual arid solid improvement in ,4" e financial and in the industrial condition of the colony., ~ 7 50 month of September ha s b een one o f continued procPeriqb e - far as the yield from the various gold-fields is concerned. .., a amounts sent down by escort are steadily on the increase, a . ' lo 'i t the reports of our own correspon d ents and of gentlemen have recently visited th e di gg i ngs, an d whose judgment ca°,e. relied on, lead u s t o b e li eve ' t h at t hi s i ncrease will be 12 3 °! 11`i be tained. The sea s o n h as b een pecu li arly favourable to I: miner. Water h as b een a b un d ant, b ut not in excess, 05; generally the' case in the winter months, and the weather 11 never been so severe as to interrupt the operations. To th e (l opening up of the quartz reefs, the supply from which w° il t ' a l appear to be inexhaustible, and to the separation of the nle i , e by means of machinery, the present satisfactory state of t' escort returns must, however, be chiefly ascribed. The Melbourne Age gives the following comparative quaff" terly statement of gold produced in 1845, 1855 :- 1854. 1855. Ounces. Ounces. .. 188,246 ... 166,198 137,148 ... 176,742 176,310 ... 253,113, July August .... September 501,704 ... 596,853 501,704 Increase on the quarter 94,349 Increase on the year 132,3 14 A smart shock of a u ear th qua k e was experienced i ll 116' bourne on the.l7th of September. It occurred at 2.53 a•w" and lasted . for about sixty-five seconds. The motion vibratory, and the di rec ti on i n w hi c h i t travelled appe ar to to be front the south-west to north-e as t. Th e a i r was Ca',7 o and hazy at the time, and the sky slightly overcast. violent was the shock, that sound sleepers were awaken from their slumbers; all moveable objects jingled and rattle d, and a low rumblin g noise accompanied the tremor of t 11 4 . e earth. The shock appears t o h ave b een f e l t s i xty or serelVe miles inland, and it see ms mos t pro b a bl e that i t wa s circumferential ripple of a gre a t convu l s i on on some of ti e islands lying more to the southward in the Pacific—possi bly in New Zealand. The Government Gazette has published a return of the population of the colony of Victoria on the 30th of June; 1855, computed from the Regi s t ers o f Bi r th s an d D ea ths and the Returns of the Immigration Agent. The census returns on the 26th April, 1854, showed the population to be at that time 236,798. In the interim there have arrived by sea 99,30 1 souls, while the births have given an additional 11,556 souk" The departures by sea during the same period have amounteu, to 36,638, and the deaths to 7490; showing a net increase 01 66,729. This added to the 236,798 quoted above, will give, total of 303,527 persons; the proportion borne by the nnu e ' to females being nearly as 2 to 1, the former numbering 198,236, and the latter only 105,291, Notwithstanding the numerous difficulties andimpedimen ts in the way, the i nc l osure an d cu lti vat i on of the land o f the . colony of Victoria is advancing. The shares in the new Colonial Bank have been taken with a rapidity which testifi es t o th e l arge amount of i n t e rest which the mercantile and general public take in its success. a The legislative council was not in sess i on. It was proro gue ° to the 4th proximo, when it is understood that it will be 1 00- rogued for six weeks longer, in order to enable the represent s " tives for the new constituencies at the gold-fields to take then: . seats. Eight new members will be di rec tl y c h osen b y thes e who posess the franchise; and four will in addition be tin l/ : nated by his excellency on the reco mmen d a ti on o f t h e digger' generally. The elections will take place early in Novembe r ' There will be some diffi cu lty i n fi n di ng men possessing the There property qualification; and, as yet, there are iv candidates in the field. COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE. The continued decrease of imp or t s i s exerc i s i ng a beneficie. influence, and holders of m an y d escr i p ti ons o f goo d s whichb:i therto could only have been sold at a loss, are looking forwar to the spring trade to enable them to realise at a profit. tP e t : culation has almost entirely ceased in oifr import market' Business is purely of a legitimate character. Our merchn.,ll ie have contented themselves for some months with doing h'„', e in the way of pushing a trade, and biding their time to rca'" for cash or for, credit to safe houses. The demand for gold was brisk, and the price rose in cop: sequence; 765. 3d. and 765. 6d. were the prices ruling at the departure of the ship. In wool the market is very active, and the demand in•exces°' of supply. The shipments made this season have been con' siderably in advance of those of former years, the actual in; crease of 1855 over 1854 exceeding 14,740 bales; of scoured and handwashed descriptions also by a largely increased ex port is reported. Tallow : Beef, £35 to £3B ; mutton, £3B and upwards, ac cording to quality and condition. _ Hides : Country hides, 10s. to 12s. In the absence of op portunities to ship, town hides have been sold at prices in favour of the buyer. Freights to LOndon and Liverpool: On wool, id. ; 355. ; hides, 455. Labour : The first favourable symptoms of improvement are a very great diminution in the numbers seeking employment , . and the greater facility th e y fi n d i n o b ta i n i ng it ; and altbouF b the wages are low, in comparison to the former rates obtain' able in Victoria, still there is employment at the rates quoted , with the no distant prospect of wages materially getting better,' as labour in the market gets scarcer. Another favourable feature is the great demand lately sprung up about the gold-field s f or f ema l e servants, where they frq' t 3 ; the obtain a considerable adva nce u p on th e Melbourne rates, lot all travelling expenses paid. l I c a o r u r n ie t d ry c . ouples are still much inquired aft er f or s tations ill TUE Turkish Minister in London is promoted to the rani c of Anibassador Extraordinary. , vet REPRESENTATION OF HEREFOR D .—N o can did a t e nas t declared himself for the represent a ti on o f H ere f or d , which, is presumed, will be rende r ed vacan t th roug h t h e b an kruptcY of Sir R. Price; but it is stated "on authority" that 30. .,* Robert Biddulph, of Ledbury, who formerly represent ed Hereford in parliament, will again offer himself to the electes• THE CASE oz Da. VAUGHAN.—Application was on Sato!: day made to Mr. Baron Platt, at his private residence, . 14 " . rescind the erder he had previo us ly ma d e f or remov ing t h e .proceedings against Dr. Vaughan by th e churchwardens o f St. Matthew, Brixton, from the Central C r i m i na l Court int o thelCourt'ofQUeen's Bench. The affidavits ou each side were submitted to the judge, but he was not attended by counsel. th beenathat his made Mr. Baron Platt said he h a d carefully considered the fresh to the ts whichLadco nclusion would not, however, resei n d th e order he had made, but he would direct that it should be stayed until the 1 1th of Janu ary, being the Ist day of Hilary Term , thereby giving th e former in thdiesc case , isio d was wrong. o parties an. opportunity of making an application upon the an he had come subject to the full court.—Observer. LIBERATION OF EDWARD MIIRRA.T.—ROME, Dec. 20...7" 1 The case of Edward Murray, so much discussed i n Englan and elsewhere three years ago, and which then gave occasion be sufficient to recall him to m i n d as the Englishman arres ted Lave v t e h the British een forgotten. Government ltiv f t o h r at re o p f ea H te is d Hreorholenssst,rawilicllesnorrtonth at Ancona in 1849, chargeel with being associated 1,1 1 ti1 " known assassins, and of having been an accomplice in '- murder of Count Severino, for. which he was condemned to the guillotine by th e sacred tribunal of the Sacra Consuitt which senten ce wou ld certainly have been carried into e ff e c i -had it not been averted by the energetic remonstrances °- our consul, Mr. Freeborn, actin g acc or di ng to th e inslolci tions of the British Government, not on the principle ° s wishing to save the prisoner, if guilty, merely because he oT o a British su bj ec t, b u t b ecause th e tr i al was, according British ideas of ju s ti ce , secret, inquisitorial, and unfai r. cod'' tnunicate. Papal Government was o b s ti na t e , an d never wou ld cod' . tnunicate. the documents of the trial even to Sir Hen r i • Bulwer, who, during his residence i n Ro me , en d eavour ed t , , procure them from Cardinal A n t one lli ; but the Pope mit3a gated.the capital sentence to that of the galleys for life, an subsequently to that of imprisonment for life in the Star., prison of Palliano, where Edward Murray was conseq uen!: sent, after having_ confined at Ancona and Rome i dr nearly five years. Since that period exertions have not be? . wanting in his behalf, and the charity of British visitors ' ll Rome has been abundant to his mother, an lonian by birth: On Sunday nigitt, the 16th in,stalll, Murray was release d from prison and pent secretly to .Civita Vecchia, escorted WI gendarme,;, there to be embarked 44:1 board the Frer el steamer for Malta. — y NeWs.