Northern Times. — Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-08-08 00:00:00

THE ROYAL INSURANCE COMPANY. The annual meeting of the shareholders of the Royal Insurance Company was held at eleven o'clock, a.m , yesterday, in the company's offices, North John-street. In the absence of Mr. Charles Turner, the chair was occupied by Mr. Ralph Brocklebank, one of the vice-chairmen. Among the gentlemen present were M. Alderman Holme, Mr. J. Torr, Mr. G H. HoNfall, Mr. T. Bouch, Mr. Alderman Dove; Mr. J. Bramley-Moore, Tyl.P., Mr. Yonnghusband, Mr. M. Hyslop, Mr. C. Moz.ey, Mr. Leate, &c., &e. The CIIAIRM iN having explained that he WAS unexpecied ly called to the chair, in consequence of the ab,ence of Mr. Charles Turner, who was summoned to London on urgent public business, reques'ed Mr. Dove, Managsr, to read the report and statement of accounts for the year. 31r. Dove thenread the report and statement of accounts. The report was as follows: REPORT FJR TOE YEAR 1856. The directors have now to lay before the proprietors a statement cf the results of the transactions of the Royal Insurance Company for e year ending the 31st December last. The details will exhibit a very important increase of revenue in each of the divisions of the business ; and a larger amount of profit than in any former year. FIRE DEPARTMENF. In directing the attention of the proprietors to the continued -and continuing increase of the fire department, the directors on this occasion prefer to cite the proof afforded by public official documents rather than to offer anticipations founded solely on their own investigations. It will, indeed, be remem bered that they were enabled to adopt this course is their report for the preceding year. and to .show by the " Govern ment Returns of Assurance Companies" the high comparative positio❑ of this establishment. They are now happily enabled, with equ a satisfaction, to exhibit the advance in the British fire business of the company, on the indisputable evidence of the " Parliamentary Return of Duty paid to Government" in the year 1-856, recently ordered to be prinied by the Howe of Commons. The statistics of that return establish the following facts, than which none can be conceived more fitted to prove that no Insurance Company, ancient or modern, is advancing more speedily than the loyal Insurance Company in the confidence of the Blitisla people.. Only one out of seventy-two London and country offices, included in that report, exceeds the " Royal" in its increase of duty for the year; and that one office solely by the all but nominal sum of £2. The progress of this establishment, when compared with the country offices, is still more apparent, Its increase of duty for the period exceeds the total increase of all the Sco'ch Offices united; whilst, taking the fourteen English offices established north of Birmingham, most of them, like the Scotch offices referred to, of tho highest respectability, it is found that the surp'.us duty of the " Royal Insurance Com pany in itself all but reaches fifty per cent, of the entire increase of all the others, and far exceeds that of any two of them. Moreover, if the three producing the largest surplus be excluded from the comparison, the amount of increase of your company alone is greater than the accumulated surplus duty of the remaining eleven offices. With respect to the details of this department, it continues to produce highly satisfactory returns in each of the two branches into which it is divided :—the British and Foreign, and the Ameri can Branches. Their respective results continue, as was antici pated, to correct the irregularities of each alternately. Thus — The large profits of the American branch for the year 1855, as already reported, made up for the smallness of the result of the former branch, whilst for the year 1856, now under review, the balance to the credit of profit and loss on the American acoonnt, is but small, and on the other hand the profit on the British and foreign business, is ihe largest that has yet been reported since the establishment of the Company, amounting, inclusive of interest, to £47,243 93. 101 Again, taking an estimate of the business for the last six months to the 30th ult.. it is found that the branch just referred to—the British and Foreign—has produced little or no profit, in con sequence of the extensive losses in Liverpool, London, and other places in the United Kingdom, but, on the contrary, the American branch has been attended with the most favour able results. These varying successes of the two branches, apart from each other, have, however, produced, when united, an increasing ratio of profit to the company year by year, and the experience of the last two years shears an equally satis factory conclusion as respects each of these branches. It is gratifying likewise to announce that the London department has assumed, in its fire division especially, a magnitude of result which leads to the most favourable hopes for the future. Its revenue for the last year showed a most promising increase, whilst the balance of profit arising from its transactions more than equalled all reasonable expectation. Indeed, it may safely be affirmed that no country office established in London equals this company in its revenue derived from the metropolis. The building now completed for the transaction of the com pany's business in Lombard-street has attracted public attention, and it is believed that by the valuable aid of the London directors, which hes been cheerfully rendered, the progre sa of the life branch of the Company's business will hence forth be as large as that of the Fire department. The branches of the company's business in Edinburgh and Glasgow are likewise energetically carried on. Indeed, the directors cannot refrain from evpressing their sense of the valuable services rendered by the representatives of the com pany, both at home and abroad. To their integrity, activity, and intelligent watchfulness they feel that much of the remark able successes of the company aro due. The report on the fire branch of the company would not be complete without an announcement that the premiums for the year 1856 are more than those for the preceding year by a sum exceeding £20,000. LIFE BRANCH. The expectation of rapid growth in the life branch, conse quent on the magnitude of the bonus declared in the year 1855, has been more than fulfilled by the result. This will be made evident by following up the statement of new policies alone contained in the last report, and completing it fur the three consecutive years ending the 30th ult. Year ending. Number of policies. Sum assured. June, 1855 396 £166,864 Premium' £4,867 8,370 11,864 288,321 „ 1857 391,158 A remarkable satisfaeory progress is exhibited here, as it will at once be seen that the premiums received on new assurances for the year ending June, 1857, are 160 per cent. above the amount of the like premiums for the same period of time only two years previously—at the same time, the mortality has been for the year at an unusually moderate ratio. In Let, the directors have little hesitation now in expressing their conviction that the future prospects of this department of your business are hardly to be exceeded by those of any life assurance company in the kingdom, provided it be encou raged by the active assistance of the proprietors and policy holijers in recommending it for selection by their friends. Such aid as this will, however, be indispensably needed, or the high anticipation! now declared will at any rate in some mea sure be dissipated. Valuable as the personal exertions of shareholders are to a fire office, its arrival can readily be ima gined to such an advanced position in the estimation of the public as to free it from dependence on any aid other than that which it derives from its own high repute. More than one example establishing this Let might read ly be quoted from among the older fire offices in London. A life company, on the contrary, has more continous'y to rely on the help of its proprietors or policy holders. Many au intend.ng assurer, unable to distinguish betwee❑ the competing statements of advan'ages made respectively by tho numerous existing life establishments, is determined in his choice by the timely coun sel of a shareholder or of an assurer well acquainted, by expo rience, with the position and stability of the dace he has him self selected. DIVIDEND AND BONUS. The business of the . year having been so prosperous, the amount of dividend and bonus to be declared remains to he considerel In dealing ai h this question, it must not be forgotten that high tees of interest have prevailed during the period, and have partly led to the favourable result announced, and that, wha.ever may be the conflicting opinions with respect to their continuance or cessation, there caa be none as to the propriety of not acting as if they were so fined and permanent as to be reckoned on at a high per essitago far succeeding years. Irrespective, however, of the item of interest, it is now clearly manifest that the evidence of another year's experience only serves to show an increased ve l ocity of progression in the magnitude of the company's business, rather than an exhaus tion of its powers of still further expansion. The directors have concluded, therefore, to recommend, on this occasion, a dividend of 3s. per share, and a bonus of 3i. per share— together six shillings—free of income tax. The following directors now retire, and are eligible for re--A ec ti on . George Booker, Esq. Edward Johnston, RI. David Cannon, EFq. James Lawrenec, Esq. James Holme,E-q. John Torr, Lg. Trios. D. Hornby, Esq. 7th August, 1857. Cuar,Lics TURNER, Chairman. The CHAIRMAN, in roving their at?optiln, said that it did not require much el.quence to induce them to pass the report and the statement of accounts which they had just heard read. They were, in his mind, the most satisfac tory accounts that had ever been laid before the Royal Ins o ranee Company. The meeting had learned from them that while the interest of the proprietors had been pro motel by an increase of dividend of is per share—from 53 to Gs—the interest of the assured had also been in creased by a large amount added to their reserve fund (Hear, hear) He thought it would be impossible for him to cite any further proofs of the vast and growing pros perity of their great concern. To use the words of the report, " No insurance company, ancient or modern, was advancing more rapidly than the Royal Insurance Com auy LI the confidence of the British people;" but he thought the report there left something short. It said only, "In the estimation of the British people," but he would say in the estimation of all people in all parts of the world, wherever their establishment existed. (Hear, hear.) He did not know if he could make much comment on the acconats that had been hid before them, but there were some points which appeared worthy of notice. They would observe that the revenue premiums amounted to £151,000, nearly four-fold the amount that they were seven or eight years ag3 The total balance of profit and loss for the year was £49,000 That was a very gratifying fact, and it had arisen, he might observe, chiefly from the British and Forei.or basinsss, while their American business had, he was sorry to say, been rather unsuccessful. It was to be hoped, however, from the success of the American busines for the first six months of the current year, that it would effectually make up for the loss they sustained in the preceding twelve months. It should be gratifying to them to receive a dividend of 6s: per share. It absorbed about £28,000, leaving upward of £20,000 to be carried to the re-assurance or reserved fund. It appeared by the report that the ratio of their fire basiness, far exceeded that of any oth -r business, while, with respect to their life business, the report showed an astonishin g success. In conclusion, the Chairman observed that the large increase of money com pared with the number of lives insured, she aed that they were getting into abetter class of lives, which would prove of great benefit to the company. (Hear, hear.) Mr Toxa said he had very great pleasure in seconding the resolution which had bean proposed by the Chairman. Their excellent Secrerary had given them a lengthy and a lucid explanation of the state of the company's affairs for the past year. In doing so, he had done a double service. He had given to the proprietors an ample explanation of the state of their affairs, the want of which was the frequent cause of complaint among j Ant-stock companies throughout the country. He had also done very good service to t'ioee who had undertaken to ask foe toe con currence of the proprietors to the report, inasmuch as he had left little for them to say in commenting upon it. The length of the report justified those who had to make re marks upon it in shortening their speeches, and he was quite sure they would all agree that a good result was much better than a good speech. It was much easier to recommend to their adoption a good result of their work by a bad speech than it would be to get their concurrence in a bad year's result by the most abte speecb, or the most lucid eloquence whic:l coal Ibe uttered in that room. He would just make this remark about joint-stock com• panies generally, that he believed one great cause why so many of these companies felled to attain the suc cess which individual efforts attained was that too many of the proprietors thought, by giving their at' endance at the annual meeting on occasions like the present, they had done their duty to their company in which they were proprietors. (Hear, hear) That is to say they to ak little or no interest in the precise' extension of the company's business. They left to the officials of the company the discharge of the duties, the responsibility of success, and the whole of the work Hence, his feeling always was against joint-stock companies, and in contrast to indivi dual effort, and he had always maintained that individual effort could work results no company could attain, simply from the reason that the energy, thought, and earnestnsss applied by each man individually to his own concerns were seldom or never applied by a joint-stock company. (Hear, Hear.) That company consisted of about 600 proprietors.ow, as " many a little makes a muckle," if each of those 600 proprietors were to put his shoulder to the wheel of that great concern, if they gave to it each that individual effort, energy, thought, Mid labour which they gave to their own concerns, then what might they not expect for the future career of the Royal Insu rance Company of Liver' ool? (Hear, hear) They had had gr.at success alreldy, he admitted, but he was paying no unmeaning or unjust compliment to the man to whom he believed they in a great measure owed their success, to say that the individual efforts and energy of Mr. Dove fortified all that he had said of individual efforts. (Hear, bear.) To Mr. Dove their success was in no small degree due, and through his officials and agents throughout the country elsewhere, for "like master like man," and he appeared to have inocculatei his officers with somewhat of his own spirit. Hence it was, after all, to individual effort and individual energy, that the company in a gseat measure owed its success (Hear, hear.) He had very great pleasure in seconding the motion. The motion was unanimously adopted. The CIIMMIAN proposed that the dividend be declared, as stated in the report. Mr. YOUNGIIUSBAND seconded the motion which was agreed to. _ _ - Th.3 CHAIIIIIAN proposed the re-election of the out-going directors. • Mr. MAXWELL HYSLOP seelnded the motion, an 1, while fully approving of the re election of the gentlemen named, suggested that, where it was possible, new members should be occasionally introduced to the direction. Mr. CHARLES MOZLEY sail it was wall understood pre viously, that some change should be made, when an occasion presented itself, by the infusion of new blood. He did not mean to raise the slightest objection to the names of the gentlemen proposed for re-election. The results showed the ability and labour they had bestowed. But he coincided in the remark of the last speaker, that it might become needful, from time to time, to make some change. (Hear, hear.) The On 4.111111 N observed that there were at present three or fonr vacancies in the direction. They should have at the Board men of talent who could attend to the interests of the company, and men of high standing who could procure for the company a large increase of business. He was sorry to say that there was some little amount of difficulty in securing the services of such men. In filling up the four vacancies, the board would endeavour to get such gentlemen for directors as they thought most desirable. The appointment would, of course, come on fir confirmation at the neat meeting. The resolution was adopted. On the motion of the Chairman, seconded by Mr. Diver, Messrs. William Titheriug on and John Dickenson were re-elected auditors. Mr. LEATE proposed a vote of thanks to the chairman, deptity : cbalrma.n, and directors of the board. Mort.zY seconded the motion, which was carried by acclamation. The CFI AIRILIN and Me. BR .316EY- MOORE, Ili P., severally acknowledged the compliment. The CIIAIRMAN proposed a vote of thanks to Mr. Dove and the officers of the company, and in doing so paid a high tribute to the zeal and talents of Mr. Rive, and the assiduous attention of the other officers Mr. Alderman Houtz seconded the motion, and declared that, for the progress of the company, he placed his chief reliance upon Mr. Dlve. - 1 ability end attention. Mr. BRAMLEY-MOORE expressed a similar eulogy to Mr. Dove. Mr. DOVE, in acknowledging the compliment, said there could be no cLubt that the company had ma-le a great advance during the last year. He had to state, also, that the impetus given to the business during the last year had not ceased with the end of the year, but from the progress of the present year hitherto, he should hope that at its conclusion, the directors would be able to report that the increase had been equal to that of the preceding one. (Hear, hear) The progress of their life business was particularly satisfactory, because, by the accounts, he had heard from London, there was a general slackness in life insurance throughout the whc'le of the country. Many causes could be assigned for that, but Vie chief was the number of offices that were established within the last few years, professing to give advantages which no life insurance company could do, and wiliest were now falling down one by one. Life insurance was, in consequence, n .t so popular as it was three or four years ago; but a reaction would take place, and*the offices of character and stability would derive the benefit. (gear, hear.) In conclusion, Mr. Dove read an extract from a let er from Mr. Titherington, one of the auditors, testifying to the excellent order in which the books of the company were kept. Thanks were then voted to the Chairman, and the meet• ing separated. DISCOVERY OF NATURAL GAS AT GULL.—On the 28:h nit., Mr. Sather, of the firm of Thompson and Stather, civil engin-ers, Hull, was sicking a well at his private residence and works. At 45 to 48 feet the workmen found a bed of p: at, three feet thick. As the water issued from the surf,cs o f t h e b or i ng i n a b u bb l i ng fountain, varying in height from one to six or seven feat, and from that to ten feet, spurting out volumes of gravel and fine sand, the sinker, who had, in sinking other wells, previously seen something o f th e ki n d , though on a smeller scale, being certain that this was occasioned, not by the force of water, bat by gas o f some ki n d , deterstile.l to try whether it was inflammable, a thirg which he bad lacier in his life . attempted befor e , an d t o uses s Tprise th ire arose a lurid flute,two yards in height, issuing from a tube three inches in diamet er , and through which tube the water continued to flow an d boil over without at all diminishing the v dame of flame, which ascended considerably higher than the gar den wall, whi c h i s seven f eet hi g h. The next day s ome scientific gentlemen visited the place, and the gas was found to be p ure gas, as muc h o f i t h a d esca p e d during the night as would have lit up all Hal Tais gas is the true , fire-damp, nil:eh recently proved s) fatal at Lundbitl, and has frtqaently done so in many co lieries. The water obtained at the same level as the gis was of a very sort quality, and would be good for washing pur poses. Onllredcesday evening twenty-one burners were supplied with gas from the boring in the well, without the interven!ion of any gasometer. Since then the bore has been carried down to the s3ild rock, which was found at a depth of fifty feet, and the supply o f gas h as f or the present ceased. POLICE INTELLIGENCE -YEiTERDAY. LIVERPOOL. BEF3IIZ MR. J. ATKIN. DESPERATZ ASSAULT BY A Durcamiar.—A Du'eh sailor, answering to the English name of John Walsh, was pat forward on a charge of having stabbed another sailor named Thomas Joha Smith. Oa Wednesday night about eleven o'clock, the parties met in Bridgewater-street, and some words took place in reference to the cc untries of each. Smith said he was an Englishman, when the prisoner swore he was a "Datcher," and did not care three straws for the other, and in order to show his independence, he drew his knife and struck complainant a desperate blow in the right arm. Two femalei proved having seen the stab, and surgeon Pope, of the :southern Hospital, said the wound was a dangerous one of four inches long, and reached to the bone, which it splintered. Tile prisoner was sent for trial at the assizes. _ _ _ CHARGE OP SM lIGGIAN G. Captain Nicholas Von Hach ten, of the Eastern Sophy, who had been remanded on a charge of having attempted to smuggle Itlbs. of foreign cigars, was brought up. Mr. Tyndall was for the Crown, and Mr. Binek for the defendant, who was ont on bail. Mr. Bluck said he did not intend to give the Court any trouble, as he intended, by advice of his client, to plead guilty ; bat he wished to say a few wards in refer ence to the facts of the case. The cigars were of a very common description, and were punhased for one pound a thousand by the defendant. He did not attempt to take the cigars on shore, nor did he ever intend doing so, as he merely kept them for his own use. Taey were not con cealed, and although two days had elapsed, no attempt to take them on shore was made. He (51r. Bluck) did not think his Worship had any p - ewer to mitigate the fine, but no doubt his Worship would recommend to the Board a mitigation under the circumstances. His Worship agreed with Mr. Black, and said he would sign a memorial for a mitigation. A fine of £lOO was inflicted, and the money was at clic. paid. "CHAMP AG NE" AND "REAL PAIN." —William Webster, a cooper, in the employ of Messrs. James Baines and Co., was charged with having stolen a bottle of champagne, and about half a gallon of brandy, the property of that firm. The prisoner was sent to see the stores put from a lighter on board the ship "Morning Light" in the river. A. brandy cask was in jured, and the prisoner got a bucket and took half a gallon of the liquor, which he concealed in the cabin of the lighter, and after that ha was observed tipsy, and on being search ed, a bottle of champagne was found under his coat. A case of champagne was found broken and six bottles were missed. The prisoner said he was not exactly a cooper, bat his duty was to see that cask., &c., were all safe; he had been thirteen years in the emyloyment, and was never charged with anything before. He was remanded in order to produce a witness. BEFORE MESSRS. SMITH AND STITT. Several beer-house keepers were summoned and fined in various mitigated penalties for Sunday trading, and for other infringements of the law, but in none of the cases was there any facts of the slightest public importance. PUBLICANS' CASES —John Harrison Wickham, the keeper of the American Hotel, in Lime-street, was sum moned for permitting drunkenness in his house on the 17th of July last. Mr. Blackhurst appeared for the defendant, and asked for an adjournment, on the grounds that the offence was committed so long back as the 171 of July last, and the summons bad only been served on the sth inst. To disprove the offence there were fifteen witnesses, but it was utterly impossible for him to enter into the case on the present occasion. He therefore hoped that the case would be adjourned. Mr. Wybergh explained to the bench that there was still a case pending at the quarter sessions against the same party, but would nit be heard until the adjourned sessions. Mr. Blackhurst suggested that the present case should be adjourned until after the sessions, when the former case would be disposed of, and that, perhaps, might obviate the bench hearing the present case. The bench assented to the proposition, aud therefore the hearing of the case was postponed. THE SAI)KE NUISANCE AGAIN. TO THE EDITOR OF THE NORMIERN TDIES. Sir,—ln consequence of a letter from Mr. John Cannington, of the Vauxhall Glass Works, im pugning, in the first instance, the correctness of my report of his case when it came before the bench of magistrates on the sth inst., and that too in no unmistakable terms, although in the last sentence he attempts to exonerate me from all blame in the matter, after stating positively that I had inserted words and sentences in the report which had never been uttered. Hence, in justi fication to myself, and that it might not appear before your readers that the report was in correct, I addressed, on seeing the letter, the following note to J. Wybergh, Esq., the clerk to the justices, who hear.l the case, and of course had, in his official capacity, to take notes of the points raised. You and your readers will be able to form an opinion as to who is correct—the one person who takes the short-hand notes at the time the words were uttered, or the interested person who afterwards reads that report thus given, and subsequently writes to contradict and make his comments on the case.—l remain, Sir, yours most respectfully, THE REPORTER. C. WILLMER, Esq. The following is a copy of the note forwarded : Northern Daily Times Office, August 7, 1857• Sza,—From a letter in this morning's paper, I find that Mr. John Cannington, of the • Vauxhall Glass Work', has disputed the correctness of the report of the proceedings which took place in the Police court, when that firm was summoned on the sth inst., under the Smoke Prevention Act, and he has stated that " THAT REPORT IS DEFECTIVE IN MANY PARTICULARS." As you were present on the occasion, in your official capacity as clerk to the justices, and there fore, uninterested and unbiassed in the matter, I should esteem it a great favour if you would trouble yourself to peruse the report in question, and let me have your opinion as to its correctness and impartiality. By conferring this obligation, you will greatly oblige, yours most respectfully, J. S. HAR3IAN, Reporter. J. WYBEROU, In answer t) the foregoing, Mr. Wybergh, with his usual courtesey, forwarded the following reply : Sic,—l have read the Report to which you vier in your letter of this morning, and have no hesitation in stating, that to my mind it conveys a vary fair and sub stantially accurate account of the proceedings, in reference to the ease ag4inst the Messrs. Cannington. I may especially notice your rendering of the scientific evidence of Mr. Green, which appears to be given with wonderful clearness and precision, when one remembers the rapidity with which it was uttered, and the various obstructions through which, in a tribunial not remarkable for order and silence, such evidence has to make its final way to the ear and understanding of gentlemen who per form your difficult and laborious duty.—l am, sir, your most obedient servant. Jowl WYBERGII, Junior. Mr. J. S. Harman. Session House, Friday. With the above opinion, as to the correctness and accuracy of the report, further comment is unnecessary.—l remain, sir, yours respectfully. August 7th, 1857. THE REPORTER . THE LATE DOUGLAS JERROLD AND THE WORKING CLASSES. THE NORTHERN TIMES.-LIVERPOOL, SATURDAY, AUGUST 8, 1857. TO THE EDITOR OF THE NORTHERN TIMES. Sir,—l perceive that the Literary and Dramatic Society has announced a performance at the Theatrelyal for Thursday next, in aid of the Jerrold Memorial Fund, and that the members are acting under the sanction and patronage of Mr. Charles Dickens and his gifters. I learn also, that a full and fashionable attendance is expected on the occasion, and I am sure, that every earnest admirer of the late Douglas Jerrold—whose keen wit and sturdy henest writings have rendered essential service to the cause of progress, will heartily sympathise with the occasion. I fear, however, that the forthcoming performance will be •an essentially " fashionable' one, unless the working classes—those sturdy sons of toil, on whose behalf the powerful pen of the late satirist has ever been wielded with giant might, will join heartily in this tribute to his memory, and show by their presence on Thursday next, that they honour and revere the name of one, who never forgot the dignity of independence, nor sacrificed his noble intellect for place, wealth, or power. 1 therefore appeal to the artisans, who swarm this busy hive, and adorn it by the labour, which Jerrold so loved to dignify by his approbation, to rally round his friends, and .by their presence and sympathy, render the occasion in truth a " peoples' rememberance."—Yours, &c., Everpool, August 7th, 1857. A WORKING MAN. HORRIBLE TRAGEDY IN AMERICA. We have to chronicle one of the most horrible tragedies ever committed in this city, hardly excepting the famous torpedo case whereby Mn and Mrs. Allison met with a fearful death by the diabolical agency of the nnhung Arri son. We affix the particulars, together with the verdicts of the coroner's jury. The public, in the meantime, are in a high state of excitement, and the bloody episode will long be regarded with fearful interest by our citizens. At about four o'clock in the morning, the mansion ocen pied by Mr. Nicholas T. Hortoa, in Ohio-avenue, at the head of Vine-street-hill, was discovered to be on fire. Judge Parker, whose residence is upon the opposite side of the way, was aroused by the screams of the inmates rf Mr. Herten's house, and speedily dressing himself he discovered a gentleman named- Concklin endeavouring to remove the prostrate body of Mr. Horton. The smoke was suffocating, but between them they succeeded in carrying their charge to the lawn, when it was discovered that he was bleeding profusely from a cut inflicted in the bead, and a dreadful gash, given evidently by the down ward stroke of some sharp weapon in the left groin, and which had severed the femoral artery. He appeared sen sible, but was speechlese, and in a few moments breathed his last. Previous to this, and at the first alarm of fire, the mother of Mr. Horton rushed into the hall, when she perceived her unfortun ite son-in-law staggering towards he bedroom of his wife, who had but recmtly been con fined, and exclaiming, " Oh, mother, 1 am stabbed," he fell upon the spot, where he was discovered by Judge Parker and Mr. Concklin. In the meantime the excite ment hod spread, and some firemen from the Mohawk engine-house arriving upon the spot the fire was seon extinguished, and suspicion having fallen upon a serv ing man named Joseph Loeffler, who had for upwards of two years been engaged in the family of Mr. Horton, some pers ens hastened to a house at the corner of Vine and Green streets, in which Loefner's wife resided. In a few minutes afterwards, however, and while the party assembled in front of the house were yet in a state of horrid bewilderment, Loeffler was seen staggering towards them from a neighbouring orchard, bleeding profusely from a cut in the hand and a horrid gash across the throat. Some of the party advanced to meet him, but he a nk LI; on the grass upon' hands and knees. They traced the blood to an apple tree, beneath which they found a large sharp b .tcher's knife and a razor. With the former he had inflicted the fatal blow which had deprived Mr. Horton of life, and with the latter he bad attempted to accomplish his own destruction. When in terrogated as to whether he had committed the arson and murder, be nodded (for he was speechles , ) assent, and also that he had cut his own throe.. In the meantime the party who had first started in purstf t of him arrived at the resi dence of his wife, but found the door of the room locked. Subsequently they burst it ia, and there, stretched nearly naked upon the bed, but with her shoes on her feet, they beheld the dead body of the ill-fated wife of the murderer of Mr. Horton, no wound upon her person but otherwise ex'aibiting marks which made it evident that she had died from s`raugulation. The wretched man, Joseph Loeffler, was removed to the Commercial Hospital, where at a late hour that night he lay in speechless agony, the attendants expecting momentarily that he would breathe his last. He heel preciously signified by signs that his motive for committing this double murder, suicide, and arson, was jealousy of his wife and Mr. Horton, and after being taken to the hospital he succeeded in tracing upon a slate the intelligible charac:ers that he had reason to believe his wife on the day previous had given him poisoned batter upon his bread, aid which had caused the altercation that had led to her murder, after which he had hastened to the house of Mr. Hor ton, in the front ba ernmt of which he usually slept, where he kindled the fire with the intention of burning the house and its inmates, but meeting Mr. Horton, who was aroused by the smoke, he inflicted the fatal stab, and then rushed forth into .the orchard to consummate his own destruction. The fire which Loeffler had kindled was immediately underneath the apartment occupied by Mrs. Horton. Mr. Horton, in consequence of the recent con finement of his lady, occupied a sleeping room on the other side of the hall and in the rear of the house. He was an old and respected citizen, aged about 50 years, and leaves his wife and six children to mourn his loss. He was an ex tensive manufacturer of grates and marble iron, doing bus'ness in Third-street, between Race and Elm, the manu factory being in Plum-street. The firm was known as Nicholas T. Horton and Co. Formerly he was in co-part nership with Mr. Baker, and more recently the firm was known as that of Horton and Macy, but this connection was dissolved two years since. Joseph Loefeer, the murderer, is barely 22 yearn' of age, and is said to have on several occasions exhibited a violent and ungovernable disposition. He was engaged by Mr. Horton as a gardener and to take care of the horses, and it is said that upon 'one occasion when the harness became entangled, he seized a knife and cut it to pieces, after which he turned and served his coat which was hanging from a peg in the stable in the same manner. The evening previous to the tragedy he had been reprimanded by Mr. Horton for exercising undue cruelty to the horses, and it is said that at that time he had mut tered dark and malignant threats. He was a German by birth, and has lived in this country for years. Francisca, his ill-feted wife, was a beautiful German girl of some twenty summers. Her maiden name was Koehler, and it was by this name that both she and her husband were most frequently caled. She had contracted the ill-fated marriage bat a abort eight months, and was five months advanced in pregnancy. To a beautiful and expressive face, and a form faultless in its symmetry, she is said to have combined the more lasting charms of amiability of disposition, and—a singularity ,for her station—a tefined and cultivated mind. Like Desdemona, she suffered by the green-eyed and unfounded suspicion of her jealous tyrant, and met, too, the same death as that inflicted by the Moor upon his putt and spotless wife. It will be seen by the testimony elicited at the inquest held over her body, that for some time previous to the fearful denoumen' her life had been clouded, and the eager hope which, for one in her situation, about for the first time to be invested with the sacred title of mother, is ever supposed to shed a rosy halo over the new and mysterious existence, des troyed by her cruel and unatuieble partner,—Cincinnati Commercial, July 22. THE Buiauwan/tai ELEe rioN.—The nomination will take place on Monday, to be followed next day by the poll. Mr. Bright is one of the candidates. VIENNA, Thursday.— M. de Thouvenal, the French Am bassador at Constantinople, has taken down his flag, but informed the Turkish government that he should not leave his post far some days. General Todtleben has received permission from the Emperor Al xander to remsis away f om Russle until July next. The General will continue to reside at Kissen gen, and other German watering pliees, uittil September, %%bon he aiU proceed to Fiorenee and Naples. COLONIAL GOVERNORS.—There are forty-seven colonial governors, &c. Only one has £lO,OOO, Victoria. One has £2OO, in addition to his salary as colonial secretary - a )d registrar of St. Lucia. Sir John thwring has £4,000 salary as chief superintendent of trade in China, with no salary as governor. PORTSMOUTH, Thursday.—Some '2,300 officers and men embarked today for India, and to-morrow another 1,000 men at least will embark. The officers and men who embarked on board the James Baines and Clumpion of the Seas seemed gratified in the highest degree at the roomy and lofty accAnmodation these noble ships afforded them, and in the best spirits at the prospect of a speedy passage. They each have a tug from Liverpool, to tow them till they get a good wind. Mr. T. M. Mackay, one of the owners of the two ships, has presen , ed £2OO for distribution amongst the wives of the soldiers who are on board. }brawn Cosifocr.—As some lads were bathing last week in the river Nene, at Peterborough, one of them named Brawn, about twelve years old, got out of his depth and sank. Fortunately, the Rev J. J. Beresford, • Pre. centor of Peterborough Cathedral, happened to be rowing up at the moment. Altfiough in an extremely weak and delicate state of health, he at once jumped ashore, threw off his clothes and commenced diving. At the first dive he got so entagled in the weeds that he had great difficulty in extricating himself. Nothing daunted, he continued his gallant efforts, and succeeded in four or five minutes in recovering the body and bringing it ashore. It was not until the next morning that happily the lad, tinder able treatment was restored to healtb. THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON THE ()ATM BILL.—The select committee moved for by Lord J. Russell to consider the operation of the act &h and 6th William IV , cap. 62, with reference to the taking of oaths, and to ascertain whether that act• would apply to the oaths taken by mem bers before sitting and voting in the Flouse of Commons, met yesterday afternoon, at one o'clock. On the meeting of the committee, the room was filed by a large body of , strangers. conspicuous among whom was Boron Roths. child, but the room was immediately ordered to be e!eared, and the first thing which the cornmittee did was to came to a resolution to exclude the public, consequently we can give to report of the prcceaditgs. THE MALAKOFF NOT TO BE TAKEN.—Several journals have annotnced that the capture of the Malakoff was to be represented at the Champs de Mars on the occasion of the Emperor's fete, but that on an observation made by M. de Kisseleff the programme has been changed. The simple fact is, that when the newspapers mentioned that the taking of the Malakoff was to be represented in the Champs de Mars, the Russian ambassador waited on the Minister for Foreign Affairs, who told him that the papers were is error, that it was never intended to represent the capture of the Malakoff, bat on the contrary the subject to be represetted was the conquest of the Kabylla.—Zetter from Paris THE ATTEMPTED MURDER IN THE QUEEN'S BENCH PRISON. The Sonthwaak police magistrate was on Thursday occupied several hours in investigating the charges against Antonio de Salvi, an Italian, and Mr. Jabez Samuel Gower, the celeb ated auctioneer of Barbican ; the former with stabbing Mr. Robert Henderson Robertson, a gentleman confined for debt in the Qieen'e Bench pr:son, and the latter with inciting him to do the same, with intent to murder him. The court was cro vde.i. Mr. Gower, who was accompanied by a number of influential merchants and contractors, surrendered at the appointed time. Mr. Sleigh appeared for the prosecution, Mr. Robin son for Gower, and Mr. Murrong'a for De Salvi. Mr. Sleigh said that he had just seen the medical officer of the Queen's Prison, Mr. Waken, and Mr. Jones, the doctor who first attended to the injured man, and both those gentlemen had informed him that Mr. Robertson was in the same state, and that no alteration for the batter had taken place. He probably might die in two hours, or he might live many days, but still they were of opinion that he could not survive the murderous attack on him. Several witnesses had been examined, but before the case was closed, and after that he should ask his worship to commit both prisoners to the Central Criminal Court for trial. Mr John Lashmer said :I am under confinement in the remanded side of the Queen's Prison. I was there on Wednesday afternoon the Bth of July last. Ney's room is on the same landing with Mr. Robertson's, and shortly after 2 o'clock I was near my door, which is 8 or 10 yards distant, when I heard a cry of " Oh, my God, murder," proceed from the passage between Mr. Robertson's room and mine, which is nearer the staircase. On hearing that I immediately ran out, and saw Mr. Bell, an inmate, rush from towards Mr. Robertson's room down the stairs. I looked over, and hearing him still call out "Murder." I followed him, and passed Mr. Gower on the top of the weirs. I rushed after Mr. Bell to stop any parties that might attempt to get out of the gaol, but hearing that no one had passed, I returned to Mr. Robertson's room. The door was then half way open. I saw Mr. Robertson on the floor supported by Mr. Tnompsen, who was sitting on a chair. He had his hand on Mr. Robertson's shoulder. Mr. Even Bernal Jones. surgeon, said : I was called in to Mr. Robertson's room, when I saw him in bed. I found a wound an inch and a half long on the temple, another three inches between the whisker and the chin, a third near the shoulder, and a deep cat on the back of the neck, which had injured the spine. I have seen Mr. Robertson since, and I believe him to ba in a dangerous state. Mr. Charles Colwell was next examined. He said : I am chief turnkey in the Queen's Prison. I recollect the after noon of the Bth of July, when my attention was called to the remanded side by hearing that a man had been stabbed, I went there and received the knife produced from Dennis, one of the turnkeys, who received it from an inmate Wyld, in my presence. It was in the same condition it is now, excepting that a little blood has been rubbed off the broken end. When I first saw the knife it was immediatly after the occurrence, and it was open. I have since had it in my possession, excepting a few days when the police sergeant had it, to endeavour to trace whether it had been recently purchased. (The knife was here examined, and although the blade, or at least the portion left in the handle appeared to have been new; the corkscrew at the back had evidently been used several times. It is a knife in general use among gen tlemen's servants when travelling) Mr. Combo : Did Mr. Gower make any observation when you told him Mr. Ro bertson had said he instigated Dc Salvi to stab him? Wit ness : He said, " Oh, God, how shocking. Mr. Robinson : Did he say anything in reference to De Salvi ? Witness : Yes, he said " Salvi did it." Mr. Robinson : Did he make u;e of any strong expressions ? Witness . Yea, he said, "Oh, God, that I should have come to this place with the villain." Mr. Mar/tough . I object to such evidence being taken ; what Mr. Gower says has nothing to do with my client. Mr. Combo : Two parties are charged with an offence be fore me, and if one says anything about the other I must take it down, but it will be for the judge to advise the jury how to receive such evidence. Mr. Robinson to Mr. Collwell . Did not Mr. Gower appear shocked and indig nant at the charge ? Witness : Yes, sir. I took De Salvi first, and he was surrounded by several persons. Mr. Gower was near at the time, only separated from the other by a glass door. Salvi called to Mr. Gower, saying he wanted to speak to him- Mr. Gower turned away, and said, "Don't speak to me, you villain." He repeated that several .times. Mr. Combs : After that, did you hear Da Salvi say anything else ? Mr. Collwell : Yes ; De Salvi said, "I did it, Mr. Gower has nothing to do with it. Mr. Sleigh : Was Mr. Robert son detained in the Queen's Prison at the snit of both prisoners? Mr. 0°11%74.1: Yes, sir. Thomas Buchanan, police constable 30 M, said : I was on duty at the Nine Elms station on Wednesday afternoon, July 8-h. I saw the prisoner brought in by Mr. Collwell and Dennis, one of the turnkeys of the Queen's Prison. I took charge of the case, and the knife produced. I also heard de Salvi say, " Mr. Gower knows nothing about the knife." Mr. Sleigh here said that was all the evidence he had to off ron the part of the prosecution. Mr. Combo then cautioned the prisoners in the usual way, and committed them for trial at the next sessions of the Central Criminal Court. De Salvi was committed to prison, and Mr. Gower ware as before, liberated on bail, Mr. Macnamara and Mr. Hartley becoming his sureties. Mr. Sleigh said that after the evidence he had heard respecting Mr. Gower, he should not in the least object to his being liberated on bail. In fact, he should support it. He was instructed by a very respectable firm (Messrs. Christie, of Lombard-street), to prosecute, and he was sure they required nothing but justice. The witnesses were then all bound over to prosecute, and Mr. Gower left the court with his friends. De Salvi was conveyed to gaol in a cab, and in a few days he will be removed to Newgate. THE R)YAL BRITISH B INK. At the London Bankruptcy Court, on Thursday, Mr. Bagley applied, pursuant to notice given, for an order for the discharge of Mr. Cameron from an attachment issued out of the Court of Chancery on the 4th of July last fa. the sum of £5,700. On the 16th of July protection had been granted until the 13th inst., which was the slay fixed for the last examination meeting. and the attachment had not been lodged until after the bankruptcy proceedings. Mr. Linklater (for the assignees) thought the application would be granted as of course. Mr. Amory complained that he had not seen a copy of causes in respect of which the prisoner V 113,8 detained. The Commissioner ultimately ordered the discharge, upon production of the required document. An application similar to the last was made in the case of Humphrey Brown, by Mr. Tucker, but it ultimately turned out that the attachment upon which Mr. Brown was detained was issued before his bankruptcy. The Commissioner said he should not interfere until after the meeting for choice of assignees, which WAS fixed for the 14th inst. Mr. Tucker : The court has tower to make the order before assignees are chosen. The Commissioner : There is nothing in this ease to induce me to depart from the ordinary course. You must wait until the 14th inst. Discharge refused. REPEAL OF BUENOS AYREAN PORT DUES. The Glasgow Daily Mail says :—We are indebted to Mr. Ferguson, the Uuenos Ayres Consul at this port, for the following translation of a decree recently passed into law by the Buenos Ayres Government, whereby, in ac cordance with the charac eristic libsralty of its interna tional intercourse with foreign eountrieo, it repeals the imposts of port dues, custom-house, rent, and last, though not least, as a commercial bonus, modifies the payment of duties on imports, which heretofore were recoverable in equal moities at three and six months, to an extended period of six months from the date they are despatched : Buenos Ayres, 30th May, 1857. To Mr. S. Ferguson, Consul of the State of Buenos Ayres, in Glasgow. Sir,—The undersigned has the hmour to transmit to you a copy of four doeleas lately sanctioned by the Legis`ativo Chsmber. The first and secong repealing the port charges en all vefs.')ls r, om foreign ports, as also oa vessels engaged in the coasting .rado. The third conceding six months for the payment of Custom duties, which formerly were pryable at three and six months. Tho fairth exonerAting from the drug° of Custom House Store Rent, scr., all merchandise transhipped from deposit fora period of twelve months from the time they were placed in the Custom House stores. • From the foregoing decrees you 'will obse►ve that this port remains entirely flee in respect to the transmit of merchandise. As these laws are of importance to all ptrt►es engaged in th 3 commerce of this port, you will please give them every possible ( 2 igned) NORBERTO DE LA RIEsTRA, Minister of Finance. VIE MANUFAC CURE C F Pour WINE. —A great sensation has been carved at Oporto, by the discovery of extensive frauds in the wire trade. It appears that mixtures, to represent port wine, are manufactured in England and Hamburgh, and sent out in ships to Oporto, when, by means of falsified certificates, the mixtures arc imported into England as port wine. About 3,000 pipes of these mix tures are now in London. GREAT FIRE IN EDINBURGH• ir.o THE EDITOR OF THE NORTHERN TIMES. Sir,—l suppose your " special corresponden t' will have already informed you that the 6 , modern Athens" has been visited by a calamity in the shape of a pretty large fire. Accustomed as w e "Dicky Same" are to fires of enormous magni' tude, the one which happened here yesterdaY seems trifling, but it was larger than the good folks of this city are used to, and excited great attention, and brought together , lookers-on by thousands. If you are familiar with Edinburgh; 9 01/ will know that as you pass up Prince's-street t° Calton-hill,your view on the right hand is bounde d by the frowning Castle, and the hill on whiel l it stands . ; and, passing further up, you get a vie w of tha new Free Church College, with its 1 0 ° towers ; and next you come to a range of old houses' remarkable for their great height, antique O a picturesque appearance-30M3 of the them ar ° from ten to eleven stories high, and present s° many windows towards Prince's-street, that, whe° gilded by a setting sun, reflect a mass of mans' coloured lights with which no illumination coul d vie. None of these buildings are what the foll o here call "self-contained" houses, but are let 05 in flats, each flat to a single family in many cases ~he entrance to these' flats being by a " commo n stair." The fire began about one o'clock, at about the middle of the pile, and by four o'ol°o l4 had destroyed about thirty flats toward s Prince's-street. As a spectator from Prince's' street, the spectacle was striking, as tit ° devouring element made its way from story to story, aided by just sufficient wind as fanned it' and feeding upon the heavy timbers, a century an a mare old, and tinder dry. The roar of the flame s and the glare of the intense inward fire, showing itself through upwards of one hundred windoWs' awed the spectator. At one time strong fears Nver ° entertained that the Free Church might want a new college, for the fire was close upon it, and its leading professors, turned firemen for the n once , , were covering its church with carpets, kept wette d to cool the already hot slates, and these effor fs were at length successful—the college is saved. The old cry of a " want of water," so familiar to us a few years ago, was here the reply you got to al° inquiry, " Where are the engines?' as for severa l hours none played in Bank-street. Not to enter int ° further details, it will suffice to state that the even t makes homeless about eighty persons, chiefly poor people, and that the fire is commonly attributed t° some children playing with lacifers. I have spoken of the fire as it appeared to fi spectator in Prince's-court—the western side 01 the burning house faced James's-court, and as yo a ti have many readers interested in historic al l antiquarian matters, the following notes will 001 that we have to regret the destruction of sever $, which the curious visitor loved to inspect f °l: ' associations with many time honored names The house in which David Hume resided I. ° l many years was one of the flats (thi r d fl a t, countin ,t ; from James's-court) now burned ; D r . Blair O5 Hume's tenant in the same house while Hume on the Continent for a year or two ; and Jam es Boswell succeeded Humo as tenant, afterwar ds removing to the fl it immediately below which W l° been for many years occupied by Messrs Pillan g - as a printing office, and is now also totally 01311 , sumed, and it was here Dr. Johnson was received as a guest by his biographer. Mr. Robert C hanl ; bers, in his " Traditions of Edinburgh,' says, ° Boswell's second house : This was an extraordinary house in its day ; for itc 01- sisted of two floors connected by an internal stair. ge r° it was that the Ursa Major of literature stayed for a fell days, in August 1773, while preparing to set out to t 5 Hebrides, and also for some time after his r e turn. Se re did he receive the homage of the trembling literati °f Edinburgh ; here, after handling them in his rag' manner, did he relax in play with little Miss Veroniciff whom Boswell promised to consider peculiarly in his W ill ' for showing a liking to so estimable a man. _ _ Of Hurno's proprietorship and occupancy of 02° house above referred to, Mr. Chambers writes Hume removed at Whitsunday, 1762, to a house whi ell he purchased in James's Court—the eastern portion of th e third floor in the west stair (counting fam the level of th e court.) This was such a stop as a man would take in those days as a consequence of improvement in his eir: cumstances. The philosopher had lived is James's Cou rt but a short time when he was taken to France as secret to the embassy. In his absence, which lasted sever' a years, his house was occupied by D. Blair, who here 1114 • a son of the Duke of Northumberland as a pupil. In 1766,he re-entered into possession of his flat in Jame° Court, but was soon a:ain called from it, by an invitatioo from Mr. Conway to be an Under Secretary of State. It l ength, in 1769, he returned permanently to his native city' in possession of what he thought opulence —a thousan d , a-year. We find him immediately writing from his retrea t in James's Court to his frieni Adam Smith, then cop' mewing his great work on the Wealth of Na'ions in th e quiet of his mother's house at Kirkcaldy. The military proved of great service at the ely gines, and the prancings of half a dozen cavalry horses sufficed to keep the road clearer than, whole troop of police could do. Apropos of these extraordinary flats—a clever young physician here, Doctor T—, narrated to us one of his experiences, when, as a medical stw dent, a few years ago, he had to visit in the Higli Town, where the typhus fever raged. In flat No. 8, to which you must mount by as many stairs as woull take you to the roof of our Town Hall, and in a suol i room, resided seven patients in fever; not an artiol ° of furniture, save a table and a stool, was there ; til ° neighbours, dreading contagion, would 120" b come to assist, and the only attendant to Ad minister food was a daughter, herself a motile ) " nursing an infant. All the water and necessari es were brought up to this flat by the comn3 o° stair, and by her. At length, too, she 0 5 seized, and worn down with watching and nursing; delirium supervened, and my frien d was appalled one day by being met bi her as he entered the room, changed into furious maniac, and holding out to his admiratio n her own babe lying lifeless in her arms, its braill s having been dashed out by herself. Yet, marvel lons as it may appear, most of these patients g ot better. It is doubtful, I should think, w hether these " fiats" now destroyed will be rebuilt. 113 cases of fire or contageous disease, life in snob. places must be fearfully exposed.—l am, y011" 5 truly, T. B. r• Edinburgh, 6th August, 1857. A TOAD IN A Boles aremAcu.—About three o'clock 01 ; Thureday morning, a boy, nine years of age, name Thomas Ncklethwaite, son of Willi am Mi c kl e t hwait e l farm labourer, Alvorthorpe, near Wakefield, parted with 41 / toad. The reptile, which was alive, was put into a basi n ° water, and has since become much swollen. Its body nod measures about three-and-a-half inches "long, two bras ; and in colour is dark brown streaked with black. 111 boy for some weeks past has been worn almost to a skeleton, and perfectly ravenous in regard to food, constantly eating 2 and never seeming satisfied. The medical attendant t` the family says the boy must have swallowed the toad in the spawn.