The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1865-07-25 00:00:00

NOTES OF THE WYEK

L VISIT OF HiR MAJCSTY to Netley
Hospital is the last kind and characteristic act we
have to reoord of our amiable and feeling•hearted
sovereign in her island home. It was only the affair
of an hour on Thursday evening, yet how must it
have cheered and gladdened the hearts of all who
were cognisant of the act. Even as quietly narrated
by the Court Newman, the Inspection of the large
number of convaleecenta drawn up near the entranoe
on her Majesty's landing, and her progress "through
many of the wards addressing • few words to the
sick and inquiring into their cases"—seems conduct
as becoming in the mother as in the Queen of her
people. Far west at Plymouth, the Land's End and
the Lizard point, there has been another Royal
progress, and the Devonian' and Cornish tribes have
been rejoicing In the riait of their Prinoe and princes',
the veritable Duke of Cornwall. Mount Bdgecombe
and Mount WI" the Prensh Ana Pinglish iron.clad
fleets in Plymouth Sound, the forts, batteries and
official residences have been redolent of feasting Vrith
innate and flre,works, And a reception as enthusiastic)
La their Royal Highnesses have Over anywhere
received. This day (Monday) even, on the return of
the Bevil y•Cht from Penzance 4,000 school children
will be assembled to greet die Royal pair, with
songs and anthems, and the Prince will with reason
remember with pride his auspicious visit to the most
ancient appenage of the heirdom to the crown,
more antique in renown in song and story than any
other British territory, and whilst famous in the
old world as the source of those metals which gave
grandeur to its civilization, supposed to have, under
Duke Madoc, first helped to people the new world,
and to have anticipated Columbus in the discovery
of "A home beyond th' Atlantic wave,"

1L —lt must be admitted that the late election has
proved itself in noise and excitement quite equal to
any of its predecessors. Let party feeling be ever
so tame, and the political firmament ever so free
from clouds, there will always be sufficient influences
at work to make Englishmen take an active and a
very warm interest in rettitnibg ihembers to Parlia-
ment. Thorn may be no great difference in our day
between the Whig and the Tory ; like a dissolving
view one fades into the other by almost imperceptible
gradation.; still as long as the names exist, English.
then will be found to fight about them, and no great
ory is needed As we have seen of late, to bring
opposing parties into very awkward contact with
each other. Thus at Nottingham a riot takes place,
which could scarcely have been more destructive
were power-looms to be broken, and bread at a
shilling a loaf. Shops are closed, trade is altogether
suspended, and the military are called out. Nor
used we set down this unfortunate circumstance to
the peculiar character of the neighbourhood. We
know that operatives are prone to disturbances, but
for their consolation it must be admitted that the
same things lately occurred in districta where the
population is less dense, and where agriculture
instead of manufacture may be said to be trie source
of employment. For instance the pastoral county
of Wiltshire has earned for itself a most unenviable
notoriety. Chippenham (partially occupied by iron-
workers) was the scene of very rlotona proceedings.
An inn was attacked and despoiled of every single
pane of glass, while the streets were in such A state
of disorder and confusion that the appointment of
special constables was a mere farce. Then again at
the county town of Salisbury the whole election
scene was little leas than revolutionary. We trust
we may have been misinformed, but it is stated that
one of the candidates engaged about twenty prize
fighting roughs from the metropolis for the mere
purpose of creating a disturbance. We would
rather believe that the step was taken for self-
defence than for intentional aggression, though even
then it would be highly reprehensible. Be this as it
may, the roughs in question had reason to repent
their errand, for however skilful in fisticuffing, they
were utterly powerless when opposed to four or flee
hundred stalwart oonnttymen. Their object being
soon gummed, they were quickly surrounded,
attacked, belaboured with stacks, ducked in the
riverb and obliged to fly for their lives. All this is
very disgraceful, and unworthy of an enlightened
age. Mere boisterous opposition amoagst a crowd
is a different matter—indeed such a thing is even
allowable, as affording a safety valve for pent-up
opinion and good natured sport. To face a noisy
crowd before the hustings is something like the
battle of life, and must be endured by all who have
any pretensions to manliness. But when it comes
to actual fighting with blows and blood, we seem
inclined, with Mr. Drax, to sigh for the ballot or
some other panacea which shall provide a less riotous
mode of electioneering. ln stating this much we
are bound to say that the most disagreeable part of
our task is accomplished. Perhaps there was never
an election which displayed more earnestness an the
part of the people or more striking proofs of the
progress of political discernment and knowledge,tban ,
the one just concluded. The character of men has ,
had greet weight and in some instances has alone
detetmined the choice of oonstituericiew "Measures
not men' was once a favourite motto, but it has
been left to our age to discover that something more
is needed than partisanship, or mere identification
with principles. Earnestness, force of character,
sterling merit, eminence of tongue and pen, have ,
been the qualities recognised and honoured in the
late election, and whatever faults on the part
of electors, the opponenta of Reform' may in
future bring forward, non-appreciation of the
beet men will certainly not be amongst them.
That two such prominent Statesmen as Mr. F.. Peel
and Mr. Seymour Fitzgerald should have found
themselves distanced is rather amusing than other.
wise. They won't, of Gonne, be left out in the
cold very long, meanwhile it may do them no harm
to be reminded of the uncertainty of political life,
One is almost surprised that men like Mr. Whalley
should have met with easy success, oonaidering the
ridicule that has been heaped upon his name. Is
it that small boroughs like to be immortalised, and
rather than have no fame at alt will catch at any ?
Our only hope is that although these much derided
gentlemen are apparently of no more use than to
amuse, there is yet some " soul of goodness" in them
which may compensate for their eauentrictity. At
all events, "Many men, many minds" and if there
be a few obstructions in the stream, let us not find
too much fault.

111. —Tim VOlOll OF THIL CHUROR, spoken through
the Oxford graduates, hal dissolved the hollow bonds
of relationship with Mr. Gladstone. The great honour
of representing the light and learning of religious,
learned, and polemical England has been taken from
• mere politician, and given to a more earnest and
honest man. Holding his present views and
opinions, Mr. -Gladstone had no right or title to
retain for a single hoar his representation of our most
eminent university. He has not shown himself
possessed of the grace voluntarily to renounce the
tie and it has been dissevered. The result must be
to disembarrass both parties. Mr. Gladstone
will, no dqubt, find unfettered utterance for his
radical proclivities amidst the millocrats of South
Lancashire, whilst Oxford will resume the even tenor
of her way which baa hitherto *mudded in the ob-
servance of the sacred maxim to "meddle net with
them that are given to change."

IV. —Ties TRIAL, or rather the condemnation
(trial there was none) of Constance Kent involves
the greatest disappointment of our day. Not that
we meek to pander the sensationalism; but being
human, nothing human, as Luther says in his Latin*
(/tomo sum, et nail humano alienum me pule) do
we think strange or foreign; and certainly we seem
unwilling to see this horrible Road mystery when
apparently on the very eve of being cleared up,
bequeathed to all generations • darker, deeper
mystery than ever. Until Constance Kent has
cleared up if she can, and that minutely, circum-
stantially and exactly, the whole process of the
murder, and eventsof that dreadful night, the public
will refuse to attach more credit to her pitiable and
inexplicit " confessions" than they do to those of
the atrocious monster Pritchard.—We again issues
diagram of the dreadful soene, which tells the tale
of what was done as plainly as if we had
reproduced the narrative of the murder ;
and we feel assured that every reader will Lemur
with nit that guilty or innocent, Constance Kent
ought not to paw away from the earth until the
story of her share in that transaction is sifted to the
very bottom. Of one thing we are glad, and that
is, that instead of now being severely questioned, the
spiritual influences that have been brought to bear
upon and affect her frame of mind, begin to be
allowed to have exercised only a legitimate sway in
bringing a great criminal to repentance. In
Pritchard's case it waa the law alone that brought to
li6ht the crime, and the criminal had yet to become
amenable to the moral power that operates on the
conscience. Religious mind, will be thankful that it
was not so with Constance Kent

BRITD3/1 AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY.
The filet annual meeting of the Dorchester
auxiliary of the above Society warn held last Friday
at the Tort-shall. Two meetings were held, as
the first at 1 p.m., the seoond at 7 p.m.
wee a larger attendance at the former then