The Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1860-12-19 00:00:00

PATENT VESTIBULE AND OTHER LAMPS,

INCLUDING THE CELEBRATED AUREOLE LAMP.
Public Buildings and Private Residences fitted for Gas.

Experienced Gasfitters employed on the Premises, and all
kinds of repairs carefully attended to in the Manufactory,
24, CHURCH-STREET.

Crepy's Foreign Refined COLZA OIL, especially adapted
for the Aurdole Lamps.

A large Assortment of
TABLE AND POCKET CUTLERY;

at the lowest Prices.
The Stock or
PAPIER MACH/. GOODS

Includes a very extensive assortment of Articles selected from
the productions of the most eminent Manufacturers in the
Kingdom, ensuring the greatest durability, exquisite finish,
&c. '

OLD POSTOFFICE-BUILDINGS,

LIVERPOOL.

NEWS OF THE DAY.

A telegram has been received from her Majesty's
Minister at St. Petersburg, dated yesterday afternoon,
stating that the Russian Government have reeeived no
news of the fate of Messrs. Boulby and Brabaz on. We
regret to learn that private telegrams do not remove
any of the apprehensions entertained respecting the fate
of these gentlemen, but the present painful suspense
cannot be much further prolonged. By the end of the
week we ought to receive telegraphic intelligence from
the neighbourhood of Pekin to the date at which the
treaty is alleged to have been signed, a term which
would be quite sufficient to enable the Chinese to pro-
duce any prisoners they may hold.
A desire has been expressed that the outgoing India
mail should be postponed from the 26th to the 27th
instant. The letters by the China mail, with dates
from Pekin to the 30th or 31st of October, four days
after the conclusion of peace, being expected to arrive
on that day, so as to admit of answers being despatched.

The China news has not any immediate effect upon
the tea market. Notwithstanding the war the exports
have been large. The tea trade is, however, in a very
depressed condition, and it has been for some time past,
and purchases could only be induced by lowering
quotations.
The news to-day from Gaeta is that Francis 11. obsti-
nately refuses to listen to the exhortations which have
been addressed to him by a majority of the great Powers
to discontinue his defence, and that the bombardment,
with all its horrors, has been resumed. It is manifest,
however, that the moment the protection of the French
fleet is withdrawn, which it is said has been positively
resolved on by the Government of the Emperor Napoleon,
the place cannot be long tenable.
The Government of India have published an im-
portant despatch, enumerating no fewer than 106 public
works postponed or retarded for want of funds. An
tehxepseen dip
pro
uo
jreee
ts of, m
buto r e
tthhea n emeiagnhst
amr iel ino
on is
ts
for
theo m requireding-for
at
them,pre present. t .
out
oTf hoeneGovernment
cent.
ona e desirous
incomes
ovf e applying ng
year,to
a quarter of a million this year, and half a million next
year.
The Avenir Commercial announces, that the negottia
tions for a treaty of commerce between France and
Belgium aro advancing rapidly, and that one of the
points on which the negotiators are agreed is the com-
plete suppression of the duty on coals. This suppression
will actually lead to the removal of all duty on English
coal, according to the terms of the treaty of the 25th of
january. The Avenir adds that few measures will be
so well received as this by all manufacturers in France.
The news by the present mail from Australia is in one
respect the most important ever received. The problem
as to the possibility of crossing the continent from South
to North has been virtually solved, and no question now
remains that a land transit may be opened up available,
not only for the general purposes of commerce, but also
for telegraphic communication. Mr. Stuart has returned
to Adelaide, after having crossed the country to a dis-
tance of about 1,600 miles from that settlement
and to within 300 miles of the Victoria river.
Here he was turned back by a body of hostile
natives ; but, as he had already reached 100
miles further north than the point to which
Gregory's expedition in 1856 descended from the Vic-
toria, the continent may be considered, by the joint
result of these surveys, to have been -fairly opened np
from one end to the other. Instead of an arid desert, it
is described to be a practicable country throughout.
The full details of the observations made were for the
present, however, kept secret, the Parliament of South
Australia having voted £2,500 to enable Mr. Stuart to
start again with a larger and more strongly organised
party, and a desire being entertained to prevent the
triumph of final success being snatched from him by rival
explorers in the other colonies, who might hastily avail
themselves of all his information. Mr. Stuart and his com-
panions suffered terribly from want, not only of water, but
food, and also from an attack of scurvy. The part of
the route in which water was totally absent, however,
was only sixty miles. In many parts
.there was fine
grass, besides splendid gum and other trees, including
at least four kinds of palm. A very large salt lake was
also discovered in the interior, supposed from the blue-
ness of the water to be of great depth. It is to be
expected that a number' of new provinces will ultimately
be formed in the territory thus explored, and that mean-
while the track might be made available almost forthwith
to facilitate communication with India, and especially the
export trade in horses. The new expedition, which was
to start immediately, would consist of Mr. Stuart and
one of his former companions, ten other well-armed men,
and 'a suitable number of horseg.

A new article of commerce fr America seems likely
soon to attract much attention. On the western border
of New York State, at a place called Union Mills, some
working men, a year or two back, observed a quantity
of dark oily matter floating on pools abounding in that
district. Subsequent experiments led to the discovery
that the oil is highly adaptable for illuminating pur-
poses, and that by sinking wells to the depth of
from 70 to 500 feet it can readily be obtained through-
out a very extensive area. Indeed, it is said
already to have been ascertained to be dispersed
over 100 square miles. The proportion of oil in the
liquid pumped up Is about one third, and the process
of separation is very simple. Land in the locality has
become exceedingly valuable, and the business is rapidly
increasing. About 1,200 to 1,500 barrels, containing
40 gallons each, are now, it is said, being raised daily
and sent to New York, where, when rectified, it sells in
any quantity at a price equal to 3s. sterling per gallon.
There is a residuum, also, which is described as being
used for the manufacture of superior candles. Many
shipments of the oil have been made to Australia. In
addition to its illuminating capacity it is alleged like-
wise to be suitable, when mixed with fish oil, for the
processes of lubrication.
The detailed reports of the North Atlantic Telegraph
expedition will shortly be made public. The morning
papers of yesterday contained the preliminary reports, and
a letter from Sir Leopold M'Clintock to Sir Charles
Bright, giving a very favourable opinion respecting the
proposed route for the cable.
The two-hundred-and-fiftieth anniversary of the Hon.
Artillery Company, was celebrated at Willis's Rooms,
on Monday night, by a dinner which was attended by
from six to seven hundred of the corps. _ .

The installation of the Duke of Newcastle as Knight
of the Garter took place at Windsor Castle on Monday.
The Queen assisted by the Prince Consort, buckled* on
the garter. The riband was passed over the Duke's left
shoulder by the Queen, assisted by the Prince of Wales.

The Queen gave a grand dinner in the evening to the
knights of the order.
A correspondence is published between, Mr. Paton,
f Montrese, and Mr. Baxter, M.P., on the
true figures about the French and English navies, the
object being to show the comparison is greatly in favour
of England. Mr. Baxter says we have 77,000 able-
bodied men in our Royal Navy, and 7,000 boys-84,000
in all. The French have 30,000. They have 60,000
able-bodied men, or 80,000 hands in all their mercantile
marine. We have 240,000, or thereabouts. Our sailors
are increasing every day ; theirs are on the decline.
The French war steamers mount 5000 guns the British
8,697.
At the Privy Council on Motiday, a Proclamation was
i",..,;-,•tiedkii,itigietiri•enty to the hew broee or mi±ed metal
coinage, The proclamation resilectiiig the new bronie
coinage makes it a legal tender, provided that no person
shall be obliged to take more of such penny pieces in any
one payment than shall be of the value of one shilling, or
take more of such halfpenny or farthing pieces in any
one payment than shall be of the value of sixpence.

The importations of corn and grain into the United
Kingdom in the month of November was 1,710,552
quartets; besides M 2,843 cwt. of meal and Nun
It is 16noiited tlita frbWeit-hall, Oxford, has been
taken permanently by, the dueen, as the ftiture residence
of the younger braaches Of the roi•al family who may
pursue their studies at Oiford.
An important meeting of the Shareboldcrs of the
Borough tank is to be held,to-da. According to the
liUuidators' report on the aftairs O this bank; it appear.
that the liabilities have been reduced from £285,708 to
£102,858, and a revaluation of the assets shows an in-
creased estimated surplus. Before the expiration of an-
other year the liquidators hope to be in a position to return
to the shareholders a portion of the surplus. Counsel's
opinion has been taken as to the personal responsibility
of the directors with regard to the losses of the bank,
and their opinion was, that OR two points the directors
were liable—namely, for the last payment of the divi-
dend out of Capital, and for payment t f dividends to
shareholders who had tiot paid up their Calls, tut only
those directors were liable Who had actually concurred
in the acts, and then only to the extent of the damage
incurred..

*.'' Owing to the pressure of our local reliorts,
we are eoiliiielled to hold over our foreign letters
and other matter of. iniportaiiee.

THE EXCITEMENT IN THE UNITED
STATES.

"THE irrepressible conflict" bet Ween slavery and
freedom between tight acid 'darkness—still rages
with uhdiminished fury in the United States
of America. Come wreck, come ruin, it must be
fought out. No quarter can be given—no truce
can be granted. There can be but one conclusion
to the battle—the complete and permanent extir-
pation of slavery from every State in the Union.
There can be no real compromise or alliance
between truth and error ; neither can we doubt
that in the end—be the process never so compli-
cated, laborious, and protraeted--truth shall pre-
vail. It may not be in our day; but assuredly
another generation shall Witness the fulfilment of
. .
our anticipations. For upwards of a quarter of
a century the agitation at the North against
slavery in the South has been incessant. For
that period the war of principles has been un-
ceasingly kept up through the press, from the
pulpit, from the platform, and from the Congress
floor. The good seed which has thus been spread
broadcast over the Union in perennial showers
has not lain dormant, but it has had to struggle
against fearful odds. At last the plant beholds
the glorious sun, and promises to become a goodly
tree, whose fruit, when matured, will give per-
fect freedom to every man who treads the soil of
America.

Those who watch the progress of the contest
must read with painful interest President
BUCHANAN'S last message. Nothing could be
more grossly inconsistent with each other than
his unmeasured laudations of American free-
dom, and his unqualified denunciation of free-
dom for his coloured brethren. The Govern-
ment of America, says the Message, is " the
noblest system of government ever devised by
mortals ;" and the Constitution is described as
" the grandest temple which had ever been
dedicated to human freedom since the world
began,"—to destroy which would be to blight
" the hopes of the friends of freedom throughout
the world," and " would be quoted as a conclu-
sive proof that man is unfit for self-government."
From whence, then, proceeds the imminent
danger which now threatens this " Temple of
Freedom ?" Have the material interests of the
country failed to prosper? Has a deadly plague
decimated the population ? Have the crops been
destroyed, and the yield of the harvests been
stinted, so that the people have suffered from
want of food ? Have commerce and manufactures
been prosecuted without yielding fair returns ?
Have the dignity and importance of the nation been
challenged or insulted by a successful rival or a
foreign foe ? No. The President proudly boasts
that throughout the year the country has pre-
sented a spectacle of material prosperity greater
than that of any natiou " in the tide of time."
Why is it, then, that the source of all these
blessings is threatened with destruction ? Is it
from internal broils among parties in the States
holding opposite principles ? Is it because of
the fierce agitation of the Slavery question ?
President BUCHANAN says No ! All that might
have been endured. In his opinion " the slavery
question, like everything human, will have its
day ;—it has already reached and passed its cid-
. minating 'point." The real cause of danger, it
seems, arises from " a malign influence on the
slaves, which has inspired them with vague
notions of Freedom !" This grandest temple of
Freedom is shaken to its foundation and totters
to its fall because of a " malign influence "
operating on an essential pillar of the edifice—
on a large proportion of the population; and that
" malign influence" is nothing else than the
yearning of millions of human beings for freedom !
The dreaded calamity, we are told, " would be
quoted as proof that man is unfit for self-govern-
ment :" but President BUCHANAN does not blush
to tell millions of men, who in the sight of
heaven are as good as he is, that so far as they
are concerned, " man is unfit for self-government."
Ages of oppression and torture, countless stripes
and brutalities inflicted by chains of iron and
heavily loaded whips, and the fangs of blood-
hounds, under which one generation after another
of the kidnapped children of Africa have lived
and laboured and pined and groaned and
sweated out their miserable existence in the
dismal swamps of the South, have not yet
extinguished the heaven-born aspirations of these
human breasts. They have still " vague notions
of freedom !" How does Mr. BUCHANAN dare to
ascribe the inspiration of that "vague notion" to
" a malign influence ?" We would tell him that
that holy inspiration comes from Heaven. The
love of freedom implanted in man's breast by his
benign and merciful Creator is imperishable ; and
dire destruction must be the inevitable fate of any
nation, the stability of whose institutions depends
upon the suppression or denial of that sacred and
unquenchable instinct of our common humanity.
The " malign influence" which now endangers the
Constitution of America reigns only in the wicked
hearts of the slave-owners and of those who,
like Mr. BUCHANAN, aid and abet them in their
daily war against human freedom.
The immediate issue of the present excitement
it is hopeless to attempt to predict with any
degree of confidence. The opinions of competent
judges are pretty fairly divided as to the proba-
bility of a separation of the South from the North.
It seems more and more clear, as the discus-
sion proceeds, that the Federal Government
is a rope of sand, whose continuity depends
upon the caprice and temper of contending
sects. It is universally admitted that disruption
would be a catastrophe to all parties. How far
good sense and patience may be overborne, and
put aside in the heat of the fray, time only
can tell. Nothing seems to be more plainly
demonstrated than the inherent weakness and,
gross imperfection of this forth of Republican

Confederation. The President himself tells us
that the holder of his high office, although pro-
iessedly the represenfati:re of the people; is not
necessarily the choice of the majority. The same
authority tells us that rebellion and revolution
are the sacred rights of every State in the Union,
which the Federal Congress has no power to
suppress! Congress may pass laws meant to be
binding upon all the States, but it has no power

to enforce submission ! individttal States hate no
fight to secede; butt the Constitution provides no
nieanS to iire•Z•ent secession What is this but
sernblatice of fioVier; .tiithoitt reality ? that
such a shadowy Union should it ailY
time break up and become a total wreck,
were a small wonder. And yet we are
expected to believe that " this is the noblest
system of government ever devised by mortals r,
After all, and notwithstanding all the bluster
about separation, we are inclined to believe that
our Yankee cousins hate too keen a regard for
their material interests to go the length of sacrific-
ing them by permitting such a catastrophe. South
Carolina of herself is as nothing; and there are in-
fluences at work to prevent united action bet Ween
her and the other stare stateM The frontier sia+
states propose to join the north, if compelled to
make a selection. Then, again, the interior states
will not tolerate any process of disunion which
would deprive them of free access to the sea.
The secession of certain slave states would cut
them off from the use of ports which are essential
to their trade: Moreover, it is not even asserted
that any overt att has yet occurred to necessie
tate a disruption. The whole uproar is caused
by the guilty conscience of the South, which
fears that ABRAHAM LINCOLN will invade
the "rights" of the Slave States. What proba-
bility IS there of so Coiiipratic'Tly powerless an
*ith ati adVerie COneres4onal Majority;
doing anything of the sort for some considerable
time to come—if ever ? Has Brother Jonathan
became so ideal that to avoid a future and pro-
blematical evil he will make an instant and ruin-
ous plunge ,towards destruction ? We rather'
.1
guess not. Arao netts