The Press.
London, England, 1855-01-06 00:00:00

AUSTRALIA.

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The most noticeable feature in the late accounts
from Australia is the increased attention given to
quartz-crushing. The lodes of quartz running
through the various gold fields are, it is believed,
the matrices of the precious metal, and wherever
there are rich alluvial deposits of gold dust, in their
neighbourhood will be found veins of auriferous
quartz, which can be worked on regular mining prin-
ciples, and which will probably be found inex-
haustible by the present generation. Strong move-
ments have already been commenced among the
diggers to procure quartz crushing machines, many
of which have been imported, and others, in order to
save time, constructing in the colony. It is the
opinion of many of the most cautious and most in-
telligent colonists that the gold production is still
only in its infancy. Several large nuggets have re-
cently been discovered. One was found at Mary-
borough weighing 500 ounces, and a quartz epecimen
Jound at Ballarat, containing a large proportion of
gold, weighed ninety-eight pounds. The.Maryborough
gold-field is considered extremely rich, but there is a
groat scarcity of water.

THE PRESS.

OPENING OF THE LONDONDERRY
INSTITUTE.
A LITERARY institution, erected under the auspices
and almost entirely at the cost of the Dowager
Marchioness of Londonderry, was inaugurated on
Wednesday at Seaham, a rising maritime town,
which now contains some 4,000 inhabitants, the
great bulk of whom are engaged in mining and sea-
faring pursuits. The building is in the Grecian style
of architecture. It has a projecting portico of four
columns, with side wings, which form the library and
news-room. The main body of the structure is
appropriated to the purpose of a public hall, or
lecture-room, capable of holding about five hundred
persons, and the whole is built of stone from the
quarries of the Londonderry family.
The inaugural ceremony was attended by a nu-
merous company, including a large and distinguished
party of guests from Wynyard-park, where they had
been enjoying the hospitalities of Lady Londonderry.
Earl Vane presided, and, after briefly describing the
purpose for which the institution had been designed,
introduced to the assembly Sir Archibald Alison,who
then addressed them in an eloquent speech. He
began by noticing the many links of connection
which bound the inhabitants of Seaham to the noble
house of Londonderry, and sketched the services
which different members of that family had rendered
and were rendering to the country, in arms and by
statesmanship. Sir Archibald then adverted to the
more special subject before him, the Literary Insti-
tute, and thus continued
It was in the social tendencies of institutions like the
one they were now seeking to establish, in forming and
moulding private character, in withdrawing men, and
*specially the humbler orders, from habits of vice and
degradation, and generally in elevating and improving all
classes of the community, that their merit is said to con-
sist. Far be it from him to throw any chill on such
pleasing anticipations. They must all have seen to what
a large extent these anticipations had been realised. But,
on the present occasion, he felt that an institution of this
kind ought to be regarded in another light—that was to
say, not so much as conducing to the elevation of the in-
dividual anti to the virtue and happiness of private fami-
lies, as to the due discharge of public duties by the whole
citizens of the empire. (Hear, hear.) This was a light
in which he was ready to admit that institutions of this
kind bad not hitherto been considered, from an unwilling-
ness, on the part of those in the habit of addressing the
members of such institutions, to introduce aught in the
nature of dissension among them. While cordially agree-
ing with those persons in that view, he still thought there
were occasions on which another line might be adopted
with advantage to all parties. And that the present was
such an occasion, he thought he might, as a proof, appeal
to the events passing around us, because they were events
in reference to which we all felt alike. The persons to
whom he wished to address his opinions were not merely
private individuals—fathers of families, brothers, sisters,
and all the different other relations of life; he was de-
sirous of speaking to them as being also intrusted with
certain public duties, on the due discharge of which the
prosperity and welfare of the empire entirely depended.
It was in vain to say they could separate the elevation and
instruction of the middle and working classes from the
general prosperity of the empire. They it was who dele-
gated a decided majority of representatives to the House
of Commons ; and, if we were to find the foundation for
wise measures on the part of Government, or on the part
of that house, we must look for it in wise thoughts and
wise views on the part of the constituencies. (Cheers.)
It was they, and persona like them, who formed the con-
stituencies of the empire, and it was to them that the
country must look for the formation of those opinions
which were gradually to rise from the great base of the
pyramid of society until they reached and properly influ-
enced the comparatively few individuals who were in-
trusted with the conduct of public affairs. lie contended
that, unless information, intelligence, and wisdom, were
implanted in the body of society, in whom the regulation
of the nation was vested—that was to say, in the great
majority—it was impossible to expect that any amount of
human ability, on the part of those who governed, was
able to conduct the affairs of the nation with success, or to
avert disaster. In every point of view, it was of the last
importance that the people of this country should be duly
instructed, and that their information should keep pace
with the enlarged and enlarging duties which they were
called to discharge. (Cheers.) Errors in conduct, either
of individuals or bodies of men, were seldom the result of
want cf right feeling ; they were, usually, rather the result
of want of knowledge, or of misdirected knowledge. He
would give one or two instances to show what an amount
of blessing might acJrue to society if all classes, from the
working man up to the Cabinet Minister, were duly in-
structed, and if information and the lessons of history
were so imbibed that error or disastrous conduct was ren-
dered impossible.
Sir A. Alison then cited many facts relating to
strikes, taxation, the national debt, and to exhibit
the serious practical evils which resulted from the
lack of intelligence and information among different
classes of the community. Afterwards he referred
to the great topic of the day, the war, and showed
that it arose in great measure from a similar absence
of due knowledge and understanding that, through
the persistence in a false economy, we had been
forced to begin the struggles with forces painfully
inadequate to the occasion
flow was it that, in this contest, we had made so sudden
transiti,‘n from the exultation of victory to the despoil-

9

dency of defeat? That was to be found in the neglect of
former wars. He stood there neither to vindicate one
Minister nor another—nor one general nor another; but
he stood there to point out to his fellow countrymen the
errors and faults—he would almost say the national crimes
—which had led to this war as a national punishment. We
had been all along unduly confident iu our position, and
had overlooked, during the long peace, all future prepara-
tion for war. The infatuation of the country in this respect
had been such, that, when it came to be recorded th the
pages of history, it would appear almost incredible. There
had not been a single Minister since 1e415 that had not
come into power, or endeavoured to retain power, by per-
petual reductions of the army and navy. That had not
been a matter of party. Whigs, Tories, and Radicals,
had had the saute end in view, and among them they had
done their best to render this great nation utterly power-
less in the midst of its neighbours. The people who
returned the House of Commons, which had the command
of the purse-strings, did not know when, one by one, they
were reducing some suiall article of taxation, that there
was going on at the same time the loss of the sinking fund,
and the utter prostration of the country for any purposes of
just aggression or defence. 'llinte times during that pacifies
period, when we were constantly reducing our armaments,
we were on the very verge of destruction from the weak-
pens of our military and na‘al forces ; at that very parted
we were three times on the eve of war—twice with Frauce,
and once with France and Russia. Indeed, so near a war
were we on that last occasion, that the Ambassadors of
France and Russia had left London. What was our force
then? At that time, if the French had attempted to land
on our shores, we could only have opposed to them 10,200
infantry and forty-two guns, the carriages of which bad
not been repaired since the battle of Waterloo. (Laughter.)
Really, iu this matter there was but one mode of securing
national independence and a durable peace, and that was
by being always prepared for war. During the forty years
of peace we had beau relaxing the sinews of war, and ahow-
ing that we were wholly unprepared for any purpose of
successful defence. e were the richest nation in the
world and the greatest in commerce ; we were the objects
of envy to every State nnder the sun, and was it wise—was
it not rather the height of madness, in a country like this,
to go on reducing its armaments year after year, and so
proclaiming to the world that we were iu no condition to
fight in the event of bring menaced by aggression or hos-
tility? He must say our existence as a nation at this
time might almost be ascribed wholly to Divine interposi-
tion, for it had not been preserved either by the wisdom of
our statesmen or of our people.
The eloquent speaker concluded by an allusion to
the moral purpose which war was intended to serve
iu the administration of nature
We bad heard a good deal of late years of peace socie-
ties, and that, through the agency of a grand congress of
nations, war would pass into oblivion, like the Mammoth
or the lchthyosauri; but they might rely upon this, that
war would never cease until vice was extirpated from the
world. War was the penalty which vice had inflicted on
man, as the pain of chilbirth was the curse which it had
left upon woman. War was a penalty inflicted on the
human race for its sins, and, under a merciful Providence,
it was made the means of working out a cure for its own
evils, and of elevating the mind of man.

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