The Express.
London, England, 1864-09-10 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR or THE EXPRERY.

Sia,—For a man to make a rapid tour through a
country. as Sir Robert Peel did through Galway and Kerry,
and report on the state of the people, is worse than seem.
less. A prima must go and stay in a district before it is
possible to know the real state of the country ; and I will
defy any man of common sense or honesty to do so without
Coming to the conclusion, we must have an absentee tax.
Go nearly where you will sod inquire " Whose land is
that!" "My Lord So-and-So," or, " Mr. So-and-So,"
living abroad, or in England—the lands running to west',
and poverty stamped on all. Oh, it makes a man's heart
ache at the dreary eight. I oor Kerry, where I am
living, and doing what little I can for the people, is the
focus of absenteeism. In London this year I sought the
acquaintance of some of our large proprietors, and tried by
every argument, and then of self-ioterest, to induce them
to employ the people, and thus stein the fearful tide of
einigration—but " let them go" was the cold response
to all my efforts. I then felt, if these men are so little
alive to the cry of duty or interest, it is the bounden duty
of the legialatuns to compel them to contribute towards
their starving poor. I then began to think how could the
tax be brought into practical operation. Not by patting it
into the heeds of government, who have more than their
share of Irish public money already, but collect it through
the medium of the poor law, without soy additional
expense—for there the value of ail land" are knowo—and to
have the sums laid out among the people on Mime estates se
the landlords may like best—either in draining, reclaiming
land, road making, building better habitations for the poor,
or any of the thousaod things wanting to be done. A land-
lord or his agent would only have to show his books to see
what amount of the 20 or 25 per cent. (as might be deter.
mined upon) would have to be levied.
I merely throw out these practical hints, and hope the
subject will never be allowed to slumber till it is the law
of the land. —I am, &c., T. BEALE BROWNE,
Crotts., Kerry, and Salpertoo-park, Gloucestershire.

A New PEER. —Th ere is a rumour in political
circles that prior to the next meeting of parliament a new
peer will be created in the pesnon of Mr. William Alex-
ander Mackionoo, M.P. for the borough of Rye. The Lou.
gentleman has been a member of the Home of Commons
with scarcely any interir.ission since Jima, 18.10, and has
always been a thick and thin supporter of the whip party.
It is understood that Captain Mackinnon, his son, will be •
candidate for the borough of Rye, on the elevation of Mr.
Mackinnon to the Upper House.lStimexpzpress.
MILITARY BALL AT WlND,9oR.—YesterdAy even-
hag the officers of the Ist Battalion of Soot. Fosairs
Guards, who have been doing garrison duty at Windier
Castle shim April last, gave • grand ball at the Infantry
Barracks, Windsor. The oSicers' tent was erected at the
entrance and tastefully decorated with choice exotica and
festoons of beautiful dowers as • reception room, and as
elegant and commodious toot from the Castle was also
erected in the barrack-square, communicating with the
officers' house, where an elegant supper warn provided. The
walls of the mess room were also tastefully festooned. la
this spacious apartment the dancing took place. The qua-
drille bead was formed by the members of the regimental
band under the direction of their master, Mr. Godfrey, who
presided at the pianoforte. The company begat to arrive
at half-past 9 o'clock, when dancing immediately com-
menced, and continued with much animation until 12 o'clock,
when the ladies and gentlemen proceeded to the supper
Met. After supper dancing was resumed. Lieutaaant.
Colonel and the Hon. Mrs. Hay and Colonel and Mrs. holed
Somerset were uoavoidably absent owing to the death of
the Duke of Cleveland.

^T
xi tNDoQs
L OF FISH. —One evening last
week the seine of Tagnmmina was shot, and so great was
the number and weight of shad enclosed therein that all
the men of the neighbourhood, who were collected for the
parries, could Dot draw in the net. Their efforts were
coutioned for three days and three nights, but without
success. In the meantime, however, four boatloads were
taken out of it by means of baskets sod other coatrivances,
and, in the end, they had to cut the net. On the thud
day the fish began to die in great numbers, to such an
extent that the air for some dist me. along where they bane
been cut by the action of the waves is very disagrees's',
impregnated with the odour arising from their decompos-
ing bodies. Had the fishermen succeeded in drawing in the
'Moe, it is thought that 40 boats could not have held all the
Soh it contained. All along the coast large quantities of
shad have been sees within the put week.—Skisherreti
Eagle.
SHOCKING ent-nrir.—At Greenwich yesterday
a girl was found in the marketplace in an almost el-
haunted state, and with a long iron chain fastened around
her seek by OMAN of a padlock. The girl, who is supposed
to be about 11 years of age, was discovered by the market-
constable, having evidently made her escape from some
place of confieemeet. Her condition was truly pitiable, and
in addition to her sufferings from long coefinemeet, her
emaciated state indicates that she has also endured the
horrors of stervatioe. The only thing that could be sneer-
tabbed from her is that her name is Sarah White. Her
mild appears to be is such a state that she is unable to
name the place she has escaped from. The police were at
once communicated with, and the unfortunate creature
was removed to the Greenwich union, where she remains,
under the treatment of Mr. Sturtoo, the house surgeon.
The police are making strict inquiries about the matter.
SCHPICCTED SuICIDL—Mr. WIII. Murray, bro-
ther to Sir P. R. Murray, Hart., of Ochtertvre, Perthshire,
is suspected of having poisoned himself at Newcastle. For
some time past he has ben residing in that town, and at •
late hour on Wednesday night wee in company with several
gentlemen at the Central Exchange Hotel. While the
company Weft *aiming themselves deceased was observed
to empty the contents of a phial into a glass and immedi-
ately drink it off. He Unsteady became ill, sod u be
rapidly became worse, he was speedily cnveyd to the in-
firmary, whore be soon after exrired. The of the
unfortanate man. who formerly, it srpears, held a commis-
Mon in the army, have bees apprised of the sad Greet.