The Express.
London, England, 1853-11-29 00:00:00

REPORTED FLIGHT OF THE EMPEROR OF

CHINA.

The New York Commercial Ackertiaer gives the
following as the copy of a letter from Dr. Parker, Secretary
to the United States Legation :
I hear what I am assured is contained in a private
letter from Pacing, that Heen Fang, the present Emperor,
a the 2nd of August, fled to Othnl, in Tartary, and that
Prince Wei Chin, fifth brother of Tana Kwang, was left in
charge of the empire, and that the insurgent troops were
within six days of Peking at that date. This news bean
marks of probability, and the source of my information is
as reliable as any we can ordinarily get in China. In
speaking with the British Consul this evening, he informed
me that he heard the same news two or three days since,
which corresponds with the time my informant states the
intelligence reached this city. Mr. Robertion seemed to
receive the intelligence with some doubt I can only say
that I think it very like) to prove true, and that Prince
Wei Chin is the man of I others who would be most likely
to be called upon to take the reins of government. He is
the man who is said to have written Tartu Kwang's
answer to the President's letter, delivered in 1814 by Mr.
Coshing."
, Dr. Parker's litter is dated on the 3rd of September.

BARBAROUS STATE OF HOUSE-BVILDINO ABOUT
LONDON. —A few days ago the greater part of a house in
the Fulham-read, near Walham-green, then in the course
of erection, fell to the ground. One of the men at work
upon it was injured, hut fortunstely no lives were lost. It
Is a corner house, intended for a shop, and both the front
wall and flank wall rested on brestsummers, which were
carried at the angle by an iron column, a very ordinary
and mast objectionable arrangement. Without making an
positive asegtion as to the cause, the brickwork on which
the Iron column stood probably yielded under the weight,
and of course all above came down. The wonder is, con-
sidering the manner in which houses round the metropolis
are built, that disasters are not more frequent than they are.
Such accidents, nevertheless, happen too often as it is ; but
unless life be lost nothing is heard of them beyond their
neighbourhood. Again and again we have raised our voice
against the reckless, dishonest course pursued by many
speculative builders, and we feel it to be our duty, at this
season of the year, when the chances of failure are greatly
increased, to repeat the warning. In the case to which we
have referred above, the work was not the worst of its class;
it was better than much that is going on under our own
eyes in various quarters, and fell for want of proper
precaution—through want of knowledge or of thought. In
scores, nay hundreds of houses now being carried up,
the bricks, mortar, and workmanship are all infamously
bad. If there be much wet weather, some of them
must come down. In one place the mortar saves the
bricks ; in another, the bricks render the badness of the
mortar lof leas consequence ; and in a third, the
minimum safety point as attained only by the exercise
of rather more care than usual. Mould is made to
supply the place of sand in the mortar ; bad " place "
bricks are used throughout, excepting where exposed exter-
nally ; and even the introduction there of better bricks is
made to produce evil, for the facing is not properly bonded
into the other work, and thus we have the walls in two
thicknesses. Every expedient is used to save material ; out
of the " solid" part of a chimney-breast, into which we had
occasion to cut the otter day, six barrow-loads of dry rub-
bish ran out like send. Toe corruption-co eeeee , compo,
and the system generally, have ruined the bricklayers, ant
many of them cannot produce good brickwork even if they
would.— The Builder.
A PAPIER-MACHE VILLAGE.—It appears that a
Mr. Seymour—about to take up his abode in the land of
nuggets—commissioned Messrs. Bielefield to construct a
number of portable houses, mainly with that material
which they have been so Instrumental in rendering publicly
useful, papier-mache,. The paper village, when made,
was temporarily set up in the grounds of the factory. It
consisted of ten houses. One of these was a villa with nine
rooms, each 12 feet high; another was a storehouse,
eighty feet long, with a eittin room, kitchen, and two
bed rooms attached ; while the rest were small houses,
varying from two to six rooms each. The villa had a
drawing-room, and a dining-room, each with a bay win-
dow, a hall, several bed-rooms, two closets, and a kitchen.
The chief matrial of all the houses is papier. mufti., ren-
der( d waterproof by a patented process. It is not the
simple papier-mach' as ordinarily used, but contains an
admixture of rags not reduced to pulp, which enables it to
solidify as hard as a board. The walls are double, to ensure
ventilation : and partitions have a strength and durability
which will put to shame the lath and plaster mockeries of
too many of the London houses that Jack built. The
roofs are nearly flat, just inclined sufficient to throw off
the rain-water. The flooring, with the joists attached, is
made in large square pieces; and, like the walls and the
ceilings, is so planned as to be transported with ease and
rapidly set up. It was found on trial, that one of the
smaller houses could be pulled down and built up again in
four hours. If, as is stated, this paper and rag building
material can be advantageously used for barracks, and
park lodges, and shooting boxes, and billiard-rooms, we
see no reason why Australia should monopolise these paper
houses.—Dickens's " Household Words."
AMERICAN TROTTING HORSE.t.—The New l'ork,
I lrrahl records the performance of an extraordinary feat,
namely, the trotting of 100 miles in 8 hours, 5.5 minutes,
and 53 seconds.
HYDROPHOBIA IN ARGYLESHIRE.--It is reported '
that this fearful malady has lately appeared upon an exten-
sive scale in the secluded valley of Olendernel, Argyllshire.
Last summer, on one farm, the whole if the dogs, five is
number, had to be destroyed. One of them got into the
kennel of A. Campbell, Esq., the proprietor, and bit two or
three of his dogs, which had also to be shot. Siam then, upon
the farm referred to, the disease has appeared among the
cattle, and the unfortunate farmer has lost a good many of
tht m. Symptoms of it have shown themselves among the
horses and pigs.—Glasgow Mail.