The Express.
London, England, 1848-07-17 00:00:00

THE EXPRESS, MONDAY EVENING, JULY 17, 1848.

tion of several waterrnen on the river, who immediately put
off in their boats, and with the aid of the police the
poor fellow was rescued off Hungerford.market. Upon being
laid hold of he made a desperate attempt to get away, and
nearly capsized the boat. The parties, carried the man to
Channg-cross Hospital, where he partially recovered, bat re-
mains in a very precariou' state.
A COLONIAL PENNY POSTAOE.— If the govern-
ment of Great Britain were capable of doing anything, how-
ever insignificant, in a bold, energetic, and businesslike
manner, we might expect them to extend the blessings of the
penny postage to the whole of our colonies. At present, a
letter is carried from the Land's End to John o'Groats for
Id., but the cost of sending a letter to Canada or Australia
is Is. or Is. 24. Now, to the people of this country, who have
become familiar with the benefits derived from Rowland
li.ll's admirable scheme, and who have heard ministers
profess that the colonies are entitled to all the privi.
leges enjoyed by the mother country, this cannot but
appear a piece of monstrous injustice. We talk of
measures for the encouragement of emigration, but
West measure could any one propose, which, at so small
a cost, would tend so much to promote emigration as the
extension of the penny postage system to the colonies ? At
present,. newspaper from Canada or Australia costs nothing
fur postage, while a letter from either of those two places
costs Is. 24. What inconsistency Is there here ! We do not
object to the free postage of colonial newspaper", but if they
can be carried fir nothing, surely letters might be brought
from our most distant possessions for Id. or 2d. each. What
a boon would this be to thousands of poor relatives left be-
hind in " the old country," by adventurous emigrants, who
have gone to " push their fortunes" in the wilds of North
America, or in the Aastralian bush! Under the present
system the cost of a letter is a heavy tax, the burden of which
has, no doubt, led to a breach of intercourse in thousands of
instances where kindly correspondence would have been
maintained, but for its excessive cost.—Manchester Ex-
aminer.
A PARLIAMENTARY COLD WATER CUBE.—Mr.
Hume very properly complains of the lengthy talk of
members of the Commons. There is no doubt of the alarm-
ing fact; the tongue of parliament has grown too long and ,
too large. Like the tongue of a certain species of parrot, it
is in preposterous diaproportiqn to the brevity of its bray.
Mr. flume proposes that certain memberr, under certain
conditions, should only be permitted to speak for half an
hour. We would make this another point of the charter.
Few members are so full of knowledge that they may not
pump themselves entirely dry in 30 minutes. The ancients
measured time by an instrument that dropt water ; a ma-
chine called a clepsydra. Now, we would, improving upon
this notion, measure parliamentary time by the power
of the lymph ; and after this manner : We would
have every member about to address the house place
himself in a eon of roofed pulpit. He should not be per.
Indeed to utter a syllable from any other place. Well, from
this pulpit there must he a wire leading to the chair of the
Speaker. The member having had his full thirty minutes'
discourse should he summoned by the Speaker to remove
himself to his seat. Two minutes'—for we would do nothing
rashly, uneourteously —two minutes' grace should be allowed.
If, after then, the member persisted to address the house. the
Speaker should Much the wire, which, communicating with
the roof of the pulpit, should act like the string of a shower-
bath, and immediately flood the orator. No call to" order"
could, in our opinion, he half so efficacious. Again, should a
verbose, stammering member, with sundry bottles of cham-
pagne fizzing and effervescing from under his white waist-
coat, still insist upon transgressing the half hour, he would
be soundly ducked, as was done in the good old times, for the
misdemeanor of scolding.—Punch.
NEW REMEDY YOR ASIATIC CIIOLERA.—A com-
munication has been made by Mr. Guthrie to the Royal
Medico Botanical Society, in reference to a new mode of
treating Asiatic cholera. Hitherto this formidable disease
has resisted nearly all the efforts of medical skill to arrest its
protease or to mitigate its virulence. It has been the oppro
brium medtcorum ; but now, if we may believe the state-
ments by medical men in Circassia, a remedy has been found
both simple and efficacious. This is naptha. a drug hitherto
little used ill the treatment of disease. The virtues attributed
to it are truly wonderful—arresting the copious diarrhoea,
rousing the vital powers, and restoring warmth to the ear-
face
previously chilled with the coldness of approaching
death. The new remedy, however, requires the sanction of
experience before it can be looked up to with confidence by
the physician, and it will be his duty to give it, the first op-
portunity, a fair trial—Medical 'limns.
INQUEST, SA-rt.:AMT.—FATAL FIGIIT.—By Mr.
Mills, at the Queen's Head, Finchley. on the body of George
South, a railway labourer, aged 27.—Thomas Thorn deposed
that on lag Wednesday deceased and others were engaged
haymaking in the " park," and while they were partaking
of some beer in the evening deceased demanded :51. from
another man, named Bowland, who replied that be would
piy it to " Joe," of whom he had borrowed the money.
Deceased then stripped to the skin, declaring that if ht
did not nay him he would have it out of him. The, were
prevented fighting, and when deceased again attempted to
renew the quarrel and the fight in the tap of the Queen's
Head they were separated, Bowland all the time expressing
great unwillingness to tight deceased. They ultimately
repaired to a field behind the church, where they had two
rounds, Rowland knockine down deceased each time. After
the second round deceased never spoke, and upon being re-
moved to the Queen's Head expired.—By the Coroner:
Deceased was to blame for the fight. There was no foul
play in the affair.—Mr. Currie, surgeon, opened the body,
and found a rupture of the left lung, whence an effusion of
blood followed, causing death.—The jury, after some delibe-
ration, returned a verdict of " Mis elventure."

SOLICITATION OF ALMS BY LETTER.
Sir,—Some months since I was shown by a gentle-
man known to contribute to charitable institutions, a letter,
which had been sent to him front the wife of a beneficed
clergyman in, it would seem, a state of distress. Recently
other copies of the same epistle, addressed to different indi-
viduals, have fallen into my hands. They are accompanied
with every faclity for rendering what is solicited—alma
There is a small card, neatly cut to admit a coin for transmis-
sion in a stamped envelope, which is ready directed by and to
the writer. I send you the letter,beeause if the cam be thought,
primdfacie,worthy of relief, it will become the more wifely
known to the benevolent by being published in your exten-
sively read paper, but I omit the name and address;
to avoid an exposure which would not be agreeable to the
clergy in general, in case the tale of distress should turn out
to be exaggerated, or that the applicant for relief should be
unworthy of it. I have not the slightest ground for en-
tertaining either supposition, for I know no more of
the matter than is revealed in the letter. This, in-
deed, is the ground on which I notice the sub-
pet at all ; conceiving the system upon which
charity is thus sought to be objectionable. It is not
unlikely that copies of the same letter, with their incloaures,
have been sent to all parts of the country to persons known
for their benevolent liberality ; a knowledge not difficult to
be obtained from the subscription lists of charitable institu-
tions. It is manifestly impossible for persons at a distance
to test the validity of the statements contained in such let-
ters by personal or even by delegated inquiries, and it is
scarcely just that their cfarities should be diverted from ob-
ji cm within the range of their personal knowledge to those
of which their only acquaintance is derived from an ex parte
appeal, cleverly accompanied as it is by matetials for trans-
mission, which takes advantage of the first excitement of
pity, by presenting a mode of forwarding relief that gives no
trouble, and, therefore, little time for consideration.
The system is, I know, practised fur public objects—was
adopted by the Corn-law League and is followed to procure
subscriptions for the building of churches. But ler such
undertakings no inquiry is needed. Their merits are, before
the receipt of such letters, widely known, and can be can-
vassed as well in one place as another.
The parish from which the following circular is dated is in
a wealthy diocese, to which it ought to have been confined
for the reason already given. There is surely suffi-
cient wealth and good foelino amongst the neighbouring
clergy and gentry to have prevented the necessity of extend-
ing the appeal beyond the county, or at least the diocese.
I find that the living held by the husband of the writer is
valued in the clergy list at 2011. per annum, and that the
population of the parish is only 125.
Sir,—Extreme necessity compels me reluctantly to solicit you ea
behalf of my husband, who, as incumbent of this small living, has
lately been obliged le build a rectory-house, and in consequence many
heavy and unexpected debts have fallen upon him, which (having a
large family to support) it will be impossible to liquidate without
aneetance. Indeed t assure you that ouch is the preasure upon us at
this time, that the sma:lest sum you may kindly send wi'l be doing us
an incalculable honelit ; and f. id you know the urgency el the case, I
am sure you would not refuse your aid. I will gratefully acknowledge
your kindnere.—l am, air, &a, —May I request you to return
thin note and card, even if you do not leftist us I
The letter concludes with a reference to a clergyman in
London ; but this does not meet the objection I have urged
to a mode of soliciting charity which, from the ease with
which it ma) be practised, ought, I think, to be discouraged.

and duly cenacted from time to time. The public sewers
may be kept in good order, and danger may be so far averted
or lessened, and yet accumulations, the real ant constant
though unsuspected loam of disease and death, may con-
tinue to exist time to dwelling-houses and even within them.
Though the sewers commissioners, with the powers they
already possess, may accomplish some good, yet, in spite of
their utmost activity and skill, the nublie in every part of
the metropolis must be constantly liable to casualties similar
to what has befallen the Westminster precinct, until such
time as the whole of the sewerage and drainage is brought
under one and the same system of management, and is com-
bined with properly regulated supplies of water. Notwith-
standing the expositions that have been given of the princi-
ples of this system, the conviction of the necessity of its
being publicly applied, and particularly the conviction of the
indispensable necessity of the combination of the house-
drains with the main sewers, and of the whole with an ade-
quate system or water supply, appears as yet to have per-
vaded only very limited circles; it certainly has net
awakened general attention, nor is the consideration of it as
yet even entered upon by parliament.
It is the peculiar disadvantage of this question and the
great obstacle to its progress, that to understand it aright
requires a specialty of knowledge not to be acquired without
some study, and which is certainly not in general possessed
by professional persons. The inadequacy of common and
even eminent architectural knowledge, for example, to ac-
complish what would at first view appear to be the very
simple work of putting the house-drains in proper relation
with the sewers, and of combining both as necessary and
dependent parts of a general system, is exemplified in the
arrangements recently made for the drainage of the new
Horses of Parliament. .

Another circumstance unfavourable to the progress of this
question is, that, after long residence amidst such influences
as prevail in Westminster and the metropolis generally,
comparatively few retain the power of appreciating them ; to
that not only the emanations from beneath pass without no-
tice, but those on the surface, and even those that assail the
senses, often escape observation. In the course of our in-
quiries we have frequently found that the residents of ex-
tremely filthy courts and houses, in which the closeness and
stench to the visitor were most offensive, have declared that
they seldom perceived any disagreeable smell. "In many
instances," says Mr. Lovick, "for PO long a period and so
constantly have the emanations been given out, that smells
which are highly offensive to strangers are not noticed by in•
mates, or even perceived until increased in their intensity by
a change of weather."
" It was no uncommon thing," says Mr. Bowie, " to be
told, in places smelling abominably, that there was no dis-
agreeable smell; and by. the most sickly-looking persons,
that there had been no sickness. In many instances, where
the most miserable localities were greatly belauded, it was
plainly to be discovered that the fear of the landlord
was the influencing dose, the truth only coming
out when some evil pressing hardly upon them was
adverted to. Au to good health, Ido not believe
it exists among those who have resided any length
of time in such places. Life may last for years under
very unfavourable circumstances, the human constitution
often bending, instead of breaking altogether ; but the re-
sults are seen sooner or later in the sickly looks of the
parents and the stunted forms of their offspring. A mist se
cloud has been represented as hanging over and enveloping
certain districts of London ; where not visible it may always I,
be detected by the unmistakable smell with which it want
be accompanied."
Many persons are insensible to the noxious odours that
pervade the atmosphere close to parliament itself, and which
are constantly breathed by its members. Speaking of this
want of power to appreciate the true nature of an atmosphere
to which we are accustomed, Dr. Reid says, " I can give you
what I think is perhaps as notable an instance of it as can
well be brought forward—that is, that the air in the interior
of Westminster Abbey was considered so pure before it be-
came the subject of special investigation, that it was pro-
posed to supply the houses of parliament from it, taking in
fresh air by the towers ; but if any person will go to the
north doer of the abbey on a fine day when there is only a
gentle movement of the air, and stop when the door shall be
opened, a rush of cold air will take place outwards which is
perfectly funereal in the odour which it presents; and I
I merely adduce this as an example of the fact, that people in
general are really not aware of the nature of the
atmosphere with which they are surrounded; and that,
in consequence of being habituated to the Westminster at-
nsosphere, they actually consider the air within the abbey
pare, instead of merely allowing for the refreshing effect
produced by its coldness in warm weather. Were means
taken to permit air to enter freely into the abbey in fine
and warm weather, by opening the doors freely, and by
permitting an equivalent interchange by the roof, the oxyda-
tion of the condensed exhalations with which the walls are
saturated, especially if assisted previously by some gaseous
chemicals, would soon place the atmosphere in the abbey in
a much more wholesome condition than it is at present."
The existence of any emanations from the contiguous
grave-yards has also been denied by some persons; but
respecting this matter Dr. Reid makes the following state-
ment. Being asked, " Have you ever seen any persons at
ali who have distinctly perceived, and have you perceived
yourself, emanations from the burial-ground of St. Margaret's
Church 1 "—be an wen, " Times without number. I crossed
the churchyard from two to eight times daily for several
years, and I have been repeatedly called by the members
attending on the committee. opposite, or in the house, to the
state of the atmosphere, and I have taken them to the very
spot from which it was perceived. I received the information
on these occasions from members anxious to let me know the
truth. On one occasion I noticed that five graves sunk in a
day to the depth of 6 to 9 or 12 inches, from the subsidence
of the body ; and there was a committee of the House of
Commons at which the librarian and others gave evidence in
respect to the grave-yard. The librarian said,' When I have
left the house very late at night, and have gone across the
churchyard, the smell has been very offensive, so muck so as
to make me rush out of the churchyard.' I have brought
with me the report of a committee in the year 1808, which
recommended that the churchyard should be removed on
account of the same cause..
Stating their perception of its noxiousness ?—Yes.
Residents say that they believe the place to behealthy,
they having had general good health, and few particular ill-
nesses ; but the pallid aspects of many of them give unmis-
takeable indications of the character of the place. Occa-
sional residence in the country improves the hue and in
creases the general tone of health and vigour of the robust,
and for the time restores the weakly ; but the effects of im-
pure air upon children and susceptible persons on their re-
turn home are as sure a test of the quality of the air as
litmus is of the presence of acid, and these effects are seen
in pallid countenances, weakened appetites, and reduced
strength.
The fever that has lately visited the spot in question
would not be regarded as an unusual or very severe attack
in a court or alley, where sometimes every house and even
every family is infected, and where the usual proportion of
deaths is considerably higher than in the instance bet ire us;
but had it in these times occurred in a prison, it would have
been considered most extraordinary and as affording pre-
sumptive evidence of some mismanagement. Out of 36 cases
there were four deaths; or the proportion of deaths to
attacks was about one in nine ; the average proportion being
about ore in six. The visitations here are only occasional, but
fever has never been absent from some of the poorer places
of the neighbourhood. Dr. Aldis, physician to the western
dispensary, states that there were, in the eight weeks from
April 1 to May 25, fifty-nine cases of typhus attended
to by the dispensary in the parishes of St. Margaret'.
and St. John's. He states also, on the authority of the regis-
trars, that 79 deaths from epidemic disease occurred iu these
parishes between the beginning of February and the latter
end of May, which would imply at least 600 or 800 attacks
in leas than four months. Further, the cases of fever ad-
mitted into Westminster Hospital from the beginning of the
present year to the 20th of May, amounted to 69 and the
tutul number admitted in 1847 was 223. Both the Dispen-
sers and ileepital returns show frequent coincidences in the
localities where the greatest number of cases are found.
T hu+, Old rye-street occurs in both returns, and shows 13
CUM
The deaths from epidemic disease in St. Margaret's and
St. John's, in 1841, amounted to 346, implying several
thousand attacks. Of this number, 9 are described as of the
class of gentry; 47 tradesmen; and 264 artisans, eke. Com-
pared with the population this mortality is about double the
mortality from epidemic in Kensington, Islington, Poplar,
and Marylebone.