The Express.
London, England, 1867-01-22 00:00:00

rite erfurt.

OSBORNE, Jam 21.
The Queen drove out this morning, accompanied
by Princess Louise.
Princess Beatrice drove also.
Prince Arthur and Prince Christian walked in the
grounds.

The Duke of Edinburgh, attended by the Hon. Eliot
Yorke, left to-day for London.
The Prince of Leiningen left also.

A deputation from the borough of Sheffield, consisting
of Mr. John Arthur Roebuck, M.P., Mr. George Hadfield,
M.P., the Mayor (Mr. John Webster), Mr. Alderman
Thomas Jessop, J.P., Mr. J. Eustace Grubbe, Mr. R. J.
Gainaford, and the Town Clerk, had an interview with
the Right Hon. Spencer H. Walpole at the Home-office
yeeterday on the subject of Sheffield being made an assize
town.

The Bishop of London has had the honour of
receiving a donation of 25/. from his Royal Highness the
Prince of Wales, and also a donation of 23/. from her
Royal Highness the Princess of Wales, in aid of the funds
of the Metropolitan Visiting and Relief Association, of
which his lordship is president.

A Florence letter of the 16th says :—" The Duke
and Duchess of Argyll left for the north a few days ago,
and Mr. Gladstone and Mr. Cardwell, with their families,
followed them yesterday. On Monday evening a number
of Italian deputies gave a farewell dinner to those two
gentlemen. About 40 were present, including Signor Mari,
president of the chamber, and two ex-premiers, Rataxxi and
Minghetti. The others were chiefly Neapolitan deputies,
who hold in grateful remembrance Mr. Gladstone's former
exertions in behalf of their suffering countrymen. The
dinner had no public or political character. Mr. Gladstone
replied to a complimentary toast in Italian so pure as to
astonish those of his hearers not already aware of his per-
fect mastery of that language. He expects to be in Paris
on the 22nd inst., and in England before the end of the
month."

The next examination for direct commissions
will begin on Wednesday, the Ist of May, at Chelsea
Hospital.

The Herald understands that her Majesty's go-
vernment have protested against the decision arrived at in
the cane of the Tornado, on account of the irregularity
and informality of the proceedings in the Spanish Prize
Court. "There can be no doubt that the evidence against
the Tornado is calculated to arouse the gravest suspicions
as to her ultimate destination; and it is unfortunately
only too clear that if the ship be legally condemned as •
Chilian ship of war, her crew may be regarded and treated
as prisoners of war. Altogether the case is one of eon-
*Womble complication ; bnt there is no reason to appre-
hend that the Spanish authorities will not eventually do
justice in the matter."

Negotiations have been for some time pending
between the directors of the Great Eastern Railway Com-
pany and Mr. Samuel Laing, M.P., with a view to induce
that gentleman to join the board. It is understood (says
the City article of the Time) that these negotiations have
resulted in Mr. Laing's consent to his name being pro.
posed to the meeting on the 12th of February, and that he
will be prepared to take the control of the financial affairs
of the company, and of any important negotiations with
other companies, upon the stipulation that his attention
is to be principally confined to those departments, and
that he is not to be expected to take charge of the details
of working and traffic arrangements, which, from the
great decrease of expenditure effected during the past
half-year, cannot, he considers, be in better hands than
those of the present management.
Among the skaters on the reserved lake in the
Bois de Boulogne on Sunday, about twenty ladies were re.
marked, the Princess de Metternich being of the number.
The Princes Achille and Lucien Murat, the Marquis de
Caux, Prince J. Troubeekoi, the Marquis de Saint-Mars,
Baron dePourtales, and M. des Varmint)* were also present.
On the previous day the Prince Imperial arrived at about
2 o'clock, and was shortly afterwards followed by the
Empress, and at about 3by the Emperor. Hie Majesty
remained on the ice until half-past 4, the public keeping
at a respectful distance. The Ernp.rets, on having her
skates adjusted, glided off, accompanied by M. and Mdlle.
Hanseler.

The festivities of the carnival have commenced
at Vienna, and promise to be on a grander scale than ever
before. No fewer than 149 masked balls alone are an•
nounced ; they will be held in such enormous assembly
rooms at Elchwender's Colosseum, the theatre on the
Wien, the Diana, Sofien, and Gartenbausaal, Dreher's
Bierhalle, lee., some of which have two and three ball-
rooms, and, to judge from those which have already taken
place, they will all be crowded.
MR. DIRRAELI, M.P., AND 818 PARTY. —The
moat virulent enemy of the Chancellor of the Exchequer
has never ventured to accuse him of want of courage.
Whether it has been his fate to reconstruct a broken party,
to lead • hopeless minority to a hostile division, to with-
stand almost single-handed the onslaught of the
most distinguished debaters of the House of Com-
mons, to cover • retreat when it was no longer
possible not to confess a failure, he has always shown
a spirit—we may almost say an audacity—equal
to the occasion. Ho is never so great as when there
is no more to be hoped for. His finesse, his arts, his
tricks of management then disappear. His real self is
manifested. He takes the whole world into his confi-
dence. Conscious of impending defeat, he resolves to
meet it so as to rise superior to disaster. The intellectual
vigour which the House of Commons so highly prizes,
and which exercises a certain fascination over even such •
man as Mr. Bright, is revealed without disguise. He is
no longer deferential to the amiable weaknesses of col-
leagues—he does not care to conceal his contempt of
commonplace. For a brief season his native fire blazes
out, until, the occasion past, it is once more carefully
huddled up to warm into life obsolete prejudices and a
defunct party.—Fuse,.
_,.
THE WHIPPER-IN" OF THE LIBERAL PARTY.—
A paragraph has been going the round of the press to the
effect that the Right Hon. Henry Brand, M.P. for
Lewes, has " respited his intention of resigning his post
as whipper-in to the liberal party." We speak upon
very substantial authority wh.' we state that the real
fact of the case is that Mr. Brand has, with the courtesy
and consideration so essentially a part of his nature,
consented to retain the post he has so long occu-
pied until the formal appointment of a successor—
an event which may probably soon take place.
The duties of the office Mr. Brand has discharged
so ably and satisfactorily must necessarily be carried on
more or less under " high pressure," and demand an
amount of mental and physical exertion which ne man
can long undergo with impunity. It is owing to this fact
alone that Mr. Brand has sought to retire from his post.
No doubt it is extremely important to the liberals in the
House of Commons to enjoy the great advantage of Mr.
Brand's tact and practised experience hi the coming ses-
sion, and the right bon. member has shown his loyalty to
his party by consenting to retain, his pest until the ap-
pointment of his successor can be satisfactorily arranged.
and the efficient discharge of its onerous and difficult
duties be fully provided for.—Sussex Adeerfiser.
PATENT OFFICE MCREUNI, SOUTH KENSINGTON.—
Number of visitors for the week ending Jan. 19, 1,213 ;
total number since the opening of the Museum free daily
(12th May, 1858), 1,108,424.