The Express.
London, England, 1867-12-21 00:00:00

POBEIGN MAILS.

DESPATCH OF AUSTRALIAN MAILB.--SOLITHAXP-
TON, DEC. 20.—The Peninsular and Oriental Company's
steamship Ripon, Captain Roger., sailed hence to-day with
mail' for Gibraltar, the Mediterranean, Egypt, Aden,
Ceylon, India, China, Australia, New Zealand, &a. She
took out 70 first and 42 secoud-class passengers, and on
freight • large cargo, including sovereigns, 26,9901. ;
26,7081. 6s. Scl. ; bar silver, 4,000/. ; gold thread,
jewellery, watches, &c., 4,6411. 84. ; and gold and silver
thread, 1751.
MAILS FOR THE UNITED STATES. —The British
mail packets of the Cunard line will, after the Ist January
next, proceed invariably to New York direct, instead of
alternately to New York direct and to Baton by way of
Halifax. In addition to this line of packets, steam vessels
belonging to the Liverpool, New York, and Philadelphia
Steamship Company will, from the same date, convey
mails weekly from Queenstown to New York, and steam
vessels belonging to the North German Lloyd of Bremen
will convey mails weekly from Southampton to New York,
under contracts with the Postmaster-General. The follow-
ing will be the arrangements for the despatch of mails to
the United States after the end of this year:—Tuesday, by
day mail, Southampton, Tuesday 2 p.m., North German
Loyd; Wednesday, by night mail, Queenstown, Thursday,
3 30 p.m., Liverpool, New York, and Philadelphia Steam-
ship Company ,• Thursday, by night mail, Morale (lon.
donderryl, Friday, 6.30 p.m., Montreal Ocean Steamship
Company ; Saturda), by night mail,
rs
Queenstown, Sunday,
3.303.30p.m., Cunard Company. All letters la., addressed
to the United States will be forwarded in the.finet mail
despatched after such letters, /co., are posted unless
spa-
tially directed to be otherwise sent. Letters, &c., marked
to be forwarded by any particular vessel will be so for-
warded. The mails for Nova Scotia, New Brunswick,
Prince Edward Island, Bermuda, and Newfoundland,
which have hitherto been conveyed to Halifax by the
Cunard packet proceeding to Baton will henceforth be
conveyed from Queenstown to Halifax by a separate
packet, sailing on every alternate Sunday as at present.

PirfEETTNO OF THE OUT-DOOR OFFICERB or H.M.
CUSTOMS, Poev or LONDON.—A meeting, attended by
upwards of 500 of the out-door officers of the above depart-
ment, was held yesterday at the Stepney Tabernacle
school-rooms, for the purpose of taking into consideration
the mum to be adopted for the improvement of their con-
dition (u per circular announced to them). The chair.
man in • brief address alluded to the present high price of
food and rent, and showed that whilst almost every
branch of the service of the government was receiving
some attention to their claims and wants, the outdoor
officers of the Customs were suffering from an almost total
stagnation of anything like promotion or a rise in their
salaries to enable them to meet the growing evil of the
dearness of everything that is necessary for the mainte-
nance of themselves and their families in respectability.
The meeting was addressed by several out-door officers, and
they lucidly and briefly showed that the amalgamation of
184;0 had so operated on their prospects of promotion and
consequent advance of salaries as to make promotion a thing
of the pest, and an almost stationary salary the necessary
rule thereof, end without a future to look forward to ex-
cept an alteration be made in their favour. It was stated
that more than one half of the officers were at • loss on an
average of from l&f. to 20/. per annum by the amalgama-
tion of the two bodies of tide waiters and the lockers and
weighers. A committee of thirty was chosen with power
to draft a petition to their honours the Commissioners of
her Majesty's Customs, praying redress for their grievances
and attention to their wrongs, and they have prepared a
petition which they (the committee) cannot but hope will
have the desired effect (a printed copy of which will be
presented to the body in a few days). The proceedings
throughout were conducted by • marked unanimity of
feeling on the part of the meeting. Several resolutions
were unanimously carried, one of which was that
the powerful 00-operation of the press be invited to assist
them in their endeavours to obtain • fair and impartial
judgment of their claims and grievances.
Citversz. PaLsca.—Extraordinary efforts have
this year been made to celebrate Christmas at the Crystal
Palace. Although in former sears the building has been
decorated in an extremely gay manner, the decorations of
the present Christmas may safely be said never to have
been surpassed. Flags, streamers, banners, garlands,
holly, laurel, shields, and baskets of flowers hung from
every girder and rib, and artistically arranged amid groups
of statuary, &e. The centre transept has been converted,
by judicious decorations, into a room—a large one truly—
but the vastness of the locale is forgotten in the warmth of
the decorations, and in the air of comfort which per-
vades the building. The great stage is now com-
plete in every respect; and in the present pantomime
Little lied Riding Hood, which has been written and
produced under the superintendence of Mr. Nelson Lee,
every advantage has been taken of the scope thus afforded
for the most brilliant effects. The Oreat Handel Orches-
tra, immediately facing the stage, offers capabilities for
seating large numbers of visitors, who can thence witness
these effects in ease and comfort. The great Christmas
tree—nearly 100 feet high—has been erected in the north
nave, and is decked gaily with every imaginable ornament.
The fancy fair and bazaar—replete with Christmas presents
suitable to all—is in full vigour, the entire Palace exhi-
biting an activity and brilliance unusual at this season.
Besides the pantomime, the troupe of Beni-Zoug-
Zoug Arabs, who performed at the Palace in October,
have been re-engaged, and will appear twice daily in
their marvellous feats of strength, activity, and daring.
In order to give increased effect to this performance, a
desert scene has been specially painted by Messrs.
Denson and Sons. Borne clever clowns and the champion
skaters complete the list of miscellaneous entertainers.
However, in addition, there is an endless variety of gains'
and sport:a, both in the Palace and outside. According to
custom at the Palace, the amusements—in their entirety—
will be oommencell on Monday and continued daily (of
course, excepting Christmas-day) ; this arrangement being
always found acceptable to visitors bringing parties of
children, who otherwise would defer their visits until the
great days have passed over. The Palace will also be open
on Christmas-day, as it is with many • favourite stroll
before dinner, and in its present highly decorated form
the building looks more brilliant than ever. On Boxing-
day extra trains will run from all stations • besides which,
some of the principal lines have announced excursions.
FIRE AT THE FOUR Coolers, DE-max.—A fire,
which, but for the timely arrival of the steam-engine and
tire brigade, would in all probability have proved very
destructive,groke out yesterday morning in the new buildings
recently erected st the Four Courts. It was observed at
25 minutes past 7, and about an hour afterward, was ex-
tinguished. The origin of the fire is not known, but it is
supposed to have first broken out in the taxing offices over
Master Litton's court. Fortunately, the damage done is
comparatively inconsiderable. A large number of docu-
ments have, however, been dentroyed—a matter which may
cause a good deal of public inconvenience.