The Express.
London, England, 1867-03-04 00:00:00

THE WEST AFRICAN MAILS.

The mail steamer Mending° arrived at Liverpool
yesterday from Old Calabar on Jan. 28 ; Came-
roon, and Fernando Po, on the 30th ; Bonny and
Brass, on Feb. 2 ; Benin, on the 3rd ; Lagos, on
the sth ; Accra. on the 7th ; Cape Coast Castle, on
the Bth ; Cape Palmas, on the 10th ; Monrovia, on
the 12th ; Sierra Leone, on the 15th ; Bathurst, on
the 12th ; Teneriffe, on the 23rd ; Madeira, on the
25th. She brings 1,6001. in specie, and 2,226
ounces of gold dust. At Old Calabar, Bonny, and
Brass the trade was dull, but the ports were
healthy.

THE REPRESENTATION OF NORTH SHROPSHIRE.
—On Saturday afternoon, Lon( Newport, the gentleman
selected by the conservatives to succeed Mr. Cost in the
representation of North Shropshire, issued an address to
the electors, in which he says, " My political opinions are
conservative, and I believe are in accordance with those of
the hon. gentleman whose place I seek to fill. If I have
the honour of being elected as your member in parliament,
I should wish to reserve to myself an independent judg-
ment on all matters affecting your interests and these
of the country, but should go there prepared to
give a general support to her Pilajesty's government.
On the great question of parliamentary reform, which now
occupies so much the public attention, I should be pre-
pared to assist in the endeavour to pass a measure which
would considerably extend the franchise, without unfairly
disturbing the balance of political power. There is another
question which I feel is a subject of great interest to a
large number of this constituency, namely, the malt tax.
It is a tax which in my opinion presses heavily upon sonic
classes and when a revision of taxation is under the coa-
-1 siderat'ion of the House of Commons, I consider that this
tax should be among the first, if not the first, to be re-
moved." After some deliberation, the liberals have de-
cided not to contest this seat at a time when a dissolution
of parliament appears to be a not improbable event. Lord
Newport's re'urn, therefore, will not be opposed.
ROYAL POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTION. --On Saturday
afternoon the ordinary meeting of the shareholders was
held at the offices of the company, at the institution, lie
gent-street. the Rev. J. R. Owen,chairman of the board of
directors, in the chair. The report of the directors showed
a profit of 492/. he. Pd. for the half-year, and this, added
to the surplus of 350/. 19s. 7d. brought forward from the
previous half-year, made a total available balance of
84:1/. 3.1., out of which the directors recommend the
payment of a dividend at the rate of 4 per cent., making,
with the dividend already paid, 7 per cent, per annum. It
was proposed by the directors to send Professor Pepper to
Paris during the Exhibition, with the view of collecting
materials for the purposes of the Royal Polytechnic, and
probably to inaugurate a lecture on the general content* of
the Exhibition. After entering into several details con-
nected with the institution, the report drew attention to
the great success of the educational department,
and concluded by recommending the thanks of the pro-
prietors to Professor Pepper, manager of the institution,
for his valuable services. The report was adopted. A
dividend at the rate of 4 per cent., free of income tax, was
declared.

----DESPATCH OF WEST INDIA AND PACIFIC MAILS.—
I SOUTHAMPTON, MARCH 2.—The Royal Mail Company's
steamship Atrato sailed hence to-day with the mails for
the British and foreign West Indies. Mexico, the Pacific,
California, Central America, Australia. New Zealand, &c.
She took out 69 passengers and • fall cargo of general
merchandise, including English specie. 16,3501. ; French
specie, 8001.; English jewellery,97s/.; French ditt0,4,8921.;
and 650 bottles quicksilver, value 5,0001. sterling.
FALMOUTH, MARCH 2.—The Liberator, from
Sydney Nov. 2, passed up the Channel off here to-day.
She is said to bring a large quantity of specie, the amount
of which has not yet been reported.
ROYAL FREE HOSPITAL, GRATIA-INN-ROAD.—The
number of patients relieved at this hospital during the
week ending March 2 was 3,849, of which 1 , 182 were
new oases.

*parting EsteManus.