Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1859-09-20 00:00:00

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--Ilitreftisex, who commanded and was wounded in-the-
'expedition to the Peiho .the 25th of June last, is.
larothei4n-law to Lord Kirmaird, and our city member.
He has the reputation of being one of the most vigilant
'officers in the service, and his friends feel confident that
his apparent surprise by the -Chinese will be satisfne-
torily, explained when the details of the disastrous affair
at-the month of the Peiho.come-te hand.
Dn. ''Slin-ritunsT.—Another. week has elapsed, and.
tlaere'llas been no intimation *iven as to the intentions:
,of the government with regard to the fate of the -con-
vict. 'lie still continues to assert his innocence of the.

fitills notes -of the case,

Lnd consist of

rematlis

•aporctlie qevidence for the prosecution. The viiitkag
itistiees,; in order to assist -him in, this matter, have

ailcrsved,him to have a transeript of the notes of -the
olsorttlunid writer employed rat the Central Criminal
'Court, orvatlier the printed report which is Trablishg:.
:at 'the °lase of each session, byorder of the Corporation
.of lire city .of London.—Vbeerver.
PREPAMMONS mi!'-FRANce.—Pms,
Fu-
tda • Ahip of the line, to' re called the Magenta,
ii h ig,to be steel-plated,-anctthe largest vessel in the
Frenar:navy, has been ,pat ,upron the storks at Bret.
The "Couri tzr de Bregyne, of Larient, annonnaes 'that
the 'Minister of Marine has ,conunandeti 200;000 bomb-
is for the navy, and 20;000- Efles for theraurinqs.

•
TheNouwelkiste, of.• Rouen, states-- that the Gomenninent
Las4orderkta return to ihe • made ,of all the mercantile
sternavvesell which miight 'be mik'e available in: :ease .of
war. :The plan,.sine -,projected, of arniug, four
forts inttheLay of St. dli, and the fort of Rimains in
the 33sybff.:Caneale, leing, carritd into execution. ...A1
plan laeheen prepared forxentiugli coast frogs AntibeS
to Port;lroluires.

TRIANSVOZT: OF FRINCIE TROOVS TO CHISA--The
Indepordlasee asserts that TAnglaad lately proposed
throngih.:Lotd Cowley to eupply,..ships to take out a
Freneh !foreetto China, anti that; the offer either has
been or altill.be declined, the FrenchfGovemment being
very glail :tot. take the present .opportunity of Wing
employment.foraome of the taeauy ;civets-els which it has
recently %milt. Five or six ;large: tratsports are to he
immediatelly ;placed at the senesce ef;tate Chinese expe-
dition. It 4s ,not thought that doe, troops to be sent out
will be move Ihan a brigade tftve, or six-thousand men).
LEE Acannz.Nvr •.ON BOARD 'TM G:114 EASTERN.-
31r. J. H. riallon(avho was on ,boxrd.the(Great Eastern,
en her trip faom!Deptford to Parr:and, staes, from per-
.asnal observatiion,,that Mr. Dimon, ‘llfr...c.ott Russell's
manager, was ineOnarnand of the.mmines the whole time,
and that Mr. Snott!Russell was on &be-paddle-box bridge
•timing the greker•pszt of the trip, -"lletpallg in charge
ofeelke signal insEctitor,s by which 'linnets are transmitted
to the engineers bellow; he also from time tto time sent
his .son, who stooti benttath him, to the engine-froom with
ardor)." - • -

LONDON TRADEgi/41FereS SIGNS.—It is veryldesirable
to keep London from becoming all new; and fortunately
English tendencies help to preserve syggestors of the
past. l'llemorials of the .old practices, even, linger to a
greater extent than' is °Ways to the mass, Notioe, for
example, the tradesmen's signs, which were so stinking
and inconvenient a feature in Old London. $ the
traffic increased, such projections became more .and
more a nuisance, and enactments enforeed -their
removal. Nerertheless, the custom lingers. The
fishing-tackle maker still puts forth his golden trout:;
the optician his eolossal speetwles ; or a naval officer
takes an observation with a cuadrant at the opti-
cian's ; the pawnkoker still extibits the cognisance of
the merchants of Lombardy ; and although the sturdy
1 and once well-known Highlander of the tobacconist,
with snuff-box in band, is becoming very scarce,
there are still a few specimens left; some of them
were well carved and painted by artists of the same
school as those who executed the figures of Gog and
Magog in Guildhall. The barber still obtrudes his
variegated pole ; the grocer the tin canister and Chinese
figures. There also the black dolls, large bones, and
other devices of the rag merchants, as well as ex-
amples of the suspended golden fleece of the' woollen-
draper, the corn-sheaf of the baker, the gilt hand of the
glover, the goldbeater's arm, the golee i boot, the harle-
quin of the oil and colour shop, and the iron pot, grid-
iron, and dustpan of the ironmonger ! These evanescent
reminders of the past are mostly met with in bustling
neighbourhoods, close to latge populations of the poorer
classes, such as Tottenham-court-road, the City-road,
and elsewhere. In the City-road a baker's shop is
surmounted by a coloured figure with a sheaf of corn
on her head and 01,,neten. eii-der one arm; at the sides

The