The Sun.
London, England, 1864-01-22 00:00:00

The Waterloo Road Murder,

The following painfully interesting letter, in re-
ference to the murderer Samuel Wright, has ap-
peared in the Weeklg Register, from the pen of the
Rev. Dr. Husenbeth, the Citholic clergyman whose
name has already been referred to in reference to
this matter : _ _

Sir,—As so many erroneous statements have appeared in
the papers respecting the unhappy murderer, Samuel
Wright, and as my name, misspelt as usual, has been intro-
duced into the accounts of the poor criminal's behaviour
previous to his execution, it will, I think, prove acceptable
to your readers to have a correct account of the man, and
to see these various inaccuracies rectified, Samuel
Wright was not born at Cossey, as represented, but came
here with his parents from Norwich, about seventeen
years ago, He was then about fourteen years of
age. His mother soon after became a Catholic, and
he and his younger brother Michael came under my spiri-
tual care. After a due course of instruction, both were
admitted together to their first Communion in 1848. In
the year following, they both were confirmed hero by
Bishop Wareing. Samuel continued regularly to approach
to the Sacraments, and to attend to every duty of the
Catholic religion, while he remained at Cossey. He was
married by me here to a Catholic young woman, nine years
ago ; and soon after this they left Cossey to reside at Lowes-
toft. Afterwards they lived in Norwich till his wife died
two years and a half ago, leaving him with two little chil-
dren, both girls. The elder of these ie just five years of
age, and is here with her grandmother, the mother of
Samuel's late wife. The younger is just three sears of
age, and is in London with Samuel's aged parents. This
I mention, because in several accounts it has been stated
that both his children were in London.

The Shakspere Committee consists of more than
four hundred distinguished persons, drawn from
the most opposite sides of the social circle—arch-
bishops and actors, judges and journalists, dis-
senting ministers and country gentlemen—a com-
mittee the very existence of which offers a great
example of toleration, and to some persons appears
to present an extraordinary suffrage in favour of
dramatic poetry and the dramatic art. Such a body
of gentlemen must be expected to have very diffe-
rent opinions as to what would constitute the most
appropriate monument to the noblest of all poets.
In such a body—where every man is a leader, a
speaker, or a writer, with a claim to be heard—a
conflict of ideas was inevitable from the moment
that the site and monument came under discussion.
there are perhaps as many projects as there are
members of the committee. As to the most appro-
priate site, voices contend for Temple Gardens,
Primrose Hill, Westminster, Kensington Gardens,
and Stratford-on-Avon. And for each of these sites
a great deal may be said, which the several partisans,
and the newspapers at their command, are saying
with great effect, and with a perfect want of unani-
mity. Ihe same thing happens with regard to
every possible form of monument. A theatre, a
library, a statue, an obelisk, a column, a Gothic
cross, a Tudor chapel, an avenue, an alms-house,
and a cathedral, have been suggested. An edition
of Shakspere's works finds many friends. One pro-
posal is to create a fund to be employed in the annual
performance of a number of Shakspere's plays, at
one or other of the London theatres, on the plan of
the Moliere representations at the Theatre Frainais.
These suggestions are, doubtless, made with a sincere
desire to see the poet commemorated in the most
appropriate and beneficial manner. The conflicts
which arise from these differences of opinion
are quite legitimate, for they exist in the very
nature of things. It is right to state our ideas—
to ask that they shall have fair consideration ; and
when they have been stated, and have had fair con-
sideration, it is graceful to yield them in favour of
plans which command a larger measure of support.
We hope and believe that such a course will be
generally adopted by members of the Shakspere
Committee; but we regret to see that some very
warm and sincere advocates of a Theatre, on finding
that their plans could not be carried in the com-
mittee, have withdrawn their names—a fact which
seems to imply that they consider the form of
monument to be of greater importance than all the
other circumstances of the celebration put together.
Surely this is an erroneous view to take. Are
there no bases on which all may agree ? In the
midst of all the discords of debate there seem to
stand out some few central ideas, around which all,
or nearly all, might gather.
We are all in favour of obtaining a large and
generous suffrage for Shakspere's art.
We are all in favour of observing Saturday,
April 23, as a general holiday.
We are all, or nearly all, in favour of celebrating
the birthday by the performances of Shaksperian
drama and Shaksperian music.
We ara all, or nearly all, in favour of promoting
local celebrations throughout the country, to be
commemorated in various cities by the foundation
of scholarships, the creation of libraries, or the
erection of statues. _ _

The site and charaoter of the monument might
very well be left to time and the special committees
which have been appointed to consider them.
With regard to the question of the Executive,
we presume that the gentlemen who constitute it,
sixty-three in number—keep office only so long as
they retain the confidence of the committee which
gave them power. Since some of our contemporaries
state that the names of the Executive are not known
to the public, we may as well give the list :—The
Archbishops of Canterbury, York, and Dublin; the
Dukes of Devonshire and Manchester; the Earls
Granville, Clarendon, and Carlisle; Lard Brougham,
Sir Frederick Pollock, Sir Roundell Palmer, the
Right Hon. William Cowper, the Lord Mayors of
London and Dublin, and the Lord Provost of Edin-
burgh ; the Presidents of the Royal Society, Society
of Antiquaries, Royal Academy of Arts, Royal In-
stitute of British Architects, the Architectural
Museum, Society of British Artists ; the R.A. Pro-
fessor of Sculpture, the Master of Trinity, Sir E. B.
Lytton, Sir R. C. Kirby, Sir C. Nicholson, Sir R.
G. Macdonald, and Messrs. H. N. Barnet, G. L.
Banks, H. G. Bohn, Rev. J. M. Bellew, Bayle Ber-
nard, Ernest de Bunsen, J. Stirling Coyne, W. F,
Cosens, Charles Dickens, W. H. Dixon, J. Durham,
J. H. Foley, Ernest Garbart, George Godwin, J. 0.
Halliewell, F. Haines, S. C. Jeaffreson, J. Knight,
J. Levy, Samuel C. Lucas, E. H. Lawrence, W. C.
Macready, W. Marston, D. Maclise, H. 0 ttley, An-
tonio Panizzi, C. Reed, J. F. Robertson, D. Roberts,
C. Stanfield, W. Tite, M.P., Alfred Tennyson, F.
G. Tomlins, and T. Wright. Like every other body
of gentlemen, these may be considered as ready to
give way at any moment to a majority. If their
ideas are not acceptable to the general body, let
those who represent the more popular opinion come
in and achieve the work. We cannot doubt that a
new Executive would receive from the present mem-
bers every assistance in their power, including a
Iconciliatory construction of all their acts.

Liverpool Cotton Market—This Day.

Market firm. Sales probably 3,000 bales or more.

WEEKLY REPORT.

Week's sales, 25,690 bales, including 3,120 on
speculation and 4,560 for exportation. Actual ex-
port, 6,437 bales. Quotations :—Middling Orleans,
271 d. ; Mobile, 271 d ; Uplands, 27d.; estimated
fair Egyptians, 270. to 27-td. ; Surats, 12d. to 251 d.
eek's import, 40,648 bales. Estimated stock
266,500 bales.

WASHINGTON IRVING'S DEATH.--On November
the 28th, 1859, on retiring for the night, at half-
past ten, his niece Sarah, who always took charge of his
medicines, went into his room to place them as usual,
within easy reach. " Well," he exclaimed," " I must
arrange my pillows, for another weary night!" and then,
as if half to himself, " If this could only end 1" or " When
will this end 1" she could not tell which; for, at the in-
stant, he gave a slight exclamation, as if of pain, pressing
his hand on his left side, repeated the exclamation and the
pressure, caught at the footboard of the bed, and fell back-
ward to the floor. The sound of his fall and the screams
of Sarah brought the whole family in an instant to his
room. I raised his head in my arms. Every means was
resorted to to recall animation, and continued until a phy-
sician—Dr. Carruthers, from a distance of two miles—
arrived, who pronounced life entirely extinct. He had
passed away instantaneously. The end for which he had
just been sighing—the end which to him had no terror
had come. His departure was sudden; but so he was
willing it should be. In the fulness of years, with un-
clouded intellect, crowned with the warmest affections of
his countrymen, and with an assured hope of a happy
irtitcalasityp,irhateiohna.d,,
Igvointhe
adlloswanil,
accordingset." \Vho that loved to his own
patm mia
him would have wished to recall h. im?—irving's Life by
his Nephew.

LIFEBOAT SERVICES.—CIIALE, ISLE OF WIGHT,
Jan. 20.—The boat of the National Lifeboat Insti-
tution, stationed at Brighstone Grange, was instrumental
to-day in rescuing the crew of the schooner Thetis, of and
for London, from Portland, with stone, which, during
heavy weather from the south-west, had foundered off St.
Catherine's Point. The cost of this boat was presented to
the National Lifeboat Institution two or three years ago by
the Royal Victoria Yacht Club, by whom she was named
The Rescue. She has since then been happily the means
of rescuing about HO persons from shipwreck.

The supply of barley on sale was tolerably large. Good
and fine malting qualities were firm in price; otherwise,
the trade ruled heavy, at late rates.
Most kinds of malt sold slowly, at late currencies.

The supply of oats on sale was moderately extensive.
Generally speaking, the trade was quiet, but at full prices,
for good and fine corn.
For beans and peas there was a moderate inquiry, and
the quotations were steadily supported.

The trade for flour was in a sluggish state, at about
stationary prices. The market was well supplied with
English and foreign descriptions.

ARRIVALS THIS WEEK.
Wheat. Barley. Malt. Oats. Flom.
English— 310 3lO lB4O 370 580
1ri5h.......... 1570
F0raign......28,080 16,820 11,130 1930 sks,
35,240 brls