The Sun.
London, England, 1864-01-19 00:00:00

and has lately been confined to his room by serious
indisposition. Great hopes were entertained by the
Republican party that this gentleman would either
die or resign his office, in either of which cases an
Abolitionist and supporter of the Administration
would have been appointed in his pace. Much to
the disappointment of the White House and the
Administration, he has recovered, and much to their
disgust he has declared that he will not resign as
long as he lives,—unless, indeed, a Democratic Pre-
sident should be elected in place of Mr. Lincoln, in
which case he would debate the question whether
it would not be better after his long services that he
should retire into private life. The President, it is
understood, desires to elevate Mr. Chase to Mr.
Taney's position, for the double purpose of placing
an Abolitionist on the Bench, and of removing out
of the wayia forwidable competitor for the honours
of the Presidency. But the good constitution and
the firm resolve of the venerable Chief Justice
having prevented, at least for the present, the
realisation of the project, it has become necessary
to devise some other scheme for securing the deci-
sion of the Court in favour of the measure, which
Mr. Lincoln's friends affirm to be the crowning
glory and his opponents the crying shame of his
administration. It has, therefore, been suggested
that ten Judges are not sufficient to transact the
business of the Supreme Court ; that the multifa-
riousness, complexity, and importance of the ques-
tions that come before it for decision have grown
with the prosperity and enterprise of the country ;
and that, if ten Judges had work enough 40 years
ago, there is work enough at the present day for 14
at the least. In other words, Mr. Lincoln is urged
to create by the consent of Congress four new
Judges, who, being all of the Republican party,
would give him in the Supreme Tribunal a majority
of eight against six. In this case the obstinate Mr.
Taney might continue to live to 150 without
danger to the Republican cause, and everybody,
except Mr. Chase, the Democratic party, and the
friends of the Constitution " as it was," would have
reason to be satisfied. The attempt will undoubt-
edly be made, with what success no one can at pre-
sent tell. If the American people submit to it, as
they probably will, they will afford one more proof
of their readiness to bend their necks to the yoke of
that great military chieftain and dictator, that
embryo Cromwell or Buonaparte, whose blood-red
shadow looms ominously on the horizon.

A man of great mark and influence has just passed
away. John Hughes, Catholic Archbishop of New
York, died on Sunday, at the age of 65, from
softening of the brain, and general prostration of the
powers of life. He came to America a poor Irish
boy, began life as shopman or assistant to a florist
in New York, and, entering the Church at an early
age, succeeded, by dint of pliancy, industry, and
native talent, in working himself up to the high
ecclesiastical position which he has held for the last
26 years, as bishop and archbishop. He exercised
an enormous influence over the Irish Catholic popu-
lation—net so much for leading them is political
affairs as for following the current of their opinions
and prejudices, and for his thorough personal sym-
pathy in all their feelings of nationality. He was
entirely a man of the people, and, if somewhat anti-
English, was more so from policy than from convic-
tion, He was not an opponent of slavery, for if he
had been he would have placed himself in anta-
gonism, not only to his Church, but to the senti-
ment of the whole Irish population. He was
deliberately opposed to an enforced military con-
scription, and during the riots of last July took no
pains to conceal either from the Government or the
people that he considered the draught unwise and
unjust, if not tyrannical. As befitted his sacred
character, he was a friend of peace, and, soaring
high above the madness of the crowd to those serener
attitudes of thought where passion has no foothold,
ho took occasion to impress upon Vie minds of the
youthful students of the Esc lesiastical College of St
Xavier, and upon those of his flock, that the liberty
of the Republic was to be prized as something far
more estimable than extent of territory, and that
the happiness of a State was to be considered better
worth securing than it " bigness." The Americans
were not then in a condition to profit by his teach-
ing. Neither are they now. Neither does it ap-
pear that they ever will be. To be the " biggest "
and most powerful nation in the world is their
highest ambition. For that darling object, which,
notwithstanding all their hopes and all their
vaunts is no nearer than it was years ago, they have
already sacrificed hundreds of thousands of lives,
millions of treasure and legal and constitutional
rights more precious than all the gold of the
earth ; and, worse than all, they are ready,
if we may believe the governing party, to
incur double and treble sacrifices of the same kind in

the future, rather than renounce the idea of a con-
solidated Empire. Though it would have to be main-
tained at the cost of a Southern Poland, to be a per-
petual thorn in their sides, a chronic disease in the
body politic, a standing peril to their liberty, a con-
stant drain upon their pockets and their temper, and
a never-ceasing cause of anxiety and unhappiness,
they crave it as the sum of all earthly desire, _Empire
was once considered the lust of kings only. The
Americans, in their present temper, lust for it more
ardently and nnreas)nably than auy King or Em-
peror who ever troubled the world from Alexander
to Napoleon.

IRELAND.

DUBLIN, San, 18.

Another special meeting of the corporation was
held on 'Saturday, to consider the important ques-
tion whether the statue of the Agitator should be
left is the niche it occupies at the side of the City-
hall or be promoted to a more commanding position
in the centre. The Conservative members opposed
the contemplated change on the ground that it
would be an unwise precedent to establish, and also
that would be giving O'Connell an apparent pre-
cedence over one of her Majesty's ancestors—a
statue of George 111, having formerly stood on the
proposed site, from which it was removed because it
spoilt the appearance of the hall. The debate
lasted more than two hours, and, as on the previous
occasion, became extremely personal. Alderman
Reynolds, who abused unsparingly all who differed
from him, observed that there were some statues in
the hall which ho would willingly see removed—
statues of Dutchmen, and worse than Dutchmen.
Dr, Lucas was a mad apothecary, and Grattan's
name was not worthy to be mentioned in connexion
with the Liberator's. Ultimately his resolution was
adopted by a majority of 13, amid great cheering
from the occupants of the gallery.

The Federal agents are perservering in their en-
deavours to fill the thinned ranks of the American
armies with the youths of Ireland. One of these
persons has been pursuing his avocations in Gal-
way for the last week with considerable srcaess, as
appears from the following account in the Galway
Express The town of Galway has been conside-
rably enlivened this week by a visit of an Irish
American, a native of Longhrea, who has kindly
offered to take out to America, free, as many able-
bodied men as he can procure. As soon as the ob-
ject of the visit of Mr. Feeny (for such is his name)
was known, large numbers of our poor labourers
proceeded to his quarters anxious to be booked. He
stated that he had been commissioned by a railway
contracting company to engage as many labourers
as he could in Ireland to work on railways. On

their arrival a sum of £2 per head is to be paid them
to procure an outfit, and 8s a day is promised them
on arrival at their destination, but where that is we
have not been able to learn. Each man is to have
28. per day stopped out of his salary, to reimburse
his employers for the expense incurred. Large num-
bers are said to have entered their names on these
terms. In Longhrea Mr. Feeny is said to have pro-
cured over 250 men, and in Galway, although the
booking only commenced on Friday, more than 200
are said to have got their names enrolled. Whether
these men are engaged as lona fide labourers or
otherwise it is impossible to determine. It is said
that Mr. Feeny was arrested under the Foreign En-
listment Act. in Loughrea, on suspicion of enlisting
for the Federal army, but as no proof could be had
he was acquitted.

RESIGNATION OF AN IRISH JUDGE.—WO letirll
by electric telegraph that the Dublin Evening an-
nounces, on reliable authority, that Judge Ball is abont to
resign his seat in tae Court of Common

THE SIT LONDO

The Alleged Child Murder at Limehouse,

COMMITTAL OF THE MOTHER.

Yesterday forenoon Mr. H. Raffles Walthew, the
deputy coroner, resumed, at the Victoria Tavern,
Three Colt-lane, Limehouse, the inquiry respecting
the death of the male child of Rebecca Porter, said
to have been murdered on Christmas-day.
The prisoner, Rebecca Porter, a respectable look-
ing middle aged woman, was brought up in the cus-
tody of Inspector Beare, under a warrant obtained
from the Secretary of State,
It will be remembered that the accused had been
for a period of five months in the service of the
keeper of an eating-house in Hales-terrace, Lime-
house, and that, as she wore an immense crinoline,
the suspicions of her mistreea were at one time ex-
cited. The accused, however, indignantly denied
the imputation, and gave notice that she would leave
rather than leave off wearing crinoline. On Christ-
mas-day, while playing cards with the other ser-
vants, she was noticed to be ill, and, though she
denied having given birth to a child, the deceased
was found in a box.

Mrs. 3. Harris, 2, Hales-terrace, West India-
road, was re-called, and she stated that she did not
know that the accused Lad prepared any baby-linen.
Witness never saw any. Rebecca Porter used to sit
at work in her room in the evenings for nearly the
whole time. She was in service; but witness saw
her make no preparation for a child. She worked
for herself as well as for witness. When, on Christ-
mas-day, witness taxed her with having given birth
to a child, she denied it for half an hour. She after-
wards showed the child to witness in her box, whioh
was under her bed. She asked witness to allow her
to bury the child, and to take her again into her
service, but that could not be done.

George Cronk, 330 K, said that on Christmas-day
he was sent for by Mr. Harris. By the inspector's
orders he then accompanied. Mr. Brownfield, the
divisional surgeon, to Mr. Harris's house. He saw
the child in the box of the accused. There was a
hassock in the box, and one or two other things,
but no baby clothes.
The prisoner said she had no questions to put to
the witnesses.

The coroner then cautioned the accused in the
usual manner, and asked her if she wished to make
any statement.

The prisoner merely replied, "No, sir."
Mrs. Harris, recalled, stated that she had been
informed by the sister of the prisoner, that the pri-
soner had been married and had given birth to two
children: These children were dead. Witness did
not inquire what was the cause of their deaths.
The coroner then read over the depositions at
length, and said that all the circumstances were of
such a character as seemed to render a verdict of
wilful murder inevitable. The medical man exan
mined iii the case indeed said that, though the child
had fully breathed he could not conclusively say
that the child had been fully born alive. But the
other facts should not be overlooked—the deter.
mined persistence in concealing her condition by
means of a large crinoline—no clothes being pro-
vided for the child, although the accused must hare
known that she had gone her full time—the denial

for half an hour that elle had given birth to any
child—the concealment of the dead body in a box—
and the marks of violence on the throat, which
were plainly visible—all seemed to show a Fettled
intention to make away with the child, and doubt-
less to deposit it in the atr2et at e. convenient oppor-
tunity.

The jury, after a !ong deliberation, returned a
verdict of wiiful murder against, Rebecca Porter,
but stated, in tendering their verdict, that had the

law given them an option they would have brought
in a verdict of manslaughter in preference, as they
believed that there could have been no malice
against the deceased, but that the mother had de-
prived it of life in 'an attempt to conceal the fact
of its birth in order to avoid the shame of detectien.
The coroner then mado out the warrant for the
committal of the mother to Nowgate for trial at the
Central Criminal Court.