The Sun.
London, England, 1864-12-28 00:00:00

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE—This day.

LONDON, Dec. 28.—Wind this day at noon—North-
Westerly ; moderate breeze, and fine weather, but rather
cloudy.
QUEENSTOWN, Dec. 27.—Wind W.—Arrived—Chris-
tina Brookleman, from Odessa.
CLYDE, Dec. 26.—Wind W.S.W.—Arrived—lriF, from
Demerara. Sailed—Eleanor Dixon, for Valparaiso—China,
for Demerara.

PORTSMOUTH, Dec. 27.—Wind W.—Arrived—Helena
and Anna, from Tjilulagof for Amsterdam.
PLYMOUTH, Dec. .26.—Wind N.E.—Arrived—Suffolk,
from London for Melbourne.

SWANSEA, Dec. 27.—Wind S.W.—Arrived—Vulcan,
from Bordeaux.

DUNDEE, Dec. 27.—Wind S.E.—Sailed—Brilliant, for
Quebec.

FALMOUTH, Dec, 26.—Wind S.W.—Sailed—Erie, for
Bombay.
GRIMSBY, Dec. 27.—Wind S.W.—Arrived—Lord Car-
digan, screw steamer, from Hamburg—Francis Arcot, horn
San Sebastian.

(By MAGNETIC TELEGIRAPM.)
GRAVESEND, Wednesday Morning.
Arrived—Holland, steamer, from Ostend.
DEAL, Wednesday Morning.
_ _

Passed, Dec. 28.—Pilgrim, for Syria—Maria Fortuna,
for Cardiff—both from London—Seine and Tamise, screw
steamer, from Paris—Ocean Chief (in tow), and Peep
o' Day (brig), from the Cape of Good Hope—all for
London.

AN EXTRAORDINARY CHINESE SWORD.—General
Gordon, of Southampton, has received the following
letter from his distinguished son, Colonel Gordon, who
fought against the Chinese rebels :—" I send home Chung
Wang's sword. It is wrapped in a rebel flag belonging to
Tien Chwang, a rebel chief, next in command to Wang, and
who was killed on it at Chan-Chu-Fu. You will see marks
of his blood on the flag, Chung Wang's sword was given
by him to Tye Wang, a rebel chief, of Leyang, at Wusich,
in Deo., 1863, after the fall of Souchow, and at the time
that Chung Wang, disgusted, determined to r, turn to
Nankin, and take for a time no further active operations.
It is more than an ordinary sword. The Emperor of China
gave one to San-quo-jan, and this gift was accompanied
with permission to San- quo-jan to execute any one, what-
ever his rank might be, without reference to Pekin. In fact
it was a symbol of the power of dictator. Tien Wang, the
rebel chief at Nankin, gave this sword to Chung Wang,
with the same power as the Imperialists, and it was this
symbol of chief and supreme command which Chung Wang
handed over to Tye Wang when he was recalled to Nan-
kin. It fell into my hands at Seyadg, on the 9th of March,
1864, and has on it Chung Wang's name, ' Li-tzn-tquen,'
Chung Wang meaning ' faithful prince.' Chung Wang
has since been taken prisoner by the Imperialists at Nan-
kin."

RUMOURED CAPTURE OF A CONFEDERATE Go.
YERNMENT BLOCKADE-RUNNER,-011 Monday it was re■
ported in Liverpool that a private despatch had been re-
ceived announcing the capture of the blockade-runner
Colonel Lamb, the property of the• Confederate Government.
The Colonel Lamb was a magnificent paddle-wheel steamer
of great speed, built in Liverpool at the beginning of the
present year, of steel, specially for blockade-running, in
which service she made several successful trips. The last
accounts were that she had put back to Nassau, after un-
successfully attempting to get into Wilmington.
_8

BIRMINGHAM EiCHINGE.—Mr. Bright will be
present at the inauguration of the new Birmingham Ex-
change on Monday next. The opening ceremony will be
performed at 12 o'clock by W. Scholefield, EEq., M.P. There
will be a luncheon in the Assembly-room at two o'clock,
The proceedings are expected to be very interesting.
A MAN CHOKED WHILE EATING A BEEFSTEAK...-.
Yesterday morning a well. dressed man of about 40
years of age, entered the coffee-shop kept by Mr Vousden,
Chichester-place, St. Pancras,and was supplied with a beef-
steak. While eating it he attempted to swallow a rather large
piece that he had not properly masticated, and it stuck in
his throat and choked him. He was removed to the Royal
Free Hospital, Gray's Inn•road. His throat was opened,
and artificial respiration resorted to, but without avail.
From the papers found on the deceased it is supposed that
he was a carpenter. Information has been forwarded to Dr
Lankester, but the time of the inquest has nut been fixed.
The representation of the " Huguenots, at the
theatre of Ghent three nights ago, was interrupted
e r belonging
of
theto the
massacre,garris
by what was at first feared to be a serious accident. The
, arew h o
particularlytake pa r part i n the
closing
s re-
quested scene
to point their muskets high. Unfortunately, on
the night in question that order was not attended to, and
the wadding from one of the guns struck M. Picot. who per-
formed the part cf Raoul, in the face. On seeing that artiste
going off the stage holding his head, the audience thought
he must have been seriously injured. The curtain was the
next moment lowered, and a few minutes after M. Guiliot,
the stage manager, came forward and announced that M,
Picot was wounded in the ear, and asked if there hap-
puled to be a medical man among the audience. That not
being the case, messengers were sent in search of one, who
found, on examination, that the eye had not been injured,
the wound being on the bone above, and not of much gra-
vity. . _

The Belgian journals announce that no New
Year's receptions will take place at the Court of Brusesls
on the evening of the Ist of January.,