The Sun.
London, England, 1864-01-05 00:00:00

A Vessel carrried over Niagara Falls.

An obliging correspondent at Chippawa sends
us an account of a melancholy occurrence which
took place on the Niagara Riv er on Monday last,
which resulted in the death of one man by being
carried over the fall, and caused imminent peril to
five others, as well as the loss of a small vessel.
Aboat eleven o'clock in the morning, the steamer
A. D. Griffin, of Buffalo, reached that port, having
in tow two scows, the Abby and the A. Murray, of
Port Robinson. The captain of the steamer, not
knowing the depth of water kept too far into the
river with not sufficient steam to keep headway on
the scows, One of the latter, the A. Murray,
striking against the spies at the entrance of the
harbour, swung around with the current almost
into the jaws of the mighty cataract. The
captain and four men who were on board, seeing
the helpless position into which the vessel
had got, and the great peril with which
they were threatened—being within less than
five minutes, distance of the great fall—leaped
from the vessel and boldly struck for shore,
Four of them, the captain included, succeeded by
great exertions in maintaining themselves above
the surface; but, sad to relate, the fifth sank amid
the leaping and boiling waters, and was carried
over the cataract. In the meantime a boat, manned
by two brave men, shot out from the mouth of Wel-
land River to the assistance of the helpless beings
in the scow, The oarsmen, Messrs. F. Latin!), jun.,
and George Morse, pulled boldly and swiftly out,
rescued the men from their perilous position, and
succeeded in reaching the shore just above the first
rapid. One minute more and they would have been
carried over the Falls to the great gulf below. Too
much praise cannot be given to the men by whose
presence of mind and courage four human beings
were thus rescued from certain destruction. The
scrow glided along the stream till it reached the
rock almost on the brink of the cataract, where its
course was stopped, and where it will probably re-
main till broken up by the ice in the spring.—
!formate Leader.

ARTIFICIAL STONE.—A Frenchman has patented
an invention for pulverising the refuse of slate, and mixing
it with some substance to produce an artificial material ap-
plicable to the purpose of some of the best kinds of slates.
AMERICAN MAIL STEAMERS DUE AT LIVERPOOL
THIS WEEK.—The following are the names of the
American mail steamers due at Liverpool this week, viz. :
—The City of Washington, with dates from New York to
the 26th December, may be expected at Queenstown in the
course
rseofteoc.eniobrerro,w
the Nova Scotian, from Portland,
Maine, on the 26th ult.
May also be looked for at London-
derry to-morrow. On Saturday next the Cunard steamer
Australasian, with dates from New York to December 30,
will no doubt reach Queenstown. Should the present
easterly wind continue, however, the steamers may be de-
layed much beyond the regular time.
THE WEATHER AT LIVERPOOL.—Such has been
the severity of the weather at Liverpool and in the
district during the past few days that portions of the
Mersey not exposed to the rapid wash of the tide have been
iocze while the various sheets of water
en to an extent not equalled for many
I
Exchange flags were deserted yesterday
coveredyinelaarnsd
h wa
past.vi teh
bTtehehince thick
by a large number of constant frequenters, who betook
themselves for enjoyment to the various skating-fields in
the neighbourh od. In fact, to use Exchange parlance, ice
is !coking up" everywhere.
We hear that the Count de Paris, who is now at
Seville,
is engaged to be married to the eldest daughter of
the Duke of MontPensier, the Infanta Isabel. May next is
stated as the period fixed for the wedding; but, in the
meantime, the Duke and Duchess of Montpensier have
gone to Madrid to seek the consent of the Queen.
ACCIDENT TO MR. NEWDEGATE, M.P.—A few
evenings ago Mr. Newdegate, M.P., had a narrow
escape from being seriously injured. On the day in ques-
tion, it would seem, the hon. gentleman, after visiting a
friend residing near Leamington, left that town early in the
afternoon in his gig, his servant driving. At Coventry the
horse was changed, and Mr. Newdegate started on his way
in the direction of Arbury alone. -While passing along the
road he was met by a small low coal cart drawn by a pony.
From some cause, at present unexplained, the pony turned
right across the way, immediately in front of the horse Mr.
Newdegate was driving. The animal, a spirited one, took
fright at the sudden obstruction, and made an attempt to
leap over the cart, in which effort the gig was turned over,
and Mr. Newdegate thrown out. Fortunately the hon.
gentleman so fell that he sustained no serious injury.—
Birmingham Daily lost.

INTERESTING TO PLACE•HUNTERS.—WhiIe Pre-
sident Lincoln was confined to his house with the varioloid,
some friends called to sympathise with him, especially on
the character of his disease. "Yes," he said, "itis a bad
disease, but it has its advantages. For the first time since
I have been in office I have something now to give to every-
body that calls."
CUI BONO ?-0n Thursday, the London press
offered its annual sacrifice to custom. Each paper
omitted its articles to make room for a dreary history of the
year, too lengthy for hu:nan perusal, too brief to bo of the
slightest use for future reference. The anathemas uttered
at breakfast tables must have been an awful addition to the
daily sins of London, and all gobonouches, conversationists,
old gentlemen, and club loungers displayed a perceptible
increase of stupidity and weariness. A dictionary, or in-
dex, or concordance, or collection of Mr. Byron's puns, is
lively reading by the side of these things, and a London
Directory would afford a great deal more amusement. Who
are they written for? Even. the penny papers insert them,
though they at least cannot aspire to the honour of the
" file." if they did, they would print themselves on paper
lasting more than an hour and a half,