The Sun.
London, England, 1852-05-18 00:00:00

HOLLAND.

The colossal bronze statue of REMBRANDT, after
the model of HOEVENS, has just been placed on its
pedestal at Amsterdam. Before that operation took
place, the burgomaster deposited in a cavity Made in
the pedestal a leaden 'vase containing a sheet of parch-
nmaenets, on which are inscribed the names of the 460
Kofinl
lovers of the fine arts who subscribed to have this
statue executed. At the head of the list are the
m
King of
Ta DE
ituLkA.sv ofpsand
NASSAU,
11. as
WILLIAM M.
as Prince of ORANGE.

ITALY.
A
Efrom n Romethe
newof theaa auditor
rh
Able D
arrivedFrance,there. aenr.
de.MTonhe siglaaotrte Fr La.hvarso
expplrCesasemd t
himselfh
adj just
the warmest terms for the kind reception which had
that
been given to him by the PRINCE PRESIDENT of the
osftatthe se
Kota for
Republic. The arrival of M. TRIERS was every day
expected. The Pontifical authorities were a little
moved on hearing of the expected arrival of this new
traveller. It is said that M. TRIERS is colltcting
documents or materials for a new historical work.
On the sth instant the King of NAPLES went in
state with the Royal Family to worship the relics of
St. Januarius.

The Opinione of Turin, of the 13th, states that the
indisposition of Marquis VAZEGLIO, which has kept
him for the hut few days from the Chamber, has be-
come rather more serious than was at first expected.
The Costituzionale of Florence appeared for the
last time on the Bth, with a farewell article to its
readers, in which it deplores the abolition of the
Tuscan Constitution ; adding that, " although the
Costituzionale dies, its principles will not die with it."

RAILWAY CONSTRUCTION.---COMBINA-
TION DEFEATED.
(FRoii A CORRESPONDENT.)
On Friday last the Permanent Way Companies Bill
was brought before a Select Committee of the House of
Commons, Lord Hotham Chairman. The promoters of
this Bill consisted of persons connected as engineers or
otherwise, indirectly concerned in the construction of
railways, consisting of Mr. William H. Barlow, En-
gineer of the Midland Railway; P. W. Barlow, Mr. Sa-
muels, formerly Engineer of the Eastern Counties; Mr.
P. Ashcroft, Superintendent of Permanent Way of the
Eastern Counties; and a Mr. Richardson, who has been
employed in railway construction. These parties had
united together, as it would appear from the opening ad-
dress of their counsel, to purchase up all patents at pre-
sent obtained relating to permanent way of railways, and
sought powers also to purchase future patents relating to
the same object—a power that was looked upon with consi-
derable jealousy by the Committee. The two witnesses
called by the promoters of the Bill were Mr. Samuels
Bed Mr. May, of the firm of Ransoms and May, who
endeavoured to maintain the principle that railway com-
panies
and the public would be benefited by a combina-
tion of all inventions relating to the formation of rail-
ways being in the hands of an incorporated company,
and possessing exclusive powers, to which reference has
been made. On this, as on all other questions, there
happened to be a difference of opinion; and the pro-
moters of the Bill found, to their great astonishment,
an array of opposition against their views, as to rail-
ways and the public being benefited, which they did not
at all anticipate.
The opponents to the Bill, Messrs. Adahead and
Greaves, the proprietors of Greaves's Patent Conical
Sleeper, which is adopted by Mr. Robert Stephenson for
the Egyptian Railway, f( und most unexpectedly an in-
fluenca spontaneously offered to their aid which pre-
sented such a phalanx of first class engineering strength,
that completely paralyzed the efforts of the promoters of
the Bill, and they concluded after the first sitting of
the Committee to withdraw it.
A judgment may be formed of the estimation in
which this Railway Construction Monopoly Bill was
viewed, when it is seen that out of the number of most
eminent engineers, who tendered to give evidence in
opposition to the Bill, are to be found the names of J. K.
Brunel, Esq., C.E., Joseph Locke, Esq.. C.E.
J. M. Rendel,„Esq , C.E., President of the Institution of
Civil Engineers, Charles Vignoles, Esq., C.E., John
Fowler, Egq , C.E., J.E. Erz ington, Esq.,C.E., J. M'Lean,
Esq , C.E —lt liertson, Esq., C.E, &c. The op-
ponents of the Bill would also have had the able assis-
tance of John Havksbaw, Esa , C.E.
The opposition to this Bill was most timely, it having
been made at the eleventh hour by the proprietors of
Greaves's Sleepers. The Bill appeared to have escaped
the notice of those who would have been by the powers
and operations of the Bill most seriously concerned.
The gentlemen whose names are above-men-
tioned, so importantly connected with the construc-
tion of raile ass, must have been impressed
with the restrictive and mischievous influence
awyc
mentioned,eo
aumldbds. construction
hu e d
mo-
nopolytha
by
yhitchhe thpeepromsasenstlaniotnyirofeypocweererspespoyugßhtill towebueldob.
inflict,tstined
inasmuch as it would place both railway companies and
patent right for
engineers under an influence so at variance with the
free competition which should exist
. for the promotion or
advancement
iimspoewritnagettoasMsisetsasnr
of
ie" or
f improvementsnoetwnhntecrptpeorrwlimnseesr.rfaoolflrl railway
assistance of the emi-
nent hlya individual
theimportantnr railways Effort
g n t materials . employed in the coiennesdtfraauchetd-
t°l
rne
ofve railwayGreaves,
nsie aided
whosebaYndthei t
names have been
the efforts of the attempted Reilwa...r.
Mono-
poly has been so signally deleated..y Construction

in SE'taffßorYdshAire
last/l/U week the
AND'
ofS muchD
The village of Ch2adley, Staffordshire, was
FARMER.
sion of a most horrible murdercleiternebt by
the commis-
fear er named Stephen Walker, and
suicide by a young
about twenty-seven ' -r• He was a single BM,
years of age, and it would seem
that he was rather of
unsteady habits, and fonder of
roaming about with his
had been for some time gun than of settled industry. He
paying his addresses to a young
girl of the name of
publican, but her Fanny Walker, the daughter of a
parents disapproving of the acquaint-
ance, sent her out
considerably excitiof the way. This had the effect of
ng him.
she returned In the course of the week
ned to her father's house, and he endeavoured
. On Tuesday he called to renew his addresses
house andstayed for several hours, the daughter, at the
r s
request of the mother, being kept upstairs, away from
him. Re had some conversation with the mother, and the
circumstance of not being allowed to see Fanny excited
his deepest anger. He then went out for a
short time and returned with a gun in his hand.
The daughter, disregarding her parents' directions to
keep out of the way, came down stairs to see him,
" ho assured her that he would not harm her.
He then asked her whether she intended
to continue the acquaintance or not. She replied that
her only objection to him was his course of life, where-
upon he snatched up the will, and pointing it at the
unfortunate girl, said, " I now show you what I
want," The mother screamed, and, getting between
them, succeeded in pushing him out of the passage into
the road, and bolted the door._ He then ran to the win-
dow, and thrust the muzzler_of the gun through one of
the panes. The
.mot
~
_too_k hold of it, exclaiming with
the utmost devotion, Don't shoot Fanny, shoot me,"
at the same moment urging her daughter to run out of
the room. This the poor girl attempted, but in her tre-
could not unfasten
pidation
of the door; and just as she was
and
out the room the rascal discharged the gun,
and the contents lodged in her left side, just below the
breast. On seeing her fall the fellow decamped, taking
the gun with him. After running across some fields he
stopped and re-loaded the gun, and then taking off his
, sammy" hat he put a loop of the ribbon on the trigger,
and then placed the muzzle under his chin, and
so, by pressing his foot on the hat downwards, dis-
charged the gun into his head. As may be supposed,
his death was instantaneous. A coroner's inquiry was
held on both bodies, and the jury gave as their verdict—
That the deceased girl was murdered by Stephen
Walker, and that ho then destroyed himself while in a
state of temporary insanity." Although of the tame
name, they wore not related to each other.

DREADFUL FIRE.
piroep.ulaTtehde
taowNnilolarg\e,intsog tool:
consists
of place at
Manes,
—On Sunday, the 16th instant,
between two and three, P.m., one of the most disastrous fires
one long street, nearly half a mile in length. The fire broke
out in a pig-stye, and the wind being in the tame direction,'
that
it rapidly spread from one end of the place to another, con-
suming everything in its course. One small engine wax
brought to play, but, through the want of water, was of little
use. The station master of the Manea station (within one
mile of the village) immediately telegraphed for engines
from March, and in the course of an hour one arrived, and
was the means of saving the other half of the town. The
loss is not known, but most of the sufferers are not insured.
The sight of the many families trying to save their furniture,
and the cries of the women, were most heartrending. Two
or three fields are now covered with household goods of
of
every description, and, as Manes is a very small place, they
will most likely have to remain in this lamentable position
until other habitations are built, or the killdur3sB 0f (a gent-
.
.. xousi public ztlityo tiara,