The Sun.
London, England, 1863-07-25 00:00:00

TUE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, JULY 25, 1863,

LAW INTELLIGENCE—This Day,

COURT OF BANKRUPTCY.
(Before Mr. Commissioner Holroyi.)

IN RE CHRISTOPHER MUSGROVE.-A, FRAUDULENT AD •
MINISTRATOR,-SUSPENSION FOR TWELVE MONTHS

WITHOUT PROTECTION.

This bankrupt came up to pass his last examination and
to apply for his aischarge ; ho described himself as adminis•
trator of Mr, Henrietta Vernon. The debts are stated at
£l6O to creditors unsecured, and £9l to creditors holding
security ; property in the hands of creditors, £ls.' No
a-sets.

Mr. Aldridge said the bankrupt had been insolvent or
bankrupt four times, and the principal complaint now
against him was misappropriating £250 moneys received
for the use of the Rev. Wm. Vernon and Miss Emma
V. *non, as such administrators.

The bankrupt had run through £l,OOO, and spent £2o`j
last year. ,

Two creditors opposed on the ground that the bankrupt
had contracted debts without reasonable prospect of being
able to pay.

➢lr. Shepherd, one of the creditors, said the bankrupt
had sued in forma pauperis, but on going to him in prison
bankrupt said !hat he (Shepherd) need not be in any fear,
as he and other creditors should be paid, and his only object
in going through the court was to punish a rascally
butcher, who had sued him for some meat—he even named
a day for payment, and a very remarkable day it was—the
Ist of April. (Laughter.)
His Honour censured the bankrupt's conduct, suspended
the order of discharge for 12 months, for misappr, priating
the trust money, and for contracting debts without means
of paying.
Protection was refused.

THE SOURCE OF THE NILE.

The following letters have been handed to us by
Captain Spike, who, in his communication which
accompanies them, confirms what Mr. Baker says
of the system carried on by the White Nile traders.
Captain Speke informs us the Vakeel alluded to took
from him three rifled carbines as an honorarium,
and faithfully promised to take Mr. Baker up the
Nile as far as his ivory ataticn, whence the Luta
Nzige River Lake could have been reached without
much difficulty.
Captain Speke further informs us that the Baron
von Heugin, in giving an account, dated May 10,
of his movements, and th :se of a party of Dutch
ladies near the Bahr el Ghazul, says he " had pro-
ceeded en a preliminary tour as far as the Dor
country, in 8 degrees north latitude, and then
rt turned to Like Rek, whence the whole of the ex
pedition, inciu ling the ladies, were to start about
the 12th of May. Mr. Petherick paid them a visit
at Like Rek on the 4th of May, after having, on
his journey from Gondokoro, had the misfortune to
lose nearly all his provisions, goods, and outfit, to
the value of about £3,000, according to his own
estimate. He intended to go up the Sobat River."
Captain Speke supposes from this that Mr. Pethe-
rick has abandoned the trading post at N'Zambara,
60 west of Gondokoro, and will therefore find it
very inconvenient to keep his promise to Mr.
Baker of sending up a vessel to Gondokoro next
January.

" Gondokoro, March 17, 1863.

"My dear Speke,—l am still here; all my Khartoum
scoundrels mutinied when the boats were fairly gone, and
they thought my retreat cut off.
"Their idea was to settle down at Gondokoro until next
year, at high wages, and doing nothing.
"Never have I seen such utter villains as these people,
The Vakeel of Deb,no, who brought you here, and who had
faithfully promised to give me porters, decamped suddenly
one evening wish his people, sending me a message ' that no
more English spies should visit his camp.'
"I therefore prepared to start with my transport animals,
leaving many of my things behind. My men then all muti-
nied, and refused to proceed.
" I then had my horses and a swift dromedary prepared,
intending to make a dash through the Bari with my only
faithtul man (a negro), taking the sextant, &c , a few light
rifles and ammunition, and a few copper bracelets and beads
on the dromedary ; at the same I took very determined
measures with my mutineers. _

" Just as I was preparing to be off alone they got fright-
ened, and 1 got them in hand again; but they mutinied
again when I wanted to take Petherick with me, who was
helpless, his men having all mutinied and deserted him.
They declared that if Petherick joined me not a man would
move from Gondokoroe

" I cannot attempt to prophesy the end of this. I have
written to Colquhoun by this opportunity to beg him to get
stringent orders sent by the Egyptian Government to the
Governor or Khartoum that all these mutineers shall be
punished to extremity on return to Khartoum. Otherwise,
all travelling and exploration will be at an end from this
side. I wish you would move interests in England in this
direction.

" I shall get on if it is possible, and I trust to be off to-
morrow with light loads, animals and all,
" Trusting you and Grant are reaping your laurels, and
with kind regards to him, ever very sincerely yours,

" SAM. W. BAKER. ''

" Gondokoro, March 25, 1863,

"My dear Colquhoun,—Still here I My men again in
open mutiny, holding forcible possession of the arms and
ammunition belonging to me, and having conspired to
shoot the 'Vakeel and desert me, and to shoot me likewise
should I attempt to take the guns from them.
" Gondokoro is a perfect hell. Not a day passes without
natives coming to me with tales of their wives and children
being carried off, their cattle stolen, the defenders mur-
dered, &c. The traders' establishments here are full of
slaves, women in fetters, &c.
The whole of the traders who now infest Gondokoro and
the neighbouring country are Egyptian subjects, with the
exception of Andrea Debono. No trader (I make no excep-
tions) can carry on his trade without stealing cattle, which
entails the murder of the proprietors.
" Is the Egyptian Government to be allowed to blink the
fact that such atrocities are committed wholesale? Should
not the Government be compelled to keep a Bey and 600
troops in Gondokoro to enforce order if the White Nile
trade is permitted, or should it not be altogether prohibited?
" Travelling and exploring are at an end. The traders
can always a xcite discontent, or frighten the escort of a
traveller, and thus keep him out of the country.
" I enclose you a copy of an official letter that I ad-
dressed to Petherick to-day upon my affairs.
" You will remember that I applied for troops as escort
from the Egyptian Government, and was refused, although
the Baronne de Capellane had soldiers given her.
" I therefore engaged my present escort in Khartoum, all
of whom are Egyptian subjects, and their names were regis-
tered at the Divan of Khartoum before my departure.

" These men were specially engaged for my expedition to
the sources of the Nile, and even the idea of meeting Speke
and Grant was explained to them, that there should be no
discontent upon so long a journey, and that the difficulties
of the undertaking should be fully understood previous to
their engagement.

" Upon this understanding they received five months' pay
in advance at Khartoum.

" Having inquired fully into the character of the country,
and having heard that no porters could be hired without
cattle, and that the cattle could not be obtained without
robbery, I brought here, in three vessels, at a greatexpense,
camels, horses, and asses. By great personal attention on
my part all these arrived here in good' order —thus I can
start at an hour's notice, without a single porter, my animals
being sufficient for the purpose of transport. In fact, my
expedition was in perfect order, and I was capable of going
anywhere bad the men been faithful. The men are there-
fore responsible, as Egyptian subjects, for the whole of my
expens-s from Khartoum, and these I intend to recover, if
possible, as a large sum of money is not only entirely wasted
through their mutiny, but they have themselves received
five. months' wages in advance, and nevertheless they have
not moved a step from Gondekoro.
"March 26.

" I have picked out a few of my men, making a weak
escort of 17, including servants, and with these I start to-
day, intending to explore the east towards the river Sobat,
as I cannot get a man to move south from Gondokoro, and
I am determined not to be beaten back from this point
before I have completed an exploration of some of this
hitherto untrodden land.
" I start thus suddenly, as I take advantage of a trader's
armed party of 80 men, who are going to a depot in that
direction (east), and I will follow close to their heels with
my weak party through the east country, until I get into
undisturbed tribes. I have no time to write home, as I
must pack immediately. If I lose this chance lam done
entirely. Please let Speke know (or the Geographical So.
ciety) Of the state of affairs. He will know that I have done
my best, and, D.V., although driven from my path, I will
nevertheless bring home some information.
"Dr. Murie, who accompanied Petherick, and the lad
Folcroft are returning to England. The former will give
you some curious information of planners and customs, Scc.

" Petherick is to send me a boat and corn, to be here in
January next, for which I have paid him £6l. I trust there
will be no mistake, or I shall be in an extremity.—l am,
&c., "S. W. BAKEB.."

" Lat. 4 24 N., 101 miles S.E, from Gondokoro,
Aprill2, 1863.

" My dear Colquhcun,—After every exertion made by my
own men and the slave hunting parties of Gondokero to
prevent my peogress, I have nevertheless got ahead by fol-
lowing in the wake of a trader's band, who refused to allow
me to accompany them, However, I soon passed them on
the road, and subsequently by a golden key I opened the
heart of the leader, and I now have him at my service.
" On the road (my escort comprising only 17 men, includ
ing servants) three of my men deserted with my guns and
ammunition, and joined another slave hunting party be-
longing to a Syrian named Chenovda, who resides at Khar-
toum. A few days later this party attacked a village on the
mountains, within 12 miles of this spot, for the purpose of
stealing cattle and slaves. The natives fought splendidly,
and annihilated the whole party with the exception of about
a dozen, who escaped ; 95 of the trader's men were killed on
the spot, in spite of their being well armed, and nearly 200
blacks, their allies in the attack, were also killed. My party
or escort is now reduced to 14 by the desertion of three, but
two of these have already met their reward, having been
killed in the fight with their new friends.
It is utterly useless fcr me to dwell upon the atrocities of
these Khartounters ; you have had enough of that in former
letters.

"T he rainyseason is now just commencing hore,and I have
camped among the tribe of ' Gatookas,' hitherto unknown,
The trader's party, under whose wing my slender escort
delight to shelter itself, belongs to Koorshid Aga. I shall
leave all my heavy baggage in their charge, making this
(their depot) my headquarters. The head man returns to-
morrow to Gondokoro, and he will take this letter to his
master, who will return to Khartoum shortly. The head
man will bring reinforcements from Gondokoro in about
three weeks, his force here being now 85 men, which with
my party form 100, in case of any necessity of defence. I
leave to• morrow for a country two days from this, where
there is a great variety of game,—there I shall hunt for a
few weeks, and then return. After that I shall continue east
to the river Sobat, but, there being no water on the road, I
must wait till the rains have set in thoroughly.
" All my animals behaved well, arriving here as fresh as
paint, not one having a sore back, owing to my personally
superintending saddles, pads, &e., in Khartoum ; but one of
my camels has since died from eating a poisonous plant.
However, I am well away, thank God I from Gondokoro,in-
stead of being beaten back to Khartoum,and I can now pro-
cure provisions, porters, and all I require for beads and
copper, of which 1 have a large supply. 1 intend to pass

nine mouths in exploring, and then to go to Gondokoro an d
straight thence to Cairo, en route for England. I trust you
will be able to procure an order to the Governor of Khar-
toum to punish all my mutineers with the utmost severity.
If not, no Englishman can ever show his face in this
country. " S. W. MILER."

Sebastopol Eight Years after the Siege.

A gentleman who has lately returned from a
fortnight's visit to the Crimea has sent to the Hom-
iny Post the following account of the appearance of
Sebastopol and its neighbourhood in 1563:—" On
arrival at Sebastopol one is at once struck with the
desolation that prevails on each side of the harbour.
There are, indeed, a few guns still mounted on Fort
Constantine, and the Russian ensign waves over it,
but the other forts on the north side are crumbling
to pieces, end not a gun or a soldier is visible along
the whole range of these once formidable works.
At the entrance of the harbour are a few worm-
eaten hulks lately raised by Colonel Gowen, and of
South Bay lies the admiral's steam yacht, while a
few coasters are laden with shot and broken shell,
the reliquice Danaum of 1854-55, at the further
extremity, and these are the representatives of the
Russian fleet in the Black Sea in 1863. Landing
at the quay, where now no Russian official accosts
the suspicious stranger, a walk of 200 yards leads
to the hotel, kept by one M. Witzel, formerly head
waiter of the clubhouse, the ruins of which are im-
mediately adjoining. The moms are scrupulously
clean, and the green soup and young mutton' are
not flit) worse because they are the staple delicacy
in a bill of fare of prodigious length. First in in-
terest to the visitor here, as to many a distant fire-
side in England, must always be the British ceme-
teries. It is a task of several days to inspect then)
all, scattered as they are on so many hillsides, and
several of them we were not able to visit; but it
will be gratifying to the survivors of that memor-
able campaign to hear that of all we visited we
scarcely found one that had received any injury
beyond the unavoidable decay which eight Crimean
winters must bring with them. This is in a great
measure owing to the attention of Captains Eldridge
and Clipperton, the late and present Consuls at
Kertch. Around each enclosure, small or large,
low solid walls have been built, and are kept in
good repair. On Cathcart's-hill, though the grass
has grown up over many of the flat tombstones,
we only noticed one headstone that had been
injured; it was one which marked the grave of
a colonel of the 55th Regiment, and on inquiry
we found that it was blown down in a gale last
winter. It splintered to pieces, and the words,
Colonel, 55th Regiment,' were all we could collect.
In the adjoining cemeteries, where some hundreds
of our brave soldiers rest, it is gratifying to see that
even the round shot which eight or nine years ago
some friendly hand placed as a border to his com-
rade's grave remain undisturbed. What has been
said of Cathcart's-hill applies equally to the graves
of the light division, and, in fact, to all the large
enclosures. Wild flowers spring up luxuriantly
about them all, and there is no appearance of any
intrusion either of man or beast. Gen. Pelissier's
headquarters and Lord Raglan's house are inhabited
by Tartars, who have taken great pride in preserv-
ing everything that tells of their departed glory.
The huts still surround Lord Raglan's quarters which
once sheltered his staff; a small tablet in the room
where he died records the fact. Kadikoi and Bala-
klava are as quiet as the graves, some few smal:
boats lying idle in the harbour, our quay rotting to
pieces, and our huts now occupied by the returning
Tartars, whose only occupation seems to be fishing
for the treasure trove, the sad mementoes of the
awful gale of Nov. 14, 1854. A bagfull of sovereigns
was fished up a few days before our arrival. 'Point
Powell' and 'Castle Bay,' in bold English letters on
the rocks still greet the eye, and several old barges
savour still strongly of the Saxon. The field of
Balaklava is now dotted with vineyards, and is by
no means good galloping ground in '63. All our
batteries remain much as we left them. The trenches
can be traced for miles. They have fallen in, as
might be expected, but every position is recognisa-
ble at a glance. Inkerman's Heights are thickly
covered with brushwood, though the batteries are
easily discerned, and the camps are also well distin-
guished, though the grass has grown over the
paved streets that intersected the lines. The
principal occupation of the Tartar women and
children consists in digging for bullets, of
which they find vast numbers in the crumbling
soil of the batteries, Great quantities of grape
shot and broken shell still lie about the prin-
cipal points of attack. I regret to say that the
Redan monument is in a disgraceful state; the
inscription has been almost entirely obliterated.
Some Vandals have cut their names on it, and even
large pieces out of it for keepsakes, and the wall
round it is broken down in several places. The
Redan itself is unaltered in general appearance,
though gradually crumbling into the ditch, and
vineyards are quietly springing up in its rear. The
Malakoff remains a mass of ruin; in fact, nothing
has been done since the war to alter the appearance
of the town, save the rebuilding of a line of barracks
near the docks, where the present garrison, consist-
ing of one battalion, is quartered. If possible the
desolation is more apparent on the north than on
the south side. You can traverse the whole line of
fortifications and meet with neither soldier nor gun ;
the ramparts are falling into their fosse, the walls
have sunk, though the general appearance is that
of desertion rather than destruction. A new church
has been lately erected in memory of Prince Gorts-
chakoff and the Russian army, which stands well
above the large Russian cemetery near the light-
house. There are said to be 3,000 inhabitants now
in Sebastopol ; we scarcely met 30. The shops
consist of a long line of open huts, on which Eng-
lish letters repeatedly occur, and prove their origin.
There cover the ground where Fort St. Nicholas
once stood. Some few of the houses have been re-
built facing the harbour, and we were agreeably
surprised to hear one evening the strains of music,
which brought out nearly 100 well-dressed people
to promenade on the terrace, where a naval trophy
looks proudly down on the shattered town, but
whence they came and whither they returned we
never exactly found out. Music amid so much ruin
jarred strangely on the ear. We made an excursion
to the Alma, and slept at what was designated the
Hotel St, Petersburg, a Tartar cabaret close by the
bridge which crosses the river, and visited next
morning the first scene of the campaign at Boul-
ganek. The ruined pothonse still marks the spot
where the first shot was fired. The village has been
partially rebuilt, the graves of Major Rose, Lieut.
Cockerel', and Capt. Cast are well preserved, and
the monument to the memory of the 23d and 33d
on the heights is not injured. The Tartars appear
to have a friendly recollection of the English, and
they have planted trees round several of the graves.
The bridge has just been repaired."

A WORD WITH M. THALBERO.—(An overlooked
series of charmingly sarcastic compliments.—ED,
Sun.)—Mons. Thalberg, Mons. Thalberg, what are you
about, sir? What el'ye mean by frightening us by letting
it be advertised that your performance at the Crystal Palace
last week was your farewell recital?" No doubt you love
retirement, everybody does, but you have surely not the
cruelty to think of it at present? Your villa near to Naples
is no doubt a sweet retreat, but to think of it at present
would be simply villa-nous. Recollect, you have a duty
to perform to the public, and the public will not let you off
from your performance. While you give us so much plea-
sure, you must not consult your own ; we love your play
sol,much that we would always have you work at it.
A few bars' rest is all we can let you take ; or come, say a
few months, if you really do require it. Yes, Halle is de-
lightful, and so is Arabella : but because a tart is sweet,
are we to have no turtle ? There is nobody to fill your
place, Sir, if you go, for nobody can make the piano sing
as you can. A piano is to many a piano-forte-et-dure,
an
instrument of horribly excruciating torture. But in your
hands a piano can never torment, it can only charm and
gratify. With Miss Blank, and some other hundred girls
who shall be nameless, a piano is a box of jingling jangling
wirer!, which serve only to emit a stupid jig or censelczs
polka. With you it is for sweetness as the voice of Jenny
Lind ; and for fire and force and fulness, as the orchestra
of Mellon. So don't talk of retirement if you please, good
Monsienr Thalberg. It is a pleasure to hear you play, and
we have not so many pleasures that we can well afford to
lose one. And why should you retire? There is no lack of
life about you. Your right hand has not lost its cunning,
nor your left one either—that is, if you leave a left, which
your playing makes one question. It is a tempting thing
no doubt to try the Southern lazy-faire, and join the Naples
lazy-roni : but you must not think of,leaving till the ladies
give you leave, and, with Judy at their head, the ladies all
protest they cannot part with you at present,--From last
week's Punch,

PROPHECIES FOR GOODWOOD RACES.

The following are the anticipations of the various weekly
papers as to the results of the Goodwood Stakes and Cup :

Bell's Life.

GOODWOOD STAKES.—WO cannot help "following the
money" and choosing Anfield for our ally, his trial being
almost good enough to win a Derby.

GOODWOOD Cur.—Buckstone is backed for so much
money that we are bound to overlook all his failures, as if
he cannot win at Goodwood there is no cup race he ie good
enough to contend for ; and the next best to him may be
discovered in Fairwater.

BEAcoisr—Sporting Gazette.
GOODWOOD STAYER.--My opinion in this instance is
that Bellman or Zapateado will prove the winner, should
no demonstration be made in favour of Brian Boru, wbo I
must take as a "cockboat."

GOODWOOD Cur.--Buckstene runs on 71b worse terms
than weight for age with the 3-year-olds; but, great horse
though he be, I think he can hardly give so much weight
as 321 b to Isoline and La Toucques, either of whom I ex-
pect to see win ; and were I certain of its being a strong
run race I should give Isoline the preference, believing that
if anything beats the pair it 7111 be Atherstone, whose per-
formance for the Epsom Cup, whero ho beat Buokstone fair
and square, giving him 31b, seems to be quite overlooked
by the public.

OBSERVER—The Field.
GOODWOOD STAYES.—TO sum up, I must place ANYIELD
first, and ZIPATEA.7IO second.
GOODWOOD Cur.—At two miles La Toucques would
undoubtedly be formidable, but if the judgment of English
jockeys is to be depended upon, she tired too much in the
great race at Paris ti) be safely depended upon now. I shall
therefore not hesitate to award the Goodwood Cup of this
year to BUCKSTONE.

TOUCHSTONE—Era.
GOODWOOD STAKES,—To sum up, we think the three
likely to beat the find are Anfi3ld, Brian Boru, and Bell.
man, and believing that Bellman is a good horse, and that
he will stay every inch of the distance, we take him to be
the most worthy of eupport at the present state of the quo •
tations,

GOODWOOD Cur.—We can see nothing to upset Buck-
stone, and we confidently expect to see him accomplish for
Mr. Merry what Thormanby did two years ago.