The Sun.
London, England, 1863-07-02 00:00:00

Ariz- ,;t
Ii Sint

LONDON, 'THURSDAY, JULY 2, 1863.

_---~ -

Although the last tidings from America,
brought yesterday to our shores by the Nova
Scotia, add but scantily to our previous know-
ledge of the course of the war, they possess
a peculiar value, inasmuch as they rectify our last
fragments of information. The accounts brought to
us by the preceding packet appear, after this revi-
sion, to have been in one cr two particulars very
considerably exaggerated. The Confederates who
have actually crossed the Potomac, it seems, num-
ber no more than a few thousand men altogether.
Along the banks of that river, however, in readi-
ness to follow their commands on the shortest
notice, loitered the rest of the Southern
soldiers making up the sum total of the
grand army, under the banners of LEE. That army
as a whole is estimated, moreover, we now learn, at
an aggregate of from 80,000 to 100,000 men, Sup.
posing which estimate to be correct, the numbers,
it is observable, are slightly in excess of those ap-
pertaining to the Federal army under HOOKER,
Very slightly, however, if at all, can it be in excess
t
assailing
that
General the Federals under HOOKER seeingsa
General LEE has refrained hitherto from ling
his antagonist, or from (as yet) crossing the Potomac.
A portion of his troops, LEE has sent across it is true'
but only a portion, as already remarked,numbering a
very few thousand. These, when the last advice,
left, were still in Maryland and Pennsylvania.
They are there manifestly enough less for purposes
of reconnoitringthan either as an advanced guard or
as a decoy. Probably the next intelligence received
from that part of the seat of war will clearly
enough indicate the purpose of General LEE in de.
ciding upon this partial and apparently as yet
merely episodical movement. Hagerstown, although
hitherto the onlyplace on the left side of the Potomac,
occupied by the Confederate troops, the comparative
few of them at least thrown across it north of
Washington, certainly appears to have been occu-
pied in something like earnest, stores having been
transported thither in abundance ! Hagerstown,
had been consittuted, in point of fact, the head-
qualaers of the expeditionary force in Maryland,
whence it might venture at pleasure upon future
raids into Pecnsy;v:.;nis.
A ecnfi3f,nt statement meanwhile appears to have
been put forth through the New York; Tribune to
the effect that General LEE had moved his
in force upon Centreville, there
main army
HOOKER and
defeating the Federals under ,
defeating them so completely that, according to the
corroborated account of MANHATTAN, "HOOKER
[meaning his immediate entourage, we presume]
had been cut to pieces, and his army
Rather captured."
a confused, almost we had said a contradic-
to
r
y
' way of putting it. But, even when expressed
thus confusedly,
poaIte:ANHATTAN'S statement is so ex-
ceedinglyuf its kind, that it surely must
have some
moderate amount of foundation.
Aa Defeat and anaamma of Defeat follow

hard one upon the other from the Fede-
ral camp, dropping ominous in upon the
the Northern public in New York and Washington,
the clamour again revives, swelling more and more
loudly upon the Presidential ear, for the replace-
ment of HOOKER by M'CLELLAN. Faithful to
their old belief in his capacity—a belief, upon what
founded, it would certainly be difficult even to con-
jecture—the admirers of M'CLELLAN hope against
hope to the very last for his reinstallation in the
chief command, and for the rehabilitation of the all
but irretrievably ruined fortunes of the North.
While these—

" Hopes and fears that nourish hope
An undistinguishable throng"—

still agitate the hearts of the Northerners, the sword
of LEE, like the sword above DAMOCLES, trembles,
ore may say, by the suspension of a hair, over
dreaming Washington.

The account of Mr. GLAISHER 'S eleventh balloon
ascent will be read with deep interest by all who
can admire courage and skill, even if they
are unable to profit to the full by the valu-
able information he has added to our scientific
store. The energies of our countrymen in pur-
suit of scientific knowledge is becoming no less
remarkable than their political or commercial
activity. How many brave men have laid down
their lives for what was after all a discovery which
chiefly concerned the curious, for the North-west
pßsssge must always be useless as a channel for
navigation. Englishmen have explored the Austra-
lian continent, and have penetrated into those
African wilds left hitherto in undisputed possession
of the savage native tribes. The discovery of
Messrs. SPERE and GRANT has just added a signal
triumph to the list of their exploits; but not con-
tent NI ith traversing the surface, and detecting the
secrets of Mother Earth, our adventurous country-
men now take to the upper world of air. Like the
conqueror who lamented that no more worlds re-
mained for him to subjugate, our adventurers have
scarcely room for their energies on terra firma.
Mr. GLAISHER and his able companion, Mr.
COIWELL, have already distinguished themselves by
the extent of their experiments, and the last ascent
Mr. GLAISHER distinctly asserts to be among the
most extraordinary ever made. The ascents made
by these gentlemen belong to a very different order
of exploit from the " air balloons" which fill chil-
dren with wonder and delight. The height at-
tained on this occasion was no less than four miles
and a half, and the results of the observations made
were curious and valuable. Unfortunately, owing
to the high wind there was some difficulty in get-
ting the balloon to rise properly, as there was not
a sufficient supply of gas to contend with the wind.
To insure clearing the adjacent buildings five bags
of sand had to be thrown out at the last moment.
This loss of weight facilitated the rising, but was
proportionately disadvantageous to the descent. It
seems a pity that provision was not made for a
windy day, and that the consequent incon-
venience was not avoided. The aerial travellers
left the earth at three minutes past one p.m., re-
turning to it at 28 minutes past two, having
thus been absent less than one hour and a half.
Before starting the temperature was 66 degrees,
but of course diminished rapidly on leaving the •
earth, It underwent many variations during the
ascent, and reached the lowest point— 17 degs.—at
the height of four miles and a quarter. A faint
sun was seen in rising after passing some clouds.
The sighing of the wind was heard for the first time
during these ascents at 'the height of two miles.
The sound seemed to come from below the balloon
as from conflicting currents beneath. Shortly after
they became enveloped in a dry fog, which con-
tinued more or less until they hed reached an alti-
tude of more than four miles. During the descent
the sun was no more to be seen, but rain pattered
on the balloon, and for a space of nearly 4,000 feet
the travellers passed through a snow storm. Mr.
GLAISHER, in recapitulating the results of his jour-
ney, considers the meeting with snow and crystals
of ice in the month of June floating in the
atmosphere at the height of three miles and of
nearly one mile in thickness as the most extraordi •
nary and unexpected. A train was heard at a height
of more than four miles, the greatest altitude at
which sounds have been heard. This is an indication
of the generally moist state of the atmosphere.
For further particulars, and more especially for the
results of Mr. CLAIMER'S experiments with his
instruments, we refer the reader to his interesting
letter. We may hope if these gentlemen are enabled
to continue their interesting experiments, that they
will greatly add to the scope of that meteorological
knowledge which has already done some good ser-
vice by forwarning us of sudden and violent at-
mospheric changes.

Last night the LORD MAYOR entertained the Earl
of DERBY, Mr. DISRAELI, and all the leading mem-
bers of the Conservative party, at a splendid enter-
tainment in the Egyp lan Hall. Lord DERBY re
turned thanks in an amusing speech. He began
by stating that political bias was unknown in the
entertainments in the City. " Yon," my Lord
Mayor, said he, "have received this year with dis-
tinguished hospitality the members of her Majesty's
Government, of whica I am happy to say your lord•
ship
is not a supporter." Then he went on to sup-
pose various circumstances in which the present
smooth state of things might be altered. He be-
lieved that if the chair of the mayoralty were filled
by the most rabid Dissenter, the bishops and
Clergy WOl.. treat him with due respect, and also
that if a Quaker Lord Mayor appeared he would
do honour to the Navy, Army, and Volunteers.
There is no doubt that this remark of the noble
Earl is true, for the influence of established custom
is very great, and it is surprising what importance
is attached to the maintenance of the principle of
toleration that has so long existed in the City with
regard to the exercise of the functions of chief
magistrate. However, said Lord DERBY, on the
present occasion he thought he might venture to
depart somewhat from the rule that prescribed the
introduction of polities, seeing so many of his
friends around him, and remembering also the fact
that the toast had been proposed not only by the
MAYOR of London, bat the member for Southamp-
ton " in which town the Conservative party bad
achieved one of the most distinguished among the
many electioneering triumphs they have accom-
plished." His lordship then gave a brief resundof
the course of events, in which he truly described the
conduct that had ejected the Ccnservatives from
office as a pretext, which pretext, as soon as it had
served its turn, was abandoned. No words can be
too strong to apply to the most unfair transaction
in which the present Government gained their
places ; it was a subterfuge unworthy of English
statesmen, and it did not speak very highly for
their own merits that they had no measure suffi-
ciently good or important to advocate out of office
and introduce wt en in power. Lord DERBY then
paid a just tribute to the moderate and forbearing
conduct displayed by the Conservatives since they
had bean ejected from office. He gave an im-
pressive description of the arduous nature of the
line they had marked out for themselves, and justly
declared that it was difficult to maintain. "My
Lord Mayor, it is with political p- rt;es very much
av it is with troops. It is not the ac._sre campaign