The Sun.
London, England, 1863-12-18 00:00:00

3
lunrt ' Cirsitar,

RER MAJESTY.

WINDSOR CASTLE, Dec. 17.

Her Majesty was prevented from leaving Windsor
Castle to-clay, owing to the unfavourable state of the

weather.

Their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess
of Wales visited the Queen.

THE COURT —Every preparation had been made
the Windsor Terminus of the Great Western
Railway for the c mveyance of her Majesty and NOP'
Family to Portsmouth. Yesterdsy moining, at a quarter-
past 11 o'clock, many of the domestics had left by an earlier
train. the time, however, when her Majesty intendtd
to leave a telegraphic despatch had re,ched the castle, ad-
vising that she should delay her journey, as it Was consi-
dered dangerous to cross the Solent in the yacht, under the
command of the Prince of Leiaingen, in cons, quenco of the
chopping sea, caused by the recent high winds. Her Ma-
jesty will not proceed on her journey until the weather is
more favourable.
THE CROWN PRINCE AND CROWN PRINCESS
OF PRUSSIA.—Their Royal Highnesses the Crovva
Prince and Crown Princess of Prussia, who left Engl'ula
on Tuesday last, arrived at Brussels the same evening.
Teir royal highnesses were to remain on a visit to tile
Belgian royal family for a day or two on their way t°
Berlin.
His Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge will
arrive in town this evening from Longleat, Wilts, wher,,°
his royal highness has been on a visit to the Marquis oe'
Marchioness of Bath since Monday last.
His Excellency the Austrian Ambassador and the
Countess App,,nyi will return to ( handos Muse to• day
from visiting the Marquis and Marchioness of Bath i 4
Longleat, Wilts, during the visit of his Royal Highness
the Duke of Cambridge.
The Duke and Duchess of Montrose and the
Marquis of Graham have left town to join the party at
Fowls Castle,
The Marquis and Marchi mess of Exeter and
Lady Victoria Cecil leave Grosvenor-square to-day
Burghley-park, near Stamford. The marquis is in irl,
proved health.
The Duchess (Emily) of Beaufort and Lad,
Geraldine Somerset leave town in a few days to joie the
Duke and Duchess of Beaufort at Badminton for Christriss'd
The Duchess Diwager of Sutherland and 14'
Ronald Leveson Gower are expected to leave Staff)
Td
House, St. James's, for Clifden, Bucks.
The Earl and Countess of Derby will entertaill
a distinguished party at Knowsley-park, Lancashire. nest
mouth. The party will assemble the first week in the
month.

Toe Earl of Powis left Berkeley-square yesterclaP
accompanied by the Countess of Powis and Ladies 1,11
and Harriet Herbert, for Powis Castle, Welshpool, where
large family gathering is about to take place.
Viscount and Viscountess Palmerston are 1:
pected to leave Cambridge House to. morrow fcr Broad-
lands, near Romsey.
Tne'lLwager Lady Clinton will leave St. Jarnes's;
place to-morrow for her residence at Hampton Court
Palace.

The Right Hon. Sir Charles Wood, Bart.,
leaves town to-day on his return to Hickleton Hall, his sear
in Yorkshire.

DEATH OF CANON SIR GEORGE SHIFFNER
—A residentiary canonry in the Cathedral Church of Cb
chester and the valuable vicarage of Amport, Hangs"'' re;
are placed at the disposal of the Dean and Chapter
Cnichester by the death of the Rev. Sir George Shiffuer'
Bart. The rev. gentleman, who was second son of the
second baronet, was born May 17, 1791.
THE EMPRESS OF THE FicENCH.—The Insttran°
Record observes that several offices in the City are ac°l?
t-
h.
?of g
proposals for an insurance to a large amount on the
of the Empress of the French. The risk is being divided
among French and English offices, and the total amount ,
insurance is £200,000.

COLONEL CRAWLEY's DEFENCE.—The
is the letter referred to in the address. Not haw-
ing been put in evidence during the trial its contents
could only be distantly alluded to by Colonel Crawley
"My dear Sister and Brother,—This is, indeed, a
ful moment—a task I never expected to have to tell
you. My beloved husband is no more. He died of apoplell
on the morning of the 25th of May. It was so sudden; h 0
was tolerably well the day before. Dear sister, in mercy
go to our father and Mother : I cannot wrhe to them. The
blow will be too much for them. I am staying with Ser.
geant-Major Cotton and Mrs. Cotton. I was to have gone
into hospital, but doctor says I not last long, so I don't
think I shall be removed before anything happens. I can-
not write any more. I cannot sit up. My best love.-
Your loving and affectionate sister, CLA.nissA. LILLEY---
Mhow, June 7."
SUPPOSED SUlClDE.—Yesterday the body °f
a respectably-dressed female was discovered floating in di°
water of the Regent's Canal, near the New Globe-bridge.
The deceased was seen by a surgeon, and had been in the
water a fortnight. The description of the deceased has been
circulated, and the body was removed to the Mile-end
Workhouse, Bancroft-road, Stepney, to await an inqueot•
In a letter from Brisbane, giving an accomat f
his passage out, an emigrant says :—" Among the
female passengers in the second cabin was a young lad?'
who frequently had hysterics, and who would burst sud-
denly into tears in the dead of night. When asked 11
reason for so doing she would reply " her young man hag
poisoned himself." It turns out that she is known here,
the notorious Madeline Smith, of Glasgow, whose tri.al to"
murder some years since caused such a sensation. 511'3 W3°
not the best conducted young lady in the ship."
MUNIFICENCE OF AN ARTIST.—The distinguished
marine painter, Mr. E. W. Cooke, A.R.A.,
has forwarded to the National Lifeboat institution £2OO
°
r
pay the cost of a lifeboat, to be stationed on the coast. 71,;
Cooke said in his letter :—" Having felt for many yeal s
greatest interest and sympathy in the cause of the II:0:
National Lifeboat Institution, and in admiration ofn
gallant deeds of the crews of its numerous boats establislle t
on our dangerous coasts, I am desirous to place a Web°
on some point where one is required. I beg, theretor e, t,°
forward a check for £2OO towaras the establishment of 5' Del:
lifeboat. I trust ere long that some good friend to this n°l).-
cause may be induced to assist in adding the boath
with its appropriate gear, to complete the object I bra v°l:
view. We shall doubtless readily find a crew of ear-4
of Oak' who will cheerfully man the Van Kock,'' am
who may be the means, under Divine Providence, of sia'l4'
many a valuable life."
ECLIPSES OF THE SUN IN 1864.—Next year tiler
will be two eclipses of the sun. The first will, be 0°
the sth of May. It will Legin on the earth at 9 30 Prili
of London time, in 126 deg 56 min of east longitud.e, and
he
deg 23 min of south latitude. It ends on the earth t,nt;
following day at 3 3 a.m., in longitude 130 deg, 25 ri,B
west, and 20 deg 9 min of north latitude. The to tal ee"P:-.11
will be visible only in the North Pacific Ocean, and it' l
be visible as a partial eclipse in part of Siberia and the n°.rit.
thernmost part of North America and the nor th of Austral
The second eclipse of the sun will be on Oct giber 3°'
will bekt in on the earth at 3 31 p.m. London ti me, in 1° qlll.,
tude 100 deg 14 min west of Greenwich, and G deg. 2 rata
north latitude. It will end on the earth at 6 30 pffi'', 19
longitude 6 deg 26 min west of Greenwich, anti latitude
ss
deg 25 min south. The line of central eclipse passrf°urcie,
South America between 20 deg and 30 deg of sc.fltil s,uth
and will also be visible in the South Pacific s:11, r.:i. for a
Atlantic Oceans A partial eclipse will be lis""- coast
short time in the United States and on the w estern - ,
of Africa, at the first for a few moments after .sunrise, ant,
at the latter just before sunset.
,-,,TprtEltED --It
HIERATIC PAPYRI LATELY ,„
that M. Chabas,
appears, says the Spectator, d the
French Egyptologist, has been engaged „Tini saint
papyri (which are facsimiled in I:L7 nm or
of
of some
and has just published his translation portions,
main, with that whiej,
them. This agrees, in th®
Goodwino g .ite
r has
thanarrived t
se t
w oindependently,between the differ etnwc to3s
trans b e ng..
n
lators of a Hebrew or other ancient text, And the tot
translated is not a short inscription, Concerning
the mean'
ieoah m a
yoce u
r
ing of which two scholars might by accident blunder into
agreement--it is a story of three hundred lines, relating tb°
adventures of an Asiatic wanderer about B.C. 2,4-001111:;:
is, before the date usually assigned to Abraham.
person flees from the Court of King Ammenemos I. into
Ethiopia, where he is hospitably entertained, marries 02°
daughter of a chief, and grows a rich man. In his •old ago
he longs to return to Egypt, and writes to the lting I°r
pardon. King 1 hn
:-- returns a gracious answer, and a c°ll
of his letter is given. The adventurer describes his return
to Egypt, the awe with which the King's presence inspire
him, the atisiaken zeal of the courtiers, who, fancying tll3t
the King is about to punish the fugitive, cry out that 1,01:
guilty ; the turning of the tables by the King, who Pr.°,
flounces him innocent, instals him in a splendid house syt:",
a handsome pension, builds him a magnificent tomb, an
;
continues to smile upon him till the day of his death. 1.5
story has all the appearance of genuine history.
GLASGOW INSTITUTE OF THE FINE ARTS. 'lilt
100 guineas, offered in Wee premiums for the bens
pictures exhibited, were awarded aa follows :-50 guine3
f3oor
guineas
best figurei6z the pbiecsttu rlea ind oil,scae
p toi
nJ" J.
oil,
oteol Pat o
Samueln,
oti-
A 11. S A. ; 20 guineas for the best water-colour irrospe
is
of subject, to Henry Tidey, London. The competition
wan
confined to British artists and to pictures painted within
the last two years.
it.
Erri:NG,JIA-usEN has p
ele
large work, iliac; rated with magdfict nt plates, of the s
to of leaves (Blattskeiette DicotYledoncn,)