The Sun.
London, England, 1837-03-03 00:00:00

less than they actually were. Who could have sup-
posed it possible that there should be found fifty-four
men in any assembly so intrepid as to express such au
opinion ? The fact so far outstripped the antecedent,
probability as to astound, embarrass, and incapacitate
the persons to whom the office of counting the tw,m-
hers had been entrusted. It is evideD.t, on the slightest
consideration of the subject, f/:,at the amendment of the
Attorney-General.. cre'ies a Parliamentary privilege‘ of
a nature entirel.:: different from any that is now claimed
by thF.tembers of the Legislature. The clause, from
the operation of which it was intended to exempt Mem-
bers of Parliament, is strictly a penal clause, intended
for the prevention of contumacy and fraud. Do IVlem-
bers of Parliamens now claim the privilege of exemption
from the operation of the criminal law ? Are they
not liable, indeed, to indefinite imprisonment, on the
summary decision of any Judge, that they have fallen
into contempt of his judicial authority ? What Judge
would hesitate to pronounce sentence of imprison-
ment against a member of Parliament if convicted of
libel ? What Chairman of Quarter Sessions but
would send an M. P. to gaol, to endure the punish-
ment of an aggravated assault, just as he would send
any other man ? Upon what principle is it, then, that
the Attorney and Solicitor General, with their fifty-
two supporters, think that Members of the House of
Commons should be privilegd against imprisonment,
for contumacy or fraud, when creditors arc to be rob-
bed ? This, we confess, is an enigma which far sur-
passes our comprehension. NVe shall not seek its
so-
lution ; but merely express our hope that the amend-
ment of the Attorney-General was not pressed upon
the House from a wish to secure to that assembly the
continued presence of any distinguished Reformers.—
Morning Post.

The Siecle says, in an article on the shipping at
Toulon, that there is now in that port a vessel of the line, the
Hercules, of which the decorations and internal splendour are
little fitted for warlike purposes, and seem more adapted for
some glorious pageantry. It is conjectured by many that the
object of such an armament can be no other than to convey
with adequate pomp the ashes of Napoleon from St. Helena.
Its guns are already on board, and it only waits for a favour-
able wind to start on its mission of national and European in-
terest.

The following is an amusing and singular instance
of the prevalence of the influenza in Paris :—At the Duke de
Mortcmart's the whole of the inmates of his extensive man-
sion were confined to their beds. So incapable were they of
moving on one particular day that the Duchesse, being the
only person preserving the use of her limbs, was obliged to
take upon herself the office of portiere, and open the door.
The old Duke de , who had called in vain several days,
when lie recognised Madame de Mortemart, exclaimed, " At
least to-day the portiere will not say the Duchess is not at
home." "I am not sure of that," answered the belle portiere,
" for I scarcely know where I am." " Nor I," rejoined the
witty Duke, " unless it be at the gate of Paradise, for there
is an angel at the door."

On Saturday the King's Procureur brought Miss
Griffiths, of Rock-cottage, Jersey, before the Royal Court,
and prayed her committal to the island gaol, on the following
charge of forgery and theft :—Some time since, the postman
had two letters from the Navy Pay-office, one for Captain
Griffiths, the prisoner's father, the other for Mrs. Lydiard, an
officer's widow ; by mistake he left them both at Rock-cottage,
with Miss Griffiths. Mrs. Lydiard not receiving her money
as usual, wrote to the Navy Pay-office, and an investigation
was set on foot, by which it appears that the prisoner opened
the letter, abstracted the bank pest bill, signed Mrs. Lydiard's
name to it, and got it cashed through the agency of a dress-
maker named Quint. The Procureur prayed the Court to
hold the prisoner in gaol until the arrival of the bank bill from
England. Advocate Godfray, for the prisoner, contended that
the Court were not justified in imprisoning the body of any
individual in the absence of the proofs, and demanded the
prisoner's release on giving bail. The Court committed the
prisoner to gaol until the arrival of the note from London.—
Jersey Patriot.

The report that a boy was murdered at Kintore, has
been very prevalent all the week, and the circumstances, as re-
lated, possess all the requisite atrocity. Thus goeth the story :
A farmer, at Kintore, having killed a cow, hung her up in an
outhouse; and a boy, the victim, who had left his people in
Aberdeen to travel through the country, after being refused
admittance into the farm-house, took up his lodging in the afore-
said out-house. There he fell asleep. Several gipsics then
arrived at the place ; when, finding the cow slain and the boy
asleep, they carried off the former and cut the throat of the
latter, hanging him up in the cow's stead, leaving their dog,
who, after licking up the boy's blood, set up an unnatural bowl,
which brought the people on the farm to the spot, Then the
murder was discovered. The report adds that the murderers
were soon afterwards apprehended, up the country. Such is
this awful tale, which, it is needless to say, is a pure fabrication,
and which has been, of course, hourly increasing with horrific
incidents.—Aberdeen herald.

In the month of October, 1835, a gentleman (then
resident in Nottingham, but now in Manchester) had his
pocket picked in a fair at Nottingham of a gold watch, with
gold chain, seal, and key; and though proper inquiries were
made by the police, nothing could be heard of the stolen pro-
perty. On Thursday evening, however, a small box, ap-
parently an old cigar box, arrived by coach from Leicester,
directed to the gentleman in question, who at first suspected
some mischievous design, and accordingly opened the box
with very great caution; but he was no less gratified than sur-
prised to find that, instead of a canister of gunpowder, or a
battery of Waterloo crackers, it contained his long-lost watch,
with all its appendages, just in the state in which he lost them.
—Manchester Guardian.

Between the hours of one and two o'clock yesterday
morning, as police constable No. 143, of the V division, was
proceeding on duty through Putney, he discovered a man lying
on the footway in a state of complete insensibility, and welter-
ing in his blood, which was still profusely streaming from a
desperate wound on the top of his head. He was taken to
Guy's Hospital, where it was ascertained that the wound lie
had received proceeded from a tremendous blow inflicted with
some heavy blunt instrument. The man remains in a state of
stupor, and is at present considered to be in imminent danger.
His name has been ascertained to be James Bolton, and lie was
known about that part of the country by travelling to collect
old metal. No money was found about him.

Scarcity of fuel is felt so much by the numerous
poor in this city, that the grave-yards have been disturbed for
decayed coffins to burn.—Limerich Chronicle.
As an instance of the perversity of fashionable taste,
we have heard that the leaders of the various quadrille bands
in London are arrang►ing the unmeaning air of "Jim Crow "
as a waltz and galope ; so that the fair of Almack's may
alternately " wheel about " or " jump," according to the
measure.

About a month ago a poor man, named Joseph
Ostler, a stone-mason's labourer, who lived with his wife and
family at No. 1, Ferry-street, Lambeth, left his home, and
has not since been heard of. It appeared that the poor fellow
had previous to his disappearance been out of employ for seve-
ral weeks, and, with his wife and two children, had been re-
duced to great distress. His youngest child, only six months
old, was also very ill, and the parish doctor, who was attend-
ing upon it, having given up all hopes of its recovery, so af-
fected the father, that he declared he could bear with his po-
verty and affliction no longer, and left his home, declaring to
his wife that he would drown himself, and that she would
never see him again. It is much feared that he has put his
rash vow into execution; and his wife, who has recently fol-
lowed the remains of her child to the grave, is in a state of
great anxiety about him. Ostler was an industrious sober man,
thirty-two years of age; and in the event of his body being
found, it may be identified by some marks and devices pricked
in one of his arms. The wife and his surviving child are in a
state of extreme destitution.

Commercial advices from Liverpool, dated Tuesday
night, state that the pressure for money was rather severe on
that day. The accounts from Manchester, dated o❑ the same
day, are not so favourable as we could wish.

Mme. Pruzinska, a Polish lady, who fought in the
heroic army of her nation, arrived a few days ago at Rouen.
She is covered with honourable scars, and has been confined
for three years in the prisons of Warsaw, whence she has only
lately been released to find an asylum with her exiled fellow
countrymen in a foreign land.

Last night an inquest was held at Guy's Hospital
on the body of Eleanor Barry, a fine girl, aged 12, who was
burned to death. The deceased was the daughter of respec-
table persons, residing in Collins's-court, White-street, Bo-
rough. On Tuesday evening she was left in charge of several
of her younger brothers and sisters, when, in prepring their
tea, her apron caught fire. Her screams brought to her assist-
ance several of the lodgers, who succeeded in extinguishing
the flames, but not until the deceased's clothes were completely
consumed, and her person shockingly burned. The poor suf-
ferer was put in blankets and brought to this hospital, but she
expired in less than an hour after her admission. Verdict—
' Accidental Death."

On Sunday evening last a meeting was held in
Bywater's large room, Peter-street, Manchester, to hear Mr.
Owen and the Rev. Mr. Roebuck's religious discussion, and
it is supposed there must have been 800 persons present. Be-
tween seven and eight o'clock they were much alarmed at
hearing a violent crash in the centre of the room, and it was
at first thought the whole floor was giving way. Their alarm
was increased by some parties exclaiming " Fire !" and the
rush to the door was tremendous, there being only one, and
that was exceedingly narrow. The windows, which came
down to the floor, were dashed out, and many persons leaped
from them into the yard, a height of at least fifteen feet
After the confusion was a little over it was found that the trap-
door in the middle of the room had given way, and that a few
persons had fallen through the opening. Two ladies were very
fortunately caught by. some hostlers, who ran to the place im-
mediately upon hearing the noise, or they must have been se-
riously hurt. The room had been used as a carriage repository,
and the trap-door was for the purpose of raking and lowering
the carriages, and which was unequal to such a heavy weight
as was upon it at the time. It is most fortunate, and almost
miraculous, that no serious accident occurred. In their alarm
many left hats and umbrellas behind, and in the confusion some
had the good fortune to change new hats for old, silk umbrellas
for cotton ditto, and vice versa.