The Sun.
London, England, 1862-02-19 00:00:00

AMERICAN TREASURY NOTES.

Judging from the postscript to the New York ac-
counts, to the effect that the House of Representa-
tives at Washington have rejected by a majority of
40 the clause in the Government bill which proposed
to make Treasury notes a legal tender, it would ap-
pear that the financial chaos, for which 90 days
were allowed at the last dates, must already have
arrived. The leading Government organ at New
York had declared that unless this clause were
adopted there would not be a dollar in the Trea-
sury by the 10th of the present month, and there-
fore, unless that journal is as much in error as on
the resent occasion, when with reference to Messrs.
Mason and Slidell, it announced that " the rebel
emissaries can never be surrendered," this state of
destitution must already have existed for eight days.
Considering that the Government expenditure has
meanwhile, it may be presumed, been going on at its
now normal rate of £400,000 per diem, future mails
may be expected to prove of great financial interest,
since they will show how the problem has been
solved of spending between three and four millions
sterling without a single coin in hand even at start-
ing, and without the power of compelling any one
to take anything else but coin. Possibly, however,
the American papers, all of which would have been
furious at a prediction from this side of the possi-
bility of financial inconvenience being witnessed in
the Northern States, have on this occasion been a
little premature in fixing a period so early as the
10th inst for the general crash. It may turn out
that they have under-estimated the credulity and
ignorance of the people at large, who may not so
speedily recognise the situation, since they will still
be assured by all " patriotic" politicians that the
promise to pay of the Federal Government is es
good or better than the gold for which evil-disposed
persons in New York, encouraged by the intrigues
of English bankers, are pretending to offer 31 per
cent. premium. A remarkable circumstance in con-
nection with the present intelligence is that the
press were generally anxious that the legal tender
clause should pass, while in the House of Represen-
tatives it has thus been summarily refused. To the
press it would not necessarily have made much
difference,lbecauSelheY would have paid their ex-
penses in the forced currency, and could, if neces-
sary, have raised their terms for advertisements,
&c., to meet any depreciation ; but the members of
the House of Representatives would have to receive
their pay of £6OO sterling per annum besides tra-
velling expenses in the legal paper, however worth-
less it might become, 'without any power of deriving
compensation in other ways. Hence the position
of the two branches of public opinion is widely
different, and, as was observed a few weeks back,
the proposal obviously involved a point which
would serve strongly to test the patriotism of the
representatives.— Times " City Article."

ROYAL GALLERY OF ILLUSTRATION.

After a long and successful career, the entertainment
here is about to be altered. •No two pieces, however, em-
bracing such a variety of character as "Car Card Basket"
and " The Two Rival Composers" can be substituted which
will show off to more advantage the versatile talent of Mr.
and Mrs. German Reed and Mr. John Parry. Both his-
trionically and musically the above artistes were never in
better "accord" with the public. The novelties introduced
into the original entertainment have enabled the lessee to
cut out its weakest parts, and at last to present a portraiture
of life and manners, equally good in every detail, and
sketched in the happiest vein of light raillery and humour.
Each performer has a eheval de bataille. W e may instance
Mrs. Reed's Dolly Chuckbiddy, the overgrown-young lady,
that mamma, for reasons of her own, will not "bring out,"
which reasons are explained in a song excellent as a musi-
cal composition and as a vehicle of broad comedy; there is
also Mr. Reed's genial hunting episode, than which no
thing could be more like the reality of English sport, with
its intense excitement and keen relish of animal enjoyment ;
then there is also Mr. Parry's narration of Byron's vicissi-
tudes of " A Colleen B awn," which places this popular
vocalist in a new and favourable light as an efficient inter-
preter at the pianoforte of the serious as well as comic. The
entertainment, notwithstanding its unabated attraction,
will, as we have hinted, in a few weeks undergo a meta-
morphosis, and we hope it will be patronised in its present
agreeable form by the few of our readers that have not seen
it. The new work is from the pen of one of our most dis-
tinguished dramatists.

Yesterday an action of trover was tried in the
Court of Common Pleas for the recovery of two race horses,
Magenta and Nimrod. The names of the litigants were
Allen and Smith. The jury gave a verdict for the plaintiff,
subject to the opinion of the Court.

PORTRAITS OF EMINENT MEN.—In the Court of
Exchequer yesterday M. Myall, the eminent photographist,
brought an action against Mr. Higby, for the recovery of
about 200 photographic portraits, lent by plaintiff to Mr.
John Tallis, when the Illustrated News of the World
newspaper was started. The defendant refused to give the
property up on the ground that he had purchased them of
Mr. Tallis's assignees. A verdict was given for plaintiff.
ANOTHER SERIOUS ACCIDENT THROUGH ORANGE
PEEL.—The consequences of the reprehensible practice of
leaving orange peel on the footpaths were further exempli-
fied yesterday, by a serious accident which occurred to Dr.
A. Magendie, of Weatbourne-terrace, Bayswater. When
in the act of descending the steps of his house to enter his
carriage, the dootor stepped on a piece of orange peel,
slipped, and fell, and the back of his head came into violent
collision with the stone door step. He was carried into his
house in an insensible state, and on account of his extremely
advanced age, serious apprehensions are entertained as to
the ultimate result of his fall.

PROCLAMATION OF OUTLAWRY.—THE BANK OF
DEPOSIT.—Yesterday, at three o'clock, Mr. Peter Morrison,
banker, &c., &c., of Pall-mall, was, from the platform on
the first-floor landing of the Court of Bankrupty in Basing-
hall-street, proclaimed, in the usual form, three times—
" Peter Morrison, Peter Morrison, Peter Morrison." The
scene was enlivened by the presence of a few of the detec-
tives, who peered curiously over the railings, on the look-
out for " son ebcdy." The fi equent and anxious calla for
" Peter Morrison," however, met no response, and he now
consequently labours under all the disadvantages of out-
lawry, in not having surrendered to his bankruptcy.
In connection with the rise in Spanish Certifi-
cates there is a rumour which may be important, if true—
that France refuses to accept from Spain payment of her
debt in new Spanish Bonds, in consequence of those secu-
rities being excluded from most of the stock markets of
Europe.

THE ALBERT MEMORIAL FUND.—The general
committee of the above fund met yesterday at the Mansion
House, and it was resolved that the sub-committee should
be empowered to communicate with her Majesty in order to•
ascertain her feelings with regard to the memorial. It was
reported that the total anlount subscribed was nearly
£33,000,