The Sun.
London, England, 1865-08-23 00:00:00

Holiday Makers.

(From the Times Correspondent.)

WIESBADEN, Aug. 15.
" Ton't you ' hobjeck to smoking ?" Such were
the first words that greeted me as I 'got into the
railway carriage at the Victoria station, bound to
Dover and Calais 10 days ago. They were spoken
by my only fellow-traveller in the carriage, and the
solicited permission was unhesitatingly granted, for
the smell of tobacco-smoke is not the worst torture
fastidious olfactories may be subjected to. " Don't
you object to smoking ? " I am travelling over
lands where any objection of that nature has long
been triumphantly overruled. As true as there are
creatures who only live in water, so there are ani-
mals that can only breathe tobacco-smoke. Smoking
in some countries has become the business of life.
In Italy the railway guard calls out "Per fum are"
or " Per non fumare." To be or not to be. In
France the arch-smoker on the throne lights or puts
out his subjects' pipe according as a passing whim
dictates. Here, in Germany, there is one carriage
in some trains where "Das tabakrauchen ist verbo-
ten ;" but what avails it when there is a rush at an
insufficient train, and the station-master calls out
" Completez vos compartements," as I heard it the
other day at Lille, when passengers were stowed in
pell-mell, hurry-scurry, higgledy-piggledy, without
even paying due respect to first-class tickets, within
the two seconds between the last peal of the bell and
first whistle of the engine? What avails it, were
you even safe in the train, if anywhere, at the
waiting-rooms, at the buffet, on the platform, in
the inevitable omnibus, at 'the hotel door, on the
stairs, along the passages, the cloud-compellers have
you at their mercy and show none ?
I got into a coach the other day at Coburg,
which was to convey me from the hotel to the
station. The vehicle was constructed to carry four
inside, and we had already our complement —my-
self and a sort of Thuringian bumpkin in the back
seat, and opposite to us two young and comely
women, a married lady and her sister, as I thought,
about whose ladylike appearance there could be no
mistake. Just as we were starting, a youngster,
or junker, looked in, a man of prepossessing appear-
ance, with good features, a sanguine complexion, and
the bright expression of a " witziger kopf," a wag
agreeably to the German notions of waggery. He
looked in, and the ladies, with whom he was evi-
dently a favourite, with many an " Ach !" and an
" Herr Je," hastened to make as much room between
them as enabled him to squeeze in The fair com-
panions gathered up their ample folds to the best of
their abilities, and apologised for the inconvenience
he had to endure from the pressure of their poor
crushed crinolines. " Ach ! was sagen Sie, meine
Damen," said the gallant spark, ogling to the right
and left ; " Ich bin hier wie im Paradies." And his
grin and his leer were certainly like those of
Mephistopheles between two angels. He had his
stump of cigar in his mouth, and he went on during
the
there,
whole with one puff here and a drollery
e,
incense on those two deities,
th lavishing journey,ms
who stood that and the ashes and the sparks and
worse, well knowing that on this country " Love me,
loge my cigar " is the motto ; and that men are only
to be had on those terms, or not to be had at all.
" Beasts !" I fancy I may hear some of our own
fair young ladies at home exclaim, as the disgusting
but true and commonplace picture is laid before
them. I quite agree with you, my dear girls ; but
it is just as well you should be forewarned that it is
what travelling abroad will bring you all to ; and,
in sober truth, I must say that most English damsels,
as they cross the Channel, soon learn to stand fire
unflinchingly, and I have heard more than one assert
that " Continental smoke is not so offensive as that
which they so much detest at home." It is a clear
case of de gustibus, all matter of habit, and I have
known a Lancashire man, after a trip through agri-
cultural the first sight of,:a factory
chimney
return,ail
h
and thank his stars that " he
had come once more within the limits of civilisa-
civilisa-
tion."

All this somewhat long preamble brings m• back
to Wiesbaden, where at least there is one safe haven
where no nicotine perfume intrudes, and that is the
suite of gambling rooms at the liursaal ; for the
goddess Rouge et Noire is a jealous goddess, and
excludes all other worship from her temple.
The swarming of European idlers to these their
hauntsfavou-
rieerheen at
witnessedthisseason
former
nnis something
years,
e
On Sunday evening
at Frankfort, which is only aimed a ter re for visitors to the
Taunus baths, I was turned back from the West-end Halle,
the Brusseler Hof, the Hotel do Russie and d'Angleterre,
and, as no trains left that night, I should have had to sleep
in my cab had I not claimed the right of private hospitality
at a friend's house. Here, at Wiesbaden, accommodation
passengers, the tumbling down of
is not easily to be had without previous notice. The dis-
gorging of shoals of
mountains of luggage by every train is something appal-
ling.car You are fain to share your drosky or cab with an
yuenukrnohwentelf,elalonwd traveller,perhaps carrying unless
ing your portmanteau to you prefer walking to
boot. You may meet everybody you fancy here ; and,
again, you may have those you care for and wish to see,
two doors or two rooms off, and never come across them,
or dream of their existence.

In the midst of this apparent bustle and confusion, how-
ever, the instinct of birds of a feather to crowd together
is true to itself, and people can be as exclusive, and indi-
viduals as private here, where everything is apparently
so promiscuous and public, as in the closest coterie, and
the most inexorable black-balling club. Hotels may bo
open to all corners, and their charges may suit all purses,
but somehow the power of attraction and repulsion works
magnetically, every one in the end comes home to his 'own

and is readily recognised and admitted. There are English
houses here where English tastes and habits are con-
sulted, and even English prejudices humoured; tables for
English guests to sit at, and allees for English saunterers
to stroll in ; meal times set apart for the English almost ex-
clusively. An intruder finds no obstruction, he is not stared
at or shrunk from. On the contrary, John Bull shows
at these placesinfinite good humour, sociability, and accom-
modativeness. Some how or other that house gets an English
name, nevertheless; and that dispensation which gave
the English an island for a home seems equally to secure
in their favour a certain amount of isolation wherever they
go. For his own part John Bull, although he has free
access to the haunts of other people, and is everywhere
cordially welcome, only moderately avails himself of the
privilege. He is, even when idling, more chary of his
time than his neighbours ; he cannot sit for half a day
under the Kursaal verandah ; his walks stretch beyond
the tether of the Kursaal grounds ; he may be extrava-
gant, dashing, and headlong at rouge et noir ; but he is
seldom to be seen sitting doggedly day and night, fighting
for florins. He does not delight in loose conversation.
There is a degree of refinement about him, which to other
people is irksome restraint. He lives to himself, to a
great extent, or only mixes with those whom congeniality
of taste points out as his fit associates.
The Royal family of England are at this time all in
Germany. Yesterday, as I was travelling from Frank-
fort to Wiesbaden by the 4 o'clock train I was surprised
to find a great crowd at Castel, near Mayence. A gallant
staff of brilliant officers of that garrison—Austrians, Prus-
sians, and Hessians—had assembled to do honour to the
Duke of Cambridge, who was with us in the train, and
who had probably come from the Castle of_ Rumpenheim,
the seat of the Duchess, his mother, to attend some parade
or other military show at Mayence. His Royal Highness
was received with enthusiastic cheers. The Duchess of
Cambridge and the Princess Maid• were with the Duke,
and followed in an open carriage and four, escorted by
many of the officers.

August 17.

I told you in my last letter how I mot his Royal High-
ness the Duke of Cambridge, on Monday, on his way to
Mayence. On the following day, Tuesday, Wiesbaden
was honoured by the presence of half the Royal family of
England—the Prince and Princess of Wales, the Duke
and- Duchess of Cambridge, and the Princess Mary of
Cambridge. Their Royal Highnesses put up at the Four
Fahrzeiten (the Four Seasons), a large hotel, where
Prince Frederick of Hesse, the Grand Duke and the Crown
Prince of Mecklenburg-Strelitz were also- accommodated
with all their "hohem geitu--Drschft" (high suite and
retinue), as the Kur-und-Fremdenlist has it.
You may imagine that the appearance of these distin-
guished visitors has not had the effect of thinning
the ranks of strangers staying in Wiesbaden and of the
loyal English especially. We have no less than 24 new
arrivals from England in to-day's list, rather more than
the daily average, and constituting about the tenth of
visitors coming on the same day to Wiesbaden from all
parts of the world. The names of many of these English
birds of passage would not, if taken literally from the list,
convey much information to their friends of home. I will
trouble you, for instance, .to make out who Herr Pony-
desta, Gentlemant, London, may be; or, to look over the
Court Guide for one Herr Etleyander, also fresh from
London.

It might be interesting to inquire wherein the peculiar
charm resides which attracts so many people to Wiesba-
den. To the good single-minded German who, like all his
continental neighbours, is, with few highly aristocratic
exceptions, a dweller in the cities, to issue forth from his
close streets and breathe the free air in the dog-days in a
place like this, which combines many of the advantages of
town and country, must undoubtedly be a rare treat.
Bating his board and lodging, for which also he is mode-
rately charged, he has all sorts of enjoyment supplied him
free of expense. Spacious and lofty rooms, all glittering
pwniit.thicogeosl, in
,dshadyte whalksKurinsatahl
e; comfortableshrubberiesrnsueatnds
itsimde t
r is
minia-
ture lake in front of it ; stately swans, black and white, to
feed, a never-ending source of delight with your kind-
hearted grown-up German as it is with our English chil-
dren ; strains of warlike music by the best Austrian bands,
well-supplied reading-rooms, gorgeous light, genial
warmth, when required—the sum of all earthly luxuries—
all is to be had here gratis et amore. The Croupier, or, I
beg his pardon, Propriaaire des Jeux, is a mighty wizard,
who, by the touch of his wand, conjures up a fairy palace
and garden, and bids every care-laden mortal lay aside his
burden and be happy. ,inttiSez roes Messieurs; c'est tout
pa?/d.

But for an English gentleman, who has a mansion and
park of his otivn, with perhapS a hunting-box in the shires
and no end of acres in the moors, what may be the peculiar
attractions of this place ? Is it the cheap opera and drama,
the balls and concerts, with Madame Czillag, Made-
moiselle Topp, and others stars of the Vienna firmament ?
Is it the " Reading from the best poets and dramatists," the
cricket-match, such as came off yesterday at Homburg,
" The Eleven of England against the Eleven of all the rest
of Europe?" It may be for any of these things that an
Englishman comes to this place, it may be for all these
things together, or it may bo for other things besides.
Wiesbaden is voted a charming spot by many, though it

lies in a hollow, and is as close and hot in the summer as a
steaming tea-kettle. But the gardens and walks, the ponds
and fountains are laid out with taste. There is a certain
heaviness about the buildings hardly redeemed by their
bran-new tidiness, their flowered balconies, their dainty
trellised summer-houses by the road side. Their great
hotels, bathhouses, boarding and lodging houses are huddled
together no less in defiance of the laws of sober symmetry
than with utter disregard of the requirements of pleasing
variety. Huge square whitewashed structures they are,
many of them, which might well pass muster in rows along
a terrace or around a square in a town, but which stare at
you hideously as they rise detached in their own narrow
lots, dwarfing the trees which ought to embosom them, and
crushing the tiny hills on which they are piled one above
another. Anything in the style of the love cottage, or of the
mountain chalet you would look for in vain for miles round
the town. German taste runs not in that line. The "Die"
model, as they call it, as broad as it is long, as high as it is
broad, flat, ponderous, unsightly is everywhere the fashion.
Wiesbaden, that part of it at least-which is got up for the
accommodation of strangers, looks very much like a town
to be sold by auction, with its houses moved from their
places, and thrown out here and there at random for the
convenience of inspecting bidders. Talk of the want of
architectural taste in England! I contend that, out of
town, at least, your Englishman knows how to build a
home without making it an eyesore in the landscape.
*Out of town, again, when you have managed to get past
the last scattered buildings, you have a land of homely and
"friendly," as the Germans have it, but by no means
transcendent beauty. It is green and woody, with ranges
of flat hills of easy but somewhat weary ascent. The
two miles' walk to the ruined Castle of Sonnenberg,
along a narrow dell, all meadow and chestnut and walnut
groves, of which the mediaeval structure bars the upper
gully, is delightful. That grey stronghold rears its square
massive tower far up in the heavens, as you near it, far
above the fort mantling the shattered fragments at its feet.
The enchantment that distance lends vanishes, however,
in a great measure as you come to it, the whole fabric
dwindles, and the view at the back of it, over the round
summit of the Feldberg and the ridges of the Taunus, is
not quite Alpine. On the other side of the town, not many
hundred yards beyond the last habitations in the Eliza-
bethan Strasse, you have the Nevo Thal, the Nevo Berg,
a verdant region, and, on the side of the hill, out of the
bosom of a young but dense wood, you have the Greek or
Russian chapel, "Die Kapelle," as it is called par excel-
lence, a striking object as seen from afar, a quaint edifice
in Oriental taste, with its five gilded minarets, and ele-
gant arches and columns, a striking object, which also
does not gain by a nearer approach.
These are the lions of Wiesbaden, and the killing of
them would not take more than half a day. Yet people
come to the spot, and stay over a month. The charm of
the place is altogether social. Nowhere else, perhaps, are
all the races of Europe, with all tfieir variety of counte-
nance, garb, and accent, with all their peculiarit'es of
taste and costume, brought together in so close a famili-
arity, in such intimate intercourse—the upper classes of
Europe, the wealthy, the refined, the idle, the frivolous.
It is a study for an age to the physiognomist and ethno-
logist ; a study you never tire of.
All this outside the Kursaal. Within its precincts, in
its fine suite of gilt apartments, as your eyes get used to
the soft demijour which makes them deliciously cool in spite
of the crowd and of the sultriness of the weather, you have
the key to the mysteries of Wiesbaden. Enter ; you have
before you eight or ten rooms, with as many roulettes, or
rouge-et-noir tables in them, and all of them beset from 11
o'clock in the morning to 11 o'clock at night—so beset as
to allow you little chance of sitting or even standing
room. At certain hours in the evening, even to
elbow your way through on your way to the
reading-rooms is an extremely difficult task. The
interest taken by the multitude in the rites therein per-
formed is intense. There is something appalling in the
silence, still more in the undertoned words that some
one is droning out, like a spell, at frequent intervals.
There is a rattle and jingle, too, but the sound is subdued,
muffled, almost dreamlike, and the order and decorum of
the assemblage aro quite edifying. Few faces round the
tables, hardly any, indeed, give signs of any very lively
emotion. There they sit, pale and earnest, most of them
in a brown study, hardly ever raising their eyes, seldom
addressing their neighbour, even in whispers. Here and
there you catch sight of a deep furrow in a man's brow, of
a twitch in a woman's lip. The sitters inside the Kursaal
make up as motley a group as the crowd outside on the
terrace. Here you have the florid complexioned German
Baron, the slender-built Magyar noble, the Kalmuck Rus-

.-.401.

sian flat face, the fine profile of the Latinrace— unmis-
takable brotherhood of nations. The English have no;
many here ; just a dash of fast young men, a few curious
middle-aged club men, a few most respectable matrons
with their bevy of blooming daughters. Not many of the
English sit at the tables ; the most venturesome of them
fling in their florin or napoleon, just by way of frolic, and
either walk away unconcerned, without awaiting results,
or are ready with their good humoured laugh either for
gain or loss. Few of the better class of English people
gamble, I repeat ; not many even frequent the liursaal.
They are rather to be found at the reading-rooms or gar-
dens, at their own hotels, where they limit themselves
pretty much to each other's company, sit down to long
breakfasts and still longer dinners, at their own late hours,
and keep up a lazy, harmless, and taut soit peu drowsy talk
about the last set come in or the last party gone off ; about
the merits and charges of various hotels, the best route to
Zermatt, Bishop Colenso, the cattle disease, Bismark, the
gout, the waters, the waiters. I notice bald heads in great
number, and a few white ties. Two-thirds of the young
ladies aro pretty, or are made by the waters, by early hours,
and mild excitement, to look so.

I wonder if any man of woman born ever grows up with
a natural calling to be a croupier. I sat opposite to him
the day at the Kursaal table d'hote at Homburg, not the
great man himself, I suppose, but certainly one of the
principal ministers and high priests of the divinity men
come here to bow down to; a bland-looking, smug, middle-
aged gentleman, clad in the most scrupulously neat black
coat and white waistcoat, very bland and very earnest,
not ill-favoured, on n first inspection, but marked with a
most unequivocal hooked nose and capacious nether jaw,
all sleek and stout and round, a gorged bird of prey, the
edge of whose appetite no gorging can blunt ; glossy black
hair, dull black eyes, deep eye-brows, colourless cheeks,
a bronze face. He cracked his jokes in an undertone,
leered at a high-dressed young lady on his right—one of
those young ladies who happen to have taken the wrong
train somewhere and lost their friends on the way, and
who come hither without mamma or chaperon—and for
the rest, there he sat, self-satisfied, conscious of his im-
portance ; a man of few wants, apparently, of humdrum
habits, of a most limited vocabulary. " Faites le jeu,
Messieurs—le jeu eat fait :—rouge perd," &c. ; and the
eternal rattle of the napoleons raked in and the florins
doled out. There is an existence for an immortal soul
made in God'g image !
Yet, without him, what would Wiesbaden, Baden, or
Homburg be in the summer, or Monaco in winter ? "It is
a crying shame, a flagrant scandal of the German Govern-
ments," I hear it said. It may be, or may not be ; but, if
that man waited till he fattened on my florins or thalers,
I dare say it would take time before he looked as sleek as
he does. I remember that Frenchmen who could never
find fault with any human contrivance, however question-
able, the result of which was to "faire rouler les ecus,"
and certainly for a sure means of rapid pecuniary circula-
toin there is nothing in the world like the darling sin at
Wiesbaden ; and because it is one of the sins we have no
mind to, my good friend, shall wo be in a hurry to damn
it, and think less of the sins we are inclined to ?
Naval and Military Intelligence.

We (Times) have received the following letter
from our Malta correspondent, dated Valletta,
August 18 :

" Her Majesty's frigate Magicienne, 16, Capt. W. Army-
tage, arrived on the 11th inst. from Castellamare and Mes-
sina, having been ordered to Malta by the Commander-in-
Chief. She brought the satisfactory intelligence that, the
last instalment of £B,OOO having been paid to the Italian
brigands, Mr. Moans was about to be released. An anchor
lost four years ago by her Majesty's ship Terrible at Mes-
sina, and which several of her Majesty's ships had been ex-
pressly sent to recover, but without success, was brought
here by this vessel. The Chanticleer, 17, Commander W.
H. Fen wick, and the Racer, 11, Commander L. Brine, left
port on the 11th inst., and are still sailing in the offing for
the benefit of the sea breeze. The former vessel returned
from Rosas Bay on the Bth inst. Last week I contradicted
a report that a second fatal case of cholera had occurred on
board. The report was untrue at the time, but the evening
after her departure from Malta a second case, ending fatally,
actually did occur among the crew. The Chanticleer con-
sequently brought back a large number of supernumeraries
she was conveying for the different ships, as had they been
received by the Admiral the whole squadron would have
been put in quarantine. There have been no other cases
of cholera on board any of the ships here ; but the disease
pkevails amongst the dockyard police, and some of the
workmen have been attacked, owing, it is b3lieval, to the
horrid state Qf the Dockyard-creek, which has become un-
bearable in the summer weather from the sewers of three
populous towns emptying themselves into it. Various pro-
posals have been made by commissions appointed to exa-
mine into the matter, but nothing has been done hitherto
to remedy the evil. Many of the employes whose duties
will permit them have been driven from their official resi-
dences to seek a purer atmosphere elsewhere. Her Majesty's
gun vessel Surprise, Commander G. Tryon, left Malta on
the 15th inst. for Spezzia with mails for the squadron.
Since her departure a telegram has been received an-
nouncing the arrival of the Commander-in-Chief at Genoa,
and giving instructions that the next mails should be de-
spatched to him at Spezzia." .

The passage of the armour-plated frigate Agin-
court, last week, from Birkenhead to Plymouth, is
said to be the first in which a ship has been navi-
gated from her place of construction to a naval port
without the aid of canvas or the escort of a steam
tender. This immense ship, 6,621 tons, the largest
in the British navy, was in charge of Capt. Paynter
and Staff-Commander Moor, of the Donegal, at
Liverpool, who had a crew of about 150 men, in-
cluding seamen and stokers, from the steam reserve
in Hathoaze, and riggers from Devonport dockyard,
under the command of Mr. Sleep, master of the
steamtug Scotia. Mr. Henry H. Laird, one of her
builders, was on board. The Agincourt left Liver-
pool on the 12th inst. for Holyhead, where, in con-
sequence of the weather, she continued until the
18th at noon, when she started, and reached the
South Slack light at 12 56 p.m. ; the Smalls light
was passed at 10 2 ; Longships, off the Land's-end,
at 7 28 on the morning of the 19th ; the Lizard,
9 38, and Rame Head, the western boundary of
Plymouth Sound, at 134 p.m. the same day. The
course, about 280 miles, was thus run in 24h. 40m.,
equal to a speed of 111 knots, without deductions
for hazy weather or when ships were near, on which
occasions the speed never exceeded 10 knots. This
result was considered satisfactory by the officers in
f
charge. When ready for sea it is estimated thatt
. ;
the draught of the Agincourt will be, aft, 26
forward, 25ft. On leaving Liverpool her draught
was 25ft. 6in., and 23ft. Gin., andin on her afurreilv,alsoaot
7
Plymouth 25ft. Gin., and 22ft. •
tons of coal, was stowed chiefly forward ; her five
iron masts are on deck, a little abaft the midship
section. The bulk of the weights which will yet
have to go in her will be placed chiefly forward.
The Agincourt on her passage answered her helm
readily, and was very easy under the swell of the
sea, whether ahead or on her beam. The weather,
although moderate, was sufficiently heavy to cause
other ships to roll. Her engines, by Mandalay, Sons,
and Field, are of 1,350 horse power nominal, being
more powerful by 100 horses than those of the
Achilles, and were in charge of Mr. Warrener, of
that firm, and his engineers. They were
fitted in Mr. Laird's yard, but will not
be accepted by the Lords of the Admiralty until
certified after trial by the official inspectors, which
cannot take place' for some time. On the passage
all her 10 boilers were worked. The screw has a
diameter of 24ft., and a pitch of 24ft. ; it is of the
Admiralty pattern—four bladed ; the revolutions
averaged 50 per minute ; vacuum, 26i and 27 ;
highest temperature in the stoke-hole 105 deg., and
in the engine-room 82 deg. There were no hot
bearings, and the machinery was not stopped from
the time of leaving Holyhead to arrival in Plymouth
Sound. The Agincourt will be placed in the new
long dock in Devonport yard. In consequence of
her great breadth-59ft. 3in.—it will be necessary
to use deeper blocks than usual to receive her keel,
by which her bilges will be brought higher up,
and consequently further off from the receding
sides of the dock. There will thus be more light
below, and the artisans will obtain more space in
which to do their work. She will probably be
docked on Thursday. Her total weight is 8,000
tons.
The Constance screw frigate, Captain E. Bar-
nard, sailed from Spithead yesterday from Devon-
port, where she is ordered to complete her outfit for
foreign service.
The Scorpion, 4, double turret ship, Captain H.
Burgoyne, V.C., remains at anchor at St. Helen's,
south of Spithead, testing the working of her guns
and turrets, under the supervision of the officers of
her Majesty's ship Excellent.

Tne following reinforcements for cavalry and in-

•
••
ftis
fantry regiments in India are now awai g'orard„
at Chatham garrison to embark on board the`char-1
tered troopship Beaumaris Castle, which has been
taken up by the Hon. Council of India for the
conveyance of troops to Kurrachee—viz., Lieut.
W. S. Jervis, Ensign C. D. Rundall, Ensign E. A.
Free, and 34 non-commissioned officers and men of
the 101st Royal Bengal Fusiliers ; Ensign R.
Lawrence, and 153 non-commissioned officers and
men of the 90th Light Infantry ; Captain J. Lane
and wife, 82d Regiment; Captain W. Green, Er,
sign A. W. Warrand ; Ensign S. G. Hulse, and 80
men of all ranks of the 42d Royal Highlanders (the
Black Watch) ; 51 non-commissioned officers and
men of the 79th Cameron Highlanders ; 1 man of
the 93d Sutherland Highlanders ; 1 man of the
51st King's Own Light Infantry ; Lieutenant J.
Gabbett and 26 men of the 95th Regiment ; and
1 man of the 21st Hussars, the whole in medical
charge of Assistant-Surgeon T. A. Thornhill, M. 8.,
7th Queen's Own Hussars. The Beaumaris Castle
was under orders to leave the Thames, with the
above troops on board, on the 18th inst., but in
consequence of an accident which she has sustained
she is not expected to be ready to receive on board
her troops for some days.

HEALTH OP LONDON.

(From the Registrar-General's Weekly Report.)
In the week that ended on Saturday, Aug. 19, the
births registered in London and ten other large towns
of the United Kingdom were 3,889 ; the deaths re-
gistered 2,658 ; annual rate of mortality was 24 per
1000 persons living.

In London the births of 954 boys and 1,019 girls,
in all 1,973 children, were registered in the week.
In the corresponding weeks of 10 years, 1855-64,
the average number, corrected for increase of popu-
lation, was 1,891.

Thedeaths registered in London during the week
were 1,182. It was the 33d week of the year; and
the average number of that week was, with a cor-
rection for increase of population, 1,322. The actual
return for the week is less than the estimated mor-
tality by 140.

It is satisfactory to observe that the mortality
from diarrhoea exhibits a great decrease. In each of
the first two weeks of the present month the deaths
from this disease were above 200 ; in the last week
they declined to 116. The average number for the
corresponding week in the last 10 years is, with a
correction for increase of population, 200. In the
week that ended Aug. 20, 1859, the deaths from
diarrhoea were 240 ; in the same week of 1864 they
were 242. Besides the deaths enumerated as caused
by diarrhoea, 12 cases, of which 4 occurred to adults,
were referred to cholera or choleraic diarrhoea. In
St. George's-in-the-East, at 61, Hardinge-street, on
Aug. 15, the wife of a working lighterman, aged 27,
died of " Asiatic cholera after 24 hours' illness."
Mr. Armstrong, registrar of St. Mary sub-district
of St. George-in-the-East, draws attention to the
condition of Blacksmith's-arms-court, which suffered
much by a visit of malignant typhus three years
ago, and where sickness is always prevalent, in con-
sequence of the filth and foetid exhalations of the
place.

The following four deaths by horses or horse con-
veyances on the streets were registered in the week :
In Dean-street, Holborn, on Aug. 11, the son of a
farrier, aged 12 years ; died at King's College Hos-
pital. On Aug. 11'the son of a chimney sweep, aged
8 months, thrown from a cart, died at 4, Canal-
street, Haggerstone. On 4th August, a carman, aged
27 years, run over ; died at 3, York-street, Bethnal-
green. In the Old Kent-road, on 13th August, a
labourer, aged 36 years, knocked down by a cab,
died in Guy's Hospital.
The rate of mortality last week was 20 per 1,000
in London, 27 in Edinburgh, and 25 in Dublin ;
32 in Liverpool, 31 in Manchester, 34 in Salford, 26
in Birmingham, 29 in Leeds, 19 in Bristol, 27 in
Hull, and 32 in Glasgow.
In Liverpool the births were 363, the deaths 289 ;
in Manchester the births 227, the deaths 209 ; in
Salford the births 82, the deaths 72 ; in Birming-
ham the births 236, the deaths 166 ; in Leeds the
births 198, the deaths 125 ; in Bristol the birthslo3,
the deaths 60 ; in Hull the births 70, the deaths 53;
in Edinburgh the births 118, the deaths 89 ; in
Glasgow the births 343, the deaths 263 ; and in
Dublin the births 176, the deaths 150.

At the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, the mean
height of the barometer in the week was 29.624 in.
The barometrical pressure fell to 29.39 in. on Tues-
day, and rose to 29.81 in. on Saturday. The mean
temperature of the air in the week was 60 deg.,
which is 1.3 deg. below the average of the sameweek
in 50 years (as determined by Mr. Glaisher). The
mean temperature was slightly below the average on
every day of the week. The highest day tempera-
ture was 73.2 deg., and occurred on Monday ; the
lowest night temperature was 46.6 deg., and occur-
red on Saturday. The range of the thermometerin
the week was therefore 26.6 deg. The mean daily
range was 18.2 deg. On Saturday the range was
25.6 deg. The difference between the mean dew-
point temperature and air temperature was 7 deg.
The mean degree of humidity of the air was 78,
complete saturation being represented by 100. On
Tuesday the humidity almost touched the point of
saturation. The general directions of the wind were
south-west and west. The rain measured 0.29 in.,
most of which fell on Monday and Tuesday. On
.lin.
Thursday rain fell at Manchester to the amount of
o 7