The Sun.
London, England, 1862-03-31 00:00:00

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THE SUN.

LONDON, MONDAY', MARCH 31, 1862.

Captain COLES may reasonably ask a reconsidera-
tion of his plan for the defence of our arsenals.
Our readers may remember that we expressed our
opinion when the subject was under discussion
before, that the Captain and those who proposed
their defence by iron - plated batteries, had the
advantage in argument over Lord PALMERSTON
and those who advocated building forts at an en-
ormous cost. Several general reasons, not necessary
to be dwelt upon now, were strongly in the Cap,
tain's favour; but the most prejudiced on the side
of forts must acknowledge that the naval battle
in America has furnished an argument in the
Captain's favour which cannot be overlooked. It
is an argument, too, so specially in his favour ; for
while much is proved by the deeds of the Mer-
rimac, yet more is proved by the performance of
the Monitor, which was constructed substantially
on Captain COLES' own plan, and, it seems, re-
ceived its name because it was to be a " Monitor"
:not to American builders only, but, as ERICSSON
himself says, to our Lords of the Admiralty and
to Downing-street.
The feats of the Merrimac made it unanswerably
Clear that the forts now building to protect Ports-
mouth harbour will be perfectly useless against
even such vessels as she is, hastily plated, and with
but the very limited means of the Confederates to
equip her. Our forts on the shoal banks would be,
indeed, worse than useless, since they would be
excellent buoys and lighthouses to a foreign ves-
sel, showing her how to keep in deep water,
while she would play about past them, or among
them, as little affected by their heaviest guns as
by a shower of hailstones. A vessel built at
leisure, and with adequate manufacturing means,
would be perfectly safe under all the artillery of
either Portsmouth or Cherbourg. She would
Place herself where she pleased, and let them fire
on, or, more probably, would select some' spot
where few or none of their shot could tell, and
Would send her shells at leisure into the dockyards
acid arsenals, just as she kept on pitching a shell or
two
in off-hand style, and as the Merrimac kind of
D.-le-PlaY, into the Federal camp at Newport News.
We do not
see
how it can be now believed that
either Erglana
or France have a single port or
tirsenal 'which
is Elate against a well-built Merrimac.
Nor is it easy to 5
ee how they can be safe, except
by- the construction of Monitors. Our stone forts
are, we are told,
to - b - plated
two
with ; that is, an
ad.tlitional million or
is to go after other
wasted millions. Surely it is time to
ask those who
si-end the national taxes to Pause. Of what use
can it be, at an owl/Eons cost, •
-0 make these forts
invulnerable by bodies of stone and coats of i
hen the Merrimacs aye Monitors Rill coolly
W
111 coolly
lite= /

t them, not, c %posing a man to their fire
and /eazin.g noting for their rhinoceros hides fro'
'+hot- of thtir stationary assailants,
itor, thot +ll only one-sixth of the
:;,

the heiivirs
liut, the

Mercirrac'A size, proved a 1'0.9 powerful competitor
for her.' So for as we can yet- .learn, it seems a little
doubtful whether the shot of tile Monitor did make
a hole in her side, or whether the Merrimac did not
injure herself by attempting to run down the
Monitor. A person on board writes that when the
Merrimac attempted to run down the Monitor, she
g;aav, aeethe latter a tremendous thump, but her bow
"er the deck of the Monitor, and the as-
saili Int
herself received an injury which wellt

through her light iron shoe to the oak itself. We
think there can be little doubt, however,
that the very heavy shot of the Monitor
did tell on her opponent ; and if it be
admitted that the Merrimac was equipped under
the greatest manufacturing disadvantages, it must
be also allowed, on the other side, that Captain
COLES' principle is the oue which allows the
heaviest guns possible to be worked on board
ship. COLES' cupolas would always have the ad-
vantage, so far as it is one of concentrating the
same weight of broadside into a few shots.
What then is the practical result of the late
battle on the subject before us ? We answer un-
hesitatingly, to pause in carrying on our Ports-
mouth fortifications. We do not ask for inconsi-
derate abandonment ; but they are works which
will take no harm from suspension, and the suspen-
sion of them may not only save millions, but leave
those millions for a really useful purpose. We would
not pronounce dogmatically, or at once convert a
number of our ships for the cupola plan. Indeed,
that plan will be sure to receive early, and perhaps
great improvements, from the ingenuity of both
American and English mechanicians. But it is
right to stay and re-examine. We have fresh light,
let us use it. No more wooden ships will now be
sent against any country which can maintain a
single iron one, for it is evident that the whole of
Admiral MILNE'S fleet in American waters could
save themselves from destruction only by getting
out of the way of a single well-built Merrimac.
But, if we see that henceforth wooden
ships will be useless, except against bar-
barian nations, it appears almost as clear
that arsenals can be defended against these new
assailants only by ships equipped in like manner.
The inhabitants of New York showed that they
, considienreidtstdhoecikr
sbaatntaerwieasteartst.he entrance of their
harbour as useless; and the New York Chamber of
Commerce itself, in face of the obvious danger, has
resolved that it is the duty of the great Northern
ports—New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Balti-
more—to create iron-clad batteries of sufficient
strength to resist the Merrimac or similar batteries
should they make their appearance at their ports.
The Massachusetts Legislature has in fact resolved
to construct iron clad ships at once to protect its har-
bours. We apprehend the resolutions of the Liver-
pool, Southampton, and London commercial men will
soon be similar. They will ask of the Government,
or, more nobly, like the Americans, resolve to create
for themselves, iron-floating batteries which shall
protect their shipping, in place of the now useless
fortifications. We see no alternative. With all
the forts we could pl ace along the Thames, a
4 French Merrimac er two could fire the entire ship-
\ ping

In anticipating the Quarterly Tables of the
Revenue, which will duly make their appearance
to-morrow morning, we are enabled already to take
a bird's eye view of 1861-2 as compared with 1860-1
—in financial retrospect. And accordingly as we
scan the contrast—thereby presented to us—with the
binocular powers of vision appertaining no less to
the balanced judgment than to the human sensorium
as influenced by the twin retinae : scanning this
contrast of the two last financial years, that is to
say, first from the one point of view and then from
the other, gazing at it, first from the right and then
from the left, looking now at the pro and now at
the con : accordingly as we look at the Revenue
returns thus, we behold the results alternately with
feelings of Hope or of profound Solicitude. It is
only by blending the two points of view into one
by means of what we have thus called the binocular
powers of vision appertaining to every truly ba-
lanced judgment, that we can contrive in any way
accurately to estimate the contrast presented to us
in its entirety. Here again, in regard to this
question of finance, as in regard to all other questions
ever submitted to discussion, there are " two sides" to
be taken honestly into account. The shield about the
colour of which the two warriors in the desert were
going to fight so implacably to the death, accord-
ing to the old mediaeval apologue—one contending
that i t was black and the other that it was golden—
might almost always lee accepted at once as an apt
and fitting type of the last tabular record of our Re-
venue Returns, whether annual or quarterly. It is
peculiarly a symbol of that about to be published
to-morrow morning—certainly so far as this forth-
coming tabular report of the Imperial Revenue can
be beheld now; that is to say, without any very
minute attention to details, but broadly and com-
prehensively. There is the dark side of the finan-
cial shield, for example, the very black side of it,
that any one can recognise upon the instant and
at a glance. Then, again, there is also as unques-
tionably the golden side of it, the one that looks to us
all as a matter of course a trifle more cheerfully. Both
sides must be taken equally into consideration
if we would understand the Financial shield as a
whole.

Before examining either side—the "black" or
the " golden"—in its several compartments, it is
but right to bear in mind for a moment, however,
the bearing of two or three very important parti-
culars eminently well-deserving of being recalled
to recollection. Added to the depressing influence
exercised over this last year's revenue by the fratri-
cidal conflict between the Northern and Southern
States of America—there were those two very
1 considerable concessions boldly adventured upon by
Mr. GLADSTONE in his Budget for 1861, the re-
mission of a Penny under the Income-Tax and of
the whole of the Paper Duty ! The Income-Tax
penny representing—Xl,l3o,ooo. The remission I
of the Paper Duty lopping off at a single stroke of
the Chancellor of the Exchequer's prunning hook, I
an impost that would otherwise have brought in a I
round sum of £1,330,000. So that our Minister of
Finance—in presence of the American Difficulty—
had the courage to forego an aggregate amount
under those two heads very nearly approxi-
mating to two millions and a half sten
ling, in effect, and to be precise, to just
£2,460,000 ! These are the " particulars" which
we referred to above as eminently well deserving
our consideration before taking into account either
the good or the bad side of the Revenue Tables, the
black or the golden side of the Financial shield now
about to be displayed for the minute examination
of any one and everyone to-morrow : the appointed
day of publication arriving most oppor-
tunely this year just two days prior to the
Financial Statement to be delivered to the
House of Commons on Thursday by the Chancellor
of the Exchequer. There is the blockade of the
Confederate Ports—causing to us a diminished im-
port, among otl er commodities, of corn, and rum,
and tobacco. And—requiring to be borne in re-
membrance quite as vividly : there is the oblitera-
tion from the Excise Ilf,turus of the customary in-
comings under the head of the old and new obsolete
and abandoned Paper Duty, and the mulcting from
the ncome- a penny in the pound !
iNotwithstanding ail which, however—and look-
ing boldly at the
with___ me
find darker side of the returns to begin
a falling off in the Customs for the
last Quarter,
in per,
merely
s.t
of somewhere about £lOO,OOO
—and h
the diminished imports cf
corn, of rum, and of tobaccon! Under the Income Tax
again for the year we find
a
total loss consequent
upon the reduction of the pennyon more than that,
of about £550,000
.—not, observe ! of nearly a
or at least of a totalminus, amounting to

£1,130,000! In reality, the returns for the last
Quarts 3r show an increase in the Income Tax returns
amounting altogether to £400,000—an increase that
would be utterly incomprehensible (remembering
the " penny" reduction) but that it is accounted for
by the• collection of " arrears," Again—in regard
to the Excise returns—while it is unpleasantly un-
deniable of course that, upon the year, the falling
off thitre exceeds a million, shows a diminution in
point o:f fa-...t of £1,100,000 or thereabouts—that
even, it should in justice be remembered,
is not by any means equivalent to the total
loss con sequent on the remission of the Paper
, Duties, an estimated foregoing, it will be re-
member ed, of £1,330,000. Nay, the Excise actually
shows, i a the returns about to be made to-morrow,
for the last quarter, a positive gain on the corres-
ponding quarter of the last financial twelvemonth,
amounting to something very like £170,000. This
gain in the Excise, for the quarter, being attributa-
ble mainly, by the way, to two items, usually run-
ning in couples, namely, those of malt and hops. All
which must be regarded, without a doubt of it, as
particularly encouraging and satisfactory ; especially
1 if it be borne is mind that, during the past year, this
branch of the National Exchequer has been under
the disadvantage of having to repay heavy draw-
, backs for stocks of paper actually on hand when
the duty was remitted.

Let it be remembered, then, that the last Quarter's
Revenue shows a decrease, under Customs, of about
£lOO,OOO, au increase, under Excise, of about
£170,000,an increase from Stamps of about£loo,ooo,
another increase of about £40,000 under
the head of Taxes, an increase, as we have
seen, of about £400,000 under the Income
tax, the customary small increase at the Post-
office, the Crown Lands receipts remaining, as
usual, somewhere about in statu quo, and
finally an increase of about £160,000 under the
vague head of Miscellaneous. So much for the
quarter. Now, as to the financial year which
but just now expired P There will be seen an
increase of some £35,000, chiefly from hops, tea,
sugar, and brandy ; a gain in stamps of some
£240,000; a gain in taxes of some £30,000; a gain
in the Post-office of about £100,000; no alteration
under the head of Crown Lands ; nothing particu-
lar in regard to the Miscellaneous ; but, as opposed
to this, a falling-off under the Income-tax of about
£555,000 ; and another loss, the heaviebt loss of ail,
under the head of Excise, amounting to about
£1,100,000. So that on the Quarter, deducting
a loss altogether of about £lOO,OOO from
an aggregate increase of about £870,000,
there is a net gain (upon the quarter,
remember !) of some £770,000. While on the other
hand—viewing the returns upon the year last past
in their entirety—as we have to deduct merely
again of about £720,000 in all from a decrease of
about £1,650,000 we find that there is left a net
loss (upon the year !) of just £600,000 under
the million of, as nearly as can be at
this moment calculated £930,000. Such is the
plain unvarnished tale, so far as it can yet be related
with any accuracy. We have told it here not by
any means, as suffused with that hue of Hope, the
ee
es
ehea
el
el
rknne show
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tabout
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esao.
fcaoru /
ee us
rthdoe rdoestea.ils War
tion of the official tables of the Revenue—and more
again on Thursday evening when Mr. GLADSTONE
will have to lay before the House of Commons his
Financial Statement. But already we can see
enough of it to know for certain that the results,
under the circumstances, might have been a great
deal less satisfactory.

General M'CLELLAN is now put upon his mettle.
He is " relieved" of all command but that of the
army of the Potomac, and he and all the Generals
are told by tho PRESIDENT Commander-in-Chief,
to move, or be ready to move, forward at a day's
notice. The General has, therefore, moved, and he
has spoken too. Our readers no doubt observed his
manifesto to the army, on Saturday, and would see
that he felt that the time was come when he must
use the instrument he has created. He declares
that his reason for holding them inactive so long
was that they might give when they did move a
death-blow to the rebellion. He did not them that
they had hitherto been a mob, but he did tell them
that they were " now a real army "—and that in
regard to discipline, material, equipment, and a
formidable artillery, they were what he had striven
to make them.

He reminds them, however, that, as the "period
for inaction was past," as it was now to be his object
to place them where they would " wish to be on a
decisive battle on the field," he should have to make
large demands on their endurance and their courage.
Their antagonists are men as brave as themselves,
marches may have to be long and rapid, and move-
ments executed incomprehensible to those required
to make them. They are to conquer, but it is to be
by a " manly struggle." If much cannot be said
for the literary quality of the address, much may
be said for its spirit and manliness. There is no
bragging in it, no underrating of the enemy ; but
a fair description of the advantages he had laboured
to give them, and the old Roman exhortation to
trust their commander, even when they do not un-
derstand him.

1 His advance does not seem to have caused the
flight of the Confederates, but rather he appears to
have learned of their falling back, and to have
moved forward accordingly. It is rather remark-
' able that the old trick practised so successfully for
some time within a few miles of Washington itself,
was repeated with like success at the advanced
works of the enemy at Centreville. When the for-
tifications there were reached it was found that
the "Bull-dogs were Quakers," painted logs
doing duty for formidable field pieces to Fede-
ral eyes. The works, too, appear to have been of
the most destructible material, sand and dirt, poorly
put together. The roads appear to be, even at the
best, of a very miserable character ; and the intro-
duction of railroads has rather made them worse
than better. It caused the common roads to be
neglected. The Confederates in retreating, however,
have only destroyed the bridges which can soon be
replaced by American energy, and then M'CLELLAN,
if he continues to prefer the direct southward move-
ment will be able to follow them, to the position in
which they are now reported to be strengthening
themselves near Richmond.

The Federals have sustained an unimportant de-
feat in New Mexico ; elsewhere they are still on
the winning side. General BURNSIDE, instead of
marching north with his small band from Albemarle
Sound, where he had been so successful, has turned
South, and attacked Newburn, in North Carolina,
which, however, the Confederates set fire to before
they left it. The battle was fought with energy
on both sides for four hours. If BURNSIDE ventures
further, however, from the coast, JEFFERSON DAVIS
ought to be able to crush him. To sustain his
energy twenty thousand additional men have been
sent him. This success, with the victories at Pea
Ridge in Arkansas, at Paris in Tennessee, the capture
of New Madrid, and the advance on the Potomac,
must tend to keep the North in spirits. We just
notice, however, that, as we had anticipated, the
Yankees are not quite pleased that the Confederates
went away from Manassas with the bottle and vic-
tory which was to compensate for Bull's Run.
The question doubtless still is what will be the

pluck of the South. Its temper is plainly bad and
fretted enough ; but we have nothing yet beyond
the burning of a few towns and accumulations of
crops, to prevent the Federals from using them, to
show that Southerns are likelyto sacrifice everything
for the disadvantage of governing themselves at a
vastly 'increased cost, and of parting company with
the wealthier half of the old Union. Discourage-
ment and submission, from we can yet see, is quite
as possible as desperation and retirement to the
swamps with guerilla warfare. As the east coast
of Florida is now c3nquered, the Confederates see
themselves completely engirdled by Federal ships
and arms, and it may well tax all the skill of Mr.
JEFFERSON DAVIS to keep up the courage of his
wholly circumvented dominions.

COURT CIRCULAR.

WINDSOR CASTLE, MARCH 29.

The Queen and their Royal Highnesses the Princess
Helena and Princess Louise, attended by Lady Augusta
Bruce and Colonel the Hon. A. Hardinge, drove out yes-
terday.
Sir Charles Eastlake arrived at the Castle yesterday.

Her Majesty and their Royal Highnesses the Crown
Princess of Prussia (Princess Royal), Princess Alice, and
the Princess Beatrice, drove out in the afternoon, attended
by Colonel the Hon. A. N. Hood on horseback.

Her Royal Highness Princess Mary of Cambridge and
his Serene Highness Prince Edward of Saxe-Weimar came
to the Castle, and returned to London in the afternoon.

MARCH 30.
The Queen, the Crown Princess of Prussia (Princess
Royal), Princess Alice, Prince Alfred, Princess Helena,
and Priacess Louise, attended Divine service this morning
in the Private Chapel.
The Hon. and Very Rev. the Dean of Windsor officiated.

THE EMBARKATION OF THE CROWN

PRINCESkY OF PRUSSIA.

The royal steam-yacht Victoria and Albert, Captain
George H. Seymour, C. 8., arrived at Gravesend yesterday
afternoon, and anchored near the Terrace-pier, for the pur-
pose of embarking her Royal Highness the Crown Princess
of Prussia and suite on their return from a visit to her
Majesty. Her royal highness and suite will proceed to
Gravesend by special train from the Bricklayers' Arms sta-
tion, and the embarkation will take place this day about
half-past two o'clock, under the superintendence of Com-
modore Sir W. F. E. Nicholson, as flag-officer of the port,
after which the royal yacht will proceed to Antwerp.

The Prince of Leiningen has left Buckingham
Palace for Plymouth, whither his Serene Highness has
gone to take possession of his new command, the Magi-
cienne, to which he has been recently appointed. It was
this nomination that caused the Prince to leave Germany
in such haste that the Princess could not accompany him,
and her Royal Highness, therefore, remains for the present
on the continent. _ _ _

The Duke and Duchess of Marlborough will
shortly leave town for the Continent for a few weeks.
The Marquis and Marchioness of Kildare are
expected to arrive in town about the 14th pros. from their
seat in Ireland.

The Earl of Fife and Mr. George Skene Duff will
leave town to-day on a visit to Mr. and Lady Louisa Brook,
at their seat, near Wrexham.
The Earl of Durham left Grosvenor-square on
Friday to join his yacht in the Syuthampton Water. The
Countess has gone on a visit to the Marquis and Marchioness
of Abercorn, at Brocket Hall, Herts.
Viscount and Viscountess Palmerston received a
distinguished circle at dinner on Saturday at their mansion
in Piccadilly. Later in the evening Lady Palmerston
opened her saloons to a numerous company, including the
members of the diplomatic corps and of the leading aristo-
cracy in town.
The Right Hon. Sir Robert and Lady Emily
Peel received a select circle at dinner on Friday, at their
residence in Whitehall Gardens. Lady Emily Peel wel-
comed a select company later in the evening.
A congress is now being held in Paris, between
the principal managers and the dramatic authors, for the
purtiose of revising the regulations which have hitherto
been in force respecting the performances of piec3s which
belong to the French Society of Dramatic Authors.
We learn that Mr. George Russell is considered
by his medical attendants to be going on as favourably as
can be expected from the serious nature of the injuries he
sustained by hie recent accident. Hopes are now held out of
his ultimate recovery.

The Opera at Madrid closes early next month.
Mdme. Legrange, Filippi, and other of the best
artistes are expected in Paris and London.
The drama of "The Golden Knife," which has
been written by Mr. Fechter, in conjunction with Mr.
Edmund Yates, and in which the former intends to sustain
the principal part, will probably be produced at the Prin-
cess's Theatre in the course of the Easter week.

We learn that Mr. Mapleson has strengthened
the already strong company provided by him for her Ma-
jesty's Theatre by the addition of Madame Guerrabella,
who is to appear in the " Puritani" soon after the opening
of the theatre.

GALLERY OF ILLUSTRATION.—The new enter-
tainment by Tom Taylor, entitled "The Family Legend,"
is postponed till Monday, April 7. It has been found ne-
cessary to give another week's rehearsal to complete the
scenic and other effects, which, we hear, are ingeniously
complicated. Our Card Basket and the Two Rival Com-
posers, therefore, will be performed during the week.
A CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTION.—Madame Lind
Goldschmidt announces her intention of singing in London
in the oratorios of "Messiah," the "Creation," and
"Elijah," during the months of May and June next; the
first in behalf of the Institution for Distressed Needle-
women ; the second in aid of the Brompton Consumption
Hospital ; and the third in support of the Royal Society of
Musicians of Great Britain and the Royal Society of
Female Musicians.

THE CLUBS AND THE EXHIBITION.—The Senior
and Junior United Service and the Army and Navy Clubs
intend, it is said, to allow foreign officers of distinction to
become honorary members during the continuance of the
Exhibition.

HANOVER•SQUARE ROOMS.—Mr. Mason Jones,
who is so well known for his clever orations on Milton,
Cromwell, Macaulay, &c., gave the second of a series of
orations on sacred characters yesterday afternoon, at the
above rooms, to which the public were admitted free. The
subject was Elijah, and the eloquent gentleman analysed
the character of the great prophet, and illustrated the extra-
ordinary incidents through which he passed with great
fervour and occasionally with deep pathos ; he combated
the arguments of the doubters and commentators with
logical acumen, and condemned the follies, vices, and much
of the literature of the present day in bitter and sarcastic
terms. The oration created a deep impression on a crowded
audience.

DEATH OF MR. RICHARDSON, THE CELEBRATED
FLUTE PLAYER.—The Era records the death of Mr, Joseph
Richardson, the eminent flautist, who has just expired,
after a long illness, in London. His first appearance in
public was made many years ago at Rotherham, Yorkshire,
whilst he was a mere youth, and he displayed, even at that
age, such a mastery over the flute that the late Earl Fitz-
william became his patron, and encouraged him to make
music his profession. He rapidly made his way to the first
rank of instrumentalists, and at the London and provincial
concerts, especially those of the late M. Jullien, his services
were in constant requisition. A few years since he ob-
toined an appointment in the Queen's private band, which
ill health, a short time ago, compelled him to resign. Ho
was a man of kindly disposition, of deserved eminence in
his art, and his death will to widely regretted.

CAPTURE OF A FEDERAL SHIP BY A CONFEDERATE
PRIVATEER.—LIVERPOOL, Saturday.—The ship D. G.
Fleming, which arrived here yesterday morning from Bom-
bay, reports the capture of an American vessel by a South-
ern privateer. Captain Hadfield, of the D. G. Fleming,
states that on the 4th instant, in lat. 26 N., long. 39 W., he
saw a large American ship about five miles ahead, steering
north-east. The American ship suddenly backed her main-
yard, when a rakish fore and aft schooner ran alongside,
and the American ensign was hauled down. The ship then
squared away to the north-west, after which the schooner
stood for the D. G. Fleming, but on seeing the British en-
sign flying, passed under her lee with the Confederate
flag flying. Her name was the S. C. Evans.
RAILWAY AND PUBLIC COMPANIES IN PARLIA-
MENT.—on Friday the committee on the competing lines of
the Crystal Palace and South Junction Railway and Lon-
don and Brighton Company's new lines informed the re-
spective parties that in their opinion the Brighton Company
might make the proposed line between New Cross and Brixton,
and that the London, Chatham, and Dover Company might
make the proposed line between Peckhem and the Crystal
Palace. Mr. Scholefield, the chairman of the committee,
then adjourned the proceedings until Monday, to give the
parties an opportunity of coming to an agreement on this
basis, adding that, is the event of their not agreeing, the
committee would deride the question on their own view of
it. The bill for the Tottenham and Hampstead Junction
was passed in Mr flassard's committee. The decision of
the committee on the Andover arid Redbridge lines was ad-
journed until some other railways, referred for considera-
tion to the committee, and having a bearing on that deci-
sion, are brought forward, and accordingly the case of the
Bristol and South-Western Junction Railway was brought
forward, and evidence taken on its merits. Continuous
evidence upon traffic, engineering, and other krrangements
occupied the committees on the Barnsley Coal, Bala, and
Midland Railway Company's projects.
THE RECORDERSHIP OF STAMFORD.—This ap•
pointment, rendered vacant by the death of Mr. Maunsell,
has been conferred on Mr. Flower, of the Midland circuit.

LATEST NEWS.

TURIN, MARCEL 30, EVENING.

It appears to have been definitively decided that
Signori Mancini and Cordova shall leave the
Cabinet.

Signor Brioschi is to be Minister for Public
Instruction, and Signor Conforti Minister of Justice.
According to the Italia, General della Marmora
has declared that he does not require reinforcements
to suppress brigandage in Naples.

PARMA, MARCH 30.

Garibaldi has arrived here. He was received with

,he utmost enthusiasm.

Garibaldi thanked the people, and said :

" The people of Parma have provided me with
numerous companions, and will, should the occasion
arise, provide me with more."

TURIN, MARCH 29, EVENING.

The Nationalites of to-day states that the Mini-
stry will be completed in the course of next week,
and that all other reports of Ministerial changes

are incorrect.

CONSTANTINOPLE, MARCH 29.
The great success of the Turkish Loan in London
gives much satisfaction.

The Sultan has cauaed 19,000,000 piastres to be
taken from his privy purse for the purpose of pay-
ing the arrears due to the troops.
He has also given orders for providing the army
with clothing at his own cost.
The surrender of Nauplia is confirmed.
The King has granted an amnesty to the whole
of the garrison, with the exception of 12 officers who
have fled.

Greece is said to be tranquil, but numerous
arrests continue at Athens.

CONSTANTINOPLE, MARCH 27.
The news from the Herzegovina continues to be
very satisfactory,

The positions which were recently taken by the
army of Omar Pasha on the frontiers of Monte-
negro will secure the speedy pacification of the
small portion of territory which remains still occu-
pied by the insurgents.
The affair of Tranitza took place on the other
side of Montenegro, on the frontier of the province
of Scutari, in Albania, to which province Tranitza
belongs.

ST. PETERSBURG, MARCH 30.

The Northern Post of to-day says that the Central
Committee appointed to examine into the propriety
of establishing banks for loans on mortgaged secu-
rities has terminated its labours.

The committee recommends the entire indepen-
dence of such banks, and is averse to the idea that
the Government should be connected with these
establishments.

The Journal de St. Petersbour gof to-day states
that Gen. Patknll, the Chief Minister of Police, has
been permitted to retire on account of illness. He
is to be succeeded by General Annenkoff.

WARSAW, MARCH 29 (Evening).

The official Dziennik of to-day contains an impe-
rial order to the Council of State respecting the
revision of the criminal code.

The order especially directs the attention of the
council to the consideration of such changes as may
be suitable to the age, and the promulgation of new
laws for offences against the State.

M. Schlenker has been condemned to imprison-
ment in a fortress for four months, and conducted
to Modlin.

The Marquis Wielopolski has arrived here.

FRANCE.

PARIS, SATURDAY.

BOURSE, March 29.—The market opened at the
closing quotation of the previous day, but sales for
a short time caused a retrograde movement, but the
loss was soon recovered, and Threes, for the Account,
are now again at 69f. 75c. The Railway Shale
Market continues firmer than the Rente. The
following were the last quotations :

4t per per Cents 97 50
Do. end month 97 50
3 per Cents
Do. end month 69 60
New 3 per Cents
Do, end month 6B 60
Credit Mobilier 765
Do. Account —

Bank Shares 3095
Credit Fonder l5OO
Belgian 4} —
Piedmontese Fivcs 67 75
Roman
Austrian
Spanish Threes 5l 25
Home Debt -

RAILWAYS.

Cash. Account.
Orleans
Northern ..
_ _

New ditto . 965 --
Lyons and Mediterranean 11171 .. 1116 25
Geneva 3Ol 26 .. -- --
Southern .. 770

Western • 575

Eastern ....
Sardinian
Austrian

Lombard

71/ tz: WEST INDIA MAILS.

SOUTHAMPTON, MARCH 30, EVENING.

The Royal Mail Company's steamship La Plata,
with the above mails, has arrived. She brings 140
passengers, 1,198,200 dols. in specie, and 1,421
packages of cargo.

The La Plata left St. Thomas on the 17th inst.

At Callao and Lima all was tranquil.
There was nothing stirring in Paita. A severe
shock of earthquake was felt at Paita on the Bth.
The news frnm Bolivia was more favourable.
Peace was re-established for a time.

In Peru matters were quieter, but political dis-
cussions and attempts at revolution were agitating
the country. The bishops and other leading mem-
bers of the clergy were said to favour the proposi-
tion of again annexing Peru to Spain.
Business was dull in Coquimbo. The mines were
of late much abandoned.

At Valparaiso, on the 12th inst., a reception was
given to the President. Upwards of 30,000 citizens
met his Excellency on his entrance into the city.
Business was improving. The wheat harvest was
better than had been anticipated, and sufficient to
prevent scarcity in the interior. Other crops were
promising.

Bar silver 10 dols per mare. Exchange on
London, 46 to 46-1 ; on Paris, 4.70.

Business was dull in Guayaquil. Money was

scarce.

News from the Cauca was generally favourable
to the Liberals. Arboledo had retreated before the
forces of Lopez.

It was `reported from Carthagena that the Con-
servatives under Jiraldo had taken possession of
Nare, on the river Magdalena. They had seized
the steamer Antioquia, having on board 5,000
muskets, and the correspondence of Mosquera.
At Demerara business was dull, and there was
no prospect of improvement.
The weather was fine at Trinidad, and the sugar
making was proceeding with activity.
At Jamaica trade was quiet. The market was
well supplied, but transactions were limited. Coffee
was scarce, 48,252 was offered for ordinary to fair.
Pimento :—stocks exhausted. Rum dull, at 30d. in
bond. Sugar, 14s to 18s for dark to fair. Tobacco:
sales were effected at 105 s per 1001bs.
Exchange on London, 90 days, * per cent. prem.

FLOODS IN 70 IDDLESEX.—Accounts from the
low-lying districts watered by the Colne and the Brent,
mention that the streams are much swollen, and meadows
in many places inundated.

THE REVENUE OF IRELAND.--. 4 number of re-
turns relating to the revenues of Ireland during the years
1860 and 1861 have been published. In 1860 the net pro
duce of the revenue of Ireland was £6,894,263 ; £2,245,394
being derived from customs, and £2,831,000 from excise.
In 1861 the net produce was £6,88;5,557; customs produ-
cing £2,295,000, and excise £2,991,000.

AMERICA.

NEW YORK, MARCH 18, EVENING.
(By Canada, via Queenstown.)

The Federals have occupied Dumfries, on the
Lower Potomac.

General Burnside's expedition has captured New-
burn, North Carolina. The fight lasted four hours.
The Confederates were driven from their position,
Gen. Burnside capturing three batteries of artillery,
46 guns, 3,000 stand of arms, and 200 prisoners.
The Confederates, supposed to number 10,000,
escaped by railway to Goldesborough, burning the
bridges over the Trent and Claremont rivers, and
setting fire to Newburn, but without doing much
damage. The Federal loss amounts to 100 killed
and 400 wounded.

The New York Chamber of Commerce committee
has resolved that in view of the magnitude of the
interests involved, it is the duty of Boston, Phila-
delphia, and New York, to create iron-clad vessels
of sufficient strength to resist the Merrimac or other
batteries, if they make their appearance.
News from Mexico gives Vera Cruz dates to the
4th instant, via Havannah.
President Juarez had ratified the agreement
entered into with the allied commissioners at
Soledad. The French and Spanish troops have
left for Tetuacan and Orizaba. The British troops
were about to re-embark for home. A portion of
the Spanish troops was returning to Cuba. The
French reinforcements which were expected would
return without landing.
Negotiations were to commence at Orizaba on
Ist April.
Everything announces that the pending disagree-
ments will have a pacific solution, and ample gua-
rantees for the future would be obtained.

The American bearer of despatches had been
murdered between Vera Cruz and the City of
Mexico.

NEW YORK, MARCH 20, AFTERNOON.
(Per Canada, by telegraph to Halifax, and from
Queenstown.)

The announcement of the capture of Island No.
10 was premature. The fighting there still con.

tinues.

Commodore Dupont officially reports the capture
of Jacksonville and St. Augustine in Florida, with
Fort Marione.

It is understood that the governor of Florida has
recommended the entire evacuation by the Con-
federates of the eastern part of the State.
It is reported that Mr. Yancey, late Confederate
commissioner to England,was captured in a schooner
attempting to run the blockade.
NEW YORK, MARCH 20, EVENING.

The Confederate steamers Ella Warley and Kate
ran the blockade at Charleston on the 27th ult., with
1,100 bales of cotton. When they left the bar
there were lying at Charleston the barque Eltiman,
fer Liverpool, witk 1,800 bales. and the brig Mary
Wright, with 1,500 bales, waiting an opportunity
to run the blockade.

General Beauregard had issued an order of the
day upon assuming command of the army of the
;Mississippi, saying :—" Our reverses, far from dis-
heartening, must nerve us to new deeds of valour,
and while true to our cause and ourselves, with the
protection of the Almighty, we mast and shall
triumph."

COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE.

NEW YORK, MARCH 20, AFTERNOON.

Money tighter. Exchange dull. Bankers' bills, 112 to
112/. Gold, Ito 1} premium. Stocks heavy. New York
Centrals, 83/ ; Illinois, 65i ; Erie, 37g. Cotton inactive ;
middling Uplands, 27 to 271. Flour, good inquiry, sc.
higher. Wheat dull. Corn slightly firmer. Provisions
quiet. Coffee inactive. Sugar good demand. Molasses
steady. .

The Queen has presented the Rev, Donald
Macleod to the living of Linlithgow, vacant by the death of
the Rev. Dr. Bell.
ETON COLLEGE.—The school closes at noon on
Friday, the 11th of April, for the Easter vacation, when
the whole of the students take their departure. The school
re-opens on IN ednesday, the 7th May, on which day the
lower boys return. The fifth form return on Thursday,
the Bth, and on the following day the sixth form return,
when the whole school will assemble. At the present time
there are upwards of 800 students at the college.
FATAL EFFECTS OF PRACTICAL JOKING. —A
dreadful instance of the danger of playing practical jokes
occurred'three days since in the neighbourhood of St. Foy
(Dordogne). It is a custom among the peasantry there, to
give a new married couple, about 12 o'clock on their wed-
ding night, a basin of garlic soup, called tourrin in the
dialect of the country. At the marriage in question some
foolish person put a quantity of laudanum into the mess,
and the unhappy couple were next morning found dead• in
their bed. The police have instituted an inquiry.

THE 2D LIFE GUARDS.—A Court of Enquiry has
been sitting at Windsor for the purpose of investigating
the circumstances connected with the discipline of the 2d
Life Guards, under the command of Colonel Mountjoy
Martin, to which we have already called attention. The
Court is composed of General Lawrenson, Inspector-Gene-
ral of Cavalry, president ; Lord George Paget, Command-
ing the Cavalry at Aldershot; and General Horsford.
The Court sat for the first time on Friday, at the Cavalry
Barracks, Spittal, and again on Saturday, from ten till four,
after which the proceedings were adjourned till Friday
next, in consequence of the regiment being under orders to
march from Windsor to Regent's-park Barracks on Wed-
nesday next. Nearly all the officers, non-commissioned
officers, and privates will undergo an examination. Several
of the officers have already been examined ; but as the pro-
ceedings will be conducted within closed doors, the par-
ticulars will not be known until the decision is promulgated
from head-quarters. _ _ _

METROPOLITAN POLICE.—It is found necessary
gradually to increase this force from time to time. At the
beginning of 1860 the entire body—superintendents, in •
specters, sergeants, and constables—numbered 5,986 men;
in 1861, it was 6,617; in 1862, 6,779. There is also a con-
siderable number of men employed in the dockyards and
military stations. The cost of all this force in the year 1861
was £533,622. The sum of £328,783, was raised by a
sixpenny rate on the parishes ; the Treasury had to add a
sum equal to one-third of the produce of this rate ; and of
the residue of the cost, also, the chief portion came from the
public purse in payment for services at the Government
offices and establishments, and for the discharge of the
duties of the home patrol and Thames police; but nearly
£6,000 were paid by public companies, lessees of theatres,
and private persons, for services rendered by the police in
keeping order for them. The cost of the police courts of the
metropolis, with their 23 magistrates, amounted in the year
to £60,064, the whole of which was granted by Parliament
with the exception of about £ll,OOO, the produce of fines
and fees at police courts.
A WORD ABOUT THE NORTH AMERICAN NE-
GROES.—No circumstance is more important than the ab-
sence of vindictiveness towards the dominant race. The
negroes do not extensively impute cruelty, each to his own
master, though in every neighbourhood there are some em-
ployers who have a bad name for rapacity and severity.
Under their present guardianship there is no incitement to
revenge ; and nothing seems to be heard of any such idea.ee
to reduce
them people crave support against any attempt u
them to slavery again ; they are well understood to have
prepared themselves to commit siucide, in inconsiderable
numbers, like so many Kroomen, rather than submit to
the yoke any more ; some of them have brought in their
masters to the camps as prisoners of war ; but there
does not seem to have been a single instance
known of outrage to slaveholders or their families.
Yet the slaveholders have,'with their own hands, shot many
negroes in the woods and on the high-roads, for refusing to
be driven with the cattle into the interior. The strong re-
ligious tendency of the negroes has doubtless come in aid
of their placable temper. Every possible use is made of it
by the Commissioners to restrain their passions. They
seem to take their religion very much to heart where they
really understand its requirements. Thus, they swear
very little, though their masters on the one hand, and
the Federal soldiery on the other, sin terribly in that
way. They seem fully disposed to be correct in their
marriage relations, when once raised above the brutish
conditions in which they have been involved by the con-
stant endeavour to increase the human stock on the
plantation. Their religion is certainly not all sentiment or
passionate excitement. They have their "glory shout" at
the close of their prayer meetings, when they join hands and
raise a cry which must be like our harvest-home clamour ;
but at the same meetings they ask and learn what their
duty is. with sincerity and zeal. It is a significant circum-
stance that in one place they held a general meeting, with
all the forms, to discuss a point of right and wrong, and
settled by vote that they ought to subscribe to pay for their
own candles for their own prayer meetings,—Qtto a WO/