The Sun.
London, England, 1862-09-26 00:00:00

LET7ER FROM MAZZINL

The following letter from Mazzini has been h. ans-
mitted to us for publication. It does not VI yto
whom it is addressed, but we presume it is to the
Italian Ministry :
Gentlemen,—Joseph Garibaldi is seriot :sly
wounded and prisoner.
We are not now about to discuss the causes which
have led to this result. We say that there are in
the life of nations acts and men which cannot 'be
submitted to common laws without dishonour a .nd
crime. Such is Garibaldi—such the act for which
he lies a wounded prisoner. Garibaldi has fought
all the battles of Italian unity. Garibaldi has given
that unity ten millions of citizens. Garibaldi is the
living symbol of the desire of the whole nation . He
was struck down whilst he was moving, not against
you, but to where Italian right has been procls,. imed
by you, and has been denied by the foreigner; not
to change the orders of the State or combat 7our
programme, but to the fulfilment of both one and
the other.

Gentlemen, you may judge that act, though in-
voked by all Italy, premature, but not guilty ; J 70U
can hinder, not punish, him who atteopted it. .
Italy is wounded and imprisoned with him.
We demand, gentlemen, the liberty of Gariball 31,
in the name of tha desire of Italy : in the name of
the gratitude that you, with us, owe him.. ti Pe
demand that, tended and surrounded by his own,
he may be freed from an imprisonment which
recals to Europe the imprisonment of Columbus..
Sept. 20, 1862. JOSEPH MAZZINI.

THE VICISSITUDES OF GOLD DIGGING.

A correspondent of San Francisco, reporting:
gold mining news from British Columbia, says :
" A remarkable instance is given of the vicissi-
tudes of the miner's life in a letter from a man
from Victoria. The part owner of a claim writes
that all felt in poor spirits,' alluding to his part-
ners, some of whom I am acquainted with, be-.
cause the "company had worked 44 days, and had
only taken out 30 dols.' This was written on-the
Bth of July. Two days afterwards, on the 10th,
he opens his letter to give his friend in Victoria
the gratifying news that we struck the gold lead.
(pay dirt) at noon to-day, and this afternoon hav'
taken out 151 oz. of dust.' The statement is cov-
roborated by a gentleman who saw the (Ins' t'
weighed on the spot, and he says he saw the nal
gets plainly visible in the dirt taken from the san le
shaft,' that produced the 15toz. The happy con-
clusion is drawn that the company, lucky at lust,
after their long and hard labour, which only pro-
duced 30 dols., have made their piles.' I sit erely
hope so, for one of them is an old Californian
pioneer who made a large fortune and lost it,. and
woo has struggled with the fates ever since 1858 in
the two colonies on sea and land, with a perseve-
rance which deserves success. He is an old: Scotch•
man, ' Major Downie,' whose travels in British.
Columbia I described in one of my letters some thre' 3
years ago. The company at work close to the
major's claim have been equally well rewarded for
their perseverance. They also struck the .same
gold leaf on that day, and claims that were sold
the day before for 1,000 dols. sold the next for 15,000
do's.' These are all hill diggings' worked in tun-
nels, which I have spoken of as being so muc h:moro
valuable than placers or surface diggings.
"New discoveries were being made frequently,
and claims hitherto worked without producinf
much were proving suddenly successfal in the earl: f
part of July, after the 'paydirt' had been penetrate( I,
and a case is mentioned of a man who was sued ;in
the morning for a debt of 130 dole., and h ad to b()r-
row flour for his dinner yesterday. In the evening
25,000 was offered for an interest in the claim !
Such is life in Cariboo,' exclaims the narrator."

7HE LOAN COLLECTION AT SOLTT.H

KENSIAGTON MUSEMIL

The more we examine the various objects o f art
which constitute the Loan Collection at South "Ke
sington, the deeper is our regret that it is so se oa
to be again dispersed. That the contents of • the
International Exhibition should be scattered ca' isetS
us no concern. We do not feel the same Inte rest in
the works exposed there. They are coiitr ibuted
mainly with an eye to business ; ugliness and beauty,
utility and vanity, economy and extravagan CG
are mingled together, and chiefly as investments . No
such motives could have actuated the noble owner -s of
the "Loan" objects. The very fact of posiessii lg
them proves a love of art, of its associations a; ad
history; the fact of lending them for exhibition
gratuitous exhibition on four days in the we el;:--•
testifies to the desire of their owners that the
public should share the pleasure which their !con-
templation affords. The efforts of the ov mere
have been ably seconded by the superinten dent
of the art collections. The catalogues issued; tire
prefaced by admirable introductions to the stuldf
of each subject, by Mr. Robinson, Mr. F3rauk3p
and others. When necessary, smaller notes on
single or classed objects are inserted in the
catalogue, so as to give the public an opportunity
of prizing, at its full worth, the boon which has
been this liberally granted to it. With the counter
attractions of its gigantic neighbour, and the feW
holidays at their disposal, a large number of the
middle and working classes have, nevon'llese,
been unable to avail themselves of the privileir of
visiting the collection. We should be sorry 10
presume upon the kindness of liberal men, hot, as
one generous deed betokens the willingness ,Ft) do
another, we do throw out a hope that the authori-
ties at South Kensington will use their influence
with the proprietors that they may leave their
works yet a while longer on view—enlarging thus
the public circle of thanks, and at the same time
extending the influence which a collection so ex-
clusively good and valuable, and formed with such
praiseworthy motives, is capable of exercising ea
all classes.—Building News.

THE NEW SUBSTITUTE FOR COITON•

The following relates to the proposed new sub-
stitute for cotton :

" Oxford Villa, Haverstock-hill, Sept. 24.
" Sir—Several inquiries have been made of me as to the
best place whence to get fresh supplies of the Zostero
marina.

" It may save endless trouble and the public some de-
lay if I state that it abounds along the sea-coast, but that•
in the river Orwell, at the entrance of the harbour, it is
growing largely ; and I have received a letter from Poole,
in Dorset, from which the following is an extract :

" Will you allow me to draw your attention to the fact
that Poole harbour, extending to 9,975 acres, though con-
taining deep channels, is for the most part very shallow,
and the tide when it falls leaves upwards of 8,000 acres of
mud covered with Zostera marina.'

" I still have no doubt as to the immediately available
quantity of the raw material, but as the question is one of
national importance, and accurate information as to the
quantity obtainable from the United Kingdom. and' Chan-
nel Islands would be extremely valuable, may I ask gen-
tlemen and others resident by or near the sea-coast to
supply me as speedily as possible with the approximate
number of acres now growing, and I will immediately pub-
lish the result F _

4i I understand that experiments are being made upon
the plant as supplied from upholsterers. If obtained from
these sources I need scarcely say that the results to be de-
sired will not be so satisfactory as if the green plant be
used; but if the object of using the dried plant he merely
to demonstrate the practicability and the inexpensiveness
of extracting the fibre, then it may answer the purpose
although I think the green plant is preferable.
" For the information of those who have not yet exa-
mined the plant, and to facilitate investigation, I may men-
tion that the outer easing forms a sort of sheath to the fibre
within, and resembles the scabbard of a sword, wbich may
be pulled off or put on again at pleasure.

" I am, sir, your obedient servant,
~ HENRY HARBEN."

A NEW LIFEBOAT FOR DUBLIN BAY.—Genera.l
Sir George Bowles, has just presented t@ the Na'
tioaal Lifeboat Institution £265, to enable it to station
new lifeboat and transporting carriage at Howth; near
Dublin. The boat, NN bich is 30 feet long, had her harbour
trial yesterday, in the Regent's Canal dock, Limehouss,
when the usual characteristics of the self-righting and
self-ejecting of water of this class of lifeboats were fulli
and satisfactorily shown, to the gratification of a number
of persons who had assembled to witness the trial. The
lifeboat and her carriage leave for their station on SaturdaY,
on board of one of the steamers belonging to Messrs. Mal-
eolmson, who, in conjunction with Mr. J. Robinson, °
Mark-lane, are ever ready to carry the boats, &c., free of
elArge,