The Sun.
London, England, 1853-05-12 00:00:00

METROPOLITAN SEWERS COMMISSION.

Yesterday a court of the justices connected with the
above-named Commission was held at the Town-hall,
Poplar, Richard Jebb, Esq., in the chair, Mr. Baker,
another of the gentlemen of the Commission, being
present.

The chief business transacted upon this occasion was
the summoning of certain parties who were alleged to
be defaulters to the sewer rate in the Poplar district.
The parties summoned were represented by Mr. Need-
ham, the barrister, who, in a speech of upwards of an
hour's duration, contended, in the first place, that his
clients were not benefited by the payment of sewer rates
inasmuch as they had not any sewer in the parish ; and,
further, that consequently they possessed a pre-
scriptive right of exemption, through being compelled
to pay for the cleansing of Poplar ditch to any charge
which might have been levied upon them for sewer rates
under the 11th and 12th of Victoria commonly called
" The Metropolitan Sewers Act, 1848." The learned
gentleman said that his clients were not unwilling, but
most ready, to pay the rates, provided proper sewerage
accommodation was provided for them ; but in the ab-
sence of such accommodation, they stood upon their
right as before stated.

The evidence of Mr. John Carter, one of the oldest
inhabitants in the locality, having been received, as to
the nature of the prescriptive right referred to, it was
agreed, upon the suggestion of the learned counsel, that
the surveyor of the court should institute every neces-
sary inquiry into the facts of the case, and report the
same to the Commissioners, who promised, on an early
day afterwards, to send an answer to the parties sum-
moned, proceedings in the meantime to be stayed.
The matter excited considerable interest, the spacious
hall being crowded with inhabitants.

After the transaction of some other business, the Corn
missioners adjourned.

NOUVEAU MONDE COMPANY.—The subjoined memo-
randum has been received from the Nouveau. Monde
Company :—" The Nouveau Monde Gold Mining Com-
pany have received letters from Mr. Clement; their su-
perintendent, to the 23d March, in which he "reports
that the expected lode in No. 1 Cross-cut, in the Pine-
tree set, had been cut, and that it is over four feet wide,
and contains gold to about the same amount as the other
lodes in the same set already explored by the Adit level.
The dam and road to the works were finished, and the
walls of the crusher-house getting up fast, so that it was
hoped to fix the crushing mill in the following month.
The steam engine at Mount Vernon had been put in
good repair; and the one sent by the Flora M'Donald
had arrived at the mines. He expected to get the
Chilian mills and amalgamating duos completed and
set to work in about 10 days. The bad state of the
roads in the low country had been a sad drawback to
him, but the future portended well."

THREE PER CENTS.—The voluntary conversion of
Consols and Reduced Three per Cents. at the Bank of
England yesterday proceeded very slowly, and it is un-
derstood that the amount thus far applied for is con-
siderably below 1,000,0001. At present the applications
are solely for the 21 per cent. stock, the public being
still left in doubt as to the precise terms on which the
Ex-chequer Bonds are to be issued.
The settling day for the shares of the Grand Trunk
Railway of Canada, the Portsmouth Railway, the Mount
Carbon Company, the Great Hewas Tin Company, and
the Chalanches Silver Company, is fixed for the 18th
inst. Of the above the Grand Trunk Railway of Canada
is alone to mark in the official list. At the same time
the committee have decided that the shares of the British
Colonial Bank and Land Company and the Portland
Iron Company are to be marked.
ROYAL FREE HOSPITAL.--The twenty-fifth anniver-
sary festival of this institution was celebrated yesterday
evening, at the London Tavern ; Viscount Maidstone in
the chair. About 150 gentlemen were present. After
the routine toasts had been disposed of, the Chairman
proposed "Success to the Royal Free Hospital." In
doing so, he observed that there was no channel in which
the public benevolence could flow with greater benefit to
the poor than in that presented by this hospital, which,
under the management of Dr. Marsden, had been con-
ducted for 25 years with unexampled success. Having
visited the establishment that day, he was sorry to find
that many rooms were empty in consequence of the in-
adequacy of the funds. The number of patients relieved
from the commencement was 403,533; the number in
the hospital at present was 134, there being room for
500. For the reason which he had stated, a large por-
tion of the premises was let for various purposes. The
hospital was at that moment in debt to the extent of up-
wards of 1,000/. ; and, as the principle on which it was
founded, and on which all its operations were conducted,
was that of affording relief to the sick without any in-
quiry, he knew of no charity which was more in accord-
ance with the example of the Founder of Christianity,
and none which had more powerful claims to the support
of the benevolent, The toast was most cordially re-
sponded to. The health of the chairman was proposed
by the Earl Powys, and received with enthusiasm. The
donations announced during the evening amounted to
1,366/.

NEW ASYLUM FOR FATHERLESS CHILDREN, STAN-
FORD-HILL.—The ninth anniversary dinner in aid of the
funds of this charity took place last night at the London
Tavern ' • the Right Hon. the Lord Mayor, M.P., in the
chair. The report stated that there were at present 95
inmates, and all available room was fully occupied. An
important change had been made during the past year,
in the prolongation of the period during which the child-
ren received into this asylum should be allowed to enjoy
its advantages ; it was determined that the boys should
have the privilege of remaining until the age of fourteen
years, and the girls till fifteen years. This change ren-
dered necessary an alteration in the name of the charity,
and it is to henceforth called by the name of " The New
Asylum for Fatherless Children," instead of " The New
Infant Orphan Asylum." The collection at the table
realised the sum of 700/.

MERCANTILE AND MARITIME COLLEGE.—A meeting of
merchants and bankers is to be held on Tuesday at the
London Tavern to promote the establishment in the city
of a Mercantile and Maritime College, together with a
museum of trade, where specimens of produce, &c., as
well as commercial statistics of all kinds, may be col-
lected. The question will also be considered whether
the Gresham College may be induced to enter into the
spirit of these proposals, and transform its present life-
less routine into something that shall better harmonise
with the purposes for which it was founded.