The Sun.
London, England, 1862-11-06 00:00:00

to become so reduced in their
physique, that when
trade revives, they will be unable to resume their
occupations. The formation of a national com-
mittee, combining all the chief local authortiee
throughout the Kingdom, the committee then
to organise a regular system of communication
with the Established and Dissenting Clergy in
every parish, and where needful to get local col-
lecting committees formed, is the obvious mode
for rating the voluntary generosity of the country.
Both the extent to which application must be made,
and the length of time during which it will be ne-
cessary, demand that such systematic operations be
commenced without delay.
Already three Bishops—those of Salisbury, Lon-
don, and Hereford—have addressed the clergy of
their dioceses. Advertence is made by them, also,
to the continuance of the contributions through the
winter months, and this is the course which all the
arrangements of congregations and individuals
ought to take as much as possible. As Lord
LINDSAY says in his admirable letter to the Mayor
of Wigan, looking to the noble conduct of the
operatives, and their distress being caused by cir-
cumstances so entirely beyond their control, " I
think we shall consider not how little, bat how
much, we caneachofuss
u.
uppsly, towards the great
and crying necessity before
The point on which Lord LINDSAY lays the
greatest stress is, we think, one which should be
made prominent in all appeals. We believe it
will be found easier to obtain the larger sum of
money requisite for the generous object he aims
at, than the smaller amounts sufficient to pre-
vent bare starvation. The knowledge that
by giving double what would just sustain
life, but not repel disease and uphold health and
strength—we might maintain the poor sufferers in
something like comfort, and save them from fever
and debility—would make the double contribution
a more pleasant sacrifice than the smaller one.
This, we are persuaded, would be the general feel-
ing, from those who could afford but one shilling a
week to those who, like Lord LINDSAY, can offer one
hundred pounds a week. We cannot do better,
however, than give his lordship's views of the
duty of the Wigan people in his own words.
Having adverted to the generous, and to a great
extent the successful, efforts made by all persons
at Wigan, he proceeds thus—
" The principle proceeded upon has been, as I understand
it, to maintain the people not merely on such a pittance as
can keep body and soul together, but so that they may
emerge from the trial in unimpaired health and bodily
power. As yet, through the effect given to this principle,
they have not materially lost ground in this respect ; but I
have been much struck on returning here after some weeks'
absence with the shadow of care and diminished hope im-
pressed upon their countenances, and, from all I have heard,
as the result of much inquiry, the suffering, notwithstand-
ing every alleviation, is very great. Ido trust, Mr. Mayor,
that the good principle thus far carried out will continue to
keep this merely comparative well-being up to the mark.
It is a well-known fact that in cold weather the body re-
quires more food to maintain it than during the warm, be-
sides clothing by day and bedding by night, the absence of
all which and the consequent huddling together in small
rooms—the consequence again of inability to pay rent—
generates low and typhus fever, the latter of the most ma-
lignant character."

Another practical suggestion of his lordship
points to an obvious necessity. In addition to
his promise of a weekly d mation of £lOO a week,
he says for himself and his father—" And we will
pay at once £5OO to the fund for the purpose of
redeeming or providing clothing and bedding, pay-
ment of ant, or any such necessary demands,
leaving this sum to the approved discretion of the
committee." With the winter approaching, can
anything be more important than to recover for
the operatives the warm clothing and bedding with
which they have parted during the summer months
to obtain food, rather than go to the parish or
accept charity. Indeed warm clothing renders less
food necessary, it being well known that a great
part of our food is consumed in the creation of
animal warmth. To clothe the poor is, to a great
extent, not mere comfort, but equivalent in its re-
sults to feeding them.
Hitherto, through various causes, the health of
the distressed districts has not suffered on the
whole. The Registrar's reports have almost taken
us by surprise, but he warns us to expect, speedily, a
very different result, if the distress continues, as it
certainly will, through the winter, and it would be
almost criminal neglect, if warned thus, and warned
by general principles too, some decided effort be
not made to enable Lancashire to pass through the
winter without falling a prey to the malignant
fevers which are the too sure concomitants of wide
spread want. Immediate attention to the sugges-
tions of Lord LINDSAY and Mr. COBDEN can alone
avert this fearful result.

The volunteer returns are in the highest degree
satisfactory. They show in no single direction
anything like a falling off. On the contrary, there
is a slight but steady increase in numbers, and every
where quite unmistakeably in efficiency. Looking
to what the late member for Montrose used to call
the " tottle of the whole," we find that whereas in
April, 1860, the volunteers amounted altogether to
119,283 in Great Britain—they consisted in the
April of 1861 of 161,400—and in the April of 1862
of 162,681. Very probably before the April of
1863 has arrived the aggregate of volunteers will
nearly have approximated to a grand total of
170,000 altogether.
The total force enrolled seven months ago in
Great Britain alone amounted, as we have said,
to 162,681. This, of course, including the diffe-
rent arms of the service—consisting of 662 Light
Horse, of 24,363 Artillery, of 2,904 Engineers, of
656 Mounted Rifles, and of 134,096 Infantry Rifle
Volunteers. Examining the distribution of this
force of 162,611 Volunteer Riflemen, it is interesting
to note the proportions in the several counties.
Middlesex, as a matter of course (with one exception
afterwards to be mentioned), bears away the
palm from all competitors—comprising within it
alone 16,505 Rifles. But then the populousness of
the metropolitan county, the little county containing
within it the chief part of this huge wen of Lon..
don and Westminster, must be taken into account
when turning from the mention of those 16,505
Riflemen for Middlesex, to a poor, little item of no
more than 404 Riflemen for Buckinghamshire. The
West Riding of Yorkshire yields also a very large
return, as indeed, considering its area, it
ought to. Kent comes next to it on the list
as befits it, remembering the propinquity of Kent
to the European continent. Recollecting that
upon that coast line, the salient point, or spur of
which, is Kent, it has been—thereabouts, upon
some part of those sea-beaten shores—that our
island forefathers have had to withstand invasion
after invasion, the Danish VIKING, the Roman
CJEsAIt, the Northern WILLIAM—it is well to
note that especially along these parts of Great
Britain
the patriotic ardour of the Rifle Corns
movements
has been especially manifested. Hence,
looking to that one
erticul
part of Our
__P ar, and prominent
it isc
satisfactory
Kent, including the Isle of
Thanet,
a factcry to see that there is
' numbered up
goodly total of 5,672 Volunteers.
Surrey, again, returning nearer
point, has 4,425 Riflemen,
to the central
Lancashire, however, - the exceptional county
- we have alluded to above jik parenthesis, though

without naming it in that parenthesis. It is the
one exceptional county—yielding a greater body
of Volunteer Riflemen than that contributed
by Middlesex ! Lancashire, now the scene
of so much distress and destitution, has an
ari2W of 17,146! Cheshire has as many as 3,612
—to
4•
her '
honour be it said. Staffordshire has
3,4
rhe rest may thus be massed
together --Bedfordshire, 449; Berkshire, 1,250 ;
Cambridgeshire, 1,251; Cheshire, 3,612; Cinque
7.
Ports, 1,332 ; Cornwall, 2,062; Cumberland, 1,252 ;
Derbyshire, 1,366; Devonshire, 4,358; Dorset,
1,114 ; Durham, 3,186; Essex, 3,120 ; Glocester-
shire, 2,802; Hampshire, 2,730; Herefordshire,
546; Hertfordshire, 974 ; Huntingdonshire, 304;
Isle of Man, 283 ; Isle of Wight, 527 ; Leicester-
shire, 636; Lincolnshire, 1,852 ; London, 3,051 ;
Monmouthshire, 1,739 ; Newcastle-on-Tyne, 1,041
Norfolk, 2,047 ; Northamptonshire, 956 ; Northum-
berland, 1,628 ; Nottinghamshire, 1,482 ; Oxford-
' shire, 1,070; Shropshire, 1,350; Somerset, 2,282;
Suffolk, 1,802; Surrey, 4,425 ; Sussex, 2,087 ;
Tower Hamlets, 2,693; Warwickshire, 1,725;
Westmoreland, 402 ; Wiltshire, 1,494 ; Worcester-
shire, 1,680; East Riding, 1,692; North Riding,
1,545. Such are the numbers even now in this
time of profound tranquillity, and when there is no
longer a moment's further serious thought of a
probable invasion. Let but an alarm be raised in
earnest, and our National Guard, now 160,000
strong, would within a few weeks, we may rest
assured, be fast multiplied into an auxiliary army
of defence, numbering (almost at the reverberation
of the first signal) 200,000 or a quarter of a million
Riflemen !

THE LOSS OF LIFE IN THE LATE GALE.—
Down to Tuesday evening no intelligence had been received
of the fate of the new iron screw collier the Addison Potter,
which sailed from the Tyne coal-laden before the gale of
Sunday fortnight. There is little, indeed no hope of her
safety, but every reason to believe that she has foundered
with the loss of her crew of 17 hands. Information has
also reached the Tyne that the collier brig, the Adelphi,
belonging to North Shields, which also left that port just
before the gale came on, coal-laden, for London, and of the
safety of which there has been the greatest anxiety, has
foundered, and that her crew, nine or ten in number, have
perished with her. A black painted board, with " Baze-
lius" painted upon it, has also been cast up on the Dutch
coast. This is the name of a collier brig belonging to
Shields, which left the Tyne before the gale, and has not
since been heard of. It is feared that she has foundered
and all her crew been drowned. So far as can be estimated,
about 50 seamen are known to have been lost with Tyne
vessels during the late fearful gales. The Loyal Standard
and other seamen's benefit societies, with the Shipwrecked
Mariners' Royal Benevolent Society, will be called upon
somewhat heavily to advance from their funds to their
families, and they are also making liberal payments to
those seamen who have lost their effects through ship-
wreck. Shipowners and underwriters are very anxious
with regard to the fleet of vessels that are on their passage
from the Baltic to North-east ports. The ports of Norway
were crowded,according to the latest intelligence,with ves-
sels that had sought shelter.
CITY OF LONDON COLLEGE.—The Rev. Alex.
D'Orsey, of Cambridge, gave a lecture on church reading
last Monday to a numerous audience of the clergy of Lon-
don and neighbourhood. The lecturer spoke of the wide
spread dissatisfaction with the present style of reading t.nd
preaching, and contended for special courses of instruction.
He said—" I do not think that the quiet instruction of the
public speaker in a small room is equal to the practical drill
in a large hall, similar to the scene of his future labours. I
admit that inaccuracies and provincialisms might be cor-
rected, just emphasis and modulation communicated, and
general taste successfully cultivated; and were graceful
reading in the family circle the object in view, the system
proposed would no doubt prove effectual. But a great
church, whether full or empty, is a very different field,
' and the pleasant reader in the drawing-room, untrained in
the management of his voice, would certainly fail in the
larger arena, just as the amateur singer is unequal to the
concert-room, and the polished peer, easily heard at his own
table, is " inaudible in the gallery" of the house. The ex-
perience of many years warrants me in asserting that can-
didates for the ministry should be trained in large rooms;
and that, after the preliminary lessons in articulation, pitch,
time, emphasis, modulation, &c., the text-books should be
the Bible and Prayer-book. The more the rehearsal in all
its features resembles the performance, the better will the
performance be."
A letter from Rome in the Paris Presse says :
" Your readers have, doubtless, not forgotten the little
Jewish Mortara, who was shut up, after his baptism, in the
convene of St. Pierre-aux.-Liens. lam assured that he has
just had conferred upon him the minor orders."

- A meeting of the Public Schools' Commissioners
was held yesterday at No. 2, Victoria-street, Westminster.
The Commissioners present were the Earl of Clarendon, the
Earl of Devon, Lord Lyttelton, Sir S. H. Northcote, M.P.,
the Hon. Edward Twisleton, the Rev, Professor Thompson,
M.A., and Mr. H. H, Vaughan. Mr. Bernard, the secre-
tary, attended. . _ .

THE ALABAMA.—An adjourned meeting of the
Council of the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce was held
yesterday for the purpose of considering the destruction of
shipping by the Confederate man-of-war Alabama, Captain
Semmes. Considerable discussion arose with regard to the
expression of any opinion upon the legality of the proceed.•
ings of the Alabama, several members urging that, as no
statement of the fact had been submitted to the Council,
they were not in a position to assert that British property
was destroyed by Captain Semmes, Mr. S. G. Rathbone,
of the firm of Rathbone Brothers and Co., explained that
British property was destroyed, but they had not made any
written communication to the Chamber, as they had already
written to the Foreign-office on the subject. Some mem-
bers of the Chamber expressed their opinion that the Ala-
bama had committed a breach of international law in de•
stroying neutral property on board an enemy's ship, while
others contended that, as the Confederates had no ports into
which to take their prizes, it would be a manifest hardship
upon them to prevent their destroying a large amount of the
enemy's property because a small amount belonging to neu-
tral parties was on board of the prize. In the end a resolu-
tion was uanimously agreed to, directing a letter to be
written to Earl ltussell, cqlling his attention to the de-
struction of the ships in question and the capture and re-
lease of others under ransom bond, by an armed cruiser sail-
ing under the Confederate flag, and desiring to know, for
the information of the commercial cammunity, what is the
opinion of her Majesty's Government as to the position of
the owners of neutral property. _

. - -
WHAT WORKING MEN MAY DO.—The estab-
lishment of co-operative cotton spinning and weaving asso-
ciations has been considerably accelerated by the high rate
of profits obtained previous to the outbreak of hostilities in
America; and, as might be expected, Rochdale was one of
the earliest, if not the first in the field. The two mills of
that town were erected at a cost of 170,000, and employ
about 300 hands. There are others at Bacup and else-
where. There establishments are conducted for the most
part on the same principles as the provision stores, except.
ing that the workers take the place of the customers in the
quarterly participation of profits, but of late there has been
observable a tendency to act more on the joint stock system
pur et simple, and to pay the workers the current rate of
wages, and no more, leaving the whole of the profits to be
divided amongst the shareholders alone. This has given
rise to much controversy and discussion on the part of those
concerned, which curiously illustrates how the love of gain
proves as insatiable in the case of the humble co-operative
as in that of the wealthy millionaire.—Jomi PLUMMER in
Once a Week.

"To PERSONS ABOUT TO MARRY."—Day-dream-
ing is all very well, now and then, on a holiday; but a
woman who gushes with moonshine and romance is seldom
a good judge of butcher's meat, or a skilful interpreter of
accounts; and a man who aspires at an angel deserves to
dine off stringy mutton and under-done potatoes, on cold
t ai ideal
protect
plates,neve
never
eifnamorttulheleshivreerest of his life. Young man, think twice
pilferings, and frayed, buttoyfnaolui
beforewhos you commit yourself to the romantic young lady,
ethefefruulimlnneeanshs.u_ratotawndeciegdahevt:di:oeuink.ews
domestic
The mode of business, A WORD ON Co
48.80:gPenerally conducted, is extremely
allowed; and a simple but efficient ERATITE ASSOCIATIONS.—
eflor cash, no credit being
purchasestregisteringhepuosemoafdaesbcyeretaacihnincupgseantromadneenru,utraTa
simple. All transactions
system epmr
profits
is aadroep
divided
r
bng theallo amountwed on allo f
*he remainder etcreally distributed
this
sount of pur-
pqauiadr_tue rply, ,five
shares,p erancdentt
amongst the members in proportion to
pur-
chases individually made by them. In
working men have acquired large sums, with wvrayY tri
anY
little
risk or trouble ; hence it is not surprising to find that
associations are rapidly increasing in number and
these
popula-
rity, or that the principles on which they are basedshouldbe applied to purposes of a more speculative nature, such se.
the formation of manufacturing companies.—Jomi PLum.
MEN in Once a Week.
THE ACCIDENT TO THE ROYAL YACHT
OSBORNE.—By some mistake no vessel was ordered to
attend the Royal yacht on her voyage, and by the merest
chance the Doris met her at Palermo, when the captain
of the yacht suggested that she should accompany them in
case of accident, and luckily she did, for the yacht broke
down off Cape Bon, at the commencement of a gale, one of
her paddlewheels becoming perfectly useless. The Doris
towed her for 47 hours, and on arrival at Malta had only
20 tons of coal left, or six hours' consumption. But for
the Doris, the future Kings of England and Prussia might
still be at sea. The yacht now proceeds to sea with one
Paddle only, and returns to Malta to be repaired.

NEW YORK, OCT. 22•
TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

Sut,—Soon after the affair at Hampton Roads,
and during the progress of the laudations upon
the Monitor, re-echoed by the British press, I ven-
tured to express an opinion to my countrymen
(through a letter which appeared in The Sun of
May 12th) to the effect that, judging by the facts
and effects relating to the said Monitor, as sepa
rated from the magniloquent verbiage and sugges-
tions which pervade all descriptions of " battles"
and " sea fights," given in the columns of New
York newspapers, she had performed nothing, or,
in other words, sustained no trial that entitled her
to be put forward by amateur naval dogmatisers in
Parliament, and elsewhere, as a model, or for what
they called her in this country, the " best war-
ship in all creation." Undoubtedly, whether I was
right or wrong in differing from those who con-
sidered that a whole host of Monitors had better
be set about at once in England, nothing that had
been performed by that vessel since she was helped
round from New York to James River, and had
the good fortune to arrive in time to gain the re-
pute of driving off the Merrimac, when, as a matter
of reality, the latter had exhausted her crew, coals,
and ammunition, would appear to have added to
her reputation ; and I allude to the matter princi-
pally because it is evident that in many cases the
British public are still misled by the sometimes
organised, bat more often the natural and national
system of "over-colouring," practised by almost
every American describer of American events, and
accept as actualities what are, in truth, often a mix-
ture of exaggerations and sensations. And, after
all, if many in Europe choose to believe that all, or
half, that is reported in and for the New York
press as to "gigantic battles" and "immense vic-
tories" is true, I for one would not seek to
trouble you or myself with any disquisi-
tions on the subject ; but the bombast
written about the Monitor appeared to me a
different matter, inasmuch as with the usual and
legitimate interest which attaches in our country
to all maritime topics, there was evidently an
intention or wish on the part of those who (to
use a familar phrase) " ought to have known
better"—to accept and mix up that bombast with
facts, and, what was more important, endeavour
to give them a practical application in what was
called a reformation of our war-vessels ; and under
these circumstances, although it may appear to
some unnecessary, or what is called " harping"
too much on the Monitor question, I' ask your
leave once again to refer thereto.
A letter has been published lately in the Ame-
rican journals from Mr. Donald M‘Kay—an ex-
perienced and approved ship builder—or, as a
New York paper describes him—" Naval Archi-
tect." It appears Mr. M.Kay has been in Europe,
visiting the dockyards and naval establishments,
&c., and he furnishes elaborate statements of the
dimensions, tonnage, nature of armour-plating
and armament of war-ships, built, building, and
designed to be built, in France and Great Britain.
His account is interesting, and, it may be assumed,
generally accurate, and he appears to have been
furnished or obtained full particulars and details
of the British vessels in particular, and one can
gather from the form of his communication pub-
lished, that he has furnished more complete de-
tails to the Government at Washington than
would be given in a newspaper letter—and as that
will probably be republished in British journals,
I merely refer to the portion of it regarding the
" Monitor," to which he alludes incidentally or
rather as a matter of comparison.
His opinion may be summed up briefly of those
sort of war-vessels, that they are only fit to take
part in defendin,4 ports and harbours--that they
would be ridiculous to look at as " sea-going ships,"
and observes that although the " Monitor" was not
run down or through by the Merrimac, which was
moving at the rate of about three knots an hour,
a heavier vessel proceeding at the rate of 14 miles
would probably have smashed her to pieces. In
short, Mr. M'Kay, after his European observations
and experiences, evidently does not think much of
the be-lauded of Hampton Roads, and trusts the
Washington Government will not persist in build-
ing many of the kind.
Of course it is not meant by me that this opinion
settles the question of the Monitor, bat being that
of a practical American, it is to be hoped, taken in
conjunction with the actual, and not theoretical,
"performances" of that " model," the opinion will
suggest to the impetuous parliamentary naval
amateurs afore,aid, and others, that they should not
allow themselves to be bewildered, if not " scared,"
by the ephemeral "sensations" and braggadocia of
New York newspaper descriptions into urging
adoptions and reforms in our navy, in the head-
long manner which probably brought no small ex-
pense on the country, and, what is more important,
distracted the attention from, or at least delayed,
substantial improvements and pi ecautions. Another
point that may be suggested indirectly by the re•
port referred to is, whereas under the circumstances
that it is palpable to any " Britisher" on this side
of the Atlantic, efforts are making by ruling "poli-
ticians" in this country to endeavour to aggravate
every old, and stir up every new, alleged grievance
as against Great Britain whether it is either
necessary, or wise, or Judicious to publish not only
the results and effects, but the minute details of
every experiment and ti ial connected with the vari-
ous guns, armour-plating, and so forth, which are
being carried on by our Government. The "dif-
fusion of knowledge" is a most excellent thing—
but whether the system pursued of imparting a
knowledge to the world of "inventions" and pro-
gressing ,4 improvements" in warlike and defensive
implements for which our nation offers, or at least
pays premiums, I leave to the consideration of more
skilled casuists than—

Your obedient servant,
A BRITISH TRAVELLER.

711 E LANCASHIRE DISTRESS.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

beg to submit the following proposal to issue
legal tender Exchequer notes of 55., and with these notes to
pay wages to the unemployed in the cotton districts. My
proposition, which will be that of every currency reformer,
or opponent of Sir Robert Peel's sold Money Bill, is :
That Mr. Gladstone be waited upon by the Manchester
manufacturers, and be requested to suspend Peel's Gold
Bill, as was done in the panic of 1847 and 1857 ; that Ex-
chequer Bills now of £lOO, bearing interest, and broken down
into notes of ss. each, not "promises to pay in gold," but
declared by the Exchequer legal tender for debts and taxes ;
that these ss. notes be devoted to the payment of wages, at
the present market price for unskilled labour, to the unem-
tpolowyeodtkinonthtehcoomttoosnsydicsotrmicnitso;nsthaantd
itnhfeerunemployed
tbreansse_t
ferring peat moss to clay lands, to the transport of the
light thin alluvial soil of the Mersey to the heavy soils of
the interior, and vice versa; to laying down temporary
railways to facilitate this and other works which it is not
my province to dictate to the managers; that these notes
be cancelled when presented to the Exchequer when paid in
for taxes.

Three hundred thousand people starving on threepence
a day Surely the wealthy residents here, like our legis-
lators, don't see the danger of the position. Surely this
is a time to look the prejudice in favour of gold in the face.
This is not a question of production of wealth, but of its
distribution. The warehouses here are groaning under the
weight of provisions, and corn stored up unconsumed,
without sale, without purchasers, and the people passing
tho doers of these warehouses unfed. The same is true of
houses, furniture, clothing, and fuel. We have not had a
famine cf any of these things.—l remain, Sir, your obedient
servant, JAMES' HARVEY.
2, Chatham-place, Edge-hill, Liverpool.

CRYSTAL PALACE.--The Winter Concerts will
be resumed next Saturday. The conceit-room—one-third
larger than Exeter-hall —has been entirely enclosed and
made warm for the winter season. Herr Joachim,
Santley, and Mademoiselle Zeiss will be the principal
artistes, Mr. Maims, as usual, being the chef d'orchestre.
During the past few days a Dirge amount of space has been
taken by exhibitors transferring their goods from the
it In-
ternational Exhibition. In some of the departmentsis
d ifticult to obtain space, and there is no doubt that the corn•
ing season will witness much of the active business of the
Exhibition transferred to the courts of the Crystal Palace.
The nave and centre transept are now well lighted with gas.
The afternoon promenade after the Saturday concerts is
likely now to become one of the most attractive and fashion-
able features of the week,

LATEST NEWS.

MADRID, Nov. 5.

It has been decided in an extraordinary Council
of Ministers that the Spanish Government shall
demand the punishment of the Americans who have
insulted the Spanish flag.
The Queen has given an audience to the Ameri-
can Minister, who expressed his regret at what had
taken place, and assured her Majesty that the
American Government had not authorized the acts
of Captain Montgomery.

GREECE.

La Presse publishes the'following::—

" The Greek revolution has caused considerable
anxiety at Constantinople. A Cabinet Council was
held on the 29th of October, at which the Sirdar
Omar Pasha was present. Measures were resolved
upon for the defence of the frontier."