The Sun.
London, England, 1862-05-21 00:00:00

t ri

passengers—all teak-built and cop,
carrying experienced surgeons, and
space between decks—all, in short, A 1 Eli Lloyd's
and everywhere else. Still glancing over the shoulder
of my industrious friend, I am offered every kind
of house, lodging, clerk, servant, situation that I can
possibly or impossibly want, with everything to eat,
drink, wear, and use. I learn, to my intense grati-
fication—for I begin to have some doubts upon the
subject myself—that I need never grow old, that
I may preserve the juvenile bloom of mycomplcxion
to any period of life—that I need never have arty
more grey hairs—(laughter)—that if I ever cough
again it is entirely my own fault—(laughter)—that
I need never be ill of any complaint—that if I want
brown cod liver oil I know where to find it—that if
I want a Turkish bath I know where to get it—
sthhoautlidfelr,want £7 a week for life for 2s. 6d. down, I
have only to send the postage stamps, and there it
member
etbhheelrr efuomm:
is. (Laughter.) Still glancing over the newsman's
yrseo slut3d:
ace,
ywarsmhe
sseout
somewhere,
re
among
on
lot
last
tshhtfle enr
night,tmd epr
stereotyped
or
asked
there, Imperial l Parliament,
Departmenthc
oomn.mguennitelaetme
whetherarnestpheect
Sineeretary of State for the Home
last railway accident, ghoreththha
or that last case of police justice, and I
always read
how the right hon. gentleman said in reply, rather
magnificently, that "he knew nothing whatever
about the matter but what he had read in the
papers! (Laughter.) Which stereotyped reply I
observe to be universally received with a " Hear,
hear," which is to me perfectly incomprehensible,
because I can read about such things in the paper
atadtla anystlast
mine
outrage,n khpteeedlaweli intelligence
Irnesoeashtegi righthenant
ot:,
without drawing a salary for doing it. (Laughter.)
Well, then I see the police intelligence, and that
teaches me that if I want to bite a woman's nose off
I can do it very cheap—(hear, hear, and laughter)—
but if I want surreptitiously to make off with
the salted nose of a pig or a calf from a shop
window it will cost exceedingly dear—(laughter)—
and also that if I allow myself to be betrayed into
the folly, say of killing an unoffending tradesman
at his own doorstep, that little act of indiscretion
will not in the least interfere with my triumphant
production of testimonials to character as a most
amiable young man, particularly to be esteemed in
all respects, but singularly remarkable, above all
things, for the mild inoffensive character of my
disposition. (Laughter.) So, also, looking over
the shoulder of my friend the newsman of the day,
I pass to the theatrical intelligence, and there per-
haps, I read the gratifying announcement, which
is no news to any one, that the true spirit of the
true and picturesque artist has been again dis-
played by Mr. Webster—(laughter)—and that
another most subtle piece of genuine comedy has
been achieved by Mr. Wigan. (Cheers.) Then,
turning my eye to the fine arts, under that head I
find the latest intelligence to be that a certain
I. 0. has most triumphantly exposed a certain
I. 0. 8., which I. 0. B. is remarkable for this sin-
gular and particularly cool feature, that I was re-
quired to make the sacrifice of depriving myself
of my best pictures by hanging them for SIX
months upon wet walls, and that I was requited
for my courtesy by having them most impertinently
covered with a wet blanket. (Laughter.) Now,
ladies and gentlemen, summing up, in short, this
one glance over my newsman's shoulder gives
me the comprehensive knowledge of all that
is going on over the great continent of Eu-
rope, over the great continent of America to
boot, to say nothing of such little geographi-
cal regions as India and China; for Reuter's
telegrams come straight to me. Under the head
of " Military Intelligence" I read the last news of
my boy in the army, and under the head of " Naval
Intelligence" I read the last news of my boy in the
navy, and all these topics are ready sifted for me in
sharp, terse, pointed, leading articles. In a word,
every morning before my breakfast is done, I can
put a girdle round the earth, like Arid, and come
to the time of high water at London-bridge, and the
latest movements of the Japanese Ambassadors .
(Laughter.) By the bye, the Japanese Ambassadors
ought of all things to be here to-night. (Hear.)
They could not be shown anything in England so
astonishing as a newsvendors' dinner, seeing that it
is the usage and policy of their country, as described
by:travellers, to forbid the circulation of news of any
kind, on pain of instant death, and to cut the news-
man in half the moment he shows himself. The
chairman then gave a sketch of the history and
progress of the Newsvendors' Provident Institution,
regretting that the benefits and advantages which
it offered were so little taken advantage of by the
newsvending fraternity, who were most likely to
require its assistance. Than the newsvendors there
were no more zealous and hardworking public ser-
vants, and their profits bore no proportion to the
great anxiety and care and the large amount of
wear and tear necessarily attendant on the discharge
of their daily functions. The Newsvendors' Bene-
volent and Provident Institution afforded assist-
ance to the decayed, indigent, sick, and needy
members of the trade. The subscription
entitling members to participate in its benefits
was, he might state, merely infinitesimal in its
amount, being only five shillings a
year. The pro-
gress of the institution, the chairman pointed out,
had been slow, but it was slow for the best of all
reasons. that it had been sure. Pensions were
granted only out of interest on the funded capital,
and therefore the institution might be regarded as
safe as the Bank. In conclusion, the chairman gave
4, prosperity to the Newsvendors' Benevolent and
Provident Institution," which was drunk with great
enthusiasm.
amou
of the n
Several other toasts followed, and subscriptions
to
the thecourse
amount of nearly £lOO Were announced. In
there was performed-an
admirable selection ' of music under the direction of
eveningrly
Mr. Lawler, assisted
by Miss J. Wells, Miss Eyles
Mr. D. King, Mr. Baiter, Mr. Benler, Mr. Barnby,
and Mr. F. Chatterton.

PRICE .4d.
STAMPED

taken a great step in that direction. Their existing
drainage being very incomplete, and particularly a
large lake, called Whittlesea Mere, being altogether
incapable of drainage, they obtained an Act for
making a new drain from theirinexelixlpteoctatltlieonEsaour
Brink Cut, which had answered oi
its promoters and the objections of its opponents by
greatly improving both drainage and navigation.
This " Middle Level drain" was completed in 1852, at
a cost of over £41)0,000, and it has been a complete
success, having given the whole Middle Level, in-
cluding Whittlesea Mere, an efficient natural drain-
age.
The drain is abut 11 miles long, perfectly
straight, and devoted exclusively to drainage, there
being no navigation. Its outfall into the Eau
Brink Cut (about :three miles above Lynn) was
secured by a sluice which cost
£30,000, and by
which it is said the contractor lost £lO,OOO.
The drain, although made for the sole benefit of
the Middle Level, runs through a district called
Marshland, lying between Lynn and Wisbech, and
forming no part of the Bedford Level. A great part
of Marshland consists of fens, the largest of which
is called Marshland Fen. These fens were drained
about half a century ago, under local Acts, entirely
distinct from those affecting the levels, and through
them runs the Middle Level drain, carrying through
the Marshland fens the waters of the Middle Level
on their way to the sea.
The-Marstuand fens, from reedy swamps, have
been converted by drainage and cultivation into
good corn land, almost equal in value to that of the
rest of Marshland, which is one of the most fertile
districts in England.

On Sunday, the 4th inst., the Middle Level sluice
blew up, as that at Denver had done in 1713, the
cause in both cases being probably the same—viz.,
that the tidal waters had gradually undermined the
brickwork and formed a hole in the bed of the
river, in which the structure was engulfed. Whether
this took place without warning is a controverted
point, which may result in litigation.
It was now evident that unless some means could
immediately be adopted for excluding the waters of
the Ouse from the Middle Level drain, the banks of
the latter (constructed only to resist the fresh water

from above) must give way. Attempts were made
to make a dam across the drain, but they failed, and
on Monday morning, the 12th inst., under the
weight of a high spring tide, the west bank of the
drain broke, and the roaring tide, which had pre-
viously nearly overtopped the bank, poured into the
adjoining fens, carrying away the bank for about
70 yards, and making, it is said, a hole ten feet
deep where it had stood. And at every tide since
the water has poured over the defenceless country,
until it is supposed that nearly 10,000 acres are now
submerged—all a few days since verdant with

luxuriant crops.
The case of the sufferers is hard indeed. They are
injured by the failure of works which were not in-
tended to benefit them, and from which they
neither derived nor acquired any advantage. _

As soon as the breach in the bank can be re-
paired, it will not, it is thought, be a work of
great difficulty to get the water off of the fens,
which possess a complete system of drainage. But
it is useless to attempt this until the Middle Level
Commissioners have secured their banks, so as to
relieve the unfortunate fenmen from fear of further
inroads.

This, it may be hoped, is now in a fair way of
being done. The Commissioners are said to have
given carte blanche to Mr. Hawkshaw, and it is
understood that the local works will be much under

the direction of Mr. Muller, a Dutch engineer, who
has been much employed in works of embankment
in connection with the Norfolk Estuary Cat, a
work designed to effect a similar alteration below
Lynn to that caused by the Eau Brink Cut above
it, but on a much larger scale.

NEW SVENDORS' BENEVOLENT

INSTITUTION.

The annual festival of this institution took place
last evening at the Freemasons' Tavern, under the
presidency of Mr. Charles Dickens. About 200
ladies and gentlemen sat down to an excellent din-
ner. Amongst those present were—Mr. Headland,
Miss Hogarth, Miss Dickens, Mr. Frank Dickens,
Mr. B. Webster, Mr. and Mrs. Wills, Mr., Mrs.,
and Miss Lehman, Mr. E. Yates, Mr. B. Jerrold,
Mr. W. Smalley, Mr. and Mrs. Benson, Mr., Mrs.,
and Miss Openheim, Mr. Leger, Mr. M'Murray,
The usual loyal toasts having been duly honoured,
Mr. E. Yates, an efficient member of the Civil
Service Volunteer Corps, appropriately acknow-
ledged the toast of "The Army, the Navy, and the
Volunteers."

The Chairman, in proposing the toast of the even
ing, said—Ladies and gentlemen, last year, when I
was to have had the honour of presiding at the an-
nual festival of this institution, I was prevented by
indisposition. I requested my friend Mr. Wilkie
Collins to reign in my stead. He very kindly com-
plied, to my great relief, and he made an excellent
speech. Indeed, to tell you the truth, I read the
account of it at the time with considerable uneasi-
ness, for it inspired me with a strong misgiving
that I might have done better to preside last year
with neuralgia in my face and my subject in
my head, rather than preside this year with
my neuralgia gone and my subject anticipated.
(Laughter.) Therefore I shall preface the toast
of the evening by making the managers
of this institution one very solemn and repentant
promise, and that is, that if ever I have to find them
a substitute again, they
may implicitly rely upon
my sending them the most speechless man inimly
circle of acquaintance. (Renewed laughter.) e
chairman of last year implicitly
imagined
the
versality of the newsvendoe s calling
and the great
variety of of people who look for him every day, and
the great diversity of interest with which his bur-
den is expected. Now, nothing that I can think of
seems to be left for me but to imagine his
generalburden
itself, to unfold one of those wonderful sheets which
ho every day disseminates, and to take a glance
over the shoulder—a bird's eye view ofthe
character of its contents. (Hear, hear.) So, if you
please, choosing my weather as the newsman can-
not, for he must be equally active in all weathers,
in winter as in summer, in sunshine and snow, in
light and in darkness, early and late—l say choosing
my weather as an amateur can, but as he cannot,
I will for two or three moments start off with my
newsman on a fine May morning, and take a peep
over his shoulder at one of the wonderful broad
sheets which
(Hear, hear.) The first he every day scatters broad cast.
taking up the
newspaper every morning is that we
are born every day, that we are married every day
—some of us at least—(laughter)—and that we die
every
day ; consequently, my first glimpse over
the
newsman's shoulder instructs me that Atkins
is born, Catkins is married, and Datkins is
dead. But one of the most remarkable cir-
cumstances connected with this sheet is that
Atkins' infancy seems to be surprisingly brief,
for in the very next column it would appear that
he has grown up to be 17 years old, and has run
away from his mother. (Laughter.) At least I see
" that if Mr. A." which stands for Atkins " who is
17 years old, in a dress suit, with one front tooth
missing, will only return to his disconsolate parent
everything will be arranged to the satisfaction of
everyone." lam afraid that he never will re!urhn,e
for the reason amongst others perhaps, that if
had meant ever to come back he never would have
gone away. (Laughter.) Immedia
• tely
find a mysterious creature in a nes ition of such below, I
mysterious difficulty that it is only to
be expressed
by several disjointed letters, several figures, several
stars, and some such adjuration as Amelia, write
instantly. Distraction ! all is lost ! The canary
bird has made over the property to his uncle. The
elephant is on the wing." (Laughter.) Then, still
glancing over the shoulder of my industrious friend

REPRESENTATION OF KIDDER-

IVINSTER.

KIDDERMINSTER, TUESDAY.
The writ for the election of a member for this
borough in the room of Mr. I3ristow, who has ac-
cepted the solicitorship to the Admiralty, was
received here this morning; and the Mayor (Mr.
Pemberton Talbot).at once issued a proclamation
fixing the nomination for next Monday at noon, and
the poll for Tuesday. There are two candidates
actually in the field; and, from present appear-
ances, there will be a sharp struggle. At the last
contest Mr. Bristow beat his Conservative anta-
gonist, Mr. J. W. Huddleston, Q.C., by
Mr.
of nine votes, the numbers being 207 and 216. 0 n
Huddleston, however, nothing daunted, came v
dhort
here last night, and to-day has issued a very s ,„,_
address offering himself again for election.
political
and
political principles, he says, are well k
therefore he need not repeat them• a majority
Colonel Luke
The Government candidate
White, who was defeated at Lonngios
'fi address to the
the influence of the priests. I: ~ in politics I am
electors issued to-day he
shayssohool of progress and
attendina ypeprhuabplisc rendermeetin ir to
isf
rd by, it is said,
a true liberal, and one of
ftanot
that I have already
enlightenment, and then.
ani
or detail the items of
a member of her Ma-
been in Parliament, a
Government,rhrue,epaeonsnpdecially as I shall at once
great events which are
Europe and in America
smjunnecessary
ievncet present
ediieamctotoo
Government should be strengthened by the
continent of
render this a time when the hands of Lord Palmer-
true advocates of the policy of non-intervention and
in your
of liberty, and I believe that your borough has ever
ranked among the foremost friends of those great
principles."
ston's

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