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

LET7EI? FROM MAZZINI.

The following letter from Mazzini has been trans-
mitted to us for publication. It does not say to
whom it is addressed, but we presume it is to the
Italian Ministry :
Gentlemen,—Joseph Garibaldi is seriously
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 and
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 proclaimed
by you, and has been denied by the foreigner; not
to change the orders of the State or combat your
programme, but to the fulfilment of both one and
the other.

Gentlemen, you may judge that act, though in"
yoked by all Italy, premature, but not guilty ; Y"
can hinder, not punish, him who attempted it. All
Italy is wounded and imprisoned with him.
We demand, gentlemen, the liberty of Garibaldi,
in the name of tha desire of Italy : in the name of
the gratitude that you, with us, owe him. We
demand that, tended and surrounded by his own,
he may be freed from an imprisonment which
recall 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 vicissiw
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 have
taken out 15toz. of dust.' The statement is cor-
roborated by a gentleman who saw the ' dust'
weighed on the spot, and he says he saw the' nur
gets plainly visible in the dirt taken from the stone
shaft,' that produced the 15toz. The happy con'
elusion is drawn that the company, lucky at lest'
after their long and hard labour, which only pro'
duced 30 dols., have made their piles.' I sincerely
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 18581°
the two colonies on sea and land, with a perseve'
ranee which deserves success. He is an old Scotch'
man, Major Downie,' whose travels in British
Columbia I described in one of my letters some three
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
dols.' These are all hill diggings' worked in tau-
nels, which I have spoken of as being so much more
valuable than placers or surface diggings.
"New discoveries ware being made frequently'
and claims hitherto worked without producing
much were proving suddenly successful in the early
part of July, after the 'paydirt' had been penetrated,
and a case is mentioned of a man who was 'sued 111
the morning for a debt of 130 dols., and had to bor-
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 SOUTH
KENSIIVGTON MUSEUM.