The Sun.
London, England, 1865-01-16 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF

OPENING OF THE HAYLING RAILWAYS
Ou Thursday the eastern section of the Hayling
Railways, extending from Havant Station on the
London, Brighton, and South Coast Line, and also
on the Portsmouth Direct (South-Western Rail-
way), to Langston Harbour, was opened under most
favourable auspices. The establishment of this
short but important line is looked upon as of con-
siderable importance to the south coast, the general
impression being that the line will inaugurate a new
commercial era in the district.
Many of the directors arrived by rail (11.30)
from Waterloo, and the train of the new line was
brought up to the Havant Station, whence the Hay-
ling line commences. The engine, gaily decorated,
was in charge of Mr. Fred. Furness, the contractor,
and the directors, with numerous guests, took their
seats in the carriages, and amidst loud cheering
were carried down the newly-constructed line to the
viaduct over the channel. Everything went well,
and satisfaction was generally expressed. The line
was commenced about 15 months since, and when
completed will cost about 60,0001. It is expected
that the railway will be finished this year. The se-
cond section will reach to Sinah Point over the
channel. The embankment across the channel is in
a very forward state, and when the line is finished
no less than 1,000 acres of land will have been re-
claimed. The promoters of the scheme have the
greatest confidence in its success. Mr. Furness has
arranged to work the line, and a revenue will at
once accrue, the directors having undertaken to
convey building material by the first section to
Havant, from whence it is to be taken to Worthing.
Had not the line existed the material in question
would have gone by sea.
After the ceremony a dinner was served at the
Bear Hotel, Havant ; Mr. Compton Reade occu-
pied the chair, in the absence of Sir H. Leeke,
M.P:, and Mr. G. Gowland (Gowland and Walten)
the vice chair. Among those present were Rev.
C. Hardy, Messrs. C. Longcroft, Walton, J. Theo-
bald, F. Furness, C. Francis, A. Fabian, W. King,
Thorn, Culliford, Naden, &c., and also Mr. W. H,
Wilson, of Victoria-street, Westminster, secretary,
and Messrs. Lomax, and Hay, engineers.
The CHAIRMAN, referring to the establishment of
the railways, said although the line would be a small
one it would be most valuable as a commercial
speculation, and one of the most useful in England.
(Hear, hear.) He believed that the line would
satisfy the most sanguine anticipations of the pro-
moters—and he was one of the most sanguine—and
improve a district as yet undeveloped. (Hear,
hear.) He need hardly tell those who were ac-
quainted with the objects of the undertaking that
in consequence of the disposition evinced by the
Government that the Royal harbour of Portsmouth
should be devoted to the navy, accommodation for
merchant vessels was to a great extent restricted.
The facilities possessed by Portsmouth as a harbour
would doubtless have long since been taken advan-
tage of by merchantmen had not the Crown secured
it as a 'harbour for the fighting ships of this coun-
try. It was evident that a Royal harbour and a
mercantile port were incompatible ; they did not
seem to agree together at all—(hear, hear)—and no
one harbour devoted to the Royal navy succeeded,
strictly speaking, as a mercantile port. Great in-
convenience was experienced by parties desiring
either to import or to export goods at Portsmouth,
in consequence of the Government requiring that
port for their men-of-war. But Langston harbour,
not being a naval port, offered every advantage to
merchant shipping that was desired and sought
after, and by making Langston a mercantile port
they would remove a great source of annoyance to
the Government. He believed it was generally ad-
mitted that the port admiral had a great dislike to
see colliers and other merchant vessels enter Ports-
mouth harbour, and great facilitieswere not afforded
for them to discharge their cargo. Now at Langston
they would afford such vessels every facility,
and they would be almost entirely free from port
dues. Vessels of 700 or 800 tons burden could enter
there at all reasonable times of tide. He
thought there were plenty of inducements to invite
a great number of merchant ships to come to Lang-
ston harbour, into which they had opened that line
of rail. (Hear, hear.) He was glad to say that the
rest of the line was in a forward state, and that in a
very few months they might hope to open the sec-
tion to Sinah Point. He believed from the facilities
offered by the line, a great amount of tonnage
would come over it, sufficient, he thought, to satisfy
thei most sanguine anticipations. Then there was
another
point for consideration, which would be-
come appai 'eat
to any one who had. been at Hay-
ling, was the advantages it offered as a
And a sea-side retreat. (Hear, hear.)
nagte, rin angd. thpiaacte
Pure fresh air, ch.
scenery—a view of the
Isle of Wight in froli
•
vm-ing
t, of the shipping at Spithead,
the back ground—and one
with a beautiful view 311
13eaclaeg, if not the most ex-
of the most extensive Hear.) A true Londoner
tensive, in England.
would appreciate the (
perfect freedom of that pure
air and the quietude of such a
sea-side retreat.

On Friday evening about four o'clock, as announced by
telegraph on Saturday, a fire broke out in the Theatre
Royal Edinburgh, at the head of Leith-walk, which within
an incredibly short space of time destroyed the entire build-
ing, and, in the falling of the walls, destroyed the cloister
and part of the main building of St. Mary's Roman Catholic
Church, and caused the loss of six lives. The disaster has
caused a deep gloom in the city of Edinburgh, deepened by
the loss of the well-known and much respected Dean of
Guild, who fell in the discharge of his public duty.
The Theatre Royal, formerly the Queen's Theatre (until
the same was transferred from the old Theatre Royal in
Shakspere-square, removed some time ago to clear a site
for the new General Post-office), was opened only nine years
since. It occupied the site of the Adelphi Theatre, which
was destroyed by fire in May, 1855. The box entrance was
in the south-east corner of the building, fronting Leith-
walk, and the site was open on the north side to Little King-
street, where the pit and gallery entrance was ; and on the
east side to Broughton-street, which the store-room and
saloon-windows looked out upon. On the north side the
theatre adjoined St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, the
interval between the two edifices being filled up by a cloister
or private chapel. On the west side, which was the higher
part of the site, the gable gutted upon several high and
densely-populated buildings in Little-King-street, or St.
James's-place, consisting of four or five storeys, and in-
habited in flats. On the other side of Little King-street,
which has a very steep slope down to the street, there was
also a tall range of inhabited dwellings, running to six or
seven storeys high.
The fire originated, it would appear, in the top shifts of
the scenery, which were so badly protected that, on several
occasions, they had taken fire, although, in the previous
instances, the men had been able to extinguish the flame
promptly by cutting away the drapery. In the present case
the gas-man, named Cassey, who had just been putting in
the lights, at a subdued height, to be ready for the illumi-
nation of the evening's performance, had succeeded in light-
ing the second row of top lights, and wits lighting the first
when the drapery caught fire. The work had been done a
little earlier in the evening than usual, it having been an-
nounced as the first juvenile night of the pantomime of " The
Old Woman who Lived in the Shoe," which had already
had a most successful three weeks' run. The flames spread
so rapidly that Cassey was unable to get the border down
in time, and he rushed along the " flies," or wooden stages
upon which the men walk when regulating the scenery, and
called to his assistance the head carpenter, Stewart, an as-
sistant named Glen, and Syme, the fireman. These men
had been adjusting the scenes for the pantomime when the
alarm was given, and they at once used every possible
means, by cutting down the borders and hacking away the
side scenes, to prevent the fire spreading in the " flies."
Syme tried to adjust the hose, in order to put out the fire
by means of the plentiful supply of water which is kept in
tanks and pails in readiness for such an emergency. While
thus engaged he was unfortunately overcome by the dense
smoke, and the other men ran to rescue him. Meanwhile,
the flames spread with almost incredible rapidity, and the
scenes were in a few minutes in a sheet of flame ; the
wooden "grooves" and stagings aloft quickly caught the
flames, and the fire was speedily roaring to the roof fed by
the draughts which open flames necessarily produce. So
rapid was the conflagration that the few men in the house
had barely time to escape, after they saw their attempts to
extinguish the flames were hopeless. Stewart, the head
carpenter, fell in one of the galleries, overcome a second
time by the smoke ; but he was aided by his comrades, and
they all got uninjured out of the building.
Meanwhile some persons in the other part of the theatre
had a narrow escape. A division wall separates the audience
and stage department of the house from the staircases,
property rooms, and saloons, and several women were in
that part of the house, engaged, it is believed, in clean-
ing. Some of the men on making their escape from the
stage department hurried round the building to the box
door, and called to some passers by to break it open. This
was immediately done, and the alarm was given to the
women inside, who hurried out of the house. The property
man, who was in this part of the building, either afraid or
unable to get down the stairs, appeared on the upper bal-
cony, about 40ft. high, shouting for help to descend. Seeing
no better chance of getting down, he ran in for a ladder,
which, however, proved too short to reach the first bal-
cony; he went back for a second, but it also was too short.
At length a large ladder was procured from the outside,
and carried up to the first and from that to the second bal-
cony, from which the man descended to the first, and from
there to the street. It was fully a quarter of an hour before
he was rescued, and his position caused great alarm to the
spectators,who now began to gather. At first energetic efforts
were made to remove some of the properties from the thea-
tre, and some valuable things were thrown out of the win-
dows of the storeroom. There are four shops under the
saloons of the theatre, two on either side of the box en-
trance, and some attempts were made to rescue the goods
from them, but in a short time the progress of the fire com-
Pelled every one to desist. The shops were closed, and the
shutters were also put up by the shopkeepers in the neigh-
bouring streets, while the gas was turned off at every pos-
sible point.
Meanwhile the fire had been raging furiously inside, and
at abort 10 minutes past 4 a dense cloud of smoke was seen
to issue from the roof. From this hour it advanced with
terrific rapidity. Within two or three minutes after the
smoke was seen a fierce flame burst forth through the upper
windows of the stage department. In a few minutes more
the arched doorway to Little King-street, which admits the
scenery, opened, and revealed the whole interior blazing
like a volcano. In a short time afterwards the roof of the
stage gave way, carrying in the ventilating turret with a
great crash, and the flames, no longer confined, burst
out from all the windows north and south, and
through the breach in the roof, illuminating, as darkness
closed in, the sides of the Calton-hill, and the tops of the
buildings to a great distance. The startling gleam spread
the alarm quicker than foot passengers could now carry it,
and brought thousands of spectators to the spot. In the
wide open area of Leith-walk there was room for a vast
multitude, and by a quarter to five there were probably
12,000 people on the ground, who walked about in the dis-
tinctness of day—the whole area being lit by the flames,
which now towered into the sky. An hour later there was
a still larger assemblage. There was a light wind from
the south-west, and as the flames tore the properties of the
stage to pieces, the draught scattered the embers in fiery
showers over Leith-wallt,York-place, and neighbourhood ;
large pieces of bupning material being carried for hundreds
of yards, threatening to spread the horrible devastation.
While the houses opposite and above the theatre in Little
King-street became ignited, the travelling embers descended
several house chimneys and set them on fire. The spec-
tacle was at this moment appalling. From the Calton-hill,
to which vast crowds of people at once hurried, the tre-
mendous sheets of white flame were to be seen shooting
high into the air, their hot glow being distinctly percep-
tible even from the highest points. There was for a time
the most vivid illumination of the different monuments and
buildings on the hill, and also of the more distant heights
of Arthur's-seat and Salisbury Crags. About this time the
fire is reported to have been seen from Dunfermline, in
Fifeshire, about 15 miles distant, and also from many
nearer points.
The alarm was first given to the police at St. James's-place
station, near the theatre, and the sergeant on duty at once
sent for all the engines of the town. It was a quarter to 5,
however, when the first arrived, and half an hour more
elapsed before the building could be reached by the hose,
and, in the first place, the attention of the firemen had to
be given to two houses which had caught fire in the imme-
diate neighbourhood. The high range of houses in Little
King-street, opposite the theatre, and also those abutting
it on the west side, necessarily received their first attention
and, though no serious damage was done to them, the hose
had to be played upon them for an hour and a half to pre-
vent their ignition.
While the Are wag raging, the inhabitant's of all the

About half-past 5 the vast body of flame had materially
diminished, although inside the structure there was still the
glow of a furnace " seven times heated." The efforts of the
fire brigade were now beginning to tell, and help had ar-
rived from various quarters. The Dean of Guild had, it ap-
pears, sent a message to the Castle, to the officer on duty of
the 74th, and immediately a body of three officers and 250
men, under Lieut. and Adjutant Currie, arrived on the ground
at the double. Shortly after 5, Lieut. Nicholas, with a party
of 50 men of the Royal Artillery, arrived from Leith Fort
with a powerful engine, which did good service in the
course of the evening. Soon afterwards Mr. Grant, super-
intendent of the Leith police, arrived with his fire brigade
and two engines, one of which, however, could not be used
for want of water. At half-past 6 Mr.Balbirnie, superintend-
ent of Leith Docks, also came up with from 30 to 40 men and
the dockyard engine. It was fully expected by half-past
5 that the fire would be confined to the theatre, although
it had now extended into the separate east section
of the structure facing Broughton-street. The flames,
evidently stimulated by a great draught, broke fiercely
through all the windows to Broughton-street, and raged
for some time with great fury at the point. But it was from
the state of the walls that further danger was most appre-
hended. A-part of the south wall had been torn down in the
fall of the roof, and the boxes and galleries having given
way in a series of loud crashes, the side walls, which were
40 to 50 feet high, stood unprotected and showing a great
inclination outwards. The north wall particularly, over-
hanging the cloister of the Catholic chapel, was seen to be
in a very threatening condition, and on this side already a
sad and fatal occurrence had taken place. A little after
five one of the chimney stacks of the theatre fell outwards,
and smashed in the cupola and a large part of the roof of
the cloister chapel. A good many people were in this part
of the chapel at the time, as it afforded a point for operat-
ing on the north side of the burning building. In the fall
of the chimney two men were struck down. An old man
named John Clark, who had for 18 years been in the fire
brigade, though not now belonging to it, was killed on the
spot, being thrown on his face against the wall. The other
was a young man of 26, named Thomas Henry Leek, clerk
in a painter's establishment. The latter was thrown down
with a great stone on his back, with his head and arms
partially clear of the rubbish, but unable to move. He
called loudly and piteously for help, which could only be
rendered by others at the greatest peril, for the north wall
threatened every moment to give way. Several men cou-
rageously endeavoured to get him out. One of the most
active in the benevolent and heroic labour was Mr. George
Lorimer, Dean of Guild. Being himself apractical builder he
felt confident in his own calculations for his safety. He was
repeatedly called to come away, but his reply to one was that
he knew the theatre walls well, and that they would not
give way ; and to another, who urged him still more ear-
nestly, that he would rescue the man at the peril of his life.
Mr. Lorimer and his companions hid been repeatedly
warned of their danger, but the former refused to leave the
work while he felt it possible to rescue a fellow creature,
and several other men stuck by him and continued the effort
to rescue Leeke. The fire-master, Mr. Mitchell, who had
been observing the increased deflection of the wall, con-
jured Mr. Lorimer to yield, and even tried to drag him
away. Bishop Strain, who had been at the spot all the
evening, helping in the work, saw the wall beginning to
yield, and ran through the large chapel to the cloister door
to give the alarm. Mr. Chessar, Mr. Mitchell, and others 4
who were also within the limits of danger at the moment
also called out that the wall was falling, and, running
within the unbroken part of the roof of the cloister, escaped.
In a second or two the greater half of the north wall fell
with a terrific crash. Mr. Lorimer and three others were
iu the act of escaping when they were overwhelmed in the
ruins. Had Mr. Lorimer got a few feet further down the
cloister, or had he taken to the door at which Bishop Strain
stood, he would doubtless have escaped. It was impossible
to tell at the time how many were killed, and the fire-
master and others had reason to be grateful for their deli-
verance, for had they not sprung forward at the moment
they would have shared the same fate. At first it was be-
lieved that seven or eight persons had been killed by the
second fall, for the falling wall left a pile of rubbish about
eight feet high over the bodies. It was not till 10 o'clock
next morning that the site of the cloister was finally cleared,
and the number of persons killed ascertained to be six, in-
cluding the two first struck down. It is thought that
Leeke had been dead before the second fall took place.
The north wall in falling also broke through a large por-
tion of the roof of the church, besides destroying some of
the parapets and, pinnacles. All the evening the church had
been the scene of great activity to rescue the property, con-
sisting of the altar-piece, a " Descent from the Cross," by
Vandyck—lately insured for 3,0001., and more recently for
1,5001., but really regarded as invaluable—several copies
from Vandyck, and the offerings and relics preserved there.
The pictures were taken out in safety, but the altar rail
and some of the interior carved work was destroyed in the
falling in of the roof. The picture by Vandyck referred to
is said to have had a somewhat remarkable history. was
sent, a number of years ago, from the Continent, and the
vessel containing it was wrecked on her homeward voyage.
The painting was recovered from the wreck, but the address
being lost it was sent to the office of her Majesty's Customs.
An offer of several thousand pounds is said to have.been
made for it by George IV., but the proper ownership of
the picture having been established, it was sent on, as it
was first intended, to St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church at
Edinburgh. This is the second occasion on which it has
been hastily removed from the church, the last time being
in May, 1853, when the Adelphi Theatre was burnt to the
ground, on the same site.
The Theatre Royal, or Queen's Theatre, was opened in
December, 1855. It was built from a design of Mr. Bryce,
Edinburgh, and had 1,700 seats, having three tiers of
boxes and galleries. The front lines of the different tiers
formed a semicircle with an ogee curve outwards, while the
stage boxes within the Corinthian-columns of the proscenium
curved inwards. The stage was from a design by Messrs.
Grieve, Telbein, and Co., and might be opened upfrom the
footlights to the wall to the depth of 58ft. The breadth
of the proscenium was 38ft., and as the height from the
stage to the roof was 54ft., scenery could be drawn up-
wards out of view of the house, or below into the area of
22ft. below the stage. There were 10 dressing-rooms, be-
sides green-room, property-room, store-room, workshops,
&c., and ladies' cloak-room in connection with the audience
department.
The theatre has for the last few years been in the han of
Mr. and Mrs. Wyndham. A few months ago it as
reopened, after thorough cleansing and repainting, and the
crystal gaselier of the. old Theatre Royal, the gift of his
Majesty George IV., was put into it. This Royal gift was
destroyed in the conflagration. We understand that the
loss is for the most part covered by insurance, both on the
part of proprietors and manager, but one office at least had
declined the insurance some time ago on account of the
want of protection of the top-shifts against fire.
All the box seats had been taken for Friday evening, and
about 1001. left in a non-fireproof safe, is said to be lost.
The treasurer, however, had at the outbreak of the fire
succeeded in recovering 3001. from one of the fireproof safes,
It is believed that the loss to the manager will be several
thousand pounds.
The late Mr. Lorimer was an architect and builder, and
was justly esteemed for his sound practical talents and high
personal character. In November last he was appointed to
the office of Dean of Guild, or by ancient courtesy Lord
Dean of Guild, with a seat in the Town Council, in which
he had previously served for three years as a Common Coun-
cillor. He had filled the annual office of Master of the
Merchant Company of Edinburgh, and had served the public
a good many years as a member of the City Road Trust.
In his official capacity he was convener of the Fire-engine
Committee, and was always sent for on the occasion of fire
breaking out. A cab had been sent for him to his house,
but he had not arrived, and had gone to the scene of the fire
on hearing of it on his way home. He was one of the first of
the authorities to arrive on the spot. The melancholy
tidings of his death were conveyed to the family through
the Rev. Mr. Cumming, in whose parish church at New-
ington the deceased gentleman was an elder. He left a widow
and four children, one or two of whom have grownup. His
eldest son was expected home from London on Saturday
morning for a few holidays, and would get the sorrowful
tidings on his arrival. Mr. Lorimer, whose life is said to
be largely insured, was in his 54th year. At a meeting of
the magistrates on Saturdit it was unanimously resolved
to ask leave for the magistfates and Council to attend the
funeral in their official capacity, and the Guildry intend to
make the same request.
All night the firemen continued to play upon the still
burning ruins of the theatre, and a body of labourers were
engaged in digging out the ruins of the cloister to extricate
the dead bodies. On Saturday morning, between 1 and
two o'clock, the west gable of the theatre fell in. Fortu-
nately warning had been given to all the men engaged in
the work of excavation, and also to the firemen, and as the
tall gable gave way the men rushed for safety into the
vestry and residence of the priests. All who were in the
neighbourhoodwere astounded at the dreadful crash, which
caused the walls of the surrounding buildings to tremble.
The body of Mr. Lorimer was got out about 4 o'clock, along
with that of a labourer named M'Vie. They both appeared
to have been struck down in running. The last body taken
out was that of Mr. Taylor, a mason or builder, formerly
employed in the service of the town.
The following is a list of the persons killed—Mr. George
Lorimer, Dean of Guild, aged 54—Mr. John Taylor, builder,
St. James's-square, aged about 50—Mr. Thomas Henry
Leeke, Union-place, clerk to Mr. Tod, painter, Dundas-
street, aged 26—John Clark, mason, Middle Arthur-place,
aged 67, and who had served 18 years in the Fire Brigade;
Bernard M'Vie, labourer, Lawnmarket, aged 36—George
Sweeney, gentleman's servant, 15, Leopold-place, aged V,
At the meeting of the magistrates on Saturday it was
resolved to defray the funeral expenses of those who had
suffered, should the relatives see fit to accept the offer ;
and also to administer temporary relief to the families of
the deceased who might require it, till more permanent
provision could be made. The Procurator-Fiscal was in-
structed Co take out warrant for removal of dangerous
walls, and adopt any other necessary measures for the
public safety. The city clerk was desired to write letters of
thanks to the military authorities for the service rendered
and also to the authorities of Leith, who gave so neigh-
bourly help on the occasiou..

THE " SPECTATOR" ON THE LAST INDIAN
GRIEVANCE.—The Anglo-Saxon toils and fights and
rules and settles in all continents, amidst all races,
and under every condition except one. No body of
English-speaking men has ever remained or now
remains under the rule of a Government not admi-
nistered by Anglo-Saxons. English or American
emigrants never select a country not so ruled, or if
by chance they find themselves so situated, they
either upset the previously existing rule, as in Texas,.
or leave, as happened in Java and the Philippines.
If our countrymen will remember that fact, and re-
collect that it has been true for three hundred
years, and is now true in an age oLemigration, they
will be able to understand the root of that singular
hostility which breaks out every now and then be-
tween English settlers in India and the official class
—a hostility which has just re-appeared in a form
which which, looked at from this country alone,
seems almost grotesque. Mr. Maine, one of the
most successful men we ever sent out to Bengal,
perhaps the only one except James Wilson, who ever
heartily conciliated both classes without deferring to
either, has just brought into the Indian Legislature
a bill for abolishing grand juries within the Presi-
dency towns, and nothing, one would think, could
be simpler or more innocent. A grand jury in
Calcutta is just what a grand jury is in London,
with the single difference that Hindoos and Mahom-
medans sit upon it indiscriminately with English-
men. There, as here, it is filled with men of busi-
ness, who swear audibly at the unnecessary in-
terruption. Its power there, as here, is to decide
whether there is any prima facie case for sending
an accused person to trial, and there, as here, it
simply stands between the magistrate and the tri-
bunal which tries the case. It is, therefore, there,
as here, in theory a totally useless and rather
worrying body, and the Anglo-Indian settlers, who
have no respect for tradition and rather despise an
institution for being old, would see it abolished
with even less reluctance than London merchants.
But they have a dread which is not felt in Eng-
land, which is the root of their whole policy as
a separate party, and which induces them from
time to time to uphold institutions which
they themselves admit to be either unfair or absurd.
They believe that the Government in many of its
"reforms" has in view a distinct end,—the subjec-
tion of all races before local tribunals, which may
be filled by native magistrates, Hindoos and Ma-
hommedans, animated by strong, and presumably,
hostile, race and religious feeling. These magis-
trates they believe, will not absolutely refuse jus-
tice,—Government could prevent that,—but they
will make all preliminary examinations painful by
insult, and they will commit persons for trial merely
in order to expose them to the annoyance of being
tried,—a practice against which the grand jury is
a sufficient and a permanent shield. They therefore
resist its abolition, and although they have no legal
control over Government, no right of representa-
tion, and no adequate voice in the Council, they are
still powerful enough to make Government hesi-
tate, and at least anxious to soothe away their hos-
tility. They can, for example, if provoked, apply
with great ease and completeness the pressure which
the Venetians apply to the Austrian garrison, esta-
blishing a thorough system of non-intercourse, and
they have always the sympathy of a class much
stronger than themselves—the officers and Euro-
pean men of the army. Owing to the ancient and
permanent dislike existing between the soldiery and
the Civil Service, a dislike kept up by excessive in-
equalities of pay, promotion' and precedence, the
army has always sympathised with the settlers even
upon points which do not directly affect its own in-
terests. So strongly is this the case that in the
great fight of 1852 against the Act levelling all dis-
tinctions—the Black Act, as it was called—the
Europeans declared repeatedly that if they were
not to be tried by the Queen's Courts, they should
prefer trial by courts-martial to trial before the
local " Company's" tribunals. The Government has
no wish to spread discontent among all merchants,
planters, banisters, railway employes, officers,
and European men all at once, and when they hap-
pen to be united, which occurs only upon this
single question, it usually pauses to reconsider. It
may pause now, as the reform is very unimportant, or
if it does not, it will be because the Europeans are
not really united upon a side point in itself so trifling.
THE " LONDON REVIEW" ON THE BANK OF
FRANCE AND THE RATE OF INTEREST.—MM. Fould
and Behic, the Ministers of Finance and Commerce
respectively, have recommended the Emperor to in-
stitute an inquiry into the causes of the high rate of
interest which has of late ruled in France and other
countries. The inquiry is to embrace " the whole
of the principles and general facts which influence
the monetary circulation in France ;" and the
Ministers who recommended the inquiry appear to
do so on the ground that " truth will emerge from
the shock of opinions and doctrines ;" and that
" from the discussions it will excite, the country
will derive much useful information." The inquiry
is entrusted to the Superior Council of Commerce,
Agriculture, and Industi y, and is to be conducted
under the presidency of the Ministry of State. The
tribunal before which the subject is to be discussed
is no doubt eminently qualified to receive and judge
the evidence which will be tendered to it, tend which
will of course embrace the practical views of the
most accomplished financiers, and the crotchets of
the most visionary theorists. The evidence will be
looked for on this side of the Channel with great
interest, not only on account of the importance of
the question in debate, but because the English sys-
tem of paper currency cannot but be inquired into,
discussed, and some judgment passed upon it. The
appointment of this committee, or commission as we
should call it, and of the Minister of State as i
president, are, however, no doubt indicative of some
foregone conclusion. The preamble to the report
sets forth petitions numerously signed by the lead-
ing commercial men and manufacturers of Paris and
Lyons, and these are backed by the petition of the
Council of the Bank of France praying for the in-
quiry. Two things, as we think, may be inferred
from these facts—the first, that the French Govern-
ment are disposed to take up the question with the
view to some modification of the existing system ;
and the second, that the inquiry is not 'entered upon
with any view of diminishing the power and position
of the Bank, but rather, if possible, of making use
of its agency in furtherance of the object of dimi-
nishing the rate of interest. Some severe theorists
will deride the idea of legislation on the rate of in-
terest, which they will rightly maintain to be depen-
dent on the law of supply and demand. But the
supply, if not the demand for currency—for that
which passes in payment of debt—is already subject
to legislative trammels, and if these be modified,
whether in the way of removing artificial barriers to
credit, or of , increasing them, it is the Legislature
which must act. When a Government either issues
or authorises the issue of bank notes and makes them
a legal tender, it must take measures to see that the
obligation or expressed promise is fulfilled. Our
own Government has measured the credit of the
Bank of England, and has declared it to be limited
by the sum of fourteen millions, and that this four-
teen millions shall be represented by promises to pay
on demand sums not less than five pounds. If a
man owes a less sum he must, to make a legal ten-
der for its payment, have recourse to the precious
metals. The immense influence exercised by the
English money market on the Continental one,
makes it certain that our Bank Charter Act and its
effects must be examined and reviewed by the French
Commission, and we may thus obtain evidence and
scientific opinions which may even exercise more in-
fluence than the Parliamentary inquiry which some
of the magnates of the Press have lately deprecated,
although it is certain that our own highly artificial
system is accompanied by greater fluctuations in the
rate of interest, and more frequently returning and
ruinous panics, than are observed under the French
systeni It may very well be that our system is
sounder, and that the fluctuations and panics which
are observable are due to other causes, and are even
in some measure favourably modified by the Bank
Charter Act; but we confess that we are glad to see
the great probability, that if we do not think, it
worth while to inquire into the causes of such phe,
nomena our methodical and scientific neighbours on
the other side of the Channel are about to do.
THE " SATURDAY REVIEW" ON THE ACTUAL
STATE OF THINGS IN AMERICA.—If it were certain
that Hood's army had crossed the Tennessee river in
safety, the latest accounts from America might, on
the whole, be regarded as not unfavourable to the
Confederates. As the capture of Savannah became
inevitable from the time at which' Sherman opened
communications with the fleet, the retreat of the
garrison with its stores and field artillery must be
considered a successful operation. The cotton
which was left uninjured was probably the property
of foreign owners, but the Federal Government will
doubtless retain the valuable booty, with little re-
spect to a title which it may be difficult to establish.
As the port of Savannah has long been closed by
the Federal occupation of Fort Pulaski, the cotton
must have been left in the town for security, and not
for immediate exportation. Although the Confede-
rates and their friends affect indifference to the
loss of Savannah, the arrival of Sherman
at a place where he . can rest in perfect
safety, with the absolute choice of his future
movements, involves a great additional danger to
the South. No Western Federal army has before
reached the Atlantic coast, and there is no large
Confederate force in the wide region which inter-
venes between Savannah and Richmond. On the
side of Tennessee, the rumoured evacuation of Chat-
tanooga has neither been contradicted nor con-
firmed ; and, unless the garrison retired before the
defeat of Hood, there seems to be no adequate mo-
tive for abandoning an important position, The

irovers y which has arisen between the land and sea '
commanders is at once perplexing and amusing.
Admiral Porter, having easily silenced the enemy's
guns by driving the gunners into their bomb-
proof coverings, not unnaturally supposed that
the troops which had landed might assault
the works almost without resistance ; and, with a
laudable confidence in the accuracy of his fire, he
undertook to keep the garrison quiet until the
assaulting column was within 20 yards of the place. ,
It is no imputation on the gallantry of the Federal ,
soldiers to object that it would have been a trial to
their nerves to come within 20 yards of a line of 1,
shells which were falling at the rate of 115 to the •
minute. The garrison, moreover, were probably
within 20 yards of their guns, and they would have
received the advancing enemy with grape shot before
they could enter the works. The attempt was not,
in fact, made, and on the whole it seems that the
generals who would have been responsible for the
success of the assault were better able to judge of
its expediency than the admiral, who, with his
fleet, was removed from all danger except from
his own artillery. Admiral Porter seems to be a
testy officer, as he reprimanded several of his own
officers as roughly as he censures his colleague in
command. There is something like humour in his
implied estimate of the qualifications of a civilian
general. General Butler informs the Admiral that
he and General Weitzel agreed in considering the
assault impracticable. Admiral Porter politely re-'
plies :—" I think it might have been done ; but
speak with deference, as I have a high opinion of
General -Weitzel as a soldier and engineer." If the
attack on Fort Fisher is repeated, batteries will pro-
bably have been erected on the spit of land where
General Weitzel landed ; but for the present, the.
expedition has failed, and the Federal Government
has wasted several millions of money. The reported
loss of 1,500 men is inconsistent with the rest of thi
account, for, according to the official reports, the'
troops were scarcely under fire, and those who had.
been left on shore during the night were re-embarkedl
on the following morning. The fleet lost 40 or 50:
men by the explosion of the wonderfulParrott guns/
which, according to the Northern journals, were
destined to sink the whole English navy in half -a-
dozen rounds. It is, perhaps, not surprising that
the national imagination should have been attracted
by things so big and so noisy. On the other hand,
the Monitors raised their character by weathering a
heavy sea and gale in safety. New York journalista
' perhaps already see them with prophetic eyes cross-'
ing the Atlantic and anchoring off the Tower, if not
ooposite Windsor Castle. Although the immediate,
danger of a, profligate attack on Canada has passe'
away, it is highly necessary that the English Gover-
ment and nation should indicate their purpose 0f
resenting the smallest aggression. At no formeri
period has the language and bearing of the Unite",
States been so insolent and menacing. Genera,'
Dix's order has only been so far modified that of6‘
cers commanding on the frontiers are directed to
report to General Dix himself for orders before they
invade Canadian territory. Mr. Seward's letter t°
Mr. Adams was a wanton and deliberate affront I°
this country, as well as a useless insult to those will
were immediately concerned with the Liverrl
bazaar. Mr. Watson Webb remains in the pes
which he has disgraced ; and Mr. Seward hinasei"
in his niggardly offer of satisfaction to Brazil, take 6
occasion to repeat the offensive assertion that tlie
; recognition ,of the Confederates as belligerents WI
a breach of the law of nations. It is evident tila'o
recent successes have' inflamed American arrogan..
to a pitch of frenzy. The paper at New York which
represents the foreign policy of the Government O.'
cept the exertions of the Canadian authorities lito
the matter of-the Vermont prisoners as the obvioll
result of General Dix's insolent threat. England
at the same time, offered impunity, though ll°,
forgiveness, on condition of " forbiddill
" her subjects to violate the blockade." To Oat
lengths have the professed champions of nelltr,
rights arrived infour years of belligerent experin,,,
It would be idle to notice the ignorant utterances
American malignity if it were certain they Wel/
end in words. No amount of verbal abuse--scareeyd
even of official rudeness and ill-breeding—We 'i
disturb the equanimity of England ; but there
constant danger that extravagant language may le;
to the perpetration of some intolerable outrag,,,
When even those American writers who profess
deration and calmness openly renounce all rePO,
for international law, it is probable that some c,°„e•
mander on land or at sea may translate their u"0
trines. into act. The continuance of Mr. Nirat6-to
Webb's mission at Rio Janeiro is an invitation io
ess A every Federal functionary to be equally reckl
his conduct. A war with the United States W 0
be an unmixed evil ; but, if it is forced upon -50
land, it is better that it should come while there is to
opportunity of striking a decisive blow by opening re,
Southern ports. There would be no risk of a ruPtli to
if American conceit could be so far dispelled as iog
convey to the popular understanding the meano,
of the conflict which is every day gratuitously Pte
,P 0
yoked. Hitherto the people of the United
have been able to comprehend that the oblignAid•
of countries to one another are both mortally al
legally defined by the international code. TO ,76,1+
arguments their teachers and organs reply that t-,d
wish for no-quarrel, but that, if they are molest
by hostile cruisers, they will follow them into neuv,e,
ports, and that, for similar reasons of conven!ll-
- they will not hesitate to enter neutral territory'