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

THE SON, LONDON', TUESDAY' EVENING, NOVEMBER 11, 1862.
FIGHTING IN AIIiICA-VIE PORI UNE
EAR WAR.

The LORD MAYOR, in giving the, g' Health of the
Prince of Wales," said—There is such a speciality
in this toast that I am sure I shall have the sympa-
thy of this di.stinguished company when I express a
wish that t',ae Prince, who yesterday came of age,
and has taken on himself the responsibilities of a
IN:Aitken which is second to none in the world—
(cheers)—when I say that the hopes and expecte-
tirens of the country are centered in the Prince who
'yesterday attained his majority, I feel that this is an
occasion on which the loyalty of the country should
be so expressed, that the Queen may feel that she
has one by her side who will act as an adviser, while
the nation will look upon him as a Prince upon
whom the greatest reliance is to be placed. (Cheers.)
The Prince of Wales bas well studied the im-
portant part which he will have to play ; he has
had oppovaunities which few enjoy, and especially
of hone associations, which cannot but have a
vast influence upon his future life. At the same
tireie he has had the advantages of travel, for one
'.:an safely say that he has seen more of the world
than any other of her Majesty's subjects. I am
sure that, with all the advantages he has the coun-
try will feel that he is worthy of the high destiny
that it has pleased Providence to assign to him,
and the alliance he has just made, with ail its in-
teresting easociations, is highly appreciated by all
her Makesty's subjects. I give you the " Health of
his Relyal Highness the Prince of Wales, long may
he live and be the support of his widowed mother
arid Sovereign"—(cheers)—and I hope that, when
it shall please Providence to call him to that posl-
tion which is involved in the possession of the
throne of the greatest empire of the world, he may
so act as to prove himself a worthy scion of so illus-
trious and honoured a Queen. (Cheers.)
The Loin MAYOR next proposed " The Army,
Navy, and -Volunteers," observing that there never
was a time when their services were more appre-
ciated than at the present moment. He had the
honour of having as guests both the Commander-
in-Chief and the first Lord of the Admiralty. The
Duke of Cambridge was par excellence the soldier's
friend. (Cheers.) On all occasions he had shown
himself most anxious for the efficiency of the ser-
vice. The same might be said of the Duke of
Somerset, who had shown himself foremost in for-
warding the great improvements in the navy in its
process of re-construction. As to the volunteers,
that force -,vas equally appreciated by the army and
the natiian at large, and he believed the formation
of the:c great national force had had the effect of
Piereing this country in a position of safety which
it herd never before enjoyed. (Cheers.)
The Duke of CAMBRIDGE, in responding on be-
half of the army, said—My Lord Mayor, Ladies and
Gentlemen,—l rise to respond to the toast which has
just been given from the chair in so handsome a
manner, as regards my branch of the service. I can
only say, on behalf of that service, what I have often
said before in this great city of London, that we
are always flattered by the kind feelings and sen-
timents expressed by the citizens of London to-
wards us. It is an agreeable compliment to us
that, while toiling for the good of the country in
every part of the globe, this toast is accepted with
those feelings and affections towards home which
never leave the army in whatever part of the world
it may be placed. There is an innate feeling in
Englis'amen which makes them feel that home is
the 'oest place to be in. Although the army of this
country is necessarily more separated from their
friends than the armies of other countries, they
always look back upon home as the place from
whence everything that is good, everything that
is agreeable, and everything that is advanta •
geous to them spring. The army expe-
riences this feeling quite as much as civilians,
They therefore appreciate, wherever they may be,
the kindly feelings and remembrances of their
friends. The Lord Mayor has been so good as to
allude to the fact that the army, as it now is, is in
a state of efficiency. I hope and believe that that
compliment is well deserved. (Cheers.) So far as
I am concerned, I can only say that I have done
my utmost to make it efficient, and to extend that
efficiency which has distinguished it ever since it
has been an army. I can say, for myself, that I
should have been utterly powerless had it not been
for the support—the enlightened and liberal sup-
port—which I have received on every occasion, from
the ;:ilustrious statesman who sits near me. (Loud
c}:ieers.) Not only has the present Government
but former Governments. have given the army that
liberal and enlightened support which has enabled
me to maintain it in that state of efficiency in
which, I flatter myself, I may now consider it to
be. But not only is credit due to the statesmen of this
country in this respect, but credit is also due to the
people of England, for if it were not for their libe-
ral views with regard to the maintenancy of the army
in a state of efficiency it would be impossible for us
to do as much as we have done. But the people of
England, with their usual good strong common
sense, have fully appreciated the value and import-
ance of the services rendered by the army. They
have never grudged us these liberal supplies which
I say, with some degree of regret, we feel to be ne-
cessary for the maintenance of the honour of this
country. Of course we all know it is not an agree-
able thing to expend money largely upon the mili-
tary service, but the people of England are segacicus
''l°n`e'h to have seen how essential it is for their own
intereststi. that money should be liberally spent for
when they
and they never grudged their support
L'q were called upon for it. We are not in
a Position to maintain a large army,but we maintain
tahlearlogyeaal spiritrrayhich, supplemented as it now is by
and feeling of the country, and by
the Militia and Volunteers, is sufficient to enable us
to maintain the
interests and power of this great
and enlightened
nation.
(Cheers.) I know it will
not be agreeable to
your lordship that I should pay
you any compliment, but I
that
disguise from
this great company the fact
h corps
tamong the distin-
guished regiments in the Volunteer
none can
boast a higher position than the R
corps of the City of London, and in that
Lord Mayor, you, my Lord Mayor, heeefro corps, my
first taken a prominent interest.
Rifle Volunteer
(Cheers,)
Ycmha
the
u
not only given us your best support and cordiale
assistance, but you have actually become -yourself
one of the body. (Cheers.) That is a
circumstance
which I am sure this country will learn with plea..
sure.
My Lord Mayor, you alluded to the special
circumstance of the day on which this banquet
takes place. We arc here met no doubt to do
honour to the Lord Mayor, and his election to an
important
which I have no doubt he will
worthily fill. His
pos,.
Islordship has told you that this is
Thi- dee therefore is a
ness the Prince of b
of the birth of his Royal High-
the 21st ar.viversary
TiralPF: r
day not only of immense
im/eree ,
Cheers.) How much
u' t of vastmpor-
i
tance to this great country• k
ositio
• n of that youth-
depends on the character and
I can only say—not
ful and illustrious Prince .
simply because he is the Prince
of
lative of mine—that I firmly believe that
tion and general disposition of that young prince
Wales
the edauc real
justify us in hoping that he will be an ornament to
this great empire, and that during his career he will
be, as bead of this nation, an object of pride to the

Viscount PALMtIStON, who was received with
loud cheers, said—My Lord Mayor, and Ladies and
Gentlemen,—For myself and for my colleagues I beg
to return you our most sincere thanks for the hon-
our you have done us—you, my Lord Mayor, in pro-
posing, and you, ladies and gentlemen, in so kindly
accepting the toast which you have drunk. .1 can
assure you that there is nothing that can be made a
greater reward to those who are engaged in the
public service than to receive the goodwill and ap-
proval of their fellow-countrymen for the perform-
ance of their duty ; and when I say the performance
of their duty I say all that can be said of any public
man, for there can be no higher praise than the per-
formance of duty ; and no public man can do more
than perform the duty which is incumbent upon
him, and although there are those men who are able
to fulfil the task, they must be presumptuous indeed
who think they have the power to do more. (Hear,
hear.) It is particularly gratifying and flattering to
men who are engaged in the public service to be
honoured by invitations to these annual commemo-
rations ; for, in the first place, I may say, without
fear of exaggeration, that there is hardly any Sove-
reign in Europe who can give a more splendid ban-
quet, when you consider the company assembled
and the hall in which we have met, than those who
have the honour of being invited to assist at it. But
these meetings are also typical of the British na-
tion, for we hear men of all classes, men of all po-
litical opinions, men engaged in very different
pursuits, and we meet here in common fellow-
ship, each forgetting any differences which might
exist between himself and others, and only animated
by a common feeling of brotherhood and of pride in
the nation to which we belong. Cloud cheers.)
There is one circumstance not devoid of interest con- il
nected with these anniversaries, which circumstance
is more peculiarly called to mind by what fell from
my Lord Mayor this evening, for it is a remarkable, 1
and I trust an auspicious omen, that the day on
which the municipal corporations of this vast coun-
try are called upon to elect what my Lord Mayor
will, perhaps, allow me to call their Sovereigns for
the year, is also the day on which the country has
been blessed by the birth of a Prince who one day
—and God grant it may be long distant—(hear)—
will be Sovereign of this country, and who, by the
qualities with which the Providence of God has en-
dowed him is, I trust destined to be a source of hap-
piness to the nation over which be may be called
upon to rule. (Loud cheers.) My Lord Mayor has
adverted to a topic which must excite the deepest
feelings of sorrow on the part of every man and
woman in this country—l mean that distress which
unfortunately prevails in a part of our manufactur-
ing districts. (Hear, hear.) We may trust, and it
is to be hoped the cause of that distress may not be
long continued—(hear)—although it must be owned
that there is not at present any immediate prospect
that more humane feelings and more kindly senti-
ments are likely to prevail between the contending
parties upon the American continent; but we may
trust that India will to a certain degree supply the
raw material which is essential to the industry of
our manufacturing population ; and if this product
which India may send us shall be sedulously used
in this country, and if we are not tempted by the
wants of other nations to send that cotton away as
fast as it arrives, I trust that India may find the
means of supplying in some degree the wants
which have been created by the civil war in
America. (Hear, hear.) In other respects it is
satisfactory to know that the country is in a good
and sound condition. (Cheers.) We have been'
told by his Royal Highness the Commander-in-
Chief, and by my noble friend the Duke of So-
merset, and by that distinguished officer, Colonel
M'Murdo, that our army and navy and volun-
teers are in a state of great efficiency ; and
although that army and that navy are compara-
tively small, in point of numbers, yet their discip-
line and efficiency, and brave spirits, and the pa-
triotic feeling by which they are animated, makes
that small number equal to a large one in which
these eminent qualities may not be equally found.
(Cheers.) Our harvest has not been bad ; and
although the farmers are unwilling to confess that
it has been good, yet at least it is a consolation that
we do not hear from them that their harvest has
been bad. (Cheers.) Our trade and commerce have
found vent in one direction to make up for the
obstacles which have been opposed to them in
others, and upon the whoie balance of productive
industry we have no reason to comp ain that we are
this year in a worse condition than that in which
we have been in years which have gone by. Our
finances are also in a sound condition. We are reap-
ing, in our intercourse with all nations of the earth,
that harvest cf prosperous trade which was sown in
those doctrines of freedom of trade and unrestricted
commerce which have won their way in this coun-
try by force of reason, after long and continued dis-
cussion, and which we trust the example of Eng-
land is diffusing over other countries which have
hitherto been deaf to the voice of reason ; and that
we shall find that our prosperity serves as an ex-
ample to the other nations of the earth, that we
are really not only benefiting ourselves, but spread-
ing over the rest of mankind some of the advantages
and some of the blessings which our own wise po-
licy bas secured for ourselves. (Loud cheers.) My
Lord Mayor. and ladies
myselfladie and
sande s, n
gentlemen,ellecolleagues,
elboegr mostagain
s
to
in
yourfo
for the honour which you have done
returneere thanks
us in drinking our healthy, and more especially for
the gratification which you have afforded us in per-
mitting us to
assist at the banquet which you hb.
(Cheers.) I cannot, ladies and
ggievnetnlemusenth, issitday.
down without asking your permis-
sion to propose to you a toast in return, and I am
sure when I ask you to drink the "Health of the Lord
Mayor," that that toast will be
rdeuceeivneodt beynyiyouto with
all those honours which ar© the
(
office which he represents, but to the
hi ly-gifted
man by whom that office is held. Lu
cheers.)
on from
ofthe
It is one of the great advantages arising om that
municipal reform which constitutes
of every great town have annually co
_.
greatest improvements of later times thnatfetrhreecditiuzpeonns
them the power and opportunity of raising to a dis
tinguished post in the community one of the most
valued of their distinguished citizens. You this
year have exercised that privilege by electing your
present Lord Mayor, and I am confident that in the
discharge of the arduous duties of his office he will
prove at the end of his mayoralty that he was
most deserving of your approval, as that distin-
guished individual who two years in succession was
elected to fill that office has been proved to have
etaornperdopoasnedto deserved your appreciation (Loud
(I,,r)ruidle
cheers.) Ladies and gentlemen, I beg in conclusion
and.,
,ou ,
,i prolongedAyon returned cheers.)
h e e r s .)
\
"The House
name of Earl mGranville,
you the the i, Health of the Lord Mayor."
Earl GRANVILLE returned thanks, and proposed
Lords," coupling with the toast the
(Loud cheers.)
x OR
theenatprofporosetahe
the
titisfaction
which the
thanks and expressed
in the ensuing session' in welcoming House of Veers would feel
"The firstii
nb
Wales in taking his sweicoming
time.thePrincee of,
The(Great
LORDc he r i nisfgi.A)
by Mr. Justice W e ' which was responded to
. icirr _
MAN.
The LORD MAYOR next proposed " The House
of Commons." (Loud cheers.)
The Right Hon. E. CARDWELL, in responding to

________
the toast, said—My Lord Mayor, Ladies, and 1
Gentlemen, in obedience to your order, on behalf of
the House of Commons I rise to return thanks for
the toast which has just been proposed. While on
the one hand we do not yield to the House of
Lords itself in cordial loyalty to the Throne and
affectionate devotion to the Sovereign, you, my
Lord Mayor, have truly glanced at the sympathy
with which the popular assembly of this realm has
always been associated with the corporations of this
country, of which corporations this great Corpora- 1
tion is the chief. (Cheers.) Whatever tends to
promote industry and commerce, and to advance
the cause of legislation favourable to the interests
of the country, naturally finds its birth in that as-
sembly, which consists of members chosen by them-
selves. (Cheers.) Every member feels that he en-
joys an honour which can only be conferred upon
him by the free voice of the people. We believe
that, strengthened by your support, and animated
by your confidence, in every juncture of difficulty
we shall be enabled to speak the sentiments of the
people, to sustain the honour of our country, pre-
serve the stability of our institutions, and promote
the true interests of the people. (Cheers.) On the
part of the members of the House of Commons, I
beg sincerely to thank you for the toast which you
have so cordially drunk. (Loud cheers.)
The LORD MAYOR proposed the health of Lord
Brougham, in a complimentary speech.
Lord BROUGPIAM, in responding, said,—I am
deeply grateful to his lordship for the kind manner
in which he has proposed my health, and to you,
ladies and gentlemen, for the kind acceptance of the
toast. Ii is, to well-regulated minds, a pleasing
thing to look back upon acts of kindness received ;
and I have, for the long period of more than 40
years, had the distinguished honour of being a
member of this Corporation. lam so much older
than others in this Corporation, that, when his
lordship proposed at first to drink to the prosperity
of the trade and commerce of the city of London, I
had sorr e doubt whether it was not my duty to
return thanks. (Laughter.) But if it was a
pleasing thing to receive this great honour, the
ground upon which it was conferred was still more
gratifying. It was from the approval of my fel-
low-citizens of this great city of my conduct, po-
litically and professionally, in supporting the privi-
leges and the honour of that renowned profession
of which I deem it the great happiness of my life
to be a member—for having maintained those privi-
leges and that honour against the whole weight of the
Government of the country, and the Crown as
represented by the King. But, independently of the
cause, the honour itself is very great. This city has
long been renowned as the cradle of British liberty,
and of late it has become the tomb of her discords
and the fountain of her charity. My right hon.
friend, the late Lord Mayor, and his worthy asso-
ciates, including the present Lord Mayor, have ex-
tended their benevolence to all parts, even the most
remote of the country, not considering distance to
signify anything, providing the necessity was great.
When we commend the givers of that benevolence,
let us not forget the admirable conduct of those who
received it. I look upon the working classes of Lan-
cashire and Cheshire and the West Riding of York-
shire—particularly the cotton districts in Lanca-
shire—as entitled to all possible commendation, to
praise, and even to veneration, for the manner in
which they bore their sufferings. When I contrast
their conduct this last year with what I well re-
member in times 40 or 50 years ago, when there was
much less pressure, but when the people broke out
into disturbances in those distressed districts, giv-
ing themselves up to strikes for wages, attempting
the destruction of cotton mills, supposing the owners
to be answerable for their distress, who were no
more answerable than they were for the wind and
weatiaer—when I contrast that with the perfectly
different conduct of the working classes upon the
present occasion, I cannot withhold my wonder and
admiration. (Cheers.) I am bound also to say, when
I am asked to what that difference is owing, that I
ascribe it to the progress they have made during the
last 40 years in education, and in tha acquisition of
knowledge to enlighten their minds upon their
I situation and upon the trials to which they are sub-
jected. I have heard it said that their education
ought to have taught the., tv lay by fur a had day.
But ought education to have taught them what their
masters and their betters and the well educated
classes knew nothing about—namely, to foresee the
cotton famine ? They could no more foresee the
famine from which they were suffering than their
masters and betters, who did not foresee it nor pro-
vide for it. But as for ordinary wants, they provided
for them by savings banks, by insurances, by be-
coming members of co-operative societies, and by
economising their small means. They did make pro-
vision for the ordinary calls upon them. But so unex_
pected a crisis as that of the affairs on the other
side of the Atlantic they would in no way be ex-
pected to foresee or to know. That cruel and an-
natural civil war is one of the most lamentable
events of our time. England and France have
looked on with feelings of kindness and friendship
upon both the contending parties, for which reason
they have perhaps not been much liked by either.
(Laughter.) Besides the ordinary evils of war—
besides the waste of blood and treasure, and suffer-
ing of every kind—besides the miseries and anxie-
ties in which it involved the whole country, which
would make us desire its speedy cessation—there is
another fear, another risk which they run more and
more every month if this contest continues, I mean
the increased number of armed men who become
habituated to blood, rapine, and pillage. It has
been said that there is nothing worse than the
tyranny of a mob. Yes there is something worse,
and it is the tyranny of an armed mob. (Cheers.)
With arms in their hands, inured to war, incapable
of peaceful occupation, habituated to pillage and
bloodshed, that habit will become their second and
savage nature. They will be the worst foes under
which one could live. (Applause.) For the sake
of Heaven, for their own happiness, for the sake of
humanity, let us hope they may avoid that situation
of things, which is at once so deplorable and so
degrading. (Cheers.) His lordship concluded by
proposing " The Health of the Lady Mayoress."
The LORD MAYOR returned thanks on behalf of
the Lady Mayoress, and proposed " The Health of
the Sheriffs."
Mr. Alderman and Sheriff LAWRENCE returned
thanks.
Some other toasts having been drunk, the com-
pany separated.
e

The following incident of the war in America is
extracted from a private letter, written by a volun-
teer in the Federal army to his relations in England :
" Hospital, Alexandria, Virginia, Oct. 23.
"Dear --,--Yours of Aug. 18 has just come to
hand. I had been expecting it for some time. Why
it did not arrive you will soon understand from the
contents of this letter.
" You will perceive from the heading that some-
thing has happened to me, but do not be alarmed
as it is nothing very serious. I will endeavour to in-
form you how it occurred. After my letter from
Harrison's Landing we were kept continually on
the march until Aug. 30th, when we arrived at
Manafres, having endured hardships ar d privations
which would only cause you pain were I to relate
them. It is sufficient to say we did endure them.
" On the morning of the 30th we were ordered
into line of battle, though we were almost exhausted.
Our regiment, with another, formed on the edge of
a wood, while our company, with two or three
others, deployed as skirmishers through the wood.
We had not long been in this position before the
enemy came in sight, advancing in strong force.
We, being skirmishers, of course fell beck, and joined
the remainder of our brigade. We bad scarcely
formed into line when the enemy advanced upon us
from right, left, and front, doing terrible execution.
Our brigade was completely overpowered. The
order was given to fall back, which was accom-
plished very tolerably.
" I had thus far remained uninjured, but it was
not long before I got struck. We had fallen back
about 100 yards, when my rifle came in collision
with a tree. I turned round to pick it up, and at
the same moment felt something warm passing
through my right hip. I instantly fell to
the ground. I struggled hard to rise, and found
that my leg was useless—a ball had passed through
striking the hip bone.
" As soon as our forcis fell back the rebels ad-
vanced, and there I lay, helpless, between the firing
of the contending armies. You can better imagine
than I can describe how I felt upon this occasion.
The balls fell around me as thick as hail. Many of
our men got killed after they were wounded by some
of the stray shots that fell in showers around us.
Every moment I expected to got one myself ; but
was more fortunate than many others, and escaped
without further injury, though exposed to all kinds
of missiles for several hours. After I was wounded,
I should tell you, one ball passed through my jacket,
and two struck the sole of one of my shoes, but did
not enter it, and hurt my foot only a little.
" It was towards night when the fighting ceased,
and the rebels were in possession of the field ; I was
therefore taken prisoner. I lay on the field until
the morning of the 3d September (four days), quite
helpless, without food, and very little water. My
wound being exposed to the sun, had got full of
maggots, half an inch long. On the same day (the
3d) a flag of truce from our army came through the
rebel lines, and removed us in heavy waggons a dis-
tance of 25 miles, over a fearfully rough road, which
almost shook the little life we had left out of us.
We arrived at our present quarters on the night of
the 3d, almost dead, not having eaten anything for
five days.
" While lying on the field 1 experienced the most
delightful dreams I aver remember to have had. I
was continually dreaming of home, and all the
loved ones there ; but woke up to be made aware of
my dreadful situation. I can tell you little more at
present. I can only say I was treated very well by
the rebels—as tar as letting me alone went. They
could not give me anything to eat, as they had no-
thing for themselves. They are in a dreadful con-
dition ; but appear determined to fight to the last.
—I remain, &c.,
" P.S.—My wound is not a very serious one,
and is going on first rate. Ido not think I shall
be a cripple. The exposure and want of proper
attention kept me bad much longer than I should
otherwise have been."

various parts of London and the hall during the
shows. In addition to this, the Agricultural Hall is
within a mile of the Great Northern terminus at
'--(Toss, and a mile and a half from the North-
nd within a ls. 6d. cab-fare from
Railway termini ex-
- • and by

Ring .
Western Railway,
any one of the Metropolitan
cept th .t of the Great Western R
exe ail lwa/
under ttu.
means of a very excellent map,
direction of Mr. S. Sidney, the secretary of the
Agricultural Hall Company, and which will be on
the back of all the tickets and documents issue
out
d
with regard to the show, the route is pointed
for reaching the grand entrance in the Liverpool-
road, thus avoiding the toll, which is still in exist-
ence on the road between the Angel and Islington-

green.
With regard to the general arrangements for this
anniversary of the Smithfield Cattle Show, the club
have made very considerable alterations. Instead
of the awards of prizes by the judges and private
view taking place on Monday, as formerly, they
will take place on Saturday, the 6th of December ;
and an experiment is about to be tried of making
Monday, the Bth, a ss. day, and still continuing to
give 4 days at the ordinary charge of ls. The new
building has had the effect of stimulating the agri-
culturists in all parts of the kingdom to take a
more active part in the metropolitan competition,
and the entries in every department are larger
than on any previous occasion. The visitors ge-
nerally will not be the less pleased to know that
their personal comforts have not been lost sight of.
The Agricultural Hall Committee of Management
have entered into a contract with the caterer for the
Grand Stand at Epsom and the Battersea Park
Agricultural Meeting to supply the refreshments
during the ensuing show.

ROYAL CiOGRAP.HICAL SOCIETY.

The first meeting of this Society for the season
of 1862-63, which took place last night in Bur-
lington House, Piccadilly, was a proof of the in-
creasing popularity of the body, and of the degree
to which it influences all classes of the community.
The large hall was crowded long before the hour
announced for the commencement of business by a
brilliant and distinguished assemblage of ladies and
gentlemen, many of the latter bearing names of
world-wide reputation in various fields of discovery
and science. We noticed among those near the
platform the Marquis of Winchester, Admirals Sir
G. Back and Sir Edward Belcher, Comte de Paris,
Earl of Sheffield, Sir D. Brewster, Sir T. Fremantle,
Sir H. Parkes, Chevalier de Schwartz, Captains
Collinson, Hall, Osborn, Pim, R.N., Col. Gawler,
Sir C. Bright, Drs. Rae and Bright, Messrs. C.
White, C. M. Grant, Brooking, Osborne, Smith, Sze.
Sir RODERICK MURCHISON, the president of the
society, having taken the chair, and the minutes of
the last meeting having been read, the list of con-
tributions to the library announced, and the names
of new candidates read, the Chairman, pointing to
a very large map of Australia, said that the papers
which would be read had reference to the recent
explorations in Australia. At the close of the pre-
vious session it had been stated that an endeavour
would be made to provide a map on such a scale
that it should show at a considerable distance the
course of the explorers and adventurers in Austra-
lia, and not only their track, but the course of the
rivets, and the character of the country which they
had brought to light. He congratulated them on
the possession of a map of a magnitude which ef-
fected this object. He had always admired the
Australian colonists—their zeal, their vigour, their
loyalty and attachment to the mother country—and
he had the greater pleasure in saying so, because
among them there were to be found no advocates of
of their secession or severance, which bad unfortu-
nately found some advocates at home. So far as
our fellow-countrymen in these far-of colonies were
concerned, the day was far distant when they would
dream of severing the tie that bound them to the
old country. (Cheers,) The papers that would be
read to the meeting were merely abstracts or offi-
cial reports from the governors of the different co-
lonies as to recent explorations and discoveries over
that vast continent, and included those of Lands-
borough, Walker, Howitt, ISVE.inlay, Capt. Nor-
man, G. E. Dalrymrle, &e.
The papers read by the secretaries were full of in-
teresting details, and proved, as was said by subse-
quent speakers, that the old notion of an in and sea
and an inland desert must be relegated to the land,
of dreams or theories. The explorations traced upon
the maps had resulted in showing almost every-
where rich pastoral and agricultural districts—in
many places districts which gave indications of
mineral wealth. New rivers—some of them navi-
gable—had been discovered, and where not so tar
from the mouth they were available during a great
part of the year for navigation and practical pur-
poses. The climate in most cases was described as
healthy, and the valleys of the Victoria River, the
country in the neighbourhood of the Burdekin
River, and other districts, were shown to possess all
the material and essential elements for the suste-
nance of a vast population.
Sir R. M'DONALD, Governor of South Australia,
on being called upon by the chairman, briefly but
forcibly addressed the meeting, and added his per-
sonal testimony, as a " bushman," to the statements
of the explorers in the colony of which he was the
ruler, as to its immense undeveloped capabilities of
supplying a happy home to English emigrants.
With respect to the three explorations which had
taken place under his Government, he explained
that his ide and that of the responsible Minister
with whom he was associated was, not to cross the
continent by way of the eastern and northern por-
tion to the Gulf of Carpentaria, but to find, in the
direct line taken by Mr. Stuart to Victoria River, a
shorter route, which would put Australia in direct
communication with India and this country. Mr.
Stuart, in one of his explorations, heel reached a
point not far from the settled portions of the Vic-
toria River Valley. He was now absent, but it was
to be hoped that upon his return the communica-
tion would be found to be complete. There would
then, he hoped, be in the first instance a direct tele-
graphic communication, and in the next a direct and
short transit for the horses, cattle, and so forth
which Australia could supply to India.
Sir C. NICHOLSON, late Speaker of the House of
Assembly, while concurring with Sir R. IVl'Donald
as to the agricultural, pastoral, and mineral capa-
bilities of the continent, contended that the best
mode of communication with India and this country
was by way of Queensland and the Gulf of Carpen-
taria to the east and north.
Governor KENNEDY, of Western Australia, in a
very racy and telling address, explained what had
been done in his small part of the map (about one-
third of the whole) in the way of exploration by
the brothers Frank and Augustus Gregory. These
explorations had taken place under his government,
and all had ended in adding largely to the cattle
runs and the agricultural capabilities of the colony.
They had done some strange things in the colony—
they had turned a great many thieves into honest
men—(hear)—by a very simple process, because
there was nobody to rob, and nothing to steal.
(Laughter.) Between 6,000 and 7,000 of that class
had been sent out to the colony; and, strange as it
might appear, the proportion of crime to the popu-
lation was less than in any other part of her Ma-
jesty's dominions ; for the simple reason that the
men were compelled to work to earn their bread,
and there was plenty of room for them to do so;
and he believed that if they had had the same ad-
vantage at home the majority of them would never
have been criminals at all. (Cheers.) Instead of
going home as they all might that night in dread of
being garotted, he would advise that this class
should be sent out to his colony. It would be far
cheaper to catch and export them than first to
watch and catch them here, next to try and impri-
son them and keep them there, and then, after a
short confinement, turn them loose in order to re-
peat the same expensive process over and over
again. (Cheers.) As to what tho colony could pro-
duce, he had received from Mr. Gregory a couple of
oyster shells to hand to the President as a specimen
e
of what it could produce. The hon. gentleman. hel,
showed, amidst laughter and cheers, two latexpresenting a large quantity of what is calimedeermcaonthtielre
of pearl, and said that he understood the
value of these shells in this country was £l4O per
ton, a fact which would make Western Aulltra"

MYSTERIOUS CASE OF POISONING IN
WILTSHIRE.

The secluded hamlet of Ludwell, in Wiltshire,
has been thrown into a state of great excitement
by the discovery of what is feared to be a very foul
and mysterious murder by poisoning. TA Ludwell
lives Mr. John Riddle, a wheelwright, who was
held in very high estimation by his neighbours.
His wife, Ann Riddle, died on the 22d of October,
after an illness of some time, and the investigation
into the cause of her death is likely to have a very
serious aspect. At the first inquiry, held before
Mr. Nelson, one of the coroners for Wilts, Dr.
Shettle, of Shaftsbury, was the principal witness
examined. He said he had attended Mrs. Riddle
professionally since the 25th of August last. When
he first attended her she appeared to be suffering
from irritation of the stomach. and Dr. Shettte pre-
scribed remedies for that complaint. These, how-
ever, produced no effect, and the patient's sufferings
c,ntinued, sickness and retching following after she
eat or drunk anything. The doctor on finding
this suspected that some irritant had been admis-
tered to the deceased, and expressed that opinion to
the husband, who stated that that was impossible,
since almost everything given to his wife was pre-
pared at the house of a friend and neighbour named
Mrs. Towbridge, a schoolmistress in the village,
who was in constant attendance on Mrs. Riddle.
After some opposition on the part of her husband
Dr. Shettle called in Dr. Roberts, of Salisbury,
who saw the patient on the 14th. To him Dr.
Shettle communicated his suspicions, but that
gentleman did not entirely concur in the
opinion, and thought the case one of malignant
disorder of the stomach. The case was looked
upon by both as a hopeless one, and no medicine
was administered after the Bth. Mrs. Riddle died
on the 22d. On the 24th Dr. Shettle made, on
his own responsibilit3 , a post-mortem examina-
tion of the deceased, which was at first objected
to by Mrs. Trowbridge. The intestines and omen-
turn were much inflamed, but the lungs, heart, and
pericardum were particularly healthy. The oeso-
phagus, stomach, bowels, and liver were placed in a
jar, which was sealed and forwarded to Dr. Hera-
path, of Bristol, Dr. Shettle doing this without
communicating with the family of the deceased wo-
man. He strongly suspected that Mrs. Riddle had
died from poison. The body was subsequently dis-
interred, and examined by Mr. Cardell, surgeon, of
Salisbury. He found a remarkable absence of de-
composition, and no trace whatever of any organic
disease. He also was of opinion that a virulent
poison had been administered. As Dr. Herapath
could not conclude his analysis for some time, the
inquiry was adjourned till the 21st inst. Mrs.
Trowbridge is meanwhile in custody, and stands re-
manded till Wednesday next. The other portion of
the body has, by direction of the coroner, been sent
to another analytical chemist.— Western Daily Press.