The Sun.
London, England, 1853-02-24 00:00:00

MR. •P. C. RONEY.

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The following notice of the present position of Mr.
P. C. Roney, in relation to the Chester and Holyhead
Railway, appears in Saunders's News Letter of this morn-
ing. The writer does only justice to a gentleman whose
merits appear to be appreciated by every one, save those
who have derived substantial advantage from his untiring
energy and indomitable exertions :
" Some six or eight months back we alluded to the sepa-
ration which we then thought would have taken place be-
tween Mr. Roney and the Chester and Holyhead Company,
and took occasion at the time, in common with the whole
of our contemporaries, metropolitan as well as provin-
cial, to state most distinctly the loss which that gentle-
man's services would be, not only to the comp wany—hose
popularity he hal so much raised during his then brief
connexion with them—but also to:the commercial interests
of Ireland generally. The press was never more unani-
mous than on this occasion—one and all concurring in the
opinion that the policy of the company in endeavouring to
dispense with Mr. Roney was a most suicidal one, and
deeply to be regretted.
" Shortly after this period we were pleased to find that
an arrangement was likely to be agreed upon, by which
:Ai.. Roney would still be retained by the sixteen compa-
nies who were interested in the through booking' system,
and the full development of the Irish traffic ; but, we sub-
sequently learned, though we have never heard upon what
grounds, that the above arrangement was not confirmed.
That this was an oversight none can doubt. Of Mr.
Roney's antecedes we know sufficient to enable us to
offer an opinion, and gly we most unhesitatin say that, be
the cause of the severance from the Chester and beHol the
head
Railway Company what it may, they only could
losers in the matter, and this we stated at the first. His
services were not, however, fortunately lost to Ireland—to
wit, his exertions in behalf of our Exhibition ; and from
this fact, we had hoped to have found him still amongst us
when the end of our Industrial Palace had arrived. Such
is, however, we regret to say, not to be the case, he
having concluded an engagement which takes him out to
Canada for three years and a half, in order to work up the
railway traffic of that colony.
it " Concerning his tourist traffic arrannments, and, in-
deed, his perfect system of through booking' g!nerally,
was truly said by a contemporary that he did more in
ono year to cement a friendship between the two countries,
and to raise friendly commercial relations between our
manufacturers here and those on the other side of the
Channel, than all our legislation did during the previous
half century,' and therefore we feel that his loss, though a
general one, will be particularly felt by our commercial
interests, which now especially so much need his guiding
spirit.
" Deeply regretting that we have lost so worthy and able
a citizen, it, however, affords us great pleasure to announce
that Mr. Roney's position has been much improved by the
change, and that he goes out to the Canadas with the full
conviction and hope that before some distant day all
Transatlantic communications must pass via Ireland—a
consummation, it need not be stated, he is deeply inte-
rested, as an Irishman, in seeing carried out.
" And, in conclusion, we would just say, that be his
mission to the east, to the west, to the north, or to the
south, we wish him a hearty God speed, and success to all
his undertakings."

THREATENING THE LIFE OF THE EMPEROR OF FRANCE.
—The Memorial of Aix states that a hosier of Marseilles,
named Sauvan, was lately tried before the Correctional
Tribunal of the former place for making a proposition
for assassinating the Emperor. The charge was sup-
ported by the evidence of an Austrian political refugee,
named Normanne, who is established at Marseilles as a
teacher of music and languages, and who declared that,
when in the shop of the prisoner, he said to him " Well,
you ought to be satisfied ; the Empire is made, and
business will prosper; " to which Sauvan is said to
have replied, Yes ;if it only depended on me,
there should be no more an Empire than an Emperor. I
have proposed to the democrats of Marseilles to set off
for Paris, and kill Napoleon 111. I demanded
100,000 f., but they could only give me 40,000 f., and
they then recommended me to go to Jersey, and get the
sum completed by the political refugees there. M.
Lagarde, a merchant, and M. Second, both officers in
the National Guard, declared that in 1848 and following
years, the prisoner had always been a zealous defender
of the cause of order, but that he sometimes talked in• a
flighty and inconsiderate manner, without any bad in-
tention, The Court took this view of the affair, and
acquitted the prisoner.
AMENDMENT OF THE, CRIMINAL LAW. —A bill brought
forward by Lord St. Leonards is waiting discussion in
the House of Lords on the amendment of the criminal
law, with the view to bring a class of offenoes relating
to the person under one act.

COWES, ISLE OF WIGHT.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

COWES, FEB. 23.—Arrived this morning, at ten o'clock,
the brig John Hillman, of Newhaven, 224 tons, from Rio
Janeiro, 6G days out, being
bound to this port for orders.
The John Hillman has been brought to this port under
charge of Mr. John Corcoran, who reports that he was
mate of the barque Esther Frances, of Swansea, and which
spoke the John Hillman on the 14th January, in lat. 6 0
S., and long. 39 30 W., and found that the late master,
Mr. Coppard, together with the first, and second mates and
one seaman, had died since leaving Rio of the fever, and
that they had left two of the crew, the cook, and a boy, on
shore, sick ; that, being without a navigator on board, he
took charge and brought the brig to this port in safety.
The last death occurred on the 7th January, and the re-
mainder of the crew, five in number, have since been in
health. The brig was of course admitted to pratique.
THE PUBLIC HEALTH ACT.—The original promoters of
this measure at Cowes are heartily tired of it ; its expen-
sive, complicated machinery swallows up the entire amount
of the rates, and nothing in the shape of improvements can
bo effected. It is one piece of jobbing, from the general
board downward.

THE ISLE OF WIGHT RAILWAY.—The fate of this pro-
ject will be known on Friday. Numerous petitions have
been sent, praying the committee to allow it to proceed.
It is much to be regretted that so many blunders should
'have been committed ; trifling though they be, they are
very likely to prove fatal to the undertakings being pro-
ceededwith this session. Had any man of business in the
locality been employed, he would have known or easily
ascertained the names of the owners and occupiers of all
the properties over which the- rail was to pass, and not
have called William George, and Harry Tom. If people
will be so penny-wise; they must pay for it. But the
worst is, it does not end there : hundreds, nay thousands,
are to be inconvenienced and injured, and business and im-
provements retarded, by people at a distance indulging in
these blunders.