The Sun.
London, England, 1854-06-05 00:00:00

THE WEST INDIES.

The Royal Mail Steam-packet Company's steam-ship
Avon, Commander E. J. Q. Ellison, from Eit. Thomas's
for Southampton, arrived at Plymouth yesterday morn-
ing. Her dates are :
Santa Martha April 23
Tampico May 2
Vera Cruz 5
St. Vincent
Greytown 7
Chagres — 9
Montserrat — 10

Kingston, Jamaica. May 12
Bridgetown, Bar-
badoes
Nevis — 12
Jaemel - 13
St. Lucia
Martinique
Dominica
Guadaloupe — 14
Antigua — 14
St. Kitts — 14
Porto Rico
St. Thomas
Fayal - 29

Havannah - 10
Georgetown
Tobago — 10
Port of Spain
Carthagena — 11
Grenada

The West India Islands are very healthy, The troops
throughout are well. Two isolated cases of cholera oc-
curred at Jamaica. Mr. Lovel Pennell, Deputy Com-
missary General of that island, died there on. the 6th of
May.
The canes were looking well at Trinidad, and there is
promise of a large crop. Present price of sugar, ss. 6d.
per cwt., rising. At Barbadoes the canes are withered
for want of rain, which was expected. The season in
British Guiana is favourable. The scarcity of shipping
is unprecedented ; double the highest freight given for
years is offered. Large quantities of produce are wait-
ing tonnage, which makes business dull. The islands
otherwise are in a prosperous condition. Great fears
are entertained of the annexation of Cuba by the Ameri-
cans, which the planters look on as certain.

The Avon has on board in all 198 passengers, among
whom are the Bishop of Jamaica and Lieut.-Col. Far-
quharson, from Jamaica; Captain Deshon, 48th Regt.,
and lady, from Barbadoes; and Captain Henderson and
Ensign Harrison, Ist West India Regiment, from Ja-
maica; and Mr. Bennett, engineer, in charge of surveys
on the Pacific side of the Darien Canal.
Mr. Osborne, barrister, of Bristol, died on board on
the Ist of June.
The Avon brings from Havannh 30 emancipados for
conveyance to Lagos and Liberia ; among them are some
who were purchased on the coast of Guinea 20 years
since by a Spanish trader, and conveyed with 300 caber
slaves to Cuba, where they were sold. Some of the
emancipados have recently paid as much as 600 doirers
for their freedom.
There i± also on board a son of General Obando, whop
with his Ministers, was put into prison at Bogota by
General Melas, the dictator. General Mosquera had
offered his services to the Government in opposition to
Melas, and in favour of the constitution.
The Pacific Steam Navigation Company's steamer
Bogota arrived on the sth of May, at noon, at Panama,
bringing 40 passengers, $300,000, and dvices to the
following dates :—Valparaiso, 15th of April ; Copiapo,
17th ; Islay, 21st ; Callao, 26th ; Payta, 29th ; and
Guayaquil, the Ist of May. Her mails by the Clyde
were not received by the Avon previous to her de-
parture.
The Royal Mail Steampacket Company's steam-ships
Clyde, from the Spanish Main, Conway, from the
islands, Dee, from the Gulf of Mexico, Derwent, from
Jamaica, and Solent, next proceeding to the Gulf, wero
at St. Thomas's. The Teviot was on the Spanish Main
route. The Wye was on No. 5 route to the islands.
The Plata, from England, arrived at St. Thomas's on
the 17th of May.
Her Majesty's sloop Calypso was lying at Barbadoes
on the 12th of May. She was the only English man-of-
war among the Windward and Leeward Islands. •
The Virago had left Panama for Callao, en route to
Valparaiso, with despatches for the Admiral, conveying
the first news of the war. She hoped to fall in with the
Russian frigate Diann. It was rumoured that the
squadron was to rendezvous at the Sandwich Islands.
The cargo of the Avon consists of 74 serous of cochi-
neal, 216 serous of Peruvian bark, 22 serous of and p 42
and 244
bales of sarsaparilla, 2 packages of vanilla,
packages of sundries.. •
The total value of specie in•dollars from various ports

is 2,000,000.
The Avon has experienced. strong contrary winds on
the She went into Fayal on the
29th ofm May randobtained 81 tons of coal, and came
into Plymouth short of fuel.

----- -----
THE ATTEMPTED SUICIDE AT THE PALACE.—From
the interest felt in the fate of Mr. Norton, several per-
sons, including members of the aristocracy a
late , made in-
quiries at the Palace on Saturday. Up to hour
on Saturday night it was reported that the medical at-
tendant on the unfortunate man entertained hopes of
his recovery. .•
UPON THE MANCHESTER AND SHEF-
FIELD RAILWAY COMPANY.— The charge against John
\Vicky Stables, the late law adviser of the Manchester,
Sheffield, and Lincolnshire Railway Company, of apply-
ing to his own use upwards of 11,0001. of the moneys
belonging to the company, was proceeded with before the
magistrates at Manchester on Thursday, after a remand
of three days. The offences charged against the pri-
soner included embezzlement, false pretences, and for-
gory. Mr. Ovens, barrister, and Mr. Guy, solicitor, at-
tended for the prosecution ; and Mr. Metcalf, barrister,
and Mr. G. H. Lewis, solicitor, both of London, ap-
pearedw as
appointedfor t the
tdefence.
officelt appearsclerktha t tthoe
the
,prisoner
com-
pany at the end of 1850, at a salary of 800/, per
annum, and an allowance of 2001. for clerks and ex-
penses—offices and everything requisite for use being
found on the company's premises. At the beginning of
1853 his salary was raised to 1 000/ per annum, with
the same allowances as bleafdosrueb.:eHqueeetftintvheestiegoamtipoannyb'ys
service in July last, and
At
allre.a
tGi
ounys,
withhis s uche ei
nslsio r
sist of sums lie had received to the discovery of the de-
h'eneowtostapnaydsincthoatrhgeedh.aTndhseyofethon;
Account-General, and to landowners for land settlements.
Most of these payments were vouched at the time, and
the frauds have been committed in this way .---The 11,-
1 eeipt given by the Accountant-General for 'deposits is
filed
in the office, and a copy only of that receipt handed
en
to the person paying in the money. The copes
in by Stables to the company were spurious copies, but,
of course, there existed no means of detecting the
frauds, except by a special application to the office of
the Accountant-General. After a long examination, the
prisoner was committed for trial,
bail were refused. and all applications for
LIVES or THE QUEENS OF VoILAND. By AGlnts
STRICKLAND. Cheaper Edition. V. 6.—" This is one
of the most plerterng of Miss Striekland's interesting
volumes. It is devoted to the life of the beauti
fful and
unfortunate Mary Beatrice, of Modena, Queen o James
11. The biography of this Princess has never before
been written, while the allusions to her in English history
have proceeded from no friendly pens, and yet there was,
perhaps, no Queen of England whose life abounds in
circumstance, of more teuelling interest. As Miss Strick-
land truly remarks—' There are epochs in her life when
she comes before us in her beauty, her misfortunes, her
conjugal tenderness, and passionate maternity, like one
of the distressed Queens of tragedy, or romance, strug-
gling against the decrees of an adverse destiny.' The
materials for the life of the consort of the last of the
Stuart Kings are chiefly derived front unpublished let-
ters and documents procured from the secret archives
France, through the influence of M. Gni
zo-
t.The
light
i
thrown by the volume on the pers oval history of sing
James, and on - the characters of many of the leading
personages of the day,
[ is corisidera,tile."—oming
Chronicle. k,..t7.ki.`:

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