The Sun.
London, England, 1854-02-06 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 6, 1854.

of abjuration ; but when the Roman Catholic Relief Bill
was passed, 'Sir R. Peersiidrif was aliogili to which MI
Roman Catholic could offer any valid objection ; but lie
(Sir F. Thesiger) said it was rather startling for the noble
lord to come forward now, within 24 years since that bill
pased, and, with recent experience, to ask the house to
abrogate entirely the safeguard in the Catholic oath
against invasion of the Protestant religion.—
(Hear, hear, hear.) He said the noble lord's measure
invaded one of the securities of the Protestant
religion, because it went to weaken the Queen's supre-
macy, which was one of the keystones, of the Protestant
religion. (Hear.)
The house then Went into committee.

The resolution was agreed to, and the house resumed.
The other orders were then disposed of, and the house
adjourned at half-past six o'clock.

LAW INTELLIGENCE. Feb. 4.

COURT OF EXCHEQUER.
JAMES V. COCHRANE.-JI7DGMENT.

Mr. Baron Parke delivered the judgment of the court
in this case, in which a rule had been granted to set
aside the execution which had been issued by the defen-
dant, on the ground that the plaintiff in error, who was
also the plaintiff below, had not perfected bail in error,
and the question was whether the 151st section of the
Common Law Procedure Act had altered the old law in
this respect, it having formerly been usual to exact bail
in error only from defendants when appealing from
judgment recovered by plaintiffs against them. The
court was now of opinion that although the former part
of the section referred to was general, and applied both
to plaintiffs and defendants, the latter part, where the
form of recognisance was given, was strictly confined to
the case of defendants. It was the opinion of the court
that the law had not been in any respect altered by the
recent statute. The judgment of the court would ac-
cordingly be that the rule must be made absolute.

COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEAL.
THE QUEEN V. BEAUMONT.

The prisoner, Edward Beaumont, had been indicted
at the Central Criminal Court, that be, being the ser-
vant of one Wiggins, had embezzled 51. 108., which he
had received for and on account of his master. It ap-
peared that Wiggins had entered into a contract with
the Great Northern Railway to supply them with car-
men and horses for their coal waggons. By the terms
of the contract Wiggins was bound to supply honest car-
men, and he or they were to acconnt for the moneys re-
ceived by them from the various customers to whom the
coals were delivered. The practice was this. The car-
' men went in the morning to the railway office, and there
received the invoices of the coals, to which the receipts
were attached. The carmen on receiving the money
did not hand it over to Wiggins, but went direct to the
railway office, and there paid it in. The prisoner, who
was one of the carmen, received 51. 108., for which he
did not account. He was convicted of the offence
with which he was charged, but his counsel at
the trial took an objection that he should have
been indicted for embezzling the moneys of the Great
Northern Railway Company, and not of Wiggins. The
point was reserved, and the question now for the con-
sideration of the court was, whether the prisoner had
received the money for or on account of his master or of
the railway company.
Mr. Dearsley, on behalf of the prisoner, submitted
that the conviction► could not be sustained, for the pri-
soner had received the money not on account of his
master, but on account of the railway company. Ac-
cording to the terms of the contract they were bound to
account to the company, and the authority to receive
the money sprung from the company.
Their lordships were of opinion that the money had
been received on account of the company, and not on
account of Wiggins, and therefore the conviction could
not be sustained.
The conviction was accordingly *quashed.

NAVAL INTELLIGENCE.

tered 650 men, which includes 40 returned from the
Thetis, Paid down yesteraay niornitig:r
The Nile, 90, screw, was commissioned yesterday
afternoon at this port by Corn. A. S. Booth. She is to
have a complement of 850 officers and men. The Nile
is one of the three splendid gun-ships designed by Sir
Robt. Seppings before he left the office of Surveyor of the
Navy. The captain has not yet been appointed to her.
The Thetis, 36, frigate, Captain Kuper, was brought
alongside the sheer hulk on Friday, and had her masts
taken out to be examined. Her crew were paid down
at the dockyard yesterday morning, and were granted
six weeks' leave of absence. Many of her crew have
volunteered for the Bulldog, 6, Commander Hall.
The Vulture, 6, steam-frigate, Captain H. H. H.
Glasse, arrived here yesterday at noon from Creenock
and the Isle of Man, with 91 volunteers for the navy,
nearly all of wham are landsmen. She left Greenock on
Wednesday, Avhere she succeeded in entering 79 men,
and from Ore Isle of,Man on Thursday evening, where
she entergd 12 men. She has lost no men by desertion.
She is ordered to fill up with coals, so as to be in readi-
ness for sea.

The Nautilus, apprentices' brig, Lieut.-Commander
Dolling, arrived last evening from Falmouth with 11
merchant seamen who have volunteered for her Majesty's
service.

The Saracen, 6, surveying vessel, Master•commander
Richards, was paid wages in advance on Friday, and
had her compasses adjusted. She sailed yesterday
morning at ten o'clock for China, but she returned again
in the evening through adverse weather.

The Alelanipus, 42, arrived from Greenhithe yesterday
morning with machinery for the Algiers, recently
launched. She was towed into harbour by the Confiance
and Pike steam-tugs.

The Camel sailed yesterday morning for Pembroke,
with stores, but she returned again in the evening
through adverse weather.

The Magicienne, 16, steam troop-ship, Capt. Fisher,
was paid wages in advance on Friday, and will leave,
probably, to-day for Spithead. The Hogue, 60, screw,
Captain Ramsay and Edinburgh, 58, Captain Hewlett,
are ordered to prepare for sea immediately, and proceed
to Spithead. ' It is understood these ships are to form
part of the Baltic fleet.
The Racehorse, 140 sloop, will go into the Sound to-
morrow.

The detachment of Royal Marines for the James
Watt, 90, screw, were furnished from this division, and
embarked yesterday morning. The detachment con-
sisted of 113 privates, 2 serjeants, 2 corporals, 2 drum-
mers, under the command of Captain Hamley. First-
Lieutenant Little and Second-Lieutenant Short also
joined her. The remainder of the detachment was fur-
nished by the artillery companies of this corps, consist-
ing of 1 subaltern, Second-Lieutenant Durnford, 2 ser-
geants, 2 bombarditrq, and 30 gunners. One lieuten-
ant, 1 serjeant,l corporal, and 18 gunners of the artil-
lery companies, are under orders to proceed to this port
to embark in the Bulldog, and one fifer and seven
privates from this division will complete the detach-
ment for that ship.
11.30 A. m. —The Valorous, 16, steam-frigate, Captain
C. H. M. Buckle, has made her number. It is ex-
pected she is the forerunner of the Lisbon squadron.
The weather at present Is so thick and hazy that the
squadron cannot be made out.

WOOLWICH, FEB. 4.
It is stated at Chatham that the Meannee, 80, and the
Wellesley, 72, sailing vessels, are to be immediately
brought forward for commission at that port. Both of
these ships were built at Bombay, of the best teak. The
Meannee was navigated from the East Indies to Chatham
about three years ago, and has never been in commis-
sion. The Wellesley was launched in 1815, and is 1,746
tons, after the plan of the Cornwallis, 72, also built at
Bombay, in 1813, from a design by the surveyors of the
navy at that period. The last service of the Wellesley
was as flag-ship of Vice-Admiral the Earl of Dundonald,
when commander-in-chief on the North America and
West Indies station, and returned to Chatham, where
she has been laid up in ordinary since she was relieved
by the Cumberland, 70, in 1851. These ships are repre-
sented by naval officers to be admirably adapted, should
their services be required, for navigating the Baltic, as
they are so strongly built, and of comparatively mode-
rate draught of water.
The Majestic; 80, screw steam-ship, built at Chatham,
from a design by Sir William Symonds, and launched in
June last, is ordered to be made ready for commission
immediately at Sheerness, to which port she was taken
to be fitted with her' engines of 400 horse power, by
Mandalay, Sons, and Field.
The engines to be put on board the Hannibal are
those that were made for the Greenock iron steam-frigate
of 1,413 tons. They were taken out of the Greenock
previous to that vessel being sold out of the service, and
smaller engines substituted in their place. They were
made of 565 nominal horse power, but are now desig-
nated 450 horse power, and they have never been out of
the factory at Woolwich Dockyard since they were deli-
vered there on being taken out of the Greenock, and
consequently the statement that they were put on board
the Hannibal, but again taken out owing to Mr. Henry
Chatfield; master shipwright, at Deptford dock, being
afraid to launch that ship with them on board, was most
unfounded.

Captain Inglefield with Mr. Rice, master shipwright,
Mr. Peake and Mr. Large, assistants to the master ship-
wright, and Mr. Atherton, chief engineer at the factory
of Woolwich Dockyard, held a survey of the Phconix,
screw steam-sloop, yesterday, when they found it would
be requisite to renew about 40 feet of the first false keel
and about 60 feet of the second. Both bows had been
stove, and the quarter had a severe nip, which showed
that the solid nature of the stowage in the hold had saved
her. One rudder is destroyed, and both screws will have
to be replaced by new ones. She is to be materially
strengthened, and doubling are to be added. A party
of artificers and engineers are now employed upon her,
in order to expedite the necessary repairs, as it is desi-
rable that she should leaveWoolwich about a month earlier
than has hitherto been the case with expeditions to
the Arctic regions. A weekly contemporary, professing to
know everything connected with naval affairs, asks the
Admiralty what service is marked out for those hard
bargains, the Lady Franklin and Sophia, now lying, as
he believes, in the Medway, doing nothing. Surely
they might be used on such an occasion, instead of ex-
pending a large sum of money in fitting the Talbot, 22,
at Portsmouth. The Admiralty have the best of reasons
for not employing the Lady Franklin and Sophia, as these
vessels are not " lying in the Medway doing nothing,"
having been sold about this time last year to Captain
Penny, and as was recorded at the time, were taken
round to Woolwich, to have their stores deposited at this
yard put on board, and then handed over to him. Capt.
Penny, and the company with which he is connected,
fitted them at Aberdeen, and they are now in the Arctic
regions with Captain Penny, who went out to form a
colony of Esquitnaux, to work the rich plumbago and
copper mines in the vicinity of Lancaster Sound.

TI! E Iti? 11 Y.

The office of lieutenant-governor of the Royal Military
College, Sandhurst, is not, we believe, to be filled up.
There are 46 candidates for the office, but we are in-
formed that the commissioners meditate abolishing it,
and converting the superintendent of studies into a mili-
tary commandant.

Major General Mildmay Fane is appointed to the staff
of the Bengal Army, and Captain Fane, of the 54th,
goes out as his aide-de-camp. Lieutenant Colonel Wil-
liam Cane is appointed Lieutenant Governor of Hong-
Kong. Major General Jervoise is ordered home.

Brevet Lieutenant Colonel Carey, of the Cape Rifles,
has been appointed militaiy secretary to Lieutenant
General Jackson, on his way to command the forces at
the Cape of good Hope. Major Ansell, unattached, has
succeeded to the office of town major of Prince Edwards'
Island. Captain Maude, 3d Foot, has succeeded Captain
Denison as an aide-de-camp to Lieutenant-Colonel Sir
W. Reid, Governor of Malta.—United Service Gazette.

We have the pleasure to state that Major General
M'Donald is so far recovered from his recent severe ac-
cident as to be able to take carriage airings, On Friday
the gallant veteran transacted business at the office of
adjutant general, Colonel Williams., at Kilkenny.
THE LATE FLOODS AT CORK.— The Mayor of Cork has
received the following note :

"Buttevant, Jan. 25.
" §ir,—ln the absence of Captain Mackenzie, I have
taken the liberty of opening your note. I have the honour
to acknowledge the receipt of a chain and medal for
Corporal Chamney, and beg to thank you on his part for
your kind consideration.—l have the honour to be, &c.,
"P. W. ROWE, Captain 60th Rifles."

MARRIAGES, BIRTHS, AND DEATHS IN

ENGLAND.

Last week the quarterly report of the Registrar Ge-
neral on Marriages, Births, and Deaths, was issued.
This return comprises the births and deaths registered
by 2,191 registrars in all the districts of England during
the autumn quarter, ending December 31st, 1853 ; and
the marriages in 12,039 churches or chapels, about 3,454
registered places of worship unconnected with the esta-
blished church; and 625 superintendent registrars' offices,
in the quarter that ended Sept. 30, 1853.
The marriages in the quarter that ended on September
30 are not only above the average, but the proportion to
the population exceeds any of th proportions previously
recorded. The births in the quarter that ended on Dec.
31 are also above the average: The mortality, particu-
larly in towns and cities, is high, and exceeds, the mor-
tality in every autumn quarter since 1843, except in
1846-47, when the potato disease commenced, and
diarrhoea and influenza became epidemic.
The returns, therefore, present a mixed result : the
marriages indicate that the circumstances of the great
body of the people were considered by them prosperous.
But the public health has suffered, and is still over the
coming year threatened by Asiatic cholera. All the mea-
sures of improvement should therefore be accelerated.
slt will be a happy circumstance if the germs of dis-
eases which first affected the potato and the vine, and
other plants, in the year of high temperature, 1846, and
have led to the loss of so much food, should be partially
destroyed by the severe cold that set in at the close of
the year.

MARRIAGES.
79,572 persons were married during the quarter end-
ing September 30, 1853, a number considerably exceed-
ing that of any corresponding quarter since the Regis-
tration Act came into operation in 1837, and 2,990 more
than were married. in the same period of 1852, when the
large number of 76,582 persons were married.
The increase was spread over each of the eleven divi-
sions of England and Wales, and the only causes in
which a decrease is observable are Hampshire, Berk-
shire, Northamptonshire,Huntingdonshire, Bedfordshire,
Dorsetshire, Devonshire, Somersetshire, Leicester-
shire, Rutlandshire, Derbyshire, Cheshire, and West-
moreland. Marriages increased in most of the important
seats of manufactures and commerce, but an augmented
number is more particularly apparent in the mining dis-
tricts of Cornwall and South Wales, of Staffordshire and
Durham. In the September quarter of the last five
years the number of marriages-was, in Truro, 76, 90,
80, 91, and 134 •, in Redruth, 101, 95, 127, 112, and
153 ; in Wolverhampton, 188, 256, 287, 289, and 313 ;
Walsall, 57, 87, 97, 98, and 107 ; West Bromwich, 157,
191, 158, 179, and 425 ; Dudley, 265, 313, 294, 326,
and 430 ' • Stockton, 104, 115, 107, 126, and 132 ; Sun-
derland, 161, 193, 191, 197, and 240 ; South Shields, 72,
74, 104, 90, and 109 ; and in the districts of Cardiff,
Merthyr Tydfil, Bridgend, and Neath, 360, 437, 424, 501,
and 580 marriages were celebrated in the September
quarter of the past five years, In Preston, the number
of marriages (252) is 'slightly in excess of the num-
ber (244) recorded in the third quarter of the previous
year, although fewer than in the corresponding periods
of 1850 and 1851, when the numbers reached 281 and
277 respectively. On -an average of the corresponding
quarters of 10 years (1843-1852), the number of mar-
riages was at the annual rate of 788 to every 100,000
persons living ; the proportion for the same period of
1853 was 867 to 100,000 persons living.

THE INDIA, CHINA, AND AUSTRALIAN

MA. ES.

The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Com-
pany's ship Ripon, Captain R. Moresby, R.N., arrived
at Southampton on Saturday night, and landed the
heavy portion of the East India, China, and Mediter-
ranean mails, in charge of Lieutenant John Parsons,
R.N., Admiralty agent.
The Ripon left Alexandria on the 21st, Malta the 25th,
and Gibraltar the 29th ult. She brings on freight 2
packages specie, 101 boxes oranges, 933 bales and 36
boxes of silk, 170 bales flax, 20 packages elephants'
teeth, and 95 packages sundries. Among the passengers
are Sir Herbert Maddock, Lieutenant-Colonel Arm-
strong, Captain and Mrs. Evans, Captains Rankin and
Jauncey, Lieutenants Davison, St. John, and Garden,
Stc.

The mails brought by this steamer were detained five
or six days at Alexandria, waiting the outward arrival
of the Ripon, which bad been delayed by bad weather.
We understand the directors of the Peninsular and
Oriental Company intend, as soon as possible, to ob-
viate these mischances, by placing an extra steamer
on the Southampton and Alexandria line, so as at
all times to have a vessel in reserve at the latter
port for the Indian mail via Suez, ready to start at an
hour's notice for Southampton. In the meantime, it is only
justice to the company to say that the mails have even
now been delivered at Southampton within the official
contract time, and although the mails were detained
so many days in Egypt, yet that occurrence, instead
of being visited upon the company as a _fault (as there
has been a disposition in some quarters to consider it),
should be ascribed to its real cause—viz., that the mails
were brought up to Suez several days before due, owing
to the rapidity and efficiency of the, packets belonging
to the company now employed on the other side of the
isthmus.

The alternate monthly mail due on Saturday by the
Ripon from Australia had not arrived, and the greatest
inconvenience is experienced by its non-receipt. It
appears that the steamer appointed to convey these
mails had not reached Point de Galle, Ceylon,
When the homeward packet left. It is considered
certain; however, that the next steamer, the Himalaya,
due at Southampton on the 20th instant, will be
the bearer of the missing advices, the Marseilles por-
tion of which may be expected to reach London on or
before the 13th inst., and the telegraphic despatch in
anticipation of which may be looked for via Trieste on
the 10th inst. The dates expected on this occasion will
probably be from Sydriey, Nov. 20 -; Port Philip, Nov.
24 ; Adelaide, Nov. 27 ; St. George's Sound, Dec. 2.
The company's fine screw steam-ship Madras, of 1,200
tons, and 270-horse power, has been ordered to be at
Singapore, to be in readiness to meet the outward
Australian mail, despatched from Southampton in Janu-
ary, and ,the Noma, of 1,100 tons and 250-horse power,
'will be at Singapore in time for the outward mail of the
4th of March ; and these two vessels will thereafter take
the places of the steamers Chusan and Shanghai; which
have hitherto performed the branch mail service to and
from Australia. The superior speed and power of the
Madras and Norna will, it is confidently hoped, for the
future provide for the regularity and punctuality of the
eastern route to Australia.

THE GREAT SCREW SHIP HIMALAYA

We have been favoured with the following account of
the Himalaya's voyage as far as Gibraltar by a gentle.
man on board. Another letter has been sent home
which confirms all that is here stated, and adds that for
seven successive hours the ship ran " off the reel" 15
knots an hour. Her performances were such as to
inspire the utmost confidence in her immense strength
and capabilities.

"Himalaya, Gibraltar, Jan. 26.
"Dear Sir,—According to your wish I send you a short
account of the passage thus far of this splendid speci-
men of naval architecture, and when I tell you th at
we have encountered most tempestuous weather from
the time we left Southampton till we got to Cape
Finisterre, 600 miles ; that we were stopped for
twenty-four hours, at 'different times, by a heated bear-
ing, and have still made the passage in 6 days (1,150 miles),
you will agree with me, and many others, in thinking
that the principle of long ships and large ones is fully
established as being far superior to smaller-sized vessels.
I can only assure you that this ship is without any ex-
ception the easiest and the fastest on any point of sailing
or steaming I ever was on board of. We left the
Needles right in the teeth of a hard south gale, which
increased and continued down the Channel and across
the Bay. Away she went tearing through it at 11 and
12 knots an hour, and when the fore and aft canvas was
got on her for a short time, with the sheets hauled flat
aft, she rushed along as steady and upright as though it
were only blowing a moderate breeze. Sailing ships
were running before it under close-reefed topsails and
fore course, so that you may guess it was blowing "a
few."

" After rounding Cape Finisterre, we got a favourable
breeze down the coast to Cape St. Vincent, and under
her three topsails ' (single reefed), fore course, and fore
and aft sails, she banged along 14 or 15 knots an hour,
and so steadily you could scarcely tell there was a screw
at work.

"In fact, the absence almost entirely of the usual
vibrating motion from the screw in this ship appears to
me to be among the greatest of her many numerousgood
qualities, and confirms a previous account you received
on this point.
" We arrived here at 6 p.m. this day, and shall leave
for Malta In the course of the night, from which place
you will doubtless hear of our further progress. In one
respect, itmay be considered unfortunate our having met
with such weather and stoppages as would prevent
any ship from making a rapid passage ; but in other
respects I think it may be considered fortunate that this
her first voyage should have afforded the opportunity of
testing and proving so satisfactorily her splendid quali-
ties as a sea-going ship, and the extraordinary speed
which she can attain under disadvantageous circum-
stances, as well as what she may be reasonably expected
to do under more auspicious ones. Whether very large
ships will be, commercially, profitable remains to be
proved;. but all who have been in them must; I think,
agree that for speed and comfort, size and length are
indispensable."

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE.

pIISTOM HOUSE, FEB. 4.

ENTERED INWARDS.—The Emma and Mary, from
Lowestoft, ex Dorothea, the Gothland disabled ; Kan-
garoo, Bordeaux ; Ann, Terceira. ; Hendrika Margareta,
Lisbon ; Five Komelpen, Oran.
ENTERED OUTWARDS FOR LOADING.—The Egbert, for
Algoa Bay; Old Hickory, Boston ; Cambalee, Adelaide ;
John Knox, Cape of Good Hope ; Thomas Henry, Bar-
badoes ; Abergeldie, Hong Kong; Rajah of Sarawak, do.
and Whampoa ; Apollo, Grenada ; Spirit of the Age,
Sydney ; Charlotte of Derby, Alexandria; John Bunyan,
Hong Kong and Canton.

CLEARED OUTWARDS WITH CARGO.--The Gloucester,
for Hobart Town ' • Victoria, do. ; Constance, Launceston ;
Quito, Sydney; Primera de Sugria, Havannah ; Lady
Franklin, Algoa Bay; Morning Star, Ceylon; Lotus, Bar-
ba,does ; Marchioness of Bute, Gibraltar, &c. ;
Monte Video; Nonsuch, Malta.