The Sun.
London, England, 1854-11-20 00:00:00

AUSTRALIA.

Yolli H SATURDAY.
porton
The Ballarat, from Port-Philip,
rt hp, T
off this
Friday, was 87 days on the passage home, and 84
on the passage out. The Red Jacket, which ar-
rived on the 19th of October at Liverpool, was 69i-
-
out and 73i home. The Lightning was 78 out
and 63 home. The two latter vessels are Ameri-
can-built. Tho Ballarat, which belongs to Messrs.
W. 0. Young and Co., of London, was only
half-laden, and would in all probability have
made a much quicker passage home if sho had had
100 additional tons of cargo or ballast. She sailed
from Port-Philip August 23, rounded Cape Horn
very closely September 27, crossed the line October
18, and reached soundings November 15. During
the last fortnight she has experienced very light
winds.

The Great Britain steamer,which arrived in Port-
Philip on the 17th of August, has had only five
cases of smallpox, one of which proved fatal, and
no fresh vases had appeared during the previous
three weeks. This ship loft Liverpool on the 13th
of June, crossed the line in 20 days, passed Rio
Janeiro on the 27th day, and the longitude of the
Cape of Good Hope on the 42d day. She was 240
miles from Cape Otway in 61 days, reached Mel-
bourne in a few days, and was to leave for England

in September.
The steam-ship Crcesus, Captain Hall, belonging
to the General Screw Company, was appointed to
leave Sydney September 9, but she was not likely
to be ready by that date, and would come home
by the Horn. The Lady. Jocelyn left Port-Philip
August 19, for Sydney, and would return to Port-
Philip before final departure for England.
Her Majesty's sloop Fantome, 12, Comman-
der A. G. Fitzroy, fired on the Lightning the
morning of her departure. It is stated that the
Lightning had, contrary to regulation, hoisted the
St. Georges ensign, and
_when rebuked from the

Fantome, the officer in charge of the clipper had
exhibited incivility of conduct. Six men belong-
ing to the Lightning joined the Fantome, whieh
appears to have given umbrage to her commander.
The Af elbourne rgus gives the following account
of the affair :

" Her Majesty's ship Fantome has been completely
successful in her late gallant attack on the Light-
ning, that celebrated clipper having surrendered with-
out firing a gun. It appears that shortly after four

o'clock on Sunday' morning the crew of the Light-
ning were turned out to get everything ready for
proceeding to sea, and about six o'clock they com-
menced heaving short' the anchor when every one on
board was suddenly startled by the booming of a gun,
and then a second, and on biking towards her Majesty's
ship Fautome it was perceived that the shots proceeded
from her. A splash was seen within a few feet of the
ship, on the port bow, and then another, and it was then
male apparent that the officers of her Majesty's ship
Fatitome had actually fired a couple of cannon shot be-
fore the merchant-ship. Captain Forbes was on deck at
the time, and anxiously looked for a boat from her Ma.
je;ty's ship Fantonie to exp'ain the meaning of such
warlike: attitude. The boat was not long in making its
appearance, when the officer in charge demanded that
the wages of the six men who had volunteered from the
Lightning into her Majesty's service should be imme-
diately paid. Captain Forbes replied that he had made
arrangements with the consignees to settle this and
every other claim against the ship ; but this explanation
not being sufficiently explanatory to the man-of-war,
Captain Forbes signed bille en his owners for the
amount, and was then allowed to proceed in peace."
The screw steamer Titania, Captain Brown, ar-
rived at Port-Philip, from Dumbarton, August 20;
the bark Pons Eli, Captain Ecclestone, from Lon-
don • the ship Planet, Buckham, from London ;
the Whip Morning Star, Allen, from Liverpool ; the
ship William Money, Skeen, from Liverpool ; the
bark Caledonia, M'Dowell, from Glasgow ; the ship
Stamboul, Reed, from Liverpool ; the ship Torrent,
Trundy, from London ; and the screw steam-ship
Glasgow Citizen, Wise, from Greenock, arrived in
Port-Philip on the 21st of August.
The railroad from Sandridge, Hobson's Bay, to
Melbourne (19 miles) is finished, but the traffic was
not opened.
The police being more effective, robberies and
violence are less frequent than formerly at Mel-
bourne.
The general trade of Melbourne appears to be
greatly depressed ' • the Ballarat brought home a
quantity of trans-shipped pepper, and heavy ship-
ments of re-exports are taking place. The law
affecting colonial local acceptances is to be revised,
and the resistance by sham pleas is to be cured.
The rate of gold is given at 41. to 41. 2s. 6d. per
oz. ; flour, 351. for best, 331. for seccnds ; bran,
4s. 9d. per bushel. The price of sheep and cattle
was rising in consequence of the increased popula-
tion, and the order in council against the sale of
infected sheep, which were numerous. Freights
to England were low. The trade of Adelaide was
suffering severely, through the irregular returns
from Port-Philip merchants.
The Australian Marine Insurance Company is
to be wound up • the losses had amounted to
something like 23,0001.
Most of the gold-working companies are closed.
The Quartz Company is doing wcll.
Large quantities of gold are constantly coming
to market, but not in proportion to the increase of
the population. Nearly 3,000 Chinese are working
at Bendigo, where a new gully has been opened
close to Devonshire gully, which is reported to be
very rich. To the west of Eagle Hawk Gaily an
abandoned hole has been sunk to a depth of 120
feet without meeting rock. The bottom of the
shaft consists of quartz boulders. There is every
indication of gold. At New Chum Gully they are
down from 15 to 24 feet with varied success. Many
holes are said to pay in Milkmaid's Flat locality,
that
notwithstanding the number of blanks have
been sunk.
regularly established them-
selvesSinis°ll's Rangers had
Water was scarce. Some
Advices dated Avoca, Aug. 12, state that the
in the gold fields.
days cleared from 5001. to
parties have inewaasdavennetwuraerrsrivaalre
I,OOQ/ per mand.a
by the ship, Re
claims ,rand in the danger-
ous thesesom
h • lost th •
havetheir lives.
ous task of removing pillars
gold has been
found 12 miles
fossicking, ' among old •
It is reported that
nearer
Portland than Mount William diggings.
Frequent robberies occur at Ballarat. Mining
operations aro more favourable than by last report.
Numbers continue
to work at Warrenb.eap. Eureka
is slowly recovering its character. The Gravel-pit
line is declining. A number of fatal accidents ard
many suicides have occurred at Ballarat.

FREE TRADE PROGRESS IN 110LLAND. Letters from
the Hague state that the Second Chamber of the States
had voted by a large majority the taking into considera-
ti▪
on of the proposition of )(I. Thorbecke and other depu-
ties• for abolishing the excise duty on fuel. The Govern-
ment had declared that, as soon as circumstances would
permit, it wJul I propose the abolition of the duty on
corn, beginning with rye.
FIRE IN RED LION-STREET, HOLBORN,—Last night,
between the hours of 7 and 8 o'clock, a fire broke out in
a spacious pile of premises, belonging to Messrs. Arnold,
Scott, Wing, and Ca., watch, clock, and chronometer
makers, forming three houses, in Red Lion-street, Hol-
born, the lads being numbered O. The upper portion
of the premises was occupied by several lodgers, who
had a most miraculous escape from being burnt to death.
An alarm was given, and in the course of a few mi-
nutes several police officers arrived, who despatched the
necessary intelligence to the engine stations, when the
Brigade engines from the High Holborn depot promptly
attended, followed by several others of the London Its-
blishmen t from Farringdon-street, Claandos-street,_ et ls-,
street, and Crown-street, as well as that of the W
England Insurance Company.
half managed to get the fire extinguished,
however, the firemen ix the coursßey?
part of the premises was destroye , an
ture wearing apparel, an.d other e of two hours and a
but not until
ad the whole furni-
great persevereaBnc°e,
effects consumed. The
origin of the misfortune is unknown.