The Sun.
London, England, 1854-10-27 00:00:00

COURT CIRCULAR.

WINDSOR, Om 26.

The dinner party yesterday included his Excellency
the French Ambassador and the Countess Walewski,
the Duke of Newcastle, the Earl and Countess
Granville, Viscount and Viscountess Hardinge, Lady
Caroline Barrington, Lieut.-Colonel H. Vyse, command-
ing officer Royal Horse Guards, and Major Spitty,
commanding officer Essex Rifles.
The band of the Royal Horse Guards was in attend-
ance during dinner, and played the following pieces :
Overture
Capricio Mercadante.
Waltz—" Dew Drop" D'Albert.
Finale, second part—" II Trovatore"
Selection—" Cheval de Bronze"
Polka—" Invitation"
The Queen's private band afterwards attended in
the Castle, and played the following selection :
Overture —" La Bayadere"
Coro der Derwische and Marsch—" Die
Ruinen von Athen"
Duetto—" Die lustigen Weiber von
Windsor"
March—" Joseph" Handel.
The Queen, attended by the Countess o f Desart,
drove out in an open carriage this morning.
His Royal Highness Prince Albert, accompanied by
Earl Granville, went out shooting,
His Excellency the French Ambassador and Countess
Walewski, the Duke of Newcastle, the Earl and Coun-
tess Granville, and the Viscount and Viscountess Har-
dinge took their departure to-day. •
M. Foucault had the honour of exhibiting before his
Royal Highness Prince Albert some experiments with
the gyroscope, in demonstration of the rotation of the
globe.

M. Van de Weyer, the Belgian Minister, transacted
business yesterday at the Foreign-office.
The Lord Chancellor has appointed eleven o'clock on
Thursday, the 2d of November, at his residence in
Upper Brook-street, for the reception of the Lord
Mayor and the ether authorities of the city of London,
when the Lord Chancellor will signify his Majesty's
approbation of the Lord Mayor Elect.
On the same day, at twelve o'clock, and also at his
private residence, the Lord Chancellor will receive the
judges, Queen's counsel, &c,, Thursday being the first
day of Michaelmas Term.

The Duke of Newcastle returned to London yesterday
from Windsor Castle.

Despatches were sent yesterday from the Colonial•
office for the Governor of Gibraltar.

THE EMPEROR NAPOLEON TO TIIE
WIDOW OF MARSHAL ST. ARNAUD.

(From the Moniteur of yesterday.)

PARIS, OCT. 25.—The Emperor has addressed the fol-
lowing letter to Marshal St. Arnaud's widow :
" Madam* la Marechal,—No one more than myself shares,
as you are aware, in the grief which is overwhelming you.
The Marshal had associated himself in my cause from the
very day when, leaving Africa to accept the post of Meis-
ter at War, he concurred in re-establishing order and
authority in this country. He has associated his name
with the military glories of France from the very day when,
resolving upon setting his foot in the Crimes, notwithstand-
ing timid counsels, he gained, with Lord Raglan, the bat-
tle of the Alma, and cleared for our army the way to
Sebastopol. I have, therefore, lost in him a devoted friend
in hard trials, as France has lost in him a soldier ever
ready to serve her at the hour of danger. Doubtless so
many claims to the public gratitude and to mine are inade-
quate to alleviate such a sorrow as yours, and I confine
myself to assure you that I revert upon you, and upon the
Marshal's family, the sentiments which he had inspired
to me. Accept, Madame la Marechal, the sincere expres-
sion of the same. " NAPOLEON."

EMBARKATION OF GUAnDS FOR THE
EAST.

PORTSMOUTH, Oct. 26.—Seven hundred and sixty-
seven men, 18 officers, and 15 non-commissioned officers
of various regiments embarked this afternoon on board
the General Screw Shipping Company's steam-ship
Queen of the South, for conveyance to the Crimea, to
fill up vacancies caused by the losses at the Battle of
Alma. The troops consisted of 1 officer, 2 sergeants,
and 80 men of the Grenadier Guards; 2 officers, 1 ser-
geant, 7 drummers, and 50 men of the Coldstream
Guards ; 7 officers, 2 sergeants, and 100 men of the
Scots Fusilier Guards ; 2 officers, 2 sergeants, and 120
men of the let battalion of let Royals ; 1 officer, 2 ser-
geants and 100 men of the 7th Royal Fusiliers; 2 ser-
geants and 100 men of the 19th Regiment ; 4 officers,
2 sergeants, and 130 men of the 23d Welsh Fusiliers ;
and 2 officers, 2 sergeants, and 80 men of the 95th Re-
giment.
The abovenamed detachments chiefly came to this
port by railway from London, Winchester, and Waltner.
They were met at the railway terminus by the bands of
the Lancashire and Wiltshire regiments of militia, who
played them through the streets of the town to the dock-
yard, alongside which the Queen of the South was lying
ready to embark the troops. The detachment of the
95th Regiment came over from Parkhurst-barrack,, Isle
of Wight. They were brought from Cowes by the Comet
steam-tug. The last detachment that arrived in the yard
was the 19th, who got there by five o'clock this after-
noon. Through the facilities in the dockyarel, the whole
of the troops and their baggage were embarked as they
arrived, and they are now ready to proceed on +heir
voyage. The Queen of the South will not sail, however,
before to-morrow morning. She takes out supernume-
rary seamen for the Black Sea fleet.

ALLEGED ILLEGAL MAKING OF A DISTRICT

RATE.---IIIPORT4NT PROCEEDINGS.

Yesterday afternoon Mr. A'Beckett was engaged
several hours at the Southwark Police-court in a case of
vast importance to the ratepayers of the metropolis, and
which occasioned considerable interest in a very crowded
court. Mr. Wilcoxon, the extensive paper-stainer and
decorator at the corner of Horsetnonger-lane and New-
ington-causeway, with a number of the adjoining shop-
keepers, were summoned for neglecting and refusing to
pay a paving and lighting rate, alleged to be legally
made by the commissioners of the Dover-road district,
according to their local act of Parliament. The chief
interest caused by the proceedings was that a, rate had
not been made in that district for more than 20 years,
and that the whole of the defendants were rated by
another adjoining district.
Mr. A'Beckett, after patiently bearing other argu-
meats on both sides, said—l think it would be better
for the two boards to enter into some arrangement, and
prevent this litigation going on, as it would say.; a great
deal of unnecessary trouble and expense. I shall there-
fore adjourn all the summonses for a month, so that
some proper agreement can be made between them, and
if not will hear any argument that may be raised, and
give my judgment as to the legality of the rate, and the
parties to be rated.
Mr. Fleming agreed to that, and all the parties left
the court.

PONTOON EXPERIMENTS AT CHATHAM.

Some interesting experiments were made yesterday
afternoon, opposite to the Pontoon-hard, St. Mary's
Creek, River Medway, by the Royal Sappers and
Miners, and in the presence of Brigadier-General Jones,
director of the engineering establishment, and the
principal officers of the Royal Engineers and the
East India 'Company's engineers, for the purpose
of testing the efficiently of the pontoons invented by
they being constructed
any yet in the service.
oCnapatayinerFyr(aiinffntceirseFowplrcien,cißpieEt.o,
The cylinders are about 20 feet long, and are made of
sail-canvas painted, and are water tight. Each cylinder
is hooped, inside and outside, with twelve hoops, and the
saddles are considerably wider than those in general
use. The rafts are let into one another, forming a very
firm platform ; the balks are similar to those now used.
The cylinders are very portable ; each can be put up into
a small compass, so that they are not so large as a big
drum. They are very light, and can be moved about
with very little difficulty, and Intit prove very valuable
to troops on their march through a country where there
are small rivers. They are ea,,ily put together, and a
pole goes through the cylinders for the purpose of ex-
tending them out to their full width. These pontoons
were manned, and taken up and down the river with the
tide, and brought down against the tide, without much
difficulty. They bear a great weight, and they are very
steady in the water. A report of them, with the opinion
et the director, is to be made to th 3 Board of Ordnance.

PATMOTIC FUND OF 1803, 1809, AND

1812.