The Sun.
London, England, 1854-01-04 00:00:00

~f

PROMOTIONS.

Commander George A. Bedford (1843), borne on the
books of the Fisgard flag-ship of Woolwich for surveying
service, to the rank of captain.
Lieutenant William H. Church (1838), also borne on
the books of the Fisgard for surveying service, to the
rank of commander.

The name of Captain C. G. E. Patey (1846), who was
injured by the falling of a block when in command of the
Ampb ion screw steam-frigate, was inadvertently omitted
from the list of officers who received their certificates
after a course of study of steam at the factory at Wool-
wich dockyard during the last three months. Captain
Patey was fifth in order of merit, or between Comman-
, der Morrish and Commander Harston.

Commodore John Shepherd having struck his broad
pendant, and gone on leave for a few days, Lieutenant
Robert Robertson, of the steam reserve, has taken the
duties afloat, and Mr. M'Donald, master-attendant, the
duties of the dockyard.
A singular occurrence took place about three o'clock
this morning, owing, it is supposed, to the freezing of
one of the self-acting valves of the caisson in the east
dry dock, in which the Firefly steam-vessel was docked
for repair. The pressure of the floating ice, while the
tide was rising at that hour, literally lifted the caisson
out of its place, and floated it up the river until it
grounded a little beyond the slip on which the Royal
Albert, 131, screw steam-ship, has been built. The Fire-
fly, like a phantom ship, floated out of dock, without
any person on board, and entered the river where she
fortunately took the ground alongside the wharf wall,
without much damage being done. The scene was only
witnessed by one of the privates of the Royal Marines,
and one of the constables on duty, the latter having
had a narrow escape from being carried into the
river, as he was crossing the caisson when it rose,
and had barely time to jump off it oa the wharf
wall as it floated into the river. The river pre-
sents a singular spectacle to-day, owing to the great
quantity of floating ice passing up and down with the
tide, and the whole of the shores on both sides. are
covered at low water with numberless miniature ice-
bergs grounded on the mud, the greater part of which
are floated again when the tide rises.
The Prometheus steam-sloop, which was at moorings
in the river, has been taken into the basin to-day to
secure her from injury by the floating ice, and the Black
Eagle, Master-Commander John E. Petley, has been
taken from the stream to strong moorings alongside the
wharf wall. The Fisgard has also had her moorings
strengthened, and every precaution has been taken to
prevent any injury to the vessels afloat in the stream.
The Banshee steam-vessel, Lieutenant-Commander
Louis R. Reynolds, will proceed round to Portsmouth
as soon as she is ready for sea, and will be paid wages
in advance at that port. Captain Brock, appointed to
the Britannia, 120, flagship on the Mediterranean sta-
tion, and at present in the Bosphorus, will take a pas-
sage in the Banshee to Malta, and then proceed to
the Britannia on his surveying duties, for which pur-
pose she has been appointed. Several other officers take
passage in the Banshee for Constantinople.

DEATH OF CAPTAIN JOHN STonDART.----Captain John
Stoddart (1825), on the retired list of 1846, and the
next but one in seniority for his flag rank, died at Ash-
ford, Kent, on the 31st ult. This gallant officer served
17 years afloat, chiefly during the war. He entered the
navy 1797, and in the Adathant, 50, with the Tre-
mendous, 74, assisted in driving the French frigate, La
Preneuse. on shore, under a heavy fire from the bat-
teries of Port Louis, Isle of France. He was made a
lieutenant in 1804. In the Melampus, 36, he assisted
in capturing two brigs and a Spanish privateer, the
Hydra, 28. In company with the l3ellisle he assisted
in the destruction, off Capp Henry, of the French, 74,
L'lmpetueux. In the Canopus, 84, in 1809, he wit-
nessed the self-destruction, off Cape Cette, of the ships
of the line Robusto and Lion. As commander of the
Stromboli, bomb, he actively co-operated with the
Catalonian patriots, and assisted at the capture •of the
Fort of St. Phillippe. He also commanded the Crocus
and Primrose sloops, but has not been afloat since he
was posted.

A. SNAKE IN A Fix.—A Texas •correspondent of a
'New "York paper gives the following snake story:—
"One night my wife and myself were awakened by a
noise from the shelf which contained our small store of
crockery, followed by a crash which showed that a great
portion of our cups and plates had been flung on the
floor. Springing up to discover the author of this ' attack
upon china,' I found a large snake in a somewhat un-
pleasant He had crawled upon the shelf, attracted
by a number of eggs which were scattered about. One
of these he had swallowed, arid in order to get at the
next, he had put his head and a portion of his body
through the handle of a jug which happened to stand be-
tween the coveted delicacies. The handle was just open
enough to let his body, in its natural state, slip cleverly
through, but not sufficient to let it pass when puffed out
by the egg. In this position he had swallowed the
second egg. His snakeship thus found himself unable
to advance or retreat ; and in floundering about to es-
cape from this novel stock had caused the accident which
bad aroused us. I, [of course, !proceeded at once to
execute summary justice upon the interloper, but the
eggs which he had swallowed were a dead loss."
CHEAP EDITION OF THE LIVES OF THE QUEENS.—
The first volume of the cheau edition of Miss Strickland's
celebrated work "The Lives of the Queens of England,"
is just published, handsomely bound and embellished
with Fourteen Portraits. The work will be completed
in eight monthly volumes at 7s. 6d. each. The price of
the present issue will doubtless place "The Lives of the
Queens" in the hands of thousands of purchasers, by
whom the former editions were unattainable. " These
volumes, as the Times observes, "have the fascination
of romance united to the integrity of history. The work
is written by a lady of considerable learning, indefati-
gable industry, and careful judgment. All these quali-
fications for a biographer and an historian she has brought
to bear upon the subject of her volumes, and from them
has resulted a narrative interesting to all. The whole
work should be read by all who are anxious for informa-
tion. It is a lucid arrangement of facts, derived from
authentic sources, exhibiting a combination of industry,
learning, judgment, and impartiality not often met with
in biographers of crowned heads,"

1

7 /1

FREE TRADE FREEHOLD LAND SOCIETY.

Last night a meeting of the inhabitants of Camberwell
and its vicinity was held at the. Greyhound Tavern,
Greyhound-road, Old Kent-road, for the purpose of

hearing a statement of the plans and proceedings of the
Free Trade Freehold Land Society. The estates pos-
sessed by the society consists of two very attractive ones,
situate at Camberwell and Anerley.
The hour fixed for the commencement of the proceed-
ings having arrived,
Mr. GIMSON proposed that Dr. Leonard do take the
chair.

Mr. COLEMAN begged leah'e to second the motion. It
having been put to the meeting, and declared carried,
Dr. LEONARD, in taking the chair, said he did not in-
tend, in opening the proceedings of the evening, to
occupy the attention of the meeting for any length of
time, as he would be followed by a gentleman
who would place before them the claims of the
society in a far more attractive form than he
could. It was perfectly well known to most .of
them that freehold land societies had now taken a posi-
tion that the most sanguine supporter could hardly have
expected. Lately an important movement had taken
place, which all and every one would hail with pleasure
and delight. Societies like the one on whose behalf he
appeared that evening tended in a great degree to foster
habits of frugality, and all who had the good of their
fellowmen at heart would be greatly rejoiced at such a
result. There was no political object to be worked
out, but all, of every shade of political opinion, were
invited to join and participate in the benefits to be
derived by joining so successful, and deservedly so, a
society as the Free Trade Freehold Land Society. He
• I
would not further detain them, but at once call upon
Mr. Smith to address them. (Cheers.)
Mr. SMITH, on rising to address the meeting, was cor-
dially received, said, although the origin of freehold
land societies was of recent date, their advantages were
well understood and appreciated. Seven years ago, the
founder of them, James Taylor, of Birmingham, and a
friend met at a coffee-house in Birmingham, and there
drew up a report, and forwarded it to the editor of a
newspaper in that town, with a polite request that he
would insert it in his journal. That gentleman
not only inserted the communication, but called .
attention to the importance of the subject by a
loading article, and results that Taylor and his
friend least expected followed. When he (Mr. Smith)
first became acquainted with Taylor, who through
drunkenness had become greatly reduced, he had saved
a little money, and become exceedingly anxious to pro-
cure a freehold home. On receiving the abstract of the
title, he made the observation that it was as long as his
arm and as thick as his leg—(laughter)—and on its perusal
discovered that he had paid five shillings a yard for land
which had cost the seller but five pence. This fact first
gave rise to the present idea, that by co-operation pur-
chases of large tracts of land might be effected wholesale,
and distributed among the purchasers at the original
cost; in other words, that which had been acquired
wholesale might be retailed at the wholesale price.
Among other societies, he would mention two, to illus-
trate the success of the movement, namely, the Na-
tional, now one of the most flourishing, in the
first year made but little progress. The success by
this society had not proceeded far before it was found
necessary to establish the Conservative Land Society, to -
counteract the success of the Radical societies. At the

present time the political part of freehold land societies
was falling into crisuetude ; the franchise was not so

much sought after, as it was perfectly well known to all
that by the aid of societies like the Free Trade Freehold
Land Society—open to all creeds of political opinion—
that, as a matter of right, followed the acquisition of a
share. The priority principle, which was the first put
forth, was found, after a short time, not to answer the
expectations .of those who were at first its most
decided advocates. The National Society put forth
two plans the ballot and the paid-up shares.
This was also objected to, and it was now found
that the system that received most favour with
the great majority was the ballot, the seniority, and the
paid-up principles combined. That was the plan adopted
by the Free Trade Freehold Land Society. (Cheers.)
The advantages held forth by savings banks had been
thought to be of the best and most solid description ;
yet, when he mentioned the case of the Rochdale Savings
Bank and the Cuffy-street Savings Bank in Dublin, he
thought that the security held forth by freehold land
societies was by far to be preferred. (Cheers.) There
was no fear of nearly all the funds of freehold land
societies being irrecoverably lost. With respect to
building societies, he (Mr. Smith) thought they were
not for one moment to be compared to freehold societies.
In the latter, every man on entering knew what he would
get. He did not think he could say so much for the
former. For the early rights in this society fifty pounds
had been offered as a premium and refused. There was
no fear of any one losing by joining this society ; all
were prizes, and, unlike lotteries, there were no blanks.
(Cheers.) •As for the moral influence exercised by socie-
ties like the one he had the honour to be connected
with, he would mention the fact, that when Mr. Stevens,
the inspector of police at Birmingham, was examined
before a committee of the House of Commons, he, in
answer to questions put to him, stated that they tended
to diminish drunkenness, and also created habits of sav-
ing and temperance not known of before their introduc-
tion. (Cheers.) *The progress made by freehold land
societies had been most extraordinary—indeed, the
Messrs. Chambers, in the last number of their publica-
tion, declared it to be quite a mania. The success at-
tained by the most successful freehold land societies
had been eclipsed by theirs, for in the short space
of four months—the date of their foundation was the
15th of August, 1853—they had had 2,030 shares taken
up. (Cheers.) No society, he could truly say, had
done so much in so short a time. Economy was carefully
studied in everything connected with the it. There was
no party bias. Conservatives and Radicals were not in-
fluenced by the directors ; indeed they considered it de-

rotatory even to attempt to interfere with the free exer-
cise of the franchise acquired through this society.
(Loud cheers.) They hatd. had •a ballot for seniority,
but the directors, to show their disinterestedness, had
submitted to throw their early acquired rights into the
wheel, and some of them now stood far down the list ;
and, judging from the premiums offered for early rights,
he might with truth say, by so doing one gentleman had
lost 250/., another 5001. The first ballot for rights
would take place on the 30th, in which all shares
would participate. He Mr. (Smith) would feel

great pleasure in answering any question any gentleman
might feel disposed to put to him, as it was their greatest
wish that everything connected with the Free Trade
Freehold Land Society should be examined and inquired
into. He begged to thank the meeting for the attention
with which they had listened to him. Mr. Smith then
resumed his seat amidst loud applause.
Mr. GIMSON then rose to propose the first resolution.
He said that after the clear, able, and lucid statement
they had heard from Mr. Smith, he thought lie should
be only trespassing on their patience if he attempted to
address them at any length. lie fully confirmed every-
thing that Mr. Smith had stated with respect to the
prices offeted as premiums for the early rights. To
enter into tie principles of the Free Trade Freehold
Land Society would take a longer time than he thought
the meeting would feel disposed to allow him ; but this
he would say, that it was their earnest wish and desire
to raise the position of the shareholders in the social
scale. (Cheers.) The resolution he had the pleasure
of moving was to the following effect—" That Freehold
Land Societies have been proved, by experience, to be a
safe and profit able investment, advancing the interests
of the community generally, and of the industrious
classes in particular."
Mr. BARRETT briefly seconded the resolution.
The CHAIRMAN having put it to the meeting, declared
it carried unanimously.
Mr. HUNT, in rising to propose the second resolution,
said, in moving the resolution he held in his hand, he
had intended to have laid before the meeting a brief
statement of the present position and future prospects of
the society, but that ground had been gone over with
such ability by Mr. Smith, that he would read the
words of the second resolution ; but before doing so he
sincerely declared that the Free Trade Freehold Land
Society was what its name implied--honest, open, and
free. (Cheers.) The resolution was as follows :—" That
the Free Trade Freehold Land Society is worthy of sup-
port from the success.thiit has marked its progress, the
principles on which it is based, and for having purchased
two very desirable estates, one of which is situate in the
immediate neighbourhood, for distribution among its
members."
Mr. KIPLING seconded the resolution.
The CHAIRMAN then put the resolution, and, like
the preceding, declared it carried nem. con.
Mr. GIMSON proposed, and Mr. HUNT seconded, a
vote of thanks to Dr. Leonard, for his conduct in the
chair. It having being carried,
The CHAIRMAN, in returning. thanks, said it afforded
him the highest gratification to have assisted at a meet-
in.- having such 'Ale and disinterested objects in view.
He begged sincerely to thank them for the kindness
they had conferred upon him.
The proceedings, which were of the most satis-
factory description, then terminated.

GRAIN IN BELorvm.—The importation of wheat
daring the last year in Belgium amounted to 106,630,686
kilogrammes, while the exportation did not exceed
11,298,577 kilogrammes.

Tit 1431