The Sun.
London, England, 1849-02-05 00:00:00

THE PENINSULAR MAILS.

SOUTHAMPTON, FEB. 4.—The Peninsular and Oriental
Company's steam-ship Iberia, Captain Charles F. Bur-
ney, arrived at Southampton this evening, at half-past
six o'clock, and landed mails from the following places,
in charge of Lieutenant Peter Rainier, Admiralty agent.
The mails were forwarded to London by the mail-
train. During the home voyage of the Iberia she expe-
rienced fine weather, and has made a good passage.
Her dates of sailing are : —Gibraltar, Jan. 27, Lisbon,
30th, Oporto no communication, Vigo and Corunna,
Feb. 1, and Cadiz, Jan. 28.
Amongst the passengers are Viscount Moncorvo and
son, Mr. Mosely, wife, and child; Dr.Bain, Mr. Strachan,
Count de Foote, Messrs. Errol, Colt, Losseuse, Howard,
Lawrence, and Corneau.

The freight of the Iberia consists of 50 packages of
specie, 53 cases of eggs, 3 casks of wine, 9 casks of pork,
91case3 of hams, 617 chests of oranges, and 29 ditto Tan-
gierines, 22 barrels of dates, arid 43 packages of sundries.
STATIONS OF HER MAJESTY'S SHlFS.—ller Majesty's
ships Sidon and Polyphemus at Gibraltar. The Indus
sailed from Gibraltar on the 27th, all well; exchanged
colours, on Feb. 1, with the Madrid, coming out of
Vigo, and, on Feb. 2, with the Montrose, bound to Gib-
raltar.

The United States frigate St, Lawrence was in the
Tags.

SHIPS OBSERVED ON THE VOYAGR.—Passed, at 8
P.M., on the 27th, off Tariffs, a squadron of about nine
sail, steering to the eastward, supposed to be Sir C.
Napier's.

GRAND DINNER AND BALL AT THE DUKE 01'
DEVONSHIRE'S, KEiII' TOWN.—On Thursday evening
the Duke of Devonshire gave his fourth grand entertain-
ment this season, at his residence in Kemp Town, com-
mencing with a dinner, the circle of which included the
Earl and Countess of Verulam, Lady Henley, the Hon.
Mrs. Lamb and Miss Anderson, Mr. and Mrs. and the
Misses Lambton, Major-General Sir Frederick Trench,
Major. General Upton, Mr. Wodehouse Currie, Mr.
Charles Culling Smith, Mr. Robert Henley, Mr. H. L.
Wilson, Mr. H. D. Erskine. There was a grand ball
in the evening, to which invitations were issued to above
150 of the leading fashionables at present in Brighton.
THE NEW STRAND ThIEATRE.—Mrs. Nisbett, it is
stated in theatrical circles, has again undertaken the di-
rection of a theatre, and the New Strand dramatic
temple is to be the scene of her exertions. The style of
entertainment, as may be imagined, will consist of light
vaudevilles, petite dramas, and those pleasant serio-
comic burlettas, for which the house is solely adapted.
13REcifiN.—DEATH Or SIR JAMES CARNEGY,
BART.—Sir James Carnegy died at Kinnaird Castle on
Tuesday afternoon. He will be succeeded in his title
and extensive estates by his eldest son, an officer in the
Grenadier Guards.

SALE OF TLIE STOWE LIBRARY. On Saturday,
the third week's sale of this collection of books was
brought to a close by Messrs. Sotheby and Wilkinson,
the auctioneers of Wellington-street, Strand. The fol-
lowing were a few of the most remarkable books sold:
--" Expositio Hymnorum Secundum usum Sarum," &c.,
one,of the curious and rare books of Salisbury, sold for
151. lis.; a fine copy of " Rees' Cyclopsedia, or Uni-
versal Dictionary," upon large paper, sold for 261.;
" Purchas his Pilgrimes and Pilgrimage, or Travels and
Relations of the World, and the Religions observed in
all Ages," sold for 13 guineas; " Loggie del Vatietuao,"
a most beautiful work, consisting of,(18 plates beauti-
fully coloured after Raphael, sold for -2 t/.; a series of
eight plates of the 1° Cartoons " at Hampton Court, en-
graved by Dorignay, sold for 6/. 2s. 6d.; a curious col-
lection of old French romances in one volume, printed
at Rouen, sold for 4/. 10s.
Loss OF A FISHING, BOAT AND NETS.—We are
glad to announce that the four fishermen of New-
haven, George and Thomas Linton, James Main and
James Ramsay, who were reported in our paper of last
Saturday to have been drowned by the ,tale
were a
Pr
poljnos.
weather, while, fishing ,offKingho!:n nAss, w
videntially saved by.another boat's crew, with much dif-
ficulty and danger. But the poor, fellows sustained a
ruinous loss by the sinking of their boat and nine nets
that cost upwards of 40/.; and unless the charitable pub-
licf contribute something to enable theseindbuestdrrioeauds
menly
•
to buy a new boat, their poor families will
c
wholly depend on the suc •
distressed, as they success of their
fishing.—Scotsman.
A servant in the house of Sub-Inspector liadnett,
of Kinsale, was accidently shot on Sunday morning,
while incautiously handling and examining a pistol
pistol, which happened to be loaded, went off when. The
pistol, she
e
touched the trigger, and, the muzzle being pointed
towards her body, she received a mortal wound. She
only lived a few hours after the fatal accident.—Cork
Examiner.

Mr. Noble, one of the senior clerks in the Home-
office, has retired, after a service of fifty-three years.
Mr. Walpole and Mr. Mills, we hear, will follow his
example. The usual promotions by seniority will take
place in the office, but the vacancies created will not lead
to any new appointment, by which a reduction and sav-
ing will be thus accomplished.—Observer.

ATTEMPTED MURDER AND ROBBER
LEEDS, THURSDAY.—An occurrence has come 1°
light in Leeds within the last few days which, in te
neighbourhood in which it happened, has caused a good
deal of consternation. An elderly man, named John
Timms, who resides in a house by himself, and who
keeps a coal-yard in Duke-street, St. Peter's-square,
has, it appears, caused persons to believe, both from his
singular habits and conversation, that he is possessed of
a large sum of money, and in the middle of last month
four men fcrmed a scheme to murder and rob him. Two
of the men were brought before the Leeds borough ma-
gistrates yesterd.W, and were remanded till Saturday.
The nsktnes of the pavans in custody are Charles Rawson
and/Thomas Spooner.
The other two men have not yet
den apprehended. It appears that on Wednesday, the
"17th of January, the prisoaser Rawson, and one of the
men still at large,-met at the hovle Spooner, where they
agreed viith' Spooner and a fourth rdual to murder
-aa nd rob Timms, and for that purpose wason the arranged
that they were all to meet again at Spooner
fol-
lowing morning at six o'clock. The meeting wok place
accordingly, but Spooner declined to be one of the yarty to
commit the crime, and was heard to say to his wife, in a
suppressed tone of voice, " that he thought one of the
men was soft, and would give information." Rawson
and one of the other men then left Spooner's, and went
to Timms's house. He was in bed when they arrived,
and in answer to their statement that they wanted half a
hundred weight of coals, be told them to call again in an
hour from that time. They never went again that
morning, hut went at nine o'clock at night, stating that
they wanted a certain quantity of coals. The old man
admitted them into his house, and while he was in the
act of stooping down to get the coals, the prisoner Raw-
son struck him a violent blow on the head with a largo
hammer and he fell. He, however, contrived to so far
regain his feet as to be able to grapple with his assail-
ant, and a struggle took place. The other man immee
diately after the blow was struck, ran up stairs in order
to search for the expected booty, but hearing the
struggle going on below, his heart failed him, and
he returned down stairs and rushed out of the
house; Rowson followed him. The hammer, the head
of whch weighs 2lbs., was left behind, and is identified
as belonging to Spooner, who lent it to Rawson on the
17th, the day when the four men entered into an agree-
ment to commit the offence. The old man Timms was
much bruised on the head by the blow he received, and
has had to obtain surgical assistance. He did not know
either of the men who entered his house, and it is only
after diligent investigation on the part of the police that
the guilty parties have been discovered. Since their
apprehension Rawson and Spooner have made a con-
, fession. Spooner acknowledges that he was aware that
the crime was to be committed, and that he lent the
hammer to Rawson. Rawson admits that he struck
Timms on the bead with the weapon, and says that
their intention was to rob him, as they understood that
he had about 1,500/. in gold in his house. He says it
was not his intention to murder the old man, but only
to stun him, so that he could make no resistance. The
two prisoners have also confessed to having committed a
highway robbery near Leeds a short time ago.

MURDER OF A CHILD BY ITS FATHER.
YARM, SATURDAY MORNING.—One Of the most hor-
rible cases of child murder that has probably ever dis-
graced the annals of crime, is at the present time cre-
ating a most painful sensation in this usually quiet
district. The murderer is a railway labourer, named
George Howe, whose wife died in child• bed on the 11th
of Nov. last, leaving behind her a boy, aged four years,
and the deceased. On the 14th of Nov. he and his
children went to live with a person named Bray, in this
town. During his residence there he was heard to say
if he could get rid of his child he could marry a female
directly with 3001. A few days back the father told
Mrs. Wood, Bray's housekeeper, that he was going to
leave, and would send for the child. Mrs. Wood not

liking his manner, from what she had previously heard
him say, refused to let the children go until she knew
what provision he had made for their comfort. At five
o'clock the same evening the father came home from
work, when he found her feeding the child. The nephew,
who was gone up stairs to bed, called to Mrs. Wood to
fetch the candle he had taken with him, when the father
expressed an ardent desire for her to leave the child
with him. This she objected to, and she carried the
child with her. On her return the father immediately
went to bed, and upon her recommencing to feed the child,
it rejected its food, and exhibited symptoms of being in
great pain. Mrs. Wood's suspicions were immediately
aroused, and having called her nephew up, she sent him
with the remains of the food to Mr. Dale, a surgeon.
The child continued in great pain till the following day,
when it expired. The lips and tongue were extensively
blistered. The father was given into custody on sus-
picion, and on Mr. Dale making a post mortem examina•
tion, he found oxalic acid in the food contained in the
child's stomach. John Garbolt, apprentice to Mr. Hodg-
son, chemist and druggist, identified the father as having,
on the evening of the day he wished to take the child
away, purchased half an ounce of oxalic acid. He then
said he wanted it to clean boot tops with. The father
denied that he had ever purchased poison of any sort,
and said that the charge was got up to ruin his prospects.
A bottle, containing oxalic acid solution, was however
found concealed under his bed, and he was forthwith
committed to take his trial at the next assizes, for the
wilful murder of the child.

ATTEMPTS AT MURDER AND SUICIDE.
NEWPORT, SATURDAY.—Great excitement prevails
throughout the village of Usk and the surrounding dis-
tricts at the present time, in consequence of the follow-
ing desperate attempt to murder a police•constable
having been made by a prisoner, who afterwards cut
his own throat, whilst being conveyed to prison. The
prisoner was named Frederick Williams, and on Monday
last he was apprehended on a charge of felony. The
next day he was taken before the Rev. T. Pope, and
fully committed for trial at the next sessions. He was
placed in the custody of John Morgan, constable, who
locked him up in his own house for the night, and the
next morning, on leaving for the prison, he was hand-
cuffed by the right wrist to the constable's left, and
thus they walked for about nine miles. On getting
within two or three hundred yards of the gaol the pri-
soner made a remark to the constable, calling off his
attention, and having previously, without the know-
ledge of the officer, drawn a knife from his pocket,
he suddenly made a most ferocious and murderous
attack on him, inflicting various wounds, one being
a most formidable gash, passing through and dividing
the ear and reaching the nose. A gentleman, named
Churchill, passing by on horseback, was horror-struck
at seeing the two men struggling in the mud and
covered with blood. He called to the prisoner to desist,
but the only reply he got was, that as soon as he had
done for the constable he would kill both him and his
horse. Mr. Churchill then rode off to town for assist-
ance, and having procured some men, they returned in
a few minutes, but the struggle was then going on.
Daring the time Mr. Churchill was away the prisoner
had succeeded in disengaging himself, and had cut his
throat in an awful manner. After some difficulty the
knife was taken from the prisoner, when he and the
constable were removed to the prison. Mr. Greatwood,
a surgeon, was soon in attendance, when he found that
the officer had received two wounds on the throat,
several on the head, and the right side of the face was
cut entirely cpen. The constable remains in a very
precarious condition, but nothing fatal is anticipated
from the wound in the throat of the prisoner, who was
yesterday fully committed to take his trial at the next
assizes.