The Sun.
London, England, 1836-02-02 00:00:00

DEATH OF MR. WALKER, POLICE

MAGISTRATE.

(Extract of a letter from Brussels, Jan. 21, 1836.)
" It is probable that you may have heard before this
reaches you, of the melancholy and sudden death of your
friend Mr. Walker. I shall give you all the particulars which
transpired here before and after the event. He had been
at the Hotel de Belle Vue for several days, and had made
some little excursions in the neighbourhood, to visit and
inquire into the state of the prisons and places of confine-
ment in this country. On Sunday last he was at Mr.
Drury's church. On the same day he dined at the Table
d'Hote, and was cheerful. On Monday he had asked
Mr. Drury to dine with him, but Mr. Drury could not
accept the invitation. On Saturday he was walking with
Mr. Cuming, of Gray's-wood, Surrey, and on coming up
the Montagne de la Cour towards the hotel, he seemed
oppressed with difficulty of breathing, and complained of
it. On the same day he made an appointment with Mr.
Cuming to go with him en the Tuesday following to see
the prison at Vilvorde. On the Tuesday morning early
Mr. Cuming received a note from him to say, that he felt
too unwell to fulfil the engagement. Mr. Cumming imme-
diately called on him, and found him in bed, about twelve
o'clock, stayed with him half-an-hour, and pressed him to
send for medical aid. He replied, there was no occasion,
he should soon be well. He would not have his bed made
that day. In the evening the servant inquired if he wanted
any thing, and she was desired to bring him some tea. He
was not visited again that night. On Wednesday morning,
as it was late, and no bell summoning any attendance, the
waiter entered his room, and found the tea things had not
been touched, and, looking into the bed, saw he was a
corpse, cold and stiff. The master of the hotel, M. de
Proft, sent to the Hotel de Ville to acquaint the authori-
ties, to the English Ambassador's, and Mr. Salter, the 'un-
dertaker. In taking care of papers and letters, your let-
ter of introduction to me was discovered, for he had not
yet delivered it. M. de Proft and Mr. Salter called on
me with the letter about one o'clock. Finding he was
your friend, and so strongly recommended to me, I could
not forbear taking a great interest and an active part in
doing what I considered essential on such occasions, and
satisfactory to his friends in England. I considered an
examination of the body by competent and skilful medical
men indispensable,' with a view simply to ascertain the im-
mediate cause of his death. Dr. Tobin, physician to the
Embassy, Dr. Perkins, Dr. Duncan, and Dr. A. Jacque-
bert, a Belgian, were desired to meet this morning at ten
o'clock, and make the necessary examination. It was done
in my presence, and in that of my friend Capt. Lovett.
The medical people signed a declaration, which I subjoin :
Healthy external appearance, body muscular and fat,*
numerous adhesions of the pleura, great congestion, amount-
ing to pulmonary apoplexy of the right lung, and explaining
the sudden death ; the liver showed like symptoms of con-
gestion ; stomach pretty healthy.' (Signed as above.) The
body is to be immediately put into a shell, and afterwards
enclosed in a leaden coffin, to await orders from his friends
in England, whether the corpse is to be buried here, or con-
veyed to his relations at home."
* This must allude to the character of the flesh, as Mr. Walker
was very thin in his general figure, particularly in the last year or
two.

FOREIGN NEWSPAPERS IN PRUSSIA.—BERLIN,
JAN. 14.—A law is expected by which the circulation of
many (especially foreign) journals will be stopped, or consi-
derably limited. Those public offices which receive French
and English journals for official purposes have already been
strictly forbidden to lend them to private persons. In par-
ticular, it is likely that the reading of such journals, espe-
cially the French, will be prohibited, or greatly restricted, in
places of public resort, such as the confectioners' shops,
coffee-houses, &c., where they are at present to be seen in
great numbers. Such restrictions have always existed in
Austria. Here, in Berlin, there is scarcely any considera-
ble confectioner's shop where the National is not lying on
the table, which, notwithstanding its present subdued tone,
has still a great many readers.—German Paper.
VOYAGE TO NEW YORK.—After a lapse of seve-
ral weeks I finally pitched upon the Eagle, a vessel built in
New York, of 520 tons burden, known as a first-rate sailer,
with a spacious roomy deck and elegant cabin. Her com-
mander and part owner, Captain Lyons, we found to be a
plain, honest seaman, anxiously alive to his duty, attentive,
and accommodating to all on board, and desirous that his
steerage passengers should equally partake with those in the
cabin of the ordinary comforts and accommodations of the
ship. My family consisted of ten individuals, including a
man servant. The charge for a cabin passage was 25/. ; the
three of my number were to be taken at a lower rate, on ac-
count of their youth, although I must candidly admit, that
many an adult would have proved a safer speculation for the
Captain's table than the very youngest amongst them. In-
cluding a state room for the exclusive use of Mrs. F., I
paid in the whole 210/. 125.; our accommodations were quite
comfortable, a room 15 feet square, entering from the
cabin, fitted with four beds, was allotted to three of my
family and myself, while the others were distributed in the
various state rooms off the cabin. By the advice of the
Captain, I purchased a good little cow from a milkman in
Liverpool, and the ship butcher sent some four-year-old
Cheviot wethers, decidedly the best of all sheep for sea-
stock, and finer mutton, for gravy and flavour, never graced
a board. The minor department of our live stock was well
cared for, as our Captain took both a pleasure and a pride
in cramming his pigs and poultry to their hearts' content.
The crew consisted of twenty steady men, and not a drop
of grog or spirits was served out, as the Eagle was a
" temperance ship," an arrangement now becoming very
general in the American ports. The men have coffee in
lieu of grog, and the difference in the price is reckoned to
them in their wages. Many a poor fellow, I believe, has
found reason to bless the hour when he agreed to try the
good effects of this exchange.—Ferguson's Tour.
THE STA NMORE GOLD-FINDERS.—The following
is a more correct account of this extraordinary affair than
that before published :—On Saturday last the coachman
and gardener of Mr. Cheoval, the rector of Stanmore,
while levelling a hedge-bank on the glebe-land, at a place
called Old Church, near the foot of Stanmore-hill, turned
up several pieces of gold. Instead of intermit)g their mas-
ter, they kept the knowledge of it to themselves till the
evening, when the gardener, it is said, got drunk in a public-
house, and informed his companions of his good fortune. It
was then agreed amongst them that a treasure which for
many years was believed to be concealed somewhere about
the spot was found. The story runs, that 13 years ago a
foreigner, from London, arrived at Stanmore, and for a fort-
night diligently searched, with the assistance of four men,
the banks of an adjoining field, but unsuccessfully, and then
departed in great distress of mind. He accused a farmer
living near of having found it ; and perhaps this, having
been the general belief, may account for no other treasure-
seeker having made the attempt. This conjecture proved
to be correct, for, having agreed to commence a search early
on the following morning, they discovered in a very short
time, not far from the surface, an iron chest, an old tea-
caddy, and a coach-lamp, all containing gold coin of the
French, American, Spanish, and Portuguese currency,
some of it bearing the date of 1818. It is believed, from
all that can be learned on the subject, that the amount was
upwai•ds of 2,000/ ; but, as all the population of Stanmore
had collected in consequence of the gardener's folly, a gene-
ral scramble took place by men, women, and children, the
man who found the iron chest having defended his treasure
from the general attack made upon it, but distributing to all
present a share. The amount secured by Mr. Cheoval's
servants is said to have been 500/., and this, of course, when
he at last became aware of what had occurred, was taken
from them. Attempts have been made to recover more of
it from the finders, but as they had found ready purchasers
for their treasure, the attempt, at present, has not succeeded.
The weather at Edinburgh continues still boisterous
and cold. Early yesterday morning snow began to fall, ac-
companied with a strong gale from the south-west, which
continued with little intermission during the day—and as
there was a keen frost the streets became slippery with the
snow ; but by the activity of the police the pavement in the
principal streets were cleared early in the day, and thus
rendered walking less dangerous than it would have been
had the snow been allowed to accumulate. The fall of
snow in the south must have been greater than in our neigh-
bourhood, as the Dumfries mail was some hours behind the
usual time of its arrival.—Edinburgh Courant.
PLUNDER OF THE TROUGHTON.—The follow-
ing is an extract relative to the plunder of the Troughton
Chinaman :—" We shall endeavour to obtain a reduction
or entire relief of port-charges on the Troughton, which
we are led to believe will be accorded on a petition to the
Hoppo, &c. The exertions of the Chinese authorities
have been successful in capturing some of the piratical
boats, with dollars concealed in their ballast, &c. ; and it
is confidently affirmed that the entire party concerned in
the plunder will be taken. We fear but few of the dollars
will be restored. At present we cannot state the actual
plunder, but believe 21 cases of dollars. The captain's
money, watches, &c., some cases of watches, clothes, &c.,
pare the rinciple articles."
In a child at the age of six months a soft tumour
was observed to grow from the front of the alveolar pro-
cess of the upper jaw. Sir Astley Cooper removed the
tumour ; but it grew again and gradually became hard.
The subject of the disease grew up a fine young woman,
but for the deformity occasioned by the tumour, which
was an inch and a half thick, and two in breadth, and
projecting two inches and a half, pressed the upper lip
against the nose. At the age of 19 the patient consulted
me. As the tumour had now ceased to grow for five
years, with the, concurrence of Sir A. Cooper I removed
it. It proved to be an exostosis of cancellated but ex-
tremely hard bone ; three years have now elapsed. but
the tumour has not returned.—Mayo's Outline§ of Human
Pathology