The Sun.
London, England, 1825-01-05 00:00:00

PEDESTRIANISM.

Mr. R. Abernethy, the best pedestrian of 150 miles of his
day, completed his Herculean labour, through all the late in-
clement weather, of going on foot 560 miles in eight days, for
21) sovereigns. He reached Wandsford, in Lincolnshire, on
Saturday night, hut much reduced and lame, although in good
health. His travels were from Huntingdon to the north of the
Tweed. He did 60 miles the first day, 71 the second, 73 the
third, 76 the fourth, 69 the fifth, 70 the sixth, 82 the seventh,
and 39 the eight. The pedestrian had much difficulty in gett-
ing over his ground the last day, and could not have gone ten
miles further.

PHANTom.—The progeny of this celebrated horse won,
during the last year, no less a sum than 13,225/. Of this sum,
Sir John Shc:lly's Cedric won 5,g801. and Lord Jersey's Cob-
web won 3,150. Phantom is now 16 years old, and quite
blind ; his owner is a well-known eccentric divine, with whom
he is as playful as a young kitten. He is a winner of the Derby,
sire of Spectre (the best horse of his year), and his owner says,
" every person of rank or celebrity has an interest in kis pro-
geny." His person is deemed perfect symmetry. Five of his
sons are entered for the Derby Stakes next year two of which
stand high on the betting list, and there are also two entered
for the St. Leger. Phantom's sire was Walton, out of Julia,
sister to Eleanor.

HONEST MOTTO.—Persons retired from busi-
ness generally feel anxious to conceal the mode
by which they have acquired their wealth. Mr.
GILLEsrIE, a tobacconist of Edinburgh, afforded,
however, an honourable exception. Having ac-
quired au ample fortune by the tale of snuff, at
the close of the American war, he set up a car-
riage ; and, lest the public or himself should for-
get how he had acquired the means of keepiug
one, to arms of three snuff-bores rampant, he
added the following doggrel couplet as a motto :
" Who would have thought it,
That noses could have bought it."

NEW CHURCHES IN THE HIGHLANDS AND
IS LA ND S.—Measures are now in progress for the accomplish-
ment of the patriotic and • pious purposes of the Legislature,
in constructing additional places of worship in the Highlands
of Scotland. Some of the Highland parishes are from 20
to 50 miles wide, and with all the obstruction of lakes, rivers,
and mountains, the inhabitants in many places are utterly
debarred from an attendance on Divine Service, while
the Clergyman of the parish is prevented from visiting his
parishioners by obstacles as formidable to him as to them-
selves. There are about forty churches to he erected in dif-
ferent parts of this country, to each of which will be appointed
a minister, with a manse, and salary of 1201, a year. This
important undertaking is to be carried into effect by those
Commissioners to whom the Highlands are already so deeply
indebted for their ability and success in completing the grand
schemes of the Caledonian Canal and the Parliamentary roads
and bridges ; and the clergymen are to exercise their clerical
functions within certain bounds to be fixed by the Commissioners
The plans and surveys are now in progress, under the super-
intendence of Mr. Joseph Mitchell, and Mr. James Smith of
this town, and it is expected that operations will be commenced
early in the spring.—( /nverne„ Courier.)

RAM HU 511'1 NG AT ETON CO LLEGE.—The Rev.
W. COLE, the antiquary, in one of his MSS. which he be-
queathed to the British Museum, gives the following account
of a singular sport at Eton about the middle of the last cen-
tury :—" When I was at Eton College," he says, " there
was a custom at election time, about the beginning of August,
to hunt a ram from the College play-fields as far as he would
run, sometimes to Windsor Park wall, over the bridge ; the
boys having a ram bludgeon, or stick knotted by ivy having
grown about it, numbers of which are sold from the neighbour-
ing woods; with these they used to knock the ram down. The
late Duke of CUMBERLAND honoured one of these buntings
with his presence. The ram was afterwards made into a pasty,
and served up in the hall, in the feastings of election week,
probably more venison than mutton put into it. What gave
occasion to this singular custom I never heard; but a practice
somewhat similar is still preserved at Orleans, where the Lord
of the Manor of Bapaume presents a ram to the bean of the
collegiate church of St. Peter en Ponet, on the eve-of the
Ascension."