The Sun.
London, England, 1849-09-11 00:00:00

S
aigh I have noticed a , agreeable expression of
tenanco in some of the men. Their wigwams are
far holes, covered with branch:s of trees and
need with mud.
As regards their religion it is difficult
idea. They have an idea of a good .nd.k2 Writ! t,
former is called Pais' in their language, and they
aat the eagle (which abounds in the couniry) is his
aster. The name of the evil spirit I could rot
camprehend from their articulation being so impera cr,
but they said that the -fox was his minister. They direct
no prayers to the good spirit, because they say that he
will do them no harm; and all tin it sup.
plications are made to the evil one. They lists
a very curious funeral rite, which is that of homing the
body; and upon making irquiry why this was done, they
said that the spirit of the deceased ascended to the sky
in the smoke of the body. The corpse is placed upon a
funeral pile of wood, and the Indians sing a low mono-
tonous song during the time oc: its being censunat d. The
mourning is even more singular than this net emony.
When a person dies the women relations of the deceased
cut off their hair, and smear their heads, necks, and
breasts with pine pitch mixed with charcoal, painting
also a streak upon the nose, and one underneath each of
the eyes. This paint is allowed to fall off by time, and
as long as it exists the term of mourning continues.
"Each tribe has its own separate and distinct lan•
gunge, and this is not at all similar to any other lan-
guage which I have ever heard in my travels amongst
the Indians of Peru, Bolivia, or Chili. It is, hoWever,
by no means harsh, but on the contrary, their words
appear to contain a great many vowels. They are ex •
ceedingly jealous of their squaws, though those ladies
are but little calculated to tempt any Lotharius who may
reside temporarily in their vicinity at the mines."
The following I took down from my friend's dic-
tation
I will conclude with the mention of perhaps the most
remarkable fact connected with this remarkable country,
which is, that although we are entirely without laws or
authority in the mines (as indeed is the case in all other
parts of tho country), and although the miners are gene-
rally composed of a bold, daring, and adventurous race,
a code of honour and justice has been voluntarily esta-
blished amongst themselves, which is strictly observed.
No miner encroaches upon the washing-ground of his
neighbour, although he sees sometimes that it is vastly
richer than his own. Robbery has been hitherto en-
tirely unknown; and you leave your tent, containing
your goods, provisions, and gold (the latter buried, how-
ever), and go out to your labour without leaving behind
any other safeguard than the good faith of your neigh-
bours, which on the river Juba has never been violated;
though, in case of violation, it has been agreed upon by
all that summary and severe chastisement would follow.
The penalty of a conviction of robbery before a jury of
miners would be certain and speedy death by hanging to
a bough of the nearest tree."
I omitted to mention in the proper place that the
gold of the Juba is contained in a fine black sand,
containing oxide of iron in abundance, which can be
extracted easily with the loadstone, after the gold has
been washed clean with water.
Although I know the foregoing narrative to be
true, for I have had the facts corroborated by many
witnesses, yet I am bound to warn such of your
readers as its perusal might dispose to leave their
homes for this land of promise, that gold digging is
a most laborious and almost killing occupation. The
narrator is a gentleman—a scientific man—with
ample means at his command, and Chi!ean-Perus, or
semi-serfs from his own estate, who look upon him as
they would on a small deity. They row his launches
and boats against rapid streams and strong currents,
saddle his horses, cook his food, and dig Ins gold.
They carry on all the material operation. His is the
mental labour only. Far different is the task of the
poor working gold digger. After he gets, by great
labour and at a considerable expense, to the scene of
operations, his hard work really only begins. He must
be constantly in the water to carry on the operation of
washing gold; and the work which is performed in a
stooping posture, is so bard, that while his feet are im-
mersed in cold water the upper part of his body is
streaming Nvith profuse perspiration, with a burning
sun over head. Then his living, unless he spends the
best portion of his earnings, is poor and very expen-
sive, and his lodging is oftener thin not on the cold
ground. Then again, he may not be successful. All
arc not lucky. Gold-finding is like gambling—the
dice may throw high, or they may beggar the
player. In short, the English navigator, the Scottish
ditch:flan, and the Irish hodinan, w ill do well at
digging, if they do not overwork themselves ; but to
all others I would say, " Leave well alone." It is
madness to a man who cannot sleep out under a tree,
eat the hardest of fare, and endure great fatigue, to
turn a working gold miner.
The best route for emigrants from Great Britain is
round Cape Horn. All other routes are expern,ive
and uncertain, and have hitherto led to great delay
and inc)nvenience.—Times.

THE REGISTRATIONS.
CITY OF LONDON.
The objections taken and claims mace in the city of
London this year, for the Revising Barrister to dispose
of, are as follow:

ECTIONS.
Persons objected to as not entitled to have their
names retained on the list of persons entitled
to vote as freemen of the City, and liverymen
of the several companies .
Ditto, as inhabitant householders

... 235
... 1,971

2,206

CLAIMS.
Persons claiming to have their names inserted on
the list of persons entitled to vote as freemen
and liver}•men ... ...
Ditto, as inhabitant householders

... 4
... 276

2SO

TOWER HAMLETS.
Mr. MlChristie will revise the list of voters for the
borough of the ToNer Hamlets, for Members to serve in
Parliament, on Saturday next, the 15th inst., in the
Court house in Wellclose-square, commencing at ten
o'clock in the morning. The objections and claims in
this borough are but few.

WESTERN AFRICA. Letters from St. Louis
(Senegal), of July 25, give the details of a sanguinary
engagement which had taken place between the French
troops and the inhabitants of the village of Fraucyez
(Fonts Tore), some distance up the river. The people
from tho neighbouring villages had joined them to re-
sit invasion of the French, and encouraged by a
victory which their countrymen had gained over the
French some forty years since, the negroes waited the
approach of their assailants with great firmness, not
firing a single shot until the expedition was within
eighty yards of them. The blacks were protected be-
hind barricades, and nothing but the muzzles of their
muskets were visible. At length the firing began, and
for twenty minutes the most determined resistance was
made; at length, the cannon having partly demolished
the barricade's, a charge was ordered, and they were
soon carried at the point of the bayonet, when a general
rout too place, the blacks throwing away their arms, and
jumping into the river to swim to the opposite bank.
Several discharges of grape were made at them, and a
number of them were killed, atter which the village and
all the fields of tuaizt) were set fire to and destroyed. The
loss of the bl4eks is considered to have been very peat,
although only fifty of their bodies were found, the rest
having been thrown into the river. The loss of the ex-
petlitiun amounted to 4 killed and about 30 wounded, 17
of whoine were Europeans. The Governor himself was
wounded, but not seri,usly, just as he was mounting his
horse.

ELOPLIVENT EXTRAONDINARY.—The inhabitants of
Nottingham!, especially those moving in the middle and
higher spkeres of life, have during the last few days been
greatly astounded, ia consequ, nee of o,e tudden disap-
pc:trance from amongst them. under vs ry extraordinary
circumstances, of one of their most highly-respected
fellow-townsmen, Mr. Robert Pat ker, cotton agent. I;
seems that about a fortnight since Mr. Parker went with
his wife to Cleethorpes, where he left her, promising to
fetch her home within a brief specified time; but net
keeping his engagement, inquiries were made for him by
his fr lads, who, to their great consternati,..n, found that
he had not only left the town, but that he had actually
embarked per steuncr f ,r the United States, taking with
him property in merchandise, a large amount of cash,
and a girl in her teens. Mr. Parker is C 2 years of age,
and has b, en married upwards of 40 years. The girl
wilt whom ho has eloped was recently his kitchenmaid_ ,
and is by no means either ladylike or good-looking.. t
would appear that he had been fascinated with the girl'sa..
charms for some time previous, for about 12 months „oo
his placed her with Mrs. Fut eller, on the Long row,
c,sc
rt-
learn the millinery business, and washoeften
large amount of
ing her to her lodgings. Owing
rtoe t
cash taken away, it is to be
bankers,
d thatLfr. Parker's
and Mr. Kirk, his
creditorv, especially
by his absence. The
partner, will sufier v
behindseriouslyerythat might have been readily
his
colurlYrl,,ds sum
mir wl .1:: a crtie(ikueer,foar
n3do Ovs/..heiec, chl o
rues.•.cd i
oaunnedn N• el
withino e.
directed to Mrs.
the family Bible. The defaulter had no
children, leavesildr of
n,but he and his wife had Lrought up and edu-
cated several orphans. By Mr. Par leer's absence from
Nottingham, it is feared Ova the litigated bankruptcy
case Wakefield and Co., which involves great liabili-
ties, anti in which he was one of the trade assignees, will
be greatly impeded.
It is underitool that the United Mexican Mining
Company are endeavouring to get an arragernent with
the Mex:can Government for a liquidation of their Za-
catecas el,!irns, and, with the view of obtaining the pro-
per attention of the authorities on the subject, a commu-
nication has been addressed to Lord Palmerston. The
answer received to this letter is, so far as it goes, satis-
factory, inasmuch as Mr. Addington says ho is "directed
to state that an instruction has been sent to Mr. Doyle,
her Majesty's Charge d'Affaires in Mexico, desiring
him again to press upon the Mexican Government tl:o
claims of certain British subjects residing at Zacatecas,
on account of the exaction of a forced contribution under
the Mexican there() of June 17, 1847."
CHATHAM, MONDAY.—The cholera has appeared
hare. Deaths tuck place yesterday—one, a woman in
perfect health at the racecourse the day before, went
home and was immediately taken, and in a few hours
was a corpse; another, an elderly woman, who had
been very assiduous in assisting the persons who recently
died of cholera in Carolina-square, Richard-street, was
attache I and died yesterday. Several other deaths have
also taken place in Hogg-lane—the lane where so many
died two or three weeks since; there are, in different
parts of the town, a number of rersons suffering under
the milady.