The Sun.
London, England, 1849-10-30 00:00:00

N,

river, but more especially on the City side, the
wharfs, jetties, windows, steps, terraces, roofs,
avenues, streets, &c., as also the decks of steamers,
barges and boats, from the water's edge to the line of
procession, and the bridges and piers, were densely
crowded with the teeming population of this mighty
metropolis.

THE DISEMBARKATION.

"We left Booby on the 25th July. I went all
over the island, and found tWo holes on the top of
it, which I went down, and discovered two most
beautiful little wells, with a quantity of not by any
means bad water."

COURTS-MARTIAL IN NEW ZEALAND.
(From the Southern Cross, May 19.)
Captain C. H. M. Smith was appointed by the local
Goverment a resident magistrate for the pensioner set-
tlements, and Lieut. 0. W. Gray was appointed a
justice of the peace ; that in the discharge of his
duties in :that capacity Lieutenant Gray was in the
habit of attending the bench of magistrates at Howick
on the court days ; that some time in November of
last year, Captain Smith and Lieutenant Gray being
both sitting for the adjudication of cases in the Court
House, at Howick, a case of debt was called on, in
which a civilian, named Tatam, was the complainant,
and a pensioner, named Lynch, who held a pub-
lican's licence, was defendant ; that the com-
plainant, previous to the case being gone into,
objected to Captain Smith sitting upon his case, al-
leging that Captain Smith was a partner of the
defendant Lynch in his public house, and that he
(Captain Smith) was, in consequence, prejudiced in
favour of the defendant. Upon this statement being
made, and Captain Smith declining to take any steps
to punish the contempt of court, or to vindicate
the purity of the bench thus grossly insulted,
Lieutenrnt Gray, as a justice of the peace,
communicated to the Colonial Secretary, the fact
of such an accusation having been made against
a magistrate while sitting on the bench, and
that the magistrate had taken no notice of it. This
communication was then brought before the Execu-
tire Council, when Lieutenant Gray was called upon
by that body to prove the charge against Captain
Smith of being in partnership with Lynch. Lieu-
tenant Gray stated that he had made no such
charge against Captain Smith; that he simply
brought under the notice of the Government
the fact of a charge so disgraceful having been
made in open court, and that no steps
had been taken to vindicate the character of
the magistrate, or the purity of the bench of
which he was a member • that he knew nothing as
to the truth or falsehood of the charge itself. Upon
this the Executive Council decided that Lieutenant
Gray had failed to prove his charge against Captain
Smith, and that Captain Smith was exonerated from
all blame. In the interim, the written desire of the
Government that Lieut. Gray should prove the charge
made by Tatam against Captain Smith, appears to
have put him (Lieutenant Gray) on the qui vivo to
ascertain the truth or falsehood of that charge, and
while seeking for the necessary proof, the man Barry,
who has been so conspicuous throughout these pro-
ceedings, sent word to him that he could give impor-
tant information. The information given by Barry,
if true, went to prove so serious an amount of em-
bezzlement against Captain Smith, that the original
charge appears to have been totally lost sight of
by all parties. Upon the information given by
Barry, supported and confirmed, as Lieutenant
Gray supposed it to be, by other testimony
the charges, as laid before the first court-martial,
were transmitted by Lieutenant Gray to the com-
manding officer of pensioners, Major Gray; by him they
were forwarded to the governor-in-chief; and thence
they found their way to the major-general command-
ing, and from him they were returned to Major Gray,
with orders to bring Captain Smith to a court-mar-
tial upon them, and to make Lieutenant Gray the
prosecutor.
The court-martial took place, and Captain Smith
was honourably acquitted; and subsequently Lieut.
Gray was arraigned before a similar tribunal, the re-
sult of which will be se n from the following extracts
from brigade orders :--

Of all the scenes we have ever witnessed that
which occurred to-day on the Custom House
Quay is the most amusing and ridiculous.
The arrangements for the disembarkation were of
the most faulty and defective nature. True, the
quay itself and the many approaches to it were
elaborately and tastefully fitted up, but
neither, the police nor those who had
the immediate control of the ceremonies observed
anything like order or civility, and the scene, though
gorgeous and imposing, was ever and anon disturbed
with noisy altercations between parties who had
been favoured with tickets, but could not be accom-
modated with seats, and busy bewildered officials.
It was with the utmost difficulty that we secured a
standing place at al!. Our card of admission
was treated with derision, and neither entreaties nor
persuasion commanded respect from the military
police or the civic functionaries. At length, however,
our importunities becoming rather troublesome to
the individual who had charge of the main
entrance, we were favoured with a back seat in the
vicinity of Billingsgate, shut out from the river, and
where nothing could be seen, and where we were kept
a prisoner till the Prince and the procession had passed
into the Exchange. " Thank God," we mentally
ejaculated, "it is over at last, now we may have a
chance of escaping from a hole-and-corner posi-
tion, and taking a hurried view of the river." But
how sadly were we mistaken; an order was given
that no one was to be allowed to leave their seats til 1
the procession had returned ; and again we
had fruitlessly to exercise the humble powers
of persuasion we are gifted with to con-
vince a policeman and a private in the
Artillery Company, of the absurdity of keeping us
imprisoned when we ought to be penning a feeble
description of what had been going forward. Alas, it
was all to no purpose, the policemen said " them
is my orders, and the millintaries too, you can't stir,'
and at the risk of being arrested or breaking our
necks, or drowning, we forced our way through the
crowd, scaled a wall, dropped into a boat, and then,
with the aid of a boatman, effected a landing cn
Nicholson's Wharf.
The river, of which we could obtain only
an occasional glimpse, was literally bristling
with craft of every conceivable size and
description, all swarming with men, women,
and children attired in the gayest fashions of
the day. To the westward, London Bridge could
be seen peering up above the masts of vessels,
thronged of course from end to end ; while

the tops of the buildings on either side
of the Thames as far as the eye could reach were
alive with eager spectators. On the quay, besides the
band of the Grenadier Guards, there were several
others equally numerous and efficient, and their
splendid performances served well to relieve
the tedium of the morning. The distance from

the landing stairs to the great entrance to the
Exchange was covered in with illuminated: glazed
calico, galleries being fitted up on each side
for the accommodation of those who were fortunate
enough to obtain tickets, and were earliest on the
ground, of course every available spot from
which even a glance at the illustrious visi-
tors could be secured was occupied. The
passage was guarded by the Royal Artillery,
Company, who, although under the command of
Captain Fitzroy, M.P., handled their arms and exe-
cuted their evolutions in a somewhat clumsy manner,
to the no small amusement of the ladies, while files of
the Grenadier Guards were stationed immediately on
the quay, and surrounding the landing-
place, which had been erected for the
occasion, and which was gaily decorated with banners,
shrubs, and flowers.

" At a general. court-martial, held at Auckland,
New Zealand, on the 2d day of April, 1849, and of
which general court-martial Lieutenant-Colonel
Daniel Bolton, Royal Engineers, was President,
Lieutenant Owen Wynne Gray, staff officer of New
Zealand Enrolled Pensioners, appeared a prisoner on
the following charge, viz.:—
" For scandalous and infamous conduct unbecom-
ing the character of an officer and a gentleman, in
getting up and attempting to support, in an un-
justifiable and improper manner, disgraceful charges
against his senior officer, Captain Charles Henry
Montressor Smith, staff officer of New Zealand
Pensioners, which harges so got up, and so attempted
to be supported by Lieutenant Owen Wynne Gray,
were found by the general court-martial by which
they were investigated at Auckland, New Zealand,
from the Bth day of February to the 31 day of March,
1849, to be totally without foundation; such conduct
on the part of Lieutenant Gray being subversive of
all discipline and subordination in the pensioner corps,
and calculated to bring discredit on her Majesty's
service.'

LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, OCTOBER 30 1849

GREAT FIRE at the MODEL ESTABLISH-
MENT of BATHS and WASIIHO USES.
Last evening, at a few minutes past six o'clock, a
fire broke out in the extensive premises erected by the
Committee for Promoting the Establishment of Baths
and Washhouses for the Labouring Classes, situate in
Gouiston-square, Whitechapel. The flames com-
menced in orul of the dryingheuses, a temporary
building of timber, erected by the committee for the
purpose of testing its efficacy previous to building a
more substantial compartment. Contiguous to this
erection was the washing department, containing 84
washtubs, and on one side stood the mangling.
houses, and on the other the ironing compartment.
The whole extended in one direction about 100 feet,
and in the other 75 feet.
The poor women who had been at work at the
baths during the day having left, the dr)inghoute
was filled, as was the usual custom, with towels to dry.
This dryinghouse was heated by means of two
radiating stoves, and there is little doubt entertained
that the heat of these machines was the cause of the
terrible fire we are about to narrate.
At the time stated above some of the managing men
of the establishment were greatly alarmed by per-
ceiving a dense mass 'of smoke pouring through the
different passages leading to the various compartments
in the extensive range of premises. Upon gaining
the dryinghouse the whole of the horses used for
drying the clothes were, together with the linen
hanging thereon, found to be enveloped in flames.
Over this building were several large tanks, contain-
ing in the whole upwards of 3,000 gallons of water,
and in order to guard against the ravages of fire the
ccmmittee had proper engineitiose attached to these
tanks, so that in the event of an outbreak a ready
supply might be brought to bear upon the flames.
The first thing attempted by the persons belonging
to the premises was to fly to the hose connected with
the tanks, and scatter the water over the flames.
Unfortunately, although the roof was formed of iron,
the ceiling was constructed of timber, and the flames
having reached this, they travelled along the top
of the building almost with the rapidity of
lightning, and so intense was the heat from the
flames that the glass windows in the ceiling quickly
became broken, when the fire rushed through the
openings in immense bodies, rising so high into the
air as to threaten destruction to the whole of the sur-
rounding houses.
Not a moment was lost in sending information of
the misfortune to the engine stations, and forthwith
the machines from Whitechapel and Aldgate parish
reached the spot, followed in rapid succession by nu- ,
merous engines' of the London Brigade, with Mr.
Braidwood, the superintendent, and Mr. Fogo, the
foreman of the district. The West of England engine
and firemen, under the direction of Mr. Connorton,
were also remarkably early in arriving.
The firemen ther found that the flames bad ob-
tained too strong a hold to be easily extinguished ;
but fortunately there was an abundant supply of water
obtained from the plugs of the East London Company's
works, with which the firemen set their machines in
full play. By order of the superior officers, the hoses
of some of the engines were conveyed through the
front baths, and were brought to bear upon the great
seat of fire, whilst a number of firemen were at the
same time sent up the scaling ladders to mount that
portion of the roof not in flames. By so doing they
were enabled to scatter many thousand gallons of
water at once upon the fire, but, in spite of every ex-
ertion, the work of devastation continued, and it was
not till after nine o'clock that the flames could be
conquere3.

TEMPERANCE DEMONSTRATIONS. CHOLERA AND DIARRMEA
The second of a series of " Great Temperance
Demonstrations" was held lust night in Exeter Hall. ENGLAND AND WALES.
The subject of address was " The Influence of the I The following is the Return of Deaths from Cholera and
Temperance Movement on the Extension of Religion Diarrhoea reported to the General Board of Health
at Home and Abroad, and the Moral Obligation of October 29, 1849 :
professing Christians to promote it." SUPERINTENDING REGISTRAR'S DISTRICT.
Mr. JOHN CASSELL was called to the chair; and DeathlL
in the course of a lengthened address he endeavoured Cholera. Diarrh.
to show that all the most eminent characters in Bible ••• 0 1
2
„,
history were total abstainers from strong drinks. In 0
• 1 0
our own country there was consumed every year a
••
quantity of intoxicating liquors sufficient to make a ••• 2 0
••• 0 5
river 3 feet deep, 30 feet wide, and 168 miles. Need
..• we wonder, under such circumstances, at the existing
••• 0 0
1
amount of crime, pauperism, and prostitution ? Ile
••• 8 0
reckoned that England alone contained 600,000 con-
0 1
firmed drunkards, and that there were 60,000 deaths
annually from this sole cause. Here then was an ob-
vious curse, that ought to be forthwith arrested ; and
should not society at once combine to arrest the de•
stroyer ? It was useless to preach the Gospel to the
drunkard; it might as well be preached to the insane.
The mind of the drunkard might be compared to a
great bog or morass. To such a mind the Gospel
might be preached in vain, for there was no adapta-
tion of the soil to the seed. But let the machinery
of temperance be applied to the making of tee-total
drains, let it dig the dyke of total abstinence, to
drain men's brains of alcohol, and immediately the
soil would become adapted to the seed, and the
drunkard cry out for higher sources of gratification.
Teetotalism was indeed a pioneer of the Gospel; and
it would be found to contribute to the salvation of the
world, by removing one of the greatest obstacles that
ever obstructed the progress of Divine truth.
The Rev. W. MORTON, late missionary at Calcutta,
in narrating the results of his own observation and
experience in the East Indies, remarked that
a majority of the population of those regions
were water-drinkers, but strong drinks had been
introduced by Europeans among the lower classes,
and he was sorry to say that this vice had been so
encouraged by the Government, that they had
been compelled to resort to the licensing system. To
such an extent had the evil amounted, that at length
a native millionaire in Calcutta had, within the last
few years, headed a temperance movement among the
native population, avowedly to stem the tide of
drunkenness which Europeans had introduced. This
man was a heathen, a very heathen of heathens ; and
he need not enlarge upon the lesson which this simple
fact read to professing Christians. In our own
country population was increasing faster than con-
version—in other words, conversions were not pro-
ceeding so as to overtake the rapidly increasing po-
pulation. What, then, was required to aid and in-
crease the spread of the Gospel ? He had no hesita-
tion in saying it was the general adoption of total
abstinence from all intoxicating drinks.
Mr. D. G. PAINE, of Deptford, was the next Witham (Coggeshall)
speaker, and be strongly urged the truth and im- Witney, Burford- --
portance of the principle of abstinence. Wolstanf,--
The Rev. SAMUEL DUNN, late member of the sr-
Wesleyan Conference, who was received with very
warm congratulations, in impressing upon the meet-
ing the virtue of total abstinence, gave the results
of his personal experience in that respect. lie
stated that he had never drank a glass of brandy,
rum, or gin, smoked a cigar or pipe, or taken a
pinch of snuff in his life. He had now passed his
fiftieth year. During his time he had travelled as many
miles, preached as many sermons, delivered as many lec-
tures, seen as much public service in various climes un-
der various circumstances, by night and day, by sea and
land, as most ordinary men, but never had tasted
strong drink. Yet the present was the first total
abstinence meeting at which he had ever spoken—a
fact which he attributed to certain restrictions in the
existing practice of Methodist society.
The Rev. JOHN KIRK, of Edinburgh, addressed
the meeting at some length upon the influence of the
drinking customs of society upon the spiritual in-
terests of the classes engaged in the trade of dealing
in strong drinks. These classes were
.represented as
requiring all the energies of the advocates of the ab-
stinence cause ; and he said it was remarkable that
when individals belonging to them became sensible of
their spiritual condition, they all feel obliged to forsake
the trade.

Ashton-under-Lyne ...
Aylsham (Cottishall)...
Belford
Barwick
••• •
Birmingham ...
Blackburn ...
Bradford (Allerton)
Bridgewater ...
Bridport
Clifton Union (St. Philip and
Jacob) .
Clutton (Midsummer Norton)
Cockermouth (Maryport dis.)
Darlington ...
Dartford
...
Doncaster ...
Dudley, Tipton, Sedgley, and
Rowley Regis ...
Eccleshall (Bierlow)
Goole (Swinefleet) ..•
Haslingden (Accrington district)
Hastings (Ore) ..•
Hexham
Huddersfield (Meltham dis.) ...
Huntingdon (Sawtry)
•••
Knaresborough
Lancaster (Skelton) ...
Leeds
Lexden (Copford)
Liverpool ...
Manchester ...

••• '....•

•••

Newark ••• ••• •••
••• • •
Newbury . , --
North Witchford (Cbatteris)... •-
Newton Abbott (Torquay)
Portsea (Kingston and Land-
port districts)
Preston •.• •••
Rotherham (Marsbrough) ...
Salford (Regent-road) •••
Sculcoates (Dry pool)
Sheffield (Randsworth)
South Shields (Westoe)
Stourbridge
Tadcaster (Aberford)
Thorne ••• •••
Thrapston (Titcbmarsh)
Totnes (Brisham)
Tynemouth (Earadon distriet)
Wakefield (Stanley) Walsall •••
(Borough) ...
West Bromwich and Oldbury
Westbury ...
West Derby (Walton-on-the
Hill district)
••• •••
Whitehaven (St. Bees district)
Wigan ...
• ••
Witham (Coggeshall)• •••
Witney, Burford, and Fulbrook
Wolstanton (Tunstall district)
Wolverhampton (Willenhall)

• • • ••••••

p.• .....

••• ....

Total ...

et.

SCOTLAND, OCT. 27.
Panbride, Oct. 24 and 25
Hawick

•. • • • • --.
OCT. 29.

Panbride ... ... ~,
Edinburgh (week ending Oct. 27)--

Total ...

The CHAIRMAN announced the subject of address
at the next " Demonstration," on the first Monday
in December, to be " the importance of the tempe-
rance reformation in connexicn with the Sunday
schools and Sabbath school teaching ;" and after a
doxology had been sung, the meeting separated.