The Sun.
London, England, 1847-04-12 00:00:00

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ties of the country. It is not, therefore, a matter )4011
wondered at, that parties, having control over money • -4
invested in the Funds should reali'e part of it, and take
Railway Debentures instead ; thus in some instances
very nearly doublirg their annum incomes. The pro-
phetic warnings of a terrible Lnd inevitable crash from
the railway mania have hitherto passed off like a dream,
and for the unfortunate state of Ireland, as respects the
supply of food, and the necessary consequences resulting
from purchases
cipcuormchmaseersta,
to meet the wants of the people, Eng-
shipping, and other leading interests,
would have been bright indeed.

EAST SOMERSET ELECTION.
The election for the eastern division of the county
of Somerset to fill up the vacancy occasioned by the
lamented decease of the late member, Colonel William
Gore Langton, took place at the Ass'ze Hall, Wells, on
Saturday.
Esq., appeared upon the hustings, accompanied
Shortly after eleven o'clock, the candidate, William
Pinney,
by his friends Captain Scobell, R.N., and the Hon. Major
Boyle.
Captain Scoam proposed William Pinney, Esq., of
Somerton Erleigb, as a fit and proper person to repre-
sent the eastern division of tho county in Parliament.
The Hon. Major BOYLE seconded the nomination of
Mr. Pinney.
No other candidate having been proposed, the High
Sheriff declared William Pinney, Esq., to be duly elected
to serve as a member for the eastern division of the
county.
Mr. PINNEY then rose, and having thanked the elec-
tors for the honour done him, said it might be expected
that he should allude briefly to some of the principal
questions which now engrossed the public mind.
And first, then, was the question of protection. He
had never been of opinion that protection would be
beneficial to the farmer, but that, on the contrary, it
would (more especially to the grazing farmer) tend
greatly to injure him. He had, therefore, never been in
favour of its maintenance. They might now turn their
attention to the other measures which had been brought
forward by the great protection leader to rally them to
the poll. They first saw the Protectionist party favour-
ing the annihilation of the independence of Cracow by
the Russian despot—a course which he thought would
not meet with the support of the people of this country.
Then their voting for the application of sixteen millions
of the public money for the construction of railways in
Ireland. Another question which excited much in-
terest was the endowment of the Roman Catholic clergy.
The question was one upon which he wished to keep
himself open, to which he would give every attention,
and upon which he would act to the best of his judg-
ment. With regard to the Government education ques-
tion, he considered that her Majesty's Ministers had
acted fairly and honestly between all parties—they had
dealt equally between the Church and the Dissenter,
and had given no favour to either. Some details might
require alteration, but the measure was based on sound
principles—the principles of justice and equality, of civil
and religious liberty. Mr. Pinney concluded by again
thanking them for the high honour which they had con-
ferred upon him.—(Cheers.)
The Hon. Member was then girt with the sword, and
the business terminated.

THE WINDOW-TAX and IRELAND.
The interest which sanatory questions is now awaken-
ing will, we hope direct increased attention to the
oppressive and injurious window-tax. The following
petition has been put in circulation by Mr. Richard
Holwell :
" TO THE HONOURABLE THE HOUSE OF COMMONS
IN PARLIAMENT ASSEMBLED.
" The humble petition of the undersigned inhabitants
of the Parliamentary borough of the city and
borough of Exeter—Sheweth,
" That one of your Honourable Members for Bath
(Mr. Roebuck) has very clearly and efficiently pointed
out in his seat in the House of Commons, that the land-
lords and tradesmen, officials, &c., &c., do not, in her
Majesty's kingdom, called Ireland, pay any assessed
taxes of any kind, or any income or property-tax
whatever.
" That in the part of her Majesty's dominions, called
England, all her subjects who have 1501. per annum and
upwards, pay aid. and 7d. in the pound thereon, also all
the assessed taxes and window duties.
" This your petitioners consider extremely unjust, im-
politic and unfair, to the great detriment of good opinion
and respect (which is the best safeguard of the Three
Estates), that every endeavour is faithfully used by the
Legislature for equal justice to all subjects in this realm.
" We, therefore, submit respectfully that your Honour-
able, House will, without loss of time, remit us the
window duties and assessed taxes, and in lieu thereof
put on an income and property-tax on all property, trades,
professions, and offices in Ireland exactly as in England,
which we are well assured will add a great appreciation
of good Government, and much to her Majesty's crown
and dignity, in the affection of her dutiful subjects,—
and your petitioners will ever pray, &c. &c.
(Signed) "RICHARD HOLWELL.
&c. &c. &c."

10, Salutary-place.

LADIES' CARRIAGES.—It is the intention of the di-
rectors o f the Great Western Railway to set apart one
division of a first-class carriage in every train for the
exclusive accommodation of ladies who travel without a
male companion. By this arrangement ladies with
first-class tickets, should they prefer this secluded
mode of travelling, will be able to avail themselves of
it, e.r.d tour incurring annnyaneoe whiolz
sometimes happen on the best regulated railways.
THE COBDEN NATIONAL TRIBUTE FUND.—Since
the last advertisement of subscriptions to this fund, we
find that 559/. have been added, including 1001. from Mr.
Jedediah Strutt, of Belper, and 501. from Messrs. Petrie
and Co., of Rochdale. The subscriptions are from many
places, principally, however, from Hull, Belper, and Dun-
fermline, and chiefly in small sums. The total amount of
of the subscriptions, as advertised here, now reaches
60,6921.—Manchester Guardian.
STATE OF THE FRENCH CORN MARKET.—lntelli-
gence from Havre, dated Thursday evening, announces
that the price of flour had risen on that day rapidly, and
that but little wheat was in the market. New Orleans
flour, which on Monday paid 48f. the barrel, was sold on
Thursday morning at 51f., and in the evening at 52E
and 52t. 50c. A great number of purchasers had ar-
rived from Paris and Lower Normandy. The Nicolas,
from New Orleans, has come into port with 3,000 barrels
of flour and 1,100
.hectos. of wheat. At Montvilliers,
near Havre, had risen lf. to lf. 50C. the hecto.
The quantity of wheat exposed for sale is stated not to
have exceeded 250 sacks. From Lisle we learn that
wheat has fallen 84c. the hecto. This downward move-
ment was attributed
.principally to the fact of the Societ6
de Prevoyance having exposed a certain quantity for
sale. At Coulommiers (Seine-et-Marne) there was a
slight fall. At Valenciennes quotations were firm, but
little business doing. Yesterday, in the Paris market,
scarcely anything was done, both buyers and sellers
seeming determined to wait for the prices of this day. It
was said that purchasers had arrived from Orleans, where
the supplies were beginning to run short.
KING'S COLLEGE, LONDON.--The Council of this
College have appointed Mr. Fearon, late interpreter to
the Chamber of Commerce at Canton, and Registrar
General at Hong Kong, to the Professorship of Chinese,
lately founded for the instruction of missionaries and
others intending to proceed to the dependencies of the
British Crown in China. The professor intends com-
mencing his course of lectures on Wednesday, the 20th
instant.

FALL IN THE PRICE OF BREAD.—Throughout the
metropolis on Saturday a reduction of kd. was made in
the price of bread both of the first and second quality.
A corresponding reduction was of course also made in
the price of flour, &c.
EXTRAORDINARY ATTEMPT AT SUICIDE IN
Copeland, a man confined in
CLERKENWELL STATION-HOUSE.
by cutting his
right charge of felony, attempted suicide
IseEri c—Yesterday
o n• housejohn
roinght arm. The wound being of a very dangerous
nature, the divisional surgeon conveyed him, in a state
of insensibility, to the Roy al Free Hospital, in the
Gray's Inn-road, where he was immediately attended by
Mr. T. Cooke, the house surgeon of the institution.
GREAT WESTER RAILWAY, SWINDON.—When the
woi Its at Swindon station are completed, which is ex-
pected at the beginning of June, the whole department
of building and repairing engines, with the exception of
the cast-ironwork, will be transferred to that manufac-
tory, where all the machinery, boilers, &c., will he made
and finished under the immediate superintendence of
Mr. Gooch, superintendent of locomotives to the com
pany. The tires of ail driving wheels, &c., will not only
be welded, but wrought and screwed there only, in the
manner recommended. At present the carriages, trucks,
and a portion only of the engines and tenders use on
the line are manufactured at Swindon.
ar-
rangements are now in progresshAih now perform the distance
from Paddington to Exeter, N.
to accelerate
i o
speed
of the express trains, w stated
th that
ACCELERATION or TE
in four hours and a halt: l
ded that the journey shall be performed in four
la,dhne vniee completed, eCesa(l9 iit miisleisa):
ten
hours, being at the rate of 484 miles an hour, including
stoppages.
SINKING OF A CANAL BOAT WITH ONE HUNDRED
AND SIXTY PASSENGERS ON BOARD.—On Easter Twits-
day a large party from the neighbourhood of Tipton and
Darlston hired a boat, named the Euphrates (an old
market canal packet), to convey them for a holiday to
Birmingham. The packet started, filled with men,
women, and children, to the number of one hundred and
sixty, increasing in numbers as the boat went along, to
such an extent that many persons had to sit upo' the
top, where also was a band of musicians. On reaching
Rolfe's Bridge, Smithwick, those on the top commenced
amusing themselves with rocking the boat, when sud-
denly she gave an unlucky heel, and in an instant
the musicians, together with the other outside pas-
sengers, were precipitated into the canal ; the water
entering the boat at the same moment, she
filled and sank. The scene which ensued beggars
description, the shrieks of the women and children
being heard at a great distance. Fortunately, at the
spot where the accident happened the water was not
more than between five and six feet deep, and although
the situation of the passengers was dangerous in the ex-
treme, their escape from drowning was very extraor-
dinary. There were at least seventy passengers in the
cabin, some of the windows of which were open, and
the water had reached nearly five feet above the cabin
flooring. Those who had children were holding thew
above their heads, screaming franticly for help. With
considerable difficulty the whole of them were get_ Out
alive and landed in safety on the canal banks. By the
ir
kindness of the manager of a neighbouring glauwogs,
the women and children were admitted inhtoeattecawpsized
where they dried their clothes.
instead of sinking down, frightful.--Study
loss of life would hare been most
Paper, there is nilialotuhbet but that t/ge