The Sun.
London, England, 1847-01-28 00:00:00

' ~.. 117
WR
''' 1
JAN U ARY 281 1847.

says that he desires to bring back the controversy within
its legitimate and constitutional limits ; that in my dis
patch of the 31st of October I introduced a name which
ought never to=have -appeared in this discussion ; that
his surprise at this was deep ; that his sense of duty
commanded him to express it strongly ; and to remind
me that the responsibility of the policy of the King's
Government in this matter belongs entirely to himself
alone. • . .

It is =mpossible for me to allow this passage to pass
without a reply.
I must beg, therefore, to remind M. Guizot that the
same name was introduced into my former despatch of
the 22i of September, with reference to the engage-
ment originally taken, that no son of the Ring of the
French should marry the Queen of Spain; and that the
introducion of that name, on that occasion, was not only
not objected to by M. Guizot, in his despatch of the sth
of October, but was even quoted by him in that despatch
with a distinct expression of his acquiescence in the
correctness of my statement.

If, then, it wai allowable to introduce that name with
refert•nce to the engagement taken in regard to the mar
riage of a French prince to the Queen of Spain, why
should it not be allowable to introduce the same name,
with reference to the engagement taken in regard to the
marriage of a French prince,to the Infanta?
But it: was M, Guizot, and not I, who first introduced
into this correspondence a discussion as to the engage-
ments entered into at the Chateau d'Eu. In my despatch
of the 22d of September, there is not one word which
relates to those engagements. Motives of delicacy,
which might, I think, have been better appreciated, led
me to abstain from even adverting to those transactions
in that despatch. But MeGuizot, in his reply of the
sth of October, founded his argument upon the memo-
randum of the 27th of February, 1846; which, he said,
annulled previous engagements; and this course of ar-
gument compelled. me to discuss what those engagements
were, and when, and by whom, they had been con-
tracted.
Bat when M. Guizet asserts that the name to which
he alludes ought never to have appeared in this corres-
pondence, I think that I might be justified in feeling a
surprise as deep as that which, he says, his sense of
duty has commanded him to express: for he himself
fm-ely introduced that name into the discussion, in his
dispatch of the sth of October, whenever it suited the
course of his argument to do so.
The following passages taken from that dispatch will
show this; but I must mention, to prevent mistakes, that
the weeds which I underline in the quotations are not
underlined in the original.
First passage:—
" The Infante Don Enrique had not taken so proper a
course to arrive at his object.
"The King himself; when this Prince passed through
Paris, had warned him paternally of this, reminding
him where lay his proper place, his duty, his chances of
success; and offering to exert himself at Madrid, in
order to enable him, to recover them. The Infante did
not follow the counsels of the King."
Second passage:—
" From the beginning of this question, the King, as Lord
Palmerston states in his dispatch, spontaneously n:ade
known that he did not pretend to the band of the Queen.
of Spain for any of his sons. Be at the some time ex-
pressed his firm hope that the crown of Spain would not
pass out of the house of Bourbon, and that the Quer a
would choose her husband from among tie descendants
of Philip V."
Third passage :
"No where, in no Court, in no family, are the rights
of liberty in contracting marriage, and in domestic life,
better known and more scrupulously respected than in
the Court of the Tuileries, and in the bosom of our Royal
Family. The sentiments which animate and direct the
King at Paris in the midst of his children, animate and
direct him equally in his relations with the Court at
Madrid and his royal nieces."
I think that, with reference to these quotations, I
may agaia ad,,pt a phrase of M. G&sot's, and say, that
in the reproof which he administ, rs to me at the conclu-
sion of his dispatch, " there is some want of memory or of
justice."

Having thus set right some "errors" is M. Guizot's
last communication, I have only further to instruct your
Excellency to read this dispatch to M. Guizot, and to
send him officially a copy of it.—l am, &c.,
(Signed) PALMERSTON.
MR. BULWER TO M. ISTURITZ.
Madrid, October 3, 1846.
Sir,—Your Excellency begins your note of the 29th
ultimo b assuring me that the opinion cf her Catholic
Majesty's Government was not influenced, and that the
sleeision of the Cortes was not prejudiced by the idea that
the notes I had addressed to you only contained my own
personal sentiments.

I certainly had reason to think that your Excellency
must have been convinced from.the first that I had due
authority 'for what I stated ; and while I was surprised
to hear it asserted in the Congress by her Catholic Ma-
jesty's Ministers, that I had merely expressed notions of
my own upon the important subject to which I am re-
ferring, I am still more surprised now at learning that
this declaration was made without any object, and that
it was neither expected nor intended that it should pro-
duce any c fEtct upon the vote of that assembly.
Your Excellency, at the same time that you reject the
right of her Majesty's Government to make any objec-
tions to the marriage of her Royal .Highness Donna
Luisa with the Duke de Montpensier, states in friendly
language that this marriage is not intended to grant any
political influence to any foreign state, nor to further
any political purpose ; and your Excellency also (while
pointing out to me the great resources of the Spanish
monarchy, in terms already used by her Majesty's
Secretary for Foreign Affairs)asks me whether it can be
supposed that such a monarchy is likely to fall into de-
pendence upon any other state, how great soever it might
be ? Now the history of the past generally furnishes an
example for the future, and I am not, I confess, aware

that greater state now than she was in the
time Spain is a
of Charles 111. or Charles IV., when her vast pos-
sessions in the New World still remained to her, and
when a proud and valiant navy kept those splendid arse-
nals in busy occupation, which I have but lately seen
mouldering in solitary decay. Yet Spain, at the periods
of which I been speaking, was in dependence upon
a foreign State, dragged unprofitably into its wars, and
charged with the penalty of its defeats. Indeed, your
Excellency furnishes me with a more eloquent :and
ample reply to your question, than any words of mine
could present. Great, indeed, was my surprise, on
reading in a sentence alniost immediately subsequent to
that in which you proclaim the impossibility of
this country being fatally attached to the fortunes of
another some remarkable words -to this effect :
"The past and present centuries teach us lessons
not. easily to be forgotten. The loss of our mighty
colonial empire, the loss of Gibraltar, that almost im-
pregnable fortress, the more retent destruction of our
navy during war, and the secession of Mexico and Peru
from the mother state during peace, are all recollections"
associated with what ? Why with that very foreign
influence, that very preponderance of France in Spanish
councils, which the wisest statesman of that time de-
plored, prophesying its consequences witk the same
assurance, and unhappily with the saute ill success that
I have intruded upon your Excellency my own equally
earnest if less eloquent ;warnings. The alliance of
families, the personal feelings of courts, then unfor-
tunately governed and misguided, the destinies of your
great nation ; and with what security can the hope be
now cherished, that this will not again occur ? At this
moment I see the hand of a young princess of fourteen
years of age, disposed of in a manner contrary to
the earnest representations of at least one great
European power, whose friendship towards Spain is
well known in history : and whose amity might
yet be worth cultivating. I see this marriage secretly
prepared, abruptly announced, hurried with incon•
tvable rapidity to its conclusion ; it revives the con-
flicting pretensions of dormant treaties ; it threatens
Spain with the removal of her civil wars; it agitates and
dissolves the present happy and peaceful relations of
Europe. These considerations are disregarded. The
delay of 12 months in the rnarrisge of a princess of this
tender age is deemed too great a concession for compos-
ing these important interests. I ask, thy is this mea-
sure persevered in? Why are all weighty and opposing
reasons pushed indignantly aside? What is the motive
which decides, what is the cause which precipitates this
apparently unpropitious union? I can see no other in
view, I have heard no other alleged, than that the two
courts of France and Spain have determined that it
should 'take place on a particular day, at a particular
hour, in a particular manner; and that, therefore, as the
Spanish and French courts have thus decided, so it must
be. now then can I, in reporting these facts to my Go-
vernment, tell it to be tranquil; that the influence of
courts in this country is gone by; and that the alliances
which bind and cement them together are of no national
importance, and will never have a preponderating influ-
ence on grave questions of national interest ? I am
aware that facts will now soon putanereelpe expressingtargument;
but in closing this discussion I cannot
)
the conviction, that in spite of the
rgrEeeeaxtln
abilitylee with
which it has been conducted
the little talent I have brought b
to your
el
Britishlu' andges
will consider that it has been-th
'oeiutm
of loti
Minister to defend the true interests and the indepen-
donee of Spain against your Excellency, to whom as her
Catholic Majesty's Minister, their defence would, as you
11. L. BULWER.
justly observe, be more suitably entrusted.--1 avail, Szc.,

"On Thursday afternoon, the 21st instant, the
children of the parish of Coniscliffe, near Darlington, were
plentifully regaled with tea and spice cake, at the expense of
R. H. Howard, Esq., M.P., of Corby Castle, Cumberland,
the benevolent and respectful Lord of the Manor, in celebra-
tion of the joyful event of the christening of his first-born
daughter. Tea was provided in a large granary belonging
to Mr. D. Hetherington, beautifully decorated with ever-
greens, byMrs. Hetherington and Rickaby, of High Coniscliffe,
whose excellent arrangements and inspiring presence, con-
tributed in no small degree to the enjoyment of their
juvenile guests. Several young ladies presided at the tea
tables, and among the visitors on the joyful occasion, were
observed the worthy vicar of the parish, the Rev. J. Cundill,
Miss Cundill, the Rev. Mr. Hogarth, of Darlington, the
churchwardens, the schoolmaster, Ir. Tobling, and principal
inhabitants of the parish, &c. The village bells rung many a
merry peal during the evening. After partaking of the cup
which cheers, but inebriates not, the young company sepa;
rated, highly delighted with their entertainment, and many
a Young bosom breathed its sincerest wishes for health and
prosperity to the house of Howard. The farmers also plen-
tifully regaled their labourer* with ale on the occasion.

•
THE FATAL ACCIDEWT ON THE
GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY.
Sotrrn.u.s.; JAIL 27.--i-At half-past four o'clock to -dal an
inquest was held by Mr. Wakley, M.P., coroner for the dis-
trict, assisted by the deputy coroner, Mr. Mills, on the bodies
of Henry Halt and Henry Bishop, he unfortunate sufferers
by the accident of Monday last at Southall. The investiga-
tion took place at the Bed Lion Inn, Southall, and the pro-
ceedings attracted a good deal of interest in the neighbour=
hood. - Mr. Seymour Clarke, superintendent at Paddington ;
Mr. Gooch, head of the locomotive department; and several
other officials of the company, were present at the proceed-
ings. Mr. Brunel and Mr. Saunders visited the spot where
the accident took place, but did not appear in the room
where the inquest was held.
The CORONER, in charging the jury, hoped that they would
dismiss from their minds any rumours which they might
have heard, and for which there might be no foundation.
Some of the jury had expressed a desire to see the tire, and
the wheel to which it was attached, by daylight, and there-
fore lie thought it advisable that the inquiry should not be
closed that evening. A goo'd deal of clamour had been raised
against railways, but it should be remembered that accidents
had happened to coaches, carriages, gigs, and every kind of
vehicles used on the roads, in which no blame could be at-
tached to any person. As, however, the iiNues,t w s 'cue to
halt-tire into a very frightful occuryence,, and as they were
bound to piotect human life, they would hrive to examine
the cause of..this accident to show the public and the direc-
tors of the railway themselves what' the cause was. They
would.have to do so, not for the purpose of punishing any
party, unless gross negligence was proved, but to prevent any-
similar calamity in future. It, was necessary; therefore, that
they should have, on a future day, some witnesses called be-
fore them who cauld give dispassionate testimony on the sub-
ject. He did not mean to say that the witnesses to be called.
before them on the part of the company were not disinte-
rested, but it was better in all cases Of the kind to have the
testimony of persons without. the suspicion of bias as to a
matter in which the conduct of individuals might be incul-
pated. - • •
The jury then proceeded to view the bodies, and on their,
return.the following evidence was adduced :
JOseph Bishop, poultry-dealer at Cowley, and father of one
of the deceased, and Thomas Weadon, butchei• of Tooting,
brother-in law of the other deceased, were called, and hav-
ing been sworn identified the bodies. Bishop was 20, and
Halt 27 years of age.
John Maydon, the next witness called, stated that he lived
at Uxbridge, and was a dealer'in cattle. He was in the
train at the time the accident happened, and sat beside
llenry Bishop, one of the deceased; his father sitting beside
Halt. Bishop sat with his back to the engine. Something
came with a crush right through the top of the carriage,
but he was so frightened, that he did not know anything
that happened until he got out. There were live of tuem
inside altogether; and he saw blood, and that Henry halt
was struck.. He did not know whether they were killed
dead on the spot. He was not hurt, but greatly frightened;
so much so, indeed, that he hardly knew what occurred
until he got out. His father was much hurt about the
thigh, and kept his bed in consequence.
Mr. F. W. Austen, station-clerk at Southall, was then
called, and said, that being in the station at the time, he ran
down at once and opened the carriage in which the accident
happened. Hilt was sitting, and Bishop had fallen forward
into his lap. The carriage which was cut in the roof and
much injured, was brought into the Socks shed; but both
the men had been killed instantaneously, and their brains
were scattered about.
A juryman—The train was in motion at the time, and
just about to stop. I was in it.
Witness—A large fragment of the tire lay in the carriage,
but the express train went cn to London with the damaged
wheel, after appearing to stop a short time before it came
to the bridgc%, Ile had never before known the tire of a
wheel to break, thJugh he had been on the line for seven
years.
John Gauntlett, policeman on the Great Western line at
the Southall station, said, that while on duty there about
twenty-live minutia past four o'clock, he saw the express
train, due at thirteen minutes past !bur o'clock, go past the
station driven by the Queen engine. When past the station
about 60 or 70 yards, he saw the tire, in two or three pieces,
fly off the driving wheel, and one piece fell on one of the
second-class carriages of the four o'clock down train. He 'at
once went to the carriage. The door had been opened, and
a lady who was hurt handed out. The two deceased men
were in the carriage, dead ; and several of the passengers
were slightly hurt. He saw nothing loose or wrong about
the express train before the accident happened, and it was
going at its usual speed, which was about 50 miles an hour.
The engine had been in use for nearly twelve months. The
exoress train was stopped as soon as possible.
A juryman—I was in the next carriage to that in which
the accident happened, but was aware of nothing till I got
out.

Wittness—The piece of tire which fell on the carriage was
projected into the air to the height of 20 or 30 feet. Its
weight had sicce been ascertained to be 2751 b.
James Loxton, inspector of metropolitan police at Hanwell,
stated that the bodies of tie deceased were removed from
the carriage by him.
James Almond, engine-driver of the Queen, which drew
the expres?, said that he hid been engine-driver on the
Great Western Railway for nine years, and about 24 or 25
years engineman for locomotive or stationary engines.. On
Monday he left Swindon at 56 minutes past t -vo o'clock,
three minutes late, with a train of six carriages. The time
for arriving at Southall was-four hours sixteen minutes, and
they were behind some Six minutes, which he attributed to
the heaviness'of the road, and the high wind blowing at the
time..
ColoNstat—Did you see the tire break ? Witness—l
saw the tire fly from the tire and the splasher, which
•is the brass cap to the wheel, and I put my back to
the dome, and saw the other carriage broken on the down
train. I )iid not sea the pieces of the tire fly from the wheel-
I did not know exactly what it was that had happened, and
could perceive no diffitrente in the running; but in about
two minut,s, seeing that the tire was gone, I stopped. After-
wards we went up to London at a diminished speed of 15 or
20 miles an hour. I have seen the pieces of the tire, which
are made partly of steel anti partly of iron. I have observed
the fractures, and though the outside appeared good, the in-
side does not look sound. The tire is about 1% inches thick,
increasing to two inches next the crease: it seems unsound
for 1% inches, the rest sound. The bad parts look dull and
dirty, and the sound quite bright. I should judge three
inches broad, by 11/4 inches in depth, bad, out of five inches
of breadth. There is no means that I know of besides that
of sight for ascertaining how much of the tire is bad. No
accident of the kind has ever happened before to that engine;
but about seven months ago the whole tire of the liellona, an
engine which came from Nasmyth and Gaskell's works at
Manchester, broke off in five pieces. This occurred about two
miles and a half below Slough. That case was similar to Oft
present, and I reported it to the foreman at Swindon. -We
were asked if we ran against anything, and we answered not.
We always examine the engine ourselves in every part of it
before starting, and on arriving at the end of our trip, and if
there is anything wrong, we report it. I did so in the. pre-
sent case examine the wheels and the springs, as is my
invariable custom. After a tire is once placed on the
wheel, we have no means of ascertaining whether it is sound
or not.
The CORMia—Did you ever see a tire unsound before it
was put on? Witness—Yes, I have; and it was condemned.
The " weld " appeared unsound outside, and showed itself.
Such accidents are not of frequent occurrence, and it never
happened to more than one before. The tires of the other
wheels are fixed on in the same way as that on the driving-
wheel.
The ConmEn—Are the driving-wheels subject to more
use than others? Witness—Yes, and by their size the tire
is more apt to come off them.
A juryman—Are they riveted on? WitnessNo; they
are kept on by contraction. •
A jurymau asked whether the tire of a wheel did not fly
oiliest Friday week between llanwell and the bridge ?—The
fact was admitted by the officials of the company present.
Mr. George Withe Daniel, surgecn, residing at Southall,
and passenger in the four o'clock down train, proved that the
deaths of the deceased were instantaneous, and had been
caused by the injuries they had received from the immense,
piece of iron which fell ou them.
Mr. Daniel Gooch was then called, and said, I am superin-
tendent of the locomotive department of the Great Western
Railway Company, and have held that position for nine
The
The Queen was built under my inspection at Swindon:
'l%e company bay all their tires at the Haigh Foundry,
Wigan, Lancashire. I see all tires bought by the company.
We have a smith, named John Faucett, living at Swindon,
whose duty it is to "block" all tires, and to inspect
them. He is an excellent tradesman, and is expressly used
for the purpose. If we buy the tires in bars, we give an
order for the length required; if in hoops, for the diameter.
About four-fifths of the tire are of wrought iron, and one-
fifth of steel. I have examined that of the Queen which has
given way, and found it unsoundly welded. The welding is
a difficult task, requiring great care, anti the best workmen
will sometimes fail in effecting a good weld. About two-
thirds of one of the ends in the carriage is bad, but the other
fractures appear to be quite bright. We " block" the tires—
via., make them a little less than the size required, and then
subject them to a great strain by means of a screw. All
tires are subjected to this process in order to test their sound-
ness. I cannot say hose many miles the Queen may have
travelled without consulting the books, but probably about
25,000 mile. Tires suffer most in frosty weather, and tome-;
times they break from that cause, though not in motion. Two
instances of the kind occurred last year.
The CORONER—Is there any step 'which you can take,
in consequence of this accident, to prevent a recurrence
of it? Witness—l can suggest ncne, except increased vigi-
lance on the part of our servants. This tire was bought in
' the hoop.
The CortoNEß—Do the manufacturers from whom you buy
submit to any penalty for selling badly welded tires? Wit-
ness —None, except the loss of credit, and the obligation to
replace the tire. The ringing of a tire is no test of its un-
soundness, and I have heard them, when cracked, sound as
clear as a bell under the stroke of the hammer. We have
had a good many cases of tires coming off the driving-
wheel. It is not a common accident, but it is one which we
are always prepared for in frosty weather.
The Coacox SR—I tis not one which lam preparedch for.—
r— '
(Laughter.) Witness—lron crystallizes very n
motion, but the fracture here is a good one, and much
not crystal-
lized. Age has no bad effect upon our tires, and some of
them have been in constant use since the opening of the line.
The weld is the place most liable to give way, and the rate
of speed has little to do wi:li such accident, for there is a re-
cent instance cf the wheel of a luggage train breaking,
though it only travelled at 15 or 20 miles an hour.
The CORONOR—You have given your evidence, Mr.
Gooch, very frankly and fairly, and we are very much
obliged to you for it.
Some conversation here ensued as to the scientific gentle,
man to be selected as an unbiassed witness on the causes of
this singular accident. In the course of it Mr. Gooch ex-
pressed his readiness to afford any one the coroner might
select the fullest possible facilities for forming a fair and
just opinion on the subject.
No decision was come to on this point when the proceed-
ings of the evening closed, the Coroner adjourning the in-
quest to half-past ten o'clock on Mona

lay teit.

-----_---
PRESENT STATE OF PORTUGAL.--p new work on
Portugal, entitled "An Overland Journey to Lisbon, with a
Picture of the Present State of Spain and Portugal," is an-
nounced for immediate publication by the author of " Re-
velations of Spain." At a time when the attention of Europe,
and, indeed, the whole civilized world is turned to the insur-
rectionary movements now going on in Portugal, and to the
transactions connected with the marriage of the Queen of
Spain, these volumes, from the pen of a gentleman, now re-
sident amid the scenes he describes, and enjoying peculiar
facilities for correct observation, ,will doubtless be cordially
welcomed by the public.

,:r

.;

IRELAND.
DUBLIN, JAN. 25
—Many, more deaths from *rya-
tion are reported in the accounts received to-day, and
what is termed the •° starvation aver" is spreading in
the western as well as the southern counties.

The Sligo Champion contairs the following alarining
statement :

" Fever is still on the increase ; the deaths in the
poor-house are most numerous, and almost rill theper-
sons whcs haie dial have been carried off either by ty-
phus fever or dysentery. There are at present :four
hundred on the sick list in the poor-house, or one-third
of all the inmates. This is really alarming, and from
the great increase of fever in the town we fear a plague
will ensue.

" The coroners of Sligo are unable to attend to all
the calls made upon them, and although indefatigable in
the discharge of their duties, numbers of persons have
been buried (who died of starvation) without inquests
having bean held upon them."
After giving details of inquests on five persons:who
died from starvation, the Sligo Champion proceeds :
" While the coroner was engaged yesterday with the in-
quests at Drumcliff, he received an official communi-
cation from Head Constable flay, of Riverstown, re-
questing his attendance to hold inquests on the bodies
of a girl named Hodge, and a man named Brian Mat-
tenis, both of whom- died .of starvation, and he was
informed by the messenger who brought the letter, that
three or four orderlieS were at his .house, requiring his
presence in different parts of the county."
From such a district it is not surprising that emigra-
tion is still in progress, even in mid-winter. Two
hundred persons left the port of Sligo on Thursday, for
LiverpOol, with a
-were
making their way to Ametica;
but most of them were vtry poorly pkovided with sea
stores, and •some were almost destitute of clothing or
provisions. Many of those creatures, no doubtywill
still further angmt-nt the pauperism in Liverpool.
From all parts of the county of Galway the most
harrowing accounts have been received, and deaths
from starvation are increasing. The Tuam Herald
states that five inquests.were held from the 16th to' the
21st instaat, and in each case the verdict was " died
by statvation."

GALWAY, JAN. 23.—MORE DEATHS BY STARVATION.
—Our private letter§ from Connemara mention details
of woe almost unparalleled. In Clifden, we are' in-
formed that the population are fast dying away for *ant
of food—many are hurried to their early graves from
utt.n tic stitution, without the ceremony of a funeral,
and frequently without the covering of a coffin, and the
clergy are incessantly employed in administering-, the
consolations of religion to those who are falling victims
to the ravages of famine. In the village of Winn,
westward of Oughterard by about two miles, inone
wretched cabin, ten human beings, constituting an.en-
tire family, lie dead in one heap of-rottenness 'and
putrefaction.
In the extensive county of Cen the most appalling
sc:.nes are to be witnessed on all sides. In the city of
Cork, on Saturday last, a crowd of labourers paraded
through the streets, but some of the ringleaders having
been arrested while endeavouring to force an entrance
into a shop, the remainder dispersed without committing
any outrage.

, '

The Cork Reporter of Saturday contains a statement
from its correspondent of the dreadful destitution in the
district of Bantry. I have extracted the following pas-
sage :—" Mothers bearing dead children in their arms
are everywhere to be seen, and those who follow them
aro often compelled is eat grim to satisfy the cravings
of the hunger that gnaws their vitals. As an example
of the rapidity with which death stalks through the land,
it may be stated that during the last ten days the Rev.
Messrs. Freeman Begley visited and prepared for death
no less than forty-two, thirty-five of whom were in the
utmost state of destitution, and of that number twenty-
eight died, twenty-five of absolute starvation. That
number did not include the deaths in the workhouse,
which had been unprecedented in extent, notwithstand-
ing the exertions of the board of guardians. Scarcely
4.n hour elapses without some of the population dropping
and sinking into the grave, and children, after suffering
the pangs of hunger for four or five days. Many die on
the mountains, uncared for and deserted. In the midst
of all these horrors, it is gratifying to find that
those who have been blessed with a reasonable share of
this world's goods have nobly done their duty. Amongst
the most prominent in endeavouring to allay and mitigate
the misery which exists amongst the tenantry is Lord ,
Kenmare.
,Some instances have occurred in the barony
where the landlord has demanded and distrained for rent,
but those instances, it is happy to observe, are very few.
The fact is, the tenantry have nothing to give;
.for
although I have,seen more fields prepared for the coming •
crop in this neighbourhood than in most others I have
visited, iu gent rat all their corn is gone, and but few
have any seed."
From the southern counties the reports are equally
afflicting.
From some of the counties of Ulster the accounts ore
quite as bad as from the south or west. The Lord
Bishop of Derry and Raphoe having recommended a
grant of 240/. frcm the National Club in Landon, con-
vened a meeting of his clergy at the deanery house last
week, to :assist him in allocating the money and obtain-
ieg local subscriptions. The reports submitted by the
clergy exhibit a mass of utter destitution in their parishes.
rho Rev. Mr. Maturin dewribed the parish of Gorton as
containing • " one thousand individuals who have no mere
than a week's provisions, and who are without means to
obtain them."
RE-APPEARANCE OF THE POTATO DISEASE.
The Cork RepOrter of Saturday says:—" A gentleman
residing in the neighbourhood of Kinsale planted in a
hotbed, about' three months since, a quantity of sound
potatoes of the quarry kind, and on examining the pro-
duce yesterday, which, by the forced growth, had far
advanced to maturity, he found them black and dis-
eased."
TtfSaMdliatftS,---REDIJCTWN OP
N RUM.
The project of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, re-
specting the use of sugar in breweries and distilleries,
has been received with general approval here ; but ,the
proposed arrangement for reducing the duty on rum in
Ireland to about one-third of the present amount, has
produced absolute consternation amongst the Irish dis-
tillers.

A meeting of the Dublin distillers was held this day,
at the Commercial-buildings, Sir John Power, Bart.,
presiding, when the following resolutions were adopted:
" That the meeting have seen, with the greatest
alarm, the proposition of the Chancellor of the Exche-
quer, made in the House of Commons on Friday last,
to reduce the duties on West India rum imported into
Ireland to 3s. 2d. per gallon—a measure which, if car-
ried into effect, will prove utterly ruinous to the Irish
distillery trade, and most prejudicial to the landholders,
farmers, and traders of this country, and to every inte-
rest connected therewith.

" That any measure of a temporary nature, calculated
to meet the exigencies of the present time, however in-
convenient it might prove to the trade, would be cheer-
fully received and submitted to by the Irish distilleri ;
but that the measure now proposed does not contemplate
any such effect, but is solely calculated permanently to
injure, if not totally extinguish, the manufacture of
spirits in this country.
" That a general meeting of the trade be called by
public advertisement, to assemble in Dublin, on Tues-
day, the 2d of February next, in the Corn Exchange, at
one o'clock in the afternoon, to take the proposition of
the Chancellor of the Exchequer into their consideration,
and that these resolutions be published in the meantime
in some of the morning and evening Dublin and London
newspapers. By order of the meeting,
" WILLIAM IV. JAMESON, Secretary." .
Mr. O'Connell attended the meeting of the distillers.
The honourable and learned gentleman has delayed his
departure for London in cons: quence of the unfavourable
state of the weather ; but has to leave town by the mail
picket to-morrow evening.
REPRESENTATION OF GALWAY TOWN.
The Galway Vindicator contains an address from Sir
Valentine Blake, Bart , to the electors of the town of
Galway, intimating his retirement from the represental
tion of the town, " it having pleased Providence to de..
prive me of the power to attend to your important inte-
rests in Parliament in future." The same journal cone
tains a letter from l'. S. Comyn, Esq., dated " Upper
Fitzwilliam-street, Dublin, Jan. 21," in which the writer
sayse—" Either my brother (Francis Comyn, of Wood-
stock), or myself, will offer ourselves as candidates, and
we will not support any Government not pled6ed to thii
repeal of the ucion."
It is generally believed that the Solicitor General,
Mr. Monahan, who is a tetive of -the county of Galway,
- will start for the representation of the vacant borough,
with a fair prospect of succes Mr. O'Hare, the late
recorder of the borough, is also spokfin of as a candidate.
Oa Wednestisy a meeting of the trades and other re-
peal electors, presided over by the 'Rev. Mr. .Martyn, was;
held in the repeal reading-room, Galway, when a resolu-
tion was adopted, pledging the meeting to use every?
exertion in the event of a vacancy for the return of a.
repeal representative.

_
- ' REPEAL ASSOCIATION..
held
this
At the weekly meeting of the Association.
Z'•
...elly..
solicitor, detailed at considerable ' day, Alderman Butler in. thebclehlaeilr,,gt h Dir.certain
yo against their cottier
he named) in the county of
• instituted by a large Wrl proceed-
ingslthe statementl
tenantry. Fromlarge number
theor liajnradrlonre.dls (vhom .
Gentle-
man, it appeared recent sessions held at
an incredible. number of civil.-
bill that
bill action'; hadj3b3elieinn7bbrLo.'uot li.r non-payment of rent,
itt(;r: iO'Connell
Igreatestornani:pdloirtion of which fell due in November last.
moved that a special meeting of the com-
mittee
should be summoned for next day, to consider the
statement, and that a petition to Parliament, detailing the -
facts (if substantiated by the gentleman who announced
them), should be prepared ; and he (Mr. O'Connell)!,
would undertake to present it. How, asked Mr. O'Con--.
nen, could the Irish members have the face to demand
assistance from the British Government if it appeared
that the landlords of Ireland were acting in the manner
stated? The Hon. Gentleman subsequently announced , .
that a Mr. Anthony OTlaharty, of Knoekbane, " having
notified his conversion to repeal," was determined to seek
the representation of Galway (town), vacant by the re-
signation of Sir Valentine Blake.

At the conclusion of the proceedings (which were
totally devoid of interest), the rent for the week was an-
nounced to be 151. 16,. 9d.
The meeting then adjourned.

EXPERIENCES OP A GAOL CHAPLAIN."—A great
deal of interest has of late been, and continues to be taken in
the very important subject of prison discipline, and the re-
clamation of criminals, and several works have been written,
which, to say the truth, have communicated mach general
information touching this matter. But general treatises,
however elaborate, have not half the effect, and consequently
are not nearly so useful, as particular facts. It is for this
easnu that we hail " The Experiences of a Gaol Chap-
lain," just bublished by Mr. Bentley. It is indeed a dark
page,from life's volume, but which, whilst it is one of the most
valuable disclosures ever made as to the economy of our
prisons and the moral conditVn of their inmates, is one of the
most interesting collections of narratives ever publiithed.