The Sun.
London, England, 1841-07-26 00:00:00

COUNTY OF WEXFORD ELECTION.

JULY 20.—When the hour of announcing the poll arrived,
the galleries and the body of the Court were densely crowded.
The Hon. Captain Gore was loudly cheered when he made his
appearance. Anxiety appeared at the Ngllea on every coun-
tenance, when the High Sheriff, accompanied by his assessor,
entered the Court, and declared the state of the day's poll to
be:—

Power
Hatton
Morgan
Majority for the Liberal candidates on the day's po:1, 260.

GROSS POLL.

Power 727
Hatton
Morgan
Majority for Power and Hatton, 300.
The cheering that followed this announcement was tre-
mendous. After it had subsided,

JAMES POWER, Esq., came forward and addressed the elec-
ton-, thanking them for their firm and undeviating exertions,
and soliciting what he had little doubt of obtaining without
solicitation, its kind continuance for the few days more that the
election would be likely to last. He congratulated them on
the glorious state of the poll, in spite of the renewed efforts
of their opponents to protract the contest. But their attempts
at procrastinatination would have no other effect than ex-
posing them in their true light as the enemies of the people
and their liberties —(Cheers.) They had, indeed, exerted
themselves on the opposite side with an energy worthy of a
better cause, and he hoped at the close of the poll to-morrow,
which, probably, would terminate the election, he would still
have to return them the same thatlis and congratulations, when
their victory would be certain.
Captain HATTON then came forward and addressed the as-
sembled multitude. He said--Gentlemen, I have likewise to
thank you for the second time for the very high position in
which soar support has placed me. The strength of our
adversaries is daily on the decline, anti all their devices
to delay us have signally failed. This election will have
the effect of teaching at least one thing to Mr. Mor-
gan, it will show him a rather extraordinary anomaly in
the county of Wexford, namely, that though very :,ieh
in money, he is very poor in friends.--(Cheering.)
The electors of this county wilt I trust, persevere, with
exertions, if possible, more earnest, more vigorous,
arid more unceasing ; and record in the triumphant
return of the two candidates of their choice their determina-

tion to obtain civil and religious liberty. One day's good work,
like those that have preceded it, will effect the triumph of_ your
friends and the defeat of your enemies ; and, electors of Wex-
ford, let me urge you on, then, to the poll, and relax not till
you have nobly conquered. —( Cheers. )
1 he Court adjourned until nine o'clock next morning.
WEDNESDAY, J 21.—The following were the numbers
on the gross poll up to five o'clock :
Hatton (R) .
Power (R)
" --•n (T'

~... 865
~... 849

Morgan( t)
S. C. Hall (T) ••• 0
JULY 22.—The election closed by the return of the Re-

formers.

EXPERIMENTS WITH PERCUS-

SION SHELLS.

W ooLwlc H, Ju LY 23.—Application having been made by
the Duke of Normandie, Mr. Smart, and Mr. Howard, the
Master-General granted permission and the use of the guns in
the marshes at Woolwich, and ordered that the experiments
should take place to-day.
At one o'clock Lieut.-General Lord Bloomfield, G. C.B.
and G. C. H. ; Major-General Drummond, C. B. , Director-
General of Artillery ; Col. Sir Hew D. Ross, K.C. 8., De-
puty Adjutant-General; Col. Paterson, Lieut.-Col. Dansey,
C.D., Dundas, C. 8., Lieut.-Colonel Cruttenden,
Major Chalmer, Major Romer, and Brigade-Major Cuppage,
arrived in the marshes' and shortly afterwards detachments of
the Royal Artillery, under the command of Major Belson, com-
menced practice.
No. 1, a shell invented by Mr. Smart, on being fired, ex-
ploded about nine or ten yards from the mouth of the gun, or
rather it may be said to have exploded in coming out of the
mouth of the gun, as pieces were dug up out of the earth
about nine yards in front of the platform from which they were
fired.

No. 2. A shell invented by the Duke of Normandie, ex-
ploded exactly in a similar manner on emerging from the mouth
of the gun.
No. 3. A shell invented by Mr. Howard struck and went
through both the bulwarks, exploding in the butt or mound of
earth at the back of it.

No. 4. Mr. Smart's burst on leaving the mouth of the gun
in the same manner as No. 1.
No. 5. Duke of Norraandie'i exploded on being projected
from the mouth of the pun, same as No. 2.
Croucher, the electioneering agent, pointed out to the
Duke that the heads of his shells were broke off in emerging
from the gun owing to their construction. and, is the others
were exactly similar, he thought it was of no use to try further
experiments with them. Mr. Croucher appeared to belong
to the Duke's party, as he went home in the same carriage
with them.

Nos. 6,7, 8, and 9, were shells invented by Mr. Smart;
three of them burst at the mouth of the gun and only one went
through the bulwark, but it was very effective, spreading in all
directions betwixt the two erections.

Mr. Howard only fired one shell, as on opening the six
brought to the marshes to place the composition which caused
them to burst, within them, he was unable to replace the
screw in their proper places, as they would not go home.
While waiting for the vessels in the river passing so as to
afford a clear range, the Duke of Normandie introduced to
the notice of the officers and numerous spectators who were
present, a figure covered with a white sheet, and on tying it
to a post with a rocket at its side, and on uncovering it, it
appeared like a Guy Fawkes, having a mask for a face, sur-
mounted on the part which might be considered the head
with an old-fashioned French-shaped straw hat. The figure
was stuffed with wood shavings, and the Duke said he in-
tended to show that any person firing a common musket
ball could do no harm to it, but if he fired at it with balls he
had invented he would set it on fire, and then it would set
fire to the rocket, but not before the rocket struck the
ground or some hard object, although the rocket might be sur-
rounded by such great dames of tire as he would produce. A
gunner and driver of the Royal Artillery fired two balls, and
both went through the figure without effect. The Duke then
fired two balls invented by him, but whether they entered the
figure or not it was impossible to ascertain correctly. The
Duke had his arm in a sling and complained of its being still
sore from the effect of injury it had received while he was
making some former experiments, he accordingly asked Lieut.-
Colonel Dundas to fire for him, and the Gallant Colonel sent
five out of six balls through the figure without producing any
effect. The Duke then went to the figure with a lighted squib
in his hand and endeavoured to set fire to the figure, but the
squib went out. Having no more combustible materials about,
he, with one of his assistants, was able to light a cigar, and
with it set fire to the figure, having first torn the cotton to
get at the shavings : the grotesqueness of the scene for full halt
an hour caused the most serious to laugh outright almost
during the whole time, and when the rocket exploded, on fall-
ing to the ground a great portion of its contents fell amongst
the spectators, several of whom ran for it in all directions.

At about five o'clock the Duke proceeded to the butt or
mound, on the top of which a hole had been previously dug to
the depth of about six feet. Into this hole a box was put with
which he was to blow up the whole mound. The operations
of placing the mine occupied about half an hour, and he said
he had set the train to explode in another half hour, to afford
time to get out of its way. When six o'clock struck no ex-
plosion took place ; and on one of the officers asking the Duke
how long it would be before his invention would have effect,
he said he had set it for half an hour, but as it had gone past
that time, it was very possible it would not go off before three
o'clock to-morrow afternoon. On being again asked if it
would not go off before that time, as they could not wait, he
said it was very possible it might go off this evening sometime,
but he thought it would be to-morrow.
Mr. Belson then gave instructions to place sentries at the
entrance of the marshes until to-morrow afternoon, to prevent
any person from going near the mound where the Duke's in-
vention is buried, and the question now is, who will go and dig
it out, if it does not go off at all.

THE WEATHER AND THE
CORN-LAWS.

If the present unsettled weather should continue for a
fortnight longer, we shall have another striking illustra-
ti xi of the injurious consequences which the sliding
scale of duty is calculated to inflict upon this country.
Already considerable orders for the purchase of foreign
corn have been sent out ; and a few days more of un-
favourable weather will cause a keen competition in the
nearest Continental corn markets, to which alone English
buyers will venture to resort under existing circumstances.
The necessary consequence will be, that in those markets
the price will be very greatly enhanced, and, as in the
years 1838, 1839, and 1840, a very large sum will be
paid to the foreign speculators beyond the amount for
which the necessary supplies might be procured else-
where. But this, though a very serious evil, sinks into
insignificance, when compared with the mischievous
consequences resulting from the derangement of the
currency, which inevitably results from these sudden
and forced purchases, all made in one part of the Conti-
nent. When corn to the amount of three or four mil-
lions sterling is purchased at once in this way, nothing
can prevent a serious fall in the exchanges, and a con-
sequent export of bullion to a large amount. Then follow
all the results under which we have recently been, and
indeed are now, suffering so severely,—a forced con-
traction of the currency, a severe shock to credit, and
general distress and suffering amongst the trading and
manufacturing classes.
Ilow different would be the course pursued at the pre-
sent time if we had a free trade in corn, or if the duty
was fixed ! and how different would its consequences
prove to the country at large. Instead of a general and
immediate rush to the nearest markets to purchase. al-
most at any price, all the grain that would be imported
into this country within a short period, English merchants
would make their purchases cautiously, and with great
deliberation. It would be a matter of comparative indif-
ference whether corn purchased abroad arrived in six
weeks or six months ; and no man would give an ex-
travagant price at Dantzic or Rostock, because he would
know perfectly well that his purchases would have to
compete with others made under more favourable cir-
cumstances in the United States, the Mediterranean, and
the Black Sea. The consequence would be, that the ne-
cessary purchases would be made only as the corn was
wanted ; they would be spread over a long time and a
large extent of country ; and the means of payment
would be arranged, without any serious disturbance of
the exchanges, or any derangement of the currency of
this country.
Such are the comparative merits of the sliding scale,
and of free trade or fixed duty ; and, if we are not
mistaken, they will speedily
.force themselves upon the
attention of the Legislature in a manner not to be mis-
taken.—Manchester Guardian.