The Sun.
London, England, 1841-04-13 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON. TUESDAY, APRIL 13. Iq4 1.

CHINA NEWS.

) BOMBAY, MARCH 1.-My last, letters informed you cf
the resignation of Admiral Elliot,' and the continuation of
negotiations down to the 18th of December. It was men-
tioned then that operations were expected to be com-
menced before the end of the year. The hope proved
too sanguine. Those who looked for decision where
Captain Elliot had t determine foredoomed themselves
to disappointment. About the 25th December, as the
enemy would not be induced to violate the blockade, the
ingenious device appeared to have occurred to our Pleni-
potentiary, that he had better do something in this
way himself, and 53 a couple of American ships, which
went up at the commencement cf the blockade, and
loaded themselves whilst it was impending, were permitted
to pass out with cargoes, in defiance of all the usages of
war. By the 6th January Chinese impudence and pro-
crastination had outrun even Captain Elliot's patience,
and on the 7th Sir Gordon Bremer was permitted
to take matters in hand. Some insignificant fort 4, strongly
manned however, about a mile and a half lower down the
river than the principal castles themselves, were attacked and
battered, while a powerful force, taking them on the land-
' ward side, from a point whence they were completely can-
nonaded, committed fearful havoc, having slain from 500 to
• 700 of the enemy. About the same time the junks lying
in the river were burnt, blown up, or taken, by the Nc-
r mesis steamer, whose performances in shallow water, and
terrific rocket practice, made her seem to the Chinese the
very incarnation of the evil one. On the following day
' (8:h January) her Majesty's ship Blenheim, ansi the
steamere Queen and Nemesis, took up a position off the
great Bogue fort, and the two latter vessels commenced
throwing shelf. The enemy, panic- stree't at the very
appearance of our vessels, particularly at tie infernal Nc-
meals, who seemed as if she could go any elacre, and do any-
thing with impunity, set off scampering the moment we
h•-gan to fire, and in all 1 kelibood, with half an hour's steady
bombardment, our men might have marched round by the
rear cif the forts, where they were perfectly unprotected,
and marched into those strongholds without meeting a
single Chinese opponent. Before this was attemoted
however, a change of measures was in view ; the local
governor entreated a cessation of hostilities, as well he
,night, till Keshen should be consulted as to what was
next to he done; a chop was sent off by some old women
in a renbc-neat, and the sigeal of recal seas immediately
hoisted on board the Cominorfore ! We had done all the
mischief, and perpetrated all the slaughter that was neces-
sary, and stopped shirt when the price of a:1 our labours
was within our gasp. Tne Cnirose authoritm; cared
nothing far the loss of 500 of their countrymen. A glo-
sieg despatch to the Emperor will get oser eli th.t,
Whereas the only thing that could not be get over, which
was really calculates. to inspire awe, could not be corm° t!cd.
The capture of the impregnable Bogue fart, fir which all
our labour bad been thus expended in vain, war re-
elected at the moment when it was fully eithin
the power cf attainment. From the Bth to the
20(h, negotiations continued to be carried on betwixt the
British and Chinese Plenipoteatiaties, when Captain Elliot
issued the seesaw circular, which we hope ts ill long remain
a document unique in the annals of British diplomacy,
announcing that the ttrolinainary arraegements were con-
cluded. The substance of the Treaty is. that we shad cede
Chusatt, and all the °the, places we have occupied on the
Chinese coast; that in lieu thereof we shall re save the
small island of Hong-kung. in the Canton river, and be
peid an indemnity of 6,00 u 000 of dollars (about 1 mill on
sterling) between this and the year 1840; that we shall
trade with China en a footing of equality, and forget and
forgive all thst is past. The value cf British props,: ty
seized by the Chinese sinee May, 1839, is abut double the
whole amount of the indemnity demanded ; and inns has been
currently reporte't,only a very small part of the opium seized
was actually burned, the remainder being kept in case of
what might happen, they, the Chinese, have made a first_
rate bargain—they may, possibly, have cleared in bright
Sveee some million sterling by the transaction 1 Whilst
John Bull will find himself greatly out of pocket, and his
fleet and army stripped of some thousand men, and bal-
l' el in every thing they have attempted to achieve, though
matters may be placed ou a footing considerably worse
than they ever were before. All this is on the suppos:tion
that perfect good faith is observed on thepartof the Chinese !
But what do we next find ?—after accepting terms so fa-
vourable for China, so disgraceful for England, Captain
Elliot takes good care that the fulfilment of these shall be
left entirely to the chivalrous honour of the Chinese them-
selves. Long before the Union Jack can be hoisted over
Hong-konge it is ordered to be sti ipped from the flag-steff of
Chumpec and Ty-kok-tow as quick as lightning ! When as
yet not one single atom of the Treaty could have been c on-
pleted, a frigate is sent off to order the instant evacuation
of Chusan ! The expedition, in fact, is now understood to
be collecting in all haste to quit the shores of China,
without asking a single guarantee for the fulfilment of the
Treaty, or remaining in a position to chastise perfidy, sti-
mulate reluctance, or compel the honest fulfilment of what
nas been promised. Would we have dreamed of treating
the most high, candid, and chivalrous nation in the world,
within reach of our arms, with the confidence which we
have manifested towards the most mean, cruel, and per-
fidious, at the distance of more than half the earth's cir-
cumference removed from us ? The intelligence here
given, the details of which will be found amongst the ex-
tracts from the Indian newspapers, has been received with
one universal shout of loud, unmeasured, and unalleviable
indignation.

STATE OF TIPPERARY.

Accounts have reached town to--day which represent
the northern at is of the county of Tirpec.-ery io be in
a sta'e bordering on actual inearection. The town of
Nenagh has the appearance of a piece preparing for a
siege, the streets being crowded with troops despatched
thither from the garrison of Limerick, comprising a
troop of the l'ith Lancers, and two companies of the
20th Foot, and two or three pieces of ordnance were
expected to arrive there in the course of Friday even-
ing. The orders of the military are to scour the dis-
turbed districts day and night in bodies of twenty-five
and thirty, and to be in constant readiness for
active duty at five minutes' warning. In the mean-
' time the work of bloodshed and outrage progresses
with fearful rapidity. Two more murders were corn
mitred in the broad daylight yesterday on the lands of
Curraghmore, in the parish of Kilbarron. The names
of these unhappy victims to Ribbonistn were Tierney
and Gleeson. Major-General Sir Parker Carroll, the
commanding officer of the district, has been served with
a Rockite notice, warning him to be prepared for the
fete which momentarily impends over him, in conse-
quence of ejecting a woman from some I sad, tlia sPme
being in direct contravention of the Ribbon Code. The
list of outrages, in the shape of similar notices, together
with assaults on the person, iSec., would occupy too much
of your space. I shall, therefore, merely abridge seine
of the particulars elicit7d at the inquest on the body of
the wretched Hayes. This barbarous deed was Com-
mitted within about six miles of Neuagh, on the borders
of the mighty Shannon) anti in one of the wildest dis-
tricts of Ireland. Contiguous to the house of the un-
aorffinqyt
ami awr occupied i
chi
y fishermen, l fe-oa,
y -idrnn p
o enelonelya?cd are situated between
dwellings, which are
h,uturesque view of that
magnificent river. There is no direct passage to tale
place, end the Coroner ant his party were obliged,
after leaving the high road, to traverse for upwards of a
mile an almost inaccessible tract of country ere they
reached the fatal spot. Toe first witness examined WAS
Bridget Hayes (widow of deceased). Her husband was
a carpenter. He was employed on the
.'ith inst. in re-
pairing a boat for the Rev. Dean Holmes.Htl left off
work between the hours of seven and eight o'clock on
that evening. When he came home he ate his supper,
tank a smoke, and said his prayers. After that he wont
to the door, and saw a man pass by. Witness asked
him who the man was, and he replied that he did net
know. He then went to the fire and kindled his pipe,
and remained standing on the floor t 11 the strange man
(whose name witness did not know) came in. The man
was armed with a two• handed wattle. He elm,- rNer
to the fire and iit his pipe. lie did not sit down ;he
stool et the fire. Deceased de.ireil the strange Iran
to sit down ;he said he would not. Daring this tame
the stick remained on the ground. The deceased then
said, " Perhaps you're a man that wants to cross the
Shannon ?" to which he replied, that he did not.
Deceased then asked him to remain for the nialit,
and desired witless to put down his supper. Toe
man said he had already eaten it. a•ceasee got op,
end walked towards the dresser. \Vitness observed a
change come over his counteaance, as if he were afraid,
Witness kept her eye on deceased. Did not look
round until she heard a blow and saw him fa!l. Witness
then ran t.etween the man end deeeat el, lest he might
strike him again. The man caught her by the heed,
tore her cap and handkerchief, and drageed her out
into the yard : he then said, "Ga in now, or I'd give
you the aarne treatment I gave him ; give up the lind
now." He afterwards went off in an opposite direction
t that in which he came. Teis happened about nine
o'clock in the evening. When witness weet into the
house she found deceased lying on his back. He was
kicking and struggling dro.adfuliy at the time. He
spoke in a faltering tone. Witntss, assisted by a man
named Martin Darmody, put the deceased on a bed.
All he said was, that he wished to be taken to his
brother. He died about one o'clock on the following slay.
The Jury returned a verdict of " Wilful murder
against some person or persons unknown."---Times.

LAW INTELLIGENCE.

i3Piin; COUNCIL, APRIL 12.
WOOD AND OTHERS V. 000 BLAKE AND HITCHINS.
( Before L, rd Lyndhurst, the Vice-Chancellor, the Mas-
ter of the Rolls, Baron Parke, and Sir J. Littledale.)
The SOLICITOR-GENERAL resumed his address yester-
day, shortly after ten o'clock. The Learned Counsel proe
ceedeel at some length to refer to the evidence that had
been given with regard to the will of the testator and the
promises held out by him at various times to different par-
ties. It vas clear, from all the facts of the case, that be
intended to make a further disposition of his property by
codicil. He had made promises, and created ex-
pectations in the minds of certain parties, and
the nor.-appearance of any codicil naturally gave
rise to the suspicion of some fraud. Mr. Chad-
borne was distinctly admitted to have said that there
was no doubt the testator intended to have left legacies,
and they would pay them. The evidence of Philpots was
to the same effect; and, in fact, there were so many cir-
cumstances scattered throughout the case, which justified
the belief that it was the intention of the testator to make
a codicil, that their Lordships could not entertain a rea-
sonable doubt on that point. The evieenee of the de-
struction of papers was extremely vague and uncertain,
and their Lordships had no judicial knowledge of the ex-
tent to which it had been carried. It was clear that
many persons had been left legacies of large
amount, which the testators did not feel themselves
inclined to pay, and nothing could be so well devised to
get rid of the claim altogether as the destruction of these
papers. He was justified therefore, in saying that the case
came before them under circumstances of great suspicion.
He had shown their Lordships the readiness with which
the testatot's most important documents could be got at.
lie had shown the testator complaining of the loss of pre-
vious testamentary documents, and he had shown that the
parties who were about him at that time were principally
those implicated in the present transaction. Tire dtffi-
cutties of proof on his side were very great; but their
Lordships would take into account the circumstances 0r
the case in weighing these proofs, and make due
allowance for its defects. The Learned Counsel then re-
ferred at some lergth to the evidence which had been
given with regard to the handwriting of the testator, and
the doubt which had been pttempted to be thrown upon the
authenticity of the codicil. With respect to the
witnesses who spoke to the codicil by comparison
of handwriting, every Judge treated such evidence
very lightly, and be should not therefore trouble
their Lordships by any comments on his class of evidence.
He should re-it his case upon the evidence of those wit-
nesses who were well acquainted with the testator's hand-
writing. are of those witnesses, produced by the oppo-
site patty, bad given evidence directly against them,
He trusted, upon further consideration, therefore, that
their Lordships would think this codicil to be the
handwriting cf the testator. As to the legacies.
Was there soy improbability in those to the corporation
of Gloucester? Notwithstanding the objections advanced
by his Learned Friend as to the differences between them,
it was nevertheless proved, that up to the time of his death
the testator kept up his intimacy and connexion with
them. It appeared from his own entr:es in a book
in which he entered such things, that he was
possed over as Ma:, or at his own request, and the
ether allegations of the disgusts he had taken to the
corporation were equally unfounded. It was, moreover,
not uncommon for penurious persons, who refuse f to con-
tribute charities in tacit 1 vee to leave large sums for such
purposes after their death. Several witnesses bore
test moray to the expression of his intentions at different
times to build almshouses, and in other ways to do sorre-
thing for the benefit of "old Gloucester." These ex-
pres-ioes did not apply to any trivial benefits, but sue, as
would be conferred by the bequest in the coded. With
respect to M Phillpotts, that gentleman bad
been an old friend of the testator's. Thar Lord-
ships would observe the interest the testator took in
h'en and in the success of his elections, by the numerous
e Aries respecting him in his books, and when their Lord-
ships considered that by this legacy to Mr. Phillpotts the
testator left no relatives unpruvided for, or expectations
unfufilled, they would not think there was airy
improbability in the bequest to him in the codicil.
In addioon to these entrie', and the probabilities of the
case, several eirnesses spoke to the testator's expression
of his intention to benefit Mr. Phillpotts. There was also
similar probability and evidence with respect to the legacy
to Mr. Counsel, and with respect to the error in the wny
in which that gentleman's name was spelt in the
codicil, it was extremely improbable that any per-
son would have forged such a document with-
out acquainting himself with the names cf the per-
sons be was about to forge. So long as it was not
improbable that men of wealth should remember in their
wills the friends of their youth, and the companions of their
age, there was nothing improbable in these bequests
to Mr. Phillpot s and Mr. Counsel. Unless Mr.
Helps were the forger for his own benefit, how diffieult
it was to surmise any person who could have any benefit
in giving that gentlemm by the codicil a sum of 30,0001. ?
The situation of that gentleman in life put such a supposi-
tion out of question ; and no one but Mr. Wood himself
could have been interested in benefiting him by his property.
To Mrs. Goodlake there was a bequest of 20,000/., which was
an important circumstance against the genuineness of
paper A, for while it was not very probable that he would
have left so large a sum to that lady, if by the former do-
cument he had left so large a sum to her son ; so, if he
was not aware of the existence of that document, it was
very probable he would have left that sum to
her. He (the Solicitor-General) therefore contended
that no circumstances could be adduced from the body of
the codicil to impeach it if it was established to be the hand-
writing of the testator. He submitted to their Lordships
that the handwriting was established, and that the codicil
was genuine. What then was the ground of the
decision rejecting this codicil? He should submit there
was no rule of law to prevent its being established
upon proof of handwritieg. So far from this Court
being more strict than others with respect to hand-
writing, it was more lax,—it admitted comparison of
hands. And what would be the effect if the
Court refused this rule ? Would it not be to refuse any
will, out of the custody of the testator, written
under any circumstances, and communicated to those
most interested ? Might not a testator, to avoid
the importunities of those about him, send a
will in the manner of this codicil to some party
whom be intended to benefit, or might not a person in
danger at sea make a will and have it attested
by respectable witnesses, and inclosed in a bottle and
cist into the sea, and were the wills in either of
these cases to be rejre ed because there was no
other evidence than that of handwriting? They
had shown conclusively that there was another
testamentary paper, and when this codicil was introduced,
referring to another paper, with which, by the
acts of the appellants he was prevented from
connecting it, he contended that his clients were
entitled to the benefit of the doubt which must exist whe-
ther or not it was so connected. The Learned Gentle-
man then quoted the decisions in several cases in sup-
port of this part cf his case and asserted that there was
no case in which the handwriing had been established to
the satisfaction of the Judge, and yet the paper re-
jected for want of other evidence.
The Learned: Gentleman was proceeding, when Lord
Lyndhurst inquired if he had nearly concluded, upon
which the Solicitor General informed their Lordships that
be feared he should not be able to conclude iris argu-
ment that evening, and their Lordships accordingly ad-
journed until to-morrow.