The Sun.
London, England, 1848-10-09 00:00:00

THE FLOODS.

The valley of the Severn may now be aptly styled
the Severn sea, being flooded to a considerable extent•
Owing to the continuous and heavy rain which pre-
vailed in the latter part of last week, the river con-
tinued to rise for several days afterwards, until over-
leaping its banks, it has covered the meadows on
either side with an extraordinarily wide expanse of
superabundant waters. The valley of the Severn
now presents a very curious appearance; the river
forcing its rapid and troubled course through a sheet
of placid waters, which becomes all the more remark-
able, streaked as it is by the partially submerged
hedge-rows, and dotted by trees.
We are not aware that any material damage has
been:caused by the flood in this locality, and it is now
subsiding.
On Monday, a young man, named Cooke, was
drowned near Maisernore-bridge, by falling into the
current while trying to get ashore with a cable from
a long boat, which had broken adrift at the Upper
Parting.
At Tewkesbury, the Warwickshire Avon, which
unites the Severn at Tewkesbury, rose much more ra-
pidly and to a greater height than has been experi-
enced for very many years; and if the waters of the
Severn had run down with equal force with those of
the Avon, the flood would indeed have been a most
extraordinary one. The whole of the meadows
in the neighbourhood of Tewkesbury were entirely
covered with water to a considerable depth; and
three out: of the four principal roads) which lead
into the borough were rendered quite impassable;
but no material loss, except the carrying away a
quantity of timber, and removing some tensing,
occurred in the immediate vicinity of the town.
At Evesham Messrs. Burlingham, Malin, Hunt,
Gilbert, and indeed many others in the locality, have
experienced great losses. Mr. Holtom, of Cleeve, it
is said, has had 70 sheep washed away, and Mr.
Hopkins, of Offenham, 25 ; the latter has also lost a
cart colt.— Gloucestershire Chronicle.

" WAIT TILL YOU'RE ASKED."
(From the Man in the Moon.)
Following up the sentiments of the letter which he ad-
dressed to the Times, and in which he declared his earnest
hope that the people of London would not be too hasty
and enthusiastic in loading him with honours and dinners,
M. Louis Blanc has written to us at length, repeating his
determination not to allow himself to be made much of
in England.
M. Louis Blanc therefore declares—

That he will not, on any account, accept of the Free-
dom of the City of London, enclosed in a gold box, and
accompanied by a magnificent service of plate—♦alued
at 5,0001.

That he will not on any account accept of any such
honorary distinction as being made a Knight Companion
of the Bath, of the Fleece, or of the Garter.
That he will not accept of any legacies which may
be left him, of houses, lands, estates, or vast sums of
money in the funds.
That he will not accept of any public dinner from the
Honourable East India Company, from the Directors of
the Bank of England, or from any of the principal Clubs
in Pall-mall.

That he will not accept any invitations to any pleasant
and brilliant parties, where he will be the lion of the
evening and the admired of all observers.
That he will not accept of any pension of 5,0001.,
10,0001., or 20,0004 a year from the Government of this
country, or from any other quarter whatever.
That he will not and cannot for a moment allow him-
self to be made the object of numerous complimentary
and sympathising addresses agreed to at vast public
meetings, and presented by numerous deputations at the
head of tremendous processions, and amid the clang and
bang of trumpets and cannons.
And, finally (and what is more extraordinary than all),
that he will not accept of the situation of Contributor to
the Man in the Moon.

A PRECIOUS BUSTLE.—The wife of a Cornish
bankrupt, who was recently examined in the Exeter
District Court of Bankruptcy, was supposed to have
concealed about her person, money or other property of
value, belonging to her husband's estate- She was
searched a few days since by two females, by direction
of the officers from the court, and in her " bustle,"
which was unusually bulky, were found watches and ar-
ticles of jewellery of the value of 1001.—Cornwall
Graeae.

SAPIENT JUDGES.—The Bedford Times states that
at the recent horticultural show in that town the judges
decided that a bundle of white carrots were the best
parsnips; and gave the prize accordingly.
Nzw IRON MINE.-Preparations are now making
to raise iron ore, a vein of which has just been dis-
covered, on the estate of Mr. John Shepherd, High
Brow, Millom, and within a short distance of the White-
haven and Furness Junction Railway.— Carlisle Journal.
THE ADVANTAGE or KNOWING WHERE TO LOOK
FOR A HUSBAND I—A woman living in Ashby inquired
the other Sunday of one of the police, if he could give
her any tidings of her "mon" (meaning her husband),
and said she wished " Parliament was fur enough for
altering the laa" (alluding to the Act now in operation
compelling publicans to keep their houses closed the
whole of Sunday morning), " she could always find her
mon till the last Sunday or two, for he always got drunk
in the morning, and was in bed the remainder of the day;
but now she know'd no more where to look for him than
the mon in the moon. But Parliament folk cared nout
what trouble they gee poor crateri."—Derbyshire Courier.

SINGULAR BINITEST.—Mrs. Jane Thompson, who,
with the exception of a short period, has held the office
of the nurse at the Cumberland Infirmary since the
opening of that institution, died on Monday last after a
short illness. A few days before her death, feeling that
there was no prospect of her recovery, she presented
the whole of her savings, amounting to about 201., for
the benefit of the infirmary. This is a very pleasing
example of devotion to the interests of an institution,
of the merits of which the deceased must have been a
competent judge. We know of no higher compliment
to the infirmary than such a bequest as this.—Carlisle
Patrict.

MURDER.—The Autumn Circuit was opened at
Ayr on Wednesday. The only case of importance was
that of James AL`Wheelan or M`Queen, accused of the
crimes of murder and robbery, in so far as on the 26th
or 27th of May, 1848, he did (on the Backhill-road,
leading from Fort Acres, or Forty Acres' toll-bar to
the turnpike road from Ayr to Kilmarnock, at a spot
about nine miles from Ayr) attack and assault James
Young, servant with Mr. Joseph Smith, farmer,
Forty Acres, and did strike him with a stone on the
head, and severely wound him with a chisel on the neck,
so that the said Jomes Young did immediately or soon
thereafter die. The libel also charged the prisoner
with abstracting from the murdered man the following
articles:—A silver watch, a watch chain and watch
key, a watch guard, and 15s. in silver. There were no
fewer than 93 witnesses cited for the prosecution in
this case, which, from the peculiar barbarity and wan-
tonness of the crime, excited great interest. The trial
lasted two days, and the prisoner was unanimously
found guilty, and sentenced to be executed at Ayr on
the morning of the 26th instant. The prisoner, who
indiffer-
ence,throughout the trial maintained an air of stolid
became nervously anxious towards the conclusion.
On judgment being given, he with an excited voice pro-
tested his innocence, saying he had received the watch
from a man named Hall, in Kilmarnock. The last exe-
cution in Ayr was that of the unfortunate Waugh (some
16 years ago), who shot a man during the Orange riots
at Girvan.—Ayr Advertiser.
VALUE OP LIPB.—In the West Indies, a colonel
was ordered to disembark his corps to attack one of the
islands. In stepping into a boat he fell overboard, the
current carried him rapidly from the ship, when an honest
tar jumped after him, kept him afloat till a boat was dis-
patched to his assistance, and put him safely on board.
One of Jack's mesamates observing the colonel put some-
thing into the hands of his deliverer, stepped up to him,
exclaiming, " Damme, Jack, you are in luck to-day -,"
and eagerly opening his hands, expecting to share in
a can of grog; but on discovering the reward, a six-
pence, the tar uttered a prayer, and whispered his mess-
mate, " Never mind, Jack, every man knows the value
of his life best."

NEW Houses or PARLIAMENT.—A facile means
of hastening Ow completion of these works has been re-
sorted to by the adoption of Parian cement, a recent dis-
covery. Unlike other plasters, this is better for painting
over in less tha❑ twenty hours. Its crystalisation is
likewise so complete that cubes of a large size may be
seen at the factory at Nine Elms, which, although
painted upon all sides shortly after their formation, have
not exuded the slightest moisture. It will mix with oil
or water, and as it does not set for four or five boars, it
can be worked to any desired end ; but so soon as it
does set it rapidly becomes consistent, and assumes the
hardness and closeness of, and will take as high a polish
as marble. It differs from scagliola, inasmuch as the
most delicate colours blend into each other without any
piecework, and it is not unlikely to take a high position
in domestic architecture. From the absence of all free
acids, glass and other expensive tools are not requisite,
nor need the upholsterer fear his delicate paper-hangings
will suffer from a similar cause. Although this cement
is of little more cost than the ordinary piasters, it is a
considerably more economical one, when the saving of
time, its check to rising moisture, its great beauty, and
enduring nature, are taken into account. In inlaid floor-
ings, and the minute purposes of utility and ornament,
it possesses its peculiar qualities—it does not swell, warp,
or shrink while in the course of induration.