The Sun.
London, England, 1846-04-10 00:00:00

THE W*- ST INDIA MAIL.

The Royal Mail *wain-ship Avon, Captain R. S.
Norton, arriv,d at. Southampton last night, bringing the
mail, fim, M. xico and the West Indic:, At Tampico
and Vera Cruz there had been some severe gales. The
weather at Bermuda was very bad, a gale having corn
menced on the 17th, and continued to the 23d. The
Avon left on the following day (after the arrival of the

outward-bound packet, the Thames), and made the run
from Bermuda in sixteen days. Her latest dates are—
Tampico, Feb. 25; Honduras, Feb. 26; Carthagena,

• Feb. 27; Chagres, Feb. 27; Vera Cruz, March 2; De-
merara, March 5; Trinidad, March 7; La Guayra,
March 7; Havannah, March 10; Jamaica, March 11;
Bsrbadoes, March 13; Grenada, March 14; St. Thomas,
March 17; and Bermuda, March 24.
She brings home fifty-five passengers, besides a very
valuable cargo, consisting of 2,014,085 dollars (49,481 of
which are from Vera Cruz, on account of the Mexican
dividends), 1,000 dollars in gold dust, 10,0001. worth of
pearls, 2811 b. 3oz. of platina, 1461. 15s. in British coin,
38 serails of indigo, and 91 ditto of cochineal, besides
other minor packages.
The following ships of war were lying at Vera Cruz:—
Her Majesty's sloop Rose; the United States squadron,
under the command of Commodore Connor, consisting 01
the Falmouth, 22 guns; Jobn Adams, 22 guns; St. Mary,
22 guns; and Porpoise brig, 16 guns; also the French
corvette La Perouse, 18 guns; the Spanish brig Patinta,
18 guns; the Mexican squadron Montezuma and Guade-
loupe steamers, of 7 guns each; two brigs of 16 guns;
and five schooners of 5 guns.
At Havannah, the Spanish ship, Sovereigna, 74 guns ;
and French brig Griffon, 10 guns ; at Nassau, bar Ma-
jesty's ship Thunder, surveying vessel ; and at Ber-
muda, her Majesty's ship Endymion.
Her Majesty's ship's Vindictive, bearing the flag of
Vice-Admiral Sir F. Austin, and Eurydice, arrived at
St. Thomas's on the 2I st of February from Martinique,
and sailed the same afternoon for Jamaica. The Vin.
dictive was expected at Havannah on the 19th ult., ot.
her way to Bermuda.
Her Majesty's frigate America was at Mazatlan, west
coast of Mexico, on the 10th February. She was t,
sail, however, in two days for Valparaiso and England
with upwards of 2,000,000 dollars on board. Her Ma-
jesty's brig Frolic was also at Mazatlan, and the Talbot
at Saint Bias.

The American squadron, consisting of two frigates
three sloops, and two store-ships, under the col:emeriti
of Commodore boat, was also at Mazatlan ; and several
other American vessels of war were daily expected.
The Avon exchanged colours, on the 4th of April.
with the Wellereden, homeward bound ; on the Bth
with the Caroline, of Poole, outward bound ; and on tht
same day with the Duncan, also outward bound.
The Company's steamer Medway bad left Havanna)
for Vera Cruz, the Tweed had goue to the Windwar.
Islands, the Forth was at Carthagena, the Severn a,
Jamaica, the Thames at Bermuda, and the City of Glas-
gow and Reindeer at Grenada.
MEXICO.

Mexico, when the Avon left, was quiet but uneasy.
and it was generally expected that the Federalists would
shortly assume the reins of Government. The Mexican
Government still refused to recognise Mr. Slidell, the
American Minister, who continued to reside at Julapa
Several more American ships of war were expected at
Vera Cruz, and it was surmised that on their arrival the
coast would be declared in a state of blockade. There
was a report current in Mexico that 3,000 of the United
States troops had marched to the Rio Grande. The
Americans who were cruising off Matemoras had forcibly
taken off two Mexican pilots, and forced them to navi-
gate their ships. The Mexican steamer Guadeloupe had
landed 300 troops at Tampico from Vera Cruz. She
had likewise on board several guns for the batteries, but
as the weather was tempestuous she was unable to get
over the bar, and was consequently obliged to return t•
Vera Cruz without landing the guns. Santa Anna was
still at Havannah.

JAMAICA.

The accounts of the crops are most favourable.

A memorial of the planters, merchants, and inhabi-
tants of the island to the English Government, praying
for a reduction of the duty payable in England on the
importation of West India spirits, has been sent home
by th© Avon.

- The inhabitants were anticipating the formation of
the promised railways. The traffic on the Kingston
Railway continued to improTe.

From the thirteenth report of the Planters' Bank it
appears the directors have declared a dividend of 5 per
cent., and added nearly 2,0001. to the reserved fund.
which now amounts to 11,283/. 19s. 10d.

On the sth ult. the shock of an earthquake had been
felt in the southern part of the island. It had not, how-
ever, caused any damage.
Lieut. B. Young, R.N., of the Persian, had been sen-
tenced by Court-martial to be dismis,ed his ship, and
put at the bottom of the list of lieutenants, for drunken.
ness. The Court-martial was held on board the Imsum.

The arrival of the Canopus was hourly expected, when
the Avon left.
EXCHANGES ON LONDON.—Planters' Bank, 30 days.
1.4 per cent. pm. ; 60 days, 1 per cent. pm. ; 90 days,
p-r cent. pm. Jamaica Bank, 30 dais, 1 per cent.
pm. ; 60 days, 1 per cent. pm. ; 90 days. per cent.
pm. Colonial Bank, 30 days, 14 per cent. pm. ; 60
days, 1 per cent. pm. ; 90 days. cent. pm.

DISSOLUTION OF RAILWAY

COMPANIES.

The railway public is indebted to Mr. Labouchere, for
extracting from Sir Robert Peel an intimation of the
course by which he proposes to place them in possession
of the general outline of the plan proposed by the Go-
vernment for enabling a majority of scripholders to ob-
tain a dissoluti of the Companies by petition. The
more that this matter is canvassed, the stronger the
opinion becomes that the Government scheme is totally
inadequate to meet the crisis, and that it will be diffi-
cult, if not in many instances impossible, to carry ii
out in practice. Not that there is much weight given
to the difficulties that have been started against the
right of scripholders to sign the petitions, because the
sale of eailway scrip previous to complete registration
has been legalised by a solemn decision of the Courts of
Law. The allottees who have sold their scrips have di-
vested themselves of their interest in the companies, but
° to
they hare not been d from their responsibility.
The parties entitled sign the petitions are the
immediate holders f
purpose possession of the th! scrips, and for that
scripis held to be a sufficient
warrant. It is necessary, however, to draw a line
between signing petitions 'to dissolve,c and voting at any
To obtain
meetings thata
diss moluay be called to
coonmsider such a purpose.
tion of any
an patz .
it
required by the Government plan
seems to be
majorityto t oin
a
value of scripholders malt exhibit their signatures
petition to Parliament, praying the House
The number of signatures is of no importance. interferenles
.
they represent a majority in value, the petition will nots
be sufficient to stay the progress of the Bill. Should
scripholders imagine that they could increase their influ-
ence by giving 100 shares to as many porters, they will
find themselves mistaken. The 100 porters would still
represent nothing more than their single author. If
he was the holder of 100 shares, they would be so and
nothing more. Their signatures would be worth just
that amount of value, and nothing would be gained by
such a device. It would be requisite, nevertheless, to
guard against splitting of scrips in the event of meet-
ings being sanctioned. In that event there would
appear to be difficulties to be encountered at-
tending the working of the Ministerial scheme
that are almost insuperable. But we have already
said that the plan itself is now looked upon as totally
insufficient, and that the prevailing opinion is to adopt
the converse of it as the proper rem, dy. We cannot
say that the reference by the Prt mien to the Railway
Department of the Board of Trade is calculated to in-
spire confidence for the efficiency of the measure. There
has been something ominous and disastrous in the past
proceedings of that unfortunate tribunal, with respect to
railways. Everybody looked upon it as defunct, and its
resuscitation at the present moment looks as if Sir Robert
Peel merely used it ior the nonce, to get rid, for a time,
of one of his pressing diffi2teties. The heavier descrip-
tions of shares have fully maintained to-day the aligkt
improvement we noticed yesterday. There is no new
feature in English Scrips. The principal attraction in
Foreign Shame has been the meeting of i he shareholders
in the Dutch Rhenish line, which is understood to have
ie p passed off satisfactorily. Independently of a detail of
spects and merits of the line, which were pre-
aentedr' in a copious report by the directors to the meet-
ing, the leading results are that the shares are ordered
in to b! registered, a call of 71. per share is to be an-
nounced, and e dividend is alluded to of 2s. 6d. per share,
to be paid in the c,Jurso of a few months.—Chronicle,
City article.

THE LATE FATAL OCCURRENCE AT THE MILE-
END•oATE.—YswerIay an inquest, which was twice ad-
journed, was resumed and concluded at the London Hospital,
before Mr. Baker, on the body of James Eestmead Bradley,
aged twenty, the 8011 of the collector of tolls at the Mile-end-
gate, who died in the above institution on Sanday morning
from injuries received the day previous by the wheels of a
cart passing over his body. After a long discussion relating
to the tickets and the mode of collecting toile on the road,
the jury, among whom a great difference of opinion pre-
Tailed, were lucked up. After four hours' deliberation, twelve
of the fourteen jurymen returned a verdict that the de-
ceived came by Isis death by the wheels of a loaded cart
passing over his body, but by what means he was forced
under the said cart there was no satisfactory evidence before
them. Two of the jury were for a verdict of manslaughter
against Ruff.
SUDDEN DEATH IN THE STREET. - Last evening
Mr. Bedford held an inquest at the Two Chairmen. Dart-
mouth-street, Westminster, on the body of John M'lnnes,
aged tity two. The deceased was a discharged soldier, and
obtained a precarious livelihood by hawking prints at public-
houses. On Wednesday evening he left home, apparently
quite well, and about twelve o'clock he was found by a
police-constable of the B division, on the steps of a door in
Great George-street, Westminster, in a senseless state. He
was conveyed immediately on a stretcher to the Westminster
Hospital, where Mr. Sibley, the house-surgeon, pronounced
life to be quite extinct, and it was further discoYered that Is
died from long-stauding disease of the heart. Verdil—
Natural (lath.