The Sun.
London, England, 1846-01-01 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, THMSDAY EVENING, JANUARY 1, 1844.

her hands the infant Brian, who is brought up by the
islanders as one of their own children. These islanders
are confirmed smugglers, and we have a most animated
account of a conflict between a smuggling craft and a
cruiser, in which the smuggler makes his escape. As
Brian grows up he is taken under the patronage of a
certain William St. George a fine high spirited
young cavalry office, whose death in a duel (which is
very graphically described), concludes the portion of
the novel given in the present number. " Early
Years of a Veteran," " Gaming and Gaining-houses,"
" The Reminiscences of the Gaol Chaplain," and
" The Outpourings of D. Canter," are continued in
the present number. The Libation of D. Canter is
a revelation concerning private theatricals in general,
and concerning Pym's in particular. The hints which
he gives to amateurs are well worthy of attention.
Rifleman Harris relates some interesting anecdotes
of the "Retreat to Corunna ;" and the " Humbug of
Quackery" (tractors, and touching for the evil, to
wit, which seem to le now on the point of being
revived under another name), is well shown up by
a physician. The expose is admirable, but we tear it
will be useless, for as Burke justly observes, " the
wearing out of an old only serves to put the,fraudu-
lent upon the invention of a new delusion. " Un-
luckily, too, the credulity of dupes is as inexhaustible
as the invention of knaves." Albert Smith contri-
butes a curious ghost-story—a real ghost story, and
Alfred Crowquill, an amusing sketch entitled " The
Picture." IA e have also a beautifully engraved por-
trait of Alfred Crowquill, and an illustration of the
duel scene from Brian O'Linn. The concluding arti-
cle in the Miscellany, is a gem of pathos and poetry.
It proceeds from, and goes directly to the heart.
Here it is. It is entitled "My Child's Grave :"

My little one ! the world looks cold,
My.sadden'd heart doth turn to thee,
And now again mine eyes behold
Thy mound beneath the alder tree !
Once more I tend the flow'rs that bloom
Beside thine unpretending tomb !
Sweet innocent ! they sanctify
Thy place of throbless rest awhile,
With dew-drops borrow'd from on high,
And many a joyous summer smile !
The rudest winds that o'er thee move
Are soften'd to a breath of love !
A meditative beauty here
Doth linger on the quiet scene,
And, waken'd to a sense of pray'r,
The mind looks forth unveil'd—serene ;
While thoughts are rife of those beneath,
Amidst the solitude of Death !
And lovingly we trace again
Each unforgotten semblance o'er,—
The fond caress,—the playful vein,
The tenderness, endear'd of yore !
They steal upon us in that hour
When Memory resumes her power.
And thou, my child, I shadow forth,
In all thine artless, infant grace,
That made me prize thee first of earth,
And bless thy bright and winsome face ;
Though fleetly closed thy dawn of life,—
At least, it knew no taint of strife !

I fondly thought thou wouldst become
My stay, my hope, in years' decline ;
But comfortless is now my home,
And dimly doth its taper shine :
For what have Ito do with joy,
When thou hast wander'd hence, my boy ?
I know thou art in yonder heaven,
With rays of fadeless glory crown'd,
But still my steps each quiet even
Bend thither to this holy ground.
Strange sympathy my feelings have
With that secluded moss-clad grave 1
There, seated by thy little stone,
My thoughts to other days allied,
I count the weary seasons gone,
Since thou wert at thy father's side,
And lisping out, as day grew dim,
Thy mother's own loved vesper hymn !
The streamlet murm'ring by doth seem

To wake familiar tones to me ;
The passing wind, too, stirs a theme
That brings me nearer still to thee :
And thus in sweet commune of love
I seek my long-lost child above !
I cannot weep,—ms tears are spent,—
But not the less my heart doth mourn,
When upward these weak eyes are bent,

Then desolate—to earth return :
But soon the conflict will be o'er,
And, angel ! we shall part no more I

TAI T.

There are several articles in the present number of
rather more than ordinary interest, among which are
" A Visit to Mr. O'Connell at Derrynane, by Wil-
liatn Howitt ;" a sketch of Shelley, by De Quincey,
in " Notes on Gilfillan's Gallery of Literary Por-
traits ;" and " Carlisle's Oliver Cromer ell's Letters."
The political article, though now little better than an
old almanac, contains some abuse of the Whigs,
which we hope is not deserved, and a rather violent
attack on Lord Palmerston, which we consider totally
unmerited. " Palmerston," says Tait, " insisted on
being Minister of Foreign Affairs—nothing less, no-
thing else would satisfy him—of course it was more
important in his Lordship's eyes that he should rule
the external relations of the state than that the torn-
laws should be repealed." The fact is, Lord Palmer-
ston justly declined any other appointment because
he could not accept it without a stigma on his
policy, but he was willing to remain out of the
Cabinet, and at the same time lend the Government
every assistance in his power. Two consolations,
however, make amends for the failure of the Liberals
—" The Whigs are pledged to free trade—the Tories
are broken up." In an article entitled " How is
Parliament to get through its Railway Business ?"
we find the following judicious remarks :
" The public is entitled to the best line that existing
lights can devise. It is not by diminishing the number
of lines upon which Parliament is to adjudicate that the
railway business of the session is to be brought within
manageable compass, but by the judges adopting a clear
and precise view of the end to be attained, keeping this
view constantly before them, and regulating all their
proceedings with the one exclusive aim to find it out.
The cardinal principle most conducive to the attainment
of this end, is to aim at giving the public the greatest
amount of railway accommodation, with the least possible
expenditure of money and labour. One great means of
eschewing extra expenditure of either, is to promote
wherever it is possible the construction of direct trunk
lines. In the infancy of the railway system, it was
common for a railway to meander through a district,
going out of its way to catch the large towns. This was
natural enough when men were sceptical as to whether a
railway under any circumstance could be made to pay.
Thus it came that the railway from London to Man-
chester and Liverpool was made to go round by Bir-
mingham. But the trade of Liverpool and Manchester
will not submit to be made merely auxiliary to that of
Birmingham ; and twe have already the Trent Valley
line by %I hich Birmingham is placed on a branch of a
more direct trunk line, as in a few years we shall have
the direct Manchester an extension of the direct system.
Now had a direct line been constructed to the north, at
first, with branches to accommodate Birmingham and
other great marts, a much shorter total mileage of rail
way would have required to be constructed ; in other
words more miles of railway have been made than are
actually required. But a still greater and more useless
outlay would have been saved. Every inconvenient
circuitous line
allowed to be constructed, becomes a
vested interest, incurs great expense itself to prevent the
construction of a better, and forces the promoters of the
improved line to incur much
unnecessary
Committees expenditure.
of
fo promote
The first duty of the rail way
to the utmost of their power the connexion
is
lines, with ourbranches greatfor
district accommodation.
marts and harbours, by direct
" Having adopted this principle as their guide, the
Committees might materially economise time and exer-
tion, by adopting the following form of process
:—lst,
To investigate the capability of the district to support a
railway. The affirmative here would be maintained by
all the schemes; the negative only by general opponents
to any railway, if such there were. All the schemes
might combine to prove this part of their case, and by
takin., this step first and apart, much time would be
saved. 2d, To investigate in succession the bonti fide
character of each company. Each company of a group
might be called in succession to prove its list of share-
holders and their means. It would be open to each of
their rivals or any of their competitors to lead counter-
proof. As soon as the affirmative or negative was es-
tablished to the satisfaction of the Committee, the in-
quiry should be closed: any company tailing to prove its
competency ought to be put out of court. 3d, Each of
the remaining companies should then be called in suc-
cession to state and prove the advantages of its line.
Any counter evidence should next be received. And
when the case of one was closed, the next should be
taken up without pronouncing any deliverance. 4th,
When they had been all gone through, the Committee
ought to decide which one or more lines ought to be
constructed, with what modifications of the original
plan. By keeping promoters, counsel, and witnesses to
the point, proceedings might thus be much expedited."

FATAL FIT IN AN OMNIBUS.—Last night, Mr.
Bedford held an inquest at the Black Horse,Bedfordbury, on
the body of Thomas Scantlebury, aged forty-one years, a
stud-groom, late in the employ of Mr. Tattersall, of Grosve-
nor-place, Hyde-park, The deceased lodged with his
nephew, at, 03, Banner-square, St. Luke's. He left home
about ten o clock on Monday morning, and at eleven, arriv-
ing at Cheapside, he got into one of the Brompten omnibuses,
telling the conductor to put him down at Charing-cross, and
appearance,artis-lape the conductor got down to
perfect health. When the
NeehiliVet ireached all
s lt.
3
take up another passenger. The deceased at this moment
fell into a fit. He was assisted out and taken to the Charing-
cross Hospital, but died. cn his way.. The deceased had in
'at the time 11/. in gold
his possession and silver, a silver
watch, and other articles of property. Verdict, " Natural
death."
OPPOSITION TO THE PROPOSAL TO RAISE THE
MILITIA.—The members and friends of the Birmingham
Peace Association have resolved to hold a public meeting in
the Town-hall here, in the course of a few weeks, to protest
against the determination of Government to organise the
militia, and to petition Parlihment to introduce an arbitra-
tion clause into all our treaties with foreign powers.
The Marine Society has sent nearly 900 boys to
sea during the year 1845, and we hope the public will libe-
rally support the institution. The subjects of its bounty are
the most distressed and desolate of our fellow creatures.
Such are relieved from all the evils of poverty, hunger, cold,
and nakedness, and trained up to be useful In the commerce
of the country as British seamen.
DOUBLY HAzannous.—ln the event of the Chelsea
pensioners being called out, a new company will be started to
insure their wooden legs against fare.—Punch.

COURT. CIRCULAR.

WiNnson, WEDNESDAY.—The Queen and Prince Al:
bert promenaded in the vicinity of the Castle precincts
previous to his Royal Highness going out to shoot, ac-
compan'ed by the Earl of Lincoln, Sir Robert Peel, the
Right Hon. Sidney Herbert, and Lord Rivers, and at-
tended by Major-General Sir Edward Bowater and
Mr. Anson.
The fineness of the weather this morning permitted
the Royal Family to be taken for their early rides and
walks in the pleasure-grounds.
The Right Hon. Sir James and Lady Graham, and
the Right Hon. William Gladstone, arrived at the Castle
to-day, on a visit to the Queen.
The royal dinner party at the Castle this evening
will include her Royal Highness the Duchess of Kent,
Lady Fanny Howard, and the Baroness de Speth.
The band of the Grenadier Guards will attend duri'•g
dinner, and her Majesty's private band will afterwards
attend at the Castle.

Their Royal Highnesses the Duke of Cambridge and
Prince George left town for Coombe Wood, on a shoot-
ing excursion, yesterday morning, returning to tuwn in
the afternoon.

The Right Hon. W. E. Gladstone arrived in town
yesterday morning from Hawarden Castle, Flintsliire.
The Right Honourable Gentleman left town in the after-
noon for Windsor Castle.

THE BLACKFRIARS PIER.

(From the Weekly Dispatch of Dee. 28r.1845.) s
The difference between the Watermen's Steam Packet
Company and the Corporation of tofidon, relating- to
the times of calling at the Blackfriars-pier, have not
been adjusted, and the dispute promises a plentiful har-
vest of actions, summonses, warrants, and indictments.
In the coarse of the week the City Solicitor has served
a writ on one of the masters of the Watermen's steam-
ers, for obstructing the navigation of the river ; in
other words, he simply called at the new pier to land
and embark passengers, and the City have put them-
selves forward as plaintiffs, ostensibly to try the right,
but in reality to harass the Watermen's Company, and
force them into a compliance with the absurd regu•
lations of the Navigation Committee. Another Cap-
tain of a Watermen's steamer was fined five pounds
by the Lord Mayor, on Wednesday last, simply for
calling at the pier to obtain passengers. This ap-
pears to be a most tyrannical proceeding. The Lord
Mayor himself makes an order to exclude the boats
of a particular Company, and while the owners of the
steamboats are disputing the validity of the order, and
after an action has been commenced in one of the supe-
rior Courts to try the validity of the order, the Lord
Mayor, who acts as a judge in his own cause, fines the
steam-boat captain 51. This decision, and a former one
of a similar nature, have been app.aled against, but the
mischief is, that in the City an appeal must be made
from one Corporation office to another, and it is difficult
to obtain anything like impartial justice in any case
where the interests of the Corporation are concerned. A
City policeman has been held to bail, in his own recogni-
zances only, to appear and take his trial at the next
London sessions, fur assaulting a gentleman who at-
tempt( d to land on the pier from Waterman No. 8.
Several other persons were used in a brutal manner by
the City police, and dragged through the streets to the
station-house, for simply attempting to land on the pier.
The Thames police have also been stationed on the pier
since the commencement of the disputes, and the floating
property on the river has been left unprotected. It
reflects no credit on the Commissioners that they should
allow their officers to act as partizans, and get up distur-
bances fur the benefit of the Corporation. The Naviga-
tion Committee have acted in this manner with the most
gross partiality. When the pier was opened, it was
held out to the steam-boat Companies that it should
be a free pier, that the boats should be allowed to call
at what times their owners pleased, but that only one
should be allowed to remain alongside at one time, and
remain no longer than was necessary to land and to embark
passengers. To these regulations no one could object,
and the boats of the rival Companies continued to call
at certain times until the Ist inst., when the Navigation
Committee, upon the application of the Old Woolwich
Company, resolved that distinct times for calling at the
Pier should be allotted to the boats of the Watermen's
and the Woolwich Companies as follows :—To the
Watermen's Company ten minutes after the qnarter, and
three quarters past the hour, and to the Woolwich Com-
pany ten minutes after the hour and half hour. The
Watermen's Company, through their secretary and soli-
citor, Mr. Newbon, protested against this arrangement,
and requested that the boats of the Watermies Com-
pany should not be dispossessed of the time occupied by
them, and that the additional injustice should not be
inflicted of admitting. another Company to half of the
trade, entirely made by the Watermen's Company, and
appropriating to a rival Company the very hours known
to the public as belonging to the Watermen's boats. A
long correspondence afterwards took place between Ser-
geant Merewether, the town-clerk, and Mr. Newbon.
The Navigation Committee, however, refused to assign
any reasons (except one which we shall hereafter notice)
for adhering to their determination, and the Watermen's
Company were informed, that unless it complied with the
terms laid down by the Navigation Committee their .
boats would be prevented calling at the pier at all. Perhaps
a more harsh and tyrannical proceeding was never heard
of. Mr. Newbon, in one of his letters to the Town-
clerk, very justly says, " And I am desired to say most
respectfully, that the Directors of the Watermen's
Steam-packet Company cannot recognise the justice of
the Navigation Committee in allotting the times at which
the boats of this Company have been accustomed to call
at Blackfriars to the Woolwich Company, which is at
variance with the understanding upon which the agree-
ment you allude to was signed, namely, that the pier
should be an open pier." It appears the Navigation
Committee wish to favour the Hungerford Market Com-
pany, whose pier is used by the Woolwich Company,
and one sage member of the Navigation Committee on
being expostulated with before his brethren observed—
"Oh, we must do what we can for the Hungerford Mar-
ket Company, its a concern of great magnitude—a very
powerful body." The fact is, an attempt has been made
to establish a monopoly of the steam boat traffic at the
Hungerford Market Pier, which signally failed. The
Proprietors of it indicted the Adelphi Pier, one of the
best conducted on the river, as a nuisance, but the tables
were turned ; the bill against the Adelphi was ignored,
and a true bill against the Hungerford Market Pier was
returned. The Corporation of London are likely to come
out of the affair with disgrace. The Blackfriars Pier
has been erected without any legal authority, and is kept
up only upon sufferance. The Commissioners of Woods
and Forests have claimed the soil and bed of the river
fur the Crown, and obtained an injunction against the
Corporation soon after the erection of the pier com-
menced, prohibiting the Corporation from driving piles
and proceeding with it. After some delay a negotiation
was entered into between the Solicitor of the Crown and
the City Solicitor, and it was arranged that the Corpo-
ration should be allowed to complete the pier and keep it
open till the main question should be decided. It was
further arranged that the Corporation should furnish an
account of the rents and profits to the Commissioners of
Woods and Forests. As the pier has been erected with-
out the sanction of an Act of Parliament on the Queen's
public highway, it is likely to share the fate of Lord
Grosvenor's embankment at Millbank, and the wharf, or
embankment, belonging to Sir Richard Dobson and Mr.
Sutton, at Greenwich. Both were erected with the per-
mission of the Corporation, and both were indicted as
nuisances and obstructions. The jury, in each case, re-
turned a verdict of Guilty. Esrl Grosvenor's embank-
ment was removed long ago ; Sir Richard Dobson and
Mr. Sutton's embankment, at Greenwich, is now being
removed by the officers a)f the sheriff of Kent, to the
great delight of the oppressed watermen owning the
floating pier ; and the Blackfriars-pier will no doubt meet
with the same fate. It has been decided, that the City
have no right to erect wharves, piers, and embankments
on the river, nor give permission to others to do so. The
days of the Corporation pier are numbered. It will be
indicted at the next London sessions.

THE MILITIA-NEW MOVEMENT.
Two or three spirited individuals ccnnected with a
newspaper-office in Newport, have drawn up the follow-
it:g petition, which has alreath received a large number
of unsolicited signatures :

" TO THE QUEEN'S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY.

" May it please your Majesty,
" We, the undersigned, loyal inhabitants of the
borough of Newport, in the county of Monmouth,
having heard with serkus alarm that an order had been
issued for the speedy raising cf the militia of this country,
do hereby offer our most solemn but respectful protest
against such an ui constitutional and tyrannical mode
of providing for the defence of these countries.
" We feel assured that • our Majesty cannot be per-
fectly acquainted with the misery and uniskppiness such
an act would occasion,—the ruthless s-vering of fimily
ties, tearing the husband from his wife, the son from
his mother, and sending them to Ireland, or some other
place, far distant from their home, to the complete over-
throw and ruin of all their worldly prospects ; and this
wittout even going through the form which is necessary
to enlist the free soldier, tut forc:ng, them, against their
will, to do that which a free nation should do from
choice.

" Your petitioners feel assured that the safety of
these realms could be efficiently secured without causing
such wide spread misery, and they confidently trust,
that in your Majesty's humane endeavours to ameliorate
the condition of your subjects, you will set your face
against this remnant of heartless oppression, and wil'
not allow the French conscription system to be retained
in our envied island. Let England still be the ;oast of
ti-:e free ; and let not her shores be defended by men
dragged unwillingly from tr.eir families and friends; for
rest assured, you: Majesty, :,bould foreign invasion or
domestic treason ever threaten our nativ_ land, brave
hearts and willing hands would be found to battle in her
dilence, without ha:ing recourse to oppressive mea-
sures; and a band of free and hearty volunteers would
be of tar more efficient service than a dispirited and op-
pr, ssed militia.

" Trusting to your Majesty's kind consideration for
the welfare and happiness of your loyal subjects,
"Your petitioners will ever pray, &c."

sERIOUs FIRE.
Last night, shortly after ten o'clock, a fire, attended
with a serious destruction of property, broke out upon
the premises belonging to Mr. Hacker, a hat merchant,
carrying on business at 30, Crosby-row Walworth-
road, within a short distance of Camberwell-gate. The
discovery appears to have been made by Police- constable
Gavin, 163 I'. Smoke which he saw issuing from the
front windows on the ground floor, convinced him that
the building was on fire. An immediate alarm was
spread throughout the neighbourhood, and intelligence
was dispatched to the_:engine-stations with information
of the disaster. With all possible expedition the brigade
engine from the Waterloo-road station reached the scene
of conflagration ; this was quickly followed by the West
of England engine and firemen. Upon their arrival the
firemen found that the fire had obtained a firm hold of
the lower porticn of the premises ; but had there been
an immediate supply of water at hand, it is highly pro-
bable that the flames would have been speedily extin-
guished ; as it was, however, the engines and firemen
were kept waiting some time ; the " call" for the turn-
cock, it appears, was taken to the wrong house. During
the time thus lost the flames spread with the greatest ve-
hemence, seizing upon everything in the buildings of a
combustibli, nature, and very quickly firing the same
from the bottom to the top. The turncocks, having
eventually been apprised of the disaster, hastened to the
spot, and water being then obtained in copious streams,
the firemen set to work most vigorously, and other en-
gines, belonging to the parish, London Establishment,
and County Insurance Company, coming up, the whole
were put to work ; the hose of some being carried
through the adjoining buildings, and by that means the
water was discharged in the right quarter. Notwith-
standing, however, that the firemen exerted themselves
to the utmost, they were unable to confine the flames to
the premises in which they be gan, and whilst they were
working, the conflagration extended first to the right
and then to the left, setting the premises on either side,
numbered severally 29 and 31, in flames. The excite-
ment in the district upon the inhabitants seeing the fire
thus extending, was of a most distressing character. The
firemen, however, exerted themselves in a most praise-
worthy manner, and by half past twelve o'clock th, y
happily succeeded in getting the mastery over the flames.
' By that period the whole of Mr. Hacker's stock in trade

was consumed ; the valuable stock of Mr. Picking, pa-
.rasol•manufacturer, was reduced to ashes ; his adjoining
premises and stock of linendrapery, severely damaged ;
and the building and contents of Mr. Gunning, grocer,
are very .Rxtensively injured by fire and water. The
total clan:age. must be very considerable. Mr. PiCking,
we understand, was insured in the Royal Exchange-
()Wee for 2,0001., but whether that amount will cover his
loss we are unable at present to tell ; and whether any
of the other sufferers were insured, it was impossible
during the excitement which prevailed to learn.

RAILWAY SIIARE MARKETS.
LIVERPOOL, DEc. 31.
STOCK EXCHANGE.-The sales are-Birkenhead, Lanca-
shire, and Cheshire, 514 p.-Blackburn and Preston, 51/8-
Ditto, New Shares, 41/ p.-Bolton, Wigan, and Liverpool,
174 p.-Ditto, New Shares, 3% p.-Boston, Newark, and
Sheffield, 7s. 6d. p.- Caledonian, 54 p. -Cambridge and Lin-
coln, 2 p.-Chester and Birkenhead, 491/2-Ditto, New 201.
Shares, 11/s p.-Derby and Crewe, 3% p.-Eastern Counties,
2214-Ditto, Perpetual, No. 2,6 s. 6d. p.-East Lancashire,
No. 2, 4 p.-East Lincolnshire, 14 p.-Glasgow and Dum-
fries, 10s. p.-Grand Junction, 2481/4-Ditto, Eighth Shares,
173/4 p.-Ditto, 40/. Shares (L. Si.), 56 p.-Grand Union, ss.
p.-Great Grimsby Dock, p.-Great Grimsby and Slid-
field, Quarter Shares, 2% p.- Great Western, Quarter Shares,
16 p.-Goole and Doncaster, 114 p.-Huddersfield Canal
and Railway, 614 p.-Huddersfield and Sheffield, 171/ p.-
Lancasier and Preston, Quarter Shares, 5%-Leicester and
Bedford, 15s. p.-Leicester and Birmingham, 58. p.-Leices-
ter and Tamworth, ss. p.-Liverpool and Leeds Direct, %
dis.-Liverpool, Manchester, and Newcastle Junction, 2! p.
-Liverpool, Ormskirk, and Preston, 3 p.-London and
Brighton, 70-London and York, 2 p.-Direct Northern, 7s.
6d. dis.- Leeds and Thirsk, 44 p.-Manchester, Midland,
and Great Grimsby, 14 p.-Matlock and Midland, 23/ 13.
-Midland, 158-Ditto, 401. Shares, 1834 p.-.north Stafford-
shire, 37,4p.-North Wales Mineral, 41i p.--North Western,
2% p.- Oxford and Birmingham Junction, ls. 6d. p.-o,_
ford, Worcester, and Wolverhampton, 3 p.-Preston and
Wyre, 34-Sheffield and Manchester, 128-Ditto, Quarter
Shares, 8 p.-Shrewsbury and Herefordshire, par-Shrews-
bury, Wolverhampton, and South Staffordshire, 1%
Shrewsbury, Oswestry, and Chester, 1 sR p.-Shropshire Union
Railway and Canal, 4 p.-South- Eastern and Dover, 404
-Ditto, New Shares, No. 2,4% p.-Ditto, Consolidated
Thirds, Half Shares, 265. p.-West Riding Union, 53/4 p.-
Dublin and Galway, par-Dundalk and Enniskillen, 10s. dis.
-Dutch Rhenish, 3% p.-Great Luxembourg, 14 dis.-
Paris and Lyons (Ganneron), 6s. p.- Ditto (Calon), ss. p.
LEEDS, DEC. 31.
STOCK EXCHANGE.-The sales are-London and Croydon,
234-Manchester and Leeds, Fifth Shares, 12 p.-York and
North Midland Extension, 30-Great Grimsby and Sheffield,
114-Ditto, Quarter Shares, 33/4-Huddersfield and Man-
chester, 9-Huddersfield and Sheffield, 25- Leeds and Brad-
ford. 574-Leeds and Dewsbury, 20%-Ditto, New Shares,
4-Leeds and Thirsk, 13-Newcastle and Berwick, 15%-
North British, New Carlisle Branch, 3%-Wilts, Somerset,
and Weymouth, 4-Cambridge and Lincoln Extensions, 34
-Direct Northern, 2%-Glasgow and Dumfries, 3%-Liver-
pool, Ormskirk, and Preston, 5-West Riding Union, 7%
-Buckinghamshire (late Rugby), 12s. 6d. p.-Clitheroe
Junction, 3%-East Lincolnshire, 21/4-Essex and Suffolk,
ss. dis.-Grand Union, % p.-Great Eastern and Western,
20s. dis.-Lancashire and North Yorkshire, 15s p.-Lan-
cashire, Yorkshire, and North Eastern, ss. dis.-Leeds and
Liverpool Direct, par-Leeds and York, 2s. 6d. dis.-Lei-
cester and Bedford, 19s. p.-Leicester and Tamworth, 7s. 6d.
p.-Manchester, Buxton, Matlock, and Midland, 3 p.-Mid-
land and Thirsk Junction, ss. dis.-Northumberland and
Lancashire Junction, Bs. 6d. dis.-North Western, 31/2-
Nottingham and Boston, 155.-Nottingham, Erewash, and
Ambergate, 15s. p.- Shropshire Union. Is. p.-South Mid-
lands, 3% p.-Wakefield and Bradford, 7s. 6d. dis.-Wake-
field and Harrogate, 18s. p.-Welsh Midlands, 23/4-York-
shire and Glasgow Union, 2%.
HULL, DEC. 31.
STOCK EXCHINGE.-The sales are-Hull and Selby
(10 per cent. guar.), 102-Ditto, Half Shares, 211/4-Black •
burn, Darwen, and Bolton, 7N-Leeds and Thirsk, 111/2-
North British, 25%-Ditto (Carlisle), 34-Ditto (Dal-
keith), 614-North Wales, 3%-Buckinghamshire, Bs. 9d. p.
-East Lincolnshire, 3-Fleetwood, Preston, and West
Riding, 1% -Hull and Barnsley Junction, 41s. 6d.-London
and York, 4/. Bs.-Manchester, Buxton, and Matlock,
Si. 25.-North Staffordshire, 61. .-Wakefield and Brad-
ford, 1%.
BRISTOL, DEC. 31.
STOCK EXCHANGE.-The sales are-Bristol and Exeter,
New, 814-Bristol and South Wales_Junction, 3-Midland,
New, 31%
EXETER, DEC. 31.
STOCK EXCHANGE.-The sales are-Bristol, Thirds, 9%
-Eastern Counties, New Shares, 9 p.-Ditto, Old Shares,
23-South Wales, 4.
EDINBURGH, DEC. 29.
STOCK EXCHANGE.-The sales are-Aberdeen, 51.- Aber-
deen, Banff, and Elgin, 21.-Airdrie and Bathgate, W. Bs.
-Arbroath and Forfar, 251.-Ditto, Half Shares, 15/.-
Ayr and Dumfries, 21 95.-Ayr and Galloway, 1/. 88.-Banff-
shire, IL 17s. 6d.-British and Irish Union, 3/. 75.-Caledonian,
13/. 10s.-Caledonian Extension, 3/. 4s.- Caledonian and
Dumbarton, 31.-Caledonian and Northern Direct, 2/. 155.-
Clydesdale Junction, 19L-Direct Northern, 21.-Dundee and
Arbroath, 35/. 10x.-Ditto, New, 17L-Dundee and Perth,
71. N.-East of Fife, 27.-East Lothian Central, 11. 17s. 6d.
-Edinburgh and Bathgate, 3/.-Edinburgh and Glasgow,
741. IN.-Ditto, Half Shares, 161. IN.-Ditto, Quarters, 16/.
IN.-Ditto, New, 131. 10s.-Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Dum-
barton, 18s.-Edinburgh and Leith Atmospheric, 11. 14s. 6d.
-Edinburgh and Leith Atmospheric Direct, IL 155.-Edin-
burgh, Leith, and Granton, 21/. 10s.-Ditto, Preference, 18/.
10s.-Edinburgh and Northern, 3/. 18s -Ditto, Newport,
1/. 2s. 6d.-Ditto, Lochgelly, 11. 148.-Edinburgh and Pee-
bles, IL 19s. 6d.-Edinburgh and Perth, 4/. 7s. 6d.-Forth
and Clyde Junction, 21.-Glasgow and Ayrshire, 691.-Ditto,
New Stock, 17/. 17s. 6d.-Ditto, Quarter Shares, 16/. 15s.
-Glasgow, Dumfries, and Carlisle, 2/. 45.-Glasgow and
Dundee Junction, 2/. 45.-Glasgow and Garnkirk, 45/.-
Glasgow and Greenock, 21L-Ditto, New Stock, 101. 155.-
Ditto, Preference, 2/. 55.-Great North of Scotland, 3/.-
Granton Junction, V. 2s. 6d.-Inverness and Elgin, 11. 15s.
-London and York, 41. 55.-North British, 24/. 10s.-Ditto,
Halves, 71.-Perth and Inverness, 1/. 195.-Scottish Central,
151.-Scottish Midland, 5/. 155.-Scottish North Western,
1/. 175.-Stirling and Dunfermline, 21. 10s.

THE HERALD'S INDIAN EXPRESS.
The public attention being very much directed at this
moment to the mode of conveying the Indian mail to
England overland, it may not be uninteresting to our
readers, many of whom are no doubt unacquainted with
it, to explain the course adopted at present, which Is
this:—
The mail and passengers upon their arrival at Alex-
andria are conveyed in a steam-boat belonging to the
Peninsular and Oriental Company to Malta. The bags
containing letters to be sent vu l Marseilles are then put
on board an English Government steam-boat, which
conveys them to their destination; and the rest of the
mail, together with the passengers, are brought by the
Peninsular and Oriental Company's boat to South-
ampton, passengers seldom availing themselves of the
route via Marseilles, as they are obliged to perform a
quarantine of twelve days at that place.
The mail upon its arrival at Marseilles is placed in a
carriage called a fourgon, and forwarded thence to Paris,
and afterwards to Boulogne. It is subsequently brought
to Dover, and thence by railway to London. Up to no
very distant period the fourgon took 53 hours to convey
the mail to Paris, and 15 hours from Paris to Boulogne,
where it was, and is still, frequently materially delayed
by want of a steam-boat to convey the mail across the
Channel—the English Post-office not being able to
.afford
the expense of a special steam-boat, although some of the
morning newspapers invariably employ one. In conse-
quence, however, of the great competition between the
Times and the Morning Herald, the mail is now, except in
very bad weather, conveyed from Marseilles to Paris in
50 hours, instead of 53, and, if no delay occurs at Bou-
logne, almost always reaches London from Marseilles in
70 to 72 hours.

The following is the made in which the morning news-
papers, up to the end of 1843, contrived to anticipate the
mail :—The several agents of the Times, Morning Herald,
Morning Chronicle, and Mtrning Post, addressed their
Indian letters to the agents of the respective papers at
Marseilles, and upon the arrival of the steam-boat at that
port, the dispatches for these four journals were given to
one courier, who proceeded on horseback to Paris, and
afterwards to Boulogne, where a special steam-boat
was always lying waiting, when one could be pro-
cured, and upon the arrival of this boat at Folk-
stone, a special engine brought the dispatches to
London. The management of this joint express was
given to the Times, and all that the courier had to do was
to arrive at Boulogne some short time before the_ mail,
when he was certain to anticipate the mail in London,
having the advantage of a special engine at Folkstone,
as the Post-office authorities never would, and do not up
to this moment, allow their messengers to employ one.
It was in this way the Times contrived to gain its cha-
racter for early Indian intelligence over its contempora-
ries—the courier being called the Times' courier, the
steam-boat being called the Times' steam-boat, and the
special engine the Times' special engine; whereas the
fact was, that the credit of the express was as much due
to the Herald, Chronicle, or Po: t, as to the Times, and
the expense was equally shared amongst the four news-
papers.
Such was the mode in which the morning newspapers
expressed their Indian dispatches to London until the
commencement of the year 1844, when the Morning
Herald came under its present management. The new
proprietor was then informed that the Morning Herald
could no longer be permitted to join with the other
papers in expressing the Indian dispatches to London
—the object of the exclusion of the Herald being,
an!?
doubt, the vain expectation of preventing the Her ld
from obtaining its Indian intelligence, owing to
the enor-
mous Our
expense attendant upon an exclusive ex press. a
opponents, however, mistook the partiesthey
n which
p hd to
deal with, and upon the very first occasion
our
courier Herald commenced its single-handed u
r ses to exertions,
Parisr
time
courier performed the distance from Marseilles
in 48—that is, in two hours less than was ever
before accomplished. Such at con-
tinued throughout the
wholeHeraldof the year 1844—the
average time occupied by, thewas the system that
hours.
express between
Marseilles and London being 67
At the commencement of the year 1845 an alteration
was made in the transmission of. the Indian mails, the
Calcutta mail, which up to that. time had been sent only
every a
lternate month, and which is still on that account
thl ' •
called the bi-rnoe . being forwarded every month
as the Bombs). mail.
.This change rendering it necessary to
send two special couriers every month from Marseilles to
London, the Morning Chronicle and Morning Post deter-
mined upon retiring altogether from the joint ex-
press with the Times, thinkicg, we suppose, that the
news was not important enough to justify so large an
outlay of money. The Tines and Herald were there-
fore left alone to fight out the battle. The distance
between Marseilles and Paris being too great to allow
one courier to carry the dispatches twice a month, we
determined upon dividing the distance, and by ap-
pointing two couriers instead of one, and thus lessening
the fatigue of the journey, we calculated upon bringing
the dispatches from Marseilles to Paris in 42 to 44
hours, instead of 48 to 50, as before. We have rarely
been able to perform the distance from Marseilles to
Paris in less than 46 hours. Still we have been able,
upon an average, to perform that part of the journey
in the time we have specified, and our express rarely
takes more than 63 hours from Marseilles to London.

Such are the exact facts as regards the mode of con-
veying the Indian intelligence from Alexandria to Lon-
don at the present moment. We propose, hereafter,
perhaps to-morrow, to continue the subject, by showing

how some days can be saved between Alexandria and
ALi'seilles, and that all -Afr. Waghorn succeeded in doing
;Ivhc,ii,he-yeade his experiment via Germany, wus to gain
some time between Suez and Alexandria., and that there-
for the' German route or the French route had nothing
to do with the- matter.•:-. :..7 - . .

. .
la making these observations as to the superiority of
the French route, we have no intention of disparaging
Mr. Waghorn's c fforts. That gentleman is, in our opi-
nion, entitled to the public thanks for his unremitting
exertions in expediting the Indian mails to England; and
we believe that at this m,ment the Overland route would
not have been adopted, but for his untiring energy and
perseverance.—Herald.