The Sun.
London, England, 1846-09-17 00:00:00

THE KAFIR WAR.

Cape of Good Hope papers to the 24th of June in-
clusive have just arrived, which put us in possession
of four days' later news from the scene of war. The
information conveyed is brief, but important, as it
shows that no more fighting had taken place at Fort
Peddie or its neighbourhood, nor indeed was any
serious engagement expected. Reinforcements
were arriving, and the Governor-General was only
waiting the concentration of all the Burgher forces,
when he intended promptly to act on the offensive,
the result of which, we trust, will be the complete
subjugation of the Kafir tribes.
(From the South African Commercial Advertiser, of
June 24.)

Last frontier post, which arrived on .Monday after-
noon, brings nothing new of any consequence. Another
detachment of waggons bad been pissed safely through
Trompetter's Drift to Fort Peddie, and there seems to
have been no more fighting in that quarter. It is stated
that 3,500 Burghers from the western districts have
crossed the Garnptoos river; 200 of these, with their
wagg, ns, arrived in Graham's. Town on Sunday, the
14th inst. Commandant Linde, with 400 Swellendam
Burghers and 200 Hottentots, marched forward from
Uitenhage on the previous Wednesday. Four hundred
Worcester Burghers, under I)u Toit, with several other
parties, had reached Uitenhage. Thus, in a few weeks
more, the colonial forces, of all sorts, will be ready to
enter on the real business of the campaign.
In the mean time, though the Kafirs have disap-
peared from the neighbourhood of the villages and
•• legers" on the immediate frontier, parties of ma-
raud.: rs are. found as far down as Uitenhage, in search
of cattle nearly a hundred miles from their own border.
The following extract from a private letter gives a
lively idea of the service in which the Burghers and
troops will be engaged, probably for some mouths to

curve :

" Camp Uitenhage, June 16, 1846.
" I mentioned in my last that the Kafirs had stolen
300 head of cattle within half an hour of this, and that
Commandant Du Toit, of the Worcester Burghers, had
gone in pursuit. He was fortunate enough in overtaking
the rascals at Pheasant Drift, on the Sunday River, and
shot all they saw, viz., 11, and recaptured the cattle.
Du Toit behaved nobly, shooting two himself, but I
regret that one of his men was killed by an assagai.
Otto Kafir got into the river .and covered his hea►l with
reeds, to
.make it appear that, he was a bush. Youeg
T it, however, saw his head, fired, and shot him
throuOr the head. They took several assagais, and
two muskets, which were loaded. Both these were
pointed at Du 'nit, but flashed in the pan. They also
took three horses.

. " The weath.r continues very warm during the day,
and c,,ld at night. No rain, however.
" 17th June.—An Aide has just arrived from
Graham's Town with a requisition to .press.4ll ',oxen
and waggons to convey provisions from Algiia, Bay to
Graham's Town, as they are very badly off there. They
have in consequence taken our oxen, and how lozg we
shall remain here it is impossible to say. Our horses
get only 121 b. of oat hay per diem. I have been obliged
to buy forage and feed my horse up a little, for there is
nut a blade of grass where our camp is."
Nothing seems to be publicly known respecting the
movements or intentions of the Kafirs. If they ever
meditated an attack on the colony in overwhelming
numbers, as some have supposed, they have lost their
opportunity. Such men as Macoma, &Arne, or Stock,
who have known the colony, and the power it can in no
long time bring to bear upon them, must begin to be
sensible that they are in the very jaws of destruction.
The sparse and scattered population of the immediate
frontier, with some 1,500 soldiers, have, in effect, re-
pulsed their whole force as invaders. Though cattle
have been captured, the loss of men on the Kafir side,
compared with that of the colonists and troops, cannot
but be felt by them as a decisive proof of their utter in-
capacity to continue the contest on anything like equal
terms. What then can they expect now that the number
of effective military is more than doubled on their front,
while the frontier colonists have been reinforced by five
or six thousand men from the rear ? They, trust, no
doubt, to the bush, or the ravines and thicket., of their
country, but in the winter even this resource fails them,
for in the months of July and August the cold and rain
on the mountains are fatal to their cattle, and the plains
will be occupied or commanded by the troops and Burghers.
Nothing further is known respecting the designs of
Creili or of the Tambookies. If they mean mischief,
they are not in a hurry.—Heral4. •

STATE AND PROSPECTS OF
NEW ZEALAND. •
The following are extracts from an important and very
lengthy petition ( just printed by order of the House of
Commons). pres,,nt.d by Mr. Charles Buller, from inha-
bitants of the settlements of Wellington, Nelson, New
Plymouth, and Wanganui, in the colony of New Zealand:
" That it is with sincere regret your petitioners feel
themselves under the necessity of anxiously soliciting
the attention of your Honourable House to the state of
affairs in this colony.
" That those affairs are in such a condition that, if not
speedily- remedied, the result must be general ruin. That
the Colonial Treasury is encumbered with debt; the re-
venue rapidly diminishing, the currency deranged and
vitiated. That all commercial and agricultural opera•
tions are checked and impeded, suspended or abandoned;
and the colonists reduced in numbers and in wealth.
That public confidence in the local government is utterly
destroyed; and there exists no adequate security for pro-
perty or life; and that the European and native races of
the country are on the verge of warfare, which in one
quarter has actually and disastrously commenced, and
which the slightest accident or imprudence may render
as general as it would certainly be sanguinary.
" That, in the opinion of
your petitioners, the imme-
diate eau,es of this lamentable state of things are to be
found in the erroneous
t
Policy adopted and pursued by
present local government,"[Then follows a very elaborate and full account of the
proceedings in the colony since 1842. The petition to-
wards its conclusion proceeds thus]:—
" Reviewing the whole Policy and proceedings of Cap-
tain Fitzroy since his assumption of the government: re-
membering the evident prepossession of his mind by or.e
fixed and erroneous idea of the character of the natives
and one theory of governing them: the utter ignorance
of human nature betrayed by his adoption of this theory
and his mode of carrying it out: the want of judgment,
infirmity of purpose, and inability to profit by the expe-
rience of his predecessors or his own; displayed particu-
larly in his unfortunate lenity towards Honi Heki, after
the many proofs that had been given of its effects upon
other natives; in his allowing that disturber to escape
unpunished after so much display of force and of inten-
tion to use it; in the miserable collision about the sur-
render of the muskets; in the repetition at the second
attack upon Heki's pa of the errors which caused the
first to tail; and in his ultimate conclusion of a truce
with the rebels: considering further hiS many impolitic,
rash, inconsistent, and unnecessary declarations ; such
as his pledging himself to resign rather than use force
in any case ; or as his solemn reconiknondation of Mr.
Spain and his court at Waikanai and pledge to enforce
his decisions, one of the most important of which he pre-
sently and so uncerimoniously overthrew at Taranaki,
and at last sweepingly condemned the court itself (after
having, in spite of the agreements at home and its ill
effects out here,' so long persisted in upholding it), in
the words, The plan was wrong from the first on
which these claims have been settled :' recollecting
moreover his continual disregard of the letter or spirit of
his instructions, as in the cases of the first Debenture
Bills, and of those on the company's stoppage : of the
establishment of a militia force ; and of the waiving of
the right of pre-emption ; looking at the fundamental
errors, arid .the extent an suddenness of the frequent
changes of his financial policy—at his unvarying acri-
mony against the settlers—at his unfortunate selection
of officers and confidential advisers—at his entire subjec-
tion to- missionary influence—and at all the ruinous re-
sults of his whole administration of affairs, however oc-
casioned—reflecting upon all these things, and upon the
very critical circumstances of the colony at present,
your petitioners feel it impossible to avoid expressing,
in the most distinct terms, their utter want of confidence
in the ability of Captain Fitzroy or his government suc-
cessfully to encounter the difficulties before them.
" Your petitioners therefore earnestly implore your
Honourable House to interfere, and literally save them
from destruction. It is undeniable that the form of
Government they are placed under is a perfect
despotism; that they have no vote, or voice, or in-
fluence whatever, direct or indirect, in the framing
of any laws or ordinances they are bound to obey,
even those which most materially affect them; that
they are ruled by the will and judgment of one
man, and three individuals completely subservient •to
him. They have often been shocked by the assignme.nt
of power over them to persons who, in more instances
than would readily be believed, have put the infamy of
their characters beyond doubt, and justified the aversion
of
e lt among,
at blymea
acts of public or
t their reluctant
removal. They have been grieved at the insults continually
private the community.
d
li nqu ell c tyhe• ey
necessitatingdw
offered by savages to a British Government; at the sad
spectacle of a British governor floundering on from disas-
trous and disgraceful concession to imbecile attempts at
coercion—driven by the practice of an utterly irrational
policy into the unwilling adoption of a wiser one, he
was utterly unequal to the execution of it ; its the one
case-as well as the other only exposing himself to the
contempt and derision of the savages he was unable
either to conciliate or conquer. They complain of prac-
tical evils of misgovernment, alike undeniable and unen-
durable. They complain of the ruin of the public
finances, and of taxation required thereby, whieh they
are wholly unable to endure. They complain of their
capital wasted, of all useful exertions restricted or para-
lised, the fruits of industry, destroyed, and :the toil of.
years rendered nugatory, by the forcible occupa4on..ley
others of lands, which by all rules of justice they
themselves should be put and maintained in possession
of. And they complain of the utter insecurity oi life,
and of such property as has hitherto escaped the
rapacity of treacherpus, avaricious, and cruel savages,
\chose passions ; mistaken policy has called into
Gotivity, adtattud 4'3 70• Qt uut4o4 ikemo

to. They wdufd be wanting to themselves, they would
be accessory to their own destruction, if they did not
protest against this monstrous policy; if they were not
with the utmost earnestness to implore your Honourable
House, while there is yet time, if time there really be, to
avert its still impending ill constquences. They do im-
plore your Honourable House to rescue from utter failure
an attempt to colonise a country, of resources AO promising
and so generally admitted, on principles acknowledged
to be the best and wisest hitherto discovered,
and originally made under circumstances apparently
more favourable and auspicious than ever attended any
similar enterprise. They ask thus much for their own
sakes ; they ask it for the sake even of those aborigines
whom nothing but the ruinous kindness of mistaken
friends, and the curse of unbounded licence, has
turned for the present into instruments of destruction,
but who, by wise and vigorous government, might
yet be preserved and civilised, made valuable auxilia-
ries in the developement of the resources of the
country, made to add to the wealth and strength of the
empire, and be raised into a peaceable, orderly, and
contented community. Your petitioners rest of nothing
more assured than that the same policy, so necessary
for their own welfare, is equally rt quisite for the ulti-
mate preservation of their own natives. FinallY, they
entreat your Honourable House to consider that possibly
the very existence. Of the settlements of New Zealand,
certainly their immediate or even early prosperity,
depends upon the favourable reception of the prayer of
your petitioners."

SERIOUS ACCIDENT ON THE
YORK AND NEWCASTLE RAILWAY.

SUNDERLAND, MONDAY NIGHT.—At an early hour
this morning a serious accident took place on the Sun
Berland Newcas►le branch (late the Brandling Junction)
on the above railway, about two miles from this town.
It appears that when the half-past down train had
passed the Cleadon station, a connecting rod of the I.,,co-
motive engine snapped asunder, and one of the pieces
penetrating the ground, the engine and tender, with two
of the carriages, were thrown off the line ; the former
fell over on one side, and the latter on the other. The
carriages,fell on some stone sleepers which were laid on
the edge of an embankment, and were smashed to pieces.
In the train altogether there were eight carriages, six of
which did not receive any damage. The guard was
seated on the top of one of these, and retained his seat
until the train was brought to rest. When he got off be
saw the fireman, a young man named Joseph Henderson,
lying on a stone block. He had been thrown off the
tender, and was severely bruised about his shoulder and
neck. The engineman, Richard Hall, was next found at
the end of the engine, in a state of insensibility, with his
head seriously cut and his body scalded.
The guard immediately directed his attention to the
carriages which had been thrown off the line. Fortu-
nately the passengers were few, owing to the early hour
at which the train started, not numbering more than
eight, and of these only two, a boy and an aged woman,
ere in the broken carriages. They were in a state of
great terror, but beyond the shock they had not sus-
tained any injury. The other passengers were none the
worse for the accident, though, as may be anticipated,
they were somewhat alarmed, as well as grateful for
their narrow escape.
The engine driver and stoker were removed to Sun-
derland in a cart, and taken to a house in Thomas-street,
occupied by the father-in-law of the engine man (Hall),
where medical assistance was promptly rendered. They
both remain in an extremely dangerous condition ;
indeed, no hopes are entertained of the recovery of Hen-
derson, the fireman. Hall was only married last week,
and his wife is living at Gateshead ; his injuries were,
however, of so serious a nature that it was nut deemed
safe to remove him to his own house.

Between one and two hundred labourers acd plate-
layers were soon procured, and set to work to remove
the engine and broken tender and carriages, and to relay
a portion of the way whieh had been torn up. Intelli-
genee of the accident was communicated by electric
telegraph. to_the principal station at Gateshead, and Mr.
Harrison, the engineer, and Mr. Allport, the general
superintendent, were speolly on the spot, making in-
quiries and giving directions. The cause of the accident
is obvious, and no care nor foresight could have pre-
vented it. The engine is almost new, and was con-
sidered to be in excellent order. The train was pro-
ceeding at a slow speed when the rod broke.
It is fortunate that this accident did not happen on
the preceding day (Sunday), when the trains were large
and crowded. Had it done so, in all probability many
lives would have been sacrificed.

Some inconvenience has arisen in working the trains
to-day, in consequence of a single line only being avail-
able for a considerable distance; but the way will be
entirely restored to-night.

SUDDEN DEATH OF MR. JUSTICE

WILLIAMS.
(From the Bury Herald.)
It is our melancholy duty to annouce the sudden
demise of Sir John Williams, Knight, one of her Ma
jesty's Justices of the Court of Queen's Bench, which
took place at his residence, Livermere Park, near this
town, on Monday evening last. The Learned Judge, we,
understand, complained of indisposition on Monday
morning. Dr. Probart, being sent for, prescribed for
him, and towards the afternoon the distinguished patient
felt considerably better, bu t did not appear at dinner, which
circumstance occasioned no serious apprehensions. In the
evening, however, while resting on a sofa, or as other ru-
mours say, while being conducted to the drawing-room,
he suddenly breathed his last. The deceased, who was an
admirable scholar, was called to the bar in 1804; ap-
pointed a King's Counsel in 1827; Attorney-General to
the Queen in 1830; a Baron of the Exchequer in 1834;
and, in the same year, was appointed a JuAice of the
Cout tof Queen's Bench. Sir John, when Mr. Williams,
acted as one of the junior counsel to Lords Brougham
and Denman in the defence of Queen Caroline.

WRECKS ON THE THAMES.--ne LORD MAYOR
has given Captain Fisher, principal Harbour-master of
the Port of London, directions to proceed immediately
to remove three wrecks, which are likely, if nut soon
taken away or destroyed, to become dangerous impe-
diments to the navigation of the Thames. Captain
Fisher intends to carry out the intention of the Chief
Magistrate, by the explosion of gunpowder. One of
the wrecks lies off Yantlett Creek, another near the
westernuost end of the Blythe Sand, and the third, (a
large barge laden with chalk) off Northfleet Creek.
Daniel Forrester, the Mansion-house officer, was, a
short time ago, employed to trace out and apprehend
William Thomas Power, who stands charged with
haling; with others, defrauded the Clonmell National
Bank, of which he was an accountant, of money to the
amount of upwards of 13,000/.. The vigilant London
officer, accompanied by Patrick Enright, a Clonmell
constable, who knew the person of Power, proceeded
with the warrant, backed by the Lord Mayor of London,
to the Continent, and acting with his accustomed saga-
city found that the object of his pursuit was at Munich,
to which place he went as rapidly as possible. Power
had assumed the name of Thomas Poisk, and was sud-
denly captured by Forrester, who will bring him to this
country, and from hence convey him to Ireland. The
prisoner had absconded faom the bank in December, and
the warrant and other documents necessary to legalise
his apprehension was signed on the 15th of August.
STEAM-BOAT COLLISION.—GRAVESEND, SEPT. 15.
—About eight o'clock last evening a collision of a fear-
ful kind took place off Gray's, between the Diamond
Company's packet the Ruby, and a small steam packet
called the Gnome, from Woolwich, the property, we be-
lieve, of the Woolwich Company, off Gray's. The Ruby
was on her way down from London-bridge, and the
Gnome was going up the river, on her return from the
Nore, whither she had been making an "excursion,"
with a party of near 200 persons on board. As far as
we could collect the facts of the case, it appears that the
night being rather dark, the captain of the Ruby, as is
his usual practice it seems, kept himself, and ordered to
be kept, a close look out, and observing the steamer ap,
proaching directly ahead of him, he called out to the
helmsman to port the helm, an order that was imme•
diately obeyed ; but the Gnome having her helm at the
same time put a starboard, a collision became unavoid-
able, and the Ruby struck the Gnome on her starboard
bow with great force, although the engines of the Ruby
were with great rapidity reversed by the captains in
command. Still the concussion of the two vessels was
frightful, and the Gnome being the smaller and weaker
vessel, was made a wreck of. The scene on board the
latter may be easier conceived than described. She was
in her forepart literally shattered and stove in, but her
engines being comparatively uninjured were kept at work,
and she was run on the Essex shore, where she soon
sunk, after the Ruby had taken all her passengers or
party of excursionists out of her. The coolness and
good management of the captain of the Ruby, both in
endeavouring to avoid the collision and when it unfor-
tunately.occurred, is borne testimony to by the pas-
sengers in the Ruby, who were on the deck at the time;
and to his coolness and management they ascribe in a
great degree the preservation of many of the lives of
those on board the Gnome, where a dreadful scene of
confusion prevailed. After having taken all the Gnome's
passengers on board, and brought them to Gravesend,
and having found that no serious damage so as to dis-
able the Ruby from proceeding back to London was in-
flicted, he, when his passengers to Gravesend were
landed, took those of the Gnome back to Woolwich,
where he landed them at their own request. Wherever
the blame of the collision may rest, it is fully admitted
by the passengers that the captain of the Ruby had
taken the only precaution he could take to avoid it—
namely, porting his helm, and reversing the engines;
and that his subsequent exertions in doing anything to
save the lives of the multitude on board the Gnome were
as judicious and coolly conducted as they were strenuous.
It is a matter of much surprise amongst those who wit.
nessed the scene, that no life was lost in the terror and
confusion that prevailed on board the Gnome.
JOSEPH ADZ IN TROUBLB.—At the Thames Police-
court, yesterday, Mr. Broderip, the presiding magistrate,
who committed Joseph Ady, of "something to advan-
tap" notoriety, for trial on two charges of fraud a few
weeks ago, handed to Inspector Scott, of the II division,
a letter he had received from Ady, enclosing another,
and requested him to adopt the necessary measures to
prevent a breach of the peace. Ady's own letter, which
was addressed " To the Magistrates of the Thames
Police-office, near Arbour- square," ran as follows :
" Gent! men,—The enclosed threatening letter is just
received by the post. I beg the favour of your directing
some of your subordinates to protect me from the
writer's violence. I know not his name. Respectfully,
Joseph Ady, 5, York-street, Commercial-road. Sept.
14, 1846." The letter which put My in so much alarm
was written, no doubt, by some one to whom he has
promised " something to his advantage." The writer
declared.that he would be "at Mr. Ally's office on the
23d, at twelve, without fail, and would then and there
administer to him, with a good horsewhip, something
that he would not easily forget." Ady, with a keen eye
to business, as well as self-protection, took care to fore
ward to the magistrate, with the letters, a " list of next
of kin," falsely (stated to have been " qtracteJ, awn the
Tinto of &glut A VA&

LITERATURE.
THE SYBIL'S SPELL. A Fairie Tule.

This little metrical story is a performance almost
too delicate and gossamer-like for the rude and cum-
brous hands of criticism. If it be dissected, or
tumbled about much in the crucible of that same un
compromising criticism, we shall find the bloom come
off it like the powder from the pinions of a butterfly.
The story itself is a trite old story enough ; never-
theless it is handled with a grace that imparts to it
almost an air of newness. A . baron roving; on a
hunting expedition in the woods surrounding his
castle, comes upon a "simple forest maiden," loves
her and is beloved—goes to the wars—is all but
betrothed to a haughty lady during his
absence —returns , homewards in a torment of
doubt— his heart luring him towards his former
ladye love—his pride And his honour towards his
latter ladye-love. Here it is that the writer of this
little poem has clothed the oil legend with a novel
and not inelegant appendage. The Baron's hesita-
tions are dissipated by a sybil's spell—the said sybil
having, with fairie agency, disclosed to him, is a
kind of visionary panr)rama, the terrible consequences
which would result from any rash step in the way of
(as poor George Farquhar hath it) " committing
matrimony." Need we explicitly state the winding
up of the fragile line spun by the romancer ? The
Baron leads the simple -damsel, in her russet dress,
from cottage to castle, his bride. Alfred Tennyson has
given a most delicious. version of this story, founded
upon a real, but romantic incident in the life of one
of the ancestors to the noble house of Burleigh. Sir
Bulwer Lytton has given the antithesis of the story—
and beautifully has he given it—in his " Lady of
Lyons." Associated with such predecessors, "The
Sybil's Spell" could scarcely fail from dwindling
into insignificance, especially when certain literal
absurdities insinuated themselves into the text. Such
for example as the lines—
" Young Baron, bast thou yet atoned
To one thy words have shatter'd?"

That unfortunate expression necessitates the ridicul-
ous consideration, that the words must have been
" devilish hard words," and the individual shattered
by them, frightfully brittle ! Then, again, we have a
specimen, so true, cf bathos, or the art of sinking in
poetry, as would have warmed the heart of Martinus
Scriblerus—where the Sybil ends her solemn warning
with the exclamation—

" Go—young man, beware!''
In another part we have the couplet—

"Then came a wakefull tiiriil ajcos 5 him,
Then did a shadowy murmer toss him."
The rhyme, too, occasionally smacks of the veritable
cochaitine ; ex. gr.
" At morning': dawn,
She heard the horn."

And at other moments the verse is encumbered with
the most awkward redundancy of language; as in
the following :

—"hidden by their bubbling showers,
And Jewelling foam, that roaring mocks
The bending of the fragile flowers,
That stoop beneath the glowing stream"—
et cetera, et cetera. Has not the bloom-dust come off
our literary butterfly ?

ECHOES FROM THE BACKWOODS. 2 Vols.
By Cal tain R. G. Levinge.
We have so repeatedly had occasion to notice these
" Sketches of Transatlantic Life" during their piece-
meal publication in Colburn's New Monthly Magazine
that it is unnecessary to enter into any minute exa-
mination of their merits. As the author very judici-
ously observes in his preface, it is matter of astonish-
ment, and should be matter of regret that so little is
known and apparently so little cared for our posses-
sions in New Brunswick. Everybody knows some-
thing, more or less, respecting the internal condition
and external relations of almost every other portion of
the American continent ; but of the provinces of New
Brunswick—provinces " containing many millions of
excellent land, magnificent rivers, inexhaustible mine-
ral wealth, and most extensive coalfields"—scarcely
one individual in a hundred knows anything
whatever. These two sensible, picturesque,
laughter-moving, sprightly volumes, are descriptive
of the scenery, illustrative of the society, and indica-
tive of the affluence of this same unnoticed, but most
noticeable territory. One literary advantage, there-
fure, is assured to the reader—the book possesses sin-
gular novelty. Of the existence in it pages of many
other literary advantages we can giv our most de-
cided, and, we trust, somewhat decisive voucher. The
writer has penned his chapters quite con amore—he
evidently relishes his own narrative—he engages in
all sorts- of surprising and healthful adventures—he
lets the reader into a thousand geographical and colo-
nial secrets ; and so pleasant withal and off-hand are
the descriptions, that it is scarcely so much reading
so many sheets of letterpress as hearing Captain
Livinge himself tell all about (what Harry Lorrequer
would call) his " wanderings and ponderings."
Nor is our author merely an agreeable scribe—
he is an excellent draughtsman as well. His sketch-
book is alternately embellished by the pen and
by the pencil. " The air hole,"—namely, a fracture
in the ice when sledging over it, and the consequent
engulphing of a horse is gloriously delineated.
Whoever can thoroughly enjoy the tales of an ob-
servant traveller will be loth to abandon the perusal of
these delightful volumes.

THE ECLECTIC REVIEW. No. 111. New

Series.

As the Latin derivation of its name (eclecta) would
indicate, the contents of this periodical are generally
the choicest cullings in prose composition. Besides
this the subjects of which its articles treat are usually
very well timed and appr,:priate. In the number for
September, however, there are two contributions
which are terribly after date, we mean criticisms
upon Burton's Life and Correspondence of Hume,
and upon Shepherd's Life and Correspondence of
Foster. For a monthly publication these notices
appear to us to have been singularly procras-
tinated. For a quarterly review it would be
different. The two preliminary volumes of Mr.
Grote's " History of Greece are submitted to a care-
ful and judicious analysis. We conceive the re-
viewer is tolerably justified in protesting against the
learned commencement of Mr. Grote's work, namely,
the chapters referring. t 9 " Legendary Greece," as al-
together unnecessary to the development of Grecian
history. The references to the mythology of that
classic region should, unquestionably, be as succinct
and incidental in the opening of its national history
as the references to Drui,i ceremonials and supersti-
tions in our English historians. Mr. Grote, how-
ever, evinces so much earnestness, originality, and
erudition in describing attributes of the Heathen
deities, and in tracing the the origin of the Grecian
mythes, that we can scarcely regret his very admi-
rable blunder of judgment. Now that the
Ministerial intentions, with reference to the
systematic education of the multitude, still
continue enveloped in obscurity, and that
we are abandoned to our conjectures, the
strictures upon Dr. Hook's proposition will be exa-
mined with interest. We cannot but think the paper,
entitled " The Irish Church—Ministerial policy,"
miserably one-Aded. If such feelings be fostered
and cultivated, religious enthusiasm can scarcely fail
of degenerating into sectarian fanaticism. What is
the grand goal to which nations are struggling in
this age of enlightenment? Is it not the goal of
civil and RELIGIOUS liberty Q And despite all the petty
bickerings of prejudice, that glorious goal will, under
the blessing of Omnipotence, be gained ! " Mexico"
and " Blair-Athol," as described by Thompson and
Trench, form the subject of two welcome articles in
this instructive number of the Eclectic Review.

THE AMERICAN ALOE.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

Sxa,—A short time since a paragraph appeared in
your columns, stating that an American aloe was in
full flower in the East London Cemetery, Alfred-street,
Mile-end. As a great number of persons have been
induced to visit the cemetery in consequence, I should
feel obliged if you would inform your readers that the
plant mistaken by your informant for an aloe is the
Yucca Gloriosa, or splendid Adam's Needle, a native of
Texas, Mexico, &c., and was first brought into this
country by Sir Walter Raleigh, in 1596.
The plant in the cemetery i 4 twelve years old, and is
now in full bloom, and will probably continue so till the
frost comes.—l am your obedient servant,
D. FRANCIS, Superintendent.
Office of the East London Cemetery, 6, White
Horse-lane, Mile End-road, Sept. 15, 1846.

- -
THE CONVICT HENEY.—Yesterday morning Joseph
Henry was sent off from the prison of La Roquette to
the hulks at Toulon, in execution of the sentence of the
Court of Peers. Until his being transferred to this
prison he maintained hopei that his appeal to the King
for a commutation would meet with some success; and
more than once sent for his counsel, M. Baroche, to
whom he expressed great anxiety as to his fate. At six
in the morning he wai informed that he must prepare to
go to Toulon, undergo the usual process, and put on the
dress worn by all persons sentenced to the hulks. He
sunk into a state of despair and almost stupor, exclaim-
ing, " Oh, God! Oh, God! All then is over! No hole
is left." And when brought out to be put into the van,
he saluted those around him, and seeing an inspector
general of prisons among them, he raised his eyes to
him and said, while his face streamed with perspiration,
which he endeavoured to conceal, but could not, " I
should have preferred death." Seven other convicts,
condemned to the hulks for different terms of from fiv(-
to ten years, were sent off with him. None of them
seemed to have the least commiseration for their
miserable companion. Among these was Pierre Marie
Lecareux, sentenced for six years as one of Fourniei'll
gang of robbers, and when he was stripped for being in-
vested with the convict's dress, there was found tattooed
on the right side of his breast, Mort a Fornier et a
Melaine Maquet (Fournier's mistress), whose confessions
and evidence formed ,the main ground of conviction.—
Galignani.
OHIO CANALS.—The returns of tolls on the Ohin
canals for the season, from November 15, 1845, to Jul
15, 1846, exhibit an increase of fifty thousand dollars
over the correepondiug period last year.