The Sun.
London, England, 1870-02-14 00:00:00

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6Aittl'A

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An application against the Pall Mall Gazette was made:
on Saturday on behalf of Mr. Dion Boucicault to the'
magistrate at Marlborough-street. The complainant
asked for a summons for libel. He vaguely insinuated
through his counsel that the change in the Pall Mati
Glzetie had made its proprietor anxious for notoriety..
In its issue on Saturday it had a letter pur-
perting to be written by " Azamat-Batuk " on
stage morale. Therein " Formosa " was criticised, and.
th 3 ceitic speaking of it and its author, Mr. Boucicault,says : --" I expectA that in addition to immoral sights,
he would again supp'_y me with some alpable notions
ab jut various dirty nests in London which I have neither
the occasion nor the courage to visit, and which Mr.
B )ucicault seems to know so well. It is from his p'ay
" After Dark " that I received an idea of the vagabonds'
residence under Blackfrairs Bridge, the robbers' gambling
house in Rupert-street, &c. That a few things of this
kind may interest a foreigner visiting this country
seems natural to me, but what interest Englishmen
thJrnselves can have in all this I never could perceive."
Then the critique went on : " If he does not give us any-
thing more attractive, it is probably because he has no
opportunity of seeing better subjects. A writer of this
school depends more than any other on the medium in
which he lives ; and if the author of ' Formosa ' can
never write a play without introducing in it women of
bad conduct, swindlers, pickpockets, policemen,
publicans, false bills, robberies, and the like, it is simply
because he seems to know all such things well, and
because he sees (as Mr. Chatterton explained in he ,
Times some months ago), that the English public likes this
kind of subject. I think, moreover, that it is an offence to
all honest Englishwomen to presume that a person like
Formosa can attract or tempt them." By this paragraph Mr. •
Boucicault understood that he was set down as the com-
panion of swindlers, forgers, murderers, and courtesans.
Mr. Knox said he thought after reading the article that:
a magistrate could scarcely take upon himself to say he
could withhold the case from a jury. In the case of
" Gan v. Hood," the law of libel was thus laid down :
" A publication commenting upon a literary work, express-
ing its follies and errors, and holding up the author to
ridicule, will not be decreed a libel, provided such com-,1
ment does not exceed the limits of fair and candid
criticism by attacking the character of the writer uncon-
nected with his publication, and everyone has a right to ;
publish a comment of this description. But if a person,
under the pretence of criticising a literary work, defames
the private character of the author, and instead of writing
in the spirit and for the purpose of fair and candid dis-
cussion, travels into collateral matter, and introduces facts;
not stated in the work, accompanied byinjurious comments
upon them, such person is a libeller. A fair and candid:
comment upon a place of public entertainment in a news-
paper is not a libel." He thoUght it was proper and rightl
to have the matter investigated, and should grant the
summons.

THE RECENT GALES.

GORLESTON, SUFFOLK, Sunday.

The brig Johanna, from Venice to Yarmouth, at
anchor in the Roads, came ashore this morning
about a quarter of a mile to the south of Gorleston
lifeboat house of the National Lifeboat Institution
(says J. P. Baumgartner). The lifeboat, which is
named the Leicester, it having been presented to
the society by residents of that town, had been got
out on the beach in readiness, under the superin-
tendence of Capt. D. Robertson, R.N., the assistant
inspector of lifeboats to the institution, who was at
this lifeboat station ou a tour of inspection. Alin©
was got on board the brig by means of the rocket
apparatus, and the lifeboat, manned by- Captain
Robertson and her crew, who hauled off through a
nasty sea, when all the people on board the wreck
(eight in number, and a dog) were brought safely
ashore. One man was much exhausted and remains
at Gorleston in bed ; the others were soon ab!e
be sent to the Sailors' Home at Yarmouth. The
brig is expected to became a total wreck.
KINGSDOWNE, KENT, Sunday.

Last night, while a storm from the cast was
raging, and the surf and sea were running high,
the cold being intense, the ship Glendura, of
1,000 tons, Captain Thomas Harland, bound front
Batavia to Rotterdam, was seen on the main
northward of Kingsdowne, near \\rainier Castle,
driving towards the shore (states 'l'. Sydenhatn
Clerke, Esq.). The Lifeboat Ins:itutiun's boat
Sabrina, at Kingsdowne, Coxswain Jarvis Arnold,
was, under great difficulties, immediately launched
and boarded the ship. At great risk the captain's
wife and infant and a man in charge of the child wera
got on board the boat and brought ashore. Again
the boat was launched, and again boarded the ship,
and brought more of the crew ashore, and at last,
after making three other successful trips, the whop
crew, numbering 28 persons, were safely landed at
Kingsdowne. Seven hours of the night were oc-
ccupied in these trips, and the severity of the wea-
ther, together with the fury of the wind and sea,
rendered the task very hazardous. This gallant
service redounds much to the credit of the Kings-
downe men, who found the crew of the lifeboat, an►i
who were exposed four hours to the inclemency of
the weather, in addition to being wet through
nearly the whole time.
GREAT YARMOUTH, Monday.

Captain D. Robertson, RN., Assistant InFpectoe
of Lifeboats to the National Lifeboat Institution,
reports that five of the crew have been saved from
the cbibris of the wreck of the barque Victoria, re-
ferred to in this morning's papers. The Duff life-
boat, at Great Yarmouth, which also belongs to the
National Institution, has likewise been out this
morning (Monday) and saved four men from the
Favourite of Arbroath. One of the vessel's crew,
a boy, had, however, been unhappily drowned.