The Sun.
London, England, 1848-04-24 00:00:00

DEMAND FOR PIKES.

A circumstance has been related to me, this
morning, well worthy of observation, as exhibiting
-he peculiarities of our times—a circumstance which,
when coming before Government, will serve to indi-
cate their true position. My authority is such that I
i_ian vouch for its accuracy. A Mr. —, a traveller
For a cutlery establishment in Sheffield, called a few
days ago on a respectable ironmonger in Dublin, to
solicit orders, and obtain the settlement of the firm's
running account. The account was presented, and
the Dublin gentleman stated that, although the credit
had a little time to run, he would have it arranged
luring the- day in the usual manner. He stated,
however, that his stock being extensive, and business
very flat, his orders would be comparatively small,
and that if Mr. would leave his list he would
mark out what he required. This was done, and
Nlr. was turning from the shop, when the
man of iron inquired, " By-the•bye, could you fur-
nish me with any pikes ? They are the only things
in demand ROW. Mr. under the impression
that his customer was jesting, laughingly replied," Oh,
to be sure ;" and immediately left. On returning to
street, an order for a varied assortment of
goods was put into his hands, and at the foot of it was
written, " 1,800 pikes, according to sample," a model
pike-head being handed to the traveller, with direc-
tions to have them manufactured precisely after that
fashion. Mr. inquired if the customer was
-erious. " Serious !" replied the ironmonger ; " I
never was more serious in my life. Didn't you tell
me that you could provide the pikes ?" "Certainly I
(lid," said Mr. —, " but I really thought you were
jesting at that time. I certainly will take no order
of the kind from any man." " Then," returned the
Dublin merchant, " I cancel the entire order. Do
not send me any other article I have noted. I won't
receive them if you do." Mr. was surprised,
but made up his mind on the instant, that, order or
no order, he would be content with the settlement of
-he account. The subject was accordingly mentioned ;
hut Dublin met Sheffield by declaring that, since the
order for the pikes was refused, he would not pay a
farthing of money until the last moment of the
4eneral credit, no matter what discount would be
illowed. He stuck inexorably to this, and Mr.
left the metropolis minus bath cash and order for
goods. I look upon this circumstance as a promoni-
tory symptom of the coming fever, and one which
tells forcibly of the present state of the national
patient. Pikes and penknives, or neither—that is
the order of the day in Dublin, so far as respects
English cutlery establishments.—North British Mail.

SUICIDE.—An inquest was held on Thursday at
it. George's Hospital, before Mr. Bedford, on the body
f Hoary Vaughan, aged 21, a confectioner, who
lrowned himself in the Serpentine. Josiah Vaughan, of
%Tauxhall-street, Lambeth, said the deceased (his
brother) had been out of work for the last five months,
tnd all that time had lived in his house, and depended
won him for support. On Thursday morning, while
mitness was from home at his work, the deco aced and
ais (witness's) wife ran away together to Portsmouth,
~he latter taking with her the money saved to pay the
rent. The next day his wife returned, followed by the
',Teased, who attempted to shoot her because she would
not go back and live with him. He levelled a loaded
pistol at her head, and pulled the trigger, but the pistol
ortunately missed fire. He heard nothing more of the
lecetved until Saturday, when a messenger brought him
Nord that he had thrown himself into the Serpentine,
oaving previously left in his hat on the bridge a letter
lirected to witness. In this letter he acknowledged
laving seduced his sister-in-law, and stated that as she
had refused to live with him his life had become a
burthen to him. Witness believed that the deceased tor
some time past had not been right in his mind. Verdict
—Temporary insanity.

. . -
A very deplorable event occurred at Easton, near
Stamford, on the lath instant. A man named Wilkin-
son, a labouring plasterer, aged about 45, in a state of
frenzy made an attempt on the lives of his two children.
The unfortunate man had been for about eight weeks in
a desponding state, and had been regularly attended by
11r. Charles Simpson, who finding him very docile, did
not consider any restraint necessary, beyond ordinary
surveillance, to prevent his making an attempt on his
own life. Taking advantage of his wife's absence up
stairs, Wilkinson took up an instrument used by him in
his business (having a hammer at one end and a kind of
hatchet at the other), and began to chop at both the
children. Their screams brought their mother down
stairs, and she succeeded in wresting the weapon from
her husband, not, however, before he had inflicted five
horrible wounds on the head of the younger, as well as a
deep gash on the wrist. Wilkinson has been since con-
veyed to Camberwell Lunatic Asylum, there being no
room for him either at Northampton, or Leicester, or
Nottingham asylums.—Stamferd Mercury.
SOUTH DEVON RAILWAT.—PLTMOUTH, APRIL 20.
—During the last few days the works on the line have
been greatly retarded by the state of the weather.
Novertheless every exertion is being made to open the
line to Lairs as early as possible. The uprights for the
electric telegraph are erected to within one mile of
Brent,k. and the attaching the wires will commence next
week. The viaducts have been tested by an engine and
several
say, to stand laden trucks, and appear, as the navvies
'():1:81 pollyemarnodutthia station
the line will be opened
work very well. A locomotive will
elhlwadehole line, trom Totnes down to Lairs
is raid that thereqiteonnoot
, this week, and it is believed that
ri e
ea about t thebee
been given
goifvellnayto. the
Government
;ion. There will inspectore tnhoat the line is ready for inspec-
Ight go ids will be goods station at the Laira, but
Such articles as willcarriedeoover the line at once—all
parcels, and also fish, whiehenuond the denomination of
im-
portant item of traffic by rail frowm forms
'l a large and im-
DISTRESSING SUICIDE. riam Plymouth.
—An inquest was held this afternoon:bunt, THURSDAY.
Plymouth Citadel, before J. EdmonciZthe Sehool-roons,
on the body of William Robinson, a colour-sergeant tile
coroner,rgeant
the 35th Regiment. The deceased had risen
in
that morn-
ing at gun-fire, and called the roll of his company,
Private soldier, about six o'clock, went to theapr' . A
at--
the sergeants mess, and there saw the deceased on
n his
knees. He at first thought it was a soldier, who, after
bein' intoxicated the night previous, had repaired there
for the purposes of nature! and, acting on that convic-
tion, he said to the, deceased, "Come, come, you
have been long enough here." The soldier, after re-
maining there a short time, saw deceased's braces were
round his neck; and on a closer examination, he found
• He
from the door.
that he was suspended immediately
gave
information of the circumstance, and the deceased
was A towel hd been ned
afterwards cut
d on
'pair of braces communicatedfaste from
over the door, and a
neck, and he then hung on
the towel to the deceased's . .
in the Mauritius, at-
The deceased, while
his knees. throat, the mark ocea-
his .
tempted suicide by cutting
neck. The •
being perceptible on his e jury
,ioned by the act
inhsaity
returned a verdict of " Temporary
T ortations of
IMPORTATIONS OF APPLES.-en; .m. p
Apples from Belgium, as well as France, are just now
:particularly numerous and extensive. One vessel, just
arrived, has brought need} 600 cases of the fruit, form-
ing an entire cargo; ani another vessel has brought 415
''43eB, comprising an entire cargo of the article. The
,1,
portation of the fruit from Gravelines, and that portion
f France, areicul pa t" l
r ar y large and numerous.
Information
has been forwarded to the metropoli-
tan police-offices of
ployed by a house the following desperate means ens-
a police-constable;—The breaker to escape from the custody of
others of his class,
prisoner, it appears, with two
of Edrington, and been committed by the magis-
tratestor housebreaking,
sad
dr Birmingham, to Warwick gaol
whilst proceeding to the latter
place from Birmingham by
the railway-train, in charge
of police-sergeant Pearsall
quimlike, through the window , he suddenly vaulted, barbs-
indow of the carriage.