The Sun.
London, England, 1870-01-15 00:00:00

LORD RUSSELL'S NEW BOOK.

The Telegraph gives, in a leader, a slight indication of
the contents of Earl Russell's new work. To his speeches
the noble earl has written an introduction, wherein the
history of the half-century is compressed, and somewhat
irreverently treated on. The Telegraph says it is a kind
of " disjointed chat," only not " bald." It is written
in 170 pages. Where another would make copious com-
ment or elaborate explanation, Lord Russell simply tells
a conclusive anecdote or gives a decisive opinion in
ten words. For instance, " During my tenure of
the Colonial Office, a gentleman attached to the French
Government called upon me; he asked me how much of
Australia was claimed as the domain of Great Britain. I
answered, 'The whole,' and with that answer he went
away." Lord Russell is proud of our extensive
empire. He describes a visit to the camp of Lord
Wellington in Spain in two pages, and relates
how, on his return from Torres Vedras, he made
a bet with Lord Pensonby that in a twelvemonth
from that date the English would still hold the lines. "At
the end of a year Lord Ponsonby paid me the bet;" which
certainly relates a very great event from a somewhat small
point of view. Lord Russell visited Napoleon I. at Elba
in 1814, and adds : " I was so struck with his restless
inquiry, that I expressed, in a letter to my brother in Eng-
land, my conviction that he would make some fresh
attempt to disturb France and govern Europe." In record-
ing the Reform Bill of 1832, he speaks of it as the deathblow
to " that Tory supremacy which had for sixty years with
little interruption ruled England ; had carried on the
American war and the French revolutionary war ; and had
placed the country in a position of immense power, enor-
mous debt, and great internal difficulty." The " Intro-
duction," is not entirely retrospective. The speeches to
which it is a preface do not come down beyond 1841; but
there are many opinions freely given on questions of the
day. The education controversy is traced from 1807 down
to 1839, when the present plan of the Privy
Council grants was introduced on these two prin-
ciples, " that education should be religious, and that
the rights of conscience should be respected." Lord
Russell thinks now that a national plan must be adopted,
but he does not think "compulsion" necessary, and he
would permit the local ratepayers to decide whether
schools should be secular or not. As regards Irish affairs
Lord Russell still clings to his "concurrent endowment,"
idea, adding, with his usual suggestive brevity, " I cannot
admit that in a country where, in the case of a mur-
der, the sympathy of the people is with the murderer,
there is no need that the State should assist and promote
the teaching of religion," On the Irish land question
Lord Russell also speaks. One of his proposals is to sub-
stitute yearly tenancies fortenancies at will, which would
be a very minute amendment cf the. present law. In
colonial questions Lord Russell inclines to the views of the
colonists who meet in Cannon-street—that is, he favours a
Couucil of the Empire ; but he suggests a contribu-
tion of three or four millions from the greater colonies
—an idea which Australia and Canada may not readily
adopt. The following are the concluding words :—"Lastly,
to speak of my own wish, I can only rejoice that I have
been allowed to have my share in the task accomplished
in the half century which has elapsed from 1819 to 1869.
➢ly capacity I always felt was very inferior to
that of the men who have attained in past times
the foremost place in our Parliament, and in the
councils of our Sovereign. I have committed
many errors, some of them very gross blunders.
But the generous people of England are always forbearing
and forgiving to those statesmen who have the good of
their country at heart. Like my betters, I have been mis-
represented and slandered by those who knew nothing of
me; but I have been more thon compensated by the confi-
dence and the friendship of the best men of my own poli-
tical connection, and by the regard and favourable inter-
pretation of my motives, which I heard expressed by
my generous opponents, from the days of Lord Castlereagh
to those of Mr. Disraeli,'

A DANGEROUS ADVERTISEMENT.—The Sherborne
Journal publishes the following curious advertisement—
probably without knowing that a penalty of £5O
was thereby incurred:—" To Klepto-maniacs.--The
gentleman who walked into the shop of Mr.
--, jeweller, of Sherborne, on Monday evening, and
carried off—doubtlessly by mistake—an antique watch of
no possible value to him, not being gold, a pair of brass
earrings, and a brass chain, is hereby informed that if he
will kindly return the articles, 10s. worth of stamps shall
be sent to any address he may like to name, and no ques-
tions asked."

THE " LANCET'S " PROTEST AGAINST CIIILDREN'S
PARTIES.—The Lancet protests against juvenile parties as
they are now conducted :—The little guests are summoned
two or three weeks beforehand, probably by gilt-edged circu-
lars, and in terms formal and complimentary. Theyassemble
in the evening, and stay well on towards midnight. Wo
shall leave to others (says the Lancet) the consideration of
the moral consequences to the juvenile mind of this
early acquaintance with all the forms of fashionable
society, and shall confine ourselves to a consideration of
the physical consequences, which we take to be injurious
and undesirable. Children are excited beforehand, and,
still more, at the time. They are dressed insufficiently,
they dance themselves into great fatigue; they eat and
drink at late evening hours what would try their digestion
badly enough in its midday vigour ; and, worst of all, they
lose from two to six hours' sleep. The ulterior consequences
of this entire disarrangement of their habits and their
functions are paleness, languor, and the development of
various other ailments, according to the constitutional
peculiarities of the children. By all means let children
have their own gatherings, but let them be within reason-
able hours. Let food be simple, sufficient and warm, and
above all let not the precious hours of sleep be curtailed
cost when, by reason of excitement and exhaustion, they
'eed to be extended.

A VERITABLE HAUNTED CIIAMBER.—A curious
story of poisoning by means of green paper hangings has
lately occurred in Paris. A young man, an attache at one
of the embassies, inherited a small property in. the
suburbs. He went to visit it, and found that
the house contained a room known as the green
room, which was never used, es it was believed
to be haunted. Monsieur V— laughed at this story,
and insisted on sleeping in the room, but ho was the
victim of an awfnl nightmare, which made him very
ill. Still unconvinced of the presence of spiritual
agencies, he attributed his illness to the dampness
of a room scarcely used for half a century, or else
to the vicinity of a small pond. The pond Was drained,
the room thoroughly aired by a fire kept up night and
day, and two months later Monsieur V. slept there
once snore. In the morning he was found almost
lifeless and apparently dying. It was not until
he was removed to Paris that he recovered
partly and he still suffered„ from an obstinate
kind of ophthalmia. It proved, on investigation, that the
misfortune originated in the lapwing of the walls, which
was of a peculiar green. Subjected to a chemical
analysis it yielded a largo quantity of arsenic,
and there is no doubt that Monsieur V— --, in taking
up his abode in the haunted room, diSturbed the
poisonous dust which during long years had *accumulated
on the books and curtains and hangings of the bed-
chamber, and which proved to be so formidable an
enemy.

ati-trfYP
iC,4.
01/ n UiEy OTtintit
6

HER MAJESTY.

OSBORNE, Jan. 14.

Her Majesty, accompanied by her Royal High-
ness Princess Louise, drove out in the grounds
this morning.

His Royal Highness Prince Leopold walked
in the grounds.

GREAT FIRE AT COLLARD AND

COLLARD'S.

The greatest alarm was caused this morning
(Saturday) between one and two o'clock, owing to
flames being seen by the inhabitants rushing through
the roof of the pianoforte factory belonging to
Messrs. Collard and Collard, situate in the Oval-
road, Gloucester-gate, Regent's-park. This build-
ing was five floors high, of circular form, and was
210 fat in circumference. The moment the dis-
covery was made an express was sent for proper
assistance, and in a very brief period numerous
engines of the Metropolitan Brigade attended, when
it was found that about one-third of the immense
roof was iu a complete blaze, and the fire bad
already descended into the fifth floor workshops,
and was extending with more than usual rapidity,
threatening destruction to the entire range of pre-
mises. The instruments, some finished and
some partly so, contained in the building were
of several thousand pounds value. Plenty of
water having been obtained the Brigade and the
London Salvage Corps went to work in an admir-
able manner, the first-named men conveying the
hose up the different stairs, and the latter by cover-
ing over many valuable instruments in the lower
part of the building. By the latter expedient many
thousand pounds worth of property was saved.
The firemen eventually succeeded in getting the
fire extinguished, but the damage done is very seri-
ous, and is thus officially returned by Captain
Shaw to the Board of Works :—" A circular build-
ing of five floors, 210 feet in circumference ; about
one• third of roof destroyed, rest of roof and work-
shops on fifth floor and the contents severely
damaged by fire and heat. The rest of building
and contents by water, &c. The origin of the fire
unknown. The building and the contents insured
in the Norwich Union, West of England, and other
fire offices."