The Sun.
London, England, 1848-04-22 00:00:00

DESTRUCTIVE FIRE.

Last night, about nine o'clock, one of the most
destructive fires that have occurred for some time
past in the metropolis broke out in the midst of a
large pile of building, occupied by Mr. Baron Water-
stadt, patentee of ships' signal lights, Mr. Taylor,
boat-builder, and Mr. Horne, sail manufacturer. The
buildings, which had a frontage in Church-row, Lime-
house, extended backwards to the Regent's Canal, and
were bounded on every side by private residences.
It appears that at the time above stated some
per-
sons who lire opposite Mr. Taylor's prenusesdisco-
vered flames issuing from the lower floor. Animme-
diate alarm was sounded, and in the course of a few
minutes a number of police officers and several of the
inhabitants rushed to the spot to render assistance.
The stock with which the premises was stored proved
such a powerful auxiliary to the flames, that scarcely
ten minutes elapsed before the immense pile
became wrapped in a general sheet of fire ;
and before an engine had time to get to
the place, the public thoroughfare was cut
off by the flames extending completely over
the carriage-road. The inmates of at least half
a dozen houses on the opposite side of the road made
an attempt to remove their furniture to a distance for
protection, but before they had time to save a single
article, the flames fired the roofs, penetrated the
wafront
ea
tro mri
the
os
dma appeared
et u
ori
nnegp
o f envelopedraewmf
premises
snle
sfiji
an. T
windows, and in an instant the furniture in all the
sceneTthhee
devastation commenced were blazing away with the
n dwe uhhri Theech
.
greatest impetuosity, and the houses numbered 6 6,
7,8, and 9, on the other side of the road, were biar,nl
ing with equal violence.
A mounted express was, at the commencement of
the fire, sent off for the engines, but the great light
in the horizon became a far more speedy messenger,
and caused a general_turn out of ;the engines belong-
ing to the London, West of England, and County
establishments. Not a moment was lost in setting
the machines to work, and vast bodies of water were
scattered over the blazing property, but without
making the least impression. Seeing that the flames
were travelling from house to house on the opposite
side of the road, the firemen directed the full strength
of water against them, in the hope of being able to
cut off the further extension of the flames. Whilst
so engaged, the whole of the front walls, roofs,
and the remaining floorings of the factories gave
way, and fell with a fearful crash into the
road. Several firemen had a very narrow escape,
and it is not correctly ascertained m hether some per-
sons who were standing by have not perished. The
persons living opposite, and who witnessed the mask
fall, state that it was utterly impossible for every one
to have escaped. Nothing satisfactory on this point,
however, will be known until the ruins are over-
hauled.

The firemen, under the direction of their superior
officers, laboured, without the least intermission, until
nearly eleven o'clock, when they at length succeeded
in cutting off the further progress of the flames, just
as they were attacking the house belonging to Mr.
W. Baker, the coroner for East Middlesex.

The total loss by this disaster will reach to several
thousand pounds ; for, besides the destruction of
Messrs. Baron WTaterstadt, Taylor, and Horne's manu-
factories, the following houses, all of which were
three or four stories high, are partially destroyed,
viz. :—No. 5, Church-row, Mr. Ayerst, solicitor ;
No. 6, Mr. W. Davis ; No. 7, Mr. Deeling ; No. 8,
Mr. Sayers ; and No. 9, Mr. Spence. Several other
buildings in the immediate vicinity are likewise
severely injured by fire and water. The origin of
the outbreak is at present enveloped in mystery.

LATES t PARTICULARS.—(THIS DAY.)
It was nearly one o'clock this morning before it
was ascertained that no lives had been lost, but as to
the amount of loss of property not the least estimate
could be formed.

CHURCH-110W, LIMEIJOUSE.

No. 18, belonging to Mr. Horn, sail maker, com-
pletely destroyed, no furniture saved. Insured in
time Phoenix Fire-office.

—No. 19, Mr. Chatter, composition felt manufacturer,
all destroyed. Insured in the Phoenix.
No. 20, Mr. Inglis, private, front of house scorched
and damaged, furniture also by fire and removal.
Insured in the Phusnix office.

COIAMERCIAL-ROAD EAST.
No. 4, Mrs. Elizabeth Chatfield, private, front of
house damaged, and furniture damaged by removal.
Believed not insured.

No. 5, Mr. Ayerst, private, similar damage. In-
sured for building only in the Kent office.
No. 6, Mr. Davis, private, first floor damaged by
fire, and furuitare also by removal. Building in-
sured in the Kent, furniture in the Guardian Com-
pany.
No. 7, Mr. Deeling, private, similar damage. In-
sured in the Sun Fire-office.

~...
I\ ~_
o. 8, Mr. Sayers, private, similar destruction of
property. Insured in the Globe office.
No. 9, Mr. Spence, private, front of house da-
maged by fire and water, furniture damaged by re-
moval. Insured in the Globe Fire-office.

NEWS AT BRIGHTON. Holiday travellers to
Brighton, who may be anxious to learn what is going
on in the world they left " behind them," will find
every information by going to Mr. Grant, the universal
news agent, in Castle square, just opposite the famed
Pavilion, now on the eve of bidding a long farewell to
all its fantastical greatness. In that snug locality of
ta
Castle-square, once the moving haunt of coach, and whip,
and horn, Mr. Grant has lately opened a most commo-
dious and elegant reading-room, where all the London
daily, evening, and weekly papers may be seen a few
almost
a boon
everyht
has
hours after publication, as well as French, American,
Bombay, Spanish, Italian, . and, in fact,i
s i
provincial and continental journal. All the magazines
h
and periodicals arc likewise taken;
and and
is fordto b
:,,hheopeed
ex-
tremely low charge of twopence a visitor may obtain as
much
long
n information
been
wanted a
s he
at may wish.
Brighton,
that Mr. Grant will meet with the support his spirited
exertions deserve.

s rVu
oEu-
rPe
da
tsra
tt owsiiTsuonE,
i
:—willtl
BOARBforoWr TesEtbAuD4
be the new Vice-Pres
ident for the Board of Trade, in
the room of Mr. Milner Gibson.
in , resigned.
TRADE or LEICESTER.—There has been more do-
ing the warehouses, and business has resumed a more
improved tone, both in London and Manchester, parti-
cularly for goods adapted for the home spring trade.
But little is at present preparing for the American mar-
ket, and continental orders are all suspended—the heavy
failures constantly taking place in that hitherto steady
and respectable market, having destroyed all confidence.
arns continue heavy of sale, and there is little doing
in wools.
WAKEFIELD CORN MARKET, THURSDAY. The
supply of wheat is good, and of other grain moderate.
The market is thinly attended, being held off the usual
day. The business passing in wheat is limited, and
prices must be quoted fully as high as last week. Barley
being scarce to-day, fetches rather more money- Beans
in better re quest and the turn dearer.
in Oats and shel-
ling each dull tale, without alteration value. Malt is
held at a slight improvement.
THE ILL-FATED EMIGRANT SHIP OMEGA.---Yes-
terday it was announced at Portsmouth that this unfor-
tunate ship, which was supposed to have foundered after
the emigrants, 336 in number had been taken out of her,
and nearly 200 of whom subsequently perished by the
wreck of the Barbara, on the American coast, has been
passed perfectly sound eighty
.miles west ,of the Scilly
Lights, by the barque Franklin. Not a soul was on
board, and the vessel was drifting with the currents,
leaving little doubt that had the emigrants remained on
board every one would have been saved. The bulk of
the unfortunate people who perished were natives of
Bradford,

RIOT` 3, UNLAWFUL ASSEMBLIES.
We gi re the following excellent chargtehteo the grand
inquest, delivered some days_
Quarter Sessions, by the Rea-cmocrederat John Robert
3Keayon, Esq., D.C.
and Vinerian. Professor of
Common ,Law in the University of Oxford. It is
admirably adapted to the times, and tcontains some
useful legit information on the duties and privileges
of special constables in cases of riot and disorder :
Gentlemen of the Grand Inquest,—l am truly
glad to see so many of you present here to-day ;at
.he same time I am happy to congratulate you that
Tour labours will probably be very light. lam not
*ware that there will be ore than one case brought
before you, and that one— m
judging from the deposi-
tions before me—is of so simple a nature that
I did not think it requisite to make any ob-
servation to you respecting it. But still lam
rejoiced to see so good an assemblage of grand
urymen ; for, since this court last sat events
lave happened which make it most important that
every good man should be forward to bear his part
in the administration of justice. You will, no doubt,
perceive that I allude to the disturbances which have
taken place on the continent of Europe, and which
have destroyed the peace, the trade, the commerce,
end wealth of the countries where they have occurred,
and the ultimate results of which no man can fore-
see. It is, however, only so far as the principles or
examples of the persons who are active in those dis•
turbances may affect us that I wish to allude to them
now. Already idle and dissolute persons, in some
parts of our country, have tried to excite in
it disturbances of a like kind, the effects of
which, if they succeed, would probably be the
ruin, misery, and wretchedness, of our land. It
is our duty to guard against this evil, and
to this point I wish to direct your attention.
Gentlemen, it is one especial part of the duty of all
Governments to protect the personal safety of
the individuals committed to their charge, and to
guard their property. Mindful of this duty, Eng-
land has from the earliest times to which we can trace
the history of its law, prohibited riots and unlawful
assemblies, provided means for their suppression and
prevention, and punished persons who have caused or
countenanced them. lam thankful to know that in
this borough and neighbourhood there has not only
been no disturbance, but that there is nb probability
of one, and that, on the contrary, we nave every hope
that, by God's mercy, we may retain the blessings of
peace and quiet which we have so long enjoyed.
Still, it may be that wicked and designing men may
come among us, and try, for their own selfish pur-
poses, to plant and encourage the growth of evil
principles, to cause discontent, and to excite the dis-
contented to disorder and riot. It may, therefore,
not be a misapplication of our time if I try to pointnt
out to you, shortly and clearly, the nature o
punishment and danger which persons incur
the by
joining themselves to a riotous assembly, and
means which the law provides to prevent or suppress
riots, and to protect persons and property against
them. And first, as to rioters themselves, and those
who join them; it should be well understood that
every person who takes part with the rioters is
punishable as a principal rioter, and is answerable for
all the crimes to which the riot leads. For the riot
itself, even if no injury is done to persons or property,
he is subject to fine and imprisonment ; but he may
become liable to more severe punishment. When a
riot begins no one one knows to what extent of crime
it may proceed. The burning and destruction of
property, murder, and high treason itself have been,
and may be, the consequences of riots begun without
any idea of such crimes ; and the rioter, and the per-
Son who has joined him, at first perhaps from idle cu-
riosity, may both become liable to the punishment due
for crimes, from the very thought of which they might
have shrunk before, and may accordingly forfeit their
lives, or their liberty so long as their lives continue.
For the suppression of riots, the common law of
England, from the earliest times, provided conser-
vators, or keepers of the peace, and assigned to
them the duties which are now exercised by our
justices of the peace and peace officers ; and the Legis-
lature has from time to time made further provisions
for the like purpose ; and according to the law as it
now stands it is the especial duty of every justice
of the peace, of every sheriff and under-sheriff, of
every constable and other peace officer, to use all his
efforts to prevent or suppress a riot, and to arrest the
offenders. To enable them the better to do this
they are authorised to call upon and command all
other persons to help them in it ; and if any person
when so called upon refuses or neglects to obey, that
person will be subject to be fined and imprisoned.
But the officers and ministers of justice are not the
only persons whose duty it is to interfere to suppress
riots ; every private person is authorised and is
bound to do so to the utmost of his power. He may
do this by stopping those whom he may see engaged
in a riot from continuing their unlawful acts, or if he
sees any one coming to join the rioters he may
turn them back and prevent them doing so. For the
purpose of thus suppressing a riot the law permits
persons, private persons as well as others, to arm
themselves and to use their arms if necessary ; and
if in the honest and due exercise of their duty
they wound or kill any person, they are pro-
tected by the law and are blameless. This duty
of private persons to suppress riots is a duty
also incumbent upon soldiers. Soldiers are not
exempt from this duty or deprived of the protec-
tion I have mentioned in executing it, because they
have taken upon themselves the characters and duties
of soldiers ; their training and discipline will enable
them the better to perform it. I mention this par-
ticularly, because it has sometimes been supposed
that soldiers cannot act without the presence and
direction of a magistrate—a supposition which
is wholly wrong. Soldiers and private per-
sons may legally act, and ought to act,
to stop any riot which they may witness, though
there may be no magistrate to direct them.
At the same time, if any magistrate be present,
soldiers and private persons should act under his
directions ; and I advise them always to get, if possi-
ble, the presence and direction of a magistrate on such
occasions; but, it they cannot get them, they are not
the less bound to prevent illegal acts being done.
I have now mentioned to you how the law punishes,
and the means it uses to suppress riots; but it also
tries to prevent their occurrence by forbidding and
punishing unlawful assemblies which may lead
to riot. These are forbidden and made punishable by
the common law, and also by the Act 1 George 1.,
st. 2, cap. 5, " For preventing tumults and riotous
assemblies" (commonly called the Riot Act), which
enacts that if any persons to the number of 12 or more,
being unlawfully, riotously, and tumultuously assem-
bled together, to the disturbance of the public peace,
and being required by any justice of the peace
for the place where the assembly is, by proclama-
tion in the form prescribed by the Act, to dis
perse, shall, notwithstanding the proclamation, con-
tinue together to the number of 12 or more for one
hour after such proclamation,
pu nhiseh a
guiltybthl n theof
felony, persona
for s ()
continuing together shall
which offence they are 7lilfeV,mo.rahnyd
1 Vict., c. 91) by transportatioewni(tfbhoyr
imprisonment for three years
la hard labour
and solitary confinement. But the
tow not only
riotsu and
punishes persons who are parties
occuafr,ebithterit unlawful assemblies, when they
fur-
ther tries to prevent the occurrence
for our
law provides means for the purposetilea.ndlthhee
statute law has affirmed and strengthened
provi-
sions of the common law. It will be enough
present purpose to mention that, by the Act Ist
2d William c. 41, it has been enacted that in
cases where it shall be made to appear to any two
justices of the peace, on the oath of a credible wit-
ness, that any tumult, riot, or felony has taken place,
or may be reasonably apprehended at any place
within the jurisdiction of none justices, and if those
justices shall be of o p that the ordinary
officers appointed for keeping the peace are not suffi-
cient for the protection of persons and property, then
those justices, or any other two justices for the same
jurisdiction, may appoint as many hou3eholders, or
other persons (not legally exempt) residing in the
place where the disturbance is apprehended, or its
neighbourhood, or (by the Act 5 and 6 William
C. 43) any other persons willing to
serve, to act as special constables for the
reservation of the peace, the protection of
theinhabitants, and the safety of property.
Full
powers are given to such special consta-
bles for
the performance of their duty, and full pro-
tection for
what they do in the discharge of it ; and
any one
who
assaults or resists them in discharging
it is subjected to
that I should add thatle serious punishment. It is right
it is not left to the option of
persons whom the justices
xpon, to act as speckl are empowered so to call
constables, to refuse to act
when required; but an
refuses to take the oath of
yone who, when so called on,
zasiepecial constable, or to act
penalties IS one, is subjected to
persons so
in the sta-
tutes. It is obvious that sd incur trouble, and
B(called upon may
in some cases lose much time, an
perhaps expenses which they can ill
ing the call, and therefore the Act veryafford,
in obey -
provides that reasonable allowances may be properly
made for
such loss of time, trouble, and expense
special constables so appointed are to be pr; and
thedea
with everything necessary to enable them to i
charge their duty. Thus you see that riots
an
unlawful assemblies are forbidden and punished by
our laws; that persons who join them even froin
motives of curiosity or idle fancy, without any
worse motive, subject themselves to punishment for
the crimes perpetrated in the riot which they
countenanced ; and you also see that it is the
bounden duty of every person to be earnest and active
in suppressing or preventing such riots and assemblies,
and that they have full authority and means for the
purpose, and full protection for doing so. If, then
unhappily, ill-disposed persons come among us, or if:
still more unhappily, any among ourselves should be
isd gem, and riots or unlawful assemblies occur,

our duty is clear; and every one must see that what •
is our duty in this case is (as in all other cases it is
in reality) our best interest. We must all abstain
from joining the offenders, or in any way countenanc-
ing them ; and, on the contrary, every one must exert
himself, to the utmost of his power, to preserve peace
and order, and to bring offenders to justice. We
shall thus best guard our lives and property, and the
wellbeing of our neighbours. Aad we shall do much
more—we shall thus best obey our laws, best do our
duty to our Sovereign, and show our gratitude to
Heaven for the blessings of that free constitution which
has come to us as an inheritance from our ancestors
—an inheritance which it is our duty (as far as in us
lies) to transmit uninjured to posterity—au inherit-
anee it is of a manly, rational, sober, noble freedom, not
formed on the visionary speculations of metaphysical
theorists, or the fancies of poets, but one which born
and flourishing under the holy influences of true re-
ligion has grown with the growth of our country,
and strengthened with its strength, and is now bound.
up with our dearest affections. We do not boast of
it as that which we have achieved for ourselves, but
we humbly and gratefully acknowledge that we owe
it (as we owe all our other blessings) to Him alone,
" who rules over all the kingdoms of the world, and
disposes of them according to his good pleasure."
Gentlemen, I will not detain you longer from your
present duties.

CAUTION TO PLACE- SEEKERS.
At a county court held here (Taunton) on Tues-
day, Captain Mahon, an insolvent, applied for his

case is brought before the court, except where the
services of the junior counsel only appear to the re-
taining solicitor necessary.—Circuit retainers: 13. A
special retainer in a country cause must be given for
a particular assize. 14. If the venue be changed for
another place on the same circuit, a fresh retainer is not
required. 15. If the cause be not tried at the
assizes for which the retainer is given, the retainer
must be renewed for every subsequent assize until
the cause is disposed of, unless a brief has been
delivered, and then the usual refresher fee is suffi-
cient. 16. A retainer may be given for future
assizes without a retainer for the intervening assizes,
unless notice of trial shall have been given for such
intervening assizes. 17. Where a renewed retainer
is necessary it must be given before the end of the
term preceding the assize. 18. In any case requiring
the renewal of a retainer, an adverse brief or retainer
cannot be accepted without notice to the original
client.—Appeals, writs of error, and nonsuits : 19.
A special retainer, in an appeal, or on a writ of error,
may be given before the appeal has been lodged, or
the writ of error issued. '2O. Counsel in the original
cause cannot accept a retainer on an appeal or writ
of error for the opposite party, without affording the
client in such original cause the opportunity of
giving such retainer. 21. After a nonsuit a re-
tainer cannot be accepted from the adverse
party in a second action without notice to the
client for whom a brief has been held in the first
action.—Opinions andipleadings : 22. Where counsel
has drawn pleadings, or advised during the progress
of an action or suit, a retainer cannot be accepted
from the opponent, without notice to the first client.
—Promotion of Counsel: 23. The retainer of a
counsel does not cease upon his promotion to a
higher rank at the bar.—Form of Retainer. Notice :
24. When a retainer is given by the plaintiff
in
a cause A. v. 8., and an action or
suit is afterwards brought by B. v. A., the
counsel cannot take the retainer of B. without notice
to
A. the causes of action are connected. 25. A
mistake in the title of an action or suit does not
render the retainer inoperative, if it can be shown
that the cause of action or suit is the same, and that
there is no other to which the retainer can apply.
26. The notice to the client mentioned in these rules
is intended to afford him an opportunity to give a spe-
cial retainer to counsel.—Amount of Fees : 27. The
fees given for general retainers are as follows: In the
Court of Queen's Bench, Common Pleas, and Ex-
chequer of Pleas, five guineas; in Chancry and Bank-
ruptcy Appeals, and in Bankruptcy, five guineas ; in
Parliament and in the Privy Council, ten guineas.
28. The fees on special retainers are as follows : At
Common Law and in Equity, one guinea; in Parlia-
ment, on Bills and Election Committees, five guineas ;
in appeals to the House of Lords, and in the Privy
Council, two guineas.

discharge.
Mr. Brown, barrister, opposed insolvent on the
grounds—first, of fraudulent preference ; secondly, of
having contracted debts fraudulently ; thirdly, having
contracted debts without the means to pay ; and,
fourthly, for obtaining forbearance under fraudulent
pretences. Mr. Allen defended.
The insolvent, on examination, stated—One of my
creditors is Mr. J. Hart. He discounted my bills.
I held out no inducement to him to do so beyond the
profits he'rnight obtain. I did not promise to obtain
for him a Government situation. Mr. Brenchly in-
troduced me to him as a friend of his who had money
to lend ; I was to have made him a present of 251.
when the bill became due. The bill was for 3501.,
and I received in all abut 3451. Hart gave me a
second acceptance for 1001., which I undertook to
take up. The bill for 100/. was paid by Hart. I
was a lieutenant and paymaster in the Marines. I
left the Marines in 1843, on account of debts. I re.
signed, and on the day I was arrested I had applied
above 2001. of Government money to the satisfaction
of private debts. I endorsed a bill for 1001. to a Mr.
Noakes. He is a mutual friend of the family, and is
now professionally engaged for me i❑ a divorce which
is going on between myself and my wife. I never
had an action brought against me for breach of pro-
mise of marriage.
Counsel—Do you know a Mr. Tuke ? Insolvent
—I do.
Counsel—Did you run away with his wife ?
Insolvent—l don't think that I'm bound to answer.

STATE OF TRADE.
MANCHESTER, APRIL 18.—Since Friday, some
rather considerable sales have been made for China,
of lower qualities
egenerefroalyrlmerly shipped to that
market; and it is generally stated that the sales have
ot
than a 4n° .tihno csh e swh ihritei
which
gs
w,
been made on terms of credit which, though common
enough in the trade a year or two ago, have not
been recently heard of. The home trade houses
have also been operating to some extent; but,
on the whole, the market for goods has been
quite destitute of animation, whilst the yarn
market is much depressed, and the little
business done is still at declining prices. Ordinary
qualities of 40's mule twist are now currently quoted
at 7d., and 30's at 6icl.; and, in some isolated cases,
we blieve, still lower rates have been submitted to.
Indeed, pending the present prostration of trade upon
the continent of Europe, it is quite clear that
only a moderate portion of the average production
can be taken off, and there seems to be no other
remedy for the miserable prices now current
than a further diminution of the hours of
labour. We are glad to learn that the firm of
De Jersey and Co., who suspended payment some
months ago, have announced their intention of paying
a further instalment, which, with former instalments,
amounts to 15s. in the pound on their sole liabilities,
and to 20s. in the pound (including interest and all
expenses) on all bills to which they and the firm of
John Thomas and Co, of London, were both parties.
We are glad to learn, from a variety of sources, that
business has become rather active in the Lon-
don warehouses, from which it is reasonable to hope
for some slight improvement here. London is,
indeed, extremely full, owing to the influx of Eng-
lish and foreign refugees from France; and the shop-
keepers are enjoying the benefit of their presence.
It is also generally understood that the stocks of
manufactured goods in the hands of dealers in all
parts of the country ere exceedingly light. In re-
ference to this point, we subjoin a letter which was
intended for the Guardian of Saturday last, but
reached us too late for that publication :

Mr. Allen objected to the question, and argued tha
such had been the case, and an action had been
brought, the record should be put in ; if not, he could
not be called on to criminate himself.
Mr. Browne contended that he was justified in
putting these questions, to show that the insolvent
had recklessly spent money.
Examination continued—l know a Mrs. Wallace,
and have driven her out occasionally ; I lived inthe
intimate
with house with her, but was not otherwise
with her ; when I drove her out, she gave me the
money to pay for the vehicle.
John Matthias Hart examined—I remember put-
ting an advertisement into the newspapers, in conse-
quence of which Mr. Brenchly wrote me a letter.
He afterwards introduced Captain Mahon to me, who
told me that if I could advance a certain sum of
money, he would procure a situation for me as landing
waiter. The salary was said to be 1601. a-year. He
said the office was worth 7001., but I replied that
the utmost I could advance to him was 3501., and
that evening 1701. was paid to him; on the following
Wednesday I paid him the remainder. I advanced
it solely upon the consideration of the promised
Government situation. I never received any interest
for it, nor did I bargain for interest. I remember
ping in a cab to the Treasury with insolvent, who
came out and said they were so busy there that
they could not attend to the matter, but that he
had no doubt I should get the appointment within a
tew days ; he told me that at his request his cousin,
the O'Gorman Mahon, M.P., had consented to become
my security in respect to the situation of landing
waiter : he afterwards said, that as the 3501. was a
very small sum, compared with the advantages which
I should obtain, he should feel much obliged if I
would give him an acceptance for 100/. ; after much
hesitation I gave it ; I made inquiries into insol-
vent's character and position, and finding that he was
cousin to the O'Gorman Mahon, I considered him
worthy of trust ; I made other inquiries, the answers
to which were that he was acquainted with several
Members of Parliament ; I never got the appoint-
ment. When the 1001. bill became due Mr. Noakes
wrote to me, and I called upon him ; Mahon said,
" Not having received my rents from Ireland, you
know the position I am in."
James Paxton examined—l was induced to ad-
vance 1101 to the insolvent upon his undertaking to ob-
tain a situ ition for me under Government. He said
a friend of his, who was very poor, a Member of
Parliament, was anxious to meet his constituents, but
was short of cash, and that if I would advance this
amount, his friend would get the appointment for me
without fail. I never got the appointment.
The Judge (to insolvent)—llid you ever make
any attempt to get situations for these parties ?
Insolvent—l never did.— (Laughter).
Insolvent was then examined with reference to a
transaction with a Mr. Edward Bennett, precisely
similar to the above. He swore positively that Ben-
nett had merely discounted the bills; but this Mr.
Bennett as positively denied. The sum in this case
was 3501.
Insolvent was next examined with reference to a
similar transaction with an individual named Bartlett,—
to whom he said he had " taken particular liking"-2-
(Much laughter)—and got him " put down on Lord
John Russell's private list," that being the very first
step to a comfortable situation. Bartlett was bled by
him to the extent of 3601.
Mr. Allen, in addressing the bench for the insol-
vent, said this was one of the most extraordinary cases
that had ever come before this or any other court. As
to obtaining money under false pretences, he con-
tended that the witnesses having been themselves en-
gaged in illegal transactions—which sales of Govern-
ment situations undoubtedly were—it was not seemly
for them to come and complain of the insolvent, who
was a mere party to these transactions. He must say
that he was surprised to hear young men coming
forward and stating that they had been taken in in
such a silly way.
His Honour said he could hardly pity the witnesses
who had been so foolish as to part with their money
to the insolvent under the circumstances. But he
thought that he was bound for the ends of justice to
inflict some evere punishment upon the insolvent,
whose conduct had been of a most gross and repre-
hensible character. It was melancholy to see a per-
son in his station, and, with his family connexions,
degrading himself by defrauding others in this way.
His Honour then ordered that that the insolvent be
imprisoned for one year.—Taunton Gazette.
and

"TO THE EDITOR OF THE MANCHESTER GUARDIAN.
" Sir,—Having just returned from the London
market, I take the liberty of stating a fact or two
that ought to have some influence in cheering up par-
ties who supply the home trade. The first is, that
Morrisons, of London, on the memorable 10th inst.,
sold a larger amount of goods than they have ever
previously done on any one day. Country drapers
are generally complaining of the paucity of stocks in
the warehouses, and of a want of taste and novelty in
printed gods.—l am, Sir, your obedient servant,
" A COUNTRY DRAPER."

The following official return, prepared under the
direction of Captain Willis, shows the state of em
ployment of the whole of the operative classes within
the borough of Manchester, who are employed in
the various descriptions of mills and works specified.
The comparison of this return with that for last
week gives the following results :—Of the cotton
mills four have gone from full to short time. Of the
hands employed in the cotton mills, 1,677 formerly
working full time, and 43 formerly out of employ-
ment, are at present working short time. Of the total
works included in the table, two previously working
full time, have gone on short time, and two have
stopped altogether. Of the total hands included
in the table, 1,172 have gone from full to short time ;
and 107 formerly working full time, are now out of
employment altogether. Altogether, the return is of
a very unfavourable character.
ROCHDALE, APRIL 17.—The flannel market has
been much the same as it was last Monday. Very
few pieces have been sold, and the prices have been
extremely low. In the wool market there is no
change to report; business slack, and prices sta-
tionary.
HALIFAX, APRIL 15.—With the exception of a
rather diminished sale of fancy goods, we have no
change to report since last week; and in yarn, also,
there is no alteration, scarcely any orders being given
out. In long wools there are very few transactions,
and those decidedly in favour of the buyer. Short
wools, however, are a little more active, at late rates.
HunaEesriELD, APRIL 18.—The business in the
Cloth Hall to-day has been more animated than for
some weeks, and the warehouses have participated in
the improvement ; but in the wool trade not much
altei ation, owing to the extreme caution of manufac-
turers in buying.
LEEDS, APRIL 18.—We have the agreeable task
of reporting a better market, both to-day and last
Saturday, at our Cloth-hall. A pretty good business
has been doing in cloth for America and the home
trade, and we hope the improvement will not be so
transitory as the general aspect of affairs seem to in-
dicate. Perhaps the unsettled state of the manufac-
turing districts of the continent may cause orders,
originally intended for France or Belgium, to flow
to our market, and thus afford a striking exemplifica-
tion to our industrious classes of the benefits which
a quiet and peaceable disposition confer on the com-
munity. We cannot conclude these, remarks with-
out giving due praise to our working classes, for the
excellent spirit they have hitherto displayed under
privations the most trying.—Manchester Guardian.

FOREIGN BOOKS.—A matter of much importance
has recently been brought under the consideration of
the revenue authorities, with reference to the right
of importing books and works from the continental
states of Europe and America, having not
only an English title-page, but also the name
of an English and well-known publisher in-
scribed thereon. In the instance under notice a
very considerable qaantity of printed books were im-
ported by a metropolitan firm of eminence from Holland,
which had been printed and published on the Continent,
and had a title-page in the Englist: language, as well as
tke name of the importing firm and metropolitan
address in the usual place thereon. The inference
deducible from these facts would appear to be an inten-
tion of giving the books the character of having
been printed and published in this country, or,
if otherwise, that they can be printed abroad,
and imported in a complete state' at a reduced expense,
agiving e. p a
themge anda
Britishaddress
independently of the amount of duty leviable thereon;
but the officers of the revenue, considering that the
Englishie
a s t itl
alndelyor thebjec wtiloan-
hcharactererelegally
affecting the importation of goods so circumstanced, the
matter was referred to the authorities for their
decision, and it appearing that the books were
, both written and published on the continent, and
it further being considered that the law pro-
hibiting the name, mark, or brand of an English maker
to appear on foreign manufactures does not apply to books,
as they are especially protected under the law of copy-
right, which renders them liable to seizure and forfeiture
if imported contrary to the provisions thereof, it has been
decided that there is no legal objection to the importa-
tion of books prepared in the manner described, and
that they are admissible upon payment of the proper
duties due thereon. It may be mentioned that the title-
page in this instance was a double one, containing on one
page or sheet a description of the character of the work
in the foreign language of the country in which it was
published
and on the other the same description in pure
,
English, both containing at the bottom of the page the
name of this metropolis, and also of the publishers
(importers), and
their addresses, is the English lan-
guage.

TIIE SUN) LONDON, SATURDA Y EVENIN Gr, APRIL 22, 1848.

OUTRAGES ON BRITISH SUB-
JECTS AT CANTON.
An interesting collection of papers relating to the
murder of six Englishmen, in the neighbourhood of
Canton, in the month of December, 1847, has just
been laid on the tables of both Houses of Parliament
by command of her Majesty. These papers are
chiefly dispatches from Sir John Davis, the Chief
Commissioner Hong
Kong, to the Secretary for
Foreign
Affairs,enclosures embodying the cor-
a t
with H
e
cor-
respondence with the Chinese authorities at Canton,
and the British Consul and resident there, on the
subject of the violation of the Ist article of the
Treaty of Nankin, by which protection and security
were insured to British subjects, on several occasions
previous to, as well as the sth of December, when
the murders were perpetrated. The general tendency
of this correspondence shows that a strong feeling of
animosity exists against the appearance of foreigners
beyond the immediate vicinity of the factories in Can-
ton and its neighbourhood, and that it is with great
difficulty that the authorities—when they are willing to
do so—are able torFstrain!open attacks on British and
other residents visiting the places in the neighbour-
hood of that city. Sir John Davis, however, seems
to have been disposed to place too much confidence in
the good faith of the Chinese Commissioner and other
magistrates in their attempts to res,rain the violence
and brutal conduct of the inhabitants of the villages
near Canton. This ill-feeling, from statements con-
tained in some of the documents, appears to have been
mainly engendered by events which occurred in 1841,
when, according to a Chinese statement, on the troops
landing at some of the villages, violence was offered
and the correspondence
At that time Sir John
to the women. The volume containing these papers
pretty confident of the
for in a dispatch to Vis-
count maintenance
enans asc
apknp cteoearoAsfutotrseventy-ninehave
pages,ueliBl
1i4.71yt. ,
count Palmerston, dated the 25th of that month,
after having stated that the Admiral had applied to
him for his concurrence in moving the Pluto steamer
from Canton, he adds, "I believe the Canton factories
were never less in need of the presence of such a
vessel than at present. The congregation of vagabonds
about them has and been u t an end to ; there is an effie
-
cient Chinese gu at the Consoo-house, and th
final blocking up of the eld thoroughfare and landing-
place in the midst of the factories, has given them a
degree of quietness and security to which they were
before strangers."
dis
In a subsequent patch, dated the 23d. of Sep-
tember, he announces that he had communicated to
Keying the expression of approbation on the part of
the British Government at his conduct in punishing
some persons who had injured a sailor, and in doing
so he had assured the Commissioner that " the most
important thing in the estimation of the British
Government is the security and welfare of its sub-
jects, and as your Excellency is determined to main-
tain right, and rigidly to govern ill .disposed Chinese,
there can be no cause for interruption to peace and
friendship."
In reply to this, Commissioner Keying says, " I
was highly gratified with the tenor of this communi-
cation on perusing it. Friendship. will thus be firmly
preserved on both side, and this will materially con-
tribute to the happiness of the subjects of both
countries. The Honourable Envoy and the Imperial
Minister will henceforth, by our united efforts, pro-
mote peace, and the good and cordial understanding
between the people of our respective nations. If any
outrage be committed, the aggressors must forthwith
be punished, to maintain peace and friendship for
ever, and to perpetuate the enjoyment of mutual
advantages."
Immediately after this Sir John Davis took ships
for the removal of a considerable portion of the gar-
rison of Hong Kong to India; and such was his con-
fidence in the Chinese authorities, that he says in a
letter to Rear-Admiral Inglefield, " the quiet and
security of British residents at Canton have been so
much improved by local arrangements since April
last, that it appears to myself that the constant pre-
sence of a steamer opposite the factories will be quite
needless."
Sir John Davis then proceeded on a mission to
Cochin China, and left Major-General D'Aguilar in
temporary charge of the Government of Hong Kong.
A few days afterwards the gallant general sent a
dispatch to the Commissioner Keying, in the course
of which he states—
" I have learnt with regret the piracy committed
on the boat of an English merchant-vessel a few days
since. This piracy appears to have taken place
between Canton and Whampoa, in the open day, and
under circumstances of peculiar cunning and audacity.
I feel assured your Excellency will be as anxious as I
am that the criminals should be brought to justice,
and I look forward with anxiety to learn the result
of your measures to apprehend them, and also to the
recovery, if possible, of the property that fibs been
thus forcibly abducted."
In answer to this the Commissioner, after having
expressed his deep regret at the occurrence, states
that certain parties had been apprehended for the
robbery, and part of the booty had been recovered,
and he added, that he had dispatched an officer to
examine the case and try the prisoners. The fol-
lowing graphic account of the trial and punishment of
the offenders was then forwarded to the British consul
at Canton :
"Ke, Imperial Commissioner, Governor-General of
,he Two Kwang, &c., &c., hereby gives a declara

on the rivers of Kwang-tung, in which the person
robbed is opposed and wounded in attempting to
save his property, the heads of those criminals who
are to be decapitated, shall, as an additional punish-
ment, be publicly exposed on poles ;' and after having
respectfully issued their death-warrant, judgment
will, in the first place be executed, their heads then
sent to the scene of the crime, and there exposed to
the public by suspension from poles, as a warning
example.
" Chin-a-tseen and Tsang-soo•tee, who boarded
the boat in order to search for booty, have been
sentenced, in accordance with the original law [on
robbery], to be decapitated ; the punishment to be
inflicted immediately [after the Board of Punishments
has notified its confirmation of the sentence].
" Kwo-a-kew and the others have been sentenced
in accordance with the clause [against those who
stand by and receive the booty, but do not assist in
searching for it] to be sent to the new territory in
Tartary as slaves to the officers and soldiers.
" The booty which has been seed is to be given
over to the proprietor after having been recognised by
him • and it has been settled that the rest of the booty
shall be recovered from [the property of relations of]
the criminals at present in custody.
" As to the criminals not yet apprehended, orders
have been given that search be made after them, and
that they must be apprehended, when their cases will
be settled separately.
" I have now to give you a declaration for your
information, and request that you will hand over into
the possession of the person from whom it was robbed
the booty now sent you. A necessary declaration.
" Accompanied by robbed booty, consisting of a
case containing ten pieces of foreign cloth.
" For the British Consul Macgregor.
" October 17, 1847."
On the 30th October, in a dispatch to Viscount
Palmerston, Sir John Davis complains of a fresh act
of aggression on three British merchants, at a village
about six miles up the river from Canton. The na-
ture of this outrage is thus described in a letter of
Consul Macgregor :
" I have the honour to report to you that I have
received a complaint from Messrs. Morrison, Mac-
gregor, and Small, British subjects, of which the fol-
lowing is the substance :
" Having hired a sampan, or small Chinese boat,
in the afternoon of the 24th instant, these gentlemen
proceeded up the river with the intention of taking a
stroll in the country, in accordance with sect. 2 of
the agreement of the 6th April of the present year.
From the time of their leaving the factories un,il

they reached a place of the -name of Cha tow,
about six miles from Canton, they met with no
molestation, but on ariving at that village some fifty or
sixty men, armed with spears, swords, and shields,
came running to the river side, yelling and shouting,
and threatening the party in the boat that if they at-
tempted to land they would be killed. The tumult
among these people being very great, and many more
of them, also armed, coming from the village, the
complainants put their boat about at the earnest so-
licitations of the boatmen, who were very much
alarmed at the hostile demonstrations of their country-
men. On returning it was necessary for the boat to
pass a point of land nearer to the village than the first
landing place ; :whe❑ it approached this point the
multitude was seen crossing the fields, evidently with
the intention of intercepting it. The party in it was
in considerable danger, the creek being very narrow
at that place, and the behaviour of the mob violent in
the extreme ; as the boatmen, however, used every
effort to keep clear of the land, the party succeeded
in making good their retreat."
Reparation on account of those proceedings was
demanded from Commissioner Keying. In a subse-
quent dispatch, dated November 14, Sir John Davis
says :
"On the 10th instant I received a private note
from Consul Macgregor, from which I gathered that
a Chinese boat, with Mr. Elmslie and two others,
while passing down the river, had apparently been
fired at with a loaded ginjall from one of the forts.
To my surprise, however, the Consul added that he
should not address Keying about this until the 9th,
the day after he wrote, although the occurrence had
taken place on the 6th. It is obvious that Keying
would not be disposed to attach much importance to
what the Consul did not mention until three days
after it happened.
" I theretore lost no time in addressing a strong
note to Keying.
" The 42d Regiment was on the eve of embarking
for Madras, but Major-General D'Aguilar concurred
with me in the advisability of suspending their de-
parture until a full and satisfactory explanation, and,
if necessary, reparation, had been obtained from

Keying.
" My note went up on the 10th instant, and on the
morning of the lath I received through the consul a
handsome and conclusive reply from the Imperial
Commissioner, in which he announced the degrada-
tion of the two officers in the fort, and the flagellation
of the men. Your Lordship will observe that Key-
ing calls on God to witness the sincerity of his con-
stant wish to maintain peace, and do what is right.
lie adds, in the same note, that the rioters at Cha-
tow, on the 24th October, besides flogging, be
paraded in the wooden collar near the factories, with
their offence inscribed."
On the 20th of November Sir John Davis, in a
further letter to Viscount Palmerston, complains of
the residents at Canton sending over false reports as
to the state of the country, which were productive of
much mischief; and he adds :
" In your Lordship's second rep'.y to the Liverpool
Association, you left it to time and events to decide
whether their anticipations as to the future results of
the measures in the Canton River would be verified
or not. They themselves must now be glad that
their frightful dreams have not been realised.
" The speculations of the association as to a steamer
opposite the factories are happily rendered superfluous
by the fact that now, for the first time since the peace,
it may be confidently predicated a steamer will not be
required. There is an end of the mob at Canton in
its antagonism to the factories, and this is a great
point gained. With the mob Keying could not well
deal ; with individual aggressors he not only can, but
has shown plainly that he will. I beg to attach to
this dispatch a statement from Mr. Johnston of his
personal experience of the improved state of Canton."
Mr. Johnston, in his communication, observes—
" There is a very observable improvement in the
temper of the people of Canton, and after a few days'
stay at that place I was so struck by the improve-
ment, that I walked with the most perfect confidence
round the city, through the extensive suburb to the
east and west of it; and I also visited the Budhist
Temple at Houan, where I remained for upwards of
two hours. These expeditions were made without
meeting the slightest opposition or molestation. . •
During a residence in the south of China since 1834
I have never before thought it safe to go round the
city of Canton."
On the same day, however, on which this letter, was
written, Captain M'Dougall, of her Majesty's ship
Vulture, while walking round the city with the con-
sul, vice-consul, and interpreter, was pelted with
stones by some boys.
We now come to the dispatches relating to the last
and most atrocious outrage, namely, the murder of
six English gentlemen at a village a few miles up the
river from Canton. These papers fill a considerable
portion of the volume, and many of them have already
been published. It, therefore, is unnecessary to re-
peat them ; but there are others of considerable
interest. The following is the dispatch of Sir John
Davis to Viscount Palmerston on the subject:—
" Canton, December 13, 1847.
"My Lord,—On the 7th instant, I received a state-
ment at Hong-Kong from Mr. Consul M'Gregor, that
six young Englishmen—John Bellamy, Henry Balk-
will, Patrick M'Carte, William Brown, William
Rutter, Alexander Small, clerks to merchants at
Canton—had proceeded about three miles up the
river on the sth in a Chinese boat, and that they had
not been heard of until the time he wrote on the 6th.
"On the Bth I learned, to my great horror, as
well by private letters as by the inclosed dispatch
from the Consul (which, in some of its details, has
since proved incorrect), that the above six young
men, some of them wiih pistols in their possession,
went into the village called Hwang- chu-kee, three
miles above Canton, and, getting into an afray with
the natives, shot one of them Glead;and wounded two
others, and that, being overpowered by numbers, they
were all of them ultimately murdered with circum-
stanceshojunti
a oehof.
rsnsafn:eKttoayilanmeledni,niasyadneevt
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would
b u id endeavouredbe excited
bconvince
atheimofti'e
barbarous
" On my way up to Canton I received the annexed
from Keying, dated the 11th instant, in which he
detailed the further measures taken for the apprehen-
sion of the murderers, and added that six of the
parties concerned had been captured.
" On my arrival at Canton yesterday, I found that
all the bodies of the murdered persons had been re-
covered in a shocking mutilated state, and that they
had been buried by their friends. I lost no time in
addressing the inclosed note to Keying, in which I
acknowledged his express determination to do justice,
and proposed that officers deputed by myself should

tion :
" Whereas in the case of the boat of the British
ve,sel Shah Allum, having been robbed on the river
between Canton and Whampoa, and certain parties
tieing wounded by the robbers in opposing (their at-
tempts to save their property), some time ago when
you sent in a statement on the subject, I wrote to
the proper district magistrate and military officer,
ordering them to dispatch a strong force of soldiers
and police to make rigorous search for the criminals,
who must (I stated) be seized.
" Subsequently, on the 11th of October, the said
military officer and district magistrate delivered over
to me the following nine criminals concerned in this
case :_Woo-a-luh, Le-a-fuh, Chin-a- tseen, Tsang-
soo- te, K a-kew, Tan-a-sew, Hwang-a-shing,
Fung-a-chin, and Kwoa-haou, together with a
booty, also seized, consisting of ten pieces of foreign
cloth. I immediately ordered a commissioner to
have the criminals brought before him and to try
I am a native of the Nan-
them.
hae"
30th of Septeinber, having happened to meet with
NVoo-a
district, luh
anddepfiosfetyd---ni4ne
years of age. On the
an old acquaintance, Le-a-fuh, at present appre-
hended, we had a conversation together on our
poverty and hardships; when Le-a-fuh told me that
he was acquainted with a black-faced man named
Mosha, who had informed him that his master's
boat, laden with a large quantity of property,
would proceed on the 2d of October to Whampoa,
and must go by way of the North Barrier.' 1
immediately proposed that we should collect
some companions, go to the place in question,
rob the boat, and divide the booty obtained
for our own use ; to which proposition he agreed. Im-
mediately afterwards I collected the following persons
at present apprehended :—Chin. a-tseen, Tsang- soo- te,
Kwo-a-kew, Tan-a-sew, Hwang-a-shing, and Kwo-
a-haou ; together with the following not yet ap-
prehended, Chin-a kew, Chin-a-se,
Leang a-woo,
Leang-a-tung, HO-a-sze, Tan-a-san, and Leang-
yung-hing. With these we sat out in a vessel, and
on the 2d of October, some time after two o'clock,
reached the river in the neighbourhood of the Barrier,
just as the boat of the Shah Allum arrived. I
immediately caused Leang-yung-hing to stand up in
the head of the vessel, with a false letter in his hand,
and to say that he wished to deliver it to the boat.
The people on board of the boat hearing and believing
this, came alongside of us, on which I and Le-
a-fuh, Chip-a-tseen, Tsang-soo-tee, Ching-a-kew,
Chin a- se, and Leang-yung- hing, immediately boarded
her in order to search andhin.plunder, her ; Kwo-a-kew,and
Tan-a•sew, Hwang a-sg, ung a-chin,
Kwo-a-haou, with the rest of our compa-
nions, received the booty on board of our
vessel. The Foreigners grasped their weapons
and advanced with shouts in order to seize
us, upon which I and Le-a-fuh opposed and wounded
them with swords. The rest of the foreigners, fear-
ing our violence, escaped by swimming. I, with
Le-a- fuh and the others, then serched the boat in
order to plunder her, and succeeded in getting one
case, two bags of copper cash, and 13 i
dollars which
were on the persons of the wounded foreigners.
After this a fast boat came towards us and fired a
apprehensive of being seized,
gun, when, becoming
we, severally carrying the above articles of booty
with us, returned to our vessel and sailed to a se-
cluded place, where we examined and counted off the
booty. The property robbed consisted in d
all of a case
containing
• • 40 pieces of foreign cloth, an two bags
containing a sum of 30,000 copper cash. We re-
tained 10 pieces of the cloth together with the case,
the rest we sold to a person whose name is unknown to
me. The cash, as also the silver got by the robbery,
we divided among us by shares, and then all dis-
persed. Subsequently I was sough ,
rand a.ppre-
hended by the soldiers and the pol 'his is the
truth.'
" Le-a- fuh deposed that be was thirty-three years
of age, Chin-a. tseen that he was forty-four years of age,
, I:sang-soo-te that he was thirty-three years of age,
kwo-a-kew that he was twenty-nine years of age,
Tan-a-sew that he was twenty-eight years of age
Hwlaang-a-shing that he was thirty-four years of age,
Fung-a-chin that he was twenty-five years of age,
and Kwo-a-haou that he was twenty-five years of
age. They all deposed alike that they were natives
of the Nanhae district, and their depositions agreed
as to the rest with that of Woo- a-luh. On being
crows-examined, they all agreed to the above state-
ments, and there was no concealment or glossing of
the facts in the case.
" Woo-a-luh and Le-a-fuh have been sentenced in
accordance with the clause, ' that in case of robbery

witness the execution of the guilty, adding that I
was ready to assist him with a force in case of need.
" The British merchants at Canton had applied for
fifty men to be sent up as a security to the factories,
and Major-General D'Aguilar, with my concurrence,
dispatched them in the Vulture steamer on the 10th
instant. There is nothing whatever, in my opinion,
to jeopardize the tranquillity of the factories. The
general feeling, even among the better Chinese, is
one of disgust and resentment at the late atrocious
outrage in a place which is noted for the bad charac-
ter and turbulence of its inhabitants.
" The villages where the tragedy occurred have
been deserted by the natives, and Keying has taken
possession of and sealed up the public buildings.
Many of our officers have visited the locality, and
seen it surrounded by the boats and men of the
Chinese Government. No pains will be spared by
me to obtain the immediate execution of the murderers

" I have, &c.
(Signed) " J. F. DAVIS."
The following are the inclosures alluded to :
" Canton, December 7, 1847.
" Sir,—Referring to my dispatches of yesterdays
date, I have to report to your Excellency that
towards evenirg I received information that a report
was spread among the Chinese that the six young
men therein alluded to had been murdered by the
villagers of Hwang- chu-ke. 1 have heard several
versions of this atrocious act, all of which agree in
the fact that soon after our countrymen had lauded
near the village just mentioned, they were surrounded
and attacked by the inhabitants, in consequence of
which an affray ensued, in which two of our people
were killed. The remaining four, who had no arms
of defence, save, perhaps, a cane, fled, but were hotly
pursued by the villagers through several places, and
at last overtaken at a place called Ilang-kaou, where
the combat was renewed, and here it seems the fugi-
tives were overpowered by numbers, captured, and
put to death on the following morning. This report
could not but cause a great deal of excitement
among the foreign population of Canton ; and
some among the British residents, impatient at
the slow proceedings of the Chinese authorities,
and the suspense in which they were kept for want
of official information regarding the fate of our young
countrymen, had resolved to proceed to the spot and
act for themselves. Asithis would be interfering with
the duties of the magistrates, who had already been
dispatched to the village by the Imperial High Com-
missioner, with orders to investigate the matter, I
thought it right to warn the British residents not to
adopt such a course, in a notice, of which I have the
, honour of inclosing a copy.
"In order to obtain early and positive information
upon a subject which absorbed all other considerations
in the minds of our countrymen, I instructed Mr.
Vice-Consul Elmslie to proceed to the village at an
early hour, there to meet the magistrate, to urge him
to greater activity, and, above all, to obtain a clue to
what had become of our missing countrymen. From
that gentleman's report, of which I enclose a copy,
your Excellency will observe that no progre's had
been made in the matter for the last twenty-four hours,
and that the affair is still involved in the same mys-
tery as before. Under these circumstances I have
again addressed the Imperial High Commissioner,
complaining of the apparent want of energy in the
proceedings of the local authorities, and hope to be
able to inform you of the result of my application in
my next dispatch. I inclose in the meantime a copy
of that high officer's communication, which he sent
me in answer to my first report of the unfortunate
occurrence, from which it is manifest he lost not a
moment in giving the necessary orders for its prompt
investigation.
" I shall be expecting your Excellency's instruc-
tions how I am further to proceed in this melancholy
affair; and as Ido not wish to detain the extra boat
which I have hired for the conveyance of this dis-
patch, I have only time to add that
" I have, &c.,
(Signed) " FRANCIS C. MACGREGOR.
" P.S. Since writing the above, the Nandarine
Tung and Ning have called upon me, by order of the
Imperial High Commissioner, with a message, to say
that the Kwang-chow-foo and several other officers
of rank had proceeded to Hwang-chu•ke to assist in
the investigation, which they were instructed to say
should he carried on with all the dispatch which
circumstances permitted. They added, that if the
persons missing were found to be still alive, they
should be immediately released, and if slain, their
bodies should be given up for interment.
(Signed) " FRANCIS C. 111 ACGREGOR."
(To be continued).

WALKING IN THE STREETS OF LONDON.—There
is great art in walking the streets of London: the coun-
tryman is a long while before he gets into the practice;
and his awkwardness in this respect is one of the marks
by which he is very readily distinguished, even if he
have doffed his country-cut coat and hat, and ima
gines he is altogether one of "the right sort." How
quickly will a pickpocket fix him in his eye, and keep
cio,e to his heels in a crowd for a whole street to.L;ether!
The habit of gazing at shop-windows, and at every
trifling novelty in the great thoroughfares, and the
want of that utter indifference to everything
but the object towards which he is journeying, dis,
anguish the indigenous individual from the stranger
in the street. The genuine Londoner is an absent man
in the most crowded parts of the city; he proceeds on

his way, casting up his bills in his mind, arranging to-
morrow's business, or prjucting new schemes of profit,
j.s unmoved and abstracted a, if he were walking alone
across a desert. Ile never jostles those he meets, either
right or left, but proceeds along, clear of porters and
draymen, gliding with the current of vitality that flows on
his own way at the general rate, nor breaking in upon
the countermarches who face him in a continued stream;

he could peruse a book or a newspaper, uninter
ruptedly, during his progress from Charing-cross to the
India House, in the midst of thousands, undisturbing and
undisturbed, his habitual ease, in such circumstances,
being the distinguishing trait of his character. The so-
journer of the provinces, on the other hand, when visiting
the metropolis, is sadly puzzled to steer clear of the
multitudes he meets. It is pleasant to see him launched
forth in the metropolis for the first time, raw from
Cumberland or Westmoreland. Now he gets into the
current of people passing the opposite way to him-
self, and finds himself pushed off the pavement
into the middle of the street ; now he staggers
among those who have their right hand to the wall, and,
not keeping the pace of the rest of the passengers,
is pushed forward, or jostled, or stopping at a win
(low to see some common-place thing, obstructs the
passengers, and is pushed through the glass, or loses his
pocket-handkerchief. Disasters are for ever occurring—
he is bewildered by the noise and confusion around
him, and is happy to return, and take his rest at his inn,
It is, scarcely credible to a Lon,:oner, but there are well-
authenticated instances of t( mporary madness in persons
bred up in the privacy and solitude of remote country
villages, from being left alone, and getting bewildered
in the streets of the metropolis.
DARING BURGLARY NEAR GLASGOW.—One of the
most daring and successful burglaries ever perpetrated
in this vicinity, was effected on Saturday morning
at the residence of Mr. Stirling, bleacher, Hoggan-
field, about three miles out of town, on the
Cumbernauld road. That gentleman's residence is
closely adjacent to the bleaching•green, where
there is always a private watchman stationed at
night. It may be mentioned that Mr. Stirling is un-
married; and the only other inmate in the house besides
himself is a servant girl, who occupies the kitchen on
the ground floor. When they retired to rest, about
one o'clock on the morning in question, everything
was quiet and secure. Shortly before that hour,
according to the statement of the private watch
man, he observed two men looking through one
of the windows of the works, and immediately
went towards them; but on the parties seeing him they
made off. In a few minutes afterwards, however, while he
was going his rounds, the same individuals, as he sup-
poses, suddenly sprang upon him, and, before he could
recover his presence of mind, he was bound hand and foot
with a strong cord, which effectually prevented him
moving from the spot. After beating him severely, they
forced him, under the most dreadful threats of taking his
life (at the same time brandishing a large clasp-knife), to
show them the entrance into the warehouse, c f which he
had the key. The poor fellow, who expected that every
moment was to be his last, complied, and after getting
access to the warehouse, they broke open several
desks in search of money, but without success.
Leaving. the watchman still bound, the two men,
whose faces were closely muffled up, then procured
a ladder from an outhouse, which they placed
against the wall of Mr. Stirling's dwelling-house, and
one of them mounted up to the root'. He then de-
scended one of the chimneys into the interior of the
house, and opened a back door to his companion, who
rushed in. The servant girl was awakened by
the noise of the opening door, and her first impulse was
to scream out; but, fortunately for herself, she kept
quiet, and feigned to be be sound asleep. The first
place the ruffians came into was the apartment in
which she was, where they immediately struck a light
with a lucifer match, which they were provided with.
One of them remarked to the other that, as the girl was
asleep, they might let her alone, and they both left the.
kitchen, speedily finding their way to the bed-room of
Mr. Stirling. Mr. Stirling, who was in bed, made such
a resistance, when they attempted to fasten him d:wn,
that one of the burglars aimed a blow at him with a
short crow-bar, which he held in his hand, and broke
his arm, thus rendering him entirely powerless. The
ruffians then commenced to ransack the house for money
which seemed to be their principal object; but we un-
derstand they only succeeded in securing a small sum,
all in silver. A man who was arrested the same night,
in Glasgow, under suspicious circumstances, has been
identified as one of the burglars.—North British Mail.
HERRING TRADE.—WICK, APRIL 13.—Within the
last fortnight a quantity approaching 10.000 barrels of
herrings has been shipped from the east coast, for the
Stettin market—the greater part being from the stations
extending from Wick to Helmsdale, inclusive. Notwith-
standing this comparatively large number, at this ad-
vanced period of the season, there does not seem any
ground to fear a serious tall in the price at the Stettin
market. One small cargo yet remains for shipment
here; after the dispatch of which our curers will have
clear stores so tar as this district is concerned. Indeed
the remark may be considered as applying to what is
generally denominated "the Caithness coast."—lnver-
nem Courier.