The Sun.
London, England, 1846-10-08 00:00:00

,;•• •
y OCTOBER 8, 1846.

quainting the magistrates and cesspayers of your county
with its contents, as you may think expcdicnt. Copies
will, however, be immediately transmitted to the secre-
tary of the grand jury. —I have the honour, &e.
11. LABOUCiI ERE.
To the Lieutenant of the county of —.
"Dublin Castle, Oct. 5, 1846.

" Sir,—l am directed by the Lord Lieutenant to in-
form you, that his Excellency has lityl under his consi-
deration the various representations which have been
made to him of the operation of the Poor Employment
Act, and of the difficulty of finding, in the greater.num-
ber of baronies, public works' upon which it would be
expedient or beneficial to expend money to the extent
requisite for affortiing employment to the people during
the existence of the present distress; and with a view of
obviating the bad effects of a great expenditure of money
in the execution of works comparatively unproductive,
he desires that the Commissioners of Public Works will
direct the officers acting under them, in the respective
counties, to consider and report upon such works of a
reproductive character and permanent utility as may be
presented in the manner hereinafter mentioned, at any
sessions held under the above Act. And his Excellency
will be prepared to sanction and approve of such of those
works as may be recommended by the Boat d, and so pre-
sented, in the same manner as if they had been strictly
' public works,' and presented as such in the manner re-
quired by the Act.
" 1. The Presentment Sessions will estimate the sum
which it may be necessary to raise off the barony for the
purpose of affording employment.
" 2. They will also ascertain the proportion of such
assessment, which,- according to the last poor-law valua-
tion, may be chargeable upon each electoral division of
an union, or portion of an electoral division (if the whole
shall not be incladed) in the barony; and they will ob
tarn for this purpose, from the clerk of each poor-law
union, a copy of such valuation.
" 3. They will present for such useful and profitable
works to be executed in each electoral division, to the
amount of its proportion of the assessment ascertained
as above.

" 4. In the case of drainage, however, and subsoiling,
so far as it shall be connected with drainage, an under-
taking shall be given in writing, and transmitted with
the presentment, by the person or persons whose lands
are proposed ao be drained (being proprietor' in the
terms of the Act 5 and 6 Victoria, chap. S 9), stating that
the money so to be expended shall be a charge exclu-
sively on the lands so to be improved, and be levied from
the same, according to an award to be made by the Com-
missioners as under the last•mentioned Act and its
amendments.

" His Excellency wishes it to be further understood
that, in case these regulations are not acted upon, and
the portions of the assessment which would be .teviahle
from each electoral division, are not presented to be ex-
pended on some work within such division, the pro-
ceedings at such sessions must be considered with strict
reference to the provisions of the 9th and 10th Victoria,
cap. 107.
"His Excellency considering also that many baronies
have already held sessions under that Act, to which
baronies the opportunity of making applications in the
manner now prescribed has not been afforded, it is his
desire that all works already sanctioned in those baro-
nies, or applied for, and which it may become requisite
to sanction, in order to afford continued employment,
shall be proceeded with until other sessions may be con-
veniently held in such baronies.
"His Excellency. in taking upon himself the respon-
sibility, under the urgent circumstances of the case, of
inviting the magistrates and cess-payers to provide em-
ployment from the people by the execution of useful
and reproductive works, confidently trusts with their
assistance and the blessing of the Almighty on their
united exertions, that the calamity with which it has
pleased Providence to afflict Ireland may yet in its result
become conducive to the production of greater abund-
ance of human food from the soil, and to the future
permanent improvement of the country.—l have the
honour to be, Sir, your obedient servant,
"H. LABOUCHERE.
" Chairman of the Board of Public Works."
THE CORK MAGISTRATES.

---
The magistrates of Cork have announced their deter-
mination to resign their commissions, unless imme-
diate means are given them of relieving the distress of
the people.
ROBBERY OF A MAIL CAR.

ROSCREA, OCT. s.—The mail car from this town to
Clonmel, was stopped yesterday a few minutes after
leaving the post-office here, by two men—one armed
with a gun, the other with a pistol—who demanded the
mail-bags and money, which the driver was taking to
Mr. Bianconi, his employer, with which they decamped.
The public ought not to venture sending whole notes by
post. This occurrence is only the beginning of what may
be expected to be practised throughout the country
during the winter months, unless the mails be guarded.

THE GREAT BRITAIN.
LIVERPOOL, WEDNESDAY.

The attempts made to rescue the Great Britain from
her unfortunate position have now entirely failed. Until
the springs of the ensuing winter no new efforts can,
with any probability of success, be made, and meanwhile
she must sustain the storms of the winter.

The melancholy intelligence was received in Liver-
pool at an early hour this morning, by the arrival of the
steam-tug Dreadnought, Captain Gillespie, from Dun-
drum Bay, whence she sailed at two o'clock yesterday
afternoon. Our last account, it will be remembered,
stated that on Monday the state of the weather, and the
heavy seaway prevailing in the bay, had prevented the
approach of the two steam-tugs hence, and of the
powerful Belfast steamer Sea Nymph. Ve now learn
that during the whole of the ensuing night and through-
out yesterday the weather underwent no improvement,
and consequently all hopes were relinquished. The
steamers, therefore, left the bay, the Sea Nymph steam-
ing to Newry, whence she arrived at noon to-day ; the
Albert steam-tug to Warrenpoint to take in coal, pre-
paratory to starting for this port ; and the Dreadnought
to Liverpool. Both of these fine vessels have lost their
anchors and chains, and last night, off the Calf of Man,
the Dreadnought encountered a gale of wind and a ter-
rific sea. The weather now continues severe and
threatening. The sea in the bay is described as running
" mountains high."
The Great Britain must now, therefore, winter in
Dundrum Bay, and such, according to the best infor-
mation we can obtain, is the intention of ber commander.
She now occupies a most favourable position for this pur-
pose, having, during the gale of yesterday, been carried
so far up the beach, that in ordinary tides she will be
out of danger from the sea. At low water she will be
left high and dry, and, happily, upon a hard srindy
beach, where there is little chance of her being imbedded.
Her bearing is now N.N.W. to S.S.E., and according to
the information of a competent judge she does not ap-
pear strained.
In the meantime every preparation will be made to
render the position of the ship secure. The erection of
a break-water for her protection is said to be con-
templated ; and measures will be taken to repair the
leak which has proved so disastrous to the fortunes of
the ship.

A few facts may be added. An attempt was made
on Saturday night, it will be recollected, to get the
Great Britain off by the the two steam-tugs. Ac-
cording to the statements received yesterday, little
was accomplished beycnd bringing the steamer's
stern round into a more favourable position. The
results were, however, of greater importance. The
steamer afterwards swung to the sea, and, had the
weather on Sunday been moderate, there is little doubt
that she would have been got off. The weather, how-
ever, proved most unfavourable, and ultimately the in-
creasing danger caused by the leak rendered it necessary
for the safety of the ship that the six anchors run out
astern into the sea should be let go. This was done, and
the ship consequently was forced higher upon the beach.
The following letters will be read with interest:—
TO MESSRS. GIBBS, BRIGHT, AND CO.

Great Britain steam-ship, Oct. 5.
Dear Sirs,—My litter of yesterday, and the weather
of last night, if you have had the same, will have pre-
pared you for what I have now to acquaint you with.
As the tide rose the sea increased, and about seven
o'clock we found the ship making much water. Worked
the pumps all night. The anchors again came home,
and on the flowing tide this morning, finding the
ship making at least two feet water per hour more
than the pumps threw,. I thought it best to get some
sail, and force her as high as possible. Captain Claxton,
R.N., who came on board last evening, coincided
in opinion with me, and we did so, letting go all our
cables and halsers. The ship is now so high that I
think she will not take much more harm. Captain
Claxton leaves as soon as he can leave; at present the
surf is too high. I presume you will communicate our
situation to the underwriters of Liverpool and Glasgow.
I shall make the best of everything until I have further
directions from my directors and the underwriters. Until
then I shall, as I have done, keep the entire management
in my own hands.—l remain, dear Sirs, yours truly,
JAMES HOSKEN.

SPIRIT of the PUBLIC JOURNALS.
FROM THE MORNING PAPERS OF THIS DAY.
TIMES.—In a few days the double marriage of the
Spanish sisters will prooably be celebrated ; a Queen
will have received an unwelcome consort, and a Princess
been entrapped into a forbidden alliance. It is, perhaps,
calculated that a step irretrievable will cease to be cis
cussed, reel lighttha to
fu n such a
t canss)net, andbe
thatcarel be din the
grand reversionary
property will have been secured at the cheap expense Of
a little dishonour and a great deal of noise. The results,
however, of these breaches of national faith are neither
so superficial nor so ephemeral.,,passinEgvejnealiof jealousy
ye presentaud ill-
humour" effects be confined to the
humour" which the most temperate of our neighbours
anticipate, it wbuld•be very unsafe to conclude that such
a termination was final. Too many rules have been in-
fringed to leave the precedent so harmless and unim-
portant. If the current and uncontradicted rumours of
the friendly conference at Eu contain any truth, the
promise of a statesman at a most amicable and confiien-
tial interview has been unintelligibly evaded. Omitting
this unauthenticated assertion, it, is undeniable that the
French Cabinet selected a discreditable season for prc-
secuting with abruptness and haste a measure of which
they well knew the doubtful legality, and of their in-
tentions concerning which they had left false impres-
sions on a friendly Power deeply interested in the event,
and possessed of a rightful claim to be consulted. At
the Court of a' common ally they enveloped their pro-
ceedings in. the secrecy and mystery characteristic
of an unlawful transaction ; to the last stage of
the negotiation they suppressed the negotiation of
an act demanding peculiar opentess and honour ;
they left the British Ambassador uninformed of a step
of which, by the first rules of diplomatic decency, he
should have been cognisant ; they dictated prevarica-
tion and dishonesty to the Court at which he was re-
sident,i and resorted to the most notorious violence to
secure the acceptance of their proposals. When at
length they allowed their dealings to struggle into offi-
cial light, they met the temperate remonstrances of the
English Minister first with equivocation and then with
discourtesy. Our last dispatches from Madrid stated
that the Spanish President had informed Mr. Bulwer
that he could not enter into any discussion
upon the subject of difference. The note of
our Ambassador at Paris, though as decisive
as was consistent with existing relations, was left
unanswered. The whole policy of Versailles was that of
a Court perfectly conscious of its unjustifiable conduct ;
well aware that it would be exposed to remonstrance
and rebuke ; concealing its craft, as long as possible ;
waiting with some anxiety kr' the catastrophe and its
consequences ; overjoyed to pint them less serious than
conscience had taught them to dread ; shrinking from a
discussion they felt it impossible to sustain ; desperately
hurrying on the project to its coMpletion ; hnd trusting
to the lapse of time or the chances of the game for
making matters smooth again afterwards. Secrecy and
speed are proverbially necessary to violence or fraud,
but are seldom imperatively demanded in peaceable and
upright transactions. Deeds that love the dark are
not often fitted for .the light. If the Montpensier al-
liance were as reasonable a project as the French re-
present it —as grateful to Spain as becoming to
France, and as desirable to Europe—how, or why
Should England oppose it ? What impediment could
possibly arise either from proclaiming or postponing it ?
With what face or what arguments could 'Englind
forbid the bans ? The most gratuitous malice has
scarcely ventured to suggest that she was a rival
competitor. It was clear that she could urge nothing
for individual advantage. She could advocate nothing
but the independence of Spain and the tranquillity of
Europe, and the treaties that define the rights and the
limits of her intervention gave also a guarantee that it
could neither be officious or vexatious. What must he
the character of that transaction which, by the avowal
of its authors, could never have borne consideration er
(Islay, which could only have been effected by stealth
and completed by precipitancy, and which, it is con-
fessed, must have been dropped had an opportunity be( n
left for the notice of that Power, which could only base its
interference on the stipulations of solemn treaties or the
requirements of European peace? France has gained
an object; with what results it remains to be seen. The
nation chiefly insulted has still to speak, and will, per-
haps, speak when her voice is lout expected. If, at the
moment when the Court of Madrid is congratulating
the Court of Versailles upon the lull of the storm and
the security of the haven, the Count de Montemolin
should call the Carlist party to arms, professing, unlike
the Bourbons, his readiness to forget and forgive; or if
a sudden democratic tempest should drive the intruders
over the Pyrenees or the Tagus, these would be events
only conformable to the precedents of Peninsular his-
tory. It was not until the Austrian party were quietly
quartered in Madrid and Toledo, and Charles had been
peaceably proclaimed in the capital as King of Spain and
the Indies, that the people of Philip gave a sign of spirit
or sensibility. Yet in twelve months Philip was a King
again, and the Spanish cause was gained at the moment
it appeared to be lost. Still less occasion is there for
congratulation or triumph in the policy practised to-
wards England. The success achieved by France could
at any time be achieved by any nation willing to pay
the same forfeit. She has calculated the offence she
might give an allied Power without provoking extremi-
ties. She has put out of her reckoning the damage done to
her credit—has set off against the risk of more substantial
damage the greatness and value of the spoil, and decided
on seizing it at all hazards and trusting to fate for the
results. It is generally in the power of any individual,
with a current character for honesty, to overreach
another in any one negotiation, but the least scrupidons
will sometimes estimate their reputation too highly to
barter it at a single bargain. King Louis Philippe has
extorted for the Duke de Montpensier a greater dotation
than ever was voted by a Parliament. France had better
have paid in coin than in character. Breaches of inter-
national confidence are acts quite as disgraceful, and pre-
cedents almost as dangerous, as breaches of international
law. It is not every outrage of either that will provoke
a war, but the least tends to injure the influence of that
conventional code which secures the peace of the world
Ina time of peace, and in a friendly country, England
has seen the spirit of solemn contracts slighted, and her
temperate protests entirely disregarded. She may not,
as was probably calculated, conceive the occasion as
calling for the last appeal of nations, but the occurrence
will not therefore be overlooked or forgotten. There are
licenses of conduct in which both nations and individuals
may indulge without being actually or immediately shot
at, but the transgressor seldom fails to pay a propor-
tionate price for his freedom and his folly.
POST.—We are borne out by the fast. In spite of all
speculative criticisms, the Wellington statue is no failure.
Very far from it. It reflects very great credit upon
the artist by whom it was designed, and—in spite of
sneerers—we go further, and say that it reflects credit
on the committee to whom its erection is due. The
likeness of the man is unquestionable. Those who
knew him best at the time he purchased, by his skill and
his valour, the great laurels that now ha can boast of,
are willing to bear witness that Mr. Wyatt has given us
the features of the great Wellington of Torres Vedras,
of Vittoria, of the Nivelle, of Toulouse, and of Water-
loo ! Yes ; in " historic brass" we have before us the
likeness of that great warrior who never advanced but
to victory, and who never retreated but, like the leader
of the Ten Thousand of old, in his retreat to eclipse the
glory of his advance ! It is a very painful thing to think
that silly jealousies, and trumpery party partialities, have
deprived a triumph of so much of. its honours.
Wretched and miserable personal feelings were
suffered to interfere with what ought to have been a
national ovation, and it is with us a source of deep
regret that these feelings were prompted and stimulated
by a certain portion of the London daily press. Lord
Bacon says that certain things are exempt from satire.
We should think that our contemporaries must have in-
deed been in lack of a subject when they selected that to
which we advert. Our London statues are scarcely so
unexceptionable as to allow us to talk grand, still less to
throw stones. The deficiency in artistic merits of Lon-
don, as a city, nobody ever ventured to question ; but,
despite it all, we dare pronounce the Wellington statue a
good statue and its site well chosen. There is a cant in
criticism as well as in politics. We hear about " high
art" as we heard about "high" politics. But as the
latter got us into the ditch, we are not very trustful of
the former. We earnestly entreat of our readers to
eschew this cant. We are willing to abide by the un-
prejudiced, uiibought, unsought opinions of those who
have viewed this statue since its elevation. Every one
that has seen it with unprejudiced eye seems to concur
with us in the belief that it is the noblest memorial ever
raised in honour of the greatest hero.
CHRONICLE.—A general assemblage of Irish landed
proprietors, at the present extraordinary juncture, is a
measure for which plausible reasons may be assigned in
abundance. The scheme, however, is scarcely more
than plausible. The promise which it holds forth, of
bringing to the relief of Ireland in this alarming emer-
gency the collective wisdom and knowledge of her edu-
cated and propertied classes, is in the highest degree
unlikely to be made good. The meeting, if it should
have the luck to escape being turned to the purposes of
repeal, will simply reiterate the truths and the fallacies
which have already come to us from the resolutions of
county meetings, without attempting to apply to the
evils which it may condemn any practical remedy. Mr.
O'Connell's game in reference to this project is obvious
enough. In the presence of famine he does not forget
repeal, and with many professions of moderation and
forbearance, he strives most ingeniously to give the
proposed assemblage a repeal character. He will
have it a meeting, if not of repeaters, at least
of precursors. Nay, he is no longer contented ;.sin a
mere meeting, which was the, first theagnt. His last
letter insists upon the "necess;ity of forming in Dublin
a central body board, or association, from amongst the
landed proprietors of Ireland," which, by the power of
local knowledge and popular confidence, may control
and direct the Government. The design has the merit
of simplicity. It is simply to make an Irish Parliament
off hand. This, however, is but the face which Air.
O'Connell chooses to put upon a movement of which it
is by no means clear that he will or can have the direc-
tion. We have no right to attribute such imbecility to
the gentry of Ireland as would be implied in the suppo-
sition that they could not assemble to consult for the
common
h m ont s
the of
pautt
sa greatf u.
r. onational .
But
crisis,ut withoutovng
them
ccom
full credit for
.the capacity to take an independmt
course, and assuming that if the should ,9%