The Sun.
London, England, 1851-12-17 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON,

Mr. Baron ALDEusoN said the Court was of opinion
that thPrn was evidence to go to Oir jury in the last case
of Fordarty, inasmuch as it appeared the prisoper gave
the broker instruc'ioni to go and purchase the silk.
for
The Court at this point of the iLgairy ad;V•urned
refreshment.

MIDDLESEX SESSIONS.
(THIS DAY.)
Esther Wyatt, a young woman of ladylike appear-
ance, surrendered to her bail to k
tae her trial on a
charge of felony, for stealing a piece of soap about
2 lbs. weight, from a shop in Lloxton. The circumstances
have already been before the public in the police reports,
and attracted much attention at the time of the occur-
rence. The facts were clearly proved that the prisoner,
whilst making a purchase of some article y,
s of chandler
was observed to take up and secrete the piece of soap in
question. The defence Bet up before the magistrate,
that she was subject to hallucinations, and was not at
all times conscious of what she did, had sufficient weight
to procure her admission to bail. Mr. Parry, who now
appeared for her, relied on the same defence, and called
the medical geetleman who attended her, also the nurse
and other witnesses, who proved that since her recent
confinement she had exhibited many instances of aber-
ration of mind, and, amongst other delusions, she fancied
that the soap for the use of the house was extravagantly
wasted. Sho was also in tho habit of complaining of
the dearth of necessaries in her husband's establish-
ment, the truth being that every necessary was supplied
with an abundance becoming his position in life, which,
Mr. Parry said, was of vi ry high respectability.
Dr. ISiitlar, of Welbeck-street, a member of the Col-
lege of Physicians, stated that from his own experience,
and on the authority of medical records, he considered
it to be an established medical fact, that women after
childbirth, and in the latter stage of pregnancy, were
subject to hallucinations. Ho had heard the evidence,
and he considered this to be a case of the kind. It
sometimes occurred that after other illness of a debilitat-
ing kind phenomena of a similar character were exhi-
bited.
The Learned JUDGE said he had known several cases
of the same kind with women both during pregnancy and
after childbirth. Indeed he had known several instances
of children being marked for life on different parts of
their persons with the appearances of things that their
mothers had " longed for" or been frightened at. In
the case of a cousin of his own, the mother having been
frightened at the idea of being bitten in the arm by a
wolf, the child was born with the mark of a wolf-bite
distinctly pressed upon his arm; and from his birth to
this. hour (and he is 45 years of age) he has neither
spoken nor heard; he is a man of large fortune. Not-
withstanding these facts, the jury should be very cauti-
ous in acquitting persons on the plea of hallucination.
The jury at once Acquitted the prisoner, who was
taken out of court in a state of pitiable exhaustion, hav-
ing evidently suffered much during the time of the trial.

STATE OF TRADE.
(From the Manchester Guardian of thia day.)
MANCHESTER, TUESDAY..--We have had a day of
very limited transactions in goods. In general, prices
are not quoted lower than they were last week ; but,
except as regards the finer and better sorts of
printing cloths, which are scarce, and some de-
scriptions of domestics, T's, and long cloths, which
are in fair request, the buyers find here and
there a disposition amongst sellers to make a
slight concession in their terms, especially for
quantities of fair extent. In light makes of 40-i
have
nch
shirtings, there is a little giving way. Yarns
been very dull, and the transactions altogether incon-
siderable. IVith certain exceptions, there is a decline
from the rates of last week, of id. to id. per lb. in
water twist, whether warps or bundles, and nearly as
much in mule, either reeled or in the cop. No. 30's
reeled water is too much under contract to b 3 sensi-
bly affected in value ; indeed, the best qualities and the
favourite spinnings remain firm. Warps show more
steadiness in the finer than in the lower counts. The
unfavourable bias in prices is Sowing to causes which
are sufficiently obvious. Not only is the season late
for shipping to Germany and Holland, but the mer-
chants, as well as their continental customers, are
rendered increasingly cautious by the events which
have taken place in France, although they regard
the success of the coup d' elat as favourable to the
continuance of tranquillity. The advices from
America, showing a decline of fully in all the
ports consequent on increasing receipts of cotton, and
upon a tendency to enlarged estimates of the crop,
have also contributed to the same result ; as have also
the accounts of lower prices from over supplies of
cotton fabrics in the Brazilian markets. However,
spinners and manufacturers are still too well situated
in regard to stocks and orders to press sales ; no
disposition to do that has appeared to-day.
ltocunaLE, MONDAY.—There has been a tolerable
demand for kerseys ; but flannels have been exceed-
ingly slack, and buyers have been reluctant to pur-
chase. The wool market continues dull, with little
or po change since last Monday.
HALIFAX, SATURDAY.—This has been a very
quiet day in our piece hall, and but few goods have
changed hands. The check which the events in
France had given to the restoration of confidence
seems to markets;assng away—as far at least as regards
the corn
enter upon operations, the general tone is somewhat
firmer and healthier. In wools there is less doing,
without any alteration in prices.
HUDDERSFIELD, TUESDAY.—We have no im-
provement to report in our market .languid, not
ay, it con-
tinues much the same, business very l
much doing to order. The shippers have been a
little more active during the week. The wool trade
is very quiet.
LEEDS, TUESDAY.—The market on Saturday was
dull ; but to-day there has been more bus
tiness done
both in the cloth halls and by direct orders o eth
manufacturers. Business continues dull in the
warehouses ; but it is the general opinion, that at the
turn of the year the staple trade of the district will
improve.

DEATH IN JACOB'S ISLAND.--Yesterday Mr. 11.
Carter held an inquest at the Stone Porters public-house,
Mill-street, Dockhead, on the body of Catherine Preston,
aged 71 years. Thead,
deceased occupied a wretched hovel in
the upper part of an old wooden building, situate at No. 5,
Jacob's Island, which is surrounded by the Old Folly ditch,
and immediately facing the residence of Fagan the Jew,
mentioned by Boz in " Oliver Twist." The .deceased was
well known by the inhabitants, for whom she was in the
daily habit of carrying messages and parcels, being very
swift for her advanced age. On Saturiay last a female
named Ayres called to see the deceased, but could not make
her hear. The door was forced open, and the deceased was
discovered lying on the floor, with a coal-s
the hov elrein her hand,
as if she had fallen down while lighting fi. She was
rais.d up, but expired in a few minutes afterwards. Verdict,
Natural death."
STREET RAILWAYS FOR HORSE- TRAINS• A new
project has been started, whereby it is proposed not only to
centralise the metropolitan railway traffic, but also that of
the omnibuses, in such a way as to virtually clear the streets
from much confused and conflicting traffic, white, at the same
time, affording increased accommodation to the public. This
project contemplates simply the laying down of lines of rail
flush with the streets, to radiate from the centre of the me-
tropolis through all the principal lines of thoroughfare, and
of coursed o suit the railway stations, the gauge being the
ordinary e able to railway carriages, by a modification
in the construe tfon of which it is proposed to adapt them also
fur street traffic when detached one by one, and driven off by
horses from each station towards the centre, stations being
set down at least every quarter of a mile along the course.
As represented by the engineer, Mr. Thomas Wright, of
George-yard, Lombard-street, a railway centralization would
thus be obtained at the smallest possible cost, and with the
utmost possible safety, and without the slightest destruction
of property, or alteration of streets, except in the laying
down of two lines of rails near the kerb-stones, on each side,
the rails to be, so far, common property, or used or crossed
by all sorts of vehicles, at all times, except while the trains
are passing. In support of the practicability of this scheme,
the engineer points attention to the fact, that the system
projected already exists in severalm A
ore, merican cit
it ies
is,
founsuc d h as
New York, Philadelphia, and Balti where to
be not only practicable, but immensely useful.—Builder.
CURIOUS ARREST.—An arrest was made one day
last week at the Orleans terminus, under rather curious
circumstances. A communication by telegraph had made
known to the gendarmes at that place of the probable ar-
rival there of a woman named nosine, who had fled from
Tours after committing a robbery. A gendarme on duty at
the terminus saw a rather suspicious looking woman alight
from one of the carriages. lie addressedhimself to her
saying," Where do you come from? " Fromhi near Blois."
" What is your name?" " Marie Faucheux." She then
walked on, but the gendarme following no !he
"r, iThe woman,
n a few mi-
nutes ealled out in a low voice "Ri
thrown off her guard, immediately turned round, when the
officer said, " AUt ah. It is you I area in search of," and, ar-
resting her, took her to prison.
DESIGN FOR THE GREAT EXHIBITION BUILD-
ING AT NEW YORIC.—A design, by Sir Joseph Paxton, for
the intended Exhibition of the Industry of all Nations at
Now York, was on view yesterday in Clarges-street, Picca-
dilly. The plan is upon a similar principle to that of
the Crystal Palace in Hyde-Park, and the materials consist
of glass, iron, and slate. The length of the building is in-
tended to be '6OO feet, and the breadth 200 feet. There are
two entrances, one at each end, and the construction of the
doorways is somewhat similar to that of the traf
nsisepto-e be
tn-
trance to the Exhibition in Hyde-park. The roo
of slate, in order to resist the weight of snow to which it
may be exposed in the United States. The structure will
be built upon arches and the galleries will be supported by
brackets, which will add materially to the st ngth of
re
use
er the
building, and render it better adapted for pmanent
than the "great original." The design is on sherd
another
ole re-
markable for its simplicity and practicability,
proof of Sir Joseph Paxton's great skill in this department
of art.
CITY ORTHOPIEDIC HOSPITAL, HATTON-GARDEN.
—At a meeting held yesterday at the above institution, the
Rev. J. 11. Bastard, the hon. secretary, stated that the num-
ber of patients at present on the books was 366, and many
others were waiting for admission. It was observed that the
many appliances requisite to the removal of such mal-con-
formati n required the most extreme care in their treatment.
Some routine business having been transacted, the meeting
adjourned.
night
THE LATE GALE IN ScomAND•--Upwards of
1,000 trees, some of them very large and of great age, were
blown downthe
galie of Sunday in
the Duke of
Argyle's gaynd 1e
policiessMon a maotrlhnihvge.raryA,
sloop and upwards (1 20 fishing-beats were driven ashore at
14onaw, and many of them will be total wrecks. The quan-
tity of timber blown down, and the amount of destruction
otherwise committed along the west coast, is immense.
The tide, which was a spring, rose along the shore, in many
places, three feet higher than it was ever recollected by any
of the inhabitants.— Glasgow Mail.
We regret to learn that the Baroness Brunnow has
been suffering from severe indisposition for several days. lltr
Excellency i 3 still confined to the house.

REPEATING" FIRE-ARMS.
COLT'S REVOLVING PISTOLS.
The opinion of some of tho-e who have made the
science of war their peculiar study is, that the more
destructive the "implements" used—the more effi-
cient the means placed in the hands of the few to
sacrifice the lives of the many—the less sanguinary
would be the warfare of nations, and the greater the
disieclivation to "go to war." They are no doubt
correct in their estimate of the " humanising" effects
of the use of improved destructive implements of
war, and perhaps the best possible security against the
horrible pastime would be the invention of a machine
which would enable a mere "detachment" to act on
the defensive against a "division," and if any explo-
sive or expansive material could be so brought under
command as to insure at a high pressure—say 6001 b.
or 8001 b. pressure on the square inch, a continuous
discharge of small shot, the art of war would
be reduced to pure strategy—to its sand bags
and its zig zags. One step towards so
desirable an end has been taken in the produc-
tion of the revolving pistol, of the destructive effects
of which, and of its important advantages in such
wars as those that have takes place in Texas and
Mexico, we find ample evidence in the published pro-
ceedings of the Senate of the United States, and we
refer to these evidences of the value of the repeating
pistol in this respect, as we think they may have
some weight on reference to the mode in which the
marauding Kafirs should be dealt with. We have
before us the report of " the committee on military
affairs to whom was referred the reply of the Secretary
of War to the resolution of the Senate of September
30, 1850, directing him to ascertain the opinion of
the ordnance bureau, and of the United States' regi-
ments, as to the relative efficiency of the repeating
pistols invented by Samuel Colt and other inventors,
their adaptation to the service, and the propriety of
substituting the most improved repeating pistol for
the common dragoon pistol now in use ;" and in
speaking of the Indians on the Texan frontier, and
on the several routes to California, the committee
observe :
" Experience has proved that it is difficult to con-
tend successfully against savages with the usual arms
of mounted men, the ordinary dragoon pistol and
Hall's carbine. General Harney, who employed Colt's
pistol successfully in Florida, says—" It is the only
weapon with which we can hope ever to subdue those
wild and daring tribes, unless we can have at least
three regiments of dragoons on the Texas frontier
alone ;' and those officers who have recently returned
from the frontier corroborate this statement by de-
claring that a dragoon armed with Colt's repeating
pistol and a musquetoon, or perhaps Sharp's rifle,
would be the most efficient and the most formidable
for frontier service ; and particularly when encoun-
ters with the savages occur, as they generally do, in
prairies, defiles, and mountain gorges. The advan-
tages of repeating arms in such encounters are incal-
culable. A few bold men, well skilled in the use of
these weapons, can, under such circumstances, en-
counter and scatter almost any number of savages.
" The committee take occasion in this connexion
to refer to the report of Brevet Brigadier-General
Talcott, colonel of ordnance; the report of the Board
of Ordnance officers ; and to the abstracts from the
opinions of various experienced officers of the army in
relation to this subject—all of which accompany this
report, and to testify to the efficiency and adaptation
of Colt's repeating pistol to the service of mounted
troops. The committee accordingly recommend that
Colt's repeating pistols be substituted, under the di-
rection and in the discretion of the department, in
lieu of the common dragoon pistol now in use in the
service, and that a sufficient quantity be purchased,
so far as the same can be done within the present
regular appropriations, to supply such demands as
may be made upon and allowed by the department."
In " a summary of the reports of the Board's
officers," convened by order of Brigadier-General
George Talbot, dated Nov. 6, 1850, for the purpose
of examining "various kinds of repeating fire-arms
and their adaptation to the cavalry service of the
United States army," we find it stated that "from
the examination and trials which they have made of
these arms, the Board are of opinion that Colt's
revolving pistol is better adapted to the service of
mounted troops than any other pistol offered to their
notice, and may be advantageously substituted for the
present cavalry pistol." It appears from some expe-
riments made by the board officers against a target of
9-10th-inch boards one inch apart, distance of target
16 yards, Colt's holster-pistol, weight 41b., 4 oz. ;
weight of balls, 146 grains; weight of powder, 30
grains, was fired 1,200 times, and that the penetration
WAS through seven boards; and that his belt pistol,
weight 21b. 6oz. ; weight of balls, 83 grains ; weight
of powder, 20 grains, was fired 1,500 times, the pene-
tration being through six boards. The pistols were
cleaned but once a day, and the board say " neither
of the pistols appeared to be injured by the firing."
The highest penetration of the common dragoon-
pistol was only through five boards. General liar-
ney, under date of Nov. 8, 1850, says :—" I consider
the arm perfect for the dragoon service, particularly
when opposed to the western prairie Indians.
It is the only weapon with which we can
hope ever to subdue those wild and dar-
ing tribes, unless we can have at least three regi-
ments of dragoons on the Texas frontier alone. I
consider Colt's repeating pistol equal in every respect
to any other pistol now in use, and very greatly su-
perior in almost every other respect. In 1837 or
1838, Mr. Colt took some of his rifles to Florida. A
board of officers was ordered to examine them and re-
port on their efficiency, &c. The report was favour-
able, and General Jessup ordered the purchase of 50,
and they were placed in my hands. They were very
delicately made, easily put out of order, and very dif-
ficult to repair. They were the first ever used or
manufactured. Thirty odd of them were lost at Ca-
loose Ilatchee, all at the time in good order ; and
most of the others, with but little repairs, would be
still good, and would be turned over to the ordnance
officer at Baton Rouge, in 1842 or 1843. During
the whole of this time they were in constant use, and
not one single accident to the injury of any person oc-
curred ; and I honestly believe that but for these
arms, the Indians would now be luxuriating in the
everglades of Florida." There are some 80 or 90
other official testimonials to the usefulness of this
pistol, particularly in the wars with the Indians. We
believe Mr. Colt is exerting himself to get it intro-
duced into our cavalry regiments.

TESTIMONIAL C. P. RO.NEY.
A very graceful compliment was paid to this
gentleman on Monday evening, by a party of nearly
eighty of his friends—sixty of whom were connected
with the metropolitan daily and weekly press, and
had associated specially for the purpose.' A recherche
banquet, served by Mr. Bathe, of the London Tavern,
in his best style, formed an agreeable introduction
to the principal object of the meeting, which was for
the presentation of a very handsome silver flower
vase and salver, of exquisite workmanship, and got
up with that fine taste which characterises all the
productions of Messrs. Hunt and Roskell. This tes-
timonial was an offering, on the part of the members
of the metropolitan press, in token of their apprecia-
tion of Mr. Roney's conduct in all his relations with
them during his tenure of office as secretary of the
Eastern Counties Railway. The salver bore the fol-
lowing inscription :
" ' Olim meminitso juvabit.'
To
CUSACK P. RONEY, D,Q
(Late Secretary of theEa4tern Counties Railway),
Thii Salver, with an accompanying
Flower Vase,
Was prescnted at a dinner given to him at the London
Tavern,

December 15, 1851,
By Gentlemen connected with the
Metropolitan Press,
And some private friends,
In token of their high sense of the urbanity evinced by
him on all occasions in his public capacity,
and of their sincere rkgard for
his private worth."
The whole proceedings were of a highly gratifying
character, and the enjoyment of the evening was much
enhanced by the able manner in which the festivities
were presided over by Mr. Herbert Ingram, pro-
prietor of the illustrated London News.

COURT CIRCULAR.
OSBORNE, TUESDAY.
The Queen and Prince Albert walked early yester-
day morning.
The Royal Children also walked and rode as usual.
The Hon. Eleanor Stanley has succeeded the lion
Beatrice Byng as Maid of Honour in Waiting.

A deputation from the Philanthropic Society, con-
sisting of Mr. Thomas Gladstone, the Rev. Sydney
Turner, and Mr. Maxon, had an interview with Sir
George Grey yesterday, at the Home-office.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer left town yes-
terday for llalifax.
Sir Henry De la Beche had an interview yester-
day with Secretary Sir George Grey.
The Right Hon. Henry Labouchere left town
yesterday on a visit to the Earl of Carlisle, at Castle
Howard, Yorkshire.

Lord Monteagle had an interview yesterday with
Sir George Grey. Mr. Glyn, M.P., bad also an in-
terview with Sir George Grey, at the Home-office.
Dispatches were received yesterday at the Colonial-
cffice from the Lord High Commissioner of the lonian
Islands, the Governors of Malta, Ceylon, and Hong
Kong ; the Governor of the Mauritius, and the
Governor of Labuan.

Dispatches were sent off yesterday to the Governors
of the West India Islands.

Father Gavazzi is studying the English language
for the purpose of lecturing in it. llis orations in England,
which have been so much praised, have been all delivered
in the Italian.