The Sun.
London, England, 1856-02-14 00:00:00

PUNCH.

Our facetious contemporary is even better .than
usual (and that is no ordinary praise) this week.
The cartoon, in reference to the recent proceedings
n the Upper House, of " bonnetting the new boy
P'srke," is inimitable. The neophyte appears with
his coronet beaten down over his forehead, unable
to see .anything, while four of the old boys are busily
engaged in tormenting him. Amongst them we
recognioe Lords Campbell, Derby, Lyndhurst, and
Broughao, who is rushing forward in order to
have his full share in the mischief. The lovers of
fun will ha ,7e a treat in the present number.

A Cabinet Cotencil was held yesterday afternoon at
the Foreign-offiee, Downing-street. The Ministers pre-
sent were :—Viscoeent Palmerston, the Lord Chancellor,
Earl Granville, the Marquis of Lanedowne, the Earl of
Harrowby, Sir Georges Grey, the Earl of Clarendon, Mr.
Secretary Labouchere, the Chancellor of the Exchequer,
Sir Charles Wood, the Right. Hon. R. Vernon Smith,
Lord Stanley of Alderley, the Right Hon, M. T. Bainee,
and the Duke of Argyll. The council sat two hours
and a half.
The Duchess of Sutherland has arrived at Stafford
House from Trentham, where the Duke and the younger
branches of their Graces' family are still staying.
The Earl of Chesterfield has left the St. George's Hotel
for Bretby Park, near Burton-on-Trent.
Lord and Lady Huntingfield have left the St. George's
Hotel for their seat, Reveningharn Hall, Suffolk.
Sir Fitzroy Kelly entertained at dinner, on Tuesday
evening, at his mansion in Piccadilly, his Excellency the
Turkish Ambassador and Madame Musurus, the Lord
Mayor and the Lady Mayoress, the Duke of Wellington,
the Marquis and Marchioness of Salisbury, the Earl of
Stradbroke, Lord and Lady William Powlett, Vice-
Admiral Sir Edmund Lyons, Lord Stanley, M.P., Lord
Brougham, Lord Campbell and Lady Stratheden, the
Bishop of Exeter and Miss Philpotts, Sir Robert Peel,
Mr. Warren, M.P., &c.
Sir Charles Tempest, Captain Cracroft and Mre.
croft, and Mr. and Mrs. Stansfield, are among the latest
arrivals at the St. George's Hotel.
Mre, Moore, and her sister, Miss Goodden, have re-
turned to Moore Hill, Tallow, county Waterford, from
the South of France. -
Mr. Drury, and Mr. and Mrs. Watson, have arrived
at the Queen's Hotel, Upper Norwood.
Lord Adolphus Fitzclarenee is gradually regaining
strength,and has been able during the last few days to
t ►ke o. caQional carriage drives.
Prince Czartoryski and General Caunt Zamoyski had
a i audience of the Emperor Napoleon the day before
yesterday to take leave. The General is about to pro-
ceed to Constantinople to place himself at the head of
tb• regiments of Polish Cossacks.
- FAILURE OF SCOTT RUSSELL AND CO.—lt results from
the disclosures made at the meeting of Messrs. Scott
Russell and Co.'s creditors yesterday that there is a
tolerable certainty of their obtaining a dividend of 10s.
in the pound, and a possibility that, when the affairs of
the estate shall be wound up, it may reach 153. in the
pound.
PURCHASE OF EIGHT OF THE SCREW COMPANY'S SHIPS
EY A FRENCH CO3LPANY.—With reference to a paragraph
to the above effect, which originated with a morning
contemporary, and has gone the round of the press, the
statement is extremely premature. We learn from good
authority that a letter has been received from the secre-
tary of the company, giving a direct denial to such a
circumstance.
ELECTION OF A ,COMMON COUNCILMAN, IN THE ROOM
OF THE LATH DEPUTY BERFORD.—Yesterday a ward-
mote, presided over by Sir James Duke, Bart, M.P.,
was held at the Sessions-house, in the Old Bailey, "for
the purpose of electing a Common Councilman, for the
remainder of the year 18E6, in the room and stead of
Joshua Bedford, Esq., deceased." The son of the de-
ceased gentleman, Mr. William Bedford, was unani-
mously elected.
BROKERS.—A Court of Aldermen wee held yester-
day, at which the following resolution was referred
to the Committee of General Purposes of the Court,
to be carried into effect :—" That it be recommended
to the Court of Aldermen to adopt such measures as
they may deem expedient for removing from the office
of sworn brokers all brokers who refuse to pay their
rents, and also all brokers whose rents are more than
one year in arrear."
CHRIST'S HOSPITAL.— Alderman Farebrother, at the
Court of Aldermen held yesterday, requested the at-
tendauce a his brethren at Christ's Hospital on Mon-
day eext, when a special court would be held for the
purpose of considering a motion to rescind a resolu
Lion in direct opposition to the rights and privileges
of the citizens of London. There will, we understand,
be a motion for the exclusion of the members of the
nrfr.re?

THE NEW SERGEANTS.—The ceremony of swearing in
the tome sergeaucs who have been recently called to the
degree of the coif—viz., Mr. Sergeant Pigott, of the Ox-
ford Circuit ' • Mr. Sergeant Hayes, of the Midland Cir-
cuit ; and Mr. Sergeant Wells, of the Norfolk Circuit--
took place before the Lord Chancellor in his lordship's
private room, at Westminster, on Tuesday afternoon.
At the appointed hour the three learned sergeants, ac-
companied by their respective " colts," as the members
of the bar officiating on this occasion are somewhat fan-
tastically designated—viz , Mr. Kytfin Lenthall, on be-
half of Mr. Sergeant Pigott ; Mr. Pitt Manson, on the
part of Mr. Sergeant Hayes ; and Mr. Granville S ener-
set, for Mr. Sergeant Wells—were received by his lord-
ship, and the oaths usual on taking the ceif duly ad-
ministered. The time-honoured custom of presenting the
Lord Chancellor with gold rings of the date of the 13th
century, by each " colt," in order of seniority, and a
brief address from the Lord Chancellor terminated the
prooeedings.
MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF A LICENSED VICTUALLER.--
Yesterday some degree of agitation was caused in Old
Ford, Bow, in consequence of the discovery of the body
of Mr. George Howard (a retired 'licensed victualler of
No. 33, Banner-street, St. Luke's, Old-street), fhatieo
in the water of is George Duckett's canal, which
passes along the eastern boundary of Victoria-park.
The case is involved in considerable mystery, as the de-
ceased had been missing upwards of three weeks from
his residence. On the body were found two severe
wounds on the head. There was also a bruise on the
chest and various abrasions, of the skin from violence,
but how caused remains a mystery. The pockets of the
deceasea had been ransacked, and only a little handker-
chief and a card of his address were found upon him,
although it is alleged that he had money and other pro-
perty about him when he left home. The cause of death,
and a full investigation into the mysterious case, will be
gone into before Mr. W. Baker, the coroner for East
Middlesex. The deceased had been many years a licensed
victualler, and had been leading a retired life.
NEW METHOD OF LOWERING AND DISENGAGING
BOATS FROM SHIPS.—On Monday, a new method of
lowering ships' boats was successfully tried on board of
Messrs. Ja; Baines and Co.'s ship, the Commodore
Perry, at present lying in the Mersey, bound for Syd-
ney. This method, the invention of Mr. Clifford, may
be thus described :—The unlashing, lowering, and
disengaging are done by one man only in the boat,
whose simple weight, irrespective of any additional
assistance whatever, is made to hold in equilibrium
the weight or descending momentum of the boat with
its entire crew, which he has thus the power to check or
control at will. Each separate operation is the natural
consequence of one act—slacking off a rope ; and they
are also necessary sequents, one of the other. The means
of reducing the weight of the boat to that of the man
lowering, is made the means for preventing the boat
canting in its descent, and the passage of the ropes by
which the boat descends, through a block of an en-
tirely novel character and action, accomplishes this end.
The entire process is as follows :—One man in the
boat unhitches a rope from a cleet (on the boat's seat),
over which he slackens it off. The boat descends
levelly, both laterally and longitudinally, frees it-
self from the gripes, by which it was firmly lashed
to the ship's side (if there is not time to unfasten them),
and letting go the rope disengages the boat from the
ship. The lowering may be effected as well from one as
two davits, or from a yard or spar, and with any degree
of velocity, which can be checked at any part of its
descent, and with the vessel going at any speed. A hol-
low rotatory plug fixed at the bettetTh of the boat
allows the free ingress or egress of water, which a half
turn stops ; the plug is consequently never out of its
place. The experiments yesterday were repeated three
times in succession, to the entire satisfaction of nu-
merous critical spectators, including Admiral Free
mantle, Captain Schomberg, R.N., Captain Newlands,
Mr. T. M. Mackay, Mr. James Baines, and other eat
cal and
commercial itentlemen.--Xancheakr GiY4raiano