The Sun.
London, England, 1834-09-09 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

A SKETCH OF CHINESE HISTORY.
By the Rev. C. GUTZLAFF.
2 Vols. Bvo. Smith, Elder, and Co.

Whoever wishes to know the exact value of fame has
only to read a history like this of China. Here we
have the annals of a large segment of the civilized
world ; yet what to us in the West are its philosophy,
its wars, its triumphs, or its defeats ? What is it to
us that Kublai, the Grand Khan, was the greatest of
monarchs, or that Seuen-wang, despised and forsaken
by his subjects, was slain by his Tartar enemies ? The
memory of Confucius is adored by an immense empire,
and yet how little does Europe know, and how much
less does she care, for the learned records which have
led to his deification !
Mr. Gutzlaff's enlightened and laborious volumes
will go far in correcting certain popular errors, which
have crept in upon us we can scarcely tell how, in re-
gard to China, its laws, its habits, and its Constitution.
Amongst many other prejudices, so old that it would
be hard to trace their origin, is the common and inve-
terate notion that, from its state of pure despotism,
China is less liable to crimes and revolutions than
those countries where, the power of the monarch
being less absolute, there is more room for the passion
of individuals to display itself. So far from this being
the case, no country has been more convulsed by re-
bellions within, or endangered by attacks from with-
out, than the Celestial Empire. The Mohammedan
rulers of Constantinople, from Bajazet downwards,
have not held their sceptres by a more uncertain tenure;
and for one Turkish Emperor that has perished by the
hands of rebellious janissaries, three or four heads of
Sungs and Mings have fallen in family feuds, or by
the open violence of discontented subjects. In read-
ing through the annals of the various dynasties, it is
the exception, not the rule, when we find an Empe-
ror dying peacefully on the throne of his ancestors.
To say nothing of the defection of tributary princes,
the country has been overrun by successive swarms of
Mongols and Tartars, the first of which have long
since melted into the general mass, and the latter are
rapidly losing their national characteristics by the same
process. The following specimen of the civilized state
of the Celestial Empire, will hardly be matched by
the greatest atrocities of our feudal times :
" A robber, Chang-been-chung, had pillaged Hoo-kwang,
routed the Government forces, and taken possession of Sze-
chuen, where he proclaimed himself King, under the name of
Se-wang. Ferocious by nature, he was nevertheless kind to
his soldiers, but murdered all the literati and eunuchs, whom
he found in that province. A soldier who had behaved very
bravely, received from him a girdle, as a remuneration for his
great services. But the soldier—expressing his dissatisfaction
at the meanness of his reward_ the tyrant, informed of his
complaint, massacred all the. soldiers of the regiment to which
he belonged. Having. invited the Buddhist priests to a great
entertainment and sacrifice, he, as soon as they had all assem-
bled, massacred the whole, and issued orders that the same
should be done in all the provinces which were under his juris-
diction. When the Tartar army approached, his general, who
was sent to guard the frontiers, deserted to the Mantchoos,
which so enraged the tyrant, that he resolved to butcher all
the inhabitants of Sze-chuen. The houses of the capital,
Ching-too, were forced, and the innocent victims dragged out.
Lamentable cries pierced the air--the poor wretches throwing
themselves at the feet of the tyrant, imploring mercy, and he
was almost moved to tears. But the impulses of his tiger-
like nature returning, he blushed for the weakness he had
shown, gave the signal for the carnage, and, within a few
hours, about 600,000 lifeless corpses floated on the river. He
himself rode about, to encourage the soldiers in exercising the
work of executioners, and he who refused to obey forfeited his
own life. Great numbers of the inhabitants speedily fled—
others sold their lives dearly, until the whole province was
ono desert. When, finally, the Tartars approached,the bloody
tyrant called his soldiers together, boasted of being left a
standing monument of dark revenge, and ordered them to bring
on the following day all their wives before the army, for he
considered them a mere incumbrance upon a long march,
which he was going to undertake. To give the example, he
dragged his own concubines before the ranks, and butchered
them with relentless fury; and 400,000 females, all remark-
able for their beauty, were massacred in a similar manner."
Amidst these scenes of violence we sometimes meet
with events that might well serve as an example and
a warning to ourselves, had we the sense to profit by
them. They, who have shown themselves so anxious
to stifle the free voice of discussion might learn, if they
were capable of learning any thing, a lesson for their
own guidance in the fate of Le-wang, a tyrant who
acted upon their own principles—
" The astounded people scarcely dared to whisper; and
Le-wang was filled with delight at having succeeded so well
in stifling the voice of the people. Once a-day he met
Chaou-kung, and exclaimed : " Have I not well succeeded in
stilling the complaints ? Who dares now to open his mouth ?'
' This,' replied Chaou-kung, ' is nothing but a veil, which
prevents you from knowing the
innermost thoughts ; but re-
member, that it is more perilous to stop the mouths of the
people than to arrest the rapids of a torrent. By restraining
it, you will only cause it to flow over, and do the more injury.
If you wish to prevent all damage, you ought to dig a large
bed, which can contain all the water. In the same way, those
who are charged with governing the people osight to grant
them liberty of speech. That emperor may be said to under-
stand the art of government who permits poets to make what-
ever verses they please, and to enjoy their harmless pastime ;
who suffers historians to speak. the truth ; ministers to give
their advice ; labourers to talk about their work, and the nation
to speak freely. Thus all things will prosper. The tongues
of the people are like the mountains and rivers, from Whence
we dig our riches, and obtain the necessaries of life.' "
What was the result ? Why, the people could no
longer endure hislyranny; they rose up in arms, stormed
his palace, tore his child to pieces, and Le-wang, too,
happy that he could escape, fled and ended his life in
ignominious exile.

The whole of the first, and a small part of the second
volume, are occupied with these annals, digested with
care and judgment from the Chinese originals. To the
scholar this abridged history of an ancient kingdom will
most assuredly be valuable, but the remainder is likely,
we think, to prove more generally interesting. It com-
prehends a retrospect of the foreign trade with China,
and enters into some curious details of the manners of
the people less in regard to their domestic habits than
in reference to their intercourse with strangers. To
this it will now be requisite to direct our attention.
From the two hundred and sixty-one volumes which
compose the Ta-tsing-hwuy-teen, it appears that the
imperial ancestors are placed on a par with the su-
preme Heaven, and that prayers are addressed to them
to obtain good or avert evil. The ambassadors, there-
fore, of foreign nations, the " outside barbarians," have
no great right to complain if they are made to knock
their heads either without or within the yellow skreen,
which, according to the same authority " ought to in-
spire the devotees of imperial majesty with the same
veneration as the bodily presence of the great master."
There can be no doubt of it.

The Chinese are the only people who, tolerably ad-
vanced in civilization, have yet opposed themselves to
traffic with other countries. The constitution of their
empire is based on the exclusion of all foreign intercourse,
and this is maintained by a system of oppressive restric-
tions, which, as ever happens in such cases, has given rise
to unlimited smuggling. The very Mandarins, whose spe-
cific duty it is to prevent this forbidden traffic, are the very
foremost transgressors against the law, and levy their fees
for connivance with as much regularity as if they were
government customs. This determined hostility to any
foreign intercourse may partly have originated in that
inordinate vanity which taught them to look upon
China as the. " Celestial Empire," the " Middle
Kingdom," situated at the centre of the earth, and
surrounded by barbarous tribes and petty chieftains ;
but a cause, yet more potent, may be found in the
jealous consciousness of their own weakness, and of
the overwhelming might of the nations whom their
excessive egotism was leading them to treat with all
the assumption of superiority. That they were per-
fectly sensible of their own inability to cope with the
" outside barbarian" appears plainly enough in their
actions, however it may be denied by their words.
European aggression could never incite them to resist-
ance, unless when they were able to take the enemy

THE SUN, LONDON, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 1834.

at advantage, or were driven on by the fear of greater
peril. The eight vessels of the Portuguese navigator,
Fernao Peres de Andrade, were sufficient to strike
their whole fleet with consternation ; and when the
Spaniards seized the Philippines, they never ventured:
beyond a murmur. They must be set at bay before
they will venture to measure swords with the nations
they are always so ready to provoke by their arrogance.
Notwithstanding the little love borne by the Chinese
government towards any intercourse with foreigners,
the celestial Emperor has no more been able to keep
down the spirit of trade by edicts, than Napoleon was
by his decrees ; it rose up, like a well-spring, in spite
of every effort for its repression, and helped to fertilize
the ungrateful land that was striving to reject it. We
have some imperfect knowledge of their commerce at a
very early period. That the Romans used silk may
be gleaned from various authorities, and where else
should they have procured it, except from China ?
The " soft wool" which Virgil describes as being
combed from the trees of the Seres, or Chinese, was
obtained, not directly from the land of its production,
but from Armenia and Nisibin, till the continued wars
with Persia put an end to the traffic. Subsequently,
the Mahommedans, by a bolder system of navigation
than had been' hitherto known, found their way to
China ; and it is said their religion had already pene-
trated into the Celestial Empire, through Bukharia,
but at no time does it appear to have made any great
progress. The only account we have upon the sub-
ject is from two Arabian travellers, who visited Cathay
in the ninth century ; they leave us, however, com-
pletely in the dark as to the origin of this com-
merce. It is a curious fact that' these Arabians
speak of the Chinese as having no sciences, their reli-
gion and most of their laws being derived from India,
where indeed we have little doubt all the knowledge of
the civilized world will eventually be found to have had
its origin. At a yet later period Marco Polo jour-
neyed through many difficulties to the Court of Che-
yuen, or She-tsoo, more familiar to Europeans under
the name of Kublai, the Grand Khan ; but the story
of his adventures is too well known to need repetition,
and in the then dormant state of the West his disco-
veries, if discoveries they can be called, led to no im-
mediate results. Tracing events still onwards, in 1433,
when the Turks, at the overthrow of the Byzantine
empire, obstructed by their unjust restrictions the com-
munication with Eastern Asia, the people of Europe
became naturally anxious to discover other outlets ;
the consequence was, that in 1516 the Portuguese,
under the conduct of Raphael Perestrello, found their
way to China from Malacca. If, however, Europe
owe any thing to Portugal for having opened this
route, the debt is fully cancelled by the evil of their
aftei, years, when, actuated by a mean and jealous
spirit; they refused the brilliant offers of Kang-he, who
proposed to make Macao the general emporium of fo-
reign commerce, and to grant to the city the dhty on
all imports. They feared lest foreigners might engross
the Chinese trade, and in 1732 Again rejected the same
offer at the instigation of the Viceroy of Goa.
The first appearance of the Dutch in China seems
to have thrown the whole Celestial Empire into con-
steration, though by this time it might have been
supposed both Government and people had been
tolerably well acquainted with European physiognomy,
but "their eyes were blue, their hair red, their feet one
cubit and two-tenths long," and as it was not recorded
that such strange monsters had ever been there before,
the Chinese authorities at first refused to have any deal-
ings with them. The Dutch endeavoured to obtain by
force that which was refused to their entreaties ; bul
by the help of the Portuguese, who were jealous of
them as merchants, and detested them as heretics,
their earliest efforts were defeated. After the lapse of
many years, by dint of heavy bribes, and by the most
abject submission to all the whims of arrogance, they
at length obtained a precarious footing in the country.
" To tame their fierce barbarian nature, they had at first to
prostrate themselves in an open hall of the old palace, before
numerous Chinese officers ; which was very conducive to their
expertness in performing the kow-tow before his Imperial Ma-
jesty. On the day of their audience, the ambassadors, with
only six of their followers, were admitted into the outer court,
where they were detained all night, with other tribute bearers,
,who had arrived from the deserts of Tartary, and were dressed
in sheep-skins. In the morning they performed the ceremony
in the presence of the Emperor, who however was so far dis-
tant, that they could scarcely behold the dragon face ; and in
order to mortify their pride, he took no notice of them. Upon
being fed, they again bowed to the earth; and when the im-
perial presents arrived, they received them in a kneeling pos-
ture. An edict was issued, which commenced—' To the King
of Holland, health and peace ;' and whilst it commended his
obedience in sending a tribute-bearer, granted him permis-
sion to send one every eight years, and praised him for his cor-
dial care of justice, by subjecting himself to China, and send-
ing ambassadors through the wide sea, in order to pay tribute.
They were, however, strictly confined during their -stay at Pe-
king ; and on their return to Canton, were again subjected to
heavy exactions; even one of their interpreters was murdered;
no solid advantage was gained, though they now began to
carry on the trade more freely. The Legatio Batavico,'
originally published in Dutch, is a very interesting work, and
exhibits a faithful description of the state of China immediately
after the conquest. The Tartars were at that time wild and
domineering, they ate the meat raw, and carried the bones in
their pockets. China had greatly suffered by this revolution,
many cities and villages were burnt down, and the people
groaned under the misery to which they had been subjected."
The toleration, for it was no more, thus poorly ob-
tained, was doomed to frequent interruptions. In
1656, a rebel chief, Kok-Sing, who had re-
volted from the empire, and had all the qualities of
a hero, though only the son of a Chinese tailor, fought
and defeated them in many actions. Formosa was
taken from them, and retained, in spite of all the
efforts of the Dutch Admiral, Borth, supported by se-
venteen sail, but the Chinese leader fell in the engage-
' The son, no less determined than his father

had been, maintained the place in a manner worthy of
his inherited reputation, and finally compelled the
enemy to give up all idea of reconquering the island.
There is, however, some difficulty in understanding
how all this could be, for a single British ship,
manned by Lascars, has frequently driven a whole im-
perial squadron before her, a fact not easily reconcile-
able with the victories of Kok-sing. Be this as it
may, the only good effected, or attempted to be effected,
by the Dutch, is their having introduced the tea-tree
into Java, where many thousands of Chinese emi-
grants have settled under their government, and where
for once their colonial rule does not appear particu-
larly harsh or oppressive. Unfortunately, the insur-
rection of a small party of Chinese, who had been en-
gaged at Macao for the purpose of cultivating the
shrub, disheartened the adventurers, and for a time, at
least, has put an end to this otherwise hopeful ad-
venture.

The author indulges in a natural exultation at the
superior benefits conferred on the East by British in-
tercourse, and advantageously contrasts the conduct of
England with that of the Portuguese and the
Spaniards. His account of the first establishment of
our commerce with China is succinct and able, supplying
in a narrow compass a perfect epitome of what other-
wise must be sought for in many volumes. It would,
therefore, be too extended a task to follow him through
this part of his subject, branching out, as it does, into
so many details, few of which could be omitted with-
out injury to the whole. The same impositions, that
were practiced upon the Dutch and Portuguese, were
attempted to be enforced upon the British, but
they were for the most part met as they 'deserved
to be, and the result was, if not a better under-
standing, at least a more perfect toleration. On all
occasions it was amusing to observe how wonderfully
the magnificence of edicts contrasted with the little-
dess of action. In later times, the celestial empire

resolved not to brook " the prancing pride of an out-
side barbarian," and actually took heart enough to Are
upon the Alceste frigate, but their courage evaporated
with the smoke of their own cannon ; a broadside was
-returned, and in an instant the whole garrison of one
fort had deserted the batteries ; yet, though several
Chinese soldiers were killed and wounded by the dis-
charge, the Supreme Government affected to consider
it as a salute, and the whole affair was allowed to die
away without any farther notice.
The trade of this country with China seems mostly
to be confined to Canton, though it would appear that
we should find a better security from fiscal annoyance
in the mutual jealousy of the provincial governments.
The British free-traders at Canton, being less shackled
in their relations at home, have endeavoured to obtain
some mitigation of this oppressive system. In their
petition to Parliament they have observed, and truly,
that the British commerce with China is restricted to
the factory at Canton, that fair competition is destroyed
there by associations of the Chinese, that trade is
carried on under circumstances hazardous to its agents
and precarious for the various interests involved in it,
and finally that, while much may be obtained from the
fears, nothing will ever be conceded by the good-will,
of the Chinese government. This document is ex-
ceedingly valuable, and, while it does not diminish the
existing evils, it proposes the readiest means for their
removal or alleviation. Still we must not allow our-
selves to be carried away by the eager spirit of com-
merce ; large allowances are to be made for the
conduct of the Chinese in there and similar tran-
sactions ; they are conscious of their own weakness, and
fearing, not without some appearance of reason, their
dangerous neighbours, they are anxious to supply
their moral and physical deficiencies by fraud and
cunning, and an outward show of resolution. With
all their ignorance and self-conceit, and we have
already seen to what extent they are carried, it is yet
impossible they should view with indifference our enor-
mous Indian empire ; beneficial as that empire un-
doubtedly is to the people, we cannot deny that it has
been built up from the fragments of many shattered
thrones, and many broken sceptres, and a neighbour-
ing autocrat may well be forgiven if he looks with a
jealous eye on the workers of these mighty changes.
Again, when they turn to the side of Russia, they are
met by causes of alarm that are even better founded and
more apparent than their terrors from Hindostan. The
two dominions border closely upon each other, and, if
any chance should ever destroy the British preponder-
ance in Asia, the Russians will then have the power,
as there is little doubt they will have the inclination,
of assisting the Celestial Empire as they have already
assisted Turkey. To Europe in general this will be of
little consequence, for when the Russian empire has
attained this insupportable burden of greatness, it will
fall to pieces from its own excessive weight, and be
again broken up into a multitude of kingdoms. Such
ever has been, such ever will be the fate of overgrown
empire ; the controlling hand of government Scan never
reach beyond a certain limit, to exercise a wholesome
restraint upon its people ; the heart has not strength
enough to propel the blood to such remote extremities.
In the meantime we see exemplified, in the relative
state of the two countries, the useful and important
lesson that, while despotism is a rapid builder-up of
empires, it also effectually prevents their further pro-
gress, when they have arrived at a certain maturity
of grandeur. To support its own power the throne
must be hemmed in with a phalanx of observances and
prejudices, which, once entertained, it dares not after-
wards dispense with ; for infallibility is the essence of
all arbitrary power, whether it be political or religious.
Two centuries ago, and Russia, compared to China,
was a land of barbarity ; but one talented despot has
converted the northern wilds into a mighty empire,
while another autocrat, his equal in every respect, either
of mind or purpose, dared to change or ameliorate no-
thing, lest, in forcibly removing the obstacles to im-
provement, he should at the same time pull down the
throne which these very obstacles supported.

The trade of the Dane; the French, and the Ame-
ricans, should now seem to claim some notice ; but
imperfect as this account has been, applied to the de-
tails of two large octavo volumes, we have already gone
far beyond our usual limits, and it only remains for us
to add that this excellent work demands and obtains
our warmest approbation.

EXCHANGE OF PARIS, SEPT. 4.—Paper on
London was in considerable demand at three months, and was
very scarce at 25f. 15c., with three per cent. Bills were to be
had at 25f. 174 c. There is much inquiry for bills on Madrid,
Amsterdam, Milan, Frankfort, and Lisbon. Business with
other places is without activity. Bullion and specie have varied,
and gold is now quoted 7 to 7i per mille premium, which is a
decline of 1 per mille. Fine silver has advanced sto 5 per
mille premium, and French standard silver (nine-tenths fine)
is now at 4 to 5 per mille ; agio on Louis d'ors, 10 to 10} per
mille ; and on 20 to 40 franc pieces, Bto 8.4 per mille. New
doubloons have declined ; present price, 85f. 30c. to 85f. 50c.
each; Austrian and Dutch ducats, Ilf. 85c. to llf. 90c. each;
Spanish pillar dollars, sf. 48c. to sf. 49c. each.

General Rodil has received positive information that
the Carlists of France have recommended in the strongest
terms to their brethren in Spain the absolute necessity of de-
stroying Colonel Caradoc, who is at our head-quarters. They
conceive that his influence, as the representative of France
and England, will injure their cause materially. It appears
that this bitter enmity to Colonel Caradoc arises in a great
measure from his extreme popularity with the army and in-
habitants, and may be considered in some degree personal ;
for the zeal and activity of this officer, and his presence with
the army, have been of great service to the cause of liberty
and the young Queen. General Rodil, unsolicited by Colonel
Caradoc, has offered him a guard of honour to protect his
person from any attempt at assassination, and to guard the
door of his quarters at night, although he is always with the
army and lodged in the centre of the towns. The Colonel
declined accepting the friendly offer of the Spanish General.
However, although Colonel Caradoc is at this moment safe in
the midst of our army, yet, when he proceeds to England, he
will require a strong escort to carry him in safety to the fron-
tiers of France.--Morning Paper.

An undertaking on a large scale is forming in the
city for improving the communications with Spain and Potu-
gal by means of steam-vessels. This will include the northern
as well as the southern ports of Spain, with the whole coast
of Portugal ; and the points of departure are intended to be
the river Thames, Portsmouth, and Plymouth, as well as Fal-
mouth. As a pecuniary undertaking, we can offer no opinion
of its merits, and it seems to be entered into less with that
object than by views beyond its mere attainment, entered into
by merchants and capatilists who have a deep stake in the
welfare of the Peninsula generally. It is quite certain that
the end of this association, if accomplished, will be a very
useful one, since nothing can well be more defective than the
present state of the communications with countries whose im-
portance to England in all respects, commercial as well as po-
litical, is rapidly on the increase. A weekly packet to Lisbon,
and one monthly to Gibraltar and Cadiz, form all our regular
means of access to Spain and Portugal. To Corunna or
Vigo, or the ports in the Mediterranean, there is no approach
except by some very circutious or inconvenient or dangerous
route. In the post-office department the main consideration
necessarily is, whether the channel is such as to make the con-
veyance of letters and passengers a source of profit. For com-
mercial objects the merchants are left to their own activity
and enterprise, and this is the aim of the new undertaking. At
some future period, when they have opened the way, the
Post-office, as has been done in numerous other instances, will
take up and appropriate to itself the different lines of commu-
nication.--Morning Paper.

DUBLIN, SEPT. 6.

TURKISH LIFE AND MANNERS.---The new ro-
mance of " Ayesha," by the author of " Zohrab," is an ex-
ceedingly interesting tale. " Mr. Morier," says the Scots-
man, " makes an excellent use in it of the intimate knowledge
he possesses of Eastern customs, manners, and habits. The va-
rious incidents of the story are well conceived, and skilfully
managed. The more marked features of Eastern character,:
too, are vividly brought out, and in so familiar a guise, that'
we feel convinced that a better and more accurate knowledge
of Turkish life may be acquired from these volumes than could
be obtained from any merely descriptive account, however able
or veritable it might be; and, on this account alone, every
body should read Ayesha.' "

Monday the partridge-shooting season commenced.
The corn-fields, generally, were well cleared for the sports-
men, and the covies, having experienced none of the storms
which have many years thinned their numbers, are both strong
and plentiful ; but the weather was so exceedingly wet and
unpropitious for the diversion in the..early part of the day, that
the slaughter was not very great ran this neighbourhood.—
Cumberland Pacquet. •

(FROM A CORRESPONDENT.)
The controversy on the authenticity of the Rev. Marcus
Beresford's annihilating declaration still engages public atten-
tion, without appearing to have lost any of its freshness. The
matter in dispute is not worth the waste of many words. it is
whether he said " We—that is, the Protestant Clergy—Trill
drive from our glebe lands the Popish rebel and the Popish
illicit distiller ;" or, " We—that is, the Protestant landlords:,
will drive the bloody Popish rebels from our lands.", The
former is the version of the Evening Mail, and thelatter,of
the Evening Post. If the speaker- confesses .either of them
to be genuine, it signifies very little which of them he may
deny. For the exterminating spirit, which would' drive:•tiie
Catholic tenantry from the Church lands, wants but-the. poker
to sweep them altogether out of the island, or—might we n'ot
add ?—off the face of the whole earth. Mr, Beresford's dis-
claimer of the "unchristian and vulgar" language set down

.o him, has come too late to remove the unfavourable impres-
sion made by his speech : and as .he does not disavow the -x-g-
-port of the Evening Mail, the general opinion, by nu means
confined to his political opponents, may be expressed' in the
words, a little twisted from the sense, of the Roman satirist-..
" Marcus dixit ; ita est."
While the writers of newspapers and their readers are busy-
ing themselves with this discussion, it seems to sit lightly
enough upon the Rev. Gentleman himself, who has repaired
to his shooting-box in the mountains of Tyrone, and devoted
his congenial mind to the extirpation of the feathered inhabii-
ants of those regions. This step, so hot upon the heels of his
Potatoe-and-salt vow, has given disgust to the religious Pro-
testants of Kilmore, who expected that in the absence of their
Bishop (Beresford) at Buxton his richly-beneficed relative,
and Vicar-General (Beresford), .would have remained to mi-
nister to their, spiritual needs and comforts. But instead of
doing so, he had scarcely returned from the " Great Meetiiig"
than he went away with his gun and his dogs to try the mettle
of the grouse. Had he such game in his eye when he spoke
se heroically of being fed by the ravens P
A Rev. George Dwyer, who writes from " The Rectory, Ar-
drahan, county of Galway," has addressed a letter t 6 Mr. Bar-
rington, the secretary of the Church Commissioners, in which he
refuses to answer any of the letters or inquiries of that " In-
quisition " The principal reasons he alleges for this appa-
rent contumacy are the direct variance between the King's
Declaration to the Bishops and the principles which actuate
the issue of "the Ministerial Commission." The universality
of the Gospel mission confided to every Protestant clergyman,
which requires him to preach to all people without any reli-
gious distinction,—the tendency of the Commission to limit
and restrict the scope of that mission, and a fear that if he
should explain the causes of the increase or diminution of
Protestants in his parish, he might stimulate agitators to.ex-
terminate Protestantism altogether, or put the Priests on their
guard against the means which he has successfully used to
increase his flock. He denies the legality of the Commission,
pinning his faith, as to that point, on the dictum of Lord
Wynford, and invites the Commissioners to come to Ardrahan,
where he trusts they will find " whether amongst Jew or
Greek, Hebrew or Proselyte,. a Christian minister amongst
his people." I believe it has not been generally known, be-
fore the publication of this, letter, that the Twelve Tribes of
Galway contained either Jew, Greek, Hebrew or Proselyte.
But it is a subject of congratulation that Adrahan has now a
" Christian minister amongst his people." When I was in
that country some sixteen years ago, the people were there,
but the minister was an absentee ; and I shall now beg leave
to narrate a little passage in my experience of the clerical
luminaries in the West, which may possibly lead the English
reader to form an opinion as to some of the causes which have
brought on a necessity for a Parliamentary inquiry into the
state of the Irish Protestant Church.
In the summer of the year 1818, I happened to be present
at the visitation of the clergy of Clonfert and Kilmacduagh,
holden in the Cathedral of Saint Brandon, a venerable struc-
ture, " bosom'd high in tufted trees," in the midst of the
Bishop's garden. The clergy assembled at the palace in their
canonical dress, and accompanied their Diocesan to the
church, at the door of which stood, rather obtrusively dis-
played, a fashionable figure, not having much of the air or
garb of a clergyman about it, which turned out to be
the personification proper of Mr. Dwyer, whose zeal has
now exploded in an attack upon the Commission of Pub-
lic Instruction. It was to me a cause of some sur-
prise, not untinctured with a less agreeable feeling, that.
he had not joined his reverend brethren in a mark of outward'
respect to the Bishop, Dr. Batson, whose pre-eminent talent
and learning would have entitled him to the homage of infe-
rior minds in any situation, but to whom deference in that
place and on such an occasion, was a duty. Mr. Dwyer, was
then regarded in any light but that of a champion of the Pro-
testant faith, having been recently appointed to the living
which he still holds, by Lord Clanricarde, whose mother, a
Burke and a firm Papist—called this Reverend Gentleman
cousin.
At the conclusion of the Church Service, the business of the
Visitation commenced, and the Clergy, one by one, appeared
before the Bishop to give an account of their respective
charges. When Mr. Dwyer's turn came the following dialogue
took place :
Bishop—Mr. Dwyer, do you reside in your parish ?
Priest—No, my Lord, I have no glebe-house.
Bishop—lt was unnecessary for me to ask the question ; for
any person who reads the Dublin newspapers can tell in what
hotel your parishioners may have the best chance of finding you.
The Bishop then requested his Vicar-general, Dr. Vava-
sour, to give instructions to the Registrar how he should pro-
ceed in the most effectual manner against the incumbent
of Ardrahan for continued and obstinate non-residence.
It is a cheering thing to see that age has not come
upon him without bringing some improvement ; for we
have his own word for it, that he is new a christian minister,
always to be found amongst his people. But had there been
no Dwyers in times past, possibly the crisis would not have
arrived which has called forth such champions to withstand the
authority of parliament, and charge our most gracious King
with saying one thing, and affixing the sign manuel to its
very opposite.
The castle-yard is crowded with applicants, soliciting the
new appointment of County Valuator, to which a salary of
5001. with some agreeable additions under the name of travelling
charges, is annexed. There are thirty-two of these places to
be disposed of ; and it is to be remarked that the great majority
of the persons seeking them, are country gentlemen and ma-
gistrates, known by their inveterate hostility to the principles
and the very existence of this government. It is time—if the
Administration would rally an Irish party around itself—to
bow such independent supplicants out of court. By promoting
them, they do not even neutralise the enemy, whom they
enrich ; while they irritate the popular mind, and throw the
representation into the hands of agitators and radicals. I
know of one county which will certainly be placed in that pre-
dicament, with respect to both its members, should the plau-
sible efforts of an individual, who has made himself most ob-
noxious to the people, and not even now ceases, when at home,
to revile the government, succeed against his liberal, though
moderate, competitors. Lord Brougham, in his admirable
speech in allusion to the Repeal Question, said that the govern-
ment would thenceforward adopt a kinder and more grateful
mode of treatment towards the moderate party in Ireland. It
is really high time to begin ; and if these two-and-thirty places
shall be given tofriends, it will soon be found that very few in
the same rank of life will have the hardihood to proclaim
themselves foes.
The .Judge's place is still an object of contention. The
Evening Mail gives it to Mr. Crampton, and kindly promotes
Mr. Richard Green to be Solicitor-General. This is one of
the Mail's mauvaises plaisanteries.

Keswick continues full of company, but the weather
is unfavourable for all kinds of proceedings out of doors, either
in harvest work or enjoyment of scenery.—Carlisle Patriot.
It is not, we believe, generally known that Mr.
Telford was a poet as well as an engineer. In early life he
was the " Eskdale Tarn" of the poetical corner of the Scots
Magazine; and on the death of Burns he wrote some very
beautiful verses to his memory, which are published in Dr.
Currie's life of the Ayrshire bard. On reading them one is
tempted to say, with a slight alteration, as Pope did of Mans-
field," " How sweet a Ramsey was in Telford lost 1"--111e-
chanic's Magazine.

PRINCE POLIGNAC AT HAM.—The admiration
excited by the portraits of M. and Madame Eugene Janvier,
painted by Mademioselle de Fourmond, which appeared in the
last exhibition at the Louvre, induced the family of Prince
Polignac to prevail upon him to invite this young female ar-
tist to Ham, where, with the permission of the Government,
she remained till she had completed the likenesses of the
Prince and Princess, and their children. Notwithstanding
the peculiarity of the circumstances under which she was called
upon to exercise her art, her talent prevailed over every diffi-
culty, and she produced a series Of portraits in which not only
the features, but the expression of dignified resignation in the
countenance of the Prince, and the affectionate commiseration
of the Princess and her children, are depicted with extraordi-
nary truth and nature.—Paris Paper.
MEETING OF OPERATIVE FANCY CABINET-
MAKERS.—_A meeting of the operative fancy cabinet-makers
was last night held at the Northumberland Arms, Clerkenwell-
green, for the purpose of receiving the report of the Com-
mittee convened in February last, and on other business con-
nected with the interests of the trade ; Mr. Wooster was
unanimously called to the Chair. After some routine business,
Mr. Amos moved the adjournment of the meeting till Monday
next. The motion having been seconded, Mr. Hardy moved
as an amendment, that those present enrol their names as
members of a Society of the Operative Fancy Cabinet-makers,
and subscribe sixpence each. The Chairman then put the
amendment, which was carried by a large majority. The in-
dividuals present then enrolled their names as members of the
society. It was afterwards agreed that another meeting be
held on Monday evening next. A vote of thanks was then
given to the Chairman, after which the meeting separated.
THE SUPPOSED MURDER 'OFA CHILD NEAR
RUSSEL-SQUARE..—Yesterday a Coroner's Inquest was taken
-before Mr. Stirling, at the King's Head, Broad-street,
St. Giles's, on view of a new-born male child, stated to have
been forcibly disposed of by its mother. The subject was
examined into before the magistrates at Hatton-garden, who
ordered Ow present inquiry before the Coroner. The body
lay at St. Giles's workhouse. The Coroner, in summing up,
remarked that.he was not fond of confessions, but the mother
had acknowledged herself the mother. She also stated that
it was born alive, though the evidence of the medical gentle-
man had contradicted that. The question with the Jury was,
if she were guilty of being the cause of death. There was
no doubt of her guilt as to the concealment of the birth.. The
Juiy, however, would take the subject into their consideration.
The following verdict was. returned—" That Harriet Challis,
the mother of the child, was guilty of concealing the birth of
the child, and that it rtas still-born."