The Sun.
London, England, 1856-11-01 00:00:00

A. PRAYER GRANTED.

---
" Why, Dick, what's the matter ?' I never saw
such deep despair, such wordless hopelessness, such a
foretaste of doom, in any human face before. He shook,
his teeth chattered, and I saw the heavy dews of night
had penetrated his very bones. A fatal illness seemed
stealing over him.

" Matter !' he answered with a sob, stretching forth
his arms, and turning his sad sunken eyes to, the sky ;
"I'm wearied.to death. I'm sick, sick to death, and I
wish to God that I was dead, and all was ended ! '
"Now, Dick was neither a skulker nor a grumbler.
Indeed I rarely have known a blither, cheerier fellow.
But the deadly illness, and much privation—besides
that, he had a wife and child at home—had brokesa poor
Dick's spirits fairly down, and he spoke with all the
sincerity of a man that had left off hoping.
" Come, cheer up !' I began but did not finish.'
" Before the words were out of my mouth he lay a
horrible spectacle several feet away from me. Bang
smash ! and a ball struck him full on the forehead,
pashing the skull into a hideous pulp, and rolling over
and over my poor comrade, found the rest hoe sought for.
I certai❑ly thought it an awful manner in which his
prayer was granted."
Awful indeed, but furnishing a moral oven more
applicable to our rulers than private individuals.
Death to him would appear a release from into-
lerable suffering. " Reminiscences of the War in-
the East, by a Military Chaplain" are continued
and " A Few more words offered on the Euphra
tes Railway ;" beside which there aro a. number
of professional articles. The " Retirement of Sir
Charles Yorke," and the expected advent of Col.
Forster as his successor, are to the Editor's taste,
as his remarks on " The Fleet at Naples " are to
ours.

Frazer.—A. lengthened dullness, long drawn out,
is this seasonably-dreary November number of
Frazer—" Regina," as the old " Town and Country
Magazine" before us loves to call herself—Aegincr,
this while, at least, of all the magazines born out
of the month of Fogs and Suicides ! For
" Poetry," we have palmed off upon us a preposte-
rous little prosy quip in rhyme called " ln Richmond
Park"—eight lines in all very newly comparing
fern, oak, ivy and holly to Youth, and Manhood,
and Age, decorated with Love and Endurance.
While a little further on, "The Brothers " are oda-
brated by N.N.S.—in stanzas that would be irre-
deemably inane, were they not occasionally gal-
vanised by a passing conceit into the contortions of
the spasmodic. Fancy a " monthly," the con-
spicuous attractions of which are papers as alluring
in subject as—" Glasgow down the Water, as the
" Memoirs of Frederick Perthes," as the second.
and (fortunately) concluding part of the "Journal
of a Tour in the Crimea," as " Communication
with the Far East," as " Mansfield's Paraguay,"
and as " Sketches on the North Coast" by a
Natural—no, by a Naturalist ! The lapidary at
least may discover something of interest for him in
the second chapter upon " Ancient Gems "—a
paper relating especially to lapis lazuli, to agates,
to the onyx, the sardonyx, the malachite, and the
cornelian. "Meg of Elibank " is the name of
the " light article " in the number—pleasant
reading enough in its way, were it not occasionally
incoherent. The criticism of the month is the one
relating to "Jami, the Persian Poet." And the
" political article " of Frazer for November is a ra-
ther tedious reply to the inquiry—" What are the
United States Coming To ?" The real and actual
reply to which interrogatory will be given through
the ballot-box by the aggregated voters of those
same States upon Tuesday next, the 4th of this
present momentous month of November. The
portion of this concluding contribution to " Re-
gina," referring to the thirteen English Colonies,
out of which came forth the grand and powerful
democracy at present known by the collective title
of the United States—the New England Colonies,
Georgia, the two Carolinas, Virginia, and Mary-
land, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Penn-
sylvania—might have proved sufficiently interest•
ing in its way, but that the manner of its composi-
tion is, in truth, so insufferably dull and common-
place.

MISCELLANEOUS.
The National Magazine has an attractive cata-
logue of names among its subscribers. Sir David
Brewster contributes a series of papers on the
Stereoscope, and Dr. Doran a sketch of the Eng-
lish Queens of France ; while in the department of
fiction Wilkie Collins, Miss Mu.lock, and Holme
Lee each supply a tale. Westland Marston, one '
of the projectors, gives us the history of " A Case
of Libel." Sydney Dobell has a sonnet in his
usual style on the death of Dr. Brown: There
are numerous miscellaneous contents of vary-
ing merits. Tait's Magazine has its usual
political papers and light and lively tales. The
most remarkable feature in it is an article entitled
" The Lost Faculty, or the Sixth Sense,"
by which
it designates the power to see the beings of the
spiritual world. A paper on the profit and loss of
Insurance Companies will be interesting to. ule,nsoirf
business. The Obituary
has of
John Ross.—The Eclectic Review,
contains a memoir I
usual,
subjects of general interest.
oo limited
its ordinary fault being that it
is
amoost entirely
and sectarian a character,
.
almost
controversial
devoted to the discussion
of
it often mani-
topics, which is to be regretted,
memoir of Goethe, and
fests much ability. A.inemo._e
7,
will be found
tfnatn
" Studies of Foreign Literature,
reader will
attractive, while the
Modern Mathematical
paper on "Ancient ainoma„,, Magazine takes a
Science." The Chia
eess and has several articles
review of Church. pro.gr
__t_
inight's valuable Cycle-
find much to interest annidodirnestruct him in a valuable
' on characteristic topics.
pedia maintains
its character, and the popular
' I llistory of England, issued simultaneously,
e which is
of Richard 11.
I has reached the time

The unfortunateo
train manto
which Thomas h Po iks
serious
whoousaccident was stokeo
to the
on
gode
Wednesday afternoon, died last Thursday
curredgn inquest was opened yesterday, but was adjeurn
until a future day.
THE COASTGUARD.—Large numbers of these nob
life-preserving, law-defending, semi maritime men, ha v
left the public service, not wishing to be under the
" martial law of the Admiralty, and receiving less
wages and emoluments than while under the Customs.
That a coast defence is useful is not to be denied, but it
is to be deplored that the public service should lose the
said men, whose praise the press of almost every week
have to record, while it is a matter of question whether
the revenue will be sufficiently protected under a martial
marine power.—Civil Service Gazette.
LANCASHIRE AND YORKSHIRE RAlLWAY.—Traffie re.
0
turn for the week ending Oct. 26, 1856 ...... £'22,460 14
.?
Corresponding week last year.................... 19,915 2
w*ekS COeTnTainintig
•
Oat. 26, 1856 ......
return CENTRAL RAILWAY.—Tr
........ the
L COTTOspencline week bid yoummotiiimeiltalo 5,529 0