The Sun.
London, England, 1851-09-16 00:00:00

IRELAND.

DUBLIN, MOND AY .—The Roscommon Journal
states that labourers are extremely
.scarce in that
locality, and so extensive is the demand for them, that
not a single able-bodied pauper over 15 years of age
has remained in the workhouse. The present average
wages are from ls. to ls. 3d. per diem, and !even at
this rate the farmers complain bitterly of the short
supply. Higher tterms have been offered, but the
bands are not to Wobtained. * • -
The Downpatrick Recorder makes a 'similar com-
plaint, and observes, that notwithstanding the paucity
of labourers in the home markets, there is but little
diminution in the numbers of Irish reapers who have
paid their periodical visit to England and Scotland.
The general advance in the payment of labour, it is
contended, shows that emigration was necessary to
diminish the labourers and raise wages to a scale
that would enable poor men to live. If at such a
time as harvest there was not to some extent a
scarcity of hands and a rise of wages, it would ne-
cessarily prove that in ordinary periods there must
have been a superabundance of labour. Meanwhile
the tide of emigration, especially from the southern
ports, continues as brisk as if it were the beginning
instead of the close of the year. On Wednesday the
emigrant ship Lady Campbell sailed from Waterford,
with 120 passengers, bound for Quebec ; the greater
number of those were, according to a local paper,
" comfortable farmers, taking with them the harvest
gains of a country which wants them more than any
other on the face of the globe." On Saturday the Mars
steamer left the same port for Liverpool, having on
board between 300 and 400 passengers, and these; too,
are described as being of the better class of farmers.
From Kerry the accounts are of a similar import.
The Tralee Chronicle states that emigration " still
continues to flow direct" from that country, " and
that in an undiminished stream." Several vessels have
been chartered for the conveyance of passengers to
Quebec and New York.
The following gratifying symptoms of improvement
are recorded by the Galway Vindisator. There is no
doubt whatever that the opening of the whole line of
railway to the western capital will be the ultimate
means of effecting a complete moral revolution in the
state and prospects of the hitherto neglected province
of Connaught:—
"The great resources of this county and province
are only about being known. It is now that some of
our proprietors are beginning to discover rich mines
on their estates which their fox-hunting forefathers
never thought of exploring—mines that will not only
preserve their property from the Encumbered Estates
Court, but place them in a position to accumulate
large fortunes. Galway abounds in mineral produc-
tions which the owners might turn to most valuable
account if they possessed the means of smelting and
purifying them at home. Some of the ore, now
selling for 18s. a ton, might produce, if manufactured
here, twenty times that price. We have had a che-
mical manufactory for some time past at work in
Galway, but so backward have we been in the march
of science in this part of Ireland that the existence of
this establishment was hardly known in the town.
However, some contributions from Mr. Bullock's
chemical works in Galway having attracted the atten•
tion of foreigners at the Great Exhibition, it is likely
that the world may soon know that one step has at
length been made in the right direction in this remote
and long neglected district. We are glad to find that
some of those articles are sent to America, and that
liberal orders from the continent have latterly reached
the Galway chemical factory. A great deal is shipped
off to Berlin and Dantzic, while not a single pound
is taken in Gal way, either at our poorhouse, our hos-
pitals, our dispensaries, or by our resident apothe-
caries."

BARRING OUT A CLERGYMAN FROM HIS CHURCH.

The Armagh Guardian reports the following curi-
ous outrage. 'The reverend gentleman's " offence"
consists in his being favourable to the system of na-
tional education. Dr. Paul Cullen does not stand
alone in his glory :
" Our readers will regret to hear that another, the
fourth, outrage has been committed on Kildarton
Church, with the intention of preventing the Rev.
James Hardy from performing divine service on Sun-
day last. About seven o'clock on that morning, the
sextoness having gone to prepare the church, fcund '
the doors fastened inside, and the keyhole of the ves-
try-room door plugged with lead, so that she could not
obtain access. She immediately came into Armagh to
Mr. Hardy, by whom she was ordered to apprise the
churchwardens who soon after met at the church, and
sent for Mr. Birch who lives in that locality, request-
ing him to have the hindrances removed. As soon es
he arrived at the church be obtained entrance through
one of the windows by means of a ladder, and after
considerable difficulty got the doors opened.
The outrage on this occasion was most systemati-
cally performed. The front door, on which is a com-
mon lock, with a brass handle, was fastened inside by
a piece of iron, so constructed with a crook at one end
to clasp the handle, while the other end was pierced
and screwed to the side of the door on which the bolt
entered. The outer vestry door was fastened by
screw nails, and the entrance door from the vestry
room to the church was screwed by two square pieces
of iron so fixed that the door and door-case were
completely rivitted. On the walls of the vestry-
room were the following words scribbled with a lead
pencil, the writing of which shows marks of a free
and well practised hand, though bad spelling and
worse diction are affected. The inscription is—' the
truth of the Gospel Wee Want in this Country, not
nothing else.' Lower down on the wall we read—
Mr. James Hardy, you left bus the Kays and Screw
Nails, and Wee Completed the Job. The man that at-
temps to open this Church may prepare for their final
doom hereafter.' The keyhole of the outer vestry
door we have already stated was plugged with
large quantity of melted lead. The windows were
also fastened, and in a most ingenious manner, by a
small chain in each, holes being picked in the panes,
and the chain then introduced, so as to prevent open-
ing—time was even taken to make the fastening link
the same as the others in the chain. To complete
their operations the fellow or fellows cut the new bell
rope as far as they could reach. The work must have
occupied a considerable time. Mr. Birch having re-
moved the obstacles, Mr. Hardy and the congregation
got admittance, and the service was gone through as
usual. We trust that some steps will be taken to dis-
cover the perpetrators, and prevent any further repeti-
tion of such scandalous proceedings, which are degrad-
ing to the district and disgraceful to religion. Since
writing the above we are glad to learn that a reward
of 1001. has been offered for such information as may
lead to the prosecution of the offenders, which we
hope to be able to publish in our next number.
Among the subscribers are the Lord Primate, the
Earl of Charleennt, the lion. Henry Caulfeild, the
Rev. Mr. Irwin, the High Sheriff, &c.
TRADE AND AGRICULTURE.
The following is extracted from the weekly trade
report of the Freeman's Journal:—
" We have nothing of moment to comment upon
this week. Although there is not much briskness in
trade, it is still considerably improved from a few
weeks back, and the favourable symptoms we noticed
last week still continue. Accounts from the country
are cheering as to the crops, and people speak with a
more hopeful tone, notwithstanding the very low
prices of produce. In shares there is very little life,
and, with the exception of the gambling going on in
Wicklow Copper Mine shares, scarcely a Nature
worth notice. The deliveries of leading articles are
good, compared with a month or two back, and the
prospects for the autumn and winter trade are very
fair. The Customs' duties for the week amount to
18,4001.—0 f which 7,4001. on tea, 2,5001. on raw and
5001. on refined sugar, 3,0001. on wine and
and 4,1001. on tobacco. The corresponding week of
1850 produced 16,400/.

The Algiers papers relate a melancholy accident
which recently took place on the beach of Mustapha. An
order had been given on the previous night by the colonel of
the Bth Regiment of the line that the men should march
down the next morning to bathe. Although the sea dur-
ing the night bad become very rough the order was not
countermanded. At the roll of the drum the men went
into the water, and in a few minutes a number of them
were knocked off their legs by the waves. By the exertions
of such of their comrades as were expert swimmers they
I were all saved with the exception of five, who were walled
I away and drovaecl.

A BRUSH WITH THE K4FIRS.
The following graphic description of a Kafir skir-
mish is from the pen of Lieutenant Corrigan, of the
74th Regiment, now engaged in his first campaign at
the Cape. It is extracted from a letter to his father,
Dr. Corrigan, the eminent Dublin physician, atd ap-
pears in the Dullin Evening Post :
"Koonape River, July 10, 18*.
"We bad a very severe action the, morning we
marched into the Amatola Mountains on our patrol
with some rebel Hottentots and Kafirs combined. We
lost some men killed and wounded, but we gave the
enemy a mast satisfactory thrashing. We had eight
men killed and seventeen wounded on our side, bee
sides one of our officers, who was wounded in the arm
(young Bruce), but he is getting on famously, and
will soon be all right again. I will try and describe
the fight to you, as I think it may interest you :—We
marched into the Amatolas just as day was breaking,
and halted on the top of one of the hills, called the
Littlle Amatola ;' thence we could see right down into
an immense valley underneath, which is called
the Amatola Basin,' and where great num-
bers of Kafirs—in fact, almost all Sandilli's
Kafirs—live. The sun rose just after we got
to the top of the mountain, and such a mag-
nificent sight I never saw. There was the Great
Amatola Mountain' in front of us, and we saw the
rays of the sun gilding the tops of the whole range
one after another, until he mounted over the top of
the mountain now before us, and threw a flood of light
over everything in the valley. However, we were
not given much time to admire the sunrise, for as the
morning lightened up' we could see the Kafirs un-
derneath us driving away their cattle, and we were
ordered to descend into the Basin and attack them.
We had at this time a pretty strong force with us,
consisting of ourselves, the 91st Regiment, the Cape
Mounted Rifles, and a number of Burghers; when
we got into the Basin we were obliged to separate,
in order to surround the cattle. We went away to
the left of the Basin, and as soon as we got to the ex-
treme left of it we found ourselves under a very steep
craggy hill, on the top of which about seven hundred
Kafirs and Hottentots had taken up a position. They
immediately opened a good smart fire on us, and
wounded one or two of our men. We had nothing
for it but to go at the hill, which we did, and my
company was thrown out in skirmishing order to
cover the advance of the regiment ; for the first four
or five minutes, going up the bill, I expected every
minute to get a bullet into me, for they were
whistling about our ears, and knocking up the dust
about our feet in a manner that was anything but
pleasant. However, we drove the enemy back from
the top of the bill, and we got to the top of it. On
the top of the hill, and stretching away for
about three miles behind it, was an im-
mense wood, or rather bush, into which
these Hottentots (who, you must know, are
all spledid shots) and Kafirs had retired, and
from the edge of which they kept up a fire on us.
We then extended two more companies (which, with
mine, made three) in skirmishing order, just under
the crest of the hill, where we lay down. Orders
were then given to us to lie still until we got the
word from the colonel, when we were to jump up,
rush over the crest of the hill, and down to the wood
(a distance of about 60 yards), and then to fire away
at the enemy as soon as we were under cover. We
lay there for about five or six minutes, and certainly
they appeared to be the longest five minutes we ever
spent. There were about 250 of us extended along
the ridge, lying down in some long grass and rushes ;
vou could not see a single man • the firing on both
sides had ceased, and we lay there waiting for the
order to rush over the crest of the hill and into the
bush. I could almost fancy that I heard my heart
beating, and you could certainly ' have heard a pin
drop,' so great was the silence. At last the colonel
gave the word ' forward.' We all jumped up,
rushed over the top of the hill, and away we

went, ' helter-skelter' down the other side, as
hard as we could go As soon as we got over
the hill, and were about half way down the other
side, the enemy gave us a volley, which wounded
three men and killed two more. However,
we never stopped to tire, but gave one cheer and
dashed into the bush. From this time the fight was
exactly similar to one of those that Cooper describes
in his novels as taking place between ' white huotere
on the prairies and the Indians.' When we got
tow❑ to the edge of the bush we caught seven Hot-
tentots in a sort of sawpit, which they had not
dine to get out of, thanks to our having run down the
hill so fast. We killed them all in Lae pit. The
fight was then kept up for about two hours in the
bush, we all covering ourselves in long grass, bebiod
trees, rocks, and everything that afforded us shelter.
Our men skirmished splendidly, and we kept on ad-
vancing and driving the enemy back, every now and
then coming on one of their dead bodies. I shot a
Hottentot during this part of the fight. I was lying
behind a log of wood, when I saw a fellow put hia
head up from behind a large stone, and then rise up on
one knee and take a steady aim at one of our men,
who was standing behind a tree, and whose side was
exposed to him. Before he had time to pull the
trigger I fired at him, and sent a rifle bullet through
big head. He tossed his arms up in the air and fell
dead immediately. I went up with some of our fel-
lows after the fight to see him; the bullet had struck
him just over the ear and gone through, so he must
have died almost instantaneously.