The Sun.
London, England, 1869-04-20 00:00:00

THE .REC.EXT REPRIEVES.

COADITION OF THE NA ILERS,

The startling facts recently made public respecting the
condition of the nailers—one of the oldest industrial tribes
of the Black Country--have excited a good deal of atten-
tion. There appears to be no doubt that the nail-makirg
trade is now in a most melancholy condition,the labourera
being miserably paid, and their homes and families squalid
and comfortless. The women and girls also work at the
universal calling, so that they have neither time nor
inclination for household work. Those who are familiar
with the nailers and their habits describe the people
as devoid of education, of social comfort, and
of religious feeling. As might be expected from their
ignorance and degradation they make the worst of their
position, drinking and idling at the beginning of the week,
and after Wednesday working day and night. The truck
system with all its attendant evils is in full force in most
of the nailmaking districts of the Midlands. It has been
proposed that a system of Government surveillance should
be adopted, and that the women and girls should no longer
be employed. The trade seems to be rapidly decaying,
and it is to be hoped that further inquiries may throw
some light on the best means of improving the position of
the nailers.

CALLING SPIRITS FROM THE DEEP.

`The committee appointed by the Dialectical Society to
investigate spiritual manifestations have held another
meeting. The inquiry promises to increase our informa-
tion, if not of the spirit world, at least of the extent of
human incredulity. Mr. Jenchen, barrister, read
a paper on the different classes of spiritual phenomena.
He said that he could himself testify to the lifting of
heavy bodies. I have seen the semi-grand at my house
raised horizontally eighteen inches off the ground, and
kept suspended in space two or three minutes. I have
also witnessed a square table lifted one foot off the ground,
no one touching it, or being near it; a friend present
seated on the carpet, and watching the phenomena all the
time. I have seen a table lifted clear over head six feet
off the ground ; but, what is more remarkable, I have seen
an accordion suspended in space for ten or twenty minutes,
and played by an invisable agency. A lady gave her
experiences as follows :—"The most remarkable manifesta-
tions I have seen were those of last Sunday evening at my
house. We were seated in a room which would have been
dark but for the moonlight. We first heard raps, and I
then we saw a figure at the window. It entered, and then
figures came trooping in by dozens. One waved its hands
and passed through us ; the atmosphere became fearfully
cold. A figure—that of a relative—came behind my chair,
leaned over, and brushed my hair lightly with its hand. It
was eight feet high, and, approaching Mr. Lindsay, passed
through him. Mr. Lindsay sobbed hysterically from the
intense cold." Mr. Blanchard gave the committee some
particulars of his experiences. Some years ago he came in
contact with the Marshalls, who were in the habit of
raising ghosts, and he witnessed some strange occurrences.
He bad given up spiritualism for the last few years, be-
cause he found it very inconvenient whent the printer was
waiting for copy to be interrupted by spirits who wanted
him as a medium. Mr. Blanchard subsequently related that
the spirits of Alexander the Great and Joan of Arc wrote
their names. Joan of Arc was asked if there was any
other name by which she was known, and she wrote
"La Pucelle." He was convinced that the Mar-
abatis did not know so much French. Mr.
Spear, a professional medium, said that he did not at
one time believe in spiritualism, but he found his hand
moved, and it wrote, "We wish you to go to Abingdon
to see David Binning." He went there, and found
an invalid of that name, whom he cured at the
dictation of the spirits. He afterwards visited New Yoi le
to lecture on geology, of which science lie knew nothing.
His success was so great that the professors said, " He
takes up geol.ogy where the books leave off." The corn.
mittee are preparing a report on Spiritualism.

There are now no less than fifteen Peeresses in
their own right—the Duchess of Inverness the Countesses
of Newburgh, Rothes, and Crornartie ; Vicountess
Beaconsfield; and the Baronesses Le Despencer, DeClifford,
Zouche, North,Windsor, Lucas, Sempill, Gray, Wellman.
and Buckhurst.
THE BISHOP or CORK'S WlT.—There is a story
just now " going the rounds" about the Bishop of Cork.
The appointment of this eloquent prelate is said to have
been rather a surprise. When it was doubtful, a witty
friend said to the Bishop, over a dinner-table, " Well, Mr.
Gregg, if you are Cork, don't stop the bottle." " Ah, I
see you're minded to draw me out," replied the expectant
prelate.
A WELSH JURY AGAIN.—At the Glamorgan-
shire Quarter Sessions, held last week, the jury, in return-
ing their verdict in a charge of robbery, said, " We have
had some difficulty in the matter. We tried all we could
to discharge him, but under the circumstances we cannot
release him." The prisoner was sentenced to twelve
months' imprisonment, with hard labour.
Mr. Robert K,Atle has consented to act as arbitra-
tor in the dispute between the employers and the employed
of the Manchester building trade. ll° will arrive in Man-
chester on the 4th of May for that purpose, and in the mean-
while, at his request, all agitation will cease on either side.
Tho strike of weavers at Preston continues without any ap-
parent change.
Official returns published on Monday inform us
that during last year 21,928,155 gallons of spirits were dis-
tilled in the United Kingdom. Nearly half this quantity
was produced in Scotland alone, and the remaining produc-
tion was tolerably equally divided between England and
Ireland. The number of gallons of proof British spirits
consumed in the United Kingdom was 21,008,634, on which
the not amount of duty was .£10,504,317. The consumption
in 11,327,223 gallons, in Scotland 4,907,701 gallons, and in
Ireland 4,773,710 gallons.
Notwithstanding Mr. Gladstone's recent statement
in the house of Commons upon the subject, it is, according
to tho Westtrn Daily Press, the intention of the Duke of
Somerset, in the 'louse of Lords, to interrogate the Govern-
ment as to whether or not arrangements Lave been made,
or are in contemplation, for replacing three prelates in the
south-western counties who aro incapacitated by illness
and infirmity from the performance of the duties of their
office.

Cardinal Cullen closes a letter-to the clergy of his
diocese, complaining of alleged proselytism at a Protestant
deaf and dumb institution tr ar Dublin, with the exhorta-
Von, " Let us, reverend brethren, redouble our exertions,
until there shall not be throughout the length end
breadth of Ireland a single deaf mute for whom we shall
not have procured the blessing of a Catholic education ; so
that the saving influence of the Catholic faith may sanctify,
and the tenderness of Catholic charity may assuage, the
sorrows and sufferings of the poorest among an afflicted
class of our brethren."

THE ST. ALBAN'S CASE. —The bill of costs in
the case " Martin v. Mackonochie " having been carried
in for taxation, an offer was made by Messrs. Brooks and
Co., the proctors to Mr. Maekonochie, to pay, without
the expense of taxation, £1,500, which, under the advice
of the proctor and solicitor of the association, the council
decided to accept, and their supporters in the country will
be glad to hear that/the sum of £1,500 has been paid.—
Church Association Monthly Intelligeneer.
It is not generally known that the eldest son of
every baronet is jure eanguinis a" knight, and that he is
privileged to demand and to receive the honour of knight.
hood at the hands of the sovereign at the age of 21. But
the right is seldom, if ever, put in force ; and during tl e
last thirty-five years only two instances have occurn d
where the claim was made ; but in both cases the claim
was allowed. They were Sir J. I. James in 1854, and
Sir William O'Malley in 1535. Both these gentlemen
have since succeeded to the father's baronetcies.

A SUTIIERLANDSIIIRE NUGGET.—We have been
favoured with a photograph of the largest gold nugget
that has yet been found in Sutherlandshire, the weight
being 2oz. I9gr. It was purchased by. Dr. Rutherford,
lielmsdale, and is now being exhibited by Messrs. Per-•
guson Brothers, goldsmiths to his Royal Highness the
Prince of Wales, Inverness, who have also brought out
and registered Several new designs in Sutherland gold
jewellery. The nugget is about the siz3 of an ordinary
walnut, and is nearly oval in shape."—Edinburgh Daily
mow.:

Those who think it desirable that the law of the land
shculd be strictly carried out by the Ministers en-
trusted with its execution will be curious to know the offi-
cial explanation of the reprieves which have just been
granted by the Home Secretary to a brace of murderers.
In regard to James Macdonald, who was convicted at
Chester of the murder of another labourer, named
Trolley, it may be argued that the crime was
rather in the nature of manslaughter, but if either the
judge or jury blundered on that point it is neces-
sary that it should bo authoritatively stated. As to the
other case—that of Charles Wiltshire at Gloucester—it is
difficult to conceive a more brutal and atrocious mur-
der than that of which he was convicted. Ac-
cording to the evidence ho found a poor woman in a
drlinken state, ravished, beat, and stripped her of clothing.
As if this were not enough, he has since commended him-
self to the clemency of the Crown by trying to
murder ono of the warders of the prison where
he was confined. Capital punishment may or
zuly net be a good thing; but the House of Com-
mons has very recently, and by an overwhelming majority,
declined to sanction its abolition. The question is whether
an important law should be privately abrogated.—Pal Mall
Gazette.

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC T 0111414

The Times discusses the debate in the Upper, gorg ;
the Coronation Oath, and thinks Lord Redes'`fe
gether mistaken in his interpretation of it.t -1700
Queen should not be capable of acting in concert /1_%.0
Parliament ought never, as it seems to ,0, to s'4;li,
itself to anyone who considers the terms of thtetS
What she has to maintain is simply that which Pt
established and which exists "by law." The Oat°
net'
posed on the sovereign by her subjects, and thelos
Parliament is the successor of the Parliament or tjupoi
tion of 1689, which framed it. It must be in the '
of those who imposed the Oath to remit it. It cot
Vi
be in the mind of the statesmen of the Rev°lt.l3-6;0
curtail the power of Parliament itself by 211'1°,of
Oath of the King an irremovable barrier t°
of every kind. This would, indeed, l'n'e
Sif.
to increase the royal power, and to give the
.
on his own judgment, the power of prohibiting leg"'oa
But Lord Redesdale exposes the trifling cluirncter—lii
own criticisms by a suggestion which is obviolet,
better than ridiculous. He asks the Governinent%to
it is their intention to bring in a bill to propose an te;
tion in the Coronation Oath. As if the QtieeP;dirr
bound to God to maintain the Irish Church, could
herself of this obligation by a bill absolving herself w
the Oath she bad taken ; and as if she would
moral right to give her assent to such a bill anY In°r
0%
to the Irish Church Bill itself ! Such are the lnoo,
tencies of a man who endeavours to furbish VP Pol
oaths—these rusty weapons of the past—for tile.i.etif
of using them in present warfare. Either Queen
°f ev
er,
has no right to assent to any change in the status j
Church, and consequently we are as a nation f°,t$
deprived of the power of settling our own ecnieailto
aflairs—a supposition so monstrous as to be self-rofn,
or she is under no obligation at all to resist the lop,
agreed to by Parliament, and needs not the opera
any preliminary Act, ti
The Standard says that Mr. Charley, seconded
eDi t
Vance, raised the whole question of disendanne,
moving the rejection of the thirteenth &ono"
was perfectly open to him to do this. The
°fd
reading of the bill could not be said to cover hot",
absolutely distinct principles ; and, as Mr. Cbar'elrei
it is beyond doubt that verymany Liberals have elrpd
themselves in favour of disestablishment without, a
downient. Before the elections many believed tbs 1100:,
a compromise was possible ; and, whether desirable tyC
we believe that it would be popular. There wns'ep
fore, no excuse for the impatience manifested by n o.
of the Liberals ; nor did Mr. Vance's denuncli4tu,
disendowment as robbery, which, after all, only.into plain words the doctrine asserted by such '-j3t
as Lord Cairns, Sir R. Palmer, and Pr,'
merit the outcries of contempt and ridicule t.,
which it was received. Of course, all Prates C'':
this kind are useless. As the division list shewecl,r,ea
servatives hardly think it worth while to enforce "re
their votes, and the Liberals are content to Oleo
conscientious scruples and individual principles in
paramount duty of implicit and absolute obedience
of
authority of Mr. Gladstone. But even majoritiesiAl
and 107 do not render discussion entirely value
~,e
absolve the Opposition from the duty of assertingi,l4
ciples and entering its protest against what it be' 1,1/
be an act of legislative plunder, and we are not soli
a formal division should have been takenupon these d
question of confiscation. We only regret that th el'
`4
not more fully debated and the division mere foi
attended. Surely more than 103 Conservatives
have thought it worth their while to record their cd
o,
tion that, whatever may be the wisdom or unWilzoal
disestablishment, as a matter of policy, the Ee:tioll'
Church property for State purposes is not a eine' oel
expediency but of morality, and is not the less on
robbery that it is also an act of sacrilege.
Mr. Disraeli's amendment (says the Post) fully
nised the incongruity of the disestablished Churchito
ing for its hierarchy that place in the Legislaturetia:',
it heretofore enjoyed; but simply affirmed the jlsl3ct ,
continuing to the present members of the EpiscoP"
the titles and precedence which they now possess'/
Charley's proposition went, however, to the root ay;
clause ; for by moving the omission
of the svetal
titling the Irish bishops to their seats in the 'o'
Lords, he would . have continued to the hierarcblooil;
disestablished and disendowed Church the same lcitlff't
functions it now enjoys. It has been urged that t
cannot be deprived of his peerage by any dt6
known to the Constitution, and it was urged
Parliament could not, consequently, deprive the P)
race of Irish bishops of their senatorial dignity. Tbde
is that Parliament and the sovereign, representing": f
do the supreme power in the State, can do anythilis,V
numerous Acts of Attainder in early times prove tb
tad;,
Legislature could cut cff a peer's head, and den' Or
heir incapable of succeeding to his title or estateS,v
appanage of rank without real power, and, al° I:
after the destruction of the very foundation °l!el,e,
such rank originally rested, could not, as Mr. Chips
Portescue well observed, be desired by the Irish bis"m ft!
The Daily A'en's remarks that the vexed question °iti`"
site of the new law courts is to be immediately sulois
to the House of Commons. Mr. Gregory asks tbe
jif
to express an opinion against the erection of the baioo,l V
1
on the site which has been cleared for them on tile,ol°l
side of the Strand, and in favour of their erection -,0,
Thames Embankment. Sir Roundel' Palmer s'sl
,;)
House simply to reaffirm the decisions of previaol, jji
merits, and let the courts be built on the site Win' I
Acy
been prepared for them under the authority of ithus t d
Parliament. In the discussion which is open ef''
burden of proof lies, of course, upon the adv°cacA
change. The Carey-street site was fixed on be oi!
it lies in the centre of the legal quarters of London'ilii
it saves the time of lawyers and, the pockets nnfOcett
who employ them to have the courts near to their, 017
Nor could the courts themselves be so convenient„V4
on the Embankment site. They would have the 112;00'
in their front, the Strand behind them, the TeroPIL
east, and Somerset House on the west, and would n'iof
pable of any expansion. The front of the building 11l
stand thirty-three feet lower than the back, and
must be a tunnel under it, along which the tide °',
~.taioj
must roll. In front of it would be the railivaYsvOi,g7
and all along the front would be the railway itself, 0
Mr. Layard has already said makes him fearful
safety of Somerset House. We cannot but belieti,
when all these and other considerations cone lee
review, the House of Commons will agree with theta°
petitioners, " that as the funds have been and are,,
supplied by the suitors, it would be most tinroiti`6
able that the site should now be changed, in OPP°,
to their interests and wishes, as expressed by their
sentatives."
The Herald laments over the difficulty of ob"
a 001
employment which is now felt by all classes. cc
mouths and scant occupation are evils by no vienn ,
f
e
fined just at present to dockyard labourers and Lali,
old
artisans. The upper and middle classes are char
b,,
those who compose the lower social strata of tu-(114
munity the hardships and perplexities which sprinootr
the existence of numerous competitors, and few pot' 1401,4
munerative occupations to be divided among thent',64o',
this one sample of news from across the water. OntP.ove
first day after Mr. Moses Grinnell entered uPoll
duties as collector at New York, he received 715a{ t
tions for the post of private secretary, and 13,101 -t°lo/;
subordinate offices in his gift. We are told further 'go
vast crowd surrounded the New York Custom 11°11ste't!„
that he had actually to call in the aid of the police .0°1',4
tect him against the physical importunities of his Peed
cutors. Anybody, however, who is even suPer-
fgt
acquainted with our own condition will need neo tbl
drawn from foreign sources to enlighten him 47- 'fro,
subject. All the gates are thronged with suitortl'es°7
bar is crowded ; the medical profession is overst°,,,
and there are far more lawyers than there is litigate,
Prospect of it. Architects jostle one another on the 'oo,hisi
merits for which they would fain design handsntnee
tages ; and builders are rapidly learning to dispena ri
their services ; just as railway contractors endealo °4do without those of engineers. The Church b°,/ Aterl.;
fewer and fewer inducements both to those who are l'4ol
ally and those who are spiritually minded. Byer,
has a tendency to wax dearer and dearer, whilst see
have no natural disposition to rise in amount. t the
The Star thinks that for the present there is rj:et'
slightest reason to apprehend either that Livingstea
failed, or that any other ill-fortune has attende.4oll'.
The time that has elapsed is short enough for such
as he has doubtless been engaged in since he coninage"
the exploration of the network of fresh-water lai'e!.,torir
are believed to lie to the south of the Albert and vi-pOl
Nyanza, mid which geographers agree in regarcli4,
part of the great Nile system. That Livingston fro°;
succeed in clearing away the last vestiges of doubt f,,°,
that still obscure and once inscrutable problem "4",c(ltP,
ages baffled the boldest enterprise of travellers, 30'"Doo
most far-reaching sagacity of men of science, is() /101's
in which we may fairly indulge, because thus far 11,,,
has been in his case good news, and in fact a Pled,arSel,'
he has been able to pursue his adventurous Jefit''
towards the point which would unite his discoveries
niese of the most successful of his predecessors.

FALL OF 4No
AVALANCHE.—TWELVE ri iDg
KILLED. —A melancholy accident has taken Pl3cevi
road over the Simplon. Thirty workmen from i 3 9
d'Ossola were crossing the Simplon. The road was PI
very bad state, a heavy fall of snow having °centre
Cut
order to cross the gorge of Eaux-Froides theY Pr°,ter
two road-makers as guides. They took but a fe"c,te
when an avalanche fell, and buried the whole thirty poi
Twenty of the workmen managed to extricate 01013500
but the remaining ten and the two road-makers firee-
away aid Ptristied.