The Sun.
London, England, 1856-12-26 00:00:00

LONDON, FRI D.A. Y EV E eIN G, DEC RINIB R 26 1856

LIVES LEASED AT FIXED RENTALS

POLICE INTELLIGENCE. —(This Day.)

RAILwAIi.

.71-;.,?..;•:,

Closing Prices
1 this day.

Business
this day

➢tARLBOIWOUGH•STREET,

BURGLARIES ON CFIRISTM AS DAY. —George Stevens, a
well-dressed man, was brought before Mr. Bingham,
charged with being found in the house No. 113, Great
Tichfield-street, for the purpose of committing a felony.

Ailey
El:Orval!"
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Col. Stour Vy.
E. Lin. g.tipe.
E. Mi. H. S
Glas. Barr.
Neils. Direct
Do. New
Olstr.da Du Fr
At.
Railway...
Hull k SAlby
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Lon..Til.„ ,

Gotta J. 24
L.We.t.
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E. Count.
ICaldoniv,

97 99
98 102
11 - 13
133 138
4 ... 4i

Mr. Francis Kellar said that he occupied the above
premises, and that about seven o'clock on the previous
night he bad occasion to go into the yard, when his at-
tentien was attracted to a light on the landing of the
staircase. He went and looked through the window,
and saw two men go into the parlour. He called
out " Police," and on the arrival of a constable
the premises were searched and the prisoner was
found behind the door, The other man effected
his e-cape. When taken into custody the prisoner
said he was no thief ; he merely went into the house
to assist in capturing the thief. Witness added that the
prisoner was one of the two men he saw in the first in-
stance trying, the doors, and openin.9, the parlour.
Draper, .?2$ A, proved taking the prisoner into cus-
tody and conveying him to the station-house, where he
was searched, and a number of skeleton keys found upon
him. He subsequently searched prosecutor's premises,
and on the floor in the parlour found five skeleton keys.
The cupboard door- had been forced open, and the place
was in great disorder.
Three other charges having been brought against the
prisoner, who is supposed to be a ticket-of-leave man,
Mr. Bingham remanded him for a week.

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& Beres.'
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8 144 st

I(''6 -7 109

124
224 234
112 114

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Lowostoft
4 per cent
Do. 6 per ct
Manch.
and Mai
Rede.g 6 p.c.
Newmarket
Bury E. G.spc
N.& Est.s p.c.
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Prost. k vt, y:
Do. Shrs. A
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Shef. Roth an
Goole g. 5 p.e
Shrews. &Her
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Wear Valley g i•
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Darlingt.
Midland..

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PREFERENCE

Naval ana Deblitary Intelligence.

Her Majesty's steam vessel Oberon, 3, Lieut. Jack-
son commanding, arrived at Spithead on Wednesday
evening from the Mediterranean. She made a loo: pas-
sage, having left Malta on Nov. 26, Gibraltar Dee. 15,
and Caps Finisterre on the 21. st. She experienced heavy
weather from Gibraltar to Cape Finisterre, where she
put in for shelter from a bard gale on the 19th, and
sailed on the 21st. Her voyage from Malta to the Rock
was extremely boisterons. After leaving Cape Finisterre
she had fine weather. She brought home seven naval
invalids from Malta, eight naval supernumeraries, 17
discharged men from various ships o❑ the Mediterra-
nean station, and one private of the 46th Regiment.
She will now be paid off and refitted.
Her Majesty's screw blockship Pembroke, 60, com-
missioned for coastguard service, was taken out of Ports-
mouth harbour to Spithead on Wednesday, and out to
the Na,) Light to try her engines, after which she re-
turned to moorings off Gosport.
Her Majesty's screw steam c,rvette Satellite, 21,
Captain Prevost, sailed from Plymouth on Tuesday for
the Pacific. She conveys Dean Howard to the island
of Madeira, and takes to the Straits of Magellan a quan-
tity of flour for the missionary station there.
The crew of the screw steamship Cornwallis, 60, at
Devonport, got up lower yards and topmasts on Wed•
needay.

The African mail eteamsbip Niger, Commander
C.)rbett, sailed from Plymouth on Wednesday for Sierra
Leone and the We,t Coast of Africa.

ARTILLERY "EXPERIMENTS ON WHITLEY SANDS.—CoI.
Wilmot, the chief officer of the gun department at Wool
wich, visited this neighbourhood last week for the pur-
pose of inspecting experiments on Whitley Sands with
the rifled gun, which for a considerable time has teen
engaging the attention of Mr. W. G. Armstrong, already
so well known in connection with the successful applies,
tion of hydraulic machinery. Two targets 9 feet square-,
and a solid block of elm timber 3 feet thick, were fired at
from distances of 1,500 and 2,000 yards, and the results
exhibited the extraordinary accuracy and power of this
gun. After the range had been tested by a few trial
shots, the timber block, which was only 5 feet i❑
breadth, was struck at every succeeding discharge, and
although the weight of the bullets was only 51h., they
always either went entirely through the block, or lodged
within a few inches of the opposite side. The targets
were fired at with shells at the distance of 1,500 yards.
The shells were projected horizontally, like the bullets,
and exploded by impact. Only one shell failed to take
effect upon the targets, which after a few shots were so
perforated as to require repair. At the conclusion they
presented a completely riddled appearance, arid the
ground was strewed with chips. At 2,000 yards the fir-
ing was equally remarkable, but the failure of daylight
prevented it being continued. We believe that nothing
approaching these results has hitherto been realised in
the practice of gunnery.—Netvcctstle Chronicle.

COURT-MARTIAL AT ALDERSHOT.
The proceedings of a general court-martial appointed
o try Ensign Charles Jacquet, 23d Fusiliers, on charges
preferred again:t him by his late commanding officer,
Lieutenant-Colonel Bunbury, have just been brought
to a close at Aldershot. The charges were, " for in-
famous and scandalous conduct unbecoming the charac-
ter of an officer and a gentleman—first, in having, on
the 26th of August, 1856, made a false report in writ-
ing to his commanding officer, to tbe effect that certain
claims against him were paid, which he knew had net
been paid ; secondly, in having committed a breach of
military discipline in absenting himself from duty during
the month of September, 1856 ; and, tnirdly, for having
falsely reported himself as too ill to comply with an order
calling upon him to rejoin the depot of his regiment."
The prosecution extended over three days, and the
defence, in which the prisoner was assisted by Ser-
geant Ballantine (specially setained), occupied two days.
The case was very simple, and would have attracted
no more attention than ordinary instances of breach
of discipline, but from the fact that Ensign Jacquet,
who is not yet 19 years of age, had obtained his
commission in the 23d Fusiliers as a mark of
good conduct while in the Royal Elthorne Mid-
dlesex Militia ; and that Mr. Jacquer, senior, had alleged
his son had not been fairly treated by Col. Bunbury, in
a correspondence which had taken place with the Horse
Guards in reference to the prisoner.
Col, Wellesley, 7th Fusiliers, acted as president of the
court ; Captain Marriott, 821 Regiment, was the deputy
judge-advocate ; and Major Bruce, commanding tbe 231 '
Fusiliers, appeared as the nominal prosecutor.
Colonel Bunbury and 14 other witnesses were exa
mined for the prosecution. The facts proved against the
prisoner were, that having iucurrred two debts, one with
a tradesvvornan at Farnham, amounting to 2/. 9s. while
an officer of the militia stationed at Aldershot ; and
another of 41. for pipes and cigars with a Jew pedlar of
the name of Salmon, he neglected to pay the first, and
gave a cheque on Messrs. Cox and Co , which was dis-
honoured, fur the second ; that having been called upon
by Colonel Banbury to discharge these claims, he stated
in writing, under date August 26, 1856, that both debts
were paid ; that at that date neither of the parties to
whom prisoner was indebted had received the moneys
due to them; that having obtained leave of absence from
the depot of his regiment, at Newport, in Monmouth-
shire, he absented himself for five weeks, residing
during this period at Brighton ; that he travelled three
times between Brighton and London while so absent
without leave ; at the same time he addressed a letter
to Captain Bathurst, commanding the depot of his regi-
ment, informing him he was unable to return to quar-
ter owing to serious syphylitic indisposition, enclosing a
civilian doctor's certificate to this effect, and that in the
opinion of the military surgeons, who examined the pri-
soner at Brighton, such illness did not disqualify him
from being able to travel at the period referred to. One
of the witnesses created some amusement by the candid
admission that her visit to Aldershot, when she came
to demand payment of the bill of 2/. 95., was not made
specially to Mr. Jacquet, but to refresh the memories of
several ether officers in camp, who had forgotten their
pecuniary obligations to her mistress.
The prisoner, in his defence, declared himself wholly
guiltless of any intentional misstatement. With regard
to the claim of the Farnham shopkeeper, he had actu•
ally obtained a post-office order at Newport for the
amount, on the 25th of August, 1856, one day previously
to his allegation that the amount had been paid, and
that an accidental omission to send the counterpart of
the order was the reason the money had not been re-
ceived, That with regard to the dishonoured cheque, he
had drawn it under the belief that his father had pro-
vided funds at Messrs. Cox's ; that when in the middle
of August he found it had not been paid, he explained
the matter to his brother, who was on a visit to him at
Newport, and received his assurance that the matter
should be settled on his return to London ; that when he
made the statement to his commanding officer he
believed it had been so settled. With regard to his
absence without leave, the prisoner threw himself on the
merciful consideration of the Court, alleging that he was
most seriously ill during the whole period of such
absence ; that while he admitted having acted with great
indiscretion and folly, he had no intention of disobeying
the laws of the service to which he had the honour to
belong.
The defence was supported by the evidence of the
Farnham postmaster, who produced a post-office order
dated Newport, Aug 25, taken out by the prisoner in
favour of Anne Cottle, of Farnham ; of the prisoner's
elder brother, who admitted having undertdeen to pay
the dishonoured cheque, and who really calmed at Sal-
mon's house with that object. The cheque was never,
however, forthcoming, and the evidence on this great
point drew from the court an emphatic observation on
the manner in which the draft had been handed back-
wards and forwards between Colonel Bunbury and
Captain Bathurst, while it was carefully kept from those
who would probably have paid it. With regard to the
prisoner's absence from duty, Mr. H. J. Johnson, late
surgeon of the Lock Hospital, proved that from the
present condition of Ensign Jacquet's health, he could
not possibly have been in a fit state to travel during
September and October last. In answer to the court,
Mr. Johnson said had he known Ensign Jacquet was
absent from his regiment without leave, in his then state
of health, though, as a friend, he might have advised him
to risk making a journey, as a medical attendaut, he
should certainly have forbade such a step.
Maj,r Bruce, on tbe part of the prosecution, read a
the
rejoinder to the defence, in which be explained to
court that the wards "infamous and scandalous," were
not his, but had been introduced into the charges against
the prisoner at the Horse Guards. He added, that the
circumstances of extenuation disclosed by the defence had
not previously been made known to the prosecution—a
fact which would explain away any appearance of her b-
ness against the prisoner on the part of Colonel Bun-
bury ; and, lastly, he iemtended, that the military
medical testimony as to Ensign Jacquet's ability to tra-
vel outweighed what bad been deposed to by Mr, John-
son, of the Lock Hospital.
The Court having heard the rejoinder read, subse-
quently determined it had been irregularly put in, and
could not be received.
The President, before closing the court to deliberate
upon the finding, animadverted in strong terms upon the
presence of Capt. Bathurst in the room after all witnesses
on both sides had been specially desired to withdraw—s a
a
proceeding which, he said, could only be designated a.
wilful defiance of the orders faint down by the court.
The decision of the court will not be made known until
after it has been submitted to the Hone Guards.

ETISCOPAL LrBERSLITY.—The Lerd Bishop of Glou_
cester atni Bristol provided lodgings, at his own expense.
for every candidate for the recent ordination, and di-
rected that all their needs should be promptly and
liberally supplied. The want of a palace at Bristol has
thus not beon held by the right rev. prt late to be an ex-
cuse for neglecting the rites of hospitality.
ARRIVAL OF THE CaNDIA.—The Peninsular and Ori-
ental Company's steamer Canoia, Captain H. W. Powell,
which lett Malta on the 10th inst., arrived at Southamp-
ton yesterday. Tuis vessel brings no passengers, those
who embarked in her at Alexandria having arrived two
or three weeks since overland, via Marseilles. The
Candia has made the voyage from Malta (not calling at
Gibraltar) to the Needles in 14 days and 11 hours, with
one engine, and against strong head winds two-thirds of
the voyage. She experienced strong north-westerly
gales in the Mediterranean ; north-easterly winds from
Gibraltar to Lisbon ; off Lisbon a very heavy northerly
gale ; across the Bay of Biscay easterly winds and hazy
weather ; up Channel nortu-westerly wind and hazy
weather. Dec. 24, at 2 p.m., off the Lizard, spoke the
Dutch brig Bantam ; asked to be reported. The cargo
brought by the Ca.ndia consists of two packages of spe-
cie (value not stated), 50 cases of gum, 15 boxes shawls,
62 barrels of dates, 2 bags of coffee, 5 cases of tortoise-
shell, 25 cases of silk, 2 bags of rice, 320 bales of silk,
76 bales of flax, 2 bales of wool, 3 cases of opium, 106
packages of elephants' teeth, II oaeks of wine, 1 package
of cigars, 1 package of dried fruits, and 117 packages of
general merchandise.

„,,
THE AUSTRALIAN EXPLORING EXPEDITION. never yet peopled by man, or undergoing the gradual pro-
_____„„_______ cess of preparation. During the whole of the ascent we
(Ft oN the Colombo Observer ) did not see one native, though a few came down one day
We are indebted to cue of the officere for the following and an on the river bank abreast of the anchorage of the
interesting particulars of the voyage of her Meiesty's ship Torch Pei hsps they avoided us, as dreading a renewal
Torch, in search of the North Australian Exploring Expe- ef the crusade k ,pt up against them by the exploring patty.
dition, between the months of June and September, 185 . The tides ate feat fully rapid up this river, and in the Cam-
It is extremely gratifying to learn that the exploring party bridge Gnlf, rising to the height 0f.20 to 25 feet. On the
was safe, notwithstanding the general apprehension that it Torch attempting to leave the river she grounded on a
had fared the melancholy fate of Leh:Lai-in, Kennedy, and spot where in 1841 there were three fethows of water, and
others : - at low water her keel was seven feet above low water mark,
” Ever since the colonisation of Australia, great desire though the next tide she floated again This peculiarity
has naturally been evinced for correct information concern- will always render this river impracticable for sailing
ing the interior of the continent ; the whole of which itn- ships, as nothing but a steamer should attempt its ascent.
inense space being, even at the present time, an unknown The Tom Tougdragged for 28 days over the rocks about
region, abounding in imaginary dangers, in which specula- half way up, and had to be hove down and caulked, and
titer has placed all climates and cepabilities. Numerous the Torch broke one anchor fluke, and the tides once took
expeditions have been fitted out from time to time with the out fifty fathoms of chain before we could bring up.
laudable view of throwing open those unknown lands, but These circumstances, together with the absence of land
all from a variety of causes have proved failures or partial adapted for agricultural pursuits, and the great heat, coru-
failures, and for all useful- purposes the interior of the bine to make the Victoria River worthless for the British
continent remains as much a terra incognita as when Cook colonist, and indeed all who are capable of judging concur
first saw the coast line in 1770 froni his ship Endeavour. in the opinion that the whole of North Australia above the
One of the most celebrated and lamented explorers, Dr, latitude of 20 S. will never be made to yield soil capable
Ludwig Leichardt, a German, left Mbreton Bay, on the Of Cultivation. During the time we lay at anchor in the
N. E. coast-, in 1848, intending to traverse the whole breadth Vittoria River the thermometer stood at 130 deg. in the
of the continent and strike Swan River on the west coast. sun; and when the rem t n-east trades blew, which prevail
He anticipated being away 2, years, anti the last time he here during three-fourths of the year, the wind, coming
was heart of was by letter, dated 4th April, 1848, from a over such a vast extent of heated and arid country, was so
sheep station et Mr. M`Pherson'e, beyond Mount Abuts,• dry and parching as completely to throw all our meteors).
since ; he left there in good spirits, and from his previous logical instruments into disorder. The difference between
success in exploring and intimate acquaintance with the the wet and dry thermometer, or in other words the
,
interior and the habits of the native tribes, great• results amount of evaporation in the atmosphere, was as 16, deg.
were naturally locket for, and much anxiety was evinced The usu rl average is about 5 deg., sometimes it reaches
in Sydney and the colony for news of his arrival at Swan 6•7 deg., but here we had it to suchan extent that almost
River. But time went on ;no news came. People began everything in the ship became us dry as a chip. The box-
to suspect ; and the result is, that from the 4tri of April to wood of the thermometer warped one-eighth of an inch in
the present time no news or even the faintest trace of him four, so as nearly to crack the glass tube, and book backs
has ever reached-the civilised world. Whether he perished curled up. The but air made the nose and eyes exceed-
by the natives, or from starvation in the great central iegly sore.
desert supposed to exist, is of course matter of conjecture On reaching Coupang we heard that the Tom Tough had
A search was instituted after him, under Mr. te„eoneo, left for Sourabaye, where we accordingly proceeded and
Hely, which left in 1851, but brought back no news, ; 13,1 there found her lying ; she had been coeds:maned as unsea-
since then rumour has been silent on his fate. severe' worths and was sel t ; the Messenger of Sydney, a well-
other explorers have shared the same lot, and in July, built schooner, being chartered and despatched in her
1855, Mr. A. C. Gregory and a party of 20 men, with six place to proceed at once to the Albert River and meet Mr.
menthe' stores of provisions, were despatched frein Sydney Gregory on his arrival there, which ere this we hope she
in a small vessel ou an exploring expedition by the direc- has done. The Torch was sold in Sourabaya. As all has
tion and at the expense of the home government. They been done that was suggested for the relief of Mr. Gregory,
called at Moreton Bay for cattle, ke., and left there on it now only remains to await with interest the news of the
12th August for the Victoria River, and by a letter from fulfilment of his anxiously cherished projects.
Mr. Gregory, slated 24th September, 18,5, the last news
received from him, were all well, and intending to com-
mence operations for a journey overland to the heads of
the Albert River at the end of October following Their
small vessel, the Tom Tough, was then to leave the Vic-
toria River and return to the mouths of the Albert River,
and there wait Mr. Gregory's arrival. Since Mr. Gregory's
letter, dated 24th September, no news of him had reached
the Colonial Government, though nine months had elapsed,
and he calculated on being away only four, and fears being
entertained th et some accident had happened to his vessel,
the Torch steamer was chartered by Government, and
placed under the command of Lieutenant W. Chitntno,
R.N., a competent and experience . officer, who ha I been
despatched from England for the purpose, and who was
ordered to search the mouths of the rivers, and in case of
need, relieve the party from their difficulties. The Torch
sailed from Sydney June 19, 1856, calling at Newcastle
for coals, from whence she sailed on the 25th following,
and commenced her voyage to Torres Straits. Lieutenant
Chirmno preferring the inner route, the Torch entered
the Great Barrier Reef at Break Sea Spit, and after a
passage of 24 days reached Booby Island, Torres Straits,
We found the much decried inner route to be safe and
practicable for steam or sailing vessels at meet seasons
of the year; the water is always smooth, the dangers
prominent, and with care easily guarded against, and
we fully concur in the opinion that it will ultimately be
the route of a line of mail steamers from Singapore to Syd-
ney, which will find its waters a smooth and speedy high-
way. Query, ie not the great Barrier Reef a mighty
breakwater formed by the Almighty for the beneficent
purpose of facilitating the navigation of these dangerous
seas
" We found that the cave on Booby Island contained a
large store of provisions ; we repaired the post-office, which
was in a very dilapidated condition, ant wi h the south-
east trade-wind blowing pretty strong, made the best of
our way down the Gulf of Carpentaria to the Albert
River. On Bountiful Island we found immense quantities
of turtle, and on Sweet's Island we opened the well dug by
Captain Stokes in 1841, where we obtained a supply of
fresh water, and on the Ist August anchored within five
miles of the mouth of the Albert River in two fathoms
water ; the immense mud lets preventing a nearer ap-
proach. The next morning Lieutenant Chimrno, with two
boats, commenced ascending the river, anti after penetrat-
ing to its source in the Plains of Promise of Stokes, were
disappointed in not finding any traces of the expedition.
On the tongue of land at the fork of the river, fifty miles
from the mouth, we left substantial indications of our
having been there, on the larger trees, and enclosed fall
particulars in a bottle suspended from a branch, and during
the descent of the river several bottles containing blinder
notices were affixed to trees, in conspicuous positions. On
the 7th we regained the ship, having been absent six days.
Of the Albert river and the country through which it
flows, it would be but misleading to speak in favourable
terms. Till just upon its source we found no fresh water,
and when 50 miles from the sea the water was at high tide
as salt as at the mouth. A much more appropriate term
would be a salt-water creek than a river, and during its
whole course we could not discover on either bank a single
fresh-water stream running into it. The country a few
yards from the bank is barren and parched up ; and, from
the scarcity of variety in the vegetable productions,
cannot at any time ptesent a very much improved ap-
pearance. The soil bears no evidence of being rich,
and the firm conviction that we all arrived at was tbat t •
country round here would never be of use for the purposes
of colonisation, and in this view Lieut. Chin-nt) joined.
Independently of its being ill adapted for agricultural un-
dertakings, the climate is, we believe, utterly prejudicial
to the health of Europeans. During three quarters of the
year not a drop of rain falls, and the heat is excessive,
with no wind. The thermometer ranged with us about 1.0
Fah., and during the other three months, while the north-
west monsoon blows, this country seems to be the sport of
gales of wind and deluges of rain, juileing from the enor-
mous ravines and gullies which everywhere run down to
the river, choked with immense trees and whole masses of
earth and stone."
One of these ravines gives you an idea of the ravages of
an earthquake or a tornado. Deep as these immense gul-
lies had worn themselves into the earth, they were coin-
pletely choked by large trees, yards in girth, and from the
smallness of those on the banks of the river some of them
must have been transported miles in a torrent of wind and
rain. They were lying tossed anti tumbled about in all con-
ceivable positions, mixed with huge boulders of earth, and
rs the burning sun had evidently been pouring down upon
them for months, perhaps years, they were as dry as tinder
and as soft as touchwood, and, in their curious positions,
and the havoc which they pictured, contrasted solemnly with
the silence anti repose in which they were then lying. Surely
no settlement could be made on the banks of a river where
you were liable to have the very foundations carried from
under you. Of natives we saw but very few, and the coura.
try seemed thinly peopled. Alligators abounded, bolds were
scarce, herons and curlews being almost the only ones visi-
ble, and in a river never but once before traversed by Eu-
ropeans we did not see sufficient animals to supply a single
fresh mess. On leaving the reouth of the Albert river we
were delayed by light winds, and were several days in reach-
ing Bountiful and Sweer'slslands, on which we left similar
notices to those deposited in the river. Strong winds again
favoured us, and we made a rapid run to the Warted 'slaters,
which we reached August 20th. We were now clear of the
Gulf of Carpentaria, and stood away westward for the
Victoria River. As the centre of the Grlf of Carpentaria
had never before been traversed by a ship, and nothing
whatever being known of it, we looked forward with some
interest in hopes of making some discoveries. Both in as-
cending anti descending the gulf we passed down the
middle of it, our tracks crossing in the centre ; but, beyond
obtaining soundings, we could not discover any land,
though a man was constantly on the look-out aloft. From
the nature of the soundings obtained, which, from the
mud flats which line the shores, increased with arith-
metical precision to about 40 fathoms in the centre, we
augured that so gradually-deepening a bottom was proof
of no land being in the intermediate space, and such
was the regularity of the soundings over this immense
gulf, that, knowing our position, we could at any time
give a good idea of the depth of water. In the bottom
of the gulf squalls and calms were f. equent. Higher up
the trades blow with regularity. From the pecu iarity of
weather in the bottom of the gulf a sailing vessel will
always find great difficulty in working up to the Albe. t
River, and it was the conviction of all on board, that had
we not been on board a steamer we might have been de-
leered weeks, perhaps months, as the prevailing wind, S.E.,
is right ahead : this will be another difficulty in the way
of settling there, should such a proposal be-ever entet-
tained. We reached the mouth of the Victoria River, Cam-
bridge Gulf, on the 26th August, and the Torch steamed
50 miles up the river, to Holdfast Reach, so named by
Stokes, who moored the Beagle here while surveying in To study the cycles of years is to discover many
1810. On Entrance Island we found notices left by the curious coiuc dencee. In the
Tom Tough, which for the first time enabled us to learn study is highly inetruc ire, T
-,i 1857 be as like 1757, as
marred the gathering of
of the expedition of which we were in search. the present year has beenshall have a
1756, we
From these notices it appeared that the schooner bad sailed
warm summer and good h b oken weather
a short time previous to our arrival for Coupang (Timor,)harvest. The
fir a fresh supply of provisions, - - and that the party who year,
of thiswhich
wasr f the crops so
like
rot the seasons this
had started overland for the Albert River had. left in goo! detrimentally, an exact reetition of the weather a
health and spirits. All doubt was now at an end, and the stenter y rotors. Ant
• not on' y pas the weather the Herb:.
object of our crui-e seemed accomplished, but as the no- Politics fled foreign affairs were but little different.
.1 ;
tice stated that letters had been left at the camp formed -t-ad of Adiuiral
by Gregory at the head of the river, we deemed it prudent dispute abut,
our grandfathers had Admiral Byeg.
in
to ascend in the boats and obtain them, which was accord- They raised a great -0 about his neglect of duty
• ly done From these notices and the people of the
ing the Mediter . utcry
d worse than our Charley ;
ranean He fare
and shot. Bet cruni-
Tom Tough, we learnt that Mr. Gregory, with great energy be was tried. to death,
and judgment, had already made two excursions iu the
gale
the garotting robbers of this
interior from the camp, 90 miles from the mouth a the
awho, Compared
NaPier ~n i his failure in the Baltic t
'lay, her
: at Warwick, and the assizes
river, in one of which he penetrated as far. as 21 degrees 1 y, • dly deserved with the
ion. Although tws w 1-
south latitud©, in a south-by-west direct as see pt StaDdiOg k bang the weavers
his of C s•esit ry, Noneat:
little was learnt from him of the nature of thecountry, were continued from weep:
fared worse. A gal-
werketotee hardware men of
in fresh water and pas- . L
Bir-
mind, and a country abounding we gleaned that a favourable impression existed in
othe 2d published the year follow-
' i to have been reached. n June
forage was salt ' In Smith's """ Clacts' - in words which
and
1856, he left the camp with seven menforty-five
of 1756 is described.
to make across the country for the heal iiil?, the harvest
from Mr. Hall Maxwell s recently issued
lenses, intendingiumgeatn, for rioting about
,d,ear bread.
har ivary '
of the Albeit River, where ere this, we trust, he has
arrived in safety, and on communicating with the ship re sort o' t ntities of grain perished by the rain
sent to afford him assistance it was his intention to aain ourable.
GI."
gosntaof what remained proved defective
'iY s i gee The la-t season was extremely unfav-
start and try and reach Port Curtis or Moreton Bay. , an
This was not at all contemplated in the original plae• --Cotdhwininqdu'
ripen-
but every ono speaks most highly of his skill and energy, ing." quantity and and substance by its not duly
and should be attempt what has hitherto been tried the ma met the public
. ateprices, at least
t fit about eaker and extorti
in vain, it will be the warmest wish of every one that he di,con ,
as now to be disprop .rtioned to the
may not share the fate of Leichardt or Eel)
u"(IY but live prices then alleged
to receive the honour that will await him. The ' cane rice et wheat, by the folio sing regulations :
abandoned on the 2d June, and we visited it • wits
Pri
Bread, to pay in money, for a loaf weighing $
August, Large
during which interval it had never been visitedbyln the In Edinburgh (1756
e unit- ls. meat fl air ; 2,1. second 11l ,tir ; 7d, third
natives. Old clothes, shoes, and implements e ying ii(:or, 'W.- ighing 4-p .un.i.-8 I finest ; Bed. second ;id
about, anti the huts standing, with Weigisieg 3 pounds-61 finest ; 41d. second ;
the rude were
and third
sleeping places just as they had been left. We afterwards •
learnt from the people of the Tom Tough constant 3i third.
that a
ntive., Small bread, to weigh as follows :-11b. Boz., finest ;
warfare had existed between the
which would no doubt account for Party and the sdr. second • 21b. 9oz. 2dr , third. The
'lb -
visiting the camp. One of the use of his twopenny loaf to weigh 1 , finest; 11b. 4oz. 10 dr.,
arm from a spear wound ; but thisen had lost the
the only second ; 11b. 11 oz. 7dr., thirst. The Penny loaf to
casualty. The shores of the Victoria''valsll7er are much more weigh Boz., finest ; looz. sdr., second ; 13oz. Ildr,
picturesque than those of the Albert,
their timidity in not 11b. 1 4oz. 1 ~
being much bolder third. The halfpenny loaf to weigh 4ez , finest; sez.
in their outline. Abrupt masses of bills come down
ttb 29dr., second ; 6uz. 1 3dr., third.
ful glimpses were obtained of striking cel3(37Y; valt
the water's edge, anti at every bend in the stream4breaahu
ere- i
get i narce,. on the top ..1 each tit t heir loay.-e with
N.B. The bakers fir, to affix the initial letters of their
of mountains, taking their *s• nat the river ban
' awe
'II idi scribing the quality ef the fi • '
unr, viz,. P. fir finest,
back into the country, - the distant horizon till
9, revealing ou W. for wheaten or second sort, anti hl, tor household or
peaks and cloud •and from the wildernessletters
y summits k tossed up in every third sort, and figures denoting the weight of the 6,4,
sterility of the jagged ' of rook
masses origin, though, and 3 pound loaves.
direction were evidently of volcanic k s re- Tne Tice of wheatper quarter
both here and at the Albert, we saw no roc i
I was then __at rate
South Australia, and l
• —freer) 46e. to 50e. In Fet Maicb, and April,
sem-tiling the gold pa Of
rev
re among our crew gave it rAiiry,
1757, it rose to 675. Theof post-offices through-
several old diggers who we be found. Thoughmasters P
as their opinion that no geld would out. the kin dote were called on by the Secretary of
hundred miles from the mouth of
we penetrated to one S ate to cellect informs,' lots an
transmit it to London
distance of its we
within a short
the river, and to for the information of his MejestY as to the probable
in a spring at Gregory's Camp ;
found no fresh
and though &Rig'
air of sterility water
itors exceptnumerous there was the same 1,111.,111A ref ecru in their respective towns and disuicts.
we
and an absence of animal life, t Thus agricultural statistics were eNen then held to be of
and drought,
like
portions of a continent value.—Ccadonkx Mercury'
I whirl realm these rivers look

DR. LIVINGSTOA'S DIsCOVERI.E3.

. ! Dr Livingetan has tree ei the river Leeambye down
to the Zatnbeze ; a wonderful tea', if we consider the
distance and the character sf the regions traversed. To
geograpbere his discovery is one of extraordinary interest,
since it makes known an immense river, so peculiar in
character as to be viiihout any parallel on the face of the
earth. And allow me to add, that his discoveries justify
to a great extent-the doubts hitherto entertained, sir it
is obvious that, after all, but a small proportion of the
waters of the Leeambye reach the sea-coast. This great
river falls like the A,hys.inian Nile flit-inlet' a ha-attic
cleft which reduces its breadth from 1,000 to 20 yards.
Above these fall-, the great river, or system of rivers,
spreads out perpeiieally into a great sea, and fills hun•
dreds of lateral canals. Below the falls ii. is a broad bat
tranquil stream, of a totally different character.
Teat the waters of the Leeambye have less influence
in the Zambezi than the rains of the maritime region
' I may be infetred from what we know of the lattsr river,
which as a channel of communication with the interior
is of little va'uo. No rigee I vessel, great or small,
ever enters the Zi.mbeze, the mouths of which seem to
be closing rapidly. Tee Luabe, the southernmost mouth
of the Cuaina—a4 the river is called in the lowlands—
was navigable when the Portuguese first appeared on
t °east, but it has long ceased to be practicable. The
Quilimace river, or most norther,' mouth, bas closed of
lsee years fit such a degree that for six 'menthe in the
year (from July to February) it is impassable even for
a canoe. The traveller up the river at that season must
go two days' journey by land to tbe head of the delta,
before he embarks for Sena. From Sena the
navigation of the river up to Tete is never at-
tempted in the dry season, and the journey by land to
the latter place takes a month in a tipola or a palanquin
along tortuous paths, through an intricate hilly country.
A couple of days' journey above Tete the river is then
easiy fordable, and armed parties of natives frequently
march across it. A little higher up we fiud cataracts
which interrupt the navigation at all seasons, and as.
cen Clog the stream again beyond the falls, we arrive at
Zuwbo, an island at the mouth of the Aruangoa, which
in the flourishing dap of Tete was the hegiest point
ever reached by the Portuguese in light canoes, arid for
their going no further n ) more probable reason can be
aseigeed than that they could not.
The river of the maritime region (the Zambez.) in its
periodic changes, or the rise and fall of its waters, pre-
cedes by three or four months the great river of the inte-
rior. Since these rivers form one stream a week might be
thought to suffice, with a moderate current, to carry its
waters; it im Sesbake to Tete ; yet it is March and April,
when the Leeambye is lowest, that the Zembeze pours
down its enormous floods ; and it is in July, when the
river of Quilimane ceases to be navigable for a canoe,
that be Leeanbye spreads out like a sea over hundreds
of square miles.
Te the nueract o ability of the tiver must be added the
p ditical state of the aeijecent country. The trade of Tete
with tbe cetnit i s to th,, sou .h a •d west has, in the pre.
cent century, ceased totaly. No Portuguese agent or
save dealer dares to move in those directions. Hard
pressed by the watcatul bosti;ity of the natives, Tete has
for some years struggled for its very existence. On the
northern bane of the river the Portuguese have some ter-
r tery, occupy estates, and carry on a little trade with the
natives to the north and no; tk.west, but from the wes-
tern interior they are and ha-c been for years completely
cut if by the chief ewe! led Gingarners, whose fame, as
we learn from the marginal notes on Dr. Livingston's
first map, has peeetrared to the interior. The Portu-
guese trade µitch reaches that interior proceeds wholly
from Delagoa Bay TLe natives of the Bay are easily
distinguished by certain peculiarities of their scanty
covering, and we kno v on good authority that in that
way they have been recognised in the villages on the
Leeambye.
Permit me to add, that valli!0 so much had been said,
right or wrong, of Livingston's discoveries, no notice
851108 to have been taken of that particular in which he
s
ryntnagtopni,
,tr,a,:faeduprn,pr
itveoal
unrivalled and alone. He has futni-hed a singu.
tar, I might, perhaps; say a sublime,. example of the
ascendancy and moral paw, r i4f c-vilised man. He has
not mer ly! made rewarsable j ,urneys, but he has
gone forth, unarmed, without a single European corn.
' surroun,led by a bead of those whom certain
peeper!,
twraajvieisllHereai(re,!)ch,,aosuClialptacail,lesaatvtaergwesa,rdbauStirwWhoi,llurattledeCrahrnis.
control, proved uniformly tractable and faithful. He
led them, not. by the diregcteensttielinweo,rbdus,ttsotitllhewliathroduisttafa::
tering 5,,d without mishap, overcoming every difficulty
b
ent
she cWouisTueilestia(ntdbis is the original sense of Was-
%\tbilri.tieughmoeunt),so,,uthheerren
tees saw
win
t:hineegfroeramt
oc an, great ships, and houses hardly less wonderful.
Though there caressed and honoured, he did not desert
his humble followers, but led them back triumphantly
to their homes, and then set off again to the eastern
00

Such as the expedition of Hercules to the western
bounds Of Europe, or of Bacchus to India, seemed to the
early Greeks, such inu-t Livingston's journeys appear in
the eyes of the B ikalolo, but far more wonderful and
Impressive, not only as bein4 more real and distinctly
seep, but also because, being performed without force
or strstagern, they are of a character miraculously ori-
ginal. Tile absolute sway exercised over these rude
tribes, whose confidence is complete'y won by the role.
ttionsries, Dr. Livingston and his father-in-law, the
worthy Moffsit, redounds to the credit of themselves
their country. and their calling. Moffatt's long.con.
tinued labours among the Bachtmnas have borne the best
fruit, in a great and good work completely performed.
From such men statesmen might learn how t estimate
and deal with uncivilised tribes.— W. DESBOROUGH Coo
LET.—A th Ce 1.191 C,

"ALL THE SA oE A ifIUSDftED YEARS
BENCE."