The Sun.
London, England, 1869-11-29 00:00:00

ADMIRALTY REFORM.S.

The London correspondent of the Leeds Mireury says
there is but one opinion among commercial men as to the
admirable manner in which Mr. Baxter has carried out the
great financial reforms of the Admiralty which he inaugu-
rated !less than twelve months ago. Such reforms have
never before been effected within so brief a space of time
in any public department, and their effect has been
to lighten materially the burthen of taxation upon the
country. Mr. Baxter has succeeded in placing the
Admiralty, so long notorious for the abuses which
flourished in connection with it, upon a sound commercial
footing. The removal of the financial and commercial
departments of the Admiralty from Somerset House
to Whitehall has at last been effected ; and in this way a
great saving both of time and of money has
been accomplished. There is no doubt that
when the navy estimates for the coming year are
presented to Parliament, a further reduction will be shewn.
in the same direction as last year. Much has been done by
a simple alteration in the mode of buying stores, &c.,
adopted by the Admiralty. Instead of adhering to the old
system of tenders--a system which led to many abuses and
to the formation of most extraordinary combinations for
purposes of private property—a mixed method is now in-
troduced. It is a mistake to suppose that the Admiralty
are not now buying by public advertisement ; but they are
also buying up the employment of brokers, as well as by
occasional purchases direct, and they are thus enabled to
keep in check the abuses of the tender system. Mr.
Childers is anxious to defend himself against the charge of
needlessly dismissing dockyard workmen. There is more
danger of his being attacked from the other side. If it be
the fact that there are nine or ten thousand "establish-
ment men" in the dockyards—men who are there for
life, and many of whom know nothing about the building
of iron ships—we can hardly wonder that first-rate work-
men, even though they would work for much less money
than these establishment men, are refused admittance to
the yards. The time has, I think, come when the Board
of Admiralty ought not to be content with mere
buying and selling reforms, but ought boldly to grapple
with the question of reducing to a peace establishment
these vast works, and of putting an end to this absurd
system of hiring men for life. The committee now
sitting upon the financial affairs of the War Office is
likely to recommend that a financial secretary, hold-
ing the same position as that which Mr. Baxter occupies
at the Admiralty, should be appointed for that depart-
ment.

To render ineffectual any attempt to rescue
O'Donovan Bosse, who has just been returned for Tipperary,
increased military precautions have been taken by the
authorities at St. Mary's convict prison, Chatham, where he
is now confined.

A diary of the Prince and Princess of Wales's
tour in Egypt, kept by the Hon. Mrs. Grey, one of the
ladies in waiting, has recently been published for private
circulation. According to the Court Journal, only four
copies, and these handsomely got up, have been printed.
The late Earl of Derby, according to Bell's Life,
has left to all the male and female servants at Knowsley
Hall legacies in the proportion of two months' wages for
each year of service. In the case of the old servants the
legacies will amount to very handsome sum& He has also
left annuities to Mr. Forshaw, stud groom, Mr. John Shaw,
keeper of the deer, and others who had been for lengthened
periods in his service.

The Sheffield Independent says :—" The delicate
state of Lord Salisbury's health renders it improbable
that he will take an active part in 'politics during the en-
suing session; and if it be true that Lord Cairns is deter-
mined to forego the responsibilities of leadership in the
House of Lords, the prospects of the Conservative party are
far from being brilliant, unless the new Earl of Derby shall
come to the rescue."

A NEW OYSTER.—The oyster failure, according
;o the French papers, is about to be remedied in an unex-
pected way. A new mollusc, which the French call a pal-
lourde, has suddenly made its appearance in the Paris
markets, and is reported to have achieved a great success
among oyster :eaters in :that city. It is described as a
bivalve smaller than the oyster, and of a more elliptical
form, having a delicious flavour which qualifies it tho-
roughly to take the place of that ruinous delicacy. At
present this novel shell-fish, which is eaten precisely in
the same way as the oyster, is described as being sold at a
rate which places it within the reach of the humblest
purse.—Daily News.
THE RECENT ROBBERY AT WALSALL.—Since
Sunday week divers have been engaged in trying to pick
up the bag thrown into the Mersey, at the back of tho
Woodside landing stage, by the lad Simpson, when he
was apprehended, together with his friend Thompson,
charged with being concerned in the robbery of £942 from
the office of Messrs. Duignan, Lewis, and Lewis, solicitors,
Walsall, at whose office Thompson was engaged. Up to
Saturday, however, nothing had been found, but the
divers are of opinion that they will ultimatety be success-
ful as the bottom of the river, near where the bag-is sup-
posed to be, is very stony. The bag, our readers will
remember, contains, according to Simpson's statement,
between £5O and £6O in geld, about £6O in bank notes,
and a banker's draft on Messrs. Barclay, of London, for
£6OO or £7OO.

EXTRAORDINARY CONCEALMENT OF SEx.—Con-
siderable excitement has been caused in the colliery vil-
lages of Etherley and Toft Hill, Bishop Auckland,
during the past few days by a disclosure that has been
made by the death of a woman who has for the past
fifty years resided in that neighbourhood as a
man, and married two wives. It is said that shy
came from Scotland fifty years ago in the guise of
young man, and obtained employment at one of the
collieries, at which she worked as one of the men for
some time, and paid her addresses to, and ultimately mar-
ried, a servant girl living at the village inn. After .her
marriage she relinquished working at the pit, and com-
menced to make bosoms, yellow clay balls, and pipeclay
rubbers, which she and her partner vended in the surround-
ing villages. They had lived together twenty-three years,
when the wife died, and the reputed husband professed to
lament her loss very much, but at length the grief wore
off, and she married a second wife, with whom she
lived for a number of years, but not on the most affec-
tionate terms, and eventually, by mutual consent, they
separated. For some time the woman had lain on a bed
of sickness, and been dependent upon some kind neigh-
bours, whom, however, she always prevented coming too
near her, and latterly she persisted in wearing trousers in
bed. The other day she died, and when the neighbours
came, and were doing the usual offices of laying her out,
the discovery of her sex was made. The deceased woman
gave her name as Josiah Charles Stephenson, and she has
often been heard to speak of being heir to some property
about Berwick-on-Tweed, but had no money to go and
claim it. Many strange stories are told in connection with
this singular individual's history.
THE NORWICH MUSICAL FESTIVAL.—A meeting
of the guarantors and others interested in this festival was
held on Saturday at the Shire-hall, Norwich, Lord Stafford
in the chair. Mr. C. R. Gilman, one of the honorary
secretaries, read a report from the general committee of
the festival of 1869, which stated that the performances
had been highly successful from a musical point of view,
but that in a pecuniary sense the festival had been a
failure, as there was no surplus available for distribution
among the local charities. The committee attributed this,
adverse result to "peculiar and exceptional circumstances
which were not likely to occur on another occasion." The
total receipts had been £3,964, and the total expenses
£3,968, so that the festival had been attended with a de-
ficit of £4. The concerts had produced /3,470 of the receipts,
and the ball £278. The payments made to the principal
vocal performers absorbed £1,244, and those to the instru-
mental band and organist £B4l. The report was adopted,
and votes of thanks were passed to the committee, the
secretaries, the assistant secretary, and others concerned
in the management. It was resolved, after a short dis.
cussion, that the festivals should be continued biennially.
On the motion of Mr. I. 0. Taylor, seconded by Mr. R. N
Bacon, it was further resolved that a special committee
should be appointed to consider whether it was desirable
to introduce any changes into the management of the next,
festival. Mr. Bacon suggested that the chorus should con-
f
Dist to a greater extent of amateurs, and that more respon-
sibility should be thrown upon the conductor in respect to.
the engagement of artists and the selection of works to be
, 4.
performed. TheproceekssAnd_M Ito of. thanks,

THEATRE ROYAL, HA YMARKET.
Sole Lessee, Mr. Buekstone.
THIS EVENING, at Seven, FAMILY JARS : Mr
Compton ; Mrs E. Fitzwilliam.
At a Quarter to Eight, the New Comedy, NEW MEN
AND OLD ACRES: Mr Buckstone' Mr Chippendale, Mr
Howe, Mr Rogers, Mr. Braid, Mr Buckstone, jun. ; Miss
Robertson, Mrs Chippendale, Mrs. E. Fitzwilliam, Miss
C. Hill, eco.
Concluding with A DAUGHTER TO MARRY : Mr
Kendall, Miss F. Gwynne, &c.
Box-office open daily from Ten till Five.

THEATRE ROYAL, ADELPHI.
Sole Proprietor and Manager, Mr. B. WEBSTER.
THIS EVENING, at 7 o'clock, MY PRECIOUS BETSY: Mr
Atkins, Mr C. J. Smith, and Miss Eliza Johnstone.
At 1.5 to 8. THE LONG STRIKE: Ms Benjamin Webster;
Messrs A. Stirling. G. Belmorc, J. G. Taylor, W. Eignold, C. H
Stephenson. C. J. Smith; Ml,:s Furtado, etc.
To conclude with DOMESTIC ECONOMY. Mr tt.Belmore
and Mrs. Leigh 3turray.
Bax-ofliee open daily, from 10 till 5. No fees for booking.
rlaccs can be secured a fortnight in advance.

7_l- 014P,0 It N TIIE A T E-4_o YA L,
solo Lessee and Manager, BARRY Sti.fTIVAN.
T TS EVENING, at Seven o'clock, STATE SECRETS: Mr

LYO
Char',

a:ey.
Lord Lytton 's celarated - Play of THE LADY OF
Harry Sullivan; Messrs W. H. Stephens, Lin Mayne,
:Unman, Evans, Lunt, &c.; Mrs. Hermann Vezin

C. IL, rpman

To conclude with THE LO fTERY TICKET.
Principal Scenic Artist—Mr Julian Hicks.
Acting 13.1anager—AMORY SULLIVAN

GLOBE THEATRE-ROYAL.
Proprietor, Mr. Sefton Parry.
Immense success of Mr. H. J. BYRON,
TUTS EVENING, at 7, A HOUSEHOLD FAIRY. Mr Henry
Neville, Lydia Foote.
At 7. 5, NOT SUCH A FOOL AS HE LOOKS: Sir Simon
Simp'e, by Mr. H. J. Byron. Messrs. J. Clarke, Pareelle, &e
Mesdames Hughes, rerend, and Stephens.
To Conclude with A BREACH OF PROMISE,
Boz-ofilce open from 10 till 5.2

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