The Sun.
London, England, 1869-01-20 00:00:00

RUSSIA.

The Marquise de Caux (Adelina Patti) arrived at St.
Petersburg on the 10th. She received an almo st official
welcome. The director of the Imperial theatres and several
of the attachc's of the French Embassy awaited her at the
railway station. The charming singer has turned the
heads of the phlegmatic Russians ; wines, scents, and
articles of dress have been christened after her, and the
name of Patti figures as prominently in the Russian capital
as recently did La Lantcrne in Paris. Accordingly, when
the Marquise made her debut, the audience was prepare
to be frantic. It recalled her forty times during the per-
formance of "La Sonnambula." It does not appear why
they stormed then.

MISCELLANEOUS NEWS.

THE REDUCTIONS.

The Admiralty is not only determined to stop
wastefulness itself, but is anxious that those under
its control should learn to practise economy. A
circular has just been issued calling upon every one
to co-operate with the Board in the work it has
undertaken. The following paragraph will
shew the spirit in which the notice is written :
" Economy in administration is attained not only by
spending no more than is necessary on the work
which is undertaken, but (still more) by not under-
taking work unless it be absolutely requisite for the
public service. Moreover, effective control over
expenditure is better secured by holding compe-
tent officers responsible (within due limits)
for necessary work, and by enforcing the con-
sequences of that responsibility, than by too
minute interference by superior authority." Each
official, from Admiral-Superintendent to clerk, is
told to be on his guard. One order is especially
worth notice, as directed against one of the greatest
evils of our Government offices. " Officers in every
branch of the service are; enjoined to reduce the
amount of useless writing and copying by all the
means in their power." This is the heaviest blow
dealt at the Circumlocution Office since M', Dickens
put it into a novel.

MORAL SPASMS.

We are suffering just now from a spasmodic
attack of morality. Woe be to any one who is found
out within the next few months doing anything
wrong—be he proprietor of bestial " Judge and
Jury," owner of a shady night-house, or director of a
joint-stock company. The public has suddenly been
aroused. The night-houses have existed for years
without molestation, but now they must be shut. The
accomplished baron—we believe he is a baronet—
who retails at half a crown a head filthy gutterings
to the " young man of the period," has long carried
on his disgusting business. But it is only now that
he is discovered to be something more than a
nuisance. In the other department of immorality—
commercial immorality—there is an equally keen
desire for punishing the guilty, and two batches of di-
rectors have trials pending. Finally,the liquidators of
Overend, Gurney, and Co. have come to the conclu-
sion that perhaps something may be got out of the
directors, and they have " filed a bill against the
directors of the company, with a view • of making
them responsible for the losses sustained by the
shareholders arising out of the purchase of the busi-
new.althelold firm: and the mode. in ,which_the

arrangements for effecting that purchase were carried
out."

AMR. PESOS AND OVEREND AND GURNEY.

Stefanos Xenos has published a denial of the state-
ment made on Saturday by the official liquidator in
the case of Overend, Gurney, & Co., to the effect
that he was a debtor for the sum of £144,000,
and that no attempt had been made to recover
the debt, which was considered hopelessly bad.
Mr. Xenos explains that in March 1863 he
sold, by a properly drawn up contract, the
steamers of the Greek and Oriental Steam Naviga-
tion Company, of which he was the sole owner, to
Messrs. Overend, Gurney, and Co. for some thou-
sands of pounds. The purchasers engaged to pay all
the debts and to collect the moneys belonging to the
Greek and Oriental Company on account of
freights and grain unsold. Mr. Xenos asks
how, in face of this contract, he can be
charged with a debt of £144,060; and
he adds that the business of the company
was carried on till 1865 by Messrs. Overend's
nominee. In conclusion, he expresses his belief that
Mr. 11. E. Gurney and Mr. Birkbeck are most
honourable men, and the victims of the acts of
others. The Greek and Oriental episode was but one
act of the great commercial drama of Lombard-
street, and Mr. Xenos declares that he is waiting for
the result of the present trial before he publishes in
detail the history connected with it. Mr. Xenos
vouches for Messrs. Gurney and Birkbeck; •P
vouches for Mr. Xenos ?