The Sun.
London, England, 1856-08-05 00:00:00

TILE COB77.RGS.

One of the most remarkable and instructive
books that has of late been presented to the Eng-
, heir public is the tr3.nslation of the " Life of
Perthes," the German bookseller, which has just
been brought out by Mr. Constable, of Edinburgh.
The following is a family picture of the Rouse of
Coburg by au admiring friend
"The great wisdom and experience of the Duke, as
we have seen, interested Perthes, and his benevolence
won him entirely. On his side, the Duke was very par-
tial to Perthes, and always saw him when at Gotha or
Reinhardsbrunnen. The forest and its inhabitants, re-
collections reaching back as far as 1806, as well 'as the
political events of the day, formed the subject of their
conversations. But Perthes' peculiar delight was in the
young princes. It was in 1836, when the Coburg Princes
came to Gotha, in order to conclude the marriage of the
Prince Ferdinand Augustus with the Queen ot Portugal
that he saw them first. In the January of that year he
writes—' A few rays ago I was dining with the old
Duchess ; both the princes were there—fine, t.4li, hand-
some youths, fresh, healthy, and full of spirits, to which
they gave free scope as soon as they were out of their
grandmother's sight. Prince Ferdinand,- the future
King of Portugal, has a noble profile, but he is still a
thorough child ; the poor slender fir-tree las to be trans-
planted to a hot soil ; perhaps his very cbildishnees it, in
his favour.' In 1839 Perthes writes : 'Late in the sum-
mer the ducal household came to Reinhardebrunnen, and
with them the Crown Prince from Dresden, and Prince
Albert from Italy. There father has good reason to be
proud of them both. The ardour, frankness, and hea-
thy judgment of the Crown Prince delighted me uncom-
monly; Prince Albert is, without doubt, a highly gifted
and thoroughly cultivated young man ; handsome and
elegant, courteous and benevolent. His thoughtful,
cautious temperament will lessen the difficulties of his
future position. We have the Duke of Meiningen, too,
and the King of Saxony ; and sometimes no fewer than
fourteen princes go out hunting together. These meets
irgs between the house of Saxony and the neighbouring
princes should oftener take place. Taken together, they
are not without significance in German relations, and
these wise, restless Cobuigs will tell upon Europe too :
they do not, indeed, form any very comprehensive plans,
but they know, as few men and princes do, how to seize
the passing opportunity, and use the pre4ent moment.
They have already secured the thrones of England, Bel-
gium, and Portugal for their own house, and they have
an eye on those of Spain and France as well.'
"In 1840 we find Perthes writing : 'The winter
months of this year have been trade interesting and ex-
citing by the chapter of histrry which has been enacted
here;; for, at the approach of the English wedding, the
Ducal Papa bound the garter round his boy's knee
amidst the roar of a hundred and one cannon. The ear-
nestness and gravity with which the Prince has obeyed
this early call to take a European position give hilts
dignity and standing in spite ot his youth, and increase
the charm of his whole aspect. Queen Victoria will find
him the right sort of man, and unless some unlucky
fatality interpose, he is sure to become the idol of the
English trams, silently to influence the English aristo-
cracy, and deeply to affect the destinies of Europe. Per-
haps I may live to see the beginning of this career. "As
for your Prince Albert,' writes a friend to Perthes in
the an'umn of 1840, ' I have every reason to suppose
that you rightly appreciate him and his position in Eng-
land. Still he can attain to a knowledge of things
around-him' and his relation to them, only after a long
residence. The public seem well affected towards him,
and in the higher circles he has already some influence;
but in order to influence politic, he must be older and
more free to act.' Another friend writes : I have not
seen the Prince during my stay in London, but I have
beard much of him ; he seems to be universally beloved,
and I have been often most courteously thanked by
Englishmen for the noble return which Germany has
wade to England for the Duke of Cuinber.and.' "

ACTION AGAINST A RAILWAY
COMPANY.

A case of considerable importance to men of business
travelling on railways, and the public generally, as also
to railway companies, came on for trial before C. .T.
Gale, E-ej , judge of the county court of Hampshire, at
llieingsioke, on Saturay, the 20th ult. Mr. Malford,
a timber-merchant, residing at Greywell, sued the Lon-
don and South Western itsilwsy Company for the sum
of 14e. 91. under the following circumstance's. Oa the
Bth of May last, Mr. Melford business to tran-
sact at Godahning, in surrey, obtained a ticket at the
Winclifield station on the Southampton line to go by
the up-train to Woking., where be intended to obtain
another ticket to go by the down-train from Woking to
Godalming, which leaves the former at 11.3 a.m. On
the up-train arriving at Winchfield, it was 20 minutes
behind its regular time, so that on its arrival at Woking
the down-train had left the station and gone on to Go-
dalming. Mr. Malford's bu laces being pressing, instead
of waiting for the next train to take him en to Godal-
ming, he hired a horse awl chaise, for which he had to pay
14s. 9-1., and which sure he now sought to recover by thia
action. These facts b-ing proved on the part of the plain.
tiff, and not disputed by the company, Mr. Greenfield,
of Winchester, solicitor, who appeared for the corn-
par,y, contended that they were not liable, inasmuch as
the delay was not occasioned by the neglect or miscon-
duct of the c mpany'e servants, but by causes over which
they had no contr.!. The guard of the train who had
travellsel with it on the day in question fr on Southamp-
ton to Waterloo was then called by Mr. Greenfield, who
proved that the morning of that day had been very wet,
and a strong north east wird prevailed throughout the
whole day, so that the driver found it impossible to pro-
pel the engine (although in good working order) at its
proper speed against the combined effects of the wet
rails and the strong adverse wind. The driver was in
attendance to prove the same. After the guard had
given his evidence the learned judge intimated to Mr.
King, of Basitig4tolte, solicitor for the plaintiff, that he
thought the defence 'Net up by Mr. Greenfield on behalf
of the company was a compete answer to the case ; but
Mr. King contended that it was the duty of the driver
under the c:rcumstances to have put on more steam, or
to have telegraphed to the down train at Woking to atop
there until the up train arrived. Both of these points,
however, were over-ruled by the learned judge, one on
the ground that the course suggested might have been
attended with danger to the passengers on the up train
—the other, that the company bad no right to detain
the down train beyond its usual time for starting. He
therefore gave judgment for the defendants with mita.
—Salisbury Journal.