The Sun.
London, England, 1869-03-27 00:00:00

BRITISH HOME for INCURABLES, Clap-
ham-rise. instituted in 1861.
Patroness—H.R.H. the Princess of WALES.
This Institution provides a home for life, with good
nursing and skilled medical attendance, for perscns over
20 years of age and above the pauper class, who are hope-
lessly afflicted with incurable disease.
Pensions of 110 per annum are also granted
The Home was opened in September 3863; 71 in-
patients and 106 annuitants have been elected. Elections
in May and November. Forms of application may be ob-
tained from the Secretary.
ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTIONS and DONATIONS are
earnestly solicited.
Bankers—Messrs. Barclay, Bevan, and Co., 54, Lombard-
street, E.C. ; Messrs. DrummoDWnd, ChD.aWEringA YEE-cross,, Sec S.W.
E.
Offices, 73, Cheapside, E.C.

OME for the I{ELPLESS.—ST. JAMES'S
.1-1- DIOCESAN HOME for FEMALE PENITENTS
(Hammersmith), under the immediate direction of the
Bishop of London. The work carried on by a Sisterhood,
"in faithful accordance with the principles of the Re-
formed Church of England." FUNDS greatly needed
COUNCIL.
The Bishop of LONDON,

Rev. J. W. Ayre
Rev. F. G. Bloomfield Major-Gen. Rt. Hon. Percy
Hon. and Rev. F. ByngHerbert., M.P.
Rev. R G. Baker Rey. J. E., M.P.
S. S. Brooke Rev. W. F. Erskine Knollys
The Lord Clinton Rev. S. W. Lloyd
Rev W. Cadman Rev. A. Martineau
E. Charrington, Eeq. Rev. W. D. Maclagan
Chaplain'2 Rev. Daniel Moore
Rev. E. L. Cutts,
Rev. J. Moorbouse
Rev. E. Capel Cure
J. D. Morton, Esq.
Rev. J. E. Cox
Rev. Cant,a Nepean
Octavius Coope, Esq.
Rev. E. Parry
Arthur Currie, Esq. John Pearson, Esq., Q.O.
Rev. J. Connell Rev. G. F. rrescott
Rev. C. W. Furse Rev. F. Pigou
C. J. Freake. Esq. R. T. Pigott, Esq.
J. S. Gilliat, Esq. R. R. Pym, Esq.
Rev. Dr. F Hessey Hugh H. Seymour, Esq.
H G Heald, Esq. R. Wade, Esq.
R. Hook, Esq., Treasurer Loftus Wigram, Esq.
Subscriptions will be received by- any of the above ;_Hon. by
Messrs. Harries, Farquhar, and Co and by
Secretary, Rev. S. W. Lloyd, 14, Seymour-street, Port-
man-square, to whom communications may be addressed.

The Mutine, 17, screw sloop, 882 tons, 200-horse
power, Commander Henry M'Clintock Alexander;
arrived at Sheerness from the Pacific station on
Friday, the 19th inst. She has since been removed
into the great basin, and will be paid off and strike
her flag on Tuesday, the 30th inst. The Mutine
was commissioned on the 7th of April, 1865, by
Captain Blake, who took her out to the Pacific.
He afterwards resigned the command of the ship,
and she then had in succession two acting com-
manders—Lieutenants Loraine and Nicholetts.
Commander Swinburn was next appointed to the
ship, and he is turn gave place to Commander
Alexander, who brought her home. During her
commission the Mu.ine has been what is generally
termed a healthy ship, the deaths on board having
been very few, an I sickness among the crew
much lees nail is usual in ships serving on the
Pacific st tti Tnc Mutine was very nearly
four yeas in commission. She was employed be-
t‘% e..la Callao and Valparaiso during the extraordi-
nary prevalence of yellow fever at those places,
but under the care of Dr. Martin, the surgeon
of }own!, escaped the disease. Tile Mutine was at
Coquimbo at the time of the earthquake at Atica,
and her crew were employed in clearing away the
ruins and iu conveying assistance to the wretched
inhabitants. The Mutine left Valparaiso, home-
ward boun.l, on the Ist of Jauulry, and performed
the almost utiprecAented feat of reaching England
in 74 days, not having called at a single port on the
voyage. Nearly the whole distance was accom-
plished under sail, steam having been got up only
while the ship was crossing the Line. The weather
during the greater part of the voyage was favour-
able, but on reaching the chops of the Channel
continuous gales and extremely heavy gales were
experienced. So severe was the weather on one
occasion that two of the quarter-boats were washed
from the davits and lost. Before leaving Valpa-
raiso the Mutine was inspected by Commodore
Powell, who, in the course of his remarks on the
occasion, expressed the great satisfaction he felt at
finding the ship and her crew in such perfect con-
dition, and further said he regretted having to
lose her from the station. Among the officers
who accompanied the ship home are First Lieut. P.
C. Johnstone, who went out in her as Second
Lieutenant; Lieut. SeymoUr H. P. Dacres (son of
Admiral Dacres), who also served throughout the
commission, and while out was promoted to be
Second Lieutenant; Navigating Lieut. Edward B.
D'Arcy, Dr. Martin, &c. Commander Alexander
saw considerable service ashore in New Zealand
during the campaign of 1853, and at the battle
of Raugariri received a shot in the right arm which
has entirely deprived him of the use of it. Before
joining the Mutine he commanded the Hector,
and for some time was commander of the naval
barracks in Sheerness Dockyard. Upon being
paid off the Mutine will be placed in the Steam
Reserve, but the division has not been named.
Only a portion of her stores will be removed, and
by the direction of the Lords of the Admiralty she
will then be surveyed acd valued. It is rumoured
that the Mutine will be purchased for the service
of the King of Prussia.

A telegram has been received announcing the
arrival at Bombay, " all well," on the 21st inst.,
of Her Majesty's Indian troopship Jumna, with the
Ist battalion of the 21st Regt., and the draughts
which left Queenstown in the Serapis on the 16th
ultimo.

The 7th Dragoon Gaards, now stationed at Col-
chester, are under orders to proceed to Aldershott.
The mounted portion, consisting of two squadrons
—strength, 13 officers, 172 men, 190 horses—is
expected to reach the camp on the sth proximo ;
the headquarters and two squadrons—strength, 12
officers, 193 men, 212 horses— on the following day.
The dismounted detachment, consisting of about
five officers, 144 men, 69 women, and 73 children,
will leave Colchester at 10 o'clock on the morning
of Thursday, the Ist proximo, and proceed via
Stratford, North London line, &c., to their desti-
nation. On arrival at the camp the regiment will
be quartered in Vie East Cavalry Barracks, and at-
tache:l to the Cavalry Brigade.
By direCtion of the Secretary for War, Quarter-
m ester J. Jones, Quartermaster-Sergeant Instructor
J. Ma.hieson, and Sergeant-Major K. Knight,
of the Royal Elgineers, Chatham, have been re-
warded by gifts of money for valuable inven-
tions by them. rifle amount awarded to Quarter-
master Jones is £lOO, in acknowledgment of the
invention by him of the iron band gabions now in
use in the corps of Royal Engineers and continental
armies. Quartermaster-Sergeant Mathieson has re-
ceiven £l5O, as the author of several inventions and
improvements in connection with military field
telegraphy and torpedoes, chief among which are
the portable voltaic battery for field telegraph pur-
poses, ebonite connectors for joining insulated tele-
graph wires, mechanical unions for passing and
securing wires used in torpedo operations, toge-
ther with several improved self-acting electrical
arrangements for firing torpedoes. Serg.-Major K.
Knight has received £5O as the inventor of the
shields used by the Royal Engineers in field opera-
tions. The order for the payment of these rewards
was announced to the troops at headquarters,
Chatham, yesterday, by direction of the authori-
ties at the Horse Guards.

PRISON DIETARY SCALES.

-~-

The thirtieth report on prisons in Scotland, which
has just appeared, contains au official communica-
tion, furnished by the resident surgeon of the
General Prison for Scotland, relative to certain
dietary scales now in use in the prisons of Edin-
burgh and Glasgow. It appears that the Glas-
gow scale supplied to male prisoners con-
tains 31.5 nitrogenous, 136.0 carbonaceous,
and 5.4 mineral constituents per ounce, as com-
pared with a diet authorised by the Secre-
tary of State, which contains 31.6 nitrogenous,
127.0 carbonaceous, and 5.2 mineral constituents;
that the latter contains 28 oz. of meat per week,
but that the Glasgow scale h ►s no meat except that
included in the soups and broths. The Edinburgh
scale is the same as that in use at Glasgow,
with the addition of 6 oz. of bread and half an
imperial pint of milk daily. It is evident that
these scales are defective in meat ; and ex-
periences that hare been gleaned during the past
few years from the chief prisons of the United
Kingdom go to prove that convicts undergoing long
terms of imprisonment, unless supplied with a fair
allowance of animal food, speedily become the sub-
jects of scrofulous diseases. This fact is confirmed
by the terms of the report above quoted; and we
entirely subscribe to the opinions expressed by Mr.
Thomson and Dr. Christison (who was deputed to
assist at the inquiry), that " hard labour and the de-
pression of mind of convicts do not admit of low
dietary scales ; and if there is a failure of health and
strength in the early months of imprisonment, it is
difficult and expensive to restore this class of
prisoners to vigour for work." This subject has
become of greater importance since the discontinu-
ance of transportation for crime ; for the class
which now undergoes penal servitude in the prisons
of the United Kingdom, in lieu of transportation, is
usually composed of men whose constitutions are
deteriorated by vice and privation, and whose phy-
siques requite therefore to be raised rather than
lowered. We do not advocate the coddling of cri-
minals ; but on the score of economy as well as of
humanity, it is wise to diminish the list of medical
comforts by increasing the supply of butchers' meat.
—The Lancet.

A controversy between two editors in Texas is
thus describ4l:—" The shooting scrape between Somers
Kinney of the Times, and Tracy of the Union, grew out of
some severe personal remarks about each other in their
papers. Tracy was the attacking party. He had been
waiting sotne time for-Kinney in Szubo's cotton ware-
house, near the Times office. At last Kinney appeared,
unconscious of danger, when Tracy commenced firing
upon him with a six-shooter. He shot widely, and killed
a little toy, a son of Mr. /Hackle, who was passing in the
street. He fired three or four times. As I understand
Kinney was not hurt. That individual stood it like a stone
wall, daring his.aLtagon* to come out and givehim
fair chance. A tremendous crowd- 150011 gathered, and
Tracy w arreptcl Inme off.."