The Sun.
London, England, 1867-09-07 00:00:00

BARNET ANNUAL FAIR.

Yesterday the horse fair was a mere spectre of
previous days. A few horses of superior stamp
which hal been held over were sold, and the large
herds of Welsh pony droves were but shadows of
the original show. Some lame horses and old
"screws," attended by topers, were chopped away
and palmed off at low figures on the advocates for
a cheap horse, and this part of the fair was broken
up by the official orders to clear the fields for the
horse-races.

In the sheep-fair fields, on the North side of
Barnet, many Scotch sheep-dealers lingered with
their flocks, and offered them on low terms, but
this class of sheep are too small, and have such
roving habits as to preclude English farmers from
speculating in Scotch mutton. Some lots of South-
down ewes and wethers were " jobbed " off, and
came to hand at low prices, but out of the un-
usually large number of sheep penned up for sale
not one-third of them were sold.

The pleasure fair was all life and bustle, but
occasionally marred by the showers of rain. Every
kind of entertainment was provided to gratify the
fair-going million. The victualling booths afforded
the most suitable accommodation, and many hun-
dreds of fair folks—who found that the salubrious
air of Barnet and the refreshing atmosphere imbibed
in the green pastures acted on the inner man and
created a craving appetite, and that nature could
not be sustained on blackberries—sojourned to the
canvas hotels. The high price of butchers' meat
and short-weight loaves were oblivious to the
mind, and eating and drinking and social
friendship was the "standing orders" of the fair.
Old people smoked tobacco ; the small fry eat
gingerbread and cracked walnuts ; "loving couples'
walked the meadows, picking buttercups and daisies,
and Cockneys looked for acorns on the elm trees,
when the bell rung for the first race. The races
were run in the presence of au immense multitude
of sightseers. All kinds of amusements were on the
course. The common trick of selling a parsec on-
taiuing a half-crown for sixpence had a great run.
Theso performers occasionally allow a " bonnet "
to buy a purse with the coin in it, and then
there is a rush for them, and the " verdants "
are sold by the score. The " three card dodge"
was on the boards, and many hundreds who will
speculate got fleeced, and went away neither richer
nor wiser. The thimble-rig fraternity had a fair
share of patronage ; the " little pea" worked wonders,
and many persons lost their' money and slunk away.
There were a large number of roughs, who appear to
come out expressly to prevent quiet people from en-
joying themselves, and in some few instances mem-
bers of this gang got lynched for sport. There was
much difficulty in getting to the special trains from
Barnet to London, and theswell mobsmen, asa matter
of business, took the advantage, and were exceed-
ingly expert; handkerchiefs were transferred and
purses stolen, and it required much energy for per-
sons to keep watches in their pockets. As night
drew on the mob moved off, and the lovely pastures
which had been tainted by London life wore left to
resume their quiet aspect and flagrant odour till
another year's Barnet fair. The licensed victuallers
in the town amply contributed to the public require-
ments, and they in their turn have participated in
the annual harvest of fair time.

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE.—This May.

LONDON, Sept. 7.- -Wind this day at noon—South-
Easterly; strong breeze and fine weather.
CARDIFF, Sept. 6.—Wind NAV . —Sailed—Cote d'Or,
for Bombay.

FALMOUTH, Sept. 6.—Wind W.—Arrived —William
Carr, from Newcastle for Barcelona; Ziwaan, from Monte
Video.

LIVERPOOL, Sept. 6.—Wind N.W.—Sailed—Columbus,
for Rangoon ; Glendower, for Bombay; Adelaide, for
Nov York.

QUEENSTOWN, Sept. 6.- Wind N. W.—Arrived—Sea
Queen, from Mexico; Inglewood, from Cardenas; Amelia
Anglia, from Sulina.

BRISTOL, Sept. 6.—Wind N.W.—Arrived—Vicar of
Bray, from Valparaiso.
KINGROAD, !Sept. 6.—Wind W.—Arrived—Margaretha,
from Bangor, U.S.

GRAVESEND, Sept. 7.

Arrived, Sept. 6.—Florence Nightingale, from Bathurst
Electro, from Grenada; Diana, steamer, from Amsterdam.
Arrived, Sept. 7.—Fulton, steamer, from Dunkirk •
Taurus, steamer, from Tonning ; Belgium, steamer, from
Ostend; Moselle, steamer, from Antwerp ; Elena, from
Odessa; Salamander, from Boston; Brazilian, from Arch-
angel ; Ranger, steamer, from St. Petwsburg ; Marie, from
Rio Grande; Star of Erin, from Calcutta; Tugela, from
Port Natal. _

Sailed-3lariaPia,steamer, for Llbbon ; Cologne, steamer,
for Boulogne ; Holland, steamer, for Ostend; Thyra,
steamer, for Konigsburg.

DEAL, Saturday Morning.
Passed, Sept. G. —Her Majesty's tug Lucifer, from Wool-
wich, for Portsmouth; Vixen, of Guernsey, and Two
Brothers, of Wells, from the west, for the north.
Passed, Sept. 7.—Matilda, from Burble°, for London ;
Cleator, screw steamer, from Odessa, for London ; Queen's
Own, from Rangoon, for Hamburg ; Nora, ant Protector
(in tow), from Quebec, for London; Silver Cloud, from
Colombo, for Loudon.

LIFEBOATS.—The Secretary of the Royal National
Lifeboat Institution has been on a tour of inspection in
Cornwall and Devon during the past fortnight, and has
expressed himself much pleased with the state of efficiency
in which he found the various boats and establishments.
All the boats were severely tested, and in every case the
crews behaved admirably.
DEATII OF A HERO OF PEACE.—The Precurseur
of Antwerp gives an account of the funeral of Capt. Jean
Napoleon du Maire, director of the swimming school, who
recently died suddenly, leaving a largo family. It is
scarcely a month since the same paper recorded his exer-
tions in saving the hundredth-person whom he has rescued
from drowning. His funeral was attended by the Royal
Society of Sauveurs, and by all the Belgian seamen in
L Antwerp.