The Sun.
London, England, 1867-05-23 00:00:00

IVI- ECKS ON THE NORFOLK COAST.

CAISTER (near Gt. Yarmouth), Wednesday.
While the wind was blowing very hard from the
N.E. yestesday, a vessel was seen by thf% heftrilmpn
on West Scroby Sands. The weather was so thick
and rainy that she could only just be discerned as
she stopped in her course, but by the flapping of her
sails &c., there was no doubt as to her
perilous position. The Birmingham, No. 2
Lifeboat of the National Lifeboat Institution, was
thereupon promptly launched, but when she reached
the sand the hull was found to be under water, and
the vessel a complete wreck. After cruising about
a short time a small boat was seen at the stern of
a schooner lying at anchor in the Roads, and this
happily proved to be the boat of the wrecked ves-
sel in which the crew of three men bad managed to
escape to the schooner. At their request they were
taken on board the lifeboat and landed at Lowestoft.
Their vessel was the New Whim, of Portsmouth,
bound from Hartlepool to Ryde with coals. While
the lifeboat was on the way back to her station the
crew saw a brig with a signal of distress flying, and
they assisted her into harbour ; and while returning
to Caister the brig Rover, of Whitby, was seen with
a signal displayed. On arriving alongside the
master informed the crew of the boat that he had on
board the crew of seven men of the brig Union, of
Cowes, which foundered through stress of weather.
The lifeboat, at his desire, took off these men, and
afterwards landed them at Caister.

SCARBORO', May 21.
Early this morning, during a strong N.E. wind
(reports William Fowler, Esq.), signals of distress
were heard from the fishing smack Choice, of Hull,
which had driven from her anchorage at the entrance
of the harbour, and had gone ou the beach. The
lifeboat of .the National Lifeboat Institution was
thereupon immediately launched and put off through
a very heavy sea and a great deal of broken water,
and rescued three of the crew of the smack. The
other two men on board would not leave their ves-
sel, but were afterwards saved by means of the
rocket apparatus.

THE IRISH REFORM BILL.—We have reason to
believe that the main features of the Irish Reform Bill are
a £4 franchise in boroughs and £8 in counties, with voting
papers. It is not intended to make any addition to the
number of representatives, nor is it supposed that any
borough should be disfranchised on account of the small
numher of electors, but the system of grouping will be re-
sorted to in order to redress inequalities. It will also be
proposed to give one member to the Queen's University.—
The Owl.

MISSING SHIPS.--The Strongbow from Calcutta
for London, spoken with on the Ist of November in lat. 2
S, long. 91 E ; the Yoe, which sailed from Kurrachee on
Oct. 19 for Marseilles ; the Ramonja, which sailed from
Havannah on Dec. 22 for Falmouth ; the Protector, of and
for Liverpool, from. Jamaica, which sailed from llavannah
on Dec. 8 ; the Sir Robert Calder, from Casablanca, with
maize, which sailed from Queenstown on March 11 for
Londonderry; and the Antenore, from Odessa for the
United Kingdom, with wheat, which sailed from Constan-
tinople on Nov. 12, have not since been heard of.
TILE WEATIIER.--At Manchester the weather has
been dry during the last few days, but there has been a
cold east wind. Yesterday the mind was more northerly,
with a considerable fall in temperature, and though there
was sunshine during a great part of the day the atmo-
sphere was bitterly cold, and there were, as in London and
its vicinity, short but rather fast snowfalls. Tho snow,
however, melted as it fell on the earth. At Liverpool and
in Leeds similar weather prevailed.
A RURAL " GANG."—liere is one now trudging
its early way to the farm. It consists of from five-and-
twenty to thirty persons of both sexes, from six years of
age up to sixty, but by far the larger portion are what may
by way of eripliemy be styled lads and lasses. Their conver-
sation is course, and to polite ears would be offensive and
polluting; they romp and dance along the road, and seem
to be in a sense merry as larks. It is the province of youth
to be insouciant, otherwise these toilers have plenty of care
to damp their spirits, did they pause to reflect. They are,
however, for the most part, uneducated, and, with stolid
indifference to the future, ignore all thought, uncon-
sciously feeling that "where ignorance is bliss 'tie folly to
be wise."—Once a Week.

ATTENDANCE AT THE JUDGES CHAMBERS. —Mr.
Justice Lush and Mr. Baron Pigott attended at chambers
on Saturday, at 11 o'clock, and in future, until next term,
the learned judges will hear applications at chambers in
the morning, instead cf the afternoon.
The new line of railway from Delhi te Mereut
was opened 6011 the -1.5 t h.