The Sun.
London, England, 1867-12-21 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON. SATURDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 21, 1867

narily meet with in the debates of this Chamber.
A great divergence of opinion may be noticed
in this matter, but it is most probable
that the bill will be carried, and, tak-
ing all things into account, it will be as well
that it should. The aspect of Continental affairs
is by no means so satisfactory that France can
afford to lose her prestige, or expose herself to
the chance of being taken unawares if any sudden
emergency arises. M. LATOUR spoke very forcibly
in support of the proposed scheme, and showed
that it was raldered desirable, because of the
increase of the forces of the other Powers,
particularly of Prussia. This crafty and ma-
noeuvring Power is indeed to be regarded
with suspicion, and the French politicians
have shown their acuteness all along in mis-
trusting the policy of M. Von BISMARCK, and
regarding his prof ession.s:with doubt and suspicion. If
it were only because of the insincerity of the Berlin
Government the measure proposed by the French
Ministry would be more than justified, and there are
other considerations to be thought of as well. A
thing of this sort is always difficult to carry out at
the best, and it is hardly fair for it to be too harshly
criticised at the outset. At any rate the Empe-
ror is on the right track, and he is not one
likely to be turned aside from his purpose when
once he has made up his mind on a subject.
The most sanguine must view the present aspect of
affairs abroad with some misgivings, while the
initiated cannot fail to recognise the gravity of the
situation in many respects. The best that can be
expected is that a policy of moderation may finally
prevail, but with the many contending influences at
work, and such excitement in many directions, it
was but natural to consider the consequences in
case of the favourable anticipations not being
realised.

THE only use that can now be made of the
frightful explosion on the Newcastle Town Moor
is to render, as far as human provision can do it,
the repetition of such a catastrophe impossible.
That which has happened was insignificant in com
parison with what might have happened. We
write not only of what was possible, but of what
was probable, what was almost inevitable. After the
evidence given at the inquest by 3lr. ISAAC LOWTHIAN
BELL, than whom there could be no better autho-
rity, doubt on either of these points is impossible.
The power of the explosive agent was more
terrible than any other with which we are familiar,
and its liability to explode was vastly greater. It
cannot be too deeply impressed upon us that the
cellar of the White Swan contained at one time the
equivalent of four-and-a-half tons of gunpowder—
a power capable of blowing down, says Mr. BELL,
115,000 tons of solid rock. This reserve of force
was stowed away in the heart of Newcastle, imme-
diately to the rear of the Bank of England, in
the midst of shops, houses, and public buildings.
The imagination recoils before the effort to transfer
to these crowded streets and buildings the scene
enacted in the Town Moor. When we attempt it,

our grief for the sad fate of men who lost their
lives in the discharge of a great public duty, and
the sympathy for their friends which it is impos-
sible not to feel, are overpowered, with a sense of
thankfulness that the half of Newcastle was not
laid in ruins, and that the dead are not counted by
hundreds and the injured by thousands. Many a

time within the last few years has the pall of gloom
settled over the northern metropolis when coal-
pit explosions have swept away at a stroke scores
or hundreds of miners ; hut those is no exaggera-
tion in saying that Mr. Mawsox, Mr. BitYSON,
and their associates in death have sacrificed them-
selves in removing from Newcastle a disaster to
which those of Wallsend, Burradon, Hartley,
and the explosion at Gateshead in 1854
might have been insignificant. Yet, alarming as
this conception is, it is a cause for the most pro-
found astonishment as well as thankfulness that
we are not called upon to record it as a
reality.

The mythologies of all nations abound in
legends of vast spiritual powers beyond human
control, but also all but beyond human power to
invoke. The great physical agents of destruction
are unlike these. A spark, a flame, a high tem-
perature may suffice to call out all the might of
gun-cotton or of gunpowder. Yet even these are
safe when compared with nitro-glycerine. In the
case of this tremendous agent, quiescence seems to
be its abnormal state, and high and low tempera-
tures equally dangerous. Its parts are held together
as if by an involuntary bond, so that the slightest
mixture of extraneous matter loosens their hf-
finity. It seems to combine in itself all the destruc-
tive might of petroleum, gas, steam, firedamp,
gunpowder, and gun-cotton, with at tho same time
the danger of each. It would in any case be vain
to depend on such a precarious element as absolute
purity in a compound of this kind. Yet when this is
wanting it may explode spontaneously at an ordinary
temperature. And, on the other hand, where com-
plete purity may be relied upon it is unsafe to
subject the liquid to any pressure or motion.
Even this, however, is an inadequate catalogue of
the dangers to which Newcastle was exposed. To
realise all its completeness we must add that this
terrible agent was committed to the custody of
persons for the most part ignorant of its properties.
We have then a total of precariousness to which it
is difficult to find an analogy. The miner working
with a naked light among the elements of fire-damp
is not too strong a comparison. The lives of
hundreds of persons for the last six months have
depended upon the exercise of supreme caution by
persons unaware of danger. A stone thrown into
a cellar by a heedless boy, the fall of one of the
canisters in the act of removal—chances like these
occurring daily—might have cost a waste of human
life the like of which is seen only on the battle-
field.

The impression which these considerations should
make on the public mind cannot be too deep.
What has transpired has demonstrated with
painful conclusiveness that the public are
insufficiently protected. It is obvious that the
lives of hundreds of persons and the safety of
whole towns cannot be made to depend upon such
conditions as those on which the safety of Newcastle
has rested since March last. Nor will the sense of
security be restored by the verdict of the jury, that
in this case the law with respect to the storing of
nitro-glycerine has been grossly violated. Cata-
strophes like these should be removed from the list
of contingencies, and of accidents properly so called
—not being produced by mere inhuman malig-
nity—and nitro-glycerine can be handled only
with so much danger that it would seem to lie be-
yond the province of the voluntary miscreant.
But in addition to this national protection it should
be fenced with every other practicable precaution.
The storage of coniiderable quantities should be
universally forbidden, and the sale even of small
amounts placed under the strictest regulations.
So long as nitro-glycerine continues in an unpro-
tected state every movement of it, if not, indeed,
every transaction in the article, should be reported
to the authorities. If it must exist, a necessity
not yet proved, let responsibility exist with it.
Meantime it is stated on an excellent authority that
nitro-glycerine, like gunpowder, may be rendered
innocuous, and that when dissolved in two or three
times its bulk of methylated spirit it is non-explosive.
As in the case of the protected gunpowder, too,
the efficiency of the blasting oil is in no way in-
terfered with by the ohange which renders it harm-
less. The addition of a small quantity of water
sets free the spirit and leaves the oil unaffected.
If the manufacturers of this compound for a
trifling consideration of bulk choose to neglect
these precautions, the public Pauot prote.,o them-
_
MIYQS;

The principal duty of the Coroner's jury has at
last been brought to a conclusion, and they have
returned the only verdict possible under the cir-
cumstances :—" That WILLIAM CLUTTON, SARAH
ANN HODGKINSON, MINNIE JULIA ABBOTT, and
MARTHA EVANS, had come to their deaths by the
explosion which took place at Clerkenwell, on the
13th inst., and that TIMOTHY DESMOND, JEREMIAH
ALLEN, and ANN JUSTICE were guilty of wilful mur-
der." After the evidence which had been laid before
them, there could be no doubt of the guilt attach-
ing to those three persons, though, perhaps, they
might, with equal propriety, having included some
others not now in custody in the verdict. The
accounts given by the several eye-witnesses of the
whole transaction yesterday were full of interest,
and no doubt every word uttered by them will be
eagerly scanned by thousands of curious readers. It
is not a little singular that so many persons
should have seen the whole affair, while those who
were warned, and were supposed to be on the look-
out for mischief, knew nothing until too late. We
are not surprised that the Coroner should have ex-
pressed his surprise and regret that a better ar-
rangement should not have been come to between
Sir RICHARD MAYNE and the Governor of the
prison. No doubt it is difficult for persons in
their position, who are in the habit of
receiving all kinds of warnings and pre-
monitions to distinguish accurately between the
true and the unreliable. They have to protect
themselves against being continually the victims of
mischievous hoaxes, as well as to protect the public
from possible danger. If it was known they took
alarm at the least hint or caution, there would
always be plenty of threateuings or warnings forth-
coming, and the regular course of the service would
be perpetually interrupted or delayed. At the same
time, in times like these, it is better to err on the
side of too much care rather than too little. Without
imputing anything more than want of judgment to
the authorities in either case, we must regret that
at Clerkenwell, as at Manchester, if it was thought
necessary to take any precautions at all, more were
not taken. If the information received were suffi-
ciently reliable to act upon, it should have been
acted upon with vigour. The facts which have been
elicited with regard to these arrangements are not
altogether satisfactory. As too often happens the
public interests have been allowed to suffer from
private pique and professional jealousy. Inspector
THOMPSON said that on Thursday he went by order
of Sir R. MAYNE to the Governor, Capt. Copp, and
told him that the police had received information
that the prison walls would be undermined in order
to rescue BURKE and CASEY. The Governor,
owing, it would seem, to some previous differences
with Sir R. MAYNE, resented this interference, and
said that he was quite capable of taking care of
the inside of the prison. He did not believe, he
said, that the prison would be attacked, and that
if he lived till it was he thought he should live to a
good old age. No doubt Capt. CODD now deeply
regrets his incredulity, but it is others who have
bad to suffer for it. As the Coroner observed, be-
tween the Commissioner of Police and the Governor
of the Prison more might have been done, and in
all probability if more precautions had been taken
these sad occurrences would not have taken place.
The Commissioner himself did not certainly act as
if he thought his information reliable. He put on
three extra constables, one of whom, according to
his own account, " arrived about .12 o'clock, and
left before 2 o'clock, and knew nothing about the
explosion." This was not, the way to guard against
a s2rious and imminent danger. If the walls were
to be mined, or an attack of any kind attempted, it
was hardly likely the assailants would Le so obliging
as to select just those two hours. Sir Rica. MAYNE
should have picked out a sufficient number of his
best men, and told them to watch the walls of the
prison with unremitting vigilance day and night,
and no loiterers allowed. More especially men and
women known to be in communication with
the Fenian prisoners should not have been suffered
to remain near the place. The criminals themselves
seem to have been particularly open in their move-
ments, so much so that if anything like proper
energy had been used attention must have been
attracted to them earlier and their plans frustrated.
The constables, few as they were, could not help
noticing them during the day, though they seem to
have been contented with watching them
and giving information, and doing nothing
else. If no intimation had been received of
tle intended attempt the catastrophe 'ould
have been deplorable but unavoidable. As
the day before there were grounds for suspicion, it
is doubly lamentable, as it might have been averted.
At Manchester the preliminary information was
turned to little profit ; but the authorities in the
Clerkenwell affair should have been doubly on their
guard after the Manchester experience. We hope
that on another occasion party and personal jea-
lousies will be laid aside, and the safety of the public
made the first consideration. The responsibility
rests upon those who have the prior knowledge, and
it is for them to see that they turn it to proper ac-
count.

The following appeared a day or two ago in
several of our contemporaries :—" Gustave Bore
has just sold the immense picture which occupied so large
a space in the central saloon of the Annual Exhibition at
Paris this year to an American amateur for £2,200. The
subject, it will be remembered, is a gaming-table at Baden.
Several of the celebrated anonymas of the day sat, it is
said, for their portraits in this picture, which is a life-liko
photograph of the scene daily enacted at a German kur-
saal." We are enabled to state, on good authority, that
not only has the above-named picture been bought for a
larger sum, but along with it a number of important and
valuable works by the samo master, all of which are to be
exhibited in London before going to America. The ex-
hibition will bo opened to the public on and after Decem-
ber 24. (Soo alvt.)

SALMON INNEW ZEALAND.—The Celestial Queen,
one of Messrs. Shaw, Savill, and Co.'s clipper ships,
will leave the St. Katherine's Docks on or about the 15th
January next ; she will conta,n as part of her cargo a con-
signment of the highest interest to naturalists and agricul-
turists, and the greatest importance to our friends at the
antipodes ; namely, salmon eggs taken from the parent
fish in various parts of the United Kingdom, and destined
if good fortune attend them, to be hatched out in New
Zealand. William Carr Young, a gentleman who has
been sent over to England on business, by the Government
of Otago, in conjunction with Mr. John Auld, the resident
agent for Otago, in Edinburgh, has undertaken the general
official superintendence of the arrangements. On the 2d of
December last, Mr. Young sent, ria Panama, as a present
from Mr. Buckland to the Acclimatisation Society of Otago,
a series of pi eparations showing the development of the
salmon from the egg to the adult state. There are several
fine rivers near Otago which promise well for the salmon ;
their tributaries rise among mountains, and the estuaries
are good; among these may be mentioned the Jiver Moly-
neux, Waitangi, and Tuitoes. It i not yet determined
into which of these rivers the young salmon shall be placed
when large enough to be turned down. Mr. Buckland
strongly advises a river to be selectee, if possible, which
shall be free from the washings of gold mines in the upper
waters.—Lard and Wate•.

Hops.—The quantity of foreign hops imported
into the U❑ited Kingdom in the year ending at Michaelmas
last was 101,622 ewl. More tha❑ a third of the quantity
came from Belgium, 8,009 cwt. from the United States,
29 cwt. from Canada, 5 cwt. from Brazil, 7 cwt. from Aus-
tralia. The quantity of foreign hops exported from the
United Kingdom was but 4,152 cwt. In the previous
twelvemonth the import amounted to only 69,788 cwt., and
the export to 13,425 cwt. The export of British hops in
the year. ending Michaelmas last reached only to 12,314
cwt., of which 7,552 cwt. to Australia, 1,862 cwt. to
France, 1,023 cwt. to the United States. In the previous
twelvemonth the export of British hops amounted fo
31,022 cwt.

CRYSTAL PALACE.--One Shilling Day, Fri-
day, Dec. 20.—Admissions on payment, 280; ditto by
season tickets, 1,203 - total visitors, 1,483.

CORRESrONDENCE FROM PARIS.

[mom OVR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

PARIS, FRIDAY, Dec. 20.

The debate on the military law still occupies the Corp
L4gislatif, and does not seem to be advancing to a con-
elusion. I shall have something to say on this question
when the debate is finished.

I am credibly informed that a commission has been given
by Italy to the factories of Belgium for 400,000 Chassepot
rifles.

There aro at Paris two editors of the name of Lacroix.
One of these; who has got a Government invitation to
prolong his stay at Paris, is M. Lacroix of the Franco-
Belgian publishing-house of Lacroix-Verbockhoven. He
is a member of the Municipal Council of Brussels, &c. It
is for having published a Bible annotated by Proudhon
that the gentleman has been condemned and imprisoned
by the " correctional" police of Paris.
A number of the, journals here continue to busy them-
selves with the probabilities' and rumours relative to the
project of the Conference. Nov it is England that has
refused its consent to a limited Conference of the Great
Powers. Now it is Russia that has become bearish, and
won't listen to anything on the subject, or, if she does
sulkily listen, returns only a growl of refusal. Now it
is to the Cabinet of the Tuileries alone that all
the despatches and diplomatic acts on the subject
are due. All such rumours are mere hypotheses.
Without pretending to be au courant of the conversations
which take place between Ambassadors and Ministers, I
believe I am able to guarantee that since the declaration
of M. Rouher in the Chamber of Deputies, no diplo-
matic act has taken place touching the Conference
which has rendered any step necessary either in a forward
or in a backward direction. The status quo remains
undisturbed. One cannot say, perhaps, that the project
has been abandoned ; but, on the other hand, one cannot
say that it will be followed out.
A story which for its munificence recalls the wonders or
the " Arabian Nights" is now, we are informed, being
told in the salons of Paris. The Sultan, during his sojourn
in France, was returning from St. Cloud incognito, and
had arrived at the quays, when he heard joyous singing.
He inquired of his interpreter the cause of the singing.
"It is an artisan's wedding," answered his interpreter ;
" the poor wretches are forgetting their miseries for a
moment in order to fete their friends." The Sultan was
touched by the simple narrative, and expressed a desire to
see the bride. The interpreter descended from the
voiture, overtook the wedding procession, and announced
to the bride that a Turkish Grand Seigneur desired
to see her. She refused the invitation on the ground that
Turks frightened her. In vain the interpreter assured her
that the Grand Seigneur did not wish to talk to her upon
Moses ainiables ; she turned a deaf ear to entreaty and con-
tinued to march on. Disappointed, the interpreter returned
to the Sultan, and told him of his failure. The voiture
drove on, and the Sultan replaced upon his finger the ring
which he held in his hand. This ring, which was enriched
with a diamond worth 10,000 francs, was destined for the
young bride, who but for her unfounded suspicions might
Lave received from the generous monarch the nice little
fortune of over £4OO.

During the last few days a female clothed in the garb ot
the ancient pilgrims attracted attention in the town of
Toulouse. She is a young and handsome Spanish lady,
named Saturnina Lopez y Alonzo. Having been attacked by
cholera at Madrid, she made a vow that, should she
recover, she would make.a pilgrimage on foot to Rome, and
Jerusalem. She has performed her pious undertaking
with astonishing courage. Setting out in March, she
arrived at Rome on the 27th of June, and witnessed there
the Fetes of the Canonisation, reached Jerusalem iR due
course, where she visited all the holy places, and is now
returning home.
A despatch from Florence has arrived, and makes known
tne somewhat exciting news that in the Italian capital it
is expected to-day that the Italian Parliament will
adopt an order of the day affirming Rome the capital
of Italy, confidence in the Minister Menabrea, and disap-
broval of Garibaldi's last attempt.
The " jury of honour" elected to examine the case of
M. de Kerveguen assembled yesterday evening, under
the presidency of M. Berryer. M. de Kerveguen has
demanded the assistance of an arocat, which was accorded
to him ; and his adversaries, MM. Havin and Gueroult,
taking benefit of the same privilege, have charged M.
Enaileollivier with their defence. M. de Kerveguen, having
afterwards demanded a delay of some days, the jury is
adjourned till the 31st of December. Let us hope the
quarrel will end with the year, and everybody turn over a
new leaf with New Year's Day.

The Prussian Lower House has increased the civil list
of the Lower House from 3,003,000 to 4,000,000 thalers—
from £4;7,0,000 to £G00,003. The salaries of Ministers
have also been increased, and will henceforth amount to
£2,000, exclusive of extras, such as official residence money
for giving entertainments, which in sonic cases make the
emoluments amount to £2,000 more.

The Etendard says that the second supplementary report
of M. Gressier has been published. It is devoted exclu-
sively to the examination of four amendments proposed
during the discussion of the military law question in the
Corps Legislatif. These amendments were, that of M.
Andelarre, granting an indemnity to the extent of a franc
a day to the wives of soldiers of the reserve ; that of M.
Tillancourt restraining taxation; that of M. Delamarre
rendering change of dwelling place legal and unrestrained;
and that of M. Leopold Javal, interdicting substitution
in the Garde Nationale Mobile.

The Courrier Politique, or political summary or tna
Etendard, on Saturday is occupied chiefly upon the affairs
of England. The Fenian outrages and the calamity at
Newcastle supply the materials.
Carl Mayer, the editor of the Beobiehter, a Wurtem-
burg paper, has just been tried, at the instance of the
Prussian Government, for having published an article
insulting to the King of Prussia and his Cabinet. A cer-
tain Herr Wachter, who was formerly a member of the
Prussian Chamber, conducted the case for the prosecu-
tion. Towards the end of the proceedings the defendant,
Herr Mayer, was asked what he had to say' in his
defence. Upon this he produced from his pocket a
report of a dj)ate in the Prussian Chamber in 1864,
and read a speech of Herr Wachter, in which he attacked
Count Bismarck and the Prussian Cabinet in far more
violent language than that for which he (the defendant)
was then prosecuted. The .effect was humorous in the
extreme, but has not been of any service to him, as he
was condemned to three months' imprisonment and a fine
of 100 florins for his attack on the Prussian Government,
and six weeks' imprisonment and forty florins fine for his
disrespect to the King. The whole prosecution is a
matter of very doubtful policy on the part of Prussia.
It will probably have far more effect in producing an
anti-Prussian feeling than the objectionable article.

The Army and Navy Gazette regrets to learn that within
the last few hours a telegram has been received, an-
nouncing the death of Colonel Clark Kennedy, C. 8., the
Commandant of the Military Train. As is well known,
he.had been sent to Egypt to superintend the despatch of
the mules for the Abyssinian expedition, and had nearly
completed his task last week, when he was seized with
dysentery, dying on Wednesday night at Cairo. Colonel
Kennedy was a very clever as well as a very distinguished
officer. He will no doubt be succeeded as Commandant
of the Military Train by Colonel Robertson, C. 8., who
is now discharging the duties of the appointment at
Woolwich. Colonel Robertson has the recommendations
of capacity, of very distinguished service in the field, and
and of seniority in the corps.

The Rev. Robert Maguire, incumbent of Clerkenwen,
nas addressed a letter to the Times, giving a specimen of
the work of the sub-relief committees and visitors in St.
James's-buildings, where the former inhabitants of Corpo-
ration-lane are now lodged. In sixteen houses as many as
fifty-nine families are dwelling—all more or less affected
by the explosion. On Friday morning each of the eight
sub-committees was voted £lOO, for the purpose, as Mr.
Maguire says, of " putting the poor people to rights,"
setting the men to work again by purchasing tools to
replace those that were lost, and generally providing for the
wants of the needy and destitute. Here is an instance of
the havoc caused by the explosion : A small tradesman in
the watchmaking trade gives employment to six men in
his workshop in a street adjoining the House of Deten-
tion ; the explosion unroofed the house ; the men were
struck down and injured; the tools and gold and other
valuables were scattered ; and when the man came to
weigh his gold-dust in the evening (as is the custom here)
he found it lacked 8,;0z., which would cost quite £25.
'fill, is only one specimen out of many.
The Essex. Liberals have had a demonstration at
Mahlon. Sir Thomas Western, M.P., who fought such
a gallant.battle against Major Beresford in 1865, presided,
and was supported by four other Liberal members of the
House of Commons, viz., Mr. Hardcastle, Sir T. F.
Buxton, Mr. C. Buxton, and Mr. Gurdon Ifehow. Mr.
Anthony Tro]lope and Mr. Mechi, of Tiptree Hall, were
also amongst the company. The tone of the speeches was
strongly in favour of Mr. Gladstone as the leader of the
Liberal party ; and, as might have been expected, the
conduct of the Conservatives in agreeing to the passage of
a Reform Bill was strongly commented upon. Mr. Charles
Buxton was especially emphatic on the future duties of the
Executive and the Legislature. He believed the new Parli-
ament would be more responsive to popular impulses, and
this would increase the energy of legislation. In the course
of the evening it Ntas stated that great attention was being
paid to the registration in the Liberal interest both in
South Essex and also in the new division of North-East
Essex. In South Essex it was announced that the pro-
spects of the Liberals had improved to such an extent that
at the next general election the present Conservative
members would be moved off the scene altogether.

LATEST INTELL EGENCE.

(REUTER'S TELEGRAMS.)

THE ABYSSINIAN EXPEDITION.

Sir S. Northcote has received the following tele.
gram from Col. Alerewether

" NEAP. RENECE, Dec. 5.
"All prospering here. Chief of Senafe took us
yesterday there. People very glad to see us. We
move on to camp there to-morrow. Special mes-
sengers from Princ© Kursu arrived yesterday
Brother of Gabriel Murcha sent because he spoke
English. Brought us most friendly letter and
messages. Wagshuatf is also sending messenger.
Menelek, from Shoa, is reported to have reached
neighbourhood of Magdala in force, and hopes to
gain possession of it first. King had burnt Debra
Tabor, all but one church ; has formed camp a
few miles off ; wishes to go to Magdala, but finds
great opposition. Country people kill his soldiers
when they attempt to cut grass or wood."

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