The Sun.
London, England, 1858-10-02 00:00:00

MORTALITY IX 185 G.

To tie, able reports ofDr:Greenhow and Mr. Simon
we have already frc qucntly referred, as containing
valunNe information on the great sanitary question
which interests, or (night to interest, every mem-
her of the community. The preventibility of mast
of our so-called " mortal" diseases has been satis-
factorily established by Mr. Simon and his colleague.
The following facts, relating to the causes of death
in 1856, arc derived from an appendix to the
Registrar-General's Return for that year from the
pen of Dr. William Farr, F.R.S., one of the most
learned and eminent statisticians and medic 11
philosophers of the age. The year 1856 was re-
markable for its low rate of mortality, differing
from 1854 in the diminished number of deaths by
cholera and other zymotic diseases, and from 1855
in the reduced number of deaths by catarrh, in-
fluenza, and pneumonia. The people were not de-
stroyed by the severities of the winter, nor by the
pestilences of the summer. The air moved taster
at Greenwich in the year than in the three preced•
ing Tears, and this rapidity of motion is very use-
ful in carrying off the organic particles that float
over human habitations. The rainfall of 1856 was
21.9 inches, slightly below the average of eight
years ; in the year 1852 it was 34-4. The winter
of 1856 was very mild, and the temperature of the
spring quarter was above the average; 78,047 per-
sons, or 20.0 per cent., died' of zymotic diseases ;
the :decrease, as before hinted, is striking (from
6.180 to 4.567 and 4.148 in 1,000 of the population),
and is mainly due to the comparative cessation of
cholera and-its attendant diarrhoea. Croup and
rheumatic fever were unusually fatal, as also metrir,
or puerperal fever; 82,856 died of constitutional
(cachectic) diseases, (21.0 per cent). The mortality
by consumption was at the rate of 2.6 in 1,000 of
the population ; 12.7 per cent. of the deaths were
caused by that insidious disease against 11.9 in
1854. The deaths by consumption to 1,000 living
were in an inverse ratio, br 2.601 in 1856 to 2.791
in 1864. This is in accordance with the principle
that when the deaths by consumption include a
large proportion of the total deaths, the mortality
from all causes, and often from consumption itself,
is low—and conversely. Through ignorance of
this principle -it has been erroneously and
illogically assumed that phthisis is more
fatal in England than in the other coun-
tries of Europe. Constitutional diseases are
very constant and regular in their influ-
ence on the mortality. 149,911 persons died of
local or " monorganie" diseases, including 50;535 of
diseases of the brain and nervous system, 3,414 from
cephalitis, 8,278 from apoplexy,B,497 from paresis,
2,096 from epilepsy, and. 23,946 from convulsions ;
59 died of the rare and remarkable disease called

" chorea," and 120 from tetanus ; 13,672 deaths
were referred to diseases of the organs of circula-
tion, 52,908 to diseases of the respiratory organs.
Diseases of the digestive organs killed 22,620 per-
sons ; and 6,498 cases of hepatitis, jaundice, and
general " liver diseases" _ are recorded. Diseases of

the urinary organs, so distressing and debilitating,
killed many, including 269 by nephritis, 934 by
nephria (Bright's disease), 433 by diabetes, 233 by
stone, and
.270 by cystitis, or inflammation of the
bladder. Itis significantly stated that there .were
177 deaths from stricture of the urethra. ' Diabetes
kills 422, on the average, every year ; it is a Well-
defined disease and fluctuates but little. 2,917
deaths resulted from diseases of the generative
organs ; 2,263 persons died of diseases of the loco-
motive organs (exclusive of scrofula, which oftut
affects the bones) ; 672 from, diseases of the integu-
mentary system ; 1,000 children from diseases of
growth, &c., and 14,912 persons from violent
deaths. The mortality under intemperance &c.,
has declined during the last three years. Cold
killed 86 persons in 1856, and 432 were poisoned.
Dr. Farr shows that zymotic diseases more gene-
rally prove fatal to males than females, and the
same holds good with regard to local diseases,
cerebral diseases; diseases of the respiratory
organs, diseases of the- liver, and violent deaths.
Heart disease, as may be supposed, kills more
women than men, but angina pectoris and aneurism
arc most fatal to men. Diseases of the urinary
organs killed 3,161 males, and only 1,166 females
Dropsy, influenza, and phthsis are more fatal to
women than to men.

LITERATURE.

China in 1857 and 1858 : being the rnies' Special
Correspondence. By George Wingrove Cooke.
Bvo., pp. 457. George Routledge.
It will be a satisfaction to many thousands that
those delightful articles, read with so much zest as
they appeared periodically in the columns of our
great morning contemporary—beginning on board
the Aden, under date May 21, 1857, being written
afterward. 3 successively from Hongkong, from Fat-
slim), from Macao, from Ilongehow, from Ningpo,
from Chusam, from Shanghai, from Canton, and
from Calcutta—have been already collected together
and issued from the press in the form of a separate
publication. The anonymous is at kngth dropped
at the title-page of the goodly volume, in which
the thirty-three letters addressed to Printing
House-square by the Thunderer's Own Special Corre-
spondent are, as that same title-page inferms us,
"reprinted by permission." Those hitherto in
ignorance as to the author's individuality now learn
a 1:
that this eminently graphic painter of the
.Chinese
as they are is no other than Mr..WingroYe. Cooke,
favourably known as the writer .of that
political gmlyl
opus " The History of Party."
It is like the recognition of an old friencd, at the
close of a masquerade. To specify the particular
merits of this able and frequently brilliant corre-
spondence were altogether idle and superfluous.
One description we are, however, fain here
to revive to popular recollection by quoting it.
It is the author's description of a veritable " Chinese
Dinner," given by himself to a select portion of the
beauty and fashion of Nin.gpo. Votre .illifjeste est
sertt or, as Bailey Junior quoth. at Todgers's,
"Wictuals is up !" or, as Shaksperc's Union to his
deluded Luc ts, " Welcome, dogs, and lap." Here is
tht record. of as pretty a piece of gastronomy as
ever was dedicated au gourmet, with a predetermi-
nation to make the reader's mouth water
" The salon Was more like a slice of a verandah than a
room. Its front was open to the narrow street. The table
was laid with the preliminary trifles provocatives to the
coming repast. There was a small square tower, built up of
slices from the breast of a goose ; a tumulus of thin square
pieces of tripe ; hard-boiled eggs of a dark speckled colour,
which had been preserved in lime, and whose delicacy is
supposed to be proportioned to their antiquity; berries and
other vegetable substances preserved in vinegar ; a curious
pile of some shell-fish, to me unknown, which had been
taken from its shell and cut in thin slices; prawns in their
natural, or rather in their artificial red state ; ground nuts,
ginger, and candied fruits.
" Everything was excellent of its kind, and the unknown
shell-fish, particularly goal in flavour. lam afraid to say
that the tripe, boiled to an almost gelatinous softneSs, was a
creditable piece of cookery, but I know many Englishmen
who would have -devoured the small heap with great
avidity. - There was at first an air of suspicion in the
manner we wandered over this light collation; but this
soon gave way as the fruits, the pickles, or the shell-fish
commended themselves to the several tastes. •
" And now we sat-down to the serious business of the
day. Each guest was supplied with a saucer and a porcelain
spoon—they had brought their own chopsticks. A folded
towel, just saturated with hot water, - was placed by each
saucer—this is the Chinese napkin—and two tiny metal
cups, motsa large as egg-cups, were allotted to every guest.
At my side, to share our feast, and see that the rites' were
properly performed, sat:the gravest of China Men: He wore
his mandarin summer cap, for he was the-interpreter at one
of the consulates.
" The first dish was, in accordance with all proper prece-
dent, the birds'-nest--soup. I bere-Ve .some- of ns were
rather snrprised not to sec the birds.-nests bobbing about in
the bowl, and to detect- no flavour of sticks or feathers, or
moss. What these birds'-nests are in their natural state I
do not know, for I-hateriehedk On .n.'nithology, and have
never been birde-nesting-intle- Straits. Their existence at
table is apparent in a thick nincija..e. at the purface of the
.Soup: BeloW this yolr come. to w- rte liquid and chickens
flesh. It 17)m-objected that.. this- was a fade.anir tasteless
delicacy. - Blit'reraaik that these two basins -are only the
suns of little systems: !The same hands that brought them
in scattered alse an mlopo'affe of still smaller basins. These
are sauces of eyeiT.it&Your and strength, 'from crushed fresh
chilies to simple soy. Watch the Chinaman: How cun-
ningly he compounds. - • • - •
-" sir, you not mean to say that you ate this
mucilage' with your chopsticks ?'
" 'No, niadain,:46-s-cooped it with our saucers and ate it
with our porcelain speons.'
" The next course was expected with a verynervous excite-
ment. It was-a stew of sop-;lug. As I have seen-them at
Macao they are white, but as served'at Ningpo they are
e.reen. I credit the Imperial Academician's as the orthodox
dish. They are slippery, and very difficult to be handled by
inexperienced chopsticks ; but they are most succulent and
pleasant food, not at all unlike in flavour' to the green fat of
the turtle. If a man cannot cat anything:et a kind-whereof
he has not seen his father and grandfather :46fdthle.? we
must leave him to his oysters, and his periWinkleS; hie his
crawfish, and not expect- him to swalloW,the-mUch more
comely sea-slug. But surely a Briton who haa-eaten him-
self into a poisonous phethein upolfrausseist has no right to
hold up his-hands and eyes at a Chinaman enjoying his
honest well-cooked stew Of Wees de suer. -
" During the discussion of this dish our Chinese master
of the ceremonies solemnly interposed. WeNtere neglecting
the rudiments of politeness. No one had yet offered to
intrude one of these sleek and savoury delicacies, deeply
rolled in sauce, into the mouth of his neighbour. Efforts
were made to retrieve the barbarian honour, but with no
great success, for the slugs were evasive, and the proffered
mouthful was not always welcome.
" The next dialt we-, sturgeon skull-cap—rare. and .gela-
tinous, but I think not so peculiar in its flavour as to excuse
the death of several royal fish.
"Thus dish being taken from its brazen lamp-heated stand,
was succeeded by a stew of shark fins and pork. The shark
fins were boiled to so soft a consistency that theymighthave
been turbot fins. The Chinaman must have smiled at the
unreasonable prejudices of the Occidentals When he sag'
some of us tasting the pork but fighting shy of the shark.
He probably, however, did not know that the same Occi-
dentals Foul(' eat with relish of a fish which they had
themselVes enticed to their angle by a worm or a maggot.
" Next in order came a soup composed of hal's of ei ab.
I have tasted this better prepared at Macao. It assumes
there the form of a very capital salad, made of crab and
cooked vegetables.
" Meanwhile the ministering boys flew an'l fluttered
round the table, for ever filling the little wine-glasses with
hot water from the metal pots. There were three kinds—
the strong samshu, for every occasional ; the medi-
cated wine, for those who,- having once experienced its
many flavours, chose to attempt it a second time ; and the
ordinary wine, wlech is so like slurry negus that any one
who can drink that preparation may be very well ,satisfied
with its Chinese substitute.
" The Chinaman had drunk with each of the (moire*
almost in English fashion, but in strict obedience to the
Chinese rites, and ungallantly challenging the male part of
the company first.
"And now we became clamourous for bread or rice. After
a succession of not by any means gross, but certainly
nutri-
tious and mucilaginous dishes, the pelate and the st 111 no
craved some farinaceous food. Nothing was easier to pro-
cure. The boys—our own boys, accustomed to wait at our
English Inners—brought in loaves at .the lightest intima-
tisn ' - but our arbiter atom,' interposed. Bread at it Chinese
feast is contrary to the rites.'
" We consoled ourselves by throwiing at him a decisive
and unanimous opinion that this was the weak point of
Chinese gastronomy."
* 5'

" So we continued our attentions to the ducks' tongues,
end passed on to deers' tendons— a royal dish. These deem'
tendons come, or ought to come, from Tartary. The em-
perors Make presents of them to their favoured subject 4.
Yeh's father at Canton, recently received some from his
sovereign, and gave a feast in honour of the present. The:-0
must have been boiled for a week to bring thedi'down to the
state of softness in_which they canto up to us.
" E*hausted, or rather repleted, nature could no mere.
When a stew of what the Chinese call the ear shell-fish
was placed upon the table, no one could carry his experi-
ments further. An untouched dish is a signal for the close
of the feast. The waiter d' hotel praested that he had
twenty more courses of excellent rarity, but our Chinese
master of the ceremonies wes imperative, and so were we.
Plain boiled rice, the rice of Szechreu, was brought round
in little bowls, and of this we all ate plentifully. Confec-
tionary and candied fruits, and acanthus-lerries steeped in
spirits, followed, and then tea. No uncooked fruit is
allowed at a • Chinese dinner. They have a proverb that
fruit is feathers in the morning, silk at noon, and lead at
night. I was assured by competent authority that nothing-
had been placed upon the table which was not in-the
highest degree wholesome, nutritious, and light of diges-
tion. We certainly so found: it ; for,
excellent supper
house of one of the eonvires, wo made an
adjourning to the
that night.
"The master of the ceremonies now looked round him
with a swollen and satisfied air, and—crypit »ions—front
his mouth came forth a loud sonorous noise, which a certain
dramatist has not scrupled to bedeck with knighthood, and
to christen Sir Toby. He, the Chinaman, seemed proud of
his performance. I'Ve sat uncomfortable on our chairs, did
not know which way to look, and some of us would have
run away, had there been anywhere to run to. Some one
who could speak the language gave him a hint which made
him declare emphatically that it would be an insult to the
founder of the feast it this testimony was not loudly
given to the sufficiency of the entertainment, and the
pletion of the guests. It was with some difficulty that he
was prevailed upon to turn over this chapter of the book
tites."

The whole work is written thus quaintly, gra-
phically, amusingly, delightfully.

CONVENTION BETWEEN ENGLAND,
FRANCE, AND VENEZUELA.

. .
- The following appears 'ln be the text of the
arrangement by which the differences between the
representatives of England and France and the
Provisional Government of Venezuela, which
threatened to involve great discredit, have becn
adjusted :—. -
" Convention concluded by the Plenipotentiaries
t h soone nasss a
stlhmsesi
ns possible.
leic t
of
of a a
especially named to terminate the differences Pc-
tween Venezuela and France and England, and to
re-establish the amicable 'relations of the three
countries, and Vice-Admiral Count de Gueydon, at
present. commanding the Anglo-French squadron.
" 1. As regards General Jr. T. 3fonagas, the pro-
mise of the 26th of March will be carried out.
hae
nseli) alp\
placed
areasttorthede
t 0 ‘t‘h2o AsAn
gr
le
og-aFr dr,ssnSa.i. GI. lelgtiaetrizo-enzs,,
disposal of the Venezuelan' Government en the rein's
they require, at least until he obtains his pardon.
"3.. As regards St. . Giuseppi, if the charges
against him do not allow of his being set at liberty,
-the process against him before the,pioper tribunals
amicable
indemnities required by the Britannic
. ~-5.. From the signing
is
Legationto4b. eTtainsialcdfoars
of the convention -all
hostilitiesilfilengi°iltltii°' in"
toA P lil'
cease, tot
h
captured ships to be re-
turned,
to renoerdi continue tli e il' functions,
representatives oafnd Franceto a
avoid England
pos-
sible sible hurt to the dignity o the republic, the naval
face* are to leave her ports."

THE LATE COLLISION ON THE OX-
FORD, WORCESTER, AND WOLVER-
HAMPTON RAILWAY.

After the despatch of our parcel on Thursday
evening, the inquiry into the circuthstances attend-
ing the fearful collision on the 22d August was
continued, and, as far as the evidence of witnesses
was concerned, was concluded. The other wit-
nesses examined were—

Mr. Markham, assistant-engineer on the Midland
Railway, who said he considered the coupling that
broke and caused the train to separate was of proper
proportions, and that the iron was of fair average
quality. The primary cause of the accident arose,
in his opinion, from the defective weld in the eye
of the coupling chain. He had examined the
break-screw and nut in the care of Cook, and
considered the nut was in the lowest position that
it could have been in when the break was off, and
he agreed with Captain Tyler, the Government
inspector, that the break had never beck on at all ;
and he believed the guard in the excitement of the
moment had lost his presence of mind, and had
screwed the break off instead of screwing it on. He
attributed the sparks seen by the witnesses flying
from the wheels to the friction of the flange of the
wheel pressing on the outer rail of the curve. The
company had adopted a safe course in dividing the
return train at Worcester. He was of opinion that
the train could be worked at 35 miles an hour
safely with the couplings which he had examined.
Considered the Oxford, Worcester, and Wolver-
hampton rolling stock was good, and it had been
lately improved. Having heard Mr. Chilling-
worth's evidence, he did not think it possible to
discover a mark as recently made upon a wheel
unless the wheel had been a long way locked down
an incline. He thought all the break wheels, if
carefully examined, would show marks on the whole
of their circumference from general use.
Mr. Blackmore, superintendent of the traffic de-
partment on the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway,
was examined as to the practice of managing
excursion traffic on his line ; but from his evidence
it was clear that the arrangements of the two com-
panies were different and could not bear a fair com-
parison. The company were continually running
trains with breaks in second-class carriages with-
out a guard to attend them, but no passenger was
allowed to ride in the break compartment. They
had lately had such a crush of traffic at Leeds that
the people not only crowded the carriages, but
got on the tops, on the buffers, and on the foot-
boards, and all the exertions of the company's
servants could not remove them. They generally
used two breaks in a passenger-train of 50 carriages,
one at each end. They had carried by excursion
trains this summer on the Lancashire and York-
shire line upwards of 400,000 persons without an
accident.

Mr. Walker, the surgeon referred to in the evi-
dence of the witness Brett, examined earlier in the
day, explained the position in which he stood with
Brett. He said that .£5O had been paid to Brett,
and that it was agreed he should be paid £1 a
week until he recovered, but that he subsequently
offered to take £lOO and release the company from
further claim. This offer was not accepted, but
was still in abeyance, and nothing more than the
£5O had been paid him yet.
This was the whole of the evidence, and the
coroner then read it over to the jury in extenso.
It was then arranged to adjourn for the last time
to Tuesday next, then to decide upon the verdict.

THE LATE FIRE AT GREENWICH.

APPREHENSION OF MR. ROPER.

Yesterday afternoon, Mr. C. J. Carttar, coroner
for West Kent, resumed the inquiry, at the Globe
Tavern, Greenwich, into the origin of the fire which
consumed the premises of Kr. Richard Roper, corn-
dealer, of Royal-hill, Greenwich, and resulted in
the death of his two infant daughters, on the morn-
ing of Sunday, 12th Sept.
T.his was the fifth and most important inquiry,
and do court was, as on former occasions, densely
crowded by respectable inhabitants of the district.
Mr. Ingle, solicitor; of Hibernia-chambers, Lon-
don-bridge, again appeared on behalf of Mr. Roper.
At the commencement of the proceedings the
coroner and jury proceeded to the house of Mr.
Cowell, tailor, of Deptford, for the purpose of tak-
ing the evidence of Mrs. Roper, who is still in a
very weak state, and under medical treatmevt.
In reply to questions from the Coroner and Mr.
Ingle,
The witness deposed as follows :—On the morn-
ing of the fire, about 2 o'clock, she observed a
strange smell in the room where she had been sleep-
ing with her nurse. She remarked this circum-
stance to the nurse, who replied that it was only
fancy. Her husband immediately came into the
room, and placed her and the nurse on the roof, and
subsequently returned for the infant, which was
also saved. Witness knew that her husband wished
to let the business, and on the Tuesday before the
fire a man whom she had never seen before came in
and inspected the premises. He ultimately con-
sented to take the business for £l3O, and paid her
husband two sovereigns as a deposit, it being ar-
ranged that the man would take possession on the
following Wednesday week, and pay the remainder
of the money. Witness subsequently told her hus-
band that as the business was let she wished some
of the furniture to be removed, and Mrs. Cowell
(the mother of witness) consented to receive a
number of articles, which were sent away daily.
Witness packed up the china, a dinner service, &c.,
which were sent to Mrs. Cowell's house by the ser-
vant girl. The witness was then examined with
respect to pawning a number of articles of wearing
apparel, and deposed she first commenced pledging
last April. She then pledged goods to the amount
of £2 to make up a sum due for rent. A short time
before the fire witness sent her father to pledge
several articles of clothing, and similar articles
were also pledged by her brother-in-law at Wool-
wich. She pledged a number of these articles with-
out the knowledge of her husband.
__

The Coroner—At is only fair to tell you that your
father (Mr. Cowell) stated that the articles he took
were pawned with the knowledge of your husband.
What was your motive in keeping it a secret from
your husband ?
Witness—Because he was unwell, and I thought
it would only worry him.
Examination resumed—At Christmas last witness
assisted her husband to make out an inventory of
the furniture and stock for the purpose of effecting
aninsurance. The man who paid the deposit of
£2 stated that he came through Ilford, but did not
give his name or address.
Mr. Cowell, senior, father of the last witness, was
then re-examined relative to pawning a portion of
the property, and his evidence was, as before, highly
contradictory.
A young man named John Abbott was then exa-
mined, and, in reply to questions from the coroner,
denied that he had taken articles of clothing be-
longing to Mr. Roper out of pledge since the fire.
His statement was then directly negatived by the
production of the tickets, and it was distinctly
proved that since the fire witness had redeemed
clothing pledged at the shop of Mr. Parr, Green-
wich.

At this stage of the proceedings it was communi-
cated to the jury that the directors of the Kent
Fire Insurance Company had resolved to give Mr.
Roper into custody on a charge of fraud, and the
inquiry was adjourned for one hour ; the coroner
directing the jury to reassemble at the Lecture-hall
of the Literary Institution, on accTint of the ex-
citement which prevailed, and the impossibility of
affording accommodation to the public at the room
where the inquiry had been heretofore held.
At half-past 5 o'clock Mr. Richard Roper was ap-
prehended and conveyed to the Greenwich police-
station, with the whole of the furniture which had
been removed from his premises. A crowd of per-
sons assembled, and Mr. Roper, who was accom-
panied by several friends appeared to feel his posi-
tion most acutely. The accused will undergo an
examination at the Greenwich police-court this day
(Saturday).