The Sun.
London, England, 1858-01-08 00:00:00

IMPRORANCE OF SELF-KNOWLEDGE.

We find, then, that there exists rules for our guidance
in judging of the amount of exercise requisite for health
—rules by no means difficult to follow. Still, they are
general, not individual. Each must be more or lass his
own guide as to what is good for him. He must listen
to the kind hints, obey the kind whisperings,. of nature,
who is ever watching to point out man's wanderings and
lead back to health and happiness. And thus we see that
judgment, and discretion, and wakefulness of perception,
and a certain knowledge of ourselves, are absolutely
essential that we may keep the laws of health. And hero
behold the bitter bane of ignorance. Ignoranceis no more
capable of obeying Nature's laws, than vice of following
in vii toe's ways. God has given instinct to the brutes,
but reason to man. They are guided in the laws of life by
inst set—man must be led to of. e Ler C 3 by reason. If
it were possible to find a btute existing in a manner con-
trary to the promptiugs of instinct, we might compare
the *retched animal to the man who is not guided by
reason in his mode of living. How clearly does this de-
monstrate that before a nation can be healthful and
happy, ignorance must be rooted out. How can a people
enjoy health who do not obey the laws of health ? and
how can they obey laws of which they know positively
nothing—of which they have sever se much as heard ?
Let him, then, who is anxious for the advancement of his
race, sho ,v himself anxious for the diffusion of knowledge.
When a knowledge of life's laws shall be spread among
the people, when truths now known to few shall bo
known to many, when philanthropy shall abridge the
hours of labour, and the poor have at least the oppor•
tunity of living as they ought, and not be compelled
to break God's ordinances—in a word, when the bulk of
humanity shall become convinced that the joys arising
from the joys of others are far more pure, more deep,
more durable than any which mere gold can purchase,
then will nations begin to feel how great, bow strangely
great, the error of supposing that God's wonderful, beau-
tan!, perfect world is ordained iota world of woe.' When
we cast our eyes around our country—when we look
from the families of the affluent, feeble and unhappy
from too much ease, down to the miserable huts and
hovels of oar wretched, o'er-worked poor, and behold,
in every nook and corner of the land, fearfulviolations of
the laws ordained to govern man—when we consider that
we are surrounded by hundreds of thousands of our fel-
low-creatures who are positively compelled, whatever be
their wills, to break the laws of God to earn their daily
bread—and then when we reflect upon the delicacy of
texture, the minut>ness of arrangement, the miraculous
sensibility of the organs of the beings which these laws
are designed to protect and perfect—when we ponder on
these things, should we feel surprise at the sickness and
sorrc,w th ►t pervades mankind, or ought we not rather
to marvel—to marvel with awe and gratitude—at the
immeasurable power and love of Nature, who is ever
working to uproot the misery springing from man's igno-
rance.—Hopley's Lectures on Bodily Exercise.

SUDDEN DEATH AT A RAILWAY STATlON.—Yesterday
evening a conapsitor, named John Bagster, late of
Angel-court, Strand, died suddenly at the Euston-sta-
tion of the London and North Western Railway. De-
ceased, who was about 62 years of age, had been ailing
for some time, was about to proceed into the country in
company with his daughter, and was on the po,nt of
stepping into a carriage, when he suddenly fell back into
the anus of one of the fficers of the company, a corpse.
Mr. Joseph Skelding, of Euston-square, has made a
post-mortem examination. The cause of death is disease
of the heart.
THE COLONY OF VICTORIA (AUSTRALIA).—The
icl-
p irtant colony of Victoria (the principal region of the
gold mining operations) contained, according to the
latest returns, 319,379 souls, but in 1354 (the preceding
year), the males fearful,' preponderated—in the ratio of
178,024 to 95,841 females. These figures exclude some
2,500 aborigines, the type of which race is familiarised
to the public at home by Mr. C. Reade's Jacky, in the
tale of "Never too late to Mend." In 1855 there were
11,941 births, 3,846 marriages, and 6,603 deaths. The
total number of schools was 536, the number of scholars,
24,494 ; and the total contributions from the Govern-
ment and private persons, 115,098/. 311 of these schools
are sectarian, 59 national, and 165 private, besides
which Melbourne, the capital of the coleny, now boasts
of an university, which at present, however, only reckons
some 16 students. The sectarian schools are principally
divided between the Church of England, the Church of
Scotland (the old and the " free"), the Wesleyane,
and the Romanists. The revenue of the col my in
1855 amounted to the sum of 4,962,3331., and the ex-
penditure to 4,716,6961. Customs figured for 994,656/.;
the dues on gold exported, for 231,483/. ; postage, for
80,109/. ; assessment on stock, for 71,7041. ; fees for
escort of gold, for 20,510/. ; licenses to diggers for ,
for 39,821/. ; beer and spirit licenees, for 121,717
1.
sales of land and town allotments for 795,363 . ; pro
ceeds of sales of debentures, 'for 562,813/. ; and
adjustments of advances on imports for public services,
for 1,650,5861. As regards the expenditure, the
civil
and legislative establishments cost 289,2051. ; judicial,
67,4111. ; police, petty sessions, and coroners' estab-
lishment, 810,389/. ; 3
gaols, ,770/. ; ecclesiastical,
medical,e
rlt s: 1 e
8r
;immigration,
i9lg,)
oi l
scientific, &c.
46,279/. ; educational, 5;3,1p5u5b11. ;
works,
survey, &c., of crown lands, 142,112/. ;
;
200,7601.; stores and transport, 746,871/, military and
naval, 233,581/. ; advances on account of sewers and
water supply, 118,023/. ; and repaymentc loans,
(gold
dn
inclusive),
250,000/. The total value of import '
and that of the exports
12,007,939 L, wasve) ,
13,493,3381. The imports from England amounted to
5,617,149/., and the exports to England, 11,359,1451.,
or nearly the whole amount, Gold figured for
10,904,150/. in the exports of 1855, and of this
9,628,396/. came to
1,405,659/., the England. Woo: figui el for
quantity being 22 584 2341 b. •st
22,988,4001 b. in 1854, 20,842,591,,b. ' again
in 1853, and
20,047,4531 b. in 1852. 437,570 acres of land were sold
by the Government in 1855. There were 46 gold
mines, 17 quartz reefs, 16 limestone quarries, 155
brick grounds, and 27 bluestone quarries. The number
of manufactories was 1,944, of which 1,507 were
puddling establishments and 159 quartz-crushing
machines. The land under crops in 1855 was 115,135
acres, and the produce included 1,148,011 bushels of
wheat, 614,614 bushels of oats, 62,378 tons of vege-
tables (exclusive of mangold-wurtzel), 83,276 tons of
hay, 488,8321 b. of grapes, and 9,371 gallons of wine.
The number of occupiers of land was 4,326. The live
stock of 1855 included 33,430 horses, 534,123 head of
horned cattle, 4,577,872 sheep, and 20,686 porkers.
No account is given of the rates of wages of labour in
'the colony of Victoria. South and Western Australia
will supply the; subject of another article.