The Sun.
London, England, 1832-10-02 00:00:00

HOUGHTON MEETING, 1832.

MONDAY—A match for 100 sovs. was made this even-
ing betwee❑ Mr. Thornhill's Farce, and Mr. Gully's
Carlton. T.Y. C.

LIVERPOOL, SEPT. 30.—Wind at Holy-
head, S. W., blowing fresh. Passed Holyhead, inward
bound No. 838, Hope, British schooner, and No. 939,
Forth, British brig, at 8 a.m. ; No. 163, Friends, British
brig, at 12 noon. Passed Point Lynas, inward bound,
No. 407, Manchester, British brig, at 3 p.m. Sailed on
Friday, the Caledonia, for Eastport ; the Barton, forß arbael—‘—s ;
the Fairfield, for Wyborg ; and the William,
for Africa. Sailed on Thursday, the Eugenia, for the
Cape of Good Hope ; the Medora, for Bombay ; the
Prince Regent, for New Orleans ; the Helen, for New-
foundland ; the Royal Saxon, for Savannah.—The
Caledonia, Cleveland, and Mount Stewart Elphinstone,
hence, at Bombay; the Welcome, from Bombay, at the
Clyde, sailed on the 20th of May. The Mount Stewart
Elphinstone was to sail on the 12th of June for this port;
the Dash, from Bahia, at Antwerp ; the Douro, hence
for Antigua, at Dublin ; the Margaret, for Barbados,
which was on shore on East Hoyle, has been got off and
brought into the river ; the Ellen, hence, at Leghorn.
LIVERPOOL, SUNDAY, SEPT. 30.—Wind
at noon S., fair.—Arrived the Richard Walker, from
Jamaica ; the Sir Francis Burton, from Bombay ; the
Ivanhoe, from Charleston ; the Ariel, from ; the
Thetis, Emerald, Craton, and Frederick, from Dublin ;
the Hibernia and Margaret, from Belfast; the Queen
Adelaide and Robert Napier, from Londonderry; the
Charlotte, from Bristol ; the Erin and Thetis, from
Waterford ; the Edward and Henry, and Princess Royal,
from Dundalk; the Darling, and William and _Betsey,
from Newry ; the Hugh Charles Bowden, from Wicklow ;
the Bristow, from Youghal ; the Albion, from Limerick ;
the Christian, from Cork ; tho Isabella, and Stag, from
Glasgow ; the Pomona from Padstow ; the Ant, from
Ulverston; the Crown, from Carlisle ; the Turtle Dove,
from Swansea; the Brilliant, from Cardiff; the Resolu-
tion, from Newport; the Success and Iris, from Fowey ;
the Alexander, from Poole ; the Wilhelmina, from St.
Maloes. Sailed, the Choctaw, for Boston. The Eliza-
beth was to sail from John's, New Brunswick, for this
port on the 31st of August ; the St. Georges hence, at
Malta, the Red Rover, hence, at Malta, and sailed
for Salonica on the 15th instant; the M. M'Donald,
hence, at Quebec; the Spring, hence, and Nel-
son Wood, from Hamhurgh, at St. Petersburgh ;
the Richard, James Grant, Lune, and Gondo-
lier, hence, at Grosse Island, on the 23d of August;
the Cervantes, from the Cape of Good Hope ; the Wil-
liam Salthouse, hence, and the Emma Scotia, from Rio
de Janeiro, at Mauritius; the Ann, sailed from Mauritius
for London on the Bth of July ; the Chieftain, hence, at
Montreal ; the Abeona, hence, at Quebec ; the Monarch,
henee, at St. Andrew's, New Brunswick ; the Lanca-
shire Witch and Mary Ann, from Trieste; the Mau-
'ley, from Genoa, and Tribune, from Leghorn, at Zante ;
the Prowler, from Smyrna, at Cork ; the Artemis, hence
for Quebec, was spoken with on the 14th instant, in
lat. 37 47, long. 38 49.

One of our correspondents, who manifests strongly his
desire to contribute to the subscription which we have
proposed in favour of Sir Walter Scott's family, begs us
to state how he was involved In debts of such great mag-
nitude as we have stated. We thought the facts were
universally known, hut as we find they are not, we beg to
state them in the words of Sir 'Walter himself, in the in
troduction to the Chronicles of the Canonyate, in the
number of the new edition of the Waverley novels which
has just appeared :
" I have, perhaps, said enough on former occasions of
the misfortunes which led to the dropping of that mask
under which I had, for a long series of years, enjoyed so
large a portion of public favour. Through the success of
those literary efforts, I had been enabled to indulge most
of the tastes which a retired person of my station might
be supposed to entertain. In the pen of this nameless
romancer I seemed to possess something like the secret
fountain of coined gold and pearls vouchsafed to the tra-
veller of the eastern tale ; and no doubt believed that I
might venture, without silly imprudence, to extend m)
oersonal expenditure considerably beyond what I should
have thought of had my means been limited to the com-
petence which I derived from inheritance, with the mode-
rate income of a professional situation. I bought, and built,
and planted; and was considered by myself, as by the rest
of the world, in the safe possession of an easy fortune.
My riches, however, like the other riches of this world,
were liable to accidents, under which they were ulti-
mately destined to make unto themselves wings and
fly away. The year 1825, so disastrous to many
branches of industry and commerce, did not spare
the market of literature; and the sudden ruin that
fell on so many of the booksellers could scarcely have been
expected to leave unscathed one whose career had of ne-
cessity connected hits deeply and extensively with the pe-
cuniary transactions of that profession. In a word, almost
without one note of premonition, I found myself involved
in the sweeping catastrophe of the unhappy time, and
called on to meet the demands of creditors upon commer-
cial establishments with which my fortunes had long been
bound up, to the extent of no less a sum than 120,0001.
The author, having, however, rashly committed his pledges
thus largely to the hazards of trailing companies, it be-
hoved him, of course, to abide the consequences of his
conduct; and, with whatever feelings, be surrendered on the
instant every shred of property which he bad been accus-
tomed to call his own. It became vested in the hands of
gentlemen, whose integrity, prudence, and intelligence,
were combined with all possible lib rality and kindness of
disposition, and who readily afforded every assistance to-
wards the execution of plane, in the success of which the
author contemplated the possibility of his ultimate extri-
cation, and which were of such a nature that, had assist-
ance of this sort been withheld, he could have had little
prospect of carrying them into effect. Among other re-
sources which occurred was the project of that complete
and corrected edition of his novels and romances (whose
real parentage had of necessity been disclosed at the mo-
ment of the commercial convulsions alluded to) which has
now advanced with unprecedented favour neatly to its
close."

To this we may add the following extract on the same
subject, from a well-writte❑ account of the distinguished
Baronet in the Spectator of yesterday. The article is
said to be written by an intimate friend of Sir Walter :
" For many years he followed his literary labours, with
an ardour stimulated by the cheering prospect of building
upon them a fortune corresponding to his elevated station
in society, and of leaving a below d family in affiuence.—
One dreadful stroke blasted this fair prospect. He became
responsible for debts which swallowed up his possessions,
and swept away the fruits of all his labours. He stood
the blow with unshaken fortitude. For its consequences
to himself he exhibited perfect indifference ; his feelings
for his family he buried in his own breast : but his firm-
ness could not stand the reflection that he had been the
means of involving others in distress or difficulty. On this
subject alone he could not suppress the poignancy of his
anguish; and his whole thoughts were bent, not, like
other men, on saving some remnant out of the wreck of his
fortune, but on giving to his creditors, in addition to what
had become theirs, that which was still his own—the inalien-
able powers of his mind. He instantly resumed his labou rs ;
and though he knew that the toil of his whole future life, even
in the most favourable event, could do little more than satisfy
the claims of hir creditors, and very probably might not
accomplish that object, still he persisted, without one of
the cheering anticipations of his former days, and without
an incitement but high moral principle, in pursuing a
course of mental exertion, in which he allowed himself not
even a pause, till his o'erlaboured brain refused to perform
its office, and his paralyzed hand dropped the pen. His
self-devotion was received as it deserved by those to
whose benefit it was directed. They have availed them-
selves of every opportunity of expressing an admiration
and gratitude amounting to enthusiasm for conduct so
sublime. To his creditors, the benefits of his labours do
not cease with his life. The great edition of the Waverley
novels alone must continue, for a long time, to realize large
sums ; and we believe the ultimate deficiency will not be
considerable."

It is gratifying to find that the suggestions thrown out
by us on the propriety of taking steps to redeem the estates
and mansion of Abbotsford are about to be followed up.
We are authorized to state that a committee of gentlemen
is now forming, principally from among the friends of
Sir Walter Scott, to arrange the best method for carrying
into elTect this truly national object.