The Sun.
London, England, 1866-09-26 00:00:00

an inquest held last Wednesday, before Mr.
HUMPHREYS, on ABRAHAM BROWN, a silk weaver,
aged 60 years. It seems from the evidence that the
deceased, a respectable man, had been out of em-
ployment for several weeks past. His brother and
others advised him to go into the Bethnal-green
Workhouse, as he had no home ; but he was averse
to go, having been there once before, and ill treated.
At last, however, the poor man's courage gave
way, and he applied for admission three weeks
ago. He was kept all day at the workhouse
gates, but not admitted. Last Saturday week
he again applied, and was taken in. On the Mon-
day he was moved to one of the wards, being evi-
dently extremely ill. During the night he kept
getting in and out of bed, and " talking inces-
santly like a man deranged." Such symptoms,
however, do not disturb the equanimity of work-
house officials, excepting so far as they interfere
with their personal comfort or convenience. In
the morning, said the wardsman, deceased "got
out of bed and lay on the floor. Witness put him
back in the bed " (roughly and carelessly enough,
no doubt), " and half an hour afterwards
found him dead. Witness then called the doctor.
He did not call the nurse or the doctor to the de-
ceased during the night because he never complained
—he seemed like a man deranged." The idea of
delirium being a sign of illness did not apparently
enter the mind of this worthy, who has charge of
14 men in this sick ward. The post mortem exami-
nation showed that death was occasioned by failure
in the action of the heart, and both the doctor who
made it, and the medical officer of the workhouse,
said that life might have been prolonged by
timely treatment. The verdict was death from
natural causes, and the jury found " that there was
great neglect in the workhouse ward, where the de-
ceased was left dying the whole night without any
attendance whatever." It seems that the deceased
was to have been buried without an inquest, when
the Coroner accidentally heard of the case. In
waiting till so.ne better and more humane system of
workhouse management is organised, it would at
least be some check upon cruelty and some stimulus
to selfish callousness if an inquest were held on every
death in our unions.

The case of ABRAHAM BROWN sufficiently ex-
plains that of MARGARET Swim, a muslin worker,
aged 76, who died from want of the common neces-
saries of life. She was urged to go into the White-
chapel Workhouse, but said she would rather die of
hunger. As might be expected with her trade, at
her age, the poor creature earned so little that she
was in a state of abject destitution. A keeper of a
common lodging-house kindly allowed her a few
nights shelter and gave her some food, but she
was at last removed to the dreaded " house" in a
state of insensibility from absolute want, and died
very shortly after. Verily, there is something
strangely wrong in our system of relieving the
poor when two inquests like these can be held in
one week. They are a scandal to the public dis-
charge of a national duty—the care of those honest
and friendless poor who can no longer work for
themselves. If England cannot do better than this
for honest poverty, she may look for a plentiful
increase of thieves and swindlers. At any
rate, her people had better cease to boast
either of their humanity or their justice, and
still less of their system of local government, when
an aged pauper can deliberately and with reason pre-
fer to perish from absolute starvation than to submit
to the treatment of want and suffering in the recog-
nised institutions of the State.

CORRESPONDENCE FROM PARIS.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

PARIS, Tuesday Evening.
The 41foniteur says that the private despatches
and the Italian papers consider the definitive con-
clusion of peace between Austria and Italy as liely
to take place speedily in consequence of the settle-
ment of the financial question, which hitherto had
made delicate uegociations very necessary.
The Siecle says :—" The negotiations between
Italy and Austria proceed slowly. Those between
Prussia and Saxony appear to be suspended. All
that we receive from Germany is the text of a pro-
clamation of the Duke of Saxe-Meiningen to his
faithful subjects. In order to save them from mak-
ing sacrifices, he renounces power in favour of his
son. The Duke who thus abdicates, Erich-Freund
Bernhard, born on the 17th Dec., 1800, succeeded
his father, the Duke George, on the 24th December,
1803, and was placed under the tutelage of his
mother until the 17th December, 1821. He, there-
fore, reigned nearly 63 years. His successor, the
Duke George, was born on the 2d April, 1826, and
by his first marriage he is the son-in-law of Prince
Albert of Prussia.

The Elector of Hesse Camel has addressed a pro-
clamation to his troops, in which he releases them
from their oath of fidelity.
The Gazette de la Croix states that the health of
M. de Bismark is not yet sufficiently re-established
to enable him to attend to his ministerial duties,
which, for the present, are intrusted to other hands.
M. de Bismark will not leave for the country until
the close of the session, which will take place next
week.

It is officially announced that the demand for
space for 199 exhibitors inscribed on the list of ad-
missions of class 53 (machines and mechanical
apparatus), at the Great Exhibition, is agreed to.
The space to be allowed to class 53 will be 978
square metres.

The Royal Commission for the great Exhibition
at Paris have issued a circular at Florence, signed
by the President, M. Vicenzi, in which ho states
that all motive of war having disappeared, the na-
tional prosperity has been the great want of the
country. He, therefore, urges the manufacturing
and industrial interests to " fructify" the natural
riches of Italy by their exertions. The coming Ex-
hibition (he says) ought to serve to make us known
to others, and instruct us to know ourselves.

Count Bacocchi, Senator, first Chamberlain to
the Emperor, superintendent-general of the theatres,
died on Sunday morning at the Palace of the Tui-
leries. The Count had occupied the position of
Chamberlain since 1852, and died very rich, hav-
ing inherited the property of the Prince de Lucques.
He was the nephew of the Princess Bacocchi, also
is much interested in agriculture, and occupies a
large farm in Brittany, which was presented to her
by the Emperor.

Shocks a earthquake have taken place in Ger-
many and Italy. At Essegg, in Sclavonia, 53
hours before the earthquake took place at Paris,
" the sun appeared to shake." So says the Ham-
burger Nachrichten. On Saturday last, at Turin
about four o'clock in the afternoon, there was a
slight undulating movement of the earth.
A new Catholic Church has been consecrated
with much ceremony at Liestal, in the canton of
Berne, Switzerland. Catholics and Protestants
took part in the ceremony. During the banquet
given on the occasion, the Bishop of Bale gave a
toast, which was
iacknowledgedsueh atevbeyts arheme of
the pariah of Liesta .
common in German Switzerland.

The restoration of the Notre Dame, which has
been in progress for 20 years, is nearly completed.
The last two statues are about to be placed in the
niches prepared for them in the Gallery of Kings.
The statues in that gallery were supposed to be
those of the Kings of France from the time of
Charlemagne, but under archaeological discoveries
prove that they represented the Kings of Judea and
not those of France. A King seated upon a lion is
certainly a David.

There will be a splendid exhibition of fruits,
vegetables, and flowers in the Rue de Grenelle, St.
Germain, from September 29 to October 3. Medals
of gold, silver, and bronze, given by the Emperor
and Empreea, the rrinceiffi Itathilde and the /Ws-
;