The Sun.
London, England, 1859-06-24 00:00:00

FRANCE.

Count Paul Schouvaloff, aide-de-camp rof the
Emperor Alexander, has just arrived in Paris on his
way to the Emperor Napoleon's head-quarters as
Russian Military Commissioner. The Count is the
bearer of an autograph letter of the Emperor of
Russia to Napoleon 111. He replaces Colonel Abbe-
dinsky, who joined the French camp at, the com-
mencement of the campaign.

Baron Kubeck has arrived at Frankfort with
new Austrian propositions for the Diet ; but he is
not to present them until he has received communi-
cations from the Prussian Government as well as
his own. The approach of Prussia towards Austria
is obvious within the last week.

Baron de Pfordten, ex-Minister of Foreign
Affairs in Bavaria, and now representative of that
Power at the Germanic Confederation, made his
appearance suddenly at Munich on the 17th, and
was received by the King. From Munich M.
de Pfordten afterwards went to Stuttgardt, to
confer with the Ministers of Wurtemburg, and
thence returned to Frankfort.

A decree in the 2tfoniteur, signed by the Emperor
at Brescia, nominates Count de Moray as President
of the Legislative Body, MM. Schneider and Revell
Vice-presidents, and General Baron Vast-Vimeux
and M. Hebert questors for the ensuing session.
General of Brigade Wimpffen has been promoted
to the rank of General of Division, and Colonels
Anselme d'Alton and Douay to that of Generals of

Brigade.
PARIS BOURSE, June 23.—The market still con-
tinues dull, and slightly declining. Threes have
been done at 61f. 90c. and 61f. 75c. Mobilier
varied from 622 f. 50c. to 617 f. 50c. ; Austrian,
400 f. to 397 f. 50c. ; Orleans, 1,207 f. 50c. to 1,202 f.
50c. ; Lyons, 817 f. 50c. to 812 f. 50c.; Northern,
917 f. 50c. to 915 f. The following were th. last
quotations :

41 per Cents. .... 91 75
Do. end month .. 92

Credit Foncier 635 !
Belgian 41
Piedmontese (5)
Roman BO 50
Austrian
Spanish Threes
Home Debt 39 50

per Cents 6l 80
_ _

D. end month.... 61 75

Bank Shares 2760

Credit Mobilier .. 620
Do. Account ..... 620

RAILWAYS.

Cash. Account.
Orleans
Northern 917 50 .. 917 50
New ditto 7BO .. 780
Lyons and Mediterranean Bl5 .. 816 25
tieneva 495 ..
Southern
Western 515 .. 510
Eastern
Sardinian 370 .. 367 50
Austrian
Exchange on London, at sight, paper, 25f. 121 c. ; money,
25f 71c.; three months, paper, 25f..; money, 24f. 9710.

AMERICA.

(BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.)
SOUTHAMPTON, FRIDAY MORNING.

The screw steamer New York, Capt. von Santen,
with mails of the 11th, from New York, has arrived
off Cowes, and proceeded to Bremen. Her advices
are anticipated.
She brings 327,336 dols. for England, 73,000
dols. for France, and 26,800 dols. for Bremen.

A marriage is arranged, and will. shortly take•
placb between Viscount Boyle and Lady Blanche Lascelles,
sister of the present Earl of Harewood.
ROYAL DRAMATIC COLLEGE.—The Prince Con-
sort has kindly consented to become the patron of the
'Royal Dramatic College, of which her Majesty is patroness.
At Hamburg, notwithstanding the political ex-
citement prevalent there, as well as in other parts of Ger-
many, the rate of discount has fallen to 11 per cent.
Mr. Edward Branson, of the Hanwell College,
passed his examination for the Indian Military Service on
Tuesday'last, at Addiscombe. We are glad to find that
the 'college, under the constant supervision of Dr. Emerton,
continues to contribute its share of accomplished officers to
the British army.—United Service Gazette.
THE YIELD OF GOLD IN VICTORIA.—The total
quantity of gold brought down by escort up to the 15th of
April, 1859, was 523,000 ozs., against 629,918 ozs. during
the same period in 1858. The quantity exported this year
has been 643,878 ozs., making the total quantity exported
since the discovery of the gold fields, 18,253,620 ozs., repre-
senting at £4 per oz. the enormous sum. of £70,014,480.—
South Australian Gazette.
FATAL ACCIDENT.—At. Lambeth police-court
yesterday Henry Sheppard, the driver of one of the Water-
loo omnibuses, was charged with having caused the death
of John Radstead, a boy of ten years of age, by running
over him. From the evidence the unfortunate occurrence
appeared to be perfectly accidental, and the accused
_was.
admitted to bail in his own recognisances to appear at this
court on Saturday next.
FATAL FALL FROM A CLIFF AT ILFRACOMBE.--
This pleasant little watering place was on Thursday last
the scene of a melancholy accident. On that day a pic-nic
party were enjoying themselves among_ the_ rocks in the
neighbourhood, when one of the party, Mr. W. Blathwayt,
an ensign in the 83d Regiment, and youngest son of Col.
Blathwayt, of Dyrham-park, Gloucestershire, scrambled
down tiff. cliff in search of some gulls' eggs. Unhappily he
lost his footing, and falling from an immense height he was
literally dashed to pieces. The unfortunate young man
was to have been married in about ten days' time. He was
in his 21st year.
The following is a literal translation of a scroll
which has been placed by the Archbishop of Paris on the
new weathercock, just placed upon the steeple of Notre
Dame :—" In this box, tied with ribands of red silk, and
sealed with our seal, are placed relics of the true cross, of the
holy crown of thorns of our Lord Jesus Christ, of St. Denis,
the first Bishop of Paris, and a martyr, and of the virgin St.
Genevieve, the patron saint of this city. Paris, on the vigil
of Pentecost, after the solemn benediction of the cross which
is to be place(' on the summit of the steeple of our metropo-
iiian Church, June 11, 1852; t FRANc. N
cwiaaja mozg; Archbieucp
view 19I1OLAS,

LITERATURE.

Life and Liberty in America. By Charles Mackay,
LL.D. 2 vols., illustrated. Smith and Elder.
It has long been the custom, when persons of any
note in this country visit the New World, for them, 1
on their return, to give us their impressions of life
and manners in the other hemisphere. They are
especially qualified for this task by the cordial
welcome and ready attention they generally receive
from our Transatlantic brethren. It has been some-
times objected that they have repaid the hospitality
they have received with ingratitude, by deprecia-
tory remarks and criticisms ; and many of them
have no doubt been restrained by this fear from
expressing their fair opinions. The volumes before
us occupy the happy medium between these two
extremes—neither refraining from fair and open
comment on the state and tendency of American
institutions, nor indulging in harsh and hyper-
critical comment on the manners and customs of
domestic life. A work of this kind was to be ex-
pected by the public, from the interesting papers
which Dr. Mackay. occasionally sent over, under
the title of " Transatlantic Sketches," to the London
periodical to which he contributed. These sketches
have been incorporated with the rest of his notes,
and appear in the present volumes, which contain
a large amount of pleasant reading and varied in-
formation. They are calculated, too, to dispel some
of the prejudices against the Americans lingering
in the minds of some Englishmen. Dr. Mackay
asserts that it is a mistake to suppose that the
Americans really regard the English with the
contempt which in argument they often express
for " Britishers." . Among themselves they speak
differently, and he beliefes that it is their eager
desire to be thought well of by the " oldhland " that
makes them resent with such fiery indignation any
disparaging comments from this side of the Atlan-
tic. The commencement of Dr. Mackay's excursion
was not auspicious. 'The weather was' stormy, the
voyage was longer than the average; and he was
ready, under a combination of the small miseries of
a sea voyage, to regret having started. On arriving
at New York, however, he soon changed his opi-
nion, and commenced his acquaintance with Ameri•
can "institutions," a word which they apply to
every thing remarkable, from pumpkin-pie to
the falls of Niagara. One of the first of these "in-
stitutions," which struck him was that of the fire-
men, who are conducted on a very different system
from our fire brigades.
The fire system, in nearly all the principal cities of the
Union, is a peculiarity of American life. Nothing like it
exists in any European community. As yet the city of
Boston appears to be the only one that has had the sense
and the courage to organise the fire brigades on a healthier
plan, and bring them under the direct guidance and con-
trol.of the municipality. Everywhere else the firemen are
a power in the State, wielding considerable political in-
fluence, and uncontrolled by any authority but such as
they elect by their own free votes. They are formidable by
their numbers, dangerous by their organisation, and in
many cities, are principally composed of young men at the
most reckless and excitable age of life, who glory in fire as
soldiers do in a battle, and who are quite as ready to fight
with their fellow-creatures as with the fire which it is more
particularly their province to subdue. In New York,
Philadelphia, Baltimore, and other large cities, the fire
service is entirely voluntary, and is rendered for " the love
of the thing," or for '' the fun of the thing," whichever it
may be. The motto of one fire company, at New York, in-
scribed on their banner, is—
" Firemen with pleasure,
Soldiers at leisure ;"
a couplet which characterises the whole spirit of their
organisation. The fireman are mostly youths engaged dur-
ing the day in various handicrafts and mechanical trades,
with a sprinkling of clerks and shopmen. In New York
each candidate for admission into the force must be balloted
for, like a member of the London clubs. If elected, he has
to serve for five years, during which he is exempt from jury
and militia duty. The firemen elect their own superinten •
dents and'other officers, by ballot, as they were themselves
elected ; and are divided into engine companies, hook and
ladder companies, and hose companies. The engine and
accessories are provided by the municipality; but the fire-
men are seldom contented with them in the useful but un-
adorned state in which they receive them, but lavish upon
them an amount of ornament, in the shape of painted panels,
silver plating, and other finery, more than sufficient to
prove their liberality, and the pride they take in their
business.
An admirable system of fire telegraphs is organised
in most of their large towns, conveying immediate
intelligence to head-quarters of the locality of the
fire. Such precautions are extremely necessary in
America, where the accidents from fire are of
alarming frequency. The railway cars and the
street conveyances are also described at length,
though in both these respects the " go-a-head "
people seem to be far behind our more sober selves.
Hotel' life in America is certainly an "institution"
peculiar, to the country. Some of the greatest in
the great cities make up from five hundred
to a thousand beds, and the system on
whiehitbe meals are conducted is as follows :
For a fixed charge of two dollars and a half a day (about
ten and sixpence English) the traveller has a comfortable
bed-room, the use of a drawing-room, dining-room, reading-
room, and smoking-room, and the full enjoyment of a
liberal tariff, or bill of fare, for breakfast, luncheon, dinner,:
tea, and supper. The two dollars and a half include all
charges for servants, and every charge whatever that can
be fairly included under the head of board and lodging, ex-,
cept wine, beerland spirits. There is no charge for wax-
lights—that flaring pretext for extortion in England. The
cookery is in general excellent. The breakfast is bounteous,
and at the leading hotels is spread from eight o'clock to
twelve, between which hours fish, flesh, and fowl, fresh
meat and salt meat, eggs, omelettes, wheaten bread, rye
bread, corn bread, corn cakes, rice cakes, and buckwheat
cakes (the last-mentioned a greater delicacy than England
can show), are liberally distributed. From twelve o'clock till
two the luncheon is spread with equal profusion ; and from
two to six there is a succession of dinners, the getting up of
which, at the St. Nicholas, the Metropolitan, or the New
York, would do credit to the Reform Club and its excellent
chef de cuisine. As soon as dinner is over, tea commences,
and as soon as tea is cleared away the cloths are laid for
supper, so that from eight in the morning till midnight
there is one continual succession of feasts, at which Go-
vernors of States, members of Congress, Judges, Generals,
ex-Presidents of the Republic, the magnates of commerce
and the law, and all the miscellaneous and less distin-
guished public, male and female, sit down. Whether the
traveller do or do not partake, it is the same to the landlord.
He may eat once, twice, thrice, or all day long, if he pleases.
The price is two dollars and a half, even should he be a
popular celebrity—have many friends—and take all his
meals abroad. If ladies and families prefer to have apart-
ments of their own, the price for lodging varies from three
to five or ten dollars a day, according to the extent or ele-
gance of accommodation required. In like manner, the
board of each individual, supplied in a private apartme_n.
is raised from two and a half to four dollars per diem. The
ccnsequence is that very few people board in their private
rooms, and that nearly all breakfast, dine, and sup in pub-
lic, except the very young children, for whose convenience
there is a separate table d' hote.
These hotels are admirable establishments for tra-
vellers, but they are often used for another purpose
for which they are not so suitable. Many families,
from the extreme difficulty of procuring good ser-
vants, take up their permanent abode in one of
them, thus forfeiting all the comforts of domestic
life, and bringing up their children in an atmo-
sphere of publicity very disadvantageous to them.
It is no uncommon thing for young married people
to settle in one of these great hotels for years—a
system which has its obvious drawbacks and disad-
vantages. It was not long before Dr. Mackay
visited Niagara, of which he gives a full and very
interesting description. We extract a few passages
from it.
Here, at all events, man and his works are impotent to
mar or diminish the magnificence of nature. No wheels of
mills or factories can be set in motion by a cataract like
this. It would dash into instant ruin the proudest pyramid,
palace, temple, or manufactory that imperial man ever
ere.lted since the world began. He who would utilise such
a flood must be as cautious as a homoeopathist. To use
more than an infinitesimal portion of its exuberant strength
would be to court and to meet annihilation. The mass of
water pours over the rocks in onefeelut
. forcent
broken depth of upwards of twenty
mile. of the
no magician and no plummet has ever sounded the
dread profundity; even within a
condemned lake steamer, the Detroit, drawing 18 feet of
finalaanl although
nn-
broken
h
leap,ou a
e
nweavteerr,towuacsheeadrnth• e
rooveekr
st hweitFalls
her a
ks
efieglh
utnl yt
la
ss
hae cwo raks .
precShi-
pitatd, r
eSehi
below,pitated ,anstdillthsheanpedloywann,ddboewanutinfuo l,onaehukundorwesd, and defivfetrywfbiellt
.know, how many fathoms into a lowteifedeep, scooped out by
the incessant action of the Falls very bowels of. the
a few minutes afterwards, a chaotic and
of beams, spars, and floating timber.
unconnectede arth, t
m reappear,ass
When the first sensations of mingled awe and delight
have been somewhat dulled by familiarity with the mono•
tonous majesty, so suggestive of infinite power, and so like
an emblem of eternity—though impossible for man's art to
picture it under such a symbol—the eye takes pleasure in
looking into the minuthe of the flood. The deep slaty-
green colour of the river, curdled by the impetus of tho
Fall into masses of exquisite whiteness, is the first pecu-
liarity that excites attention. They/ the shapes assumed by
the rushing waters—shapes continually varying as each
separate pulsation of the Rapids above produces a new em-
bodiment in the descending stream—charm the eye with
fresh wonder. Sometimes an avalanche of water, striking
on a partially hidden shelf or rock half-way down the pre-
cipice, makes a globular and mound-like surge of spray ;
and, immediately afterwards, a similar downflow, beat-
ing on the very same point, is thrown upwards, almost
to the level of the Upper Niagara, in one long, white,
and perpendicular column. Gently, yet majestically, it
reaches the lower level by its own independent impetus,
without being beholden to the gravity of the sympathetic
stream from which it has been so rudely dissevered. And
then the rainbows 1 No pen can do justice to their number
and their loveliness. No simile but the exquisite one of
Byron at the Italian waterfall—which, compared with
Niagara, is but a blade of grass to some oaken monarch of
the woods—can adequately render the idea of any spectator
who has a soul for natural beauty as he gazes on the un-
paralleled spectacle of such an Iris as it was my good for-
tune to behold :
" Love watching madness with unalterable mien 1" II
One of the most amusing chapters is that on Ame-
ricanisms of speech, in which Dr. Mackay giveshch
us first an account of the English words
dwl
of
have lost their English meaning, and,
whatclass
arehe remx
esr'e‘ipseu,r,e
which
Americanisms.
o"
agsoeicttao,ttnhe,e secondly,
which means courteous ; " amiable,
or trouble; " bright," which means ctvwerh;ie‘hcllneveearn,s'
stupid,
thnded atshe,,
tloattehorncelyafussghlee,ffintvoesfiaaterexo;
sucOlif
"take in ;" " to stump a state," to go on a tour of
politiad agitation ; and many others, some of which
are ray expressiyet While ether* hate A strong

tinge of vulgarity. To one of them the following
anecdote is appended :
A bunch of sprouts. An Englishman who had steamed
down the Mississippi with a captain who was not "clever'
in the American sense of the word, seeing on his arrival at
New Orleans a great assemblage of people at the levee,
and hearing a disturbance, asked the captain what was the
matter.
"Oh, nothing particular," said the captain. "It is only
Jones, an editor, who has quarrelled with Smith, another
editor, and given him a whole bunch of sprouts."
" A bunch of sprouts 1' " inquired the Englishman.
" Yes, a bunch of sprouts," said the captain.
" And what is a bunch of sprouts ?' " inquired John
Bull, bewildered.
" Don't you know ?" rejoined the captain.
" I don't," said John Bull.
" Then more fool you," was the reply, on giving which
the captain turned upon his heel, and walked away.
The Englishman, not altogether discouraged, applied to
the clerk for information.
" Oh! editors are always quarrelling here," he replied.
" It is but one editor who has given another a bunch of
sprouts."
" But what is a bunch of sprouts ?' "
" Don't you know r'
" Not I.

" Why, what a fool you must be 1"
The story is that the Englishman has asked the same
question since that day, no one knows how many years a
of thousands of people, but never obtained an answer ; that
the idea has taken entire possession of his mind ; and that
he is wandering over the United States asking every one
he meets, " What is a bunch of sprouts ?" Receiving 13,1
satisfactory reply, he hurries on from place to place, ans-
from person to person, worn to a skeleton, the mere shadow
of a man—a kind of flying Dutchman—a spectre pressnen
—a wandering Jew—asking the old, eternal question never
to be answered on this side of the grave, " What is ;bunch
of sprouts ?" Should this unhappy citizen of our fortunate
Isles ever read these pages, the spell that is upon him will
be broken, and he will learn that a " bunch of sprouts" is
a slang expression for the whole diticharge of a revoker--
barrel after barrel.
It would be impossible, in a work of this kind, to
avoid touching on the subject of slavery, and Dr.
Mackay has done so with moderation and judg-
ment. He looks upon it with the honest indigna-
tion of an Englishman, and an American's sense of
the difficulties of the question. On the subject of
political parties and the government of the States
his remarks contain a good deal of truth. He was
a sufficiently shrewd observer to detect that, under
the high-sounding names of republicanism and free-
dom, party tyranny exercises a stronger influence
than under a constitutional government. The
dependhas
irely injurious
upon et
system of paying the members of the Legislature
frheiecrtss'ala and are open
'arY, many
ofthem
all outward influences of bribery and persuasion.
The frequent changes of the President maintain_ .01
continual agitation and strife in the political world
The rival parties, each with their candidate, keep
to
up and foster the angry passions of the community,
in order to obtain votes. In this way Dr. Mackay,
accounts for the sudden disturbances about Engils
misconduct, slavery, and other chronic troubles the
the States, which occasionally astonish the
English public. Each party catches at some
popular cry, and many of the statesmen are
forced by the exigencies of the hour to countenance
those views and opinions which they are secretly_
averse to. It is impossible not to believe that all
this must have a deteriorating effect on public life.
On leaving the States Dr. Mackay visited Canada,
and his description of Canadian loyalty to Eng-
land is very gratifying. His descriptions of the
scenery all through his tour are graphic and well
written. Here is his account of shooting the rapids
on the St. Lawrence, one of the most difficult feats
of American navigation. The Indians of the neigh-
bourhood are always the pilots :
Our pilot started from shore in a canoe, and, on reaching
the Kingston, spring nimbly upon deck—an indubitable
red man, but without paint and feathers—in the European
costume of his vocation. He had a keen black eye and a
quick hand, and seemed to be fully aware of the importance
of the task he had undertaken, and of the necessity that lay
upon him to have every faculty of mind and body on the
alert, to carry our vessel in safety down this frantic stair-
case of seventy, feet in a run of about three miles, intersected
and encumbered by many rocks and with a current rushing,
in some places, at the rate of fifteen or twenty miles an
hour. Our trusty pilot was equal to his work. He was all
nerve—and nerves—and at one point more especially of our
mad career, when ,we seemed to be running right upon a
point of rock projecting about two feet above the surface of
the torrent, to be inevitably dashed to pieces—a sudden turn
of his wrist altered our coarse instantaneously, and sent
down a long reach, amid showers of dashing spray, at reck-
us
less speed—like a railway train—full tilt upon another heap
of rocks that seemed absolutely to bar the passage. A delay
of one second in altering our course would have been
certain perdition ; but the mind of the red man, quick as
electricity, communicated its impulse to his hand, and his
hand, with the same rapidity, to the wheel ; and away we
were again, before we could draw breath, safe in deep
waters—dancing along impetuously, but safely, into .new
dangers, to be as splendidly and triumphantly aurmountecl,
The trees uon either side seemed to pass out, of our fio!tt
of vision asp instantaneously as the pliantasmagoria seem ui
a magic lantern ; and when we darted at last into the bins
water, and saw far behind us the snowy wreaths and feathery
crests of the mountainous waves through which our ship
had whizzed like an arrow, the propri.ety of the,expression,-
" 'shooting the Rapids," needed no Justification but this
scene and its remembrance. It should be stated that;
although many canoes and boats have been lost in the
Rapids, no accident has ever yet happened to a steam vessel
in navigating them.
Dr. Mackay's reception both in the United
States and in Canada was enthusiastic. The po.et
of " the good time coming" was a most congenial
visitor to the people of Progress. A banquet was
given him on his departure, at Boston, at which
most of the American literary celebrities were pre-
sent. On this occasion, Mr. Holmes, one of their
well known poets, addressed some graceful lines to
the departing friend and litterateur, which are.repro-
duced in these volumes. Some of Dr. Mackay's
own impressions of America are given in verse
which is well worth the reader's attention. lie
sums up his opinions in the following terms
es
conclusion, and for the benefit of Americans, and espe-
cially of critics, who are too apt to be over sensitive upon the
which I formed both of the people
Cosas Americanas, I need but say that time has strengthened
every good impression
and of the country, and weakened every unfavourable one ;
that if I have spoken of slavery, and one or two other sub-
jects in a manner at which some may take offence, I have
spoken conscientiously, and that I could not do my own
heart the injustice to witness slavery, without raising my
voice against it—not to blame the slaveholders, but to con-
dole with them on the burden of their inheritance, and to
pray for the day when the evil thing may be either entirely
removed, or so diminished by natural, aided by legislative
causes, as to lead to the hope that one or two generations at
the furthest may witness its extinction. No Englishman
can travel in the United States without seeing on every
side and at each step of his progress, the proof of
the indomitable energy of the people ; and (if he will
not judge too rashly from first appearances, or from
random expressions), of the
.pride which they feel in
their Anglo-Saxon descent, in their relationship to
England, and ofthe noble inheritance of British literature,
which is theirs as well as ours. Should the day ever
arrive—which may Heaven in its mercy avert—that the
" Old Country" should be imperilled by the coalitions of
despotism, or by the subjection of Continental Europe to a
great and overpowering military barbarism, Great Britain
would have but to say the word, and an alliance with the
of the whole American people, and bring to the green shores
United States, offensive and defensive, would stir the heart
of the " Mother Isles"—of which professor Holmes has
w
sung so seetly—a greater army of volunteers than Eng-
land and America have at the present moment ships enough
to convey across the ocean.
Thus he closes his pleasant and vivacious records
of a people who must always be especially interest-
ing to the English nation. He has discharged his
task with a degree of taste and ability, which leaves
on the mind of the reader a pleasant impression
of the lands and the people he visited, and of the
visitor who records his experiences.