The Sun.
London, England, 1866-02-22 00:00:00

TIIE SUN, LOAPON, THILTRS9A I EVENING, FEBRUARY 22, 1806,

tides. A quotation is given from the writings of
an anti-slavery man who has served on the Coast of
Africa. Commander A. H. Foon, United States
navy, thus speaks of the African race—" No philo-
sopher among them has caught sight of the myste-
ries of nature ; no poet has illustrated heaven, or
earth, or the life of man. No statesman has done
anything to enlighten or brighten the links of
human policy ; in fact, if all that negroes of all
generations have ever done were to be obliterated
from recollection for ever, the world would lose no
great truth, no profitable art, no exemplary form
of life. The loss of all that is African would
offer no memorable seduction from anything but
the earth's black catalogue of crimes. Africa is
guilty of the slavery under which she suffered, for
her people made it as well as suffered it." Mr. M.
FORSTER, who for fifty years had great experience
in the characteristics of the race, states that he
has had many of the native children in England,
under his care, and that it is not till they grow up
that their natural deficiencies:are discovered ; they
acquire the rudiments of education with great
facility, and have " considerable receptive,
but no creative powers." This gentleman con-
siders that they are the worst enemies of
the negroes who would give them sudden
liberty without being prepared for it. The writer
concludes the first part of his paper by stating that
he has shown sufficient to prove that the negro, in
his own land, is little better than a brute "in
mental+ power a child, in ferocity a tiger, in
moral degradation sunk to the lowest depths ;"
and from this he infers that "social slavery is
the effect, not the cause, of this degraded condition."
The experience of ages, the observation of the wise,
and the discoveries of the learned, all tend to con-
fute this view of the matter; and the more the sub-
ject is studied, and the investigations are pursued,
the clearer will it be shown that the negroes are
an inferior race, incapable, under any circumstance,
of attaining to the heights reached by other races,
and only kept in their just limits by strict super-
vision and firm and judicious treatment. Their
savage propensities are most manifestly displayed
on all possible occasions, and it is perfectly idle for
for pseudo-philanthropists to rave about the per-
fection of the African race, when history, ancient
and modern, emphatically belies their statements,
and the personal experience of those best qualified
to judge goes directly against the extravagant pro-
positiOns set forth.

In speaking of the negro elysium, the Island of
Jamaica, the writer affirms that this plan furnishes
proof that the " negro is a negro still, theories to
the contrary notwithstanding." The Maroons, to
begin with, show that the possession of mere free-
dom has not affected a savage people to civilise it.
They have been free since the island was taken
by the English, and they still wander through the
woods in a half-naked state, and exhibit other signs
of barbarism. It is truly stated that nowhere more
than in Jamaica could a better opportunity
have presented itself for proving the soundness
of the wisdom of those who declare that
the negro is equal to the white man, and that if
he had the same privileges he would attain the
same degree of excellence. The writer of this
paper has a good right to speak with boldness and
decision, for he has had great experience, and
what he utters is the " practical conviction of
twenty-five years' experience of the negro charac-
ter." We shall take another opportunity of re-
ferring to his able and explicit remarks upon this
interesting subject.

Leave was given on TuesdaX night to bring in
a very important social measure in the House of
Commons. Mr. TonnENs introduced a bill to pro-
vide better dwellings for artisans and labourers ;
and the principle of his measure was a practical and
simple one. He proposes that whenever the Home-
office is called upon by a corporate body,
or by twenty ratepayers of a district to direct
an inspection to be made of a fever-stricken locality,
the Home Secretary should have power, supposing
the houses to be found unfit for habitation, to de-
mand from the local authorities an estimate of the
cost of removing and rebuilding such houses, and
that it should be competent for the Public Works
COmmissioners to advance the necessary funds on
the security of the rates. Mr. TORRENS remarked
that many philanthropic individuals had been en-
deavouring for some years past to improve the
dwellings of the labouring classes ; and he instanced
Mr. PEABODY'S munificent gift, Miss BURDETT
C Ourrs's charitable efforts, and other noble examples.
However great the good effected by each and all
of these the work is beyond the scope of private
effort, and as it is emphatically a national question,
it is clearly the duty of the Government to take it
up. Mr. TORRENS cited the opinions of several
experienced medical officers. The prevalence of
fever in the metropolis is a great and recognised
evil, and it is an evil which does not only affect the
poor, for, as Mr. TORRRNS justly said, how do the
wealthy residents of the West End know from what
fever-stricken quarters their clothing or their fur-
niture come ? It need not, we hope, be necessary
to appeal to the selfishness of hon. members
to induce them to give a favourable hearing
to this bill, for the facts are powerful
enough to demand consideration. The number
of persons who live by wage labour within the bills
of mortality are roughly estimated at about 648,000,
and for these proper accommodation is only
provided for 9,000. No wonder that typhus
in all its forms is ever at work amongst us,
that over seven hospitals are full to overflowing,
and our pauperism never lessened. " There were
men," said Mr. TORRENS, "living with their fami-
lies in a single room, deaths taking place there,
births taking place there. As the inevitable result,
there was a pestilence ; fever held revel in those
places, fever never departing. He could multiply a
list of the evils resulting from the system. These
places were the well-heads of pauperism—the
springs of disease and demoralisation and death ;
and unless they were dried up and drained, as was
done with the land, to expect health in the inhabi-
tants was vain." Tho bill is not intended to
benefit London alone. Newcastle, Liverpool,
Glasgow, are all described as anxious for
something of the kind. Mr. TORRENS dis-
claimed any idea of indicting a loss upon the
owners of the property rebuilt. They were to be
fully compensated, but the free trade in fever which
they had hitherto enjoyed was to be put a stop to.
It is quite certain, whether the TORRENS bill becomes
law or not, that the Session cannot be suffered to
pass without the Legislature taking seine steps to
remedy so great and increasing au evil. The health
and morality of the population should be the first
care of Parliament, and all reform, education, and
preaching will in vain seek to elevate the people so
long as they are confined to habitations which are
a degradation to the inhabitants and a disgrace
alike to our civilisation and our humanity.

The biddings for bills on India took place yes-
terday afternoon at the Bank of England. The
proportions allotted were, to Calcutta, £247,200 ;
to Madras, £3,200 ; and to Bombay, £lOO,OOO.
The minimum price was as before, Is. 11/d. on
Calcutta and Madras, and Is. Il4d. on Bombay.
Tenders on Calcutta and Madras at 2s. will receive
about 80 per cent., and on Bombay at.2s. Old.
about 13 per cent, above these prices in full,

CORRESPONDENCE FROM PARIS.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)
PARIS, Wednesday Evening.

I have nothing more important to speak of to-day
than the attitude assumed by M. Bismark, which I
noticed yesterday. The anticipations prevalent as
to the course he was likely to adopt have proved
perfectly correct. He declares, by a single letter
to the President of the Chamber of Deputies, that
the resolutions adopted by the Chamber of Repre-
sentatives of the nation are unconstitutional and
unacceptable, and that he sends them back to the
Chamber, considering them to be null and void, and
says he shall treat them as not having come to his
knowledge. The Siecle, in reference to the attitude
of Prussia, says that diplomatic communications
between the Cabinets of Austria and Prussia have
been very frequent within the last few days. There
is a desire to prevent an armed conflict between
Austria and Prussia, and to arrive at a pacific solu-
tion of the question of the Duchies. The obstinacy
of the Cabinet of Berlin has rendered this diplomatic
activity more necessary than ever. The restoration
to Denmark of the northern portion of Schleswig
appears to have been again under consideration.
By such a plan Prussia would gain the co-operation
of the other portions of the two Duchies.
To-day is observed in some circles of Paris with
a degree of veneration as the anniversary of the day
when the remains of Moliere were committed to the
grave. Moliere died on February 17, 1673. At
that period he was treated as an atheist, and his re-
mains were conveyed to the cemetery of St. Joseph
by two priests, accompanied by about 100 persons
with torches, like those of a malefactor, no funeral
service having been performed over them previously.
A schism has taken place among the society of
Gens de Lettres, the cause being the Tresor Lit-
teraire. A very stormy meeting of the society has
just taken place in the ,Rue Scribe. The society is
now divided into what may be called two intrenched
camps, Conservatives and Liberals. The commit-
tee were attacked very vigorously, but on a scrutiny
the Conservatives obtained seven nominations out of
nine. Another scrutiny, however, is to take place
next week, to decide the points at issue.
The doubts as to whether the late Leopold of
Belgium was or was not a Free Mason have been
settled by a masonic funeral ceremony celebrated
with pomp in the hall of the Lodge of the Grand
Orient at Brussels. A sarcophagus was erected,
ornamented with all the masonic insignia of Ma-
sonry. The Grand Master, M. Van Schoor, pre-
sided at the ceremony, and M. Dare pronounced
an eloquent funeral oration. Mr. Van Schoor,
holding in his hand the symbolical ear of corn, said,
" The life of man here below is only a passage.
Look at this ear. It has fallen under the scythe of
the husbandman. Thus man falls under the scythe
of Time. The ear is dried up, but it is not de-
stroyed. If this grain be placed in the earth it will
have new life. Nothing is lost for the Great
Architect of the worlds. Brothers, let us return to
the tomb of our venerated Master. In the name of
the Lodge of the Grand Orient, whom he loved so
much, and by whom he is so' much beloved, let us
say a last and eternal farewell." At the same time
the funeral veil, which separated the tomb of the
Temple of Immortality, disappeared, and the bust
of the late King was seen surrounded with lights,
flowers, and plants. To the sound of music the
Masons defiled around it, each depositing a laurel
of acacia on the sarcophagus. The ceremony is
said to have produced a profound sensation.
A terrible story is told by the Epoque. Some
time ago a young girl named Sophie G- left the
convent to be married to a respectable young man.
The marriage had been in contemplation for some
time, and was looked forward to with pleasure by
both families. Unfortunately the young lady had
been confided to the care of a governess,
supposed to be a woman of great purity,
but who, in reality, is bad in every re-
spect. She taught the worst lessons to the
young Sophie. One evening she took the young
girl out into bad company,lnd she did not return
home till the next day. The governess told such a
lame story that she was instantly discharged, and
Sophie was sent back to the convent. Her behaviour
there was so regular and so good for a time that her
parents thought she was quite reformed, and again
sent for her home. The marriage was once more
talked of, and indeed arrangements were made for it
to take place. Unfortunately, however, the bad
example of the governess had taken too deep a root,
and Sophie thought of nothing but balls, concerts,
lovers, and novels. By an unhappy chance, Sophie,
who was not watched closely enough, about a week
ago, met her former governess. Sophie was in vain
expected to breakfast. For some days there was no
news of her, and then came the information from
the Prefecture of Police that she had been with girls
of bad character, and was in prison. Both father
and mother were horror-struck. The father went
into his study and blew out his brains with a pistol.
The mother rushed into the room. Soon after the
young man who was to be Sophie's husband followed.
Sophie's mother was sitting beside the corpse. Her
reason was gone. She was mad. Next day a corpse
was found in the Seine. It was that of Sophie's
affianced. He had announced his coming marriage
to all his friends, and from shame, disappointment,
and despair, he had committed suicide. Sophie,
who is but 17, is still under the care of the police.
The young man was very rich, and there was every
probability that the marriage would have been a
happy and prosperous one.
A circular has been issued by the Minister of
Public Instruction -which directs that henceforward
education is to be given in the religious schools
without any distinction in regard either to birth or
fortune. The distinction heretofore made between
rich and poor children has sometimes led to various
evils and much dissatisfaction.

The weather is still very ztrong and unsettled.
The wind to-day has been colder than on any day
during this winter. lam told, but Ido not know
the fact myself, that snow fell last night a few miles
from Paris. It does not freeze, but the temperature
is very little above freezing point.

A ROYAL DESSERT SERVICE.--A magnificent
dessert service in porcelain and ceramic statuary
has just been completed by Mr. Copeland of New Bond-
street, for his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, which
far outrivals anything yet produced in " the Potteries."
The centre piece is of extraordinary beauty. The principal
comfort being supported by figures representing the four
quarters of the globe, each with its appropriate symbol,
modelled from designs by the celebrated sculptor
Durham. The exquisite taste and richness of the deco-
ration of this specimen of the potter's art is positively
enchanting. The four raised fruit dishes are also elevated
upon groups of figures, and represent, by their various
zodiacal signs and diversity of the ideal occupations, the
months of the year. The remaining portion of the
elegant service includes ice pails, cream bowls, sweet
meat dishes, plates, and coffee cups and saucers. The
plates are of the finest porcelain, perforated to show the
skill of the potter's art. On each plate there are four panels,
surrounded by festoons and ribbons of raised and chased gold,
most delicately painted with varied flowers and fruit. In the
centre is the monogram of their Royal Highnesses the
Prince and Princess of Wales, the initial of the Prince
being in gold, that of the Princess in strings of roses. The
design of the plates is carried out throughout the
entire service, both as regards the pedestals of the vari-
ous groups, which are all perforated and magnificently de-
corated in a truly regal style. For our own part we
hardly know which to admire most, the gorgeous beauty
of the gilding or the chaste and exquisite flower painting,
the colours in every instance being quite up
as to that of
Sevres. The labour of producing such a brilliant speci-
men of British art must have been immense, but it must
ba extremely gratifying to Mr. Copeland to hear the &a-
bounded and especial praise that is lavished on his
efforts by all those who have the good fortune to got a
glimpse of it before it is conveyed to its destination.
BURGLAR PROOF SAFES.—The many recent
robberies from so-called thief-proof safes has stimu-
lated the different makers of these articles to remedy the
glaring defects of their construction, but hitherto without
effect, for forcing a la crowbar is now a daily, or rather a
nightly fact. The safe patented by Mr. Hendry, Cheap-
side, is so constructed that it is impossible for the same to
be opened by foul means, as the more it is forced the more
firmly does it get fixed. The safe has a circular door which
screws into its position, the screw round the edge of the
door worming itself into the mouth of the safe; when
locked another bolt presents itself so as to prevent the
turning of the door; when unscrewed it rests on a pivot,
which is borne by a frame hinged to the side of the safe,
thus permitting the door to be swung round. The safe is
semi-cylindrical, and is thus calculated to resist a large
amount of force. It is made of half-inch boiler plate, care-
fully packed with a fire-proof composition.

LA TEST INTELLIGENCE.

(REUTER'S TELEGRAMS.)

--41.,. -

SPAIN.
MADRID, FEB. 21 (Evening).

Congress has adopted the proposals of the com-
mittee in reference to the bill to prevent any person
from being at the same time a Government func-
tionary and a member of the Chamber of Deputies.

PORTUGAL.
LISBON, FEB. 21.

To-day the motion protesting against the order
addressed by the Government to General Prim to

quit Portugal was rejected, after an animated de-
bate, in the Chamber of Deputies.

It is said that General Prim will go to Gibraltar.

AUSTRALIA.
(By Overland Telegraph from Galle.)
MELBOURNE, JAN. 25.

The severe drought which prevailed has at length
terminated, and rains have fallen over the whole

continent.

NEW ZEALAND.
MELBOURNE, JAN. 25.

Intelligence from New Zealand announces that
General Chute had attacked and captured a large
rebel pah.

The war was virtually over, and the troops were
leaving for England.

CHINA AND JAPAN.

HONG KONG, FEB. 1.
It is reported that a large rebel force is within 30
miles of Nunkan Nankoo).
Intelligence from Japan states that Belgium is
endeavouring to conclude a treaty with the Japanese
Government.

FRANCE.
PARIS, FEB. 22.
M. Pietri, Prefect of the Department du Nord,
has been appointed Prefect of Police.
BOURSE, Feb. 21, Two o'clock.—ln spite of a
fall of per cent. on English Consols being an-
nounced by each telegram, the market here exhibits
great firmness, and quotations are generally higher.
Threes are doing at 69f. 15c. Three o'clock.—The
market has closed on the following quotations :

4f per Cents 93 95
Do. end month —
3 per Cents. 69 121
Do. onctmonth 69 12f
Credit MObilier 680
Do. end month
Bank Shares 3690
Credit Fonder 1327 50
Italian Loan 6l 20
Do. end month 6l 22f
RAILWAYS.
Cash.

Roman 69
Ottoman Fives 3B 50
Mexican Loan 47 50
Do. Bonds 307 50
Russian
Austrian
Spanish Threes
Home Debt —
Deferred

Orleans •
Northern
Lyons and Mediterranean
Southern
Western
Eastern

Acct.
865'4"-
- ... 1113 75
882 50
... 556 25
... 568 75
... 541 25

Sardinian.
Austrian
Lombard

- -- ... 180 -
- - ... 405 -
- ... 397 50

North of Spain
Saragossa
Ditto to Barcelona
Ronan

- ... 172.'50
... 228 75
100 -
- - 120 -

AMERICA.