The Sun.
London, England, 1866-11-14 00:00:00

DESTRUCTIVE FlRE—This Day.

This morning, at a few minutes before 5 o'clock, a terrific
fire, nearly attended with great loss of life, happened in
the extensive range of premises belonging to Mr. T. E.
Cobner, No. 112, Bermondsey, New-road. The premises
were used as a linen-draper's stores, and the upper portion
was occupied as sleeping-rooms. The fire was discovered
by Police-constable 214 of the M division, who at once
raised an alarm and sent off for proper assistance, and in
the course of afew minutes Conductor Butterworth attended
with the Royal Society's escape, when he saw the fire
coming out of the windows and the door of the shop. He
at once placed his escape in front of the building and tried
to gain an entrance at the first floor window, hearing that
people were in the house asleep. He found the fire coming
through the floor, and being unable to enter he went to the
next house belonging to Mr. Greaves, a hairdresser, and
made his way for the back window, and although the fire was
rapidly extending beneath, the owner of the premises suc-
ceeded in passing his wife out, and she was carried insen-
sible to a neighbouring coffee-house and put to bed. Police
constables 214 and 217 materially assisted the conductor
in handing the female over a dangerous wall. Mr. Cob-
ner was also assisted out by the conductor. Several land
steamers by Sband, Mason, and Co., promptly attended,
and, under the direction of Mr. Henley, the chief officer of
the south district, the firemen went to work, but the flames
by this period had obtained the complete possession of the
whole of the premises, and were attacking with full vigour
the premises of Mr. J. Turner, oilman, No. 111, Mr. Graves,
hair dresser, No. 2 (opposite), Mr. E. Roberts, butcher,
No. 3, Mr. J. Gill, chemist, No. 4, Mr. Verner, greengrocer,
and No. 6, Mr. Davies, grocer. Owing to the vast quan-
tity of water thrown upon the fire the flames were even-
tually subdued, but the damage done is very considerable,
and will fall upon the Sun, the Royal, and the Commercial
Union fire offices.

Sir H. Bulwer intends, says the Liberte, to re-
main for some time in Paris, where he is engaged in pre-
parin for publication an important work on politics.
THE ACCIDENT TO THE REV. PROFESSOR SELWYN.
—The bulletin issued by tho professor's medical attend-
ants on Tuesday morning was as follows:—" Professor
Selwyn has again passed a good night, and the more
serious symptoms are subsiding." Inquiry last evening
elicited that the progress was still favourable. Tho most
anxious inquiries as to the state of the professor were con-
tinued throughout yesterday, not only by members of the
university and other friends in residence, but by a large
number of both from a distance.

THE BYRON NATIONAL MEMORIAL.--A meeting
of the committee for raising a national memorial to Lord
Byron was held on Monday in the Mayor's Parlour, Not-
tinbam—Mr. T. C. Hine in the chair. A number of replies
from literary men and noblemen who had been asked to
further tho movement were read. The feeling of tho
meeting was that a bronze statue of the noble poet should
be erected in one of the principal streets of Nottingham.
The Dean of Westminster had been writtento respecting
the memorial being placed in Westminster Abbey, but no
answer has been received.

THE METEORIC SHOWER.—Rain fell during Mon-
day night and continued almost without intermission dur-
ing the whole of yesterday forenoon, so that nothing was
of course seen in London of the " meteoric shower."
Those, however, who were on the look out (and they wero
many), after 12 o'clock last night, can bear witness to the
accuracy of the calculations of our astronomers ; for from
that hour until four 4 o'clock, an extraordinary number of
what are popularly called " shooting stars" wore to be seen
travelling in space.

BLUNDERING INTO A WRONG PROFESSlON.—Un-
fortunately the choice of a profession is about the
last which can be managed safely by a young man who
knows little or nothing of the world. Most of us drift, it
may be, into our professions. Somebody who is in, the
college boat is coming up to London to eat his term-
dinners in the Temple ; and, faute de mieux, Jenkins of
Magdalene, whose chief notion about law is that lawyers
wear wigs and that the successful ones are admirably paid,
comes up to London too to accompany his fellow-oars-
man, eats his five o'clock dinner, and calls himself a bar-
rister. The fatal move is attended with lifelong conse-
quences. Possibly the bar turns out to be the very voca-
tion for which Jenkins was designed by nature, and ho
becomes, in turn and with much satisfaction to himself, a
drudge, a bully, and a celebrity. But it is equally probable
that the noble profession of the bar is not the thing for
Jenkins. His soul is incapable of stooping to hard work
in dingy chambers ; be misses the little professional chances
which only fall to the lot of those humbler persons who lie
in wait by day and night for them; leading cases pall on
him ; points of practice puzzle him ; the success of still
more incompetent noodles than himself, who are fortunate
enough to possess cousins in the attorney lino, aggravates
and exasperates him; and he becomes, accordingly, mor-
bid, idle, briefless, and hopeless, and divides his inglorious
life between London drawing-rooms and his club. For all
this he has to thank the one lazy instinct which brought
him up to London 20 years ago, to eat law dinners, because
some one else was coming up to eat them too. The punish-
ment seems a severe one ; and, in the eyes of an impartial
judge, destiny appears to have kit Jenkins rather hard,
simply for rushing at ono unhappy turning-point.—Satur-
day Review,

YKEFIL'ItILNI 24 bLIA.K.ISI:I.
Great Eastern, E. Counties Ex., No. 1, 80
west Northern, 5 per cent., rd. at 10 per cent. pm., 1014 3

PREFERENCE SR ARES AND STOCKS.
London and N.-Western 5 per cent., 105
North London, 4/1 per cent., 100
LINES LEASED AT FIXED RENTALS.
London and Glreenwich,l6}
Nottingham and Grantham R. and C, 90i
FOREIGN RAILWAYS•
Otto ,man (Smyrna to Aidin), 31
So Ali Austrian and Lombardo Venetian, 161
BAN lib

Albion, 5f 5
A lila oce, lin►.. 181
Chartered \ler. of India, London. and China 34
Hindustan, China, and Japan. inn., 2i
London Chartered Bank of Australia, 2if
London and estminster. 94 21
Merchant Bank, lim 13 15
Union of London, 44j I
DOCKS.
ondon and:St Katharine, 601
Southampton, 05f
MISCELLANEOUS.
Anglo-American Telegraph, 15}
Ceylon Company, 8
Credit Fonder ut England. Bin . 31 f
Italian Irrigation (Canal Cavour),
Ditto, 6 per cent. Bonds, redem. 1t,70, issued 90, 45
Nt.tional Discount a ompany, 15
Oriental Gas, lim., 5f
Telegraph Construction and Maintenance, lim.„
Ditto (Zl5), 141
Thames and Mersey Marine, Insurance, Urn., 5f
Trust and Agency of Australasia, lim., ti

AGRA. AND MASTERMAN'S BANK (LIMITED).—A
meeting of creditors under £lOO was held at the London
Tavern yesterday, when the chairman, Mr. Thompson,
stated tho result of, the meeting of the day before, and said
that, after the payment of the dividend of ss. in January
next, it was proposed by the board, if the bank were re-
suscitated, to pay of the creditors under £lOO in full, and
as soon as possible. The amount would not be consider-
able, averaging only about £3O each, or altogether about
£160,000. A similar resolution to that passed by the
larger creditors the previous day was at once agreed to,
and the meeting:separated.
STRANGE ACCIDENT AT TYNEMOUTH PIER.—TWO
men, whilst walking along the pier on Monday, were sud-
denly struck by a strong wave breaking over the side and
washed off their legs into the water. A heavy sea was
running at the time, and the cries of distress by the unfor-
tunate mon attracted the attention of two foy-boatmen,
who bravely put off to their assistance; and succeeded in
bringing the half-drowned men ashore.

AN EXTRAORDINARY CALF.— On Sunday after-
noon a fine cow, on the farm of Mr. Richard Harper, Red-
dish, near Stockport, was delivered of, perhaps, one of the
most extraordinary calves ever born. It had two heads
(one at each end of its body), two tails, seven legs, and
eight feet It was calved by Messrs. J. WooHendon and
F. Ousey, veterinary surgeons, Stockport, but was de-
stroyed before parturition was accomplished. It is now in
the possession of Mr. Qusey, and will be preseryed.