The Sun.
London, England, 1859-03-17 00:00:00

gard to the mines or the general prosperity of the
colonies. Buildings are going up in all directions,
and very little property is offered for sale. Real
estate, in fact, has advanced from 30 to 50 per cent.
during the last two months.
" Business generally is dull in consequence of the
scanty population in the mines, and the difficulty in
supplying the remoter parts. This will be mended
before long. By next winter things will have
quite another aspect, Government being already now
busy laying out roads and making other improve-
ments.

" Two law-suits were desterday decided—one
Nelson v. Truett—defendant having ejected plain-
tiff from property leased, The jury gave him 1,500
dols. damages ; 10,000 was asked. The other law-
suit was against the Sierra Nevada for three horses
washed overboard. The amount claimed was 1,700
dols., which was given by the jury against the
steamer.

" Several ships are now due with cargoes from
England, and parties in San Francisco who ship for
here ought to be cautious and bear this in mind.
Many goods, no doubt, will be brought here for re-
shipment to San Francisco and other places.
" We have had an arrival of 90 passengers from
Australia. Most of them are old experienced
miners, and are very orderly and respectable look-
ing people. I have conversed with several, and
all are pleased with the prospects for mining and
other pursuits in these colonies. None think
of returning, but very few, if any, are leaving for
California. It seems, according to the statement
of these miners, that mining is not at all remunera-
tive in Australia for the individual miner; and a
large emigration may be looked for from there so
soon as the true state of affairs is made known by
this late arrival to their friends in Australia."
The Bulletin is the only California newspaper
which has had the honesty to publish the truth on
the subject of the new gold country. All the other
papers publish the most barefaced and palpable
falsehoods knowingly, or distort facts to serve a
purpose. The people are now tired of all this
misrepresentation, and pay no regard to what the
papers publish.
From private letters to the end of January I learn
that business was improving in Victoria, and that
the accounts from the mines inspired ardent hopes
of a rich harvest of gold in the incoming season.

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.

OXFORD CIRCUIT.—STAFFORD, March 15.
CRIMINAL COURT.

(Before Mr. Baron Channell.)
George Ross, 24, wrenchmaker, was charged with
feloniously assaulting Noah Timmins, and stealing
from his person the sum of £lOl 6s. 6d., the pro-
perty of Wm. Henry Dawes, at West Bromwich,
on the sth of February, 1859.
Mr. Scotland and Mr. A. S. Hill appeared for the
prosecution ; Mr. Cook Evans and Mr. J. Best de-
fended the prisoner.
It appeared from the evidence that the prosecu-
tor, Noah Timmins, was in the employ of Messrs.
Dawes, ironmasters, at Bromford-lane, West Brom-
wich, and acted as clerk and timekeeper at the
limestone pits which they had at Friar's Bank. It
was his duty to go from Friar's Bank to Bromford-
lane to obtain money to pay the men, and on Satur-
day, the sth of February last, he went there and
obtained £lol6s. 6d. for that purpose. There were
84 sovereigns, 14 half-sovereigns, two five-pound
packets of silver, and 6s. 6d. in loose silver. He
placed the money in a leather bag, and put the bag
in his left hand trousers pocket. On his way he
changed a small quantity of silver for copper and
placed that in his right hand trousers pocket, and
proceeded towards_ Friar's Bank, down a lane called