The Sun.
London, England, 1857-02-20 00:00:00

THE MEDITERRANEAN.

SOUTHAMPTON, THURSDAY.
The Peninsular and Oriental Company's steam-
ship Pera, Captain John Soy, arrived to-day, with
the heavy portion of the India and China mails, in
charge of Lieutenant Charleton, R. N., and dates
from Alexandria, Feb. 7 ; Malta, 11 ; and Gibral-
tar, 15.

The Pera on her outward passage experienced
• strong winds, but generally fair, and completed
h-r voyage to Alexandria in 10 days and 18 hours.
Homewards she has met with fine weather .and
generally fair winds, and has made a most remark-
ably quick run. She was 3 days 5 hours from Alexan-
dria to Malta, 3 days 10 hours thence to Gibraltar,
and from Gibraltar to Southampton she has made
tLe unprecedented passage of 3 days 221 hours ;
making from Alexandria 10 days 13 Lours, and
from Malt), 7 days 8 hours. Her average during
the voyage has been nearly 12 knots—a rate of
speed scarcely to be expected from a ship of 2,620
tons, and a propelling force of only 450 horse power.
On the 16th, 20 miles south-west of the Bur-
lings, observed a vessel with no canvas set and
apparently a wreck. Captain Soy at once
shortened sail, and proceeded towards her with the
view of saving any of the crew who might be yet
on board. She proved to be the bark Ralph
Thompson, waterlogged and abandoned ; her main-
mast gone six feet from the deck, fore and mizen-
masts standing, and all her sails gone ; so she had
probably been visited before. She was a vessel of
say 300 tons, and was drafting on towards the land.
She was just in the track of steamers, but if the
wind and set continued as it was, from the west-
ward, she would in a few hours be well in shore off
the Burlings.
Dates fioin. Gibraltar extend to the 15th. Ex-
changes on the 14th were quoted as follow :—Lon-
don, 90 days' date, 51 ; Paris, ditto, sf. 32c. ;
Marseilles, ditto, sf. 33c. ; Genoa, "ditto, sf. 38c. ;
Madrid, 8 days' sight, dis. ; Cadiz, ditto, s dis.
Malaga, ditti .
, dis. ; Seville, ditto, ; Ali-
cante, ditto, /- dis. ; Valencia, ditto, dis. ; Bar-
' celona,- ditto, dis. Spanish pillared dollars 91 to
10 per cent. premium.

THE PACIFIC.

SOUTHAMPTON, THURSDAY.

By the Magdalena steamer, from the West Indies,
we have files of Panama papers to the 23d of Jan.
The British steamer Bolivia arrived at Panama on
the 21st, with dates from Valparaiso to the Ist,
and Callao the 11th.

From Chili we receive the usual satisfactory con-
firmation of peace, progres4, and plenty existing
throughout the country, although the past season's
crops had suffered from the inclemency of the
weather, so as to make many articles of consump-
tion inconveniently high priced for the lower
classes.

The Valparaiso Railway was progressing favour.
ably.

Business had not been so brisk as usual during
the fortnight in Valparaiso, owing to the great
scarcity of specie, caused by heavy exportations of
that article of late to Europe.
Freights—To England, per ton English, 31. 10s. ;
Hamburg, ditto, 3/. 15s. to 3/. 17s. ; France, per
ton French, 100 f. to 105 f. ; United States, per ton
English, 20 d'oll•:rs.
From Peru we learn that the revolution cop-
tinned, and was drawing nearer tho capital) the
possession of vessels of war giving General Vivarico
a great advantage over the Government in
able to move his forces from point to point
.being
President Castilla .had issued a de.) t
cr
, eL prohibit-
ing the supply of provisions, Ac.
revolu-
tionists under penalty of trial b3l,nilear trtial
attempt law
at a.
From Bolivia we hear that another
revolution had been made, bat it was immediately
suppressed.

NICARAGITA.—The latest news from hence state that
General Walke: wss strongly fortified at Riv: s, and that
he had an effective force of 1,200 men, well armed.
SOLITE-EASTERN RAILWAL—The directors of this
company have resolved to recommend the proprietors 'at
the ensuing balf•yearly meeting to order payment of a
dividend of 15s. on each 301. stock, being at the rate of
per cent. per annum.

--
TILE DOUBLE 3IURDE R ITV IVA LWORTH
AND LINGO tssimeE roisoivf GS.

EXHUMATION OF THE BODY OF BACON'S FATHER.
STAMFORD, THURSDAY EVENING.
It would be difficult to describe the excitement that
prevails in this town. and neighbourhood at the present
time, consequent upon the decision which the jury came
to last evening respecting the death of Mrs. Ann Bacon,
the mother of the wretch Thomas Fuller Bacon, who
was committed by the magistrate at Lambeth police-
court yesterday, to take his trial for the murder of his
t wo children.
It seldom happens that, however bad a man may be,
or whatever crimes he may be accused of, but that he
has some few persons at least to speak somewhat in his
favour; but the present instance seems to be a great ex-
ception. Every person with whom our reporter conversed
express their entire satisfaction at the result of the in-
quiry, and the only surprise to them was, that the ma-
gistrates for the Stamford division of the county had not
long since taken the initiative in bringing the man to
justice, as it was not only patent to every one, but a by-
word in the town that Bacon was a murderer, a forger,
guilv of arson, had committed a rape, defrauded his
creditors, caused his wife's insanity by his brutality, and
the perpetrator of numerous other crimes, more or less
heinous. Had it not been for the almost superhuman
exertions of Mr. Reed, the chief constable of Stamford,
this most atrocious culprit would still have been at
iarge. From the first moment that he heard of the
murder of the two children in Walworth, he arrived.
at the conviction (from his knowledge of the antece-
dents of Bacon) that he was the perpetrator of the crime,
which fact he immediately communicated to the proper
authorities, and the result was his apprehension. After
he was in custody Mr. Real informed the magistrates
of Stamford that he had every reason to believe that
Bacon's mother had been poisoned by her son, but na
steps were taken by the magistrates to arrive at a satis-
factory elucidation of the case. When Mr. Elliott, the
magistrate at Lambeth, suggested that the body should
be exhumed, the magistrates of Stamford still exhibited
the same supineness, and excused themselves from inter-
fering on the ground that the body was interred out of
their jurisdiction. Mr. Reed, however, still persevering,
furnished the whale of the facts connected with the death
of Mrs. Ann Bacon, and transmitted them in depositions
to the Secretary of State for the Home Department, and
air G. Grey at once sent instructions to Mr. Hough, the
coroner for Rutlandshire, for the exhumation of the body.
But even here there was another difficulty ; for, not-
withstanding the Secretary of State's letter, the coroner
did not like to act without the authority of the magis-
trates, and those learned savants declined to interfere.
The next difficulty that presented itself was the extra-
ordinary pertinacity with which Dr. Barber adhered to
his original certificate as to Mrs. Bacon's death, and he
assured Mr. Reed and Inspector Young that if the body
were analysed a thousand times over they would not
find a grain of arsenic. However, his evidence yester-
day proved he was in error. The disclosures that were
taking place in the examinations at the Lambeth Police
Court at length induced the authorities to bestir them-
'elves and the body was exhumed, and with what result
our readers are now fully aware.
EXHUMATION OF BACON'S FATHER.
Whilst the foregoing inquiries were being proceeded
with, certain facts came to the knowledge of the police
that induced them to believe that Nathaniel Bacon, the
husband of Ann Bacon, and the father of the alleged mur•
derer, in whose death he had a beneficial interest, had
died from poison. Mr. Bacon was possessed of house
preperty in this town to the extent of about 1601. per
annum, a portion of which would immediately revert to
his son, Thomas Fuller Bacon, and the remainder to his
wife for life. Nathaniel Bacon, the father, dined with
his son on the 13th of October, 1854, was taken ill,
seized with cramps, spasms, and vomiting, cied on the
17th, and was interred in Great Casterton Churchyard.
As there appears no doubt now that he met
his death by foul play, and in order that nothing
shall be wanting to insure the conviction of the mur-
derer, the authorities have determined to have the
body exhumed, with a view of being subjected to an
analytica test. This will be proceeded with forthwith.
Tue grave in which Mr. and Mrs. Bacon are interred
is situate in the north-east corner of Great Casterton
churchyard. It is surmounted by a very chastely-carved
upright head-stone, bearing the following inscriptions,
which were suggested by the alleged murderer
"In memory of
NATHANIEL BACON,
Died Oct. 17, 1854, aged 60 years.
ANN BACON,
Died May 15, 1855, aged 62 years.
" How still and peaceful is the grave
Where life's reign tumults past,
Th' appointed house by Heaven's decree
Receives us all at last."
It is said that the above lines were also selected by the
murderer.

BACON'S FIRE.
The murder of the unfortunate children at Walworth
would, in all human probability, not have taken p'acet •
except for the extraordinary conduct of the judge before
whom Bacon was tried when he was charged with arson.
The case against the prisoner was the most complete
in its evidence and details that could be conceived ;
but because Bacon's house had been valued shortly be-
fore the fire, for the purposes of sale, at a few pounds
more than it was insured for, the judge argued, in
his summing up to the jury, hat there was no motive,
as the prisoner could at any time have got more money '
by the sale of the house than it was insured for, and
the consequence was the jury acquitted the prisoner.
But it is now quite clear, from what has subsequently
transpired, that the villain had a double object in view ;
first, to get rid of his children, whose lives were insured ;
and, secondly, to obtain the amount of the policy upon
his house.

CAUSE OF MR.9. BACON'S APPARENT MADNESS. •
The medical men and others acquainted with the Bacon
family slate that the cause of Mrs. Bacon's apparent
aberration of intellect is the brutal treatment that for
years she experienced from her husband, the principal
cause being that, on one occasion when Bacon went home
partially intoxicated, he kicked his wife down a high
flight of stairs, and afterwards jumped upon her head,
which caused a fracture of the skull, from which she has
been suffering ever since ; and it is, therefore,, the be•
lief of the medical men who have attended her, that
although she is not what might be termed perfectly
insane, she in such a state that Bacon may have easily
worked upon her to have assisted him in his diabolical
transactions.