The Sun.
London, England, 1861-02-23 00:00:00

SUN, LONDON, SATURDAI EVENING, FEBRUARY 23, 1861.

mencemmit of entirely new Harbours of Refuge,
\Lord FA XIEERSTON prudently concurs with the
hon. genti,leman the member Northumberland in ap •
plauding -first and foremost the notion of improving,
and especi ally in this way of enlarging, certain
harbours of refuge already in existence. The ina-
dequate dimension of several of these harbours is
unhappily a matter of most painful notoriety.

Their iroufficiency in almost every particular,
in size, in number, in actual convenience,
is lamentably indicated time, and again in the
stormy seasons,• particularly during the terrible
periodical recurrence of the equinoctial gales, by an
appalling loss of life and by the most deplorable
destruction of property, property sunk in the deep
sea, past every chance of recovery. As to the last
mentioned class of misfortunes, the loss of
vessels and of their cargoes, that undoubtedly
is a loss (as the Prime Minister took occa-
sion to remark yesterday) falling upon indi-
viduals—those individuals having the means
of, to a certain extent, indemnifying themselves by
marine insurance and the like kind of provident
arrangements. As to the loss of life, however—
" the loss of most valuable lives, the loss of some
of the best seamen in the country"—that Lord
PALMERSTON solemnly and impressively pronounced
to be " a loss against which no insurance can be
effected, and for which no compensation can be
obtained, and which is therefore a dread calamity
to the country." Against the perpetual renewal
of that dread calamity along our coasts,
the promoters of Harbours of Refuge are
striving to guard the gallant fellows Ma n-
g the mercantile marine of England and
of other maritime and commercial nations
trading with our own. In that humane effort they
will now, to a certain extent at least, be assisted by
her MAJESTY'S Government. How far assisted in
this by the House of Commons there will soon be
an opportunity of judging, immediately upon the
introduction of the bill now in the hands of Mr.
MILNER GIBSON for presentation to it, a bill
(as described by Lord PALMERSTON) enabling
the Exchequer Bill Loan Commissioners to
make advances both in England and Ireland
to those who are prepared to take money on cer-
tain conditions for the purpose of improving exist-
ing Harbours of Refuge. The urgency of the matter
involved in this foreshadowed [measure of assist-
ance, has assuredly of late, as recently indeed as
within this last week or two, been illustrated very
fearfully. During the gale of the 9th, for example,
at Hull alone, by the loss of seven vessels, and the
driving of no less than forty others ashore outside
the harbour—at Whitby, again, by the drifting
ashore of six other merchantmen—at Hartlepool,
by the wreck there, within five hours, of absolutely
as many as sixty-seven vessels, " thirty of them
being totally lost, and eight foundering, with
every soul on board, in sight of thousands who
were looking on and were unable to render any
assistance." This, recollect, was on the 9th inst.
during the raging of that fearful gale at Hartle-
pool. Altogether there were there and then lost
on that single day no less than fifty lives, and,
together with those fifty lives, property to the
value, it is computed, of £150,000 sterling ! But
turn again to the record given at Lloyd's only
three days' afterwards, on the 12th inst., as the
House of Commons was reminded yesterday by the
hon. member for Northampton—" when notice of
139 losses of ships was posted up at Lloyd's,
being the largest number ever known in
a single day !" Reading this, noticing this
fearful record, it:must be obvious that it is time
indeed the Legislature and the Government bestirred
themselves, if it is only to carry out some few of
the admirable suggestions thrown out in regard to
the development of the system of Harbours of Re-
fuge in the elaborate report upon that subject, pre-
sented to Parliament in 1858, as the result of the
anxious deliberations of the Royal Commissioners.
11

THEATRE ROYAL, DRURY-LANE.—This fashion-
able place of amusement was honoured last evening by the
presence of her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge,
accompanied by the Princess Mary, Captain Cust, and
suite, to witness the performance of Mr. Charles Kean in
the play of " Louis XI."
The Earl of Winchilsea has left the St. George's
Hotel.

The Prince Bariatinsky and M. and Madame
Berikoff hale left the Brunswick Hotel, Jermyn-street, for
Paris.

The Duke and Duchess of Beaufort are shortly
expected at Curzon House from Badminton, Gloucester •
shire.

The Earl and Countess of Westmoreland come
to town to-day from visiting Mr. and Lady Augusta Sturt
at Critchill House, Dorset.
THE NEW PHYSICIAN TO THE QUEEN.—The
Gazette has announced the appointment of William Jenner,
M.D., to be Physician Extraordinary to the Queen, in the
room of the lamented Dr. Baly, F.R.S. Dr. Jenner was
educated at the University College, London, and took the
degree of M.D. in 1844, without obtaining honours. He
had been elected fellow of the Royal College of Physicians
in 1837. He is professor of pathological anatomy in Uni-
versity College, physician to the Hospital for Sick Chil-
dren, fellow of the Medico-Chirurgical Society, member
of the council of the Epidemiological, North London
Medical, and Pathological Societies, and secretary to the
fever committee of the Epidemiological Society. Dr.
Jenner is known as the author of " The Gulstonian
Lectures (1853) on the Acute Specific Diseases;";of a paper
" On the Specific Cause of Typhoid, Typhus, aid Relaps-
ing Fevers," printed in the Medico-Chirurgical Society's
" Transactions " for 1850; of essays "On the Identity or
Non-Identity of Typhus and Typhoid Fevers" (1850) ;
" On the Diseases commonly confounded under the term
Continued Fever " (1851), and various other professional
papers,

PEMBROKE ELECTION.—The polling for the
Pembroke Boroughs closed on Thursday evening. Sir
Hugh Owen, the Liberal Candidate, was returned by a
majority of 86.

TALBOT V. TREHERNE.—Yesterday (Friday)
evening, at six o'clock, the jury decided in this case in
favour of the plaintiff, thereby affirming the will of the
Rev. G. M. Treherne. The case occupied ten days.
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY ROOMS.—We have much
pleasure in drawing the attention of our readers to the
Annual Benefit Bal Masque of Mr. W. M. Packer, musical
director of this establishment, as advertised in our columns
for Thursday next, the 28th instant. For many years has
the efficiency of the band, and the excellent taste displayed
in the selection of the music, been the theme of admiration
of the visitors frequenting this fashionable and well-con-
ducted establishment. The previous entertainments of
this description have always met with a large amount of
patronage, and have been carried out with great spirit.
We are well assured, therefore, that nothing, will be want-
ing, on the part of either Mr. Packer or the direction, to
render this Bal even more attractive than any previously
given.—Era.

A SHTP's COMPANY POISONED.—SHIELDS, Feb.
21.—The crew of the Boxer, of Colchester, have had a
narrow escape from an awful death. The vessel is lying in
the Tyne, and the night before last a messenger was sent
hastily ashore for a medical man, as the master, mate, and
five of the crew had been seized with a serious illness. Dr.
Emmerson proceeded promptly aboard, and at once saw
that• the men were labouring under the effects of poison,
and administered antidotes to them, and with great care
they are now out of danger, though for a time the five sea-
men were in extreme peril. The master and men, it seems,
had partaken of a pudding for dinner, and were shortly
after attacked by the dangerous symptoms. The cook who
made the pudding had taken the flour for it from a locker,
and on searching the locker, to the horror of every one, a
parcel of arsenic was discovered. It seems that the parcel
had been found in the cabin, and the mate, imagining that
it was flour, had put it into the flour locker. The cook, on
going for the flour for the pudding had thrust his scoop
into the parcel, but, not liking the contents, he had with-
drawn the scoop, and had taken his flour for the pudding
from the usual source. Some particles of the arsenic had
adhered to the scoop and got mixed up with the flour, and
had occasioned all the mischief. The poison had been on
board the ship two years, and was the remaining quantity
of a parcel sent aboard to destroy worms in the ship's
bottom. The master did not know that it was in the vessel.
The advices from Paris yesterday state that M.
Marcuard, DI. Blount, and another have been named
liquidators of the estate of N. Mires.

LATEST NEWS.

(REUTER'S TELEGRAMS.)

TURIN, FEB. 23.

Admiral Persano has arrived in the waters of
Messina, to summon the Commander of the Citadel

.o surrender.

_______
General Cialdini remains at Naples, bat will join
Admiral Persano in case the Commander refuses to
comply with the demand.
The report published by some Italian newspapers
in reference to the surrender of Civitella del Tronto
is untrue.

RIETI, FEB. 22.

About 1,000 brigands, with artillery, under the
command of Count Christen, have attacked Carsoli.
The Italian volunteers retired fighting.

On receiving this news Colonel Masi and Major
Vincentini hastened to the spot, energetically at-
tacked the enemy, and pursued them as far as.
Oricola, killing many men.

VIENNA, SATURDAY.

The Presse says :—" A report is current that a
convention has lately been concluded between
Austria, Russia, and Prussia, for acting in common
in case an insurrection should break out in Poland
or Hungary."

PESTH, FEB. 22.

The Judicial Conference has, by a considerable
majority, decided against the re-establishment of
the Hungarian laws relating to inheritance.

LIVERPOOL, SATURDAY.

The Royal Mail steamship Niagara, which sailed
,o-day for Halifax and Boston, took £75,402 in

specie.

NAPLES, FEB. 22, 6.15 P.M.

The Papal Zouaves have massacred Dr. Latini
and his little daughter, aged six years, in the
village of Collalto.
Francis 11. has refused to receive General Bosco
on account of his having said to some Neopolitan
noblemen that he intended to return to Naples.
The Queen of Spain is about to purchase some
property of Francis 11.

MARSEILLES, FEB. 22.

Letters from Rome to the 20th inst. state that a
proclamation of the National .Committee announces
that Victor Emmanuel will soon be proclaimed
King of Italy at the Capitol. The same proclama-
tion expresses thanks to France for her reserved
attitude in Rome.

The French authorities had taken possession of
the keys of the Capitol, in order to prevent the
ringing of the bells by the people.
The Papal Government had exiled several per-
sons, among whom was Signor Titoni, a rich mer-
chant, who was suspected of having promoted the
late political manifestations. The Abbe Passaglia
had returned to Rome.

-~♦ a

NAPLES (via Marseilles), FEB. 19.

The property of the religious orders which have
been suspended has been taken possession of by the
Government.

The garrison of Gaeta, being prisoners of war,
have been sent to the Neapolitan islands.

ST. PETERSBURG, FEB, 22.

The project of a new tariff of import duties on
European goods, drawn up by order of the
Emperor, will shortly be published in the Borzen-
zeitung of St. Petersburg.

the Lebanon ; and, on the other hand, no definitive
understanding has been arrived at for the indemnity
to be paid at Damascus, and the Porte puts forth
the pretension of settling that question at Constan-
tinople. The administrative reorganisation has
been, it is true, recently touched on in confidential
conversations ; but the delegates, absorbed by other
cares, have not up to the present time found them-
selves sufficiently prepared to treat the subject
officially, and it would be difficult to determine the
moment when they may be able to communicate
to the Powers the result of their investigations.
) In short, the very uncertainty which those delays
I throw on the reorganization of the Lebanon, keeps
the public mind in a state of extreme excitement ;
and the information which we possess make us
fear that the departure of our troops would be
followed by fresh outbreaks, if it should take place
before the arrangements necessary for guarantee-
ing the security of the people have been adopted.
" In presence of considerations of that kind, all
the Cabinets will understand that we are most
anxious to relieve ourselves from all responsibility.
If, on the one hand, we are determined to abide by
the stipulations decided on by the Conference, we,
on the other, do not wish to incur any reproaches
for not having pointed out the dangers which we
foresee. We are therefore induced to request the
Powers to make known their opinion on this sub-
ject, simply reserving to ourselves to express our
own in the deliberations, as one of the parties to
the Convention of the sth Sept., that is to say, on
the same footing as the other Cabinets.

" We have proved, by the manner in which we
have urged on the labours of the Commission, how
desirous we are to be able to evacuate Syria at the
period stipulated, and no one would feel greater
satisfaction at finding that circumstances would
allow that wish to be realisedalf the Powers
decide that there are grounds for prolonging the
period of occupation, we, having accepted the con-
dition of furnishing the expeditionary corps, shall
doubtless not refuse to continue the sacrifices we
have imposed on ourselves, to lend the Sultan the
co-operation of our troops. But in case the Cabinets
should be of opinion that it would be proper to fix
on one or more of them to take part in that mission,
we shall be ready to accept their cooperation.
" It appears to me that the most natural means
of coming to an understanding on those different
pints would be to convoke the Conference. If that
manner of viewing the question obtains the assent
of the Cabinet of I beg you to make it known
to me as soon as possible, and I would bring about
the meeting of the plenipotentiaries es soon as the
adhesion of the different Courts shall have reached
me. You will please to read to M. -, and leave
him a copy of this despatch, which I also address
to the Emperor's representatives at: .
THOUTENEL."

PRUSSIA AND ITALY.

A letter, dated Turin, 20th February, says :

" General Bonin leaves Turin tomorrow. All
the Deputies have decided upon leaving their
cards at his hotel by way of expressing their
thanks for the vote of the Prussian Deputies in
favour of Italy. During his stay at Turin General
Bonin has strictly confined himself to his mission,
simply one of courtesy, and has even declined any
conversation of a political character."