The Sun.
London, England, 1857-10-05 00:00:00

THE SONG OF THE PRESS.

(From the Coloniit, American paper.)

With temples weary and worn,
With a throbbing and aching head,
An editor said, at his nightly toil,
And this is what he said :
Write, write, write,
My work ne'er seems to grow less,
And a most unthankful office it is,
Preparing for the Peess.

Write, write, write,
When the lamp is burning bright ;

Write. write, write,
Till the stars have vanished quite.
'Twere better to be a slave,
And perform any menial work,
Than worry myself to an early grave,
For a merciless "Public Turk."

Write, write, write,
Till the body is wan and thin ;
Write, write, write,

Till I'm nought but bone and skin.
Leaders, Revisions, Reports,
Reports, Revisions, and L2aders ;
Till the brain grows sick, and quite out of sorts—
I envy the dullest of reader

Oh, subscribers and readers, reflect,
When denouncing the scarceness of news,
How hard the task is, all leaders to please,
And comply with their manifold views j
Write, write, write,

Amid moral and political dirt,
Scourging and warning with doulk, pen,
That dupes may be on the alert,

Write, write, write,
Line still fol:owing line;
Write, write, write,
While the brain for rest must pino.
Condense, Review, Arrange,
Arrange, Condense, and Refow,
Till the eyes are dim, and the fingers aeho,
Yet the work must go on anew,

Write, write, write,
In the dreary winter's night ;
Write, write, write,
In the summer's radiant light ;
The same insipid routine
Te me e'er seems to cling ;
Whether cool autumn would tempt me forth,
Or the freshness of the spring.

Oh ! to enjoy the scenes,
Of which the tourist's letters treat,
With th 6 glorious sky above my head,
And the waves beneath my feet ;
Ah ! for a short respite,
A lull:to this throb of the brain,
That nature might heal my failing strength,
And I feel myself again.

Oh ! for that blessed hour
When these mental toils shall cease ;
When I can view life's turmoil and ,trife,
Unassailed; in my bower of peace.
But why should I cherish the thought ?
'Tis for gold relaxation is spread ;
Where intellect only is given.
That intellect works till it's dead.

With temples weary and worn,
With a throbbini: and achin4 head,
An editor sat, at his mianight toil,
And this is what he said :
Write, write, write,
My work ne'er seems o grow less,
And a most unthankful task it is,
To write copy for the press.

«J. D."

THE PENINSULAR MAlL.—Southampton, Oct. 3.
The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Com-
pany's steam-ship Tagus, Cept. E. Christian, with the
usual Peninsular mail, in charge of Lieut. Gardiner,
Admiralty agent, arrived this day, having experienced
fine weather daring the voyage. Her freight cowls";
of 6 packages of specie, value 1,943 ; 1 packsge gold,
50 doublooons ; 239 boxes grapes, 100 barrels figs ' • 410
boxes, 204 half do., and 132 quarter do. raisins ; 163 k
chests lemon., and 59 packages of sundries.
THE AMERICAN FRIGATE PLYMOUTH. —On Saturday
afternoon Captain Dahlgren and the officers of this
frigate, which has been lying in the Southampton Water
for the last two or three weeks, were entertained at a
sumptuous banquet, given by them by Mr. Alderman
AndreNs at his Winchester residence. Mr. Wil iam
Thompson (the United States' Consul), the Mayor of
Southampton (tlr. J. White), and other friends from
that town were also among the company, The usual
hiel toasts, together with those of an international
character appropriate to the occasion, were drunk, and
the American officets seemed much pleased with the
friendly treatment they had experienced. The friga'e
has since a dad on her return to Washington.
CHRISTY'S hieteernEne.--This most eccentric and en.
tertaining company of mock Ethiopians, after perform-
ing with success at the St, James's and Surrey Toeatres,
have located themselves at the Polygraphic Hall of Mr.
Woodin, in Kiug William-street, Strand. They rattle
away in their several scenes with a rapidity and ansteii-
.ation of interest quite surprising. They have their cha
rooter entertainment, in which a musical deecriptiou of
a fashionable eleigh ride sands prominently forward; a
musical and terpsichorean melange ; a burlesque Italian
opera ; and a succession of character bit-, forming
what they call " Plantation Life in the Sunny Seuth:"
Half, at least, of the entertainment .:insists of delinea-
tions of negro life in charaneristio dress, so that there
is nothing of the monotony which has marked previous
nigger performance., where geintlemen.in black sit in a
row, and utter their lugubrious witticisms like.so many
lively mutes. We will not at.e opt to pick out any
particular individual in the company for special praise.
All work together in a capital spirit, and each,lo 1119
turn, gets his award of approbation for some side-
splitting sally of eccentricity.
VALUE OP LAND AT ALDERSR3T.—The Government
bought the la•.d at Aldershot for, on the average, 171.
an acre. Instead of erecting the present barracks in the
centre of the 8,000 or 9,000 acres bought, the engineer
pitched upon a spot on the extreme edge of the Govern-
ment land, and beyond which, of course, the military
authorities have no control of any kind. The result is
that a swarm of public-houses and beer-shop, is hemming
in the new buildings, while others are being built, and
will of course soon be accompanied by houses of a still
worse description. Of course the land in the rear of the
barracks has risen in value more than fifty-fold since the
buildings were commenced, and it is said that Govern-
ment surveyors who came into the market the other day
to purchase two acres on which to erect an hospital, had
to pay upwards of 2,0001. for what, 18 months ago, they
would have obtained for 341. ; or have had for nothing, if
the site had been chosen in the centre of their own land l
—The Builder.
Sin COLIN CAMPBELL—Reports are prevalent that
serious misunderstandings have arisen at Calcutta be-
tween the Governor-General and the Commanders="
Chief. No "serious misunderstandings" exist. Sir
Colin Campbell has very properly resented an imprudeet
and uncalled-for attempt to limit his authority over the
army. The country may rest assured that Sir Colin
Campbell is not the man either to exceed his powers or
to permit them to be encroached upon. At the saute
time it is not to be concealed that the presence in the
Council at Ca,!cntta of these petty jealousies and imPee-
tinent assumptions upon the part of men, not only ut-
terly ignorant of war, but who have proved themselves
so incapable in a crisis demanding that decision 'f cha-
racter for which Sir Colin Campbell is
pre-emineut, is
deeply to bo deplored. It may paralyse the most
vigorous measures of the General-in-Chief, and Po hamper
the operations of the campeign as to expose him to de-
feat and disaster, instead of the victory and eacessa he
has a right to expect. With respect to the command of
the cavalry in India, it is believed that Lord Geo. Paget,
in preference to General Scarlett, or to General Jackson
at the Cape, will be selected.—Vie Press.
MAJOR GEORGE POWELL THOMAS.--We regret to
have to record the death of Major George Powell
Thomas, of the 34 European Regiment. Tne deceased
wag seriously indisposed the day before the battle of
Agra on the sth of July, when ho so Tallantiy com-
manded and led on five companies of his regiment. in
ibis action he was severely wounded in the foot, and his
horse also receiving three bullets fell over and upon him,
thereby injuring his head, from the effects of which he
never rallied, but lingered on amid severe suffering until
the 4th of August, when he expired in the fort of Agra.
Major George Powell Thomas served with great distine-
tien in Affghaoistan under General Sir George Pollock,
K.C.8.,-a.leernhe "-commanded a corps, of Jez4ilcheee,
and, being at home on sick leave on the breaking out of
the war with Russia, he applied for and obtained the
command of a regiment in the Turkish Contingent under
General Vivian, on which occasion the Queen conferre

upon him the 10-c,il rank of Lieutenant•Colone' in 'fur.

key ; bat, being desirous of more active employment, he
volunteered to proceed to the Crimea, and was present
at the fall of SehaFtopol, for which he received the
Crimean medal, to aed to the other dacorations he had

already won in tho service of his country. He tirtu
known as an author and artist of considerable merit

having published a voluneCl-po;ms which were very
favourably noticed both here and in India. He was also
a first rate linguist, while his sketches of the Himalayas
are perhaps the most magnificent productions of the
kind that have been published. Maj,r.George Powel
Thomas was a son of the late Major-General Lewis
Thomas, C. 8., whose services in India are tco wtll
known to require comment.
SHOOTING AT A CLERGYMAN IN TH PULPlT.—Con-
siderable excitement prevailed at the magistrates' meet-
ing at Frome, in consequence of a man, named Joseph
Ashman, being charged with having discharged a gu❑
at the Rev. G. A. Mahon, while he was engaged in the
performance of Divine service in the pariah church of
Leigh, on Sunday. The sitting magistrates war,. W.
F. Knatchbull, M P., Dr. Harrison, and N. Barton,
Esq., and the court was much croi,vdef. It appeared

frotYthe evidence of the Rev. G. A. Mahon arid other

Witnesses, that at about 7 in the evening of Sunday he

was in the pulpit engaged in preaching a sermon, when
the sudden report of a gun was heard on the north Bide
of the otiurch, )wed instantaneously by the crashing
of gltss in the north window. The minister was observed

to fall back against the c,dumn of the palpit. in a state
of unconsciousness, and his face and surplice wr„re in•

btantly covered with blood. As may be supposed, the
utmost consternation and alarm was produced—women
screamed and fainted, many rushed from the church,
iota& others hastened to the help of the clergy-
man, whom everybody thought had been min.
dered. Mr. Mahon bad been struck by the charge.
and partially stunned, but it was soon ascertained
that the greater part of the blood must have been
discharged from the gun, and that the oily wound Fe
bad received was from a fragment of the glass which
wai still stickirg into the a ruor of hie eye, acd was
removed by one of the congregation. The inquiries in-
stituted by the police caused very strong susp'elon to fah
on the prisoner, who was arrested. Evidence to fix
that suvicion upon him Laving been adduced, the ma-
gistrates remanded the prisoner to Shepton Mallet gaol, I