The Sun.
London, England, 1861-02-13 00:00:00

THAMES.

EXTENSIVE ROBBERY BY A DRAPER'S ASSISTANT.—
James Lawson, a well-dressed man, aged 28, who was
labouring under great depression and anxiety, was brought
before Mr. Yardley charged with stealing property to a
large amount, belonging to his employer, Mr. George
Greenbridge, a linendraper and outfitter, carrying on an
extensive business at Nos. 99 and 100, St. George-street,
alias Ratcliff Highway.
The prisoner had been in the employ of the prosecutor
for five months, and in the course of that time many articles
had been missed from the shop and warehouse. The pri-
scner was at length suspected, and last-night, as he was
leaving his master's shop, he was stopped by Thomas
Harper, another shopman, and given into custody of
Smith, No. 253 K, who found eightpairs of child's stays
concealed round his body, and in his pockets. The
prisoner also took from him a quantity of tickets in blank,
and used by drapers and outfitters for ticketing goods. His
dwelling, at No. 17, Roman-road, Bow, was then searched,
and a large quantity of goods, similar to those which formed
a portion of Mr. Greenbridge's stock, were found in his
parlour, but with the exception of 6 dozen pieces of tape
with the prosecutor's private mark upon them, nothing else
could be identified.
The prisoner said he was guilty of stealing the child's
stays, but not of stealing the other things.
Mr. Yardley—Then you are guilty of the charge against

you.
Mr. James Massingham, a linen draper, sail he had
known the prisoner eight or ten years, and never heard
any thing to his prejudice before. The priscner was in
his employ for some time and conducted himself in a most
exemplary manner. He had no reason whatever to doubt
the prisoner's honesty while in his service.
Mr. Yardley—One can't help being sorry at seeing
man, apparently respectable, and-who has for many years
maintained a good character, in such 'a degrading situation
as this. He has a wife and family too. His character is
zone for ever. lam sorry a,mR.ll should so_faKforget him-
self as to be guilty of an act of tbeft. Tn cOnsideration.of
the prisoner's previous good character and family I shall
pass a light sentence. The prisoner is sentenced to one
month's imprisonment and hard labour.

OCEAN TELEGRAPHY.

We have several times had occasion to mention
the various objections adduced against the use of
iron armatures as a protection to submarine cables,
at least in deep water, where they are not in dan-
ger of injury from the dragging of anchors. The
chief inconveniences of iron armatures are-1, the
enormous strain on the cable in paying-out; 2, the
danger of kinks or casual loops which occasion
rupture ; and 3, the currents of induction generated
in the armature, and often counteracting the desired
effect of the transmitted current. In order to do
away with armatures, Capt. Rowett, as early as
1857, patented an outer envelope of fibrous
materials for electric cables; but the latest
improvements in their construction, marked by
peculiar originality, are due to an amateur, Dr.
Thomas W. Evans, well known as dentist to the
Emperor of the French. Starting from the prin-
ciple of the absolute necessity of light electric
cables for great sea depths, he proposes, as an
external envelope, a combination of hemp or
other fibrous materials, wrought in the usual
fashion of ships' cordage. But the- chief novelty
consists in the mode of preparing the electric
conductor and its insulation. He insists upon the
employment of a conductor composed of several
wires drawn from metal rendered absolutely pure
by refining, and he adopts copper as the con-
stituent metal of the wire conductor. To avoid
the serious risk involved in the employment of a
submarine electric conductor composed of only a
single wire, Dr. Evans combines seven copper wires
(drawn from perfectly pure metal), six of which
surround the remaining one as a centre. Having
first placed these wires in pal allel lines in close con-
tact with each other, he draws them all together
through a round-holed draw plate. By this means he
reduces the volume, and compels the wires to assume
the form of longitudinal sections of a prolonged
cylinder, the exposed surface of which will be, of
course, exactly equal to that of a single wire of the
same diameter, while additional strength and addi-
tional safety from risk of total rupture are effectually
secured by the use of independent wires. Upon the
cylindrical conductor thus prepared, Dr. Evans
superimposes a slight coating or plating of pure
copper or gold. By thusyresenting a surface of abso-
lutely pure metal, the facility of electrical trans-
mission is sensibly increased, whilst the danger of
any chemical action upon the conductor from the
contact of the insulation is entirely avoided. The
insulation is effected by three distinct coats—an
interior one of pure caoutchouc, a second of gutta-
percha, and a third of caoutchouc. For the interior
coat, Dr. Evans employs pure caoutchouc unmixed
with any other material. From sheets of india-
rubber, of about 12 millimetres in thickness, he
cuts long narrow bands, which are then united
together end to end, and then stretched to such a
degree as to lose their elasticity. This inelastic
gum cord is then wound upon bobbins, and from
these bobbins it is rolled off by simple machinery
Upon the metallic wire-conductor already prepared.
(Syn. this a second coating of gutta-percha in a
semi-liquid state is imposed, and upon this is placed
a third coating of caoutchouc, either pure, or com-
bined with pulverized glass, feldspar, sand, or other
non-conducting substances. The conductor thus
coated is passed through a chamber heated to a
gentle heat, and by this means the guttapercha
gradually softens and forms a complete solder
between the two coats of caoutchouc, and thus two
important results are attained, namely, the solid
union of all the coats of the insulation, and the
total exclusion of air.— Galignani.

MEDICAL APPOTNTMENTS.—Robert Gretnhalgh,
M.D., St. Andrews, L.R.C.P., London; M.R.C.S., Eng-
land ; to be physician to the Samaritan Hospital, in the
place of Dr. Priestley, resigned ; Dr. Guthrie, Senior Chy-
mical Assistant in the University of Edinburgh, to be Pro-
fessor of Chemistry and Physiesin the College of the Mau-
ritius; Alfred Hill, M.D., King's College, Aberdeen;
M.R.C.S. England ; L.S.A., London ; to be an analyst for
Birmingham, under the Act of last session ; Alfred Hud-
son, M. 8., Trinity College, Dublin, Fellow of the King's
and Queen's College of Physicians in Ireland, elected phy-
sician to the Meath Hospital and County Dublin Infirmary,
in place of Dr. Lees, resigned ; Dr. Logan, of Coylton, Ayr-
shire, elected house surgeon to the Royal Infirmary at
Glasgow; Reginald Southey, of Christ Church, Oxford, to
be Radcliffe Travelling Fellow.
THE WAKEFIELD BRIBERY PROSECUTION.—
The rule obtained, on the part of Mr. Leatham, for a new
trial was yesterday discharged in the Court of Queen's Bench.
There still remains one question to be disposed of in thls
case—viz., whether the prosecution.was instituted within the
time limited by the Act. The finding of the jury upon this
point, it was agreed, should be turned into a special ver -
dict, which is to be taken to a Court of Error, so that some
time must elapse before the whole case can be finally dis •
posed of.
Baron Anna de Mangalaviti has recently dis-
covered in the ttorth. of Sicily two caverns, containing a
great quantity of bones of elephants, hippopotami, horses,
oxen, stags, dogs, bears, hyenas, and cats. The first of
these caverns is in Monte-Gallo, at the western extremitynear
of the bay of Palermo ; the second, and larger one,
Acque Dolci, at the foot of Monte San Fratello.
Baron d'Arnim, Grand Cupbearer to the Court
of Prussia, died at Berlin, three days back.
THE WEATHER.—The weather has again become
The gale, which seemslto
very cold in the eastern district.
have raged with the greatast severity on the extreme north
east coast,
on Monday nearly cleared the ground. On Monday night
was succeeded by a snowstorm, but a rapid thaw
there was a sharp wind, frost, and yesterday morning a
fresh fall of snow again took place. The quantity of snow,
however, was not stalcient to interrupt the usual comma-
nications,