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

THE SONG OF THE PRESS.

(From the Colonist, 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 Press,
Write, wiite 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 Leaders ;
Till the brain grows sick, and quite out of sorts—
I envy the dullest of readers.

Oh, subscribers and readers, reflect,
When denouncing the scarceness of news,
How hard the task is, all readers to please,
And comply with their manifold views ;
Write, write, write,
Amid moral and political dirt,
Scourging and warning with double pen,
That dupes may be on the alert.
Write, write, write,
Line still following lino ;
Write, write, write,
While the brain for rest must pine,
Condense, Review, Arrange,
Arrange, Condense, and Review,
Till the eyes are dim, and the fingers ache,
Yet the work must go on anew.

Write, write, write,
In the dreary winteL's night;
Write, write, write,
In the summer's radiant light ;
The same insipid routine

To me e'er seems Lu ullug, ;
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 the glorious sky above my head,
And the wavos 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 1 for that blessed hour
When these mental toils shall cease ;
When I can view life's turmoil and strife,
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 throbbing and achin; head,
An editor sat, at his midnight toil,
And this is what he said :
Write, write, write,
My work ne'cr seems t o grow less,
And a most unthankful task it is,
To write copy i or the press.
"J. D."

TIM PENINSULAR MAlL.—Southampton, Oct. 3.—
The Peninsular and Orient3l Stem Navigation Com-
pany's steam-ship Tagus, Capt. 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 consists
of 6 packages of specie, value 1,943 ; 1 package gold,
50 doublooons ; 239 boxes grapes, 100 barrels figs • 410
boxes, 204 half do., and 132 quarter do. raisins ; 163
chests hmons, and 59 packages of sundries.
THE AMERICAN FRIGATE PLYMOUTH.-otl Saturday
afternoon Captain Dahlgren and the officers of this.
frigate, which has been lying in the Southampton Water
for the lat two or three we,;ks, were entertained at a.
sumptuous banquet, given by them by Mr. Alderman.
Andreas at his Winchester residence. Mr. WiLiamt
Thompson (the United States' Consul), the Mayor off
Southampton (I,lr. J. White), and other friends front
that town were also among the company, The usual
Inyal toasts, together with those of an international
oharacter appropriate to the occasion, were drunk, and
the American officers seemed much pleased with this
friendly treatment they had experienced. The frigate
has since stiled on her return to Washington.

MINSTRELS.--This most eccentric and en-
tertaining company of mock Ethiopians, after perform.
ing with success at the St. James's and Surrey Theatres,
have located themselves at the Polygraphic Hall of Mr.
Woodin, in King William-street, Strand. They rattle
away in their several scenes with a rapidity and ouster.-
t ation of interest quite surprising. They have their che.-
racter entertainment, in which a musical description of
a fashionable sleigh ride stands 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 South."
Half, at least, of the entertainment consists of delinea-
tions of negro life in charac•eristio dress, so that there
is nothing of the monotony which has marked previous
nigger performances, where gentlemen in black sit in a
row, and utter their lugubrious witticisms like so marly
lively mutes. We will nut ate apt to pick out any
particular individual in the company for special praise.
Ail work together in a capital spirit, and each, in his
turn, gets his award of approbation for some side-
splitting sally of eccentricity.
VALUE OF LAND AT ALDERSHDT.—The Government
bought the lad 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 engincler
pitched upon a spot on the extreme edge of the Govern-
ment land, and beyond which, of course, the militi.ry
authorities have no control of any kiwi. The result is
that a swarm of public-houses and beer-shops is hemmii3g
in the new buillinga, while others aro being built, and
will of course soon be accompanied by houses of a stilt
worse description. Of course the land in the rear of they
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 Lad for nothing, if
the site had been choaen in the centre of their own land r
—The Builder.

Sin COLIN CAMPBELL—Reports are prevalent that;
serious misunderatandurgs have arisen at Calcutta be-
tween the Governor-General and the Commander-in-;
Chief. No "Serious misunderstandings" exist. Sir
Colin Campbell has very properly resented an imprudent
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 same
time it is not to be concealed that the presence in the
Council at Calcutta of these petty jealousies and imper-
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 of cha-
racter for which Sir Colia Campbell is pre-eminent, is
deeply to be deplored. It may paralyse the moat
vigorous measures of the General-it-Chief, and so hamper
the operations of the campaign as to expose him to cla.-
feat and disaster, instead of the victory and success he
has a right to expect. With respect to the command ttel
the cavalry in India, it is believed that Lord Geo. Paget,
in prdference to General Scarlett, or to General Jackson
at the Cape, will be selected.—The Press.
MAJOR GEORGE POWELL THOMAS.—We regret to
have to record the death of Major George Powell
Thomas, of the 3.1 European Regiments Toe decease('
was seriously indisposed the day before the battle of
Agra on the sth of July, when he so gallantly cone-
mended and led on five companies of his regiment. Its
this 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 distinc-
tion in Affghanistan under General Sir George Pollock,
K.C.8., where he commanded a corps of Jezeilchees,
and, being at home on sick leave on the breaking out A
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 d
upon him the local rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in Tee-
key ; be', being desirous of more active employment, he
volunteered to proceed to the Crimea, and was present
set the fall of Sebastopol, far which he received the
Crimean medal, to add to the other decorations he had
already won in the service of his country. He was
known as an author -and artist of considerable merit,
having published a volume of poems 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. Major George Powell
Thomas was a son of the late Major-General Lewin
Thomas, C. 8., whose services in India are too well
known to require comment.
SHOOTING AT A CLERGYMAN IN THE PULTlT.—Con-
siderable excitement prevailed at the magistrates' meet-
ing at Frame, in consequence of a man, named Joseph
Ashman, being charged with having discharged a gun
at the Rev. G. A. Mahon, while he was engaged in the
performance of Divine service in the parish church of
Leigh, on Sunday. The sitting magistrates were W.
F. Knatchbull, NI P., Dr. Harrison, and N. Barton,
Eq., and the court was much crowded. It appeared
from the evidence of the Rev. G. A. Mahon and other
witnesses, that at about 7 in the evening of Sunday. he
was in the pulpit engaged in preaching a sermon, wemo
the sudden report of a gun was heard on the northe snid
of the church, fed wed instantaneously by the aswng
of glass in the north window. The minister was observuit
t
to fall back againet the column of the pulpit
ast
of unconsciousness, and his face and surplice were
in-
stantly covered with blood. As may be supposed, the
utmost consternation and alarm was produced—women
screamed and fainted, many rushed from the church,
whilst others hastened to the help of the clergy-
man, whom everybody thought had been mur-
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 gur, and that the or ly wound he
lead received was from a fragment of the' glass which
was still st:ckir g into the comer of his eye, and was
removed by one of the congregation. The inquiries in-
stituted by he police caused very strong suspicion to fall
on the prisoner, who vas arrested. Evidence to fix
that suspicion upon him having been adduced, the ma- t
gistrates remanded the prisoner to Shepton Mallet-gaol,