The Sun.
London, England, 1857-01-31 00:00:00

arsals:

, At the Court of Bankruptcy, Mr; W. Smith, ban-
ker, of Watford and Hemel Hempstead; passed passed his
litat.examination on a supplergedtajd hilance-sheet. The
queitioa..of the. liability of the, executors of Mr. Whit-
tint/stall. (the partner of Mr. Smith) to the -debts of
the bank was ordered to stand-over for private diseue-
sion.
TOTAL WEALTH OF THE bIiITED SiATICE.--It is shown
by the .Am'elrican papers Just received tbat the grand
total value " of real and personal wealth" of the whole
of the 'United •States of America, in 1856, amounted to
the sum.of $11;317,611,972, or nearly 3,000,000,0001.
The populati* arnountecl to 26,964,312 souls. The
wealthiest States are those of New York, Pennsylvania,
Virginia, Georgia, Massachusetts, -Kentucky, Ohio,
South Carolina, and. Tennessee.
tontiiE OF AN ABSOONDED "PIifKONEICA. curious
case of the reappreheilsion of 1, prisoner occurred a few
days ago at Torquay, Devonshire. In September, 1850,
Mr. Thomas'Parrott, a middle-aged man of respectable
connexions, ana 'who had been a schoolmaster, was com-
mitted for triaf'on a charge of stealing money from a
baker named Coplestone. Parrott, with his wife and
daughter, rented apartments of Mr. Coplestone. Money
had been frequently missed from the till in the shop,
and a police-officer, concealed ender the counter, was
set to watch. In the middle of the night he detected
Parrott, who had come down into the shop in hie night
dress, in the act of robbing the till.. After his committal
bail•wa,s accepted; the prisoner did not appear at the
quarter sessions, and the recegnisances were forfeited.
Lord Courtenay, the chairman, issued a warrant for his
apprehension, but he could not be discovered. Within
the past few days, however, he made his appearance at
Torquay, and being identified was taken into custody,
and was forthwith committed to the Devon County
Prison. The prisoner said he understood that the fact
of his bondsmen having paid the amount of his bail ren-
dered him no longer amenable for the offence.

AN AMERICAN SAILOR'S SKETCH OF Esn HIGH
LIFE.—The following peep at English domestic life is
published ie an American paper as an extract from a
letter written by an officer of the Merrimac frigate, when
she lay at Southampton, in October :—" Much attention
has been paid us ashore, too, especially by two families
—one, that of an old East India general (General Frazier),
the other that of Lord Hard wicke. Lord Hard wicke's
family consists of his Countess, his eldest son (about 18
to 20, and Lord Royston by courtesy), three of the finest-
looking daughters you ever saw, and several younger
sons. The daughters—Lady Elizabeth, Lady Mary, and
Lady Agneta—are surpassingly beautiful. They take a
great deal of out-door exercise, and came on board the
Merrimac in a heavy rain, with Irish thicker-soled shoes
than you or I ever wore, and cloaks and dresses almost
impervious to wet. They steer their father's yacht,
walk for miles, and don't care a cent about rain, besides
doing a host of other things that would shock our ladies
to death ; and yet in the parlour they are the most ele-
gant women in their satin shoes and diamonds I ever
saw. The countess looks like a fit mother for three such
women. His lordship has given us three or four dinners.
He lives here merely during the yachting season, and
leaves here on Friday for his country seat at Cambridge,
where he spends his winter, as do all English gentlemen
of means, in bunting, &c., and when Parliament is in
session he lives in London. Here he has a host of ser-
vants, and they wear the gaudiest livery—white coats
with big silver buttons, white cravats, plush knee breeches
and vest, white silk stockings, and low shoes."
THE "ONE PASSENGER' LOST IN THE VIOLET.— The
identity of the passenger lost in the Dover and Ostend
mail packet Violet has been now proved, and that in a
quarter where it was least expected. It is no* satisfac-
torily ascertained that the .deceased was a Prussian
Baron von lming, captain of the 7th company of the
15th regiment of Infantry, in garrison at Minden. This
officer obtained leave of absence to go over to
London on family affairs, taking with him 500
dollars in cash, and bills to the amount of 2,000 dol.
Lars. When the news arrived of the loss of the
Violet, this officer's wife (who is a sister of the fernier
cantatrice, Sophie Cruvelli, now Baroness Vigier), be-
came dreadfully alarmed, aod Onsed juquirkes to be
made In London, which were answered oy the stafie;
merit that the letters of credit and introduction in posses
sion of the,Baron had not Peen delivjed nor the bills
presented for payment. By means of a Portrait of the
missing captain sent to Ostend, it was recognised by the
boatmen and people of the hotel as that of the courageous
but ill fated passenger *he deterthined to remain in the
Violet cehen the tither three passeugers returned to shore
on that' tempestuous night.
MlNES.—There bas been a large business doing this
week in a few particular mine,, and in many of them a
considerable rise has taken place in price. In shares
generally, though there has been a fair demand for divi-
dend and progressivermines, the business transacted has
not been so extensive as we have had to report upon for
some weeks past. Both tin, copper, and lead are at good
prices, and still likely to adva•ne ; and whllst many
mines must necessarily pay larger dividends, the extensiou
of the market will bring many new investors into it, a.-
though at present there is no perceptible increase. The
large dividend paid on Devon Great Consols last week, ,
and the expectation of a still larger one at the next twc- THE CITY POLICE.—On Wednesday the Police Com-
monthly account, has sent the shares to 440.. South mittee disposed of the cases of the 58 officers and con-
Frances bar; got over the temporary depression, and ad- stables who had been certified by the commissioner as
vanced to 340, 35U. Bassets remain steady at 300 ; the I unfit for further police service, and entitled to retiring
dividends are not likely to increase beyond 8/. per share, allowances under the provisions of the City of London
two-monthly. Bullers have.adianced to 280, 300 ; the Police Act. To 33 of these officers was awarded half-
mine is looking better in the 60 east. South Cara Brea pay for life ;to 11 others pensions proportioned to then
and
61 have been in demand, and price advanced from extent of injuries they bad received were granted ;
_d
61 to 7,7 i, and left off at 7i to 8. Great South Tolgus, to the remaining 14, whose services had been forordin periods
16 to 16i ,; these mines are likely to advance still more less than 15 years, liberal gratuities, acc in
after the dividend.-74Ifinin9 Journal. of th,if day, amount with those periods of service, were allotted

THE WESTMINMER PALACE CLOCK.

The clock-face is of cast-irom, filled in with a new
description of white semi-opaque glass, supplied by
Gardner, of the Strand. The dial, which is 22 feet 6
inches in diameter, will appear entirely opaque by day, it
is hoped, but will, nevertheless, be available for illumi-
nation by night. The clock hands will be made of copper,
made as light as is consistent with the requisite strength
to resist the action of the wind. The 4 dials, as we have
said, are to be 22 feet each in diameter, the largest, it is
believed, in the world with a minute-hand ; the larger
dials on the Continent have only an hour hand. The
minute-band, on account of its greater length, velocity,
weight, friction, and the action of the wind upon it, re•
quires at least 20 times as much force to drive it as the
hour.hand. The effects of friction and wind with suchk
hands as these offer difficulties iu the way of the cloc
going even as well as an ordinary church clock; to over;
' come which, what is called reinontoire work isouseidv
npgara
of the arrangement being for the purpose
.nfutge, i
when
visible motion of the hands at every half i
ninearly sevcu
the point of the minute-hand will move
part is twenty-
linches. The great wheel of thpeengdoui
seven inches in diameter nlum is fifteen tett
I°4, and weighs 6801 b ;
driven by th e reusicalu-bnoet. ring on the third wheel,
a; ntielle die se-wincel, which is
...017A.lel.,the wheels except the
i with the teeth cast,
tiwbetlipgeh-swahbeeelutahrealej
five s ekes.
pThe weight of the
not cut, Antl all have s than 4 cwt acco
posed to be not les. ,
hammer was was pro
proportion,
with a rise ot at least a foot,
ncanst i.
ing to the Usual pr a con mance
- the winding when the clock is going to
but roost now be 12 cwt. There is to be t •
for stopping
strike, a 4 the winding of each of the striking parts will
probably take two hours. Mr. Denison adds, with
reference to the question Of the strength of cast-iron
teeth, that a segment of one of these great wheels was
tried up to breaking point, and it bore a pressure of six
tons, and then only broke from the pinion not bearing
quite fiat upon it. The desirability of employing east-
iron wheels is questioned, as our readers know, by some
who are well informed on this subject, but into this we
do not propose to enter.—The Builder.