The Sun.
London, England, 1857-04-11 00:00:00

NORTHERN COPPER DISCOVERIES.

For some weeks past a rumour has been current
in Adelaide of a further discovery of copper to the
northward. This rumour has now settled down
into a fixed reality...
Mr. Bull arrived on Monday evening from the
seat of the reported discovery, which has already
been surveyed, and taken on a mining lease, and
he has furnished us with particulars, o which we
proceed to give a digest.
The situation of the mine is east of Mount Stuart,
and bearing 100 miles N.N.E. of Port Augusta, the
road to which is easy of access, and well supplied
- with water from springs at intervals of ten or 15
miles the whole of the way.
The samples from the mine, exhibited to us by
Mr. Bull, are of malachite and silver grey ore of
the richest description. Mr. Bull reports his hav-
ing traced the lode at surface for 50 fathoms, bear-
ing a continuous course of ore the whole of the way,
and on his breaking the group on the course of
the lode southward 50 fathoms further on, he found
-the same rich character of ore existing.
But what is more remarkable than the whole of
the foregoing, is the cropping out of the ore on the
surface at the base of one of the adjoining hills. A
large basin is formed there comprising several acres,
say ten or twelve. Over the whole extent of this,
nodules of copper ore are extensively dispersed and
lie scattered among the debris. This can hardly
exist without large and important underground
workings.
This discovery, we learn, was made by Mr. Bull's
eldest son, who, in conjunction with his father and
Mr. Whitington, has secured the mineral lease of
the property referred to above.
Large samples of ore are, we understand, on the
road down with the cart, and will be exhibited on
arrival.

(Front the Sydney Morning Herald of Feb. 10.)

It is a common opinion abroad that it is very
difficult to purchase land in the Australian colonies.
A certain portion of the Australian press has done
its best and worst to propagate that absurdity. It
has h en asserted over and over again that all lands
available for cultivation are " locked up" by leases,
to a tribe of grasping monopolists called " squat-
ters," who make no use of theni save to raise those
useless commodities, wool, tallow, and meat. There
can be little doubt but that the constant declama-
tion against our land system has deterred immigra-
tion here to a considerable extent, and that it con-
tinues to do so. Apart altogether from the Govern-
ment lands—the extent of land for disposal being
almost illimitable—there is always a large quantity
for sale by private individuals, so large indeed and.
at such moderate prices that it is not easy to
believe in the alleged pressing demand for it,
The Herald of 31st of January last, for instance,
shows that there is no lack of sellers. It an-
nounced for sale by auction and by private bar-
gain, sixty-six different lots of land, varying in size
from three acres up to 14,000, the whole amount)
ing to upwards of 33,000 acres, some of it, the
greater part iudeed, ready for occupation, with the
clearings, fences, and houses. This quantity does
not include several farms where area is not men-
tioned, nor any of several hundred city; town, and
suburban building allotments. For lease there are
12,683 acres, in lots varying from 6 acres to
10,C00. Wth these public advertisennnti before
us there can be no great difficulty in obtaining
land, unless people want it for nothing, which is
too often the case with those whose delight it seems
to be to revile our land regulations. It the whole
truth were known, it would be found that it is as
easy to get land, to • settle, and, to live on it, in
Australia as in any other part of the world. In
the Herald just referred to there are a few adver-
tisements of squattages. There are 11,000 sheep
in two lots to be sold without stations. There are
155,350 sheep and 5,850 cattle to be sold with sta-
tions in six different lots. The quantity of stock
and stations at present on sale is, about the usual
amount: There is often much more in the market,
seldom less. Judging from the number of sellers
and the quantity of stock, it is evident that there
are plenty of opportunities of buying out the so-
called monopolists, upon advantageous terms.

THE PASSRNGER TRAFFIC FROM AUS-
TRALIA TO ENGLAND.

(From the Sydney Morning Herald of Feb. 10.)
A finer vessel than the Simla never graced the
harbour of Port Jackson, yet she will take her de-
parture to-morrow with a mere handful of passen-
gers. The Oneida was no better patronised: She
left Melbourne with 65 passengers and 10,000
ounces of gold. This was the total Australian
freightage, unless some solitary passenger was
picked up during the coaling at King George's
Sound. Of this number only 43 were booked to
Southampton, or Malta, the remainder stopping
short at intermediate stations. Sixty-five passen-
gers for a splendid vessel Qf over 2,000 tons ! Why,
the crew alone would muster double that number.
The passage-money received would not pay for the
coals, to say nothing of stores, wages, expenses of
wear and tear, or interest on cost of the vesseL It
is quite clear that this cannot pay. Not even the
postal subsidy, heavy as it is, will compensate for
such a loss.
The scanty patronage given hitherEo to the ves-
sels of the European and Australian Mail Company
does not arise from the fact that there is but little
passenger traffic between the mother country and
these colonies. There is a very large passenger
traffic, both outwards and homewards. - A glance at
'the shipping columns of the colonial journals will
show this in a moment, but the passengers choose
other vessels, and other routes, less comEnodlos,
but more economical. It is the high rate oef that
sage, money charged for the overland v g
t h ;rye t bulk
makes travellingby it impossible for
of passengers.
The voyage to England by way of Cal' Horn is
that way once has any especial de:4r
repeat the
not a pleasant one. Nobody who.
ehatso jo ey,ed
to one just quit-
experiment. The first part of
ltlhevoyage is cold,
miserable, and cheerless, especially
tine, the warm and sunny plains of Australia. Any
other way home would be preferred. by a returning
%colonist if equally economical, But all the oailiug

ships, and latterly all the screw steamships, go home
by the Horn, becl,m-e the winds are usually favour-
able. The great balk of the passengers, therefore, go
-that way. The over:and route offers the advantages
of a speedy trip, and the maximum of comfort pos-
sible on:shipboard, but the price charged is such as
to prevent, all but a few from availing th..mselves
of these advantages. The company charge 2001. for
a best cabin, and 1451. for a share of one. To a colo-
nist returning to England with his family this makes
a serious sum, arid is about double what he will have
to give in a sailing vessel.' If the richer classes
fight shy of such heavy charges; the less wealthy are,
of cour:e unable to meet them. Those who may
be in possession of moderate incomes, but who,
finding that they can leave their affairs in safe
hands, wish to pay a visit' to the mother country,
cannot of course entertain the idea of travelling.
home by a route the. expenses of which, for the
whole family, would go far to swamp a year's in-
come at starting. It is a popular notion in Eng-
land that those who return from Australia ate
only the lucky rich, who have made large fortunes.
But this is quite a delusion. So showthat it is so,
it.will be-quite enough to instance two of the re.-
c ant departures. The Royal Charter took home
two hundred and thirty-three passengers—not all
rich, for fifty-eight went in the second cabin, and
one hundred and forty-three in the third cabin.
The Anglesey, a favourite Blackwall liner, took
away from Melbourne.one hundred and eighty-five
passengerA, of which only nineteen were in the
cabin, the rest being all steerage passengerS. It is
pain, therefore, that there is a large passenger
traffic from Australia to England, of that class to

whom a few pounds is an object, and who will sub-
mit to inconvenience and loss of time in order

to effect a small saving.
'II it is worth while at all to employ ships of two
thousand tons burden to rim between Sydney and
Suez, it is,worth while to try And fill them—to get
the maximum utility out of them—to adapt them
so exactly to the requirements of the trade that they
should be well freighted each trip to and fro.
There is no reason whrit should not be so. The
expense of maintaining a fleet of large steamships
is no doubt great, but yet wherever there is enough
to give them full employment, large vessels can be
worked. at a proportionately less expense than
smaller ones. And there is a passenger trade be-
tween England and Aitstralia quite large enough

- -
to give ample employment to the vessels of the
European and Australian Mail Company, if the
trade could only be attracted to, them. And if

th,.sa vessels were regularly filled, the line would
pay handsomely, heavy as its necessary expenses
are.

It may, perhaps, be said that this is a matter
which concerns the Company much more than it
concerns the colonist. Bat it is not so ; it
equally concerns both. It is to the advantage
of Australia that the Company should find their
undertaking profitable. If the Company should
prove a failure, die mail service will be aga'n
deranged, and enterprige in this direction dis-
couniged. In all trades—the carrying trade as
well as others—it is the best when those who serve
as well as those who are served mutually reap ad-
vantage. There can be no such thing in commerce
as a continuous one-sided benefit. A country is
never so badly served as when those who trade with
it find the business
.a dangerous or unprofitable
speculation—never so well served as when those
who are engaged in the task find it to be their in-
terest to pay attention to it. For the sake of
Australia, therefore, we are anxious to see the Mail
Company prosperous. Its conductors are said to
be shrewd men of business. They must quickly see
how the matter stands, and we can hardly doubt
that they will see the expediency of such a prompt
and, thorough revision of their present tariff as will
give the control of the passenger and gold carrying
trade, instead of, as at present, excluding them
from it.

The completion of the Cairo and Suez Railroad
is a matter of great importance in reference to their
future arrangements, and it is their interest to
urge forward the work as fast as possible. With
that finished, the overland route might, in the
absence of any service by way of Panama, almost
monopolise the trade so tar as passengers and. light
freight are concerned.

ALLEGED POISONING AT• WOOLTrIcir.

Much excitement prevailed iu Woolwich on
Thursday, and the police-court was crowded, in
consequence of a report that one of the artillerymen
was to be brought up on a charge of having admi-
nistered poison to a girl named Ellen Smith.
A little after 4 o'clock, George Heatherley, aged
32, a gunner and driver in the Royal Artillery,
was placed at the bar before Mr. Traill, on sus-
picion of administering poison in some beer to a
girl of the town, named Ellen Smith,
Ellen Malloes deposed that she was an unfortu-
nate girl, and that last Sunday fortnight she was in
company with Smith and the prisoner at the Alma
beer-house. Tl'e two appeared as if they wera
quarrelling. They talked. about poisoning ; pri-
-soner said he had put many a brighter girl than
her under the turf; and said he could put it in an
orange or a cake. He did not appear much in
liquor, but he had been drinking. She did not
see him give her anything ; since then (on last
Tuesday week) she became ill. On the day before
Smith was taken ill prisoner and the girl were both
in the same room together.
R. D. Walker, M.D., said he was called in last
Monday to attend Ellen Smith. He found her in
a very low state. It was named to him that poison
had been administered to her, and she 'was labouring
under symptoms of having taken poison, She bad
a tingling of the skin, or itching, and vomited, and
now remained in the ,same state. He thought it
would be important to take the girl's evidence, as
he considered her life in danger. She was fast
sinking.
His worship having disposed of the other re-
maining cases, adjourned to the residence of the
girl, accompanied by the medical gentleman, the
clerk of the court, the reporter, two or three
officials, and the prisoner, who was placed at the
bottom of the bed.

The woman appeared in an emaciated and ex-
hausted state, and immediately upon catching sight
of the prisiuer she called out loudly, pointing,
" That's the young man." As soon as her excite-
ment was over she said her name was Mura Bassam,
and that she was married. Upon being asked her
husband'oname she became so visibly affected that
no answer could be got from her. After a time she
resumed that she knew the prisoner well ; she had
seen him in the London Hospital, in the Mile-end-
road, four years and a-half ago. She had met him
at the Alma beer-house several times. They were
there one night when Ellen Malloes was there, and
bad some words. It was last Sunday fortnight.
He was in liquor. I said to him, "Be quiet, or I
shall say things you do not like to hear." He said,
" I'll cook your goose before another week." He
'said he would knock my brains out. He asked me
to drink out of his pot, which I did ; and the next
night after that I saw him put something into a pot
of ale down stairs. That was the Monday night.
I drank some of it, and so did he. Here the wit-
ness became confused and exhausted. She after-
wards said she did not know there was anything in
the ale. She said she afterwards found had effects
from taking it on Thursday week, but did not know
the cause. At this point she evidently became un-
conscious, and apparently swooned away.
The magistrate finding that there was no coher-
ence in her answers, and that she now became per-
fectly insensible, some stimulant was administered,
but she did not revive. The doctor gave it as his
opinion that she was getting from bad to worse. As
the examination could not be continued, the pri-
soner was taken back to the court, and remanded
till to-day, to await the issue of the woman's illness.
On leaving the house it was asserted by some
person present that the prisoner and the victim
tan and