The Sun.
London, England, 1844-09-27 00:00:00

A DAY AT A. CUSTOM-HOUSE.
For the following vicissitudes of a "Day at a
Custom-house" we are indebted to the kindness of the
Custom-house officers of Folkestone :
You arrive very early in the morning. Your fel-
low-passengers eye you with distrust ; though you are
135 on the list.
The clock strikes nine. A groan escapes from 178
individuals in and out of the room. The first train
has gone.
No. 4is called. An hour afterwards No. 5 ;
then No. 6, followed at eleven o'clock by 7 and
8, the latter consisting of a French schoolmaster,
with thirteen of his pupils, come over on
a holiday trip. Good heavens ! It is already twelve
o'clock, and you have a wife waiting for you at the
Bricklayers' Arms, and a bill to take up at four.
One o'Clock.—You have read the almanack over
the mantelpiece no less than four times, eaten a basin
of soup, got bitten in playing with the old lady's
parrot, and yet No. 29 has only just gone in. You
think of your wife, and prepare to go to sleep.
Half-past One.—You wake up. Can you believe
your eyes ? There's not a man, woman, or child in
the room. Don't be alarmed ! The Custom-house
officers hare only gone to their dinner, and you have
missed the second and third trains long ago.
Quarter to Three.—Another boat has just come in.
Two hundred passengers. You wonder at what dis-
tant period No. 200 is likely to reach London. Not
before A.D. 1845. You suddenly determine, to go in
search of lodgings.
Three o'Clock.--Not a lodging—not a book—not
a newspaper to be got in the place, excepting at the
Pavilion. You begin reading the " Hackney-coach
Fares " in last year's pocket-book, till another train
starting reminds you it is
Four o'Clock.—You rush recklessly into brandy
and water and cigars.
Five o'Clock.—lt's beginning to rain. Your great
coat is in your trunk, so you are obliged to go back
again into the little cupboard of a waiting-room for
shelter.

Six o'Clock.—A mutiny has just broken out amongst
the starved-out passengers. The complaints are heart-
breaking. The door-keeper has retreated into the
next room to escape the vengeance of an old lady's
poodle, and the threats of a Baron of the Exchequer.
Seven.—A policeman and a copy of Punch have
restored order. A famine, however, has just attacked
the 257 remaining passengers. Five and thirty full-
grown children and two babies are screaming ex-
cruciatingly with hunger. The policeman has sent
to the Pavilion for a wheelbarrow of sandwiches.
Eight.--The sandwiches be praised I The babies
are again quiet.
Half-past Eight.—The children are asleep—the
women are putting their hair into paper. The men
every five minutes keep pulling out their watches.
Nine.—No.loo hasjust gone in. Hip, hip, hurrah.
Ten.—Every bed in the town is hooked three deep.
Eleven.—Can it be possible ? Only two numbers
more, and then—

Quarter to Twelve.—No. 135 ! Yes—no, pooh ! it
cannot be—but yes—you are called! You shake
the door-keeper by the hand, and plunge
franctically into the next room—huddle boots, shirts,
shaving tackle, gloves, chocolate, soap, perfume, all
together in the same box—and drive at a steeple-
chase pace with your luggage up to the railway
station.

Half-past twelve strikes as you arrive. Command
your patience—the last train has that moment gone.
Conclusion.—You are morally convinced there is
a base conspiracy between her Majesty's Custom-
house and the Pavilion Hotel to detain passengers at
Folkestone as long as they can.—Punch.

THE ALBION BALLOON.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.
Sin,—The Albion Balloon having passed near, the
metropolis last evening, it has struck me that a brief
history of her may not be altogether uninteresting, espe-
cially as many of the voyages she has made are charac-
terised by extraordinary daring and intrepidity. This
by Mr. Hampton, the bold and
noTvih-
Albion was made
the property of the
Thew
celebrated
ea leloborant ew enterprisinga sA constructed
rCharles
but
Green.
for the purpose of taking up Mr. Hampton's parachute,
with which he made three descents. It may be remem-
bered that shortly after the death of the lamented Mr.
Cocking, Mr. Hampton announced his intention of de-
monstrating the practibility of a safe and gradual descent
with his improved parachute. The result of Mr. Cocking's
experiment having satisfied him that it would be highly
dangerous to permit a second person to co-operate, he
determined to undertake and complete a parachute de-
scent with his own hands, and subsequently exhaust
the balloon without the assistance of another person.
This he effected with consummate skill, and the exploit
created as much astonishment as it afforded delight and
satisfaction to those who witnessed it, at Cheltenham. It
was only by stratagem that Mr. Hampton was enabled
to ascend from the Montpellier-gardens. Poor Mr.
Cocking's death so operated upon the public mind that
a second parachute
descent was no sooner announced
than it was prohibited by influential parties. As the
aeronaut, however, was allowed on this occasion to ex-
hibit his parachute in connexion with the balloon, and
point out its peculiarities, he considered this a suitable
time to sever the rope that held the whole machinery,
and away he went in excellent style. When about two
miles high, the parachute was separated, and the Albion
speedily exhausted of gas by an original contrivance of
Mr. Hampton's. The parachute was ten minutes and
twelve seconds descending, and the daring occupant of
the car reached the earth without injury. Mr. Hampton
also made two parachute descents in London, and the
Albion each time was called into requisition ; her name
is also associated with a perilous trip to sea, which was
the result of a boisterous wind. The aeronaut would
have lost his life in this adventure but for the timely
arrival of a brig, and with the humane assistance of her
sailors, together with help from Lieutenant King aid his
boat's crew, Mr. Hampton was landed in safety at South-
end. After two busy seasons, during which Mr. Hamp-
ton attempted and completed three parachute descents,
and about thirty balloon trips, he was unfortunate enough
to lose the Albion, and during a praiseworthy but un-
successful struggle to regain possession of her, she was
purchased by Mr. Charles Green, who uses her as occa-
sion may require. The successful veteran has more than
once made private asceats with the Albion, and not long
since he attempted to cross the English channel with
her, but was prevented by an adverse wind. It is not
unlikely that the ascent of last evening was for expert
mental purposes. The trip must have been as pleasan
as it was majestic.--I remain, Sir, your obliged servant,
HENRY WELLS.

Claremont-row, Pentonville.

FATAL ACCIDENT AT MOLD.—On Thursday, the
12th instantZa young man from Ruthen, named Stephen
Jones, better known as " Steve the Cryer," walked for a
wager of 3/. 10s. the following arduous feat:—Jones
agreed to perform forty miles in eight successive hours,
on the Liverpool•road, about a mile from Mold to the
milestone near Altamy. He walked the forty miles in
three-quarters of an hour under the time; according to
the rule of his wager he did not partake of any refresh-
ment. He is a fine tall young fellow, and some dispute
arose on account of his having taken part of a cup of
coffee, which, however, was overruled. It may be no-
ticed that Jones walked thirty-two miles (from Man-
chester to Liverpool) the day previous to his walking
here. An accident occurred the following day which
nearly proved fatal to Jones, and unfortunately caused
the death of Rowland Hughes, a carrier between Mold
and Liverpool. It appears that Hughes agreed with
Jones, and two of his friends, to take them to Ruthen in
a car; and, the whole party being far in liquor, the car
was upset. Hughes, the driver, was killed, and Jones
was seriously injured, as well as another young man,,
who had his shoulder dislocated. Hughes has loft a wife
and four children.—Liverpool Chronicle.
MESMERISM.--The Leicester Journal says :—On
Friday last the Duke of Rutland, Earl Howe, and C. W.
Packe, Esq., M.P., visited Mary Anne Lakin, the young
woman whose thigh was amputated while under mes.
merle influence. They were also accompanied by
Dr. Ohm

coat, and the deceased, George Benson, did the same
a few minutes afterwards. Jones left the house at
least twenty minutes or half an hour before Benson
did. Had never seen any previous quarrel between
Jones and Benson. Believed the quarrel arose
through some jealousy about work.
George Lewis, a mason, living at Chelsea, deposed
that he was at the Wellesley Arms on Saturday night,
when the scuffle took place. When they all got out-
side the house it was agreed that Jones and the de-
ceased should fight the next morning. He did not
see the prisoner Forman there at all that night, but
the other prisoners were there. Witness did not then
hear where they were to fight, but he heard they
were to meet the next morning at the top of Wel-
lesley-grove, Robert-street. He was there when they
assembled, and he followed them to the hollow and
saw the fight. They fought about a quarter of an
hour, but witness's back was turned from them when
the last blow was struck. The only persons in the
hollow except the prisoners was the deceased. Wit-
ness was at the top of the hills. They all went to
the hollow separately.
Mr. Waller, surgeon, of St. Mary Abbott's-terrace,
Kensington, deposed to having made a post mortem
examination of the body of the deceased. He had
found a violent bruise on the left side of the chest, a
similar bruise over the bridge of the nose and behind
the left ear, or rather behind it was a wound about
an inch long, which was surrounded by a large bruise.
On opening the cranium he found a considerable
effusion of blood on the brain, particularly on the
right side, where the appearance of the brain was
much darker. In all probability the effusion was the
cause of death. The effusion was caused by the rup-
ture of a vessel in the brain, which, in witness's opi-
nion, was the result of the blow under the left ear.
This being the whole of the evidence, and the pri-
soners saying they would reserve their defence until
another time,
Mr. PAYNTER said it was his duty, after the evi-
dence which had been adduced, to commit them all
for trial on the charge of murder.
On the application of Mr. Wolfe, the worthy Ma-
gistrate consented to accept bail in the sum of 1001.,
and two sureties in the sum of 501. each, for each of
the prisoners.