The Sun.
London, England, 1868-03-04 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, MARCEI 4, 1868.

but who can say that he has really committed an
error or interfered with the authority of King
WILLIAM. The truth is that, perhaps, like the fable
of the " Wolf and the Lamb," if one objection had
been overruled another would have been speedily
substituted for it. It is also intended that some-
thing more shall be done to mark still further the
displeasure of King WILLIAM about the affair of
the " silver wedding," and the Supreme Court
has decided to proceed against Count PLAT-
TEN, King GEORGE'S Minister, at Hietzing,
on the charge of high treason. This is a
most unjust thing to do, but not too strong a
measure for a country like that of Prussia to adopt
in pursuance of its arbitrary rules and oppressive
policy. How it can be made out to be " high
treason" for Count PLATrEII to have acted as he has
done it is difficult to imagine ; but the Prussians
seem to venture anything for the sake of fulfilling
their objects, and carrying out their purpose. The
public will be anxious to hear further news from
Berlin on this subject, but we would suggest that
from this time people should abstain from flourishing
about the freedom of Prussia, and the great benefits
that must accrue from her increased sway inGerm any.
In plain words, it amounts to this, that the pro-
vinces newly annexed have lost all their inde-
pendence; and their rulers, if retained, are no better
than puppets, for they can neither think, speak, nor
act with anything like independence. Perhaps
some second thoughts may prevail, and a more
honourable policy yet be pursued towards King
GEORGE ; but we do not feel sanguine, and indeed
regret, that the chances of war should have proved
too adverse, and that he should be subject to mor-
tification and insults that his former position might
have shielded him from, and that his affliction
should have withheld his enemies from reducing
him to.

It will afford general satisfaction to hear that the
health of the Emperor NAPOLEON is not in so seri-
ous a state as some would have had us believe but
lately, and his MAJESTY has given a direct contra-
diction to the rumours set afloat by riding in the
Bois de Boulogne. The mysterious journey of
Prince NAPOLEON has filled all Paris with, the
greatest excitement, and it is most curious to notice
the speculations that are rife on the subject. As
nothing serious is apprehended, there is every op-
portunity for edification in these endless re-
ports, which stretch from the sublime to
the ridiculous, and finally wind up by the
declaration that the Prince is only travelling
through Germany for his own pleasure. It is in-
teresting to dwell upon the comments that the new
aspect of affairs in this country have called forth
from the French writers ; and the Press of France,
it must be confessed, has come out very creditably
on the matter. It is more satisfactory to read the
remarks made, as they show an intimate know-
ledge of our political leaders which could hardly
have been expected from them, but there has
been for some time past a great improve-
ment in this respect among our Continental
neighbours. An eloquent article has appeared
in the Revue des Deux Mondes, which many will be
glad to perceive. The writer explains what the
Premiership really signifies in England, and then
illustrates his meaning by giving a sketch of Mr.
DISRAELI'S career. Ile then exults in the triumph
a man of letters has met with among us, and com-
pares it with the depreciatory remarks that have
just been made against writers in France during the
discussions on the Press Bill. The present Prime
Minister of England once declared that he had no
" coat of arms save literature ;" and added, " I
am a gentleman of the Press." To com-
plete the picture, it is then shown that the
statesman who inducted him into the high func-
tions of the State was a noblemau of high position,
" the representative of the present Saxon race,
crossed with Norman blood, since the Conquest ;"
and finally it explains how Lord DERBY himself has
won high literary honours. Ile is a scholar of great
repute, " a consummate and practical master of the
pure well of English undefiled, the translator of
HOMER into SIIAKSPERE'S idiom." After the
many strictures that have been passed upon us
by various critics, not without justice, as to
our neglect of men of letters, it is really a
relief to meet with this genuine expression of ap-
proval, and to learn that it is merited. If party
zeal and political prejudice did not pervert the judg-
ment of some politicians among us they would join
in the feeling of satisfaction at the elevation of
merit and ability, instead of leaving the highest
offices of the State to be filled up by rank and title.
It is a step in advance, at any rate, that the Con-
servatives have made, and all true Liberals will
consider it as such, for to go out of the beaten track
is, as in this case, to open the door for the admis-
sion of intelligence.

LATEST INTELLIGENCE.

(REUTER'S TELEGRAMS.)

THE ABYSSINIAN EXPEDITION.
ALEXANDRIA (via Malta), Feb. 25.
The Egyptian interpreter employed at Ma,ssowah
by the Egyptian Government has been brought on
to Cairo in irons ; the cause is unknown.
Doctor Krapf has returned from Abyssinia.

DENMARK.
COPENHAGEN, March 4.

Herr Martin Sevy, the Chief Secretary of the
Finance Ministry, left this capital yesterday for
Berlin, commissioned by the Danish Government
to conclude a postal convention with the North
German Confederation.

CORRESPONDENCE PROM PARIS.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.,
IARIS, Tci a DAY, March 3.

I alluded yesterday very briefly to the stormy debate in
the Corps lAgislatif which took place that afternoon. It
was indeed stormy. It is long since the like of it was seen
here. Everything betokened what was coming. Every
passage of the building was thronged with a surging crowd,
who cheered Jules Simon as he passed into the Chamber.
Inside there was a sea of heads. Deputies, senators, men
of letters, men of fashion were all mingled together. One
stranger had the audacity to seat himself among the
deputies, and was " invited "to remove himself. When
M. du Miral, acting temporarily as the President, rose,
there was dead silence. He called upon M. Havin, proprietor
of the Siecle, to speak, and that gentleman then mounted
the tribune. No sooner had he opened his mouth than the
storm broke forth. "I am not going to read you the
decision of the Jury of Honour," said M. Ravin. But the
Arcadians were not to be pacified. ' You know it already,"
he cried. At this the shouting was louder than ever. Once
more he began ; but so did the uproar. " Assez 1 4 l'ordre
Consultez la chambre ! Cela ne nous regarde pas!" Still
Havin persisted, and still the majority declared that they
would not hear him, and demanded the order of the day.
At last the speaker turned to the President for protection,
and had a long and animated conversation with him, of
which no one could hear a word. All this time the hostile
deputies were making as much noise as they could,
knocking with paper-knives, jingling keys, slamming
desks—a concert worthy of Wagner. Seeing that it was
useless to speak farther, Havin gathered up his papers and
descended from the tribune, but on his way had another
conversation with the President, and afterwards mounted
again. This was the signal for a fresh burst of fury more
violent than before. The deputies declared that the inci-
dent was finished,and called upon IDu Miral to pass to the
order of the day. He appealed to Havin, declaring that
he must abide by the wish of the majority. Havin still
maintained his rights, but at length the President put an
end to the scene, and the other business was proceeded
with.

This morning Havin publishes in the Sickle, the Liberte,
...d other journals, the speech which he had intended to
make. It is short enough and inoffensive enough to have
been listened to without any noise. It simply states very
briefly the accusation made by M. Kervdguen that certain
Paris journals had been in the pay of foreign Powers, that
a jury of honour had been appointed to investigate the
charge, and that it had been found false and calumnious.
In spite of all the clatter of the Arcadians the matter will
not end here. Yesterday three summonses were served
by the Avenir National, the Journal des Debats, and the
Liberte upon the secretary of the Pays, in which paper
the defamatory charges have been repeated, calling upon
the editor to furnish his alleged proofs. The editor of the
Revue des deux Mondes, as I mentioned yesterday, has
commenced a criminal prosecution against M. de Cassag-
nac cf the Pays. There is one disadvantage in this mode
of procedure. The trial cannot be reported, and so the
public will know nothing of it, except the verdict.
Prince Napoleon's visit is now supposed to be without
political significance. He is travelling incognito as the
the Count de Meudon, and has gone to a private hotel
at Berlin. He passed through Frankfort on his way.
The Emperor has sent to Vienna a number of medals,
struck in Paris at his own expense, for distribution ti.
those Austrian volunteers who served in the French
Mexican army. Ido not know what the device is, but 1
imagine it is not that of Maximilian and his two general,
standing up to be shot. One would have thought that the
less this unhappy expedition was " commemorated" the
better.

There is sad news from Algeria. It is feared that not
less than 25,000 persons have died of starvation. Publi(
works have been set on foot by the Government, but th.
best news is that the harvest is looking particularly well.
and is likely to be very abundant. In France the homk
supply of wheat is nearly exhausted, and increased prices
are anticipated with some anxiety.

Your readers may like to know something about Father
Mix, the celebrated preacher whose Notre Dame Confer
ences always attract an enormous crowd of listeners even
Lent. He is in his 58th year. At 27 he joined the Jesuits,
and spent ten years in completing his theological training.
He then became a professor in Belgium , but soon afterward,
helosthis voice and came to Paris to get cured. Subsequent)
he retired to the monastery of Notre Dame d'Ay. It wa,
while lie was in this retreat that he made his first at
tempt at preaching. His audience was a poor and
rude one, miners of Rive-de-Giers. But his word::
won a way to their hearts. The 'society soon discovered
his power, and directed him to enter on the preacher':
mission. In 1851 he preached the Advent course at the
Church of St. Thomas Aquinas, Paris. The following
year he preached in the better-known Churches of St.
Germain-des-Pres and St. Sulpice. In 1853 he began hi,
Notre Dame Conferences. All Paris was soon going
tt
hear the short, pale, black-eyed, and youthful-looking
monk. lie had:quite recovered his voice, and it completel
filled the nave. He preached, amoz:g other subjects, or
the danger of separating material progress from religion.
and declared tha.tone maxim of a wise man was worth in, r
than all the railways of the fuL owers of Saint S:mon. Le i.
preaching at Notre Dame every Sunday during L( nt. Ti
is estimated that 40,000 pr, alers are at this time giving
series of Lent sermons in France.
This being the season of Lent, we are all of us, of course,
fasting and wearing sackcloth and ashes. Not quite all.
For instance, M. Pinard, Alinker of the
gives a grand dinner to-night, and among the guests wid
be Lord Lyons. Yesterday there was a grand concert :ti-
the Tuileries. These were the penitential robes in which
the Empress appeared. A dress of green tulle, with a:
excessively gule trimming of mignonette, all aigrct‘,
of diamonds, and an enormous emerald; in her hair, almosi
on her forehead, a band of many rows of diamonds, fastened
by green velvet. This concert came off just in time ; to
day the Court goes into mourning for King Ludwig
Bavaria.

A special correspondent of the Times, describes the first
press trial by jury which has taken place in Hungary.
Last summer Kossuth addressed a letter to the eleet,T3 of
\Vaitzen, denouncing all the changes which had ttken
place, and especially the reconciliation between Hungary
and the Emperor of Austria. This letter was repub7ished
in the organ of the Magyar Radicals, and 6,000 copies were
distributed gratuitously throughout the country. It was
felt by the Government that such a document, coming from
such a man, could not be overlooked, and so, the writer
being abroad, a prosecution was directed against the editor.
who is a member of the Diet. After many delays and pre
texts for postponement on the Part of the defendant, at
trial has just taken place, and the jury, by eleven to one
after half an hour's consultation, brought in a verdict o:
guilty. Considering that the letter might have been pub
lished in haste, the mitigated penalty of one year's imprison
ment and 2,000 florins (e 200) has been inflicted. Thus,
the present moment there are journalists suffering impri,
sonment in Ireland, France, and Hungary.

The unfortunate Archduke Henry has been severely
punished for his offence in marrying the pretty singer.
Mdlle. Hoffmann. Not only has he been deprived of his
commands, but a large portion of his revenues have Leen
taken from him. The Bishop of Trent, who granted the
necessary dispensation, has been strongly reprimanded.
A recent interview between the Premiers of Wiirtcm-
berg and Bavaria has given rise to much speculation. It
is believed to signify a fresh attempt to establish a South
German Confederation. The success of the project will
depend upon the co-operation of the Grand Duke of Baden,
a very unlikely contingency, considering how completely
that sovereign has identified himself with his father-in-
isA4he King of Prussia.

Particulars are published of the recent disturbances in
Granada. They were caused by the high price of bread.
The military authorities acted with the utmost vigour,
which, being interpreted, signifies rigour. They charged
the people, slow thirty of them, and wounded a number
of others, and having thus re-established order, opened
public works and reduced the price of bread. Why did
not the sedative precede the operation ?

The Italian Government has renounced its intention of
sending an expedition to the River Plate. It will, in view
of possible complications with the United States arising
out of intervention in American affairs, content itself with
a naval demonstration having for its object the payment
of the Italian creditors of the Monte-Videan Government.
Among them is Garibaldi, to whom nearly £ll,OOO is
due ; but he declares that he would sooner lose the money
than see his country involved in hostilities.
The sale of Church property in Italy is going'odrapidly.
Estates to the value of 5i millions sterling have been sold,
and lands which have been long lying waste are now being
brought into cultivation. The selling price has exceeded
the most sanguine expectations.

The Italian Government has renewed its negotiations
for a loan with the house of Rothschild. It is believed
that the affair will be carried through this time.
The Russian Government has given orders to the corn.
manders of Russian ships that they are not to transport
any more refugees from Crete. There are already 60,000
in Greece, and they are said to be in danger of starvation.
Brigham Young has just wedded his thirty-first wife.
The favoured lady's name is Merivini Van Cott. She is
28 years old, and the daughter of one of the dignitaries of
the Mormon Church.
POOR POOR-RATE PATERS,--It is said the Mayor
of Salford was, on Monday, called upon to sign 3,500 sum-
monses for poor rates, and that for some time to come the
overseers will require to have issue 4 pt lea:A $OO sum-
lIMISOS per week.

As the time rapidly approaches for a declaration of
policy on the part of the new Premier, speculations mul-
tiply as to what that policy is likely to be. There is a
growing belief that the presence of Lord Cairns and Mr.
Gathorne Hardy in the Cabinet will effectually prevent
any revolutionary measures being carried out with respect
to the Irish Church. It is assumed that this difficult
question will be staved off on the plea of there being an
inquiry by Royal Commission in progress ; that another
commission will be issued to inquire into the Irish Land
question ; that some compromise will be made about a
charter for the Catholic University ; and that the project
for a purchase of the Irish Railways will be seriously taken
in baud.

Looking at probabilities, the Post looks upon it as not
unlikely that Mr. Disraeli will endeavour to postpone the
consideration of the Irish question till next year, and will
avail himself of the measures of Reformwhich are now
pending to deprive his opponents of the occasion of oust-
ing him from office in consequence of this delay. So much
the more reason, then, for the Liberal party to reconnoitre
well the position of the Government before proceeding to
attack it. The few remarks which Mr. Gladstone let fall
on Friday evening indicate an intention on his part to lose
no time in attempting to dislodge the present occupants of
the Treasury bench. The Times thinks that while on the
one hand it will be possible for the Liberals to dislodge
the Government, it is also possible that an unsuccessful
assault would materially strengthen its position.
The metropolitan police having interdicted the meetings
of the Holborn Branch of the Reform League at a-public-
house known as the Nag's Head, the executive of the
League, headed by Mr. Beaks, determined to ascertain
whether the police would resort to measures of ejectment
should the prohibition be set at nought. Mr. James
Acland has, with that view, delivered a lecture at the
Nag's Head on the Equality of the Law, 'and the
meeting was not interfered with.

The ceremony of electing the Marquis of Lorn as M.P.
for Argyllshire, in succession to Mr. Finlay, was as brief
as it was unexciting. The Duke of Argyll was not present
to witness his son's unopposed return for the shire in which
so much of his property is situate. His Grace was at the
Prince of Wales's lev6e.

We have to announce the death of Baron Bentinck, the
representative in this country of the King of the Nether-
lands. The Baron was 70 years of age. His Excellency
had been accredited to the Court of St. James's for more
than sixteen years. M. D. Everwyn, Secretary to the
Legation, will hold the post of Charge d'Affaires until the
appointment of a successor to the late Minister.

The Duke of Argyll and Mr. Gladstone are making use
of their enforced hours of idleness in the same way. The
first is writing in Good Words upon Darwin's theory of the
origin of species, and the second has just concluded a
series of papers on " Ecce Homo." In the same periodical
Dcan Stanley appeals to Englishmen not to let the ex-
ploration of Palestine stop for want of funds, and he holds
up to them the example of the French Duke de Luynes,
who died last year to the great loss of the promoters of the
exploration.

Dover and Brighton having had their turn in connec-
tion with the Easter Monday Volunteer Review, Ports-
mouth is this year to be the scene of the gathering. At the
meeting of Volunteer commanding officers at which this
decision was come to, an influential attempt on behalf
of Brighton was made, but it was defeated by a large
majority.

Mr. Train is again in trouble, and this time without the
opportunity of demanding £lOO,OOO from the British
Government. He had been announced to lecture at the
Rotunda, in Dublin, on Tuesday evening, and was on his
way to that building, when he was arrested for an old debt
on a judgment which had been obtained against him by a
London firm. On Train's agent announcing the fact of
his arrest to the expectant audience, they demanded back
their admission money. The agent refused, and Mr. Train
was then denounced as a swindler. Ultimately an arrange-
ment was made whereby the disappointed ones were
appeased and the reputation of the imprisoned one
preserved.

The Dublin Town Council have refused to allow Mr. A.
M. Sullivan to relinquish his seat in their body. Accord-
ing to a bye-law any member absent for three months is
struck off the roll, and Mr. Sullivan, writing from Rich-
mond Bridewell, tendered his resignation in anticipation
of his six months' imprisonment. Conservatives joined
with Liberals in the Council in refusing to accept it. It is
stated that Mr. Sullivan was one of the most active and
useful members of some of the business committees of the
corporation.

DRUNKENNESS IN THE ARMY.—Sir C. E. Tre-
velyan has written a thoughtful letter on the subject of
drunkenness in the army, a vice which statistics prove to
be greatly on the increase. Sir Charles's remedy is to
expel from the service all bad or incorrigible characters,
and to attract to it a much higher class of men by throwing
open to the private soldier a portion of the military and
nearly the whole of the administrative promotion. He is
jmtly n,:vere in comlf:rnning Sergeant Kite's malpractices.
There is no doubt that the recruiting sergeant in many
instances accomplishes his object by pandering to that
very appetite for drink which ultimately leads the young
greenhorn who pockets the shilling to grave breaches of
military discipline. Besides, in garrison towns there are
too many facilities for intemperance.

OUTICACE BY TRADE UNIONISTS.—The stipendiary
magistrate of Liverpool was lately occupied for a con-
siderable time in hearing a casa of extremely cowardly
assault by trade unionists. Some weeks since, the boiler-
makers in the employ of Messrs. George Forrester and
Co., the well-known engineers, of Vauxhall Foundry,
being dissat;sfied with their wages, turned out on strike.
By the aid of the Free Labour Association of London,
the places vacated by the " strikers" were filled by men
from the Isle of Dogs.- On Friday last, seven of the new
comers were passing along Regent-road, on their way to do
some work at the Canada Dock, when they were met by
a body of about a hundred men, who set upon and mal-
treated them in a most brutal manner. Two of the men
thus attacked were " spirited away ;" the others were in
attendance at the court to prefer the charge. Seven of the
assailants have been apprehended, and were now charged
with a common assault only. Nothing has been seen or
heard of the two men said to have been spirited away.
The prisoners were all sent for trial at the quarter sessions,
but admitted to bail.

DISGUSTING CRUELTY TO A Dou.—The magis-
trates at Tinslade, near Leighton Buzzard, have convicted
two men, named respectively James Stone, farmer, of
Soulbury, Bucks, and Thomas Robinson, one of his
labourers, of practising atrocious cruelty to a dog, and the
offenders were fined each 55., with costs nearly £3, all
of which were paid by the man Stone. The facts of the
case Were briefly these. The Rev. David Carson, rector
of Soulbury, was the owner of a little rough terrier,
which, it was alleged, was accustomed frequently to go
from his master's house on to the premises of the farmer
Stone after a little dog owned by that prisoner. This was
regarded as a nuisance. On the Ist of January James
Stone, and his man, Thomas Robinson, caught the rector's
dog on the farm, took it into a barn, and tied it up.
Stone's son Richard was there, and another farmer named
John Mead, and all were witnesses or assistants in the
disgusting treatment to which the poor little animal was
subjected. Mead, who most unwillingly gave evidence,
and somehow was not included in the charge, held
the dog. When it was released it ran home howling
piteously, and seemingly mad with agony. Examination
of the tortured creature revealed the fact that it had been
horribly cut and mutilated in a disgusting manner, and
that turpentine had been poured upon the fresh wounds.
The magistrates were the Rev. P. T. Ouvry, rector of
Grove and vicar of Wing, Bucks, and the Rev. Maynard
Wodehouse Currie, M.A., rural dean and vicar of Ment-
more, Bucks. They retired for a quarter of an hour to con-
sider the sentence, which was, that the case being made
out, each of the defendants be fined ss.
A TALE FOR THE MARINES.— There is in the
House of Commons a certain noble lord, whose name it
will be better not to mention, but who has somewhat
recently appeared in the, to him, new character of a
lawmaker. This noble lord met at a dinner party, a
few weeks ago, a certain great " City man," whose
transactions in stock amount yearly to a fabulous sum,
The young legislator began to talk in the City man's
hearing of Cabinet secrets, and to do so with a very
great assumption of knowledge on the subject. " Talk
of Cabinet secrets," at last cried Mr. Consol, " there's
one secret—the secret of a Cabinet Minister too—that I
should uncommonly like to know. It would be worth
£5,000 to me if I knew what judgment Lord Chelmsford
will give to-morrow in the case of Bloxam and the Metro-
politan Railway." "Five thousand pounds !" cried his
aristocratic neighbour, who is as poor as any lord ncod
wish to be ; " do you mean to say you would give five
thousand pounds to any one who could tell you what old
Chelmsford's judgment will be ? " " Yes ; indeed
I should," said the other. " Then, by Jove, I'll
find out and tell y.m." "Do so," said the City man,
with a laugh, as he went on with his soup. That very
night, when the tired merchant in his Bayswater palace
was wooing gentle sleep, quite forgetful of his conversa-
tion with this young sprig of the nobility, he was roused
by a summons at his bedroom door. His servant on
being admitted told him that Lord —'s valet was below
with a message for him. " Show him up," said Mr.
Consol, in wonder as to what it all meant. Enter the valet,
who speaks as follows :—" Beg your pardon for disturbing
you, sir, but my lord sent me with a note to Lord Chelms-
ford's, and said I was to bring the answer to you. I took
the note, sir, and Lord Chelmsford told me to say there
was no answer 1" The story is a strange one ; but it is
true AQYVrtlatlen.—.feedsMercurY.

THE MINT.
--

Everybody knows how money can be spent ;
most people know how it can be earned ; a select
few, pretty equally distributed from the highest to
the lowest classes, know how it is to be saved ; but
very few of any class trouble themselves as to the
mechanical processes by which mere metal is made
into coin, whether gold, silver, or copper. This is
done at the Mint, or, as it is termed, the New
Mint, to distinguish it from its many predecessors.
At one time there were several Mints existing—
those, for instance, at London, at Chester, at Win-
chester, and at York. That at Southwark was con-
tinued in operation later than any, but at last was
removed, and the Mint in the Borough, once so
famous for its production of money, is now a vil-
lanous neighbourhood, only notorious for the cer-
tainty with which persons possessing it are robbed
there. All the Mints were then drawn in and con-
centrated in one central office in the Tower, and
there the works were carried on till about 1806,
when the present, or as it is called the New, Mint,
was built. Few persons who have seen the modest
stone exterior of this building will be inclined to
credit the statement that nearly a quarter of a mil-
lion of money was spent on its erection, though such
is said to be the fact. At all events the New Mint
since 1806 has been the sole coining centre for the
British Empire, where not only all the coins from
farthings to pounds are struck, but where all com-
memorative medals, all medals for the army and
navy, all gold medals for the Board of Trade, all Vi-
ctoria crosses, and all medal decorations of any kind
awarded by the Government, are made and issued.
The history of an establishment so vast, and the ope-
rations of which are so continually varying, must
necessarily be interesting, though so voluminous as
to take its real history far beyond the limits of any
newspaper article. Much, however, may still be told
which will be new and interesting to the great
mass of readers.

There is a popular notion that any one taking
gold, silver, or copper to the Mint can have it at
once made into an equal weight of pounds, shillings,
or pence, and this at one time was the fact. But
it is not so now, except with respect to gold. 'lime
was when silver plate and bars of copper, gold
ornaments, and gold trinkets used to be left for
coinage. Now, however, the practice has sunk into
desuetude, for the Mint is not bound to return
coin for bullion in less than twenty days, and not
now bound to take private consignments of silver
or copper at all. 'People find it much more advan-
tageous to dispose of their metals through the ordi-
nary metal and bullion agents, who pay on the
spot, and from these again the bullion agents of
the Mint buy, according as silver or copper is
needed. The Act of the Mint still binds them to
take gold from any who bring it to them to coin,
though, as a rule, these transactions are done
through the Bank of England, which, of course, has
to buy gold in ingots, dust, bars, or foreign coin, and
which either sends it to the Mint for its own pur-
poses, or sells it to the Mint as it may be wanted.
As a fact, however, any one taking gold to the
Mint can have it made into sovereigns, and
the country bears the whole expense of the coinage.
The very last private application which was made
to the Mint came from Mr. Peabody, who sent
about £lO,OOO of old gold of all kinds to be made
into sovereigns. This was the only application of
the kind that has been made for years past. It is a
singular fact that, for the first time in the history
of the Mint, not a single sovereign was struck there
during the whole of last year, nor has one yet been
struck there during this. During nearly fifteen
months, in fact, not a pound sterling in gold has
been added to the currency of the kingdom. It
was thought after the panic of 1866 that the Mint
would have to coin more money ; but the very re-
verse has been the case. The Mint itself is suffer-
ing from the depression which has for a time over-
taken all trades and occupations. The demand
there now is not for pounds, but for shillings and
sixpences, and even at the manufacture of these the
men are only working half-time, and at little more
than half wages.
Before proceeding to describe how the money
itself is manufactured, it may not be out of place to
say a few words as to how currencies die out, and
how certain coins are popular or unpopular for
years. The guinea and the half-crown were always
popular ; the five-shilling piece, the florin, and
the fourpenny piece were always unpopular. The
guinea was first coined in Charles IL's reign,
and derived its name from the Guinea Company,
which used sometimes to stamp on it the ele-
phant, as symbolical of its African origin. The
guinea was so popular that its successor, the sove-
reign, was for a long time looked on with dislike.
It may surprise the reader to hear that any coins
of the realm were ever looked on with disfavour,
but the records of the Mint show that the public
are as fastidious in their coins as in their food ; and
there are some which are regarded with such dislike
that the public will not take them till they see they
can get no others. In this way the coinage of
guineas was stopped, and the sovereign forced upon
the public, who have now taken to it very kindly
indeed. But this has not been the case with either
the five-shilling or fourpenny pieces. The former
were old institutions of long standing unpopularity.
Many, even in the simplest retail transactions, re-
fused to receive them. But they were driven out
of circulation by the bankers who sent to the
Mint for silver, and the employers who sent to
their banks for silver, both of whom so con-
stantly stipulated against taking five-shilling
pieces that they remained on the hands of the
Mint. Yet about £2,000 worth of these coins are
made every year to go to the Falkland Islands.
There the whalers, English, Germans, Swedes, and
Americans, assemble to pass the winter in harbour,
and among them the only accepted currency is the
English five-shilling piece ; for them, therefore, it
is manufactured, and to the Falkland Islands it is
sent. This noble coin, therefore—by far the hand-
somest in our currency—is now no longer issued
in this country, and will soon become as much a
thing of the past as guineas. The fourpenny piece,
which was introduced for the first time in 1836,
has always been so unpopular that its coinage has
been discontinued, and for the last twelve years not
one has been struck. The favourite half-crown,
too, has gone the same way, though not without a
struggle for its retention on the part of bankers
and employers, who took a great aversion to the
florin. But it was useless coining two-shilling pieces
and two-and-sixpenny pieces at the same time, so
the latter have been discontinued, and now only
florins, shillings, sixpences, and threepenny pieces
are struck. What are called the garter sovereigns,
the lion shillings, the rose, thistle, and shamrock
shillings, have all nearly disappeared from circula-
tion, not only because they come into the Mint and
are re-melted and re-issued in a more modern guise,
but because from their scarcity there is a belief or
kind of general notion that a sort of " luck" at-
taches to them, so they are kept to an extent that
has made good impressions very scarce indeed, and
when they do appear the clearness and sharpness of
their outline show at once how little they have been
in circulation. A curious illustration of this may be
found even so recently as in the history of florins.
The first issue of these were small in size, and the
usual letters F.D. had to be omitted from their cir-
cumference. A sort of protest was raised against
this coinage, which at once received the name of the
" graceless florin." Public attention was thus di-
rected to them, they were kept as specimens, and
though 750,000 were issued, hardly any are in cir-
culation, and none are returned to the Mint.
The amount of damage sustained by spurious
coinage is very small. There are only a very few
coiners or " smashers" in London, and as they
have to manufacture by hand—that is to say, to
cast each piece separately in plaster moulds and
afterwards electrotype it—the process is very
slow, and is entirely limited to the silver coinage,
and more especially the florin and the shilling.
" Smashers" never make money to pass themselves.
They make it and sell it in dozens to those willing
to undertake the risk of palming it off on the un-
wary, and the price of these counterfeits is in exact
proportion to the risk incurred in passing them.
Thus, counterfeit florins of the best class cost as
much as 12s. a dozen, and the best class of shil-
lings Os, a dozen, and these coins, unless minutely

examined, would be taken offhand by any one; on
the other hand, shillings can be got as low as 2s. a
dozen, and common florins for 35. a dozen. The
smashers" are a peculiar set of rogues, the num-
ber of whom has not much increased or diminished
for the last fifty years. There is a kind of " cut-
ler's law" among them never to tell from whom
they buy the coin, though the Mint police
would rather catch one maker of counterfeit coin
than twenty utterers. Only one formidable attempt
against the gold coin was ever made, and this was
some three or four years ago. A party of Ger-
mans established themselves secretly at Hamburg,
and entered into a well-considered and deliberate
plan for making English sovereigns. These con-
spirators did not fall into the vulgar error of our
native " smashers" in making actually bad sove-
reigns. They simply put so much additional
alloy into the pure gold as to make its value 17s.
instead of 20s. These adventurers made proper
steel dies, erected presses, and had all the
appurtenances for the processes which are gone
through in the English Mint—in fact, they estab-
lished a private mint at Hamburg. Many thou-
sands of their sovereigns got into circulation on the
Continent ; for, in fact, none but the Mint autho-
rities could detect them except by weight.
By this test, however, they were at lsst dis-
covered, the coiners traced, and their place of
business seized. The chief conspirators escaped, but
all their dies, machines, and a very considerable
sum in pure and adulterated gold fell into the hands
of the Hamburg authorities, so that the speculation,
though boldly conceived and skilfully carried out,
was a ruinous one after all. Not half as many
sovereigns were put into circulation as would pay
the first cost of the plant employed in their maufac-
ture. Yet within the last few days one of these
sovereigns was sent back to the Mint from Devon-
shire, simply on account of its extraordinary light-
ness, without apparent wear, and the tests showing
it to be to all appearance standard gold. Of course,
at Tower-hill it was at once recognized and de-
stroyed.

Those who have now and then to pay in sove-
reigns at the Bank of England know how often one
or two or more light sovereigns are rejected—that
is to say, not returned, but cut into two or three
pieces, 4d., fid., or Bd., according to the deficiency of
the piece, being charged for the unpleasant pro-
cess. The popular impression is that these cut
sovereigns go back to the Mint to be remelted and
recoined. But there are a vast number of trades in
England which require standard gold for all sorts of
purposes, and these regularly go to the Bank to buy
these cut sovereigns. The reason is obvious ; few
trades use so much gold at once as to buy an ingot
of gold, which weighs from 250 to 300 ounces, and
if they did they have seldom the means necessary
to melt it. But they can buy the cut sovereigns by
the ounce or the pound, and though as coins they
may have been light, yet as metal they are known
to be pure. In this manner, between the gilding
and porcelain trades, an immense amount of gold
is annually absorbed. The porcelain trade alone
takes nearly £50,000 worth of gold a year, and
between gilding and porcelain the annual con-
sumption of England and France is estimated at
not less than 40,000 ounces, which is lost to cur-
rency for ever.

OYU rt
I t
1

HER MAJESTY.

OSBORNE, March 3.
The Queen drove out yesterday afternoon, at-
tended by the Duchess of Athele.

Prince Leopold went out, attended by Mr. Duck-
worth.

Her Majesty drove out this morning, accompanied
by Princess Louise and Princess Beatrice.
WINDSOR CASTLE, March 3.
The Queen, accompanied by Princess Louise,
Princess Beatrice, and Prince Leopold left Osborne
this afternoon at three o'clock, and arrived at
Windsor Castle shortly after six.

Her Royal Highness the Princess of 'Wales
drove out, attended by the Countess of Morton.
The Prince of 'Wales, attended by Capt. Ellis,
rode out yesterday afternoon.

THE KNIGHTS OF THE GARTER.—Yesterday
morning Sir C. G. Young's assistants went to Windsor
Castle and placed the arms, banner, and insignia of his
Majesty the Emperor of Russia, one of the newly-created
knights of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, abovo his
stall in the choir of the Chapol Royal of St. George. The
banner and insignia have been fixed on the north side of
the choir, near those of the Emperor of the French.
SALE OF A LORD 'CHANCELLOR'S LIVING.--The
Lord Chancellor's rectory of St. James's Church, Colches-
ter, has been sold, under Lord Westbury's Augmentation
Act, to Lord Braybrooke, who has by a benefaction in-
creased the value of the living to £2OO a year. It is said
to be his lordship's intention to make ovor the patronage
to the bishop of the diocese.

MR. CHARLES DICKENS IN AMERICA.—Mr. Chass.
Dickens has finally bid farewell to Philadelphia, and will
give readings for the balance of his stay in America in
various cities of New York State and New England.
Ho says ho will positively leave America in the Cuba
on the 22d of April, and, therefore, will be unable to
give auy reading in the Western States, a disappoint-
ment that is keenly felt by the people of that section. In
Hartford, New Haven, Portland, and other towns where
his readings are announced, the usual anxiety is shown to
procure tickets, and the sales of soats attract large crowds.
While Mr. Dickens was in Washington his fifty-sixth
birthday overtook him, and he was presented with many
bouquets, one of them of superb character, being specially
ordered by telegraph from Boston by an eminent literary
lady of that city. Other tokens more rich and substantial
than flowers were also presented by friends and admirers.
Mr. Dickens's net receipts for four nights' readings in
Washington were slightly over $lO,OOO, and for eight
readings in Philadelphia nearly $19,000.

THE QUEEN'S HOUNDS.—The Queen's staghounds
met at Denham-court, Capt. Lambert's, on Monday, when
a very large field, not less than 500 horsemen, wore in
attendance. The Prince of Wales was among tham. The
stag, "Doctor," the best and most sure of her Majesty's
deer to show sport, was uncarted at Bate's Farm at 12
o'clock, ten minutes' law given him, when the hounds were
laid on, and away they went with so good a will that it
soon became clear none but the best-mounted men could
live with them. Through the Harrow Vale, the stag took
tho course right on to Eastcott, through Morton's Farm
to the Ruislip-road, through the top of Deans, across Wel-
shin's Farm, through Prince's, skirting Mr. Templar's, by
Brays, to the top of Harrow Hill, where there was the
first short check. By Mr. Steel's garden he trotted up the
road to the Vaughan Library, when he jumped the rails,
and into Hoare's garden, across the road by the Priory to
Sudbury, at the back of the trotting grounds to Perivale
then by Hanger-hill across to the Abbey, through the
canal and over the Ealing Steeplechase Course to Willes-
den, across the Midland Railway, and over the canal and
Great Western Railway, up the towing-path to the new
building plots, Paddington, and into the coal wharves just
below the Paddington station, where he was taken in a
stable at Charles-mews. The distance altogether yea
about 22 miles, and perhaps a sharper or better run was
never seen with hounds, as the time was about 2} hours,
and the country all through about as stiff as can be ima-
gined. The Prince was well up throughout the whole
run, with a change of horses. The master, Lord Colville,
also went right well, but of the 500 only about 20 wore at
Paddington at tho finish, and they only who had the good
fortune to have a change of horses. Men who know the
country will appreciate the first 50 minutes, from Bata's
Farm to Harrow Steeple—all grass, with the enormous
withe and stake fences that bound the fields. The ground,
however, rode fairly light.
ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY.—An unusuallf
beautiful and various show of valuable flowers was made
at the meeting of the Royal Horticultural Society 3t
South Kensington yesterday. The specimens ru°A
notable for rarity and artistic cultivation were orchids,
and the finest among them. was an example of Oucidil
macranthurn, which came from the collection of lic"r
Londebborough. There was a large attendance of veer"
berg. Mr. Wilson Saunders, F.R.S., presided. The ful"
lowing new fellows were elected ; Mr. William Adains,
Mrs. Brown, Mrs. Forbes, Lieutenant-General Hay, 31'.:"
Jones, Mrs. Loveland, Dr. 11. R. Madden, Mr. ei-oerba
Thomas Selby, &c.
n
THE GRENADIER GUARDS.—Yesterthy morDig
a battalion of Grenadier Guards left the Wellington ra;Lo
racks en route for Dublin, where they aro to relieve _
Coldstreams, who have been for some months past sae_
tioned there. The Grenadiers mustered 640 strong, 111.0
pendent of officers. The departure was witnessed q
1
Prince of Wales- from Marlborough House, and a 130. b.
crowd of spectators IV li"d the road to Euston stati