The Sun.
London, England, 1868-08-12 00:00:00

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'PHE BISHOP OP LONDON A.

The Bishop of London arrived at Bonn on Saturday
last, accompanied by Mrs. Tait and his family, and by
Mr. Hassard, his private secretary. His lordship preached
to the English congregation in the chapel of the university
at the eleven o'clock service on Sunday. The chapel is a
handsome building, erected in the reign of Louis XIV.,
as the private chapel of the country seat of the Electors
(Archbishops) of Cologne. After the great French Revo;
lution the Electors of Cologne were almost virtually
swept away. On the re-arrangement of Europe after
the downfall of Napoleon, though the Archbishops
of Cologne had estates re-assigned to them, the old
country seat or palace at Bonn was never given back to
them, but has been turned into a great and thriving uni-
versity for the German nation. The jubilee (or 50 years
established) was celebrated at Bonn only last week, with
the King of Prussia, the Crown Prince, and a brilliant
company present. Between 300 and 400 English heard
the Bishop of London preach. Morning prayers were read
by the Rev. Dr. Anderson (formerly Lincoln's Inn
preacher), chaplain to the British residents at Bonn. The,
Bishop was again present at the afternoon service, and later
visited the graves of Niebuhr and Bunsen, in the cemetery.
Thirty years ago the Bishop of London attended a course
of lectures at Bonn University, and was resident there
for several months. This fact is said to have always
formed a bond of union between his lordship and the late
Prince Consort. The Bishop of London is still well
remembered by many of the old residents of Bonn as
" the Rev. Mr. Tait," the young English clergyman who
first established the English Sunday service. On Monday
his lordship called on some of the professors, and later left
for Frankfort.

THE METROPOLITAN CAB-DRIVER4'

SOCIETY.

The members of this Society held their first annual
dinner at the Crystal Palace on Tuesday, Mr. George
Potter in the chair. Great interest was attached to the
meeting on account of the present disputes with the rail-
way companies in regard to " privileged cabs."
The CHAIRMAN, in an interesting speech, proposed the
toast of the evening," Success to the Cab-drivers' Society,"
and gave some account of the grievances under which the
cabmen laboured. He said that the number of licensed
cabs in London was about 5,9Q0, and if £5O was allowed
as the average value of each cab and two horses, the
aggregate worth of this cab property amounted to
£294,500 ; but this property was subjected to an annual tax
duty of £lOO,OOO. In his opinion it was the existence of
this exorbitant taxation that was the principal cause of
the dissatisfaction which existed in the cab trade. There
must be a diminution in the cab taxation ; there must
be a better and more humane system of police regula-
tions ; there must be increased and improved standing-
room for the vehicles, and the system which compelled
numbers of cabs to crawl about the streets in search of jobs
must be abolished. In conclusion, he advised the men to
be conciliatory in their tone, and they would be sure to
succeed.

Mr. B. PEARCE, president of the society, responded to
the toast, and entered fully into the operations of the
society and the remedies which were proposed by the cab-
men to improve their position. He said that informa-
tion in his possession justified him in stating that the
strike against the railway companies would terminate
before the end of August in favour of the men. (Loud
applause.)
The meeting was subsequently addressed by Messrs.
Crompton, Barnes, Sawyer, Evans, and Silless, all cab-
drivers ; and the proceedings, which were of importance
to this useful class of public servants, were brought to a
close by a vote of thanks to the chair.

AN INTERVIEW WITH THE FENIAN

PRESIDENT.

The Herald New York correspondent writes :
" Fenianism is not dead ; its directors have learned by
experience the value of silence ; they are quietly doing
what formerly they did with much bluster and noise. I
pretend to nu information concerning the exact time of
the threatened rtiid upon Canada, or the points of attack.
I merely draw inferences from patent facts. I think
that the movement will soon take place, and that
its course will be over the ground selected in 1866.
Certainly Fenians in considerable number have collected
at Buffalo, Detroit, and St. Albans, and certainly the
persons who are known to be the adjutants of O'Neill are
passing hither and thither to confer with acknowledged
leaders of Fenianism. Curious to know something of the
personal appearance and traits of the Fenian President,'
I lately secured an interview with that `official,' at his
headquarters. The office of the Fenian `President' is upon
the second and third floors of an unpretentious brick
building in Fcurth-street, in a central locality, and not
more than one hundred feet from Broadway. No placards
or signboards indicate the whereabouts of the 'Executive
Mansion,' A few large show-bills, with harps, sun-bursts,
and enormous letters, printed in green ink, are stuck to
the walls on each side the street doorway ; these announce
Fenian picnics at Jones's Wood, Elm Park, and other
places. The stone steps of the old dwelling-house are
battered and broken ; the dirty winding wooden
stairway which leads up to the second floor
trembles beneath the treat. Tu: n'ng sharpy to
the right, one sees an or en door : this leads to the main
office of the Fenian Government.' This apartment, in
the rear of the building, is perhaps twelve feet square.
Its furniture consists of four chairs, a stool, and a desk.
Directly opposite the door is an old-fashioned fireplace,
over which hang pistols of every variety. In the corner
to the left, and next the window, are half a dozen rifles
and muskets. About the walls are crossed sabres
and short swords, bowie-knives, and miscellaneous
cutting tools. On the walls also hang, from brackets,
heaps of blue and green uniforms, with red and yellow
stripes, and upon the floor at the right is an immense box
filled with green jackets trimmed with yellow cord ; these
lest, lam told, re for the ' cavalry.' On the walls ar•
lithographs of Emmett, Corcoran, and Meagher, and
highly-coloured prints of the Battle of Limestone
Ridge,' and the Battle of Pigeon Hill.' In the works
of art possibility of mistake is prevented by the fore-
thought of the artist, in giving to the coats of ' the
British' a crimson of peculiar intensity, and to the dress
of the Fenians a preturnaturally vivid green. While I
look upon these pictorial treasures, the Fenian President'
enters. He is saluted with great respect by two large,
full-bearded men, in black garments, whom he
addresses respectively as Colonel' and Alajor.'
These men, after a few words, pass into the
front room, uncarpeted and cheaply furnished. The
' President,' to whom I have been named, is a
man of the middle size, rather robust in appearance,
with a good head, a sharp blue eye, a face by no means
lean, though bearing the unmistakable Celtic stamp. He
wears a dark brown moustache. His smile is pleasant,
his manner courteous, his words well chosen. He speaks
with great caution. He requests me to be seated, and
after a little desultory talk he gives me, at my request, a
description of his movements at Fort Erie and elsewhere, in
1866. In a quick and soldierly manner he sketches out the
campaign, shows the position of the Canadian troops and
his own men, describes the trap into which he had nearly
fallen, and explains the ease with which he crossed from
Fort Erie after the regulars and the Canadians bad driven
him to the water's edge. He tells the story of his sacri-
fices for Fenianism, his success in recruiting 20,000 men
in Tennessee alone, and the deceits practised by the self-
styled Fenian leaders. He speaks with great respect
of the British troops, and with great contempt of the
Canadian Militia. Finally, I ask him plumply, what he
hopes to gain by attacking the people of the provinces.
Sir,' says he, 'my principle is that every English-
man is an enemy to Ireland ; that when an Englishman
is assaulted anywhere the whole nation must feel
it ; and I think that England will never be brought
to her senses except by this continual attack.
England understands force, but she does not care
for discussion. Socially, I. think that the Canadians are
very respectable people, and I have no personal grudge
against them. But they are English.' I tell him that if
a new movement is contemplated I suppose that the
present year is the most favourable for Fenian pur-
poses. ' Well,' he replies, ` I have nothing to say on that
subject. But General Grant knows, and the Democrats
know, that the party which interferes too strongly against
us will get the vote of no Irishman.' Of course Ido not
speak of O'Neill's plans, and only venture a hint—that if
any attack be made this year it will take place before
September. 'Either before or after,' he says with a
laugh, if it take place this year.' And thus the inter-
view ends. I come away convinced, not by what O'Neill
has said, but by his manner, that the Fenian President'
means mischief."

The royal commissioners appointed to inquire
into the pollution of rivers, navigable streams, &c., will
shortly return to the metropolis, on the completion of their
personal survey of the rivers Mersey and Ribble. The
report on the rivers, it is expected, will be ready by the
meeting of the new Parliament.
DETERMINED SIIICIDE.—The Slirrey Standard
gives an account of a singular suicide which has occurred
in the parish of Preston. The deceased, Harriet Fin,
was the wife of a gardener employed at Patcham, She
appears to have fastened a cord to the top of a bedpost,
then put her head through the noose while kneeling on the
bed, and while in that position it would seem that she
opened a large vein in her arm with a razor. Having done
so, she shut the razor up, laid it on the ledge, and
becoming weak from lose of 144 fi..24.4,4bit 4.431M044rd_t
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