The Sun.
London, England, 1842-06-30 00:00:00

SHIPOWNERS' SOCIETY.

The Annual General Meeting of the Directors and
Proprietors in this Society was held yesterday at the
London Tavern, fnr the purpose of receiving the Annual

Report of the Directors. -
Mr. BARRY took the Chair, and in doing so said that
they were met for the purpose of presenting the Annual
Report of the Committee of Directors in the General
Shipowners' Society, in which several matters of vital
importance to the navigation of the country were set
forth. He believed that every one present regretted the
present state of the shipping interest, and he believed
that the measures lately before Parliament would mate-
rially aggravate the distressed state of the shipping trade.
Mr.Yourethen read the Report, which was extremely
lengthy, in which it was stated that a deputation had
waited on Sir R. Peel, to endeavour to prevent the then
proposed reduction in the timber duties from being made,
but Sir R. Peel declined to accede to their request, say-
ing that the time was now come when an experiment
must be made.
Mr. LYALL, M.P., proposed that the Report should be
received, which being seconded by Captain DREW, was
agreed to.
Several other resolutions having been agreed to, ex-
pressing the opposition of the meeting to the proposed
reduction in the duties on foreign timber, the meeting
eparated.

LOSS of THREE VESSELS by ICE.
(From the New York Commercial Advertiser: June 3.)
BARQUE ANN LIFFEY.—The barque Oscar, Perry,
arrived last evening, having on board the mate and ten
of the crew of the British barque Ann Liffey, whose
loss has been before mentioned. The mate of the Ann
Liffey states that when ten days out, at three A. M.,
in lat. 43. 8., long. 49., while running before the wind
at the rate of eight knots per hour, weather thick, the
Ann Liffey struck an island of ice with so much force
a; to run the heel of the bowsprit clear aft, capsized the
windlass, and took stern cutwater, &c.,entirely off. The
crew anal passengers, twenty-two in number, used every
exertion with crowbars and hand-spikes, to clear the
wreck of the fragments of ice which fell on deck. The
iceberg was as high as the foreyard. Sounded the
pumps, and finding her sinking, took to the boats, in
which they remained until two P. M., when it cleared
away, and they were fallen in with by the Oscar. Capt.
Lyle and eight others went on board the British barque
Ganges, bound to Liverpool.
ANOTHER VESSEL LOST BY THE ICE.—The British
brig Stephen, Hensall, from Newcastle for Pictou, ran
foul of an iceberg when 81 days out, and received so
much damage that she was abandoned. The captain
and crew took to the boats, were picked up by the John
Romilly, from London, for St. John's; New Brunswick,
and afterwards transferred to the American brig China,
Small, and arrived at Pictou on the 28th ult.
AND ANOTHER.--PICTOU, N.S., MAY 25.--The
barque Isabella, Captain A. Thomas, from Glasgow, for
Pictou, with 54 passengers, and a large quantity of dry
goods, iron, books, &c., was lost at Cape North, on the
north side of Cape Breton, on the 11th inst. She sailed
from Glasgow on the Ist of April, and made St. Paul's
Island on the 28th. She then became entangled in the
ice, and continued in that perilous condition for eleven
days. The captain, seeing the imminent danger the
ship was in landed the passengers on the 9th, with much
difficulty, over fields of ice, when the vessel was three-
quarters of a mile from the shore, and riding at anchor
among icebergs. On the following day she slipped the
anchor, and when turning she struck a rock and began
to fill with water. She was then run into Aspy Bay, a
distance of eight miles, where she now lies a total wreck.
We are glad to learn that though the vessel has become
a total wreck, and the cargo is materially damaged, no
lives have been lost.

COURT-MARTIAL.—A Court-Martial was held at
Colombo, on sth July, and badjournment on the 9th August.
1841, to try Lieut.-Colonel James Macpherson, of the Ceylon
Rifle Regiment, on a number of charges, of which the two fol-
lowing are the chief :—For violent and scandalous conduct,
unbecoming the character of an officer and a gentleman, while
Commandant at Trincomalee, Ceylon, in endeavouring to ex-
cite private John Kenny, of H.M.'s 90th L.I. when on sentry
over the Commissariat stores at Fort Frederick, on the night of
28th, and morning of 29th of March, 1841, to a breach of
military discipline, in repeatedly provoking and ordering him
to run him (Lieut.-Colonel Macpherson) through with the
bayonet, and placing a native, armed with a broomstick as a
fireloek, upon the post of the said sentry, with the
intent to turn him and his orders into ridicule, Lieutenant
Colonel Macpherson being at the time in a state of in •
toxication, and improperly dressed. For threatening
the lives of Brevet-Major Horace Suckling of the 90th Light
Infantry, and of Lieutenant A. T. Heyland, 95th Regiment,
staff officer of Trincomalee, sundry times between the 3d and
12th of April, 1841." The Court found the prisoner guilty,
and sentenced him to be cashiered. They, however, accom-
panied their verdict by the statement that he was subject to
fits of excitement from wounds received in the service, and by
the result of a malignant fever contracted during a dangerous
overland journey on public duty. The consequence of this
statement has been, that her Majesty has been pleased to ex-
tend her most gracious pardon to the prisoner for the purpose
of retiring from the service, receiving the regulated value of
his commission.

MELANCHOLY DEATH IN THE CAMBERWELL BATH.
—Tuesday morning information was sent to Mr. Carter, the
Coroner for Surrey, of the following instance of sudden death
in the large bath in Addington-square, Camberwell, on the
banks of the SurreirCanal :—A gentleman of fortune, residing
at Clongall-place, Kent-road, of the name of Butler, and con-
nected with a firm in Tower-street, has for some time been in
the habit of attending the baths, and was considered an excel-
lent swimmer. On Monday evening, between eight and nine
o'clock, he went as usual to enjoy the healthful recreation of
bathing, and upon entering, was handed, by the attendant,
his towel, &c. At the time no one was in the bath but Mr.
Fieldwich, statuary, cf the Camberwell-road; Mr. Beghie,
and other gentlemen had just left the water, and were admiring
the expertness of Mr. Butler as he was swimming in different
directions in the bath. They were proceeding to dress them-
selves, and on turning round missed the deceased. At first they
supposed lie had dived to the bottom, and were anxious, as all
swimmers are, to see how long he would remain under
water, but in a few seconds they were much alarmed by
seeing Mr. Butler rise to the surface and struggling. It was
a matter of great difficulty to render him any assistance, the
depth of the water at the side of the bath being about three
feet and a half, and gradually shelving till in the centre it
is between six and seven feet ; the deceased was, at the time
in the deepest part of the water, and nothing at the time
was on the premises which could assist in securing him, save
a pole, which WM thrown to him. In his exhauste state this
was almost useless, but at last the body was got out, and Mr.
King, of the Camberwell-road, surgeon, was sent for, and
upon his arrival he declared life to have been extinct for some
time. Upon inquiry at the bath yesterday, it was stated that
the deceased was perfectly sober, and there is no reason to be-
lieve this was an intentional act on his part. Mr. King, without
having an order to open the body, was inclined to think that the
deceased, although in the prime of life, had suddenly been seized
with apoplexy, which made him powerless, arid suffocation
ensued. It is stated that a somewhat similar occurrence took
place in the same bath about twenty years ago.
DEATH FROM EATING PEAS.—On Tuesday Mr.
Higgs held an inquest at the George the Fourth, Gilbert's-
passage, Clare-market, on the body of John Ledbury, aged 64,
a carman. The evidence showed that deceased resided at 24,
Clement's-lane ; that he was of miserly habits, and afflicted
with lumbago, produced by a singular custom he had of sitting
and lying naked in his room. About a week ago he appeared
worse than usual, which he attributed to having eaten a quan-
tity of parboiled gray peas, which had remained ever since win-
ter, and which, during that season, together with bacon, was his
favourite food. On Friday evening he went to the parish board-
room in Savoy-street, Strand, for medicine, and he said the people
there were saucy to him, and told him to go to the hospital, and
riot put them to expense. 'They gave him, however, a powder,
which he took, but it did not operate. He afterwards went
to the Metropolitan Free Hospital, Carey-street, where he re-
ceived a bottle of medicine and some pills, which he took, hut
they had no effect. He then prescribed for himselt, taking
two twopenny doses of jalap, one of them in ale, but they did
not operate. His landlord administered an enema ineffec-
tually also. On Sunday he applied for advice at the King's
College Hospital, and was admitted on Monday morning.
Mr. George Johnston, physician's assistant at the hospital; saw
deceased when he was admitted. He appeared then very
ill, and was in a dirty state. He was placed in a warm-bath,
and on his being removed from it into one of the wards he
expired. On opening the body, the lower portion of the in-
testines were found very much distended by the presence of a
large quantity of peas. They had obstructed the bowels, and
the obstruction was the cause of death. Verdict, " Died of
stoppage of the bowels, caused by the swallowing of gray peas."
COEBURN'S NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE FOR JULY,
EDITED BY Timms, s HOOD.—An excellent number—full of
entertainment for all classes of readers. The Editor, besides
puttin • g forth his own strength in certain " Diabolical Sugges-
tions," and Epigrams, admirably applicable to present circum-
stances, besides one or two other productions, has procured
some capital contributions from our most popular writers. A
paper, entitled " Contributions to the Income. tax," deserves
particular, notice. " The Barnabys in America," under Mrs.
Trollope s auip.ces, are represented " going a-head" in
glorious style, and Mr. Poole's continuation of " Phineas
Quickly" is not only the best portion of the picture of existing
manners in that clever work, but will be found as full of .well-
defined character as any of his best dramatic pieces. There is
also an admirably characteristic sketch of Life in Oxford, in
the story called " A Day's Coursing at Woodstock," by the
Author of " Peter Priggins ;" and the " Reminiscences of a
Medical Student, with the title of " Romance of a Walk,"
will find many admirers. Captain Medwin's narrative, " De-
saga," a fantastic tale, after the manner of Hoffman, is as wild
and wonderful as the most German production of the German
press. A very touching story by Miss Youatt, called " The
Sculptor of Avignon," cannot fail to interest her readers,
whilst Mr. Blanchard's article, " The Thief of Time," and the
essay " On the Perception of Danger," will touch their feel-
ings in a totally different way.
THE HAGUE, .11-N E 26.—The Government has truss
replied to the observations made in the sections of the Second
Chamber of the States-General on the project of law relative
to the office of Notary,