The Sun.
London, England, 1845-11-29 00:00:00

THE WINE CROPS OF FRANCE.

The following account of the state of the wine crops of
France this year is taken from the Indicateur de Begiers.
PARIS.—Crop moderate in quantity, bad in quality. The
first wines which have arrived needed to be strengthened
with brandy; it is supposed that this will be generally the
case with the white wines of lower Burgundy and the banks
of the Loire, which are detestable. This circumstance, which
we anticipated in one of our preceding numbers, will absorb
an incalculable quantity of 3s. Gd. brandy, which was not
reckoned upon.
CDAMPAGNE.—Crop very mean in quantity, quality
pitiable.
.ALSACE AND LORRAINE.—CrOp nearly nought ; the little
made detestable. A total failure of prune brandy, a pro-
duct usually very considerable, and which was important
last year.

BURGUNDY.—Excepting some spots in which the quan-
tity is palpable, the result bad ; general quantity very mid-
dling less than last year; quality generally bad, some emus
only passable.
ORLEANS AND THE BANKS OF THE LOIRE TO NANTES.—
General quantity less by a third than last year; quality
very middling, especially of the white wines, which are, as
in i3urgundy, acid, fiat, and green. They cannot be used,
nor can the red wines, unless fortified by other wine or
brandy.
SAINTONGE AND DEUX-CHARENTES.—Very bad crop in
every respect ; quantity upwards of two• thirds less than the
last, which was very middling ; qualinl,7 pitiable ; ten
casks of wine necessary to produce tr... 4 of brandy twenty-
three proof.

GIRONDE.—Bad crop in general ; quantity a quarter or a
third less than last year's modicum ; indifferent qualities in
the good exposures ; detestable in Vae less good, which will
require as an indispensable necessity the wines of the south
to be potable. The pretensions of proprietors so exorbitant,
that all buyers have been scared away.
LE PAYS and LE MARmAuDms usually produce 20,000
pipes of brandy. They will only turn out 4,000 to 5,000
this year.
Esr.—Le Beaujolais only has succeeded, and has conse-
quently attracted many buyers. Wines are on the rise, and
proprietors will not sell.
GEas.—Crop next to nothing in quantity, quality not
potable.
TOULOUSE AND viaNny.—Quantity middling and tole-
rably successful in some quarters. Some wine has already
been sent to Bordeaux; price 17 to 18 francs per hectolitre,
which is enormous for wine of such little alcoholic value.
This circumstance will impose on the south (Provence) the
onus of supplying the enormous consumption of this depart-
ment.

PROVENCE.—Crop tolerably satisfactory in quantity and
quality. Great demand ; excessively high pretensions of
proprietors, who are aware of the necessities of the Algerian
market, as well as those of the foreign markets and colonies,
deprived, as they are this year, of Portuguese wines, which
have almost totally failed.
ROUSSILLON.—Crop passible as to quantity; quality sa-
tisfactory. The country has been crowded both before and
since the vintage by an innumerable number of buyers from
all parts. Extraordinary prices are paid, which still do not
satisfy proprietors.
We have gone through all the wine countries of France.
It will be seen that for the most part the crops are miserable,
averaging far less in quantity than last year. The quality,
which is generally bad, will cause an enormous use of the
southern wines and brandy. These are facts, and very serious
they are.

MEETING of MIDDLESEX MAGIS

TRATES.
Yesterday a meeting of justices of Middlesex was held at
the Sessions-house, Clerkenwell-green, for the transaction of
county business. Mr. Pownall took the chair.
The minutes of the last Court were read and confirmed.
The monthly reports of the visiting justices of the re-
spective county gaols were read. The ordinary information
was communicated. The number of prisoners in the House
of Correction was 909, of which number 605 were males, 286
females, and 18 children.

The ASSISTANT JUDGE laid before the Court a correspond-
ence between himself and Secretary Sir James Graham, re-
lating to recommendations to Parkhurst prison.
In reference to this subject, and to the existing criminal
jurisprudence as respects juvenile offenders generally, an in-
teresting discussion took place.
Mr. 'rum( opened the subject, and stated that he had re-
ceived an urgent remonstrance upon the insufficiency of the
means for the reclamation of juvenile convicts, from a lady
well known to them, namely, Miss Neave who had established
an asylum for the reception of discharged juvenile criminals,
in order to their reformation.

Mr. Sergeant ADAMS expressed regret at the restricted
sphere of operation which was allowed to the Parkhurst es-
tablishment, the instructions being that no cases should be
sent there except such as would be entitled to transportation.
He considered this a departure from the original intention in
forming this establishment, and the consequence was that not
one case in five hundred of common larcenies could now be
sent there. The extent of the evil resulting from this regu-
lation might be judged from the fact that about one-third of
those committed for larceny to that Court were children.
Mr. LAURIE paid a warm tribute to the unostentatious
benevolence of the lady who hal devoted herself for so many
years to further the best interests of humanity. In France,
holland. and generally on the Continent, establishments were
provided expressly for that destitute class of juvenile offenders
to which their attention had been drawn. The importance of
the matter would be apparent when he stated that, out of
26,000 criminal committals in England and Wales last year,
nearly one-half, or 47 per cent. of the whole, were between
the ages of fifteen and twenty-five, and if they took in the
ages under fifteen it would amount to 75 per cent.—(Hear.)
On a comparison of the two last five years the increase was
very considerable. The feeling which existed against these
unfortunate children on their discharge, after serving their
term of imprisonment, rendered them more than ordinarily
destitute, and the difficulty of working reformation was a
common observation of society. He insisted that something
should be done to supply the deficiency complained of.
A very full bench of justices concurred generally in the
importance of the subject, but no active measures were
adopted.
The other business was not of general interest.

DUESTER CASTLE, A TALE OF THE GREAT RE-
BELLION.—The public may be congratulated on the appear-
ance of a new and powerful writer of historic fiction in the
person of the author of " Peter Priggins," and other hu.
morons works, which, in their particular line, approached so
nearly to the writings of the late Theodore Hook, that they
were for some time attributed to that popular author. It is
also not the least curious coincidence as respects the writer
of " Dunster Castle," that his celebrated predecessor, Horace
Smith, the author of " Brambletye House," also commenced
his literary career with works of humour and satire. Judging
from the stirring scenes and striking characters in " Dunster
Castle," it may be confidently predicted that its author will
continue his new career with the same brilliant success as
attended his eminent and more experienced contemporary.

NEW NOVEL, EDITED EY MRS. GORE.—We are
requested to state that Mr. Colburn, of Great Marlborough-
street, has this day published " The Queen of Denmark," an
Historical Novel, Edited by Mrs. Gore, in 3 vols., which can
now be had at all the Libraries. Mr. Colburn has also pub-
lished the following popular new works of fiction :-2. Duns-
ter Castle, a Tale of the Great Rebellion, by J. T. Hewlett,
MA., Author of " Peter Priggins," &c., 3 vols.-3. Pomfret;
or, Public Opinion and Private Judgment, by H. F. Chorley,
Esq,, 3 vols.-4. The Attractive Man, by Mrs. Trollope, 3
vols.-5. Love, a Tale of Venice, by Horace Smith, Esq.,
Author of " Brarnbletye House," &c., 3 vols.-6. The Story
of a Royal Favourite, by Mrs. Gore, 3 vols.-7. The Master
Passion, and other Tales, by T. C. Grattan, Esq., Author of
" The Heiress of Bruges," .&c., 3 vols.-8. The White Slave
and the Russian Prince, by the Author of "Revelations of
Russia," 3 vols. ; and, 9. Count Konigsmark, an Historical
Romance, by Captain Frederic Chamier, R.N., 3 vols.

- .
Earl Granville's youngest son, the Hon. F. Leveson
Gower, intends to follow the profession of a barrister, hating
been just called to the bar for that purpose.
Lord and Lady Cottenham and family are passing
the winter at Wimbledon. The Noble and Learned Baron, it
is understood, has received a large accession of fortune by the
demise of his brother, the late Sir W. W. Pepys, Bart.
DEATHS OF Two CHILDREN By FIRE.—On Thurs.
day night Mr. NV. Paine held two inquests at Guy's Hos-
pital, on the bodies of John Banner, aged two years, and
Tamer Johnson, aged six. In the former case it appears
that the parents of the deceased reside in Green. bank, St.
Olive's, and on Monday forenoon last the child was at play
with some other children in a room in which there was a
fire, and in poking a piece of wood amongst the burning
coals, his pinafore ignited, and he was shockingly burnt
fore the fire could be extinguished. He was removed imme-
diately to the above hospital, where he expired on Tuesday.
In the second case the deceased's parents have the care of
chambers in Great Tower. street, City, and on Tuesday fore-
noon she was sitting before the fire when a burning coal flew
out of the grate and into her lap, and ignited her pinafore.
Her screams brought assistance, but the fire was not extin-
guished before she was dreadfully burnt. She was taken to
the hospital, where she expired on Wednesday. Verdict
in each cave, "Accidental death."