Star.
London, England, 1828-01-05 00:00:00

EDINBURGH, JANUARY 3.

NEW YEARS DAY.—Thib day was ushered in here
with all the noisy fun, frolic, and festivity usual on such

occasions ; but happily the Saturnalia has passed over
without being productive of any serious disturbance.—
The streets were indeed crowded with jobilairts, fresh
from their carousals, and exhibiting evident symptoms
of the exhilaration which copious libations inspire; dull
care seemed banished from every bosom, and multi-
tudes went along shouting with delight that another
year was done—a strange enough unfree of pleasure;
but, upon the whole, the greatest .good•hurnour pre.
veiled among the vast majority of those who mingled
in the carnival, and the spirit of mischief, so prone to
break loose in a large city—and in none more than in
Edinburgh—was either overawed by the salutary atten-
tion of the police, or subdued by a milder and more be-
nign influence. A few fights, it is true, diversified the
occurrences of the morn:ng,in one of which some students
essayed a display of their prowess against a few of the
guardians of the night, and were for a moment io pos-
session of the field. A reinforcement, however, promptly
appeared on the scene of action, and the doughty as-
sailants, who had sallied forth in quest of adventures,
were made prisoners, though not without a struggle ;
and, one of the policemen having been rather roughly
handled by them, the delinquents were. in the cow se of
the same day, amerced in the moderate fine of half a orris
nea each in vindictam publicans, upon payriwnt of which
they were dismissed. No other case worth mentioning
occurred; which, considering the cheapness of ardent
spirits, and the deep potations in which at this season
the lower classes indulge, is not a little gratifying. In
the course of Tuesday, numbers of persons were, as
usual, seen reeling along the streets in a state of
intoxication, the conseqaence of their morniug'orgies;
at almost every turn might be met some forjaskit
wight, redolent of empyieumatic alcohol, and sorely
troubled with preserving even a tolerable compromise
between the laws of gravity and of m"tiorr : but we
have seen these living monitors of the evils r f inebria-
tion still more numerous; and, upon the sebnCe, it may
be doubted whether cheap whi ky be altodthir so per-
nicious as some 1' friends of the people". were at first
inclined to prognosticate. The greatest' praise is clae
to the different authorities, particularly to the Poike,
for the excellent precautions taken to maintain order
and (reserve the peace of the city, had any serious 'at-
tempt been made to disturb it, which, however, was
not the c use.
Last night, about eleven o'clock, the premises
the shop of Mr. Browning, ironmonger, N6s't•street,
were discovered to be on firer but by OP prompt as•ist-
ance of the fire establ;diment, it was confined to the
place in which it i.ruke out, and finally subdued before
twelve o'clock.
Tuesday, a person having the appearance,'" a trades-
man, came up to a Gentleman at the Carta! Bis'n, just
as he was going into the boat for Glasgow, and after
making a doleful story about his wants, all of a sudden
he made a snatch at the Gentleman's watch, with which
he got clear off.
Monday forenoon, .while a woman was engaged in
rinsing some clothes in the Water of Leith, near to
Bonington Bridge, her child fell into the water, and
would most certainly have been drowned, but for the
intrepidity of Mr. George Tait, son of Mr. John TAt,
late Convener of the Trades of Leith, who, notwith-
standing the inclemency of the season, instantly stripped
himself, leaped into the water, and brought the child
safe to land.
The clock dial•of. South Leith church was illuminated
with gas on Friday night for the first time. The light
is reflected from above the dial, and strews the hoer
very distinctly.
Saturday morning a slater of the name of Scott,
engaged on the root of a four-story land in Portland-
street, Glasgow, unfortunately losing his balance, was
precipitated to the ground, and killed on the spot. He
has left a wife and three children to lament his un-
timely end.

The Loan MAYOR and Corporation have granted the
use of Guildhall, for a grand Morning Concert, on Wed•
Emil:lay, February 13, which will be under the direction
of Sir GEORGE Shutter—for the benefit of the Spanish
and Italian Refugees.
DAMAGE TO THE SHIPPING AT QUEBEC..—We have
been favoured with the following important extract of
a letter from an eminent commercial house at Mont-
real :—" Montreal, 30th November, 1827. We are
just informed from Quebec, that the disasters amongst
the outward bound vessels have been dreadful and ex-
tensive; and all persons here seem to agree that it will
be the means of keeping at least 4,000 barrels cf ashes
out of the English Market, and many calculate 'he lo.s
and detention to next season at 6,000 to 8,000 barrels,
which, it is probable, will canse a great scarcity and
consequent inconvenieace in your neighbourhood:—
Liverpool Courier.
Monday last, as a woman namedWebber,was hanging
some clothes from a window of a house in Old-Town-
street, Plymouth, she missed her hold, and was pre•
cipitated to the court below, a height of upwards of 30
feet. She escaped with only a few slight bruises.
During the last war a poor fellow returned to his
native place, Hailsham, with the loss of a leg. From.
the manner in which it had been found necessary to
amputne .it, the common construction of a wooden
substitute would not answer, and he could not discover
any artizan skilful enough to make the proper thing.
At length one night he beheld in his dream what he
wanted; in the morning he set to work, and up to this
time he walks with the l* thus made. ' Soon after his
return to Hailsham, he 'apprenticed himself to a tailor,
in which avocation he has continued until a few days
Since, when, as he was shooting, the gun burst,- and
shattered his hand in such a dreadful manner, that it is
supposed he never can again work with the needle.—
ilrighton Gazette.

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