The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1840-10-16 00:00:00

ATTACK UPON THREE ENGLISHMEN BY
ITALIAN BRIGANDS, NEAR ROVIGO.

The following is an extract of a letter just received from
Florence, written to a friend by Albert Smith, Esq., lec-
turer on chemistry, &c. residing at Chertsey :
" In consequence of there being no vacant place in the
diligonce, we left Venice at two o'clock on Saturday, Aug.
29th, and on landing from our gondola, at Fusina, imme
diately hired a carriage and horses for the next stage, the
party consisting of Mr. Decastro, Mr. Hallett, and myself
About seven, a violent thunder storm on, which lasted the
way from Padua to Mont Celice, but on arriving at the lat-
ter place it cleared up, and a brilliant moonlight succeeded.
The clock struck ten as we left Mont Celice, and my compa-
nions composed themselves to sleep in the corner of the car-
riage, leaving me awake. We had gone on for about half
an hour, when I felt the horses stop suddenly, so as to throw
me forward with the check, and the next instant I saw,
through the front glasses, six or seven figures ranged across
the road in a semi-circle, pointing their guns at the postilion,
and closing round the carriage.
" I awoke my companions directly, and then recollecting
I had eight sovereigns loose money in my waistcoat pocket,
I contrived to put seven into my mouth, between my cheeks
and teeth, and to slip the other into my shoe. I had barely
finished this operation, when we had the muzzles of half a
dozen guns thrust into the carriage at once, against our
heads, breasts, &c. accompanied by the most horrid oaths,
and orders to descend. My friends immediately got down
on the near side of the voiture, but I was less fortunate ;
for the Italian carriages are not very well appointed, and
the door on my side was nailed up altogether, having been
formerly broken. In consequence of this, I could not get
out when commanded ; but that appeared of little moment,
as the chief of the party, a six-foot ruffian, seized me by
the collar, and dragging me over the door, threw me down
violently upon the ground, as if 'I had been a doll, not
without some trifling pain to myself. A general pillage now
began. Our knapsacks and their contents, together with
all our German friend's trunks and portmanteaus, were soon
pulled out of the carriage, and then they commenced rifling
our persons. I had the side pocket of my blouse filled with
zwanzigers (Austrian coins worth about Bd.) to pay the posts,
which was directly emptied. Hallett's gold watch and ap-
pendages followed ; then our knives, pencil-cases—in fact,
everything down to our braces, with which they appeared
highly delighted. They tore our trowsers in all directions
to make sure no money was concealed in them ; and finally
discovered the leathern belt which I always wore, and in
which I had placed the circular notes we had obtained from
Henries. To show their rapacity, I may here mention that
I had a couple of pins and a gold chain in my scarf, which
was tied in a sailor's knot, and these I had secured with
some thread to prevent their working out in travelling. The
brigand who was rifling me, finding he could not remove the
pins, very deliberately took his knife and cut the scarf from
my neck, taking it away altogether.
" I was extremely anxious respecting a small gold ring I
had on my finger, since it could not be removed, and I knew
it was their common practice to hack off finger and all when
this was the case. By good luck they never perceived it, as
I contrived to turn the clasped hands, which formed the sig-
net, towards the inside of my palm.
"When they had finished they made us re-enter our car-
riage, still keeping their guns pointed to our heads ; and the
postilion who had descended, resuming his seat, we pro-
ceeded on our route, heartily glad to escape with our lives,
which for the last ten minutes had been worth but little.
Our first care, on arriving at Rovigoovas to call out the
gendarmerie, and some ten or twelve carbineers departed in
search of the robbers, but with little success, as we stfbse-
quently- found.
" We passed a wretched night, as you may conceive, our
bed-room being filled with the officers of police, newspaper
reporters, &c., until morning, taking down all sorts of de-
positions, and asking innumerable questions. The next
morning, on the arrival of the diligence, a young Prussian
nobleman, Baron de Hartmann (whom we had met in our
hotel at Venice, and who had followea us on our route), en-
tered our room, where we were actually lying in bed for the
want of clothes to get up in, and insisting on our sharing
with him a rouleau of Napoleons, which he threw on the
bed, pressing us to take as many as our present wants re-
quired. To this generous and uncalled-for liberality on the
part of a foreigner, and to us almost a perfect stranger, we
were indebted for the means of arriving at Florence, where
we again met him, and repaid our debt, having, with our
passports, fortunately preserved our letter of credit.
" The only things that we saved were, a pocket telescope,
some small silver gondolas, for brooches, purchased at Ve-
nice ; and my straw boating hat, which I still hope to see
again on the Abbey river. Now it is all over, the affair
does to talk and laugh about as ' an adventure ;' but I can
assure you at the time it was anything but pleasant.
• Believe me, yours, &c.,
"ALBERT SMITH."

INFLUENCE OF THE MOTHER'S IMAGINATION
ON THE FETUS IN UTERO.

[We are induced to copy this interesting case, and give it
publicity, because of its intrinsic interest to the medical pro-
fession and the public.]
To the Editors of the Medical Press.
Liverpool, September 23,1840.
GENTLEMEN Samuel Cooper, speaking of Ncevi Materni
of different kinds, says, " All have been supposed to arise
from some impression made on the mind of the mother dur-
ing pregnancy, or at the time of conception." The settle-
ment of this disputed point he leaves to speculative writers.
May I solicit a corner in your Press to tell my story on the
subject.—l am, gentlemen, most respectfully yours,
HUGH NEILL,
Surgeon to the Ophthalmic Infirmary
An infant of six months old., the child of William H
was brought to me at the Ophthalmic Infirmary, about twelve
months ago, having congenital cataract, with malformation of
both eyes, whose development was little more than half the
usual size : the pupils were obliterated by the opaque lenses
being in contact with the iris, to which they were adherent.
As the child could distinguish the light, and followed with
its eyes a lighted candle, I determined to operate.
Upon making inquiry whether any of the relatives were
similarly affected, I was told that that the child's father had
eyes of the same sort. One of his eyes had been operated on
in early life; but the operation was scarcely successful, as
his sight barely enabled him to guide himself about. He was
a pupil in the Blind Asylum in this town for a period of
nineteen years. He has been married for some time—is now
forty years of age, and has only this one child.
I operated upon both eves of the infant, and upon his own
(the one which had not previously been meddled with), and
the operations both upon the infant and himself have been
quite successful ; both have got sight—but this is only a
passing remark. Gratitude for such a blessing as sight urged
the man to tell me the following story, and I repeat it to you
in the first person, as he told it:—

" My mother was, some fifty years ago, a servant in the
country ; in the farmer's family was also another female ser-
vant with some pretensions to beauty. Among the many
men servants about the farm was a half-witted lad who
laboured under some infirmity of vision, (perhaps, partial
congenital cataract!) for he could see, although not well ;
and, with some twisting motion of his head and eyes, ges-
tures ludicrous to those witnessing the manoeuvres.
" This Cupid became enamoured most deeply with my
mother's pretty fellow-servant. His love was the cause of
much merriment to these girls ; and, when his proposal came
in due time, their open laughter could no longer be restrained,
and he forthwith became the butt for all their jests and fun.
" His love soon was turned to bate, and with the bitterest
imprecations on the heads of both, and prophesying that,
should my mother ever have any children, their eyes should
resemble his own, he went away and hung himself.
" Several years passed by and the matter was forgotten,
until my mother was married ; and in the first pregnancy,
the idiot's curses were recalled to her memory, and, as her
"time of trouble" approached, the dreadful thought that her
child should be born blind haunted her night and day. I
was born, and both eyes resembled the idiot's. She had only
one other child, a daughter, who was born with similar mal-
formation. I have only one child—its eyes were similar to
my own."
__

Query.—Will the sceptics say that these were not the ef-
fects of powerful mental sympathetic influence between the
parent and foetus ?—H. N.

THE HEALTH OF LARGE TOWNS.

(From the Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal)

Among the proceedings of the last session of the legisla-
ture, relating to medical questions, is the investigation which
was entered into respecting the health of towns. A commit-
tee was appointed on the 12th of March last, to inquire into
the circumstances affecting the health of the inhabitants of
large towns and populous districts, with a view to improved
sanatory regulations for their benefit. The report which they
have drawn up is collected from the evidence of several wit-
nesses from different parts of the kingdom, and points out
the evils resulting from various causes connected with a
crowding together of the population, at the same time that it
suggests some remedial measures for the consideration of the
house.
To these proposed measures we shall, on some future oc-
casion, direct the attention of onr readers ; at present we are
desirous of making them acquainted with the mass of evil and
mischief, physical and moral, which has resulted from the
want of some efficient system of medical police. The excel-
lent letter of Mr. Farr, published in the Registrar-General's
first annual report, has made known the fatal influence exer-
cised upon the duration of life by the crowding together of
large bodies of people within a confined state. He remarks,
that the fatality of every class of diseases, and almost of
every disease, is augmented in the concentrated city popula-
tion of this country. This observation is proved by a table,
which exhibits the deaths from certain classes of fatal disease
in city and county districts, and affords so decided an illus-
tration in aid of the evidence contained in the parliamentary
report, that we insert it here.
Cities. Counties.
Population

Epidemic, Endemic, and Contagious } 12,766 6,045
Diseases
Sporadic Diseases—

Of the Nervous system
'
„ Respiratory organs 12,619 7,847
„ Organs of circulation
„ Digestive organs 3,476 1,832
„ Urinary organs
„ Organs of generation
„ Organs of locomotion
„ Integumentary system 62 55
Of uncertain seat
Age 2,924 3,102
Violent deaths 1,370 929
Not specified

Total death 5.......... 47,953 29,693
It hence appears that not only is the excess of the morta-
lity of the city population very great in diseases classed as
epidemic, contagious, or endemic,.. but also in those usually
considered as of sporadic for instance, diseases of the
nervous, respiratory, and digestive systems. Mr. Farr sub-
sequently points out the difference in three special causes of
mortality, of vast importance as respects the condition of
the labouring poor, from their chiefly affecting adults, often
the heads of families, and consequently exercising a very
serious effect upon the prosperity of the class. These are
consumption, child-birth, and typhus fever. The deaths, by
consumption, among the county population, amount to 5857;
in the towns to 8125, giving an increase of 39 per cent. The
deaths in child-birth are in the counties 217; in the towns
372, showing an increase of 71 per cent. The deaths from
fever (typhus) are 1564 in the country districts ; in the town
districts 3456, affording an increase of the mortality in the
towns from this cause of 221 per cent.
The evidence brought before the committee of the House
of Commons does not embrace the consideration of the pre-
valence of consumption, or of deaths from child-birth, in
large towns ; but the general fact of the extent and fatality
of disease, especially of such forms as belong to the epidemic
and contagious class, is unhappily but too well borne out.
In some of the densely-peopled and neglected districts of
London, not only are the houses relet, but even the rooms,
so that often more than one family inhabit the same room.
Mr. Mozeley's evidence prbves the prevalence, to a great
extent, of disease, and especially of fevers, in certain of
these districts ; and shows that, independently of the occur-
rence of fever, the inmates of those abodes are ever enfee-