The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-04-25 00:00:00

NEW MUSIC.

The Chalet Polka and the Chateau Polka.
These are two polkas cleverly arranged for the
pianoforte, with just sufficient difficulty to arouse
attention without disheartening the juvenile per-
former ; they will also be found piquant additions
to our popular stock of dance music. They have
been brought out in the usual style of tasteful
accuracy which distinguishes the musical publica-
tions of our townsman Mr. 13eswick.

THE RESOURCES OF AUSTRALIA.

FROM THE SYDNEY CORRESPONDENT OP THE TIMES,

As you are aware, the Executive Government here has
consented to advance £3,000 to defray the expense of col-
lecting specimens of the natural productions of New South
Wales, to be sent to the Great Exhibition at Paris in 1855.
There is a general impression that this colony was not ade-
quately represented in the London Exhibition of 1851. As
the discovery of gold was only made here about the time General Browne and Colonels Sullivan and Laurence,
the Exhibition opened; Australia sent nothing so striking with the Rifle Brigade, and Colonel Victor, of the Artillery,
and brilliant as the fine specimens of the precious metal, with 100 Sappers, have arrived at the camp of Courail,
in solid " nuggets," dust, and scales, it could now furnish. three leagues from Gallipoli. Four thousand French
But these are not the only forms in which it is found ; soldiers, under the orders of General Canrobert, are
many of the auriferous rocks, through which the gold is encamped there. Horses are not to be had. The best
scattered in threads or grains, are more beautiful to the understanding exists among the allied troops. The Pacha
eye than the solid metal. itself.' Parts of the gold region of Adrianople does everything in his power to facilitate
have also produced gems and stones, which have yet to be our arrangements. The Sappers have begun to fortify
confirmed in a full right to the name of " precious ;" and the Isthmus.
the opinion of Parisian lapidaries on the diamonds and The Baltic fleet, under the command of Vice-Admiral
rubies of Australia will be worth taking. There is also a Parseval Desehenes, has sailed from Brest for the Gulf of
great variety of other minerals, quite enough to fit up a Finland. This fleet, on board of which a body of infantry
splendid cabinet of specimens. 'he ores of copper are very and marine artillery has embarked, is composed of 15 sail-
rich; stream tin has been found among the black dust of ing ships, carrying 1,080 guns, one screw vessel of 100
the goldfields ; and more recently a mine of pure steel is guns, and six paddle-wheel steamers, carrying upwards of
said to have been discovered near Bathurst. A block of 30 guns. The Mediterranean squadron includes 23 sailing
Sydney sandstone will be sent to show we have excellent ships of 1,370 guns; six screw vessels of 328 gnus; and
materials for building, and some of the pure white sand of seven paddle-wheel steamers ofdrs of 31 guns. The
the coast, in hopes of tempting over a few glass makers, French navy has now ea
embark, pw
on different seas, woo
for whom there is a capital opening. Specimens of all the sailors.
cereals at present cultivated will be sent, and perhaps a A detachment of the 17th Lancers embarked on Tuesday,
few cases of colonial wine, though the comparisons chal- with their horses, in the Pride of the Ocean, at Ports-
lenged by submitting it to French criticism may be mouth. The process of slinging the horses on board was
slightly hazardous. It is proposed also to give European ' done with the utmost celerity and safety ; eighty-three of
eyes a better idea of some of the Australian scenery by the animals were on board in the first two hours without
means of models than can be derived from pictures or i an accident. The Pride of the Ocean was towed off to
descriptions. The harbour and shores of Port Jackson, 1 Spithead by the Sprightly tender, and sailed on Thursday
from the Heads to Paramatta, including the city of Sydney I for the East. Another detachment of this regiment em-
and its suburbs, with all the coves and creeks of the bay, barked soon after in the Ganges, and left the harbour
have been suggested as furnishing a fine subject for this, on Thursday morning.
the best kind of illustration if it is well executed. Sped- Letters from Gibraltar mention that the North of
mens of the colonial flora could not be sent in their finest Europe Steam Company's vessel Tonning had arrived at
condition, but close imitations of the best native varieties ' that place after a passage of four days and 20 hours, be-
may, it is believed, be prepared in wax. Our fruits are all lieved to be the shortest on record ; she had on board Sir
introductions, and the European sorts would have no direct Colin Campbell and a portion of Lord Raglan's staff,
novelty, but some degree of interest might attach to them together with some troops and 60 horses. The steamship
as familiar friends returning from their distant home, in I City of Norwich, belonging to the same company, sailed
appearance nothing the worse for the climate. The native from the Tower on Saturday, the Bth, and arrived at
woods did not attract so much attention as they deserved Hamburg in 39 hours.
in London, as the specimens sent were in planks and The Albatross, Captain Lyell, lately arrived in Ports-
blocks ; for the Paris Exhibition it is proposed to work mouth Harbour, has been ordered to the East on special
them up into articles of furniture, that the French mann- service. The Stromboli, 6 guns, which has arrived home
facturers may the better appreciate their merits. We from an American station, is expected to be ordered to
should send some colonial silk if we had any, but we the Baltic.
have got no further towards producing it than growing a The gigantic new steam-ship, Royal Albert, 131 guns,
few mulberry trees. In the production of cotton we are is to be launched on the 13th of May, in the presence of
more advanced, 18 bales having been recently shipped for the Queen.
Liverpool from the Moreton Bay district. Olives have In regard to the Baltic fleet we learn from Copenhagen
been grown in the Botanical-garden at Sydney, to the ex- that four Russian ships, laden with cargo, were captured in
tent of two tons in a season, but we do not know how to the Baltic on the 17th, and carried past that city the next
preserve them, or press them for the oil, so the commercial' day as prizes for London. On the 19th the English fleet
value of this capability, like that of so many others, is nil, was reported off Gothland.
Two experiments with coffee have lately been announced Sum CHARLES NAPIEB IN THE BALTIC.—A letter
as failures at Moreton Bay ; in one the plant withered, in from an officer on board H.M.S. Hecla, dated Copenhagen,
the other the seed would not grow. It is a safe rule to the 13th April, states that Sir Charles Napier had sent a
assume that any kind of cultivation that requires special competent party to the island of Gothland, to ascertain if
knowledge and close attention, cheap labour and many there was any good anchorage there for the fleet, and if
hands, does not and will not exist in Australia for many water could be provided. In returning, the officer fell in
years. Cattle breeding and agriculture, according to the with the Dauntless, on her way back from the Gulf of
most ordinary English methods, are the only productive Finland, with intelligence that the ice had cleared away
industries practised on a large scale, to which may be added up as high as Helsingfors, and that six or seven Russian
horticulture enough to furnish a meagre supply of the com- sail of the line were anchored there under the strong
monest English kitchen vegetables and fruit. batteries. Sir Charles Napier, who was then in Kioge
Bay, about 18 miles from Copenhagen, on hearing this
news, at once made arrangements to sail immediately,
and on the 12th inst. put to sea, at the same time sending
the Hecla to Copenhagen with despatches, and to com- 1
t plete coaling. The Hecla will rejoin Sir Charles imme-
-1 diately, together with the Dauntless, Gorgon, and one or
two other steamers, which were all at Copenhagen on
the 13th.
The Bth Hussars, or " King's Royal Irish Light
Dragoons," embarked on Saturday week at Plymouth, on
board the Echunga transport. Some trouble was found in
getting the horses on board, and an accident occurred:--
` Not all the caresses, which the Hussars bestowed un-
sparingly on their favourites, could induce some of them
to submit to the trammels. They snorted, reared,
plunged, darted to and fro, and in other ways gave much
trouble to the courageous fellows, who invariably over-
came them in the end. One of the creatures furiously
resisted all efforts to put the sling upon him. Numbers
of men clung to him, but he threw them off several times,
except those who held the halter. At length an instru-
ment, with a loop of leather at the end of it, was fastened
to his upper lip. This had generally tamed the most re-
fractory, but it only excited this noble creature ; and
kicking with fearful violence, all near him were dispersed
except the man who held the instrument just named, and
he was borne along off his legs, yet never slackened his
hold. The horse soon stopped ; it was pushed back to its
place, and another attempt was made to put the sling
under him; he, however, kicked it from him, and at the
same time kicked one of the assistant riggers in the
abdomen. The poor fellow walked a step or two and then
fell. He was immediately taken in men's arms to the
doctor's office. After this serious accident a rope was
fastened round a hind leg of the creature, when his kicks
became more violent than before, but having exhausted
himself, the rope was brought between his fore legs, over
his shoulders, and round his neck. This being drawn
tight materially prevented his struggles, the sling was
fastened upon him quickly, in the twinkling of an eye he
was pawing in the air, and the next moment was deposited
in the ship's hold." Besides this, another horse knocked
down a Dragoon ; and the last that was put on board bit
the arm of another Dragoon. The sailing orders of the
Echunga arrived by electric telegraph on Monday, when
she immediately put to sea, with a fair wind.
GREEKS IN TURKEY.—The measures against the Hel-
lenic population are being carried out with unexampled
severity. Every steamer that leaves for Syra is crowded
with human beings so thickly wedged together, that to
walk the decks is impossible. At least four hundred are
said to have taken their departure in one vessel. Most of
them have been reduced to the depths of poverty, and
when thrown ashore, friendless and destitute, at the
Piraeus, three-fourths of the men will probably go to
swell the ranks of the Thessalian insurgents, or take to
their old trade of piracy in the 4Egean. A very large
number of the subjects of King Otho, resident in Turkey,
have acknowledged allegiance to the Sultan, and will re-
main in the country.
THE BLACH SEA.—A letter has been received in South
Shields from Mr. Philips, master of the barque Anne, now
at Constantinople, giving the particulars of the attack on
his vessel by the Russians on the Danube. The captain
states that the Russians kept up a brisk fire for above half
an hour, and that one of the balls knocked the cap off his
head. At two o'clock on the following morning about
100 soldiers came on board, and compelled Mr. Philips to
get out of bed, when they took him and the crew before
the Russian general. On arriving there Captain Philips
asked the realSOn why they had fired upon his vessel, when
the general replied that it was a mistake, and apologized
for what had been done. In a few hours afterwards Mr.
Philips and his crew were liberated, and escorted back to
their vessel by a guard of soldiers. He also states that
one of the crew of the Bedlington, of Blyth, was killed,
and the master wounded.—Shields Gazette.
OUR NAVAL RESERVE.—A full account has been given
of the powerful fleets which have been designated for ser-
vice in the Black Sea and the Baltic. We do not suppose
it likely that they will prove inadequate for the hot work
they will have to encounter ; but even if they do, and
supposing both of those magnificent fleets should be de-
stroyed, we have ample material in our home ports to
supply their places. From our ships in reserve and build-
ing we could form a naval force far surpassing that which
any other nation in the world can boast of having afloat.
We have in reserve at the four ports of Portsmouth,
Devonport, Chatham, and Sheerness, not less than 161
vessels of the " effective ships of the Royal navy," and
these estimated to carry not less than 6,807 guns. Be-
sides these, too, we have a goodly number of paddlewheels
and other small craft. Though some of the vessels may
not without considerable repairs be in a state to send to
sea, yet most of them are excellent sea-going vessels—far
superior indeed, to anything Russian—and could be
fitted out for service on very short notice. Then we have
of vessels building-5 at Portsmouth, 7at Devonport, 1
at Sheerness, 6 at Chatham, 11 at Pembroke, 4 at Dept •
ford, 4 at WoolWiChl MA 1 at Millwall.—Portamout4
C4t4tirdiGne

VARIETIES.

A Tunictsu WILL.—A testator left to his eldest son
one-half of his horses, to his second son one-third of his
horses, to his third son one-ninth of his horses—the
testator bad seventeen horses. The executor did not know
what to do, as seventeen will neither divide by two, by
three, nor by nine. A Dervish came up on horseback,
and the executor consulted him. The Dervish said, " Take
my horse and add him to the others." There were then
eighteen horses. The executor then gave to the eldest
son one-half, 9 i to the second son one-third, 6 ; to the
third son one-ninth, 2; total 17. The Dervish then said,
" You don't want my horse now ; I will take him back
again."
ImpouTaNcE of LEGS.—Only consider the im-
portance of legs ! What should we be without them ? Ask
some infinitely poor and miserable person, a bedridden
man. To be deprived of the blessed faculty of locomotion
at will—not to possess that glorious privilege of riding
" Shank's mare, or of taking the " Marrow-bone stage ;"
of bidding defiance to stage-coaches, carriages, cabs, and
railway trains ; of feeling the firm earth
beneath our tread ;
of footing it over the daisies, or strolling over the velvetty
sward, or climbing the hill, or descending the valley, or
paddling through the brook ; to be unable to take a walk,
in fact is to be deprived of nine tithes of our pleasure here
below, of half our capacity for enjoyment, of nearly all our
faculty of observation. A man may learn with his legs
very nearly as much as he can with his eyes ; and helearns
it more cheerfully, more genially, more naturally. It was
a true word spoken in jest, that named the legs the under-
standings. A great walker is nearly always a contented,
happy, and philosophically observant man. The free use of
his legs makes the penny postman satisfied with his
twenty-five shillings a week, reconciles the policeman to
his weary night watch, solaces the sentinel on his guard,
makes the ploughboy whistle as he follows his team, the
milkmaid balance her pails merrily, and the pedlar carry
his pack as if it were a pleasure. Legs are a consolation
in trouble, and thegrand remover of spleen, care, and evil
humours. The first thing that a man does when he is im-
mured in jail is to walk about (if so he be allowed) his
prison yard. If you have been angry with your brother,
or if your wife has vexed you, or your affairs are in a
gloomy case, or your periodical hatred of the world and
those who are in it, come upon you, you cannot do better
than "walk it off."—Dickens' Household Words."
A DEAru-BED IN BETIINAL GREEN.—I went into one
room in this unhappy place—this core of all the misery in
Bethnal-green—and saw a woman in bed with a three
weeks' infant on her arm. She was still too weak to rise,
and her husband had died when the baby was three days'
old. She had four other children, and she panted to get
up and earn. It eased her heart to tell of her lost love,
and the portion of her story that I here repeat was told by
her, in the close narrow room, with a more touching em-
phasis than I can give it here ; with tremblings of the
voice and quiverings of the lip that went warm to the
hearts of all who listened :—" The morning before my
bpsband died," she said, " he said to me, ' 0 Mary, I have
had such a beautiful dream I'—' Have you, dear ?' says I ;
do you think you feel strong enough to tell it me ?'—
' Yes,' says he, I dreamt that I was in a large place where
there was a microscopic clock' (he meant a microscope),
and I looked through it and saw the seven heavens all
full of light and happiness, and straight before me, Mary,
I saw a face that was like a face I knew: And whose
face was it love ?' says I. 'I do not know; says he, bud
it was more beautiful than anything I ever saw, and
bright and glorious, and I said to it, shall I be glorified
with the same glory that you are glorified with ? And
the head bowed towards me. And I said am I to die
soon ? And the head bowed towards me. And I said
shall I die to-morrow ? And the face fixed its eyes on
me and went away. And now what do you think that
means ?' Ido not know,' says I, but I think it must
mean that God is going to call you away from this world
where you have had so much trouble, and your suffering
is going to be at an end, but you must wait His time, and
that is why the head went away when you said, shall I
die to-morrow ?" I suppose you are right; says he, and
I don't mind dying, but, 0 Mary, it goes to my heart to
leave you and the young ones' (here the tears spread over
the poor woman's eyes, and her voice began to tremble).
I am afraid to part with you ; I am afraid for you after
lam gone.'—' You must not think of that,' says I ; yoq
have been a good husband, and it's God's will you should'
go.'—` I won't go, Mary, without saying good-bye to you,'
says he. If I can't speak, I'll wave my hand to you,'
says he, and you'll know when I'm going: And so it
was, for in his last hours he could not speak a word, and
he went off so gently that I never should have known in
what minute he died if I had not seen his hands moving
and waving to me good-bye before he went." Such dreams
and thoughts belong to quiet poverty. I have told this
incident just as I heard it ; and if I were a daily visitant
in Bethnal-green, I should have many tales of the Mule
kind to " Household Words,"