The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1851-09-16 00:00:00

MISCELLA.A-L'OUS.

Sir M. R. Shaw Stewart has given a public park in per-
petuity to the people of Greenock.
Mrs. Horrocks, a huckster in Preston market, aged 75,
has lately " cnt" three new teeth.

A tablet, in memory of the late William Wordsworth,
has just been erected in Grasmere Church. • -
A statue of the late Lord Melville is about to be erected
in front of the County-hall, Edinburgh.

Gambling, it is said, has been mournfully prevalent
amongst the traders of Hull.
Messrs. Rucker and Sons announce a dividend of 2s. 6d.
in the pound, to be paid in a few days.
The corvette Artemise, now fitting out at Cherbourg, is,
it is said, intended to form part of a scientific expedition
round the world, under the command of Captain Page.

An Indian paper refuses to publish eulogies
but adds—" We will publish the simple announcement of
death of any of our friends with pleasure."
The town council of Leeds have decided to build a town
hall and corporate offices, at an expense of £22,000 with-
out the site, or of £31,000 with.—Leeds Mercury.

A basket-hilted broadsword was found, a few days since,
on Culloden Moor, near the stone known as the Duke of
Cumberland's resting place on the day of the battle,

An infant has been killed at Sheffield by a cricket-ball
striking it on the head while its nurse was viewing the

progress of a game.
On Tuesday last, two men who descended a well at the
King's Arms Tun, Exeter, to make some alterations in
the pipe, were suffocated by foul air.
The sale of the materials of the old House of Commons
commenced on Wednesday. The auctioneer took the
place of the Speaker, and knocked down the lots to spe-
culative builders and eager jobbers in old materials.
It is said that next year, 1852, all the paper money now
in circulation in Prussia will be withdrawn, and that it will
be replaced by notes resembling those of the Bank of Eng-
land.
Her Majesty's Theatre is filled to overflowing each night,
as Mr. Lumley is presenting operas at playhouse prices.
Probably both houses would find that moderate prices
would pay best in the long run.
It is stated upon respectable authority, that a very
amiable young lady, who had been induced to enter, as a
postulant, the convent, at Clifton, has seen quite enough
of conventional life, and quitted that establishment.
The seven large casks of Messrs. Barclay's brewhouso,
known as the " Seven Sisters," hold each 3.600 barrels,
or 129,600 gallons of beer, making in all 907.200 gallons,
and these are frequently emptied in three days I
Letters from Grand Cairo, of the 4th ultimo, in one of
the sporting journals, announce that an English mare
has defeated the " Arab steeds" of the desert, both in
long and short distances.
The Times says that the Austrian Loan would find no
reception whatever in this country at the present rate of
exchange; the issuing price of 100 would be equal to
about 80.
The Hong Kong Register announces that the Chinese
residents in that city have begun to allow their ladies to
enjoy social intercourse with the wives and daughters of
the barbarians.
Snow fell heavily on the mountains of Schytz, in Swit-
zerland, on the 29th and 30th ult., end half the canton
was covered with snow. This is the first time for the last
fifty years that. snow has been seen so early in the season.
Discoveries of the ruins of an ancient city, two miles
long, containing vast quantities of broken, burnt earthen-
ware, arrow points, &c., have been made by the Mormons
in the south of Utah territory.
It is said that the constitution of the lonian Islands is
to he changed. There is to be a viceroy with a responsible
cabinet, and only one chamber. The, senate, which has
always shown itself hostile to England, is to be abolished.
in Suffolk, it is a practice on New Year's eve to open
a Bible at midnight, and the passage upon which they
stick a pin will be the luck (good or bad) that attends
them the following year.—Notes and Queries.
The hire and working, for one day, of the American
reaping machine, comes to £3; and, in that time, it will
cut ten acres. By hand labour, the reaping, binding, and
shocking of the same extent of land would cost £5.
During the sessions of Parliament since the last general
election, 133 seats, or nearly one-sixth of the entire House
of Commons, became vacant; thus securing to the people,
it is remarked, some compensation for the evils of the sep-
tennial system.
A Paris paper relates that a mam named Thevenin, lately
ate his breakfast while he was suspended by his feet, with
his head downwards, and afterwards declared that he had
never made a better breakfast than he had done while in
that position, in which he remained during eleven minutes.
Duncan Dunbar, Esq., the extensive London shipowner,
and a leading Protectionist, is spoken of as likely to come
forward at the next election as a candidate for the repre-
sentation of the borough of Sunderland.—Newcastle
Guardian.
One of the soldiers of the 40th Royals, now at Winches-
ter, has voluntarily resigned himself into the hands of the
police, acknowledging that ho is amenable to the law for
murder, committed on a young woman in Norwich, about
four years ago. _ _ _ _ _ _

We learn by our letters from the Cape, that the slave-
prize which we lately announced as having been captured
by H.M. sloop Orestes, contained some twenty thousand
pounds' worth of ivory, ebony, jewels, gold dust, and
other valuable property.—United Service Gazette.
By the decease of Mr. Busfield, the representation of
Bradford has become vacant, as far as one of the seats in
parliament is concerned. The only candidate at present
in the field is Mr. H. W. Wickham, who comes forward
as a Conservative free trader.
The coroner's jury who have inquired into the cause of
the colliery accident at Kingswood, near Bristol, have re-
turned a verdict of " manslaughter" against the engineer,
John Stone, who was committed on the coroner's warrant
to take his trial at the next Gloucester assizes.
Mr. Egerton having declined to stand for the East
Riding of Yorkshire, the Hon. Captain Duncombe, M.P.,
for East Retford, has been applied to, and is believed to
have consented. There will, consequently, be a vacancy
for East Retford.
An ass belonging to Mr. Bray, tinner, of Barnsley,
which had been unwell for a long time, died a few days
ago. On opening it, a large stone, in the form of a ball,
and weighing a pound and a half, was found inside the

animal's stomach.
An inquiry is going on at Sheffield respecting the death
of a poor Irish reaper, who was found on the road with
his skull fractured, and died without being able to give
any explanation. He is supposed to have been attacked
and robbed of his earnings.
A man unknown, aged about 40, was apprehended in
Holborn, on Monday morning, for tendering a bad crown
piece. On being carried to the police station he was
found to have expired, from an effusion of blood on the
brain, caused, in the opinion of the workhouse surgeon,
by fright !
A challenge has been sent up from the beachmen at
North Yarmouth, to sail one of their splendid large
yawls, named the Reindeer, against the clipper schooner
yacht America. The sum proposed is 100 guineas. A
correspondence is now going on with the owner of the
latter relative to the proposed match.
Mr. Scoble, the secretary of the Anti-Slavery, has
safely arrived at Boston, United States, en route to
Canada, his object being to inquire into the condition and
prospects of the coloured population, many hundreds of
whom have lately escaped thither from the fury of the
oppressor.—Anti- Slavery Reporter.
A massive gold collar, purchased by a subscription pro-
moted by the ladies, has been presented to the Mayor of
Sunderland, to be worn by the chief magistrate of that
town on official occasions. It is also intended to append
to the chain a superb gold badge, the subscription for
which has been raised.
In the year ending the sth of January, 1840, the num-
ber of postoffice money orders issued in the United King-
dom was 188,921 representing a sum of £313,124. Last
year the number of orders was 4,439,713, representing the
sum of £8,494,498, transmitted in amounts averaging
£1 18s. 3d. each.
Madame Rachel is making a progress through Germany,
but at such a rapid rate that she is suspected of being an
emissary of the democrat committee. A statement in the
same paper, however, that her performances at the theatre
were thinly attended may account more naturally for the
quickness of this eminent tragedian's movements.
The America is said to have won the race at Cowes,
thanks to her " superior rigging." Now, as America was
finely rigged by England for being so far behind every
other race at the great exhibition, so England must not
feel angry, after having been fairly beaten in a naval race,
if she is made to feel in her turn the smartness of
America's Rigging.
A donkey committed suicide in the orchard of Mr.
Parker, at Mickleholme, a few nights since : the children
had been swinging and had left the rope dangling near the
ground. In the night the donkey got his head entangled
in the rope, and, turning round, so twisted the rope
round its neck that next morning it was found strangled,
its head not being more than a foot from the ground.
—Stamford Mercury.
John Caffery, a marble polisher, has been committed
for trial at Clerkenwell, charged with having beaten his
son, a boy of fourteen, with a red hot poker. He hunted
the boy whilst naked round the room, and so burnt 'bins
that a certificate was put in from the surgeon of the St.
Pancras Infirmary stating that he was unable to attend
owing to the burns on the back, shoulders, legs, and face.
The prisoner, in defence, accused the child of robbing him.
The electric telegraph is a capital agency for catching
stray wives. On Saturday last a lady of fifty-three eloped
with a theatrical performer from Plymouth. The husband
of the faithless one telegraphed to Newton, and when the
pair arrived there, they were amazed on being arrested by
Inspector Baker, a'cut officer. On being taken back to
Plymouth, in custody, the husband relented, on his wife
entreating forgiveness, and promising never to do the like
again.
A man named Taylor, of notorious character, at Frisk-
nev, Lincolnshire, has, on his death bed, confessed to the
murder of a boy named Enderley, who disappeared about
fifteen years ago. It appears the boy was up early, at
three o'clock in the morning, to go with some horses to
Louth, when he discovered Taylor and a man named
Milnes, since deceased, slaughtering a sheep ; to prevent
disclosure of their crime, they murdered the boy. It ap.
pears Milnes had made similar confession on his death-
bed. but too indistinctly to be used.
Upon the morning of Friday, the 29th, the mountains
of Benalder, Beneven, and Gealcairn, in Inverness-shire,
presented a singular phenomenon, being covered with a
thick coat of snow, not only on their lofty summits, but
also half down their furrowed and rugged sides, whilst the
famed Shechailllion and other mountains of Perthshire,
within view, were quite free of it; and even Ben Nevis and
the loftiest summit of the Gruapaichean, only second to
Ben Nevis itself in height, were free from any fresh snow.

x-Scolch Paper

1 CHESHIRE AND_ NORTH WALES.

A magnificent Eisteddfod is to be held at Denbigh in
the autumn of 1862. Prince Albert and the Prince of
'ales have been invited to attend.

The following place has been duly registered for the
solemnization of marriages therein :—Ebenezer, Llan-
gefni, Anglesea.
A woman named Sarah Ding was committed, on Tues-
day. by Mr. J. D. Case, at Birkenhead, for deserting an
infant to which she had given birth about a month previous.
An extensive and commodious market is about to be
erected at Llandudno. The capital is to be raised in
shares, more than one-half of which have been already
subscribed for.
FREEMASONRY.—The Right Hon. Viscount Comber-
mere, R.W.P.G.M. of Cheshire, has appointed the Rev.
R. Cockcroft, incumbent of Oxton, V.W. Provincial
Grand Chaplain for Cheshire.
NEW BRAZILIAN STEAM FRIGATE.—This splendid
piece of naval architecture, which is now almost com-
pleted, will be launched from Messrs. Wilson's yard, at
Birkenhead, on the 25th instant.
The Protectionists of Brecon and its neighbourhood are
striving to induce Sir Charles Morgan, Bart., to come
forward at the next general election to contest the repre-
sentation of the borough with Lloyd Vaughan Watkins,
Esq., who has for some years past been the sitting
member.

Several parties at Seacombe having been summoned for
church-rates, the rate being no less than 3d. in the pound,
they objected to pay on the ground that the money had
been illegally appropriated. The question is to be tried
in the Ecclesiastical Court, and in the meantime the sum-
monses are allowed to stand over.

FUNERAL OF MRS. WALKER.—The remains of the
widow of Mr. H. B. Walker, of Holt-bill, Tranmere,
were borne to their last resting place on Saturday, at St.
Mary's Churchyard, Birkenhead. It is a singular fact that
Mr. Walker died on the 29th August, 1850, and his widow
on the same day of the month of 1851.

The celebration of the third jubilee of the Society for
the Propagation of the Gospel will be solemnised in
Chester on Tuesday, (this day,) with morning service,
commencing at eleven o'clock, at the Cathedral, during
which a special anthem will be sung, and the sermon
'preached by the lord bishop of the diocese.—Chester
Courant.

CHURCH PASTORAL AID SOCIETY.—On Sunday last,
at St. Catherine's Church, Tranmere, after sermons by
the Rev. Wm. Francis Taylor and the Rev. B. Arthure,
the sum of £lO ss. 4id. was collected in aid of the funds
of the above society ; and in Christ Church, Claughton,
after a sermon by the Rev. B. Arthure, the sum of
£l2 4s. Oid. for the same purpose.
MASONIC FESTIVAL AT CREWE.—On Wednesday, a
provincial grand lodge of freemasons, for the county of
Chester, was held at the Town-hall, Crewe. After the
transaction of the private business, the brethren formed
into a lengthy and imposing procession to the church,
where an appropriate sermon was delivered by Brother
the Rev. W. Cockcroft, from Numbers xxiii., 9. A sump-
tuous banquet afterwards took place at the Crewe Arms
Hotel, Viscount Combermere in the chair.
CHESTER AND HOLYHEAD RAlLWAY.—Traffic for the
week ended 7th Sept.—C. & H. Main Line : passengers,
£2,624 ss. 58. ; parcels, H. C. & D., £BB ss. 4d.; goods,
cattle, &c.,£460 16s. Id.; Mails,.£s7s; total, £3,748 6s. 108.
—Mold : passengers, £4l 2s. 4d. ; parcels, H. C. & D.,
£2 7s. Bd. ; goods, cattle, &c., £B4 13s. Bd.; total, £l2B
3s. 81—Steam-boats : passengers, £523 12s. sd; parcels,
H. C. & D.. £24 ls. ; total, £547 13s. sd.—Grand total,
£4,424 3s. Ild.

THE BRITANNIA HOTEL.—The proposed new hotel,
on the land between the tubular and suspension bridges,
and near to the junction of the Carnarvon and Bangor
with the Chester and Holyhead railway, we hear, is not
to be abandoned, as has been represented, but the plans
are to be reduced, so as to make it one-third the size at
first contemplated. It is expected to be completed by the
close of the ensuing year, and, we are assured, will then
be one of the most convenient and commodious places of
public accommodation in Europe.—North Tales Chron.

IMPORTANT TO HOUSE AGENTS.—At the Birkenhead
County Court on Friday, Mr. Craven, as agent for Mr.
Robinson, summoned Mr. Thorpe, of Brunswick-street,
Tranmere, for the sum of £3 14s. 3d., including costs,
being a quarter's rent fora house belonging to Mr. Robin-
son, and which Mr. Thorpe had occupied for part of a quar-
ter. The defendant had let the house to another party,
whom Mr. Craven accepted as a tenant, and on quitting
the house tendered to Mr. Craven the full amount of the
rent then due, namely, £1 ss. 6d., which he refused to
accept, and he also refused to give a receipt in full of all
demands. The learned judge ruled that Mr. Craven had
no right to refuse giving the receipt, and gave a verdict for
the defendant.

DISORDERLY CONDUCT.—John W. Clarke, and W. L.
Gilliland, were summoned before the sitting magistrates
at Seacombe, on Wednesday, for an assault. Gilliland
did not appear. Alice Connell and Mary Hughes, two
respectable-looking servant girls, stated that on the even-
ing of Thursday last, about ten o'clock, the defendants
accosted them, and after using very disgraceful language
Clarke struck one of the girls on the side of the head;
the other girl was also ill-used. Two witnesses were
called who saw the defendants immediately after the
alleged assault, and they described their conduct as being
exceedingly shameful. The magistrates admonished
Clarke (who was a youth of very genteel exterior) and
ordered him to find bail for his good behaviour.

PUBLIC LODGING-HOUSES IN BIRKENHEAD.—Parlia-
ment. in the recent session, having passed an act for the
regulation of lodging-houses, the Birkenhead magistrates,
on Thursday, caused the court to be cleared for the purpose
of considering its provisions. The act contains provisions
to the effect that all common lodging-houses shall be
registered, with power to the police to inspect the same ;
and any obstruction to the officer, violation of the act with
regard to the size of the rooms, harbouring contagious dis-
ease, or other infraction of the law, is to be visited with a
penalty of £5, and a further penalty, not exceeding 405.,
for each and every day that the offence shall be committed.
As all public lodging. houses are required to be registered,
the magistrates have the power to close them by suspend-
ing the licenses for any infraction of the law. As the
court had not time for considering the regulations which
they might think it advisable to adopt, the consideration
of the subject was adjourned to a future day.
A GHOST STORY.—On Tuesday night last a strange
contretemps was enacted at Birkenhead. A Scottish
quarryman, named Harvey, residing at Gillhrook, having
become intoxicated, stripped off his clothes beside a pit
near Kenyon-terrace and lay down to sleep. An hour or
two afterwards he was seen stalking along in his white
shirt by two men who thought he was a ghost, and re-
ported their vision to the police. Search being made,
the clothes were found on the brink of the pit, suggesting
thoughts of suicide. Grappling-irons being procured,
the pit and others in the vicinity were perseveringly
dragged ; but, like the fishermen of old, "they toiled all
night and caught nothing." In the morning Sawney
found himself in his own snug bed, but on getting up his
clothes were gone. In due time, however, the mystery
on both sides came to be explained, and the " cannie
Scot" claimed and obtained at the police-office the gar-
ments of the supposed suicide.

BIRKENHEAD CommisstoNrus.—An adjourned and
special meeting of this board was held on Tuesday evening,
Mr. John Laird in the chair. The minutes of a joint
committee of the road and improvement and of the finance
committees were read, relatingto a completion of Canning.
street, from which it appeared that a tender had been
received from Mr. George Makin to do the work for
£2,400, to be paid in township bonds, and that the amount
should be considered as a set off against the £40,000 due
by the commissioners to the dock trustees. The arrange-
ment come to between the commissioners and the dock
trustees was, that the former should have a lien upon
the bonds for £40,000 now in the hands of the Royal
Bank, and on which £15,000 had been advanced ; and that
notice should be given to the bank to that effect. A long
discussion took place in reference to this proposition. The
motion was carried by a majority of two, including the
chairman. The next part of the proceedings referred to
the formation of Ilchester Wharf, on the shore of the
Great Float; and it appeared that the tender of Mr.
Makin, to construct it for £l9OO, had been accepted. A
debate also arose on this ; but the motion was carried by
a majority of ten to four. The new code of bye-laws for
the regulation of the ferry and porters was read and
adopted, and the Town,clerk instructed to take the neces-
sary steps for their confirmation by the quarter sessions.

SHREWSI3URY AND CHESTER RAILWAY.—The half-
yearly meeting of this company was held at the Royal
Hotel, Chester, on Wednesday. Wm. Wardell, Esq.,
presided, and the meeting was numerously attended.
The chairman congratulated the proprietors on the act,
procured last session, giving the company power to run
over the Birkenhead line to Birkenhead, and also to Wal-
ton, on the Warrington and Altrincham Junction line.
He then intimated that a special meeting would shortly
be held, as it was in contemplation to call up the £lO
shares. The report, amongst other matters, referred to
the advantages the company would derive from the carry-
ing into execution the River Dee Improvement Act, and
anticipated that the value of their property at Saltney,
which was already obtaining considerable importance as a
port, would be much increased. The agreements with the
southern allies of this company (the Shrewsbury and Bir-
mingham and Great Western), which had already been
brought fully before the shareholders, the directors e 7
pressed their determination to carry out • and th
glad to report that the Stour Valley, from !Wolverhampton
to Birmingham, would be opened in October. The state-
Ment of accounts in the hands of the shareholders showed
that the sum of £6,398 12s. 6d. was applicable for divi-
dend. The dividend on the preference shores, including
income-tax, will require £7,000. The directors recom-
mended tint the deficiency, amounting to £6Ol 7s. 6d..
be taken from the reserve fund. The report was adopted
with but one dissentient.
CHESTER AND HOLYHEAD RAILWAY.—The half-
yearly general meeting of this company took place on
Thursday, at the Euston-square station of the North-
Western Railway. S. M. Peto, Esq., in the chair. After
the usual preliminaries the secretary read the report,
which showed the receipts for the half year ending 30th
June, 1851. were :—" Railway : receipts, £61,662 13s.
9d. ; expenditure, £33,184 14s. Bd. ; showing a profit of
£28,477 ]9s. ld. Steam-boats : receipts, £4,208 ss. Id. ;
expenditure, £6,639 10s. 941. ; showing a loss of £2,431
ss. Bd. ; leaving a net profit of £26,040 13s. 5d., which
was upwards of £lO,OOO over the corresponding period of
last year. The question of remuneration for Irish mail
services performed previously to the opening of the Bri-
tannia Bridge, from which date the contract with the
Post-office, concluded in 1844, came into operation, has
at length been settled, with the exception of two months
at the commencement of the period in question, by a
reference from the arbitrators to the urrpirage of Mr. J.
Roebucl , M.P., whose award gives the company—for

ley were

single mail, from 30th September, 1848, to 18th June,
1849, and double mail, from the latter date to the 25th
March, 1850, £28,128, which sum, although considerably
above the estimate of the government arbitrator, is below
the present contract rate. The works on the original
contracts are now being completed ; and the directors
being desirous of finally arranging the capital account,
have instructed the engineers and accountant to take the
necessary steps to that end. The revenue account shows
a balance, at the 30th of June last, £31,358 193. From
this sum must be deducted £24,761 19s. 6d., being the
interest paid upon the debentures on the 10th of July
last, leaving net balance of £6,596 19s. 6d. available
for dividend on the preference shares ; and your directors
recommend that a dividend of 3s. ld. on these shares be
declared accordingly." The Chairman then moved the
adoption of the report, which was agreed to; and after
the transaction of other routine business the meeting
separated.

WELSH BARDIC CONGRESS,

The first meeting of the Welsh Bardic Congress took

place at the Conceit-hall, on Tuesday evening, a numer-
ous assemblage of ladies and gentlemen being present.
The hall was appropriately decorated with evergreens,
banners, and harps. The president was the Rev. D,
James, M.A., F.S.A. ; and J. Games, Esq., M.D.. filled
the vice-chair. The chairman delivered an animated
address on the excellence of the Welsh language, which he
extolled as superior to all others. He also dwelt at some
length on the literature and music of his native country.
The poetical addresses of the bards were then deiivered,
some of them drawing forth the heartiest applause. Miss
Ann Brewer afterwards, at the call of the chairman,
played upon the harp a solo, " Merch Megan," with t reat
tasto and expression. The instrument upon which this
lady performed is about to be presented to her by the
ladies and gentlemen of Liverpool and the principality.
There are from eighty to one hundred subscribers,

amongst whom are the Dowager Lady Erskine, Sir Wat-
kin Williams Wynn, Bart., and several of the clergymen
and merchants of this town.
The Welsh Choral Society sung a chorus, and the
chairman gave the award of prizes for Welsh Essays on
" The Usefulness of Scientific Knowledge." The first
prize, £7 and a silver medal, was adjudged to John Mor-
gan, of Wrexham ' • second, £3 10s., to John Jones, of
Llanelly ; third, £1 10s. to T. Richards, of Merthyr Tydvil.
An address, in English, was then delivered by Dr. J.
Games, who urged upon the meeting the importance of
encouraging similar gatherings to tle present, tending, as
they did, to promote true patriotism,
The prizes for Welsh poems on " Moses' view of
Canaan, from the summit of Pisgah," were afterwards
awarded. The first, £6, was obtained by Evan Jones;
second, £3, Rev. T. B. Morris, Rhyl ; third, £1 10s.
William Evans, National School. The awards were read
in the Welsh language, and the silver medal was placed
round the neck of the first prize-man by Mrs. Richards.
Some Welsh Pennillion singing, by Messrs. R. and A.
Evans and W. Hughes, followed ; after which the Rev.
M. Williams, incumbent of Amlwch, delivered an address
in Welsh. Another award of prizes succeeded, namely,
£3 to William Williams, of Staleybridge, and £1 to Abra-
ham Williams, of Mostyn Colliery, for eight stanzas " To
the Memory of the late Mr. John Jones," secretary of
the Cambrian Society. The air of " Jenny Jones," per-
formed on the harp by Mr. Edward Hughes, with the
" Eisteddfod song," by the choral singers, closed the pro-
ceedings of the evening.
On Wednesday this interesting festival was resumed at
seven o'clock—the Rev. D. James again presiding. The
chorus " The glorious rising of the sun," air, " Codiad
yr Haul," was first given by the members of the Welsh
Choral Society, in a very effective manner. An address,
in Welsh, by the Rev. Wm. Jones, of Nevin, succeeded.
The next proceeding was the awarding of prizes for
essays on " The duties and responsibilities of a mother,"
(by !" female.)

The decisions announced by the chairman were :—First
prize, £4, Mr. Genlius, (an assumed name) ; second, £2,
Mair Gwynedd, Mrs. Manuel, Llanover, Monmouthshire;
third, £l, Miss Jane Jones, violinist. A violin solo,
" Fantasia on Welsh Airs," was then played by Mr. E.
W. Thomas, accompanied on the piano-forte by Mr.
Rogers. It was an exceedingly tasteful performance.
A Welsh address succeeded by the Rev. W. Williams.
" Caledfryn." Mr. Solomon Gibson (brother to the cele-
brated sculptor) then delivered an address in English.
The duett, " Gruffydd's Feast," air " Alldud o Cymru,"
was next performed by members of the Welsh Choral
Society. A performance on the harp by an amateur (Mr.
David Rowland Jones) having intervened, a contest then
took place on the triple harp, a prize of £3 being awarded
to the best performer, and one of £1 to the second. The
competitors were Miss Mary Ann Brewer, of Liverpool,
who played the air, " Llwyl on ;" Mr. Edward Hughes,
air, " Bardd yn ei awen ;" Mr. John Jones, of Chester,
air, " Pen rhaw ;" and Edward Jones, of Liverpool, air,
" Sweet Richard."

The prizes for the contest on the harps were next
awarded, the first, £3, to Mr. Edward Hughes; the
second, £l, to Mr. Edward Jones, of Liverpool. The
prizes were then awarded for the Welsh poems on " Navi-
gation," Gwilym Ganoldrefn, the Rev. Richard Parry, of
Ffestiniog, being invested by Mrs. Richards with the first
prize, a silver medal, accompanied by £7. The second
prize, of £3 10s., was awarded to Hu Gadarn, Mr. Thos.
Davies, shopkeeper, of Cardigan.
A grand finale, " God save the Queen," by the whole
choir, with English and Welsh words, wound up the
Eisteddfod, which certainly has been moat successful.

DIRECT COMMUNICATION WITH CANADA.-

THE SCREW STEAM-SHIP S. S. LEWIS.

The day of opening the railway from Boston to the
Canadas, now on the verge of completion, has been
appropriately selected for the celebration of the building a
new line of steamers to ply between Boston and Liverpool.
To all connected in the trade either with British America.
Boston, or the far west, this completion of the link of
communication will be importantly apparent. The line
which has been established by that enterprising firm,
Messrs. Harnden and Co., will consist of four or more
first-class vessels. The first launched is the S. S. Lewis,
the largest propeller steam-ship ever constructed at
Boston. being 232 feet long, 82 feet beam, and 26 feet
deep, measured from the coombings. It is calculated
that she will carry 1,000 tons of measurement goods, 400
tons of dead weight, and will accommodate 100 first-class,
and about 300 second-class passengers.
The hull and machinery of the S. S. Lewis were designed
and constructed under the direction and superintendence of
Capt. R. F. Loper. The hull was built by Messrs. Birely
and Sons, and is most substantially fastened. Her frame
is almost entirely of white oak, and the planking and ceil-
ing principally of the same material. Her floor timbers
are a solid bed of oak from the stern post to midships,
each piece being bolted horizontally to one another, and
vertically through the timbers. The frame is bound toge-
ther with diagonal iron braces, each 66 feet long, 5 inches
wide, and 1 inch thick, These braces, which cross one
another, are let into the timbers, bolted through them
and rivited on the outside, and at every intersection are
bolted together. In iron fastenings alone, exclusive of
the frame braces, she has 125,000 lbs., besides 10,009 lbs.
of copper and 5,000 lbs. of composition. Below the main
deck 12,000 bolts have been driven from the outside,
through all. and rivetted on the inside. The number of
knees used in her construction is 848.

The engines and accompanying machinery have been
constructed at the Franklin Iron Works The cylinders
are placed at angles of about 45 deg., and are 60 inches
diameter and 40 inches stroke. They act on a driving
wheel eight feet in diameter, geered to the shaft, and in-
crease the sp'i'ed of the propeller from one to one-and.
three-quarter turns at each stroke. The propeller is 14
feet in diameter, and has four blades. The engines have
already been tried with the greatest success. One of the
Boston pavers states that with 301bs pressure she made
over 12 miles per hour, and that speed is expected to be
greatly exceeded. The S. S. Lewis is a fine model. She
has an almost upright stem, and her bow is bold and
swells boldly outwards at the upper works. She has a
clean run, and her stern, which is square, is light and
beautiful. A gilded spread-eagle ornaments her stern,
while the bow has carved and gilded billet-head, the
ornaments of which are continued along the trail-boards
and around the hawse-holes. The lower moulding of her
plank-sheer is gilded throughout her entire length, and
with this exception the hull is painted black down to
her copper-line, which comes up to eighteen feet for-
ward and nineteen feet aft. She is in every respect
the most beautiful vessel, both below and aloft, that
has ever been turned out by Philadelphia mechanics.
She has on deck a house 190 feet in length, the
top of which forms a spacious promenade for her pas-
sengers, the sides being protected by a tasty brass railing.
The after division extends across the deck, and contains
the wheel house. On either side of the house there is a
gangway of 71 feet wide. The house contains the mess
room and state rooms for the officers and engineers of the
ship, captain's cabin, hatchway leading to the cabins and
engine-room, the ice-house, and a large galley. The
main saloon contains thirty state rooms, and is panelled,
set off with pilasters and cornices, edged with beautiful
carving, and fringed with gold and silver. The forward
part of the main deck is designed for second-class pas-
sengers. The forward and after portions of the lower deck,
clear of the engine-room, which occupies but a small com-
parative space, can be devoted to steerage passengers or
to the stowage of cargo.
The S. S. Lewis is rigged after the fashion of the Cunard
line of steam-ships, and it has a taunt and elegant !ippear-
ance. She will sail for this port on the 22nd instant,
under the direction of Capt. Barstow, and may be expected
to make her debut on the waters of the Mersey at about
the time of the Royal Visit to Liverpool. The S. S. Lewis
is here consigned to the branch house of Harnden and
Co. The already established trade to Boston, the rapidity
with which the British colonial possessions may now be
reached by rail, and the increase of trade that must na-
turally follow, all tell the success that Is awaiting a well-
regulated fleet of screw-steamers to Boston. There can
be no fear of such a line as the one now being established
proving remunerative.

THE GOVERNMENT DUTY ON RAILWAYS.—A bill is
to be brought into parliament early next session, which
has for its object the abolition or modification of the pre-
sent very oppressive passenger-tax levied on railways.
Many companies which at present pay no dividend, and
indeed should they ever be so successful are not likely for
many years to come, are obliged to pay large sums an-
nually for passenger duty to the government, which the
shareholders naturally consider a great hardship, and as it
can hardly be urged by any person in the House that a
number of gentlemen are to invest their capital solely for
the purpose of increasing the revenue of the country, there
is very little doubt but that the bill will pass.—Sun.