The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-06-24 00:00:00

Buckingham Palace, on a visit to her Majesty.
TESTIMONIAL TO DR. DALTON.-.-011 Thursday evening
last a splendid gold medal, value about £2O, was presented to
the venerable Dr. Dalton, at the Literary and Philosophical
`

.
Society's rooms, by Messrs. Bradshaw and Blacklock, of

Manchester

REGISTRAR.-GENERAL.—Major Graham, private secre-
tary, and brother of Sir James Graham, has, we understand,
been appointed to the office of registrar-general of births,
marriages, and deaths, in the room of the late Mr. Lister.—
Standard.

Amongst the gentlemen called to the bar by the lion. So-
ciety of the inner Temple, last week, we perceive the name
of Sir Thomas Phillips, the gallant mayor of Newport, at the

time of the chartist riots

Within the period one hundred hours, observes Galigna-
s Messenyer,three of the greatest calamities of this or any
other century have occurred, viz., the fire of Hamburgh. on
the sth of May ; the earthquake at St. Domingo, on the 7th ;
and the fatal accident on the Versailles railroad, on the Bth.
SHEFFIELD AND MANCHESTER RAILWAY.---WC under-
stand that a portion of this end of the line, to the length of
upwards of two miles, has been set out for letting, on which
it is expected that the able-bodied poor will be set to work
in the course of two or three weeks.— Sheffield Independent.
At an early hour on Sunday morning a violent attack was
made by a body of Irishmen on the police at Bristol. Three
of the constables were injured, one of them so seriously that
his recovery is very doubtful, Seven of the men are in
custody and await the fate of the wounded policeman.
There is a tree in the church-yard at the corner of Wood-
street, Cheapside, London, wherein three pair of rooks have
been building their nests, and rearing their sable progeny.

...
A. few days ags, one of the young birds, attempting: its first
flight across the street, dropped upon the roof of a Padding-
ton omnibus (No. 466,) and suffered himself to be taken by

the driver, without the slightest resistance.
On Sunday afternoon Mr. Wrenn, who was living at No.
7, Weymouth-street, Walworth, on an income which he had
accumulated while in business, committed suicide by drown•

ing himself in the water-butt. He had been missing, some
time, when on being searched for he was found with his legs
projecting from the butt. On being taken out, life was
found quite extinct. He was nearly 80 years of age, and had
been observed to be melancholy for several days previous.
RAILWAY TRAVELLING.—The distance traversed daily by
the passenger trains alone, on eight of the principal railways,
amounts to 10,508 miles, and the yearly distance to 3,562,338
miles ! The lines are the Great Western. London, and Bir-
mingham, Grand Junction, Birmingham and Derby, Mid-
land Counties, Manchester and Leeds, South Western, and
Brighton ; and it appears, by the parliamentary returns, that
during the year IS4I the number of passengers conveyed on
these lines amounted to 4,600,000 ! and that during that pe-
riod the number of persons injured was 56, of whom 22 were
killed.—The Britannia.
THE MASSACRE AT CABUL.—We are glad to learn that
an appeal, which we trust may be eminently successful, has
been made to public sympathy in behalf of the suffering wives
and children of our army in Cabul. The list of subscriptions
is appropriately graced by having at its head the name of the
Queen for £2OO ; Sir C. Forbes has given 100 guineas. the
Hon. Mr. Elphinstone £5O, and a number of other chari-
table individuals have sent in to the committee sums of less
amount. The case is one of very urgent nature, and we hope
the general body of our countrymen, and ccuntrywomen as
well, will aid in the promotion of so pressing an object of be-
nevolence.

ANOTHER SERIOUS ACCIDENT AT THE NEW CHURCH,
ANDOVER.—On Monday week several persons were employ-
ed in clearing away the fallen timber, bricks, &c., which
nearly filled the shell of the new church after the destruction
of the roof. They had been engaged nearly the whole day
without hurt or impediment until about half-past five o'clock
in the evening, when the whole length of the south wall,
from 25 to 30 in height, fell inwards. Many of the labourers
miraculously escaped unhurt, but three or four sustained
very serious injuries by the fracture of their legs, ribs, &c.
The ruins are still in a very dangerous state, and seem to
threaten destruction to those whose duties require them to
be near.—Berkshire Chronicle.
NEW POOR LAW DIETARY.—The adjourned inquest on
the body of George Shoesmith, a boy seven years of age,
whose death, in an extreme degree of emaciation, was alleged
to have been caused by the want of nutritious diet while an
inmate of the Ringmer Workhouse, in the Chailey Union,
was held at the Town-hall, Brighton, on Monday night.
After the evidence had been fully gone into the jury returned
the following verdict,—" That George Shoesmith, the de-
ceased, died by the visitation of God, in a natural way—to
wit, of an enlargement of the mesenteric glands, which
disease was accelerated, if not caused, by the dietary of the
Union Workhouse at Ringmer, in the Chailey Union, which
the jury think not sufficiently nutritious for growing chil-
dren. They are also of opinion that the deceased (lid not
receive that medical attention in the workhouse which his
case required."
•• • -

THE EAST AND WEST INDIA MAILS.—The mails that
are now brought from the East and West Indies are so
heavy, that it has been found advisable, after they have ar-
rived at Falmouth, to despatch, without sorting, the major
portion of them to London by the first conveyance, because
the number of persons employed in the General Post-office
can always insure any number of letters arriving in foreign
mails being sent to their various destinations without delay.
One of the West India steamers brought mails, a short time
since, that occupied the Falmouth post-office authorities 12
hours in sorting and despatching them. Unless, therefore,
such heavy mails arrive at Falmouth a considerable period
before the London mail is despatched, or are sent off to
London unsorted, a delay of 2-I hours must take place. The
increase iu the East and West India mails will render the
Falmouth packet establishment useless, unless considerably
augmented. No inconvenience is felt from the size of the
Falmouth establishment for outward foreign mails, because
most of them are made up in London, and only those letters
posted to the west of the metropolis are sent direct to Fal-
mouth.— Globe.
AN IRISH BROTHER.—A young sprightly couple, to all
appearance under age, passed through this town on Friday,
in a carriage and four, en route to Gretna Hall. The young
lady, in addition to a swain alike loving and likely, was ac-
companied by her brother, an Irish gentleman of superior
education, and the greatest frankness of mind and manner.
In calling on a townsman to obtain a supply of sovereigns
for Bank of Ireland notes, he mentioned, unasked, his des-
tination, and seemed to enjoy the trip amazingly. " What !"
said the Dumfriesian, " I hope you are not going to make
a runaway marriage ?" " Not yet, at least, but my sister is,
and that s pretty much the same, seeing it's a family affair
after all." " Indeed ! But why travel so far to get the knot
tied, as if there were no altars and priests in Ireland?" "As
for that, there are plenty of parsons, and ready enough to
take the fee besides; but then, you see, my father refused
his consent, and was like to break the hearts of both the
darlings. But for my own part I see nothing wrong in the
match ; the bridegroom is a friend, and a fine young fellow,
who may as well have my sister as another ; and so 1 thought
it best to jog along in company, and enjoy the spree." Gold
was readily tendered for good bank paper, and the party took
their departure across the border in the same dashing style
they had arrived. On Saturday they returned, and seemed
quite delighted they had got the job so well over. The
" lions" of Dumfries were, of course, visited, and many com-
pliments paid to the scenery of Nithsdale ; and, after a slight
repast, the trio started for their own country, Ma Portpatrick,
to beg forgiveness of an offended father, who resides some-
where in the county of Dublin.—Dumfries Courier.
AFRICAN CIVILIZATION SOCIETY.—The annual meeting
of this society took place on Tuesday in London ; Lord
Ashley in the chair. Amongst the friends of the society
present were Lord Sandon, Lord John Russell, Lord Teign-
mouth, Sir R. H. Inglis, the Bishop of Worcester, &c. A
letter was read from Mr. Clarkson, in which he said that he
was of opinion that another expedition might be undertaken
on a smaller scale than the last. They only required the
Bible and the plough, and very few persons would be suffi-
cient in number to attend these instruments of good. The
report consisted of forty-eight printed pages. It was divided
into four heads or departments ; the first relating to the
operations of the society abroad ; the second to the oper-
ations at home; the third to the state of the slave-trade and
the condition of Africa ; and the fourth to the future plans
and operations of the society. The last division of the re-
port recommends a perseverance in a course of operations
similar to those which have already been commenced, and
says, that in Africa the resources and influence of the society
must still be devoted to the encouragement of such efforts as
may tend to smooth the path and to protect the labours of
the Christian missionary, the free cultivator of the soil and
the friend of innocent commerce; whether this is to be done
by establishments of its own in the manner suggested, or by
rendering assistance to others, has not been determined.
ANOTHER MADAME LAFFARGE.—At the Assizes of the
Rhone, on the sth instant, the wife of a workman named Pre
was tried for attempting to murder him by cutting his throat
with a razor, The victim of her fury escaped, bleeding pro-
fusely, before she could consummate her crime by repeating
the attack, and with skilful attention recovered in less than a
month. The motive assigned for this offence in the act of
accusation was jealousy, bnt the evidence left no doubt that
the woman was at the time, and had long been labouririg
under monomania. On the day of the attack, after some
words with her husband, she had requested him to kiss her.
lieflusgliN‘War algtEesiEd a,,razor and drew it
under a momentary impulse for which she could InOtTcIeMIEI,
and it was proved that she and her four children had been
drinking something which would cause death, and that she
had attempted to murder her husband in order that the whole
family might go out of the world together. She was very
indignant, however, on her trial, at the attempt of her coun-
sel and medical witnesses to establish her insanity, and her
replies were intended to remove this belief from the minds
of the jury, but there were occasional symptoms of incohe-
rence which left no doubt of the fact, and the jury consequent-
ly returned a verdict of acquittal, after which the president
of the court ordered that she shonld be placed in a lunatic
asylum. In the course of the pleading .of her counsel, he
cited several instances of monomania to show that the priso-
ner was really insane, and in illustration of his argument,
amongst other cases, related the following extraordinary
anecdote :—Madame Adelaide, sister of the King, in 1836
took under her protection a young lady of family, placed her
in a boarding school, and received her frequently on holydays
at her own apartments in the palace. Suddenly her protegee
announced to the schoolmistress and her intimate friends
that she was about to be married, under the auspices of her
patroness, to a young Lieutenant-Colonel, to whom she had
been introduced by her Royal Highness, and in evidence of
her assertions produced letters on the subject with the seal
of the Princess, and in a handwriting whic,h all acquainted
with that of Madame Adelaide believed to be hers. Subse-
quent letters were also displayed, in which her Royal High-
ness was made to state, first, that the intended husband was
detained away by his regimental duties; then, that he was
dangerously ill, and ultimately, that he was dead and buried.
The young lady, upon this, gave herself up to such violent
grief that fears were entertained for her own life. The only
consolation she would listen to was a permission to put her-
self into the mourning of a widow, and to weep over the
tomb of her lost lover. The under governess accompanied
her to the cemetery of Pere la Chaise, and, at the gate,
desired to have pointed out the place of interment of Lieu-
tenant-Colonel Connt M., who had died a week before at the
age of 25. The concierge searched the register, and then
assured the enquirers that it did not contain the entry of any
such burial which consequently must, lie said, have taken
place elsewhere. This answer increased the despair of the
young lady, who prevailed upon her attendant to go with her
to the other cemetaries of Paris, at each of which they met
with the like disappointent. It was ni;ht before tey re-
turned home, and the grief stricken pupi retired for est in
deeper despair than ever. The governess the nett day, felt
it her duty to go to Madame Adelaide, aid relate all these
mournful circumstances, taking with her tle letters announc-
ing the events which had so entirely destroyed the peace of
her pupil. The astonishment of the Priness on hearing the
extraordinary narrative, and at seeing leters apparently in
her own handwriting, but which she had lever written, and
recognizing impressions from a seal which did really belong
to her, could not be described. No such ierson as Lieuten-
ant-Colonel Count M. was known to her Royal Highness,
consequently she never could have contmplated any such
alliance nor have announcel to her his illness
and the young lady hatibeen iuduced by a
death. f fur her
npfu
cp
a ti '
morbid imagination to invent the whole ale, to purloin one
of her patroness!s seals, imitate her haidwriting, compose
the fictitious leitters; and, by bribing anold servant, induce
her to put thein in the post. Her mind,aowever, was affec-
ted with the same grief from her own ,eliberate invention
as if all the circumstances had really exited.