Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1852-05-08
NATIONAL lNTELLIGENCER.
FRoM0URLoND0 ON CORRESPONDENT
LONDON, ArR1L Is, 1852.

If we were asked to give definition of this great
assemblage of mankind, as it existed, in all its va
ried phases, during the last week, we should con-
dense it into one word, and call it SUNSHINE; for
such it was, whether considered morally, socially,
commercially, politically, or even atmospherically
There was sunshine in the drawing-rooms at the
West End in the absence Of political debate and par
liamentary discussion; there was sunshine in the
contingencies and parlors in the city, in the pre-
sence Of commercial prosperity there was sunshine
in the suburban gardens and paddccks, in bright
spring flowers, and buds and blossoms and verdant
tender grass; there was sunshine in the green lanes
and shady hedgerows and rural footpaths of Hamp-
stead, Hghgate, and Hornsey; the skylark rejoiced
in the sunshine, and sung and SCARED to meet it.
There was sunshine in the palace, amidst domestic
happiness and peoples love; there was sunshine
in the mansion house at the Lord Mayors Easter
banquet where the members Of the Cabinet and the
diplomatique, and the Ellie Of the city were
jcted, and where Mr.. ABBOTT LAWRENCE made a
good speech about peace and friendly intercourse
among nations, civic hospitality and the universal
power and government Of the ladies' There sunshine
at the Bank the presence of twenty millions sterling Of
bullion and good dividends; at the Royal Exchange in
the existence Of universal peace and commercial inter
course and at the Stock Exchange, in three per cent
Consols at 100 and in the increasing value Of railway
and mining shares and foreign securities The pave
ments Of Cheapsde and the Strand reflected the sun
shine and the alleys and the lvenlated gar
rets Of Spitta6ed and the crowded teneents Of Saffron
Hill and Coppice-row caught the influence, and looked
less desoate and gloomy There is ALSO another side TO
the picture. There and is and always will be- much
Of pain and sorrow and poverty and suffering to which
an external sunshine can only give momentary relief
much ignorance, which light reach; much obdu-
rate sin which bright midday subdue cor
rect Amidst the enjoyment of the Easter holydays by
thousands of the working classes who visited the British
Museum and the Parks, and partook in the ques
tonable festivities Of Greenwich Fair thousands of the
idle and the dissoue gatheredround the gaows at Horse
mongerlane Jail to behold the execution Of murderer
and whilst Richmond, and Kew and Hampton Court were
ubilant with the mrth Of tens Of thousands of humble
hoyday people, and bright and fresh and green with the
early produce Of spring and sparkling with sunshine and
happy faces murders were committing in the Borough
and IN Isngton, and hardened criminals receiving
sentence for their ransgressons the Old Bailey and the
Police Courts Alas that it should be SO; but these
things only the exceptions general rule and the
general rule then in operation was that the great human
heart of this vast metropolis less in the
shine of either positive enjoyment rational hope
infinitely more inclined to virtue than vice mmeasa
bly, the possession Of happiness than under the
infection of We proud thus to record that
London is not always dull dark, anddisma That though
modern writer states in high Johnsonian style, the
fugnous particles held in suspension in the circuma-
ben medium tend greatly to the obfuscaton of the
chitectura elegances of the metropolitan edces there
times when smoke-soed St Paus looks bright and
cheerful when the dark towers of Westminster Abbey
feet the sunbeam and the sootsmntched features of the
statue Of the Queen in the Royal Exchange look more
worthy their original During eight ten days bright
sunshine has enyened the metropolis and almost all that
is therein, notwithstanding the combined efforts Of Lon
don smoke and fog to obtain brief and partial mastery
Hence cheerful congtulatory strain; hence this
Easter offering to this glorious old city Excuse
brief extract from FIT1osBoRSE, brought recoec
ton by the state Of feeling induced by light and bright
and spritraising atmosphere: at might methinks
somewhat abate the nsolence Of human pride consider
that it is but increasing diminishing the velocity of
certain fluids in the animal machine, eate the soul
with the gayest hopes sink her into the deepest de-
spar depress the hero into coward or advance the
coward into hero" No one who has experienced the
vicistudes Of the atmosphere Of London doubt the
effect of skey influences" upon the human mind and
the intellectual and moral powers
There has been much difficulty lately with the Govern
ment respecting the future convict system Of the country
The Cape of Good Hope very justly demonstrates against
the introduction Of convicts into that colony Australia
and her neighbors think it high time that even Norfolk
Island should to be the Of British crim
but CRIMINALS tnere VIII commune TO who Will
want shutting up somewhere in order that secuson and
punishment may lead their amendment or at least pre-
vent their nuring their peaceable neighbors and the
difficulty is what to do with them, and where to place
them The opinion that excellent cooniss be raised
out Of the moral refuse OF home society longer
entertained Reason and experience have shown how fall
acous is the hope that ground be successfully
planted with such seed. Other and most manifest evils
of this system need not be enlarged upon Sir JAMES
MATTHEsos, NJ p for Ross, has offered to the Govern
ment the island of North Roma This island situated
in the Atlantic midway between the Orkney and Shetland
islands, in latitude 500 and longitude 80 49, west It is
about mile square in extent 1t would combine many
essentials Of penal colony and be enough to be
controlled by the home authorities whilst from its small
size and ts loneliness It would have all the terrors and
Of the attractions, Of transportation to Australia
The cost Of maintaining convict Rom would be about
ELS year, in Australia II is Gao year; the difference
thousand convicts being G25 900 per An
idea has been started to construct prison Of galvanized
iron, which be easily removed from place to
other This would sbvate the great difficulty arising from
the expense Of buildings whh after serving their pur
poses in locality, become useless and valueess.
Parliament adjourned the Easter recess leaving
the country in the uncertainty that has prevailed
since Lord DERBY took Office only to the future
policy Of the Government but also to the time when
appeal win be made the constituencies The april
May, June" which Lord DERBY indicated with tolera