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Grey River Argus, Volume VIII, Issue 572, 16 September 1869, Page 4

Major Burne, Private Secretary to the 1 Viceroy, in a communication addressed to i Baboo Prosonno Coomar Duti), Colon- J tolah, -Calcutta, informs him that Lord I Mayo considers there is' nothing iii either f t^e rules or spirit of Freemasonry' which v prevent persons" who dp pot profess it Christianity from being admitted to the vi order; but that his Excellency is of

opinion that no power is entrusted in ( any Masonic authority that can contrql or interfere with the dispretion which, by the rules of the order, is vested in each lodge, as to the admission or rejection of candidates for initiation. Writing to the same Hindoo gentlen>an, Colonel Greenlaw, Provincial Grand Master of Mark Masonry, and Pas,t Spnior Grand Warden of England, remarks :— " The Most Worshipful tjie Grand Master has decided that Hindoos may submit their names as candidates for initiation into masonry, but als,o declares that this cannot interferp with the right inherent in all lodges to depide by ballot whom they shall admit into their body. This latter rule is of universal application to all classes, and therefore does not press, more hardly on Hindoo applicants, than on those of any other creed." The Supreme Court of Georgia has decided that the intermarriage of whites and negroes is illegal, null, and void, and that the Legislature cannot rightly define the social status of citizens. It was so dark in Manchester on June 25, that for several hours gas-light was necessary to anyone who wished either to read or write. There was np thunderstorm, iio rain, and no fog. AYhaj; caused the gloom ? Messrs Sampson Low, Son and Marston announce a work on '<The Last of the Tasmanians," fro'n the pen of Mr James Bonwick, who is well known as an author to the colonists of Australia and Tasmania. The book will be well illustrated. Appearing at such a time, a record of "The Black War of Van Dieman's Land" will be welcomed alike in the Colonies as in Europe. In the Court of Exchequer, on June 29, a case of rather unusual character was tried. Miss Warren, of Boston, a teacher of dancing, sued for damages from the Great Northern Railway Company for an accident which befel her in a waiting-room at Spalding. As she was leaving the room she was tripped by a rent in the carpet, and fell so violently as to suffer concussion of the spine. The counsel agreed to a verdict for the plaintiff for LISOO. The preliminary proceedings against the Rev. C. Voysey for heresies published in a book called " The Sling and Stone," of which he is the author, took place at London House on June 24, before a commission appointed for the purpose. The case for the prosecution having been stated, and the passages complained of read, the Court decided that there was prima facie ground for further proceedings, which will now be taken. The brother of Lord Farnham's valet, who perished with his lordship in the fearful accident atAbergele on the 20th August last, sued the railway company for compensation. It was shown at the trial on June 26 that the deceased was the support of his aged mother, and that he had lost the greater part of his personal effects through the collision. The jury gave a verdict for L3OO, of which L 225 is to go to the mother, wliile the VdJue of the articles destroyed was assessed at L 75. An inquest was held at Whitefield on July 2, on the body of a youth named William Hilton, aged 14. Deceased had two teeth extracted by a surgeon, and immediately after the operation had been performed he fell back in a fit of epilepsy, from the shock to the system. Every means possible were used tp restore him, but in vain. Dr. Birnie (the dentist) did not know the name of deceased, and it was seven hours before his parents were communicated with. Verdict, "Accidental death." A French paper, the Ganlois, serioxisly informs its readers that encouraged by a prophecy of Nostradamus, M. Fretreau, formerly an assistant of the famous chemist Gay Lussac, has turned his attention to alchemy, and has at last succeeded in converting a lingot of silver into a lingot of gold by the combined action of nitric acid and electricity. It is true that the cost of production exceeds many times the value of the article produced, so that M. Fretreau rather reminds one of Raymond de Lulli, an alchemist of the sixteenth century, of whom Brantome naively ; relates that, disdaining to turn lead into gold, a very easy and common process, he actually succeeded in converting gold into lead. The Mining Journal has the following : — " 'Oroide,' the new alloy resembling gold, is a French discovery, and consists of pure copper, 100 parts ; zinc, or (preferably) tin, 17 parts ; magnesia, 6 parts ; sal ammoniac, 3-6 th parts ; quicklime, part ; tartar of commerce, 9 parts. The copper is first melted, then ihe magnesia, sal ammoniac, lime, and tartar in powder are added little by little, briskly stirring for about half-an-hour, so as to mix thoroughly; after which zinc is thrown on the surface in small grains, stirring it until entirely fused. The crucible is then covered, and the fusion maintained about thirty-five minutes, when the dross is skimmed off, and the alloy is ready for use. It can be cast, rolled, drawn, stamped, chased, beaten into powder or leaves." The Lancet says a novel experiment is about tj be tried, by which invalids will be able to get out of England during the winter months. It is proposed to take those who like to go to the Atlantic Ocean, between the latitudes 25 degrees N. and 55 degrees S., where the pleasant trade- winds blow, the sea is seldom rough, the sky is blue, and the temperature rarely exceeds 75 degrees Fahr. Uapt. Chas. Grey, R.N., proposes to fit out a British clipper ship to cruise in these latitudes, visiting the coast of Portugal, Cadiz, Gibraltar, Madeira, en route to the cruising ground, which will be between St. Helena and Ascension to the east, and Rio and Pernambuco to the west. Pleasure expeditions will be arranged to the interiors of the different islands. The clipper will be of 900 tons register. The private cabins are of a good size, and fitted up with special reference to comfort and health. The vessel is to sail about October 15, from Plymouth. A discovery of "lost letters" has just been made, which is of singular interest — nothing less curious than the suppressed correspondence, of Charles I. with his Friends on the eve of the battle of Naseby. Ihe House of Commons printed at the time a collection of royal letters, urider the name of the " King's Cabinet opened." rhese letters were thirty-nine in nnmber; Diit it has been always known that, for .'easons of sttite, a good many 'of "the King's letters were kept back. These sup)reased letters are the papers recently ound. They are in private hands ; but ■ ye hope to hear iii due time that copies of .hem, at least, will be obtained for public fseT""' At a recent meeting- of the Croyden

Board of Guardians, while the subject of the appointment of a public vactinator was being discussed, Mr Newman, one of the guardians, took occasion to oppose the proposal. He believed, he s,aid, it was a cruel and barbarous action to put poison into children, and he did npt want a better proof of this than the number of children in the union-house that developed the itch soon after vaccination ! In this statement he was supported by Mr Coles, another guardian, who asserted, on the authority of the nurse, that there was the proof in the children themselves. Ultimately, it was agreed that Mr Roper, the medical officer, be requested to attend a subsequent meeting of the Bpard ; and that a public vaccinator for Croydon be advertised for, at a salary of iso per annum. How can we expect the poor to recognise the benefits of vaccination when their guardians give such proof of their utter ignorance of the subject as was cx 7 hibited by Mr Newman. The American women are going to Washington with a monster petition, claiming fpr themselves the privilege of seats in Congress. The TributTfi hopes that the Sergeant-at- Arms will be firm, and if necessary call upon the commander of the department for troops. A novel race took place atSpston,. US., on the 11th May, at which about 1500 persons, were present. The race took place at the River-side Park, between Walter Brown on a velocipede, and the horse John Stewart ; Brown on top of a velocipede, five miles, and the horse, in harness, 10. The race was won by Brown, who completed his five miles in 26.20, the horse doing nine miles in 26.35. Brown's best mile was done in 4.29, and the horse's in 2.47£. The London' correspondent of the Scotsman writes : — "A tacit understanding has, I believe, been come to between Mr Motley and Lord Clarendon, to allow the Alabama negotiations to slumber quietly for yet a little while. It seems to be aow quite certain that Mr Motley's instructions are framed in a sense very different from Mr Stunner's speech, both the spirit and argument of which are now repudiated by all rational Americans on both sides of the ocean. It is not improbable that a way may be found out of the difficulty by a frank acknowledgment on our part of a breach of neutrality, unintentional, but still matter for complaint, in the escape of the Alabama, and a withdrawal on the part of the Americans of the plea in reference to the recognition of Southern belligerency. At any rate, the situation is now admitted to have assumed a much more hopeful and agreeable aspect. The prosecution of the betting-list people in London has created a good deal of excitement in town, where almost everybody bets from high to low alike. There is a general feeling that, after having been allowed to pursue their trade so long undisturbed without the slightest hint of its illegality, it is rather hard on Mr Wright and his companions in misfortune to be now pulled up without even a word of warning. A vast amount of capital is involved iv the trade, and, of course, a conviction is dreaded, not so much on account of the legal penalties as of the commercial ruin which will be produced by the prohibition of these agencies. Sir Thomas Henry's opinion was evidently very strong against them, and Sir Alexander Cockburn, who was one of the promoters of the Act of 1853, may be expected to enforce it sharply if the case goes before him. The subject is to be brought before Parliament, and if a decision is given against the agencies, there will, 1 understand, be an attempt made to get the' law revised. The demand for the prosecution of Tattersalls is, as the law now stands, out of the question, since the Act is expressly directed against persons who keep betting offices, and. themselves actually engage in betting traiisactions, either directly, or as intermediaries. Messrs Tattersalls have nothing to do with betting in any way. They merely let their room to a body of gentlemen, who may bet among themselves, or talk about the weather, or amuse themselves with conundrums for anything the landlords know. The present uniform and clothing of our soldiers are, states an evening contemporary, at once to undergo some alterations, which will dp much to remove the hitherto just stigma on our nation as " the worst military tailors in the world." The present tight tunic, which has so recently been noticed as a source of disease, will gradually fall into disuse, being; according to orders now to be published, reserved for the Queen's parades and purely special occasions. A loose, blouse-like, or "Norfolk" coat is to be issued to the troops, which will be worn on all duties, fatigues, and parades usually comprised in the soldier's routine of duty. A band running on the inside of the coat will draw it into the figure, and add much to its appearance. An improvement is also to be made in another article, the shirt". About 20 specimens are to be at once issued to each regilnent for trial and report. The material will be: a mixture of cotton and wool in equal proportions, and, in addition to the advantages of cheapness, lightness, and lessened roughness, the quality of not shrinking will be highly appreciated. The present great coat, which weighs as much as 4lbs., will.be made much lighter, and it is also suggested that a water-proof cape might be advantageously added, to. be used with or independently of the coat itself. :, These improvements, in the soldier's wardrobe will do much to benefit him on home service, and will doubtless lead to further considerations as to his requirements when on active service or abroad. Petroleum. 'is said to have been disccverad on the line of the Pacific Railway. The intelligence comes from lowa that Mrs Bloomer has abandoned her principles by again donning petticoats. The use of absinthe is said to be increasing to an alarming extent in New York. Many of the bars retail it as they- do other liquors. Marshal Bazaine says that he was poisoned half a dozen times in Mexico, but that his Mexican servants gave him antidotes and saved his life. i Mr George Francis Train does not appear to be getting on any better in America than -he did in Australia or England. The Chicago Times, of May 12, says that he delivered a lecture iii Farewall Hall on the iOth, on " The Freedom Of Ireland." The Chicago Times remarks tjhat the first half of his lecture was made up of a tirade against the press, and the Second of remarks tending to shew the ii) significance of all public men as compared with G. F. Train, and of his adventures in the prisons of Great Britain. i The history of the famous Confederate

war-song " Dixie's Land" is given by the Ledger. Dan Enunett, a member of the negro minstrel band, whilst in Mobile in 1847, heard some colored laborers singing a melody whilst at work, which impressed him. He appropriated the tune for his own entertainments. In 1861 Mrs John Wood at New Qrleans introduced it in a burlesque as a march. It received a double encore, and the burlesque haying a " run" " Dixie" became in a short time popular. When the war broke out, the military bands, tqpk it up, and made it the war-song of the South. The Royal visit to Hnll.- An effort is being made to induce the Prince and Princess of Wales ip, extend their visit to Hull for a few hours,, but it appears probable, according to present arrangements, that their Royal Highnesses will return to London the same evening." Are yqu surprised that their Royal Highnesses intend to make so short a stay ? Read what fqliows : — " Addresses will be presented at the station by the Town Council, by the Docls Company, by the Chamber of Commerce, by the Consuls, and by the Danish residents.'" (Why not also by the Custom House officers, the police, the fire brigade, and the velocipedists ?) Do you wonder now that the Prince and Princess propose to " return to London the same evening 1 n — Punch. An employe of the Davenport Brothers, styling himself the Rev. ElishaF. Minier, was recently charged at Boston with emhtJzzling 150 dols., the proceeds of a dark seance. When arrested he declared that the wholo establishment, Davenports and all, belonged to him, and he proposed to run it until he had raised ten millions of dollars, which he declared his intention of devoting to the publication of fortyeight thousand pages of manuscript that he had been ordered to write on the subject of the birth of Christ, whose near kinsman he was. Minier was very indignant towards the Davenport Brothers for their attempt to regain the 150 dols., and talked to them only as an insane person could. He has for some time carried with him a huge dirk-knife, because, as he said, the spirits had told him some one was going to take his life. His arrest, he contended, was part of a plot looking to that end. Medical evidence having been given to prove his insanity, he was taken to the asylum at Tavmton, not however, until he had promised to visit Boston [ with a big earthquake and shake it all to pieces. A pauper lunatic, named Ann Cook, who is now in the Garlands Asylum, near Carlisle, has become entitled to ,£15,000 under the will of a relative. A man has died at Ross, Herefordshire, from an overdose of chloroform, which he had been in the habit of taking to allay the pain of a spinal disease. A. child, aged two and a-half years, has died, at Leedsi from drinking some oil of vitriol from a bottle which had been left within its reach. A boy, aged eleven years, was playing on the JSew Wharf, Whitefriars, when a packing-case fell on his head and crushed him in a frightful manner. He was carried to King's College Hospital, but died on his admission. One Tuesday morning lately, whilst a young gentleman named Edwardes was practising on Derby Road, Boptle, near Liverpool, he met with a very severe, and, it is feared, fatal accident. Mr Edwardes was coming down Bottle Mount on his bicycle at a very rapid rate, when, although he managed to retain his seat in the "saddle" of the machine, he was unable to guide its course, and the velocipede ran right into a low stone wall. Mr Edwardes was jerked forward with great force against the wall, striking it headforemost, and fracturing his skull. He was picked up insensible, and the doctors entertain no hopes of his recovery. A monument in the cemetery at Cannes, to the memory of the late Lord Brougham, has just been completed, at the cost and under the superintendence of the present Lord Brougham and Vaux. The Historical Commissioners have got so far into their good work as to have appointed four travelling deputies— one each for England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales— who will have to visit country j houses, and report on the literary treasures which may be found in ttiem. A fine run was. made at a game of billiards in New York on May 10. The match was between Foster and Sriyder. Foster won by a score of 1200 toSnyder's 872 in 31 innings. Best runs, . Foster, 492; Snyder, 249. A man now at San Francisco rides a velocipede on a wire rope twenty-five, feet above the ground. The wheel is grooved to tit the wire. He intends shortly to attempt the passage of Niagara Falls in a similar manner. • The special commissioners, appointed by the President of America to inspect the Pacific Railroad, report that both companies, in their immoderate haste to cover as much ground as possible, have built very imperfectly, and that the traffic will necessarily be dangerous. One night lately, at midnight, a policeman saw an old man and woman with a little girl begging in Whitechapel, London, and took them into custody. They turned out to be professional beggars, and the child was a hired slave. Her father had let her out to these hoary traders- upon charity, and they paid him a shilling a week for her services. This is : worse than the slavery of the Italian organ boys which the Italian Legislature has so ruthlessly, dealt withy and it. is painful to find that Bertha Taylor was restored to the unnatural father. . : ■ The Duke and Duchess of Saxony, while driving out in the neighborhood of Sorrento, were lately made prisoners by the band of the terrible FuocO, formerly one of the King of Naples' forest guards. A few minutes after the capture the chief arrived, and, approaching the prisoners, who had been made to alight, he asked them whom he had the: honor to address. . The duke stated who they were, and the bandit immediately taking of his hat, politely handed them, ., to their carriage, and, giving a five-franc piece to the coachman, said, with a final bow, " Will your highness deign to excuse the audacity and insolence of my men, and carry away with you a favorable recollection of the poor Neapolitan Fuoco ?" The duke is said to have sent to his captor a magnificent gold watch and chain, valued at iOOOfr. There has been an attempt at assassination in Italy, apparently . for political motives. Signor Lobbia,: a member. -of bhe Chamber, who has furnished evidence to a Parliamentary Committee which is investigating some alleged scandals in connection with the Tobacco concession, was stabbed twice, at midnight on June 15, in :he streets of Florence, by a man who succeeded in escaping, though his intended t

victim fired at him with a revolver. An order of the day was adopted in the Italian Chamber, expressing, detestation of the crime and sympathy with Signor Lobbia. The Qintto. of June l Q states that Signor Lobbia has nearly recovered from luji wounds. When the news of the outrage reached Milan a large number of persons assembled and shouted "Viva L,obbja. !" They then proceeded to the offices of the Perseverar\zq and the Pungalo, broHe some windows, listened to a speech from on.c of their number, and soon afterwards quietly dispersed. The next night it seemed as though tfie demonstration was to be renewed on a qomewhat larger scale. The authorities, however, interfered, and the crowd dispersed after some of the police had b,een fired at and wounded. The military, however, did not use their arms. M, Mende, a banker of Leipzic, lately received a registered letter from the house of Hachette and Masson, of Paris, for whom he had for some time past acted as agent in Saxony, announcing, that their cashier had absconded with securities valued at 2Q0,000f. The writers added that the delinquent was known to have taken refuge at the Hotel de Prusse, in Leipgic, and p n joined M. Mende to endeavor to recover the papers without too much scandal ; that in case of a voluntary restitution they had compassion on the wife and children whom the culprit had left behind, and were therefore willing to. advance him a sum of 20,000 fon condition that he would take himself off to America, M. Mende, thug instructed, went to breakfast at the table d'hote of the Hotel de Prusse, and observing a gentleman whose appearance corresponded with the description sent, lost no time, in/ making his acquaintance, ' A sort of intimacy being soon established., the stranger asked M. Mende for the address of any I banker that would, discount some bills for him. "lama banker, sir, and will do it myself," said the other. The parties then proceeded to the office of the latter, when M, Mende logke'dthe dqo^and said to the stranger — " You^-are ~a rogtiei You have, stolen these securities, from the house of Hachette and Masson. Your chiefs are, however, generous men. Restore all the papers, and they have commissioned me to hand you 20,000 fto enable you to fly to America. Here they are— go and get yourself hanged elsewhere." The conditions were, of course, accepted, and the other left the room apparently in great emotion. On M. Mende informing "the Paris firm of what had transpired, he learned to his great annoyance that he had been been played on by some artful swindlers as Hachette and Masson had not lost any money, and had never sent, him any telegram on the subject. The Sultan has conferred the title of Pasha on Sir S. Baker as a proof of the interest he takes in the success of Sir Samuel's African expedition. The Queen of Greece was safely delivered of a son at Athens at ten o'clock on the morning of June 24. y ... One of the: Sultan's wives has given birth to a Prince, who has been named Mehmed Chilket. The special correspondent to a daily paper writes : — " Mazzini is again to the fore, and advocating the overthrow, not only of Roman, but of monarchical rule. Italy, with Rome for, its metropolis, is again the cry." The country round Pumpkin Creek, Georgia, is very sickly, and there is such a notorious prevalence of chills and fever in the district that it is the invariable custom to pass round quinine pills^ with the dessert. A guest, who shpuld^refuse to partake would be ' regarded as having committed an unpardonable breach, of etiquette. . , ' ' A Carillon of forty-three bells was consecrated with great pomp and. religious ; ceremony at St. Joseph's Cathedral, in Buffalo, on July 1. This is the only instrument of the kind in the United States, arid there are only two otnerk in the world. ' ' " ThePaM Mall Gazette has the following : — "lt is somewhat startling to find a captain of the Royal Navy publicly accusing admirals and other brotherofficers of. systematic smuggling in a foreign country, and [the Admiralty of winking at the : practice. We can hardly bring ourselves ; to believe (though .there have been somewhat similar -stories at Japan) that the following statement in a new work on Panama, Nicaragua," and Mosquito, by Captain Bedford Pirn and Dr Seeman can possibly be ..true.: — 'Though I have never been a smuggler myself, I was on board her Majesty's vessels which, on the Mexican coast, used to do some little smuggling of silver dollars, in the profits of which the admiral of the station, and the captains, officers, and men of the ships participated. The Mexican Government having almost prohibited the export of coined dollars by high export duties, the merchants found it cheaper to buy over the whole coastguard, and pay a handsome bonus to oar naval officers, rather than let their treasure pass through the custom-house. Hence sprung up the Mexican treasuresmuggling winked at by the Admiralty, and distasteful to many subordinate navalofficers, some of whom have openly re- r fused to accept the usual proceeds of such a service." Dates are wanting ; but otherwise this is a very circumstantial and unpleasant statement. ; The alleged misdeeds must be recent-, ' and \t is to be presumed that the authors are'ablejtd substantiate so grave an accusation against the British navy and Admiralty.! ,; •. | ... The followingis the text of the bill introduced into the Canadian Parliament for the punishment of seduction -:^- J. Whosoever shall, under promise of marriage, seduce and have illicit connection with any unmarried women of previous chaste, character, ;is guilty ?t a r misdemeanour, and shall -on conviction be be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years, in • any jail or place of confinement, with or without evidence, nor unless the indictment, is Hard labour, is liable to pay such fine as the Court may award, in addition to or without any such other punishment as aforesaid.— 2. No conviction shall be liad under this Act on the testimony of the woman seduced, unsupported by othe> 3vidence, nor unless the. ';'■ indictment is found within two year* after^ the i}' jb'otn^ mission of the offence. — $.'-Tlie :V i«ißlsei- :! iuent inter-marrjage of the parties; may be pleaded in bar of 'cphviction. ' J -