English and Foreign.

Lyttelton Times, Volume IX, Issue 555, 27 February 1858, Page 3

English and Foreign.

THREE DAYS LATER FROM ENGLAND. The Red Jabket/'drrlved'at the Port Phillip 'Heads, on Friday, the29thl ult.,;at 2:45 jj.tt1.1; after a 1 dasliing passage' 'of only „,.,;■',: .„■■ ■„ : ■ We give the following extracts of e-ene-raFnews,'Home io liaiid' via Hobart Town. The NoVtherh Times'; of the 20th Notember, fives'i the following summary of 'ThWDay^'NeWs',:— \ ; ;.. ' ''' ' Our ' 'metropolitan 'contemporaries continue to descant upon1 the!' late' )bews from India. "^ a most' saUsfactory bhara'cter, 'and. We are gla^d 'to see thai there is no,' such thing; as ' fepoyisni'advo^ated^of'late. 'We have liad !s6me' soldiers ( of ;sterlm^;merit killed'be-■ ;fore Delhi, |and it is aisdurbe; of relief to notice how some of pur Lbn'dori friends talk upon that; dffiiir. ;The'^Times' m of' yestpdiay,; af^ter tb1 the .great slaughter, which "must have taken' place before and'iriside the'walls bfpeln^ dhd 6ulogisirig the conduct of ' the Various troops l engagiedi in theconHic|;,"says:-- j " dur ' Indian ' Genemls,'then, we 'say, are 'tee'.1 proper l6bjects l6f. the highest' honours. High honours do not suit our; aristocracy alone, though some may think so; they suit these men of the middle, classes also; they suit them admirably,suit them perfectly. There is no dispro-' portion, and there will be no incongruity ■;, these men have earned Eonbur well, and they can wear it well. Nor, let us forget one particular honour to tlie, dead. General Neill has left a family behind him. A national provision for them, and that Ja generous' one, is an npnoiir'which such -a General can justiy claim from the toml|). Siich a-provision will be an honour to the d.cad and to the living—to Him who earned | it, and t° *UP^9 receive; it. THe brplians of our'soldiers me] the children of the nation; and : their national adoption, while it is their necessary support, is alsb, by its] associatiohs/ their pride; and glbry— the noblest of all family escutcheons anid insignia." . The subject of reform is beginning to attract the attention of the general public. The usual monthly meeting of, the Dock. - una iieaitii Committees were held yesterday, but the proceedings'were of no general importance. The successful submersion of the telegraph cable between Cag'liari and Malta is announced. " This is a success of some importance just now, as it will considerably expedite the despatch of the next telegraphs, and we hope of all future telegraphs from India. The news from abroad is rather interesting to-day. The diplomatic gossip in the continental press affords hopes of a mutual understanding between the powers on the. question of tlie principalities. Not merely is it suggested that Prussia, Eus■si'a and even France have become unanimous, on the proposed compromise, but the latest information from Constantinople renders it probable ; that Turkey herself will accept it. If so, the meeting of the Paris conference will be a mere matter of form. On tlie other hand, we are informed that Turkey is arming', and that the Mohamedan population generally anticipate war. Turkish troops are constantly moving '; towards the .Xpwer Danube. The Sardinian elections, in, which the clerical party andrthe ultra-liberals seem to some extent to co-Operate'against the' Government, continue,' nevertheless, to be in favour of the latter. Count Cavour's strength rests chiefly on the great division of parties in the Tui-iri chambers. For, besides the clerical and ultra-liberal parties ( and the .Ministerialists proper, there .is the , Kattazzi faction, or left central, besides a right central, and a phalanx of strict conservatives; . ■ .■...;,/,'" ".■ :, '• . •"'■'■ .' -.■ { From:.: the. l liiyerpool Mercury'pf the 20th ; of November, we take the following g precis of the previous day's news:— j Fortunately the monetary pressure in Ireland is subsiding, arid it is'expected to f disappear by the close of ;the present week. The run in Cork, Limerick, and other towns, was well met. In Scotland, the run on the banks had ceased, and on Tues-. £ day and Wednesday a sum of 220,000 sovereigns was returned to London. On tlie t( first-named day the same amount of f, (£220,000) was' sent -to : Ireland. The de- ti mand for money in London is, however, g , still very great, an,d the list of failures | ; there has been seriously extended. TV Fathers Conway and Ryan, the two priests who are. to be prosecuted by the J Irish Government for their .sharp"in tlje, last Mayo election, neglected to make any

appearance to the ex officio information fildd against' them^and the result was 'that warrants were issued for their arrest. 'The knowledge of this fact transpired in Ballinrob'e, causing a good: deal of excitement ; sind {^opposition to the ex edition of the'warrants was deemed possible, detachments''of horse and foot soldiers were sent into the district to aid the officials. Mr. Conway, hear- . ing; ;of these preparations, resolved not to "be the cause'of riot and bloodshed; he hurried to Dublin' by' train, and on Tuesday morningl appeared in the Crown office; How Mr. Ryan has acted is not yet known. Prosecution of the Directors of the Royal British ■Bank."-— The ' Liverpool" Mercury' of the 20th says :— In the Court of Queen's Bench yesterday, it was arranged that'the case against the directors and manager of the Royal British Bank shall ■ commence on Saturday next. - -Another Attempt to Launch the Leviathan;—-Another attempt to launch the Leviathan was made to : day (November 19 th).' The four hydraulic presses were brought to bear1 on'the ship with full force, which failing to 'start her, all hands were set to work on the capstans and land , purchases, to heave her off by the chains laid out to the city mooring chains, secured oh the opposite side of the river,'when about'two o'clock, the fore mooring chain' gave way and put an end to the operations.; The chain was the one which gave'way beforr. About GOO men. were engaged. The secretary of the compan3 r stated that no further efforts to launch the ship will be made until the 2nd December, as it would take that time to replace the broken • mooring chain. - . Death of Rear-Admiral Graham. -—We regret to announce the death of Rear-Admiral Graham, brother of Sir James Graham, which took place last s evening* at his residence in the Albany. —" Globe," of 19th November. We extract the following' commercial news from the /Times' of Nov. 19:— The applications at the Bank of Eng*land for discount increase rather than diminish, and the list of failures has again been seriously extended; but the public' have abundant j3upplies_ of money for in--veatmont, "and the funds shew, .undirminislied firmness. Consols for money, which advanced after regular hours last' evening to 80i to §, were first quoted at 89g to |, whence they improved to 89| to f. Ultimately, although the quotations were again 89g to I halffor money, arid 89g for the 7th of December, the market presented a very good appearance. There was no particular pressure for loans on Government securities, and the rate ranged between 8 and 10 per cent. Bank stock left off at 212 to 214; Reduced, 88| to i; New Three per Cents, 81 g to \; India Stock, 211 to 214; India Bonds, 455. to 355. discount; and Exchequer Bills, 18s. to 13s. discount. The suspensions to-day have been numerous. First on the list is the old aud respectable mercantile house of E. Sievekmgand Son, with liabilities for more than £400,000. They are connected with the : Swedish trade, and will suffer from the stoppage of Hoare, Buxton, arid Co., an- ] nounced yesterday; but the immediate j cause of their difficulties was-the failure j of Broadway and Barclay, on the 9th ; instant. < In consequence of the difficulties of Sievekirig and Son, and Hoare, Buxfon, s and. Co., Messrs. Allen, Smith, and Co., chiefly engaged in business with Denmark, t have also "suspended. Tlie amount of their 1 liabilities has not transpired. 1 Messrs. Gorrissen, Huffel, and Co., merchants, have been, brought down by tlie c absence of remittances in America. v Thei-e has likewise been a failure of # c born importing1 firm—Messrs. Brocklesb'y t irid Wessels—with liabilities estimated at 1 ibout £40,000, and assets which, at pre- d sent depressed prices, would yield about 1: £30,000. ; Messrs. Hoare, Buxton, arid Co., whose s ailure in the Swedish trade was announced resterday, have "since addressed' a 'circular a o their creditors. s; A meeting of creditors of Messrs. R. .n 3ainbridge and Co., whose suspensioh si ras announced on the 13th iiist., was held h o-day, but, in the absence of accounts ti rom America, no positive information as tl d the financial state of the firm could be ci ■iven. The immediate cause of the dis- m ster was stated to be, the failure of cc lessrs. Dennistoun, whose acceptances pc tessrs. Bainbridge held to the amount of A 511,000. • co The Western Bank of Scotland, it ap- af jars, is to be resuscitated if the share- tv

holders will subscribe a specific amount, and the creditors will'grant certain periods of extension. As the recovery of claims is much more practicable and inexpensive in the case of a concern that has still a vital character, than under the operation ,of liquidators, it is'satisfactory,'for the sake of the deluded proprietry, that a prospect of this'kind exists ;—-whether it is to be desired for the general interests of the community, is another question. Under a resumption, an exposure will, of course,1 be more or-less avoidefl of -the profligacy that has brought the .bank to its present position—ran object which doubtless adds to the immediate zeal of all who might be implicated-^—but for the sake ■of public justice,, and especially with a view to the approaching parliamentary discussion, it would be well for the whole details to be dragged to light. Moreover, the Western Bank ,of Scotland does not profit by experience. It was helped on a former occasion, and the result is unfavourable to any propositions it may"henceforth make. It seems to be admitted that £1,000,000 of the assets has been lost., It is "thought" that that amount may enable the business te be carried on as /usual. It is also , alleged that at least half the deficiency has been through advances in aid of a gang of pretended mercantile firms whose : whole system was 'based upon the manufacture of fictitious paper. The private ; history of these proceeding's must be full of instruction. We take the following announcements from'the 'Times ' of the 18th. November : —It lias been arranged for a meeting of Messrs. Dennistoun's creditors to take place at the London 'Tavern, on the 26th instant, when the accountants, Mr. Goleman of London, and Messrs. Kerr, Adamson & Co. of Glasgow, will be prepared with a general statement. The: "Vy6lverhamptdn and Staffordshire Banking Company closed its doors this morning. It was a Bank of Issue, with an authorised circulation of £35,378, and its general liabilities are supposed to rangefrom.£4oo,poo to 500,00 X It had. a nominal capital of £500,000, of which £100,000 is paid up, arid, according to its last return, £7,000 had been appropiated to a reserve fund. The number of sharehol--ders.is about 200, and the principal losses will fall, it is presumed, on persons connected with the iron trade. ' The suspension was also announced of Messrs. Edwards and Matthie, a firm largely engaged in the produce' markets, as East Indian and colonial brokers.. Messrs. Fitch and Skeet, who suspended in the provision trade on the 11th inst, with liabilities for £55,000, 'have intimated that, instead of an extension of two, four, and six months, they will require only one, two, and three months. A meeting of creditors of Messrs. Clayton and M'Keveringan, shipbuilders, was held yesterday at Liverpool, and a composition was accepted of 7s. in the pound. The liabilities were stated at £22,300. .In the "Evening Star" of the 19th November, received by the Red' Jacket, we read the following" notices of the movements in the London markets :— Wool.—The Colonial wool sales,to-day, passed over without any -quotable change in prices. Good Sydney -continues in steady demand at rather better prices than at the opening, but inferior qualities are dull of sale, and prices have not improved. The Bank Directors have been sitting since eleven o'clock, and the Court is not yet broken up. This protracted meeting excites considerable interest, but it is scarcely expected that the rate of discount will : be advanced. - ' -The Liverpool Borough Bank was re- ■ opened, on Tuesday, 17th November; the i words, "in liquidation" being placed un- ; der the name of the bank, on the door where ] the public enter. The first duties of the Manae-mg Committee will be to pay off the j depositors under £200, (those under £100 ; having been settled with). The '* Morning- Post,' of November 20, ( says:— 1 ""Everybody knows that the cause of the ( approaching winter session is the suspen- . sion of the Bank Charter Act, and that,a measure of indemnity must be introdiiced similar to those which on former occasions lave received the sanction of the Legisla;ure. It must not, however, be supposed hat in the presence of the great Indian srisis noble lords and honourable gentle- * nen will confine their attention to matters s onnected with the currency and financial I losition of the country. The Bank Charter Let, we conclude, will be referred to a new ■*■ ommittee which sat last session, and then, il fter a brief discussion, Parliament will t: irn to the consideration of the one great c

;, j subject, which, far above all questions s j even of finance, occupies the hearts and s moves tho sympathies of Englishmen." q. . But this is not all. Government does a, contemplate that Parliament will have n time to do something1 more than discuss 3 two'questions which are not yet ripe for - legislation. The ' Morning- Post' states 3 that as a session with two royal speeches 8 would be a novelty in our political annals, a Government Will state at once " those mea- !, sures of domestic improvement which are f. likely to engage the early consideration of t the Legislature." Amongst these, we are s told, will be a system of registration of c titles to real property such as that which c the Commissioners have proposed, so as to c facilitate and cheapen transfer, and there t will be a plan for constituting a separate c department of justice, to be entrusted with n the supervision of the legal administration - of the country. This is characterized as - " a great measure of urgent and necessary f administrative reform, which the public t will demand to be passed even amidst the f din of arms." Then " the complicated con- " dition of joint stock company law—the s confusion worse confounded of our statutes o —the herding together of the poorer y classes in unwholesome dwellings, are a other matters which may appropriately c undergo discussion during the approaching - session of Parliament." This is a very c different question from that of the ' Time?,' :1 but it ends at the same point. There is to be no Reform Bill. Thus speaks Lord s PalmerstonVespeeial organ :— uWe do not expect to hear anything ' about a Reform Bill; first, because such a calamity as that which has occurred in India no moi*e than the late Russian war presents a favourable opportunity for the calm discussion of a question which lies at the very root of our political system; aud> secondly, because the public in England care little or nothing about the extension or equalization of the franchise. They would sooner hear of the capture and execution of that execrable miscreant \Nana -Sahib, than, of the enactment of the most - sweeping measure of reform proceeding even from the paterfamilias of whig-liber-alism, Lord John Russell, whose familiar spirit or political ' Mrs. Harris' is an ever threatened Reform B*ill." .:'_..:Tho--< Daily News,' of yesterday, thus refers to the subject:— : "For the suspicions which have arisen that Lord Palmerston means to play the country false, Ministers have only the subverviency of their organs to his supposed and assigned intentions to bin me. If however, these suspicions prove true, a serious irreparable feud in the Liberal party is impending*. A party cannot, even were its morality so low as to dispose it thereto, live on expectations. Want of time is an ex cuse that can be dways resorted to where there is an indisposition to act. No man can bespeak a ses*sion of Parliament for any particular subject. When a question is ripe for legislation, then is the fittingtime for legislation. And who will say that the question of Parliamentary reform is not ripe T Postpone the question again this approaching session, and so far from securing for it an opportunity the session thereafter, the reverse will be found to be the case. The question will then be found to have receded still further from Parliamentary grasp. There is no time like the present^ when we have a House of Commons prepared for its deliberation by the pledges of a great party and the promises of a powerful Minister. The mysterious -enlistments are apparently not yet at an end on the continent. A Paris letter in the ( lndependence ' of Brussels contains the curious assertion that recruiting for the English service is busily carried on all over France, that the English recruiting- agents apply themselves particularly to gain over old French soldiers who have served their time, and that the persons enlisted are directed to London, and not to Marseilles. Then the Swiss Federal Council has felt bound, in a circular, to contradict the statement that England is enlisting, or ;v ill enlist men in the Cantons.