Miscellaneous.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XI, Issue 674, 23 April 1859, Page 3

Miscellaneous.

:i Much affectionate'interest is felt in the Princess Frederick' William/1 and' the ■ coming fruit of her alliance with thel probable heir of the crown of Prussia is anxiously looked -for.' The usual attendants, including; Sir rjames Clark, a nursei from England, and f one from 'Westphalia, have arrived in Berlin.:

It is rumoured in naval circles that the government have it in'contemplation to ihakeV considerable augmentation in the channel squadron by the \ addition of twelve sail-of-the-line. The greatest activity prevails at all the dockyards in hastening forward the completion of those line-of-battle ships which have been on the stocks several years, most of which are nearly completed, in order that they may be cpmniissioned and made ready for sea. | During the present year several first-class screw steamers will be launched at Portsmouth, Chatham, Devonport, and Pembroke, when other line-of-battle ships are to be immediately kid down on the same slips.— Daily News. „.,-, It appears from the traffic returns published weekly that the receipts on railways in the United Kingdom fortheyear 1858 amounted to £23,263,765 on 9016 miles, against £23,672,465 on 8690 miles in the year 1857, showing a decrease in the receipts of £408,700, and an increase in the mileage of 326' miles. The past was the first year since the establishment of railways in the United Kingdom of a decrease instead of an increase in the receipts, each year from the commencement having "shown a steady increase over preceding years. The progressive increase of railway traffic from 1842 to 1857, averaged £1,318,500 per annum over'each preceding -year, thus increasing the aggregate re- ' ceipts.in.the course of fifteen years by £19,762,000. The decrease above mentioned of £408,700 appears rsmall as compared with the total amount of the 'receipt's, but when added to the usual incre.ise of 'railway traffic annually—namely, £1,318,500— ' makes an actual deficit of £1,827,200, airi hence; lthe serious reduction "in the ordinary dividends. The decrease is referred to the competition for the; Manchester traffic and the effects of the commer-j cial panic of 1857. , , ' ' J The completion of the communication between the metropolis and the lines of telegraph' recenthj submerged from the Norfolk and Suffqlk coast to the continent, is being rapidly pushed forward.

Prince Alfred appears to bo making a kind of semi-regal tour in the Mediterranean. He is the subject of loyal or courteous ebullitions wherever, ho goes. Recently at Malta he was entertained at dinner by Sir Jolui Pennefather aiid Rear-Adniiral Codririgton ; he made a progress through' the streets; received all the authorities nt tbe Palace;' went to the Opera; and visited the Governor's country; seat. , Of course Malta illuminated and a great deal of powder was burned, in, salutes. The Maltese .were delighted... and flattered by this visit from the Queen's second son..

A singular case ; was heard in the Vice-Chan^-cellor's Court at Oxford. Two: members; of the University—one Mr. Parkinson, a Master of Arts—' dulyattired in jockey costume, had "determined to ride a race in Port. Meadow, a large flat'piece;!pf ground belonging to the freemen of the city. The Proctors,. hearing of this^' interfered. Although; they were warned' to refrain from riding, this gen-. tlemen persisted, and when summoned .to attend, before the senior proctor Mr. Parkinson, refused,, not recognizing his authority. For .this he -was fined £5 ; ; but; he refused, payment, and was cited to appear in the VicerGhahcellor's Court, whemhe paid the fine under protest",' and appealed, alleging that the Proctors have no powev: over any member of convocation, except to report him to the' ViceChancellpr. Dr. Kenyoh heard the'appeal. Judghieht reserved. •«. . ; ..'....,,". ..,.;.,. Tlie new standard'of weight for the sale of corn in Liverpool, \ and ' other . markets, founded : on the, decimal principle,, comes,into operation on the,^lst of Feburary. ; To;meet: the difficulties which may be at, first experienced in -ascertaining the value iof the usual measures ofgrain,;meal, or flour at every usual price .per. cental, (1001b.) the Association■; of the Liverpool Corn Trade have computed! and pub-' li'shed a complete list of hew corn tables; which will'enable buyers, and sellers to communicate with all other market's where the old standard^ipf weight or measure are'still maintained- 'In th^cdnstruc,tion of ;the; tables 'the priced of the cental^ is first given'at 45., and thence, upwards,... advancing a penny .at each step,.to 285., and in parallel columns the price is stated for each of 11 of the' Weights most commonly used. Thus it is seen at, a glance that, corn at the-given price, say 12s. perc ental; (1001b:) is worth ss. 4fd.> per bushel of 451b: • 7si 2id.T?er bushel of 601b.; 13s. sfd. per'cwt: of 1121b: 235; 6^dv per barrel of 1961b,;' and 265: 10_d, : per barrel of 2241b. j. and so on in proportion to. the less or greater price per cental. At'tlie1 end have been added the corresponding prices from ,4s. to 21s. 6d. of-the ton, (2,2401b.) and of the 2,6001b; or 20 centals.— Liverpool Albion. n ,

-■ The little Prince Imperial of France was playing the other day' in the. gardens of grahde' mere M6n: tijo,, when some ladies" well1 known to; him: ran'up as'usual to:kiss and fondle him.' Butthe' little heir apparent, doubtless under instruction, astonished them bythrowing himself '■'. into an attitude, and holding out his " hand"' for'.their;salute,! ; , f

i Madame* Anna- Bishop is. now: no - longer Madame ; Anna Bishop; but Madame Schulze, ■ having been recently: united to an American gentleman'6*f

;hat name,

Mrs. Reekie, a widow, 'died Pathhead, near Kirealdy, in the beginning of January. She was known to be the last of those; young lasses who lighted the fires in Ravenscraig Castle when the men of Pathhead kept armed watch and ward nightly for the return of Paul Jones. She often referred to this'period5; in her life;, and described miniiteiy the' appearance' of 'Mr. Shirra, when engaged in praying on the.beach for that wind which drove the vessels of the dreaded Paul Jones down

the Firth., She was 27 years single, 44 years iharried; ;and 28 years a widow, and was in the habit "of saying that she had lived three lifetimes. Ser offspring was as follows :—9 children; 65/ gran children, 216 great-grandchildren,'and three great-great-grandchild^ — in all VdZ.-^E&inburgh Courant..: „ , ■

Ari interesting discevery has just been/made at Nbnahcpurt, in the department, ef the,; Eure., . ' The parish priest pf* that village had in the .vestry,'of his church: an ornament called a breuse,; which is used io cpver the chalice in carrying ;it frpm. the vestry to i the altar ; and back. This brouse was •worn-out,; and had not been used for some time. It had, however, been very rich, being composed- of scarlet silk embroidered with geld. _ Tlie priest took it to pieces in order to have it repaired. ■' arid in*the lining he found a paper with the following'words written eh'it;"'and;spelt in the eld Trench 'orthography i, *' I .am the cordon pf James, the last King of Great, Britain of the family of the Stuarts., If you wish to know how it; happened that I was converted into ;an ornament, read .the history of; the

Regency of the Duke of Orleans during :the minprity of Louis XV. . Given, to the- Church :in 1753 by Madame L'Hbpital." The history pf that peripd mentiehs that the" Pretender,: sen pf James- II;, escaped assassination at Nenancburt-in the;year 1716 through the presence pf mind'arid courage, of Madame" "L'Hppital, grandmpther of the: Hb'npurable M. L'Hbpital, late Mayor pf Eyreux. It may be.ihfeh'ed from this discovery, that the Pretender ;left his cordon, of. the Order of the Bath with Madame- L'Hopital,. as he was forced to assume a disguise in order to escape from; the assassins. According' to St. Simon, Madame L'Hopital died in .1740, and her daughter-in-law gave the cordon to the church.— Journal de V Eure. . -

The lives of the Marchioness of Westminster and her daughter were placed inperiPat Chester the. other day. in consequence of what looks like an indulgence of-excessive parsimony.. ...AV they were driving along, Foregate-street the: body of the old carriage,' from;sheer decay and lorig,use, separated in'two parts. The two ladles were^ placed gently on the. ground; the horses ran off with; the box pn which sat the servants. No one <was hurt.

Huge draper's shops are now the fashion. They | grow bigger and bigger almost'daily. The mania! is not' confined to London. One of these' enormous:: establishments at Liverpool has recently been aug-; mented. . Business was carried on in ,one depart-; ment, while labourers were pulling down walls and [ clearing away another. On Tuesday the shop was full, when suddenly a wa11,.,, left without support, j fell down, broke into the shop, and carried custo-i mers, shopmen, and' goods, together with the floor1 -on which they stood, into the cellar. They had to ■be dug put. The^ result' was that, five persons, two ladies, a shopman y Mand two labourers,, have been; killed, and seven others have been..wounded more; or less severely. A jury have-blamed-the-proprie-j tor;bf the shop for'not having employed'prpper: workpeople. "' T , ,- A correspondent of the ' Sherbourne Journal : draws attention to the fact-that Mr. 'Miles, the! well-known Tory member for East Somerset, has,; in his character of colonel of ;a Somerset regiment; of yebmanry cavalry, actually appropriated riO fewer; ' than five commissions to his pwn family;.,, " : It ap-, pearsi" says; tlie writer, "that:this;hapj*y, family, ot; fMiles's Boys,' consists ;bf 'Colonel ,Miles,; Major Miles', Captain Miles, Xieutenant Miles; and Cornet Miles. A Miles- in every rank, forming one-; fifth of the entire list of officers,, besides others; closely connected to'the Worthy cOldnel .by marriage) but'owriing no other connection of any sort with the; county. ■-:-: -.:,-. : -~' ! The Sunday Question at the Ckystal Pa-: lace—At the half-yearly meeting of the .Crystal Palace shareholders, the Sunday question w4s very earnestly discussed When the vote was taken the; mbtion'"'to,:-re_eirid- i,the resolution for opening the uPalacer tp shareholders was' Rejected by S a i majority^ ■Of twenty,fpur;.( A;.hallot frasjr. however, ftga'm! de-j sipandediand'it was'ifixecl.to;take plaCOiOnthe 12th; of January andother days.; r- ; i;■.■*,■ :■■■■-, t I

James Atkinson murdered Mary Jane Scaife at Hampsthwaite, near Parley, in August last. He courted the, girl, , she refused to have him on account of, his violent temper, and ho one Sunday killed, her in a lane. There, was no doubt of the fact, Atkinson confessed it the next morning to his brother; and. afterwards described the crime in. a written statement. , For this ho wen tried at the York Assizes., The defence was that Atkinson was ah imbecile, acretin.. The disease was in the family. ! His brother was>iri idiot; his aunts were lunatics; his lather's brother, was a furious lunatic ; his grandmother had brought .lunacy into the family. The malady was traceable tp even move remote generations', and there were six or seven lunatics in i the family, .in every," generation—in the prisoner's 'own generation,in his father's, in his grandfather's ; and even in his great "grandfather's generation. 'ThiVwas supported by evidence. Persons who had known! him from childhood deposed to his idiotic - rages ; his delusions; and medical men deposed to ' the. weakness of.his mind. Nevertheless his " confession" is remarkably clear and explicit. The ' counsel for the prosecution sought to discredit the' medical men, and their crotchet theories • Mr. Baron Wat'soh ably summed up' the case and held the balance even. The jury found Atkinson.not guilty! on'the ground of insanity"; .and ;he. was ordered to be imprisoned during her Majesty's pleasure. " The" Tie verend St:' George Kirke, Hector of St Martin's, near Hornc'astle, was. taken before Mr.' Broughton, to answer a..charge of defrauding the North Western Railway; Company. He had travelled third-class from liiverpbol without paying his fare, .It appeared from | the. examination that theipoor gentleman. jvas: insane. ..In reply .to., a question from; the magistrate, hesaid he was one day taken frowhis house- and carded by train'to St.1 Petersburg;' the cook rode with him: He had not'seen the carriage before or since. Asked if he had any: friehds, he 'referred to Mr. Barrow, 'M.'P,-' and the'ReV'erend Mr. Wretich. "I'h'appen to be his'wife; fahd' his wiie'is my, sister. Her' name is Maria' Wrench,1 and she .is, a' yery' goqd wepch, and a good mother, 'and lah'angelic sister." '.Mr. Broughton—"W^here does your,sister live ?" Prisonerr^!'.St.,Michael's, Cornhill, in the City of London; in England/this side of, Jamaica, and be* low Tuxford." ,:Mr.' Broughton—" What's her name?" Prisoner(spelling)—' fW-r-e-n-c-h: Wrench his head off. The Reverend Tv W. Wrench." He gave several answers of a like kind,-and showed a decided tendency to make bad puns. He. was remanded -in order that enquiries might ha 'made.,'"' A new railway;war has brokenout. The scene of conflict, is- appropriately enough in the neighbourhood^ of Portsmouth ; ;and there a great battle has vbee"n fought. The South-Western had running pbwer's over'the'Brighton- and Sotith Coast line to Portsmouth. •'The'formedcompany:entered; into arrahgenients with the "direct .Portsmouth line now' in, course" .of'constructW; and the Brighton Company '.'thereupon -gave notice that South-Western Company's ; trains could.not traverse the line after the"27th.' Thiniahg this a formal notice intended to raise a legal,question, the;South-Western sent a train to' Portsmouth. ■•■ A locomotive was found in position across the -junction, and some rails had been taken -up. These were relaid by the SouthWestern party, and one of them seeing the obstructive .locomotive"unguarded, .took possession atid'moved it;out'of the'! way. : Trie 'train,.'then wentforvvard,'but tlie skirmishers of. the Brighton side,tore up more-rails. The South-Western train hloeke^up.the line for two hours and then retreated in .good order..;.-, „

"'Meetings have been held in Doncaster and Stocktori-on.-Tees, to put forward the claims of those tovv.ns to the honour of having representatives'in Parliament. At' Stockton one of. the; burgesses said.:—-" I think we ought to let Lord John Russell" arid Mr. Bright know. I say this here, that the franchise ought to be extended to'direct tax-payers —to the people .that pay the taxes. I'm sure, the intellect of this country is grown so much

and the ideas that people have now, and the way they're "educated by cheap publications and cheap papers and'> what1 riot—l say- this here, that any man thatJ pays direct taxes ouglit to have a vote for'members' of,' Parliament. (Laughter.) It's fruitless; td'talk abdut £10 ideas in Stockton here.

Stockton is; an', increasing town,;a town .that's, rapidly increasing, and ought long ago^ gentlemen, to have had"a representative. But, 'however, this is a very : important, town is Stockton, whether people looks at it with this idea or the other idea ; but. they must see this, here, that intelligence is rapidly extending in Stockton. (" Hear !'.'■ and laughter.) I don't say it'should be £10 or £5 or what it should:be—(Cries of " Question,' question !") —but I say that all intelligent men, all the men that pay taxes ought to havei a' vote." (Roars of laughter.)

The 'Hong Kong Register' describes with much detail the execution: of a French Bishop Melchin in Tonquin. . He was captured with two servants. The latter were tied to posts and beheaded in the •presence of their master. Then the Bishop was •stretched on the ground securely tied head feet arid arms to Stakes,'a bar crossing his chest, his Avhole frame being subjected to agonizing tension. In this, position he was literally hacked to pieces bit by bitj the savages beginning with his feet and passing upwards by slow degrees. '■ An American claims to have invented a submarine boat. He says that be has remained under water in it four hours without air tubes; that he can move it under water three miles an. hour; rise and sink at pleasure; carry arid fix to hostile ships torpedoes; use a 24-pounder against the hull of a ship, firing, disappearing to load, rising and firing again; he can use his boat for "several; days" at sea without showing an inch above water;; •and do many other wonderful things. His own: government would not look at his invention: it; •was offered to'the French—he got no reply. He; has now brought it to England, and has received prompt and full attention from the Surveyor of 'the Navy. The cabs from Mr. Mahew's, of Great Ormond yard,-provided for public use with patent caoutchouc .wheels, are^built in a neat and unpretending style. Theemblem is a sign of peace, a dove carrying a a sprig of myrtle; motto, "Persevere." These cabutohouc wheels have made Mr. Mahew's cabs ;hqt brily the/best public vehicles on the road, but 'superior in comfort to any priyate carriage. 'Punch' has'put into a rhyme a story current in .society[for. some -time.; A'young gentleman,' desirous of serving his country, but^ unable to pass -the-slight examination-'for a commission, procu-ied a substitute from one of our universities1 and/passed "by proxy. 'Nominally, the young; fellow took a high; pnice^nd; he^entered' a regiment. He was, :howeyer,:pursued by! his "friend"; demands for ,'money, were!Nnatle, and satisfied, .until .the boy's ''pocket or credit, was.; exhausted;. Then the proxy ; informed,against the principal, who was forthwith cashiered.. -.- • -,-.. : ..

A young lady, the dauglitei' of 'an East Yorkshire squire, and the hello of her district, has fallen '.in,, love with' Her: father's' valet, and married him. The account in'circulatipn describes the lady, as ; mainng ioye to the gentleman's " gentleman," and ,;as.'succeeding.in her seductive arts. Perhaps this will hot prove, quite accurate..', The wedding was .Cleverly contrived. Miss pretended to go on a .visit to a friend of the family; she went-really to -iYbrkv The "gentleman,'' laOweek'-af^rwaT.'ds^ob.-'i -tamed."leave of absence on urgent private affairs"; ■fdr-two fdayS;; He^iilspwerit toYorkV Sbon after-; '■ wards the ;par<mts orthe 'la^y were iby" re.-; 'ceivihg 'weddiug-c'ards! ; " ' " .'I <■ \

H_tsn The Jury that would not deliver a verdict Lord Campbell could receive finished by delivering no verdict at all. Some of them had no food since the

break of day on Friday. One, suffering from carbuncle, was relieved by a medical man. When

called into court they presented an amusing appearance. It is not often a starved jury appears.

But they had not agreed. Lord Campbell said that was a reasonable answer, but the verdict of damages one farthing was not reasonable. He also observed that—" The law contemplates that a jury

may not agree. With* regard to the time when a judge may discharge a jury, that depends upon his own discretion, and when it seems that there is

danger to life or health from longer confinement, and that there is no reasonable prospect of the jury agreeing, a judge will discharge his duty if he releases them' from further attendance. At the

assizes, according to traditional law, a jury who cannot agree ought to be locked up as long as the assizes last, and be carried in a cart afteV the judge to the boundary of the next county, and there be shot into a ditch. With regard to the sittings in London, which go on continuously for v long time, the jury aro left entirely to. the discretion of the judge; and, you having sat up the whole night—l am afraid much to your inconvenience—in obe-

die'nce to the law, and I have reason to believe that the health of.one of you is in a rather precarious' state,'and' there being no prospect of your agreeing

—I now discharge you all. Such is the law at present, but I may mention that I have given notice of my intention to bring in a bill in next session of Parliament1 to alter the law on the subject.

I never would! wish io. encroach on the maxim which has hitherto governed us in England that no man shonldbe convicted of a crime unless the

jury are unanimously of opinion that he is guilty ; but with regard to civil cases, my opinion is, that if—l will not. say a majority—a certain number, say, nine or ten, concur in a verdict, that verdict should be taken, and acted upon, unless it should afterwards be disapproved of by the court.' I shall submit a proposition of that nature to the Legis-

lature, and I hope they will agree to'it. I think it will be ah improvement upon'the present, mode of proceeding as;regards juries; but as you cannot agree this trial must go for nothing, and it will be necessary to "summon another jury, who I hope will'be unanimously of opinion either for the plain-

tiff* or the defendants on the merits, and will give a verdict that may be satisfactory to the country. You are now discharged." A juryman.—"l think we told your lordship last night that we had not agreed." Lord Campbell.—" Well, that shows you were not agreed when you gave your verdict." The Jury then left their box, and immediately retired from the conrt.

Johri Mitchell has become an out and out partizan pf slavery since he emigrated to America. In a recent number of his paper, the ' Southern Citizen,' he gives his views very plainly. "What Southern, statesman will have the pluck to plant himself on the honest human flesh platform ? It is true democracy, for it will abolish.monopoly. It is the best Know-Kothing-ism, for it will enable the Americans to rule America, which the English and Erehch do at present," and so forth. He undertakes to show what the Irish are doing in America,

and tells how almost every large plantation in the market is bought by an Irishman. He says, "Not only is there a large number of Irish-born citizens at the South who own slaves, but most of the Southern planters and slave holders, we are. proud to say, are Irish by 'descent." He has met with. only one of his countrymen wlio is not disposed to revive the African Slave-trade; and that singular Paddy's reason is that he holds so many slaves that he wants no more. ... The police continues its visits in Jewish families, in order to'ascertain whether any Christian do-

mesiics are kept by them. These visits often take place at very unseasonable hours. When some time ago a Jew remarked to the intruders that it was rather inconvenient to be disturbed by them, the ruffians fell upon hint and beat him so severely that he was confined to his bed for three weeks. The Jews of Kome groan under the heavy_ yoke weighing upon them, and many of thorn anxiously look for .the means to'escape from a bondage as bitter as' that of their ancestors in Egypt. The Mortara family lias received a definite answer to' its memorial, that " baptism once administered cannot be revoked." Nor were the parents any longer permitted, to see their child,-on the plea that when they came it was sick. This will account for thenhaving'quitted the Papal States. — 'Jewish Chronicle.

Byspme unexplained means the ' Cork Examiner' obtained and published a full note of the evidence taken before the Cork Magistrates, at a private sitting in the affair pf the Phosnix Club. Itcphsists mainly of the statements of Daniel Sullivan, alias' Gould, the informer, extracted^from that worthy Under direct cross-examination. His history is this. A process server in Kerry, he attended a fair at Bantry in August last to " buy lambs." There he was induced to-join a secret society and to take the oath of-secresy and the path of brotherhood, and to attend the meetings of the society. He stated that the object of this society was to. be ready to take up arms, as the Americans were expected before Christmas, and they would be joined by the French, and Ireland was then to be made an independent republic. . By the oath witness was, bound to secresy and tp take up arms at a moment's warning, and'to yield implicit obedience to his leaders. He described two night meetings at the Priest's Leap, a lonely spot on the borders ef Cork and Kerry where duels were formerly fought. At one pne of these meetings seven were present, at a second fifteen or twenty. There they met to make " arrangements to rise when the Americans should land." Each person had to sing a national song or make a speech tailing howthv/y would tale the country and make it a republic. _ He had attended meetings at Kenmare and Skibberean.. By this time one Father John had refused the fellow absolution because he belonged to a secret society. This, said Sullivan, led him tp think of turning informer to save his soul, although he had previously declared he would rather beg his bred than turn in- ' former and thus stain the blood of his ancestors! He resolved,- however, to lay informations and to become a spy; and he admitted that he went to Skibbereen "to'get at the secrets of the society,' and the names of its members. Keeping : in constant communication with the police-he. looked up his old friends, and vowed himself into then- confidence. He ulayed at cards with them. ." I gave some coppers to one of the little,children,mldorty ;'D'p'wling's house. Mnv have kissed, the child and called her 'My little Kerry pet.' : Came over at that time to get information to swear against the father. Sullivan was subject to a. scathing cross-examination "from, which he did not come.out ovorwell. His evidence is direct against some of the prisoners, but; it is not quite coherent. The Eeyerend Mr. " O'Haliaran of Bantry deposed that he saw four of the prisoners firing at a target on Newtown Strand. Mr. . Patterson saw them at sword exercise. A number of the prisoners'were admitted to bail. Mr.; Smith O'Brien.has publicly proclaimed his sympathy for the'youug men under arrcvst. _ Th? 'fundamental requisites of justice have boon violated in their esse, audthe mode of treating them reminds him of Austrian tyranny. The treatment of sailor* suffering from smallpox en board one of the ships of the Channel fleet, has attracted some notice- Tlie ' United Service Gazette' tells ..the story. "A .case- of small-pox .made its appearance on board one of the ships, of the Channel squadron some time ago. As. th^ disease : ; 4e vclared itself before the squadron left .Bantry/.thfe., 'men might have been landed and sent tp sick-quarters at Berehave_. Thiswaa not done.

. -■Mi_aa--e-«itn-m,-w, l »m-»--<-----i nm— ir -tiwa-ca-agwa 'The ship left for Quwnslown, but instead of male- : Jug the host of h»r. way thither under steam and -immediately stvnding the case to the hospital—<-the 'Course, recommended -the fires wore put.out and 'tlie ship-jpvoecedt'd leisurely under sail, making a *long passage. '.The patient was kept some days on rboard :the ship, all or her arrival at Queenstown, -and only landed to die. Other eases subsequently nvado their appearance, but were kept days on "board. The ship has not been fumigated, neither •have any..precautions heen taken to .prevent this dreadful-scourge!" As.an'instance of'the effects of the late stormy - weather we may mention the case of a vessel that • passed through'the Caledonian Canal. The Betsy, of Peterhead, from Oporto • for -with fruits - and wine, lost the English Channel -during the sßtorm, The first port made by the master was -Queenstown ; on' leaving Queenstown, intending to make for the English Channel again, he was driven as far north as the Sound of Islay! He then determined to take the route of our canal, passing

from the west to the east sea. — Inverness Courier.

France.—General Neil has received a letter of thanks from Queen Victoria for a copy of his "journal of the singe of Sevastopol, which he pve-." « sented to her Majesty. -The "letter pays a high •compliment, to the work, arid expresses her Majesty's gratitude for the handsome manner in which "the general speaks of the English army.-; The t French Commission appointed to examine the • question.of the immigration of free negroes has : held three meetings. 'At, their last sitting M. Le- " inne, who commanded a-ship on the coast of Africa, was examined. rHis evidence was favonr- ., able to the measure. The Government' have invited the presence of English naval officers, who have served on the African-coast, in order to ob-' tain their information and evidence upon the subject. The commission of Marshals appointed to classify the officers in' the army subject to the late • general inspection, is now sitting under thepresi- - dency of Marshal Vaillant. .great medical cause which has been so'long pending at Paris between the allopathists arid the homosopathists, was terminated last week-to the discomfiture of the latter. -The case, in a word, was simply this :-— The. "Union Medicale some time since stigmatised homoeopathy as a pretended science, and'its -professors as charlatans. Upon this, twenty-four;, homoeopathists of Paris brought an action for libel. M. Emille Ollivier did his best for themy but the court, after'a hearing of several days, dismissed v the case with costs. Crinoline catastrophes are .now as frequent as railway accidents. The Memoriale dcs Pyrenees, mentions the case of a .lady whose dress. caught fire. The hoops kept the flounces at such an enormous distance from her person, that her legs remained uninjured in the ■ midst of flames; but when the fire reached her waist, she was horribly burnt. She remained in a state of dreadful suffering, with little hopes of recovery.——A Government French engineer has been "placed at the disposal ■of Archduke Constantino for the series of naval dockyard works about to he constructed at the Russian port of .Yillafranca. • Great apprehension was lately -felt in literary - circles in Paris, at the absence of any tidings of Theophile Gautier, who was known to have taken shipping at Kiel, to proceed, to St. Petersburg. He tossed about for a month, and has at-last turned up at Cronstadt, of his entrance into which haven ■ he gives a very graphic account in the 'Moniteur.' I n the window of the library, No. 212,.Eve • de llivoli, there has lately been exhibited an engraved portrait of Mr. Charles Dickens, with a ..beard, a la impe'riale, sitting at a desk in a thoughtful position, and writing. The police entered the shop the-other day and told the proprie- • .tor in very angry terms to take the engraving out - ,of the window. They mistook Mr. Dickens's por- : strait for a caricature of the Emperor,

.ME. BABNUM ON MONEY-MAKING AND HTTMBT7G. The celebrity of.Mr Barnum, and the popularity of his two ■subjects, " Money -making" and (incidentally) "Humbug," helped to fill St. James's "Ball last evening.with an attentive audience. Mr. JBarnum has a good manner..; hislecture was light, .land agreeable, and there was something piquant in : finding the ".science" of humbug expounded by a .professed savant in that line. * ! The lecturer said that man was certainly a moneymaking animal, arid he showed how, in all professions, it was the stimulus to exertion. The elevation of Baring "Lloyd Jones would tend to shew ithat honours ;await the clever possessor of wealth as they do the general or 'the statesman. The lee- ; turer also instanced Washington, who," he stated, if lie had not ""been a great general, -would "'haye 1 been an excellent "financier. ""With regard to the methods of accumulation, he would state "that certain rules must be abided by, "although, doubtless, the man of :'clearest intelligence met with the greatest success. These rules, he -told the audience, were, ""briefly, to live within their income; "judicious economy, not 'cheeseparing economy, which was like purchasing a red herring for dinner, arid seri'ding. it home in a - carriage-aud-four, but a careful proportion of expenditure' to income, to carry which out he would .strongly recommend a daily account iept of necessaries and luxuries; to avoid, debt, as they would . avoid a life of misery; having selected a profession to pursue it with perseverance; not' to employ un- ' lucky persons or go to unlucky places fluck, of course, was a mere superstition, but when persons acquired that reputation there wassome cause which was not less important because unseen. System ' was a-great element of success, as it was a saving of time, labour, and money. Never to engage in. enterprises which .they did not understand. Gamb- ' ling and speculation were the bane of commerce, and money made "in i'such a manner was never of permanent good. These precepts he illustrated .by anecdotes told in a pleasant ,- effective manner, not theleast interesting-of which ' were those connected with Kis own career^ He defined humbug to be the art of attracting public interest to objects worthy of their patronage, and in that sense he was not ashamed to acknowledge himself a professor, lie .had been, he believed, . connected with everything but the sea serpent, and that he hoped to obtain some day. He concluded '.by impressing on his hearers the importance of advertising, instancing the American Museum, which, when it came into his possession was a loss and a failure, but by extensive, advertising, without adding to its internal attractions, became a lucrative ..- speculation. He took an opportunity of defending the institution of "humbug by showing the ideal representation of Napoleon crossing the Alps by the painter David, in contrast with the reality, and /by asserting that in the carving-of a statute the -sculptor selected the best: points from numerous .models, and the result was a representation-of form in such perfection as never existed, and this heightening of nature.Mr. Barnum characterised as h.n ml»ug. As'instances of his .successful humbug, Mr. '"Barnum -narrated how, having obtained 14-young Xtiffyjoes for.^oo dollars','he gave notice that a herd •of wild buffaloes would be presented for exhibition. He exhibited?, a-picture of the buffaloes which had been painted to attract spectators, and which contained a representation of fierce-looking animals, with threatening horns and fiery eyes, and then •^displayed a picture of tlie real buffaloes, which had jnerely the appearance, of sucking calves. He described the disßppoiritriieiit' of* tlie visitors, though 111ey ware odm'itted to the e,xiiiljifcion-'free, and ex- ' plained :that 'in the'Course'of a few days h« caused it. vo.ibe mncie kn^wn that the person who;hid perpetrated -this 'piece of humbug' was .Barnum, the '. 'of, the. American Museum, that/being fine of the novel modes he bad adonted'to attract yisitors to his' institution. He explained all the

circumstances about his mermaid, and how it was one of'his advertisements for the museum, He promised that in the course of a few days a mermaid should be exhibited, and promised that tickets for the exhibition would ho delivered to the company as they retired from tho hall. The mermaid was a hideous creature, but he exhibitod outside the picture of a beautiful and interesting damsel. He gave an account of his purchaso of elephants, and when he was asked what-they would draw, ho said -they would draw the attention of 25,000,000 Americans/to Barnum's Museum. "It was by advertising that the success of Tom Thumb was accomplished, for otherwise, fully admitting Tom Thumb's merits, he was of opinion that he might be confined to a booth. 'So far humbug might be practise!],'but no further. They must not hide their light«under a bushel, but must beat the gong and sound their trumpet (laughter). Under all circumstances, trials, and temptations, a person should preserve his integrity.

At :the close of the lecture Mr. Barnum was loudly applauded. As the company descended the stairs, they were presented with tickets, on which was printed the word " Bluff." _t was understood that these tickets will enable the .holders to visit tho mermaid, to which Mr. Barnum promised his auditors access in the course of a few days.