ENGLISH EXTRACTS.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume III, Issue 139, 28 November 1846, Page 3

ENGLISH EXTRACTS.

It is stated in circles likely to be well infoiraed on the subject, that her Majesty, wishing to mark her approval of the services of the Premier, offered him a peerage, which was respectfully but firmly declined. This is the second time that Sir Robert Peel has refused this distinction. It is stated that after Sir Robert Peel had declined a peerage for himself, her Majesty repeatedly offered a peerage to Lady Peel, One of the last ministerial acts of Sir Robert Peel was the recommendation of Mr. M'Culloch to her Majesty for a pension of £200 for the services he had rendered by his writings on political economy* Mr. Cobden has addressed the constituency of Stockport. He thanks them for having been the instruments of placing him in Parliament, and giving him the opportunity of doing such seivices as he may have rendered* He says he has received permission to absent himself from Parliament for the remainder of this Session, and will not be able to attend Parliament next year. He therefore resigns his seat into their hands. Lord Brougham declares his intention of opposing the new Administration to the utmost of his power. It is rumoured that Pope Pius will be as favourable to railways as his predecessor was opposed to them. Lord John Russell will be re-elected for the City without opposition. Ibrahim Pacha is undergoing the process of Z,*o/»isation throughout England; he promises to work Wonders when he returns to his lain Up to the date of our last advices, ninety Peers had affixed their names to Lord Stanley's protest against the Corn Bill. ;

Sir Robert Peel's Business Habits.— Sir Robert Peel does business at all hours. He received the first intelligence of the fight in India between the hoiirs of three and four o'clock in the morning ; a gentlemen conducting one of the morning papers having at that hour forwarded to the right hon. baronet the Bombay Times. Sir Robert was in bed, got up, dressed, and wrote a note in return, thanking him fot his kindness. It was exactly twelve hours after, that the Government despatch was delivered in Downing-street.

Statistics.—The number of tobacco-pipes used in London last year was 364,000' gross, or 52,416,000 pipes. It requires 300 men, each man making 20 gross 4 dozen per week, for one year, to make them ; the cost of which is £40,950. The average length of these pipes is twelve and a-half inches } and, if laid down in a horizontal position* end to end together, they would reach to the extent of 10,340 miles 1600 yards. It they were piled up, one above another perpendicularly, they would reach 135,148 times as high as St. Paul's. They would weigh 1137 tons 10 cwt; and it would require 104 tons 9,cwt. 32 lb^ of tobacco to fill them.

The American Line.—lf President Polk means mischief to his country and the whole civilised world, he will speedily begin mustering forces with a view to hosti.ities with Great Britain. What the organization of the American army is, we do not know, but the following corps, we should think, form a distinguished portion of it j—The Kentucky Gougers: the Bowie-Knife Brigade; the Sword Stick Division; the Revolving Barrelleers. We might also mention the Auxiliary Niggers; but we suspect that this regiment is not exactly to be depended on. We still hope, however, that peace will ultimately be preserved, and that the affair will end with Bombastes' address to his followei s: —" Begone, brave army, and don't kick up a row." — Punch.

Literary Gossip. — Douglas Jerrold has got something new on the anvil. Mentioning Jerrold's name puts me in mind of the Daily Newsf on dit Mr. Dilke of the Athenaum, has purchased it, and is going to make a cheap paper of it. Dilke succeeded well in reducinq c ing the price of the Atheneum t hut with a daily newspaper, having a crack corps of re-

porters, foreign correspondents of note, cdi tors and sub-editors ditto ditto, it must be ad* mitted that the reduction of price must be" considered 'doubly hazardous.' At al! events* the paper has the goodwill ot every well wisher of the press. Charles Dickens has left the Daily Neics, and, together with his wife and family, is preparing to wing his way to the neighbourhood of Constantinople. Yoii will have seen that the Era has changed editors. Vates (Mr. Harrison), a gentlemanly man does not appear to have been very well used ; it is stated that he, in conjunction with one or two wits about town, are making ar-* rangements for the publication of a rival paper. May they both win ! Meautime the Era has got into the hands of two or three of the original boys of Punih. —London Correspondent of the Chronicle.

Thurtell. —At the Norwich Sessions, on the 16th March, Mr, Riches, the proprietor of tht Norwich News, preferred a bill of in* dictment agaiust Mr. George Thurtell, for horse-whipping him most severely in the public market place, on the market day, for having inserted in his newspaper, of the 2nd of that month, the following paragraph amongst the deaths :—" Thomas Thurtell, Esq., of" Horfoyd Hill, aged SB. Mr. Thurtell was an Alderman under the old Corporation, and Was father to the infamous John Thurtell, who was executed twenty years ago for the murder of Mr. Weare." Mr Thurtell admitted the assault, but pleaded the provocation in having his feelings Wounded by ripping up a matter which had so long ago occurred. The court thought the provocation was certainly great, but the law did not authorise such a redress. The sentence was accordingly a fine of one shilling.