ENGLISH EXTRACTS.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume IV, Issue 239, 13 November 1847, Page 3

ENGLISH EXTRACTS.

The Irish Emigrants to, the ttiuTED States and Canada. — In a letter from Philadelphia, under date the 21st March, we find the following melancholy statement :~ " Much alarm is felt in all the Atlantic cities in consequence of the spread of the ship fever. It has extended fatally" in New York, several deaths occurring daily, not only among the immigrants, but others also who have taken the infection from them. Many hundreds arein the hospitals, and on Monday there were six dead bodies from this disaase within two hours. The board of health having engage*! the huildiugs at ' Long Island farm* for fev.-r hospitals, the residents near the, place' coti r vened a meeting on Wednesday evening, \aiiil d mob burnt down the empty buildings.' Thus pestilence, like famine, produces, outrage — and really there is in this instance the excuse that the board of health might just as well have placed their intended hospital away from inhabited neighbours. Almost every emigrant ship that arrives from Europe reports from 50 to 60 or 70 deaths during the voyage. At Boston, the British brig Mary', , from Cork, was not al owed by the authorities to come into the port, owing to the condition, of her passengers, no security being^given (according to law) that said passengers should not become chargeable to the city. : In the Boston almshouses there are daily deaths from this dreadful disease. In this city there have been, as yet, but few cases,, but at Baltimore the deaths are numerous. ' At^Queb^c and Montreal the hospitals are crowdedrr'from 40 to 70 deaths on board nearly all the ves-' sels on their voyage. There were on Satur* day week 224 patients, one or more dying hourly, on board of four ships at Montreal 5 ; and the authorities have constructed accp'mV modations at Gresse Isle for several thousand patients. In New York two, .physicians caught the infection and died in, a few hours — one being Dr. Van Buren., Each day, adds to the alarm and to the' number of victims; and when the excessive heals of summer shall have fairly set in, a great mortality will probably occur in more than one of , the large ports of this country and Canada.' The quarantine and emigrant laws, and the , required securities for passengers, will be rigid) >*' enforced, for the public health seems to require unusual vigilance. The fever is fata) , in a majority of cases — ay, as fatal'as the cholera, or the vomito of the tropics. It generally produces death in a few hours." „ i A Speech on the Currency.-t (N.B. — ■ Utter unintelligibility is here absolutely requisite, and grammar is never expected.)— r "Gentlemen, what then is to be done in a crisis at which we see the Bank contracting its bullion, and the exchanges becoming so mucb, convertible currency— -heighttneiJ as they arc

by ,the drain of gold produced by the standard of 'oueen Elizabeth and the "jan^ of 1J825 J (tfear,) 'We are to)'d that tbje fl^qatijng^ medium' as represented by' ah' equivalent amount 'af'tbe precToiis metajTs in consequence of course jof ( }mp"6rts of cornfroiri bdessa^and the wher"' ports' on' ih'e 'Blacj^' Sea"/ which a'r.e much'a^ected by the go,lcl,of the Ural, niouna 4r tains' f> a4 well" as by the accp'mmbaa'tion wbich tbe Bank fs unable to afford upon .paper disc'ounte^'a^'a fal'ffngoffin interest of seven per cent.— a' state bi'.'uiin'gs which, so far as .the feonvertibilTty,, of 'currency ' and' tne ; frequent "calls upon 'tne smallholders in railway! goes, 'iriiist necessarily occasion that panic in the lolotiey-rnafket which, considering the state r of W& foreign exchanges and the quantity lof'nu^lion (lo'clced up by the act of ,1844, operating in all' instances to the disadvantage of holders of reduced Consols in the ratio of 11,| to 13j - — i he" amounts respectively being multiples of -the kctuala.mount"' of circulating medium afloat inlhe different "branches, of industry, to which a, paper' currency would ,give stability 'and monetary iraport'anceln the share. marke/. (t dud cries' of 1 , Kearl') Thus, gentlerii'en, I think I Have made out the pfonttsit^on with s Wbich I 'started. ' (Loud cheers.)'*— { Mah in the Moon. " , , ' ' , '

' Teetotalers at' Fault. — In Edinburgh^ ias't week, \ person brought liis Vife t0 the police-office,' ( od a charge .of habitual d'runketin'essf, 'The wife, stung by the complaints b'f 'her husband, ' retortedj " You're no sober y'qdrsel', man. "Me no, sob l er !" , exclaimed the' man ; " it's four months the noo sin' I joined' 'the Teetotal Society^ and I only fell through last 1 week a wee ; but you wa,sna joined a' wieek',Wbman, till you began to smuggl?,and'ypu'\re scarcely ever 'been, sober sine. ThereV-waur members 'o* the society than me; fyiit'as for you; you're a disgrace to a' connected Wit." " iiaud your wheisht ? man ; I keepit steady enough (ill I got baud o' a drbp o' ydur one Sunday, that you 'had Hidden 'in 1 a 'corner, whaur ye thought I wadna look ior't." "Eh, Jean, \yas't yo that stealt that t\ waur than ever — ye deserve to be'selit vto3lßt'iaeweir'forv to 3l Bt'iaeweir'for that ' itsel'— lock hef up. policen.an," Tbe^policp,' however, re'fuse t d*"tb i'pt6rfere,' aud disruissed them both. " ' tvl

Hulla^s, Mysic ? HALL. — The ceremony of ltiying tbe foundation stone of Mr. Hullah's music-hall, in Long-acre, was performed'yesterday, un^er the presidency 1 of Lord Morpeih,'* Prayers having been read, the members' of Mr. Hullah's class sang the 100 th psalm, with precision and taste ;" after which/ Lord' Morpeth performed the ceremony ot laying the si'one, pn which was inscribed merely his name and, the date. His lordship then addressed the meeting. He said, that* having gone through the "mechanical part of a ceremony for the performance of which lie had stolen a brief interval, from graver, and certaffily less' har.moniou? occupations, he would joffsv a few observations as to the higher ql'ject, for' , which they ,were met together. Though he had spoken of graver occupations he did not think that the present undertaking had anything 'in it of a frivolous character. Its object was* the cultivation and propagation of an art which', must tend to good, which mi^ht pleasantly and profitably employ hours \tfhich otherwise would, by many, be spent in ale-house orgies. ( or in midnight brawls. His lordship dilated at some length on the moral and social good which might be expected to result'frorii a more general knowledge of music, the comfort it might carry mo the domestic'circles, and the spirit of earnestness and, m^re'than all, of unity which it might give to devotional exercises. All must admit that no man had, done one-half' so much towards giving a knowledge of music to the million in 1 Jplngland'as Mr. Hullah, who, besides' the musica| attainments he imparted, rendered no small service to "society by the spirit of unanimity an,d good-will generated by his classes. His lordship ended, a long and eloquent speech by wishing every success to the institution. —Mi. Beaver read' j^n address "from the siognjg classes to' Mr'.' Hullah,' expressive of their satisfaction at the qourse'he was adopting, wjfuch' satisfaction 'they, had proved by subscribing among themselves JESOO towards defraying 'the expenses of the building, a cheque for which sum was handed to Mr., Hullah'by'Mr. Beaver. — Mr. Hu'llah" returned thank's, homing that his pupils, with many of wh'qm he 1 had been connected for six or seven years; ' iri comraou with himself, would always' be actuated by the samtf principle of unity 'aifd co-operation, without which the new hall woiilii be" n6 mpre than four walls" and a, foo'fj-'vbia 1 ' of influence or profit. — The Bishop of Norwich, in a very effective speech "propo'scd a vote of thanks to Lord Morpeth/and aAFude'd to the, effects of music upon both sol-. diers. and sailors, askirig^who did' not ' /eel' more loyal wfien he heard the' national aninem of "'l&ule Britannia," sun'^ or ', played I^— LoVa'Md^peth^thbugfit ijiey could not do"better'than close'the proceedings by requesting tfr^tfuiA^^'rifitbys^ "(Soil save 'the; Glueing" was* perf ormed in a truly ere-

ditable style., Alter the, ceremony, an ,ey,en-r ing party," in co^naep.Qrati.on. ,of the event, was given at the Crown and Anchor Tavern, Strand, where most of jMjr, Hijil^h's,. pupils were present, as well as many influential personages! There was some good professional .sipgjng,— Daily News, June 22. . Fever prevails to an alarming extent in, the Jow" lodging-houses of Halifax, ; .caused by ilie crowding in of great numbers of , poor Irish.' Eleven were ill iv one building where 'there jwere twenty lodgers. , , , The prospect of ultimately t saviog the, GJreflf Britain i( sjeamer has recently improved. Some of the compartments have been made so tight that in a ]ate spring-tide the vessel floated ; when all the compartments have, been made 'equally sound her buoyancy will of course be increased. , , . ' The Experiment steam-ship, on the voyage to London from Sunderlaud, has been destroyed by fir'ei off the coast of Suffolk. There were eighty persons on board i, .During the night, the steamer Clarence, from Edinburgh to London, appioached, received the Exjierimenl's, passengers, and. took the burning ship in tow ; the crew remaining on board to endeavour to extinguish the fire. ,Th e ' attempt, however, failed ; and it was found necessary to t take all the people from the' Exf>eripient an^ leave her to her fate. T.he Hanover Gazette publishes a law, which gr.eatly modifies the position of, the Jews in that kingdom, and renders it, much more advantageous to them ; their testimony may now be received in the tribunals with the same credit as that of Christians. Private letters irom Alexandria, of th 19th April, announce that the foundation of the first lock of the barrage of the Nile was laid on the 9th, by Mehemet AH, with considerable pomp. The first session of the Prussian Parliament was opened by King Frederick William on Sunday last, with a very long speech, delivered, it is said, ex tempore, and conveying an elaborate and reiterated caveat against what his " dear and trusty Orders'' ought npt to do with the new toy. His speech, however, involved the important declaration, that he woul# contract no loans, levy no new taxes, nor increase those that exist — always excepting what may be necessary in war-time — " withoutthe free consent of all the Orders. " Prussia, therefore, has at last its embryo Parliament assembled in Berlin ; and that Parliament has received the partial custody of tbe v piirse-strings. The King of Holland is represented to be in a hopeless state of health. The disease is said, to be in the liver., The Brussels Herald mentions violent palpitations of the heart as one of the alarming symptoms. Russian letters mention that two general officers and twelve colonels have been committed for trial on the charge of having embezzled monies destined for the service of the military hospitals. A letter from .Cologne, dated the Ist of May, says — " The Emperor of Rqssia is positively not going to Pans. His Imperial Majesty has during the last three or four weeks been very seriously,indisposed ; and his physicians have at last declared his malady a liver complaint, and strictly prohibited,,, his leaving St. Petersburgh before the middle of summer, and then to pioceed to the celebrated watering place Kissengen, in Bavaria." > Accounts from Iceland, received at Copenhagen to the Bth March, report, a commotion of the mountain. At the beginning of. Ue r cember, dense volumes of smoke began to,issue from Hecla ; and from the 10th to the, 15th of February repeated shocks of earthquake were felt at Reikiavik and its environs, and in the district of Thinggolden, several of which were sufficiently violent to shake ihe houses and throw down heavy pieces of furniture.

India. — The overland mail furnishes news from Bombay to the 2nd of April. The reports brought by the previous mail as to the death of Akhbar Khan are confirmed. He is supposed to j:iaye died, from poison. The Delhi Gazette asserts, on the, authority of a correspondent a,t Cabool, that Akhbar Khan had, entered into a league with the chiefs of Candahar, who are in the pay ot the Shah of Persia, fqr the invasion of British India via Shikarpore. Jn furtherance of this object, Yar Mohammed, of Herat, was to aid his spn^in-law Akhbar with 3,000 men. Akhb'ar 's ( journey into Candahar las,t year, it is said, had reference to thjs projected invasion. Affairs in Lahore and Sc,iude w,ere proceed-, ing tranquilly., x „ , , The Indian mail confirms the report t)iat the restless £.kb,ba.r Khan had died — with a conspiracy in his heart. '

Fji^Nqfj.; — jThe, subject of colonial slavery for »some tjrae in abeyance, has b,een suddenly mooted in the Chamber of Deputies, w ( ith, a, m,ost unexpected result. In July 1845, the Chambers passed a law to .ameliorate the condi ion of the slaves ; allowing them certain day^s l[or work } on oyt^n account, rjght ' to purchase freedom, to majjy,, &c, (The e*e-

cution of the la,w was intrujted'to tribunals in., which the slave-owners cpustftuted t,he majority ; and the consequence is, that it has become a dead letter through the, flagrant partiality and evasions of public officers. JPetjpns from, the French colonies, praying for : ajjolvtiori of ■slavery, were presented on Saturday; and, a discussion was taken on Monday* The, petitions were strenuously supported by M. Lasteyrie and , M. ,Ledr,u Rollin ; with frightful statements as to the cruelties prac,tised in .Gaudeloupe and Martinique. For exarnple-rr < A little Negro boy entered a garden ; he was seized by the owner, and taken before the .Mayor ; the Magistrate drew out his penknife, 'an'd^ cutting off the end of the boy's v e'ar,' forced him to swallow it. A cn'ild was suspected of having poisoned an ox, which had died. The head of the ox was cu,t off, and suspended round the neck of the child, who was compelled to carry it until the effluvium from the decomposition of the flesh relieved the child from its torments by death. ' An aged woman was tied naked by th'e four limbs, and her son was compelled to hold her while the whip was applied to the naked back of the woman, until her off&pring was covered with the blood which spouted from her. A female, five months gone with child, was bound upon a ladder by the four limbs, a billet of wood being stuffed between .her bosom and the ladder, to render her back convex; the lash was then applied, until premature delivery was produced under the operation of the torture. The blows inflicted upon her head broke out her teeth, destroyed one of her eyes, and deprived her i of hearing. Another female, also pregnant, was submitted to the whip, until her back was covered with bleeding wounds ; and then by a devilish refinement of torture, a solution, of pimento and lemon-juice was poured into the wounds. There was at times a show of punishment for these outrages ; but only nominal penalties were inflicted. The man who tortured the woman into premature labour was brought before the Correctional Police and sentenced to fifteen days' imprisonment! An officer who tried to procure due enforcement of the law in the case of the child that was killed, was " advised " to leave the colony " for his health ;" he refused ; but ultimately he was recalled, and placed on half-pay ! The Chamber received these statements with violent exclamations of incredulity j but M. Ledru Rollin adduced minutes of evidence aud other proofs. Disbelief was succeeded by undisguised horror. M. Jolivet, who rushed to the tribune and vaguely denounced the statements as "infamous calumnies," was driven from his post with shouts of indignation. The Minister of Marine and Colonies " deplored " that such facts had been brought forward — he did not think that any one, however different the results that could be desired, was justified in unfolding such a long catalogue of grievances, There woul4 be 'abuses in all communities. Admiral Mackau was persisting in the demand for , " the order of the day " — analagous to our " previous question :" but M. Guizot, perceiving the sense of the Chamber, broke in with the declaration, "II ny a pas d'ppposition;" the, motion should not be. resisted. It was, that the petitiqns be referred to tjie Minister of' Justice. This result i,s > understood to sound the knell of slavery in the French colonies. Intelligence reached Paris on, Saturday, by telegraph, of tbe complete submission of the district of Kabvlia, in Algeria. These .mountain tribes have acknowledged themselves, subjects and tributaries of France ; they have engaged that.no enemy .of, France shall be harboured by them ; and they are to keep the roads saje for travellers. On the other hand, the Governor of Algeria has engaged, that so, loug as the Kabyles observe th.ese conditions, their country shall not be invaded by the colonists. , Bou Maza, the recreant Arab chief, has arrived in France.