MISCELLANEOUS.

Colonist, Volume III, Issue 301, 7 September 1860, Page 3

MISCELLANEOUS.

Bombardment op Palermo.—For the honor of human nature he hoped there was no foundation for that report. The act, if true, was unexampled in the history of nations. Even the most execrable tyrant of ancient times, whose very name had become proverbial for' tyranny, Nero himself, -was only charged with levity and indifference while Rome was burning. There could not be a move atrocious offence than that of setting fire to a city for the purpose of destroying among hundreds and thousands of its inhabitants, the enemies who were attacking him. He hoped and trusted there, was no ground for the statement. -The principle, of non-intervention was sacred, and ought to be inviolably preserved ; but if it was unhappily true that this account was correct, he must say that the principle had been tried to the utmost. He hoped that that principle would still be preserved, but it ought not to extinguish in their bosoms the natural feelings of humanity, or prevent them feeeling the utmost indignation at the dastardly act, or wishing for the speedy and entire liberation or the people of Sicily, though that liberation could only be effected in consequence of the downfall of a tyrant.—(Lord Brougham in the House of Lords.) The Rev. H. Grattan Guinness.—lt is with regret that we have to inform our readers that, iv consequence of overwork in Philadelphia and New York, the health of this devoted servant of Christ is so much impaired as to require his return to his native country. For upwards of three months he preached nearly daily, and also generally three times on Sabbath-days, at Philadelphia. During the 6th, 7th, Bth, 9th, 10th, and 11th weeks of his stay_ in that city, he preached forty-six times. During that period he saw and conversed with more than 400 anxious inquirers, who had been awakened by his preaching. Since then he has been actively engaged preaching in New York, and during the last five or six weeks he has preached in the following cities and towns of America, where he has been travelling about for his health. He has [preached at Columbus, Cincinnati, Chicago, Detroit, Buffalo, Toronto, Kingston, Montreal, Burlington, and Boston, from which place he sailed by the Europa on the 30th of May, and hopes to arrive at Cork on the 9th of June, -where he will (D.V.) preach next Sunday, the 10th of June; and on the following Sunday, June 17, iv Dublin. The folio wing week he hopes to arrive in England. The Lash.—ln accordance with garrison orders the officers and men of the Depot Brigade, Royal: Artillery, with the whole of the prisoners who had been confined to the cells for various offences, marched to the Riding School, at six o'clock ' this morning, to witness the infliction of fifty lashes upon Joseph Jolliffe, a private of the 3rd battalion of the Military Train Corps. The prisoner had been tried by a garrison court-martial held at the Royal Artillery Mess-room, and presided over by Lieutenant-Colonel Robinson, C.8., the commanding officer of the Military Train Corps. The evidence proved that whilst in confinement for being absent without leave the prisonei refused to perform the usual drill, alleging that his foot was disabled. A regimental surgeon found this statement to be false, and the Court fonnd the prisoner guilty of insubordination, and sentenced him to fifty lashes. The approaches to the Riding School were guarded by a number of non-commissioned officers, and at six o'clock, the prisoner's sentence having been read over, he was stripped, and his hands and feet bound to the triangle, an assistant surgeon from the hospital being present to watch the punishment, the full amount of which was administered by two stout drummers. During the first few strokes of the cat, the prisoner exhibited his intense suffering by the most frightful contortions ; but subsequently, notwithstanding the laceration he received, the physical pain appeared gradually to become less, and when the last lash was given, he shouted out " Domino," amidst roars of laughter from the soldiers present. The prisoner was then conveyed to the hospital to be placed under medical treatment. Public Accounts.—An article in the Money Market Review furnishes some startling figures as to the loss sustained by imperfectly audited public accounts. Seven companies are cited, from the failure of which the public loss has come within a fraction of four millions sterling. The Royal British Bank, which stopped payment in 1856 through making advances to directors and others on insufficient securities, lost £375,000. The Sadlier frauds on'the, Tipperary bank lost the capital and the deposits. The Colonel Waugh fraud on the London and Eastern Bank, who appropriated to himself the whole paid up capital of that bank, involved a los 3of more than "a quarter of a million. The Western Bank of Scotland, with a paid-up capital of a million and a half; lost the whole of thatjcapital through reckless advances. By Robson's tampering with the Crystal Palace transfer books, there was a loss of Redpath involved the Great Northern Railway Company in a similar manner to the extent of £250,000, and Pullinger's frauds on the Union. Bank of London caused a loss of £263,070, Nearly the whole of these losses might have been prevented by a proper audit of accounts; and the whole of them were avoidable had the boards of directors acted with good faith towards the shareholders. Mysterious Token in India. —We read in a Bombay letter of May 12:—" There has been a mysterious gharra, or token, in the shape of an earthen vessel, conveyed from village to village. This pot, upon investigation, has been traced through ninety-two villages, through the wildest parts of the Gwalior territory, till, at a place called Simreea all vestige of it was lost. The affair was first known ou the 3rd ultimo, when a man brought the gharra to a village in theDolpora territory. When last seen it contained 215 pice, 160 cowries, 10 brass rings, four plated rings, and one silver ring. The official political agent at Gwalior, after pursuing a full investigation, has arrived at the conclusion that this gharra was not a mystery, but a custom among the inhabitants of Raj warra, when a community is visited by heavy sickness, or other trouble to send forth a gharra, after performing certain ceremonies, under the impression that the affliction under which they suffer will travel with the gharra, and leave them unafflicted. This, as far as can be at present ascertained, is all that can be said about the mysterious gharra." Deserters.—ln the year 1859 the deserters from the navy were as many as 2338, of whom only 86 were apprehended. 712 ot those deserters had received bounty to the amount 0f^4,571.; 26 were JCroomen, but the entire number f of the foreigners and men of colov cannot be distinguished, from the restv