The Illustrated Usk Observer and Raglan Herald

EPI'rOMEO!' NEws" ,J The Bishop Exeter had a stroke of paraly sis last "Teek,^ has serioaslv affected the right side of the body. His iorflahip is 87 yeara of ago. Queen EmnLft,, of the Sandwich Islands, is ad- vised by her physicians to leave London, and spend the winter Mt the aeuth of Franoe. Mr. B&jmum, in a"rerifmttemperanoe.address, said 'tfeat he would give m^re for a, drunkard .who succeeded in basinets, as public curiseity, than for anything he ever exhibited. The Diijte of Sx. Alfepns Jbas contributed twenty guineas and accepted the office of patron to tha Granel Lodge Benevolent Fujid, which has lately been estab- lished for the benafit of the indigent members of the craft in Lincolnshire. Which is -'The JweMth'Finger of the Left Haind but One? .which we see ^advertised. Lord Dun- sdreary says it must be the great toe of your right foot. Th-, 'What Qhser -Hottse," an hotel at San Francisco, ofFecs its guests the use of a well-chosen abrary of 5,000 volumes. jae cholera is fast declining at Naples. On the -(3rd ulfc. there were only-80 cases and 48 deaths, and in the neighbouring eomjnuaes 24 cases and. 10 deaths. Tnomas Russell, a shipwright in the Portsmouth i>ockyard, has just been by Admiral Super- intendent Wellesley with the bronze medal of the Royal Humane Society for saving the life of a youth named Elwes, an apprentice in the same yard. The "Building Thews'' says We learn that, 24.480 persons will b-e turned out of their homes should the Glasgowlm^rovei»ents Bill be passed. This Bom- ber Coas not include a goodly population who will be removed by the proposed alterations of the twelve streets to be widened. The Queen has been g-raeiojwly pleased, says the Gazette, to give orders for the appointment of the Highs Honourable William Hutt, Viee-Presidant of the Board of Trade, to be an extra member of the civil division of the secoad class, or Knights Com- manders of the MostHowurabJe Order of the Bath. In a railway comBeusacion ease, onTiwaday, "line jury awarded in King-street, Hammersmith, And South-Western Rail way Company. The property had been pujcch^sed by its owner for .£1,200. Heeeatgatltja have intetfered with the success of the Great Yarmouth boatsen gaged in prosecuting the herring fishery, atid the oatehes made have been com- paratively small; Prices ha?e ranged from £ 15 to < £ 25 per last (13,300 fish). The Liverpool magistrates have committed for trial the mate of the ship Halton Castle, who was charged with maltreating a boy on board that ship to such an extent that the lad ia not likely to recover. It is now believad that the story which was larerelv ciroalated last week, under the title of a "Feaian Buelin Liverpool," is a pore concoction, and that no such incident took place. Hotel-keepers and the more fashionable trades- people of Paris say thsrt city has not been so empty aiace the troubled times of 1848-9. It must await a clean bill of health; at present the deaths by cholera are about thirty a day. 7 It is rumoured that the Spaniards arefollowing the footsteps of the North American Government during the late war in keeping a. sharp look-out for several Bteamera said to be about leaving this country for the Chilian Government, and no doubt intended to prey upon their commerce. The Queen has sent her customary gift of £ 3 to the wife of James Gibaon, handloom weaver, Killbar- chan, who gave birth to three daughters on November 12th. The children are all doing well. We wonder how the poor father is doing ? At the Cornish ticketing last week, 3,373 tons of ore realised £ 17,526'2s. 6d. Averages:—St ird, > £ 125 os.; price per ton, £ 5 4s.; produce, 6|. com- pared with the previous week's sale the stands a. has declined 14a., and with the corresponding monthly sale it is about,stationary. The bachelors of New York have formed an anti-marriage club on the ground of economy. They object to the expensive silks, satins, and miseries of American married life, and insist upon the abolition of Parisian fashions and the introduction of calico as the chief article of feminine attire. It is reported that one Englishman recently died of the cholera at Murice, a town of considerable extent in Spain. WGone would go near him to render him the slightest assistance, and the clergy refused him Christian burial, so that his body had to be smuggled to the English convent at Carthagena. A sad report reaches us from the South-no less than 30,000 or 40,000 blacks will, it is said, perish this winter of starvation, if not relieved through the bounty of the Government; and at present the people of the North, who have taxes to pay, object to this continued outlay. The American Ambassador in Vienna, Mr Motley, has had a severe affliction. His daughter was married the other day to Captain Joes, and the young pair were at Havre enjoying the honeymoon, where Captain Joea auddenly died. Mr. Motley has left for Havre to fetch home his widowed daughter. Aa announcement appears in a French paper an association, following the Freedmen's Society for supplying trousers to the negroes, will shortly hold a. meeting in Park, with the object of raising money to supply the negra with the necessaries he seema to require—namely, torches, hatchets, and revolvers. The dead bodies of nine of the arew of the brig Favourite, of Liverpool, which was wrecked during the late gale off Blackpool, have been cast ashore, six at Bispham, two at Fleetwood, and one at Cleveleys. Thd boày of the captain, William Hinde, was recovered on Friday. A communieation recently received from Vera Cruz states that the two French officers and ten privates who had been removed by a party of guerillas from a railway train running between that place and Ptoo del Macho, were afterwarda murdered in the mountains. The other passengers, after being robbed of their money were allowed to depart. DUrring the week ending Nov. 25, the visitors to the South Kensington Museum were as followsOn Mondav, Tuesday, and Saturday, free days, open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., 7,655; on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, students' days (admission to the public, 8d.). open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., 1,485. Total, 9,140. From the opening of the muaeam, 5,663,814. A tradesman in Bradford was sent for trial on Monday, on a charge of perjury-committed in a court of justice, by which a prisoner was sentenced to six months' imprisonment. He swore that one of his customers attempted to defraud him by giving a false address, and for that she was sent to prison. After she had served her time in gaol, she accused him of perjury, and so far substantiated her case, as to lead the magistrates to send it for the decision of a jury. John Pleasant, a boy of eleven years of age.. charged with the manslaughter of Thomas Fen wick, in a little house at Southwick, has been brought up on remand before the Sunderland magistrates. The ooromer's inquiry terminated with a verdict "That deceased died from a blow of a stone thrown by Plea- sant, but without malicious intent." The magistrates, however, committed the boy for trial on the charge of manslaughter. A fire broke out on Monday which has destroyed the premises of Messrs. Price and Gosnell, manu- facturing perfumers in Lombard-street, London. At one time it was feared that some of the banking houses in the neighbourhood would be involved in the con- flagration. Happily, however, that was prevented. Damage to the extent of several thousands of pounds was done. The Court of Inquiry, at Liverpool, into the circumstances attending the the stranding on the Blackwater Bank of the iron ship Savoir Faire while on her voyage from Liverpool to Calcutta, having heard the whole of the evidence, have adjudged the captain guilty of negligence in the courses he steered, and recommended that his certificate should be sus- pended for nine months. A Forged Captain's Order. — A case was brought before the Liverpool magistrates in which Daniel Grnndle, a well-dressed young man, was charged with obtaining < £ 1215s. from Messrs. Stoddart Brothers and Co., of Liverpool, by means of an order purport- ing to have been signed by Captain Brown, of the ship Canova, one of Messrs. Stoddart's captains. The case was remanded, evidence being adduced to show that Captain Brown had never signed the docu- ment. A pneumatic communication has just been set up between the Paris Bourse and the central tele- graph-office at Berlin. Between the two there have been placed two parallel iron pipes, 2,835 feet in length and 3t inches in diameter. By one of them telegraphic dispatches deposited at the Bourse are carried to the central office, and by the other the Te- verse takes place in the sp&oa of from one miaufe to a oiinute and.a half. On Monday evening a seafaring man, named John Capes, was crossing Tower-hill on his way to the Sailors' Home, when two men came up with him, and after following him for a short distance he felt a cord suddenly thrown over his head and shoulders, which pinioned his arms and prevented resistance. A third man then came up and robbed him of his watch and money. No trace of the robbers has since been gained. Yorkshire Statute Fairs.—The last and chief of the series of statutes" for the hiring of servants was held at Malton last week, when a vast number of young boys and attended. The day was wretchedly wet and stormy, and for some reason un- explained the Corn Exchange was not opened for the female servants, and the poor girls were obliged to stand tha market." The progress made in drawing the girls from the open market was lost on Saturday, and there was the usual amount of public-house fre- quenting of years past. Both agricultural and do- mestic servants are stated to have been engaged very readily at increased wages. The Storms of the Year.-During the storms of the past year the National lifeboat Institution, by its lifeboats and other means, contributed to the saving of 698 persana from different wrecks on our coasts. The institution also expended £19,500 in the same period en its lifeboat establishments, in addition to granting £ 1,539 as rewards. The committee of the institution now earnestly appeal to the public for assistance to enable them to meet the continued heavy demands on the institution's 150 lifeboat stations. We may add that contributions are received by the London and country bankers; and by the secretary, Richard Lewis, Esq., at the institution, 14, John- street, Adelphi, London. Dreadful Death of a Platelayer.—A foreman platelayer, named Eiobmaon, was killed near Woking station on Saturday. He was walking'along the line, when the 4.10 p.m. tr&in from Waterloo knosked him down, and as he lay on the rails a train from Exetar passed over his body, cutting both legs across at the thighs. A signalman having heard. Bobinaon's moans, went to the spot, and lifted the poor fellow on to the bank. He hastened with all speed to Woking to obtain assistance, but in his absence jEobinson rolled off the bank, and lay dead upon the rails when the oignalman returned. Quarrel abo ut a STame. — Mdme. Caste) mary Sax, the prima donna at the Grand Opera at Paris, who was selected by Meyerbeer for the part of the Africaine," has had an action brought against her by M. Sax, of Saxhorn celebrity, for taking a name to whioh she is not entitled. A compromise was attempted, and the lady had consented to call herself Saxe, but the negotiations failed, and the attit will be followed up. Mdme. Sax was formerly a singer at a low cafe, where she was remarked by Mdme. Ugalde, who gave her instruction and developed her magnificent voice. The pupil is now in her glory at the opera; whilst the mistress, after a short engagement at the Biaruffes, is singing in a fairy piece at the Porte St. Martin. A Very Unkind Remark.-British philan- thropy and humanity have been largely employed during the last four years in behalf of mercy and Christian charity to Jeff. Davis and all concerned in his bloody rebellion. This is British preaching. On the other hand, it appears that the black rebels of Jamaica are hung up in. rows as fast as they are cap- tured. This is British practice. Now this preaching of humanity and brotherly love may be a very good thing, but it is practice that makes it perfect.—Ifew Yorh paper. Cheap Meat Association.—The workmen at the Cyclops Works, Bays the Sheffield Independent,, assert that they have proved to their satisfaction that they can buy and sell meat amongst themselves as good and cheaper than the batchers will supply them with it. The Cyelop's Working Men's Cheap Meat Association began operations on Saturday with about forty stone of meat as an experiment, at prices from 6d. to 8 jd. per lb.; mutton from 6td; to 9d. per lb. It was opened at eleven o'clock in the forenoon, and by three o'clock they had sold all out and closed the shop, and on clearing up the accounts it was found that sufficient profit had been realised to pay all the working expenses of the concern. The Meeting of Parliament.—It ia arranged that Parliament shall meet on Thursday, the 1st of February, and a formal notification to that effect will, in all probability, shortly be made. Thefirat business will, of course, be the election of a Speaker. Mr. J. Evelyn Demson, the late Speaker, will be again a candidate for the post, and we do not anticipate that there will be any opposition to his re-election. The swearing-in of members will probably be proceeded with up to Tuesday, the 6th, or Thursday, the 8th, on either of which days the Royal Speech will be de- livered. As our readers are aware, her Majesty has signified her intention of, if possible, opening Parlia- ment in person.—Globe. The Great Granddaughter of Mrs. Siddons. -We are glad of the occasion of noticing, the entrance on the stage of a great granddaughter of Mrs. Siddons, under Mr. Walter Montgomery, at the, Theatre Royal, Nottingham. Having first appeared "as Portia, in the Merchant of Venice, the character in which her distinguished ancestress first played, and on Thursday night as Lady Macbeth, "with all the intellectual features and personal graces of the Kemble family," we are not surprised that she created a sensation indicative of her future career, and we anticipate that that career will be worthy of those celeb-rated members of her family who have passed away. A Knowing Old Dame.-The Prince and Princess of Wales were driving out recently on their estate at Sandringham, when they met an old woman with a basket of shrimps. The Prince offered to purchase them, and asked the woman for what she woald sell them. Seven shillings and sixpence," was the reply. The shrimps were worth about a third of the money, but the prince at once closed the bargain, and insisted on taking the basket into the carriage with him. The old woman was well satisfied with her sale, and exclaimed, as she watched the retreating carriage, that the Prince was a good 'un." Robbing a Church.—Early on Sunday morning the vestry-room of Christ Church, Watney-siiraat, was broken into by thieves, and all the drawers broken open, as well as the cash-box in which the communion alms were kept. The money was taken, but the box was left behind. It is supposed that the thieves were disturbed in their work of plunder, as they took nothing away from the body of the church itself; neither the communion plate nor the robes of the clergy are kept in the vestry. No clue has yet been obtained as to the parties who committed the felonious act. Death of Sir Richard Bromley.-We (Army and Navy Gaze tte) are serry to announce the death of Sir Richard Madox Bromley, K.C.B., which took place, we understand, at St. Leonards, on Thursday. Sir Richard's health had been failing for some time past, and he lately, by advice of his medical men, undertook a journey to Italy; but before he could accomplish more than half the distance he was compelled to re- trace his steps. By the deoease of Sir Richard, pensions in the aggregate exceeding £ 1,200 per annum will revert to the Crown. The late Sir Richard Bromley was possessed of considerable ability, and was entirely a self-raised man, having commenced his official career as a third-class clerk at Deptford Victualling Yard. G-. W. Gordon's Insurances.-The Morning Star observes: We have heard with satisfaction that the directors of the Star Insurance Company, with whom the life of the late Mr. Gordon was in- sured for £2,500, have unanimously resolved to pay over the amount at once to his widow. The signifi- cance of this fact. is obvious. The policy would naturally become void in the case of a man executed as a felon but the directors of the Star Company have, we are informed, justly decided that Mr. Gordon's case is simply that of a man unlawfully slain. The directors deserve the highest credit for this course of action." Will of Alderman Whelan.-The will of Sir Thomas Whelan, Knight, Alderman of Dublin, late of Elmville, Harold's-cross, was proved in the London Court by his reliot, Lady Whelan. Sir Thomas had held the distinguished offices of High Sheriff and Lord Mayor of Dublin. He died, on the 16th of October, at the age of sixty-five, having executed his will in June, 1859, and a eodieil April, 1864. By the will, he had« left the whole of hia-property, real and personal, to his wife absolutely; but by the codicil he bequeaths, en the decease of his wLfe,aU his land and house property j in the town of Carlow to his grandson Clement John, son of George and Mary Davis, of Kildare, on his attaining twenty-one; but should he die previously thereto, then he bequeaths the same to his gra&idson, George Edward Davia. A Montpellier journal announces that a young i lady of twenty, Mdlle. Antonio Cellarier, the daughter of a naval officer who died in the colonies, has just obtained the diploma of bashelier-doa-tattrea in that town, after passing a brilliant examination. Among twenty candidates the young lady held the first place for her translation from the Latin, and her essay written in that language. Mdlle. Cellarier is the fourth young that has drained a similar diploma; within the last year or two,'tha other three having passed thair examinations at Lyons, Bordeaux, and Algiers. Double Murder in Prance.—A double murder was committed a few nights since at Tour d'Aigles, Vaaoluae, France, on the persons of a man and his wife named Arniaud, both about eighty years of age- As the aged couple were not seen at the usual hour the next morning, the neighbours went to ascertain the cause, and found them both lying dead in their kitchen, each with a cord drawn tight round the neck, and the skull fractured by blows with some blunt instrument. As the house had evidently been ransacked, robbery must have been the motive of the crimes, in which more than one person appears to have been concerned. Body Found.-An inquest was held on Monday at Homerton on the body of a child found in South Hackney Churchyard. The deputy sexton said he found the body in a coffin iying upside down, in the churchyard. The coffin had been nailed down in the usual manner. As there was no undertaker's name on it he took it to the police-station. The surgeon who examined the body said there was no case of infanti- cide the child was evidently still-born, and the coroner (Mr. Richards) remarked that it was evidently a case in which some unprincipled undertaker had received the burial fees and thrown the body away in [this disgraceful manner for the purpose of pocketing the money himself. A Paris correspondent of the Eæp?"ess writes :-1 "A celebrated character has arrived in Paris-the ex- Irish rebel, John Mitcbel. I have not seen him, but I am told that he looks extremely ill, a consequence partly of his imprisonment, partly, it is said of the severe domestic bereavements he has lately sustained. Apropos of Mitchel's presence here, it will be in your recollection that he was released by the American President at the instance of a Fenian deputation. Has he came over here as a head centre ? I cannot say. But I own it would be rather curious if he were to meet in Paris with the escaped prisoner Stephens. There was a report on the Boulevards this afternoon that this political Jack Sheppard had landed on the French coast. The Prisoner Captured in Australia.—John Thomaa Knight, aged 52, and described as a miller and baker, formerly of Stratford, in Essex, was brought before Mr. Paget, at the Thames-street police-station, charged with feloniously embezzling divers sums of money, amounting in the aggregate to upwards of £ 1,000, he had received for and on account of Messrs. Brown and Moore, millers and flour factors, of the Globe Flour-mills, in Lower Shadwell. It will be recollected that the prisoner was followed by a London policeman to Australia, and captured in Melbourne. Several payments made to the prisoner by customers were proved, and Mr. William Brown said that the prisoner had never accounted for them. Mr. Paget committed the prisoner for trial, and declined to accept of any bail. A Good Landlord.-The fifty-ninth birthday of the Duke of Buccleuch was celebrated on Saturday with every demonstration of respect in the various parts of the country where his grace has possessions. The tone of the speakers at the annual gatherings of the tenantry on these occasions, and the enthusiasm with which the health of their landlord is always pro- posed and received ia, perhaps, the most telling testi- mony that could be found of the many good qualities which characterise the duke; and the compliments paid are all the more valuable that they come from men whose happiness and prosperity to a large extent depend upon the owner of their farms. As usual, the poor were not forgotten by the dacal family amid the general festivity, and the school children, in Dalkeith were also liberally treated. The "Toronto GHoba "tells the following story: —James McCarthy, an idiot, while sitting upon the track of the Lake Shore Railroad, near Dunkirk, a day or two since, his head bent upon his knees, and fast as- leep, was struck by a. passing. train and thrown a dis- tance of forty feet. The train waa immediately backed to the-soone of disaster, when, imagine the aarpriae of the passengers, at discovering the simpleton standing near the track, apparently unharmed; the only. sign of injury being manifested by him being exhibited in a vigorous friotion of his back. Banda and Kirwa Priza-Money.—At the Admiralty Court, on Tuesday, before Dr. Lushisgton, Dr. Deane, Q.C., applied on the part of Sir Hugh Rose, that the evidence might be closed by the 8th December, and the case proceed, without any further delay, to the hearing on the 8th of January. The Queen's Advocate had no objection to the motion, but only as to the copies of the evidence to be delivered. Mr. V. Lushington, Mr. C. Pollock, and other learned counsel for their respective claimants, concurred in the proposal. Mr. Bayford, for General Wheler, could not agree to the motion, as search veas being made for a letter, and additional evidence might be filed. He thought a supplemental bill, as in Chancery, might be filed, if permitted by the court. His lordahip approved of the suggestion of the learned counsel, Mr. Bayford, but after some discussion the evidence was directed to be closed by Dec. 8th, and the case finally heard on the 8th of January. The Heir of a Bonaparte.—A Roman corre- spondent says :—Signer Renazzi, the universal heir of the late Prince of Mussignano, Don Giuseppe Buona- parte, has surprised all Rome by making a formal declaration by act of notary, that he had only accepted the inheritance of the late prince as his trustee, and that according to the terms of the trust, the family palace was to be the property of the two surviving brothers, the Princes Lucien and Napoleon, and the jewels and other valuables to be divided among his sisters. Renazzi himself retains the enjoyment of a sum of about 60,000 soudi during his life-the capital returning to the Buonaparte family at his death. Oat of the interest of this money he has also to defray some pensions and legacies left to the prince's ser- vants, so that, after all, his share of the inheritance is reduced to very modest proportions. The Friends of the Clergy Corporation.— This institution was founded in 1849, and was incor- porated by Royal Charter in 1854, for allowing pensions not exceeding < £ 40 to the widows, orphans, and unmarried daughters of clergymen of the Established Church, and for affording temporary assistance to necessitous clergymen and their families thronghout England, Wales, and Ireland. A general meeting of the subscribers was held on Tuesday at Willis's Rooms, St. James's, for the purpose of electing three lady pensioners on the funds from a list of sixty candidates. Including those elected that day, the number of pensioners on the books was 103. The Rev. E. B. Allen, B.A., chaplain of Brompton Hospital, was in the chair. The poll commenced at twelve and closed at two o'clock. Singular Discovery of Treasure —A very remarkable illustration of the truth of the well-known adage, that "It's an ill wind blows nobody good," has just been afforded in the case of a farmer named Patrick Murphy, who resides at a place called Slatery, in the Queen's County. A few night's back a portion of the thatch was blown off Murphy's house by the violence of the storm, but upon searching amongst the ddbris next morning he found an old horn, which, upon examination, proved to be the well stored savings bank of some former occupant of the house, who, pro- bably in the troublesome times," resorted to this novel mode of placing his surplus cash out of harm's way. It is said the horn oontained as many as four hundred "golden guineas," besides a considerable number of Spanish dollars; but, whatever the exact amount may be, it is said the lucky finder has netted a very large amount, and has every reason to feel satisfied with the result of the late gale. Narrow Escape of Lord Araberley.—On Friday evening an accident, which might have proved very serious, occurred to Lord and Lady Amberley at Nailsworth. As they :were descending a short but steep pitch, on their return to Rodboroxigh Manor- house, after a short drive, the hozse his lordship was driving suddenly became restive, commenced kicking aad ran &way. The wheel of the conveyance earning j in contact with some timber lyingatthe side of the road, it was upset, throwing the occupants out with great force. His lordship soon reoovered himseif, but found that besides feeing badly bruised his knee was hurt. However, he was able to render asaistanoe in conjunc- tion with two friends who were on horseback with him, to her ladyship, who lay for sot&etkne insensible in the road. As soon as possible, after assistance from Mr. Pavey, surgeon, who was speedily in attendance, she was removed to a house near by, and after ascer- taining that no bones were broken, her ladyship was conveyed home by him in a fly. Her ladyship was able to move about the next morning. A New-fashioned Garment.-The winter has seen a now fashion in ladies' dress inaugurated in Paris. It consists in having the great-coats which, in imitation of the men, are now worn fabricated partly of one colour, partly of another—the body, for example, being black and the sleeves blue. At first view the contrast of colours in one garment seems strange, but improves on being looked at, and Qie fashion consequently will probably become general. Unfortunately for husbands and fathers, the winter has not led to the introduction of materials less ex- pensive than those used previously; on the contrary, still dearer ones are employed. Ladies' dresses, in fact, are now perfectly extravagant as regards price; X40 or £50 is a common sum to pay, and some go as high as X150 or even j8200. A Living Child Found ia a Basket.—On Friday evening, about nine o'clock, a flag-basket con- taining a living female child, wrapped in fine linen and new flannel, was discovered by a porter named Greenhalgh, under a seat on the down platform of the Metropolitan Railway Station, Edgware-road. The infant, on being taken out of the basket (whioh was a new one, and bound strongly round with new cord), was found to ba suffering from cold, and in a comatose state, the reault of an overdose of morphia. Dr. Kirby was sent for and promptly attended. By the administration of stimulants and the application of mustard, supplied from the refreshment-room, the babe was partially restored, and was taken by the police to the Marylebone workhouse, where it died on Saturday morning .from the effects of the morphia. No trace of the mother or persons leaving the ehild hAs yet been discovered. The Murder of Prince Alfred's Cook at Bonn.—The murder of the Frenchman Ott at Bonn, which created so great a sensation some months back, has been followed at last by a military investigation and a sentence. Count Eulenburg, nephew of the Prussian Minister of the Interior, who was accused of having given the fatal wound, has been tried by court- martial and condemned to nine months' detention in a fortress. The sentence is light," remarks the Brussels IndSpendance, when we compare the punishment with the gravity of the charge, but it is much when we take into account the position of the accused, his family relations, the immunities which the special tribunals are but too well inclined to accord, the privi- leges of the uniform in Prussia, and, finally, certain facts of the case which might be considered as extenu- ating oiroumatan-ees. Sanitary State of Leeds.The reply of the Leeds Town Council to Dr. Hunter's report on the sanitary condition of the borough was presented on Saturday at a special meeting of the corporation. The Mercury publishes the reply at length, remarking J From this, and the brief discussion which followed tko jading of it, it appears to be the opinion of the council that Dr; xiunt/tt, a- a hig nfficialvisit. got into the hands of certain gentlemen, who.havingbeon disappointed in schemes in which they themselves were interested, sought to cast discredit upon the corporation. The reply in substance states that Dr. Hunter's report is greatly exaggerated, and the council request either that Dr. Hunter or some other inspector should be sent down by the Privy Council to make another and fuller investigation into the real condi- tion of the borough." A Fortunate Escape from Fire.—Late on Sunday night, a fire, nearly attended with fatal con- sequences to a woman and four children, took place at Mr. Barnes's, blind maker, 5, Belvidere-place, Cam- bridge-road, Bethnal-green. The woman in question discovered that the staircase was on fire, and at the same time perceived that there was no possibility of getting out of the place by the usual means of egress. She and her four children accordingly raised an alarm at one of the front windows, and' some of the neighbours contriv ed to get them to the ground in safety. The engines attended, and plenty of the East London Company's water having been proenred, the firemen succeeded in confining the flames to the building in which it originated, which, with its contents, were nearly destroyed. The origin of the fire is unknown. A Mistake in the Quality.—A curious action of divorce is-about. to be brought in Switzerland. A young lady of wealthy family in Paris met, some piontha ago, in society, a dashing young man, who re- presented himself to be Count of an illustrious family, and very rich, and she, with the consent of her parents, married him, but, to her and their dismay, they recently found that he was only the son of a poor public-house keeper in Switzerland, that he had no fortune at all, and, what was worse, he was what is called a mouckard-that is, a political spy-and that it was to enable him to exercise his disreputable calling that his assumption. of a false title had been tolerated by people about the Government, and his entr64 into fashionable society facilitated. If the man had been French, the young woman would have had no eseSpe from her matrimonial bonds, divorce not being allowed in France, but, as divorce exists in Switzerland, and as he, is a Swiss, the belief is that she can obtain emancipation from him, on the ground that he deceived: her as to his quality. The Manslaughter by a Boy near STMider- i land.—At the Durham Assizes, on Saturday, before Mr. Justice-Shee, John Pleasant, a boy eleven years of i age, was charged with the manslaughter of Thomas 1 Fenwick, another1 boy, fifteen years of age. The two lads were employed at Seott's bottle works, South- wick, near Sunderland. A fortnight last Saturday they quarrelled, Fenwick struck Pleasant a blow, and the latter retaliated by throwing a stone which struck Fenwick on the head; the wound bled a little, and Fenwick went home and died in five or six hours after- wards. The coroner's jury returned a verdict that Fenwiok's death was caused without malicious intent; but the magistrates committed Pleasant for trial. The jury found him guilty, and Justice Shee, in sentencing him to a fortnight's imprisonment, said this was the slightest crime of the sort he ever knew. Conviction of a Chemist for Selling Poison.—Mr. Thomas Goodman has been charged before the Bolton magistrates with having sold to a young woman named Catherine Joyce, now deceased, half an ounce of almond flavour. The deceased, who had been discharged on suspicion of dishonesty, called at Mr. Goodman's and obtained sixpennyworth of almond flavour, which she swallowed in the stroet,and died soon after. The sale was proved to have been made when no. witness was present and no entry was made. It was alleged for the defendant that he had only followed the custom of the trade, and that al- mond flavour was regularly sold to confectioners with- out observing the restrictions referring to ordinary poisons.—The magistrates strongly advised druggists to comply with the law in future; but, as the young woman had intentionally bought poison, they thought a nominal fine, to act as a caution, would meet the case. He was, therefore, fined 5s., and the cost of the case. Death of Mr. Prescott.-We regret, says a local contemporary, to have to record the premature decease, at Tenby, in the very flower of his youth, of Mr. W. W. Prescott, only son of the late- Mr. W. G. Prescott, banker of London. In May last the deceased, with his widowed mother, came to reside at Kyre- house, having in the adjoining parish of Bookleton purchased extensive estates on which they were about to erect a mansion. The disease which carried off the lamented young gentleman was typhus fever, caught on a visit of charity which he made to his gamekeeper, who was lying siok of the fatal disease. By his amiable bearing to all the tenantry and those with whom he had come in contact during his short resid- ence in that locality, he had much endeared himself, and his early removal is deeply regretted, as he gave much promise of becoming a good landlord and a useful country gentleman. The Alleged Frauds by a Physician.-—John Bottemley, innkeeper and coach-builder, Huddersfield, appeared at the Magistrates' Court-house, Dewsbury, on Monday, on a oharge of having, jointly. with Thompson Whalley, M.D., unlawfully and knowingly, by false pretences, obtained from the British Nation Assurance Association a policy of assurance for £ 1,000, payable on the death of Eleanor Bottomley, his wife, with intent to defraud. The solioitor to the British Nation prosecuted. Mr. Alsop asked for a remand, stating that it waa proposed to bring up Whalley under a writ of habeas corpus, and that he should be prepared to go fully into the two charges intended to be preferred on Friday. Samuel Archer Sykes said he was agent to the office above ■mentioned, and, from answers given to him by Whalley. he filled up a form, which Bottomley took away. He afterwards brought the document back, and it then bore the aignature of E. Bottomley. The prisoner had subsequently admitted that he had signed the name. The document in question was a policy on the British Nation office for £1,000 on the life of the prisoner's wife. A remand for a week was granted, and the prisoner was allowed to be at large until that time, on providing bail to the amount of £ 2,000. A Late London Alderman in Difficulties.- Sir William Magnay, Bart., formerly alderman of the City of London, and who once occupied the high posi- tion of Lord Mayor of London, on Tuesday, November 28th, petitioned theoourt at Oxford in formdpauperis. It appears that Sir William had taken up his abode at Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, and was arrested at the aiiit of Adolphus Gunner, and lodged in Oxford castle. As he would have remained in durance until after Christmas in the ordinary way, he applied, through his solicitor, to Mr. Mills, of Bicester, to the judge of the Oxford County Court for his release, and his honour granted him protection until early in De- cember, when the circumstances of his case will be gone into. Sir William is described as a paper dealer, and his assets are put down under < £ 1,000. Petroleum in Yorkshire. — It has recently been found that the shales of unctuous clay overlying the ironstone deposits of the Yorkshire moors in the North Riding can be made to produce a mineral oil, similar to petroleum at a cost of 6d. per gallon. From the fact that these shales crop out to the surface in almost all the valleys, the discovery is expected to im- part a Wonderful degree of life and activity to those hitherto unpeopled hills. It is evident that during the Roman occupation both the iron and coal deposits were wrought, the refuse from the workings being met oeeaaionaliy below the heather. This last discovery, coming quickly upon that of coal and ironstone, has raised the value of land amazingly. Last week a small property of under 150 aores, for which—being fit only forigrollse shooting—per acre was thought too much a few years ago, was sold for nearly < £ 60 per acre, the enhanced price being paid simply because it is be- lieved oil, shale, and ironstone lie below it. Most of the moors are crown lands leased. It is stated that the Yorkshire oil will soon be in the market. .A victim of Runaway Knocks.An aotion for damages was brought in the London Sheriff's Court by the friends of a girl named Griffith, against Gallo- way, a. constable of the East London Union. Some time ago Galloway charged the girl with knoeMng at his door, and as it was alleged in the course of the in- quiry that he had assaulted her and torn her olothes into tags the Lord Mayor dismissed the oaae. Griffith now deposed that as she waa nursing a baby in August last, sittmg on the step of defendant's door, he sud- denly rushed out upon her, seized her by the throat, and tore the clothes off her back. She produced the clothes- which were in shreds. In reply, the defen- dant stid that he had suffered the greatest annoyance from persons knocking at his door. His knocker had been wrenched off on the day before this offence, and even then the annoyance was continued by persons kicking at the door and knocking with their hands. He heard the complainant say, "Let us give him another," and at the same time she commenced to strike the door with her hand. Hefurther stated that on 1.11.. -a'h ttia aiirl he had been very roughly handled by the mob—receiving a Riaox «jD, a tooth knocked out, his nose injured, &c. His honour told him that as a constable he ought to have known that his remedy did not lie in treating the girl as he had done, and gave a verdict for the plaintiff for the full amount, 16s. Stoppage of Reigate Fat Stock Show.—At a recent meeting of the justices at Reigate, the mayor (Mr. J. Searle) directed attention to the existence of the order prohibiting the holding of markets and fairs in the borough. Advertisements had been issued fer the holding of an agricultural show in the town on the 12th instant for the exhibition of fat stock and various other agricultural products; but such show could not be held unless the order was revoked. Since the issue of the order the cattle plague throughout the kingdom had very largely increased, and more particularly during the last three weeks. The existence of the present order pressed with some injustice on the borough of Reigate, as the usual market could not be held while markets were held in neighbouring towns. However, that bench could not in such a matter but think of the public good, disregarding the oonduct of other benches. He sh uld be unwilling to do anything to prevent the show being held, but was perfectly ready to take the entire responsibility of revoking or continuing the order, as the bench might determine. The mayor, on his return, said the justices were unanimously of opinion that the order should not be revoked. Under these circumstances it would not be possible to hold the agricultural show of which n.(i)tice had been given. Suspected Murder. — A respectable farmer, named William Walsh, residing at Ballycrenaice, in the county of Cork, has died under circumstances which leave no doubt that he was murdered. It ap- pears that deceased and his wife lived on very bad terms for a long time, and on the night before de- oeased was found dead he had retired to rest at his usual hour, and about one o'clock in the morning a servant in the house heard an altercation between Walsh and his wife, and a noise as if the former were choking; but as fights were of frequent occurrence he took no notice of it. The next morning, deceased not having made, his appearance, his bedroom was opened, when he was found hanging half out of the bed, naked and dead. The police were sent for, who immediately arrested Mrs. Walsh. An. inquest was opened, but adjourned, and the prisoner committed to the Bride- well of the town. A post-mortem, examination was held by a medical gentleman, who gave his opinion hat the deceased died from strangulation. Suicide through a Dream.—Mr. Humphreys, the Middlesex coroner, held an inquiry at the London Hospital, on Monday evening, relative to the suicide, under very singular circumstances, of John William Dennant, aged forty-six years. The deceased, who died on Monday last, was a corkcutter, residing at No. 22, Goldsmith-row, Hackney-road, and having been unsuccessful in business, he became very des- ponding. His widow, Ann Dennant, said that he was in the habit of sleeping alone in the kitchen appar- ently on account of his wishing to brood over his want of success in obtaining a situation. On the morning of the 15th he suddenly rushed upstairs into her bed- room with his throat out and bleeding profusely, and cried out, I was awoke by an awful dream, and I have done this." The screams of the witness brought in the passers-by, and Polioe-constable Glover, 267 N, who found a razor covered with blood in the kitchen, where the unfortunate man had thrown it. He was conveyed to the hospital in a cab, where he said to the constable, "I am very sorry for this; I did not know what I was doing at the time I did it." Verdict, Suicide while in a state of unsound mind." The Absconding Cotton Salesman.-At the Liverpool Sessions, on Saturday, before Mr. Recorder Aspinall, Francis Reginald Statham, twenty-one, cot- ton salesman, was charged with absconding with < £ 2,500, the property of his employers, Messrs. Ry. lands Brothers and Boult, ootton brokers, Liverpool; and Caroline Ellen Tate, a ballet dancer, was charged with complicity after the faot. It will be remembered from the published reports that on the 2nd of No. vember last, Statham, having received the .£2,500 under the pretenee that he was going to bank it, absconded, and, being joined in London by the female prisoner, proceeded to Paris, Marseilles, Milan, and Lugano. After an exciting chase they were overtaken by detective Inspector Carlisle, and induced to return to London. As there was no extradition treaty in force he was unable to arrest them until their arrival in London. On the case coming before the committing magistrate he discharged the girl, as there was no evidence of her having received any portion of the money with a felonious knowledge. The Recorder, in his oharge to the grand jury, however, pointed out the danger that might arise from an understood impunity in such eases, and, thinking a full investigation very desirable, he directed that a bill charging the female prisoner with complicity after the fact, in that she had aided and abetted the robber, should be laid before the grand jury. A true bill was returned, and the female prisoner was arrested and placed on her trial. The male prisoner pleaded "Guilty," in order, as stated by his counsel, that he might give evidence exonerating the female prisoner from any knowledge of the robbery. He was accordingly called and gave evidence. The case lasted several hours, and resulted in a verdict finding the female prisoner" GuUty." Sentence was deferred.