Pontypool Free Press and Herald of the Hills

Wtfrnpnlifan 6FLSSIP. rfT OWX OWN eORRESP01mENT. 'I'fhe remarks unàer this head are to be regarded as the ex- pression oi independent opinÜm, from the pen of agentleman wÍ10m tn havc the greatest confidence, but for which we ,vortheles3 do not hold ourselves responsible.] The attitude of the House of Lords in regard to the Irish Church Bill has for some time past been a theme for gossip, speculation, rumour, prophecy, and ment, but, writing at a critical time, it is hardly worth while to add to the mass that has been already written on this subject. It may fairly be added, however, that it is abundantly clear from many considerations, that the majority of their lordships must be opposed to the measure. But it does not therefore follow that this numerical majority will assert its power, and carry out the warfare with the House of Commons to the hitter end, and the balance of opinion leads to the con- elusion ihit their lordships will accept, under protest as it were, a measure in favour of which the House of Commons and the country appears to have made up their minds. But a truce to speculation so soon to be superseded by fact. Lord Clarendon has spoken authoritatively on the relations between England and America, and the pub- lic mind appears somewhat easier than of late. Most people will agree with the Foreign Secretary that the speech of Mr. Sumner was ridiculous and absurd," and be glad to hear that this rabid oration was de- livered under no ministerial influences whatever and it will readily be admitted also that Lord Claren- don properly estimates the effect of that speech when he says that it has called forth a determination in Eng- land not to allow our national honour to be affected, while Mr. Reverdy Johnson's speeches called forth a spontaneous expression of good feeling towards America. The public are now, however, becoming anxious that there should be something more than speeches, and that this long-pending-Alabama question should be settled It is not surprising that the House of Commons on Friday night came to a conclusion in which nothing was concluded,—except the debate—when the question came before them whether certain museums, &c., should be opened on the after part of Sundays. It is a most difficult and delicate question, calling forth the' strongest religious opinion on the one side, and equally strong anti-Sabbatarian (no other term expresses it) opinion on the other; and it can be easily understood that many of our representa- tives would be only too happy to avoid the necessity of voting either one way or the other. And our repre- sentatives had their way. Mr. Gregory, who advo- cates the Sunday opening of museums, commenced his speech by remarking that it was a matter of regret that many gentlemen who wished to record their opinions on this subject would not have the opportunity c f doing so. Cheers and laughter followed this sally of irony, for it is a rule of the House that on the motion to go into committee of supply only one amendment can be carried and this had already been done. But there was no necessity to count out the House, which was the sorry conclusion at which hon. members arrived. Those who take an interest in this question will not now be able to tell who are in favour of Mr. Gregory's motion and who are against it, seeing that an hon. gentleman or it may be two hon. gentle- men ultimately succeeded in getting the House counted out. It is rather curious that the public lire never informed who thIS" hon. gentleman" 13. Some nameless person steals up to the Speaker and asks that the House be counted. Then some hon. members rush in and others rush out, according to their desire to continue the debate or stifle it. On the first effort on this occasion a few members were suddenly added to the number while the process of counting waa going on, and 39 were found to be present besides the Speaker but a little while afterwards a second at- tempt by the same or some other" hon. gentleman" was successful, and Mr. Gregory took nothing by his motion. I, for one, do not regret this result. The question is one on which public opinion on either side has not yet been sufficiently expressed, and the House cf Commons ought not to be called upon to pronounce judgment on a matter on which the public mind has not yet been made up. The influential deputations which the other day waited upon the Colonial Minister and the Home Secretary, to urge upon them the advisability of Government aiding the Emigration movement, affords another proof of the deep interest the public now take in this question. The leading points insisted on were, that emigration to our own Colonies, rather than to the United States, will be highly beneficial to those colonies and to the mother country that private enter- prise is insufficient to promote emigration sufficiently, and that therefore it is the duty of Government to assist emigrants. No one can be surprised that the two members of the Ministry thus appealed to spoke very cautiously, urging that such a proposal demanded very careful consideration. On the other hand, the Duke of Manchester no doubt gives expression to the prevailing opinion, when he says that what is wanted this—that arrangements should be made with the Colonies to settle our emigrants on their lands, that they should have money to start with, and that the cost of the land should be credited to them. This is an old idea, and it has partly been acted upon with great success, and if Parliament could but agree on some plan to develope the idea, and adapt it to modem wants, a great boon would be conferred on our working families at home, who find it so difficult to get a living. A very important fact was stated by Mr. White, a Canadian Government emigration agent, that the 2,500 or 3,000 people who had gone out to Canada this year had found immediate employment. This fact shows how immensely import- ant are the negotiations for transferring to Canada the Hudson's Bay territory. Referring to this territory, a public writer says it is & vast and princely domain into a corner of which we might pack such pigmy countries as England or France," and he speaks of it as enriched with spaces of land as fertile as the corn- growing plains of Hungary, as level and trackless as the prairies of the west." In fact, to speak within bounds, there is a. territory nearly as large as Europe r available for agriculture and the arts and pursuits of civilisation. Earnestly is it to be hoped that the nego- ciations now in progress for annexing this vast territory to Canada, and so opening it up to European emigra- tion, may be carried out. The subject is now attract- ing increasing attention among the working classes in London. I notice that there has been yet another trapeze ac. cident, a man who was performing at a music-hall at Windsor having fallen some twenty feet, suffering severe injuries. I suppose the liberty of the subject'' would be regarded as endangered were Parliament to prohibit these dangerous performances, but till they are made illegal they will be continued on the principle of demand and supply. The element of danger is the chief attraction, deny it who will. A pleasant feature of outdoor life at this time of the year is the school excursion to some rural resort. This is a travelling age, and we are apt to speak of every- body now travelling by railway and visiting country or city friends as the case may be, but in the crowded courts and alleys of London, the slums of Westminster and Lambeth, and the densely packed rows of little houses at the East End of London, there are thousands of children who never have a chance of seeing the beautiful fields, and charming hedgerows and dells that are to be found only a few miles off, except when kind friends get up an excursion in vans or by railway. It is now a common sight to see half-a-dozen vans in pro- cession, packed full of happy children on pleasure bent, bound for some breezy common or some large field, where they will enjoy themselves to their hearts' content, as they never enjoyed themselves before, except when they went in the same style last year to some similar place. Thousands of pounds are spent in this way, during a few weeks, on London children alone, but it is money well laid out, and it is a pity that such visits are so short and far between. The Metropolitan Board of Works did a strange thing the other day—bound, I suppose, by red tape. A large slab of Roman teaselated pavement had been found in Walbrook, and application had to be made to this high and mighty Board before it could be placed in some museum. If the mountain will not go to Mahomet," says the Eastern proverb, Mahomet must go to the mountain." If this tesselated pavement would not go the Board, the Board must go to the pavement, it might have been thought. Not a bit of it. The Metropolitan potentates had a piece chipped off, and sent up to them for inspection at their office in Spring Gardens; and the tesselated pavement, now in the Guildhall Museum, bears evidence of this refined vandalism. Surely the absurdities of routine and red tape can no further go. Th&Athenceum is answerable for asserting this statement, which, it is to be hoped, may turn out to be exaggerated. Perhaps a part of the Roman pavement had previously been broken off, and the Board, thinking they could best exercise their critical powers in their own office, had the piece sent up to them.

THE SINGULAR CHARGE OF FRAUD UPON A YOUNG LADY. Last Saturday, James Walter M'Alpine, a well- drestsed man of middle age, who had at first persisted in refusing his name and address, was charged, on remand, before Mr. Alderman Causton, and Alderman Sir Hobert Carden, at the Justice-room of the Mansion- house, in LondoD, with obtaining on the 12th of May, from a lady at the Bath and Cheltenham Hotel, Pad- dington, a cheque for IYJJ7, drawn on the bank of Ie»srrf. Prescott, Grot-, and Co., Threadneedle-street, •>y Messrs. Smith and S m, stockbrokers, in Copthall- •;ourt, Throgmorton-atrejt, by falsely representing that ,10 was Major-General Haines, of Madras. When originally arrested that the charge preferred against J' prisoner, and on Saturday he was accused, in addi- tion of bigamy and forgery* From the peculiar circumstances the examination excited much interest, and the court was crowded. Mr. George Lewis, jun., solicitor, addressing the Bench, said he had to charge the prisoner with the commission of bigamy in a marriage solemnised with Miss Ann Lee, a lady residing at Scarborough also with forgery, and with obtaining from her upwards of £600 by the false pretence that he was an unmarried man, and an officer in the Madras Army. The circum- stances, as they would be elicited in evidence, were very heartless. A few years ago the prisoner con- tracted a marriage with a lady named Russell, a mem- ber of a highly respectable family, and who had since had children by him. His real name was James Walter M'Alpine, and he had no authority, as would be shown, to call himself an officer in the Madras Army, or to assume the name of Major-General Haines, to whose family the circumstance had given great pain. The prosecutrix was Miss Ann Lee, and her evidence was to the effect that about six weeks ago she left Scarborough, where she resides, and came to London on a visit to some friends. About a fortnight after- wards she met the prisoner on the Metropolitan Rail- way. He happened to be in the same carriage with her. She was receiving change for a shilling from a porter on the platform at a station, at which she had to pay a few pence as additional fare, and the prisoner advised her as a safe rule on such occasions not to part with her money without taking a receipt. On the fol- lowing Wednesday she met him at the Moorgate station by chance, and in the course of conversation he gave her his card, which had Major-General Haines, Madras Army," upon it. He said he was in England on leave, and aQked her to allow him to call on her. At his request she gave him her address, and he after- wards visitedhertbere more than once. In the result he offered to marry her and take her out to India with him. That was on the 12th of May. She hesitated, wishing to consult her friends at Scarborough. He replied, he cared only about herself, not her relations, and that it would mar both her happiness and his if she did not listen to him. She consented. Before marriage she had wished him to accompany her to Scarborough, but he put her off, saying that when married they would go there. He wanted her to marry him at a registrar's office, but to that suggestion she declined to accede. He said something about selling out of the army, but that if he parted with his commission he would only have £500 a year. On the 13th of May she was walk- ing with him in Oxford-street and happened to men- tion incidentally that she had JE700 in the funds, upon which he suggested that she should sell it out forth- with, which she eventually consented to do. They met on the following day at the Broad-street railway station, and she was then prepared to go to Scarborough with him, but he declined, saying they would go there after the marriage. He persuaded her to go with him to Doctors' Commons, instead of Scarborough, and there he made a declaration preparatory to obtaining a licence, and they made arrangements to be married next day. Thence they went to a stockbroker and sold out her stock, which realised JE637, for which she received a check on Messrs. Prescott, Grote, and Co. On the 15th of May they were married by licence at the parish church of Islington, and up to Wednesday, the 26th of May, she lived with the prisoner as his wife. On the previous day she went with him, at his request, to the stockbroker, and, as the check for JE637 was crossed, they had the words Pay cash" written upon it. The check was afterwards changed, and the money was paid to the prisoner. On the 26th of May they were to have gone to Scarborough, and he went as far as King's-cross Station with her, and paid her fare, but excused himself from accompanying her on the ground of illness. She returned to London on Friday week, and spent some time in looking for him, but in vain, until Tuesday last, when, happening to be in Carey-lane with two friends, she saw him and gave him into custody. At the police-station he re- fused his name and address. Upon evidence of which the above is the purport the prisoner hali been remanded, and on Saturday fr. Rickards, a civil engineer, residing at Brighton, was called for the prosecution, and sai<1 he knew the prisoner too well. On the 24th of January, 1866, he contracted a mar- riage at Hove with Mrs. Crulckshank, a widow, and sister of witness. He then represented hlmaelf to John Walter I'A1pine, and as being a major-general in S9me regiment of Hussars. Mr. Rickards, brother of the preceding witness, and also residing at Brighton, spoke to knowing the prisoner by sight, and to having seen hia sifter, the prisoner's wife, on Friday evening last. She has two children, he added, and had a small fortune at the time of her marriage. Air. Laye, a commander in the Royal Navy, said he knew Major-General Haines, of the Madras army, well. The major is a married man, and not now in England. The prisoner was certainly not Major-General Haines. The major served in the 21st Regiment in the Crimea, and distinguished him- self very much. Captain Sandeman, a retired officer in the army, also spoke to being an intimate friend of Major-General Haines, and to his being now commanding'in Madras. Ir. Smith, manager to a firm of stockbrokers of that name in Copthal-court, said the prisoner and Miss Lee called at his office on the 14th of May. The lady asked him to sell out £700 stock standing in her name, which he did, and handed her a crossed check for JE637 on Messrs. Prescott, with the sale note. A day or two afterwards the priBoner called alene, and asked him to write upon the check" Pay cash," which, having his suspicions excited, he declined to do, unless the prisoner brought a letter from Miss Lee. He afterwards brought a letter, the genuineness of which witness suspected, and witness told him Miss Lee must attend. To the surprise of witness she did attend, and at her request he altered the check so as to make it payable to bearer. Witness asked the prisoner if he was married. He made no reply, and refused his name. Mr. Tarver, clerk to Messrs. Prescott, bankers, identified the check for £637 as having been paid on the 18th of May in twelve £50 notes, one for £20, a third for £10, and the re- mainder in coin. Mr. Lewis, addressing the Court, said the prisoner had cashed all the notes, except JE400, and the lady had been deprived of her little fortune by the gross fraud of the prisoner. He believed, however, the notes for JE400 would be forthcoming. William Green, a city detective officer, produced a certifi- cate of the prisoner's marriage (in which he was described as Frederick Paul Haines and a bachelor) with Miss Lee, the prosecutrix, at the parish church of Islington, on the 15th of May. He also deposed that he had been at Havengreen, Ealing, since the prisoner was apprehended, and had seen the prisoner's wife there, Mrs. M'Alpine. Mr. Smith, ship agent, said he knew the prisoner, to his cost. In May, 1868, he applied to witness to become a trustee to his marriage settlement, giving the name John Walter M'Alpine, and saying he had property w rth between and £9,000 a year. Witness became;: ostee at hia request. In July last the prisoner was a bankir jt, and wit- ness heard him, while under examination inti e Court of Bankruptcy decline to say whether he had any rank in the army, and, if so, what. For refusing to answer, his examina- tion was adjourned until tbe following November, and be then said he had never held any rank in the army as an officer. By the Court.—He had never been in the Indian service to witness's knowledge. Sir Robert Carden, referring to an observation by Mr. Lewis that the notes for JE400 were in court, urged that they should be produced at once. That, however, was not done, but an intimation was given that they might be. Mr. Louis Lewis appeared for the prisoner. Eventually, at the wish of Mr. Lewis, the prisoner was remanded until Friday next, Much sympathy appeared to be felt in court for the prosecutrix, who is understood to be a member of a most respectable family in Scarborough, and an esti- mable lady. Her evidence, it is said, scarcely did justice to her reserve in admitting the addresses of the prisoner, to the precautions she took, or to the arts on his part by which they were overcome and she was in- veigled into the marriage.

CALAMITOUS FIRE IN LONDON, AND LOSS OF THREE LIVES. Late on Saturday night a terrible calamity occurred on Pentonville-hill, which resulted in the loss of three lives. The details are peculiarly distressing, as the following out- line will show &. The house in which the fire occurred is, externally, a private one; but a private millinery business was carried on by Miss J ago, who occupied the parlours and third floor; the first floor and kitchen being occupied by a Mr. Till; and the second floor by Mr. Richardson, a carpenter. It will be seen, therefore, that the house was a large one, and it had in front, it is necessary to add, a long fore-court, railed in on a dwarf wall. The alarm of fire was given at a quarter to ten o'clock, the fire being caused by a paraffin lamp having been knocked over in the kitchen. A fire-escape was almost immediately on the spot, but it was unhappily useless, for the dwarf wall and railings were in the way. Fruitless endeavours were for a time made to reach four persons in the top floors-three women and a child—some of whom, entreating assistance, could be seen at the windows of that floor by a vast and horror- stricken crowd which had assembled, and one of the three women having, in her despair, lodged herself on the lofty window sill, some men made way to her over the roofs of neighbouring houses, and, at the imminent risk of her life and their own, hauled her by means of a rope from her doubly perilous position. In twenty-five minutes or so after the alarm had been given an engine came, and, having extinguished the fire, the top room was searched, and three dead bodies taken out. The three dead persons were—Martha Naylor, aged 23, assistant to Miss Jago; Anne Lettitia Thomas, also assistant to Miss J ago and Mary Rich- ardson, aged three, the daughter of the second floor lodger. The whole of the property in the house was destroyed,

THE RIOT AT MOLD. There have been three persons arrested since Saturday morning on a charge of having taken an active part in the riot at Mold. The prisoners in custody are William Griffiths, formerly a collier, but now a "medical herbalist" in Mold; Benjamin Tat- ham, gentleman's servant, Mold; Isaac Jones, collier, Black Diamond, (husband of the woman who was shot through the back, and who died on Saturday morning); John Roberts, driver, Leeswood; William Thomas Jones, collier, Leeswood and Rowland Jones, collier, Pontblyddyn. The two latter were apprehended while they were asleep in bed at two o'clock on Sun- day morning, and were hurried into conveyances that were in waiting. They had to dress themselves on their way to the County Hall at Mold, the object of the police in making the arrest at night being to secure their prisoners without giving the colliers the oppor- tunity of attempting a rescue. On Monday, the six prisoners were brought before the justices at the County Hall, Mold. The court- room was densely crowded, and the greatest excite- ment was manifested by the public outside in the issue of the trial Mr. Taylor, solicitor, Flint, appeared for the pri- soners Isaac Jones and William Thomas Jones. The other prisoners were undefended. Mr. Browne, Chief Constable of Flintshire, deposed that on Tvednesday evening in last week a mob of about 1,500 colliers conimenced hustling and throwing stones at the police and soldiers who had in charge the two prisoners committed to &9001 for committing an assault upon Mr. Young, manager of the Leeswood Green Colliery. The first stone was thrown by a woman, and immediately afterwards the stone-throwing became general from all directions, the object of the rioters evidently being to rescue the two prisoners, and several of his men were struck with stones and knocked down. The volleys of stones hurled at the military and police darkened the air, and he saw several of his men bleeding from the face and head, the blood streaming down their uniforms. It was impossible for any of them to go eut and face the mob. It' a magistrate had out of the station to read the Riot Act he would certainly have been murdered. Life was decidedly in great and imminent danger at that moment in the station. The witness called upon Captain Blake, the officer in command of the military, to protect himself and his ùw" men and the constables by firing into the mob. He refused to do so. The witness thought it was necessary to have a magistrate's order to justify firing, and he said to a magistrate, Mr. Clough, For God's sake give the order to fire, or we shall be all mur- dered He then shouted out, as loudly as he could, "Fire?" The commanding officer even then was very re- luctant to allow his men to fire, although at that mo- ment his face was covered with blood, and blood was also streaming from a wound at the back of his head. Some of the soldiers, who were very severely cut, were writhing under the pain they were suffering. They wished to fire, but the captain held them back. One private who was wounded charged his rifle, and was about to step towards the station-gate with his rifle pointed towards the mob, when one of the officers caught hold of him round the waist and drew him back off his legs, at the same time crying out, "For God's sake don't fire!" The stone-throwing all this time was continued, the mob even coming round to the platform, and across the line on the opposite side of the rail- way. The police and military were thus surrounded by the rioters, and he again called upon the officers to fire on their assailants. Immediately after witness heard the discharge of a rifle, followed by other shots. The officers were holding their men back, and using every effort to check them in firing, cautioning them not to take human life. They said, "For God's sake, men, don't fire where there's no necessity for it!" To the best of his judgment, 12 or 15 shots were fired, and then the mob dispersed, and the few soldiers that were firing were ordered back to the platform. The greatest number of shots were fired from the yard behind the station. One or two shots were fired from the station gate. There was no volley firing, only dropping shots, with long intervals between the firing. Witness recognised Isaac Jones as being in the crowd in the courtyard as the escort with the prisoners in charge were starting for the station, but did not see him throw stones. He could not speak to any of the other prisoners. Serjeant Hughes an d several other police officers gave corroborative evidence, and identified all the prisoners as having taken part in the riot. The case occupied the magistrate for seven hours, and ultimately Mr. Taylor applied for an adjournment in order to obtain evidence for the defence, which was granted Captain Blake gave evidence that his men did not fire until the magistrate orde ed them. No blank cartridges were used. In cross-examination, Captain Blake said the soldiers marched to the station with arms trailed. He did not hear the Riot Act read. Stone-throwing was continued over a quarter of an hour before he had an order to fire. No blank cartridge was fired. The men fired into the mob, but not without his order, although they were irritated. The witness Price, on being recalled, fenced with many questions, and at last said he was afraid to give evidence. He did see Tatham throw one stone. In the case of the other prisoners, Police-Constable Jones, Robert Ellis, and Sergeant Hugbes gave evidence showing that they were present. Dr. Williams and Mr. Trubshaw spoke to the injuries inflicted, the former having dressed the wounds of twenty soldiers, and the latter attended the police. Mr. Taylor applied for bail on behalf of Isaac Jones, who wanted te see his wife buried, and after some con- sultation the Bench granted it, requiring two sureties of RZO each and the prisoner in R50. The other prisoners were ordered to find bail in O for their re- appearance on Wednesday morning. An inquiry was held on Saturday respecting the death of Elizabeth Jones, who was wounded in the affray between the soldiers and the police, and died at a late hour on Friday night. Upon the jury returning their verdict of "Justifiable homicide," the coronerremarked that it was a very correct verdict. In the House of Commons, on Monday evening, Mr. Osborne Morgan asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he had received any further intellisrence as to the circumstances under which the troops employed to suppress the late disturbances at Mold fired oa the people, and particularly whether it was true that such firing took place before the Riot Act was read. Mr. Bruce The information that has reached me comes from the Clerk to the Justices and the Clerk of the Peace, through the Lord Lieutenant. It states that in consequence of apprehended disturbances some troops were telegraphed for from Chester upon the 31st of May, and that there as- sembled at Mold about fifty soldiers and thirty-eight of the county police. The case adjudicated upon was that of eight colliers, six of whom were sentenced to tine or imprisonment, and two to Imprisonment only, for an assault upon the manager of a colliery. The two latter had to be removed from the police-office to the railway station, a dis- tance of 200 yards, and in the course of their removal the officers who had them in charge were assailed by a mob, esti- mated at 2,000 in number, who lined both sides of the street, and who unfortunately had an unlimited command of stones, inasmuch as the road had lately been repaired. The soldiers and the police behaved with very great forbear- ance, though they were subject to a very severe discharge of stones-so much so that one of the inspectors states he was himself struck from two to three dozen times. The police and soldiers, however, were enabled to carry their prisoners into the railway station. There the attack become so violent and the danger so great, because by this time a considerable number of both soldiers and policemen had been rendered unfit even for self-defence, they were so seriously injured, that, by the order of one of the magistrates, Captain Blake, the officer in command, gave the command to fire. At first the firing was mainly directed over the heads of the rioters; one collier was shot, and that was the only result of the first firing; and, as the effect was not to diminish the violence of the attack, the firing was renewed, and was kept up- for some time, until the colliers retreated. During that time, I grieve to say, four persons received mortal injuries, and they are, in fact, dead of the injuries they received. In addition, a considerable number of persons were wounded, but the number has not been exactly ascertained. More than twenty of the soldiers and twelve of the policemen were seriously wounded by missiles. The Riot Act was not read. I have no doubt my hon. friend who puts this question is perfectly aware that the reading of the Riot Act is not necessary. The only effect of reading it is to make a riot, which is already a misdemeanour at common law, a greater offence; it makes It, in fact, a felonious offence, which was formerly punished with death, but which by a recent Act is punishable with fifteen years' penal servitude. The jus- tiflcation of the soldiers in firing before the reading of the Riot Act can be based upon the fact that they were subject to a very dangerous personal attack, which justified them, as it would justify us, in ming for defence any weapons at our command. That was the opinion of the jury, who found a verdict in which, besides stating the cause of death, they stated that the soldiers showed great forbearance and that is the opinion of the persons who have communicated with me, some of whom were present on the occasion. [The delivery of the last sentence in this answer was in- terrupted by a burst of cheering from the Ministerial side of the House with which Mr. Gladstone was greeted on entering the House.]

A SHOCKING AFFAIR. On Sunday afternoon, Mr. Midson, landlord of the Chequers," Alperton, Harrow, had been quarrelling with his wife, when he suddenly snatched up a revolver from the table, and discharged the contents of one chamber at her, killing her on the Ispot. He then discharged the contents of another chamber at himself, with the intention of committing suicide, but the shot did not take effect. He was taken into custody, and on Monday was brought up at the Hammersmith Police Court, charged with the wilful murder of his wife by shooting her through the head with a revolver. He was also charged with attempting to commit suicide by shooting himself in the head with a revolver. Mr. Lewis, sen., attended to watch the case on be- half of the prisoner, who was led into the court crying, with a bandage round his head, and he was allowed to have a seat in the dock. The first witness examined was a young man named Frederick James Midson. who said he was nephew to the prisoner, who was the landlord of the "Chequers." It hap- pened about half-past twelve o'clock on Saturday afternoon. fwo or three minutes before, the prisoner and his wife had been quarrelling, and he said he would go up stairs to shave. j She replied, You can go up stairs and cu your throat J if you like." She then followed him up stairs and abused i him. Witness left her in the first bedroom, and the prisoner in the adjoining room. About two minutes afterwards he heard two reports of fire-arms, and on running up stairs again found the deceased lying in the first bedroom ap- parently dead. He went into the next room and saw the prisoner bleeding on the floor from the right side of his head He had a revolver underneath him close to his right hand. Witness asked him what was the matter, when he replied, "I can't help it, she drove me to it." He also said, Fetch a doctor." In reply to the magistrate, the witness said he never heard the deceased speak. He further said that she was of a very aggravating temper. The prisoner was sober, but she was not. She had been aggravating him from nine o'clock in the morn- ing, following him from one room to another, and abusing him until the time of the occurrence. Cross-examined: The prisoner was very excited all that morning through her abuse. He kept the revolvers loaded for the protection of the house. Sergeant Brumfield produced the revolver, and said it con- tained seven chambers; two had been discharged, and one had a ball and cartridge. The remaining four chambers had caps only, but they had been discharged. A bullet was found by the nephew, and it appeared to have strucs a nail in the floor, upon which a slight impress on had been made By Mr. Lewis He had known the prisoner for two years, and always found him to be a peaceable and quiet man. Police-constable Frost was questioned by Mr. Lewis, and he stated that the deceased was a disagreeable and nagging woman. The nephew was recalled, and he stated that he found the bullet in the room in which the prisoner was, about three feet from where he was lying. Mr. Whitby, a surgeon at Harlesden, said he was called to the house, and saw the deceased lying dead upon her face. He next went to the prisoner, who was sensible, and had a wound on the back of his head behind the ear. While dres- sing the wound the prisoner said it was a very sad case Witness afterwards examined the deceased, and found that she had a gunshot wound on the back of the head. He had not completed his examination. The prisoner's wound was not serious. Mr. Lewis then addressed the magistrate, fend sug- gested that he should remand the prisoner on a charge of manslaughter only. He argued that it was not a charge of wilful murder, for the prisoner was goaded on by his wife until he was quite beside himself, and in the excitement of the moment he fired off the re- volver. The prisoner was then remanded.

THE RIGHT OF VOTING. In the Court of Common Pleas, on Saturday, an appeal was decided on the question whether the mem- bers of the University of Cambridge who had chambers in college were entitled to vote for representatives for the town. The appeal was founded upon the case of the scholars, and upon those of the fellows and the undergraduates. The case stated that each scholar occupied rooms in his college separately as sole tenant, and rented the same unfurnished at 210 a year or up- wards. The rent was paid to the corporate body, and each appellant as a member of the corporation received an allowance out of the fund, of which his rent formed a part. Each appellant had the key of his rooms, and there was a common staircase. The master and fel- lows had a regulating power as to closing the outer gate, and each appellant was subject to the general discipline of his college. The Lord Chief Justice said that the Legislature, in having experienced some difficulty in agreeing upon a definition, had left it to the judges to decide the mean- ing of certain general and ambiguous terms, and they had therefore to interpret as best they might the sense in which they were used in the statute, and they must take as their guide the whole language of the Act of Parliament. He had come to the conclusion that the appellants did not occupy as lodgers, and that their rooms were not lodgings within the meaning of the statute.

THE MISSING BRACELET. At the Central Criminal Court. in London, Thomas Clifford, aged twenty-five, awell-firessedyouagman, described as a carpenter, and Julie Martin, aged twenty-five, a fashionably-dressed woman, werecharged with stealing a diamond bracelet, value 2800, the pro- perty of John Hunt and another. They were also charged with feloniously receiving the same bracelet knowing it to have been stolen. This case was one of a rather singular character, as the following outline will show The prosecutors are the well-known jewellers, Messrs. Hunt and Roskell, who carry on business in New Bond- street, London, and the robbery in question was committed at that establishment on the 14th of August last year. On the afternoon of that day a brougham and pair of horses drove up to the shop, and three fashionably-dressed persons, two men and a woman, got out, and went into the shop and asked to see some turquoises they were shown a variety of articles of jewellery of that description, but one of the men made the remark that they were not rich enough, and they wished to see some diamonds. They were then taken to the diamond counter, where a variety of costly articles were shown to them, and among them the bracelet in question, which was valued at eight hundred guineas. One of the men took up this bracelet, and observed that it was very beautiful, and it was the sort of article they required, but all the party said that they did not exactly see what they required, and they wished some drawings of a completely parure of jewellery to be prepared for them, and said they would call on the following Wednesday and make a selection. The three persons then went to the carriage, and one of the men and the woman got in, and the other man ordered the coachman to drive to the Charing-cross Hotel, and then walked away in the direction of Oxford-street. The man who had taken up the bracelet and examined it wis seen to put it back upon the tray; but immediately after the party had left, and, indeed, before the carriage was hardly out of sight, it was missed, and no trace of it has since been discovered. It should be stated that, while the party were in the shop, a card was handed to the assistant belong- ing to a gentleman of position In Berkshire, and no informa- tion could be obtained as to how they obtained possession of this card, and the circumstances left no doubt whatever that the bracelet must have been stolen by the persons who went to the shop of the prosecutors and the only question in the case was as to the identity of the two prisoners 11 appeared that the carriage had been hired on the day in question, and that the coachman, in the first instance, was directed to drive to the Charing-cross Hotel, and the detective officer who is em- ployed at the hotel expressed a strong opinion that the pri- soners were two of the persons who got out of the brougham and went into the restaurant, and said that when they came out he heard the coachman ordered to drive to Bond-street. The prisoners were not taken into custody until recently, and the two gentlemen who had waited upon them at Messrs. Hunt and Roskell's picked them out from among several other persons, and expressed a strong belief that they were two of the parties who came in the brougham. James Shaw, one of the Corps of Commissionaires who is employed to attend to the carriages coming to Messrs. Hunt and Roskell's, also gave some confirmatory evidence with regard to the question of identity, and caused a gsod deal of laughter by stating that his attention was particularly di- rected to the male prisoner, on account of his going away from the carriage without raising his hat to the lady, which he said induced him to come to the conclusion that he was not a gcntleman. This prisoner, it appeared was not apprehended until recently, upon some other charge, and while he was in Horsamonger- lane gaol, the female prisoner went to see him, and she was apprehended by Serjeant Micklejohn, a detective officer, out- side the prison, and upon being told that she was charged with being concerned with Thomas Clifford m stealing a diamond bracelet from Messrs. Hunt and Roskell's last August, she said that she knew nothing about it. She after- wards admitted that she had been cohabiting with the pri- soner, but persisted in declaring that she knew nothing about the robbery. The learned counsel for the prisoners addressed the jury at some length on their behalf, and he contended that the evidence of identity was not sufficiently con- clusive to justify them in convicting the prisoners upon offences committed such a long time ago, and under such peculiar circumstances. The jury retired to deliberate, and, on returning into court, found Clifford guilty, but acquitted the female prisoner. It was proved that the prisoner had been previously convicted, and sentenced to penal servitude. The Recorder said he would postpone passing sen- tence until the prisoner had been tried upon other indictments which have been preferred against him.

THE MASSACRES IN ABYSSINIA. Mr. Thomas Powell, of Coldra-hall, Monmouthshire, a magistrate and wealthy colliery proprietor, who went on a shooting excursion to Abyssinia some months ago, has been murdered by the natives, together with his wife and child, His servant and two missionaries are also said to have been murdered. Mr. Powell left Newport in the latter part of January or the beginning of February to go to Abyssinia en a shooting excursion, taking with him his wife and one of his children, a keeper, a native of Scotland, and a female domestic servant. Soon after leaving England the maid servant fell ill, and it is said was left at Marseilles to return home as soon as she recovered. Mr. Powell and his party proceeded on their excursion, and while at Suez the keeper was taken ill, and he also bad to be left behind. Other servants, among whom was a Swiss, were engaged, and the party reached Abyssinia. Mr. Powell was anxious to proceed to a part of the country known to be extremely dangerous for an Englishman to enter, and although told of this fact, his determination was made, and the onward journey was pursued, the result of which has been the murder of alL On the morning of the 17th of April it appears the Swiss went up the country, and while away a number of savages fell upon Mr. Powell and his party who were unarmed, and murdered and mutilated them in the most horrible manner; a similar fate awaited the Swiss on his return. Beyond the brief telegram containilg these particulars no further details are known.

ELECTORS, TAKE HEED! In the Court of Queen's Bench last week, the rather Im- portant case of "Simpson v. Yeend was decided. This was a County Court appeal, and raised a ques- tion as to what is bribery. It was an action for a penalty for the alleged offer of a bribe at a municipal election, and the evidence of the defendant was that he solicited a vote and told the voter he would be remune- rated for his trouble and loss of time. Mr. Gray argued that this of itself was sufficient to show an offer of a bribe. In "Cooper v. Slade" (6 House of Lords Cases), the only promise was, Your expenses will be paid," and the House of Lords held it bribery. The Lord Chief Justice observed that there had been a series of decisions of committees of the House of Commons that such payments were allowable. And after the decision in that case Parliament passed an Act allowing vehicles to be supplied. But here it was pay- ment for loss of time. Mr. Manisty (with him Mr. Bosanquet) argued on the other side, and urged that there was neither an offer nor a promise of money. Not an offer for the money was produced, nor a promise, for the defendant did not say that he would pay the expenses, but only that they would be paid. The Lord Chief Justice, however, said he did not see the substantial difference. There could be no doubt the object was to influence the voter, and in substance it amounted to an offer. An offer was distinguished from a promise. If the party said, "I will give you 25 if you vote for my friend," and he said, "Yes, I will," that was a promise, if he said No," it was equally an offer otherwise, these emissaries of bribery would in all cases easily escape. In the result the Court said they were clear that the case came within the Act, and gave judgment for the plaintiff, that he was entitled to recover the penalty.

MR. GLADSTONE IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS. (From Tuesday's Standard]. Yesterday a little scene was witnessed in the House of Commons which was evidently meant to carry some significance with it in reference to the action of a large and influential section of the peers who met a day or two .1(1 proclaimed tlu-ir tL.qualílt Ú bootiUty to the policy of ministers on the Irish (Jhurch. When the Speaker took the chair there were barely enough members present to constitute a House, and there was nothing on the paper calculated to prompt hon. gentlemen to display any particular alacrity of attend- ance. A few minutes prior to the commencement of public business, however, there was a sudden and numerous inflow of Ministerialists, and very shortly the Radical benches became crowded to excess, as if pending some imp rtant official declaration or in ex- pectation of a great fied night. The aspect of the house was, indeed, curious :for although Mr. Disraeli, Mr. Ward Hunt, Mr. Gathorne Hardy, Sir J. Paking- ton, and one or two others of the more prominent mem- bers of the Opposition, were in their placps, their followers were few in number. But, strangers were not permitted to remain long in doubt about the denouement. The Prime Minister, who usually enters the house and takes his seat on the Treasury Bench from bthind the Speaker's chair, departing from his wonted custom on this occasion, came by the bar when the way was clear. His entrance was at once recognised, and with a spontaneity that could hardly be the result of accident, and a vigour and en- thusiasm seldom displayed even cn the termination of a division and the triumph of a party, a shout was raised by the Liberals, which they renewed and renewed again until long after Mr. Gladstone had taken his seat. The demonstration was a flattering one, and was obviously so regarded by the object of it, who advanced smilingly up the floor to his place, but could of course only acknowledge it by making a series of obeisances to the chair. The whole proceeding bore so much the appearance of preconcert and arrangement that it seemed to excite no surprise or wonderment amonpst the Opposition, the leaders of whom viewed it with unblanched cheeks, and a calm bearing that indicated their having a shrewd suspicion at least, if they were not absolutely in the secret, of the means by which the demonstration had been got up, and which, if it does no more, shows how perfectly the Ministerial phalanx is trained and organised, how willing to follow its leader, and how ready to obey the orders of the Treasury "Whip."

A RATHER NOVEL CASE. In the Court of Queen's Bench, on Monday, Mr. James moved for a rule on behalf of Sir John Henniker, calling upon justices of Hampshire to show cause why a mandamus should not issue compelling them to re- ceive a certain information, and issue a certain sum- mons. It appeared that a complaint had been lodged at the instance of Sir J. Henniker against two persons for trespassing upon his land in pursuit of game. In the first place he proceeded against them for a trespass secondly, for trespass in pursuit of game upon a Sun- day and thirdly, for being in pursuit of game without a certificate. The justices granted summonses upon the two first grounds, but refused one upon the third, for the reason that the two latter charges formed but one offence. They also refused it upon the ground that the in- formant was a youth of only fourteen years of age. Mr. James contended that the youth was Sir J. Henniker's agent, was very intelligent, and bad full ability to lay the information. He maintained that the justices were without discretion in the matter. Their lordships decided that as the youth could not be responsible for costs, the magistrates had rightly exercised a discretion obviously vesting in them under such circumstances.

FUNERAL OF THE LATE SIR R. J. CLIFTON, M.P. The funeral of the late Sir R. Clifton was celebrated on Monday, at Clifton, under somewhat remarkable circumstances. It is estimated that not fewer than 30,000 people were present. The singular local popu- larity that attached to the deceased baronet during the last few years of his life had expressed itself in nearly every possible way in the interval since his death. Blinds were drawn in hundreds of humble homes in Not- tingham large numbers of people, having no personal connrction whatever with the deceased, went into mourning; the poorest made a sacrifice to buy a printed memorial of his death. The remains lay in state at Clifton-hall on part of Saturday and Sunday, where they were visited by from 10,000 to 15,000 per- sons. On Monday the singular manifestation of public regret culminated iu a demonstration which would have been ill keeping with the burial of a great statesman. Considering that the number ef persons present was so large, the decorum exhibited was very praiseworthy.

STATISTICS OF CRIME IN LONDON. Colonel Henderson reports that, in the year 1868, 45,848 male persons were charged with crime before magistrates of the metropolis, fifty-six of whom were on ticket-of-leave. The number of males whom the police were prepared to charge with crimes committed in the metropolis, but whom they were unable to arrest, was 1,438 and the number of crimes committed in the metropolis of which information was given to the police during the year, but of which the perpetrators were unknown, was 12,687, exclusive of larcenies whtre the loss was under j35. 2,519 males known to have been previously convicted were charged before magistrates of the me'ropolis, and of that number 330 were discharged, 1,372 were sum- marily convicted, and 817 were committed for trial. The result of the trials was that 1 was sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment, 3 to 15 years, 3 to 14 years, 5 to 12 years, 42 to 10 years, 5 to 8 years, 170 to 7 years, 65 to 5 years. 144 to 2 yesrs, 337 to 12 months and under, and 42 were acquitted. Colonel Eraser reports that during the year 1868, 2,732 males who were not known to have been pre- viously convicted were charged before the magistrates of the city of London. Of these 870 were discharged, 1,666 were summarily convicted, and 196 were com- mitted for trial. One ticket-of-leave holder was com- mitted for trial on a charge of burglary, and sentenced to five years imprisonment. 293 males who had been previously convicted were charged during the year, of whom 46 were discharged, 158 were summarily con- victed, and 89 were sent for trial, and, with the excep- tion of 3 of them, were sentenced to various terms of imprisonment. Of the 642 crimes committed in the City of London of which information was given to the police, but of which the perpetrators were unknown, 5 were cases of burglary, 628 were cases of larceny, 7 of fraud, 1 of sacrilege, and 1 of uttering counterfeit coin.

VERY OBLIGING TO A PRISONER! There exists in certain gaols in the country districts of New England a primitive practice of allowing pri- soners to have their liberty temporarily at the gaoler's pleasure. Charming in the abstract as is this idea of convicts treated upon honour, it seems that it does not always work satisfactorily. One John Dorsev, an Irishman, lay lately in the prison of Northampton, a town of Massachusetts, under sentence of imprisonment for maltreating his wife while under the influence of liquor. On Saturday, the 1st of May, he asked leave to visit his home on matters of business, promising to return on the Mon- day, and, receiving permission, started in the train for the village of Williamsburg, near which he lived. Making his way to his house, he met the unfortunate wife at the door, felled her at once to the ground with his fist, and then, snatching a heavy stick from a pile of firewood at hand, delibeiately bar tered out her brains. This done he dragged the body into the house, and then sat quietly down to drink. The neighbours being called together by a girl who witnessed the beginning of the tragedy, found him dead drunk, and soon con- veyed him back to the confiding sheriff who had suffered him to rove from the custody of the State on the security of his own word. The New York paper from which the story ia taken, naively adds that the crime will probably come "within the definition of murder in the first degree," and that, if so, Dorsey will be hanged. It is added that the practice of the gaoler (or sheriff) was cor- rupt," and that the whole affair calla for investigation with a view to remedying such an irregular state of things. |

A ROMANTIC WEDDING DAY. At the Thames Police-court, in London, Mary Kreighton, aged twenty-eight years, has been charged with unlawfully running away and leaving her child Sophia chargeable to the parish of All Saints, Poplar, under the following circum- stances :— The prisoner is a widow. She had one child by her late husband, and after his death she lived five years with a man named Richard Morris, a horsekeeper. Their quarrels were frequent, and she then left him and obtained a precarious living in the streets, and returned to her paramour again. On the 12th of May she left him for the last time, and her child, about eight years of age, wa3 abandoned to the care of Morris. He took it to the house of f. woman named Lewis, who conveyed the child to Poplar workhouse, and the union was obliged to take charge of it. Mr. Spratle, relieving officer, and Mr. Courtenay, prosecuting officer of the Poplar Union, had been directed to ask the magistrate to punish the prisoner for running away and leaving her child chargeable to the union. The prisoner's defence was that she thought Morris would have taken care of the child as he had done be- fore. Morris said he had done with the prisoner for ever. She turned pale at this announcement, trembled ex- cessively, and would have fallen if she had not clung to the top of the dock. She asked him what he meant, to which he replied, "Why I was married this morning, and here is my wife." A deadly pallor overspread the woman's face, she raised her hands deprecatingly and endeavoured to speak, but in vain. It was absolutely painful to behold her emotion. The Magistrate Come, you must not give way to these feelings you are not married to him. The Prisoner, (half-choked): Oh, oh, sir, what will become of me ? I have made sacrifices for that man, have brought him home my precarious earnings on the streets, and have—I can say no more. The magistrate asked Morris if he was really mar- ried that morning. Morris An hour ago. Here is my wife (pointing to a woman in court); here are my marriage lines (holding up a certificate). The Magistrate A romantic wedding day. A Woman, who said she was the landlady of the house where the prisoner had been living in Poplar, said that Kreighton had often deserted her child. Morris That woman is doing the prisoner a wrong —a very grevious wrong. I am alone to blame. I de- serted the child. The Landlady: You said you would not keep another man's child. Morris This is a beautiful wedding-day for me The magistrate said that the prisoner and Morris had no claim on each other. They must part, and for ever. He was very far from being satisfied that the prisoner intended to desert the child, or to desert her p iramour, and after living with him five yearBsbe miyht, have thought he would maintain the girl. The act of the prisoner was not a desertion within the meaning of the Act of Parliament. Tne prisoner must be dis- charged a The magistrate, anxious to avoid a outside the court, spoke to Roche, the gaoler, who took charge of the prisoner temporarily, while Morris and his bride were directed to leave the court. The prisoner fainted direccly she was transferred to the care of Roche, and medscal r.: < her situation to be very critical.

Killarney.—I love you. You are good. I am un- happy, and wish to see you. Write.—June 5th."—Advertise- ment in Tht Tivm.

WHOLESALE SMUGGLING. At the weekly sitting of the Isle of Wight Petty Sessions, held at Newport on Saturday last, George Colemutt was charged with being concerned with others not in custody in "running" a cargo of forty- two tubs of French brandy on the previous Monday morning. Mr. Dear, collector of Customs, conducted the prosecution on the part of the Crown; Mr. Field defended. From the evidence it would appear that on the evening of Sunday, at about six o'clock, the defendant was seen by Thomas Pile, a coast- guardsman on duty at Shanklin, to leave the shore in a boat in company with two others. At a quarter-past twelve the same nkht, Mr. John Knowler, the officer in command of the coast-guard, while making his rounds, observed a light close down on the beach between Shanklin Point and the Chine, nnd as soon as it was light he had the spot searched. Five tubs of spirits were found, with "slings" attached to them, concealed among the rocks on the shore, and 37 more tubs covered over with furze bushes. Mean- while defendant was seen to return to Shanklin without his companions, and on his boat being searched half a dozen short ends of rope were found, which were said to correspond with that used in the construction of the slings of the tubs. On being broached the tubs were found to contain three gallons of brandy each, 45 degrees over proof. Mr. Field contended that there was not a particle of evidence against the defendant, an opinion in which the bench concurred, and the man was accordingly released.

lltistcllaiiiOMs ntelligentt HOME, FOREIGN, AND COLONIAL. THE SURGERY OF BICYCLES.-Human sorrows, it is seen on all hands, keep pace with human progress, the new mode of transit being no exception to the uni- versal law (says the Lancet). Within the last few months, both in this country and in France, surgeons have had to treat a great variety of injuries, the results of accidents from the bicycle some of them being, in one sense, special and peculiar to the novel risks at- tendant on the machine-the position of the rider, but more particularly on his relation to the law of balance, whether in progress or retrogression, on the level, ascent, or descent. Dislocation of the upper extremities, and especially of the radius, have been the most com- mon some few fractures of the ulna have, however, been observed, with severe sprains of the wrists. In some instances the lower extremities have been injured, sprains being more common than fractures. General shock of the nervous system has been sustained by others in consequence of a complete capsize, the bicycle running backwards down an incline, unseating the rider in a manner directly the opposite of a head-pitch. THOSE RIDICULOUS GARMKNTS !—Mrs. Olive Logan, in a speech at the Brooklyn woman's meeting, said :— I reject the trousers with contempt and scorn. Men cut a sufficiently ridiculous figure in them themselves. The trouble is they don't like their own costume, and are envious of our laces, jewellery, frills, and dresses. Trousers, forsooth trousers?" Shake not the ridiculous garment at me. No; so long as we can have our silks, satins, and shawls, we will repudiate your absurd bifurcated unwhisperables. Look at your swallowtail coats, stovepipe hats; and you wear your hair so short, some of you, that you look precisely like monkeys, and I don't wonder that one of your number has written a book showing that animal to be the father of his race. This speech was greeted with roars of laughter and ap- plause. AN AMERICAN SKIT.—The New York Evening Post says So violent and furious are the Americans, since Mr. Sumner's speech, that in social circles, and in private conver- sation, a proposal is seriously lliscused which threatens the most awful consequences to England and its people. It is suggested here, and by prominent Americans, that unless England will at once pay off our whole national debt and re- imburse the slaveholders for the loss of their slaves, the American Congress tliall pass a decree changing the course of the Gulf Stream, and shutting off England, Ireland, and Scotland entirely from the ameliorating effects of that truly American stream of lukewarm water. If this threat should be carried out, England would, it is well known, become a second Iceland; and we therefore advise all ERglishmen, the moment the negotiation falls through, to hasten at once with bag and baggage, to this land of the free and home of the brave. AN UNFORTUNATE PROVISION.—It lately oc- curred to the management of the Royal Alfred Theatre (says tho Pall Mall Gazette) that the severity of tae rule "No children inarms admitted" might be mitigated for matrons of dramatic tastes by pro- viding a special cloak room where they could leave their infants, just a* other ladies leave their shawls and bonnets. A crèche was accordingly instituted in the theatre, with an experienced nurse to welcome the little strangers and attend to their wants. A small charge was made for each of them, and the mother re- ceived a ticket, on presentation of which the child was returned to her. The experiment, however, has been attended with unforeseen results which have com- pelled its abandonment. We learn from a notice which has just been posted at the theatre that, while mothers have been glad to avail themselves of the new cloak-room, they have forgotten to go back for their babies. The result is an accumulation of infants, which the manager now threatens to send to the workhouse "if not claimed within three days, and all expenses paid." "No more children," it is added, can be taken care of as previously announced." TH E LONG Bow. I That's a good gun of yours stranger, but Uncle Dave here has one that beats it." Ah how far will it kill a hawk with No. 6 shot?" I don't use shot or ball either," answered Uncle Dave himself. "Then what do you use, Uncle Dave?' "I shoot salt altogther. I kill my game so far with my gun that the game would spile before I could get it." RATHER COMPLIMENTARY !—Mr. Sumner has been receiving some letters about his Alabama speech. The following is a specimen:— "London. Sir,—I enclose an article from one of our papers, which contains a proper view of your speech. For myself, allow me to say that, in my opinion, you are a thieving, cunning, Yankee scoundrel. Yours respectfully, AN ENGLISHMAN." Mr. Sumner has also received several letters from Canada of similar import. THE WAY TO SPEND MONEY !— A collection of costly jewels was last week dispersed under the hammer of Messrs. Debenham, Storr, and Sons, at their Great Metropolitan Auction Mart in London. The following were the more conspicuous objects and the sums at which they were sold :-Lot 793, a set of five magni- ficent brilliant stars. 200 guineas 798, two matchless rubies, 4 carats, 63 guineas 8 J3, loose brilliants, 18 carats, el ?.] 10s.; 805, two fine drop-shaped brilliants, 3 carats, ?/l guineas; 826, a fin" brilliant and pearl Bouton br .owlet, with pendant locket, 30 guineas 845, a curious antique emerald cross, 20.^ guineas 846, a pre- sentation aquamarine and diamond ring in fine old settiug, 21 guineas 848, a pair of single-stone brilliant Bouton ear-tops, 170 guiiea-s 849, a pair of brilliant pear-shaped ear-drops, r 5 guineas 852, a rose diamond star brooch, 32 guineas 853, a ruby of remarkable size, set with two lustrous brilliants, as a ring, 30 guineas; 860, an enamelled gold and diamond fl, xible bracelet, designed in crown and monogram, 42 guineas 861, a large sapphire, with brilliants, as a star, 42 guineas 862, a brilliant and sapphire horse-shoe pin, 24 guineas 863, a lozenge-shaped emerald surrounded with brilliants, as a ring, 41 guineas 867, a ruby, of large size perfect shape, and of the rarest colour and lustre, being in every respect a matchless stone, set in fine gold as a ring, 350 guineas 873*, an emerald and brilliant ring; 50 guineas 874*, a brilliant of 13 grains, as a ring, 126 guineas. DREADFUL RAILWAY ACCIDENT. On Mon- day morning, Mr. Thomas Alfred Hazlehurst, son of Mr. Hazlehurst, soap manufacturer, Runcorn, was seated in the carriage of a trip train in which hia father's workpeople were going to Buxton, and had the curiosity to put his head through the carriage window to see the length of the train. Just at the instant he came into collision with the buttress of one of the bridges spanning the line. His skull was fractured in a frightful manner. On arriving at Cheadle the train pulled up, ami the unfortunate gentleman was placed under the care of a medical man, but he was not expected to recover. UNLIMITED WATER POWER.-An engineer of this city proposes to employ the waves of the ocean as a motive power for running mills, factories, &c. His plan is to build on the beach (at Long Branch, Rockaway, or elsewhere) a dike several hundred feet in length against which the waves of old Ocean are privileged to break as wildly as they will, but are not to be allowed to recede. In the sea face of the dike are the openings of conduits which conduct the water to a reservoir within the dike. A canal from the reservoir reconducts the water by a circuitous route to the ocean, to turn, on its way, the wheels of as many mills as can be built on the canal banks.-New York Timet. THE ECONOMY OF ADVERTISING.—For many years performances on the organ at St. George's Hall Liverpool, have been given twice a week. Some months ago the corporation, in a fit of economy, agreed to discontinue the short advertisement published in the three daily newspapers of the town. The result was that the council saved £ 34 in advertising, and lost R250 in the receipts. The Corporation being convinced of the folly of their economical experiment have now directed the advertising to be resumed. EXTRAORDINARY SUICIDE.—A. young rnau re- cently committed suicide at Tavytown, U.S?, in a very determined manner. He first shot himself in the right side of the head, the ball glancing from the skull and penetrating the scalp, making a wound of about two inches m length. Finding that ineffectual, he fired again, the ball striking in the centre of his fore- head, fracturing the frontal bone, and causing com- £ rfi!r^n- b^in; the ball remaining partially em- bedded in the skull, from whence it was extracted in a flattened state. As the second shot did not produce instant death, the left breast received a third bullet below the heart and near the fourth rib and this not having the desired effect the pistol was lowered to the fifth rib, and the fourth leaden messenger passing through the lungs, penetrating the bronchial artery, caused instant death, from excessive hemorrhage. When found deceased's vest was on fire and the re- volver lying by his side. A STRANGE ATTEMPT TO DEFRAUD.—The Berlin correspondent of the Globe writes A strange process, of which you have perhaps heard, and in which an English life assurance company is interested, has for some days engaged the attention cf the Berlin public. A bookbin '.er bonnd himself in writing to two merchants to e,e-iiroy liii self after six months by moans of a berry, traces of which are not easily discovered. For this his accomplices iusured his lifo with two companies, and the sum was to be divided between the two tine fellows and t'ue family of the future suicide. In orJer, however, to justify tho insurance, the latter drew bills which pre'euded a debt 1-1 tnc accomplices, ftud the aceeotaiice of wujch was forced. T tey thought the thing was without danger, as, on the"dis'- covery of the forgery, tljg forger v. ouiu already bo beyond the nadl of human justice. Wrien, iiowevt r, the time for ful- tii-itig his n.intc, his coura.e tailed thewould-b« self-muJ'ùercr, and he drew back cliuging to life. his accomplices had now the audacity to denounce this for before the justice. By this, ho« ever, the whole transa^: co; me to light. The tribunal has not yet pronounced jiul0- ment, and the decision is awaited with interest. ESCAPE AND RECAPTURE OF A CONVICT.— One evening last week, shortly before the time ft r the cuilvict8 employed on the extension works at Chatham Dockyard leaving their work, one of the number, a, convict named Peter Crane, under sentence of seven year8' penal servitude, succeeded in effecting his escape. The convict was employed in a gang ",ith several other convicts, and se zing his opportunity he succeeded in eludingr the vigilance of 11 v keepers, and making his escape. On the circumstance being ref rted at the prison, a number of convict warders and others were despatched to search the neighbourhood, in order to effect his capture. After a minute seaich over the extension works, the prisoner was ultimately discovered concealed in a disused sawpit, and conveyed back to the convict prison, St. Mary's, where lie will receive the punishment awarded to convicts attempting their It scape. SOCIAL STATISTICS OF IRELAND.—The Irish llegistrar-G-ener d has isnud his report of the number of nouuriages, births, ani deaths 'n Ireland in 1868. The marriages were 27,752; births, 146,108; deaths, 803. The total number of births given represents a ratio of only 1 in every 37'94 or 2-64 per cent, of the estimated population in the middle of that yea and the deaths afford a ratio of only 1 in every 63 86, or 1'57 per cent. The entire number of marriages regis- tered gives a ratio of 1 in every 200, or 50 per cent, of the population, the number of Roman Catholic marriages (26 and 27 Vic. cap. 90) affording a ratio of only one marriage to every 220 of Rom-tn Catholics and the number of Protestant marriages (7 and 8 Vie. cap. 81), a ratio of one in every 150 of Protestants. A HIGHL_I-.RESP.ECTABLF, "DIFI-ICULTY.An American papS records the following: A shocking affray took place in Harrisonville, Cass County, Missouri, on Saturday evening. A lawsuit between George Preston and George W. Lindsay had been decided in the morning favourably to the latter. John and Je,se Prerton, sons of the plaintiff in the suit, dogged Lindsay all tho after- noon, armed with revolvers—the latter trying to keep out of their way but, about nine o'clock in the evening, one of the Prestons went into the Hotel where Lindsay was stopping, took hold of him and pulled him out of doors, and imme- diately the other Preston shot him through the body, inflict- ing a mortal wound. Lindsay then drew a revolver, and first shot the Preston that had hold of him, and then the other, both through the body. Lindsay and John Preston are, be- YOllIl doub, mortally wounded; Jesse Preston at least very dar;gerously. All the parties are reported as "highly res- pectable.' ATTEMPTED WIFF, MURDER. Oil Saturday night, at Barton-on-Humber, a working shoemaker, named Sinclair, attempted to murder his wife, by stab- bing her in the left side with a knife. Sinclair was for some years in the Federal army, during which time his wife, who had for years previously earned her own living and that of her family, sought for and obtained magisterial protection for the property which she had acquired in her husband's absence. Coming home at the close of the American war, he attempted, as he had often done before, to break up the house. He was told that there was a home for him so long as he chose to conduct himself with propriety, but that seemed not to suit his purpose. He threatened to murder his wife, and was sent to prison, in default of finding sureties. The prisoner was sent a second, and even a third time, and on Saturday he carried out his threat, as above stated, and the woman lies in a precarious condition. No DISTINCTIONS ON ACCOUNT OF SEX! -A Woman's Suffrage Convention was held in Boston, U.S., on the 26th ult., at which a letter from Mr. J. S. Mill was read, stating that the writer had no present intention of visiting America, but that if he ever con- templated such a visit, nothing would give him greater pleasure than to exchange marks of sympathy with those who were endeavouring to establish the" claim of all human beings, independent of sex, to the full rights of citizenship and freedom of competition on equal terms for all social advantages." Among the speakers at the convention were Ralph Waldo Emerson and Wendell Phillips. A resolution was passed that a constitutional amendment which has been prepared by the Hon. G. W. Julian, prohibiting political dis- tinctions on account of sex, should take precedence in Congress of any national question of mere political ex- pediency. THE SUTHERLAND GOLDFIFLDS.-The diggers complain that they have some difficulty in keeping up the average find of gold (says the Northern, Emiyn). But the fact is that the men are in general very secret as to what they are doing, and try to avoid the subject. They feel the position they are placed in very keenly, and one need not be surprised at their fightint- shy on this point when they have declared already to the col- lector of the Crown royalty that their find is miserably small. A few new hands are daily arriving and taking out claims, and the number of licences now issued for the month has run up to 261, which, however, is some 30 or 40 short of what was granted last month. Many of the diggers appear to be getting dispirited about the business, few or none of the claims turning out better than the old. The most tantalising thing about the whole affair is that, search where they mlty, gold is to be found sufficiently plentiful to yield wagER of about El a week, but not in such quantities as to come up to the expectations of the diggers, many of whom have made jE5 a day and disinterred £100 nuggets in Cali- fornia, Australia, and New Zealand. Unless r;c ier deposits are met with soon, many of the old hands will desert the business and turn their attention to some- thing else but the country people will look forward to the Kildonan diggings for many a day to come as a valuable resource to fall back upon when the iwhin^ rr other trades may fail them. The diggings have had the effect of causing a great influx of bakers, butchers, and grocers to Helmsdale, filling up all the vacant shops and causing a demand for dwelling houses. A WEALTHY PAUPER.—The guardians of the Huddersfield Union have been grossly imposed upon by an octogenarian, named Mary Oldfield, who, although she had been in the receipt of parish reli f to the amount of 4s, per week, possessed the large sum of k105 Is. lid., with which she appears to have been re- luctant to part, even on the verge of eternity. She had deprived herself of the common necessaries of life, and expired on Tuesday night in last week. The old woman had been looked upon as a needy subject and it is a mystery to her neighbours how she has acquired her riches. THE SUEZ CANAL.—It is stated that the arrangements for the opening of the Suez Canal in October are fully developed, and that the Viceroy of Egypt proposes to entertain his guests with unprece- dented magnificence. On the banks of the canal are to be erected lodges, constructed, fitted, and decorated so as to be reproductive of the characteristics of the several countries to which the guests belong. Public amusements, theatres, circuses, balls, and fetes are to be provided for the recreation of the assemblage, which promises to be as brilliant as varied in its charactrr. It is confidently expected that the Empress of the French will attand in person if this be the case, the Emperor Francis Joseph of Austria will be prefjitt. The heir presumptive of the Italian Crown will re- present King Victor Emmanuel; the King of l'i iisiii will send a member of the Royal family aid the Prince of Wales, possibly accompanied by Prince Aitbur, will represent Queen Victoria. The event is, therefore, likely to be one of extraordinary grandeur, and will doubtless pass off with great eclat. Its inter- national significance well warrants these manifesta- tions of this world-wide interest. Loss OF TUB STEAMSHIP "MISSISSIPPI."—In- telligence from Martinique, vid St. Thomas, reports that the Rteamer Mississippi,, which left Rio Janeiro on the 25th ult., bound to New York, ran ashore near that place on the night of the 12ch inst. Her passen- gers and crew, a3 well as her mail. were transfeired to a Iren ;h war vessel, which arrived opportunely, but it was feared that the steamer would prove a total lots. The mai!s have been sent on to New York vid Havan- nah. The Mississippi, was built at South Boston in 1862. She was bark-rigged, bad four bulkheads, and her hull was wholly of iron below the second deck. She was of 1,960 tons, new measurement. and was com- manded by Captain G. B. Slocum. The Mississippi was, or is, one of the steamers belonging to the New York and Brazil Steamship Company, and was rated first-class. "THE GREEN OF THE PELIOD."—The medical and daily journals have for many years past occasionally drawn attention to the increasing evil and danger at- tending the use of a green pigment known in the trade as "Scheele's green," and largely employed in the manufacture of wall papers but we are not aware that these warnings have ever been placed before the public in a form more worthy of the interests which are at stake. It is, therefore, with sincere pleasure that we (City Press) hail the appearance of a very attractive and entertaining as well as interesting little volume, entitled The Green of the Period or, The Unsus- pected Foe in the Eaglishman's Home," and which ia published by Messrs. Routledge, London. The work contains a mass of evidence and information which will be new to many, and is apparently written by one who has had much practical acquaintance with the many mysterious and multifarious forms of disease engen- dered by arsenical poisoning. It reads like a work of fiction, but the author assures ns of the truth of every startling incident narrated. We trust the importance of the subject will obtain for this well-timed and valuable work that wide circulation which it richly merits. A HINT TO U'AIIMFRS.-Mr. Mechi writes from Tiptree Hall, Kelvedon :— The question of economizing our food and expenditure and inereasinz the produce of our harvests by a diminution of the usual quantity of seed sown, is so important nation- ally, that I beg to send you the following facts -FifLy-five acres of my wheat sown with one bushel per imperial acre are amply luxuriant, and some portion has required flagging. The half bushel per acre is also ample in plant, and even the peck an acre promises to yield abundantly. Two bushels of oats per acre and six pecks of barley are almost too thick, some of the latter requiring flagguig. One bushel per i.,cro each of oats and barley appears to be all sufficient. Those who desire to see this and compare it with their much thicker-sown crops will be welcome to come here and draw their own conclusions. High farming and deep cultivation absolutely demand a great reduction from the old quantities of seed sown." L?TIER FROM PRINCE ALAMA.YOU.The Bir- mingham Gazttte publishes the following letter, which it says was written within the past few days by the son of King Theodore, who is now in the Isle of Wight to a former schoolfellow. It will be seen that the prince is not only acquiring a knowledge of the Eng- lish language, but likewise a love for British sports:- Aftou 7 My dear-You got plenty butteifly in the school ? no got in here. too much cold. Did you see snow and make snowman, me like it very much. me ride one pony oil to very nice. Oue day me go to hounds, the fox run away and dogs kill him Give my love to Charlie Good bye M FS SHEDDES'S CASE.—On Tuesday Miss SheuOv-ii addressed the House of Lords for the four- teenth day. The Lord Chancellor had informed her that their lordships have consulted together very anxiously as to the course they should adopt. They were all of opinion that a great deal of unnecessary time had been occupied by her, and serious complaints had been made by suitors in the next causes ready for hearing. Their lordships were also of opinion that ,be ou-ht to conclude her address, when her father would be heard. Their lordships had decided that. ti!y could not now hear counsel on her behalf. That, his lord^bip said would be contrary to the rules of the Houne, Miss Shedden having in 1867, when counst-l were being heard in her behalf, taken her case out of their hands and argued it in person. A RICH BANKER.—The personalty of the late Mr. Scott, banker, has been sworn under £ 1,400,(00. He ln-qm-aths to his nephew and partner, Edward 11 r. hill banking business in Cavendish- nits him ie-i.'naiy legatee. He also 1: < -.i of £ 500,000, a portion of which was L.it L of testator's grandfather, Sir Claude Sci'tt, blii-t., shall be retained in the banking lutbiess, and that his nephew, Edward Henry Scoit, sha 1 re- ceive therefrom an interest of 4 per cent. the princi- pal sum, after his decease, to devolve to the Raid nephew's wife and children. Among the bequests is a considerable sum to charities, &c.