The Pembrokeshire Herald and General Advertiser

FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE. FRANCE. The Changarnier affair having ceased its attractions I the Paris papers have recourse to a subject which, from long experience, they know will always find readers-namely, rumours of conspiracies among the Socialists and Red Republicans. The flfoniteur de I' Armee announces that Generals Du Rochchouat, de Persigny, Picol, Poucelot, and Sauvan have been placed in the retired list. Our Paris letter of Wed- nesday evening announces that the accounts from Lille, up to half-past 11 o'clock on that day, gave 60,000 as the number of votes obtained by General de la. Hitte. Accounts from the same city up to half-past 5 o'clock p.m. of the same day give the number as 62,978. A letter from I'Orient of the 4th states that the frigate La Semillante, of tile first class, and the brig of war Leger have been disarmed and laid up by order of the Minister of Marine. The only ships to be maintained in commission at L'Orient are the frigates Penelope and Jeanne d'Arc. General d'Hautpoul embarked at Toulon on the 2nd inst. for Africa. A duel took place in the wood of Mendum on Wednesday between M. Chatles Hugo, son of the poet, and M. Viennot, of the Gorsaire. The parties fought with swords, and the former being wonnded in the knee was removed from the ground. An incendiary took p!ace in tiie I night of the 1st inst. at bourg. Two large farm-houses afed the buildings adjoining, containing a large quantity of farming stock, were totally consumed. SPAIN. Letters from Madrid, of the 31st ult., announce the opening of the Cortes by the Queen on that day, with the usual ceremonies. The Queen was accom- panied by the King Consort. In the speech from the throne, her Majesty began by alluding to the hopes she had entertained of presenting herself with a Prince or Princess on the occasion, but expressed her resignation to the will of Providence. She expressed satisfaction in being able to announce the happy re-establishment of diplomatic relations with Great Britain in a manner worthy of both countries. Friendly relations continued with other Powers. The Spanish expedition to Rome had been eminently successful. In the interior of Spain public order was maintained, and past dissensions # forgotten. Tranquility was for a moment disturbed in Cuba by a set of foreign pirates, who fled before the loyalty of the people and the bravery of the troops. The army preserved its reputation for discipline, and the navy was increasing in importance. Various reforms had been made in the penal code of Spain, all of which wonld be submitted to the Cortes by the Ministers. Reforms bad also been effected in many other branches of the public administration. The public revenues continued to progressively increase. The plan for tha definitive settlement of the public debt would be presented; also that of the Basque fuetos. In a word, the state of the country her Majesty pronounced to be relatively prosperous and favourable. The ceremony took place in the new Palace of the Congress, the Chamber of Deputies. DENMARK AND THE DUCHIES. HAMBURGH, NOV. 2.—The following are authentic conditions under which the Statthalterschaft will conclude an armistice with Denmark, as given in the Hamburger Nachrictenoi this morning 1. The district of Sehleswig, south of the demar- cation line, marked out in pursuance of the Armistice Convention of 10th July, 1849, with the Island of Fehmarn and Schleawig islands, on the west coast, as also that part of the Angeln district north of the ine and east of Flensburg. with the village of Hoyer (neat Tondern) must be evacuated by the Danish troops and be governed in common with the Duchy of Holstein by the Statthalterschaft. [The demar- cation line, under the Armistice of 10th July, 1849. commenced at Geltingor Noor, on the east coast of Schleswig, and passing close to, but south of Flens- burg, then ran in a north-westerly direction to Tondero, in the west, and divided the Duchy into two parts uearly equal in size, the population of the south part amounting to about 150,000 souls, that of the north to about 180,000]. 2. The Danish vessels of war must leave the waters and coasts of the Duchies. 3. The whole of ihe prisoned, military and civil, shall be released nn both sides, and all private property under sequestration for political causes shall be restored to the owner^. 4. AH persons of the Duchies compelled to military service for Denmark against their will to be released at their request. 5. The navigation to be facilitated by both parties as much as possible. 6. The armistice to be concluded for one year, and further continued until it shall be denounced by six weeks' notice. These conditions will, of course, be considered by the Danes a mockery, for it can hardly be expected that they will relinquish the south of Sehleswig, which they have gained after severe contests, and yield up, with the strong positions of the Dannewick and Istedt, one half of the Duchy to their opponents without a blow. GERMANY. BFRLIN, Friday Afternoon.—It is said that a body of Austrian troops, marching from Bamberg, have entered Coburg, on their way, as it is supposed, to Schleswig-Holstein. The Duke of Coburg is re- ported to have arrived in Berlin." "BERLIN, Friday Evening.The Deutsche Reform which has just appeared, contains an article in which it is asserted that the Government has not yet aban- doned the hope of securing an honourable peace by means of its energetic military demonstrations. An answer from Vienna has arrived in the course of the morning and the ministry, under the temporary presi- dency of Colonel Ladenberg, is already deliberating on its contents. A definitive resolution will, how- ever, only be arrived at after a deliberation in which the King will act as President, and which will take place after the arrival of Count Bernstorff, who has been delayed on his journey by indisposition. ITALY. EXCOMMUNICATION OF PIEDMONT. TURIN, Oct. 30.—The excommunicating edict of the Pope has arrived at Turin that by this edict the Pope has excommuhicated from the bosom of the Roman Catholic Church the King, the Chambers, all the civil and judicial authorities, as well as all mu- nicipalities, and all private persons who give their consent to the Siccardi laws. The report appears to be no idle tale, for it is asserted by well-informed official persons, and if, as is positively believed, it be correct the immediate consequence will be that the policy hitherto pursued by the government will meet with the unanimous support of the country-nay, even the Chamber of Peers, whose unfavourable de- cision on the clerical question was apprehended, will side closely with the Ministry.

WOMAN-WHIPPING OF THE PLANTATIONS-—" THE whipping of women on plantations is in a different manner. Their frock is turned up over-then- heaa, and they are made to lie down with their face to the "round, their arms extended and tied to ai stake. A board is then taken, which is prepared in shape like a shovel. The wide part is bored full of small holes, and with this they are beaten on the bare flesh, from twenty-five to two hundred blows. Aftet these blows are repeated a few times, the skin tears away, and the blood and flesh are driven through these holes with great force, and z, flies several yards from them and yet this is very modest and I moderate correction.' Females are required to do as much work on a plantation as men; and there are generally about thirty women to seventy men. The treatment of slave women is so severe, and their labour so hard, that very few children are raised on the sugar or cotton planta- tions; and if they are alive at birth, they grow up feeble and puny, and, from neglect, and the want of proper cleanliness and care. very few become men and women." THE "NATIONAL CONCERTS."—The appearance of the choristers of the Berlin Chapel-royal, with their director, Kapelmeister Neidhart, at their head, has given a stimilus to the National Oon- certs." These singers from the choir of the King of Prussia's Lutheran Chapel, where no instru- men t- not even an organ -is used and the pieces they sing are hymns used in the course of the service The chorus was about forty, men and boys — a mere handful compared to the chora. hosts we are accustomed to, but (says the Spectator) infinitely surpas3ing in real power and grandeur of effect the largest masses ever assembled at any of our great music meetings. The ecclesiastica. pieces severe, solemn, and destitute of that rhythmical air which catches the general ear might have been thought ill-fitted tor a populai concert: hut there is a magic in the harmony 01 human voices, pure and unmrngled with ithei sounds, which has a power beyond all other music. The strains, swelling and dying away with a delicacy quite indescribable, seemed to proceet: from one voice. The harmony had the unity <>. organ diapasons, with the vitality which no instru mental sounds possess.

NARBERTH UNION. The REPORT of the COMMITTEE of the GUARDIANS of the NARBERTH UNION, appointed to enquire into the EXPENDITURE of the Year ending 25th of March, 1849. 0 Gentlemen,—We have investigated the accounts of the years ending the 25th of March, 1849 and 1850, respectively, and have compared them with those of that ending 25th March, 1844, as being that in which the expenditure has been the least during the last eight years, and it affords us great satisfaction to be able to report to you that the supposed increase in the expenditure of the first of the above-mentioned years had no ex- istence in fact; the annual abstract furnished to you, and to the Poor-Law Board, proving to be erroneous to the extent of £74.5 13s. in excess, in consequence of the cost of the common fund for half-a-year having been cast up twice over; so that instead of the expenditure of the year ending 25th March, 1849, exceeding that of the year end- ing 25th March, 1848, it falls short of it by £ 188 17s. We wish to observe that we found the accounts to be correct, and that the error we have referred to was simply in the statement made in the Poor-Law Board. In comparing the number z, of paupers relieved in the year 1844, according to the quarterly abstracts with the relief lists, we find ourselves unable to reconcile the two. We also found that the annual abstracts for the years 1841, 1842, 1843, 1844, 1845, 1846, and 1847, which ought to have been in the custody of vo ir clerk, were missing, in consequence of which we have oeen put to a great aeai o* truuwc, d,t"t;, however, with the exception of one, been lately found. In order to give a clear view of your posi- tion we have drawn up and annexed to our report some tables to shew the relative expenditure on the poor, and number of paupers for several years back. On reference to Table I. it will be seen that the expenditure on the poor for the year ending 25th March, 1848, exceeded that of any year since 1839, and that there has been a succes- sive diminution for the two subsequent years. This is a matter of congratulation to the Board; but it is with much regret that we have to report that the diminution of the expenditure during the last year on that lending 25th March, 14), 1 as arisen from a reduction in the amount pei- head paid for the poor (which the Board has been enabled to effect in consequence of cheapness of provisions) and not from a reduction in the num- ber of paupers. The number of paupers relieved during the half year has increased to the extent of 70 since 1849. In consequence of the accounts for the two last years having been made up half yearly, and the others quarterly, we have no direct means of show- ing the increase of the number of paupers in the two lastyears though Table I. will show that th3re was, as might be expected, considerable excess in the years 1847 and 1848. We have, therefore, formed Table II. to take into account the number of weeks during which the paupers have been relieved in the years ending 25th of March, 1844, 1849, and 1850, respectively. From this it will appear- i st. That on the first of these years there were 1,778 paupers (on the average of the four quarters), re- lieved on the average for 46 weeks each a num- ber which is equivalent to 1,563 paupers relieved every week in the year. 2nd. That 2,120 paupers (on the average of the half-years) in 1849, were relieved on the average during 39 weeks each a number equivalent to 1,633 permanent paupers. 3rd. That 2,250 paupers in 1850, ivere relieved, on the average, for 39 weeks a number equivalent to 1,691 permanent paupers. In comparing these numbers of permanent paupers the change in the method of making up the accounts before alluded to will not effect the general result.that for the last year there was an increase on 1S44 of 131 permanent paupers, costing £ 4 Is. 5d. per head C, per annum; and an increase of 62 on the year ending 25th March, 1849. We have not been enabled to make a similar calculation for the year 1848, but it seems to be clear that the number of paupers hftve been much heavierj during the two last years than in any of the years 1841, 1842, 1843, or 1844. Table II. will also shew that the increase as between 1849 and t850 has been caused by an in- crease nearly uniform of males, of females, and of children. We have to remark that in this respect the county of Pembroke presents a striking contrast to the country at large, in which there has been a general decrease of pauperism in the last year of nearly 16 per cent. (15-8). The only counties in which there has been an increase are Kent, Lin- coln, Norfolk, Northumberland, Rutland, Stafford, Suffock, Westmoreland, Anglesea, Brecon, Merioneth, and Pembroke, and of these, with the exception of Anglesea and Northumberland only. the increase has been greatest in Pembrokeshire. We do not think the increase in question is to be attributed to the recent alteration in the law of settlement, as we find that the Union has gained on the balance by that alteration to the amount of about £ 3 a week. It demands, therefore, your serious attention to ascertain the causes which have had so unfavour- able an influence on the poorer classes. It will be observed on reference to Table II. that the women and children in receipt of out-door relief are together to the men in the proportion of 1,752 to 380, or about 41 to 1; and that through- C, out this Union the backward and unimproved state of agriculture affords no steady employment to the sickly among the males, who are unable to do a full day's work, or to the women and children, many of whom would find employment in the various operations carried on where land is well cultivated; and We would impress it upon the minds of the Guardians and Ratepayers generally that, by neglecting to employ these persons, they not only lose the benefit of their labour, but add heavily to the burthen of the rates, and compel families to become chargeable (many of whom, having once become so, remain so permanently), who would otherwise be maintaining them- selves by honest labour, and adding to, instead of living on, the resources of the country. Briefly, we would say, you must support these persons, either by giving them wages for their labour, or by paying them through the relieving officer for living in idleness. And we would fur- ther add, that no care on the part of the Board can materially diminish the rates and alleviate the local taxation, which bears so heavily on the Rate- payers, so long as no efforts are made by the farmers to afford suitable employments to the classes referred to. We beg to recommend that the strictest vigi- lence should be exercised over the Common Fund; as the Board must be aware that a considerable number of paupers, whom there is not a pretence to consider irremovable, have been hitherto main- tained by that fund and that the officers of some of the parishes in the Union consider it a. cheaper and easier process to throw a pauper on to that fund, than to incur the trouble and risk of remo- ving him. We are sorry to find that the Board has been in the habit of giving out-door relief to bastard chil- dren, the mothers of whom are, in many cases, able-bodied and well known, and that, although a Z!l partial check was given to this practice last year, it was by no means discontinued, up to a very recent period. The Board cannot be ignorant that this course is, in almost all cases, illegal; and we wish to impress it in the strongest manner upon them. that no course they can pursue can be more entirely improvident, shortsighted, and wrong. by such means the Board, for the sake of saving the paltry difference between the out-door and in- door cost, in any given case, entail a permanent charge on the Union, larger out of all proportion than such diffetence, and do all that lies in their power to encourage a wide spread disregard of chastity and morality. To shew that this conse- quence has, in fact, followed (or at any rate ac- companied) a line of conduct which the Poor-Law Amendment Act was expressly intended to prevent, we beg to refer you to the Report of the Committee of Privy Council on Education, lately sent to you, where you will find the county of Pembroke singled out, and placed in the lowest class among the counties of the kingdom, as one in which the ille- gitimate births bear the highest proportion to the legitimate. We recommend, therefore, that in future no out-door relief whatever be given to any bastard child, excepting only the case where the inother is shown clearly to lie dead. We find :hat the out-door relief list is to the in- loorin the proportion of 2,132 to 119, or IS to 1 nearly; and that whilst the out-door paupers are relieved on ihe average for 39 weeks in the year, che in-door paupers are relieved for 30 weeks only. These facts, coupled w:t'1 others to which we have •>2lor3 referred, lea I u;; to d lubr. whether the workhouse test h is ever been proper.y applied in this Union And we are strengthened in this view by the fact that whilst there has been a general decrease of pauperism in the kingdom to the extent of more than 15 per cent in Anglesea, where there is no workhouse, there has been an increase of more than 23 per cent. In any view of tbe case we are strongly of opinion that so long as hard work is not systematical: v enforced, as it never has been in this workhouse, that test cannot be properly applied: and we advise that the pick- ing of oakum should be at once introduced. In comparing the relative number of paupers in the different parishes, we have had our attention called to a practice which appears to be prevalent in some of them. of maintaining a portion of their poor by means of private rates, for the purpose of reducing their contribution to the Common Fund at the next adjustment of the averages one instance has been brought under the direct notice of the Board in case of Manachlog-ddu; and another in that of Bletherstone has lately been before the County Court, and we think that the great reduction in the number of paupers in some other parishes, coupled with the general increase! in the Union attaches considerable suspicion to them and we recommend that measures be taken to put an effectual stop to so fraudulent a practice. There was, it appears, an iacreasc, in the coal and culm account in lS-^L^over 1814. This is partially accounted for by the fact as we find of more coal and culm having been paid for than was actually received. The blame of this rests with an officer, now no longer in your service, and the practice alluded to has been discontinued. There has been an increase in the extra medical fees, but we trust that this arises from an increase in the number of cases requiring medical aid, and not from any improper charges by any of the medical officers. We recommend that in future the balances in the hands of the relieving officers be ordered not to exceed jE5, as we find it has been the practice to allow them to retain in their hands sums vary- ing from £10 to 2C40. It will be observed in Table 1. that there has been a very considerable increase latterly in the County and Police Rates, but this is a matter over which the Board can exercise no control. We have the honour to be, gentlemen, Your obedient servants, W. D. PHILLIPS, JOHN L. GRIFFITH P. LEWIS, G. B. ALLEN, Wm. LLOYD, W. P. CURRIE, JOHN ROBLIN. To the Board of Guardians of the Narberth Union

0 CALAMITY AT SEA.—The following report of the ab<>n lonment of the ship Aqncs, Smallman, of Dub- lin, from Quebec, is from lur master :—" On Tues- day, September 10, daylight came in with an awful gale, the sea breaking over the ship foie and aft. The pumps would not suck. About six o'clock, a.m., an enormous sea broke over the stern, carrying death and destruction fore and afr. It stove in the ship's stern, smashed the poop deck and beams into atoms, knocked away half the rudder, an 1 did not leave a vestige of anything on the poop. It took the two men away from the wheel, and myself, who was standing close by them. One of the men, named William Corry, was killed the other, George Piles, was washed to the forehatch, badly bruised. I found myself at the mainmast, much hUlt. All the men at the pumps were seriously injured; John Thomson, left arm broken; Nicholas Paterson, skull fractured, and liii life is still despaired of. All the rest were more or less cut and bruised. Immediately after the sea had struck the ship, she broached to, and lay over nearly on her beam-ends. The mate got the tiller lashed down, and her main topsail all right to keep her head to sea, it was blown to pieces. Seeing it was all over with the ship, we decided on letting the foremast go out of her, to get her head to sea. The fore-rigging was cut, I I z, I and the mast fell over the side, taking the rcaintop- gallant mast along with it. Shortly after the mainmast was blown away, which was followed by the mizeamast. The wreck of the foremost, got a.- .¡ the weather bow, and took the bowsprit out of the the ship. The vessel now lay like a log, with the sea breaking over her tore and-40fc. We found it uselss to attempt the pumps. She was filling; got one of the air ports out. At midnight she filled, the gale blowing at a fearful rate. We z, passed an awful nigh of suffering. The whole crew continued in a wretched state until the 15th, when they were taken onboard the Princess Royal,' and kindly treated by Mr. Dugid and his crew." The master and crew of the "Agnes," 22 in number, were landed at Bathurst, as previonsly reported. WRECK OF THE SUPERB,-The captain (Priaulx.) and the mate (Fleming) of this unfortunate vessel were brought up before the Royal Court of Jersey on Saturday, to take their trials on the charges— against Priaulx, of culpable imprudence," and against Fleming, of" imprudence," involved in the verdict of the coronars jury on the remains of the victims of their reckless and unpardonable conduct. They both pleaded "Not Guilty," and with reser- vation of two points :-1. That the indictment of the Crown officers was not conformable with the verdict of the coroner's jurv 2. That the case was not within the jurisdiction of the Jersey Court. Witnesses were then ordered to called in the case, which was adjourned to a future day. The process of trial in this court is very tedious, and in the meantime a mawkish feeling of sympathy is being z! got up in favour of the accused. In the event of their being finally convicted of the charges prefer- red against them, the reserved questions, of the irregularity of the indictment and the Court's non- jurisdiction in the case, will be argued before the Court in bar of judgment. THE BURGLARIES IN THE RURAL DISTRICTS.—It is quite evident (says the Dailg News) that of the late crimes which have startled and affrighted us in rural districts, the perpetrators are not of the regular criminal class. They are not expert London thieves, driven from their usual scenes of depredation by the activity of the police the burglaries at Charing-cross sufficiently evince this. The Firmley murder and burglary are of quite another class—that of the rustic labourer out of employ. We do not by this mean the agricultural labourer, for whom there never was r a larger field of employment than the present, but that large and nomade tribe of labourers that have been created by railroad expenditure. Having acquired certain gregarious habits, and been indulged with more than the wonted rate of wages, the rail- road labourer does not return willingly back into the agricultural class. Indeed his place there has beeu tilled up. It is the diminution of means and the precariousuess of life with this set of workmen that has infected so many remote and rustic districts with insecurity and with crime. Wherever railroads extend, these men wander in search of work, and in lack of work, of plunder. It is not merely in Surrey that their presence is felt, but in the remotest dis- tricts. In South Wales, for example, where people used to sleep with open doors, all the precautions usual in the vicinity of the metropolis are obliged to he had recource to. The police may overtake and punish such depredators and burglars, but prevention is not within the attributes of this force. We do not know of any class to which facilities for emigration might more justly and more beneficially to themselves and society be extended, than to the class of labourers and their families employed in the construction of railways. DENMARK AND THE DANES.—Denmark you know it, and yet you do not know it—this wonderful little island kingdom, which stretches from the vicinity of the north pole, where the Greenlander tosses in his kajack amid the icy waves and sees the spirit of his father hunt and sport in the flames of the northern lights where eternal death reigns, in Issefjord, to have erected the pillars of his temple of never-melt- ing icebergs, which still tremble and are sometimes prostrated by the voice of man to the Southern Ocean, where under the glowing line, the sugar-cane and the coffee-plant are cultivated by the negro, and the light of nature ceases to bloom in magnificence. Between Greenland and Santa Cruz-eternal winter and eternal summer—lies an archipelago of islands, j subject to the Danish crown. Iceland, with the most ancient memories of the north the volcanic cradle of the Scalds the Faro isles, peculiar in scenery and in people, where, amid rocks and mists, the sun pour- trays Ossianic shapes; the Hallings, where man and sea contends for the earth and many, very many more. But Denmark Proper, the mother land, con- sists of the great and fertile islands, where the stork, 1 the sacred bird of Denmark, builds its nest; in whose azure creeks the crimson Dannelros;, the national flag, floats the beautiful islands of Zetland, Jutland, and Ftinen. There have the Danish people their home. -Frederika Bremer.

BIRTHS, MARRIAGES, AND DEATHS. The Quarterly Return of the Marriages, Births^ and Deaths, registered in the Divisions, Counties, and District of England just published by the Regis- trar General is one of the most important documents isssued for a long time, and is highly encouraging as an exponent of the state of the public health. ° This Return comprises the Births and Deaths re- gistered by 2,189 registrars in all the districts of England during the Summer quarter ending Septem- ber 30th, 1850; and the Marriages in more than 1.200 churches or chapels, 2,869 registered places of worship unconnected with the Established Church, and 623 Superintendent Registrar's officas, in the quarter that ended June 30th, 1850. The return of Marriages is not complete but the defects are in- considerable, and have been supplied from previous years. The general result of the return is favourable in a high degree the Marriages in the Spring quarter are more nnmerous than in any corresponding quar- ter of the last 12 years, so also are the births in the Summer quarter and the deaths are 8,4044 instead of 135,358, which they were in the quarter ending September, 1849, when cholera ravaged the chief town? of the kingdom. The decrease of deaths im- plies necessarily the decrease of sickness and suf- fering the increase of marriages and births indicates improvement in the condition and prospects of the great body of the people. MARRIAGES.—The marriages ia all England in the quarter ending June 30th, 1850, were 3$,018. The numbers in the Spri ,g quarter declined rapidly fiom 1846 to 1848, and rose still more rapidly up to- 1850 thus following and portraying the state of the' country. London, Cheshire, Lancashire, the West Riding of Yorkshire, and South Wales, presented the greatest fluctuations, and the greatest increase of marriages in the June quarter of 1860. The marriages in the counties of Middlesex, Hert- ford, and Buckingham; in Essex and Suffolk, the marriages declined, as they did also in Devon and Cornwall in Shropshire, Staffordshire, Worcester- shire, and Warwickshire,-the coal and iron regions -the marriages increased they increased also in Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, and Derbyshire—' the seats of the thread, lace, and other manufactures. In the great agricultural county of Lincoln the fluc- tuation was in an opposite direction the marriages rose from June 1846 to June 1818,Jand then declined. In the East and North Ridings, in Durham, Nor- thumberland, Cumberland, and Westmoreland, in Monmouthshire, and North Wales, the marriages increased in 1850. The marriages in Portsmouth and Plymouth declined in Bristol and Cheltenham they increased in Stoke-upon-Trent (the potteries), in Coventry, and in Birmingham, Liverpool, and Manchester, the increase was considerable, it was still greater in Leeds Halifax and Sheffield shared in the general advance. Hull, Wolverhampton, and Salisbury—where cholera was exceedingly fatal in 1849—have little more than the average marriages. BIRTHS.—146,970 births were registered in the quarter which ended in September. The births are invariably more numerous in the first and second than in the third and fourth quarters of the year; and they are in the last,, fewer by 8,757 than in the pre- vious (June) quarter; the number and the proportion to the population are, however, greater in this than in any of the corresponding quarters since 183;). The increase of births is greatest in London, in the West- Midland Counties, and in the North-Western Comi- ties-Cheshire and Lancashire. INCREASE or POPULATION.-The excess of births registered over deaths in the quarter was 60,956 which if all the births were registered would be the natural increase of the population. In the same time 53,703 emigrants sailed from three ports of England; 1,394 from Plymouth, 7,684 from London, 44,627 from Liverpool. This leaves a narrow margin for the increase of population but many of the emi- grants entered at the English ports are from Ireland, which has been for many years diffusing a stream of natives over England as well as America. The pro- gresss of the whole fixed and moving population of the country can only be determined accurately from a comparison of the returns of births and deaths, of emigrants and immigrants, with periodical enu- merations. STATE OF THE PrrBLW J-IEHTH-The mortality is much below the average; and the £ public health has never been so good since 1845 as in the present quarter. The rate of mortality is 1-901 per annum. At this rate one in 211 persons living died i [t three months. The chances of living through three sum- mer months (1839-40), for persons of all ages, being 192 to 1. The rate of mortality in 506 districts, comprising chiefly small towns and country parishes, was 1*693 percent, per annum in the qnartor; the average snmmer rate (1840-50) being 1832 percent. The rate of mortality in 117 districts, comprising the large towns, was 2-206 per cent. per annum; the the average rate (1840-50) being 2'517 per cent. The juxta position of the figures in the table suggests r,9 the melancholy reflection that more than seven millions of people, inhabiting the metroplis and all the cities and great centres of industry, are still ex- posed to a mortality which is not inherent in their nature, but is due to the artificial circumstances in which they are placed. The-waters, the sewers, the soils, the churchyards, the houses emit poisons. To every ten natural deaths, four violent deaths—deaths from these poisonous exhalations—are superadded. Still after the scarcity—after the great epidemics of influenza-and atter the catastrophe of last year, the return even to the wonted degree of health is a relief to the nation and health above the average, not only in places scourged by cholera, but in nearly all the towns of the country, is cheering, as it seems tJ.) show at once that the imperfect sanatory measures in progress are already beneficial, that the country is recovering from its loss, and that the wants of the people are now more abundantly supplied than they have been of late years.

THE POLISH BALL.-The announcement of the in- tention to renew this (now annual) ball in aid of Polish refugees," has called forth some ridicule. The Times has the following caricature PUBLIC DINNER FOR THE RELIEF OF IRISH FAMINE. A number of gentlemen, deeply sensible of the des- titute state of the Irish poor, have agreed to dine together for their benefit. The dinner will be of the most recherche description, and the proceeds, after defraying the incidental expenses of the feast, will be handed over to the guardians of the onion of Skib- bereen. It is hoped that the exhibiting nature of the entertainment, the consciousness-of doing a vir- tuous action, and the encouragement likely to be afforded to innkeepers, butchers, and wine merchants, will induce a large and liberal patronage of the gas- tronomic and benevolent public." Upon which the John Bull writes-" What a storm of ridicule would such an announcement have raised. What invidious comparisons between Dives and Lazarus, feasting and fasting, the rollicking guest of the tavern and the famine-stricken inmate of the workhouse and yet, substitute dancing for dining, tripping for tippling, and Poland for Ireland, and precisely the same absurdity is about to be enacted on the 14th of next month, in the Guildhall of the City of London, under the patronage of its Mayor and Sheriffs, as an inaugural festival for the civic year. Poland, say the committee who are getting up the ball, is blotted out of the map of Europe, therefore let us dance her liberty was cloven down on the bloody field of Ostrolenka, and buried in the reeking breeches of Warsaw, therefore let us fiddle and uisk." A SCARF MADE BY HAND FROM HOMK-GROWN SILK.-The wife of a clergyman in Cheltenham intends to exhibit a lady's silk scarf, made from silk the produce of silk worms kept in an open building in an adjoining county. The lady gives the following interesting account of its manufacture :—" Having resided for about three years in a village in Hereford- shire, the garden of which possessed a fine mulberry tree I wished to give my family an idea of the habits and natural history of the silkworm, and the method by which silk is produced. With this view I pro- cured a quantity of eggs early in the spring of 1847, which were hatched about May, and I placed the worms, 2,000 or rather more in number, in an out- house in the garden. They were attended and fed by myself and some of the juvenile members of my family, and in due time they spun and wishing to turn the produce of their industry to some use, I directed my attention towards making the scarf which I have the pleasure to lay before you. The silk was wound from the cocoons by my daughter and myself on a winding machine, and afterwards I wove it into its present form. It has consequently never been in the hands of any manufacturer, and presents the same colour and quality as when taken from the cocoon. I may add, that the outhouse in which the worms lived had no windows to protect them from the weather, which was unsuallv cold fcr the season of the year as I think this point may illustrate the fact that. an English c.iniate presents no insuperable obstacle to the cultivation of -silk, The mulberry tree was of a common kind.