The Aberystwith Observer

lltetmpolitan: (Sffsstp. BY OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT. ,fm remarks under thi-s head are te be regarded as the ex- rt' -fjon of independent opinion, from the pea of a gentleman ,1 rh«;,i we have ttuj greatest confidence, but for which we oevcrthwleas do not hold ourselves responsible.1 Already in the marts of commerce, the counting- house and the factory, the splendid mansions of the rLh and the cottage homes of the poor, has that simple and affecting letter of the Queen been sympathisingly read. One touch of nature makes the whole world kin," and there are many touches of nature in this letter from the Sovereign to her people. As the widowed mother, writing with earnest affection of her eldest son— mother and son so dear to the country—the royal lady touches a peculiarly tender chord in many ;1, heart, but the whole letter—so earnest, so dignified, and yet so homely—will for ages to come remain a memorial of the kindly relations between monarch and subjects. It is a trite remark that Death levels all distinctions that the King of Terrors lays equally low the prince and the peasant; but sickness has the same effsct. The Prince of Wales during his severe illness has had all the advantages that medical science c-juld procure, and tha whole nation has been waiting, watching, f«ariag and hoping; but just the same kindly sympathies, just the same affection, just the same alternation ■> of hope and fear have exerted rheir varying influence a.3 would have been exerted in the humblest family among her Majesty's subject?. .Yrflieuon has its sweet use. and the long and danger- ous illness of the Prince, from which he is now happily recovering, has tended to strengthen more than ever the bonds between Queen and people. lhave somewhere read that if Lancashire is prosperoua England is prosperous. Certainly the condition of this great manufacturing county is some criterion of that of the United Kingdom, and it is highly satis- factory therefore to read such favourable accounts from the North. It seems that the rateable value of Lanca- shire property has increased two and a half millions sterling. Lord Derby's remark that this absolutely proves the material progress of the country, and his statement that both her 'manufacturing and agri- cultural interests are aetive, must be pleasing to the community at large, especially considering the aphorism to which I have referred. Cheering, too, is it to find that news of similar prosperity reaches us from other quarters while here in the metropolis, trade, makimg due allowance for the time of the year, is decidedly briak employment is general; and pauperism has diminished and is diminishing. I could easily cite facts in proof of the last assertion, but facts of this kind are dry reading. I do not think, however, that my con- clusion will be disputed. At present, at any rate, the year 1872 bids fair to be a prosperous one. The Revenue Returns which have just been issued, though dealing with tho past, confirm this hope very pleasantly. When we find that for the last quarter of 1871 the revenue was £924,IH5 more than during the correspond- ing quarter of the previous year, and that we have up- wards of two millions more revenue during the last nine months of the past year than during the corre- sponding period of the preceding year—when we find these agreeable facts, why—twopence off the income- tax is about the least we can expect. That trade societies are not wholly established for the purpose of keeping up wages and otherwise fighting the battle of Labour against Capital, we all know, but sometimes forget. The Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners has just presented, with no little pomp and circumstance, the sum of one hundred pounds to one of its members, who was disabled for life by having his left hand cut off with a circular saw. When the money was being handed to him it was mentioned that this was another instance of the ratepayers being spared frotn a burden that otherwise would have fallen upon them. Very true, and not at all unimportant. But I wonder whether such facts as these will influence the Government when preparing their bill on Friendly and "Benefit societies, which is to be introduced next session. It will be rather difficult to separate two objects aimed at in one subscription whereas trade societies, as trade unions in the ordinary acceptation of the term, can hardly, one would think, be brought within the opera- tion of the measure about to be brought forward. Working-men and labourers now out of employment —I suppose there are some of these, as there always are —might do a worse thing than to accept an offer now made to them to go out to New Zealand to aid in the construction of a railway "over there." True, New Zealand is a precious long way off, but then it piT-se^ses a delicious climate and a fine soil, and there are ample scop.i and verge enough for the labours of T^n^li.-ih mechanics, artisans, and labourers. Moreover, a railway always creates work long after it is made —in all sorts of direct ways. It is rather strange, then, that considerable difficulty is found in procuring the number of labourers required. Xo 189. than 1,000 men ar*ui^ed-L>uw fmvazd. market at home. Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council is a. curious and nondescript body, dealing with a number of very different things—from the drainage of a town up to a question of the regency from the dimensions of a cattle-truck up to a national form of prayer or thanksgiving. But in the multitude of counsellors there wauteth not wisdom, and whatever the Privy Councillors do is generally done well, and after mature consideration. I suppose these councillors have inspected the new Foreign Cattle Market, either personally or by deputy. At all events they are frraciously pleased to express their satisfaction with it; and In doing this they ratify the opinion of all who have. like your correspondent, had the opportunity of rambling through the new market, and noticing its splendid arrangements for the reception, slaughter, and distribution of foreign cattle. Wandering through the alleys, corridors, and pens of this fine market the other day, I came to the conclusion—which by no means demanded any peculiar sagacity or profundity—that this new establishment will exert an immense influence on tho arrival of foreign cattle in the metropolis, in- creasing largely the supply, and consequently cheapen- ing meat in London, and, as a second consequence, elsewhere. How important this result will be I need not insist upon. Considering that this certainly will be the result, to say nothing of innumerable other advantages, the only wonder is that we have never had a Foreign Cattle Market before. The Liverpool magistrates have hit upon a good idea, in endeavouring to repress drunkenness. Besides fining offenders, their names and addresses are to be published. I believe this will have a decidedly good effect. Cases of people being brought up fur being "drunk and incapable," and being fined, are seldom worth reporting, and thus drunkards escape the penalty of publicity. But the official publication of their names-a kind of moral pillory—will, probably, have a good effect. If it has, other magistrates might take the hint, and it might even be embodied in an Act of Parliamant. I am glad to learn that Mr. George Cruickshank is engaged on hia Autobiography. If it is not to be pub- lished till after his death, may it be many a year yet before it sees the light But if I were great man enough to write an autobiography, worth reading, I should like to have it published so that I could smub this objector, confound that disputant, and so on. Would it not be well for the veteran artist to do the same ? At present, perhaps, society hardly does him justice. He has exerted an immense influence on ) the social progress of this country—much greater than i", generally supposed. To many people Mr. Cruiokshank is only known by his pictures of The Bottle and the Worship of Bacchus "—pic- tures that have been lectured upon and written about times without number. But he was a powerful artist before most of us were born, and his sketches date, I believe, as far back as 1806, when George the Third I was king." Could all his productions bo collected, and placed in chronological order, they would form a < gallery in themselves thoroughly "unique in character, and would prove a marvellously interesting study with regard to the political and social progress of the people: during upwards of half a century. < On the last Sunday and the last day of the Old Year, when multitudes of people in the metropolis were preparing for their watch-night services, a con- ¡ siderable number of railway servants met at a tavern 1 to further the ten hours' movement. That a Sunday evening should be chosen for such a purpose is » fact; that is certainly to be regretted, and I can well under- a utand that numbers of good people would be shocked by such a meeting on the Sabbath evening, almost simultaneously with large congregations assembling for the purpose of solemnly recognising the passing from one year to another. But these men, be it 1 remembered, did not choose Sunday evening. They 1 are occupied so continuously on other evenings that they have no time to meet; they work such long 1 hours that they have not an hour to spare to aim at ] the lessening of their work they meet on Sunday to protest against so much Sunday work. And I 1 think they are perfectly right. The facts stated 1 at this meeting incontestibly prove it and the public are directly interested in the move- t rnent inasmuch as the unreasonable protraction of the work of signalmen, pointsmen, &c., has an undoubted j connection with railway accidents. All honour to Mr. f JHas-, for espousing the cause of railway workmen as A he has done The advocacy of such a man is at once S n proof of the justice of the cause, and a guarantee for r its success. t Nearly a year ago the preliminaries of peace were a discussed by the French and Germans, and when in due] time the treaty of peace was signed by the t representatives of nations that had been en- a ueavouring to ruin each other, it was fondly h imagined by other nations that peace would be secured and so it has been—with a vengeance! There are, just now, too many evidences of this. French and German newspapers preach hatred, and in some parts of France there are continual outrages inflicted on Germans. In some cases it is undeniable that murder has been committed by Frenchmen, the victims being German soldiers. Such painful facts as these ought to read humanity a lesson. War, no doubt, settles disputes—after a fashion, but it always leaves a heritage of hatred and vengeance. Can it be said that France settles down contentedly under the arrange- ments of the treaty of peace? Far from it. The efforts now being made to reorganise her army tell a very different tale.

.¡ THE PRINCE OF WALES. Last Sunday morning at ten o'clock, there was a special service of prayer and thanksgiving in Sandring- ham House by the express command of Her Majesty, who, with the members of the Royal family and household, was present. The Rev. W. Lake Onslow officiated in his capacity of private chaplain to the Prince and Princess of Wales. Afterwards, at the usual hour, their Royal High- nesses the Princess of Wales and Princess Louis of Hesse, attended Divine service at the parish church. Mr. Onslow conducted the service, and in lieu of the special form of prayer he requested the congregation to join with him in the Litany in imploring the AI- mighty to grant the speedy restoration to health of his Royal Highness the Princess of Wales. The rector preached an appropriate sermon from the text, Behold I make all things ncvRev. xxi., 5. He referred to the favourable change of circumstance.; almost coin- cident with the prayers of the nation, and, indeed, of the world. It may be interesting to state that the family prayer every morning in the hall of Sarrdringham House, concludes with the following special sup- plication :— "And now, () Lord God, Almighty, and Father of all Mercies, we implore Thee especially in behalf of the head of this family and household, who lieth sick on his bed. To Thine ever watchful care, to Thine all- sufficiant love we commend him, his body, his soul, and his spirit. Oh! Thou most gracious and Heavenly Physician, Thou alone canst heal him for this life and the life to come hereafter. Oh most merciful Saviour and Redeemer, bless, we beseech Thee, all human means and skill used for his recovery, and in Thy great mercy restore him to his wonted health, strength, and vigour. Give to him beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of prahe for the spirit of heaviness. That he may glorify Thy holy and blessed name for evermore. Amen."

NEW YEAR'S SERMON BY MR. SPURGEON. In London, on Sunday night (Xew Year's Eve), a congregation of not less than 7,000 persons crowded the Metropolitan Tabernacle, to take part in the service and to hear a sermon by Mr. C. H. Spurgeon and, although the vast buiiding was packed from floor to ceiling, the preacher's voice could be heard by all— and such is the construction of the interior that very fair ventilation and comparative freedom from draughts are preserved. Following that independent order of conducting the service which belongs peculiarly to this noted preacher, Mr. Spurgeon began with a brief prayer having special reference to the closing year. A chapter of the Gospel next read was, as usual, illustrated with free commentary. But it is in the singing, perhaps more than in other parts of the service, that Mr. Spurgeon's congregation shows peculiarity. Without any instrumental assist- ance, the whole assembly, conducted rather than led by one powerful male voice, not only joins in, but sings with spirit, in excellent unison and without flag- ging, the hymns before them. Particular impressive- ness was given to this part of the worship on Sunday night, when Mr. Spurgeon, on announcing a well- known hymn, requested his people to sing the first two verses with force, the next two softly, and the last with great power. This was done with a degree of feeling that was not marred by any exaggeration. The sermon by 1fr. Spurgwoll was Introduced with the remark that the text was a simple one. They had most of them heard several sermons from it. It was as plain as words could make it—they must all know its sweet- ness—" This is a faithful saying and worthy of all accepta- tion, that Christ Jesus came, into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the chief." Paul wrote this verse im, mediately after he had given an outline of his own personal history. He had, he said, been a blasphemer and a persecutor and, after he had described his own life, he spoke of God's grace to him. This was an ex- perimental text-one that Paul wrote out of his own soul. lie dipped his pen into his own heart when he wrote those words; and there was no teaching, no preaching like that which waa experimental. Those who tried to do gnod to others mUilt first do good themselves. It wag in vain to give instruction onpatns wbich the instructor had never trodden, or to speak of the benefits of grace which had never been en- joyed. That preacher lipoke hest who gpoke with a conscious- ness of what he had seen. Such was the testimony of Paul. U" never did anythincrby halves it was neck 01' nothing-with bim. It must have been a great illumination which took him to God in direct opposition to the way which he had pursued with so much ardour in the early days of his !ife. Truthful, sincere, outspoken, he wore his heart on his sleeve ami when he said that Jesus Christ came into the world to savti sinl1prs, he might be believed, not oLlly because hc was inspired, hut hecause he spoke from his own experi- ence. The text was like a picture in a frame. Some times in the pictures of the old masters the frame was full of heart. So he would look at the frame first; This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation." It was a saying, commonly spoken, an axfom--as those who liked hard words would call it a fundamental truth, which ought to hI) currently repeated among Christian people. Every aile should hear it; the air should ring with it. If there was a secular saying of note, though only a jest. it was repeated, and every newspaper made a comer for it. Let this be 80 iyid if there were (let per and more mysterious trnth8 th;it were "f- "impl.. n»d phtin save sinners. It was not merely a »c £ £ £ £ „t. £ L saying. There were many sayings that would be better never heard; there weie proverbs which passed current among us as fine gold whi(dj were base and spurious metal —and no one could tell tlie mischief which an injurious proverb might work. But was a faithful saying, and worthy of all acœptance. Times had changed, circumstances altered, and things were not now what they were to our fathers but this was 3till a faithful saying, awl as true now as when, 1,800 years ago, the Apostle wrote it on that page. Bleaged he God; it would lie true when we were all gone—and if this world lasted a thousand years ur fifty thousand years it would outlive all time and all ages. They had not thought of it in their youth: many of them would be lying dying soon still unsaved. Thirdly, it was worthy of acceptation. It was worthy of acceptation from all—the richest, the greatest, the most learned, the most innocent, the most pure-every man speaking after the manner of men. In the sight of God all were guilty, and they needed that Christ should save them. On the other hand, the lowest, the most unjust and debauched, abandoned, helpless, hopeless lost cast-a-ways all might receive it. If he were standing III theapsIde and a man came and said, "Is that sentence worth accepting?" he should say, "Yes." If a mall stopped his carriage and asked him if a man took his hand from a costermonirer's barrow, a shoebla«k, a man in ragg, or a man escaped from a prison-van, he would say to all, "It is worthy of acceptance." A mere platitude, said they. Vet such a platitude made heaven ring with sacred mirth; such a platitude might make a desert spring with flowers and herbs, a platitude that might make a man's hell a heaven. It was wõrthy of the orator's loftiest speech and the philosopher's profoundest thought; and surely it was worthy of the acceptance of every human being. There, then, was the frame of the picture there were the baskets of silver which held the jewels of gold. Christ came into the world to save sinners. Thirty years and more he, the Creator of the world, lived in it. He was a work- ing man, a mere common la}¡,ourer. He tolled and laboured, and was sick and weary. It was a sinful world, and He was Texed with the sins of those about Him. It was a dying world, and he died. To save the guilty, He died the death of the guilty. He came to take them from hell's dark door, and to pass them, through cleansing in His precious blocd, into eternal glory, saved souls for ever. Christ came to save the sinners—not the righteous. To save those that were not lost would be ridiculous superfluity. To come to pardon those who were not guilty would be absurd. Christ came to perform certain necessary work. If any were not guilty, with those He had nothing to do. Against self-reliance of this kind the preacher particularly warned his hearers. On the other hand, St. Paul, in saying he was the chief of sinners, showed that the way was open to aIL Wherever a big sinner could go a little one could go. If a bridge would bear nn elephant, it would certainly bear a 111Ouse; and if the. greatest sinner got into heaven through an atoning sacrifice, could any Ulan sav that h1. sin would not be forgiven ? There was, however no salvation in anything m8n could do. "While in R#me he saw a sight which moved him with indig- nation and pity. At the-8anta Scala, where Jesus was said to have been brought before Pilate, die steps were covered with wood, to save them from being worn out by the knees of the faithful, and there he saw men, women, and children crawling upon their knees, so that they might get to heaven that way. There was a hole through the wood:1t the bottom of the stairs, anti then half-way up, and a third at the top where the faithful might kiss it to jet so many days out of purgatory. It was a painful sight. Men were not saved by crawling on their 1 hands and knees, not by penances and self-inflicted miseries. What a blessing it would be if they would turn with scorn from those miserable impostures in which priests sought to deceive the souls of men. They might depend upon it that Jesus Christ, who came from heaven to do the saving work, could do it that the price He paid was enough to redeem us and that the blood He Ihell sufficed to cleanse us. Let each ask himself if Christ had saved him. Many years ago he (Mr. Spurgeon) knew and understood the plan of salvation, and, hearing it, simply preached and looked to Him. He looked to ilini now, and knew that His word was truth, and was saved. He lived habitually in the enjoyment of this bleslffid fact, and it was long since he had doubted the truth of it, for he had Christ's word for it. There was i passage which said, lie that believeth in Him is lot condenyicd. Did they know how to believe ? It was to -elJly upon Him. If they would lean upon Hun they would ;hat moment be aaved. But they wanted to crawl up that lame staircase. X 0, said they they were not such fools. Well, but if they wanted t,) be saved hy their works, it was tJl that iitaircase-that plbssed stairca8e. Xow, the Goapel said that staircase, meaning works, never did, and never, :ould, save. ft said, Believe on the Lord Jesus L'hrist and you shall ue saved." They woulrl smile it Popery being so foolish. It was the natural relighm of unconverteti men. The wanted to do something. They were so proud they did not want heaven 1 *iven to them for nothing they wanted to do something or )ther. The only pbn was to believe in, and trust and rely lpon Him, au(llouk to God. There is life in looking up at Him crucified. God grant us each such a look this /try night, the close of the year of grace 1871, that each nay begin the next year saved in the Lord with everlasting ial vation

RAILWAY SERVANTS. On Sunday evening a meeting of railway servants, neluding engine-drivers, guards, ticket-collectors, porters, shunters, stokers, policemen, and other classes )f railway employes was held at the "Winchester Arms," Southwark-street, London, to advance the ten lours' movement, the payment for overtime, the dimi- nution of Sunday duty, and the weekly payment of wages. The chair was taken by Mr. George Chap- nan. The chairman gave a most 'encouraging account of jhe progress of the newly established Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants, and spoke of •he encouraging sympathy and liberal dona- .ions they had received from outside friends. There :ould be no doubt when it became generally cnown that the rules of the society were ramed In the interest, not solely of the railway ser- j 'ants, but of the public, a large amount of public 1 general support would be given to the society. As a natter of course, the presidency of the society was >ffered to Mr. M. r. Bass, M.P. (cheers), or, rather, he hon. gentleman was asked to be good enough to < accept that position. They all knew that no man in i England could more appropriately take the post of 1 resident of the society, because Mr. Bass had evinced 1 he deepest interest in the condition of railway servants, nd had devoted much of his valuable time and given us great influence to redress the grievances of the over- worked servants of the different railway companies in the United Kingdom. However, he had received the following letter from Mr. Bass :— I' "Rangemore, Burton-oa-Trent, Dec. 27, 1871. Dear Sir,—It would be a real pleasure to me to accept the office of President of the Amalgamated Society of Rail- way Servants, and I feel very grateful for the offer of such ¡ a mark of their confidence but, after the best consideration I could give to the subject, I have come to the clear conclu- sion that I may be of more service to the society by preserv- ing a perfectly independent position. You may feel perfectly sure that in that quality I shall neglect no opportunity of doing all that is possible for me to promote the best interests of the society. Btlleve me. faithfully yours, To Mr. George Chapman." "M. T. BASS." The Chairman went on to say that on Thursday Mr. C. B. Vincent, agent of Mr. Bass had been appointed by the members of the society their president and he (the chairman) was appointed the general secretary. That night Mr. Vincent was to address a meeting of railway servants at Chester, when Mr. Raikes, M. P., would attend. Several railway servants then detailed their grievances. A man employed as a porter on the Great Northern line said he worked 112 hours during the past week. One or two signalmen told him they were working short-handed, and had to do twelve hours a day. Four signal-boxes between King's-cross and Wood-green were thus served. A porter on,the London. Brighton, and South Coast line said he had worked during the Christmas holidays for 25 con- secutive hours, and had not received a penny extra for it. A guard observed that on the )¡ orth Kent line men of his class worked 14 or 15 hours a day, and on Sunday often 18 hours. A young man, who has just resigned the post of ticket collector on the Brighton line, which he had held for sixteen years, said he had been at a country station at £1 a week, but when a new superintendent came down he told him (the ticket collector) that the expenses must be cut down, and that if he wanted to keep his £1 a week he must go up to London. fie did so. and, arrived in London, he got ISs. a week. (" Oh and a voice An Irishman's rise.") He had circulated the announcements from the new society among the men, and hence pig place was mad'3 W un- comfortable that he was obliged to resign his situation. A mate of his went on duty at 8 o'clock on Saturday evening and would remain on duty until 2 o'clock on Monday. ("Oh, oh.") The Chairman said it was well known that men, as a rule, were not paid for overtime. Strong resolutions were passed in support of the ob- jects of the new society and a treasurer having been appointed, the proceedings, which were protracted and enthusiastic, closed with a vote of thanks to the chairman.

PUBLIC-HOUSES WITHOUT DRUNKENNESS. A correspondent, "F. B. has sent the following commu nication, in connection with this subject, to The Times, and we reprint it with the hope that the experiment may excite public interest in a subject so intimately connected with the elevation of the working-classes :— The concluding paragraph in yojir valuable article of the 26th, in which you urge the importance of pro- viding a safe and cheerful place of evening resort for "men our brothers, men the workers," instead of con- tenting ourselves with declamations against the fatal attractions of the alehouse and gin-palace, induces me to ask for room in your columns to assure those who may be stirred by your earnest words that the enter- prise is neither a troublesome nor a costly one. In the village from which I write a working men's reading-room has just been opened, in which a good fire, a good lamp, and opportunities for reading and meeting their friends, without payment of any sort, are the attractions offered, at a cost, including a daily paper, of about £12 per annum. The room is furnished with table and chairs, an< £ the walls are hung with a few maps and pictures. On a shelf in a recess stand a few bound volumes of magazines, &c., and a chess- board and men, to which a draught-board will shortly be added. Above the books hangs the table of rules. There are five rules only :—1, No papers or books to be taken from the room 2, no papers or books to be introduced without leave 3, no smoking allowed 4, no cards, dice, or any kind of gambling or betting allowed 5, no one admitted under 18 years of age. Rule 3 is perhaps open to question but pains were taken beforehand to ascertain the judgment of the working men themselves, audit appeared to point in the direction of prohibition, ontheground thatitwas notfah-forthose who liked smoking to make the place disagreeable to those whodidnot. The complete arrangement would, of course, be to bavea separate smokingrocm, but this entails addi- tional expense not only in rent, but in fire and light. A managing committee of three of the working men has been appointed, who are to consider themselves as responsible for the maintenance of good order, and to report any modifications of the rules that experience may suggest. The room is open from 6 to 10 p.m. on week days, and from 1 to 6 p.m. on cundays. The newspapers are put away on Sundays, and reading suitable to the day substituted. I bear that frhe'-room was full on the day of opening, and that the men regard it as a great boon. When so important an advantage and safeguard can be secured at so small a pecu- niary sacrifice, is it not almost a disgrace to our country and village gentry that it is still necessary to urge the subject on their attention? It is most desirable that there should be as little parade of patronage and as little interference as possible. The more quietly the thing is done, and if possible by one person, the better. When the room is once opened it is easy to make it known through private channels, in addition to the signboard over the door or window. There seems to be no reason why, mutatix mutandis, similar opportunities should not be afforded to working men of large and small towns, but in what I have said I h1\VC confined myself to my own village experience.

LONG TRIAL IN MARYLAND. i ne inai or UTrs. tm.'irton, at AnMpOIIS, Degun on the 4th of December, excites much interest in the United States, and is likely to be of great length. Mrs. Wharton, the widow of Major I L Wharton, of the United States' army, is charged with the mur- der, by poison, of General Ketchum, a. retired officer of the Quartermaster-General's department. The two families, the Whartofts and the Ketchums, were on terms of intimacy, and General Ketchum had lent Mrs. Wharton 2,600 dols., for which she gave him her promissory note, paying the interest half yearly. Ac- cording to the case for the prosecution Gen. Ketchum, in .Tune last, went to visit her at her house in Baltimore, taking (as is believed) the note with him, in order that he might receive the amount lent to her, as he intended to go to Europe, and he might want the money before her return or, as he said to his son, might never see her again, she being in delicate health. He had not been long at her house before he was taken ill, and in four days he died. The symptoms led the physician to suspect that poison had been taken, and the indictment is described as charging poisoning by tartar emetic, by yellow jasmine, or by some poison unknown. The phy- sician first prescribed creosote, afterwards yellow jasmine, and later (on using a catheter) had occasion to give chloroform, followed by chloral. Mrs. Wharton purchased tartar emetic while General Ketchum was at her house, and used that drug at night (in the presence of one of the witnesses for the prosecution) for a plaster which she applied to her chest. She was fre- quently with General Ketchum during his illness. There was evidence tending to show that she administered an overdose of medicine, and that it had a different appearance from that made up from the prescription and produced in court, the one being cloudy and the other clear. The post mortem ex- amination developed no natural cause of death; tartar emetic was found. A witness, deposing to General Ketchum's condition while ill, stated that he said he was getting better, but had been quite ill that Mrs. "Wharton had poisoned him in a glasa of lemonade. The prisoner's counsel objected to this "jocular re- mark being given in evidence it does not appear that it was made in Mrs. Wharton's presence; the state- ment is described as unexpected, and it was expunged. The deputy marshal of police .deposes that after General Ketchum's rjpth he told Mrs. Wharton that she ought not to think of leaving for Europe until the affair was cleared up she thanked him for all the in- formation he had given her in the case, and requested his acceptance of a 20 dols. note, but he declined it, say- ing he could not take presents. When the General's clothes were packed up to be sent to his house after his death, his vest could not be found on inquiry, Mrs. A\ harton said it was in her wardrobe, and it was found there. Her promissory note for 2:1;00 dols. cannot be found. She alleges that she paid it off some months before, and then destroyed it. She also claims that General Ketchum is in her debt; that she handed to him four Five-Twenty bonds for 1,000 dols. each, to be sold by him and converted into other bonds. There j were no witnesses to either of these transactions and it is stated that there is no trace of either in General Ketchum's books, which were kept with minuteness. There is another indictment for attempting to poison Mr. Van Ness, a bank clerk who had transacted finan- cial affairs for Mrs. Wharton, and who called at her ( house when the General was staying there. ( —— 1

LIFEBOAT WORK IN 1871. During the past twelve months the lifeboats of the s National Lifeboat Institution rescued 658 lives from t maritime disasters onf.the coasts of the British Isles, in } addition to 31 vessels saved from destruction. During t the same period the institution granted rewards for t the saving of 230 lives by fishing and other boats, t making a grand total of bS8 lives saved last year mainly through its instrumentality. Altogether J the institution has contributed from its formation to the s saving of 20,752 shipwrecked persons, for which service v 915 gold and silver medals and JE36,673 in money have beengiyenasrewards. Whenitisrememberedthatnearly a every life saved by lifeboats has been rescued under perilous circumstances, the crews often incurring much y nsj and exposure throughout stormy days and nights, t it is gratifying to know that not a single life has been s lost from the lifeboats of the institution during the 1 past three years, in which period they have been manned on all occasions, including quarterly exercise, u by upwards of 30,000 persons. It is also a remarkable fact that during the past 20 years the institution has not lost from all causes more than 22 persons from its own lifeboats. The following is a list of the ship- wrecked crews which received aid :— j Brig Morning Star, of Dublin, 6 lives saved; Schooner o Oxalis, of Macduff, 4 smack Lark, of Wexford, 2 bark Sea, ii of Montrose, assisted to save vessel; schooner Handy, of 1: Wexford, 5. brig Flora of I'oole, (j; brigantine Lady Huntley, of Maryport, 4 brigantine Cornhill, of Dungarvon, 3 bark Mexican, of St. John's, New Brunswick, rendered assistance brig Elizabeth ohid Cicely, of Guernsey, 3 galliot Friendship, of Goole, 3 bark Paquita, t of Santander, assisted to save vesssel and crew, o 16 ship Maria, of Dunedin, 19 brig Sarah, of Sunderland, a OJ: Austrian brig Sori. assisted to save vessel brigantine £ Margaret, of Lancaster, 25 Danish schooner Dania, 5 screw steamer A lexandria, of London, 23 hark M arlha, of Arendal, Norway, 15; bark Richard and llarriet, 7 bark r Veviotdale, of North Shields, remained by vessel brig a British Queen, of London, 7 brig Valiant, of Jersey, Î; rI (ark Launceston, of Shields, 14 schooner St. Fergus, of ( \berystwith remained by vessel bark Arctic Ilero, of T joole, 1 schooner Stranger, of Newfoundland, 3 brigan- ;ine Queen of YToughal, 6 schooner Mary, of North Shields, 4 hrig Thessalia, of Whitby, 9 barque Frieiuls' In- t: irease, of London, 4; Ship River Nith, of Liverpool, C •endered assistance; brigantine Echo, of )laldon, 6; si jrig Windsor, of Lynn, (3; schooners, Halliwell, of Bridg. f( yater, and J. W. A., of Xew(!uay, 10; lugger Hcho, )f Lowestoft, saved vessel barque Jane Kilgour, of J London, 13 schooner William, of Liverpool, saved vessel, md crew, 3; schooner Francis, of Cardigan, saved vessel, is uid crew, >1; schooner Albion, of Beaumaris, saved n vessel, and crew, |3 brigantine Pomona, of t)undalk, saved vessel, and crew, 5 brigantine William, of Londonderry, 5; Ketch Equestrian, of Port Gordon, saved vessel, and crew, 4 brigantine Isabella Heron, of Blyth, skved vessel, and crew, 6 dredging barge, of Ilowth, 4 schooner Lucia Antoinette, of Nantes, 5 schooner Ann Mitchell, of Newquay, 5 schooner Niiza, of Pwllheli, ren- dered assistance schooner Carnsew, of Hayle, 4 bark Idun, of Bergen, Norway, 16 schooner Cynthia, of Montrose, 2 a man overtaken by the tide at Fleetwood, 1 brig St. Thomas Packet, of Blyth, as-isted to save vessel, and crew, C: brig Trioner, of Arendal, Norway, 9; smack Vale of Conway, of Bc.uimaris, 3 seven fishing coliles of New biggin, assisted to save vessels; packet boat of Lynmouth, 1; schooncr Eleanor, oi Xewquay, assisted to save vessel, and crew, 4; schooner Mersy, of Liverpool, 4; yacht Hattie, of Cromer, 3; Img Hope, of Portsmouth, re- mained by vessel brigantine Jane, of Barmouth, I); brig- antine Rosdtlts, of Belfast, saved vessel; schooner liapid, of Preston, saved vessel, and crew, 2 schooner Intrepid, of Liverpool, rendered assistance schooner Ann, of Inverness, 6 bark Times of Liverpool, 17 brigantine Zoe, of Dundalk, remained by vessel; two fishing boats, belonging respectively to the Isle of Skye and to liopeman, N.B., U schooner An- gora, of Bangor, assisted to save vessel, and crew, 7 brigan- tine Cyrus, of Rye, 9 fishing cobles Tempemnce Star, Mar- garet, and Six assisted vessels bark Three Sisters, of Genoa, (i schooner Courier, of Lerwick, rendered assist- ance schooner Dispatch, of Whitby, i); schooner Major, of Lynn, 4; brig Iiegiaa, of London, 7; brig Orb, of Whitby, saved vessel, and crew, 7 sloop Trafalgar, of Clay, saved vessel, and crew, 2 four fishing cobles, of Scar- borough, assisted vessels schooner Pausilippo, of Ram- sey, 3: steamer Kingsbridge Packet, rendered assistance; brigantine Sorval, of Sealiam, asdsteù to save vessel, and crew, 7 schooner Adelaide, of Malahide, 5 brig Jeune Colombe, of St. Malo, 7 schooner Jubile?, of l'reston, 4 schooner Confidence, of Aberystwith, 2 smack Domitian Lass, of the Isle of Kkye, 4; bark Albion, of Restock, 10; screw steamer Benjamin Whil- u-orlh, of MMdh sbrongb, J'emailH d by vessel brig 0, ornc, (Of Hartlej":ol. 8-: slirew steamer Pierre Mxirte, of St. Yali-rie, save*) vessel, and crew, 4 lurk Cotsaadria, of Liverpool. 21; brigantine Sigretta, o New York, 7; bark Storm, of Carditf, remained by vessel; hrig T'IlJh 091 of Tvedestrand. Norway, saved vessel, and crew, 8; six fishing cobles of Whithy, 18 fcrig Aula, of Blyth, assisted to save vessel, and crew, 8; schooner Samuel and Ann, of Great Yarmouth, 4; dandy Musselburgh, of Lowestoft, 11; baric Allert, of Bremen, 21; bark Robina, of North Shields, 17 bark india, of Shields, 16: schooner Rose, of Ipswich, saved vessel, and crew, 4; schooner R.B., of Bayonne, 7: smack and crew saved by Swansea lifeboat, 3 Greek brig Calamidas, 11 brig Champion, of Shoreham, saved vessel, and crew, 8; and brig Wanderer, of Maryport, 10. An interesting narrative might be made of nearly every one of these brief accounts of noble rescue, but the present purpose, the illustration of the character of these services, will be answered by an allusion to the services of the Ramsgate and Broadstairs lifeboats to the bark Idun of Bergen, which was going to pieces on the Goodwin Sands on the 28th of March last. After reaching the wreck and taking from her fourteen men, together with the son and daughter of the captain, the boats themselves grounded on the sands and the boiling surf broke over them. They had to drift to leeward for three hours in order to save themselves, but at last they got the aid of the harbour tug, by which they were taken in tow and saved. Such deeds are quite as gallant as the most brilliant exploits of warfare, and the time will most assuredly come when they and those who have promoted their accomplishment will occupy a incom- parably higher place in the estimation of mankind.

A SCENE FROM A LONDON POLICE- COURT. At the Guildhall Police-court, in London, Mary Brooks, an elderly woman, has been charged with being drunk and stealing three cocoa-nuts from a grocer's shop. When asked by the magistrate what she had to say to the charge, the prisoner fell on her knees and begged for mercy. She would not have done it but for the drink and she did not know what she did at the time. The magistrate asked her why she got drunk, if it had such an effect upon her. The prisoner said that she was a teetotaller, and had that dav renewed her pledge; and, meeting with some friends, they had asked her to have some shrub and water, and had given her two quarterns of rum instead, and she knew nothing about it. She then renewed her prayers for forgiveness, and promised to renew the pledge and never get drunk again. She handed in the card of the society to which she belonged, which contained the following pledge :— W ellclose-square Total Abstinence Society. Established ls38. I do voluntarily promise to abstain from all intoxicating drinks as a beverage, and to discountenance their use by others. This is to certify that Mary Ann East is a member of this society, having signed the above pledge on the 2Sth •f December, 1S71. T. JACKSON, Hon. Sec." The magistrate having read the card, asked how she came to make use of another person's card. The prisoner declared it was her card. The magistrate pointed out to her that it was made out in the name of Mary Ann East, and her name was Brooks. The prisoner said that East was her name before she was married to her present husband. The magistrate said it was dated the 27th of No- vember, 1869, and that date was scratched out and the 28th of December, 1871, was written above it. The prisoner said that was through the renewal, but if he would only let her go this time she would never get drunk again. The magistrate asked the officer if he knew anything about the prisoner and her husband. In reply, the officer said that he knew her and her husband well. The latter was a very steady, sober, hardworking man, but the prisoner was very often drunk, and then very troublesome. He had never known her to do anything dishonest. The magistrate, in consideration of her having been locked up from twelve the previous day, nr.d on her promising to keep from intoxicating liquors in future, said he would discharge her. The prisoner gave the promise, and saying "God bless you, your honour—long life to your honour," left the court overjoyed at her liberty being restored.

TWO ROYAL MOTHERS. Under the above heading, Nineteenth Century writes to the Daily 'l'eley/,{.¡pl¿ ;— During the agony of suspense to which during the second week of last month tho alarming illness of the Prince of Wales subjected Englishmen of all classes, one con- soling reflection was not wanting which brought with it at least some vestiges of relief. For the first time within the last century and a quarter it became evident that the existence of deep alfection between a Prince of Wales and his Royal parent or parents is not—as was often alleged during previous reigns—an impossibility in the annals of the House of Ilanover. It is just one hundred and twenty years since the eldest son of George II was struck down by pleurisy, contracted by walking at midnight in lus garden at Kew. Frederick Louis, Prince of Wiles^ says Mr. Massey, the most recent, and by no means the worst historian of George the Third's reign, "Tiad from his earliest years, endnred the rancorous hatred of both his father and mother. He reciprocated the animosity of his parents, and, on one occasion hazarded the life of his young consort and the existence of his yet unborn child merely for the purpose of wreak in tr his filial spite. He caballed against the King's Govern- ment, and comforted the avowed enemies of hit dynasty at a moment when the House of Hanover was imperilled The Court of Leicester House maintained a rivalry with that of St. James; and the aspirants to Court favour were perplexed by the necessity of making election be- tween the present and the future reign. Every man who. paid his respects to the Heir was excluded from employment under the Sovereign in like manner the service of the King was disqualification for that of the Prince Eleven years before the demise of his father, and at a time when neither the King's age nor his state of health offered any hope of its early approach, the Prince of Wales had taken the trouble to arrange the details of his coming Administra- tion. The death of the Heir Apparent, instead of being a calamity to his family and to the nation, was in truth a re- lief to both. It was, indeed, a sad reverse to the worshippers of the rising sun but they showed great proniptude and deci- sion in repairing their misfortune. Of the many great and noble persons who had been devoted to the Prince of Wales not a single British peer, temporal or spiritual, except those appointed to carry the pall, ventured to attend his remains to the grave. None of the Royal family were present at the funeral, and the office of chief mourner was discharged by the Duke of Somerset, although the Prince's vounser brother, the Duke of Cumberland, was in London." But let those who wish to realise more vividly the contrast between Kew in 1751 and Sandringham jn 1871 consult the -Memoirs of Lord Hervey," and read for them- £ I6. ,f0vl 0W'ng extract frf;!U a tetter addressed to his lordship by Queen Caroline of Anspach, the wife of George II. it is hardly necessary to remind students of history that Caroline of Anspach enjoys a v2Ut m 0f havil)g been 0116 of th* shrewdest and abrest queen-consorts that ever occupied that position. vT exemPlary Churchmen whom she p ? p.- Sees live, under the name of the Caroline Bishops," in every history, secular or eccle- siastical, which treats of George Il-'s reign. And yet the terms in which a Royal mother of the eighteenth century could write of her eldest son ought to remind us that even the sick bed of the Royal sufferer at Sandringham was not wholly unsuggestive of comforting thought. r '? loi'd," writes Queen Caroline to Lord Hervev I will give it you under my hand, if you are in any fear of my relapsing, that my dear first-born is the greatest ass, and the greatest liar, and the greatest canaille and the greatest beast in the whole world and that I heartily wish he was out of it." Not many months after these words were written the death of the son whom she thus detested gave effect to the vindictive aspirations of his unnatural mother. The death of George II.'g Heir Apparent, in his forty-fifth year, was, says Mr. Massey, "a relIef both to his family and to the nation." The extinction- of the life oi Queen Victoria's Heir Apparent in his thirty- first year would, on the contrary, have been the heaviest blow that the Royal Family and the nation have sustained since the premature death of the eldest and only daughter of George IV. in 1817. But, in addition, the chamber of mortal sickness at Sandringham preached a moral fraught with instruc- tion for every household, from the highest to the lowest, that the British Empire contains. Within that darkened room were assembled the mother, the wife, the brothers, and- the sisters of the prostrate son, hus- band, and brother. In the hnmhlest of England's cottages, or in the proudest of her palaces, never ret was a more harmonious 01' loving family sum- moned, by a common anguish, to the bedside of a beloved sufferer. Nor can I conceive any two public documents which more emphatically contrast the petty jealousies and mercenary self-seekings of George II.'s family with the pure atmosphere of Queen Victoria's home than the letter from Caroline of Anspach which I have just quoted, and that which, on Saturday last, met the eyes of your reader. The words of the Queen go straight to the hearts of all, because their simplicity and reality proclaim that she and her" dear son and beloved daughter" are veritably one. From under the gloomy shadow of the second great trial of her lIfe, her Majesty emerges, with a firmer and stronger hold than ever upon the affection of her children and her subject5.

CHURCH REFORMS. The Bishop of Carlisle Dr. Harvey Goodwin) has issued a Pastoral Letter to the clergy of his diocese, giving a history of the work of the second year of his episcopate, and describ- ing and commenting upon recent acts of ecclesiastical legis- lation. With regard to the future, Dr. Goodwin says :— I believe it almost certain that legislation will be attempted upon several subjects affecting the Church in the approaching Session of Parliament. It is pro- bable that, with approbation of the Convocations of Canterbury and York, an effort will be made to give legislative sanction to some or all of the re- commendations contained in the fourth and final report of the Ritual Commissioners. Some of those recommendations are of comparatively small import- ance, but others are of a very different character. The subject is under careful consideration by a Committee of Convocation in both Provinces, and I think we may safely trust that nothing will be done without the most complete ecclesiastical sanc- tion. Possibly an attempt may be made to give the Cathedrals the power of altering and amending their statutes. If this he done wisely, it will be very much for the benefit of the Church. As one who has been intimately connected with the Cathedral system I have long felt that the position of the capitular bodies is a very unfair one they are tied by old Statutes and modern Acts of Parliament, which they cannot change, and they have no power of adapting their regulations to the wants of the time or to the peculiar circumstances of their particular cathedral. The reeuit has been that the Cathedrals have been a source of weakness rather than strength to the Church. This is much to be lamented, and Ishall welcome any I well-considered change which will put them upon a belter footing. The question of clergy discipline- in other words, the reform of our Ecclesiastical Courts --is certain to be introduced early in the Session, and may, perhaps, be settled. Then there are the Paro- chial Councils Bill, the Private Chapel Bill, and the Burials Bill—perhaps others—so that the number of ecclesiastical questions likely to come forward is not small. May God grant that nothing be done which shall be contrary to the interests of true religion I feel strongly that with regard to the whole question of ecclesiastical legislation we have, under God, the matter in our own hands if the clergy and laity of the Church of England be only united in their views, reasonable in their demands, and steady in their co- operation with each other, it is quite impossible that any obnoxious measure can be made law. This is one reason why I am so anxious that our Diocesan organisation should be complete and hannonious if, as I suggested at the last meeting of our Conference, each diocese had its conference, and the Archbishop of each province had the means of submitting any im- portant Church question to the whole of his province through the several conferences, and so gathering up the views of Churchmen upon any proposed scheme affecting the Church, it seems to me that aggression would be rendered difficult, if not impossible. [t is unpleasant to have even to speak of aggression, and it would be much more satisfactory to be able to regard the Church as militant only with respect to those spiritual enemies—sin, worldhneris, unbelief, and the like-to which that is good must be in a condition of permanent hostility. But the active steps which are being taken for the express purpose of destroying the present position of the Church of Eng- land make it imperative upon those who regard that position as a source of blessing to the country, to do their best to maintain it—hence we are compelled to have 'Church Defence'societies, and our condition is something like that of those Jews who re-built the walls of Jerusalem, having a tool in one hand and a weapon in the other."

NEW YEAR'S EVE AT A FRIENDS' MEETING-HOUSE. A writer In the Daily Telegraph gives the following ac- count of a visit he paid to the Friends' Meeting House in Peel-court, St. John-street, London, on Sew Year a Eve Any stranger going on Sunday evening to a place of Quaker assemblage would be aware that the meeting on New Year's Lve was simply an accident of New Year's Eve falling on Sunday. High days and holy days are not recognised by Friends but when denial or dissent springs from an active principle it is apt to be quite as positive as affirmation, and it was not im- possible that a meeting of Friends would, in the very zeal of controversy, overleap the intention to discoun- tenance an anniversary celebration by some edifying remarks on the subject. The meeting-house in Peel-court, J ohn-street-n. neighbourhood but little changed amid "surrounding mutations "would hold ten times the number of Friends who met there yester-eve. It is a large square building, plain to the verge of depressing ugli- ness and, in addition to its ample ground space, it has wide galleries, which were, on the occasion we speak of, empty. If there were not many benches below in the same condition, the fact is ascribable to the habit which prevails among Friends of sitting as far apart as possible. To speak by the card, there were nineteen male and seventeen female Friends present during the whole meeting, which lasted from six until twenty minutes past seven o'clock. For a considerable part of this time the congregation did not number half so many and, as the new comers dropped slowly in, the curious observer might have wabched in vain for any precise formality marking the rigid manners of the sect. the beard movement and the adoption of the wide- awake ■' in preference to the high stiff hat of modern convention, hare made as much way with the Quakers as with "their even Christians in city and suburb. Nor do Quakeresses generally eschew the flounced skirt, artificially distended, the floral hat and the florid chignon. At the Peel-court Meeting-house the benches in the open midst of the square floor face the farthest side from the entrance, until the limit is nearly reached, and then they turn the other way. There are also two rows of raised seats along the sides right and left; so that, altogether, the arrangement 'seems as good as it could be for bringing Friends face to face, there being no minister or spiritual head for them to look at. There is a separation of the sexes during the meeting, female Friends taking their seats to the right of the entrance, and male Friends to the left. Few architectural signs about the meeting-house near Smithfield would serve to indicate its age within half a century, but it must at least be old enough to have its memories of intolerant times when the name given to the Society of Friends in scorn yet served to rouse passionate prejudices, and incite the ignorant to acts of brutality. One has only to sit in this dull chamber, and hear the continual din without, to understand what the case of the congregation must have been when the noise and interruption came, not from a heedlessly uproarious population, somewhat influencedby theSabbatli gin and beer, but from designedly .offensive mobs, whom the law rather abetted than checked. The outward sounds last evening, the yelling of boys, the barking of dogs, the laughing and shouting of tipsy revellers, mingled with the bells of the" steeple-houses "-as George Fox, the first Quaker, called our churches— made the silence inside more painfully irksome. Now and then a cough, and now and then a wearisome sigh —but never one word so much as whispered- broke that dumb sitting of an hour and twenty minutes. There was but one personage among the thirty- si^wbo bore the aspect once commonly distinctive wearing a hat with as broad a brim as may be seen in a day's march and he was one of the very few, by the bye, on the male side of the meeting, who remained with their heads covered. lie seemed as likely a man as any there to be moved unto speech by the Spirit; but he was not moved, and nobody else was moved but he was not moved, and nobody else was moved and, at twenty minutes past seven o'clock, neither earlier nor later, two Friends, who were probably Elders, and who sat on the long cross-seat fronting the entrance, rose suddenly and simultaneously whero- upon the whole meeting rose suddenly and simul- taneously, and walked out into the damp smoky air and the greasy mud of Clerkenwell.

DISCONTENT. Unwilling Idler" writes to The Times :— I get £ 768 a year from Government for doing nothing. In three years more I shall get £98,( a year for doing the same; and after being twelve years at that I shall have earned a pension of £1,1:?1 a year. Now, if I were in any private company's employ, they would probably be very glad if I would take £ 500 r, a year and give up all claim against them (always sup- posing that they could not get rid of me at once, which my present master cannot). Now, I shall be very glad to give up all claims against the Government, and take £ 500 a year, with leave to live where I please and not only I but hun- dreds of others will do the same if we can only got the chance. I am a major in the Bengal Staff Corps. Govern- ment have nothing against me indeed, I may say without vanity that I am known to be a good officer, have seen a great deal of service, was all through the Mutiny, severely wounded before Delhi, &c., but Government cannot find employment for me now, and I do what is called general duty. It is not generally known at home what this is, so I will give my experi- ence of it. During the last cold season (the drill, the busy- time), in five months I came on duty twice for a week each time, in which week I went round the station guards twice by day and twice by night, and reported having done so. I was once president of a Board on 117 new blankets, and once a member of another on some trifling article. I forget what, and this was the whole of my duty for five months. In the hot weather, of course, I go to the Hills as much as I can. This is not my fault. I have applied again and again for an appointment. I may when I go back get an offidating one, for a few months, which as I should have to provide myself with new and different uniform < would not be worth my while to take, but of a per- manent appointment, having no particular interest with anybody, I have almost no chance. Hundreds of us are in the same position, which we i cannot quit, the intermediate pensions being so small, < until we come to the Colonel's allowance, £1,124 a year, < that we cannot live on them. They were calculated in ( the last centuiy, when, perhaps, a man after 20 years ( in India, could live on J6191 a year. We, to a man, < hate India and doing nothing. The saving to Govern- ment by giving us this JE500 a year would be reckoned > by hundreds of thousands of pounds. In my own case 1 it would be £G,ü12, up to the date of my being entitled ( to Colonel's allowances, after which it would be k624 a year. | These are facts, they are undeniable, and it seems I s to me that they only require to be known for action to I r be taken on them. I j

SUNDAY TRADING IN LONDON. The aspect of the New Cut, last Sunday, went to show that the collision between the vestry and the traders in that thoroughfare is by no means at an end. Between ten and twelve o'clock several members of the Lambeth Vestry, and other parish officials, visited the locality for the purpose of ascertaining the effect of the notices served la-it week upon the shopkeepers, calling upon them to close their shops on Sundays or the penal provisions of the Sunday Trading Act would be enforced against them by the vestry. A general understanding had been come to by the shopkeepers to resist the interference of the vestry, and, as a proof of this, more shops were open on Sunday morning than on any Sunday for years past. Several of the shopkeepers who have been in the habit of closing their shops on the Sunday opened them as a practical protest against the course pursued by the vestry, and to express their sympathy with their fellow-tradesmen and the costermongers. A com- mittee of tradesmen has been formed to take the necessary measures, by organisation, and by retaining legal assistance, to resist what they consider the illegal and arbitrary conduct of the vestry. A society is also being formed amongst the tradesmen in the parish for the special purpose of ousting at the next election those members of the vestry who have taken a prominent part in the movement against the traders. The costermongers sold their goods as usual on Sunday morning, and the public bought more largely than usual, as a practical expression of sympathy with them under present circumstances. At 12.30 the police visited the various stalls of the costermongers, requesting them to pack up their goods, so as to clear oil before one o'clock. This request, civilly made, was universally complied with, and before the clock struck one the roadway of the Cut was cleared of all the stalls and barrows.

Uttsallaitcoiis Inldligwct, HOME, FOREIGN, AND COLONIAL. THE AMERICANS AND THE EDUCATION OF WOMEN.—All the influential American journals which we receive comment in a tone of surprise upon the re- cent action of the Edinburgh University authorities in regard to the lady students. The New York Herald. however, cannot believe that their present course will be persisted in, and adds confidently that the profes- sors who object to the female students must now quietly submit. It is quite manifest that the Edinburgh ladies mean to take advantage of their opportunities. It is a healthful sign. We know no good reason why ladies should not fully participate in all University privileges. If education is good for man it ought not to he bad for woman. The blue-stocking is not necessarily the fruit of education." IRISH FUNERALS AND W AKEs.-Thü Roman Catholic clergy of the metropolis have announced to their flocks that they will not attend the funeral of any person over whose body a wake has been previously held. At the Camberwell New-road Catholic Chapel, on Sunday, the Rev. Mr. M'Grath, in making the announcement, said that the practice of waking bodies was disgraceful. It was terrible to find, as had been found, sitting in a small room in which a corpse was laid, as many as forty persons who had drunk in one night as much as fourteen gallons of beer. It is also stated that no Catholic clergyman will accompany any funeral to a cemetry unless the greatest order be preserved during its progress to and from the place of burial. THE COMMTTNTST PRISONERS.—During the past week a considerable number of persons—estimated at more than 3,000—who have been confined in the depots at Brest, Belle Isle, and Cherbourg, have been set at liberty. Nearly the whole were persons who were taken prisoners on the 3d of April last year. On that day, it will be remembered, the Commune entertained the idea of attacking and taking possession of Versailles, for which purpose four columns of combatants were des- patched from Paris—one commanded by Flourens, which was cut to pieces by the. fire of Mont Valerien, leaving many killed and but few prisoners. A second column, under Bergeret, proceeded towards Meudon, but was attacked upon its march and lost 500 prisoners. The third and fourth columns, under the command re- spectively of Duval and Henry, were surrounded upon the plateau of Chatillon, where more than 5,000 prisoners were taken by the Government troops. The prisoners just released consist mainly of those taken at Chatillon and among them were 21 Poles, who were brought to Paris in a special carriage. A GENTLEMAN BURGLAE.—The New York Times of the 19th ult. says — "Carroll Sanborn, the renowned gentleman burglar,' is dead. He breathed his last on Sunday morning in the gaol at J-jawrence, AIa"s. Early in October Sanborn got a mortal wound in a fight with a constable named Donovan. The latter was bent on arresting his man, and succeeded with this result. It is said that Sanborn made friends of all who approached him while in gaol, and that he gave up freely all the] property he had stolen. He seems altogether to have been a singular character. In all respects, save his mania for burglary, he lived a pure, and even an exemplary life. Ile touched no intoxicating drink and no tobacco. lIe was scrupulously faithful to his wife, and tenderly attached to his family. His clergyman and physician concur in extolling his amiable and attractive disposition and gentlemanly manners. They say that he really did not care to accumu- late wealth, and had none but kindly feelings for his fellow- men. His sole fault was his inextinguishable passion for midnight burglary, a form of colossal kleptomania, which, styive as he might, he could not control. The unhappy man escaped the last disgrace of being doomed to the State l'risoll. He pleaded guilty to the charges against him in the Superior Court; but he died in the arms of his wife before the bonch had time to pronounce his sentence." AMERICANS AND THE PROPOSED MONUMENT TO COWPER.—The admirers of the author of The Task," says the Nev; York Post, are late in tneir expression of the honour in which they hold one of England's gentlest and purest poets. It is only this year that they have proposed to erect at his native place, North Berkham- stead, Hertfordshire, a memorial monument. Cowper died in April, 1800, and nearly three-quarters of a century 1,ave tbefore the idea of a monument has been broached. To the American reader of the present day Cowper is known in three widely different lines of poetical authorship. To the boy at school his John Gilpin" early becomes familiar. The inn known as "the Bell at Edmonton" is still called by that name, though it is not the same building whioh ex- isted in the days of Cowper and the American tourist of 1871 may, without much difficulty, travel in the track of Gilpin's imaginary ride. When boyhood is past, the lover of poetry will find delight in certain portions of "The Task," and in other of Cowper's maturer works. Higher than these, however, we place the hymns he wrote in his later days—few in number, but unsurpassed in their tender and eloquent expiession of Christian sentiment. The stanzas to be found in every hymn-book, beginning, God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform He plants his footsteps iu the set And rides upon the storm, are Cowper's, and they form a hymn which will ever ring out grandly in the literature of Christanity. Another well-known hymn of Cowper's is that be- ginning, Hear, what God the Lord has spoken Oh, my people, faint and few, Comfortless, afllicted, broken, Fair abodes I build for you. THE ANDRESELLES MURDER. A French correspondent, writing in reference to this murder, says that the coolness of Lemettre during his trial was throughout so marked that he was anxious to observe his demeanour after his condemnation. The result of an interview in his cell, which, by special permission he says, "I obtained with him, may interest your readers His politeness on my entrance was excessive. In spite" of the chains which bound his hands and feet, he flianaged by bending his head to take off his cap and bid me wel- come. In answer to my questions he assured me, he was as unmoved upon hearing his sentence delivere,l, as he was with the remarks of the crowd who followed him to gaol, with fierce and threatening cries for his death. He had resigned himself also to the irons with which it is customary in France to encumber those con- demned to death, though they were so heavy for him—he is a slightly built man—that he had to be half assisted and half carried from place to place. He was slightly grieved for his parents' anxiety on his behalf, but being fully absorbed in his own fate, he said he had very little time to think of such matters. Still, for their sake, he would prefer to be executed at St. Omer rather than at Marquise, where they lived, as the remembrance might be doubly painful to them. He confessed to the robberies, but per- sisted in affirming his innocence of the murders. Through- out the interview, his manner was as imperturbable as his appearance was simple aud inoffensive. If the evidence against him had not been overwhelming and conclusive, his leok and behaviour might well mislead one as to his guilt." "BE SILENT AND WAIT !"—May we be allowed to hope that the •alamitious experience of the last two years has thoroughly disgusted Europe with war and revolution, and that we may hail 1872 as the harbinger of a period of comparative peace and order, remarks The Times, in a leader. It would seem natural for us to indulge such expectation. Wounds received in the heat of strife, however grave and even mortal, do not always immediately stun and disable but exhaustion sets in with the loss of blood, and re- covery must needs precede a renewal of the conflict, However convinced the French might be that they had been worsted in a quarrel of their own seeking, they would hardly have been human if they had been able to smother a cry of" Revenge ;"but they would hardly be reasonable if they did not also perceive that what they clamour for is for the present out of the question. The wisest men among them, and the patriotic and pugnacious President of their Republic first and foremost, bid them be silent and wait." M. DE PLOEUC.—The Figaro states that "the Marquis de Ploeuc, Sub-Governor of the Bank of France and a Deputy for the Seine, has just received from London a handsome silver cup as a Now Year's present. The bankers of the City of London have thought fit to offer to M. de Ploeuc this testimony of their respect for the courage with which he preserved the Hank of France from pillage during the Commune and finally from incendiarism. From the 18th of March to the 25th of May—a period of 68 days-the Sub-Governor defended hour by hour, with the aid of his brave battalion of employes, property of the total value of three milliards which was contained in the Bank vaults. The destruction of that vast amount of property would have had a disastrous effect even upon the London money market. The English once more give us a lesson. They thank M. de Ploeuc. We show our gratitude towards him by appointing M. < Rouland as Governor." 1 We show our gratitude towards him by appointing M. < Rouland as Governor." 1 CURIOUS WILL OF AN OLD LONDON WORTHY. -On Monday afternoon a sermon was preached in the parish church of St. Magnus the Martyr, 1 London Bridge, by the Rev. A. J. M'Caul, M.A., the ( rector, in conformity with the will of Mr. Henry Cloker, once a member of the Grocers' Company. The < will is dated 1573, and contains some singular clauses, one t of which is that the master, the wardens, and court t of assistants of the Coopers' Company shall attend 1 divine service and a sermon preached on New Year's s day in the afternoon for ever. The property consists i of two small estates, the proceeds of which are divided c amongst the clergymen and the officers of the com- pany, and for other purposes. One of the most singu- 1 lar points in the will is that in the event of the Coopers' c Company failing to carry out the various bequests t without showing sufficient reason, the property shall y be forfeited to the Grocers' Company. At the conclu- if sion of the sermon the clerk to the Coopers' Company t read the will, after which the curiously antiquated f proceedings terminated. it THE CTOOD TIME AT LAST !—Mr. J. Berger Soence's "Retrospect of 1871," contains the following interesting paragraph :— "To judge fairly of the national prosperity, it is essential to glance at the condition of the labour market, and at the Board of Trade returns of our imports and exports in the gross. At no time in the history of this country has there been such full employment in all the branches of our varied industries as the paHt par has so agreeably shown. The normal rate of progress has been much exceeded, and in some trades, the scarcity of skilled hands has very much hindered advancement. Employers, in many instances, nave promptly and wisely made such large concessions as to the ieduction of labour hours per week, and in the advance of wages, as will, it is anticipated, be beneticial to all in- terested. It may be briefly summed up There is plenty of work, at good wages. The new year opens under very favour- able circumstances, and, unless further political complica- tions arise on the Continent, there need be no anxiety as to any diminution of the present state of prosperity." FROZEN TO DEATH.—A gentleman who ar- rived in Kansas city on tho (itli of December informed e an|?"s. Clt>r "ncf that the Sunday previous a terrible an air occurredin Salino county, Nebraska. A party of emigrants with their families were passin" through the county westward, when, the cold con- stantiy increasing, they concluded to camp and light a .• } y were on a piece of high prairie several miles from any liou.se, but three miles from tiiem was a piece of timber land. After unhitching their teams the men started for this timber to procure fuel. Not returning for several hours, the women left their chil- dren and started to hunt for them. This is all that is known, save that the next day the bodies of 17 persons who perished from the intense cold were found. The children, who were left in the waggons, were the only survivors of the party. THE FIRE-PROOF NEGRO.-The fire-proof negro is still agitating Maryland. It will be remem- bered that, as reported some time since, he handled red-hot iron and melted lead with the utmost impunity, those metals, if we mistake not, being burned by con: tact with his flesh. A Maryland, paper, after correct- ing some of the .statements circulated concerning this man, whose name is Nathan Coker, adds He can, however, eat red-hot anthracite coals, stir up red-hot coals in a furnace with his naked hands, lick a red- hot bar of iron until it is cold, receive molten lead Into his mouth and keep It there until it cools and it has been said that he has walked on red-hot bars of iron barefoot. This feat we have never witnessed ourselves, although we have seen him apply a red-hot bar of iron to his bare feet, and keep it there until it had lost its redness. But we have noticed that there are times when Are seemed to alteet him, and we have' seen him start back from its touch. We remember a few years ago, while lie was mixing lime for the plasterers who were at work finishing a building for us in this town, he ran his hand into the lime while being slaked, to take out the core, but he withdrew it in a twinkling. The lime burned him, and lie felt its effects very sensibly. Another time a company of young men beat Coker rather badly. He made a wager with them of twenty dollars that he could sit on a red-hot stove for fifteen minutes. The stove was heated up till it was all aglow with redness the fire-king took his seat, and actually, it is said, sat out ten minutes of the time, but one of the wags, pouring a little coal-oil on the stove, drove him from his position in double quick, and burned him severely. He is a remarkable negro, and no one yet has fever been able to explain his dealings with this element." He would do to make fire-proofs safes of. BEER AND CIGARS !—The most curious stories of great men are not those which are recorded in his- tory. Floating rumours are sometimes more indicative of character than the best summary made by the his- torian. One of these tells us that during the nego- tiations at Frankfort, when Pouyer Quertier and Jules Favre were invited to dinner by Bismark, the latter wa3 growing sulky at Jules Favre's lengthy speeches, and gave a portentous yawn, always a bad sign with him. Just then Pouyer Quertier whispered to Favre, Stop^ I have an argument more effective than all your rhetoric." Then turning to the Chancellor he said innocently, Does your Excellency object to beer and cigars ?" Bismark's face brightened up on the instant. This was just what he was wanting; and when the beer and cigars were produced he entered at once upon business in a jovial manner, and Pouyer-Quertier suc- ceeded in his demands. A LITTLE OMISSION !-A firm of London Brewers sends the following to the papers:- The economy and dispatch which attend the use of the halfpenny card must by this time be patent to all; never- theless there is one way in which these ends are in our experience, and doubtless that of others, (lisappointed-viz., by the inadvertent omission of the writer's name, initials or the least semblance of address. A hint oil this point would we think, be very useful. Witness the enclosed specimen card, which bears no other writing than" Please send nine- gallon cask of stout on Friday," and the address of yours faithfully, II, and II. JENNKP. and SONS, the Brewery, South- wark-bridge-road, S.E., Dec. 29." UNITED STATES' TOBAcco.-The native leaf tobacco exported from the United States during the year ending June 30, 1870, amounted to 21,100,4201b. and during the year ending June 30, 1871, to 111,908,7931b. The seed leaf grown in the State of New York, it is asserted, is in great. demand for manufacture, instead of fine Connecticut, which did not grow in 1870. The demand for Pennsylvania and Ohio tobacco of the crop of 1870, it is stated, has materially improved. The yield of the crop of seed leaf tobacco of 1871, just harvested and cured it is estimated, will amount to 160,000 cases, dis- tributcd as follows 40,000 cases of Connecticut river tobacco, 40,000 cases of Ohio, 30,000 cases of Pennsylvania, 25,000 cases of Wisconsin, 20 000 cases of New York, and 5,000'cases of Illinois tobacco. This crop, it is believed, will be the largest ever grown in this country, the average yield being 60,000 cases. The heavy crop of 1863 amounted to 85,000 cases, and reduced prices one-half. The consumption of domestic tobacco is placed at 60,000 cases per annum, and the export of 1872 is estimated at 70,-000 cases. The stock of tobacco on hand amounts to about 40,000 cases, and adding this to the 160,000 cases of the crop of 1871, there will be a total of 200,000 cases. Subtracting from these figures the 130,000 cases con- sumed at home and abroad, there will remain a, surplus of 70,000 cases. -Ph ilctdelph ia Ledger. WOMEN'S SUFFRAGE.-(From the Victoria lIfar/ft::il1f> ).—The misfortunft ,\vl,.ir>h ¡::r'l'm. nf aU* liuva lately apprehended has come. Those differences of opinion amongst the promoters of women's suffrage to which no well-wisher of the movement could pre- tend to be blind have produced their inevitable result and there is a split in the. camp. It is discouraging at hrst sight to view this state of affairs, because al- though it is not absolutely impossible for two com- mittees to co-exist without hostile feelings, all human experience goes to show that persons having the self- same object in view do not divide forces to ensure strength. h>ach of the two parties which have sprun" up is no doubt quite satisfied as to the absolute neee £ sity there was for this open breach to its own eon- science each beyond question is justified, The fruit disagreement comes from the tree dictation and if this last quarrel has the effect of putting an end to the cliqueism which we have aforetime mourned over, we and all other independent advocates of women's suff. rage will not view the event with unmixed feelings. A TRIBUTE TO THE LORD CHANCELLOR.—IN addressing his constituents in South Norfolk, Mr. ( S, Reid, M.P. the Conservative tenant farmer member' paid the following tribute to the personal character of the Lord Chancellor "I believe the Lord Chancellor to be a thoroughly trood conscientious, Christian man. I know that every Sunday ü; his life he goes and teaches in a Sunday School, and has done so for many years. That is setting a good example. And I will tell you another thing which does him honour. The in- cumbent of a neighbouring parish to mine died. lie had been non-resident all his life, and the curate, who had been in charge for twenty-three years, was naturally very desirous of having the living. We got up a memorial, signed by every liauseholder in the parish, and we sent it up to the Lord Chancellor. Xow, although the Lord Chancellor knew that the curate's polities were opposed to his own, and although he had a whole host of personal and political friends ready to seize the living out of his hands, he was good enough to i/iva it to the curate. a ANOTHER KICK FOB FRANCE.—Prince Bis- marck will rank very high among the revolutionists of his own time (remarks The I'imes, in a leader1). He bas broken the charm of French military ascendancy he seems bent on equally challenging the title of France to Diplomatic pre-eminence. Why should French," he asks, be the universal language of Diplomacy ? And he answers the question practically by sending his notes to M. Remusat written in his own vernacular German. Prince Bismarck has raised his countrymen to the full consciousness of their national dignity, and he sees no reason why they should not in their interna- tional transactions stand on the same rights which England and the United States have long since asserted. According to the good old rule it was for the vanquished to learn the language of the conqueror. Ancient lvome based on universal conquest her scheme of a universal language, and, when she fell, Latin held for a long time its sway, partly owing to the universal aspirations of the Church which had its See in the great City, partly to the pretensions to universal dominion which Frankish and German Monarchs founded on their inheritance of the imperial diadem. A HINT FOR THE AUSTRALIAN MEAT COM- PA-NIES. -The Spectator remarks;- The Australian Meat Companies seem to us to be playing an unwise game, which we notice, not for their sake, but for that of the public. They have got the ball at their foot. They can sell their meat at a cost which, allowing for coofcl ing, bone, and household waste, is barely a third of the cost of uncooked butcher's meat—7d. a pound instead of 19d. a. pound—and if they can only get rid of the impression of over-cooking which spoils some of their specimens, they will have the limitless market they desire. In Manchester they have seriously atfectcd butchers' price lists, and as English- men like meat and cannot pay its present price, their ultimate victory is quite secure. L'nder these circumstances, their managers are idiotic enough to compete for workhouse and prison contracts, that is to seek for a dividend to-day at the cost of dividends in perpetuity. The precise prejudice they have to face is that their meat is wholesome, but only good enough for paupers and convicts, and they deliberately go and ttive that prejudice a seeming foull,latioll. We are ashamed of their brains. Yankees would have tendered for the supply for Windsor Castle, the Guards Mess, and tha Travellers, and whether accepted or rejected, have 1.1- vertised the tender. SHOCKING FATALITY.—An inquest HAS been held at Lewes, on the body of William Thompson, aged 21, a corporal in the Inniskilling Dragoon Guards From the evidence it appeared that the deceased was with a young Illan named Edward Obberd and the latter s father at a sparrow shooting match at Chilting. ton. Young Obberd bad a double-barrelled gun under his arm, and while he was moving it one of the barrels exploded, and the charge entered deceased's thi<Th. Medical aid was procured, and it was found necessary to amputate the leg, the poor fellow expiring shortly after the operation. The Coroner said that the de- ceased had lost his life throwgh gross carelessness on the part of Obberd, and the jury, in returning a ver- dict of Accidental Death," likewise strongly censured him. It was stated that Thompson was engaged to be married to the sister of the young man who caused his death. DEATH OF A REMARKABLE CENTENARIAN.—. On the 26th December there died at-Seymondstown, in the parish of Kilskyre, Kells, Mr. John Farrelly, at the ripe old age of 100 years. He was a most respect- able and intelligent farmer, who by his great industry and foresight amassed a considerable Property. }Ie retained his faculties up to his death. He had seven daughters, all of whom were present when his remains were consigned to the grave, and through whom he leaves a posterity of 150 grandchildren, great grand- children, &c. It is worthy of note that a brother and two sisters survive the deceased, the youngest being 87 years of age. The eldest, the brother, James Farrelly, is VI) years, and is so strong and healthy as to be able to take an active part In the management of his own farm. He, too, through his many sons and daughters, is the ancestor of a numerous offspring.