The Pembrokeshire Herald and General Advertiser

FOREIGN INjrEtLIQENCE. FRANCE. The debate upon that paragraph of the address which has referepce to the entente cordiale" with England, ,jvas brought to a conclusion on Monday evening, wjien. the ,.ministry came off victorious, and a majority of the chamber of deputies declared in favour of thfgeneral foreign policy of M. Guizot, and of the cordial relations of England with France. The papery of Wednesday, like those of; the pre- ceding ten days, are entirely taken, up with the debate on the address, and with their own comments and speculations upon it. SPAIN. The news from Spain is of jio particular interest. The papers of. the 18th bring none of the slightest importance.. The. government has published the official account of the capitulation-of Figueras. Pri- vate letters state that the ministry have finally [ resolved on the dissolution of the Cortes, but- that it will not take pface for a month, The rumours..of a change of ministry are still very prevalent at .Madrid, but this time it js the Moderado and not the Libera^ party who are endeavouring to make the chajige. Thg reports of a change go so far as to give the composition of the new ministry. The Madrid Gazette of the 17th publishes an important decree of that date-important and favour- able to the holders of Spanish bonds. I, M. Olozaga has addressed a letter from Lisbon to the electors of Madrid, in which he states that, if elected for Madrid, he will take his seat in the Cortes. He ^tributes his flight to the personal danger to which he was exposed and he adds, that as soon as his political friends may think it advisable, he will be ready to appear before^theXortes. i" General Prim is still; in Catalonia, though he has relinquitibed his. command, which has been conferred on General Blanco.—Amettler and twenty-eight of his officers have arrived at Perpignan. PORTUGAL. Lisbon correspondence, up to the 17th inst., informs us of the proceedings in the Chambers on the discussion of the address in reply to the speech from the throne. It is evident, whatever form opposition to the ministry may take, that what renders it formidable are the financial difficulties which are connected with every question, and which stare the government in the face at every step.—In the recent discussions in the chamber of Peers, the Duke de Palmella expressed the deep regret he should feel to be obliged to withdraw his support from ministers, in the event of their failing to set seriously about attending to the disordered state of the finances during the present session. HOLLAND.} The omcial journal contains all the lawsj-elative to the budget for the years 1844, and 1845. But the ways and means voted for the two years are not sufficient to cover the expenditure. The deficiency for 1844 is 5,193,707 florins, and for 1845, 4,829,880 florins, making a total deficit of 10,023j587 florins, which has yet to be provided for. ^la, the second chamber of the >States-General, many members could not conceal their apprehension that, even allowing the correctness of. the calculations furnished by the government, and supposing that all the estimates should be realised, they will nevertheless be. a deficiency for 1846, which will call for new burdens. The chambers, therefore, think a voluntary,, loan x re extremely desirable. The chambers, we observe, asked whether the government thought it could imppse a moderate duty on tea and coffee.—Dutch Papers, Jan. 24.. The Vienna Gazette of the l5th inst., announces that the ratifications of the treaty of commerce and navigatiou between Austria and the republic of Mexico, concluded at London on the 30th of July, 1842, were exchanged on the 8th of August. 1843. The latest flews from" Constantinople state that Admiral Walker had been dismissed from the Turkish service. ^General Jochmus, it is expected, will also be dismissed. The Porte has positively refused tcr give a. Written .answer ta the notes pre- sented by the ambassadors of France and England respecting the affair at Biledjick. ? I—: —

DAMAGING A. PICTURE IN THE NATIONAL GALLERY.— William Adams, a,laro& young man using crutches, was chained before Mr. Maltby with damaging a picture at the National Gallery. He was seen to lift up one of his crutches, .and stxjkis it with great force through the Jupiter and Ijeda,,b'ytP.F. Mola>' which was worth aboutX150, but which would now be comparatively valueless. There being a suspicion that "the prisoner (who declined saying anything) was of unsound mindf he was remanded) but on. a subse- quent day was again brought up, when Mr. Maltby said, on consideration,, it had been, deemed the most advisable course to reduce the amount of the painting to S5, which thus gave him a summary jurisdiction in the matter, and enabled him to inflict the highest fine of j^or t\vo months' imprisomnent—-a penalty which, he was bound to say, was inadequate to meet the offence.The prisoner begged to say a few words. He had taken to the trade of watch-maker. Business had latterly been very bad,,and,-as he was afflicted with a aeceased leg, he had at times become affected in his head. He could, not account for the impulse which had led him to injure the paintiflg. He now much regretted what had occurred. METROPOLITAN DESTITUTION.—Notwithstanding the liberal sums recently sent to Marlborough-street police court, for distribution among the indigent, the whole of the, funds would be immediately ex- haustpd, were not. the precaution adopted of render- ing assistance to those only whose cases present the strongest claims. For some time put between S4 and J5 have been daily distributed, but this has not had any sensible effect in diminishing that mass of poverty which exists within the jurisdiction of this court. The case of Mary Ann Cook disclosed a state of continued privation. A constable said he wap informed that a woman had thrown herself into the Serpentine. lie w?nt to, the spot, and saw her floatin Igin, the water. A Polish gentleman, who was passing by at the moment, jumped in and brought her to the bank. The woman was the defendant, and had been, a widow some years. Finding her utmost endeavours useless towards maintaining herself and child, she procured the child's admission to Chelsea workhouse, intending to support herself by serace..Being extremely near- sighted, and with broken health she was unable to keep her situation, and she made an attempt tfc support herself since by going out as a laundress, but this resource had failed. Mr. Maltby gave her two sovereigns to redeem clothing, and a gentleman ip court put some .silver into her hand. These unex- pected pieces of. good fortune so overcame her, that she fell into hysterics while attempting to express her gratitude. A NICE COUNTRY To LivE IN.—The Philadelphia correspondent of the Morning Chronicle gives the following account of the state of the Texian frontier: —" A notorious brigand chief on the Texian frontier, who had murdered twenty men, with his own hands' and known and dreaded as Pete (Peter) Whetstone was shot dead, a few days since, by a citizen of the United States, whose life he had threatened. The ruffian was 60 years of age. That frontier, especially adjoining Arkansas, is partly peopled by desperadoes. Judge Field, in addressing one of the courts thpre, recently said that two prosecuting attorneys had been murdered for doing their duty a judge"harrod out of his court by a mob, and his life endangered and another judge attacked on his bench by ruffians, merely for ordering silence in the court—while a third was forced by. an armed blackguard to leave- the bench and drink with him, during a session of the coVt." CONVERT TO CATHOLICISM—Intelligence has been received; in Oxford of-the, qonrve;rsjop of another mem- her of Exetei College, Mr. Thomas Harper Kin& to the Romanist faith, making the tenth member of the university who has conformed within the last three years. Mr. King, some time since, nyy}* ,1 munifi-, anorgantoMr-^ AN ECCENTRIC.-r—On Sunday last Dr. Swiney died under very extraordinary circumstances, at his resi- dence Grove-street, Camden-town, where he had resided for the lastfateen years. He was the son of the late _44mirat .{swmey, and was a relative of the late Sir JIumphrey Davy. His age was about fifty, and he had not shaved for the last two years. He lived in almost complete seclusion, his house having ,but, another inmate, .bis housekeeper. He went abroad nqt more than four ox five times a year, and for a month previous to his death refused all food,: and took nothing in the shape of sustenance, but a mixture of,cider and water. On Sunday morning becoming nearly insensible,, his housekeeper called in a surgeon, but deceased would not take medicine and died shortly afterwards. Part of his will shows the eccentricity of his character. In it he desires to be..interred in St.. Main's burying-ground, Pratt- freet, the. funeral procession to be on foot: his to be covered with bright yellow cloth, the paE aS cloaks of the mourners to, be of the same material and colour. Three girls he willed should precede clad in. white, leaving to each a legacy of X20 and a sum of similar amount to buy funeral dresses for all l "v V M 6 ?iS Vll€i £ 3>000 to the trustees of the British Museum for the establishment of a lecture- ship on geology, and a similar sum to the Roval Society of Arts, out of which the first freeholder, whether ip England, Ireland, or Scotland, that should reclaim, and bring into cultivation the latest amount of waste land, was to receive 100 guineas, to be presented in a goblet of equal value. The testa- tor appoints five executors, gentlemen of eminence in literatjye, art, and science. SHIPWRECK ON THE GOODWIN SANDS.—On ■ Satur- daj-night a, shipwreck took place on the Goodwin Sands, in the total Joss of a fine brig called the shepherdess, of two hundxed tons burthen^, whilst 011 her passage from Newcastle to Plymouth, laden with coais. When off the north sand head of the Good- win, there came on a tremendous gale of wind, which drove the vessel on the sands, and she instantly fell over on her beam-ends. The crews of several lug- gers quickly bore down towards her, but the gale still increasing, accompanied by a heavy fall of hail and snow, rftkde it utterly impossible for them to go alongside the wreck.. The cre.w of the ill-fated brig were at this period in a truly appalling condition, no sooner had she struck than the surf made a complete breach over her, and it was only by maintaining a firm hold that they were prevented from being swept away. In this situation did Captain Turner, eight seamen, and.an apprentice, remain for seven hours white the crews of the luggers continued cruising around the wreck, waiting for an opportunity to run alongside of her. At last, about four in the morning, one of the Ruggers succeeded in running so c!o,e alongside the brig.as to enable Captain Turner-tb jump from the rigging on board of her it was deter- mined upon to throw ropes from the lugger, and bid the crew tie the ends round their bodies, whereby they, might be hauled on board. They acted as desired, and were eventually dragged into the lugger, although in a most deplorable state of exhaustion. One of them had a most remarkable escape the rope broke, and he was carried a considerable dis- tance ere lie could be recovered. The loss of the brig is stated to be upwards of £ 2,000., BANQUET AT STATIONERS'. HALL.—On Tuesday a dinner was given at Stationers' Hall, in honor of the Jord mayor and sheriffs, (the lord mayor and Mr. sheriff Moon being members of the company,) Charles Baldwin,. Esq., the master of the company, presiding. The recorder passed a high eulogiam on the exertions of the Stationers' company to promote the interests of lirerature and science. The evening closed with a speech by Mr Sergeant Talfourd, describing the part which he took in forwarding the late bill for the protection of copyright, by which the advantages of their intellectual labours were continued to the families of authors, the rights of. publishers better secured, and the stationers' company constituted as it were their perpetual trustees. j ^SMUGGLING.—A prosecution against no less tlilb nine individuals, one of them a public officer, for smuggling large quantities of tobacco, and defrauding the revenue ta a very great amount, has been set down for trial for the first week in February, in the Court of Exchequer. The principal witnesses are smugglers, who formed part of the gang POPULAR EDUCATION—Another public demonstra- tion of the friends of eduoj^pn took place on Tues- day at Craven Chapel, (^mien-square, to promote the objects of the recent conference.! Mr. Hindley, M. P., presided, and, after complimenting the con' gregation upon the circumstance of- their being one of the first to make a stir in this movement ret marked that it was not necessary to -ai^gue now upon the adya#tages,.of education. When the Education Bill which he had opposed, fair its sectarian character was thrown out of the-House of Commons, he had hoped that all the dissenters in this country would 4ate co-operated in one joint effort; but that had not been the ca.se, for no sooner was the Education Bill lost, than the Wesleyans declared their intention of confining the movement, so far as they were,, coti- cemed, to their own body. So large a class as the VVesleyans having adopted that plan, the congrega- tipnalists. were.obliged to act on the game systMa— Mr. James explained the object of the congregations alist -body more- fully, and stated that they had determined to raise the sum "of Xl 00,000 in five years, for the purpose of educating the people Of that sum ,5622,77,1 10s. had already been raised (loud cheers;, more than one half of which had been raised in the, metropolis alone. Amongst the dona- tions were five of. £ 1,000 each, eleven of £ 500 fifteen of £ 250, four of j:2<00, one. of £ 150, twenty of £ 125, tw^nty-ftve of f.100, 0f &c —Dr. Lefchild proposed the first resolution approving of the proceeding lately adopted at the conference at Leed^The fceV. J, Burnett seconded the resolution Other resolutions were adopted, ^nd a vote of thanks to the chairman concluded the business <tf the meeting. F ^PB^EKTATION OF NORTH WIITS.—-The decease of Sir I Burdett has caused muck speculation on the questiop of who is to succeed him in- the 'repré.. sentation of the northern division of the county of Wilts. The gentlemen- who usually take the lead in these matters: have been busily engaged in Devi- zes. It is generally believed thatMr Southeron will be soucited to represent, the county. Should he consent to do so his success ia considered as. certain Mr. Ludlow Bruges,, of, Seeod, near Devizes, is ex- pected to fill the vacancy m that borongh in the event of Mr. Southeron vacating it for the county. THE REPRESENTATION 0F DUW,KY.—It J», CO^ dently stated that a new writ, for this, borough will be moved for immediately on the opening of the en- suing session, and the Anti-corn-law League are ac- tively preparing for a vigorous, attempt to secure the seat for a free-trader. Mr. Ackland has arrived in the borough, and commenced the campaign by a course of four lectures on the corn-laws. Several agents of the League are also actively at work dis- tributing Anti-corn-law tracts amongst the electors ai*d non-electors. Two candidates are spoken of as likely to contest the borough in the: free-trade inter- est; and whichever of these gentlemen may be even- SwT •?? We caaPr0Iflis3 tbe monopo- lists that they will have, a candidate, of no. ordinary character and,,influence, to contend against. We shall soon be able to speak in plainer terms. HADDINGTON.—LOVE ANP MADNESS.—last' \viaek a young man, a tailor by trade, threw himself X* the Kay Hanghs a precipice to the north of Had- dmgtoii" His fall was broken by the tree? growing, at theioot of the recks, otherwise death must have ensued from his rash act. He was obsen-ed by some ^§hbourhood, who, hastened to ms relief, and found he. was very severely bruised. tJUf-n111 fiVfaiJ 7ay ,recove,7j and states he jid his, m.a fit of desperation, because bis sweetheart had retusea to name the raaxriage-day, antl wouW U1^ to give uieir names to the session-cleijk [fa proclamation on the sabbath following. A few days after the abwe occurrence, another you2!? man, a shoemaker, att^pted to cut his.^wat, because (a youug \yoHian„deelined to .be his partner at a (fencing patty that was to take place olthe fallowing even- ing he is also in a fair way ff recoverv. 0 EDUCATION AND CRIME.—From a return made to the visiting Justices of the house of correc tion, Cold- bath fields, it appears that out of 1,0^4 prisocers confined in that prison on the 13th ins^^nt,—namelv, 834 males, and 260 females it was ascertained that nine females only could read and write well with a knowledge of other languages Jid arithmetic; 92 males, and 25 females conld rea 1 and write well With .arithmetic 258 males, and 00 females could' read and write a little 274 male-i, and 105 females could only read a little; and 20f. males, and 70 females could neither read nor write at all. MEPHAM, THE INNOCENT CONVICT.—This young man, who was transport id about two years since for an alleged attack on Mr Killick, of Weavering-street, but whose innocence tlas been proved, arrived in Maidstone in good health on Monday last, to the great joy of his friends. He was sent to Hobart Town, and from thence about sixty miles into the I bush, to a place called the Cascades, clearing land with other convicts, where his work continued from half-past five in the morning till six at night in the summer, with naif an hour for breakfast, and an hour for dinner. He remained at this work for about two months. The first intimation which he received of his pardon having been granted, was by a para- graph which Mr. Carr, a superintendent of convicts inclosed to him in a letter, and which had been cut out from jome English newspaper. He did not re- ceive thy official letter till some time afterwards.- Maidscone Gazette. The number of sudden deaths that have recently occurred at the east end of the metropolis is <tp- p^ling. Within the space of fifteen days seventeen iiases have been brought under the notice of the au- thorities. TASTE FOR WINE.- The quantity of Madeira wine which paid duty in 1843 was 68,906 gallw^and 51,513 in 1842, showing an increase of 17.393' gal- lons in a year, in which the consumption of most other kinds of wine decreased. If the Portuguese ministers possessed common sense (which, however, is a very uncommon possession amongst ministers of state), they would have availed themselves of this change in the public taste to the utmost, by agreeing to a commercial treaty which would have given theto the command of the British market for the wines of Portugal and its possessions.—Liverpool Times. • DISCOVERY OF A SKELETON.—At abbot thirty yards from the high road leading to Shooter's hill, a labour- er found some bones: he made the circumstance known, and proceeding cautiously in his search, dis- covered an entire skeleton. It was of the usual stature, indicating a young person, but all doubt on this head was speedily removed by finding the hair perfect, of a light gold colour, of great length and beautifully plaited. At the back "Of the head was- a deep distinct fracture, of a circular form, though ir- regular, the skull being quite beaten in. THE NEW TAX ON COAL.—With feelings of ex- treme disgust we announce to our readers that a new tax on coal is in preparation. The corporators of London, groaning under a weight of wealth whieb they cannot manage, and a large proportion of which c' they lavish in feasts and pageants, intend to apply to parliament to lay a tax of fivepence- per ton on coal, for the purpose of beautifying and improving the streets of the metropolis. The bill, indeed, we believe, is printed. A more impudent act of piracy than this was never contemplated. It is not sufficient, it seems, that the principal churches, streets, and edifices, of London, by which the architectural charac- ter of the capital has been deservedly exalted amon" nations, have been built at the expense of the coal- trade, but the north of England, by some strange fatuity, it would appear, is to contribute to the end of time to all the wants and luxuries of London. Will the coal-trade be silent under a job like this? Peel's coal-duty was bad enough, but the deficiency in the public revenue afforded some pretext for its imposition. But here we have a set of men, with more "money than wisdom, nor only notoriously mismanaging their own concerns,.but impudently con- tending that the trade of their neighbours ought to f be taxed, to the very starvation point, for the benefit and improvement of a city which for ages has been entrusted: to their care, and for which, by the prf- vidence of their predecessors, far more than ample funds have been provided.-Gateshead Observer. ExcisE DuTY .-=-It appears that the duty on sales by auction in the United Kingdom, in the year end- ing the 5th of Jan. 1841, was £320,062 13s 6d of which £286,624 lis. 3d. was for duty in England, £20,060 16s. 7d. in Scotland, and .£13,3.7.7 5i. 8d in Ireland. In 1842, the duty in the United £ 297 lTfi 47aQrl '°I?' 12?'i ld"' and in 1843, £297,146 4s. 9d. on auction sales. On bricks the of £ m>0S6 5d., and on glass £ /66,540 14s. 3d., m the United Kingdom of jvhich £ 703,194 Gs. 2d. was paid in England on' the last-mentioned article. The duty on hops in Eag- af'1Z rrf endinS.Januai7' ^43, ^s £ 310^025 8s. 10d, On licenses in the United Kingdom last Th*' J/941 ,ls. number being 592^42. The Quty on malt in the last year, in England Z,«f1',742 i9s- IS; ilMW li OA ™ p?s'11»s«8 in Efiglana, £ 156,397 Is. 9d.: on post-horse licenses, £ 3 849 • on soap in_England, last year, £ 35,528 Is. 4d'. • on sprits in England, in the one ■year, £ 316121W 17s- M-; 0,1 -V"ta 0d-.mTone year, and £ 10,832 17s. on game certificates m lreland. The total amount of LAíE HOURS OF BusINEss.-=Theannual meeting of the Metropohtan Drapers' Association, formed ror of effecting present late hours of business, was heldon evemng m Exeter Hall, whieh was densely crowded. The cbar jv-as t,len by Mr. Emereoi TeMertM P z nZeh no meeting for the of the employees if but the W18h was to persuade the inclination of their customers. He drew touching pÏctureQf the condition- of those wbo were doomed to toil for fifteen and even seventeen of the twenty- four, at unintellectual, re- lieved only by. that sleel) U-hich, for them, be rest. He referred to the painfftl con- dItIOn of the dress-makers' and arsigtaits. The number of assistants to cktliiera and W. rupers was 16,796, grocers 12,831, and chemists -5,500 r making a total of 47,127 exnwed S evils of this baneful system.—Dr R^d addroc the meeting on the consequences Snf t T health of young men from the.present W^T ,1^ expressed his opinion that length of life nally abridged by it.—The iter. Mr r • appealed to the press to lend its aid in furth^min^S objects of the association.—Mr. Carter .if all °f ^stedM/' *f7heS aiS0-jp0ke' and suge gested for future consideration whether numberof tradesmen (say seven-eS 'ofth'^ number), living in a 'certain their shops at a certain hour SaTa E^1 to close not be made to have the force of„w\* The meeting s^-ated at half-past eleven^^ ament' from the Journal des S^JL ? Sini^gUa0brated Ange1Jica SSd at hi ffk kSKi 1° e nei?hbo«hood o#our citf, and is in the best state of he&h that could be eSct with reference to her advanced, age. Therr that. her husband, M. de Valabreque, died^ is equally untrue. He is also stffl alive, a wise resides here. Madame Catalani, or breque, possesses. no villa at Siniga^lia, aa opinion of well-informed pr rson&?3^s was given of l^r forti^m th3l^oun\ is far too high.