The Cardiff Times

THE NOMINATION OF SHERIFFS. The ancient ceremony of nominating sheriffs for the different counties of England and Wales, except the royal duchies of Cornwall and Lancaster, took place in the Court of Exchequer, on Monday, in the presence of an unusually large concourse of spectators, to whom the great object of attraction in the quaint and ancient cere- mony was the presence of the Lord Chancellor and the Chancellor of the Exchequer in their gold robes of office. These high dignitaries were accom- panied by the Lord Chief Justice, Chief Jus- tice Bovill, the Lord Chief Baron, and Justices Mellor and Brett, and Barons Bramwell and Pigott. The formality of the Queen's Remembrancer reading in old Norman French the Act of Parliament bearing on the proceedings, and administering in the same language the quaintly worded oath to the Lord Chancellor, and the other officials, that they will not present any names for the office of shrievalty with partiality, was not observed, it having been abolished by an Act passed in a late session of Parliament. A variety of objections were raised by the gentlemen nominated for not serving as sheriffs, one gentleman named for the shrievalty of Nottinghamshire alleging as an excuse for not performing the duties that his income was only £ 3,800 a-year, and not sufficient for such a high office.

MR. BRUCE AND HIS DETRACTORS. MR. BRUCE AND HIS DETRACTORS. Few ministers of recent times have been subject to a greater amount of undeserved censure and abusive criticism than that which has fallen to the lot of the Right Hon. H. A. Bruce, since his accession to the Home Office. Almost every mishap in social arrange- ments, or delay in the progress of necessary legislation has been attributed to a want of care or energy on the part of the Home Secretary, while iu not a few cases it has been sought to prove his responsibility in matters with which he had not the most remote connection. It is therefore with pleasure that we reproduce the follow- ing able and well merited defence of -the right hon. gentleman against the persistent attacks which have been made upon him in certain quarters. It appears as a leading article in a recent issue of the Manchester E raminer and Times :— It may perhaps appear to some persons an act of ex- treme hardihood to say a word on behalf of Mr. Bruce. In almost every Ministry there is some member whom it has become the fashion to run down. Sometimes the unfortunate man gives but too much provocation for the attacks made upon him, but even then the current of denunciation, once well utarted, generally runs with a vehemence which leaves fairness and impartiality far behind. The dog having got a bad name, people who know nothing, or next to nothing, of his supposed offences eagerly join in the cry for hanging him, and his most innocent actions are twisted into so many proofs of heinous guilt. To the public, or at any rate to a certain class of writers, a whipping post seems to be indispensable, and if a victim be required it is natural to seek him first at the Home Office. From the very nature of his duties, the Miinister presiding over that department affords the best sport for the Opposition pack. There are, we believe, still some persons who admit their inability to give an opinion as to the mode in which an army should be organised or a fleet constructed. But everyone feels himself able to criticise the Home Secretary, while scarcely a day passes in which he does not do or leave undone something about which it is possible to have two or more opinions. Once start with the assumption that he is responsible for every- thing which goes wrong in any corner of the kingdom, and you are not likely to want topics for more or less acrimonious animadversion. As Mr. Bruce himself said the other day in addressing a meeting at Merthyr Tydfil, If a magistrate gave a wrong decision, or what WM the same thing, if he was reported in the papers to have done so if a police constable misconducted himself if one man was hanged notwithstanding some people thought he ought to have been saved, and another was saved notwith- standing the opinion of some folks he ought to have been hanged if a drain was opened in a country town, or smallpox appeared in a place, the Home Secretary was made responsible, and he was called upon to determine all things." That is scarcely an exaggerated description of the running tire of attacks to which Mr. Bruce has been sub- jected for the last two years, and against which it is almost impossible for him to defend himself. A Minister may vindicate a policy or triumphantly uphold a principle, but he cannot explain day by day the details of his ad- ministration, or follow step by step the misrepresentations through which he is made responsible for things over which he has no more control than the least influential of the outside public. We venture, however, to say that in almost every instance in which specific accusations have been made against him in the House of Commons he has met them with entire success and the best proof that he has done so is to be found in the fact that his bitterest assailants have of late shifted their ground of attack from his administrative failures to his legislative shortcomings. We hear far less than we used of his want of vigour in putting down this or that bete noire, or in abating this Dr that grievance of a {parochial kind. The great fault low found with him is that he has allowed himself to be overshadowed by his colleagues. He has, we are told, failed to vindicate the importance of his department with becoming spirit. He has actually allowed precedence to be taken by such measures as the Irish Church Act, the Abolition of Purchase, and the Ballot Bill, and we are isked to visit with our severest contempt the Minister who did not compel his colleagues to postpone one or nore of these capital measures in order that he might deal with those social subjects in which our Conservative iriends always take an interest in exact proportion to the extent to which they are available for drawing as red aerrings accross the scent of political reform. Mr. Bruce repelled this charge at Merthyr Tydfil with becoming ipirit and force. To one form of the accusation he need, .ndeed, scarcely have troubled himself to reply. He is lot concerned otherwise than as a member of the Cabinet to defend the Government for turning their full attention and devoting their main energies to the removal of those sreat political grievances with which the Reform Act of 1867 gave the popular party power to grapple. As he truly said, the country, or at all events the Liberal majority by whom Mr. Gladstone and his colleagues were placed in power, demanded the measures which the Government have given, or tried to give, them and whatever we may think of the necessity for the Mines' Regulation Bill, Licensing Bills, or Sanitary measures, there can be no doubt that if the Administration had brought them forward instead of the measures to which they have devoted their energies, such a course would have given rise amongst their own supporters to a general complaint that they were not turning to the best account the new power which Household Suffrage had conferred upon the people. But then, it is said that although it was quite right for the Government to insist upon dealing with all the subjects we have mentioned, Mr. Bruce might neverthe- less, by proper energy and self-assertion, have edged his comparatively unobtrusive vehicles in amongst the more ponderous conveyances that were rushing and crushing to I get through Temple Bar. Nothing can be more easy to make or go on repeating than such an assertion because, however much may be done by the House of Commons, it is almost impossible to show that more might not have been accomplished by better management. Unfortunately, indeed, there is always a large amount of foundation for any criticism which may be directed against the arrange- ment of the Government business. Looking back at the end of a session, it is never difficult to see that many mistakes have been made which might have been avoided. But, in spite of the confidence with which we are con- stantly told that Mr. Bruce might have passed this or that measure if he had tried, we are utterly at a loss to understand which of those measures it is supposed he might have got through. It is conveniently forgotten that although the Mines' Regulation Bill, the Licensing Bill, or the Sanitary Bill would not have led to party debates, they would each and all have given rise to pro- longed and minute discussion. Indeed, they each and all involved principles to which it was by no means desirable that the sanction of Parliament should be given without the fullest consideration. Consistently with the abolition of Purchase and the passage of the Ballot Bill through the House of Commons—obstructed as both these measures were by an opposition of an unprecedented character— we venture to say that it was simply impossible for Mr. Bruce to have obtained time for the discussion of any of the bills which he is accused of allowing to drop. Nor, indeed, do his opponents say that he could. Their real charge against him is that he did not insist on time being made for him by the abandonment of the Ballot Bill. Closely regarded, his legislative inefficiency amounts simply to this, that he agreed with his colleagues in think- ing it their duty to attend first to the things nearer to the Libeial heart; and although in the eyes of Conservatives that must needs be a great fault, it would be most unjust if Liberals were from mere unthinking acquiescence in a current cry, to join in running down a statesman who has successfully vindicated every one of his important ad- ministrative acts, and whose legislative failures are mainly due to the fidelity with which he has subordinated his own activity to the main policy and the chief mission of the Government.

THE WEATHER AND THE CROPS. The Mark Lane Express says :—We have had another fine week for field-work and autumnal sowing, though the nights have been sharp and frosty. This will prevent the early wheat from getting winter proud, and check the superabundance of vermin, to which the September rains were favourable. The condition of samples has already improved; so that hitherto November has excelled October in its innuence but the frosts which we have felt here have been much more intense in the Baltic. Petersburg is already closed, and some barges shut up in the ice at Cronstadt; while from Konigsberg there are orders not to bind sellers to shipment this side of Christmas.

THE NEW LORD MAYOR OF LONDON. Alderman Gibbons, the new Lord Mayor of London, took his seat for the first time in the Justice Room of the Mansion House, on Monday. His Lordship said he could not do so without recollecting how many distinguished men had filled the position he now occupied, and he hoped that when his year of office had expired, he should have discharged his duties in such a manner as to merit the appro- bation of his fellow-citizens. He hoped lie might be able to say, as the gentleman who had so recently vacated the chair had done, that there had been a consi- derable diminution in the number of charges brought be- fore that court, because it was the hope of all that crime was being considerably lessened. He concluded by saying he trusted that, taking the late Lord Mayor for an example, he should discharge his duties in as efficient a manner as his predecessor.

The forgemen at Taylor's Clarence Ironworks, Leeds' have been refused the nine hours limit, on the ground that it is inapplicable to puddlers' business. The nine hours movement has commenced amongst the forgemen of other works, and a strike is probable if their demand is not granted. Equal in importance with quantity is the good quality of Tea for upwards of 30 years Horniman's Packet Tea has been preferred far its great strength, purity, and cheapness. DONVILLE & C* Belfast, are the largest holders of whisky in the world. Their Old Irish Whisky is recom- mended by the medical profession in preference to French brandy. Supplied in casks and cases for horae use or ex- portation. Quotations o* application to Messrs. I)uw TILLE A, Co., Royal Irish Distilleries, Belfast. 1730 FLORILINE.— FOR THB TEETH AND BKIATH.—A few drops of the Fragant Florilin* on a wet tooth brush produces a delightful foam, which cleanses the Teeth from all impurities, strengthens and hardens the gums, prevents tartar, and arrests the progress of decay. It gives to the teeth a peculiar and beautiful whiteness, and imparts a delightful fragrance to the breath. It removes all unpleasant odour arising from decayed teeth, a dis- ordered stomach or tobacco smokt. The Fragrant Floriline is purely vegetable, and equally adapted to old and young. It is the greatest toilet discovery of the age. Sold at 2s. 6d. by all Chemists and Perfumers. Prepared only by H. C. GALLUP, 493, Oxford-street, London. The word Floriline" is a Trade Mark." 1887 SIMPSON'S CATTLB STICB.—This seasoning powder, to sprinkle amongst the food fer horses, cows, calves, fatting cattlb, sheep, pigs & poultry, is the first article ever sold as Cattle Spice," and ten times stronger than any imita- tion its wunderful effects are proved all over the world— Sold retail in halfpenny packets, and sixpenny packets, by grocers, druggists, and corn dealers everywhere, with the makers' trade mark and signature. BREAD AND PASTRY MADE EASY. A fair trial is asked for Simpson's Clipper" Custard Flour, Egg Flour, and Baking Powder—three new and most excellent articles, in large penny packets, & sixpenny boxes. Sold by grocers druggists, and confectioners everywhere. Simpson & Co. sole manufacturers), Chiswell-street, London. 1748

OCTOBER COAL AND IRON EXPORTS. The October Export Returns indicate a considerable improvement in the coal trade of the port. Last mouth upwards of 221,529 tons of coal were cleared to foreign ports, against 190,623 tons in the preceding month, and 163,719 tons in the corresponding month of 1870. The shipments of coal to home ports amounted to 80,197 tons, against 73,776 tons in the previous month, and 70,923 touts in October last year. The iron clear- ances were also highly satisfactory as regards quantity, though they were scarcely as heavy as was the case in September. Last month 20,7i-|9 tons were cleared foreign, against 21,008 tons in September, and 18,108 tons in October, 1870. We also sent abroad last month 3,599 tons of patent fuel, and 1820 tons of coke. The number of vessels which cleared foreign was 187 British, and 191 foreign. It is gratifying to find that the orders for steam coal on account of the French and Mediterranean ports continue to be of an increasing character, and some heavy shipments were also made last month to South American and Eastern ports. The following were the ports which received upwards of 1,000 tons of last month's coal export :-Alexandria, 1,931 tons Ancona, 1,141 tons; Bremerhaven, 1,050 tons; Bilboa, 2,088 tons; Bordeaux, 3,958 tons; Bombay, 1,094 tons; Bahia, 3,54s tons; Barcelona, 1,558 tons; Caldera, 1,880 tons Callao, 6,107 tons Charente, 1,409 tons Copenhagen, 1,020 tons; Contantinople, 9,056 tons; Caeu, 2,293 tons; Dieppe, 2,li6 tons; Gibraltar, 8,137 tons; Genoa, 8,236 tons; Havannah, 5,234 tons; Havre, 11,240 tons Hamburg, 6,263 tons; Hong Kong, 5,255 tons; Leghorn, 1,034 tons; Lisbon, 4,22-1 tons; La Rochelle, 2,095 tons; Martenique, 4,967 tons; Malta, 11,818 tons, Monte Video, 12,437 tons Messina, 1,441 tons; Naples, 1,782 tons; Nantes, 3,657 tons; Odessa, 3, :24 tons Point de Galle, 1,074 tons; Port Said, 3,065 tons; Pernambaco, 1,832 tons; Rouen, 2,316 tons; liio Janeiro, 12,184 tons; Rangoon, 4,211 tons; St. Nazaire 11,545 tons; St. Catherines' 1214 tons; Smyrna, 1,218 tons; St. Malo, 2,555 tons; Shanghai, l,3:il tons; Singapore, 10,789 tons; St. Thomas, 2,187 tons; Syra, 1547 tons; Trieste, 1,880 tons Wilhelmshaven, 1,140, and Zokohama, 1,250 tons. Last month's iron shipments comprised 989 tons rail to Enos, 500 tons rail, aud 962 tons bar to Constanti- nople 540 tons rail to Charlestown 2,335 tons rail to Galveston 968 tons rail and 496 tons bar to Naples 8,395 tons rail to New York; 3,015 tons rail to New Orleans; 1,133 tons rail to Rotterdam, and 1,067 tons rail to Trieste. Of the 378 vessels which cleared foreign with coal last month, were 15 American, 11 Austrian, 187 British, 1 Belgian, 2 Danish, 3 Dutch, 75 French, 22 German, 29 Italian, 20 Norwegian, 2 Portuguese, 2 Russian, 3 Spanish, and 6 Swedish. The following have been the returns which we have published during the respective months of the year:— Coa1. Iron. P. Fuel. Ceke. Vessel. C'stwise. Jan. 207,640. 13,937. 1,056. 1,633. 325. 79,300 Feb. 166,16.1. 18,094. 4,050. 640. 256.73,232 March 177,717. 19,795. 6,973. 719. 321. 76,201 April. 180,838. 28,722. 3,293. 328. 355. 70,814 May 217,336. 25,928. 9,719. 237. 3S9. 78,113 June. 67,906. 18,126. 9,251. 223. 189. 58,625 July 89,905. 20,198. 6,995. 89. 199. 61,156 August 102,052. 33,676. 5,001. 202. 217. 64,835 Sept. 190,623.. 21,008.. 5,674. 1,294. 352.. 73,776 Oct. 221,529.. 20,789 3,599. 1,820.. 378.. 80,197 Total.. 1.621.710.220,273.55,611. 7,185.2,981.716,249 In the following table is contrasted the quantities of coal and iron shipped foreign daring the first ten months of the undermentioned years :— 1869. II 1870. 1871. Coal. Iron, CoaL Iron. Coal. Iron. 1,811,790 230,545 11,920,252 225,297 1,621,710 220,273 The heavy falling off which the late Strike caused in this year's export of coal is gradually being reduced, so that now there is .only a decrease of 298,0¡¡0 tons as compared with the ten months of 187 0, or 190,000 tons as compared with the same period of 1869. The iron shipments are also little below what they were during the busy period of 1870 and 1869. As regards the other South Wales ports, we find that their export trade is also in a very satisfactory position. The following table exhibits the returns for the past month FOREIGN. r C'STWISK. PORTS. A JJ Ceal. Iron. Fuel. Coke. Vesls.!| Coal. Cardiff 221,529'20.789 3,599 1,820 378-;) 80,197 Swansea 60,181 2,296 12,262 235 220 15,870 Newport 34,629; 19,112 — 650, 77 70,723 Llanelly 10,641 — — — 45 14,494 Totals '326,980,42,197 15,861 2,705 720 j 181,284 On comparing these figures with those for the corres ponding month of last year, we find that there is an increase in the coal shipments at Swansea of 24,000 tons; at Newport, of 2,000 tons; and at Llanelly, of 8,000 tons. The iron exports show an increase of 1,000 tons at Swansea and 8,500 tons at Newport. Patent fuel shows a decrease of nearly 4,000 tons at Cardiff, while in coke there is an increase of 1,700 tons at Cardiff, 100 tons at Swansea, and 200 tons at Newport. 74 more vessels cleared foreign from Cardiff, 98 more from Swansea, 7 more from Newport, and 32 more from Llanelly than in the corresponding month. The coal shipments coastwise also exhibit an increase of 9,200 tons at Cardiff, 20,000 tons at Newport, and 1,300 tons at Llanelly, but a decrease of 3,300 tons at Swansea. Appended is our usual table, showing the quantity of coal shipped foreign and coastwise from all the British ports. In the foreign trade, Newcastle exceeds Cardiff by some 80,000 tons, while in the home trade, our total is exceeded by both Newcastle and Hartlepool FOREIGN. COASTWISE. r Oct. 1871. Oct. 1870. Oct. 1871. Oct. 1870. Cardiff 221,529 163,719 80,197 70,923 Swansea. 60,181 36,644 15,870 19,126 Newport 34,629 32,528 70,723 50,263 Llanelly 10,641 2,189 14,494 13,165 Newcastle 302,336 229,674 200,498 214,033 South Shields. 13,556 19,338. 3,990. 9,971 North Shields. 18,797 16,177 10 11 Blyth 30,303 13,431 4,889 5,620 Amble 5,688 2,608 170 829 Sunderland 137,696 106,357 143,060 161,505 Hartlepool 62,031 53,403 56,014 79,097 Stockton 12 — — — Middlesbro' 3,386 2,698 3,302. 6,986 Hull 38,394. 21,464 3,064 2,240 Grimsby. 28,549. 19,127. 2,210 2,160 Greenock 6,404 9,004. Seaham .d. 5,022 3,836 39,243 43,488 Liverpool 74,409 65,850 14,551 15,029 Whitehaven — 350 13,257 12,307 Goole. 2,512. 2,683 9,934. 10,142 Ayr 544 — 13,402 7,587 Glasgow. 14,117 12,049 — — Port Glasgow.. 350 48 — — Grangemouth. 12,789 10,717 — — Charlestown. 13,767 12,500 1,769 3,547 Alloa 13,250 11,702 397 2,246 Barrowstoness. 4,058. 724 3,761 3,601 Inverkeithing.. — — — 99 Troon 16,092. 5,139 31,966. 33,205 Ardrossan 2,483 3,011 14,127 10,150 St. David's 6,544 7,499. 221 — Irvine. — — 10,731 7,582 The total number of vessels leaving Great Britain with coal last month, was 2,916, of which 1,376 carried the British flag, 403 the German, 258 the French, 204 the Danish, 173 the Norwegian, 154 the Swedish, 106 the Russian, and 100 the Italian. 735 of these vessels left Newcastle, 291 Sunderland, 221 Hartlepool, 140 Liverpool, 150 Hull and 100 Blyth. The average quantity of coal taken away by each vessel, was 585 tons at Cardiff, 411 at Newcastle, and 235 tons at Hartlepool.

THE LONDON MARKETS. a LONDON CORN MARKET MONDAY.—Innuenced by the cold weather and by the closing of the Baltic ports for the ••fcitjr months, the grain trade at Mark Lane, to day, has been firmer. A moderate supply of English wheat has been on sale, and the show of foreign has been good. Transactions have been to a fair extent, and full prices have been realised. The supply of barley has been moderate. Fine malting produce has been in request at full prices. Other sorts have been quiet. Malt has sold slowly on former terms. With oats the market has been fairly supplied. The trade has been steady, and prices have ruled firm. Beans have been in moderate demand at late rates. No change has taken place in the value of peas, the inquiry for which has been to a moderate extent. Maize has been firm in value and demand. Flour has been quiet, but firm. Current Prices of British Grain and Flour in Mark-lane. Shil., per qr. Shil. per qr. Wheat-Essex A Kent Oats—Irish black 0 Q White, now, 1870 54 64 Ditto white 0 0 Ditto red, 1870 -54-62 Rye 32-34 TaJavera, 3870 58 64 Beans-Hazagan, 1869 B5 37 Norfolk & York new- 0-0 Tick, ditto 39 .1 Barley-Malting 32 40 Harrow & Pigeon, do. 39 — 41 Grinding and Dia. 0 0 Peas-N on-boilers. Q 0 Malt-Essex & Suffolk 52 65 White boilers 39 48 Kingston and Town- (14 70 Ditto, fine Snnolk 41 — 42 Brown 48 — 56 Maple 0 — 0 Oats—Essex & Suffolk 26 — 28 Grey 86 38 Scotch and Lincoln Flour—Best marks, de- potatoe 23 — 26 livered (per 2801bs) 47 — 50 Ditto feed 0 — 0 Seconds & Country 35 — 38 LONDON CORN MARKET, WEDNESDAY.—Owing to the warmer temperature, the grain trade exhibited less firm- ness, and the tendency of prices, on the whole, was un- favourable. The supplies of English wheat were short, while the arrivals from abroad were liberal; transactions were restricted, but prices were without appreciable variation from Monday last. Barley changed hands slowly on former terms. There were good supplies of oats on sale trade was not active, but for sound sorts full rates were realised. Beans and peas were taken to a limited extent at previous prices. Flour was inactive, and in some instances ruled in favour of the buyer. LONDON CATTLE MARKET, MONDAY.—A firm tone has been noticed in the cattle trade, to-day. The supply of beasts has been less extensive, but has still been good. The demand has been firm for all qualities, and 2d. per 81bs. more money has been obtained. The best Scots and crosses have occasionally made 6s. but 5s. 8d. to 5s. lOd. per 81bs. has been the general top quotation. With sheep the market has been only moderately supplied. There has been an absence of activity in the demand, but the inquiry has ruled firm, and prices have bees well supported. The best Downs and half-breds have sold at 6s. lOcl to 7s. per 81bs. Calves have changed hands quietly, on former terms. Pigs have been steady, at late rates. The cattle show will be opened on Monday, the 4th proximo, and the Annual Christmas Market will be held on the following Monday.

IIRDFGESTION. -The Medical Profession adopt MORSON'S PREPARATION of PKPSINE as the true remedy. Sold in bottles and boxes from 2s. 6d. by all Pharmaceutical Chemists, and the manufacturers, Thomas Morson and Son, 124. Southampton-row. Ruasell-square, London. 164 VALUABLE DISCOVERT FOR TILM HAIH !—A very nicely perfumed hair dressing called The Mexican Hair Po- newer," now being sold by most Chemists and Perfumers at 3s. 6d. per bottle, is fast superseding all Hair Re- storers"—for it will positively restore in every case Grey or White hair to its original colour, by a few applications, without duàng it, or leaving the disagreeable smell of most "Restorers." It makes the hair charmingly beau- tiful, as well as promoting the growth on bald spots, where the hair jiland" are not decayed. Certificate from Dr. Versmann on every bottle, with full particulars. Ask for THE MEXICAN HAIR RENEWEK," prepared by H. C. GALLUP, 493, Oxford-street, London. 1888

THE PROPOSED SALE OF THE CARDIFF BATHS. SIR,-Being a shareholder of the Baths, I could not but feel amused at a proposition made at a meeting of direc- tors and shareholders held last week at our Town Sur- veyor's office, when it was proposed the baths should be disposed of at a sacrifice of £ '3 per share (as a boon to the Corporation). This is a very liberal offer to the purchaser at the sacrifice of the shareholders At the same time, I believe the Corporation should be the proprietors not only of the Baths, but also of the Gas Works. The Chairman, Mr. Thomas Evans, is a director of the gas company, and I would recommend him when offering the sale of the Baths not to forget to offer the sale of the Gas Works to the Corporate Board. Surely if the Baths are not remu- nerative to the company, and can be saddled on the town, I would in fairness say the Gas Works should also be offered to the Corporation, and it has this advantage-it pays so well? So also as regards the Water Works. Borrowing powers are in the hands of the Corporation, so that they could make no excuse to the ratepayers for not purchasing the "good with the bad." As eight of the Gas Company are representatives at the Council Board, the passing of the Gas Works into the hands of the rate- payers should not be a matter of great difficulty.—Yours, &c., Roath-road, Nov. 14, 1871. W. LEWIS.

A CARDIFFIAN ON THE CAPE DIAMOND FIELDS SIR, Doubtless you occasionally give your readers a little news in reference to the South African diamond fields, and perhaps some of your readers are preparing to start to search or rather dig for diamonds. If so, permit me to offer them one or two remarks as to the require- ments essentially necessary to the individual who comes here. The first requirement is a determined will to per- severe and to put up with difficulties and disappointments. He must have capital to back up the undertaking. No one should attempt to come to the diamond fields if he has not at least Jt-150 in starting. The rate per steamer for second class passage to Cape Town is 20 guineas. The passage from Cape Town, per Inland Transport Company waggons, which leave weekly, and do the trip up in eight days, is JE12. The expense on the way is about k5. Occasionally the waggons are full, so that passages have to be engaged some time previous. Good strong clothing, strong boots, and a waterproof railway wrapper are about the only requirements the digger need take up. Imple- ments of all sorts are to be had at the fields. There are now about thirty thousand people at the diamond fields, and among that number are many luoky finders. The health of the place is very fair. Weather from November to March very hot -with an occasional thunderstorm. Butchers meat is about half the price that it is in Cardiff. All other kinds of eatables and drinkables are about double your prices. The quantity and value of diamonds found weekly are increasing. There have been more large diamonds found in South Africa during the last two years than has been found in the entire world for hundreds of years. From enquiries made I find that taking the num- ber of diggers and the estimated value of diamonds found, it would only give very poor average wages all round. This remark is also found correct respecting the digging for gold in other countries. A young man, clerk in the Telegraph office, gave up his situation and, in company with three others, worked digging for diamonds for nearly a twelvemonth and found nothing. He now writes to say that in about one week they have found diamonds valued at about £ 10,000. Others work and find none and return in disgust. March is about the best time in the year to arrive at the fields.—I am, yours &c., TAFFY. Cape Town, Cape of Good Hope, Sept. 27, 1871.

THE MATERIALS FOR THE WORKHOUSE EXTENSION. SIR, I have been considerably interested in the dis- cussions at the Cardiff Board of Guardians on the works now being carried on at the Union Workhouse, and also greatly mystified by the Architect's report on the same read last Saturday, and with your permission I will make a few remarks on the subject. It is usual in all public buildings, and especially those belonging to the rate- payers, to insist on the best and most durable materials being used, as the small difference between the cheapest and best timber in the formation is as nothing compared to the early decay and consequent rebuilding of the whole. Now the architect reports that with regard to the timber the quality is generally as described, with the exception of the Infirmary joisting, which is 11 x 3 deals instead of 11 x 21 yellow pine, thus substituting one-fifth more strength, a very important thing." Now the rumour is that the whole, or nearly the whole, of the timber in the roof of that curious building by the road, as well as the joists spoken of, is Sioedish—the cheapest timber im- ported. Yet the architect condones the use of this cheap material in the joist because of the one-fifth increased size I cannot imagine there is any increased size in the roof timbers, as the Chairman, alarmed at its appearance, wished for additional strutts to strengthen it. Now the yellow pine timber specified cannot be converted into the sizes required under Is. lOd. to 2s. per cubic foot, while the Swedish deals can be bought ready for fixing at Is. 3d. Thus the contractor gives one-fifth additional size in the joist and saves one-third on the price of the whole. With regard to the masonry, the architect reports that the work is everywhere equal to the specification, and in the Infirmary superior in finish to it. I have not seen the Infirmary wards, but I have seen the wall by the road side, which is evidently "rubble," and the main quoins composed of stones on their edges instead of on their proper beds. This wall is certainly a curiosity, there being no such wall in any public building in this neigh- bourhood but I will let the wall tell its own tale. Shake- speare says there are "Sermons in stones." Now it will be well for contractors who intend compet- ing for any other portions of the works intended to be done at the Workhouse to understand the specification thus-" Earth excavated and carted away," means level- ling the same on the premises Rubble walling of the best and hardest ballast stone obtainable at the Docks, or other approved stone, with extra to external facing, pointed as the work proceeds," means the wall against Mr. G. Stowe's garden, adjoining the Canton road (it will also be as well for the contractor to endeavour, if possible, to get an extra 2s. per yard for the walling—at any rate, after getting the contract, he can try it on); bricks to be of the best, hard, well burnt, square stocks, free from all breakage and soft or inferior bricks," means the common Cardiff brick; and "the best yellow pine timber, best Memel and best St. Petersburg deals," means Swedish timber and deals and so OR. With the aid of this additional knowledge it may be possible for some one of the local contractors to tender low enough for the work not yet contracted for. Is it fair to the rate- payers that'such timber should be used ? or is it fair to other competing contractors to pass such work ?—Yours, &c., CARDIFF. Cardiff, Nov. 14, 1871.

ST. CATHERINE'S CHURCH. SIR,—I have read "A Churchman's," "Music," and a "Dissenting Churchman's" letters. They all seem to pitch into (if I may be allowed the expression) the un- fortunate individual who, without intention, has made himself the observed of all observers. Instead of all this satire and chaff may I ask the following1. Is it cus- tomary to do such a thing during your own lifetime ? 2. Was the consent of those in authority asked? 3. Who payed for the erection? 4. Do the congregation approve of it? for, after all, this is the important question of all. -Yours, &c., ONE WHO DID NOT SUBSCRIBE. Cwm Rhondda, Nov. 15th, 1871.

CARDIFF POLICE INTELLIGENCE. MONDAY. (Before Mr. W. ALEXANDER, Mr. G. PHILLIPS, and Mr. W. D. BUSHELL.) EXTENSIVE THEFT FROM AN EMPLOYER.—Thomas P. Merrell, 14, an errand boy, was charged with stealing a number of articles of drapery from the shop of his em- ployer, Mr. Evan Thomas. From certain peculiarities in the prisoner s conduct, Mr. Thomas became suspicious that all was not right, and further noticing that he was wearing a coat that did not belong to him, Mr. Thomas gave information to the police, which caused the arrest of the prisoner, and the discovery of a large quantity of drapery goods, some packed in bundles, in the prisoner's bedroom, and some sold to a second-head dealer in Bute- street. All were identified by Mr. Thomas as his pro- perty, and altogether were valued at £ 40. The prisoner pleaded guilty, and was committed for three months' im- prisonment with hard labour. STEALING TURNIPS.—John Adams, labourer, Maindy, was charged with stealing four pennyworth of turnips, the property of Mr. J. B. Jones, of the Crwys farm, and was fined 10s. and costs, or in default to be committed for seven days. DISORDERLY. Mary Ann Gascoigne, a woman of the town, living in Canton, was committed for ten days for disorderly conduct in St. Mary-street. WEDNESDAY. (Before Mr. W. D. BUSHELL, Mr. W. ALEXANDER, and Mr. G. PHILLIPS.) COMMITTAL OF DEFAULTING RATEPAYERS TO PRISON.— John Swllivan was summoned to show cause why he should not pay £ 1 3s. rates due to the overseers of the parish of St. Mary. The debt was proved by Mr. Howell, who stated that several demands had been made, and a distress warrant issued, but without effect. De- fendant said he could not pay. He was committed for a month's imprisonment. —J ohn G ran town, who was likewise summoned for non-payment of JE1 15s. 9d., was also com- mitted for a month.—Jeremiah Driscoll, for £1 15s. 9d., was also committed for a month.—Michael Casey, for non-payment of 18s. 9Jd. In this case the defendant had been summoned for non-payment in the case of every rate that had been made during the last ten years. He was committed for a month, as were also two other persons whose cases were precisely the same. In all cases there seemed to have been a resolute determination not to pay the rates, and as the defendants were all able-bodied men it was deemed desirable to make an example of them. CHARGE OF ASSAULT AGAINST A CONSTABLE. -George Ramsey Hale, the constable on duty in the Arcade, was charged with an assault upon Mrs. Charlotte Da vies. On Tuesday, the 7th inst., there was a group of persons loitering at the entrance to the Arcade. Hale ordered them to remove, and, according to the evidence brought by the complainant, pushed her with both his hands out of the Arcade, and so violently that she would have fallen to the ground had it not been for the assistance given her bv a passer by. Hale's defence was that the people, of whom there were seven, were obstructing the pavement. He denied that he used violence, but said he thought he had a right, as a constable, to remove those who would not "move on" when they were told. The defendant received an excellent character, and was said to discharge his duty very well under very difficult and annoying cir- cumstances. The Bench thought he had exceeded his duty in this case, and inflicted a fine of 10s. and costs, or seven days. THURSDAY. (Before Mr. W. D. BUSHELL and Mr. GRIFFITH PHILLIPS). DESERTION.—Guiseppe Stinga, an Italian seaman, was charged on a warrant with deserting from the Italian barque Letizia, and was ordered to be sent on board, Lis only excuse for desertion being that he owed the captain thirty francs and could not pay it. DRUNK. — John Bentey, for being drunk and causing aa obstruction in Bute-street, was committed for three days' imprisonment.

VACATION PAPERS.—No. XII. THROUGH THE HIGHLANDS BY RAIL, EXCEPTING that railway whieh runs across North Scot- land from Dingwall to Mrnmn Ferry on the shores of Loch Carrou, tiifre is no hn<? in Great Britain which opens np so vast a raufi" "nll so wide a variety of scenery as that running ■- 'it.li .vard through the High- lands from Iuvernt Tin: day's journey is an epitome of a Scotch tour an ev< rshifting panorama, which is a foreshadowing of coining ilflights or a reminiscence of past pleasure- Its oidv contribution to that alloy which accompanies all enjoyment is the depressing consciousness on turning southward that your holiday is coming to an .«)• B<; ;t understood that this is not written in a spirit -f rail -v:iv glorification. We are not bhssetl that WH. "TJv s, blanked railways are blanked nuisances," snid ilif rubicund "whip" of the" High- flyer," whose besetting sin was a partiality for neat rum and n.iugli'v a 'j-cti ves, in the years gone by, when he drove his last relic, of old coaching days from Cheltenham to Oxford. We would give unqualified concurrence to Lis emphatic opinion if it were not that railways were very convenient for us who desire to make long exeursioMs in vt-rv short time. But, nathe- less, They hurry us where we would like to linger, they make us rnll when we would wish to walk, and they upset our equanimity with their clatter and noise, and ilisrurb our sense of thd fitnesi of things by shrieking their tympanum-splitting, brain- piercing shriek in the wild desolation sacred to grouse and red deer And wild black cattle. How glorious would be a coach ride over that wonderful military wood running through frowning passes down into the Perthshire Highland-* Why does not somebody start a coach from Inverness to Perth, like that running from London to Brighton or Tuubriuge Wells? Sir John Ord, who can indifferently drive tandem or lassos a child, would make a first rate driver But there is no coach, aud we want to go south so we must swallow our prejudices and make the best of the Highland rail- way. If prejudices wt-re always as easy to swallow, there would be less obstinacy in the world. The rail- way cumoativ facilitates the action of the oesophagus by giving you a glass compartment at either end of a first-class carriage, which enables you to look all around without stretching out of the carriage window—a very bad practice, for you are certain to lose your hat, or catch cold, or have your litad knocked off by collision with the stone work of a bridge, and the latter alter- native not only spoils your own enjoyment but mars that of your fellow-passengers, for a time. The scenery along the shore of the Moray Firth sus- tains the impression Inverness gave you of the sylvan beauty of this district and Nairn, which looks a pre- tentions and fashionable seaside retreat, is one of a group of little towns which keep up the idea. Nor at Forre s, whose heath it was whereon Macbeth met the weird sisters, do you find the pastoral character of the scene change, and as you pass from it into the "gar- den of Scotland," the lowlands of Moray, still more beautiful grows the landscape. But in winding round from Forres, along the gorge of the Findhorn, through the romantic vale of the Divio, and on to the slopes of Brae Moray, you get into a more primitive country, where the scenery commences that iv'ildness of charac- ter which ultimately charms and awes you all the way down the strath. A bleak wild moorland stretches away to the distant mountains, its monotony of heathery turf broken only by low hills or black-looking, peat-reeking mountain tarns. Then the moorland narrows, and the distant mountains come nearer, and a few pines and gnarled oaks whirl and dance backward as you hurry along into a dark glen. This ends in a deep cutting, above which a fence of wide strong plants, like the paling of tub- staves around a cottager's garden, tell you of the ter- rific snow-storms the winter brings, and remind you of the threatening drifts that often overtop the railway, and have once or twice engulphed for a day or two the train upon this very line you are travelling. Save a covov of grouse put up by the noise as you rattle and clatter along, or a few sheep, rapid as the train itself, as they dash up from the herbage, or a herd of the glorious cattle of the Highlands, or an antlered stag, the sentinel of the herd, to be discerned on a distant hillock, not a sign of life greets you. Now and then a cabin, whose peat smoke rises in a blue spiral line in the air, shelters in a little cleft, or a shooting-box is discovered afar off in the grey distance, or a little vil- lage clusters in a hollow belaw you, like that of Edin- kethie beneath the Divie bridge, or an old castle catches the wandering gaze, like that of Loch-na-dorb, from which Sir Donald Campbell of Cawdor carried away on his own broad back the massive iron gate now to be seen at Cawdor Castle. After this wildness your eye will be offended by the glaring white houses of Grantown, the capital of this wide Strathspey region—a little town mentioned in the Queen's Journal in the Highlands." Near here are the" Haughs of Cromdale" where the Highlanders vainly strove with Livingstone's troops in the fiery times of 1600, and a little further away, are the cliffs of Craigelfachie, which have given a slogan to the Grants, whose clan has often been aroused to battle by the beacon fires which blazed in former times upon those heights. At Tullochgorum—name so suggestive of intoxicating reel !-where the rapid Spey dances along by the side of the railway, we are running into a deeper valley. On the right stretches the Monaghleagh range, in whose southern spur rise the Foyers river to dash over cataracts into Loch Ness, and the Findhorn that straggles along, serpent-like, to find its way to the Inverness Firth by Kincorth. On our left rise the Braes of Abernethy, which appear to open up away from us as we rattle along, and then looms in sight, shadowy and mighty, a forest of peaks, the northern spur of the Grampians. Gigantic among the giants stands out Cairngorum, though it it is not the highest, its isolation giving it a great prominence and around it cluster Craiginch, Cairntoul, and BenMacdhia, all over 4000 feet in height. Their sides are stained with dark shades, which mark gloomy corries and frowning precipices, and here and there a towering summit shines with a whiteness that is not cloud or sunshine but the eternal snow which at that height knows no thawing. The long chain, reaching from the pine forest of Rothie- murchus down to the deer haunts of Badenoch, is broken only once, and that by a rocky pass, more wildly grotesque than Glencoe, running through the heart of Cairntoul. That gorge, which is lined for ten miles by rocks rising in precipitous walls a thousand 'p feet high, leads through into Braemar and Balmoral, and the country our Queen loves so well. Between us "and that distant mountain range there has been a wide tract of diversified country. The Spey cut up into numberless islets, which look like patches of meadow land floating down the stream, has kept us company on one side, and the highway road has run with us on the other. Near Loch Insh, at the vil- lage of Lynchat, is a monument to Macpherson, the much-maligned translator of Ossian, whom the burly autocrat of Fleet-street pronounced an im- poster. The beautiful meadows of Belleville we passed through belong to Colonel Macpherson, a grand- son of the revifier of the Gaelic Homer. Now, we have got into the country of the Macphersons. This is Kin- gussie, and the old barrack on the rising ground on the other side of the river contain in its walls the last remains of Castle Ruthven, one of the residences of the Comyns the foretime Lords of Badenoch, ere yet the Macpher- son were a powerful clan. Craig Dhu there gave the blazing war signal, when the Macpherson of thalt day rallied to his side the brave Highlanders dispersed at Culloden, to make another stand against Cumberland's ferocious troops and the castle underneath the beacon- hill is Cluny, the seat of the Cluny Macpherson, who, to-day, claims to be the chief of the old Clan Chattan. Through Glen Truim, and we rise towards the heights where stretch away the hunting grounds of Drumouch- ter, called a forest," though there are no trees. Then we get on to the level ground among the summits of the Grampians, and glide along a railway for a piece nearly fifteen hundred feet above the sea level. The scenery here is wild in the extreme, and grand to those who ad- mire the rugged magnificence of Nature. Away from us stretches the great ridge which cuts Scotland in two parts, the two high mountains queerly called the Badenoch boar and Athole sow, rising above the top of Loch Ericht on each side looking back, and to the left is the great forest of Athole. This vast tract of wild mountain extends over nearly 100,000 English acres, and is given over entirely to deer, of which it is said there are 10,000 head roaming among its fastnesses. We have heard the Duke of Athole indicted for a criminal waste of productive land. We have heard it made the subject of bitter comment that while men are starving in England Scotch deer have ten acres each of land to wander in. And though the country from here right up to Ben Dearg, rising in the heart of the forest, looks arid and bare, we could not help thinking how grand the scheme and how glorious the statesman that should utilise this wide-reaching forest for a bstter purpose than to satisfy a useless fancy of a wealthy Duke. At the pretty little station of Dalnaspidal we strike the watershed of the Garry river, and as we descend the hill see on our left the Loch of that name, whose blue waters lie in the shadow of high mountains rising on each side from the brink of the lake. The river has cut a ravine through the rock, and in this narrow val- ley railway, river, and road wind along so close together that a woman might throw a stone across the three. The country about here is bleak and lifeless; neither house nor living creature dots the heathery hillside, or relieves the barren monotony which may be seen stretching away to the distance where the line rises to the level of the steep banks that enclose Glen Garry. Corries open up in the mountain side, and we dash past with a glimpse of their gloomy recesses. Long green oases in the desert mark the beds of the rivers running down the slopes, and we leave them with the scant courtesy of a passing peep. Through deep cut- tings in the rock, over light and airy bridges, dodging the river now on this side now on that, running away from it, and then joining it again to find its channel more rugged and more picturesque on every introduction ;m we go. pasc the rocky Glen where the Garry foams and dashes in its first mad leaping from shelf to shelf, and past the opening of the Glen where the Bruar water rolls over precipices, and carries the marks of its fall in the foam on its face as we cross over it, oeneath the Mil which is crowned hy Blair Castle. Then we reach Blair Athole, at the mouth of the lovely Glen of the Tile, extending backwards into the ranges of Benygloe, and backwards still further into the county of Aberdeen, eighteen miles away. Our iron horse stops at Blair Athole for a few minutes, which gives us an opportunity of admiring the grand sceaery ia the midst of which Athole House is set, and of wondering what they do in the winter in that pala- tial hotel near the station—the gaily-dressed ladies at the windows and the crowd of males at the door being evidences of what they do now. A shriek and a pant, and we are off again, into scenery more magnificent and diversified. There, on that piece of flat land on the right, enclosed by an amphitheatre of hills rising to the mountains around, was fought the desperate battle of Killiecrankie, in 1689, between the Highland clans under "Bonnie Dundee," and the troops of Wil- liam of Orange, under Mackay of Scourie. Dire then was the slaughter of Lowlaiders, for there was no escape over the wearyful passes or the impassable gorge below. The hill of Lude on the left there, on the other side the highway road, in front of Urrard House, has a I monolith which is preserved as the rude monument of i the death of Dundee, the gallant leader of the victori- j ous clans, whose bonnet" was there laid low for ever. The Viscount is said to be buried at Blair Castle, the j grounds of which we passed through just before reach- ing Blair Athole. But the battle field is gone, and the hills which frowned upon the fight frown now on us more deeply, and shut us in as far above as we can see. Further on they close together, and we have to tunnel through them. A brief interval of darkness, then out into the daylight again, and over a lofty viaduct through the deep ravine, the famous Pass of Killiecrankie. In front of us the hills seem again to close to bar our passage. Above our heads they rise for many hundreds of feet in walls of rocks clad with the silvery birch, the rich green of the oak and the alder, and the sombre foliage of the rugged fir. Below us, sixty or seventy feet down, the base of the precipitous walls dams the river bed, and huge boulders dot it with rough islets, and fallen rocks lie half across it. But the furious current will not be withstood, and it insiduously, silent and dark, tunnels under the barriers, and risiug the other side of them, foams at the other obstructions, dashes around them impetuously, and bubbles over them fiercely, and rages, for over a mile, as though it were the water of a vast earth cauldron boiling at a heat such as life never knew. That narrow pass just below the tree-embow- ered cottage of Killiecrankie, is commemorated as the scene of one of those "leaps" common to all river ravines. The tradition is, that one of the flying southron soldiers being hard pressed on the cliffs away yonder by one of the bare-legged Highlanders, ran for his life, and with a desperate leap cleared the awful gorge, and thus disappointed the claymore of his sanguinary pursuer. Faskally House, described as the most beautifully situated residence in Scotland, and several other man- sions, the seats of the noble or rich, we leave behind, as we are carried on through Perthshire towards Pitlo- chrie, whence we pass into the district wherein the wide and deep Tummel vies with the Garry in its leaps and cascades ere it falls into the Tay. Beyond we strike the silvery stream of the Tay, the glorious salmon stream so attractive to southern anglers, and as we run down the strath catch glimpses of the wind- ing river through the arching trees. Guay, in whose gaol Rob Rey was confined, and Dalguise, with one of the many seats of the Duke of Athole, lead us on to the pass of Birnam, whose sparsely-wooded slopes would make us believe that Malcolm's soldiers carried away bodily the famous wood of Birnam on their march to Dunsinane. This Dunkeld, of which Birnam is a suburb, is one of the portals of the great gate of the Highlands, a noted and strikingly beautiful old town, whose stately cathedral and magnificent bridge rises prominent objects on the banks of the wide river, with a noble background of wooded mountains. We j are now out of the Highlands, and the country further 1 south becomes less mountainous and more pastoral. 1 Luncarty, where Kenneth III. drove back the invading Danes in 990, is no sooner passed than we are skirting the North Inch, the Campus Martius of the Romans, 1 whereon was fought the battle between the Clan Chattan I and the Clan Quhele, described in the Fair Maid of Perth," and then the train draws up with many a grunt and a groan at the platform cf the large central station ] of the ancient town of Perth. ] The number at the head of this paper reminds us that they have already been extended over too long a i period. To prolong a sketch of a summer jauat .until Christmas has made summer jaunts seem things of 1 the indefinite past," will ill assort with our idea of the fitness of things. Putting aside the tempting materials, Stirling, and the glorious Trossachs, and the fair town of Edinburgh offer for descriptive sketches, we bring these fragmentary papers to a close at Perth. The reader may imagine the traveller to have stayed at Perth, too, or, perchance, to have returned to the place from whence he started. If he take the former view he will give the writer credit for good taste, and may perhaps envy him the change from Cardiff to the beau- tiful town on the banks of the Tay. —

SALE OF SIR .J. HAWLEY'S RACING STUD. The following brood mares, stallions, &c., the property of Sir Joseph Hawley, Bart., were disposed of at Tatter- sall's on Monday. Pero Gomez, a bay horse, 5 years old, by Beadsman, out of Salamanca, by Student, winner of the St. Leger, and many other races, 3,000 guineas, pur- chased by the Earl of Portsmouth. The Palmer (own brother to Rosicrucian), a bay horse 7 years old, by Beadsman out of Madame Eglantine, 1,450 guineas; Asteroid, a bay horse, foaled in 1858, by Stockwell out of Teetotum by Touchstone, 1,100 guineas; Happy Wife, a bay mare, foaled 1863, by Beadsman out of Mrs. Quickley by Longbow, 420 guineas; FitzRoland, a chesnut horse foaled 1855 by Orlando, out of Stamp, by Emilius, 220 guineas Columba, by Churleston (son of Sovereign), her dam Vexation, by Touchstone, out of Vat, by Langar, 220 guineas Monaca, a bay mare by Beadsman, out of Madame Eglantine, by Carol, 400 guineas Wave, a bay mare foaled 1860, by Vortex, 200 guineas. There was a large attendance, and the competition excited much interest.

THE LOSS OF THE EARL OF ELGIN. The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council-present Sir Joseph Napier, Sir J. Colville, and Sir Montague Smith-were on Monday engaged in hearing an important cause, in which the owners of the Tyne steamer Jesmond appealed from an interlocutory decree of the High Court of Admiralty condemning them in certain damages. The suit arose out of the circumstances attending the destruc- tion of the steamer Earl of Elgin off the Yorkshire coast, and the lamentable loss of life which followed on that event. In the Court below cross suits were instituted between the parties, and the learned judge decided that both vessels were to blame for the collision, and pronounced that the damages should be borne between them but condemned the Jesmond in a certain moiety, and made no order as to costs. The pro- ceedings were very voluminous, but the facts may be very briefly stated. The collision took place about eight or nine miles north by west from Whitby lights. The Jesmond was under steam, and proceeding at the rate of about eight knots an hour; and the Earl of Elgin was also under steam, and proceeding at a like speed. Each vessel had proper lights duly exhibited, and burning brightly, and the weather was fine. The course of the Jesmond, according to the statements of her witnesses, was N.N.W., and the course of the Earl of Elgin, S.E. The Jesmond therefore contended that the three lights of the Earl of Elgin were seen ahead, that the helm of the Jesmond was posted, and that shortly before the collision her engines were stopped. The officers of the Earl of Elgin were 'charged with having neglected to port her helm and having improperly star- boarded. The case, on the other hand, set up by the Earl of Elgin was that the masthead and green light of the Jesmond were seen on the star- board bow of the Earl of Elgin. The Earl of Elgin was kept on with a view to passing on the star- board side of the Jesmond until the latter, by porting her helm, opened her red light, caused immediate danger of a collision, and induced the Earl of Elgin to starboard. The Earl of Elgin was struck about amidships on her star- board side by the stern of the Jesmond with such violence that she foundered almost immediately afterwards, and five of her crew and three pas- sengers, as our readers are aware, were drowned. The remainder of those on board the Earl of Elgin were fortunately rescued by the Jesmond's boats. Mr. Butt, Q. C., and Mr. Webster were for the appellants, and Dr. Deane, Q. C., and Mr. E. C. Clarkson for the respondents. Their Lordships, after hearing counsel, pronounced that the vessels were meeting end on, and that the Earl of Elgin was so responsible for the collision that she must he con- demned in damages and the costs in this court and in the court below. j

The Spanish Minister is said to be on a visit to Earl Granville. WRECK OX THE LANCASHIRE COAST.—The schooner Jubilee, of Preston, whilst entering the port of Lytham on Sunday morning, struck heavily on the Horse Bank. In reply to her signals of distress, the Lytham lifeboat, of the National Lifeboat Institution, was instantly launched, and in a short time was successful in saving and safely landing the vessel's crew of four men. THE BISHOP OF LONDON'S VISITATION.—The Bishop of London commenced the holding of his primary visitation in St. Paul's Cathedral on Monday. The ar- rangements extend over three days, the first two being for the reception of churchwardens from the various parishes in the diocese. On Friday his lordship will deliver his charge, which is expected to be of more than usual interest in consequence of the recent judgment by the Privy Council in reference to Ritualism, and the request of Canons Gregory and Liddon that they might be allowed to be the first defendants in a prosecution to test the validity of the judgment tn tmestioB.

==- MISCELLANEOUS. 4 Dr. James Cartmell, Master of Christ's College Cambridge, has been appointed one of the new governing body of Shrewsbury SchooL An effort is being made in the Isle of Man to procure a daily mail service between Douglas and Liver; pool. In winter time there have been heretofore tw postal services between the two places. Private critics speak in very warm terms j Gounod's new opera, and especially of one air en^v, i An Ode to Vesta. M. Gounod may now bo regard as a permanent resident in this country. n There are now on view at a well-known mart, near Covent Garden, preparatory to their sale tft week, upwards of 150 native diamonds, as found at Cape, ranging from 1 to over 23 carats each. It is'stated that the Queen is steadily improving in health, and it is hoped that Her Majesty wIllfter able to bear the fatigue of a journey south the week a next. Mr. T. H. Sparks, who served in Paria D^legu^ to the society (Ambulances Volantes) during t siege, has received the bronze cross and riband, with to diploma, as an acknowledgment of his services rendered the society. The magistrates of Doncaster having a);plied Government to prosecuteina case of alleged illegal that borough, Mr. Bruce has refused to do RO,- stating thaf it is the duty of the Local Watch Committee and not 0 the Government. The Rev. Canon Kingsley has undertaken write a hymn to be sung by 1,000 children on the 4 of December, when Lord Leigh, with Masonic rites, v* lay the memorial stone of the Queen's Hospital Extensi Buidin, gsl at Birmingham. Mr. P. A. Taylor, writing to a Republic8^ Club" at Bolton, deals very summarily with the House Lords. The member for Leicester would not lose tin>^ by attempting to reform the House of Lords he ^r0.'L abolish it at once. A second Chamber i", in his oplwan, a mistake. The Civilian has information that the of London Tradesmen over which Mr. W. H. SWIt, M.P., presidf" has resolved to agitate for a Parliamentary Committee toe nquire into the operation of the Friena k- Societies Act, ¡"we especially as exemplified in the war ing of the Civil CL.wice Co-operative Societies. Active steps are being taken to restore the na^ of the ancient cathedral of Kiklare. Mr. Street, i now engaged in the restoration of Christ Church Dublin, has given his opinion that the nave can restored for £ 5,000. Nearly £ 1,000 has already been SO scribed. The Poet Laureate, accompanied by Mr8j Tennyson and their eldest son (Mr. Hailain Tennys^ have just visited Oxford. Mr. Tennyson was the guest the Master of Balliol (Professor .Towett), who entertain a large party to dinner in honour of his distinguish g11est, while Mr. Tennyson, jun., was the guest of t Master of University (Rev. Mr. Bradley). te In the course of a case heard before a magistra (Rev. H. P. Boothby) at Market Rasen, a few days sin_^ in which a shepherd named Rogers was charged^ stealing one lamb, the property of Mr. Francis W ll- solicitor and farmer, of Ludford. it transpired that taking cararof and attending to 200 sheep, the prISOn It received the weekly remuneration of eight shillings. 1 „ of this he had to maintain himself, wife, and six. chiWr The line which the Confederate bondholders intending to take at Washington is that they had n_"thi^o to do with the state of civil war which existed III teS United States, hut simply lent money to certain St» on the security of cotton, which had since been burnt confiscated by the Federal Government. An argiu1,e of of this nature necessarily raises the vexed question State rights.—Scotsma >i. A very excellent institution has been establish in the General Post Office, called the Sorters', Borters', and Letter Carriers' Orphan Home, vith the o ject of providing board, lodging, clotltin-, and educati for the orphans of deceased members who have been ployed in the minor establishments of the Post either in London or the provinces. The children are to admitted to the privileges of the Home without elecWV by priority of claim, and the institution has received •« warm support of the Controller of the Post Office. J} the heads of various other departments in the cstablI-6 ment. At the Mansion House on Saturday, a fashionabj dressed young man, named Francis Taylor, appeared^ answer a charge of obtaining a large quantity of c!H'ju from Mr. Vaux within the proscribed time mentionert^ the Bankruptcy Act. The cigars, it was alleged, sent on the representation that they were for a gen tie'n> named Brewster, but it was afterwards discovered they had been deposited with a person named Bland sum of money much below the value of the articles. Z F. H. Lewis, who appeared f• >r Taylor, said there been proposals made with respect to the property in tion, and therefore he contended it was not onen for ro- prosecutor to adopt concurrent civil and criminal P Qe ceeding-I<. Alderman Finnes decided on sending the ca\g for trial, but bail was accepted for the defendan appearance. NEW BARONETS.—The Standard has infor-111^ tion that the Queen is about to confer a baroneteV Thomas Graham Briggs, of Briggs-Dayrell, in the Is'8' of Barbadoes, a member of her Majesty's Council and P J prietor of extensive estates in that island and in the Tsla of Nevis. It is also announced that tbe ex-Lord Ma> of London (Alderman Dakin) will receive the honour o» baronetcy. FATAL COLLISION AT SEA.—The Hamburg-A#16 rican steamer Holsatia, from New York, after haVM* landed the mails at Plymouth on Friday iiieht, and about four miles outside the breakwater, just after night, in a dense fog, steaming at half speed, in a local pilot, was in collision with and sunk the p1 sloop Queen of the Craft. Two of her crew of four ban were drowned, and the other two men saved themsel-v t by elinifing to a nun buoy, and were rescued by a bOk from the Holsatia, and transferred to a fishing swaC which landed them at Plymouth on Saturday morning- THE GOVERNMENT OF LONDON.—Mr. Pruce?^ written a letter (in reply to a communication addressed him) as follows :—" The subject of the local for the metropolis has received the attentive conside^ tion of her Majesty's Government. It is with ni11 regret that I have to inform you that, having regard st the magnitude of the question and the time which JJltI e necessarilv have been allotted to its discussion and pas?a^ through Parliament, they have found it impossible include it among the measures wftich it will be their do J to submit to Parliament during the coming session. BELGIAN NEUTRALITY IN THE LAST WAIt. Count de Palikao, in the work which he recently in defence of the acts of his administration which_1 as^ twenty-four days, explained the optimist views which J1 held up to the last moment by publishing several tel grams which were communicated to him. The CoU^ considered the following despatch—"Junction f between MacMahon and Bazaine; Prussians in n'g towards Sedan "—which was sent from Brussels to aJI private individual in Paris, as sufficient authority f°r announcement in the Corps T.i'gislatif. This telegra signed" Humbert," was shewn first of all to the Eu>p''<?, who wept for joy. It now turns out that Humbert is 1 director of the Alcazar at Brussels.—Pall Mall Gazette. "BRITISH WORKMAN" HOUSES.—The seCT°\. annual gathering of the supporters of the British V1 0 0 men houses in Leeds has taken place. There are n0^^ of these establishments in Leeds, where the movement first started. Houses have been opened upon the same l'r'j ciple at Bradford, Birmingham, Liverpool, ITull, 1'55. other places, the total number in the country being tb6 The Mayor presided at the meeting, and proceedings were highly interesting. Amongst ft i statement made in the report was that Mr. Con vers n promised £ 5 for every public house turned into a Workman," and the committee were about to "appv that gentleman for the fifth £5. of GAS ILLUMINATION.—In a recent number Encrinceriwi was described a new process of distillation f the production of gas of greater purity and a much illuminating power, invented by Dr. ^'veleigh, and w' n0{; has been very favourably reported upon. Tt is stated only to be more brilliant, but to contflin only about o tenth of the sulphur frequently found in ordinary Lon Ie, gas. Its value has not yet been tested on a full sC^i1g but this is to be effected at the end of the month, directors of the gas works at Barnet having made arrani>y ments for the purpose. The patent is now fhe P1"0?.6,!) of a company called the Patent Gas Company (Limite '» of which Mr. T. Randolph Mellor is consulting engineer* A HANDSOME BEQUEST.—Mr. Alexander Stewa; > J.P., and ex-chief magistrate of Huntlv, Aberdeensh' £ whose funeral took place on Thursday last, has left lise whole of his estate, which", it is estimated, will i:<•; £ 10,000, with the exception of £ 200 to the Roman Catli_ clergymen of Huntly, for the benefit of his native to. By Mr. Stewart's wiR, a much-felt want will be supp^l the erection of a public hall being specially meiitioneo^ one of the uses to which he wishes his money to be P During his life, Mr. Stewart took an active and v,ltrJU interest in everything connected with tbe good of the to He was never married.—Scotsman. THE LOSS OF LIFE BY COLLIERY ACCIDENTS- The Preston Herald publishes a letter from Mr. Herd M.P., to Alderman Miles Myers, Mayor of Preston, which'he says:—"I have felt deeply the terrible cala ties that have befallen our mining population of late, a have considered whether anything could be done to P j vent these catastrophes. With this object in vIeW, on propose to give a premium of £200 for the best essays^0 the subject, to be competed for by practical miners io coal fields of Lancashire and Yorkshire—say £ 150 first prize, and £ 50 for a second. In your official ca^?njjig as Mayor and Coroner I am sure you will assist in §?V.ye the attention of those concerned to the subject.. to nr. doubt we shall find three able and impartial judge decide on the merits of the pamphlets, one of the oo tions being that phraseology and spelling shall not tbe fluence the decision, but the prize to be awarded for most useful and life-preserving suggestions." NEWFOUNDLAND.—" Those who believe (sAYS rej Toronto Glove) that Newfoundland is a region dehv over to fog and mist will be a little surprised to lear^^yg the Newfoundlanders experienced only three fog&y.eajj in the month of September, and that whilst the ed g, average temperature was 55 deg. 3 min., it attain. to maximum of 80 deg. 4 min., and never once 1 freezing point, the minimum being 32 deg. 5 min- ere»ii foundland, too, is just now enjoying an era oi 0gt commercial prosperity. The capture of the Î thiS fabulous number of 600,000 seals in the spring 0 f0l- vear, and a most successful cod fishery, have be after lowed by the re-appearance of mackerel on the coas an absence of forty years. Money, too, appears, inte- abundant, the local banks having reduced the rate test; their dividends of from 8 to 12 per cenk^ bonuses in addition, amply justifying them in eivio customers a share in their prosperity." pheO" HALSE ON MEDICAL GALVANISM.—Paraly3L^E^,IIITY> matism, Loss of Muscular power in any part, ^tl3ness> Sleeplessness,Indigestion, Asthma, Sciatica, njsni» Tic, &c., See Mr. Halse's Pamphlet on Medicalr(^nary 52 pages, for the particulars of the most extra_ )( ^er cures by means of Halse's Galvanic APPARATU»>^ be(::JJ all medicines and other Galvanic Machines ftv BaIse, tried in vain. Send t\v, stamps to Mr.. London, Warwick Lodge, 40, Addison-road, Kensington, 1893 for it.