Monmouthshire Merlin

THE BLACK SEA AND THE SEA OF AZOFF. ADMIRALTY, AUG 18. Despatches, of which the following are copies, have been received from Rear-Admiral Sir Edmund Lyons, G.C.B., Commander-in-Chief of her Majesty's ships and vessels in the Mediterranean and Black Sea :— "ROYAL ALBERT, OFF SEBASTOPOL, AUG. 4. Sir,—In continuation of the proceedings of the squadron in the Sea of Azoff since those which were re- ported in my letter of the 30th ult., No. 613, I have the honour to enclose, for the information of the Lords Com- missioners of the Admiralty, a copy of a letter from Commander Sherard Osborn, of the Vesuvius, the senior officer in that sea, reporting to me the steps he had taken to harass the enemy as much as possible, and to punish him at Berdiansk, for having fired at some of our people, although the town had been previously spared on the plea of its being defenceless. Commander Osborn does not fail to point out, and to do justice to the merits of the officers by whom he has been so ably seconded, and he particularly mentions Commander Rowley Lambert, of the Curlew, the officer next in seniority to himself, who has on all occasions been conspicuous for his activity and gallantry. Commander Osborne has also, on several occasions, «ne t*ie highest testimony to the merits of those gallant officers, Lieutenant William Horton, commanding the Ardent, and Lieutenant John E. Commerell, commanding the Weser. I am, &c., EDMUND LYONS, Rear-Admiral and Commander-in-Chief." The Secretary of tho Admiralty, &c." "HER MAJESTY'S SHIP VESUVIUS, ARABAT SPIT, JULY 2.5. Sir,-Since my last letter, I have fully succeeded in destroying, by means of submarine explosions, the four Russian'steamers sunk in Berdiansk Bay, and, as the enemy had, from the houses of the western suburb of Berdiansk, twice fired upon our people, while peaceably and unguardedly employed, I considered it right that such a dishonourable course, from a town which had been spared under plea of being defenceless, should be severely punished, and the more so as Berdiansk bad been treated with unusual leniency upon the occasion of our former visits. I therefore, on the 22nd of July, caused to be de- stroyed the western suburb, which had screened their ri- flemen, and succeeded in discovering and setting fire to no less than ten large granaries filled with wheat, each averaging about 200 tons in capacity, and several flour mills, which have been employed night and day, grinding for the use of the Russians. The church, and major part of the town, I spared, although nearly every house we searched contained grain in large quantities, and the whole place might be consi. dered little else than a general granary. The dangerous service of landing in so large a town, with bodies of Cossacks threatening, was intrusted to Commander Rowley Lambert, Lieutenant Hubert Cam- pion (senior of this ship), Lieutenant Hewet, her Ma- jesty's steam-vessel Beagle, and Lieutenant Marryatt, her Majesty's steam-vessel Cracker, and the skill with which it was executed reflects the highest credit upon their zeal and judgment. The operations were admirably covered by the gun- boats under Lieutenant Grylls, Commerell, and Towns- end, and her Majesty's ships Vesuvius and Curlew, the latter, under charge of her zealous First Lieutenant, C. J. Rowley. On the 24th of July, I rejoined Lieutenant Horton, her Majesty's steam-vessel Ardent. He, I found, had not been idle; and, with the assistance of the Clinker, Lieutenant Smithett, and Wrangler, Lieutenant Burgoyne, very much damage had been done to the enemy from Genitchi to Obitotchna Spit, in the destruction of forage, fish, stores, and launches. I have, &c., SHERARD OSBORN, Commander and Senior Officer." Rear.Admiral Sir Edmund Lyons, Bart., G.C.B., Commander-in-Chief."

RUSSIA. The following telegraphic despatch has been received at Berlin Prince Gortschakoff, under date of Sebastopol, 16th of August, 5 p.m., says:- "1 A portion of our troops crossed the Tchernaya, to- day, and attacked the enemy on the so-called Feducheni heights. Having found the enemy in considerable force, our troops, after an obstinate combat, withdrew to the right bank of the river, and there awaited the enemy for four hours. As he did not advance, they returned to their former positions. The loss on both sides considerable.' FRANCE. PALACE OF ST. CLOUD, AUG. 20. The Queen and Prince, the Prince of Wales, and the Princessjloyal, attended by the ladies and gentlemen in waiting, accompanied the Emperor of the French to the Exposition des Beaux Arts, in the Champs Elysees this morning. At eleven o'clock the acclamations of the crowd an- nounced the approach of the Queen, and the shouts and hurrahs were repeated as the royal party reached the en- trance. Ten beautiful carriages, the first two drawn by four superb horses, and richly adorned, comprised the im- perial cortege, escorted by the Cuirassiers of the Guard. The Queen was handed from her carriage by the Em- peror, who gave his arm to her Majesty as she entered the principal saloon, while the band of the Chasseurs a Cheval played the National Anthem. They were accom- panied by Prince Napoleon, Prince Albert, the Prince of Wales, the Princess Royal, the President of the Legisla- tive Corps, the President of the Council of State, the Ministers, and the suite of the Queen. The Emperor, as well as Prince Albert, was dressed in plain clothes, and the imperial commissioners of the exhibition were pre- sented to the Queen by their President, Prince Napoleon. The members of the International Jury, those of the Academy of the Beaux Arts, and a good number of the most distinguished painters of France, accompanied her Majesty during her inspection of the pictures and statues, which lasted about three hours. At two o'clock, the Queen proceeded to the Palace of the Elysee, where the members of the diplomatic corps were presented to her. The continued indisposition of the new Ottoman Ambassador prevented him from attend- ing. The Queen soon after left to visit the Sainte Cha- pelle. It was known that she would pass along the Bou- levards, on her return to St. Cloud, and from two o'clock a considerable number of persons took up their stations on the sideways, from the Bastille to the Madeleine. The weather was magnificent, and as the triumphal arches, flags, and other decorations still stand intact and un- dimned, the Queen could at leisure admire the beauty of that great thoroughfare. The reception, which was warm in the Rue de Rivoli, through which the Queen passed to the Sainte Chapelle, was excellent along the Boulevards. It was near five o'clock when the cortege entered the Champs Elysees, and, as this is the hour when that gay promenade is most crowded, I have no doubt that her reception was equally satisfactory there. PARIS, TUESDAY NIGHT. The Queen, with the whole of the imperial and royal party, visited Versailles to-day. The Grandes Eaux played, and their Majesty's received the most enthusiastic ovation. Their Majesties were received at the entrance of the town by M. de Saint-Marsault, Prefect of the Seine-et- Oise, the Mayor, and members of the Municipal Council; and at the entrance of the castle, by H. E. M. A. Fould, Minister of State and of the Household of the Emperor Count de Nieuwerkorke, Director-General of the Imperial Museums and M. Questel, architect of the palace. PARIS, TUESDAY, AUG. 21, 5 P.M. A private despateh from the French camp gives a few additional particulars about the affair of the Tchcrnaya, and explains, to a certain extent, the disproportion, re- marked by every one, between the loss of the allies and that of the enemy. It appears that the garrison of Sebastopol, as well as the relieving army, are almost without provisions; they have scarcely a morsel of bread to eat, and they are in such a plight that, according to the despatch, one would say the Russian Commander-in- Chief really desired to get rid of a considerable number of his men from the sheer impossibility of feeding them. The enemy had to pass through a deep ravine to approach our lines, and while they did so they were actually mowed down by hundreds by our guns and musketry. The Russians were not in a position to return our fire with effect, and did little more than fire in the air. They seem tojhave been sent forth as desperate men, to do the best they could. It was in advance and retreat that they suffered most, and, but for the signal slaughter of the enemy, the affair could scarcely be called a battle. If we do not take Sebastopol with our cannon," adds the despatch, we shall do so before long by famine." Another despatch mentions that Omar Pasha has left Constantinople for Sebastopol, for the purpose of taking a part of the Turkish troops to Asia. They will be replaced by the Turkish Contingent under General Vivian. A letter from Vienna speaks of the menaced dislocation of the Austrian Cabinet. There are two elements struggling for mastery,-one, which is now in office, and which is favourable to the alliance of the Western Powers, but without action the other which is not only favourable, but desires to co-operate actively and speedily. It is the latter, the despatch says, that has the best chance of success. The Moniteur of Wednesday makes the following ob- servations upon General Pelissier's despatch, giving the number of Russians killed on the 16th of August at 3,329 :—"The losses of the Russians on the 16th were, therefore, much more considerable than the first de- spatches of General Pelissier had led us to suppose. They assume a proportion rarely exceeded in regular battles, yet we should not be surprised, to judge from the news from St. Petersburgh, if the Russians should simply call the affair of the 16th a reconnaissance. The number of troops engaged, the materials brought into the field by the Russians, their efforts to take again a position which General Liprandi had occupied during the whole winter, prove the importance they attached to being victorious." AUSTRIA. VIENNA, AUGUST 18. A day or two since the Oesterreichische Zeitung stated, on reliable authority," that the Western Powers ha.d made known to the German Governments their intention permanently to occupy Turkey, and at no distant period to attack Russia from the Danubian Principalities. It is ge- nerally believed that the paper in question receives infor- mation from the French Embassy in this city, and there- fore considerable importance had been attached to the foregoing intelligence. It is probable enough that the Western Powers consider it advisable to occupy the atten- tion of the Russians on the Danube; but it is difficult to believe that they have announced their resolution per- manently to occupy any part of the Sultan's territories. "VIEHNA, AUG. 21. "The Oesterreichische Corresponded publishes news from Constantinople cf the 13th and 19th inst. "Omar Pasha had been invested with the order and insignia of the Bath. He was still at Constantinople. Advices from Trebizonde of the 7th of August state that the postal communications between Kara and Erze- roum are interrupted. The Russians had advanced as far as Kapricio, on the road to Erzeroum. Ten thousand Baahi-Bazouka had arrived at Erze- roum."

FORTIFICATIONS OF SEBASTOPOL. The plan for the Sebastopol docks, the most costly and difficult of its public works, was devised by M. Raucoiirt, a French engineer. But his estimate of the expense, 6,000,000 roubles, startling the authorities, they accepted the offer of Mr. Upton, an English engineer, and a refugee from the laws of his country. He undertook to complete the task for 2,500,000 roubles in five years; and com- menced it in June, 1832. But double the time stated was required, and the outlay was quadrupled. The prin- cipal basin-300 feet by 400—is at a short distance from the eastern side of the central inner harbour, and 30 feet above the level of the sea. There being no tides, the difficult part of the problem to be solved was to fill and drain the docks, bring up vessels from the port, and re- turn them. This was accomplished by conducting water along an artificial channel from the valley of the Tcher- naya river, about 12 miles, through two tunnels, and over three aqueducts, and by an ingenious combination of locks. The water supply being inadequate, especially., in the hot months, a pumping engine for assisting was sent out from the manufactory of Messrs. Maudslay and Field, in London. It was originally designed to make the dock-gates of timber, but, owing to the destructive worm which infests the water, they were made with cast iron frames, covered with wrought iron plates. Nine pairs of gates were manufactured by the Messrs. Rennie, in a building expressly fitted up for the manipulation of the immense masses of metal required. The openings vary from 64 feet in width to 34 feet 4 inches in height, for ships of 120 guns, to 46 feet 7 inches in width and 21 feet in height, for frigates. I have sees it stated that the gates cost 270,000 silver roubles. A whole army of military labourers, 30,000 in number, was employed upon the basins, tunnels, and aqueducts, with the rest of the watercourse. Dreadful sufferings were endured by the workmen. Recklessly exposed to the sun, the glare of the white rocks and clouds of the fine dust gave rise to ophthalmia so virulent that, in 24 hours after the disease commenced, the eye left its socket. The tunnel at Inkermann, 900 feet long, 10 feet high, and sufficiently wide to admit of a footpath being left on each side of the narrow canal, was excavated by gangs of labourers, working day and night, and relieving each "ther every four hours. It was begun July 31, 1832, and finished October 31, 1833. The tunnel was quite a novel performance in the Crimea, and regarded in the light of a marvel. Being commenced at the same time at both extremities, many surmised that the two parties of la- bourers would miss each other in the rock, instead of meeting in the middle. It is curious to reflect, considering existing political combinations, how prominent our countrymen have been in aiding Russia in the Crimea and the Black Sea. No blame, however, to the engineers. I could give a host of instances; but a few will suffice. During the first invasions—1736—17AO—Marshal Lacy, who twice con- ducted an Imperial army into the peninsula across the Putrid Sea, was an Irishman, and died Governor-General of the Baltic Provinces at Riga. Colonel Brown, who was with Marshal Munich, when he forced the lines of Perekop, was Irish also, and died General Count Brown, at Riga. General Keith, second in command under Munich, was a Scotchman; Lieutenant Innes, who dis- tinguished himself at the capture of Otchakow, was like- wise Scotch, as well as Colonel Johnstone, who fought under Lacy, and General Leslie, who was cut off in the steppe, with his entire party, by the Tartars. Lieutenants Smallman and Every, who served on board the flotilla in the Sea of Azoff, were English. Most of these gentle- men had either been out" in the '15, or as Jacobites preferred being abroad to living under the Hanoverian dynasty. Admiral Bredale, who commanded the flotilla, though a Dane, had been educated in the British navy and Munich, a German, first served under Marlborough. In the next Russian war with Turkey, which broke out in 1768, the great naval victory in the Bay of Tchesme, was gained by the intrepidity and skill of the subordinate British officers, Elphinstone, Greig, and Dugdale. That victory was as fatal to the Turkish navy as the Battle of Lepanto under Don John of Austria, or the Battle of N avarino under Sir Edward Codrington. In the troubles connected with the annexation of the Crimea, General Balmame took Kaffa. He was the son of Viscount Bal- maine, whose adherence to the Stewarts compelled him to quit Scotland. The first person to make known the capacities of the port of Sebastopol, was the English Lady Craven, after- wards Margravine of Anspach, in 1786. One of the early governors of the Crimea was an Englishman, the veteran officer, Colonel Michelson, who saved the throne i rr ^ne when it tottered, owing to the remarkable rfi i o11 ^o^chef. Priestman, an admiral in the Black Sea fleet, was English, and read the burial service at the grave of Howard. So was Admiral Greig, who founded the Astronomical Observatory at Nicolaicf. He was brother-in-law of the well known Mrs. Somerville. The plans for WoronzofPs palace at Aloupka, were pre- pared in London; and Jamie Sinclair, a Scotch gardener, resided 13 years on the estate, engaged in laying out the grounds. Mr. Hunt, an English architect, was employed upon the unfinished Imperial palace at Great Orlanda.— Correspondent of the Times.

■ ii —————^ .ø' DISGUSTING OUTRAGE, AND PERJURY. At the Liverpool Assizes, on Tuesday, Abraham Naylor was indicted for a rape upon the person of Pro* dence Frost, at Ashton, on the 27th of March last. Mr, Tindal Atkinson prosecuted, and Alr. SizodO- defended the prisoner. Mr. Atkinson called Prudence Frost, a modest and respectable-looking woman, who said I am the wife of James Frost. On Wednesday, the 28th of March last-, I was proceeding home to Ashton about 8 o'clock in the- evening, and had reached a lonely part of thte road" about 2oO yards from our house, when the prisoner at the bar came up to me and struck me a violent blo< on the chest, which knocked me down. I fell upon n] back, and he then knelt upon my chest and committed the offence. I screamed, and made every etforti I possibly could to get away from him, but he said he would have his will of me." I became very faint and; exhausted with his weight on my chest. 1 had not been in good health previously, having suffered from a mis* carriage. It was a moonlight night, and I had mean< of observing the prisoner. Afterwards the prisoner ran away, and I then got up and went home. I first saw my servant, and I told her, in the presence of Alice Mather. J what had happened. My husband was not at home, but when he came home I told him of it. Upon the 3d of April I went to the police station at Ashton. and I there, recognized the prisoner as the man who had abused m6., I have no doubt whatever that is the man. In her cross-examination, the witness admitted that she was very confused and agitated at the time, and at first thought she was going to be robbed. She wrestled:s with the prisoner for some time, and struggled against him, and he made use of disgusting expressions towards ) her. She described his dress, particularly his cap and jacket. It was a moonlight night, and when she in-5 identified the man at the police station, she did so partly by his voice. By the Judge: The moon was on my face when I fell, but the position of my body changed in falling. I waS.) in such a weak state that I could not get up. When I t went to the station to identify the prisoner, my friend Mrs. Taplin, accompanied me I was very much agita- ,a ted at first, but after composing myself I saw the-4 prisoner a second time, and I was certain he was the tnant. T particularly when I heard his voice. I selected the a prisoner from four or five men in the room Alice Mather deposed that she was crossing the fields leading from Senley-green to Ashton, about a quarter to 8 on the evening in question, and heard a cry of "Murder!" andscreaming. She became very frigh'ened and ran as bard as she could to Mrs. Frost's house, and in a few minutes afterwards Mrs. Frost came in. She was very pale, and appeared as if she had been used very' badly. She said a man had knocked her down, and abused her very much indeed. Francis Gardner, a police constable, described the dress of the prisoner at the time he took him into custody. Mr. Simon then addressed the jury on behalf of the prisoner in a powerful and energetic speech. He lamented as they all must, the barbarous ill-usage to which Mrs. Frost had been exposed, but insisted that the identity of the prisoner had not been sufficiently established by the evidence, which he should rebut by calling witnesses who would prove than the prisoner was some miles distant in company with his wife at the time of the alleged offence. William Knowles, a lodging-housekeeper, at Wigat, then swore that the prisoner, in company with his wife, slept at his house on Tuesday, the 27th of March, and also on the night of Wednesday, the 28th of March. Charles Hesketh, a publican at Wigan, also swore that the prisoner was drinking all day at his house on- the 2Sth of March, up to seven iu the evening. John Rigley, sexton of St. Mate's Church, said the prisoner passed the 28th of March in his company at Hesketh s house. All these witnesses were severely cross-examined by the learned judga, who made the variations in their testimony very apparent. Mr. T. Atkinson having replied upon the evidence. The learned Judge addressed the jury, and proceeded to enumerate the various facts detailed in evidence. After a short deliberation the jury returned a verdict of Guilty against the prisoner whereupon His Lordship inquired whether the jury believed that the three last witnesses had sworn falsely with the object of perverting the ends of justice and, being told by the foreman that such was the impression upon their minds, the learned Judge at once committed Knowles, Hesketh, and Rigley to prison, ordering them to be indicted for perjury. Upon the prisoner's being called up. The learned Judge told him that he entirely concurred with the jury in the verdict they had given. He had committed a most brutal and savage assault on a respect- able woman, and lie feared he was a very dangerous character, for he saw that he had already been twice in gaol, one offence being burglary, for which he had suffered two years' imprisonment. The sentence of the Court for this offence was that he be transported for the term of his natural life.

A correspondent of the Times says:—"With this almost entire destruction of Sweaborg, I expect we must be satisfied, and not look for any other great operation in the Baltic this year. But there still remains a great deal that may be done; indeed, a great deal more might have been done at Sweaborg but for the failure of our mortars; the blow, however, which we have so successfully given, and which, I belive, was more successful than was ever anticipated, will be severely felt by Russia. It shakes her confidence in her stone walls, and makes her tremble for every town along her coasts, when she sees that a few small boats, some of them actually old dockyard lighters, after having a gun or a mortar put into them, are able to ore destroy stores, public buildings, and property worth millions, and defended by between 500 and 600 guns, without the slightest accident or casualty, for I have just learnt that neither French nor English have lost a single man, for those wounded in the Cornwallis were not engaged upon the fortress, and those wounded in the gun and rocket boats were only, with two exceptions, slight burns from our own rockets. The weather during the time was most favourable to us, a gentle breeze from the N.E. fanning the fires we lighted without disturbing the smoothness of the water. RUSSIAN VERSION. A supplement of the Invalids Russe, of the 12th of August, publishes the continuation of the telegraphic account of the bombardment of Sweaborg :— "July 29 (Aug. 10), 2.10 p.m.—The fire of the enemy was renewed wfth double intensity after 9 a.m. Up to noon their fire was directed chiefly against the works on West Swartoe, and the Nicholas battery on the island of Nantan, but without success their cannonade was then again turned against the fortress. According to an approximate calculation, about 3000 shots were fired yesterday against Sandhamn Island; the firing consisted chiefly in broadsides, or rolling fire. "To-day about 4,800 shells were thrown into West Swartoe and the Nicholas battery, which, to judge from their explosion, were all of the weight of seven pouds. "7.6 p.m.—The cannonade of the enemy is weaker. "10.17 p.m.-The bombardment to-day has positively done no damage, either to the fortifications or to the bat- teries or guns. In these two days the conflagration de- stroyed some buildings on the island of Stura-Ester- Swartoe." WAR DEPARTMENT, AUGUST 20. Lord Panmure has this day received a despatch and its enclosures, of which the following are copies, addressed to his Lordship by General Simpson :— BEFOtilE SEBASTOPOL, AUG 7. My Lord,-Since the 5th instant, nothing has occur- red to form the subject of a despatch. I have the honour to enclose the list of casualties to the 5th inst. I regret to have to inform your Lornship of the death of Colonel Cobbe, 4th Regiment, which took place yesterday; he was an excellent officer, and is a serious loss to her Majesty's service. Captain Layard, 38th Regiment, Deputy Assistant- Quartermaster-General, died this morning of diarrhce, on board the steamer Faith, in Balaklava harbour, to which ship he had been removed, in the hopes of benefitting his health. I am, &c., "JAMES SIMPSON, General Commanding." "The Lord Panmure, &c."

THE STATE OF SEBASTOPOL. (From the Schlesische Zeitteng.) ST. PETERSBURGH, AUG. 8. If we carefully peruse the reports of the Privy Coun- cillor Mansuroff, to whom, as is known, the inspection of the treatment of the sick and wounded belonging to the marine force in the Crimea has been confided, not from the extracts in the newspapers, but from the full accounts in the See Magazin, it will be seen that, as far back as the middle of July, to which date these reports have reached us, the state of health in Sebastopol must have become materially worse. In one week of June, the daily increase of sick is given as 100; in July, as 60 and more.' If we take into consideration that this has only reference to the naval force, whose strength since the beginning of the siege has dwindled to at least one-half, this would give about 15 per cent. of sickness in a month. Cholera and typhus prevail to a great ex- tent, as many officers have fallen a sacrifice to them. From these reports will also be seen how bad the position of the defenders of the place had already become after the capture of the redoubts, on the 7th of June, as the former hospitals and temporary places for attending to the wounded were exposed to the hostile fire, and were obliged to be cleared. However, much has been done to direct the wounded capable of being moved, first to the north side, and then to the valley of the Bclbek, in order to gain room. A new bombardment must greatly increase all former difficulties and disasters. The progress of the besiegers, after the taking of those redoubts, is also ob- servable in the lists, according to which persons are said to be killed or wounded in those parts of the town which were formerly considered quite safe. The progress of the enemy's approaches seems to be particularly dangerous to the officers, who are more exposed to the riflemen, and the number of their wounded in those days when the bombardment was weak or had stopped, is out of all pro- portion to the wounded. Among the inmates of the hos- pitals are at present the two celebrated captains of the first-class Budischtscheff and Jurkowski; and the well- known commander of the redoubt between the third and fourth bastione, which had received its name from him, Lieut. Schwarz, was so ill that he was obliged to be taken to Nicolaieff, where the surgeons hoped to save his life. The sailors are still unshaken, and the chief of the Sisters of Charity in Sebastopol says, in a letter in which she describes the horrors of the bombardment, and relates several interesting traits of the wounded, and of those men who carried them out of the hospitals amid the most terrible hail of balls—' Then I saw that it does not re- quire a great deal to encourage our glorious Russian sol- diers a good glass of brandy, a few friendly words, and they are happy, and forget both pain and hardship.'

HORRIBLE ATTEMPT TO MURDER A CLERGYMAN AND HIS DAUGHTER.—The neighbourhood of Colyton was, on Sunday morning, thrown into the utmost consternation and alarm, by a report that the Rev. George Tucker, the rector of Musbury, a village a mile and a half distant from Colyton, had been shot by a man known as Captain Harvey, a resident in the village. It appears that on y 0 Sunday morning the rev. gentleman, accompanied by his son daughter—a young lady of about 22—was pro- ceeding from his residence, as usual, to serve his church, and that when passing the house in which Harvey lived, situate in the lane leading to, and only a short distance Y"01? the church, they were deliberately shot at with a double-barrelled gun. Mr. Tucker was a few feet in advance of his daughter when the first shot was fired, and on turning quickly round to ascertain whence the report IU proceeded, he observed Harvey standing in the passage of nis house, and at the same instant received a portion of the contents of the second barrel in the shoulder and side of the face, which were frightfully mutilated. It would appear that in turning round, he fortunately escaped the DU K oi the charge, which struck against the wall on the opposite side of the lane. Miss Tucker's escape amounts almost to a miracle, as the assassin must have fired point- blank at her head. The charge entered the poll of her bonnet, making a hole about the size of an orange, carried aW?7 k?uCT« in ^er hair, and lodged in the opposite wall, without touching her person. Both were imme- diately conveyed to the vicarage, and shortly afterwards Messrs. Scarborough and Snook, surgeons, were in attendance. It wis feared on Sunday night from the great loss of blood sustained by Mr. Tucker, that he would not rally, but on Monday hopes were entertained of his recovery. No cause whatever can be assigned for the outrage. Harvey has been living at Musbury about six months; previously to this he had resided at Seaton where his conduct, we understand, was of the grossest character, committing the most unheard-of indecencies and altogether conducting himself as a person of unsouad mimd. He is a powerful man, and has a wife, who lives apart from him. After the occurrence, he locked and barricaded the front and back doors of his house, which had to be broken open before he could be arrested. He was ultimately taken into custody, and has since been committed for trial.

SWEABORG AND OTHER RUSSIAN FOR- TRESSES IN THE BALTIC. The fortress of Sweaborg is the most formidable obstacle in the Gulf of Finland, and does the outpost. duty, as it were, for the great military entrepots of St Petersburg. On the east, this fortress also partially commands the most navigable channel for vessels of a large draught of water, on the voyage to Cronstadt, which is distant 163 miles on the St. Petersburg side. Sweaborg is composed of seven rocky islands, and is situated about three miles and a half from Helsingfors. It fell into the possession of Russia with the grand duchy of Finland; but, unlike Helsingfors, which was j i fortified by the late Emperors Alexander ana J\ lcnolas, Sweaborg has been a place of considerable strength under the Swedes. General Ehronfwald an able Swedish officer. considering that these islands might be rendered a formidable stronghold, and might enable Sweden to maintain her power in the Baltic in spite of the ambitious designs of Russia, projected the plan of their fortification. Previously, however, ships were built and repaired for the Swedish navy The works were commenced in lUQ, but were not completely finished when acquired by the Russians, who have continued making improvements and devising every means of rendering the place impregnable, They say" the Swedes began, but we finished the Gibraltar of the North. These works are stupendous. The walls are chiefly hewn granite, covered with earth, rising in some places to a height of 48 feet. The batteries, which commence on a level with the water, aii rT wpi16rSo ?UG a £ ove anotIier- are mounted, it is alleged, wuh nearly a thousand guns. In Wolf's Island, the principal of the group, there is a dry dock, capable of containing 11 or 12 frigates, which has been com- pietely hollowe, out of solid rock, the length being 300 fee breadth 200 and depth 14 feet. At one extremity of this dock is a basin 200 feet square, closed at each eDj W-\ ? 5 s* J^'ich serves for the entrance and exit of frigates, and for repairing and building ships. The stores and ammunition for the batteries are deposited in magazines, on the edge of the water. The three fortresses—Cronstadt, Sweaborg, and Hel- singfors-could not have been intended for the defence alone of St. Petersburg. They tell their own tale. The magnitude of their works, and the incessant activity in the arsenals during the last half century, should have clearly warned Europe that these huge fortresses were intended as a basis of operations againsts its liberties and the rights of its rulers. Cronstadt, which commands the passages at the mouth of the Neva, was taken from the Swedes by Peter the Great, and first converted by him from a desert island into a harbour for his navy in 1710. The most invul- nerable portion of the stronghold, a rampart of granite, built in the sea for the protection of the shipping was begun and finished under the superintendence of Admira Greig, who is styled the father of the Russian navy. Doubts are entertained whether the guns of Cronstadt completely command the northern passage; the Mar- quis de Custine, a keen inquirer, declares that although he put himself to some trouble to learn as much, he could not find the Russian who would inform him of the fact. The population of Cronstadt is about 45,000, of Helsingfors, which is the captal of the district, 10.000, and of Sweaborg about 4,000, the greater part of whom are tradesmen and merchants, who depend on supplying the garrison and fleet, and who, as if the Russians anticipated on this occasion a serious attack from the Allies, have been removed to Helsingfors during the last few weeks.

ISSUING A FORGKD CHEQUE FOR JE700 EXTRAORDINARY CASE. Edward Agar, a respectable middle-aged man, was brought up in custody by Daniel Forrester, on Thurs- I day last, charged with uttering a forged cheque for £700, on Messrs. Stevens, Salt, and Bankers, 20, Lombard- street. Mr. Mullins, solicitor to the Bankers' Association, ap- peared for the prosecutor and Mr. Wontner for the prisoner. William Smith carpenter, 69, Theobald's-road, deposed that in May last he was at work at No. 19, King's-road, Grey s-Inn, where he became acquainted with the pri- soner, who went by the name of Jenkins, and in the course of the conversation he stated he had travelled much in America and the West Indies. Prisoner seeing witness could use his pen well, promised he would do what he could to procure him easier employment than carpentering. At the prisoner's request, he met a dark- looking man at Tom's coffee-house, Holborn, and gave him 10 sovereigns, which prisoner had let him have for that purpose. On leaving the coffee-house the man gave witness a small heavy parcel, about nine inches long and four wide, and thin, to take care of for him, taking his address, and inquiring if he had a good character, because he thought he might soon require his services. The par- cel remained in his possession about ten days, when the prisoner called on witness and asked him to meet him with it the following morning at the Black Horse, Coven- try-street. He did so, and gave it to him. He met the prisoner there again the following night, when prisoner gave him another parcel to take care of, which remained in his possession till last night, when he gave it to Daniel Forrester. When he last met the prisoner, he asked him if he had ever done business with bankers, to which he replied he had occasionally. Prisoner then said he thought he should want witness to do a little for him shortly, and would tell him all about it in a week. He afterwards met the prisoner by accident in Southampton- row, when he asked witness it he would like to earn £ 100. Witness replied he should, and asked what it was to do. Prisoner replied, to present a check for £700, to be cashed at a bank and that, if he waw careful and attended to his instructions, no harm would come of it. He promised to meet witness the following night, or he might call any night at the coffee-house. He was to walk in, but not to speak to prisoner, and walk out again, when he would follow him out. On the 7th he met the prisoner at a coffee-shop in Orange street, where the prisoner gave him instructions bow to present the cheque, saying, If t).ey pay you the money, it will be all right; but if they begin to question you, you will then understand it is wron8- H he was asked were he had it from, he was to say, Captain Pellatt Euston Hotel-that he was not his servant, but that as he was passing the hotel, a gen'leman asked him to take a letter to Mivart's Hotel, where a gentleman gave him half a sovereign, and told him to take a cab to the Bank and back, and get a cheque cashed. He was also to say that the gentleman inquired into his character, and who and what he was, and that he could get him an excellent situation that it some per- sons from the Bank would go back with him to the hotel, and find what, be had stated was correct, they would let him go. Prisoner said if he got the money he was to meet him next day at Tom's coffee-house, when he would give him £ 100 for his trouble. He met the prisoner the following Saturday, in Soulhampton-row, where he gave him the cheque, a canvas bag, and half a sovereign, first asking him if he understood his instructions. The cheque and bag produced are the same. The cheque was written on a plain piece of paper, payable to W. Pellatt. and signed "Jno. Deverell." The prisoner also gave him instructions, when he got the money, to leave an en- velope with a blank piece of paper in it. addressed to Captain Pellatt, at the hotel, then drive to the Easton Hotel, aid then pay the cabman after that, walk to Lombard-street. Piisoner was going out of town, and he would watch the paper to see if anything occurred, and communicate with him when he was liberated. He asked witness if he had a better suit of clothes than he then wore, because it was necessary to go as respectable as he could. On the Monday following he made a com- munication to Mr. Mullins, and on Wednesday last, the day the cheque was dated, he did as the prisoner had re- quested him. He presented the cheque, and received a b ig containing money, which he put into his pocket, and walked to Bedford-row and in the neighbouring streets, but did not meet the prisoner for some time. At ten minutes past five o'clock he saw him coming from the Holborn end of the street, and they met. He said, "Have you got it all right?" Witness said "Yes," pointing to his breast pocket, where the bag was. Before asking that question he drew witness's attention to two men on the opposite side, and asked if they were watching them, but witness said he thought not Prisoner said, (, Come on," and they walked towards Holborn. At the cor- ner of Princes-street he turned round and said, '"These two fellows are following us come on, let us get round the corner. Sling me the stuff and I'll run for it." Witness passed the bag to him as they were walking at the corner of Lee-street, on which prismer said You go into that baker s-shop, and I 11 run for it into the fields (meaning cincoln s-inn-field.) After walking 20 yards, prisoner commenced running, and he saw no more of him until he was in custody. Witness was brought last night to the Mansion-house, where he saw the prisoner, who asked him to stick to him, and that if it cost him £ 1000 he would see him out of it. Evidence was given by Mr. Scott, clerk in Messrs. Stevens and Co. Bank. of the presentation of the check, and a bag containing 100 farthings being tied up in it, and given to the last witness. Mr. Deverell, of Pem- broke Park, Hants, had an account at their bank. The signature was a fair imitation of that gentleman's writing. The prisoner was remanded.

LIMITED LIABILITY BILL. The bearing of the main clauses of this bill appears to be as follows: Any company, excepting assurance companies, formed under the Joint-Stock Companies Act of the 8th of Victoria, chap. 110, may obtain a certificate of complete registration with limited liability. The con- ditions are that the capital must be in shares of not less than EIO each, that the word "limited" shall be the last word in the name of the company, that the number of shareholders shall be not less than 25, holding at least three-fourths of the nominal capital, and that 20 per cent. of the capital shall be paid up. Other com- panies not framed under the Joint-tock Companies Act may obtain limited liability, provided three-fourths of the proprietary in number and value sanction the appli- cation, but their affairs must be previously audited at their own expense by some person appointed by the Hoard of Trade, who must certify the solvency of the concern, and that 20 per cent. of the capital has been paid up. In no case is any subsequent increase of nomi- nal capital to be made by a company, unless the consent of three-fourths of the proprietary shall have been certi- fied. The word "limited" in the title is to be made conspicuous on all occasions, under heavy penalties. Directors are to be liable for the amount of every divi- dend they may declare when a company is insolvent, except such of them as may have filed a protest against it at the time. No note of any shareholder is to be held in payment of shares, and no loan is to be made to share- holders. Existing companies coming under the act are not to be protected from previous liabilities. Companies are to wind up, upon three-fourths of their capital being lost or rendered unavailable, and each company is to have one auditor appointed by the Board of Trade.

THE CLAPTON POISONING CASE. CLAPTON, AUG.20 The inquest on the body of Mrs. Emma Candy, who died under circumstances recently described in the MERLIN', was resumed to-day before Mr. Bruges Fry, one of the coroners for Somersetshire. We subjoin the evidence taken at the opening of the investigation, and at the adjourned inquest this day. The first witness examined was William Candy, the husband of the deceased. He stated that his wife had been in a low state of mind for some time past, aud had often brought up blood. She said some time since she knew of a slip of small cord, and would use it to destroy herself Witness occasionally drove out a young woman who was named Huntley, who was in his service as dairy- maid. His wife did not disapprove of it; she wished it. Mary Ann Swift, a servant, had told witness that deceased had sent her to the druggist's at Midsomer Norton for three pennyworth of powder to kill mice. His wife was not jealous of Miss Huntley, or any other woman. He had been married four years last May, and had one child. Was with his wife when she died. She vomited a good deal at the time, and he had seen her vomit on many occasions before. Did not recollect his wife ever said she would hang herself, or allude to self- destruction in any other way than in the manner he had described, but thought from her manner that she meant to hang herself. Never knew till that afternoon that deceased had sent Mary Ann Swift for poison. Mary Ann Swift, a domestic servant to the last wit- ness, deposed that the day before her mistress died, she was very sick and brought up yellow stuff. Witness never heard her master and mistress quarrel. Miss Huntley and master were fond of each other, because they were cousins, but I never heard my mistress com- plain. About a week before my mistress died she sent me to Mr. Duddin's house at Midsomer Norton, for three pennyworth of poison to kill mice and rats; and 1 gave her the powder when I came back. My master keeps poison to kill mice in the barn and in the house. I have held my mistress because she should not cut hor throat. The last servanl told me that mistress had trouble, and that if I lived there as long as she had, I should find it out. I have asked mistress the cause of her trouble, but she never would tell me. Thomas Batt, farmer, of Clapton, deposed that in November last he was sent for to Mr. Candy's house, and was told by him that his wife had threatened to destroy herself with a slip, and added that she would have done so if a person had not prevented har. Wit- ness asked Mr. Candy the cause, and he said she had a religious impression that her soul would be lost, or that there would be no mercy for her. The deceased was present and did not contradict her husband. Mr. R. H. Boodle, surgeon, of Chilcompton, stated that the husband of the deceased did not object to the post mortem examination, or throw any impediment in the way of its being made. The poison which, in all Erobability, caused the death, had the appearance of aving been taken a day or two before death. Spirituous liquors would not have produced the appearances which were found. Mr. William Herapath, analytical chymist, of Bristol, depised, that he had analysed the contents of deceased's stomach, and found arsenic. The inquest was adjourned.

ADULTERATION OF DRUGS.—The public mind is unhinged by the startling exposures before the Com- mittee of the House of Commons of the frauds practised in the adulteration of Drugs. It is therefore satisfactory to know, on the high authority of DR. HASSALL, that since the introduction of DH.. DE JONGH'S LIGHT-BROWX COD LIVER OIL, one of the most valuable, salutary, and curative agents of modern times, can be obtained in a pure and uniformly genuine state. DR. HASSALL thus flatteringly testifies his approval of the COD LIVER. OIL prepared by Dr. de J ongh I have more than once, at different times, subjected your Light Brown Cod Liver Oil to chemical analysis-AND THIS UNKNOWN TO YOURSELF—and I have always found it to be free from all impurity, and rich in the constituents of bile. So great is my confidence in the article, that I usually prescribe it in preference to any other, in order to make sure of obtaining the remedy in its purest and best condition." THE HAtR.-Of the numerous compounds constantly announced for promoting the growth or reproduction of the human hair, a few survive, even in name, beyond a very limited period whilst Rowland's Macassar Oil, with a reputation already unparalleled is still on the increase in public estimation. The unprecedented success of this discovery, in restoring, preserving, and beautifying the human hair, is too well known and appreciated to need comment. The very fact of its having stood the test of half a century of probation, and obtained the especial patronage of Her Majesty the Queen, and the Royal Family of Great Britain, and of royalty and the aristocracy throughout Europe, together with numerous testimonials from all parts of the world constantly received of its efficacy, afford the best and surest proof of its merits.

EMBEZZLEMENT BY A COUNTY CLERK.—On Wednes- day information was given to the police that George Harrison Bennett, late in the employment of John Eden, Esq., assistant county clerk at Cambridge, has absconded with a very considerable sum of money, belonging to his employer. A large reward is offered for his apprehen- sion. NORWICH,—Mr. Edmund Wodehouse, late M.P. for East Norfolk, died on Tuesday, at his residence, Thorpe, near Norwich. The hon. gentlemen represented Norfolk from 1817 till last June, when he retired in favour of Mr. H. Stracey. In politics he was a strict Conservative.