Monmouthshire Merlin

EZT&AORDINART CHARGE OF ASSAULT. At the O'd Bailey on Tuesday an application was made f a ;)cstpon-mer:t 0: the trial of Mr. Arthur Foster, a government clerk, charged with assault- ing Mr. L»- c»zer, proprietor of P ice's Hotel, Dover Btrm-c. The circumstances of the case were of an extraordirarv character. A lady named Beecher had tMCHQ lodgings at the prosecutor's hotel, stat- ing th :t ner husband held a high position in Amerii'-i. She was visited by the prisoner a d hia broiler, and the prosecutor, finding them in her room at twelve o'clock at night, went and ordered them out. The defendant, who be ore the magis- trate C'ji!iplained that disgraceful language bad been u-ed towards the lady, who had been ad- dres-ed fig Polly Skittles," gave this fact in ex^enua n of the assault. The ground of the applicat on for a postponement of the case was that a medical witness was absent.—Application granted.

THE PROSPECTS OF RAILWAY SHARE- HOLDERS. The Daily News, in an article on this subject, says :—The pro-pect, it will be sa d, is not hopeful at the present time. The business of the country increases from year to year, as steadily, but more rapidly, than the population. As the railways are now in the safe enjoyment of a practical monopoly, this increase of general business throughout the country must bring them an increase of their special business, and consequently, as a rule, an increase of profit. This is the natural course of things, and although there may be temporary fluctuations the tendency will always be for things to revert to the natural course. What- ever may be the talk for the moment, there- fore, it will certainly be safest for those interested to disregard it, and take the entire future into their calculations. As regards even the present moment, however, it is easy to see that in some quarters too much stress is being laid on unpro- mising points in the railway horizon. The trade ot the country, it is said, is dull, and the goods traffic is stationary or actually diminishing; the gross earni- ga of railways will therefore diminish, at any rate for a time, and as new capital is always being sunk, the proportionate net earning on the increased amount will be less, and will fall very heavily on the ordinary shareholder, who receives the fluctuating profit. To all this the answer is very simple. A diminution of gross earnings does not necessarily mean a diminution of net earnings, and in the present instance there is every reason to believe it will have that effect.

GBR AT STRIKE OF NAILMAKERS. A gv-ia, strike began on Monday morning. The wroi gi:r nai'.makers of South Staffordshire and Kort! Worcestershire have been asking for 10 per ceu advance, and the masters have issued a ne'w !'3\ dating from Saturday, which makes some cor.'e p, but far from what he majority of the work].' e want. This has led to b0U0 hands tm*n:r. out, and on Monday they passed resolutions that, uniiss the 10 per cent. was given this week, they -u v-.id demand 15 per cent, advance. The men hr. a union, but only small resources.

ALL- D GREAT DIAMOND ROBBERY. •-■•id Baiiey, on Tuesd >v. Abraham Hogeto- ran, Z merchant, was indicted for that he, being a mem- v ot a copartnership with one Alexander Bernard uaap, did embezzle and s'eal one diamond ring, on- ■ ncket of rubies the sutn of £:)82, and 800 co.v; ■<* of diamonds, the property of such co- partE-svshjp. The pris ner went t" the Cape of Grcod J. to transact business for the firm, and "wh:1.? e disposed of diamonds and other goods, witl, ?. •••ounting fur the money. The counsel for the deforce now submitted tbnt the Central Crimi- nal Con" had no jurisdiction, and that it there was any it r the Cape of Good Hope. The Re- corl- e- the objection to be valid, and directed a verllid of acquittal.

A FICTITIOUS BAR OX CONVICTED. At the Old Bailey, on Tuesday, Charles King, a man ot gentlemanly appearance, and described as an interpre er, pleaded guilty to a charge of steal- ing from Theodor Lehin Kuhi, a merchant's clerk, .Em in money, and a go'd watch and chain. The robbery was effected in Victoria Park by the well knowr devise of inducing the victim, during an in- teresting conversation, to deposit his property in the hard- of another; but the special feature in this c- se was the agency of a lady," who professed to have recently become p ssessed of £ 40,000, a portion ot which she was then sending to Germany for distribution among the p or The prisoner led the way, and showed continence in the 1-dy, assum r.g the name of B r. n Von Bontheenbeist. Itappeyed that the Baron was well known to the police, < nd he was now sentenced to twelve months' imprisonment.

MALICIOUS ATTEMPTS TO UPSET P ASSENT E TWAINS. At the East Riding Petty Sessions at Hull, on TlleHLy, two lads, about I;, years of age, named respeevvelv William Whiting and Charles Usher, weie charged with having, on the 2Sth of January, ma ici us!y thrown across the line of railway running from Hull to e?.-le, a coupling chain, shackies, three wo den railway keys, and stones, with intent to endanger the safety of passengers. —Mr. Champney, who app a red for the prosecu- tion, sa.d a more villainous attempt to upset a train could not have been made by two boys If they h .d only been eight or nine years of age, it might Lave been looked upon as the act ot mis- chievous lads, but the 'ris'r'ers were 15 years of age, tn I what was worse, weie in the company's employ and, therefore, must have known "hat the eSoct of placing the stones on the lines would have been to the engine or railway carriages pass- ing over them. There was no doubt that it was with tie intention of upsetting the train; and that -ey did actually put the coupling, Ac.. on the lire, as they had attempted a similar thing with the mail train on the previous night They then piaced an iron chair on the linbut fortu- nately it was a broken one, and shook off as the train approached. The prisoners were found guilty, and they were sentenced to three months' impugnment each.

PAINFUL SUICIDE. On Monday an inquest was held at Hampton touching the death of Char'es Hampton, aged IS. Deceased, who was a parcels porter at the Staines railway station, left his employment on Friday, T .21 January 23rd, and did not return. On Feb. 27th, his body was picked up in the Thames by a lighter- man near Hampton waterworks. A letter, dated Staines, January 22nd, which had been received by the young man's parents, was read, in which he said :—" I have been so ill lately, I don't know what to do with myself. 1 am half afraid I am mad. I feel so in .-ometimes that I am afraid of myself, and am obliged to go away from my office or be se and lunge into company. My wages have b. en so low that I have never been able to get a d'nnei- more than once a w ek, and that and wet feet ba, e brought me so low that 1 don't care to live longer After areference to some ore having robbed his tiil for revenge, wl.i .h, he said, was the real cause of hh committing the act whi.-h be had in contemplation, he went on to say, "Give my love to all my brothers and siste' s, and never let another j work or a railway. I only wish I could die a natural death and not by my own hand. I do hope you will not feel this much, as I feel quite pre- I pared to die. I have thought of this for months, anci have been stopp t once by a kind friend in Richmond, but it is • o good. I feel all my sins are forgiven in heave t; I hope they will be on earth." Mr. Wilson, t! e stat'o- master at Staines, said the deceased was receiving 13s. a week, and it was contemp'aTed to raise his wages to 18s Several of the jury commented strongly on the inadequacy of the wages the lad was receiving. Ultimately a. verdict w;.s returned to the effect that deceased committed suicide while in a state of unsound mind.

Mr. Tom Taylor has b en appointed editor of Punch, in the place of the late Mr. Shirley Brooks. On Tuesday night, about half past ten o'clock, a nrebrckeoutintbe Gateshead East Railway-t^tion, near the end of the High Level Bridge, and before it was extinguished the building was entirely gutted. Some alteratio ns, in hiding the addition of anchor story, were being made, and the fire comme^cvd in the new part. The damage is estimated at J62000. TICHLORNE TRIAL AND OUR LEGAL MACHINERY. —"In truth, if thevaue of our legal maehi ery as an instrument for the discovery of truth were tested by the Tichborne case, e know not why its friends should shrink from the ordeal. We grant that the expense has been e or- mous, but that is an evil which must be borne when one has to gather evidence from the ends of the earth as to a series of events in the lives of two men, reaching back for nearly twenty years. The repro ch of this must lie, not upon the law, but upon that unreasoning and unreasonable popu- lar sympathy which howled itself hoarse at public meetings, and did its best to warp the judgment and cow the hearts of those by whom the issue was to be determined. It was this which rendered the task of the trustees and of the prosecution so difficult, and which made it abso- lutely necessary to leave no stone unturned to secure a conviction which should silence all but those who were absolutely determined not to be convinced. It was this which inspired the anony- mous letters whereby judges and jurymen were threatened with deadly violence if they did their duty, and which kept alive to the last the current rumours of divisions in the jury-box of pre-de- termined refusals to agree to any verdict other than one which would have outraged common sense, and been the occasion of grievous scandal." » ~-Stavdtrd.

THE REV. DR. BROCK. This popular and respected gentleman, for many years the minister of Bloomsbury chapel, London, is now confined to his residence at Hampstead by severe indisposition. Last Sunday night he was to have concluded a special series of religious ser- vices at Heath street chapel, Hampstead; but ne was unable either to officiate or to be present. His son, who is also a Baptist minister, informed the large congregation that his father was then lying very seriously ill, though it was hoped the sickness would pass over well with care and patience.

A BARRISTER SENTENCED TO PENAL SERVITUDE. At the Old Bailey, on Tuesday, Geo. Rutherford, described as a barrister, nged 54, pleaded guilty to a charge of obtaining furniture and other goods from various tradesmen under false pretences. The prisoner had gone about repres nting himself as being about to marry an heiress worth J630,000, and that he required furniture to fit out a residence in accordance with his coming high position. His story turned out successful, and he obtained the credit which he now acknowledged to be fraudulent. The Common Serjeant said it was marvellous that tradesmen should be such dupes. It was evident that the prisoner had been getting his living for many years by swindling, and a previous conviction ot five years' penal servitude having been recorded against him, the sentence now was that he be kept in penal servitude for seven years.

NEWSPAPER MEN IN PARLIAMENT. The Neunvendor publishes the following list of gentlemen connected with the Press who are mem- bers of the new Parliament: — Dr. Cameron, Liberal (Glasgow), son of the late Mr. Cameron, one of the founders of the Dublin General Advertiser; Alderman Carter, Liberal (Leeds), proprietor of the Leeds Evening Express; Mr. Joseph Cowen, Liberal (Newcastle), proprietor of the New- castle Chronicle; Mr. A. J. Beresford Hope, Conservative (Cambridge University), one of the proprietors of the Saturday Review, Mr. Samuel Morley, Liberal (Bristol), one of the proprietors of the Daily News; Sir Charles Reed, Liberal (Hackney), partner in the fi m of Reed and Fox, type founders, and one of the proprietors of the Daily News Mr. W. H. Smith, Conservative (Westminster), principal partner in the firm of W. H. Smith and Son, wholesale newsagents; Mr. P. A. Taylor, Liberal (Leicester), proprietor of the Examiner; Mr. J. Walter, Liberal (Berkshire), principal proprietor of the Times; Mr. B. Whit- worth, Liberal (Newry), one of the proprietors of the Circle.

AN ARISTOCRATIC GAMING SCANDAL. A London correspondent writes:—" There is a terrible scanda I afloat connected with a member of one of the highest families in the land, and himself an important Government official. It appears that at one of the west-end sporting clubs, where high play is not only tolerated but fostered, the gentle- man was a frequent and regular attendant at the whist table, and a singular success had recently attended his play. Suspicions having arisen amongst the other players, he was closely watched, and it was noticed that on eac I occasion that he dealt the cards a card fell upon and was after the deal picked up from off his knees, and this card was invariably an ace. Of course, a great hubbub at once arose, and there were even rumours of executing Lynch law upon the aristocratic "Welsher." Calmer counsels, how- ever, prevailed, and "the Greek" left the club j precipitately, and has suddenly disappeared, not 1 only from London society, where for so many years he has been known under a sobriquet that it would perhaps be unaivisable to repeat, but from this country. It is said that his private affairs, in spite of the large official salary of which he was in re- ceipt, are als > in inextricable confusion. At least two ducal families are closely related, one by blood and the other by marriage, with the hero of this most untoward episode of London fashionable life." .■

MANCHESTER AND THE FAMINE IN BENGAL. At noon on Tuesday, a meeting, convened by the Mayor (Mr. Aid. Watkin), was held in the Town Hall, to consider the communication from the Lord Mayor of London in relation to the Bengal famine, and to determine whether any and what steps shall be taken thereto. The Mayor presided, and there was a small but influential attendance of citi/ens. The Bishop of Manchester moved the following resolution :—"That this meeting, while deeply im- pressed with the magnitude of the disaster which has fallen upon so large a population of Bengal, and profoundly moved by the accounts received of the distress already caused in large districts by the deficient supply of food-a tale, it is to be feared, only too likely to become sadder and sadder for many months to come, is strongly of opinion that a misfortune of this dimension which has befallen a province of the Empire cannot be dealt with or materially influenced by a private subscription administered by private and irresponsible agency; and considers it to be the imperative duty of the Government to take prompt and sufficient measures to les en ti,e amount and reduce the area of suffering and feels convince that the most real, because the most ad quate and effective mode of expressing national sympathy is by offering national aid, the cost of such aid being thrown fairly and equitably in whatever form the wisdom of the Government may deem most expedient, upon Imperial re- sources." Mr. Garnett seconded the resolution and, after some discussion, it was adopted unanimously. The To-vn Clerk was requested to send a copy of it to the Lord Mayor of London.

Captain Semmes, formerly commnnder of the famous Southern privateer Alabama, has petitioned tor the removal of Southern disabi ities. The Home Rule Conference in Dublin on Tuesday was attended by 40 members. The proceeding were strictly private, but it was rumoured that the- leadership of the Home Rule party was only one of several difficulties. A deputation from the Am- nesty Assoeiation will wait on the Conference to ask aid in efforts for the release of the Fenian pri- soners. A COBOSER ON "DIED BY THE VISITATION OF dOD." -At a coroner's inquest held at Whitby, on Monday, Air. Buchanan, the coroner, said the medi al officer to the rural sanitary authority, in his recent report to the guardians, had stepped out of his proper province to animadvert on the v. rdict of Died by the visitation of God," which coroner's juries, under the guidance of trained lawyers, were accustomed to give. He (the coroner) thought this was a piece of impertinence, as a coroner's inquest was a judicial and not a scientific inquiry, and its end was to ascertain whether the deceased had died by fair or foul means. Died by the visitation of God" was a verdict recognised by the law of England, and a v. rdict of "died by natural causes" was only worthy of a jury of semi- infidels, such as he hoped never to address. He hoped the jury he was now addressing did believe in the visitation of God," and were not afraid to say so by their verdict. The jury found a vexdict of II Died by the visitation of G-JJ

:==-=- THE CHANTRELL WILL CASE. In the Proba; e Court, on Tuesday, Dr. Deane men- tioned the case of "Chantrell v. Chantrell and Lamb." The jury, he reminded the Court, had returned a verdict stating that the will had been obtained by fraud; and as his Lordship bad pro- nounced against the will, he had now to ask for the condemnation of the defendant, Mrs. Chantrell, in the costs of the suit. His Lordship said that where fraud was proved, the costs, as a rule, followed against the defendant. He was only waiting to hear if Dr. Spinks had anything to say. Dr. Spinks said he bad to ask that the costs of ascertaining the capacity of the testator might not be included His Lordship intimated that the general order be should make WNE that the costs of the case should be paid by the defendant. With regard to such costs as relatetl exclusively to the issue :is to the sanity or insanity of the testator, he made no ord^r—tha- would-be a matter which the registrar would have to settle, a; d therefore he mi.de no order on th-it point; but the genera! costs of the cause would have to be paid by the defendant. Mr. Inderwick, for Mr Lamb. said as his clier. r had only done that which he was bound to do in his capacity of executor, the order would not aCeev. him. His Lordship said Mr. Lamb was justified it acting as he had done. and he did not give order as to costs ngainst him. Dr. Spinks I-a-ld it was dkely he should hare 4_ make another upplicat-o" to the C-jxirt for a i,cv: trial; and if he should have tdo so i, fd h,: might be permitted to make the motion on Iv.e.-j. day week. His Lordthip consented to that day being iixt-d for that purpose, if it was thought necessary to make the application.

MURDER AND BURGLARY NEAR WO I .VEPJiAM PTON. A shocking case of murder and burglary has been perpe rated in Wolverhampton The crime was committed during Monday night, and this victim is an old woman named EJien L'avis aged 67. Deceased lived in the mining village of Et- tingshall, close to Wolverhampton. She resided in the only habitable ropm of one of two cottages, y I which have been render- d untenable by the opera- tions connected with the mining for coal at a pit situated 20 yards in its rear She was a native of Nottingham, where, letters in her possession, show that at 5, Portland road, she had in January la:it year a niece named Mary Burghage. For some eight or nine years she has been a widow. Her hus- band was a miner, and a Wesleyan local preacher. During hia life she was the infant school governess of the Wesleyan school, Ettingsball, and subse- quently to his death was schoolmistress at one of the Primitive Methodist schools of the di trict Whilst her husband was local preacher amongst the Wesleyans she was a local preacher herself amongst the Primitive Methodists. She bad no children. Affection for a nephew, and for the memory of her deceased husband appear to have been the emotions most cherished by her for a long time past. With her hus- band's death and her own advancing age there came poverty. Her reiations in Notting- ham wished her to leave Wolverhampton and live with them, but she clung literally to the grave of her husband, protesting that come what might she would die near to him. Her relations appear to have often sent her money by post-office order, and she had two shillings per week from the parish. She bad told her neighbours that she had saved a sovereign or more, with which by-and-bye to visit her relations at Nottingham, and it became notorious that she had accumulated a little hoard. This would seem to have led to her murder. On Tuesday morning a moveable pit railing, which had been used as a ladder, was found against the back window of her house, and upon the front door being forced, she was found dead, lying on her pallet she used as a bed in the downstairs front room. Evidently she was undressing, seated upon her bed, when the burglar thrust her back, and whilst with one hand he covered her mouth, with the other he clutched the front of her throat, and held on his mur- derous grip till she had ceased to live. Of all this vio ence there are marks enough upon the face and throat. The determina- tion of the murderer is further shown by the fact that as she lay back upon the b. d the toes of the left foot got fixed in such a position against a chair that the front of the foot formed a standing place for one of the boots of the assassin, and the foot is sprained. Having committed the murder, the ruffian plundered the drawers of all money, and turned out the store-purse. A stranger was found lurking at the rear of the premises at 10.30 on Monday night, but nothing more is known.

IMPORTANT COAL ARBITRATION. An arbitration case of considerable interest to colliery owners and coal dealers was he'd at the Boyal Hotel, Doncaster, on Monday, in which Mr. John Wardle, coal dealer, of Middlesbrough, ap- peared as plaintiff, and Messrs. Samuel and Richard Brown, proprietors of the Lewden Bridge Colliery, near Barnsley, as defendants. The arbitrators were Messrs. Hewitt and Bly. Mr. Waddy, Q.C., M.P., (instructed by Mr. George Bainbridge, solicitor, Middlesbrough), was counsel for the plaintiff; and Mr. Wheelhouse, M.P., instructed by Mr. J. ■]. Freeman, solicitor, Barnsley), appeared for the defendants; It appeared that in February, 1873. the plaintiff called at the Lewden Bridge pits, and a few days after., ards an agreement was entered into by plaintiff and defendants, by which the former con- tracted to receive the whole out-put of the pit from March to the end of Dece, her, 1873, at 10s. per ton, the out-put to be at least 250 tons per week. Meanwhile the price rose, and defendants, instead of keeping faith with the plaintiff, sold the coal ro other buyers. Plaintiff, not having received any part of the coal up to the end of August, issued a writ claiming damages from the defendants. He then received a let er from the defendants asking if he could find them a partner, with about £ 750 to in vest in the concern. Defendant offered himself as partner, and was accepted. An agreement was drawn up between them and signed, and it was stipulated that in consequence of the defendants not having fulfilled their pirtof the contract with plaintiff, he should receive 210 tons of coal per week for twelve months. Plaintiff was to p^y his JE750 in sev n monthly instalments, and he placed X200 in the banK in the name of the firm, which was to be styled Brown, Wardle, and Brown." Defendants drew the.2200 out, and used it in the business. Plaintiff received in October and November over 500 tons of coal, for which he paid to defendants £ 200. At the end of November hey refused to let him have anything to do with the colliery, nor would they supply him with any more coal. He did not derive any benefit or participate in the profits while he was a part: er in the col- lierv. On one occasion, while they were all at a public dinner, one of the defendants pro- posed his health as ti.e new partner in the colliery. On behalf of Mr. Wardle, it was now contended that inasmuch as the defendants bad not carried out the second con- tract, plaintiff could recover damages under the first agreeme t, which was not cancelled by the second-both contracts rela' ing to the supply of coal, one 250 tons per week and the other 210, neither of which had been fulfilled. It was represented that if plaintiff bad received the 250 tons of coal, according to the terms of the first contract which was made for the nine months, he would have made a profit of £1900, because he would have bought at 10s. per ton and sold at 16s. He therefore sought to recover this amount, and also the £ 200 he had invested in the concern; likewise his share of profits as a partner up to the present time; making bis total claim about £ 2500. For the defence it was contended that the plaintiff was the prime mover in promoting a partnership which was never agreed to by the defendants, although they acknow- ledged to having received a draft of partnership agreement, but they could not abide by it in con- sequence of plaintiff's conduct. It was also stated by defendants that the colliery had since ceased to be theirs, under a bill of sale. The whole day was occupied in hearing the case, and eventually the arbitrators made an award for £300, each party to pay their own costs,

Wolves have been showing themselves lately in the neighbourhood of Magnedens, in the Canton of Fribourg. The Western Times (Exeter paper) mentions the case of a young couple who were ruined by the Tichborne case. They set out in life with every comfort, but the husband, much against the wishes of his wife, invested £ 14,000 in Tichborne Bonds.' After the cross-examination of the Claimant by Sir John Coleridge, the young man became dis- heartened and desponding, and died in a short time, bis early death being attributed to vexation. consequent upon the feeling that he had lost hia money, and had shown a great want of prudence.

ARTHUR ORTON IN PRISON. Between nine and tenon Monday morning Alder- man Sir Robert Carden, while going the round of the gaol of Newgate as one of the visiting magis- trates, accompanied by Mr. Jonas, the governor, saw the convict Arthur Orton in his cell, which happens to be the same he occupied previous to the trial of the indictment against him being removed by certiorari from the Central Criminal Court to the Court of Queen's Bench. Sir Robert found Orton engaged in picking oakum in the cell, that being the accustomed task to which every prisoner sentenced to penal servitude is invariably subjected after conviction, preparatory to his removal to his permanent place of confinement. The convict seemed in very good spirits, all things con- sidered, and to have entered freely, and of his own accord, into conversation with the visiting magistrate, saying, in effect, among other things, that surely the people of England would never submit to what he called the injustice which had been done him on his trial. The convict, on his arrival at Newgate on Saturday, having stated in answer to a routine question, among others, that he ¡ W a Roman Catholic, was excused attending the fn\ 'nary religious services in the prison on Sun- I day. In the experience of the governor it is not un- i for persons of the Roman Catholic persuasion t commvtted for trial, or after sentence, to attend t thi, Pivtedtant services in the gaol chapel, from a I oe -ve To relieve the dreary monotony, if for only helt an hour or so, of prison life, but Orton has not j yet shown such a desire. Up to Monday night no one I has see a tne convict except Sir Robert Carden, it 5 his capacity of visiting magistrate, and the governor. His solicitor is understood to have made i ar application to see him in the course of Mon- day, but was not allowed. At present his ultimate destination on leaving Newgate i; not known.

THE LORD CHIEF JUSTICE AND THE TIOHBOKNE TRIAL. In a letter to the Daily News of Tuesday, A barrister" complains of the language and de- meanour of the Lord Chief Justice of England during the later days of the Tichborne trial, and says he hopes they will not be allowed to pass without reproof and remonstrance." The writer proceeds:—"Probably until last Saturday, the spectacle wa" unprecedented of a Lord Chief Jus- tic of England, or indeed of any judge of a superior court, almost directly soliciting an ex- pression of approval from tie bar before him, and being rewarded by a suppressed cheer. Sir Alexander Cockburn declares his indifference as to the persons by whom or the tepiri in which the history or the late trial may be written. He may very well be heedless. In the main, his part in it will redound to his honour. No malignant animus can permanently distort or conceal the facts. But the most candid and careful historian, by virtue of his very candour and his carefulness to be just, will be forced to deplore a certain indecorum of language, and an unchas- tened violence of demeanour, unbecoming the august place occupied by the first magistrate of the country. Two years ago, while he was acting as arbitrator at Geneva, Sir Alexander Cockburn seemed occasionally to forget that, being in some sense the representative of England,' he was bound to represent the dignity and courtesy, the forbearance and self-restraint, as well as the keen sense of honour and the moral rectitude of a great nation. Then, also, he managed to put himself in the wrong by his way of doing things, when he was in the right as to the things done. It is no secret that his associates were more pained and hurt than his adversaries; and that probably the substance of the award in the Alabama business might have been somewhat different if, as was often said at Geneva in those days, Sir Roundell Palmer had been the arbitrator and Sir Alexander Cockburn had been the advocate. So now, the language and demeanour of the Lord Chief Justice of England will, probably, hinder the promptitude and univer- sality of the public acquiescence in a just and in- evitable verdict. If the bar of England, as Sir Alexander Cockburn has said. will fitid in the conduct of Dr. Kenealy nothing to imitate, the future occupants of the bench will find in that of the Lord Chief Justice some things to avoid. His errors lean, it is true, to virtue's s de; they are those of a generous and impulsive temper, indignant beyond measure with baseness and fraud. But on the bench, self-command is the first of virtues, without which the rest may become vices."

CAN THE TICHBORNE CASE BE RE-OPENED ? The London correspondent of the Manchester Guardian says-Incidents relating to the trial are plentiful, and though in themselves trivial, they are received with interest of the same exaggerated kind which the whole case has created. In discuss- ing the conclusion of the trial, many persons (bar- risters of old standing included) have drawn special attention to the circumstance hat no opportunity was given to the Claimant to make any statement before receiving sentence. I know not whether it is merely a matter of custom or a matter of right, but it is certainly the practice after the jury have recorded their verdict of guilty to ask a prisoner whether he desires to say anything either in mitiga- tion of his punishment or for any ether purpose, and the omission of such a procedure in the present instance has elicited many comm nts which it might have been better to avert. For some weeks before the termina,ion of the trial, the Claimant's counsel entertained an inten- tion to present a "bill of exceptions" on grounds which may be best indicated in the following man- ner. It will be remembered, probably, that one of the cases of perjury charged against the Claimant was committed in an affidavit sworn before Mr. Newman in Chancery, and the Court of Chancery being in the City of London, the point was to be again rtised whether it was competent for a Mid- dle ex jury to try the Claim nt for an act com- mitted in the city. In the second place the alleged perjury respecting Lady Radcliffe took place in the Sessions House at Westminster during the cross-examination of the Claimant by Sir John Coleridge, the hearing having been transferred. with the consent of the parties, from the Court of Common Pleas as a matter of convenience. The Act of Parliament under which the last-named cause was tried provide- for the hearing of nui prius cases in Westminster Hall, and, of course, contains no such provision respecting the Sessions House; and the question to be raised on this point was whether, in the face of this distinction, the mere consent o the partie to bear the cause in the Sessions House could make valid a course which was not legalised by the Act of Parliament. A decision against the course of procedui-e in both these respects would, therefore, have involved the quashing of the whole trial, and with a view to arguing these points the second counsel for the defendant (Mr. M'Mahon) prepared himself with all the uthorities and preceden's he could find to support his case. But when the time came for the presenting of a bill of exceptions in the closing hour of the trial, it was decided, for some reason which does not appear, not to take this step, and the sentence was allowed to pass unchallenged. It is now rumoured that Dr. Kenealy still intends to move further in the matter with a view to obtain- ing a new trial on several grounds, including those described above but as no bill of exceptions was presented at the proper time, it may be fairly questioned whether the case can now be re-opened at all. The cost of this trial to the country is be lieved to have been not less than X 170,000, and it is not known how much has been expended by the friends of the Claimant. One of them is known to have advanced iJ8000.

THE DUKE OF WESTMINSTER AND MR. ROEBUCK.—On Monday an address of congratula- tion was presented by the Chester Town Council to the Duke and Duchess of Westminster, at Eaton Hall. The members of the council subsequently lunched with the duke and duchess.—In acknow- ledging the chief toast, his Grace said: I was si ruck, the other day, in reading a very interesting speech by Mr. Roebuck, the member for Shef- field, when he put forth a noble programme -a programme which should be taken up and acted upon by every one, whether duke 01 duchess, or of whatever rank n person may hold in this great country. He said it would be his plea- sure, as it would be his duty, to endeavour to in- struct the ignorant, to make the poor, if possible, rich, and the miserable happy. That, as we know, would be a very great work but, notwithstanding, it is one which, if all would put their shoulders to the wheel, may be in some measure accomplished; and, by God's blessing and grace, I hope, during the remainder of my days, to take part in it. If any encouragement were wanting, it has been afforded by the gift of this title; and, so far as health and strength permit, we will do what, we can to alleviate the misfortunes of our fellow- countrymen, because a gre,it deal may be done by wealth to decrease the misery and the evils that prevail. (Applause.)

I LITERARY EXTRACTS. Sir George Rose's wit was sometimes expressed in a single word. On one occasion, when a new serjeant had been created, and it became his duty, according te) custom, to present rings to the judges, inscribed with the usual brief "poesy" in Latin, Sir George indicated his appreciation of the then existing company of serjeants by suggesting for the motto in question, "Scilicet" (silly set). PITMEN'S LUXURIES.—The Staffordshire Advertiser vouches for the accuracy of the following anec- dote :—" A professional man entered a provision dealer's shop in one of the mining districts, and, pointing to some sealed tins, inquired what they contained. Grouse and partridges, sir," replied the dealer. "How many birds are there in eqch tin, and what do you charge." "There's one bird in each tin, and they are half-a-crown each." Thank you, that's more than I can afford." No offence, sir, but we did not lay them in for gentle- men like you. We got them for the miners. A miner called w th his wife half an hour ago and asked the same questions as you have. When I had answered them he said' Missis, we'll ha' two of them for tea. SERVANTS' WORK.—A servant's work is never done potentially, if even actually. She is liableb) be rung up at all hours her very meals are not secure from interruption she has no time that is absolutely her own; and even her sleep is not sacred. In the deed of night something may be wanted, and she must get up to bring or to do it. Can there be a choice of agency between a deli- cate, consumptive maid, fatigued with her day's hard work, and a buxom, well constituted lady, whose greatest exertion has been a drive in the park, and the handing to her man a few cards to be left at friends' doors ? The one is a servant, the other a lady; and physiological conditions stand nowhere in the face of such divine distinctions.- Cornhill Magazine. THE ABSOLUTE AUTHORITY OF DESPOTS.—The other night the Marquis of Ponteleina was discus- sing with King Joseph I. of Portugal the delicate question of royal pre ogative, and he contended that there should be limits to a king's power; his majesty aserted that there should be none: "I only mean, sire, such limits as reason itself would suggest," protested the marquis respectfully. There should be no limits, and reason has nothing to do with it," replied the king; if I were to order you to fling yourself into the sea you ought to do it instantly." The marquis bowed, and turned to leave the room. Where are you going ?" asked the king, astonished. I am going to take swimming lessons, sire, rejoined M. de Ponteleina, which made the king laugh, and put an end to a debate which had its perils. This reminds one of Peter the Great visiting Frederick IV. of Denmark, and being led by him to the summit of the Round Tower at Copenhagen. Shall I give you an example of my absolute authority," said Peter, and turning to a Cossack in his suite, he pointed to the abyss below the tower and cried jump." The Cossack saluted his master, and jumped with- out a word. There," said the Czar quietly, has your majesty any subjects like that ?" "Happily not," answered Frederick IV., with a shudder. Gazette de France, Jan., 1775. A WONDERFUL MEMORY.—That excellent man and delightful writer, Fuller, mentions St. Dun- stan's-iu-the-East when talking of his singular gift of memory. It is said that Fuller could repeat 500 strange words after twice hearing them, and could make use of a sermon verbatim, if he once heard it." Still further, it is said that he undertook, in passing from Temple Bar to the extremity of Cheapside, to tell, at his return, every sign as it stood in order on both sides of the way (repeating them either backwards or forwards), and that he performed the task exactly. This is pretty well, considering that in that day every shop had its sign. That many, however, of the reports respect- ing his extraordinary memory were false or ex- aggerated, may be gathered from an amusing anec- dote recorded by himself. None alive," says he, ever heard me pretend to the art of memory, who in my book (' Holy State') have decried it as a trick, no art; and, indeed, is more of fancy than memory. I confess, some years since, when I came out of the pulpit of St. Dunstan's East, one (who since wrote a book thereof) told me in the vestry before credible people, that he, in Sidney College, had taught me the art of memory. I returned unto him that it was not so, for I could not remember that I had ever seen him before! which, I con- ceive, was a real refutation.From Cassell's Old and New London," for February. THE WATER OUZEL.- Who has not encountered the little fellow, with his light eye and white breast, dipping backwards and forwards as he sits on a stone amid the tiny pools and freshets, and rising swiftly to follow, with swift but exact flight, the windings and twistings of the stream ? And who that has ever so met him has failed to see in his company his faithful and inseparable little mate P He likes the waterfall and the brawling linn, as well as the dark pools amid the green, mossy heath; and he is to be found building from head to f. ot of every mountain that can boast a burn, however tiny and unpretending. The young are born with the cry of water in their ears; often the nest where they lie and chirp is within a few feet of a torrent, the voice of which is a roaring thunder; and close at hand, amid the spray, the little father-ouzels sit on a mossy stone, and sing aloud, What pleasures have great princes ?" &c., they seem to be crying, in the very words of the old song. To search for water-shells, and eat the toothsome larvoeof the water-beetle, and to have the whole of a mountain brook for kingdom,-what royal lot can compare with this? To the eye of the little feathered king and queen, the bubbling waters are a world miraculously tinted and sweet with summer sound. The life of the twain is full of calm joy. So at least thinks the angler, as he crouches under the bank from the shower, and sees the cool drops splashing like countless pearls round the ouzel's mossy throne in the midst of the pool. -Huchonan's "Master Spirits." A SENSATIONAL DEFENCE.—A beautiful lady, Madame de Bethune, having brought an action about some land against the Marshal Duke de Broglie (great grandfather of the present duka), Lingnet was retained for the plaintiff. But on seeing his client, he said You are so lovely, madame, that yonr face is worth a speech in itself. What I'll do is this I will write you a speech, and you shall learn it by heart, and rehearse it to me, dressed in a light-blue silk gown, the colour best suited to your style of beauty. If you deliver it correctly, as I direct you, I defy any bench of Frenchmen to find for the defendant." This was accordingly done. Madame de Bethune's speech took se'en hours in delivery, and caused a most theatrical sensation. The lady bad an excellent memory. She had learned her part well, and her demeanour, voice, and gestures were all such as a firat-rate actress mig-ht have envied. It was so evident that she had won the hearts of the judges, that when the court adjourned Yor dinner, midway in the speech. the rascible Marshal de Broglie sought, out Ling net, in the Headers' Hall, and, shaking a cane in his face, said Just i ou make your dent speak her own wor Is, and not yours, Master Linguet, or it will be the worse for you-do you hear: Linguet's reply was at once the most d licat-e compliment to his opponent's renowned valour and the proudest personal retort. He made a low bow and answered: "My lord, you have taught Frenchmen never to fear their enemies; and I mean to remember the lesson."—The French Pres, in I Jt,, Cornhill. A MONARCH IN SERVITUDE.—Louis XV., hearing one day that one of the sub masters of the royal hounds was making it a practice to remove the best head of deer from ti e crown chases to stock his own forests, he asked his favourite huntsman to pick up irrefutable evidence of the fact, in order that the sub-muster might be disgraced- The huntsman answered bluffly that if he did this he should lose his place. "Oh, but I will see to that," answered the king, nettled, and the unlucky man, rather out of obedience thiln from confidence m the royal word, denounced the suh-mas er and was dismissed from his place the same day. "I did not know the man was so strong, my poor fellow," said Louis XV. shyly to the huntsman, "but it seems there will be no money whatsoever for our hunting if he is displeased. His people farm all my woods an rivers, and be has half-a-dozen duchesses behind him." The huntsman submitted that it was sad to be beggared for doing his duty, and the king assenting, signed him a.n appointment to a place in the customs, but three weeks later the man returned again, saying his commission was worth so much waste paper. "I'll tell you how to manage," exclaimed the king, impatiently, and doing violence for once to his natural -stingi- ness, he unlocked a drawer and drew out a roll of fifty louis "You make a present of this to Madame Desparbes maid. Madame Desparbes' is the mistress of the chief clerk in the customs, and if you bribe the maid, the mistress will see that the clerk obeys my orders." This roundab ut method of exerting the royal prerogative succeeded.Corn- hill Magazine.

F A C E T I jE. How to raise beet—Take hold ot the tops and pull. SCIENTIFIC.—L eather, chemically considered, is the ox-hide of beef. Why is the horse on which you bet sure not to win P—Because ,,011 buck him. Young ladies find fault with postal cards because there isn't room on them for a postscript. Under the head line "Miscellaneous Crimes" a. Chicago paper announces the election of officers of the St. Louis Board of Trade. USE OF ClDER.-Cider has its uses in this world. A Devonshire farmer drank twelve barrels of it, and then left his farm to his heirs. QUERY.—A debating society U reputed to be distracted on the historical qiie.:t on, Which is the older battle-ery-Erin go Brab or Indigo Blue?" COMPLIMENTARY.—A paper describing an acci- dent says: "Dr. Crawford was called, and, under his prompt and s-ilful treatment, the young man died on Wednesday night." MIXED REQUESTS.—Jack, wh, is at boarding school in the country, writes home: Please send me a good trap to ClLtch birds, and a piece of carpet for me to say my prayers on." Don't advertise," says a New York paper. If people want to buy your snoods < :.ue;i> hunt you up. They will be certain to doit. If you don't believe this, ask the mere ant th i* .'atLed." A letter-carrier, after walking tune miles and delivering the same letter to Ui men, none of whom would receive it, sat down on a tire-plug and wept. The letter was directed to Mr Smith. IN THE BALLROOM —A.: W .at a handsome lady that is—the one who is so sweetly smiling." B.: "But she reminds me of a comb." A.: Why ?" B.: Because she shows all her teeth." THREE CLASSES.—A modern writer on social science divides the human race into three classes Those who think it is so; those who think it isn't so; and those who don't care whether it is so or not. SHOPPING.— Some one calls "the race of Ameri- can ladies indolent," whereupon one of them re- torts I wonder if that man ever reflected upon the amount of shopping we do, and the willingness with which we do it. His OWN SHADOW.—Tipkins aroused his wife from a sound sleep, saying he had seen a ghost in the shape of an ass. Oh, let me sleep," was the reply of the irate dame, and don't be frightened at your own shadow." OUT OF THE JURISDICTION.—A judge recently interrupted a flowery young orator with—"Hold on! hold on! my dear sir Don't go on any higher. You are already out of the jurisdiction of this court.-American Paper. A young man who had a light incipient moustache, one day, while fingering the few hairs, said to Harry :_u Hadn't I better dye this moustacne ?" Oh, no replied Harry, let it alone, and it will die itself." An assessor asked a woman how many chickens she had, a.nd, doubting her word, proceeded to count them. She took him to the beehive, kicked it over, and invited him to count the bees. He'll take a woman's word the next time. An Irishman, writing from Philadelphia the other day to his friend in the country, concluded a letter thus: If iver it's me forchune to liv til 1 diy, and God nose whether it is or no, I'll visit ould Ireland afore I leave Philamadelphy." IN THE WAY.—"Mike, why don't you fire at those ducks, boy ? Don't you see you have got the whole flock before your gun?" "I know I have; but when I get a good aim at one, two or three others will swim between it and me." NOTHING IN IT.-A coxcomb, teasing Dr. Parr with an account of his petty ailments, complained that he could never go out without catching cold in the head. No wonder," replied the doctor, "you always go out without anything in it." Mary," said John Henry, as he reclined in the arms of his loving sweetheart, can you tell me why my head at present is like what I was last night." No, dear, why is it ?" Because," murmured John Henry, absently, it is on a bust." A local paper says :—" A It an called at one of our shoe stores yesterday, and vainly essayed to get on either numbers 11, 12, and 13 shoes. The store- keeper then suggested that he should put on a thinner pair of stockings, and try on an orange- box." NEW USE FOR A WIFE.-The frie ds of a wit expressed some surprise that, with his age and fondness for the bottle, he should have thought it worth while to marry. A wife was necessary," he said, they began to say of me that I drank too much for a single man." OBJECTION.—Smith can't see why his wife should object to his staying at his club so late, simply because he said when he came home the other night, My dear, it's the coldest year for many nig-ht; at fifteen degrees past ten the clock stood sixteen minutes below freeze." Said Lord John Russell to Hume at a social dinner. What do you considt r the object of legis- lation?" "The greatest good to the greatest number." What do you consider the greatest number?" continued his lordship. "Number one, my lord," was the commoner's prompt reply. Talking of law," says Pompey, makes me tink of what the 'mortal Cato, who lived most a thousan' years ago, once said; de l<w am like a ground glass winder, dat give light enough to light us poor errin' mortals in the dark p issages of dis life; but it would puzzle the debble hisself to see troo it." Speaking of extravagance in dress," writes Captain Crosstree, the most expensively-dressed man I ever saw was an African chief on the Gold Coast. His wives had anointed him thoroughly with palm oil, and then powdered him from head to foot with gold dust. You never saw in your life a man got up so utterly regardless of exp nse." RED-HEADED Boys.-Carefully compiled statistics go to prove that if there were no red-headed boys life would be far less of a burden to school dames, and the earth a quieter and more peaceful abode. The inclination to prod a pin into a red-headed boy is something sternly irresistible, and the red-headed boy's prompt pugnacity always reliable.—American Paper. A servant girl in a country town, whose beauty formed a matter ot general admiration and discus- sion, in passing a group of officers in the street, heard one of them exclaim to his fellow :—By heaven, she is painted Yes, sir, and by heaven only she quick y replied, turning around. The officer acknowledged the force of the rebuke, and apologised. WHAT is LOVE ?—" What is love, Nanny ?" asked a minister of one of his parishioners, alluding, of course, to the word in its scriptural sense. Hoot, fye, sir," answered Nanny, blushing to the e enholes, dinna ask me sic a daft-like question. I'm sure ye ken as weel afe me that love's just next to cholera. Love is just the worst inside complaint for a lad or lassie to have." It was about two o'clock on Friday morning that Mrs. Maguire, thinking she heard a noise in the kitchen, crept out of bed and to that room, to see if it was not Maguire, who h id been expected for several hours. On reaching the kitchen she found her lord and master sitting on the floor, with his new silk hat between his knees, and in that hat several dried herrings and about two quarts of water. Maguire was eyeing the mixture with pro- found gratification. Peter Maguire," screamed the lady, "what are you doing?" "Me?" in- quired Mr. Maguire, with a look of surprise. Why, Matildy, I'm (hie) starting an aquarium for you at Christmas." TECHNICAL LANGUAGE.—Young Simpson, begin- ning the study of natural philosophy, became fond of applying technical names to common objects to impress hearers with a sense of his profound know- ledge, and tried the game with his father one evening. When he mentioned to him that he had swallowed some marine ascephalous mollusses, the J old man was much alarmed, and he suddenly seized Simpson and threw him to the floor, and held him and screamed for help. And when Mrs. Simpson came with some warm water, and the hired man rushed in with a garden pump, they forced half a gallon of water down Simpson's throat, and then held him by the heels over the edge of the porch, and shook him, while the old man said, "If we don't get them things out of William he will be pizened." And when they were out, and William had explained that the articles alluded to were merely oysters, his father fondled him with a trunk strap for scaring the family. Subsequently Simpson framed his language in a more familiar phrase.- American Paper. .4 :I,.J