LONDON.

Otago Witness, Issue 652, 28 May 1864, Page 7

LONDON.

(from a ookre-pondent.)

March 25th, 1864. Parliament is now adjourned for the Easter holidays. The session thus far exceeds in interest that of last year. The Opposition has from the fir3t sought to worry and run down the Ministry. In both Houses embarrassing questions have been put, and bitter speeches have bten delivered. Lord Russell has received unmeasured abuse from the Tory press in connexion with his alleged "muddling and meddling" in Continental affairs. "Lord Paltnerston has stood up manfully for him, and told the Opposition that he held himself responsible for all that the Foreign Secretary bad done. The failure of the English diplomacy in its attempts to prevent Austria and Prussia attacking Denmark, has been made a constant subject of vituperation. Even now, when a Conference is likely to take place (without an armistice), matters are not much better. Another ground of excitement in the Lower House has arisen out of the trial of Greco and the other conspirators, against the life of the Emperor of the French Greco declared that Mazzini was privy to the plot; and. moreover, that he had directed him (Greco) to write letters to London under cover to "Mr Flower," giving the number of a particular square. This address was the residence of Mr Stansfield, a junior Lord of the Admiralty, who has shown great ability of late, and is a trenchant reformer .of naval abuses. The Opposition got up the cry that Stausfieldwas the intimate friend of a notorious instigator of assassination. Passages were adduced from Mazzini's writings showing that he considered that there were exceptional cases when the " dagger" might be Tosed. Mr Stansfield, in his place, pub licly denied any knowledge of the Greco plot, and avowed his friendship with, and admiration of, Mazzini. Mr Layard, for the Foreign Office, declared his "contempt for the accusation 'made by the French Procureur General, as a member of rarhament. Ihen came a fierce debate and a cloee division, giving the Ministry a majority of ten votes against the Tory motion that the House should express a *f regret"— thus demanding an apology to the French Government. Mr Stanefieid admitted that fora number of years letters from Mazzini were addressed under cover to his residence, but again disclaimed all knowledge of any abuses arising therefrom, on the

part of hig friend. Still he expresses sor- ' row for what had been done, and so far apologises. He had seriously tendered his resignation of office. The Premier refused to accept it, and in the final struggle, with that true chivalry that makes him always stand up for his friends, threw his hroad shield over the vilified minister. It is not likely, after these defeat*, 1 that the Opposition can force either a dissolution of Parliament or a change of Ministry. I have heard that the Queen has made it a personal request to Lord Derhy, that he and his party shall wait for the issues of a general election. Mr Gladstone has brought in a Government Annuities Bill to enable the laboring class to insure their lives, and also to realise provision for old age. In connection with this, he gave a history of those Friendly Societies which are so numerous in England, and by hia exposure of the fraudulent and bankrupt character ol some of them, has caused much alarm and anxiety. The directors of these institutions are up in arms ; George Potter, the Chartist leader of London citizens, has held and addressed a great meeting in Exeter Hall. In the House, Mr H. Sheridan, M.P., for Dudley, has defended himself against Mr Gladstone, who hai cited hia^ name as an auditor of an assurance society which has turned out most fraudulent. The Tories hacked Sheridan, and there was, as Bernal Oaborne said,' what the House likes so well, a regular " baiting" of a victim. But out of all, Gladstone will come viptorious, and will confer ou the working classes an inestimable boon. The retirement of Sir Rowland Hill from the management of the Post Office arises from ill health. The country gratefully recognises his <rreat services. The Treasury and Parliament secure to him for life an annuity of £2000 per annum, and Lady Hill, if she survive her husband, will be amply provided for. At Birmingham, his birthplace, and where his father wajg a schoolmaster of eminence, a statue of Sir Rowland is to be erected. A Royal christening has been, as usual, j very much of a state ceremony. "Victor Albert" is the name given to tbe,6rst born of the Prince and Princess of Wales. They { have been holding a drawing-room at St. i James' Palace — the presentations being 1 held equivalent to a reception by the Queen herself. Her Majesty still keeps aloof from public life, but is much more cheerful, and her health is greatly improved. The Prince and Princess of Wales are at present spending the Easter holidays at their new seat and propert}', the Sandringham Hall and estate, in Norfolk. This property was purchased from the Hon. S. Cooper, son of Lady Palmerston, for L 220,000. It has been my privilege lately ' to have visited that region, and to be welcomed at the Hall by Mr. Carinichael, the Scottish resident agent and manager. He j is a man of great talent and energy. He h laying: out the park and gardens with great skill, and under him are placed large bodies of laborers filling up marshes and ponds, planting trees, making broad carriage walks, and effecting vast changes and improvements. The Hall at Ssndringham is approached by an avenue, at the end of which are the fdinona v Gates of Norwich"— famous among the glories of the Exhibitiou of 1862 — presented to the Prince by the authorities of that fine old city. The house is small, but large additions are about to be made. I bad much interesting information given me, both as to the Prince and Princess. The latter is goodness personified ; she is gentle, kindly, and sympathetic. She goes into the cottages of the poor, and talks with them. The Prince is quite a man of business. He takes the Scottish steward with him, riding by the carriage of the Royal pair, or on horseback along with him«elf as an equestrian, and talks incessantly about the improvements to he made. He is not stupid or dull. He is sharp, and also very decided in his views and resolves. He is a keen sportsman, also, both as to shooting and hunting. The neighborhood of Sandrinsham, including the town of Lynn, are much henefitted by the presence of Royalty. The Norfolk farmers, who had been paying their laborers the miserable dole of nine shillings per week, now find themselves in a difficulty. The Princess's steward pays 12s per week, and so many are employed, ! that the farmers sometimes come a beggiug to Mr Carmichael for a loan of a few laborers. He is the superintendent, and paymaster of a.l the servants in doors and outofe'oors He is at this time paying weekly wages at the rate of L 2500 per annum, and this will be much increased. There are 10,000 acres on the estate. 3000 of these have, tenant farmers upon them —the rent being only Ll per acre. The estnte is very like a Highland district : one-third of it covered with Scotch firs, underwood and brake, and heather abundant. It is near the German Ocean, and is o.'ie of the healthiest regions in the kingdom. I hope the foregoing sketch of

what I have seen at Sandringbam, may be of some interest to your readers. The Emperor of the French has imported largely cattle of the Durham stock, and with a view to the encouragement of cattle breeding, there are tvo establishments — one at Pompadour and another at Corbon, in Normandy. The main drainage system for the metropolis is fast approaching completion. It is really a vast underground tunnel 65 miles long. At least one million per annum for several years has been expended. Not till it "is finished will the results be seen. They will be astonishing. The Thames will become a pure stream, and fish will probably be caught at London Bridge. Recently an omnibus came in collision with a fire engine in Clerkenwell, and was completely overturned ; no lives were lost or limb 3 broken, but the outside passengers were precipitated on tne road and pavement and down the areas. There have been several iresh cases of women burnt to death. One was that of a young married lady. She wore two crinolines ; she had twice taken fire before the final catastrophe. Her husband approaching the house saw the blaze ; and efforts made to save her were vain. A case of garotting at Islington has been followed by swift retribution, and terror has struck the hearts of the garotters, as the convict is to be severely whipped, under the new statute. There has been a high rate of mortality both in town and country. In the first week of March there were 176b" deaths in London, being 360 above the decimal average. In the same week 2210 children were born. The influx of people from the provinces and otherwise still goes on, and in the next census year London will contain three millions of souls. The suburban tendencies are ever increasing. The new railways will increase the outflow; but a large proportion of those who live out of town are within the metropolitan area. The Charing Cross Railway to London Bridge station, is a great success, and to persons going to the Westend saves at least half an hour of time. The Parliamentary Committee has strangled in the birth many of the new projects for intersecting London with railways. The city, merchants met and strongly protested against them. But the Thames tunnel is to be utilised at last by being incorporated in a railway communication between the east of London and the south-eastern side of the Thames. Railway interests generally— save in the case of the Great Eastern and Great Western— are flourishing. Upwards of three hundred ana eighty millions of capital have been expended on railways ; and 11,200 miles are open for traffic in the British isles. In effecting these results crossing have been made over navigable rivers aud arms of the sea; hills have been pierced by tunnels; and viaducts embankments and cuttings have been made in all directions. All this has been c % C / ed in the lifetime of °ne generation. rinckeray's furniture, pictures and books have been sold, He had recently built himself a house at Kensington, and there he died. The attendance at the sale was large and unique also. The Shaksperian Commemoration at Stratford-on-Avon, is now changed as to its programme. The Earl of Carlisle will lead the van on the occasion. The London Committee has been reconstructed, and probably will be able to do their work well. But "Punch" is ever and anon applying the lash, and the conduct of Ilepworth Dixon and others towards Thackeray is deeply resented. Ecclesiastical questions continue to force themselves on public attention, and occupy large space in the discns3ions and records of the secular press. The recent decision of the Privy Council has alarmed the great body of the clergy as well as the Episcopal Bench. Hence it is that two demonstrations have been made; the first, the ejection of a renewed proposal and motion at Oxford to pay L 360 per annum to Professor Jowett, the Greek Pr6fessor. Dr Pusey and the Evangelicals had withdrawn their opposition, but had inserted I in the terms of the motion, a caveat against [ Jowett teaching aught contrary to the Catholic faith. The High Church clergy, however, flocked to Oxford, and by a considerable majority refused the endowment. Thereupon have followed several animadversions in the "Times," " Daily News," "Saturday Review," and "Daily Telegraph." The subjects also of " inspiration " and the duration of punishment of the wicked, have been discussed between the Rev. F. D. Manna on the one hand, and Dr Pusey on the other. Cases of extreme old , age have been recently recorded, in connection with the returns of mortality over the country. In the report for Scotland, we find that a seaman ditd at Dtinbar, who fought Avith Nelson at Trafalgar ; a joiner who was apprenticed to Meikle, the inventor of the first Scottish threshing machine ; and a domestic servant aged 97, wiy> remembered convening with her

grandfather, who used to tell her be 3jbB seen William and Mary enter L<hmlcm in Royal state, in 1688. The Great Eastern steamship has ferae chartered for the conveyance of lie Atlantic telegraph cable, which, it is asserted will be ready lor submerging raa&e-. summer of 1865. A deputation from the National T«a«- ■ perance League, lately visited Oxford . and held a conference, attended by 94 bb--dergraduates and several Professors mtHa:~ the presidency of a Proctor: A Vnh&Fsity Association has been formed. Hre wine parties at the Universities do 3*fr run to such txcess as formerly. Kev«»— theless, the Proctors have their cwa» troubles at times, in connection wftjfe41 Carloing," and there has been quite *•' stir at Cambridge, where fines have Vcbibinflicted for ringing the bells of pjwafcr • houses, &c. From ijndia, we hear of a short cottswcrop by reason of both frost and rains. 13x» exchanges are again so high, as to renew the eastward drain of cold and silver frastt this- country. Sir John Lawrence Torn been working hard at Calcutta, but wMr the members of the Supreme Council jb» about to go to Simla, for the hot montlec Ships have left KurrUchee with a telegraph •- cable, which, if successfully laid duvnu^,.. will speedily give us close and coDsJaafc 1 j communication with India. i From Japan, we hear that afresh embassyis about to be despatched to Enrope, wftlt the view of abrogating recent treaties, as& obtaining complete isolation in matter* ofi " trade from the western nations. The American spring campaign on 13m - part of the Federals has been confessedly a failure. At Mobile— as.well as in Gem*- - ral Butler's attempt to surprise and feiteRichmond, and the retreat of Shersnaat**Vicksburg, with large rumoured loescsv I and his object unaccomplished— all tare . been inefficiency and disappointment. €k~ I ner*l Grant seems, to be " the comings man "as War Minister, or General Ctafr-manding-in-Chief. Meade is likely to le made a victim, on the principle of " hashing somebody " when disasters occur. OSB General Scott affirms, that not this year^ . or the next, will the Confederates be caok- - quered, Thurlow Weed expects tl«Sr.when the war closes, the national debt wHf have amounted to at least four thousand millions of dollars. The conscription h*& been deferred for some time, and when. ever the time for it arrives, there will b& great shortcomings aa to numbers. Thews - is a startling collapse of interest in Ame~ r\can affairs of late, partly because of the - war " dragging its slow length along,*"" and that its continuance seems interims*- - able, and partly from the absorbing iatere3t taken in tlieDano-German question^. . as well as in the " shindies " and rowsit* , which the House of Commons is disportEacjitself in the last year of its existence. The Tories have now a seat both. sS: Brighton and in Hertfordshire. Nevertheless, in a division they fail to bring^ up. a sufficient number to the vote. These are always some who, while Conservative, - have a sneaking kindness for Palmerstura^ and who in their hearts distrust D'lsradaL That gentleman i 3i 3 now rich by the legacjr of a Jewish lady, and he is asserting bi» claims to position by a recent fit of the gout.

What the Danish War mvt Bmnss • Forth.- The plan of tho campaign tboogbifc involves the eventual evacuation of tfchleswig, is- . ivdeemi'd fiom absolute hopelessnfa3 by ih& expectation that a diversion will be effected aas the spring at the opposite end of Germany. ltd*' • is massing troops, and collecting troops on the.- ■ eastern coast, and pieparing the necessary sttpdto of preliminary grievances. Hungary is sufiejius: - extreme distress, while the constitutional qnantii^ ' witli the Uown has not even approached to *." settlement. 'Hue Koman provinces on the Danniesare preparing, nnder French and Russian inßtSation, to participate in the impending confadoo z and it is impo?sible to foresee the course of Urn Polish insurrection, °r to withdraw tha considerable forces which watch the Gnlician frontier— A policy based on coDjeetures and possibilities feseldom to be Jcommeuded, but. the Danes oads- ■ require an excuse to satisfy their reason or toesr conscience that their defence iB not absolutdy desperate. Their real motive for acreptinfftW challenge of a superior enemy is their belief tbsfc they are wronged, and their own obstinatecourage. It is impossible not to admire tieresolution which rejects ail coneideration* «# satety and all comparisons of force. It is the ossbest augury, as Hector said three thousand yesrr* Bao, for a caan to fight, for his country. A*t th» same time, foreign bystanders ought not to allow their sympathies to overpower their judgment— " Saturday Keview." Somethihg " like a Brjok."— A notary lte» forwarded to the Bank of France a brick, wit&a IOGOfr -note pined on ifc, which has been paid, nwB will be kept in the Bank Museum of Curiosiria. It appears that it had been far 15 yeara clued o» the wall of a peasant's house, and consi Jered t» *. pictoral curiosity by,the man who found it astf did not know its value, fteither did hondreda «T his fellow-laborers, who had seen it in its plsee, between a picture of Beranger and WapoiecoL. until it was remarked by the notary on his taking •;. an inventory of the man's gooes. The late Sir Robert Peel, speakinir in tKt - House of Commons of the Lord Cnnnceltajr (Eldon), said that— to apply to thas noble iotf tir words of the poet— "even his feelings leaned t» virtues side:" a gentlem«n . present remarit* that,mihat case ills lordship's failings resembfctß ' the Leaning; Tower of Pka, which, notwithstaw^. ing its inclination, had never yet jfone'ovee.. "■ ".