LATEST NEWS FROM ENGLAND.

Colonist, Issue 15, 11 December 1857, Page 2

LATEST NEWS FROM ENGLAND.

The following items, of news, in . addition to jwhat appeared in. our., last, publication, will be jfound interesting.:. The Houses of Legislature were prorogued, :by: commissi m, on the 28th of August. Some (measures of great importance have been passed : among these ate the Divorce Bill and the Probates Bill. One clause in the Matrimonial Bill will put an end to an unheard of amount of petty tyranny and domestic suffering—namely, the provision that when a wife is forsaken by her husband she may forthwith apply to a police magistrate, or to the magistrates in petty sessions, _nd thefe: obtain an order which1 shall protect her property and her earnings from being seized, either by her husband or his credi-j tors. The claqse which gave rise to the most, obstinate conflict in both Houses is that which permits any other clergyman to solemnize the marriage ceremony of persons , convicted of adultery, and legally separated, in cases where the incumbent of a church; refuses to' officiate. ' Besides the above mentioned measures, there have been passed—the Transportation Bill, which' will largely affrct the treatment of the criminal class; the Reformatory Schools Bill, destined to extend the means of rescuing: youths of both sexes from vicious contaminations; the! Fraudulent Trusts Bill; and the Bill for amending the process of Winding up Insolvent Joint Stock Companies. V, "•■,': '.; : ' :: ' r /. .Serious, riots have just occurred at Belfast, arising out of street preaching.; The Riot Act had to be read, arid the ihob was fifed on by the constabulary, by -which many ■ persons were badly wounded. . Spollen, afterhis acquittal, with unparalleled hardihood, engaged the St. Patrick's, Theatre, for the purpose of rehearsing his exploits in con* neetiori with the Broadstone tragedy. The proceeds "of the performance were to be employed to aiding him to'emigrate. .Such was the disgust excited in the public mind, however^ that only about a dozen persons mustered, several of whom consisted of reporters and detectives; The distressing intelligence had reached England of the assassination of the well-known African travelers, Vogal and Maguire, thus adding two more illustrious names to the dark catalogue of martyrs to African exploration and regeneration. It is stated that the Rev. T. Binney, who is incapacitated by ill-health for the fulfilment of his ministerial duties, is about to. pay a visit to Australia. His people have given him a lengthened leave of absence. By a letter published in the British Banner, it appears from the Secretary of the Colonial Missionary Society, that the Rev. Mr. Popre, who is on a mission to secure some efficient preachers and patois for Australian Congregational Churches, has already succeeded ia secur^ ing twelve out of fifteen required. Six of the number have sailed'for their new sphere of labor. In compliance with a request from'some of the Free Church,in Australia it was likely that Dr. Begg would go out as a deputation from Scotland, to heal, if possible, the division which exists, and promote the union of the various Presbyterian bodies in the colony. The ambassadorial strike, which for some time threatened to produce a disruption of European alliauces and friendship, is happily at length at an end. The representatives of France, Russia, Prussia, and Sardinia have returned to their several residences, which they so lately quitted in high dudgeon. The quarrel, it will be remembered, arose out of the Moldavian elections, which were said to have been unduly influenced by Government agencies, and which the French Ambassador, with three of his fellow dignitaries, demanded should be annulled ; the real^gepund of this, violent demonstration being thatSfhV result was unfavourable to the desired union between Wallachia and Moldavia. The.Sultan aud his ministers, supported by Lord Stratford and the Austrian Ambassador, resisted the demand. The alarming breach thus produced was healed by an interview which lately took place between Louis Napoleon | and our Sovereign, at Osborne. Our Government yielded, and sent out instructions to our Ambassador to act in accordance with their new views and intentions. The haughty veteran, however, while tardily and reluctantly obeying his orders, did it with so bad a grace, that his conduct has become the scandal of Europe; arid everybody is asking with wonder why the austere autocratic rebel is not recalled. He probably would, be-if our administrators knew what to do with him at home. Madeleine Smith.—A telegraphic despatch to the New York Commercial from Newfoundland, intimated that Miss Smith, lately acquitted of poisoning her lover in Glasgow, had taken passage for New York in the. Asia. We now learn from the Albany Statesman, that when the Asia "arrived, a larg^ number-of New Yorkers, behi"upon giving ; Miss Madeleine a public reception, serenade, &c, after the most approved Gorham fashion, proceeded to the Cunarde dock to receive, her. But, alas;, it was" found that the heroine was not on board; but the error had arisen from the fact that a Dutch lady named Mathilde Smidt was among the passengers. The committee of reception, rushing on board, inquired for ' Miss Smith.' They were shown tq the cabin of the 'fat, fair, and forty' Mathilde Smidt. Their chairman and spoksinari had hardly commenced his prepared speech, when he was interrupted by something which sounded very much like,-' Nix furstang—nix spreich Anglaish !' The committee were thunderstruck. They very well knew that the dialect was not Scottish, and concluding there must be some mistake, gathered up their hats and left in disgust. .It strikes, us that the said telegraphic, notice, being suplementary to the first one announcing the general news received on Thursday, from the same point, must have been intended-by some wag to impose upon the credulity of the excitable fast ones in the model city. The joke was a good one, and must have amused the Dutch Miss Smidt amazingly. Book.Post to the Colonies.—On the Ist of October next, and thenceforward, printed or lithographed letters may be sent, like other printed' matter, under the regulations of the colonial book-post. At the same period ah al-

teration witt take^lace in the scale of weight under which book packets sent to the colonies have hitherto! been charged. When a book packet does not exceed(ftv,weight 4 oz., it will be chargeable; with one half only of the present rate of postage, arid when the weight of a book packet exceeds i-lb., the charge will increase by steps Vlb; msteadjbf by steps of I-lb., as at present.::. The -colonial book post has now been extended tb'tlVe whole of the British colonies and possessions, and the following return "shows the faT_B""o7"''pbltagelbliyHch: such book- : packets: shainin ; be' liable: ; Por-New 'Zealand, New South Wales/ South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, and ,West^&-^ Ipacket, the rates; will" be; as follows — For a packet not exaeeding 4 dz'. 4d. i , Do. above 4 oz. and"not~exceedmg~£ lb>~ 8d::, : ; Do:above j IbidoVl lb; ls.4d/ ■'-• ■' -j - ; Do. above 1 lb. do.l;i lb. 2s. ■■ '' ' Do^above 1£ lbvdo. 2 lbs. 2s. Bd. : ; ' No book packet must exceed two feet in length,1 width, or depth, and must not exceed 3 lbs! in , ; r f -;, yi , ; :j. :: :..- I .^ /•";;/;.;' fVThe Harvest ''.xjx.': Great "BRiTAiN.—The Economist prnoounces the harvest to have been, brought to a pretty general conclusion throughout Eng'and, and proceeds to consider its results, aud its probable" influence upon future, prices both here ■„ and *in the; other large grainproducing countries of * the world. The wheat crop is remarkably good, of unusually fine quality, and the weight of "the samples is fully" up to 64 lbs. per'bushel. ; ; ]\ ; Several Priests have been excommunicated by the Bishop,of. Augsburg, in Bavaria, for holding that.salvation may be found within the; pale of'bther ; churches""than.that,of Rome, x A melancholy story has just came to light in connection with the emigration of Irish girls to America. Some time back, a Mr. Vere Foster gathered together a number of respectable young women from various parts of Ireland, and shipped them at Liverpool, with,'the intention of settling them comfortably in the western states of America.,' He preceded them to New York, but, on the arrival of the emigrant ship, found, to his surprise, that out of the* 120 girls only a portion would accompany him to their new^ homes. The others, for some unexplained reason, determined to remain at New York. At a subsequent period, a gentleman in that city discovered a 'wretched Irish girl in the streets, covered with bruises and rags, and wandering about without home or money. He questioned her, and found that she was one of the girls brought but by/Mr! 'Foster. She stated that she and about thirteen of the others had been seduced by the sailors on shipboard, and on the arrival of the vessel, had been taken to houses of ill fame. It is believed in Ireland that this sad fate frequently attends the young • Irishwomen sent out to America on board Liverpool emigrant ships. Apprehension and Committal for .Trial of Spollen.—^James Spollen was rearrested on the 22nd of August, on a charge of fobbing the late Mr. Little. Spolleh confessed to be greatly astonished at his re-capture. He was . brought up to the Police Office, aud committed for trial at the next commission for Dublin. The " War in China.—The most perfect understanding exists between the French and English Governments on the subject of China. If the court of Pekin does not give immediate satisfaction to Lord Elgin, war against the Celestial empire will be declared simultaneously by the two Governments. The Electric Telegrap-c;—lu pursuance of arrangements made by the Government, there will in six weeks be direct telegraphic communication from London to Malta, via Cagliari, and. in six months a telegraphic line from London, to Alexandria, via Ragusa, thus bringing Bombay within fifteen days of England. The Great Bore.—The Esperq of Purin says:—' As soon as all the machinery for the tunnelling of Mount 'Cehis shall have been set up, his Majesty the King of Sardinia will fire the first mine by means of an electric wire,? and will set the engine of ■ M.M. Grandis, Grattoni, Sommeiller in motion. The first rock detached from the venerable mountain will-be conveyed with great pomp to Aix-les-Bains, and will be used as the foundation-stone ofthe new bathing establishment which is to be built there.' Some extravagant ieffusions have lately appeared in the Parisian linkers, the ultramontance journal, attempting, after its fashion, to account-for the Indian mutinies. Among other preposterous causes assigned is that of the Reformation. • The Steele and the Debate have most ably confuted the, sophisms, and laughed to scorn the absurdities of the English-hating paper. Nearer home, too, but acting; under similar inspirations, some Irish journals have been found cowardly and base enough" to rejoice and, gloat oyer the tidings ; of English sufferings and sorrows in India—to delight in the treacheries, -the murders, and; unparalleled atrocities committed by if the. patriot, sepoys.' Happily such journalists do not represent the views and sentiments of the Roman Catholics of Ireland, as is proved by;an indignant protest just published by a distinguished gentleman of that persuasion. The. health of Oscar, King of Sweden, has been for some time in so precarious a state, as to incapicitate him from attending to public affairs. AH remedial measuresjhaying proved unavailing, a consultation\ of physicians has been held, as the result of which his Majesty is pronounced unfit to resume state business for twelvemonths. Should he prove unable to resume his royal functions at the expiration of that period, this decision will amount virtually* according to the Swedish constitution, to a deposition. His eldest son, Prince Charles, it is thought, will be appointed regeut of the kingdom. Dr. Livingstone, released at length from his literary labour (although his work has no yet appeared), has been lecturing at Manchester and Dublin on the resources of Africa. • A Captain Rogers had been executed at Liverpool; for the wilful murder of one of the seamen of his vessel while at sea. A great deal of interest has been excited, especially in seafaring circles, by this case of capital punishment, such a summary mode of avenging this class of crime being almost without modern parallel. The death of the poor victim was the result of a protracted series of barbarous and reyolting cruelties, such as are, iv a more modified form, only too common on board both American and British merchant vessels. Scarcely a week passes without some similar, though not fatal, case of brutal atrocity and tyranny coming before the public eye. -His first and second mates were also implicated in the crime for which Captain Rogers has suffered, but their sentence was commuted to penal servitude. ; Mercy was invoked in vain for the principal criminal. It was felt that some terrible example must be exhibited, calculated to deter those who have the control of mariners from the perpetration; of such barbarities and tortures in future. Killing by inches will henceforth be treated by a British jury and judge as murder of the foulest type, and as deserving of the sternest execrations and

vengeance. Yet Captain Rogers was not, apparently, a man of the Legree stamp. He is said to have been a kind husband, and an affectionate' father, and has left a widow and five children. The elevation to the peerage of Mr. Macaulay, the historian, is looked upon as a compliment paid- to 'literature in the person of one of its i most illustrious professors. It will be virtually , only a life peerage, as the historian is a bachelor, and is scarcely likely now to change his condition "In""the debates on Indian affairs in the next session, Baron Macaulay, it is anticipated, will give the country ihe advantage of his knowledge of the land of Clive and Warren Hastings. A - . Lord Robert Gfosvenor is another of the per : sonages elected to be honoured. He takes the title of Lord Ebury. The elevation of Lord Grosvenor has led to a vacancy in the fepi'esentation of Middlesex, which has been filled by Mr. Byng, previously, member for Tavistock. The, latter snug borough, under the domination of the Duke of Bedford, was o-mtested by' Mri Miall' andr Mr. Arthur Russell, and' was won by'the latter gentleman by a narrow majority. ■ Changes in the Cabinet are spoken as likely to'be (effected before the reassembling of Parliament/It is pretty generally believed that; Mr. Vernon Smith. President, of the Board of Control, has received permission to subside into private life. Mr. Sydney Herbert and Sir James Graham are hinted at as his successors. An able man is. undoubtedly wanted for this post at the present crisis. • The French Press and the Indian Re-volt.-—We read in the Paris Pays :—" Several of the .English journals, speaking of the recent events in India, accuse one of the great powers of Europe of having by its intrigues excited the i natives to revolt. These accusations appear to I be devoid of foundation, and we are assured that they are contradicted by an official document recently issued by the Governor-General of India himself. This document declares that the revolt was spontaneous, that it was produced by numerous internal causes, and that up to the present time :no trace of any foreign excitation has been discovered;" On the other hand the Presse states, on the authority of a traveller just arrived from Ems, that a grand dinner given the other day, .at which Russian Boyards only were present, the host proposed the health of the ' Great Mogul,' and that the toast was received with frantic applause,. We take from the Steele: —" The serious events which at present menace the power of Great Britain have naturally communicated fresh ardour to the enemies of the English alliance. Certain journals perceive danger for England in Egypt, Persia, India,-China, Greece, Canada, and other countries, and to judge from, their conclusions, England's1 days are numbered. We cannot for Our part so soon forget that our soldiers wear on their breasts, as a mark of honour, the effigy of Queen Victoria. Were a revolt to burst out to-morrow in Algeria, which God forbid, and we were to see the English rejoice over that event, and prognostigate our ruin, we should assuredly treat them as bad allies; we should point'out to them the sacrifices made by France at Inkerman and elsewhere. But another reason ought also to restrain the said journals from condemning the existence of England, namely, the simple fact that she is still upright and unhurt. ; We cannot lose from sight the history of our ally, formerly our gigaatic foe ; we cannot forget those wonderful strokes of fortune which her energy prepared. We know the immensity of her resources—the struggle she has formerly maintained; and far irom considering present events as a blow, we look upon them as a warning from which she will derive profit. We are convinced that the English are well able to meet their present dangers. We have seen in China how they can strike when necessary, and certainly British patriotism will accomplish all. that,is required in In lia. ■•••"- ---1848 and 1857.—Mr. David Buchanan, of 72, Washington-street, San Francisco, writes froni Westport/:where, he is now staying, as follows:—"From-the;year 1843 until 1848 I was. engaged travelling through the west of Ireland, and the miserable state of the county the wretched peasantry, with the hordes of lazy beggars were sights to. be seen every day. Although a Protestant and a staunch Presbyterian protesting; alike . against Popery aud Prelacy, I joined the young Irelanders, ' the men of '48,' and in the course of a very short time had tofc 'leave- my country for my country's good' and my own. In the distant land that gave me shelter, fortune smiled on me, and not being of sufficient importance to incur the displeasure of Government, 'I, have returned, I trust, a wiser man to my native country. But Ireland is no longer the. land it was: beggars now do not swarm round, public conveyances as in former days. In the episcopal city of Tuam where, ten years ago, mendicanrs, witty, clamorous, and abusive, crowded about the. coach doors in dozens, I only saw one poor old creature as I passed through yesterday asking alms. From Athenry, where I left the railway for Bianconi's car, to Westport, a journey of seventy miles, I saw no signs of abject misery or poverty. Doubtless there are cabins to be seen that might shock a Sassenach's notions of comfort, but bad «he seen the same district twelve years ago, he would rejoice and take courage, as I do, at its flourishing appearance; and when he contrasted the improved cultivation of the present with the wretched scrapings of the past, the little white cottages on the mountain sides, or in the lonely glen, the flourishing patches of oats and potatoes far up on the rugged rocks on the steep hill-side; the healthy, happy appearance of" the peasantry, the utter absence of beggars, with things as they were in those day, then he would cease to wonder that the hot blood of the Irish rebel of ' '48' flows in a more temperate flood, and tbat, while there are men in Ireland who do not fear to speak of' '98 'or "48,' yet the brave, the wise, and experienced thank heaven that their mad schemes failed, and that prosperity dawns over the length and bredth of Ireland."