AUSTRALIA.

Colonist, Volume VIII, Issue 794, 6 June 1865, Page 3

AUSTRALIA.

The action for libel, brought by Dr. Lang against the Sydney Morning Herald, has resulted in a verdict for the Dr., with damages, of £350. The facts of the case are these :—

"The Sydney Morning Herald, in a leading article, brought a charge against Dr. Lang, which in effect was that the reverend gentleman, being in receipt of a salary of three hundred pounds a year from the Government of this colony, had mortgaged that salary to Messrs. Ewing, May and Co., of Glasgow, to the extent of seven hundred and sixty pounds, in order to procure his release from a debt to that amount, for which he had been arrested in England at the suit of that firm, but that, on his return to the colony, he then and there invalidated this security by resigning the salary; taking credit to himself afterwards for religious principle in surrendering State-aid, in consequence of which he secured from his congregation a higher salary, which his creditors could not touch. Dr. Lang admitted that he did mortgage the salary as stated, but swears that he did so as collateral security for a bill on his brother, in this colony, for the amount; that as this bill was dishonoured, and as the gentleman in this colony to whom the mortgage of his salary was transferred refused to act upon it, and referred their authority to another gentleman, a Mr. Bryant, a further arrangement was made, whereby a valuable freehold property was mortgaged and substituted as security. Nothing of this is disproved. Dr. Lang says that the mortgage to Mr. Bryant, on behalf of the creditors, was executed in September, 1841, and the deed of mortgage, bearing that date is produced iv court. He further says that the mortgage, with all expenses, was fully paid off in the same year, and there is not a tittle of evidence to contradict him.

•My Geandfatheu was a Peuson of Veby Regular Habits.'—Some twenty-fivo years ago, or perhaps a little more, an aged and highly-respected physician departed this life in one of the counties of Massachusetts. In fact, this worthy gentleman had reached at the time of his decease the extraordinaiy age of one hundred and five years. The period of his death was one of great excitement in regard to the temperance question, and it was felt that most important lessons for the benefit of the cause could be derived from an investigation of the ordinary habits of a gentleman of education and scientific attainments, whose life had been protracted to such an advanced period, doubtless owing to the rigorous adherence to the laws of health, as promulgated and enforced by the total abstinence advocates of the day. Accordingly, after the lapse of a due season, a committee was deputed on the part of the temperance societies to wait upon some near relatives of the old gentleman deceased. The deputation having proceeded to the ancient physician's late place of residence, waited upon a gentleman who was his grandson, to obtain from him all the particulars concerning his aged relative. " Doubtless," said the chief interlocutor, "your grandfather, enjoying such a remarkable span of existence, was a strict observer of the rules of temperance, and wo need not express our confidence that he indulged in no excess in I he use of hurtful kinds of drink." ' Oh, no, Sir,' said the person enquired of, ' You may be quite sure of that. My grandfather was a per&on of very regular habits. 1 "But we should like to know, if you please," pursued the questioner, "something in particular regarding his mode of life ; how, for instance, he began, and passed, and ended the day." 'Well, Sir, when he first rose in the morning he took about half-a-glass of pure Jamaica rum ; my grandfather was a person of yery regular habits ; this was his uniform custom.' " This, I suppose," said the inquirer, " was to give a sort of fillip to his system after the lethargy of lengthened repose, made requisite as an exceptional case by his very advanced period of life. Please tell us what his practice was during the rest of the day." 'My grandfather, gentlemen, was a person of very regular habits, and took nothing else of this sort until eleven o'clock, and then ontyaglass of Jamaica rum.' " Indeed; did he drink anything with his meals ?" ' Not exactly with his meals; about half-an-hour before dinner he drank a mixture to which he was partial, consisting of half-and-half of cider and rum. But after drinking that it was his custom to go out for a short walk and return to dinner. When dinner was about half through lie would then drink, say a glass of rum or whisky, as the case might be, and another when diuner waa over. Dinner was always punctually on the table at one o'clock; he took no more until four o'clock, and after that a small quan-\; tity in his tea. His practice was not to drink anything else until near bed time, which was always nine o'clock,when he had a glass or two of whisky or rum; unless, indeed, some neighbor or friend came in to join him, He was very hospitable always, and, as I have remarked, extremely regular in hiis habits.' The committee looked at one another and hesitated about pursuing the enquiry any farther. It occurred to them, however, that it would be well to save themselves, if possible, in regard to the use of tobacco. " Did Dr. ever smoke ?" asked the chairman. ' That,' said their host, ' was one of his most regular habits. He was not often without a pipe in his mouth, when not engaged professionally. He did not smoke in his bed.' " Surely then, he used tobacco in no other way?" suggested the interrogator. 'My grandfather every Saturday afternoon, gentlemen, purchased a certain quantity of pigtail tobacco, say from twenty-one to twenty-three inches in length ; this he cut up into seven different portions, one of which per day, and no more, he used for chewing in the course of the seven days of the week. My grandfather's habits, as I have observed. "Oh, confound your grandfather and his habits," broke in the questioner, out of all patience. " I beg your pardon, Sir, but it is not necessary to pursue this subject any further." — Boston Courier,