LONDON.

Wellington Independent, Volume XXII, Issue 2641, 27 February 1868, Page 4

LONDON.

(jROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.) Lonelon, Ist January, 1868. Fenianism stops the way ! That hydra-headed andhybrid monster — the offspring of an unnatural union between American rowdyism and Hibernian fatuity — ha 3 now, at the age of ten years, reared his "horrid head" in our midst, and threatens the peaceable inhabitants of the British metropolis with vengeance dire ! Tho " great work" of creating a revolution in Ireland, and of severing tho connexion which has existed between that country and this kingdom for the last seven hundred years, has been "inaugurated" more Fenianism, in tho very heart of London by an act of diabolical atrocity for which no parallel can be found in our day. Driven from Ireland some months back by the vigilance of the authorities, and by the suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act, tho Tankee Fenians (all the leaders and their satellites como undei 1 that description) took refuge in tho leading towns and cities of Great Britain, more especially in the metropolis and in the great manufacturing cities of Lancashire. Here they hatched new plots, and while lying under tho protection of the British Constitution, they devised fresh schemes for its overthrow. The leaders of this confederacy are, for the most part, wily, if not able men, crafty knaves who know how to make use of base tools to work out the nefarious plots which they themselves concoct in their secret haunts. They shun the light of day, and like beasts of prey, only venture forth from their dens under cover of night, and thus tho majority of thorn have hitherto managed to elude tho watchful oye of the police. Kelly and Deasy, who were captured in Manchester last September and afterwards rescued from tho police van, were two of the most notorious loaders of this fraternity. They escaped, but their " libcrafcars" were caught, and had to pay tho forfeit of their deed with their lives. Sine Wee lachrymce. As you are already aware only three out of the band of desperadoes, who to the number of forty or fifty, attacked tho van and murdered tho brave policeman, who refused to give up the keys, wore actually hanged, though .'egtilly, they were all equally guilty. Incredible as (he fact may seem, these ruffians, who with all their crew, wore armed to tho teeth with revolvers, hatchets, and hammers when they made this attack upon half-a-dozen unarmed men in the discharge of their duty, (a dastardly act in itself) have already been raised to the dignity of " martyrs" and lauded to the skies as " murdered patriots" by thousands of tbeir infatuated compatriots in Ireland and America — while vengeance, " loud and deep," was vowed against tho British Government for having had the " hardihood" — that is to say, the firmness — to deal with those patriots as thoy deserved. The cry was immediately taken up iv Ireland by the so-called " National" press — by men who sympathise with, and encourage Fenianism indirectly, without having the honesty or the courage to proclaim their opinions openly, and the ehout was re-echoed from Dublin to Cork, that the three culprits — Allen, Gould, and Larkin, had been " murdered" by the British Goveralnent, hounded on by tho clamour* of tho " bloodthirsty" people of Great Britain. Loud were the lamentations that were mndo for tho fate of tho hapless " martyrs" who were forthwith canonized and exalted to that lofty empyrean (if such it be) — that Wnlhalla of the " mighty dead" in which several Irish worthies of the Emmett era are supposed to dwell. Not only were their praises sung in every key in tho major and minor scales — from tho heroic to tho pathetic, — I might say from tho sublime to the ridiculous — but funeral honors were decreed to the glorious martyrs. What matter that their bodies were buried within tho precincts of their gloomy prison — did not their immortal spirits still hover over tho land of their birth ? And could that land be insensible to the presence of such ethereal essences ? Certainly not. Nor was it. Funeral processions svero accordingly got up in various towns and cities throughout tho south of Ireland — Cork taking tho lead, and Dublin following closely after. These processions were attended by thousands and tens of thousands of persons of both sexes and of all ogeß. They were nil apparently respectable and well-to-do, and all wore crape in juxtaposition with a bit of the national color. Their conduct was sober and orderly, and these " mock" funerals with their hearses and mourning coaches and mutes and " keeners" and grave pedestrians had all the outward appearance of a solemn pageant, as the processions moved through milea of streets to the cemetery. When the "chief mourners" reached the "grave" (tho same description will apply, mutatis mutandis, to the funerals in Cork and Dublin) they unburdened their souls in chants and hymns and prayers for the dead, and with a few bald and very common-placo "funeral orations," which were in every way suitable to the occasion that called them forth, and fully commensurate with tho merits of the individuals whoso apothesis was thus celebrated in mock-heroic fashion. Tho first of these demonstrations of sympathy, as before stated took place at Cork, and the procession was said to have numbered 20,000 or moro ; but tho orators sang very small. After this there were a few small affairs in the provincos, and then came tho Dublin procession, which was said to have numbered 40,000, and which paraded on a wet Sunday afternoon a distance of five or six miles through oceans of mud and slush, while the rain cumo down in torrents and drenched the processionists to tho skin. But this did not damp their enthusiasm, though it certainly spoiled the finery of the " ladies," who mustered in considerable forco on the occasion. On they went marching in regular military order through tho lending streets and thoroughfares of Dublin until they reached Glasnevin Comotrey, where they were addressed by John Martin, of '48 notoriety, under whose auspices, and those of Mr A. M. Sullivan, of tho Nation, tho procession was got up. Of course there was a considerable amount of seditious nonPonse spouted by tho orators and shouted by the audience ; and defiance was flung in the tooth of tho British Government. Up to this time the Fenian sympathisers had had it all their own way. No opposition had been offered to these pseudo funeral ceremonies. In fact they were under the impression that they could carry on these processions ad infinitnm without let or hindrance, and the notion was strengthened by certain opinions expressed by tho authorities in their

places in Parliament, namely, by Lord Derby and Lord Mayo, who on the first procession being held were asked if it was not a violation of tho Party Procession Act, and replied in tho negative. This gave a handle to the leadors of which they were not slow to avail themsolves. But they had gone one step too far. And .hen tho Government came down upon them ull swoop and said in effect : "We have had enough and to spare of this wretched tomfoolery, under tho guise of a funeral proces3ion you organises a political demonstration to overturn the Government and to intimidate loyal citizens. Under ths musk of sorrow you hide tho face of sedition — this must end here, we -will no more of it." And so it was. In a day or two a proclamation was issued forbidding any more of these " semblances of woe," and the principal speakers, some five or six in number, have been summoned to answer for tho part they took in these funeral demonstrations. It was quite time that this seditious farce was stopped, for it bid fair to have a terrible " run" in the provinces, where it was about to be played with great eclat before " crowded houses," with new actors and scenery, and with a whole host of minor " stars" engaged to do tho leading business of this lugubrious extravaganza. Kilkenny and Killarney had already been fixed upon as " thcatros of great events," centres of attraction to which all the surrounding country should send its quota of tearful peasantry in doleful trim, to wit, in black and green. But the fatal decree had gone forth, the proclamation had been posted up, and the tears (if any) which were to bo shed in common, had to be dropped in silence and solitude by the unhappy mourners. In Killarney the O'Donoghue had been induced to lend his countenance (very much I believe against his will and better judgment) to tho projected demonstrations. But when the Government proclamation came out he was the first to counsol submission, very much to tho disgust of the sympathisers. Indeed tho O'Donoghuo is no longer the ultra " Nationalist" that he was somo five or six years back, for ho is a man of considerable ability and common sense, and he has already found out to his cost that le jeu ne vant 2>as la chandelle, in other words, that it don't pay. Of courso there was a great hubbub made by the " national" press, and the old stock figures of speech about Russia and Poland were again trolled out, bub the sorry jades are worn out, and won't go, not even under tho lash of " despotism, tyranny, and oppression." The foregoing narrative, which gives a kind of resume or general view of Fenian history for the early part of the month of December, brings us down to tho diabolical outrage which was perpetrated at Clerkenwall on Friday, the 13th ultimo. Wo sooner were the Manchester Fenians executed, than their friends threatened wholesale destruction, and " life for life" by way of reprisals. And they wero as good as their word. Some few days before tho outrage in question two more of the Fenian leadei'3 — Irish Yankees — named Burke and Casey, were taken up in London. Burko is a man of mark, education; and ability, and was formerly a Colonel in the American army. Casey was his subordinate agent, and is a common-place individual j but Burko was a keen, active man of business — of good address and insinuating manner, who, in the character of a " mercantile agent," had been buying up a large quantity of revolvers in different parts of the kingdom — of courso, "for purposes of exportation." These two individuals had been taken before the magistrates at Bow street, and remanded to tho Clerkonwrll House of Detention — a prison adjacent to the Clerkenwell Green, in the midst of a dense and populous neighborhood, inhabited exclusively by artisans — chiefly working watchmakers and jewellers, who abound in that locality. Tho prison is surrounded by a high wall. On one side of it is a narrow street called Corporation Lane, the houses in which are within a few feet of tho prison wall, which thoy overlook. This was the scene of tho outrage. A h\y minute 3 before four o'clock on the afternoon of tho day in question three men and a woman were observed with a small truck, on which was a barrel, in tho vicinity of Corporation Lane, but they looked like ordinary working men, and little notice was taken of them, until thoy suddenly put down the powder close against the prison wall, and ono of the number immediately applied a light to the fuse, and they all four bolted at tho top of their speed. Within a minute a loud explosion followed, resembling tho discharge of a park of artillery. You may readily iuvifjiuj I !io wholesale destruction that followed. Tho wholo of the houses in Corporation Lane wero shattered, and sevoral of them laid in ruins, besides which fourteen other streets, containing somo 200 houses, were more or less injured by this terrific explosion. A gap was made in the prison wall, resembling the letter V — somo Bixty feet wide at tho top, by fifteen feet at tho base. But the destruction of property was the least part of it. Tho loss of life was worse. Some six or eight .persons were killed, and forty or fifty lie wounded and maimed in the hospitals — many of whom will be crippled for life. And all to gratify the fiendish spirit of revenge that animated these Fenian miscreants. It is certainly quite possible that the perpetrators of this fearful outrage never contemplated, or did not calculate tho wholesale ruin and destruction of life and property which they succeeded in accomplishing. We can scarcely imagine any beings in human form so utterly lost to every bettor feeling of our nature, as wantonly to blow up some scores of their innocent and unoffending fellow mortals. The real motive of the explosion was no doubt the liberation of the two Fenian prisoners — Burke and Casey — who it was well known were in the habit of taking oxercise daily in the prison yard at a certain hour inside the spot where tho breach was made. Had they been there at the moment however, they must have been killed on tho spot. Owing to the communication which had beon made to the Governor, to tho effect that an attack was contomplated, tho prisoners had taken their exorcise iv another part of the prison, and an oxtra number of police were put on duty both inside and outside the walls. But in spite of this tho deed wus done. Its perpetrators wore actually seen in the act by several persons— policemen and others — but only when it was too late. The fuse had already beon fired, and to approach tho powdorbarrel at that moment would have been certain death. Three of the misereantß, however, wore caught — two men and a woman — named respectively, Timothy Desmond, Jeremiah Allen, and Ann justice ; the fourth, the man who fired tho train, escaped, and has hitherto eluded tho vigilance of the police, notwithstanding tho offer of a largo reward by Government. The woman Justice, it appears, is a relative of tho prisoner Cusey, and had boon in the habit of going in ovorj'- day to take him his dinner. Tho two men — tho ono a tailor, tho other a shoemaker — aro part of a regular nest of Fenians, who live in the neighborhood of St. Giles's— chiefly journoymon tailors of a low class, who carried on their conspiracies in low public houßoß. This appears from tho evidence of ono of tho gang, who, on the reward being offered, gave information to tho police which, if it can bo corroborated by further evidonce will lead to tho ccnvietion of tho prisoners. Tho inforrnor, whoso name is Yaughan, is himself a journeyman tailor, and was a most intimate friend of Desmond and Allen. This man has " peachod" upon and inculpated sevoral other persons of the same crew, who have been charged with the same offence—namely, " wilful murder" j and ho has also disclosed tho fact that tho three principal informers in tho late Fenian trials in Ireland, as well as Lord Derby, Lord Stanley, and the Home Secretary, Mr Gathorno Hardy wore marked out by tho conspirators for asaassi* nation. But not content with this, it appears tho brotherhood had likewise declared their intention of blowing up docks, warehouses, public buildings, and especially banks and Government offices, whenever nnd whorover they had a chance. Of courso all theso threats have produced a considerable amount of anxiety, not to say panic, in the publio mind. Tho Government are taking nil the precautions necessary for watching and guarding the public offices against gunpowder or " Greek fire." Considerable additions are being made to the metropolitan police force, and not a day has passed for tho last fortnight that somo

f thousands of special constables have not been sworn in to help the authorities ; and at the present moment there are no fewer than 50,000 already sworn in — a number which could readily be increased five-fold in case of necessity. Similar precautions are being adopted in all parts of the kingdom, for tho Fenian conspiracy has ramified in every direction, and would be far too formidable to be dealt with (in caso of a sudden outbreak) by the ordinary police forco of any given district. The foregoing is a tolerably full and faithful summary of what has been done and suffered in England during the past month in connection with this fatuous conspiracy. I should mention that the public sympathy for tho victims and their friends of the Clerkonwoll outrage his beon expressed in the most substantial manner by largo and liberal subscriptions — amounting in the total to several thousands of pounds, until it has been this day suggested by tho Times that the public bounty has reached a point at which it may be asked to hold its hand. The Chancellor of the Exchequer came forward in tho first in- [ stance to rolieve the immediate want of the sufferers, and all classes, from tho Queen and the Piinco of Wales downwards, have shown the most active sympathies for tho victims of this terrible outrage. Somo startling accounts have reached us from Ireland within the last twentyfour hours — showing that the Fenian leaders have not yet been completely extirpated in that country. Two or three days since, the artillerymen in charge of ono of tho Martello towers at a place called Foaty, at the entrance to Cork harbor, were surprised by a party of armed Fenians and their arms and ammunition taken away ; and, on Friday morning last, another party of Fenians, armed to tho teeth with revolvers, entered the shop of a gunsmith in one of the principal thoroughfures of the city of Cork. Tho proprietor, Mr Allport, his brother, and a gunsmith, were in the shop at the time. Tho Fenians at once covered the whole three with their revolvers, and threatened to shoot them dead on tho spot if they moved or attempted to raise an alarm— whereupon, two of the gang who were provided with sacks, proceeded to fill them with revolvers and ammunition, after which they decamped, taking with them about 1500 rounds and 60 revolvers, while their confederates kept guard and enabled them to get clear away ; after which tho five sentries themselves " hooked it in quick sticks," and have not beon captured up to tho present moment. I have given you tho fullest information upon this topic, because littlo else has been talked of in England for the past month ; it is tho all-absorbing subject of conversation in every social circle. I am therefore justified in repeating tho phrase with which I commenced — " Fenianism stops the way." There have lately been two severe and disastrons explosions — the one by gunpowder and the other by nitro-glycerine — a chemical composition of a very dangerous character, used for blasting purposes. The gunpowder explosion took place on Saturday morning last, the 28th ult, at tho powder mills of Messrs Hall, the well-known manufacturers. These works were situated about a mile from the town of Frtvcrsham, and were completely isolated from any other buildings. This was a most fortunate circumstance, for tho forco of the explosion was such that it shook all the windows and broke some glass in the city of Canterbury, at a distance of ten miles. The works consisted of three separate houses, or blocks of buildings, standing at a distance of about 100 yards apart. How tho accident occurred will probably never bo known — for there is not a single survivor to tell tho tale. There were fortunately at the time only eleven men on the premises, but they were literally blown to fragments, and not a vestige of the promises remains — although ev(S?/ means had been taken to isolate them as much as possible and to guard thorn by mounds and earthworks. The first explosion took place in the coming-house, and was followed at intervals of, half a minute by two other explosions in the press-house and glazing-house respectively. It is not yet known what tho amount of tho damage done has been, but tho town of Favcrsham itself and tho surrounding district has suffered extensive injury from the forco of the concussion — which may bo estimated ri-om the fact that huge trees were torn up by the roots and flung to an incredible distance. At first it was surmised that the Fenians had something to do with this fearful explosion, but I believo there are no grounds whatever for tho suspicion — at least there is no evidence to warrant such a belief. Singular enough tho causo of tho other explosion will equally remain a mystery, as there is no ono out, of six or seven left alive to tell the talo. Upwards of a fortnight since it was found that several cans of this blasting oil were found stored away in a cellar in the cloth market behind tho Branch Bank of England, at Newcastle. How they got there was somewhat of a mystery, but tho authorities hearing of it, and being on the alert after tho Clorkenwell affair, took immediate steps to have this dangerous and highly explosive compound removed. But what should bo done with it ? At length after having boen taken to the Town Hall, and tho railway authorities having refused to touch it, a suggestion was made by Mr John Mawson, the shoriff of Newcastle, who was himself a clever practical chemist, and by Mr Bryson, tho town-surveyor, that tho composition should be taken to a certain spot outside the town and the contents of the eight cans or canisters poured down the creeps or crevices of some worn out mines. This was accordingly done. The cans wore put into a cart, and under tho direction of a sub-inspector of police (who survives, but who was a witness to a part only of the process of getting rid of the substance) and four others was taken to tho spot fixed upon. When Mr Mawson and Mr Bryson joined tho party. The corks were then taken out of the cans, and tho contents (a greenish fluid resembling cod liver oil and having tho smell of French polish) poured out into the soil which rapidly absorbed the oil, but it was then found that a considerable portion of tho composition had become crystalised at the sides and bottoms of the cans. It was accordingly decided that the cans should bo buried in the earth, as they stood at a little distance off, and this was being done by the other men when the explosion occurred. Tho four men were killed on the spot, and Mr Mawson and Mr Bryson received such severe injuries that they were rendered insensible and only survived for a few hours. The police-inspector alone survives, Being at somo littlo distance off from where the workmen were burying the cans ho only sustained a severe shock and was able to come to the help of Messrs Bryson and Mawson ; but ho can giro no account of tho cause of tho accident, and ifc has therefore been conjectured that tho oxplosion was caused by the concussion of tho spades upon the cans while being deposted under the earth. The accident has caused great regret, not only in Newcastle but throughout tho kingdom, and certainly I greater precautions will be taken in futuro for dealing with this " villainous compound" which had it exploded where originally deposited would have left the town of Newcastle a mass of ruins. It is said to have ten time 3 the explosive forco of powder, and to bo now veiy extensively xised for blasting purposes. This is the same composition which your roadera will remember as having caused a serious disaster in. tho harbor of Panama some eighteen months or two yeurs ago. The manufacturers however assert that tho substance, with proper precautions, is not moro dangerous than gun-cotton or powder. Another accident by flro took place in London, upwards of three weeks ago, in tho total destruction by fire of her Majesty's theatre. Many of your roadors will remember the Opora House, surrounded on all sidos by a colonnade, which had stood since our grandfathers were boys at the eornor of tho Haymarket and Pall Mall. It had just accomplished the ago of seventy-five years, and was ono of tho finest opora houses in .Europe. Fortunately there was no loss of life, but there was considerable destruction of property as well in the theatre itself as in some of the adjoining houses on the western side near the Opera Arcade. Close to this was tho house of the Messrs Graves, the well known print publishers and engravers, whose immense stock in trade, but more especially their picture gallery at the back of the premises, i

■were greatly injured by fire and water. The fire broke out about a quarter past eleven at night, the wind being very high. There wag no performance on that evening, bub there had been a rehearsal of the opera of Fidelio in the morning. The only persona on the premises at the time were the care takers and gasmen, who, on going their rounds an hour bofore the accident, saw no signs of fire. This was first discovered from the street, but too late, for within half an hour from tho time the lire broke out, the roof had fallen in, and the theatre was a mass of ruins. Somo twenty or thirty engines were quickly on tho spot from all parts of Londow, but they could do nothing more than check tho progress of the fire 1 and save the adjacent buildings. Such a conflaI gration had not been seen in the heart of London for many years. It seemed to light up the whole of the metropolis for miles around, and the flames i were as visible at Highgate as they wero in the Haymarket itself. Tho theatre wa3 insured by Lord Dudley and "Ward for nearly £100,000. He therefore, as the proprietor, is secured, but tho lessee, Mr Mapleson, was unfortunately not insured (the papors were drawn out, but not signed), and his losses are estimated at £12,000. Besides this there was considerable loss sustained in dresses and jewelry belonging to the artiates of the establishment. Madlle. Tietjeus alone estimated her loss at £2000. Besides this the unfortunate members of tho orchestra lost their instruments — sonift-of them very valuable violins. There was also tht^ptal destruction of all the splendid scenery, ana of the rich musical library — containing the original scores of some of the greatest composers of the present century. Altogether it will be difficult to repair the damage that has been done, there is some talk of having the house rebuilt, but this is doubtful. The site is government property, and only twenty-one years of the original lease remain unexpired, and it is well known that the Q-overnment would be glad of tho locality to build a western district post office. Tho " autumnal session" of Parliament, which barely lasted throe weeks and came to a termination in the early part of December, having accomplished nothing but a barren discussion on the Abyssinian expedition, which was severely condemned by soveral speakers as having been rendered necessary by the " bungling and mismanagement" of the Foreign Office during the late administration. At all events, a " vote in aid" of tho war was passed, and to meet the expenses an additional penny was added to the income tax, for the whole of tho current financial year, or in other words an additional 2d for the next half year. Tho expedition is now on its way — that is to say, a small portion of it — into tho interior of Abyssinia, and up to the present moment no very great obstacles have been encountered on the way — only that a considerable number of our horses and mules have been seized with some kind of epidemic, and have dropped by the way side. Some two or three very interesting letters have already reached iis from the special correspondent of the Times, who is with the advanced guard, and those communications possess great value for those who take an interest in African topography, soil, climate, and natural history, for the writer (whoso name is Arnold) is evidently a first-rate man, having special aptitude for an important office of that kind. Buf with regard to this expedition it must be confessed that everything is at present in a very backward state, and it is greatly to be feared that they will not reach the seat of war for several months to come. Tho advanced guard is, o\ course, a mere dribblet of what is to follow, and is merely clearing the ground and feeling its way cautiously along with a little army af sappers and miners, who are being engaged in removing obstacles which encumber tho tracks and mountain passes along the routo. The climate is described as being very fine, but the temperature varies c good deal, being sometimes as low as 30 degrees at night, and upwards of 80 degrees by day, which 13 rather trying, but hitherto the health of tho troops has been good. The conductor of this avant-garde, Colonel Merewether, is " buying-up" all the chiefs ho can meet with along his route, and they are only too ready and -willing to be bought — that is to say bribed. Tin's is considered excellent policy, otherwise these chiefs, who appear to bo numerous, might harass us on our inarch, and do us considerable damage along the defiles and mountain passes of the route. There is a kind of vague expectation here that before long King Theodore will knock under, and liberate the captives, before it comes to blows, for he is far from being in a condition to fight British troops, with his subjects in ©pen rebollion against him. It is also reported that he has already re moved tho chains from several of the captives, and exhibited towards them more leniency and consideration ; and that there is a chance of their release." This indeed would bo welcome news if true, for this Abyssinian business can not in any case procure us honor, glory, or reward, and may possibly result, if protracted, in considerable waste of life and trcasuros. I believe tho whole of the expedition has ere this embarked from Bombay and on its way to Massowah, but there is considerable delay owing to insufficient means of transport for men and animals. An action of considerable importance to the newspaper press has lately been tried before the Court of Queen's Bench. The case was that of Wason v Walter, one of the proprietors of tho Times, for alleged libels published in that paper in the spring of last year, the libels being in the first place a report of a debate in the House of Lords on a petition presented by Mr Wason for an inquiry into cortuin charges made by him against tho Lord Chief Baron (Sir Fitzroy Kelly), and in the next two leading articles of the same journal commenting upon the debates in question. Somo thirty years or upwards it appears the pre sent plaintiff Mr Rigby Wason and Mr Fitzroy Kelly, who were at the time both members of the Bar, and had been on friendly terms with each other, were rival candidates in the borough of Ipswich for a seat in Parliament. Mr Fitzroy Kolly was returned, but a charge of bribery was brought against him by his rival, and from having been friends they became bitter enemies. The case came before a committee of the House of Commons in due course, and the charge now raked up against the Lord Chief Baron by his former rival was that he had then " made a statement on his word of honor as a gentleman which he knew to bo false." This was the principal charge, but there were also others alleging that in 1846 Sir Fitzroy Kelly had obtained his appointment from Sir Robert Peel under fraudulent pretences, or, in other words, that Sir Robert 1 Peel had great reluctance to make his appointment, but that his scruples had been overcome by fraud. These charges then of " wilful and deliberate falsehood" and of "fraud," were embodied in a petition to the House of Lords lust spring, and the petition was prosonted by Earl Russell, who, howevor, appeared to do so with some show of reluctance. The petition naturully led to a somewhat animated debate, in which sevoral of the Law Lords, including the Lord Chancellor, took tho principal part. This debate showed that there was not tho shadow of a foundation for such a charge now brought forward for the first time after a lapse of more than thirty years, and after Sir Fitzroy Kelly had been raised to tho Judicial Bench. The petition was declared to bo scandalous and malicious, and tho allegations utterly false and unfounded ; and tho conduct and motives of Mr Rigby Wason were characterised in no measured terms by the Lord Chancellor, as well as by all other learned Lords in tho House. Whereupon Lord Russell, after : some apology for having presented such a document to the notice of tho House, withdrew it, and declared himself thoroughly satisfied with the way in which the charges had been met. The Times, as a matter of courso, published the debates the next morning, and made some very pungent remarks by way of commont in a leading article upon tho issues raised by Mr Rigby Wason. i Shortly after which this gentleman (who must be close upon 70 years of ago) applied for a criminal information for libel against the Times, which, howevor, was refused, and he then resolved to proceed by civil action. This action came on •bout a fortnight ago, and occupied two or three i

whole days in hearing. The most hijoifcanfc point involved was whether the pu^catidn by a newspaper of a faithful repor ( no t necessarily a verbatim one) of a deb\ c j n Parliament is "privileged" in the Bam\ way as the publication of judicial proceij ngß in Courts of Justice. This point, it apf Qrß . was somewhat doubtful, as it had in some foi ieP cases being ruled that such publication waß ofc " privileged." But since then the whole law f libel has undergone considerable modificatio; and change, and the present Lord Chief Jußtice in summing up, ruled that " an honest and bond fide report of a parliamentary debate is a privileged publication, and one which cannot be the subject of an action." The jury, without hesitation, found a verdict for the defendant, and thus a most important question as to the privilege of the press in such matters has been finally set at rest. This trial was chiefly remarkable for the extreme virulence and truculence of the language used by Mr Rigby Wason in the course of his opening speech for himself (for he "was his own counsel) towards certain noble and learned personages who from having been " sons of barbers and Old Bailey barristers," had been "pitchforked into the House of Lordß." This speech was read from a manuscript, or rather, I believe, from printed slips, occupied about eight hours or more in the delivery, and was throughout a tissue of gross and scurrillous vituperation, without a shadow of proof against noble Lords now upon the Bench or in the Upper House. But the moßt singular part of the business was that in his cross-exami-nation by the Attorney-General, who was counsel for the defendant, he completely broke down in his attempt to substantiate the truth of the alleged " chargea" contained in his petition, and was forced to confess that he had no better authority than " general rumor." And in another case ho was compelled to admit that the charge of " wilful and deliberate falsehood" was an "error" through having confounded a speech, made by Mr Kelly with a letter in a local journal. And so the whole case fell through — to the great; discomfiture of the plaintiff, but to the infinite satisfaction of the public, who know by this time what value is to be attached to imputations made through Bpite, jealousy and malevolence, and from no motive of public benefit. The winter has hitherto been very trying to the health and constitution. There has been very little frost or snow, but there has been a constrable amount of cold, damp weather and heavy fogs, which seem as if they would chill the marrow within the bones. In every point of view the season has been dull, gloomy, and cheerless. Stagnation in trade and business still continue?, and there are thousands of working men — artizans, laborers, and operatives, out of employment, as well in London as in the manufacturiag districts. People who were at one time comparatively well off are now realising the full effects of the panic of '66. They have no money to spend, and scarce enough to live upon, and this makes tho demand for clothing and for fabrics of every description very slack. The great decline in the price of cotton at Liverpool has naturally affected the quotations for wool, in which there are at present no signs of improvement. They remain much as they were a month back. HoweTer, wool-growers in your colony must console them* selves with the reflection that they have had a long run of good luck and high prices ever since the outbreak of the American war — that is to say for a period of six or seven years, and they must in future make up their minds to be content with smaller profits. At the same time I think some improvement may be looked for when a return of activity in trade generally shall have created a demand which does not at present exist. The conversion of your provincial loans has not taken anyone by surprise who understood tho question, but tho mode in which the transaction is to be carried out — so much to the disadvantage of the colony and to the clear profit of the bondholders, has certainly been productive of some astonish* meat. The common sense view of the matter would seem to be that an understanding or arrangement should have been entered into "with the bondholders, and that the latter should hare given a full quid pro quo to the General Government for the enhanced value of the security presented and for the consequent enhanced prices of bonds, which had been purchased at a low figure under a different condition of affairs. Kb doubt the bondholders will at least remember their generous colonial benefactors — in their prayers* Your 6 per cents, are now quoted at 110, and your s's at 991. This, at least, is encouraging— but the fact is owing in some measure to the difficulty of investing with any chance of a fair profit in securities nearer home. Unless by very cautious proceeding on the part of colonial bar* rowers, I am inclined to doubt if your " consols" will continue for any lengthened period to enjoy the high quotations which thoy at present command. No news of importance in the evening papers of this date. A gang of eight mor» Fenians has been captured at Dowlais and Merthyr, in Wales, and an attack was made yesterday by a Fenian party in the county of Cork upon the houso of a gentleman named Mathevr (a brother of tho late Father Mathew). They were fired on by the inmates, and one of them was shot, after which they decamped, taking with them the wounded man.