Num.

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9TH.

THE various sections of the British Association resumed their sittings at Manchester on Friday. Mr. New march, the president of the Eco- nomic Science and Statistics section, delivered the opening address which he had been on the previous day compelled to postpone through indisposition. The section sat in the Assembly Room, Free Trade Ida, which was well filled during the day. Mr. David Chadwick then read a paper on the general progress and improvement in Man- chester and Salford during the last twenty years. Mr. Edwin Chad- wick also spoke on the subject, especially going into the sanitary state of the city, which lie represented as being bad in the extreme. The death-rate of Manchester was far above the average death-rate of the kingdom. The great causes of mortality were diarrhcea and typhus, both arising from atmospheric impurity, and both to be greatly mitigated, if not entirely banished, by sanitary measures : " Sanitary science was so far advanced in its practical application that con- tractors might contract for results. They might be shown instances where, by one measure alone, the abolition of cesspools, here called middensteads,' death- rates had been reduced 10 in 1000. Dr. Greenhow had examined the causes of death in Manchester; he found a large proportion to be from diarrlicea, and de- signated the middenstead the monster evil of the city. In this city, of all born full cue-half were in their graves before their fifth year ; and that from dis- eases which were almost banished from well-regulated pauper establishments. The deaths of adults from these diseases was excessive, and the duration of life and working ability in Manchester was exceedingly low. The city competed with Liverpool in being the most unhealthy in England. The state of the county in respect of crime was shown by her criminal returns to be relatively as low as its state of health. Its relative position in education, as shown by the proportion of marksmen prevailing among middle-class persons, or those who had the franchise, was yet a very low one A warm discussion then ensued, several Manchester gentlemen assert- ing that Mr. Edwin Chadwick had represented the sanitary state of the city as being much worse titan really was the case. The President observed, that whatever progress had been made in sanitary improve- ment, so log 45 the death-rate was so much larger than the average

... 9 3-5ths „ 12 months' wages ... 19 1.5th „ 121 months' wages ... 20

But, as money is worth 5 per cent at interest, it follows that if a strike for 5 per cent. lasts 12i months and then succeeds and maintains the increase for 20 years, the workman has lost in interest much more than he gained in wages, and that, therefore, no part of the Ices can ever be made up ; for if he could have worked for the lower sum during the year of strike, and have invested instead of spending the money, the year's wages would have grown into three years' wages nearly by the time in which the gain of the strike would make up for the loss of a single year. Of course a strike for 10 per cent. would require only half the above term to make up the loss, while a strike for 2i per cent. would require double the time exhibited in the table, or 41 years. The strike of the London builders in 1859 was for 10 per cent., and, as it lasted 26 weeks, would, if suc- cessful, have required 10 2.5ths years of continuous work at the extra rate to make up the loss of wages sacrificed. The amount in dispute between the weavers of Colne and their employers did not average more than at per cent., and, had the strike been successful, would have required more than 28 years' con- tinuous employment at the advance to make up the amount of wages lost, by which time the lost wages would, at 5 per cent., have quadrupled. In the cotton trade wages appear to undergo something like a general adjustment every three or four years, in consequence principally of defective or abundant harvests of corn or cotton, or both. Such adjustments occurred in 1853, in 1857, and in 1860. If, therefore, the strikes which occur were spread equally over these periods, they would, even if successful, only affect the rate of wages for about two years upon an average, and therefore could not make up for more than about five weeks' loss of wages by strike. But strikes are seldom successful to the workmen, so that while they sacrifice the wages of the present time, they also lessen the wealth of the world, and so lessen the future demand for labour, and put further off the day when any advance of wages will be possible. Here is a list of a few un- successful strikes, with a rough estimate of the losses consequent thereon. Some of these were among spinners, and some among weavers; and, learning that about 451. in weaving and 801. in spinning will represent the capital per EXAMPLE OF UNSUCCESSFUL STRIKES, WITH ESTIMATE OF LOSS TO

SOCIETY.

Name of Town.

Nuoa'ndos.

Weeks of Strike. g'-'c RI

il'.

Amount of Wages. Profit at 121 per cent. on Ca- pital.

Subscrip- tions at i wages.

Total Loss.

Preston . . . 15,000 38 15e. £427,500 £93,841 £106,875 £628,216 Padiliam . . . 800 29 - 17,400 8,750 4,350 25,494 Clitheroe . . . 8,000 6 - 13,501 2,925 3,375 19,800 Blackburn and district . . . 40,000 3 - 90,000 19,500 22,500 132,000 Ashton and dis- trict. . . . 22,000 6 - 09,000 21,524 24,750 145,274 Colne . . . . 1,500 50 - 56,250 12,187 14,062 82,499 Bolton. . . . 12,000 6 - 54,000 16,250 18,500 83,750

£757,650 £169,977 £189,412 £1,117,083 London Build- ers . . .. 10,000 26 25s. 325,000 40,625 81,205 446,875

£1,082,650 £210,602 £270,617 £1,563,908 The associated colliers have, upon their own showing, spent about a quarter of a million since 1842; and the amalgamated engineers threw away nearly half a million in 1852. According to our assumption of capital of 651. per individual, the amount thus lost would have given employment and wages to 17,184 persons, and if every second person was the head of a family, they would represent 42,950 individuals whose bread is thus wasted in perpetuity. And all the above named, except the Preston strike, have occurred within the last two or two and a half years, and all have ended unsuccessfully ; so that there has been no compensa- tion whatever."

Mr. Watts then entered upon the subject of co-operative societies, which he praised, as allowing the workmen profit as well as wages : "Thus, if 651. represent the capital required to employ one workman, and that workman earns 20s. per week, then the half-yearly dividend would be upon 911. If these latter societies pay the ordinary wages, they will, as a matter of course, have their choice of hands ; for the workpeople will learn that even if they spend the whole of their wages and simply allow their dividends to accumulate as shares, twenty or thirty years of employment with ordinary profits will then give as much for interest of money as for wages." He added a valuable suggestion: "lithe real co-operative societies extend and succeed, it is possible that we may see individual employers, in self-defence, constituting their workpeople part- which prevailed in other districts similarly situated, people would continue to think that much remained to be done. (Hear, hear.) Mr. J. Watts then read a paper on strikes :

" That strikes are great evils is universally allowed. Some persons affirm that they are unmitigated evils ; some think that, however mischievous, they are not preventable; while others affirm that they are necessary, as preventing even greater calamities. If I can at all aid in discovering which of these theo- ries is the true one, or if any of them be true, my purpose will be answered. I suspect there are but few men who would think of re-enacting the laws against combinations, for, whatever be the evils of freedom, those of secret societies, endless prosecutions, and schemes of revenge, which would certainly follow any such enactment would be much worse; and we are therefore left to reason alone as our court of appeal, whatever may be our conclusions ; and if we find that We are at present experiencing the danger of a little learning' in trade affairs by workmen, the cure, as I believe, is not to be found in the backward path, but in the progress to higher knowledge. Strikes, however, are still great evils. The difference in dispute is sometimes not more than two and a half, frequently not more than tive, and seldom exceeds 10 per cent. of the wages paid. The duration of a strike varies very much. The great Preston strike lasted 38 weeks, the one at Padiliam 29 weeks, Bolton six weeks, Ashton and district six weeks, Clitheroe six weeks, Blackburn three weeks. The strike of the London builders lasted 26 weeks, and the late Colne strike 50 weeks. Let us assume 5 per cent. as the average amount in dispute, and assume that the strike is in every case suc- cessful, and we shall then find that the adage which is applied to disputants at law, that he who wine loses,' is equally applicable here. A week is nearly 2 per cent. of a working year, and of course represents nearly 2 per cent. of the wages of a year. If, therefore, a strike for 5 per cent. succeeds, its results will

be exhibited in the following table: Years of Work

at the Extra Rate.

The loss of 1 month's wages will require to make it up ... 1 3-5ths „ 2 months' wages ... 3 1-5th

IP 3 months' wages ... 4 4.5ths

„ 6 months' wages I ners in profits, in the belief that the extra interest excited in work would make the employers' share of profit greater than the whole amount formerly obtained. Such an arrangement would also prevent strikes ; for, if the hands thought wages were too low, they would see it made up by profit, so that the result would simply be an enforced prudence." In the section of Mechanical Science, Mr. Bateman, president, in the chair, Mr. Scott Russell made some observations on the third report of the Committee on Steam-ship Performance, which he laid on the table. He alluded to the paper on the subject of the shape of steam-vessels read in that section on Thursday by Mr. Atherton, chief engineer at Woolwich Dockyard, in which it was shown that the proper shape of a ship for a particular purpose, as compared with an improper shape, would give as much as 32 per cent. profit or loss upon the per- formance of that ship ; 14 knots an hour was now as common a speed for steam-ships as 10, and there was not a steam-ship in the world now performing 14 knots an hour which was not built in the exact form recommended by the committee after a continued series of numerous and costly experiments. Mr. James Heywood read the report of the Committee on the Patent Laws, and Sir William Arm- strong read a paper on the same subject, at the close of which he complained of Mr. Fairbairn's treatment of the subject.

" Before I conclude, I must take exception to a passage which occurs in our president's inaugural address in treating of this subject. He says it is asserted by those who have done the least to benefit their country by inventions that a monopoly is injurious.' Now, to say nothing of myself, those who have taken the same view as I do are not men to be referred to in such terms. It is strange that this question cannot be discussed even by one holding the dignified position of President of the British Association without verging on personalities. If the remark were true, the argument would remain unaffected. Whether it be tree the public may judge."

In the course of an animated discussion on the subject, Mr. Fairbairn,

"In reply to Sir W. Armstrong, assured that gentleman that 'personalities' were a commodity he never dealt in. (Laughter.) He had not intended any condemnation of Sir W. Armstrong, and was exceedingly sorry if any remark of his (Mr. Fairbairn's) had been offensive ; but he maintained that the principles to which he bad given expression in the passage referred to were correct. (Hear, hear.)

On Saturday, the sections again resumed their sittings. In the Eco- nomic Science and Statistics section, the discussion on co-operative societies was continued from the previous day, and concluded. Mr. Shuttleworth read an account of the Manchester Gasworks, the profits of which are devoted by the municipal authorities to the improve- ment of the city. Miss Twining read a paper on the internal eco- nomy of workhouses, with especial reference to the success attendant upon the labours of the Workhouse Visiting Society. Colonel Sykes then read a paper on our trade with China. Among a variety of statistics which he introduced, were the following : In 1814 the total value of both imports and exports in our trade with China was 5,750,0001. In 1826 it was 7,000,0001., and in 1856, 17,526,1981., independently of the opium trade with India. The exports in that year exceeded the imports by 4,000,0001., a. sum which must have been -paid to China in silver ; but the balance of trade between India and China always being in favour of the former country, that amount of silver from Europe found its way in payment for opium through China to India. Taking one port alone-Shanghai, the exports rose from 6433 bales of silk and 3,300,627 lbs. of tea, to 18,192 bales of silk and four times the amount of tea in the very next year. Of the tea exported in 1850, Great Britain took 31,621,204 lbs., or more than half ; the United States 18,299,388 lbs., and all the rest of the world only about 3,000,000 lbs. Of the 67,737 bales of silk exported in the same year, Great Britain took 19,084 bales ; America 1554, and the remaining 47,099 went to the continent of Europe and coastwise. Colonel Sykes then expressed his strong disappro- bation of our selfish policy with regard to the encouragement of the opium traffic. He believed all our wars with China really originated in our smuggling transactions in opium. If we persisted in our at- tempts to force the Chinese to permit its introduction, he anticipated evil results to our entire trade with China. By three successful wars, we had extracted from the Tartars facilities for trade, leaving them, however, burning with resentment, and determined to throw every possible obstruction in the way of the execution of the treaty of Tien-Tsin. The rebel Taepings, on the other hand, though desirous of entering upon all other branches of commerce, prohibited all traffic in opium in a religious ordinance under pain of death. " The tax-payers of England will therefore have to determine whether we are to tread in our former steps, and for one article of commerce waste life and money to force upon a reluctant people for selfish gain a deleterious product, while at the same time we crush a national movement to throw off a foreign oppression, which, under analogous circumstances in Europe has had our warmest sym- pathy, and at the success of which all free men rejoice." Mr. Purdy then read a paper on Pauperism in the United Kingdom daring the last sixteen years :

" Poor laws had existed in England for more than two centuries, but in Scot- land there was nothing worthy the name before 1845 ; in Ireland they were in- troduced in 1838. In England the average number of paupers was 892,000, in Scotland 121,000; in Ireland, 96,000; or 3.9, 4.0, and 1.5 per cent on the population respectively. For 1 in-door pauper in England there were 6 out-door; in Scotland, 14; but in Ireland, .03 only. Though pauperism was lowest is Ireland, it was shown that in Scotland, where nearly all the relief is out-door, the resident Irish were greatly pauperized, for 1 in 13 was there a pauper; but in Ireland only 1 in 274. With reference to rates, it appeared that during the ten years, 92,000,0001. had been levied; in England, 78,000,000/. ; in Scotland, 6,000,0001.; and in Ireland, 8,000,0001. But of the English portion, 18,000,0001. was for purposes quite unconnected with relief to the poor. The sums actually spent under that head were for England, 54,767,0001: Scotland, 5,918,000/.; and Ireland, 6,656,0001.; equal to a rate per head on the population of. 55. Sid. 3s. lltd., and 2s. lid. Comparing the amount expended in 1860 whh that 1851, it appeared that in England it was now 10 per cent., and in Schtland 25 per cent. higher; in Ireland, on the other hand, it was now 60 per cent lower. The yearly coat per pauper was for England 61.; Scotland, 51.; and Irland, 71. Ireland stood highest here, because relief in the workhouse was deaker indi- vidually, though in its ultimate effects the most economical and least \ dont ralizing. The rate per head on the schedules A, B, and D was compurdto show the relative wealth of the three countries.. This in England was 11/. 17e.; Scotland, 91. 13s.; and in Ireland, 3L lls. Taking these figures in conjunction with previous ratios, it appeared that the pauperism .11.ad been inversely as the poverty of the three countries—England, the wealthiest and most pauperized; Ireland, the poorest and least pauperized; Scotland coming between, but much nearer to England both in wealth and in pauperism. It was clear that Ireland, by a.judicions poor law administration, had reduced her pauperism to its present small per-centap of the population. By what means could similar results be achieved in England and Scotland?"

After some remarks on this subject from Mr. E. Chadwick, Dr. Farr read a paper on the Health of the British Army. After speaking in the very warmest terms of the labours of the late Lord Herbert to improve the sanitary condition of the army, Dr. Farr showed how the enormous death-rate which existed in the army twenty years ago had been reduced :

"I must first request your attention to the state of the army at home, of which the strength in 1859 was 90,753. The army consists of men in the prime of life, between the ages of 20 and 40, very much under control in every respect, but generally unmarried, and living hitherto together in barracks. We contended that, whereas 17 in 1000 of these men at home had died annually, a body so selected, well fed, well lodged, and well handled, morally and physically—ad- mitting only recruits satisfactory to the examining medical officer, and parting constantly with its invalids—should not experience a higher rate of mortality than that expressed by 7 in 1000; the rate of mortality actually experienced by the population at the corresponding ages in the healthy districts of England. That result was nearly achieved in the corps at home in 1859. The mortality of the Foot Guards had been 20 per 1000 (1837-46), and fell to 9; that of the infantry of the line had been 18, and fell to 8; which was also the mortality of the cavalry, the engineers, and the artillery. The annual deaths among all arms of the service at home had been 17.5; the deaths at Sborncliffe and Aldershott in the three years 1857.58-59 were at the rate of 5 in 1000. The previous ex- cess was referable to zymotic diseases, such as fevers, cholera, diarrhoea, and to consumption; the effects of crowding in barracks, of bad ventilation, bad water, bad drainage, badly chosen sites, bad cooking arrangements, and the absence of the means of cleanliness. A battalion living in arms at the end of the year 1859 would at the previous rates have then lain buried in their graves. To Lord Herbert belonged the lasting honour of having first devoted himself to the im- provement of the sanitary condition of the British army, and his labours in that good work can be appreciated, and will be expressed in figures as long as that army exists."

In the section of Mechanical Science, the entire sitting was oc- cupied with discussions on various papers which were read, on the best modes of constructing armour-plates for ships of war, which would be proof against every possible projectile. The possibility of constructing projectiles which no armour could resist was also dis- cussed. In the course of the sitting, Sir E. Belcher, Sir W. Arm- strong, Mr. Scott Russell, Mr. E. Reed, Sir J. Hay, Mr. Fairbairn, Captain Blakely, R.A., Dr. Eddy, and other gentlemen, either read papers or addressed the section on the subject.

— The annual festival of the Corporation of Cutlers of Hallam- shire took place on Thursday evening at Sheffield. The toast of the House of Commons was proposed by the Right Hon. Stuart Wortley. After allusion to a variety of topics, he expressed his views on the American civil war. He feared that, though our good wishes were entirely with the North on the issue of slavery, the new tariff and the especial hostility to this country manifested by the North had done much to excite a suspicion that the issue was protection and monopoly, and not slavery. He believed the people of England would gladly see two great nations formed out of the South and North, and that the voice of humanity and public opinion would soon interfere to put an end to the further effusion of blood in so senseless and savage a quarrel. With regard to France, he thought we should maintain an attitude that would defy attack and command respect. Mr. Collier, M.P., responded to the toast. From the com- plaints so constantly made by each of the great parties, that nothing was done when the other was in office, one would think that the country was constantly demanding remedies for great grievances and organic changes in our laws. The House of Commons was constantly accused of doing nothing, but he believed that was an outcry without foundation. The mass of our laws were good, and it was only on minorpoints that they required alteration. It was, therefore, no fault of the House of Commons that they did not every year produce a fresh crop of bills. As for the other accusation, that they talked too much, that was the fault of the constituents of the members who filled whole columns of the Times with their speeches. Sir J. Ham- den responded to the toast of " the Members for the West Riding." He was disposed, notwithstanding the ominous rumours and military preparations on the Continent, to take a hopeful view of the present aspect of affairs. The temperate and constitutional way in which Italy had worked out her freedom presented an admirable contrast to the revolutionary and lawless excesses perpetrated thirteen years ago under the name of liberty. Even in Poland, generations of oppres- sion had not succeeded in crushing the spirit of national independence. Believing that the American form of government had been proved by the present crisis to be a very bad guarantee against war on the largest. scale and the most profuse expenditure, he considered it to be the duty of all Englishmen to revere and preserve their own institu- tions with greater gratitude for them than before. Mr. Wilkinson then proposed the "Borough Members," alluding thus to Mr. Roe- buck's lately evinced Austrian tendencies : " The one has acquired a European reputation, and his speeches, especially some very recent ones, are no doubt read with considerable interest in every Cabinet in Europe—in some of those Cabinets, no doubt, with peculiar com- plaisance, and in others, as we know, with allowable irritation. (Laughter.) As to the amount of discretion exercised in the delivery of those speeches, there may be, and, indeed is, very great difference of opinion (hear, hear); but none of us can doubt that they were inspired by a patriotic spirit. ("Hear, hear," and cheers.) Mr. Roebuck, it must be admitted, represents in the House of Commons the pluck and spirit of John Bull (hear, hear); and, although many of us differ from him widely in opinion, there are very few, if any, who would wish to see his place in the House of Commons vacant." (Cheers.)

Mr. Roebuck's reply was given in our impression of last week.

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10TH. — The Select Committee of the House of Commons appointed to inquire into the constitution and efficiency of the Diplomatic Service, have just issued their report. They recommend:

" 1. That there be two classes of examination previous to admission into the service—a first and second—the candidate selecting which he will undergo; if he pass the first he will be exempted from any further examination. " 2. That the Attachiship shall, for the future, be regarded as a probationary period of four years at the most, six months of which shall be spent in the duties of the Foreign-office.

"3. That at the expiration of his Attachdship, if his character and conduct are approved by the Minister under whom he has been placed, the Attaché shall be nominated secretary of a certain class, and be paid so such. It is understood that a commission be issued to every member of the Diplomatic Service on his first appointment as secretary, so as to give him a claim to calculate his pension from that date.

"4. That exchanges between members of the diplomatic body and clerks in the Foreign-office should be allowed, under the sanction of the Secretary of State.

" 5. That the present regulations, with regard to leave of absence of Ambas- sadors and Ministers, appear to press upon them with undue severity, and that the attention of the Secretary of State may be advantageously directed to this subject.

" 6. That, whenever it is practicable and fit, a residence for a term of years should be secured for the British Embassy or mission; the rent and repairs to be defrayed at the public expense.

" 7. That the attention of the Secretary of State be directed to the salaries and allowances of the larger missions, with the view of considering whether they are adequate to meet the greatly increased expenditure of living at the principal European capitals.

" July 23, 1861."

— The coroner's inquest on the bodies of Betsy and Emily Beamish, who died under suspicious circumstances at Coventry a week or two ago, has terminated. A verdict of " Wilful murder" against William Beamish, the husband of the former and father of the latter, was returned by the coroner's jury. The only evidence of any importance given in addition to that of which an abstract has already appeared in our columns, was that of Mr. Joseph Nethercliff, of the British Museum, who, after careful comparison of several specimens of the prisoner's handwriting with that of the letter said by the prisoner to have been found in the pocket of his wife's dress after her death, gave his decided opinion that tilt letter in question (which, it will be recollected, expressed the deceased's intention to commit suicide) was forged by the prisoner. Further proof was ad- duced of the improper intimacy between the prisoner and the girl Statham. The defence rested principally on the fact that the quan- tity of arsenic found in the stomach of the deceased was infinitesimal, whereas first-class analytical chemists had stated that no smaller quantity than 33 grains was sufficient to cause death. It was also shown that arsenic was necessary to the prisoner for the destruction of bugs in the house and rats and mice in the garden, and that he had borne an unblemished character, with the exception of his connexion with Statham, up to the time of his wife's death. The coroner, in summing up, commented severely upon the negligence of Dr. Goate in giving a certificate of death without proper inquiry. He said that five or six grains of arsenic would ordinarily cause death. He considered it to be very improbable that Betsy Beamish wrote the note which the prisoner pretended to have discovered in her pocket. The jury, after a short consultation, returned a verdict to the effect that the deceased died from poison administered by the prisoner William Beamish, and also that Emma Statham was acces- sary to the fact. The coroner stated that he could not receive the portion of the verdict relating to Emma Statham. If accessory at all, she was indictable for murder. The jury then altered their verdict to simply one of wilful murder against William Bcamish.

— Steam has recently been introduced as a motive power in many

of the barges on the Grand Junction Canal, in order to do away with the many disadvantages attendant upon the employment of horse power. There are several tunnels of considerable length in the course of the canal, and their dimensions not being much larger than those of a large sewer, the only way of passing a boat through hitherto was by the boatman lying down on his hack, and propelling the boat by pushing with his legs against the sides of the tunnel, which, as some of the tunnels are upwards of a mile in length, must have been a peculiarly unpleasant process. The introduction of steam, how- ever, has been attended by more serious consequences. On Friday night, two boats propelled by steam entered the Blisworth tunnel. Common coal, and not coke, is uses for the engines, and before the boats reached the other end of the tunnel, all the boatmen were rendered insensible by the dense and stifling smoke from the engines, which completely filled the confined space of the tunnel, the only means of ventilation being one shaft, which is said to be closed at the top. Two of the unfortunate men were quite dead when the boat emerged from the tunnel, and another was severely burnt from falling upon the engine while insensible. It seems scarcely credible that the danger of suffocation should not have been foreseen and provided against, as it must be if the system of steam navigation on canals is to be carried out to any extent.

— At the meeting of the British Association on Monday, a discus- sion on the income tax and taxation in general in the Economic Science and Statistical section, commanded the greatest amount of interest and the largest attendance. Mr. Newmareh first delivered an address on The Extent to which Sound Principles of Taxation are embodied in the Legislation of the United Kingdom," Mr. Tite, M.P., taking the chair in the mean time. After a lengthened induction of facts and statements, Mr. New march deduced the following practical results as regards this country :

"1. That a very large part of the present Imperial revenue of the United King. dom—a part certainly exceeding one half—is raised by taxes not open to serious objection on any ground, abstract or practical. 2. That in an old country in which 90,000,0001, sterling of total revenue, including local taxation, has to be raised from thirty millions of people, the great mass of whom subsist on wages, indirect taxation to a large extent is inevitable, and may be so adjusted as to avoid almost entirely the evils of injustice and oppressiveness. 3. That, com- bining the imperial and local taxation at present raised, the direct virtual assess- ments on j'ucome already amount to 8 per cent. per annum, and that practically this mode of levy does not admit of more than trifling extension. 4. That to supersede any•large part of the present indirect taxes in the form of moderate .Customs duties on articles of general consumption would render necessary a

poll-tax and a direct assessment on some capitalized value of wages and heavy incomes—both of them forms of taxation in a high degree impossible in this country. 5. That, as a general result, it may be affirmed with no small confidence that the present system of taxation of the United Kingdom is not fairly open to the sweeping censures, and certainly is not susceptible of the ex- treme and subversive changes, which in some quarters have been lately recommended."

Professor Rogers then read a paper on " The Definition and Inci- dence of Taxation." Mr. Macqueen, on the part of the Liverpool Financial Association, read a paper on " The True Principles of Taxation." He condemned indirect taxation, and advocated direct taxation, by which lie did not mean the income tax, with all its injus- tice and anomalies, but some certain poundage or per-centage on capital, income, or wages—such a system as statists and actuaries could readily devise. He believed, however, that even the very worst system of direct taxation, even an extension of the income tax, would be preferable to the indirect taxation of Customs and Excise. Of the various schemes for direct taxation which had been pro- pounded, he considered the following three as most practicable. The first was the proposition of the author of the People's Blue Book, which comprised a tax of 4s. in the pound on the annual value of all real property and invested funds, yielding runt, interest, or dividend to the owner without his personal exertions ; a poll tax of 1/. per head on all persons above fourteen years of age, in consideration of the protection afforded by the State ; and the retention of certain existing sources of revenue other titan duties of Customs and Excise. The second plan of direct taxation was that under which all real and personal property, goods and chattels above the value of 501., except- mg stock in trade, would be taxed, to the exclusion of all inquiries as to profits, earnings, or wages, but imposing a small poll-tax in ad- dition—the plan of.taxation adopted in most of the Sates of North America for State purposes. The third plan was that recommended in the draught report submitted by the late Joseph Hume to the In- come Tax Committee of 1852, of which he was chairman, but not adopted by the committee, which contented itself with reporting the evidence to Parliament. That plan was based upon the capitaliza- tion of all incomes, from whatever source proceeding—property, real or personal, professional earnings, profits of trade, or wages of labour, according to the marketable or calculated value—a scheme which, in the opinion of Dr. Farr and other eminent authorities examined before the committee, is perfectly practicable, and presents no difficulties but such as are encountered and overcome by actuaries every day of their lives. To none of these plans, nor to any other, was the Association wedded; but they maintained that, under any one of them, or under any other system of direct taxation, the three con- ditions of taxation—Equality, Certainty, and Economy—would be more nearly attained than they couldpossibly be by any system of indirect taxation whatsoever. A long debate ensued, at the close of which the President gave his opinion that the system of taxation re- commended by the Liverpool Financial Reform Association was one which, in its oppressiveness, impracticability, and exasperating quali- ties, could not be paralleled in the Turkish empire. He must say, in the most emphatic manner, the propositions of the Association sinned against all the classical canons of taxation sanctioned by the highest authorities during the last hundred years. The propositions in themselves involved an amount of injury and injustice which would go far to subvert the foundations of society in this country, and were, from first to last, so wild and impracticable, and so inapplicable to the present state of things, that lie believed the world would be 2000 or 3000 years older before there would be any opportunity of carry- ing them into effect. The Rev. Canon Richson made some observa- tions on the Report of the Committee of the House of Commons on the Income Tax, summing up the objections generally entertained with regard to the operation of that tax. Mr. David dhadwick read a long paper by Mr. Valpy, of the Board of Trade, on our commercial relations with France, as affected by the recent treaty. The advan- tages which had already resulted to both countries from the operation of that treaty were shown by a most extensive range of statistics. In the section of Zoology, a letter was read from Dr. Gray, explain. ing his reasons for disbelieving Mr. du Chaillu's account of the way in which the great gorilla in the British Museum was killed. Dr. Lan- kester said he had communicated to Mr. Du Chaillu the substance of the communication of Dr. Gray, but Mr. Du Chaffin said the charge was an old one, which he had answered so frequently that lie did not think it worth his while to come again to reply to it. This state- ment was received with laughter and disapprobation. In the section of Geography and Ethnology, Mr. John Crawford, the president, read a paper on "The Antiquity of Man, from the Evidence of Language," which was subsequently discussed at great length by several speakers. A long account of a journey to the interior of Japan, by Mr. Ruther- ford Alcock, was then read ; after which Colonel Shaffner, of the United States, read a paper on the " Spitsbergen Current and Ice," also on the " Active and Extinct Glaciers of South Greenland." At a meeting of the General Committee, held on Monday afternoon, Cam- bridge was fixed upon as the place of meeting for next year, the re- spective advantages of Bath, Birmingham, Nottingham, Newcastle- upon-Tyne, being also advocated.

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 11TR.

— The coroner's inquest on the Brighton Railway accident was brought to a conclusion on Tuesday, having been adjourned over Monday in order to await the decision of the railway company with regard to the production of the documents which formed the sub- ject of dispute at the sitting on Saturday. Mr. Slight, the secretary of the company, attended, and read a resolution agreed to by the board on the previous day, authorizing him topiroduce the documents in question. They consisted of the reports of Scott, the driver, and Butcher, the guard of the Brighton excursion train, and of Boynett, head-guard, Webb, under-guard, and Gregory, driver of the parliamen-

tary train. he directors stated in their resolution that, while they did not consider themselves legally bound to produce the documents, they desired to forward the investigation by every means in their power, and would not stand on the legal rights of the company. The announcement of their decision was received with some applause in court. The documents were then read, but they simply confirmed the previous oral evidence of their writers, with the exception of Scott's report, in which he says there was only a recoil of his train for four or five yards, whereas in his evidence he had stated that the train went back thirty or forty yards. A return was produced by Mr. Hawkins of the number of passengers who passed through the Clayton tunnel in the previous year. The number was 594,000 on the up-line, and 550,000 on the down-line. The coroner then summed up. He defined manslaughter by negligence to be "that where persons were employed in occupations from which danger might arise, if they neglected ordinary precautions, and if on account of such neglect loss of life occurred, it would be manslau,ghter.. The degreee of caution required must be measured by the necessity for caution, and, if it should appear that neglect by any individual was the essential or chief cause of death, it would not excuse any such individual that other secondary causes in some degree con- triboted to the accident." He then went through the evidence in detail, commenting especially on the statement of Legg, the station- master, that the two first trains left Brighton at 8.22 and 8.28 re- spectively, while all the other evidence went to show that they did not start until 8.28 and 8.31. With regard to Scott's evidence, it seemed clear that he must have misrepresented the facts of the case when he asserted that he did not back the train. It had been proved in evidence that it would have been impossible to have stopped the train in 200 or 250 yards, as stated by Scott. The train must have gone double that distance before it could have been brought up, and then backed for one hundred yards or more. He did not, however, think that Scott, though he had broken a rule, was guilty of such gross negligence as to induce the jury to find him guilty of manslaughter. After four hours' deliberation, the jury re- turned a verdict of "Manslaughter" against Mr. Legg, "for want of common ordinary caution in starting three trains—one at 8.28, one at 8.31, and one at 8.35, in breach of the express rules of the com- pany and the usual practice." With regard to John Scott, the verdict was couched in the following terms : " And that one John Scott, an engine-driver, by mistake, but not carelessly, contributed in some degree to the violence of the collision aforesaid, by backing the engine and train known as the Brighton excursion train for a distance of 100 yards at least in the said tunnel." The misunderstanding between Killick and Brown, the two signalmen, was next alluded to. They were neither of them found guilty of negligence. The jury also

their opinion "that the system on the 25th of August, and for a considerable time previously thereto, in conducting the traffic of the said railway between Brighton and Hassock's-gate, was defective, in not bringing immediately to the knowledge of the traffic manager for the time being such departures as happened from the said rule as to the starting of trains. And the jurors aforesaid find that the said Charles Legg did, on the 25th day of August last, at the place afore- said, feloniously kill and slay the persons upon whom the inquest was holden."

— The inquest on the bodies of the fourteen persons killed by the late accident on the Hampstead Junction, was continued on Monday. The jury were first resworn for the purpose of extending the inquiry to the case of Benjamin Rushbrook, who died in University College Hospital from injuries received at the accident. They then proceeded to take the evidence of Joseph Brydges, the guard of the excursion train, who was lying in the same hospital in a very weak state. The evidence of Stewart, the flagman of the ballast train, who was also in the hospital, was then taken, and the coroner and jury afterwards went by train to Bow to take the evidence of George Scott, the driver of the excursion train. On their return to the Vestry Hall, Henry Rayner, the porter on duty at Kentish-town station, was examined. He gave his evidence in a very unsatisfactory manner, not being able or willing to remember anything connected with the circumstances of the accident. He could not be got to give a distinct answer to the question whether lie had given permission by signal for the ballast train to shunt. Other evidence was taken, and the coroner summed up, reading over the evidence of most of the witnesses. After an hour's consultation, the jury returned a verdict of "Manslaughter" against Rayner, with the following qualifications : " At the same time they cannot separate without expressing a strong opinion that the directors and managers are much to be censured in not employing more experienced persons to fill such important situations as those of signalmen. It is highly improper for a station-master to start any special train either before or after the specified time of his instruc- tions from the secretary of his railway. That, when the line is obstructed by shunting or otherwise, the line should be blocked both by telegraph as well as out-door signals." — The various sections of the British. Association all sat on Tues- day. In the Economic, Science, and Statistics section, Mr. J. Ham- mack read a paper on " The General results of the Recent Census of the United Kingdom." After alluding to the somewhat incomplete

character, or rather the want of symmetry, in the official returns, Mr. Hammack gave some statistics in connexion with the late census :

"In 60 years the United Kingdom had increased in population 82 per cent., iota 13,250,000 had been added to the numbers of 1801. During the first 80 years of this period the increase had been 52 per cent., in the second only 20 per cent.; but before 1681 there was little emigration, while an account of nearly 5,000,000 emigrants had been taken by the Emigration Commissioners since that date. The maximum rate of increase was attained in the decade between 1811 and 1821, after the Peace. In the last 10 years it bad been 6 per cent."

The population of the British empire, of which, however, only an ap- proximate calculation could be made, was enormous :

"According to the Blue-book and the latest official authorities, the North American colonies contained 3,785,000 inhabitants, and the Australasian group not less than 1,275,000; the West Indies about 1 000,000; the Cape and other African colonies, 870,000; Ceylon, 1,754,000; Mauritius, Hongkong, &c., 280,000; and the possessions in Europe, 805,000. To these an enormous addi- tion must be made for British India—namely, 185,500,000. Adding the United Kingdom, the truly grand total was obtained of 175,000,000 of subjects of Queen Victoria."

In the section pf Geography and Ethnology, Mr. Da Chaillu read a papa. on " The People of Western Equatorial Africa," containing a variety of interesting particulars respecting their peculiar habits and

superstitions. — The Leeds Chamber of Commerce addressed Earl Russell, strongly urging him to appoint Mr. Cobden to negotiate the com- mercial treaties with Belgium and the Zollverein. His Lordship replied, that Lord Palmerston refused to comply with their request, oa account of the great inconvenience of appointing persons not in the public service, and informed them that Mr. Ward, Charge d'Af- faires at Hamburg, had been appointed to negotiate on behalf of her Majesty's Government.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER a2T.H.

— The coroner's jury who have been engaged in inquiring into the accident on the Hampstead Junction line met again on Wednesday, for the purpose of formally signing the verdict delivered by them on the previous day. The witnesses were all recalled, and bound over to appear in support of the prosecution of Henry Rayner, the signal- man, against whom the jury returned a verdict of manslaughter, at the next session of the Central Criminal Court. The warrant against Rayner has not yet been executed. In reply to a question from a juryman, the Coroner stated that he hoped there was no likelihood of any more deaths among the injured.

— The Prince of Wales presented a new stand of colours to the 36th Regiment, at the Curragh, on Tuesday. The proceedings ex- cited much interest, on account of the Prince's approaching departure from the camp. On the arrival from Dublin of the Lord-Lieutenant and the Commander of the Forces, the regiment was drawn up op- posite to the Royal quarters, and the consecration service having been read by the senior chaplain, the Prince presented the new colours to the two senior ensigns of the regiment, who knelt to re- ceive them. His Royal Highness then addressed the regiment as follows :

"Colonel Hort, officers, non-commissioned officers, and privates of the 86th Regiment,—It affords me very sincere gratification, after having served some months in the brigade to which you belong, to present these colours to you. Be assured that I shall ever look back to my intercourse with yourselves and the various corps composing the fine division assembled in this camp with feelings of =mingled pleasure; and I gladly avail myself of this opportunity of expressing my thanks for the cordial welcome given me on my joining the ranks, for the purpose of obtaining a practical acquaintance with the duties of your noble pro. lemon. Time will not permit of my entering into a detailed narrative of all the valuable services rendered by your regiment to their sovereigns and country. From the year 1700, when it was raised in Ireland—the birthplace of so many gallant soldiers—until the close of the war in 1815, your records might almost form an epitome of the military history of the empire. During that period the 86th served with marked distinction in Europe, Asia, and America, throughout many of the most brilliant campaigns in which our armies have been engaged. It was repeatedly named in very honourable terms by Cornwallis and Wellington, and other eminent commanders, and has on all occasions nobly vindicated its title to the motto inscribed on your banners, and of which you are so justly proud. To a regiment that has already achieved such a reputation, and is now in so high a state of efficiency, under the able command of Colonel Hort, these colours may, indeed, be safely entrusted; and I feel convinced that, whenever the opportunity shall arise, you will show yourselves worthy of the memorable eulogy once pronounced by Lord Cornwallis upon your gallant corps—that they furnished a conspicuous proof that discipline and valour in soldiers, when directed by zeal and capacity in officers, are irresistible."

Colonel Hort, in the name of the regiment, then returned thanks to his Royal Highness for the honour done to the regiment. In the evening, the sergeants of the regiment celebrated the event by enter- taining the sergeants of the Grenadier Guards at dinner. — The meeting of the British Association was brought to a con- clusion on Wednesday. In the section of Zoology and Botany, Mr. T. M. Mitchell read a paper " On the Migration of the Herring," containing some curious information on the subject. In the section of Economic Science and Statistics, the Right Hon. J. Napier pro- posed a vote of thanks to the president, Mr. Newmarch. Mr. New- march, in responding, gave a classification of the papers which had been read during the week :

"First of all we have had a series of papers, of a valuable kind, relating to what I may call Lancashire topics. Among these I will give the -first place to a valuable paper by Mr. J. Shuttleworth, pointing out to us the working of the Manchester Gas Act ; Mr. Chadwick gave us a great deal of valuable informa- tion on the progress made by Manchester and Salford during the last twenty years. It was to be expected that a meeting of the kind held in Manchester could scarcely have been considered effective unless the question of cotton was discussed; and we have largely benefited by papers read by Mr. Bailey and Mr. .Ashworth; and we have had also a short paper from Mr. Alderman Neild, which was valuable inasmuch as he stated facts of an order which we are not always able to obtain. We had also a paper from Dr. Strang on the embroidery trade of Scotland and Ireland. Also, under the head of Lancashire topics, we had a valuable paper from Dr. J. Watts, on strikes. We bad also a series of papers on co-operative societies, beginning with one by Mr. Potter on the general principles of the question, and followed by two remarkable ones from Rochdale, informing us in a very succinct and clear manner the results of the remarkable experiments going on in that town. The second group of papers were on purely statistical questions. First in this list I must refer to a remarkably excellent paper by. my friend Professor Rogers — a paper compiled by him during the last few months with so much labour, perseverance, and skill, and.cdtitatning a collection of prices in this country in the sixteenth century, the period Of the first influx of gold from the New World. I regard that paper as one of the-most valu- able fruits of the Statistical Congress of last year ; and I hope it is but the pre-. cursor of many more, and that the example Professor Rogers has set will lead to researches being undertaken and carried on not only in this country but in other parts of the world. (Bear, hear.) Dr. Farr gave TM some acceptable informa- tion on the health of the British army—a subject with which he is connected, and upon which he was eminently able to dilate. Then we had a valuable paper from Mr. Purday on the comparative pauperism of England, Scotland, and Ireland ; and we had also an elaborate paper from Mr. Valpy, stating, in a convenient form, facts relative to the trade between England and France. We have to-day had valuable papers on the census, beginning with that of Mr. Hammack who comes among us speaking with the authority due to one of the chief officials in connexion with the operations by which the enumeration of the population has been carried on and completed. We have had also a statement to-day from Dr. Strang of the results of that census as re- gards the Scotch. The third division consists of questions purely economical. 1 confess I should have been glad if we could have had more of those papers, papers raising, as that of Professor Rogers to-day, purely economical questions, going straight to some great doctrine, the discussion of which must be attended with the utmost possible good. (Cheers.) Foremost in this group of economical topics is the series of papers on national taxation. As regards special taxation, we had a timely paper from the Rev. Canon Richson, which there is every reason to hope will lead to ulterior results. (Hear, hear.) Under the head of distinctly scientific papers, we had a second paper from Professor Rogers, ' On the defini- tion and incidence of taxation ;' and we have heard to-day an address from Mr.

Fawcett, the effect of the new gold discoveries.' In the fourth place, on general topics we have heard this morning Mr. Heywood on the subject of 'En dowed schools Dr. Hume, On education in Liverpool ;' a short and interest. ing statement from Captain Donnelly 'On the progress made in the Government examinations in science; and also a paper by Mr. Ashworth, On capital punishments ;' while yesterday afternoon we were instructed by hearing Mrs. Fison dilate so charmingly in the midst of us ' On sanitary reform.' Beyond these there were several contributions of a minor kind in themselves, but well worth listening to, raising points which I am sorry the section had not power to discuss as they deserved.

A General Committee meeting of the Association took place on Wed- nesday, when the recommendations of the Committee for rants of money, amounting altogether to 23631., were agreed to. The con- cluding general meeting was held in the Free Trade Hall. Professor Phillips read the report of the General Committee. The attendance of members at the meeting was much larger than had ever been the case at any previous meeting. The number registered up to one o'clock this day were these : Old life members, 321 here present; new life members who had joined them on this occasion, 180 persons, who had paid them 1080/. ; old annual members had joined to the extent of 184, and by some unexplained act of generosity they ap- peared to have paid them 1/. too much (laughter), they having pond 1851. Then they had been joined by 119 new annual members, who had paid them 258/., and they had had associates to the number of 1588, and what, in their estimation, was more valuable than all the rest, 1818 ladies had been presented with tickets of the value of 18181., making therefore a total of members and associates who were on their books of 3139 persons, and the sum of money which they had received for the advancement of science was 3905/. Out of that sum, 2363/. had been set aside for grants, which had been voted in the Committee of Sections and the Committee of Recommendations. The President then proposed a warm vote of thanks for the welcome the Association had received from the various gentlemen and insti- tutions who had afforded accommodation during its meeting, and the Mayor of Manchester responded. Professor Airy moved a vote of thanks to the President, which the latter briefly acknowledged, and the business of the meeting terminated. — Mr. Hubbard's scheme for levying the income tax, which was rejected by the Select Committee of the House of Commons would thus have distinguished beltween incomes derived from property and industrial incomes : FIRST CLASS.—INCOMES DERIVED FROM PROPERTY.

Present Sche- Property. To be Assessed. Proposed Allowances. dole.

Land let.. .. ..1. Rack rent, or rent by (For insurance and re- Land occupied.. ..1 valuation .. - 1, pairs 1-12th of rent

Rent charge .. • • Amount thereof.

Rent chargewith Cure){On £100 for contingent

of souls .. .. Amount thereof .. duty of the cue.

Houses let •. .. Rack rent, or rent byj For insurance and re- Houses occupied .. valuation .. .. 1. pairs 1-6th part of rent.

•• 145th part of rent.

.. 51-10th part of rent. i

D

C D D B A

D D E A Mines, metallic .. Rents or royalties Mines, earthy .. ..1 Rents or royalties Quarries.. .. - 1

Manors • " - - ' Amount of rents. It way, canal, mining,

Fisheries .. ..1 Public companies, rail-

dock, gas, ke. .. Dividends 1Bauking, trading, ma-

t nufacturing .. - Money lent or invested:

1 Exchequer-bills and bonds .. .. - Annual Interest. Annuities perpetual .. Annuities terminable— Annual interest on ca. Do. years r pital unpaid. Loans of all kinds .. Annual interest. Public pensions .. Amount thereof. Foreign possessions, property, and securities.

SECOND CLASS.—INDUSTRIAL INCOMES.

Sources of Profits. To be Meowed.

Mining adventures • • • • • . •• • •

Manufactures .. .. .. .. .. - Two-thirds of the net Trades 1

profits.

Shipping Professions • •

Salaries, stipends, and superannuated allowl Two thirds of the I antes ..• •• •• •• amount.

• • • • • • • • •

— The Registrar-General's weekly return shows that the deaths in London, during the week ending last Saturday, were 1121, or 41 less than the corrected average for the same week of the last 10 years, the deaths from epidemic cholera in the 36th week of 1854 being excluded. The mortality of London, while below that of many large cities, is still so much above that of other places in England, as to show that there is a waste of life which might be preserved by proper sanitary measures. This is also proved by the untimely age of death. Diarrhoea and choleraic diarrhoea are still prevalent-147 deaths from the former and 12 from the latter are recorded last week. The births of 871 boys and 897 girls, in all 1768 children, were re- gistered in London last week. The temperature of the week was very high, the average height of the thermometer at Greenwich Ob- servatory for the week having been 62.4 deg., which is 4 deg. above

i the average of the same week in 43 years.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 13TH.

— Though the proceedings of the British Association terminated on Wednesday, many of the members remained in Manchester until Thursday, for the purpose of joining some one of the excursions to objects of interest in the neighbourhood which had been arranged for that day. One of the most interesting was to Worsley Hall, the seat of the Earl of Ellesmere, when the coal-pits, with their network of subterranean canals, were visited, and the gardens were thrown open to the party. The Astley coal-pits, near Dukinfield, said to he the deepest in Europe, also attracted a large party of visitors. There were also excursions to the Marston salt mine, near Northwicli, one of the largest in Cheshire, the Manchester waterworks at Wood- head, the glass and chemical manufactories at St. Helen's, and the copper mines at AlderIcy-edge, where the works have been recently resumed, after having been for many years given up.

— The Times, of Friday, endeavours to exonerate Mr. Legg, the Brighton station-master, from the stigma of culpable negligence affixed to him by the verdict of the coroner's jury. The writer of the article contends that as the avowed rate of the company is to allow only five minutes between the starting of trains, and as Mr. Legg did not start the last train till four minutes after the ill-fated excursion, it is clearly unfair to convict the official and acquit the system on account of a departure from that system by the narrow margin of one minute. He loses sight, however, of the fact that the accident really arose, not so much from the Parliamentary train being allowed to start less than five minutes after the excursion, as from the previous violation of the company's rule involved in starting the Brighton excursion within three minutes of the Portsmouth train. If the former had not been so close behind the latter, there would not have been any chance of a misunderstanding between the signal- men at Clayton tunnel, without which the accident could not have occurred. The jury returned a verdict of manslaughter against Mr. Legg, not because he started the trains in four minutes, but three trains in seven minutes. When it is taken into consideration that it requires more than a minute to stop a heavy train running at the rate of thirty or forty miles an hour, it must be admitted that the slightest curtailment of the minimum of five minutes between each train comes within the limits of culpable negligence, though, if care- fully observed, that minimum may be amply sufficient for safety.

— A convict named Murphy, who was employed in the breakwater at Portland, pending the arrival of the vessel which was to convey him to Australia, made his escape on Wednesday. There is but one means of leaving the island, and a sentry is stationed at the spot night and day, so that the Chances of escape are apparently very small. By some means or other, hitherto unexplained, Murphy got possession of a workman's suit of clothes, which he hid among the stores of the breakwater until a favourable moment for escape arrived, when, after deliberately wishing several of his fellow-convicts good-bye, he left the island, and has nolabeen heard of since. He had been transported previously to his present sentence of eight years' penal servitude. — Sir Roderick Murchison's opening address on the Geology section of the British Association has been published in full. It constitutes a most comprehensive and elaborate review of the rapid advances made in geological researches during the last thirty years. i At the meeting of the British Association in 1831, the terms of "Cambrian," " Silurian," "Permian," and "Devonian," had not been dreamt of. It was at that meeting that Sir Roderick first propounded his theories on the Silurian system ; and when lie took the chair in the Geological section of the Association in 1842, those theories had been fully established, the Devonian red sandstone recognized as a distinct formation, and an important geological survey of Russia com- pleted. Recently, the greatest advance has been the discovery of a lower stratified formation than had hitherto been suspected to exist. The old belief was that the Cambrian was the lowest of the aqueous formations. Sir William Logan discovered in Canada, a few years ago, a fossiliferous stratum lying beneath a formation coeval with the Cambrian rocks of Great Britain, a stratified gneiss formation in which both limestone and iron ore occur. This lie named "Laurentian," and Sir Roderick Murchison, on careful investigation of the gneiss rocks in the north-west of Scotland, discovered a corresponding formation, which now must be considered the fundamental rock of the British Isles. The all but azoic character of the slaty masses of the Cam- brian formation was, up to this discovery, regarded as sufficient proof that it formed the very lowest sedimentary deposit, and this discovery creates quite a revolution in geological maps, the newly discovered stratum being marked as "alpha," preceding the Roman "a" which had previously been applied to the earliest known formations. This is one of the most striking discoveries of modern geological research, but is only one of many recorded iu Sir Roderick Murchison's deeply interesting address.