SCOTLAND.

It may have been thought that war banquets were over; but it is not so. Last week, Greenock gave a dinner to Admiral Sir Houston Stewart, in the new Town-hall. The Provost occupied the chair ; many Stewarts gathered round him; the Duke of Argyll partook of the banquet, and the Duchess was in the gallery ; Sir Archibald Alison and many no- tables, civil and military, were present. In the rhetorical portion of the proceedings the Duke of Argyll and the guest of the night took the prin- cipal share. The Duke, replying for "her Majesty's Ministers," was profuse of his thanks to the people of England for past support. He hoped he should haire 'to thank them for past support when the " day of reckoning arrives "—that is, " when Parliament meets." " I believe ytelahall have to thank you again for the support you will give to those exertions which have been made by my noble friend at the head of the Government; and by my noble friend Lord Clarendon., to carry out the con- ditions of the treaty of peace in their entirety and integrity. (Loud cheers.) I -can only say, gentlemen, that it is my sincere belief, that, struggling as we have been throughout this war for objects which are not selfish, for objects in which England had no primary concern, which affected almost more the in- terests of other states, we have thought it our duty to be strenuous in sup- port of the literal terms and obligations of that treaty ; and I cannot doubt that these exertions will be crowned with success. I believe that they have been conducted in that spirit at once of conciliation and of firmness in which the foreign affillrs of this country have been uniformly conducted by my no- ble friend Lord. Clarendon. And now, gentlemen, I do trust, that whether the Government of this country. is to be in the present or any other hands, Government will still have the support of its people in times of profound peace. I hope those times arc coming; for, great as may be the triumphs of war, they are costly triumphs, and we look, as I am sure the people of this country look, forward with anxiety and hope to the time when we may be the rivals of other nations in nothing else than in the arts of peace. And I would say, in conclusion, that I hope we shall be able in future, when the transactions connected with this war are wound up and closed—I hope we shall be able to resume terms of amity and friendship with that brave and gallant people with which we have lately been at war. There are circum- stances which I think are hopeful. A youn" Emperor has just succeeded to the throne, not insensible, I have reason to believe, of the weight of his re- sponsibilities and the difficulties of his task. There can be no reason why, with his vast empire, he should desire its extension; and if he is a wise man he will rather direct his exertions to the development of that people in the arta of industry and of peace. I trust such will be the case ; and I have no doubt that in thee° circumstances, the Government of. this country will be able to turn its attention to those many measures of social reform which are so much needed by a great and an advancing people." Provost Hunter, in proposing the health of Admiral Stewart, referred to his distinguished services, not only at Malta and in the Black Sea during the war, but at the attack and reduction of St. Jean d'Acre. Ad- miral Stewart pointed out, in reply, how ably he had been assisted at Malta-

" He bad a Governor, a gallant Scotchman, (Sir William Reid,) the hero of a hundred Peninsular-fights, whose heart was in the service of hie coun- try. He had another gallant Seotchman, Sir James F, n with eight forward every musket, gun, and cartridge, to support Lor Raglan." Tao

clasps on the medal he wore, and who was as anxious iyi e hiniself to send Later in his address he spoke on the moot question of ships versus stone wails—

They

might talk as long as they pleased about ships and stone walls, the one versus the other,. but he had lived long enough to know that, consider- ing the combristibles and the inunense increase of Weir*: of metal with which ships would be met if they came in contact, they„would have little chance. Unless they could place a ship of war within thistar.gards of a stone battery the wooden. walls would not have the best of iti. , They might pro- bably allude to Acre and Algiers ; but they must ; recollect' the sage remark of the Duke of Wellington after the bombardmeet,of,Acre,,in which he here a huinble part. At Algiers they allowed the ships An take up their position ; the Queen Charlotte, with Lord Exmouth, was acty within yard's length of the quay, and Lord Exmouth, before . he Ivo .arop anchor, ac- tually waved to the people to get out of the way : no dec . n t., they would in such a case make precious work with the battery. At Acre we put buoys upon the shoals in the night-time to show where they were : the Egyp- tians thought these were the spots on which we meant to anchor our ships ; they lowered all their guns for these buoys, and blocked up the embrasures with sand-bags to prevent our shot touching them : what was the conse- quence ?they let us pass the shoals, and then opened fire, but not till we were past them • and three times their batteries were manned and destroyed. That was taking up a position before' hey began. With respect to ships and stone walls, then, it is very easy•to talk of the Baltic fleet, and say it ought to have sent Cronstadt to the Devil; but they should; after all, consider that it was much more easily said than done. Now with regard to the bombardment of Sebastopol—he .was not present on the 17th October—the same argument was illustrated there. A gallant attack was made, and it was intended to support the rivselt. The siege-batteries were opened at daylight, and they succeeded so well that Lord Raglan had.left the parapet where he had been observing our fire, and was going to, communicate with the French General in order to arrange the assault, whim the French maga- zine blew up, arid, to use the expressive phrase at thejime, "their fire was snuffed out." The assault, of course, could not beniade. The bombard- trent was ordered for one o'clock, and then had been counterinanded. But that was a very difficult thing to do with an allied fleet—with every man burning for distinction it was almost impossible—so they went at it, and they behaved admirably. But what was the consequence ? We showed every weak point the enemy had, only to enable them to repair the errors and add to the strength their fortreas. That noble fellow Todtleben—he must be a Seotehman—but Todtleben made good use of it; and when Sir Houston looked over the batteries on the North side after all was over and peace pro- claimed, the commandant of the Wasp Fort—so calledtV the sailors be- cause it stung ssliadlf--showed him different works, and said, " Yes and our prayers were offered daily that the fleet might attack again" Had at- tacked again there must have been a great deal 'maretthunage done to the fleet-than on the 17th. - Without troops to take possession, .'they might have • fired away their ammunition, and come away drnaged`0 the enemy would fire a shot after we had retired, and would then Say thef,liad beaten us.

The Admiral closed his speech with a warm 'tritiiiterb Lord Raglan— he'd Wellington been in his'plaoe he could not hired:6 ' 'more.

George Duncan, with a testimonial-1100/. subSeribei,l' y all classes and c ,

Some time since, the people of Dundee presenteil: Jr Member, Mr. parties. Mr. Duncan was to appropriate it in what way* pleased. In- stead of having his portrait painted, as had been propssed, Mr. Duncan built Ragged or Industrial Schools, and made them•over to the town. They are now called "the Duncan Testimonial.": , On Tuesday last, the Directors of the Schools entertained Mr. Duncan at dinner. Lord Kin- naird, the President of the Schools, filled the chair ; Lord Panmure, Mr. Dunlop M.P., Mr. Sheriff Watson, the Honourable Arthur Kinnaird M.P., Sir John Ogilvy, Dr. Glithrie; and Mr. W., E. Baxter M.P., were among: he prominent guests. The business of'tlie evening was the pre- sentation of a memorial to Mr. Duncan. recounting his services to the porcine'. of 'Dundee. - The speakers paid him high compliments; and the main topics were Mr. Duncan and the influence of industrial schools. In his reply, Mr. Duncan narrated his initiation into local public life at the age of three-and-tWenty, and the Oiriimstances that introduced him to Parliament, where he had ' sat as tkrreisariatqe.for 'Dundee since the general election in-1841. Lord Panniine, after ' adding his :tribute of praise to his "friend George Duncan," spoke on a subject of larger in- terest " All of you are perfectly aware, that some years ago the practice and sys- tem of transportation from this country was,, by the united determination of our Colonies in AuStralin . at once aba died and'ont in end to. I think lit these Oolonieri were right 'm refusing to'. ' e their'soa y longer poisoned

by criminals from' the Mother-country." "(1 Wirth 'refused it was a

matter of the deepest anxiety to the Giiverriindift'off ,how, after

the period of punishment was expired, the di% AP be disposed of, not to be a burden and a poison to the society',Orilik ii untry: Various means have been resorted-to„ and I am sorry to ' but little of the expected success ; and, at this moment it is a queii Nether to liberate them on what is called ticket-of-leave, or whethe rate them later.

Into the wholesome system of our society that polio_ A es, unless we can find some means for : disposing of it. Now, for 'briils1 say there are no means -except that of prevention. I say therelik' no means for pre- venting criminals associating with their old' - " • tes in this coun- try, but by preventing the youth` of this conii ' from, being brought up in the paths of crime. I know no system MO ''efficient for this than Ragged Schools. I know nothing to which the Goierninent of this country can more beneficially turn their attention. Tliv siffiuld give every possible endoinagement to institutions such as•we are this *if& met to inaugurate —where those who fall into crime almost from neasty may be brought up in paths of virtue and religion; instead of floating d' *n in streams without inquiry or feeling, into those paths of vice .WIrl, ,('Sfand so widely open for all who will enter them. It is by encouraging of having as this that we will redeeni the society of this country tkiiiii' Ilia ef having poured on them those who come out of gaol. For let rig lOok! o'fir, the 'world, turn in any direction, we are not able to ley our hand on any 'single spot to which you can transfer your criminals without falling into society again in these foreign lands. ' YoUr celonies repudiate them. Alrtbreign countries with whom there is any connexion by treaty or otherWikeviill repudiate them. Therefore you, must keep them. 'Prevent Hie Jaitth' Of this country from falling into crime ; make of- them•viiiiiiiiiiiteifikeWCPersons earning their pwn livelihood ; and then we will easily settle the igifftticin what to do with 'the small minority who will, still persist in disgracing the country."

Dr. Guthrie and Principal Tulloch did not stunt their encomiums upon Ragged and Industrial Schools ; and Dr: Outliiie =told many anecdotes illustrative of their usefulness. . - • - ,;u:; 1,r,;:.. The Liberals of Perth gave a dinner to *fix Member, the Honourable Arthur Kinnaird; on Tuesday, in the ConntY,-hill, ea a recognition of his services and attention to the interests of the burgh in Parliament. Lord Panmure was to have been present, but he could not attend. Lord Kinnaird, the Lord Advocate, Mr. Dunlop M.P., Mr. Baxter M.P., the Marquis of Breadalbane, and Dr. Guthrie, were the conspicuous guests. The Lord Provost of Perth took the chair. After dinner there were

many speeches, as each of the Members present, in addition to Mr. Kin- naird, d was called upon to say something. Mr. Rinnsird made two re- marks worth transferring from the local journals. Speaking of his own position as " an independent Member," he said- " have watched, and I confess it with satisfaction, the disappearance of those party landmarks which I have often thought have been an impedi- ment to the public good. Liberal as I am—and I have never concealed my opinions—I am fully persuaded that the old party government, strictly speaking, can never be restored ; I do look with satisfaction to the fact, that the Government of this country can no longer be confined to a few families of one party or another, irrespective of ability. or worth. There is nothing now,. as my Lord Breadalbane has so well said, to prevent any man from aspiring to the first offices of the state, if he only possess the recommendation of capacity and ability for the work. And this it is which gives the inde- pendent party in the House of Commons increasing power—because we can both stimulate and clog the Government. We can stimulate the Government when they propose good and sound measures, by bring- ing to their support men who under the old and ordinary system of party-government would have been ranged against them ; and, on the other hand, when the Government propounds measures which we con- sider unsound or bad, then those who are in the habit of acting with the Go- vernment can, by withholding that support when bad measures are proposed, give the advantage of opposition without upsetting the Government ; for I be- lieve the constant change of Governments to be a great evil. I hope my friend the Lord Advocate will not tell these political opinions to my friend Mr. Hay- ter, because I believe that a Secretary of the Treasury looks upon one of these independent creatures as one of the worst kind of animals which he has to deal with. (Laughter.) It is natural that they should like to have a perfect certainty of a man voting either the one way or the other—that black is white ; but, unfortunately, the independent Members don't take the same view." He extolled lord Palmerston, and went on to speak of our foreign policy. " What is our guarantee that the treaty will be kept inviolate—that our blood spilt shall not be wasted—why, under God, that Lord Palmerston is -Premier. So it has been with America. That Government knows as well as we do that Lord Palmerston will maintain the rights of England, while he knows how to respect the rights of other nations. That noble lord is not afraid to let it be known that his sympathies and the sympathies of England are with the oppressed nations abroad. There was a time in the history of this country, awl it was a glorious time, when the head of this state powerfully and successfully in- terposed on behalf of the persecuted Protestants abroad ; and I an not afraid to own that I do cordially sympathize with such a policy. States have their duties as well as individuals, and I hope that the voice of Eng- land will be more loudly though temperately urged on behalf of the perse- cuted and oppressed abroad."

The Lord Advocate took up Mr. Kinnaird's remark respecting his position in the House of Commons-

' Notwithstanding the somewhat heretical opinions that ho chooses to express about his own position, I am bound and proud to say, that from no Member in the House of Commons have I received more strenuous, more undeviating, more constant, and more able support, than I have from your honourable representative. He begs of me not to inform the Secretary of the Treasury of what he has been saying tonight. Of course it cannot travel to him by any other channel !—(Laughter)—but I am sure that when 'I tell Mr. Hayter that your excellent representative intends to support Government only when they are in the right, the answer will be—' I knew all that before ; but we are always in the right, and therefore we shall always have his support.' (Laughter and cheers.) But in sober earnest, I must say that my honourable friend, and those who form, as he calls it, the independent party in the House of Commons, are undoubtedly among the most useful representatives of the people. A re- presentative of the people, to my mind, is neither the slave of any Govern- ment nor the delegate of any constituency. He is a man acting on free, liberal, and broad political principles ; a man who, while he goes along with that party which he believes holds those broad liberal principles, (for I do not like your man of no party,) yet follows the dictates of his own inde- pendent judgment,. There-is a line up to which a man may, to a certain ex- tent, modify his opinions in deference to those whom he respects ; there is also a line beyond which that deference ought not be carried. The difficulty is to draw that line ; and it is because I think that my honourable friend in his public career has shown alike a discrimination and independent judg- ment in knowing when to support and when to oppose the Government that exists—it is because I think he has those qualities in very great excellence, that Ibelieve him to be one of the most useful representatives of the people."

Mr. W. E. Baxter touched on the conduct of the mercantile classes in regard to our foreign policy- " We are told once and again, that we ought to put down our vast arma- ments and dismiss our ambassadors, have nothing to do with the concerns of foreign nations, and allow the interests of liberty and philanthropy to take care of themselves. Perhaps there is some degree of truth in the reasoning of those who are fond of talking thus. Certainly I do not stand here to de- fend an immoderate military force, an inefficient corps diplomatique, a per- petually meddling foreign policy, or a Quixotic crusade against everything in all parts of the world which savours of injustice and wrong. But at the same time, I hope and trust that the British people will never for a mo- ment forget that they have a misaion to perform, a destiny to fulfil or suffer, even at the risk of increased taxes, and a disturbed tranquillity, and national

honour to be tarnished either the East or in the. Much uch as I do dread the recurrence at any future time of hostilities, I dread still more the downfall of British prestige among the nations of the globe,— a prestige which rivals that of Imperial Rome, and has done a vast deal for the, material benefit of the oppressed and the ignorant, which in a thousand instances has stayed the hand of the tyrant, and which I believe to be an instrument in the hand of Almighty Omniscience for civilizing and evangelizing the world. The com- mercial classes of this country in times past have ever been the foremost to demand the maintenance of its prerogatives and its honour ; and if treaties are to be violated—if our provinces, however distant, are to be threatened— if a disposition be shown in any quarter, either in America or in Asia, to take advantage of our natural desire for peace—then I have no doubt that those classes will be the first to support the Cabinet that defends the right." (Great cheering.)

One of Mr. Dunlop's several speeches had " the Press " for its theme ; and he said that he could not but think, looking to the gathering strength of despotism on the. Continent, to its shackling of the press, and to the willingness with which the despots would, if they could, curtail its li- berties in this country, that the time might come when "the Press" would cease to be a complimentary sentiment and become a battle-cry.

Mr. Laing, Member for the Northern Burghs, is to be opposed at the next, general election by Mr. A. N. Shaw of Newhall, Fortrose ; a Liberal, favourable "a comprehensive measure of reform, including an extension of the franchise and a more equitable distribution of the electoral districts " ; a supporter of the present Government; and no religious subjects he holds the views which predominate amongst the Scotch. Members."

One of fruits of the late municipal election in Edinburgh appears in

the strife which convulses that city respecting the "restoration of Trinity College Church ; an ancient fabric, founded by the widow of James the Second in 1461, and pulled down in 1848 to make way for the North British Railway. The stones were removed and preserved, as it was the intention of the Town-Council which negotiated the bargain with the Railway Company to restore the church, using for that purpose the 16,0001. paid by the Company as compensation. The Town-Council re- jected an offer of the Company to build a fine new church,—on the ground that it would be a new church, and not a restoration or rebuilding of the old one ; and the same Council, NG. Black being Lord Provost, fixed on Calton Hill stairs as a site. The site, however, could not be had for three years. In the mean time, Mr. Black went out of office; Mr. Duncan lif`Laren and a new Council came in ; and the new Lord Provost proposed a site in Leith Wynd, that met with general reproba- tion. Under Lord Provost Melville, the Council again resolved upon the Calton Hill site ; but before it could be obtained, the recent election under the Municipality-Extension Act occurred, and gave the Free Kirk party a majority. One of their first steps was to give notice of resolu- tions to build, not a "restoration," but a "suitable church" for the parish. Hereupon the restorationiste held a public meeting. Sir Wil- liam Gibson Craig took the chair ; Mr. Black M.P., Mr. Blackburn M.P., Colonel MUM of Caldwell, Mr. Robert Chambers, and other gen- tlemen of local repute, were present. At this meeting, resolutions were adopted in favour of restoration, and a deputation was ordered to lay them before the Council. On Friday the 19th, the Town-Council, with a brief adjournment for dinner, debated the question from twelve at noon to midnight. The restoration party were defeated by 28 to 12 ; and 26 to 14 resolved in favour of a "suitable" church.

t" By these resolutions," says the Edinburgh Daily Express, " the Art and History' party, who selfishly aimed at making Trinity College Church a useless and expensive toy, to the detriment of the poor inhabitants of Trinity College parish, are effectually checkmated. This result will not surprise any oue who remembers what took place at the election of the Council. The Whig and Church party, headed by Mr. Black M.P., put forward the re- storation of Trinity College Church as a testing question ; and in this issue, chosen by themselves, they were signally defeated by the good sense of the great majority of the electors. So well was this understood, and so noto- rious and clearly-defined were.the views of every Councillor elected, that on the morning succeeding the election we were able to state the probable re- sult of any division that might take place in the Council on the subject: and the result has singularly verified our calculations."]

There is a talk of carrying the question into the law courts.