Arliliscellantous.

Prince Albert's birthday on Thursday was kept with the usual obser- vances, both in the Metropolis and at Windsor. The Prince has now en- tered his twenty-ninth year.

The Queen Dowager and suite left Busby Park on Wednesday morning, for a short visit to Ryde in the Isle of Wight. Her Majesty travelled from the Kingston station by the London and South-western Railway, crossing from Portsmouth in a Government steam-yacht.

Mr. Thomas Duncombe, M.P., left town on Saturday for his father's residence in Yorkshire. In a letter since received in town, Mr. Duneombe states, " Since I came here I breathe easier, but I am still very weak." It is hoped that a short time will so far restore the honourable gentleman as to enable him to bear the fatigue of a removal to the genial climate of Montpelier or Nice, and thus prepare him for the resumption of his Parlia- mentary duties on the opening of the session.—Globe.

General Sir George Cockburn died on Wednesday sennight, at his resi- dence, Shaangnagh Castle, near Bray, at the advanced age of eighty-four. He entered the Army in 1781; was Aide-de-camp to General Elliott at the renowned siege of Gibraltar; and ceased to be employed in 1811. Sir George Cockburn was noted for several eccentricities. He was an active promoter of Parliamentary Reform, and an admirer of the late Mr. Cobbett. On the passing of the Reform Bill, he erected a column near his house to commemorate the event: but he afterwards pulled it down in disgust at the slow progress of the Whigs; giving in his ultimate adhesion to Conservatism and Sir Robert PeeL The obituary records the death of Colonel Sir Henry George M‘Leod, K.H., at Windsor, on Friday last.

Sir Henry entered the Army in 1807, saw much service, and was severely wounded at Waterloo. In the same year he assisted with his corps at the siege of Dantzic, for which he was decorated with the order of St. Wladimir of Russia. He was for some years Lieutenant-Governor of St. Christopher's; he was sub- sequently appointed Governor of Trinidad, and in 1842 also received the appoint.. ment of Commander-in-chief. He remained Governor of that colony until last year; and he was then succeeded by Lord Harris, the present Governor. In 1843 he married Miss Robinson, daughter of the late Reverend Sir John Robinson; but he does not leave any family.

Rear-Admiral Phipps Hornby has been appointed to the command in the Pacific, to succeed Sir George Seymour; and will hoist his flag in the Asia, 84 guns, at Sheerness.

A considerable increase is about to be made in the Artillery department. An additional company will be attached to each of the ten battalions in October next, and another in April 1848; which will make the number of battalions and companies the same as it was during the last war, although each company will not be so strong as it then was in number. It is also contemplated, in consequence of the increased number of artillerymen re- quired for the new fortifications at home and in the Colonies, to increase the strength of the Royal Regiment of Artillery by adding two more bat- talions, so soon as there are a sufficient number of gentlemen cadets passed for officers. The new battalions will be denominated the Eleventh and Twelfth.

A company has been incorporated by royal charter for establishing a line of steam-boats to ran between India and Australia; thus completing the steam communication between England and Sydney. It is calculated that the entire distance to Sydney will be accomplished by this route in about sixty-four days: of these, forty-two days will be spent in going from Eng- land to Singapore, ten days thence to Port Essington, and twelve days from Port Essington to Sydney.

A letter by the Alexandria correspondent of the Portufoglio Maltese announces a change in the relations of British subjects with the lex loci, which may have disastrous results. "Lord Palmerston has given instruc- tions that, in future, crimes of a grave and criminal nature, committed by British subjects in this country, shall be tried before the local author- ities."

"A few months ago, seven English seamen were accused of having murdered an Arab. The local Government claimed these seamen; but Mr. Murray, our Consul-General, refused to give them up; instituting, however, a strict investiga- tion into the affair, which resulted in the innocence and liberation of the accused. Upon this, it seems, the local Government made strong remonstrances, through the Turkish Ambassador at London; which induced Lord Palmerston, although he approved of the conduct of Mr. Murray in regard to these seven seamen, to desire that in future persons under the imputation of similar crimes should be given over for trial to the local authorities. An article in the i'uthish Govern- ment Gazette, published at Cairo, states that in civil causes between Turks and Englishmen the local authorities will be competent to try them, and will have the power of sending Englishmen to prison for debt; which, however, is not the fact. "It was very natural that the British Consul-General, better able to judge of things in this country than Lord Palmerston, should have kept his Lordship's orders in his portfolio, and made strong representations to the Foreign Office against so unheard-of a measure. But by the last mail, Lord Palmerston has repeated his orders; conveying at the same time to the Consul-General the opinion of the Attorney-General, in which that learned gentleman states that this measure can- not militate against the privileges of British subjects, nor is it contrary to inter- national law. Notwithstanding these repeated orders, it is said that Mr. Murray has again made strong remonstrances, and has accompanied them with very im- portant documents. We are anxiously waiting the result."

We understand that a highly respectable bookseller in London, one of the most popular if not one of the most successful publishers of the day, is about to be re- ceived, if it has not already taken place, into the Church of Rome, with the whole of his family. We at present withhold the name, though we have no doubt of the accuracy of our correspondent. A gentleman also well known to the patrons of art, as a Royal Academician, is said to be about to follow the same course.-0x- ford Herald, Saturday.

The officers of the Seventeenth Regiment of Foot have presented to Mr. J Wing, late Sergeant-major, a gold medal, of the value of 301., as a mark of respect for his character as exhibited during many years' service. The medal was pre- sented before the assembled regiment, at Canterbury.

Two detachments of disabled soldiers from the Fifty-eighth and Ninety-ninth Regiments, engaged in the recent military operations in New Zealand, have arrived at the General Hospital of Pitt Fort, in Chatham. Each detachment consists of two Sergeants and twenty-five men; under the command of Major Richard Denny. The whole of these men were engaged in the disastrous attack on Ilekes pah. Thirteen have been ordered into hospital; the remainder will be discharged on pensions. The worst cases of wounds were left at Sydney.

The neighbourhood of the Paris Bourse was on Friday thrown into consterna- tion, a little before two o'clock, by the intelligence that a murder had just been committed on the clerk of M. Meyer Spielman, money-changer, Rue Neuve Vivienne, 26. It appears that the clerk, a German, aged eighteen, was sitting behind the iron railing which is usually found in such shops; when a well-dressed man, of about thirty, entered, and presented a bill of exchange. Whilst the young man was unfolding it, the other stretched forward his hand through the little opening in the grating, and seized on is wooden cup, filled with gold, and a handful of bank-notes; with which he attempted to make off. The clerk, how- ever, who perceived the movement, rushed round into the open part of the shop, and seized the thief. The latter then, drawing out a poniard-knife, stabbed the young man in the hand and forehead. The clerk, however, struggled with him, crying out all the time loudly for help. The cleric at length contrived to force the weapon from him; and, in his turn, plunged it into the man's leg, and cut the angers of his right band. In the midst of the struggle the knife fill, and the thief stooped down to pick it up. The clerk availed himself of the chance, and, opening the door, again shouted for help. A servant-girl at the same moment entered the shop from the interior of the house; and the thief, finding himself hard pressed, made a last effort, and, snatching up the knife, plunged it twice into the lower part of the abdomen of the unfortunate clerk; who fell to the ground in an expiring state. The murderer then darted towards the Bourse; but was overtaken by a commissionaire and M. Frischmuth, the proprietor of the baker's shop opposite. On his person were found another poniard-knife, and several pieces of gold. The police-agent who first came up recognized him as a thief by profession. The unfortunate clerk was taken to the hospital of the Hotel Dien en a litter, but expired on the way. We may be permitted, on this occasion, to larea hope that the money-changers will abandon the system of display of ismsd notes which they make in their windows, and which has proved so fre- quently a temptation to robbery, and more than once has led to murder.—Ga/ig- siatris Messenger.

A violent storm burst over the town of Gy (Upper Saone) and the surrounding country, on the 18th instant, and did considerable damage. Masses of water, mingled with hail, were poured down, and in a short time the streets resembled so many torrents. Houses were thrown down, and furniture, doors, windows, and goods, were carried away by the torrent. All the lower part of the town was under water, and more than one life has been lost. A number of persons were badly bruised. In the country parts, the ravages of the inundation are most serious: about 1,400 acres of vineyards present nothing but a heap of atones and rubbish.

The Glasgow papers recount a painful romance; which has had precedents enough in number, and known enough, it might have been thought, to prevent the recurrence of the like calamities. On Saturday afternoon, three boys—two sons of Mr. James Wilson, a builder in Gallowgate Street, and a nephew—were missed. "As the rest of the family, with the exception of Mr. Wilson, were down the water, [at Helensburgh, in the Frith of Clyde,] the boys' absence occasioned at first no great uneasiness, as it was supposed that the youngsters, the eldest of whom was about eleven years of age, had set off to join their mother and the rest of the family. As nothing had been heard of them, Mr. Wilson left home early on Tuesday morning, with the intention of proceeding to Helensbnrgh, to ascer- tain if the runaways were there. He had not, however, been long away, before a carter, who takes charge of a horse belonging to Mr. Wilson, went to the stable attached to the wood-yard, to get some food for his horse. The provender was kept in a corn-chest—a box six feet long and about three deep, with three sepa- rate compartments, and secured on the outside with an iron hasp, which fits into a staple in the side of the chest. On opening the lid, the man was horror-stricken at ending the three young boys lying motionless at the bottom of the chest, each oc- cupying one of the compartments. He immediately summoned assistance, and they were taken out; but it was found two of them were quite dead and had been so apparently fora considerable length of time. The youngest, a boy be- tween seven and eight years, son of Mr. James Wilson, showed some signs of life, and gradually revived, so as to be able, during the day, to state in a coherent manner what had led to the melancholy catastrophe. The brothers and cousin had gone into the chest, in search of beans; and while so engaged, the lid closed on them. In falling, the hasp fixed into the staple; and all the united strength of the poor captives was insufficient to enable them to burst the bands. On the aide at which the youngest boy was found, the lid did not fit so close as the other parts; and from the limited supply of air which had been admitted through this crevice, is to be attributed his preservation. They had endeavoured to support each other's courage as well as they could in their dismal dungeon; and, before giving up hope, one of them broke the blade of a penknife in the attempt to make an incision through the aide of the chest. After they had exhausted themselves by unavailing shouts and cries, which were not heard on earth, they all joined in prayer to the hearer and answerer of prayer. This is the last circumstance which the surviving sufferer recollects, as he soon after became insensible. To account for no noise having been heard, or no one within call, it may be mentioned that the wood-yard in which the stable is situate is locked up early on the Saturday afternoon, and is not again entered till Monday morning. The distress of the bereaved and afflicted families, who are well known and highly respected, may be imagined."

A curious ease of abduction was tried on the 11th instant in the Civil Court at Malta. The form of the proceedings was an action brought by two sisters named Cannon, who keep a ladies' school at Valetta, against Mrs. Emma Curtis, for forcibly taking out of their custody her daughter, Miss Ellen Curtis. Mr. George Savage Curtis, a gentleman of fortune residing at Teignmouth, married the daughter of Sir William Curtis; by whom be had five daughters. From this lady he was divorced last year. He soon afterwards placed his three younger daughters at school with the plaintiffs in Malta. On leaving that island for Lisbon, Mr. Curtis gave strict injunctions that they should have no communication with the mother; and he subsequently got his daughters to sign a written promise that they would avoid all intercourse. On the evening of Fnday the 6th instant, Miss Cannon, with a number of her pupils, including Mr. Curtis's three daughters, crossed from Valetta to Slienia in a ferry-boat, for the purpose of taking a walk. About mid-channel, the ferry-boat was passed by a man-of-war's gig, steered by Lieutenant Baker, the commander of her Majesty's steamer Ardent, and having two females in the stern-sheets. These parties were put on shore just before the arrival of the ferry-boat. They were recognized, however, to be Mrs. Curtis and her maid. On making this discovery, Miss Cannon hurried her charges into the ferry-boat, desiring the rowers to make all haste back to Valetta. The gig put off in pursuit, with Mrs. Curtis on board; and having overtaken the slower craft, one of the gig's crew held on with a boat-hook, while Lieutenant Baker demanded the delivery of the young ladies to their mother; stating thatbe would take upon himself the whole responsibility. Miss Cannon refused compli- ance. An appeal was then made to Miss Ellen Curtis; who ultimately, though with some hesitation, allowed herself to be helped from the ferry-boat into the gig; her sisters refused to accompany her. When asked by Miss Cannon whether she went of her own free will, Miss Ellen Curtis declared that she merely wished to see her mother, and not to go away with her. Finally, Mrs. Curtis and Lieutenant Baker both promised that the young lady should be restored in three hours. This promise having been disregarded, the matter was put into the hands of the police. It was then ascertained that Mrs. Curtis had arrived from Southampton, in the Ripon steamer, on the 31st July, under the name of Charles. The case was ar- gued at some length. It was contended on behalf of Mrs. Curtis, that her daughter had voluntarily joined her. On the other side, it was urged that, being only seventeen, the young lady's will could not be recognized. The Court decided in favour of the plaintiffs; adjudging Mrs. Curtis to deliverup her daughter into their charge, until Mr. Curtis's directions in the matter should be received. Mrs. Curtis has appealed against the decision; and the bearing of the appeal was fixed for the 16th instant.

In our second edition last Saturday we reported a trial that took place in the Central Criminal Court on that day—that of John Ramsay for the murder of Mr. Henry Williams, in November 1844. It may be recollected that Mr. Wil- llama died in some manner that appeared incomprehensible, after getting out of a cab; Ramsay was with him at the time, both being very much intoxicated. Recently, Ramsay volunteered a confession that be had murdered his companion; but afterwards he retracted this confession, averring that he was drunk when he made it. At the trial, as Mr. Bodkin was stating the facts to the Jury, he was interrupted by Mr. Justice Erle; who said—" It appears to me, that before you proceed to show that the prisoner had been with the deceased, and bad in- flicted any injury upon him, it would be as well to ascertain what was the cause of death. I have carefully read the depositions and listened to your open- ing, and it strikes me that the death may be accounted for by the fact that the deceased, while in the carriage, dropped his head on the ferrule of the umbrella, which entered his eye and penetrated to the brain." He therefore suggested that the medical gentlemen should be first called. The indictment charged the prisoner with striking the deceased on the head, &c. If that were so, it was con- trary to the evidence on the depositions; and if the learned counsel thought he could satisfactorily discharge his duty to the public by adopting this course, the ends of justice would be answered. Mr. Bodkin did adopt the Judge's sugges tion; Mr. Fogarty, a surgeon, confirmed the judicial view; and the trial, which was brief; resulted in a verdict of "Not guilty."

Mr. Grantley Berkeley has proved his fitness, for once, to administer his uni- versal remedy, the "punch on the head," for he has been returned for Chelten- ham simply by beating his opponent on the poll.—Putich.

In some of our English contemporaries we have seen paragraphs relating. to the extraordinary size of the grain crops in different localities.. On the farm of Bwleh, in the parish of Abergwilly in Carmarthenshire, in the occupation of the owner, Mr. William Williams, there are crops which will not suffer by comparison with those we have mentioned. On the farm in question there is a crop of wheat, the

length of the stalks 6 feet 2 inches, the ear 7} inches long, and containing 58 corns. On the same farm an oat ear has been found containing 270 corns, the length of the stalk 6 feet; and this is the size of the greater part of the crop.— Carmarthen Journal.

An instance of animal sagacity and humanity, unequalled in our remembrance, took place before our door lately. An unfortunate dog, in order to make sport for some fools, had a pan tied to his tail, and was sent off on his travels towards Galt. He reached the village utterly exhausted, and lay down before the steps of Mr. Young's tavern, eyeing most anxiously the horrid annoyance hung behind him, but unable to move a step further, or rid himself of the torment. Another

dog, a Scotch colly, came up at the same time; and, seeing the distress of his crony, laid himself gently down beside him, and, gaining his confidence by a few caresses, proceeded to gnaw the string by which the noisy appendage was attached to his friend's tail, and by about a quarter of an hour's exertion severed the cord, and started to his legs with the pan hanging from the string in his mouth; and after a few joyful capers around his friend, departed on his travels in the highest glee at his success.—Edinburgh Weekly Chronicle.

A hive of bees has been found in the roof of the church of Widmerpool, in Not tinghamshire, from which a hundred pounds of honey have been obtained.

The labourers on the Londonderry and Coleraine Railway were engaged in a strange combat the other day: a number of whales entered Lough Foyle and got into shallow water; the "navigators " put off with two boats, and attempted with poles, spars, and rails, to conquer the fish : but they bad a hard struggle, from the inefficient weapons they possessed. Eventually, four whales were captured. It is supposed that this will be the last scene of the kind in Lough Foyle: in four years what are now shallows are expected to become waving fields of corn.

On Sunday morning, as the train from the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway WA

starting for the Scotswood station, two men imprudently jumped upon the steps of one of the carriages, and, after riding over the bridge, one of them jumped off,

and fell on the opposite line. Before, however, he could recover himself, another train, from Blaydon, came up, and the iron plough in front of the wheels swept him off the line; by which his life was fortunately preserved. The man imme- diately got up and walked deliberately away.—Newcastle Advertiser. John Holyoak, an assistant plate-layer, has been killed at Rugby, by an engine knocking him down while he was clearing the railway of coke: his legs having

been crushed, they were amputated; and he died soon afterwards. He smoked a pipe both before and after the amputation. Holyoak bad been a soldier for twenty- one years, and he regretted in his last moments that he had not died in battle rather than thus.

A young girl has been killed, at Worcester, by culpable carelessness in putting away a gun without removing the loading. The sufferer's family had charge of a house for a day; it was proposed to scare some pigeons by firing a gun, but eventually it was resolved only to fire off a percussion-cap on the nipple; an old cap having fallen off, a boy was picking the touch-hole, the hammer fell, some percussion-powder ignited, and the gun went off, shooting the girl dead: the owner of the weapon bad, contrary to hisusual practice, left it loaded.

On Tuesday afternoon, four men in a small sailing-boat off Wandsworth fas- tened the sail, as there was no wind, while they wetted it: a sudden gust came and upset the boat; the men were thrown into the water; and two—brothers- perished. As two men were engaged in fishing in the mill-pond at Sidlesham, near Chi- chester, on Friday night, about twelve o'clock, one of them was suffocated by a

small fish leaping into his throat, and there becoming fixed. No proper assistance being at hand, his partner could not extricate the fish from its position, and in five minutes the poor fellow was a corpse. He has left a wife and three children.— Sussex Advertiser.

Two men have perished by a fall of earth on the railway near Nevaant, in France; and five or six by a similar disaster at Fronard, near Nancy.

A fire burst out on Wednesday afternoon at Messrs. Craven and Lucas's sugar- refinery, in Whiteehapel, and burnt for two hours; but by the exertions of the firemen, the flames were then got under, after the upper floor had been destroyed.

The Reverend Huntley Haggard, the curate of St. John's, Newcastle, has com- mitted suicide at Carlisle, by cutting his throat. Mr. Haggard had been most exemplary in his conduct, and liberal to excess on a very small salary; he was about to be married; but be was of a very nervous temperament, and his mind had become unsettled for some time.

Some two months since, James Walsh was murdered, at Ballingarry, by his wife and father-in-law, who fled to America: the culprits have been captured by an Irish officer at Toronto; the man, Brophy, was found in a fever-shed laid up with the prevailing disease.

A notice has been published cautioning thepublic against the receipt of forged five-pound notes of the bank of Messrs. Radford and Wragge, of Stourhridge, of the date of June 1, 1847. The genuine notes issued by the firm on that day were from Nos. 5,002 to 5,400 inclusive. The forged ones may be detected b' their entry and signatures having been lithographed, which is not the case with the genuine ones.

Results of the Registrar-General's return of mortality in the Metropolis for the

week ending on Saturday last— Number of Summer

Zymotic (or Epidemic, Endemic, and Contagious) Disetties 871 .. . 228 deaths. average.

Dropsy, Cancer, and other diseases of uncertain or variable seat 112 .... 103 Diseases of the Brain, Spinal Marrow, Nerves, and Senses 148 ... 157 Diseases of the Lungs, and of the other Organs of Respiration 1St .... 228 Diseases of the Heart and Blood-vessels 30 .... 25 Diseases of the Stomach, Liver, and other Organs of Digestion 197 .... 91

Diseases of the Kidneys, &c. s

Childbirth, diseases of the Uterus, &c 12 .... 10 Rheumatism, diseases of the Bonin, Joints, &c. 7 Diseases of the Skip, Cellular Tissue, &e. Old Age 31 . .. 50 Violence, Privation, Cold, and Intemperance 13 .... 28 Total (including unspecified causes) 1057 940

The comparison of the deaths registered last week in London with the deaths which would have been registered if the rate of mortality had been the same as is Dorsetshire, shows these totals—London, 1057; Dorsetshire, 684; excess, 373.

The temperature of the thermometer ranged from 96.2° in the sun to 43.0° in the shade; the mean temperature by day being warmer than the average mean temperature by 2.2°. The mean directions of the wind for the week were North by East and North by West, but the air was generally calm.