Iftisttllarreous.

The Morning Post states it to be the intention of the Queen to hold two levees in the course of the present month at St James's Palace. A drawingroom is also spoken of as likely to take place at an early period. A Court mourning for the late King of Denmark has been ordered—to begin on the 3d instant, to change on the 17th, and to cease on the 24th. The Queen has bestowed the blue riband, vacant by the death of the Earl of Fowls, upon the Duke of Norfolk. Major-General Sir John Hunter Littler, K.C.B., is appointed " an ordinary member of the Military Division of the First Class, or Knights Grand Cross of the Bath."

A Cabinet Council was held on Tuesday afternoon, at Lord John Russell's resi- dence in Chesham Place.

Lord William Beresford, in a letter to the Morning Herald, contradicts a state- ment recently put forward by that paper, that " Lord George Bentinck thrust himself unsolicited into the position of leader of the Country party in 1846." The Standard of Tuesday reluctantly admits that there is dissension in the ranks of the Country party; and that Lord George Bentinck, "eminent among these lights of the Protectionist party," has been discarded as its leader. The Standard makes out that Lord George has been rather ill-used. With one voice, it says, in the summer of 1846, the Protectionists solicited him to lead their party in the House of Commons: in consequence of feeling himself committed to a course on the Romanist and Jewish questions at variance with the feelings of the Country party, Lord George declined the honour; and it was then forced upon him, with L full knowledge of his scruples. The Protectionist party has therefore no right to quarrel with him now for voting as they knew that he must consist- ently vote.

The Oxford protest against the agitation on Dr. Hampden's elevation to the see of Hereford is signed by 371 members of Convocation, and between five and six hundred non-members. Copies have been sent to the different members of the Government.

Early in the week it was stated that the rumours respecting the critical state of the Archbishop of Canterbury's health had been exaggerated; on Tuesday there was decidedly a change for the better, which continued till Thursday; bat then there was an unfavourable reaction. Yesterday the bulletin stated that the Archbishop had enjoyed some hours of tranquil sleep, and was less exhausted.

Mr. Brooke, the Governor of Labuan and R ijah of Sarawak, accompanied by his family and private secretary, Mr. Spencer St. John, embarked on Tuesday, on board the Meander frigate. Among the passengers who have come home in the Avon West India steamer is Sir Baldwin Walker; who has been appointed to succeed Sir William Symonds as Surveyor of the Navy.

Several German journals, and particularly the Borsen/ialte of Hamburg, assert that the King of Prussia has decided upon having a regular periodical session of the General Diet every two years; and that the letters-patent for this measure will be published as soon as the present Committees shall have terminated their labours. The announcement that a marriage was on the tapis between Count Trapani, the youngest brother of the King of Naples, and Princess Alexandra, the youngest daughter of the King of Bavaria, is confirmed: letters from Munich of the 26th state that the bridegroom was daily expected at the Bavarian capital.

Our private correspondence from Cairo, of the 17th January, announces that the health of Mehemet AU is in a very precarious state. His Highness had a very severe attack of illness, and fears were entertained for his life; but at the last advices he was considerably better.—Morning Chronicle.

A deplorable event, which recals in a minor degree the disaster of Bon-Taleb, has just happened between Tablet and Sak Hamondi, on the Algiers road to Aumale. An artillery convoy left Aumale on the 8th of January; and was overtaken on the 11th, on the heights in front of Sak Hamondi, by a violent snow- storm. At the turnings of this perilous road the burdened mules were precipitated into the deep ravines. The cold became so intense, that in less than a quarter of an hour fourteen men out of forty-four fell beneath its severity. Those who were able to escape from this horrible situation took refuge in the dachera of Tifiras. At the same time that this convoy was suffering on the heights above- mentioned, another from Algiers lost two men between Onled-el-Had-el-Tablat. As soon as Si-Mahi-ed- Din was informed of the catastrophe, he immediately sent assistance to the unfortunate sufferers; and on the 17th, a dozen men, frozen to death on the nights of the 11th and 12th, were brought to Algiers.—Coestitur- tionnel.

The celebrated French artillery-officer, Lieutenant-General Paixhans, has, at his own request, been placed upon the reserved list. Having always been of opi- nion that aged officers should retire to make room for those more fit for active service, and having expressed this sentiment in the Committee which prepared the law on the General Staff of the Army, he has resigned his situation as mem- ber of the Committee of Artillery.

The Prussian papers give a most awful description of the want and distress in some parts of Silesia: according to them, it is much greater than even in the worst parts of Ireland. A.socuity, under the auspices of Count Brandenburg, had been formed at Berlin for the relief of these unhappy districts.

The maritime city of Augusta, in Sicily, has been wrecked by earthquake. A first shock of great violence drove the people from their houses; the fatal second shock then worked such destruction that only twenty-seven houses remained standing. Where the mole lately stood the sea now gives no bottom at fifty fa thorns. Fifty-nine citizens had been drawn out of the ruins, wounded, but alive; thirty-five dead bodies had been recovered.

A recent attempt at boring for water in Venice has proved a total failure, and has been completely abandoned, with a net loss to the French company of three or four hundred thousand francs. The project of M. Grimaud de Caux to furnish the city with pure river water by an aqueduct has again risen into favour, and will probably be adopted by the local authorities. A letter from Baumes-les•Dames, on the Nabs, states that the country round that place is infested with wolves. A few days ago, as two children, one ten years of age and the other eight, were on their way home from a farmhouse, they met a wolf; and on their attempt to fly, the younger child fell, and was immediately carried off by the wolf into a neighbouring forest. A diligent search was made, but no trace of the child could be found.—Gcaignani's Messenger.

A colonial community of seventy-five persons, of all professions, who will live as brothers and wear uniform clothing, have left Havre for a district to be named Icarienne, on the Red River in Texas, of nearly a million acres.

By the Avon, from the Spanish Main, we learn that the town of Chagrea has been nearly totally destroyed by fire. We have not been placed in possession of any document containing particulars of the distressing calamity; but, from all we can learn, we have reason to fear that the loss will fall heavily upon some of our mercantile houses in the Spanish trade. The Customhouse, with its stores and bonding warehouses, containing merchandise to a large amount in value, the greater portion of it derived from this city, and unhappily unpaid for, were entirely con- sumed.—Jamaica Dispatch, Jan. 7.

A third mail, to arrive in London at about five in the afternoon, has been placed on the London and Birmingham line. Additional mails also have been recently placed on the Brighton and South-western lines. These additions have been effected by the cooperation of the companies, without further expense to the Post- office.

Another expedition, to proceed by Behring's Straits in search of Sir John Franklin, is to be immediately fitted out, under the command of Captain Sir James

Clark Roes. It is to consist of two ships, of 470 and 420 tons respectively, which are entirely new, and are to be appropriately named " the Endeavour" and "the Resolution, after Cook's ships. They are to be fitted at Blackwell by the 1st of April, and will be commissioned in a few days. They will follow up Sir John Franklin's track to Baffin's Bay.

The arms which have been granted to the new see of Manchester are thus de- scribed in heraldic tongue—" Or, on a pale engrailed gules, three mitres of the first; a canton gules, charged with three bendlete enhanced, or." The canton contains the old arms of the Grelles, Greslets, or Gresleys, the ancient Barons of Manchester.

The distress at Paisley continues unabated; and there appears bat little pros- pect of a revival in the staple manufacture of the town. At Hawick and Gala- shiels, the shortness of the working hours, and in many cases the absolute want of employment, are seriously felt.

The agricultural report for January is very satisfactory as regards the winter corn. Indian corn-meal has come into favour with the graziers; and large quan- tities have been taken for feeding purposes. There is an immense quantity of hay still on hand, and cattle of all kinds fare remarkably well. The early lamb ing season has been very favourable, particularly in Sussex, Hampshire, and Dor • setshire.

A letter from Frankfort, of the 27th January, quoted in the Indepenelanca Beige, mentions that in Alsace there is a considerable fall in the price of corn " Immense quantities, collected together with a view to gain, have been thrown on the market in consequence of apprehensions entertained by speculators of an abundant harvest. These fears have been increased in consequence of all the let- ters from the Upper Rhine, Wurtemberg, Bavaria, and Austria, agreeing in their accounts of the extreme abundance of provisions. At Trieste the granaries are not sufficient for the supplies of corn constantly arriving from Hungary and from the interior of the Austrian states."

The Mayor of Boston in Lincolnshire has declared his determination to preside at no public dinner where drinking customs are permitted.

Feargus O'Connor wants a public subscription to defend his seat for Notting- ham. "Not lees than 1,0001. must be raised," says he, in his Northern Star. "Let no time be lost," continues he: "only think that if only 240,000 persons subscribe one penny each, the 1,0001. is got."—Globe.

A guinea-pig, on which Mr. Brenda had experimentalized in a recent lecture on chloroform, has since died. It did not rally after the second administration of the vapour. During a storm on the 13th ultimo, no fewer than 180 small bottle-nosed whales were driven on shore on the island of Haroldswick in Zetland.

The statistics of enlistment show that during the last military year 27,093 mug had enlisted, of whom 19,333 were accepted as fit for service. The recruits were in the proportions of 11,506 for England, 11,968 for Ireland, 8,804 for Scotland, 271 for Wales, and 44 for Foreign countries. A decision has at length been come to in the case of M'Cabe, the man con- victed with Reid who was hanged for the Mirfield murders: the Home Secretary announces, that as the Judge who tried the case believes that M'Cabe was to a certain extent a participator in the crime, the convict will be transported for life.

Two men have perished at Messrs. Abbott and Co.'s brewery, at Bow, from carbonic acid gas. They had been directed to clean out a large vat, and they seem not have taken the precaution of ascertaining whether the air was foal: after a time they were missed, and on a search they were found lying dead at the bottom of the vessel.

A fatal collision occurred on the night of the 23d January, off the South-east coast of Ireland, about forty miles below Tuskar. The auxiliary screw steamer Aram was on her voyage from Liverpool to Malta, when she came in contact with the Philadelphia packet-ship Susquehanna, on her way to Liverpool: the night was rough and cloudy, and the disaster appears to have been quite unavoidable; the accounts vary as to which vessel drove into the other, but the Aram was the more damaged. The water entered rapidly, and the people were obliged to take to their boats, two in number: unhappily, in the darkness and confusion, the boats parted from the steamer while there were yet six bands on board, and the vessel could not be regained. After a perilous navigation, both boats reached the Susquehanna, and the people were taken on board. The packet then bore down for the wreck; but a light which had been burning on it suddenly vanished, doubtless from the vessel's foundering: nothing more was seen of her, though the Susquehanna cruised about during the night and the next morning. Those saved were twenty in number; the sufferers were, the chief and second engineers, a fireman, two seamen, and a boy.

The brig Endeavour of Maldon having encountered a heavy sea in St. Andrew's Bay., the hands, seven in number, took to the boat, apparently during the night; and all were lost. The brig was boarded next day by some fishermen, and taken to Dundee. While the vessel was in distress efforts had in vain been made to send out assistance from the shore.

A pilot-boat, which put off from Cullercoats, on the coast of Northumberland, to board a vessel, was capsized by the rough sea, and the whole crew of seven men perished.

The Journal des Debuts records the recent death, at Luxembourg, of Madame Is Baronne de Geisen, at the age of a hundred and seven, or, as some say, a hun- dred and eleven years; and of Madame de Cambfort, at Ilusseren, Haut Rhin, a hundred and three years old. The latter has left a daughter aged eighty-two, who has outlived her faculties.