Mr. William Wise, a gentleman residing in the North Mall,
Cork, re- ceived an unpleasant visit a few days ago. A person of good appear- Mr. William Wise, a gentleman residing in the North Mall, Cork, re- ceived an unpleasant visit a few days ago. A person of good appear-
ance called at his house ; and Mr. Wise being ill in bed, he was taken up-stairs, as his business was represented as being very important. The stranger locked the door, and then, according to the story in the Cork Constitution, " took a pistol from his pocket, raised the pan and examined the priming, and then with his left hand drew from another pocket a folded paper, open, however, at one end. This end he exhibited to Mr. Wise, and presenting the pistol at his head, he said, 'sin your name to this or your are a dead man.' Mr. Wise asked what it was? Ile replied, ' I won't tell you, but sign it at the peril of your life.' Mr. Wise hesitated for a moment ; t s which the fellow said, Come, conic, there's no time to be lost; sign that, or in one moment your are a dead man.' Mr. Wise then raised himself in the bed, and the other banded him a pen from the table at its side. Agitated as be was, Mr. Wise was sufficiently master of himself to write his name in a way so different from that in which he ever wrote it before as to Aim] an easy clue to the detection of the document whenever it is presented, which is supposed will not be until after Mr. Wise's death. When his object was accomplished, the person who resented the paper took it over to the fire, and held it to dry; examining it deli- berately two or three times daring the process, and all the while remaining with his face turned towards Mr. Wise, and his eyes firmly fixed on him. This occupied about a minute and a half. He then (putting his pistol on half-cock) returned to the bed, and said, ' So far I have accomplished what I wanted : I have now but to say, that if you attempt to make the least noise or to give the least alarm, until I am out of the house—though I should be at the ball -door— I will return and blow your brains out.' f his said, lie placed the paper and pistol in his pocket, made his bow to Mr. Wise, unlocked the door, and walked deliberately down stairs. Mr. \Vise has no recollection of having ever seen him before."
Mr. Wise has since received a letter, signed " W. Leader," enclosing part of the document he signed, with his signature and date- " It proves (says the paper already quoted) to be a 3s. bill stamp; but of the amount of the draught 31r. Wise is still in ignorance. The writer accompa- nied the document with an expression of thanks to Mr. Wise fin his kindness, and a hope, using the words • Death before dishonour,' that the terms of the conversation that passed between him and Mr. Wise would not escape the latter —in the mean time, that tie amount of his bill being diachaiged, he had no further use for his signature."
We beg to caution our readers against putting implicit faith in the stories of Irish distress which obtain circulation in the newspapers. A few weeks ago, a paragraph appeared in the London journals, stating that Counemarra was in a state of famine, from the failure of the potato crop. In answer to inquiries which we have made in that dis- trict, we have received the following information, which may be fully relied upon, as it comes from a person extensively interested in that neigh. bourhood. " There was no truth in the paragraph about a famine in this part of the country. At this moment there is no scarcity ; but the season is so very wet and unfavourable for live stock, that the people will be compelled to give their cattle a large portion of their potatoes. They are on the qui vice about the fishery. For the last two seasons, Roundstone Bay was alive with herrings, and salt rose to an exorbi- tant price. The Irish Fishery Company are about making their first trial this season ; their head station is Roundstone."—Hertford Re- former.
The Rector of the parish of Jonesborougb, the Reverend Robert Henry, induced an unfortunate man, named James Morris, to serve a
parcel of subronas for tithe. The consequence of his filling such an office WM, that on Wednesday night, Morris was taken out of his cabin near Newry, and his skull cloven with a spade on his own threshold.
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