An estimate was issued on Wednesday, of the sum required

to be voted towards defraying the expenses of naval and military operations in China, beyond the ordinary grants for army and navy services, for the year 1860-61; including a repayment of 443,896/. to the government of India, for advances on account of former expeditions to China. The sum in question is 3,800,0001. '

At a meeting of the Council of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, on Wednesday afternoon, Mr. James 31onerieff Arnett, F.R.S., President of the College, was elected as the representative of that institution in the Me- dical Council of Education and Registration, in the vacancy occasioned by the promotion of Mr. Green to the President's chair, vice Sir Benjamin Brodie, resigned.

Mr. John Watkins, the artist and photographer, of Parliament Street, attended at Buckingham Palace on Wednesday morning, for the purpose of taking the portrait of the Prince of Wales, previously to his departure for Canada. Major-General the Honourable R. Bruce, governor ; and Captain Grey, equerry to the Prince of Wales, eat to Mr. 'Watkins on Wednesday. The Earl of St. Germans and Major Teesdale having previously given sit- tinge to the same artist, a series of photographs has thus been completed, of the gentlemen who will officially accompany the Prince of Wales to the United States.

The Gazette d'Auysburg announeea "upon good authority, that the Prince Regent intends to return the Emperor Napoleon's visit at the Camp of Chalons immediately after his Imperial Majesty has taken up his resi- dence there." VSecond report of the Select Committee on Packet Contracts states that '*-- has been brought to their knowledge, that in 1858, Mr. Lever offered 0001. to Mr. G. O'Malley Irwin, a member of the Irish bar, if he should

sin for Mr. Lever a subsidy of a certain sum for the conveyance of the ited States' mails to and from this country, and subsequently a deed was

ut,ed in which Mr. T. K. Holmes, member of a firm of Parliamentary agents, was admitted ass party jointly with Mr. Irwin, and they bound them- selves to use their best efforts and exert all their influence with their friends and others to procure the subsidy ; and Mr. Lever bound himself to pay them the 10,000/. if the subsidy should be obtained or a proportionate sum if it should be of less amount. Proceedings at law are pending between Mr. Irwin and Mr. Lever, and an action has been bronght against him for 53601., claimed by Mr. Irwin and Mr. Holmes under the deed ; but the action has hitherto been delayed on the ground, it is stated, of anticipated legal difficulties till the Galway Packet Contract shall have been ap- proved by Parliament. The committee report that there seems to them no ground for supposing that any corrupt means were resorted to by Messrs. Irwin and Holmes in carrying out their part of the agreement, but that the largeness of the sum stipulated. the fact of its payment being made con- ditional on success, and Mr. Lever's plea to the action, which alleges that Mean*. Irwin and Holmes (who, however, deny the charge) falsely and fraudultntly represented themselves to have great influence with members of the Government and others, which would be of service in procuring the contract, appear to lead to the inference that the exertion of undue milli- sastseonld pot have been excluded from Mr. Lever's view when he entered into the arrangement. At all events, they are clearly of opinion that the agreement is in itself deserving of the strongest reprobation, and that the allowance of such undertakings would present a temptation to corrupt prac- tices, and open a door to evils most injurious to the public service. If, therefore, Mr. Lever' who entered into this arrangement, were himself the contractor under the Galway contract, the Committee say they cannot doubt that the House should withhold the moneys necessary for carrying it into effect. But a company has since taken the contract of him, and he holds but about a fourth of the stock, and the other directors do not appear to have been aware of the transaction. The Committee, therefore, submit the mat- ter for the judgment of the House.

The Ring of Denmark returned on the 24th from his visit to the King of Sweden and Norway at the Swedish camp, and the next morning left Co- penhagen for Schleswig, where he would reside for some days at the Castle of Glueksburg.

Colonel Faulkner, the recently-appointed American Minister at Paris, and Mr. Spencer, the American Consul, celebrated the 4th of July by a fete champetre in a pretty park at Neuilly.

The Pays is authorized to contradict the widely-circulated news that the Marquis Antonini, the Neapolitan Ambassador in Paris, has resigned. The Duke de Gramont, who has been ill, has been cured by the waters of Vichy, and is about to resume his functions as Ambassador at Borne.

Signor Frescobaldi, the representative of the late Grand Duke of Tuscany at Naples, has taken down the escutcheon of the Grand Duchy. M. Berryer has received notice that the will case, in which he is going to plead in London, will be called on before Sir C. Cresswell on July 16. Queen Christina, accompanied by her husband, the Duke de Rianzares, their family, and suite, have arrived at her villa at St. Adresse, near Havre.

The Prince of "Wales has been pleased to contribute 50/. towards the com- pletion of the School of Art, Vauxhall, of which his Royal Highness laid the first stone last Wednesday.

Lord Palmerston has directed that a donation of 10/. should be paid out of the Royal Bounty Fund to Abraham Cann, the champion wrestler of Eng- land in old times.

A committee has been formed to promote the erection of a monument to the great Lusitaniati poet, Camoens. The Duke of Saldanha is the presi- dent, and the committee is composed of some of the leading men in Portu- gal. The Viscount de Jerumenha has also nearly completed a new edition of the works of Camoerus, preceded by his life, which is said to contain matter never before made public.

Sir George Bowyer, son of Admiral Bowyer, died recently at Dresden. His eldest son, George Bowyer, M.P., succeeds to the title and estates.

The friends of Mrs. Gore, the popular authoress, will regret to learn that the recent operation for the restoration of her sight has not been successful.

The very day the Neapolitans left Palermo the official Gazette contained the nomination of the Principe di San Giuseppe as the representative of Sicily in England. The Prince has been a stanch Liberal all through, and has lived in exile. The next day the Principe San Cataldo was appointed in the same capacity in France.

Touching the late changes at Naples, the Count of Syracuse is reported to have said :—" They would not give way when I advised them to do BO, and now it is too late ; they will fall all the same." "Only," said a diplo- matist, who heard the remark, "they will now fall out of a first floor win- dow instead of a second."

The Army and Navy Gazette of Saturday, says, that in the hurry of .pre- paring the returns the numbers of the Volunteers reviewed by her Majesty on the 23d, were mis-stated, and that the total, instead of being only a little above 18,000/ was within a fraction of 21,000. The aggregate was, accord- ing to the same authority, made up as follows :—First Division : Mounted, 143; Honourable Artillery Company's Engineers and Volunteer Guards, 668; Artillery. Brigade, 1250; 1st Brigade, 2722; 26 ditto, 2517; 3d ditto, 2624; 4th ditto, 2127. Second Division: 1st Brigade, 2407; 2d ditto 2568; 3d ditto, 2380; 4th ditto, 1486. Thus there was a grand total of 20,890.

The total expense of maintenance, from the foundation of the British Museum in 1753 to March 31, 1860, has been 1,382,733/. 138, 4d.

The Patric, in a leading article, anticipates that the Corps Legislatif will throw out the Government bill for abolishing, though on condition of re- taining a very high duty, the prohibition of the exportation of rags, and lays down the doctrine that "rags" is an article to which the science of po- litical economy does not apply.

The number of deaths in London last week, 1001, exceeded by 36, the number in the week preceding; nevertheless, they were less by 216 than the calculated average.

A report is current in Paris that the Emperor will confer on Prince Na- poleon all the political prerogatives enjoyed by Prince Jerome, particularly the post of President of the Privy Council and of the Council of Ministers, in the absence of the Emperor. It is stated that the Legislative Body, be- fore its separation, will have a bill 'presented to it for giving Prince Napo- leon the dotation of Prince Jerome, and the former is also to occupy in the Palais Royal the apartments of his late father, and make a considerable in- crease in. his household.

The post mortem examination of the body of Prince Jerome led to the dis- covery of a ball which had remained in his chest, after a duel which he fought in his youth with a brother of Marshal Davoust. The deceased prince, it is stated, has left memoirs, and in his will prescribed all the mea- sures which are to be adopted for their publication.

" The laurels of the King of Naples," says the Siècle, "prevent the Bey of Tunis from sleeping. The latter is about to promulgate a con- stitution and create ministries of the interior, foreign affairs, finance, war, and marine."

A work under the title, "One Hundred and Seventy-one Rebeffionein the States of the Pope, from 896 to 1859," by Signor C. Rossi, has ap- peared in Florence.