112 
THE FIELD. 
[Saturday, 
Death of a Greek General. — W e arn apprised from 
Athens, under date < i the 13ili, of the death of the famous 
Grecian general, Haggi Christo*. 
Claims of British Subjects on the United 
States. — A notification Ims been niudo by the Foreign- 
office, dated tit© 20th ult., to tlie effect tlmt British subjects 
who, in pursuance of die convention between Her Mqjosty 
and the United States of America, have presented claims to 
tho British Government for its interposition, which jet 
rerauin unsettled, are required to notify their desire to have 
their claims laid before tho Commissioners to the agent of 
Her Majesty’s Government under tho said convention, and 
to transmit the particulars and evidenco of such claims to 
him, within six months from the 14th of September last. 
Under special circumstances the timo will be extended to 
three mouths longer, after which all claims will ho b&rrod. — 
Prom the London Gazette of Tuesday week. 
Extraordinary Exhibition. — A curious spectacle 
(says the Pays) was witnessed in the groat avenue of the 
Champs Elysees : — A well-dressed person appeared, with a 
great number of bladders, each nearly filled with pure 
hydrogen gas, covered with a network of silk, and attached 
to his body hy means of a strap fastened to a belt beneath 
his arms. The bladders possessed a sufficient ascensional 
force to diminish the weight of the man by throe-fourths, 
without lifting him from the ground. Thus lightened, lie 
was able to t-'ko leaps of five or six yards ot a timo with 
extraordinary rapidity. After descending the great avenue 
from the quartier Beaujou to near tho I’ulais do 1’ Industrie, 
lie returned in tho way he came. A vast crowd followed 
him, and seemed astoundod at his feat. 
A Bed op Am ber. —Prague, Jan. 13. — In digging 
for a well in tho coal ininos near this city the workmen met, 
between the bod of gritsforio which forms the roof of that 
mine ami the first layer of coals, u bed of yellow amber, 
apparently of great extent. Fiecos weighing from 2 lbs. to 
3 lbs. have been extracted. 
COLONIAL INTELLIGENCE. 
Colonial Expenditure. — The animal abstract of the 
coloniul expenditure of Great Britain has just been issued. 
The period ombraced in this return is the year 1851-52. 
The military expenditure amounted to 3,003,2821., the 
naml to 55,717/., the civil to 400,350/.; u small itoni, 
2.77 6/., is deducted in respect of post-office collections in 
Multa and Honduras exceeding the expenditure, reducing 
the total expenditure incurred bv Great Britain to 
3,555,573/. The Cape absorbed 1,007,921/. of the military 
expenditure, the Ionian Islands 122,51 1/.. Jamaica 12.1,033/,, 
Canada 312,072/., NovaSootial 10.077/., M luritius 73,293/., 
Ceylmi 90.477/., New Zealand 83.819/., Labuan 4,033/. 
CoprER Mining at the Cape. — The arrival, during 
the mouth, of several coasting vessel.-, laden with rich copper 
ore, from the western part o' the Clanwilliam district, about 
the mouth of the Orangv River, has nuturally created h 
great sonsation m Cape 1’own ; and pru|iurutio is are being 
inudo on an extensive scale to curry nil mining operations in 
that part of the colony. It has been long known that 
copper existed in that quarter, and specimens huvo been 
from time to time sent down, of which mineralogists re- 
ported in very favourable terms. The actual arrival, how- 
ever, of many tons of this vuluublo material, commanding n 
high price, and collected with such imperfect meuns us ai 
at present available, Ims shown so conclusively the extra- 
ordinary value of these mines, that within the lust two days 
u company, for tho purpose of working them, has been 
formed here, with a cupital of 100,000/. The proprietary 
consists entirely of the principal merchants and inhabitants 
of Cape Town, by whom the shares have been eagerly taken 
up. These mines are situated on the coast, within the 
colony, about 263 miles north of Table Bay. — Cape Town 
Mail, Dec. 17. 
Antigua. — (From the London Gazette of Tuesday.) — 
Downing-street, Jan. 30. Tho Queen lias been pleased to 
appoint An'hony Alusgrave, E-q., to ho Colonial Secretary 
and Clerk ol the Crown for the Island of Antigua. 
Malta. — Her Majesty has also been pleased to make the 
following appointments for tho Island of Mdlta, viz.: — 
Doctor Paolu Dmgli, to bo President of the Court of Appeal ; 
Doctor Antonio Mica lief. t<> be one of her Majesty’s Judges , 
and Doctor Adriano Dmgli, to be Crown Advocate.— 
Tuesday’s Gazette. 
The late Mr Thomason — Tho lamented Governor of 
th>- North -west Provinces ol India has bequeathed the whole 
ot his valuable private library to the Government College at 
Agra. 
Yellow Fever and Cholera at St. Thomas’s.— 
A lotter, dated January 7, says: — "The yellow fever is 
again commencing at St. Thomas’s, and tho island, with 
some of the surrounding smaller ones, is likewise being 
frightfully ravaged by cholera." Up to the sailing of the 
Medway steamer, arrived at Southampton, 791 dt-utlis had 
occurred in St. Thoma-’s alone. Tlie Times of that island 
says : — “ It is painful to learn the circumstances attendant 
with mortality ut such places us Jos-vun- Dykes, Loungo, 
aud Thatch Island, the excess of which bus, it ts said, with u 
few tare exceptions, depopulated those places ; leaving, in 
many instances, toe dead unburled. Jos-vun- Dykes is uu 
island belonging to tbe Virgin islands group, and a depend- 
ency of Great Britain. How comes it, then, that depend- 
encies claiming allegiance to so great and powerful a nuiion 
become so thoroughly uncared for, tliut during a caia»- 
trophe of this nature the inhabitants are so totally destitute 
of every succour, and so backward In the scale ol civilisation, 
that we are credibly informed that of the few who received 
a Christian burial there, the partitions of some of tho cottage- 
standing had to be torn down to make coffins of ? Tho fol- 
lowing shows the number of deaths occurring daily since our 
lul :— 
Total from our lost 656 
is TOWX 
Wodnevlay. the 4 tit, from noon .. 32 
Thursday, the Sth 43 
Friday, the Ctli 47 
bstardoy, the 7th, to noon . • . . IS 
it* tub ooujrrsr .— 
From our last to afternoon of the 4tli . . 05 
Total 701 
Intelligence hud ulso readied St. Thomas's that tho 
cholera had broken out at Nevis, and, it was feured, would 
sprr-ud among the whole group of tho northern and wind- 
ward islands. 
Disasters on the Lakes in 1853. — A statement has 
just been prepared by Captain G. W. Hounds, showing the 
number ot marine disasters during the past year, aud the 
los* of life and property which they occasioned. The 
number of accidents, 200, exceeds those of last year by 37, 
while the loss of property, 874,143 dollars, Is less than thot 
uflost year hy 11 8,510 dollars. Thenainbaroflivcslost wa»81, 
. outlawing fivourubly with the previous year, when the loss 
■ *f life was 21)0. With but one exception (that of tho Ocoun 
Wave on Lake Ontario) no lives have been lost on utty of 
tlie regulur passage Mourners by nny accident whatever. 
There is a very great decreaso in the loss ol life ttnd property 
hy collision and explosion, which shows a very gratifying 
result of tlie first yoar’s operation of tho new law, relating to 
vessels propelled by steam, and tho improved system of 
lights. During the year, six steamers, two propellers, and 
thirty sail-vessels, have gone out of existence entirely . — Old 
Countryman, Toronto, Jan. 12. 
The Cafe of Good Hope.— T he General Scrow 
Stoam Company’s mail packet Propontis. Captulu Maude, 
arrived at Plymouth on Monday. Sho loft Calcutta 
November 15th, Madras 20th, Ceylon 24th, Mauritius 
December 7th, Cape of Good Hope 23rd, St. Helena 
January 1st, Ascension 5th, and St. Vincent 6th. There 
was great scarcity of money at the Cupo, by which tho land 
sales were considerably affected. At King William’s Town 
it is reported that British Caffraria is to bo made u ponul 
settlement. The eastern frontier is quiet. Captain Breton, 
74th Regiment, died suddenly at Port Elizabeth. Mr. 
Sowerby reports that silver and copper ore, limestone, Iron, 
gold and quicksilver, have been discovered at Port Natal. 
Her Majesty’s steamer Deo was about to embark the 2nd 
battalion of the 74th Highlanders; she was in Tablo Bay. 
The Hydra and Meander were in Simon’s Buy. The General 
Screw Steam Company’s ship Indiana, Captain («. B. Lam- 
bert, which left Plymouth on the 15th of November, arrived 
at the Cape on the 22nd of December. Tho Calcutta was 
two days due at Ascension when tho Propontis left. The 
Propontis, on the 29th December, 200 miles off Mossol Bay, 
received tho Natal mail front the Sir Robert Peel. Two 
days before mooting the N.E. trade winds, spoke the troop- 
ship Tyne, bound to Ascension ; Jan. 30, spoke the barque 
Belvidere, returning to Falmouth, with loss of bulwarks, 
from Fowey ; and the Brunswick schooner, from Bidoford. 
The Propontis is nearly four days alter time. Sho loft 
England June 15, and was due here on the 26th of November. 
She lost time through the sickness of her coiiimaiidcr, who 
returns passenger by the Queen of the South. 
The Mauritius. — The event of tho past month has beon 
tho renewal of tho trade with Madagascar on favourable 
conditions. Tho diseaso atnoug the cattle ut Black lliver 
had not extendod. 
AUSTRALIAN A. 
The Crcesus. — This steamer for Australia was still at 
Lisbon on the 22nd ult. in want of half-u-dozen men, tho 
crow having refused to go to sea iu her on the previous day 
after steam had been got up, in couscquciicu of tho vessel 
not being fully manned according to the act ; unil although 
Captain Scott, of tho Odin, offered to take tho Croesus out 
of tho Tagus, Captain Hall considered it better to wait lor 
the shipment of n few more hands, which was expected to 
detain tho vessel until the 24th. 
Russian Cruisers and Australian Gold Ships. 
(From the Times). — "Sir, — I fear that 1 am not the only 
one who imagines that the Czar Iihs some iilea of laying his 
bunds on one or two Australian galleons, lie has evidently 
been acting on u preconcerted plan throughout his late 
policy, and the news of Russiuu vussels being iu the Aus- 
truliun waters ought to point out the necessity of immediately 
securing our merchant vessels against any surprise from 
them. It is not unlikely tliut we inuy soon hear of II i« Im- 
perial Majesty’s having laid his bunds on a few treasure 
ships as ‘ material guarantees,’ and as u reply to our meiiHce 
in entering the Black Sea. Nauta." 
Outward Bound The departures from tho port of 
Loudon for the An-truliun colonies during tho past week 
'how an increase. They have comprised altogether eight 
vessels — two to Sydney, with an aggregate burden of 2,073 
ions ; two to Port Phillip, with an aggregate burden of 
1,550 tons; one to Swan River, of 582 tons ; ono to Hobart 
Town, of 461 tons; one to New Zealand, of 409 tons ; and 
one to Launceston, of 387 tons. Their total capacity was 
consequently 5,462 tons. The rates of freight show a 
further tendency to decline. 
Arrivals. — The Undaunted has arrived from Port 
Phillip, whence she sailed the 30tli of September, with 
35,000 ounces of gold, valued at 140,000/. Tho Mohawk 
has arrived from Sydney, whence site sailed tho 17th of 
September, with 14,095 ounces of gold, valued ut 56,300/. 
THE METROPOLIS. 
OPENING OF PARLIAMENT. 
On Tuesday her Majesty the Queen opened Parliament in 
person, with the following 
Speech from the Throne. 
" My Lords and Gentlemen, — 1 am always happy to 
meet you in Parliament ; and on tlie present occasion It is 
with peculiar satisfaction that I recur to your assistance and 
udvice. The hopes which I expressed at the close of the 
lu*t session, that a speedy settlement would be effected of tho 
differences existing between Russia and the Ottoman Porte, 
have not been realised, and I regret to say that u stalo of 
warfare has ensued. I have continued to act in cordial co- 
operation witli tlie Emperor of tbe French, and my endea- 
vours, iu conj unction with my Allies, to preservo and to 
restore peaco between the contending parties, although 
hitherto unsuccessful, have been unremitting. I will not fail 
to persevere in these endeavours; but as the continuance of 
the war may deeply affect the interests of this country, and of 
Europe, I think it requisite to make u further augmentation 
of my naval and mihtury forces, with the view of supporting 
my representations, and of more effectually contributing 
to the restoration of peace. I have directed that tho 
papers explanatory of the negotiations which have taken 
place upon this subject shall bo communicated to you with- 
out delay. 
"Gentlemen op the House op Commons, 
"The estimates for the yeur will he luid before you, and 
I trust you will find that, consistently with the exigencies 
of tho public service at this juncture, they have been framed 
with n due regard to economy. 
"My Lords and Gentlemen, 
“ In the year which has just terminated, tho blessing of 
an uhundaut harvest has not been vouchsafed to us. Hy 
this dispensation of Providence the price of provisions has 
been enhanced, and the privations of tho poor Ituvo been 
increased ; but their patience has beon exemplary ; and 
the care of tho Legislature, evinced by the reduction of 
taxes affecting the necessaries of Ilfo, has greatly tended to 
preserve a spirit of contentment. I havo tho satisfaction of 
announcing to you that the commerce of tho country 8t .., 
prosperous ; that trade, both of export and import, bus been 
largely on tho increase ; and tliut tlie revenuo of the p 8| , 
year 1ms boon more than udequute to the demands of tho 
public service. I recommend to your consideration a Jill) 
which 1 liuve ordered to be framed foroponing tho coasting, 
trade of tho United Kingdom to the ships of nil friendly 
nations ; und I look forward with satisfaction to the removal 
of the lust legislative restriction upon the uso of foreign 
shipping for tho benefit of my people. Communications 
have been addressed by iny coramund to tho Universities of 
Oxford and Cambridge, with reference to the improvements 
which it may bo desirable to effect in their institutions. 
Those communications will bo luid before you, and measures 
will be proposed for your consideration with u view of giving 
effect to such improvements. Tho establishments requisite 
for the conduct of the Civil Service, and the arrangements 
bearing upon its condition, have recently been under review • 
and I shall direct a plan to be laid before you which will 
lmve for its object to improve the system of admission, and 
thereby to increase tho efficiency of the service. Tlie recent 
measures of legal reform have proved highly boncficiul, and 
the success which has attended them inuy well encourage 
you to proceed with further amendments. Bills will be 
submitted to you for transferring from tho Ecclesiastical 
to tho Civil Courts the cognisance of testamentary mid of 
matrimonial causes, and for giving increased efficiency to 
the superior Courts of Common Law. Tho laws relating to 
the relief of tho poor have of Jute undergone much salutary 
amendment ; hut there is one branch to which I earnestly 
direct your uttontion. The law of settlement impedes the 
freedom of labour; and if this restraint can with safety be 
relaxed, the workman may be enabled to increase tlio fruits 
of his industry, and tbe interests of capital and of labour 
will bo more firmly united. Measures will bo submittoil to 
you for the umendmen t of tho laws relating to tlie representa- 
tion of tho Commons in 1’rtvllmnent. Recent experience 
has shown that it is necessary to take more offectuul pre- 
cautions against the evils of bribery, and of corrupt practices 
at elections. Jt will also be your duty to consider whether 
more complete effect may not lie given to the principles of 
tho Act ot tho lost roign, whereby reforms wore made in the 
representation of tho people in Parliament. In recom- 
mending this subject to your consideration, my desire Is to 
remove every cause of just complaint, to incrooso general 
confidence in the Legislature, and to givo additional stability 
to the settled institutions of this state. I submit to your 
wisdom the consideration of those important subjects ; and 
I pray God to prospor your counsels, and to guide your 
decisions.” 
Arrival of 209 Colliers in the River.— During 
Monday and Tuesday tho extraordinary large number of 
209 coal laden vessels, from tlie northern ports, were entered 
inwards at tlie Custom-house This immense fleet lias 
brought, In the aggregate, 42.900 tons of coals, which is 
exclusive of a largo quantity of Welsh coal that has also 
arrived in the Thames. Tlie entrance of such a large fleet 
of coal-laden ships within 24 hoars is quite unprecedented 
in tho trade, aud information has been received that 134 
colliers are at present on their passage from South Shields, 
Sundei l md, and Iiartlepooi. It was anticipated tlial tho 
arrival of this fleet would havo the effect of reducing tho 
price of coals from 42#. per ton to 3 as. per ton for the best, 
und inferior qualities to 285. per ton.— [See Market Pago]. 
Suicide of a Physician. — On Tuesday afternoon, Air 
E. S. Brent opened an inquest upon the death of Dr. 
Howard, of No. 6, Upper Glnucoster-streot, at tlie Hope 
Tuvorii, Park-street, Dorset-squirc. Henry Archer, policc- 
consiablo, 137 D division, stated that on Friday last, about 
a quarter past one o’clock, the servant of the decenscd called 
him in, aud stated that she felt considerably alarmed, as lur 
master bad not cither got out of bed or answered her u-.mil 
e.ill. Sho bad knocked at his bedroom door, and also rung 
the night bell; both of which lind, however, failed to obtuiu 
an answer. She further said tliut lie retired to rest at ton 
o’clock on tho previous night, and his ordinary timo of 
h-iiig called was at eight in the morning, but lie sometimes 
<l>d not come down stairs until twelve or one. At witness's 
desire sho rang the bell again, and failing to elicit a reply, 
he went out and called tlie assistance of some neighbours, 
us hu did not like to take tho responsibility of going to the 
deceased gentleman’s bedroom himself. The assistant of 
Air. Otue, surgeon, of No. 1, Milton-place, formed one of 
tho number, when they all proceeded up stairs, and found 
tho hodroom fastened inside. The door wus immediately 
broken open, and the deceased gentleman was found lying 
upon his buck in bed, quite dead, his hands and arms being 
crossed upon Ills breast, and the bed clothes neatly arranged 
ami tucked up all round. Tlie features presented the ap- 
peurunco of u slight convulsive spasm. A small phial, with 
the stopper out, and labelled “ Hydrocyanic acld(Scheele's)” 
wus lying upon the tuble, and near it was a minim measure 
and a wine-glass. There was no indication of the slightest 
struggle having taken place. The candlestick, with about 
two inches of imburnt candle, was also by the bed. The ser- 
vant ol the deceased deposed that his habits were odd and 
peculiar, but that she was never afraid of him. Air. Henry 
Ohi o, surgeon, deposed that prussic acid was the cause of 
death. Air. Keed Howard, of 34, Alfred-street, Bedford- 
squuro, stated that the deceased gentleman was hie brother. 
He had lived about twelve years in Gloucostor-strcet, und 
witness seldom saw him oftoner than once in u twelve- 
mouth. lie was in independent circumstances, and had 
publishod his peculiar opinions in various ways through 
tho press. Witness could not account for the suicidal 
act miles-, under u state of monlul dorangemont. With 
respect to his books and pecuniary arrangements, he was 
us regular and correct as any man living, which his papers 
amply testified. He rarely saw any ol his friends. The 
Coroner recapitulated the evidence to the jury, und, after a 
short consultation, they returned u verdict to the effect that 
deceased had destroyed himself by hydrocyanic acid, but 
as to the stato ol his mind tlioro was not sufficient evidenco 
to show. 
SOCIETIES AND INSTITUTIONS. 
Battersea Literary and Scientific Institu- 
tion (in union with the Society of Arts). — An interesting 
locturo was delivered to tlie members of this institution at 
the New Infant Scliooi-room, Green Lane, on Tuesday, by 
Mr. C. F. Chubb, of Battersea, tho Honorary Secretary of 
tho Prince of Wales Yacht Club, who, we observe, notwith- 
standing the frequent meetings und discussions on nuutical 
matters in the club, can yet find time to cultivate acquaint* 
