Maitland Mercury and Hunter River General Advertiser (NSW : 1843 - 1893), Saturday 28 October 1843, page 4


ENGLISH NEWS.

The committee appointed to act in concert with her Majesty's government for the erection and endowment of additional bishoprics in the colonies and dependencies of Great Britain have determined to appropriate £20,000 towards the endowment of a bishopric at New Brunswick.

Mr. Murray, the eminent publisher, died at his residence, Albemarle-street, on the 27th June, in the 65th year of his age.

Colonel Chesney, the celebrated traveller, who was employed in the Euphrates expedition, and several other important missions in Asia, has received orders to proceed to Hongkong as commanding officer of artillery. On his arrival he will attain the rank of Major General. He will take out a detachment of the Royal Artillery, Greenwich.

The proceedings of the Sydney Salting Com-pany, and the formation of salting establish-ments at Port Phillip, Port Macquarie, the Clarence River, and other places along the coast and in the interior, had begun to attract considerable attention in those circles in London connected with Australian interests.

The announcement that the wool at the June London sales had not realized so high a price as was anticipated appears to have been premature. The sale commenced on the 13th June, and from its being the first series of the new clip, and so large a quantity as 17,000 bales being offered, there was a very full attendance of buyers. The sales proceeded with but little animation, in consequence of a large proportion of the Van Diemen's Land and Port Phillip wools being badly washed, and of inferior breeds, and the sales were effected at a reduction of about 10 per cent, upon previous prices; but as far as New South Wales brands were concerned sales were effected with spirit at former rates.

The price of tallow had declined considerably, in some instances as much as 10 per cent., and the market presented a dull appearance, very few sales being effected.

The first German wool fair for the present year commenced at Breslae on the 31st of May.

The "permanent" pier at Greenwich gave way lately, by the rising of the piles through the quicksand foundation, and three-fifths of the entire length (300 feet) was damaged, cracked, and shaken as by an earthquake. It had just cost £30,000 and is now a ruin.

The sermon lately preached by Dr. Pusey before the university at Oxford had been referred to a board of heresy ; on receiving the report of which the Vice Chancellor suspended Dr. Pusey for two years. The Doctor protested against the sentence, and a numerous body of tutors and officers of colleges had addressed the Vice Chancellor requesting to know the grounds

of his decision.

Archdeacon Samuel Wilberforce had been

appointed to take charge of the education of

the Prince of Wales.

A large Roman Catholic chapel had been

opened at Islington, at which four bishops and fifty priests were present; one of the bishops was the Right Rev. Dr. Willson, the newly appointed Bishop of Hobart Town.

Mr. Hume moved in the House of Commons that the sum of £21,000, which the King of Hanover receives as Duke of Cumberland, should be discontinued. The motion was lost on a division by 197 to 91.

A person named Samuel Mayer, a resident of Gloucester, and holding a situation in the custom house of that city, had written a letter to Sir J. Graham, in which he stated "that he would undertake, as he might be advised, to risk his own life against that of Mr. O'Connell." He was apprehended, and brought before Mr. Hall, chief magistrate of Bow-street police office, where, having expressed his sorrow for the letter he had written, he was discharged, on finding bail, himself in £200, and two sureties in £100 each, to appear at the next jury sessions of the Central Criminal Court to answer any charge which might be preferred against him.

Immense flights of wild pigeons, supposed to be visitors from America, have appeared in the vicinity of the lakes and hills of Cumberland.

A petition from the Wesleyan Missionary Society has been presented to the House of Commons against the introduction of " Popery"

into the islands of the South Pacific. The

petitioners allege various reasons for their protest, and concluded by entreating the house "to adopt such measures as may seem best for obtaining for the Queen of Tahiti her just independence, for securing to the British missionaries unrestricted liberty in discharging the duties of their office, and also for preserving the civil rights and religious freedom of other evangelized islands in the South Pacific."

The Moniteur announces that the Austrian merchants were actively engaged in devising means for opening a direct communication with the East Indies, via Suez. The Commercial Chamber of Trieste had with that object commissioned an agent to proceed on a voyage of inspection to Egypt, along the coast of the Red Sea and British India, and to prepare the establishment of factories at Alexandria, and on the Red Sea, for the reception of goods from

India.

During the first two months of the Thames tunnel being opened, 675,640 persons passed thronen and paid toll.

The bill for registering and branding arms in Ireland, though containing nearly the same provisions as have existed in former and even recent acts, but without being strictly enforced, has been very warmly debated in Parliament. Even the Epsom races could not charm the debaters from their conflict. The bill was carried, but the minority is larger than might have been expected.-Leeds Mereury.

From the Leeds Mercury of June 3rd we learn that trade was still progressively improving. The accounts from the manufacturing districts were more satisfactory, inasmuch as more work-people found employment, and in some instances at better wages; but the improvement was chiefly confined to the cotton and woollen trades, particularly the latter, in consequence of which the public warehouses had been nearly cleared of the better qualities of foreign wool, and at rather higher prices.

Father Mathew, the apostle of temperance, was about to visit the principal towns in England. The Bishop of Norwich had offered the very rev. gentleman accommodation at his episcopal palace during his stay in that city.

A convention of the Friends of Universal Peace was to commence its sittings in June, to which delegates had been appointed, not only from all parts of the United Kingdom but from the continent of Europe, and from America. The Marquis de Rochefoucault Leancourt had been deputed by the Peace Society of Paris, of which he is president. The object of the convention is "to deliberate upon the best means under the divine blessing to show the world the evil and inexpediency of the spirit and practice of war, and to promote permanent and universal peace, on the principle that war is inconsistent with the principle of Christianity and the true interests of mankind."

It was rumoured in London that government intended to propose a vote of £50,000 to the Church of Scotland, to be distributed by the General Assembly. This, it was thought, would tempt the seceders back again.

The Duke of Argyll had given the New Secession, or Free Church of Scotland ground in Campbelltown, as Bites for such new churches as they might require.

THE ARMY.-An increase of the army has just been decided on. The present establishment of regiments of the line, with the exception of those having second battalions, is to be aug-mented, without delay, from 740 to 800 rank and file. The corps serving in India, China, and

New SouthWales, are already above the strength last enumerated ; and they are not, therefore, to be understood as being included in the intended alteration.-United Service Gazette.

SALE OF THE COLOSSEUM.-This celebrated building was brought to the hammer at the auction mart, upon which occasion Mr. George Robins officiated. The event drew together an extremely numerous assemblage, and amongst those present the members of the legal profession constituted a large proportion. Prior to the sale, in reply to a question, Mr. Robins stated that the ground at the back of the building, but which was attached to it, was capable of being let for the erection of houses, or any other pur-pose, upon such terms as would realise yearly ground rents amounting to between £2000 and £3000. He furthermore said, that the Com-missioners of Woods and Forests would, the property being held under the crown, render every facility to the purchaser. Mr. Robins then put the lot for competition, premising that the ground upon which the colossal building stood was held under a lease from the crown, of which 80 years were unexpired, at a moderate ground rent. The biddings commenced at £10,000, and after a considerable time had elapsed in the progress of the successive ad-vances, the property was ultimately knocked down to a gentleman of the name of Giraud for 23,000 guineas.-London paper.

THE DERBY AND OAKS.-The race for the

Epsom Derby came off on the 31st May, and was won by Cotherstone, the property of John Bowes, Esq., M.P. for South Durham. Twenty-three horses started for the race; the second horse was Colonel Charritie's Gorhambury, which was beaten easily by a couple of lengths ; the pace throughout the race was very severe. The value of the stakes, free from the usual deductions, were £4250, and it was rumoured in the sporting circles that Mr. Bowes netted some-where about £30,000 by the result of the race. Large sums of money had changed hands.-The Oaks Stakes, value £2,600, were run for on the 2nd June, and were won easily by Mr. Ford's ch. f. Poison, beating Mr. Thornhill's Extempore,

and 21 others.