South Australian (Adelaide, SA : 1844 - 1851), Tuesday 7 April 1846, page 3


A CONTÄA8T.

Not many weeks since the Belair steamet anchored in I

Fmachal-roads. .;

The dread yellow flag drooped from her mast head. A strange and deadly sickness *xd »wept off two-thirds of . her officers and men. Her captain and both her surgeons had perished. The wan, worn surr wura, sought relief

from the inhabitants of Madeira,

The Governor of the Island deemed it his painful duty to forbid «ny intercourse between the "plague-ship and the shore. Be sternly comntanaed them to weigh their anchor and depart.

The scanty crew of the steamer, already insufficient to j carry on the duty bf the vessel, were dairy becoming scan

tier under the attacks of the fever- .The equinox was at I hand. In thia pitiable pliglU; withmV

were on the point of being compelled to put to sea, and cross tiie Bay of Biscay.

There chanced, however, to be at Madeira, Sidney Bernard, an English sturgeon. This man and seven seamen, volunteers from English^erchantmen, came forward and offered meir aarvices in taking the Belair home.

It is needless to waste words in praising their noble

conduct-a more signal act of cool disinterested devotion

is not on record.

The Eclair reached the Mothesbenk ; the feyer still raged between her decks. Many had died on the passage from Madeira ; the pilot who boarded her in the Channel died, and the heroic Sidney Bernard,naving accomplished the humane task he so nobly assigned bJnvwtlf, also died.

A merchant at York speculated boldly and successfully , in railroads. He bought in as low as he could, he sold ont as high as he could, and when he made a permanent investment, he took the best care he could that the ^ con

cern in which he had placed his capital should te weil

managed.

He was a clear-headed, energetic man. Hisgains were, enormous. He is now an M.P., a huge lsadedjjroprietor,

and as for bis posseston m

come Tax Commissioners can alone guess at thew amount. His name is George Hudson. \ :

Many people have closely watched his opërauoiil^ihe share market, jand have imitated him. Mssj^^o^ have sought lus advice and followed it, and many people by so doing have made much money, and hope to make more

by the same means.

So, in order to evince their gratitude for pe&and future favors, the British public have got up < a subsection to oner a testimonial to the most successful speculator bf the day. In the list are tobe seen the names Of 4¡he noblest, the wisest, the fairest in the'laud-all, all unblushing worshippers of Mammon. £50,000 have been already

subscribed for the Hudson testimonial,-sad money still

pours in.

> Alas f for Sidney Bernard and the gallant volunteers of the £rfo*r-alas I for their wkiows and orphans!

Np testimonial ia proposed to record theil daring humanity ; no subscription is raised to provide for the fami

lies of the dead, and to reward the noble courage of the

sui itvofs.

Our nobility and gentry crowd forward in hundreds to do homage m puss« «ad petson to the /^Railway King;** but not a single individual has appeared desirous of rewarding, or even noticing, the high deserts and melancholy sate of Sidney Bernard and his companionsin danger and

death. . - v»'

Yerjly, we are a nation of shopkeepers 1,

-Time*, NCT. 19. .< M.LH.

The Constitutionnel publishes a letter from Nwikalir^ one of me Marquesas, of a most instinctive character fbi the French government. The writer, evidently aman oj observation,' shows that au enormous outlay of Freud money takes place yeariy m the ^'protectorate" <t) wuh

ont the shadow bf a prospect of return,

j Tue Journal des Dàats announces that .the Duches d'Ausaede washappüy delivered of a prince at a quarte past leight o'clock on Saturday «vemng,^ the palace o St. Chad. The royal mumt haslOTriaaiedby tbe Ktnj the Prince de Condé. The ceremonyof baptism waa ti take place at the paUice of S t Cloud OIL SuncUy er«ùna The nines cf Candéis '^'élewenú\Jsjisnd8^ ¿T Loni

Philippe, s -. ^SV

MAHOMETAN SCHISM.-A new sect has lately set itself

up in Persia, at the head of which is a merchant who had returned from a pilgrimage to Mecca, and proclaimed him-

self a successor to the Prophet. The way they treat such matters at Shiraz appears in the following account ( June

23) :-Four persons being heard repeating their profession of faith according to the faith prescribed by the impostor, were apprehended, tried, and found guilty of unpardon-able blasphemy. They were sentenced to lose their beards by fire being set to them. The sentence was put into execution with all the zeal and fanaticism becoming a true believer in Mahomet. Not deeming the loss of beards a sufficient punishment, they were further sen-tenced, the next day, to have their faces blacked and ex-posed through the city. Each of them was led by a mir-gazah (executioner), who had made a hole in his nose and passed through it a string, which he sometimes pulled

with such violence that the unfortunate fellows cried out

alternately for mercy from the executioneer and for ven- geance from Heaven. It is the custom in Persia on such

occasions, for the executioners to collect money from the spectators, and particularly from the shopkeepers in the bazaar. In the evening, when the pockets of the execu-tioners were well filled with money, they led the unfor-tunate fellows to the city gate, and then turned them adrift. After which the mollahs at Shiraz sent men to Bushire, with power to seize the imposter, and take him to Shiraz, where, on being tried, he very wisely denied the charge of apostacy laid against him, and thus escaped from punishment.-Times, Nov. 17.

Win!«or, Tuesday.

The Queen will hold s Privy Council on Thursday next, (be «nh No»., at die Castle. The council »iii be held at half past two o'ciook.

Her AJajesty, accompanied bj her Hoya! Highness the Princess Augustus of Saxe Coburg, ptormnarfed in the pleaxuie grounds in the vicinity of the Castle, some time lilt«

morning.

Their Royal Highnesses 'be Prince of Wales and the Prince** Hoya! were laking their ear y morning airings ¡a the grounds.-around tbe casi:*.

Plymouth. November 17.

Il|t Imperial Highness the Grand Duke Constantine, yester. day afternoon, between 'oar an«« five o'clock, (anded at the Barbican pier, from the Kassian ship pf war Ingermanland', accompanied by Admiral Lütke, and by Air William Luscombe, of the Consular Office, and pioceeded to Elliott's Royal Hotel, «here the Kunian Ambassador, Baron Bruoow, has also taken apartments'. Admiral Lütke, Baron Freedr¡cbs, Dr. Harwievitz, and Captain Loutkewsky, are

with the (irand Duke.

We published a few days ag" the final sentence, or award, of Ute couit mania! on Lien«. Hyder, of the loth hussar-, who has been honorably a qaitteJ vt the charges brought against bim by the Lie olee nt Colonel of bis regiment. The Young soldier does not appear to have even bad a tendency to blsck bonks, or any of those ouirages on the feelings of a mers which have before now sown the seeds of disnesnion amongst the officers of a bursar regiment. Lieut. Hy«'er bad none oi I líese objectionable tastes, which nullit have nib de I him unpopular in foch a corps a« the lOib, but be neveithe[ less was not so fortunate as io have the approbation of Cul. i Vandeleor, though fae had been more mccersfui «i<h other

commanding cjficeia m.der whom be had «er*td. He had an excel!« nt character given bim upon bis trial by many Tnili'ary friends of high standing, whose testimony, added lo the emptiness of the charge against him, ¡ed to bi» tiiumphaut acquittal, l here is iea<!y some difficulty in accounting tor the enduct of Lieutenant Colonel Van-leltU', in cmintnciug bis piostcntion of Lieutenant Hjder, though it is very easy lo see the Colonel's motive for carrying the affair in a court martial. The unfrtr treatment adopted by the «mperior bad been made a matter of complaint from the info ipr lo a high official quarter, and it was iheiefoie politic of the Colone« to rarn the table« on the Lieutenant, au«l place the la ter in the position pf defendant which the former would otherwise probably have occupied. The pretext-tor we c«n call it by no more dignified name-chosen by Connel Vaiidekur to get up a prosecution was an ai'-epeti transaction relative lo a gig horse, which Lieutenant Hyder wi»s accus.«! «f wiship» to introduce lo {tis con.niandiog officer ia the character «>f a charger. Tbe affair ia leally ridicuion*, but we are simply Staline the fact, and cannot be responsible for i a ludicrous

character.

lt is, it seem«, required of an officer in the lOib bussats, to be provided with iwo chargers, and Lieutenant llyder bad not supplied himself with more than one, which one, moreover, was not exactly to tbe taste of tbe Colonel, it was either too heavy, or ran too fast, or performed some other eccentricities at variance wirb the usual equestrian etiquette which tue hora?» of tbe lDtfe were expected to observe implicitly. Io reference !. ibis trumpery matter of diffeience, which Lieutenant Hyder did his very best io-rectify by purchasing another animal, whoie behaviour the Col. artoally approved, several Several circurastai.ces arose thal induced the Lieutenant to complain of oppressive tieatmen' at (he hands of bis f'olonel. Tben it was that the labes weie turned, aa ne have already observed ; and a charge was (¡ot up against Lieutenant Hyder of hiving offered to hire a g g boise to be imposed upon the sagacity of Colonel Vandeleur ap an actually purchased charger, Only one witness, of somewhat dcabtful credibility, was brought forward, ard facts came ou» on the court martial, involving the Colonel in tile responsibility of having been a patty to the destiuciiun of documents that thould have been forthcoming at the trial. This naturally led to the acquittal of the accused, who had the advantage cf the able assistance of Mr Warren, in the preparation of a well written and eloquent defence, io which the conduct of the prosecution and tba character of va witnesses were attacked with considerable power, but certainly not more forcibly than the circumstances fully justified.

We have read tb« defence carefully through, and we do not hecate lo declare that we see nothing in it lo warrant tb« reflections cast upon it in tue verdict of the court martial. That it was brilliant end effective was acknowledged even by the prosecutor, and its triam pb was manifested io tbe complete acquittal of ibe gentleman on whose behalf it was , written. Whether the position of Lieutenant Hyder will be I improved by «he verdict in Jin iavor is another que» ti on ; for

Colonel Vandeieur, whose conduct has been actually censored on one around, and appears to be censurable on many, continues to be the colonel of tbe regiment. It is not likely that bia feelings towards his junior officer will be rendered less bitter after what has occurred ; and if the i»t«er is compelled to leave the regiment to avoid the possibility of farther prosecution, ih« former becomes virtually tb« successful party is 'the recent trial. Sorely it might bay* been more for tbe in

forest of the service to have accompanied the mere verbal reflections on the misconduct of Lieutenant Col. Vandeicui with some substantial sign of displeasure. His removal from the regiment he faa* shown himself onqnafined to command, would «careely have been too severe a penally for the indiscretion-to use a mild word-wbioh he is found to haas been guilty of. r