gbe 43robinces.

Mr. Walter has been chosen for Nottingham, after an election which threatened at one time to be of rather a stormy character. The nomi- nation took place at ten o'clock on Monday morning, in the large room of the Exchange, in the Market-place. From the first a good deal of turbulence was exhibited by the crowd. A rush was made by Mr. Walter's friends to his side of the hall ; and they had to fight their way : they say that they were obstructed by the other party on entering the ball; while Mr. Larpent's friends describe them as eager to fight. In one of the disturbances that occurred during the meeting, a man was pitched down a staircase, and removed much hurt. Mr. Roworth, of Wilford, late Mayor of Nottingham, in proposing Mr. Walter, repeated several times that he did so on account of no political motive, but solely because he shared in Mr. Walter's deter- mined hostility to the New Poor-law. Not that he was for reverting to the old system ; but the working of the present law, he said, had brought many to their graves who would not submit to in-door diet and separa- tion. He was for allowing the people to elect the Guardians, as they do under the new law ; but at present the power of the Guardians was a mere mockery. Who really have the power? he asked : "Who order the food for the poor ? who assign their labour? who, in distinguishinj the cases, order the relief?" Mr. Roworth said that threats and intimi- dation had been used to prevent his appearing before the electors. Mr. F. B. Charlton, of Chil well Hall, who seconded Mr. Walter, did so on political grounds ; calling to aid his bearers' experience of "ten years of Whig misrule."

Lord Rancliffe twice essayed, with the help of the Sheriff and Mr• Walter and others, but failed to the last in making himself heard. Ile asked the people why they should give so unwelcome a reception to an old friend, who stood firm by his old principles; who was an enemy to

the New Poor-law, and a friend to Annual Parliaments, universal suffrage, and vote by ballot ? He then proposed Mr. Larpent, in dumb show ; and he was seconded, in dumb show, by Mr. Hart. Mr. Walter's coming forward was the occasion of redoubled confu- sion; to such a degree, that a proposal was entertained for the candi- dates to pair off, each addressing his partisans in a different place : but it was frustrated by Mr. Larpent, who, it is said, refused to accede, unless Mr. Walter would give a pledge that he would not publish his speech in the Times. At length Mr. Walter obtained a hearing ; which he used chiefly in contrasting Mr. Larpent's liberal promises with the scanty means of fulfilment at the command of a Ministerial Member.

Mr. Walter was favourable to a change in the Corn-laws ; but not such as would prevent landlords and landholders from paying their wages and thus leave the whole agricultural population to starve. After run- ning over a variety of his opinions, which he put in as favourable a light as possible for the occasion, he recurred again to the Corn-law, with a hit at the rashness of Whig fiscal reforms— Mr. Larpent said in direct terms, "Let us get rid of the odious and detestable Corn-law, and then let us see what we can procure in its place." This might be his honourable opponent's mode of proceeding, and it had also been that of Lord John Russell and his colleague the Chancellor of the Exchequer ; but he should think they would have already had enough of remitting one tax before they had found others in its place. They remitted the heavy postage on letters; and what had they since done in the place of it ? (Cheers.) Why, they had clapped 10 per cent, on the Assessed Taxes, and screwed up the Window-tax by every species of vexation, inquisition, and fiscal extortion. (Cheers.) Let us, then, before we have one tax remitted, know what is to be substituted in the place of it. Let the country at least bare the choice of two evils" (Cheers.)

Mr. Walter then, after a few cuts at Mr. Larpent, for talking of waiving some of his principles to save his party from danger, entered fairly upon the grand subject of the Poor-law ; quoting a long address to his Berkshire constituents in 1834.

Mr. Larpent proposed himself as a decided Reformer, in opposition to the Anti-Reformer, Mr. Walter. He said that he was highly delighted with his canvass ; and promised that it should be "his boast and his pride to follow the steps of their late lamented representative." He denied that he had ever waived his principles. Mr. Walter, however, had done so : he and the Times changed together. The electors of Nottingham, said Mr. Larpent, had, in fact, to choose between himself and the Times— "The real question between me and Mr. Walter is this—which I have put upon my word—will you have a person who votes for the ballot, or the Times newspaper ? Will you have one who votes for an extension of the suffrage, or the Times newspaper ? Will you have Parliaments shortened, or the Times newspaper ? IN ill you have the general diffusion of education, or the Times newspaper ? Will you have repeal of the Corn-laws, or the Times newspaper? Will you have the most unbounded liberty of conscience, or the Times news- paper? that has for the last twenty years written for and against, advocated and opposed, supported and denounced, the most extraordinary, extravagant, and antagonistical principles." (Cheers and renewed clamour.) An elector asked Mr. Larpent point-blank, whether, if he were re- turned for Nottingham, he would use his influence to abolish the Poor- law Commission. At first Mr. Larpent positively refused to answer the question ; and a new scene of confusion ensued. Ultimately, he declared that he would do his utmost to carry the law into effect, with- out harshness in its bearing on the poor.

The Sheriff then called for the show of hands ; upon which four- fifths of the crowd declared for Mr. Walter. A poll was demanded on the part of Mr. Larpent, and appointed for the following day. The polling began on Tuesday, with some appearances of tumult in the town, which subsided, however, as the day passed on. From the first hour Mr. Walter took the lead at the poll, and maintained it until one o'clock ; when Mr. Larpent resigned. At that time, the returns published by the Whig Committee gave the opposing candidate a majority of only 85; while Mr. Walter's Committee claimed for him a majority of 279. The official declaration next day gave a majority of 238: the numbers being, for Walter 2,018, for Larpent 1,722. On Wednesday, Mr. Walter was chaired through the principal streets of the town ; and he afterwards addressed his friends at a public meeting.

When the result of the Nottingham election was known in Lincoln, a town with a Radical Corporation, the bells of the Corporation church were rung.

In consequence of the continued ill health of Colonel Davies, we un- derstand that the honourable and gallant Member will not again offer himself for the representation of Worcester.— Worcester Journal.

Mr. Hugh Hamilton Lindsay, the son of the Honourable Hugh Lindsay, at a meeting of the Deal and Walmer Conservative Association, on the 22d, expressed his readiness to come forward to represent the borough of Sandwich on the first opportunity.

A correspondent of the Globe states that Mr. Henry Vincent, the Chartist, has been addressing the people in Gloucester, in his capacity of delegate from the new association of Chartists, recommending a union between his party and the Tories, in order to keep out Whig Parliamentary candidates- " He denounced the Newport riots as the work of the Government spies ; and alleged that a discovery had been made by the National Chartist Associa- tion, that many men were now living in America, with full purses, who had been connected with the Chartists of Monmouth, but who had emigrated from thence immediately on the commencement of the riots. These men, he said, had been paid by Government to excite the riots and betray Frost and his companions" At an Anti-Corn-law meeting in Westbury, near Devizes, on Friday, a petition was adopted for repeal of the Corn-law and of all taxes on provisions. The Mayor refused to comply with a requisition to call the meeting, and it was therefore held in a factory belonging to Mr. Matravers. About five hundred people attended. Two or three of the speakers have "Reverend" prefixed to their names ; and two working- men took part in the proceedings.

A correspondence has taken place on the subject of the alleged refusal of the Reverend Christopher Reed, the Vicar of Tynemouth, to perform the funeral service over the body of a Roman Catholic soldier who died lately in that town. Mr. Reed addressed a letter to the editor of the Gateshead Observer, flatly denying the report, which he said was "without foundation." This called forth a reply from the pastor of the Catholic Church at North Shields, Mr. Thomas Gillow, addressed to the Newcastle Clwonicle, in which he says—

Having heard that the soldier, whom I had attended for some time, was- dead, I went over to Tynemouth for the purpose of performing over the body, privately, the rites of the Catholic Church ; which is our usual practice pre- viously to the service being read in the Established Church. On entering the Castle, I was informed that the funeral was not to take place in the usual. burial-ground of the Garrison, but in the Subscription Cemetery. In con-

sequence of this information, I called upon the commanding-officer, Major Trevor, and acquainted him with the rumour which I had just heard. The

Major replied, that it was quite correct ; that the Vicar, to whom he had applied for the purpose, had refused to perform the ceremony. I then offered to discharge the duty publicly in the Cemetery, which I was on my road to. do privately ; and my offer was accepted with much satisfaction, and the funeral, took place accordingly.

A correspondent writes to the Times to correct some errors in the ac- count of Mr. Dudley Ryder's refusal to perform part of the funeral ser- vice over the body of Mrs. White, one of his parishioners. According to the new account, Mrs. White was a much more troublesome schis- matic than she was represented ; and Mr. Ryder was not uncourteous, as he was described to be ; while Mr. Wilberforce, Archdeacon of the East Riding of York, was not present at the interview between Mr. Ryder and Mrs. White's relations.

On Wednesday, the Reverend Mark Waters was tried before three clergymen, as Commissioners appointed by the Bishop of Norwich, at

Southtown, for attempting the chastity of Ann Laws, the wife of a sail- maker. The case excited much interest in the place, and the town was crowded by the gentry and clergy of the neighbourhood. It was stated in evidence, that Mr. Water had caused a note to be dropped into Mrs. Laws's basket at market ; and that she kept the appointment, while her husband watched. There was some contradiction between the wit- nesses; and the Commissioners decided, that although Mr. Waters's conduct had been highly objectionable, yet there was not evidence to warrant further proceedings.

Liverpool was startled by a shocking tragedy on Wednesday last. Mr. Jenner, a cotton-broker, suddenly made a general attack on his own family ; shooting one lad of fifteen to death, severely wounding his wife, and attempting to shoot another son ; but the last escaped, and' gave the alarm. Mr. Jenner had once been a rich man, but he lost 30,000/. by a cotton-speculation ; and it is supposed that a morbid dread of destitution induced him to destroy his family, as he had always treated them with affection. At an examination before the Magistrates, it was stated that he once tried to poison himself with prussic acid. He was committed for trial on a charge of wilful murder, at the next Liverpool Assizes.

Bartholomew Murray, the young man who was found guilty at Ches- ter Assizes of murdering the Cooks, at Over-Peover, was executed at Chester on Saturday. He seems to have gone through the last trial with unbroken fortitude. Up to the previous Thursday he enjoyed sound and uninterrupted sleep at night. His attention to his de- votions was serious and unremitting. At four o'clock on Saturday morning he dressed, and ate a hearty breakfast. He was then con- veyed to the gaol ; and on reaching his cell he knelt down, and continued his devotions. The various religious services of the Roman church were performed throughout the morning, almost unceasingly. The public were admitted within the walls of the prison, and up to half-past eleven o'clock the cell was occasionally crowded by spectators. In answer to a question from one of the authorities, he said, " I have no declaration to make." He was conducted to the scaffold at about twenty minutes past twelve o'clock ; he received the sacrament ; the rope was placed round his neck ; the bolt was drawn, and he expired almost without a struggle. The body was buried in the Castle-yard, with no religious ceremony. The city was crowded with visiters to witness the first execution since 1834.

A tremendous fire broke out, at eight o'clock on Wednesday night, in the timber-yard of the Great Western Railway Company, at the terminus of the Railway in BristoL The fire began in a large tank, of creosote, which was used for the preservation of the timber ; either from some accidental spark, or because the tank was overheated. The fire spread to an enormous quantity of timber, collected in a yard two acres in extent, belonging to the Bristol and Exeter Railway Company. The conflagration was visible at Bath, Henbury, and all the surround- ing villages ; and in a short time people came from all parts, to the number of 40,000 or 50,000, to view the scene. At first the destruction of the whole terminus and the adjacent buildings was feared, the engines being quite ineffectual in reducing the flames ; but by cutting off some of the timber, that was prevented. It was not subdued, however, until half. past four on Thursday morning. The intensity of the heat set the neighbouring trees on fire, and two were burned to the ground. The Bristol and Exeter Railway Company have lost 18,000/. or 20,0001. in timber.