be Iftetropolls.

A Court of Common Council was held for the despatch of business on Thursday. A report was received from the Improvement Com- mittee, which suggested a variety of improvements in the thorougfares of the City. The one of most general interest is a means of re- lieving the press of traffic in the Holborn and Fleet Street lines, by the formation of a street to commence at the north-eist end of St. Paul's Churchyard, and continue along Paternoster Row, through Amen Cor- ner, across Farringdon Street, to the south-west corner of Farringdon Market, in a straight line across the middle of Fetter Lane to the City boundary ; and a branch to diverge from the corner of the market to the end of Fetter Lane, at the summit of the hill in the wide parte Holborn. The report was ordered to be printed ; an-I it is to be taken into detailed consideration at the next Court. Mr. R. L. Jones stated that he had purchased for the City, for 145/., an autograph of Elba- spere : it appeared in a deed relating to Shakspere's property in Black- friars.

The poll at the Guildhall for the election of City Chamberlain finally closed on Thursday ; when the numbers were—for Heygate, 2,374; Pine, 1,910. Sir William Heygate was declared duly elected, and he returned thanks.

A Court of Aldermen was held, for the purpose of receiving the-se- curities of the newlpelected Chamberlain. Eight gentlemen were named, each as security for the amount of 5,000/. separately ; the while amount for which the securities were required being 40,000/. They were immediately accepted.

Mr. W. Hunter, of Finsbury Circus, a Common. Councillor, iseau- didate for the vacant Alderman's gown for Coleman Street Ward.

The Lord Mayor gave a splendid banquet, yesterday, to the Arch- bishop of Canterbury and the Bishops, after the sermon at St. Paul's for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts. Among the guests, one hundred and fifty in number, were many clergymen, Mr. W. E. Gladstone, and Sir Robert Inglis.

The Anti-Corn-law Delegates held the last meeting of their C011- ference, at Brown's Hotel in Palace Yard, on Tuesday. Kr. P. A. Taylor, on taking the chair, congratulated the Conference on the-result of the debate in the House of Commons. He had not met with a. single individual who expected a minority of 125; there was an in- crease since last year of 35 votes, and a decrease in the majority of 47. He proposed an address to the public on the progress of Free Trade principles ; which was adopted; and it was ordered to be printed and circulated throughout the country, copies being sent to the Cabinet Ministers and to Members of both Houses of Parliament. Next a res0- lution was carried declaring that the Coference hailed with satisfaction the progress which Free Trade principles were making in the public mind. Mr. Charles Villiers insisted that there never was a time when discussion upon the Corn-laws was more imperatively demanded. The recent debate in the House of Commons had stripped the subject of all extraneous matters by which it had been mystified : a Cabinet Minister had admitted that the Corn-laws were maintained for the purpose of supporting the interests of a particular class; and some minor gentle- men had let slip the secret that they wanted to maintain the landed interest dominant in the country. He attributed the increased number in the House in favour of repeal of the Corn-laws to the exertions of the League : a perseverance in the same coarse might swell the mino- rity on the next division ; or if they could not so far change opinion as to bring it to bear on the present House of Commons, there was still an ulterior course. Mr. Cobden remarked, that if some Irish Members had not been absent, the minority would have been increased by 40 votes. The farmers had been humbugged for twenty-seven years: first they were told that corn would be maintained at 80s. the quartet ; now Sir Robert Peel confessed that he could not maintain it at 20s.; and another Cabinet Minister said that the Corn-laws were necessary to enable the landlords to pay their mortgages. If that were wriftenen every church-door in the kingdom, there was an end of the Corn-laws. He explained the "ulterior course" alluded to by Mr. Villiers— If the members of the League did their duty in their several localities, in re- gistering as electors their friends and members of their own body, they might have a dissolution ofAlrliament in lea than twelve months. If they. ph a sufficient number of electors registered, and addressed the Queen, a minority could do one thing for them—they could, by obstructing the business of the House, compel the Prime Minister to dissolve the Parliament, and afford the electors of the empire the opportunity of revising the decision they came teat the last election, when all classes were imposed upon. On that occasion, they were cajoled, bamboozled, cheated, and humbugged : but only let the electoral body memorialize the Queen, as be understood was intended, and he would engage there were men in the House of Commons who would force a dimoln- tion of Parliament.

Mr. Hume and Mr. Mark Philips having delivered speeches, filf,r. Norris moved the following resolution ; which passed unanimously-

" That this Conference recommends the League forthwith to commence, a registration of the electors of the kingdom, in order to be prepared at the ear- liest possible period to call upon the Queen's advisers, through the constitu- tional means of a humble memorial to her Majesty, to dissolve the present Par- liament, and thus afford to the electors of the kingdom an opportunity of re- vising their late decision upon the question of the Corn-law.'

Other resolutions awarded thanks to Mr. Villiers and other Members who voted in the minority ; and finally to the Chairman. The Anti-Corn-law League held a meeting on Saturday, at the English Opera-house ; when there was the usual show of leading agi- tators on the stage and a full house. The scene in the House of Com- mons furnished a topic for the speakers—the Chairman, (Mr. Wilson,) Mr. Fox, and Mr. Cobden. The Chairman laughed at Captain Bernal's method of "dispersing the enemy" by moving the second reading of the Ecclesiastical Courts Bill at four o'clock in the morning. Mr. Fox addressed himself to controvert many of Sir Robert Peel's arguments against Mr. Villiers's motion ; and Mr. Cobden, seeing several young persons in the house, entered upon the general subject The Anti-Corn-law League held a meeting at the Hall of Commerce, Threadneedle Street, on Thursday ; when speeches were delivered by Mr. Charles Villiers, Mr. Ward, Mr. J. Bright, and Mr. Moore. Mr. Bright suggested that a weekly meeting of the League should be held in the Hall of Commerce as long as Parliament sat : in which case be thought two things would happen,—first, that Government would see they were in earnest ; and second, that the Members for the City of London would perceive that they were now standing on very slippery ground. This proposition was much cheered.

There have been several Metropolitan meetings against the Factories Bill ; at which a great proportion of the speakers, as is the case with most of such meetings, appear to have had "reverend" before their names. On Wednesday evening alone, there were nine meetings. At those which are reported, the measure was universally condemned in the strongest terms.

A numerous and highly influential meeting of copyholders and other inhabitants of Hampstead was held at the parochial school-rooms, on Monday, to consider a bill now before the House of Lords for em- powering the lord of the manor, Sir Thomas Maryon Wilson, to en- close the Heath, and let it on ninety-nine-years building-leases for making squares, roads, &c. Mr. Samuel Hoare, the banker, was called to the chair. He stated that the bill authorized the enclosure of Blackheath as well, The Reverend Dr. Burgh, alluding to a similar attempt in 1830, which was successfully resisted, said, that Lord Tenterden gave a very strong opinion against the lord of the manor's claim to have such powers granted to him ; Lord Skelmersdale told him that nearly all the Peers were opposed to the bill. The present measure would ininthe town of Hampstead ; the copyholders would relinquish their property ; and he understood that Lord Mansfield had announced his determination to leave Caen Wood. The bill had been smuggled into the House of Commons without notice, and every attempt had been made to keep them in the dark. Mr. Ripley stated, that Sir Charles Wetherell, Lord Abinger, Mr. Vernon Richards, and other eminent lawyers, had on the former occasion expressed themselves ad- verse to granting such powers. The following resolution was carried unanimously- " That the proposed bill was highly injurious to the interests of the copy- holders resident in Hampstead and its vicinity; and that it was their bounden duty and they were resolved to oppose it, and endeavour by every means to prevent its being passed into a law." A petition against the bill was also proposed and n mnimously adopted. It set forth that the petitioners would sustain re arable in- jury if snch a measure were passed; that previous attempts had been made, in 1829 and 1830, to pass a similar measure, which was rejected ; and therefore they prayed to be heard by their counsel or agents against the passing of such bill. It was announced that 2001. had been subscribed to carry on the opposition against the bill.

Among the religious and charitable meetings of the week are the fol- lowing. The Evangelical Voluntary Church Association breakfasted at the London Tavern on Saturday. The Protestant Home Missionary Society held its twenty-fourth annual meeting at Exeter Hall on Tues- day. The Society has in connexion with it 70 missionaries, 158 agents, 210 schools, 13,000 scholars ; during the year 61 new stations were formed, having 655 preachers, teaching 50,000 people ; the income was 7,7881., the expenditure 9,334/. The National School Society met at the Sanctuary in Westminster on Wednesday ; the Archbishop of Canterbury presiding. The children of the Central School were exa- mined in their studies, including music. The number of schools is now 259, of scholars 42,900; the expenditure last year was 11,900/. The anniversary of the Licensed Victuallers' Asylum was celebrated on the same day : the society's funded property amounts to 6,4001.; the sub- scriptions amounted to 1,654/. The Governors of Middlesex Hos- pital dined at the Thatched House Tavern : the subscription was 626/. The City of London General Pension Society feasted at the London Tavern ; Lord John Russell at the head of the table : 1,000/. was sub- scribed.

At a Special General Court of Governors of the Caledonian Asylum, on Monday, the Duke of Buccleuch was elected President, in the room of the Duke of Sussex.

The Court of Exchequer was occupied on Saturday in trying an in- formation filed by the Attorney-General, to recover from Mr. Hurel penalties to the amount of 5,0001., for illegally defrauding the Board of Customs of duties payable on 921 pairs of gloves. Mr. Hurel is a glove-importer in Old Jewry; and he has a partner, M. Vidil, at Gre- noble. The fraud was effected by a collusion between Mr. Tye, who acted as Customhouse-agent for the importers, and two Customhouse- officers, Mr. Homersham and Mr. Burnby. Burnby turned Queen's evidence; Homersham is dead ; Tye is said to be at Boulogne. Some gloves were landed from the Lady de Saumarez in February 1841 ; and Burnby, the landing-waiter, took a "sight entry" of the goods in a "blue book." This book is one of which the leaves are stamped and the strings are secured with a Government seal. Afterwards, at the in- stance of Tye, and with the aid of Homersham, the leaves were torn out of the book, a fresh seal being forged.; and other leaves from a blank book were substituted, with a false entry, stating the goods under the true quantity—namely, 548 pairs, instead of 1,439 pairs : the duty paid was 1271., instead of an amount proportionably larger. Another charge related to some goods landed about the same time. The defendant's counsel took some technical objections on points of law, and contended that there really was no evidence to bring home to him proof of parti- cipation in the fraud. The Jury returned a verdict for the Crown, damages 4,5001. In another case, the Attorney-General versus Bruce, a verdict was agreed to between the parties, for penalties amounting to 1,5821. 4s. A similar case, the Attorney-General versus Charles Candy and Co., was tried on Monday. The defendants are silk-importers, of Watling Street ; and they were charged with receiving two cases of silk in July 1840, and three in August 1840, without paying the full amount of duty. The fraud alleged in this case was similar to that already de- scribed : the Customhouse-officer was Burnby, the agent a Mr. Lumley, and a Mr. Hunt, who was Candy's clerk, was a principal hand in the fraud. Several witnesses were examined to prove that the cases in question must have contained a larger amount of goods than that set down. The investigation of the case was continued on Tuesday, when Burnby was examined 'at great leegth. He stated that half of the amount saved in the shape of duties was kept by Mr. Candy, and half was divided be- tween Homersham and Hunt. The falsification of the books was managed in Mr. Candy's own house ; Burnby tracing part of the en- tries, because Homersham, who was his instructor in the business, had drunk too much of Mr. Candy's wine. For his share of the transaction Hamby had upwards of 5001.; and Mr. Candy promised him that if he kept quiet until he had the charge of a silk floor as a Customhouse-offi- cer, he would make it worth 10,000/. or 12,0001. to him in the first year. Burnby procured the false seal at Homersham's desire : Captain Bur- naby, a Mend, had it made at an engraver's opposite the Senior United Service Club, but he did not know the engraver's name. In cross-ex- amination, Burnby confessed that he had "done a good deal of business at the Customhouse " : he had passed wine for a Colonel Parker, char- ging him with the full duty and pocketing part ; he had had some plate from a Mr. Savory, obtained the drawback for it, and sent instead of the plate a box which was thrown into the sea; an annuity-deed was fabri- cated at Burnby's marriage, by the desire of his brother-in-law ; he was under two indictments for perjury ; he had actually smuggled small things in a coat which he used for the purpose ; he had been charged when in the Coast Guard with grossly indecent conduct ; the Crown had allowed,hi in 15s. a day subsistence money since August last, when he was suspended, and had removed the indictments against him, which had delayed the trial. On the part of Mr. Candy, Sir Thomas Wilde denied the whole statement ; resting the defence mainly on the had character of the chief witness ; on the disproof of one of his statements, that Mr. Candy was present at a time when he was proved to be in France ; on the length of time that had been suffered to elapse since the alleged fraud, and the consequent impossibility of disproving it. Evidence was then given to prove Mr. Candy's absence in France at the time mentioned, and the difficulty of saying precisely what goods certain cases produced must have contained. The Jury, however, gave a verdict for the Crown, damages 6,000/.

In explanation of the statement in the Times last week, that an ex.- tensive seizure of foreign goods with a British manufacturer's mark had been made at the Customhouse, that paper publishes a memorial from Messrs. Baring, Brothers, and Co. to the Commissioners of Custom, from which it appears that goods described by the Times as marked " Stark Mills, Manchester," were really marked " Stark Mills, Man- chester, N. H. ;" the two last letters being the initials of" New Hamp- shire." That mark is said to be one used bond fide by an American firm.

At the Central Criminal Court, on Saturday, Augustus Sinzenich aged seventeen, was tried for presenting a loaded pistol at Mr. John Clark Hayden, the officiating clergyman, in St. Paul's Cathedral, on the lit April, with intent to murder him, to maim or disable him, or to do him some grievous bodily harm. It will be remembered that the lad had imbibed some notion that the Stuarts have a right to the crown of England, and that he was a Jacobite; and that when Mr. Hayden came to the prayer for the reigning family, he presented the pistol. It was shown that the weapon was loaded with a small quantity of pow- der and small shot, so loose that all would have fallen out but for a piece of paper screwed into the muzzle : the charge could not have carried the shot so far as the clergyman ; four times the quantity of powder might have done so, but the shot would not have hurt him, unless he had been hit in the eye. There were no. traces that the pistol had been primed. The prisoner was seen to snap it ; but as to whether he did so in deliberate aim, or accidentally while struggling to escape from those who seized him, the evidence was contradictory. The Jury acquitted him.

At the Mansionhou.se, on Wednesday, Mary Thompson was re- examined on suspicion of having stolen a little boy. She consented that the boy should remain under the care of the Committee of the In- stitution for the Houseless Poor. She was discharged, promising, after she had seen the child, to go in quest of its father. It was stated that advertisements on the subject had been circulated, even in Ireland and throughout the Continent.

Lord Fitzgerald's house, while still the abode of death, was the scene of an impudent robbery on Saturday. William Cornelius Fuller, a carman, was examined at Queen Square Police-office, on Monday, and George Howse, Lord Fitzgerald's steward, on Tuesday. The following are the principal facts deposed by the witnesses, the other servants. The servants were in the drawing-room on Saturday, being measured for mourning, when two men were observed by the kitchen-maid to carry the plate-chest out of the house to a cart which stood at the door in Belgrave Square, and drive off. The maid had no suspicion that there was any thing wrong; but on mentioning the circumstance to the cook, her suspicions were roused, and she went to the steward and asked him if he had sent the plate-box ? He said be had not sent that

away ; and the cook ran down to stop the men ; but they had gone. Now it was observed that Hoarse, (who had been for thirty-four years

in Lord Fitzgerald's service,) had hurried the servants up stairs. He also sent Mrs. Parker up stairs to Mr. Cane, one of the executors, to receive instructions about the mourning for the women : when she Came down, he took her into her own room, and insisted on writing the in- structions, although she said it was not necessary : and she observed that his hand trembled very much. While he was with her, the cook came with the announcement that the plate-box had been carried away. William Woodbridge, the valet, had seen Fuller in the house six or seven weeks before. Mrs. Parker said, that the night before the rob- bery, a tall man visited Howse : he showed this person about the place

pointed out to him its conveniences and advantages, and spoke of the plate-closet, observing to his friend, " Your master is about to have one fitted up like ours, I believe." On Monday afternoon, when Howse -was blaming the servants for the robbery, Mrs. Parker said to him, "You alone must know most about it "; and after a pause, in which the prisoner made no reply, she added," What a dreadful thing it is to think of, that one who has been in a gentleman's service so many years should be concerned in robbing him before his remains are hardly cold1"—upon which the prisoner burst into tears. Howse, who said nothing in his defence, was remanded till Monday next. Fuller, when apprehended, had a cart like that in which the plate was carried away. At the examination on Monday, he tried to prove that he was at the shop-door of a picture-dealer in Bond Street at the time of the robbery : but the evidence was worthless. He was remanded till Wednesday, and again till Monday.

The stone pier at Greenwich has become a ruin. One of the piles that fronted the pier and supported the masonry gave way, between nine and ten o'clock on Tuesday morning, and part of the structure fell with a loud crash. The damage spread to other parts of the pier ; which was shattered in every direction, large stones cracking and break- ing in pieces. Several people were on the pier at the time ; but no one was hurt. It is supposed that the whole foundation has given way; and it is said that the loss will fall on the contractors, Messrs. Grissell and Peto, as a more solid foundation ought to have been formed. The " permanent " pier cost 30,0001.