t aittruppliff.

A Special Court of Common Council was held on Tuesday, to receive the report of the Consolidated Committee on Mr. Lowe's Shipping Bill. The Committee reported against the bill ; describing it as an attempt to take away property from municipal corporations without compensation, and recommending the Court to petition Parliament against it. In moving that the report be received, Mr. Wood said, although London is not touched by the bill, yet they ought to act for their brethren of Liver- pool and Dover. Mr. Lott deduced a train of fearful consequences from the measure. It confiscates private property ; next the property of the City would be confiscated, then that of the Companies, and "last of all, as an inevitable consequence, the property of individuals." Mr. Rowe, Mr. Dakin, and Sir Henry Muggeridge, gave a qualified support to the bill ; but the report was unanimously adopted.

Sir George Grey's Police Bill has called forth a good deal of opposition from municipal authorities. On Wednesday, one hundred gentlemen, including twenty-eight Mayors and nine persons deputed by Cm pom- tions, and twenty-four Members of Parliament, met at Herbert's Hotel, Palace Yard, to protest against the Government bill " for securing a more efficient system of police for the counties and boroughs in England and Wales." The Lord Mayor of York occupied the chair. The Mayors of Birmingham, Cambridge, Halifax, Rochester, Portsmouth, South- ampton, Leicester, Brighton, Leeds, Sheffield, Stratford-upon-Avon, and Winchester—Mr. Roebuck, Mr. C. Forster, Mr. Bass, Colonel Smyth, Lord Henry Lennox, Sir Joshua Walmsley, Members of Parliament--par- ticipated in the proceedings. The shape the objection to the measure took was that it was aggressive, encroaching, unconstitutional ; that it would create a police force that would become the tool of the Govern- ment of the day ; that it would wrest power out of the hands of the peo- ple and place it in the hands of the Government ; that it would virtually repeal the Municipal Corporation Act ; and that, if conceded, the down- fall of local and municipal influence would speedily follow. The reso- lutions adopted accordingly characterized the bill as " subversive of lo- cal self-government," and expressed a determination to meet it with a strenuous opposition. It was also arranged that a deputation should wait on Sir George Grey.

The deputation appointed at the meeting waited on Sir George Grey on Thursday, and stated the objections they entertain to the centralizing principle of the bill. They declined to offer any suggestion as to its amendment, and demanded its entire withdrawal. Sir George said he was obliged to them for their opinion ; he agreed with Mr. Roebuck that the House of Commons is the proper place to discuss the bill ; he could not withdraw it. On retiring, the deputation returned to Herbert's Hotel and repeated their resolves to meet the bill with a strenuous oppo- sition. Mr. Roebuck advised them not to make the constituencies only, but the Members, " uncomfortable." Thus, Southampton might strongly intimate to the Attorney-General that a word from him would go far to stop the bill.

At a special general meeting of the Law Amendment Society, on Mon- day,—Lord Brougham in the chair,—it was resolved, after considerable discussion, that the Partnership Bill, now before Parliament, be referred to a Committee of the Society to consider its language, with a view to the provision that no person making an advance of capital in considera- tion of a share of the profits, shall, as against the creditors of the trade or undertaking, have any title to the property or assets thereof. There was a large gathering in Exeter Hall on Tuesday,—Mr. Tritton, of the banking firm of Barclay, Bevan, and Tritton, in the chair,— to pronounce against the opening of the British Museum and the .Crystal Palace on Sundays. The resolutions declared, on religious grounds, that the meeting was decidedly opposed to "the opening of any exhibition of a secular character on the Lord's Day " ; and that the opening of such places would "lead to a large increase of labour, a dete- rioration of the character of the nation, and would endanger the preser- vation of the weekly rest," so especially necessary. In the course of his opening remarks, the chairman said that "not one single hour of God's blessed day ought to be polluted by pleasure."

There are three parties in the field desirous of raising a memorial to the late Mr. Hume. In April last, a body of working men met and took steps towards raising funds : in September, there seems to have been a simultaneous but independent move by a section of the House of Peers'; and a number of persons who held a meeting in Marylebone, over which Sir Benjamin Hall presided. Earl Fortescue and Lord Hatherton were instrumental in collecting the signatures of thirty Peers to a circu- lar convening a meeting held a short time since in Willis's Rooms ; and at an earlier date Sir Joshua Walmsley and others got together the sig- natures of 250 Members who express a desire that the monument erected should be one set up in the House of Commons. On Saturday last, representatives of all the parties met at Willis's Rooms. Earl Fortescue occupied the chair. Earl Granville, Lord Panmure, Lord Hatherton, and the Duke of Somerset, represented the Peers ; Sir Benjamin Hall, Sir Joshua Walmsley, Mr. Ewart, Mr. Edward Ellice, Lord Robert Grosvenor, represented the Commons ; and Mr. Wall, the Secretary of the Working Men's Association, represented that body. In the course of the proceedings, each party described the share it had respectively taken, and a common understanding was arrived at. It was resolved that Mr. Hume had a claim to a "lasting record of the gratitude of his countrymen " for forty years of disinterested services ; that a subscription should be opened for the erection of some public monument in his honour ; that no sum subscribed should exceed ten pounds; that a committee should be intrusted with the promotion of the subscription ; and that Sir Benjamin Hall, Colonel Sykes, and Mr. Roebuck, the trus- tees of the Worhng Men's Association, should be the trustees of the Committee.

In the course of the speechmaking several interesting remarks were made. Earl Fortescue said that Mr. Hume was always chief in the van of the fight- " Other statesmen may have had the honour and the happiness of pro- posing and ultimately of carrying through those great measures, from the first defeat of religious intolerance by the repeal of the Test and Co ration Acts, -up to the final triumph of commercial freedom by the repeal of the Navi- gation-laws ; but to all those questions Mr. Hume gave a cordial and zealous support. Other statesmen may have brought to their discussion more profound learning, more able arguments, more flowers of eloquence ; but none, through evil report as well as good re rt, ever gave them a more honest, uncompromising, and zealous support, Mr. Hume." Lord Panmure, who moved the first resolution, said he saw no reason why he was selected to take so early a part in the meeting, unless it were that he had "the good fortune and honour to be born in the same County as Mr. Hume." Forfarshire boasts of no higher honour than that of having given birth to Mr. Hume. Mr. Wall said, that the working classes will not be satisfied with a mere monument—they want to found a school ; a design in which Earl Fortescue and Lord Blather- . ton concurred. Sir Joshua Walmsley, on behalf of Mr. Hume's family, denied that he had ever coveted or sought the distinction of Privy Conn- oilier. The result of the meeting was great unanimity in the determina- tion to raise a common fund ; and it was agreed to defer the consideration of what should be done with it, until it be collected.

Mr. Thwaites, President of the Board of Works, gave a dinner on Monday to his colleagues of the Board and the Metropolitan Members of Parliament. Among the latter were Sir Benjamin Hall, Sir Charles Napier, Mr. Masterman, Sir James Duke, and Mr. Williams. Except a speech from Sir Charles Napier, on what great things may be done with the efficient navy in preparation, the speechmaking related to matters connected with the Board of Works.

The suicide of' a Member of Parliament is no ordinary incident ; and on Saturday night a Member of Parliament—Mr. John Sadleir—killed himself, under no ordinary circumstances. On Sunday morning his corpse was found on Hampstead Heath ; and on Tuesday, Mr. Wakley, the Coroner, presided over an inquest held at Hampstead to inquire into the fact. The inquiry was attended by Mr. Manning, Coroner of the Queen's Household, on be- half of the relatives of the deceased—his elder and younger brothers, Mr. William and Mr. Clement Sadleir. Among others present were Mr. Vin- cent Scully M.P. and Mr. Francis Scully M.P. The story of the suicide,

i so far as it is known to the public, came out in the evidence.

Mr. Sadleir left his house in Gloucester Square, Hyde Park, on Saturday morning, with a quantity of papers, in a cab. Before getting into the cab, he returned and went up-stairs as if he had forgot something ; and after he had driven away he came back again, and again went up-stairs. He seldom dined at home, but on Saturday he came back unexpectedly to dinner. While Elwin, his butler, was laying the cloth, Mr. Sadleir gave him a paper to take to the chemist's. The paper was as follows—"Get from Maitland's a bottle of the essential oil of bitter almonds ; I don't know the quantity wanted, but—but Kenyon writes to me to bring 11. worth. Pay my bill at Maitland's." [Kenyon was stated, by a gentlemen present, to be the deceased's groom, and to have care of his stud of hunting-horses at Leighton Buzzard.] The butler took the paper to the chemises, but his assistant could not supply the article required. Later in the evening, Mr. Sadleir inquired whether Mr. Maitland had sent anything ; and finding that he had not, directed that some one should be sent for it. Hannah Bishop, kitchen-maid, accordingly fetched the poison ; and gave it to the butler, who handed it to his master. The bottle was wrapped up in paper. In the course of the evening Mr. Sadleir took tea ; and Elwin went in twice to take away the tea-things, but his master would not allow him to take them away. [It would seem that he had destined the milk-jug and sugar to a particular use.] Shortly before eleven, Mr. Norris, a solicitor, called upon Mr. Sadleir. It appears that Mr. Sadleir, stating that he wished to be alone on Saturday, had expressly requested that Mr. Norris would cull on Sunday morning, 6ut that the latter, having something to communicate, thought be had better call. "He seemed surprised," said Mr. Norris at the inquest, " when I went in and was walking about the room, which was very un- usual with him. I thought I perceived a very great redness and peculiarity about the eyes, as if he had been weeping. I called next morning to keep

my appointment with him, at eleven o'clock; and then I learnt for the first time that he was dead." Shortly after the interview on Saturday evening, Mr. Sadleir went out ; putting on a thick greatcoat that he seldom wore, and taking with him, besides the bottle of poison, a silver cream-jug, some white sugar, and a case of razors. He left behind several letters to be post- ed by the servants.

OA Sunday morning, Joseph Bates, a labourer, walking over Hampstead Heath in search of a strayed donkey, saw a body lying on the grass about two hundred yards from Jack Straw's Castle, on the -West side of the Heath, and close to a small footpath which leads down from the flagstaff at the top of the hill. The hat had fallen off, and the head, bending back, rested on a furze-bush. Bates sent a passer-by to call the police • and Constable Howson coming up, they found that the body was cold. ' There were no marks of a struggle. The eyes were wide open, glistening and lifelike. On the left side of the body lay a bottle, marked " poison' " with the stopper out; a cream-jug, with some drops of the poison still within, lying near as if it had dropped from the right hand ; and close to the right side lay a case con- taining two razors. In the pocket was found a slip of paper, on which was written, in Mr. Sadleir's own handwriting, "John Sadleir, 11 Gloucester Square, Hyde Park." Besides this paper, there were in the pockets of the coat six sovereigns, two half-sovereigns, a five-pound note, and twelve shil- lings and sixpence in silver, some cop re, a pair of gloves, a white pocket- handkerchief, and a latch-key. The y was taken to the workhouse,. and there Mr. Nichol, surgeon, performed a post-mortem examination. In the stomach he found about ten ounces of undigested food, and from six ounces of that he took two ounces of essential oil of almonds. There was no doubt that this poison had caused death.

With regard to the state of Mr. Sadleir's mind during the past week, Mr. Norris gave some evidence. " He appeared oppressed by his undertakings. Latterly he seemed rather haggard. During the last week particularly, I had noticed a great change in his appearance. He did not complain of his head, but I have noticed him put his hand to his head as if he was oppressed. He appeared to be quite borne down by the extent of his business, and par- ticularly by some occurrences which took place with reference to his affairs last week. They were losses and pecuniary embarrassments which had lately come upon him, and it was about these that he talked to me during our interview on Saturday night. During the interview I noticed a pecu- liarity in his manner. His eyes were bloodshot ; he was very restless, and evidently not in his usual temperament, when I saw him. I had not seen him in such a state before, at least not to anything like the same extent. He

was always cool and collected until within the last few days In the course of Saturday afternoon, I made a remark in Mr. Gurney's office in reference to Mr. Sadleir's appearance, and to some reverses that had come suddenly upon him. The remark was, that I should not be surprised if Mr. Sadleir were to shoot himself. I said that to a Mr. Stevens about two p'cloek on Saturday afternoon. I was acting professionally for Mr. Sadleir in one matter at the time of his death. The reason I made that remark was, that Mr. Sadleir was a man of extraordinary clearness and strength of mind ; and my impression was that these reverses, coming suddenly upon him, as they did on Wednesday morning, last, his mind would break down at once. I was told last week that his losses were very severe. The subject was discussed in my office, and he admitted it."

Among the letters left by Mr. Sadleir on the slab in the hall, was one to Mr. Keating, Member for Waterford, and one to Mr. Norris. The latter gentleman said he had forgot to bring the letter addressed to him.

With this evidenoe the Coroner seemed to wish to close the case, depre- cating inquiries into family matters ; but as it had come out in the evidence that a letter from Mr. Sadleir to his sister in Ireland had been written and posted on Saturday, and as the Jury wished for more evidence respecting the state of Mr. Sadleir's mind, it was agreed that the inquiry should be adjourned until Monday.

Mr. Sadleir was Member for Sligo • and it may be remembered- that he was a Lord of the Treasury under the hovernment of Lord Aberdeen. In early life he practised as a solicitor in Dublin. Latterly he was Chairman of the London and County Bank, and of the loyal Swedish Railway Com- pany. He was in the prime of life, having not yet completed his forty-third year.

In 1847, Lord Cardigan, much troubled respecting the management of his estates, invited Captain now Major Lawrie to take charge of such as are situate in Leicesterehire and Northamptonshire, at a salary of 4001. a year. Major Lawrie had held a captain's commission in Lord Cardigan's regiment ; and my Lord remarked that as Major Lawrie "had always managed his troop devilish well, there was no reason why he should not do as well in Ids new capacity." After a few years, Major Lawrie became virtually the steward,

and his salary was raised to 56 1.

0/. ; and when Lord Cardigan ;went to the Crimea and his Yorkshire agent died, Major Lawrie, not hearing from his em- ployer in reply to a letter on the subject, assumed management of that property. When Lord Cardigan returned home, however, he brought many complaints against Major Lawrie, especially on the ground that he had as- sumed too much independent authority ; and the upshot was that_Major Law- rie was forced to resign. He brought an action against Lord Cardigan for wrongful dismissal without sufficient notice, and also to recover compensa- tion for his services on the Yorkshire estates. The ease was tried in the Court of Exchequer on Saturday last. Lord Cardigan paid 1501. into court ; but the Jury awarded 300/. At the request of the defendant's counsel, the Chief Baron stayed execution, in order that the opinion of the Court above might be taken.

At the Surrey Sessions, on Monday, Richard Lawrence Beattie, the switchman who caused the serious accident near the Bricklayers' Arms junction, was tried for neglect of duty. It appeared that Beattie bore an excellent character ; and that he had a multiplicity of duties to perform at the junction, for small pay. In returning a verdict of "Guilty,' the Jury recommended him to mercy on account of the variety of work he had to do. The Chairman passed almost a nominal sentence—seven days' imprisonment.

Late on Saturday. evening, Celestine Somner, the wife of an engraver, residing at Linton Street, Islington, went out, desiring her servant, Rachel Mont, a girl of fifteen, to go to W. The servant, however, sat up i and, hearing her mistress entering, extinguished the candle, and pretended to be asleep in her bed in the kitchen. She heard Mrs. Somner come down stairs bringing with her a young girl : the pair passed through the kitchen into the cellar; and Rachel Mont heard cries and struggles, as of one in the agonies of death ; but ihe feared to move. Afterwards she gave such in- formation as was in her power to the police ; who the next day searched the remises and found the poor girl with her throat cut in the cellar, as well as bloodstained clothes in Mrs. Somiier's bedroom. The woman at first pretended ignoranoe, but afterwards confessed that she killed the child, who, it seems, was her own illegitimate daughter. A Coroner's Jury have re- turned a verdict of "Wilful murder" against Celestine Somner, but the Clerkenwell Magistrates still have the case before them. Mr. Serener, who is a foreigner, was arrested, but immediately liberated. It is reported that Mrs. Somner had complained of having to pay for her daughter's keep, and had said that her husband objected. It does not appear that he made any complaint ; and their house was well furnished.

Mr. Cluff, a silk-manufacturer, has bad a gallant and desperate struggle with robbers who set upon him, at five o'clock in the afternoon, in Virginia Row, Bethnal Green. Four or five ruffians attacked him, and attempted to steal his watch and chains. One got off with a gold chain ; but Mr. Cluff seized another, and kept him prisoner until a third, Martin, interfered, and the first robber, in a distressed state, was hurried away by his confederates. Mr. Cluff now seized Martin, pushed him into a publichouse, and having got the landlord's assistance, held him till a policeman came. The Worship Street Magistrate has committed Martin.

Mr. Warwick Augustus Hunt, a solicitor, has been held to bail by the Bow Street Magistrate to appear at the Sessions on a charge of assaulting Mr. 'easel, a Chancery barrister. Mr. Jessel made irritating observations about Mr. Hunt while that gentleman was giving evidence before an Examiner in Chancery.

The inquiry into the loss of the Josephine Willis has been closed in regard to receiving evidence ; but the opinion of Mr. Yardley and Captain Robert- son has not been announced. It appears that by law the master of the Man- gerton ought to have taken a pilot on board at Dungeness. Newham and Anderson, seamen, who were passengers in the Mangerton, behaved nobly : when they could get no one to help them, they left the steamer in a boat by themselves, and saved eleven people from the wreck : had other boats been promptly despatched from the Mangerton, more lives would have been saved. It is now known that sixty-nine persons perished.