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The Convocation of the Province of Canterbury seems to have come to an end sooner than was expected. It was formally prorogued on Wednesday, until the 10th July.
At a meeting of the Court of Common Council, on Thursday, Dr. Livingstone was formally presented with the freedom of the City. In making his acknowledgments, he took the opportunity of urging the mercantile community to develop the commerce of Africa.
Mr. Ross moved a resolution directing the Improvement Committee to report on the best mode of improving the dwellings of the working classes. He held that it is the duty of the Corporation to provide suitable habitations for them. Alderman Cubitt objected to the proposal : instead of building lodging-houses that will never pay, they should construct a railway, to carry off the working population to healthy suburban villages. The motion, however, was carried without a division.
The Marylebone Board of Guardians are at war with the Poor-law Board. Some time ago, they refused to permit Mr. Famell, a Poor-law Inspector, to attend their meetings; and the Poor-law Board threatened them with legal proceedings under the 9th and 10th Victoria. On Monday this week, a deputation waited on Sir Benjamin Hall, to ask his assistance in putting an end to the interference of the Poor-law Board. Sir Benjamin reminded them that the woman-flogging and ill-treatment of lunatics in the workhouse, and the refusal of the Guardians to dismiss the offending parties, had justified the interference of the Poor-law Board. An attempt was made by Mr. Hodges to prevent Sir Benjamin from repeating these facts, and to pin him down to the simple issue, would he assist them or not?—" they did not want him to speak of the flogging of women." Sir Benjamin replied, that he should nevertheless give his opinion, and send it in writing to the Vestry Clerk. As soon as the Board can show that they have remedied the disgraceful state of things in the workhouse, he will represent the case to the Poor-law Board, and endeavour to prevent further interference.
The parish of Fulham has joined in the agitation for the equalization of the poor-rates of the Metropolis. At a public meeting on Thursday, it was determined to petition Parliament in favour of the proposed change.
The sixty-eighth anniversary of the Royal Literary Fund was celebrated on 'fuesday by a dinner at the Freemasons' Tavern. In the absence of Earl Granville, "elsewhere," Mr. William Cowper presided. A great number of distinguished men were 'among the guests,—Mr. Thackemy, Mr. Justice Halliburton, Mr. Arthur Helps, Colonel Sykes, Mr. Monckton Milnes, Mr. Macaulay, Dr. Livingstone' Colonel Hamley, Sir Roderick Murchison' the Rajah of Coorg. Mr. Monckton Milnes having proposed "the Literature of the Colonies and Mr. Justice Halliburton, ' Mr. Halliburton contributed an amusing speech, intended. to show that there is no literature in the Colonies !
The colonies, in fact, are too busy clearing the forest, and building cities, laying-out roads, bridging rivers, and providing shelter for the ticket-ofleave gentlemen. Literature requires the academic leisure of learned and well-endowed institutions, such as Oxford. The colonies are too young to afford the time, and if they had the time they could not afford it either. There is no literature in the colonies, because they have no poet, no infancy, noyouth. They have grown up suddenly, have no settled orders, no nobility, no castles which had formerly been strongholds and tolcl tales of rapine and oppression ; their rivers have no names, their streams have no legends ; they have no fairies, no superstitions, their people are plain, hard, matter-offact men. As matter-of-fact men, poets are not valued among them, for Mere can be no poets where there are no memories. He hoped their literature would long continue to be as it is now—the literature of the empire, for the literature of the Mother-country is the strongest bond of union between it and the colonies.
The toast of the evening, "Prosperity to the Royal Literary Fund," was proposed by Mr. Thackeray. The subscription amounted to 1200/.
Since the Brompton Consumption Hospital was established, it has relieved 6586 in-patients, and 36,030 out-patients. One year its income amounted to 19,0001.; but the average is between 7000/. and 80001. The anniversary dinner in aid of its funds was held at Willis's Rooms on Wednesday ; Lord Stanley in the chair. The subscriptions of the evening amounted to upwards of 10001.
The anniversary dinner of the Licensed Victuallers Asylum was held at Highbury Barn on Wednesday ; Mr. Bass in the chair. Three Metropolitan Members of Parliament were present. The sum collected during the evening amounted to 3566/. The society lodges and supports 142 decayed members of the trade.
The Royal Hospital "for the reception of persons past cure," founded in 1864 at the suggestion of Mr. Charles Dickens, held its second anniversary dinner on Thursday ; Mr. Dickens in the chair. The funds received an addition of 12001. by the subscription of the evening.
At the annual dinner of the friends of the Orthoptedic Hospital, on ' Wednesday,—Lord Feversham in the chair —a sum of 21601. was col
At the Middlesex Sessions, on Saturday, Ernest Augustus Lloyd, formerly Lieutenant in the Royal Artillery, who served in the Crimea, was tried for obtaining goods and money on false pretences. Be gate cheeks to tradesmen on Cox and Co. at a time when he had no balance at the agents; but in several eases he told the parties not to present the checks immediately, but that he expected money would in a little time be paid in to his account. In these cases the Assistant-Judge held that there was no evidence to go to the Jury. One case was then selected in which Lloyd had said nothing about a delay in presenting the cheek. Mr. Worsley urged for the prisoner that there was no intent to defraud : he had an open account with Cox and Co.; he expected money to be paid in ; if his suspension as Lieutenant had been taken oft' his back pay would have been received by the agents ; he might have given the checks as security for ultimate payment. The Assistant-Judge instructed the Jury to acquit if they believed the accused had reason to expect that money might be lodged to his account. The Jury quickly returned a verdict of "Not Guilty." The Assistant-Judge then administered sonic words of advice and warning to Mr. Lloyd; who politely bowed and left the dock.
At the sitting of the Jury on Tuesday on the six persons who were killed by the fall of houses in Tottenham Court Road, not much new light on the cause of the calamity was obtained. The District-surveyor had condemned the wall which gave way, declaring it to be rotten ; and the Police-surveyor had given notice that it must be repaired or removed—fourteen days' notice. "Why so long an interval for the removal of a dangerous wall ? " inquired a Juror : the surveyor explained that such is the law. It seems that Maple and Hunter could not agree about removing the party-wall : Maple said that his side of the wall was sound, and Hunter ought to rebuild the wall. Apparently, Maple's premises had been weakened by making communications from house to home for the purposes of business. Mr. Johnson, Hunter's builder, did not hear that tho wall was to be under-pinned till the Saturday morning ; when he heard of it he instantly drove to the works—on his arrival he found only a heap of ruins.
Miss Mary Macnaghten, a young woman of twenty-five, eldest daughter of Sir Edward Macnaghten, has met with a frightful death, at her father's house in Upper Brook Street. While she was writing, alone, in the drawiamgroom, she discovered that the lower part of her dress was in flames ; she rushed from the room, the flames now ascending above her head ; a butler heard her screams, and ho extinguished the flames by wrapping a tablecover round the lady—too late : sue had been fearfully burnt from foot to head ; and all that surgical aid could do was to alleviate her sufferings for the few hours she lived. Miss Maounghten explained how the calamity ()muffed : a lucifer-match had fallen from a box on to the floor; this she had unconsciously trod upon ; it ignited, and her dress was blazing before she discovered the accident.
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