Christmas Day falling on Sunday, Monday was kept as a

general holiday. There was very little remarkable in the day except the ve bad weather. All the institutions were open and were tolerably well attended in spite of the rain ; and, in spite of rain, bodies of Volun- teers, in town and country, marched about to stretch their legs and show themselves. On the whole, the Christmas has not been so brilliant as many which it has been our lot to record.

The Reverend Henry John Hatch, convicted of indecently assaulting two little girls, has petitioned the Queen for pardon. The foreman and ten of the Jury, after considering the petition, declare, "that had the contents of such petition been proved at the trial of the said indictment we should have acquitted the said Henry John Hatch, and that we now believe him wholly innocent of the charges made against him." This opinion is embodied in a petition to the Queen praying that Mr. Hatch may be pardoned.

Another instance of the spy system in England is furnished by the Court of Divorce. Mr. Sopwith, a widower, of Tunbridge Wells, married a Miss Deane. Her parents lived near, and although at that they were friendly the parties soon fell out. Mrs. Sopwith betook herself in 1858 to Cheltenham with her father and mother, and never returned. Since that period the friends of Mrs. Sopwith have been engaged in.collecting evidence to prove a case of adultery against Mr. Sopwith, in order that the lady might obtain a decree of judicial separation from Judge Cresswell. They employed one

hex, and gave a clear account of herself; her mother also denied some state- mour of with, and his alleged paramour, denied the truth of the statements affecting ments; a surgeon proved that Miss Prickett was not the person who lodged with the milliner. In short, the case broke down. In summing up the spies.

ing thepash klyholes,of two men, who swore that they had witnessed acts and other persons. On the other hand, Miss Prickett, servant of Mr. Sop- Judge made some severe remarks on the employment of,ex-detectives as

a brother in the craft, one Topp. Timm men got up the evidence to support of aduftery.e1 a milliner, who expressed her belief that the alleged para- a petition ot• judicial separation. They broeght forward the testimony of a groom, dlsqmrged from the service of Mr. Sopwith, and addicted to peep- Shaw, au ex-detective, in this business, and afterwards associated with him . Sopwith had been confined in her house under a feigned name,

"I feel bound," he said, "to make some observations upon the subject of the employment of men of the class to which Shaw belongs. They may sometimes be instrumental in discovering malpractices which would other- wise remain concealed, but—I say it advisedly—it is my opinion that they are very dangerous agents. Police detectives are most useful ; they are employed by a Government establishment, they are responsible to superior officers, they have no pecuniary interest in the result of their investigations, and they may be and are constantly employed safely and with benefit to the public ; but when a man sets up as a hired discoverer of supposed delin- quencies, when the amount of his pay is dependent on the extent of hie em- ployment, and the extent of his employment depends on what he is able to discover, that man becomes a most dangerous agent. It appears that Shaw, not being sufficiently clever or sufficiently vigilant, another person was set to work. That man, Topp, has been intrusted by the ettorney for the pe- titioner to do that duty which properly belonged to the attorney. He has had the seeking out of all the witnesses, he has communicated with them again and again ; and it is not until the last moment, after the briefs had been _prepared, that they are examined by the attorney's clerk. I trust the time is far distant when professional men, regularly educated and entered on the rolls of the courts to which they are responsible for their conduct, will abandon their proper branch of the profession, and put it into the hands of such persons as those who appear to have been engaged in the conduct of this case.'

He declared the whole story to be preposterous, and thal thesibaracter of a decent man would be in much peril if on such testimony, contrary to all probability, he could be found guilty. On these grounds he should dismiss Mr. Sopwith from the suit. It was stated that a sum had been deposited in the registry as a security for the wife's costs. The Judge said, "I find I cannot order costs to- the respondent. It is -very hard on Mr. Sopwith, but he must suffer." Petition dismissed.

After another severe examination something like an end has been put to the Rowley case. Mr. Paynter, the Westminster Magistrate, strongly ex- pressing regret that the case had been so deeply gone into, and so much ir- relevant matter introduced, said the inquiry could do no good. He thought that there were no Founds for the charges of perjury, except pmenws one, the charge of knocking Mrs. Rowley down and striking her head against the fender. The Magistrate thought that Mrs. Rowley had magnified certain acts into acts of cruelty. But he did not see why there should have been any

charges of perjury. The charges ought to have been brought in the Divorce Celia, or not at all. After some- serious reflections on both parties, Mr. Paynter advised Mr. Rowley- to let bygones be bygones, and to drop the pro-

secution. In this course the counsel on both aides concurred. Mr. Rowley said he had made the same suggestion ten days ago. Mr. Paynter adjourned the ease, and hoped they would not appear before him any more.

Mr. Barnes, a young man' has been summoned before Mr. Selfe, to answer a charge of troubling the Reverend Mr. Lowder by saying responses in

church in a disorderly manner. This was One of the St. George's-in-the- East cases. It was contended that neither Barnes nor any one else, has a right to say-responses when the choir sing them. Mr. Selfe, however, de- murred to the doctrine that the responses cannot be said and sung at the same time. He had himself, at the Temple and Lincoln's Inn churches

heard one half the congregation saying, and the choir and the other bail the responses. Barnes insisted that he had a right to say the re- sponses aloud. There seemed no desire to press for a conviction. After a

long debate, the prosecutor withdrew, and the defendant signed this docu- ment drawn by Mr. Selfe- Mr. w. at. Barnes undertakes that be will not interrupt the church services at St. George by saying the responses at irregular times, or in so loud a tone as to dis- turb the minister and choristers.—Oecember 24,1859."

A Mr. John Salmon has been accused at the Idansionhouse of attempting to bribe Mr. Miller, an officer of Portsmouth Dockyard, to give a certificate for work done. The facts are simple. Salmon was employed to fit smoke- consuming apparatus to a boiler and reverberating furnace. He did so. Mr. Miller received two halves of a fivo-pound note, one in an envelope without a letter, the other in an envelope with a letter from Mr. Salmon, which, however, did not refer M the half note. The point was to prove the handwriting of Mr. Salmon. It seems that the solicitor of the Ad- miralty employed for this purpose one of the notorious Fields of the

"Private Inquiry Office," to see Mr. Salmon write, under a pretence of doing business with him. He succeeded and saw Salmon write six words and two figures, and on the strength of this identified the writing in the letter sent to Mr. Miller, but would not speak to the writing on the en- velope. Mr. Sleigh, for the defendant, strongly stigmatized the "spy system," but his endeavours failed to induce the Lord Mayor to discharge Salmon. He was remanded.

A most amusing ease was heard at the Mansionhouse on Tuesday. Francis Mullen was charged with assaulting Timothy Collins. Mullen, as he stood at the bar, shook and shivered, as if suffering palsy, and was at- tired in a coat and trousers which hung about in tatters, and were secured to his waist by a rope. Collins a boy of fourteen, said—" I am a shoehlack, and was in Crooked Lane yesterday afternoon with my box, when the prisoner came up and asked me to black his shoes. I told him there was so much mud about 'em that they wouldn't shine, and so I would rather not do 'em. With that he ups with his foot, and kicks me over and when I was on the ground he kicks me five or six times more." Mr. Goodman (chief clerk)—" Was he

as respectable then as he is now-?" Mullen (interrupting)—" Oh, res, yourHonour's Worship, quite as respectable." (Loud laughter.) Col ns

—" He was just as be is now." Mr. Goodman—" Then I should think he

might have cleaned his boots himself." (Laughter.) Mullen—" And so I would • but, yer Honour, where was I to get the brushes ? " The Lord Mayor—" Well, what have you to say ? " Mullen—" Oh, my Lord, may Lord, may it please your Honour's Worship, I'm a po3r unfortunate boy, and gets my living by singing ; and yesterday, as yer Honour knows, was Boxing Day. So I togs myself out in my best—(roars of laughter)— and out I goes to sing in the publichouses where my countrymen goes—

The Lord Mayor—" You are Irish, I suppose ? " Prisoner—" Of course, yer Honour, and a Catholic to boot, and (with a low bow) I wish yer

Honour was as good a Catholic and friend to the Pope as I am." (Roars (if laughter.) The Lord Mayor—" Well, never mind that now. The Pope

wouldn't be very proud of his friend, I think, if he could sec the figure you cut now. What about the assault on this poor boy

Mullen—" Och, by the powers yer Worship, I was a coming to that— like next Christmas—all in good Arne. (Laughter.) I tell'd Ter as how I went out to sing in the publics. Well, I got a little drop with one and a little drop with another, till I am afraid I was drunk, yer Honour. Well somehow I began to think I did'nt cut a very nice figure, and I thought I would get my boots cleaned, to make me look a little more like what an Irish gentleman ought to be—(renewed laughter I went to this boy to black my boots, and he wouldn't do it, though I offered to pay him ; and being drunk, yer Worship, I felt like an Irish gentleman and resented the insult aceordingly—(loud laughter); but now I'm sober; yer Honour' I'm very sorry for it, and if you only let me go this time I'll promise you here, on my beaded knees, and swear by the Pope and all the saints, never to drink another drop for six months to come (dropping on his knees amid the laughter of the audience). The Lord Mayor—" I'm afraid you are a dis- grace to the saints and everybody else, or you would never be dressed in that way." Mullen—" Oh, don't say so, yer Honour. There's need blood in my veins, and I'll be a gentleman yet." (Laughter.) The Lord Mayor—" A gentleman yet ! I believe that dress is not your usual one, but is only put on for a purpose." "Mullen—" No, on my honour. I mean your Honour, my Lord. Divil a rag have I got at home or anywhere else, except what I've got:on ; and, as you see, they wouldn't hang together if it wasn't for these strings. But I've been locked up all night hi a very cold cell, and if you let me go now, I'll swear to you on my knees to keep sober for evermore, and make myself iruly respectable." (Lang/seer.) The Lord Mayor (to complainant)—" Did he hurt you much ?' Collins—" No not a great deal. Don't be hard with him, my Lord ; it's Christmas time." The Lord Mayor—" I'm afraid, pri- soner, you are a disreputable fellow ; but as he says you didn't hurt him much, I shall discharge you. So take care you don't come here again, or if you do, at all events, come in a more decent trim. There, be off! Mullen (flinging himself on his knees)-0h, thank your Honour's Worship—thanks on my knees. Yer- a rule gentleman, and no mistake, and I hope I shall meet you in Heaven !"

• This sally was received with a tremendous burst of laughter all round the Court, from amid which was just audible the voice of a man at the back of the audience, who shouted out, "By the powers, honey, you meat put on a cleaner coat before they'll let you in there, at all events!" and the prisoner appeared to relish the joke exceedingly.

An inquiry before the Westminster Coroner and a jury has been instituted ,into the fatal fire in Little George Street last week, when four persons perished. It adds little to the facts already stated. The fire broke out in the basement floor; warning was given, but the inmates were not sufficiently prompt in making their escape. The fire-escape proved of no use, because the upper part of the ladder, raised by a lever from below, broke. Some blame was thrown on the constables, because they sent for the engines of the Fire Brigade instead of the parish engines ; but it was shown to be un- founded, since the parish engines are not always ready for work, while those of the Brigade are.

The jury have found that the deceased persons died from the effects of burns, but that there is no evidence to show how the fire arose. They regret that the parish engines were not sent for.