ffitiscettantotts.

A paragraph going the round of the papers reports an intended augmentation , of the British Army. A more specific report is that each of the ten battalions of Royal Artillery is to be increased by an additional company. [Not too soon.] A deputation of Irish Members waited upon Sir Charles Wood on Tuesday, to solicit Government aid for completing the unfinished public works in Ireland. The Chancellor of the Exchequer expressed his regret that the finances of the country precluded the advance of any funds from the public treasury; and incidentally combated the idea that Government was in any way bound to the completion of the works. He should be happy to relend to the counties the instalments of the past debt, and promised to afford all facilities to enable the counties to borrow money on the security of their rates.

A Cabinet Council was held on Saturday, at Lansdowne House.

Rear-Admiral Prescott, C.B., one of the Lords of the Admiralty, has accepted the post of the late Rear-Admiral Shirreff, Superintendent of Portsmouth Dock- Tuesday's Gazette notified the appointment of Mr. Samuel George Bonham to be her Majesty's Plenipotentiary and Chief Superintendent of British Trade in China.

It also announced the appointment of Mr. Thomas William Clinton Murdoch, Mr. Charles Alexander Wood, and Mr. Frederick Rogers, as Colonial Land and Emigration Commissioners; Mr, Murdoch being the new Chief Commissioner, in the room of Mr. Frederick Elliot.

Mr. Elliot has been appointed joint "Assistant-Under-Secretary" of State for the Colonies, with Mr. Merivale. The Morning Chronicle announces, from authority, "that the Reverend W. Jacobson, Vice-Principal of Magdalen Hall, has been nominated by her Majesty to succeed Dr. Hampden, Bishop-designate of Hereford, in the Divinity chair at Oxford. Mr. Jacobson's opinions are moderately Liberal, and not Tory, as we were led to suppose on the authority of an Oxford correspondent."

The following notice has been issued at the General Post-office--" Information having been received from the Director-General of the French Post-office, that, under existing circumstances, letters from the United Kingdom for Austria would be accelerated for some time to come by being sent through Prussia rid Belgium, instead of by way of France, through which country they are now for- warded, the Postmaster-General thinks it necessary to make this intimation to the public, and to give notice that letters of this description will be transmitted by the route pointed ont, provided they are specially addressed."

New postal arrangements between England and the United States have now been made public. On and after the 17th instant, the mails will be made up in London every alternate Friday during the months of December, January, Fe- bruary, and March, to sail from Liverpool on the Saturday, and on every Friday during the other eight months of the year alternately to Boston and New York; and on and from the 1st of January next the British mail-packets will return at similar periods from Boston and New York respectively, calling at Halifax both on the outward and homeward voyages. The postage on letters for the United States sent to New York will be the same as that at present, viz. Is. per half- ounce, and so on; and newspapers 2d. each; which must in every instance be pre- paid.

Among the marriages for which formal notice has been given in Paris, is that of Lord Byron's Countess Guiccioli, now a widow, to the wealthy Marquis de Boisay du Coudrais.

The King of Bavaria has appointed the learned and Liberal Professor Thiersch as Chief Rector of Munich University.

Amongst the deaths recorded in the obituary will be found that of Lieutenant- General Sir Charles Dalbiac; who died on Tuesday, at his chambers in the Albany. Sir Charles had seen much service in the early part of his career; having entered the Army as Cornet in the Fourth Dragoons in 1793, and served in Spain up to the close of the war in 1814. Sir Charles wrote a Military Catechism for the in- struction of young officers.

One of the victims to the season is Mr. Robert Liston, the eminent surgeon. The Times says—" Mr. Liston had suffered for some weeks, from an affection of

the throat, which proved fatal at half-past ten o'clock on Tuesday night. Al. though he had scarcely more than reached middle age, Mr. Liston bad achieved an European reputation. As an operator be was unrivalled, but it would be un- just to suppose that in this consisted his highest excellence. No man was less inclined to have recourse to operation when relief could be attained by any other means, and no lecturer ever took more pains to inculcate the duty of pursuing this course of practice. To the public and to science Mr. Liston's death may be considered a national loss: it will be deeply regretted by the many who have pre fited by his eminent talents, and by the numerous friends in private life to whom his kindly disposition and estimable qualities had endeared him."

Mr. Samuel Duckworth, one of the Masters in Chancery, whose health had long been precarious, sank under an access of his malady on Friday, at Paris, i Mr. Duckworth sat in Parliament, for Leicester, in 1835; and in 1839 he was appointed to the Mastership. He was a Liberal in politics. In Parliament he attained no great distinction: but he was generally and highly esteemed for his professional talents and his personal qualities.

The celebrated Father Thomas Maguire died at Artdram, near Ballinamore, on Thursday sennight, of gout in the stomach. The reverend father was one of the ancient Maguires of Fermanagh; and he occupied a very prominent position- in the political world of Ireland at the time of the memorable Clam election.

Mr. Murphy, the weather prophet, died last week, very suddenly. The Journal des Debate states that Madame Mendelssohn Bartholdy, widow of the celebrated composer, has received letters of condolence from three Sovereigns —the King of Prussia, the King of Saxony, and the Queen of England.

The prevailing epidemic has been very fatal to old people; and our obituary this week mentions the deaths of several persons who have far exceeded the usual span of life.

The late Dr. Holme, of Manchester, has left the residue of his property to the medical department of University College, London; it is estimated that the be- quest will amount to 25,0001.

Trade is beginning to improve in Glasgow: one large factory employing 1,000 hands, which had been shut up for some weeks, has again commenced work, and is on full time. Others are expected soon to be in the same position. In Gree- nock, ship-building and machine work are very dull.

Messrs. Gates, Coats, Bartlett, and Co., calico-printers in Watling Street, stopped payment on Thursday.

A meeting was held on Monday by the creditors of Messrs. E. J. Coates and Hillard, at which some startling disclosures were made. The account made up showed debts to the amount of 72,0571. lls. 11d., against assets amounting to only 35,4621. Ils. 7d. It seems that the firm had been carrying on business for eighteen years without having ever struck a balance. Good, bad, and doubtful debts, with all other contingent losses, had been indiscriminately carried forward in the ledgers, and the apparent balance in favour of the concern posted to the credit of the house as if it had been a reality.

Messrs. C. de Bras% and Sons, sugar-refiners of Amsterdam, have suspended, payments. The amount of liabilities is 250,0001.; and a nominal surplus of 80,0001. is shown in their balance-sheet; more than one-third of the assets con- sisting of the plant and machinery, which are understood to have been estimated at half their cost. Of the above amount of debts there is said to be due 25,0001. to the Government, (whose claim will of course override that of every other cre- ditor,) 35,0001. to the Dutch Commercial Company, and about 60,0001. or 70,0001. to parties in London. The firm say that they only want time.

According to the Nuremberg Courier, a report is very current amongst the higher orders of the Polish nobility of Gallicia, that the Hungarian Diet, basing their rights on several important documents, will discuss the question of the incor- poration of Gallicia with the kingdom of Hungary.

After much delay, the result of the Polish trials has become known. The ten principal offenders—namely, Ludvig von hlieroslawski, WladisLans Eusebius von Kosinski, and eight others—are all to be beheaded, being first deprived of rank and possessions. Eighty-two have been condemned to hard labour in a fortress, some for life, others for a term varying from twenty-five to eight years; and six- teen are sentenced to imprisonment for one year. The remaining 137 have been ordered to be set at liberty.

Baron de Jaengler, Archbishop of Graetz in Austrian Styria, has been interro- gated under a commission, consisting. of ecclesiastics and laymen, appointed by the Austrian Government inquire into the charges of gross intolerance alleged against the Prelate. On the termination of the inquiry, the commission condemn- ed the Archbishop to fifteen days' imprisonment in his archiepiscopal palace, and to a fine of 500 florins (521.)

Letters from Vienna bring official intelligence of the appearance of the cholera at Tarnopol, in Gallicia. Scarcity of food in the district favours the spread of the disease.

Letters from New York speak of an expedition which the United States Go- vernment is now fitting out for an exploration and survey of the Dead Sea. The expedition was about to sail in the store-ship Supply, under the command of Lieutenant William F. Lynch.

The Courrier de Marseilles gives the following description of a passport ex- hibited at its office by a traveller just arrived from that country—" The passport, thanks to many additions, is six feet and a half in length. Its weight, owing to the seals and binding, exceeds thirteen ounces; the signatures and stamps with which it is covered are seventy-three in number; and the whole cost of the pass- port, during a journey of five months, amounts to 262 francs 50 cents." (101. 10s.). The Courtier recommends the bearer to show that document in Paris, and to keep it carefully as a carious monument of the administrative history of Italy previously to its regeneration.

Another case, strongly illustrating the defective state of our criminal juris- prudence in regard to the conviction of innocent persons, is narrated in the Lincolnshire Times. On the 4th August 1845, a man describing himself as Mr. Drewery of Hull, corn or coal merchant, hired a horse and gig at an inn in Wake- field, with which he disappeared. On the 12th of the same month, a man named Thomas Drewery, of Hull; a druggist, was apprehended at York, charged with the theft. He was tried at the Wakefield Sessions in the December following; was found guilty, and sentenced to seven years' transportation. The bar-maid would only swear to her belief that Thomas Drewery was the man who hired the gig: two other witnesses, however, swore positively to his identity. Drewery all along protested innocence; but lacking funds for his defence, he could not bring up the evidence deemed necessary to corroborate the testimony of his only wit- ness, one Wilkinson. Drewery was sent to Pentenville Prison; where he con- ducted himself with remarkable propriety; and in May last he left England for Australia as an "exile." Recently, however, a letter has been received from the Reverend G. Walter, one of the penal Chaplains in Van Diemen's Land, enclosing a communication made to him by a convict named John Webster, confessing that he stole the horse and gig, under the assumed name of Drewery, in terms which clearly prove Thomas Drewery's innocence. What compensation can the Home Secretary make in such a case? The matter-of-course pardon " is an insult, and therefore an additional injury.

Sullivan, a farmer of Kappah, near Bandon, is charged with a horrible crime. It is said that he placed his son, a boy some four years old, on the fire, and held hifn there until he was roasted to death! A servant lad attempted to rescue the child; but Sullivan kept him off with a reaping-hook. On the Police going to the farm, both the man and the lad were found to have absconded.

A mischievous outrage has been perpetrated on a railway in South Wales. The lock of a switch was broken off, at night, and the points were wedged back so that any train coming up would dash into a siding. At nine o'clock, a long goods-train on its way to Merthyr arrived at a high speed—it rushed into the siding, and came into collision with some loaded waggons. Of course the crash was frightful; the driver and fireman narrowly escaped by leaping off.

The accounts from Bombay brought by the last mail describe the loss of the East India Company's steamer Indus, on the morning of the 7th October. As the Indus was going from Bombay to Kurracliee, she struck on a reef about thirty miles to the Northward of Diu Head, on the coast of Kattiawar. She had on board a number of passengers, including some officers and soldiers proceeding to join their corps in Scinde. Luckily, the weather was perfectly calm, and everybody was landed in safety. The vessel remained fixed on the rocks, and steamers had been sent from Bombay to get out her engines and boilers. In this they were successful; but the stores were destroyed, and all attempts to heave the vessel off were fruitless.

On the arrival of the Lady Kennaway Indiaman in Plymouth Sound, she was pumped, and in twenty-two hours after she had only made twelve inches of water. An official examination of the vessel has taken place. When fallen in with by the Danes, it was found that part of the cargo had been removed, and there was .much confusion in several parts of the ship; the state-rooms, cabins, Sze. on deck, had been broken down, and the cabin-freight carried off entire. A formal claim has been made by the two Danish crews for half the estimated value of the cargo—I05,0001 ; while Mr. Wynvard, midshipman, and the crew of the Queen's brigantine Dolphin, claim 35,0002. for the aid rendered by them.

The gales which prevailed at the end of last week and beginning of this were attended with fatal consequences on the South-eastern coast. A ship, apparently timber-laden and a foreigner, struck on the Goodwin Sands; some luggers put off to assist, but they found it impossible to reach the vessel; it was in great part buried in the sand, and soon disappeared altogether. The crew must all have pe- rished. A Neapolitan ship went ashore in Pevensey Bay; nine men were lost, three others and a boy getting to land on a raft. The storm was of terrific vio- lence.

To the Northward of the Nore several ships were wrecked. Two vessels foun- dered in the Swin. Two others were lost on the Gunfleet: crews saved. Along the Yarmouth, Cromer, and Lynn coasts, many disasters occurred. At Liverpool the tempest raged fearfully, and numbers of vessels went aground or had to seek refuge in port in a damaged condition. The Frankfleld, a fine ship bound from Liverpool to Callao, was wrecked near East Mouse, off the Isle of Anglesey: twenty lives were lost, eight only of the crew escaping. On Saturday morning, a number of people belonging to No. 4 pilot-boat left Liverpool in another pilot-boat, to reach their own vessel, which was at Holylake. When the boats were near each other, seven pilots got into a punt to gain No. 4; but owing to the strong gale which was blowing, the punt was capsized, and only one of the crew was rescued from the waves, all his companions perishing.

The East coast of Scotland was visited with great severity. At Leith and Newhaven, much damage was done by the sea, and many vessels and fishing- boats were wrecked. From Dunbar the accounts are disastrous; not only have many vessels been destroyed on the coast, but it would appear that a number of seamen perished.

The mansion of Mr. Walter Buchanan, at Shandon, near Helensburgh, was burnt down last week, daring the absence of the family.

Results of the Registrar-General's return of mortality in the Metropolis for the week ending on Saturday last—

Number of Autumn deaths. average.

Zymotic (or Epidemic, Endemic, and Contagious) Diseases. 638 211

Dropsy, Cancer, and other diseases of uncertain or variable seat 144 .... 101 Diseases of the Brain, Spinal Marrow, Nerves, and Senses 231 ... 157 Diseases of the Lungs, and of the other Organs of Respiration 991 .... 333 Diseases of the Heart and Blood-vessels . 77 34 Diseases of the Stomach, Liver, and other Organs of Digestion 113 71 Diseases of the Kidneys, lac. 14 9 Childbirth, diseases of the Uterus, &c. ..... 19 14 Rheumatism, diseases of the Bones, Joints, ace. 17 7

Diseases of the Skin, Cellular Tissue, &c. 6

Old Age 165 65 Violence, Privation, Cold, and Intemperance 28 29 Total (Including unspecified causes) 2454 1016

The lowest temperature of the thermometer in the shade was 28.5°; the mean temperature by day being warmer than the average mean temperature by 4.7°. The thermometer whose bulb was placed in the full rays of the sun was broken. The general direction of the wind for the week was South-west.