tt Vroniurrs.
Sheffield has anticipated the London Reformers with an "Administra- tive Reform Association"; adopting wholesale the resolutions to be proposed at the London Tavern today. The meeting at which this was accomplished was held on Monday ; Alderman Carr in the chair. It had for its leading speakers Councillor Beal, Councillor Harvey, and Mr. Ironside •' and for its main object a "thorough reform of the Army." The kind of meeting it was may be judged from the speaking. Mr. Beal said that "half the army had been literally starved to death." "While the men had shown unparalleled bravery, the generals had shown them- Selves imbecile"-.-" all which came from the aristocracy having the Management of public affairs." Mr. Harvey said, we must reform our system if we intend to take SebastopoL "The only thing he could give Lord Raglan credit for was that he had had the honesty to say that the Victories of the army had been soldiers' battles." " We must not send ent gentlemen to play at soldiersany longer." A petition to Parliament was agreed to praying that the military rules should be revised, so that men of more intelligence may enter the army ; that men should be pro- moted from the ranks; that the Army Surgeons should have a separate organization, and means for carriage and service, so that hospital-tents and medicines-cheats may "not be left behind by the eagerness of generals preoccupied with other concerns " ; that the Militia should be reconstituted in its original integrity ; and that the Drilling Act shall be repealed. Thanks were voted to Mr. Layard for "the noble position. be had taken up."
The two Conservative Members for Huntingdonshire, alarmed for their seats by the threatening " attitude " of a Liberal candidate, Mr. Heath- cote, have issued addresses declaring their determination to fight for their seats. Lord Mandeville thinks that he is the Member who has canoed dissatisfaction in the breasts of the faithful of Huntingdonshire, as no murmurs have been raised against his colleague Mr. Fellowes.
The people of Burnley have presented Major-General Searlett, the leader of the Heavy Brigade in the charge at Balaklava, with a handsome sword.
Mr. Mansfield, the Liverpool Stipendiary. Magistrate, has held to bail Messrs. Bahr and Behrend, "ship-brokers of Liverpool, on a charge of con- spiring with George Hult, master of a Russian vessel, to obtain a British re- gistry for the ship Atlantic. The Atlantic arrived from Russia, with a Bus- man crew, in November 1853; in January 1854 she was chartered by Bahr and Behrend for Montevideo, Hult being supercargo. The vessel had an English captain and crew ; she carried Russian and English colours—it is said she also had Russian and English papers, one or the other to be pro- duced as occasion required : on her return she was seized at Leith by the Government officers. It appears that Messrs. Bahr and Behrend had become owners by giving a bill to Hult, which was honoured, but the money re- transferred to the brokers. Their answer to the charge is, that they had advanced large sums on the vessel, which liult could not pay, the freight having been received by the owner in the Battle. Mr. Mansfield thought he had no other course than to commit; but his remarked that there was no moral imputation on the conduct of the accused.
At Sandbach in Cheshire, there lived one Sproston and his wife: Dpreeitest was a strict Methodist, and the chief of the Methodists who dwell 111 these parts ; and moreover he had considerable temporal possessions. But he {grew madly jealous of his wife, without any apparent cause ; and his spiritual and temporal possessions availed not to keep him from crime. Yesterday week, he hacked Mrs. Sproston to death with a sabre, and shot himself dead with a pistoL The poor woman was found alive ; "praying to the Lord to take
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her" crying, ' Oh, James, don't!" and wildly inquiring" Where is he?" The Coroner's Jury returned a verdict of "Temporary insanity" in the ease of Sproston.
Prince Albert and the Duke of Cambridge had a narrow escape on their return from Dover, after taking leave of the French Emperor and Empress. Timber and bricks had been phioed on the rail at Tunbridge. The perpetra- tor, William Froyue was arrested, and committed by the Tunbridge Magis- trates. He said that he did not intend to injure the Prince and the .11uke, as he was "closely connected with royalty himself." He is naturally sup- posed to be insane.
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