an average of only 4 hours each day; and in 1814 the sittings occupied 127 days, or 476 hours, which was not 4 hours each day. It was a cruel mockery to compare factory labour with the labours of the House; for, from these statements, it would be seen that, during the whole session, the House had been occupied 9 hours a-day on the average; and for the much larger portion of the session, namely, since Easter, very considerably more than 12 hours a-day. The hon. baronet concluded by moving that the report be printed.-The Speaker, attended by all the members present, then proceeded to the House of Lords. After an absence of about half an hour, the Speaker returned, and, standing at the table, read to the House the speech which had been delivered from the throne.

THE COLONIES.

WEST INDIES.

THE intelligence from the West Indies continues to be more favourable than we had anticipated to the prospects of the successful operation of the plan for the abolition of slavery. In Barbadoes the legislature have unanimously resolved to adopt the resolution of the British parliament, claiming only to be heard as to the suggested scheme for the distribution of the twenty millions. In Demerara there appears to be a certainty of an unqualified approval of the plan on the part of the colonists. It is everywhere acknowledged that parliament, as towards the collective body of the colonists, has acted with fairness and liberality; the only difficulties which remain will be in the adjudication between the several colonies as claimants on the fund provided for them.

From Jamaica there are similar accounts. The only fault found is the long duration of the apprenticeship, twelve years. On this point the Antigua Herald observes, "We have conversed pretty generally on the subject, and can say, without hesitation, that masters, in this island at least, think that the freedom had better be early, simple, and unrestricted, and feel convinced that everything will soon find its level."

At a numerous meeting of planters, merchants, and other inhabitants of Berbice, held on the 27th July, an address was presented to the governor, Sir J. C. Smith, in which, after thanking him for having so promptly communicated to them the circular despatch of Mr. Stanley, accompanied by the resolutions of the House of Commons for the abolition of slavery, they state that they are convinced that the momentous changes about to take place in the colonial system are inevitable, that their property and very existence as a civilized society depend upon the successful issue of them, and that they will most cordially concur and co-operate by every means in their power with the governor in giving effect to all measures (in pursuance of the resolutions of the House of Commons) for the preservation of the public tranquillity, confidently relying on the justice of his Majesty's government, and of their fellow-subjects in the mother-country, should all their efforts to meet their wishes fail of success, to award them full and just compensation for all the losses they would in such event sustain.

The amount advanced out of the vote of last session of one million for the assistance of certain West India proprietors was-for Jamaica, 79,2007.; St. Vincent's, 38,400. The commissioners have also granted loans on further applications, the securities for which are not yet completed-to Jamaica, twenty-three applications, amounting to 119,000l.; Barbadoes, fifty-two, amounting to 109,2507.; St. Vincent's, twenty-two, amounting to 76,7007.; St. Lucia, twenty-two, amounting to 20,000/.

Head-Money for Captured Negroes.-The head-money, or pecuniary gratuity awarded for captured slaves, during 1827, was 61,548. 10s.; 1828, 29,2731. 14s. 3d.; 1829, 66,047. 10s.; 1830, 74,2397. 18s. 1d.; 1831, 17,6837. 15s.; 1832, 20,2427. 10s.; and 5th of January to the 5th of July, 1833, 5,8377. 10s.; making a total of 274,973/. 7s. 4d.

The number of imperial gallons of Colonial spirits which paid the home-consumption duty in 1832 was 3,513,965, being a decrease, as compared with 1831, of 110,632 gallons. The total number of gallons charged with the home-consumption

duty for 1832 was 25,982,494, and the net amount of the duty 8,413,5527., showing a decrease in consumption, as compared with 1832, of 775,832 gallons, and an increase of revenue amounting to 161,830., accounted for by the increased demand for foreign spirits.

CANADA.

The population of Upper Canada for the year ending June last was 296,544 persons, being an increase of 35,652 over the preceding year.

FOREIGN STATES.

RUSSIA.

The Russian Cabinet has put forth a long manifesto, in reply to the statements and arguments of Lord Palmerston, on the debate on Mr. C. Ferguson's motion. In this manifesto it is maintained, that as the Polish constitution of 1815 was not guaranteed by any power, that none has a right to insist on its being maintained. That constitution, it argues, was annihilated by the insurrection-the revolutionary Government acting in direct violation of the treaty of Vienna. Having thus deprived themselves of the protection that treaty afforded them, the Emperor contends that he was the only judge whether the charter of 1815 should be restored. In opposition to the advocates of the Poles, Nicholas, however, affirms, that the constitution now given to that people, by which they obtain a separate administration and a popular representative system, is in perfect accordance with the principles promulgated at Vienna. He also denies the right of any foreign power to interfere with his administration of the affairs of Poland-any more than with the conduct of Austria or Prussia, in the government of that portion of the ancient Polish territory, which is now under their jurisdiction.

PORTUGAL.

The struggle in Portugal still continues. Donna Maria has been " acknowledged" by the courts of London and Paris, and more recently by the King of Sweden; and has lately departed for Lisbon.

MARRIAGES AND DEATHS.

Married.]-At the Royal Hospital, Dublin, Lieutenant-Colonel Arbuthnot, eldest son of the Rt. Hon. C. Arbuthnot, to Caroline Eliza, eldest daughter of the Hon. Sir Hussey Vivian, Bart. Commander of the Forces in Ireland.

At Killowen, Ireland, W. Hunter, Esq. of Londonderry, to Margaret, daughter of the late Archbishop of Dublin,

At Greaseley, Lieut.-Colonel Hancox, of Woodborough Hall, Notts, to Caroline, daughter of Launcelot Rolleston, Esq., of Watmall Hall, same county.

At Grendon, Sir J. Hanmer, Bart. M.P., to Georgiana, daughter of Sir C. Chetwynd, Bart.

At Iwerne Minster, Dorset, H. Corbet Singleton, Esq., of Aclare, Meath, to Jane, daughter of the late General and the Lady E. Loftus.

At Narborough, Norfolk, the Rev. J. J. Holroyd, rector of Abberton, Essex, son of the late Sir G. Holroyd, to Sophia, daughter of 8. Tyssent, Esq. of Narborough Hall.

At. St. James's, the Rev. H. Stevens, Vicar of Wilmington, to Mary, daughter of Colonel Bingham, R.A.

Died.]-In Pentonville, Esther, wife of Professor Hurwitz of the London University.

In Plymouth, Mrs. Jenner, widow of the celebrated Dr. Jenner.

Mr. Thomas Williams, Editor of the "Cottage Bible."

At Whitley, Essex; T. Walford, Esq. F.A.S. In Green-street, Grosvenor-square, Lady Ann Ludlow, first daughter of Peter, Earl Ludlow, aged 73.

In Barbadoes, M. Coulthurst, Esq., King's Advocate, and Judge Advocate General in that island.

In Park-street, Grosvenor-square, Mary, eldest daughter of Colonel Leith Hay, M.P.

M. Dupire, formerly member of the Council of Five Hundred, and lately Deputy Mayor of Valenciennes.

In Duke-street, Westminster, J. Farquhar, Esq., of Doctors' Commons, many years M.P. for Aberdeen.

Dudley, fourth and eldest surviving son of the Right Hon. Sir Edward Thomson, G.C.B., of Wembury House, in the county of Devon, åged 17.

In Fitzroy-square, Mary Dowager Vis

At the Vicarage, Elizabeth, wife of the Right Hon. and Rev. Lord Aston, Vicar of Tardebigg, Worcestershire.

At Cheltenham, the Hon. Catherine Newcomen, daughter of the late Viscountess New

comen.

At Brithwood, Humphry Denholm, Esq., of Brithwood, aged 77.

At Portobello, N.B., Lient.-Colonel Peat, late of the 25th regiment.

At the Hazles, Lancashire, aged 78 years, Sir Joseph Birch, Bart.

At Cheltenham, Major-General Blackwell, late governor of Tobago.

At Rolleston, Staffordshire, Penelope, daughter of Sir Oswald Mosley, Bart. M.P.

On board the steam-boat Quorra, in the river Niger, T. Briggs, Esq., M.), senfor medical officer of the African expedition under Lander.

PROVINCIAL OCCURRENCES

IN THE COUNTIES OF ENGLAND, AND IN WALES, SCOTLAND, AND IRELAND.

LONDON.

THE total number of votes now registered in the respective parishes for the City and Liberties of London, in respect of 107. houses, is 8,041.

St. James's Park.—The exterior of the new guard-house, facing the old Birdcagewalk, has been finished, and presents a very handsome building, in every particular suitable for the purposes for which it is intended. The whole of the new railing enclosing the handsome avenue leading from Pimlico-gate to Storey's-gate is nearly erected, and the great improvements at that side of St. James's Park do much credit to the taste by which it was directed. At the opposite side, the Green Park, as far as Hyde Park Corner, has a very naked and desolate appearance compared to the adjacent improvements, and will remain, it is said, in its present state, until the Palace is finished, when it will be ornamented with shrubs, which, from the irregularity of the ground, can be planted to great advantage; and, with serpen tine gravel walks, this Park may be rendered a place of pleasant rural recreation for the public.

Upon arranging the suicides according to the months in which they occurred during the aggregate of years, Mr. Higgs found that, contrary to the generally received opinion, November was actually the month of all the year in which the least number of suicides took place.

The temperate months comprising the least number, it would appear that extreme heat or cold may affect the constitution, and render persons predisposed to insanity more liable to sudden attacks of that disease.

The Medical Board has announced to the proper departments of Government the disappearance of the cholera from the metropolis since the occurrence of the late high winds. That disease, it is thought, will in future annually appear in a more or less severe degree with the autumnal disorder of a kindred nature, on which account it will henceforth be included in the published list of maladies. It will also be from this time named as Cholera epidemica in the bills of health, of which a new form with that addition is about to be circulated. We understand that the Medical Board will still maintain a mitigated attention to and superintendence of this afflictive disease, that no announcements or measures of precaution may be prevented, which circumstances may render necessary or desirable.

A Circular has been issued from the Horse Guards, abolishing, at the command of the King, the infliction of corporal punishment in the army, except for mutiny,

insubordination, or violence to their officers, drunkenness on duty, selling their accoutrements, or stealing from their comrades.

Suicides in Westminster.The following statements of the number of suicides which have occurred in Westminster for each year from 1812 to 1831, inclusive, has been drawn up from official documents by Mr. Higgs, the Deputy Coroner, and presents some results of a novel and interesting character. The total number of suicides during that period is 489, and includes eight cases of felo de se-seven men and one woman. The number of men destroying themselves to women is nearly as three to one, as appears from the returns, there being 359 men to only 130 women. In very many cases Mr. Higgs observes the insanity which led to suicide was decidedly brought on by intoxication. The following is the return for each year :

1812 (1818)..

1814

1815

1816

1817

1818

1819

1820

1821

1822

24

1823

From the Parliamentary returns it appears that the population of Westminster, in 1811, was 160,801; in 1821, 181,444; and in 1831, 202,891.

Leicester-square. This square has been recently greatly improved in the centre. The trees and shrubs which had been much neglected, and appeared like a wilderness, and almost entirely hid from the public view the equestrian statue of Geo. II., have been pruned, and the statue, which was also much neglected, has just been bronzed, and is now seen to great advantage. The walks enclosed by the iron railing have been gravelled and improved.

Compression of Water.—An apparatus is exhibiting in Adelaide-street, London, which, by hydrostatic pressure, compresses water to an extent equal to a fourteenth part of its volume. The force employed is equivalent to a pressure of 30,000 lbs. to the square inch, and is applicable to other liquids. In most of our works on natural philosophy, water is treated as incompressible and not elastic; by this apparatus the opposite of these two propositions is clearly shown.

John Traill, Esq., has been appointed to fill the vacancy at Union-hall, in the room of R. J. Chambers, Esq., now one of the magistrates of Marlborough-street.

BUCKINGHAMSHIRE.

Land Allotments.-The greater part of the land in the parish of Cholesbury, Bucks, has, we are informed, been purchased by a society established in the metropolis, for the purpose of allotting it in small portions to the labouring poor of that distressed district. The situation of the above parish is described as the most destitute that can be imagined, the whole of the land lying waste and uncultivated, the occupiers having abandoned it in consequence of the poor-rates absorbing the whole of the rent and profit; not a cow, a pig, or even a fowl is to be seen. The labourers are said to be entirely dependent on the poor-rates for support, the last being reported last year to have amounted to 32s. in the pound, at a rack-rent. No funds being to be raised on the spot, they were maintained by precarious rates in aid from adjoining parishes. These allotments will, it is expected, restore them to a state of comfort, and render them independent of parish relief.-Monthly Miscellany of the Labourer's Friend Society.

LANCASHIRE.

Locomotive Engines. The daily performances of the engines on the Liverpool and Manchester Railway testify the perfection which has been there attained in the conveyance of light goods and passengers, the ordinary rate of travelling being from 20 to 30 miles an hour, but they seemed to be excelled by those in the neighbourhood of Glasgow in another very important application of the power of locomotive engines, namely, the transmission of heavy goods, in which so great speed is not of such importance as the diminishing the expense of conveyance by increasing the

quantity conveyed. The other day one of the engines on the Garnkirk and Glasgow Railway hauled a train of seventy loaded waggons from Gartgill colliery to the depôt at Glasgow, a distance of 8 miles, in one hour and five minutes. The gross weight of the waggons was 287 tons, and of the engine and tender 14 tons 7 cwt. making a total weight of 301 tons 17 cwt. A great proportion of the distance is quite level. The ordinary resistance on a level line is 9 pounds per ton, so that the engine must have been exerting a power of about 2718 pounds. The diameter of the cylinder is 123 inches, the length of stroke 22, and the pressure at 55 pounds per square inch. The train extended over a distance of upwards of 270 yards, and presented to view a grand and interesting spectacle, while it afforded a most wonderful exhibition of locomotive power to those who take an interest in the important national question of the improvement of our internal means of communication.

Lieutenants Denham and Robinson, deputed by the Board of Admiralty to make a survey of the river Mersey, have ascertained the existence of a new half-tide channel, at once affording invaluable and increased facility of navigation in the approach to Liverpool. The advantages of this discovery are these—that a maritime intercourse may be pursued at all hours, and that a channel to seaward is progressively forming, which affords at present twelve feet water at two hours' flood, and seventeen at half-tide; that a ship coming in with an easterly wind can stand up the Crosby channel, approaching from the northward, at as early a period of the tide as the Rock channel affords.

MIDDLESEX.

The Commissioners of the Metropolitan Roads have in agitation a plan by which the narrow and dangerous passage through Brentford, on the great Western Road, will be avoided, by turning it through the gardens at the back of the town. Want of the funds necessary to purchase the property is the only impediment to the immediate execution of this most desirable improvement.

SOMERSET.

Communication between the Bristol and British Channels.—It is contemplated to form a branch from the Bideford and Barnstaple rail-road to Newton-Tracey, and from Exeter to Crediton and Bow, by which the desirable opening from the Bristol Channel to the British Channel may be accomplished, avoiding the long circuitous voyage by the Land's End, and the transit from London by steam-vessels to Exeter, and thence by a rail-road to Barnstaple, will be performed in twenty-four hours. To effect this line, it is suggested that the head and main trunk of the project extend from Bideford to Winkleigh, 18 miles; of the extremities, one branch to Exeter, 15-to Oakhampton and Bridstowe, 16; of the upper parts, a branch to Barnstaple, 6; and any future collateral branches to Ilfracombe or Southmolton, &c. Bideford to Exeter will not exceed 38 miles; Barnstaple to Exeter (by a junction at Newton Tracey, 6 miles) will be 40.

From a Parliamentary paper, recently printed, of the amount of poor-rates levied in England and Wales, in 1832, it appears that in the county of Somerset the total sum levied was 224,4827.; payments thereout for other purposes than the relief of the poor, 29,088.; sum expended for the relief of the poor, 191,6877. 11s.; total expended, 220,775/. 11s. Increase, 8 per cent. Select vestries, 71; assistant overseers, 116; number of persons employed in the repair of roads, 961; amount paid from the poor-rates for such labour in 1832, 33977. 188.; number of persons employed in other parish work, 428; amount paid from the poor-rates for such work during the year, 16057. 4s.

SUSSEX.

Rail-Road. The first division of the original project, devised some years ago, for establishing rail-roads through Surrey, Sussex, and Hampshire, is about to be carried into effect, by making the Brighton and Shoreham line in the first instance. This is the most direct route from London to Paris; and, by the prospectus of the proposed company, we see that a carriage may travel from London to Paris in eighteen hours, by the way of Dieppe, it being agreed by the French Government to continue the rail-road from Dieppe to Paris.

The Brighton Athenæum, built of cast-iron, and weighing between four or five hundred tons, fell down on the 29th of August. The crush was tremendous. This building was intended for an horticultural exhibition. The dome was larger than that of St. Peter's at Rome by eight thousand feet; the glazing of it would