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thought he could not say that there had been no cock-fighting, but his lordship denied altogether that there had been any cruelty used in the sense of the words of the information. As far as Lord Hastings and the three keepers were concerned, he should relieve the Bench from any further trouble. A conviction against them was then entered. The magistrates ordered the Marquis of Hastings to pay the full penalty of 5., and the three gamekeepers to pay a fine of 27. each. The secretary stated that it was not the custom of the society to take the moieties of penalties allowed by the Act to complainants, and in this case he would be glad if the clerk would hand such moieties, amounting to 57. 10s., to the Loughborough Dispensary.

24. BRITISH ORPHAN ASYLUM.-The ceremony of inaugurating the new building for this asylum at Slough was a most brilliant one, apart from the interest attaching to the charitable object for which it is intended. The fine weather, the attendance of the Prince and Princess of Wales, and the excellent arrangements, combined to attract a very large number of visitors, and make the day at Slough a complete festival.

The Prince and Princess arrived by special train from London at four o'clock, and were received at the station by a deputation of directors, by whom they were conducted to the reception-room prepared for them in the main building. The procession was then formed, and consisted of the board of directors of the institution, headed by the chairman, Mr. Thomas Tilson, and the vicechairman, Mr. Charles Wolloton, the clergy of the neighbourhood, the Sheriffs of London and Middlesex, the Lord Mayor, the Bishop of Ripon, the Bishop of Bath and Wells, and, lastly, their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales, attended by Lord Mount-Edgcumbe, Lord Jermyn, General Knollys, and a numerous suite. They proceeded from the west door through two lines of pupils of the school to a dais prepared for them beneath a large marquee erected on the lawn, and communicating with the main portion of the building. During the procession the National Anthem was played by the bands of the 18th Hussars and the Commissionnaires, who were in attendance during the whole day. On the arrival of the Prince and Princess at the dais the pupils of the Institution sung the Old Hundredth Psalm very sweetly, and an address to the Prince was read by Mr. Thomas Tilson, the chairman of the board of directors. It gave a short account of the foundation and gradual progress of the institution, stating the reasons that had determined the directors to move to the present premises. It alluded in grateful terms to the patronage already bestowed on the asylum by the Queen, the late Prince Consort, and the Prince of Wales, and concluded by expressing a hope that the Prince and Princess would allow their names to be enrolled as the Royal Vice-patron and Vice-patroness of the institution.

The Prince, in reply, said,-"It has given the Princess and

myself great pleasure to be present at the opening of your new asylum, and to have been invited to take part in so good a work. The benevolent purposes of this widely-extended institution speak for themselves. It is one in which the Queen and my lamented father, the promoter of every scheme for the relief of the necessitous, evinced warm interest; and the details which you have given of its formation and progress furnish another appeal for aid from those whose highest enjoyment is to give a home and education to the fatherless and destitute. It is a privilege, I assure you, that the Princess and myself value greatly, to have our names associated with the British Orphan Asylum."

His Royal Highness then declared the building to be open, and for ever dedicated to the purposes of the British Orphan Asylum. A prayer was offered by the Bishop of Bath and Wells, invoking the blessing of the Almighty on the institution. This was followed by a sacred song set to music by Dr. Sterndale Bennett, and specially composed for the occasion. The ladies who had purses to present then advanced in an almost endless procession, and, with graceful obeisance, deposited them on the table before their Royal Highnesses, making a goodly heap. The Prince of Wales, amid much cheering, announced that Mr. Edward Mackenzie had presented to the society the sum of 12,000l. to pay for the building.

The National Anthem was sung by the pupils of the Royal Academy, under the direction of Mr. Lucas. The Prince and Princess then proceeded to the south lawn, and there each planted a tree in commemoration of the events of the day. The trees were finely-grown specimens of the Wellingtonea gigantea, which had been presented by Mr. Turner for the purpose. The planting of the trees was followed by hearty cheering; and this interesting ceremony over, their Royal Highnesses left the grounds and re

turned to town.

In the afternoon the company were entertained at a splendid banquet, laid out in a marquee in the grounds of the asylum, at which the Lord Mayor presided.

THE AFRICAN DISCOVERERS.-The discoverers of the source of the Nile-Captains Speke and Grant-were present at a special meeting of the Royal Geographical Society, at Burlington House. The meeting was most numerously attended. Sir Roderick Murchison presided, and panegyrized the gallant explorers. He presented a medal to Captain Speke, sent by the King of Italy, observing at the same time that it was probably only the precursor of more which other sovereigns would bestow. Captain Speke gave a detailed and most interesting account of his journeyings, to which Captain Grant added a few modest sentences. Both the gallant gentlemen were most cordially received.

24. FRIGHTFUL ACCIDENT AT CREMORNE.-Mr. James Bird, coroner for West Middlesex, held an inquest upon the body of Carlo Valerio, aged twenty-five, who expired in the morning from the effects of injuries received while performing on a wire rope at

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Cremorne-gardens the previous evening. On the evening of the accident, about eight o'clock, the gardens were unusually full, and the deceased mounted the tight wire rope to go through his evolutions. Police-constable Avenell, 224 V, who was on duty in the gardens, said that when the deceased had reached a point about ten yards from the end of the rope, and about 300 feet from where he had started, something gave way in the tackle of "the fall" at the end from which he was furthest. The effect was instantaneous. The wire rope became slack at once, and the deceased was thrown right off. He fell headlong to the ground, from a height of forty feet, and alighted on his head on the gravel of the promenade. Dr. Ree and other medical gentlemen, who happened to be in the gardens, rushed to his aid. He was removed to his residence in Stanley-villas, Chelsea, and died there at three o'clock the next morning. His skull was fractured and his spine was believed to have been injured. Mr. Thomas Bartlett, machinist and master carpenter to the gardens, described the tackle. The wire rope, which was provided by the deceased himself, weighed about five cwt. At the end furthest from the ball-room it was made fast by a fall," composed of an iron chain and a strong cable. One end of the chain was fastened to a massive iron hook, fixed to an elm-tree. When a man was on the rope the strain on the hook would be about two tons. The hook was calculated to bear a strain of six tons and the chain of five tons. The hook, however, broke right in two, and the rope of course fell slack, causing the accident. The witness believed that in some way the lightning on the previous night had softened or otherwise affected the iron, and caused it to give way. Mr. M'Cullogh, of the Cadogan Ironworks, expressed a similar opinion as to the cause of the accident. The iron in the hook was of the best quality and manufacture. The hook would certainly have been calculated to bear a strain of six tons at least. Mr. E. T. Smith said that when Carlo Valerio applied to him for an engagement he declined to allow him to perform, and it was only after he had been furnished with proofs as to his great ability and perfect competence to perform with every prospect of safety to himself that he would consent. Even then he informed deceased that he should personally provide the ropes and tackle, as he would not incur any responsibility with regard to the matter. He advanced deceased 50l. to buy the wire rope, and deceased himself borrowed powerful cables from the Steamboat Company. Nothing, he added, should ever induce him again to permit a performance of this kind in the gardens. The jury returned a verdict, "That deceased lost his life through injuries from a fall in Cremorne-gardens, through the giving way accidentally of a certain iron hook." The proceedings then terminated. The effect of the occurrence on the crowded audience at the gardens was a general feeling of horror and pity. Several persons fainted, and one lady was so much affected that she had to be conveyed to St. George's Hospital.

26. THE GUARDS' BALL.-The Guards' ball to the Prince and Princess of Wales, which excited extraordinary interest amongst the higher circles, took place in the picture-galleries of the International Exhibition building. The beautiful rooms were decorated in the most elegant manner. The Queen kindly placed at the service of the committee the whole of the temporary fittings used at Buckingham Palace on festive occasions. Emulating this royal liberality, several members of the highest aristocracy contributed their stores of gold and silver plate without limitation; and the value of the plate and ornaments is stated at two millions sterling. The company, which was limited to 1400, commenced to arrive about nine o'clock, and the brilliant throng assembled in one of the galleries about ten o'clock to receive the Prince and Princess of Wales, who arrived shortly after. The ball was opened by a quadrille of sixteen-the Duke of Cambridge, as first among the gallant entertainers, leading forth the Princess of Wales, while the Prince danced with Princess Mary. Both the Prince and Princess seemed delighted with their reception, and the Princess, especially, was radiant with smiles and kindly recognitions of the fair faces around. Princess Mary also excited much admiration. The supper-room presented a scene of almost regal magnificence. Not a minute did the Prince lose after his return in recommencing the festivities of the evening, and again figure after figure succeeded each other rapidly, the Prince, with his untiring vivacity and kind, genial humour, standing up in every set, and the Princess also dancing often, but not waltzing. It was getting well on to the grey of dawn before their Royal Highnesses had quitted the room, while many of the company remained till five or six o'clock.

29. SUICIDE IN A RAILWAY TRAIN.-An inquest was held upon the body of an unfortunate gentleman who shot himself in a railway train. It was shown that about seven o'clock -a.m.,`as the limited mail train from Edinburgh to London was approaching Newark-on-Trent, the passengers in one compartment were aroused from their sleep by the report of a pistol, and found that a gentleman had shot himself. The pistol was in his hand, and blood pouring from a ghastly wound in the right temple. The two gentlemen in the carriage with the suicide, who both turned out to be surgeons-viz., Dr. Low, of Martley, and Dr. Douglass, of Her Majesty's Indian Army, immediately raised an alarm, and the body was removed from the train at Newark, and taken by the police to the Newark Arms Inn, where the inquest was held before Mr. Griffin, coroner. Drs. Low and Douglass were detained at Newark as witnesses. The gentleman was ascertained to be M. le Viscompte de Marieo, a Frenchman and officer of the Legion of Honour. He had gold and silver money in his pockets, and letters and passport, but no baggage, and nothing to indicate his reason for destroying himself. Drs. Low and Douglass had travelled with him alone from Edinburgh and Berwick respectively, and con

versed with him, and saw nothing to indicate insanity in his conversation. The jury returned a verdict, "That the deceased destroyed himself, but there was no evidence to show his state of mind at the time."

29. STATUE TO LORD HERBERT.-A memorial statue of the late Lord Herbert of Lea was uncovered at Salisbury. Lord Palmerston was to have officiated at the inauguration, but his recent attack of gout prevented him from being present. Earl de Grey and Ripon, however, occupied his place and uncovered the statue. The ceremony was imposing, and caused much interest.

30. THE RE-OPENING OF HEREFORD CATHEDRAL, after alterations and restorations of different parts of the edifice, took place with great ceremony. The restorations, so far as they have gone, have cost more than 40,000l. Towards this sum the Dean and Chapter of Hereford have raised 13,0007. by mortgage on the fabric estate, and the cathedral body have subscribed 10,000l. in addition from their private resources. The public have contributed some few thousands more, and there is still an outstanding balance to a large amount.

JULY.

4. DREADFUL SHIPWRECK IN NEW ZEALAND.-The Rev. T. H. Campbell, Principal of the High School of the colony, was drowned, together with his wife, five children, and two servants, on the day after his arrival from England. They had crossed the ocean rapidly and prosperously, and arrived at Port Chalmers on Friday, July 3. On Saturday morning Mr. and Mrs. Campbell proceeded to Dunedin, and were welcomed by the chief authorities of the colony. They returned to Port Chalmers in the afternoon to bring their children to their new home. On the voyage, as it might be from Portsmouth to Southampton, their small steamer, the "Pride of the Yarra," was run down in the darkness of a hazy evening by a large vessel, the "Favourite." Eleven lives were lost, and nine of these were the family of Mr. Campbell. They were all in the cabin when the collision occurred, and nothing was heard or seen of them till the corpses were recovered next day by a diver. The Colonial Government voted them a public funeral, which was attended by the whole population of Dunedin with every mark of respect.

11. BALLOON NAVIGATION.-The following interesting account of his twelfth ascent was given by Mr. Glaisher, the well-known scientific aeronaut :

"This ascent was intended to have combined extreme height and distance, and almost until the time of leaving the earth there

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