door was the window, with folding wooden shutters inside. At the right-hand side of the room was the fireplace, and on the mantel above it were two prayer-books, with other little family articles. The floor of the room was covered with blood, papers, and articles of children's clothing, and also an overturned bed-chamber candlestick, and on the floor was found a razor, which appeared to have been the instrument of these terrible deeds. Whitworth's boots were also found in the room without any marks of blood upon them. At the left side of the room stood two bedsteads in a line with each other. On the outer edge of that nearest the door lay Mrs. Whitworth, dressed, with the exception of her boots, her throat gashed in so horrible a manner as to show the vertebræ of the neck. The wounds of the mother and her six children were all of the same shocking character. An infant lay across the mother's lap, and had been placed at the breast, in which position the mother had evidently fallen asleep, and been deprived of life before she awoke. On this same bed were the bodies of the second girl and eldest boy, which had both been thrown on the bed after being murdered. On the bed nearest the window lay the eldest girl and another, both of whose countenances bore the impress of the deepest horror. They were all in their night dresses, but had their socks on, excepting the eldest girl. The soles of the socks were saturated with blood. At the head of the same bed lay a little boy, about two years old. The marks on some of the pillows would appear to indicate that the murderer used bem to stifle his victims' cries

while he deprived them of life. In the room with the bodies was found a sword, or common ship's cutlass, with the point sharp; it was bespattered with blood, but, as far as could be judged, had not been used. The razor was covered with blood, and a part of the edge was turned, as though from coming in contact with some hard substance. From the circumstances disclosed at the inquest, it appeared that Whitworth and his wife were of highly respectable conduct, and lived upon the most affectionate terms; their children, also were well-conducted, clean, and apparently happy. The humble home was kept in excellent order-the garden, in particular, had been kept with great care; but the family were reserved, and had little intercourse with their neighbours.

Whitworth himself had always conducted himself as a steady soldier, and the business of his office was properly discharged; but he appeared to entertain strong prejudices against several persons, and particularly against any per son connected with the Royal Engineers. At the expiry of eight or nine months he would have been entitled to a pension, and he was especially anxious that he should not be removed from the fort until that period arrived. On this point he appeared to have worked himself into a state of great agitation; and a letter to a superior officer, very properly and respectfully worded, petitioning for this indulgence, was found in his room. On the whole, his conduct was considered strange, but there was nothing to excite alarm.

Of the time and circumstances

of the tragedy nothing is known. On Wednesday evening the whole of the children were seen.

On

Thursday morning the second girl was seen with her hat and shawl on, going out of the fort; but the bedroom blinds were down the whole of that day. On Friday morning the bed-room shutters were closed. About half-past 1 that afternoon a neighbour remarked to his wife, "There is the window-shutter moving; they are getting up." Soon after 2 o'clock a boatman, on the road between the fort and barracks, met Whitworth running towards the barracks. He stopped him and asked what was the matter; he answered, "Horrid! they've murdered my six children and poor wife!" The boatman said, "Nonsense." Whitworth replied, "Yes, they have; and I have been watching out two or three nights, and there is a man standing down there with two pistols, one in each hand." After a few more hurried expressions he rushed on towards the barracks. In the house were found some scraps of paper, on which incoherent sentences were written, all having the same tendency to indicate a plot of others for the murder of the family.

The area of the fort, as before stated, is extremely small, and the dimensions of the court-yard only thirty-five paces; the buildings surrounding this small space were occupied by sixteen persons; yet of these seven were slain, under such circumstances as indicated that some, at least, had struggled with their murderer, without giving the slightest alarm to the other eight. Captain Manners, the officer in charge of the fort, sat up smoking in the room of a brother-officer until half-past 12 that night, and no noise was heard the night was perfectly quiet. The surgeon who

examined the bodies early in the afternoon was of opinion that they had been dead about fifteen hours.

In the meanwhile the unfortunate man-unfortunate, indeed, that even his unwitting hand had committed such deeds-fortunate, that having committed them, his mind was utterly unconscious of his misery-was examined in the hospital. He had inflicted severe wounds on his neck, but none of the larger vessels were injuredprobably owing to the razor having been blunted and jagged in the slaughter of his victims. He was perfectly unconscious of his actions, and exhausted by loss of blood. Afterwards he spoke incoherently of his family, enumerating his children by name, and spoke ramblingly of his duties and his garden.

The poor fellow, whose age was stated to be 39, was placed at the bar, at the Winchester assizes, on the charge of murder. When placed in the dock, he stared vacantly about the Court, and muttered incoherent sentences. A jury was empannelled to try whether he was in a state of mind capable of understanding and pleading to the indictment. The gaol-surgeon deposed that the prisoner's mental powers were almost entirely extinct, owing to softening of the brain; and the jury accordingly found that he was incapable of pleading. The poor man, who during this inquiry had placed his armn round the neck of the turnkey who had him in charge, and smiled at, and pointed to, the Judge, was then removed.

22. EPSOM RACES. - Probably the mythical " Clerk of the Weather-Othice" had got leave of absence, and had an engagement for the Derby; for the Epsom week

was one of the rare exceptions in "the wettest year ever recorded." The crowds on the Derby-day were at least as numerous, as respectable, and as jovial as heretofore. The Craven was won by Mr. J. Hawley's "Gallus;" the Woodcote by Mr.Merry's "Dundee;" the Derby by Mr. Merry's "Thormanby," beating the two first favourites, the "Wizard" and "Umpire," easily. 224 subscribers, 33 started. Value of the stakes 60501. Besides this very handsome sum, Mr. Merry is said to win 70,000l. in bets. The Oaks was won by Mr. Eastwood's "Butterfly," a filly low down in the list of favourites. 156 subscribers, 16 started. Value of the stakes 39951.

22. WRECK OF THE "MALABAR." -The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Company's ship Malabar has been wrecked under very singular circumstances, and the loss of the vessel entailed the loss of documents which might have affected the result of a great war, and even changed the whole position of England in the East.

It is a matter of history, that on the refusal of the Chinese Government to ratify the treaty of Tientsin, and their subsequent defeat of the English and French squadron at the mouth of the Peiho, the Earl of Elgin, who had negotiated that treaty, was despatched from England on a special mission, to unravel the tangled chain of Chinese diplomacy, to endeavour to bring his former arrangements into operation, and if he should fail, to bring the Chinese Court to reason by force. For this purpose a large and complete army, and an effective naval force, were already assembled on the coast of China, and only awaited his Lordship's

ival to proceed to the Gulf of

Pichelee. The French Ambassador, Baron Gros, was also sent with a similar object and similarly escorted. The two Ministers Plenipotentiary, with a large suite, had proceeded from Suez, in the Simla, and were now awaiting the arrival of the steamer from China, in the harbour of Point de Galle, Ceylon. The Malabar entered the harbour on the 20th May, and was anchored by the pilot in the usual anchorage; but it appears she was not secured in the effectual manner which the port regulations, founded on the dangerous character of the climate and the exposed nature of the anchorage, require. The reason assigned for this carelessness deserves notice, since, in the doctrine of chances, the same calamity may occur at any time. It is not deemed necessary to secure the mail-steamers in the same way as paltry merchant ships, because they frequently stay but a short time. "It's not worth while." On this occasion the undervaluation of contingencies occasioned the loss of half a million of property, inappreciable injury to private passengers, great loss and inconvenience to merchants-finally, the detention of two important personages, on whom depended the question of peace or war to half the human race, and the loss of the credentials which alone could authorize them to deal with the Chinese Court.

The luggage, documents, and decorations of the two Ambassadors having been put on board, those high officials themselves and their suites embarked: the vessel was to start in another hour. At this moment, when one revolution of the minute-hand would have shown how necessary precaution is, a white squall struck the ship,

steamers trading along the coast, or from the Baltic, were lost-one, a Dutch steamer, on an excursion trip, with eighty people on board, foundered, and the cattle boats from Hamburg, Rotterdam, and other places, had all their deck cargo swept overboard, the vessels themselves escaping by what seems a miracle. During the height of the hurricane, on Monday, eight ships were seen to go down off Yarmouth, and not one of all their crews was saved; others were driven on the sands of that dangerous coast, and were beaten to pieces in the sight of hundreds who thronged the beach, and sought in vain to render aid. Hundreds of ships, dismasted or injured in spars or hull, ran for shelter into the harbours. Further north, thirteen Filey yawls were driven on the rocks, to the ruin of their proprietors, their value, with their nets, being estimated at 10,000l. Near twentyfive sail were driven ashore off Redcar. A large barque was wrecked north of Hartlepool, and the master and most of the crew drowned.

On the 28th May, 143 wrecks took place off the English coast; of these vessels, thirty-six were beaten to pieces; but, fortunately, only thirty-four persons of their numerous crews perished. In the whole month, 187 vessels were wrecked or damaged on the British coasts; seventy-four persons were drowned; 212 were rescued. This enumeration, however, does not include the vessels and their hapless crews that foundered at sea; nor the fishing-boats and the poor men who perished with them off Yarmouth and the east coast of England and Scotland.

28. DREADFUL LOSSES OF THE

YARMOUTH FISHERMEN.-The terrible gale of this day was more fatal to the fishing vessels along the east coast than to the merchant leviathans of the deep. The fishermen of Yarmouth, Lowestoff, and other places on the coast, were pursuing their occupations, when the storm came upon them before they could draw in their nets or even cut themselves loose from them. So utter and so sudden was the destruction, that none survived to tell the tale. Their return was awaited in vain by their distracted families, and their fate was only ascertained by the wrecks of their vessels, which were picked up at sea, or were driven on shore. By this fearful calamity, 186 stendy and industrious men, in the prime of life, earning a livelihood by honest labour for themselves, their wives, and families, were swept into eternity; leaving seventy-two widows and 172 children bereaved of their natural supporters. About 130 of these poor men were from Yarmouth alone. The wail of desolation from that industrious little town may be imagined. The public sympathy was warmly interested in the case of persons so frightfully and so suddenly deprived of support, and even of the means of future industry. The subscriptions for the relief of the widows and children exceeded 10,000l., when the trustees of the fund announced their intention not to solicit further aid. The fund, after rendering adequate immediate assistance, was sufficient to last as long as assistance ought to be required.

28. THE NORTH-WEST PASSAGE. -FRANKLIN AND MCCLINTOCK.— At the annual meeting of the Royal Geographical Society, the Founder's Gold Medal was pre