India.

Bro . Hollingberry's able assistance as interpreter , His Highness the Prince could not have been initiated , Bro . Hollingberry having returned thanks , the AV . M . gave as a last toast , "All poor and distressed Masons" —drunk in solemn silence . The only other speech we shall allude to is that of Major Chamberlain , Superintendent of Thuggee , himself a hig h Mason . It was fully of anecdotes and numerous allusions , and he succeeded in keeping up one continuous flow of merriment ; the party did not break up till the small hours , hoping they mig ht soon again meet to spend as pleasant an evening . —Delhi Gazelle .

Obituary.

Obituary .

THE R . AV . BRO . THE EARL OF MKXBOROtTGH , PROV . G . M . OF AVEST YORKSHIRE . The R . AA ' . the Earl of Mexborough rlied on Tuesday , December 25 th , 1 SG 0 , at the residence of Colonel the Hon . James Lindsay , M . P ., in Fortman-sqnarc , after a short illness . The deceased was born on the 3 rd of July , 17 S 3 , and married ou the 29 th of August , 1 S 07 , Lady Anne Yorkc , eldest daughter of Philip , third Earl of Hardwicke , by whom , Avho survives his lordship , he leaves surviving

issue three sons and a daughter , namely , Viscount I'ollington ( now Earl of Mexborough ) , the Hon . and Rev . Philip Yorkc Savile , the Hon . Charles Stuart Savile , and Lady Sarah , married to Colonel the Hon . James Lindsay , ! a [ . P „ of the Grenadier Guards . The deceased nobleman is succeeded iu the family honours hy his eldest son , John Charles George , A'iscount I'ollington , born the : 1 th of June , 1 S 10 , and married on the 2 . 1 th of February , 1812 , to Lad y Rachel Walpolc , eldest daughter of the late Earl of Orford , who ' died the 21 st of

June , 1854 , and by whom he has an only son , John Horace , born in 1 S 13 . The present peer ivas educated at 'Trinit y College , Cambridge , at which University he graduated IiI . A . in 1 S 30 . In 1 S 31 he was returned to Parliament for Gatton , and represented Pontofract in the House of Commons from 1 S 35 to 18 . 17 . Our Bro . the late Earl was one of the oldest Masons—indeed so far back is the date of Ms initiation that we have been unable to trace it . His lordship , it is well knoivn , ivas what has been termed an " Athol

Mason , " and when the IAVO sections of our order merged in tho United Grand Lodg-c of Eiig-l-iiicl , in 2810 , it is believed that many of the Athol hooks were destroyed , the record of the late Prov . G . M . ' s Masonic career being amongst those missing . His lordshi p held the office of Prov . G . M . of West Yorkshire for many years , and up to the time of his decease .

BROTHER MATTHEW DAAVES . On the 13 th of December , at his residence , AVostbrook , Bolton , Lancashire , Brother Mattheiv Dawes , P . S . A ., JP . & . S , in his 57 th year . Bro . Dawes ivas initiated iu the Anchor and Hope Lodge , So . -11 , March 3 , 1 S 35 , and served the office of W . M . in 1810 ; he was exalted in the chapter attached to the same Lodge , May 31 , 1 S 37 , and passed the chairs . Bro . Dawes Avas i ' rov . Grand Com . of Knights Templar for Lancashire , and a member of the Supreme

Council of the 33 rrl degree . In the Templar degree , as also those under the Ancient and Accepted Rite , Bro . DIIAVCS look great interest . He ivas au assiduous searcher after Masons' marks , ' and had a most extensive collection of these memorials of Craftsmen . Few brethren were more esteemed and respected than our departed brother , and AVC may truly say a courteous gentleman has gone to his rest .

The Week.

THE WEEK .

THE COURT . —During the early part of the week , her Majest y and family have been dispensing the usual hospitalities of Windsor , and Mr . Lock , who brought the despatches from China , where he was one of the prisoners , has harl tho honour of joining the Royal circle at dinner . On New Year ' s-day the band of the Royal Horse Guards played a selection of favourite airs ou the East Terrace . Her Majesty ' s annual distribution of food and clothing to about GGO poor persons of the Windsor and Clewer parishes took place on in the of

Wednesday , Biding . House the Castle . The Queen and Prince Consort , accompanied by the Prince of AVales ^ Princess Alice , Prince Arthur , Prince Leopold , and the Princesses Helena , Louisa , and Beatrice , left AVindsor b y a special train for Osborne ! Prince Alfred has proceeded on a visit to Germany . GEXERAT , HOME NRWS . — -An increased rate ' of mortalit" is shown by the metropolitan returns for last week , attributable to the severity of the weather . From 1260 in thc previous week- the number of deaths '

rose to 1-107 . Of births there wove durin . " tho same period 1188—731 being boys and 751 girls . A proper idea of the unusual degree of cold may be had from the fact that the mean temperature of the air was 11 ° below the average of the same week

in 13 years . The lowest point reached by the thermometer was S ,. which happened at seven o ' clock on the morning of Christmas-day , Heavy snow and intense cold are reported from various quarters of the kingdom ; cold , indeed , to a degree such as has , perhaps , never been chronicled in our country ' s meteorological records . As muchas 45 degrees of frost , or 13 below zero , has been registered by the thermometer in some situations . In the western counties the snoivfall has been very great , and in consequence of the obstruction

caused to traffic several mails were delayed , and the Post-office announced the non-arrival of sixty in one day . On Sunday there was a fearful storm , accompanied by the breaking-up of the frost ,. AA-hich has made itself felt on the coast , antVmarked its passage by a considerable amount of damage to both life and property afloat ; The French sloop , Jean Baplisie , with a valuable cargo , was driven on shore under the South Foreland . All hands were got safely on shore with the exception of . the captain , who , unfortunately ,

was drowned . In Cawsand Bay a schooner was wrecked , the captain , mate , and three men losing their lives . At Portland Bay a Swedish ship called the Irene ivas driven against the neiv breakwater , when the pilot ivho had chargeof her was drowned . Another storm passed over the metropolis on Monday night and Tuesday morning ' , which told Avith disastrous effect in the * Channel , where its violence Avas experienced to a fearful degree . Serious losses , both of life and property , have been the result . On Neiv Year ' s

morning a large French barque ivas wrecked on the GoodAviu Sa ' nds . Of the ' crew tho fate is uncertain , it being only knoivn that they succeeded in getting into their boats . Another large vessel , belonging to Hamburgh , was also wrecked on the south part of the same sands . In this instance , also , it is to be feared the unfortunate creiv have perished . The opposite French coast appears to have been the scene of even more numerous casualties than our OAvn , the gale having raged there with extreme fury . The frost

has since returned with tho utmost severity . A serious boiler explosion happened in the building of the School of Medicine and Surgery , Manchester , on AVednesday , through the pipes having become frozen up . Much damage ivas done to the house , and some of the students narrowly escaped ivith their lives . At the Surrey Sessions a youth named George Lingham was charged with obtaining 10 s . fraudulently . He had gone into a public-house where the prosecutor , a female , was standing at the bar , and offered lier a " gulrl watch " for a pound . S ! ie , however , not satisfied AA-ith such a decided bargain , agreed to pay half the sum demanded .

Soon after , on examining her purchase , she found it to consist of a brass locket . The prisoner was found guilty , and sentenced to tAvelve months' hard labour . In the Court of Queen's Bench an action against the Eastern Counties Raihvay Company , arising out of an accident at Tottenham , by which a gentleman named Stokes lost his life , and ivhieh has been protracted through six days , the jury found that there was no evidence to prove the ivelding of the defective tire by the company—that the weld was a proper one

—that the defect could not have been discovered by inspectionthat there ivas an insufficiency of break poiver , but had there been more the nature of the accident would not have been altered . A verdict ivas accordingly entered for the defendants . A bill of exceptions was tendered to his lordship ' s summing up on behalf ot the plaintiff . A young man named Lot Ivanson Leather , who shot a girl at Bury a tew days ago , ivas brought before the magistrates on Friday , charged with attempted murder . It ivas

sliOAi-n that the girl , Jane Mooney , had refused to receive the prisoner as her suitor , which moved him to commit the crime . After firing a pistol at her and wounding her he made several successive attempts upon his oivn life—hy shooting , hanging , droAvning , and ultimately cut his throat with a knife . He ivas committed for trial . At a coroner ' s inquest , held in the Hut Barracks , Woolwich Common , on Saturday , a verdict of manslaughter was returned against a soldier , named May , for causing the death of his

comrade . Immediately after tho occurrence May absconded , and had succeeded in defeating the efforts of the pickets to discover his whereabouts . Ou AVednesday , lioivever , he turned up amongst a batch of ruffians who were charged at AVestminster police-court with perpetrating a series of dastardly outrages in Chelsea ; showing by his subsequent conduct how little the fate of his poor comrade had affected his mind . TAVO farmers of Somerton have been committed for trial at the assizes on a charge of cutting aivay a

portion of the bank of the River Barrett . Their object is stated to have been to benefit a portion of their own land by the deposit from the river water thus made to overfloAv ; but the effect to others is represented as likely to be very disastrous . An explosion of gas has taken place at the South-Western Railway Station , Glasgow , ivhieh , although fortunately not attended with loss of life , has caused a serious destruction of propertj * . The gas had accumulated in the cellars underneath , and ignited upon the door being opened . Doors aud windows Avere bloAvn out , the floor of the booking-office was lifted up and sent into the street , whilst a huge iron gate , several tons in weight , was shattered to pieces . Of