Obituary.

at the general election of 1832 for Portsmouth , but was unsuccessful . In 1837 he made an equally unsuccessful attempt to represent the borough of Greenwich , hut was defeated by Mr . Attwood and Mr . Barnard . It was in 1 S 41 he first entered the House of Commons , being returned for Marylebone , in conjunction with Sir Benjamin Hall ( now Lord Llanover ) , which borough he sat for up to 1847 . In November , 1855 , he was elected for Sou thwart , on the death of Sir AA'illiam Molesworth , and was again returned at the last

general election . A vacancy consequently occurs in the representation of that borough by his lamented demise . AVe are not aware when or where Sir Charles was initiated , but a e \ v vears since he was a constant visitor at the Lodge of Friendfihip No . 6 ) , where he was well known . BRO . DAVID WILLIAMS AVIRE .

It is with feelings of the deepest regret we have to announce the decease of Bro . Alderman AA ire , which melancholy event occurred on Friday morning , the 9 th inst ., at his residence , Lewishain , shortly before ten o ' clock . The late worthy alderman of AA'albrook AVard was in town on the Monday , appearing somewhat better , and on his return home was in much hotter spirits than usual , which raised hopes in the minds of his family that he would improve . During Monday night , however , ho was seized with violent sickness , and

from that time he sank , despite the ellorts of his medical attendants , During AAtednesday , Mr . AVire became- delirious , his complaint , paralysis , having evidently deeply affected the brain , and on the following day he was entirely unconscious , in which state he remained until death . The event , too , was rendered more melancholy by the fact that the day of his death was the second anniversary of his accession to the civic chair . Bro . AA ire was a member of the Moira Lodge ( No . 109 ); hut owing to his public duties and ill health , did not take any active part in Masonry .

The Week.

THE WEEK .

THE COUET . —Her Majesty , the Prince Consort , and suite , remain at AVmdsor , where the usual hospitalities are being dispensed . On the 9 th there was a dinner in honour of the birthday of II . R . H . tho Prince of AA ales . Prince Alfred arrived at Plymouth on board the Euryalus , on which he has been studying his profession , and proceeded to pay a visit to his royal parents at Windsor . H . R . H . the Prince of AA ales , on whose account some anxiety was felt , owing to the Hero and attendant vessels having been out twenty-five days , arrived home on Thursday .

GENEBAL HOME NEWS . —For tho week ending Saturday last the number of deaths in the metropolis was 1084 . This is a slight increase on the numbers for the two proceeding weeks , but compared with the average of the same period for ten years past it is less by 108 . The circumstances of one death , as given by the registrar , ought to be repeated for general information : —A child , three years of age , was poisoned by " arsenical exhalations from the of breakfast " There 1691 births is

green paper a -room . were regtered for the week—800 hoys and 801 girls .- A deputation ' of the hop growers of Kent , Surrey , and Sussex , have had an interview with the Chancellor of the Exchequer , for the purpose of presenting a petition praying for the postponement of the second half of the duty ou the ' 1859 crop till November , 1861 . As set forth in their petition , the grounds of this request are , that although the crop of that year was large the prices were not remunerative , and for the of 1860 the small

season produce is in such bad condition as to be unfit for present use ; consequently the value not being realizable , the planters have no funds to meet the excise deniandjust falling due . Mr . Gladstone informed the gentlemen of the deputation that he should carefull y inquire into the allegations adduced , and inform them without delay of the decision of Government . On Monday evening the competitors in the Lancashire rifle-contest had the various prizes awarded them at a held in St

meeting . George's Hall , Liverpool . Lord Stanley offered some excellent advice to the companies , both as to their drill and shooting , and warned them . against suffering such a grand and noble movement to be tarnished or impeded fay feelings so insi" --nifieent as local jealousies and rivalry . Lord Elcho recommended that they should form a countyassociation to be connected with the national one , having its rules constructed on a similar basis . Mr . Rafflestho Liverpool stipendiary istratehas made his

, mag , official report to the Board of Trade on the loss of the Conway . This vessel sailed from the Mersey for Calcutta on tho 24 th August , ' with a " erew of 48 hands and 348 passengers on board , principally wives and children of soldiers . On the morning of the 9 th Sept ., the ship having become a wreck , all on hoard were taken of hv

the masters of the Summer Cloud , and were safely landed at Funchal . According to the report , the Con wag was to thelast , a good and staunch ship , the officers and crew discharged their duty to the utmost of their ability , and the loss of the vessel was not cansed through any default of the master . Bytroop ship Perseverance , the total loss of that vessel is announced . The disaster occurred on the 21 st October , on one of the Cape de Verde Islands . She had on board a large number of troops , all of

a telegram at the Admiralty from Lieutenant H . AA aller , of the whom were providentially saved . A ship was hired by which 500 of the soldiers were dispatched to Gambia , 100 more were carried to Lisbon by the steamer Africa , and the remainder sontinue in the meantime at Mayo , where the wreck took place , under the charge of their officers . The old martello tower at Bexhill , from the state of decay into which it has fallen , having been condemned to be removed , advantage was taken of the circumstance to make it serve the purpose , ere its final demolition , of testing the power of smooth-bore cannon compared with that of the Armstrong- gun . His Royal Highness the Commander-in-Chief superintended the

experiments on Monday , when a battery of two sixty-eights and two thirty-twos was extemporised and served , one set by Royal Artillerymen , the other by Cinque Port A ' ohmteers . At the close of the day ' s firing , which proved remarkably good , so little damage had been sustained by the structure , that his Royal Highness declared he would trust himself inside the towers while a smooth-bore battery played upon them . In proof of the superiority of the Armstrong weapon it may be stated that the tower of Eastbourne

was laid in ruins by fifty shots from a 100-pounder . 'Ihe usual business of nominating sheriffs for the counties of England and AArales was gone through on Monday at the Court of Exchequer in the presence of a number of Her Majesty ' s Ministers and the judges of the civil and criminal courts . The pricking takes place in January next , by the Queen in Council , when tho . gentlemen so selected will enter upon their office for the following year . AVestminster Abbeon AA cdnesday opened its gates to receive the

. y ashes of Thomas , Earl of Dundonald , Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom , who worthily takes his place side by side with the most distinguished of all that distinguished host who have received from , their country this final testimony of admiration or regard . The impressive burial service was read by the Dean of AA'estminster , whose earnest accents fell on the ears of an audience deeply serious and attentive . In the nave of the Sanctuary and at the foot of the

grave of Stephenson , is the spot assigned to the coffin of Lord Dundonald . Another shocking murder is reported as having just been committed in the county of Durham . The body of a man was found on Saturday lying near the river Teams disembowelled , it is said , and a knife , the w-eapon , apparently , with which the deed has been perpetrated , beside the body . On Saturday a labourer named AArilliam Ingram , a married man , 21 years of age , was brought before the magistrates at the Comity Court , Northampton , charged

with attempting to murder a girl , in the first place by stabbing her with a penknife , and afterwards by strangling . The girl was in the infirmary and unable to attend , consequently the prisoner was remanded . This atrocity was committed on a country road , as the poor girl was on her way home .- In the Court of Queen ' s Bench a rule has been granted calling upon the Great Ship Company to show cause why they should not pay Mr . Scott Russell the sum of £ 18 , 000 , awarded to him under arbitration . This case arose out

of work done for the Great Eastern by the petititioner . At tha Middlesex Sessions , Ambrose AAlillis , living in Short ' s-gardens , has been convicted of receiving stolen property , and it was shown that he bad been carrying on the practice for a considerable time . There could be no doubt , from the prices paid to the thief , that the prisoner knew the articles were dishonestly come by . He was sentenced to 18 months' hard labour . Two women , AVilliaras and Jameson , said to be proficients in their art , were also convicted of picking pockets in an omnibus , and sentenced the one to three years' penal servitude , and the other to 18 months' hard labour . Robert Ernest Graham , clerk to Mr . Nathan , wholesale watch

manufacturer , has been committed tor trial , charged with Iraudently obtaining watches and jewellery to the amount of £ 2000 . Accordto the evidence of witnesses the prisoner appears to have carried on quite a wholesale business on his own account , and iu a manner which displayed an amount of cool hardihood rarely met with in roguery . It is satisfactory to state that from the exertions of those in charge of this remarkable case , a portion of the property , worth nearly £ 1000 has been recovered .

FOEEIGN INTELLIGENCE . —The session of the Belgian Chambers was opened at Brussels on the 13 th inst . Contrary to expectation , there was no Royal speech . The Minister of the Interior read a letter from the King , in which his Majesty expresses his regret that he could not attend , owing to a severe cold . The Bourbon army is further diminished by 15 , 000 men , besides 4 , 000 horses and 33 guns . A body of Neapolitan troops of the above amount and force ; wo learn , were pursued by the Sardinians and took refuge in tho .