The Week.

Reed ' s two new war vessels , the Research and the Fnterprise It was alleged that these ships , of which so much had been expected , were comparative failures , but Lord Clarence Paget defended Mr . Reed and his experimental craft . —In reply to questions from Mr . AVhiteside and Mr . Darby Griffith , Lord Palmerston and Mr . Layard stated that Count Bismarck had intimated that orders had been issued to the Prussian officers in Jutland

to make no military requisitions during the armistice , ancl to restore any property which may have been taken from Danish subjects since the day on which hostilities were suspended . Adjourned till Thursday . GESERAL HOME NEWS . —The mortality in London last week was high . The deaths were 100 above the number reported in

tha previous week . The actual number was 1 , 421 ; the excess above the average of- ten years corrected to allow for increase of population amounts to 178 . The births were 1 , 81-1 ; the estimated average 1 , 915 . The pauperism of the cotton manufacturing districts continues to decline steadily . 4 , 500 paupers went off the union relief lists in the second week of

the present month . Three of the larger unions contributed 2 , 130 to the general decrease , viz ., Ashton-under-Lyne , 860 ; Manchester , 860 ; and Preston , 710 . The out-door relief last week was £ 6 , 117 , or £ 278 less than the sum expended in the week immediately preceding . The adult able-bodied paupers decreased by 1 , 850 ; leaving , however , 26 , 750 of this class , and

their families , yet dependent upon the poor rates . Mr . Farnail reported to the Central Relief Committee that during the fortnight ending the 11 th inst . 13 , 916 persons were struck off the relief lists of the 27 unions composing the cotton manufacturing districts . Mr . Hugh Mason gave notice of a motion to request " the President of the Poor Law Board to seek for further powers under the Public Works Act , to

enable him to lend a further sum of at least £ 500 , 000 , in order to promote sanitary and other improvements in the manufacturing districts , and thus to provide employment and wages for cotton operatives . " At the last meeting of the Metropolitan Board of Works an interesting discussion took place on the formation of a new line of street from Oxford-street to Cliarin" --

cross . The Hampstead and Charing-cross Railway had offered , in consideration of their bill being unopposed , to make a street 40 ft . wide . The committee of the board insisted on a width of 60 ft . The company objected to the expense , but offered to carry out the plan if the board would give them a site on the Thames embankment ancl a contribution of £ 75 , 000 in money . This

proposal , when referred to the board , was rejected , and the committee was instructed to insist upon 60 ft . of roadway untramelled by conditions . The Gazette contains an order from the Sovereign appointing the Duke of Sutherland and the Marquis of Ailesbury- to bo Knights of the Garter , and dispensing with the ceremonies attending the usual mode

of installation . The conga d'dlire is also issued for the appointment of Dr . Jenne to be Bishop of Peterborough . On Saturday , the Newspaper Press Fund held their first annual dinner , Lord Houghton in the chair . There was a very brilliant company assembled , and the addresses of the noble chairman , Mr . Denman , Mr . Newdegate , and others , set forth in a

striking manner the nature of the charity and the claims it has on the benevolence of public men . In the present case that claim was not made in vain , a large subscription , drawn from wide sources , following the chairman ' s appeal . The musical department came out in unusual force ; in fact , the after-dinner portion of the entertainment consisted more of music than of

eloquence . So many of the leading members of the musical profession , including Mr . Sims Reeves , Mdlle . Parepa , and others were anxious to testify their good will to the newspaper press

by their attendance on this occasion , that the dining-hall was in a measure turned into a concert-room , to the intense delight of a brilliant assemblage of ladies who graced the galleries . The attendance at the Derby on Wednesday showed no falling off from former years . The rail and the road were as crowded as ever , the latter with the old motley grouping of vehicles , and the course presented the old vast surging crowd : The fineness

of the day added much to the enjoyment of the scene . The "blue ribbon" was won on this occasion by Mr . I'Anson ' s horse Blair Athol , a horse which , from its position in the betting list , did not seem to be popular among the turf frequenters . The favourite , General Peel , ran second . Our second cupola gun ship is now afloat . The Prince Albert has been launched from

Messrs . Samuda ' s building yard . It is said that the ship was intended to throw a weight of metal of l , 1201 bs ., against the Warrior ' s 881-lbs ., though the crew of the Prince Albert will be only 150 , against the 700 men of the TPnmo } -. A meeting of the commanding officers of the A oIuuteer Corps in and about the metropolis , has been held , at which it was agreed to

make a request to the emplo 3 ers of labour to allow all volunteers in their employment a half-holiday in order that they might take part in the review which is to take place in Hyde Park ou the 2 Sth inst ., under the inspection of the Prince of Wales , ancl it is not doubted that the employers will cheerfully comply with a request so reasonable . The Globe states that the Government has purchased the two

Mersey steam rams , —a circumstance upon which that journal congratulates the country , on the ground that we have thus not only secured two good ships but have also escaped the heavy expenses of a trial at bar , and " the consequences of a possible adverse decision . " Our iron-clad fleet , which has been so unexpectedly strengthened , consisted , a few days ago—as we learn from a parliamentary return—of sixteen ships and seven floating batteries . Since the return was prepared , however ,

a cupola ship , the Prince Albert , has been launched , so that , including the Messrs . Laird ' s two rams , we have a total of 26 iron-caseclsliips and batteries afloat . Deducting the Prince Albert , the return shows that 10 other iron-clads are " bulletin ; .. "

Few places in England apparently escaped the thunderstorm of Friday week . A vast amount of damage was done in many parts of the country , and several deaths from lightning arc reported . The case of the men who were apprehended on the charge of being pirates for seizing a Federal ship bound from Matamoras to New York , has been concluded in tho Court of Queen ' s Bench . The Lord Chief Justice was in favour of iving the men up to the Federal authoritieswho claimed them

g , , but all the other judges took an opposite view , and the prisoners were consequently discharged . \ iee-Chancellor Sir John Stuart has given judgment in the long pending action between Sir John Ramsdon , Bart ., and one of bis tenants in the neighbourhood of Huddersficld . The late Sir John Ramsden was in the habit of granting verbal leases , renewable in perpetuity , ancl the present baronet

soon after be cimo of age proposed to put the leases on a new footing , and to raise the rents , which led to a dispute that finally issued in Sir John bringing an action of ejectment . The action was tried in the ease of one of those tenants ; and the Vice Chancellor decided that the tenant had acquired a right to the land of which the owner could not dispossess him , but that the ground-rent ought to be doubled . Sir John

Ramsden to pay the costs of the suit . This will decide several other cases that were pending . There seems to be no prnrpect of au early termination of the dispute between the ironworkers of Leeds and their employers . On Monday the workmen submitted a sort of compromise to the masters , but the latter decided that thoy would entertain no propositions which did not embody the spirit of the " Declaration , " by which

it is sought to relieve the trade from union interference . In this state of things , the "Association of Ironworkers" make the singular intimation to " those of their friends who are _ disposed to emigrate that there are ample funds noiv at their disposal to carry out that object . " It may bo remembered that a person representing himself to be the agent of certain ironmasters in the Northern States of America recently addressed a meeting of the men , and we presume that the " ample funds" at the disposal of the union come from a Federal