a sign of weakness during the evening and the night, and landed on the west side of Calais Harbour a little after half-past ten in the morning" in good spirits and condition," having remained in the water, without even touching a boat on his way, no less than 21 hours. The swimmer was supplied from time to time with refreshments from the boats that accompanied him-brandy, beef tea, and coffee-but no solid food passed his lips. The sea was calm till the French coast came almost within reach, when the flood tide set in, and drifted him eastward, towards Calais. An hour or so later there sprang up a breeze, which ruffled the sea and dashed the waves in the face of Captain Webb, who faintly called out that this cruel sea was killing him by inches. Success appeared hopeless; and one of his friends in the boat, well known as a diver, sat with a life-line round him in case of accident, as it was by many supposed that the long exposure to cold might cause Webb to become suddenly insensible and to sink without a moment's warning. The tide was running strongly away from shore, which was at 9.45 only half a mile distant. Fortunately a boat belonging to the Steam Mail-Packet Company put off from Calais and acted as a sort of breakwater to the now utterly exhausted swimmer. The sea ran so high that it even broke over the little boats which had accompanied him throughout the voyage. He persevered, however, and at last touched ground too weak to stand. A couple of men instantly went to his assistance, and he was able to walk slowly ashore; and after a refreshing sleep was none the worse for his unparalleled exploit.

On Captain Webb's return to Dover, and subsequently to his native county, Shropshire, he was welcomed with processions and rejoicings. The officers of the Dover garrison gave him a silver cup, and a public subscription was opened to present him with a round sum of money.

25. THE BRITISH ASSOCIATION opened its forty-eighth congress to-day at the Colston Hall, Bristol, under the presidency of Sir John Hawkshaw. The meeting, which lasted a week, was largely attended, and the topics discussed were of general interest.

THE EISTEDDFOD, the annual congress of patriotic Welshmen devoted to the literature, history, and music of their romantic country, was held the same week in the small town of Pwllheli, near Carnarvon. About 800l. was offered for competition in literary compositions, choral and instrumental and vocal competition, and for proficiency in art and sculpture. The meetings were held in a pavilion capable of accommodating an audience of six thousand. The festival proved highly successful.

27. RAILWAY ACCIDENTS have again occupied a prominent place in the daily papers, as is usually the case when the excursion season is going on. The first we shall record was of the most alarming character imaginable. An engine at full speed, without a driver, dragging a train full of passengers after it down an incline which ended in the sea, presented some elements of horror to which

we are even now unaccustomed in the annals of railway disaster; but through the courage and readiness of two of the passengers, the danger was happily averted without serious damage. On the morning of the 16th the passenger train from Dartmouth arrived at Torquay, where, as there is only a single line of rail between that place and Newton, it waited until the down goods train came in. Owing to the slipperiness of the rails the driver was unable to bring up the goods train at Tor, through which it passed down the incline to Torquay. The driver and fireman on the passenger train, seeing the goods train coming on the same line of rail, reversed the engine and jumped off. The goods train ran into the other with a shock and brought up a little beyond the station; the collision was not great, but it gave an additional impetus to the passenger train, which then ran on four miles by itself, none of the passengers knowing that the engine was without driver or stoker. When it ran through Paignton two gangers who happened to be in the train, thinking there was something wrong, walked along the footboards, clambered on to the engine, and brought the train to a standstill. In another five minutes the train would have reached the Churston incline, down which it must have rushed with increased speed till it plunged into Dartmouth harbour. The engine driver and stoker who thus abandoned their post were dismissed, and a valuable watch and 25l. were presented by the directors of the South Devon Railway to each of the two gangers.

On the 18th the train from London vid Chester was entering the tunnel which passes under the town of Birkenhead, on its way to the Monksferry Station, when it ran into a train of empty carriages which was coming up the single line of rails that passes through the tunnel. Sixteen passengers were hurt, some of them badly, and seven of them had to be sent at once to the Borough Hospital.

The most disastrous accident, however, occurred on the Midland Railway, at Kildwick Station, on the 27th. As an excursion train, on its return from Morecambe to Bradford, was at Cononley, the station before Kildwick, it was observed that the tail-lamps were not alight, and the fact was at once telegraphed to the station-master at Kildwick; but the Scotch express, which passed through Cononley only three minutes after the excursion train, was not stopped. The consequence was that whilst the excursion train was stopping at Kildwick to light the lamps at the end, the express dashed into it, and smashed two carriages to splinters. Five persons were taken out of the débris dead, two men died soon after, and the wounded numbered over forty. Fires were lighted with the wood of the broken carriages, and after a delay of some hours' traffic was resumed. At the inquest a verdict of manslaughter was returned against Palfreyman, the engine driver of the express, and the signalman at Cononley was censured.

-RAILWAY ROBBERIES.-The Metropolitan magistrates have had before them a case which seems likely to show how

some, at least, of the robberies at railway stations are accomplished. Some ingenious persons, it appears, have devised a way by which a trunk can be made to steal a trunk, and a portmanteau to annex a portmanteau. The thieves lay a trunk artfully contrived on a smaller trunk; the latter clings to the former, and the owner of the larger carries both away. The decoy trunk is said to be fitted with a false bottom, which goes up when it is laid on a smaller trunk, and with mechanism inside which does for the innocent trunk what Polonius recommended Laertes to do for his friend, and grapples it to its heart with hooks of steel. In fact, the decoy trunk-we do not know how better to describe it-is made to perform an office like that of certain flowers, which suddenly close at the pressure of a fly or other insect within their cup and imprison him there.

29. THE ARCTIC EXPEDITION.-The screw frigate “Valorous," which accompanied the two Arctic ships "Alert" and "Discovery to Disco, with stores for the Arctic expedition, arrived at Plymouth this day. A correspondent of the Standard gave particulars of the "Valorous 's" voyage to Disco and back. He described the ship as having been much overladen with stores, and stated that on the passage out she experienced bad weather. She arrived at Disco in five weeks and a day, nearly two days before the "Alert" and the "Discovery," both of whom suffered severely from the tempestuous weather. The stores were transferred to the expedition ships, and all three went together a little distance up Waiggt Straits, where they parted. In that locality they met with a great quantity of ice. They parted in sunshine, but the weather soon changed into a fog, with a cold cheerless drizzle, which speedily shut out of sight those who formed the expedition. The "Valorous" had only proceeded a short way on her return passage when she ran upon a rock, and was detained at Holsteinborg twelve days for repairs. At the time of finally parting company with the Arctic ships the crews of both were in perfect health and excellent spirits, having the utmost confidence in their gallant chief and their ultimate

success.

SEPTEMBER.

1. Loss OF THE "VANGUARD."-A serious collision, resulting in the total loss of one of the ironclad vessels of the reserve squadron, occurred off the coast of Wicklow shortly after noon this day. During the last week of August the reserve squadron of the Channel Fleet, consisting of five ironclad vessels, and the yacht" Hawk," had been stationed at Kingstown, Vice-Admiral Sir W. Tarleton, Admiral Superintendent of the Naval Reserves,

being on board the "Warrior," which led the fleet. At half-past ten the ships got into line in the roads of Kingstown and prepared for departure. The usual order having been settled, the start for Cork was made, the "Warrior" and " Hawk" in front, the "Achilles," "Hector," "Iron Duke," and "Vanguard coming behind in a straight line. Off the Kish Lightship, which floats at sea six miles from Kingstown, the " Achilles" hoisted her ensign to say farewell, and then parted company to proceed to Liverpool at noon, the sea being at this time what is known in nautical phraseology as moderate. A fog came on; it increased, as fogs at sea do, in density every moment. At 12.30 fifty yards of sea ahead could not be seen, and at this time the "Warrior" and "Hector were considered to be a mile or two in front of the other ships. The ships were proceeding at the rate of twelve or fourteen knots, being desirous of keeping their appointed time in Queenstown; but their speed was reduced when the fog came on, and they were running at not more than half the former rate. The "Vanguard" watch observed a large vessel coming down upon them, and the helm was put hard aport to clear it. The "Iron Duke" was then in the wake of the Vanguard" at a short distance, and the sudden check in the course of the latter vessel had the effect of bringing them closer and turning her broadside to the former, which, unaware of the obstruction, had made no corresponding motion, but continued on its tack. The commander of the "Iron Duke," Captain Henry Hickley, who was on deck at the time, saw the figure of the Vanguard" appearing through the fog. He instantly ordered the engines to be reversed, but this direction went forth too late. The ram of the "Iron Duke " struck the " Vanguard some four feet below the armour-plates, on the port quarter, abreast of the engine-room. The rent made was very large, and the water poured into the hold in a perfect flood. The officers of the "Vanguard," with a crew whose discipline the officers described as sailor-like and magnificent throughout, did all they could to obviate the danger by endeavouring to make tight the several compartments of the ship. An artificer, at the imminent risk of his life, ran down into the engine-room and let off the steam. But for this a terrible explosion would have occurred, and destroyed probably the lives of all on board. The after portion filled first, and the water rushed into the engine-room, extinguishing the fires, and the machinery was stopped. Captain Dawkins then called out to the men of his ship that if they preserved order all would be saved, but if there was confusion all would be lost. The men stood along the deck in order, and not a man moved until ordered to do so. The ship was quickly filling; nothing could withstand the deluge that began to flow through every section. Meanwhile the boats of both ships were promptly lowered. While the launching was going on the swell of the tide caused a life-boat to surge upwards against the hull, and one of the crew

had his fingers crushed. This was the only injury to any person. Captains Hickley and Dawkins worked vigorously to get the men of the "Vanguard" aboard the "Iron Duke," and within twenty minutes the whole of the men were transferred. There was many a voluntary delay, as individual sailors petitioned to make one more effort to secure chattel or keepsake hidden away below. But the orders, " Boys, come instantly!" were not only frequent, but stern. As the bells on the "Iron Duke" were striking two, the last man of the "Vanguard" having been received on board the "Iron Duke," the disabled vessel whirled round two or three times, and then suddenly sank in deep water. The discipline and courage of the service were never more admirably proved. Captain Dawkins was the last person to leave his sinking ship, having remained on the bridge all the time. He was earnest in impressing upon his men the necessity of preserving order and selfcommand, and in pointing out the fatal consequence of any confusion, and his expostulations were effectually seconded by his officers.

3. AN ECCENTRIC CLOCK.-Soon after midnight the cathedral clock at Ely struck nearly two hundred times, and then, after a brief rest, recommenced another long series of strokes. The occurrence caused no small surprise, and even consternation, for it was taken as a fire bell; but it arose from no more mysterious cause than the giving way of a pin from long use.

7. THE NEW NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE.-The first brick of the New National Opera House on the Thames Embankment was laid by Mdlle. Titiens to-day, the laying of the first stone being postponed until it could be performed by one of the Royal Family. The ceremony was a very quiet one, almost, it may be said, private. The lady descended by a stairway dressed with red cloth to that corner of the foundations which had been chosen for the honour, accompanied by Mr. Mapleson, Mr. Fowler, the architect, and some dozen gentlemen well known as interested in music and all people and things musical, while about an equal number watched the proceedings from above. A handsome silver trowel, chased with gold, bearing an appropriate inscription, was handed to Malle. Titiens, who went duly through all the necessary ceremonies of spreading the mortar, tapping the stone, and applying the plumb line. Mr. Fowler, Lord Alfred Paget, and Mr Mapleson also contributed a brick apiece, and the whole party then adjourned to the St. Stephen's Club for lunch, and the usual making of speeches. The house is to be the largest in Europe, next to the San Carlo at Naples, and is to cover more than two acres of ground. In making good the foundations it was found necessary to excavate as low as 40 feet before the London clay could be reached, and the depth of the concrete on which Mdlle. Titiens has laid the first brick is 16 feet, the level of the stage itself being but 40 feet above the foundation.

FALL OF A FACTORY.-A sad catastrophe occurred in

F