of the feringhees and the property of the Merchants are now lodged. Mr. and Mr. and and have fled to the War ships beyond Gunga Saugor, see we not the Christians everyw here retreating? 5th. The illustrious Nuwab Mahommed Ameer Khan has been invited by His Majesty Akbar Shah to join the holy Syud in exterminating the Singhs of the Panjab after which he will doubtless smite the accursed English also. at 6th. The Government has manifested singular want of sense in appointing Mr. to be The man is a capacious blockhead and very hot-tempered: he can do no business himself yet he has the extreme folly to be angry when abler persons wish to do it for him. When the most respectable Hindoostanee gentlemen waited on him yesterday he just stood up half naked while they salamed and said "well (so in the original) what do you want?" and when they answered only to pay our respects, he growled out "jow!" He is ruled by his mistress, who is reported to slipper him at times. 7th. The gentlemen of exalted dignity had a great feast last night to which all the Military chiefs and Lieutenants were invited. There was a little hog on the table before Mr. who cut it into small pieces and sent some to each of the party even the women ate of it. In their language a Pig is called Ham. Having stuffed themselves with the unclean food and many sorts of flesh, taking plenty of wine they made for some time a great noise which doubtless arose from drunkenness. They all stood up two or four times crying Hip! Hip! and roared, before they drank more wine. After dinner they danced in their indecent manner tumbling about one another's wives Captain who is staying with away early with the (latter's) lady arm in arm, the Palankeens following behind and they proceeded by themselves into the Bangalow. The wittol remained at table guzzling red wine. 8th. There is likewise a Miss Beeby (Spinster) of the party but as she is forty years old and ill-favoured how sbould Mr. marry her? went 9th. His lady has the leprosy. She scolds the people about her with a voice like the shrieking of Jackals. 10th. Is it not marvellous that he should be so great a ninny as not to see that a buxom woman must yield to passion. He allows that handsome Khedmutgar with his long locks and gay attire to be continually and in all places before the eyes of his wife: who doubts that the fellow is her paramour? I believe these extracts selected for their moderation will sufficiently attest the licentiousness of the native Reed, if they do not allay the fears of those who dread the influence of types 66 in such hands. It requires unusual expansion and serenity of mind to make one invested with power to relish a Free Press within its own jurisdiction. But better this than worse by my advice." A man of good sense and prudence will endure quietly what he can neither avert nor put down. Since the severest remarks with distorted inferences and a malignant contempt of truth prevail at present without remedy, it would be wise policy to induce the assassins who shoot these poisoned arrows from their lurking places, to appear as open enemies in civilized warfare. A SKETCH. She stood before me as a playful child, Through her dark locks her slender fingers twining; A chasten'd light, like to some planet shining In the blue vault of Heaven, and gazed In rapture, as on me those eyes were raised. Her playfulness soon ripen'd to a glow That to her bosom gave a deeper heaving; Fortune withdrew her smiles, and, one by one, Those who had seem'd my veriest friends departed, Yet their desertion found me not alone, Still was she left, the firm, the noble hearted; Without a murmur or regret she bore. When sickness shook my frame and paled my cheek, So full of tenderness, so unremitting, Chasing the gloom that care and pain had spread, Sorrow on sorrow follow'd, and I grew Despondent o'er my hopes and prospects blighted, THE RAINS-THE STORM. The Rains have now fairly set in-Calcutta was on Monday morning (June 13) visited by a violent storm of thunder, lightning and rain, which lasted from about 2 to 8 o'clock A. M. reducing the thermometer to 82°. The rain has, with a few intervals, continued to pour (monsoon fashion) ever since. Several accidents have happened from lightning. Reports of which, as published by our contemporaries, we subjoin: The corner of the Allipore Jail was struck by lightning and the Burkundauze on duty, killed on the spot. A Sepoy who stood near him had his musquet shivered to pieces and he himself received severe injury-part of the premises in which the Calcutta hounds are kept, was burnt down at the same time. Two Lascars were killed by the electric fluid near the Jaun Bazar. A House in the Circular Road was struck, but not much injured. Yesterday morning (June 13) Calcutta was visited with a heavy rain and thunderstorm, between the hours of two and five o'clock. The first remarkable peal of thunder lasted for ten seconds, and the bolt struck a tree in Mirzapore, the branches of which were scorched and broken. There were altogether about a dozen awfully loud crashes of thunder, during which a house in the Circular Road, and a stable in Allipore were struck by lightning. In the latter a syce was severely hurt, and is not expected to live; and a dog was killed on the spot. The last loud peal of thunder was preceded by a vivid flash of lightning, which arched over Calcutta, from the northward and eastward, and branched into three parts, the centre one of which struck two huts in Khulashee-tolah, in one of which two men were killed, and in the other two were severely injured. By an inquiry made on the spot, and by an examination of the bodies, the following particulars were ascertained. The names of the men who were killed were Ruflick and Buddhoo, both khulashees from Chittagong. Buddhoo had gone to the outside of his door for a moment, and was in a sitting posture, while Ruffick who was near him on the inside, was sitting and conversing with him. The other hut was directly opposite, (at the distance of about eight feet) at the door of which two men named Assa Buddeen and Mutta-oollah, were seated observing the state of the weather, being, as they stated afraid to remain in bed. The bolt struck through the roof of the first hut, and passed into the other. The neighbours on hearing the crash ran to the spot, and saw Ruffick and Buddhoo lying dead, and the other two writhing in agonies. Buddhoo had been first struck on the left arm, which was cut and bleeding, and the hair on his breast and legs was completely scorched. There was no contortion of features, but the blood had been forced from his left ear. Ruflick had a mark like a long scar on his left shoulder, and two punctures at the back of the neck, through which the electric fluid had apparently passed: the blood for several hours after his death was flowing freely from his right ear. Mutta-oollah, when we saw him, had hardly recovered from the terror into which he had been thrown, but complained little of any pain. His breast had been scorched, and under his eye there was a large bruise, as if it had been inflicted by a blow. Ruffick's left thigh was marked on the inside with a long narrow zig-zag line, which was red and raised, in appearance similar to an inflamed vein. The progress of dissolution on the corpses was very evident during the short time that we remained, and the people in the neighbourhood were on that account very clamorous in requiring that they should be removed as early as possible, and were anxiously looking for an order from the Coroner to that effect. It is worthy of remark, that the only elavated object, besides the houses, is a guava tree on the spot, the branches of which overhang the roof that projects exactly over the space occupied by the unfortunate sufferers: here the fluid in its descent seems to have displaced some of the tiles. We learn also that the house of Mr. W. K. Ord, who resides in the Circular Road, was struck by the lightning. It appears from the statement given by Mr. Ord, that he became alarmed by the violent claps of thunder, and immediately got out of bed and went into the hall, where he had not been many minutes before he was struck by the electric fluid, which rendered him insensible for a time, but we are happy to say without having caused any serious accident it then proceed. ed along the hall and went out of the window of an adjoining room, which it completely shattered and burnt the frame. On examining the premises it was discovered that it had penetrated through the wall at the top of the window on the northwest side of the house, and in its progress had gone through the above mentioned places, and then descended into the ground not before it had cracked the walls in several places and torn off the plaister of the various rooms through which it went.-India Gazette. ASIATIC SOCIETY-PHYSICAL CLASS. At a meeting held on Wednesday, the 8th June, G. Swinton, Esq. in the Chair.1. A series of Geological specimens of the rocks in the Tennasserim Archipelago were presented in the name of Lieutenant R. Lloyd, H. C. N. 2. Also specimens of vegetable impressions in the coal and shale of Raniganj; -transmitted by the Reverend R. Everest, 3. A sample of the petrified wood of Van Diemen's Land was received, with a note in explanation, from Dr. J. Henderson. 4. A report from Dr. Strong announced that the borer in the Fort had attained an additional depth of five feet since the last meeting, in all one hundred and sixtyfive feet, and was still at work in a soft sandy clay. 5. A paper was then read "on the Sandstone of India, by the Reverend R. Everest." Geologists in India have generally considered this rock as identical with the new red sandstone of England, from its comprehending beds of marls and grits, from its saliferous springs, and from its horizontal and uncomfortable stratification: Mr. E. argues that these characters are but imperfectly made out, and in themselves are not decisive of the question: the new and old sandstones of England are, in many cases, only distinguishable through the intervention of well developed groups of the carboniferous series, and such ought to be pointed out either above or below the Indian sandstone, before a definite name be adopted. The limestone associated with it in Bundelkhund, and called Lias by Captain Franklin, wants the chief attri bute of that formation, fossil remains:-beds of gypsum and rock salt are also absent, for the brackish springs of Hindoostan cannot be said to prove the existence of the latter. Mr. E thinks that some arguments tend to assign this rock an earlier place than the "new red": its frequent association with primitive and transition rocks its containing coal ;-its frequent passage into gneiss and quartz ;-its interstratification with clay slate:-and lastly, the great rarity or entire absence of organic remains in the blue limestone which rests upon it: he agrees with Captain F. in supposing the detached sandstones of Ramgurh and Burdwan to be portions of the same formation, which extends as far as Rajmehal. Under the imperfect state of our acquaintance with it, Mr. E. suggests that the general name of the great Sandstone or red Sandstone of India," should be adopted for its designation. 6. A notice by Captain Herbert was read" on the Himmalayan Fossil Remains, explaining in general terms the structure of that great mountainous range, and the circumstances of the discoveries in Fossil Mineralogy made therein during the last few years. Captain S. Webb is believed to be the first who noticed, geologically, the Fossil bones sold by the natives under the name of Bijli ka hár: during his survey of the hills he made a collection of them, which are mentioned in Buckland's Reliquiæ Diluvianæ Mr. Traill, Commissioner, also took a large collection to Europeamong them was a cranium, apparently of a deer or goat, lined with crystals of calcareous spar :-The Museum of the Asiatic Society has not been favored with any of these interesting products of Indian research. In the department of Fossil shells, however, it is indebted to Dr. Gerard for a small, but very interesting series:- the shells brought by the hill people for sale, consisted mostly of ammonites and belemnites, and, as well as the bones abovementioned, were evidently picked up in the beds of torrents. But Captain G. found the parent rock whence these rolled specimens were derived; along with a multitude of others, whose texture would not have endured the rough handling of mountain streams. The circumstance of the great elevation at which they are found, merely proves that the up-heaving of this vast mountain ridge has taken place subsequent to their deposition, whether they be supposed to belong to the secondary or tertiary formation, a point yet undetermined. Dr. Gerard has not hitherto discovered any fossil bones in situ.-Govt. Gaz. THE INSOLVENT ACT. [FROM A CORRESPONDENT.] The trite maxim, that" what is every body's business is nobody's," was never more strongly exemplified, even in Calcutta, than in the instance of the recent establishment of Insolvent Law within the Indian Presidencies. Such a law had long been a desideratum in a community, in which commerce was general, and credit universal. At length, after years of inaction, a meeting was got together; and the wants of the public expressed by petition to the legislature. But this effort seemed to have exhausted the energy that it had taken so long to awaken; and the matter, being left almost to work its own way, fell of course into the hands of inexperience. The result was our present Insolvent Act. It has now been more than two years in operation and although its defects and errors are manifest to all the world, for indeed a lamentable catastrophe in the mercantile body soon brought them into glaring evidence-nothing has yet been done or attempted towards a remedy: and, in the general apathy of those classes most concerned in the matter, this miserable temporary expedient seems likely to grow into a permanent law, which is to regulate in British India the destinies of commercial misfortune in all time to come. We say a miserable expedient, for so in truth it is, when considered as affecting the trader and his assets. We know that it has been urged in extenuation of its defects, that it never was designed for the case of traders, and so indeed we should infer from the reading of it. For, otherwise, how would it be possible to account for the absence of any definition, either of the character of trader, or of the act of Bankruptcy, (save in two particular cases); or for the absence of all provision for the regular convening of cre |