May 7. A meeting of Southern members of both Houses of Congress is held at Washington, and reports an address to the people of the Southern States. May 13. The Berlin Conference of Princes decides that a ministry be appointed for the Erfurt Bund, and that Prussia should appoint it. May 14. The Republic newspaper at Washington passes from Messrs. Bullitt & Sargent, as editors, to Mr. Allen A. Hall, late of Tennessee. May 15. The three divisions of the Cuban expedition, in all 609 men, when near the island of Mugeres, off the coast of Yucatan, are concentrated on board the steamer Creole. - May 16. The French Minister of War in the Assembly announces, "that the President of the Republic had given orders to recall from London our Ambassador." May 17.. Governor Roberts of Liberia writes to the secretary of the Colonization Society, that he has succeeded in purchasing the noted slave-factory at Gallinas, the last point at which the slave-trade has been carried on for 1200 miles of the coast, for $9,500. May 18. - A large fire occurs at Corning, N. Y. The business portion of the village is consumed, at a loss of $300,000. May 19. Between 2 and 3 o'clock, A. M., General Lopez, in the steamer Creole, reaches Cardenas and disembarks his men. Skirmishing ensues, and soon after sunrise the town surrenders. The invaders hold possession of the place during the day. In the evening, after another slight skirmish, the invaders go on board the Creole and leave Cardenas. The loss of the invaders is from 30 to 40 killed and wounded. That of the Cubans is large. May 21.The steamer Creole, closely pursued by the Spanish war-steamer Pizarro, arrives at Key West, with the invaders, who immediately disembark. The Pizarro anchors near her for the day, and on the evening of the 22d sails. May 21. The steamer Creole is seized by the United States revenue officers at Key West. - May 22. -The remains of Ex-President Polk are removed from their temporary resting-place in the cemetery, and deposited in the private family vault. May 23. The Advance and Rescue, the two vessels equipped by the munificent liberality of Mr. Henry Grinnell, of New York, to discover Sir John Franklin, sail from New York. May 24. 1 Sir John Ross and Commander Phillips leave Lochryan, on their expedition in search of Sir John Franklin. - May 27.- General Lopez is arrested at Savannah, for his connection with the Cuban expedition, and, no delay being granted by the District Judge to procure evidence against him, he is discharged amid the cheers of the crowd. May 27. -The Mormon temple at Nauvoo is destroyed by a hurricane. May 27.- Prince Albert, Chancellor of the University at Cambridge, advises the authorities of the University not to resist the royal commission. May 27. The Court of Common Pleas, England, sustains the decision of the Queen's Bench, in the cause Gorham v. Bishop of Exeter. May 31. The Electoral Law passes the French Assembly, without any important amendment. May 31. The freedom of the city of London is presented to Lord Gough. May.The King of Prussia is shot in the arm by a pistol, discharged by a man by the name of Sefeloge. May. Parliament meets in the new House of Commons. June 3. The Southern Convention meets at Nashville, Tenn., and in the afternoon organizes by the choice of William L. Sharkey, of Mississippi, as President. June 3.-The French ministry propose to the Assembly to increase the salary of the President of the Republic to 3,600,000 francs per annum. June 7.-"The piratical expedition to Cuba" is the subject of discussion in the House of Lords. June 7. - Lord John Russell announces that the great seal is to be put in commission; commissioners to be Lord Langdale, Sir Launcelot Shadwell, and Sir Robert Monsey Rolfe. June 14. Another destructive fire in San Francisco destroys 300 houses, at an estimated loss of $5,000,000. June 17. At 4 o'clock, Á. M., the steamer Griffith, on her passage from Erie + to Cleveland, is burned to the water's edge. Out of 330 passengers and crew, between 30 and 40 only are saved. June 18.-The House of Lords passes a vote of censure upon the ministry for their conduct in Greece, by a vote of 169 to 132. - June 19. A convention is held at Worcester, Mass., to devise means for the better observance of the Sabbath. June 20.-The elections under the State constitution of New Mexico are held. June 20.-The number of emigrants to California passing Fort Laramie, and registered to date, are, men, 32,740; women, 493; children, 591; of mules, 6,725; oxen, 21,418; cows, 3,185; horses, 28,798; and wagons, 7,586. June 21.-The Minister of Foreign Affairs announces to the French Assembly the adjustment of the Greek question, "the French cabinet having accepted on the 20th of June, in substance, what it had previously proposed to the English cabinet on the 14th of May, before the recall of its Ambassador." June 24.- The Dotation Bill passes the French Assembly, by the influence of General Changarnier, by a vote of 354 to 308. It allows the President the sum of 2,160,000 francs. June 25.-A railroad jubilee at Burlington, Vt., celebrates the union by railroad of the waters of the Lakes and the Atlantic. June 27.-Queen Victoria is struck upon the upper part of the forehead and on the bonnet, by Robert Pate, an insane person. June 28.-The English ministry is sustained in the House of Commons, on the Greek question, by a vote of 310 to 264. June 29.- Lieutenant De Haven, commanding the Arctic expedition, writes to the Secretary of the Navy from the Whale Ship Islands, where he arrived June 24, the Rescue reaching him June 27, that he shall this day leave for the North. June 29. A portion of Table Rock at Niagara Falls gives way. June 29. Sir Robert Peel is thrown from his horse, is severely injured internally, and dies July 3d, aged 62. June. - The Southern Convention adjourns, and issues an address to the people of Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, Louisiana, Texas, Missouri, and Arkansas. June. The Prussian government puts in force the new press edict with great vigor. Seven journals in Berlin, and thirty in the provinces, are notified that they are excluded from post-office circulation. July 1.. Governor Bell, of Texas, calls a special session of the Legislature at Austin, for August 12th. July 8. Adolphus Frederic, Duke of Cambridge, seventh son of George the Third, dies. He was born February 24, 1774, and had served in the army. July 9.. -An extensive conflagration rages in Philadelphia, 350 buildings are burned, and property is consumed to the value of $1,500,000. During the fire, by the falling of buildings and otherwise, 25 are killed, 9 are drowned, 120 are wounded, and 18 are missing; in all, 172. July 9. At 10 P. M., Zachary Taylor, President of the United States, dies, after a brief illness of little more than five days. July 10. Commodore Morris, a special agent of the United States to Cuba, arrives at Havana in the Vixen. July 12.. Robert Pate is tried, insanity is proved; he is found guilty, and sentenced to transportation for seven years. July 15. Forty-two of the Contoy prisoners (passengers) are liberated by the Spanish authorities, and put on board the United States sloop-of-war Albany, to be taken to Pensacola. Ten are retained for trial. July 19. Hugh N. Smith, Delegate from New Mexico, is refused a seat in the House of Representatives, by a vote of 105 to 94. July 19. A violent gale, accompanied with rain, prevails in New York and Southern cities. July 21.The grand jury in the United States District Court, at New Orleans, returns true bills for the violation of the act of Congress of 1818, by setting on foot an expedition against the island of Cuba, against John A. Quitman (Governor of Mississippi), Judge Cotesworth Pinckney Smith (of the Supreme Court of Mississippi), John Henderson (late Senator from that State), J. L. O'Sullivan (late editor of the Democratic Review), John F. Picket (late Consul at Turk's Island), Theodore O'Hara (late Major in the United States Army), C. R. Wheate, Peter Smith, A. Gonzalez, Thomas Theodore Hawkins, W. H. Bell, N. J. Bunch, L. J. Sigur (State Senator), Donatien Augustin (Brigadier-General and Commander of the Legion), and General Narciso Lopez, making in all sixteen persons: Warrants are issued for the arrest of the parties. July 24. Holsteiners. An affair of outposts takes place between the Danes and Schleswig July 25.-The battle of ldstedt is fought between the Danes and SchleswigHolsteiners, in which the latter are forced to retire, though in good order. The loss of the Danes is 116 killed, and 2,373 wounded. The loss of the Germans is not given in General Willisen's report of the battle. - July 27. General Willisen, of the German army, issues his proclamation declaring that the spirit of the army is unbroken. July 31.. The Compromise Bill, by successive amendments reduced to a Bill for establishing a Territorial Government for Utah, is ordered to be engrossed in the Senate, by a vote of 32 yeas to 14 nays. July 31. A railroad convention is held at Portland, Me., in favor of a road from that city to the British Provinces. July. The famous diamond, named the Koh-i-Noor, "Mountain of Light," is brought to England. Its value is estimated at $2,000,000. Aug 5. - The admission of Baron Rothschild as a member of the House of Commons is referred to the next session of Parliament. Aug. 6. Rev. George Cornelius Gorham is formally admitted into the vicarage of Bramfordspeke, by Sir Herbert Jenner Fust, of the Arches Court. Aug. 10. Sir Launcelot Shadwell, Vice-Chancellor of England, dies. Aug. 12. Hon. Edward Everett tenders his collection of public documents and state papers, which he has been 30 years collecting, to the city of Boston. Aug. 12. The Texan Legislature meets at Austin, and (August 13) Governor Bell recommends the equipping of two regiments, and that $34,000 set apart for a school fund be appropriated to that purpose. Aug. 17.- Ashtabula County Court-House, Ohio, with the records and papers of the court, is destroyed by fire. Aug. 24.- A proposition to substitute specific for ad valorem duties, under the present tariff, is negatived in the House of Representatives, by a vote of 81 to 77. Aug. 26. Louis Philippe, ex King of the French, expires at Claremont, England. He was 77 years of age. Aug. 28.-The capstone of the monument to Silas Wright, at Weybridge, Vt., is this day laid by General Wool, U. S. A. Aug. 30.- Professor John W. Webster is hung, in the yard of the Leverett Street jail, Boston. - Aug. The great Tenant Right Conference assembles in Dublin. TITLES AND ABSTRACTS OF THE PUBLIC LAWS, PASSED AT THE FIRST SESSION OF THE 31ST CONGRESS. No. 1. An Act further to extend the time for locating Virginia military land warrants, and returning surveys thereon to the General Land-Office. The act of July 5th, 1848, and its provisions concerning all warrants issued prior to Aug. 10, 1840, and no others, are revived and extended to Jan. 1, 1852. The same right is extended to such warrants issued after Aug. 10, 1840, if issued justly and legally, and to the person entitled to receive them. Feb. 20, 1850. No. 2. An Act to carry into effect the convention between the United States and the Emperor of Brazil, of the 27th day of January, 1849. The President shall appoint a commissioner, at a salary of $3,000, who shall act under oath, and forthwith, at Washington, shall, under such needful regulations as he may make, receive, examine, and decide upon all such claims as may be presented to him and provided for by the convention between the United States and the Emperor of Brazil, concluded at Rio de Janeiro, Jan. 27, 1849, according to the merits of the several cases, and the principles of justice and equity, the law of nations, and the stipulations of the said convention, and award the ratable proportions of the several claimants in the sums of money and interest to be received under the stipulations of the convention; and within one year complete and terminate the duties of the commission. On the termination of the commission, he shall report a list of the awards, and the Secretary of the Treasury shall distribute ratably among the successful claimants the money received under the convention, and shall issue certificates showing the proportion to which each claimant is entitled, the amount of that certificate to be paid to the legal holders upon presentation at the Treasury. A clerk, also to be sworn, is appointed, at a salary of $2,000. The act is to be in force only one year, and at the execution of the commission, the records, documents, &c. are to be deposited in the office of the Secretary of State. March 29, 1850. No. 3. An Act to supply deficiencies in the appropriations for the service of the fiscal year ending the 30th of June, 1850. May 15, 1850. No. 4. An Act providing for the taking of the seventh and subsequent censuses of the United States, and to fix the number of the members of the House of Representatives, and provide for their future apportionment among the several States. The marshals in the several States and Territories, or, where there is no marshal, some suitable person appointed by the President, shall enumerate the inhabitants and collect other statistical information, as provided in this act, and in the instructions of the Secretary of the Interior, omitting Indians not taxed, and, in the discretion of said Secretary, all the statistics of Territories except population, and shall return the same on or before Nov. 1st, 1850, unless, for reason, the time is extended by the Secretary. In the Territories, or places where the population is sparse, officers or persons belonging to the army may be employed, when not prejudicial to the public service. Each marshal shall subdivide his district into divisions of not more than 20,000 persons, unless convenience of boundaries, which shall be known civil divisions, requires a larger number, and shall estimate the square miles in each subdivision, and make return to the Secretary of the Interior, and shall appoint an assistant for each subdivision, by a commission under his hand. Neither marshals nor assistants shall commence their duties until they are sworn to the faithful discharge thereof. The marshal shall furnish the assistants with suitable blanks, shall instruct and oversee them in their duty, shall examine their returns, and cause discrepancies, if any, to be corrected. He shall send one set of the returns required of the assistants to the Secretary of the Interior, and deposit the other in the Secretary's office of the State or Territory to which his district belongs. He shall determine the rate of compensation of his assistants, subject to the final approval of the Secretary of the Interior, which shall be paid by said Secretary, -one half when the marshal shall certify that the duty is satisfactorily done, and the other half when, upon careful examination and classification, the returns are found satisfactory. The marshals shall also be paid on like condition for their services. Each assistant marshal shall obtain all the information required by this act, by personal visit and inquiry, and when the facts are obtained and entered on the tables, the memoranda shall be read over to the persons giving the information, for correction, and to supply omissions. He shall deposit the original returns with the clerk of the County Court, and give two copies to the marshal, having first signed each page of the schedules, and certified that they were truly made according to his oath. The pay of the marshal shall be $1 per 1,000 persons when the population in the district exceeds 1,000,000; but when less than 1,000,000, then $1.25 per 1,000. No marshal shall receive less than $250, and when the pay is not over $500, reasonable allowance for clerk hire shall be made by the Secretary of the Interior. When the marshal performs assistants' duties, which he may at his discretion do, he shall receive assistants' pay, which is two cents for each person enumerated, and ten cents a mile for necessary travel; and the number of miles shall be the product of the square root of the number of the dwelling-houses in his division, by the square root of the number of square miles therein; for each farm fully returned, 10 cents; each establishment of productive industry fully returned, 15 cents; each name of deceased person returned, 2 cents; and for social statistics, 2 per cent. upon the amount allowed for the population. No pay to be given for returns not authorized, or for those not limited to the year next preceding June 1st, 1850. The marshal may appoint deputies, for whose official acts he shall be responsible for any purposes not inconsistent with the duties of assistants, and the collection of the social statistics is not inconsistent with such duty. If a marshal shall secure to himself any fee or compensation, for the appointment of an assistant, or any part of the pay for the assistant's services, or shall neglect to perform the duties imposed by this act, he shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction shall pay not less than $1,000. An assistant that accepts the apppointment, and does not perform its duties, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction shall be liable to a forfeiture of $500. Making a false oath shall be perjury, and a false certificate a misdemeanor, and upon conviction the offender shall forfeit not more than $5,000, and be imprisoned not less than 2 years. Any free person, over 20 years of age, shall, upon request of the marshal or assistant, give true answers on the subjects in this act, or forfeit $30, to be recovered in an action of debt, by the assistant, to the use of the United States; all fines and penalties in this act may be enforced in the courts of the United States. The marshal and assistants may frank papers and documents relating to the census only, and $12,000 is for this purpose to be paid the Post-Office Department. The Secretary of the Interior is to carry into effect this act, and have the enumeration taken everywhere for June 1st, 1850; to supervise the marshals; to arrange and classify the returns as they come in, and lay them before Congress at its next session. He shall have a general superintending clerk, at a salary of $2,500, who may frank documents and letters relating to the census, and assistants, at not over $1,000. The Secretary of the Census Board shall have a salary of $3,000 per annum. If no other law be passed for taking the eighth or any subsequent census of the United States on or before the first of January of any year when, by the Constitution, any future enumeration of the inhabitants is required, such census shall, in all things, be taken according to this act. The subjects of inquiry are in six schedules. Schedule No. 1 is Free Inhabitants, · including number of dwelling-houses, number of families, name, age, sex, color, occupation of males over 15 years, value of real estate owned, place of birth, whether married or attended school during the year, those over 20 who cannot read and write, deaf and dumb, paupers, convicts, &c. Schedule No. 2, Slave Inhabitants, -number, age, sex, color, fugitives from the State, number manumitted, the deaf, dumb, &c. Schedule No. 3, Productions of Agriculture, — including number of acres of land, and value of home-made manufactures. Schedule No. 4, Products of Industry, — including kind of machinery used therefor, and rate of wages. Schedule No. 5, Social Statistics, including valuation of real and personal estate, aggregate of taxes assessed, public schools, public libraries, periodicals and newspapers. seasons, public paupers, criminals, cost of labor, religious worship. Schedule No. 6, Persons who died during the Year ending June 1st, 1850, — |