J. H. Jacob. Mr. Herbert, in mentioning his acceptance
of office, said he had felt that Lord Palmerston was
entitled to ask from him, and that he was bound to
give, whatever service it was in his power to render.
Of the army in the Crimea he said, that it has met
with "an enemy more fell and more dangerous to it than
the actual foe,—that is, disease—by which it has been
crippled to a fearful extent, and has had to undergo
privations and hardships which have been borne with a
heroism almost unexampled, but which may be and must
be attributed to causes that require searching investigation
in order that the proper remedy may be applied,
and that the blame, if blame there be, should fall upon
the right shoulders. This inquiry it behoves the
Government to lose no time in instituting." Of Lord John
Russell's mission to Vienna, he remarked,—"I think that
the government of Lord Palmerston has done wisely in
sending a statesman of the character, the antecedents, the
reputation, and known ability of Lord John Russell,
to ascertain whether or not the time has arrived
when we can have peace made upon those conditions
which we consider to be necessary and indispensable to
secure a durable as well as an honourable pacification."
Though the election was unanimous, Mr. Herbert was
assailed by showers of questions—such as "Who starved
the soldiers?" "What about the green coffee–berries
served to the soldiers?" "Where is our army?"
"Why did 'he' spare Odessa?"

Both Houses of Convocation met on the 6th inst. In
the Upper House the principal proceedings related to
proposed alterations in the Church services. An address
on the subject was presented by the Bishop of Salisbury
from a clergyman in his diocese, and ordered to lie on
the table; and a report was read by the Archbishop of
Canterbury. The Bishop of Oxford moved the following
resolutions—"That some modifications of the Church's
rules are desirable, to enable her adequately to administer
to the spiritual necessities of the people of this
land; and that such modifications may most properly be
considered with reference, first, to the services, and
secondly, to the ministerial agency which she now
employs. "That, in any modification of the Church's
rules to her services, it should he a fundamental principle
that the Book of Common Prayer should be maintained
wholly and unaltered, except in so far as it is
inconsistent with the rubric; and that the division of
the present in the formation of new services be
reconstructions from those now existing, with such changes
in the Psalters and Table as may be judged needful.
"That no division of the services appears to be desirable
which would not insure the use of the whole order,
morning and evening, now contained in the Book of
Common Prayer, on Sundays and other holidays."
The Bishop of Exeter moved the addition of the words,
"Provided that nothing new be introduced which is
not now in the Book of Common Prayer." But there
was no support for this, and the Bishop of Oxford's
resolution was carried. After a long discussion, it was
resolved to appoint a committee to consider the heads
of an address to the Queen, founded on the resolution.
On the 8th inst, the Archbishop of Canterbury read a
report on the changes required in the present constitution
of Convocation. The principal changes are, that there
shall be a proctor for every archdeaconry elected by the
clergy; and that all beneficed clergy, curates, and chaplains
in priests' orders, and licensed by the bishop, shall
have a vote. The remainder of the report relates to the
mode of doing business in both houses, founded on
precedents. With respect to the vexed questions as to the
right of the president of the Upper House to refuse to
submit propositions to the Upper House, and as to his
power of proroguing Convocation against the wishes of
his brethren, as the precedents are not decisive, the
report suggests that it would be expedient that he should
not be at liberty to refuse to submit propositions; and
that while he possesses the power of prorogation, he
should, in ordinary prorogations, act with the consent of
his brethren. This report was received; but, on the
motion of the Bishop of Oxford, the house resolved that
it was not expedient to address her Majesty as to any
alterations in the constitution. In the sitting of the
Lower House on the 6th inst, Archdeacon Denison
proceeded to make a statement respecting his case, but was
stopped by the Prolocutor as being out of order. Mr.
Denison, however, read a statement purporting to he an
account of what took place before the Clevedon
Commission; and he reserved to himself the right to go into
the whole case at a future session. It next became a
question whether the written statement could be
received; and on this the house divided, rejecting the
paper by 36 to 33. The resolutions which had been
agreed to in the Upper House were then brought down
and read. Archdeacon Denison had moved that the
Church service resolutions should not be received, when
the house was adjourned without coming to a decision.
On the 8th inst, the Lower House was occupied with
the consideration of the resolutions on Church services
sent down from the Upper House; respecting which
there was great difference of opinion; and strong
expressions from Dr. M'Caul, Archdeacon Denison, and
others, against touching the Prayer Book. At last, a
modification of the resolutions sent down by the Upper
House was adopted, on the motion of Archdeacon Grant.
A committee was appointed, and the house adjourned.

A crowded meeting to consider the "Deplorable and
Wretched state of the Army in the Crimea," and the
causes thereof, was held at Derby on the 10th inst.
The speakers, including some working men, denounced
the government for cruelty to the army, and demanded
inquiry with a view to the punishment of the guilty.
The resolutions adopted also called for inquiry; for
reorganisation of the military departments, under one
ruling head; for an abolition of the sale of commissions;
the dismissal of men of an obsolete age and an obsolete
practice, and the appointment of men whose genius and
mechanical science have added to our power and
commercial greatness. A petition to parliament, embodying
those demands, was unanimously adopted.

The following is the list of the ministry formed by
Lord Palmerston:—Lord Palmerston, First Lord
of the Treasury; Lord Cranworth, Lord Chancellor;
Earl Granville, President of the Council; Duke
of Argyll, Lord Privy Seal; Earl of Clarendon,
Foreign Secretary; Mr. Sydney Herbert, Colonial
Secretary; Sir George Grey, Home Secretary; Lord
Panmure, Secretary for War; Mr. Gladstone,
Chancellor of the Exchequer; Sir James Graham, First
Lord of the Admiralty; Sir William Molesworth,
Public Works; Sir Charles Wood, President of the
Board of Control; The Marquis of Lansdowne, with–
out office; Lord Canning, Postmaster–General. Some
minor offices it appears have not yet been filled up; but
Mr. Gladstone, Sir James Graham, and Mr. Sidney
Herbert have since resigned their offices. Lord Palmerston
and Mr. Herbert have been re–elected, without
opposition, for Tiverton and South Wilts.

             NARRATIVE OF LAW AND CRIME.

A Dreadful Murder was committed on Saturday
night, the 27th of January, at Rochester. The victim
was Mrs. Bacon, an old lady who lived, with a maid–
servant, in Ordnance–road. On Sunday morning, a man
named Pearson, who is in the daily custom of calling
with vegetables, while so engaged at the adjoining
house, heard a rattling at the door, as of some one
endeavouring to force his way out, and, on going to the
spot, the servant–girl made her appearance in such a
state of agitation as to lead him to apprehend she was in
a fit, and he ran for assistance to a chemist's close by,
who directed him to Dr. Gamine, at Fort Pitt, surgeon
of the 94th regiment. On his arrival she was found to
have her throat cut, and by his directions was removed
on a stretcher to Fort Pitt. In the course of the day
she expressed a wish to make a statement, and Major
Boys, a county magistrate, attended for the purpose of
taking her deposition. What the nature of the disclosure
made, if any, was, did not transpire. On a policeman
entering the house, the girl said her mistress had been
murdered in the cellar by two dustmen. On going into
the cellar he found a pail full of water, with a flannel
in it stained with blood, and which appeared to have
been used in washing deceased's face. Close by this
he found a hatchet and a knife, both stained with blood;
he observed blood on the floor, and the fagot wood