Queen Bertha, and Vivid as her only opponents. Reaching the centre of the stand, Isoline was in difficulties, and was passed by Queen Bertha and the French candidate, who gradually gained upon the leader to within half-a-dozen strides of the chair, where Aldcroft drove his mare to the front, and snatched the victory by a short head. Marigold, who stopped as if shot when headed, defeated Vivid by a like distance for second place. Isoline was beaten half a length only from the third; the favourite fifth, Old Orange Girl sixth, Lady Augusta seventh, Tornado eighth, and Sea Nymph next. Then came a number of pulling-up horses, the last of whom were Cadeau and Countess. Net value of the stakes, 50507. Run in 2 min. 51 sec. SUICIDE OF MR. SWANBOROUGH, THE ACTOR.-Dr. Lankester held an inquest on the body of Mr. Henry Valentine Smith, aged sixty, professionally known by the name of "Swanborough," at his residence, 9, Greville-place, Kilburn, who had committed suicide. Mr. Francis Musgrave, the musical director at the Strand Theatre, who had resided with the family for two years, was the principal witness. He said he last saw the deceased alive on the morning of his death, and that he then appeared as well as usual. He had complained of giddiness and pains in the head, and had been in a low state for three or four weeks. The only reason he could assign for the act was that the business at the Strand Theatre had lately been bad, or not so good as it had been. He had heard the deceased speak of the bad business, but he was not, he believed, in pecuniary difficulties. He always had, and could get money. Latterly the deceased had been eccentric in his manner, and on one occasion he came up to his bed-room, and then returned to his own, where he always slept with his wife. There were no differences in the family, but quite the contrary, nor had he heard of any tendency in the family to insanity. Some weeks ago the deceased had a fit, and had not been the same man since, as he would sit for hours without speaking. A juror asked whether the deceased was a betting man ?-Mr. Musgrave said he was not, and he was sure knew nothing of such matters. It was stated that the question was asked on account of a report which had been made. Mr. Musgrave further stated that the deceased was at the theatre the previous night. They returned home in his brougham. The deceased had been quite deaf for seventeen years; he had, however, believed that he should recover his hearing till about three weeks ago, when he was told the expectation was absurd. Since then he had desponded. Mr. Musgrave said the deceased always read his Bible before he retired. to rest. The cook, Sarah Taylor, stated that as the deceased went on the morning in question to the closet upstairs, which was not usual, and did not return, she told the housemaid. The door was locked, but she heard breathing. Afterwards they told Miss Swanborough, and the gardener forced the door open. The deceased was in a sitting posture with a razor in his hand. Dr. Cleveland attended and described the wound in the throat. The deceased never rallied, and died in three hours. Mr. Robins, a surgeon, said he had attended the deceased two or three times in the last twelve months. Since the fit his circulation had been feeble, and his state of health had no doubt acted on his mind, and produced a temporary aberration. The coroner said Mr. Robins's evidence was important as explaining the state of mind, and he thought that there could be no doubt but the act was committed during a temporary aberration of intellect. The jury concurred, and returned a verdict of "Temporary Insanity." 30. FATAL ACCIDENT ON THE BRIGHTON RAILWAY.-An appalling accident occurred to the five o'clock express train from Brighton, by which four passengers were killed, and upwards of thirty were more or less severely injured. The train in question, though termed an express, owing to its speed being somewhat faster than the ordinary trains, and consisting only of first and second class carriages, works through from Worthing, Shoreham, and other watering-places daily to Brighton, taking up and attaching the passenger traffic of the various converging branches, until, arrived at Hayward's-heath, it proceeds uninterruptedly to Croydon, which, in the due course of things, it should reach by six o'clock, so as to arrive at the terminus at Victoria by twenty minutes past six o'clock. It was found at Croydon, however, that the train, though not heavily freighted, was considerably behind its time, and in order to make up for this lateness, the driver put on the steam at a pressure so excessive as to cause the boiler to burst, and the engine to leave the rails, dragging with it in its descent down an embanked part of the line between Streatham and Balham the entire train. The engine-driver was killed on the spot; but perhaps the most melancholy part of the sad havoc committed occurred to between thirty and forty of the Grenadier Guards, two companies of which regiment, with their officers, Colonels Keppell and Burnaby, Captain Norton, Lieutenant Trotter, and Quartermaster Collins, in all 150 strong, were returning from their periodical rifle practice at Eastbourne. On examining the shattered train, two of the Guards were discovered to have been killed, and some thirty others were extricated with great difficulty, and more or less wounded. Several civilians in the train also suffered severely. One lady was found dead, and another very seriously injured. The line was torn up in every direction. As soon as the occurrence was telegraphed to the metropolis, a special train was despatched from the Victoria station with Mr. Hawkins, the manager of the London and Brighton line, Mr. Francis, superintendent, and the medical and general staff. With this reinforcement of aid, which arrived within twenty minutes of the accident, all the sufferers were extricated, and those soldiers and civilians who could bear to be removed were at once brought on by the special train to the Victoria station. 1863.] Fatal Accident on the Brighton Railway-Lunar Eclipse. 89 Twenty-eight of the Guards were taken to the Guards' Hospital, in Rochester-row, under the superintendence of Dr. Lane, the house-surgeon, Sergeant Rushton, the steward, and others. Two of the Guards, whose break-van, being next to the engine, was completely smashed, had a most marvellous escape, one being whirled away with only a broken arm, and the other with only a few bruises. The officers in command, who were in a carriage at the end of the train, escaped unhurt. It should be mentioned that the particular length of line where the accident occurred is a newly-opened portion of the suburban railway system of the company, and that it has not been in work more than six months. An inquest was held by Mr. Carter, the coroner, at Streatham, on the bodies of the deceased persons. After several of the men employed on the line had been examined, Mr. John Scott Russell was called by Mr. Faithful, on behalf of the company. He stated that he considered tank engines the safest and best kind of engine that could be used for traffic on this particular line, namely, between Victoria, London-bridge, and Croydon. He had heard nothing to account for the accident, except the irregular shutting off of the steam. Colonel Yolland, who had made an inquiry by direction of the Board of Trade, said that the permanent way was not strong enough to bear the weight of the engine and carriages running at such a speed. He did not think it expedient to run at the rate of sixty miles an hour with tank engines having 18 feet 6 in. wheel basis, especially when the engine was not tightly screwed up to the break-van behind it. The jury, after deliberating for an hour, returned the following verdict:-"That the deceased persons severally came by their deaths from accident, and we, the jury, are of opinion that it was attributable to the high rate of speed at which the express trains run over the line from Croydon to Victoria. The jury would urge on the directors of the London and Brighton Company the necessity of allowing more time for the performance of the journey, and that careful attention should be given to the coupling of the trains." JUNE. 1. LUNAR ECLIPSE.-A lunar eclipse was seen to great advantage in the metropolis. Although not so exciting or interesting an incident as a total solar eclipse-the one producing some five minutes' darkness during the day, when the contrast is very sudden, and the other an hour's darkness during the night-yet the recent event was observed with great pleasure by numbers in the streets and on the bridges. During the whole of the eclipse the sky was splendidly clear, although in the earlier part of the evening it looked somewhat threatening. The moon rose, however, round as a shield (being full at 11.30 p.m.). Had the eclipse commenced a few minutes earlier, we should have had a recurrence of that which occurred in the lunar eclipses of 1666 (June 16) and 1668 (May 26), when the moon rose eclipsed whilst the sun was still above the horizon. At the time of totality the moon presented a soft, woolly appearance, apparently more globular in form than when fully illuminated. Faint traces of the larger and brighter mountains were visible. The sky being beautifully clear, the effect of the moon's light in obliterating the fainter stars was very apparent. As the light became gradually dimmer, one star after another came out, until at length the whole of the Milky Way, which had previously been invisible, stood out with all its beautiful unduÎations and varying brightness. The saying, "inter ignes luna minores," was reversed for a short period. Although the last contact with the real shadow occurred at a few minutes past one, it was not until two o'clock that the moon's light was free from the penumbra. This was the finest lunar eclipse which will occur for some years. Although in general there are more solar than lunar eclipses -forty-one solar and twenty-nine lunar occurring in the space of eighteen years (or the Saros)-yet at any one locality there will be fewer solar than lunar eclipses, the latter being visible over one-half the globe, whilst the former is confined to a small portion of the earth. 4. ASCOT RACES. THE CUP DAY.-These races derived this year unusual éclat from the presence of the Prince and Princess of Wales, who were received on the course with enthusiastic acclamations by an immense concourse of visitors, as well as from the remarkable circumstance of the contest for the great prize of the day terminating in a dead heat. It took place as follows: The GOLD CUP, by subscription of twenty sovs. each, with 200 added from the fund. The Cup of 300 sovs. value; the owner of the second horse to receive 50 sovs. out of the stakes; weights for age. About 2 miles. 28 subs. Mr. Merry's Buckstone, by Voltigeur, 4 yrs., Lord W. Powlett's Tim Whiffler, 4 yrs., 8st. 71b. +1 (S. Rogers) Mr. T. Valentine's Hurricane, 4 yrs., 8st. 4lb. (carr. 8st. 5lb.) (Aldcroft) 3 8st. 11lb. (Challoner) Mr. W. I'Anson's br. m. Caller Ou, 5 yrs., Mr. R. Boyce's Carisbrook, 4 yrs., 8st. 7lb. (Boyce). Lord W. Powlett's f. Eleanor, by Kingston—Kate, 0 Betting.-5 to 4 agst. Tim Whiffler, 9 to 4 agst. Buckstone, 9 to 2 agst. Caller Ou, 100 to 8 agst. Carisbrook, and 20 to 1 agst. Hurricane. Eleanor, for the purpose of serving her stable companion, immediately rushed to the front, and made play at her best pace, the favourite going on second, with Carisbrook and Buckstone third and fourth, and Hurricane and Caller Ou lying away. On passing the Stand, Buckstone ran past Mr. Boyce's colt, and went on in waiting upon the two leaders to the foot of the hill, where the pace somewhat decreased, and on approaching the lime-kilns Tim Whiffler joined his stable companion, the pair running in company to the old mile-post, where the filly was disposed of, and was seen in a few strides after in the extreme rear, leaving the command with Tim Whiffler, who came on with a decided lead to the road, where Buckstone drew forward, Carisbrook still lying third, Caller Ou at the same time quitting her rearward position, and taking the fourth place. Rounding the bend for home the two leaders appeared to get upon closer terms, and as they approached the distance shouts arose from the stand of "Whiffler wins," but which were speedily superseded by the shouts of the partisans of the yellow jacket and black cap as Buckstone reached his antagonist at the enclosure, the balance of favour, as the two ran locked together to the end, remaining equal until the fiat of the judge (who was unable to separate them) was made manifest by the exhibition of the numbers 4 and 5 side by side, making it a dead heat. Hurricane, who ran past the others, who pulled up, was placed third by the judge, although beaten off a long way. The others trotted past the post at similar intervals. The race was run in 4 min. 38 sec. Deciding Heat.-Betting 7 to 4 on Tim Whiffler, who made the running at a strong pace, followed by Buckstone under waiting orders to the entrance into the straight, where the latter got closer, and Edwards, with commendable patience, bided his time until they reached the centre of the Stand, when he made his effort, and in the next stride headed the favourite, and won by two lengths. The race was run in 4 min. 23 sec. 8. THE CITY ENTERTAINMENT TO THE PRINCE AND PRINCESS OF WALES.-The ball at Guildhall, on the occasion of H.R.H. the Prince of Wales taking up his freedom as a citizen by birth, will long be remembered as one of the most splendid entertainments ever given to royalty. The hall itself was entirely remodelled for the occasion, and the courtyard occupied by a temporary building, which was absolutely necessary to accommodate the two thousand guests that were invited, and very few of whom failed to attend. It was not so much a ball as a grand assembly, a fête occasionally varied with dancing. The arrangements made by the New Commissioner of Police, Colonel Fraser, were very good, and the guests arrived without any inconvenience. Assistance was obtained from the Metropolitan police, and the route of the procession, which was crowded throughout, was well |