Poetry.

For there the Master of us all Enthroned sits on high , And welcomes all the pure in heart To temples iu the sky . With linked hands from every land Our God a circle makes—¦

A world encircling brotherhood , Which every evil breaks . Again I hear the solemn song , The pealing organ ' s voice ; I hear the swelling chorus shout Rejoice ! rejoice ! rejoice !

All men are one in brotherhood , Admit them one and all . Is it an angel's song , or man ' s , That cheers with such a call ? Alas , I dreamt ! 'twas all a dream !

Awakened from my sleep , Resounding from the Minster came A chorus loud and deep . A sacred hymn of liberty Came swelling up the bill , But not for me—O not for me !

The Jew ' s excluded still 1 Oh ! come the time , the happy time , When all the true and good From every clime , through endless time , Shall be a brotherhood .

The Week.

THE WEEK .

TEE COURT . —Tho Royal Highnesses tho Prince and Princess of Wales , Princess Louise , Prince Leopold , and Princess Beatrice , attended by the Hon . Mrs . Bruce , the Hon . Mrs . Hardinge , Lord A . Paget , and Major Tecsdale , went on hoard the royal yacht Alberta on the 2 nd inst ., and wore present at the Cowes Town Regatta in Cowes Roads . The Queen held a

Council on Monday , which was attended by the Lord Chancellor , Earl Granville , Viscount Sydney , and the Right Hon . T . M . Gibson . Her Majesty the Queen , accompanied hy their Royal Highnesses Princess Helena , Princess Louise , and Princess Beatrice , left Osborne on the 8 th inst ., at half-past one o'clock , for Woolwich , to embark for the Continent . His Royal

Highness Prince Leopold left Osborne early , and proceeded straight to Greenhithe to embark in the Victoria and Albert , which awaits her Majesty in tbe river . His Royal Highness Prince Arthur accompanied the Queen to Woolwich , and returned to Greenwich Park . Her Majesty ' s suite to the Continent consists of the Duchess of Roxhurghe , Lady Churchill ,

Lieutenant-General the Hon . C . Grey , Major-General Sir T . M . Biddulph , Dr . Jenner , and Mr . Buff . Earl Granville accompanies her Majesty as Minister in attendance . The Prince of Wales presided on Wednesday at a meeting of the Council of the Duchy of Cornwall , held at Marlborough house . GENERAL HOME NEWS . —The health of London is happily

improving , and that to such a degree as to lead to the conclusion that the sickly season we have recently had to lament is now at an end . According to the Registrar General's weekly return the deaths registered for the past week show a decrease of 40 on the estimated mortality . Diarrhcca had been much less fatal than previously , and most of the cases were confined to young children . Cholera had carried oft ' nineteen victims , six of whom were adults . It is a fact worth noticing that not less

than twelve deaths by horse conveyances were registered during the week . On the whole the return is reassuring , and calculated to allay any apprehension that may have existed in tho public mind in consequence of the high rate of mortality which has lately prevailed . At the meeting of the vestry of Marylebone , Dr . Whitmore , medical officer of health , presented a

report on the cattle plague . He described its ravages , and said he agreed with Professor Gamgeo that it had been brought into this country by foreign cattle . The report was received , and it was resolved that representation should he made to the Home Secretary to induce him to enforce stricter regulations for the time being on the importation of foreign cattle . A

great meeting was held at Birmingham in support of the Freeman ' s Aid Movement , Advantage was taken of the meetings of the Wesleyan Conference-to hold a demonstration indirectly under the auspices of that influential religious body . The result was that upwards of one hundred Wesleyan ministers attended on the occasion ; that the first resolution was moved

by the President of the Conference and seconded by the ex-President ; that the Rev . William Arthur , ono of the secretaries of the Wesleyan Missionary Society , moved the next resolution ; and that subsequently Bishop Janes > of the Methodist Episcopal Church North , delivered an able speech on the condition and prospects of the suffering and

much-libelled freedmen . He defended the negroes from the charge that they would not work , and , like Mr . Arthur , appealed to faets which none could gainsay . The venerable bishop was followed by Mr . Leigh , of New York , and other gentlemen . The friends of the emancipated slave may well congratulate themselves upon the progress which their cause is making in the midland counties . A case was tried at the Croydon assizes , not unlike that of Mr . Debcnham , the surgeon ,

of the Commercial-road . A small fanner , named Stephen Winter , was charged with shooting at William Maynard . The prosecutor had gone witli another man to gather watercresses , and they were busily engaged on a cress bed ou the farm of Winter , when he came up witli a gun in his band . He ordered Maynard to desist from pulling the cresses , and threatened to shoot him if he did not . No sooner was the threat made than

Winter raised his gun and fired at the prosecutor , who was wounded about the arms and shoulders with shot . The defence was that Winter had suffered severely from pilferers ; that Maynard was stealing watercresses ; and that the gun was fired simply to frighten him—Winter not being aware that it was loaded with shot . The jury acquitted the prisoner .

Another attempt was made at the Metropolitan Board of Works to break faith in regard to the tenders for the utilisation of metropolitan sewage . As the Board' had decided that Mr . Shield ' s tender , sent in after the others had been opened , should not be received , Mr . Newton moved that the Board re-advertise for tenders . Mr . Doulton , M . P ., opposed this , and moved an

amendment . This amendment was rejected by 15 votes to 12 . Another amendment , moved by Mr . Miller , for deferring the consideration of the matter until the committee to ' whom the tenders had been referred had reported , was carried . At the opening of the Birkenhead Working Men ' s Hall , Lord Stanley delivered ono of his characteristically practical speeches . He

strongly urged upon the working men to aim to secure another benefit besides those which they already enjoyed—viz ., to acquire the ownership of a freehold house . He paid the highest tribute to the value of working men's clubs . The execution of John Hughes , a soldier , for the murder of a poor woman named Clements took place at Winchester on Friday morning . As the soldiers garrisoned in the town were greatly irritated at the reprieve of Broomfield , coupled as it