To labourers who have worked the greatest number of days in the year on one property​—​five prizes, from 10s. to two dollars each, currency.

To those parents who have the largest number of children employed in agriculture​—​five prizes, from 10s. currency, to two dollars each.

To stock-keepers who have remained during the year, and have been most successful with the stock​—​five prizes, from 10s. to two dollars.

A popular institution for intellectual improvement has also been instituted at St. John’s, in which several lectures have been given upon various interesting subjects.

On the 12th of June, 1842, a very bright and beautiful meteor passed over the town of St. John’s, in a direction from east to west. Its form was globular; and as it passed rapidly along the heavens, it emitted bright spiral flashes of fire, which gilded the sky, and threw deep shadows upon the earth. During its progress, it was attended by a rushing noise, sufficient to call the attention of those who did not even notice its extreme brilliancy. Possibly this meteor might have belonged to the class termed aerolites; many of such phenomena have appeared, from time to time, in this quarter of the globe: one fell at Bahia, in Brazil, which weighed 14,000 pounds, and another, (still preserved in the British Museum,) which fell at Buenos Ayres, weighed 1400 pounds.

The next great event to be recorded, is the awful earthquake, with which Antigua and many of the other Leeward Islands was visited, on Wednesday, the 8th of February, 1843. About half-past ten o’clock a. m., a low, hollow, rumbling sound arrested the attention, and announced, in its own peculiar solemn tone, the coming of an earthquake. Immediately after this awful warning, a tremor of the earth was felt, which gradually increasing in violence, led the frightened inhabitants to rush from their houses, and seek safety in the open air. Heart-rending were the screams, fervent and numerous were the calls for mercy, from the assembled groups. The air was darkened with the dust from the falling buildings, as well as from the sulphureous exhalations which issued from the opening earth, and almost stopped respiration. In Antigua, the extent of damage was immense. Out of fourteen parish churches, (including the chapels of ease,) only two remain uninjured. St. Paul’s, situated at Falmouth, was entirely destroyed; as also St. Stephen’s chapel of ease, the district church of All Saints, and the chapel schools of St. Bartholomew’s and St. Mark’s, not long ago erected. The new church of St. Peter’s, which has been mentioned in these pages as being in a state of progress at Parham, and which was expected to be completed and opened for Divine service in 1843, was also much rent and injured. The pretty parish church of St. Philip’s was cracked from top to bottom, and rendered unsafe, and the school-house was levelled with the ground. St. James’s chapel of ease was severely injured, and the north and south wings fell. The school-room at St. Barnaby’s was rent in several places; and at St. Stephen’s a similar building was entirely levelled. The school-room at Brecknocks was also rendered unsafe. There were 172 sugar-mills upon the island, most of which upon that eventful morning had been “put in the wind,” and were merrily going with the breeze, crushing between their powerful machinery the golden canes, and sending a rich stream of luscious juice through the several pipes into the boiling-houses; of these thirty-five were entirely levelled with the ground, eighty-two split from top to bottom, and the remaining fifty-five almost all of them injured, requiring numerous repairs. Among those most seriously injured may be mentioned​—

“Bellevue, Messrs. Shand’s​—​down.
Renfew’s​—​down.
Belmont’s​—​down.
Bath Lodge, property of Walters​—​down.
Green Castle’s, Sir Henry Martin’s works and mansion​—​down.
Lower Freeman’s​—​down.
Sir Geo. Thomas’s works, and part of the mansion​—​down; the manager was obliged to take up his quarters under a shed.
Little Duers​—​down.
Big Duers​—​down.
Ffrys​—​down.
Elliot’s, part of sugar works​—​down.
Potter’s​—​down.
La Roche’s​—​down.
Baijer Otto Baijer’s​—​down.
Mount Pleasant​—​down.
Rock Hill​—​down.
Delap’s​—​down.
George Byam’s​—​partly down.
Patterson’s new steam-mill, and works​—​down.
Monterea’s​—​down.
Paynter’s​—​down.
Gunthorp’s​—​down.
Claremont’s, the seat of the Hon. W. E. Williams, untenantable, and works of two estates​—​down.
Gambles, Admiral Tollemache’s​—​down.
The Wood​—​down.
Fryar’s Hill​—​down.
McKinnon’s​—​down.
The newly erected sugar-works of Wm. Williams, Esq.​—​down.
&c. &c. &c.”

The city of St. John’s suffered severely, and after the earthquake, presented a most dismal appearance. About one-third of the stores and dwellings were levelled with the ground; and the remainder (with the exception of those buildings erected of wood) so shattered and torn, that they were rendered untenantable. Some of the houses were completely twisted round, presenting an acute angle to the street, instead of their usual position. The cranes at the water’s edge were many of them lifted out of the ground; and in several of the stores, streams of water bubbled up through the interstices of the pavement. The court-house, police-office, (formerly the old jail,) the arsenal, the new jail and barracks, the registrar’s office, treasurer’s office, governor’s secretary’s office, (recently erected,) colonial bank, Antigua library-rooms, &c., were all of them rent and torn, and several rendered unsafe. The cathedral of St. John’s was damaged to a great extent, the tower being rent from top to bottom, the north dial of the clock precipitated to the ground, and part of the east wall of the tower thrown upon the roof of the church. The handsome altar-piece was entirely destroyed; and many of the monuments which graced the walls of the cathedral were hurled from their resting-places, and shivered into atoms. Of these were the tombs of Lord Lavington, Warner, Kelsick, Ottley, and Atkinson. The font was thrown off its pedestal, seven of the large pipes in the front of the organ knocked out, and much damage done to the interior of that instrument. The whole of the south-east walls of the cathedral were thrown into the churchyard, carrying with them some of the ornamental ground-glass windows. The north-west walls fell in one mass of ruins, while the north-east protruded beyond the perpendicular. The north and south vestibules were almost blocked up by the piles of massy stones and bricks. The churchyard also presented a melancholy appearance, many of the tombs being rent open, and split in various places.

Before this awful event, it had been the intention of the vestry to enter into a contract for raising the tower, and improving its architectural adornments, as also to make some alteration in the chancel.

The school-room erected near the rectory of St. John’s was also very much dilapidated; and the national-school for girls was so much injured as to require being taken down.