Star. — London, England, 1819-10-29 00:00:00

41 - 41 , IVIELLIGENCE. o.ollllot variable.—Sailed his Majes . alai Ph.Y V. 00 a CrUiZe, tkruscs Wind N.F.—Arrived the Ann, Dantzic ; Ann, MarrnEns, from London for g o ral Frevereigo, TH , RN TON, from the South Seas for wee k:. with 500 tuns sperm oil ; she spoke on ;m., :c h, the Hydra, of this port, coming out of Payta, ; left at Calipago Island on the ;61st May, the Reumord,3oo barrels ; Spring Grove, 160 barrels; b.:rt els. o c resrat N.F..—S tiled the urpa, Ikrrntala ; Braa., for Rio Janeiro ; and ':;t..talt, T A N LOR, II•C Tobago. rz a.. N. E.—Arrived the ratty, SPRING -3 SlVelen far Yarmouth. Came down from the River the Aowa - r, for New South Wales, with fe- • wear: last night, the Lord Sidmouth, , 04t,•rd, with a and passengers.—Sailed L•::: Otin:an racket, Captain IlAnivroN, for Art eve,' this clay, VI,- Lord' l' • frein :cud, with a .hail and e.ickt.t, flu ITE% ; and a . •, train paiisT guys. .Irrived the wro ..,11,1 tor erd.iin, with Liss of And Ili • to be daina,,ed she is st; u t2ti.—'Pi'• !ri: t,..portei! y ester .!ay to be on Cao iZtvu, 1: - ous St. l'ettl.biagh t N. S! co.) t.. , -thy with the as •., 4 4 :.: f. ll w..ter, con Ne. . ! ,..•-•it .: ra.,,aly The \Vaterhouse, :el shir..%:ti a IICAV y about . of 1in.,:.0n-nes, has done Lti cuosi- 0,-Tost.R CDnlfflerCe ' WAYG, is a e• , tit.: 11. rd Saud—rnateti 116 saved, except her .thick arc ,411.1- , A uipt ti. Thc C.:l - Z•1 (coals, ten Ali eiglst s..tks much Ittred liramr,ls.—The William, .i,atthe, from Curk ; fr3lll Pe- I r , •tli ; from Liverpool; • a 1 u ••a • from reter.burtit ; Wil• ; lioy, from Stiii%ate Crack ; 4,•; ruur ilrothers, from Memel ; Britannia, nom C.oik ; Fanny, iron Onega ; ; Lay ilia, from Z.tute; I,:urinia„ frum • .Irarru, from 31a1,,za; and front tF tl•:arch.—Britannia, for St. Kitts; Earl lialcarras, Caica; Aid, for Ilaitiltur3a ; Neptune, fur 03- llotterilam ; Conlittss of Elgin, fur Rutter .\ i;rray, t runt .Ititwerp. MST!: lit - TION tIP PIII ZV,- 110NEy. .t for the Tlteti, bittu;gling cutter, on the ri r, at No. .Idelplei Terrace, and recalled mr: AV, dnoday tual Titurst.la , t'ur three months. LIQr7ID,4TION OF NATIONAL DEBT. TO THE EDITOR OF TILE STAR. When we see every day around us the ,spirit of adventure and speculation which exists in all our commercial operations; when we behold what 13 called the monied interest playing their daily game of chance and hazard in the Alley; or, when in every direction, we observe institutions for insuring lives, and for every species of gambling, what, I would ask, is all this but lottery ?—a lottery sanctioned by Government for the benefit of individuals. If that, then, which has for its end the advantage of alert), be sanctioned, how much more should the measure which has for its view the benefit of the many. The scheme proposed in your Journal of the Gth of July, is, properly speaking, not a lottery—for lottery implies chance, which clearly does not belong to the plan; for whether an individual draw a blank or a prize, he will nevertheless be assured of a proportionate decrease of the Nationll Debt, and, consequently of the Taxes which he would otherwise have to pay. There is nothing in the name to object to. Every thing in life is uncertain: and even human life itself may by us, as to its duration, be ccnsidered as a lottery. To apply the term, therefore, to a means of procuring a national good, neither adds to, nor takes from, the merits of the plar. A Lottery, for this purpose, would soon fill: it would be, as it were, turning a portion of the spirit of a d v e n t ure i n this country to a great national use; and, although some few would be disposed to quarrel with the mode devised, there are many who would approve. There are some who would adventure, from a hope of gain, bat a much more considerable number who would, from pure patriotic feeling, contribute their mite. B. THE NORTHEI:N MEETING. This Institution, which met at Inverness the week before last, is among the oldest of its kind in Scot land, having commenced as far back as the year 1788. Its avowed object was the promotion of har mony, and eas) social intercourse among the Nobility • and Gentry of the Northern Counties. The com pany was but thin in the beginning of the week, but towards its close many additional visitors arrived, and on Friday, a party of about 130 Ladies and Gentle men sat down to dinner and supper. Lord SALTOUN presided over the convivialities of that day, and the social powers of his Lordship were most successfully exerted to promote the happiness and festive gaiety of the brilliant party around him. On this evening the Ball-room was crowded, and the dance kept gaily up till four o'clock in the morning. In the absence of SEAFORTII, the Honourable Mrs. STEWART MACKENZIE sent the Stewards a large fat hart, from the parks of Brahan. Handsome and pro fuse dinners were furnished through the week by Mr. LiEnues. Captain WALKER favoured the company with the attendance of the band of the Inverness-shire Militia ; and all the Gentlemen acting as Stewards exerted themselves to promote the general comfort and accommodation of the company, in a manner that deserved and obtained their warmest thanks. it', in agitation at Sheffield to erect a grand cast .l'.l:ar in the cent' e of the town, at the top of to be a large ball, which is to be lighted up so that the whole of the town and its envi he illfiminated thereby. The height of the 7 1 , ..,a1 pillar is to be IS feet, and the diameter two , r a halt: l,!vicc: from Gibraltar, of the sth instant, confirm irr.notrint intelligence that a large body of Spanish fps had broken the cordon established round the •11 , ,vegern part of Andalusia, for the purpose of .ering the further sinealing of the yellow fever. leacrs cf yesterday, however, assert, that not 'J t. kit S or 9,000 men had separated themselves the iemainder of the force in the proscribed ail had made their way into the interiors happy to state, that although the yellow erer,e,l tt iderable virulence in the imme :en,-,shbeurhood, garrison and inhabitants of raltar enjoyed , effect health. MAI id state the singular occurrence, or tht Spani hi troops, whit maintained the thLf piague, in the neighbourhood of If: olce ait aNI ft out .the want of provi .7a. a.l [fru:et:tied lei the country and would epfundered, had they not been obliged to make zits a ith the it:habitants. who had taken up at ms ' James M'lndoe alias the City Orator alias Blue ep, , o e them. We speak rather with regret than Thumbs alias Blue Jamie, was yesterday apprehended it .my intfgelaiities in Spain, which indicate for a contravention of the Statutes, crying on the seat Cinvet mein and dissatisfied subjects, whe- streets, selling seditious and inflammatory Papers, and . ieil en. military. - animadverting on them iu very offensive language. Lent , rs :rem Xeres, of the sth of October, say, that - NPlndoe has perhaps changed his mode of procuring .nwttality at Cadiz, during the Ist, ted, and 3d of his livelihood as often as the celebrated Carew ss month, was :is great as 1,000 deaths daily, and " changed shapes." In this instance he has become t weir;; Etat time there were more tkian 10,000 a Radical, not only to increase his respectability, but ra afflicted with the dreadful plagO•i • The Spa- that by being popular, it increases his " wa y s and s,regim en t s Valencay and 1.,i Colet nue, which means" of procuring aqua vita, his chief end. Isis !'ewatlee; to embark at the 10011 :Of Leon, have figure, gait, and phiz, have as much drollery in them e.,titely perished. Ot _the lE rst there remain as the celebrated Liston's, and he is as well known at •,y lee men and a Lieutenant:- the Public Offices of this City and the neighbouring si:-•rcf OFR I.—On the 4th instant, at towns, as that personage is to the London theatrical faatk in de evNing, we had here such a vio- I amateurs. He has figured as a vender of spurious •!!)(k el an earthquake, that in an instant the ' peppers, dye stuffs, obscene papers, witty observations fail tht: trehes began to ring. As this hap- on marriage. henpeckism, dying declarations, speeches •e a let:;. cites at once, it may be supposed on Radical Reform; and has riot unfrequently made 'err i• t The inhabitants rushed out as many converts to his theory of the benefits likely • hotist•- rid several buildings were damaged. to accrue to society from cheap whi s ke y , " the staff was quite se:cue, and the moon shcne bright- of life," as his new blends have from their decorated ''pact iaee that vie shall hear of an eruption of scaffolds. or _Lula, as earthquakes in this country are S aw.pbtAl to suLli eruptions. D. Ill.—Yesterday, as the Sexton of St. Bunsgate (a stout hale man), was in the r ''..rn'vong a corps e i n t o th e gra ve, he was struck 14 (411, !‘d down, and instantly expired, without . 'J . :lelre; aggroan.How strongly should the so- In the midst of life we are in death!' .ye , sed upon us all. This poor man (whose ax " Pumper) wa s b e t ween 10. and 50 years of scarcely ever known to have had a day's ei: in ff ie whol e Lourse o f hi s li! e . I.\lli ( . .VI ROPII E.—The fall of snow on :f mgla was uncemniotily heavy in some t IlJ.lt, and accompanied by wind, little hurricane. The itinerant booth proprie• , or, as it is commonly called, Horn r Illackheath, which commenced on Mon .ht}',. c:insequence of the previous bad - . ...• - epermitted to keep open a day longer • • I_h'- favour proved to them in the end ;r)", as about one or two o'clock in the ! 'achy, the weight of the accumulated -.se frail e r e c ti oint became so immense, - riffling props, attacked at the same mit ' • tfind, sunk beneath the burden. The • 41 : 1 1 . 1.0011% glen* was torn to tatters al tint, and the Preemon's Tavern suf reiially; but by fir the greater injury ')y the C7ofro and Andiar, which up v•ith great splendour, and flit ••••• omitted to take down hi. • '!re' , ,tshich his brother purveyor hat °led fortunate enough to secure. Thf c-nsequence tremendous. Lamps, lus • • dad crockery, shared one commen fate •••,';-: 4 to their 00V Ur of considerabl: Laic hnedred pounds. GLASGOW, OCTOBER 26. • THE SCOTTISH CAPITALv—A Gentleman, who has recently made a tour through the most interesting parts of North Britain, was asked by a Lady of great beauty and fashion in that country to favour her with his real opinion of Edinburgh ? I think, Madath," raid he, speaking of the ancient and new town, it is like an old Gentleman married to a blooming young ' bride ; he fondly loves and protects her, whilst she graces his side by her beauty and elegant attractions.' The carriage of Mrs. IsLER, of Argyle-street, was overturned yesterday in Oxford•street, by the negli gence or obstinacy of the driver of a coal-waggon, and a south in the carriage unfortunately had his shoulder dislocated. - - - t • • .... The following is the abstract of the Will of the late . WILLIAM SMITH, Esq. " 'Pie will of the late William Smith, F.sq. of theatric cele brity, was, as we before stated, proved in the Prerogative Court l)ii the 14th instant, by Wiliam 'faddy, Esq. one of his Execu tors; the personal estate being sworn under £lB,OOO, power of granting probate being reserved on the future appli:atlon of the relict, as the other party constituted for that purpose. lie has left his house and appurtenances at Bury St, Edmund's, with all other LURIS, tenements, and hereditaments, to his wife abso lutely ; also the interest of £B,OOO in the Navy 5 per Cents. for life i the inttreA of 4,000 in the 5 per Cent. Consols, is left to Mrs. Elizabeth White, of Lyinington, Hants, for life; after her death, ttt said interest to his wife in like manner; and at her .leaLli, the principal is to be divided bet Ween Mr. 'Liddy, 4r. Robe' t Smith, of Edinburgh, and other Legatees of the name of smith, "l'l e interest of all other funded property is kit to Mrs. 'midi io.ri , lg her life, and after her death it is given in sums „arty e q ual to the above-naititAi persont, including two of the ~ii,. 05 I rewson, his wife's sisters. The widow is also the general . ,i,ii:.., y lAzatee... A tire broke out last night, at seven o'clock, in the mouse of Mr. TEATS, tailor, ironmonger-row, St. Luke's, Old-street, which it totally consumed, besides Ilam:Ting two houses adjoining, before it was es inguislied. WORKMEN'S WAGES. The subjoined Letter on this subject, from a respectable 'Manu facturer in Manchester, has Ist.en in our possession for about ten days, and would have appeared sooner, bat for the presi cf temporary matter. The subject is most important, and de serves the serious and continued attention of every genuine friend to our common country. " SIR—In the present distressed and distracted state of most of the manufacturing districts—arising' chiefly from the extreme depreisign of wages, any attempt, howeverfeeble, to place ttle subject in a proper light, deserves encouragement. if the fol lowing remarks meet your views, I have no doubt their inset tion in your highly rApectable and impar ti.tl Journal, will prove acceptable to many of your Readers. " The greatest evils that have attended the cotton trade, for some years past, have been occasioned by the unreasonable reducti,•ii of the prices for weaving. Though the weaver is the first victim of this inhu- Milli practice, yet it is equally injurious to manufac turers and merchants; to wholesale and retail dealers. I am glad to find this sentiment is gaining ground, and have no doubt, that if it becomes generally pre valent, it will at length produce a bettertstate of things. " One circumstance which has had considerable weight in inducing the manufacturer to make so great a redaction in the price of labour, was a mis taken notion of %slut would be for his own benefit. Ile unfortunately supposed, when his stock became too large, that the only way to remedy the evil would be by lowering the wages of his workmen. The measure produced an effect the reverse of what was intended and expected. It has proved the source of a two-fold evil, viz. the increase of his stock, already too large—and the diminution of its value. He imagined he should be unable to dispose of the sur plus of his goods, if he did not get them made at lower prices ; but it was soon found, that whilst this measure did not materially increase his sales, it greatly augmented his stock, and in the end obliged hint to sell at a loss. "His true policy would rather have been to increase the price of weaving, and then, if he pleased, to have restricted the quantity manufactured. It might be expected, that whilst the maxim, that. the labourer is worthy of his hire,' is disregarded, numerous evils must ensue. If a man, in addition to what he gains during twelve or fourteen hours a day, is obliged to have recourse to parochial relief, to make up the deficiency of his earnings, the conse quence must necessarily be injurious both to himself, his employer, and to society. As it respects himself, it serves to lessen the sense which, in common with every individual, he ought to possess of his own im portance in the scale of society ; it relaxes his religious and moral feelings, by taking away the impression of his responsibility for the maintenance of his fa• rrtily ; it deprives him of the heartfelt satisfaction arising from the discharge of relative duties; and thus he becomes degraded in his own estimation, and instead of being useful to society, falls a heavy bur den upon it. " In justification of that inconsistent and ruinous course of conduct pursued by manufacturers, which has produced such an unparalleled depression of wages, it has been urged, that by this method alone our foreign trade can be secured. This, at first view; may appear plausible; but if we examine the facts with closer attention, we shall find that the idea is totally unfounded. Admitting, however, that this were the case, we had surely better relinquish the trade altogether, than continue it at a loss. As the poor-leys (rates) are never reckoned on the cost of goods, by continuing the trade on this principle, the Nation sustains a loss on every package sent out. Many descriptions of the cotton goods we export are not made abroad; and in those that are, we need not fear a competition for some time hence, at least within 15 to '2O per cent. of our present prices. It is worthy of remark, that almost every kind of cotton goods were 15 per cent, higher a year ago, than they are now ; yet this did not in the least di -1 minish the quantity of exports, ner would it if those prices were still continued. Several merchants, en gaged in the export trade alone, have repeatedly as sured me of this fact, and also of the heavy losses they, as well as ourselves, have sustained by the ex treme reduction of the value of their stock in hand. It is likewise the sentiment of all the respectable London purchasers, that not a piece less would have been sold, had they been 10 or 15 per cent. higher. " Now, since it is so generally allowed, that a con siderable advance in weaving is desirable, why is it not accomplished ? The price of the raw material is now particularly favourable. It is true, our ex cessive taxation is a bar to high wages, but there is still room for a considerable advance. The pernicious effects of the existing system extend themselves in every direction. They are severely felt, as greatly diminishing the circulation of money aniongsrall the trading classes. As, for instance, suppose 200,000 or 300,000 people having only seven or eight shillings, instead of fahrteen or sixteen shillings, to expend 1 weekly, what a drawback must this be, not only on, the comforts of the workmen, but on those tradesmen who are chiefly dependent on them; and at no time has the evil been so great as at the present, arising, l in a great degree, from its long continuance. This needs no comment. The following conversation will illustrate the preceding remarks. " A Gentleman, who is both a farmer and a manu facturer, stated to me, that he had never reduced the wages of his farming servants, in consequence of which they were able to purchase the same quantities of butter and milk as formerly, but that with respect to his weavers, the case was widely different, their income being so much reduced, that they are not able to buy any butter, and but little milk and pota toes. This alteration, as he feelingly expressed, does not arise from their not wanting the same quantity as before, but from their incapacity to obtain it. It is in fact impossible to describe the privations and sufferings of this class of the community. The sight I of a number of weavers, briaging in their work, pre sents such a spectacle of poverty, as must be exceed- ; ingly distressing to the feelings of all to whom cus tom has not rendered the scene familiar; in many poor families, their looms arc never at rest, one part of the family occupying them through the day, and the other taking their place at night—thus one loom is made to produce the quantity for which two ought to be employed. It is not fanciful to say that the forcing so much labour 014 of the weavers hands, by low wages, has had its share in keeping up the price of cotton, by creating a demand for this article, of one-third more than was actually wanted ; this, aided by most unwise speculation, has ended in the total ruin of many respectable firms. " Much is said by those who are the most forward in withholding from the labourer what is his due, respecting their loyalty—let such prove their own attachment:and love to their country, and its admi rable Constitution, by hastening to do an act of jus• tice to that part of our population, o❑ which so much of the prosperity and peace of the State depends. If the working classes are not able to support them selves by labour, it is plain the State is diseased, and it surely becomes.the State Physicians, as well as its Manufacturers and Merchants, to try to discover the disease, that they may apply a suit :Me remedy. " Mr. Ilolt, to the benevolence of whose heart and good feeling I pay a most willing testimony, says, that m the letter he has received from the Earl of Derby, his Lordship expresses himself with much humanity upon the sufferings of the manufacturing poor; but why, I would ask, are his sentiments on such a sub ject to he kept secret? There would not, I presume, be any impropriety in his Lordship's affording a more public procf of his feelings ; many persons of rank and influence, have come forward in other places with great effect, and it is certainly the duty of every loyal friend to his country, to use his efforts at this important crisis, and to render what assistance he can, in averting the evils that threaten us. Legisla tive interference with trade, must ever be considered an evil, but since it appears evident that no other method will prove efficient for the protection of the weavers, of the two evils we must chase the least— to this it is objected, that labour, like all other dis posable commodities, will ultimately find its own level, which would probably hold good, if every other at ticle were left free; but whilst effectual means are taken to keep up the price of corn, and other ar ticles absolutely necessary to subsistence, the case is different, and the withholding such interference be comes injustice on the part of the Legislature. " When, at some periods of the late war, we pos sessed in certain branches almost the exclusive trade of Europe, the pike of provisions was not of so much importance; but when a general peace took place, and a competition in many articles commenced with other nations, we find that the price of food, Ste. must bear some proportion to that of other countries, or that we must, in a great measure, lose the trade in those articles, or otherwise oblige our labourers to work at prices that must greatly oppress them ; it is true our machinery and industry will give us great advantage for years to come; but if the im mense amount of our taxation is not lessened, and our - Corn Laws are continued in operation, we shall find, and probably at no very remote period, many branches of our manufactures not only rivalled, but completely ruined. I beg pardon for so long a letter, but it is only by the subject being placed In different points of view, and discussing its merits, that it can be pro perly understood. I hope persons of wealth and in fluence will step forward before the winter sets in ; measures of this nature will do more to tranquillize the public mind than any other. lam well satisfied ' that in the great majority of the working classes, there is as predominant a portion of good feeling and love of country as in any other class of society, and ; it behoves all who have it in any degree in their ; power, to do what they can to cherish that feeling, ; by rendering their situation as comfortable as possible. " A MANUFACTURER." FENIALE COAL4SEARERs,—Mr. BALD, an intelli gent and experienced Engineer, in a small Work, published some years ago, on the Coal Trade of Scotland, gives the following description of the mi serable condition of the Female Coal-Bearers: " The bearers are generally the wives and daugh ters of the colliers, but sometimes other women are hired. They leave their house about two in the morning, the mother having previously wrapped up her infant child in a blanket, and committed it to the care of an old woman, who for a small gratuity keeps three or four children at a time, and in their mother's absence feeds them with ale, or whiskey mixed with water. The mother and grown-up daughters then descend the pit, where their occupation is to carry immense loads of coals on their backs in baskets.— In carrying their loads, the mother sets out first with a lighted candle in her teeth ; the girls follow, and in this manner, they proceed to the pit-bottom, and with weary steps and slow, ascend the stairs, halting occasionally to draw bread', till they arrive at the hill or pit-top, where the coals are laid down for sale ; and in this manner they go for eight or ten hours without resting. It is no uncommon thing to see them, when ascending the pit, weeping most bitterly, from the excessive severity of the labour ; but the in stant they liAve laid down their burden on the hill, they resume their cheerfulness, and return down the pit singing. The work performed by a stout woman in this way is beyond conception. The author has seen two tons carried in this way in a day, by burdens of 170 pounds or upwards, or even as high as three hundred weight, first 150 yards up the slope below ground, then up the stairs of the pit 117 feet, and lastly twenty yards on the hill. The wages paid them for this work are eightpence a-day, a circum stance, as Mr. Bald remarks, as surprising as the work performed. The women begin their labour generally at seven years of age, and continue it till fifty or even sixty. It frequently happens, that the mother of a family continues to bear coals even to within two days or twelve Lours of her in-lying. This practice is unknown in England ; has been discon tinued at Glasgow ; and prevails chiefly in the neigh bourhood of Edinburgh, and some other limited dis tricts; but we understand some families in Edinburgh have resolved to take no Coals from Collieries where female bearers are employed ; and there is no doubt, were this resolution acted on to any extent, the prac tice would soon be entirely given up." CORN MARKET, MARK-LANE, OCT. 29. Having but little fine Wheat and Barley'at Market this morning, rather better prices were obtained for prime samples; but the middling qualities of each of the above articles still contiivie very dull in sale, although offered on Muaday's terms. Oats are Is. per quarter lower than on Sionday. In Beans and Peas there is no alteration. SMITIIFIF.LI) MARKET, OCTOBER 29. (To sink the offal ; per state of bibs.) Beef 49 01 to 5s 4).1 I Veal ss Od to 6s 64 Mutton ....4s Od to .is Pork B ro u 740....ta1ve.;;40--Slteep and Lwtbs 5,4501)--15‘91:8111 .I A II . -; 1. '~~~~ !;ll ~, .N 1 I , , .j ~' It I 1 11 iff:!l 1 i 1 . 4 1 1 : , l i .. , ). . 1 ' 1 4 " 1 1 v h . 1 : 1 , cli t,. , y !~