The Press. — London, England, 1856-08-09 00:00:00

AUGUST 9, 1856. - THE WEST RIDING MAGISTRACY assembled at Wakefield on Friday, for the purpose of considering the best means for carrying into effect the new Police Act. The Hon. E. Lascelles, presided, and the meeting was fully attended. A resolution detailing the duties of the clerk of the peace, and moving for the appointment of a central committee of magis trates to carry the police acts into effect, was proposed by Mr. E. Denison, M.P., and carried nem. con., while a second resolution proposing that the com mittee should meet at Wakefield on the 12th Sep tember was also agreed to. THE EDINBURGH AUTHORITIES have resolved to give a welcome to the sth Dragoon Guards and 72nd Highlanders on their return from the war. It is ex pected that a grand banquet to men and officers will be decided on. THE MEMBERS OF THE MILITARY GUN TRADE OF BIRMINGHAM last week presented Mr. Muntz, M.P., and Mr. Newdegate, M.P., with testimonials to mark their sense of the important services which those gentlemen rendered to the trade, and to the country at large, in the small arms committee, which sat two years ago. This presentation took place at a dinner given at the Royal Hotel on Friday night. The tes timonial to each gentleman took the form of a piece of plate. The productions consist of two groups in oxydised silver (fac-simile), one for each of the two gentlemen. The incident which is depicted is one of the most memorable episodes in the battle of Inker mann, viz., the final occupation by the Guards of the Sandbag Battery. The groups are executed in silver, oxydised and gilt, and mounted on pedestals of Sienna marble, each bearing on the front a wreath inclosing the word "Inkermann," and on the back a silver plate with the presentation inscription. In addition, both gentlemen were presented with a double-barrelled fowling-piece and a Mime, specimens of the latest improvement in this arm, both bearing appropriate inscriptions, but upon the rifle of Mr. Newdegate making special reference to the exertions of one of his ancestors, Sir Richard Newdegate, who in the reign of William 111. exerted his influence to get the military gun trade introduced into Birming ham. Mr. J. Goodman, who occupied the chair at the dinner, gave a slight history of the Government and Birmingham factories during the war : In February, 1854. the Government came before Parlia ment with their new plan for a royal factory, founding all their arguments for its establishment upon this delay. They asked for 100,0001., and they undertook that it should not cost more than 150,0001. They promised also to pro duce five hundred muskets a day ; that they would produce guns at 11. Bs. instead of 31. ; that they would thus save 727,0001. a year ; that they consequently would not require to keep stores ; and talked so much about factories and machinery that the belief was pretty general that if they put iron and wood in at one door they would come out guns and bayonets at another. ( Laughter.) Then it was that Messrs. Muntz and Newdegate stepped in to the manufacturers' relief. They asked for a committee, where the trade could be heard, and the declarations of the Government sifted. The trade was beard, and they promised that, instead of 20,000 or 30,000 a year, they would undertake, if they bad a fair field, to produce within the first two years 150,090 guns. The committee lent a favorable ear to the trade, and in consequence of their report the factory was not removed to Woolwich, and the grant was reduced from 100,0001. to 40,0001. The report was made in March, but it was not till November that the whole of the trade was set to work. And what had they done? They promised 150,000 in two years. The actual performance was that they bad sent in the enormous number of 272,000. And of that number 240,000 were Minie rifles of a quality that the world never saw, and such as no other country in the world could equal. But what bad been done at Enfield? A sum of 40,0001. was granted; but, according to a return obtained by Mr. Spooner, they had already spent 106.000/. ; in March they gut 47,0001. more, making 153,0001.; and 50,000!. more was asked for artificers and officers. Thus they had a total of 174,0001. expended on the factory for which they asked only 100,001., and for which only 40,0001. was granted, and as yet there had not been produced a single gun . A MAN NAMED HELSTONE, last week in Leicester shire, concluded with ease a walking feat of seventy miles a day for six successive days. He walked the distance usually in from twelve to fourteen hours, and during the week lived on beef tea and underdone muttm chops. RAILWAY AcciDENTs have been numerous this week. Collisions and running off the rails have oc curred on the North-Western, the East Lancashire, the . Wigan line, and the Dublin and Belfast. Several lives have been lost, and frightful fractures and other injuries, on nearly every occasion, suffered by the unfortunate passengers. A REFORMATORY-SCHOOL. MEETING was held at Winchester on Wednesday. The Bishop of Win chester presided, and Mr. Shaw Lefevre, the Speaker of the House, also addressed the meeting in favour of the county establishment at Eling. Subscrip tions to the amount of 100/. were announced. r. SUNDAY BANDS in Manchester will probably be discontinued. At the City Council on Wednesday, r. Alderman Bancroft moved and carried a resolu tion, by 27 to 18, recommending the gentlemen con stituting the bands committee to withdraw them. THE PRESS. THE ROYAL YACHT SQUADRON REGATTA has been held at Cowes this week. Prince Albert's Cup was won by Sir Percy Shelley's yacht Extravaganza. Her Majesty's Vase remains to be decided. THE VEGETARIAN SOCIETY held their ninth annual banquet last week in the City-hall, Glasgow. The company were served with a most sumptuous repast, consisting of a great variety of savory dishes, all prepared without the flesh or fat of any animal, followed by a service of coffee and fancy breads, and concluding with a dessert of the most delicious fruits of the season. Several gentleman from various parts of Great Britain, Ireland, and America, addressed the meeting. Some of the speakers had not tasted animal food for upwards of forty years. THE SCHEME FOR AN EXHIBITION OF ART TREA SURES at Manchester next year progresses favorably. A deputation from the committee have had an inter view with the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, and his Excellency has promised his support, public and private, to the scheme. The building is progressing rapidly, and the executive are indefatig able in their efforts to induce noblemen and gentlmen to lend their support by permitting the exhibition of their collections on the occasion. _ MAJOR GOODLAKE, of the Coldstream Guards, met with a warm reception yesterday week from the neigh bours and tenantry of his father, Mr. T. M. Good lake, of Wadley-park, Berks. Major Goodlake left England with the first portion of the army. He was present at the Alma, in command of the sharp shooters. In the battles of Inkermann and Bala klava he took part with his regiment, and fought most gallantly with the Zouaves at the Tschernaya, for which service he received from the Emperor of the French the distinction of the Legion of Honour. From the commencement of the campaign until the close he was not absent from duty one single day from sickness, or any other cause. This gallant officer was entertained on the Ist instant at a public dinner, presided over by Sir R. G. Tnrockmorton. THE BISHOP OF EXETER has offered a compro mise to the Torrington Burial Board. His secretary has informed the burial board that the bishop would consecrate the ground in accordance with the report of the select committee of the House of Lords on the Burials Act, and dated the 4th ult., recommend ing a railing as a line of demarcation (between the space for dissenters and the part allotted to church men), but the board, with but oue dissentient, de clined the terms, and preferred waiting till the next session, in the hopes that an effectual and general alteration will be made in the law, rendering the con sent of the bishops as to the finished state of the ground before consecration unnecessary. ANOTHER TERRIBLE DEATH BY MACHINERY occurred on Monday at Messrs. Hatton's silver-plating estab lishment, Sheffield. The young women employed in silver polishing stand at a workboard, about four feet apart, and underneath each board, at about eighteen inches from the floor, runs the shaft from the steam engine by which the polishing spindles are propelled. An iron bar is fixed on a level with the front of each workbench, to protect the clothes of the young women from the shaft. This precautionary measure, how ever, proved ineffectual in the case of the deceased, Emma Memmott, for while she was at work her clothes, from some unknown cause, became entangled with the coupling-box of the shaft. Feeling the drag at her clothes, she screamed out for assistance, and a man named Birks, under whom she worked, ran to her assistance, and, seizing her under the arms, endeavoured to drag her from the spot, both he and she screaming all the while to the persons in care of the engine in a lower room to stop it. The engine was not stopped, and the machinery gradually wound up the poor girl's clothes, dragging her down at every moment, despite the efforts of Birks, who, finding it useless further to contend against the force of the machinery, himself ran into the lower room and instantly stopped the engine. When be returned be found all the deceased's clothes torn of, and her body mutilated in the most shocking manner ; literally] crushed to pieces. It is supposed that the iron bar connected with the shaft was loose, and caused the accident, for, so great was the force of the machinery, the bar, though of considerable thickness, was found wrapped round the shaft as though it had been a piece of cord. A verdict of " Accidental death " was returned by the jury at the coroner's inquest. The jury also expressed a strong opinion that where women are employed engine shafts should be boarded off. Messrs. Hutton have since ordered the shafting in every workroom to be completely boxed off. THE EMIGRATION FROM LIVERPOOL during the past month amounted to 11,702 persons for Mel bourne, Sydney, Canada, and the United States. pulant. THE GREAT COMET OF 1556, if the accounts from Limerick are to be credited, after an absence of three centuries, has made its predicted reappearance in the south of Ireland. The Observer of Saturday says : 753 A gentleman of the highest respectability has just in- formed us that he saw last night, for the third time, what appesrs from his description to be the long-expected comet of 1556, the reappearance of which this year has been so lon,; foretold ; astronomers, however, guarding their cal culations by the proviso that a difference of three years might possibly tccur, although there was every reason to expect that the great comet, which takes three centuries to complete its orbit, would be visible about the month of August, 1856. Our informant thus describes the object which attracted his attention for the first time last Wednes day night :—He was standing near the salmon-weir, on the platform before the mills of Corbally, about half-past ten o'clock, when his attention was attracted by what appeared to be a fire rising on the top of the Keeper mountain, due east of his position. He remarked the object to a gentle man who was with him, but, as the tire rose and cleared the top of the mountain. his friend suggested that it must be a lantern suspended to a kite. It had then the appear ance of a globe of fire as large as a good-sized orange, with a broad tail of light extending about eighteen incites from the body. The two gentlemen watched it for an hour, and the watchman on the weir observed it also. On Thursday night they all saw it again. It rose a few moments later, pre senting the same appearances, and was high in the heavens at haltpast eleven o'clock, when they went home. At that hour one of the gentlemen pointed it out to his sister. Last night, from the same place, the same persons again saw it rise about twenty minutes before eleven o'clock, and then it first occurred to one of them (our informant) that it might be a comet.. He ceased to watch it about mid night, but the watchman observed it up to half-past one o'clock this morning. It did not seem so large as on the previous nights, but still far exceeded the most brilliant form in which the planet Jupiter has ever been beheld. As the greatest comet on record is really due about this time, and as tit.: extreme sultriness of the weather would seem to warrant the belief that such a celestial visitor is near at hand, we shall be glad to hear if any other persons have observed the appearance which has thrice risen upon our astonished friends. Mn. Mrwrwr, the Master in Chancery who con ducted the private examination of James Sadleir, explains and justifies that proceeding in a paper placed on the file of the records of the case. He says : The official manner and his solicitor were appointed on the 17th of March. On the came day they attended in chamber and represented the importance of Mr Sadleir being immediately examined, under the foregoing circum stances. It was then suggested to me, most properly, that the proceedings in this cue were analogous to those in bankruptcy, in which, at the instance of the assignee , private examinations are constantly bad. At their in stance, and upon fall consideration, I assented to the pri vate examination. Mr. Sadleir accordingly attended on March 19. His examination occupied about five hours ; it related to the matters above referred to. It had nothin. whatever to do with the frauds afterwards in question The examination resulted in James Sadleir handing over to the Mlles' manager the deed above referred to, and giving other useful information. lam satisfied that this private examination was bond fide, prudent, and uselhl, and that it would have been a weak and unworthy aban donment of my plain duty not to have acceded to it. It was contended before me, on behalf of the official manager-Ist. That no fraud on the part of James Sadleir had been alleged. 2nd. That it had not been proved. Upon a most careful consideration of this point of the case I arrived at the conclusion (which I still consider to be correct) that although there were against James Sadleir strong grounds for suspicion, there was not before me sufficient legal evidence to sustain the charge ; and I accordingly find that the terms of my original judgment, which is now before me, and from which I copy them, are—" On this point I am of opinion that, as between the alleged and admitted contributories, the fraud, as imputed to James Sadleir, has not been sufficiently established by strict legal proof so as to form a ground for legal decision." THE Tipperary Free Press states that Clonacooty, the residence of James Sadleir, near Fethard, has been very recently visited by the authorities, who, on one,occasion, were said to have been close upon the trail of the fugitive. The Free Press also states that the rumour of James (and even John) Sadleir being still in Ireland is daily gaining ground and becoming more generally credited. THE COURT MARTIAL upon the Tipperary rioters is still sitting. elution nttiligenct, GLAMORGAN.—The address of Mr. H. Hussey Vivian, the Liberal candidate for the representation of the above county, appears in the local papers. The hon. gentleman appeals to his votes during the past four years as the best guarantee of his political principles ; declares himself opposed to Church rates and all legislative distinctions on religious grounds; in favour of free trade, the ballot, and civil administrative reform. Mr. Vivian, in conclu sion, says : I shall vote for a thorough reform of our military system, because I believe that the greater part of the disas- ters which betel our gallant army in the late war may be traced to a servile adherence to effete routine, based upon appointments originating in interest and nepotism, rather than merit. FROME.—The statement of the Sherborme Journal that the petition against the Hon. Major Boyle's