The Sun. — London, England, 1860-04-02 00:00:00

COMPANY. .HERTFI The first ordinary meeting of the shareholders in the Hertford Building Company (established for the purpose of building and improving dwellings for the working classes) was held at the Shire-hall on Tuesday: M. H. Gosselin, Esq., presided. Amongst the shareholders present were—the Hon. and Rev. Godolphin Hastings, R. Dimsdale, Esq., J; W. Chesshyre, Esq., G. E. Hyde, Esq., Jasper Gripper, Esq,, E. H. Hoskins, Esq., E. Lewis, Esq., W. M. Armstrong, Esq., Mr. S. Hatchard, Mr. Ludlow, Mr. S. Andrews, Mr. W. Wilds, &c. The CHAIRMAN said they had met to-day to com plete the constitution of the company, which had been duly registered, by the appointment of direc tors and auditors and other officers to carry out the objects which they had in view. It would also be necessary to make a call upon the shareholders in order that they might commence operations. He was sorry that the attendance at this important meeting was so scanty, but those of their friends who were kept away by other engagements would doubtless be satisfied with what was done at this meeting. He would call on Mr. Dimsdale to pro pose the first resolution. Mr. R. DIMSDALE said the company had now arrived at that stage of its proceedings when, having been registered under the Act of Parliament, it was necessary to take further steps to complete its orga nisation. The number of shares already taken was 379, and the donations amounted to the sum of £195. They had, therefore, the means of commenc ing their work. it was not proposed, in thu first in stance, to enter upon any very extensive scheme. At the outset it would probably be sufficient to erect half-a-dozen cottages, after some of the excellent plans and models upon the tables ; and if they were successful in producing at a reasonable cost a suitable class of dwellings, others would be induced to assist them, and they might easily extend their operations. Amongst the many good plans upon !the table, there were some according to which they might build excellent cottages at £9O each ; and he had seen a gentleman who was willing to give them a small piece of land on one of the roads going out of Hertford at a moderate price. If, then, they could build cottages at £7O or £BO each, they would be able to make a start with a capital of £5OO or £6OO. Amongst the questions suggested at the very outset of this undertaking, there was one of great importance—What sum can the labouring man be expected to pay as rent ? Now, in answer to that, he wo u ld sa y th a t if t h ey fixed their rents at £6 a year they would be giving the labourer a good cottage for less money than he could at present get anything that was fit to live in. (Hear.) And if that were the sum fixed, it would give them for six cottages an annual rental of £36 on—say an expenditure of £620. That would be a good income to start with. It would be rather more than 6 per cent., and if they deducted 1 per cent. for a sinking fund, there would be 5 per cent. left for the shareholders. (Hear, hear.) In his opinion the best thing they could do was to carry out their scheme on a small scale at first, and see how it answered. With this view they proposed to com mence by making a call upon the shareholders to the extent of £2 10s. a share, which would produce a little short of £l,OOO, and as they would only want between £6OO and £7OO to build three pair of cottages, the balance might remain at their bankers. He was sorry that there was not a larger number of shareholders present, as he was most anxious to elicit their opinions ; but amongst those around him there were practical men fully competent to form a judgment on all the matters which would come under their notice. He begged to propose-- " That a call of £2 10s. per share be made on the shareholders in the Hertford Building Company (Limited), payable on or before the Ist of May next, and that interest at the rate of 5 per cent. per annum be charged on all calls unpaid on that day." Mr. CHESSHYRE, in seconding the motion, said he hoped he should not be taxing the patience of the shareholders, if he entered into a somewhat more detailed statement of the position and plans of the company than they had just listened to. Mr. Dimsdale and himself differed a little in figures, and the proposition which occurred to him was a rather larger one than that which Mr. Dimsdale had sub mitted. The shareholders were aware that no Joint Stock Company could be carried on without the observance of certain regulations as prescribed by the particular Act of Parliament under which it was established. This Company had been formed and registered under an Act of Parliament passed in 1856, called the" Limited Liability Act," which pro vided that no shareholder should be responsible for more than the amount of the shares for which he had subscribed, that there should be annual meetings of the shareholders, and that at the first of those meet ings directors should be appointed (which was one of the propositions to be submitted to-day.) There were rules relative to the keeping of a register of the share holders, and other stringent regulations prescribed by the Act of Parliament,—and that at all meetings, shareholders should be entitl e d t o vo t e according to the number of shares held by them. He just men tioned these particulars, because very few people really understood the nature of companies of this description. Now it would be apparent that the suc cess of such an undertaking depended solely on the judgment and discretion of the directors. In con sidering any plans that might be submitted to them for the erection of cottages the question of cost would be of main importance, and it would also be necessary that every part of the work should be erected in a substantial manner. No . ..pay was at tached to any office in the company, and there fore a considerable onus rested upon those who un dertook the management of the company. In saying this, he was anxious to explain how it happened that Mr. Dimsdale's name and his own appeared as managing directors. It was necessary that some body should pay the fees, and go through the form of registering the company, and they had been ap pointed at the last board meeting to that office. They were mainly indebted to Mr. Dimsdale for the extent of their share list, and for the amount of the donations received, for he had taken upon him self the trouble of writing to parties and inducing them to assist in the undertaking. For himself he could say that he should be happy to continue his services as long as he could find time to devote to the promotion of its interests. (Cheers.) Nearly 400 shares, representing a capital of £2,000, had been subscribed and the call of £2 10s proposed to be made would realise about £l,OOO, which would be invested at interest and withdrawn as t he building works pro gressed. It had not, of course, yet been decided to what purpose the donation fund of nearly 1:20/should be applied, but he thought that a portion of it might be fairly applied towards the preliininary and other incidental expenses in the establishment of the Com pany. There was a great deal more than at, first sight appeared in the proposal to erect a few model cot tages in the neighbourhood of Hertford ; and if this had been the aim and end of the company, he cer tainly should never have devoted so much time to such an object, because the good to be done would have been confined within so narrow a limit, that he should have felt his time and labour might have been much better employed. But the fact of the existence of such a company had already drawn attention in this neighbourhood to the wretched accommodation for the labouring -classes ; and had induced inquiry to be made as to the general cost of cottage building, the description of cottage best suited to meet the requirements of the poor, and the rent a man can afford to pay, In reference to the latter point—the rent an agricultural labourer could afford to pay—he some what differed with Mr. Dimsdale. It was true that no decent accommodation could now be obtained in the town of Hertford by the labouring man for a rent of .£6, or even higher. Their means and their plans at present went no further than the building of a certain number of cottages ; but their success in this beginning would secure increased patronage, and would, he hoped, enable them to do something towards remodelling and improving existing dwell ings in overcrowded courts and alleys in villages and towns, and in erecting buildings of that much needed class—common lodging houses. (Hear, hear.) The proposed plan of erecting a few model cottages was entirely experimental—the ob ject being to ascertain whether or not it was pos sible to build them at such a cost as would remu nerate the proprietor ; and if they were successful in that experiment there could be little doubt that it would stimulate others to turn their attention to the subject, and thus indirectly effect a vast amount of good. (Hear, hear.) If as a company they failed in obtaining a large return on their investment, it would not follow that landed proprietors might not, in the erection of cottages on their own land, reap the advantages of improved cultivation, and the blessing of a com f or t a bl y h ouse d population around them. And if so, the company would in some measure have been instrumental in effecting this desirable change. (Hear, hear.) Now it was perfectly clear that the object of this company— the improvement of the condition of the labouring classes, by the erection of model cottages and other dwellings, could never be effected unless the rentals charged were within the means of those whom the company proposed to benefit. It would be absurd to build a villa residence, and offer it to a labouring man for £2O a year ; and equally so to build a cottage, and ask him to pay a rental exceeding in amount that which, on a fair calculation of his average wages, he could afford to pay, at the sam e time providing for himself and family the common necessaries of life. Nor would it have been possi ble to establish this company if the principle of providing the labourer with a house at a rental h e could afford to pay had not been kept in view. Those who had taken shares had not done so with a view to profit, though many undoubtedly looked for some return ; whilst those who had assisted the company with donations regarded the movement entirely from a benevolent point of view, and looked for no return at all. To meet the views of both parties, it was essential not only that good and commodious dwellings should be erected for the working classes, but that they should be erected at the least possible cost, and that that cost should not exceed a sum upon which a moderate and fair rental would give a return of - not less than three or four per cent. Although there were various opinions as to the description of dwelling, in minor details, best suited to meet the require ments of an agricultural district, all appeared to agree upon one point—that no cottage could afford proper accommodation for a married man with a family exceeding two or three children of different sexes, and beyond a certain age, which did not possess at least one sitting-room and three bed rooms ; but if any ordinary parish were selected, it would probably be found that, if one half of the cottages for families had a sitting-room and two bed rooms, the requirements of the district would be amply provided for. This was not taking into con sideration the question of cottages for single men, who might find a home in the second class of cot tages, occupied by married men without families. Then, it was also generally admitted that detached cottages, built in pairs, were preferable to cottages built in an unbroken line. (Hear, hear.) Now, supposing these opinions met the views of the di rectors, and that it was decided on commencing operations by building a certain number of such cottages as he (Mr. Chesshyre) had suggested, in the immediate vicinity of this town—the first question to be considered was the cost of erection and of the purchase of land. The quantity of land required would depend upon the number of cottages proposed to be built, and the cost of purchase very much upon the generosity of its owner. The value of laud near the town of Hertford, fortunately, was not so great as in the neighbourhood of some towns; and if they reckoned from .-C3 10s. to £4 an acre per annum, they were stating about the average rentals paid. Therefore they might fairly expect to purchase an acre of land on an eligible site for about £l2O, though he confessed he was not at this moment prepared to name any owner who would sell such land at all. (Hear.) Taking it, however, for granted that a movement of this kind would be liberally met by the owners of property, they might calculate on pur chasing an acre of land for about £l2O. Well, an acre of land would be amply sufficient for the erection of eight cottages, in pairs, containing, on the ground-floor of each, a good-sized sitting-room and small kitchen ; and, on the upper floor, three bed-rooms over one part and two over the other. Taking, then, the land at £l2O, and the four double cottages at £l6O each (.£640), the total cost would be £760, to which must be added, for fences and extras, at least £4O, making in all £BOO for the eight model cottages. There was no doubt that cottages of this class, if thrown into the market, would command rentals of at least £7 10s. per annum, or £l5 the pair, which would make a return of no less than 71 per cent. on the in vestment ; but the question then arose whether the labouring classes, for whose especial benefit this company proposed to erect cottages, could afford to pay a rental of 3s. per week out of the average wages which they received. Upon in quiry, he found that the rentals paid by agricul tural labourers in parishes in the surrounding country varied from ls. 3d. to 2s. per week; but in no case did he find that the variation depended on the rate of wages adopted in those particular parishes. Without going further into this difficult question, which depended so much on the number of a man's family, the description of labour he had to perform, and whether his employment were con stant or not, he would assume that a labourer with a family, earning 1 ls. per week during the whole year, could afford to pay £4los. a-year, which was little less than ls. 9d. per week, for his cottage. Taking, then, four of the cottages as producing this amount, and the other four let at 10s. a-year less, they had this result : the cottages would produce £34 per annum, which would be about 41 per cent. on the capital invested. Each cottage would have little less than an eighth of an acre of land for garden purposes. (Hear, hear.) Now, he confessed that he felt considerable diffidence in offering these calculations to the notice of the shareholders, because he had been often told that cottage property was the worst possible investment. Landowners would not regard it as a bad investment if they j could get 41 per cent. ; but then they must recollect that no man, unconnected with land, th oug ht h e made a good building investment if he did not get from 7-1 to 10 per cent. It would be easy, however, to show that, as compared with investments in land and in connection with land, cottage property was a profitable investment in various ways. (Hear.) It, however, unfortunately happened that there was a prevalent opinion amongst landed proprietors in this county, and, indeed, in the country gener ally, that the erection of cottages on their estates had the effect of creating a burden on the land in the shape of poor-rates, instead of enhancing its value. Hence, instead of erecting cottages for la bourers employed upon their estates, they made no provision for the increased demand of that descrip tion of dwellings ; and where such dwellings had been erected, the style adopted had entailed such a large outlay that it would be absurd to expect any thing like a moderate return for the investment. No one who had travelled much in this country but must have been struck by the contrast presented by the cottages to be met with in agricultural districts. In immediate contiguity to the common lath and plaster and thatched cottages of the olden style— which, it water-tight, were certainly not air-tight —they observed large, roomy, substantial houses, more like villas than labourers' cottages, and which had been erected at a cost of from £l5O to £2OO. It was certainly not to be wondered at that such pro perty did not pay. (Hear.) With regard to the question of increased poor-rates, and also thel:ernu nerativeness of cottage property, he would, with the permission of the meeting, read a very sensibl e practical letter of Mr. Christopher Neville, published in the Times two years ago, and which to his mind furnished the most conclusive argument he had. met with on the subject, not only with reference to the pecuniary part of the question, but also with regard to the ad van t ages o f increased accommoda tion for the labourer on the land on which he had to work. The letter was as follows : " In an excellent article in your last Monday's paper you say, A good cottage let to an agricultural labourer is not remunerative, at least we shall be glad to be corrected on this point.' I hope to be able to show you that judicious cottage building for agricultural labourers is remunerative. It is admitted that 3 per cent. is an ample net return for landed property. Now, I will say nothing of the ruinous consequences in a national point of view of the present in human system of dividing a parish into the three or four farms of 500 or 700 acres each, and driving the unfortunate labourers into wretched habitations three or four miles off; but I will take the case of an individual proprietor owning an entire parish. " It is quite sufficient if half the cottages have three bed rooms and half have only two. A plain good cottage of bricks and tile can be built for £75 by building two to gether, with five bed-rooms over the living rooms. A la bourer can well afford to pay £4los. a-year for one of these cottages and half an acre of land, usually let at £1 per acre, so £4 is left to pay the interest of £75, which is 51 per cent. Deducting 31 per cent. there is more than 11 per cent. for a reserved fund, which would build the cottage over again in .50 years. The cotta ge wou ld, h owever, b e very good in that time, and therefore an agricultural labourer can pay 31 per cent. and pay for building his cottage himself. If only one hour ii,day is saved in going to his work and re turning home, it amounts to more than 300 hours a-year, or 30 days of 10 working hours each, which at 2s. a-day is £3 a-year ; bnt a labourer can earn much more than 2s. a-day in his own garden. All this I know by my own ex perience for many years. " I have, now, however, tomeet the objection ofincreased poor-rates. It has been proved by Mr. Knight, in his able book upon the Poor -law, that the parish where the labourer spends his wages is far mere enriched than the parish where lie earns them; and it is clearly shown that, whereas open or populous parishes have doubled and trebled in value in a cei-taienagneisi ar number of years, close pa r i s h es h ave i n most ordi nary scarcely improved in value. In obedience to this n a e r a i b h y o fH cottage ar b y b , ui b l d e i c n a g us o e n i t s m h a a l s l been o s l u d p s - . law, I had to g i ve £5O for a single rood of leasehold land in p th o e se a d dl o oi b n e in ru g I admit that the poor-rates may be increased by an in creased population, but the landowner in reality p poor-rates ; and I had rather pay 3s. in the po o und d a n Y p s on a e rental of 30s. or .t 2 an acre, than lin the rental £1 an acre. The entire parish in wh P icl in l te a longs to me, and in no way.have I more closely considered own real interest than in retaining the small holdings my and in adding to the cottages on my est a t e. . That was a letter which should be published and read by every landowner in England. (Cheers. If he had not already occupied so much o f their) time, he would have read a speech delivered by Lord Palmerston at Romsey in December last bear ing upon some of the same points, and which was so much to the purpose, and brought before them such common-sense views with reference to cottage i property, that every one should read t. (Hear, hear.) The real history of overcrowded dwellings —of courts and alleys, in towns and villages, setting aside political motives, which induced many to build them in former days —was, that so little accommo dation was provided on the land, that agricultural labourers were obliged to resort to such places to live in. (Hear, hear.) In conclusion, he begged to second the resolution proposed by Mr. Dimsdale. (Cheers.) Mr. HATCHARD said it would have been satisfac tory if there had been more models and plans of cottages, so that they might have unanimously ap proved of some one. He was sorry there was not some design they could all agree to as the best. He would suggest that a portion of the amount received in donations should be appropriated as premiums for working models of cottages, such as they might be likely to adopt, and that no cot tages be built until they had such models. In the model on the table, the roof was objection able, but perhaps, with a little expense, they might have an improved roof. IN ith regard to the rent to be paid, it struck him that as a labour ing man's means very much depended upon the number of his family, those with the larger fami- lies would have the least means of paying rent, while the larger of the houses suggested by Mr. Chesshyre would cost more than the others. They would best meet the wants of the labouring classes by having houses of various sizes, instead of each being a repetition of the other. A man might then choose his own house, and he could not be compelled to take a large one if he wanted a small one. Mr. CHESSHYRE said the model on the table was only brought here to give an idea of the thing wanted, and which might be done ; there was no intention of adopting that or any other particular plan. It was not ; however, possible for the share holders to decide these things at their general meetings; the matter must be left in the hands of the directors; and if Mr. Hatchard, who was a practical man, would allow his name to be put down as a director, he might render material assistance. At present it was not proposed to enter upon an extensive building scheme, and it would, there fore, be impossible to erect a great variety of cot tages. The principalthing was to present a model for a good cottage. (Hear, hear.) Mr. HATCHARD said he was willing to act as a director, if his services were of any use. Mr. DIMSDALE said he had received a letter from a shareholder, proposing that they should offer prizes for the best plans ; but recently he had had some conversation with Mr. Payne, a practical man, and well up in these matters, who advised him that very little good was to be got out of the course sug gested, and when they had got a good plan from a practical man, it was better to take it than seek suggestions from all quarters. (Hear, hear.) Mr. POLLARD (of the Iferts Guardian) said that some friends of his in the town were disposed to be come shareholders, but they entertained the objec tion that, if too many of this class of houses were built in one parish, it would have the effect of making more poor persons chargeable to that parish. The cottages proposed to be built ought to be divided fairly between the different parishes. Mr.Hatchard's suggestion that the cottages should be of different sizes, was a very reasonable ime, for if a labou r i ng man had only one or two children, he did not want the same sized house as if he had five or six. The CHAIRMAN--This is a matter which mutt, I think, be left to the directors. The Hon. and Rev. G. HASTINGS said it struck him that one of the primary objects of this company was to put before the landlords a good model cot tage. The question raised by Mr. Pollard was one which should be put before the landlord. It was too large a suggestion to be carried out in the small movement at present contemplated by this com pany. Mr. POLLARD—How many cottages do you pro pose to build ? Mr. R. DIMSDALE—Six or eight. It is possible to build two with two bedrooms each. Mr. CHESSHYRE said the cottages he should sug gest would be built in pairs, with two rooms below, and five rooms over, three for one cottage and two for the other. They might by this means get more space for the three rooms; and if the cottage with two bedrooms were let to a married man without children, he might add to his means by taking in a lodger. He did not suppose that any one would suggest that they should build a cottage with a single bedroom; Mr. J. GRIPPER said he could not agree with the suggestions of Mr. Hatchard, nor with some others that had been thrown out. His object was not to build the cheapest cottages, but to improve the dwellings of the poor. He would take it in this way—that labouring men could pay what they paid now; and rather than give them the cheapest cottages it was possible to erect, he would improve their condition and their means of earning money to pay their rent with greater ease, by giving them better accommodation. (Hear, hear.) He did not think it worth their while to form a company merely to build cheap cottages. It was of far more importance to improve their condi tion by providing for them suitable dwellings, in which they would enjoy better health, and consequently, incur less expense for sickness, while they would have more comforts and be more dis posed to stay at home. (Hear, hear.) Mr. CHESSHYRE—Mr. Gripper had said that the labouring man could afford to pay the rent he now paid, but where did he get the means ? Were not employers robbed to an extent that was scarcely credible ? And in illness it was not the labourer who had to pay, but the parish. If a man earning 11s. a week, and having six or seven children, paid 3s. a week for rent, how could he honestly provide the common necessaries of life out of the remaining Bs. ? No one who looked at the sort of cottages in which labourers lived, in and around Hertford, but must be convinced that a vast amount of good might be done by providing better cottages, as they pro posed to do, for less money. They knew how the rent was now paid, in some by the very worst means ; and it was only by reducing the amount of rent that they could remedy this evil. If they could only secure the payment of proper wages to the labourer, he should be glad, indeed, to see him in a still better cottage at a higher rent. (Hear.) Mr. J. GRIPPER said his objeet was to improve and benefit the labouring classes, and that could not be done by putting them in hovels. In his es tablishment the labourers earnt at least 18s. a week. Those were labourers, not artizans, who were paid much higher wages; and taking it as a fact that they did pay a certain amount of rent now, he would improve their condition, so that they might pay it with greater ease, instead of putting them into the cheapest dwelling that could be built for them. With reference to what had been said about sickness, he thought it clear that whatever assist ance a poor man might receive at those times, sick ness always made him poorer, and that if the health of himself and his family was improved, he would be benefited in every way. Mr. POLLARD said labourers might be divided into three classes—skilled artizans, who earned from 21s. to 30s. a week; labourers to merchants, who earned 18s. a week; and agricultural labourers, who earned from 1 ls. to 14s. Mr. Gripper's labourers were better paid than agricultural labourers, and could afford to pay higher rents ; and this brought them back to Mr. Hatchard's suggestion—that different kinds of cottages should be built. The CHAIRMAN—As we have very limited means, we must try to benefit the labourers of the lowest class first. Mr. POLLARD—In the village I was brought up in the agricultural labourer did not pay more than 2s. per week rent. That was in one of the Midland counties. The CHAIRMAN said it wa3 better that persons of small means should have dwellings the rents of which they could pay honourably. Mr. POLLARD —That will follow as a matter of course. Mr. HosKINs thought it was best to adopt the principles which they found safest in life, and take a just medium between two extreme courses. They had entered into this company with purely bene volent feelings, and looked for no large pecuniary return ; but as they proposed to set an example, and show what could be done, they should have regard to cost and rent. Their object was to provide as good cottages as they could without making the rent so high as to exclude those they wanted to place in them. But they did not want to make it too low, so as to remove from the mind of the labouring man the idea that he must depend upon himself. (Hear, hear.) If their plans succeeded he hoped that in the course of two or three years theY would have eighty or a hundred cottages built; but if, commencing with the erection of so small a num ber as six or eight cottages, they introduced a greater variety than had, been suggested by Mr. Chesshyre, namely, cottages with two or three rooms up-stairs, they must have as many different scales of rent as varieties of building, and would get into confusion. On every ground he thought it undesirable to have more than two styles of cot tage. (Hear, hear.) The Hon. and Rev. G. HASTINGS said he took a somewhat different view of the question from almost every one who had spoken. This Company arose out of another Society—the Hertford Labourers' Friend Society, originated by Lord Raynham; and it 'struck Mr. R. Dimsdale, that one of the most practicable means of improving the condition of the labourer was by the erection of model cottages. It was not, however, so much in tended to provide cottages for the poor, as to build a few to show landlords what nice, comfortable, well e built for a sma ll sum of money. They would further, St. in,n s T teheubljaencdtlowrdas's tpurouvreinutceinifHtehretyforwd,enatt h i and other pl aces , mo d e l cottages which gentlemen ght see as they passed by and be in duced to adopt. That was his idea in ,joining this wantedh S it abl e dwellings in hu countyww iothrkmt f uo o ur r . dp Gritouhrvietipdhpe provide s Gripper labourer hute whmauthat n h w u a y e c. a sr hear.) the He agreed landlords' (b w e ff : i e ni te r a e p irt a m , if these were provided, the labourer would be bene fitted physically, morally, and in every way ; but he thought their present object was not to erect a large number of houses and become a rich Com pany. (Hear, hear.) As an illustration of the usefulness of their operations, he might mention that he was going up to London by railway the other day, when a gentleman asked him whether he knew where there was any good model for a cottage ? and he told him that before long they would have some good model cottages at Hertford. (Hear, hear.) Mr. Hastings concluded by pro posing--" That the following gentlemen be ap pointed Directors of the Company:—The Marquis Townshend ; the Right Hon. W. F. Cowper, M.P.; Viscount Raynham, M.P. ; Martin Hadsley Gos selin, Esq., William R. Baker, Esq., Charles John Dimsdale, Esq., Robert Dimsdale, Esq., E. H. Hoskins, Esq., J. W. Chesskyre, Esq., Jasper Gripper, Esq., and Mr. Samuel H a t c h ar d." Mr. G. E. IYDE seconded the resolution, which was agreed to. Mr. CIIESSIIYRE asked Mr. Armstrong whether he would be kind enough to act as auditor ? Mr. ARMSTRONG said he should be happy to serve the Company in any way. Mr. POLLARD-I have had something to do with accounts, and shan't mind acting as auditor. Mr. R. DIMSDALE then proposed " that Mr. Arm strong and Mr. Pollard be appointed auditors." In submitting the motion he remarked that he looked forward to this company extending itself indefinitely. He had received a communication on the subject from Cheshunt and other places, in which offers were made to become shareholders if cottages were built there. He replied that, as the company had received most support from Hertford, it must begin there ; but he looked forward to the time when they would go from place to place and build a large number of cottages. It was therefore important they should show, not a great, but a fair return for their money. In the Strand Union Company they had just paid a dividend of 41 per cent., and he did not see why they might not obtain a similar return here, and confer great benefits on different locali ties. (Hear, hear.) The Hon. and Rev. Mr. HASTINGS—If the land lord do not move, I hope this company will •, but I hope the voice of the country will compel them to do their duty. (Hear, hear.) Mr. Hastings then seconded the resolution, which was agreed to. Mr. ARMSTRONG moved the next resolution— " That the London and County Bank at Hertford be appointed bankers of the company." Mr. J. GRIPPER seconded the resolution, which was agreed to. Mr. DIMSDALE moved a vote of thanks to the chairman, who, he said, had been more regular in his attendance at their preliminary meetings than most of the committee. Mr. CHESSHYRE, in seconding the resolution, said all the remarks that had been made should have the attention of the directors, who would be happy to listen to suggestions from any of the shareholders, or to hear the opinions of any practical gentlemen on the subject. His idea was, that this movement was more applicable to agricultural labourers than to any other class; for he attributed much of the overcrowding in towns to the fact that cottages were pulled down on estates in the country and the labourers driven into the towns. If it were, however, found that rents could be kept up, and labourers afford to pay them, he should be most happy. (Hear, hear.) The vote having been agreed to, The CHAIRMAN said he was glad the company was now fairly afoot, and hoped it would go on and prosper; that it would not only be useful to the labouring classes, but that eventually it would pay such a moderate interest to the shareholders as would suffice to induce landlords to build cottages on their estates. (Cheers.) The proceedings then terminated. ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE. HOME CIRCUIT.—KINGSTON, March 31. (Before Lord Chief Justice Erie and a Special Jury.) WHITMORE AND OTHERS V. LLOYD-EXTRA ORDINARY TRIAL. This action was commenced on Friday, and ad journed until this morning. The action was brought to recover a sum of £2,000, the value of a cargo of corn that had been sold to a merchant at Cork, and which had been seized by the plaintiffs under the authority of the Court of Bankruptcy, as the assig nees of a Greek merchant named Antonio Demetrio. Mr. Bovill, Q.C., Mr. Sergeant Ballantine, and Mr. Honeyman were for the plaintiffs ; Mr. Lush, Q.C., Mr. J. Browne, and Mr. Digby were for the defendant. The case was opened to the jury by the counsel for the plaintiff as one of a very extraordinary and unusual character. It appeared that the father of the bankrupt Antonio Demetrio, had for many years carried on business as a merchant in London, and after his death his son carried on the business under the same title of Demetrio and Sons, he being the principal and his brother Nicholas assisting him. It appeared that they were very large speculators in corn, and in August last year Antonio Demetrio was made a bankrupt upon his own petition, and his debts were proved to amount to over £60,000, there not being a single farthing of assets for the creditors. It seemed to be admitted that Antonio and Nicholas Demetrio had given great dissatisfac tion to their creditors, and it appeared that just before their bankruptcy they hired four counting houses in different parts of the City, where they passed by the names of John Lamb and Co., Dalga and Co., De Bons and Co., and it seemed that another similar firm was established at Leghorn, under the style of Merrys and Co. ; and bills were drawn and accepted one upon the other, and shipments o f corn were o b ta i ne d f rom abroad to an enormous amount. Immediately be fore the bankruptcy it seemed that two cargoes of corn were conveyed from a Russian port to the bank rupt, which arrived in two vessels, called the Bou verie and the Gloria, and it was with reference to the cargo of the latter vessel that the present action was instituted. It appeared that the cargo of this vessel was purchased by Mr. Hall, an extensive corn merchant at Cork, of a lady named Martin, at the end of Angust, and after the bankruptcy of Demetrio, and she handed him the bill of lading and the other papers connected with the cargo, and received a sum of neatly £2,000 ; and the case on the part of the plaintiffs was that this proceeding was to prevent the creditors from obtaining the smallest vestige of property. The explanation given by Miss Martin of the mode in which she became possessed of the cargo was; that a gentle man named Lambe introduced her to a foreign gen tleman named De Bous, and that she purchased both the cargees of the Gloria and the Bouverie as a speculation. In order to rebut this supposition it was shown that Antonio Demetrio had adver tised for lads to occupy the situation of clerks at the counting-houses that were taken by him, and no one but himself and his brother Nicholas were ever seen, and that after the bankruptcy only a per son came forward who was represented to be De Bous, but who was in reality believed to be another brother; and it was proved that the bill of lading relating to the Gloria was in this person's posses sion after the bankruptcy of Antonio Demetrio, and he has never since been seen. It also appeared that Nicholas Demetrio had lived in the house of a lady named Westbrook, at Kensington, where Martin had lived a considerable time ; and it also appeared that the husband of Mrs. Westbrook was ordered by him to go to Liverpool and establish a mercantile firm there under the title of Westbrook and Co., Nicholas Demetrio himself being in reality the principal, and that during his absence an inti macy took place between him and Mrs. Westbrook which was made the subject of an inquiry in the Divorce Court. It appeared that since the bank rupty both brothers have left this country, and the main question involved in the present inquiry was, whether the alleged purchase of the cargoes by Miss Martin was a genuine transaction, whether the property was really purchased with her own money, or whether the transaction was part of the scheme concocted by the bankrupt Antonio Demetrio and his brother Nicholas. It should be explained that Mr. Lloyd was merely a nominal defendant, he having joined in a guarantee bond to pay the value of the cargo of the Gloria to the plaintiffs, in case the verdict in the present action should be in their favour. A good many witnesses were examined on behalf of the plaintiffs, and their evidence left no doubt that Antonio Demetrio had been guilty of the grossest conduct. It was also proved that Miss Martin had lived for a considerable time in the same boarding-house with Nicholas Demetrio, and that she was aware that the cargoes of corn had been consigned to the bankrupt Antonio Demetrio, and that he had been declared a bankrupt at the time she made the alleged purchase. There was also evidence that all the various signatures of Lambe, Dalga, De Bous, and others that appeared upon various documents, were all in the handwriting of either Demetrio, the bankrupt, or his brother; and it was stated that they were in the habit of disguis ing their handwriting by . using quills and steel pens to make the various signatures. Mr. Lush made a most able and forcible address to the jury on behalf of the defendant, who, he said, was a merchant of high honour and respecta bility, and he said he should be able, he hoped, to convince them there was not the slightest ground for believing that they had acted in any other than an honourable and straightforward manner in this transaction. He said he should not deny that Demetrio, the bankrupt, and his brother had ob tained large quantities of grain from abroad imme diately before their bankruptcy for the purpose of raising money, and that the cargoes by the Gloria and the Bouverie were obtained for that purpose. Mr. Hall, however, had nothing to do with this. He had purchased the property openly of Miss Mar tin, and he should be able to prove that Lambe and De Bous were actually in existence, and that Miss Martin had purchased the cargoes of them with her own money. Mr. Hall was then examined, and he proved that he purchased the cargo of the Gloria, through the agent for Lloyd's, at Cork, on the usual terms, and that he paid rather more than the market price at the time for it. He also proved that the moment toe cargo was seized by the ninsscsn ger in bankruptcy Miss, Martin handed. over, £BOO of the money she had received, and that she placed the bill of lading relating to the Bouverie in his hands, as further security that he should not sustain any loss. Mr. Walker, a solicitor, proved that he was con. suited by Miss Martin as to what course sho should pursue with regard to disposing of the two bills of lading, and that it was by his advice that she went to Cork to sell them. Miss Martin, a ladi-like woman, apparently about 40 years old, was also examined, and she swore positively that she had known Lambe since 1847, that he introduced her to lb Bous, and that she purchased the two cargoes ortly before she dis posed of the bill s o f l a di ng t o Mr. Hall) of that per son. She declared she knew nothing whatever of the bankrupt Antonio Demetrio, and that the money she paid for the bills of lading was her own, and a variety of Totters and other documents were put in, which showed that she was in possession of considerable sums of money. At this stage of the case the trial was adjourned. On Saturday morning, at 9 o'clock, it was again proceeded with. - Miss Martin was cross-examined at very great length by Mr. Bovill. She said that she knew no thing whatever of De Bous until she was introduced to him in Hyde-park, and that she had never seen either him or Mr. Lambe since the transaction re lating to those cargoes. She first became acquainted with Lambe in 1847, and she did not see him again until 1857, when she met him in Kensington-gar dens. She did not know what his business was, or where he lived. A letter was here shown to the witness, and she said that she had received several similar ones, without any signature, and she could only guess from their contents who the writer was. She said that she first became acquainted with Nicholas Demetrio four years ago, and they were on friendly terms until he left, and the action she brought against him dick. not make any differ ence in their relations. She said she had known Mrs. Westbrook since the year 1851. She purchased the furniture that was in the house at Kensington of Nicholas Demetrio, who had come into possession of it by some arrangement with Mrs. Westbrook. She paid altogether £6OO for the fur niture, but did not pay it all at once. The money was sent to her from Holland. Thtre was a fire in the house, and the insurance company resisted the claim, which was £2OO, and ultimately they received £l5O, but she was not aware that this sum included costs. Witness's income was about £4OO a-year, which was partly derived from the lodging house, but sometimes she lost money by her lodgers. The witness then admitted that in the years 1859 and 1858 she was in debt to a number of tradesmen, and that judgments were obtained against her, and the debts were not paid until she received this money from Mr. Hall. Mrs. Westbrook used to go by dif ferent names, as Drinkwater and Turner, and wit ness received letters from her in these names. She did not remember her going by the name of Smith. Smith, she considered, was "no name." (A laugh.) If any letter came to witness's lodgings in the name of Smith she used to take it in and open it, and she might herself have said to a cabman, who was in solent to her, or who demanded her name, that it was Smith. (A laugh.) The reason she did not pay the debts in 1859, she said, was that it was not con venient at that time to do so. Miss Martin then stated that she had employed several solicitors on various occasions, and she was fond of having fresh ones. She was recommended to Mr. Walker by a law stationer, but she did not know his name or his address, but she could find it, although she could not describe where it was. The witness then said that she had heard that Mrs. Westbrook had on one oc- casion accepted and drawn a bill for her husband in her maiden name, and that she had done the same for Nicholas Demetrio. The witness was then cross examined at great length upon the subject of the circumstances under which she had received the money from Canada, and she stated that he was engaged in speculation, and never stopped six months at any one place. He had no banker or agent to assist him in his affairs. He came to Liverpool from Canada, but she did not know the name of the ship. She said that he had since gone to Aus tria, but she did not know where he was. The whole sum of £2,700 was brought to her in gold and notes, and there were about 300 sovereigns. She said she had not got a single scrap of her husband's writing, except the account he gave her at the time he handed her the money. She put the money into a bag, and took it up stairs and showed it to Mrs. Westbrook. She knew nothing about the qualities of grain, but she looked at the newspaper to see the prices. These were the first cargoes of grain she ever bought, but she should not object to buy more. Re-examined—A gentleman named Ashcroft, and Mrs. Westbrook's nephew, saw her cousin when he came to bring her the money. Mr. Ashcroft and Mr. Lewsey were then exa mined, and stated that they remembered being at Miss Martin's in the month of July last, when a gentleman, who was introduced as her cousin, was there. Mr. Terry, the manager of the Unity Joist-stock Bank, proved that in June last two persons, who represented themselves as Nicholas and Andrew De Bous Brothers, opened an account with the bank, and referred to Demetrio. They paid in £2OO, and drew out the whole amount in August, and he heard no more of them. He expressed an opinion that the whole of the signatures to the different documents that had been produced were similar to the signa tures in the bank book of De Bous Brothers. In cross-examination the witness said he had never seen either of the Demetrios, and he could not say they were not the same persons. Mrs. Westbrook, the lady alluded to, was then examined, and she corroborated the evidence of Miss Martin as to the circumstances under which the proposition for the sale of the corn first took place between her and Mr. Lambe and De Bous, and also as to the fact of the cousin of Miss Martin coming to her house and bringing her money in the month of August. She was subjected to a very severe cross examination by Mr. Sergeant Ballantine, pretty much to the same effect as that of Miss Martin, and answered every question that was put to her very readily. She declared that the reason she and her husband separated was on account of his ill-treat ment, and she denied most positively that any im proper connexion had ever existed between herself and Nicholas Demetrio. Evidence was then given that Antonio Pemetrio had offered the bills of lading in question for sale to Messrs. Young, Begbie, and Co., corn merchants, end an agreement had been come to; but in conse quence of the quantity being larger than those gen tlemen required, the bargain went off, and this was the reason why the marks of cancellation appeared upon the contracts. Mr. Bovill having replied upon the whole case, Lord Chief Justice Erle summed up, and the jury retired at half-past six o'clock to consider their ver dict. At 10 o'clock they returned and found for the plaintiffs. : NORTHERN CIRCUIT—LIVERPOOL, March 29. CROWN COURT. (Before Mr. Justice Hill.) Mary Ann Sullivan was indicted for the murder at Liverpool of Margaret Cross. Mr. Simon and Mr. Littler prosecuted; and Mr. C. Russell defended the prisoner. It appeared from the evidence that the prisoner and the deceased were both prostitutes, living in the same brothel in Liverpool, that on Christmas day last the of the keeper of the brothel was christened, and that the deceased stood sponsor on the occasion. About 5 o'clock the deceased went out to return a bonnet which she had borrowed for the purpose of attending the christening, and did not return until half-past 11 at night. In the mean time the prisoner and two other girls who lived in the house sat drinking at home. The brothel keeper and his wife went to bed in a state of intoxication, and the deceased when she returned was also to some degree in liquor. As deceased came up the court where the house was she called twice to the prisoner, who went out and pushed her into the house, and then on to a form. Deceased thereupon called her a name, which she retorted by calling her a cow, which so incensed her that she took a candlestick and threw it with great force at Sullivan. Sullivan ran at her, seized her by the hair, bumped her head on the ground, and then kicked her severely on the head. Deceased then said in a feeble voice, " Oh, Mary Ann, another like that will kill me." Whereupon the prisoner said, " There it is, then," and kicked her again with great force. After the second witness had been called Mr. Justice Hill said the charge of murder could scarcely be maintained, and the jury should direct their at tention to the charge of manslaughter. The facts and cause of death being fully proved, Mr. Russell declined to address the jury, as he could not resist a verdict of manslaughter. The jury convicted the prisoner. Mr. Justice Hill expressed his horror that such depravity should be found in a so-called Christian land, and that the prisoner, although only twenty years of age, had been eight times in gaol, five of which were for acts of violence. She had been guilty of a most aggravated and malignant offence, and the sentence of the Court was that she be kept in penal servitude for the term of her natural life. John Rooney was indicted for the manslaughter of James Carlisle at Liverpool on the lath of July last. Mr. Preston prosecuted, and Mr. E. M. Fenwiek defended the prisoner. The statement of the case on the part of the pro secution disclosed a melancholy instance of depra vity arising from intemperance. It appeared that the deceased man Carlisle, who was a dock labourer, and lodged with his wife in a room in the prisoner's house, had at the time given way to very d run k en habits, and when in that state his widow said he was very hasty, and on coming home would "beat her badly," so much so that she ran away from him and left him on the 10th of July, five days befor the affray between the deceased and the prisoner. She never saw him again till she visited him in a dying state at the Northern Hospital, on the Bth of August, the day of his death. Carlisle, after his wife's desertion, continued to lodge at Rooney's, indulging in his old course of drunken ness, and persuaded Rooney's wife to drink with him at various publichouses. On the morning of Friday, July 15, the prisoner Rooney came home to dinner from his work, and, finding his wife out, he sought her in a neighbouring publichouse and brought her home ; at 6 o'clock, on his return to tea, she was again absent, and on this occasion he discovered her once more in a publichouse in com pany with Carlisle and some other women, and much intoxicated. In this state he led her home to the cellar of his house, in which they lived, and having fastened the doof commenced beating her, and some neighbours, on hearing her screams, came to the house, among others Carlisle, who first knocked at the front door, which led by a distinct passage to his own apartqient, and then knocked at the cellar door and called out to Rooney, who told him he should not enter, but that if he did so it would be at his peril. Upon this Carlisle burst open the door, and Rooney, who had in the meantime armed himself with a dagger and pair of tongs, struck him two orthree severe blows upon the head, and he fell on the ground, after which a scuffle took place, and when down Rooney again beat the de ceased about the legs, causing, among other wounds a compound fracture of one leg, which resulted in Carlisle's death on Auust Bth. Mrs. Roon e y was found lying on the floor, very tipsy, and in a state of nudity, with her clothes torn from her, and her body covered with her chemise slightly thrown over her. Carlisle was in a very weak condition, bleed. ing, and was at once taken to the Northern Hospi tal, where the wounds on his head and legs were attended to. A son of Rooney, who was present during the quarrel, explained that the entrance into Carlisle's room was from the front door, and that the cellar door led into Rooney's chamber only. He also said that his father had several children and had been twice married. The deceased was a powerful man. After the surgeon had been examined, Mr, Fenwick, addressing his lordship, said he felt it hopeless to struggle further against the evi dence which had been offered, and after urging the great provocation which the prisoner had experi enced and his natural jealousy and resentment at the conduct and interference of the deceased man, who had forced himself into the cellar, said that he could not, under any circumstances, hope to reduce the case below the crime of manslaughter. He also reminded his lordship of the good character which prisoner had previously maintained in the neigh bourhood. His Lordship having directed the jury as to their verdict, they accompanied it with a recommen dation to mercy, upon the ground of the very great provocation the prisoner had experienced. The learned Judge said in such a serious case he must take time to consider the sentence, and that the recommendation of the jury should have its pro per weight. CROWN COURT. (Before Mr. Justice Hill.) Bridget M'lntyre and Sabina Whaling, mother and daughter, were indictedfor having on the Ist of December unlawfully and maliciously inflicted grie vous bodily harm on Elizabeth M'lntyre, the step daughter of the first prisoner. They were charged in various other counts with the same offence com mitted on other days down to the 19th of March on Elizabeth M'lntyre. Mr. Leofrie Temple and Mr. Deighton appeared for the prosecution, and Mr. Sinion for the defence. It appeared that the prisoner Bridget M'lntyre is the wife of a sailor now away at sea, and that his child, Elizabeth M'lntyre, by a former wife, aged six years, lived with the prisoner and Sabina Whal ing, her mother, at a house in No. 19 Court, Robert street, Toxteth-park, Liverpool. From the evidence of Mary Hewson, it appeared that cn the 19th of March she went to a petty in that court, and there found Elizabeth M'lntyre, the stepdaughter of the prisoner, crouched up in a corner. She gave her a piece of bread. Between 6 and 7 o'clock next morn ing she found the child sitting there in the same position in a dirty state. On the Monday before this she had seen the prisoner M'lntyre take the child by the kair of the head and knock its head against the wall and kick it twice. She was finding fault with her being late on a message. She knocked the child down and kicked her up the court, and did this a second time within five mi nutes. In the middle of last month she saw the prisoner M'lntyre lift the child out of a tub of water by the hair of the head, and on another occa sion saw the child with two black eyes. Another witness, Esther M'Cormick, proved that the pri soners formerly lived at her house, 73, Mann-street, and left it on the 2d January last. She had seen the prisoner Whaling beat the child in December last on the face with her hand until she made the child's lips swell out, and when doing this on one occasion she heard Whaling say " You young fairy of blazes, will you ever tell les again of your mammy ?" The witness waited in the room some time, and saw Whaling take the child up by the arm, and repeating the same expression to her, she put the child's face to the bars of the fire. Witness interfered, and was told to mind her own business, and Whaling then attempted to place the child on the fire, but witness caught hold of her and dragged her away. The tire was in a small grate, but at the time red and blazing at top. On the 18th March the child came to her house, and Mrs. Whaling came for her and said to her, " Are you coming home, Lizzy ?" The child said she would rather stop with Mrs. M'Cor mick. Mrs. Whaling then called the child a " young fairy of blazes," and said she would cut Mrs. M'Cormick's throat for all she was there with her then. She then took held of the child by the arm and threw it on the floor, and when it was down she kicked it twice between the legs behind, and the last kick raised the child off the ground, and the child cried out and was taken away by the prisoner. Another witness, Jane Rooney, stated that on the 19th March she had seen the prisoner Bridget M'lntyre kick the child up the yard. Other wit nesses proved similar acts of violence and cruelty to the child on other occasions. A witness named. Alice Harding proved that on one occasion in De cember last she saw Bridget M'lntyre, the step mother, beat the child with a s t rap an d buckle, striking her with the buckle end of the strap, the grandmother, Whaling, being present. The child's clothes were stripp e d o ff. It had dirtied itself. She struck it on its body and little legs, and made it bleed. The child cried very much. On the fol lowing morning she saw the prisoner Whaling beat the child with the same strap and buckle on its naked body till the blood came. Mr. Wall, the surgeon to the workhouse in Toxteth-park, proved that on the 20th March the child was taken there by a policeman, and he examined her and found her in au extremely emaciated and neglected condi tion. On examining her person he found nearly a score of wounds and contusions upon her. Some of the wounds were the result of violence, some were he result of burns. There were several livid con tusions. The child was in a very dangerous condi tion. He attributed her condition to want of food and proper clothing, and to the bad treatment he had heard described. In the course of this witness's evidence the child, carried by a nurse, was brought into court for the purpose of identification. It was pale and emaciated to a dreadful degree, and though six years of age, looked no bigger than an infant of three years old. The sight of its poor little wasted arms and hands excited a thrill of horror through the court, coupled with the evidence which had just been given. Mr. Simon, without attempting to extenuate the cruelty which had been proved, attempted to show that the beatings, though cruel and in excess, were administered to the child as correction for being a dirty child, and without any malice, and amounted only to a common assault. His lordship having carefully summed up the evidence,f The jury found both prisoners guilty of the graver charge. - His lordship, in passing sentence, said the jury had very properly convicted them. The evidence, to his mind, brought the charge home conclusively against them both. He could hardly restrain him self to express an opinion of their conduct in mode rate terms, it had been so brutal, so inhuman, and so destitute of every spark of humanity. He should feel it his duty to pass on them a very severe sen tence as a warning to all others that children were not to be so treated with impunity. The sentence of the Court was, that they be each imprisoned for two years with hard labour. CANTON. The acres of unkept, overgrown wilderness, with its rotting pavilions, tumble-down temples, dried-up lakes, crum bli ng rockwork, and broken seats and table,s, formed the spring of all the impressions I afterwards received in and about Canton. Nothing so dreary—not even Vauxhall on a wet Christmas Day—ever could be imagined. It was not the breakdown of acute organic lesion, but the decay of long, long-continued atrophy: and I formed a theory at the moment, which the appearance of every other yaniun, or temple, strengthened, Its, - the Chinese tied fi r ages so jealously shut up their vaunted city, not from tusy terror of the barbarians becoming acquainted with their secrets of trade, government, or manufacture, but from a positive idea of shame that any one should see the moul dering neglected "lions" of their southern capital. True to the estimated value of their curios, everything was in a state of " crackle." Combine all you can call to mind of d reary places—Miss Linwood's old room in Leicester-square, and the present aspect of the square itself ; the gaunt, cheerless show-rooms of palaces generally; the " bloated Graue-e" and " H aun t e d H ous e;" the old pavilion on Monkey Island, and indeed " pavilions" generally, from that in Bans-place to any damp ceiling-stained summer house, dedicated to friendship or nature, that you know of —mix them together, and extract their essence, and then you will have not the least idea of the general rot and ruin that is spreading, like an ulcer, throughout Canton.— ConthiU Ifergqzme for itpril. STMT_ E OF TRADE. LEEDS, March 30. —Tile following is the trade report of the Leeds (?.amber of Commerce for the month of March :—" roollen Trade.—The continued inclemency of the wea C her has had a depressing in fluence on the spring ti-ade, a less amount of business having been transacted in the warehouses than was to be expected. The ma n ufacturers are, nevertheless, still very well employe d. Prices remain firm. Wool. —At the public sales of colonial wools in London, which concluded on th .e 20th inst., the attendance of buyers was large, and( the purchases on foreign ac count were larger tha n. for several sales past. There was fair animation in the biddings, and prices on the average may be quoted fully equal to the last series, the most lively competition being for the better descriptions. Trade in the warehouses con tinues steady, which applies equally to English as to colonial wools, and a fair amount of busi ness has been done in the former .at a slight advance of prices, the aspect of the market being firm. Flax. The supplies o f flat are eagerly bought up in all the continental markets, and prices are decidedly harder than at the date of the last report of this Chamber. Through out the month there has been a fair demand for yarns, and spinners have had no difficulty in ob taining full list prices. The machinery in the spin ning mills is generally working to order. Leather. —A tranquil tone bas prevailed in this branch of business during the month, purchases being limited to immediate requirements. In prices there is no change worthy of note, and the production and consumption of this article appear to be nearly equal. The manufacture of boots and shoes is in a satisfactory condition. Seed Crushing and Oil Trade.—There is been an active demand for olive oil during the nax nith,except for floating cargoes, although prices are well supported; and according to accounts from Naples, notwithstanding the in creased duty, businesl3 in oils does not seem checked. There has been a large demand for rape oil, it being very freely used by our own manufacturers, the price being so much lower than that of olive oil. Linseed oil is ei:ceeding,ly firm in price, with an upward tendency, the weekly exports from the outports being large. Iron and Machine Trades.-- - The forges are all i n a very active condition. In the machine trade t here is a very fair amount of orders on hand for fl ix machinery, chiely for export to Belgium and Germany. The general machine tool trade is in a very brisk state, especially in the completion of Government orders. Corn—The mar ket at the commencE..ment of the month for wheat was of a dull character, and the closing rates of the previous month we re! with difficulty maintained. A marked improvement in the demand, with a mo derate supply, took "dace on the 13th, and con tinued to the close of the month, prices ending from 3s. to 4s. per qr. dearer. Good barley con tinues in request, and fully maintains its value. Oats and beans hay., been in fair demand, and fell prices are obtained." _ - MANCHESTER, 30'cir.—Although it might not be quite correct to say that the market for naanuftte tures is generally in .a better position than on Tues day, there is no doubt that some of the uneasiness from political causes which on that day interfered with business has now given place to a more hope ful feeling. There is still a great deal of caution on the part of purchasers in goods, some of which may be ascribed to the advance in the rate of inte rest. However, the re is also great firmness, owing to the extent to which manufacturers are still en gaged with previous contracts, and a tolerably con fident anticipation that the demand, hitherto checked from week to week for some time past, must soon become z ware pressing. In yarns there is a more manifest improvement ; in various branches there is more activity than on Tuesday, more stiff ness in the quotations, and increased hope of sta bility in the trade. CU uni:arie Y 111211LKB.TS. NORTHAANIPTON—M.kRcu 31. At this corn-market wheat was in fair supply, with s tolerable sale, at fully is over the rates of this day sex night, prices ranging from 46s to 49s for white, and 45s to 47s for red. There was a steady business passing in bark'', malting 39s to 435, grinding i29s to 34 s p er qr . Oats in, limited show, with a languid sale, quoted at 24s to 300 per 24 stone. Beans, old, 47s to 51s; new, 43s to 468. Rye, —s to —s; matt, 68s to 72s ; flour, 33 s t o 37 s pd sack. NORWICH—MARCH 30. ; At our market to-da3 - there was a limited supply of whot, and the demand being still brisk, prices were fully main tained, and in some ins tances is to 2s more money. Tiler* was only a small suppl y of barley, but higher rates well obtained. Flour is to is 6d dearer. White wheat 46s to 49s Red wheat 40s to 45e Malting barley... .425. to 46s p Chevalier barley.. ,34s to Oa Distilling d0......25 s io 2751 Oats.. 24s to 28s, Flour, 29s 6d to 32s per sack from the CAMKRIDGE-MARCH 31. There was a mod erate supply of wheat, and, with $ fair demand in the trade, white moved off at 46s to 500 i red, 40s to 46s per 36 stone. Thera was a small show of barley to-day; malti air, 38s to 445; grinding, 32s to NS per 30 stone. Oats a't 22s to 28s for new ; old oats, — 8 —s. Beans in limited supply, and a s te a dy sa l e — new, 38C - vw —a se p e e d r , 3 8 8 6s st t o o ne 89 ; s p ; e r a ea s, 4 4 0 6 1 s to to —e 6o4 par lor t 3 06 4 s o to s n ; e. old iv , — hit s e t c o lo quarter. YORK—MARCH 31. To-day's nmrket, was moderately supplied with wheat, irs fair condition, and most all descriptions sold steadily at 2s to 3s over last week's rates. Beans about the same as last week. Oats firra. Barley a very small show, at late rates. Malt, 68s to 708 per qr. ; rye, 34s per qr. ; flour, 30s to 35s per sack. DIJBLIN—MARcu 30. A fair supply of wheat and barley to-day. A moderate show of oats. Wheat was briskly sought after at a further advance of 6d per barrel. Malting barley Is more m.oney. Oats 3d to 6d dearer. 8. d. s. d. 1 Wheat, white 28 6 to 30 6 Do., red 27 0 to 28 6 Do., new - 0 Barley Oats Do., black ll 6 to 12 6 x. d. U. a. Do., new . 0 to 0 B ere . l3 0 to 14 0 Rapeseed .... 20 0 to 23 6 Oatmeal l3 6 to 15 0 Bakers' flour Indian corn FOREIGN MAIL PACKET LIST. In the following table E signifies that letters are despatched by evening mails from London, and AI by morning mails. Next DESTINATIONS. Dcliatch ' Port of Mail of Mails. Despatch. due. Australia and Mauritius, vial 1 Southampton lAprill2,3lSouthamp. lApril.lo Ditto, via Marseilles Bahamas and Havana via New f York April 14, El Liverpool.. April 12 Canada, .&c. (by Can adn. pckt ) April 4, E Liverpool., April 4 Cape of Good Hope, Ascen sion, and St. Helena April 5, E i Devonport 'Apr] 1 3 China, Penang, and Singa pore, via Southampton April 4, IllSouthamp. Aprill 3 Ditto, via Marseilles Gibraltar, via Southampton ..iApril 4 , 31 Southamp. April 3 Honduras and Blewilelds .... Aprill7, 3 1,Southamp. April 14 India (Calcutta) and Ceylon, I via Southampton Ap r il 4 , 31 Southamp. April 'S Ditto, via Marseilles iAprillo, E India (Bombay), via South ampton ,Aprill2. M I Southamp. April 1 0 Ditto, via Marseilles .... .., April 3,E Ap r il 4 Lisbon, Brazils, Buenos Ay res l and F. Islands ............ April 9, M,Southamp. April 6 Lisbon, Vigo, and 00rt0.... April 7, M'Southamp. l APril. 1 Malta, Egypt, and Aden, via Southampton April 4, M Southamp. April 3 Ditto, via Marseilles !April 3, EP April 12 Mexico and Havana ,Southamp. Newfoundland April 7, E Liverpool.. United States and British N America (by British packet) April —, E Liverpool.. April 4 Ditto (by U. S. packet) West Coaet of Africa, Ma-I Beira, and Teneriffe April 23 ELiverpool.. April 10 West India, California, Yene-I zuela, Chili, Peru, Grey town,l New Granada, &e. lApril 2, hi ; Southamo. Anril 1 !April 2, 111 Southamp. !April 1 [ADVERTISEMENT.]—HoIIoway's Pills and Ointment.--- Decision.—lt is d.ifficult for the learned to decide what par ticular remedies in the pharmacopcea are best adapted to so individual cure. In this the treatment formed by Professor Holloway has a manifest advantage; for the use of hiS noble preparations will effect a purity throughout the sys tem by casting out all noxious matters, and this must prove beneficial to all disease s. Multitudes have followed Iloilo way's simple, but sure, instructions with success; if faith fully obeyed, none will be disappointed. Whilst this power of the Pills drives oat internal disorders, the Ointment soothes, cools, and heals wherever it is applied ; Holloway's remedies, therefore, haw. , a decided advantage over all drugs. BIRTHS. COLEBROOK.—On the 30th ult., at 37, South-street, Lad,' Colebrook, of a daughter. KING.—On the 30th ult., the wife of Dr. King, of Saville row, of a daughter. MOLESWORTH.--On the 2Eth ult., at St. Petroc Minar Rectory, prematurely Lady Molesworth, of a daughter, stillborn. MARRIAGES. AlRD—NoAxzs.—On the 29th ult., at Lewisham parish church, Charles Aird, Esq., of Kingston, Surrey, eldest son of John Aird, Esq., of The Grove, Lee, to Biles Louisa, youngest daughter of William Noakes, Esq., of Brandon House, Blackheath. MooßE—HoGa.—On the 29th ult., at South HacklrY Church, Wm. J. Moore, Esq., of Old Kent-road, to Miss Georgina E. Hogg, youngest daughter of Stratford G. Hogg, Esq., of 28, Glengall-grove, Old Kent-road. I) EATH S. BIGNOLD.—On the 30th ult., at Cheltenham, Lady Bignold, wife of Sir Samuel Bignold, of Norwich. aged 63. CADE.—On the 24th ult., in London, Major W. J. Cadet late 13th Bengal N. 1., aced .53. NARRIEN.—On the 39th ult , at 16, Clarendon-road, Ke,..11- sington, Professor Narrie n , F.R.S., late of the R.M . "' ? Sandhurst, aged 77. VAuGHAN.—On the 30th ult., at 128, Hi g h Holborn, M r : Solomon Vaughan, upward s of 40 years the celebra ted and highly-respected chef de cuisino at the late Piazza Coffee-house, Covent-garden, aged 84 LONDON : Printed and Published by MIJRDO YOUNG, of No. 112, Strand, Printer, at The Sun Office, No. 112, Strand, in the Precinct of the Savoy, in the county of Middlesex, Monday, April 2, 1860. A p, Duet i , v-r 13fiRi t bISE ) tYST] -Ke, DT BTftk tans al Why ft they e Ozetho Ction hY Media] street, toster. 31E] C al:Rat p in a .atiit, Per Fee 15, Al] IT Structi CITA Early CH — A of Mar Follies ITA and C )4( over a CAA Gonorr The ] eases, t Xotion. " Cur ~. " 4 0uld 23d Ma littlThee w • a 4 j, I Col I tics Paz bea Cen Pay 1 ti TI -tore Cases of at Of f oo LPPoir JOSE