The Sun. — London, England, 1854-02-17 00:00:00

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT. HOUSE OF LORDS--(YESTERDAY.) Their lordships met at 5 o'clock. Lord ALBEMARLE moved for copies of two peti tions, presented to the other house, respecting the Mili tary Knights of Windsor. The Earl of ELLENBOROUGH thought such a course never was heard of, as a member of this house roving for copies of petitions presented to the other house. Lord ALBEMARLE said he would give notice of his intention to move for those petitions. While in pos session of the house, he wished to make an observation — The Earl of ELLENBOROUGH (interrupting) said there was no question before the house, and the noble lord was wrong in saying he was in possess ion of the house. Lord ALBEMARLE (resuming) said if he was out of order, he must submit. But he took that oppor tunit y of saying that he deeply regretted the despondent with house tone which seemed to pervade members of this respect to the approaching war with Russia. (Hear.) He hoped, if this war did come, itwould not be as disastrous to us as the American or the French war. Lord ST. LEONARDS interrupted the noble lord, and begged him to remember that there was no question before the house, and he was therefore clearly out of order. (Hear, hear.) The subject then dropped. LAW OF TESTAMENTAI JURISDICTION. The LORD CHANCELLOR then rose to call their lordships' attention, pursuant to notice, to a measure for the amendment of law relating to the probate of wills and the granting of letters of administration. There were no fewer than 386 distinct tribunals scattered over the country—commissary co urts — archdiaconal, and peculiar courts —all having appeals to the di ocesan courts, for the purpose of d ec idi ng tes tamentary matters. Such a number of courts was in itself a great practical evil. In the first place, owing to the number of appeals. But that was not all. Very often there were contentious matters of great delicacy, difficult and hard to be dealt with even by the Prerogative and Consistory Courts, and clearly be yond the capacity of the functionaries of those little petty courts in the country. A party dissatisfied with a decision in the courts of law had now IF o nly one course open to him —to come before their lord ships for an appeal. Attempts had been made from time to time for more than twenty years to remedy this evil. In July, 1330, at the commencement of the reign of William the Fourth, a oe , nmission was issued to inves tigate this very subject, both as to the common and the ecclesiastical law. They recommended the abolition of all the ecciesiasticel courts es far as wills were con cerned, with the exception of the Prerogative Courts of Canterbury and Yurk. They made their report in 1833, and in the seesion of that year Lis noble and learned friend (Brougham), who had always shown so much ac tivity and vigour on these subjects, introduced a bill on the subject, but that being the year of the Reform Bill, it was no wonder that. amidst the major eoecerns, the minor matters of the Ecclesiastical Courts Bill was lost sight of. (Hear, hear, and a Lough.) In 1834 Sir F. Pollock intreeluced a bill to give effect to these recom mendatl'ons, but it did not pass ; and in 1836 the subject was again taken up by Lord Cottenham. Neither was he . succeSsful, and it was thought that such were the in fluences agaiest any bill on this subject from the number of persons who were likely to be affected that it was con sidered useless to introduce the subject again. However, on the return of Sir R. Peel to power, a new bill was in troduced by Sir J. Nicoll. but it did not pass, and subee .quent attempts at legislation on this subject were made by Lord Lyndhurst and Lord Cottenham. His noble and learned friend behind him (Lord St. Leonard's) laid the foundation of legislation on thissubject. At the end oflBso his noble and learned friend, Lord Truro, issued a com mission to inquire into the state and practice of the Court of Chancery. They reported in ].852, and the amendments made in consequence of the report of that commission constituted now the law of the Court of Chancery. His noble friend behind him thought it right to refer to the same commissioners, who had shown themselves so com petent, this vexed question, which no one had yet been able to solve, and he added to the commissioners a num ber of individuals who were connected with the ecclesi astical courts. These were Sir J. Dodson, Dr.Lushing ton, and the Queen's Advocate. These learned men were engaged the whole of last year in investigating this sub ject. He had been much pressed after he received the great seal to proceed at once to call attention to this subject, but as there was a commission then sitting, con sisting of so many eminent and able men ; he thought it the better and wiser oourse to wait for their report. They re ported in the beginning of the present year, and upon the receipt of their report he proceeded to frame a bill, not adhering precisely to their recommendations, but varying it in some particulars; his reason for doing so he would state to their lordships. The only dissentient from the report as a whole amongst the commissioners was the Queen's Advocate. The commissioners recommended the abolition of all the existing jurisdiction, and that the whole jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical courts as to the probate of wills and testaments should be vested in a new court, to be called the Court of Probate. This court was to be a temporal court, and not an ecclesiastical court, and in it all power as to wills was to be vested. In the aboli tion of the existing courts he quite concurred, but he did not concur in the creation of a new court. His opinion was that, subject to some modifications, by far the safest, easiest, simplest, and cheapest course to pursue, would be to vest the whole of the conten tious jurisdiction in the Court of Chancery, in ac cordance with the report of the Real Property Commission. He ought to say that ninety-nine hundredths of the business of the Prerogative Court consisted of business of common form, with which the Court of Chancery would have nothing to do. He proposed, therefore, to give the Court of Chancery jurisdiction in the case of personal as well as real pro perty. He doubted if a new tribunal would deal with this subject es completely and as well as a court which had been in the habit of dealing with it. Another great advantage of transferring the jurisdiction to the Court of Chancery was that the Court of Chancery alone had the power of construing wills. He proposed, therefore, that there should be a court of probate connected with the Court of Chancery. The power of proving and con struing wills would therefore be in the same court. It was not merely for the sake of making things look square that he proposed this, but from the con sideration that every court of probate should be of the same extent as the court of construing ; and for this reason, that when a man made his will, and afterwards appended a codicil thereto, it might be come an important question for consideration whether that codicil did not revoke the will. That could only be determined from the language used. A court of probate must constitute a construing court for that purpose, and it only got out of the difficulty in an awk ward way—that was to say, by putting all the docu ments together, and leaving the Court of Chancery to deal with the question. It would be a great advantage, therefore, that the court of probate and the construing court would be one and the same, and that when a will was construed, it was construed once for all. All this related to the contentious business. With regard to the common form business, there was great difference of opinion. He proposed to get rid of the necessity of proctors in order to prove the will. It had been thought that the having an intermediate anent between the party interested in the will and the solicitor directly employed, greater security was afforded against improper or dis honest conduct, the proctors being a limited body, consisting of eighty practising persons, whose faces were well known in the Ecclesiastical Court. The consideration was not entirely without weight, but it would be a very great misfortune if they could not relieve the public from the necessity, in convenience, and expense of having a double system of agents to conduct the same business. 'With regard to persons dying in the country, leaving a small property which it was thought might be more cheaply managed and administered in the country, he proposed to consti tute certain district registrars, who would really have to do little more than to examine the apparent accuracy of the instruments, which when so examined, whether proved in London or the country, would have validity throughout the whole kingdom, whether the property were large or small. He thanked their lordships for their kind attention, and trusted that they would give the bill a first reading. Lord BROUGHAM conceived that a change must be made in the present system ; and expressed a hope that the proposed transfer of the existing jurisdictions to the Court of Chancery would be approved by their lordships. Lord ST. LEONARDS approved of the abolition of the existing courts, but condemned the suggestion for a new court of probate. He entirely agreed that the Court of Chancery ought to have th e whole jurisdiction is testamentary matters. The business, too, ought to be I thro wnopen to the g e ne r al b o dy o f pract i t i oners. But be ob ject to real estate bei ng ma d e su bj ect to pro b ate. Lord CAMPBELL strongly approved of the whole proposition ; but, unlike his noble and learned friend who laat 2 ,P°, ke, thou g ht t h ere ought to b e a probate of real as we well as of p ersona l estate. He was disappointed boer, at finding that the reform of th e ecc l es i ast i ca l' courts wen not to be entire and complete, by taking away their jurisdictio n L 1 • Cons, and brawl'in matrimonial causes' gs in c h urc h . slanders, d e f ame The LORD CLIANCELLOR assured his noble and learned friend that a bill would be brought in on the subject of the ecclesiastical courts in the course or the session. The bill was then read the first time. RET URNS. The Earl of POWIS moved for certain returns relative to 'Univ the ersities, which w fees payable up ere ordered.on the obtaining o f d egrees at the Their lordships adjourned shortly after half -past seven o'clock. HOUSE OF COMMONS—(YESTERDAY.) The SPEAK ER took the chair a few minutes before four •'clock. KINGSTON•UPON-TIIAMES IMPROVEMENT BILL. On the motion for the second reading of this bill, Sir F. THESIGER said the object of the bill appeared to be to extend the borough of Kingston to the outlying districts for the purpose of making them liable to the borough rate. This, he contended, was a violation of th• principle which the Legislature had invariably fol lowed Under the municipal corporations all the parts contiguous to a borough could not be included for muni cipal purposes. There were only 4 instances in which laCta had been passed for extending the boundaries of boroughs with this object, but the circumstances in each of these cases were entirely different to those under which tire present bill was introduced. The districts intended to be included could not possibly derive any benefit by being brought within the borough ; while, as regarded paring and drainage in them, no complaint could be made. He moved that the bill be read a second time that day six months. Mr. FRESHFIELD trusted the bill would be allowed to go before a committee. The bill was supported by Mr. L. KING and Mr. EVELYN. Mr. BOUVERIE considered that the only ground on which they ought to reject a bill on the second reading was that of its being in direct contravention of some great public principle, or in violation of a previous deci - sion of the house. As the present bill did not come under either of these objections, he hoped the house would adopt the usual practice, and agree to the second reading. After some observations from Mr. A. Pellatt, Mr. T. Chambers, Mr. W. Patten, Mr. Brotherton, Mr. Alcock, Sir W. Joliffe, and other hon. members, the house divided, when there appeared— For the second reading B4 Against it ll6-32 The bill was subsequently thrown out. PETITIONS. Mr. ANDERSON presented a petition from Queens bury against the grant to Maynooth. Mr. G. DUND.A.S presented a similar petition from the East Lothians. Mr. HADFIELD presented a petition from the news paper proprietors of Sheffield, praying for the repeal of the paper duty. ➢lr. GROGAN presented a petition from the Corpo ration, praying for the repeal of the ministers' money in Ireland. Mr. HUME presented a petition from the newspaper proprietors of Arbroath, praying for the repeal of the paper duty. THE REFORM BILL. Mr. FRENCH gave notice that to-morrow he should ask whether the Irish and Scotch Reform Bill would be introduced before the 13th of March. Lord J. RUSSELL was afraid he should be not be able to make such a promise. AVERAGE PRICE OF CORN. Mr. L. BLAND gave notice that after Easter he should ask for leave to bring in a bill to provide a better mode of taking the corn averages in Ireland. ACCIDENTS BY FIRE. Sir DE LACY EVANS wished, with reference to the melancholy accident and loss of eight lives caused by the fire in Princes-street, to ask the Chief Commissioner of Works and Buildings, whether any inquiry has been made (in pursuance of the promise given in Feb. last year to the deputations from the local authorities of the metropolis) as to the defects in the present act for the regulation of buildings, with a view to the preparation of a bill for the amendment of that act Sir W. MOLESWORTH said the General Board of Health had under its cmsideration a general bill which would include the subject referred to. LOSS OF THE AVENGER Mr. HUME wished to ask Sir James Graham whether, since the dreadful loss of her Majesty's Avenger in the year 1347, any steps have been taken to erect a lighthouse on Galita Island or the Aguglia Rocks ; and whether the still greater boon to navigation of the Mediterranean, a lighthouse upon Keith's Reef in the Skerki Channel, where her Majesty's ship Athenian, 64,' was lost in the year 1306, is obtaining the attention of Government ? S it J. GRAHAM said the highest naval authorities were opposed to the erection of such a light as that sug gested in the first part of the question. With regard to the other light there was no doubt that such a light would confer great advantage on commerce, and it was his intention to cause the necessary plans to be prepared for it ; at the same time the erection of such a light would he very costly, and he did not think England ought to be called on to bear the whole of the expense. BURIAL GROUNDS. Mr. T. DUNCOMBE wished to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, since he issued an order for closing the New Bunhill-fields burial ground, Islington, on the 31st day of December last, his atten tion has been called to a notice that has been recently given by the proprietor of that cemetery to the effect, " That as the ground is required for building purposes, the relatives of persons buried there must remove the bodies within one month ;" and to inquire what steps the Government has taken to allay the excitement and grief that prevail in the district at this contemplated desecration of the dead '• Lord PALMERSTON said several applications had been made to him on this subject, and he was now seeking the advice of the law officers of the Crown as as to whether the existing law was sufficient to prevent this disgraceful desecration of the dead. If it was not, he should bring in a short bill to meet the case. SUSPENDED WRITS. Mr. STANLEY wished to ask Lord John Russell if he intends to bring in any bill to amend the represen tation of the borough of Barnstaple, previous to the issu ing of a new writ, or to disfranchise the 255 electors who have beau proved before the Commissioners to have been bribed at the last election ? Lord J. RUSSELL replied in the affirmative. THE WAR QUESTION. Mr. DISRAELI wished to ask the noble lord the member for the City of London a question bearing upon our diplomatic relations with France. The house was no doubt aware that a letter had appeared in the public prints purporting to have been addressed by the Em peror of the French to the Emperor of Russia, and appa rently with the sanction and confidence of this country. lie wished the noble lord to inform the house whether the letter was authentic, and, if so, whether any com munication had taken place between the Government of France and her Majesty's Government relative to the letter, and if it had been transmitted to the person to whom it was addressed with the sanction of her Majesty's Government ? (Hear, hear.) Lord J. RUSSELL in answer to these questions, stated in the first place, that he had every reason to believe that the document alluded to, and as published in the Moniteur, was an authentic document. With regard to the second question, he should state that her Majesty's Government had received a communi cation from the Government of France, stating that the Emperor of France thaught it desirable that he should make a last appeal to the Emperor of Russia in an autograph letter to terminate the unfortu nate dispute between Russia and Turkey so as to prevent future hostilities. The reply of her Majesty's Ministers was, that they had no objection to such a step being taken, provided the terms proposed to the Emperor of Russia were in conformity with those proposed at the conference of Vienna. A copy of the letter was communicated to her Majesty's Government at the time its sanction was asked, and they suggested certain modifications in the letter, which were after wards adopted before it was despatched to St. Peters burg, though he should add, that her Majesty's Go vernment had no opportunity of receiving the letter in its amended form before it was transmitted. Her Majesty's Government were, however, responsible for the substance of the letter as it had been printed, though he could not go the length of saying that they approved of every word and phrase that appeared in it, but he had no hesitation in saying that they entirely approved of the step which had been taken by the Emperor of the French, and they hoped it would ultimately be attended with success. No answer had been received to the letter at the time the last information was de spatched from Paris. Mr. BENTINCK said a paragraph appeared in a morning print of this day, which professed to come from Vienna, and which was to this effect :—" Austria con siders the armed intervention of the Western Powers in Turkey as dangerous, but she has full confidence in the loyalty and rectitude of the Emperor of Russia, an d she thinks it necessary to take the necessary step of securing her frontier." Now he wished to ask the noble lord if the Government had received any information to the same effect ? Lord J. RUSSELL conceived that this was one of those reports which were constantly being conveyed by the electric telegraph, but for which no authority what ever could be given. He could not be answerable for these telegraphic messages, the majority of which were false, though occasionally some of them might be true. (Hear, hear.) ATTORNEYS' CERTIFICATE DUTY. Lord R. GROSVENOR wished to state, before the house proceeded to the business of tho day, that he had been instructed by the Law Society, to say that, in the present state of our foreign relations, it was not their in tention to introduce a measure for the repeal of the At torneys' Certificate Duty. (near, hear.) He there fore should not ask leave this year to bring in such a measure. (Hear, hear.) REPRESENTATION OF THE MINORITY. Mr. BRIGHT wished to put a question to the noble lord the member for the city of London, a question with regard to the noble lord's proposal for allowing the minority to be represented in the house. The proposal appeared to him to be something like letting the last an the race win ; but he wished to know if the noble lord intended to apply the system to the city of London. He wished also to know whether the noble lord intended to make any proposal that in case the 'members of the minority died the minority should be represented by his successor. (A laugh.) Lord J. RUSSELL said a clause would be inserted 'in the new Reform Bill to extend the system to London. The City returned four members, but the electors would only be allowed to vote for three out of the four. He could not answer the second question. RECRUITING IN IRELAND. In reply to Colonel KNOX, Lord PALMERSTON said he had received no infor mation of the interference of the priests with the pro gress of recruiting in Ireland, but inquiry should be made about it. POLICE. In reply to a question, Lord PALMERSTON' stated that it was intended to preserve a general measure with regard to the organisa tion of the police of counties and towns throughout the country. THE COAST GUARD. In reply to Mr. LUCAS, Sir J. GRAHAM stated that 10,000 men belonging to the Coast Guard had responded to the call of the Admiralty in the present crisis, and consented to enter the navy. (Cheers.) CORRUPT PRACTICES AT ELECTIONS. Sir FITZROY KELLY moved for leave to bring in a bill to regulate the practice at the election of members to serve in Parliament for counties, cities,.and boroughs in England and Wales, to prevent bribery, corrupti on, and intimidati on, and ndue influence at such elections, and to diminish their expense. The hon. and learned gentleman argued that experience had shown the in crease of the constituent body to be no safeguard against corruption, and that the ballet would probably prove as little efficacious. The means to which he looked for suppressing . this great evil were to be conaidered ae rO• ,TH - E SUN, LONDON, FRIDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 17, 1854. garde(' the candidates, the agents, and the electors. First, he proposed to appoint a public officer at every election—a person of character, knowledge, and pro bity —to whom all moneys due on account of elec tions must he paid over by the candidate, with the view of preventing any money being paid through channels for illegal or corrupt purposes, and who should have the whole management and control of the expenses of the election. The candidate would be required to swear that he had made no pay ments on account of his election to any other person. He proposed that this election officer should be a bar rister, appointed by the judges, as the revising barristers were. If the source were stopped at once and for ever on the part of the candidate, bribery would soon die out cf itself, and few agents would be found to give their time and services at elections. The candidate was to declare to the election officer the names of the agents employed by him, and no others were to be admissible ; these agents also must take an oath before the election officer in conformity with that taken by the candidate, and which would have the like effect with regard to all funds placed in their hands, whether proceeding from clubs, subscriptions, or other sources. Expenditure for processions, music, and the like was to be pro• hibited. The bill further contained a series of provisions for enabling the electors to give their votes by means of voting papers, accompanied by safeguards against fabrication, mutilation, and fraud. This would get rid of all the tumults, agita tion, and violence, often a tt en d e d w i t h d anger to human life, heretofore prevailing ' • so that the voter might, if necessary, give his vot e a t home. It would further save the vast sums now expended for the conveyance of voters, which at county elections often amounted to 4,0001. or 5,0001., and further opened an unlimited door to treating. The evil of intimidation and undue in fluence would in like manner be miti g ated, if not alto gether remedied, by the machinery he proposed. The giving of the vote should consist in the act of signing the voting paper, and the declaration therein contained, which was then to be delivered to some competent person for transmission to the returning officer. For this purpose the magistrates of the county or town would sit at fixed places for three or four days after the nomination, to receive and transmit the voting papers. By this plan even in the most numerous constituencies the greater part of the votes would be given at an early period of the election without pressure or inconvenience. The declaration in the voting papers would consist of—first, as to the place for which lie was entitled to vote ; then, that he was the person named on the register ; and then the voting-paper contained a solemn declaration to be made with all the sanctity, although not in the form of an oath, that the voter had not received any species of bribe, reward, or consideration in respect to his vote. To meet the case of intimidation, he also proposed that, in addition to solemnly abjuring bribery, the voter should declare that he gave his vote freely and willingly, ac cording to the best of his judgment and conscience, and without any intimidation, coercion, or undue influence. Such a declaration would, he thought, put an end to a single word of pressure or intimidation from any one. lie proposed the Queen's printer should print a suffi cient number of voting papers, to be transmitted to the various places in which elections were to take place, to the election officer, who should have power under this bill to call around him parish officers and others having local knowledge in the various places, who would have the register before them and be attended by others who had the means of knowing the voters, and, in fact, be attended by a proper staff of assistants, like those who now assisted at the pulling places. The election officer would make up from the register and transmit voting papers to all the voters. In case of miscarriage or mis delivery of the voting papers, they might be obtained at any stationer's shop in the kingdom, where they would be sold, so that in case a legally qualified voter had not received one lie might purchase it, go before a magistrate, make a d ec l ara ti on o f hi s t i tle to vote, and transmit it the same as if the paper had been sent to him. The election officer would examine by the regis ter all the voting papers that were returned, and, with the aid of check clerks and the assistance, on behalf of the respective candidates, of those whose services were usually employed, and on a comparison of the voting papers the return of the member would be declared. He did not intend by this bill to prevent any one from voting openly at the poll. Any one who pre ferred the publicity and notoriety of such a step might take his voting paper before the returning officer or the magistrate who received it, and there publicly deliver his vote, as he did now, at the hustings. It was necessary to reserve to the election officer, in cases of personation, or forgery, or fraud, the power of laying aside any of the voting papers which might be objected to by any check clerk or inspector in regard to any particular vote. If the return of the candidate were not affected by the num ber of such objectionable votes, the papers might merely be laid aside ; but if the return of the member were af- I fected, then the officer would have power to investigate the validity of the vote, and, if a charge of personating a vote had been made which was not true, the voter so charged could establish the validity of that vote. Under such circumstances fabrication or fraud would be almost impracticable, and, if not impracticable altogether, it would be very difficult. He did not think any person would be willing to incur the punishment imposed by this bill and by the common law of England on the torgery or fabrication of papers of this description, not only with the great probability of detection, but when the greatest uncertainty would exist of benefiting the canaidate whom he wished to be returned. Such was the outline of the measure he proposed to submit to the house ; but he ought to observe, with respect to the ex pense of elections, it was necessary, in order that the election officer might well discharge his duties, that jus tice should be done to those who might have really fair demands in respect of elections. In order that there might be no excuse for the dispensing of money to any other person than the election officer, he proposed that that officer should be entitled to demand from every candi date who was nominated at any election a deposit, ac cording to what might be the prospects of a contest, of a sufficient sum of money, not exceeding, in counties, the sum of 3001„ and in boroughs 2001. (which latter sum he trusted would soon become the largest expended at any election), and that he should likewise take a bend of two sufficient sureties, or a deposit, in lieu of a bond, of 1,000/., to meet the whole expenses of the election. He had intended, in the event of the present bill receiving the sanction of the house, to have proposed, in a separate one, to abolish the law of property qualification for members of Parliament ; but he was not sorry to find that that had fallen into abler hands. The right hon. member for Devonport had given notice, as he understood, of his intention to bring that question before the house. Should his bill proceed he believed sufficient security would be given for the re spectability and independence of every candidate for a seat in this house, and he should be happy to render any assistance he could to the right hon. gentleman to enable him to carry his measure. He concluded by saying he felt he had ventured on a task to which his humble abilities were altogether inadequate, unless he were sup ported and encouraged by the assistance and approba tion of the house. With that assistance he did not de spair of effecting very great good, and of putting an end to a very great evil in the constitution of this country. He had brought it forward, animated by no party views, and had prepared it in all its details without the slightest reference to party considerations. If it should receive the sanction of Parliament, and conduce to the great ends which he had laboured to obtain, he should rejoice that he had lent his humble assistance in giving freedom and security to that part of our constitution upon which the liberties and well-being of the people of this countty depended. Colonel SIBTHORP denounced the plan as impracti cable and futile. He would not, however, oppose the bill at that stage, but he would see this public officer far enough before he would take his oath about any such matter, and would feel inclined to exercise the argumentum ad baculunt to him, even though be might be a barrister. The ATTORNEY.GENERAL on the part of the Government, did not oppose the introduction of the bill. It contained, he observed, matters which, novel in prin ciple, were worthy of consideration, though some parts were of very doubtful policy, especially that relating to polling papers, which would tend to renew the evils of protracted polling and scrutiny of votes. Mr. HUME said the object of the bill was a good one ; but, if they wished to meet this evil, why not take the simplest means ? He was afraid the hon. gentle man's bill would add to existing evils. The simple mode he proposed, and which he had brought before the house some years ago, was that no candidate should be sub jected to any expense whatever, that the counties or boroughs should defray the expense of electing members, and that they should come there and declare that they never had nor ever would pay a shilling for their elec tion. Why should they ? They were public servants, and it was preposterous that they should pay large sums of money in order that they should be placed in a posi tion to act for the public good. So long as they made the members pay, how could they hope to escape vena lity ? He hoped the time would shortly come when common sense would prevail in the house ma this sub ject. Mr. H. F. BERKELEY declared his belief that th e bill would stop neither intiinid" ( di m nor bribery. Leave was then gi ven to oring in the bill. THE TRUCK SYSTEM. Mr. C. FORSTER moved for leave to bring in a bill to alter and amend the act commonly called the Truck Act, an:i in doing so entered into a statement of the evil,' which arose from the evasion of the existing act, and of the necessity of making its provisions more stringent. He did not object to the masters becoming shopkeepers, but wished them to descend to the retail arena on equal terms with our shopkeepers. He and others, anxious of amending the truck system, were desirous that the law should enforce a bona fide payment of wages in money, leaving the workman free to dispose of it when and where he pleased--merely realising to himself and the rest of the community the benefit of full competition. The present act would pro hibit shops being attached to the works of em ployers. Another alteration he proposed to effect was in the penalties. As the law stood at pre sent, the fine for the first offence was not less than 51. and not exceeding 101.; for the second offence, [ADVERTISIMENT.]—The Earl of Aldborough and 101. and not exceeding 201.; and the third offence was a Holloway's Pils.—An astounding cure by this miracu misdemeanour. When they considered that the profits lous medicine after every other means had failed. See of the tommy-shopkeepers amounted to hundreds and extract from be lordship's letter, dated " Villa Messina, often thousands of pounds, it was clear penalties so Leghorn, Fet. 21, 1845. To Professor Holloway. small would not have the effect of stopping them in Sir—l beg to mquaint you that your pills have effected their career. He therefore proposed that the fine for ; a cure of a divider in my liver and stomach, which all the first offence should be 101. and not exceed 20/., a n d the most eminent of the faculty at home and all over the that the second offence should be declared a misdetnean. Continent had not been able to effect—nay, not even the our. A s regar d e d th e ti me of laying the information, waters of Calsbad or Marienbad. (Signed) Ald taking into consideration the difficulty of getting men borough." Thise wonderful pills will cure any disorders to come forward and give evidence, he should adopt the of the liver of stomach.—Sold (also Holloway's oint rule of th e J us ti ce Aet and extend the time from three ment) at Prssessor Holloway's Establishment, 244, to six months. As to the application of the penalties, ho Strand, Londoi; and by all medicine-venders through. did not propose to leave the award, as at present, in the the world, hands of the magistrates, but to,give the informer one-half of the penalty. He knew the law looked upon such appli cations with jealousy, but taking into consideration the present precarious source from which funds for laying informations were derived—the contributions of shop keepers and the workmen—he thought the Legislature would not object to deal with this matter as they did with the Excise penalties. These were the principal provisions of the bill he asked to introduce. Before the select committee all parties would be able to state their case, and the house would be put in possession of the necessary evidence to enable them to legislate on the question. By doing so, they would give ee proof to the working man that, amid more exciting topics, they were not neg ectful of his interest, and convince him that the protection of his rights was not to be found in trade unions Dr strikes, bat by stating his grievance, which, when proved, stringent legislation should prevent his being deprived of his right to receive a fair day's wage for a fair day's work, the payment for which should be in the lawful coin of the realm. Mr. PETO thought there was no great necessity for the bill being referred to a select committee. A great deal of attention had been given to this question and many inquiries made, and he (Mr. Peto) could not conceive any circumstances under which the payment of a man's wages should be withheld, or that for such pay ment anything else should be substituted for money. When first he became connected with public works the payment of money was the exception and not the rule ; but, from 25 years' experience, he could conceive no reason why there should be a departure from the rule, that a man's wages should be paid in the current coin of the realm. The firm with which he was con nected had employed in England, Canada, Denmark, Norway, and various parts of the continent, 30,000 men, and they never paid wages otherwise than in money, and always took care the men had it in sufficient time to derive the full benefit from it for their families. He asked the hon. gentleman and the Government not to refer the matter to a select committee, but to a com mittee of the whole house, and he was certain there was no hon, member but would say that the proposed measure sought to secure to the workman his simple and inalienable right. Let them make the act as stringent as they might, they could not be doing an injustice, as it was but right that an obligation should be discharged in the spirit in which it was incurred—by a proper pay ment at the proper time. Mr. HUME said all the bills on this subject en forcing penalties had invariably failed. Mr. BRUCE supported the bill. Lord PALMERSTON said he would certainly support the motion for the introduction of this bill, because it was in conformity with a pledge ho had given at the conclusion of last session. He brought in a bill last year similar to that which the hon. itember for Wal sall had now asked leave to introduce, dud he withdrew it, not in consequence of any change of opinion as to the principle of the measure, but because the session was drawing to a close, and because considerable objections were made to some details of the bill, and it appeared to him impossible, at that period of the session, to give those objections the fair consideration to which they were entitled. He quite agreed that, on general principles, it was much better to leave classes of men to arrange and settle among themselves as they best could all mat ters connected with their mutual interests ; but at the same time, they knew perfectly well that, front the arti ficial arrangements of society, cases would arise in which some of the parties were more or less dependent upon others, and unable to take proper care of their own inte rests and concerns. He thought it could not be disputed that before the introduction of the truck acts great abuses were practised. It was a fact pertectly notorious that at times, when the masters had a pull upon the men from the state of trade and the labour market, then, under pain cf losing their employment, men were coin pelled to receive payment of their wages partly in arti cles given them at a price far beyond their real value, and for which they had no use whatever. (Hear, hear.) He remembered that on one occasion at Sheffield shovels, tongs, and pokers were given to the workpeople in part payment of their wages—(a laugh)—and they were compelled to sell these articles at a price far below the value for which they had received them. In principle, he was prepared to say that wages ought to be paid in money. But then came the difficulty that had been alluded to, for, although they might compel the masters to pay their workmen in money, there were many ways in which that arrangement might afterwards be evaded and defeated. The workman might be told— " Here is your money, but there is a particular shop, and unless you take your money to that shop and leave part of it there, we shall not employ you any more, and some other person will be put in your place." Therefore, a natural provision of the bill was that no shop should be allowed to be established on premises belonging to the master. But then, it was stated to him last year, that in many of the iron districts—for instance, in South Wales where the works were at a very considerable distance from towns, a provision of that sort must clearly interfere with the comfort and advantage of the men, for, as had been stated by the hon. member for Merthyr Tydvill, cases might happen where there were no shops within a reasonable distance of the works to which the workpeople could go and obtain at a fair price the goods which they required. He thought these difficulties were so completely esta blished, that he was induced to withdraw the bill at the end of the last session, and to ent er i n t o an engagemen t with his hon. friend that if he (Mr. Forster) would bring in a bill again this year, he (Lord Palmerston) would agree to its being read a second time, for the purpose of being referred to a select committee. That, he thought, wo'ild be the best course the house could pursue, and with that view he s u pp or t e d t h e mot i on, hoping that his hon. friend would put off the second reading for some little time, to enable those who were interested to ex amine the provisions of the bill, which could then be re ferred to a select committee. Mr. MUNTZ did not wish to oppose the introduction of the bill, but he thought the noble lord had shown that, with very few exceptions, such laws were totally ineffec tual, After 45 years' extensive experience in the em ployment of workmen, and never having adopted the truck system, perhaps he (Mr. Muntz) might be allowed to give the house a little advice ; and to show them that all that could be done in the way of legislation would be disappointing to the parties whom they wished to serve. He remembered that 10 years ago, when Sir R. Peel was in office, and when Mr. Ferrand made violent attacks upon masters for their treatment of their workpeople, he (Mr. Muntz) ventured to offer to show the house that all the laws they could pass would never prevent the system of truck. His statements at that time convinced the house generally that it would be quite unavailing to pass laws to put down that system, and Sir R. Peel said that he (Mr. Muntz) had perfectly satisfied him that they would be ineffectual. He (Mr. Muntss) then said that it was not necessary for any master to have a shop for truck ; it was not necessary for him even to say that he wished to truck his men, or to say that they should buy their pro visions at a certain shop or place. All that it was neces sary for the master to do was this —he could make arrange ments with any shopkeeper to allow him so much per an num if he sent his men to that person's shop to buy provi - sions. It was only necessary for the master to recommend his men to deal at that shop, and if they did not, the conse o melte would be that there would be no work. Here they Sad the truck system without any power of legal pre vention. He thought the present was an unfortunate time for the introduction of such a measure as this, when the employed were disputing with their employers. There were not now half a dozen men running after mas ters, but the masters were running after the men. and any workman of sober and industrious habits might obtain work at higher wages than he (Mr. Muntz) had ever known. Tinder such circumstances how was it possible that any master could truck ? But let a time of pressure arrive, when the men were running after the masters, and then let them see if they could prevent the truck system. By the simple plan ho had mentioned, any law might be evaded, and therefore he disapproved of this bill, which, in his opinion, would deceive the working classes and the country. The bill vas supported by Sir H. Halford and Mr. J. G. Phillimore, and opposed by Mr. M'Mahon. Leave was then given to bring in the bill. TENANT RIGHT (IRELAND) BILL. Mr. Serjeant SHEE, in moving for leave to bring in a bill to proride compensation for improvements made by tenants ie Ireland, justified his motives in doing so, observing tint there was no better mode of convincing the Government and the house than to set before them, in the shape of clauses, what he thought would be im provements in the measure of the Government to come from the other house. He then explained the provision of the bill hi proposed to introduce, and in what it dif fered from tie bill which had passed that house last ses sion, and to the merits of which he bore testimony ; its main defects were to be found, he said, in the specifica tion of irnp - ovements (important classes of improve merits being omitted) and in the restrictions upon claims for compensation. Mr. P. URQUHART seconded the motion. After son Observations from Mr. GEORGE and Col. GRETILLE, Sir J. YOUNG, on the part of the Government, said he would no: object to the first reading of the bill, if no further steps were to be taken until the bills of the Go• vernntent slpuld be placed upon the table. Mr. NAPCER enforced the necessity of some decision upon this su)ject being come to during the present ses sion, as keeling open the question was detrimental to the value of 3roperty in Ireland. After some observations from Mr. 31IlAttoN . and Mr. Rocus, Leave was given to bring in the bill. COIIIIITTEE OF PRIVILEGES. On the mrtion of Mr. BUTT, the Committee of Pri vileges, to wiom the complaint of the paragraph in the Times newapper is referred, was appointed to consist of the followingmernbers :--Sir John Young, Mr. Solicitor- General for Peland, Lord Hotham, Mr. Joh n O'C onne ll, Mr. Bright, M r . George Moore, Mr. Henry Thomas Liddell, Mr. Ker Seymer, Mr. Macartney, Mr. Muntz, Mr. George 3entinck, Mr. Napier, and Mr. Dunlop. That nine be ,he quorum of the said committee. The commitee was ordered to meet on Monday next. The house Wen adjourned at 20 minutes past 11 o'clock. LAW INTELLIGENCE.—Feb. 16. EQUITY COURTS. (Before the Lords Justices of Appeal ) forcibly got her away from Dr. Lord and put her into a brougham. The fracas attracted the attention of the police, and all parties went to Marylebone police court, before Mr. Long, who, finding the assinit was committed in this district, referred the complaint to this court. Yesterday, a note was handed into court, to the effect that Captain Armstrong was indisposed and could not attend. The complainant's professional adviser was not satis fied with this excuse. Mr. Bingham desired that an intimation should be conveyed to Captain Armstrong, to the effect that, as he should send the case to the sessions, the appearance of Captain Armstrong at the court must take place. Summonses were granted against Colonel De Lard Captain Maher, who were parties to the assault, and the case was again adjourned for a week. ATTORNEY-GENERAL V. THE MAYOR, &C., OF ROCHESTER. This was appeal from the decision of the Master of the Rolls, directing a scheme for the application of the income of the Watts Charity at Rochester. The found ation of the charity arose under the will of Richard Watts, Recorder of Rochester, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, who thereby devised his dwelling house called Satis, and other real estate to the mayor, with four of the principal citizens of Rochester, upon trust to sell the same, and apply the income to arise from putting out the proceeds to profit in maintaining an almshouse then standing at the Corn-cross, Rochester, for poor travellers and wayfaring men, and for the relief and sustentation of other poor persons, to give employ ment to whom flax, hemp, and wool were to be pur chased. Shortly after the death of the testator, the income arising from the charity estates amounted to 36/. 10s. 81., but since that time it had increased to the sum of 3,0001. and upwards. The almshouse had been xept up from the time of its foundation to the present time, but the annual expenditure upon it only amounted to 761. so that there was yearly a large surplus of the charity income. Relative to this surplus various decrees had been made by the Court of Chancery since the reign of Charles 11., the result being that such surplus had been applied by the churchwardens and overseers of the several parishes of St. Nicholas, St. Margaret, Stroud and Chatham, within the precincts of Rochester in proportion, settled by a decree of the court pronounced in the time of Lord Not tingham, in satisfaction or relief of their respective parish and borough rates. The information was filed at the relation of certain inhabitants of the city of Rochester challenging this application of the charity funds, as being in contravention of the trusts of the testator's will, and of the intention of the decrees which had been made upon the subject. Mr. W. M. James. Mr. Roundell Palmer, Mr. Lloyd, Mr. Campbell, Mr. Glasse, Mr. Terrell, Mr. Bevir, Mr. G. M. Giffard, Mr. Messeter, Mr. Herberden, and Mr. Vincent, appeared for the different parties interested in the suit. Their Lordships dismissed the appeal with costs, Lord Justice Knight Bruce observing that it was impossible not to notice the striking disregard with which, notwith standing the great increase of the income of the property, the plainly expressed wishes and intention of the testator with reference to the almshouse had been treated. It was impossible not to disapprove and disavow the omission to increase the assistance which the testator had directed to be given to the needy wayfarers. As to whom not only in point of number, but of the amount of viaticum, the provision made in the 16th ce ,, tury had not b'en aug mented, while the rents since that time had been increased by thousands. In the face, nevertheless, of all this, churchwardens and overseers had been found to con tend that justice, on being apprised of these abuses, should allow them to remain as they were—a contention which, as the court was now in possession of the matter, and had power, if not to redress past abuses, at least to control the future, could hardly be a serious one. It was, however, matter of regret and something more that in a community for various reasons, civil and ecclesiasti cal, so considerable as the city in which this charity was founded, there should so long have been tolerated, and for reasons it was to be feared too obvious, fostered and encouraged so gross a system of wrong. SOUTHWARK.—James Bower, a lad, whose head scarcely reached the top of the dock, was charged before Mr. A'Beckett with stealing a loaf of bread from a baker's shop, in the New-cut. The only thing that excited any interest in this case was the melancholy way in which the child had been brought up by its worthless mother. The latter was a few minutes previously put in the same dock, charged with being drunk and using disgusting language towards a respectable green-grocer in the New-cut ; and from her dirty and dissipated appearance, there could be no doubt she was a confirmed drunkard ; and instead of attending• to her child, and bringing it up in the paths of honesty, sent the poor lad out thieving, to procure the means to gratify her propensity. The constable who took the lad into custody imme diately after stealing the loaf, informed his worship that the father of the lad was a sober, industrious map, and had worked for many years as foreman at a baker's. His business necessarily kept him out night and day, and during his absence the wife spent all his earnings in drink, and kept his home in a dirty and filthy condition. Mr. A'Beckett said there could be no doubt from the appearance of the woman that she was a drunkard, and she ought not to have the care of the prisoner. He should remand the latter for a week, and he desired the constable to call upon the father and request his atten dance at his dinner hour, so that something might be done to save his child from utter ruin, which it would inevitably come to if left under the care of such a worth less woman. The child was accordingly remanded to prison. NEWMARKET CHAMPION COURSING (Before Vice-Chancellor Kindorsley.) COY V. MIDDLETON. MELTING. This was a bill to compel the defendant specifically to perform an agreement into which he had entered fur the purchase of a house and garden at Chelsea. The con tract was made partly in writing and partly by word of mouth. Upon inspecting the premises the defendant found them in a very dilapidated condition, and refused to complete unless they were repaired, contending that the plaintiff was liable according to the agreement for purchase. On the other hand the plaintiff insisted upon the written part of the agreement being carried out, contending that the other portion of it was void under the statute of frauds, and instituted the present suit to enforce that right. Mr. Elmsley, Q C., and Mr. Southgate were for the plaintiff, and Mr. Chandless, Q.C., and Mr. Haidea for the defence. The case was not concluded when the court rose. EXNING FI STAKE for PUN Merry 7 Taid beat Merin Barrister beat Mansoor beat Dormouse ALL-AGE STAKES. Second Ties. Whirlwind beat Lively I Julius beat Misfortune Barabbas beat Kate Mixture beat Marchioness Damietta beat Glaucus I Glenluce ran a-bye SECOND STAKES for PUPPIES. First Ties. Mr. Swinborne's bk and w b Echo beat Mr. Dobede's bk b Daffodil. LD.—FEB. 16. is. Second Ties. IFurious beat Lapidist Welcome (2) beat Sophy Lord Stradbroke's be and w d Mclntosh beat Mr. Moody's bk b Rosaline. Mr. Gillett's r b Gertrude beat Mr. Blenkiron's bk t d Act mon. _ _ . _ Mr. Buckworth's r b Bud beat Mr. Fryson's bk d Forester. . _ _ Second All Age Stakes. First Ties. Mr. Blenkiron's r and w b Bessie Bell (2) beat Mr. Jackson's f and w d Pilot. Mr. Gillett's r d Golden Drop beat Mr. Dobede's bk b Deborah. Mr. Swinborne's bk d Electric beat Mr. Jardine's f b Nancy. Mr. Buckworth's f d Bravo (2) beat Mr. Fyson's r 13' Fairday. Exning Stakes, for Puppies. First Ties. Mr. Fyson's r d First-rate beat Mr. King's r b Ruby. • Lord Stradbroke's r b Music beat Mr. Moody's bk and wb Violante. Rutland St,lkes. First Ties. Mr. Dobede's bk d Driad beat Mr. Blenkiron's r d Zig. zag M . r. Fyson's bk d Freeman beat Mr. Jardine's f d Ma. thematics. Mr. Gillett's bd d Gold Dust beat Mr. Swinborne's w and f b Queen Bee. Mr. Jardine's bk and w d Musicmaster beat Mr. Jack son's bk and w d Prince. THURSDAY, FEB. 16. FOUR-MILE STABLES. Stake for Puppies. Mr. Buckworth's bk d Barrister beat Mr. Jardine's bk d Monsoon . _ _ Mr. Wilson's f b Welcome beat Mr. Fyson's bk d Furious. Ld Stradbroke's r b Merry Maid ran a bye. All-Age Stake. Mr. Miller's bk d p Barabbas beat Mr. Dobede's bk b Damietta. _ _ Mr. Jardine's r b Mixture beat Mr. Milier's bk and w b Whirlwind. •• --- Mr. Jackson's de d Julius beat Mr. Gillett's bd b Glen. luce. . . - Newmarket Stake for Puppies Lord Stradbroke's be and w d M'lnlOsh beat Mr. Gil lett's r b Gertrude. Mr. Buckworth's r la Bud beat Mr. Swinborne's bk and w b Echo. Bottisham All-Age Stake. Mr. Swinborne's bk d Electric beat Mr. Buckworth's f d Bravo. Mr. Brenkiron's r and w b Besse Bell (2) beat Mr. Gil lett's r d Golden Drop. Exiling Stake for Puppies. Lord Stradbroke's r b Music (2) beat Mr. Fyson's r d First-rate and won the stake. Rutland Stake. Mr. Jardine's f d Mathematics (2) beat Mr. Dobede's bk d Driad. Mr. Gillett's bd d Gold Dust beat Mr. Jardine's bk and w d Music Master. POLICE INTELLIGENCE. MANSION-HOUSE. John Valentine .Raentor, a German, was charged before Alderman Moon with hav ing stolen a bill of exchange for 561. 9s. 3d., the pro perty of the Governor and Company of the Bank of England. Mr. Botcher, a clerk in the out-tellers office at the Bank of England, stated that he presented the bill for acceptance on the 6th instant, at Messrs. Westenholz Brothers, in Mark-lane, that he put it in the acceptance box through a slit in the door, between half-past twelve and half-past one o'clock, and that he observed a man on the stairs at the time. Spittle, the detective officer, said the prisoner came to Reid's brewery while I was there, and in consequence of information which I had received I showed him the bill. He said it belonged to him, and that he wished to get it discounted ; that he had received it from Mr. Goldsmidt, shoe manufacturer, in Gialstone-street, Whitechapel, for the sum of 511., and that he was to have 51. 19s. 3d. discount. I took the prisoner to the Bank of England, where I was directed to charge him with having stolen the bill. I found in his possession several memoranda and 61. Os. 6, 1 4 d. in money. Mr. R. Ogilvy, clerk to Messrs. Westenholz, opened the bill-box on the tlth inst. about half-past ten in the morning, and again at half-past four, and found in it a large number of bills, but not the bill produced. I remember two gentlemen being in our office at about a quarter past one. As far as I can recognise him, I think that the prisoner was sitting in the office at the time, and the two gentlemen came out of the private room, and told the man, whom I believe to be the pri soner, to go down stairs and pay for a cab. He went down stairs, and I went out at the same time. I returned in about four or five minutes, and the man was then standing outside the office door on the landing. I did not see him come into the room again. Another clerk to Messrs. Westenholz stated that the prisoner was with the two gentlemen alluded to in the evidence of the last witness, and was desired to go into the elerk's room, while they were engaged in one of the partner's offices. He also proved that a bill could be taken out of the box from the outside, as the hole was rather large, and that he had taken large letters from it several times, without having used any instrument. It was likewise proved that the prisoner went to a person with whom he was acquainted and showed him the bill, and that the person, suspecting that all was wrong, gave information upon which the prisoner was apprehended. The prisoner said he had not stolen, but had bought the bill, as he had mentioned in the first instance. Committed for trial. Charles Anthony Noe dl, who was charged upon sus picion of having uttered forged endorsements to two bills of exchange, the one for 101. and the other for 101. ls., with intent to defraud Messrs.. Glyn and Co., appeared before Alderman Moon for furth er examination. Mr. Bush, of the house of Bush and Mullen , , solicitor to the Committee of Bankers for Protection against Felonies and Fraud, appeared for the prosecution, and stated that he had no further evidence to adduce against the prisoner, but he hoped that the Alderman would fur ther rem an d the accused for the attendance of Mr. Mul lens, who was detained in Paris on important busin9ss. Alderman Moon stated that he had been directed by the Lord Mayor, who had heard the case, but was life vented from attending that day by other important public duties, to express his lordship's opinion upon the evidence, which he had carefully examined, that the accused was the dupe of some fraudulent person, and had no knowledge that the bills were forged, that it was evident the accused had given his correct name and address in the transaction, that his own state ments of his possession of the bill were consistent, and had been borne out by the testimony, and, inasmuch as the prosecutors had no other witnesses to produce, his lordship considered that Mr. Noedl should be released from all further opprobrium and was entitled to his dis charge, but to meet the request of Mr. Bush, he would take the accused's own recognisances in 1001. to appear next Wednesday, in case any other evidence might be produced by Mr. Mullins on his return from Paris. BOW-STREET.---George Carter, a supernumerary and bill deliverer in the employ of Mr. E. T. Smith, the lessee of Drury-lane Theatre, was charged with the fol lowing wholesale robberies : _ _ . From the evidence of Mr. Smith and the witnesses ex 'mined for the prosecution, it appeared that the prisoner, in addition to his employment in the theatre, had been engaged to assist in the delivery of the posting bills, by way of increasing his pay. The bills, or posters, were of an expensive kind, owing to their extraordinary dimon !ions, and from their being printed in colours ; and yet it now transpired that the prisoner had been in the habit of disposing of the entire mass of bills to a man not yet in custody, by whom they were afterwards sold as waste paper. Notwithstanding this circumstance, the manager was regularly charged every week with all the expenses of distribution, &c., in addition to the original costof the sheets ; so that Mr. Smith had been actually robbed to the extent of about 101. per week. Some of the bills (about 521bs weight) had been pur- chased by a Mr. Cork, waste-paper merchant, in Lam beth-walk, to whom they were represented as the " perquisites " of the men engaged at the theatre, being out of date. Mr. Smith stated that a similar practice prevailed to an alarming extent in London, and the managers of the theatres lost from 8,0001. to 10,0001. per annum by it. Mr. Hall condemned the conduct of those who pur chased this description of property without sufficient caution. The present offence was peculiarly insidious, because the prisoner had been appointed a bill deliverer out of sheer kindness on the part of Mr. Smith, who wished to mako his berth a more profitable one. It having appeared that the prisoner had also disposed of the posting bills of Punch, and of a freehold l au d society after much the s ame fashion, he was remanded for further examination ; but upon the present charges. Mr. Hall committed him for trial. 1 MARLBOROIIGH-STREET.—Captain Armstrong was summoned for an assault on a medical gentleman named Lord. The case was adjourned from last week, but the defendant was not in attendance yesterday to meet the charge. The assault arose out of the following ciroumstances : —The 'wife of Captain Armstrong is under the care of Dr. Lord for a mental complaint. She was taking some refreshment at Verrey's, in Regent-street, with Dr. Lord„ when Captain Armstrong and two friowl Victoria Stake. Mr. Dobede's bk b Dormouse beat Mr. Gillett's r d General. Mr. Blenkiron's f d Banker beat Mr. Garrad's f b Lively. Chippenham Stake. Mr. Blenkiron's w and f b Bee's-wing beat Mr. Swin borne's bk and w d Executioner. Mr. Jarndine's f d Mynheer beat Mr. Dobede's bk b Deborah. SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE. CUSTOM HOUSE, FEB. 16. ENTERED INWARDS.—The Margaret from St. Michael's; Kron Prins Frederick, Kiel ; Fronke, Antwerp ; Atalante, ditto ; Grenada. New York ; Saltano Oran ; Cecrops, Kallundborg; Peninsula, Cadiz ; "t. Pierre. Gravelines Corneli Henrietta, Amsterdam - Bertha, Antwerp. ENTERED OUTWARDS FOR LOADING.—The Enriqueta, for Havanna • Antia, Geelong ; Nymph, Corfu, Cephalo nia, Zante and Patras. CLEARED OUTWARDS WITH CARGO.—The Northumber land, for New York; Cybele, Demerara ; Eugenia, Cal cutta ; Prince Regent, Port Adelaide; Grape, Gibraltar and' Marseilles. LIVERPOOL, FEB. 16. The Lady Franklin, for New York, when going into the river to-day, (hove foul of the Star of Empire alonside the Prince's Pier, changing docks. The Ll.dy Franklin damaged her cutwater, counter, and ono of her boats. The Star of Empire sustained no damage. The Olinda (s s.), on the Furlo❑g Rocks, broke amid ships yesterday, and the remaining cargo has been strewed about the coast. STRALSUND, Feb. 3.—Seven vessels went ashore on the night of Jan. 30-31 in our harbour during a heavy gale, and, although they have come off, are almost all so leaky, with loss of rudder, and otherwise damaged, that they must discharge and repair. The following names are given The Ceres (brig), from Scotland to Christiana, with coals, and the Pegasus (yacht), from Scotland to Aarhuus, with co als. CUXIIAVEN, Feb. 12.—The Scandia (Swedish brig), from Canton, which was on shore at Eitzen Lock on Feb. 10, has been got off and towed into the harbour, leaky. ELSINORE, Feb. 11.—The Catherine, from Callundborg to London, which put back on the 7th inst., leaky, has been surveyed and is discharging to be hove down, about half discharged, in good order. MELBOURNE, Nov. 20. —The Ontario, of Liverpool, is reported to have gone down off Point Nepean ; all hands saved. ALSTEN, Jan. 17.—The Pursuit, of Aberdeen, from Archangel, drove on shore at Raysboten, on the 11th Dec. during a heavy gale ; crew saved, and cargo expected to be saved. The Bona Dea, of and for Liverpool, from Savannah, has been fallen in with dismasted and waterlogged, off Alizen Head, and the survivors of the crew, 11 in number, taken off and landed at Crookhaven, by the Cuba Organ, except 5, which died on board the latter. The men had been on the wreck for 11 days and a-half without food or water. The master and 5 men had died from their sufferings. VESSELS SPOKEN WITH. The Nancy from Oporto to Sydney, New South Wales, Oct. 24, lat. 39 S., long. 39 E. The Refngo from England to Melbourne, Nov. 6. The Stourbridge, steering west. The Ariel (brig), off King George's Sound. • The Sir Allen M‘Nab, bound to Hobart Town, Dec. 11, lat. 22 S. long. 21 W. Th e (I-thaya, 13th, lat. 20 S , long. 25 W. The Glasgow, bound to Port Philip, 18th, lat.lS long, 29 W. Tho Santiago' from Valparaiso to Li verpoo l , 13 t h , l at. 26 N., long. 0 9 W. The Oresund, outward bound, Jan. 8, lat. 2 S., long 29 W. The Ceres, from Montevideo to Falmouth, Jan. 24, lat. 31 N., long. 41 W. The Inverary Castle, from the Clyde to Melbourne, Jan. 6, lat. 2 N., long. 22 W. The John Melhuish, from Calcutta to Liverpool, Oct. 11, lat. 19 N., long. 88 E. The James Shepherd, from Bombay to London, Jau. 13, lat. 2 N., long. 23 W. The Ann, from London to Sydney, 14th, lat. 13 N., long. 24 W. The Almade, from Bristol to New Orleans, Jau. 4, lat. 18, long. 67. The Creole, from Londonderry to New Orleans, Jan. 14, off Cape St. Antonio. The Stewart (brig), bound E., Jan. 15, off Tortugas. The Prompt, from Grangemouth to Melbourne, Jan. 3, lat. 1 N., long. 21 W. The Typhoon, from London, 4th, lat. 2 N., long. 22 W. The Julindcr, from Glasgow to Calcutta ; and Hydrabad, from London to Port Adelaide, both the same da y . The Cadet, from London to 'Launceston, Van Diemen's Land, Sept. 17, let. 12 S., long. 30 W. The Dorisana, from Liverpool to Singapore, Dec. 16, lat. 31 N., long. 22 W. The Henrietta, from Hartlepool to King Geor g e's Sound, Sept. 30. The Eleanor, from Melbourne to the Mauritius, Nov. 12. THE PRESTON STRIKE —Last nig-lit the weekly meet ing of the delegates from the London trades on behalf of the Lancashire operatives, was held at the Bell Inn, Old Bailey. Mr. It. Hooper, the chairman, said he was happy to say there WAS at last some prospect of the struggle being soon brought to a conc'usion. From Ictte:-s rec;ivA it appea . ,•.A wac , )n loot which would bring about results satisfactory to both masters and mono COUNTRY MARKETS. DERBY SMITHFIELD-FEB. 14. There was an average supply of beasts to-day, which were in good request, but without any alteration in price. The number of sheep not quite so large. Buyers nume rous, and a clearance easily effected. Fat and store calves were more plentiful than they have been this year, both of which sold well. There was a larger supply of fat pigs than usual. The following were the quotations :—Beef, 6d WO ; mutton, 7d to 74d ; lamb, Od to Od ; veal, 64d to V. per lb. ; pigs, 9s 9d to 1053 per score ; rough fat, 6s 3d to 0; Od per 141 b. ; hides, 2Ad to 3d per lb ; calf-skins, aid t. 4d per lb. EDINBURGH GRAIN.-FEB. 15. Wheat on the top same as last week, and the average 8d up. Barley on the top 9d up, and the average 44 down. Oats on the top same as last week, and the average ld up. Beans (,12 the top ls, and the average ld, down. Top of Wheat .............................62i lb 90s Oct Barley Oats Beans 66 lb 53s 01 Total Supply and Sales. Wheat 7BB qrs sold 588 qrs Barley 9BB qrs sold 777 qrs Oats 1721 qrs sold 1232 cps Beans 2Ol qrs sold 180 tans Average of whoat 23 13 2 11-12thos Ditto of Barley Ditto of Oats . 1 9 9 11-12t1 is Ditto of Beans BOSTON-FEB. 15. The corn trade here continues in an exceedingly excited and unsettled state. During the week the price of wheat receded 2s to 3s per qr., some of the leading merchants and millers refusing to purchase a single grain. At this day's market, however, there was a better feeling in..the trade, and good dry, parcels of both red and white wheat brought an advance of fully 2s per qr. Oats and beans cheaper. Barley and peas unaltered. Prices :—Wheat, red, 69s Od to 80s Od; white, SOs Od to 83s Od extra. 85s Od. Barley, 32s Od to 4 1 s d. Oats, 23s to 295. Beans, 40s Od to 47s Od. Peas, 53a Od to 60a por qr. • NEWARK-FEB. 15. A good attendance of farmers to-day, and tho weather being dry the samples of grain produced were in better condition than of late. Prices similar to last we ek's. Prices :—Wheat, white, 84s Od to 90s Od ; rod% 80s Od to 84s qd. Barley, malting, 36s Od to 40s Od ; srindin 4 36s Od to 388 Od. Oats, old, 30s Od to 36s Ott ; new, 28s 0.1 to 30s Od. Beans, 48s Od to 62s Od. Peas, 00s Od to 008 Od. Malt, 66. Od to 70s Od. Tares, 645 Od to 6910 d. RAIL WA y - SHARE MARKETS. LIVERPOOL, FEB. 16. STOcir EXCHANGE.—The folio .ving were the sales in the morning :—Birkenhead, Lancashire, and Cheshire, 22/. shares, nd. ; Caledonian, 26$ ; Lancashire and Yorkshire, 66A ; Midland, 63a ; Shrewsbury and Chester (osw , estry and Chester), 12. The afternoon's sales were :—East Lan cashire, 16 9-16; Lancashire and Yorkshire, 66 4; Lon don and North-Western, 1011 ;- Midland, 63 ; Swath. Eastern and Dover, 18 9-16. MANCHESTER, FEB. 16. STOCK EXCHANGE.—The market has been rather dull, except for Leeds shares, for which there was a goad de mand. Prices had an upward tendency. The sales of the morning were :—Sheffields, 23i ; Leeds, 664 ; Midland, ; London Stock, 104 ; Dover, 18A. The sales in the afternoon were—Leeds, 66.1 i. BIRMINGHAM, FEB. 16. STOCK EXCHANGE.—The share market to-clay was re markably quiet, the only transactions reported on 'Cistange being in Birmingham, Wolverhampton, and Stour Valley shares, which were done at 9, and South Staffordshire at 11 dis. LEEDS - Fn. 16. STOCK EXCEIANGE.—Basiness in shares limited to-day to a few sales at the following prices . :—East Lancashire, ; Great 'Northern halves, A stock, 9k; Lancashire and Yorkshire, 66k a. SEABORNE MAILS. (N signifies that the mails are sent from the General Post•oßiee , - ,y the night—and M by the morning —dispatch.) Day when made up From what When COUNTRIES. in General Post- Port due in Office, London.* Dispatched. Zi sgland. America(byllrit.pack)N Every Friday .... Liverpool ... Eaelh Mott. America (by United Sts. packet) .N• • ........ Liverpool . America (by U States packet) ..........N . ........ Sonthamph vnd Australia (via South ampton) ..........M.March 4 • Southampt.. Feb. 20 Ditto (via Marseilles) N March 8 Ditto (via Cape of Hoed , Hope) ............N , Feb. 4 Africa (West Coast) ..N,?.3d of the month.. Plymouth lArrived Alexandria.......... N;8, 9, 24, &30 of in. Dover .... Feb. 16 & 20th of mon. Soul hampton Feb. 20 Bahamas ----Al:l7th of the month Seuti Campton Feb 16 8e1gium,............Ni, Daily Dover' Daily Brazil of the month.. Southr mpton Arrived Buenos Ayres ........M 9th of the month.. Southa. Upton Feb 16 Cape of Good Hope ..N;l4th of the month Plymou th Feb. 26 Cape of Good Hope ..Nil4th of the month. Southampton( Cape de Verds il4th of the month Plymouth . Feb. 26 Ceylon (see Indla) Ceylon ..............Nll4th of the month Plymouth Feb. 26 Channel Isles ........NlMon „Wed..,&Frid. Anuthampf4 n Tu.TILSat Chili. ... 1%112d & 17th of month, Sou thamptoi i Feb. 16 China (see India) Constantinople Ni7,8,17,21,&27 of m. Dovor Constantinople ........14th & 20th of mon Souttrampto . Feb. 20 wont. of Europe M & N 'Twice daily ...... Dover llrWicedally Egypt (see India) France ........ M & N Twice daily ...... Dover . , TVleedallF iibraltar -314, 7, 17, 20.27 of rr, tiouth amp top Feb'. 16 Greece (see India) Greytovrn .......... 51,2nd & 17th of mon. 4outhanepto, Feb. 16 Hamburgh ..........N,Tuesday & Friday London Havannah .......... 511nd of the month SotithamP, 'Mardi 1 Rolland ............ m. Daily . Honduras ... . 1)1 1 17th of the month Souttimumpton Feb. India (viaSouthampt.)M 4th & 20th of inn Soathampro• Feb, 20 India (via Marseilles) it 81h&24th of morth Dover Feb. 16 lonian Isles (see India) 7, 1 7, &27 of mon D0ver.......• F b. 0 Ireland .. & N,Twice daily Holyhead' • . Twieetaily bi 7,9, 17, & 17 of m. Southa mptOn,Feb 16 Madeira ............ :11 1 9th of the month Soothe mytoisTeb Madeira ...... N 23d of month .... Plymo.uth- .. Feb. 14 Malta (see India) w a it. ............ .N 7,17,19,27. 30 of m. Dover ........ I Mauritius (see India) s b writ i us 14th of the moot. Pismoc an .. Feb. 26 Mexico 51,2nd of the month. Boutha] taptco, Mares I Naples N 'sth tsth2sthormon.Dover Feb. 12 New Granada 5112 d & 17th of month 'f3outhal rtptots Feb 16 New Zea1and.......... ;By private ship .. Various; port' Uncertain. Papal mates • . N l sthlsth2sthonnon. Dover .. .. Feb I'2 Peninsula .... ;7th 17th28thonnon South= Oa.' Feb 16 P er , .......... MI 7d & 27th of mon Southaan ptoi• Feb. -.* Pert Natal ...........Nil 4 th of the montlii PlYmOntil ...Feb. 16 ild b„ „„./.715th1 5 th25tho0mon,Dover •• •...Feb. 13 Tageany ........N6oll6th2sthofinoit.luov•er Venezuela & 07th of monthlSou/Itantiotoa Feb. 16 Van Diemen's Land (seeo . Australia) ........ I I West Indies i2cl t 17th n month ,South amptokarrivett * When any of these .sates a l o•t n , unclay, the mails wit be Ilspatche lon the following clay with the exceptien at the India Tie Southampton), and the Jialta, both of which will b a dispatched the day preceding. EMIGRATION.—The Emigration Comm; issioners have advertised for two vessels to carry emig, rants to New South Wales and Victoria. One is to be ready, for Sydney, on the 7th, the other, for Geelon:r, on the 11th of April. [ADVERTISEMENT.] —Fifty thousand Cui es! have been effected by Du Barry's delicious Revalenta. A rabica Food, without medicine, inco ivenience, or expel Ise (as it saves fifty times its colt in other remedies).--" Tw •etity-fiveyears nervousness, constipation, indigestion, and tiebility, from. which I had suffered great misery, and whii.ch no medi eine could remove or relieve, have been cff ectually cured by Du Barry's Food in a very short W. R . Reeves, Pool Anthony, Tiverton.' , " Eight years' dys pepsia, nervousness, debility, with cramp e, spurn s , an d nausea, for which my servant had consu'ited the advice o :many, have been effectually removed by Du Barry's delicious food in a very short time. I s hall be happy to answer any inquiries. Rev. John W. Flavel, Rid lington Rectory, Norfolk." "Three pure excessive nervousness, with pains in my neck and left arm, and general debility, which rendered my life very miserable, has been radically removed by Du 13arry a excellent food. Alexe. Stuart, Archdeacon of Rocis, Skibbereen." —" Fifty years' indescribable agony from dyspepsia, nervousness, asthma, cough, constipation, flatulency, spasms, sickness at the stomach, and v,,mittings, has been removed by Du Barry's excellent food. Maria Jolly, Wortham Ling, near Dies, Norfolk." Copies of testi monials of 50,000 cures (including those of Lord Stuart de Decies, Major-General Thomas King, Dre. ITre, Shorland, and Harvey (gratis). In canicsterti, with f u n instructions, 11b., 2s. 9d. ; 21b., 48. 6d. ; 51b., lls. ; 121 b 225. ; super-refined, 5 1 b., 22 5. ; 10113., 33 5 . T he 101 b. and 121 b. carriage free. Barry Du Barry and Co., 77, Regent-street, London ; also, Fortnum, Mason, and Co.. purvevesi to her Majesty. Piccadilly. BIRTHS. Dr A SOY. On the 14th inst., a t Edon, the wife of B. S tnnard, Esq. On the 16th inst ., at 8, Queen's . -road West, Pogent's. park, the wife of T. Weatherley .PhlPson, Esq. OF DAUGHT/:11. On the 15th inst., the wife of Wiliam Theed, Esq., of CaTupden-lodge, Camp d en hill , Kensington. On the 15th inst., at 6, South-street, Grosvenor-sqn are, the wife of George T. Duneouibe, Esq. MARRIED. On the 16th inst., at the parish church of St. Mary's bone, Robert Richardson, F.S.A., of Lincoln's-inn, Rag, barrister-at-law, to Maria Louisa, only child of Minty Gardner, of 5, York-terrace, Regent's-park, Esq. On the 16th inst., at St. George's, Hanover-square, Captain Fearon, 14th Regiment Bombay N. 1., eldest eon of the late General Fearon, to Claudine A'hmuty, eld est daughter of Colonel Claud Douglas, Bengal Army. DIED. - - On the 14th of October, 1853, at his residence on the River Hunter, New South Wales, Colonel Kenneth Snod grass, C. 8., in the 71st year of his age. On the 6th of November 1853, at Melbourne, AustralLs, while bathin g i n the Yarra , Yarra river, Richard, aged 2J, younger son of Mr. Henry Philip Force, bookseller, of ee.2, South Audley-st ree t, G ros venor-square. On the 16th inst., at 8, Queen',.-road, Notting-hill, in her 83l year, Mrs. Brasier, former. y of the Rope-walk, Margate, and late of Chiswick-lane, Middlesex. On the 16th inst., at Cirencester, John Brewin, in bis 79th year—a m em b er of the Society of Friends. LONDON: Printed and Published by 311TRDO YOUNG, 0: ,t.d, No. 112, Strand, in the Precinct of the Savoy, in the county of Aliddimx, Friday, February 17,1854. I.J OND( The I en the securi leg 4% per c dne. York-road 0 U Ik-7 NO nc ORDINARY hold, pursuit of the Great instant, at 01 and one Awl by rotation ; The Trans' and will not Meeting, on South Wil , T Ti, c, i a Anne 1852), 9th March, 1 received at until the 2nd Printed Fi Lists, and th tion at this c The beare and they nit where the 11 ments of eta and bills bei NEW EI Upon ever• March, 1851 whole, or Ps mentioned, new bills re The New before the s 10th day of sign receipt Payment, Said Bache upon the cb to that on v previously s PURE or in German Cu as our, and •rrowroot 1 them adapt Rye Biscuit lb.; Barth° root Biscuit The Royal 1 1* bags or 5 JOllll It only. --- youß public brew] tract ; a la! twenty gull sent to any months.--J Lill, only. FOR: DA choice ass< plied on thi mencing at CONTRA , Depl TH! and Irelan instant, al persons as into her M Articles, • WHE PEAS OATS A propo' for any w 4 No Toni quarters, c tard than 1 Sams ea each, and the parties The lan are mines tract has 1 The con tion is cal mender B tol. No t treaty, no for the pu said Oftle , at Liverp( Every t and bear "LI NI 124 th. e nst leave for has been and SON cedented subdued the adva which cc As am the mos ever ack gained tl crating 1 labourer ampletu most ec( Liver E. Masi Flats, clothing E. Mow charged The 1 advantl ing, boc can be Full format) CAU public Misch° the sae obvioul No( Lon 64,85, Lon( MIISI Me! Shoe IM] excha witho price, Th( on Sa A ing f may Al on al '