The Sun. — London, England, 1839-01-05 00:00:00

e "'"tinn, although they ro . -bs . not i;. :cs , 1 " , ;;:nakt strain all their(lrocts to nbtain -->uf fr"ge• If moral fere- wi.uld not avaii. h trY physical force.—( Vehement cheering.) Let them recolle , t ; that good old Charter, which was a confirmation of all their Anzio- Saxon rights and liberties—Magna Ch arta . That pro vided that no man could be sent beyond the seas—and yet Lord J. Russell had dared to bring in a Bill to transport children, after being torn from their mothers'arms (their parents being immured in the Bastiles)—to the Cape of Good Hope and other British colonies. If resistance to that law be not worth struggling for, of what value would Universal Suffrage be to them? If they sent Representatives to the House of Commons what answer was it to the people to be told by one of her Majesty's Minsters, when these honest men asserted that Magna Charta did not authorise such a proceeding, to be told, pointing to the Treasury Benches, These are my ser vants, and they shall not vote with Mr. Fielden or General Johnston, who wished to preserve the race of English men entire.—( Hear, hear, and cheers.) What would their representatives do in such a case? They would come back— they would throW up their trust, and they would be sent back again by their constituents. The consequence would ulti mately be, that they would obtain what they asked for ; be cause if such a thing as the Poor-law Amendment Bill was continued in operation they would be bound, by every moral tie, and by every social tie—by the laws of God and of man, and of their country, to resist such laws to the utmost of their P n wer•—(Loud cheers.) Mr. R. then alluded to the con temptuous manner in which the petitions of the people upon this subject had been treated. They had been signed by not less than three hundred thousand persons, and had actually been crammed under a table by a fellow in a big wig ; and what was the result? A proud Northum. brian scion of the house of Grey, got up an opposition to their prayer, because, forsooth, the petitions were not traced in letters of blood ; because they were not written in " characters o f fire," The consequence was, that the petitions of the people were rejected ; they were treated with the utmost contempt : and was not the argument of the Noble Lord an inducement to the people to fire and destroy pro perty ?—( Hear.) The Constitution directed them to petition, then to remonstrate, and finally to arm. And if they expected anything for themselves, or if they expected the gene ration that was to f o ll ow t h em to b e f ree , th e y must adopt thos e p r i nc i p l es to t h e very l etter. Th ey were au thorised to arm for the defence of the Constitution, and they had a right to arm for their own defence. What were the men of Birmingham doing upon this subject ?—( Hear, hear, hear.) They were about to join the men of Man chester, and he trusted that some general organization would take place. If the Birmingham people were for moral force and the Manchester people for physical force, in the name of God let them go half way to meet one another, and the thing would be done effectually. Mr. Cobbett had said, give me the Birmingham motto, " arms and men," and if the Birmingham people won't come to us, he hoped the people of Manchester would go to them, for without a union of all par ties they never would obtain Universal Suffrage. Mr. Wm. FITTON then rose to propose the health of one of their most worthy guests and fitting Representatives. He begged to make a few observations with respect to the position in which that borough had been placed efter the passine, of the Reform Bill. It was a matter of pride and self-congratulation to him that Oldham had from the first moment asserted its indepen dence. They were all aware that long previous to the pawing of the Reform Bill the feelings of the majority of the inhabit ants had been in favour of Universal Suffrage, Annual Par liaments, and Vote by Ballot.—( Hear, hear.) That constituted Major Cartwright's constitution. It was be lieved, after the passing of the Reform Bill, that the ten -pound enfranchisement clause would afford the people the means of having their sentiments fairly represented in the House of Commons. That Bill had been obtained after great exertions in the year 1832, and the first thing the borough of Oldham did was to act upon the principle which had been se cured to them of an extensive reform in the repre sentation —to look cut for men who were fairly entitled to their confidence, and who were calculated :o carry into effect the great changes which an unfortunate Combination of circumstances, and the blind policy which for !,9_ long a period h a d b een pursued, rendered necessary. Mr. Fielden w as th e gent l eman whom they selected, and it was a matter of pride and satisfaction to him that he (Mr. Fitton) Was one of the deputation which bad waited on Mr. Fielden for that purpose. Since his return he had fairly justified the sanguine expectations of his friends.—( Great applause.) Since the first entrance of Mr. Fielden into the House of Commons lie had never been found wanting when a bad measure was to be opposed or a good one promoted. Whenever any attempt was made by the Minister of the day to interfere with the liber ties of the people he had always resisted every such attempt— he had denounced everything in the way of entravagance. His constituents could not forget his speech upon the occasion of the grant to the Queen, and afterwards to the Queen's mother. The Constitution of England knew nothing of such extrava gance. There was a King of Hanover receiving 25,0001. a-year ; there was the Queen Dowager receiving about 00,000/. a year ; there was King Leopold, another tributary Prince, with 50,000/.--all a parcel of petty German people, who had turned Protestants for the purpose of riding on the neck of John Bull ; there was the Queen with 380,0001., and yet she could not provide for her mother, the Duchess of Kent, who received 30,0001. per annum.—( Hear, hear. ) Why, under the new, and even the old Poor-law Bill the children of indigent parents were compelled to support their families. Their Hon. Member, Mr. Fielden, had on these and every other occasion advocated the cause of the people, and realized all that could be expected of an honest and independent Member of Parliament. He had in tended to make more reference to the conduct of Mr. Fielden regarding the New Poor-law Bill and other circumstances, but these topics Mr. Fielden would, be was satisfied, comment upon when he addressed them. He believed Mr. Fielden had done much good and peevented the doing of very great Cheers.) He would conclude by proposing the health of John Fielden, their worthy, patriotic, and independent Re presentative. The toast was drank with three times three and much cheering. Mr. FIELDEN then rose, and was received with renewed cheering. He regretted that his efforts had not been attended with better results, but it would be as " bread cast upon the waters, which may be seen after many days."—( Cheers.) When h e h a d been called out of his quiet mode of life, bad he known the difficulties he had to encounter, and the great exertions and sacrifices, both pecuniary and personal, w hich he had been obliged to make, he thought he should have refused their call. He had accepted it because he felt it was his duty. Nothing besides a consciousness of it being his duty would induce him to continue their Repre sentative any longer. When he first came forward he had p u blished an address, and he never did, and never would, put forth any other. He had stated that the difficulties of the country had been caused by excessive taxation, by improvident ex penditure, by the prosecution of unjust wars, and that had been followed by Peel's Bill. He had stated that unless some remedy was applied to remove the cause, these difficulties would continue to increase. They had increased.—( Loud c ee ries of " Hear, hear.") There had been no abate iient of the expenditure since the passing of the Reform there had been no reduction of taxation. The expendi ture of 1837 h a d b een more than that of 1835 by two mil lions and a half..—( Hear.) In 1838 the increase over 1835 w as four millions. The sum required for the service of the year 1838 -1839, was fifty-three millions. When they saw that, they could not expect that the public mind could be com- Pesed or th e people contented. The i r difficultiss increased with the i ncrease of taxation, whether t h ey were engage d i n trade, commerce, or manufactures ; the money was ab stracted from the pockets of those who laboured, and given,t to those w h o were t h e cause of all their difficulties.l Field en h ere went into a statement o f t h e consum pti on o f cotton in the years 1815, 1831, and 1838, for the pnrpose of showin g that t h e manu f acture o f f our t i mes th e quantity had b een furnish e d f or t h e same money as i t h a d required to work the smaller quantity, and argued from thence that the com forts of the labouring classes had been curtailed in'the same Proportion. He then referred to the condition of the agri cultural labourer and the hand-loom weaver, and to the evi dence before the Parliamentary Committee of last year on the ,alleject. It was proved by the High labourers were working 1 18 hours F e e ,: z ( i hty, at the wages of 2d. per day for each member of his - 1 1""Y.--( Shame 0 What did the new Poor-law say to them ! v e uen in this condition If they were compeed to ask even "le relief of the bastiles, it was denied them, because they Were in employment.—( Shame l) Could they expect men to ne Peaceable an d qu i e t i n such a state of things, and when Minister of the Crown, Lord Howick, said that the people Were quiet, because he saw no blazing ricks, or pro perty destroyed. Was not that a direct inducement i° t he people to do so ?—(Hear, hear, hear.) He ‘ ,ed h eard Loid Abinger declare, that t h e power given to ( a k e Poor -l aw C omm i ss i oners was an imperium in imperi o , w hi c h never not b e su b m i tte d t o ;' a nd he ( Mr. Fielden) for one -ev er would.—( Great cheering. ) Lord Wynford, in the course of last Session, had said that the Poor-law Bill btas opposed to every principle and maxim of the British Con- Hear, hear.) - Was it wrong, then, to use hard batr with respect to it ? Lord Lyndhurst, in the same de rei had said that it was only an experiment, which the reernrnent dare not carry out in many places.—( Hear, and cheers.) Were the words of Oastler or Stephens himself to be seized on when he quoted such authorities as the se? —(H ear. ) If they were to die let them die like men. di (Immense cheering.) He was prepared to play his part. He ~ not want to set the people r i ot i ng b ecau se he knew r lw t a hat WWUId gi ve strength to the a d vocates o f t h e ac cursed Poo - • i . ° man, theref o re, could suppose that he had anything to do Zth the ri o t s at Todmorden, which he believed wou ld never " occurred if the had not been instigated by the adve- Zates of th e Poor-lady Men as honest as the day wa s light, d be en sent to York Castle' for doing what was right tie Camwould not, how ev er, prejudge their case. Others had been Cam from their beds and dragged before Justices, he (Mr. F. ) e " them Just-sses, and no evidence was charged against eine—their irons a were knocked off, and without a word they l'7ere sent h ome. A n d t h at was ca lled the law of England, ut g.) b - The l aw sa id t h ere was no wrong without a remedy; si l ; l e t e th „ e case would be yet decided in a Court of Justice whe stiff "ey were to have justice or not. If these things were ered he would be unworthy of being their representative. It had been just stated to him that Mr. Brandt had yesterday at t he New Bailey said that the prosecution of Stephens had b be en undertak en i n consequence of a deep conspiracy against e Poor -l aws . F or anything he knew he (Mr. F.) might beent Neither Stephens nor any other man had dame louder in its condemnation. lie might not have used the language. He had some times thought Mr. Stephens in. Wretcheddown, cruel, iniquitous, unjust, unconstitutional law. --(H ears hear, hear.) No, people of England, it was rot come to that yet, at least in Oldham !—(Great ap plause.) Lori Altitorp had told them that ould be eio_eferei eith whcrc the ClOl, l , !;.;,3 managed, That, like all other Whig promises, had been broken. Was it likely that he (Mr. F.) should be engaged in trying the right and validity of the Board of Guardians ap pointed at Todmorden ?—( Cries of " No. no.") If he could prevent them they should never have a Board, and the pre. sent was, he contended, manifestly illegal. It was intended next year to renew the power of the Commissioners ; he hoped they would all petition against it, because if they took away the Commissioners they drew the teeth of the rascals.—( Cheers.) He should continue his exertions to obtain an extension of the Suffrage as embodied in the Charfst petition.—( Hear, hear.) Were they all of that mind ?—( All the company here rose and shouted " All, all.) He was glad of that unanimity. Another question likely to occupy the attention of the House next Session was the Corn-laws ; he would leave the people to judge for themselves, and, if they thought proper, they might petition for their repeal. They could not, however, ob tain a repeal of those laws without a considerable re duction of taxation, because they could not at tempt to reduce the price of corn so low that it would not pay the cost of production. Another question would be the introduction of stipendiary magistrates, and a rural police. That was an attack on the liberties of the people that ought not to be permitted. If a rural police was introduced, the liberties of the people of England were gone perhaps for ages. Let them, therefore, be on their guard. It was said that these police were to come from Ireland, but he must say that did not look well coming from Mr. O'Connell. Let him not attempt to introduce either police or army to sup port the Queer, for they would all rally round her Majesty, and he (Mr. F.) would never submit to them. Another prospect before them was an attack upon trial by jury. Thus attempts were making, year after year, to fritter away the most valuable institutions of the country. The standing boast of the Whigs was " The Sovereignty of the People, and Trial by Jury," and these were the very men to bring in such an in famous measure. He hoped they would watch the progress of that measure. As something had been said about arming, he would say a word upon it. It was the right of every Englishman who chooses, to possess himself of arms for his own defence. It was a right which ought never to be given up. He was far, however, from recommending a re sort to arms at present. If any mark thought it necessary to procure arms for his own defence, Jet him purchase them without making any display of it. Those who intended to fight kept it secret till they were ready. Men who acted wisely acted cautiously ; and if he (Mr. Fielden), intended to fight, he would not tell of it, but would take his opponent when he was not prepared. After recommending the people to stand together, and merge all minor differences, so that the moral-force men of Birmingham, and the physical-force men of Manchester, would; pull together, Mr. Fielden concluded amidst loud and general cheering. Mr. JAME?. HALLIDAY, proposed the health of Gen. John ston, their worthy and patriotic representative.—( Cheers.) He believed there was but one sentiment with respect to that toast. Many, with him, had regretted the disappointments they had experienced in the progress of Reform, and the little benefit they bad derived from the Reformed House of Com mons. He was satisfied that it would be for the peace, the happiness, and the prosperity of the country that the House of Commons should be established on a more democratic prin ciple. It was a consolation to the borough of Oldham, that its representatives had never disappointed them, but that they had always been the advocates of the rights and liberties of the people at large.—(lmmense cheering.) Much obloquy was thrown i on persons associated with the cause of Reform. It was said that they were Levellers and De structives, and irreligious; but he denied it. Notwithstand ing what had taken place with respect to Mr. S'ephens—not withstanding that a mob should arise and destroy the borough of Oldham, or Manchester, or Ashton, or Rochdale, or any other place, he would still have confidence in the principles he' advocated. When did they hear of riots, and burnings, and destruction of property, when the people were contented and happy ?—(Great cheering.) He believed they would never have peace or solid contentment until the labouring man re ceived the due reward of his labour. It was stated by some, that Mr. Fielden was to blame for the riots that had taken place at Todmordcn, but be denied that. He had the same confidence in his priociples, and he hoped that he and General Johnston would long continue to be their advocates. With respect to the Corn-laws, much had been said about the people of other countries being able to cultivate the soil at a lower price. Would it not be better to have a policy introduced which would increase the value of the labourer's property? The thing was nothing but a mass of absurdity, to suppose that that country should rise in proportion as other countries de clined. All the countries on the Continent /might prosper, and England be nothing the worse—that was his opinion, pro vided a proper system was acted upon. The Whigs and their Journals were trying to intimidate them by the report that the Russian Bear was about to invade their shores. He believed that was all absurdity; and what the people wanted was more civil liverty and independence at home. Mr. H. concluded by proposing the health of General Johnston. General JonNsToN, M. P., returned thanks. After the able speech of his esteemed colleague, his observations would be brief. Among the principles enumerated by Mr. Richard son as involved in the Constitution, was this—that no man should be taxed without his consent. That was a proof that their Constitution originally contemplated Universal Suffrage. He felt much hesitation in saying anything with respect to the subject of arming. He believed the recommendation to arm had done serious mischief to their cause. If the people were all as enlightened as the men of Old ham, he would have no fear of such recommendation ; and as they at present stood he thought this subject ought to be dropped, until every other means had failed. He would advise them to agitate until they bad obtained Univer sal Suffrage ; and if every thing else—( A voice, " The Bal lot")—including the Ballot, did not follow, it would be the fault of the people. The people of London had taken very little part in the agitation of these principles, but they were dazzled by the display of rank and equipage, and they saw more of soldiers than the people of Oldham. So much the better for the latter, because it was not right in a free country to see armed men interfering in any way with the legitimate rights of the people.—( Hear, and cheers.) :General Johnston then referred at some length to the case 'of the Glasgow spin ners who had been lately tried there, and condemned the principle of finding men guilty on a mere majority of the Jury. He had the pleasure of waiting upon Lord J. Russell with Mr. Wakley, to interfere on behalf of these unhappy men, who had been sentenced to transportation, and he had some reason to hope that their exertions would be successful.—(Loud cheer ing.) The Gallant Gentleman then alluded to the absurd manner in which legislation was conducted in the House of Commons, and condemned the practice of midnight legisla tion. He trusted the session now approaching would be of more benefit to the people at large than the one immediately preceding it. He should at all times be most happy to attend to their call, whenever they required him to do so, and he would conclude by drinking all their healths.—( Loud cheers.) The healths of Mr. Fielden and Mr. Johnston were then given and responded to. The CHAIRMAN next gave the " Immediate Repeal of the Unconstitutional Poor-law Act." . . Mr. FIELDEN spoke at some length in reply to this toast. Some other toasts were afterwards given, and the company broke up. BY EXPRESS. BOLTON. (FRIDAY EVENING.) ARREST OF THE REV. J. R. STEPHENS. A public meeting of the inhabitants of Bolton and the neighbourhood was held this evening, in the Town Hall, Little Bolton,! for the purpose of taking into; consideration the present critical state of the country, and of deciding upon the movement to be taken by the Radical Reformers, in con sequence of the arrest of Mr. Stephens. Attached to the placards summoning the meeting was the following address : " Radical Reformers ! upon the firmness or the inactivity which you display upon this occasion will depend the success or the failure of the struggle in which we are engaged. Be up then and doing I Let the promoters of this PERSE CUTION see that your friends must not be sacrified with impunity. Assume an attitude worthy of the votaries of freedom. Let not their machinations betray you into acts of violence; but show them by your peaceful, yet irm demeanour, that the time has arrived when no power on earth can resist your immediate enfranchisement. By order of the Working Men's Association." The chair was taken 1:1) Mr. Woon, one of the Delegates of Balton, at eight o'clock, by which time the Town Hall was crammed, and there must have been two thousand per sons present. The CHAIRMAN, in opening the business of the meeting, said the time bad come when it was necessary for the Radicals of England, and all men who were favourable to universal liberty, to step forward and arrest the progress of tyranny.— ( Hear, hear.) He had always considered the present Govern ment weak, but he had never thought it wicked enough, after the declaration Lord J. Russell made at Liverpool, to proceed in the manner it had done against their leaders. A better hearted rr an—a better husband—a better father than the man they had made their victim, never breathed. The little errors he aright have committed in heated moments tae Whigs had taken advantage of, and hadendeavoured to crush him, and through him the whole of the leaders of the Radical party.—(Cries of " They shan't do it.") That moving piece of inconsistency, O'Connell, had been allowed to talk treason or anything else he pleased, without being interfered with by the Whigs, for upon him they d e p e nded as a G o vernment, and almost as a party. Anything Mr. S te ph ens m i g ht h av e said in a moment of pas sion, that meeting would not recognise as their sentiments, but they were determined to support him in his advocacy of Uni versal Suffrage, and the legal and constitutional means by which that right might be obtained.—( Hear, hear hear.) Ile had yet to learn what authority it was that knounced the possession of arms in self- defence. He could not for a rnoment supposethat any one present wished to be in possession of arms either to thrust their views down the throats of any person against hi s w ill, or to t a k e hi s property prom him. They wished to act peaceably, and gain their rights constitutionally ; and he had not yet seen a Radical who wished to go further than that. If a man came up to him for the pur pose of committing- a robbery, and told him if he did not deliver up his money his brains would be blown out, ,urely be had a right to defend himself by similar weapons.—( Hear.) He had never heard O'Connor or Ste t.hens urge the possession of arms for anything e l se t h an t i n t .revention of robbery, to be us ed defensively, and no man would deny they had a right to the possession of arrn , for a constitutional and defensive purpose. —( Hear, hear.) If they did not stand forward in the defence of p Mr. Stephens, another of their leaders, would be taken. Feargus O'Connor might be the next ; or, perhaps, poor e) ,, ,vjer, who was called a madman, and whom, he had no e lit 4 :';.t: , :1 1; could, zith , 'll, - gli it was said a madman could not be hung.—( A laugh.) They ought to speak out, but be peaceable, and by their peaceable behaviour, show they were determined to persistin their demands for justice. It was necessary they should act cautiously, constitutionally, and peaceably.—( Hear, hear.) Some of the resolutions that would be proposed, would express strongly a disapprobation of Mr. O'Connell's conduct—( Hear, hear)—and he (the Chairman) must say that if ever there was a being more degraded in the eyes of the honest men of England (what the Irish thought of him he could not tell), or more worthy of the universal contempt of mankind, it must be Old Scratch himself.—( Much laughter.) There never was a man who had been guilty of such truckling, base, abominable, and malignant conduct as O'Connell.—(Cheers.) The worst man that ever lived was an angel compared to him.—(Cheers.) No man had ever possessed more power, which he might have turned to the good of the whole community—( Hear, hear)— and no man had ever so disgracefully and so abominably abused that power.—( Cheers.) He trusted Mr. Stephens would think it better to be a victim of Whig perseeutic a lord in the camp of Toryism or Whiggism—( Loud cl The following letter, addressed to the Secretary of the Working Men's Association by Mr. Oastler, was then read by the Chairman " Manchester, Jan. 4, 1839. " My dear Sir—Last night I had the pleasure to receive your very kind letter. Nothing would have given me more pleasure than once more to have met my friends the people of Bolton. lam bound to them by the strongest ties of grati tude. But it is impossible that I can be with you to-night. My duty to that victim of Whig and sham-Radical vengeance —your friend and my friend Stephens—demands my presence here. This I neither can nor will neglect. Mr. O'Connor desires me to thank you, and to express his sorrow that he must be absent, having previously engaged to be at Oldham. " I rejoice that you are determined not to allow the enemies of God and man to triumph over Stephens. " His enemies may chuckle over the arrest of the man who in Ireland, Scotland, and Birmingham has been denounced as a traitor, an incendiary, a devil ! Yes, they may chuckle and pocket the blood-money, and think that they have crushed the wretch ; but the day of reckoning is not far Idis taut, and in the end you will see that all will be right. Be calm, resolute, and ready to keep the peace, but ,make ready for the worst.—(Loud eieers.) Depend upon:it the Threne is in danger. Be ready, I say, to drive back that host of death's-head and cross-bone Precursors which O'Connell has threatened to lead against England ! Be ready, I say, to defend yourselves and the Queen. You will be delighted to hear that Stephens is well, arid happy, and calm, and confident.— (Cheers.) Deegan, the bearer, will tell you all about the soul-stirring events of the last few days. " Remember me to the good people, and say that.l am right happy. God bless you all. "„Faithfully and constantly yours, " R. OASTLER." Mr. LLoYD in moving the first resolution, said that every Radical should feel as though the blow aimed at Mr. Ste phens, had,been' made ati himself individually.—( Cheers. ) He could scarcely express the abhorrence he felt at a Go. vernment who took office under the plea of peace, order, eco nomy, retrenchment, and reform, following the very course of these men (the Tories), whom they used to denounce. HA the Radical Reformers stood by the principles they first advocated, turning neither to the aright nor the left, with respect to physical or moral force, and had the leaders of the Radicals not been denounced in London and Birmingham, Ireland and Scotland, the Government would not have felt itself powerful enough, and dared not have commenced this campaign against the liberty of the leaders of the people.— ( Hear, hear.) The Government appeared to think the mid dle classes countenanced their despotic acts. Look at the means by which the Whig achievement had been carried ? —( Hear, hear, hear.) In all cases of this kind it was necessary to collect a few tools to work with, Tne individual who laid the information against Mr. Stephens, after the speech he made at Leigh, from which the words not quite palatable to the Whigs were selected, actually on the same evening (as he was informed) invited Mr. Stephens to take tea with him I—( Shame, shame, shame.) In 1819 that individual had to fly from bis native land, and was for some four or five years a voluntary exile in America, to avoid the fangs of the law; and in the latter end of 1838, he was found avenging himself on a fellow victim.--( Shame.) He would impress on them the necessity of scarcely letting their right hand know what their left did. If they held any companionship let them be careful with whom they communicated. The other individual, Scotch Johnson, was the vilest character, except Daniel O'Connell, he ever came near in his life. Mr. Lloyd then reviewed the evidence that had been given against Mr. Stephens, and said that it was only by getting the public opinion to bear against the malpractices of individuals, that they could be induced to reform their con duct. The object of the Government was to deter the mem bers of the National Convention from meeting together in London, knowing that they would stand in opposition to the pre sent pretended House of Commons.—( Cheers.) It was a blow levelled at their Convention; and if the Government succeeded in inducing any of them to commit a breach of the peace, the Convention might not work well.---( Hear, hear.) Mr. Stephens would be at liberty till March, and he hoped that by that time the Convention would have done its Rork.—(Cheers.) They should, therefore, reserve the ulte rior expression of their feelings, until they knew to what extent the Government was inclined to go. The resolution which it was his duty to propose was this:— "That this meeting denounces, in the strongest terms which language can express, the tyrannical proceedings of Government against the Rev. J. R. Stephens, and calls upon all honest Reformers to brand them with their uncquivo calreprobation." . He trusted that every honest man in the country would sand by the Rev. J. R. Stephens, the eloquent asserter of the people's rights, and oppose the proceedings of the vaga bond Government.—(Loud cheers.) _ _ Mr. BOOTII seconded the resolution, which was then put from the chair, and carried unanimously. Mr. KEN YON moved the next resolution : " That this meeting pledges itself to support the Rev. J. R. Stephens, by every means in its power." And observed that something fell from the last speaker about not letting their right hand know what their left did. Now, though he had a very great respect for the last speaker and his sentiments generally, yet he must give them directly opposite advice.--( Hear.) He would say that whatever their proceedings were, make all known—let the Whig and Tory parties know all they did, and all they meant to do. They had nothing to fear or to be ashamed of—they merely advocated the rights of man. Radicals believed all men had a right to be happy, and that happiness depended, in a very great measure, on the nature of the laws by which the people were governed—( Cheers.) But to come more particularly to the object of the present meeting : If he had the head or the tongue of a Cicero, or a Demosthenes, he perhaps might be able to expatiate on the merits of the Rev. J. R. Stephens. If any mortal man ever ap proached more nearly than another tojhuman perfection, that man was Joseph Rayner Stephens.—( Cheers.) If that man had a fault or a failing, it was his too great philanthropy—too sincere love of his fellow-beings, and his urgent desire for their happiness.—( Cheers.) He called upon them to support Mr. Stephens as a maligned, persecuted, heaven-minded man, and to protect him from the iron arm of the law. This might be done without very great inconvenience. It was true they had to contribute to their sick funds and their political associations ; they had to give the capitalist his profits, the priest his pay, to bear heavy taxes, to sup port pampered Ministers, and a whole host of idle people, yet sufficient might be gathered in Lancashire to de fend Mr. Stephens against his persecutors, without the in dividuals contributing scarcely feeling it. A penny per quar ter would scarcely be felt even by those oppressed sons of toil, who earned on'y ss. or Ge. a-week.—( Hear.) There need be no apprehension of the Government inflicting any injury on him —they no more dared to punish him than they dared to part with their right arm—the army.—( Cheers.) Mr. WARBURTON seconded the resolution. - -- - Mr. DEEGAN, (a Delegate from Hyde,) supported it. This was an eventful crisis—these were trying times—and it required all the deliberation and the fortitude they could command to beat their enemies. The Reverend Mr. Stephens had been arrested, not because he was a Whig, or a Tory, or a Radical, but because upon all oc casions he had exercised his extraordinary and glorious abilities in defence of the poor man, and because he had on all occa sions, in his own inimitable language, denounced the bloody tyrants that had so long trampled on the people. It was be cause he had not spared the tyrants, and because he had in his own withering► language terrified the blood-thirsty-Ministers, and because he had brought the constitutional laws of his country and the Word of God to bear against these men, that he had been arrested.—( Loud cheers.) But he praised God for it, because the arrest of that man had done more to accelerate the progress of Radical Reform than if they had had meetings, and had been speechifying for 50 years.— ( Tremendous cheering.) The Whigs, and Tories, and sham Radicals, were the real firebrands and revolutionists of so ciety.—( Continued cheers.) Never since God made this lovely world had the people of any country done a millionth part of the mischief and injury which the bloody Whigs and Tories had done to the people of this country. If they had the power, as they had the inclination, they would pull God Almighty from his everlasting throne in Heaven, and place a damnable Poor-law Commissioner in his place. The people did not desire to deprive the rich of any of their prerogatives; but unless they did, every thing they could do to better the condition of the poor man would be fruitless, and they and their property would be destroyed.—( Cheers.) Let them rally round the Heaven-born Stephens. He believed God had created J. Rayner Stephens for the express purpose of protecting and advocating the rights of the poor man. He never knew a man so humane and benevolent as that Christian.— (Cheers.) What he was on the platform, or at public hustings, he was at his co tt age fi re . His cottage was besieged day and night by the poor. If a tottering, grey - headed , old grandfather, over whose head sixty winters had pelted their pitiless storms, applied to him and stated his complaints, the heaven-gifted Stephens would go to the Poor-law Commissioners and see irn righted.—( Hear, hear, and cheers.) A poor factory child who might have been ill would have only to go to that kind hearted man and tell its " plain, unvarnished 'ale and he would see the child redressed..—(Cheers.) What contrast between him and O'Connell !—( Cheers.) There was a time when he had thought Mr. O'Connell had the in terest of his country at heart.—( A cry of "He has now," responded to by cries of " No, he has not.") Perhaps he had, but he (Mr. Deegan) was himself an Irish man, and he was compelled to say he did not think he THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY, JANUARY 5, 1839. had.—(" Yes he has," from the same person, and cries of Turn him out.") If Mr. O'Connell had rightly wielded the po,eer and influence he had over the Irish people, Ireland would not still have remained in such a degraded state.— ( Hear, hear.) The men of Lancashire would not allow Stephens to be trampled on by any Government.—( Never, never.) Before O'Connell's base, bloody, and brutal Whigs should victimise Stephens, he knew they would lose their lives, and Stephens was worthy of their lives.--( Hear, hear, and loud cheering.) He was worthy of all the sym pathy and support they could give him, and he ( Mr. Deegan) should feel much pleasure in telling the men of Ashton and Staleybridge, the glorious outburst of feeling that had manifested itself in Bolton..—(Cheers.) He would now tell them a fact, which he hoped the gentlemen of the Press would be good enough to give publicity. The Whigs were circulating a pamphlet written by a man of their own party, for the very purpose of murdering the children of the poor. It abounded with arguments to prove the necessity and expedi ency of checking the increase of population, and urged that a law should be passed to prevent any married couple from having more than three children.—(Cries of " Shame ! shame !") A new gas company was to be formed ; that gas company was to send out a medical man, and after the poor mother had borne her lovely child, nine months in her womb, and had suffered the intense anguish of child-bearing, the Whigs proposed to give the little infant a dose of Whig gas, quietly to destroy it.—( Shame, shame.) When things came to that pass, it was time to give over Qpeaking. [ A person in the crowd said, " From what authority have you that ?"] It was written under the name of " Marcus"—any one could purchase it at Messrs. Eton and Ogle's, in that town—( Hear, hear, hear. ) It . was no use p et i t i on i ng. T hey must h ave Whi g mus k ets. —( Hear, hear.) They had as much right to have muskets as the linen-drapers of Leigh had. A linen-draper of Leigh told the Magistrates he had " a pair of right good uns."— ( Laughter.) Let the people be prepared with " a pair of right goood uns" also, and their judgments would tell them when to use them. —(Loud cheering.) In conclusion, he would wish them a happy new year, and trusted that next year they would have no occasion to call these meetings. Mr. WARDEN moved the following resolution : " That we continue to place the fullest confidence in Feargus O'Connor, Esq., and the Northern Union, and disclaim all connection with Daniel O'Connell, consider ing him the greatest enemy of the working classes of this empire."—( Great cheering.) The career of Mr. O'Connell had exhibited a degree of uculency that had not been shown even by a political demagogue.—( Hear. hear.) Mr. Warden then read the following extract from an Ad dress of the Precursor Society, in The Sun of Saturday last, which he said was written by Mr. O'Connell, and which would show what a miscreant that man was. It was as follows : '• And moreover, they state, as a reason for refusing to disclaim the bloodthirsty Feargus O'Connor, that they are unwilling to lessen his usefulness'—aye, his usefulness'—that is the very word they use. So that, according to them, a man might suggest the burning of factories and homesteads 1" He (Mr. Warden) would a3k, Did Feargus O'Connor ever suggest the burning of factories and homesteads ?—(Cries of " No, no.") —the resorting to armed violence and sanguinary insurrection, and the commission of high treason itself, and still be consi dered useful to the purposes of the London Working Men's Association." That was a specimen of Dan's recent elo quence. Mr. SULLIVAN seconded the resolution, which was carried unanimously. The neat resolution was proposed by Mr. Dewhurst, and seconded by Mr. R. Jones— " That the attainment of the principles contained in the People's Charter, will necessarily lead to the repeal of all laws inimical of the public welfare. This meeting discoun tenances all agitation for the accomplishment of partial mea sures." Agreed to. A vote of thanks was then given to the Chairman, and the netting broke up. PRICE OF SUGAR. COMBINED EFFECTS OF BOUNTY AND OF MONOPOLY, Table showing the ex-duty price of West India Sugar in Mincing_ lane, and comparing the same against foreign sugars : London, Jan. 5, 1539. By the last Gazette quotation the average price of British Per cwt. Plantation Muscovado Sugar, exclusive of duty, at 3ss. 10d. MAscovado Sugars raised by free labour in the Manilla have brought this week from 225. to 235. (id per cwt., being about 13s. per cwt. less than the average price of West India Sugar. The on refined S ugar h av i ng b een reduced to 35e. Sd. per bounty o cwt.,n no sales for exportat i on h ave been effected this u week in that article. This reduction still leaves a clear bounty—allowing Is. per cwt. forthe duty on the poisonous dirt contained in the Muscovado or moist Sugar —and which is extracted from it by the process of refining of ... los. Sd. British Treacle is worth 9s. per cwt. in the foreign markets. The same has been sold this week at 31s. per cwt., being an excess of price paid by the British consumer of 225. per cwt., in other words 225. per cwt. on Treacle contributed by the poor man towards West India Bounty, and not, as it is erroneously supposed, towards revenue. COFFEE.—The duty on West It.dia Coffee, the price of it ranging from 9Ss. to I 355. per cwt , is 565. per cwt., about 50 per cent, ad valorem. The duty on St. Domingo Coffee, the average price of it being 425. per cwt., is 140 s. per cwt., or about 300 per cent. ad valorem. The protec. tive duty, therefore, on West India Coffee is equivalent to 250 per cent. It will be remarked by the above statement that the average price of West India Muscovado Sugars exceeds the price of Sugar raised by free labour in the Manilla by 13s. per cwt. The gross amount of revenue derived from Sugar is usually estimated in Parliamentary discussions at five millions sterling per annum, being the proceeds of a duty of 245. per cwt. ; as, therefore, 245. per cwt. give five millions, 13s. per cwt. (the effect cf monopoly) will give 2,600,000/., demonstrating, as clearly as figures can do, that the British nation pays a tax of 375. on each cwt. of sugar it consumes. If the whole of the money collected by these means went to the Trea sury, the circumstance would merely form grounds for consider ing whether or not such a heavy per ccntage impost was judicious; but as only 245. per cwt. are received for the public use, and the re maining 13s. per cwt. go out of the country to enrich the West India Sugar growers—the 1 3s. per cwt. being nearly the value of the Sugar itself beforethe charges of bringing it to market are added to the costs of production. The whole system displays a wanton and profligate ab straction of money from the pockets of all classes in the British nation, for the purpose of enabling a comparatively few Colonists (who, be it re membered, have already drained the country of 20,000,000/.), to live idly and luxuriantly. The monopoly law, conferring these iniquitous advantages ought, therefore, to be forthwith rescinded ; and the friends of the people in the House of Commons will, with justice, be liable to an accusation of drowsiness on their parts if they grant one shilling towards defraying the costs of maintaining the Beauharnois and other Canadian Estates' owners in possession, until this wicked monopoly, second only to the " Devil's Law," is abolished. Next week we intend giving the gross amount of the value of all the monopolies enjoyed by the West Indian proprietors. MR. STEPHENS. (From a correspondent of the Times, who was present at the re-examination of Stephens.) _ _ The refusal of Mr. Stephens to-day to cross•examine or take any notice of the former witnesses drove the Counsel for the prosecution to OF; necessity of bringing up another wit ness of tke name of Dean. It was known previously that the whole of yesterday and the day before, had been employed in seeking men who were able to strengthen the case against Mr. Stephens, and it is not a little surprising, after the labours of the Magistrates, supported by the Bow-street officers, to find their labours result in so weak a display. The result must have been anything but satisfactory to Mr. Stephens' enemies, it being a well-known fact that all the report of the new witness with reference to the Ballot must have been a pure invention of his own, it being a clearly ascertained fact, known to every person acquainted with Mr. Stephens and his proceedings, that the Ballot is a question upon which he never speaks. The altera tion which Mr. Coward made in his former statement, nullify ing decidedly the most important part of his former evidence, must satisfy every unprejudiced person that his statements can have no authority against the prisoner. Many respectable persons have expressed their sorrow at witnessing the presence of that truly excellent man, Mr. Fos ter, the Chairman of the Quarter Sessions, placing himself under Mr. Kcnworthy's authority in the court over which he ( Mr. Foster) has presided for so many years with so much credit to himself and the town of Manchester. Such a sensation in court is not often observed as was pro duced by Mr. Brandt's unwarrantable interruption of Mr. Stephens in his defence ' • and the matter of the interruption caused an expression of feeling which cannot be described, it being perfectly understood by every one that the prosecutors dared not produce their informer. Mr. Stephens's answer to this assertion of Mr. Brandt will be read by the public, and particularly by the bar, with the greatest interest. The public mind was prepared for the disavowal, by Mr. Kenworthy, of the expression imputed to him by the editor of the Manchester Guardian, during the former examina tion-4' We are determined to commit him to Kirkdale." No such disavowal was made, although pressed for by Mr. Stephens. The fact, therefore, that Mr. Stephens has been brought before a bench predetermined to commit him is con firmed beyond a doubt. In justice to Mr. Stephens, it must be admitted that his whole conduct in the management of his case was admira ble ; and during the whole of his concluding speech, which was in itselt a pattern of self-possession, good judgment, and eloquence, a pin might have been heard to fall, particularly when he was alluding to the conduct of Mr. J. E. Taylor and the Hon. Fox Manic, relative to the fire at Ashton—a matter, by-the-by, about which strange accounts are to be beard. Mr. J. Law, solicitor, attended as Mr. Stephens' legal adviser, and, judging from what took place, he seems the man best fitted for such a post. THE CORN-LAWS.—We are glad to see that Col. Thompson is to give a public lecture on the Corn-laws, at the Central Committee-room of the Marylebone Reform Association, 50, Great Portland -street, on Tuesday even ing, the Bth January, at Half-past Seven o'Clock precisely, the admission is free. Petitions, it is added, for the total repeal of these inhuman laws, lie in various parts of the Borough of Marylebone for signatures, of which, upwards of 10,000 have been obtained in three days for the total repeal. At Guildhall yesterday, in the course of an exami nation of a man charged with bigamy, the fact of the first marriage having been performed by a Catholic priest in Ireland was proved, whereup on t h e pr i soner d ec l are d t h at at the time in questioh he w as d run k, an d th e pr i es t was drunk, so that he considered it no marriage at all. The Magistrate thought otherwise, and committed'him for trial. The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge has generously subscribed the sum of one hundred pounds towards the erection of the new Episcopal Church, Inverness.—lnverness Courier. MANSION-HOUSE.-(THIS DAY.) EXTENSIVE FRAUD ON THE CITY OF LONDON UNION.— Hannah Wright, who is upwards of 80 years of age, and ex ceedingly infirm, and her daughter Charlotte Cooke, were brought before the LORD MAYOR, under the following cir cumstances : Mr. Thwaites, one of the relieving officers of the Union, stated that Hannah Wright had for several years past been in the receipt of relief from two parishes, having been paid 4s. 6d. per week by the parish of St. Mildred, Poultry, and 7s. by Allhallows, Lombard-street. Up to the year 1836 she had received :from St. Mildred's parish 1691. 17s. 6d., and from the other parish 111/. ; since which time she had received about 301. from each parish. Her daughter was in the habit of fetching the money from the relieving officers ; and about a fortnight previous to Christmas she applied for something additional in the shape of clothing. In consequence of this application witness called on the old woman, and gave her ten shillings. An alteration having been lately made in the mode of paying the weekly allowance, the fraud was discovered ; the daughter then stated, that she was afraid her mother had been doing wrong. The old woman, in answer to questions by the LORD MAYOR, said that her husband died about fourteen years ago, and that he had obtained relief in this manner, and she had continued to do so. She believed that she belonged to Stepney. The LORD MAYOR thought the daughter was more to blame than the old woman, and directed the matter to stand over in order that further inquiries might be made. Mrs. Wright declared that her daughter was innocent of any fraud having been committed. The defendants were directed to attend again in the course of a few days. BOW-STREET.-(THIS DAY.) A young man, named Charles Stevenson, was charged with stealing a mahogany Pembroke table, value 21. lOs., the pro perty of John Bolton, 29, Curtain-street, Shoreditch, cabinet maker, his master. It appeared that the prosecutor took the prisoner into his service on trial, preparatory to his being bound ; and on the 30th tilt. he absconded, when the table was missed ; but it was subsequently found at Bullock's Auction-rooms, in Hol born, where it was exposed for sale by the prisoner's direc tions, after having raised 255. upon it, and signing a paper that it was his oA n property. Mr. MINSIIULL asked the prosecutor if he had a good cha racter with the prisoner ? The prosecutor replied that he met him in the greatest distress, and he took him and gave him shelter, from pure motives of eharity. The prisoner said he was worked like a slave, and received nothing in return.—Committed for trial. THE MARKETS.-(THIS DAY.) COVENT GARDEN. The supplies of vegetables were good to-day, particularly of Turnips, which are very fine. Trade was more lively. The only novelty in the market were new green Peas, which were 12s. per sieve. Plants, 4s. to ss. per dozen ; Asparagus, 9s. to 12s. per hundred; Celery, 6d. to ls. 6d. per bundle; Onions, Is. to 2s. per sieve ; Carrots, 4s. to 3s. 6d. per dozen : Brocoli, 3s. to 3s. 6d. per bundle; Turnips, 3d. per bunch; Oranges, 6s. to 9s. per hundred; Lemons, 83. to 10s. ; Apples, 6s. to 20s. per bushel ; Rhubarb, 3s. to 3s. 6d. per bundle; Cucumbers, 4s. to ss. per brace; Cabbages, 2s. to 2s. 6d. per dozen ; Spinach, 2s. to 2s. 6d. rer sieve ; French Beans, ss. to 7s. per hundred; New Pota toes, Is. 6d. per lb. HUNGERFORD MARKET. There were fair supplies of most kinds of articles, which usually appear in this Market to-day, and a fair business ap peared to he done. Fish-Turbot, 7s. to 20s. and 255. ; for very fine Soles, Is. to 4s. per pair ; Cod, 2s. to ss. and 10s. and 12s. each ; Lobsters, Is. to 4s. each. Butchers' Meat in good supply and demand-Beef, 7-id. to Bid. ; Mution, to BAd. ; Veal, Bd. to 9d. ; Pork, 70. to 81d, per lb. Ve getables were dear, owing to the present high price of Wheat. NEWGATE `AND EEADEN - HALL. Town and country-killed meat were in good supply, and trade tolerably brisk. Prices much as last quoted. Beef 2s. 103. to 3s. 10d. ; Mutton 2s. 101 to 4s. ; Veal 3s. Bd. to 4s. Bd. ; Pork 3i. Bd. to 4s. 103. ; Irish 3s. 2d. to 3s. Bd. Game and Poultry were in but short supply. The demand was tolerable, but prices were higher. The following are the quotations for each, and not per couple, or per pair :-Geese 4s. 63. to Es. ; Chickens Is. 6d. to 25.; Fowls 2s. 63. to ss. ; Wild Ducks 2s. to 3s. ; Teal ls. 6d. to 2s. ; Widgeons Is. to Is. 6d. ; Leverets ls. Gd. to 2s. 63. ; Hares 3s. to 3s. 6d. ; Turkeys 4s. to 12s. ; Partridges Is. 63. to 2s. ; Pheasants 3s. 6d to 4s. 6d. ; Woodcocks 23. Gd. to 4s. 63. ; Rabbits Bd. to ls. 3d. Eggs in dull demand, and prices lower; for 120 the price was 7s. to 10s. Gd. CITY FISH MARKET. Supplies to-day were to a fair extent, and prices much as yesterday. Trade lively, owing to the cold weather. Turbot 7s. to 20s. and 255.; Soles ls. to 3s. 6d. per pair ; Cod 2s. and 3s. to Bs. 10s. and 15s. each ; Lobsters 10d. to 3s. 6d. per pair ; Whitings 3d. to 6d. each ; Haddocks 6d. to Is. each, and both the latter descriptions scarce. LLOYD'S SHIPPING.-(THIS DAY.) DEAL JAN. 4.—Wind, N.N.W. moderate.—Came down from the River the Dandy, Mayhew, for St. Michael's; Bra ganza, steamer, M‘Leod, Lisbon ; Ann, Coke, Leghorn. Put back and remains the William Bryan, for South Australia. PORTSMOUTH, JAN. 4 —Wind W. N. W., squally.—Arrived the Elizabeth. Cook, from Jersey ; Favourite, Gandle, do. ; Walberton, Gilbert, Dublin; Victorine, Le Feuvre, Cher burg; Ariadne (steamer), Prians, Guernsey ; Gulf of Pavia Wills, Cadiz. Sailed the Chili, for S.Anderland. Passed by the Swedish barque Akogman, Brudberry, Gothenburg. PLYMOUTH, JAN. 4.—Wind W.--Arrived the Gazelle, Bu chanan, from Dublin ; Margaret, Weeks, Newcastle ; Royal Adelaide, steamer, Dublin. Sailed the Brothers, Deacon, for London. FALMOUTH, JAN. S.—Wind W. to W. S. W., strong breezes. —Arrived the Royal Adelaide (steamer), Ley, from Dublin. Sailed the Pigeon packet, Lieut. James West, for India, with mails ; Cawson, Boyce, Trieste ; Northumberland, Nixon, Newcastle. LIVERPOOL, JAN. 4. —Wind N. W., fresh.—Arrived the Hesperus, from St. Andrew's, New Brunswick ; Christian, Crawford, Bay Chaleur; Mary Jane, Newfoundland ; Jo hanna, Rotterdam; Venilia, ditto. Off port Charles Eyes, from Chili; Phcenix, Antigua. CREEK, JAN. 3.—Arrived the Justitia, Clarke, from Smyrna ; Devon, Morris, Venice ; Virginia, Boyd!, Pa lermo ; Sworni, Gilman, Marseilles. COWLS, JAN. 4.—Wind W.—Sailed the Adolphe, Waller, for London. RAMSGATI, JAN. 4.—Arrived off the Maria Sophia, from Gothenburg. The Mungo Park, Anderson, from Shields to Malta, put into the harbour yesterday, and must discharge part of her cargo to stop a leak. MARGATE, JAN. 4.—Arrived off the Matilda, Perkins, from Bordeaux ; Hebe, Robinson, ditto. CORK, JAN. 2.—Arrived the Hercules (steamer), from London. WATERFORD, JAN. 2.—Arrived the Sultan, Read, from London ; Rapid, Miller, ditto. POOLR, JAN. 4.—Arrived the Unicorn, Gill, Leghorn. BRISTOL, JAN. 3.—Arrived the Avenger, Henderson, from Newfoundland. HULL, J. 3.—lt blows hard from the W. S. W., and every appearance of a bad night. Arrived the Julie, Harmin, from Wismar. DUNGENESS, JAN. 2.—Arrived the Grace Darling, Crockett, from Perth ; Darcy, Phillips, London. SHEERNESS, JAN. 4. Arrived her Majesty's ship Russell, from Portsmouth. KINSALE, DEC. 31.—Arrived the Ocean, Mifflin, from Ca diz, with loss of fore topmast, sails, bulwarks, &c. HAvaa, JAN. I.—The John Wood (steamer) has been on fire, and it is feared the cargo has sustained considerable damage. LCANAIADOCK, JAN. 3.—The Frederick, Durant, from Nantes to Bristol, stranded near Llannelly, has been got off and towed into that port, apparently not much damaged. MILFORD, JAN. 2.—The body of a man, with a gold watch and 28 sovereigns on his person, supposed to have been the master of the French vessel wrecked in the mouth of the Haven during the late gale, has been washed on shore. CAMFBILTOWN, J&N. 2.—The Jean, from Londonderry to Glasgow, in taking West Loch Tarbert, got on a reef of rocks, but is expected to be got off. BRIDLINGTON, JAN. 3.—The Janet, Beats, from Alloa to Dunkirk, put into this harbour to-day, very leaky, with cargo shifted, bows stove, and other damage, having been struck by a sea. HOLYHEAD, JAN. 3. —The Star, Farren, which got on shore at Roscolyn Creek, has been got off, and arrived here. CORK, JAN. 2.—The Pennsylvania, from Bremen to Balti more, was spoken with 28th ult., in lat. 48., long. 7., by the Venus, Carr, arrived at Cork. ANTWERP, JAN. 2.—The Thomas and Martha, Ransom, from Newcastle, is reported to be in the Scheldt. COMMISSION OF LUNACY.—The case of Mr. Tay lor was resumed yesterday, when upwards of half a dozen witnesses, professional and non-professional, relatives and strangers, gave it as their most decided opinion that Mr. Taylor is insane. The alleged lunatic is to be examined at to-day's sitting. THE PRESS.—The total number of newspapers which passed through all the Post-offices in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1837, was forty two millions. MR. STEPIIENS.—The Edinburgh Conrant,speak ing of Mr. Stephens's arrest, tells its readers that " there can be no doubt of the propriety of this proceeding." The propriety, we apprehend, will be deemed pretty generally extremely questionable. ALTERATION OF BANK HOURS IN INVER NESS.—We understand that, from the first day of this year, the offices here of the Bank of Scotland, British 'Linen Co., Commercial Bank, and National Bank, are to continue open till 3 o'clock, and then strictly to close for money transactions.—lnverness Courier. O Tuesday se'nnight, a banksman employed on No. 5, B shaft, at Clay Cross, had a most singular escape. He was in a cabin close to the pit, and on hearing a call from below, ran to make answer, when his foot struck the catch—an iron lock to keep the railing in its place—and he was precipitated down the shaft, which is 137 feet deep. In his descent be fortunately had the presence of mind to grasp the gin -rope, and, by sliding down, reached the bot tom in safety,—Derby Mercury. BRIGHTON. FRIDAY.—This afternoon, at two o'clock, her Majesty rode out on horseback on the Rottingdean-road, accompanied by Baroness Lehzen, Countess of Charlemont, Miss Quentin, Marquis of Headfort, Lord Alfred Paget, Colonel Buckley Sir William Lumley, and the Hon. C. A. Murray. , The Duchess of Kent, accompanied by Miss Spring Rice, took carriage drives twice to-day. Lord Mabourne took his departure this morning, at half past twelve o'clock, for London. The Royal dinner invitations for this evening comprise Mr. and Lady Jane Peel, Major-General Hill, Lord and Lady Rivers, Earl and Countess Wicklow, and the Earl and Coun tess of Kinnoul. The Duke and Duchess of Richmond and Lady Caroline Lennox, the Duke of Norfolk and the Earl of Surrey, are expected to-morrow to dine at the Palace. M. de Hummalaucr arrived y esterday evening at the Albion Hotel. Admiral Sir Philip Durham, Genet al Sir Thomas Nl'Mahon, and Mr. Otway, embarked this morning on board the Emerald yacht, on their return to Portsmouth. COURT CIRCULAR. Viscount Melbourne returned to town soon after six o'clock last evening, from a visit to her Majesty at the Pavilion, at Brighton. Mr. Spearman, Assistant Secretary to the Treasury (who has been severely indisposed), was a little better yesterday. Despatches were sent off last evening from the Foreign office for the Marquis of Clanricarde, Ambassador at St. Petersburgb. Despatches for Major-General Middlemore, Governor of St. Helena, were sent off from the Colonial-office on Thurs day evening. FASHIONABLE INTELLIGENCE. ARRIVALS. Lord Clinton, from his seat Trefusis Castle, Penrhyn ; Lady Anne Montagu Scott, in Grosvenor -st ree t, from Hastings ; Baron Bulow, in Bryanston-street, from Brighton ; the Marchioness of Bristol, in St. James's-square, from the family seat Ickworth Park, Suffolk; Mr. Edmund INl‘Donnell, at Mivart's Hotel, Brook -street, from a visit to the Marquis and Marchioness of Londonderry, at their seat Wynyard Park, near Stockton-on-Tees;; Lord Hilt, in Belgrave-square, from Brighton ; Sir Wm. and Lady Gomm, in Upper Gros venor-street, from a tour of visits ; the Hon. Miss Foley, at Richmond, from Worcestershire; the Hon. Thos. Coventry, in Piccadilly, from Croome Park, the family seat, in Worces tershire; the Dowager Countess de Salis, in Carlton-gardens, from her seat Dawley, Southall ; the Dowager Countess of Scarborough, from a tour; the Hon. G. S. Byng, in Eaton square, from a visit to her Majesty, at Brighton , M. Dedel, at Mivart's Hotel, from a visit to Lord and Lady Montagu, at their seat at Thames Ditton ; the Earl of Brecknoch, in Grosvenor-street, from a visit to the Marquis of Camden, at the 'Wilderness, Kent ; the Hon. A. M•Donald, in Con naught-place, from Brighton • the Hon. Berkel e y N oe l, at Marshall Thompson's Hotel, from Warwickshire ; * Miss Saw bridge, at ditto. DEPARTURES. Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge and the Princess Augusta of Cambridge, from Cambridge House, for Belvoir Castle, on a visit to the Duke of Rutland ; the Duchess Countess of Sutherland, from Hamilton Place, on a visit to Lord and Lady Montagu, at Ditton Park, near Windsor; Colonel and Lady Susan North, from Portman-square, for Brighton; the Countess of Bridgewater, from Grosvenor square, for her seat, Ashridge, near Hemel Hempsted ; Lord and Lady Colchester, from Great Cumberland -street, for their seat, Kidbrooke, near East Grinstead; the Hon. Charles Compton Cavendish, M.P., and Lady Catherine Cavendish, from Burlington House, Piccadilly, for East bourne, Sussex; General Alava, from Harley -street, on a visit to Sir Robert and Lady Peel, at their seat, Drayton Manor, Staffordshire ; the Countess of Mountnorris, for the family seat in Ireland ; the Marquis and Marchioness of Nor_ manby, from Bond-street, for Dublin Castle ; General Boreel, from Mivart's Hotel, Brook -street, on a tour. CHANGES. Lord and Lady Montagu, at their seat, Ditton Park, near Windsor, from Scotland; Lord Francis Egerton, at Worsley Hall, his seat in Lancashire, from a visit to Sir Robert and Lady Peel, at Drayton Manor, Staffordshire; the Marchioness of Anglesey, accompanied by Lady Adelaide Paget and Lady Louisa Cadogan, at the family seat, Beaudesert, Staffordshire, from Leamington Spa ; Lord Prudhoe, at Alnwick Castle, on a visit to the Duke and Duchess of Northumberland, from his seat, Stanwick Park, Yorkshire; the Duke of Rutland and Lady Adeliza Manners, at their seat Belvoir Castle, Leicester shire, from a visit to Sir Robert and Lady Peel; the Hon. Wm. Duncombe, M. P., at Worsly Park, Langton, from a visit to Lord Faversham, at his seat, Helmsley Castle, York shire; Sir John V. and Lady Johnstone, on a visit to the Archbishop of York, at Bishopthorpe, from their seat, Huck ness, near Scarborough ; Sir Digby and Lady Mackworth, at their scat in Wales, from Bath ; Lord and Lady Oranmore, at Brighton, from a visit to Viscount and Viscountess Dillon, at their seat in Oxfordshire ; the Hon. W. and Mrs. Talbot, at Badminton, on a visit to the Duke and Duchess of Beaufort, from Cheltenham ; Sir Philip Durham, at Brighton, from Portsmouth ; Sir Francis Head, at his seat, Atherstone Hall, from a visit to Sir R. and Lady Peel, at Drayton Manor, Staf fordshire ; the Hon. R. 11. Clive and Lady H arr i e t Clive, at their seat, Ludlow Castle, Shropshire, from their seat in Worcestershire ; the Earl and Countess of Delawarr and Lady Elizabeth West, at their seat, Buckhurst Park, Sus sex, from Brighton ; Lady Gifford, at Sandewell, from Cheltenham; Lord Sandon, at Saridon Hall, the seat of the Earl of Harrowby, from a visit to Sir Robert Peel, Bart. ; the Duke of Wellington, on a visit to the Duke of Rutland, at Belvoir Castle, from Strathfieldsaye Hants; the Marquis of Chandos, at Wotton House, Bucks, from a visit to Lieut.- General Sir Edward and Lady Kerrison, at Oakley Park, Eye, Suffolk ; John Van Buren, Esq., at St. Mary's Park, Kirkudbright, on a visit to the Earl of Selkirk, from Dublin ; the Hon. Mr. Irby, at Brighton, from a tour ; the Earl and Countess of Jersey and family, at Naples, from a tour in Tuscany, Savoy, and Piedmont ; Lord Leveson, at Florence, from Paris; Colonel Percy Denison, from a tour of visits in Northumberland, for Paris; Major-General the Hon. Sir Robert Dundas, on a visit to Lord and Lady Dundas, at Aske Hall, near Richmond, from a tour ; Admiral Sir Philip Durham, G. C. 8., at Portsmouth, from Brighton ; Lord and Lady Colchester, at Kidbrooke Park, Sussex, from a visit to Lady Ellenborough and the Hon. Miss Law, at Brighton ; Viscount and Viscountess Dillon, from Ditchley Park, Ox fordshire, for Brighton; the Dowager Countess of Dalhousie, at Edinburgh, from Dalhousie Castle, near Haddington, N. B. ; thelMarquis of Douglas, at Hamilton Palace, N. 8., from the Duke of Hamilton's hunting lodge, Broderick Castle, in the Isle of Arran ; Captain and Lady Georgiana Codring_ ton, on a visit to the Duke and Duchess of Beaufort, at Bad minton, from a visiting tour; Lord Bathurst, at his seat, Ci rencester, from Badminton ; Sir John, Lady, and Miss Shelley, from the Duke of Wellington's, Strathfieldsaye, on a visiting tour ; Lord and Lady Dunglas, and family, from Lord Home's seat, Coldstream, for Brighton; the Dowager Lady Rivers, on a visit to Lord Rivers, at Kemptown, from her seat at Eltham, Kent; Earl and Countess Delawarr and Lady Eliz. West, at Buckhurst Park, near Lewes, from Brighton; Lord Forester, on a visit to the Duke of Rutland, at Belvoir Castle, from a visit to Lord and Lady Willoughby d'Eresby, at Grimsthorpe Castle, Lincolnshire. We regret to learn the dearh of the Earl of Carn wath, which took place on Tuesday last. The Noble Lord was in his 71st year, having been born in 1768 ; he was restored to the forfeited honours of his ancestors by Act of Parliament in 1826. He was twice married ;in 1789, to Jane, daughter of Mr. Parker, who died soon after ; and in 1794, to Andalusia, daughter of Lieutenant- Colonel Arthur Browne. By the first wife he had an only child, a daughter, who died at the age of 11 ; by his second he had not less than thirteen children, some of whom sur vive him. He is succeeded in the title and estates by his eldest son Lord Dalzell, now Earl of Carnwath, who was born in September, 1797. The late Earl was a Major in the army in 1798 ; Lieutenant and Captain Ist Foot Guards in May, 1803 ; Lieutenant-Colonel in the army in September of that year ; Colonel in the army in January, 1812 ; and Major-General the 4th of June, 1814. He served as Deputy-Adjutant-General in Ireland, and was on the Staff in Belfast, The Countess of Newburgh is entertaining a large family circle at Slindon House. Among the guests are the Earl of Newburgh, Colonel and Lady Dorothy Leslie, Mr. and Lady Cecil Delafield, Sir C. and Lady Pocock, Mr. Ferdinand Strachey, the Abbe de Silveira, &c. On account of the recent demise of the late Coun tess Dowager, the usual festivities of the season have been deferred. The Earl of Mulgrave, son of the Marquis of Nor manby, has arrived at Tours, in Touraine, where he is tra velling for the improvement of his health, on leave from his regiment, the Scots Fusileer Guards. The celebrated Prussian surgeon Driffenbach is about to establish himself in Paris, when the vacancy caused by the death of Dupuytren affords him a favourable opportunity for practice. _ _ _ TWELFTH DAY.—This festival falls on to-morrow, but it will be celobrated on Monday. Lord Brougham has returned to his residence in Grafton -street, from a visit to Dr. Le Blanc, at Cambridge. The Waterford Chronicle states on authority that there will be no change in the representation of the county, and that Mr. Caraw has withdrawn himself. ASSASSINATION OF LORD NORBURY.—The Dublin Post of last Thursday afternoon states that " the Surgeon-General who was called in to attend the wounded Nobleman, Lord Norbury, had just returned from King's County, and that of his Lordship's recovery there was but little hope. The motive of the assassin is attributed to the old cause of predial outrage in Ireland —the strug gle for land. But we believe that the Noble Earl was one of the best and most considerate landlords in Ireland. Other motives have been assigned, and even in the news papers, to which we pay no attention whatever. The assassin has not yet been taken, but he cannot long escape the arm of justice." COST OF RAILROADS.—The cost of the Man chester and Liverpool Railway was 30,000/. per mile ; of the Dublin and Kingstown, 40,000/. ; of the Frencb, about 1.5,000/. ; and in America, from 2,000/. to 6,0001. y , CLTV:4".c",#(g