The Sun. — London, England, 1839-02-01 00:00:00

Edition cf Ben in The Sun-:-- e true Russia') heartiest good y exposed, but • • vere,y Intedsls estion" argues this obnoxiou s that " since t to everybody apidly drawing ply doubt which uneh—Moral s Ming desultory' with these re' ards perfection' p and look ; nr " shares,,, and ;o words chang e sense is not th e , is writers, th at " as far as th!Y ivouring to ittle frail boats terminated in ian of the swee t home terslq' lid fountain :lose infants st e nd painted in never told the° have been the mle of Angeli ce le passion st e r mplcs would be to embark ee, 1 stars, and wa" dded happin e 7 d arms, heralche, ted, we have en' give us any g e i our Pertias a nd r whom our 51r Homer, for j be whole truth, traits of of Antl . r e ; the ever-lovin", -bye, may y et ' hey did not ell s sake, but l i ‘o maid- servants . tt gatherunt d severe, swq led tog ether s himself " fs ledian" is a Memoirs of this to make out a Despite SOU' lion of the d a l' to be anytil proofs ? th such me!' " 1 he was anxo u t nount to? vo„ i first-rate n 01; eautiful man 'd nit this vaun t % le two greate r: e and the G e i the author of one element a! " The Ir°P vy. Inch better o expected vib e . The interest rs more bris k, worth's eog se' He P e r e • as if be icane across the t the follow s 1, had referee ; Thames fro' chirnney-P ° rs ? aax. The b id Stunning '"'d Nay the powe r , I have been' eis ..!e in th e e loti oto limbs, or fti abed the fl es th j ss added to li• ;el hurried t i, though e. Imagin ati with phant °o aloft, eh ar g b eemed to fllt and directing " n , these wild Od 3 scared beg nes. le midst of t liB ie it is nerv° d, dialogue 1 ) ,,, ° .„ where cene, is n ot 1 1 , 11 . , many difficul ti ; nimation eg 'ppard will, The Ete t the subject{'We are e 9 1 , 0 " tome as we e pretty 03 0 /. 6 , a quaint er° 3 , 4 or a Christ ° , his way in t °. iishment firT s , ull length °, O , I out after ba race is ao d y e r xpected t 6 close of t" in its hute° 3f story had bt e ; dit was w` 11 0 ( that not on° 1 , .ept with O c i ars. Maclel, iple and London" 15 ( I Iready noti ce „ contains 0 „ 1/I ff found in "'-; For a Stores, tches of Are, ancient glorie justice and common sense. The remaiuing papers call for no r , articular comment. TAIT'S MAGA ZIAE. " Blanche Delamere" is one of tile most entertaining stories that Tait has yet turned out. To say nothing of sprightly and vigorous description, there is character in it, Which is the very salt of Magazine, or indeed of any other, fictions. The haughty Countess of Delamere, and Blanche, her grand-daughter, who has been educated without the slightest regard to conventional politesse, are admirably contrasted with each other, so as to beget a constant into• rest. William Wordsworth , ' is resumed this month, and gives us some pleasant reminiscences of the early earner of this eminent poet. The subjoined anecdote of Lord Lons dale, a relative of Wordsworth's present patron, may per haps amuse our readers Lord Lonsdale, the immediate predecessor of the presentr is not unfrcquently described by those who still remembe him, as the ' bad Lord Lonsdale.' I have heard it said tha he was mad ; and, at any rate, he was inordinately capricious— capricious even to eccentricity. Ile was a true feudal chief tain ; and in the very approaches to his mansion, in the style of his equipage, or whatever else was likely to meet the public eye, he delighted to express his disdain of modern refinements, and the haughty carelessness of his magnificence. The coach in which he used to visit Penrith, was old and neglected; his horses fine, but untrimmed ; and such was the impression dif fused about him by his gloomy temper and his habits of op pression, that the streets were silent as he traversed them, and an awe sate upon many faces, pretty much like that which m aY be supposed to attend the entry into a guilty town, of some royal commission for trying state criminals. In his park You saw some of the most magnificent timber in the kingdom ----trees that were coeval with the feuds of York and Lancas t"r ; yews that perhaps had furnished bows to Cceur de Lion, arid oaks that might have built a navy. All was savage grandeur about these native forests ; their sweeping lawns and glades had been unapproached, for centuries it might be, by the hand of art; and amongst them roamed—not the timid fellow deer, but thundering droves of wild horses." Wordsworth, says, De Quincy, the writer of these re miniscences, once got drunk at Cambridge, " and the strangest part of the story is the occasion of this drunken ness, which was in celebration of his first visit to the very rooms at Christ's College once occupied by Milton—intoxi cation by way of homage to the most temperate of men, and this homage offered by one who has turned out himself to the full as temperate !" " British Commerce versus British Corn Laws," is a remarkably well-timed article. The substance however is anything but new, being rather a clever digest of what has been said by others who have b ee❑ canvassing the subject during the last two or three months, The Reviews in Tait, as usual, form very accept able reading. THE SPORTING MA GA ZlNE.—Pittman. The pictorial embellishments of this number are "made !icast" by S co tt, f r om a painting by Laporte, and " Rab bit Shooting" by Engleheart, from a design by Turner ; of which the former is by far the most creditable to the Skill of the artist. Of sporting intelligence there is abun dance to sate the curiosity of every lover of field sports in the British empire, with a fair sprinkling of paragraphs, over whi c h th ose w h o n ever trouble their heads about dogs or horses may wile away an hour agreeably. From t " Cockney in Leicestershire," a humorous article in ru Ploe, we select the following graphic description of the most fashionable of modern tests of manly courage, a duel, It l 'ioh will not fail to edify those fair dames who regard "racking of pistols as the only legitimate passport to their f 4 " 11 r• We verily believe, with the exception of the sex of , one of the principals, it would apply to half of those which are weekly paraded in the fashionable Journals : Mora ca m e—bis new-found friend taps at his door : " Ready ?.....time presses—party gone before." " Will he apologize?" cries Snaggs. " and stop The bloodshed we may brew at every pop ?" " Apologize I By Mars I he'd rather die I" " Won't he ?" said Dick ; " how headstron. , ! then shall I?" " Oh, no ! proh pudor I honour bids you fight : You're in my hands—twelve paces makes all right. Advanc'd so far, you surely won't retire, But show your manhood, man, and meet his fire." " I wish," said Snaggs, " this thoughtless thing could stop ; I—wish—l ne'er had left the draper's shop I" But on be's urg'd, and in five minutes found His foeman fierce already on the ground. Pistols, well cramm'd with powder and with paste, Are given the combatants—at distance placed. Tape! was the word. Bang—bang the pistols go, And fear, not pellet, laid our Hero low. A sponge well soak'd in bullocks blood was press'd O'er the recumbent warrior's breast : He saw and swoon'd let fancy tell the rest. But who shall tell the tittering and the glee That shook the plotters of that harmless spree ? torne in a blanket to his yet warm bed, b lek roused, and question put, " Alive or dead ?" Alive," said Sam, and rulob'd his master down u !„t as they rub the posters at the Crown. `There lies your pain, Sir?"—" Have you found the bullet? The blood, but not the wound, is on your gullet." No aveund, no scratch, could groom or surgeon find : Dick saw the blood, and deemed the blockheads blind. Galen a: length began to hint to Dick l is thoughts 'twas nothing but a larking trick. 1 1 ,,,,‘ Trick !" said our hero ; I received his fire , " 8 s floor'd, too, fairly search a little higher." vainthe ves t —no or'fice was found, 4 Snaggs at last confess'd to " safe and sound." C ongratul a ti ons c ame in scores from those "horn late h e deer-red his foes—his fellest foes: Pow brave his bearii:q !—glad the thing was o'er ! Vs fault in field would weer be mentioned more -tied fought, and proved his metal to the core 1" Cheer'd b y such ki n d ness , Dick resolves to stay— r .i] le thought of bolting off but yes terda y )— T !s tr ue good nature soon f orgave the past ; 11 e Dons ind ee d had noticed him at last— .‘' nY should he quit when fame came in so fast ? n ext morn h e ven tured out, rejoiced to spy e E, e w as "the cynosure of every eye :" II children followed with endearing wile, A nd pluck'd his coat, while maids and matrons smile. Prouder be grew at every step he trod— A,Ciubm an b ow 'd, a Peer vouchsafed a nod. • This nod ---this notice—this unlook'd - for lu ck, thought, were only owing to his pluck. B Q was no more a scorn'd and scouted fellow : He'dßlind fought a Gentle, braved the dread duello I t nd at th e b es t are mortals ! could he know r i 11 'fair antagonist was—Betty Snow 11" she it was, who, tutor'd to the trick, "sguised in coat and hat, had met poor Dick! 9 " Mutat° nomine, but the combatant really was of the feminine gender, DEARDEN'S MISCELLANY. 'Eh . e various prose and verse articles in this new provin 3periodical, w hich is published at Nottingham, are pass ,bale enough, but we cannot award them any higher praise. , Chapt ers on Poetry and Poets" is a criticism on—what 7,2 es the reader imagine ?—that tritest of all topics, nemer, who is pronounced to be a very fine poet—a novel opinion, and one that indicates infinite critical perspicuity. We have seldom read more unquestionable common-place than is to be found in every page of this essay, wherein the writer favours us with Homeric translations of his own, be cause forsooth he is not satisfied with those of Pope, Cowper, or Sotheby, nor cven of old Chapman, whose metre nevertheless he adopts in his own version ! The best portion of this essay is the sonnet which closes it, in which speaking of Homer's Troy, the writer says—and says forcibly too— rc along whose streets in olden days Shone that divinest form, for whose sweet face A monarch sire and all his kingly race, Were too content to let their temples blaze--. Where art thou now ? No massive columns raise Their serried shafts to heaven ; we may not trace Xanthus and Simois, nor each storied place Round which poetic memory fondly plays— Rut in the verse of the old man divine Thy windy to veers are built eternally ; Nor shall the E‘ges as they ruin by, Print on thy Inilwarks one decaying sign; So true is beau ty clothed in endless rime So false the several monuments of time." " Floating Rem embrances" are by a writer who signs himself " the Old S, tilor." They are not destitute of abi -1113 ; but we are get ting heartily sick of the sameness that characterizes almost all our modern naval fictions. " Inci dent at the battle of V 1 Taterloo" is an ordinary anecdote told with feeling and simplicity. From " Rose Gladstone's Bridal" --a poe m by Thomas F'eatherstone—we quote the opening stanza, for the sake of the line which we have marked in Italics, and which convoys a truly poetical image : " It was a soft a nd sunny eve, The air was full of balm, The summer-sk y without a cloud, The Severn s mooth and calm, Extended silvery and clear From sedgy sl 'ors, to shore, Unruffled with a single breeze, • Unrippled by an oar: A little boat with snowy sail •- Lay dreaming on the deep, Whence music's voice was often heard Across the waiter's sweep." THE RAILWAY MAGAZINE. Wylde. The Editor of this very useful publication has at last taken up the too-long neglected subject of Irish Railways, to which we trust he will devote much of his future atten tion. His present arti'clo on the Report of the Commis sioners is too brief and'. too general to enable us to judge of the degree of care s lie has bestowed upon an exa mination of the mass o f useful and curious facts which the Commissioners have br might to bear upon the adoption of the system of Irish Railway communication, which they so zealously recommend. But there is time enough for dis cussion before the qurst ion can be brought fairly under the notice of Parliament ; ar id the knowledge to be reaped from inquiry will well reyay i he labour which it may cost. The Railway Reperts in the present Numbee are unuyaally lorg, and, in the .judgment of the Editor, mere than usually portant. Several of them have appeared in onr columns, but that, of course, does not supersede the neces,ity of their insertion in the columns of a periodical devoted to the pro mulgation of Railway intelligence. THE ASIATIC JOURNAL. Allen and Co The summary of Eastern news, published in the "Asiatic Journal" of this month, is neither long nor particularly im portant. The main topic is the anticipation of a war with the Burmese—an event which we unite with the Editor in regarding as all but inevitable. It appears from the Ori ental Journals that the popularity, in this country, of such a war, is greatly doubted in the East. We are persuaded that no real grounds exist for such apprehensions. On the contrary, our impression is that a war carried on against the present usurping Ruler of the Burman empire would be decidedly popular, were the people of England only made acquainted with half the insults which he has offered to the Representatives of our Sovereign, and with the prepara tions which he has set on foot for the invasion of our Eastern frontier, the instant he finds us em broiled with any of the Princes on the North West. The " Philosophy of the Hindus," by Vans Kennedy, is continued. It displays in every page a long and intimate acquaintance with the sacred and recondite literature and traditions of Hindustan. " Native Society in India— No. V." is a catalogue of extraordinary instances, in which persons have been•supposed dead or murdered, who, after the lapse of years, have again re-appeared among their friends. It appears that in India there are various ways of putting obnoxious individuals " out of the road" for a time, without absolutely taking their lives ; and what is still worse, that not a few have suffered the extreme pe nalty of the law, on suspicion of having murdered their missing relatives. The other articles consist principally of oriental gossip, and profusion of such verses as usually en rich the columns of four-fifths of our monthly periodicals. THE MONTHLY MAGAZINE. Under the Editorship of Mr. Heraud—a name deservedly familiar in the higher regions of poetry and criticism — our old acquaintance the " Monthly" promises to achieve even more than pristine popularity. The second part of the " Pleasures of Genius," a poem by the Editor, is full of fine thoughts, and high imaginings. There is a manly vigour about it which the professors of the modern Chloe and Corydon school of poetry may mistake for the absence of refined polish ; but which recals to our mind the verses of many of the standard names in English poetic literature. To the same pen we are disposed to attribute an excellent article on the genius of Milton, in which the criticisms of Addison and Dr. Johnson, are examined in an admirably investigating spirit. " It was not the foible of Johnson's mind," observes the writer of the article before us, " to succumb to authority, whether ancient or modern. He showed well in his Preface to Shakspeare that he could grant to genius its prerogatives, but claimed extraordinary privileges for criticism. It is remarkable that in his Lives of the Poets' he always says his best things, and gives his most cordial commendations to the works of inferior writers. The sense of superiority sheds a complacency ever his mind and feelings, which is benign antly expressed in his opinions. He makes as if he were doing a kindness, and delivers his sentiments with a rough good-nature, of which we have nothing to complain except its ostentation. When lie meets with a master mind his own rises in opposition—' Greek meets Greek.' His con duct on these occasions, by such as are ignorant of the work in:7s of a great intellect, has been attributed to literary jea. lousy—a feeling which, surely, cannot generally exist towards departed genius." Much of the above is common-place ; but the concluding remarks afford a better key to a right com prehension of Johnson's Criticisms of Milton and Shaks peare than twenty volumes of such flippant and offensive twaddle as Sir Egerton Budges has written upon the same subject in his preface to Milton. The " Address to the Queen," though admirable in tendency, is not likely to find favour at Court. Some of the paragraphs are awfully mystical ; and to those unacquainted with the habit of groping their way through the haze of German metaphysics, we doubt not they will appear perfectly in comprehensible. " Caliber." is a pleasing legend, very agreeably told ; for we have an impression on our mind that the ground-work of the story was familiar to us in childhood. Upon the whole, we congratulate the proprietors of this Magazine on the Ne ry great improvement which it exhibits. LONDON MONTHLY MISCELLANY. The most amusing essay in this number of the Monthly Miscellany, which is one of the best of our cheap periodicals, is that entitled " Another W ord on the Old Watchmen," in which there is much of that sprightly play of fancy which we admire in the prose writings of Leigh Hunt. The tales in the number are not remarkable for their merit. MONTHLY LA W MAGAZINE. With the legal questions discussed in this Number, such as the recent petition of the Segeants of Law to her Ma jesty, we presume not to meddle ; but of the rabid diatribe on " The House of Commons," we My say that its attack on Ministers is far too violent to produce any effect. The thing is altogether overdone. Nevertheless, we must, in justice to the writer, confess that it is written with vigour and ingenuity, and shows in every sentence that he is a " good hater ;" and, like old Johnson, we have a respect for a good hater. THE NAVY. TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN. have read with much interest the various letters on the state of the Navy which have appeared in your columns, and your comments upon them. British sailors, and well informed ones too, are the authors of the whole, under what ever signature. Their object appears to have been the same as your own. Your zeal has been great, and your services eminent, in upholding that branch of the public service on which, in times of trouble, most thinkir g men admit our safety depends. I also have the honour to belong to the Navy ; and for the same reason as the Dons who have addressed you before me, would rather be excused from signing my own name, unless in your Notice to Correspondents you particularly request that favour of me. Allow me to ask why neither yourself, nor any of the Naval Officers alluded to, have connected steam with men-of-war in their several treatises on the state of the fleet. Enough has been said upon ships of the line and frigates, and as soon as the Canada thing has flashed in the pan, the usefulness of your information will be made apparent in Parliament. Steam, Sir, in the event of war, will be a power to influ ence, if not to divide, future naval engagements. What have we in that " line," and what has France ? How stand we in respect to naval steam officers and engineers, and how stands France? We have four or five war steamers only fit for ser vice. The Gorgon, 1,100 tons ; Medea, SOO ; Rhadaman thus ; Phoenix (repairing) ; Dee (ditto), of shout 760 tons; and one of 1,200 tons building. What has France? Did you happen to see the large, black, fierce-looking steam ships, im mensely armed and well manned, which accompanied the French Marshal Scull at the Coronation ? What think you, Sir, of a fleet of similar vessels plying, fur practice, at this moment, to and fro in the Mediterranean ? They carry pas ' sengers about between all the principal ports ; and travellers will tell you that our little men-of•-war packets of 500 tons have but little chance. Every body goes in the French ves sels. Marseilles and Toulon are the head-quarters. The officers are perfectly distinct from the passengers. They all belong to Louis Philippe's Navy, and the object appears to be, bringing up engineers and steam officers in—Practice !I! Seek, Sir, for information on this head ; you will find plenty to corroborate my statement—made in the hope that truth, and the agitation of it, may overcome cheese-paring economy, and be a means of keeping us on a footing at least with France in this respect.—Yours, &c. " CONNECTING ROD." Bath, Jan. 31, 1839. CONCERT AT THE LONDON TAVERN. Mr. T. H. Severn last night gave his annual benefit concert at the London Tavern, Bishopsgate-street. The room was completely filled, Chiefly owing, we apprehend, to the attraction offered by a selection from Mozart's " Idomeneo," an opera:never produced in this country, which formed the first part of the concert. The vocal parts were sustained by Miss Bireh, Miss Woody a tt, Mi ss E m ma Cawthorn, Mr. James Bennett, and Mr. Leffl er, accompanied by an excellent t h oug h no t num erous band, comprisin g some of our first-rate perfonners, such as Barrett, Baumann, Harper, &c., led by Mr. Dando. The music of the selection comprised all the fine flowing melodies, and delicious, though inartificial accompa niment so characteriitic of the inimitable composer to whose genius and skill it owes its birth, and strongly reminded us of his " Don Giovanni." Truth to say, however, it might have gone much better than it did. The singers did net appear to be perfectly at home in their parts, and there was too often a want of delicacy and an occasional uncertainty in the accompaniments, which showed that the rehearsals had been, like angels isits, few, though perhaps not far between. The chorusses too were noisy, without the richness of combination which ought to form the main feature of full concerted pieces. The best chorusses, both in point of composition and effective performance, were " Corriarn.), fuggiamo," an d " Accogli, o Re." Miss Birch's best effort, perhaps, was in the recitative and air " Zeffiretti lusinghieri," Miss Woodyatt sang very effectively, as did Miss Emma Cawthorn, Mr. Bennett, and Mr. Leffler. As a whole the effect of the selection upon the audience was very striking, and we make no doubt we shall have further opportunities of hearing those pieces, which made the most decided impression. The second Part of the Concert opened with Mozart's symphony called " Jupiter." The Minuetto and Trio, and the last movement, were finely played. Mr. Leffler, who is improving very rapidly, gave a ballad of E. Perry's, Oh, the steps of mY l o ve," very charmingly. The gem of the evenin g was decidedly Miss Woodyatt's " Ave Maria," splendidly accompanied on `'Where the bee sucks,'' by Miss Bir c h, Dfistsh ec 1 ari o n Woodyatt,et b 3 y , essr s Willman..Bennett and Leffler, did not go half so well as at Covent Garden. Miss Cawthorne sang very well, in a new song of whichl:, Sr,e v w e i l i n r e n s o n d l o f r n o l m y wantspracri o a cs b l i e t f t o l ...emze public.mellovv n e; i s r o . f D t a o o n d e o a r n l d . y s o t d y l Concerto on the violin, but in our opinion would have lost nothing if he had let it alone. The Concert concluded with Weber's overture to " Euryanthe." wompsomerrammemonsara . _ LoItD COREHOUSE.—We have been favoured with an extract of a letter dated Edinburgh, Saturday, which states " that Lord Corehouse has been struck with palsy, and is in a very delicate state." There is little doubt he will never be on the bench again.—Glasgow airosick. THE SUN, LONDON, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 1839. MISCHIEVOUS EFFECTS OF THE FOOD TAXES. TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN. Sts,-The more the people turn their attention to the sub jest of our bread taxes, the more do they discover new proofs of their pernicious effects on the happiness and comforts of the community, I shall briefly notice one with which I am pretty conversant, and I am convinced you will think it high time the country was rid at once of this hateful tax. The demand for Russian tallow, it is well known, increases every year; indeed that country can hardly supply our want of that article. There, is much speculation as to the cause of this increasing demand, some attributing it to this cause, some to that. My own opinion is that it is much owing to our dail) increasing steam power, and I make no doubt but that alone may consume from twenty to thirty thousand casks annually. However, let the cause be what it may, our importations of that article are now sixty thousand tons, and, as may well be supposed, the Russians, ever keenly alive to their own interests, are not slack in taking advantage of our wants. Well aware we can get no supplies worth notice from any country but their own, they have niade us pay this last season about 15/. per ton more for it. Now let us see how this tells on the comforts of the people. Last advices from St. Petersburgh say next season's supplies are to be short, and prices have advanced to about 481. per ton free on board ; 60,500 tons at 481. pc , r ton come to 2,880,000/. ; add to this, duty, freight, and other charges 71. per ton, 420,0001., then it will be found we pay for Russian tallow alone 3,300,000/. consumed in this country. Now what I wish to make out is, that all this might be saved, and a great deal more, were we allowed animal food at somewhat near the prices of other countries ; and I beg here to remark that I cannot help thinking this has been too little attended to by the many able exposures brought to light as to the pernicious ten dency of our Corn-laws ; but let us follow out our tallow calcu lations, and show what an enormous sum this country pays for it. Our home supplies have been generally estimated at three times more than our importation—but to keep within the mark, call it only double; then it follows our home produce will be 120,000 tons, including our Russian supplies, 180,000 tons. Now, as the price of our home tallow is entirely regulated by the foreign, which is now 57b in the London market, it will appear we are now paying the astounding sum of ten millions sterling for tallow, and, as the manoeuvring of the Russians has raised their price 15/. per ton, it throws 1,800,0001., nearly two millions, into the pockets of the agriculturists (this must be very satisfactory to the Marquis of Chandos), which, I dare say, they were not aware of before. Were our food taxes removed, we should very soon see beef and mutton at 3d. the pound (on the Continent it is only to 2d. per lb.) ; at this rate, or even a little higher, the con sumption would double ; but say it only reached the half , then it foilows we would prouce a half more tallow, say 60,000 tons, thereby rendering us independent of Russia. Did they take our manufactures in exchange, it might not be so bad for us ; but in place of that, I suppose our imports from Russia will exceed our exports three or four to one. Of course, we must be excellent customers to the Czar. Is he grateful for it? Why, not content with the immense quantity of tallow we take from him, he thinks proper to lay duties of one sort and another upon it to the amount of 4/. per ton, which is tantamount to a duty of equal amount on all we produce at home, as I said before, our prices being entirely regulated by the price of Russian tallow, so the Czar's duty of 4/. puts 480,0001. into the pockets of the farmers. I suspect they never knew before what a friend he was to them. I have shown that under our present system, our farmers are pocketing a deal of money from tallow; but what are the consequences to the community ? it just obliges them to pay 2d. per lb. more for their candles, and nearly as much for soap. Were our animal food assimilated in price more than it is to the rates on the Continent, we should at once put an end to all this rob bery. And, moreover, the working, classes, who seldom or ever taste butcher treat, would be able to indulge a little in the use of it, greatly to their comfort; for it is cruel to tied the hard-wrought and worn-out tradesman, from the extrava gant high price of butcher meat, unable to touch it, and even many of the middle'classes, with moderate incomes, obliged to put up with a scanty portion of it. Such are a few of the evils entailed on the people of this country in consequence of the land- owner's taxes. Were they removed, which, it is to be hoped, will be soon, our country would assume a different appearance altogether, our artizans and working classes would find that, what with cheap bread and meat, soap and candles, they would enjoy comforts that are now, from the cruelty of our landed gentry, denied them; our middle classes, with whom butcher meat and bread forms the principle item in the expense of a family, would have their expenditure so much lessened, that they would be enabled to expend more in other comforts, such as better clothing, and indulge more in the use of articles that produce largely to the revenue, such as wine, spirits, tea, and sugar, &c. ; in fact, the whole community would find themselves in better circumstances, the working classes both better fed and better clad, and all contributing, according to their different stations in life, to the general prosperity of the nation, which would soon show itself by a speedy revival of all our manufac tures arising from the increased demand at home for the various articles our manufacturers produce; and, consequently, fullym ployment to all the working classes, and to a certainty a rise in their wages, for our manufacturers, from the great demand at home, could well afford to pay better wages, as they well know a good home trade is better than a foreign one. I have no doubt whatever, were we clear of these ruinous food taxes, there would be set afloat amongst our manufacturers and farmers a suns not short of forty millions, that the people have been and are now robbed of by these withering and impoverish ing taxes. Once remove them, and you will soon see this coun try more flourishing, happy, and contented than ever, and if not, nothing but discontent and ruin staring us in the face. I will conclude by remarking how beneficial the removal of these taxes on food would be to our shipping interest-, our merchants could provision their ships at half it costs them now, and pre vent them laying in provision in other countries ; and more over, what a saving it would be to Government were they able to victual our immense Navy at half cost. These are all considerations worthy the most serious attention of our Minis try, and let us hope they will fearlessly and honestly come for ward and join the great mass of the people in sweeping from the Statute-book laws at once hateful to both God and man. Leith, January 25. A CONSTANT READER. OXFORD.-WEDNESDSY. TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN. Sta,—Thinking perhaps that you may wish to know some thing of the meeting here to-day of the subscribers to the Memorial to the Martyrs I send you the following particulars: First, the meeting was a sad fdlurc. Although every means have been used to secure a large attendance, among which I may mention that an extra number of 5,000 copies of the Oxford Herald was printed, and distributed all over the country the week before last, expressly for this purpose; and although it was said we should hive great Lnd illustrious speakers from various parts of the kingdom, not a single man of them came. Only a few of the dons of Oxford spoke on the occasion, and these in such a way as to show that eloquence forms no part of our University education : no Mechanics In stitution, or assemblage of operatives, but would have shamed them in this respect. Dr. Macbride was in the Chair, and opened the business by stating the (abject of the meeting, namely, to decide whether the memorial should be a simple monument or a church. The Vice-Chancellor then, in a very flat speech, proposed that it should be a church ; which proposition was seconded by the Rev. Vaughan Thomas (the political Parson so cele brated for the very active part he took in the persecution of Dr. Hampden). The Rev. Mr. Greswcll, of Worcester College, then arose, and stated at great prosy length various objections to the plan and object of the meeting. He combatted the motive as not orthodox ; said the thing had its origin in party feeling, but was a complete failure ; complained of the word prelate being used in the inscription instead of Bishop ; contended that Cranmer could by no means be considered as a willing martyr, seeing he had changed and changed before to save his life, and would probably have done so aga►n if that would have availed him; but his chief objection was to the use of the word Pro testant, which he considered as altogether inapplicable to the Church of England, which was not a Protestant Church, the word Protestant being no where to be found in any of her formula ; her true designation, he asserted, was the Catholic and Apostolic Church. Much applause was here expressed, but the Rev. Gentleman was interrupted by the Chairman, who informed him that the business of the meeting was not to discuss the inscription, which had been settled upon, and could not be altered, but to determine whether the memorial should I be a monument or church. The motion for a church was then put, and carried unani mously. The remainder of the business was mere routine, and managed in the dullest way possible. There was only one interruption to its dullness, and that, I fear, reflects much dis grace upon the members of the University. A townsman, I believe a very respectable grocer, attempted to address the meeting; but as he is known to be a Dissenter, and moreover a decided Radical, the gentlemen present re ceived him with yells and hootings, a►,d noises such as one would only expect to hear in some drunken assembly of the ignorant and unwashed. He could not obtain a hearing ; and although he claimed it as a citizen and freeman of Oxford, standing in the Town Hall, the exclusive property of the city, and cried out that the city might be disgraced by their pro ceedings, might overcome right, and the religious, the earned, the adepts in argument, who met there to deliberate upon erecting a monument to one, whose merit, in their eyes, was that he suffered martyrdom for the Gospel of Peace, the Ministers of this Gospel had recourse to brute force, and ab solutely ejected him they seemed afraid to hear, from the room. I was present, and confessed that I felt shocked at this violence, and deeply pained that a body of gentlemen should have so demeaned themselves. Oxford, Jan. 30, 1839. Wednesday an inquest was held in the Kingsland road, on the body of Henry Ayres, aged sixteen years, who, it was alleged, had died in consequence of a blow he had re ceived while an inmate of the workhouse of St. Leonard's, Shoreditch. From the evidence in appeared that on the fore noon of Thursday the 16th instant the deceased was playing, with a number of other boys, in the yard of the above work house, when the master-shoemaker, being annoyed by their noise, threw among them a dusting-brush, which he happened at the moment to have in his hand, and said, " Share that amongst you." The brush struck deceased on the head, but he did not at the time complain of any pain, nor until the Saturday following, when he was removed to the boys' infir mary. It was only a slight blow, and he played about in the yard for two days afterwards. He lingered until Saturday last, when he expired. Mr. Finn, the parochial surgeon, subsequently made a post mortem examination, and found some coagulated blood pressing upon the brain, which arose, in his opinion, from the rupture of a blood-vessel, and not from the effects of the blow. The jury returned a verdict accordingly. (.341-2To - li AND coi:N—A DIALOGUE. (raom THE MISCELLANEOUS POEMS OF THOMAS MOORE, ESQ.) Said Cotton to Corn, t'other day, As they met and exchanged a salute— ('Squire Corn in his cabriolet, Poor Cotton, half famished, on foot)—' " Great 'Squire, if it isn't uncivil To hint at starvation before you, Look down on a hungry poor devil, And give him some bread, I implore you I" Quoth Corn, then, in answer to Cotton, Perceiving he meant to make free, " Low fellow, you've surely forgotten The distance between you and me " To expect that we, Peers of high birth, Should waste our illustrious acres For no other purpose on earth Than to fatten curs'd calico-makers ! " That Bishops to bobbins should bend, Should stoop from their bench's sublimity, Great dealers in lawn, to befriend Your contemptible dealers in dimity! " No; vile manufacture I ne'cr harbour A hope to be fed at our boards: Base offspring of Arkwright, the barber, What claim canst thou have upon Lords ? ; thanks to the taxes and debt, And the triumph of paper o'er guineas, Our race of Lord Jenunys, as yet. May defy your whole rabble of Jennys P' So saying, whip, crack, and away Went Corn in his cab through the throng, So madly, I heard them all say, 'Squire Corn would be down before long. MR. DANIEL WHITTLE HARVEY. We do not yet know what effect our article of yesterday, re lative to Mr. Daniel Whittle Harvey, may have had on the electors of Southwark ; but we are gratified to learn, from the following paragraph, that his services, in his late official capa city, have been duly appreciated by those who have bad the best opportunity of judging of their value : " We understand that the proprietors and drivers of the metropolitan public carriages intend to express their sense of Mr. Harvey's official services, by presenting him with a service of plate, to be raised by sub scription, not exceeding ss. from one person." We are sure that this manifestation of the sense which the parties in question entertain of Mr. Harvey's services, in his official capacity, will have the effect of stirring up the consti tuency of Southwark to make him the more substantial mark of respect, ac their representative, which we pressed upon them yesterday..-,Morning Advertiser. NEW REGULATIONS IN THE ARMY RELATIVE TO COURTS MARTIAL. (CIRCULAR. " War-office, Jan. 17, 1839. " Sir,—l am directed to request, with a view to supply this office with information which is after required for the dueset tlernent of the regimental accounts, and to obviate also the ne cessity of requiring copies of courts-martial sentences in proof of the correctness of deductions in the pay lists on account of the forfeitures awarded by such courts-martial, you will, at the expiration of each quarter, commencing with that just ended, furnish the Secretary of War with a returrraccordin,g to the en closed form, specifying the particulars therein required of every court-martial durinc , the present three months, on any officer, non - commissioned officer, or soldier, belonging to the regiment under your command--I have, &r. ( Signed) 6' L. SULLIVAN. " Officer commanding the regiment of Quarterly Return of Courts-martial between Ist of and , 18—. Regimental 1 Crime and Number, Date, and I Place and Rank and Pl ace o f D ate of Sen- I Name of the I C omm i t- Trial. fence. Prisoner. ting it. Remarks showing if any part of the Sentence has been Remitted, &c., &c. &c. IRELAND. (PROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT. DUBLIN, .TAN. 30. GREAT MEETING OF MR. O'CONNELL'S CONSTITUENTS. A meeting of Mr. O'Conncll's Constituents was held this day in the Circus, Lower Abbe,•-street, pursuant to a notice from the Hon. and Learned Gentleman, who was anxious to lay before them the course he intended to pursue during the ensuing session of Parliament. The Theatre, which was the scene of the late Metropolitan Dinner, was crowded to excess. R. M'CLELLAND, Esq., having taken the Chair, Mr. O'CONNELL said that he always approved of the system of repre. sentatives, at the end of each session, giving to their constituents an account of their conduct—•but he wished to add to that system another, a hich was that of representatives, before the commencement of each session, stating the course they meant to pursue during it. Before he would take up the questions likely to come on, he would declare in one word his political faith. He was a repealer.—(Enthusiastic cheers.) The first topic he would allude to was, the Committee on Combination. Ile was accused of taking the part of the employers on that question, but he acted on principle; and though he enjoyed more popularity than any other man ever did, he would forfeit it all for principle. He did not intend to examine any further witnesses on this subjcct, but that Gayly and Moran, two deputies from the trades demanded as an act of justice to get further witnesses examined on their part. Mr. Molitor here thanked Mr. O'Connell for the course he was about to take. Mr. O'CONNELL continued to say he did not mean to propose any legislative measure on the question.—(Cheers.) The next question was the Corn-laws. An opinion was abroad that the landed proprietary had an interest in keeping up these laws, but the poor man has an interest in keeping bread cheap, and he would vote for their abolition.—(Cheers.) If his constituents did not agree with him, he would resign rather than vote for the Corn-laws, but lie saw by these cheers they agreed with him. The next question related to Canada. As long as the Canadians confined themselves to legitimate means he supported them; but when they took up arms, and turned out in civil warfare, he shrunk from any connection with them. He would not rote against them ; but he took no part along with them. Their eflints had rudest in raising a despotism over them selves, and they were now trampled on by a savage yeomanry.— ( Hear.) In reference to Canada, he would speak and vote against any cruelty and against the present courts-martial, and the unnecessary shedding of human blood.—(Cheers.) The next question was one in which he would properly be obliged to vote against the Ministry ; it was the one between Belgium and Holland. A question has arisen as to two provinces that formerly belonged to Belgium, which the rants of Europe were anxious to give to Holland. It was a cruel tyranny to hand them over to that country, and he would oppose it in the English Parliament. He would vote against the Government on that subject. Though he would not join the Chartists, he intended to support Universal Suffrage, not that he expected it would be conceded at once, but because he approved of the principle. Vote by Ballot would also have his support as a necessary protection for the voter.—(Cheers.) He would not support Annual Parliaments, but he would support Trim- ial Parliaments, which he thought a proper limitation of time.— (Hear, hear.) One reason that prevented him from joining the Chartists was the foolish and ill-assorted leaders they had got. There was first Feargus O'Connor, who was for Annual Parliaments, and every thing else on the same scale; and with him was Stephens, a dissenting Parson, who did not care if Parliaments lasted 20 years, and that but 20 persons had the Franchise. Who was the third ? Why, Oasticr, who had put down Parliaments altogether. Such leaders was like three men singing different tunes, and calling it a glee. Then their mode of working out what they profess to seek was most objectionable, like a greedy child who was hungry, and would not take a slice of a loaf without getting it all—they refused to take instalments.—(Hear, hear.) Worse than all, they preached up bloodshed and murder. Could he join mis creants like these, who would make England like what Canada is at present, and who arc so cowardly that when one of their leaders was ar. rested they shrunk like rats into their holes ? No, he would have nothing to do with them.—(Loud cheers.) The next subject he would touch upon was the Ministry. He went to Parliament, determined to give them his decided and most unequivocal support; they were valuable even if it were only to keep Haddington and Hardingeout of the Castle, and the Orange flag (win again waving triumphant in the public theatre. These things would occur again, If the Ministry were not sup. ported, and to prevent it he would support them. He had, to be sure, to complain of their not dismissing Lord Oxmantown, but even with the recollection of that in his mind he would not desert them. The only other question on which he had to touch was his views with regard to a repeal of the. Union. He was firmly convinced that England would not consent to do us justice as would induce the Irish people to give up that question. He had asked for bread and got a stone, he had asked for liberty and got restriction, he had asked for equality and got insult. When the Session commenced he would bring in a Bill for the equalisation of the franchise, if it passed he would bring in another for an incre4sed representation, but if both were refused, he would despair of obtaining justice, and once more raise the green flag of repeal, and call upon the Irish people to become a nation again. The Honourable and Learned Gentleman sat down amidst loud and long. continued cheering. Resolutions were pas sed approving of the c ourse propose d to b e a d op t e d by Mr. O'Connell, and e x p ressing their willingness to take up the Repeal question when he conceived the experiment which was being made had terminated. The inciting then separated. MR. O'CONNELL AND THE PRESS.--A meeting of the Precursor Society took place yesterday', O'Meara,Esq., in the chair. After some routine business, Mr. O'Connell came t o the notice o f t h e mo ti o n he had given on the last day for the withdrawal of the advertise ments of the Society from the Morning Register, and stated that since then matters had arisen which enabled him to change the form of his motion, the Pilot had published the proceedings, the Freeman ' s J ourna l had given up its resistance. Mr. Staunton, al though he still withheld publication in the Morning Register, had distinctly recognised the principle of publication. In his Weekly he gave the whole proceeding s . Register Thus the great ends of Publication had been answered, and although ' Mr. Staunton refused to retract to the full extent, yet he (Mr. O'Connell) did not feel called upon to persevere with his intended motion.—(Loud cheers.) Th e Hon. and Le arned Gentleman proceeded to show that lie only stood up for a principlr, and that if evil befell a jour. nal that opposed that principle, the evil was of its own choosing. In the resolutions he intended to propose, lie should have been glad a man who had bee n so l ong id en tifi e d with to include Mr. Sta unton, the public cause, but under all the circumstances he was bound to propose two resolutions, the one declaratory of the necessity of pub lication, the others conveying a vote of thanks to the Pilot and Free manl Journal. The resolutions having been read— Mr. T. Wri.cit rose and said that he was rejoiced to be relieved from the necessity of proposing an amendment to any proposition coming from t h e Liberator, while he protested against the principle of suppression. No matter how unjustifiable attacks on the press might 'be assumed to be, he yet felt that any censure proceeding from Mr. O'Connell, carry ing with it the weight of his name and popularity, would make the punishment more than commensurate with the guilt. What he had intended to propose, therefore, was that a Committee should be ap pointed to inquire how far the Metropolitan Press had so discharged its duty, as rendered it unnecessary to establish another journal, which would be the organ of that Society.—(Great hissing, with cheers.) After proceeding to give his reasons for his intended course, he concluded. Mr. SCOTT moved as an amendment, "That Mr. Staunton's name should be included in the vote of thanks." Mr. O'Connell's original resolution was put and carried. The Society adjourned until Saturday. Lord St. Helens is much indisposed at his house in Grafton-street, Berkeley-square. THE CORN LAWS. MEETING AT CAMBERWELL. A very numerous meeting of the inhabitants of Camberwell, Peck. ham, and Dulwich, took place last night in the Vestry-hall, Camberwell, for the purpose of petitioning for a repeal of the present Corn-laws. At seven o'clock the chair was taken by Mr. MeAuno, who said that the meeting had been called in pursuance of a requisition most respectably signed. The question which would be submitted for their consideration was not a party question, but one which operated equally on the interests of the rich and the poor—in fact upon all classes of society; he hoped, therefore, that their discussion of its merits would not he mingled with any political topic.—(Cheers.) Mr, WILKINSON said that it had been urged by many that the people should urge upon the Legislature a modification of the Corn-laws. He, however, hoped that they would rather give their efforts to procure a total repeal of them. One class of society, he would contend, should not be taxed for the benefit of the other—but the Corn.laws operated injuriously to all classes of the public, for he was sure they would all concur in the maxim that the property of the manufacturing anti agricultural interests went hand in hand. Mr. Wilkinson here quoted from a pamphlet of Lord Western, which went to prove the injurious tendency of a dependence on foreign countries for a supply of corn, "as many circumstances, even the ele ments, in freezing our seas, might prevent a regular supply."—(Laugh ter.) This, he (Mr. Wilkinson) would say, was absurd. Again, what would become of the agricultural classes if our manufactures declined P —(Hear.) Another respectable person who had been an enemy to the repeal of the Corn-laws, " Old Glory," had come round, and had found that the Corn.laws ought to be repealed, and that all the interests of the country must sink or swim together. Old Glory had recently said at Northampton, that either the population of the country must be diminished, or the wages of the operatives must be increased ; but it seemed to him (Mr. Wilkinson) that it was strange it had not struck him that the price of food should not be decreased.—(Hear.) He should now propose the first resolution :—" That this meeting desires to ex. press its firm conviction that the present high price of wheat operates in juriously upon the interests of all classes, and that it is occasioned by the existing Corn-laws of this country, which prevent that supply from abroad which a certain demand would not fail to secure." Mr. Baarr raid that, in seconding the resolution Which had been proposed, the shocks to our manufacturing interests had been so deve loped at previous meetings elsewhere that it would be waste of time on his part to recapitulate them.—(Hear.) It was sufficient to know that Continental countries took from us the raw material, and sending it back manufactured here undersold us thirty or forty per cent.(Hear.) But this was not all, for as our manufactures decreased the export for machinery increased. This, in fact, amounted to an exportation of the hens which laid for us golden eggs.—(Hear.) This would end in the ruin of all our best interests, and he trusted, therefore, they would all unite to procure a repeal of the obnoxious Corn-laws. Before 1815 the farmers had steady prices, but since the Corn.law then made, small farms were increased to domains of 1,000 and 2,000 acres each, and farmers relying on the high prices thus induced, hoped they wolf(' al. ways last, and thus the ruin had been provoked.—(Hear, hear.) For had not the agricultural interest been injured by these laws ? It was sufficient to know that the tables of both Houses of Parliament were loaded with petitions from the agricultural interest, praying for relief; and to know that the farmers, who had been induced by the protecting duties to take long leases, were found in large numbers in the Gazette. —(Elear.) It was said that if the Corn-laws were repealed, the inferior soil would go out of cultivation ; but what had the Hon. Mr. Murray said lately in the north ? He had said that in Scotland, where the climate was not so congenial as here, the farmer was content with 12/ a load far his corn—(Hear, hear)—and he (Mr. Brett) also, as an agricul tural man, would also say that he was be,ter content with a return of 81. 10s. per load, in 1636, than 191. in the present year ; because in all seasons of scarcity the cost of the tillage of the inferior lands did not pay itself, and the farmer had no compensation which could enable him from it to support his family; for if there were high prices, he had little or nothing to sell.—(Hear, hear.) The farmers, in many instances, he was sorry to say, differed with him in opinion; but they were beginning to find out their mistake, and he ventured to say that if a poll were taken, the mojority would be with him.—(Hear.) He spoke of the farmers, not the landlords. There was another era be would allude to, which was, that whilst the landowners impoverished their tenants, they were themselves eating the cheap corn which was the produce of foreign countries. One line would tell the effects of the Corn-laws : in the present year froM 50s. corn had risen to 755., and that rise had taken twenty millions from the pockets of the people, and scarcely a tithe of it went into the pockets of the landlords.—(Hear.) He hoped the people of Camberwell would unite to get rid of this evil, and he felt sure that, if Parliament were properly urged ; their efforts would be successful. He hoped they would avoid all party feelings, and urge forward the one great object, the good of both the rich and the poor,—(Cheers.) The resolution was then put and carried. Mr. PEWTRESS proposed the second resolution which was:—" That the diversity of seasons which has been ordained by Providence, must render uncertain the supply of one limited spot, and make impracticable that independence of foreign countries for this prime necessary of life upon which the advocates of these laws so much insist, but which it is plain they are unable to effect. This meeting, how. ever, does not anticipate that the free importation of wheat will so re duce its price as to prevent its profitable cultivation in this country, but that the price abroad will be materially advanced, and that the English farmer will still enjoy an advantage over his foreign competitor to the extent of all the expenses of freight and transport." The question they had met to discuss was a material one, affecting the pockets of every class of society.—(Hear.) No great interest could suffer with out involving all others. Looking, then, to the working classes, their earnings were of a fixed character, and yet when they found the prices of corn vary from 395. to 1208. what an inroad must be made ip these earnings.—(Hear, hear.) And he would say that it was impossible to improve the interests of the working classes without improving those of every other class.—(Hear, hear, hear.) Looking still at the working classes, he would ask if any person requir ing but 100 persons should employ 110, and pay the additional ten out of his own property ; not requiring, would it not be absurd ? And yet it was the folly of legislation in this country to deprive the poor of the means of employment, and at the same time to place a tax on their food ; and yet there was abundance of food, and of employment, and capital in the country.—(Hear.) Within fifty miles of London there was waste land enough to employ all our poor, when he considered the number of copyholds of short tenures, and of annual tenures, the tenants of which could not beneficially expend capital for their improvement•—(llear.) It had been stated by the Hon. Mr. Murray that the inferior lands in Scot land were rendered sufficiently productive; but this he was sure was to be attributed to artificial causes. There were no tithes in Scotland, and the system of commutation in this country, when in full operation, would be found in this respect to be greatly beneficial, for the tenant would then derive, in a great measure, time benefit of any capital ex. pended by him, and all the waste land hereafter cultivated would not be liable to tithe; and there was uncultivated land enough everywhere to support our population—land which the proprietor of the soil ought to be compelled to cultivate, or should be deprived of it.--(Hear.) He was satisfied the land did not produce as much as was necessary to support the country. Such being the case, they should make soil free for cultivation, or they ought not to tax foreign corn. Mr. Cox seconded the resolution. The laws had not answered the purpose for which they were intended; but he would take higher grounds than that upon which to oppose them. He considered their enactments as presumptuous and impious, inasmuch as they attempted to interfere with the ordinations of the Creator in the supply of food for man. He explained the nature of barter in trade, and owned that the argument urged by the advocates of the Corn-laws had at first staggered him, namely—if they relied on foreign countries for corn, what would be the consequence in case of a war ? He bad now discovered that his fears had beets founded on fallacy. In time of war we had always had plenty of wines and every other foreign commodity. The fact was, that we salt our goods out of the country, and with them we purchased money, and as long as we could procure money for our goods, we would be able to obtain all that we wanted. With the command of money there was nothing to prevent our supply unless the British Channel were frozen over, as the gentleman had alluded to, and which was an occurrence he believed that had never taken place, nor did he expect it would ever take place, any more than he would expect to see the Pepe of Rome coma over to this country to crown Queen Victoria.—(Hear, hear.) He would direct the attention of the meeting more especially to the inequality of the operation of the Corn-laws. The man with an income of 1,0001. a year might say that the increased price of bread did not make to him a difference of 20/. a year, and he had no cause to complain ; nor need he complain, for that was not more than one-fiftieth part of his income. But the man with an income of 401. a year, and requiring the same quantity of bread with the other, the !20/. a year extra made the difference of one-half of his entire in come. These were two cases of illustration, but it would be impossible to carry out the calculation to the full extent of the oppression and inequality of the operations of the Corn.laws as they bore upon the working man. _. Mr. GOLDSMITH dissented from the terms and intention of the reso- lution. He spoke of the landowners holding their property by "thief" titles, or "cut-throat" rights. The meeting, with few exceptions, called upon the Chair to call him to order, and ultimately, we believe, he did sit down before he had finished what he intended to say. Mr. SMITH supported the resolution. He urged the propriety and necessity of nations being kept in a state of intercourse for mutual sup plies. He stated that in Kent, if there happened to be a bad cup of hops, the hop growers did not gather them, because they would have more to pay the Clergyman than the hops were worth. The great cause of the sufferings of the people he thought was, that the landowners paid more attention to the cultivation of their freeholds, than they did to the cultivation of the minds of their peasantry. A GENTLEMLN (whose name we could not learn) considered that the proposition for the repeal of the Corn-laws was a mere juggle. If they were to have a cheap loaf, they would have less wages. On the Conti nent, where the loaf was cheap, the workmen had only 3s. 6d. a week, and were little better than serfs. He made several allusions to the new Poor-law; and concluded with giving it as his opinion, that every one who sanctioned the new Poor.law were virtually murderers. The speech occasioned considerable uproar in the meeting, on account of the Chair man and some others present being Guardians. The speaker had not many to bear him in countenance. Mr. WARKINSON a in answer to an observation that had been made, remarked that he considered the landowners to be as fairly entitled to their estates as the working man was to his labour. For, in point of fact, the estates were just so much labour that had been laid apart by the possessor as by the ancestors of the proprietors. Mr. TAITAM referred to statements to show that wages did bear proportion to the price of corn. Nine shillings or ten shillings a-week with bread at its present price, was not sufficient to support a family with. The consequence of which was, that it became the interest, or rather it became necessary for the working man, who was willing to labour, to go into the workhouse, because he could not support his family from his wages. The resolution was then put, and carried, we believe, unanimously. Mr. JOHNSON moved the third resolution, " That it is the opinion of this meeting that the working classes will be doubly benefited by the repeal of these laws; for while a much larger proportion of their expen diture, as compared with that of the wealthier classes, is applied to the necessaries of life, they will net only be enabled to obtain these necessa ries at a much lower price, but the increased rate of profit in the country will so enhance the demand for labour as to prevent that depreciation of wages which would otherwise take place, and ensure the constant cm. ployment of an increasing population for many years to come." He argued for the repeal of the Corn-laws, and for the resolution, in a clever and interesting speech, of considerable length. Mr. Ktsex seconded the resolution. He was sorry to see that it seemed to be an idea generally received, that this was the only amelio rating question which would be taken up by those who had called this meeting, for he was sure that they would willingly take up every ques tion which would be generally beneficial when the proper time arrived. —(Hear.) He seconded the resolution, because he considered that. the effect, if carried out, would be to increase the demand for labour, whilst it reduced the price of food.—(Hear.) Mr. MOET rejoiced, from what he had seen, that he could say the repeal of the Corn-laws would be carried, not by physical force, bur by moral influence.—(Hear.) Let the large farms be reduced to smal. farms in the hands of a greater number, repeal the Corn-laws, and reduce taxation. and prosperity to all class e s would fellow. In conclu. sion lie would say that, if they resolved to petition, something should be done to urge their Members in Parliament, in order that their petitions should be attended to, and not, when delivered to their Representatives, taken out of a carriage, presented, and then finally closeted without fur. ther notice.—(Hear.) He cordially concurred in the object of the reso. lution.—(Hear, hear.) Mr. COBBIN said that a great deal had been said to ensure a proper presentation of their petition, but he would say that petitions were nothing unless numerously signed. He trusted, therefore, that all pre. sent would sign the petition, to forward which they had met, as other wise all they might say would amount to nothing. It was said that the business was half carried, because of the force of public opinion mani. fested on the subject; but if, when petitions Caine to be presented, they were found not to be numerously sigr.ed, the triumph would be again' them. Mr. HEARSEY referred to statements to show that on a fair calcula tion the Corn.laws affected the value of our manufactures to the extent of 60 per cent. He was of opinion that if another year passed without the landowners giving way to the necessity of the times, that the change in the trade of the country would give cause to succeeding landowners to curse the memory of their ancestors. _ _ _ Mr. CALLow was opposed to the repeal of the Corn-laws. The resolution was then put and carried, with only the dissentient hand of Mr. Callow being held up. Mr. ZotortAN, with a suitab!e introduction, moved the 4th resolu tion—" That the prosperity of the landholders in this country has been mainly advanced by the progress of its manufactures—for, without the population encouraged and sustained by these the present high price of corn, the cultivation of inferior soils, and the consequent high rate of rent, could never have had place. That this meeting, therefore, has come to the conclusion, that the ruin or depression of these manufactures—the necessary decrease of population, and lessened demand for food, would have a greater tendency to throw land out of cultivation, and to lower the rate of rent, than any probable importation of foreign corn; and that thus ad parties are equally inte rested in supporting the manufacturing interests of this country, but that this support can be best afforded by the total repeal of all laws and duties affecting the price of food, and generally by the absence of all protecting duties whatsoever." Mr. Sm TR seconded the resolution—which was carried. On the motion of Mr. Balm, a petition was ordered to be framed on the resolutions; and that Lord Durham be requested to present the pe tition to the House or Lords, and Mr. Hawes to the House of Corn.. mons, and that Mr. Tennyson D'Eyncourt be requested to support it. After the usual votes being passed, the meeting dispersed. MANCHESTER AND LIVERPOOL DISTRICT BANK. (Abridged from a Second Edition of the Manchester Guardian.) The general annual meeting of the Shareholders of the Manchester and Liverpool District Banking Company was held this day (Wednes. day), in the Board Room of the Bank, and, by adjournment from thence in the Manor Court Room. Owing to the heavy losses which were ge. nerally known i to have been experienced by the Bank, and the numerous reports in circulation respecting its affairs, the meeting had excited a ♦cry strong interest amongst the Shareholders, and the attendance was unusualty k.rge ; nearly four hundred Shareholders being present, many of them from distant places. On the motion of JAMES Woon, Esq., Samuel Fletcher, Esq., one of the Directors, was called to the Chair. SAMUEL FLETCIiEIt, Esq., an taking the chair, said they had met on this occasion under exceedingly interesting and important circumstances —disastrous circumstances. This bank, which had stood so high in general opinion, had unfortunately committed errors, and sustained losses, the particulars of which would be detailed to them. He begged to say, on behalf of himself and the Directors generally, that they had no feeling with regard to the bank, or any disclosures which might be made, but in common with every shareholder present. They had no wish to keep anything back, or to refuse to answer any question which might tend to the interests of the shareholders. They had sustaiLed a loss of 375,0001.—(Hear.) That was a tremendous loss, such a loss as was never experienced by any bank before; and he was only surprised that the confidence of the public and the shareholders had been mani fested under such circumstances. Whilst they admitted this lose they were not disposed to admit for a moment that there was the slightest reason to doubt the stability of the bank.—(Elear, hear.) Shareholders might have angry feelings; they might fe,..1 morti, lied at the disasters which had befallen them ; but they ought not to go and sell their shares now. It was for them, as wise men, to look upon the details which would be laid before them in a calm and dispassionate manner. They had met with a heavy loss, but it was as nothing compared with disunion in the bank. That bank could not be injured unless that meeting injured it. It was safe with an investment of upwards of 1,100,0004 of its money.—(Hear, hear.) That bank was as competent to fulfil its engagements as ever. But if there were disunion there what would be the consequence? The eye of the public was upon them, and he feared for that bank greater disasters than double the amount of this loss. He made these obser. vations to show them the importance of unity. They were all in one boat ; let them take care that no individual said anything to-day that might tend to swamp that boat. He had no doubt that, in a very short time, they should rise rapidly to that point of estimation which they had hitherto held in the public mind. This depended on what would be done this day. He was their servant, and would do anything he could to forward the business of the meeting; but he threw himself on . . _ _ -.. .. the good feeling of the meeting, that no questions should be asked, nor anything mooted, that would injure the interests of the bank. _ _ _ .. Mr. GISBMINE said, he, as one of the public, did not know what had been done; and he thought they should have the Report read to learn the circumstances. Whatever misfortunes befel them would only affect themselves.—(Hear.) They possessed a broad security. There was more property pledged to the security of every man to whom that bank owed a pound, than there was in any other bank in the world.—(Hear.) They were only talking about their own present loss, not about anything which related to the public. They ought to meet their own situation and their own interests in a rational way; and, therefore, he should propose that the Reports be read, and the shareholders placed in posses_ sion of information before they chose Directors. The CHAIRMAN said he was quite willing that that course should be adopted. Mr. Jackson would read first the Report of the enlarged Committee, which contained information respecting the two disastrous accounts. This Report was read at their meeting a fortnight ago, and he thought it would put the meeting in possession of all thematerial facts. Mr. JACKSON, the Manager, then read the report of the enlarged Committee on the two accounts of Taylor, Son, and Gibson, and Brown and Powell, to the General Board of Directors of the Manchester and Liverpool District Banking Company, the conclusion of which gave the result in the following terms : " The estimates of loss upon these two accounts, furnished to the Committee by professional and competent parties, are presented with this Report for the information of the General Board; and these esti mates exhibit a loss of 375,4621.45. Id. .. _ " In a result so disastrous, it is felt that the General Board and the shareholders at large will naturally inquire what degree of censure, if any, attaches to those Directors and others more immediately connected with the management of these two accounts ; and the Committee report, that hitherto so much cf its time has unavoidably been oc cupied in considering what steps were necessary for prevent.. ing further loss, and for securing the best disposition of the. property, that it has been unable as yet to go into the investi gation ; but legal possession of all the property being new obtained, the affairs arc in such a state, that the Committee hope shortly to be able to report specifically upon this important branch of the subject. Thus far they feel it incumbent on them to state, that, in the absence of all evi dence to the contrary, the character of all the parties acting for the Bank in these transactions does protect them from any imputation as to want of integrity. (Signed) " JOSEPH CROSSFIELD, Chairman." The CHAIRMAN said they should now read the Report of the Directors of the Manchester and Liverpool District Bank, to theninth general an nual meeting of shareholders, held on the 30th January, 1839. The Report was then read, the following is the substance : " The shareholders will expect from the Directors a full explana. Lion regarding• the issuing of the new shares In 1836, and the con tinuing to recommend a dividend at the rate of 71 per cent. per annum, pending the existing of accounts which have since resulted in such disastrous consequences, and, although they cannot •expect to escape censure, yet they are exempt from being justly charge able with having acted in this, or any other of their proceedings, with an intention of misleading the public, or the shareholders of the Bank ; the facts of the case being, that at the time the now shares were created, at the half-yearly meeting in July, 1836, the ac count of Brown and Powell was not believed to be likely to cause any loss to the bank; and the account of Taylor, Son, and Gibson was, with a view to the bank's interests, confined to the knowledge of a Special Com mittee, which had been appointed by the Manchester Board, in which Committee the Directors have the fullest confidence; and, as will be seen by the detailed Report (appended hereto) of a further Committee, appointed by the Special Board, it was not believed by the members of the former Committee, that the loss at that period was likely to be such as seriously to affect the value of the bank's stock. It was under these circumstances the General Board of Directors recommended the divi dends which were paid. The confirmation of the truth of this will be found in the facts, that the Directors do now collectively hold 13,000 shares, or nearly one-sixth of the whole stock of the bank; that they not only took the full proportion of the new shares at 51. premium, but they took also nearly 4,000 shares at 61. premium ; and those Directors more immediately concerned in the management of Taylor, Son, and Gibson's accounts took as large proportion as any others. " In communicating to the shareholders the extent of the very serious loss which is expected to arise upon the two accounts referred to, the Directors confidently rely upon the large paid-up capital of the bank, the well.known wealth of its proprietary, and the extended and safe connection it has secured, as sufficient guarantees that its stability and prospects of future success will be most amply protected. " It has been brought to the knowledge of the Directors, that rumours of other losses than by these two accounts have been industriously cir. culated, as well as the bank's having been obliged to borrow money in aid of its capital. To such rumours the Directors beg to give a brief, but emphatic denial. " There is still another point, and one of the greatest importance, upon which the Directors feel that the shareholders will be naturally anxious ; and that is, to know what measures (if any) have been adopted to prevent the recurrence of such calamities as those which they have now to deplore. A Special Committee has been appointed by the Gene ral Board, to examine minutely the whole accounts and affairs of the bank. From the Report of this Committee, the Directors have much pleasure in submitting the following extracts : " Vie. your Committee, have accomplished the object of our ap. pointment as carefully and circumstantially as we have been able ; and we have to report, that the bank's accounts are, with very few excep tions, in a healthy and active state, and that the exceptions are not of a character or magnitude to prevent the future growth and prosperity of the concern. And farther, we feel a happy confidence in stating, that if the means hereafter recommended be promptly applied by the General Board, those exceptions may be expunged from our record. And we recommend to the General Board that a rule be made to appoint a Corn. mittee of Inquiry, at certain periods, to examine into and report upon the state of the accounts, as at the present time.' " The Directors hope, that in these unreserved communications, the Shareholders will feel convinced that they know the worst ; and that large as is the expected loss (far beyond the anticipations of any of the parties most conversant with these accounts), there are well-founded ex pectations of future prosperity. " The Directors have now to refer to the result of the business of the bank during the past year, and it is truly gratifying that they can re. port a considerable increase during the last half year, upon the profits of the preceding one; not arising from any adventitious circumstances, but from a regular progressive increase of the business of the bank. " The balance-sheet for the year 1833 shows, after the customary deductions, viz., all current expenses—the usual proportion of pre_. flashier) , expenses—and (excepting the two accounts of Taylor, Son, and Gibson, and Brown and Powell) an estimate of the loss likely to arise upon bad debts whirls have occurred during this period, or which having occurred and been estimated upon in preceding years, have now been finally ascertained.--.a profit of 36,079/. Bs. 10d., of which sum there has been paid a dividend for the half year ending 30th June, at 31 per cent., 45,783/. ; leaving undivided pr0fit,40,296/. 88.10(1. " It will be remembered, that the dividend recommended to the last half-yearly meeting exceeded the net profits of that period by 7,0681. 19s. 3d., which sum the Directors were authorised to take from the reserved surplus fund. This, however, has not been done, and conse quently the undivided profit, now reported, is the produce of the busi. ness of the year, without any extraneous addition, after paying 3/ per cent. It is for the shareholders to say what dividend shall now be declared for the half year. The recommendation of the Directors is, that it be fixed at 2i per cent. for the last half year, making til for the year. "For the details connected with the accounts of Taylor, Son, and Gibson, and Brown and Powell, the Directors now refer to the appendix to this Report (Signed) " JOHN CHEETHAM, Chairman." The recommendation of the Committee for making a dividend for the half year of 94 per cent., was unanimously agreed to, and the meeting separated. From inquiries made in circles likely to be well in formed there appears to be no foundation for the rumoured return of the Earl of Granville from Paris, and we can positively state that his Excellency's relatives do not antici pate his arrival in town until April next. There is a rumour in the diplomatic circles of the probable recal of Count Sebast iani. The Countess of Tankerville, who has been indis posed, was so much recovered yesterday as to be able to pay Visits.