The Sun. — London, England, 1847-02-11 00:00:00

THE SUN legislaVass interference In manufacturing enterprise (for since the year 1832 the hours of labour had been reduced for all Persona above 13 years of age from 74 to 69 hours, for all persona under 13 they had been reduced from 74 to 36, and in every case the best possible results had followed the adop tion of the measures.—( Hear.) Looking then at the past, and relying upon practical experience for the future, they were,, justified in calling upon the opponents of this Bill to sne eke out a most irresistible case, to demonstrate by facts wad figures, which could admit of no dispute or cavil, that the wages of the workmen would fall in consequence of the passing of this treasure, which was another of the arguments used by the opponents of the measure.--( Oh eers. ) But, even this fail of wages were to take place, it would be in some sort compensated by giving to 'the workmen facilities for household economy, and for the mental and moral improvement of r he inmates of 'the cottaise.—( Hear, hear.) The people working in the fac- , tories were told that, with the repeal of the corn-laws, the chief element of their expenses would be materially I reduced. -- (Hear, hsar.). How those promises had • been fulfil led, the present prices would abundantly testify. If the corn -laws were to reduce the food of the people at least one-t bird, surely they were entitled to have their hours' of labour relaxed. He was willing to leave this matter to be decides' by the practical experience of the operatives themselves, but yet it was a difficult question, and one on which it would. be difficult for them to deal with their employers. Fortunately, Lancashire and York shire were not exc'aisively populated by manufacturers ; others lived in there who were competent to judge by their knowledge of tb:e condition of the operatives. There were intelligent Dissenting ministers—there were the Dean of Manchesteae the Vicar of Leeds, the Rector of Brad ford, all of whom were competent arbitrators, to whom he should feel satisfied to leave the decision of the matter. Now, when they came forward and told them that for the 'sake of their spiritual health it was necessary to pass this &al, and when the surgeons in the large towns said it was necessaev for the improvement of their physical condition, acid when they and the landed proprie tors were unanimously of this opinion, he considered it was incumbent on the House to comply with their wishes. lie had beer, entrusted with a letter on the subject from Mr. Fletcher, th a well-known surgeon of Bury, dated Feb. 7, 1847, which. deserved the serious attention of the House, which was As follows:—" I have been professionally so much engaged that I did not know till yesterday that the second reading of your Factory Bill is fixed for Wednesday next, or I would have earlier communicated a few statistical facts, which so strikingly illustrate the effects of the present sys tem, especially as regards the unavoidable neglect of their infer-Ls by mothers employed in the mills, that you may, perhaps, consider them worth using on that occasion. They came to my knowledge during an inquiry into the sanatory condition of different parts of this town, for the Purpose of giving evidence on an Improvement Bill. Some Sears before, while preparing a report for the health of towns commissioners, my attention had been attracted to the greater mortality especially of infants, in the factory districts of the town and neighbourhood, compared with those in which few rains existed. I therefore, on this occasion, in calculating the average age at death in the better and worse conditioned localities, carefully dis tinguished the factory operatives from the other working classes. . The result proved the average age attained by the factory workers and their infants to be somewhat less than one-half that of the other operatives in the same districts. —(Hear, hoar.) In order to prevent any doubt as to the accuracy eV:l:Lent calculations, I may mention that on finding the age at, dseath, of the factory population in one district so low as eiglat years, which appeared really incredible, I went over the !'5 gisters a second time, being assisted by a friend accustom, to such researches, when, finding the extracts and cake jiasichs perfeetly correct, an explanation of this re nuts' ole result appeared in the fact, that of every 100 deaths a .ction over 61 are infants under the age of two years, 'Valle of the other operative classes, in the same locality, the 'deaths under two years are a fraction less than 33 in 100. I give below the average age at death, and the deaths under two years of factory and other operatives, in three districts, which, differing materially in their sanatory condition, and containing a large proportion of factory people, afford a fair comparison. The first is a town district, extremely ill conditioned as regards ventilation, drainage, and cleaning. In this locality the average age a t death of factory operatives is eight years ; other operatives, fourteen years; deaths of infants under two years, of factory operatives, 61 1-sth per cent. ; other e , peratives ' 32 3-4ths per cent. In the registra tion district of Bury North, exclusive of the above, the average age at death is, of factory operatives, 94 years; other other operatives, 19 years ; deaths of infants under two years, of facto: y operatives, 54 3-stbs per cent. ; other operatives, 33 1•- 3d per cent. In Woodhill district, lying a short distance fro me the town, and particularly well situated as regards the le ealth of its population, the general mortality of the northern steburb, of which it forms a part, being 1 in' 44 3-10ths, which is, I believe, about the average of all England, and bet leg in this particular locality 1 in 40, the cottages of the operatives being also more roomy, better ventilated, and more cleanly than is generally the case, we find the average factory age 10 years ; that of the other- operatives, 214 years ; the deaths of in fants under two a Tars, of factory parents, 56 per cent.; other operatives, 33 per. cent. In risme other districts the disparity appears even greater, but the proportion of factory workers is se small that I do not r only further to state .onsider the test a fair one. I have that these calculations are made on an average of seven yee .i . s, in these le and include every death that has oc curredscalities. They appear calculated to rebut the assump ti o n , that it is the condition of large towns, and not the empl'saymeat in factories, which produces the awful mortality , - particularly of the infant population, he the menu facturin 6districts. This, you are well aware, has been strop', ly maintained by several medical practitioners and Otl'sera. It was to disprove this fallacy that I endeavoured, its far as possible, in making these investigations, to &scars teak the relative effect of the two sources of disease and pre 'nature mortality, and I am the more especially induced 'to forward you the above extracts from the tables I have constructed, as Sir George Grey appears to have adopted an opinion which I am convinced will prove to be founded ca a hasty and superficial examination of this important question. From a report which was presented to the House in 1834 he found that out of 1,000 deaths in Man chester, 424 were children under two years of age ; that in Liverpool the number of children under two years of age, out of 1,000 deaths, was but 362 ; whilst in London, out of 1,000 deaths, only 308 were infants under that age. (Hear, hear.) This showed the great want of sanatory improvements, and that the mortality against these child ren would be less if they were taken more care of by their parents. The subject bad been submitted to them in every possible way : they had been shown how the homes of factory workers were left comfortless, in consequence of the protracted: hor s es: of labour—how the Saxon mother refused to be comforted because her children could not par take of it-,..(Hear, hear)—but then when one died she knew OW. it had ceased to suffer from prolonged and severe toil, arat that it had gone to join the army of innocents in heav, en.— (Hear, hear.) He would ask the House I v i sasther a sufficient case had not been made oat for passing the measure ?—(Hear, hear.) It was in vain for them to provide parks and athenaeums 'for the recreation and instruction of the people, if they did not at the same time provide them with a few hours to par take of their advantages. They were agreed to the end : it was the means only that were obj ectionable; but if he thought there was a reasonable chance o f - an arrangement being come to between the masters and their labourers be might possibly alter his opinion, especially if 1,000 manufacturers in Lanca shire would sign a bond to reduce their hours within the limit he thought necessary, and pay down a quarter of a million as the guarantee that they would fulfil the condi tions.—(Hear.) But he should think the acute labourers dupes if they consented to any arrangement unless they had ample security that it would be carried out. That House was not in the habit of waiting until rival steamers in the Thames had agreed to regulate their speed in the pool, to adopt measures to compel them to do so, supposing such a step were necessary ; or until master builders agreed to improve the sanatory regula tions of the houses they build ; chimney-sweepers not to use climbing-boys; proprietors of collieries and butties to prevent the harnessing of naked women.—(Hear, hear.) They did not stop until the proprietors of slaves in the West Indies could make some arrangement with their slaves for . their emancipation; in these and a thousand other instances they did not want for the parties to come forward, but . brought the "imperial majesty of the law," to whom all were subject—the lowest as well as the greatest— and which has for its object the vindication of the rights of those ordained by God."—(Hear.) It was all very well for the Hon. Member for Montrose to say, in accordance with the doctrines of that school of philosophy to which he belonged that they ought not to interfere, and to allow the labourers to remain at the mercy of their employers; but were kings and legislators to do nothing? If they were not to interfere, he was at a loss to understand why they bad in terfered with various things, and were continuing to interfere. If the interference proposed by the Bill be not satisfactory, let them point out to him, if they could, a more advisable, a more safe, a less objectionable mode of intervention, or which bad more noble or more glorious reasons for interference. Unless the factory operatives came before them and declared that all their past legislation on the subject had been pro ductive of the desired good, and that there was no need of the proposed interference, or that danger would result to them from it, they were bound to pass the Bill. He ought almost to apologise for touching this part of the subject after the eloquent speech of the Honourable Gentleman the Member for Edinburgh last year.—(Hear, hear.) He was flad that that city had, by its representative , spoken in avour of the Bill.—(Hear, hear.) In a late number of the -Edinburgh Review he found an article, from which he would read two or three passages which appeared to him " germane to the matter." Talking of the principle of interference and the probable consequences to which it led, the reviewer pro ceeded in this fashion :—" Once admit the principle that Go vernment may rightly exercise such influence—and the usage of every day sanctions it—and every case seeming to call for it is argued on its own merits. And so it must be with re ference to the limitation of the hours of labour—the most knotty question of the class now before the public. Its sup porters urge that the duration of labour which men engage to undergo is too much for their bodily and mental health. "They say that even high wages thus acquired bring little of • blessing with them to men, spiritless from over exertion, in homes rendered squalid and uncomfortable, because there is neither time nor inclination left for the exercise of house :" hold economy. They say that hasty marriages, early deaths, constant improvidence, brutish and irregular habits of living are the necessary concomitants of a state of things i n w hi ch the whole six days are devoted to toil. They even affirm that man deteriorates with these evil influences, not only i n his higher qualities, but also in his inferior capacity as a machine for production, and t h a t , w i th shorter labour, h e might do more or better work. The time is surely past for answering these arguments with mere assertions of gener a l ' doctrine. Fair reasons must be givenf o r supposing that the point has been already reached (some point there evidently must be) at which further interference would do more harm by diminishing the productiveness of the fund i i for the main tenance ' of labour than it could do good by ts nfluenee on the character of the labourer; and since every step which the Legislature has taken in the same direction has bee n met by similar objections and denunciations, none of w hic h have yet been realised, the burden of proof seems to be rather on the opponents than the supporters of further re form." He (Lord J. Manners) hoped he bad stated the case fairly, and that he had said nothing to irritate or wound any person in the course of his observations. The Honourable Gentleman talked of Russia, and Germany, and America, but since 1839 no person under sixteen years of age, in Germany or Prussia, was allowed to work more than ten hours.—( Hear.) Throughout Prussia the average hours of work of all classes was 11 ; and then the case in America to which he referred was not a good example in favour of his argument, as the committee came to the opinion they did owing to the pressure of circumstances which could not be controlled.—(Hear.) What country entered most into competition with us. Was it not America? They compelled the Americans, against their Rills, to employ their labourers longer titan they desired, by enforcing their competition. He considered that the statements which he had taken the liberty to read must satisfy every gentleman that their foeign trade had not ,uffet ed fiorit a reduction in the hours of labour, arid no case had becu made oat to 8 4°W that their foreign trade would coffer. Ile would there fore sabnlit t 1 1 . 1; th. t i o ,- l nr tor the sake of W orking men, and for the sake ot the working women of the north of England, and also for the sake of the master menu fecturers themselves, that this great question should be finally set at rest. He would ask that House of Commons was it prepared to throw back to another Parliament the settle ment of the question which had enlisted in its favour the affec tions of the working men and women—which came to them supported by the opinions of the clergy, the medical profession, and all the enlightened and impartial, which was based upon the experience of the past, and which app9aled to past results for future beneficial effects? Would the House of Commons reject such a measure as the present, because some Honourable Gentlemen are pleasei to avert that it does not altogether steer with their notions of political economy? He trusted not; but should it be so, and should the House come to a conclusion advers7e to the second reading of the Bill, the Gentlemen on his side of the House would retire from the contest undismayed and undeterred, cheered and encouraged by the reflection that they had done their duty, and that the Tory gentlemen of England had maintained their historical position—(Laughter)—and had, consistently with it, fought the battle of the poor against the rich, of their poorer fellow-subjects against the mighty and the strong. —( Hear, hear.) He trusted that the Bill would pass into a law, and that this protracted struggle would now be terminated ; and if such was the case, he could assure the House the measure would be received by a grateful and loyal people amidst the accla mations of millions. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said, that if the Noble Lord had abstained from those allusions which he had deprecated in the commencement of his speech, he (the Chancellor of the Exchequer) would not have addressed the House. He had been willing to believe that the question might have been discussed without any party feeling being expressed. And if the Noble Lord did take credit for his party, he would surely allow him to claim, for the Gentle men with whom he acted, the merit of a measure which gave to the mass of the people the main article of subsistence at the cheapest possible rate. He did not wish to pursue the subject further, or to say much upon the present question, which had been so repeatedly before the House. On the last occasion that the Bill was before the House, it was opposed by the Governmeut as a Government measure. His Noble Friend near him, and the Right Hon. Baronet near him, would support the measure under certain modifica tions, but he supported the same opinion upon the present as upon former occasions. And he considered himself bound to geed up and declare himself, so that the question might not go forth with the weight of Government authority. He was as much a friend to the poor man as any Gentleman in that House, and if he were disposed to overlook the immense interests which were involved, and to consult those only of the working man, he would not give his consent to such a measure, as he believed it would be most injurious in its results. He had no hesitation in granting a limitation to the hours of labour for children, but he would oppose any interference with those of adults. By such a measure they would take away one-sixth part of the earnings of the labourer. By diminishing the hours for labour they would increase the coat of production, and that cost would either fall upon the profits of the manufacturer or the wages of the artizan. He would take the cases of the different mills. In the first mill all the operatives signed in favour of long hours; in the second mill, 169 signed in favour of long hours, and 75 against it ; in the third, 59 only signed for long hours ; and al though an announcement was made by the masters, that in the month of October following they should commence working short time, before that day of working short time came the workmen sent a deputation to the owners request ing that they should work for long hours. In the fourth mill it was agreed also to work for long hours; for in consequence of working short hours the wages of the people would have been reduced. In one mill many of the operatives were so anxious to earn high wages, that they continued working at tea time when their hours were re duced. These parties worked by piece work, and in their anxiety: they worked during the half-hour allotted for tea, thus working the same time as before, only in a smaller compass. In these instances the experiment had been fairly tried, and the question had been fairly put to the workmen, and they preferred long hours with high wages. If any of the operatives were anxious for. short hours it was in the full belief, and in which belief they would be disappointed, that they would continue to re Tire the same amount of wages. In another mill which he would mention 400 hands all signed in favour of long hours, and in another a majority of 50, in a third a majority of 40, in a fourth a majority of 50, and in a fifth a majority of 103, signed in favour of long hours. In a sixth mill 2r6 signed for long hours, and 125 against them. It was his firm belief, that long hours were preferred by the workmen, as it was their conviction that a reduc tion of the time of work would be followed by a reduction of wages, and they were told that they did not consider the interest of the workmen when they demurred to a measure which would inflict an injury. He would, therefore, by no means accede to the request of the workmen, even if they were in favour of this measure much more generally than he believed them to be. He was really so little able to ad dress the House, that he would not venture to make many further remarks. The question concerned not only the interest of the artizans in the mills, the interest of the manufacturers, and the large interests of all persons dependent on the cotton mills, and of all dependent on the production of the raw ma terial consumed in the mills, and of all persons who were en gaged in the preparation of the material: it affected also all those employed in the after processes, and if they reduced the raw material consumed in the mills, and there became in consequence a deficiency in the production of the manufactured produce, the various stages it had to go through subsequently they would affect the interest, not only of the manufacturers themselves, but the interest of large bodies of men on either side, who had no opport unit y of expressing their opinions, but whose interest, nevertheless, was ma terially injured. He thought that these were con siderations of vast importance, which ought not to be left out of the question. He had taken it upon the nar rowest grounds—those grounds upon which they generally agreed, viz., that the interest of the workmen was materially affected, and it was upon those grounds that he felt it to be his duty to oppose the measure. The Marquis of GRANBY said that the patient endurance of the operatives, and at the same time the conciliating tone they adopted towards their masters, would naturally cause a desire to grant their wish. The Right Hon. the Chancellor of the Exchequer had said that the wages of the opera tives would be reduced. He was ready to admit that, if they reduced the number of hours the operative had to work, the master manufacturers would find it neces sary to make up the deficiency by employing more hands. He thought, likewise, that if they did employ more hands, the number of workpeople, as an inevitable conse quence of the principle of competition between the masters would be benefited. He thought that this measure would be conferring a great boon on the operatives in the manufacturing districts, and it would not at the same time materially re duce their wages. He: was for acme time per plexed by the argument, that if they did not reduce the wages there would be no ether means of raising the same quantity of manufactured produce as they did at present. He thought that with regard to the women who were now labouring twelve hours per day in those factories, the reduction of their hours of labour would not be followed by so material a reduction in the produce as was anticipated. The labour and wages would be more equally distributed over the surface of the manufacturing population, who would thereby be materially benefited. On these grounds he should give his support to the Bill. Dr. BOWRING said that he acknowledged the philan thropy of the Noble Lord, but it would net be what was called philanthropy to suppport that which would bring misfortune upon the labouring community. The discussion was one which should be entered upon free from all prejudice, and with minds inaccessible to all facts likely to prejudice the judgment. He did not approve of the present measure, for he felt convinced that it would not be of any practical utility to the poor.—(Hear, hear.) He had heard one of the principal manufacturers in the borough he had the honour to represent offer to his workmen to engage them for eleven hours a day, but he did not attempt to disguise from them what the result of the altera tion would be. He told them that it they did not produce the same amount of work as in the twelve hours he could not be expected to pay them the same amount of wages. He (Dr. Bowring) understood that a large body of the most influential, the most intelligent, and the most wealthy manu facturers had been testing the consequences of the Bill should it become the law of the land, and they all agreed on this point, that it would occasion a general reduction in the value of produce in the cotton manufactures. He spoke not of the silk nor of the flax manufacture, but confined his attention to cotton alone, and the return showed a di minution in the value of production to the extent of 12i per cent. Now he might just infirm Hon. Members that the value of the cotton manufactured in this country exceeded 30,000,000/. ; the number of bales required for working up amounted to a million and a half, representing in value 15,000,000/. sterling, and before it left the manufactory the united cost of labour and capital would increase the sum to 30,000,000/. sterling. The statement added, as the result of a limitation of the hours of labour, that the annual loss would be from 1,800,000/. to 2,000,0001. sterling. Now he would inquire on whom this logs would fall. It ap peared to him that it could only be borne by one of three parties. The first was the consumer, and perhaps it might be more generally distributed in this way at the least amount of individual sacrifice; but the question was would the consumer pay this loss—would they rest con tented with the extra price which would be charged them. They had already, by their measures of last year, taught the people of the country that the only true principle was to buy in the cheapest and sell in the dearest market. They had decided that they were entitled to the benefits of that principle, and the people had a right to require that they should give effect to it.—(Hear.) The consumers therefore would pay no portion of the 2,000,0001. sterling. But they they might say, e The manufacturers are gorged with enormous profits, the manufacturers must pay, and they are affluent and successful men, wrest, ther e f ore , from them a portion of their ill-gotten gains." But was it the fact that the gains of the master manufac turers were so large as to enable them to continue manufacturing, when they b y their legislation en acted from them an amount of 2,000,000/. sterling annually. It was not likely they would do so, and therefore after all the loss would fall upon the opera tives themselves. The Hon. and Learned Member then proceeded to show by the evidence of Mr. Gregg that the profits of the manufacturer, after deducting the 5 per cent. interest on his money. did not exceed 2 1 ,4 per cent. If the consumer and the capitalist would not pay, the burden must fall on the labour ing population, and thus, instead of granting a boon, the House would, by passing this measure, take away from them the means of education and the ability to procure the comforts of existence. The workmen were, in effect, to be told that one-sixth of their earnings be to to be withd rawn , an d however willing they might to work for the extra hour, the manufacturers would have no po wer to accede to their wishes by this enactment n the Government. He (Dr. Bow• ring) h a d during m oh. of is whole lifetime been the advocate of the worki ng he had ever sought to obtain for him an influence in that his House of which he was as yet de prived; sympathiesit was wer because enlisted on his side, and it was for that reason, he thought the present measure was calc u l ated to lower his er condition that he would oppose the further progress of it. Mr. P. HOWARD, in rising to support that he would not detain the house with the measure said o b s ervations. He could perceive that e they any lengthened o th • a division, and were desirous of testing the question by he should t h er efore, not trespass for any time n their attention. The House had already seen that arrange ment between the employers and the l was out of the question, and it was therefore necessary for Government and that House to legislate Zia " the subject. H e had hoped . that the manufacturerse of 'England would have copied the example of the agricultural party, who make a great sacrifice for the good of their country—(Laughter)—and he might yet ask the m t o make some little sacrifice, to offer some tribute on the altar of their country. He would give his most cordial support to the second reading of the Bill. Mr. MUNTZ took the trouble to go to Manchester to sa tisfy himself of the position of the working classes and the manufacturers, and the result of his in spection was. that all the changes which had been made were entirely t,i, the benefit of the manufacturers, and not for the eeirieek:et --."(lieere.) The aft,?retion hi the spfial the machinery, and the number of s t aueles had been M- Icreased threefold, and the quantity of work done was of course double. Though the manual labour LONDON, THURSDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 11 , 1517. employed was rather less. It was therefore self-evident that a young girl attending to those spindles must have an increased amount of duty to perform. The questicn was, was this a sort of labour for such persons? It was said the labour was not hard; granted. He would like to know how Hon. Members would like to be kept walk ing up and down a slippery floor for 13 hours, in an atmo , sphere ranging from 65 to 80 degrees? Why it would be bad enough to shut an Hon. Member up in a hothouse heated to 80 degrees, even if he had nothing to do.—(Cheers.) Why, the people of Birmingham would be ashamed to see such persons as these factory-girls in their town.—(Cheers.) Mr. BRlGHT—(flcer, hear.) Mr. MUNTZ—Did the Hon. Member suppose that none but a cotton-spinner could tell whet her a girl looked healthy or unhealthy?—(Laughter.) The Hon. Member himself got up a petition in the year 1833 in favour of the Ten Hours' Bill, and paid all the expenses of it himself. If the Hon. Member had altered his opinions since that time, he ought to explain the reason of his change to the House.—(Cheers.) The manufacturers complained of being compelled to work only ten hours a day; why, up ,n an average for the last ten years. no mills had worked more than ten hours a day; they could not, therefore, lose anything by the passing of the present measure. He believed the greatest enemy the manufacturers had were the manufacturers themselves.—(Hear.) It was competition carried to excess that did the mischief. This competition eagle home to the manufacturers here at last, even in those cases where competition had begun with the foreigner.—(Hear.) He was satisfied if the workpeople were required to work only ten hours a day, that they would neither lose in their wages, nor make less produce.— ( Hear, hear.) It was asserted, however, if a different regulation was made in the hours of labour, a differ ence would be made in the rate of wages. Why should this be? But then we were told it was wrong to adept the principle of restriction; why, then, adopt it with respect to omnibuses? why not let as many get in to ride as chose? Why limit the cab charges? Why prohibit the growth of tobacco? You had already interfered with labour, and with advantage, not only to the labourer, but to the manufacturer. The Honourable Member for Dur ham (Mr. Bright) paid for wages to his card-loom hands, in the year 1820, Bs. per week ; in 1830, 83.; in 1844, Bs. 6d. ; in 1846, 9s. Did this, then, bear out the assertions of those manufacturers? It was only fair to ask the Hon. Member, or some other Hon. Member, to explain to the House how it was that such an amazing alteration had taken place since the year 1815, when only 6,000 bales a week of cotton were spun, and in the present year the quantity spun was 30,000 a week, being an increase of five times the quantity. It seemed extraordinary that while there should be this increase the value of the goods produced should have also been one-third less, contrary to the opinions of those " feelosophers " who maintain that nothing but the application of the principles of political economy should be allowed, and that all in terference should be deprecated. and yet that, in spite of the interference of the Government, there had been an increase in the rate of wages ,paid to the workmen.—(Cheers.) The consumption of cotton was— In the year 1815 ... ........ 6,000 bales. 1846 The price of the raw material was— In 1815 ls. 7 1 / 1 d. per lb. 1846 6 1,4d. „ The selling price in 1815 3s. 3d. per lb. 1846 lod. per lb. The number of revolutions per minute of the thrlstles of the machines was in the year 1815 1846. from 5,000 up to 7,000 The number of spindles to each mules was in 1815 180 1846 5OO These were facts demanding the most serious attention of the House.—(Cheers.) The rooms in which the operatives were, were of the most unhealthy nature, no current of fresh air was allowed, and it seemed to be necessary that the unfortunate creatures of factory labour should be kept in a state of continued perspiration, in order the better to perform their work.—(Cheers.) Since he had had a seat in that House he had never given a vote against his conscience, but he never gave a vote in that House with more honesty of feeling than that which he should give upon this occasion in support of the present mea s ure. Mr. BRIGHT hoped, after the pointed allusions which had been made to him by the Hon. Members for Dorsetshire and Birmingham, and by several other Hon. Members, that the House would allow him to state the grounds on which he was compelled to differ from many Hon Gentlemen on this important question. In addition to the means of udging, which many Honourable Members possessed from political economy and from other sources, he possessed this additional knowledge. He had lived all his lifetime amongst the population for whom they were legislating; he was very largely connected with this particular trade, and had not a farthing in the world beyond what was invested in it; but in his op position to the Bill he was actuated by no belief that it mould injure his property or prospects, because it was clear to him that if the measure was really calculated to advance the interests of the 1,200,000 persons more or less dependent for their support upon cotton spinning and other textile employments, that his interests would be consulted. The agitation in factories in favour of a Ten Hours' Bill had been conducted on the political economy of the Hon. Members for Birmingham and Oldham, and of the late Michael Thomas Sadler, on those principles of poli tical economy which that House last session declared un sound and rotten, and which, if persevered in, would injure the great interests of the country and de stroy the manufacturing and commercial supremacy of the kingdom.—(Hear, hear.) When it was first commenced, it professed to have only the labour of children in view, and Lord Spencer brought in a Bill with that view but last session. The late Secretary of State for the Home Department carried a Bill through the House, which limited the labour of children under thirteen years of age to six hours a day ; but, not satisfied, those who pro fessed themselves the friends of the workers, now asked the House to interfere to prevent young persons from 13 to 18, and women of all ages, from working more than ten hours a day ; but their object really was to interfere with the hours of work of persons of all ages, and of whatever sex, engaged in labour in this country, in the belief that the pre sent rate of wages would be maintained—a higher rate than their labour could command in the free markets of the country. Many. of the exaggerated statements which had been put forward by Lord Ashley had not been urged upon the House on that occasion, but the Noble Lord the Member for Newark (Lord J. Manners) had read a letter from Mr. Fletcher, physician, in Bury, which however he did not consider more worthy of belief than official documents furnished by persons appointed to make such investigations. From them it appeared that, in 1831, the mortality in Leeds was less than in 1801, and less than the mortality in Bristol for the same year. The mortality in Manchester was lees than in Liverpool, and, in short, the mortality in large manufacturing towns was not larger than in other towns is which there were no manufactories. Dr. Phillipps, who had published a book on " scrofula," had stated that the health of those engaged in factories was not worse than the health of the rest of the population employed in large manufacturing towns. It was stated that the labour of women in factories was long and severe, but he considered the fact of women being so employed was conclusive evidence that the work was not laborious.—(oh !) If Hon. Gentlemen doubted this, let them make inquiries, and they would find that he was correct. If it was so severe as it was stated to be, why did not women forsake it, and work as stonemasons and with spades —(Oh, oh!) They did not, because factory work was superior ; they naturally turned te it. They must turn to those employments where they were sheltered from the weather, and which were light. The experiments in France had been equally con clusive, that there was nothing injurious in factory labour to females. (The Honourable Member then read a long extract from a report of the Committee on the Ten Hours' Bill appointed by the Con gress of Massachusetts on the 12th of March, 1845, which went to show that manufactories did not injure the health of those employed in them.) And the report further stated, that in the town of Lowell the hours appointed for manufacturing labour far exceeded those appointed in these countries for textile manufacture. Let him not be misunderstood : he was not advocating a twelve hours' labour Bill, he was only defending himself, and arguing against the state ments put forward in behalf of the present Bill; and let the Hon. Member recollect that children up to thirteen years of age were exempt from the system now complained of. He himself never went to school after he szas fifteen years of age, and he held himself to be a proof that some kind of information might be obtained up to thir teen years of age. Under the old system their forefathers used to put out every person to earn at fourteen. And to show that those employed in manufactories were not so wholly uneducated and immoral, he would tell them that Dr. Peirce had divided the community into twenty classes, and amongst the first and the worst of these were grooms, such a class as most gentlemen in that House were in the habit of employing. Number nineteen in that class were domestic servants, and number twenty were females engaged in factory la bour. There was not a magistrate in any manufacturing town that could not bear witness to the sobriety and good conduct of these operatives. The Hon. Member said that he presented a petition from Manchester, signed by twenty-two thousand persons. Now, when he (Mr. Bright) presented a petition in favour of the repeal of the corn-laws, the same Honourable Member would not pay the slightest regard to it, He was as much in favour of paying attention to the wishes of the poor as any man, and he would go farther than the Hon. Member, for he was prepared to give them votes, by which they would be enabled to send men to that House to represent their feelings and wishes. But if the short time was enforced, they would be obliged to receive less wages. He could not conceive a guilt more dreadful than the prac t!sing of such a delusion on the working classes, a delusion likely to bring upon them the most serious disappointment, and greater evils than any other measure had ever inflicted upon them. He had in his h a nd a p u blication called The Tea Hours' Advocate," dated December 5, and that . publication asserted that it had, from its first con nexion with the question, advocated the fact that the effect of the Ten Home Bill would be a diminution of wages in the same proportion as the reduction of time, as any circumstance that lessen e d th e supp l y o f an article in creased its value in the market, and that there were numerous instances where the hours had be en re d uce d and the rates of wag es we re advanced. Mr. Oastler said, i n spea ki ng of Mr. Ackroyd, in Halifax, that if he were one of the operatives, and he present rate of wages, he would n o t d o so ,d na to s persuadei any ne re increase, were asked to sign for the T en H ours ' Bill at the idnucotridoenr to no show t he h h o o u w rs t h o K s ' e oll p id ers b o n e s followed o endeavoured the working classes that the y would h ave th e same wages. The Ten Hours' Advocate sa . that when child ren were made to work only six hours , the ir wages had been increased. Such was not the case, for, in every instance, the wages were reduced in exactly th e . same proportion as the time was reduced; and a child twelve yea and eleven months old, and working only six hours, received only half of the wages that a child 13 years and one month old re ceived. With regard to th e case of foreign competition, he believed that it was not properly . understood by the Hon. Member for Oldham. He had in his hand a statement of the raw material consumed in the manufacture of this country. In the cotton trade alone 600 millions of pounds of cotton and worsted n sed. tradesln t he ther e fiax d ra were t e n w o e t re les u s se t d h , an an 2 d 6o in in t i li ll e w ions o o o f l pounds there were 177 millions of pounds i mported , and in the silk 600.000 pounds, making in all 1,000,175.000 pounds. If that were divided by six, it would give a diminution i n the consumption of the raw material of 176,000,000 of pounds, and how was it possible to dispense with one-s i xth of this description of manufacture ? The difference in the revenue would alone amount 7,000,000/ annuall y . That was a question worthy of the consideration of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, as it would make a reduction of 7,000,0001. per annum in the expenditure. He had attended many meetings at Manchester, and was aware that not one single individual of the working classes would accept of this Bill if he did not believe that no reduction would take place in the rate of wages, Many of the work .people he employed had petitioned that House in favour of the Bill. and he Was gla 1 that they hail cim:v s', as it rdiuwed that they , wer e i n d epen d en t, an d cou ld act for rbenis,!v, r ~.. 1. hat wa the mohy of th , I.trz,sst and te menu in their trade ; but he warned the house, that ii they encouraged the working classes to come to that House for legislative enactments to limit their hours of labour, and to tlx their scale of salary, that every manufacturer would be obliged to unite in self• defence—(Loud cries of " Divide, divide")—and that, he was sure, would do away with the good feeling which at present existed between the manufacturers and their workmen.—(Renewed cries of" Divide divide.") He would not detain the House, but he understood that it was intended to bring forward in Committee a clause to limit the hairs of working to eleven and not ten hours. Now he thought that the House would at once concede that the workmen were or were not right in this demand—if right it was cowardly for Hon. Members to depart from their principles, if wrong, they had only to op pose the Bill altogether. He could not consent to the second reading of this measure. The Hon. Member for Durham then expressed his astonishment that the Government had left this an open question. He had expected that the Noble Lord at the head of the Government would have adopted a bolder awl more straightforward course, and he thought that he was introducing a strange anomaly in legislation by sanctioning the principle that the workman should be pro tected against the capitalist. Sir ANDREW LEITH HAY moved the adjournment of the debate. Lord JOHN RUSSELL said that he rose only to say a few words to the House, in consequence of the attack which had been made upon him a few minutes before six o'clock. If the Hon. Member for Durham (Mr. Bright) had intended to have made this attack, he ( Lord J. Russell) thought it should have been made at five o'clock—(Continued cheer ing)—and he really thought that the Honourable Mem ber, in his anxiety to .make the best defence en behalf of the cotton manufacturers, had departed from that candour and courtesy to which Honourable Members who might differ in opinion from him were fully entitled. The lion. Member said that this was a question of principle, he (Lord John Russell) did not view it as such. He conceived that the difference between ten, eleven, and twelve hours was a question of degree, and not a question of principle. This was no new principle, as the Hon. Member had been pleased to allege. The limitation of the hours of labour had been introduced before into that House, and it would be found that it was carried out in the statutes of the realm.—(Hear, hear, and cheers.) Neither was it a change in the old law, for the old law protected apprentices against their mas ters: it was, therefore, no question of principle; it was merely a question whether the Legislature should throw the shield of protection round the younger workers. That was a mere question of the day, on which the mem bers of the Government might differ without at all differing on any principle. if the Honourable Member differed from that principle ; if he thought the Legislature were wrong in the course they had adopted, he should have proposed the repeal of the laws on the subject. He knew not that it was necessary now for him to enter into this question. He had stated what he thought was the general principle, and if this debate came to be adjourned he would not detain the House by any length ened observations. But if the House were pleased to listen he would not address himself more than a few minutes to the question. He considered then, as he had already stated, that it was not a question of principle, but of degree; and that young persons of 13 years of age, working twelve, thirteen, or fourteen hours a day, were taxed too much, because their bodily frame was not sufficiently matured. He considered it was too much to give time for their moral or mental improvement, and he conceived that it was so far a question of degree, inasmuch as a shorter period of labour would be more fitted for them. The Honourable .3:•nber for Durham had expressed a fear of foreign competition. That was another qt estion, and with regard to it he would only say that the same objection had been urged in every previous arrangement that bad been made from 1831 to the present time, and he was happy to say that the manufactures of the country were still flourishing, while the factory operatives bad been greatly benefited. The limitation of labour had given them three or four months in the year fur thin purposes of improvement, iie would not have troubled the House so long but for the attack of the Hon. Member for Durham.—(Cheers.) The debate was then adjourned till Wednesday next. The other orders of the day were then disposed of, and the House Adjourned at Six o'clock. PARLIAMENTARY BUSINESS. (From the Votes anti Proceedbm cf the House of Commons.) WEDNESDAY, FEU. 10. The following Railway Bills were presented, read a first time, and ordered to be read a second time : Cheltenham and Oxford—" for making a Railway from the Great Western Railway at Cheltenham to join the Oxford and Rugby Railway near Oxford, with a Branch therefrom, and for other purposes." Glasgow, Paisley, and Greenock (Branches at Port Glas gow, and to the Caledonian Railway and Diversion of Canal) —" to enable the Glasgow, Paisley, and Greenock Railway Company to make certain Branch Railways at Port Glasgow and to the Caledonian Railway at Glasgow, and to divert part of the Glasgow, Paisley, and Ardrossan Canal." Caledonian ( Edinburgh Station and Branches to Granton, &e.)—" to enable the Caledonian Railway Company to ex tend their Station in Edinburgh, and to make Branch Rail ways to Granton, to the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway, to Wilsontown, to Fauldhouse, and to Biggar and Broughton." Liverpool, Manchester, and Newcastle-upon-Tyne Junc tion and Northern Counties Union Amalgamation—" for amalgamating the Liverpool, Manchester, and Newcastle upon-Tyne Junction and Northern Counties Union Railway Companies." Boston, Stamford, and Birmingham (Peterborough and Thorney Line)—" to empower the Boston, Stamford, and Birmingham Railway Company to make a Railway from the Syston and Peterborough Railway, at or near Peterborough, to the Stamford and Wisbech Line of the Boston, Stamford, and Birmingham Railway, in the parish of Thorney and Isle of Ely." London and South-Western (Andover to the Bishopstoke and Salisbury Branch, &c.)—" to enable the London and South-Western Railway Company to make Railways from Andover to join their Salisbury Branch Railway at Micleael marsh, and from the same Branch at Romsey to join the Southampton and Dorchester Railway at Redbridge, all in the county of Southampton, to be called The Andover and Southampton Junction Railway.' " The following Railway Bills were read a second time, com mitted, and referred to the Committee of Selection:— Newmarket and Chesterford (Extension to Thetford). Caledonian (Glasgow, Garnkirk, and Coatbridge Railway; Branch to Glasgow and Station). Chard Canal and Railway (Extension and Amalgamation). NOTICES GIVEN AT THE PRIVATE BILL-OFFICE. The following Railway Bills are appointed to be read a second time on Monday, Feb. 15 Caledonian (Edinburgh Station and Branches to Granton, &c.) London and North-Western (Ormskirk and Raintord Branch, &c.). London and North-Western (Bescot and Wolverhampton Branch, &c.). NOTICES OF MOTIONS. Mr. Ricardo—To nominate Select Committee on the Na vigation Lawsi—Mr. Ricardo, Mr. Alderman Thompson, Hume, Sir Robert Peel, Mr. Milner Gibson, Mr. Hutt, Sir George Clerk, Mr. Brownrigg, Mr. Bright, Mr. M'Carthy, Viscount Sandon, Mr. Brown, Mr. Lysll, Mr. Mitchell, and Mr. Thomas Baring—Friday, Feb. 12. Mr. Roebuck—ln Committee on Factories Bill to MAI) the following amendments:— To extend the operation of the Act to all mills and factories. To extend the operation of the Act to all persons employed in agriculture. To till up the blank in section 1, line 6, with the word " eight ;" and so also in line 13. To fill tip the blank in section 1, line 7, with the words forty-eight;" so also in line 14. PATENT MILE INDEX. A simple and ingenious contrivance for measuring and indicating the distance travelled by wheel carriages, has been invented by Mr. Voulister, a gentleman con nected with the Engineering College at Putney. The in strument is applicable to all carriages, but the special object of the invention is to supply the passenger in a cab with a perfect check on the distance actually tra velled, and consequently against overcharge by the driver. The instrument may be described thus :—A piano-spiral rotator is concealed within the hoop of the nave of one of the hind wheels, and gives action to a shaft or small rod of iron which is carried horizontally nearly as far as the opposite wheel. At this point a universal joint connects the horizontal with a vertical rod, which latter continues the action into the body of the carriage under the seat. Here two or three wheels give motion to a suitable shaft or chain, which is concealed between the panels of one side of the carriage, and ter minates near the roof in a dial-plate provided with two faces, one ieside for the use of the passenger, and the other outside, in which the driver and his fare can together note the position of the hands before the latter steps into tne cab. Both dials have exactly the face of a clock, being furnished with an hour and a minute hand, and hours, half-hours, and minutes are indicated on the dial pre eisrly as in the ordinary time-piece. As the hands per form the circuit of the dial, the divisions of hours, half hours, and minutes correspond exactly with the miles, half-miles, and fractions of a mile actually traversed by the vehicle. Thus if the dials indicate 20 minutes past 12 when the passenger enters the cab, he will know that he has travelled exactly a mile when the dial within points to 20 minutes past 1; a mile and a half when it points to 10 minutes to 2 ; two miles when it arrives at 20 minutes past 2: two miles and a half at 10 minutes to 3; three miles at 20 minutes past 3, and so en. A s ma ll circle within the dial face, with a pointer answering to the second-bands of a watch, enables the owner of the carriage to satisfy himself as to the total number of miles which the vehicle has travelled in any given period. The simplicity and convenience of adopting, as the mode of indicating the distance traversed, the face of a clock, with the reading of which every one is familiar, needs no comment. The public can at once avail themselves of the invention, without having to learn its use. The instrument is perfect for its purpose, it is accurate to a nicety in its working, is easily read off ; is so simple in its construction, that it cannot be easily put out of order, and is neither cumbersome nor unsightly—indeed it is scarcely visible at all when the carriage is in motion. The actual working of the in strument has been tested, with the most perfect success ; it has been fitted to a Brougham carriage, which has travelled several hundred miles over the worst pavements in the metropolis, in all weathers and at different speeds, so that there can be no doubt as to the efficiency of the instrument for the purposes to which it is applicable. It gives the passenger in a cab a perfect check on over ' charge, and the proprietor the means of knowing the amount of mileage actually performed. The application of this really useful invention to cabs will be a great public accommodation. The sys , tem of overcharge practised by the drivers of cabs is too notorious to require any comment. There can be no doubt that if cabmen would be content with their legal fare, and would receive the same with civility, many persons who are deterred by fear of altercation with the drivers from riding in cabs at all, would avail themselves of the accommodation which a cab affords, and of those who do ride, most would ride a great deal more. In fact, the custom would be doubled at least, Ladies are almost excluded from the use of cabs—they mostly prefer the inconvenience of an omnibus to the rink of insult by a cabdriver. Thus there is a large class of the community whose custom is at present with held, but would, if given, afford a very conside rable increase of employment. Individual drivers are not very likely to adopt the Patent Mile Index ; it will militate too much against what they imagine to be their interests. Even if one or two of the class should have sense enougn to see that just fares and fair treat ment will induce a custom which will be amply remu nerative, they would be unable to keep way against the abuse and violence of their class. It is only by a public company taking up the invention, and forcing it (if we may use the expression) into the cab market, that there is any likelihood of the public receiving the benefit of it. We observe with much pleasure in our advertising columns the proposal for forming a company, having for its special object the application of the Patent Mile Index to London cabs. We refer to the " Patent Mile Index Carriage Company." The undertaking bears on its face the stamp of respectability, and it is put forward in so honest a manner, and with such a total absence of anything like jobbing that the promoter will deserve success with the public. The undertaking embraces beside the application to cabs of the patent mail index, the improvement of cab con veyance by furnishing to the public a superior equipage with a better class of drivers ; the reduction of fare to 6d., through the medium of mile tickets, an arrange ment which will prove not only a very great accommo dation to the public, but also very remunerati ve t o shareholders ; and also the giving to the public the advantage of having a body of gentlemen to appeal to instead of having recourse to summons to a police court. A company with these objects will certainly confer a great obligation on the metropolitan public when they make their debut on the London stands. The proposals of the promoters offer not only a great inducement to parties willing to embark monies in the undertaking, but also are put forward so openly and fairly as to induce confi dence in their assertions. The registered promoter bears all preliminary expenses absolutely, reserving a per centage, or profit for his remuneration. If the ca pital be not subscribed deposits will be returned. A detailed estimate is given, so that the public can judge of the assertion of the 'promoter, that 15 per cent. clear of income tax, will be realised. An abstract of the deed of settlement also is given, that the public may know what the deed is they will be called upon to sub scribe. The directors, instead of receiving a fixed re muneration, postpone all recompense till the share holder receives five per cent. interest, and then take only in proportion to what they realise for shareholders. The foregoing are the principal features of the under taking—they are novel, and give evidence of the sin cerity of the parties, and offer a very fair inducement to those easy people who may have a few hundred pounds in the Three per Cents., and may feel inclined to realise fifteen per cent., with chance of larger profit and but little risk. The parties who appear as trustees and directors are highly respectable. The names of the solicitors —Messrs. Wire and Child—are alone sufficient to stamp the undertaking as a respectable and bond fide project . THE CIRCUITS. CROWN-OFFICE, FRB. 9, 1847. 183 D 67v s i a z n . e : 1 Pl ac es appointed for holdi ng th e L ent Assizes, HOME CIRCUIT. Si T h r o T m h a o s m L a s o r Wilde, e Denman, Chief an Lord jus t C i c h e i e o f f J t u h s e t i Co c e C omm on Pleas. urt of Hertfordshire, Tuesday, March 2, at Hertf or d. Essex, Monday, March 8, at Chelm s f or d. Kent, Monday, March 15, at Maid s t one. Sussex, Monday, March 20, at L ewes. Surrey, Monday, March 29, a t Ki ngston-upon-Thames. Right Hon. ilon NORFOLK CIRCUIT. Right Hon. Sir Frederick Pollock, Chief Baron of the Ex chequer. Mr. Justice Coleridge. Buckinghamshire, Monday, March 8, at Aylesbury. Bedfordshire, Saturday, March 13, at Bedford. Huntingdonshire, Wednesday, Mar c h 17, a t H un ti ng d on . Cambridgeshire, Friday, March 19, at the County Courts. Suffolk, Wednesday, March 24, at Bury St. Edmunds. Norfolk, Tuesday, March 30, at the Castle of Norwich. City of Norwich, the same day, at the Guildhall of the said city. MIDLAND CIRCUIT. Right Hon. Sir Jame , . Parke, one of the Barons of the Court of Exchequer. Mr. justice Patteson. Northamptonshire, Monday, March 5, at Northampton. Rutlandshire, Friday, March 5, at Oakham. Lincolnshire, Saturday, March 6, at the Castle of Lincoln. City of Lincoln, the same day, at the city of Lincoln. Nottinghamshire, Friday, March 12, at Nottingham. Town of Nottingham, the same day, at the town of Not tingham. Derbyshire Tuesday, March 16, at Derby. Leicestershire, Saturday, March 20, at the Castle of Lei cester. Warwickshire, Coventry Division, Wednesday, March 24, at the city of Coventry. Warwickshire, Warwick Division, Thursday, March 25, at Warwick. NORTHERN CIRCUIT. Mr. Baron Alderson—Mr. Baron Rolfe. Lancashire, Monday, February 15, at the Castle of Lancaster. Westmorland, Thursday, February 18, at Appleby. Cumberland, Saturday, February 20, at Carlisle. Northumberland, Wednesday, February 24, at the Castle of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Town of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the same day, at the Guild. hall of the said town. Durham, Monday, March 6, at the Castle of York. City of York, the same day, at the Guildhall of the city of York. Lancashire, Saturday, March 20, at Liverpool. OXFORD CIRCUIT. Mr. Justice Maule—Mr. Baron Platt. Berkshire, Saturday, February 27, at Reading. Oxfordshire, Saturday, March 6, at Oxford. Worcestershire, Thursday, March 11, at Worcester. City of Worcester, the same day, at the city of Worcester. Staffordshire, Tuesday, March 16, at Stafford. Shropshire. Tuesday, March 23, at Shrewsbury. Herefordshire, Tuesday, March 30, at Hereford. Monmouthshire, Thursday, April 1, at Monmouth. Gloucestershire, Monday, April 5, at Gloucester. City of Gloucester, the same day, at the city of Gloucester. WESTERN CIRCUIT. Mr. Justice Cresswell—Mr. Justice Williams. Southampton, Saturday, February 27, at the Castle of Win. chaster. Wiltshire, Saturday, March 6, at the City of New Serum. Dorsetshire, Thursday, March 11, at Dorchester. Devonshire, Wednesday, March 17, at the Castle of Exeter. City and County of the City of Exeter, the same day, at the Guildhall o! the said City. Cornwall, Wednesday, March 24, at Bodmin. Somersetahire, Wednesday, March 31, at the Castle of Taunton. CIRCUIT OF THE PRINCIPALITY OF WALES ♦ND COUNTY PALAVI'SE OF CHESTER. NOSTZ WALES. Mr. Justice Coltman—Mr. Justice Virightman. Montgomeryshire, Monday, March 15, at Welchpool. Merionethshire, Thursday, March 18, at Bala, Carnarvonshire, Saturday, March 20, at Carnarvon. Anglesey, Wednesday, March 24, at 13eaumiris. Denbighshire, Saturday, March 27, at Button. Flintahire, Wednesday, March 31, at Mold. Cheshire, Saturday, April 3, at the Castle of Chester. SOUTH 'WALES. Glamorganshire, Wednesday, March 3, at Swansea. T P oeTwmonb;aounkdnefschi et T yr r h jo u rf r d s ra d , a ea y sv - t , , 7 11 r f i o a r r d c w h 11, t a thet l l a s v a e m r f e o r t . a t the Girdig-auchire, Tuesday, March 16, a'. Cardigan. Carmarthenshire, Saturday-, March `_tc', ;.1 Carmartlwx. Borough ofearmarthtal, the sawe Way, at 111,.; iiu.vub i ul' Carmarthen. Brecknockshire, Saturday, March 27, at Brecon. Radnorshire, Wednesday, March 31, at Presteign. DEATH of GEORGE ROBINS, ESQ. Our obituary of yesterday announced the death of the above eminent auctioneer, a gentleman who has ho nourably and successfully filled an eealted position in hi prkeession for many years ; indeed, we are informed that he began to wield the bummer before he had at tained the age of 19, for whilst attending a large sale in Yorkshire, he was unexpectedly called upon to act for his father, who, from indisposition, was unable to offi ciate. From that time to the present, during a period of ,fifry years, he enjoyed the uninterrupted good opinion of the public, and perhaps no man can boast of a more extraordinary catalogue of business, the most extensive estates in this country, and Scotland and Ireland, as well as all parts of the globe, having passed though his hands ; the wonderful skill and tact with which every advantage connected with the property he had to describe was seized upon and turned to profit in his glossing descriptions, and his ready wit and re par tee in the rosttura, are too well known to require comment from us. It may certainly be allowed that, for his profession, no man possessed or exerted greater capabilities, and he may he considered one of the most successful and persuasive advocates in seducing his auditors to unloose their purse-strings that has ever appeared at the auction mart. A foolish report was some years age circulated, when this gentleman first struck out into a different and more descriptive style id advertisement, that his literary effusions were not his own production. That his announcements were unlike those of any of his contemporaries there can be no doubt ; that they were highly coloured, graphic, arid often excessively clever, has been constantly admitted ; and that they were his own productions we have ample reason to know. Indeed, when only a youth, and al lowed by his parents to make the tour of the lakes in Cumberland, his love of the picturesque was then evinced by a publication of all that he had seen and been delighted with. Highflown and indulging in fancy's sketch as were Mr. Robins's advertisements and partial ' lars of the properties he had for sale, yet we have heard him say, in no instance was a purchase repudiated on the ground of misdescription, whilst in many cases purchases, and to a heavy amount, have been made by persons who had never seen or heard of the estate when they entered the auetion-room, and they were overcome by his persuasive eloquence. We now turn to what may be termed his private li'e. A love of taking a prominent part in sonic of the events of the day, and a desire to assist some well-known cha racter, whose prudence had not placed him above the world, brought him before the public most frequently in the cause of charity, and sometimes as the champion of some oppressed individual, or to serve the fallen for tunes of some institution or other—indeed, it may be Said, he possessed more of the milk of human kindness than generally falls to th; lot of man ; politics he care fully eschewed, and deemed those mad who wasted their time and substance upon them. His first unprofessional effort was at Margate, where, in the cause of charity, no less than that of assisting the funds of the Margate Sea-Bathing Infirmary by holding a plate for contribu tions outside the church. gate, he, with several other gentlemen, were taken .mtu custody as rogues and vagabonds for begging, and were afterwards compelled to attend the Dover Sessions, where no evidence was offered against him, and upon the trial of an action against the magistrates of Margate at the Maidstone As siws, damages were obtained, and to this day a tablet in the walls of the institution at Margate record his victory and the increase to the funds for the sick at the infirmary. To his determined hostility - , in conjunction with the late Mr. Calcraft, to the sub-committee of Drury-lane Theatre, in the years 1817 and 1818, and their exposition of the mal-government of the theatre, anew system was adopted, by which this splendid place of amusement was nearly released from a load of debt; and at a later period his exertions were mainly instrumental in resuscitating the rival establishment when all human hope of again afford ing amusement to the public within its walls seemed past. Notwithstanding his numerous avocations, he could spare time for the cause of charity, and many were the successful claims to public benevo lence that he advocated—the most remarkable was that for poor Emery's (the comedian) family, when, by the greatest indefatigability, a sufficient sum was obtained to provide a comfortable annuity for the widow and children. That exquisite songstress Mrs. Bland, and many others, were equally indebted to him, whilst his protection of James Brandon, the well-known box-book-keeper of Covent-garden Theatre, against the proprietors, is even now remembered by theatricals. Perhaps no man in his station was more courted by his superiors, by whom his manly, straightforward conduct was appreciated, his advice often sought, and amongst the men of his day he was always welcome. The description of a dinner given by him to Lord Byron is recorded in that nobleman's memoirs, edited by Moore, when Lord Kinnaird and his brother, Sheridan, Colman, John Kemble, and other eminent men were present. In his private life he was strictly a domestic man, always ready to do good and to succour the distressed. Ile leaves a widow and seven young children, which his exertions have enabled him to provide for in an ample manner, and a large circle of friends who will long mourn his irreparable loss. The poor have lost a kind friend, society an excellent member, and the Queen a faithful subject. He was an exemplary husband, a kind and indulgent father, and a warm-hearted friend. His extensive business as an auctioneer and valuer will now be conducted by his two cousins, who have long assisted him in carrying out his novel and successful method of effecting the transfer of property, and were often large contributors to his fame. CHESTER AND HOLYHEAD RAILWAY. The usual half. yearly generaltreeiing of the proprietors of this undertaking was held yesterday afternoon, at the offices of the Cor...pany, in Moorgate-street . Mr. W. Collett, chair man of the board of directors, in the chair. The CHAIRMAN, in introducing the report, stated that a few days ago he had personally inspected the works on the line, and he was glad to say they were proceeding in a most satisfactory manner. Upwards of one mil lion of money had been expended in the works, and the consequence was, there was not any point upon the line where the works were not in progress. In a short time, he confidently expected, the line would be opened to Flint, in August he Conway, at the close of the year to Bangor and the whole of Anglesea, and by the close of 1848, or the commencement of 1849, the line would be opened throughout. Government had let the con tract fur the construction of Holyhead Harbour, and from a conversation he had with the Secretary of the Admiralty last night, he understood the works were to be proceeded with almost immediately. Negotiations were pending between the company and Government for obtaining better terms for carrying the public mails, while arrange ments were going forward with the London and North- Western Company for working the line, by which it was hoped that a considerable saving would be effected in the working and maintaining the traffic. Their prospects were exceedingly gratifying. and their could now be no doubt that this undertaking would soon be one of the most flourishing in the country, while the enormous amount of money it had absorbed last year sufficiently indicated its great national im portance. The report stated that every exertion had been made to provide the means for the most rapid and complete execu tion of the works, the payments upon the road contracts alone having amounted, on an average, to 71,7081. per month since the Ist of July last. The average number of workmen employed upon the several contracts has been 12,560. Con tracts had been made for the construction and erection of bridges over the Conway and the Menai Straits, thus com pleting the entire line, with the exception of the extension to the new harbour at Holyhead, which had not yet received the sanction of the Legislature. By a Bill now before Parliament. the Company would take powers to raise an additional capital of 500,000/. ; 200,0001. being required for the subscription to the harbour, under the arrangement with her Majesty's Go vernment, and 300,0001. for the extension of the line to the pier, and the proposed steam-packets. A line of railway to the mineral district of Mold had again been brought forward : it was to join this Company's line about three miles and a quarter from Chester, and the entire length of the fine and branches was about sixteen miles. The capital required was 180,0001., of which the Chester and Birkenhead Railway Company undertake to subscribe 20,0001.; the Birkenhead, Lancashire and Cheshire Junction Railway Company, 20,0001.; and the directors recommend that this Company should subscribe 30,0001. The receipts from the commencement of the Company up to the 31st December,lB46, amounted to 1,793,418/.lls. 10d., while the total expended amounted to 1,399,4901. 4s. 4d.; since the last half-year 593,7651. 15s. 6d. had been spent, and 880,9101. 17s. 9d. received. The cash in hand, after the payment of everything up to the 31st of December, 1846, was ' 393,9281.75. 6d. The report and accounts were unanimously adopted. In reply to a question, The CHAIRMAN stated that the author ised or iginAl o . , l3 ooo ill L by loans, them to raise 2,100,6001. by calls. d orks of the main line making their capital 2,1100,0001. .- They were now going would be completed within that time. to Parliament for extensions a nd by the Bill authorising those extensions, they proposed to raise an additional capital of 500,000/. In reply to a question, The CH:mil/Art replied that the cost of the bridge over the Menai Straits was estimated at 300,000/. In reply to another question, Mr It. Sricpus_Nisort admitted that there were diffi cu l t i es conne cted with the bridge, but he saw or knew of none which could not be overcome. He did not anticipate the estimate would be exceeded ; but still, as every step con nected with the bridge, was novel and never attempted before, of course he could not be positive upon that point. This closed the business of the half yearly meeting. SPECIAL MEETING. The shareholders then resolved themselves into a special meeting for the purpose of considering a Bill "for extending the line of the Chester and Holyhead Railway at Chester and Holyhes.d respectively, for authorising certain alterations in the levels of the said rail'raY7 and for empowering the Com pany to subscribe towards the construction of a harbour at Holyhead, and to purchase, hire, and use steam-boats. And also to approve of a Bill to be submitted to Parliament in the ensuin,2; 6essi,n for mAing a railwal. from Mold, in the county c:f Flint, t-. 3.11 the Chester and Holyhead Railway in parish of Ilawar(ien in the same.county, with branches L.) be calltd tug Muhl ILtil way." The CHAIELMAN stated that the capital of the Bill would be 500,0001., of that sum 200,000/. would be subscribed to• wards building a harbour and pier at Holyhead, 150,000/. COURT CIRCULAR. The Queen and Prince Albert took an airing yesterdig, ac companied by the Prince of Wales and the Princess Royal, in a sledge, the Prince driving. Count Alexander Mens dorff, the Princess Alice, and the Hon. Miss Stanley, fol lowed in another sledge. Sir Frederic Stovin followed in a third sledge. The Eque rr i es i n Waiting, Colonel th e Hon. Charles Grev, and Captain th e Hon. A. H. Gordon , a ttended on horseback. Lord John Russell had a n au di ence o f the Queen Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Kent visited the Queen yesterday at Buckingham Palace. and partook of luncheon with her Majesty and her Royal Consort. . The Royal dinner party yesterday at Buckingham Palace included her Ito al Highness the Duchess of Kent, his Serene Highness Prince Edward of Saxe Weimar, Count Baroness de Alexander Mensdorff, Lady Fanny Howard , Speth, Earl Spencer, Earl Granville, Viscount Ogden, and yesterday. Sir George Couper. The Band of the Coldstream Guards attended during dinner, and performed the following pieces:— Selection, from I. Lombardi ............ Quadrille, " The British Army" Jallien. Fantasia, " Alma" Costs. Waltz, " The Duoro" Labitzky. Polka, " The Catnelia"... Jullian. Her Majesty had afterwards an evening party. The cr pany consisted of the Countess Jersey , and Lady Clenn lua Villiers, Earl Somers, and the Ladies Caroline and r H Lie Colonel the Hon. C. B. Phipps, lord Georg e Lennox, and Captain Francis Seymour . Cocks, Lady Elizabeth Dawson Mr. G. E. , rl t e ! i CharlemontTh succeeded Boyle, a the th e C o G u r n o t o e m s s s u i o cn. f T n he Earl of Morton has succeeded LordirCli.mreodyesriacs th Frederick Stovin has Wat- And S . 1. e s a s the Ladyof il Douroi Waitingbhearat ins to her Majesty. medal Captain the Hon. Robert Waiting to her Majesty. to the Qu e er n . rd e Duchess of Ka t arrived at Her Royal Highness th at half- ast n Clarence House, St. James's, _ P twelve o'clock yesterday, from her residenced S' b Lady rg House, Windsor. Her Royal Higness was _ atten e y Fanny How ard, d Sir George Couper. Boroness de Speth, ala___________=____ interview with Sir Charles Exchequer, yesterday, at his t. The deputation eon dford), Mr. John Leech Stout (Halifax). v(vvi ffitis A toec, i eso ddta d d ißoe e frr p itde3h u msfii en t i edargic.etdiniahoo)cafn:anatcntfiehnrdlo York sh irel Chancellor wmpi . or t ßo.w h fca e nithhini hna S aegedr h .l ( o es r ßtn t r e er Sir Montague Cholmeley had an interview with the Right Hon. E. Strutt yesterday, at the office of the Commissioners of Railways, in Great George-street. Sir John Pelly had an interv d iew with the Earl of Claren don yesterday. 111 r. John Woo , Chairman of the Excise, had also an interview with his Lordship yesterday at the office of the Board of Trade. The Ecclesiastical Commissioners for England , had a general meeting yesterday at oce in Whitehall place. THE OLD -STRE ET - ROAD.--Last before ten o'clock, a fi re b ro k e out on i the premises in t h e occupation of Mr. Ber r y, k nown as the ri Victoa Coffee-house, 57, Old-street -road, , From wh a t cou ld be gleaned on the spot, shortly after the o u tb rea k , it appears night, Ai l a B f M eiv illiG minutes FI" IN the lower room, a strong smell of fire filled th e room and in that while the parties connectedwith the premises were in a few minutes the roaring of flames was heard in the upper part of the house, shortly after which the fire burst through the chamber-windows. Engines were soon upon the spot, and were set to work. The tire, however, prevailed, nor was it quenched before the building (built chiefly of wood) was burned through, and its contents consumed. The adjoining shop, on the eastern side, was saved, in consequence of a substantial party-wall being between them. The fire is sup posed to have originated through some defect in the flue. U a g ll il ud k e N d c i g n olumr laistt°t(sisthe obstruction which It is said that the occupier is not insured. FOOD AND ADJACENT co w O r o i D Es. D — r y T e occurred at Fowlis to the shipment of grain, which has since manifested itself at Cromarty, I nvergordon, Avoch, and Rosemarkie. At the latter places there were assemblages of the people on Monday and Tuesday, and the corn d ea lers were informed that no shipments of grain would be allowed. At Invergordon no grain was allowed to be shipped by the North Star, and a large quantity of cured haddocks were taken away from the steamer. The Swift. London trader, itiTived ;it foie:. en San). fr,igiited, it is K^.' , {, to enTry 4\ . •V cotarteri, but Nv!,,r3 i•u9clint. , , and the ,sei theielore, may he now literally bal d to hoe blockaded trum Aberdeen to Fowlis, and a stop is put to the export trade in corn and fish.—Rosshirc Advertiser. would go towards an extension to the harbour, and the ba• lance would be devoted to the establishment of an efficient seam navy. Four of these vessels were already ordered, and when they were completed, they hoped to per form the jnirney between London and Dublin in the, twelve hours, and to have the privilege of carrying all the Irish mails. No other company but themselves could use the pier, but the harbour would be open to all the public. The amount to be subscribed towards the completion of the proposed Mold line would be 30,0001. _ _ Both the Bills were approved of. The meeting terminated with the customary vote of thanks to the chairman. IRELAND. DREADFUL EFFECTS OF FAMINE. DUBLIN, FEB. B.—The deaths from starvation are rapidly increasing in the western and southern counties—to such an extent, indeed, that some of the local journals find it im possible to publish reports of the inquests. The Sligo Champion reports sixteen inquests, in all of which the verdicts were " death from starvation." . . The Cork Reporter says:— "'I he duty of publishing reports of inquests held on per sons who have 'died from starvation' has now become so frequent, and such numbers are daily reaching us from every part of the county, that the limits of our space do not admit of their publication. Our reporter sends par ticulars of 15 such cases from Bantry yesterday, and men tions that 20 more had occurred during the week ; but inquests could not be held; and we received this morning from Mallow reports of 11 inquests held by Richard Jones, Esq., on persons who had died from want of food. Com municltions pour in from every district, a tithe of which we could not find room for, stating similar appaling facts." The reports from Kerry are equally afflicting as to the ra vag-s of famine. Mr. Stephen O'Reardon, in a letter to the Trulee Chronicle, give the particulars of ten inquests which he held from the 6th to the 31st January, in which the ver dicts were " died from want of food." In addition to these be mentions several cases of deaths from want of food, in which inquests have not been held. The Liin . qford Journal says—" Our poor, notwithstanding all the efforts made to relieve them, are wretchedly off, and throng to the workhouse to finish a miserable existence, as the following facts prove:—" Deaths since the Ist instant (Monday), 44; ditto in the month of January, 116; ditto in the month of December, 71; total, 231." Typhus fever and dysentery are spreading in the most des titute districts. DISCHARGE OF LABOUFAILS FROM THE PUBLIC WORKS. —A general movement is in progress to diminish, to some extent, the enormous amount of labourers on the public works; but in some cases the wretched people have been re-employed, as the only means of saving them from absolute starvation. OUT-DOOR REUEL—THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CLERGY.-- The Cork Reporter contains an address signed by the Ca tholic clergy of the united diocese of Cloyne and Ross, re questing a meeting of their brethren of the other dioceses at Fermoy, on the 11th instant, "to consider the propriety of petitioning Parliament for out-door relief for the able-bodied, as well as for the infirm poor of Ireland, and for an enact ment affording cheap and speedy means to enforce such a righ t." GALWAY ELECTION.—The letters from Galway still speak very favourably of the prospects of Mr. Monahan, the soli citor-general. On tl:e other hand, the Galway Mercury as serts that the llepal candidate, Mr. O'Flaherty, is quite sure of success. That journal states that Archbishop M'Hale is to attend the election, and give his earnest support to the Re pealers. Au address of the Repeal Association, signed by Captain Broderick, has been circulated in the town, calling upon the Repealers to make a vigorous struggle on behalf of Mr. O'Flaherty. CHARGE OF EMBEZZLEMENT AGAINST A STOCKBROKER. —At College-s'reet police-office this day, Mr. Henry La nauze, the stock-broker, attended, and the informations of Mr. Browne Clayton, charging him with the embezzlement of nearly 9,0001. government stock, being taken, he was sent for trial at the Commission. The magistrates consented to take bail for Mr. Lanauze in 2,0001., and fouraweties in 5("01. each, to abide his trial at the next Commission. Fool> litoTs IN COAK.--011 Sat urday:a deputation of the master bakers waited on the magistrates at the Cork police office, stating that from the repeated outra,es on their shops, and depredations on bread carts passing through the streets, they would be obliged to suspend baking for some time, unless adequate protection were given. The bench at once communicated with the military authorities on the sub ject, when it was determined that three patrols should be established in the city, consisting of four policemen and eight soldiers each. EMIGRATION.—A meeting of the operatives of Sligo, con vened by the mayor, was held in that town on Wednesday, when a petition was adopted praying that Parliament would afford facilities for emigration to distressed tradesmen. The Tipperary Constitution says that one of the party who attacked Mr. Wayland, and murdered the policeman, has been arrested, and lodged in the bridewell of Cashel. LOUGHKEA.—The market held in the above town on Thursday last was, we are glad to state, considerably on the decline as to price. Oats, which at previous markets ave raged 1/. ss. per barrel, sold as low as 17s. to 18s. Wheat, of which there was a good supply, also fell a few shillings in the barrel towards evening.— Galway Mercury. REPEAL ASSOCIATION. The weekly meeting of the Association was held this day, Mr. Steele in the chair. The following letter from Mr. O'Connell was read : "British Hotel, Jermyn-street, London, Feb. 6. "My dear Ray,—You have inclosed the following sub scriptions for the month of February :—Daniel O'Connell, M.P., 1/. ; Maurice O'Connell, M.P., 1/. ; John O'Connell, M.P., 1/. ; Daniel O'Connell, jun., M.P., 1/. ; Thirty Grand children, 1/. 10s. ; total, 51. 108. "I am sincerely sorry to inform you that any prospect of relief—l mean of substantial and comprehensive relief—from Parliament is, in my judgment, daily diminishing. There is, to be sure, a great deal of sympathy and goed feeling, both in and out of the House, and generally a very sincere desire that something efficient should be done to relieve the horrible destitution of the Irish people, but there are also many ob stacles, and an unwillingness to place upon the British people the burthens absolutely necessary to give efficient re lief to Irish misery. "In short, there is a great individual and personal sym pathy for our national distress. There is abundant indivi dual humanity and charity , the noblest generosity is evinced by multitudes of the English. They are making large, very large pecuniary sacrifices, and, as far as personal goodness and charity go, nothing can exceed the benevolence exhibited by many classes towards Ireland. "I am afraid of not finding words sufficient to express my strong and lively sense of English humanity and generosity. If the exhibition of these qualities by individuals could save Ireland in her present misery, we should be saved, but I cannot conceal from myself, and I ought not to conceal from the Irish nation, that there is, alas, but little prospect of substantial relief on that—l will call it by its right name— enormously large scale which is absolutely necessary to pre vent hundreds of thousands of the Irish people from perish ing of famine and pestilence. A The Government measures, as far as they go, are good, and their intention to relieve by those measures is apparent; but the measures themselves are not of half sufficient magni tude; it is essentially necessary to have food in the utmost abundance, poured in so as to extinguish the famine prices which devour the people. " I trust in God that my health will enable me to take that active part which I desire on behalf of the famishing people. I intend, please God, on Monday, in sadness and in sorrow, to develop my views of what is necessary to save Ireland—the obstacles in the House of Commons are mani fold, and there seems to be an ignorance of the real state of horror in which Ireland is placed. How I wish that it were possible to make Parliament comprehend the enormous and hideous extent of the calamity which cries for a remedy. " One word as to the Galway election. I need not recom mend to the Association the taking every step- in their power to secure the return of Mr. O'Flaherty for Galway. He is a most valuable candidate, and if he has been slow and late in joining the repeal cause, he will not be, I can answer for it, the less firm and persevering in sustaining and forwarding the cause of Irish nationality. The repeal cause is identified with him. and could not be identified with a more desirable candidate. " I beg leave most earnestly to recommend him to every repeal voter. Believe me to be very respectfully yours, " T. M. Ray. DANIEL O'CONNELL" The approaching Galway election formed the principal subject of discussion, and it seemed to be the prevailing opinion that the Solicitor-General could not hope to succeed in effecting his return, except through the instrumentality of bribery and corruption, and it was urged that the Govern ment ought, in deference to purity of election, to withdraw their candidate, rather than succeed by a resort to the means which proved so fatal to the Whigs in 1841. At the termination of the proceedings, the rent for the week was announced to be 28/. 9s. 6d. The meeting then adjourned. THE POSTAGE CONVENTION : ENGLAND AND PRUSSIA. There were on Tuesday issued, by order of Parliament copies of the Postage Convention between the General Post-office of the United Kingdom and the General Post office of the kingdom of Prussia (signed at London, Ist of October, 1846) ; and also copies of the articles agreed upon between the two Post-offices, for carrying into execution that Convention (signed at London the 14th, and at Berlin the 21st of October, 1846). They were presented to both Houses of Parliament by command of her Majesty. The following are the chiefly ma terial articles as respects the charges to be made for letters : The British Post-office shall pay to the Prussian Post oflioe, for postage upon unpaid letters originating in Prussia, addressed to the United Kingdom, and upon paid letters orig inating in the UnitedKingdom,lddressed to Prussia, the following uniform rate : For every single letter, .not exceeding half an °anon in weight, fuurpence, internal Pruss ian the transit through addition to this rate, twopence i b not ex the territory of the Netherland! For every letter exceedingo/bi postage. For one ounce, exceedingtworat one ounce, and not ex- For every letter I - r rates. for or w il e s: bt,u and ceeding two ounces, two ounces, and not ex ceedingand so in proportion, three " a i led for every ounce. two rates being' every letter e :X 9 e: i ldiz es, Post -office shall pay to* th© British ho T he Prussian Mee for the postage upon unpaid letters originat ing in the United Kingdom, and addressed to Prussia, and upon paid letters originating in Prussia, addressed to the United Kingdom:— For every letter not exceeding half an ounce, one rate of sixpence. For every letter exceeding this weight, and not exceed ing one ounce, two rates of postage. For every letter exceeding one ounce, and not ex ceeding two ounces, four rates. For every letter exceeding two ounces, and not ex ceeding three ounces, six rates, and so on in proportion, two rates being added for every ounce . SUNDAY TamNs.—At a meeting of the town coun cil of Paisley on Thursday last it was resolved—" That it is the opinion of this council that, in the present circumstances of society, it is indispensably necessary to the comfort and health of the people, more particularly of the labouring classes in all populous districts, especially in the vicinity of large manufacturing towns, that railway pAssenger trains should travel on the morning and evening of. Sunday, and that such are called' for op the principle of humanity, and may, in an especial manner; be classed amengst the works of necessity and mercy; and that a Memorial, founded op this resolution, be addressed to the directors of the Etlinburgh and Glasgow Railway, Glasgow, Paisley, and Ayr Railway, and Glasgow, Paisley, and Greenock Railway." iffE SMALL DEBTS ACT.—The appointments of Judgcs e been made, and lire expected to be gazetted forthwith. Among- the appointments -will be foUnd three sergeants-ot-law. After the 15th of •'March, ..actions brought in the superior Courts, for debts not exceeding 201., will entail on the plaintiffs the law expenses. Both plaintiff and defendant may be examined under the Small Debte Act. put eir ti nt