The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1844-05-07 00:00:00

I I May 7, 1844. CORRESPONDENCE. MR. COLVILLE'S MEASURE AND THE LIVERPOOL BUILDERS. TO THE EDITOR OF THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD. SIR,—I n my last I endeavoured to show the unjust and unconstitutional character of this measure. I shall now confine myself to its effects. There are two points of view from which this measure, in its effects, must be considered—the first is as it relates to the landlord only—assuming that he could not be able, by enlY means, to reimburse himself of the rate imposed tiPon him as owner. The other point of view is, as it Would operate upon the cottage tenant in case the owner s hould raise the rent to cover the projected dedu lion from his profits. I shall now apply myself to the first thisof the question. I would, by the way, observe, that is the only point of view in which the legislature can consider this measure. I should suppose that Mr. Colville does not even think of the possibility of the landlord ob laining the rate from the tenant in any way, for that would be fatal to the enactment, inasmuch as it would amount to a declaration, that a rate upon the owner instead of the Occupier, would be inoperative, the legislature will there fore proceed upon the assumption th,t the landlord only will be affected by the impost. The most singular feature of this measure, as regards 1 ; ; 8 oPeration, is its inequality. I would illustrate it thus, is a , shopkeeper deriving from his business, say £3OO per L an nurn, he occupies a house wbich is assessed at £35, and 1 pays in poor ra te s upon the said house (calculating at the Present rate) £3 15s. 10d. ; B is a builder, receiving annually £3OO in rents from cottage property, and upon which tie liv es be also occupies a house assessed at £35, out h av i ng to pay poor rates upon his income, as well as o Pon the h ouse l e occupies, he trintributes annually to t he Poor fund £36 odd, but the income of B is, to a great extent, nominal, he has a mortgage upon his property, the annual interest of which is £lOO, which, deducted lotTethe gross rent, leaves him only £2OO income. A and : n would stand thus—A with £3OO per annum to live that I onlywould Pay £3 15s. 10d, poor rates, whilo B. with ,0.30 income, would have to pay £36 odd. I protest ? not intend any invidious comparisons; all I wish m ea u demonst rate t h e o b nox i ous i nequa li ty w hi c h t hi s w s ure would e ff ect. T he test and princ i ple of the poor act is ability to pay; yet here is one class that would Pay la per cent. upon his in-ome, while another, with less 'lncome, would be compelled to cont-ibute to the tune of 12 per cent. I maintain that any enactment operating so unequally among individuals of equal means, as would this, must be radically bad. It would be a disgrace to the statute book of England, unjust! intolerable !! But its effects upon cottage buildings would be synonimous with a prohibition upon that class of builders. Cottage build ers in this town are, to a great extent, without capital— their ownership is almost nominal. The mortgagee is in Many cases the bona fide owner. There are scores of houses which, if brought to the hammer, would not realize more than the mortgage money and expenses of sale, yet the mortgagee, the wealthy man, would be exempt from 'this rate, and the cottage builder w0,.1d be the care- worn toil-worn slave, paying a roor rate upon a portion of the Mortgagee's income, and also the taxes of his tenant. There are peculiar burdens upon, and difficulties belong ing to, small property which many entirely overlook. As for instance, the great wear and tear, losses from rents and empty houses to an extent unknown to the owners of tt lalarger property. Well, take this into account, and add to the mortgagee's interest at 5 per cent., and a property that and there will be no difficulty in at once concluding, THE if to all this there be superadded a poor rate UPON build tow E n "Lt R - RNTAL, the days of cottage building, in this at least, are numbered; in fact, the sooner the existe will thene his trade the better will it he for him, and he be divested, or rather robbed, of his means of I'M But the effects of this measure would be, in a ---"Y ow cases, a sp ec i es o f re fi ne d crue l ty . T a k e t h e ea , ,e of wid with four or five children li v ing upon the sur plu s trepn°tal of property left to them by a hard-working. indus 11s hils')and and father; a tax such as the one under consideration would be to them, not only oppressive but ruinous. ei It h as b een sa id , th at proper t y h as i ts d ut i es as a aits rights. The converse, however, is equali y true, acre s Alt a rights as well as its duties—the one equally as as an .4 as the other. I denounce Mr Colville's measure, sonl,Myrtsion of those rights—the poor rate being a per ..and not a property tax. The occupier is the pro- F ar r object for a parochial assessment. The owner, there distributed r e a 'wno may be holding ten cottages, would have to pay amount that should, by law and equity, be although in its imposition amongst ten individuals, not t In Pecuniary circumstances, it may be that he is sedulously shilling better than any one of his tenants. s tru ibiset k a t li em e r s . tai n from declamation, as I really dare not btenne for to a description of the measure. Is it pos tbe c • is it th Colville sees as other men see? What is d which the cottage builder is to do penance dePrived of his only means of sustentation ? Why prod' ull sien f at he should be singled out for legislative °pores -3' as useful and us deserving as any other class of right?ceis? I see no reason why he should be thrust from ghroaa of industry. He has a right —a God-given of whZ, l ive and to thrive by the sweat of his brow ; but may lir. Colville would, it appears, (unknowingly it then de prive him. I cannot, however, trespass tor nPon Your space. 1 must reserve the subject of P b u u b il l d ic in g. societies and the cottage tenant to your next abouldat3n. if the insertion of another letter from me and be consistent wi'h justice to your other numerous intelligent correspondents. Liverpool, 4th May, 1844. LETTER PROM AN ORANGEMAN. ILLAUDATUS. TO THE EDITOR OF THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD. SlR,—Permit me through your widely circulated jour- Dal to expre•s'my surprise at the aspersions which hive been thrown upon that truly loyal Protestant and inde pendent body—the Orangemen of England. The time is now arrived when it becomes the duty of every tree born and loyal subject to asserts his rights in a land where true Protestantism ought to be triumphant, and to be supported up in all its purity. As brethren we are united to a man to uphold the dignity of our monarch and the constitution as by law established. Are we then to be branded and held up to scorn be cause we are loyal, and supporting those endeared and fundamental principles, " Our gl,trious Constitution in Church and State.' Or is there a determiliatien—as it Would appear —to root out ail those bright jems for which our forefathers suffered at the stake, and to let rampant bPon us the horrors of popery, and the does of war ! If such be the intention, we wish them t 9 speak out, and not as the bight assassin to stab us in the dark ? We invite every man who is a lover of his country, and of the true Protestant church, to read our laws, and to Judge for himself whether they are not found on the true Pula of a Christian spirit. That all power and authority have their origin from God, and that one creature is not .I.laced over another, except by the prmidence and will of z i HI who i s over all, cannot be denied, and by conse- Mine all the authority we have over men by our laws is ritv ' m Proved for G o d ; an d th e c hief objects of autho i,to o ur institution, as may be gathered from our laces, tbabe "Use to our fellow creatures, and to restrain vice enco urage virtue. This, therefore, is my resolution, Poiswed ;h at soever authority the most high God shall be to put upon me I will look upon it as my duty to fur ther these glorious objects bv extending the blessings of the 3 Orange Institution. Yours, &c„ AN ORANGEMAN. Mr. Youatt ; i n one o f hi s orations to t h e mem b ers o f th e Veterinary Colle ge, o b serves, " t h at b y t h e improve ients in modern c h em i stry, the medical pro f ess i on are enabled successfully to treat diseases which were previously l oPposed as not within the reach of medicine." This truth has been manifested for many yews: hut in no in- Stance of greater importance to mankind than by the discovery of " Blair's Gout and Rheumatic Pills."—See advt. MR. SAMUEL LOVER'S FORTHCOMING ENTERTAIN ME. NT IN LivEßFoot..—We f u ll y s h are in Lire pleasure the announcement of Mr. Lover's appearance in Liver pool, in his new and fashionable entertainment , entitl e d " Irish E ven i ngs, " seems to created among our contemporaries and the public generally.l n a lo ca li t y like this, where party feeling runs so higlias occasionally to render even intellectual enjoym ents i naccessible to one or other portion of the comnnunly, it will be gratify ing to our readers to learn that Mr. Lover's entertain ments are entirely exempt from all party allusions what ever, and that they are in reality what they profess to be -- an accumulation of anecdote, song, and legendary lore --the production of one of the most original and variously Rifted minds in the annals of a country prolific beyond all others in the growth of genius, like that so character istically developed in this minstrel poet. With the ready allantry and tact proverbial in all his brother-h. od, Mr. oqover intends, we understand, to select the tion vi of !Ongs from the vocal talent of each place illustra he may , sit Provincial tour. We hope he will be :is fortunate 8 respect as he has been here, where, we believe, he ' c lued the services of Miss NV hitnall and Mr. 1.10, tenet„llA i n•—At the toilet, no greater anxiety is more beeoQ felt than the consideration of perfeciing that ni t l rn ament, the hair! The delightful and fasci admirable r Ps of a fine head of ha r being the most " indiv idu " r „ ec oration of either sex. The features of e yes l n 'sy be irregular and ill-proportioned, or the attribtv_t-i-ssive, but with the possession of this essential Many tiii_no co untenance can look absolutely plain. Like the th ir 'T of much importance, but lightly estimated, ?WI it s (froth a variety of causes) is frequently neglected, . decay is often the first symptom of declining rou nd when such is the case, the sufferer anxiously looks th2or some effectual remedy to arrest its progress. Prornjiiumerous compounds constantly announced for "rvive , the growth, or reproduction of the Hair, few Whilst f l e _ven in name, beyond a very limited period ; paraii i 'W AND'S MACASSAR OIL. wiih a reputation The B i n ' , ed, is still on the increase in public estimation. tto..•te gllar vi rtues of this successful invention for re- are . t„'„' Preeervin and " 9, beautifying the Human Hair, e very f a ,.. t known and appreciated to need comment.. 4 JoYs, i t B of the high and distinguished patronage it rnern,, s eeneral use in all countries, together with nu kith ‘ 1 ! tesri moni oy e . u rities a..s constantly received 'n its favour, are vni.e-tearrliedat Which stamp its supe , ior excellence tri art of a similar nature. Being universally 4 .! onpri„:,;'l consequent great demand excites the cupidity .rash sh opkeepers, who vend the most spurious ten h • .8 the ..ine arti c l e . ualsi unc c , IllacaB.car Oil: whereas the s w. , 011y the invention and property of A. SoN, and th e amalgamation of its cosily t 7 a rtiv e a":.erulis, (solely imported by them,) renders s •"Y attempt 'o th, ovin g th discover its component parts — t,_ titl e ot e imposition of all other articles bearing Rea wo r d ' Macassor Oil." The genuine article ha rYtt, 8 • ID ePer. A, O.sOWLAND'S MACASAAR OIL" on t All tilers are FRAUDULENT COUNTERFEITS ! TOWN COUNCIL PROCEEDINGS. On \\Tednes.liv, the u.ital moltlity m-etlog of the Council was held at the Ttivv,i_h•ill. The MAYOR took tie chair at eleven o'clock, time there were 23 members in their retTective THE WATCH COMMITTEE. -TUE MAGISTRACY. - ORANGEISM AND RIBBONISM. Mr. ASPINALL asked permission of ti n ' May•)r to have the proceedings of the Watch C maort-e read in the first instance. He made the applivaiion in consecineime of be ng obliged to leave town, on business of a melancholy nature, at one o'clock, and as the chairman of the com mittee would be unable Mr. G. H. LAWRENCE exer,ssed willingnessto attend the Council that day. to con ent to the a pplicatio •, under t.e circumstances stated. Mr. H. HORNBY thouAt it ex'rmn-ly desirable Oat the proceedings should he read in the presence of a full Council, as they involved considerations of a somewhat unusual character. lie understood that observations were to be made respecting the conduct of the magis tracy. Mr. ASPINALL said he was in hopes that discussion arising out of the pr..c edings would he postponed for the present, as a case was about to be drawn up for the opinion of eminent counsel, touching the powers of the magistracy and the committee. Mr. 1 - 10aNBY, under these circumstances, observed that his objection was entirely withdrawn. Mr. HARBORD said he should feel It necessary, for the protection of his own character as a public mai!, to bring forward a subject in which he wasiodividually concerned, and upon which he expected a certain member of the Council, then in his place, to satisfy him on a particular point. Upon the motion of Mr. AsetsrAtt., the proceedings were then read. It appeared from those proceedings that the Mayor (having heard that some of the police-officers of the borough were members II Orange and Ribbon So cieties), together with Mr. Rushton, had come to the determination, that any constable who was a member of an Orange or Ribbon Society, was deemed by them ineli gible for the sit cation of a police-officer in the torn of Liverpool, and unfit for police duty. Inquiries were then directed to be made ; Mr. Whity, Mr. Miller, and Mr; Dowling were consulted ; and the head constable reported that seven of the force had acknowledged themselves to be Orangemen, and that others were members of three Catholic benefit societies. A meeting of the borough magistrates was then called, at which the foregoing facts were detailed, and at which the following resolution, pro posed by Mr. itu•hton, and seconded by Mr. BAton, was adopted :—" That no man who is a member of either an Orange or Ribbon Society shall be permitted to belong to the police force of this borough. and that alt members of the present force now be!onging to either of those so cieties shall be required forthwith to withdraw fr 'm them, and that in case of retu.al the Mayor and magistrates will feel it their duty to dismiss them from the force." An amendment was moved by Mr. Hodgson, but; for the want of a seconder, fell to the ground. Mr. Miller then read the resolution of the magistrates to the seven Orangemen in the force, who immediately declared their willingness to withdraw from the Orange Society, but at the same time reque ted that copies of the rules and orders of that society might be laid before the Mayor and ma is trates. Then followed a correspondence which had taken 1 place between the Mayor and Mr. Aspinall (the deputy chairman of the Wateh Committee), touching the pro ceedings; of the magistrates, which proceedings, it ap peared, were not, in the first instance, cominotticated to that committee ; and lastly, there was the fol owing reso lution to which the Watch Committee had come :—" That the Town-clerk be requested to prepare a case for the opinion of one or more .rltinent comisel as to the powers of the Watch Committee and the justices. in respect to the diani-sal of the constables, and on al points which have arisen or may arise as to the management of the pelice,' or the separate duties of this committee and the justices in relation thereto; also upon the points now rai-ed by the proceedings Of the justices in relation to the exia Dim; of Orangemen and Ribbonmen from the police as ineligible; and that moil the opiwort he received, the further consideration of the master and the proceedings of the committee be posteoned " Mr. ASPINALL, seconded by Mr. Thornhill, having moved the ro: , tirination of the proceedings, Mr. HARBORD said that perhaps that was the time for him to make a statement relative to the proceedings of the Watch Committee. in which he was individually con cerned—(hear). As a member of that committee, he availed himself of the opportunity to bring under the notice of the council a certain report, which appeared in the Liverpool Journal of Saturday last ; but, before he ventured to read any portion of that report, he had to request the permission of the Council to put a question to a member of their nody as to whether what was stated in the Journal was substantially correct. He hoped he should be a lowed to do this, as his character, as a public man, was very much involved at the present time. The Ms_voß.—Certainly, you can ask any question you , like ; but, you know, it is optional with the parties to answer VOll. Mr GLADSTONE.—IS it the pleasure of the Council that Mr. Harbord should have this permission ? He wants to out a question to me, to know Ahe'ber a report is correct, before he has read that report. Mr. HARBORD said he had nut mentioned Mr. Glad stone's name. and that if patience were evinced, the re port should be read. To ensure the attendance of Mr. Gladstone. ha had sent a note to that gentleman the day before, I Ring him that he was going to put a question to him in Co u ncil. Mr. Gbdstotie must know that other people had ears and understanding as well as himself: and it was therefore considered necessary to communicate with him, so as to ensure his attendance there that day. Mr. GLADSTONE--I assure you I have not attended here in ptu , uance of your summons. Mr H ARBORD.—I hope if I act as a gentleman to wards Mr. Gladstone, he will act the same towards me— (hear). I have not summoned him Mr. GLAnszoNE —There is an insinuation here. Mr. Fl ARBORD.—No ; I say it would be an ungentle manly act, on my part, to summons him, and that I have not done so. ThP MAYOR.--I understand Mr. Gladstone to say that he did not attend in consequence of your summons. Mr n ARBORD,—I say I trust I know how to conduct myself as a gentleman towards him ; and 1 trust he will he able to act as a gentle man t owar d s me . Il e h as at temp'ed twice to interrupt me. I can assure the council that, althow.:h my feelings are very much hurt, I came here not. to show the slightest acrimonious feeling to wards any person, hut rather inclined to believe that what Mr. Glads'one has said of me was owing to a want of judgment. awl n ,, t with any intention to hurt my feeli , gs. —(hear, hear). I have been determined for twelve months past never to allow my natural feelings to he brought into action to the des'ruction of my better judgment; and I o h f op r e ev A e l na.e Mr. C f -r a fa l ifiese,olinnegawi,l)lrlitvieatttolkneonwtertthat l a a n m y n d o e. t s ir re ma to n insult. But, as an in d ependent member of society, shall ake all the stens I can to protect my character as a public individual. Having s'at-d thus much, I now turn to the report in the Journal, which purports to be a re port of a meeting of the magistrates on business con nected with Orangemen in the police force: and from this it anpears that Mr. Gladstone expressed his entire con currence in what had fa`l,n from Mr. Rehbone, and said " he c tu-idered it highly improver that such a per son as Mr blarbord, the Grand Master of the Orange Lodges, should be a member of the Watch Committee." I bee to ask Mr. Gladstone if that is substantially cor rect ? Mr. GLADSTONE.—Ts t the pleasure of the Council that I .houlti reply to the question ? I shall take the vo•e. of the Council on that point. (Oh !) The NI AYOR.— I think it optional with you to answer. Mr. H. LAWRENCE.—It is not for Mr. Gladstone to Ask the pleasure of the Council on such a point. He has been asked a question. and it is for him to answer it or not, as he pleases ; but we are not constituted a Council to inre , t'eate such a matter. (Hear, hear.) Mr. GLADSTONE.—WeII, then, I have no hesitation in saving that if this had been a matter which referred to my conduct, as a member of the Council, I should have thought it necessary to give Mr. flarbord every informa tion, so far as was consistent with what is right and proper, connected with the matter. But, as this information re lates entirely to my duty as a magistra'e, I conceive that I am now acting in j. , stice to myself and the other ma gistrates of the borough when I say, that in no way hold lire myself amenable to Mr. liarbord in the matter, I must distinctly and unequivocally refuse to give any in formation as to the report, whether correct or incorrect; and that, taking my stand on that, I shall make no fur ther remarks on the subject. Mr. HARBORD.—I should not think of remaining on the Watch Committee until the pleasure of the Council was known ; and I now challenge Mr. Gladstone to move that I be suspended from the committee. The M AYOR.—Yon cannot make that motion. Mr. H ARBORD.--I trust I may have that justice done to me. lam connected with a public board, and if a sus picion rests in the breast of any man that I am incapable to discharge its duties properly, put me in a position in which+ I may set myself right. I must either retire or be select to taunts. The M AYOR.—If there is no personal, there certainly is no legal objection to you. None was ever stated, or at attempted to he stated. Mr. ISAAC HOLMES thought the cases analogous. If an individual, who happened to be a member of the Orange Society, should not he in the police force, surely the Grand Master of the Orangemen should not be on the committee. Mr. Harbord's challenge was fair. (Hear.) Mr. G. H. LAWRENCE suggested to the Council the pr 'priery of asking Mr. H3rbord if he thought himself a member of an illegal society. Mr. HARBORD believod that be was a member of a body who were exclusively loyal, and who were constitu ted to uphold the laws of the country and the Protestant government. He should say that any sound Protestant was in his heart an Orangeman. (Hear, hear.) In fact, all the laws and regulations of the society were laid open to the Public, wh o were i nv ited t o j o in, merely that they might be banded t oge th er t o ma i nta i n th e laws andinstitu tions oc the country : and therefore, with these objects in view, he was under the impression that it was not only a legal hot a legally constituted body. (Hear.) Mr. 11. HORNBY thought the discussion out of order, and that they were not justified in questioning any pro ceedings which might have taken place before a body of who met without reporters being present. Mr. HA Ill!ORD hoped his position would be considered by the council. If a common policeman, who was a re enerned fitanzeman, was considered unfit for the force, surely he (Mr. II.) who was an honorary member of an Orange must be e qua ll y disqualified f rom s i tt i ng on the Watch Committee. He hoped those who objected to him would have the moral courage to rise and object to him. He eh .11euged at , y one to do it then. Mr..ll..lloaNny said th a t if i t was competent to make th e uhipetton, be, for one, would have the moral courage t o do so, not ecause Mr. lla.bord had discharged his du de, un'ai,ly, for he had always discharged them very pro perly. LTVERPOOL STANDARD. In M evert :—But you c twee :it cannot be a ground of distill iliticati and theref ire it is not competent for any u,, rn ter 0' the council to lug- it as one. Mr. PARKER to kn troin th- Town-clerk wh I her the Orange Society was a leg it society, or whe ther it was nit. Mr. THONIPSON thought it better to postpone the latter Ref: t rri magistrate s d tihn t e l c i a a t u s t e i o th o e ' y e I tivit he c •rt iiiity should n o t he the person to yore tor Mr. Ilarbords removal because he b -kneed to the Or tege is'ocee y. Mr. I'HOMPSON exiirees,d his regret that neither Mr. Gladstone nor 't o y of the other magistrates in council hid answered Mr. Harbord's question. He expected that the magistriree, feeling tie position in which they had placed the Watch Committee, would have given every informa tion in their power. That committee felt that they were placed in a very stranee p isition by the proc.-edinge of the magistrates, which hail taken place bellied their backs; aed the only informatioe they could get, as to why the proceedings were not communicated, was that the chair man of the committee. (Mr. Alderman Lawrence) was out of remit —a reason which conveyed an imputation of a grave nature on the deputy-chairman, Mr. Aspinall. He could assure the magistrates that there was no - , lied never had been, any wish on the part of the Watch Committee to act otherwise than cordially with them. The proceed ft a e ms madegii tr a o t n e se, supposehowever, t theyhat assumed we re n s o u t e d h iliappearancegs o si roes of acting with the Comm ttee. This sort of aliena tion amongst the two bodies might be prejtelicial to the peace of the town. Quarrels hal already been springing up between the members of the force in con-eqoence of the reeeet eritichrOt of the magistrates; and inst inces could be cited to shot the unsat.sfactory state of things, caused by the interference of that body. It was on these grounds that he hoped the magistrates in council, or some one or their behalf, would offer seme etiplenation for their proceedings, the causes which had led to , hoaegtoceedinge, and also the reasons why they had no , been croximniii= cared to the Watch Committee. (Hear.) Before he sat down, he wished to give the nialistrates the following piece of information :—The committee had written to the astrict Master of the °ranee Lo ages, for information with regard to a procession in the town last month, which he believed was the foundation of the proceedings of the magistrates ; and the enswer was to the effect, that the procession on Easter Monday was not a procession of the Orange Seciety,—that such processions were diametri cally opposed to the rules of that society,—that there was only one Orangeman in that procession, and that he had since been suspended for having taken part therin. (Hear, hear.) The MAYOR said, that however much he might regret that any act ut his, or any pr.ceedings of the magistrates, should have f illed tp receive the approbation of the Watch Committee, or any portion of the Council, it was never- napless very satisfactory to him to know, that whatever had taken place was under the advice of the Town-Clerk. It was also satisfactory to him to believe that the magis trates were only prompted by a sincere desire to preserve the peace of the town : and he had further satisfaction of believing, and indeed of knowing. thet what they had done had met with the approbation of the Home Secre tars', who had been informed of every thing as it occurred, and from whom a note had been received expressive of his approval. With respect to a want of courtesy on the part of the magistrates, he was sure that if the Watch Com mittee knew what transpired, they would not entertain any such feeling for a single moment. He might be al lowed to state how it originated. Mr, H. LAWRENCE thought that if it was to be dis cussed hereafter, it was better not to discuss it now. Mr. HaRBORD said it was absolutely neeessety tie sub ject should be gone into, for at the t ery ime the Mayor's comneuriication was received by the Watch Board ihat Orangemen, were not to be appointed, the Mayor recent mended one himself. (A laugh.) The MAYOR.—Not knowing it. of course; I wasn't aware of it, I assure you. Tue whole of their proceed ings had their origin in the procession to which Mr. Thompson has alluded. He bad been waited on by Mr. Rushton, who made certain representations. The Town clerk was sent fer ; and they advised together. He (the Mayor) suggested the propriety of communicating with the Watch Committee at the first meeting. (Hear, bear.) The object, however, they hart in view was simply that the thing might be kept perfectly quiet—that no one should know it, not even the bench of Magistrates. However, the instructions given to Mr. Miller and Mr. Whitty came before the Watch Committee • the thing got out; and then the Magistrates were called together, and the resolutions, already read, passed. Mr. ASPINALL said, that the Town-Clerk, when asked why he did nut recommend the Mayor to send for the Watch Committee, said that he had not been sent fur until everything was arranged by the Mayor and Mr. Rushton. The TOWN-CLERK assured Mr. Aspinall that his an. swer had been wholly misunderstood, for that he had never made any such statement. The MAYOR thought the Town-Clerk must have been misunderstood, for he had rung the bell for him the mo ment Mr. Rushton mentioned the nature of the business upon which be had come to the Town-hall. Mr. ASPINALL said there was no mistake; for that he had put the question to the Town-clerk twice on Satur day last, and that the answer was, that everything had been arranged by the Mayor and Mr. Rueliton before the Mayor sent for his legal adviser. (Hear, hear.) The TOWN-CLERK again assured the council that he had been, in a most extraordinary manner, misunder stood. He had no hesitation at all in avowing that he had been called into the Mayor's room at an early stage ; that he found Mr. Rushton with the Mayor; and that the representation respecting the Orangemen bad been pre viously made. Before he had taken any active part in the matter, be thought it necessary to consult with Mr. Shuttleworth, who concurred with him, that Orangemen, as well as Ribbonmen, were unfit persons to be members of the police force; and when he joined Mr. Rushton and the Mayor, he found them in possession of information that there was ground for believing that there were sixty Orangemen in the police rorce. His infere nce was, for he knew it not of his own knowledge, that Mr. He Rushton had made that representation to the Mayor. matter, arid said his wish was, that until should proceedings no repre sentationsthere be had arrived at a proper st age, C C mmittee, ne the object then referred at length to the part he . l i ta t d he takenin tlie made to the at a proper period, they should or a Ribbonma was a pro perof a man being an Orangeman h t t i r l t e t t , prepared, if the him to • councilwa s g t to effect ucnhdofeo t the e t oh b i ss u t s ad i ti n es business dismissal. be in t el e was informed se induced di that e; be Ribbonmen,decidedly w o ' f a s o g p u i t i ne unfitth a t for an the force. as well as a Mr. ASPINALL.—Iou had better postpone that point for the present. Mr. Hensoare—The Town-Clerk came to that conclu sion before he ever saw the rules of the Orange Society. (Hear, hear.) The TOWN-CLERK. —I came to it from the general re presentations made of the society, and also from a full knowledge of what took place regarding Orange Societies in parliament in 1835. Mr. TURNER.—Did the Town-Clerk advise the Mayor and Mr. Rushton to issue the ori!er regarding Orangemen in the force, and to act upon that order before ever it went to the Watch Committee? such owwee rr ea of fotti.tt) the often placed The TOWN-CLERK, without immediately readying to the question, went on to say that, according to the mu nicipal corporations act, the Watch Committee had the appointment of the constables, and the power to frame regulations as they should deem expedient for the preven tion of neglect, and that the constables were required to obey the lawful commands of the justices. In cases of disturbance the constables were under the complete order and controul of the magistrates, without any right on the part of the Watch Committee to interfere. Mr. TURNER,—You say the police are bound to obey the orders of the magistracy : are they not equally bound to obey the orders of the Watch Committee ? The TOWN-CLERK.—Not in cases of disturbance. He thought that, as magistrates were often placed in situations of great peril, they required to have a force under them upon which they could rely ; and, believing it to be per fectly clear that the justices had the power to take into consideration what constables should be dismissed, he tt c eh o re n o tt i f t e h r e e considered, stipendiary i a n yl o a_ somrmt e thari a bsgee s :ri e astult i ttri n rrhieebtades:, which there was reason to believe there were sixty Orangemen in the force, that the charac nlhanidaaiasemilntsc.bdgtotrhonignaeticoitpeatfindoekihtfirentecarghuenmiepndwlttoahosvevsriutobhija.le,tfcotjoriietsrh. y one believed jurisdiction first could pursue astdhi juris diction t n ipoo t n h w e teor o other , — that dismissal the thing to a conclusion, and that, considering the pOsi whhaidcha mrigaghitsttroasteese that often placed, they, f c all oti o tol u 'ne ld risn ;ely upon. It must be obvious ry man th .t those were riots, t e occur whi a c g h ain, it would be a source o! ob jection to the force if Orangemen were called to act against Ribbonmen, and Ribbonmen against Or Under o if c o ca n s e io o n f s, those circumstances, he certainly lead -I.l9emen. advised the Mayor to pursue the course already detailed of the situation in which magistrates concluded by reading from Mr. to the Council. He Justice. Littledale an ac countplaced when called on to act •in cases of riot and dis turbance. magistrates to dismiss, but that the re,. • o ution of the Mayor and Mr. Rushton was considered an interference with the placers of the Watch Committee. MI. TURNER said no person doubtedottihueera warmly of the zeal and attention ma n if este d b y the sepoonike mittee in making their appointment s t o the force, and. said it was of the utmost consequence that good will should exist between two such bodies as the magistracy and the Watch Committee, so intimately interested as both were in the maintenance of an active and efficient police. The TOWN-CLERK said that if he thought tha resolu tions an interference with the rights and privileges of the Watch Committee, he never could have advised such a mode of proceeding; but he retained the opinio n up to the present moment, that there had not been any inter ference whatever. Mr. BLAcKsußN:defended the magistrates, and thought they were perfectly warranted in coming to the resolu tion in question. Mr. H. LAWRENCE was of opinion that the Present discussion would not be productive of any good, an d that a pitiful procession of thirty boys, with a cracked drum and a yellow colour, was not sufficient to throw the town into a ferment. Mr. BIRKETT characterised the proceedings of the ma gistrates as a " tempest in a teapot." Mr. HARBORD said he 111.c1 received the first intimation of the magisterial proceedings from a poor Orangeman who was going to be quietly dismissed, and who came quietly to his house at ten o'clock at night, In t e ll h i m that he and others were to be quietly dismissed, and then be (Mr. H.) quietly mentioned the fact to Watch the Committee, and they quietly took it up, and now it With being qui e tly brought before the Council. (H ear, hear, and great laughter.) Mr. PARKER said that Mr. Thornhill could tell the Council that questions of religion and politics were never asked the candidates for situations in the free by any of the members of the Watch Committee. If they were to have tests of the kind, let the Test Acts be revived. The committee never thought of putting such queries. If they got men with characters for sobriety and honesty, that was all they looked for and all that they considered necessary. At the same time he did not agree with those m,mbers of the Council who had been casting blame on toe magistracy. He thought the magistracy deserved the complimentary letter they had received from Sir James Gr , h tm ; for what might not have been the result, if they had overlooked the circumstance, or if they had not made the wonderful discovery, that there was the large number of seven poor Orangemen in the police force! (" Hear," and a laugh.) He had been informed that morning that there was some treasonable correspondence found out by the stipendiary magistrate (renewed laughter) ; and, un der these circumstances, the bench ought to be lauded, instead of censured, for their great exertions in making the discovery. Considerable stress had been laid on the word " Orangemen" by Mr. Blackburn, and only once in the course of his speech had that gentl .man mentioned the word " Ribboumeo". Now, he (Mr. P.) thought the question put to the Town-Clerk a very proper one— namely, whether the Orange Society was a legal or an illegal society ; and he certainly expected a decisive an swer ; but the Town-Clerk said. " No, I am not in a po sition to answer such a question." (Hear, hear.) Then the Town-Clerk went into a long explanation, and mysti fied the nritter with SQW deep law (a laugh); but no stra:ghtforward answer had been given to the important qu:istion touching the legality or illegality of the society. When political feeling ran so high, and when Orangemen were considered as firebrands in the town, he certainly thought it necessary to make a passing allusion to another view of the subject. He contended that there were a great many liepealers in the force; and Men who contri buted to the O'Connell and Repeal funds ; nay, they had magistrates who presided at certain meetings, and who were themselves Repe'alers. Mr. EVAigS.—Who are they? Mr. PARKER.—Look at their actions. Nr. THORNHILL was of opinion that if those discus• sioii and interferences were to go on, the force, in a shor tirn-!, would not be worth a single halfpenny. ._ Mr. LAce said, the real question was, whether it was proper to have any man on the force who was a member of any society except a mere benefit club. He was of opinion it was the very ivorst thing; for they would find that, in alt cases, the police force would be sue to serve any other member of a secret society. He quite agreed with the opinion of the magistrates, and he would say that neither freemasons, oddfellows, or any other secret society should they belong to. He would have no connexion with any secret society. It was entirely incompatible with the proper discharge of their duty. He thought the Mayor, under the advice of the Town-clerk—for he must bear all the Mayor's sins in this respect—had gone too far in coming to the resolution. The Town-clerk had made some good observations, and if the matter had involved a riot next day, it would have perhaps been the right course; but when three or four days did not signify, he thought all the magistrates should have been called, and then a com munication sent to the Watch Committee. The magis trates had clearly the power—there was no doubt of that. Mr. Li ORNBY denied that there were any Repeaters on the magisterial bench. After some further discussion, Mr. AsettiA Le replied, and gave notice that he should move at the next meeting, that Mr. J. B. Lloyd be a member of the Watch Committee, in place of Mr. Bout flower, deceased. He said, that if th e cour t esy d ue t o the etch Committee had been shown to them, it would have been found that an inquiry had been instituted, and that the number of Orangemen, Ribbonmen, and Repeat ers in the force was so trifling as not to be worth the trouble of noticing. He was glad to hear from Mr. Ter • nrr that the stipendiary magistrate, and other individual magistrates, had denied that any discounters was meant; hut the proper course for them to pursue would have been to send a letter, to the deputy chairman of the Watch Committee, on the subject, as they had sent other letters. This would have done away with a great deal of ill fe,l ins. and placed one party as well as the other ha a proper position. The proceedings of the committee were then confirmed. FINANCE COMMITTEE. The proceedings of the Finance Committee, which re commended a site fora Sailors' Home near the slate yards at Prince's Dock, were read and confirmed. Upon the motion of Mr. Lloyd, the recommendation to increas , . the salaries of the District Surveyors, Mr. Rishton and Mr. Woods, was negatived by a majority of 20 to 19. THE DOCK BILL. The Liverpool Dock Bill, as it passed the Committee of the House of Commons, was then taken into conside ration ; and the following amendment, moved by Mr. Gladstone, was adopted by a majority of 20 to 16 :—" That in case of the refusal of any vessel to move. (for no other cause than the repairing or cleansing of the docks,) which shall be in the course of receiving or discharging cargo, the expense of such removal shall be borne by the trus tees, but that no vessel in such case shall claim more than 40s against the trustees." The bill was then approved, subject to this amendment ; the Coroner's accounts were referred to the Financial Committee for payment; and the Council adjourned at twenty minutes after four o'clock, to Wednesday next. LOCAL NEWS. The British and North American royal mail steam ship Britannia, Captain Hewitt, sailed for Halifax and Boston on Saturday last. The foundation stone of a new Roman Catholic chapel was laid wiLti the customary ceremonies on Wednesday, in Edmund-street. It is to be called " St. Mary's." At the late Kirkdale Sessions, Edward Sidebottom, Esq., Aqueduct, Staleybridge, qualified as a magistrate for this county. Mr. Gilmour, whose name is well known in Liverpool, was to have been tried last week, at Edinburgh, on a charge of forg-ry ; but, at his own request, the trial has been postponed. CHRIST CHURCH SCHOOLS.—On Sunday, £212 7s. 8411. were collected at Christ Church, Salford, for the Sunday and Day Schools, after two sermons by the Rev. H. Stowell. FATAL ACCIDENT ON THE CANAL.—On Tuesday last, James Hughe: was severely crushed by falling between a flat and the wall of the canal. A police-officer went for a surgeon immediately after the accident, but when he re turned, the deceased was dead, Verdict accordin4ly. SUDDEN DEATHS.—On Tuesday last, Henry Valentine, a young child, died in its mothers arms in Wavertree-lane. On the same day also, Daniel Andrews, a child six weeks old, died in bed by its mothers side. Verdict's in accor dance with the evidence in both cases. THE ST. HELEN'S RIOTS—At the Kirkdale Sessions, on Tuesday, Peter Dagnall, who assaulted and wounded Mr. Joseph Storey, in the market place on the day of the colliery riots, at St. Helen's was found guilty, and sen tenced to six months' imprisonment. DOCK COMMITTEE.—At the meeting, the only public business trinsacted, beyond the mere routine proceedings, was the reading of a letter from the Liverpool and Man chester Railway company, as to the putting down of a rai!way on the east side of the King's Dock, which was referred to the Harbour-master's Committee. CITY OF DUBLIN STEAM-PACKET COMPANY.—The halt-yearly meeting of this company was held at the corn pal,y's office on Wednesday last, and the usual dividend of 3 per cent. declared out of the profits of the half-year. The report appeared to give much satisfaction, and the change of the hours of departure of the admiralty packets was expected to be favourable to the company. THE NORTHERN CIRCUIT IN 1800 AND 1814.—Ac cording to the Law List for 1800, there were sixty-three barristers on the northern circuit, including five silk gownsmen, viz., Messrs. Law and Park, and Sergeants Cockell, Clayton, and Heywood. The Law List for 1844 names two hundred and t wen t y - one b arr i sters on the sane circuit, including thirteen silk-gownsmen, viz-, Messrs. Armstrong, Baines, Dundas, Knowles, Lewin, Mart.", Roebuck, Starkie, and Wortley, and Sergeants Atcherley, Murphy, Thompson, and Wrangbam. DINNER TO CELEBRATE THE OPENING OF THE BIR KENHEAD WATER WORKS.—Yesterday evening week, the Birkenhead Gas and Water Company entertained the men in their employ, along with their families, and seve ral officials and gentlemen of the township, with a sump tuous dinner, in the open air, on the grounds attached to the Gas Works. The dinner, which was of the most recherchi description, was provided by Mr. Gleave, of the Adelphi Hotel, Woodside, and gave general satisfac tion. MR. A. ESKELL, SURGEON DENTIST.-It will be per cei‘ed from an advertisement in another column, that this gentleman, one of the wea-known firm of Messrs. Eskell and Sons, of Sheffield and Manchester, has taken up his permanent residence amongst us, and we doubt nut his name being almost a sufficient guarrantee for respecta bility and professional skill he will obtain an extensive practice. Those who require the beneficial and beauti fying aid of the Dentists' art, cannot do better than con sult those whose long experience entitles them to the patronage of the public, PANORAMA OF CHINA.—We have been exceedingly gratified by a visit to this exhibition at the Liver Theatre, and, in referring our readers to the advertisement in ano ther column, we have no hesitation in saying that all who visit it will feel the gratification that we have done. The scenes which compose the most popular parts of China, more particularly those connected with the late war, are splendidly painted, and, partaking of those rich and mel low tints for which the Eastern views are so remarkably adapted, have an exceedingly admirable and lively appear ance. The whole panorama occupies 4,000 feet of can vass, contains upwards of 5,000 figures (some of th em large and effective), and is, we learn, the work of a townsman, on whom it reflects the greatest credit. FRACTURING A POLICE-OFFICER'S ARM.—On Tues day last, George Jarrett, John Godfrey, and Thcmas Jones, remanded from Thursday, were brought up on the charge of breaking the arm of police-officer Davies, No. 43. It appeared that on Wedne s d ay t h e pr i soners, with a number of prostitutes, were driving about Dal e - s t ree t, Tithebarn-street , and Oldhall-street, in a shandry, at a furious rate, and that they wete stopped by Inspector Abram. Davies, and other officers, who determined upon taking the whole party to Bridewell, in consequence of their disorderly conduct. Davie s t oo k h o ld o f the reins of the horse to lead it, when one of the prisoners lashed : h e a nimal so brutally that he plunged, at the same time knocking down the officer, and the wheel passed over his arm, which was severely fractured. He ako received a coutusion on the head, and the other officers bad a very narrow escape. The prisoners were sent for trial. NEW PATENTS.—Amongs the p 'en , s recently om tained are ihe Ai lowing :—Mr. Ecma.alv. the firm of Messrs. finry,(2•,tis, and Kcanedv. d,f t'iis tow", engineer, and rhinnts Vern , m, also of this town, troll ship-builder, for cenain improvements in t' , e building o: construction of iron and other vessel-, hr n.tvigation on water. Mr. George Morton, of Dah---street, Liverpool, for a design of a new conztruk,tiora for bo.hes of vehicles. Sealed 4th April. A Foecen ORDER. —On Saturday a fellow, named William M`Cartnev, was brought before Mr. Itush , on on a charge of having forged an order. in the name of Jame M'Kenna, auctioneer, Tithebarn-street, for 7?, , yards of moleskin, 3 yards of calico. and some thread Ile took the order to Mr. Robert Mnrrav, draper, of 7, paradise. street, from whom he received the ar isles, the value of which was 10s. sd. ; but, in a few days after, it tur ed out that M'Kenna. who had been in the habit occasionally of dealing with Murray, had never signed the order, nor R, llt the prisoner on any such errand. He was committed for " SWING" IN LIVERPOOL—Mr. Maekrell and Mr. James Ainsworth, joiners and builders, at Boole, have received letters bearing the signa ure of this formidable gentleman, announcing his intention to set fire to their premises unless they discharge some wirkmen in their employ, whom he calls " black sheen." They have, h ow . ever, shown ro disposition to c imply with the request ; on the contrary, they have offered a large reward for in formation which may end, perhaps, in the detection of the writer. Mr. Mackrell, on a former occasion, by his energy and resolution, broke up a very formidable Conspiracy. HEARTLESS ROBBERY BY A DAUGHTER.—A poor old woman from Drogheda, appeared at the police-court, on Friday. to charge her daughter, M try Ann Garritty, and a man named Peter Kelly, with having robbed her of £22 10s., all the money she had in the world. She stated that this money was the accumulation of her savings for many years; and that on Wednesday last her daughter took it all, and afterwards decamped with the man Kelly to Liver pool, where she found them on Friday row ning. A sum of £6 14s. was found upon them. Mr. Rushton said he had no power to deal with the prisoners ; but he directed the commissioner of police to afford the old woman every assistance in conveying them to Ireland. BURGLARY.—Some thieves obtained acre=s to the house of Mr. John M'eutcheon, mariner, 96, Woolfe street, on Thursday night last, and stole some gray calico, lead piping, and other articles. They obtained access through the cellar hole. Police-officer Jackson (289) saw three thieves early on the Friday morning carrying some thing, and with the assistance of Dodd (321) succeeded in apprehending Robert Quick and Robert Leyland. who had some of the articles stolen from Mr. M •Cincheon's house in their possession. Robert Webster, the third party, was not t a k en till M on d ay morning. )n his road to bridewell he told Inspector Towersrm that lie supposed it would be a seven years' job for him. The three prison ers were committed to take their trial at the next assiz,s. RAPID TRANSIT AND Low CHARGE.—We observe, by the advertisement of Mr. Braithwaite Pooh.. the agen' for the merchandise department of the Grand Junction Railway, that the maximum rate of charge for the carriage of goods beween this town and the metropolis is now re duced to 4s per cwt. When we consider that the time now occupied in transit is only a few boors, we must view this low rate of charge as a great b on to the public, and as a striking contrast to the rates charged a few years ago, by canal, of Sc. and 10s. per cwt., when the time occupied in transmission was be'ween a fortnight and three we,ks. What a convincinz urn of is this of the rapid progress and advantages of railway communication to tr-d , and com merce! No doubt it is found mutually beneficial to all parties. CUSTOMS FRAUDS IN LIVERPOOL.—THE QUEEN V. WILLIAMS AND BROCKLEH URST. —ID the Court of Queen's Bench, on Thursday, the deendan.s in this case, who w. re Liverpool merchants. and had been convicted at the List Liv.-rpool Assizes of a conspiracy to defraud the revenue ot rmrtain customs' duties, by taking certain quantities of coffee out of bond wilhout payin% the duty, were brought on for judement. The sentence of the Court was, that Thomas Williams should be imprisoned in her Majesty's gaol at Ki.kdale, Lancashire, fir six calendar months, and that Brocklehurst should be im prisoned in the same gaol for tw lye calendar months, and that in the mean time they should be committed to the custody of the keepers of the Queen's Prison. AWFULLY SUDDEN DEATH OF A LADY AT WALLA SEY.—An Inquest was held yesterday week, before H. Churton, Esq , Coroner, on the body of Mrs. Briggs. It appeared in evidence that the deceased lady was in health and spirits on Tuesday morning at half past six o'clock, when her husband left her to go into his garden. On his return, in about an hour, he found her Icing on the floor in an insensible and dying state. Dr. Dunlevy was immediately sent for and used every exertion, but in vain —the vital spark had fled. On a post-mortem exatninati on being instituted, it was discovered that a vessel in the brain had been rup.ured, thereby producing a .oplexv. The Jury returned a verdict in accordance with the evi dence. The deceased was a young lady only very recent. ly married. _ ALLEGED ILL-USAGE BY THE POLlCE. — Among.the business at the police-court, on Friday,. was a complaint by a person named Alexander Bryce, againg constables No. 511, and No. 438. Bryce was stopped by the officers a few minutes before twelve o'clock on Thursday nig)t, with a pick in his hand, in Chris'ian-street. and being in liquor was conveyed to the Rose-hill Bridewell. In going down the steps, he fell, as he alleged, from a shove given him by police-officer No. 514, whereby he was consider ably hurt upon the head and one of his legs. He was soon afterwards discharged from the hridewell, it being ascer tained that he had been sent to fetch the pick by his mas ter, Mr. Mills, of London-road, from Mr. Higson, a pub lican, Scotland-place. It appeared from the testimony of the bridewell-keeper, that Bryce fell without being at all touched by either of the officers, on which Mr. Rush ton said he was very sorry that Bryce had sustained so much injury, b , it at the same time he was not prepared to impute any blame to the officers, for they had done their duty correctly. The complaint was therefore dis missed. Stile LAUNCH.—On Saturday last Messrs. Joseph Steel and Son launched, from their building-yard, Baffin street, a splendid new vessel, of the following dimensions: namely, length from stein to stern, 120 feet ; breadth of beam 29 feet ; depth of hold, 20 feet ; and 520 tons bur den as per register. She is built of the best English and African oak, copper-fastened, and is a first class twelve years' ship For symmetry of m0c1.4. excellence of work manship, adaption to carry, and sail n 4 qualifications she is not to be surpassed. Precisely at twelve o'cloc& the order " Down daggers," was given, when the ship glided into her destined elcment, amidst the joyous cheers of an immense mult , tude of delighted spectators, without the slightest accident having occurred. She received the narn- of Chat lotte, that being the name of the lady of J. Higginson, Esq., of the firm of Messrs. Barton, Irlarn, and Higginson. She is intended for the East India trade, and will be commanded by Mr. Cork hill. The Mersey, Birkenhead steamer, was in attendance with the owners and a party of friends, who, having seen the Charlotte safely into dock, proceeded to Runcorn, where they spent the day to the satisfaction of all who were present on the interesting occasion. THg GOVERNOR OF THE WORKHOUSE REPROVED. — On Wednesday last, Richard Edwards, a pauper, was charged before Mr. Rushton, by officer Galloway, of the Wot khouse, with refusing to work. The prisoner said he wished to see the Workhouse Committee, and had an order signed by Mr. Gray, the overseer, for that purpose. He had shown the order to the governor of the Work house, who refuse I to permit him to see the committee, and he therefore refused to work until he had been brought before the magistrates. It having been proved, by Mr. Gray and Mr. Heathc,te, that the prisoner's statement was correct, the governor, who had been sent for, said he was aware the prisoner had an order, but he (the governor) had exercised a discretion in the matter, having heard the committee were averse to entertai •ing such applications. Mr. Rushton said he and the magistrates were most anxious to support the authority of the governor, but on this occasion they considered the governor had neglected his duty, in not allowing the prisoner to see the commit tee, he having an order from the overseer, and that he had no right to exercise any discretion on the subject. To the prisoner Mr. Rushton said—You are discharged ; let there be no mistake about that. THE NORTHERN CIRCUIT.—Mr. Justice Coltman. and Mr. Baron Rolfe, on the return from their Northern Cir cuit, which commenced on the 17th of February, and did not terminate until the 13th ult., immediately informed the Secretary for the Home Department that it was im possible for any human exertions to do justice to her Majesty's subjects on such an extensive circuit : and that, although they had sat early and rose up late, they had been obliged to leave causes untried at Durham, at York, and at Liverpool. To remedy this great evil, we understand that the government propose to have recourse to the in judicious expedient of adding the county of York to the Midland Circuit—a measure manifestly unjust. The bar of the Northern Circuit have a claim in the nature of a vested interest in the district through which their labours have extended, and the fairest way to them, and the most satisfactory to the public, would be (as the barristers, silk and stuff, are sufficiently numerous) to make a division of the present circuit between them into two circuits. There would then be an average of 150 causes on each cir cuit, which to the bars thus formed on the new circuits would briog a profit nearly equal in amount to that which each barrister in business now receives; and iu general each of the circuits would have a greater number of causes than falls to the lot of any other circuit. SELECT VESTRY PPROCEEDINGS.—On Friday th e usual fortnightly meeting of the Select Vestr y w as held at the Parish-offices, Fenwick-street , the Rev. Re ctor Campbell in the chair. All the members were present, with the ex ception of the Rev. Rector Brooks, Mr. Deakin Mr. W. Henderson, and Mr. Ferguson. The minutes and pro ceedings of the last meeting, and of all the committees These d. at At thethe expense sametime of 2s. were read and confirmed. From the Wor khouse report, it appears that there were fur the week e nding 20th April, 1 ,1 73 . l perpaupers, i c n o s t t h huo6u 14s. last year there were 1837 P aupers in the h ouse ; and they at an expense of Is. 6d. per head higher, and th e wee kl y out l ay £37 more than last year. There were 3515 cases of out door poor for the week ending 27th April, at the cost of £390 13s. Bd. At the same time last year there were 3460 cases, which cost £386. Ils. 2d. Mr. H. H. Rad cliffe son of the Town-clerk, Ras elected by a majority of fifteen to seven to the situation of House-surgeon to the Workhouse, in the room of Mr. Nightingall, resigned, at a salary of 1:150 per anum, With apartments in the house. There were six candidates for the situation. A retiring pension of £5O per anum was voted to Mr. Nightingall, subjected to the sanction of the Poor-law Commissioners. for his arduous services since 1823. Mr. John Blackburn, of Castle-street, was unanimonay elected a member of the Select Vestry, in the room of Mr. Green, appointed Over seer : and Mr. John Briscoe of 01(4,811-street, was also elected a member of the Select Vestry, iu the room of Mr. Henderson, appointed Overseer. it. A t/DOCK, OF' IMF STER.— e has bet . rt ofd-ased to 1..1f ter the dignity of Knigh , i•o o' t Un ted Klogd me on Mr Maddock, of the B-ril-t.a' C‘vd Serv . ce, Adeit , on t f th , . late Rev. Thomas M.,,hiock, a h i ghly respet-ted Pr-he, dart, of our ratio drat, and Rt , ctir of the Holy T.ini•y in this ei'y. Her Nlaj .sty has cal.fcrred this honnarthe dist netion tin Mr. id nadock i t conside ration of hi , 1 ow aid faithful s'rvic s as a in her Indian Empire; and more partirul-irly on v.,!c-.onrit of his well-conducted fu!filtnent of a di, 1 , vatic min i n to China, entnst-d to his charge by the Inman Gorern r wat during the late war. We are bight.; g - r , t . fied to see a native of our 'orient city thus notic and hone the dis tinction may le4il to further lionoitis. whi , h, from all we can learn, ar. so richly de-' rved y the present Sir Thos. Heriierr Wald irk. Sir Thomas went out to India in 1814, and ha.t since held severil official appointments, of great trust and confidence, to the satisficton of the au thorities. He was Secretary to the Government, and accompanied the Governor-Geiser-1, Lord Ellenhorough, throughout the arituosis and soccessrr.l campaign of Aff ghaniatan, a, d now ho , hlc a seat it, the Su; , reme Council of India —Chester Courant. [The pres , nt Sir Th 'lnas Herbert- M,iddock is grandson to the late Rev. Tnomas Math'ock, rector of Liverpool so f,,r hack as the year 1782, and brother to our townsman, Mr. Edward D. Maddock, of Eve,ton of aform l e r : t e nh u e, E mß s k r ,, s ,_:o . - - u,"l o h : C,, S o.h : io t e t i : i.i r e c r l h a .a y ulT fi bl v ,: e efin it r , s q ft, u ,wi e l s ;i : dss owere the bodyheld b e t four miles to the westward of the Northwest g Lightship,bou was picked up by the ha ills belonging to the flat Sarah, and brought to the Seric.unbe-slip. It appeared to have been some time in the water. The only article found in the pockets was a knife. The decra•i.d, who was about five feet nine inches in beght, had shoes and stockings on, blue cloth trousers, blue and white -triped shirt, blue cloth wai-tcoat, an oil-cloth jacket, and a red comforter. —The second inquest was al-o on the body of a nom un ku Avn, which wit biol.] floating in the ;Mersey. was picked up by a hihermal, and conveyed to land There was a large cut on the crown of the hesd, which appeared to have been caused by a fall or a blow, and there- were also several contusions about the uoper part of the body. A comb, a knife, a piece of metal, and a stiff-wr for a neckerchief. were found. The deceased, who had dark sandy whiskers, and was about forty-five yea's of age, had on a pa'r of cassimere trousers and jacket, two white shirts, and gray stockings.—Tne third was on Vie body of a male child, who was born with a caul. and was suf focated in about ta'ttity milures after the birth by the caul having extended over the m)uth and prevented res piration.—The fourth was on Vie holy of a child, two rears of age, nam-d Henry Charles Workman, who, whibt 'playing in the yard attached to the Church of England Schools, in Cornwallis-sareet, fell bwkwards, and struck his head with such ri,letree' against , he pave. ment that it caused a severe contuoon on' the skull, and produced death.—The fifth and last war on the b idy of kobect Griffiths, a chill six weeks old, who, whilst in bed w'th his parents, was suffocated by his father, who was intoxicated at the time, bating placed his left arm across its month. Verdicts in accordance wirli the evi• deuce were returned in the several cases. • VESTRY MEETING AT RUNCORN. —A meetirtoof.the rate-payers was held on Thursday last, in pursumiet of a requisition addressed to the churchwardens ind oversetrs, to call a meeting 'o consider the police of allowing tba'as sistant overseer in I collector of the rates to hold tile' office of constable of th parish, or any oth:r office, out the expr.ss consent of the rate-pavers ; and the expo-- diency of resorting to measures to effect a separ t eel o 3 the offices held by him. Mr. John Crippin, churchwar den, took the chair. Mr. F. Pitman said that no one in dividual could now peer:rot the duties of Ole offices held by Mr. Harding, ant their union was contrary to law and usage. The population, which eighteen years ago did not exeeed.3,ol:o; had now increased to 8,000. The sir nations hel tby Mr. Harding should he divided into t:Tee, a the office of assistant-overseer kept separate iron all oth-rs. —Mr. Whiteway said the meeting shon'd consider h. , w ly.st to separate the offices, so as to promote the interests of the town.—Mr. Johnson said if Mr. Harding Pas ever so active he could not discharge the various duties with satisfaction to himself. He moved a resoluiion to the effect that the offices could not .11 discharged satisfactorily by the overseer; that the duties of overseer and also of constable were incompatible, and th .t the appointment of Mr. Hardin: as assistant overseer and roll. cror be revoked and made vt.id. This was seconded by Mr. P. Ward.— Mr. Pitman recommended that the town should be placed under the County Constabulary Act.—Mr. Whiteway warned the town against such a step. He said constable Mr. Harding had done his duty: there were few towns of the size in which so few depredations had been committed. In the division of the offices alluded to there would be act increased expense of .£loo.—Mr. J thnson was in favour of the County Constabulary Force, notwithstanding the additional cost.—After some discussion an amendment was carried, to the effect that it was impossible for Mr. Harding to discharge the duties of all the offices he held; that those of assistant-overseer and constable were incon sistent with each otter, and that a committee (named) be aupointed to consider* the best means to separate the offices held by him, and to report the same at a future meeting. Several °tiler names were added , to the com mittee, and the motion was unanimously carried.—The meeting then separated. OMNIBUS TO H A LE.—OnWednesday last, being May day, the new omnibus, recently procured by a number of spirited gentlemen in Hale, started for the first time with passengers, from the Angel Coach-office, Dale-street. for the delightul village of Hale; and notwithstanding the great race at Chester on the same day, which drew thou sands of our townspeople to the " ancient citie," by rail way, road, and water, it was crowded to repletion both inside and out. The machine itself was constructed by a celebrated builder in Derby, and is at once elegant, easy, and commodious. It was decorated with flowers and evergreens round the roof, forming the words " Rale," &c. in perforated lattiee-work, surmounted on each side by the crest of the Blackburne family, of 11-.le Hell. in gilded metal—namely, "the Cock and T. uropet." The horses, (four fine animals,) in new and handsome harness, were also adorned with ribbons, b autilul real flowers, &c. ; and the whole was certainly the handsomest turn out of the day, albeit the other omnibuses wire more or less ornamented. A large crowd witnessed the departure of the machine from Dale-street, and it attracted much attention as it passed through the several great thorough fares southward. The coachman, a smart and steady young man, is not only a ca ital whip, but plays the key. bu;le with great ease and execution—h Ding the reins in one hand and the instrument in the other. The day was delightfully fine, and at Hieh Park, Aigbortb, and every hamlet and lane ends on the way crowds were stationed, and heartily cheered the new " bus." At Garston the assetnolage was greater than we had conceived the entire population to amount toy especially as the males- were nearly all at work. The drive thiougliout was both rapid and delightful, and Hale, beautiful in the young verdure of spring, turned out her whole population to welcome the first arrival with passengers of the handsome machine, which promises to form an agreeable connecting: link. both for business and pleasure, between the two localities, as well as with Speke and other intermediate places on the route. We hope and trust that those who delight in peaceful and rural scenery, and the beauties of a fine an cient village,—yet unmarred by the smoke of a single fac tory chimney,—will avail themselves of an early excursion by this conveyance, which they will find no cause to re pent, while, at the same time, they will encourage and promote the establishment of a conveyance undertaken for the convenience of the public, rather than with a view to pecuniary gain. The drive back was accomplished in about an hour and a half. The distance (by Aigburth) is, we believe, a little over eleven miles. THE SCOTCH CHURCH, OLDHAM-STREET.-011 Tues day last, a meeting of the members of the congregation took place in the church, called by the Rev. J. R.. Welsh. After prayers the Rev. Gentleman , read an address which he had received, signed by upwards of 500 of his hearers, to the effect that in consequence of the late proceedings of the established Presbytery of Greenock, they availed ut that opportunity to express their respect and attach ment to that reverend gentleman ; and gratefully acknow ledging the usefulness and acceptability of his ministry, thereby declared their determination to adhere to him as their minister, and to do all in their power to secure a continuance of the valuable services he bad snauspicious ly commenced amongst them. Mr. Welsh expressed his gratitude, and alluded to the nature and solemnity of the pastoral tie—explaining the circumstances in which he had come to Liverpool, he having been ordained by the Presbytery of Lancaster, to whom he became bound to render obedience. His whole conduct had proved that he was desirous to preserve peace with all men., and faithful ly to discharge his duties ; but he had nevertheless been interfeered with in a way that could not but retard his usefulness. Besides anonymous letters he had received communications from Messrs. Loundes, Robinson, and Bateson, solicitors of this town, which be read. One of these stated that as he had resumed duty as reirester. altho' he had ceased to be a licentiate of the Church of Scotland, they (Messrs. L. and Co.) were instructed to proceed against him by information and bills in the High Court of Chancery. In connexion with these documents. he begged also to read an extract of a letter from a friend in Glasgow, to the effect, that the free congregation of St. Mathew's had unanimously elected him their pastor, and were now expecting his reply that they might proceed with the call. Nothing he added would be further from his mind than a desire to leave his present congregation ; but there were circumstances which might justify a change, and even render it unavoidable. The prese n t o ff er h a d come to him unsolicited—it was a call in Providence he could not disregard, and, in,his present position, barrassed and annoyed in every way, and having his usefulness most seriously interfered with, he could not but think it his duty to leave his congregation, however much he felt at._ tacked to them. He must, therefore tell them distinctly ; that he could not remain, in his present position, among them ; although it was right for him to add, that his views, of duty would be materially affected if they could do any, thing to alter that position. Having made these state ments he had done all that belonged to his sphere of duty, and he now left the case in their hands. Mr. Welsh then pronounced a blessing and retired. The congregation however, remained, and Mr. Kirk being called to the chair, a resolution was proposed to the effect that having heard Mr. Welsh's determination not to meet a, suit in chancery, and sympathizing with him in his con. scientious scruples, they resolved with reference to the le gality or illegality of the claims set up by those opposed to him, but solely from their desire to retain him as theit pastor, to commence a subscription, for- the perPosa " building a new place of worship for him in Liverpool The motion also went to the appointment of a committee to superintend the subscriptions • and to provide a tempo. rary place of worship, an d t o follow out to a successful termination the object they bad in view. The motion was carried unanimously, and a committee was appo . Subscription papers were then brought forward n - ilk j ' the the course of about half an hour, the sum of 9 .eg t - ii .f,r/ subscribed towards erecting a church, to be leAqiderdo ' -- -.(i, 1 with the Synod of the Presbyterio ChurchfiiCKirii44 '•:'.. lt it . 7 . - i_ _N •-•:..- ~ s, '..:,,. ' :: ( 1 77 1 ,-/..'. N i' rr •• v -4 !ster r of Rev. Vor obb,