The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1844-06-18 00:00:00

flupertai paritanunt. HOUSE OF LORDS.—MosoAY. The Earl of STRA DBILOKE moved the thril nndirg of the Night Poaching Prevention Mil. Tie Earl of RADNOR was of opinion, the the best way of getting rid of all legislation on this Eulject was to ie lieve t'te necessities of the peopla ny re:liming all the strictions on the importation of the necessaries of life. —Unfortunate labourers were driven to these practices Lai distre-s. Earl FITZHARDTNGE sa7d, he was as anxious as his noble friend to alleviate the distresses of the poor. This bill, however, he thought a very nec-s-ary one. It was a measure that would not interfere with the honest and industrious poor. He could most truly sate that, dutir , g an experience of 40 years in the county of Gloucester, he had never known an instance where a party convicted of poach n: was driven to the coannti , sion of that offence through distress. or who could otherwise boast of a good character. The bill was then read a third tune, Tue Copyhold and Customary Tenure Ac's Bill w•as read a second time. The Law of Libel Act Amendment Bill was committed prc forma, and was reported with amendments to the house. HOUSE OF COMMONS.-MONDAY.. The Eastern Union Railway Bill was read a third time and passed. The Market Ilarborough and Coventry Roads Bill was read a second ►ime, and ordered to be committed. Lord ASH LEY and other members presented numerous against the Dissenters Chapels Bill. Sir R. PEEL, in reply to Mr. I'. Borthwick, sa;d the British government had received a communication from Don Carlos, who stated his object was the tranquilization of Spain. The proposal of Dun Carlos was, that if his proposition was agreed t), viz., the marriage of his eldest son with the Queen of Spain, he (Don Carlos) would -make certain concessions. As regarded his own rights, these concessions, however, were not clearly pointed out. -The British government were content with forwarding these communications to the government of Spain, with out expressing any opinion as to whether they were likely or not to quiet the public mind in Spain, the government (A that country were the best judges. Mr. P. BORTIMICK considered the answers of the right hon. baronet were not satisfactory, therefore he should proceed with the motion of which he had given notice. • On the order of the day being read for going into com mittee on the Sugar Duties Bill, • Mr. EWART rose and brought forward a resolution to reduce the duty on foreign sugar to the same rate of duty as colonial sugar. Mr. GOULBORN excused himself from dealing with this motion at any length, on the ground that this proposal had been so often discussed on former occasions. He ad mitted that, it the revenue would allow it, a very large re duction of the sugar duties would be desirable, but not an entire withdrawal of protection by the equalisation of all the duties on that article. On a division, Mr. Ewart's motion was defeated by a majority of 259 to 56. The Dissenters' Chapel Bill went through committee pro forma, and was ordered to be recommitted on Thurs day. _ _ .... The Joint Stock Company's Bills were read a second time. After some discussion on the Vestries in Churches Bill it was ordered to stand over for the present, in order that the parishes of England might learn the nature of the measure, and have the opportunity of expressing opinions upon it. • HOUSE OF LORDS, TUESDAY. The Earl of Fowls, after presenting a great number of petitions against the union of the sees of Bangor and St. Asaph, moved the second reading of the bill which he had introduced, to repeal so much of the act of 1836 as provided for the union of those sees. The noble earl having urged the unanimity of the vast number of peti tions presented to the House, and the universal feeling of the clergy of North Wales in favour of his proposition, proceeded to answer the objections he anticipated. It might, he said, be called inconsistent to repeal part of an Act so lately passed ; but then it would be worse than in consistent not to repeal it, if it were found to work a great evil. But he had a precedent for his motion. Within a short time after the original Act was passed, it was thought desirable to repeal so much of it as related to the union of the see of Sodor and Man with the see of Carlisle. Why, then, should that which had been granted to the entreaties of the inhabitants of the Isle of Man be refused to the en treaties of the clergy and inhabitants of North Wales ? The great increase of the population in Wales, the extent of the surface over which the bishop would have to exer cise his spiritual functions, and the natural difficulties of the country, were all potent arguments against the pro posed union of the sees. The Duke of WELLINGTON, on the part of the govern ment, opposed the bill. The arguments used by Lord Powis, he said. might be very good azainst the Act of 1836, but now that the Act was in operation, and that the orders in council consequent of it had been promulgated, it would embarass the Government and her Majesty in council, if a bill to repeal part of this Act were to be passed into a law. His Grace continued :—" The orders in council were made in 1838, six years ago, and the orders having been duly registered as required by the Act, my noble friend now comes for a repeal of the Act, which is the foundation of all those measures. My noble friend has argued the question as if nothing had been done, and as if we had now to consider whether these sees should be united or not ; but if be comes forward to repeal the act uniting the sees, on which are founded the other measures under the order in council, he ought, at least, to have provided all the means and machinery for which the orders in council, under the authority of the Act of Parliazuent, have made provisions ; but on these points my noble friend and his bill are entirely silent. The Act, however, and the orders in council, provide not only for the pecuni ary means, but also for the political situation of the new Bishops of Ripon and Manchester. It provides that if two new bishops are to be appointed, two of those who had formerly seats in this House shall be withdrawn, and unite the sees of Bristol and Gloucester, and secondly of St. Asaph and Bangor, thus leaving the number of bishops in the House the same as before the passing of the Act. My noble friend should have adverted to this, and seen that his measure would make an organic change in the constitution of this House, and in the number of spiritual peers. It makes the augmentation, but no provision in which those bishops shall be called to take their seats in the House ; no provision for rotation if the number should not be greater than at present, nor for any con sequences of making one more bishop. Considering the necessity of providing for these points, I intreat your lord hips to remember the difficulty in which you and her Majesty in council will be placed if you give a second reading to this bill." The noble duke moved that the bill be read a second time that day six months. The Bishop of BANGOR warmly supported the bill. The Archbishop of CANTERBURY admitted that the feelings of the clergy and laity of Wales were in favour of this measure ; but argued that the opinions of the commis sioners were against it, and against the expediency of maintaining the sees separate. The most reverend prelate opposed the bill. _ _ The Bishop of St. DAVID'S charged the Government with want of regard to the grievances of the Welsh people. He knew that representations made to the Government previous to the recent disturbances in Wales had been discharged, and the principality now felt the bitter effects of that discharge. The Church in Wales was labouring under the effects of that general disregard. The Earl of WINCHELSEA warmly supported the bill. The Bishop of LONDON opposed the bill, on the ground that, if carried, it would endanger the creation of the new see of Manchester. The Bishop of EXETER supported the bill, and argued, that it was in committee on the bill that the inconveni ences mentioned by the Duke of Wellington, and the fu ture provision for the Bishop of Manchester would have to be considered. The Bishop of SALISBURY adduced his own personal experience as an instance of the mischief and disappoint ment attending the unions of sees. lie had, he said, the misfortune of having cast upon him the duty of two dio ceses ; most unwillingly he had been induced by the example of those, to whose judgement and experience he felt great deference was due, and by a supposed state of necessity in the Church, for which he had been told no other remedy could be found, to undertake the care of another diocese in addition to that which properly belonged to him. Now. he could assert, that the union he was concerned with had given satisfaction to no man, and least of all to himself. The burden of it distracted his attention from the duties of his own peculiar diocese : it over weighed his spirits, and it broke his health. He had earnestly desired to be relieved from that burden, but for that relief he had petitioned in vain. The clergymen of his own diocese might well complain that a portion of their care and Alperntendence which were due to them had been diverted from them ; and those of the other diocese deeply felt, he knew, that they were deprived of the care and oversight of a bishop residing amongst themselves. The right reverend prelate assured the government that, by rejecting this measure, they would greatly shock the feelings, disappoint the hopes, and shake the confidence of those who were the firmest friends of the Church. Greatly would the Church rejoice —exclaimed the right rev. prelate—to see a government strong not only in finan cial resources, not only in its success in both Houses of Parliament, but strong also in those higher attributes which attached to the Government the affections of the people. Greatly would the Church rejoice to see an ad ministration strong in that faith which can trust for a blessing on all religious questions ; strong in that hope which can animate to meet difficulties ; and strong in that enlarged charity for the souls of men, which would make them see it to be a statesman's duty to bring reli gion home to the doors of the people, and that the offi deney of the Church of Christ was the only sure founda tion alike of social order and eternal peace. The Earl of H A RROWBY likewise supported the bill. Their Lordships then divided — For the second reading .. For the Duke of Wellington's amendment.... 37 Majority against the Government —l2 The , bill was read a second time. HOUSE OP COMMONS.—TUESDAY. M r. BowricwicK moved for a select committee to in quire i nto the operation of the Anatomy Act, but the motion was ,resisted by Sir 3. G ra h am, and refused on a division. Mr. WARD then brought on his annual motion for a committee of the whole house on the temporalities of the Irish Churcb, Lord ELIO? observed upon the vagueness of this pro posal for a commi ttee, by w h ich the hon mover had specific proposal whatever up on evaded the making of an y the important sutject of this motion. He quoted the declarations of many distinguished advocates of the Ro- Paan Catholics against the disturbgn_ce of the Protestant Church in Ireland. The Protestant Clergy in that coun try were not open to the censures which they had justly incurred in elrlier times : they were now pious and dili gent ministers of religion. Tie Roman Catholics now profe , sed to repud;ate all State provisions for then:selves; and the present o`-jest, therefore, was not to endow the Roman CatLoli:! re;igion, hut to take away the property of the Protestant Ci.ureh fur the purpose of applying it to secular uses. Mr. Str Aw said the question seemed now to be no lancer whether the Irish Protestant Church should have a little mere or a little less, but whethor its whole pro perty should be transferred to another Church, or carried away from Church purposes altogether. The general state of the Church of Ireland might challenge compari son with that of any establishment in the world. The income of the Church, as stated by Mr. Ward, was the gross income : its net income was only about £550,000. He rejoiced that this motion had been met with manly resistance by the government. and felt assured that the people would sanction no other principle. The debate was then adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS.-WEDNESDAY. The adjourned debate on the Church Temporalities of Ireland was resumed. After one or two members had spoken. Sir J. GRAHAM remarked that the thin attendance and the apathy of the few members whc did attend were a ju.tification of the praise given to the mover as a man who manif,silv outstripped the spirit of the age. The subject of the Roman Catholic oath was irrelevant to this debate; and he would only observe upon that oath, that he considered its construction to be matter for each mem ber's individual conscience. With respect to the imme diate matter of discussion—the Irish church, the govern ment had endeavoured to purify it, but, in its purified state, were resolved to uphold it with their utmost strength. It was asked, wuuld you, if there was no Irish Protestant church in existence, create now such a church as this . That question was not an applicable one in the case of a nation's ancient institutions. He would not say that the union precluded all changes in the temporalities of the church; but his opinion w ts, that such changes should be made, not with a view to weaken, but to con firm the esta'Aishment. On this ground it was that he had been a party to the removal of sinecures and other abuses ; but he would not be a party to reductions which should carry away the church prqperty to uses not con nected with the church. As to Sir C. Napier's threat of mischief from hostile steamers, it was an injustice to the loyalty of the Irish Roman Catholics; a sure way of nul lifying any danger in the Channel would be to place the gallant admiral himself in command there. The assumed analogy between the unions with Ireland and with Scot land was an inaccurate one ; for the religion established in Scotland was not only that of the majority of the Scotch people, but had been that of the Scotch legislature ; whereas the religion of the majority in Ireland was one in which the Irish legislature did not participate. The go- vernment had beeii reminded in this debate that they had promised to remove all substantial grievances and to effect all safe improvement in Ireland. He believed the now pending measure respecting the registration of Irish electors to be a measure of this beneficial character. He had the same impression with respect to the _ _ . . pending Municipal Bill, which, mutatis mulandis, was that of England. Then as to the facilitation of a Roman Catholic endowment ; on that subject a bill was prepared, would be forthwith introduced, and was intended to be _ _ passed in the present session. Moreover, it was the de sign of government to increase the vote for religious edu cation in Ireland. All these were legitimate boons. But this proposal to take away the property of the Irish church, whether for the endowment of the Roman Catho lics or for secular purposes, was one which, in his:opi nion, justice, honour, and policy alike forbade, and which the government was determined firmly to resist. Lord JOHN RUSSELL pointed to the present excitement of Ireland, and the flourishing exchequer of the Repeaters, as strong reasons for the present motion. From the speech of Mr. Shaw it might have been suppo'ed that he was speaking of a Protestant church in the midst of a Protestant people; but even if all its abuses were ad mitted to be in a course of extinction, still there remained the argument that the whole state provision for religion was in the hands of only one-tenth of the people. He was surprised at the high ground of adherence to the Union Act now taken by Sir J. Graham, who had been a party to a bill taking away £300,000 from the Irish church. Sir R. Peel bad used more moderate language as to the extent in which the Union Act should be considered as obligatory at the present day. He would next inquire, whether the Protestant church now answered the proper purposes of an establishment so completely that no change could fitly be made in it? His own view of an establish ment was, that it should give the means of instruction to the people. As the state punished the people's offences, it was bound to teach them how to avoid offending. For the diseases of the body, the patient suffering pain would seek relief of his own accord ; but the diseases of his im mortal part being usually unfelt by him, the remedy was not spontaneously sought, and consequently those were the cases in which the state was especially bound to inter po e for his preservation. Besides, where the religious teacher was dependent wholly on his congregation he had an inducement to flatter their vices; and to that cause might be traced the guilty support which was given to slavery by religious teachers in the United States. Poli• tically, too, it was inexpedient that the teachers of religion should have an interest to side with the people against the state. How important an object was it, therefore, to en gage the Roman Catholic clergy on the side of the state, by some Provision which should make them in some de gree independent of their flocks! There were 217 Irish parishes without a single Protestant; and what duties connected with the state could the pastors of such pa rishes have to perform ? The church might he called the eyes of the social body ; but you would scarce think it ex pedient, for the sake of having six eyes, to give up the arms and the legs. It was no argument to say that dif ferent supporters of this motion lad different plans ; that was equally the case among those who made the first movements towards the reform of Parliament ; but all had agreed in the fitness of such a reform, and finally in the manner of effecting it. The dangers of war were now treated lightly ; but experience bad shown that such dan gers, when they actually arrived, had brought concession with them. True, the Irish people were yet loyal; but when they should see that you imposed upon them what no other nation in Europe submits to, the warmest loyalty might cool. While you refused to apply to Ireland the rule which you apply to England and to Scotland the dis content of Ireland was a justifiable one. Proceed, then, into committee, and there consider what terms the wor thy bishops and clergy of Roman Catholic Ireland will agree to. Until you have done that, you have no right to say you have done justice to Ireland. Sir R. PEEL said, that having in the last, and again in the present session stated his opinions upon the subject, he regretted to be under the necessity of repeating them now; but he should not shrink from such a repetition in the official position which he held. Lord J. Russell had not stated the principle which he would adopt in the pro posed committee; but he had said that which would lead to a conclusion that the Roman Catholic religion must be come the established one in Ireland ; for he had treated the discontent in that country as justifiable, unless the same rule were applied to it which was applied to Scotland and to England. Sir R. Peel reminded the house of the extreme opinions professed on former occasions by Mr. Ward, and cautioned them against going into this com mittee, unless prepared to carry those opinions into ef fect. He admitted that he had treated the Act of Union as not absolutely binding under all circumstances and at all hazards, but he had also stated that its spirit was not to be departed from without a strong necessity. He quoted a speech of Mr. Plunket, the authorised advocate of the Roman Catholics in their suit for emancipation, in which speech Mr. Plunket had expressly pledged himself that emancipation was not to involve any hostile attempt upon the church establishment, and had insisted upon the distinction in principle between the Irish and Scottish onions. He had himself, when he introduced the Relief Bill of 1829, relied on the understanding that the inte grity of the Irish church was to be preserved ; no other intenton or impress i on had been entertained by Mr. Pitt at the time of the union ; and it was most dangerous that these great compacts and mutual understandings should be lightly rescinded. Ile did not believe that the reli gious animosities of Ireland were generated by the exist ence of the Church establishment, or would be removed by its extinction. Very recently, on the Dissenters' Cha pels Bill, he had found much greater animosity between different sects of Dissenters than between Dissenters and the Established Church. But if a change in the Church of Ireland were necessary for the removal of religious animosity, what sort of a change was it to be? In a church establishment there ought to be a control by the state over the church ; but the Roman Catholics refused to permit the state's intervention at all. They would not accept a public provision for themselves •, and so they claimed that a public provision should not be allowed to the Protestants, but that the fund should be transferred to secular purposes. Surely that was no very reasonable demand. Again, how was equality to be arranged with respect to the seats of bishops in the House of Lords ? and was there to be also an equal or a proportional divi sion of the churches of Ireland between the two sects ? When Lord Althorp introduced the bill for the:abolition of ten bishoprics, it was hailed by the Reformers with de light; yet now, only ten years after that large reform, harsher language was used than when the whole was un reformed. His refusal to enter into this committee was not because he wished to avoid any useful correction of non-residence, or of any other still remaining abuse, for in such corrections he was ready to persevere ; but he op posed the motion because he was satisfied that the Church ought to be maintained, and that to go into committee would be only to countenance delusion. Mr. SHEIL desired to know what course was to be taken respecting Maynooth, about which nothing had been said. Surely the government would not be so dis ingenuous as to offer an endowment to the clergy which they knew the clergy would refuse, and to withhold an endowment from Maynooth which they knew that May nooth would accept? Yet the g i o n v t. erornenstirhßad. Peel'sbeen wholly silent on this important point. administration of 1834 a bill was brought in taking 25 per cent. from the church, and giving it to the landlords. That was no ecclesiastical purpose. (Mr. SHAW said it was an allowance.) The right hon. gentleman called it an allowance ; he would call it a confiscation; but call it by whatever name, it would smell as sweet to the land lord, and as offensive to the parson. He blamed Sir J. Graham for having thrown out an i n timation that to touch the Irish Church would be to endanger all other Irish property that was the excitement of an unfair pre judice—of a false alarm—it was the invocation of the ghost of Cromwell to mount guard upon the ministerial camp. He drew a I arallel between the C ana dian clergy reserves and the Irish Protestant Church. There was no express mention of the temporalities of the Church in the Irish Act of Union ; while in the Canadian constitution the reserves had been expressly guarded ; yet, under the popular pressure of necessity the sanctity of the reserves was given up by Lord Sydenham. What he now asked was, not a subversion of the Church, but only a reduction of her revenue, a modification of her establishment. If the state and the church must be connected, he did but ask that, as in the state, so in the church, mere sinecures should be retrenched. Why should the Archbishop of Arma2,h be paid more than the Chancellor of Ireland? Why a bishop more than a judge ? He did not 13.4 t to suppress the bishopric, but only to place it on a level with the judgeship. After 4 few observations on the supposed intentions of the government respecting Irish education, he animadverted on the delay of the Irish Registration. Bill. That delay he attributed to the fear of government, lest, by increasing the power of the people, they should accelerate the destruction of the Church. As in Canada the government had found it expedient to act !n confor mity with the wishes of the people, so let them act in Ire land, and not disastrously throw away this great occasion of rendering an invaluable service to their country. Sir R. INGLIS would maintain the Protestant Church, not merely because it was the establishment, but because it was the truth. Mr. Sheil's argument was, that he, wanted not her life, but only her money—an argument less usual in Parliament than on the road. Mr. WARD said two or three words in reply, and the house then divided, when the motion - was lost by a majo rity of 274 to 179. THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD. HOUSE OF LORDS.-THURSDAY. Lord CLARENDON elicited from Lord Aberdeen some interesting information upon the respective relations of France and Spain and Morocco. The quarrel of the lat ter power with Spain he considered as in a fair way of ar rangement, ho , h parties having accepted the mediation of Great Britain, and he had reason to believe that, in spite of the skirmish which had taken place, no serious inter .uption to the existing good understanding between France and Morocco was to be apprehended. Lord MONTEAGLE then rose, and in a very long speech endeavoured to make out the proposition that protecting duties are injurious to all classes, but most especially to those whom they profess to protect. The motion was opposed, on the part of the govern ment, by Lord Dalhousie, who gave place to Lord Cla rendon. Lord Colchester, the Duke of Richmond, Lord Wicklow, the Marquises of Lansdowne and Winchilsea followed ; and after a short reply by Lord Monteagle, their lordships proceeded to a division, negativing the mo tion by a majority of 109. HOUSE OF COMMONS.—THURSDAY. On the motion, in the House of Commons, for the se cond reading of the Bank Charter Bill. Mr. HAWES proposed a resolution that no evidence bad been laid before the House to justify the interference of the legislature with the circulation of the banks of issue. He maintained, that in order to warrant such an interposition there ought to have been proof of some de preciation in our paper currency ; but that no such proof had here been given. He contended that prices had never been proved to rise and fall with the increase and contrac tion of the circulation; and he produced a table of prices to verify his argument. He asserted that if the present small-note circulation were withdrawn, its place would be supplied, and much more injuriously, by a paper credit in the shape of small b lls of exchange. In past seasons of pressure, as in 1823 and 1839, assistance had been given to credit by the Bank in a way which bad been approved by the highest authorities ; but, under the proposed plan of contraction, if like seasons should recur, such assistance could not again be afforded. The present corn-laws would be a disturbing cause to your currency, but that would give him an additional argument for demanding their repeal. He feared that the references which the Bank would have to make to the government would in troduce an evil not hitherto known in the city—the mix ture of party politics with banking affairs. Mr. HASTIE seconded the motion: Mr. GOULBURN considered the speech of Mr. Hawes as an objection to the whole plan. It would have been more manly to mole that the bill should be read a second time on that day six months than to let the bill pass with this kind of slur upon it. One of the main articles whose cheapness Mr. Hawes had relied on, to show that prices were not raised by excessive issues of paper, was sugar ; but the cheapness of sugar was owing to the peculiar cir cumstances of the maritime supremacy of England dur ing the war. Did Mr. Hawes forget the difficulty which from time to time had occurred in maintaining the con vertibility of paper, which he admitted to be indispensa ble ? Did he forget Mr. Huskisson's declaration, in 1825, that the country was reduced almost to a commerce of barter ? To guard against the recurrence of such evils it was necessary to introduce a measure like the present; and he considered the evidence taken before the Banking Committees had supplied the house with amply materials for judging of this bill. He restated the principle of the measure as before explained by Sir R. Peel, and called upon the house to sustain it. Sir W. CLAY and Mr. HUME spoke against the motion of Mr. Hawes, and Mr. WODEHOUSE in favour of it. Mr. C. BULLER thought that Mr. Hume, to be consis tent with his speech, ought to have voted for Mr. Hawes's motion. According to Sir R. Peel, this would be a cure for all the evils of our complicated commercial state; but he could not regard it in that point of view. He was not prepared to agree that the American disasters arose mainly from excessive issues ; he imputed them rather to wild speculation. Nothing could be more absurd than the old policy of parliament in restraining the number of partners in banking concerns; the reversal of that policy by the legalization of joint-stock banks had worked well in point of security for the public, whatever losses might have been sustained by the shareholders. The most objec tionable part of the present plan appeared to him to be the suppression of the issues of country banks. It was ' not a sound principle to limit speculation, by excluding a particular form of credit : worse forms were sure to be substituted. One would suppose to hear in these discus. sions that all the great speculations had been effected with bank-notes ; but the fact was that the amount of bills of exchange in circulation during the year 1829 was upwards of £132,000.000 sterling, while the amount of bank. notes was only £25,000,000 or £26,000,000. The clearing house daily settled about £3,000,000, with cash to the amount of only about £200,000. In fact, the evil lay much deepzr than legislation could go—it had its roots in the cupidity and folly of mankind. Suppose you succeed in extinguishing the notes, the result would be only a complicated system of credits in each neighbourhood, resting not on the solvency of the one bank, but of its many customers respectively. He questioned the accuracy of Sir R. Peel's list of bankers who had failed, and argued that but a small proportion of them were issuers of notes. It had been said that the banker was induced to make advances by the facility of issuing his own notes, when, but for the notes, he would have lacked the means; but this was an error, for if his regular circulation was £lO,OOO, and he issued £20,000 beyond that amount to a borrower, a few days only would elapse before the sur plus £20,000 would be returned upon him. He objected, then, to this bill—first, because it was delusive ; secondly, because he thought it would introduce objectionable forms of credit; thirdly, because it sacrificed private interests without a clear ground of public necessity. It was obvi ous that the object of Sir R. Peel was to put an end to all issues except by the Bank of England. The bill proposed to fix, as the maximum of each banker's future circulation, the average of his circulation during the last two years. But why should the average between the highest and the lowest point in time past be fixed as the highest in time to come ? In Lancashire there was no circulation but of bank-notes, yet the bankruptcies in that county we:e just as numerous as in counties where country notes were cir culated. He complimented the government upon their adoption of the opinions of the Political Economy Club ; this very measure was the invention of Mr. Jones Loyd ; but, on banking, the club was much divided. How much better would it be if the government would adopt those opinions in which the club were unanimous—for instance, their views on the subject of the corn laws I Sir R. PEEL commented upon the inconsistencies of the speakers who had preceded him. The arguments of most of them went substantially, though not professedly, to the rejection of the metallic principle. He exposed the futility of any reference to the prices of particular articles as a test of the value of the currency. He appealed to the example furnished by America while the control of a central bank subsisted there, and to the warning held out by the con sequences which had followed the removal of that control. He quoted the opinions of Mr. Gallatin and Mr. Web ster, that convertibility was not, by itself alone, a sufficient security against overissue. In each of the commercial crisises of this country there had been an overissue of most injurious magnitude. lie knew perfectly well that the Bank of England, under the worst of those circum stances, could have tna'ntained the convertibility of its notes ; but how frightful was the cost of that mainte nance ! The present measure proceeded upon the princi ple of a wholesome precautionary distrust of the Bank. With respect to country paper, it was said that the want of accommodation would be seriously felt. But he had shown that an issue of only £1,300,000 supplied the whole of that great circle round London of which the radius was 65 miles. And if country banks should not be prepared to give accommodation, would the Bank of England refuse to make proper advances ? In some of the greatest ma nufacturing districts more than five-sixths of the notes in circulation were those of the Bank of England ; such was the case at Gloucester ; so at Manchester, where the cir culation was of such vast extent ; so at Liverpool. It was , said that the noteholders of joint-stock banks bad sus tained no loss. Perhaps not, after four or five years of pressure upon every individual shareholder; but many of those banks were founded in fraud, and had failed under the most disgraceful circumstances : and he did feel that it was justifiable and necessary to protect the poor man, who had no opportunity of receiving their notes, the retail dealer, the servant, and the labourer. He trusted that no further opposition would be offered to this bill, even by a small minority. Four times iu the last twenty years events had occurred in the monetary affairs of this country which proved the necessity of the present precaution ; and, though that precaution could not control illegitimate spe culation, the government felt it their duty to interpose as far as it was in their power, a check to those mischiefs which it was possible to restrain. After a few words from Colonel SIBTHORP and two other members, Mr. Hawes's motion was rejected by a majority of 185 to 30. HOUSE OF LORDS.-FRIDAY. In reply to a question from the Earl of WIcKLow. The Lord CHANCELLOR said there was no truth in the report that the judges had postponed the circuits, in order to attend the discussion of the writ of error in the House of Lords respecting the Irish state trials. The Bishop of EXETER moved the second reading of the Suppression of Brothels Bill, which was seconded by the Earl of FITZHARDINGE in a most extraordinary speech, which drew a reply from the Bishop of GLOUCESTER, in defence of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster, and an expression from Lord BROUGHAM of condemnation of the exclusion of the statue of Lord Byron from the Abbey. The Bishop of LONDON was of opinion that the dean and chapter were right in refusing admission to the statue. The Bishop of EXETER, after some observations from the Lord Chancellor, Lord Lovelace, and Lord Brougham, suggested the propriety of having a national gallery for the reception of statues to public men, instead of plactrig them, however inc:ingruously, in qur churches, by reso lutions of either house of parliament. After a few words from Lord CAMPBELL, the bill was read a second time. Some bills on the table were forwarded a stage, and their lordships adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS.-FRIDAY A discussion arose respecting a power exercised at the General Post-office of opening letters, for reasons which Sir.JAMES GRAHAM declined to explain, except by say ing that, as Secretary for the Home Department, he possessed the power, and believed it necessary to exercise it in the -case which was brought under the consideration of the house by Mr. T. Duncombe, and which that hon. gentleman said he would again bring forward on a night of supply. In committee, on the Sugar Duties Bill, Mr. P. MILES rose. He objected to the change proposed by ministers in the old amount of protection, as a measure which was not expedient in itself, and which had not even the merit of being a final settlement. Ministers ought to have taken the whole subject into consideration, so that when it was affected it should be set at rest. An extensive and systematic immigration tad been promised, but not effected, and the West Indian colon , st would be ruined by the abolition of protection before the completion of the immigration promises could arrive. After entering into some details for the purpose of showing the general de pression of the sugar interests, he adverted to the reduc tion which had been made in the protection upon coffee, and asked what security the planters had, that the small protection now proposed upon sugar would not be in next year still further diminished ? He called the attention of the house to the importance of this country's commerce with her West Indian colonies, and to the amount of shipping employed in it, and contrasted the former pro sperity of those regions with their present decay. He wished the Chancellor of the Exchequer would pay a visit to his estates in Jamaica, and view a state of things which was the sad spe, tre of what it once had been. He begged the agriculturists of England to remember that their cause and that of the West Indians was a common one, the difference being only that while the British farmer grew corn, the West Indian farmer grew sugar; and that if the protection to the one description of agri culture should be abandoned, the protection to the other would soon be at an end. He concluded by moving that from the 10th of November next the duty on British colonial sugar should be 20s; on the sugars of China, Java, and Manilla, 305., with a duty of 345. upon the foreign sugars, when imported at a certain degree of re finement ; and with an addition, as usual, of 5 per cent. upon the whole. The amendment of Mr. Miles was supported by Mr. Baillie, Mr. Labouchere, Mr. Bernal, Mr. F. Baring, Mr. Hume, Mr. Coiquhoun, Mr. Hampden, and Lord J. Russell. It was opposed by Mr. Ewart, the Chan cellor of the Exchequer, Mr. Godson, Mr, Bouverie, and Mr. Gladstone. Lord Howler( then reminded the committee that they were about to divide on the government plan, and should that be negatived, it would be open to any hon. member to move any amendment upon the proposition of Mr. Miles. The committee then divided — For Mr. Mites's motion Against it Majority against the government ... 20 Sir It. PEEL proposed to resume the discussion on the bill on Monday night. The house then adjourned. FOREIGN AND COLONIAL. ARRIVAL OF THE BRITANNIA. At eleven o'clock on Thursday night, the royal mail packet Britannia, Captain Hewitt, arrived in the Mersey, bringing papers from the United States up to the Ist, and Canada papers to the 3d instant. The United States is in a complete ferment of agitation, in reference to the presidentship, the tariff and the an nexation of Texas being considered as questions valuable. or otherwise as auxiliaries or impediments to party pros pects. There were four candidates in the field, Mr. Tyler being one of them ; but as a democratic convention had assembled at Baltimore, for the purpose of fixing the popular interest upon one, they will now, in all probability, be reduced to two, viz., Mr. Clay and Mr. James K. Polk, of Tennessee. Great anxiety was felt during the sittings of the convention : some were for Mr. Tyler, and some for Van Buren ; but, the nomination having fallen on Mr. Polk, it is probable that the other democratic candidates wi 1 retire. Mr. Clay is the whig candidate; and Mr. Webster is attending public meetings, making speeches in his favour. With these speeches all free traders would be terrified ; he is for protection for every thing; for no reciprocal treaties; and for high-priced agricultural products. The doctrines of the last century are all revived by him with apparent approbation. He is very sanguine of success. Mr. Wright, who was named by the democrats as vice president, has, it is said, declined the honour. On the 15th of last month. the president seni a message to congress announcing, that he had made arrangements for an exhibition of naval farce in the Gulf of Mexico : and, as the Mexican government felt angry, a collision was anticipated. The annexation of Texas is evidently popular in the Union ; for, even Mr. 'Webster, while de claring that the presidential power required abridgement, did not venture upon a single word of disapprobation as to the Texan treaty—at least, not in his great speech at a Jersey meeting, last month, A most disastrous conflagration occurred in New Or leans on the 18th ult. The flames were first discovered bursting from Mr. Goq's carpenter's shop, near the cor ner of Franklin and Jackson-streets, which before they could he subdued spread to the adjoining tenements with frightful rapidity. The fire raged for three hours, de stroying a large number of elegant and costly brick resi dences. The total number of houses destroyed is stated to be not less than 280. The Bee of the 20th says— " The number of persons left houseless by this dis tressing calamity cannot fall short of 2,000, the greater portion of whom are of the poorer classes of society." Another journal of the same date says— " The amount of loss on the houses is estimated at 335,000 dollars. A large quantity of furniture was burnt, and insurance had been effected on about one-filth part. Total loss of furniture, groceries, &c., say 100,000 dots.— in all 435,000 dollars. This is a heavy figure, and is much greater than the loss sustained at the last fire at the Cotton Press. The Caledonia steamer had made a very rapid outward passage, having arrived at Boston early on the morning of the lst of the present month, being only 121. days. The Boston merchants were thus enabled to answer their let ters by the steamer now arrived. There are accounts of great destruction of property, by the overflowing of the Red River. Property to the value of upwards of a million of dollars is said to be destroyed. From Canada we learn, according to a Kingston paper, " that the Governor-General has formed his new cabinet, and that the nomination will be promulgated before his excellency's departure from Kingston." The provincial parliament is convoked to meet in Mon treal on the 24th of June next. The latest commercial account in the money article of the New York American of the 31st, says— " The prosperous condition of the country seems to be indicated by what is not generally an indication of pros perity—the abundance of money and the consequent low rare of interest. Yet at this moment trade is flourishing, industry fully carried forth and rewarded, and wages are rising while money goes begging and interest is falling. i Stocks of all sorts have risen." . . . . .. In regard to the cotton crop the latest circular of Stewart and Wright says—" the opinion expressed in our circular of the 30th of April, that the extent of the cotton crop for the year ending the Ist of September, 1844, would prove a full average one, has been confirmed by the re ceipts during the present month, which have swelled the amount to 1,899,641 bales, against 2,251,175 bales to the same period last year. For the remainder of the season, which, at the south is fast drawing to a close, the number of bales will be but comparatively small: sufficient is known, however, to justify us in saying, that the crop will not vary much from 2,000,000 bales." As to the coming wheat crops, notwithstanding com plaints in parts of Virginia and elsewhere of the divaga tions of the canker worm, the crop promises enormous. Exchange on England had somewhat risen, and was in demand at from 9to 91 per cent. On France at sf. 25c. WAR BETWEEN FRANCE AND MOROCCO. Hostilities have already commenced on the frontiers of Morocco, between the troops under the command of Ge neral Lamorciere and the troops of the Emperor of Mo rocco. The same letters also state that there is not one word of truth i❑ the statement made by the French autho rities relative to the proclamation of a holy war against the infidels by the emperor. As far as our information now goes, the attack upon Morocco was entirely on the side of France. Abd-el-Kader acts with the Moorish army. Ina letter dated Magruia, May 30, General Lamorciere states that on the morning of that day his troops were at tacked by about two thousand Moorish and Arab cavalry, who, after about an hour's engagement. were worsted with great slaughter, the survivors flying towards Onschda. the French loss is said to be only twenty-five wounded. His despatch concludes as follows:—" Whatever may be the construction put upon this recital, war exists in fact. Fortune will demonstrate to what degree it will be carried. It is not doubtful but that Abd-el-Kader will endeavour to profit by it. I write this night to all the commanders of columns. I shall have the honour to address you a new report as soon as any fact of importance shall require it." MR. MACREADY IN NEW YORK.—Mr. Macready played Shylock last night at the Park Theatre for the first time in this city. Otir expectations were raised very high on the occasion, and they were not disappointed. The trial scene is well calculated to call forth all the talents of the most admirable performer, and never was histrionic talent more triumphant. Loud shouts, and three distinct rounds of applause when Shylock left the stage, spoke the feelings of the audience.—American paper. PRAYERS FOR RAlN.—Prayers to the blessed Virgin were offered up in all the homan Catholic churches for rain, and high masses were celebrated by the is York Sun. [lt is constantly denied by Ito a n t r u st . B l that prayers are ever addressed to the denied the i their authorised prayer-books establish the fact _. most convincing manner. Their transatlantio re shipped, and and they only gionists do not hesitate to declare o penly that sis wora more candour t cannot be disproved, and what is so unblushingly denied in this country.j s t a te withd Iler Majesty the Queen Ad-laide arrived at Ghent on the 4th instant, and on the stir reached Cologne, from whence her Majesty was to proceed the following morning to Mavence, in the Victoria steamer, belonging to the Dusseldorf Steam Navigation Company, which the Queen had caused to be engaged some days ago, through the London Company. THE ARTESIAN WELL NEAR PARTS —The volume of water supplied by the Artesian Well of Grenelle was mea sured a few days ago, and found to have lost nothing of its force or quantity. The source furni-h!s 2,000,00 quarts of water per 21 hours, which is more than suffi cient for the quartier of the Pantheon, where im mense reservoirs have been constructed to receive it. The water is as limpid as filtered Seine water, and has conti nued clear since tubes have been inserted in the aperture. —Constitutionnel. THE POPE AND THE BIBLE SOCIETIES.—The follow ing is the conclusion of a rescript which the Pope has just issutd to the Romish clergy of France respecting the move ments of the Bible Societies :—" We recommend you, therefore, to announce and to explain in proper time and place to the people confided to your pastoral charge, our present advice, and ti use all your efforts to withdraw your faithful flock from any connection with those Bible Societies. It will be your duty to take from their hands any Bible translated into the vulgar tongue, or published contrary to the sanction of the Roman Pontiffs, and to watch over them that your counsels may be attended to, and particularly to watch the conduct of those whose duty it is to expound the Holy Scriptures, that they may acquit themselves diligently of their office, according to the ca pacity of their auditors, and in strict conformity with the tradition of the fathers and in the sense of the Catholic Church." The document furnishes abundant encourage ment to that noble institution, the Bible Society, to pro ceed in its beneficent career. The truth is beginning to exert its power, and must ultimately triumph alike over the errors of Romanism and the dogmas of an atheistical philosophy, which have for so long a time exercised a wabering influence upon the mind of France. NEW ZEALAND.-- I By two or three arrivals from Sydney we have part of the intermediate files, containing the par ticulars of the arrival of Capt. Fitzroy at New Zealand, and the proceedings which immediately followed. Capt. Fitzroy landed at Auckland on the 26th of December, and was most cordially received by the official authorities, with the whole assembled population, including a consi derable number of the aborigines. A public meeting had been called, and addresses had previously been prepared, embracing all the real and alleged grievances which the colonists have been subjected to. These addresses, and the Governor's reply, are very elaborate ; but the main point embraced is the slate of the land tenures, which it is obvious, from the conflicting views and interests, will be the new Governor's chief difficulty, It appears from what fell from the Governor in this preliminary speech, in reply to the addresses, that there will be no interference by the government to dispossess the settlers of land pur chased from the natives, except where there is an excess of the quantity allowed to be purchased by Europeans. He further observed that the power of selling their land to whom they please was withheld from the natives by the Crown for their own benefit, but that he was autho rised to prepare for other arrangements more suitable to their improved, and daily improving, condition. A re survey, of the lands held by the settlers he seems to think necessary, as the most likely mode of terminating disputes, and he seems also to contemplate introducing a plan to enable the natives to let their lands on lease, with selling them outright. AUSTRALIA.—From Sydney we have accounts to the 16th of February, and from Launceston to the 12th of December. There is nothing from either place of a corn • mercial character worth communicating. The general statistics of New South Wales denote a rapid rate of ad vancement. Ten years ago the number of acres under crop were 60,520; last year it was 115,660; and this is stated to be only one-fifth of what is required for the pre sent population. The number of sheep in the colony 15 years ago was 536,600 ? it is now 6,000,000, and Great Britain alone could take the produce of 20 times as many in common seasons. Of horned cattle, at the same period, the colony possessed 263.000; it has now 800,000. Seven years since, when its affairs were most flourishing, the coin in circulation amounted to £420,720 ; last year it was £475,390. In 1832 its exports amounted to £384,344 in official value ; and in 1842 to £1,067,411. The sheep now in New South Wales, it is estimated, according to the ratio of Great Britain, would supply food to about 3,200,000 inhabitants, and its cattle to 2,500,000 inhabi tants. The proportion of imports per head, indicative of the substantial prosperity and comfort of the inhabitants in general, as compared with those of some other coun tries, is given as follows :—Russia, 84d. ; Prussia, 32d. ; Frane, 11d. ; United States of America, 17s. ; British North America, £1 1 ls. 7d. ; British West Indies, £3 12s ; New South Wales, £ll 15s. In contemplation of these statements, we cannot but concur in the remark of the Sydney journalist, that the present embarrassments of the colony are " nothing but the natural and proper punish ment of an extreme infatuation." COLONEL STODDART AND CAPTAIN CONOLLY Capt. Grover has received letters from Dr. Wolff dated Meshed, from the 14th to the 24th of March. The in telligence contained in these letters was considered so im portant, that they were sent open to Constantinople for the perusal of Sir Stratford Canning : this will account ' for the dates being anterior to those already received, ex tracts from which have been published. At Askarea, two miles from Meshed, Dr. Wolff was met by Mullah Me shiakh, the Jew of.. Meshed who assisted him in 1831 when be escaped from slavery at Torbad. He was ac companied by Mohammed Ali Seraf, Colonel Stoddart's agent. They had heard of his approach by the caravans. This Mohammed Ali Seraf was the man through whose hands passed all the letters, and the doctor says—" In less than two hours I found this man to be a lying, treacherous scoundrel !" Numerous proofs are given of his %Many, and it is known that he alone, and not Colonel Sheil, is to blame for the detention of the Sultan's letter. The Doe tar discovered that this man had property in his possession belonging to Colonel Stoddart of the value of £l,OOO sterling. In a subsequent letter Dr. Woolf mentions that Aga Abool Kasem, a respectable merchant, formerly Bri tish agent, informed him that Colonel Stoddart ha I sent to Mohammed Ali Seraf shawls to the value of £lOOO sterling, for the purpose of raising money to pay for some land. The Doctor says—" I asked him about that. He replied that he had still the shawls in his possession, and that he intends to deliver them to Colonel Stoddart's sis ter in person ! You see by this that the fellow is a rogue." A chief of a caravan, named Kurban, who goes to Bok ' hare every three months, states that Stoddart and Conolly are alive, and imprisoned in the Kalai, outside Bokhara; and the Doctor says, " Kukulli, a Turcoman chief, showed me a letter from his brother at Bokhara, in which he states that Stoddart is alive to a certainty, and his Ex cellency the Assoof Adowla (Viceroy) of Kliora , san, to whom I sent the King's courier to inquire where I should go to meet him, at Maclean or Meshed, sent me word that Stoddart and Conolly were alive last year." UNIVERSITY 6- CLERICAL ,NEIT's. OXFORD, JUNE 14.—1 n a Convocation holden this day, the degree of Doctor in Civil Law was conferred, by de gree of convocation, upon the Rev. Edward John Po2son, Fellow of St. John's College, now resident on account of his health in Van Diernan's Land, but who is required by the statutes of his college to proceed to his degree this term. In a Congregation, holden the same day, the following degrees were conferred :—Doctor in Divinity.— Rev. Edward Greene, Fellow of Magdalene College. Doctor in Medicine.—Arthur Tawke, Trinity College, Grand Compounder. Bachelor in Medicine.—Henry Monro, Oriel College. Bachelor in Civil Law.—Rev. Charles Leopold Stanley Clarke, Fellow of New College. Masters of Arts.—Thomas Evetts, Corpus Christi, Grand Compounder; Thomas Alexander Falkner, St. John's, Grand Compounder; William Robert Seymour Fitz Gerald, Grand Compounder ; Rev. James Humphrey, Trinity, Grand Compounder • Drummond Percy Chase, Fellow of Oriel ; Thomas Compounder; Peyton, St. John's ; Rev. Henry Albany Bowles, St. John's; Harry William Forrester, Trinity ; Rev. Robert Lewis Bomptield, Tri nity ; Michael Terry, Linco n ; Rev. Alfred Clifton, Lin coln; Rev. Brabazon Hallowcs Lincoln ; William Beckett Turner, Queen's ; John Cowley Fisher, Queen's ; Rev. William Henry Jones, Magdalen Hall; Rev. John Hem stead, Magdalen Hall ; Rev. Charles Wilson Heaton, Jesus ; Rev. Henry William Wynne, Jesus ; Rev. Her bert Sidney Hawkins, Jesus ; Rev. Samuel Shedden, Pembroke; Rev. William Ewart, Exeter; Rev. William Jackson, Scholar of Worcester •, Arthur Thomas Whit more Shadwell, Bailiol : Rev. William Tylden, Balliol ; Edmund Round, Balliol. Bachelors of Arts.—Robert Scarr Redfern, Queen's • Frederick Thorpe Pearson, Queen's ; Thomas Waltham Were, St. Mary Hall ; Greville Morier, Christ Church ; Robert Arthur Currey, St. John's ; Edward Spooner, Exeter; Ric.:ard B. Tur ner, Exeter; Robert Sawyer, Merton. CAMBRIDGE, JUNE 12.—At a congregation just held the following degrees were confirmed :—Bachelors in Divinity—John Rowlands. M.A., Queen's College; George Bullock, M.A. and Frederick Morton Walter, St. John's College. CAMBRIDGE, JUNE 14.—At a Congregation, held yesterday, the following degree was conferred :—Bachelor of Divinity.—Willinm Aldrit, Magdalene College. TESTIMONY OF RESPECT.—On the 31st ult., the Rev. J. H. Macguire, minister of St. Luke's Church, Charlton upon-Medlock, had presented him a very beautiful Pocket Communion Service by the candidates for confirmation. Lawrence, rector of Maraham, when closing was taken suddenly ill. He wa s removed to t he Rector's house, where he instantly exp ired. John his m Alexander Yesterday afternoon week the R ev. J d o e o r elected principal of this Rev . Dr. NORTHERNWooIIey ey CHURCHhas distinctions of first class estab lishment. He obtained the high 1836 He IS Open Scholar of in literis hurnanioribus, • NGI,A.ND SCHOOL—The and Falow of University Col- Exeter College, Oxford, d. aster of H f ere ord College lege, and has been ea m School. bee:FE O F n o e ur of y othuengniimoesnt NG ACC DISTRESSI wh d i a c y h has ever happened in Yarmouth, oc curred on Sun o'clock • m the afternoon, intending to sail up four about to Burgh Castle, for a little recreation. On ar riving river where between the half mile point B ' point on rel riving some • afternoon. i pF'N l. don and the boarded Bank, a blast, termed by seamen Roger's blast , " sprang momentarily up ; two sails were at this time up, which they commenced taking in ; all their efforts, however, were unavailing as the boat ran down head foremost. Two of them tried to swim to shore but sunk in the middle of the channel. A third sunk close by the boat, and the fourth clang to the main mast,choly iivents and was saved—the water not being deep enough to cover the " shrouds" of the boat. A shrimping boat was near by when the accident occurred—they proceeded to rescue him. They found the bodies of the other three, but were too late to restore animation. June 18, IRELAND. THE STATE TRIALS, COURT OF QUEEN'S BENCH.—JoNt tot It hiving been fully expected, in consequence Of what transpired in the court on Saturday, that the Writ of Error would be argued on Monday, the court was crowded to excess. At e l even o ' c l oc k a ll t h e mem bers.% , the Court were present, with the exception of the Chief Justice ; in a frw minutes, however, his lordship entered the Court, and took his seat amongst his learned bre thren ; at. this time the Attorney and Solicitor-Generalt Messrs. Bennett, Q C., Holmes, Smyly, and Napier► were present, as counsel for the Crown, the Crowe- Solicitor Mr. Kemmis was also in attendance; the 0011 counsel who appeared on behalf of the traversers was Sit Colman O'Loghlen. The Chief justice said, Mr. Attorney-General do you move anything ? The Attorney-General--my lords is the case of the Queen v. O'Connell and others, if the gentlemen at the other side intend to argue the writ of error, as the replication which we have put in on behalf of the crown is in the nature of a demurrer, we have s a right to commence, and my learned friend the Solicitol- General will argue it. Sir Colman O'Loghlen said it was quite true as stated, that the replication put in by the crown was in the nature of a demurrer. Mr. Whiteside, Q.C., who was with hint (Sir Colman O'Loghlen) in the case did not mean to argue it, they would sutler judgment to go by default as their only object was t 3 have the judgment of the court pro .forma upon the subject, the question intended to be raised was the same as had already been decided against the traversers by the court, when the plea in abatement was under discussion, and they (the traversers counsel) would not presume to trouble their lordships with a mere repetition of the arguments which had then been urged without success. The CHIEF JUSTICE.—Very well, then. let judgment be entered for the Crown. Mr. Attorney-General do you. move any thing else. The Attorney-General bowed, and having no further application to make, in a few minutes withdrew. In a few minutes after, the Chief Justice, addressin{ the Solicitor-Gene r al, who had remained after his col league left court, said it would be very necessary for hies to see that the judgment of the court was properly made up. - The learned gentleman stated he should attend ,t et its being duly entered, and then the subject dropped• • As term expired on Wednesday, this is probably the last time the case will be mentioned in court. The pro ceedings, which though almost unintelligible to civilians, nevertheless were looked on with a considerable degree of interest. It seems that it was necessary to have a. formal decision of the court upon the matters brought before them by the writ of error, coram nobis. before they could appear regularly on the record, and be submitted to the final decision of the House of Lords. The Dublin Evening Mail of Monday, in reference to this motion, says—" Another scene of the farce—for it does not deserve the name of drama—was enacted this\• day in the Court of Queen's Bench, as will be seen from the following report ; but we only hope the managers may have the courage to bring out the whole piece at the great theatre in Westminster—the Peers and Judges being the• audience, and we undertake that the thing will be damned off-hand, and after the conclusion of the first act." A most numerous meeting of the Repeal Association was held on Monday at the Conciliation Hall, Burgh Quay, Lord French in the chair. No endeavour had been spared to give it eclat, in fact such were the exertions made during the week by the priests, backed by the Repeal rent, to make the unfortunate peasantry bring in the Repeal rent nolens volens, that the landlords of Ire-- land will stand a very indifferent chance of getting in theirs next November, the poor dupes being forced to bring into market, at no matter what sacrifice, produce which would otherwise be kept over until an advantageous • price could be obtained. The meeting was not over until a very late hour. The room was crowded to suffocation probably there never was so laree and formidable a meet- ing of the Association. The Repeal rent amounted to • upwards of X 3,200. Loss OF A VESSEL AND ALL HANDS.—A letter in the Cork Reporter of Thursday last, announces the total loss of the John, of Dunboy, on the previous day, on the Long Rock of Reagrove, and all hands perished. SUDDEN DEATH.—On Thursday week, as the Mayor of Limerick was entering the Exchange, for the purpose of holding a meeting, sympathising with the state pri soners, he fell down in a fit of apoplexy, and soon after ceased to live. He is represented as a gentleman of most excellent character. THE " REPEAL BUTTON."—Peremptory orders have been issued by the authorities to deny all access through Dublin Castle-yard to persons decorated with the " Re peal button," which has been very freely sported in town by the lower orders since Mr. O'Connell's temporary retirement from public life. The " orders," it is said. were read at parade last Sunday ; and two or three ardent Repealers have complained of summary expulsion from the Castle by the military placed on duty there. PRESENTATION OF ADDRESSES STOPPED.—The com mittee of the Richmond Penitentiary have put a stop to the influx of deputations which were daily crowding to the presence of Mr. O'Connell and his friends. Had the majority of the addresses already presented been free from improper charges against the government and the law au thorities, it is said the committee would not have inter fered. On Tuesday the resolution of the prison authori ties was put in force on the occasion of a deputation from the county Limerick, with Mr_ Smith O'Brian, M.P., at their head, demanding admittance to the presence of Mr. O'Connell. Having received this intelligence the depu tation withdrew very much chap-fallen. DESPERATE AFFRAY.—A hurling match on a large scale took place on Sunday week in a field near A rdarostig, about three miles south-west of the town of Cork. The parties were the men of Blackrock and St. Barry's on the one side, and those of Ballinora on the other. An im mense concourse of spectators were on the ground. Ins little time a riot occurred amongst those who had the ar rangement of the course; this soon included the hurlers, and completely changed the character of the game. Stones were flung, and hurleys and sticks used, even the women joining in the melee; and the place soon presented the aspect of a general battle. Great numbers were maimed and wounded on both sides, and the affair terminated after about an hour and a half's hostilities, by the retreat of the townsmen. A decent person named O'Brien, who was a looker on, had his head laid open by a blow of a stone, and was borne senseless from his assailants, and many others received desperate wounds and contusions. The number of persons congregated together has been estimated at fr ,m five to six thousand. RAIL/1 7 A Y INTELLIGENCE. It is intended to form a line of railway from the Fleet wood line to the fashionable watering-place of Blackpool. The distance is about three miles. BRISTOL AND GLOUCESTER RA ILWAY.—The directors made a trip on this line from Bristol as far as Stonehouse, on Thursday last. RAILWAY FROM LONDONDERRY TO ENNISKILLEN. — On Wednesday last, a meeting was held at Londonderry, when it was determined to carry out this undertaking, for which a company was formed in the year 1836, and the progress of which was arrested at the time by the com mercial embarrassments of the country. BRISTOL AND ENGLISH CHANNELS JUNCTION• RAILWAY, — The proposed line is now being surveyed ; the course is that pointed out by Mr. Percey, of Sherebone, in 1825, as the most eligible for the then projected Grand Ship Canal, viz., from Bridgewater to Ikhester, near Yeovil, Sturminster, Newton, Bradford, to the Port of Poole. THE GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY EXTENSION TO OXFORD.—The directors, accompanied by a large party of their friends, came down to Oxford on Monday by a special train, to inspect the works, which they found in a very satisfactory state. After inspecting the station at Oxford, and the bridges at Nuneham and Appleford, they returned to Paddington by a special train. On Wednesday morning the line was opened for traffic, and was found in very good order. DOVER AND GREENWICH RAILWAYS.-011 Tuesday, the directors of the Greenwich Railway submitted a pro position to the Dover company to lease their line on the followin; terms : namely, that the Dover should give them a rent of £30,000 for the first year, and afterward/ increase it by £lOOO yearly, until it reached £50,000 per annum, which is about 5 per cent. on the expenditure -- Then, that they should receive a penny per head for every passenger abov ta e o 6 d ,l t O an ,o c fi e O o p f er six a t n y nu m m il 0151 their line. On Tuesday, day ) GREAT NORTH OF ENGLAND RAILWAY.— (this The rail way communication between London and Edinburgh is p es a , ssing rapidly approaching completion. N e wcastle-upon-Tyne. The entire Darlington to dis tance between London and Newcastle , upwards of 30G the line of railway already formed will be extended from m il es , will be accomplished, it is calculated, in twelve hours, including all stoppages. From Newcastle to Ber railway has been projected, and surveys made by the east P an n ; T thence wee elt Edinburgh, little more than fifty miles, a line is already in course of formation. On leaving the station in Euston.square, the traveller passes 83 miles along the London and Birmingham Railway. to Rugby, thence 491 miles along the Midland Counties Railway to Derby, thence 631 miles along the North Mid land Railway to Normanton, thence 231 miles along the York and North Midland Railway to the Cathedral City of York, thence 45 miles along the Great North of Eng land Railway to Darlington, thence 27i miles along the w c oa s t,i ck - u Newcastle, Darlington, and Durham Junction Railway te- Worbington, thence 54- miles along the Pontop and South a line of Shields Railway (formerly the St3nhope and Tyne) to. Brockley Whins, where the line diverges to Sunderland and Shields, and thence 61 miles along the Brandling Junction Railway to Newcastle, or rather to Gateshead+ on the south bank of the River Tyne, where a magnifi cent station is being erected. A more direct line from York to London has been projected through the Eastern- Counties by way of Bedford, Huntingdon, and Lincoln! which will shorten the distance by about thirty miles, .2 . 10 pass over the most extensive planes in England, uniting the vallies of the Trent and Ouse by direct railway OW munication with the metropolis. FRATRICIDE.—A man of the name of John Child' of; Leeds, has been committed to York Castle on a charge °` manslaughter. The prisoner was quarrelling with his bro- tber on Tuesday last, and at length they commenced fight ing, when the prisoner stabbed his brother in five placee with a clasp knife, inflicting such serious wounds as t° pe netrate the heart, and of course cause the death of tbf unfortunate man almost immediately.