The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1846-02-10 00:00:00

Feb. 10, 1846 LOCAL NEWS boun Tue s d ay, the body of a male child, enclosed in a ;( was found in St. Martin's Churchyard. ea u ° Wednesday, a ma n named Wm. Cumming, who was glged in a spirit vault in Lancelot's-hey, died from ex atesively drinking rum. fiL°4 Mo nday, Jane Hughes, who resided in Toxteth ric: was burnt to death by her clothes accidentally taking s t..9° Tuesday night, Margaret M'Guinness, of Sun :_reet T oxteth-park, went home in a state of intoxication _ed fell asleep on the floor. She was put to bed, and foun d dead shortly afterwards. hit on Friday week, Eliza Thomas, servant to Dr. Orpon, trlitton-square, Birkenhead, whilst cleaning the draw itiiralr°eoa window, fell into the area, and broke both her ,e, the right one in two places. She is recovering. I_‘•aPitalists, and others wishing to invest in land or 'leasehold roperty, will do well to consult Mr. Williams, estate a gent , sae. A list of the various properties he has on G!at May he se en at hi s o ffi ce, R ane l ag h -street , corner o f r, Charlotte-st ree t.—S ee adv. of °CKET PICKING.— On Monday, Mr. Robert Healy, ,is town, having had occasion to call at the Union • Jile to receive dividends, Placed the amount, together f i lth some cheques, in his pocket-book. On reaching the eoarish-ffices, Fenwick-street, the pocket-book and its chntents were missing. In the afternoon, the book and vet clues , minus bank notes to the amount of £55, were Itrned to him through the Post-office. harbree excavators lie in a dangerous state at the northern `!_ e Pital from th e e ff ec t s o f d r i n ki ng rum . S ome cas k s o f W th at spirit were thrown on the North Shore from the iry, from Demerara, that was wrecked on Sunday at Eest Hoyle. The " navies" assembled in large num viler!' to broach the casks, and so copious were their liba ,l2llB, that thirty of them had to be conveyed from the "vAtle lorries--drunk. NE* VALVE.--Mr. M'Donald, the new manager of e Harrington Water Works, has invented and intro tred a new valve for the water mains, which possesses halmerit of being simple, efficacious, and cheap. The f ° nes cost £25 eac h, an d p erm itted, when open, only the quantity of water which the pipes were capable of e .. o . ll o ta r inng, to pass. The new valve costs only 365., and 44 , 1 , ds full egress to the water. te l l•atAtt. OF CAPTAIN JOHNSON, OF THE SHIP TORY.— ge trial of this notorious individual for the atrocities on and the ship Tory, with which our readers are familiar, naeletneuced on Thursday morning at the Central Crimi da Co urt, and did not conclude until half-past two onYri c Y afternoon. He was arraigned on a charge of having er°l eiled several murders and felonies. The attorney neral prosecuted, and the prisoner was defended by ivir. H e The jury acqu itt e d him on the ground of insanity. will thus be imprisoned for life. Ari,a 4AND OPERATIC CONCERT.—We understand that egement s are now being made for an operatic concert, the Agrand scale, which will take place in the course of Ail Present month, at the Concert-hall. The progra mme /4 alcbee°th,nslipt of the music from " Guy Manneiing , _ " Maritana," and o th er favourite operas. ' s tb .ugst the vocali s ts already engaged are the Misses e pitii, J. S. Reeves, Mr. G. Lunt, together with an h is w o i ci ie e l ltehorus the whole to be conducted by etne nt. Mr. George t Particulars will appear next week in an adver- W ft ettEQ.„ DERBY GUARDIANS.—At a meeting, on Tuesday er t ft „, was red from e aw Commissioners, a at - "eg of the a division th of the Poor-1 union into three districts p ; on the motion of Mr. Mould, it was resolved, by a ° Nor p er I tY of nine to six, to request the commissioners to th,,,eut the board to re-consider the schemes proposed for e el l e d f ivision of the union into districts for the purpose of ti t and it was a l so agree d t o d e f e r the advertising for 6n:i o dates for the situations of relieving o ffi cers until the ti-ee Ott of the comm i ss i oners was k n ow n upon thi s resolte .... t hat r rom the state of the returns, it was apprehended t hey large number of infants remain unvaccinated, and ei directed the attention of the vaccinators to subject. /,,,LeCrltlc TELEGRAPH.—The Dock Committee, on B : 4B daY, were for some time engaged in considering I , rite for a telegraph tower station, which would answer ti ) o4 lll aaunicating with Bidston, and also with a new sta to be built Crosby, for reporting the vessels which 1, 4 „„ at 11,7 th rough the new channel. It was stated that a tower til.eo feet hi g h , placed any where between the north side of ta,.Prince's Basin and the south side of the George's lua, would answer both purposes. The subject was at ta ll i gt h refered back to the sub-committee, to enable them oform themselves as to the practicability of erecting an te.c_thrie telegraph to communicate at once with the ange News-rooms. IaALLANT CONDUCT. —We stated briefly, last week. t the barque Mary struck on West Hoyle, the previous . ti d,aY• At halt-past twelve the Point of Ayr life-boat Les taunched little west of the station, to enable her to et to windwar d' a of the wreck. which was in a tremendous craw and quite dangerous to approach, but the cries of the tit l v.Were h ear t-rending, and by the mercy of Provid ence l ife -boat men succeeded in getting every man into the O",a, t, fifteen in number. One sea carried the boat on the w arks of the wreck, when she was very nearly cap 'teed and lost ; the mate missed the boat, and was washed 1 1v erboard, ad in hauling him out of the sea into the life. eclat h e wa s jammed between th e b oa t and the wreck, and 74 much bruised ; ha f the crew were more or less hurt in getting from the wreck into the boat; the captain was washed overboard, and another sea threw him back on board, which has hurt and exhausted him so much that be is very ill. PBIRKENHEAD COMMtssioNERS.--At the usual monthly ,eeting, on Tuesday, the proceedings of the Market ', l . l .en e mittee gave rise to a conversation, as to the desire. '4.!.ness of appointing a Clerk of Committees, and the goJect was referred to tile Finance Committee. The H ° o l l 4 declined giving their assent to the Birkenhead and Al.Yhead Junction Railway Bill. The resignation of Haselden, superintendent of the Woodside Ferry, we" reported. The ferry receipts, for the previous five eh e e ee, had been £lBB4 6s. 7d.; and the expenditure, in P or a atte period, including a payment of £2O o Messrs. Xl2 B r ester oq account of the new boat, a m t tinted to C 123. 9d. Some conversation took place as to an CjoUnt of Fox, Henderson, and Co., for providing pat- De r ea and specifications for th• park railing, which, it ap 4red, had been furnished under orders from the Chair -4... Several members protested against any member ' l eg power to give orders ; but eventually the account ordered to be paid. W t LECT VESTRY.—At the meeting, on Wednesday, the ei hs e labouse Committee reported that there had been a le l - ration in the fever cases within the last fortnight; s erce apprehension was entertained lest the disease 0 :11t br e tk out in an aggravated form, and as there was a he at want of room, it was suggest e d th a t th e c h ape l m i g h t th ei u s e va as a sleeping-room. Many member s e x p resse d se el l ; %approval of using a consecrated building for any te r , Purpose ; but as the want of room was v er y appa %hot, it was un d erstoo d that the Workhouse Committee ti e old report as to the best mode of appropriating addi teh°,,al room. Mr. Radcliffe, surgeon to the WOrkhouse. tl;', e 'ed his resignation. Mr. Parker, surgeon, reported h ee ` a large number of cutaneous diseases had recently also into the infirmary of the Industrial School. feet l uso offered one or two sugeestions on the same sub ra,„" and his letter, along with one from r. Gardner, " ti,7ter of th e i n f an t sc h oo l , to t h e e ff ect, t h at hi s sugges hOt relative to the sanitory condition of the children had instructions Of th -e en board r carie*th to attend t were referred ttw members "eo o th o m e. . da b v 'NG. AND SEWERAGE.—At the meetiny on Thurs hoi., Mr. J o h n H o l mes i n t h e c h a i r, Mr. IN althew gave ta rn ic eof a motion to the eff e ct th a t th e p ar li amentar y :tantee be empowered to enter into a treaty with Lord tl 4 as to his inter e st in th e B oo tl e W a t er W or k s , sub kß to the board approving of the terms. Mr. Higgins 4 1 .,, e d the attention of the board to the necessity of some 0 - . ° °_,gerae ri t being made between the Council and the th e -r ", as they were both going fur powers to carry out 114,, s ame object, and there would, consequently, be an 1 114 "e ssary expenditure of the public money. In reply it e „ stated that a conference had taken place between the ~;:latnittees of the Council and of that Board to whom the slautte was entrusted, and that they were awaiting a corn. tl e 4l cation from the Corporation; but it appeared that 1 10 h,ghvvay Board Committee had nothing to say, and it i i lt:oPosal to make, and the Council Committee being irrsame predicament, nothing was done. Aft e r an th e 'gular and recriminatory conversation of some length, hq,Chairman put an end to it by saying, " every one ti p ,1 2, for the sake of talkin g . o ne half the time taken 1 making speeches when there is no , question before oted per)nst as in his noticewas of no value at all.' if time Mr. Higgins . Ih 4.LLASEY IMPROVEMENT ACT.—On Thursday even tll the monthly meeting of the Commissioners under the 'let was held at the Queen's Arms, Liscard. Before c oromeneement of the regular proceedings, Mr. 4;ttt said that he understood at the last meeting, Mr. he e - „ w dsley had said that in the minutes an addition bad h e "tnade to a resolution passed at the previous meeting ; st,: a ehed to know if Mr. Mawdsley persisted in that ah tnent ? M r . M aw d s l ev b e li eve d that suc h an additi the ad been made; whereupo n , Mr. C rump , c h a i rman o f hi e F in ance Committee, ca ll e d u p on th e repor t er f or th e th at urY, who had given an account of the meeting in Pe Per, and w hi c h f or t unate l y conta i ne d t h e reso l u . 01u. 114 the exact words entered in the minutes, to verify etraZa report. That gen tl eman th en s t a t e d th a t the ac oq In the M ercury was wr i tten from his notes, ta k en e ler e O ccasion, and without any communication .what .4er with the cl ei k o f t h e b oar d or an y o f th e commissi kittes:l Mawdsley then, somewhat reluctantly, ad ee toight have been mistaken, and withdrew the Ititsge involved in his former statements. The proceed 4e° the various committees were then read and con ./erred.aA communication from the Town-clerk of Li eteeiel, announcing that the Town Council could not rei ss t ?l with the prayer of the memorial from the Corn tiii.:etters respecting the removal of the powder maga s.° was referred to the Improvement Committee SPO it TING IN TEL LIGENCE. UvU TII LANCASHIRE COURSING CLUB. At th e `t meeting a t L y th am , on W e d nes d ay an d Thurs ,pkthe foll ow i ng were the deciding courses : Vi h e Clift on C up was won by Rocket, beating Reserve. 4 " e 114.01 k °Puppy Cup Talb t was won by Clara, beating b. Th. 1-Ythatn Stakes were won by Emblem, beating rhe 1:4 94 Cup Stakes were divided between Mr. Hard , Th-"Q T. Taylor. git Ribble Stakes were won by Prince of Wales, beat -113 l etd.h ne ilwa . Stakes were won by Selina, beating Old- L 995 ._ l u. --------- 'Mt p ' Unday tw o s t eep l e c h ases ca me off over a line of t; ri t it t oo Y It th e Ol d Roan. The running on the whole was liPtle p • The first race was won by Mr. R. Morris's th e 'tour& pee er beating Iron Duke (second) and four others. tee ot hers, 4 by Mr. Henderson's Helen M•Gregor beating TOWN COUNCIL PROCEEDINGS On Wednesday the usual monthly meeting of the coun• cil was held in the Town-hall. PURCHASE OF NEWSHAM-HOUSE ESTATE, _ . • The proceedings of the Finance Committee comprised recommendations to purchase the Newsham-house Es tate ; to allow Mr. Francis Venn the salary of £lOO per annum, in respect of his office of Sergeant-at-Mace; to increase the salary of the clerks in the Town Dues Office, as follows : Mr. Ellis from £l5O to £2OO per annum. Mr. M`Naughten from £135 to £l7O per annum. Mr. Kaye from £lOO to £125 per annum. and to appoint an additional clerk at a salary of £lOO per annum. Mr. G. H. LAWRENCE, in moving the confirmation of the proceedings, referred particularly to the proposed pur chase of the Newsham-bouse E s tate. He said it con sisted of 260 statute acres, of which about 240 or therea bouts lay contiguous to each—not exactly in a ring fence, for a road separated it in one part. It was distant about 100 yards from the municipal boundary, and it was about two miles from the Town-hall. Added to this, there were 16 or 17 acres situated almost in the village of West Derby. So large an extent of acreage had not been offered for sale for a long time, and the opportunity might never present itself again. The debt of the corporation was now about £550,000, but they were about to receive a large sum for the sale of their land in Great Howard-street to the Liverpool and Manchester Railway Company, and with that sum he proposed to purchase the estate in ques tion. He admitted that it would be advisable to make improvements in the town, but still he thought that the propriety and policy of the purchase were based upon strong grounds. He wished the council to consider the matter in the light of an investment. The price to be given was £85,000, and £2,000 more to i enable that portion of the property which was copyhold to be enfranchised and made freehold. The rent would be about £1,700. He bad no fears of the property. He believed the price of the land would increase. When he considered the ad- vancement of Liverpool—the density of its population— the abandonment of cellar occupation, and the great in crease in the number of new houses, 15,000 having been built in the course of a few years, he thought they might embark in the present adventure with every likelihood of success. As to the policy of the thing, there were differ ences of opinion amongst his colleagues on the Finance Committee, but as to the reasonableness of the price there were no differences. He had every confidence in the wis dom of the present Council. He should be much disap pointed if they refused to purchase and manage the pro perty with enlarged and liberal views, bearing in mind that the financial interests of the council would not be frittered away, and that the interests which involved the health, happiness, and morality of the community ought not to be disregarded. . - Mr. Nicol, thought the money might be laid out a great deal more advantageously by making improvements in tte town. The proposal was to lock up a large amount of money, to realize a very small per centum by it, and, as It seemed to him, to hold out nothing in the shape of bene fit to the inhabitants. Several gentlemen spoke as to the propriety of the pur chase, Mr. EVANS observing that it was an estate which would cost at the rate of £335 an acre, and only ls. 41d. a yard, and that within two miles of the Town-hall. All be could say was, that if he had the money be should be happy to give £25 per cent. on the purchase. It was one of the happiest and best windfalls which had been offered to the town for some time, and there could be no reason able objection against it. Some discussion followed upon the propriety of widen ing Berry-street, and making various other improvements in tie principal thoroughfares upon some general plan, after which the purchase of the Newsham-house Estate was agreed to, and the whole of the proceedings were con firmed. A note was read from Mr. Abbott, of the Town-hall, requesting to be permitted to withdraw his notice of resig nation, and his request was complied with. LORD LINCOLN'S BILL The sub-committee of the Watch and Health of the Town Cmmittees on Lord Lincolo's bill and the bill of the council reported that the former embraces the follow ing subjects :- 1. Paving and supervision of streets, including restric tions on the mode of laving out new streets. 2. Public sewerage and effectual drainage of houses by their owners. 3. Scavenging and watering streets. 4. Supply of water for cleansing sewers, streets, &c., for domestic use, and ha' extinguishing fires, with provision: for establishing a fire police. 5. The appointment of a medical officer of health, an inspector of nuisances, the suppression of nuisances, registering of lodging-houses, &c. As stated in the former revort, several of the powers which Lord's Lincoln's bill proposes to vest in the Com missioners to be elected under it, are in this borough now exercised by different bodies. The Commissioners for better Paving pnd Sewering of the town have the control of the pavements within the parish of Liverpool, which are vested in them, whilst the soil and freehold belong to the corporation ; the Commissioners water the streets, and the council cleanse them • the powers of the Commis sioners for Sewering are confined to the parish of Liver pool, whilst Everton, Kirkelale, and the part of West Derby within the borough, and now becoming very popu lous, are entirely without provision for sewerage; and though the council have power to cleanse the streets in these townships, they cannot raise any rate for that pur pose. The most populous part of Toxteth-park, though forming part of the borough, has its own commissioners for sewering, paving, &c., whilst the council have power to cleanse, though they cannot raise a rate; the Health Committee of the Council can enforce drainage in courts throughout the borough, but have no control over the main sewers; and the Commissioners for Paving in Li verpool have now to supply water for extinguishing fires, whilst t e control and management of the Fire police is with the Watch Committee of the Council. The reports of the Commissioners for inquiring into the state of large towns, strongly urge the importance of these various duties being combined under one management, and Lord Lincoln's bill, which appears to be based on the recommendations of those commissioners, adopts that principle in its provisions. The principle of one governing body for all municipal purposes appears in the Municipal Act, by which it is pro vided that the trustees under any local rct for paving, lighting, cleansing, watching, supplying with water, and improving any borough, or part thereof, may transfer their powers to the Council; and under this provision, the Commissioners for watching and lighting the town did, in the year 1836, transfer their powers to, and they are now exercised by the council. And, independently of their concurrence with this view as a great principle, the sub-committee are of opinion that many practical inconveniences have arisen, and should the same system Continue, will still arise in this borough, from the want of uniformity of action, which can only be secured by combined management. The council having. on the 29 , h of October last, affirm ed this view by adopting the repot then laid before them, notice of intention to apply to Parliament for a bill was Published by the Town-clerk, in the local papers, on the 7th November, such notice specifying the intention to re peal, alter, or amend the provisions of all the existing acts of the Commissioners for paving. &c. in Liverpool, and so much of the art of the Toxteth-park Commissioners as re lates to the borough ; and to vest all those powers in the Council, with such additional powers as are necessary to enable the Council to frame, for this borough, a local bill, on the plan of Lord Lincoln's public bill, substituting the council for the Commissioners proposed under that bill and thereby avoiding the inconvenience of further elec tions, and the expense of separate establishments. The Sub-committee then go on to refer to what the Toxteth-park Commissioners, khe township of West Derby, the Harrington Water Company, and other public bodies have been doing with respect to local affairs, and they conclude as follows 7 - " The Sub-committee have not been unmindful of the importance of an adequate supply of water for cleansing and fire-police purposes, and for domestic use, and they refer to the report on this subject, unanimously adopted by the Councjl on the 29th of October last. " But they are of opinion that the subjects of water supply and drainage should be taken together, and that the interests of the public would only be effectually secu red by adhering in thi• pardrular also to the plan.of Lord Lincoln's Bill. In that bill it is proposed that an inquiry should be instituted as to the existi ig supplies of water, arid that the best plan of increasing the same, how far any existing companies are able and willing to extend their supplies, and what streams and supplies of water would be available by the enlargement of existing or by the con struction of new works. Such an inquiry, carefolly con ducted and maturely considered, by able and scientific persons having their attention specially directed to the combined objects of drainage and water supply appears to your seb-committees to be a necessary step previous to the adoption of a plan Alfficiently comprehensive to se cure both objects on a scale commensurate with the re quirements of this borough, and as the report of the Health Committee on the supply of wat. r was only affirmed by the Council on the 20th of October last, there was not in their judgment sufficient time for such a sur vey and examination as would haveadmitted of a matured and well digested plan being laid before Parliament in the present session. Your sub-committee therefore abstained from attempting in the present bill to obtain powers to construct new works, which, upon such further consider ation by competent persons, might, after the expenditure of large sums of money, have proved insufficient for the required purposes. But provisions will be found In the bill to be submitted to the Council, under which the sup ply of water to the inhabitants, and especially to the poor, may be rendered, even under existing circumstances, much more efficient than it has hitherto been. " In conclusion, your sub-committees, representing two of the most important committees of the council, are strongly of opinion, upon mature consideration, that should the proposed bill of the commissioners be passed, and the operation of Lord Lincoln's bill within the bo rough be thereby prevented, most of the evils now expe rienced from the existence of two public bodies for muni cipal purposes will still continue; and your sub-commit tees recommend that power should be obtained from the Council to vroceed with the bill which has been prepared —the several clauses being submitted to the Council for their approval, previous to going before a committee of the House of Commons on the bill." A long discussion followed the reading of this report. Mr. Kaye. Mr. Aspinall, and Mr. Proctor spoke in fa vour of allowing the powers to be vested in the Highway Board, on the ground, generally, that that board was quite competent to discharge its duties, and that if the management of all local interests were concentrated in the council there would be a very considerable difficulty in making quorums on all occasions. They said, moreover, that they were willing to abide the issue of an appeal to the rate-payers. Mr. Tinne, Mr. Higgins, and Mr. Earle were in favour of concentrating all interests in the Council ; and even tually their report was adopted. THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD. DOCK COMMITTEE. Mr. BRAMLEY-MOORE, in moving the confirmation of the proceedings of this committee, said the New Dock Bill would very shortly be laid before the council for their approbation. In the meantime be wished to make it known that there was a clause in it recommending swivel bridges to be made across Great Howard-street, so that, if the inhabitants on the Bootle side had any objection to those bridges, now was the time for them to meet and ex press their sentiments on the subject. He had a commu nication to make from the warehouse owners, which would be received with gratification by the council and town at large. A year or two ago it fell to his lot to cast censure upon the warehouse owners, believing that their interference, with reference to the half-deck floor at the Albert Dock, was uncalled for. But now behoved him to say that any such impression on his mind had been en tirely obliterated by their late generous conduct. From this time forward no more would be heard about the warehouse interest overriding the town ; but they should be all running in the same harness, and all aiming at the same great object—the general good of the town. He re gretted that he had not muds to express what gratitude he felt towards them for the handsome manner in which they bad come forward to relinquish all further proceed ings against the completion of the Albert Dock Ware houses. But he would-read the resolution : "At a meeting of the Warehouse Association, held on Tuesday, the 3d January, 1846, John Montgomery, Esq. in the chair, it was unanimously resolved, on the motion of Wm. P. Bushby, Esq., seconded by James Brancker, Esq., that this association, in deference to the wishes of the Dock Committee that the remainder of the Albert Dock warehouses should be completed immediately, in stead of their erection being postponed until the period stipulated by the Act of Parliament, do hereby give their assent to the removal of the restrictive clause, and desire to express their hope that the abandonment on their part of the solemn engagement entered into with the Dock Committee on the passing of the act will be received in the spirit with which it is conceded, this association being willing to make the sacrifice., if such be deemed advisable, for the welfare of the port." (Applause.) Mr. EvaNs regretted that the communication from the warehouse owners had been presented before the debate upon the Dick Bill itself. The fact was, they had no powers of restriction, and everywhere the English mer chant had a right to interfere with the docks of Liver pool, so far as the commerce of the country was con cerned. Mr. HORSFALL confessed that he had listened with the greatest pleasure to the resolution of the warehouse own ers, because he conceived that they had conceded every thing which the most sanguine advocate of dock ware houses could possibly require. The concession was very honourable on their parts. It relieved him and other members of the Dock Committee from considerable em barrassment on the subject of Oz. dock warehouses. There certainly was a compact entered into with them, and the only difference was as to the extent of that compact. But whatever differences of opinion might prevail upon that subject, there could be no doubt that the warehouse own ers would not suffer one iota by the concession now granted. Mr. ROBINSON moved an amendment to the effect that the number of officers proposed to be employed at the Al bert warehouses was too large ; but on a division the amendment was lost by a majority of 31 to 9, and the pro ceedings of the committee were confirmed. The Council adjourned to Friday. At the adjourned meeting, on the Report of the Law Courts Committee being brought forward, a conversation took place relative to the new gaol, from which it appeared that delay had arisen from the property being in chancery ; but the dispute was now at at end, and the land would soon be placed at the disposal of the Council. The Market Committee recommended the markets to be closed at ten o'clock on Saturday nights, and at seven every other evening of the week. Mr. ASPINALL proposed that this recommendation should be referred back for reconsideration, together with several memorials which he presented, and which were numerously signed, against such early closing. Mr. KAY E felt strongly in favour of the measure; but, after %Ia bad taken place, and because some parties wished to have a further hearing, he was favourable to the whole of the facts being reconsidered. Mr R ATFIBONE spoke strongly in favour of the mea sure recommended, and adduced• several reasons ; urging, also, the propriety of masters paying wages on Friday. Mr. ROBINSON was for reconsideration. Mr. READE concurred with Mr. Rathbone. Mr. LLOYD feared that early closing would cause the people to go to shops to the detriment of those who had stalls and shops in the markets. Mr. THORNE" , LL was also of this opinion, and thought with earlier closing three-fourths of the shops and stalls would be deserted. All the shopkeepers had signed against the earlier closing. Mr. ASPINALL'S motion was agreed to. The minutes of the Education Committee stated that the total number of pupils in attendance.at the schools was 408. Mr. G. H. LAWRENCE congratulated the Council on the success that had attended the South Adult School, where there were 102 persons receiving instruction. These schools were open to all. The proceedings of the Health Committee were con firmed. A memorial from the Rev. J. R. Connor and the Build ing Committee. praying for a grant of the reversionary in terest in some land adjoining St. Simon's Church, in order to its re-building and enlargement, with 700 free sittings, was read. It was stated that the Council had no power, but that the Lords of the Treasury would probably grant it for a nominal sum. A memorial from shopkeepers and owners of property to be taken for the Wapping Docks was presented, pray ing that compensation clauses might be inserted in the New Dock Bill. Several members supported the memorial, which was refered to the Dock Committee. A let'er was read, containing a request from the Bir kenhead Commissioners to have the use of the landing stage to run boats all night. This was referred to the Ferries Committee. THE NORTHERN HOSPITAL, On Friday a special meeting of the trustees of this hospital was held at the Clarendon-rooms, to determine upon alterations which had been submitted in the general rules. The attendance was pretty numerous. Mr. R. E. HARVEY, (who was called to the chair,) stated that, at a prior meeting of the trustees, as stated in the advertisement calling the meeting, it had been pro posed by Mr. Banner, that the honorary medical officers without the boundary of the borough should no longer be coosi•leredlai attached to the institution; on the motion of Dr. Carson, " that the direction of the institution should be placed in the hand of a committee, consisting of pre sident, three other officers, and twenty other trustees, to be elected at the annual meeting, and two members of the medical board, a physician and surgeon, each member of the board occupying the situation in rotation four months in the year ;" and " that in case of the temporary absence of a physician or surgeon, one of the consulting physicians or surgeons should be requested by the house surgeon to take the duties of the absentee until his return; that the consulting physicians and surgeons shall be members of the medical board ; that the consulting physicians shall be summoned to the medical consultations, and the con sulting surgeons shall be summoned to the surgical con sultations." Mr. J. N. BANNER stated he had been misrepresented as regarded his proposition, and was not actuated by in terested motives. His object was to secure to the poor patients a better attendance of medical men. At present there were three phys clans and three surgeons, a number which he considered inadequate, if they did not constantly attend. All he wanted from that meeting was, that they would permit the consulting medical off ers, in cases of emergency, to take that upon themselves which they ought to do, and their services might be made available without affecting the character or feelings of those taking ti,e ac tive department. The duties of the house surgeons were too great and too responsible. moved a resolution in accordance with the advertisement. This was not seconded. The CHAIRMAN then brought forward a resolution which had been proposed by Dr. Carson, and read a letter addre,sed to the chairman of the committee of the H oFpi tat on the subject, signed by several of the medical officers. It conveyed resolutions of the medical board, stating the object they wished to attain at that meeting of the trus tees—that of having one physician and one surgeon ap pointed to co-operate f,r the general interests of the institution, &c. Dr. CARSON said, that in cor sequence of certain pro ceedings at the medical board since the last meeting, and also of the persevering objections of the committee to the arrangement he had proposed, he should withdraw his motion, but in doing so did not give up one iota of his conviction of the correctness of the principle which be advocated, and that he felt convinced that at no very re mote period the committee would see the necessity of having a deputation of the medical board upon their body. Mr. MOZLRY complimented Dr. C. for withdrawing from a contest which could but have terminated in un pleasantness. A letter had been addressed to him (Mr. M.) after the last meeting, couched in shameful terms. Had the writer the audacity to be there, he (Mr. M.) was prepared to rebut every word of that letter. (Hear.) Mr. GILL moved, and Mr. STITBBS seconded, a counter resolution to the one of Mr. Banner. After a lengthy conversation, the amendment was de clared to be carried by a division of twenty-one against ten, and the meeting se, arated. MORTALITY We extract the following particulars relative to the mortality in this town and neighbourhood during the De cember quarter of 1845, from the tables published under the authority of the Registrar-General : DALE-STREET.—No particular disease has been preva lent within my district this quarter. It appears that there are 7 deaths less than in the preceding quarter eliding 31st December, 1844. ST. THOMAS.—The deaths this quarter are 33 less than in the corresponding quarter of last year. Of the deaths registered, 47 are from bronchitis; &c., 22 phthisis, 3 hy drocephalus, 10 dropsy, 16 enteritis, &c., 37 b oop i ng cough, 6 typhus, 8 scarlatina, 9 small pox (only 1 of which was vaccinated,) 3 pleuritis, and 3 measles. MOUNT PLEASANT.—Deaths 376, being 36 above the general average. Phthisis has been most prevalent. 26 coroner's inquests. There has also been great m or t a li ty amongst children, 150 deaths having occur red under six years of age, principally from hooping cough, bronchitis, and convulsions. ISLINGTON.—My district continues healthy- Deaths still decreasing. ST. GEORGE'S.—Number of deaths rather above the average, principally owing to measles ; hooping cough and pneumonia being very prevalent. The number of deaths of children under 5 years of age is 90. EVERTON.-The increase of deaths in this quarter arises principally from measles, which is prevalent in the Industrial School, Kirkdale, in which the children are paupers belonging to the parish of Liverpool. WEST DelanY.-Decay of nature 14, convulsions 20, bronchitis 2, small pox 5, dropsy 1, water on the brain 5, dysentery 3, decline 7, inflammation of the lungs 8, pneu monia 3, hooping cough 4, teething 6, scarlatina 3, typhus 1, brain fever 1, gastro enteritis 1, phtbisis 4, consump tion 7, diarrhoea 1, intermittent fever 1, croup 2, apo plexy 2, cholera 1, liver complaint 2, Asthma 1, child birth 2, disease of the heart 1, mesenteric disease of the glands I, premature birth 1, influenza 1, erysipelas 2, ulceration of the bowels 2, and inquests 2. The number of deaths this quarter exceeds the past by 28. Small pox, scarlatina, and pulmonary complaints have been and con tinue to be prevaient in my district. GREAT CROSBY.—Though the number of deaths this quarter is more than an average, the whole of my district is in a very healthy state, for of the number 16, there are 10 children. TOXTETH PARK.—The number of deaths this quarter (354) being a decrease of 19 compared with September quarter ultimo. The principal cases are as follows—con sumption 2, small pox vaccinated 5, of which number 2 were adults, the one a male aged 30 years, and the other a female, aged 36 years, both of whom it appears were va cinated in their infancy; small pox not vaccinated 13, measles 2, searlatina 25, typhus 7, diarrhoea 9, chronic ditto 2, excessive drinking 2, syphilis 1, aged 3 months, from its birth, and inquests 9. DREADFUL SHIPWRECKS. FOUR HUNDRED AND FOURTEEN LIVES LOST Port Philip and Hobart Town papers received last week give the melancholy details of the loss of the Cataraqui, emigrant ship, upon the iron-bound coast of King's Island, in Bass's Straits, (between Australia and Van Dieman's Land,) a locality in which, for want of light houses, it is said. the lives of hundreds are daily en dangered. The following particulars are condensed from the account supplied by Mr. Guthrie, the chief-mate, who, with his eight fellow survivors, reached the shore almost in a state of nudity, having of course lost every thing they possessed. The Cataraqui, Captain C. W. Finlay, sailed from Li verpool on the 20th of April, for Van Dieman's Land, with 369 emigrants, "and a crew (including two doctors, brothers, named Carpenter,) of 46. The emigrants were principally from Bedfordshire, Staffordshire, Yorkshire, and Nottinghamshire. About ]2O of the passengers were married, with families, and in all 73 children. On the 3rd August, at seven in the evening, the ship was hove to, and continued lyingto until three a.m. of the 4th. At half-past four, it being quite dark, and raining hard, blow ing a fearful gale, and the sea running mountains high, the ship struck on a reef, situate on the W. coast of King's Island, entrance of Bass's Straits. No observa tion to ascertain the ship's precise position could be taken for four days previously, and from the dead reckoning she was presumed to be in 141 22 E. long., and 39 17 S. lat., making her 60 or 70 miles from King's Island. When she struck four feet water was found in the hold. The scene of confusion and misery that ensued was indescrib able. All the passengers attempted to rush upon deck, and many succeeded in doing so, until the ladders were knocked down by the working of the vessel, when the shrieks of men, women, and children, from below were terrific, calling on the watch on deck to assist them. The crew to a man were on deck the moment the ship struck, and were instantly employed in handing up the passengers. Up to the time the vessel began breaking up it is sup posed that between three and four hundred persons were got on deck by the extraordinary exettions of the crew. At this time the sea was breaking over the ship on the larboard side, sweeping the decks, every sea taking away more or less of the passengers. At five a.m. the sbip fell over on her larboard side, carrying away boats, bulwarks, &e. The captain ordered the masts to be cut away, in hopes of righting her, and getting the passengers still be low on deck ; and everything was done, but without avail. The ship became full of water, and the passengers below decks were all drowned. Those above were directed to cling to the wreck above water till daylight. When day broke it was found that the stern was washed in, and numerous dead bodies floating around the ship, some hanging on the rocks. Several of the passengers and crew (about 200 altogether) were still holding on to the vessel, the sea breaking over, and every wave washing somebody away. About four p.m. she parted amidships, at the forepart of the main rigging, when immediately some 70 or 100 were launched into the tumultuous and remorse less waves. The survivors ran ridge-lines along the side of the wreck, to enable them to hold on. The remains of the upper deck now began to break up and wash away. An attempt was made to get a buoy on shore, but it stuck amongst the seaweed on the rocks, twenty yards off', and there was no one on shore to secure it on the sand. The waves broke with unabated violence. At five o'clock the wreck patted by the forerigging, and so many souls were submerged that only 70 were left, who were lashed to the wreck. The sea broke over hem, the wind raging, and the rain falling heavy all night. Numbers died and fell overboard, or sank, and were drowned at the places where they were lashed ; when day broke the following morning, it was discovered only about 30 were left alive. The sea was now making a clean breach into the fore castle, the deck of which was rapidly breaking up. About this time, whilst numbers were helplessly clinging to the bows and continued dropping off without the possibility of succour, the captain attempted to reach the shore, but was unable, and with some assistance regained the wreck. I he lashings of the survivors were now undone in order to give them the last chance of life. Mr. Thos. Guthrie, the chief mate, now on the sheetsail yard, was washed out to the bowsprit; he saw the captain, second mate and steward clinging at the bows with about 18 or 20 dead bodies on the fragment of the wreck. Mr. Guthrie was now driven to a detached part of the wreck, but soon found it impossible to live with such a sea breaking over, and seizing a piece of plank under his arm, leaped into the water and was carried over the reef, and got on shore. lie found a passenger who had got ashore during the night, and one of the crew, John Robinson, plunged into the water when he saw the mate ashore, and partly swimming and partly driven reached the land. Five other seamen followed, and landed dreadfully exhausted. Almost im mediately after the vessel totally disappeared. Thus, out of 423 sire's on board, only nine were saved. The names of those saved are Thomas Guthrie, chief mate; Solomon Brown, emigrant; John Roberts, Wm. Jones, Francis Milan, John Simpson, John Robertson, and Peter Johnson, able seamen; and William Black stock, apprentice. They had neither fond nor drink from the time the vessel struck (Sunday) to Tuesday afternoon, when they found one small tin of preserved fowl; after eating which they went and lay down in the bush, almost destitute of clothes. The beach was strewed with fragments of the wreck, mingled with numerous corpses. They could find no water that night, and slept on the beach. The next morn ing found a cask of water, but were unable to make a fire. Soon after they observed a smoke, which they thought arose from a fire of the natives, and immediately a white man approached, which turned nut to be Mr. David Howie, residing on the island. He observing a portion of the wreck, arranged to reconnoitre the island, but as his own boat was wrecked he could not leave the island. The party, therefisre, constructed a hut, and re ma i ne d five weeks, hospitably provided for by Mr. Howie and his people, according to their means, the supplies having to be carried forty miles over a difficult road. On the 7th of September, they saw the Mudge bearing for the island, which t. ok them off with much difficulty, and by the aid of Mr. Howie, on Tuesday, September 9 They landed at Hobson Bay September 13. Most of the ship's papers and the mail (except 35 letters) were lost. Loss OF THE AMERICAN SHIP SCOTLANP.--The Scotland, Captain Snow, sailed from Liverpool 17 , h Jan., bound for New Orleans. On the night of the 19th, du ring a gale, and thick weather, she struck on Arklow, or some of the neighbouring banks of Ireland. The pumps were tried, and it was discovered she had two feet water in her hold. The ship was then steered up the Channel, in hopes of gaining some port, but the water gaining fast, and the ship steering with much difficulty, (having five feet water in her hold,) all the after sails were taken off to make her steer, both pumps being kept going, at the same time baling out of the fore and after hatchways. At four in the morning she broached to. every exertion being made to get her again before the wind, but in vain, her lee rail at the time lying in the wa ter, and having seven feet water in her hold. Orders were then given to cut away the mainmast, which was done, carrying the mizenmast along with it. The ship then stood in for the Welsh coast, which they made at day light, and kept on till within a quarter of a mile of shore, when the best bower anchor was let go, but finding the ship sinking, and no one to relieve them, the anchor was slipped, with the intention of running her on shore, but she became completely water-logged, and would not steer. Guns were fired, and signals of distress made, but no one came to their assistance. The ship ultimately struck, and the crew succeeded in getting on shore. DREADFUL SHIPWRECKS.—On the 11th ultimo, the new ship Montreal, laden with flour, &c., a trader be tween London and Montreal, was lost during a snow storm, near Cape Chat, and all bands perished. On shore, the bodies of the captain, wife, and child were found, the latter being clasped in its mother's arms. Four other bodies were after afterwards discovered en tangled in the wreck. They were buried in one grave. The Saxon of 367 tons, from Boston to London, was ob served on the 24th ultimo, on a reef of rocks, and was a complete wreck. Her crew consisted of twenty hands, all of whom perished. The brig Laurel left Quebec on the morning of the 29th of December, with a cargo of 400 barrels of flour, and twenty-eight of butter. On ar riving off Cacona, on the banks of Newfoundland, she was met by a large field of ice, and every effort to steer clear of it proved abortive. The ship becoming fixed in it, she was shortly driven ashore on Green Island, where she immediately became a wreck. The crew suffered se verely for three days. The barque Universe, of Boston, was lost under similar circumstances ; fortunately the crew were saved. The ship Cambridge, from Liverpool, on the 23d of December, saw a vessel in distress, which proved to be the Lord Lynedoch. of London, in a sink ing state. They took off the crew, thirty-two in num ber, who were in a dreadful state. The vessel foundered shortly afterwards. The East India Company have re ceived information of the total loss of one of the com pany's war sloops, named Coote. The brig Merlin, o f Newcastle, was fully destroyed, by fire, on the 3rd in stant. She was laden with wine and fruit, and within twelve hours after leaving Oporto Bar she caught fire. The captain and crew were soon forced to take to the boat and abandon the vessel. They were afterwards picked up. On the books are also reported the total loss of the. ship City of Shiras, in the Mindora Sea, with forty persons drowned; and also the wreck of the Gus tave Edward, a French Indiaman, 650 tons burthen ; and another vessel, name not exactly known, both attended with melancholy results. MELANCHOLY Loss OF THE BARQUE BENCOOLEN AND THIRTEEN OF HER CREW.—The Bencoolen, Capt. Can but, belonging to Mr. Ripley, of this port, was totally lost on Saturday night, she having, during the heavy gale, unfortunately run upon Taylor's Bank, near the Formby Light-ship. Only eight of a crew of 21 were saved by taking to the boat. The other thirteen, including the cap tain, mates, and pilot, were drowned when the vessel went to pieces, shortly after she struck. During the late strong gales (we may state) several fine ships have been lost on our outward coasts, including the Susannah Cumming,. on Mad Wharf, the Mary, on West Hoyle, and the John Horrocks, near Leasowe. The crews of these vessels were gallantly saved by the life-boats. The Bencoolen sailed from Callao on the 15th Oct. last, with a valuable cargo. On Saturday morning list, at 8 o'clock, she passed Hoy head, and at 10 took a pilot (Harding, of No. 3)—the wind fresh from th e W.N.W. At s i x i n t h e even i ng (having previously bees, hove to) she crossed the Victoria Bar. Half an hour after they had passed the Bell Buoy, the ves sel struck on Taylor's Bank. The pilot, aware of the danger in so heavy a sea, ordered out the jolly-boat, and into it went five seamen and three apprentices. The boat twice nearly filled with water, and, the painter snapping, she was borne far from the vessel. Her crew made seve ral anxious attempts to regain the ship, but without suc cess, and thinking those on board would take to the long boat, made towards Liverpool. They landed at half-past nine at the Prince's Dock Basin in an exhausted condi tion. Two steamers and the Liverpool lifeboat were im mediately despatched to the wreck, but no signs of the ill fated vessel or the unfortunate individuals who had been on board her were visible. At the time the jolly-boat was lowered, the men were busy clearing the other boats, but it is supposed the vessel broke up immediately after those who were fortunate enough to reach Liverpool lost sight of her, and that all on board were drowned. The pilot was James Harding, of No. 7. It is supposed that, in running up the Victoria Channel, he took the northeast side of the Formby Light-ship, and, being to leeward, ran on the bank. He was a steady, sober man, and much re spected by his brother pilots. We subjoin a list of the parties who have lost their lives by this melancholy dis aster :—Capt. Claribut, Mr. Sands, chief mate, Mr. Creasy, second mate, William Adamson, seaman, Robert Wallace, seaman, George Spenser, seaman, M'Nicol, seaman, Chas. Pugh, seaman, the carpenter, sailmaker, cook, steward, and James Harding, pilot GENERAL MISCELLANY. Sir Robert Peel completed the 58th year of his age on Thursday. Mr. R. Cooke, a surgeon, was on Friday, in London, sentenced to seven years' transportation' for bigamy. A Society is just formed in London, called " The So ciety for Promoting Church Music." A ship has just left the Clyde, for the West Indies, with a cargo of metal coffins. By a recent Treasury order British spirits may be bottled in bond for export under certain regulations. On Sunday morning week, a fresh-grown mushroom was gathered by the way-side, near Preston. A fine butterfly was seen near Bath the last week in January.—Another was caught near Liverpool. The personal estate of the late Isaac Cohen, Esq., in England, is sworn under £300,000. On Sunday, through the upsetting of a boat at Yar mouth, three persons were drowned. In the horrible case, at Greenwich, the chemists have found large quantities of arsenic in the body of the child. On Tuesday a fine lively infant was found in a basket in the Hyde Park, London. The number of converts to Romanism from the upper ranks of society, during the last few months, now exceeds one hundred. Nearly forty are clergymen. On Friday week a poor man at Kirkcudbright com mitted suicide by hanging himself, in consequence of hav ing had a quarrel with his daughter, a worthless character. The Post-office authorities have discovered that spuri ous postage stamps, to a considerable amount, have been issued in London. During the performances at the City of London Theatre on Tuesday night, a man named Briton was killed by the fall of a cannon, and another seriously injured. On Thursday, Augustus Hopeton, of Holloway, aged 14, was accidentally shot by his younger brother, while firing at sparrows in their father's garden. Within the last week the Trent has -gain overflowed its banks, and laid a vast extent of land under water, the marshes having been covered for miles. The associated mill-owners of Manchester propose, on Sir Robert Peel's measure becoming law, to reduce the hours of factory labour from twelve to eleven.—Daily News. A spot is now traversing the sun's disc, which is esti mated to be 26,000 miles broad, and to cover an area of 1,062,282.000 square miles, more than five times the number of square miles on the surface of our globe. _ A sad accident occurred at Messrs. Black well's Fur naces, near Dudley, on Sunday evening week, by the falling in of the roof of the casting-house, whereby one man was killed in endeavouring to rescue his son. EXPLOSION.—On Friday week, an explosion of gas took place at the offices of Mr. Naylor, solicitor, Leeds. A workman was dangerously injured, the window was for. ced into the street, ar.d the house shook to its foundations. When the Duke of Buckingham was shooting on his Wotton estate recently, he had a narrow escape. He held his gun with the stock on the ground, and was talk ing to a gentleman, when it exploded in his hand, and the contents rose close to his face. The other day, a man and two women, of Dunster, ate the top of a wedding cake, and were immediately after t a• ken ill. A surgeon was sent for. and on his arrival he found that they had taken poison. Happily, however, they all recovered. The royal steam navy of Great Britain consists now of 156 steamers, with 38,788 horse-power. This is of course exclusive of an immense number of steamers at this and other ports, which may at any time be conyerted into war steamers, with little delay or expense. IRON TRADE.—So great and general is business in the iron trade at the present moment, that there is difficulty in executing the most trifling orders for casting. A cor respond ent informs us that for weeks he has been unable to get an order, even for three grates, executed in the me tro polis. —Railway Chronicle. AN EXPENSIYEPAUPER.—The parish of Longhope, in the Westbury-on-Severn Union, has had a pauper of the name of Elizabeth Duffield, in the Gloucester Lunatic Asylum for more than 20 years. She has cost her parish nearly £500; and what is most remarkable, she died on the 24th inst., aged 102. In order to gratify his constituents, Mr. Hudson caused a special train to convey copies of the new morning paper containing a report of Sir Robert Peel's commercial speech. The paper was on the Mayor of Sunderland's breakfast table, 268 miles fi on, the metropolis, at the same time as in the London clubs. A QUEER CUSTOMER.—On ThurFclay, a racoon of an unu-willy large size, wa ,, , discovered in the hen-roost cf r. Clark, farmer, at Watnall, near Nottingham. On examination, it was found that the intruder had made a meal of two game ocks, five fowls, and one duck. Where the animal had come from, or how it got there, nobody knows. At Greenwich police-court, on Wednesday, a workman employed in Deptford Dockyard was charged with steal ing an old iron staple, the property of Her Majesty, the value of which was estimated at five-sixteenths of a far thing. As the man had been dismissed from his employ ment in consequence, the magistrate considered that suf ficient punishment for the offence without inflicting any penalty. A FICKLE SPOUSE.—A couple were married, a few days ago, at Warmington, Northamptonshire; and, not many hours after the nuptial knot had been tied, an old sweet heart made his appearance. The wife, on seeing lym, immediately pulled off her rine, and threw it at her hus band, told him she had had quite enough of him, did not intend to have anything more to do with him, and imme diately left the house with her old beau. On Wednesday, afire broke out in the extensive engine building tnanufactory of Messrs. Hawthorn, near New castle-on-Tyne. It broke out in what is c-ulled the pat tern and tittlng-up shops, and it is said., nearly all the va luable t atterns have been consumed ; and four or five locomo ive engines, in a very forward state, which were in the fitting-up shops, have been rendered nearly useless. The loss is estimated at from 1:10,00 to £15,000. The premises were insured, but not the engines. THE LATE DUKE OF YORICA CREDIT —OR Thursday, at the Auction-mart, Mr. G. Robins offered for public competit on, a boqd given by the late Duke of York to Mr. William Gilpin, to secure the payment of £1,955125., of which £665 12a. balance of principal now remains due, with interest thereon from the 15th September, 1826. The bond was secured on property in Nova Scotia. Mr. Robins asked £9OO kr the lot, remarking that the balance, with the interest, was above £1,200. After considerable delay in getting an offer, a gentleman bid 20 guineas. This was eventually increased to 180 guineas, at Which sum it was purchased. . . PEOPOSED AND PRESENT CORN LAWS.- The fol lowing table will best show the operations of Sir Robert Peel's new Sliding scale :7 Average Prig. Present Duty. . 20s. . . 205.. . 203. . Proposed Duty. ...,10s. When it reaches 45., according to the proposed scale the duty remains fixed ; while in the present scale it falls ls. for every Is the price rises, till it is reduced to Is. NOBLE DARING.—The ship Alhambra, from Dublin to Cal,z, being driven by one of the , late gales within the north-west horn of Carnarvon Bay, her peril became most imminent to every soul on board. A lad, named Owen Jones, of Cerrig-yr-Ader, in Rhoscolin, immediately ran out to a projecting point for the purpose of making the best signals he could for her to come into a small creek where she could lie in safety. A small island, detached from the shore by a sound cf about 100 yards, offered him an ad vantageous position for getting nearer to her, but how to get there was the difficulty, as there was a tremendous sea tumbling in, such as no boat could live in had one been at hand; he therefore boldly plunged in, and by great ex ' e :tions, succeeded in gaining the island, Here his presence of mind was as remark able as his intrepidity. When his companions entreat , d him to take off his jacket before he made the mad attempt, he replied while plunging in, " 1 cannot spare it; it's the only signal I have to hold out." He did providentially succeed, and gaining a high pinnacle, there he stood with his jacket fluttering in the gale ! "1 he people on board having acknowledged that they saw him, be instantly dropped both arms in a manner that was in telligible to them, when the ship instantly rounded to and dropped her anchor, and was in'comparatisT safety; the life boat then went on board, and at a proper time of tide, they slipped her anchor, and beached her in a spot " as quiet as a duck pond," from whence she was, on the return of moderate weather, taken into Holyhead.—North Wales Chronicle. FALL OF Two HOUSES.—On Wednesday, at noon, two houses, three stories high, situate at the top of Upper Marshall -street, near St. Thomas's Church, Birming ham, fell to the ground with a fearful crash. The houses belonged to Mr. Frith, a cooper, and the roofing had just been completed. The accident is supposed to have been caused by impr u d e ntly di gg i ng ou t a foundation ad. jacent, which, from the late heavy rains, had not got pro perly set. Fortunately, no lives were lost, but the pecu niary damage is considerable. SUNDAY TRADING.—We understand that the mayor and magistrates have issued a caution to those shopkeep ers who are in the habit of violating the law by Sunday trading, warning them against the penalties to which they expose themselves, &c. We trust that this well-timed caution will have the good effect it is intended to produce and that the p rac ti ce comp l a i ne d o f w i l l b e voluntarily discontinued. It is a well known fact that the majority of those who open their shops on the Sunday are averse to this illegal custom, but are tempted to adopt it by the conduct of their less conscientious neighbours. The ex ecution of the law, therefore, after due notice, becomes a protection to the shopkeeper who wishes to attend to his religious duties, and to have the quiet enjoyment of his family circle one day in the week. The cust m adopted by many masters in this city of paying thtir workmen on Friday night, or in good thine on Saturday, has been pro ductive of much benefit to the labouring classes.— Wor cester Journal. NARROW ESCAPE.—The junior members of the family of Mr. Scott, of Colney, narrowly escaped destruction on Tuesday se'nnight, in crossing the railway at the Healer sett station. The carriage was on its return from Ketter ingham-hall, with the governess and four of the family, and on reaching the station the gate-keeper came out to open the gate. The carriage was passing through the first gate when it was partially closed by the wind, and striking the body of the carriage, caught the hindmost wheel, and stopped its progress. The foot man .jumped down to extri cate the gate from the carriage, and at the moment saw an engine coming along the line close to them. The gate keeper had also, in crossing the line, seen the train coming. The footman and gatekeeper instantly rushed to the horses' beads, and succeeded in pressing them back, and at the very instant they had cleared the rail an engine passed them unharmed. We are afraid this was one of the special trains that proceeded to London after the con clusion of the free trade meeting, of which it would seem thegatekeeper had received no notice. — Norwich Mercury. SERIOUS CH ARG E.—On Tuesday, great consternation was occasioned in Leeds by the apprehension of Mr. H. J. Marcus, of the firm of Marcus, Naylor, and Co., on a charge of forgery. The facts of the case are understood to be that the name of Darnton Lupton, Esq., late Mayor of Leeds, had been attached to a transfer of some London and. Croydon Railway shares without his knowledge, the attestation to the signature being by Mr. Marcus. On apprehending Mr. Marcus, he made a desperate attempt at self-destruction, and it was only by the activity of Mr. Read, of the police force, who dashed the bottle of lauda num in pieces, which the unhappy man had just raised to his lips, that the attempt was frustrated. Mr. Read's hand and Mr. Marcus's face were both cut in the struggle. Another unfortunate feature is, that a pocket-book be longing to another firm in the town, which had been mis sing fur some time, was found upon his person. Mr. Marcus was not a member of the Stock Exchange, but held the office of chairman of the Sharebrokers' Assccia tion. He is also one of the honorary secretaries of the Leeds Mechanics' Institution, and had hitherto been well respected. DISGRACEFUL SCENE.—One of those demoralising ex hibitions, denominrted a prize-fight, took place on Tues day, the combatants being Harry Broome, of London, and a Birmingham man named Benjamin Terry, both well known in e hat is called the " prize ring." The contest took place in Berkshire, seven miles from Swinton station. After fighting upwards of an hour, Broome appeared to have so much the best of the battle, that the partisans of Terry were in despair for their man, or rather for their money, and eagerly seized an opportunity of declaring that Broome had struck a foul blow ; but the referee de clining to declare it one, a party, properly denominated roughs, broke into the rine, armed with bludgeons, and it was with the greatest difficulty the unfortunate referee was preserved from being brutally slaughtered on the spot. The language and threats made use of were described as surpassine, for horrible and savage ferocity, anything ever witnessed on any similar occasion, bad as they generally are. The ring being broken up, the most open robberies were committed with impunity, no one daring to inter fere. Surely something will be done to put a stop to the e scenes,—scenes disgraceful to human nature, Or to any country calling itself civilised. THEATRICAL PROPERTY.—On Thursday, Mr. George Robins attended at the Auction-mart, for the purpose of disposing by auction of two £5OO renter's shares in Covent•garden and Drury-lane Theatres, and of 22 £lOO subscription shares connected with the litter establish ment, on which occasion a great number of gentlemen who had large interests in the respective royal prope r tie s were present. The first lot was a rent cha r ge upon t h e ( t i a g td a o r b d be e ae n ,n. , e w rb l e ) e i de c un h e se sold originally dfrbomy pxrci2ovssattt private l:50O i s h o t ic e t h r e l Ti theohs e. income This o oys,a,fal was state d con tract. Lot 2 was a £5OO renter's share in the Theatre Royal Drury-lane. The annual income from it was £8 10 : the share expiring in fifty years. This was sold at 62 guineas. The auctioneer remarked that he had sold a similar share for 300 guineas. Lot 3, five £lOO subscrip non shares in the Theatre Royal Drury-lane, paid up, and entitled to a personal life admission. Lot 4 and 5 were ten £lOO shares, but with no personal admission. They were bought by Mr. Burgess for 5 guineas and a half. The last lot cons'sted of five similar shares, but of which there was no certificate. These were knocked down to Mr. Burgess for 3 guineas and a half. FACTORIES IN THE NORTH OF ENGLAND.—In his last report (just laid before parliament), Mr. Leonard Horner thus describes the result of his inquiries in his district (the north of England), giving the following cu rious details :—" I have ascertained, by inquiry, that the 1.519 firms on my books occupy 2,068 factories, have 1.552 steam-engines, with a power of 44,338 horses, and 515 water-wheels, the power of which is estimated at these 5,413 horses ; b e i ng t oget h er 49 . 751 h orses power. T hey employ 221,437 p ersons o f a ll ages, o f w hi c h num b er 14,441 arearechildren femaleteen 8 childrenan dI3 , years 3s. of l72f age, em al 6 e s s ,546 5,424 be between 13 and 18, and 141.450 of 18 and above. Of there be tween 13 and 18, and 77,208 above 18 ; making in all 120,804 females • or above 544 per cent. o f t h e w h o l e number employed. Since the last return to parliament, in February 1839, there has been an increase in my dis trict of 529 factories, of 10,041 horses power, and of 50,522 persons employed. This increase has all taken place since November 1812, when the revival of trade began ; and indeed the increase of persons employed since that time must have been considerably greater than the above amount; for between June 1838, when the collection of particulars for the return of 1839 began, and November 1842, many mills had entirely ceased to work, and others had considerably reduced the number of their hands. The total number of power-looms in my district, ascertained by inquiry, is 142,949. The only return of power-looms made to parliament is that of 1835, and I find from it, that in the same parts of England which now constitute my district—viz., Lancashire, part of the West-Riding, and the whole of the North-Riding of the county of York, and the four nortnern counties of England, there were then only C 3,861 ; showing an in crease of 79,088 in the ten years ; and there are now 26,237 mote power-looms at work in my district alone ti an there were in the whole united kingdom ten years ago. As regards the employment of women, Mr. Horner says that the clause in the late act which prevents women from working more than 12 hours a•day, and secures to them regular intervals for meals, applies to 85,515 in my district, that is, to all those of 18 years of age and up wards ; and I have every reason to believe that the inter ference in their behalf is very generally approved of, and est ecially by the women themselves ROMANCE OF REAL LIFE.—CH AP rER IL—We have a sad task to perform in giving the finale to the history of " Da Costa," whose exploits in this neighbourhood were spoken of in our columns during the autumn, as a "ro mance of real life." A romance indeed, they were, but of a different character from what we were led to antici pate. Soon after his marriage with Miss Rimmer, after paying a visit to Cheltenham, Da Costa took up his resi dence at Cirencester, and continued there to live in the same magnificent style as here, though it would appear, by his not paying for anything in cash in that quarter. that the " boundless wealth " which he seemed to possess while here was already exhausted. A short time ago a lady went to Alcester to inquire for him, and followed him to Cirencester. She was then introduced to his wife as a cousin, who had come over to him on important business wit's some deeds, and brought some deeds for him to sign. It became necessary, he said, for him to go with her to London, and afterwards to France. At Cirencester lie assumed the name of " Baron Da Costa," hunted with the hounds, rode in a carriage and four, and by, his ex pensive mode of living gained many converts to the opi nion that he was possessed of " enormous wealth," and there were not wanting those who wished to see his name in their ledgers, a desire which the " Baron" was so complacent us to gratify. But it came to pass that a strange woman came to visit him, and, notwithstanding that he had obtained the ' object in search of which he had travelled so far,' the fascinations of the stranger were so great, that he has rather fulfilled the prophecies of the good people of Alcester. among who'll were many rumours "of what the modern ' Blue Beard' would do.' For it so happened that one morning he informed his newly married wife that business of importance would take him from home for a day or two; but still, not unmindful of his bride, he kindly told her that as the gold watch he bad presented her with did not " work quite well," he would take it with him, and have it put into "good working or der," and " well regulated "by an experienced hand." After bidding her an affectionate adieu, Ise departed with the familiar spirit,' who assumed the form of a French lady, and has not since been heard of. Unfortunately, ' the Baron ' had a short memory, and forgot to call upo n those whom be had allowed to make use of his name in their ledgers, and say that they were quite welcome so to do, and, therefore, some little dissatisfaction has been ex pressed. It is generally thought that the atmosphere of Cirencester was no longer " healthy," or " the Baron " would have favoured us with a longer stay. His unfor tunate wife has returned to the house of her parents. It is painful to add that her relatives have been victimised by this artful scoundrel to a considerable extent.—Birming ham Journal. IMPORTANT FAMILY MEDlClNE.—Frampton's Pill of Health effectually relieves the stomach and bowels by gentle relaxation, without griping or prostration of strength. They remove btad•ache, sickness, dizziness, pains in the chest, &c. ; are highly grateful to the sto mach, promote digestion, create appetite, relieve languor and depression of spirits ; while, to those of a full habit and free livers, who are continually suffering from drow siness, heaviness, and singing in the bead and ears, they offer advantages that will not - fail to be appreciated. S old by all vendors of medicines. Price Is. lid. per ,r; on the government stamp See the name of "Thomas Prout, 229, St rand, London, \\ \I"F / ~'F b 0 II °I 00 1 . 1 ' I)? ° m'' it ;A 0 w P e' ff , d