Northern Times. — Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1859-11-18 00:00:00

WRECK OF THE ROYAL CHARTER. BOARD OF TRADE INQUIRY.—THIRD DAY. This inquiry was again resumed yesterday, at one o'clock intiae Crown Court, St. George's-hall. James Russell was the first witness called and, on being svora, said :—I was a passenger on board the Royal,. Charter, with my wife and two .children, who were drowned. I remember when we were oil Holy head:. I was on deck whew we were•passing that place; which might - be about two or three miles distant. The wind was I:l',)wing a little fresh, and was a-bead. I saw Cap fTequently during the•voyage: I was examinee' , fore the coroner, and certain questions were then- t pat - to me vtotiehing Captain Taylor's conduct. From my oi-in observation I never saw Captain Taylor in atiy irnr?,- , per state, or in such 'a state-that a gentle man'::9uglf. not to be,. I.Was washed overboard and thrown up Uy the sea on the rocks. To Cap! tin Harris—l saw nothing of the wreck till some tine . !fterwards: I cannot say what time the gale came on -..) severe, fo r I : h a d g Ori e i n t o * my cabin at eight o'cla•A in the evening ; but I felt from the motion of the ship, that it must have been. blowing hard. I heard Cap:ain Johnston, who was a nautical man, say on Tuesday forenoon, that from the appearance of the . weather it -vonld blow hard.. The passengers seemed to be in a st.ite between hope and: fear: at the tinie,tho struck. CaPtain Adams took me by the hand.and. told,rae there was great danger, and on that being com municated to me, I went on deck. I saw four persons at tile stern of the vessel, with Whom I was intimately accpulinted, but not one of them wa.l saved. TO Mr. Mansrield- 7 -The vessel acted in. some measure as a breakwater, and to some extent helped to calm the ' sea betweun.ber and the sh ore . • 1 Aspinall—l observed all the afternoon that the wind was freshening; and after eight o'clock, I heard it blowing very hard. said he had received a letter from Mr. O'Dow.cl that was .addressed — to — Mr. Smith, and he• thought it ,woUld be well to put it into the court, not in justification of Captain Taylor, but of another gentlornan, .Mr. Bradbury, inasmuch as it had been -stated in the newspapers that Mr. Bradbury had said that Captain Taylor was drunk. The letter is as follows : " MomaltA, Saturday Morning. . . . "Tiaving.,seen a statement i n th e public papers, to the effect that I had , stated. that Captain Taylor, of the. Royal Charter, was not Sober, I beg to say most positively that, I, liavo. not the • least knoiyledge ,of ever having made i . such a statement ; if I did, • i t mus t h ave .b eerk ,• during a state of unconsciousue:ss, which has often,been the ease during, my illness. , Had I been, cow eious,l . never `could have made a statem en t so un t rue . , I . never -kneig Captain Taylor or any of the officers, to be in a state of intoxication during the whole voyame. 0 ~ "(signed) ' 4 ' JOHN BILADBUILY.". Accompanying , the above was a note from miss•Brad tury, requestirig Mr., Smith to lay it before- the Court of Inquiry. There was also a note from Surgeon Hughes, certifying that John Bradbury was not fit to be removed. . Mr. Aspinall read the following . -- "Deposition of John Bradbury, of Manchester, a thirctclass "passenger from Melbourne 'to Liverpool .in 'the Royal Charter; sworn before IL' 11. Smith, receiver of wrecks :—Did anything happen to the Royal Charter during the voyage from -Melbourne to QueenstOwn ? No. - How long did the ship' remain off Queenstown ? -(,- From two to three hours.—Are you acquainted with nautical matters ? I :am not.---illow was the weather from Queenstown to Holylread? It was clear, with, light 'winds. - PaS - sinksHolyhead saw the Great Eastern 'between four and hve p.m., on the 25th Oct., 1859.—What time did you pass the Sherries ? Ido not remember.—Did you see the Sherries Light ? I did.—Did you pass outside or inside the Skerries ? Outside.—flow was the wind then ? I don't kn o w. The wind was fresh and ahead.—Did you see Point Lynas Light ? Yes.—How far, to your opinion, were you from it ? Between three and four miles. The wind kept freshening and - getting thick, with rain. I came on deck. about two hours after seeing Point Lynas, and • they were burning blue lights on the bridge. I think it would then be between eight and nine o'clock. I don't know how the wind was, but it was very strong. I don't know whether the ship had any sail set, but she was-under steam. I only remained on deck about ten minutes. I was at 'the fore part of the ship, and did not see Captain Taylor. I did not suppose there was any 'danger and went to bed. I heard the anchors being let go, but. I don't know the time. I was awoke between one and two o'clock, on the morning of the 26th, and was told the ship was driving ashore, and I got up and went into the saloon ; and while I was there I saw Captain Taylor come down to his room twice. He had no appearance of being intoxicated. I saw Captain Taylor frequently durifig the voyage, and I copied his log-book forhim. I: did not hear anyone ask Captain Taylor to bear up for Holyhead. I consider everything was done that could be done to save the ship and pas sengersi-but-the-storm--and sea was-so-violent- that, it was impossible to do more, in my opinion." Mr. Mansfield thought it would be important to have Mr. Bradbnry examined, as he had copied the captain's log,,and would be able, no donbt, to give a good deal of information. O'Dowil said there was no doubt it would be im portant, but it would be some time before he could be brought. Aspinall suggested that Captain Harris should write out the questions that might be necessary to have answered, and Mr. Smith would get them answered. The suggestion was not adopted. Samuel Edward Gapper was then called, and he said----1 was examined before the coroner. I was a second cabin passenger. I have been in court a great portion of the time that the other witnesses were being examined. I heard nothing that I did not agree with except as to the. wind. One gentleman said it was strong when we came to the Irish coast, but it was very gentle. To Mr. Aspinall—Some of the passengers were anxious to go near enough Holyhead to see the Great Eastern, but the captain declined the proposal. To the Court—l was acquainted with Captain Adams, and I saw him on the evening of Tuesday on three occaitioixs. After the anchors were let go,..Mr; Croom came down to the cabin, and tapped Captain Aims on the shoulder, and said that Captain Taylor wanted to 9oak.to him immediately. He went away, and I waited - till his return, when I asked how we were situated, ivad said I was not afraid, but ,, wished to know. He looked me i n t h e face and said, possible to sing the song of lf it were The Squall,' it He cou ld now be done with feeli ng. " eaidhe had n o doubt we would have to 'do so mo ti o n of swimming) before we would (m a ki ng g the ashore. I heard C a p tain Adams say that he t had had a conversation with Captain Taylor and Captain Withers earlier in the evening, but he did not say that the consultation was with reference to any act to be taken for the preservation of the ship. Just at the time when the order was given for the ladies and children to be brought forward, in order that they might be get ashore, the vessel parted. Up to that time there was a hope that the passengers would be got ashore, by the hawser .and by boats, when it would become daylight. Mr. Croon, the fourth officer, seemed anxious to save ladies andelaildren first. The captain and the rest of the officers all done their duty. The passengers and officers both seemed to behave well. Joseph. B,ogers, the Maltese sailor who swam from the Yessercto'the shore with the line, by.which the hawser was brought ashore, was the next witness. He spoke Englist:v er y imperfectly, but his evidence was to this effect. lie was on deck between four and five o'clock in the morning of the day of the wreck, because it was his watch. The boatswain's mate called him to go down below and help the sailmaker to stow away the small sail:, that were unbent, which comprised the th ree roy A I S an d three topgallant. sails. He - was doing so when he Was again called up to loose the maintopmast staysail, and it was set only about ten minutes when it was hauled down again. When he, I came on deck he saw th e manyard had been rounded ai r but could not see what had been done besides, because it was too dark. The impression on' his. mind at that' time was that the captain intended' to stay tlie ship. The maintopsail was set but it was furled up again. ; He . was on the yardarm at the time, and , was, nearly blown off. He knew he could not stow it, and went on deck and told Mr. Stevens, the chief officer, that he ; could not furl the sail, and Mr. Stevens told him to go.' Up again and try. He went up and made the gasket, fast roma, the yardarm, and when :he came down, he heard. the captain give the order to let go the port anchor, and while. that was being done he (wit ness) helped to pay out the chain. The starboard anchor was also let ;go soon after. A, short time afterwards they cut away -the mast, as the anchor was ' being dragged. The ship was : ultimately driven on shore, and he then heard Captain Taylor give an order to clear the portlift-boat, and the witness assisted .in doing so. When the ship struck on the rocks he was in the forecastle with some 'other sailors, and ; one of them said to him, "Jne, *hat are you going to do ?" He asked . the boatsvrain7s mate - whet he was going to do, and he said be was going . ashore. Some one said to. witness, " Joe, you go ashore," and at the same time, offered him a life buoy, but he replied that if he went ashore he would swim ashore. He then got the line and made it fast , iroundhis body ; 'and on going out mlong, the jih-boom, lie found the Ilying,jib-boom guy was adrift, and b it,. he let himself down into the writer-He - was driven back by the, waves several times to the side of the ship, and while he was in the water he saw some-men on the rocks: Heget to the rocks again, and be called out' d the men " will you Jena me a hand,""end about that time sane ? person gut; `hold of him and pulled him out. Ho did not see the - hawser pulled to the rocks, because he was taken'away by some peeple. He wanted to stay, but - they' would not allow him, and he supposed it was becanse he was I exhausted. . Captain Harris congratulated Rogers on his being the means of saving the lives of seventeen persons by his gallant conduct of swimming ashore; and, he also congratulated him on the present that had becumade to him en the previous day. Roland Hughes, master of the life-boat at Amlwcb, was then called and,savarn. He said lie was fifty-two years Of age, and had resided at that• place from his infancy,' and he never saw strch a storm in his- life. He was at another place that night, looking after. a schoonor that was lost, and he did not see the signals - which were ; fired from. the Royal Charter. The crew of the life-boat practised every three mouths. It would have been quite'impesSible for any boat to have ptit . to sea that night. There were four or live of, the men belonging to the life-heat on shore, abreast of the Royal Charter at the time of the wreck. It would have been quite impossible to have gone round Moelfra Point that night. • He did not hear that'there wits any life-boat out along the coast that night. George Suiaear, a Maltese sailor, was the next wit ness called, and deposed as followsL-I was boatswain's mate on board the. Royal Charter. I .have been in .one of Mr. Inman's ships sailing out of this port. On Tuesday, the 25th, I 'remember 'eomingfrom 'Que'ens- • town to Holyhead, and a nice gentle breeze was blow ing. We had unbent the light sails, and had the royals and skysails below. Prom eight to twelve was my watch on, deck. We, had a storm maintopmast staysail and other storm sails on board, including djib and foretopmast-staysail. After the- hawser was got ashore I was ordered to go ashore first by the chief' officer and attend to the hauling Tine, in, order to get the ladies ashore. When we were about to' get the hawser ashore, Mr. Stevens said to me, " Suiacar, can ; you swim ?" and I said I could. " Yes," says he, "all your countrymen can swim ; will you take this line and swim ashore with it ?" I said I would &anything at all I could to save life, and as we' were talking we observed some persons on the cliffs, and I coiled up the line to, try to heave it to them. We tried several times . to throw it . out the rocks, but still missed it, and at last a heavy sea came and washed it out of our hands. I said to Mr. Stevens that I . knew whore there was another line,. and he told me to get it at once. I ran to a place where I knew the line was, as we had been using it to sling the stage that we were painting on the day before. I asked time to go below to get my life-belt, and when I got it I tied the end of the line round my body. At that minute I met Rogers, and he said, "What are you going to do ?" ~ I told ( him that I was going to swim ashore. He said, "Let us both go." Rogers suc k. in getting out on the jibboom, and lowered him self doWn into the water. I was going over amid ships, when Captain Withers observed that ' I was in danger; and just as I got to the water I was hauled aboard again. I was told that if I had gone over at the place where I was going that I should have been dashed to pieces between the vessel and the rocks. By that time Rogers had got ashore. Mr. O'Dowd said that this witness was the last he wished to call to give evidence on this portion of the matter. He thought it right that he should apprise his learned friend, Mr. Aspinall, of the course he intended to take on further investigating the circumstances, and he apprehended that the next thing for them would be to inquire whether the Royal Charter was built as strongly as it was customary for them to build iron vessels, and, secondly, whether that strength was -sufficient. This, of course was subject to the opinion of the court: It would be necessary that the highest possible scientific evidence should be produced on such questions, and in order to obtain that evidence, he asked for an adjournment for a week. Some conversation took place as to the time necessary to get such evidence, and what time would be most suitable to all parties.—lt was finally agreed glut the court . should be adjourned to Wednesday next, at one ehlciek: ...., Mi. Siiith, receiver of wrecks, received the following letter yesterday, at St. George's-hall, while attending the above inquiry, and signed by a tide-waiter, in charge of the wreck : " Moelfra,' 17th Nov. " We got on well yesterday, as we succeeded in getting two bags of sovereigns, supposed to contain about 500 each, and a lot of gold, which Captain Fell has in charge. This morning I went round the point to the westward, and found a male body, with' 17 13s. 71d. on the person, two mourning rings, a small clasp, and a piece of foreign coin. Just now, sir, there has another body come ashore, with £l7, three gold rings, three breast pins, and two pair of earrings, in a belt.' • - Pf. 011,0 c4 fin f oonta th e e tuhte p p o l i a . c s i o hn n totig er tienr P a al nc m ourap er's racers, Goldfinder, iZ:en t isn Islington a t th e rescued from a Cart Gate. The ni in bus l b B e s te and Bennington mANeume,streets of Paris. The Godolphin Arabian was BONDING IN Exchequer has sent the TfoEli.-- . The Chancellor of the reply to a series ;of by persons inte restedl.tr°l2lit, Ic2thteNroZ 5 resolutions recently, Dfoorwwninardged: in bonding warehouses in Manchester: receipt of l 8 of the • " Sir.—l beg tiY, acknowledge the letter of the 10th instant,. transmitting the resolutions passed.at a meeting of the inhabitants • n inte rested in bonding foreign produce in Manchester. It is perhaps convenient for the public service that the question of inland bonding has now taken, or is likely to take, a wider scope than when it was confined to the single, though very important, case of Manchester ; a n d, while I am unable to give you any pledge in regard to it, I can convey the assurance that it will receive the careful attention of her. Majesty's Government. —I have the honour to be, sir, your obedient servant, • " W. E. GLADSTONE. "The Mayor of Manclicter." NORTH - ERN DAILY TIM M. MERSEY DOCKS AND HARBOUR BOARD: Charles Turner : presided at the usual weekly meeting of the Dock Board yesterday, and the other members present were—Messrs. Brocklebank, Hubback, Littledale, Smith, Rankin, Forwood, Mondel, Farn worth, .Rounthwaite, Bushell, Segar, Tobin, Langton, Graves, Bold, Eyre Evans, Maclver, and Boult. WORKS. COMMITTER. This committee recommended that certain portions of • the sea wall between Scaeombe and Egremont, which had been damaged during the late gales, should be re built at the expense of the board. The followin?; tenders were recommended for acceptance, viz.: Mr. James Blake. to supply soap ; Messrs. Walker, Parker, and Co., to supply white and red lead; and Messrs. Matthews and • Co., to supply Venetian red. Mr. BROCKLEBANK moved the confirmation of the proceedings, which was agreed to. The CHAIRMAN, in answer to Mr. Langton, said that the previous decision of the committee in reference to the rebuilding of the Cheshire sea-wall had .been re versed. • WAREHOUSE COMMITTEE. The committee had reconsidered a previouscresolution, and now agreed that the clerks an 4 other partiefi em ployed'under the Doak Board in the warehouse depart ment be informed that the Warehonse Committee did not in any way wish to prevent them enrolling ;a any volunteer artillery or rise corps, provided that their duties to the board were not impaired or interfoted.with. Mr. Ilunnkcic, in moving the confirmation of the'gro endings, said . he trusted the. decision of the committee as to the volunteer movement would be satisfactory. It SMITH seconded the motion, which was aired to. MAPINE COMM.MEE. " Tive• committee having reconsidered the question of providing a new life-beet for the I ilbre Island' Station, persisted , in recommending that one of White's boats should be- ordered at a cost of £l-28, and that a boat be built on the principle' of Peak!s• boat,. at a cost of £220. The committee hadihad under consideration the question -oKthe. loss of the Austrian barque Tyrol : and the condtict:of the crew of two of the life-boats. After ' a full examination of the- , master and mate, of" the. Formby life-boat, the keepw of the light-house, and the man Clarke, who horsed the boats, it had been resolved that oa consideration of all the circurnstances,, it , appeared to the cenainittee that no blame attaches to tha• crew of the Formby life-heat. The inquiry vme,al,l be still further proceeded with ; , in reference to the conduct of the , crew of the Liverpool boat. Mr. Moxoan, in moving,the confirmation-of the pro ceedings, said it. was a- matter et regret that the com mittee had not been able to proceed -further with the inquiry in refererce to the conduet of the lifeboat men, in consequence of the absence of material witnesses who were preVented . attending, owing to the dense fog that prevailed.on Tuesday. In reference7to the recommenda tion to order a life-boat from the Messrs. Waite, of Cowes, hes would state briefly tha- premed** of the committee-ou that matter. On the 30th of August last, the Hilbre Island life-boat was reported in want of repair,nndwas ordered to be brought into port fersurvey. On the 13th of September the report of the survey was considered, the boat condemned as too -old for satisfac tory repair, and. it was ordered that tenders for - a new life-boat be pro'cured. Tenders were submitted on the 20th of September for a life-boat on, a Liverpool model, by Costain T on the model of the National Insdtution, - by Forrest, of Limehouse ; and on' the patent of Lamb and 'White, by the patentees. On that occasion. the tenders were,opened,.and further estimates were ordered to be procured in Liverpool. On the 4th of thatcher further estimates were submitted, and. the ,whose: con- . sidered ; and. on. the 11th of October it was resolved .that one of Lamb and_White's boats be built, but this-reso lution was not confirmed by the board, who, on the 'l4th of October, referred it back to the committee for.recon sideration. Messrs, Lamb and White were communi cated with on the subject of the buoyancy of their boat, . and the following letter was received.from.them Cowes,.lBth October, 1859. Sir,—We are in. receipt of your favour.of the .14th.instant, and in answer would submit that we consider the building the air cases :n the boat forms a principal feature, as being part of the boat itself it increases the strength. of the side in a great degree ; and it is this construction that.. makes theSe boats specially adapted for hoisting in. davits without the danger of breaking. All loose apparatus placed in a boat adds weight without increasing the strength ; and if the india rubber fender is placed round the' boat, I,think. there can be little danger of damaging the air cases, as the beat has a double side to stand the blow; and these sides. supported by bulkheads at, every five feet. We are satisfied. the committee would be pleased had they one of our boats, and.we shall feel pleasure in building should they so decide.—Remaining, sir, your Obedient servants, JOHN & ROBERT WHITE. per JOHN. WHITE. M. T. Parks, Esq., Marine surveyor's Office,liverpool. PA.—When we consider the number of compartments, there is littl chance of all being damaged. This, I think, has been explained before. This letter was considered, and the marine surveyor ordered to report. on the capabilities of the boat patented by Lamb and, White. The marine surveyor reported that the air cases, were built into the boat, to, give it additional strength and extra buoyancy, and that the boat appeared to. have been extensively used by the Peninsular and Oriental Company, and by the Revenue cruisers. The reason why the committee hail chosen this boat for an outlying station was, be mime of its superiority over any other description of boat in pulling to seaward in bad weather—a quality which was considered of primary importance, for in its absence all other good qualities would be of no avail. Mr. Mlclyzu seconded the confirmation of the pro ceedings. • Mr. TOBIN opposed the recommendation in reference to White's life-boat, and contended that the committee should have been prepared to submit the advantages that would arise from any change in the construction of the life-boats. The committee only said that a change was necessary; the reason for that change was no 6 6ivon, and 4bp onromittoo ohouldi havo borno in mind that a change was not always an improvement. When they found too that 'the present boats had done their work in a manner' which was not surpassed by any boats in the country,'it was clear that the board should not make a change, unless the; committee colld give the soundest reasons to convince them that the change would be one for the better. (Hear, hear.) The principle of this patent boat was reported against by the Northumberland Commissioners, who examined the 280 models sent in for the £lOO prize; and those commis sioners were all eminent nautical. men. The marine surveyor, too, was very guarded in his report, for he said the boat was well adapted for a ship's life-boat; but, then, did the marine surveyor consider it was superior to the boats now in use ? Mr. MAclven—Yes. Mr. Team resumed—He had it on good authority that the marine surveyor considered the presents boats were equal, if not superior, to any -Alter boats round the coast. (Hear.) Why, it was only last year that this same boat was before the committee, and they rejected it at that time as unsuitable ; but now they were told that this boat was wanted on trial. If the trial had reference to goods, he would not have objected to it ; but when the question was one of saving human life, hewould make no change unless thoroughly convinced that it would he for the better. Mr. Tobin then censured the course taken by the committee in reference to obtaining tenders tenders for boats, and said that in having ope ne d t h e first l o t o f t en d ers , an d then advertislig for second, they had laid the matter open to great abuse, which was exceedingly wrong in principle. He then went on to condemn White's boat, his proofs being quotations from the report of the Northumberland Coni misaioners, and pointed out that of the thirty-eight , boats which were classed. White's was the lowest but . . . two; and tkat the Liierpool boati, by Cattalo, ,wer considerablyhigher on the list. They would, no'doubt, have been higher had they been constructed to free themselves of water more quickly, but that fault had been . since remedied. Mr. Tobin quoted the only, two instances Which he found on record of the services of White's boats, and argued, from the results of their_perfonnances; that the boats were failures. He contrasted with those services the results of the operations of the: Shields and Liverpool boats. 'At Shields, last year, the boats had. gone to 33 wrecks ; at Liverpool, in the same period,' to 24. - 'The' Shields boats went off 84 times,' ,and saved 493 lives in 11 years; the Liverpool boats went off 269 times and saved 1,123 lives; The Point of Ayr boat alone went off 120 times, and saved 664 lives. The services of White's boats were not to be put in comparison with those of the Liverpool boats. From 1840 to the present time the Liverpool boats had saved 1,786 numIET far in excess of any life-boat establishment in the kingdom. There Were, therefore, no grounds for the change, and he should oppose the recommendation of the committee. • Mr. NAUTVER: said Mr. Tobin should bear in mind that the Government to a - very large extent recognised White's boats. Mr. TOBIN—For ships' use only ; net for coast service. Mr. MAclverc said, from the Marine "surveyor's- re- . marks in committee, he way led to suppose' that was an excellent' boat. If the board would order one' Of those boats, and did not like it afterwards, lie won4tl' give them £lOO for it, and put it on board one of hie own Tends. 131C0C4.LEBANK. seconded,Mir:,Tobincs'amendment,. which, was' that, that part of the proceedings:relating to the purchase of a life-boat from the Messrs. White be not confirmed. In 185 T-the . committee. arrived at the conclusion that the boats'then in use would Carry more • passengers, anti were better'idapted for being towed out to a Wreck, through a roula , sea, than ,any other boat rf the committee wanted to , try White's boat; let them do !so ; but he protested against her being: put on any station in lieu ofany of the existing boats:- • • Mr.• LANGTON said the boat•previously.refused by the committee was only a single banked boat; whilst that which it was . intended, to .have built now. woad be double banked, uncles° strong lip., consequence that there could-be little fear of the air cases being damaged. Mr: Bouvr said he would like to hear something as to the-relative.cost brthe boats., Mr.. GRAVES said the number! of lives saved' by the Liverpool boatYshowed hOW 'admirably they were adapted to the wants of the port, and .. eipreffied - his i6ar that .White's beet Would be too light to bkOwed through a heavy sea. He strongly recoiumended'a trial of Peak's' life-boat,. which' was meg_ by the RojraliLife-boat Insti tution. Mr. SMITH urged that any life. 7 boat, that was .con *meted should be one he which the men had confidence ; iand all the- life-boatmen had.porfect confidence inithe boats at present used by the Dock peard. The CHAJR.I4IA.N said the principle on which the-Liver pool: life-boats had hitherto been constructed, had been considered with special , reference to the service- to be performed, and the coast on which that service was.-to be performed. In Mr! the marine.- surveyor was , of opinion that the life-boats lhen in use, with certain-I'in provements. which had, been since made, would be superior to any beat of which, he ,then had any know-- ledge. He-wonld like the: opinion of the marine sur veyor upon' the relative merits of the Liverpool boats 'and those . pmposed to be substituted. Mr. BesnELL concurred in the remarks of the chair man. Mr. MOM:I,EL having replied, the - board went u, .a. division, when there appeared—for the amendMent,. ti:;. against it, 7";. so the amendment was carried. Oa the motion that one of Peak's life-boats be built, it was moved by Mr. SY4TH, and seconded-by . ..N:lr. FOR, wOOO, that the whole subject be referred back to-the committee, and that the marine surveyor do, report upon! the relative merits of the Liverpool boats- and. Peaks boat. The amendment was.lost by le . votes against,,to for, and, tine proceedings were then confirmed, excepting thatipart relating to 'Mute's boat._ The proceedings of the Pilotagc f : Docks and Quays, and , Master POrterage Cominittees r liere read and:con firmed. letter from Mn., ,Caleb Smith on behalf of, the master ship-builders-and shipwriglats, suggesting that :a mast shed should be erected on the east side of - No. 1' §andon Graving-daek, was referred 'to the Docks and Quays Committee. TAR VOLUNTEER RIFLE AND. A,RTILLERV MOVEXENT. Mr. GILAYES postponed for a week his notice of motion for voting-£250 to .the fund for raising Tolunt eer corps in Liverpool.and the neighbourhood. A letter from, Mr. John. Laird, asking that the fear Wallasey Companies of Rifles, might participate in. the grant, if made, was read. TILE SYSTEM, OF MASTER PORTERAGZi Mr. MACINER then.ntoved the resolution ; notice of which he gave last week, that the system, of master porterage, as. respects steamers, required alteration, and ought to be altered without delay. He considered it a description of ,heathen 'darkness and ignorance to say that the present system was a check upon the dues in any way, or that it helped the working of, the docks, for it did just the reverse. , (Hear, hear.) ,He contended that the consignee ought to be the master porter of the vessel, but, as it was, the largest consignee took the porterage ; and, although the list of masters porters em braced the names of first-rate gentlemen., yet they en trasted the work to their butler's son's sister's little boy —(roars of laughter)—and the result was neglect, and delay, and damage. Mr. SEGAR seconded the motion, hut hoped it would be withdrawn, as the Master Porterage Committee was fully alive to the subject, and would deal with it., The picauut zybtem appeared to, hang as a drag on that despatch which was of such vital importance to, the steam trade. Mr. SMITH and Mr, BaULT considered the present system an impediment to business. Mr. BusuELL was of the same opinion, and said that on the 20th of January last a special committee was appointed to inquire into the management of the docks and quays. This question concerned that committee; and he should like, to know how often they had met, and how far they had progressed in the inquiry. (Laughter.) Mr. GRA.VES said the committee had been very hardly pressed by. other business, still if Mr. Bushell had not declined to serve on the special committee, he believed it would have been at work ere this. In reference to Mr. Maclver's motion, he considered that a strong case had .been made out, and expressed a hope that the MaSter Porters Committee would consider the whole question. For himself, he would say, he should like to see the board take the master porterage of the port into its own hands. Mr. MAclvicn—Oh! nonsense. (Roars of laughter.) Mr. Brocklebank, Mr. Tobin, Mr. Rankin and the chairman admitted the necessity of an alteration in the present . system. It was then.agreed that the whole question, both as regards sailing and, steam vessels, should be inquired into: by the Master Porters - Committee, and thereupon Mr..Maclver withdrew his motion. This was the whole of the public business, and at half past four the reporters withdrew. V' DEATH WHILE OOLIRTING.-OH 'Monday, a coroner's inquest was held at Malton, upon the body of John Atkinson, who had fallen down dead on the Saturday, night previous. Deceased was a,farm . seivant, and haa. attended,the Malton hiring; •and pal - ions to returning, had walked with a young woman whom he was courting to the outskirts of the town. lie suddenly• fell, knocking his companion down also, and{ died instanta neously.—Verdict,".Died by the visitation of God." WELSH CHURCH - SMIREES. On Tuesday evening last a soiree took place in the Tabernacle Welsh Church, Great Crosshalteatreet, the object of which was to further the freedom of the Welsh Chapel in Birkenhead froth debt. Tea was on the ales at half-past five o'clock, and was continued up to seven o'clock, which was prixtdpally owing to the im mense party that had congregated. The Rev. Mr. Thomas, minister of the . Tabernacle, occupied the chair . after tea, and eloquent speeches were delivered by the several ministers who attended from the various denomi nations of the Independent and Wesleyan- bodies. . Mr. STITT, town councillor fir. Everton and Kirkdale, gave a very interesting ~defail of his experience ,as a bible-clais Sabbath-school teacher.. _ He stated thithe had made it his business to_ visit personally several dis tricts,,of the borough, inhabited only by working men and their families ; and, he regretted to state; that hun dreds, nay thousands, of human beings were huddled together in such a way as was a disgrace to humanity. Her was, however, happy to state that, with respect to Everton and Kirkdale Ward, such• was not the case,. as a greatimProvenient was observable in the working men's habitations, nearly 6,000 housei had been built withittiwo or,three years, averaging rent' from £l3 to £25 annually.. These were j houses_in which -a sober,. steady workman and his family could live happy and- contented. Mr. "Stitt then went y on to_ make special - reference to the Tabours and su:epess of the Welsh Independent ministers .9f Liverpool ;, and the - inhabitants of that denomination , were a cre6l, he said, to any society. He was .happy to be present , on such an occasion, and trusted that the object in view would in a short .time be accomplished, of setting free from debtithe Welsh Independent Chap - el at 'Birkenhead.- (.Hear; hear.) He, Mr. Stitt, would do all in his power to further so praiseworthy an object, and to extend the work of church extension and scrip turaleducation. Mr. Stitt concluded an eicellent ad dnos amidst deafening plaudits. The Rev. Mr. THOMAS, of Birkenhead,, addressed the meeting ia an appropriate address, as did also the minister, of the Tabernacle. The choir, during the proceedings sang somebeautiful and aimropriate hymns suited to the oCcasion.- On the evening of Wednesday, a soiree wee given to the children of the Snriday School, after- which Mr. Chadburn, of r Lord-street,. introduced his " magic lantern,'' which was beautifully attractive. Mr. 'John Evans, one of the Sunday Scheel teachers, deserves much credit for his exertions upon the occasion, and the deep interest he -takes in everything: connected with, the Tabernacle Church, which has for its object ihe advancement of Script Ural truth. It may not be out of pittee to state that at the animal soiree last year, R. A..Macfie, Esq., was presept artd after the delivery of d'inost . practical addres§; gave £lO towards the accomplishment of the object in view. • HEALTH COMMITTEE. .~ . Alderman Dover presided at the usual weekly•-meet in.. of the Health Committee yesterday, and the other , ,members present were-31. , ..55r5. * Shell; Holden, Credal, • Beckwith, Bowring, Ridley;. Dickson, Haydock,..A.vison, Job, Stitt, and :Barton. , The Borough Engineer, Bhilding Surveyorond In spector of Nuieances reported, variourparticularaof 'the operations in their several departments during the week, from which it; appeared that 112 nuisances complained of by inhabitants had • been inspected, and means taken to remedy them ; .830 homes in the unhealthiest dia tricts, Containing 2,555 apartments and 343 celrdrsiliad linen put under' examination' with the view of improving their sanitary Condition, and 260 lodging-houses hact also bemi eaminatand reported upon. ' , The BuildislOurveyor reported that sine s January lost he iad had taken down. and. secured, within the i borough of Liverpool, 628 , dangerous buildings,, :530 fence walls, 2,141. chimneys,. total 3,299, the- result of whibkhad been. that not a. single accident occurred in Liverpool during the late hurricane. This, heithought, must be very gratifying to--the committee, taking into account the: sefious accidents that occurred in- other parts 'of the cauntry at that time. Mr. Sum-observed that if the world was. so, much inclined to find fault with the Health Conimitteei, they must try to convince the -world that it was wrong: Mr, )3ownis-o--We must shut their mouths. ber facts such as these.. • The MedicalrTortieer. ai Health reported, that, during the last four-weeks tlie- mortality of Liverpool, had been lower than the average of the same season, in former years, although the sudden falLof nearly,-21, degrees in the mean temperature- between the 19th, and 25th of October raised; the mortality -in two subsequent weeks -to a higher-point than. it had reached since the month of August. In the second week of October the deathi, as previously reported, were 149, than lowest weekly mortality ever recorded in Liverpool. In, the four fol lowing weeks they were successively 161, - 221, 203, and 182, being fifty-six, twenty, twentyriight, and forty eight less, than the average of the same weeks of the preceding ten years ;•between the second and fourth weeks, of October, the• sudden fall of temperature baiting . occurred: in, the interval, the deaths. rose :fifty. per . cent.;: and those from;cliseases.of the lungs, which-in the first of those weeks. were 32, .were in the three following,, weeks 52, 80,, and Bs. Last week. they. fell to 66. • Foom, epideMic and contagious diseases, constituting .the zyio tio class, the-mortality had been lower than, usual •, the deaths in' the , last four weeks were 148, only 29 o f Aich occurred last week, being fewer than in any week of the preceding three years—of the.l4B deaths from this class of diseases, 38 were caused by. diarrhoea ; 28 b y scar- Jaime, 27 by, typhus, 22 'looping-cough, 9 dysentery, 8 croup,' 5 measles, and 3 diptheria. Last week there was no death registered from measles, and only one from scarlatina; it being nearly five years since the weekly mortality from scarlatinalad been observed to.he so low.. Not a single death had been registered from 'small-pox during the last eighteen weeks—a circumstance of un precedented occurrence, The deaths of 8 males and 2 females were registered from .delirium tremens and ex cessive drinking, their ages varying from 10 to 52 years. Rain fell, on 20. days of the 28, the amount averaging 9-foths of an inch weekly. • The Medical Officer of Health reported that several hduses in Pleasant Hill-street, Texteth-park, were bait bad sanitary condition from want of 'drainage, there being no sewer in the street. The committee ordered that a sewer be constructed, - the cost being provided for . in the estimates for le present year. ProceEdings were ordered to be taken against Peter Callaghan, whose inciting- works, 21, Pownall-square, were certified by . the -medical officer of health as being a nuisance injurious'to the public health. The sub-committee hadeonsidered.the memorial of Mr. Chadwick, Who prayed to be released from a sewerage eontract into which he had -entered with the committee. Mr. Chadwick's contract -was £3,329, being the' lowest tender, and considerably under the amount of the borough engineer's estimates and the other tenders. Mr. Chadwick proposed to be released from the contract, and in consider ation to give up all claims upon the committee for the work already done, to the amount of 420. Thnerror arose from the, estimate having been" niade on the supposition that the ground to be excavated' was clay, whereas it turned out to be red sandstone rock, full of water. The committee found that Mr. Chadwick's statements "were true ; that there - had been iinwilful misconduct on his part ; and they recommended that, under the peouliar - circumstances of the case, 'Mr. Chadwick's proposal should be acceded - to. . Mr. fallen into the same mistake. OMr. z s L o i: ssataidtedthtahtaitn.ifftli.tturehe o a t u he c r o e n o t n ra t e ra to c r t s or i s n h c ;:d r the committee should consult the geological map, of The' Bonbuonr Er/Gni-sea said lie proposed, in future' - om Liver, ee p b o e o f l 0 re which m ak e i n o g u t d h b e i e r s that contractors should:employ some p arti e s to take Out 1 the quantities for th em. work was e teeenndienrst.he borough engineer's The report w-as then agree , to, anl it-wasp esolved worth,tliat th ew co ho n se tra es e t t in e i h a o t u e I f d o r be o n d e i virdnetdi portion e t o w r e t e h n e Mr. NOVEMBER - 18, 18 W. £5,870, and 'Mr. Mason, whose estimatufor the re - ; mainder of, the work was £4360, making a total of £7,230, as against £3,329, at which price the vroric bad been contracted for by Mr. Chadwick. Some, conversation took place in. reference to the Pr'; prietf of retaining Mr. Chadwick' s na m e on the list contractors, and on a diiision it was agreed by sef°' votes against five that his name should be retained. Mr. STITT presented a memorial "from Kirkdatey numerously and respectablysigned, complaining of the state of Back. Castle-street, Kirkdale ; and, on the 11 1 ° - tion of Mr. Stitt, the document was referred to the borough engineer for as repOrt. A letter was.read from Mr. William Chadwick, flag merchant, Leeds-street, stating that he was not the person whose contract had been the subject of disenow n in the Town Council. Mr. AVISON wished to know when it was intended to make a footpath through St. Peter's Church-yard. All The question was discussed at,', some. length, and Chairman expressed an Opinion that the churchward i e rf would not object to a passage over the church-yar, the committee put up a sufficient - fence; but llfr land's, the borough engineer, stated that on a 1 °":. occasion, although the churchwardens would not CO— to sent to the pathway being made, they did not, ohjec t ai d it. The Law-clerk stated that the proper way 09 5 ,4 be for the churchwardens to leave the chat - 0: 1 ,4 gates, open night and day,- when it would be s whether the public cared for using the church-yard; r pathway: The result of the discussion was that a o e r the tation was appointed to' see the churchwardens on _,L O ., subject; the deputation to consist of Messrs. .o'7 Ridley, and Bowring. • A letter from Mr. T. W. Rathbone on.the subje— the Common Lodging-houses Act was read, and referred to the Lodging-houses 'Sub-committee.'' • After some other business the committee adjourne d ' TOXTETH GUARDIANS. rev The usual weekly meetinrof this board was held 3 ,- terday, at the : public offices, Park•road; Mr. Alpass P r : sided; and the other *guardians present were-3,,,, 1 !.:4 -. Baynes, Hunter, , John:: -Wilson,- Joseph Wilson, - 0 -...„ ier all son,,Carter,- Ogden, Hughes, Grindrod, Mo s s, Laytand and John S- . , Gronciu, governor of - West Derby- Workhe. h r reported. that the number of paupers in that estaba f; meat, belonging .to Toxteth-park r last week was 3 : 9 6, this weeil, 386; corresponding week of last year, 9, In the hospital-the patients last. week numbereaa, Since which 4 had been admitted, and 2 dischato leaving the number this week at 55, t- A cheque to theamount of £lOO.-w 1' ns granted for . door relief,. - _ e re The piebeeding,s of -the Building Committee 1 ` confirmed on the motion of Mr. HsniirsoN. ANOTHER CHARGE AGAINST MR. HEATH.... ; 0 ,1 The CHAIRMAN read- a Tornmunication from -5 01 . 1 Greig, dated November 14, stating. that it- had been -ported to him., by Inspector Deka', of the Southert, Division; that he had .entered a cellar Mana-str ee , on -Saturday last, and found a : woman na med 31!), Bridson about the age of 56; instate - ofi great destlL u tion, and- a suffering-from erysipelas: He sent and `,", ~ formed. Mr.. Heath, who, ,on ,visitin.g. - .her, asked if th e would like to go' to the workhouse ; She 'replied in negative ; Mr.. Heath then left, ancLrefused to give P relief. Another communication, dated the 16th inst., ste te that Mr. Heath had again visited lierand again effet e to take her to-the workhouse, - -which:she refused, as s ' -,, ' e was desirous of seeinr, herdayghter - first. 60 1 she was dependant on the neighbour:a - 4r feed- r The CHLTrimAxasked Mr. Heath. -what he'had to se , .to this charge. • . Mr. HEATH replied that his attention had been - 4rSt i , , called to the :case on Saturday evening, about six o'eh' e rr by police-eonstahle 807,,: and Mrs,Jones, who reP o l 'seated that the woman, Mary Brielson, had. been sev e _ o days ill with erysipelas in the face, that nobody V;le attending to- her,' and that she- was 'destitute. e 1 promises to, visit " her, which hb • did iernmediaL it i i afterwards,. He found her reclining on a chair 0 a place_ linden : her - head ; • them was also , a fir e o i the place. She had just had some tea, and hr her from some- neighhours,, as they had . just known °f or illness. , Alter making: some - irouiries about her ' hi: J(3 tionS• and means= of. livelihood, he. told her he l ',for remove hey,to the workhouse,. and would send a ,r 0 that purpose. She replied that seine neighbours hoes going over to • Birkenhead to see her. daughter who " o es . there, and she- would not go .until she had either„-,j to her or get - an, answer from her, which: she expec t do next day. He examined the place, and having:bieb where she.‘slept, was shown a. little -back eellar,,roof he also examined, and found, no• window or 01 1 - 1 40 g,. ventilationj a profusion' of- bed. elothisg a tit 0 ' about. He again impressed, upon hen the h e ' - it the, going to.: the workhouse, and sa l iz e i f g t th he a r t l s o he l c i l - as hett ai r' ci result of communication' with her. daughter. -bole ~igb't nothing of-the ease on Sunday, but weal down at 'l lit et and found herin bed in the back I ner daug had net been there. .He nlin ; ad s i b u ee fo ni rtne: see b Y that the,(l3ridson) had had some victuals given het', , e • some one. He again offered to- convey h er to j 'iu ot M her r , s-. . rnwH w e o ooae r trad, kh utytuy: o )la uie .e33. ,.. h ica,: t indoie.ea s nin h rti e dse7 d ge_ e biav c wasuot..4:d:Teawte. :rya jast.ea:foeddro to attozui her. He wrote.. one oat,, which he e vB .lp Mrs. Grant, wilo:pronliseclito, tak.e , it .next morrueg,o, - the doctor's surgery. HA: then, salted upon Dr. S' il iot the medical officer ,4f, board, thinking a t bt it fight be him who. hid: • la her, - but feuudlt . " - r det had not been there. He told! Mr. Smyth of the o h s on Monday and tasked- him tio.e,e her. He heart!' ; ', ( , ) ,, t o: sa farther about the case till Id. Bait Mr. John, rt" h - e the stieetnn-Tuesdaoc,who informed him that not to go to , oe r c a ta me - clic ile alP --ft"e to ',visited the woman- en,Sunday,• and heard- that e - ia d w,: e :offered her the workh ouse, and- therefore did e ° 1;"0 11 "; fere. Mr. Wilso n , asked. him to call again, 4 , "„ l 'olit B ' , did on : Wednesd a y even i ng, when he found,het attending her,, a n d i was t o ld t h e d o e tor had 5,e:(111 , 1 her 0,: He then heard n o . complaint, except that-Mr. Grant, who occ u pied house, wished her " - to t' -. ..the cellar. He again offered to-- take her toe' workhouse. Her daughter -"t o ld. hi m that h er d bee ther was no m willing to go, and that she h e , jt, : to his office to tell him so.. He _then, said he svfor bet going_ to the. office, and would send a pr- - immediately ; but, on arriving, he found that no ri • S$ had already gone - with a car for thepurpose of r e • her. . -- • . _Ace By Mr., donms--Ile was not insolent to the f ( rill' and woman, who first called upon him relative,_; roe, case. All he said was, that his. house was not .' to fiodhim.so readily as at his. o ffi ce ., lie also be the pelieemanhow the case came to his knevi le Mit• replied that the woman had called his attention w"le.herer By.. Mr. Moss—He did not think it was a eas Stee de it was right' for him to exercise his discretion, aD immediate relief. of By Mr.- OonEx---.She dld not ask for immedia te ; Mr. Moss, then said, he could not avoid exP • the great pain he. felt in this board being aga i i l / 60 0, pe to enquire into the conduct -of the relieving -0 „. o .i i t t ot. considering the gravity of _the affair he thot, i it and fairly and" dispassionately investigate 44 board should take some immediate action in the.r . X fo '; Heath,: he admitted, had all the* neccssarY r his situation, but was destitute of the human ity quired. . - tO g s Mr. Joni's - WILSON said he begged to no s i e , . committee be appointed to in ves ti ga te into to_ . ) (q7: against Mr. Heath, and- had it consist of ge.s, s ,, i l,asea. Baynes, Grindrod, John 4 Henry Leyland, an d Mr. OGDEN seconded the-resolution • e it" t Mr. MILLER .considered. that the destitu e stauces of the woman ought to have promP t ,l i on'ji feelings of every man possessing the least _ e a tbfi e The cases coming before them every week shrthAt was something very far wrong ; but he hope r, inveStioation might turn out more in favour a tte r: than it at present looked . a start The 'Cusinaiisrt- said 'he woUld• like to call ti i , s tion of the-board td - tome points in Mr. He nt o . a ipst b pi mea ts, as he did not think - there was a case sio oia de , he .begged to at all: , He then read Some of the statements that • - ::e:- • frote differ Abet c M h r a lir ir il in e a a n l°ll , l3.. i N f s ever aaid there— was a ease otO t e there had,Jbeeu aegleet • '.:hy a relievig. otio it.. was this': one.. ; H eat h k ne w: it was 'Z s to ~,i 1 visit the wpman. from time to time, yet, accords F ey i t;JJ own statement, he had. not been near he r , days. If this is allowed 'to go on, Toxteta • soon be the talk - of LiVea;pdol. . tie Oc t The motion was then.pnt and carrien• lfrs irije anal Mrs. Grant, should be -JO • 4r: JoUrrs *suggested that the in the inveAigation. meet 0° Toe' The co mmittee- was appointed to m morning, at ten o'clock. -* ' i na tod• The business of the meeting then terra summPotedenitoa give e ter .4*: , IEI, ha Zit] Q 2, t ti Pt ] e°6 :~~~ ~•~ 21 11 ,