The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1840-03-10 00:00:00

LIVER THEATRE, CHURCH-STREET. MRS. RAYMOND' T HIS pr sent TUESD AY, S the BENEFIT 10th March instant. GREATEST NOVELTY OF THE SEASON. TWO NE DRMS. First Ni g h ts of the RepresenW tation A of A a New Adaptation, expressly arranged for this Theatre, entitled THE FATAL tren SECRET Which will include the entiie sgth of the Company. First Nights of a New Drama, in One Act, Translated from the French of Mons. Scribe, by Mrs. Raymond, entitled MY UNCLE'S WILL ! LAST TWO NIGHTS OF Mr. J. L. HATTON. First Appearance at this Theatre of Mr. BLANCHARD, the Popular Pantomimist. First Appearance these Six Years of Mr. CONEY AND HIS CELEBRATED DOGS. 'lr. RAY M 0 ND'S SXT APPEARANCE THIS SEASON. The Favourite Melo-Drama, called THE FOREST OF BONDY. The extraordinary Feats of the celebrated Dog Dragon, the same splendid Animal who saved the Life of a Child, of Ten 'Years of Age, in the month of July last, in the Ser pentine River. Mr. Raymond, Mr. Tilbury, Alr. C. F. Marshall, Mrs. Raymond, Mrs. Barton, Miss Baldie, in the Opening Dram a f or t h e f i rst t i me. The Evening's Entertainments will commence with a New Adaptation of a Popular Drama, in Three Acts, arranged expressly for this Theatre, entitled THE FATAL SECRET; Or, False Nobility. Mr. Patrick Fitzpatrick • Sir William Wrangle M r . Tilb ury . Miss Wrangle Mrs. Raymond. After which Mr. J. L. HATTON will Sing the favourite Italian Buffo Song, - Accompanied by himself on the Piano-forte J'ajgo Al Factotum, from the Opera of 11 Barbiere di , Seviglia. Mr. F. Gardner will b " What will a' the Lads do ?" Composed by Mr. Alexander Lee, „r. Accompanied by himself on the Piano-forte. J.L: HATTON will sing the Comic Anatomy Song. Misses THOMASSIN and LIDIA will Dance the admired Follie D ance, arranged for them from the Opera of Gustavus 111. CHEVALLIER will Dance a favourite Pas Seul. To Which will be added, for the first time at this Theatre, a new Dramatic Sketch, in One Act, translated from the French, by Mrs. Raymond, for this occasion, entitled MY UNCLE'S WILL; Or, a Wager for Love. „Mon s . D'E gv ill e, ( a r i c h o ld B ac h elor, and Guardian to zpunelin e ,) Mr. Tilbury ; Emmeline de Beaulieu, (a young Widow,) Mrs. Raymond. After whic, 'Mademoiselle Chev a lli er w ill Dance an Admired Pas Seul. MUNGALL will appear in his JOCKY HORNPIPE, and Mr. SMITH will Dance a New GROTESQUE DANCE. To conclude with the celebrated Melo-drama, not acted here these Six Years, entitled THE FOREST OF BONDY; Or, the Dog of Montargis. Captain Aubri, Mr. Blanchard ; Laundry, (as acted by him - at several of the London Theatres,) Mr. Coney ; Dra gon, by the Dog Hector; Ursula, Miss Baldie. In the course of the Drama, A GRAND MILITARY DIVERTISEMENT, In which Misses Thomassin and Lidia will appear. 13 Tickets and places for the Boxes may be had of Mr. REZt, at the Box-office, from Eleven till Three, and at the usual places. Boxes, 3s ; Pit, 2s ; Gallery, Gd. Second Price at Half-past Eight. Boxes, 2s ; Pit, ls. No Second Price to the Gallery. Doors to be Open at Half-past Six o'Clock, performanee..to commence at Seven precisely. ROYAL AMPHITHEATRE OF ARTS. TLAST WEEK OF THE COMPANY ' S PERFORMING. HIS present TUESDAY, March the 10th, the Grand Entertainments produced for DU CROWS BENEFIT will he repeated every Evening, till the Closing Night on Saturday next, the 14th inst.—The Performance will com mence with the successful Equestrian Spectacle, under the title of THE PROPHECY ; OR, THE GREAT FIRE OF LONDON ! A GREAT TREAT IN THE CIRCLE, AND NEW SCENES OF THE ARENA. In the course of the Evening, a variety of surprising and astonishing FEATS OF HORSEMANSHIP The Performances will conclude with the interesting Nautical Drama of THE WRECKER'S OF NORWAY ; , THE M R: DUCROW OR WILL JACK'S APPEAR D ON THURSDAY F OR THE BENEFIT OF MR. & MRS. SHEPHERD. TO CORRESPONDENTS. ie must positively decline to insert any further communica tions respecting the Brougham Institute. The controversy is of no public interest whatever. Elm) Zibrrpoot &tan Darb, TUESDAY MORNING, MARCH 10, 1840. By the New York transient ship Rochester, Captain Woodhouse, which arrived here on Sunday, we have received news from that city to the 6th ultimo, which is two days later than the previous arrival. The news is comparatively unimportant. Letters from the interior of Alabama say that the cotton picking was still going on with full success, and that the prospect was good for a very abundant crop. Some speculated upon as much as two millions of bales. Cotton maintained steady prices at New York. The arrivals at New Orleans were very considerable. The stock amounted on the 22d of January to 106,137 bales. The prices maintained were, for ordinary bid to qd, middling 7d to 7d, fair 9d to 91d, good and fine 101 d. The cotton market of Augusta was lower, on the 28th of January, than it had been during the Beason. This was not owing to any unfavourable news, but to the low state of the river, which rendered it i mpracticable to send the cotton off. It was esti- mated that there were from 8,000 to 10,000 bales lying on the river bank, waiting for a rise in the river to be carried off. The quotations were from 6 to V I cents for the extremes of the markets. The chief falling off had been in the middling qualities. The market at Mobile had become somewhat lively. Fair cotton was filleted at 9 to 91 cents. The English advices by the Patrick Henry do not seem to have affected the flour market at Baltimore. Higher rates of freights for Liverpool were demanded by the ship-owners—the rate being on the 2d ult., ss. st erling per barrel. The rate of exchange at New York was quoted at 8 to 81 per cent premium, with very little doing. The annual report of the Bank Commissioners for the State of New York says that, since October 1839, the loans of all the banks of the State had been con tracted to the amount of 20,000,000 of dollars, and of the banks of the city of New York alone, 9,000,000 of dollars. The subject of the Maine boundary had not been resumed in Congress. The legislature of Ohio had passed a resolution declaring slavery to be an institu tion of the State, and another denouncing the anti slavery agitators. From Canada, there is no news of importance, if "De rnay except the resolutions which had been passed a t a great anti-union meeting held at Quebec, against t he proposed legislative union of the two provinces. We have been favoured, by a respectable commercial house, with a file o f Syd ney papers f rom th e 1 6 t h o f Septemb er to the 14th of October, both inclusive. The news contained in these papers is exceedingly interest ing and important. We learn that the Governor had received a despatch from the Secretary of State for the Colonies, in which it was intimated that convicts trans- Ported to New South Wales, henceforward, were to be r e -embarked for Norfolk Island, as fast as the conve niencies for their reception there might permit; and t hat, in the mean time, they were to be employed in Sydney on the public works, and not to be assigned to settlers. The Sydney Monitor complains of this arrangement, which, it is said, will deprive the Colony of the advantage of cheap labour, and the consequent profits to an army of assignees. This profit, estimated at £lO a man on 15,000 convicts, has been £150,000 a year. In this amount of profit has lain the secret of the pecuniary prosperity of New South Wales. " With this source of prosperity," says the Monitor, " we have been able to bear up against, not only de structive droughts, but also the enormous expense of the crimes of the convicts. But by the new system of transportation we shall have all the crimes and all the expense, while the profits are to be dissipated at Nor folk Island." The accounts of the harvest, from all parts of our Australian possessions, are extremely encouraging. Several genial showers of rain had been experienced, and the crops were, consequently, looking remarkably well. The country from Sydney upwards is said to look beautiful, and there was every prospect of abun dance. The market prices of grain, as well as of every other description of agricultural produce, had expe rienced a considerable fall. This was the case in Van bieman's Land as well as in New South Wales. The reduction in the Sydney market amounted to as much as £lO per ton on flour in one week. The Sydney Herald remarks that " every day shows more forcibly the want of steamers in the Colony and the advantages which would accrue to it, if a number of Steamers, say ten in the year 1840, and ten more in t ,lje‘,Year following, *ere to be sent out from England." The-;Sydney Monitor states that large quantities of coal hate been discovered in the neighbourhood of NM:Matta—and, Windsor, as well as at Port Philip Is 'ar'AVindsor they are said to be lying on the surface. .:.04.the whOle, the news by this arrival from Austra lia is of an extremely favourable character. All our C olonies on that splendid continent were in a very flourishing condition. All that seems to be corn. plained of is, the want of a more extended system 0: immigration, and under better regulations, a complains which is common to most of our Colonies. The Perthshire Election has terminated, just as we anticipated, in the triumphant return of Mr. Drummond, the Conservative candidate. When we take into con sideration the means resorted to by the Ministerial faction—the open bribery practised—the intimidating threats held out—and the low acts of cajolery by which the Whigs sought to dupe the electors—we must look upon Mr. Drummond's return as one of the greatest and most decisive victories yet achieved over the enemies of the Constitution. We heartily congratulate the electors of Perthshire on their triumph. The cause of Whiggery is evidently on the decline in the Scottish counties. The non-intrusion question does not appear to have had any effect upon Mr. Drummond's majority. This is creditable to the good sense of the Conservatives of Perthshire. They have done well by avoiding the snare which was cast before them by the Ministerial candidate. Popery is still in the ascendant ! Popish colleges are, at length, openly patronised by a Government calling itself Protestant. Our young and unsuspecting Queen has been induced to affix her sign manual to documents which cannot but be considered insulting and degrading to the Protestant Universities of the United Kingdom. Before we proceed to lay before our readers the particulars of these last outrages upon the feelings of Protestants, it may be necessary to premise that, in the year 1837, a charter was granted to the University of London, enabling the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor, and Fellows, to grant degrees (pre viously only to he had in England at the Universities of Cambridge, Oxford, and Durham) to candidates on presenting a certificate of having completed the re quisite course of instruction, either at the University ' College, King's College, or such other institution or college as should receive the royal authority to issue certificates of examination. On the 18th ultimo, the Popish College of St. Cuthbert's, at Ushaw, near Durham, received a charter, authorising the Presiden and other officers of the college to grant such certificates The following is a copy of the royal document to whicl: we have alluded : " VICTORIA REGlNA. — Victoria, by the grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Queen, Defender of the Faith, &c., to her trusty and well-beloved the President, Vice-President, and Professors of Saint Cuth bert's at Ushaw, in our county of Durham—Greeting. Whereas, we did by our Letters Patent, under the Great Seal of our United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Fifth and Twenty-sixth days of December, in the First year of our Reign, will, grant, declare, and constitute the persons therein named, to be our body corporate and politic, by the name of the University of London. And whereas, we did therein, amongst other things, will and ordain, that all Persons should be admitted as Candidates for the respective Degrees of Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts, Bachelor of Laws, or Doctor of Laws, to be conferred by the said University, on presenting to the Chan cellor, Vice-Chancellor, and Fellows thereof, a Certificate of their having completed the requisite course of Instruction, from the College called University College, or from the Col lege called King's College, or from such other Institution, corporate or incorporate, as now or hereafter shall be esta blished for the purposes of Education, within the Metropolis or elsewhere, within our said United Kingdom, as we, our Heirs and Successors, under our or their sign manual, shall hereafter authorize to issue such certificates. Now, know ye, that we reposing great confidence in your learning, ability, and discretion, do hereby authorise you to issue to such per sons, as may be desirous of becoming Candidates for the re spective Degrees of Bachelors of Arts, Masters of Arts, Ba chelor of Laws, or Doctor of Laws, to be conferred by the said University of London, Certificates, to the effect, that such Candidates have completed the course of instruction. which the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor, and Fellows of the said University of London, by regulation, in that behalf, shall have determined. " Given at our Court, at Saint James's, the Eighteenth day of February, 1840, in the Third year of our Reign. "By Her Majesty's Commands, NORMANBY." " Warrant to Saint Cuthbert's College, at Ushaw, in the County of Durham, to issue Certificates to the Candi dates for Degrees in the University of London." On reading the preceding document we feel tempted :o ask whether it is the intention of Ministers to restore the title of " Defender of the Faith" to its primitive meaning ? It will be remembered that this title was originally conferred upon Henry the Eighth, on account of his refutation of the doctrines of Luther. The juxta-position of this title with the appellations "trusty and well-beloved," as bestowed upon the Popish Professors of Ushaw College, is rather ominous. But the above is not a solitary instance of royal patronage of Popish Colleges. The celebrated College of the Jesuits at Stonyhurst has obtained a similar privilege. One might have imagined that a sense of decency would have compelled Ministers to hesitate before proceeding any further. Maynooth, Ushaw, and Stonyhurst might surely be considered sufficient as a beginning. But no ! The demands of the Romish Hierarchy are not so easily satisfied. Hear what the Cork Reporter says : GRANT OF A CHARTER TO ST. MARY'S COLLEGE, °SCOTT; NEAR BIRMINGHAM. " We announce with great satisfaction that her Majesty has been graciously pleased to grant a charter to this noble and extensive Catholic establishment, a proof at once of the liberality of the government, and of the growing enlighten ment of the age. The advantages to the students of the college will be great. They will be entitled to graduate at Oxford, Cambridge. London, or Dublin, as A.B. A.M. LL.D. &c., on presenting the certificate of the President and Vice- Presidents of Oscott on one examination each term, instead of a tedious, expensive, and inconvenient attendance at those places for years ; after which they can return to Alma Mater,' to complete their studies for whatever profession they may be intended." Such is the way in which . we are silently but se curely permitting Popery to obtain the ascendancy in this highly favoured land. In reference to these painful proceedings we cannot do better than quote the following impressive appeal from our excellent contemporary, the Durham Ad- vertiser : MINISTERIAL REWARD OF POPERY. " Since our last publication, an insult has been offered to Protestantism, which even exceeds all former outrages against the Constitution; an insult which ought to make the face of every Churchman glow with indignation—need we say that we allude to the recognition, by a government calling itself Protestant, of a Popish seminary in our neighbourhood as an English college. " By this infamous transaction, an insult is offered to every gownsman, to every graduate, to every churchman in Eng land ; and for which, satisfaction should be immediately de manded from its perpetrators. " Was it for this the Martyrs suffered the faggot and the flame ? was it for this the fathers of our Church poured out their life blood on the scaffold ? shall we indeed again suffer our land to be defiled by the pollutions of idolatry? Are the men of England become so degenerate, as to bear pa tiently such acts of shameless tyranny on the part of a cor rupt government? Is our liberty to be tamely permitted to be thus trodden under foot ? Are there none left among us who dare stand in the breach, and with a giant's arm, unfurl the standard of the Church of England ? " Infidelity is marshalling her troops ; popery is bringing up in close array her well trained phalanx. Let churchmen too arm themselves for the fight. Their active foe is already in the field ; the defiance has been sounded ; and their safety, their existence, depends upon their promptitude and firmness in the cause. " Let such an universal expression of feeling echo through the land ; let such a shout be raised as met the ears of the last Monarch of the Stuart race ; when too late he found that there was a limit, beyond which even British loyalty would not allow him to proceed. " We are now placed in circum s t ances closely resembling those preceding the revolution ; let the pages of history not be read in vain. No longer is it allowable to permit false delicacy to hide from the Sovereign's ear the true sense of the country. Our Queen is no longer an unprotected fe male ; she is a wife, and we hope will prove the mother of a lengthened race of kings. That she may be so, it is neces sary that the indignant remonstrances of the only true sup porters of the Crown, the Churchmen of England, should echo through the walls of the Palace, and warn her against the machinations of the perjured band of traitors, who, having sworn to protect the Church of England, betray her to her foes ; and who, from the same self-interested motives which have induced them to procure this recognition of Po pery, would not scruple to compel their Royal Mistress to subscribe her abdication, if they thought such an act might farther their ambitious or mercenary projects." The " tyrant majority" in the House of Commons have contrived to sink one step lower still in the slough of degradation. The debate on Lord John Russell's Privilege" Bill was brought to a conclusion on Friday evening. This Bill—after all the vapouring of the " tyrant majority"—amounts to little more than a virtual abandonment of the self-assumed privileges of the House of Commons. It involves a distinct acknowledgement that - the mode adopted by that House for vindicating its privileges has been illegal and unconstitutional. Lord John Russell has, at length, found it necessary to obtain the sanction of a legislative enactment, as a guide for the future decisions of the House in all matters relating to the publication of its proceedings. Such is the humiliating sequel to the swaggering career which the House has thought fit to adopt during the last eight weeks ! On Friday evening the debate on this subject was enlivened by a singularly original speech from Mr. O'Connell, in which he ventured to advise the House of Commons to assert its privileges at all hazards. He strongly deprecated the idea of introducing any law for defining those privileges. He even went so far as to advise that counsel should be attached for contempt, as well as attorneys. Nay, he had the audacity to suggest that the judges themselves should be seized, and dragged before the Star-Camber tribunal of the House, rather than abandon the privilege of trampling upon the laws of the land. He arraigned Lord John Russell for bringing in the Bill " without having the resolution, he would say the political courage to go further. 'Why should counsel or judges be suffered to violate the privileges of the House any more than sheriffs ?" This language is quite in keeping with the native effrontery of the man. He delights in doing all he can to insult and degrade the judges of England. Mr. O'Connell's eloquence, however, did not pre vent Lord John Russell from deserting the " proud position" which Messrs. Bright and Rathbone im agined him to occupy. He has been forced to solicit the aid of the House of Lords to extricate him from his difficulties. Our sage contemporary of the Mercury is just now engaged in the congenial occupation of raking amongst the impurities of socialism, selecting with all the relish of an epicure the choicest morsels, and serving them up in a kind of hash, duly seasoned to the palate of his tap-room admirers. The task is one in which we should be glad to see him employed if we could be as- sured of his sincerity; and his labours, if honestly di rected, would be more than usually beneficial. They might at least serve to point out to that portion of the public, for whom our contemporary enacts the part of " Sir Oracle," how disgustingly loathsome are the opinions of the hoary wretch whose presence was al lowed to pollute the court of England's maiden Queen ; and how inconceivably contemptible must be the prin ciples of a public journalist who, pandering to party at the expense of morality and decency, could stoop to become the apologist of the infidel intruder and justify the minister by whom his intrusion was permitted. That journalist we need scarcely say was the Editor of the Mercury himself ; and we do hope that, having become convinced of the disgusting tendency of that system, of which the protege of Lord Melbourne and the visitor of our Queen is the founder and apostle, he will at once step forward and; join us in denouncing earnestly the system itself and the dangerous error which procured for its author the countenance of royalty. Lord Melbourne has admitted, and regretted publicly, his part of the offence; and the Mercury, if he wishes to retrieve himself in the opinion of the re spectable portion of his supporters, will follow so lauda ble an example. We fear, however, that the leaven of party is too strong in the composition of our contern porary to allow him to do anything so manly and so honest. We know him too well to expect that he will allow either public:morality or decency to weigh for one moment in the scale against party subserviency. The minister, with the blood of a gentleman in his veins, and standing up amongst the assembled nobility of England, might afford to express, even at the hazard of a little mob popularity, his consciousness of the foul insult which he had offered to the purity of the throne and the character of the maidens of England ; but the Editor of the Mercury, the mere literary hack olfaction, possesses no such sensitive feelings. Impurity the most nauseous, so long as it is clothed in the jargon of philosophy, is to him legitimate food; and doctrines which, in their naked deformity, would excite the un mitigated disgust of nine-tenths of the lowest classes of our population, are dribbled through his pages in terms of the most gentle reprobation, and their advo cates chidden " gently as any sucking dove." Yes—these hellish doctrines, which hithertO have been almost entirely unknown to the great mass of our population, will now be laid upon the tables of every beer-shop and tavern, in which the lucubrations of our contemporary are weekly imbibed—they will be placed in the hands of the daughters and wives of our respecta ble tradesmen—in the hands of the young and inex- perienced of all classes to which the circulation of the Mercury extends. It will be remembered, too, that their profane author has been thought fit for presenta tion at court, and that such presentation was justified by this " best possible public instructor" and his party : and we fear that the Mercury's present faint condemna tion of the social principles will scarcely be sufficient to neutralize the effect of that fatal step, unless accom panied by an honest acknowledgment of error, such as we are well aware no ordinary power will wring from him. Were a stranger to visit Liverpool—the port of ship ment for the great manufacturing districts of Lanca shire and Cheshire—the first object of his curiosity would probably be to inquire, what are the political principles which actuate the members of this hive of industry and enterprise ? For a reply to this question he would at once proceed to examine the character of our local press ; and the evidence which he would de rive, from its circulation and advertisements, would undoubtedly incline him to the conclusion that the ma- jority both of population and of property belonged to that party which delights to call itself liberal. This conclusion formed, his next endeavour would he to as certain our rank in the scale of talent and of taste ; and, to arrive at this knowledge, he must again wade through the vapid pages of our Mercury and Albion, our Chronicle, Journal, and Times. Perhaps he might afterwards step into our Council Chamber, and listen to the frothy declamation and admire the gentlemanly demeanour of the elect of our municipal constituency ; and, as a whole, we fear that the impressions which he would form from such an examination would be any thing but flattering. It may be said, however, that such is not the mode in which men of judgment and discrimination endea vour to ascertain the character of a people. We con tend, however, that on something like this principle first impressions are formed and superficial judgments maintained. The character of a community is readily identified with that of its press. The power of diffe rent parties in that community is judged of by the profitable circulation of their press; and that power, when directed to bad objects, is correlative with such circulation. We must, therefore, be content to be judged by this primci facie evidence, or submit to the imputation of misusing our powers and placing the means of working evil in the hands of our opponents. If, as a community, we are not the puny drivellers which an identification with the press which we support would make us ; if we are neither doating upon a cha rade, enamoured of ribaldry, or pandering to unholy and filthy libels ; we are upon the horns of a dilemma equally as disreputable. We feed the trifler, the ribald, and the libeller. We dung the roots of the unwholesome plant from whose leaves the noxious poisons of infidelity and socialism are exhaled amongst our population. We give wings to falsehood—golden wings ; and we place the imprinted scoff and the senseless raving of the sophist and republican in the hands of our fellow men, stamped with the impress of our approbation. Let us then ask the conservative body—the mer chants and tradesmen of Liverpool —to examine calmly and dispassionately the effect which a judgment of their principles, their character, and their intellect, formed upon the comparative prosperity of their local press, must have upon the community at a crisis like the present. That an unfavourable judgment is formed we think few will deny. Nay, is it not a fact that 'the encouragement given to the whig•radical press of Li verpool is appealed to as an undeniable evidence of the superior influence and power of that party amongst us ? Is it not a fact that the encouragement given to the whig-radical press of Liverpool has tended almost to neutralise in the public mind the effect of the great est blow ever inflicted upon that party—the return, by the noble efforts of our townsmen, of two conservative members to the House of Commons ? These things cannot be denied ; and, at a crisis like the present, when the demands of commerce and of agriculture, of religion and of morality, are, by a degraded adminis tration and a venal House of Commons, alike openly set at nought,—when the cry of a suffering people is treated with contempt, and the consideration of its afflictions co m p e ll e d to g i ve way to some paltry object of party intrigue, —when the favour of the British Parliament is deemed of less value to a government than the favours of Ladies of the Bedchamber,—at such a crisis, we ask, ought the real opinions, the cha racter, and the intelligence of this great mercantile community to be mistaken for an hour ? We appeal then to the conservative body of Liver pool. Will they allow their own efforts—will they allow our efforts to be neutralized by the want of that moral strength which it is in their power to bestow upon the conservative press ? We ask for no sacrifice on their part ;we ask for no exclusive—no individual advan tage. But we do say, take away this reproach from your own party ! Let us not be deemed weak when we are conscious of our strength. Give us that coun tenance and support which will enable us to direct our prbper strength to the advantage of your interests and the well-being of the community ! That this is an object not difficult of accomplish ment must be pretty evident to any one who will take the trouble to examine the sources from whence the circulation of our opponents is derived, and the extent of their advantage over us. Let the conservative mer chants and tradesmen of Liverpool bestow upon the conservative press a portion of that advertising support which now crowds the pages of our whig-radical con temporaries, and they give us at once a portion of their circulation. Let a combined efort be made and firmly adhered to, and the power of that press which weekly derides and scoffs at their misused strength is broken for ever. We understand that a motion was carried, on Thurs day last, for the admission of reporters into the Dock Committee. Whoever the individual may be that pro posed the matter, he deserves the thanks of the com munity; for it is not consistent that the public should be ignorant of the sayings and , doings of the Dock Committee, when their deliberations have such an im portant effect on the commerce of the port, and whilst the Council proceedings are regularly published. Both are public trusts, and both ought, consequently, to de liberate with open doors, as far as the press is con cerned. We trust the motion was carried unani mously, and that the members of all parties cordially coincided in it. We cannot see, indeed, how the libe ral members could do otherwise, knowing that it has always been their complaint that the old corporation excluded reporters, and that the public would have been completely in the dark but for the amateur re porting of Mr. Currie. We therefore hail with joy the adoption of such a really open and liberal measure—a measure which the public have loudly demanded, and which they had a right to expect ; and, although there may he no brilliant flashes of wit to amuse, nor splendid oratory to amaze or instruct, there are many import ant questions discussed at that board, bearing on the commerce and welfare of the port, which, when made known, will enable the public voice to be freely ex pressed, and which will render the Dock Committee more amenable than they are at present to public opinion. It is quite possible, for instance, that the Dock Committee have discussed the absolute necessity of providing suitable accommodations for the prodigious steamers now employed in Transatlantic navigation, the number of which will, no doubt, be greatly increased before seven years elapse. If this matter has been under the consideration of the Dock Committee, we are in utter ignorance of the fact. If they have not deliberated on such an important matter, they are highly culpable, and the public voice will soon force the question upon their notice. We were much struck, when witnessing the launch of the splendid steamer, the United States, on Saturday last, by the remark of a naval officer, who observed, that it was most dis graceful to this port that there was not a single dock in which a large steamer could be hauled, without the serious expense and trouble of unshipping her paddle wheels ; and that, unless ample provision. for the ac commodation of these vessels was made, Liverpool would lose them altogether." "When 'we consider the advantages which our innkeepers, ropemakers, ship builders, engineers, smiths, and others, will gain by this new branch, we think the Dock Committee will deem it to be incumbent upon them to provide every convenience which this class of steamers may require, and get the start of Southampton and other ports in this respect. This is such an important subject that we must return to it. Giving publicity to the proceedings - of the Dock Committee will also afford to our merchants and other practical men an opportunity of expressing their opi nions upon the deliberations of the Committee : and if it should result in taking the management of Dock affairs out of the hands of Council nominees, who are principally Aldermen, made such after being rejected by the constituency, and men totally unacquainted— we speak of them generally—with nautical affairs, and placing it in the hands of those who should be elected by, Dock rate-payers only, so much the better will it be for the interests of the town, for it is notorious that of all those who are nominated by the Council, and who form a " tyrant majority" in the Dock Com mittee, scarcely one is, bona fide, a ship-owner ! This will not much longer be endured. Before, however, the proposition can become law, it must have the sanction of the Town Council. Whether the liberals of that assembly will entertain such a reasonable proposition remains to be seen. We trust it will re ceive the sanction of every Conservative member. RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE. HALF-YEARLY MEETING OF THE NORTH MID LAND RAILWAY COMPANY. The half-yearly meeting of the proprietors of this com pany was held on Monday, the 2d inst., at the London Ta vern, Bishopsgate-street ; Geo. Carr Glynn, Esq., in the chair. The attendance was very numerous. The report of the directors, which was read by the secre tary, announced that a large portion of the line, viz., from Derby to Sheffield, a distance of 44 miles, would be opened at the latter end of April ; and that, from the satisfactory progress which the contractors are now making throughout the entire line, the directors confidently expect that the en- tire distance to Leeds will be opened in June or July next. It was stated also that by that period the remainder of the York and North Midland and the Midland Counties Rail ways will be completed, so that within the short period of six months a continuous line of railway from London to Leeds and York will be opened to the public. During the proceedings, a motion was made that no trains should be allowed to run upon the line on Sundays, except those employed in carrying the despatches of the post-office, which was negatived by a majority, of persons 62, and of votes 1706. HALF-YEARLY MEETING OF THE LONDON AND SOUTH WESTERN (LATE SOUTHAMPTON) RAILWAY COMPANY. The half-yearly meeting of the above company was held on Saturday, the 29th February, at the company's offices, Vauxhall ; John Easthope, Esq., M.P., in the chair. By the report of the directors, read to the meeting, it ap pears, that the revenue arising from the portion of the line now in operation has amounted during the past six months to £76,768 lls. 3d., or £2952 10s. per week. This revenue, there can be no doubt, will be very much increased when the line shall have been opened to Southampton, n o t mere l y i n proportion to the mileage, but in a much greater ratio. This is proved by the fact, that when the first 38 miles were opened the receipts were £1067 per week, and were raised by the opening of only an additional eight miles to £1958 per week. The opening of the entire line to Southampton is-confi dently expected to take place in May next. In the course of the proceedings a letter was read from Mr. Charles Lafitte, announcing the approaching formation of a company for the purpose of constructing a railway from Rouen to Paris, —an undertaking the importance of which, as an adjunct to the London and Southampton, we need not attempt to estimate. But we must express our surprise at the statements entered into at the meeting as to the probable revenue of such a line. Mr. Locke, the engineer, states that the expense of making a line from Paris to Rouen will not exceed £2,000,000 sterling, and that upon the line of road between the two places there is a present traffic sufficient to produce one million sterling per annum .P—a statement which Mr. Locke truly says " must almost frighten any one to make." It is, however, corroborated by two gentlemen, Messrs. Chaplin and Reed, (the latter the secretary of the Southampton Company,) who have been deputed to Paris to examine and report upon the traffic. Mr. Chaplin stated the amount of goods alone travelling between the two places at 558,029 tons annually. EDINBURGH AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. In our Friday's publication we gave a report of the pro ceedings at the half-yearly meeting of this company, and can only here express the satisfaction with which we view the successful progress of so important an undertaking and our surprise that its merits are not better appreciated by the public than they appear to be. MANCHESTER AND BIRMINGHAM RAILWAY HALF-YEARLY MEETING The half-yearly meeting of this company was held on Thursday last, at the York Hotel, Manchester, Thomas Ashton, Esq. in the chair. Tile principal topic in the report of the directors, was the arrangement entered into with the Grand Junction Company, for the accommodation of their traffic from Crewe to Bir mingham, the terms of which the directors consider it ad visable, for the present, to withhold from the proprietors. From the report of the engineer, it appeared that the line, from Fairfield-street, in Manchester, to Stockport, is ex pected to be opened in the month of May next. A long discussion followed the reading of the reports, in which Messrs. E. D. Davenport and Tomlinson, landowners upon the proposed Pottery line, took part, respecting the abandonment or postponement of that portion of the under taking ; and a motion of censure upon the conduct of the Directors was brought forward, which, however, was nega tived, only three hands being held up in its favour. Vir We should really be obliged if certain of our contem poraries, who are in the habit of appropriating our articles of Railway Intelligence, would. have the common honesty to acknowledge the source from whence they have been transferred into their colums. The Liverpool Chronicle, the Albion, the Chester Courant, and the Manchester Courier• (from whom we should have expected better things), have lately practised upon us this kind of petty larceny. We trust a hint will be suMcient to remedy the abuse. BIRMINGHAM AND DERBY JUNCTION, - - - - - ----- The only features of consequence at this meeting were the disappointment of some at receiving no dividend, and the defeat, by an overwhelming majority, of a measure to stop the trains altogether on a Sunday. The causes of the former are most ably explained by the chairman in the proceedings. It is impossible, in our opinion, to expect that this line can pay, with so small a portion of its resources in action. The wonder to us is, that it now clears its expenses. We were expecting a large deficiency, and are pleasingly surprised to find it otherwise. In a year or so, when all its tributaries are flowing in, we expect it will put on a very different face; at all events, it is said to be in very good hands, and if any can make it pay they will. We are glad to find the good sense, of the meeting negatived the Sunday question by 1,360 votes to 213, and by 2,118 shares to 276. We should have been pleased to see a resolution against any future agitation of the question carried by the same majority. WEEKLY RETURNS OF RAILWAY TRAFFIC (From the Railway Magazine) Passen- NA ME. Cash. .mile:P.mile P asseng , gers. pr.wk. p. day. per day, X. X. X. Birmingham - 131 South Western — 70184 72 10+ -- Great Western .. 2358 761 11 South Western Newcastle &Carlisle 1509 25 31 Greenwich 25449 887 233 33+ 36351 Manchester &Leeds 10451 599 44+ 61 1493 Croydon 7449 462 44 6.1- 1064 York &N. Midland 1289 275 19 21 184 Midland Counties 2543 i 251 161 2+ 363 Glasgow & Ayr 1352 53 5 1 225 Eastern Counties 4165 595 LAUNCH ,OF THE NEW STEAMER "UNITED STATES." The splendid new steam-ship " United States," which has been so fully described in the columns of the Standard, was launched on Saturday from the building yard of Messrs. Thomas Wilson & Co., at the north end of the Clarence Dock. The day was remarkably fine, and a vast crowd as sembled to witness the ceremony. Every spot, indeed, whence a view of the launch could be obtained was studded with spectators ; two commodious stages were erected, one just before the bow of the vessel and the other on the south ern side, both of which were completely crammed, whilst steam-boats, and other craft, crowded with passengers, plied on the river opposite the building yard. It would hardly be possible to estimate correctly the numbers present, but in our opinion they exceeded thirty thousand. On the platform under the bow, we observed Mrs. Robertson Gladstone and Miss Wright, the ladies chosen for the distinguished honour of christening the vessel, the Mayor of Liverpool, Robertson Gladstone, Esq., John Wright, Esq., John Myers, Esq., Mr. J. C. Shaw, marine surveyor to the Transatlantic Steam Navigation Company, &c. &c. In the moulding room, from the windows of which a view of the launch was afforded, we observed Mr. Richard Cobden, of Manchester, the author of several free trade publications, and Mr. J. B. Smith, also of Manchester, commonly called Corn-law Smith, President of the Manchester Chamber of Commerce, whose controversy with Mr. Samuel Jones Loyd on the currency is just now exciting some attention. It was high water, the tide rising to twenty feet, at seven teen minutes past one o'clock. Every thing being in readi ness, precisely at twenty-three minutes after that hour the magnificent fabric began to move, and, amidst the hearty cheering or the multitude, glided majestically and safely into the bosom of old father Neptune. Mrs. Gladstone and Miss Wright, as the vessel began to move, performed the cere mony of christening by breaking a bottle of port wine against the bow. It was one of the most beautiful launches we ever beheld, and many have we seen in our time, and gave the greatest pleasure to the countless thousands who beheld it. A steamer was in attendance to take the vessel in tow and assist to dock her. The ebb tide, however, was found to run so strt ugly as to prevent her from docking on Saturday, and she was towed to the Sloyne, where she was made fast to the Liverpool's moorings. On Sunday she was brought down by two steamers, and placed safely in the Trafalgar Dock, in which the President also lies. Thousands of spectators lined the seawall to see her come down the river and enter the dock. An accident, we are sorry to say, happened at the time of the launch. A man, who was standing on the margin of the river, was unfortunately swept into the water. Scores of boats were about, but some time elapsed before the poor fel low was taken out, when he was in a state of complete insen sibility. He was conveyed to the Northern Hospital, where the unfortunate man died in the course of the afternoon. A report of the inquest will be found in another column. A splendid entertainment was laid out in the Mould-room of the Messrs. Wilson's yard, for the ladies and gentlemen who had tickets of admission. Two tables ran the whole length of the room. They were covered with a variety of dishes, fruits, and confectionery, accompanied with a profusion of champagne and other wines. A few of the dishes were ac tually hot ! When we state, that Mr. H orne , o f t h e M ersey Coffee-house, Old Churchyard, was master of the ceremo nies, we need not add another word by way of proving the excellence, as well as the elegance, of the entertainment. There was a crowd of waiters, who were attentive to the guests, and all passed off pleasantly and most harmoniously. A band of music, which had previously played appropriate airs in the yard, was stationed at one end of the room, and enlivened the company, while regaling themselvA, with fa vourite strains of music. The repast being over— The MAYOR rose to propose the first toast, " Prosperity to the Transatlantic Steam Navigation Company," and re marked that it was to their spirit and enterprise that we were indebted for that splendid effort of human genius which we had just seen launched upon the waters of our noble river, and which, for architectural taste and mechanical skill, it would be difficult to excel. (Cheers.) It was due, he con ceived, to that company to say, that their exertions had rendered essential service to this town—that we owed them a deep debt of gratitude for those services—and that it was our duty to promote their prosperity. For his own part, he could not witness one of these heart-stirring scenes without remem bering, with pride, that it was to these mighty engines we owed many of our present comforts : they had been our safe guards during adversity, and were now the means of our national prosperity. It had been said, that the best way to preserve peace was to be prepared for war ; but he thought, and he believed many would agree with him, that the surest means to preserve peace was to cultivate its spirit by the interchange of mutual good offices, and by making these great machines the source of happiness and comfort to the people by the extension of our commerce. (Loud cheers.) It was with these views that he had ventured to propose the toast, and he doubted not that every one present would feel disposed to join in wishing them the most brilliant success. (Cheers.) The toast was drunk with enthusiastic applause. Mr. J. C. SHAW briefly returned thanks, in the name of the company. Mr. WRIGHT craved permission to propose a toast. As "a chip of the old block," (his father was an eminent ship wright,) lie had enjoyed the highest pleasure in witnessing the launch of that day. For beauty, and symmetry, and strength, the splendid vessel which had just been launched was, he was satisfied, unequalled. (Cheers.) He was glad that so fine a specimen of naval architecture was called the " United States." The great country whose name she bore was the eldest daughter of Great Britain ; and long might the mother and the daughter live together in peace and harmony ! (Loud cheers.) England and the United States were closely connected by the ties of commerce and of friendship, and Liverpool, his native town, owed much of her prosperity to the share which she enjoyed of that commerce and that friendship. (Cheers.) He concluded by proposing the health of Messrs. Thomas Wilson and Co. the builders of the " United States." , The toast was drunk with larked applause. Mr. WILSON briefly acknowledged the compliment. Mr. J. C. Saaav, after a few appropriate remarks relating to the presence of the ladies, proposed the healths of Mrs. Robertson Gladstone and Miss Wright, which was received with loud cheers. Mr. ROBERTSON GLADSTONE returned thanks on the part of his lady. He was sure he could not too strongly express how deeply indebted Mrs. Gladstone felt to the company, for the high honour conferred upon her in having been re quested by them to be present on the occasion, and to assist in giving a name to a vessel which was likely to confer so much benefit upon the trade of the port, and, at the same time, he humbly trusted, to prove equally beneficial to the enterprising company for whom she had been built. (Cheers.) That company, he thought, ought to feel a satisfaction to which expression had not yet been given. It was this—that the noble ship just launched had been built by British hands (applause)—that she was principally composed o f B r i t i sh materials (cheers)—of the old English oak," which he trusted would now prove as lasting and profitable to them, as it had on so many occasions been serviceable to the coun try. (Continued cheers.) In again returning thanks on the part of Mrs. Gladstone, he could not avoid expressing his belief that the company could not have adopted any means better calculated to secure the confidence and good opinion of the public, than by entrusting the building of this noble ship to the hands of Messrs. Thos. Wilson & Co. (Cheers.) Mr. WRIGHT acknowledged the compliment on the part of his daughter. She would feel this day one of the proudest in her life, in having been invited to name such a magnificent vessel as the United States ; and she would highly esteem the honour of having her health proposed and drank with so much cordiality. (Applause.) Mr. J. C. Shaw rose to propose the health of a gentleman who held the highest station in Liverpool, and who had honoured the ceremony of the day with his presence. (Cheers.) They all knew to whom he alluded—Joshua Walmsley, Esq., Mayor of Liverpool. (Cheers.) The MAYOR returned thanks for the honour which the company had done him in drinking his health in so flattering a manner. Carried upon the shoulders of the people to the highest office in the town, it would give him the highest pos sible gratification to find, on the expiration of the limited period during which he held it, that he retired from its oner ous duties with some eclat. He thanked them for the kind ness he had at all times received from the inhabitants of the town, and from his fellow citizens ; and, if greater exertions from him were possible, he would use them to the utmost to deserve that kindness. (Applause.) Mr. WRIGHT proposed the health of his friend Mr. J. C. Shaw, which was received with great applause. Mr. J. C. SHAW very briefly acknowledged the compliment. The bulk of the company then departed, highly pleased with the sight and the entertainment of the day. Some, however, lingered in the room, which, from its size, is admirably fitted for a dance. Dancing accordingly commenced, and added to the enjoyment of the select few who remained. The Directors of the company, being determined to make .his vessel in every respect worthy of the public patronage, advertised, during the past year, for plans for the cabins, offering premiums for the first and second best, if approved of. There was considerable talent displayed in the arrangment of the plan and design by Mr. J. R. Isaac, of Castle street, to whom the first prize was awarded, but the arrange ments were not deemed applicable for ocean steam-boats. The consedueuce was, the Directors have fallen back on Mr. Shaw for his ideas on the subject, and, when we know that his experience in such matters goes beyond that of most men, we are sure that the Directors have acted wisely. Mr. Shaw has been in connexion with the City of Dublin Company six teen years : he has been mainly instrumental in gaining that character for their vessels which the general outfit has elici ted from the public moreover, he accompanied the Royal William to and from New York on her first voyage, and also the Liverpool from Cork, in November, 1838, thus having opportunities of knowing, from experience, what are the ac commodations required by transatlantic passengers. THE ANTI-CHURCH EXTENSION MEETING OF THURSDAY LAST. TO THE EDITOR OF THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD. 22, GRO VE - STREET, M ARCH 9, 1840. SIR, My attention has been directed to an article in the Journal of Saturday last, which is calculated to do me serious injury, unless promptly replied to. 'You will therefore much oblige me by inserting the f o ll ow i ng i n your paper of to morrow. In the article above-mentioned my name is most malignantly introduced, with reference to the anti-church extension meeting of the previous Thursday. The object of the writer appears to have been to fasten upon me, most un justly, the odium of the disturbance, and injure me in my business, by giving unnecessary publicity to the names of my employers. Intimately acquainted though lam with the un manly tactics of the radical faction, (particularly the papist section of it,) I was not prepared for this most unmanly attempt to mar the prospects of a youthful opponent, by trumpeting to the world the names of the parties whom he served. lam sure all honest antagonists will join me in stigmatising this, as a most venomous effort of ungenerous rivalship. Had the writer contented himself with insinuat ing that I was recognised as a leader by the dissentients, that I manifested pleasure at the disapprobation they evinced, and that I only interfered to stop the interruptions when the police made their appearance, I should not have deemed it necessary to trouble you with this communication, for I have sufficiently vindicated myself from those charges, in my letter to the Chronicle. But as he has thought proper to carry his rancour so far as to seek to expose me to the displeasure of my emplOyers, I think some reply is called for. The article states that " a forward looking young man, in a blue cloak, marched along the aisle to the head of the room, and was respectfully greeted by the front rank of the rioters." " Marched along the aisle." The writer of this must be blessed with a most extraordinary vision, to discover any thing peculiarly dignified in my mode of walking up the aisle. I thought I walked as mortals ordinarily walk. But it ap pears I marched. What a pity there was not a trumpeter at the meeting. I am sure, if there had been one, this acute individual would have desired him to play " See the conquering hero comes ;" for he has certainly (most untneritedly) made me the hero of a scene in which I had not the most remote idea of playing a part. _ " A forward looking young man." What the writer means by this I cannot conjecture. If by forward looking he implies that I exhibited a thorough contempt for the mot ley combination the platform presented of treacherous church men and political dissenters, scoffing infidels and licentious socialists, refined socinians and bigoted papists, united in an unholy crusade against the bulwarks of our land, then, sir, I plead guilty to the charge. If he means by forward looking that my countenance indicated a readiness to step forward manfully (whenever propriety would permit it), to defend my principles with all the energies I possess, then, sir, is his implication a just one. " A forward looking young man, in a blue cloak." Upon my honour, sir, 1 have hitherto been ignorant of the charm contained in a blue cloak. What a scruti nizing gentleman this writer must be, and how faith fully he records the most minute particular connected with my appearance at the meeting. I marched along the room :—I had a most forward looking countenance : —I wore a blue cloak. When I read this part of the ar ticle, my first impression was that the writer, seeing the paucity of respectable persons at the meeting, had his gaze anxiously directed towards the door, to see what addi tions would be made to the number, and beholding an indi vidual enter wearing a blue cloak, he deemed it of sufficient importance to be recorded ; but, on reconsidering the mat ter, I saw it was an instance of the writer's accuracy in de tailin-2; everything connected with his hero, even the garment that covered him. What a pity it is he could not ascertain the colour of my trousers ! This he would undoubtedly have considered an interesting fact to have noted. Having stated that I marched along the room in my blue cloak, this faith ful chronicler goes on to allege that I walked across the room, and began to converse with some decently-dressed people. with whom I occasionally simpered with great glee. Now this is all very correct, and I cannot withhold from him my approbation of his extreme accuracy. Had I known he was watching me to observe whether I smiled or looked grave, I should have taken care to have acquainted him with my reason for smiling—namely, my great satisfaction at the remarkable failure of the meeting ; for there did not appear to me to be more than a hundred persons present who sym pathised with the parties who called it. So far, sir, Ido not 'complain of his statements. All that I quarrel with is the impression conveyed by them that I was a ringleader in the disturbance, and interfered to calm the tumult only when I fancied it had gone far enough. I have already stated in my letter to the Chronicle, that, from the commencement, I wit nessed the interruption with pain, and did all I could to prevent it. There are statements, however, contained in the article which are not correct. The writer says that most of the men who made the noise were half intoxicated. This assertion, sir, is as far from th e t rut h as i t can possibly be ; and I can only free the writer from the charge of uttering what he must have known to be incorrect, by supposing that he had been paying his devoirs to the merry god himself, and fincied he saw the hilarity of his own countenance re flected in the faces of the auditors. In conclusion, sir, I would beg to offer a word or two by way of apology for the men whom the Journal politely calls ruffians. I have reason to know that they went to the meet ing entirely of their own accord, intending to propose amendments to the resolutions. They looked upon the meet ing as a public one, and fancied they had a perfect right to evince their disapprobation of the proceedings. I do not mean to excuse the manner in which they spewed their dis approbation. lam only desirous of shielding them from the imputation that they attended at the instigation of others, and had no object in view but to create a disturbance. That such was not their intention is evident from the fact of their leaving the meeting at my suggestion. Ido not believe there would have been any uproar but for the indiscretion of some bigoted Papist, who commenced a discussion on some doctrinal point. Mr. Rathbone, by his imprudent allusions to the police, and the riot act, added fuel to the fire. I am, sir, &c., --- W. WHATHAM. PROPOSED ESTABLISHMENT OF A SHIP-OWNERS AND SHIP-MASTERS' ASSOCIATION. TO THE EDITOR OF THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD. was much pleased by perusing in your paper, a short time ago, a letter signed " Nauticus,” in which the writer, after stating that vessels frequently leave this port that are altogether unseaworthy, strongly recommends that a surveyor of all ships and vessels should be topapointed by Government, and that none should be suffered depart that are not fit for sea, and sufficiently found in rigging, sails, &c., for the voyages on which they are destined. In this recom mendation I most cordially agree, and no respectable ship owner would object to its being taken up in the proper quar ter. The fact being notorious that, from, the cupidity of some owners, unseaworthy (uninsured) vessels are sent out manned from the shipping offices by poor fellows who are ignorant of the fact that such vessels will in all probability become their coffins, I have now to offer a further suggestion to all the respectable ship-owners and ship-masters of the port. I beg to propose to them the formation, amongst themselves, of an association for the mutual protection of mariners, first by taking steps to prevent unseaworthy ves sels from going to sea, and secondly, for the raising of a fund for the protection and support of such captains, officers, or men, as may be thro wn ou t o f emp l oyment by refusing to go on board of such vessels. No doubt ship-captains who have retired from the service, who are well qualified to watch the interests of such an association, and have time to devote to it, would readily be found to undertake the respective offices of chairman, treasurer, surveyor, &c. I need only refer to the graving docks, and particularly to one of them not one hun dred miles west from the Queen's dock, in proof of my asser tion, that some men, regardless of the lives of their fellow creatures, will patch up and send to sea vesse l s t h e greater part of the materials of which (originally of poor description) are unsound or absolutely rotten. I could name one of these, the upper works of which, upon a rotten bottom, have been repaired with short junks of deal by way of timbers. When planked up and painted she will look very well, of course ; but if she encounters a gale of wind, the probability is, that her upper works and her bottom will part, and that not a soul will be saved to tell the tale. The great number of ships that have got water-logged at sea during the past winter, as well as those that are missing, and have doubtless foundered, furnishes a lamentable proof of the necessity of such an association as that suggested ; and I do hope and trust that, when the wind changes to the westward, and brings in our mercantile fleet now at sea, a meeting of ship owners and captains, and others interested, will take place, for the purpose of its immediate formation. At such a meet ing the facts that would be elicited would strike the public with astonishment, and rouse the indignation of every well regulated mind. It is su r p r i s i ng th at such an association, (which might embrace other objects connected with the ship ping interests, as well as those stated) has not long since been established. If once commenced, however, its benefits would be too extensively acknowledged to leave a doubt of its being amply supported, not only in Liverpool, but in London, Hull, Bristol, and, finally, in all the sea-ports of the United Kingdom. A requisition to our worthy Mayor, to call a meeting on the subject, would doubtless be cheerfully complied with. I am, sir, respectfully, your most obedient servant, A FRIEND TO HUMANITY. Liverpool, 9th March, 1840. FIRE AT WAVERTREE.—At three o'clock, on Sunday morning, a fire broke out in the workshop, &c., of Mr. Pearce, joiner and builder, Wavertree, and, before any as sistance could be afforded, the workshop and sawpit were burnt down. The fire did not extend beyond these. Mr. Pearce is insured, and the damage done is about £3OO. SHOCKING ACCIDENT.—On Friday forenoon, about eleven o'clock, a fine youth of about fifteen years of age, named Edward Mylrea, apprentice to Mr. Thomas James, plasterer, fell from a part of the new range of buildings belonging to Mr. Barned, of Lord-street, and was so dreadfully injured that he survived only a few hours. At the hack of the pre mises there is a small yard forming an indenture of the build ing, open to the top, and having ranges of three windows in each story, facing each other across it. The plasterers were employed in the upper rooms, and the deceased was assisting them. A single stout plank was placed across the yard f rom one of the upper windows, four stories in height, to that on the opposite side, for the passage of the plasterers from room to room. The deceased Was in the act of going from one room to the other by this plank, to bring a white -wash brush, but had scarcely placed his foot upon it, when, by some accident, he slipped, and was precipitated head foremost into the yard below, from a height of forty feet. In his descent his head struck on the string course of the story below, and this wound alone would, in all probability, have been fatal. H e thence fell on the flagg e d top of an out-house in the yard, where, it appeared, his chin was dreadfully cut on both sides, and his whole body dreadfully bruised. From the roof of the out-house he fell to th e b ot t om o f t h e yard opposite to it. Some of the workmen in the opposite rooms saw him fall, and he was instantly picked up by Mr. Harpur, the master finger on the premises, (who was close to the spot where he fell,) and another workman. There was a fracture of the skull, faom which the brain protruded, and other injuries, yet he still breathed. , A surgeon was instantly procured, but gave no hopes of his surviving. lie was carried to the Northern Hospital where he died about five o'clock.' O n S atur d ay, (and by adjournment yesterday,) an inquest was held on view of the body of the deceased, when the above facts were elicited. It appeared the plank had been used by the master of the deceased and the work men, and that it was considered safe. The deceased, it tiather appeared, had incautiously jumped from the plank crossing the top of the yard or area, on to another plank erected above it, and that he accidentally fell off the latter plank, and was precipitated into the yard. The jury returned a verdict accordingly of "Accidental death." INQUESTS. Before P. F. CURRY, Esq. Coroner. FATAL ACCIDENT AT THE LAUNCH OF THE STEAM-SHIP " UNITED STATES." Yesterday a n i nqu i s iti on WRS held on view of the body of a man unknown; who unfortunately lost his life at the launch of the United States, on Saturday last. Alexander Sweeny, being sworn, said,—l am a labourer, and live in Mathew -street. On Saturday last I went to see the launch of the steam-ship " United States," at Mr. Wilson's yard, at the North 'Wall. I was standing on the north side of the vessel, and the deceased, whose name I do not know, was standing alongside of me. There was a rope hanging over the bow of the vessel which had a noose on it, and just as she began to move off the stocks we all ran to see it. The rope was hauling on the ground, and the deceased whilst he was running, put his foot in the noose, and be was drawn under the water along with the vessel. I saw him in the water, and shortly afterwards he was taken into a boat. The deceased was not under the water long before he rose again. When the deceased came to the top of the water I could see nothing but his hand. I helped to carry the de. ceased to the top of the yard, and he was then placed in a coach and taken to the Northern Hospital. He was dragged about a couple of yards along the yard before he got in the water. Thomas Wilson said—l am timekeeper in Messrs. Wil son's ship-building vard. I was present on Saturday last in the yard when the 'United States was launched. There is a rope attached to the bilge-log which slides along with the vessel. This rope is held by a man on deck, until the vessel has slided about three parts of the way, and is then dropped into the yard, and the men employed to do this work then haul the logs into the yard by means of the rope. Knowing the danger there always is by people rushing to see the launch, I placed myself at the particular spot, and a policeman along with me, and cautioned the people not to come too near. I did all I could to prevent the people coming toes near, and there was another policeman stationed at the other side of the vessel for the same purpose. I saw the deceased standing near, but I cannot positively say whether I did not caution him in particular. After the vessel had gone about three parts down the slide, the rope was thrown in a coil dawn into the yard, and just at that moment the deceased stepped off a plank which he had been standing on, and his foot was caught in a coil of the rope, and he was drawn into the water. He was dragged about five or six yards along the ground before he got into the water. There are a number of balks and planks which necessarily go along with the vessel when she is launched, and the deceased was amongst them, and as soon as ever these had got clear of the vessel, the deceased came up, and he was taken into a boat which was close at hand. It is generally considered there is more danger by having the ropes fastened in the yard, than by having them fastened to the vessel. in the way this was done, Mr. Askew, harbour master and water-bailiff, said, — Messrs. Thomas Wilson anti Co. had four boats stationed in the river just outside of their yard, for the purpose of keep . ing vessels out of the way of the launch. I stepped on board one of them in my official capacity as water-bailiff, for the purpose of keeping vessels clear of the launch. I was about 120 yards from the wall when the United States passed me. I heard a great noise, and on looking round, I saw a man splashing in the water. I directed the men to pull towards him, which they did. When within six or eight yards of him, the oars were stopped. Th e man nearing the bow oar held himself in readiness, to take hold of the man. When we got within about six feet of the man he went down. The man at the bow put his hand down as low as hecould reach, but could not take hold of him. A few seconds afterwards I saw him come to the surface. I hailed a boat astern of us to hook him in, which they did by getting hold of his jacket. They raised him out of the water as high as the gunwale of the boat, and I took him into our boat and landed him on the quay. He was alive, but not able to speak. -I laid him in a recumbent position, and unloosed his neckcloth. I consider it would be a most dangerous operation to have the rope attached to the bilge logs fastened on shore, instead of on board the vessel. I must, in justice to the police say, that they used every exertion in their power to prevent any accident from happening. Police officer, Anthony Barrow, said :—I was stationed in the yard on the south tilde of the vessel, for the purpose of keeping people back. The deceased was landed a few minutes before I got to him. Every precaution appeared to have been taken by Messrs. Wilson and Co to prevent any acci dent. The deceased was carried in a coach to the Northern Hospital ; but appeared to be dead before we got there. Mr. G. N. Arnott, house surgeon of the Northern Hospi tal, said—the deceased was apparently dead when admitted. He had received a severe bruise on the right side of the body. I used the usual means to restore animation, but without effect. I have made a post mortem examination of the body, and am of opinion the deceased died from the combined effect of the bruise on the right side and the drowning. The de ceased had on a long brown coat and faded grey trousers, and, I think, a black waistcoat. He had in his pocket a punch, such as is used by engineers. The CORONER, in summing up, remarked, that, in his opinion there was not a shadow of blame that could attach to Messrs. Wilson and Co., who had taken every possible pre caution to keep the people off. If the jury thought other wise, they might lay a deodand on the rope by which the de ceased was hauled amongst the balks and into the water. He could not, however, help remarking, that, in his opinion, the power to lay deodands was a disgrace to the statute book. It was instituted in a very dark age, and its object was stated preposterously to be to purchase redemption for the soul of the deceased person in a future state ; the amount laid for a child being less than that for an adult or old person, who had .nore sins to answer for. The jury, after a few moment's deliberation; returned a verdict to the effect that the deceased accidentally came to his death by the combined bruises and the immersion in the water. As the body of the deceased has not yet been claimed, and his name is unknown, we may state, (though it was not taken in evidence,) that there was found upon him a two-foot rule, stamped with the letters T. N. CAUTION .TO MOTHERS. Yesterday an inquest was held on view of the body of William Catterall, a child of eight years old. The deceased was left by his mother in the house, Catterall-court, Renshaw street, on. Thursday evening last, when his clothes caught fire, and he was so much burnt, that he died on Saturday. Verdict—" Accident al death." • THE SHERIFF.-Mr. Sheriff Evans was released from the custody of the Sergeant -at-Arms on Friday night, in a few minutes after the house had agreed to his discharge. WOODSTOCK ELECTION.-Mr. Frederick Thesiger, bar rister, has issued an address to the electors of Woodstock, soliciting their suffrages to become their future representative in parliament, in the room of the Marquis of Blandford, called to the peerage by the death of his father, tht late Duke of Marlborough. LEWES, March B.—Our anticipations with regard to the success of Viscount Cantalupe, the conservative candidate, are fully realised. General Trevor, the whig candidate, finds, upon a canvass, that he has no chance, and therefore last night withdrew his pretensions ; consequently, Viscount Cantalupe will be returned without opposition, and will, perhaps, take his seat in the house to-morrow night.—Times of yesterday. We are desired to state that the late Mr. Henry Lace never held a situation in his cousin's office, as intimated at the last council meeting by Mr. Rathbone, but that up to the date of his appointment under the corporation he held a commission in his Majesty's customs. A correspondent, for whose letter we have not room, expresses his regret that Mr. Isaac Holmes was not acquainted with this fact, in order that the council might not entertain an erroneous impression on the subject. LIVER THEATRE.—We beg to direct the attention of our readers to the announcement of the performances at the Liver Theatre. They will be found highly attractive, and to furnish a combination of talent which is not usually to be found out of the metropolis. ROYAL AMPHITHEATRE.—A very few days will bring the termination of the season at this establishment. Mr. Du crow will leave Liverpool with an universal acknowledgment that he has most abundantly provided for his patrons, and on another occasion we can readily foresee a most lucrative season. " ARISTOCRATIC LARIC."—We are authorised to give an unqualified contradiction to a paragraph under the above head which appeared in the Chronicle and Albion, no such event as is there described having taken place at the Am phitheatre. The box book-keeper, the box checker, and the cashier positively declare that no pauper got up the box stairs, either on Thursday or any other evening. THE °plum TRADE.—A petition has been prepared, and is now receiving signatures in this town, praying the House of Commons to adopt measures for the suppression of the growth and preparation of opium in British India for trans mission to China, and the traffic in the same by British sub jects. THE ACCIDENTS AT THE STEEPLE CHASE.—We under stand that great credit is due to Dr. Collins and Dr. Davies for their kind and prompt attentions to Mr. Barker, at the steeple chase on Thursday, trid also to Mr. Bullet', of Brookfield House, who very kindly rode over to his house at the time of the accident, and brought back the things re quired by the medical men. The unfortunate accident at the stone wall leap was evidently owing to a reckless bet made by some parties that Valentine would be over the wall first, which he was, and the parties won £3OO on the event. Messrs. Barker and Oliver, who were supposed to be so much injured by the accident, were brought to Liverpool on Friday, and proceeded, by railway, to Birmingham the same evening. CHARGE OF MANSLAUGHTER.—At a coroner's inquest held on Friday, a verdict of manslaughter was returned against Elizabeth Brown and James Lynch, in having caused the death of William Dunn, by assaulting him on the 19th ult. in Queen-street.—lt is a remarkable feature in this case, that Lynch, one of the accused, was brought before Mr. Rushton for the assault, and that the deceased appeared and gave evidence against him. He was sente nce d to a term of imprisonment, and is still in gaol; so that, unt il hi s term of imprisonment has expired, he is,beyo n d t h e j ur i sdiction of the coroner. How this circumstance will affect .his case on the trial, remains to be seen. The other party, (Brown) was committed instanter, on the coroner's warrant, to take her trial at the assizes. LAUNCHES.—On Friday was launched, from the building yard of Messrs. Robert Clarke and Sons, a fine, handsome ship, burthen 410 tons, called " The Urgent," for T. J. Hutton, Esq., of this town, and intended for the East India trade, for which she is admirably adapted. She is to be commanded by Captain Gibb. On Saturday Messrs Thos. Royden and Co. launched a fine ship of upwards of 400 tons from their yard, in Baffin-street. She was christened "The Devon," after the native county of her enterprising owner, T. Tapley, Esq., of this town. After the launch a party of the owner's friends retired to partake of a substantial repast which had been provided for the occasion, their numbers being augmented by the arrival of James Tyrer, Esq., (under whose auspices the ship will be loaded for Canton,) with another party, including a goodly number of the gentler sex, who had been witnessing the launch of the United States. Several appropriate toasts were given and responded to ; and the company separated much pleased with the entertainment, and cordially wishing success to the Devon. EXTENSIVE SEIZURE OF BASE COIN.-Mr. Woodruff, the active officer o f excise, whilst searching the Irish steamers this week, for smuggled whiskey, made a curious seizure on board one of the City of Dublin Company's vessels. In the course of his rummage, three suspicious boxes attracted his attention, and, believing th e y con t a i ne d i l li cit spirits, he caused them to be opened. On examination they were found to contain base pennies. The packages were addressed to a person in Small-Brook -street, Birmingham, and weighed 7 cwt. The packages were handed over to the police, by whom the affair is being investigated. , - WHIG WlT.—Poor Sheriff Evans will cut a miserable figure at Lewes. Even the aid of his " Riot Act" deputy, Mr. France, will be unavailing ' • not a score of vo t es w ill iv obtain from any party. H e had better content himself wit); following up the hint of our witty contemporary, the Ex. aminer, and cherish his unfortunate liver, so as to make r. magnificent pate - de foie gras.—Palmerston print. (All tb` . harm we wish the unfeeling scoundrels who can thus tun, into ridicule a man labouring under one of the most distress ing diseases that flesh is heir to, is, that they may thernselve practically experience what a very laughable matter a live, complaint is, and not be without "witty" writers at tL, same time to cut jokes upon their sufferings.) MONTEO VIDEO.—PH ILLIPPEVILLE. — A NEW FRENCII COLONY .—The Sentinelle of Bayonne says, that emigrations for South America are continuing from that part of France, and that a vessel, containing 292 emigrants on board, sailed from that port on the 12th inst. for Monte Video. Among them were 50 women and 17 children. More than 300 had left before in two vessels for the same colony. III: R I 'OO I, ..7',1. ( , t.... 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