The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1846-02-03 00:00:00

11.1)r Eiberpool 43' MO INING, PEI It is really asto some men can t, tural conEeq the interpretation to be signs of-other menaced by their hunte then imagine them legislators, and oth sufficient in ordinary jects are to be advanced and par be indulged, no noble branches use a somewh of wilful! Chlncellor of th title of Lord Monteagl legislatur In the day night, would inv upon the policy of minis free trade in a c qantrarti. 3, 1.8i6 hing - to observe how effectually lot only to the na- heir own acts, but even to ptit upon the professed de ; animals, W 3 know, when onceal their heads, and ;ecurity; and there are men, possessed of intellect afters, who, when party oh- predilections to . _ ss, - !ss the same weakness as the less of the creation ; who will not,—to t vulgar but expressive phrase,— r noses." Amongst this class Teatures, we place a late Whig Exchequer, who rejoices in the rid is thus enabled to 'camber of the bate in the House of Lords, on Thurs- Lord Ashburton, a high authority, one following remarks could be established, was common n was how to establish a system of b l vinsr, such complicated interests a of trade as this country possessed, 'tries with equally artificial systems of fighting against the system of this coun le way, and the people of this country £800,000,000 upon their shoulders. If h a system of free trade, he agreed that The nobi and s Navin trade fenein try in ever having a d they could it would I: earl bad s of rever tion which t into competition the price that he to mai must maintain al 4e article of tea amongst , and from which millions was an article of consump- Noired. who bad to enter ) obtained tea at one-third hod tree trade, how were , ay their debt? They The noble mputation on the British rn , at the farmers of other m agreed in that; but the lot hare k hands tied behind him. ' The farmer earl contended t farmer to I not me British farmer rz Did he meet the 1 terms? on the shores of the Baltic had his labour at 6d. a-day to compete with ►he farmer of this country with his labour at 2a. a-day. It required no skill in political economy to id not meet each other on equal There 2 zst the leaguers them be har selves, who w ly enough to deny the jus tice of these remarks. They apply equally to the farmer and to other classes of producers. If we are to submit the industry of the country to the ordeal of co countries, w ,e industry of other its hands." A man cannot t It is the overweight in pro o bear it, which decides the portion to ti race. Lord Mor ever, cannot recognize this vildered amongst the ques- doctrir tions of pr and duties for re g to reply, to the In replying, or rather i above, Lord Monteagli " They and tobac maximum duties upon tea t they had passed the si—but, until we were revenue by free trade we 'likewise, the tea and to- bacca dut tion to the doctrine h In ha r foreig, n relations at the on (Hear, hear.) free trade is to enable us to become " producers of tobacco." It is to do great things, no doubt; but scarcely this. To come, howev We cannot high duty upon which Lord Monteagle says does not militate against the principle of free trade, or come within the scope of the opponents of protection, we must con tend that his lordship perversely blind. The tea and tobacco duties, he argues are revenue duties so, and remain intact, of those articles ; aster luce from his argument, that med by our theorists. But have and will, we presume, until we b which, we are to they will be conde the lea, ied these in their catalogue of urse with foreign We have been ple article with which return for our exports ; restrictions upon extended intercot nations? Undoubtedly they have told that tea is the print China can furnish us a and that we must cliP en it and increase ite con sumption in this country to enable China to increase her imports of our goods. The decrease of the duty upon tobacco has been urged upon the same "grounds, and also upon the ground that it enters largely into the comforts of the working man. Neither Lord Monteagle, nor the ministry, must be allowed to mislead themselves by the notion that they are dealing only with protective duties. They are dealing with the customs revenue of the country They are biddi for an in crease in the consump-- ~ tion i in this country, of every species of . foreign produce, or manufacture, which can be made avail able, and profitable, as a return for exported Bri tish commodities. And moreover, they are driving -the necessity, insisted upon v class, which is called upon f competition, being enabled ing its hands tied behind its bit by bit, every duty levied whether for revenue or for )me manufactures. The league, us, by another cow: by Mr. Baring, of e to enter upon the rat to do so " witho back, ' to sweep away upon article the protection of 1 on the one hand, 1 upon its bond; the con on the other hand, will sumer d the labou have and ought to have As a proof that the stone once set a-rolling cannot readily be arrested, and that the demand for further reductions of duties is not likely to he confined to any class or to any party, we beg to direct attention to our report, in another column, of a meeting of the East India and China Association of Liverpool, held on Thursday, to demand from Sir Robert Peel's Government a reduction of the duty upon tea. Sure) , no minister, entertaining the opinions with respect to the advantages of free trade which Sir Robert Peel has expressed, can long resist such as the #rgumen K coming from a Conser- erring to the great and increasing export of manufactures to China, as d out in a former memorial from the associa- Mr. Nicol remarked, that !turns could be found, they could imit to the export of the manufacuire t that the tra native mercbar don to go oF this c was very much &Jac ifined almost to silk and e high duty on tea acted as m, and also to the returns ; hey pointed out that an )131(11:ad to a vast increase consequently, the revenue red by it, or if injured, i They went upon general ► in large efforts, and they tea; it v as pointed oul ieck to the co. they had importat in the cc would b princi net with som€ atten onlv had they been but he•introduced gs, the reduction of leal more harm than nts was, that China passed a great the du umber of One of tt British manufactures, but still the duties 1. How did the is regarded Russia ? gh. One gentleman China, a pound cn manufac was only a halfpenny. a ted to 100 per cent., Yet R re his dut sound sense and sterling justice in these observations, and ultimately they must have their proper weight with the legislature. That they will influence Sir Robert Peel, however; to include the article of tea amongst those affected by his present mea , ures, we do not believe. The sugges tion comes from an influential body of British merchants, with no party bias or combination to influence them in the course they are pursuing, and not from the members of a brawling conspiracy. It is to he laid before him for consideration in the respectful and constitutional form of a memorial, not dictated as the "sic volo sic Tubed' of a body which holds in its hands the power of swamping the registries of the kingdom. It will be neglected therefore, for the present, although capable of being urged on the ground of morality, as affecting the sobriety and the diminution of crime, of the masses of consumers; but it may ultimately be conceded, not for its beneficial tendency alone, but as leading There is both to the full carrying out of tk Peel's present ciple of Sir RObeii s not on account of any importance which attaches to the opinions of Lora Monteagle that we have made his remarks serve as the text of these observations. The most feeble of Chancellors of the Exchequer is not, even after being pitchforked into the peerage, an authority in our eyes. The remarks in question, however, afford us an opportu nity of directing the attention of our readers to the ltimatum of the Free Trade party, and the full carrying out of their policy. Let it be borne in mind that the original argument of the league—only abandoned because it aroused the hostility of the operative masses and was to transparently selfish— Was that they must have repeal of the corn laws, to enable them to cheapen the labour of their work. real u ‘d enu or revenue e dutie ae that people, which is as much a raw material of any branch of manufacture as the cotton, the silk, or the iron, which is its foundation. We have already cheapened the latter class of raw materials ; and we shall be urged, by another course of agitation, to cheapen every article of consumption which enters into the composition of the former. The other argument upon which the league took refuge, when convinced that the cry for cheap labour would not go down with the country,—viz., the argument that we must place foreign commodities more within the reach of the consumer, so as to serve as returns for our exports,—will lead us to the same result. Both of them involve the ultimate abolition of all customs duties, and the substitution of some other mode of raising the public revenue. The able speech of Lord Ashley, on Thursday night, in urging his motion for leave to introduce a Ten Hours' Factory Bill, ought to decide the ques tion as to the practicability of such a measure being carried out, without injury either to employers or their operatives. On the grounds of humanity and morality, the necessity of the measure has been proved years ago. His Lordship shews us now that the experiment of a reduction of the hours of labour for adults to eleven hours per day has been tried by Mr. Gardner, an extensive spinner and manufacturer of Preston; and the result has been, from Mr. Gardner's own data, that the total pro duce of working has not decreased at all. The leading argument, hitherto used against reduction, has been, that the produce would decrease in pro portion with the reduction in time; and that, hence, reduction of wages must follow. No such reduc tion of wages has taken place in Mr. Gardner's mills. The quality of the work done was better, owing to the workers being able to retain their energies during the eleven hours of working more easily than during twelve. The health of the hands employed has undergone a marked improvement. In reply to Lord Ashley's question as to " the means of improvement, if any, which the diminution of daily labour was found to give to both sexes for the comfort and duties of domestic life," the follow ing statement was furnished him, by Mr. Gardner, which his Lordship considers "the most striking and satisfactory of all " " When our mills worked 12 hours, the number that attended night school was 27, and a few months of er the change they increased to 96 ; the female part of our hands timed their leisure time more to the needle, and those that are married, to their domestic concerns ; I be lieve there is a better taste for reading among the work people ;' and he instances the demand for Bibles and Testaments." We may add, that the hands themselves were uni versally satisfied with the change, and the best relations subsisted between them and their em ployer. . _ . Prom other evidence adduced by his Lordship, it was shown that similar results had attended experi ments made in different parts of the country, where the time had been limited to ten hours a day. " In October last," he says, " I received a letter from a very large powerloom weaver in Scotland, who volun teered the communication to me, knov , ing the part I had taken on this question, and in what way I was likely to be engaged with it, and he says he has himself instituted the experiment, with these results :—' About six months ago we came to the resolution of employing our workpeople only 65 hours a-week, instead of 69 ; it has been entirely successful; we have ha I no reason to regret the change, neither have our workpeople; we made no alteration in the wages, and there never was more earned in our works than at present by those employed at work paid by the piece. We have it in con'emplation now to reduce our time to 60 hours. The more I have considered the matter, the more convinced have I become that for all parties a ten -hours' bill would - be advantageous.' I have a similar report from a large worsted mill near Bradford ; the pro prietor says be has lately tried the ten-hours plan with profit and advantage I have another report from a wool len mill near Leeds ; the overlooker says. the limitation of the hours of labour has been of incalculable benefit to the labourers, not only in relieving physical suffering, but in distributing the wages over a longer period. I have another report from a worsted weaver in the West Riding; he says, I have been trying the ten-hours' principle, and I get nearly as much work done as my neighbour gets, who works for a longer time.' A manufacturer in the West Riding writes, that he " used to work 16 hours a-day, but he gets more work and better work in 10 than he ever did in 16.' (Hear, hear.) These are the results of experiments instituted in various parts of this country, and in every instance the amount of work produced has not fallen off, the wages have not diminished, the physical condilion of the people has been much improved, they have turned to great moral advantage the time placed at their disposal, and the best understanding has arisen be tween the employer and the operative." As a further encouragement to persevere in the cause of humanity, his Lordship shows, most con vincingly, the great amount of benefit to the working classes in factories, derived from past measures of amelioration, viz :—those measures of the past two sessions, by which the period of working children under thirteen years of age was reduced, first to eight hours, and subsequently to six hours per day; and that of young people between the ages of thir teen years and eighteen years, was limited to twelve hours per day. It was predicted that these changes would prove ruinous to those, for whose benefit they were expressly enacted. After noticing these pre dictions, his Lordship continues Now, let us see how 'far the prediction in regard to these classes was founded in truth. I shall take first the work ers between the ages of 13 and 18, whose labour was re stricted by the bill of 1833 to 12 hours a-day. The ave rage rate of wages for those young persons before the re striction of 1833 was ss. 4d. a-week ; the average rate of their wages since the restriction has been 6s. lld. a-week, thus showing an increase of 30 per rent. on the average drawn from the four large towns of Manchester, Bolton, Preston, and Oldham. (Hear.) It was predicted also that the wages of children would be reduce.l to a mere fraction. Now, observe that the average rate of wages for children under 13 years of age, at more than 12 hours a-day, before 1833, was 3s .Id. a-week. When the limitation took place that none under 13 years should be exposed to more than 8 hours a-day, there was no diminution whatever. Since that time Parliament has passed another law, restricting the labour of children under 13 to 6 hours. We have seen that with more than 12 hours' labour their average wages were 3s. Id. ; but during the period they have been work ing only 6 hours a-day, their average wages have been 2s. 2d. a week. (Hear." , And though the wages have in this way been less, yet, in many instances, the families of these children have not suffered any loss. By the restriction of he hours of labour of these children, there has been a greater demand for children of that age than formerly, and families that used to send one child to the factory now send two, by which the weekly wages are increased. (Hear.) So far, therefore, his Lordship's views are tri umphantly confirmed, and those of the politico economical school, who opposed the ameliorations in question, have been corn i; letely overthrown, and proved to be worthless. Wit beyond this his Lord ship shows that these meas.::es have already exer cised a powerful effect, in promoting the spread of education amongst the lab '..ring classes.— _ _ _ " It is difficult," he remarks, " to obtain statistical in. formation as to the condition of children under 13 years of age before 1833, but this we know, that very few were receiving any education at all. Now I have grounds to assert, there are working six hours a-day, and receiving three hours' education a-day, no less than 30,000 children between 8 and 13 years of aye. In Manchester, Bolton, and Preston, the increase of children at school is as eight to one, and these are exclusive of those who attend night schools. But the increase in school attendance of those above 13. who are kept at the lull period of labour, 12 hours a- day, is hills or nothing." Of course, the latter is likely to be the case. The boy or girl, of 15 or 16 years of age, who has worked twelve hours a day in a factory, is more likely to feel an inclination fur rest or sleep than for education ; and by these classes, in consequence, the night school is deserted. On this occasion,. no Ministerial opposition was offered to his Lordship; and, therefore, we are as yet somewhat in the dark as to the grounds upon which a Conservative Government can jdstify such opposition. Sufficient, however, fell from Sir James Graham, on Thursday, to assure us of the fact that such opposition will Le offered,—that, with respect to the overtoiled far c)ry workers, as with respect to the Corn-laws, t l, • League and the Government are in the same boal. "It will be expedient," Sir James says, "to postpone the discussion of the House upon the principle of this Bill until their opinion bad been pronounced upon the great proposition of his Right Hon. Friend at the head of Government, in respect to the supply of Corn." But the Home Secretary leaves us in no doubt what his own course is likely to be, even should Lord Ashley he weak enough to concede to his expediency and postpone his measure until after the settlement of the Corn-laws. _ _ •` He (Sir James) was bound to say, speaking for him self, that no decision with respect to the corn laws—lnti mately connected as that subject was with the one now under discussion—could ever alter his opinion with res pect to interfering with adult labour in the manufactur ing districts. lie could not anticipate that the noble lord would use—certainly he had never used—any arguments which could induce him to support the second reading of the bill. (Hear, bear.)" Sir James Graham is too much of a philosopher and leaguer to interfere with " adult labour in the manufacturing districts," or, to speak out of the jargon of political economy, he cannot bring him self to throw obstacles in the, way of men, women, and helpless youth of both sexes, being worked to idiotcy and premature old age, to rear up fresh fab- THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD. rics of wealth for selfish millionaires. Yet what, we ask him, is the whole scheme of that " great propo sition" to which he refers—of the whole measure announced by Sir Robert Peel—but an interference, not only with the adult labour of the country, but of every description of labour ? There is not one branch of labour or of industry which it does not affect and unsettle. We trust that the Legislature will not, on this que§tion of humanity, justice, and sound policy as well, he again dragooned by the minister into stulti fying themselves, and stifling the utterance and im peding the realization of their own convictions. The true interests of the agriculturists, and of the labouring classes, have never found a more trusty, an abler, or a more chivalrous advocate than Mr. W. B. Ferrand, the member for Knaresbro'. With unflinching courage he has ever, in Parliament as well as out of it, thrown himself into the breach, when the destructive and selfish policy of the day has sought to level a blow at either. He has faced the League in their strongholds; and, with a vigourous hand, has torn the mask of hypocrisy from statesmen and hollow-hearted philanthropists, whose policy, disguised by professions of superior virtue, is to "grind the faces of the poor," and to rob the labourer of his hire and his independence. first, and with many I fear, panic the first. But there PRAYER BOOK AND HOMILY SOCIETY. will be no settlement. You will not be able to foretel whether the duty during the years 1847 and 1848 will be Last night the annual meeting of the Liverpool Auxiliary to 4s. or 10s. It is q uite probable that in February 1849, this excellent Society was held in the Commercial-hall, Glou the duty will be 10s. ; if so, on the first of that month it cester-street, the Rev. T. TATTERSHALI, D.D., in the chair. will drop again suddenly, from 10s. to ls. Here will be The Rev. W. MAYNARD having opened the proceedings by change the second, fright the second, and possibly panic offering an appropriate prayer, the second. The fall of duty in these two changes would The CHAIRMAN said that though he always rendered with have amounted to, first, from 15s. to 4s. ; next, from 10s. pleasure every facility in his power towards the arrangements to is., making, together, 20s. ; but mark, if the d u ty were immediately reduced, from Iss. to ls., the fall would be of every meeting held for the purpose of promoting the cause of only 14s. So that by this clumsy contrivance you are not God, and especially those connected with their own Church; only to be kept for three years in a state of suspense and yet his pleasure on that occasion was considerably alloyed, be embarrassment, and exposed to double panics, but are lia- cause he found himself standing in the place which they had ble to a drop of 20s. instead of IA s. duty ; you are actu- hoped would have been occupied byone to whom they had been ally subjected to the shock of the withdrawal of 63. more for years in the habit of looking up to with the highest venera of protection !" What a notion the man must have of the intellect tion, and whose presence always was regarded with the greatest delight, the Chancellor of the Diocese,—one of the oldest and of those to whom he addresses this balderdash ! firmest friends of the society and of the interests they Drop the first, from 15s. to 4s.—and drop the were met to promote, who would have been present but second, from ios. to is. make up, it is true enough, for a pressing and important engagement. The Prayer Book 120 s. as the amount of the two drops. But then, and Homily Society was one which he (the Chairman) had most ingenious disciple of Loyola !—most jesuitical long held in the highest esteem, and regarded as most w ec i t h i el t to firit directs a indirect e rs on oxerrae of leaguers !—neither one " drop" nor the other iv i a o l n ua . bl' io n s o a t y 4,: e ly tr f i c: t r h, it i ; air regulates the price or the amount of protection de- to find the best defence of our Church and Liturgy, p he would rived during the intermediate three years. If Mr. point ers at r once y oc to the S in err ,o oare a ac n tyil e for o ar society, ent . on an , Cobden 's prints "drop" 10s. a piece in this Febru- ticular a to of the number, which were most mmasteriloyn in n o l el a u r c - - ary 1846, and 10s. more in February 1849, is it tions—one bythe Rev. John Scott, and the other by Dr. Bealtry. thence to be inferred that Mr. Cobden will have But ci smit an the he would y o ll - s a e s r o r f e e a x m z n d o. i s n t g utility i i r ei i i n e r s e , c i t e ge e r d at f i r o o n n . ; been losing 10s. a piece upon his goods for the three it, that by the instrumentafity of this society the ordination years, or that he will lose 20s. afterwards ? The price e s x em am .c p e le was a as now fir set ir ist im owe po tae p th an we t ho a ni n clh d tl y teA e in soc t i h e e ty Pr i a l y e e t r ho ß n ot Book; t las e t, w t e h r e e of printed calicoes may rally after the glut or any few Prayerßooks now which did not contain ob th nul a i t other cause which has led to their suddtn drop ; and formulary.lfslAtturgi the operation of Sir Robert Peel's new scale, we Prayerßook s aantd wase not om gle e s, one which professed to publish the other authorised formularies y fancy, is likely to effect the same rise for wheat. If of the Church. It was also the only society which, acting as an the duty under that scale is now likely, owing to auxiliary ip i a t t r t y rg t y o i t n h ite C l la u n r g c n h ae Missionary ote o Society, try ii s w ur c l i i i ell h c e o l f a ig ons o f high prices, to be 4s. instead of 155., the low prices, missions were stationed. hat was a feature of great importance. induced by a low duty and extensive importations, T e he a r r e d :v d as another t of not t less est importance, which : f it , be pool; rg the society wm m m a e d n e Liver is tolerably certain to bring into operation the otherits principal y objects and studies e one b h end of the scale before many months are over. to distribute the Prayer Book and the Homilies among the seafaring portion of their countrymen. In this work agents A still more precious argument, however, Mr. were employed to visit the ships, and large numbers were dis- Cobden advances to 'minting the farmers. tributed in that port. The Reverend Gentleman concluded by _ _ —ll2 •1L • .. 1 al a A at I a During the past week, this sturdy champion has been adding largely to his claims upon the ad miration and the gratitude of his fellow-countrymen, by his efforts to arouse the Conservative feeling of the electors of the West Riding, and to secure to the Conservative party the representation of that important district of the County. But for his spirited interference it is exceedingly doubtful whether Lord Morpeth would not have been permitted to walk over the course. By the aid of Mr. Ferrand, however, Mr. George Lane Fox will be brought to the poll; and, whatever may be the result, it is certain that the League will be called upon to dis burse a portion of their quarter of a million fund, if they mean to carry their favourite candidate. In the mean time, the Honourable Member is engaged in the work of explaining to the working classes of the large towns throughout the Riding the character and objects of the League agitation ; and holding up to their view the probable effects of its success upon their own condition. On Wednesday last, he addressed a meeting of operatives and others, to the 'number of about 4,000 persons, in the' Music-hall, in Leeds; and, although every effort was made by the League millowners to interrupt the proceedings —although overlooker , managers, and clerks -at tended to overawe their assembled workpeople, and to give a signal for disturbance, he succeeded in carrying with him the feelings of the majority of his audience, and striking a heavy blow against the supporters of oppressive poor-laws and low wages, whilst the members of the League, by their inter ruptions, succeeded in exciting general disgust, and an impression that they were afraid of allowing their dependents to have the truth publicly elicited. Another result of this meeting, and of the de termined stand made by Mr. Ferrand, has been to warn the advocates of League policy in the Riding of the necessity of vigorous exertion to save them selves from defeat. An extraordinary edition of the Leeds Mercury, published on the night of the meet ing, calls earnestly upon the Free-trade electors and canvassers, in a tone of evident alarm, to use in creased energy in behalf of their candidate. Another circumstance has occurred to increase this alarm. On Thursday,— " Mr. Anderson. of York, the Under-Sheriff, waited officially upon N 9 r. Ferrand, to ask him whether it was seriously intended to contest the election, he wishing to know, in order that he might direct the necessary arrange ments to be made ; and if so, whether he was prepared, on the part of the gentleman to be put in opposition to Lord Morpeth, to pay the usual legal expenses. Mr. Fer rand said he was prepared, on the part of Mr. George Lane Fox, to say, that not only would a poll be demanded, and kept open to the latest day, but that his party were determined to win; and also that be was prepared at that moment to give a check for their portion of the legal ex penses, estimated, in the whole, at about £2,500. Mr. Anderson declined then to take a check, being satisfied with Mr. Ferrand's answer, and immediately communi cated the result of his interview to the High-Sheriff." There is no mistake, therefore, about this, or any other matter which Mr. Ferrand undertakes. He is not the man to turn back on account of ordinary obstacles In consequence of the unfair and cowardly treat ment which he experienced from the League hire lings on Wednesday, the honorable member issued, on the following day, an address commenting upon their conduct, of which the following are the concluding passages : "Thank God, their opposition and uproar were as pow erless as they were cowardly ; the working men not only heard my voice above their uproar, but they shall have my address distributed among them throughout the riding. " They heard me challenge the League to an open air discussion in the Leeds Cloth-hall yard, upon the follow- Ing terms : 1. That their party should be represented by a mem ber of parliament, because Mr. Cobden had always re fused to meet a working man in public discussion. "2. That all the mills should be closed, to allow the operatives to attend the meeting. " 3. That the overlookers of the League mills should not be allowed to compel the workmen to accompany them to the meeting, nor to force them to hold up their hands against their own conscientious convictions, as they have long been accustomed to do. " 4. That no working man shall be discharged, or mo lested, or fined, for attending the meeting, and holding up his hands in favour of my resolutions. " 5. To secure this protection to the working men, that the League manufacturers and their overlookers shall be excluded from the Cloth-hall yard, so that the operatives may not be entered in the black book.' "They heard this challenge given, and they saw the Leaguers slink away from accepting it. " The brutal treatment which I received at the hands of the League last night has completely opened the eyes of the few workpeople who supported them, and will-cause my address to be read with ten times more attention. " Leaguers, I thank you for your services—follow me to Bradford to-night, and to Huddersfield on Saturday night—repeat the same brutal conduct, and bring the junior editor of the Leeds Mercury' with you again to propose `three groans for the Queen,' which will be an appropriate conclusion to your reign of oppression and plunder. " Feilow-countrymen, I am, yours faithfully, " W. B. FERRAND.''. We shall see whether the League will accept his challenge, on these very fair and reasonable con ditions. On V Thursday, Mr. Ferrand held a meeting of operatives, according to his promise, at Bradford, and there, notwithstanding every effort made by the League party to interrupt him, his indomitable courage bore him through, and the telling facts which he adduced of the selfishness of the League manufacturers and the tyranny of the system carried his audience with him ; and here once more he dared the League to meet him in the open air, in Bradford, before an assemblage of operatives, on the conditions that neither masters nor overlookers should be pre sent. As a proof of the disgraceful conduct of the League, we may mention, that both at Leeds and Bradford, it was found, at the close of the meetings, that they had destroyed the bulk of the furniture of the places in which they were held. We trust that the example of Mr. Ferrand will not he lost upon the Conservative gentlemen of England. We are arriving at times in which every Englishman must be prepared to make sacrifices of ease, of comfort, and of money too, in defence of the institutions of his country, which are menaced by the march of innovation—by the treachery of rulers and the weakness of the people. If we are to witness the destruction. of the best interests and the liberties of Englishmen, let us, at least, have the consolation to reflect that we have done our best to avert such a calamity. . Mr. Cobden is nowhere and nobody, if not en gaged in the game of agitation. The vanity of the man keeps him in a constant fret. He must be before the world—he must be doing something to keep the quondam Sussex farmer's son and com mercial traveller from sinking into the insignificance of his original position. One would have thought that the concessions contained in the proposed mea sures of Sir Robert Peel would have been sufficient to gratify any ordinary amount of craving after the world's adulations. The minister, however, whilst granting the boon of total repeal, postponed its oper ation for three years, substituting, meanwhile, for the present law, a greatly reduced scale of duties ; and Mr. Cobden, happy, we dare say, that he is not shelved for ever, by the immediate carrying 'out of his one idea, has eagerly seized the opportunity for a fresh career of agitation, by addressing a letter to the farmers,.prompting them to ask leave to come and be killed at once instead of dying by degrees, which appears to be their most likely fate under the newly adjusted three years' scale. The following is the somewhat singular argument which he employs to enforce his appeal : " The Government measure proposes to abolish the corn law in February, 1849, putting on for the three in tervening years a new scale of duties, sliding from 10s. to 4s. The moment this law is passed, the duty wilt drop from 15s. to 4s. Here will be change the first, fright the " From the moment that the new corn-law is passed" be says, " foreigners and coin importers will begin to make preparations for the day of its extinction ; they dread a sliding scale in any shape, owing to former losses, and will keen their ;eyes steadily fixed upon the Ist of Feb ruary, 1849." Whereas the following, he contends, would be the operation of an immediate repeal : _ _ _ - - -" There would then be no stock' of foreign corn waiting for the opening of our ports. Nobody expected last year in Poland orAmerica that the English corn-law would be repealed—nobody prepared for it ; not a bushel of grain was raised upon the chance of such an unlooked for con tingency. Is there an intelligent farmer in the kingdom that will not at once exclaim, If we are to have a repeal of the corn-law, give us it this spring, when the foreigner is unprepared for it, and when not a single quarter of corn sown after the news reaches him can be brought to this market in less than eighteen months.'" Of all the absurdity that ever we read, this is the most eminently absurd. With an immediate repeal we should have, in 1849, no stock of foreign corn "waiting for the opening of our ports," for the very palpable reason that we should have had as much of it as our markets would sustain some two years previously; and presuming it to be correct that, "not a single quarter of corn sown after the news reaches the foreigner can be brought to this market in less than eighteen months," what is that to the purpose so far as the farmer is concerned ? His pro tection, meanwhile, will be much more efficacious, and the duty will go into his pocket, instead of that of the league speculators in grain. We should most strongly advise Mr. Cobden to lay aside such pitiful efforts as the present to impose upon the British farmer. Let him stick to declam ation and frantic abuse of the aristocracy. That is his forte. If he has anything in the shape of argu ment to advance, let him express it in the house of commons, where he may have a chance of being answered. BAD NEWS FOR THE FARMERS The League have always told us that, under a perfectly free trade, we need never anticipate any very large supply of foreign grain. The Liverpool Mercury, however, has just enlightened us as to the precise quantity which we shall receive. In a leading article on Friday, in which he finds fault with Sir Robert Peel's propositions as not go ing far enough, he gravely informs us that even the shil ling duty which is to remain after February 1849 is a heavy tax upon the food of the people—" a tax amounting to at least a million sterling per annum "I Now, if we have any skill in arithmetic, a million sterling contains twenty million shillings ; and, to produce this sum by a duty of a shilling a quarter, we must import no less than twenty million quarters per annum (I!) or nearly the amount of the present consumption of Great Britain. What the farmers can do with their useless fields and more useless ploughs and harrows with this immense im portation of foreign grain the Mercury can perhaps tell them—we cannot. We hope, however, our wise brother is only joking, or has put a cypher too much to his reck- The subject of the lecture at St. Andrew's Church this evening is " The perils and obligations, respectively, of pro-perity and adversity.": We understand that the Rev. Hugh M`Neile has a work of considerable extent in the press, on the constitu tion and present state of the church in this country, ,with particular reference to the Tractarian heresy. SCRIPTURAL EDUCATION.—Our readers will perceive in our advertising columns that appeals are about to be made in Liverpool on behalf of the Sunday School So ciety for Ireland. We sincerely trust that the friends of scriptural education will respond liberally to these appeals, and that the excellent men who are to advocate the cause will return to their native land refreshed with the Christian sympathy and support which they anticipated on leaving family and home. From a paper which has fallen into our hands it appears that the time-honoured institution has in connexion with it 2972 schools, containing 246 788 pupils and 23,408 gratuitous teachers. Surely its claims (guaranteed by the most respectable patronage, both lay and ecclesiastical) are not to be questioned at this event ful period of Irish history. ILLEGAL Des rILLATION —At the police-court yester day four men—Peter M`Donald, Thomas Martin, Patrick Traynor, and James Hughes, together with the wife of Martin—were brought before Mr. Rushton under this charge. It appeared that Mr. John Walker, Supervisor of Excise, in consequence of information, had gone to a house in Field. street (near the Collegiate Institution), and which he believed commanded a rent of about £3O a year, and there found the prisoners in a fighting and dis orderly state, though several police-officers were present. He there also found several gallon of what is called " low wines" (the first distillation from the malt in making whiskey), also a ten-gallon cask and several tubs used for the wash. The low wines had been spilt about the cellar floor; a ten-gallon cask and several tubs that had con tained that liquor were also found, and several bottles that had contained " the cratur" itself, but which the parties had broken in their alarm, for the purpose of con cealment. The supervisor, in fine, had found everything but the still itself, though there were appearances of such an article having been recently fixed in one of the cellars. The female prisoner was discharged, not being con sidered amenable. The rest were required to pay, under the act 7th and. Bth Geo. IV., the sum of £3O each, or to be imprisoned three months. DAMP CELLARS IN LIVERPOOL.—We need hardly say that damp kitchens are frequent enough. We. have even known a heavy rain to sink into the sandstone rock, and and force the fluid contents of the cess pool, with which it had been previously saturated, through the kitchen fhor of a well built house, so as to cover it to the depth of three inches with putrid fluid ; and sickness has followed as a consequence ! The whole of the town, including the enormous additions which have been recently made, has been built after this manner, and the consequences in the poorer districts are deplorable. Every cellar in the bo rough must be to some extent damp ; and a few years ago nearly 40,000 of our poorer fellow-tovtismen lived in them. The corporation survey has shown that there were lately in Liverpool parish 2,420 cellars, with pro bably 10,000 inhabitants, absolutely wet or damp. Water, and the fluid contents of cess-pools, drain into these wretched abodes, and if not received into wells, they cover the floor. Mr. Samuel Holme states in his report, that he had to walk on bricks, across the flooded floor of a cellar, to the straw litter on which a poor woman was laid, who had been confined ouly a few days. He says— " This is by no means an extraordinary case," for it would b e easy " to find hordes of poor creatures living in cellars which are almost as bad end as offensive as char nel houses." Every medical man who has been in the habit of visiting the poor can verify this statement. — Front Yesterday's Liverpool Health of Towns Advocate. THE MANUFACTURERS AND FREE TRADE.—The measure of Sir Robert Peel is bold in the extreme. It has, we conceive, gone deeper and wider than the nation anti cipated ; and its reception by the country cannot, we con ceive, at this moment be anticipated with any approach to certainty. For it is not the agricultural body only that is affected by the expansive proposal, but the manufacturing interest at large, and this universally, and, in mauy cases, in the most sensible degree. Even the cotton manufacture, which the gentlemen cotton-spinners of the League con sidered to rest on a height of perfect security, may be af fected. The American low cottons, called Domestics, fairly undersell those of this country in the Chinese and other markets; and now, to be admitted with perfect free dom into this country, they may undersell us here too. Indeed, were it not for the seriousness of the subject, as affecting all classes of the community, the aristocracy and the nation at large might well laugh at the League, and thoroughly enjoy the ability with which the Premier has struck them absolutely dumb by acting on their professed but not real principles. Not oae of them has dared hitherto to open his mouth on the subject, in or out of the House. What they wanted, with the fullest professions of absolute love for the most enlarged free trade, was the instant removal of the protection the landed interest of the country enjoyed, and to allow to stand over, no one knew bow long, the consideration of the protection which the manufacturing interest of the country possessed ; and this happy, honest, and honourable arrangement of their mat ters they flattered themselves they .had attained. " No, no, Gentlemen," says the wily Premier, " it is free trade you desire and it is free trade that you shall have. Free dom in one article would be serving your idol little ; by approaching freedom in all, I shall serve him much, and give a delight to your heart beyond your highest anticipa tions l"—Record. calling on the secretary to read the report for the last year. The Rev. Mr. MAyNARD read the'report. In this document the Committee called attention to the sphere of labour under taken by the Society, (which in this respect stood alone,) inas much as it embraced an object beyond that of the parent So ciety. It laboured amongst seamen and boatmen : it laboured at home ; and it laboured abroad. Its labours amongst sea men had been blessed. Many a captain had been induced to assemble his crew on the Sabbath, and to join with them in the worship of Almighty God. The parent Society's report on this point was deeplyy!leresting, ana indeed affecting The circu- loan, had also been resorted to with great success, by setting before the people the -scriptural character of our liturgy, arti cles, and homilies. The labours of the society had not been less abroad. Some of the most useful homilies had been cir culated in no fewer than twenty-seven languages, and accounts had been received from missionaries in all parts of the globe, bearing strong testimony to the benefits produced. With re spect to the auxiliary Society in this town, they regretted that it was in a languishing state from want of general support. One reason for this was the mistaken notion that its operations were the same as those of the Christian Knowledge Society. The two societies were, however, altogether distinct. The object of thr ffirrnf.r wac fn r•irrnlata Rihlaci find nrnver honks_ nod trnri+e on religious subjects of general character, and to thOse ap plied for them at the repository. But the object of the auxi liary society was (according to one of its laws), to visit the sea men on board vessels, also the boatmen, fiatmen, and barge men, and to circulate amongst them the Society's addreses,calling their attention to the importance of prayer : also to supply them with prayer books at a reduced price, and with small books of select homilies . gratuitously for the crew. In fine, were it not for the society, the seamen frequenting the port would be left comparatively destitute of the means of grace when at sea. after the counsel of his Own will. It became their duty to go for ward in faith, relying on the promise that " their labour should not be in vain." The report of the parent society showed that during the past year 4,550 vessels had been visited and re visited, and of these 166 held divine service regularly at sea, wind and weather permitting—being an increase of 66 in the past year. The number of prayer-books sold on board during the same period was 457, and the_number of homilies 184. The committee lamented that the funds of this auxiliary society were in a depressed state. The amount of the annual subscrip tions amounted to only about £25, which was inadequate to meet even the current expenses, while, at the same time, there was a.loss to the parent society from the sale of prayer-books at a reduced price, and for grant of books, from time to time, of upwards of .e 228. Surely, in such a town as this, such a state of things should not endure; and it would not be so if the clergy, shipowners, and merchants supported it as they might. The report concluded by strongly appealing to the clergy to bring the subject before their congregations, many of whom comprised the mercantile part of the community; and a hope that, if this were done, the laity would not be back ward in doing . their part, so that the parent society would be materially assisted in carrying out its labours. The Rev W. MAYNARD stated that he had received a very kind letter from Chancellor Raikes, and others from the Rev. Messrs. Barry, Hunter, Knox, &c., excusing themselves from attending. The Rev. J. H. STEWART, on coming forward to move the adoption of the report, was received with loud cheers. Fre- quest as it was his lot to attend the meetings of various religi ous societies, there was scarcely one which he felt it more a duty to attend than that of the Prayer Book and Homily So ciety. He had heard that the society was in a languishing con dition; but it should never go down to the grave without a groan on his part. It was a matter of deep sorrow and regret, that this great town could not keep so useful a society afloat ; but he trusted there would be too many roans from the Lord's praying people to allow it to be extinguished. It might be in deep waters, but an all-powerful God had said, " When thou passest through the deep waters, I will be vsgth thee ;" and he trusted the floods would not be permitted to overflow that ex cellent society. That was a time, above all others, wheii they ought to carry the society forwards. They were about build ing a princely house as a home for their sailors, and could they not raise the small sum required to keep the society from fall ing. (Hear.) It would be much to the dishonour of that great town, which had been favoured by God with such an abundant measure of his gospel, if they permitted that auxiliary to be a burden instead of a blessing to the parent society. The speaker then quoted from the report, in proof of the usefulness of the society, some interesting particulars respecting its operations at Yarmouth, where out of 1500 ships visited before the society had been there, only eight were in possession of a copy of either bible or prayer book; lately, however, the scene had changed, and out of 858 ships, 353 were well supplied, and prayers were offered on board every sabbath, (applause) while the sacred volume and the prayer book were regularly read by the men. He instanced a case in which, by means of the society, the mate of a vessel had been converted, had left his ship to study at Cambridge, and was now a preacher of the eternal Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. He then referred to the operations of the society in Jerusalem and among the Jews, and it was de lightful to reflect that they united every Lord's Day with the Lord's ancient people on Mount Sinai itself. After dwelling at some length on the Indian and other Foreign operations of society, he alluded to the fact that on the day her present Majesty was crowned, the society distributed many hundreds of the coronation service, a service which every Protestant in Britain, who cared for the Protestant faith and its preservation, ought to delight in .—(Applause.) The rev. gent. concluded with an animated appeal to the auditory on behalf of the funds of the society, and resumed his seat amid loud cheers. Mr. SEAWARD, the visiting Secretary of the Parent Society, in a long and eloquent speech, full of the most interesting details and anecdotes, illustrative of the good effected by the society, which we regret our limited space precludes us from giving, seconded the resolution. . Th'e' Rev. CHAIRMAN then put the question, which was carried unanimously The Rev. HUGH iSPNEILE, on rising to propose the next re solution, was received with loud cheers. It was to the effect, that, considering the important objects of the society with re gard to seamen, and what had been done for them by the Parent Society, and the loss thereby entailed upon it, had espe cial claims upon the merchants and shipowners, and urged up on them, the clergy, and the inhabitants generally, the neces sity *of more strenuous exertions in its behalf. The object of the resolution, they would perceive, was to apply for funds, and the simple and sound reason why funds should be supplied to the society was to be found in the fact, that the society circu lated scriptural truth—to convey the one only source of real happiness to fallen man, that was, the knowledge of God in Christ Jesus. The Book of Common Prayer defined the line which our reformers drew between two very important principles—the one was, " Obey them which have the rule over you, who watch • for your souls, as they who must give an account," and the other was "We should obey God rather than man." The first required of members of the Christian Church obedience to the rulers of that Church, If this gave any authority to the rulers or ministers of the Church it could only be in those things where the Bible itself— God's own Word—had given them authority. They required nothing more than the Word itself, so far as the Word went, and unquestionably it was the duty of all Christian people to obey those who had rule over them so long as they ordered ,nothing which God had forbidden. If they transgressed this line and commanded anything in opposition to Holy Scripture then they arraign their own character, for the Scripture gave them authority, but not to oppose itself. Anciently our church rulers had put together a number of prayers—they had given direction about divine worship — things not found n Scripture at all ; they had set down certain words, they had given certain forms, they had prescribed times for service, different dresses for the clergy,—different postures at different times of service, and ordered certain creeds to be read. All these things were not found in the Scriptures. More than this, however, came to be commanded, that images should be put up, that holy water should have a place appropriated for it in our chUrches, in order that those who entered should bow down to images and cross themselves with holy wa ter. (Laughter.) These things were ordered in the church of England—(laughter)—and a great many .more such things. Then came our Reformers to the completion, as it was said, of the Book of Common Prayer, and what did they do? They drew a line. They said, We must obey God rather than man," and therefore all the men in the universe won't make us bow down to the image. But they said again, " Obey them that have rule over you," and therefore they said, what God has commanded we will obey, but what God has forbidden we will refuse to obey. Therefore they did not take it all and throw all overboard, nor did they take all and use it ; they kept that part of it which was good, and that which was bad they eschewed and spit out. (Cheers.) That was a very simple his tory of the Prayer Book- To have taken it all would have been to reject Christianity, and to have rejected it all would have been a great piece of petulance against . church rulers, and our Reformers were not guilty of such petulance. Here was a commendation of our prayer book. Here was a compi lation of primative . prayers, Which were to be believed because there was nothing in them contrary to Scripture.—(Hear and cheers.) It was a very prudent thing . not to throw away good and bad together, but to search the mixture and reject the bad and keep the good.—(Cheers.) Our Reformers adopted this method—they took a sort of middle way between Papists and Dissenters, the Papists have kept the whole, good and bad, the Dissenters have thrown away the whole, good and bad.— (Applause.) We have kept the whole' that was good, and were neither Papists nor Dissenters.—(Continued cheers.) The - reverend gentleman then referred to the conduct of the creed of the Papists with respect to the Sacrament, and proved what was the real belief of the church of England, on the subject from the Rubric of the Visitation of the Sick, and the 29th Article. He then proceeded to observe that they had heard a good deal that evening about the Homilies, but none had told them what was in them. He would, therefore, read a few specimens from the Homilies. The Rev. Gentleman then read an extract from the Homily, on the " Reading and Knowledge of Holy Scripture," shewing its sufficiency in all matters relating to man's salvation. In this part of the subject, he referred to the ser m on of Dr. Pusey, preached in Oxford, on Sunday :last, and placed the fathers referred to by him, as Titian, Ignatius, and Chrysostom, in contrast with the recommendation of the Homily, to " go to the well of life, instead of the stinking puddles of man's tradition." (Hear, hear.) He then referred to the doctrine of the fall of man, as contained in another Homily, and pro ceeded to notice extracts from the same source of the protest of the Reformers against image worship. In conclusion, the rev. gentleman urged in eloquent terms the claims of the so ciety to the support and countenance of the shipowners and merchants of Liverpool. (Cheers). Some meetings were good for getting money, and some for preaching the Gospel. The great object of a meeting like that was to bring forward the truths which such an institution set forth. Now, what did the truths he would read from the Homilies teach them ? That by nature they were utterly and eternally ruined, and if left to themselves they must perish eternally. Oh, who could dwell with everlasting burning? Then contemplate the salvation Feb. 3, 1846._ offered. God the Father's mercy, God the S on's righteousnesp and God the Holy Ghost's grace in the heart. oh, how ba c „cii was it that they had an open bible where they could learn a glorious truth—where they could' learn from that Word w_ . ,o should judge them all at the last day. But w hat they `ra n was to send this glorious truth to others destitute of it. .1,";, they could not give given with way of subscription, tit .2.5 smallest subscription given with self denial was m ore bleiM; to the giver than the receiver, because it proved that therer; something real in religion; and when a man was convinced W"; there was something real in religion, there was the germ of V I happiness. (Loud cheers.) The reverend gentleman concitA with seconding the motion, and resumed his seat amidst lob cheers. Mr. Joni.; EDEN seconded the resolution in a brie f _„„ddr pr The simple object of the society was to distribute the r Book and Homilies, and that, to o, chiefly amongst the sew n be • t It appeared that about 10,000, had been distributed durinc,„, last year by this auxiliary, and as this had been done at 5 11 7. u h b at sc a ri E p w tio h n o s 7er Th e f e ay soc ou i ra et b y le teen trusted their subscriptions. the support of, the shipowners and merchants, (as refer a in the resolution,) inasmuch as it addressed its efforts w great extent to seamen. hadto athaepecobijaelcctilavilidirew.o The motion being carried, a collection was made. The Rev. Mr. MAYNARD proposed the best th . anks . o " t 9 meeting to the Rev. Dr. Tattershall, who had been a kin' zealous friend of the society from its commencement. The CHAIRMAN returned thanks in a feeling manner. ... o f The Rev. Mr. MAYNARD announced that on to-11 01 1:„A evening, (that is this day, Tuesday,) a sermon would be prot , on behalf of the society. The meeting then separated LIVERPOOL FEBRUARY SESSIONS. These sessions commenced yesterday, before Gilo 6 Henderson, Esq., the Recorder. The calendar lc: rather heavy for the short time that has tr a nspired oin.„,i the last s tting of the Court, there being the names of prisoners for felony, and 15 for misdemeanour. 11 , 1 , stated that of the whole number 6 can read a nd writesir; 66 can read and write imperfectly ; and 43 can Dei l P e read nor write. The following gentlemen were BO" - in as the GRAND JURY. Edward Gibbon, Netherfield-road, merchant, (Foreman•) George Armstrong. Abercromby-square, ditto. Gaven Brackenridge, Bedford-street South, ditto. James CroQsfield, jun., Temple-place, wholesale grocer Samuel Dutton, 1. dge-lane, merchant. W illiam Dalgliesh. Dingle View, Tosteth, ditto. W F. Foster, South Hill Grove, ditto, broker Mathew C Mgh- ,iregson, Furth-road, merchant. Thomas I). Headlam, Wavertree, insurance broker. Timothy Bristowe Hughes, Sea Bank, Liscard, ditto. William Henry Higgins, Hope-street, iron merchant. Timothy Jevons, Park Hill-road, ditto Thomas Critchlow Molyneux, Knotty Ash, cbain cable manufacturer. William Mather, Finch House, West Derby, lead and coPP CS merchant. Simon Lee Trotma •ombie.square, broker. Park -road, merchant. James Stitt. Islington iron merchant. Alex. Shand, Elm Cottage, Ullet-lane, Toxteth, merchant. George Winstanley, Walton, wine merchant. The usual proclamation having been read, The RECORDER charged the Grand Jury. He saLa that although seven weeks had scarcely elapsed since the last sessions, within that short space of time no few:, than one hundred prisoners had been committed for bony, and fifteen for misdemeanours. The most numernT, cases of the graver kind were for shoplifting, of whit': there were fifteen.. Several of these were of parties irr n had taken goods that were temptingly placed at or near ,: the doors of the premises. It bad been cu s tomary ui the court not to allow the expenses of prosecution. ea t to this practice he should abide. He thought that in en instances it would be well for the local authorities to en . force the penalty of 40s. imposed by the local act on Perk ties thus exposing their wares. The next cases worth'' w", more particular notice were tho se o f s t ea li ng f ro m person. No fewer than ele ven a b an d one d wore_ . % , awaited their trials for thi s ki n d o f o ff ence. Here eri, the parties who had lost th e i r p roper t y h a d s h own a gr" want of prudence and discretion, which too often tor pened in the intercourse of men with such charactel There was one serious ca se o f an a tt emp t t o capon, highway robbery ; and he re gre tt e d t o say , th ere Wa l t other cases of a like nature, in which the parties had no been apprehended and brought to punishment. 1 1 , should certainly deal with severity with such offendel whenever the case was brought home to them. At 111 0 last sessions, an individual found guilty of the offence try transported for ten years, although it was the first time° had been brought before the court. With this exception! there was no very serious case requiring comment from him, or on which they would probably find any difficul t / in deciding. He should, however, remark that these W e b four instances of thieves being brought to justice throng the agency of pawnbrokers. This was highly satisfae: tory, and creditable to the latter. He hoped the exarnPl c t thus set would be followed, an d th a t t h e w h o l e o f that class would co-operate, for none had more in their poore r ; Amongst those who had thus acted in a praisewort in mariner were Mr. Mc. Pherson, Mr. Gillaird, Mr. MO' and another pawnbroker, whose name be had not yet en' certained. The example they had shown was well wortbi of imitation. He thought the grand jury would not fin s anything of a legal kind with which they might be a t , loss. Their province was merely that of a p r eliming 4 . character, and did not involve a trial of the accuse_!A They should weigh well the evidence, and if it appenTa conclusive, send the parties for trial; if otherwise, an n the probability was that no convicti on w ou ld res ult, ' would be their dnty to check all further unnecessary ea' quiry by throwing out the bills. The trials then commenced, but during the day we ll not of general interest. LEAGUE MEETING—LAST NIGHT. A meeting of the Anti-Monopoly Association was held last night in the Mechanics' Hall, Lord ' Nelson-street' to petition parliament for the total a n d i mme di a te rePe. B of the corn-laws. Wm. Brown, Esq., was in the chair' The meeting itself, however, was a poor affair, consisting chiefly of working men drummed up for the occasion; and the prevailing sentiment of every one present apt peared to he, that in the measures of Sir Robert Pe, e ,, they had obtained more than had e ver ben expec ted v.', reasonable men. The expressions of all the speaker,: conveyed gratitude to Sir Robert, and f u l some adulati° oo ,`; for his efforts in the carrying out of _thei r own f re e-' c notions,—mingled, however, with some little contemp t for his truckling subserviency, and triumph over the fa c t of his being compelled to come into the recognition ° their views. Lord Ashley has issued an address to the electors, 0 Dorsetshire, regigning his se a t b ec au se h e i s " o f opitil ° o that it is no longer expedient to maintain protection% He states that he will appear on the hustings at thenotol( nation to ascertain by a show of hauds the sentiments the constituency. • ODD FELLOWSHIP.-- Colonel Reid and Mr. RAP)! Neville, the two members f or th e b oroug h of New Win"' sor, have both been elected members of the Odd Felle o Lodge held in that town. • ~;; Sir T. Freemantle, S ecre t ary f or I rel,nd, will, on ": appointment as Chairman of the Commissioners of toms, vacate his seat for Buckingham, in whicli• he will succeeded by the Marquis of Chandos. Lord Farnham, in a letter to a Dublin paper, n a ° sf e that "he does not consider himself at liberty to state ° l , reasons which induced hi m t o d ec li ne secon di ng the n a l dress in answer t o th e speec h f rom t h e throne, elf,e' that they had reference solely to the question of corn. g, RAILWAY NEGLIGENCE.—At the Ilford petty session, on Saturday, Thomas Blackburne, an engine-driver, ``he fined £5, f or h av i ng l e f t part o f a l uggage tra i n e n main line of the Eastern Counties Railway, wherebl 4 collision was caused. A few days ago, John Burfielrl. engine -driver, was fined £5, at Darlington. He had cite % of the coal train on the Great N or th o f E ng l a nd lin which was run into by the mail train, t ° ta The nomination for the West-Riding election will - 4 ,6 place to-morrow. George Lane Fox, Esq., has C i forward to .oppose Lord Morpeth ; and Mr. Ferra o , actively engaged in support of the conserva ti ve intere s ts) He deserves for his strenuous ex e r ti ons some su bsta o l o `,, testimonial, and we hope all friends of the constituti l f will help it forward. Had Mr. Fox presented himg„,,r little earlier, his ele c ti on wou ld p ro b a bl y h ave been ' b ut vied easily, and e v e n now it d oes no t seem un likely ye a that Mr. Ferrand's zeal a n d d e lo t e d ness w ill b e crew with success. rs; PORTRAIT OF MR. ASKEW.—We were extreme , ' ~-t eo tified a few days s i nce b y th e i nspect i on o f a we ll exec,,",; l o likeness of Mr. Askew, our able and long tried bar e t, master, painted in oil by Mr. Lovatt, of Duke-str e ba . Mr. Askew is represented seated in an arm-chair 0 1 4 0 scroll of paper in his left hand ;‘and the artist has ,"•; ‘ ,O, very successful in placing oil the canvas all the aninla': e lf intelligence, and good humour which beam so express,_`,o9 in the countenance of the original. When the fres°,, P e cli of the colouring has worn off the portrait will be iroPN' t lie but it nevertheless reflects, as it is, much credit 00 tyß artist. We believe Mr. Askew will be happy to she uy likeness to any of his friends at his office in the oust° house. re . AUSTRALIA.—FiIes of Australian papers have heel of ceived to-day, extending through the months of lel , and part of September. The capture of Jackey J a ,, n or and other notorious bu s h rangers , h a d made quite a s ` - o iltj tion at Hobart TOM:), where thei r ravages among 0 ;01 side stations of the agriculturists and sheep farraeL'„blP created much -alarm. Bu s i ness at S y d ney an d P:00 Town was steady. Th e va l ue of flour and whe a 'frO/ rising at the latter place. A s hi p arr i ve d at Sydney th." New Zealand. and reports among other intelligen ce vtl' a chief named Noble, with his tribe, had joined fb e i s rei tish, in consequence o f w hi c h ano th er tr ib e h a d dec o ° in favour of Heki, who is now said to have upwa r . 3,000 PR PROTECTION TO BRITISH INDUSTRY,On Tll ll . the Central Agricultural Society, under the presiden et ia his Grace the D u k e o f Ri c h mon d, h e ld a spec i a l al e for the purpose of considering the ministerial sc be f iel and the followin g reso l u ti ons and recommendations airs unanimously agreed to :—" That this society vi e lobel( the utmost alarm the p ro p ose d measures o f Sir a l ° Peel for establishing free importation, and w ithdrll o o, protection from the producti ve classes." '• That t sof`; ciety feels convinced that th e resu l ts o f suc h m e- 0 6 would produce a revolution of such fearful extentiotif, involve not only the agricultural but the other pr°!, c oS i ,i classes of this country in certain ruin." "It Is the mended to the country and local protection societies tiol they do immediately form committees, of not olorf e fer / 4 12 gentlemen, to wait upon the members in their s e 0 tp d phr i e s eee t isl r r: i c pot t hor s el, at Ent:: political tcho % e v ep e tri r on e t ioroeenslrseieg.cj,nt:ecdt theiro th n esepart protective ns adl ao p pf r p i o esa c i. i rk :lo f te r e: l; to IS different constituencies for" a sanction of the CP LIVERPOOL : TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3,184 G. ,0, PRINTED AND PUBLISHED ,7 TUESDAY MORN EVERY BY JOSHUA FLETCHER LACE, of 53. Grove-street, tad LEONARD ADDISON, of 14, Great Orford-stree t. At No. 4, Sr. Geoaaa's CRESCEXT, Livaarosh •