Northern Times. — Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1859-02-05 00:00:00

entratrani (Salts. - NEXT WEEK. MONDAY On MONDAY next, C the 7th insta Saleroom, nt, at Twelve o'clock, in the Commercial 900 Cases Valentia ORANGES, ex 1 uria (s.s 400 „ Messina LEMONS, ex Express, 30 „ Naples DITTO, ex Taurus 300 Bags Turkey NUTS, 80 „ „ „ stained, 00 ~ Bilboa CHESNUTS, 00 „ Para NUTS, 40 „ Black Spanish NUTS, 60 Boxes Layer Muscatel RAISINS, damaged. GEORGE BADENACH and SON, Brokers Apply to On MONDAY next I,,at Twelve o'clock, at the Brokers' Otßee, 16, Exellanke= PENTINI x Ncptu from N 3. side Waterloo Dock or to aris e 8,1 H. RAI Lrid Co., Brokers TI T-ESDAY On Tuna Ay nex Twelve o'clock, a 14%0 'Bags LINSEED, „ RAPESEED, ;, 11IITSTARDSEED. BROWNS, MINTER, and Co., T3rcrs WEDNESDAY 7, -Exchange-chambers, ne American ROSIN, 70rk..-Apply to FRANCIS J: EATON, Broker tstant, at Twelve o'clock, at Apply to On WEraixsnxt - Isext, the tith -Bracer , Offic 76Barrel-s kt, from Pic v ex John 13ri On WEn:ia On WED 2, Dale-stteet, 12 'Chests East India GUM ARABIC, Quantity SAPAII-WOOD. BROWNE, HUNTER, and Co., Brokers IfiEhtY neett, the 9th instant, at Twelve o'clock, at the Brokers' Office, 2, halt-strest, 12 Cbests East India-GUM ARABIC, ' Quantity of SAPAIsTWOOD, • 300 Bags SALTPETRE. BROWNE, HUNTER, and CO., Brokers. Apply to WIL S. SLATER 314clinemakers, & nfctim Cabinetmakers the SALE of Hondura MAHOGANY, Porto Rico "SATINWOOD, Rio and Bahl ROSEWOOD,'WALNUT BURRS, and VENEERS, will tak place at Tv e o'clock, on WEDNESDAN next, in the Hondur Sheds, Birktnhead. 'WM. S. SLATER, Brokerand MeasnTer for the Limited Timber Company, Birkenhead. T H U RSDAY On THURSDAY next, the 10th instant, at One o'clock; at the Brokers' Saleroom, 35, Dale-street, Liverpool, 62 Bales Austrian Anal - Clippings BAGS. ply to JOHN L. BOWES & BROTHER, Wool'Brokers, nscant, at Twelve o'clock, at the Exchange-buildings, er's Office, lo 50 Cases 7 C asks African. GUM COPAL, [aggie Walker, from Sierra Leone, in the Albe s.—Apply to Messrs. Burnett and Kidd, ME J. H. RAYNER & Co., Brokers, A - es 2~1 Warehous , s; orto On Sgt. 'TO LANDOWNERS AND FARMERS. CHESHIRE4PHOSPHATE COMPANY have constantly ON SALE Nitrogenised BONE PHOSPHATE, and other valuable fertilisers.—Samplis - and prices may be had at the Office, 3, CABLE-STREET. Works:—Lowsn. 'BEBI:!GTON. J. R. CAMERON, CHRONOMETER MANUFACTURER AND OPTICIAN, 54, 4017 TE CASTLE-STREET, LIVERPOOL. MARINE CHRONOMETERS ON-SALE OR HIRE.. GOLD and'SIEVER 'WATCHES,' SEXTANTS, rADRANTS,;I3.4.I?O3IETERS, TELESCOPES, 4.c CHARTS :FROM LATEST SURVEYS. . . ISTORY OF THE WORKING CLASSES, Every 'Saturday, in the NORTHERN DAILY TIMES, Price One Penny. LETTERS OF CREDIT, TAITNCAN, SIIERM - AN, BANKERS, AND CO CORNER OF PINE AND NASSAU-STREETS, NEW YORK Issue Letters of Credit and Circular Notes for travellers, available in all the cities of the .United States, Canada, the West India Isiandsoke., similar to those in such extensive use in Europe. W"" WINTER] CLOTHING, r iE GENTLEMAN'S OUTFITTING WAREHOUSES, 26, BOLD-STREET. P. L. JIACTAGGART. 24 AND INVERNESS WRAPPERS. OVER COATS. DRESSING GOWNS. DRAWERS AND VESTS. FANCY FLANNEL SHIRTS. RAILWAY RUGS AND PLAIDS MUFFLERS AND SCARFS. FLANNELS AND BLANKETS. BOYS' WINTER CLOTHING TO CORRESPONDENTS. Under no circumstances can we insert communications not accompanied by the author's real name and address, not neces sarily - for publication, but as a guarantee of good faith. AMUSEMENTS, MEETINGS, &c THEATRE RovAL—Grand Comic Pantomimt_ ROYAL AMPHITHEATRE—EngIish Opera Company HENOLER'S CIRQUE VARlETE—Miscellaneops Attraction THE PARISIAN' GALLERY OF ANATOMY, Paradise-street. MANDERS' MENAGERIE—Foot of Shaw's-broNt. TEUTONIC HALL (Lime-street) —Ascent of Mont Blanc. CLAYTON HALL—Christy's Minstrels. ST. GEORGE'S HALL—Organ Performance. sir For particulars see advertisements on Bth na .-THIS DA/ SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 1859, THE DAY'S NEWS Business in both Houses of Parliament, last night, was chiefly confined to notices of motion. On the report of the address in answer to the Queen's speech being brought up, some conversa tion took place concerning the cultivation of cotton in India, but it did not end in anything practical. The debate in the House of Commons, on Thurs day night, with reference to the critical state of affairs on the Continent, and the large expenditure to be made in our naval service, has caused general heaviness in monetary circles. The Express says, that an unfavourable effect had been produced in the Stock Exchange by the explanations with reference to foreign politics; more especially, the remarks of Lord Derby and Mr. Disraeli have tended to increase the feeling of uneasiness. We publish this morning a translation of the Pamphlet, entitled, "Napoleon 111. and Italy ; " which it is believed was composed under the inr e ediate direction of the Emperor. Qne object o work is to show that the letter of treaties cannot hold against the necessity of politics and the inter ests of European order; but instead . of appealing to force,leit is requisite to appeal to public opinion. T pamphlet has been composed in order that public opinion gui lllay have the means of announcing its judgment, but without hostility to Austria. T of he question z e ta e ly is the only difficulty which can exist b,t Austria and France. There are dangers in Rally d the best manner of securing peace is to outstripanotclizinnplica tions capable of proucing war. One e causes involved is perhaps the Independ ency Papacy, which Fra nce h as a lways defended. The the The writer of the pamphlet proposes an Italia n c o , federation, at the head of which should be the Pope. The pamphlet concludes thus : therefore ardently desire that diplomacy, the day preceding a conflict, will do the same as it would do the day after victory. May Europe unite energetically in the cause of justice. Europe will always be on our side, because we are with it when the object is, to defend its honour, equilibrium, and security." If we are to put faith in the Paris correspondent of one of the Ministerial journals, the Queen's Speed has met, in all but certain official quarters in France, with the most cordial approval. The paragraph in which her Majesty states that " to cultivate and consolidate the friendly feelings of foreign powers, to maintain inviolate the faith of treaties, and contribute, as far as her influence will permit, to the p reserva ti on o f peace," is especially wel commended4B fi a one of the wisest and most prudent , 45 pxPrmion of policy, ever pennPa by a minister. The infrerenee drawn from this sen tence by the Parisians is, that her Majesty's pre sent government will use their utmost influence in averting the danger of war now hanging over the Continent, and that in case of hostilities actually breaking out, England will mark her sense of the disturbance of the peace of Europe by preserving an armed neutrality.. Such, in a few words, is the opinion passed An. Paris upon the Royal Speech, The - )loniteur contains a statement that the Emperor in person will open, the Legislative ses sion of 1859, on Monday next; the 7th of Feb., at one o'clock, in the. Salle des Etats in the Palace of the Louvre. , There seems to be a pretty general feeling in Paris that Louis Napoleon has changed his tactics as to the present European embroilment, being now of opinion that Austria should be per mitted to retain possession of her territory in Lombardy. He may probably say that he never held any other opinion. Little doubt can, at the same time, be entertained that he has committed himself to the defence of Sardinia if that State should be attacked, but no man more than he can be able to pre - vent such a contingency from taking place. At the same time comes a telegram from Turin announcing that Sardinia is in the money market of Europe for a loan. The amount is not stated. The intended concordat between- the Holy See and the Grand Duchy of Baden has met - with an obstruction that seems insurmountable. The Grand Duke will not sign it without - the constitu tional consent of the popular representation, and the Pope will not have it submitted to and debated by that body. If the Catholic Church refuses to acknowledge Governments in - their existing organization, it must be prepared to forego the advantages it hopes to derive by entering into conventions with them. News has come from Naples of a conspiracy in the fleet there, not quite so alarming as the mutiny at the Nore in 1798, but of sufficient dimensions to occasion the seizure of twenty naval officers, who have taken - the - berths lately vacated - by Poerio and his eighteen companions. It is of importance to note recent adhesions to Prussia in quarters where Austrian guidance had hitherto been in the ascendant. The reigning Duke of Brunswick had never visited the Court of Berlin. He has now gone there, possibly to pay his devoirs to his new kinsman of the royal line of Brunswick (English branch), but also to rally round the northern nucleus of German power. The two princes of Hesse, one being heir to the duchy of that ilk, have taken service in the Prus- sian'army, Among the notices of motion at an early day during the present session, we notice a bill by Mr. M'Cann, for the sale of grain, flour, meal, potatoes, &c., wholesale and retail, by the pound avoirdupois, its decennial multiplies, and aliquot parts ; and a bill by Mr. William Brown, as an amendment to Mr. M'Cann's motion, to weigh, in place of measuring grain, that 1001bs avoirdupois be called a cental, 2001bs a ton, and that 5001bs be con sidered equivalent to a quarter of eight bushels, and that the inspectors of weights be authorised to stamp weights of 10, 15, 20, 25, 501bs. Both these gentlemen were speakers at the meeting in Liverpool at which the cental was adopted. Election matters are again engaging the atten tion of several counties and towns. We have a despatch from Galway, which states that Sir T. Reddington has retired from the contest in that town, and now the only candidate is Mr. John Orrel Lever, the originator of the line of steamers from Galway to the United States, To-day, the electors of Linlithgowshire will be asked to send Mr. Charles Baillie to Parliament. He is the present Lord Advocate of Scotland, and has no seat in the Commons. Mr. G. Dundas retires from this county, having received a colonial appoint ment. Mr. Calthorpe and Mr. Pakington will certainly have a fight for it in East Worcester shire ; and we may also anticipate a struggle at Banbury. A Dublin paper tells a wonderful story of a gentleman discovering one night, lately, about 100 men, at secret drill, at a place within gunshot of Dublin Castle, and who are said to be members of a Phcenix Club. As the Dublin police is a very vigilant and quite übiquitous body, it does seem natural in the editor to add to the tale an expres sion of surprise that such doings should have remained unknown to the authorities: The Rochdale Town Council have passed a reso lution in favour of Reform. Very slender opposi tion appears to have been made to the proceeding ; and when it was liroposed to take the opinion of the Town Clerk, whether purely political questions should be discussed by municipal bodies, a worthy Alderman remarked that the opinion of that official " was not worth a rush." Finally, the original motion in favour of reform was carried by 21 to 2. The Vectus, with mails from Bombay, arrived at Marseilles on Thursday night, and the mails left for London yesterday morning. A despatch from Lisbon, dated yesterday, states that the mail steamer Avon had received some damage, and was lying at the Berlanges Islands. Two Portuguese steamers had been sent to her assistance. The Bank Returns, as published in last night's Gazelle, show an increase of £146,108 in the amount of bullion, £288,910 in active circulation, and a decrease of £221,065 in the reserve of notes. THE IMMINENCE OF WAR NOTWITHSTANDING the - hopeful assurances of Ministers at the opening of Parliament, that although the condition of affairs in. Europe was critical, war was scarcely probable, there are yet circumstances in the confederacy of France and Sardinia for Italian objects which make an out break very imminent. Lord BROUGHAM very forcibly exposed, in the House of Lords, the pre text of Sardinia in coming forward as the disinterested champion of Italian freedom when her real intention was her own aggrandisement. Well might the noble lord express his sorrow to see that Sardinia had departed from her ,ound and religious policy and his that the universal reprobation which had been expressed would cause her to think twice before persisting in it. But then there is the French Emperor's policy to 'be considered, as well as the Sardinian King's ; and one scarcely knows how to reckon upon that The real interests of France would never be served by such a war as that which is threatened. But Louis NAPOLEON has his own game to play It is impossible that a war between Austria and Sardinia could be con fined to Lombardy ; it would, in all probability, become an European war. And it is difficult, therefore, to conjecture what one so ambitious be calculating upon Lord DERBY declared that it is to Rome we must look for the cause of all disturbances and discon tents in Italy. And, yet, in the pamphlet just published in Paris, entitled Napoleon 111. and Italy, and which it is believed was composed under the immediate inspiration of the Emperor, while it contends that the letter of treaties cannot hold against the necessity of politics, and the interests of European order, it is actually proposed that there shall be an Italian ConfederatiOn, with the Pope of Rome at its head There is evidently a crisis at hand in Italy, and one in which Austria can scarcely, according to present appearances, avoid a hostile collision with France and Sardinia. But it is, in such a case, most satisfactory to be assured, as was "the House of Lords by Lord DERBY, on Thursday, th at the THE NORTHERN TIT)MS SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 1859 Ministry had entered into no engagement with any Power which could ha raper it ; but that on all Powers - alike hail teen impressed the fact that England had no direct concern in the matter beyond that of a great maritime and commercial State. such the hopes, of "a prominent represen tative of one of our great manufacturing consti tuencies, who is in the confidence of the Govern ment. And certainly they are such as to show that the prospects of a real Reform are by no means uncertain or unsatisfactory ; while there are assurances, at the same time, of the country being spared the infliction of any mischievous excite- ment on the important question at issue. REPEAL OF THE PAPER DUTY This is one of the acts of justice to . the people, and _policy to itself, that we expect from Parlia- ment during its present Session. Her Majesty's Speech enumerated several important subjects of " legal and social improvement," on which Bills will be introduced without delay ; but not one of them is of greater importance than this. We do not know that even " the state of the laws which regulate the representation of the people in Parliament" is really more worthy of immediate consideration than this because it has to do with the propagation of right views among the people on that, as on all other political questions,—such views as it is most necessary to have prevalent among . all classes of the community; in order that they may fully understand and appreciate the true constitutional principles on which those questions must -be dealt with. The " legal and social improvement " is it affects the masses, cannot fail to be promoted by cheapening, and thereby, rendering more accessible ,to them, the meanA'of instruction, whether as respects the laws under which they live, or the 'interests of society, with which they are concerned. As a matter of finance, there may not be much to excite new hopes of its immediate accomplishment ; but there is • nothing to discourage the old ones. Surely, if the estimates for • the ensuing year have really been framed ." with. all due . regard to economy," there ought' not to be any longer delay in the remission of an item of taxation, the maintenance of which has already been declared by the House of Commons to ibe "impolitic," as bearing oppressively upon literature, being an obstruction to education, an impediment to commerce, and a hindrance to production. The Paper Duty has been shown to be all this over and over again; but -never, perhaps, so forcibly as in the speeches delivered at the annual meeting of the " Association - for Repealing the Taxes on Knowledge," held in London the other evening. The Paper Duty, it was shown, is the last remnant of three separate means that were had recourse to for crippling the Press, at a time when, through the "exercise` of its enlightening influences on the body politic of this country, the Ministry, having sinister and selfish objects in view, got alarmed for the consequences,—namely, the newspaper stamp, the duty on advertisements, and this duty on paper. As the Chairman of the meeting reminded them, the history of it is this,— " It originated in the days of Queen ANNE, for the distinct object of restraining the Press. The Tory Ministry of Queen ANNE'S days ' were annoyed,' to use the words of- an eminent writer, with the vivacity of the Press,' and not liking to alarm the public by the adoption of a censorship, or of any measure bringing, as it were, directly in question the freedom of the Press, they invented that sagacious mode of crippling the Press,' namelyAhat of heavily taxing it, and they-put on the three taxes together." Now, were there no other reason than this, it were surely sufficient to render it a great public - duty, in these more enlightened and less corrupt times, to remove all traces of so iniquitous a proceeding. One-third of 'the crippling process has already gone,—the stamp duty and the advertisement duty, after severe and protracted struggles, were wholly removed. And the remaining third, the paper duty, stands con demned by a vote of the House of Commons ; which condemnation, we trust, will be executed as a sentence of repeal, ere the Session just com menced has run very far in its course. It is not the Newspaper Press alone, however, that the Paper Duty " cripples." It obstructs, it " cripples" the education of the people. As another speaker at the meeting we have alluded to truly and forcibly said,—" Most of them knew that the Irish Commissioners of Education had issued a series of lesson-books. The Paper Duty on these was twelve and a-half per cent. When it was paid, the, paper maker required a profit for paying it, as well as on 'the paper ; and the publisher and the bookseller also demanded a profit on the tax, and between them they doubled the tax, so that he was quite justified in saying that of every one hundred of the school-books that were printed the Government got twenty-five. The man who gave a sovereign for religious tracts might make up his mind that he gave only 13s 4d for them, and that the Government filched the 6s Bd, a lawyer's fee. They had ground, therefore, for alleging that this tai was an obstruction to education." It were, surely, a great inconsistency, therefore, to be voting half a million of money annually for pro moting education, and at the same time levying a tax of more than a million annually to its virtual obstruction. Nor is there, as on the same occasion was shown, any absolute necessity, even in a financial point of view, for the retention of such a tax. Ministers may say they can't spare it at present but they must make up their minds to do so,—if not by reducing the estimates, by some other arrangement. " I have been in Parliament," said Mr. MILNER GIBSON, "upwards of twenty years, and I never knew a case when a tax was attempted to be repealed that Ministers could spare the But a tax giving but a million, a sum forming only one-sixty-fifth part of the public revenue of this country, we need not be alarmed about ; it does not afford so large a portion of the whole revenue of the country that we are unable to deal with it. But to tell me that moral consi derations, considerations of high • public policy connected with public education, are to be disre garded because you would have to deal with a sixty-fifth part of the public revenue, I say the notion is wholly absurd ; we can deal with it, or any other amount of public revenue in this country, if we are so minded ; and I would say to those who are alarmed about the public roveztue money, leave that to the Chancellor of the Exchequer and tlya Parliament." Let us hope that the Chancellor of the Ex chequer is already prepared to provide, by some more legitimate subject of,taxation, if need be, for any deficiency that may arise from the Repeal of the Paper Duty. He is himself pledged to its repeal ; and he will seriously damage his reputa tion if . •he does not now, when he ha's the opportunity, practically and signally redeem that pledge. LOCAL INTELLIGENCE. Mr. J. Stoyle as clown " A la Grimaldi," 'on Wednes- day next TILE GAME OF THE SE ASOX.—Third edition of the amusing card, game of " St. George and the Dragon" now ready. Solid by 111awdsley and Son, and all book, MANCHESTER AND LIVERPOOL DISTRICT BANK. —A dividend of 12s. 6d. per share for the half-year ending 31st December last, and also . a bonus of 6s. 6d. per share, both clear of income-tax, will be payable at the Head Bank and branches. on and after the 9th instant. The interesting historical work of art, whioh comme morates Miss Florence Nightingale in her mission of mercy at Scutari, and contains the only authentic por trait of this amiable lady, continues to attract crowds of visitors 'daily. We would also add that this picture contains the portrait of the new Lord High Commis sioner of the lonian Isles, Colonel Sir Henry Storks, K.C.B. AlthoUgh it is the month of February, 1859, most people admit we are living in hard times, hence it should be the study of every one to ask themselves the question, "How can I- save my money ?" We reply, without hesitation, buy your steel' pens and other sta- tionery, at E. T. Wholesale steel pen war 23, &kith John-street. John Gillett's, Thomas Lowe's, G. W. Hughes, and other maker's pens at is per gross. Good Pen Holders 2d per dozen. LIVERPOOL UNITF.DGAS-LIGHTComPArtv.—The half yearly ordinary meeting of the proprietors of this com pany will be held on the 15th instant, at Newington. A resolution will be suhinitted to the said meeting to con vert or consolidate the £25 shares, numbered 9,951 to 10,386, both inclusive, in the capital of the co m p an y i n t o a general capital stook, to be divided among the holders of such shares, according to their respective' interests therein, pursuant to the company's Act of Parliament. CORONER'S INQUESTS.—Yesterday the Coroner held the, following inquests:--On the body of Elizabeth Butt, 15 months' old. The child fell out of the arms of her sister, a girl, aged nine, down •a flight of cellar-st e p s , a nd di e d i n consequenCe of theinjuries received. Verdict, "Acci dent:Al death."--On the body of Martha Moss, 54 years of age, the wife of a shipwright„ who kept a coal-yard in Bedford-street, Park. On Thtirsday,she was very drunk, as she was in the habit of drinking very much. She fell off a chair whilst in a state of drunkenness, and hurt her head, and died from the effects of the injuries. Verdict, " Died from the injury, brought on by excessive drinking." Accippyrs.—Yesterday, a man, named John. Harrison, belonging to the flat Star, lying in the Huskisson dock, was taken to the .Northern Hospital, suffering from a severe wound on the thigh, inflicted by a carpenter throwing a chisel at him. It appears that the two men had been larking together on the stage where they were employed in repairing the vessel, and that it was without malicious intent that the accident "odcw..red. A woman, named Jane Graham, was also admitted into the same institution, having had her leg severely scalded by the fall of a boiling kettle. Patrick Sceif, resident in Slater-street, received severe injuries on the head, br the fall of some planks of timber, at the Nelson dock. He was taken to, and properly cared for at the Northern Hospital. , " Buicf.wrow SCANDAL."—In reference to a paragraph which appeared in our paper of yesterday, we have been requested to publish the following letter from Mr. Cordy Burrows, the Mayor of Brighton :—" Permit me to state that, having convened a meeting of fifty of those gentle men in the town who, from their position are best able to judge of the truth or falsehood of such reports, the unanimous conclusion arrived at was that, after the most searching inquiries by the members present, consisting of county and borough magistrates, clergymen, medical men, lawyers, teachers, and others, they were of opinion that there is not the slightest shadow,whatever for such report. :They believe it to have been the wicked inven tion of some one who wishes to injure the town, and that the whole story is a heartless and groundless fabrication. and I endorse this opinion as my own firm coviction." THE HYACINTH POLKA, BY C. W. SMITH—LIVERPOOL: JAMES SMITH, LORD-STREE r.—TO produce anything bear ing the name of polka which shall be beautiful in melody, suitable as dance music, and at the same time fresh and new in character is, it must be owned, no very easy task: In this, liowever, a very talented and rising young musician,i Mr. Charles W. Smith, of thi s t own ; h as , . in the present instance, very fully succeeded. The Hyacinth Polka is one of the most inspiriting and brilliant, pieces of ball-room music we have heard for some time. It is qualified to give spirit and life to the most inanimate of dancers ; to express its time.and 'measure to the least practised ears, and to lend new animation to the dullest or the wearied company. At the same time, it has exquisite snatches of melody, and played over merely as a piece of musical composition will be found delightful by its hearers. The introduction is appropriate, expressive, and beautiful. We have upon more than one occasion spoken highly of the compositions of Mr. Smith ; but we think, in the present instance, he has even more successfully than before established his claims to be ranked as a skilful and a gifted musician. • Mr. StOyle as Simon Sly and Clown, with songs, on Wednesday next. ELECTION .OF A BIRKENHEAD COMMISSIONER. —A mandamus having been issued by the Court •of Queen's Bench for the election of a Birkenhead Commissioner, in the room of Mr. Thomas' S. Eddowes a niimber of rate payers assembled at 10 o'clock on Thursdayi msrning, in the Town Hall, Birkenhead, for the purpose. Mr. Waln, law clerk to the commissioners, was not present, nor were the other officials who usually attend to the township elections. Mr. Thomas •Evans • was appointed returning officer, on the motion of Mr. Bailiff, seconded by Mr. Storey. The only candidate was Mr. Gough, of the Woodside Hotel, who was' proposed by Mr. Bailiff, and seconded by Mr. Corrie At 11 o'clock, about thirty votes having been recorded.-for Mr. Gough, an no nther candidate appearing, the returning officer declared Mr. Gough duly elected. It will be remembered, however, that at the last meeting of the Commissioners, Mr. Waln stated that he was advised by counsel that any election under the present writ of mandamus would be void. It seems, therefore, probable that sonic difficulty will still be raised in the way of Mr. Gough's taking his seat at the board. ACCIDENT AT THE MENAGERIE.—A MAN TORN BY A TIGER.—On Thursday night, a man named John Mangan, a labourer, residing at 6, Brown was consider ably damaged by one of the tigers in Mander's Menagerie, but the fault was all his own. It appears that between seven and eight o'clock, the man, along with a friend, entered the exhibition. They were both the worse of drink, and Mangan commenced teasing one of the large tigers. He was repeatedly cautioned to desist, but would not. At last the coloured lion-tamer deemed it proper to interfere, and pushed the man away from the cage, but in a few seconds, whilst the tamer had his back turned, the man again rushed at the cage, for the purpose of irritating the tiger more than it already appeared to be. He approached the cage in a very wreckless manner, and the beast, watching an opportunity, put one of its paws through the bars, caught Mangan by the arm, and lacerated the limb considerably, tearing the clothes and flesh off from nearly the top to the hand. He was at once carried to a medical establishment, where the wounds were dressed, and then he was sent home in a cab. The entire blame is attributable to himself, no matter what the result may be. The animals in this exhibition are very quiet and well tamed, and will not touch any one if not interfered with, but it is almost natural to conclude, that if put into a passion, as in this instance, that the person who acts so rashly, must take the consequences. THE WIRRAL WATERWORKS.—A meeting of the rate payers of Higher Bebington was held at the Royal Rock Ferry Hotel, on Thursday evening, for the pnrpose of promoting the object of the Wirral Water-works Com pany, for supplying the districts with water. The chair was taken by the Rev. T. F. Redhead. During the con versation which followed, it was stated by Mr. Cunning ham, the engineer, that the cost of the entire works would be about £35,000, and that the company would supply half a million gallons of water per day, but the wells would be capable of supplying two millions a day. It was stated that shares to the amount of £15,000 or £16,000 had already been subscribed, and paid for. Mr. W. Webb objected to the proposed works, and uro•ed that under the local Government Act the ratep ayers of °any township might supply themselves with water ; that the whole of the capital for the proposed works would not be subscribed for in the district, and therefore if--any advantage was to be reaped the township ought to have the benefit, which would be the case in the event of the Local Government Act being adopted. Mr. Gill explained that nuclei the Loeal Government Act the Government would lend the money for the erection of works, but they would require security for the payment of interest as well as the repayment of the principal in a certain. THE PROSPECTS OF REPORM THERE is nothing that we can discover, either in the Speech from the Throne on Thursday, or in any thing that fell from Ministers in the debate which ensued, in either Rouse, to danip the hopes of constitutional reformers as to the accomplish ment of their _ anxious desires. We should certainly have liked it better, as we said yesterday, had more prominency been given to the . topic of Parliamentary Reform, in the - Speechi—had it been put foremost instead of hindermost, in that important Royal manifesto. But there is a precedent, it appears, .for placing it where it was. Sir JOHN PAKINGTON produced the Speech of her Majesty in opening the Session of 1852, when Lord JOHN' RUSSELL was Prime Minister. " I find that Speech refers," said the right hon. member, "to a great number of topics, of more or less interest, connected with the Govern ment,of the country, and then at the very end of it, and not till then, adverts to the question of Parliamentary Reform in these terms It appears to me that this is a fitting time to calmly consider whether it may not be advisable to make such amendments in the Act of the late Reign relating to the repn sentation of the Commons in Parliament as may be -deemed calculated to carry into more complete effect the principles on which • that law is founded.' So that whatever error we may have committed in the position which has been assigned to the topic in her MajestT's Speech relating to a reform of the representation in this' House, we have at least the consolation of knowing that we are supported by the precedent and example of the noble lord himself, seeing that he assigried to that subject precisely the same posi _ tion in the Speech which we have given to it This was . certainly a most conclusive reply to Lord. JOHN RUSSELL and the Whigs. But it - would have been more satisfactory to the country, nevertheless, had greater prominency, been given to it on such an occasion as the present, •Still it does not in anywise affect the real position of the great question. - The formal introduction of the question to the consideration of Parliament is not likely to take place, it seems, until after Easter. Lord PALMERSTON took it , for granted, on Thursday evening, that the Ministerial measure of Reform was prepared, and therefop would immediately be brought forward ; and the Chancellor of the Exchequer told him he was per fectly right. But he at the same time maintained that it is the duty of Ministers to introduce it at a period when it- can, receive ample deliberation, and when Parliament will have time to comprehend the purport of all its details. Therefore, he added, " the noble lord cannot expect, or if he does indulge so unreasonable an expectation he will be disap pointed in supposing, that Her Majesty's Govern ment will bring forward that measure before the urgent business of the country can be put in a proper frame Nor do we really see any thing very unreasonable in this. Lord PALMERSTON had himself admitted that a due provision for the reorganisation of the Navy, for instance, was not second in importance to any question that would occupy the attention of Parliament. And this is one subject, it would seem, which is to have pre cedence of the Reform Bill. "At the proper time," says the Minister, "and giving to the House the most ample tittportunity to consider its merits, I shall be prepared on the part of the Government to introduce that measure to their consideration." This, then, is a pledge; and it is one from which the Reformers in the House will take care there is no escape We have thus a double assurance, that a Reform Bill we are, certainly and without doubt, to have. The prospects of Reform, therefore, in that respect, are in no wise clouded, but rather the reverse. The nature of the measure is the next anxious con sideration. Ministers cannot be expected to make known its details before hand. But we have Sir JOHN PAKINGTON'S deliberate declaration, that they are in earnest. Having removed from Lord JOHN RussELL's mind the ground of the complaint he had made as to the place assigned to the sub- ject in the Speech from the Throne,—" I hope," added Sir JOHN, "at sonic not distant day we shall equally remove from his mind any doubts he may have as to the sincerity of the Government in dealing with this question." The seconder of the Address (the hon. member for Leeds) having no official trammels in the matter, spoke unreservedly as to what he had evidently been led to expect would be the character of the Ministerial measure. It would, he said, "be conceived in no peddling spirit, neither, on the other hand, would it display a genius for revolution. They might be sure that it would not ignore Royalty, or eliminate an estate of the realm. It would not speak evil of dignities, or pander to mobs. It would not set up class legislation, and subject all other classes of the community to the domination of the lowest. It would not exclude any one class from its fair share of representation in that House, under the pretence that it was represented elsewhere. But it would aim at making the House of Commons the exponent of the views of all classes, the reflection of the population, the industry, the wealth, the worth, the intelligence of the people,"—observations which appear to have elicited the heartiest cheers from the great body of the House. Yes, he went on to remark, " Ministers would show them that there was a better reform than that which sought only to destroy ; that there were truer friends to their country than those who railed against its institu- tions; that there were higher apostles of peace than those who arrayed class against class; that there were brighter prospects for this, country than any mere theorists could g ive us. And he trusted that when the next Session of Parliament should be inaugurated we should have to be grateful for loftier triumphs than those of arms, and nobler victories than those of war.'? Such' are - the feelings , number of years, and that security would have to be provided by a special rate upon the inhabitants, whether they took the water or not. A letter from the Rev. Joshua King, rector of Woodchurch, in opposition to the company, on the ground that the proposal was impracticable and visionary, was read. It was moved that a petition in favour of the bill be presented to both houses of parliament. Mr. Webb moved an amendment, but, he not being a ratepajer of the district, the amend ment was not received, and the petition was adopted. Thiuble Pantomime Company at the Theatre Royal, on Wednesday next, for Mr. Stoyle's benefit. THE AUSTRALIAN Men. —The steamer Wye reached Marseilles, on Thursday morning, with the light portion of the Australian mail, which will be delivered in London this morning. FATAL ACCIDENT''ON THE LANCASHIRE RAILWAY.— We regret to . state that a fatal accident took place yesterday morning, at the Waterloo Station, on the above line. The facts, as well as can at present be collected, are these. It appears that on the arrival of the 8-o'clock train at the above station s a young man, named Doyle, who was engaged as a newspaper carrier, in the employ of Messrs. Smith and Son, news agents, was proceeding with a quantity of papers for distri bution in the neighbourhOod ; that in his hurry to leave the train he jumped ottt while it was yet in motion, and, falling on the rails, the train passed over him, i mangling his b o dy' n .a frightful manner, and of course killing, him instantly. On further inquiry, it appears that the deceased went out by the 7.50 train, and in his attempt to get on the platform before the train stopped, he was thrown on his back, and in his attempt to rise, the step of the carriage caught and threw him under the train, the carriages passing over his chest, the body stopping the train, and the latter had to be pushed back to get out the body. He was sixteen years of age, and the son of a porter. • Thu ENGLISH OPERA. COMPANY.—At the Amphitheatre this company continue their performances with success,. the change of pieces fully evidencing the wish of the managers to _keep pace ,with the public desire. For nings during the week Miss Fanny Reeves, we regret to say, was too severely indisposed to perform, her parts, and, at short notice, Madame Maude Bishop kindly undertook her characters, and met with unbounded applause. On Thursday evening " Lucia di Lammer moor " was well put upon the stage,. Madame Bishop playing the arduous part of LUcia,, and its satisfactory performance was an excellent proof of her capabilities as an actress as well -as a singer. There is, about the character of Lucia, something tragic, and the music demands not only great powers of voice and execution, bUt:.also an ' intensity of passionate expression, ancr ill all this Madame Bishop showed herself to be a perfect artiste, capable of. giving force and - expression to. Donnizetti's charming music. Mr. Elliot GaTer, as Ediai Ravenswood, admirably sang and acted, seldom with better effect, and in the well-known "malediction" scene, loud applause was bestowed upon both. Bide-the- Bent, by Mr.. Corn, and Arthur, by Mr. Lyall, were also excellently given, each receiving well-merited recog nition. Mr. Barran as Colonel Ashton, was highly effective in the music, sustaining his long and well established reputation. ' Last evening the per formances were for the benefit of. Mies Fanny Reeves, when Bellini's opera of Sonnambula was produced, in which she played. the part of Arniruz; Mr. Eliot Galer, Elvin ; Mr. Borrani, Count Bodolpho. Miss Reeves, although evidently very ill, and appearing only iii conse quence of . its being her benefit, sang with sweetness, and gave a good interpretation of the "sleep walker." Mr. Galer was encored in the well-known airs, and Mr. Boriani was also satisfactory. The " Quaker," concluded the evening's amusement, in which Mr.. Corri and Mr. Lyall, in conjunction with the ladies, were loudly applauded. To-night, "Il Trovatore " and the " Loan ,of a Lover," will make up an excellent night's entertain ment. • several THE DONALD M'KAY.—At the police-court, yesterday,. before_ Messrs. Benn and S. Holme, Capt. Tobin, of the Donald M'Kay, one of Messrs. Jas. Baines and Co.'s vessels, wassuitimoned on a charge of being short of provisions, oz the passage from Australia, and also having hides on board. Captain Schomberg appeared on j)ehalf of the Emigration Commissioners, and Mr. Forshaw defended. A question arose as to whether the vessel came under the provisions of the Emigration Act, as was what is known as a "short ship." She had 30 steerage passengers ; but in addition, 32 men were taken on board who were registered as seamen, although in reality sailing as passengers. • Mr. Forshaw, however, on the part of the defendant, offered to waive all technical questions of whatever kind; and in reference to the charge of having deficient provisions applied for an adjourn men t, un til this day, at twelve o'clock, inasmuch as he would able to produce the most complete defence to the charge ; but owing to the short ness of the notice, was unable to have his witnesses then in court. With reference to the other charge he stated that Messrs. Baines and Co. knew nothing whatever Of it, the arrangements of the vessel having been conducted by their agents in Melbourne, for whom be admitted that they were, of cowse, legally responsible. The vessel sailed with a cargo of 7'oo tons of hides, so that of course, supposing her to passenger ship,_ she was infringing the act ; but in order that no inconvenience might ensue, he was informed that sonic feet of salt were put over the hides, wool over that, 'and that in fact no inconvenience did arise. They had had •no sickness, and none of the crew or the passengers had died. He quite admitted that Messrs. Baines highly 'disapproved of the manner in which the arrangements had been made as to the shipping of the additional passengers, and they would take care to write to their correspondents in Australia, directing that nothing of the kind should ever occur again. Under these circumstances, he appealed to the Bench for the lowest possible penalty ; and in reference to the charge of want of provisions, stated that he would be able to pro duce a complete defence. The case was then adjourned to this day, both as regards the question of penalty for the admitted infringement, and the eharge of deficiency of provisions. THE Poon. LETTER-CARRIEHS.—We have more than once directed attention to the very' inadequate remuner ation of the letter-carriers and letter-sorters, in the employ of the Post-office, and the annexed extract from the Civil Service Gazette, will give some information on the working of the New Scheme :—" Althongh the sorters and letter-carriers of the metropolis refrain from giving public expression to their feelings, it must not be con cluded that the late concession' has removed the causes of their discontent, and reconciled them to their lot. Having already stated their grievances, they deem it unnecessary to weary the public ear by repeating their complaints from day to day ; and, moreover, they have come to the conclusion that no real redress will ever be obtained except through the intervention of Parliament. In the meantime they request us to state that since the ' . ,New Scheme came out the duty re quired is beyond human performance. Indeed, the General Post-office, during the time the sorting is going on, is described as the most complete scene of confusion it is possible to imagine. As an instance of one result Of these attempts to do what is impossible, we are assured that on Friday, the 14th inst., six large baskets full of newspapers were left behind, and detained till the fol lowing day, for -want- of sufficient hands o ,o.et them sorted and sent off. No wonder th a t we t and all our contemporaries suffer from the delays of transmitting our papers through the post, and that we ars inundated with complaints from country subscribers that the irregulation in the delivery of their journals is intolerable. But the loss of newspapers is not the worst consequence of the overworking, frightening, and coersive measures now in full opera tion. One melancholy story will illustrate another description of loss : —Dukes, a General Post Letter carrier, a quiet, inoffensive man, on the Wardour-street and Oxford-street Walk, was, on the 18th inst, threatened by the authorities with the punishment of having to work three days without wages, for having in the hurry and bustle of his sorting duty on the morning of that day, miscounted the number of his letters, about three hundred, for delivery (a duty required of each letter-carrier one week every month). The communication to him of this intended punishment, and the manner in which he• was pounced upon and treated by one of the 'drivers,' so completely upset the poor fellow that he went on doing his duty till the Saturday evening, in a very desponding state of mind; and on Sunday morning he was found in the water-butt, almost lifeless, and only lived twelve and a half hours afterwards. He died a most lamentable death, in a state of madness, and has left a wife and eight helpless children—one child lying a corpse at the time this sad occurrence took place—and the widow is just on the verge of confinement again. This is a most heart-rending case, and shows in a shocking iight the effects of the intimidation and overworking system now carried out with such rigour at St Martin's le-Grand. The perplexity . created, too, by the numerous edicts issued is most harassing, and makes confusion worse confounded. A code of new printed instructions was sent, a few days ago, from the General Post-office to the different district offices of the metropolis, with orders that they were to be strictly acted upon. On the following morning, however, fresh orders were d espa t c h e d, commanding that the previous instructions were not to be .acted upon, but were to be cancelled or destroyed. In this manner a very considerable sum is wasted, besides keeping the unhappy employes in a con stant state of terror, apprehension, and uncertainty. What with orders and counter-orders, instructions and counter-instructions, regulations and counter-regulations, no man knows whether he is doing right or wrong. Indeed, the laws of the Post-office, like the statute laws of the realm, are a monstrous mass of inconsistencies, which would puzzle the profoundest lawyer in the land. There must be a radical reform of this establishment." T HE PR] The Prin The 4 CCIDE/4i . 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