The Express.
London, England, 1852-01-21 00:00:00

THE STRIKE.

Last night a meeting of the Executive Council of
the Amalgamated Society of Engineers, &c., took place et
the office*, Little Alie.street, Whitechupel, to receive re-
ports from the different branches, and determine upon any
steps which it might he necersary to take consequent upon
the present state of affairs in the society.
Mr. Allan, the general secretary, stated, for the infor-
mation of the council, that although the time originally
appointed fur the returns of votes upon the cu-operative
grant of 10,0001. from the general fund of the society had
that day expired, returns from only 72 branches out of 120
had arrived at the offices. He was, however, glad to state
that, with the exception of those Gum three small branches,
the returns received were in favour of the proposition of the
council: in fact, the votes iu 69 out of the 72 districts re-
ferred to, were returned as almost unanimous upon the
point.
No active steps, it was understood, could be taken with
regard to tho establishment of the eo-omrative shops until
the receipt of returns ham the other brioches, which are
expected to arrive iu a few days.
Mr. Allan also stated that he had received information
from Liverpool that the firm of Fswcctt and Cu. had given
notice of their intention to discharge the society men in
their employ at the end of the present week; and further,
thar Mr. Macgregor, of the Vulcan Work+, had issued a
document pledgiug his workmen to nominee all connexion
with the Ama garnated Society, and that those who refused
to sign would be discharged on Saturday.
The result of these notices, we understand, will bo to
throw out of employment many additional hands.
A donation of 101. from Mr. C gham, a aeutleman of
fortune residing at Brighton, accompanied by the following
letter, was handed in by the secretary:
" 20, Sussex•square, Brighton, Jan. 20, 18.52.
"Sir—l am convinced that you will have the moral sup-
port of the public, whatever may be said to the contrary,
in a movement to limit the hours of toil for the operative,
whose bodily strength is his Duly patrimony. An adjust-
ment of the system of piecework is a mere complicated
question; but if the employers, as well as the employed,
be sincere in their desire to arrive at an equitable solution,
then a fair adjustment may be made. When the mestere,
in their 'statement,' say we claim and are resolved to
assert, the right of every British subject to do what we (!)
like with our own,' they appear to have forgotten that pro-
perty, or capital, has its duties as well as its rights;
and that the rights of tho poor and the rights
of the rich are reciprocal privileges ; the former
being the condition no which the latter are enjoyed.
As a proof of my sympathy for your cause, 1 beg to forward
ten pounds to the fund of the Amalgamated Society of
Working Engineers, etc., and to auto that, if a co-operative
association be bleated, I shall ho prepared to take some
shares in it.—l em, sir, young obediently,
"Wit.
" To Mr. Allan, Secretary of the Amalgamated Society."
Reports were received from various branches, showing
the members to be firm to their previous determination to
uphold the movement; and the receipt of a large amount of
contributions was announced.

It Will also determined that 'public meeting in connexion
with the movement should nest week be convened in the
largest available building in the metropolis.

THE AMAZON.

SOUTHAMPTON, TVESDAY.
Notwithstanding the most strenuous exertions of
the Southampton Amazon Fund committee they experience
the utmost difficulty in discovering the families and relatives
of those persons who were lost in the Amazon. The Royal
Mail Company's establishment do nut even retain a list of
the crew ,• and even if they did it would not furnish infor-
mation of where the men resided when ashore. Although
the loss of the Amazon has been daily proclaimed and
noticed in every newspaper throughout the kingdom for the
last fortnight, persons most deeply interested in the event
who live in the vicinity of Southampton are even now igno-
rant of the calamity. This appears almost incredible, hut
it is nevertheless true. It was only on Monday that the
committee learnt that there was a widow with nine orphan
children who had claims on them living at Der Leap, a
few miles from Southampton, in the Nuw Forest. Thou-
sands of the wives and children of poor seamen cannot read
or write, and thousands who can never enjoy the luxury of
reading a newspaper. Means have been adopted to obtain
information of the sufferers by the loss of the Amazon, by
desiring the Southampton postmen to acquaint all those
poor persons living in their districts, whom they may sus-
pect to have had felatives on board to attend at the
Mail Company's offices, and give information, after which
such information is handed ever to the committee. Many a
poor creature who had a relative on board has received
from the postman the first announcement of the calamity
that has befallen her. It is believed that the committee
will obtain complete information about the end of this week
of the extent of the chime on their bounty. There is net
the least doubt that there will be a hundred orphans to pro-
vide fiir. The subscriptions amount at press nt to about 3,000'.
The mayor of Southampton received yesterday an affecting
letter from the family of Mr. Kerseboe, at Angers, in
France, entreating to know whether that gentleman, who
was one of the passengers, is amongst the saved or not. It
is feared, from the madden of this gentleman'r cabin on
board the Amazon, that he was one of the first on deck,
and that he lost his Ile by the upsetting of the boats. Mr.
Kerseboe was the gentleman concerned in the Duchess of
Berry's appearance in France a few years since. The un-
fortunate gentleman was bound for Chagres and Cali-
fornia.