The Express.
London, England, 1848-05-01 00:00:00

STATE OF THE COUNTRY.

Front all iiiiestTieaocCuntsiiTs to the activity in sowing
crops and the prospect■ of a good h►rvest are most cheer-
ing. AU men will be gratified at this state of things. Those
who look witn anxiety to the development of Irish industry
will be rejoiced at such evidence that apathy has not wholly
prevailed among our people ; those who are concerned
for the political state of the country will equally rejoice that
the abundance which providence in its mercy promises in
mitigating the distress will check that spirit of excess to
which physical misery presents a strong incentive. The
Limerick Reporter gives the particulars of a case in Clare
in which the act 5f Mr. Blake was imitated, and a number
of poor creatures, who had gone to the out-door relief depots
to obtain the u-ual rations found their houses levelled on
their return. The unhappy beings, it states, bewailed their
fate long into the night that saw them homeless.
The accounts of outrage upon property in the papers to-
day are very numerous. especially in the district where Tip-
perary and 'the King's and Queen's Counties adjoin each
,ther. Four persons have been arrested in Ballyshannon,
haired with Bibbonisna. The Carlow Sentinel speaks of the
manufacture of pikes being openly pursued there. Another
announcement of the same journal, which rests upon fact,
not report, s satisfactory—namely, that the Rev. J. Maher,
P.P., the writer of some le tern upon public matter.,
and an uncompromising repealer, has denounced from
the altar the parties who excite the people to violence, and
reprehended the practice of shooting at marks with firearms.
The result his been that the Carlow Rifle Club has ceased to
exist. An open-air meeting, "to sympathise with the per-
secuted patriots," has created some alarm, but the msgis
trates w:11 not interfere save to request there shall be no
banners, and to "recommend" that the country districts
should meet in their localities.

SCOTLAND.
EDINBIJR4R, APRIL 29.
Funds for the relief of the unemployed in Edinburgh
are coming in very slowly. There are many causes
that contribute to this, such as the general depression
of trade, the heaviness of local taxes, particularly for
poor, police, and prisons, the unsatisfactory operations
of the Highland relief board, the improvidence of the
working classes when employed, and the number of
Irish swelling the list of the destitute. But giving lull
force to all these considerations, surely men ought not
to starve in a city of comparative plenty. The sub-
scriptions received to this date are only some thousand
pounds for nearly an equal number of labourers—to
say nothing of women and children dependent on these
destitute men.

A Chartist meeting, for the formation of a " Metro-
politan National Guard," was held here last night.
It was so very noisy, that the original chairman had
to be deposed in order to make way for another pre-
sident more fitted by external aspect to " fulminate
the fierce democracy." The statistics of the contem-
plated force were imposing. There were to be four
divisions of 400 men, each division to be subdivided
into 100; these to be again subdivided into sections
of twenty-five ; each division to have a colonel, and
each sub-division a captain ; the first and third divi-
sions to have lances, and the second and fourth
mu.kets ; the total number of the guard to be 1,600.
and the officers 84 ; and last, but not least, there was
to be a treasurer for raising the supplies. A tailor
recommended peace, but was unheeded. Several
policemen in plain clothes were taking notes of the
proceedings, but rot, it is to be hoped, with any view
to criminal prosecution. The "grand army" referred
to will never have any existence, except in the brains
of the spAkere,or, if it should be licked into anything
like consistency, one review would do its business.
It would be Falstaff's troops again marching through
Coventry, with the sole difference that they would be
commanded by Jack Cedes; and the popular eye, more
quick in detecting the oddities of amateur soldiering
than in discovering bad logic at meetings, would soon
laugh down the " National Guard."

PROVINCIAL.
LANCASHIRE.
THE COBDEN TESTIMONIAL FUND.—A meeting of
the committee to the Cobden Testimonial Fund was held at
the Townhall, Manchester, on Saturday morning, when a
number of the principal contributors to the fund were pre-
sent, including Mr. R. Hyde Greg, Mr.W. Rawson, and Mr.
George Wilson, the three treasurers; with Mr. J. Heywood,
M.P. ; Mr. Ald. Shuttleworth ; Mr. Ald. Potter; Mr. T. B.
Potter ; Mr. J. Kershaw, 11.1'.; Mr. R. Ashton; Mr. T.
Ashton; Mr. Henry Ashworth; Mr. Thomas Woolley; Mr.
W. Bickham; Mr. W. Evans; Mr. Jos. Simpson; Mr. T.
punter; Mr. Edmund Potter; Mr. Salle Schwabe; Mr.
`Thomas Barnes; and Mr. Schofield, of Littleborough. It
appeared that the amount subscribed was 79,0001., from
whice 4,8001. had to be deducted for expenses, leaving a
balance of 74,0001 to be placed at Mr. Cobden's disposal.
Of the whole amount subscribed, all within about 2,0001.
had been collected, notwithctanding the commercial demos-
' slot which had prevni!ed; and of the. deficiency Mr. Wilson,
who read the rep.rt from the tr • &surer', stated that pro.
bably 1,6001. more xould pctbereteived. the delay lc closing
the subscription was attri bu t ed to the great dept. a of tra
and the absence of >lr. Cobden from home. A moil c)r.:
and fist contradiction was given by the three t.2:-crers
is the statements and insinustions so men•lse.Jusly put
forth from time to time, and boldly reiterated by journals
of a certain standing in public estimation, as to a inisappro-

priation of the money enbecribed, these gentlemen declaring
they held themselves responsible to Mr. Cobden for the
whole amount named at any moment. The whole of the
money had not remained in the banker's hands, however,
some portion having been invested, with Mr. Cobden's con-
sent, to greator advantage, and one moiety had been ex-
pended in the purchase of the estate known as Mr. Cobden's
Krth•plue. The Want* was in cub, and ready to be paid
over by the treasurers so soon as the mode of doing it should
be determined upon. These explanations appeared to give
the highest satisfaction to the gentlemen preamt, and a sub-
committee 1141 appointed to audit the accounts. It appeared
to be the wish of some parties that it should be presented in
the presence of the subscribers, but they suggeszed at the
same time the impracticability of the scheme, owing to the
fact that the parties were so widely spread, many of them
being resident in distant parts of the kinglom, and some
on the continent of Europe. It was thought under these
circumstances that the committee should decide upon the
presentation being made by a few of the principal eentri-
haters only, or by the treasurers, in the name of the whole
body. The following resolutions, unanimously adopted by
the meeting, will bear out the statements above given as to
the eatisfactory character of the report, and the other expla-
nations tendered by the treasurers and the members of the
executive committee. Moved by Mr. Jas. Heywood, F.E.E.,
M.P., and seconded by Mr. Thomas Hunter:
That the thanks of this nneting be presented to the treasurers for
the eery able aid economical manner In which they knee conducted
the business eatruated to them in relation to thin

seconded by Mr. John
Brooks:
That henry Ashworth, Earl., and Sall. Schwabe, Esq., be appointed
auditors of the accounts.

Moved by Mr. flouter, and seconded by Mr. Greg
That, inasnir.ch SA it to Impossible to convene generally the contri-
butors to a fund which has come from all parts of the United King-
dom, and even from foreign countries, this committee autborisestheir
treasurers, when the accounts shall have been audited, to piece the
entire fund at .he absolute disposal of Mr. Cobden, and requests them
to transmit to the subsoribers generally a copy of the accounts, as au.
dited,with Mr. Cobden's acknowledgment of the receipt of the

mone
A.
SECOND MEETING IN FAVOUR OF REFORM—Of
" household suffrage, triennial parliaments, vote by ballot,
and equal electoral districts, with a view to a large reduc-
tion in the notional expenditure," war held on Thunday
night, in Exchange Ward, Manchester. The first resolution
moved war:
That, wing the large government majorities upon all questions of
Silence, this meeting his no hope of retrenchment from the Moose of
Commons ea at present ocastituted, and therefore resolves Streit into I
an association to procure tuansehuld suffrage, triennial parliaments,
rote b 7 ballot, end equal electoral districts.
Thu and the following other resolutions were adopted
with ettly two dissentients.
i abet it is desirable that the whole of the directors be requested to
give their influence to the movement, by signing a requisition to the
members for the borough, instructing them to use every legal plan,
in and out of parliament, for the promotion of our object, it being
understood that if the Kitting members cannot lend themselves
heartily to the cause, the same requisition shall, if It meet the appro.
battik% of the majority of the electors of the borough, empower the act-
ing committee to cell upon the sitting members to resign their meats.
That Mr. Mackie, Mr. Armstrong, Mr Prentice, Mr. Rawson. Mr Wad's,
Mr. Woolley, Mr. Cooper, Mr. Johnson, and Mr. Councillor Goulaby
(with power to add to their number) be appointed a committee to
arrange fur a general meeting of the :electors, and to conduct the
general ai ranuitnenta for busineva in the essociation.
THE LIVERPOOL FINANCIAL REFORM ASSOCIA-
TION held a meeting on Friday. The meeting war a pre-
liminary one, its chief object being to hear a report of the
result of en interview between • deputation of this society,
with one from the national confederation. Letters received

from gentlewen residing in distant parts of tile country, and
whose attention had been called through the press to the
efforts being made in Liverpool to reduce the taxation of the
country, were read. Some of these laters were perused
with a purpose of gaining information, with a view to
establiahing similar associations in other towns. It was
announced that Col. Williams had sent in Lis adhesion. A
letter from Sir J. Walralley, M.P., approving of the objects
of the association, and offering it his assistance, was also
read ; and another of a similar tenor from W. 'Swart, Esq.,
M.P. The chairman, Mr. Robertson Gladstone, called upon
Mr. Charles Robertson to read the report of
the result of the meeting of the deputation which he did,
after which a good deal of discus-ion took place relative to
the policy of amalgamating with the National Confedera- '
tion, and some objections were raised to such a course, on
the score of the more extended views of the Financial
Reform Association, which took a wider range of the
object before them than the association already in ex
istence, which combined with the same object the reduction
of local taxation.—Mr. Holland proposed a resolution (se-
conded by Mr. L. Hey worth), to promote an amalgamation
with the association already in operation, the oistinative
objects of each, should there be any, to be conducted by
sub-committees.—The question as to giving the association a
new name, and other matters of detail, were deferred for
consideration at the next meeting.

.....
CASE OF THOMAS DREWERY.—In the Ezpreu
of the 18th inst., under the head of Yorkshire, in the Pro-
vincial Intelligence, it was stated that an application had
been made to the government in consequence of a letter from
the convict to his wife, urging her to Join him in Australia,
for a free passage to her and her children. The following is
the simmer from the Home-office, addressed to Mr. M. T.
Baines, M.P., who has exerted himself in favour of the in-
nocent conrct:

Whitehall, April 22.-84,-1 am directed by Secretary Cie G. Grey
to achnowledge the receipt of your letter of the 17th mat., with its
accompanying cope of • letter from "Dimas Drewery, with ',lrani to
a free plumage being granted to his wife and children, in order that
they may }um him in Australia, and 1 am to acquaint you, with
reference to your letter of the 18th of January last, that Sir
G. they deemed It advisable to address • communication to
the Coloniaboffice, to order
reference to the Lieut