The Express.
London, England, 1862-02-05 00:00:00

MR. BRIGHT AT BIRMINGHAM.

BIRMINGHAM, Tummy Moat.

The anniversary of the Birmingham Chamber of
Commerce was celebrated this evening at the Plough and
Harrow Hotel, Edgbestan. Mr. Ono. Duos, one of the
vioe•presidents of the chamber, took the chair. These were
also present the Right Hon. C. B. Adderley, M.P., Mr.
John Bright, M.P., a number of deputies from chambers
of commerce in London, Manchester, Sheffield, Wolver•
hampton, and other places, and many of the leading
merchants and manufacturers of the town.

Mr. BRIGIT responded to the teed cf "The Borough
Members" given from the chair—lle regretted that there
was not in nearly every town a chamber of commerce, sitting
as a committee of vigilant*, watching the progress of
all questions affecting the industry al the country ; and
he thought the different chambers might be emaciated
on a broad and liberal beefs with the best effect, because
what affected one trading community affected all. If
chambers of commerce declined to disease any important
question because it might be inconvenient to a minister or
affect parties in the House of Commons, they should not
pretend to take commerce under their guardianship at all.
The corn laws and the tariff were essentially political quer
Lions, yet they had been discuased with advantage by
chambers of commerce, but such chambers had been feeble,
and, consequently, disregarded, because they had not suffi-
cient self-respect, or did not appreciate the duties they bad
undertaken ; and they sometimes subordinated the interests
of commerce to the temporary interests of particular parties-
Three or four years ago chambers of commerce took ups
bat did not proceed with, the question of mari-
time law, urging that war should be confined to
vessels a;med for war, and that nobody should
interfere with property being innocently carried acmes
the ocean. It was argued against this view that you should
do In much harm as possible to your enemy ; but if this
should be the rule at sea why not also upon land, where
the property of private persons is respected ? If England
is superior in power and mischief on the see, is she not
also the most powerful in the amount of property at sea?
We have probably property worth a hundred millions ster-
ling at sea, and in the event of a war with a country like
the United Staten we should doubtless receive more
damage to our commerce than we could inflict upon the
commerce of that country. The growing expenditure of
the government was another question with which chambers
of commerce might deal. That expenditure was three
hundred millions sterling over the amount in the preceding
twenty years. The question of cotter supply wea another that
might be dealt with. Mr. Bright alluded to his unsuccess-
ful efforts to obtain a royal commies' ion to inquire into the
cotton growing capacities of India, especially of Bombay
and Madras, and quoted from four speeches made by him to
prove that he bad foreseen the disruption of the American
States, and the consequent dearth of slave-grown eaten.
He recalled his plan of dividing India into separate
prsst-
fancies, each with a government of its own, and expressed
his belief that if the committee he obtained bad led to its
legitimate result, we should have had plenty of cotton at the
present moment. A world of nonsense bad been talked about
American affairs, the blockade of the Southern ports bad
been declared ineffective, and yet the effects of its effective-
DM had been deplored. No blockade( had ever been so
effective over a similar extant of coast. At this moment
the population of the States now under the Washington
government was greater than that of all the States in 1850.
All the maritime wealth and power now belongs to the
North. Nothing could be more ignorant or more foolish
than to speak of the Northern federation as of a few dis-
connected province., to be trampled on, insulted, or injured
at pleasure. The people of Lancashire considered that
England's interference in the American struggle meant war,
and that such interference would be fatal to their beet
interests. If cotton be now a shilling a pound, it could not
be got through war at lees than five shillings. There were
thousands of families not knowing where to-morrow's food
wee to come from, yet it would be the cheapest thing England
ever did to subsidise these families until better times
came rather than encourage an unjust and violent
attempt to break a legal blockade, and declare war against
• people anxious to be friendly with us, and engaged in the
patriotic endeavour to maintain the integrity of their
government, and sustain the permanence of their Union.
(Applause.) The interests of Lancashire depended at this
moment absolutely upon the principle of friendly neutrality
being maintained by this country and government. He
was pleased to see the neutrality principle advocated byithe
Manchester Chamber of Commerce, and at the way in
which (the distressed operatives bore their deprivations.
Many of them had saved money during better times, and
their ordinary employers possessed great wealth and bene-
volence, with the will to render necessary mist-
once. In conclusion, Mr. Bright said that if Clam-
hem of Commerce would regard these questions more
broadly ; if they would forget the Prime Minister
and the hopes of • coming election ; if they would divest
themselves of party considerations and regard themselves

mainly for the time all the guardians of commerce—they
would exercise more self-respect, and assert their views with
more firmness, and they would have greater weight with
government and parliament. They oould represent opinions
which official statesmen had not the means of forming ;
and they should bring all their intelligence and energy and
truthful's/me and earnestness to bear on the procuring of
such laws as would benefit the great body of the people.
I The other toasts were "The Mayor" "The Board of
I Trade," " The French Consul" (acknowledged by M. Ver.
they de Latour)," Our Unionise" (responded to by Mr.
Adderley, M.P.), " The Associated Chamber of Com.
mercer" and others of a similar character.

THE HARTLEY COLLIERY CATASTROPHE.

TUB MQUENT.

A late edition of the Nereastk Daily Chronicle yesterday
gives the following summary of the day's proceedings.
The inquiry wsa resumed to-day.

Mr. Emerson, sinker, rid he had worked in the pit since
Frisky, the day after the accident, until the bodies were
found. A large fall of stone occurred in the shaft, and also
two smaller falls, one on each aide of the shaft. With excep-
tioo of those portions of the shaft which he believed had
been struck by the fall of the beam he considered the shaft
had been good. He described the socumulatioo of debris
as consisting chiefly of brattice planks, tightened together
by very large stones, some of which it was necessary to split
in the execution of the work.

Mr. John Taylor, coal owner and viewer, was an im.
portant wanes. He had been twice down Hartley pit
within the last eight months, and he considered that it was
not in any respect a dangerous one, that it wee conducted
with skill, and proper precautions used for the safety of the
men. His opinion with respect to gas was that the gas
which had killed the men was the result of imperfect com-
bustion, which would produce carbonic oxide ; this mixing
with the ordinary carbonic acid naturally produced in the
mine would, be thought, cause the death of the men.
John Short, engine weight, was re-examined as to the
dee and strength of the machinery employed in the working
of the colliery. . _

John Hceiius, chief engineer with Mews. Hawks, Craw-
ebay, I,
and Sons, Gateshead, stated that in him opinion the 1
beam would carry considerably more than the weighs upon it
at the time it broke—at least four times more. He did
not think the fall of the beam when hoisted up three
or four inches had been the causo of the accident ;
if that fall had canoed a fracture it would have become
• complete fracture before that, sod he understood
it had gone on working about a month after it fell
when they were about to put the new brasses in. He
observed on examining the remaining portion of the beam
that the gudgeon hed been keyed and wedged into •
hexagonal hole with considerable force ; this would
have • tendency to cause the beam to break. He thought
1 there had been two or three causes in operation tending to
1 the fracture of the bean. In the diet place the gudgeon
1 had been unduly keyed ; there had been a want of more
equal distribution of the metal in the beam, too much
being in at the centre boas, and espesiegy at the
time when the fracture took place, the weather
was very frosty. His opinion was also that the bot-
tom spear had given way at a bolt-brie. The break-
ing of this spear would relieve the weight of the engine out-
side, and would cause the beam to strike violently on the
opting beam on the inside, produciag • severe shock ;
this in his opinion would account for the accident.
1
Thomas Clara., ironfounder, ooseidered that the iron
composing the beam was of good quality.
Henry We.nara anglaise, Walker Ironworks, slated that
i the beam vas composed one-third of Bleaarvon No. 3 coal
1 blast pig bon, and the remaining of No. 1 Omo Scotch.
Very few people present. Inquest adjourned until 1 to.
1 useruo.

Fonitatt-omcnt. Pim I.—The Queen bas been
planed to approve of Mr. Beery B. Hammond as Cowl
at Dublin, and of Mr. Jams W. Marshall as Card at
Lai% tor tbs %Tinted States el Anberice.—entette.