The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1853-11-08 00:00:00

THE NORTHERN DAILY TIMES

and Honduras, Panama, California, and the
Western Coast of South America. These mails
embrace trade -to the amount of 12,000,0001. to
14;000,000/. annually, of-which vast sum the North
of England supplies quite three-fourths of the
whole amount. And of the import trade from
thence the port -of Liverpool receives one-half.
The. great bulk of the commercial letters borne by the
Southampton steamers must therefore be from and
for the North of England. Why then should our trad e
be taken from us? What right has Southampton
to our letters ? Can she offer greater facilities for
large ships, or greater pecuniary advantages to
those whose capital is invested in the conveyance
of the West India Mails ?

In the price of fuel alone we can offer a saving
of a considerable per centage in the daily cost of
steam navigation. With us coal is on the spot
and can be supplied at all times at prime cost.
outhampton must import her fuel, and the best
coal for her marine purposes lies at the greatest
distance from her port. In this fact alone we have
the basis of a successful competition. In Liverpool
we have freight, letters, and passengers to a far
greater extent than any other place in the kingdom.
As a passenger port Liverpool has become popular
both at home and abroad. Her merits have been
tested, and foreign buyers coming to the English
markets find it to their advantage to visit the
Northern manufacturing towns before they think of
wending their way to the more fashionable towns
of the South.

Above all these considerations, however, there is
one of much greater import. The trade and com-
merce of these days require the utmost despatch
in all postal matters. The loss of a day by the de-
tention of letters might produce national, as well
as individual consequences of a !most ;serious cha-
racter. Impressed with the force of this fact, the
-Government were no doubt induced to aid th
establishment of Ocean Mail lines of communica-
tion with distant countries. The vessels employed
on these lines are by a variety of imp.ovements,
and other circumstances being beaten by better and
faster ships. We here instance the recent perform-
ance of the Braziliera, she being the fastest ship
that sails for Brazil, will as a matter of course, be
selected by merchants for the conveyance of their
letters thence.

Here then we have the merit§ of a Company
unrecognised by our postal authorities competing
with the Government contract vessels, in the con-
veyance of letters. The public will at all times, as
they invariably did, under the old " ship-letter"
regime, select the beSt. ships for letters. The ques-
tion then is, What remuneration ought such vessels
to receive, and what amount of protection ought to
be 'given' to the public for the safety "and prompt
delivery of letters conveyed by ships selected for
the advantages they offer over the Government
paid ships?
If twopence per letter was allowed to all ocean:-
going vessels, we feel assured that our postal com-
munications with very many distant parts of the
world would be much more expeditious and fre-
quent than they are at present, or ever have been.
Should any comprehensive arrangements be made
on this subject, we believe that the enterprise and
superiority of Our Port will soon secure a fair por-
tion of the Ocean Letter and Passenger traffiC.of
England, without any aid directly or indirectly,
from the public purse.
If the arguments which we have here advanced
in favour of Liverpool over Southampton, as an
Ocean Packet Station, apply with any force, how
'immeasurably' greater that force, when directed
against the pretensions of Milford Haven. This
latter port has been put forward very prominently
as a rival to Liverpool, in this branch of our trade,
but as such an idea can scarcely be looked on ne
anything more than a hoax, a little publicity will
be sufficient to restore it to the happy oblivion in
which the Milford oyster would fain spend the
whole of her days ;. but there are cormorants, like
ourselves, who will drag these tenacious creatures
from their hidden beds, and having swallowed the
unsuspecting fish, present the shells to the more
curious for closer investigation. Of Milford Haven,
therefore, we hope to hear no more, except, indeed,
at our fishmongers, or in a dish of scollopped
natives. In the meantime, another Braziliera or
two, will establish the character of Liverpool for
fast Ocean Steamers, when all rivalry may be
openly set at defiance.

Is English law an ideality or a reality—a myth
or a fact ? .Is " our Glorious Constitution" a sem-
blance or a substance—a miserable sham, or a ge-
nuine verity? Wa•confess we are at our wits' ends
how to afford a s'atisfactory answer to these queries
—judging of the Law from its administration, and
of the Constitution from the " free-and-easy" man-
ner in which it is construed.

We always thought, until recently, that English
jurisprudence was chiefly contradistinguished from
that of other nations by the justness and wisdom
of its policy, and that our Courts of Judicature
were pre-eminently remarkable for their freedom
from secrecy which reflects dishonour on those of
Continental countries. Unfortunately, hoivever, we
have been mistaken, both as regards the character
of the. law itself, and the manner of its adjudi-
cation. •

One or two circumstances have recently taken
place at the Birkenhead Police Court, which have
astonished us greatly, and which, upon inquiry,, we
find to be of repeated occurrence. We allude to
the hearing of charges by the magistrates with
closed doors; and what is worse, either excluding
altogether the accredited representatives of the
Press, or else requesting that the name of the party
accused should not be suffered to transpire !

We have no hesitation in saying, that such a
procedure is contrary to the genius of English
Law and the spirit of the English Conititution.
No ,Civil magistrate, no matter how elevated his
position, is justified in hearing a charge, or trying
a criminal, in any court where the public or the
Press are excluded. More than this, the public
have as perfectly legal a right to be present as the
magistrate himself—except in those rare cases
where the ends of justice might possibly be frus,
tratad by such a course. Fortunately the prece7
dent set by the judicial functionaries across the
Mersey are not followed in other towns. Never-
theless they are not the less objectionable; and
most certainly should meet with hearty opposition
from those who, value their privileges, and estimate
the birthright of free-born Englishmen. AS we
have no especial desire to. see an Inquisition
established in this country, we cannot be too care-
ful in resisting any infringements on our Constitu-
tion--or too forward in raising our voices against
any approximation towards a secret tribunal.
Even were the practice which. we denounce
legally justifiable, it would nevertheless be decid--
edly impolitic: That the accused could not be bene-
fitted by it is obvious. For admitting that the presid-
ing magistrate thought fit, in such a case, to acquit
the party, on the ground of insufficient evidence,
there would be a disposition in the public mind to
suspect (perhapS unfairly) lenity on the part of
one, and criminality on the part of the other. But
if an accusation be fairly heard in open court, and
that a similar conclusion is arrived at, every one
will consider the magisterial decision equitable,
and not a shadow of suspicion will alight upon the
alleged criminal ever after. It is due, therefore,

to the dignity of the law itself, the honour of the
judicatory, and in fairness to the individual charged
with crime, to have that charge publicly 'investi-
gated; without any attempt at concealment.
It unfortunately happens that, in too many in-
stances, gentlemen are elevated to the magisterial
bench, who are by no means fitted for so responsi-
ble a position ; and ivhoSe reading has been More

confined to the" Price Current," than to "Coke upon
Lyttleton." Under such circumstances, how can
we possibly expect a fair dispensation of justice,
and a proper administratiOn 'of the law ? We hope
none will be invidious enough to suppose that we
make personal allusions. We do no such thing.
We merely assert a plain matter-of-fact statement,
which is too obvious to need confirmation. Were
the bench exclusively occupied by those whose
previous studies, and professional status preemi-
nently qualified them for 'such an office, so many
anomalies would not occur in the administration
of justice; and our laws; would be administered in
conformity with the spirit of the British Consti-
tution. _

SUDDEN DEATH.—A man named Edward Farrell,
residing at 8 Court, Grenville-street, died suddenly about
two o'clock on Sunday morning, of disease of the heart.
ESCAPE OF A LUNATIC.—On Saturday night, a
lunatic named Bibby, escaped from the Sun-street
Asylum, Rainhill. Bibby formerly lived in Pall Mall
in this own.

LAST EVENING, shortly before nine o'clock, a
German was robbed of a gold watch, in Dale street.
The robbery was perpetrated by a female.
THE KNIFE AGAIN. —A man named George
Stevens, residing at No. 3 Court, Gun-street, was
stabbed in the face, yesterday, in a public-house kept
by Mr. Harwood, Scotland-road. The party who.
stabbed him is well-known to the police.

PRIZE FIGHT.—We understand that a prize fight
takes place to-day, between Rory Gill of Liverpool and
Donnelly, for 201. a side. The point of Ayr is the
locality selected for the display of " fistic-science," and
w here, no doubt, it will come off, should no impedi-
inents be thrown in the way.

LIVERPOOL AUTUMN RACES.—The L'pool Autumn
races commence to-day, under more than usually favour-
able auspices. The horses which have accepted for the
various races, have arrived with, we believe, four or five
exceptions, a circumstance unprecedented in the history
of our autumn meeting.

SHOP ROBBERY.—Last night, the shop of Matilda
Basnett, -176, London Road, was broken into, by
wrenching the padlock off the door, and the thieves
carried off a dozen silver spoons, gold ring and eye
glass, guard and watch. The property stolen is valued
at 101.

WRECK OF AN EMIGRANT SHlP.—lnformation was
received in Glasgow on Sunday morning of the loss of the
ship Sapphire from Glasgow to Australia, which left Rothe-
say Bay on Thursday night last. The vessel had got as far
as the Black Head, at the mouth of the Belfast Lough ; but
unfortunately went ashore in a fog about midnight on
Friday. No lives were lost. The ship is heavily insured in
Glasgow.

LAUNCH OF A SCREW STEAMER FOR SYDNEY.—On
Saturday afternoon a fine new steamer, named the " City of
Sydney," was launched from Messrs. Smith and Rodgers
yard, at Govan, near Glasgow. The " City" is the first of
a fleet of seven new vessels for the Australasian Steam
Navigation Company of Sydney,. and measures 750 tons,
and is to be propelled by engines of 180 horsepower.
BURNING OF THE AMERICAN SHIP VICTORIA.—
Samliel Graham, the cook, and David Somerset, one of the
seamen of this slip which was burned in the Clyde on Friday
last, and who were taken up on suspicion of having set the
vessel on fire, were liberated on Saturday night, the Procu-
rator Fiscal not considering
.the evidence brought against
them sufficient to warrant their committal for trial.
DEATH BY DROWNING.—On Saturday last a boy
named John Hawkins, residing with his parents at Welling-
ton-place, Wellington-road, went to see the fireworks in the
brick-fields near:Beresford-road, where great crowds of chil-
dren had assembled, and did not return home that night. On
Sunday morning a man named Robert Jackson went out to
look for him and found his dead body at the brick-fields in
a pit there.

ACCIDENTAL DEATH.—A little girl named Mary
Ellen Lethwaite, residing with her mother Mary Milling,
at No. 4 Court, Jones's-street, Toxteth-park, was badly
scalded by the contents of the coffee-pot being accidentally
spilled upon her on Saturday week. She was removed to
the Southern Hospital, where every attention was paid her,
but she died of the injuries she had received about seven
o'clock on Saturday morning last.

A MAN DROWNED IN-THE DOCKS.—Bernard Mc.
Carthy, a dock labourer working on board the Isle of Man
boat, was found drowned on Sunday morning between the
gates of the lock leading from the Clarence basin into the
Trafalgar dock. The gate where it is supposed the de-
ceased had attempted to cross on Saturday night had formerly
a platform for walking over, and a rail to keep persons from
falling, but these were removed to give greater facility to
the entrance of steamers.

ACCIDENTS.—WiIIiam Sutton, labourer, residing
at 9, Court, Brick-street, fractured his leg in the Albert dock
yesterday. He was unloading cotton from a ship when one of
the bales rolled against his leg and produced the injury. Carl
Deseloff, sailor, shin Andreas, fractured his leg on Sunday, by
a fall on hoard his ship in the Brunswick-basin. Catherine
Boland, 37, Chisinhall-street, vas admitted yesterday to the
Northern Hospital with a compound fracture of the skull ; the
particulars are given in our police report. Hannah Smith, 81,
Eaton-street, when getting out of bed yesterday morning, her
foot slipped and she fell, thereby producing a fracture of the

FATAL ACCIDENTS.—On Monday, the 24th ult.,
James Castel an engineer in the Victoria engine works,
Stanley Dock, was working at the steam-ship Persia, in No.
4, Sandon Graving Dock. He, and another, had the screW-
propeller unshipped, and resting on some planks at the
bottom of the docks near the end of the keel. The other
man, Adam Drummond was holding on against the head of
the bolt on one side whilst the deceased was unscrewing. the,
nut, when the propeller slipped and jammed the deceased's
leg between it and the keel. He-was-taken to -the-Northern
Hospital where he died .on Satnrday last of mortification.
On Saturday between one and two o'clock John Dawson, a
bricklayer's labourer, was wheeling a barrow of mortar
along a plank on the scaffold, on the inside of the new ware-
houses now in course of erection on the North side of the
Stanley dock. The barrow struck against a brick that was
on the scaffold and that threw him round and he .fell off the
scaffold to the bottom of the building, a distance of 46 feet:
This fearful fall caused a fracture of the ribs and leg, and
he died in about two hours after, from the internal injuries
he had received.

ACCIDENT. TO THE GUIDING STAR.—The beautiful
clipper-built ship the " Guiding Star," which sailed hence
on Thursday, the 27th ult., for New York, with upwards of
450 passengers on board, under the command of Captain It.
D. Robertson. She encountered high and baffling winds up
to Sunday the 30th, but managed to make very fair progress.
At noon of that day the wind freshened from the south-west.
At 4 p.m: the vessel was off the Fastnett rock, which bore
N.N.E. .3 miles, the breeze still increasing. The weather
continued to get worse and worse, and at 11 p.m. it was
blowing a heavy gale from the south-west, with a tremen-
dous sea. During the gale, she Carried away her fore- and
main topsail yards, maintopmast, and mainyard. On Mon-
day the weather moderating, Captain Robertson determined
to put back to Liverpool to replace the lost spars, and for
that purpose the ship's head was turned up channel again.
She had reached to within 10 miles of the Calf of Man,
when the wind veered round to the iouth-east, blowing a
strong breeze. Captain Robertson bore up for Belfast
Lough, where the vessel arrived on Friday evening. During
the heaVy weather much sickness necessarily prevailed among
the pagsengers. Up to the time of her reaching Belfast,
'seven deaths had occurred, and a few were still sick; but
with rest and attention they 'are all getting strop.- again..
On arriving at Belfast, Gaptaiii *Robertson reported his case
to the authorities. The Guiding Star is an entirely new
vessel, of 1,471 tons register, hew measurement, built this
year by Messrs. Wright, of St:John, New Brunswick. A
steam-tug has been despatchedlo Belfast to bring her back
to Liverpool, to be. refitted. Her detention is not expected
to be above a few days. •
CotiNelr. MEETING.--The first meeting of the
New Council will be held to-morrow, when the following busi-
ness will•be transacted :—The election of Mayor; the election
of eight persons as aldermen to supply the places of the under-
mentioned aldermen who go out of office under 'the Municipal
Corporations Acts;' namely, Mr. Thomas Bold, Mr. James
Parker, Mr. Joseph, Cooper' Mr. John Nelsen ,Wood, Mr.
James Procter, Mr. John Bramley Moore, Mr. Edmund
Molyneux, and Mr. Thomas Chilton; the Mayor's allowance ;
the appointment of six members of the Council to be members
of the committee for tho affairs of the estate of the Trustees of
the Liverpool Docks, upon the vacancies occasioned by the
retirement from the Council, under the provisions of the Muni-
cipal Corporations Act, of Mr. Charles Turner, Mr. James
Holme, Mr. Edmund Molyneux, Mr. Oliver Holden, Mr.
Matthew Gregson, Mr. James A. Tobin. (Gentlemen who
have been re-elected members of the Council, either as Alder-
men or Councillors, aro eligible to be re-elected members of.
Dock Committee.) A recommendation of the Health Com-
mittee to increase the salary of Mr. W. L. Crosby, clerk in
the treasurer's-office, Cornwallis-street, from £lOO to £l2O
per annum, the consideration of which was postponed at the
last meeting of the .Council, pursuant to the standing orders :
and the appointment of the following committees:—Finance,
fifteen; Watch, Lighting, Fire-police, and Fire-prevention,
eighteen ; Improvement, eleven ; Courts of Law, nine ; 'Mar-
kets, nine ; Education, fifteen ; Gaol and House of Correction,
thirteen • Town-hall Establishment, eleven ; Health Corn

mitten, sixteen ; Gardens, nine; Church Expenditure, eight ;
Observatory, ten ; Water, thirteen.; Library and Museum,
fourteen ; Hackney Carriage, nine ; Shipbuilding Committee,
ten; and Baths, nine.

LECTI

7E UPON THE GUNPOWDER

PLOT.

Last night the Rex. W. F. Taylor delivered a lecture
upon the Gunpowder Plot at the Concert Hall. The gal-
leries, body of the hall, and' platform were densely crowded.
Alderman James Parker occupied the chair, and amongst
those on the platform were the Rev. Messrs. G. Reade,
G. L. Ireland, and Wm. B. Mathias, and Messr. S. P.
Evans, Geo. Nickson. T. Gregory, Ed. Ford, W. Roul-
ston„ S: P. Williams, T. Warnal, &c• &c. The reverend
lecturer detailed the eircumstances and events attendant
upon the concoction and discovery of the Gunpowder Plot.
Which he contended was the work of Jesuits and of Roman
Catholics, declaring that that religion was and ever must be
essentually treasonable in every Prostestant state. He traced
the history of England from that period down to the acces-
sion of William the Third, and the introduction of the Bill
of Rights. From the event he-had detailed he deduced the
conclusion that the Gunpowder Plot was a type of the Ro-
man Church and calledupon his hearers to guard their families
against that Jesuitical influence which was now as ever•
endeavouring to undermine the British constitution. The
lecturer was several times interrupted by the most enthusias-
tic bursts of applause and peals of the Kentish fire. A vote
of thanks was passed amid renewed applause to the rev.
lecturer, upon the motion of Mr. Nixon, seconded by Rev.
M. Ireland, Thanks was also voted, upon the motion of
Mr.. J. B. Williams, seconded by' Mr. Roulston to the
Chairman, after which the proceedings terminated.