The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-02-01 00:00:00

your c

has been remitl-ed, and £13,149 paid, during the past year
at this port:' This measure will be a great advantage to the
sailor, inasmuch as it is attended with no cost either to
sender or receiver.

The library is slowly but steadily increasing, and it is
very pleasing to see a number of boarders, young and mid-
dle-rged, and elderly, engaged quietly in reading by the
library fireside, or in the amusement-room, innocently
enjoying themselves, after the monotony of a long sea
voyage.

The committee take this opportunity of thanking those
friends who have kindly added to the lityary and

room by their gifts of books, periodicals, &e., and to those
newspaper proprietors who still continue to send gratui-
tously their papers as published.

The chapfsiti, the Itev. J. .J: Butler, has been earnest and
assiduous in the discharge of his ministerial duties, and it
is gratifying to know that the attendance of boarders and
other seamen, is increasing. Your committee pray. that God
mayprosper and bless these nrvices to the moral and spirituid
good of all who may attend.
The school under the direction of the Board of Trade,
bas been very successful, and, no doubt, will be eminently
so when its advantages are more widely known.

-
This department-is under the able tutorship of Mr. Smart.
In the morning, from ten to one, captains and mates are
prepared for passing their 'examination ; and nautical men
generally avail themselves for education in the higher
branches of nautical science, Ste., at a charge of 6s per
week. To the evening school, which is open from six to
nine o'clock, apprentices are admitted free, and adults at 6d.
per week.

In conclusion, your committee would suggest to ship-
owners and captains the propriety of using their influence
to induce the crews of their vessels to board in this estab-
lishment.

From the treasurer's report, read by Mr. Tomlinson,
it appeared. that the expenditure for the year was
£5,602 131 3d. Receipts—by amount from sailors for
board, £3,877 12s 6d ; annual subscriptions, £231 178 ;
balance on cashing seamen's notes, £34 Ds; from Board
of Trade for use of offices, £750 ; total, £1,894 Os 6d.
The Chairman moved that the report, with the treasurer's
accounts now-laid before the meeting be adopted, printed,
and circulated, in the usual manner. He observed that
upon occasions of that kind a frequent subject of regret was
that the general meetings of institutions like that had so
small a number attending them. To him that was always a
subject of congratulation, because it very clearly proved
that the Liverpool public, having contributed as largely as
£30,000 to that institution, would be looking after it more
narrowly if they did not know that it was in very good
hands, and well managed. (Hear, hear.) Therefore
instead of the thin attendance being a subject of regret, it
shotild rather be a subject of congratulation, as showing
that the public believed the governors of that institution
had been good stewards in their-management. There was
a distinction the public, frequently, did not draw between
the local board and that home, but of the Home he was
happy to say that it was progressing to their satisfaCtion.
The number at the present moment of inmates exceeded,
he belived, 200. The average, he was sorry to say,
did not come up to more than about' half of the
accommodation which they had there prepared for
sailors. Various causes had combined to pro•
duce that result. A great deal of misrepresentation
existed. Some of the men, when they left their ships fer
the purpose, as they said, of coming expressly here, had, in
many instances, been taken elsewhere. But he was happy
to say that the best of the men visiting the port had come to
the Home; and, he was still more happy to say, that those
who came almost invariably returned, shewing that the
comfort of their lives in their home, or club house, as it
might be termed, arising from the cleanliness and excellent
fare provided for them, and the whole of the arrangements
met with their entire approbation—at least they had
not heard a word of complaint. It was intended originally,
and it was still intended, that it should be altogether a self-
supporting establish.r,ent that is to say, that the parties
who partook of the good cheer there should pay for the cost
thereof. When it was, first established a calculation was
made that it would cost about 14s. a week for the board of

each; that was making, of coarse, no charge for any rent,
because the buildiug was erected for them as' a present to
the sailors frequenting the port of Liverpool as their club-
house, their property. It appeared, however, by the accounts
which had jut been road, that the 14s. a week during the
past year had not been sufficient. This had arisen in great
degree in consequence of the charges for butchers' m:-at, for
bread, and for various other materials consumed, having
been so high. It would be a question for the
commit.ee •at their next meeting to take into
their consideration whether they would be obliged
to raise, .or whether, expecting that the prospects
of peace before them might cause a reduction in prices, it
would not be better to continue their present rate, and see
if, by an increase in the numbers and a reduction in prices,
they would not have a better account to show to the board.
The other great objects of that establishment, in addition
to the Home, had,.as they were aware, in a great degee
been taken from them, and had been put under the local
marine board, acting uuder the Board of Trade, for which
special acts of parliament were passed. They were all
aware that, in the first instance, the founders of that insti-
tution were so satisfied, that they were likely to accomplish
the great objects which they had in view, in establishing a
Sailors' Home, better by their own management, than by
any management under a government board, that they
did all in.-their. pewter-to prevent any act of parliament
affecting their institution. However, they did not succeed.
At the same time, they were gratified and flattered, on
hearing it frequently stated in the llouse of Commons, by
the president of the Board of Trade, that if every place
was like Liverpool, legislation would probably not have
been necessary; or that if other ports-had-Sailors' Homes
upon the same principle, legislation would not have been
necessary; but there was so mnch complaint made from
London, and various other ports, that legislation, as was
stated in the House of Commons, became absolutely
necessary, and they were obliged to bow with
submission to the act of parliament, which was
passed. It was, however, very gratifying to find
that in the formation of that bill the framers did borrow, in
great measure, from the objects which it was contemplated
to carry out in that Sailors' Home. It became, when the
act of parliament Was passed, a bounden duty upon their
part to make the two objects work harmoniously together as
much as possible. The consequence had been that the ac-
commodation which was offered to the local marine board
was such as perhaps could not be offered in any other part
in the kingdom, and the two systems were working together
with as much harmony as he believed it was possible for them
to work with. At the north end of the building there was
a very long gallery, where the sailors congregated after their
arrival, to receive the balance of their wages. Each sea-
man, when he had been examined, and after he was satisfied
that his balance was correct, received it ; and on his way
along, he passed the door of the bank, with "Bank" pub-
lished on it : and he was invited to deposit his money there,
if he chose. He did deposit his money there to a very large
amount. Last year, he was glad to say, there was nearly
£21,000 deposited. Then, upon the other side of the
building, there were places where the sailors congregated
for the purpose of being shipped, where they could be in-
formed what ship required sailors, and where also captains
could find seamen, if they chose to come there to look for
them. At another part of the building, there were rooms
well arranged for the examination of masters and
mates, which formed a very important part of
the whole arrangement, and which was calculated
to effect a great improvement in sending a well qualified
class of officers for the British marine. Then close at hand
there was an. excellent schoolroom, and he was glad to say
that the local marine board had been exceedingly fortunate
in getting a very superior man as master, who had made
the school not only self-supporting, but he had extended the
school so much, that it was found necessary to apply for
additional assistant teachers. They had asked for one, and
he believed they would have to ask for more. He mentioned
these things as they were all part and parcel of the objects
they all had in view; and he mentioned them because he
desired to show that in some degree the objects were being
accomplished, he did not think so well as they might have
been if they had been exclusively under their own manage-
ment, but under the circumstances that they wore managed
as well as it was possible for them to be. He regretted to
say that there was one point upon which neither the Bailors'

lest rate of v

necessity of

sailors paid sums 1

the ameu
payment <

plied to the in 4

of all the materials th
boarding house k

!laded by statin

report and ac

[at time

ships, c

nt of

ptains w ant.,

to the
whom

prumisea upon them in the prices
obtained from the crimp or the
(Hear, hear.) The chairman

s he w

.ssing them, as chair.

from the

loption of the

,dopted

Mr. Tomlinson moved a resolution re-electing the retiring
members of the committee, with the exception of Mr.
Arbuthnot, who was about to leave the town, and who was
to be replaced by Mr. Andrew BOvd.

Mr. Carson, In seconding the. resolution, expressed his
gratification that the institution appeared to be fulfilling
the philanthropic intentions with which it had originally
been founded. He expressed his satisfaction at the
general aspect of the report, but regretted that the amount
of annual subscriptions should be so small. No doubt

it was originally intended that it should be
self-supporting, but they knew it was very difficult to
carry out that intention, and that very few institutions in
the country which were originated with the intention of
being self-supporting, succeeded in obtaining it. He hoped
the shipowners and merchants of Liverpool, if applied to
diligently, would increase their subscriptions, and that
numbers more would be added to the list. The amount
He hoped the committee for the

now only £2lB

ensuing pear would take some steps to endeavour to increase
it. (Hear, hear.)

The motion'wis adopted

'Mr. Dart

hire moved, and Mr. Tyrer seconded, a vote
which was

also pissed to the chairman, after

-THIIRSDAY.

) report an extensive business