The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-12-19 00:00:00

P ERMANENTLY ENLARGED

TO
DOUBLE ITS ORIGINAL SIZE.

IT IS NOW AN

EIGHT PAGE DAILY PAPER,

[POSSESSING
THE LARGEST CIRCULATION,

will arrange with those who have taken tickets this
year we cannot say.
The Dock and Health Committees held their
uusual weekly ineetin,gs yesterday. There was
nothing in the proceedings of the former to call for
special notice. At the latter committee the medical
officer of health presented a satisfactory return of
the mortality of the town, showing, as it did, the
great decrease of deaths when compared with
previous years, and the increase of population was
taken into account. The Rivington water, or rather
its quality, formed the subject of a long conversa-
tional debate, when Mr. Holme endeavoured to
' induce the committee to proceed to Rivington to
examine the water for themselves. He character-
ised the the remarks put forth in an anonymous
letter signed " Aquarius," as a false statement.
The committee, however, felt unwilling to interfere
without the sanction of the Council. The matter,
from what transpired at the committee will, no
doubt, form the subject of a keen and animated
debate at the next meeting of the Town-Council.
The practice of " great frauds" has not been
done away with, although the terrors of the law
have been put in operation. London was yesterday
subjected to considerable consternation, by a
rumour that one of the principal collectors of the
rates had been discovered, by a committee of inves-
tigation of accounts of the City of London Union,
to have defrauded the board, and, of course, the
ratepayers, of several thousand pounds. From
hut very imperfect materials, but the accuracy '
of which can be vouched for, it appears that the
guardians not being exactly satisfied with the
receipts of the last half-year, were determined
to institute a private investigation of the
books and vouchers during the past year, notwith-
standing the signature of the local and government
auditors in testimony of their correctness. The
result has been that up to Wednesday discrepancies
to the amount we are informed of from 12,000/ to
13,0001 have been detected, and yesterday the
investigation was (resumed. Some extraordinary
revelations will come out of the enquiry, and it is
expected that more than one person will be found
. connect el with this serious matter. Nine parishes
in the City, so far as is at present known, will be
sufferers from these extensive frauds, but whether
that they are the most wealthy of those in the
union.

In yesterday's paper we alluded to her
Majesty's visit to the Resolute, returned from the
Arctic regions, and presented to the British
Government by the American authorities. It is
said that the interview which took place between
the Queen and the American Captain on board was
a pleasing evidence of the prevalence of common
sense. " Allow me," said the Captain, to welcome
your Majesty on board, and, in obedience to the
will of my countrymen and the President of the
United States, to restore this ship to you, not
only as a token of a friendly feeling to your
sovereignty, but as a token of love, admiration,
and respect." This was all on the one side. On
the other it was not less simple and emphatic.
" I thank you, Sir," said the Queen. Perhaps her
Majesty would have appeared more pleasing in
the eyes of Brother Jonathan, if she had been less
curt in her reply.
Two letters of political importance have just
been published. One is from one of the Secre •
taries of the Administrative Reform Association to
the Chairman of the Society, in which Mr. Gussiot
rectifies with considerable precision many derelic-
tions of duty on the part of members of the House
of Commons. The other communication to which
we have referred is another letter from Mr Cobden
on the maritime law question to that Sheffield
Committee which investigates our diplomatic
policy.
The Judge at the Maidstone Assizes has had to
sentence three fellow beings to death, and from
what transpired, there is no hope of mercy. Efforts
are being made to induce the Home Office to
reprieve, with a view of averting the death
penalty, the Italians under sentence of death at
Winchester,
According to one of our Manchester cotempora-
ries, it would seem as if we were about to be em-
broiled in a quarrel with China. A statement has
found currency that, a trading vessel, bearing the
British flag, and registered at Hong Kong, was
hoarded Py the crew of a junk bearing the imperial
flag, and four of her men were taken into the city,
where three of them were beheaded. After two
days had been allowed for explanation and apology,
which did not arrive, the imperial junk was taken
possession of by armed boats from one of our men-
of-war. -A strong naval force is said to be muster-
ing at Whampoa, and some of the steamers and
vessels of war have proceeded up the river as far
as the depth of water will allow them.
The fact of our being at war with Persia has already
called forth a sound of opposition. It is likely
that a series of meetings will be held to condemn
the policy of the Government in the matter.
Bradford has already spoken out, for the purpose
of considering the propriety of continuing the war.
The meeting has been convened by the Mayor, on
the requisition of a number of merchants, manu-
facturers, and ratepayers. The walls of Bradford,
it is said, presented a placard warning all soldiers
against taking part iu the " piratical invasion."
To the foregoing we may mention that on Wednes-
day evening a large meeting of the inhabitants of
Newcastle upon- fyne was held, for the purpose of
considering what steps should be taken by the
people in relation to the menacing aspect of our
foreign affairs. The Calcutta proclamation was
denounced by all the speakers as an evasion of law,
and the following resolution was unanimously
agreed to :—" That, in the hopelessness of either
prevention or redress by the Parliament, it is re-
quisite to appeal to the laws against the subordi-
nate agents executing lawless orders; and this
meeting pledges itself, in case the expedition
against Persia shall be persevered in, to bring to
trial for their lives, before the Central Criminal
Court, certain of the officers and soldiers engaged
therein."
A variety of interesting and important Conti-
nental news will be found in another part of our
paper this morning.
The Constantinople journals give a detailed re-
port of the capture of the Turkish vessels at
Soujouk-Kale. The account is very confused. The
vessels have not been captured, but plundered.
Then the Russian general, to procure redress for
them, sent them to Kertch, with a detatchment of
Russian soldiers. But the Turkish sailors over-
powered the soldiers, and took them to Trebisonde
instead; and thus it seems the vessels have not
been captured by the Russians, but the Russians
by the vessels. Who, then, has reason to com-
plain ? But we must wait for the Russian version
of the affair.
It is now stated, with what truth we cannot tell,
that so far from the English Government wishing
to deprive the French Foreign Minister, Count
AValewski, of the presidency of the approaching
Conferences, its desire has been strongly
expressed that he should occupy that position, The
assertions and contradictions on these matters
of esoteric politics are curious. The English
Ministry, it is added, have energetically repudiated
the furious articles of their newspapers on this
subject.
M. Bourree, the French Ambassador to Te-
heran, has arrived at Marseilles on his way to
Paris. He is perhaps the precursor of the
extraordinary ambassador of the Shah of Persia,
Feruk Khan, of whom it is known that
he only awaits the permission of the French
Government to come to Paris.
According to our Paris advices, the article in the
Moniteur on the Neufchatel question is regarded as
the most important event of the day in foreign
politics. If Switzerland persists in rendering
negotiation impossible, France, by this announce-
ment, has solemnly bound itself to leave her to her
fate. Another pledge of peace between France and
Prussia is the acceptance by the Emperor of the
French, of the King of Prussia's invitation to visit
him in the spring, If the Swiss republicans have
reckoned on quarrels between these monarchs they
are mistaken.
By a telegraphic despatch, dated Paris, Thursday
night, we learn that the attempts to release the
Royalist prisoners had inspired great fear at
Neufchatel. The prisoners enjoy the greatest
liberty. All persons wishing to visit them are