The Express.
London, England, 1850-02-18 00:00:00

MEETING OF CARRIERS BY RAILWAY.

A meeting of parties transmitting goods by rail-
way was held on Wednesday evening at the White Lion
Inn, HaLiles, to oppose the Lancashire and Yorkshire Rail-
way Company in their present attempt to increase .heir
rates of charge for both goods and passenger, through the
medium of a bill now before parliament.
J. ROLDSWOTH, Req., moved a resolution upon the
subject.
The resolution was put and carried unanimously.
Some other resolutions were then moved and carried, and
a subscription list to meet the necessary expenses of oppo-
sition was entered into forthwith. About 1501. was put
dowa in the room, and should it be needed, the parties suh-
scribing will be again ready.
Thanks were voted to John Crossley, Esq., for his services
as chairman, and the meeting then broke up.

THE HOP DUTY.—The Sussex Express says :
"As the period fired for the payment of the second metal-
mentor 1848 duty is rapidly approaching, the question of *net
is to be:done in future relative to the duty in general,
naturally Huts the attention of the grower to the considera-
tion of the best method to obtain relief from the obnoxious
impost. Oa this point, as unfortunately on many others in
which agricultural interests are concerned, there is a great
I difference of opinion, and it is much to be regretted that
some medium measure cannot be suggested that would recoil •
elle the conflicting interests of East and Mid Kent and Sue.
sex. We hadboped that the important meeting held at S•sple-
hunt last year would in a great degree have accomp lobed
this desideratum ; but it appears that there is still a want of
unanimity, as to the relief required, between Mid. and East
Kent. The nearest approach, we believe, to a general iz.,4,1
understanding on the subject is expressed in the ptition re-
cently agreed to at Muden ' That your petitioners have foe
many years suffered severely from the excessive duty on hop.,
and earnestly entreat your honourable house to repeal that
part of the hop duty called the war duty, and the 5 per cont.
additional :thereby reducing the duty to Id. per pound.'"
TIIE " SWEATING " SYSTEM.—A deputation of the
Tailors' Trade Protection Society waited last Saturday
evening on Lord Dudley Stuart, M.P., and Sir Benjamin
Baronet, M.P., in the Marylebone Court-house, kr the
purpose of inducing his lordship and his honourable collPagie
to support a petition to the House of Commons, praying the
interference of the Legislature, to put down, by a legislative
enactment, the present " sweating " system. His lordship
and Sir Benj stem Hall promised to support the petition;
but the former doubted whether the government would pass
a law, compelling masters to:give in-door work, and su..ire-ted
an applicatisr to the Board of Health. The grievaixes
the " sweating " system were most forcibly pointed out by
Mr. William Dyke, 2r. Busty, and Mr. Pryor, which thty
stated brought poverty upon the industrious wcrkm .n,
while the jobbers, who undertook to complete the work t :ow
prices, ground down the former to the lowest possible map s—
wages so inferior, that, with constant toil, they were seat i.se'iy
able to eke out an existence. It was stated that one jobber
alone realised 3,0001. a year, and kept his carriage.
A NEW BRIDGE FOR WESTMINSTER.—It is stated
that it has been determined to take down the present bndee
at Westminster, and that a new one is to be erected ae.ine
four hundred yards further from the Houses of Parliam,nt,
in order to heighten the effect of those elaborate spec. in, us
of British architecture. The new structure is to be lose ant
straight, supported by gothic arches. Plana for the er.ction
of first-class detached, or semi-detached houses, forming a
line of streets up to Buckingham-palace, have, it is also said,
been approved of.
NICNIFICENT FOUNDATION OF A RAGGED SCHOOL.
—Some short time back the friends of a ragged school, who
had fitted up one of the arches of the South Western
ituii-
way, near Lambeth-walk, as a place of instruction for pror
ragged children, applied to Mr Beaufoy, the eminent dis-
tiller, of South Lambeth, to subscribe towards a fund to
erect a suitable edifice. Mr. Besufoy so far complied with
their request that, at his sole expense, he has erected, in
Doughty-street. Lambeth, at a cost of upwards of 3.0 JO/. a
magnlicent building, covering an area of 1,130 square yard.,
calculated to afford ample roam for the instruction of 1.0,6
children. _ _

—WARWICKSHIRE MEMORIAL TO THE LATE QUEEN
Dowitose..—A committee is in the cousae of formation for
the purpose of erecting memorial windows in St. M creel's
Church,Ceventry, as a mark of respect to the lett Queen
Adelaide. The Marl of Craven, Lord Leigh, Lod L;ff rd,
the Hon. W. H. Leigh, Lard Fielding, G. J. Turner, H.q..
M.l'. the Mayor of Coventry, the churchwardens of St.
Mtcha+l's, Sic., have consented to act on the committee. 'Chu
first last of the county of Worcester subscription towarde the
memorial window in Wcrcester Cathedral has been published.
—Coventry herald.
EXPLOSION AND Loss OF LIFE.—on Prides Mr.
Hayes, the coroner, held an inquest at the Navigation Inn,
Wigan, on the respective bodies of John Anders, aged 23 ;
Peter Gaskell, aged 35 ; George Broadhurst, aged :ad ;
James Anderton, aged 25; who lost their lives in the f.:-
lowing mintier:—From the stridence adduced it app. seed
that the deceased were in the employ of Messrs. L .ne +Ater,
at Ince, the owners of the Lower Patricraft Colliery. On
Tuesday last, whilst a great number of men were in the pit
at work, a terrific explosion ef fire damp took place, when
three of the unfortunate deceased were blown uo the pit,
one for a considerable distance, and fell down again into tuts
dib-hole with such violence as t break a great number if
their bones, and causing instantaneous death. At the teno
time all the platform and wood covering at the eye of
pit, with the exception of the head gear, were *Astute t
pieces, and the fragments scattered in every direction. Tho
other poor fellow was burned as black as the coals in tho
pit. Two other men were also fearfully burned, but sonic
hopes are entertained of their recovery. The other work
men saved themselves by rushing through the flames. Tho
witnesses all declared that as nothing of a fiery na.ure had
previously shown itself in the pit, the men wire allowed •sa
use lighted candles; but, on Anderson going to the further
end of the pit, the foul air took fire, and hence the ei-
tastropbc. The jury hoped the present mistirtnne w. u:
make the men more careful, and they returned a ven'ilt—
.. That the three former deceased were sceidentally
by being blown up the pit's eye, and falling down again ;
and that James Andcrtoa was accidentally burned to

death."
A CHARGE OP ARSON.--WO announced the fact
that a fire bad taken place, under peculiar and suspicious
circumstance% in Queen-street, Exeter, some digs ago.
the house being in the occupation of Mr. Foote. a grocer.
An inquiry before an inquest, as to the cause of the lire, has
been instituted by the coroner and on Wnesday, iu con-
sequence of what had traaspirnl at the tinted meeting of that
bWy, Mr. Foote was brought up before the City Bench, on
warrant, for knowingly and wilfully setting fire to the
premises ia question, and remanded on bail on that charge.
The inquest, at their adjourned sitting on Thursday, breug!lt
in a general verdict of •• Wilfully setting lire, against sone
person or persons to them unknown."