The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-03-18 00:00:00

THE DAY'S NEWS

The great meeting of the Liberals was held last
night. The Amphitheatre was crowded from
floor to ceiling, and it was much more enthusiastic
than that of the Tories on Monday. The speech
of Mr. Ewart was at once pointed and eloquent.
He declared openly in favour of extension of the
suffrage, vote by ballot, and a more pei feet system
of education, and greater economy in the manage-
ment of the army and navy. Mr, Mackay, of the
firm of James Baines and Co , delivered a most
argumentative and eloquent speech on the occasion.
A full report of the meeting will be found in
another part of to-day's paper, to which we would
direct the reader's attention.

Later intelligence is to hand from the Austra-
lian Colonies, by the arrival of the Dunbar, at
Plymouth. The dates from Sydney, N.S.W., are
to the 27th December. The screw steamer Oneida,
which sailed from Southampton on the 18th of
October, had not arrived out at Melbourne on
the 22nd day of December—then 63 days out—a
sufficient commentary upon the arrangements of
the Government for supplying speedy and safe
transit for the Australian mails. At both Sydney
and Melbourne the Legislative Councils were not
sitting, in consequence of the Christmas holidays.
The intelligence from the mines from both colos
nies is of the most cheering character. The South
Australia❑ Legislature had been prorogued, and it
was expected that it would soon be dissolved. At
Western Australia political and other matters were
quiet.
In. the House of Lords last night, the Lord
Chancellor stated that it was the intention of the
Government to introduce a measure to protect
trustees who might render themselves liable to
punishment by the bill now passing the house by
mistaken execution of their trusts., but as it was
difficult to meet with cases of breach of trust with
innocent intentions, it would have to be a
matter of consideration. The Earl of Hardwicke
took occasion to censure the Government on care
not being taken that the war with China was not
entered into before they had sufficient power
to prevent defeat, and pointedly asked
whether the British forces had not been
defeated at Canton. Earl Granville did not say
whether the British had been defeated before
Canton, but said he should lay the despatches
lately received before the house. He defended
Sir John Bowring. Lord Panmure, in answer
to Lord Clanricarde, said that there would be
a slight increase in pay to the officers and men
proceeding to Chine, but from what fell from the
noble lord, it would appear that the said addi-
tional pay would be made up by extra clothing
and rations. Several bills were read a second
time, and the house adjourned.
In the House of Commons, a message from
the Queen on the subject of the address
of the House on the case of Colonel Tulloeh
was read. It stated that Her Majesty
had taken the matter into consideration,
and had given directions for the same. The Chan-
cellor of the Exchequer entered into full details
of the treaties recently signed respecting the Sound
Dues. Several bills were passed a stage, including
the Birkenhead Gas and Water Bill, and the Wine
Duties Bill was withdrawn.

A meeting was held on Monday night in London,
on the Canton bombardment and the Persian
Expedition. Mr. Roebuck was in the chair,
and Mr. I ayard and Mr. Cobden addressed
the meeting. When the members of Par-
liament announced as speakers had spoken,
a motion was moved and seconded justify-
ing the House of Commons in resisting the
conduct of the Premier, and it was carried by an
ovewhelmning majority. At a private meeting of
the Administrative Reformers, Mr. Roebuck took
the chair
.likewise. The outlines of an address
were submitted to the meeting, containing
ji programme of Reform principles: which
included the Vote by Ballot, Extension of
the Franchise, and Triennial Parliaments. As
might have been supposed, some of the older
members of the society resisted such declarations
upon the ground that Administrative Reform only
was the purpose for which they came together.
The Chairman, however, intimated that he had
consented to act as President entirely upon the
understanding that some practical suggestions
would be enunciated as a means of reforming the
House of Coinmons, and with the ultimate view of
rendering the Executive Government more
efficient. The address was unanimously sanc-
tioned, the dissentients not deeming it their duty
to hold up their hands against it.
It is a matter of not only great surprise but
regret, that all the talents of Liverpool are drawn
off to other constituencies. In the last election,
we had to part with a Thornley, a Walmeley, a

1 Cardwell, and a Heyworth ; and to the list we
must add the name of Mr. George Mlxwell, who
has addressed the electors of Kirkcudbright. His
address will be found in another column.
Our foreign intelligence this morning is not of
much importance, and may be summed up in a
few words. In the first place, the report that the
Russians were marching upon Bokhara was, as we
anticipated. false ; but the Khau is soliciting the
SultP ;I's alliance. The Austrian official journals
maintain that, in good faith, Austria intends to
evacuate the Principalities; and the Greek
Minister has given a certificate of good behaviour
to the French troops on their quitting Greece.
King Frederick William is indignant at being
accused of breaking his honourable promise in the
Neufchatel affair, and instructs his organs to deny
that he ever gave any promise ; but Louis Napoleon
must settle that point with him. Finally, Spain
alone withholds her signature from the Convention
redeeming the Sound Dues, a circumstance which is,
apparently, not of much consequence. According to
the terms of this treaty, all dues to which ships
were subjected on their passage through the Sound
and the Belts are completely abolished, 'after the
Ist of April. Denmark also agrees to suppress on
certain goods, and to reduce in a strong proportion
on others, the transit dues which it has hitherto
levied on the Eider Canal and on the passages
between the Baltic and the North Sea. On their
part, the maritime States engage to pay Denmark,
as a compensation, in one sum or in instalments,
au indemnity representing a five years' average of
the revenue of the actual dues, capitalised at the
rate of 4 per cant.

ALL Englaud is of opinion, we suppose, that
Liverpool is
,the very focus of opposition to the
Maynooth
~Grant. Our town is, one might
almost say, as notorious for its Anti-Catholic
zeal as it is celebrated for the extent of its trade
and the management of its docks, Nowhere in
the Empire are the outpourings of the vials of
wrath so copious on the heads of devoted
Rotnaoits, as in the great commercial metropolis.
It would seem that some of the best things and
some of the worst are linked together, by Jupiter,
like Age and Poverty, wending their weary, un-
pitied way over stony places. We were, there-
fore, rather agreeably disappointed that at the
meeting on Monday in the Amphitheatre, there
was less than the usual amount of opposition to
Rome. There was, we are bound to say, no
unseemly violence displayed even against May-
nooth. Mr. HORSFALL'S opinions on this sub-
ject are known, and Mr. TURNER left no doubt
of his. We could not help having the impres-
sion, as we listened to the not powerful speech
of this latter gentleman, that he was probably a
better merchant than theologian, and that he had
better keep to the first department. But we
repeat that, though a very strong conservative
feeling pervaded the meeting—and we differed
from most of those present on the questions of
Education, the Church, and Maynooth—still
the tone of the proceedings was moderate
throughout, and not unbefittinz Englishmen.
For ourselves, we are conscientiously of opinion,
that even if there were some objections offered
against the grant to Maynooth, yet on the whole
it is defensible ; the reasons in favour of it pre-
dominate, and its withdrawal would be harsh and
inexpedient. Its amount—some Thirty Thousand
and odd pounds a year—is not of sufficient con-
sequence to put the country in a ferment. The
constant agitation of it embitters the minds of
our Irish fellow countrymen, and disturbs not a
few even in England.
Is it7desirable to be always fishing in trou.
bled waters—always ringing changes upon
the errors, corruptions, and superstitions of
Rome ? It will be answered that not the
amount, but the principle is the objection,
not that £30,000 a-year given to support profes-
ors and students at Maynooth will materially crip-
ple the exchequer of Britain. But the atrocity
is that a shilling should be given to support error
and falsehood, and a plausible superstition
expressly contrived to deceive mankind. Strong
language this; it is, however, only an opinion,
not a certainty. Have we no errors or supersti-
tions to get rid of ? Are we sure that our own
creed is free from mistake ? We think so, but
the Roman Catholic thinks otherwise. The
chief argument of the opponents of Maynooth
will not hold water; their battle-horse will not
bear the weight laid on him. The guilt of sup-
porting error is not a sound reason for disen-
dowing Maynooth. Men living in society must
bear each other's frailties and errors, To refuse
this is to go out of society. When we are per-
fect ourselves, we may refuse to bear with the
imperfections of others. And then we believe
that the higher each one of us advances in moral
goodness, the more patience and tolerance we
shall have with others, even if we deem them in
error. By all means let us endeavour to correct
the errors of our brethren by the arguments of
reason and persuason ; —but no violence or
denunciation, or persecution, is available to cor-
rect the mistakes of the understanding. If we
can bring over Roman Catholics by reason, it is
well ; but the smallest amount of force or vio-
lence is of the nature of persecution.
The antagonists of Maynooth are driving
out an impossibility. You want gentle-
men to give no support to Romanism and
Roman Catholic opinions, which you con-
scientiously term error. But if you admit
Roman Catholics under the shelter of British
law, you inevitably agree that they shall be
unmolested in worshipping GOD according to
their consciences—we say their consciences, not
yours or ours. When the policeman protects
the Roman Catholic or the Unitarian chapel, he
is doing something to protect what you call
error, and this is inseparable from the social
union; it must be, if we are to live together as
citizens and fellow-countrymen. Roman Catho-
lic worship is legal, and is protected in the
British empire, and unquestionably, therefore,
Parliament shelters Romanism equally with
Protestantism. But if you refuse all support to
what you deem error, you must go much further
than merely disendowing Maynooth. You must
repeal the Catholic Emancipation Act ; you
must propose that all public servants and officials
holding Roman Catholic opinions shall be dis-
missed from their places and salaries, and
declared incapable of holding office ; there must
be no Roman Catholic Attorney General for
Ireland ; an Irish Lord Chancellor, who was also