The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-08-13 00:00:00

Victoria. Oiir latest reports of the tabour MI

firms us in the opinion that there is plenty of room for as
many of all classes of servants as we are likely to receive.
Thorough domestic servants are greatly in request, WI
although the approach of vva weather has created some
little flatness in the demand for fartn labourem such 2..

feature can only b
married couples y

regarded as temporary
ithout families range (with ratitct

from £7O to £B5; do. with families, £55 to

30 to £65 ; stock-keepers,
£4O; hutkeepers,

0 ; shepherds,

e2B t o:d

ploughmen, 30s per v

arm labourers

9a to 101 per bushel ; bullock drivers for roans,
for farms, 25s to 308 do. ; horse to "°

es per week ;

is, 253 to 303 do. ; haycutters acid trn
ton ; male cooks, 25s to 45
week; waiters, _ 30s do. ; blacksmiths, 50s to 60
The most interesting feature that we have to re'
upon in a social point of view is the movement in. '
of shortening the number of hours of daily labou'•
has begun with a good deal of enthusiasm th,
doubt; whether it will be able to hold its own k.
winter is over, is matter of speculation. There is .
sound reason in the nature of the pleas put forward
the working men in r- The princi

drivers for r

'53 do., or 6s to 7s I
203 1

.e can be

your of the change.
)n the physical frame of ten hours I

are the effect u

under tile c

Victoria, at

(1 7; the next place, the

moral neces

t exists for the devotion of

lay to rec

tion of th(

ion and mental culture
operative classes naturally retort with vehetnenci

the scientific economist, and upon the more favoui
sections of society, that they build and advocate public
libraries and philosophical institutions, and then p'
caly shut out from the benefit, the very class for wit,
they profess so commendable a care. "We are wool
'out," say the operatives, " with excessive labour." True'
most true, who can ds-ny it? We confess that hithertu
we have met with no legitimate answer to the plea. what,
then, are we to do ?

Beyond the preparations for the coming campaign, there
is .of importance to note in the political world
present. The work `of collecting the Electoral Lists !,
the two new Houses of Legislature has just been COtn_A
pleted. It has been a work of excessive costliness, and
very extravagantly conducted. The total cost of colle;:__
tion and revision, including the advertising of the lists_ 1_1:
the public journals, cannot be estimated at less than
£60.000, and will probably cost a great deal more. Solve
of the journals have benefited pecuniarily by this arrant%
ment to a large extent ; and the.result is already evidence
in the altered tone with which they speak of the present
unconstitutional Ministry. Fierce denunciation has M',
suddenly softened down into mild apology or faint pralsf,
By a judicious distribution of the extensive patronageli;
their command, the Government are undermining 13'
strength of their opponents.
At length, however, there are beginning to be heard till
first certain, though still faint, indications of the come
political struggle—if a struggle it is really to be;
possibly there may be nothing more evoked by the fir.',;
elections under the New Constitution than a little healthy
political excitement. Two parties are, clearly, required I,`;
create a contest—which cannot be (like the Irishman
f
reciprocity) " all on one side." But are there, in point
fact, two well-defined. and opposing political parties.
,";
the colony? Have we got here anything correspondl7;
to the Whig-and-Tory conflict of principles Which 11
become hereditary and inveterate in the old couritrY:o
These are questions on which everybody aaho oart.'„,
anything at all about " politics" is beginning "
speculate. And as yet, it must be allowed, there,
no satisfactory reply to them forthcoming. Polipc o,
parties—if parties there are to be—are as yet 0_1,3
crude, inchoate, and quite elementary state ; they :ie,
not yet so fully developed as to be distinctly VislV,lo
Nor, until the indications of the coming campa':.:et
have become more decisive, is it possible to pff",o
with certainty anything respecting them. All that_ '2,0
can infer from the names of the candidates for the t7in
Houses at present before the public is, that there w,„O
be a government party, and probably an opposition. 1
4:v
speak of the first as a certainty, because
_it is the n4l.
fixed fact in the existing undeveloped state of things ; cof
of the second as a probability, because, although soro- —5B/
the canditates are bound by their antecedents to opPOl
the present government, it is note% orthy that not one 4,
those who have addressed constituencies, with the Oreli
tion of Mr. C G. Duffy, has intimated his intentSln.„3J
doing so. The fact, that the great ..responsihility"
tion has not been brought forward prominently by tot
---a:a-,- -- indication that they have "or
the nature of those very c"p
stitutional principles which they are avowing their re3'
ness to maintain. A second "indication" we gather 1.00
the names and addresses of the candidates is, that then
will be a good deal of splitting upon minor questions 1g
the new Parliament, while the great questions af,istilille
out of the position of the government, and out of `tti.
grand primary point of a reform of the New Const.-rf
tion, are not touched on at all. Candidates are veo74
eager to let electors know that they hold particular vie on
on education, on state grants to religion, on railways, ri
opening up the lands, and so forth ; all which are ve,is
good topics in their way, hut are still only subordin
and secondary. It. is very possible, then, and even lil ;,g
that in the new assembly we shall have endless discusslT-0,
respecting the relative merits of the two systems of cuts,
cation, about the .6'50,000 clause, and such like poio of
while the property qualification question, and others equal importance, will be suffered to remain in abeyance/,,
A third " indication"—and a very unfavourable oft_tii
which we note is, a disposition on the part of constitor,
cirs in provincial districts, to make their chsice of a ea
,l 0
didate turn altogether on the probability of his being'
to gain some material advantages for their distritrt
The people of Portland, for example, will stlPP;se
the Collector-of Customs simply and exclusively beciti`s'e;
he can "get" more for. Portland than anybody e`,1,0
This is explicitly avowed by the local journal
°e
Guardian. It is an avowal which does infinite disholl°4
to the people of Portland, for they ought to see, what frig
honest minded observer can see, that the statement
equivalent t a confession of their being open to bribe'l.
The openness with which those members of the govern,
ment who have come forward as candidates have e°„-,1
cised this kind of influence on the constituencies reforr`v
to, flings additional discredit on both parties. We ffro36e
believe, however, that these gentlemen have overst'of
their mark ; that there is already a strong. feeling,g
disapprobation of this kind of indirect bribery pervacti"„v
the minds of the entire community ; anti that the ovei-0
will show that there is sufficient moral force in the eeePtia
ot Victoria to repel with indignation any attempts, 13'..
whomsoever made, to establish here a system of vvll°
sale corruption.
No public question is agitated, at the present MOM' or
with greater vigour and earnestness than the qoe
uestion 0'
the impolicy of public grants for the support of religion,
that principle is embodied in the fifty-third clause of to
New aloll Constitution Act. Although the numbers of I
who belong to the various denominations of Christiro'of
which share the grant of £50,000, greatly exceed that of
the few religious bodies who oppose it, yet there is a
11
prevalent sentiment against it more or less pervading 'O,
classes in the community. In addition to this the 01/300
nents of the grant are incessantly active in the inculeall",
of their principle on the whole body of the coloniolie
Thus, an immense meeting, numbering not less than 2,14.
persons, was held two evenings since, in the largest bull g
ing in Melbourne, at which the voluntary principle or
very ably and energetically advocated. eel
Mr. C. G. Duffy has just returned to Melbourne fr-Ati
an electoral tour in the Western District. He has see"":
his tlection for Warrnambool ; all intended oppoSitl
having retired before his personal appeal to the electors
His speeches have made a great impression throulti_,°ji
the colony ; and his reputation is rapidly becoming f11".,5,
established. At first his Irish " antecedents " were 10' a
apprehended by certain parties in the colony, bat netif
particle of that feeling now exists. Mr. Duffy has bold, °
announced himself as an uncompromising opponent of to
present Ministry, and an advocate for the inmedis
organization of a constitutional Opposition. As we batioo
said above, the state of political parties is still too cha•o
to predict any general result with confidence ; but
need not have the slightest hesitation in asserting t"ify
whatever aspect the political future may take, Mr. D° 0t
is sure to be at some future time (and not very disl;3,
either) e leading and influential member of the Gov,e
rnent of Victoria.

iemselves, is an

yet formed correct idea

THE MARKETS.
We addressed you last on the 30th ult., per 0!,•sl•ar
ri
Lang, and we were then able to speak in very satisfact° rt
terms of the general prospects of the European iml'c'd
business ; and' although but a short time has expiroa
since then, our market during the past month has l'e
characterised by such dulness and apathy, and affecteti
much by very large importations, that we cannot reP°
o
to-day so favourably as we did then of many lead'y
articles of import. The only branch of the import tr,:fo;
which has at all given signs of activity, has been buil":,o
materials, in which speculation, owing to the extenoo
nature of the public buildings now being erected, has D, of
busy, based on the assumption that the ruinous resuit.,o
all shipments made to this market within the last tv:s,
yea; s; will effectually deter anything like large shiproen.,il
Notwithstanding
this improvement, which in sloes
of pist heavy losses, is again making many Parci,i9
very sanguine, we cannot advise our friends to •00
either timber or metals to any large extent ; as altho :10
prices here have risen, they are still far below a 0
at which, shipment are profitable, and we hotelare
further prospective improvement rather doubtful. Viewg
afraid, indeed, that building, which was about be,; 10
largely resumed, will again now have to be put off, 0,„,0e
continued stream of emigration will cause the 0,0
market to be far easier than what it is ; in fact, if .9,6i0t
active measures, for providing us with more abuo"iyill
labour be not soon organised, every branch of trade 01
suffer enormously. Not only are wages far higher Ijovo
than they were six months ago, but the workmen
been able to carry the eight hours' question ; and
~1,00
causes combined, have increased the cost of bull"