Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1860-02-17 00:00:00

WORKHOUSE COMMITTEE.

The ordinary weekly meeting of. this' committee of
the Select Vestry was held in .the board-room, at the
Parish. Offices, Brownlow-hill, yesteirday forenoon. Mr.
Churchwarden Cropper presided ; and the other mem-
bers present were,, Messrs. Owen, Peck, Denton, A. By-
ford, 8.-Byford, Melly, Syred, Williams-, and Broome.
The governor of the workhouse; Mr. Carr, reported
that;
there were 1,217 paupers in the house against 2,233
last week, and 2,329 in the corresponding week of last
year. The medical officers reported that-there had been
03.deaths,in the house during the week ending on the
14th inst. The total number of sick
,paupers under
treatment per last report was 684 new cases since 173 ;
cured and discharged .109 ; leaving 713 at present under
treatment, including 20 fever and 11 itch cases. FrOni
the report of 'the master of the vagrant •shedsr, it ap-
peared that the number of destitute persons relieved in
that department during the week was 178 men, 60 vcso
men, and 14 children—total 262 ; showing .an increase
as compared with last week of 72. persons, and as.com-
pared with the corresponding week of last year an in-
crease of 26 persons.

ALLEGED PROSELYTISM. IN TEE WORKHOUSE,

The following letter, was read, from Mr. Evans, the
Scripture reader, who was requeSted to discontinue his
visitstO the house bf.a resolution passed last week, -in
consequence of a complaint from the Rev. Mr. Fleet,
wood, the Roman Catholic • priest, that Mr. Evans was
attempting proselytism amongst the inmates :=

TO TUE CHAIBMAN OF. THE WORKHOUSE COMMITTEE._

SIR,—In June, 1856, I received the permission of the Work-
house Committee,to visit Wesleyan inmates of the Workhouse,
on conditiox that I avoided "disputation and proselytism." I
have visited the Workhouse every Friday afternoon ever since,
Without anyone, up to the present day, being able to show that
I have, in a single instance, violated the above condition. No
rules to guide me in any of my visits Were ever placed before
sue by anyone .connected with the Workhouse. On the 27th
January, the Governor (Mr. Carr) stated to me that the Chap-
lain, (Rev. Mr. Scott) was displeased with my, visits, and dis-
tribution of tracts, when I explained that I only gave tracts to
such as asked for them, and never used means to collect the
hunat, s where I might be reading beside a sick bed, and de-
clared my willingness to desist from any course considered by
the Governor or Chaplain to he contrary to the rules of the
house, and I at once desisted from giving away tracts, and did
not resume the giving away on my next visit, which was on
Friday, February 3rd. Great, therefore, was my surprise to
learn by the public papers that the Workhouse Committee, on
the complaint, not of their Chaplain, but of a Romish Priest, •
had in the most summary way condemned me unheard, and
rescinded the resolution of 1856, the terms of which I•have
faithfully observed. As I have not received any official com-
munication on the subject, and could not, through illness, visit
last Friday, I might doubt whether the newspaper report is
correet,-but assuming the aecnracy of that report, I feel called
upon, in justice _to my own.charscter, respectfully to request
a consideration of my case by the committee, for it floes FCCITI
hard to reward three-and-a-half years of disinterested Chris-
tian labour in the manlier stated in the report.—l am, yours
respectfu'ly, SAMUEL. EvANs, Wesleyan Town Missionary.
7, Butter-street, "Vest Derby-road, Liverpool.
February 14, 1360.

The.CnArnmAN said that this question was discussed
very summarily last week. He was of opinion that it
would be better for the committee to rescind their own
resolution, if they thought it desirable, than to leave it
to the general board to do so.
Mr. llnki.ox thought they should give Mr. Evans a
fair and impartial, hearing. Ile contended that the
matter had been brought before the' committee upon
hearsay only ; in fact, that the Rev. Mr. Fleetwood
was not the person who made the complaint, but that it
was fathered upon him in order that the real complain-
ant's name Might not appear in the. public prints. He
would ask, upon the grounds of justice and English
usage, that every man having a charge brought against
him should have an opportunity of vindicating himself.
He should be sorry to charge any gentleman with par-
tial motives, but lie thought the committee acted very
hastily under the circumstances last week. He would
therefore move that the resolution entered on the books
be rescinded, and that Mr. Evans be allowed to attend
before the committee to explain the charges brought
against him by Mr. Fleetwood. . The man had never
attempted to proselytise, unless giving a tract when
asked for, or reading the. Scriptures when requested, was
proselytising.
Mr. OwaN was of opinion that the committee last
week acted hastily ; and he, hoped they would now con-.
sent to go into the
,matter calmly and considerately.
When he saw the report last-week, he could not think it
was a thing which could take place in constitutional
England; it was more like the Star Chamber of the
Inquisition to condemn a man without hearing him.
Mr. Evans had proved himself very useful in the house,
as many a dying pauper could have testified.. lie .(Mr.
Owen, moved that the resolution of last week be re-
scinded; and that • the matter be- allowed to drop at
once. . . .

- -
Mr. SYRED seconded Mr. Ovven's proposition.
Mr. MELLY advised that they should call in the.
governor, and check the accuracy of Mr. Evans's letter.
Mr. PECK contended that the governor had fully
proved the case last week. The Roman Catholics in
the house felt their religious principles insulted, and
their feelings wounded by the practice complained of.
Some of the lady visitors, seeing the example of Mr.
Evans, had thought fit to follow in the same,way ; this
was letting in the steam, and it'would be impossible to
say where it would stop. He denied that the committee.
last week acted with any precipitation at all.
Mr. E. BYFORD said it had been a pitched up affair,
and that the priest had been asked to.put the complaint
upon the books. It seemed to him very absutd.that any
lady, or other visitor coming into the house, shduld not
be allowed to read a good tract or the word of God.
The CHAIRMAN said that the insinuation having been
thrown out, it would be better to call in Mr. Fleetwood.
If, until last week, the Roman Catholic priest had
never received any complaint, the Roman Catholic in-
mates could not have much reason to complain.
The Rev. Mr. FLEETWOOD having attended before
the committee, in reply to several interrogatories on the
part of members, stated that his complaint against
Mr. 'Evans was merely founded on what he bad heard.
He had not had the complaints for any length of
time. Ire believed the Scriptures were read secretly ;
and' when he "made inquiries, he 'found the parties had
called the Scriptures history, navigation, geography,
travels, and biography ; and as these names were used,
he did not know, until assisted by the governor, that
the Scriptures were alluded to under these heads. The
Roman Catholic inmates never complained to him of
the practice. One of the lady visitors brought the
matter under his notice.
Mr. CARR, the governor, 'also replied to various ques-
tions put to him, stating that the' chaplain had first told
him of the facts; that he told Mr. Evans, and that Mr.
Evans' only anxiety was to do what was right ; that he
was quite sure Mr. Evans , had never attempted
proselytism or disputation.
On the motion of Mr. DENTON, seconded by Mr.
SYRED, the previous resolution of the committee was
rescinded, by nine to one.
This was the whole of the business of 'importance be-
fore the committee:

The name of the Emperor of China appears for the
first time in the Almanach de Gotha for 1860. Sien
Fien is the seventh Emperor of the Tsins, which suc-
ceeded the dynasty of the Mins in 1644.
A CORPORATION IN A Fax.—The Corporation of
Gravesend having mortgaged the whole of its property
to Mr. Wells for the sum of £12,721, notice.has been
given that the mortgage will be foreclosed on the 20th
of March next. At the last meeting of the corporation
the object was discussed, and ,the town clerk stated that
there was no means of obtaining the required sum. The
town-hall, and the whole of the corporation estates,
will, therefore, become the absolute property of Mr.
Wells on the day named.
THE TOURMAREADY MURDER.—We understand that
informations have been laid before the resident magis-
trates, implicating an individual in Lord Plunkett's
employment. It is said he was seen, gun in hand, in
the vicinity of the scone of the wanton outrage a very
short time before its perpetration.