Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-07-24 00:00:00

THE COURT, &c.

OSBORNE, TUESDAY. —The Queen and the Prince Con-
sort drove out yesterday afternoon in an open carraige.
His Royal Highness left Osborne this morning, attended
by Captain the Hon. Dudley de Ros, for Salisbury, to be
present at the meeting of the Royal Agricultural Associa-
tion.

THE PROGRESS Or CANADA.—The Toronto Colonist
observes, in speaking of the pressnt condition of Canadian
securities in England :—There never was a time in our
commercial and monetary history, when there was a
greater necessity for a good and reliable pamphlet in
England on Canadian res iurces and Canadian property,
as compared with Canadian indebtedness• For the last
certainly unparalleled prices for every product of our
industry. Some ten or twelve million pounds have also
been spent in the country, over and above what the people
have made by their legitimate occupations. The seasons,
too, have been generally healthy, and the people have
undeniably worked hard. Neither can we discover that
they have been more extravagant than usual in their
mode of living ; nor that, beyond speculating perhaps too
wildly in lands—which, however, are all here—they have
been indiscreet in their business transactions. Hence we
state it as a fact, susceptible of the clearest proof, that
the entire assessable property of Upper Canada has
doubled in value since 0354. It was £50,000,000 then; it
is £100,000,000 now. And this unparalleled increase has
arisen from the construction of railroads ; from the
opening up of a new country, in many cases by
the labourers employed upon them, who used the
little capital they made on the roads in the purchase
and clearing of lands : and from the greatly increased
value imparted to the improved properties by the facili-
ties the railways afforded for getting to markets and for
selling a number of things which the farmer previously
had no means of disposing of. Besides all this, the expen-
diture of £10,000,000 or £12,000,000 had of itself an im-
mense effect upon a country where £lOO spent on a com-
mon road often imparts .4300 additional value to the
adjacent lands ; and where a gravel road through a
township frequently makes a difference of a pound an acre
to 60,000 or 80,000 acres, and where a railroad changes the
whole face of the country in a few years, making villages
spring up—like Angus and Collingwood, for example—in
the densest forests, and farms make an appearance where
a white man never trod before the chain-bearer for the
engineer first made his appearance. Mr. Hincks, some
years ago, raised the credit of Canada immensely by a
well written pamphlet upon our resources, in which he
pointed out that we had not only wherewithal to meet our
liabilities, but that:greater advances would actually make
u's richer. He was right at the time. The capitalists
saw he was so; and provincial credit rose 50 per cent in
a few months. But does Mr. Cayley, iu the face of our
very best debentures being almost unsaleable in the
English money market, make a single move to show what
we are worth; or that these very debentures are one of
the causes of our increased prosperity ?

WEEK-DAY PREACHERS.—ReIeased from the election..
eering excitement of the recent struggle at Oxford, bear-
ing with him the respect and sympathy of all who knew
him in his capacity of candidate for the suffrages of the
constituents, Mr. Thackeray, almost immediately on his
return to the Metropolis, on Wednesday night delivered a
lecture, called " Week-Day Preachers," for the benefit of
the "Jerrold Fund." On similar occasions, both in
Scotland and America, Mr. Thackeray has presented
portions of the above-named discourse, which, from
beginning to end, is strongly characterised by the peculiar
genius and temperament of the great novelist ; which, in
all its passages, abundantly breaks forth the open, honest,
independent spirit of kwriter and of:„a thinker who holds

it as a sacred duty to unmask the wickedness and the
perfidy which come in his way, but who, nevertheless, has
at all times ready a word of praise for the good, of loving
tenderness for the weak and suffering, and of a pious con
solation for the fallen. The audience present seemed
bent upon welcoming, with all possible ardour, the return
of Mr. Thackoray to the arena in which he has earned so
many triumphs. He was received with deafening acclama•
tions, and the first sentence of his lecture was the signal
for their instant renewal. It was to the effect that, as he
was yesterday walking in the High•street of a certain
anoient city, he saw a placard announcing manuscript
sermons for sale; he did not believe that the gentlemen
who purchased them and delivered them always told the
true history of their orations, but that, not imitating their
example, he would tell the audience that portions of his
present lecture had been previously heard in public.
After an eloquent description, of the true/duties of a
clergyman, Mr. Thackeray explained the term of "week-
day preachers " to mean the poets, philosophers, essay-
ists, and social writers, whoge exertions were productive
of so much good—the men of the world, who uttered com-
ments on the world they rived, in. 7 Addison was the first

writer who attracted the eulogy of the lecturer, who
saluted his memory with gratitude and honour; there was
no better praise than to call him a great gentleman ; he
was high-bred, urbane, :and humane ; and there was an
exquisite sense of religion always with him. An extract
from the Spectator was offered by Mr. Thackeray in
corroboration of his opinion. The character of " Dick
Steele" was next drawn with an indulgent hand, the
speaker declaring his conviction that the sermon may be
good, thoughihe preacher nought; he was the founder of
sentimental writing, and the cause had derived great
benefit in that others had built upon his ground, just as
the Foundling Hospital derived great revenues from the
the edifices which had been erected on the lands left
to the charity by the respected Captain Coram.
In due succession followed Fielding and Sterne, of whom
the latter was mentioned by Mr. Thackeray as a
clever, surprising fellow, but he would sooner sit
under an honester preacher ; he ridiculed the false
senZimentality of I the " Sentimental Journey," the
outpouring over ludicrous'objects of those tears that are
the mites which souls: drop into the collection for God's
poor and unhappy. A; tribute to Goldsmith was suc-
ceeded by a charming picture of the influence produced
by such men as Beranger and Burns--of the humour
which has refreshed myriads more, from her natural
spring, than ever tragedy has from her pompous old urn.
In connection with!the dramatists, Mr. Thackeray spoke
a word in favour of " Black-eyed Susan," and of " The
Lady of Lyons," the principal points of which were
briefly but happily recorded, and at the climax of which
the speaker said he always took refuge in his pocket
handkerchief. A most humorous description of a visit to
twopenny theatres and of their performances created a
perfect roar of laughter; in the principal dramas of both
establishments there :was a wicked lord thrown out of
window—there"always is a wicked lord thrown out of
window—and in the second -piece which was nautical,
there were matters of thrilling 'interest, chiefly horn-
pipes. At the People's Theatre, Baltimore, much the
same kind of thing 'prevailed. The kindly nature of
Lamb was the next theme for the lecturer ; he wished he
had been as fortunate as some of his friends, to have
shaken him by the hand. Thomas Hood—a portion of
whose " Bridge of sighs " was read with touching pathos
—came in for his richly-merited meed of approval; and
" Punch" subsequently earned a well-deserved tribute.
From a number of no very ancient date, Mr. Thackeray
rend an extract from an article written, we believe, by
himself; he then paid an elaborate compliment to Mr.
Charles Dickens and his works, the readers of which—as
a vroof of public appreciation—were always increasing.
The same agreeable fact he could record of another
author, although described as a dreary misanthrope. The
popularity of Mr. Dickens with the youth of the nation
was proved to Mr. Thackeray in his own family ; he had
a daughter who read the books of the former ten times to
one perusal of the dismal preachings of her father. In
her almost childhood she had told him she liked Mr.
Dickens' works much better than her papa's, and asked
him why he did not write so good a book. The deaths of
Mr. A'Beckett and Mr. Douglas Jerrold were dwelt on
with becoming earnestness ; and Mr. Thackeray's lecture
—of which the above is the briefest summary—terminated
with a solemn aad imposing tribute to the memory of the
late deceased wit and author.

NEWSPAPER LIBEL Law.—Newspapers, it seems, are to
labour, for another year at least, under the same disabili-
ties with regard to reports of public meetings as those to
which they are at present subject. As the law now stands,
we publish accurate reports of parliamentary business, town
council meetings, commissioners of supply meetings, and,
indeed, the proceedings of any kind asd of all meetings
whatsoever, except those before a court of justice, at our
peril. Any sensitive member of parliament, town coun-
cillor, commissioner or any other person who may
deem himself wronged or insulted by what may have been
said at one of the meetings we have named, or in any
other public assembly, can raise an action of damages
against the newspaper publishing a faithful report of
that speech in which the alleged libel is contained. The
onus of the speaker's assertions rests not with him, but
with the newspaper publisher. Nor does it matter that
the report is a true one, that it has been published
without malice no the part of the newspaper, and
l
, I.IIZIGL abblleVea teas
.•
suffered no damage whatever, the mere fact of
publication obliges the jury by law to fled a verdict for
the plaintiff. It is not to be expected, surely, that every
newspaper should number amongst its staff a lawyer, just
as it has its reporter, to decide what is and is not libellous
in the report of a public speech. Besides, the process of
winnowing that must necessarily take place ere the legal
censor was satisfied that he had expurgated all actionale
matter would, in many cases, be most prejudicial to the
public weal. Directors of " Royal British Banks," were
newspapers to abide strictly by the letter of the
law, might go on prosporously swindling, as
we all run the risk of heavy damages by giving publicity
to the indignant remonstrances of suspicious shareholders
at half-yearly meetings. That this is a grievance, and a
very great one, has been seen by the highest legal function-
ary in the land—Lord Chief Justice Campbell. At his
instance, a select committee was appoin'ed to consider the
subject, and to report how far the privilege given to law
reports in newspapers might be extended with safety
to the reports of proceedings in other public assem-
blies. The committee, however, while declining not to
grant perfect immunity, have come to the conclusion that
true reports of the proceedings of both Houses of Parlia-
ment, of meetings lawfu'ly called by the sheriff of a county,
or the mayor of a borough, for the purpose of petitioning
the Queen of either Houses of Parliament, meetings of a
town council, or a board of health, or of any body acting
under the authority of an Act of Parliament met to impose
a rate, or to consider the local affairs of any district,
should be protected, and that in the case of an action being
brought, the jury, if the plaintiff had sustained no damage,
should find a verdict for the defendant, and the plaintiff b e
compelled to pay all costs. This would be a decided im-
provement upon the present law, but it is by no means
satisfactory. The committee's definition of a public meet-
ing is a very limited one. It excludes all those meetings
in which the highest intellect is not unfrequently engaged,
and the most vital interests are always involved. We may
report without fear, if the committee's suggestions become
law, a town council squabble about the exact dimensions
of a sewer, ur a parochial board fracas concerning the
precise elasticity of a pauper's stomach ; but it is at our
peril we venture on reporting a meeting for the extension
of the franchise, a speech on parliamentary reform, the
proceedings during an election, a ragged school meeting,
a Bible society meeting, a railway meeting, a bank
meeting, or, indeed, of almost any important finan-
cial, social, political, scientific, or religious assembly.
Of course, the reporting of such meetings might
not, in all probability would not, in any one in-
stance occasion an action of damages ; still, the journal
publishing them would have no legal security against
litigation. We c inaot understand why, unless it be on the
supposition that the committee are composed of individuals
desirous to figure in print, and anxious to find freo vent
for their own libels, newspapers should run a risk in
giving publicity to such rneeeings as these, while
they are to be permitted to publish with safety the
proceedings in Parliamont. Noble Lords and M.P.'s are
quite as capable of libelling each other and outsiders
as any stump orator who ever stood on a barrel head.
Upon the resolutions arrived at by the committtee
Lord Campbell has declared his intention of founding ti
bill next session; and we trust that, on consideration, he
wi'l see reason to define a public meeting much more
liberally than the committee have defined it. To our
thinking, the simplest and most effectual mode of settling
the difficulty would ba to make the speaker responsible
for his speech. The committee object to this on the
ground that it would make an important change in
the law of England, which recognises considerable
difference between spoken and printed slander. A
man, it seems, may call another a liar and a scoundrel,
and the law can take no hold of him ; but so soon as he
commits such language to paper it becomes actionable.
Now, it seems to us that a change in the law, making
the speaker responsible for his words, instead of the jour-
nal that prints them, so far from " being wholly unnes
cessarv," as Lord Campbell affirms, is as necessary and
desirable as it is just. It would oblige speakers carefully
to weigh their words, to be cautious in imputing
motives and in slandering a neighbour. This, surely,
would be a great good gained, for slanders uttered at a
public meeting, whether they be printed or no, cannot fail
to have a wide dissemination ; and we all know that they
will lose none of their piquancy by word-of-mouth trans-
mission. Make the speaker responsible for his speech,
and this great wrong of allowing one man publicly to
villify another would be done away with, the honest jour:
nalist would be relieved of the great disability under avtich
he now labours, and we venture to predict that no mischief
will arise in consequence of the speeches of that frightful
" mob" and still more terrible " man cif etmw..—Edin-
burgh Express,

TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.

By British and Irish Magnetic Telegraph.

THE VISIT OF THE EMPEROR OF

RUSSIA. TO PRUSSIA,

A despatch from Berlin states that the Czar
will not arrive at Potsdam until Sunday. The
Empress Dowager and the Grand Duke Michael
arrived on Saturday. The stay of the Empress
Will be prolonged to the beginning of August.

EXPULSION OF FOREIGN REFUGEES

FROM ENGLAND.

The Austrian Gazette, a semi-official journal.
learns, through its London correspondence, that
the Cabinet of Lord Palmerston has resolved to
apply to Parliament for the means of enabling
tt to expel from England those Foreign Refugees
whcf" abuse the hospitality of the country, by
rendering it the focus of conspiracies which have
Assassination for their object.

This step on the part of the English Cabi-
net is described as the more gratifying,
because it has been undertaken spontaneously.
As if in confirmation of the above intelligence,
the semi-official organ of Lord Palmerston's
Government—the Globe—of last night, winds
up a leader in the following words :—Persons
in the position of Signor Mazzini must be made
to perceive how impossible it is that they should
be permitted to avail themselves of residence in
this country for purposes which are alien to our
policy and interest. As fugitives, we have
given them an asylum; as guests we would con-
tinue to them our hospitality ; as conspirators,
we cannot afford them Archimedean " standing
room," from whence to " move the world " by
the machinery of revolt and assassination.