Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1859-09-15 00:00:00

BOROUGH HOP MARKET, SEPT. 14

There is a slight improvement in the demand for
fine new Hops at full quotations, but other qualities are
a slow inquiry.

TO CORIMSPONDENTS,

Under no circumstances can we insert communications not

publicatian, but as

guarantee of good faith

Sheet letters, are encouraged on matters of public interest.
They should be legibly written on oneside of the paper only,
apd colitain'(in confidence) the Writer's name and address.

Ziy gtortlynt ants

771:U85T,41; SEP2RIIIBER 16, 1859

THE DAY'S NEWS

We repeat in our paper to-day, the details'of
the affair on the Peiho, which appeared in only a

portion of our yestefday'& impression, the tele-

pthufi' conveying them, riot having been received

in time-for-our-early edition

confirm the

i;r2eviousq.eport, that the repulse had resulted in
thgtsitak defeat of the. British and French forces
by th&ehinese, with the loss of no less than five

boats; and ahout one-third of the whole of

the. forces engaged. Some idea may be formed of

the deac

ure

.sive means to

*hich the Chinese so treacherously and inhu-

ilto'nther,

)rts, mbunti

.g fro:

in ninety to a

which poured out upon the

p,quq.ccl, roll col3tin9.ous volleys of. shot

they were, of Course

ntend

The account

states

it mill be seen, tli'at although every .slint

of the enemy's told, olirs did comparatively little

damage to their mud walls. It appears to have

hypu, Confidently expected that .apon the landing

of the troops they )voulcl..earry the. day.: But
just as the first boat touched the shore, the

shells,- gin-gall-balls, and rockets, which mowed

We already

know the diqastrous result. Among the most
.severely wounded. were Admiral Hope, and three
other -British officers, and the Chaplain 9f the

Royal Marines; whilst seven. British officers were

It is gratifying to find that

the small American

naval force that was at the place

gust the Bth, has brought

several'interfsting items of intelligence from that

-country

It is nit *cry satisfactory to find that

de*.'ire.to return to EngTand.was growing still

.onger-, both in the military and civil services

favour

tending parties.

From'—Australia, there are advices to the middle
of July, which, whether as respects the supply Of

-....-.,..---

In the first instance, no doubt

the workmen, as the weaker side, naturally chal-
lenged the livelier share of our interest; but, on
whatever side it may tell in the end, no per-
sonal feeling can be allowed to override the
maxims of sound political economy, or social
distributive justice.

The extreme and prolonged obstinacy with

which the strike is maintained on the one side,
and the proffered terms of reconciliation resisted
on the other, seems to indicate the presence of
some great principle, the limits of which are in

tate of trade, or 'the condition of the

dispute, or the manner of whose equitable appli-
cation is not yet .ascertained. We are naturally
inclined to ask, have the masters ventured on

some novel mode of oppression, or has some
gradually increasing evil grown to a head, and

become no longer bearable ? Yet so much as

this is scarcely alleged,

The grounds on which

the workmen themselves base their concerted

,Latour-market; arc very_ satisfactory

movement are, in fact, very variable, and by no

means consistent. Sometimes their object is

stated to be to snatch a little more leisure

from their daily toil, that they may devote it

to those pursuits which the educational appliances
of the day so abundantly offer them. Then they

do not think the present rate of wages sufficiently

remunerative, in proportion to the hours of la-
bour ; a disproportion, however, which they do
not seek to have rectified in their own behalf,

,ut in order to extend employment to many of

their unemployed brethren

Some of them even

fire broke out at' last night shortly before
eight.o'cleck in the work-shops and wood-yard
of Messrs. Kilpin and Montgomery; contractors

say, Shorten our hours of labour, and we are con-

tent to let the question of wages take its chance.
For, thus ignorant are they of their own mind,

or of the motives which sway them, =except it

be the one brroad and undefined desire of change,-

that they do not perceive this giving up of the
question of wages to -be a giving up of every-
thing in dispute. The man who will be content

to receive one hour's smaller pay, may be well
allowed to give an hour's shorter work. To let

the question of wages take its chance, is to bow
to that law -of supply and demand, to resist
which, by forced combination, is the whole secret
of the Strike.

Now to oppose this principle of political economy,
or we may say, this natural law of social inter-

course, there is needed some eccentric and ex-
traneous medium of action. To supply this irre-
gular medium is the motive and the work of Trades'
Unions. They are founded on the assumption

and builders, in Lawton-street. The fire appear

that labour is not competent to take its place

-I-to—have -originated in—the- saw-mill of the esta-

in its bargainings with capital, or to rely alto-

blislunent, or, at all events, it was first discovered

ther on the adjustment of that law which rules

there. :Froni ihe highly combustible nature of
the materials with 'which the Yard andpremises

and directs relations between conflicting interests.
It is supposed that- labour needs some means of

were filled, the flames spread_ with resistless
rapidity ;- and, nowithstandin,g every effort made
by the fire-brigade and the salvage men, very

assistance out of the ordinary course, to compen-
sate the intrinsic preponderating influence of
capital, strong in the power of money

little of - the valuable property' contained in
the workshops, and accumulated in_ the_ yard,
could be saved. The loss of • seasoned wood,
partly prepared, and entirely finished work,
together with the valuable :machinerY, "all
of'Which was destroyed, amounts to a sum which
'has been. -variouSly estimated at from £20,000 to

can, we deny some sort of necessity for a counter-
weight of this sort. No law works without
occasional variations and break-downs. We
know things must come to their level in the long

run. The wages of industry, as a general interest,
must on the whole, or in the end, keep or regain

their due proportion. Capital can never succeed
permanently, or on a large area, in evading or
depredating the just claims of labour. But par-
ticular evils may occur. Capital here and there,
as represented by its holders, may shirk its re-
sponsibilities, and try how much it can " wring
from the hard hands of toil." It is therefore
allowable, and even salutary, that the latter should
adopt exceptional means of provision against
such exigencies, and repair their own weakness
by artificial modes of resistance. But a movement
which has assumed such proportions as the pre-
sent Strike, which strives to spread itself to other
towns, and is canvassing for support all over the
country, involves` the question, whether labour is
to be put upon a wholly different footing from
other interests, or to be subject to the same
law
of supply and demand. It would be all very
well, and a very pleasant subject of contempla-
tion to the philanthropist, if capitalists and pro-
prietors would remunerate their labourers and
dependants according to the accidental abundance
of their own pecuniary means, and not according
to the market value of the labour supplied. But
it is impossible, and indeed inexpedient, to en-

£30,000. From the first the fire presented a
• most alarming aspect ; and the most lively fears
were entertained for the safety of the property
adjoining, particularly the Howard Arcade, and,
by proximity With it, of the north side of Bold-
street. Several shops in the

Arcade, indeed, were

I at one time on fire ; and it required the utmost

exertion to prevent the fire from spreading to
Bold-street. In alluding to this, it is.difficult to

refrain from an ,expression of indignant remon-
strance against the conduct of some parties, appa-
rently servants, or _ other employees in Bold-
streek, who persisted in •looking at the conflagra-
tion, whirl_ was raging, through opened back
• windows of the premises in which they happened
for: the. time to be ,domiciled. Such a practice
was obviously a courting of danger, and cannot
be too earnestly reprehended. A general and
wt4l-foUnded iegr& was expressed by all present
'at:lhe inevitable, if not !ruinous, loss which must
`fall_ upon the numerous workmen employed in
the works*, by the temporary loss of occupation,
and still :more by the destruction of their valu-,
able stock of working tools. It would be impos-

sible to bestow too high encomiums on the judi-
cious exertions Made_ by the firemen, under the
able superintendence of the local authorities, to
suppresg the fire, and- also to prevent its spread
to the adjoining properties. '
The Lucknow heroes who arrived a fortnight
ago at Dover, were there entertained, on Tuesday
afternoon, at a banquet, intended—and successful
in the intention—to represent the high apprecia-
tion of the-British- people, of the fortitude and
enduring h6toism exhibited, by these gallant
soldiers, in the capture of ;Lucknow. The ban-

force considerations of generosity or self-sacrifice
upon classes. Charity refuses the alliance of any
but the willing efforts of the individual ; and
commerce per se refuses any obligations but those
of po Weal economy. If, therefore, as the work-
men allege, the article of labour be plentiful, the
result should be a proportionate fall in the price
which is paid for it. The same principle rules
the labour market, and every other market. If
capital be plentiful, a smaller remuneration is
granted for its use. If any article increases in
supply, a less price is paid for its acquisition. If
a service is easier to hire, it demands a smaller

quet was numerously attended, and all present

appeared enthusiastic in reference to the occasion

recompense.
It is, therefore, simply "kicking against the
" pricks," to attempt the liberation of the labour-
ing interest from the rigid principles of political
economy. These principles may sometimes seem
,to inflict hardship upon poverty,—so unfitted to
bear up against the unyielding maxims of science;
but such temporary hardships take their place in
that run of misfortunes to which some portions
of the community are more exposed than others,
and must be repaired when they occur by the

-The sot' dissant Liberal press has been making
a great fuss with respect to the Earl of Derby
having.given directions to remove from his estate
of Doon, in Ireland, all the tenants except the
immediate relatives of Mr. Crowe, who recently
was ruthlessly murdered in that neighbourhood.
The partizans of the political opponents to his
lordship represent this as an act of arbitrary
tyranny and oppression. From an article which
we publish in another column, it* will be seen

•
LONDON. CORN MARKET.—SEpTsmB7. 14. that two, at least, of the most respectable journals extraordinary efforts of the wealthier classes, anct
Supplies of all grain moderate. English Wheat: opposed to the late Ministry, accord. to Lord not by the subversion of the fixed bonds of corn--
Nnthityrfrogh-tip. No ichange. Foreign dry out : not
cheaptt. 7-; Fronting cargoes : _Pried sti4r. Flour : No Derby high praise for his disinterested judicious mercial intercourse.
proceedings, adopted with a view to show that If the Trades' Unions have assumed this aspect
py : .
alteration. Indian Corn rather deressed. BarleA
miidefite consumptive deMarid.' Rye would sell for the
-Olithignt,_ Peas and beans unchanged. Oats no tho'se who persistently screen murderers from the of opposition to the law of supply and demand',
!ach of justice arc unworthy of confidence or we can scarcely wonder at their rousing all the'
It is in this feature'

jealousy of the masters. __
t
As it happens in the case of most disputes in that the movement has become important to the
which the spectator has no personal or imme-
general interests of the community.
classes are proverbially ignorant of the principles
diate interest, so it is in the case of the present
of political economy. It is for them we fear
unhappy Strike : the general public can scarcely
more than for the capitalist or the employer"
accord their full sympathies to either of the con-
lest this ignorance should make them a prey tc"
the designing and unscrupulous arts of Paid
agents, and the tyranny of factious and pernicious

combinations

The working

As for the principles of economic

science, it is impossible to anticipate any reed"

sion in them. In a civilised community they are

removed from the influence of temporary move—

ments, however violent. Things must find their

level sooner or later. It is the workmen them'
selves who suffer the most signally, and the most

fruitlessly, from the interruption and derange'

ment of which they are the authors

MR. BRIGHT, at Huddersfield, took into the field

of view of his political telescope a vast and

varied range of subjects. Of course, many, °f

the professed grievances he presented. to his au-
dience were plausibly enough put ; and, while We

combat them, it is not because we apprehend all

danger from Mr. BRIGHT'S personal influence, or

the probable adoption of his principles by the

people of this country; but simply to show their

utter fallacy, and his own want of solid infornia"

tion as to the questions he touches upon. Among

such questions there is not one on which he 11(15

wade more fallacious and incorrect reflections

than the law of primogeniture, as it of

this country. Doubtless, it would well suit his

purpose to bring into odium this " feudal lay

as he calls it, of the mediaeval age, since it 15

that which has raised up and preserves a landed'
a powerful, as well as hereditary aristocracy, the

presence of which is a barrier against gr

BRIGHT'S republican and revolutionising vie'.s's

and aims

This very law which he deprecates la

one chief means by whioh, we truly believe, tb

nation has risen to its present prosperous ow
dition and undisputed supremacy. It is by the
law of succession that the serried and

phalanx, which he points at as opposite to binl
in the House of Commons, has been formed'

and which angrily. he designates as " Tories,

—the impediment to his democratic rage'
the straitwaistcoat of his madness, and the shield'

which preserves the time-honoured institutions
of our country, and the glorious Constitution °C

the Unitedliingdom, from the desolation of bis
unsparing and violent hands. The hon. member

must be conscious that so long as that

fortress shows its front towards him, like the Cele-

brated quadilateral of the Mincio, there is n°ll°,..Pe
for him to effect his unpatriotic purposes, a L
nd u 5

Cromwellite predilections. He complains tha

there is no party in the House of Commons : hoc

is it then that he directs the attention of his stip'

posed spectator in the Strangers' Gallery to those
hateful and hated " Tories," who do not pay, t's
he says, their due proportion of the taxes, directil
or indirectly ; but, on the contrary, consume ill.
salaries and appointments ten times as much 95'
" Why, then," he continues, " am 1 tn.
be asked to go to their stolid phalanx of t°
" received and tax expended, and to beg and t.;
plore them to be more moderate in the use oftl'o.
" public money ? Every addition of a million
" our taxes and to the State'revenue is addil
" another stake to the patrimony of the privilegn,,4,
" classes of England ; and until you come to tw-

they pay.

" point that you look them in the face and
" Parliament shall not be the instrument of
0,
" House of Lords or of the great territorial Pf .t
prietors, but shall fairly represent the grea
" body

of the people of England,' there
no remedy for the grievances of Wa
' you complain." This would be all we
enough, if it were true ; but his conclusions
erroneous, because his premises are false. 'ribr
aristocracy and the territorial proprietors, eq'
with the rest of the people, are not exempt fro
iljao
paying their due proportion, if not more, of
taxes of the State ; neither do they exercise lie
Unbecoming or undue influence, their stake itt t s,
country considered, over the House of Como°
We recommend to JOHN BRIGHT'S con Sider t
tion, some reasons which plainly indicate th e
h
the law of primogeniture is preferable t° tea
Corsican or French law of succession, introcincol
to establish that restless revolutionary spirit
has proved so disastrous and ruinous to Fralleenw
forthwhich produced anarchy and bloodshed, and
and again Strewed the seeds which bring
eo,
such poisonous fruit, as in our own day and gtue
eration has been seen. The interference 0f
vv. Will'.
legislature with the disposal of property
la be.
forcibly argues Mr. J. R. M'CuLLOcll9
the
" adverse to the increase of opulence, and to f;
Sgali
"best interests of society." Dr. ADA-31 wereand MONTESQUIEU'S objections against it 9 deed,
without any Solid. fo-f.ndation,—the first, in
order
maintained that it is a custom which '
of the
"to enrich one, beggars all the rest
" children "

C'est ifi°

And the latter observingt.va-yoreeps.
BRIGHT and
"esprit de vanite qui a etabli chez les
"rityaste droit d'ainesse." But, Mr. Nl`CvliT:cil'
his disciples, being, as he is, a
uStan;iica...
who ought to be no mean authority lr —,,,311.11.
ble testimonies his own opinions,
advocate for free-trade opposes to these
" But, notwithstanding the apparent reason
" ableness of this opinion, and the authority];
" which it is supported, we do not think It
_....,
" any really good foundation. On the contra? 0
"we are well convinced that much of til
f modern
" industry, freedom, and civilisation °f
of
of this'
" Europe may be ascribed to the influence
ester
;
" custom in determining the succession to
as follows :
0_