The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-02-03 00:00:00

pence incurred in regard to it. The amount of information
'which was evolved in the various discussions on that subject,
showed,•to the fullest degree, the enormous evils with
which the whole system of bankruptcy was fraught. It
showed that the system absorbed one half of all
the assets of every estate; or, to speak more literally,
that 49 per cent of the funds of all the estates in the court
of bankruptcy were absorbed by the means which were used
for the arrangement of the mate. (Hear, hear.) If that
was not in itself a proof of the gigantic evil with which the
court was afflicted, or of the complicated and expensive cha-
racter of its maainery, he knew not what was. (Hear,
hear.) There were twelve officers attached to the bank-
ruptcy court, and each of them, they might rest assured,
had its " pickings" out of it before the estate was passed
through with trouble and delay. (Hear, hear.) One
proposition was that there should be a consolidation of the
insolvent and bankruptcy courts—(hear, hear)—and in that
suggestion Lord Brougham completely concurred. It was
also proposed that there should be a diminution of the
officers, inasmuch as all of them might be reduded riot only
with the advantage of a diminution of costs; but with a
greater Wility of working the estates. It was also proposed
that the official assignee should be paid in a manner differ-
ent from +he present—that he should be- paid in part by a
small salary, and in part by a large commission, which
woull s stimulate him to increased exertion. As to the
measure proposed to the conference by Mr. E. Heath, viz.,
" Tribunals of Commerce," though ft was not adopted, yet
he (Mr. Bushell) thought that it would stimulate them to
give facilities to commerce by bringing law to their
very doors, and by, dimtnishing its cost, and
that it would show the legal gentlemen that if they did
not do ,something for the commercial world, the commer-
cial world was determined to do something for itself.—
(Mar.) Mr. Bushell then referred to the interview which
the deputation from the Cenferenee, headed by Lord
Brougham, had with Lord Palmerston, and spoke in en-
thusiaStic terms of the cloqtienee, precision and taste with
which his lordship stated their views. They received an
assurance from Lord Palmerston that the subject then
brought before him would receive every attention from the
Government. It was right for him to add that when a slur
was attempted to be cast on commercial intellect and com-
mercial capacity to deal with commercial questions in a
commercial point of view, Lord Brougham interfered, and
said that when he was in the habit of going circuit it was
always considered that a Liverpool petty jury was a better
jury than a special jury obtained anywhere else. (Hear.)
He (i'lr. Bushell) need not tell them how gratifying such a
declaration was to the Liverpool gentlemen present (Hear.)
In conclusion Mr. Bushell regretted that the scheme of the
new post-office in Dale-street was not more warmly prose-
cuted by the Town Council and the Government.
Mr. Macfie referred to the intended alteration of the
Exchange buildings, and suggested that before the
proprietors. went to parliament for their bill, the council
should communicate with them, with a view of having the
buildings commensurate with the commercial greatness of
Liverpool, and superior to anything that could be found
elsewhere.
Mr. R. Sheil said, with respect to the post office, and
in justification of the town council, that the committee
appointed by the corporation to take the matter into
consideration, and to carry it out if practicable, directed
the town clerk to write to the post office authorities in
London, to know what quantity of land they would reqaire
for the purpose of erecting the new post office, and on
what terms they would be induced to treat for it: That
was written in December last, and with a degree of
prompitude for a public office unexampled, they received an
answer sometime about the end of January. (Laughter.)
The first question was only answered, it being too much to
expect that a public department could answer two enquiries
at the same time. (Laughter.) They replied that they
would require 3,000 square yards. The town clerk wrote
next day, enquiring again as to the conditions, and it was
probable that the enquiry would be answered in about two
months—(Laughter)---when he (Mr. Sheil) would com-
municate the result to the chamber.
Mr. Bouch, in bringing forward the question of the
supply of cotton, regretted that Mr. Booker, was not himself
present to introduce it. What he (Mr. Bouch) would
therefore say on the subject would be somewhat crude, but
he would endeavour to represent faithfully Mr. Booker's
views, at the same time stating before hand that he fully
concurred in them. Mr. Booker, who was for some time
resident in this country, spent the greater portion of his life
in Demerara. From circumstances, he was perfectly inde-
pendent of his interests in Demerara, and he bad assured
him (Mr. Bench), that in taking up this subject, he was
merely tempted to it from a desire to serve the colony in
which he had spent so many years of his life ; and, from
the feeling that, in serving the colony, he would be also
serving his native land. Mr. B)oker's attention had been
called of late very greatly to their cotton trade; for, not
only here, but in Manchester, and throughout all the districts
of England, where cotton was manufactured, the greatest
interest had been excited as to the result of the falling off
in their imports of cotton. It was said, that next to the
trala 'Cv&ds L'ininnatiElntuthajaut.his coutryli they
yu.U4t, rai
As regarded the colony of Demerara, it produced a very
large supply of cotton not many years ago. There were at
this time in it, upwards of four hundred abandoned estates;
abandoned, not because they were unproductive, but simply
because there was not labour to cultivate them: (Hear,
hear.) At the time of the irgro emancipation, Demerara,
in common with the other colonies, applied for free labour;
but the feeling of the country was so intense against slavery,
that the public were unwilling even to sanction the intro-
duction of free labour into the colonies under the circum-
stances. From that time, the countries cultivating cotton
produced by slave labour, were thriving at the cost of the
colonies • and now, when it was almost too late,
tEnglaud found herself—not only with her colonial in.
terests in a state of great decrepitude—(hear, hear)—but
wi h itself dependant on slave labour for a supply of that
article which it could not do without. (Hear, hear.) They
were content to bear the prospect of high prices for sugar,
coffee, &c , with a diminished supply, but when it came
home to them in the shape of a dearth of cotton, then they
were awoke to the consequences of their neglect of this
great interest. (Hear, hear.) In the colony of Demerara
the soil and climate were peculiarly adapted for the growth
of cotton ; it was a singular fact that not only could cotton
be grown there abundantly, but cotton of the finest quality.
He believed there was no finer cotton grown in any part of
the world than could be grown in the colony of Demerara,
excepting the cotton grown on the seaboard of America,
which was known by the name of " Sea Island." The
estates which were abandoned in the colony at present
would, if cultivated, produce 150,000 bales of cotton
annually, in addition to which there was in the colony an
amount of virgin land, uncultivated, capable of producing a
supply of cotton equal to the demands of all the manufac-
tures in the kingdom. It was, moreover, nearer to her
coast than any other colony England possessed, and the
clima'e was salubrious. All that they required to make it
a cotton producing colony was the assistance of government
in a way to he pointed out, and he believed that if the
Manchester Chamber of Commerce, and the other
commercial associations throughout te country, would
give their attention to this subject they, with the assistance
of the West Indies, would prosecute it to a
successful issue. (Hear, hear). Mr. Bouch then read the
following correspondence, which passed between Mr:
Booker and Mr. Maley, president of the Manchester
Chamber of Commerce, on the matter :
Liverpool, 27th Dec., 1856.

' My Dear Sir,—According to protnise, I forward you the
following papers on the subject of emigration to British
Guiana.: _ _

The particulars of an interview, that took place in May
last, between Mr. Labouchere and a deputation of the
West Indian committee, when the former desired the latter
to state in writing what they required with regard to the
object of the interview.
This was done agreeably to a correct copy of the docu-
ment now enclosed, to which I beg your kind attention.
The resolutions, which you will find attached to a
memorial from the colony, will prove to you what the
planters feel for want of labourers. The deputation are
yet without any answer. I could furnish you with numer-
ous documents which have for the last fifteen years
emanated from the same quarter, all turning upon this
subject, namely, a supply of labourers, consequent upon
the Emancipation Act ; but I fear the perusal of them
would be too tedious, and occupy much of your valuable
time. Brit;sh Guiana has, I may say, not only unaided,
but in the face of continued opposition, imported some
forty, thousand adult labourers, at an expense of ezi,coo,
by which means the'y have, at, a serious loss, kept a
portion of the estates producing sugar in cultivation—
those on which coffee and cotton were grown are aban-
doned ; indeed, several importations of slave-grown coffee
have been imported for the use of the inhabitants. On a
moderate calculation, I should think the colony contains
four hundred estates on which cotton has been grown,
and would no doubt produce 150,000 bales when in full
working ordor ; and, besides this extent of land, there is
almost an unlimited supply of virgin soil, all situate on the
east sea coast, which is by far the most healthy part of
the colony, and admirably adapted for acclimatising the
newly imported labourers.
When these cotton estates were first settled, the planter
had many difficulties to contend with. He found the land
covered with a heavy forest of wood, without dams or
side lines, and the most part under water at high tides,
to overcome which he had to deal with newly imported
Africans, not inured to the climate, and totally ignorant
of the work they had to perform ; and last, though not
the least, the means to purchase the land, erect buildings,
and supply the property with workmen at an outlay of at
least RlOO per head.
If the colonists were permitted to import labourers
from all parts of the world, under proper restrictions, and
in accordance with the Passengers' Act now in force,
they could supply themselves from China, Calcutta,
Madras, and Bombay, at about £lO per head. To estab—
lish these estates the labour and expense would be trifling,
compared t 9 what the original settlers had to contend