The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1814-09-20 00:00:00

BRISTOL.

•
A Meeting of tw Merchants and Traders of the
cite of•fiiistot, so held on Tuesday last at the
Guildhall, 41 for he purpose of taking into consi-
deration the preent unprotected state of our Ma-
ritime Tratle."—"lAC It - Agit Worshipful the Mayor
in the Chair. •
The Requiritioi for calling the Meeting having
been read,
Mr. M.J. FARII:I.t, row and said, that be had
been induced its impure it few firsilutionc fur the
consideration of tw Meettag, at the rerest of a
number of Meeehatts, interested in the trade of
this c)ty with thiports shroud, and more particu-
larly with Ireland. and tleit lw wits actuated to
step forward io tie capacity of an humble inilivi-
dual, from a collodion of the imperious necessity
tt Itieh the present state of 'rude imposed upon the
31erchants to stihnit u reminwirinto e the soh-
ject to the iiiiitiedate tltfi, ers of the Croon ; that
he would state the mitres/non opois his mind in the
thin of three septrate propositions, which, if he
succeeded as to the .iatisfaction of
the Meeting. he vould follow by:the mittitte (la
Nketuoritil which be held in his basal, and which he
tneaust to submit to the coositleratiolt and corrention
of the Chairman atil 11cetin1 :—•
lest. He mote. tea thitthe feeding. interaA send .hippie';
now puet, hetet •et stninvel very eenettele e Able led eir* :pete t '
ler late) ite Si. Gener and the bleb 043111.1.1, strop even
(be entrunee almost nu PM' port.
Idly. That the Nat JI Peewee of this kneeeleten WM. amply
',ancient to the tart ertten4ec sod efficient protection of
ils tra4r. •
tv• ntituntnrueren 11tore been pit %rested tn. flee'
Boa of Aaiun-all), e.hich batiste-to budoat proved ef-
fectual.

hn twoof of the first, he would 'only mention the
capture of the Betp-9, the Berwickshire Parket,.
and the General Polk ;- and any one who choose•
to turn his eves on the even balance of insurante
mid risk, which hung suspended its the office of the
Insurance Broker, would be instantly convinced of
the truth of this proposition; for it was a wdl
known fact, that the %eights which crow levelled the
scales, had lately increased nearly three-fold more
than when this country had, single-handed, to con-
tend sophist nearly the whole Continent. The in-
surances to Ireland were then effected at 15s. 9d.
per cent. ; now, when the fleets of France, Spain,
and Rolland, were no more, and the British navy
might be said to be almost omnipotent, the insu-
rance to that country hail risen to 4!s. per cent.;
so that. if we took into calculation the diminished
number of our opponents, it wind.) not be too much
to say, that the increase of our sufferings, from in-
attention to this species of defence, were iu u ratio
of ten to 01W.
With regent to the second proposition, it might
be considered self-evident. ‘1 ere not the fleets of
our former enemies iss,ept away from the ocean, and
there ac now left tots a maritime enemy, whose
a-tilde force could not. be said scacely to exceed
that of one 'vessel this country %ad just launched to
the memory of the immortal Nelson. Who would.
or could then doubt his second proposition
Thirdly, he wished not to be understood to accuse
the Lords of the Admiralty of a disinclination to
attend to their high official duties -a single capture,
aceonspanied by a memorial, might not strike them
with much force; but he believed there was a de-
gree of flippancy in the answers which had been
re—
cr from some persons connected with that do .
partmcnt, which had given offence, whets it was a
notorious fact, that
.just ground of eothouini ,A-
i,trol, and he could produce evidence from Genik-
-1131911 present, that they sailed hackman,* and for- •
wards in St. Viewer's Channel 'for necks togethes,
mid never saw a british cruiser.

Mr. Farrell then prosweded to read the tirst reso-
lotion, whirls was dreoutlefi by Mr. Miion.
Mr. MAC ADAM said, that after the very ahle
manner its *bids the business; of the meeting had
. been opened by the gentleman who hail just ...sat
doss n, be should not trouble it with many observa-
tion* Ile believed lint one sentiment uetunted the
.metering upon the preswnt oceaSion--that of in-
dignation on reflectiug that any British port could
be bleckialed by such an enemy as the Americans.
lie ("Rad nut, hosiever, abstain from observing, that
the answer received to un 'application Made by a
...entlemun of this city to Mr. ('raker, deserved to
• e considered us a I,a.uuic and petulant reply ; par-
ticularly ;rhea he informed the meeting, that the
letter to Mr. Cruiser had been wiitten by one who,
they would all allow, was incapable of addressing
the servants of the Crown, upon ally subject, but
with the greatest propriety and respect—he meant
Mr. Alderman Daniel—
The MAYost here. rose, and begged to make a
few oloserva:ins, in thisi stage of the discinsfion, on
the remarks Which had just fallen floor Mr. Mae
Adam. He srai fearful a greater degree of uni-
•.4. AY, • •

*Mr. Corker, titan the letter itself warranted ; and
lie thought it right to Winos the uaeethag, that
Mr. Croker, in las official capacity, could not no.
tam au application from one gentieurair more than
another. He was inclined to think that the letter
%1 us merely one of ordinary form, and such As was
generally sent in answer to applications of this tor-
ture. Ile Nal occasion to make a commuisicntion
respecting the (rtierol Doyle and the Berwickshire
Partys, to the Admiralty, in his official carpricity as
Chief Magistnate of this city, and lad received, not
from Mr. Croker, hut from Mr. Barrow, another
officer, u reptv very similar to the one complained
of. merely mentioned this circumstance to re-
move any undue impression us to any neglect of the
officers of the Crown; and he could inform the
tweeting, that at the tune the application was sent,
the Loots of the Admiralty were on a survey of the
ports, and one of the Sten:auks probably attended
them. • He hoped, therefore, geutleinen would not
give too nun h consideration to a document which
lw did not consider as intentionally disrespectful.
Mr. MAC ADAM proceeded to observe, that he
might, from what had fallen from the Chair, have
considered himself mistaken if he had stood alone ;
but when lie reflected ou time opinions of those
monad In in, which were in unison with his own,
and on the sentiments publicly repressed by the
trolls of Liverpool and Glasgow, upon the same
N sm. ries of answers ;,even tir them, he could not alter
his velitiownts upon the Osibject. Mr. tricker laud
stated that Mere was a sufficient force mow employ-
ed—that there were three friptes and fourteen
sloops of war already on this scrvice.—lle would
ask, how were they disposed of, when masters of.

vessel‘ could eririae fur fourteen days in St George'.
Clio l, and whet' out West India fleet had come
in without seeingout ? Mr. Mae Adam would iwt
slow to a propositioil to address the Prince Regent,
Iwcause he bail great reliance on the Lord% of the
Admiralty, and (relieved them disposed to afford
every protection; hut he thoOglit the Memorial
shriald 1w so worded as to slew that the Meeting
felt a degree of displea.are with the alisaers which
had been received.

The Resolutions, stittim; that the protection af-
forded to our trade was not adequate to its object,
and the Memorial to the Admiralty, requesting an
additional number of cruisers to the proper points
were then read and agreed to.

DUBLIN, Scrr. 15!