The Sun.
London, England, 1825-11-08 00:00:00

IMPROVEMENTS ON THE RIVER TYNE.

(From Me Tyne Mercury.)
A Company has been established at this port
for the purpose of effecting a great improvement in the mode of ' .
unloading vessels, which cannot fail to be highly beneficial ov
the commercial interests. The object they have in view is tb
introduce lighters into the river Tyne, to be employed as they'
are at Hull, Liverpbol, and most of the principal sea ports in
the kingdom, so that a vessel maybe discharged of her carme,
with much greater security, convenience, and dispatch than hasb
been hitherto practicable. Heretofore this duty has been per-
formed by keels, but they have been frequently otherwise en-
gaged when their services were required, and whether other-
Wise engaged or not, the keelmen seeing the importance of the
office they were called upon to discharge, have too often taken
the opportunity of practising extortion by requiring much
higher terms than could either have been asked or corn-
plied with except from the necessity under which the ship
owner was placed of employing them. Besides the high
premium thus given for their services, the keelmen were
not under sufficient controul either with regard to the
time or the care they employed in discharging the cargo. It
any deficiency ever occurred, as we understand, was sometimes-. .
observable, between the keel's-receiving the cargo and deliver-
ing it up, there was no responsibility, and the owner was ob.::
liged to submit to a loss, always mortifying from a suspicion •
at least of fraud, and not unfrequently of consequence from its
amount. From these circumstances, therefore, the policy of
establishing a company -with lighters to deliver vesseLs at any
time and at any place must appear obvious. The gentletherr
who have associated together for this purpose are chiefly
owners themselves, and will, of course, be the chief employers
of their own craft, though when not so employed, of course
it will be at the command of other shipowners for a rea,soi=
ahle compensation. The shareholders arc twenty-five in mini- .
ber, every subscriber holding two shares of twenty-five pounds.
each. The first lighter was launched at Shields on Tuesday
last, amidst crowds of spectators. Her burthen is about 67
tons, and she only draws lan foot water. This vessel is decked,
and. will thus possess a striking advantage over the keels, as she
can take in and deliver in perfect safety cargoes of a perishable
nature, such as hemp, which were not unfrequently subject to
considerable damage by the old system, from unavoidable ex- •
posure.—The company intend in the first instance to have three
of these lighters built, that they may try their effect, and we con- .
fess if their concerns are conducted with spirit and attention we
see no reason to doubt that they will be found to answer the ex-
pectations of the projectors, while they must be a very important
convenience to the port. Indeed if they are prudently managed
at the outset, it seems highly- probable it will be found neces--
sary to increase their number, and we should not be surprised
to hear that, besides the accommodation afforded by them to
the shipping, they become a source of considerable emolument
to the subscribers.

COMBINATION.—The combination mania has
seized the crews of the fishing boats at Gravesend, where :11
the vessels are fitted out, for the supply of the London market
with cod, salmon, and lobsters from Scotland. There were 160
of these smacks at Gravesend the other day, not one of which
would proceed on their voyage, until the owners consented to
raise their wages.

STAGE COACH ACClDENT.—Yesterday morn-
ing, about ten o'clock, as one of Harris's Brentford and Par,.
worth stages was coming through the town of Kensington
wards London, the front axletree of the coach broke, by which
it was overturned, and the whole of the outside passengers were
in consequence' precipitated to the ground. The proprietor
and driver, 111 r. Harris, was thrown with great violence
against !he 911).stone and was liken into a neighbouring sur-
gtlm's quite insensible; the other pa,sengess pn . the roof,
•efe all mos or less injured ; but we are extremely glad to
stake thaiJnobe of them mere so severely hurt as to'eridanger their
I.l,'vePi. A .gentleman was much cut in the face by
Me gla'si in the window, which was broken to atoms by the
shuck. The stage, which is quite new, was upset, about a
fortnight since at the corner of Regent street. Harris was
driving it at the time, and fell on the backs of the horses, and
escaped injury. There were no passengers at the time.