The Sun.
London, England, 1869-04-29 00:00:00

THE PERMISSIVE BILL.

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An important meeting was held at Manchester on
Tuesday night in favour of the Permissive Bill.
Sorneof the leading men of the neighbourhood spoke.
Mr. Birley, the Conservative member for Man-
chester, said he

"Had often felt that, however anxious they might
be to promote temperance, and however willing they
might be to impose sacrifices upon themselves, yet it might
be a question how far they had a right to impose those
sacrifices upon others. But when he considered that in
the progress of legislation it was sometimes necessary
to curtail and diminish the freedom of the individual for
the general good, it certainly appeared to him that the
present was an occasion upon which that principle might
be fully carried out. He believed that if the bill was
adopted in any large portion of a c:ty, that that portion
would become the favourite residence of the respectable
inhabitants. It was distressing to know that, at
the present time, a respectable working man e:pe-
rienced the greatest difficulty in finding a home for
his family in a locality where they were not exposed
to sounds and scenes which they ought not to see and
hear. Last year he visited many towns in Germany, and
he made it his study to see whether there were to be seen
there the degrading sights which met the eye at every
turn in this country ; but he observ, d a marked difference.
A degree of quiet and order pr.vailed in the lower parts
of the towns which could mt be found in this country
amongst the same orders of soe, ty. 'rhe evil of drunken-
ness had risen to a height hich must be earnestly
grappled with by bath the people and the Legislature."

TUE CAPTIVES IN THE SOUMALI COUNTItY.
During the excitement caused by the successful
termination of the war in Abyssinia efforts were put
forth in this country to obtain an interest in some
very apocryphal white slaves, who, it was said, were
being detained in the Soumali country. The story
told was most romantic. A ship called the St. Abbs
had been wrecked off the coast of Soumali on the
west of Africa. Certain of the crew managed to
escape drowning, and were cast up on the shore
where the "wild Africans" live. Those most interest-
ing persons had no pity on the shipwrecked sailors,
but took them into the interior of the country and
sold them for slaves. That they were still alive was
said to have been attested by certain inscriptions on
the &ins which came from the neighbourhood where
they were supposed to be held in bondage. The
story was investigated. how it arose nobody knew.
Certain it was that nearly every statement on which
it might be supposed to rest fell to the ground. Thera
were left only the two facts that a ship was wreaked,
and that skins inscribed with Roman literals had
come to the coast. This was considered sufficient to
call for a private expedition. The Government
ordered every inquiry to be made. Mr. H. A.
Churchill, C. 8., her Majesty's political agent at Zan-
ibar, writes to the Poreign Oflice reportinf.v, that Mr.
Heale, who had been sent to Brava, lm; .s learnt nothin
respecting. the men, The sum of £lOO was offered
for every captive, but ito response was wade
during the six months that 311.. I was at Brava,
from any quarter, althouo the most influential
chief of Brava male the ofLr knovm far ;,,jici neAr,