The Sun.
London, England, 1859-07-14 00:00:00

THE ROYAL AGRICULTUAL SOCIETY
OF ENGLAND.

TILE NA VI.

The ship Belleisle, 6, Commander H. M. Bing-
ham, from Hong Kong, March 10, and the Cape of
Good Hope, May 12, arrived in Plymouth Sound
on Tuesday morning, as reported in The Sun of
yesterday. She was commissioned at Plymouth
March 20, 1857, and during the hostilities was
employed as alospital on the coast of China. The
Belleisle brings 10 naval and military invalids,_and
the following. officers :—Mr. F. G. Pearce, Paymas-
ter, late of the Cambrian, 40, invalided; Mr. G. H.
A. Cox, midshipman, of the Cruiser, 17 ; Mr. E.
Gozzard, Assistant-Surgeon, gunboat Staunch; and
Mr. Mr. Benjamin Bradshaw, late of the screw
steamship Ad7entare. One officer, nine seamen,
and 11 invalids died on the passage home from
Hong Kong. She has brought from Canton and
Hong Kong 12 metal cannons weighing from 3 to
41- tons each. Spoke June 2, in lat. 571 N., long.
21.42 W., the emigrant ship Shah Jehan, for Algoa
Bay ; and June 3, in lat. 6.42. N., long. 21.47 W.,
the barque Anna Anderson, bound to Kurrachee.
The Belleisle will probably be paid off at Chatham.
The sailing ship Vanguard, 84. has been placed
in the basin of the dockyard at Devonpert to re-
ceive anchors and the necessary gear, preparatory-
to her being towed to Sheerness, where she will be
converted into a screw, and the frigate Octavia, 50,
will be towed to Portsmouth for the same purpose.
Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas S. Pashley, Admiral
Superintendent of the DOckyard, struck his flag at
Devonport on Monday evening for an absence of-
four days.
The gunboat Snap is ordered• to be repaired at
Devonport and placed in the steam ordinary in lieu
of the Jackdaw, which has been put in commission.
During the- late' hot weather tents have been
pitched in the grounds of the Royal Military. Hos-
pital at Plymoath for the use of the patients.
The paddlewheel steam 'sloop Gladiator, 6, Com-
mander Hickley, was placed alongside the coal
depot in Hamoaze on Monday. •
The newly-raised stokers at Plymouth have been
sent outside the breakwater in a gunboat for exer-cise.

The screw steam line-of-battle ship Trafalgar
left Sheerness Harbour on Tuesday at 9.30 a.m., on
a final trial of her machinery, ' and the Admiralty
authorities expressed themselves entirely satisfied
with the results of the trial.
By an Admiralty order, a number of engineers,
boiler-makers, &c. now engaged in the factory at
Sheerness, under Mr. George Blaxland, are work-
ing from five a.m. to 10 p.m. to complete certain
works urgently wanted for the various ships com-
missioned, and ordered to be got ready to be com-
missioned, at that poet.
Rear-Admiral of the Blue Sohn Elphinstone
ErSkine hoisted his flag on board the screw line-of-
battle ship Edgar at Sheerness, yesterday, at 2.10
p.m., which was saluted in the usual form, and the
salute returned by the flagship of the Commander-
in-Chief Vice-Admiral, of the Red Edward Harvey.
The hired transport Clara, has arrived at Wool-
wich pier, and has commenced shipping shot and
other heavy stores. The War Department have also
taken up the following ships for the transport of
stores from Woolwich Arsenal----viz., the Amelia,
the Eurydice, the Skipworth, the Vigilant and the
Daniel Jeffries..
On account of the extremely low rate of wages
paid to the dockyard labourers at Woolwich .(re-
cently reduced to .12s. 6d. per week, all but the
most necessitous refuse to enter the dockyard em-
ploy in that capacity. A notice has been affixed
at the principal entrance, signifying that la-
bourers, caulkers, and sawyers were required,
stating the numbers, and, although the notice
has been daily hung up during the past month,
the numbers required are not yet engaged.
The same class of men employed, in the Arsenal
are in receipt of 145., 16s. 4d., and 18s. per week,
and some of the laboratory labourers are earning
as high as 215., and are engaged, as in the dock-
yard, 56 hours per week. Another objection to the
dockyard employ and preference to' the Arsenal
work, arises from the privilege of the half-holiday
on Saturday, accorded by the War Department
only.

The following appointments were made yester-
day at the Admiralty :—J. E. Chapple, master to
the Simoom ; R. W. Brigstock, Acting Assist.-
Surgeon to thelSidon ; and W. Asslin, Acting As-
sist.-Surgeon to the Cossack.
Lieut. Hatchard, of the Impregnable, 104, at Ply-
mouth, has been appointed to the Cossack, 21, at
S herness.

A. moty•rnore, llowevoit,;
lezt Johnstone by their f:-
Joh Burns, miner's drawer,
.14
in the ight breast.
.7 a S
E 4 ard Little, laboorer, PaisleyMrangeman 2 -severe .cut on the. head.
, Jose II! -Fraser, Lin Wood, Orangeman ; severe
'scalp quads.
Joh Dickson, 70, High-street, Paisley, Orange-
man; ut on the bead:.
oh Mellon, printcutter,. Paisley, Orangeman,
1
as alio his wife; cut on thelead and' face.
TWO prisoners were taken. One of them we have
already iiatieed as haVing only escaped with his lifo
through the intervention of the police. Tie gives
his name asPatricli M'Craw,Newton-street, Paisley.
Ile is stabbed in the thigh, and had one of' his
117
wrists cut. ' The other prisoner gave his name
as Francis Brannan. Both are Catholics.
Medical attendance was fortunately soon obtained
for the wounded. = Dr. Donald, from Paisley, hap-
pened to be visiting a family in the vi;lage shortly
after the'affray happened, and. he was followed by
Dr. M'Hutcheon, of the Paisley Infirmary. Mes-
sages having been despatched to Johnstone, Drs.
Colligan, M'Laren, and Stirling arrived succes-
sivly, as also Drs. Daniel and lir. B. Mackinlay,'
from Paisley. Marshall and Burns .may both be
considered as dangerous. The former in the course
'of the evening was removed to the Infirmary here.
As was to be anticipated, the affray has created
great excitement in the neighbourhood. In the
afternoon nearly all the miners left their work; but -
when
our parcel was despatched last night no
iurther disturbance was reported. The enrolled
pensioners resident in Paisley were called out in
the afternoon and, lodged in the-Paisley barracks
for the night, there being no military at the pre-
sent time.in. the district. ' ' '- • . One very extraordinary feature in the day's pro-
ceedings was the encouragement given to the
of Orangemen by,the police. In the morning several the night force, so soon as they were dismissed,
joined the procession in their uniform.

TRP. SLA.VE

--
A public meeting was held last evening at the
London Tavern, Bishopsgate-street, to consider the
traffic in Chinese and coolies earried on in British
ships, to British and foreign colonies, and to adopt
a memorial to her Majesty's Government, praying
for a committee of inquiry into the subject.
Lord Brougham presided, and besides his lord-
ship and other speakers, there were present Mr.
Charles Gilpin, M.P., Mr. William Allen, the Rev.
J. F. T. Brown, and the Rev. S. Green. -
Lord BROUGHAM said it gave him very 'great
satisfaction to meet his friends in that room, in
order that they might take into consideration a
subject of very great importance,. most interesting
to 'every friend of humanity, and, he would add, to
all friends of. a sound -end- well-cohsidered 1)olity,
concerning a large number of their felloT men.
The main object of their meeting was to consider
the state of the immigration into the British colo-
nies of the coolies from the East India possessions
of the Crown and from China. There were many
differences of opinion upon the subject, and whether
or not there existed in the West Indian colonies,
and generally in our colonial possessions, that want'
of labour which was contended for on the part of
those who favoured the introduction of this
class of labourers, it must be: borne in *Mind
that the system had existed for five-and-twenty
years, almost as many years, indeed, as • had
elapsed since the liberation of the slaves.
-Whether the system ought to exist at all, and if
so, to what degree, was a question which; he
thought, deserved careful inquiry, and one upon
which it would be rash to give a confident opinion ;
before they could come to any irrefragable conclu-
sion upon it, it would be needful to resort to the
process of investigation. He felt no hostility
against the West India body ; on the contrary, he
believed he had been - their best friend—first, in
promoting the abolition of the infernal slave trade
—(loud cheers)—and next in promoting the de-
struction of the foreign slave trade after the entire
abrogation of the system, as far as she was con-
cerned, by England. (Hear, hear.) That was the
course he had adopted in order to see the slave trade
really and effectually put down all over the world..
But the immigration of the coolies into the West
Indies was said to be calculated to effect great relief
to the West India proprietors. If it were so, and
if it could be shown that in consequence of the
liberation of the negroes it was necessary that other
resources should be placed within reach of the
planters, still they ought not to have the benefit of
the immigration if it were likely to lead to a revival
of the slave trade. (Hear.) When he brought
the question the other night before the House of
Lords he was told by the head of the Colonial Depart-
ment that the planters themselves were taxed in
order to obtain the supply of coolies and others, and
no doubt the application of such a test, that of taxa-
tion, was a strong one to apply to men's motives and
feelings, and it might be supposed that a great want
must exist before such taxation would be readily
assented to ; but his answer was that though the
planters submitted to be taxed the tax was not
confined to themselves. (Hear.) The poor negro
was taxed as well as the planter, the liberated Afri-
can or the noble as well as the proprietor, and the
one paid as much in proportion as the other; but
the planter paid the tax in order to obtain a further
supply of labour, -.vhile the negro had to pay the -
tax which operated against himself by increasing
the competition of labour. (Hear.) The question
demanded investigation, and he would strongly re-
commend the meeting to confine itself to the de-
mand for inquiry, not one-sided inquiry, but one
which should present the opinions of all classes of
persons acquainted with the subject. (Hear.) He
had thus given very shortly his notion of the state
of the case, and he would.not detain them longer
in a state of the weather which caused fatigue -to
those who listened, as well as to those who spoke,
and he would only further say he hoped theywould
give a fair and patient hearing to all who might
speak, whatever might be the opinions they enter-
tained. He might mention, however, that lie had
received a letter from the Bishop of Oxford, who
•regretted that he was unable to attend, as he had
been required to start at an early hour of the day
for the country in the discharge of his spiritual'
duties. ' He could not name the name of Wilber-
force7--(loud and continued cheering)—without --
having recalled to his mind the triumph with which
it stoo associated, and when he uttered it feelings
of veneration and of affection strove in his bosom
.for the mastery. (Loud cheers.)
Several letters were received from gentle-
men who had been unable to attend, and among
them one from Sir John Baring, whose.shattered
health prevented his being present.
meeting,
gC,HhAaRvLiEnt.S.. BUXTON,it
heardt h M.P., m
o moved--"
. statementse which Thathtahvies
been made on the subject of the present system of_
obtaining Indians and Chinese as labourers, and
their employment in British colonies, considers
desirable that a memorial should be presented to
his Grace the Duke of Newcastle, her Majesty's
Secretary of State for the Colonies, praying him to
promote the appointment of a committee of the
House of Lords to inquire into the whole subject."
He was of opinion that it was of the utmost im-
portance that the inquiry should take place; and 'he believed that the most effective mode of con-
ducting it would be by a committee of the House
of Lords. Theinsqt India Islands,uirywaslikely
Coolie immi-
to give great
satisfaction, and would lead to a better state of
feeling
gn
in the wre
was often effected by most questionable
meanso, and searching investigation was necessary
gthamr
tt.hceriwilisHoloeLqAufeAstivios
tory and intelligible basis.
wic was supported T might be put on a satisfac-
tory
seconded the resolution,
heed
a to.
by Mr. G. TnomrsoN, and
gDulle of Newcastle,
then read a memorial to the
Newcastle, which it was proposed to pre-
sent tot he noble duke on an early day, which was
adopte
The meeting then separated.