The Sun.
London, England, 1859-11-17 00:00:00

FEMALE LABOUR.

It is a common practice with moralists and his-
torians to estimate the civilisation of a community
by the position and treatment accorded to women
in the social body; and we are usually taught to
recognise they. true features of barbarism in cus-
toms which throw all the labour of life on the
shoulders of women, while the men reserve them-
selves in haughty indolence for the savage pas-
times of hunting or war. With the accuracy of
this moral diagnosis we are not concerned to

quarrel, but we do entertainconsidsze considerable
in thisledou
whether our own most opposite u
respect are entitled -to unqualified approval as
evidence of true civilisMon. In exempting our
women from the toils of existence, and quarter-
ing them systematically on the stronger sex for
support, -we have left them exposed, when this
support fails them, to trials and sufferings far
less tolerable than the mere hardships of labour.
We do not say that our theory is essentially false;
on the contrary, we believe it to be true ; but,
whether true or false, it is found by experience to
be impracticable, and it would be mere folly to
shut our eyes to the realities before us. The simple
fact that women are constantly thrown upon the
world to get their daily bread by their own exer-
tions is a sufficient answer to those who think that
dependence upon man is a woman's proper position.
We are quite willing to accept that principle, if it
could but be realized. On this point we be-
lieve all parties, at any rate in this country, are
of one accord. If every woman could reckon
with absolute confidence on the protection and sup-
port of a father, a husband, a brother, or song.
body standing in an equivalent capacity, that
state of things would unquestionably be the best
for us. The service which a woman so placed
could render in return would be her natural service;
ituh e domestic
the
fam il o n `dutiesd
the
areb
e her
home t pbraotivber
rduties,mostgand it is i
timat
gs pa hi
ne
sr
ao
yis f
otro
ab
me foomu ne
ud.
t. eesye
would propositions
be
pro
promptly
tdl
yo not
ac-
cepted by the most earnest advocates of female inde-
pendence. Mrs. Jameson woull accept them, Miss
Parkes would accept them, and they would meet,
indeed, as far as we are aware, with no contraven-
tion whatever. But, unfortunately, this common
agreement is utterly good for nothing in the face of
every-day life. Destitute women crowd the scene
by thousands, and the question is not whether we
shall reject our theory as essentially wrong, but
what we shall do with it when it is so extensively
destroyed by facts. It is too late to inquire
whether women ought to take upon their own
shoulders the duties of daily labour. They are
doing so already, under the compulsion of neces-
sity, in vast numbers, and with most deplorable
disadvantages. When we discuss, therefore, the
duties on which they may be best employed, we
are but dealing with facts as they stand. Nobody
desires to invest a woman with new "rights," or
to charge her with any new "mission." She is
best placed as man's helpmate, but that place,
unhappily, she cannot always find, and, as she can-
not, it is obviously the wisest course to make the
best of the difficulty by substituting some other
spheres of usefulness.
Afhe whole question of " educated female labour"
—by which term is meant all female labour above
that of an absolutely menial character—may be
resolved into a single line of explanation. Every
woman of education who has got her bread to get
is expected lo get it as a governess, and, as this
necessarily proves the ruin of the profession, it is
asked whether some other openings cannot be
found. It deserves especially to be noticed that in
the classes below the educated class there is no
pressure or suffering experienced. Take a girl who
does not aspire to be a governess, or even a needle-
woman, and she can command her own terms.
Servants of all kinds, from the highest to the
lowest—housekeepers, ladies'-maids, cooks, nurses
—get their full share of the prosperity of the
times. Their wages are nearly double what they
were fifty years ago ; they can dress as smartly as
their mistresses, and save money too. It is only
when a certain amount of education has been ac-
quired or a certain position in lice occupied that
a woman becomes helpless. If this were the
case with men we should think the result
most extraordinary. If good schooling and quick
capacity were to disqualify a lad for rising in the
world we should regard the state of society as
strangely wrong ; and yet this is what is allowed to -
happen with women. Uneducated women are at a
premium ; they may have whatever they like to ask
for by going to the colonies, but they have already,
got such a call of the market at home that few of
them take the voyage. Give these same women a
little education, just enough to lift their ideas above
the kitchen or the garret, and they lose all their
advantages. As seamstresses they may work them-
selves to death for half the wages of a scullion, or
"go out" as governesses for less pay than a cook,
and with scarce a prospect of eompetence or comfort
after a life of drudgery.
We have already inserted communications on
this subject showing how many branches of art
and how many departments of labour are really
open to female industry if the prejudices of society
could not be but once discarded. Modelling, en-
graving, lithographic drawing, filigree work, and
fifty other corms of designing, would afford ample
scope and excellent remuneration for special capa-
cities. Such capacities, however, in women as well
as men, must be comparatively rare, and we should
not omit to mention that the ordinary standard of
female competency is not only not ignored in these
speculations, but is actually regarded as of more
immediate promise than talents of a higher kind.
It is at this point, indeed, and this only, that
the controversy we have been considering ex-
hibits any symptom of radical innovation. Here,
however, it has been asserted that, apart from
all the contingent obligations of women, it
is absolutely indispensable, as a measure of
social reform, that woman's work should be
called in and employed in certain departments of
business. It is argued that women in workhouses,
women in prisons, women in reformatories, and
women in sickness, do imperatively require female
attendance and supervision ; that for lack of this
superintendence rising female generations are
viciously disposed, and that by excluding women
from such places of trust and authority we not only
deprive the sex of a remunerative occupation, but
work infinite damage to the whole social body.
We cannot enter into this argument more par-
ticularly at present. We do but allude to it, not
merely as indicating what Miss Parkes called the
great " field of paid social labour," but as showing
what opinions arc at work upon the question, besides
those which are concerned simply with female
employment.
We can well understand that a good deal of this
discussion may in many quarters be distasteful.
In fact, it does imply a sad shortcoming. some-
where or other, in our social system. The
very proposition from which we:are obliged to start
—that in this opulent and prosperous country
thousands of women must be expected to miss that
position in life where the greatest amount of happi-
ness could be imparted and received—is in itself a
disagreeable one. Perhaps, too, it may be thought
that the present movement may rather aggravate
the mischief, and that if, in addition to the disin-
clination of men to marry, we create a disinclination
in women to be married, the result must be prejudi-
cial to civilisation and society. But Ws3 do not see
how the risk, if risk there is, can be avoided. There
is the actual evil before us, and wo must face it.

It is not as if the destitution of women were a

thing of uncommon occurrence, to be recognised
as a rare exception which could not affect a
rule. Miss Parkes swept away that idea at
onco when, in addressing her audience at Brad-
ford, she did not hesitate to aak whether there was
a single man in the company who bad not known
among his own connections an instance of the de-
stitution referred to. The difficulty, therefore, or
the misfortune, or whatever it may be termed, has
already occurred, and is staring us in the face.
How it has happened it might not be useless to in-
quire, but at any rate, there it is. Women can no
longer, in this country, rely with such eertainty
upon the support of man as to be exempt from the
obligation of learning how to support themselves.
There is the truth. It would be the best of all

remedies if we could be enabled to unsay it, but, as
we cannot do this, it remains only to deal with it
to the best of our power, and to lend a helping hand
to those who, if they cannot place women in their
proper spheres, will at least relieve them from the
misery of having no sphere at all.— 7 imes.

THE SCACII SHIPOWNER AND THE WRECKED
Cnr.ws.—During a heavy gale of wind on the i'th inst., the
schooner Hawk, of Aberdeen, picked up off St. Abb's Head
the crews, consisting of six men, of the wrecked vessels,
Ark, of Colchester, and Ann, of North Shields. The poor
fellows were kindly treated for four days by the master of
the Scotch schooner, and afterwards brought by him, we
believe, to London. The probable expense of this mainte-
nance was £lss. On the Scotch shipowner learning this
fact, he immediately instructed the master of his vessel to
apply for the repayment of the expenses from the Ship-
wrecked Mariners' Society. Of course, that society declined
to entertain the application. A subsequent application to
the National Lifeboat Institution was attended with no
better success. If the shipowner himself were to suffer
shipwreck, and practically to avail himself of tho kindness
of those who above all others ought to extend it to him, he
would no doubt appreciate rightly the nature of the amps-
thy and kindness shown to the six.men for whose manhi
ta-
cnasaneceisfoonlr ayfaenwotdhaerysihlleussotramtiuonchofdetshie tlerelsitpayomr enn,t.syluptatthys
that unfortunately exists between shipowners and the sailors
boarn
hr their employ. We have often referred to the want of
dthisicsoavyrrepdatthhaytotnheowrecaescikoends
vessel se l wreckhad on , when
aitlithtlaes
or been
provisions, not even a lifebuoy or lifebelt to save life oil these
disasters.

MR. DARBY GRIFFITH, M.P., OH THE
AFFAIRS OF ITALY•

(From the Wiltshire independent.)
On Tuesday evening Mr. Darby Griffith, M.P.,
delivered an address at the Town Hall on the affairs
of Italy, in pursuance of a promise he hadomade to
some of his constituents who had requested him to
do so. Eight o'clock was the time appointed by
Mr. Griffith for the delivery of the address, but long
before that hour a great many persons assembled in
the hall, a large portion of whom were ladies.
The hon. member cntered the room about eight
o'clock, accompanied by the Mgor and some other
of his friends.
The MAYOR, ascended the platform and briefly
stated. the object of Mr. Griffith's appearance that
evening, and referred to the numerously and re-
spectably signed requisition which had been pre-
sented to Mr. Griffith.

Mr. GRIFFITH introduced his subject by briefly'
sketching the early history of Ttaly before and at
the time of the Christian era. He remarked that
the history of Italy in the 13th and 14th centuries
was the most flourishing period of that country.
He touched lightly upon the interference which at
that early period had been exercised by Germany.
From an early period also Italy had attracted the
attention of France and excited her desire for ac-
quiring power in that peninsula, and Fiance was
even at that time opposed by Germany. He next
referred to the early pre-eminence of the arts in
Italy,-and observed that many of the names which
are now commonly used both in France and Eng-
land had derived their origin from Italy ; as for
instance "milliner" from Milan, and " pistol" from
a small town in Italy named Pistoia, where these
weapons were once made in great perfection.
Mantles and mantuamaker were words also origi-
nating from tne town of Mantua. Lombardy at
the present day was exactly what it was described
by Virgil. Lightly touching upon its geographical
features as confined and bound in by the Alps, Mr.
Griffith rapidly passed over a description of the
fertility of the plains of Italy, and came to the
more recent affairs of its political and social condi-
tion. After a passing remark on the possession of
Venetia and other parts by Austria, and the tenacity
with which she retained them, he referred to the
commencement of the present year, when tt e Empe-
ror Napoleon gave his first indication of his inten-
tion to interfere with the relations of Austria and
Italy. The Emperor communicated to the Austrian
ambassador his regret that there was not so cordial
an understanding between his governmentand that
of Austria, as he desired, indicating, at the same
time, that he referred to the affairs of Italy. This
was at once understood by all the European Powers
to mean that Napoleon intended to step in with
Frendh interference, and. led to correspondence be-
tween the Governments of England, Austria, and
France. The events which had transpired during
the past year, fully confirmed the correctness of the
impression which he (Mr. Griffith) entertained, at
once, that Austria would make no concessions what-
ever, but would defend at any cost her Italian pos-
sessions. In answer to the early remonstrances of
England, Austria had said, " do not blame us, but,
if you must scold somebody, scold France and Sar-
dinia." Mr. Griffith next referred to the speech of
Lord Palmerston on the first day on which the pre-
sent Parliament met, is which his lordship depre-
cated the prospect of war which was apparent be-
tween Austria and France, but stated, that under
the existing treaties by which Austria held
Venetia and Lombardy, it was impossible
for England to ask her to give up any
of those possessions. Austria had been ob-
liged to hold possession by the most arbitrary
amt tyrannical rule, suppressing every species
• of liberty, and most especially the freedom of the
press. In a passing notice of the negotiations which
ensued between the Governments of England and
Austria, Mr. Griffith took occasion to claim for Lord
Malmesbury the credit of having stated, in the
plainest and most unequivocal manner possible, the
deprecation by England of a war being entered
into between Austria and Sardinia and France, and
her disapprobation of Austria's treatment of the
Italian States. The manner in which Austria re-
ceived the remonstrances of England further con-
firmed his (Mr. Griffith's) first impression, that she
would make no concessions whatever, and would
rather appeal to military force; and the result had
fully proved the correctness of the view he had
taken. As an illustration of the manner in which
Austria maintained her power, he observed that
they must all have heard of the severity with which
she had carried out her military executions upon a
number of Italians who had sought t) oppose her
authority. Those executions had of course, caused
great sorrow among a large number of families;
and when a number of ladies assembled in the mag-
nificent cathedral of Mantua, to pay their tribute of
grief for their lost relatives, after the Roman Catho-
lic manner, the head of the police in that city,
whose name was Ramponi, thought proper to con-
sider it apolitical offence, and he turned them out
of the building. Those ladies then removed to the
cemetery to mourn over the graves of their rela-
tives, and Ramponi there looked them in, and kept
them during the whole day, without any efresh-
ment, under the burning heat of an Italian. sun.
That was a specimen of the system under which
Austria expected to govern her possessions in Italy.
It was not only hars tyranny, but it. was carried
to a length of absurdity which made it border on
the ludicrous, much as if the Mayor of Devizes was
to lock a number of ladies in the Town-hall who had
assembled at a Bible Society's meeting. Mr. Griffith
next referred to the Emperor Napoleon's first
indications of hostile intentions against Austria,
at the commencement of the present year, with
a passing notice of the. article which appeared
in the iloniteur on Jan. Gth, endeavouring to ex-
plain. away the Emperor's previous intimation ; and
stated that on the 10th January Lord Malmesbury
had thought it necessary to write to the Govern-
ments of France, Austria, and Sardinia. He (Mr.
Griffith) thought it was a matter of regret that
those negotiations were not made public at that
time, as he believed the force of public opinion in
England, which would at once have found expression
through the press, must and would have had a power-
ful influence in affecting the measures of all those
countries. He then read extracts from the de-
spatches which were subsequently published, and
.said the result of the correspondence with England
on the part of Austria amounted to her saying, " go
and tell France that if she interferes between Aus-
tria and Sardinia, England will send her forces to
support Austria, and France will then do nothing."
After tracing the progress of events, and the wrt-
to its conclusion at Solferino' with the treaty im-
mediately made between the Emperors, 7ilr. Griffith
remarked that the English Government then be-
came directly concerned in. the negotiations ; and
he had, on the 22dJuly, in the House of Commons,
asked the Secretary for Foreign Affairs whether he
knew if any provision was made that the Grand
Dukes and other authorities, which had before
existed in the Italian States, were to be restored to
power by force of arms in opposition to the wishes
of the Italian population ; aad Lord John Russell
was able to announce that the Emperor Napoleon
-had given a pledge that there was no such inten-
tion. He (Mr. Griffith) deprecated secret treaties,
both before and after a war, and contended that it
would be greatly to the advantage of public inte-
rests that the representatives or the people should
know what were the provisions of those treaties,
instead of their being kept secret among the few
forming the Government. Ile had been
induced to make his recent journey to Italy,
for the purpose of learning, by his own per-
sonal observations, what really were the feelings
of the Italian people upon the subject of the
restoration of the ruling powers in their states. Mr.
Griffith then described the haste and the discomforts
attending his journey, which he commenced on the
2d of September. Haring arrived in ,Turin, he saw
Sir James Hudson there, and received 'from him the
necessary credentials and introductions. At Milan
he saw the Governor Of Lombardy, from whom he
received the"most courteous attention, and he never
saw a population who appeared more happy than
that of Milan, livinz on the most friendly terms
with the French and Sardinian troops quartered in
that city. From Milan hetravelledOn by way of
the beautiful Lake of Garda, and saw the fortress
of Peschiera, which looked like a place of great
strength, but he doubted whether it was so in reality.
Verona and Mantua were immensely strong kir-
tresses, the latterwe
especially,li as it had never been
s,
' taken, excepting when it was reduced by famine by
Napoleon 1., during; ctonequests in Italy, but even
he had never attemnt'crd h
assault. He (Mr. 'Griffith) capture of Mantua
returned to Milan in
n
time to meet the deputation from Parma and' M o
den a, one of whom addressed the audience from his
box in the great theatre, on the same evening,
where the deputation had been received with the
greatest enthusiasm. He next vi,:iteml Parma. which
possOscol a mast tumultuous population ; but tbre,
had her ra shamefully gsverned, anal therefore it was
littlelo be wondered at. The lato Grand Duke had
.been asstissitiated in the public streets, and, apart
from dirt mode of punishm.-nt being justifiable, he
had merited his fate. At Parma Mr. Griffith met
ai id was received by him with such a degree
of confideE ter, as really surprised him, for he told him
without the least reserve, what the people would do,
and what +lc 7 would not do. At Bologna Mr. Griffith
• found bveryhouse placarded with inscriptions, "Viva
Victor Exam at " Viva our king," and "- Viva our
elected king.'' He found also in that place the most
determined or to going back to the domina-
tion of the 11.1i.ie, and Mr. Griffith here remarked that

the Government of the Pope's Prime Minister, Car-
dinal
Antonelli, had been of the worst possible kind.
Passing on to Florence, Mr. Griffith observed, that
it was an impossibility to separate those mill Ita-
lian States, which were of no more extent than our
English counties. At Florence, he saw the gover-
nor, Baron Ricasoli, by whom he was received with
the greatest frankness and confidence, and he de-
scribed the Baron as being the model of a patriotic
nobleman. The Baron was a member of one of the
most anciert families, and he told Mr. Griffith
though he was that day a man of wealth, he knew
not but that on the next he might be in poverty, as
he had laid his all upon the altar of his country.
To show how free Florence was from a sanguinary
desire for vengeance upon their oppressors the
Baron told him that on the previous (Sunday) night
Count Andrea Corsini was at the opera, and, though
the bitterest enemy of the Florentines, not the
slightest indignity or the least molestation was
offered to him. On returning to Turin, Mr. Grif-
fith saw the Sardinian Minister for Foreign Af-
fairs, who was a man quite fitted for his position
by the mental qualifications, extensive information,
end liberal mind which he possessed. Many
of the questions which Mr. Griffith had desired to
be informed upon in direct communication with the
people of Italy, when he left England, had, he
found, travelled wit:' es great rapidity as himself
between the respective Governments, and already
been disposed of. He found an those with whom
he came in contact men well qualified for their
duties as leaders in such a time ; and to the one
great question which he sought to have answered—
Whether they would have the Grand Dukes at all?
he received from all the same reply, that " they
would not, be the consequences whatever they
might." They stated that they were prepared rather
to adopt the most desperate measures, and they did
not hesitate to state to him what they would do ;
but, so desperate were some of their measures, that
he did not think it advisable to make them public.
Another object he had in view in going to Italy
was to ascertain what idea was entertained as to
the feelings and intentions of England in connec-
tion with Italian affairs. Many had a notion that
she could send her fleets to any part of the coast,
and do what she liked in the way, of armed inter-
vention ; and he was therefore desirous of explain-
ing to those with whom he came in contact, that
the employment of physical force by England would-
do the cause of Italian freedom more harm than
anything else, as it would be the very means of ex-
citing the jealousy of all the European powers—
especially that of France—and would lead to all
the other powers being arrayed against them. They
had stated to him that they were quite prepared to
fight their own battles, and to ask from England
only sympathy, and the moral force of public opi-
nion. After some remarks in support of a prin-
ciple which he laid down, that government was
an art and not a science, he contended that it ought
to be made or altered to suit the taste, habits, and
feelings of the people governed, although he depre-
cated the idea, broached at a recent meeting, at
Aberdeen, that people were justified in deposing
their rulers or kings whenever they thought pro-
per. He believed, however, that when the case of
the States of Italy came to be examined, it would
not be found so very different from our own Revo-
lntion. James 11. abdicated, and the Grand Dukes
ran away from their States, so that in both cases
the scats of power were left vacant for the time
being. In support of his argument in justification
of the Italians, Mr. Griffith cited the conduct of
England, in aiding the Greeks against the Turks in
1826, and fighting the battle of Navarino, conduct
which was applauded by the French people; and,
at a more recent period, France gave her aid to
the Belgians against the Dutch, the Belgians be-
ing strangers to the Dutch both iu habits and
religion ; but to come to a still later period, at
the close of the Russian war the French pro-
posed a measure the reverse of that which had
been adopted in relation to Italian affairs—that of
separation—they had proposed that the Principali-
ties of Moldavia and Wallachia should be united—a
proposition which had been carried into effect, entire-
ly through the influence of France. In illustration of
the inconsistency of France he recurred again to the
conduct of the Emperor, who, he said, when his
armies entered Italy, had at first called on the inha-
bitants to become soldiers for that day that they
might be citizens on the morrow, and who had given
encouragement to the inhabitants until the terrible
battle of Solfurino, after which, he went into ne-
gotiations with the Emperor of Austria, and pro-
ceeded to make treaties with but little or no regard
to the wishes of the people of the Indian States. He
maintained that the Emperor of France, because he
had obtained Lombardy from Austria, and had
transferred it to. Sardinia, had still no right to at-
tempt to force upon other Italian States rulers, to
whose domination the population was opposed. The
proposition of the Emperor of France that the Pope
should be the head of the Federal Union of the Ita-
lian States, was so preposterous that, wishing to
give his Majesty credit for sincerity, lie could only
reconcile the fact of a man of such sagacity and in-
telligence acting so being under the influence of a
pious illusion. He' was very much mistaken if
there would not be great difference of opinion on
such a question in France, and as to the opinion of
England, it was quite clear that the people were
utterly opposed to it, and and he was satisfied that
no English Minister would be able to stand for a
day who should venture to countenance such a
proposition. The Italians deprecated a Congress
to settle their affairs; they had the matter iu their
own hands, and he believed they were prepared to
adopt the couplet of Lord Byron—

" Hereditary bondsmen, know ye not
Who would be free, themselves must strike the blow."
And he also believed they would be ready to adopt
our English motto, quis separabit ? or " who shall
separate us ? as well as that other motto, Nemo me
impune lacessit. "No man wrongs me with im-
punity." .
Mr. GRIFFITH the❑ sat down amidst much ap-
plause, which had been frequently accorded to him,
during the course of his address.
The MAYOR proposed a vote of thanks to Mr.
Griffith, which was given by acclamation and duly
acknowledged, after which the meeting separated.

MISS MARTINEAU ON TIGHT-LACING,

The modern dress perverts the form very dis-
agreeably. The evil still begins with the stays, in
tha many instances, though there is less tight-
lacir, than formerly. It is a pity that women do
not know how little they gain by false pretences in
regard to figure and complexion. Our grandmo-
thers would not have worn paint if they had been
aware that it is useless after forty to attempt to
seem younger—the texture of the skin revealing at
a glance the faCt.which paint and dyed hair cannot
conceal, except perhaps in the parks, or across a
theatre. In the same way, the round waist pro-
duced by tight-lacing is always distinguishable in a
moment from the easy oval form of the genuine
small waist. Compare the two extremes, and
you will see at once. Compare the figure
of the Graces of Itaffaelle, or the Venus de
Medici, with the smallest and most praised waist
in a factory, and observe the difference. Before
the glass, the owner of the latter sees the smallness
in front, and fancies it beautiful ; but it is disgust-
ing to others. It is as stiff as the stem of a tree,
and spoils the form and movement more than the
armour of ancient knights ever did ; and we know
what is going on within. The ribs asc pressed out
of their places, down uran the soft organs within,
or overlapping one another : the heart is comp: so sed,
so that the circulation is irregular : the stomach
and liver are compressed, so that they cannot act
properly : and then parts which cannot be squeezed
are thrust out of their places, and grave ailments
are the consequence. At the very best, the com-
plexion looses more than the figure can be supposed
to gain. It is painful to see what is endured by
some young women in shops and factories, or else-
where. They cannot stoop for two minutes over their
work without gasping and being blue, or red, or
white in the face. 'They cannot go upstairs with-
out stopping to take breath every few steps. Their
arms are half-numb, and their hands red or chil-
blained ; and they must walk as if they were all-of-
a-piece, without the benefit and grace of joints in
the spine and limbs. A lady had the curiosity to
feel what made a girl whom she knew so like
a wooden figure, and found a complete palisade
extending round the body.- On her remonstrat-
ing, the girl pleaded that she had "only sir-and
twenty whalebones !" Any visitor of a range of
factories will be sure to End that girls are dropping
in fainting-fits, here and there, however pure the
air and propar the temperature ; and here and there
may be seen a vexed and disgusted proprietor,
seeking the warehouse-woman, or some matron, to
v,h,onihe gives a pair of large scissors, with direc-
tions to cut open the stays of some silly woman who
lied fainted. Occasional inquests afford a direct
warning of the fatal effects which may follow the
prigemhsott-raleaycsci,nohuguu;tn
ob nu
thet;
msalanol,:liv
bsa
tt sc:nmooutre
dta)l,nlecdrerlaeliinds tfucbryl dteihsse:
stays as the cause of death.. That such cases are
common, any physician who practises among the
g
working-classes will test ify.--rnee a Week

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OFFICIAL IY-QUIRY INTO TILE LOSS

OF THE ROYAL CHARTER.

LIVERPOOL, WEDNESDAY.
The inquiry into the circumstances of the wreck
of the Royal Charter was resumed to-day, at one
o'clock, in the Crown Court, St. George's-hall, Li-
verpool, beforelr. Mansfield, stipendiary magis-
trate, and Caffein Harris, R.N., nautical assessor
for the Board of Trade.
Mr. O'Dovvd, as on the previous day, appeared
for the Board ; and Mr. J. 13. Aspinall for the
owners of the vessel, Messrs. Gibbs, Bright, and Co.
Owen Williams was the first witness called. He
was examined by Mr. O'Dowd. He said—l was
late quartermaster on board the Royal Charter.
My watch commenced at 8 o'clock in the-morning,
and lasted till 12 o'clock. I was from 10 to half-
past 12 o'clock at the wheel. I went below after
that. I came on deck again at four o'clock. I then
remained until six o'clock. I was busy about the
poop from four to six o'clock, doing various duties.
I took the wheel again at eight o'clock. The course
given me was east by south. When I took the helm
there was only the maintop staysail and spanker
set. I remained at the wheel till 25 minutes to
twelve o'clock. The lower main topsail was set be-
fore twelve o'clock. We tried to stay the ship at
this time, by bracing the yards the other way and
squaring them. The ship was not stayed by this
movement. The helm was put hard a starboard in
order to stay the ship. The port anchor was thrown
out about eleven o'clock. The starboard anchor was
also thrown out about a quarter of an hour after-
wards. We were then steering the same course,
and the helm was still hard a starboard. When the
anchors were let go she came up east half-north,
and then fell off east south-east again. The wind
was then about N.N.E. When the anchors were let
down the ship became very steady. She did not ap-
pear to me toile driving at the time. The screw was
kept going all the time. She continued in that state
until the parting of her anchor The lower main-
top-sail was furled after the anchors were let go,
and the spanker was afterwards trailed up. The port
cable gave way at a quarter-past two, and at 20
minutes past three the ship struck upon the sand.
The engines were working all this time, up to the
ship's striking on the sand. It was about five
o'clock when she struck upon the sand. I was in
the forecastle at the time. The ship, in three-quar-
ters of an hour after she struck upon the rocks,
began to break up. I saved myself with the haw-
ser. I saw Captain Taylor several times on deck.
I saw him last at four o'clock. He was then on the
fore part of the poop.
By Mr. Aspinall—Mr. Stephens, first mate, was
forward on the forecastle during the time the haw-
ser was being taken on shore. He was giving di-
rections at that time about the hawser. Mr.
Stephens ordered me to go aft, as soon as the haw-
ser was hauled taut, to get the lady passengers for-
ward, in order to send them ashore. Before I got
aft the ship broke up. When I was in the act of
going aft she broke right in the middle before me.
The port side was the highest. She had a starboard
list to windward. I told Mr. Stephens. He had
the charge of the hawser, and would not let any of
the men go on except one or two to keep it going
back and forward. When I told him about the ship
breaking up, he went aft and did not say a word,
and I never saw him afterwards. Mr. Stephens
appeared to me to be most anxious to save the ladies
first. He could have saved himself if he liked.
Mr. Bean, the third officer, could also have saved
himself. The only woman on the forecastle at the
time Mr. Bean was anxious to save, but she was
frightened, and would not go. These officers did
not try to save themselves. ' I joined the ship on
the 9th of May.
By Captain Harris—About 14 days before land-
ing we experienced some head winds. We had
about 700 tons of coal on board on leaving Mel-
bourne. We did not steam till after passing Cape
Horn, and we had 300 tons on board in the Channel.
We had very fine weather till we got to Queenstown.
I was at the wheel from two to four o'clock on pass-
ing Tusker. The wind freshened up at about five
o'clock in the afternoon. When I came on deck at
six o'clock we had passed the Sherries. There was not
much wind then. The wind was ahead: It began
to blow pretty fresh about half-past nine o'clock.
I was at the wheel at eight o'clock, ant steering
east by south. She was carrying a lee helm then.
She carried a topgallant sail at eight o'clock. It
would be about ten o'clock when we neared the
Skerries. She would steam about seven knots in
fair weather. We had all the square sails and all
the fore and aft sails set, when crossing from
Queenstown to Holyhead. I do not think there
were any sails unbent that afternoon. After
_ _

coming Past the Skerries we carried the helm three
parts a starboard. I was at the wheel when they
let go the anchors. I believe ther, was a barome-
ter on board, as the officers used to go down to see
the state of the glass. The hawser which was got
on shore was our best. It was a 101 inch Manilla.
It was used for towing us into the port. The peo-

pie on shore gave every assistance as far as I could
see. After I landed, about two o'clock in the after.
noon, some one came to the public-house at which
I was to seek for the captain of the lifeboat's crew
to save some people that were wrecked from a
scl:ooner. I was told that the captain was over in
Red-wharf Bay. It was not good daylight when
the ship broke up, but we could see the people on
shore. She gave no notice when she broke in two,
but snapped suddenly. The sea came in a sort of
perpetual roll.
Wm. Foster, being sworn, said—l was carpenter
on board the Royal Charter. About the 24th ult.
she was off Kinsale Head, and reached Holyhead
about half-past four o'clock. I was the principal
carpenter on board the ship. I was on deck when
she came opposite Holyhead. The wind was then
ahead, I think. The wind increased very much
after we left Holyhead. I was on the main deck
about ten o'clock. The wind was blowing pretty
stiff at that time. We found a abort time after
that that the ship was drifting towards the shore.
We let go the port anchor to prevent this, in
about 16 fathoms water. We paid out at fir t
about 45 or 50 fathoms, and then we increased it
afterwards to about 90 or 100. There was a suffi-
lciency of hands at the compressor to pay out the
cable. She held for some time after the port anchor
was thrown out, but began to drift afterwards, and
we let go the starboard anchor. We were steaming
all this time. We did not succeed in keeping her
up to her anchors. She dragged her anchors, drift-
ing all the time. I do not think she held for any
length of time after both anchors were let down,
but she did not drift so rapidly as before. The port
chain parted about two o'clock. After the breaking
of the port chain we gavo more chain to the star-
board anchor. I assisted in paying out the addi-
tional chain. Thero was about 90 fathoms paid out.
They afterwards went down to get up the stream
anchor. I stopped on desk to give them a hand
to get it up. We did not throw out the stream
anchor as the starboard cable parted, and then the
stream anchor would have been of no use. Mr.
Stephens was then on deck, and he told me to cut
away the mainmast. This would be about twenty
minutes or half an hour after the starboard cable

parted. It was a very stout and heavily rigged
mast. It was made of four pieces. It would be about
3ft. Bin. or 3ft. 10in. in diameter. The vessel had
not struck upon the sand, I think, when I cut away
the mast. The foremast was pretty nearly the same
as the mainmast, but a little shorter. The mizen-
mast was scarcely 3ft. in diameter, about 32in. The
cutting away of the mainmast had some zirect in
stopping the drift of the ship. I cannot say whether
the cutting away of the mast stopped the working
of the screw by entanglement. It would be between
two and three o'clock when the vessel struck upon
the sand. I was on deck when she struck. I cut
away the foremast after she had struck on the sand.

It was Mr. Stephens that also gave him directions
to cut away the foremast. I cannot say that it
would have been prudent to cut away the masts
earlier. I was saved by the hawser. I saw Captain
Taylor on deck at the forecastle when both anchors
were down. The captain appeared to be giving
orders. I saw the vessel breaking up. The tide
slewed her broadside on to the rocks. and she bear
very heavily. The sea was making a clean
breach over her. Sho beat against the rocks for
about three-quarters of an hour before she began to
break up. She seemed to twist, and the one part
go one way and the other the opposite way, and she
broke right across at the main hatch. This was my
first voyage ou board the Royal Charter. She had
seven water-tight compartments. Shestruck forward
first on the sand, and she slowed broadside on to
the rocks. I was employed in the repair of the
Royal Charter before she left Liverpool. That was
about three weeks before she left for Melbourne, in
May last. There were a great many others em-
ployed in the repair of the vessel—about 40—the
same time as myself. Messrs. Brown and Martin
were the gentlemen who had the charge of these
repairs. They are shipwrights. They do not build
iron ships. We were caulking the passenger decks,
and a great part of the upper deck, and many other
little jobs. There was ncthing done beyond the
ordinary repairs after a long voyage. She was a
big ship, and required that number of men. I can-
not say whether there was any repair done to her
iron plates at this time.
By Mr. Aspinall—Sho made na water till after
she got on to the rocks. Nothing could have stood
the beating on the rocks without making water.
My-opinion of the vessel is that she was a good ship,
and I would have gone in her again. if they ha
taken me, had sho been saved. I remember when
we were off Point Lynas signalling for a pilot, and
we continued after that to make signals during the
night. We fired guns, sent up blue lights, and
lighted torches. We put up aflig of distress after
we struck. I believe it is correct that there were