The Sun.
London, England, 1844-11-11 00:00:00

THE MAILS.

SOUTHAMPTON. Nov. 9.—The Oriental Company's
steam-ship the Tagus, Capt. Brookes, arrived in the
docks at 3 o'clock P.M. this day, and landed the Gibral-
tar and Peninsular mails, which will be forwarded to
London by the night mail train. Her dates are—Gib-
raltar, Nov. Ist ; Cadiz, 2d ; Lisbon, sth ; Vigo, 6th.
From the state of the weather the Tagus was unable to
communicate with Oporto. The Dutch squadron was
still at Gibraltar, as also her Majesty's sloop Scout and
Savage brig ; Danish brig of war ani one steamer ;
one Swedish corvette and one schooner ; one Norwegian
and one Austrian corvette. At Ca tin, a Spanish line-of-
battle ship, 74 guns, and one French vessel, 12 guns ;
at Lisbon, one French brig, of war, Volage, 10 guns.
Nov. 8, at noon, in lat. 48 15, long. G 37, the Tagus saw
a line-of-battle ship steering to the east, ard. 'I he Tagus
has ten passengers, and a full cargo of fruit.
The Eleanor, Captain Wickham, arrive d in the &cica
at noon this day from Fayal, with a large fruit cargo, a
great portion of which was forwarthal by railway this
day, thus arriving in London on an art ra..e of four days
sooner than vessels going round by se2.. 'lle Eleanor
left St. Michael's on the 27th ulthre,, where the Quay r
and the were loading' mod p, ct dto sail in a
few days for this port. The fruit crops at Fayal are
very abundant, and ready nearly thr, e weeks earlier this
season than for many years past. The.r&lway company
are about building waggons, in which fruit can be loaded
and conveyed to the London station, and there, by a crane,
be lifted off the railway trucks, and put upon carriage
wheels, and transmitted to the fruit wa: &louses in the
City without unloading and reloading into barges or
waggon., thus preserving the fruit from damage.
SUNDAY, 10Th, NOON.—The Oriental Company's ship
the Oriental, Captain Sop, has arrived at the Mother-
bank. The East India and China mails are landed, and
will be forwarded by this night's Mail tnin. She has
102 passengers, and a full cargo of silk. 'lll,l Oriental is
expected to be released from quarantine (n Tuesday
next.

THE ANTI-CORN LAW.LEAGUE.
This influential body is about to resume its meet-
ings at Covent-garden Theatre, and with tenfold
vigour. During its temporary repose from active
agitation, monopolist writers have been loud in their
gratulations on its presumed discomfiture. A different
prospect is now opening up to them. The recent
proceedings at Manchester have roused their bile, and
some of the Pro-Corn-law organs have indulged in
language of the grossest character when discussing
this subject. No mind that is not thoroughly debased
by ignorance and bigotry can do otherwise than reject
with disgust the food thus offered by those who seek
to pander to the worst passions and prejudices of their
readers. We will not do the Conservative party the
injustice to suppose that either such language, or the
vile spirit that prompts it, can be in any degree
acceptable to them. These remarks apply more
especially to the provincial press, the London journals,
with one exception (the Morning Herald) appearing
to be alive to the vast influence the League is exert-
ing. That journal, and its joint. stock companion the
Standard, has for some timepast been loudly proclaim-
ing the death of the League. This has at length
brought forth the following reply from that courtly
organ of the monopolists, the Morning Post :
" Our Contemporary has, within tie last six months,
repeatedly proclaimed that the League had dit d a, 'natu-
ral death. Not only, however, has its spirit been with-
out interruption active in the economical policy of our
Conservative Ministers, but the League itself—the ex-
tinguished League—the League which, according to the
Herald, all men despised and had abandoned, is once
more in the field of agitation. The leaders of the con-
spiracy have made their influence felt in more than ono
half of the borough registration court: in the kingdom ;
and they are now preparing to wrest from landowner;
that preponderating power which they have hitherto
exercised in counties. Does the Herald deny that the
League possesses the power of multiplying, almost
without limit, forty-shilling freeholders in a majority of
English counties ? No. Our Contemporary will not
venture to deny that the dead League is more full of
vitality than ever."
For a monopolist print this is pretty well. At all
events, it shows that the Post possesses some of the
honesty which the Morning Herald has long ago dis-
carded. For the comfort of both, it may be staled
that active exertions will be made by the Leagtp.
during the present season ; and it will be furt,tilate
for the bread-taxers, if they do not fina ,nt-ir fate
sealed much sooner than they an:;cipate. So much
for the defunct League.—r-acaster Guardian.

CONVICTION OF A. MIL LOWNER_
ACCIDENT BY MACHINERY.
MANCHESTER, SATURDAY.—The first conviction of a
millowner in a penalty tor injuries received by a party
in a mill, owing to the machinery being 4-ft in an inse-
cure state, took place this day at the Borough oourt,
before Messrs. D. Maude and S. Walker, two of the
magistrates for this division, and considerable interest
attached to the case, in consequence of the question
raised being whether a person not a worker in a cot ton-
mill could not receive compansation for injuries received
from unprotected machinery.
Mr. David Waddington, cotton-manufacturer, of Com-
mercial-street Mill, was summoned by Mr. Armstrong,
Superintendent of Factories, to show cause why he
should not be convicted in a penalty of not more than
1001., nor less than 10L, for not having securely boxed
off and guarded a certain upright shaft in his weaving
establishment, in consequence of which a girl, named
Emma Hurst, had received serious bodily injuries.
The prosecution was brought by order of the Secre-
tary of State, and Mr. Leonard Horner, the Factory In-
spector, was on the bench.

The facts of the case were as follows :—The r-ibther
of Emma Hurst Wand her brother were power-loom
weavers, employed in No. 5 room of Mr. Waddington's
mill, and the girl, who is twelve years 013, was in the
habit of coming to the mill every afternoon with her
mother's and brother's tea. On the afternoon of the Bth
of October the girl came as usual with h,ur mother's tea,
and shortly afterwards was heard to utter a piercing
scream, and was observed to be fast bound by her clothes
to an upright shaft, and turning round at a frightful
rate. Some time elapsed before she was released, and
not before she had received severe injuries about her
head and face.

Mr. Bagshaw, of the firm of Bagshaw and Stevenscn,
solicitors, who appeared for Mr. Waddington, took a
preliminary objection to the proceeding, his client not
having had four clear days' notice, according to the Act
of Parliament. He next drew the attention of the Court
to the Act of Parliament. He contended that no penalty
could be recovered in this instance, the intention of the
Act of Parliament being to protect mill-workers, and
not persons who might intrude themselves into a cotton-
mill. He suggested that the only clause to which he
ought to be called upon to address himself was that
which referred to the not fencing off the machinery, and
for which the penalty was not less than 5/. nor more
than 20/. The 60th section used the words " any per-
son;" but he apprehended that the clause must be con-
strued strictly, and be taken to mean " any persons em-
ployed in a mill."

- Mr. MAUDE said, that looking at the clauses prior to
the 60th, it would appear that the Legislature did not
contemplate that any person not being a worker would
be present in a mill ; but, looking at the 60th section.
he could not suppose that the words " any person " were►
mere surplusage. It appeared to him that the 59th
section was for the purpose of protecting the factory
workers, and the 60th for the purpose of protecting
"other" persons.
Emma Hurst was then called, and she stated, that on
the day in question she had taken her mother's tea into
the mill, and on passing the upright shaft she was caught
by the clothes and twisted round in the manner des-
cribed, and received various injuries. On her cross-
examination she stated, that there was a tin casing round
the shaft, but it was split open at the side, the opening
being about the breadth of her hand, and it was through
this opening that her clothes were caught by the shaft.
She denied that she bad been playing with the shaft.
Mr. B. Fothergill, one of the managers at the exten
sive works of Messrs. Sharp, Brothers, machine-makers
of this town, stated that on the sth instant he went with
Mr. Horner to Mr. Waddington's mill, and inspected
the shaft in question. It was then performing 68 revo-
lutions per minute. He considered a tin casing for such
a shaft as that to be very insecure, as it was constantly
liable to damage. The tin casing had since been re-
placed by a wooden casing.
Some otherwitnesses were called, who spike to the in-
security of the casing.
The COURT having intimated as cpinion that they
thought that the defendant was liable to the penalty
under the 60th section,

Mr. Bagshaw urged that this was the first case, at
the Act of Parliament was not generally known.
Mr. MAUDB said that the opinion of the Bench vvaak
that there ought to be a conviction, with a penalty of
20/., and it was to be understood that such was the de-
cision of the Court; but he would consider the law a
little more narrowly, and Mr. Bag*haw would know the
result in the course of a few days.

SINGULAR ROBBERY AND RESTITUTION.—On
Fri-
day the house of Mrs. Pepperell, a widow, residingin
Exmouth, was broken into, and 60 sovereigns and six
guineas stolen. By this robbery she has been stripped
of all the money she possessed excepting half-a-crown.
On Saturday night a parcel contaiaing twenty-four
sovereigns, and on Monday night a parcel of 12 sove-
reigns and guineas, were thrown over the wall at the
back part of her house, with a request for her to pray
for the thieves. One parcel of sovereigns they lost, but
expressed a hope to be able to pay it in time with in-
terest.— West of England Conservative.
THE MAYOR IN A " Fix."—A requisition to the
mayor was numerously signed in the early part of the
week, calling npon his worship to convene a public
meeting of the inhabitants of Southampton in the course
of this week, to take their opinion as to supporting the
proposed Southampton and Dorsetahire Railway. The
mayor, however, has managed to postpone caring the
meeting until after his mayoralty had expired, as his:
recent attendance at Weymouth as the supporter of a
rival scheme had placed him in an unpleasant position.
The matter is likely to be made the topic of some smart
discussion at the council board to-day.—HampshiNe
indenendent.

THE COUNTESS OF HATN-1L NEW WORE.
In a few days, in 3 vols., post
LET"
rEES OF A GERMAN COUNTESS ;
WRITTEN DURING HER TRAVELS
1..," TURKEY, THE HOLY LAND, &c., IN 15-13-4.
Henry Colbarn, Publisher, 13, Great. Marlborough-street.

NEW HISTORICAL ROMANCE.
Just ready, la 3 vols., post Bvo.,
,r TIE PALAIS ROYAL.
AN HISTORICAL ROMANCE.
By the Author of
•`IiENRI QUATRE; OR, THE DAYS OF THE LEAGUE."
Henry Colburn, Publisher, 13, Grea Marlborough-street.

Now ready,
THE NELSON DISPATCHES,
AND LETTERS.
VOLUME THE FIRST.
EDITED BY SIR HARRIS NICHOLAS, G.C.M.G., Sc.".
To be comp ced in about 3 vols., price 15s. each, bound ; the
Second of which will be ready in January next.
Henry Colburn, Publisher, 13, Great Marlborough-street.

NEW ROMANCE, BY G. P. R. JAMES, ESQ
In 3 vols. post Bvo.,
N C 0

U It T.