The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1852-06-01 00:00:00

WHITSUN WEEK.

•
" In comer, at Whitsontyde,
When knights most on horseback ride;
Which horse that best may ren,
Three myles the emirs was then,
Who that myght ryde him shouide
Have forty pounds of redy golde."
EVERY season of the year has its peculiar charms, and
in the days of our ancestors, to whom the Young Eng-
landers would still direct our attention, these charms were
constantly increased. Holy day and holiday, religion and
amusement so mingled themselves together, that the
whole population looked forward from point to point to
the Church's festivals ; and whether they had longer lives
or not than we have now, it is certain that they had

merrier ones.
There are few festivals of the Church so old as Whit-
suntide, for it is the anniversary not merely of the descent
of the Holy Spirit, but of the giving of the law to Moses.
In other words, the period of Pentecost is still remem-
bered at the distance of 3,300 years from its institution ;
and if the world survive 3300 years longer, it will still be
remembered by millions whose fathers now know nothing
of it. Thus, in one sense, all men are Conservatives, all
sensible men at least ; for there is a degree of fixity and
permanence about a good institution that preserves it as
a bond of union between past centuries and the present
one ; at :east, there should be, for we are bound to it by
the cords of affection, association, and gratitude.
Whitsuntide is one of those cheerful seasons that ele-
vate the heart of every man, unless there be a heavy
weight of care or oppression to keep him down. It is the
first pleasant goal that we reach within the boundaries of
summer; the smiles of spring, sometimes warm but often
chilling, having been left far behind. The trees are now
clothed in their full garments of leaves, and they are yet
in a healthy freshness that would put to shame Genoese
velvet; the fields are beginning to show distinct waves,
as they bend their vegetable treasures to a passing blast;
the sun is in the clear heavens, warming, lighting, cheer-
ing, and apparently untired with the long hours that he
is now obliged to travel. To the green neighbourhood of
a smoky factory, or the sterile district of a lead mine,
there is a tone of healthiness and cheerfulness imparted,
and one pauses on his footstep to hear the rude but hearty
chant that bursts from the strong lungs of one of the
unwashed. What must it be on our own beautiful river,
with fairy steamers flying up and down, and passing each
other like butte: flies in a field ; with the hum of half a
million in one's ears, including the din of industry, the
rattle of transit, the echo of rejoicing, the words of fare-
well, and the stir and bustle.
Of all the sights which the working man, or his wife
and little boy, from the inland districts, can see, to them
there is none that can be compared to our noble river,
Liverpool may well say " thank God for the Mersey.'
It is the main artery that carries thalife blood from the heart
in purifying streams all over the great body ; it is also the
vein which returns the vital nourishment again. Familiar
as we are ourselves with' the prospect wl.ich may be seen
occasionally from the hills of Everton, the top of the
Town-hall, the houses at New Brighton, or, indeed,
almost any point near the river's margin, we cannot fully
appreciate its beauty and value, nor can we thoroughly
comprehend the emotions of the casual visoitor. The
stranger can see large towns- elsewhere,- spacious
streets, and handsome shops; He has seen, on
crowded occasions, in his own village or borough,
as many people throng the ways ; and he has but
to imagine a grand occasion at' home to reaiite the
whole scene'which increased population makes here. But
from the moment that he reaches the line of the decita all
is-neve. A railroad conveys goods fronapoint to point, north
and south. Ships sail along water inside the land, and pas-
sengers then cross the bridge. In the beauty of summer
the masts are like a forest of wintry pines ; :and a floaalag
church on the borders, is like the ruins of a monasterrin
some remote parisli. Ira the landing;ttage he picturea-a
giganticuaan-of-warr with masts and bulwarks cut away
so ar-to leave the upper deck unobstracted ; and the liar--
'Ting-ter and fro of buy feet, the running of those who-.
cut the time closet' the leisurely walk, of others, the,
burthens carried, the ringing of bells; -the shouting of
indivicktals to others of their party, the arriTals and de,
parturess—all' these constitute a scene to which nothing,
but a beehive can belikeneel-
But wire shall'deseribe the emotions of the stranger in
looking upon our magnifleent river. He has seen lakes
and streams before; but he has here the -highway to the
antipodes, a-by-lane firm the common path Way of all na-
tions. He-sees -upon it travellers of different grades and
of different importance, hut all of them necessary for our
well being. The hulks up the river rerrand'hina •of the
veterans of Greenwich,' vbo hawing borne the- "'battle and
the breeze" for many years,: st1)1 hobble about maimed
and coopered, -and make- themselves occasionally useful.
The ferry-boats,--river craft; and coasting vessels, are the
working-classes in society, and his heart thoobs- with sym-
pathy ; they perform orditary bet very necessary duties,
and are constantly in • demand. The Atantic line of
steamers are a set 'of beautiful gentlemen's carriages, on
whielr it is almost heresy- to 'stow luggage. The, freighted
merchant vessels-that stagger up and down under
pressure of all; sail, or glide in the- wake, of a
hig., boat,: are the carriers'. waggons, welt; packed
and long expeated.• And; finally, the emigrant ships
are- the special trains which. convey rioli!,anal poor,
high,and low, 7pherever• they wish to go.. Then there
is- a similarity between . the things of landiand those of
the 'water ; though they diffdr of course in their.application
audits their movements. In the sketch-book of Wash.
htgton-Irving there is the- description of a scene on the
liver's side, the- arrival of asingle ship. What emotions
throbbed in hie-own breast;. how much of human cha-
racter was developectin the common but ft-aching circum-
stances of others.. He saw, the new spire- of, Birkenhead
church rising under-the ivied rails of the ancient abbey ;
" all, all," he says, " was-characteristic of 3itgland." An
hour's march beside ow-docks is still crowdedi with inci-
dents. There are arrivals-and: departures, how-eye.doing
and good-Dyeing, rejoiciagand weeping ; dal of the smallest
importance to mere observers, and often, even, annoying,
hut, to the principal actors. in the scene. all-absorbing.
la a single day,.theusands-leave the porta some never to,
returis.. Asia-gin-day scatters brethren and, companions-
-to the four winds ; :to every great division.of the globe or -
point of the compass. A single day sends the young and;
healthful. to N` se. of Geelong, .where they may,
perhapa dig their own. graves ; it disperses- the sickly and.
exhausted to the-sunny:south, where, like-a making gate,.
they may hang :long on the hinges ; and. others again speed
wherever fame or fortune, or frolic, or duty calls. Mang,
a feeling long-pent up, has burst the barriers of caution,
custom, or etiquette,on the docks of ,Liverpool. Many
an eye that dimmed at the disappearance of our bristliog
docks, has-never looked on them again.
The stranger-maya if be pleases, study geography along
the water side, in, the productions of various parts of the
world. The landing waiters are making record of various.
commodities-which tell of many clinics. There arehorns_
and hides from South America, and cotton bales from the
States:_. Flora Australia there are nuggets of gold, and
still a large supply of wool. Fruit from the Levant, pro-
visions-from-Ireland, tallow freni.Russia, &c., aro all clas-
sified' aud• arranged in their respective places so that,
though. confusion seems to reign everywhere, there is in
realityperfect order. There. is a similar degree of order
and-clessiftcation in the ferries to which he may. ply. New
Brighton is the place for sands and sandwiches, for don-
keys., nurses, and noisy children. Egremont is a point of
passage to right or left, or straightforward:: and few visit
Seacombe, except the raaidents. Woodside and Birken-
head lead to the parks,. the new docks, and various other
points of interest. Birkenhead Ferry is the approach to
the abbey ; and Tranmere and Rock Eerry lead to the
country generally. But Eastham is the !, Richmond of
Liverpool," with its green lanes, waling woods, and pretty
gardens, affosding at the same time wide scone to range
and perfect seclusion.
We have been so much occupied in noticing the im-
pressions of the visitor from a distance, that we have
almost forgotten the manner in which ho reaches us. The
caverns of the earth could not always yawn forth their
miners, nor the factories dismiss their motley crowds ;
Cambria could not always transport her mountaineers to
England by a whistle, a rumble, or a puff, and Hull used
to be on the other side of the island. Thanks to Mr.
MARCUS, and others who have taken a leaf out of his book,
we must learn geography over again. Glasgow and
Edinburgh are now near at hand ; Belfast and Dublin are
almost part of ourselves ; and Manchester, York, and
Birmingham hang on our skirts. -We expect shortly to
receive invitations to tea from Berwick-on-Tweed or
Penzance ; and to make morning calls at York and Dover,
By the way, we must not forget to suggest that a statue
should be erected to Mr. MARCUS. He has done more to
enable us to shake hands with our country cousins than
any other man living. JAMES WATT did not create steam,
nor did he invent the engine; be only improved upon
that which was known before and made it practically
useful. This is just what Mr. MARCUS has done for the
million in railway travelling, and has done with safety

and success.
The local customs of this week are now nearly forgotten.
There is no lamb seized at Kidlington, no races are held
in other rural districts, no scriptural plays are performed