The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1839-06-21 00:00:00

ANNUAL DINNER OP THE PROTESTANT
BENEVOLENT
,SOCIETY.

On Tuesday last, the members of this excellent institution
dined together in St. Paul's school-room, Hackin's Hey.
The room was very tastefully decorated with a profusion of
handsome flags, bearing a variety of devices, most of them
indicative of the loyalty of every true Protestant, and of his
undeviating attachment to the church of England. Among
the company present we noticed Jas. Parker, Esq., George
Gurden, Esq., Mr. Whatham, Mr. Bradley, Mr. Mason,
&c. At four o'clock, about 100 persons sat down to a most
excellent and substantial dinner, which was provided by the
president of the society, Mr. C. S. Rowlands, the worthy
landlord of the John Bull, Lumber-street. Mr. Rowlands
occupied the chair on the occasion.
After dinner the CHAIRMAN proposed the health of " the
Queen." He hoped every individual present would evince
his loyal feelings by doing justice to this toast •, though he
could not avoid expressing his wishes that the Queen might
speedily be surrounded by better advisers than her present
ministry.
The toast was drunk with enthusiastic cheering.
Air—" God save the Queen."
The CHAIRMAN then proposed the health of " the Queen
Dowager, and the rest of the Royal Family." This toast
was also greeted with loud applause.
Air— Away to the mountain's brow."
The CHAIRMAN next proposed a toast which he was sure
would meet with the approbation of every one present, and
one which would cause an able gentleman present to say
something which would greatly interest the company. He
would give them " Protestant Ascendancy." (Continued
cheers.)
Mr. WHATRA in rose to respond to the toast. He felt
assured that every individual present was a Protestant both
in name and in heart. The plaudits to which he had just
listened, proved them to be sincere in their professions of
attachment to the Protestant cause. They had impcsed en
ungracious task upon him, inasmuch as he had received no
previous intimation that he should be called upon to
respond to the toast which had just been proposed. He was
sorry that he could not do it the justice which he wished to
do it. He was, however, never ashamed of avowing his
attachment to the great cause which was so dear to each of
them. He was always prepared to assert his Protestant
feelings, and to declare his gladness at seeing the cause of
Protestantism triumphant. (Cheers.) The annals of this
country proved that Protestant ascendancy was always the
accompaniment of national prosperity. It was the Protes-
tantism of England which infused that moral courage into
her sons, which made them irresistible in battle. It
was Protestantism that nerved their arms, and gave
them the victory over their enemies. These assertions
were not mere rhetorical flourishes. They were solid
and undeniable truths. That very day reminded him
of the debt which this nation owed to Protestantism. It
was not to British steel that they owed the victory gained on
the plains of Waterloo. It was Protestantism that gave the
valiant soldiers of England the moral courage requisite to
ensure victory. (Cheers.) If such advantages were derived
from Protestantism, they would surely not rest contented
to see popery and infidelity sap the very foundation of their
country's prosperity. (Cries of " No, no.") They were
all prepared to stand up in defence of the principles on
which their excellent society was based. He confessed that
he never thought he should live to see such " a heavy blow
and great discouragement" dealt to Protestantism as that
which was now aimed by the present ministry, in their
scheme of national education. The first blow was dealt
against Protestantism in Ireland. Now Lord Melbourne
and his associates were repeating the experiment in England.
They were desirous of making England a tool in the hands
of the Pope. The Protestants of England must be up and
stirring, or their most valued privileges would be wrested
from them. Let them in Liverpool stimulate other towns
by their example—by their zeal on behalf of Protestant prin-
ciples. But they must not rest satisfied with mere speaking.
They must carry their Protestant principles into active life.
They must spread those principles among their neighbours,
their friends, and their children. (Cheers.) They should
take a lesson from the activity of their enemies. They must
struggle until they saw their glorious cause triumphant.—
(Loud cheers.)
Air—" Hearts of Oak."
The CHAIRMAN, in proposing " The Members for the
Borough," stated that the Protestant Benevolent Society
was under great obligations to Lord Sandon and Mr. Cress-
well, who had kindly consented to become patrons and annual
subscribers to the society.
Several other toasts were proposed, and responded to in
speeches of considerable ability, for which we regret we have
not space.

FIRE INSURANCE.

Duties paid to government b
Offices, for the year ending a
last official return :
Sun Office £151,6661
Alliance 25,084
Atlas
British
County
Globe 31,9571
Guardian
Imperial
Independent & West
Middlesex 1,782
Licensed Victuallers 4,561
London
Phoenix

ly the following Fire Insurance
at Christmas, 1838, being the

;Royal Exchange ......£65,160
Union
Leeds and Yorkshire 10,861
Liverpool
'Manchester 19,757
'Norwich Union .... 65,407
West of England.... 30,802
Yorkshire
York and North of
England 13,349
Scottish Union 20,178
North British

We regret to announce the death of Lord' William Ben-
tirtck, which took place yesterday evening; after along illness
at his residence in the Rue Chaussee d'Antin. His lordship
was in his 66th year, and his death will be a'sUbject of deep
regret, not only to a very extensive circle of private friends,
but to his country at large, which he had honorably. served in
nearly all parts of the world.—Galignani' 8— Messenger,
Tuesday.
We must caution our readers against a bill recently brought
into Parliament by Lord John Russell; and entitled " A Bill
to Amend the Laws relating to the Assessment and Collection
of Rates for the Relief of the Poor, and to the Collection of
County, Borough, and Police Rates." Any one who peruses
this bill will see that it is nothing more nor less than an insi-
dious attempt to invest the guardians of the poor Under the
New Poor Law with the power of levying by the harshest
processes of the law those rates which the guardians are Con,
tinually making in the most arbitrary manner. :Bilrely, 'Awl
a measure can never pass even a liberal House of COMIROAS.
We shall keen our eye upon it ; and we trust .that the 'coii-:
stituencies of hon. members will narrowly watch the conduct
of their representatives in reference:to this measure.—Tiines.
SUMMARY OF THE DIVISION ON THE BALLOT Jtims•lB4
Majority (tellers included) .. ..
.. .. . 335 --
Minority (ditto) .. .. • • • • - • 317 .
Pairs (17)
Absent Liberals) . .. .. • • .. 51.
Absent Conservatives)
Carlow and Glas,

Vacant
Speaker

igow)

1

Total .. . • • • .. 568
The number reported by the tellers were—Ayes, 333 ; None
216 ; but the lists show only 213 for the Noes. The latter is
supposed to be the correct number.
That immense steamer, the Cyclops, is to be lautached at
Pembroke yard on the 10th or 11th of the ensuing month.
She is the largest man-of-war steamer in the world, and is a
beautiful model, constructed by Sir W. Symonds, the.present
surveyor of the Navy.
The usual run of expenditure in Switzerland for persona
living in what we should call easy circumstances is from £lOO
to £3OO per annum ; and it is asserted, that not a single ins
dividual in the whole of Switzerland spends £l,OOO per annum.
Mr. French, the conducting agent for Mr. Gisborue, at the
late Carlow election, and who has been in professional attend-
ance in London, before the committee, this day returned to
Dublin. This looks as if the game were nearly, up,- if not
quite so, with his client.—Dublin Evening Mail.
Very unfavourable accounts from the wine districts con-
tinued to reach Paris. The recent storms had been 'general,
but could not, of course, have done much injury to the corn
crops. A very melancholy accident occurred during the
tempest of Sunday, the 2d instant. A battalion of the 51st
regiment, while on its march from Mezieres to Wisieni-
bourg, was struck by lightning; 200 men were knocked down
by it, all of whom, so great was the concussion, bled pro-
fusely from the mouth, eyes, and ears ; but it is consolatory
to add, that two only of them were killed.—French paper.
EXTRAORDINARY Faetstatm—The following circum-
stance is perhaps unparalleled. The other day, a mare of the
cart breed, belonging to Mr. James M'Dougal, farmer, of
Haggistown, gave birth to a very fine filly foal, got by Young
Wallace, the property of Mr. David Broach, of Haithwaite,
being the seventeenth foal the mare has produced in nineteen
years. All her offspring have come to maturity, and when
of age were sold by the owner for different prices, varying
from twenty-eight to thirty-five guineas.—Carlisle'Patriot.
ISLE OF MAN.—The weather since our last has made am-
ple amends to the farmers, for the long period of drought
that in many instances had parched the higher grounds, and
created considerable alarm for the growing crops, particularly
that of hay„ which was beginning to exhibit symptoms of in-
sufficient moisture. During the present week, there have,
been two days of successive showers and one of continual
rain, to the great benefit of vegetation, especially wheat and
other grain, which in all parts of the Island appear most pro-
mising. From Great Britain and Ireland Us agrieultaral
reports are also highly favourable, representing the corn crops
as healthy and flourishing, with a prospect; that the whole
produce of the soil will be much average.—Mama
average.—Man
Liberal.
THE WEATHER AND CROPS.—After' along continuance
of dry weather in this city and neighbottahood, Providence
has favoured us with gracious showers, which have cheered
the whole face of nature. On Monday afternoon, about five
o'clock the distant sound of thunder was heard, and soon
afterwards the heavens were darkened —the loud peal in-
creased, while the lightning darted forth most vividly ; this
continued for nearly an hour, during which time the rain
descended in torrents. It is worthy of notice that on Tues-
day, about the same moment, a similar storm visited our
city ; the shower continued for about three hours, when it
ceased, but commenced again about eleven, and continued
during the greater part of the night. The wheat, oat, and
barley crops around this neighbourhood are fast getting into
ear, and look admirably ; hay grass appears thick at the bot-
tom, but in consequence of a want of rain, is very short.
We are sorry to say that in places the potatoe crops are very
scanty, numbers of the sets having rotted because of a lack
of water to nourish them. On the whole, however, in refer-
•enca to the winter crop of this necessary vegetable, it is be-
lieved that the present showers will do much towards strength-
ening and increasing it.—Chester Gazette.
TILE OLD OAK CHEST.---NARROW ESCAPE.---A most
providential escape from death occurred the week before last,
at Harrogate, to a boy about ten years of age, the son of Mr.
Hildreth, the fabricator of those beautiful straw baskets and
ornaments so well known to visitors. The boy having
dropped something into a small corn-bin in the stable at
Bellevue House, which is at present untenanted, he jumped
into it, when the lid closed upon him, the hasp clasping oa
the staple in front : he was thus fastened in, and being far
from any assistance, was left to hope for chance of relief.
The bin being small, 31 inches long, the same deep, and 20
inches wide, and the lid fitting very close, he soon found a
difficulty in breathing. lie fortunately had a marble in his
pocket, which, by pressing up the corner of the lid with his
head, he contrived to insert, so as to admit more air: this
saved his life. He states that he felt very weak, and fell
into a state of stupor, which rendered the length of his con-
finement unknown to him. The anxiety of the parents and
the neighbourhood cannot be described, the disappearance
being in every respect unaccountable. It was suggested that
the hay-loft should be searched ; the stable had been before
entered whilst the boy was in the stupor; but upon the se-
cond more particular search the boy heard a noise, and made
known where he was, front which dangerous situation he was
relieved, after a confinement of sixteen hours. Medical as-
sistance was procured, and the boy is now quite recovered._
Leeds Times.
A bank of I'me coal, containing several thousand tons, at
the works of Messrs. Ireland and Co., near Oswestry, has
by some means taken fire, and an immense quantity has
'been
consumed. All the hands in their employ, with many from
the neighbouring collieries, have been for the last fortnight
endeavouring, by removing the bulk, to get it under, and
have at length succeeded in confining the fire to two large
heaps, which must of course be allowed to burn themselves
out. The circumstance has daily drawn crowds of curious
spectators to the spot, and has formed matter for convertats -
tion amongst all parties in science and ulation.,7--sao,,-
spec
pian Journal.