The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1847-04-20 00:00:00

THE NEW HOUSE OF LORDS

Their lordships assembled, on Thursday, for the first
time, in the chamber appropriated in the new Royal Pa-
lace at Westminster to the peers of England, sitting in
their legislative and judicial capacities. The descriptions
which have been already published of this magnificent hall
fail, through no want of skill in the describers, but from
the imperfection of language, to present an adequate
image of its gorgeousness and grandeur. When first en-
tering it, the eye is dazzled and distracted by the richness
and profusion of the ornaments, the walls and ceilings be-
ing charged to the verge of excess with azure, crimson,
and gold. The exquisite harmony which reins through •
out soon sobers the senses, and surprise subsides into ad-
miration. The throne, the most striking object, is a
triumph of architectural art, the symmetry of its propor-
tions vying with the brilliancy of its materials, and the
costly splendour of its decorations. It is a vast Gothic
canopy, distributed into three portions ; under the centre
is the Queen's chair of state, and a smaller chair is placed
on each side beneath the sub-canopies. The ceiling of the
chamber is divided into square compartments, which are
again subdivided by elegant panels, carved pendants en-
crusted with gold droppinc, froth the intersections. A
broad oak pannelling, richly carved, which -covers a por-
tion of the side walls, subdues the glare of the other parts.
The reporters' gallery, placed at the end opposite the
throne, is another prominent object, being externally a
mass of gilded ornaments. The interior of this gallery is
fitted up with the most careful regard to the convenience
and accommodation of its occupiers. The house is lighted
by richly gilt branches holding lamps, running along the
side walls, and lofty magnificent candelabra, standing on
the floor at the ends, bearing tiers of waxlights. The
woolsack, the table, and the seats for the peers (covered
with crimson cloth), resemble those in the late house, and,
compared with the luxurious aspect of the other furniture,
have a rather homely appearance. The great problem
upon which so much depends, namely, the adaptation of
the new house for the transmission of sound, cannot be
solved without further expiration, under more favourable
circumstances ; for, during the short sitting of Thursday,
the constant hum of conversation, perhaps of admiration,
amongst the peers and strangers below the bar, would
have rendered it difficult to hear the most powerful
speaker. _ _

The galleries were opened about a quarter before five
o'clock, at which time many peers had assembled, and
their numbers rapidly increased. Amongst the earliest
were Lord Campbell, the Earl of Shaftesbury, Lord Bean-
`mont, the Duke of Richmond, the Bishop of St. Asaph,
Earl Stanhope, Lord Ashburton, the Hari of Eglintoun,
Earl Fortescue, the Bishop of Oxford, Lords Lyttelton,
Redesdale, and Stanley, the Bishop of London, Lords
Brougham, Colchester, and Lyndhurst, the Earl of
Radnor, the Earl of Auckland, Lord Combermere, and
Earls-Lovelace, St. Germans, Grey, Suffolk, and Powis.

SANATORY v. SANITARY.—The orthographers are
waging a fierce war about the spelling of the word which
Lord Morpeth's bill concerning cleanliness and drainage
has brought into great use. One learned and rather dog-
matic gentleman tells us that " every school-boy knows
that sanatory is derived from sano, sanare, just as decla-
ratory from declaro, declarare." And, fortified by this
display of research, he goes on to pronounce it to be " as
great a barbarism to talk of a sanitary act, as it would be
to speak of a preparitary school, a damnitary clause, or
a manditary summons." But softly, good sir : one
" Orthographicus" comes to the rescue, and somewhat
damages your scholarly reputation. " Sanatory," he
says, " if there be such a word, derived from sano, sanare,
must necessarily mean curative or remedial since sanare
,signifies to cure. Sanitary laws and sanitary precautions
are not intended for cure, but for prevention. A hospital
is a sanatory establishment ; quarantine is a sanitary re-
gulation. Sanitary ism word similar to salutary, volun-
tary, arbitrary, not derived from the verb sanare, to cure,
but from the substantive sanitas, health, like voluntary
from voluntas, and signifies regarding or relating to
health. Sanitary'rneasures are measures relating to health."
To our thinking " Orthographicus" has the best of it.
CURIOUS RESULTS OF VENTILATION.-1R a weaving
mill near Manchester, where the ventilation was bad, the
proprietor caused a fan to be mounted. The conse-
quences soon became apparent in a curious manner. The
operatives, little remarkable for olfactory refinement, in-
stead of thanking their employer for his attention to their
comfort and health, made a formal complaint to him that
the ventilator had increased their appetites, and therefore
entitled them to a corresponding increase of wages ! By
stopping the fan a part of the day, the ventilation and vo-
racity of the establishment were brought to a medium
standard, and complaints ceased. The operatives' wages
would but just support them ; any additional demands by
their stomachs could only be answered by draughts upon
their backs, which were by no means in a condition to
answer them. In Edinburgh a club was provided with a
dinner in a well-ventilated apartment, the air being per-
fumed as it entered, imitating in succession the fragrance
of lavender and the orange flower. During dinner the
members enjoyed themselves as usual, but were not a
little surprised at the announcement of the provider, that
they had drunk three times as much wine as he had usu-
ally provided. Gentlemen of sober, quiet habits, who
usually confined themselves to a couple of glasses, were
not satisfied with less than half a bottle ; others, who took
half a bottle, now extended their potations to a bottle and
a half. In fact, the hotel keeper was drunk dry. That
gentlemen who had indulged so freely were not aware of
it at the time is not wonderful ; but that they felt no un-
pleasant sensations the following morning, which they did
not, is certainly quite so.—Wyman's Practical Treatise
on Ventilation.
AMERICAN WOMEN
school to the forum
Young gi

.—There is scarcely a step from the
-from the nursery to the world.

bread- and butter, boldly precede. their mammas into
the ball-room; and the code of a mistaken gallantry sup-
plies no corrective to their caprice, for youth and beauty
are here invested with regal prerogatives, and can do no
wrong. In short, the Americans carry their complaisance
to the sex beyond due bounds—at least in little things—
for we by no means think that the real influence of their
women is great, notwithstanding the tame and submissive
gallantry with which the latter are treated in public. We
doubt whether the most limited gynocrasy would tolerate
the use of tobacco as an article of daily diet, or permit
ferocious murders to go unwhipped of justice under the
name of duels.—But the absorbing character of the pur-
suits of the men forbids any strong sympathy betwixt the
sexes; and pehaps the despotism which the women exer-
cise in the drawing room arises from the fact that all that
relates to the graces and embellishments of life is left en-
tirely to them. We do not know that this can be avoided
under the circumstances of the country, but it has a most
injurious effect on social intercourse. The Americans of
both sexes want tact and graciousness of manner, and that
prompt and spontaneous courtesy which is the child of disci-
pline and self-restraint. They are seldom absolutely awk-
ward, because they are never bashful. They have no mau-
vaise honte because they are all on an equality ; hence they
never fail to display a certain dry composure of bearing
which, though not agreeable, is less ludicrous than the
gaucherie so commonly observed in all classes of English
society, except the very highest.—Blackwood's Magazine.
YANKEE LOVE FOR THE LASH.—Certain it is, that even
in the United States those books circulate most freely
which lash most vigorously the vices of the republic. Ho-
nest Von Raumer's dull emconium fell almost still-born
from the press, while the far more superficial pages of
Dickens and Trollope were eagerly devoured by a people
who are daily given to understand, by their own authors,
that they are the greatest, the wisest, the most virtuous
nation under the sun. Let a European author be never so
well disposed towards them, his partial applause contributes
but little to their full-blown complacency. But, when they
hear that the republic has been traduced by a foreign, and
especially by a British pen, their vanity is piqued, their
curiosity'excited, and their conscience smitten. Every one
denounces the libel in public, and every one admits its
truth to himself,—" What !" say they, " does the Old
World in truth judge us thus harshly ? Is it really scanda-
lised by such trifles as the repudiation of our debts, and
the enslavement of our fellow-creatures ? Must we give
up our playful duels, and our convenient spittoons, before
we can hope to pass muster as Christians and gentlemen
beyond our own borders ? 0, free Dennis ! 0, wise De-
mus ! 0, virtuous Demus ! Will you betake yourself to
cleanly, and well-ordered ways at the bidding of this scrib-
bler ?" Thus " they eat, and eke they swear ;" vowing all
the time that they will " horribly revenge." No doubt,
however, the bitter pill of foreign animadversion, though
distasteful to the palate, relieves the inflamation of their
stomachs, and leaves them better and lighter, than be-
fore. But when will a native Aristophanes arise to purge
the effeminancy of the American press, and show up the
sausage venders and Cleons of the republic in their true
'light ? How long will the the richest field of national
'folly in the world remain unreaped, save by the crotchety
sickles of dull moralists and didactic pamphleteers ?
"How they Manage Matters in the Modern Republic:"
- Blackwood's Magazine for April.
SMALL HOUSES DEAR ONES.—It is a great error in a
working man, with a large family, to think that he can
save money by taking a small house. He crowds his poor
children into miserable rooms. It is not long before dis-
ease shows itself. Perhaps one of the children dies of
convulsions, another falls into ill-health, or scarlet fever
or measles break out among them ; or, worse than all, ty-
phus fever appears and carries off its victims. When
these things take place, people are apt to blame any-
thing rather than the right thing for their misfortunes.
They will tell you that they have had a great deal of trou-
ble, and perhaps they have had to apply to the parish, be-
cause the father is in the Fever Ward : but they have for-
gotten, all the time, that they themselves have been the
cause of the evil. The great Creater never made human
beings to be able to bear this kind of crowding. He in-
tended that all his creatures should have room enough
and fresh air enough ; and it is utterly impossible for man
to neglect the law for his existence, without suffering for
his neglect.. Remember, that the present frightful fever,
which is destroying so many people in Liverpool, arises
to a great extent from overcrowding of houses by the Irish
Poor ? Overcrowding of houses produces also fearful
moral evils. We would ask ally father or mother to think,
what must be the result to their children from sleeping in
the, same 'room with grpwn up people of all sexes and ages ?
"ins abominable habif prevails to a great extent among
the working classes, and it is high time that it were abo-
lished. Poverty has very little to do with it in many cases.
l'he matter has been inquired into, and we are afraid that
bad habits and want of thought have more to do with it
than poverty has. What would you think of a family,
with 1.1 2s. a week, consisting of father and mother, a
married son and his wife, a grown-up daughter and two
sons, all sleeping in the same room on three beds ? What
has poverty to do with such an occurrence as this ? And
yet there are many cases far worse. It is like a man with
255. or 30s. a week, trying to rear a family in a cellar, for
the purpose of saving money. Depend upon it, that the
dearest of all houses, both for health and morals, is the
house in which you are obliged to crowd yourselves to-
gether. You are certain to pay more than the difference
of rent in the illness and moral injury your families will
suffer.—Address to the Working Classes.