The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1849-05-08 00:00:00

IT that you ever ex-

even upon the
therefore, clearly show that other considE
as they reasonably might, in determining your course at
the election, and that congruity of opinion, on this single
suaject, was no essential condition of you

object of th

ions weighed

support

I have expressed myself plainly upon your. conduct in
respect of this letter to the Morning Herald. I have far
greater pleasure in closing my reply, with my willing ac-
knowledgment of the consideration, candour, and friend
liness which, on every occasion excel
rienced at your h

I have expe-

I have the honour to remain, dear s
iervant, EDW. C

John Lockett, Esq., Chairman

R. LOCKETT'S REJOINDER

pool, 7th Ma

. •
DEAR SIR,—I have to acanowled‘ ge 'the receipt of your
letter of the 4th inst., being a reply to one addressed by

ing Herald, upon the sub-
ject of your vote in litvour of the bill for the repeal of the

me to the

Navigation Lav

There are two matters, not having a 4irect bearing
upon the main question between us, namely, the consis-

tency of your vote, which are so prominently put forward
in your letter, as to have a tendency to dist!'

tention

from that 'question ; these are, your complaint of my want
of courtesy, in not having communicated to you my letter
to the Herald; the other, my omission in not having
preferred against Sir Thomas Birch charges similar to
those which I had advanced against yourself. With re-
spect to my want of courtesy, the offence, if any, was one
of inadvertency, and not of intention; it certainly never

occurred to me that you could remain by possibility igno-
rant of my letter. I did not suppose that the Herald, the
organ of a great party on a question deeply interesting to
yourself, and on the fate of which it is supposed that
the existence of the present ministry depends, would not
have come under your daily notice, or that you would
have to derive a knowledge of my letter from 'an acci-
dental perusal" of its pages. However, I am by no
means unwilling to express my regret that I did not ap-
prise you of its publication. With respect to Sir Thomas
Birch, I could not with justice have brought against him
any " accusation of deceit " upon the subject of the Navi-
gation Laws : he made no professions,—not one syllable
upon that question appears even in his address to the
electors. As regards the support he received from me, I

him my second vote
observe, by

influenced to do this,
' bat in a great

Iv
" other considerations

measure by the belief—shared in and successfully acted
upon by all your influential supporters—that by so voting
your own return would be decidedly promoted.

nd, now, as regards the main question ; in your letter

you accuse me,

First,—Of want of fairness in not referring to some
proceedings of an association existing in Liverpool, in
1847, called the Conservative Association, before I quoted
the passage in your address, in which you say, " I will
support no change in the Navigation laws calculated to
interfere with the growing prosperity of the shipping and
commercial interests." Having never been a member of
that association, I can truly say that I was ignorant of
the proceedings referred to. Whether that body rejected
you on the ground that you did not sufficiently avow your
opposition to the endowment of the priests, or that your
opinions on the navigation laws were not satisfactory, or
on what other ground, know not ; but this remark 4 I
would now make, that if I had been present when your
letter was read, in which, with reference to the navigation
laws, you said—" I shall feel it my duty to consider the
evidence, and shall not consent to any modification of the
law which may appear to me calculated to interfere with
the prosperity of the shipping and commercial interests
and the maintenance of our maritime power"—(l take
the liberty of marking the term modification)—l should
not have supposed that within two years from that time
you would have voted for their total repeal. You accuse
me,

Secondly,—Of want of fairness, when I quoted your
speech on the hustings. in passing over in silence your
" repeated and emphatic declarations" of your aetermi-
nation to give no pledge even upon the subject of the
navigation laws. There are two modes of influencing the
minds of electors—one, by the candidate giving distinct
pledges ; the other, by a general and frequent expression
of opinions, leading them, in either case, to the conclu-
sion that he will support or oppose certain measures. Of
breaking distinct pledges I have never accused you. My
accusation is this—that by language repeated again and
again, in public and in private, and in many instances
volunteered, you led your supporters to believe, that even
after the most " careful enquiry" and " full consulta-
tion" with the parties interested, you would only consent
to a " change" or " modification" of the law, not affect-
ing its vital principles ; and that after so frequently bring-
ing before them your so guarded, and, as it was consi-
dered, wise determination, you have unhesitatingly voted
for total repeal.
Thirdly,—You refer to certain resolutions of the Ship-
owners' Association of 28th July, 1847, and with consi-
derable boldness, but with no proof in support of the as-
sertion, you say that in quoting from your speech on the
hustings, I was aware that it had an especial reference to
those resolutions. I have searched through your speech,
but I cannot find any reference to those resolutions, and
my impression still remains that your allusion to me as
" the Chairman," supporting you, was intended to create
amongst the general body of electors a confidence in your
soundness, if I may use the term, on the question of the
Navigation Laws. I must say that so striking an allusion
contributed to my own confidence.

Fourthly.—Your conversations with me in Liverpool,
from which, as I observed in my letter, I felt assured that
you would ever be found a supporter of the vital principles
of the Navigation Laws, you do not deny or explain, but
instead of so doing, enter upon the less difficult task of
narrating what passed at a recent interview in London.
Into the details of that interview you enter most fully,
and assume from them the following justification of your

vote, viz. : —that because the supporters of the Navigation
Laws proposed no modifications of Mr. Labouchere s bill,
did not accept your invitation fora fair discussion of every
improvement, you had no alternative but to vote for
total repeal." I would ask, have you not been frequently
told by us, that of that bill there could be no modification ?
Has it not been admitted from first to last, by all parties,
that that bill (the coasting trade and inter-colonial clauses
excepted) must stand or fall as a bill of repeal, neither
more or less ? Is it then either just or generous to en-
deavour to cast upon us the " responsibility" of your vote?
And lastly.—lt was no part of my duty to remonstrate
with you, at that interview, on the vote, which I could then
only infer, you would give on the third reading. My task
was fulfilled when, as one of the deputation, I stated
to you the views and wishes of those I represented. Nor
should I, after you had given such vote, have thought it
necessary to publish my opinions, had not Sir James
Graham made special reference to your vote, as represent-
ing the sentiments of this place, on the bill he was
supporting.

You will observe, by a reference to the proceedings of
the Town Council, at their meeting on Friday last, to
petition the Lords against the repeal of the Navisation
Laws, that my convictions of your inconsistency are

by no means solitary, but that Mr. Holme, Mr. Bromley-
Moore, Mr. Tyrer, and others entertain, from facts de-
tailed by them, opinions on the subject in perfect accor-
dance with my own.

1 have the honour to be, dear sir, your very obedient
servant, JOHN LOCKETT.

To Edward Cardwell, Esq., M.P.

. Bre, SCC

JONES'S LAST NUMBER.—This lively publication con-
tains a few good hits this week. It contains, however,
some blemishes, which we would gladly see avoided in
future. We may instance the article " Christianity in
the House of Lords," as one of these. Jones would do
well, also, to eschew meddling too much with questions
which can be much better discussed by journals of a more
serious description. We 'take up his columns to be en-
abled to indulge in a laugh at the comical phases of
humanity at large, and do not expect to be called upon to
mix in the personal quarrels of either public men or
individuals.

DEATH FROM STARVATION.—An inquest VMS held yes-
terday, on view of the body of Nancy M`Dermott, aged
46, who resided in Henderson-street, Toxteth. Twelve
months ago she was sent over to Ireland by the parish
authorities. She returned in about a month, and since
then had lived by begging. She had not had sufficient
food, but never applied for relief, for fear of being again
sent back to Ireland. On Friday morning she was taken
ill. A surgeon, who was called, found her in a dying
state, and she died the same evening. The cause of death
was want of sufficient food. Verdict accordingly.
DR. SANDIE'S LECTURES IN AID OF ST. CLEMENT'S
SCHOOLS.—A course of most interesting lectures was
delivered by Dr. Sandie on the evenings of the evenings
of the 16th, 23rd, and 30th ultimo, in St. Clement's
school room, on " the similarity of growth in the textures
of animals and plants," the proceeds of which are to be
given in aid of the funds of the schools attached to St.
Clement's Church. Each lecture was well attended by
an intelligent audience, including the Rev. F. Parry, W.
H. Moore, Esq., &c., and we are glad to learn that the
result will be very beneficial to the fund for which Dr.
Sandie kindly volunteered his gratuitous and valuable
services. The subject in his hands was no doubt novel to
most of his hearers, although the perspicacity with which
it was treated will have now rendered it as familiar to all,

as it is important in itself. The comments and medical
hints deducible from the subject, with which the lecturer
wound up his course, were most instructive ; and, as well
as the lectures themselves, were received with great grati-
fication by his hearers.