The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1853-01-25 00:00:00

THE AMERICAN MINISTER has
books to the Manchester Free Liter;

MR. JOHN LORD is d
Manchester on the heroes of Pro
THE CARPET MANDA A Pl,Traal

vanced the prices for weaving on

01,11 p way, in it
death on Friday last,

a a do

:er of a qu

stantism

tie absence o

THE LIVERPOOL Cm
take place in the Tow
auspices of Lord Derby,

AM SOCIETY'S annual
all on Friday next.

middle s

COLLEGIATE INSTITUTIONT.—The
opened on Tuesday, the number of n
much larger than usual.

ONSTABVLARY FORCE
One of the off

men, including officers
classic name of Telemachus
THE MAYOR OF PRESTON u
bread must he sold by weld
chaser, under a penalty of lOs
-

all will

tied an orc

that all

nce of the

A GREAT NUMBER OF PERSONS
grated from Rochdale to Aust-
preparing to depart in the spring.
.111 u. SAMUEL HOLUB, the Mayor of I
tamed a select party of gentlemen at dinn,
hall, on Wednesday evening last.
SUDDEN DEATH.—On Wednesday, John Day, ala
bourer, while working on board the brig Amedora, lying
in the Prince's Dock, fell down and expired.
Two FEMALE POACHERS from the town of Arbroath,
with nets and a well-trained dog in their possession, have
been taken into custody in this neighbourhood. .
THE SOLE SURVIVING GRANDCHILD OF SIR WALTER
SCOTT is the wife of Mr. James Hope, brother of the late
Mr. John Thomas Hope, who was a candidate for Man-
chester.

ralia, and hundreds

erpool

er, in the Town-

A. GIG ACCIDENT occurred on Tuesday, near Stockport
by which Miss Potts, step-daughter of Mr. Middleton
grocer, was subjected to such injuries as place her lifA Jr

danger

THE REV. JAMES CRANBROOR V
(Tuesday) in the Concert-hall, on '
under the auspices of the Livery
Institute.

PHILHARMONIC SOCIETY.—The nnnnal meeting of the
proprietors of the Philharmonic -hall was held on Wed-
nesday, at the office, ExChange-court, when the report
was unanimously adopted.

AARON SMITH, aged 78 yeqrs,
week whilst crossing the Longridge Railw.,
burn. Tha deceased was a labourer, and we.
down by an engine and tender.

s killed

yesterday
ear Black-

THE DRESSMAKERS AND MILLINE....
have been invited to hear a paper read at the
Institution, on Friday next, by a committee appointed or
behalf of the above class of young persons.
TttomAs AND MARY HOWARD, convicted of extensive
illicit distillation at the Manchester Police-office, on
Friday morning last, were fined in £3O : in default of
payment, to be imprisoned for three months.
SHIPPING TO AUSTRALIA.--The Gambia, Jas. Carson,
Ottilla, and Thorwaldsen, vessels belonging to Mr. James
Walthew's Liverpool and Australian line of packets, have
all arrived safely at their antipodal destination.
LIVERPOOL ACADEMY.—The numbers of person,.
visited the Exhibition of Paintings, during the popular
evenings, since Monday, December 27th, up to its close
on Saturday, were 10,532 adults, and 1,167 children.
NEW DEPUTY-LIEIITENANTS.—The Lord-Lieutenant
the Earl of Sefton, has appointed Peter Catterall, Esq.,, Mayor of Preston, and Vm. Ainsworth, Esq., of Preston,
Deputy-Lieutenants of the county palatine of Lancaster.
THE NEW STOCK EICCHANGE.—Workmen are now
busily engaged in altering a portion of the west side of the
Exchange-buildings, preparatory to the Stock Exchange
being removed there from its present locality in Royal
Bank-buildings.

of Manche
Mechat

A PUBLIC MEETING, called by the Mayor of Oldham,
was held in that town on Wednesday evening, and a per
tion adopted praying both Houses of Parliament to r-
the evils arising from the gross violation of the
Factory Bill.

TAE FARMERS in, the neighbourhood of Roc!
on Monday week to raise a fund for tl
an annuity for John Turner, of Birch
years, who raised an
called the " Fluke."
THE REV. Mn. Ramo, late of the Scottish Church,
Oldham.sstreet, Liverpool, now minister of the second
Scottish Church in Melbourne, officiates every Sabbath
111 the Temperance Hall, Russell-street, Melbourne. to
large congregations.

purcha:

poor man aged
mproved variety of the potato,

EDWARD RYAN, the well-known Indian Judge
accompanied by Mr. J. B. Lloyd, paid a visit to tile
Public Library this week, and, after minut
the building and arrangements, expre
gratified with all he saw.
A. CORRESPONDENT of the Lancers—.
that the Preston board of guardians have made an u
cessful attempt to foist upon the town a Romili governor
of the workhouse. "In every public office in Preston,'"
he affirms, " Jesuite irrfiuence is at work."

A BOY, eleven years old, nan
on Thursday las

,t upset fi

ied himse

Fletcher Barm, Ni

utuz uu
lead, and he died almost instantaneously.
THE MANN SUFFERERS.—The Rev.‘Canon Stowell, of
lianchester, having, on Sunday week, intimated to his
congregation his willingness to receive contributions to-
wards the relief of the sufferers from the late catastrophe
in the Isle of Man, has received £lOB ss. for that purpose.

MRS. BESWICK, wife of Mr. John Beswick, innkeeper.,
Chapels, near Darwen, in Lancashire, was yesterday even-
ing week seized with a sick fit in her own house, in con-
sequence of which she fell into the fi:e, and was almost
burned to death : she is still in a precarious condition.
Ma. JAMES BAINES, of this town. accompanied by
Captain J. N. Forbes, of the ship Marco Polo, and
Captain Alexander'Newlands, had an interview with the
Right Hon. E. Cardwell, at the Board of Trade, on
Tuesday, on the subject of ships deserted by their crews
in Australia.

JUMPING.—WiIIiam Preston, aced 48 years, a strong
healthy man, employed at Messrs. Bury's works, Adel phi
Manchester, was killed on Saturday last,
with some of his fellow workmen. 7'
against the ground, lost
against a door-post.

ilejumping

is balance, and br'oLe

A CASH-BOX STOLEN.—Jane Twist, aged 19 year
servant with Mr. Thomas Ball, grocer, Oldfield--
Manchester, has been apprehended, cha
a cash-box from her master, containing £3b.
has been in the habit of hiding this box in a cellar, where
he thought no one would find it.

ged with stealing
Mr. Ball

MILES DIXON, weaver and warper, in the employ of
'essrs. R. Battersby and Sons, woollen manufacturers,
been committed on a charge of robbinz that.

charge of r

Ipftpr nom

er to a

RAIL MAILS.—Mr. Warburton, in ails
iplaining of the detention of the Brazil mails in

,olis, has received a letter from the Postmaster-
ating that the mails cannot be accelerated till

lilt at pre

they are, with diffieu

from Eu-ston-sc

e by the 9 15 a.m. train, and
uite impossible for them to be

forwarded b

ington,

e-hall, St. Hetet
and on

, .nd qualthect as
and at the same
William Pilkington, Esq., of Eccleston-hall, St.
and on Thursday, at the same place, William
rpool, took the oaths and qualified as
enants of this county.

Helens

RAMSEY HARBOt

__ _ Some improvements are likely to
e made in this harbour shortly, which will make it more

nmodious t

ather beat

an at pre

:It, and

'assets may ent

with s

fety, and b

:ted from the storm, in lieu of anchoring

petition from this town to the commissioners of harbours,
praying them to grant an adequate sum for the extension
I improvement of the harbour, was presented on Tues.
etition was received favourably, and a

Ist. The
of £6OO 1

iven, all the funds tr

Posal at present.—

:ommissioners have

Manx Sun

REFUSAL TO PROCEED TO SEA.-At the Liverpool
police-court, on Tuesday, the captain of the ship Albion,

,
lying in the river, preferred a charge against Frank Wil-
liams, James Lettine, John Harrington, John Johnstone,
Jonathan Seed, George Baker, Henry Kline, and John

seamen, for having, in violation of their agree.:
ment, refused to proceed in the said vessel to New
Orleans—from thence (if required) to any port in the
United States, British North America, or whatever freight
might offer, or for a term not to exceed twelve month
They were each sentenced to thirty days' impri

Seanta

sonment

EXEMPTION FROM JURIES.—An application was made
at the Kirkdale Sessions, on Tuesday, on behalf of Thomas
Ridley, Esq.. J.P. for the island of Newfoundland, and
holding her Majesty's commission as a member of the
executive council of that island, to exempt him from
-ruing noon juries at the sessions, on account of the
-q held by him. It was stated that, although a magis-
nempt from serving upon a jury at the sessions
of which he was a magistrate, (on the prin-

trate we

for the count

Ige at such court

al ptien in regard to

,gard to the

Mere was no such

ons for other counties, or in

THE SPRING CIRCUITS.—On Wednesday the Judges
assembled in the Exchequer Chamber for the purpose of
selecting their respective Circuits for the ensuing Spring
Assizes. The following is the result of the selection :
Northern.—Mr. Justice Cresswell and Mr. Baron Martin.
lk.—Lord Campbell and the Lord Chief Baron.
Chief Justice Jervis and Mr. Baron Parke.
nn Alderson and Mr. Justice Coleridge.
Mr. Justice Erie and Mr. Justice Crompton.
Mr. Justice Williams and Mr. Justice Talfourd.

—Lor
Mr. B

•th Wales.—Mr. Justice Maule.
th Wales.—Mr. Justice Wightman

Mr. Baron Platt will remain in town.

tiLwAY.—lt is asserted that this
Wore than five per cent., and to do
e to dip into the balance brought from
The earnings are £16,000 less, and there
shares to come in for full dividend instead

,TERN

it account

are the quarter-

.er cent., mat

INIt'ORTANT TO OIL

by that statut

nded that the statut
sr,••••••4 na-Anni• Onnh

by the

cl limits

at the r

in an e

he arguecl was
caffinfl

which, in the

it is to 1

him with a

of our fell

he nulled c

r.r! rr t

f deteCtive

which the congre

saner in I'
in £3O. ai

1 of good

nent in defa

A FAMILY OF BOA CONSTRICTORS.--011 Sunday week
there arrived in this port, in the ship Arrow, Captain
Wyatt, from Para, a huge serpent of the boa genus. The
reptile is 18 feet in length, and was caught by some of the
natives on the banks of the " mighty Amazon." Before
it came into the possession of Captain Wyatt, it had satis-
fied its appetite by swallowing a full-grown goat. On the
day the vessel left Para. the captain and crew were sur-
prised to .find that the serpent had given birth to 36 young
ones. The "snakelets" were about two feet each in
length, and in six weeks they have only grown about an
inch in length. In about six days after the birth, the
mamma devoured 29 pigeons, being the first food she had
tasted from the time she had feasted on the goat—a
period of about three months. Captain Wyatt has dis-
poced of the boa constrictor and its progeny to Mr.
Edmonds, the proprietor of one of the travelling menage-
ries of his father-in-law, the late Mr. Wombwell, which
is at nresent being exhibited in Manchester. The mother
and three of the young ones has been conveyed to that
town, but 33 of the snakelets have yet to be delivered,
dead or alive, to the purchaser. They are at present, in
seaman's phrase, adrift in the ship's hold.
A. RICE MILL DEs-- —On 'Wednesday

TED BY FIR
place at the

y of M

11-road. -The works

ted of a

large building of four stories, containing a great quantity
of produce and machinery. The fire broke out in the
upper part of that portion of the premises used as a rice-
mill, and was discovered shortly after four o'clock in the
afternoon. Information was immediately sent to the
central fire-police station, and Mr. Hewitt, with a number
of the fire brigade, proceeded to the burning building
with all despatch. The West of England engine was also
in attendance. When the engines arrived the fire had
made such progress as to render the destruction of the
rice-mill inevitable. Through the exertions of the fire
brigade, however, the starch manufactory, offices, and
several surrounding cottages were preserved. The con-
flagration was chiefly remarkable for its fierceness, a cir-
cumstance in part owing to the •extreme dryness of the
materials exposed to the action of the flames. It was
about seven o'clock before the fire was effectually sub-
dued. The damage done amounts to from £4,000 to
£5,000. It is covered by insurance in the Norwich Union
Fire office. Much of the stock in the rice-mill was saved.
The fire is supposed to have originated from the friction
of machinery.

SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF AND DUMB.---The annual
meeting of the supporters of this institution was held on
Thursday, at the school, Oxford-street East. The Rev.
Rector Campbell, the president, in the chair. The children
under instruction in the school were in the room during
the proceedings, and their healthful and cheerful appear-
ance was a subject of gratification. There are at present
between 40 and 50 pupils.—Mr. Edward Banner, the
honorary secretary, read the annual report. This stated
that there had been an increase of income derived from
legacies. More than three-fourths of the children now
under instruction belong to Liverpool itself; and never,
at any former time, did the institution more fully answer
the chief object of its benevolent founders. Contributions
to the clothing fund had been received from Richard
Rathbone, Esq., of Woodcote, Aigburth, and from other
donors connected with the institution ; and the committee
had also to express their thanks to Miss H. M. Rathbone,
Mr. Hugh Shimmin, and the directors of the American
Asylum for the Deaf and Dumb, Hartford, Connecticut,
for valuable acquisitions to the school library.—The cash
account was read by Mr. Arthur Thompson, the treasurer ;
after which, the Rev. William Brewster moved that the
report and statement of accounts be adopted.—The reso-
lution seconded by Mr. Richard Rathbone, and car-
ried unanimously.—Mr. Harmood Banner moved a vote
of thanks to the president, officers, and committee, for
their services during the past year ; and the meeting broke
up with the usual compliment to the chairman,

IHE LIVERPOOL STANDARD, TUESDAY, JANUARY

MERCHANTS.-Tri the Court of
Exchequer on Wednesday, the case of Rosseter v. Cahl-
mann was heard on a demurrer to a rejoinder, which
raised the question whether a contract for sundry gallons
of palm oil, " old measure," to be delivered on the coast
of Africa and paid for in Liverpool, was an illegal contract
within the sth and 6th William IV., c. 63, s. 21, because
in the "imperial measure" established
Mr. M. Smith, for the plaintiff, con-
d not apply to any
he United

n question cou

Kingdbm. Mr. Field, being called on to support his
plea, submitted that the contract, though made with
reference to foreign goods, was one to be performed in
England, and, therefore, fell 'within the 21st section of
the statute. The court, however, hell that the statute
could only apply to contracts wholly arising within the
United Kingdom, and could not be extended to foreign
transactions such as that on which the plaintiff sued.
There must, therefore, be judgment for the plaintiff.
Judgment accordingly.

LICENSES FOR STEANI-TUGS.—On Thursday, John
Nicholson, William Henry Ogden, and William Currie,
the owners of the steam-tug Queen, appeared before the
magistrates, charged with sailing that vessel with passen-
gers without a certificate.—Mr. Tindal, who appeared for
the Board of Trade, said the information was filed on the
12th section of the Steam Navigation Act. According to
the 3rd section of the act, owners of steam-vessels are
bound, twice in every year, to have their vessels surveyed
by a shipwright's surveyor appointed by the government,
who shall testify as to the soundness of the hull, and by a
shipwright's engineer, who shall testify as to the state of
the engines. After this, the Board of Trade grants the
certificates. In the case in question, no application had
been made for such certificate.—Elisha Wilcockson,
Custom-house officer, deposed that on the 3rd instant he
saw 36 passengers on board the Queen, then lying at the
Prince's-pier. The steamer was conveying passengers to
the emigrant ship Forest Monarch, which was lying in the
river.—Mr. Owen, for the defence, contended that the
Queen was not employed on any voyage or excursion ; she
was merely the means of transit to the ship.—The magis-

trates decided that the law affected the case in question,
and ordered the defendants to pay a mitigated penalty of
40s. and costs.—John Newton, the captain of the Queen,
was fined 10s. and costs for the same offence.
DOCK COMMITTEE.-At the weekly meeting, on Thurs-
day, the Secretary submitted a letter from Messrs. George
Baker and Son, in reply to a letter written to them.
enclosing the resolution of the dock committee, and
requesting to know the amount of expense they had
incurred in tendering for the contracts for the dock works.
They refuse to state what expenses they had incurred,
complain of the injurious comparisons which had been
drawn in discussions about their tender, and request that
the case may be referred to three eminent engineers.
After a lengthy debate, it was agreed to send a reply to
Messrs. Baker, to the effect, that the committee could not
proceed further in the matter.—The Solicitor submitted
his annual report in reference to bills preparing for the
ensuing session of parliament ; he expressed his satisfac-
tion that it was the first time during many years in which
the dock trustees were not the object of parliamentary
attack.—The Chairman intimated that the contracts for
printing and stationery, now in the hands of Mr. M'Cor-
quodale and Mr. Harris, expired in March next, and it
was agreed that the necessary advertisements should be
issue.l for tenders.—Mr. Bigham brought forward the
motion of which he had given notice, that in future the
reporters be requested not to withdraw until the chairman
left the chair ; but, after a lengthy discussion, the motion
was lost, the majority considering that the presence of re-
porters would be injudicious, and might lead to difficulties.

HEALTH COMMITTEE.—At the meeting of the com-
mittee on Thursday, Mr. Alderman Langsdale presided.
From a financial statement read by the clerk, it appeared
that in 1852 the rates collected amounted to £4 ss. 7d.
per cent. increase upon those of the preceding year, or a
total of £3,s4o.—The medical officer reported that though
inflammatory affections of the lungs have become more
prevalent, there had been a decrease last week in the
general mortality of the borough, the deaths being 200
against 214 in the week previous, and an average of 258
in the corresponding week of five preceding years. The
deaths in the parish were 140, and in the extra parochial
wards, 60. Of the total deaths 96 were from diseases of
the lungs, including consumption, a larger proportion
than in any week of the previous three years. Consump-
tion caused 40 deaths, which exceeded the number in any
week of the preceding twenty months. There was a
decrease of six in the mortality from zymotic diseases, the
deaths last week being 38, including 9 from 'looping
cough, 7 from typhus, 6 from scarlatina, 6 from diarrhoea.
2 from small pox (1 not vaccinated), 1 from measles, and 1
from erysipelas. One death from rheumatism.—The
chairman read a letter from Mr. John Rose, relative to
his proposition for deodorising the town manure, and
afterwards disposing of it. in the most advantageous man-
ner. The letter, which included some financial state-
ments, for the purpose of showing that by the proposed
plan the committee would save £1,538 per annum, or
£23,000 during the fifteen years, was referred to the engi-
neer.—Mr. Bigham said, at the last meeting remarks were
made as to his interest in a machine for sawing, purchased
by the engineer; all he could say was, that it was pur-
chased from a gentleman, a friend of his, and he had no
A letter from Mr.
plaining that he had
acture of rosin oil for some
cs were within the distance
parliament, namely 75 feet. Since
Sour, Mr. Lutwyche, had come within the
and an information bad been laid against
Mr. Taylor was requested

ST. HELENS SAVINGS' BANK.--A meeting of the de-
positors was held at the Fleece Inn, St. Helens, on Mon-
day, Mr. Edward Morgan in the chair. The report of
the committee appointed the preceding year by the depo-
sitors was read. The trustees furnished them with a full
statement and abstract of the accounts, whereby it ap-
peared that the net amount realised from the estate of the
two Johnsons was £555 ; that mortgages on the shares in
the colliery, amounting to £2,366, had been paid, and
that the expenses of the prosecution, beyond the amount
allowed by the county, had been very great. Conceiving
that the depositors have a strong claim on Government
for at least the amount of those expenses, the committee
prepared a memorial to the Chancellor of the Exchequer,
which Wm. Brown, Esq., M.P., has undertaken to present.
MURDEROUS THREATS.—On Tuesday, Angelo Cook, a
Sicilian, was charged at the Police-office with threatening
to shoot Mr. Benussi, who is a pawnbroker in Paradise-
street, and keeps a public-house in Drury-lane. Robert
M'Cartney, assistant, stated that at half-past three, and
again at half-past five o'clock, on Monday afternoon,
Cook called at Mr. Benussi's house, Drury-lane. At the
former hour he wished them all " good bye," but when
he came the second time, he inquired for his master, who
was absent. Prisoner then pulled out two pistols and
said, that " if they would not do, this knife shall."
M'Cartney, who saw a large knife in his breast, sent word
to Mr. Benussi, who, accompanied by Sullivan and Car-
lisle, police-officers, arrested the prisoner, on whose person
were found the pistols loaded, as also a dagger-knife.
The prisoner was ordered to find bail—himself in £3O and
two sureties in £l5 each.

s read, eon)
nr,

int-be6re the finance committee.—Mr

to bring

CRIME IN LANCASHIRE.—At the Epiphany Sessions,
held at Kirkdale, on Tuesday, Capt. Woodford, the chief
constable, read a return of the state of crime, &c., in the
county. During the quarter, from the Ist of October to
the 31st of December, 1852, there had been a total of
2,174 prisoners apprehended, 422 charged with offences
against the person, including 245 common assaults, and
55 assaults upon police constables. There were eight bur-
glary cases, and 544 charged with larceny and other
offences against property. Of the other offences, 42 pri-
soners had been charged with wilful damage ; bastardy,
159 ; deserting females, 26; drunkenness, 401 ; and va-
grancy, 292. Of the total number of 2,174 prisoners, 271
were sent for trial, 1,230 summarily convicted, 129 bailed,
and 544 discharged. 1,970 persons had been summoned
by the police in the same period, 149 of these being
charged with breaches of the beer act, 98 breaches of the
licensed victuallers' act, 168 with breaches of the peace,
and 701 with drunkenness. Of the total, 1,070 were
summarily convicted, 1,747 dismissed, 180 did not appear,
and the number of warrants granted was 39. Of other
summonses, issued on the complaints of parish authorities,
common informers, &c., there was a total of 2,382. Of
these, two were sent for trial ; 1,376 summarily convicted,
667 cases were settled out of court, one left to arbitration,
300 persons were dismissed, 36 did not appear, and 25
warrants were issued.

attention to the crossing of the streets
:s by the Lancashire and Yorkshire Rail-

way Company, when the chairman intimated that the
matter had been referred to the engineers of the two
bodies.

RAILWAY ACCIDENTS AT CHORLEY.-011 Tuesday,
two collisions occurred at the Chorley station, on the Bol-
ton and Preston line of the Lancashire and Yorkshire
Railway, but neither was attended with loss of life. The
first, which took place in the morning, appears to have
been caused by the neglect of persons in charge of the
station, in not turning on a signal. Through this over-
sight, a coal-train came up behind, and ran into a goods-
train which was standing in the station, on the down-line
from Manchester, and the force was such as to make con-
siderable havoc with both trains. The second accident
occurred in the evening. About three-quarters of a mile
short of Chorley the express-train which left Preston for
Manchester at 5 o'clock, consisting of five first and second
class carriages, overtook and ran into a train of 19 wag-
gons filled with cattle, which was going in the same direc-
tion, and ascending one of the steepest gradients on the
line. The cattle train had been much impeded by the
slippery state of the rails, and the express came upon it in
a very sharp curve of the line, where the driver could not
see any great distance in advance. However, he succeeded
in arresting the train so as to prevent the collision being a
severe one. Three of the cattle-trucks were smashed, and
six sheep were killed, but in the express train the passen-
gers were some of them scarcely conscious of the shock.
None of the carriages of the express-train were thrown off
the line, nor were they in any way injured. The directors
have made a strict investigation into the circumstances.

ST. CLEMENT'S MISSIONARY MEETING.—A very in-
teresting missionary meeting was held in St. Clement's
Boys' School-room, Windsor, on Monday evening, the
lith instant, in furtherance of the object of the above
society,—the Rev. F. Parry in the chair. After the pro-
ceedings had been opened with prayer, the rev. chairman,
,quent speech of considerable length, dwelt upon
Society for Promoting Christianity Among the Jews,
of which he is the zealous secretary ; in the course of
which he defined its real province and aim—corrected

many prevalent mistakes made by many with regard to
the objects of the society, and urged its claims upon the

. _
sympathy and support of the meeting.—The Rev. J.
S. Burdon, who has been recently ordained, and is
about to proceed as a missionary to Shanghai, China,
next addressed the meeting, and ably advocated the
cause of "missions to the Heathen. Among the topics
dwelt upon, was the success of one missionary and the
want of success of another, though equally zealous, which
' - God, mainly to be attributed to the
followed up by untiring devotedness,

tp, out the conviction—that the
education of the rising generation was the opening of a
" wide and effectual door for the Gospel," by which the
whole fabric of Heathenism will be shaken to its base,
and the comparative neglect of this duty by the latter
He glanced at •

ltcrestinz mission field of China, in
ence of God, be will be soon called to

A FRAUDULENT INSOLVENT. —ln the Insolvent
Debtors' Court, London, William Pomfret, who had kept
the Railway Hotel at Blackburn, was brought up last
week, before Mr. Commissioner Law. The insolvent in
his schedule stated that in March last he had property
at the Railway Hotel to the value of at least £3OO, which
had been seized at the suit of Mr. Bell, an attorney at
Blackburn. Towards the end of 1851, finding himself in
difficulties, he mentioned his circumstances to one Charn-
ley, a sheriff's officer, who advised him to go to Mr. Bell,
which he did, and, after explaining his position, he, at the
request of Mr. Bell, wrote his name several times in a
book, which that person produced, with different pens
and different inks. He also, by Bell's desire, gave a pro-
missory note for £l9l 16s. 10d., payable on demand.
Insolvent then came up to London, and Mr. Bell sued
and obtained judgment upon the promissory note, under
which he levied an execution upon all the property at the
Railway Hotel, and Charnley, as the sheriff's officer, got
into possession. The property was sold, and realised be-
tween £2OO and £3OO, of which no part had reached the
creditors or the insolvent, who left the town with £65 in
cash, and had remained in London till the period of his
arrest.—Messrs. Bell and Charnley stated, by affidavit,
that the circumstances deposed to were utterly false and
untrue, except the institution of legal proceedings against
the insolvent upon a promissory note given to secure
£l9O, money advanced to insolvent by Mr. Bell.—Mr.
Commissioner Law said the insolvent, by his own account,
had employed Mr. Bell, an attorney, and Charnley, a
sheriff's officer at Blackburn, to help him to cheat his
creditors. The other two persons, Bell and Charnley,
had had the indiscretion to make affidavits, which he con-
sidered as confirmatory of the insolvent's statement. He
(the Commissioner) believed all that part of the insolvent's
story, and he looked upon the whole as a conspiracy be-
tween these three parties to cheat the insolvent's creditors.
The insolvent, however, had been the primary cause of all
the creditors being defrauded, and on that account he
would not be discharged till the lapse of 14 months from
the date of the vesting order.

LIVERPOOL ART UNION.—The drawing for the-prizes
took place on Tuesday ; Samuel Holme, Esq., mayor,
presided ; and, in the course of a preliminary
speech, intimated that 378 persons had subscribed, mak-
ing the sum of £396 18s. ; and by which they were enabled
to offer 25 prizes, varying in amount from £5O down to
£5. -While on former occasions the chances, he be-
lieved, of obtaining a prize were about 1 in 45, those chances
were now reduced, or rather, be should say, advanced to 1
in 15 of the subscribers. He could not avoid congratulating
the people of Liverpool, and particularly the artists, on
the greater encouragement which had been given of late
years to modern art and to modern artists. Mr. F. Ro-
berts, the secretary, read the report, in which, while the
committee regretted the smallness of the sum subscribed,
as compared with Glasgow, Edinburgh, and other towns,
they still expressed a hope in the future. The total
amount of subscriptions was £396 18s. ; and after paying
all expenses, a balance of £355 had been left to buy pic-
tures—one of £5O, one of £3O, one of £25, three of £20,4
of £l5, eleven of £lO, and four of £5. At the conclusion
of the drawing, the Mayor read the names of the fortunate
subscribers. The first in the list was " the first drawn
blank." and was, according to the conditions. entitled to
a £5 prize. The following is the list :—Mr. John Roberts,
12, Huskisson-street, £5 ; Mr. Richard Grindley, 58,
Bedford-street, £5O ; Mr. R. H. Frank, Aigburth, £2O ;
Mr. Robert Greenhatn, Mersey-chambers, Old Church-
yard, £lO ; Mr. J. W. Macrae, Liverpool, £2O ; Mr. J.
H. Swale, at Messrs. Leyland and Bullen's, King-street,
£2O ; Mr. George Brown, Birchfield, Edge-lane, £l5 ;
Mr. Thomas Mather, Holywell, £lO ; Mrs. H. Lorimer,
Woolton-road, Wavertree, £10; Mr. Samuel Blain,
Brunswick-street, £5 ; Mr. IV. Graham, Monk-street,
Birkenhead, £5; Mr. John Naylor, banker, £10; Mr.
Robert Case, Holly-road, Fairfield, £l5 ; Mr. Thomas
Branch, Hanover-street, £lO ; Mr. F. Braun, Falkner-
square' £10; The Earl of Sefton, £3O; Mrs. Macintyre,
25, Slater-street, £10; Mr. J. J. Hadwen, 10, Erskine-
street, £25 ; Mrs. William Kay Coubrough, 8, Cumber-
land-terrace, Upper Parliament-street, £10; Mr. James
Pelham, Marsden-street, £lO ; Mr. J. Joynson, Exchange-
buildings, £10; Mr. George Schultz, Grove-park, Lodge-
lane, £5 ; Miss Agnes Atkinson, Seaford), £l5 ; Mr.
Latham, Garston-hall, £l5; Mr. F. Tamplin, Colonial-
buildings, £lO,

,yed in labouring there, over those whose lot
or among half civilized and barbarous races
w-creatures. But by far the most interesting
the evening's proceedings was the pleasing duty
-ation had to discharge. As a feeble
will, and to record their high sense
of the value of the faithful services of Mr. Roberts, their
late Scripture reader, they deputed the Rev. Chairman
to present him with a large handsomely bound copy of
Baxter's comprehensive Polyglot Bible, with notes, &c. ;
and a purse containing ten guineas. The Bible bore the
inscription :—" Robert Roberts. Presented to him with
sincere and cordial wishes for his peace in time, and bliss
i❑ eternity, by his friends in the district of St. Clement's,
Windsor, Liverpool, as a token of their appreciation of his
faithful labours as a Scripture Reader of that district foreight
years: ' Be thou faithful unto death, I and will give thee a
crown of life.'—Rev. 2, v. 10. They part with him with
regret. In this World partings are frequent and unavoidable ;
but there is another world, where adieus and partings are
unknown.' The Rev. Chairman, in a feeling and affec-
tionate address, bore testimony to his zeal and devoted-
ness, and implored the Divine blessing to follow him in
the new sphere in which he has been called to labour.
As soon as Mr. Roberts had sufficiently recovered from
the emotion which the unexpected presentation had occa-
sioned, he briefly, but in an appropriate manner, returned
sincere thanks ; whereupon the proceedings terminated
with singing and prayer.

MILNER'S FIRE-PROOF SAFES.—At the Bankruptcy
Court, on Tuesday, ,Mr. Commissioner Perry gave judg-
ment in the case of John German Harrison, which we re-
ported fully last week. His honour said that the charge
against the bankrupt was either gross fraud committed
against Mr. Milner. or gross recklesness, according as the
bankrupt is to be considered as acting for the Messrs.
Tann in the capacity of agent, whom safety boxes he sold
in Liverpool, or on his own account. His Honour, after
recapitulating the facts of the case, and the piracy com-
mitted by the bankrupts on Mr. Milner's patent by which
the latter had been compelled to bring two actions at law,
said—Now it appears to me, that no sufficient justification
has been shown for the bankrupt's exposing himself to
the litigation which has occurred, and to the expenses ne-
cessarily consequent upon it. He failed to take the ordi-
nary precaution of obtaining a guarantee which would na-
turally have suggested itself to the mind of one strongly
impressed, as his was years ago, with the belief that the
Messrs. Tann were using Milners' principle of non-con-
ductors, and which Mr. Samuel's application for indem-
nity, made according to the bankrupt's own representa-
tion to Messrs. Tann, ought to have made him the more
ready to exercise in his own case. The costs incurred and
payable to his opponent have amounted to £1,300, in ad-
dition to a large sum for which the bankrupt is liable to
Messrs. Norton. The preference also shown by the deed
of October, 1851, for securing the previous debt of the fa-
ther and uncle of the bankrupt, executed in order to de-
feat the judgment obtained by Mr. Milner in the first ac-
tion, is another feature in this case. It is urged by Mr.
Bardswell, first, that the proceedings in action have been
instituted by Mr. Milner for the purpose of oppressing
Mr. Harrison, his late servant, and he asks why the pro-
ceeding was not instituted against the Messrs. Tann. The
answer to this has, I think, been satisfactorily given by
the pamphlet issued by the bankrupt, in which he has de-
scribed himself as sole proprietor, and also as proprietor
of Tann's patent for the manufacturing districts. The
next argument in support of the bankrupt is founded upon
the fact of professional advice having been taken respect-
ing the defence of the action, but what that advice was,
does not clearly appear, and it may be added, that such an
argument is entitled to little weight in the present case,
in which the bankrupt was probably more competent,
from long experience in the service of Mr. Milner, to de-
cide for himself than any professional adviser could be,
upon the question of infringement, or no infringement, of
Mr. Milner's patent rights. With regard to the assign-
ment in October, 1851, it is said, and very properly, that
it is justifiable to assign property to protect it for the ge-
neral body of creditors ; but that is not the present case,
the assignment having been made to benefit two creditors,
relations of the bankrupt, at the expense of his other cre-
ditors, and which two creditors have only been prevented
by the order of this court from reaping the full benefit of
the assignment. Upon a review of the whole case, I
thought that the certificate should be suspended for six
months from the date of the last examination, and that,
as the accounts of the bankrupt are stated by the official
assignee to have been properly kept, the certificate should
be of the second class. The Commissioner consented to
grant protection to the bankrupt.

Tna BunisuNG OF TUE ST. GEORGE.—The steamer
Sir Edward Banks, arrived at Havre, has brought some
additional particulars of the loss of the St. George. G.
Grant Cousins, one of the crew, states that the vessel
would be about 10 deg. 12 min. lat., and 23 deg. 30 min.
long., or about 1,200 miles south and westward of Cape
Clear, when smoke was first discovered coming from
the hold. During the whole period, indeed, it seems that
no fire was observed at all, the vessel being enshrouded in
thick and stifling smoke. Cousins states that when the
Orlando came in sight, the first two boats that left the
ship contained Captain Bairnson and all the crew, with
the exception of five hands. Cousins also described the
successive trips of the life-boat on the first day of the
disaster. He says—That the people had, so violent was
the hurricane, and so terrific the rolling of the St, George,
to watch the boat's rising on the top of a wave in order to
jump :in. Two lost their lives in the attempt. He left
the vessel in the fifth trip, and no one was left on board
then that could manage the vessel. Two other trips were
made after this, the last about nine o'clock. The Orlando
had two boats, but it was not safe to launch them. She
remained by all night, about ten miles distant. No com-
munication was made during the night with the St.
George, and the storm raged more furiously. At day-
break the following morning, (Christmas-day,) Captain
Bairnson came forward, and asked who would volunteer
to go off to the St. George to save the lives of the pas-
sengers. I was one of the party. Off we went, and, in
the course of an hour and a half, succeeded in coming
alongside. Still there were no means of assisting the pas-
sengers, and the only chance for them to reach her was to
jump. We remained a long while alongside, imploring
others to follow the example of those who had already
jumped, but fear and terror seemed to have seized them.
Several missed the boat, and were lost. No one was
saved who fell overboard. The poor creatures who were
left consisted entirely of women and children—the number
they could not tell ; but, on calling over the names of
those on board, for Captain Bairnson had saved the ship's
papers and log-book, some fifty were ascertained to be
gfatto the
.
al
missing. They never afterwards saw anything of the St.
George, or heard what fate she and her passengers met
with it. The next morning Captain Bairnson, who was
in a dreadful state of mind, called the men together, and
asked whether any of them would volunteer to risk
another attempt with him to rescue theunhappy creatures,
adding that it was a horrible thing to abandon the wreck
while so many poor things were on it. None would
voorlluanntdeoe,r
being
nggo,coenvverinycoendea,nasalso
attempt thosewoubld proveelongin
John Star, one of the emigrants of the St. George, a
framework-knitter, of Nottingham, who had paid for a
passage in her, taking with him his boy, five years of age,
complains bitterly of the conduct of Captain Bairnson and
his officers and men. He says—,' Had they remained to
direct the terrified passengers in making their enapep the
whole of them might have been Pved.".