The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1847-10-12 00:00:00

THE LIFE OF OYSTERS.—Oysters lead, on the whole, '
as is known, a tolerably quiet life ; but even they cannot
get through this world, it appears, without their troubles.
Now they are attacked by a kind of star-fish that lies
watching till they open their shell to take in fresh water,
and then darts in its long tough arms, kills them, and !
consumes them in a fresher state than they have ever yet
been enjoyed by any epicure; now their sorrows proceed
from within, in the shape of a small worm that destroys
them ; and sometimes, according to the testimony of the
people of Sylt, they are attacked successfully by a bird
called thence an oyster-fisher, who disturbs their tran-
quillity whenever he can find an opportunity of introdu-
cing his long sharp beak. When this may be, however,
does not seem very clear. There are also various diseases
by which they are occasionally attacked; but those who
are so fortunate as to escape these dangers, pass their
time comfortably enough, for thirty or forty, or even up
to a hundred years, unless fate has allotted them the
more honourable destiny of being dredged up, packed
into barrels, and sent off to Copenhagen, Berlin, Ham-
burg, or St. Petersburg, where their merits are duly ap-
preciated.—People's Journal.
FATE OF ONE OF THE FOUNDERS OF THE BANK.—Mr.
Michael Godfrey, to whose exertions, with those of Wm.
Paterson, may be traced the successful establishment of
the Bank, met with a somewhat singular fate in 1695.
Previously to this year, the allied armies had retreated
before the wisdom of Louis and the bravery of his soldiers.
The funds supplied by the new corporation changed the
scene but the transmission of specie was difficult and
full of hazard, and Mr. Godfrey left his peaceful habita-
tion to visit Namur, then vigorously besieged by the Eng-
lish monarch. The Deputy Governor, willing to flatter
the King, anxious to forward his mission, or possibly
imagining the vicinity of the Sovereign to be the safest
place he could choose, ventured into the trenches. "As
you are no adventurer in the trade of war, Mr. Godfrey,"
said William, " I think you should not expose yourself to
the hazard of it." " Not being more exposed than your
Majesty," was the courtly reply, " should I be excusable
if I showed more concern ?" " Yes !" returned William,
" I am in my duty, and therefore have a more reasonable
claim to preservation." A cannon-ball at this moment
answered the " reasonable claim to preservation," by kill-
ing Mr. Godfrey, with several officers near the king, and
it requires no great stretch of imagination to fancy a sa-
turnine smile passing over the countenance of the mo-
narch, as he beheld the fate of the citizen who had payed
so heavy a penalty for playing the courtier in the trenches
of Namur. Tradition states that Mr. Godfrey's remains,
which were buried in the churchyard of St Christopher le
Stocks, were disinterred to make room for the enlarge-
ment of that prosperous establishment in which he once
felt so deep an interest, and in the service of which he
may be said to have fallen.--History of the Bank of
England. •
THE OXFORD COLLEGES AT THE LATE ELECTION.—
Mr. Round's stronghold was St. Edmund Hall. Forty-
one members of convocation from that society recorded
their votes in his favour, while four only were found to
uphold his adversary. Next to Edmund Hall, he was
most successful at New College, where the votes were
more than two to one onn his side. After New College,
Jesus was his best friend, giving him a majority of about
seven to four. Worcester' voted for him in the ratio of
about three to two ; Magdalen Hall, Wadham, and Mag-
dalen College, in that of five to four. Even, however,
where he had a preponderance of votes, it was seldom
that the foundations were at all decidedly in his favour.
At Jesus, where the balance in his favour was the great-
est, while nine Fellows, with the Principal, took his side,
six voted for his adversary. At Worcester, where he had
the votes of eight Fellows with the Provost, again six are
found opposing him. At New College the balance of
Fellows was but nine to eight in his favour ; at Magdalen
it was actually against him, fourteen Fellows voting for
Mr. Gladstone, while Mr. Round had but eleven on his
side. Wadham abstained as much as:possible from pro-
nouncing an opinion. According to the official returns, it
would appear that only four Fellows out of fifteen recorded
thei2 votes, and of these one declined to pronounce be-
tween the rival candidates. Of the other three, two voted
in Mr. Gladstone's favour ; one only, with the Warden,
took the side of Mr. Round. Thus it would seem that
there is not a college in Oxford which can be said, so far as
its governing body is concerned, strongly to prefer Mr.
Ronnd's to Mr. Gladstone's principles. A few second
rate (not to say third-rate) colleges, and one or two halls,
do, so far as the members not on the foundation are con-
cerned; strongly sympathize with Mr. Round and Pro-
testantism. A considerable number,of the most respec-
table colleges are pretty nearly balanced as respects the
whole body of voters, the governing portion favouring, by
a larger or a smaller majority, Mr. Gladstone and church
principles. The leading colleges are with Mr. Gladstone
decidedly. His great strength lies in Christ Church,
Exeter,.and Oriel. To the two former colleges his elec-
tion must be considered as owing. Had they been evenly
divided,. and the other colleges voted as they did, Mr.
Round would have been returned by a majority of thirty-
four votes.—Oxford Review.

RAILWAY AFFAIRS.

Owing to the delay in perfecting the post-office ar-
rangements, the Trent Valley Line will not be available
for postal matters until the middle of November, if then.
Mr. G. Woodhouse, the chief agent of the Chester and
Holyhead Contractors, has been presented with a service
of plate, to commemorate the completion of the works.
NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE AND CARLISLE.—An inter-
mediate dividend has been declared for the half-year end-
ing the 30th of June last, of £3 per whole share, and in
proportion for the quarter shares, such dividend to be paid
free from income tax, on and after the 22nd instant.
LIVERPOOL, MANCHESTER, AND' NEWCASTLE JUNC-
TION RAILWAY.—At a meeting of the shareholders in
this company, held at Manchester, on. Friday, a committee
was appointed, to consult with the directors as to the
propriety of staying proceedings for the present.
At Redcar, on Saturday, at the railway terminus, the
goods' office, at a cost of not less than £2OOO, was rapidly
approaching completion, when it was visited by fire, and
in less than an hour the interior of the building was nearly
all destroyed.
GREAT WESTERN,—The express trains of this company
are now provided with an officer, called a travelling porter,
whose, business it is to ride on the tender, and keep a
constant look-out ; and on an accident to any of the car-
riages, a signal from the guard, or any other sufficient
cause, he is to communicate with the driver, and stop the
train. It is also his duty to see that the carriages forming
the train are in every respect fit for. travelling.
The arrival platform at the Euston-square station,
which is upwards of 900 feet long, and will be covered
throughout, will now admit of several trains coming in
and despatching their passengers- without the least delay.
The departure platform is also to be covered. The diffi-
culties experienced in starting the trains will be effectually
surmounted by the employment of a second booking-
office and a second departure platform.
From official returns it appears that the amount of
traffic for the last week, on upwards of 3,152 miles of
railway, was £202,320, thus accounted for :—.£107,204
for the conveyance of passengers only, £49,021 for the
carriage of goods, and a remainder of £46,095 for pas-
sengers and goods together, not respectively apportioned ;
being an increase of £29,314 ever the corresponding week
of last year,__ when the mileage was about 2,525.
THE " RAIL" AND THEADEICULTURAL INTEREST.—
On Tuesday, seventeen trucks, containing between five
and six hundred sheep, and about a dozen oxen, passed,
through Lancaster to Manchester by rail, from Sedbergh,
in Yorkshire, being about, the weekly average consign-
ment from that quarter. Before the Lancaster and Car-
s
r
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fallen on the line ; the child ran to look at it, when its
clothes caught fire,, and it was burned to death. The jury
returned a verdict of accidental death, accompanying it
with a recommendation to the company to the effect that
no engine should be used on the branch without an ash-
box attached to it.
In a letter to the Mornini Chronicle, Mr. W. F.
Spackman rebukes the " practical" men connected with
railways for not helping themselves at the present juncture
—"Do the shareholders in railway companies want to
limit, restrict, or suspend the calls ? Nothing is easier.
The law gives to the shareholders in all companies formed
since 1845 the power to call extraordinary meetings, and
to controuL and regulate the acts of the directors. If,
then, the shareholders in any particular company are con-
vinced of their folly—if they are unable to pay the calls, or
carry out the works—let them meet and apply the remedy :
but let them cease to complain of a burden which their
own supineness only renders intolerable."
EAST LANCASHIRE RAILWAY.--An extraordinary
meeting was held at Bury, on Wednesday, Mr. J. Grundy
in the chair, to borrow £232,000, under the provisions of
their various acts. The report stated., that although calls
have been made upon the shareholders to a large extent,
up to the present time the total number of calls in arrear
(exclusive of the call now in course of payment) does not
exceed £26,000, and that the capital already raised, and
authorised by the existing acts, will, it is anticipated, be
sufficient to complete the whole of the undertaking, as
authoriser.: by parliament. Another call would probably
not be made till November, or the end of the year. The
resolution was carried.
THE NEXT DIVIDENDS.--A correspondent has analysed
the receipts of twenty-nine railways, for the week ending
September 25, present year, as compared with the cor-
responding week of 1846, the result of which shocis that
there is, so far, no prospect of a diminished dividend.
He has shown that the tncrease of receipts is about pro-
portioned to the increase of mileage in the week selected ;
but he has also shown that this week is under the average
of the weeks elapsed since the closing of the last half-
aoafdciffouerresnec,
ewaadseteorebreseexapaecthteedy,eaars
theye a half-
year's
as
ki accountsngsan and
advances. However, if the additional workings be done
more eponomically in proportion to the excess of distance,
as we presume they will be, it will tend to raise the profits.
—Herapath. .theTehxacte,
EFFECT OF RAILWAYS ON TURNPIKES.—On Thurs-
day a general meeting of the trustees of the Surrey and
Sussex roads was held at the Sessions-house, Newington,
for the purpose of letting the tolls arising from the gates
and bars at Newington, Camberwell, Kennington, Vaux-
hall, Kingston, Croydon, East Grinstead, &c., which were
put up at the sum of £32,350, for which they were let on
the previous year. Much interest was excited on this oc-
casion, as, in consequence of the extension of the line of
the South Western Railway from the Nine Elms to York-
road, which will cause a loss of revenue of about £6OOO
per annum, it was thought that a reduction would be pro-
posed to that amount. The tolls were put up, but there
was no offer for them, and it was stated, in the course of
the sale, that during the last four weeks there had been a
falling off of £lOO per week in consequence of the rail-
ways south of the Thames,