The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1840-05-22 00:00:00

STATE OF TRADE

MANCHESTER.—There was another gloomy market yes-
terday, and prices of yarn were generally about lth lower than
on the preceding Tuesday, with a very moderate business
doing. The market for cloth of all kinds was also very quiet,
and, notwithstanding the extensive turn-out at Stockport,
which has, to some extent, diminished the supplies of power-
loom cloth, the prices of the preceding week were barely
supported.
ROCHDALE FLANNEL MARKET, TAT 18.—There has been
a tolerably fair demand to-day for the coarser kinds of flan-
nels, while those of a finer description have not been so much
inquired after. Manufacturers are desirous to obtain a little
advance in prices ; but the buyers have generally resisted it,
though they have been willing to give the former prices.
There has been a better demand for wool ; prices have been
firm, and rather looking up. .

HUDDERSPTELD MARKET, MAT I9.—We have no change
of importance to notice in this day's market. The demand
continues very steady, and prices remain firm, with a tendency
upwards. Orders arc increasing; and, consequently, work
is more plentiful. Business in the warehouses is an average
for the season. Goods of the middle and finer• descriptions
are most in request.—Manchester Guardian.
BLACKBURN.—Our trade has presented no new feature of
importance during the past week, except having been more
languid and unsatisfactory : and the prospect for some time
to come is gloomy, unless it should be dissipated by the re-
sults of a good harvest which we trust will be fully realized.

BARNSLEY.—This town at the present time is infested by
a host of daily beggars, principally Irish wo:nen; respectably
dressed people cannot go along the streets without being
stopped, and even laid hold of by them.—lbid.
A gentleman, last week, found a nest of that scarce and
beautiful little bird, the golden crested wren, in Ryholie Dene,
containing several egos, and was gratified to seethe pair of
birds, in beautiful feather, near to the spot.—Newcastle
Journal.

Prince Albert proceeds admirably in his study of the Eng-
lish language, and is a tolerable wit. W hen he was thrown
from his horse, the other day, in the' Park, he said to his
Aide-de-Camp, who dismounted to render him assistance,
" Ah, ah ! I thought I had improved in my riding, hut I find
that I have fallen of!"
QUEER TASTE IN A ROBIN.—A robin has built its nest
this season in Mr. Robertson's saw-mill at the New Quay,
only a few feet distant from one of the circular saws, where
it now sits hatching, evidently delighted with the men, the
flapping of belts, and the hungry shriek of the saw when it
gets at the wood. Little red-waistcoat must have capital
tympana.—Dumfries Herald.

A NOVEL IDEA.—In a case of bastardy, at the Wakefield
Court House, on Monday, Mr. Wainwright, who appeared
for the defendant, endeavoured to get an admission from the
mother of the child, that she had been to a fortune-teller, to
get to know who was the father of the child ! Of course
his labour was in vain, but the idea produced a smile, which
could not be repressed by the gravest of their worships on
the bench.

The weather has been very favourable for the last three
days—on Saturday mild and balmy, notwithstanding some
smart showers; on Sabbath, dry and sunshiny ; and yester-
day, although the wind still remained in the north, there was
no rain, while the gentle breeze was fitted to dry up the late
superabundant moisture. The country never looked more
promising in the middle of May.—Scottish Guardian.

SQUINTING.—A. most interesting and delicate operation
for the cure of strabismus, or squinting, has been lately ap-
plied to the human eve, with the most perfect success, by
Mr. Bennett Lucas. The report of the cases in the medical
journals shows, that the operation is unattended with the
slightest danger to the organ affected It simply consists in
dividing the muscle which draws the eye in the wrong direc-
tion ; and when this is accomplished, it is impossible to de-
tect, after the lapse of a few days, which of the visual organs
had been the subject of operation.

The fact that woodcocks occasionally remain throughout
the year, and breed in this country, has this season been es-
tablished at Netherwitton, the beautiful seat of Raleigh Tre-
velyan, Esq., near Morpeth. In the romantic wood, a little
to the west of the mansion, a woodcock's nest was found
about a fortnight ago by the gamekeeper ; it contained four
eggs, and soon after four fine young birds left their shells, and
are now in the course of being reared by their pnrenta, in a
nest prepared for them in the immediate neighbourhood.

RIBBLE NAVIGATION IMPROVEMENT.—The excavation
of the second length of rock is proceeding most satisfactorily.
The rock is considerably harder than that of the last coffer
dam, and the contractor has therefore resorted to blasting,
which we understand answers the purpose admirably. The
channel of the river is already much improved by the clear-
ance of the rock, and when it is fully completed there can be
no doubt of a very important and permanently beneficial
effect being produced in this respect.—Preston Chronicle.
TEMPERANCE IN PURGATORY !—An old woman, who
some time since joined Father Mathew's Temperance So-
ciety, being last week on her dying bed, requested that her
" medal" should be suspended to her neck after death, and
buried with her. On being asked her reason for making this
request, she replied—" Wisha, agra, shore it would be worse
to dhrink the whiskey in purgatory than here-itself, as the
burning within and the burning without would be too bad—
so, in the name of God I'll take the meddle, and then it I
meets Mick Brien, or any of them ould neighbors that used
to be threating me, I can show them the meddle, and faix
then they'll not mind making me dhrink in spite of nie,whe-
t::er I like it or not, as they used to do at the fairs and pat-
terns."

STEAM Pi.ounx.—On Saturday last a trial was made in
one of the fields on the estate of Possil, near Glasgow, of the
steam plough intended for the cultivation of the sager lands
of British Guiana. This trial was completely successful.
The machinery consists of two iron boats, one containing a
small high pressure steam engine, with a drum, round which
the endless chain or rope is coiled, and the other a reversing
pulley, by means of which the chain or rope is extended, and
allowed to work which ever way is required ; the ploughs are
attached to this chain, and made to work. backwards and
forwards with great rapidity and accuracy.—Glasgow Herald.
CUTTLEFISH.—The noise of this fish, cn being dragged
out of the water, resembles the grunting of a hog. When
the male is pursued by the sea-wolf, or other ravenous fish,
he shuns the danger by stratagem ; he squirts his black liquor,
sometimes to the quantity of a drachm, by which the water
becomes black as ink, under shelter of which he baffles the
pursuit of his enemy. This ink, or black liquor, has been
denominated by M. le Cat, alhiope animal, and is reserved
in a particular gland. It may serve either for writing or
printing, in the former of which ways the Romans used it.
It is said to be a principal ingredient in the composition of
Indian ink, mixed with rice.

MORECOMBE BAY.—We have just seen, says the Lancas-
ter Guardian, a plan of the great scheme proposed by Mr.
Hague, the engineer of the proposed embank inent over More-
combe Bay, to which is united the project of forming Lan-
caster into the finest port on the western coast of England.
Mr. Hague proposes to carry the Lunc by a canal 150 feet
wide, to be cut through the level land from Oxliffe to Poul-
ton, where the waters, joining those of the Kent in the Bay,
would sweep out a deep navigable channel capable of bring-
ing up the largest vessels. He also proposes to form a float-
ing dock at Lancaster, to contain 12 acres, having at all
times 20 feet of water, with a ship-lock to take ships in and
out. Another great feature in the plan is the vast accretion
of land. In addition to 52,000 enclosed by the embankment,
Mr. Hague expects 20,405 -acres to accumulate on the outside
of the embankment, and 26,581 along the shores from Poul-
ton to the Wyre. The following is Mr. Hague's estimate of
the expense and profits :
New channel from Lancaster to Poulton
Land to be purchased
Floating dock at Lancaster
Expences in training the rivers and embanking 33,352

164,325
Land reclaimed, 26,581 acres at £25. per acre.. 664,525

Profit.

500,200

EFFECT OF VEGETABLES ON DIFFERENT ANIMALS.—
Horses have so great a repugnance to cruciferous plants that
they will not touch them, but will feed on reed-grasses,
among an abundance of which goats have been known to
starve, though they often feed on other vegetables, and will
even become fat on water-hemlock, which is rank poison to
other quadrupeds. In like manner swine will devour hen-
bane, while they are destroyed by common pepper; and the
horse which avoids the mild turnip will get into flesh by feed-
ing on rhubarb. It is stated as a curious fact, that man, if
he take the scrapings of the rind of alder, scraped one way,
it will act as a purgative, but if scraped the contrary way, it
will act as an emetic.
REMEDY FOR TUE " PLY" IN TURNIPS.—For the pre-
vention of the ravages of this distructive insect, M. Wundram ,
a clergyman, at Darste, in Hanover, recommends, from many
years' experience, the empinyment of infusion of wormwood
road-dust. Boiling water is to be poured on a handful of
wormwood, and suffered to stand from 12 to 24 hours, so
that it may be perfectly cold ; then put the plants that are
to be planted out into the infusion, with the leaves downwards,
as far as the stem, so that their roots may not be wet, and
then put into a cellar, or some other cool place. In 6,8, or
19 hours afterwards they may ,be planted out, for scarcely
an earth-flea-beetle (another name for the same insect) will
attack them. The bitterness lasts so long, that the plant
seldom requires to he sprinkled in its new station, unless fre-
quent heavy rains fall soon after the planting it out ; then it
would be a good thing, the next fine day, to sprinkle the
leaves with the infusion, by means of a whisp of straw.
Young plant and seed-beds, whether sown with the various
sorts of cabbage and turnip seed, radishes, cress, or tobacco,
&c., will likewise be successfully secured from the earth-flea-
' beetle by a gentle sprinkling with this infusion of wormwood.
Plants may also be rescued from the greedy voracity of these
small devastators in a more simple and easy manner, by the
application of the second remedy, viz. road dust. The dust
of Chalky stones is to be gathered on the road in a tine day,
and stowed up in a dry place for future use. As soon as it
is perceived that the earth-flea-beetles'appear on the seed or
plant-beds, a night must be chosen when a great deal of dew
has fallen ; and while the young plants are still wet they are
to be thickly sprinkled with the road-dust, till they look as
if coveted with powder. Whether the dust is injurious to
the bodies generally, or only that by covering: the leaves it
obstructs, or is injurious to the action of their masticating
organs, is not known ; but the earth-flee-beetles all at once
disappear from the seed and plant beds, particularly if the
day,maenddi a
ttehley dauftsetr itsh
ed
firstr ied
sun shines brightly the foralloinwifieusig
on the plants. If heavy
sprinklipg, And wasbes off the dust, it must be repeated as
before.