The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1849-10-16 00:00:00

;FILTH AND CHOLERA.

%Jetefollowing interesting statement of the occurrence
otera in connexion with removable causes at Stoke,
of the county of-Worcester, is taken from the testimony
"ne medical attendant, and is an illustration, among
14.nY,:0f the evils arising from all3wing noxious accumu-
!tato exist :
he:cholera:has again appeared at Stoke with extreme
olt-I;enoe, All theeases are confined to persons working
NA,"ling on the works of the Imperial Alkali. Company.
(3ne of the men on the other side the canal has diar-
th a- The manner in which the men liveis similar to
fp a colliers at Bilston. The disease apparently proceeded
°4l a hut occupied by a miserable family named Jobson.
asth-
,,l! but, situated under ground, about 1.0 feet square
livein height, between the canal and fire of the pans,
thi"„ a man of the name of Jobson, his wife, and three
i-,„ rell- The accumulation of human excrement andM
kind of filth in and near the hut was sufficient of
Ad' —1 to Produce disease. Five of the eight persons who
The worked under the same roof that covers this hut.
lin' Privies are placed immediately behind Hobday's
tir, and were in a very bad state, and perhaps the death
Wo i?bdin aY's child and those of Duggan and Grove, who
tittlited other parts of.the yard, are attributable to this
se- The pump water was also bad and unfit for:use.
,day All the men appeared:in perfect health up to Thum-
,t4tafternoon, and between then and breakfast time the_
mudmorning six of the eight who have died were seised,
ilievilone survived the attack twelve hours. On Friday I
.ilt..l4wed all the spare time had to trace the origin of the
-4etis e• I had the handle taken off the pump. the hut
the clown, and chloride of:lime put in the privies where
but stood, and on other parts of the works. Between
to taad five the next morning (Sakurday) I was sent for
told'', York. I found him in a hopeless state, and was
to st'n,ners were gone home ill. Alittle before six I went
t'etipp° and called upon Mr. —, to consult with him
he ,;"n!ling the propriety of stopping the works. In this
Nes,leed and kindly and actively rendered every assist-
o'ohl.A Could wish. The chief manager arrived at home
ou th‘lxford on Sunday evening, and has had every . hut
ter v."orilcs pulled down : will build new privies in
,a
holly situation, and get a supply of good water. Jobson 's
0102 Went to reside at the needle mill the day before the
at tii-a appeared, and their eldest daughter was attacked
wore, same time as the three first were seized at the
''kses • The disease has never subsided, and most of the
di4rtharo, I believe, going on favourably. The number of
very cases amongst the workmen and their families is
ale4ts. 'eat, but most of them yield to the ordinary treat-
'llire,rY Precaution has been used to prevent the disease
til,:urlr.inng' and I have forwarded a list of things destroyed
lownsend.
the 4, sick, again mention widow Creswell's attention to
rou, who, when requested, immediately csm.e and
to h,ll her own blankets and paid every attention to
1::74! 8 Child.
41 0101 a visitation as this, proceeding from filth, and
lincel_l9,Pinion from filth alone, proves to us the import-
Ptiuecit,r,e_aloving nuisances; for had the privies been
,urne,
is
ordered by Mr. Greenchild's before left
ein all ts the huts not been put up contrary to his wishes,
v4ease. Inman probability never should have had the
431eht d• hoeory to say I have bad had three cases of
~_o lois in houses at Stoke-heath. Platts had
ola •er evacuations, coldness, cramp, and the dark
'unit the
eyes,"

MR. BARROW'S REPORT ON THE SOUTHPORT
HARBOUR OF REFUGE.

TO 7111 E CHAIRMAN OF THE SOUTHPORT COMMISSIONERS.
SlR—The report 1 had the pleasure to lay before you,
on the 13th of August last, relative to the removal of the
buoys from the Southport Channel, and also as to the
eligibility of the roadstead as a harbour of refuge, having
been referred by the Liverpool Dock Committee to the
master pilots, they have reported that the Piel of Foudrey
and ''Pyre Water (Fleetwood) are preferable to Southport,
as harbours of refuge for vessels trading to the port of
Liverpool.
This appears to me a very vague and indefinite state-
ment, made without that due consideration which the
importance of the subject demands, and evidently evading
the strong fact (which they must be well aware of) that
Southport is the only place which offers any possible
chance of " saving vessels driven to leeward of the Mad
Wharf, off Formby Point, during the flood-tide in a gale
of wind" from W. to S.W. In this case, when i is im-
possible either to fetch the Piel of Foudrey or Fleetwood,
Southport offers a safe anchorage.
I have since had an interview with the chairman of the
Liverpool Dock Committee, who stated that the subject
had been duly considered by that body, and that it was
not, by them, considered advisable to render Southport
roadstead too attractive by being buoyed, as masters of
vessels might be induced to run in when there was no
actual necessity, thereby causing the loss of more vessels
than would be saved. This I consider to be one of the
most extraordinary objections that I ever heard brought
forward against affording a chance of safety to vessels
placed as above, especially as vessels placed in this situa-
tion generally are in charge of Liverpool pilots; there-
fore, the pilot, not the master, must. judge of the necessity
of running for Southport. I would ask—why did not
such accidents occur during the forty years that the chan-
nel was well buoyed, viz., from the; year 1806 to 1846 ?
During that period, so far as I have been able to ascer-
tain, no vessel was lost in attempting to run into South-
port roads ; whilst, on the contrary, soon after the buoys
were removed, two vessels, laden with iron rails, got on
the Trunkhill Bank, one of which became a total wreck,
thereby causing a loss of nearly £l,OOO to the contractors
for making the Liverpool, Crosby, and Southport Railway.
This loss was caused entirely by removal of the buoys, and
not by stress of weather.
The next objection stated was, that the Horse Bank
being covered at half-flood, the Dock Committee's Ma-
rine Surveyor and the Master Pilots were of opinion that
it could not afford sufficient shelter to vessels in the road-
stead. This proves that the above parties have no local
knowledge whatever of the place they reported upon ; as
the fact is that that part of the Horse Bank which pro-
tects the anchorage is not covered at neap tides at all, un-
less the tide rises more than 22 feet above the level of low
water at ordinary spring tides, and not until 41 hours flood
at spring tides ; and that it then affords sufficient shelter
is practically proved by the fishing vessels being able to
ride out the heaviest gale in safety.
I have re-examined the soundings in the channel during
the present equinoctial spring tides, and find them cor-
rect, as laid down in my chart.
In my former report I stated that the channel chart and
sailing directions published by Wilson, late Norie, (1848)
are incorrect, and at variance with each other, as far as
regards the mouth of the Ribble. As an instance of this
I may mention that the Nelson Buoy, the leading mark
for vessels entering the Ribble, is placed on the chart
nearly three miles to the southward of the place pointed
out by the bearings given in the book of directions.
There are other errors of equal importance, which prove
the necessity of a survey of the mouth of the Ribble,
more especially of the South Channel ; which, I have good
authority for stating, was not completed in the surveys of
Captains Denham and Belcher : the former having only
worked up as far as the Nelson Buoy, and the latter having
been ordered on service to China before his survey of the
Ribble banks seaward was completed.
In the report of the Tital Harbours Commissioners re-
lative to the proposed Harbour Conservancy Bill, amongst
the " objections urged" I find the following by the Liver-
pool Dock Trustees :—" And the further object is to place
all ports, harbours, creeks, tidal waters, and navigable
lakes and rivers in the most efficient state and condition
in which they are capable of being put." " The objectors
to the bill are prepared to prove that none of the evils
which are thus sought to be remedied have any existence
as regards the harbour of Liverpool."
This positive and flippant denial on the part of the
Liverpool authorities, " that they were not chargeable
with neglect or inertness," though so much at variance
with the true state of this part of the port, at the very
time it was made, (six months after the buoys were
removed by the Ribble Commissioners) might however be
considered as a pledge on the part of the dock trustees,
that provided the proposed bill exempted Liverpool from
its provisions, the port within their jurisdiction should be
kept in the most efficient state and condition in which it
is capable of being put ; and as Southport, with the shore
as far as Orossens Sluice, is within the port of Liverpool,
it follows that the safety of the coasting and fishing ves-
sels belonging to the place should be equally considered
with those of Hoylake, and that consequently they are
bound to buoy the channel leading into Southport Roads.
But as the dock committee now persist in refusing to
perform that duty which they admit devolves on them, and
which they have so long neglected, I would respectfully
submit that the time has arrived when an appeal to a
higher authority should be made, and would suggest the
propriety of the commissioners causing a copy of all
statements and reports on this subject to be forthwith
forwarded to the Lords of the Admiralty, accompanied
with a memorial, praying that a full and thorough local
investigation into all the circumstances of the case be
instituted by them, with a view to restore to the poor
fishermen and coasters the advantages of good buoyage
which they enjoyed for forty years previous to the 14th
August, 1846, when the buoys were removed by the Rib-
ble Commissioners, although not within their jurisdiction.
I remain, sir, your obedient servant,
(Signed) E. BARROW.
Oct. 8, 1849.

TO THE RIGHT HONORABLE THE LORDS COMMISSIONERS
FOR EXECUTING THE OFFICE OF LORD 'HIGH ADMIRALS

MY LORDS,—We the Commissioners acting under the
Southport Improvement Act (1846) have the honour to
forward for your consideration the reports made to us by
Mr. Barrow respecting the removal of the buoys in the
Southport Channel, to the manifest danger of all vessels
trading to Southport, and to the great inconvenience of
the fishermen belonging to the place.
We also forward for your Lordships' information a copy
of the chart as surveyed by Mr. Barrow in 1846, and
revised by him during the present wear.
We respectfully submit to your Lordships that the re-
ports prove that the roadstead, if properly buoyed and
lighted, would afford an excellent harbour .of refuge in
the cases pointed out in the report.
We therefore request that your Honorable Board will
cause an investigation to take place as to the removal of
the buoys and the eligibility of the roadstead for a harbour
of refuge, as we feel confident that nothing but a know-
ledge of the facts is required to insure your Lordships'
immediate interference in promoting and carrying out the
great benefit sought for.

JONATHAN JACKSON.
Chairman of the Southport Commissioners.
October 8, 1849.

In our advertising columns will be found the announce-
ment of the anniversary meeting, and sermons, of the
Society for promoting Christianity amongst the Jews.
On Friday evening Dr. Nevins delivered, at the Colle-
giate Institution, the first of three lectures on 'magnetism
and electricity, with their practical applications. He
treated chiefly of the mariner's compass, with a-variety of
kindred subjects bearing upon the science of navigation,
which were all rendered highly interesting by the lec-
turer's simple method of illustration and easy and agree-
able style of discourse. Some remarkable facts were
mentioned in connexion with the operation of the needle
in the Arctic Seas, where Dr.:Nevins has had the advan-
tage of making personal observations.
GYMNASTICS.—A remarkable fact illustrative of the
beneficial effects of gymnastic exercise is mentioned in
Mr. Huguenin's advertisement in another page. The
advantages of gymnastics were much better understood
by the ancients than they are by us. If we .paid more
attention to them, we should see more handsome, vigor-
ous, and alert young men, such as those who are in the
habit of frequenting Mr. Huguenin's establishment.
Mentally, as well as physically, the value of properly
regulated gymnastic exercises is invaluable. The follow-
ing is the testimony on this point of one of the most
learned of the medical faculty, Dr. James Johnson, phy-
sician to William the Fourth, in his work on The Morbid
Sensibility of the Stomach::—" I cannot too strongly
impress on the minds of parents the necessity of gym-
nastic exercises. Those who, horn false or fashionable
ideas, neglect to give their children the physical advan-
tages which result from this education of the corporal
powers are answerable for more than half the bodily ills
which befall-their offspring in after life and, if they recol-
lect that the energies of the mind are mainly dependent
on the health of the body, they may probably perceive the
moral as well.as the physical advantages of gymnastics."