The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1840-11-06 00:00:00

LIVERPOOL MUNICIPAL ELECTION

The investigation into the dispute as to Mr. Thomas Ry-
lands' vote for Mr. Toulmin, the conservative candidate for
Pitt-street, took place on Wednesday in the Town-clerk's
mom, in the Town-Hall, before Alderman Booth' and Robert
Allan and Henry Stewart, Esqrs., Assessors. There were
present, both Mr. Toulmin and Mr. Rathbone, and several
gentlemen on both sides. •

The TOWN-CLERK said, it appeared to him that the proper
course to be taken this morning would be for the alderman
and assessors to agree upon the facts of the case, in which
case there would he no necessity to proceed with the exami-
nation of witnesses. If an examination of witnesses should
be found necessary, it would be conducted openly.
Mr. PENINOTON, for Mr. Toulmin, said he had no ob-
jection to the course suggested : on the contrary, he thought
it desirable. Mr. Penington subsequently stated, that as
Mr. Rylands had to attend an inquest at twelve o'clock,
probably there would be no objection to take his evidence.
The TOWN-CLERK said there was no objection to receive
evidence of the identity of Mr. Rylands.
Mr. Rylands said he should wish Mr. Rathbone to be
called as a witness, for when he tendered his vote he shewed
him his watch, which then wanted four minutes to four.
His watch was smashed.

After some more discussion, Mr. Rylands' identity and
qualification for Lydia Ann-street were proved, and his vo-
ting paper produced. Mr. Ryland then stated, that when
he delivered his voting paper, he had his watch in his hand.
It then wanted by the watch four minutes to four, and by
the school clock three minutes.

The TOWN-CLRRK then repeated that the aldermen and
assessors would now retire to settle thefacts if they could. If
they agreed upon them, the statement would be read over.
If not, the examination would proceed.
Mr. ToumeiN said there was another vote which he wished
to have recorded as having been received before four o'clock.
The TOWN-CLERK having taken a note of this, as well as
of a claim by Mr. Maxwell on the part of Mr. Rathbone,
that a man named Joseph Saunders should be struck off the
roll, on the ground that he was not a resident inhabitant house-
holder bf the the town on the 31st August, 1839, retired with
the alderman and assessors. After the lapse of a few mi-
nutes, a written question was sent in to this effect—Was
the vote of Mr. Rylands entered on the books of the poll
clerks before four o'clock ?

Mr. DUKE, (one of the poll clerks) replied—no.
Mr. Moss, (the other poll clerk) replied—that it was

.
On returning, the Town-clerk proceeded to read a state-
ment of the facts agreed upon. It was to the effect that
Thomas Rylands delivered the voting paper into the hands of
the alderman two minutes before four. The questions were
demanded by two burgesses, but the voting paper being de-
livered to the alderman, he instantly attempted to put the
questions, but the tumult was so great that the alderman
could not make himself heard, and could not get through the
first question—that this continued till two minutes past four,
when the tumult first abated.

Evidence was then gone into, for Mr. Toulmin, consisting
of Mr. Moses Moss (one of the poll clerks), and Mr. John
Whitley; for Mr. Rathbone, Mr. Duke (the other poll
clerk), and Mr. Buchanan, master of the corporation school
in Pitt-street.

Mr. SNOWBALL then addressed the court against the vote,
and was followed by Mr. PENINGTON in support of it.
The TOWN-CLERK then delivered his judgment as follows :
—Mr. Alderman, I am called upon, in the discharge of my
'duty, to do that which must be very painful to my feelings,
to decide upon a question with which one of the best friends
I ever had is concerned. Whatever my opinion may be, my
duty is a very painful one. It is still more painful because,
in the discharge of my duty, I feel myself bound to advise
you, that Mr. Rylands' vote is a good one. I look at the
act, at the 32nd section, in the first instance, which directs—
(The town-clerk, here, read the direct mode of voting.)
Now, there can be no doubt about Mr. Rylands with this
section of the Act of Parliament. With regard to any ques-
tion as to the proper polling clerks entering the vote, I think
that it cannot amount to anything; for, in the first place,
where a borough is divided into wards, the appointment of
polling clerks belongs to the aldermen and assessors, and any
arrangement they might think proper to make with regard
to the poll books being in duplicates, each clerk taking down
the whole, instead of an alphabetical division, was in their
own power; and. further, I should say, if the poll clerks had
neglected their duty, Mr. Rylands' delivery of his voter's
paper would still have been sufficient. Then, Mr. Rylands
having complied with this section of the apt, stood entitled
to the benefit of his vote, subject to this further condition,
that any two burgesses might require the presiding officer to
put the question to him, and if Mr. Rylands had been re-
quired to answer any of the questions he could not have been
permitted or qualified to vote till he had answered under
these words of section 34.

When ?—Between 9 and 10 o'clock.
On your oath you swear that ?—Yes

Did you tell your wife or daughter anything before you
went out of the house in the morning ?—I thought Mr. Allen
was on the other side (Mr. Gladstone.) When he met me I
told him I was waiting for another person, and he said, " Oh
come with me, he'll be here very soon."
The TOWN-CLERIC.—Did you say anything more to him?
No : I met Mr. Allen, and told him I was going to meet
another gentlemen, and he said, " Oh! come with me—he
will be here soon."

Mr. Wntowr.—Did you tell Mr. Allen the name of that
gentleman ?--Yes.
What is his r4me?—lt is Mr. Parks.

Is he a friend of Mr. Thornhill, or of Mr. Gladstone
Mr. Gladstone.
When you went with
for Mr. Gladstone? He
Mr. Parks.
Did you intend to vote for Mr. Gladstone, when you went
with Mr. Allen ?
Mr. SNOWBALL objected to this question, but the objec-
tion was overruled.
Mr. WRIGHT.—When you went out in the morning, did
you intend voting for Mr. Gladstone? Yes.
Did you know where you got this voting-paper—that it
was Mr. Thornhill's voting-paper? No: it was written be-
fore I saw it. I had another, and I took them both.
After you had voted for Mr. Thornhill, what did you do?
I went and got more drink.

Mr. Allen, did you intend to vote
; said he was on the same side as

Did you afterwards tender your vote for Mr. Gladstone?
They tell me I'did ; but I was so drunk I do not know.
What did you do after that? I had more drink.
Did you go home last night at all?, No.
Where did you find yourself this morning? I do not think
I ought to tell that.

YO'u are quite sure you were not at home yesterday after-
noon? Yes.

Did you see your daughter yesterday afternoon? Yes : at
the public-house ; she wanted me to go home.
Why did you not go? Because I had a ride in a coach to
some other place, and I remained there all night.
Do you know who took you? Yes.
Who was it ? Mr. Allen.
Where did you see Mr. Allen? I saw him in the house
where I was last night.
Have you seen him this morning? Yes.
Perhaps it was at his house? No.
When did you leave this house ? I left there about half-
past nine or ten.

Where have you been since ? It took me a long time to
come as far as this.
Have you had anything to drink this morning? Yes.
Did you walk up here? No; I came in a coach.
Who brought you in the coach? Mr. Allen was one of
them.

Did you not tell Mr. Parks tlit they had refused to take
your vote, and that you had not voted for anybody ? I did.
Did you tell your daughter so ? Somebody told me I bad
I
voted for Mr. Thornhill, and then I told her had not.

And you swear distinctly, that you did vote yesterday
morning? Yes.

Where is the public-house you have spoken of ? Is it at
the corner of Scotland-road.
Is it called the Traveller's Rest? I think it is.

Mr. Smethurst, Chairman of Mr. Thornhill's committee,
proved that the Hughes who had just been examined was the
same Hughes that had voted in the morning ; and William
Wright, the poll-clerk, that he was the same person who
tendered his vote in the afternoon for Mr. Gladstone. He
had then answered the whole of the questions.
Mr. WRIGHT asked the poll-clerk why, knowing the same
man had previously voted in the morning, he did not imme-
diately acquaint the returning officer ?
The witness replied, that it was no business of his to inter-
fere, but that he should have spoken had not some of the
burgesses found it out. _

There being no further evidence, the Town-clerk pi oceeded
to give his opinion. He thought, from all the circumstances,
that the vote given in the morning, was the vote of Hugh
Roberts, of Carlton-street, and ought to be retained on the
list ; and that the returning officers had acted quite right,
and were perfectly justified in refusing to receive the vote
tendered in the afternoon. The return would therefore be—
For Mr. Thornhill
For Mr. Gladstone 214

and terminated in the course of the afternoon, when the
aldermen and assessors agreed to and signed the following
certificate. It will be seen that in this document they de-
clare Mr. Kilshaw to have a majority of six votes over Mr.
Blackburn, the numbers being—

For Mr. Kilsbaw
For Mr. Blackburn

Majority for Mr. Kilshaw

The following is the official document

" We, the alderman and assessors of No. 12, Lime-street
Ward, in the borough of Liverpool, do declare that, on the
application of James Aspinall, Esquire, a burgess of the
said borough, alleging that errors existed in the poll-books
of the election of a councillor for the said ward, on the
second day of November instant, and that, upon a further
examination of the voting-papers delivered at the said elec-
tion, it would be ascertained that there was a greater num-
ber of votes for John Kilshaw, a candidate at the said elec-
tion, than the number of votes for Thomas Blackburn, also
a candidate at the said election, and that John Kilshaw
ought to have been returned, we have examined the said
poll-books, and further examined the_ said votin

and that we do find in the poll-book for voters whose sin
names begin with any of the letters of the alphabet from A
to K, inclusive of both, the following errors and omissions :
" The insertion of the vote of Joseph Clare for Thomas
Blackburn, when by the voting-paper it was for John Kil-
shaw.

" The insertion of the vote of John Arrowsmith for Tho-
mas Blackburn, when by the voting-paper it was for John
Kilshaw.

" The improper insertion in such hook of the vote of
James Mason, who voted for Thomas Blackburn, when that
vote properly belonged to the other poll-book, and was pro-
perly therein inserted for Thomas Blackburn.
" The omission in such book of the vote of Robert Cole-
burn, who voted for John Kilshaw.

" And in the poll-book for voters whose surnames begin
with any of the letters of the alphabet from L to Z, inclusive
of both, the following error :
" The insertion of the vote of Edward Parsonage for
Thomas Blackburn, when by the voting-paper it was for
John Kilshaw.

" And that we do ascertain that there were upon the said
voting-papers three hundred and ninety-two votes for the
said John Kilshaw, and three hundred and eighty. six votes
for the said Thomas Blackburn.

" WILL. EARLE, Alderman,
" J. ROBINSON, } Assessors
" JNO. WALL,

" Town-hall, sth November, 1840."

We understand that the alderman and assessors also signed
an affidavit to the same effect, which will be made use of in
the application about to be made to the Court of Queen's
Bench to amend the return. It is said, and we believe it to
be true, that Mr. Blackburn himself will be a party to the
application. If this is so, he will have taken the only proper
course for a highminded man under the circumstances ; and
there is no doubt the court will interfere.

CORRESPONDENCE,

EXTINCTION OF THE SLAVE TRADE AND
CIVILIZATION OF AFRICA.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD

SlR,—Will you allow me, through. the medium of your
valuable journal, to direct the attention of your numerous
readers to the great and important meetings held during the
past week, in the town of Manchester, for the purpose of
forming an auxiliary association to " The Society for the Ex-
tinction of the Slave Trade and the Civilization of Africa ?"

This is the society, it will be remembered, of which Prince
Albert is the president, and whose first meeting he adorned
with his royal presence ; and I am well persuaded that every
well-wisher of Africa, familiar with its constitution and its
plans, will hail with unmingled satisfaction its establishment
and extension.
The extinction of the slave trade and the civilization of
Africa are objects, the achievement of which every heart sus-
ceptible of sympathy with human suffering, and possessed of
one spark of benevolent feeling, must most devoutly desire.
Africa itself is one of the fairest and most beautiful portions
of the globe. No other country surpasses itin native riches.
Its fertile plains will raise almost every production peculiar
to a tropical climate. Its forests, consisting of the most
valuable timbers, cover thousands of miles. Its rivers are
equal to the magnificent streams of America ; and the Niger,
which is navigable within 500 miles of its source, after flow-
ing more than two thousand miles through the interior, rolls
its mighty waters from upwards of twenty mouths into the
ocean. These are natural advantages which ought to give a
people a noble standing in the scale of nations, and render
them a happiness to themselves and a blessing to the world.
But what is the real fact of the case ? Africa, notwith-
standing all, is a moral wilderness, and her inhabitants are
wolves to each other. She is desolated, and almost destroyed
by one of the greatest practical evils which ever afflicted man •
kind. The slave trade still pursues its dreadful career of
bloodshed and iniquity. One hundred and fifty thousand
Africans, as we learn from evidence which has never been
successfully attacked, are annually sold into captivity, while
no fewer than five hundred thousand lives are annually lost
to this unhappy country in the various departments of this
accursed system.