The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1840-07-07 00:00:00

MISCELLANEOUS

The Archimedes had trial trips in the Forth on Tuesday
and Wednesday.

Strange to record, London, the first mercantile city in the
world, is still without a chamber of commerce !
It is computed that the French army at present in Algieria
is little short of 60,000.

The bank of Messrs. Langmead and Co. of Teignmouth,
has suspended payment.

" Of in the stilly night," as the vatchman said ven they
asked asked him if he ever took a nap.
A Roman Catholic Barrister was recently refused ad.
mission to the bar mess of the Munster circuit.

The Duke of Newcastle is said to be forming a library at
Clumber, for the use of his large establishment there.
An oak as been lately cut in Shropshire, the weight of the
bark of which is 30 cwt., and that of the whole about 25
tons.

By the ancient laws of Spain, if a woman could prove her
husband to have been thrice drunk, she might plead for a
divorce from him.

It is understood that her Majesty will have another state
ball at Buckingham Palace, on Monday the 20th of July.
The booksellers of Glasgow have agreed to shut their shcps
on Saturday, at five o'clock, during the months of June-,
Julyjand August, in order to accommodate themselves and
the young men in their employment.
The Attorney General will have much work on hand dur-
ing the ensuing assizes in Ireland ; he has several Ribbonmen
to prosecute, as well as to state the rights of the crown in
some civil action s that are pending.
The coffin in which the late King of Prussia has been bu-
ried was the same that served in 1810 for the remains f
Queen Louisa his wife, and which was replaced afterwards by
a marble sarcophagus.

POTATOES.—Of this useful root we hear very favourable
reports. The yield is expected to be abundant, and the
quality good.

HAMBURGH, JUNE 20.—Our post-office has received an
intimation from the Post-office at London, that the postage
of our letters would be reduced if reciprocity could be
reckoned upon.

The floating light at the entrance of the Tees was brought
to Mr. Mellanby's building-yard to be coppered, and when
hauled upon the patent slipway, upwards of seven tons of
small muscles were found adhering to the bottom, and have
been disposed of for manure.—Tyne Mercury.
AN UNIMPEACHABLE WITNESS.—On Thursday week a
man was charged before the magistrates at Monmouth with
murdering his wife, but while the investigation was going on
the woman herself appeared, and the prisoner who appeared
to be insane, was of course immediately discharged.
We are informed on good authority that Messrs. Hawes
and D'Eyncourt, the present representatives for the borough
of Lambeth, have received notice from a considerable portion
of their most influential supporters that after the present
parliament their services will be no longer required.—Times.
The address from the city of Limerick to the Queen has
been elegantly printed on pink satin, and encircled with a
wreath of Limerick lace, beautifully figured, representing the
rose, shamrock, and thistle, with the royal crown overhead.
—Limerick Chronicle.

The unfortunate Mr. Yarworth is not expected to recover
from the murderous attack made upon him at Piff's Elm.
The Worcester Herald states that he has risen from his bed
but twice during the last six weeks, and his decease was
hourly expected.

We hear that a brevet will positively take place if Her
Majesty gives birth to a son, but decidedly not should a
daughter be born.—Naval and Military Gazette.
The Sultan's favourite wife has had a daughter. Great
rejoicings have consequently taken place in Constantinople,
notwithstanding the disappointment that the child was not a
son.

THE HARVEST.—On heavy clay soils there is a general
complaint of a deficiency of plant, and the ear is represented
to be short. On light soils rather more than average crop is
anticipated. Owing to the unfavourable rumours, there has
been a rise in the price of corn generally throughout the
country ; in a few more weeks we shall be better able to give
an opinion, but we have every reason to believe that there
will be a full average crop.—Bristol Standard.
A pleasant typographical blunder appeared lately in one of
the morning papers. A petition presented by Mr. E. Ten-
nent, from Belfast, in favour of Lord Stanley's bill, com-
plained of the present registration system in Ireland as
" leading to immorality." By the addition of a singe letter,
the system of corruption was described as " leading to iqa-„
mortality."
A lady lately observing to one of her maid-servants,
when she came in from the play, that her eyes looked red, as
if she had been crying, the girl, by way of apology, said,
" Well, ma'am, if I did, it was no harm ; a great many re-
spectable people cried too."
On the arrival of the Dinan diligence at Nantes, on Mon-
day last, an Englishman alighted, who was about six feet in
height, and, calling to the attendant at the office, desired he
would take care of his little brother whom he had left inside.
The worthy official mounted the steps, expecting to receive
a child in his arms, but, to his astonishment, saw a " bit of
a baby" come forth, measuring full seven feet !

BARLEY.—The transformation of oats into barley, it is
said, may be accomplished at will in the following manner :
—They are to be sown late, and cut twice in the way of
grass before they come into ear—the following season they
will be changed into barley.—Athenaurn. [A mode some-
what similar may be adopted with equal success towards
many other cereals and vegetables—for instance, if a cucum-
ber be cut three or four times before fully ripe, the next year
it will produce a boiled cabbage.]
On Monday night a report was in circulation at Walsall
that a large sum of money had been found by the workmen
employed at the Walsall and South Staffordshire Bank, in
taking down the counters, &c., for the purpose of removal to
the new establishment. The fact, we are given to understand,
is, that on removing one of the counters upwards of £3OO in
notes was found concealed about an arm's length between the
counter and the wall, but by whom this sum was secreted is
at present unknown.— Wolverhampton Chronicle.
The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign
Parts has voted £l,OOO for each of the years 1840 and 1841,
to be placed at the disposal of the Bishop of Australia, for
the purpose of assisting in building churches in New outh
Wales ; and £5OO for each of those years for a similar pur-
pose in Van Dieman's Land ; and William Leigh, Esq., of
Aston-hall, Lichfield, has given the munificent donation of
£2,000 for the purpose of building a church and parsonage-
house in South Australia, and has appropriated 400 acres of
land as an endowment. He has also made over to the so-
ciety two town acres of land in the city of Adelaide, producing
£l5O a-year.
We understand that the Marquis of Saldanha has now
finally settled the object of his special mission to the British
government, and that he will return to Lisbon in the course
of this week. The claims immediately adjusted are those of
the Duke of Wellington, Marshal Beresford, and others, be-
sides the expenses of the expedition sent to Portugal in
1825. The civil claims are to be referred to a commission.
It is also said that the basis of a commercial treaty has been
agreed on between this country and Portugal.—Morning
Chronicle.

PUBLIC CHALLENGE.—Mr. Carpenter, of Hull Farm,
near Chipping Norton, Oxton, challenges to show a fat long-
wooled ewe, bred and fed by him, and now the property of
Mr. Robert Masters, of Weston, in Northamptonshire,
against any man in England, for £5O at Cambridge on the
15th of July next ; age and time of feedinz to be taken into
consideration. The judges to be chosen, one by each party,
and those two to appoint a third, provided one resided in
Oxfordshire, one in Leicestershire, and one in Gloucester-
shire. Mr. C. is the same person who exhibited a fat ewe
at the Smithfield Show in 1832.—Lincoln Standard.
SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION.—Mr. Marsh, chymist, con-
nected with the Royal Arsenal, recently discovered that it is
an invariable rule with iron which has remained for a consi-
derable time under water, when reduced to small grains, or
to an impalpable powder, to become red hot, and ignite any
object with which it may come in contact. This he expe-
rienced by scraping some corroded metal Atom ima, which
ignited the liaper%ontaining it, -and Vilna a 'tole- in his
pocket. The knowledge of this fact may be useful in ac-
counting for spontaneous fires, the origin of which has never
been traced.--Time:,

SOCIALISM AS IT ts.—The community of Queenwood,
near Titherley, are already falling " into the sear and yellow
leaf." The public of the surrounding towns and villages
have ceased to he excited by the blasphemous and seditious
lectures, which only a few months since attracted hundreds,
on every Sabbath-day, to this sink of sin and wickedness.
Such is the apathy at the present time, that these worthies
have been compelled for a time to abandon their Sunday lec-
turing for want of visitors, and such is their domestic so-
ciality, that their great man and head farmer, Mr. Aldan),
has actually quitted through a general quarrel ! So much
for the vaunted system, where all is peace, love, and kar•-
mony.—Salisbury Herald.

THE ATMOSPHERIC RAILWAY.—A variety of experiments
have within these last few days been tried on the railway re-
cently laid down between Shepherd's Bush and the Great
Western Railroad, across Wormbolt, or, as it is more com-
monly called, Wormwood Scrubs, for the purpose of testing
the efficacy of the atmospheric tubes, the working of the air-
pump, and the speed of the carriages propelled along the
rails. It is gratifying to know that the results of these ex-
periments have all been satisfactory. Amongst those who
were present at .the experiments on Monday last was his
Royal Highness Prince Albert, who expressed himself fully
satisfied with the result of the experiments. The mere rate
of the carriage with its passengers, weighing 8 tons 3 cwt.,
was 30 miles an hour ; with the carriage and passengers of 5
tons 13 cwt. it traversed the rail at the rate of 36 miles an
hour ; and during the time of the prince's inspection its ra-
pidity was still greater.—Standard.
A return to an order of the House of Commons gives an
account of the imports of foreign wine into the United
Kingdom for the year ending the sth of January, 1840. The
total quantity was 9,909,056 gallons. and the total quantity
exported was 2,053,085 gallons. The quantity retained for
home consumption, after deducting the amount exported
subsequently to the payment of duty, was 7,000,486 gallons,
and the quantity remaining in warehouse under bond, on the
sth of January, 1840, was 11,233,744 gallons. It is worth
remarking, that it is shown by the same return that the
quantity of French wine retained for home consumption was
no more than 378,636 gallons, while the quantity of Spanish
wine was 2,578,997, and that of Portuguese 2,921,422.

OPENING OF THE EASTERN COUNTIES' RAILWAY TO
BRENTWOOD.—This railway having at length reached its
terminus in Shoreditch, was on Thursday thrown open through
the entire line from that point to Brentwood, a distance of
eighteen miles. Crowds flocked at an early hour to the ter-
minus, and flags were flying from every steeple. A dejeuner
a la fourchette was prepared on an extensive scale, and
several elegant tents, which had been erected for the enter-
tainment, were crowded with ladies and gentlemen. Bands
of music paraded the town, and the utmost hilarity pervaded
all classes. The directors, with a view of inspiring the public
with confidence, departed in one of the trains at twelve
o'clock for Brentwood, amidst a numerous concourse of
spectators, and they returned in time to see the two o'clock
train off. Everything passed over in a satisfactory manner.
The inhabitants of Brentwood have every reason to congra-
tulate themselves on the great increase to their trade and
comfort which this railway must occasion.
A NEW BRASS INSTRUMENT.—We have seen and heard
a musical instrument newly invented by Mr. John Shaw, of
Glossop, in Derbyshire ; an ingenious mechanic who has
made the improvement of brass instruments an object of his
attention for nearly 20 years. During his time he has pro-
duced five new kinds of valve for lengthening and shortening
the tubes ; and has now constructed an instrument bearing a
general resemblance to the Cornet-It-piston, but decidedly
superior to that instrument in simplicity of mechanism,
quality of tone, and facility of performance. It so iniall
that it can be carried in the pocket without inconvenience ;
yet, notwithstanding its diminutive size, its tone is superior
in power and volume to that of the Cornet-a-pistons or the
Cornopean ; and it has a clearness and brilliancy—a crisp-
ness—of which those instruments are destitute, The instru-
ment which we have examined has a perfect chromatic scale,
extending from G below the lines of the treble staff to the
double D in the hands of an ordinary player, hilt the scale
may be carried still higher by a powerful lip. Its intonation
is exceedingly true; and it seems capable of being played as
easily as a German flute. Such an instrument must be an
important addition to our orchestras, and to military bands
be invaluable. Mr. Shaw has taken out a patent, for the
invention ; though the instrument has not yet been brought
into use, nor, we believe even christened.—Spectator.

NORFOLK.—THE CROPS.—Upon the whole, it may be
fairly asserted, that the county of Norfolk never exhibited
so magnificent a prospect in its growing crops of grain as it
does at the present moment. A bountiful and all-wise Pro-
vidence has scattered its blessings through the length and
breadth of this highly favoured land, and the anti-corn law
junta may now say with Balak of old, " I called thee
to curse this people, and behold thou halt altogether blessed
them !" The extreme folly of instituting any measure which
should incur the risk of driving us to a foreign market for a
supply of the first necessaries of life, can never be better ex-
emplified than at the present time. Let ally one examine the
crop of grain in this county, and inquire how it has been
produced ; he will learn that within the last few years the
acreable yield of grain has increased nearly one-fifth over
and above what was formerly considered an average produce,
and it is not improbable that the forthcoming harvest may
even surpass in productiveness that of any former years. If
we inquire how this has been effected, we shall find that it
arises out of a vast expenditure of capital.—Lincoln Stan-
dard.

EXTRAORDINARY FANATICISM.—TIie villages of Coombe
Florey, liaise, and adjoining parishes, in Somerset, have fre-
quently of late been visited by field preachers, whose preten-
sions to extraordinary manifestations of " the Spirit, effect
their followers with ' strong delusions,' by which they are led
from the plain path of duty into all kinds of visionary fancies.
and absurdities. They may be heard at the distance of halt
a mile, crying out with stentorian voices, " Come in, come
in, and let the Spirit take possession of you, and convert you,
and drive the Devil out of you !"
under-
stand, is this : A circle is formed ofT
thheeiprrocess. we
deluded followers,
within which, whoever has a mind to be converted (as they
call it,) is admitted ; he is then exhorted and beaten till the
Devil is expelled, and the patient acknowledges himself to be
a convert! After this, they roll .upon the ground, or lie ap-
parently lifeless, or in fits of convulsion, for a while, and
then assert that they have been favoured with visions and
lights, and revelations from heaven !—Bristol Standard.