The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1849-05-01 00:00:00

PASSENGER SHIPS AND THE PASSENGERS'

If we take a retrospective view of the improved accom-
modation presented in the hitherto unparalelled number
of ships that have this year graced our docks, we are
led to the conclusion, however unpalatable to our national
love of supremacy, that American enterprize has done
more to ameliorate the condition of the thousands emi-
grating to the New World, than all the ponderous pro-
ductions of the legislature in the shape of acts of parlia-
ment. Session after session they have been engaged in
manufacturing laws to regulate the transit of passengers
in merchant vessels, and within the last seven years they
have turned out no less than five altered bills, each of
which has contained clauses of restraint and vexation
to the sllipowner, at the same time that they are unne-
cessary and expensive to the emigrant.
After being seven years thus engaged, it is not to be won-
dered at that we hear the cry, "Ministers are doing no-
thing." Prorogation after prorogation, and not a perfect
or efficient measure passed. Labouring like a mountain,
they give birth to a mouse.
There was an act passed in the sth and 6th years of the
present reign, another in the Bth and 9th, another in the
10th and 11th, another in the 11th and 12th, and now
another is produced as a great panacea, (a mixture of all
other bills, with something very original,) that is at once
to remedy " all the ills that flesh is heir to." But one
clause (which could only have emanated from a navigator
on some inland canal) will show, as all passenger acts
have done, the folly of government passing a bill without
consulting those who are interested, and have had expe-
rience in the trade—the clause in question affects the
size of ships, but deals not with the more important
points of strength,
,security to health, light, ventilation,
or cleanliness.

It is suggested to enact that, exclusive of stores, cabin
passengers, &c., " No vessel shall be allowed to carry on
any deck below the second deck, or platform, more than
one passenger for every 30 superficial feet; on the poop
or second deck, or platform, more than one passenger to
every 12 superficial feet; or, if destined to pass within
the tropics, one 'passenger in every 15 superficial feet."
What, we ask, will be the effect of this clause on the
American trade, and, as that is principally confined to
Liverpool, on the business of the town ? Will it not at
once chock the building of ouch noble throe deckers,
as the Constitution, Constellation, New World, Guy
Mannering, &c. by rendering it more profitable to employ
only those ships that can carry a passenger to every 12
feet ? and these are principally small vessels that have
barely the accommodation of a 'tween decks.
It is the climax of the ridiculous to assume that the
accommodation of an ordinary, or old merchantman,
without light or ventilation, and the height between decks
scarcely sufficient to allow an ordinary person to stand
upright, can be half as healthy as the lower decks of a
vessel solely constructed for the trade ; and this was fully
instanced in the awful preponderance of deaths from fever
in the fatal years of 1847-8, in those ships which sailed
for British America, few of which were built for the trans-
port of passengers. But all under the new act would be
far more lucrative than vessels of a larger class, and in
every way constructed to promote health and comfort.
Captain Edwards, who has successively commanded the
Sea, the Marmion, and the Ivanhoe, and whose experi-
ence in the trade should be a guarantee of the excellence
of the arrangements of his ship, arrived here on Thursday,
with another magnificent vessel, the Guy Mannering, and
as, under the arrangements of the act, such floating cas-
tles would cease to be required, we shall give a brief des-
cription of her. She is consigned to Mr. John Taylor
Crook, through whose kindness we were allowed to in-
spect her. _ _

- The " Guy Mannering " is 1600 tons new measurement;
and while in appearance she has all the stateliness of a
line-of-battle ship, she still partakes of those clipper
qualities that would qualify her for a " monster" pri-
vateer. She has a long sneaking-looking bow, with a
gracefully curved stem, surmounted by a neatly carved
head and trailboards. On the lines she is fine fore and
aft, with a side plump as an apple. Indeed, she is the
beau ideal of nautical beauty. Her beam (42 feet 9
inches) is carried well forward, which gives room for
a spacious topgallant forecastle, Aft of this are the
galleys, as well as several state-rooms,
The cabin forms a kind of quarter deck, but being built
with a eomplete gangway round it, is encircled aloft with
a substantial bulwark. Though not very large, it is beau-
tifully decorated. Neat Grecian pilasters, in burnished
white and gold relief, run up to the deck beams, forming
the sides into panels, each alternate one serving as a state
room entrance. The panels are veneered in beautifully
feathered mahogany, with skirtings ofrose-wood and zebra-
wood. The ceiling is a dead white, as also are the state
rooms, which are neatly furnished, and ventilated orna-
mentally by perforated arabesque carvings. The advan-
tage of a cabin on deck is more readily seen on going
below ; for where in ordinary ships there is a per-
manent bulkhead to separate the cabin from the for-
ward portion :of the vessel, here there is one unin-
terrupted sweep from stem to stern, and as perma-
nent ventilators are fixed in the bows with an ex-
hauster abaft, there can be no fear of a continual cur-
rent of fresh air. The state-rooms are here erected for
the second-cabin passengers. They are convenient, airy,
and well lighted ; indeed, superior to anything we have
before seen. The height between decks is eight feet ;
and we can see no difference between the upper and
lower decks, save the difference of position. They are ,
equally lighted and ventilated. The number of superficial
feet in the second cabin, from the apron aft, is 5,960 feet, i

anu in Lne Lower clecic space 4,966. Thus she is built
under the existing act to carry on the lower deck 355 pas-
sengers, and on the upper deck 426, which calculations
exclude the store rooms, chain lockers, water tanks, &c.
There is also further available space on the main deck and
in the cabins. The dimensions of the Guy Mannering
are :—Length between perpendiculars, 190 ft. Sin.; length
overall, 206 ft. ; beam, 42ft. 6in. : depth of hold, 28ft. Sin.
She was built at New York by Mr. W. Webb, and in
point of strength as well as beauty she excels. Her keel,
kelson, and futtocks, are all of live oak. The tops and
half-tops are of live oak and red cedar. The stern-frame,
the night-heads, the dead woods, fore and aft, as well as
all her principal timbers, are of the same durable material.
Her guardboard streak is 8 in. thick, the wales 6 in. thick,
and the remainder of the outside planking from 4 to 6 in.
thick, of the choicest white oak. The deck knees, of
which there are 320, are all well formed and finished, of
great depth in the throat, and from 7 to 8 inches in thick-
ness. The hanging knees (146) proportionately stronger,
and there are some 150 others applied to the houses on
deck, stanchions, &c.

We think we have already said sufficient to shew the
efficiency of such ships as those recently constructed for
trade, and while we see the necessity of government
forcing those injunctions for the regulation of a proper
ventilation, an abundant supply of water, and all the other
tributaries of health, we must deprecate the sweeping
measures they propose to adopt, which will retard, if not
altogether prevent, the building of three-decked ships,
and we trust that ere the act becomes a law they will
consult the experience of the past.

A. FEW MORE FACTS FOR THE FREE-TRADERS

We contributed last week a few facts towards the solu-
tion of the important question—Can we compete success-
fully with the foreign artizan I—which went to shew that
with respect to one of the great staple trades of the coun-
try, the hardware manufacture, we were already feeling
our inferiority. Further evidence of this is now before
us, derived from the same source, a correspondent of the
Midland Counties Herald. The writer says :
I would call your attention to the following quotations from
actual Lists of Prices of Articles very extensively used. Ido
not give the names of the tools, nor yet the names of the firms,
because in these matters of trade both manufacturers and
sellers are somewhat jealous. Persons connected with the
trade will be easily able to satisfy themselves that I am here
giving real prices. The tools are denominated by inches, and
the German measure is better than the English. Thefollowing
are the prices of one set of articles :-
5 6 7 8 inch.
Ils. Bd. ]ls. Bd. 14s. 3d. 16s. 9d. per doz. German make.
225. 6d. 265. 6d. 30s. Od. 355. Od. per doz. Birmingham make.
245. Od. 28s. 6d. 335. 6d. 28s. 6d. per doz. Lancashire make.
• •- - -

Another article—

German make,
6,1 7

13s. 6d. doz

Birmingham' make,
10s. Sid. 13s. 2d. 16s. 94d. 21s. doz.
Lancashire make.
Ils. 3d. 14s. sd. 17s. 7d. 20s. 9d. 245. Od. 325. Od. 38s. 4d. doz
The margin here, from a hundred to a hundred and
fifty per cent. in favour of the German, is tremendous;
and as the cost of the articles, most likely, consists chiefly
of labour, nothing except a very considerable reduction of
wages can place the British manufacturer on a level with
his opponent. The comment of the writer is most im-
portant :

"The new tariff of 1845 fixed the duty on wrought-iron and
steel goods at fifteen per cent. ' • this in the following year was
reduced to ten per cent., being the duty now paid. The reduc-
tion of the duty, no doubt, directed the attention of foreign
manufacturers to the articles suitable for the English trade.
• 1 1_ . • -

The articles above enumerated have been manufactured
pressly for the English markets, and great judgment has been
exercised in adapting them to this purpose. In order to effect
this the workmen have had to be carefully trained, and the
different processes of manufacture carefully examined. This
has taken considerable time, and will, in part at least, account
for the long delay which has taken place in introducing these
goods into the English market. There will still remain another
counteracting influence; every person practically acquainted
with trade knows the difficulty of introducing articles of a new
make, even though they be home-made goods : there are always
prejudices in favour of certain makes to overcome; and it is
very just that this should be the case. The manufacturer who,
by carefully attention to the quality of his goods, has ensured'
to himself a good name, ought to reap the benefit of his honest
exertions; every man should have his due."
It is well-known that there has always existed, not only
in our own, but in nearly every foreign market, a preju-
dice in favour of British-made articles, even although the
foreign were produced at a cheaper rate. Let the foreign
maker, however, progress in the course to which we have
invited him. Let him adopt British patterns and British
processes, and produce, as he is now doing, articles which
cannot be distinguished from our own ; and we shall find
him not only competing with us successfully in our home
market, but taking away from us, as well, the custom of
the foreigner. What is to prevent him even adopting the
marks and names of our best makers ? We have our-
selves for years, with our fictitious French and other
labels, and our imitations of every foreign article, which
Possessed a higher reputation than our own, been setting
the example of such dishonesty.

CARELESS PLACING OF GOODS AT
the police-court, yesterday, a woman named Catherine
Welsh, was charged with having, on Saturday, taken a
piece of gingham from the shop door of Mr. Boyse, in
Tithebarn-street, where it had been temptingly exposed.
Mr. Rushton, with reference to this and another similar
case, reprehended the custom of thus exposing goods,
which saddled the public with the heavy expenses of pro-
secutions, and scarcely entitled the losing parties to pro-
tection. The piece taken by the prisoner contained About
40 yards, and was stated to be worth 6d. a yard. She was
committed for trial at the sessions.