The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1841-11-12 00:00:00

THE BRAZILIAN QUESTION.

We regret to notice a degree of malicious satisfaction in
in the tone with which certain of our whig contemporaries
communicate to their readers the somewhat unfavourable
news which have recently been received from the Brazils

The approaching termination of the commercial treaty, ex-

isting between that country and Great Britain, is certainly

not an event which, interestsd as we are in the prosperity of

our manufacturing and commercial classes, to whom it affords
a large source of employment, can he to us an object of gra-
tifying contemplation. And it is still more unfortunate to
know that the period, at which it will be necessary to dis-

cues between the two nations the terms of its renewal, should
be one in which the pressure of financial difficulties may very

probably render it imperative upon the Brazilian government

to insist upon a re-modification of its system of duties, upon
terms less favourable than otherwise they might have been

for the interests of British industry

It is, however, jumping a little too fast to conclusions, to
represent the possibility even that the government of the

Brazils, in seeking to repair the disorganized state of their

finances, will adopt those largely discriminating duties
against the manufactures and the merchandise of Great Bri-
tain, which are spoken of with such evident satisfaction by
our contemporaries, the Liverpool Times and the Manchester

Guardian. We nothing doubt that some increase of the

duties upon imports of British goods, and of the goods of

. .
other countries as well, will be resorted to, as a measure of
revenue, by the Brazilian government. There may be too,
in the minds of some of the Brazilian people, the feeling

(which is mentioned by the Times and Guardian) to legislate

in a retaliatory spirit against Great Britain,

" in return for

the virtual exclusion of the principal productions (?) of Bra-

zil ;" yet we cannot but express our belief that such feeling

is far from being either largely felt or entertained in very in-
fluential quarters ; for we are quite certain that its indul-
gence, to the extent pointed at by both these authorities, is
a thing which it is quite impossible for any prudent and sen-

sible government to contemplate.
' But be it even as it is asserted. Let the Brazils, as is an-

ticipated by these very eminent free trade luminaries, lay 50
or 60 per cent. duty upon British imports—upon the neces-
sary clothing of their now large population. Let their finan-
ciers fly in the face of the recorded opinions of all the free
trade and politico-economical authorities, from M'Culloch
downwards to Lord Althorp—from the Manchester Guardian
to Mr. Richard Cobden—and attempt to increase their reve-

nue by the imposition of prohibitory duties upon the neces-
saries of life and comfort. Is it therefore, we ask, at all a
necessary consequence that Great Britain will be seriously
damaged ? Not at all. By such an insane and suicidal step
the people of the Brazils themselves would be the ultimate
sufferers—not in their revenue alone, but throughout every
department of their commerce—whilst Great Britain, al-
though for a time she might experience inconvenience from
the temporary derangement of existing connexions and ex-
isting channels of trade, would ultimately profit by the in-
creased activity and energy which the prostration of the Bra-
zils would infuse into the industry of other states, more ad-
vantageously circumstanced perhaps for becoming large and
valuable consumers of our manufactures.

There can be no question, we apprehend, that the con-
sumption of those countries, whose population the slave class
constitutes the principal portion, is infinitely less valuable
than the consumption of Free States ; and though we are
quite disposed to accord to the trade with the Brazils its just
value, we are not disposed, as we are urged by the admirers
of the defunct budget of the late Whig Chancellor of the
Exchequer, to seek its retention by the sacrifice of a trade
with our own colonies, which we know to be so far snore

important to the interests of our manufacturers to encourage.
and arty check to the growing prosperity of which, would be
so fatal to the best interests of humanity, and if caused by
our own grasping selfishness so disgraceful to us as a nation.
The noble experiment to rear the products of the Tropics, by
the instrumentality of free labour, is at this moment in suc-
cessful progress in those colonies. The liberty and happiness
of millions of the human race is staked upon its success ; and
shame—deep and lasting—be upon our name, if for a merely
temporary outcry, and to appease a purely selfish and short-
sighted mania, entertained, in sincerity, by a mere fraction
amongst the manufacturing classes, we consent to arrest the
progress of this experiment—to rivet afresh the fetters which
bind down our fellow men to servitude, and to spread desola-
tion and misery over some of the fairest portiOns of the globe,
which we believe firmly are destined, by a perseverance in the
the noble course which British philanthropy and British
energy are now pursuing towards them, to become the in-
exhaustible gardens of the human race—seats of industry and
happiness, instead of so many dark blots upon the face of
nature !
We know well the object with which these threats of re-
taliatory tariffs are held out by the organs of Liberalism"
in this country ; and we concede to them no more weight
from the fact that they are echoed by cliques and factions in
other countries. That object is to mislead the ►manufacturing
classes from their true interests. It is a factious. object ; and
the purpose of those, by whom it is pursued, is strengthened
by a rankling and bitter feeling against the interests of certain
of our West Indian colonists. But that object will not be at-
tained ;—the good sense of the people of England forbid that
it should I There is no fear that we shall be called upon to
choose between the alternatives of abandoning the experiment
—no longer a doubtful one, or, with proper appliances, a
losing one—of raising the products of the Tropics by free
labour, or of resigning altogether our commerce with the
Brazils ; for we are confident that the treaty with that country
—despite the prognostications rof our contemporaries to th
contrary—will be renewed in good time, upon fair and reason-
able terms. There are other branches of industry amongst
the Brazilian people besides the cultivation of the sugar cane ;
and we cannot for a moment imagine that for a very question-
able prospect of advancing the interests of a few sugar culti-
vators in that country, its government will commit so enor-
mous a folly as would be the adoption, in passionate spirit,
of a policy which, without any adequate advantages of a
financial nature to recommend it, would consign to certain
and vast injury, whole classes, whose interests are bound up
inseperably in the connexion with Great Britain.

means of their death and destruction have been introduced
and visited upon them by acquisitive white men ; and by
white men, also, whose forefathers were welcomed and em-
braced in the land where the poor Indian met and fed them
with ' ears of green corn and with pemican.' Of the 2,000,060
remaining alive at this time, about 1,400,000 are already the
miserable living victims and dupes of 'white man's cupidity,
degraded, discouraged, and lost in the bewildering maze that
is produced by the use of whiskey and its concomitant vices ;
and the remaining number are yet unroused and unenticed
from their wild haunts or their primitive modes, by the dread
or love of white man and his allurements."

The aborigines of America—such of them we mean as are
left to tell the tale—have little to boast of as the result of that
commercial enterprise which brought white men to their
hemisphere. Africa has still less. Europe and Asia may
divide the honour between them. The more we inquire, the
less reason we shall find to be satisfied with the civilising, or
even huinanising, effects of commerce standing apart jrom
any other principle. And how should it be otherwise? By
itself, the commercial principle is purely one of barter.
When men go to barter. it is not of another's good they are
thinking; they do the best they can for themselves. Lord
Byron used to make hard bargains with Murray, the book-
seller, for his poems ; for some, at least, of his latter pro-
ductions. " I consider," his lordship used to say, " two
persons going to make a bargain, like two men going to fight
in a saw-pit; and the only discredit in the transaction is that
of coming off second best." The mainsprings of commerce
are luxury and necessity. Men do not embark in it for their
amusement, or for the good that it will do to those with
whom they propose to carry on their intercourse; no, they
do it for their own advantage. How, then, can commerce—
confining the use of the term strictly to its original and pro-
per signification—be the missionary of more than that for
which it is sent, or possess powers beyond its commission ?
Yet, there is something admirable in that extended commerce
which pervades the world, and which is every day extending,
and will continue to extend, till the consummation of all
things. It proves that, as man increases upon the earth,
corresponding means for his employment develop themselves;
and there is no doubt that, influenced, guided, and directed
by a higher, that is, by a Christian principle, it may, and
probably will, subserve all those noble purposes of which the
writer whom we have quoted speaks. The error we complain
of consists in attributing that directly to commerce which
belongs to it only as an accident. The vast commerce of our
glorious country is surely a blessing—a blessing that may
not be disputed ; but if here
busy Commerce waits
To pour his golden tide through all her gates ;
Vhose fiery suns, that scorch the russet spice,
Of eastern groves, and oceans floor'd with ice,
Forbid in vain to push his daring way
To darker climes, or climes of higher day ;
When the winds waft wher'er the billows roll,
From the world's girdle to the frozen pole.
—if this be so, we say, there are also corresponding respon-
sibilities. Commerce is a blessing, because it furnishes to
man, whose doom is labour, the opportunity of doing so
profitably and advantageously. It supplies a motive to his
industry, lightens his toil by giving him a cheering confidence
of reward, and not only smoothens the rugged path of life,
but strews flowers, luxuries, and pleasures along the way of
it. To commerce we humbly make our acknowledgments as
one of the main instruments of British greatness; but there
is a greatness beyond that of mere commercial dealing, and
all the wealth and power which commerce can bestow ; it is
to be derived from the use we make of it. If we are the first
commercial nation in the world, we have corresponding re-
sponsibilities. If we draw our wealth from every point of
the compass, and every part of the world, surely we owe the
world something in return—something beyond those merely
perishable commodities which our industry furnishes it with.
We conclude, then, with our theme : every thing in its place.
Commerce, liberty, science, learning, the arts—each and all
in their place. We should avoid the heathenish error of
deifying secondary causes, and of resting satisfied with that
kind of eminence which the vulgar of a former age, both
great and small, agreed in calling great.

THE LIVERPOOL CABMEN

TO THE EDITOR OF THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD.

SlR,—Through the medium of your excellent paper, allow
me to put travellers arriving by the steam-boats or railways
on their guard against a deception practiced very generally
by the cab and coach men plying in their vicinities.
It has been my custom for many years always to reside at
one hotel ; but of late I have been prevented going to my
accustomed " hostelrie," by a trick which I accidentally
discovered had been played upon me by these fellows. A
short time ago, on arriving from Dublin, I desired the car-
man to drive me to an hotel in Ranelagh-street, when I was
told "oh ! you need not go there, sir ; they are full. I took
a family there this afternoon, and was obliged to go else-
where.' Upon this, believing his story, I desired him to
take me to any other establishment. He drove me into
Clayton-square, where I sojourned. Visiting Liverpool again.
I was served in a similar manner. On a third occasion I
shared the same fate, when, accidentally meeting my old and
well-respected host, I informed him of my disappointment
in not being able to enjoy any comfort in his excellent house,
when he informed me that the carmen—in consequence of his
having resisted very successfully their attempts to impose
upon some of his guests, and from his refusing to fee them
as other houses do for introducing strangers—had deluded
persons, and taken them elsewhere, with similar representa-
tions as made to me.
Strangers should, therefore, when they wish to reside at
any particular hotel, insist upon being taken there; and
ascertain for themselves whether they can be accommodated
or not. I am, &c. A TRAVELLER.
Liverpool, 10th Nov., 1841.

[We understand that the above is practiced to a great
extent ; and we trust our contemporaries will put strangers
also on their guard. These cabmen are sad fellows.]

CORRESPONDENCE

TO THE CONSERVATIVE MEMBERS OF THE
TOWN COUNCIL OF LIVERPOOL.

LETTER II

GENTLEMEN,—Amongst your high and honourable re-
sponsibilities, you are entrusted with the management of a
portion of public property devoted to the education of the
children of the poor in this town. You are aware of the
manner in which this was originally done. At a large public
meeting, held in the Amphitheatre, on the 13th July, 1836,
the Rev. Jonathan Brooks, the chairman, said—
" It will most likely be known to all who hear me—at
least to the great majority of my hearers—that a few years
ago the common council, the acting body of the late corpo-
ration, thought it right to establish two schools, the one in
the north, and the other in the south end of the town, for
the purpose of educating the children of the great mass of
the people. When they did so, they also thought proper to
call in the assistance of the clergy of the established church
in the education of the children of those schools. The clergy
most willingly obeyed the call, and had great pleasure in
giving every assistance in their power.. The religious in-
struction of those schools was left entirely to the discretion
of the clergy. When the municipal bill for altering the
system of town councils passed, a different mode of electing
that body came into force. Early on the new body coming
into office, a communication was sent by the mayor to the
clergy, desiring they would continue their services in the
schools till something was definitively fixed as to their future
management. The clergy most willingly acceded to this re-
quest. Subsequently an education committee was appointed
from the body of the town council, and it has been their
pleasure to recommend, and that of the council to adopt, a
different system, which is called the Irish system of educa-
tion."
- - - • , •

The resolutions of the council adopting this Irish system
were thus worded :
" 1. That the schools shall open at nine o'clock each
morning, and commence by the children singing a hymn
from the selections of the commissioners of national educa-
tion in Ireland, and by the masters reading a portion of the
Scriptures from the same selections.
" 2. That one hour of each day be devoted to the reli-
gious instruction of those children whose parents do not ob-
ject ; and that such hour be in the afternoon, after the school
has closed. That the school shall be considered as closed at
three o'clock in the winter, and at four o'clock in summer.
That instruction be given on Thursday afternoon as on other
days, and that Saturday afternoon be considered a holiday.
" 3. That the clergy of the different denominations be so-
licited to attend for these purposes, and that every practical
accommodation be afforded them.
*

Mr. Adam Hodgson said—

" 6. That the books of the commissioners in Ireland be
adopted, and that they have a fair trial previous to the in-
troduction of any other."
The books of the commissioners of education in Ireland,
here referred to, did not include the Bible. The schools in
Ireland, previously iu operation and supported by govern-
ment, did include the Bible, but this was discovered to be a
-vital defect, and the new system was introduced to remedy
this defect. This is plain from Lord Stanley's letter on the
occasion, addressed to his Grace the Duke of Leinster.*
Concerning the manner in which this Irish system was in-
troduced intu this town, the Rev. Augustus Campbell, at the
meeting already referred to, said—
" I lament, sir, that the education committee, before they
decided upon the rules, had not been so kind as to consult
you and me upon the subject. The Roman Catholic clergy
were so consulted, I believe. It should be known that we
were really and bona fide the acting committee. 1 had au-
thority from the mayor, whose letter I have now in my
pocket, wherein he thanks us for past services, and requested
us to continue them until further notice. We were really
and truly the paramount authority—the schools were con-
ducted entirely under us. It would certainly have been dis-
creet and wise to have consulted us, and asked the clergy for
their concurrence. This was not done. The thing was de-
termined upon ; the Irish system was adopted ; and we were
compelled to withdraw."
The change so introduced was of too important a character
to pass sub silentio as a mere matter of business. It involved
a great principle. Mr. Brooks said—
" The very essence of protestantismp is the free and un-
shackled use of the Bible.
Mr. Sands said—

"To take any part of the Bible away—l will not charac-
terise it as a robbery, though I might he justified in so doing,
but I will say, sir, it is a direct interference with the rights
and privileges of the rising geueration. Secret things belong
to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us
and to our children for ever ; if, therefore, we withhold, or
attempt to withhold, any part of this revealed treasure, v.e
are guilty of a breach of the trust that has been committed
to us.

" It is our imperative duty, as inhabitants of this town, to
stcure for the population of this town, in their schools, the
usshackled and unrestrained use of the unmutilated protes-
* WHILE they (the government) do full justice to the
liberal views with which that society (the Kildare-place So-
ciety) was originally instituted, they cannot but be sensible
tint one of its leading principles was calculated to defeat its
avrowed objects, as experience has subsequently proved that
it has. The determination to enforce in all their schools the
rrading of the holy scriptures, without note or comment,
was undoubtedly taken with the purest motives, with the
wish at once to correct religious with moral and literary edu-
cation, and, at the same time, not to run the risk of wound-
1 ing the peculiar feelings of any sect by catechetical instruc-
tion, or comments which might tend to subjects of polemical
controversy. But it seems to have been overlooked, that the
principles of the Roman Catholic Church (to which any sys-
tem intended for general effusion throughout Ireland, the
bulk of the pupils must necesssarily belong) were totally at
variance with this principle; and that the indiscriminate
reading of the holy scriptures, without note or comment, by
children, must be peculiarly obnoxious to a church whose
duties, even to adults, the right of unaided private interpre-
tation of the sacred volume, with respect to the articles of re-
ligious belief. Shortly after its institution, although the so-
ciety prospered and extended its operations under the foster-
ing care of the legislation, a vital defect organ to be noticed,
and the Roman Catholic 'clergy began to exert themselves
with energy and success against a system to which they
were on principle opposed, and which they feared might lead
in its results to proselytism, even although no such object
were contemplated by its•proposers.