The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1847-03-30 00:00:00

COOKE V. BLAKE

This was an action brought by Ralph Cooke against
John Blake, to try the right of way through a certain yard
between Bold-street and Wood-street. The verdict was
for the plaintiff on the two first counts, and for the de-
fendant on the remaining four.

FINANCIAL AND COMMERCIAL SUMMARY.

:AL...A AUG we:e.
have been tolerably firm, with a disposition to advanee,
caused by the decline in the markets for grain, together
with the release of the Bank of France from its difficulties,
which has only been counteracted by the pressing demand
for money. The extent of this influence, and the purpose
for which money is required, may be" judged of from a
circular which is being transmitted by one of the Scotch
Exchange Banks to solicitors and others; in the different
towns of the north, offering a commission for procuring
deposits for.over a year at five per cent. interest, to be
used in advancing upon railway shares held over by par-
ties who are disinclined to sell at the present depreciated
rates. The interest charged upon such operations may
be estimated by considering that the banks advancing pay
themselves, probably from 2 to 2i per cent. commission,
in addition to the 5 per cent. for the lodgements.
Commercial affairs generally wear a rather more healtny
'appearance. We are now assured that our • supplies of
food are likely to be abundant ; acid that prices will'shortly
be. brought down to a point which will place eOnSifruers in
ability to devote an increased portion of their incomes -to
the purchase of manufactured goods and imported produce.
The country trade is found to be good and remunerative,
the farmers generally haying profited by the recent high

rates for their crops. The decreased etnisuntptiOn owing
to the stoppage of working, and short time, of our manu-
facturing population is, however, a serious drawback. In
the district immediately around Manchester, extending
from four to five miles from that place as its centre, it is
computed that.of the wages of factory hands, and others
dependant on manufacturing operations, at lest £BO,OOO
Or week are withdrawn from circulation. The effect of
hiatus in the demand for all articles of household neces-
sity is readily conceived.

Our Cotton Market, during the week, has been operated
upon by the advices from America, per Montezuma ; and
an active speculative demand has produced a rise of Ad. to
VI. per lb., the market leaving off firm. Whether this
advance can be maintained or not appears exceedingly
doubtful, when the decreased consumption- caused by the
continued stoppage of spinning operations is taken into
account. How far this decreased consumption. is merely
temporary, it is at present difficult to say. We have as-
certained, that considerable orders for manufactured
goods, for theUnited.States, were received by the CaM-
bria ; and we understand that the Montezuma also brought
orders. These however are, at present, being very spar-
ingly given out ; and are not likely, in the present con-
flicting attitudes of the markets for the raw material and
for manufactured products, to induce a return to active
operations. The India Mail brings nothing very encou-
raging for the manufacturer.

bu; Corn Markets are rapidly declining, and we have
every symptom of an approaching panic, and " a heavy
blow and great discouragement," to corn speculators, by
which some of our merchants, unconnected with trade,
are likely to be considerable sufferers. The decline in
Wheat, on Friday, was 2d. to 3d. per 701b5.. from Tues -
day's prices. Indian Corn, which was, a few weeks ago,
at 755. per 4831b5., was pressed in vain, on Friday, at 525.,
and even at 50s. All other kinds of bread-stuffs are going
fast downwards. A week of westerly winds will probably
bring matters to a crisis. Every recent purchase in the
American markets must prove ruinous.

One of the chief supports of our corn markets here has
been, of late, the demand for Ireland. This is abating.
The Irish farmers are at length bringing forward their
stocks, which prove more extensive than was generally
anticipated. Even the potatoe crop is showing itself not
so deficient as was expected. The pits are at length being
opened ; and those who have hoarded for famine prices,
are finding out that they have held too long, Good sound
potatoes, for seed, which, a month ago, would have real-
ized 30s. per barrel, are now offered for 20s. ; and the
probability is that less must be accepted. It is satisfac-
tory also to the consumers to know that the' markets for
butcher's meat are declining suffi.iently to bring so neces-
sary an article of food within their reach.

The necessities of France appear to be the only draw-
back against the prospect of a return to ordinary prices of
food. The ports of the Baltic, however, arc now open ;
and abundant supplies appear to be about to pour into that
country. By the favour of Nicholas of Russia, France
will be enabled to pay for what she requires without crea-
ting any great drain upon the bullion required for the
commerce of Europe.

erntral

General complaint is made in. the metropolis that the
banks are issuing light sovereigns in great abundance.
The English mint has eight presses, which strike sixty
blows in a minute, and produce 3,600 coins in an hour.
On Thursday, the price of the four-pound loaf was
lowered a penny by the London bakers.

Many crocuses are now seen in. the meadow near Not-
tingham, which is said to be the only place in England
where those flewers are indigenous.

So great has been the demand in Wiltshire for parsnip
seed, which has been generally sown in the room of pota-
toes, that its price has risen from £5 to £4O the cwt.
Baron M, de Rothschild is said to be in treaty with the
Earl of Buckinghamshire for the purchase of the earl's

estate at Hampden, Bucks.
On Saturday week, at the market of Shaftesbury, Wilt-
shire, a Jew, named Marcus Lewis, exposed four pigs for
sale, and after great laughter among the dealers, ulti-
mately sold them for £2.

It is reported that convict ships are to be fitted up
for the reception of convicts, at each dock yard, and that
captains and lieutenants from the navy are to superintend
the management of the prisoners when on board.

The Bath Herald states that the- bakers of that town,
in consequence of the high price of flour have resolved
not to make hot cross buns on Good Friday, as it is
thought that much flour will thus be saved.
On Sunday evening last, a maid-servant employed by a
family residing in London, was so overjoyed at seeing her
lover, who came to escort her home, that she fell down
and died almost immediately.
An electrical clock is to be erected in the tower of
Wenham church, near Ipswich, and the motive power is
to be incessantly maintained by a perpetual electric cur-
rent derived from the earth.
At Pontypool, on. Monday, a coroner's jury returned a
verdict of wilful murder against Hannah Thomas, for the
murder of her infant son, 10 days old, and she was com-
mitted to take her trial.
Drainage is working wonders in the county of Caith-
ness, where bogs and locks are rapidly disappearing,
giving cheering promise of being speedily converted into and
fruitful fields.

The use of the bear-skin can, hitherto worn by the fu-
silier regiments, is to be discontinued. Our fine-looking
soldiers are all to be disfigured by the cap which Prince
A ~.. • .

The Suburban Village Association has arranged with
it, Pa chn.r. 11,1 r .1

.he convey-

s than five huridred

passengers each day

from and to a village intended for London artisans, w
is to be erected five miles and a half from London.

On Tuesday afternoon upwards of 20,000 mackerel,
caught at Plymouth, were brought into Billingsgate by
the Great Western Railway. This sudden glut so reduced
the price that mackarel were sold retail at six and eight

for ti shilling.
The Shropshire Conservative proposes that policemen
should disguise themselves in asses skins, in which dress
it thinks they would appear in character, and should thus
watch arid take thieves, who might trust to their stupidity

for impunity.
At the Maidstone Assizes, on Friday, a nameless man
was tried for arson. The confession made by the anony-
;ht have led to his conic.
aconclusive. he was aeunit-

fit Derby A

garaener roar KUICa tus wire and attempted to destroy a
female neighbour who entered his house to see what had
occurred, was tried for the murder. Evidence was given

of his having exhibited madness on several occasions and
the verdict was "Acquittal on the ground of insanity."
At York, on Wednesday, a respectable pawnbroker,
named Hoatson, was tried for forging a transfer deed of
shares in the Eastern Counties Railway, andlound guilty
The

lefence was that no fraud could have resulted froin

the peculiar circumstances under which t
mated. He was sentenced to two months

act was corn

imprison

PARENTS PROSECUTING THEIR CHILDREN.-At the
Middlesex Sessions, on Tuesday, several children werE
convicted of larceny at the instance Of their parents. The
judge remarked that the present system enabled parentf

he conic

their children, and from that moment they were relieved
of all responsibility of their support. They became the
" children of the state."
A SAGACIOUS CAT.—A " navie" lately left Brigham,
Cumberland, and went to reside at Dumfries, taking with
os,l, ;AI Con reachiriZ its destination Was

Mardi 30,1847.

FATAL BOILER EXPLOSION NEAR NEWCASTLE-ON-
TYNE.—On Saturday morning, about nine o'clock, a fatal
accident occurred at Burraddon Colliery, by the bursting
of one of the boilers used in working the engine of the
pit, by which three persons were killed, viz., a man, a
woman, and a boy. The colliery is situated about six
miles north of Newcastle, and belongs to Lord Ravens-
worth and partners.
MRS. BUTLER, A MANAGER.—The Observer states it
to be more than probable that Mrs. Butler (late Miss F.
Kemble, for it is necessary to make the distinction, as
there is another Mrs. Butler, who has advertised readings
at Crosby Hall), will ere long become lessee of one of our

metropolitan theatres ; the present tenant of the house
being willing to dispose of his interest in it at only a mo-
derate profit, namely, .0,000 a-year beyond the compa-
ritively low rent he now pays.
COMMITTEE ON THE NAVIGATION LAWS.—The com-
mittee now inquiring into the operation of the navigation
laws, of which Mr. M. Gibson is the chairman, have
agreed to report the evidence-to the house weekly. This
dcision has been taken in consequence of the condensed
and imperfect
.reports which have appeared in the morning
journals, reports suggesting very faint ideas of the weight
of testimony brought before the committee. Two more
important committees than these have not been sitting
simultaneously during any preceding session of parlia-
ment.

THE BRITISH MUSEIIM.—A return, obtained by Mr.
Moffatt, M.P., shows that the total amount of money
that has been expended in the new buildings and fittings
of the British Museum, from the commencement of the
rebuilding in 1823, up to Christmas, 1846, is £606,500.
The estimate of the cost of completing the building, in
which sum is included the expence for fittings in the years
1847-48, amounts to the sum of £106,911. The amount
that may be required for fittings in subsequent years can-
not. at present, be estimated by the architect, as it will
depend upon the nature and extent of the collections in
progress.

AN UNTOWARD DREAM.—A respectable auctioneer of
Chesterfield was troubled last week with a dream that led
him to inflict on himself a serious injury while. under its
influence. He dreamt that he was much troubled with a
nutshell that had become jammed between his teeth, and
so strong was that impression, that he tugged violently at
the supposed shell to relieve himself from it; awakening
with his efforts he found, to his great consternation, that
he had pulled out a sound double tooth, which had been;
the night before a firm-set and serviceable grinder, but
which he then held between his finger and thumb.—Der-
byskire Courier.

The Educational malcontents have waited on Lord
Lansdowne, and been by him again assured that this year's
grant is to be administered with perfect impartiality. A
concession," too, was obtained from his Lordship to the
effect that any school of private foundation, which, after
having received Government grants, and submitted to in-
spection, shall afterwards decline the grants, may free it-
self from the inspection also. This result is, of course, no
more than what every man of common sense knew before;
and we doubt much whether the iteration of it will ap-
pease the discontented. impartial assistance will not do
the Dissenting bodies any good ; and they know it.
LORD SANDON'S COMMITTEE ON OUR RELATIONS
WITH CHINA.—Lord Sandon has nominated his commit-
tee to inquire into the state of our commercial relations
with China. Amongst the members there are no less
than four connected by representation or family with
Lancashire. The noble lord himself, Mr. Wm. Brown,
Dr. Bowring; and Mr. Ewart. Witnesses will be sum-
moned both from Manchester and Liverpool, from whom
scope striking statements will be elicited, showing the
perverseness of our policy► towards China, particularly
with respect to the importation of tea. No evidence will
be taken until after Easter.

DREADFUL ACCIDENT TO AN EXCAVATOR.—On Wed-
nesday se'nnight, a frightful accident occurred to a work-
man engaged in blasting on the Trent Valley Railway, in
the neighbourhood of Polesworth. The poor fellow had
been boring the rock for the purpose of blasting, and hav-
ing charged the aperture with powder, he applied the fuse,
but from some cause it did not explode. He then left the
place, and returned in about an hour, and commenced
boring in the same part of the rock, when the friction
caused the charge to explode, and the unfortunate man
was blown to the distance of some yards, his body being
dreadfully mangled. He survived only a few, minutes.
Two fellow-workmen were also injured, but not so as to
cause any serious apprehensions.—Birmingham Adver-
tiser.

INCRISASE OF FEVER IN GLASGOW.—We regret to learn
that the ravages of fever continue unabated, and that the
disease is on the increase. The returns made by the dis-
trict surgeons to the managers of the infirmary up to
Thursday last show that on that day the maximum of
cases treated in the hospital was of corresponding, almost
identical, amount with the maximum of cases treated in
the houses of the patients. Under these circumstances,
the managers of the infirmary have been unremitting in
their exertions to find adequate accommodation, as they
have been prevented from receiving the daily accumulat-
ing cases by absolute want of room. The auxiliary hos-
pital established in Rottenrow (the New Lock. Hospital)
has for some time been completely filled, and it has there-
fore become necessary to establish another auxiliary insti-
tution, for which purpose a building has been purchased
in Dalmarnock-road, Bridgeton, which is capable of being:
fitted up in a week or two for the accommodation of about
100 patients.—Glasgow Argus.
THE PROVISION SQUADRON.—Captain W. H. Hall is
to take the Terrible, steam-frigate, loaded with meal, to
Scotland. The Odin, steam-frigate, is ordered from Cork
to h
CP.
ol
Ayr, mk, onwu:ael
ntsogt
eraem-1
orders,o
g.
havinga
teT,hi e Dr
agon,
teosdt steam-frigate,
provisions:r fnri gt
4a i
s
vonport after she has discharged her cargo at. clifden.
The Bull-dog, steam-sloop, at Cork on the 15th inst.,
was ordered to take 860 sacks of meal to the tenor cuter.;
mittee at Dingle. The Scourge, steam-sloop, having
transferred to the Dasher, steam-vessel, at Westport, for
distribution, some of the supplies on account of the
Society of Friends, proceeded to.Clifden to•discharge the
remainder, and is then to return to Liverpool for another
cargo. The Avon steam-vessel, is ordered from Holy-
head to Oban. The Zephyr, steam-vessel, is distributing
supplies of clothing, shipped by the British Relief Asso-
ciation, from Cork to Bantry. The Centaur, steam.
frigate, left Portsmouth, on Thursday, with a large cargo
of provisions, for Kenmare. The Rhadamanthus, steam-
transport, has proceeded from Liverpool to Fort-George,
Inverness, with meal. The Portland, 50-gun frigate, is
loading at Portsmouth with a large cargo. Her stowage
is immense.

EAVESDROPPING POLICEMEN.—At the trial of a man
at Cambridge, on Tuesday, on a charge of setting fire to
two corn-stacks, an inspector of police was called to speak
about statements said to have been made by the prisoner
whilst in his cell, and it turned out that the inspector had
overheard them by listening at the door. Mr. Justice
Coleridge thereupon interposed, and said that he should
receive with the greatest reluctance, if, indeed, he should
not reject, evidence so obtained, for it was impossible that
a jury should not suspect, and perhaps disbelieve, all the
evidence of a person who had descended to such unworthy
means of gaining information.. The inspector then urged
that he had often been blamed for not having, on similar
occasions, listened to what had been said. Mr. Justice
Coleridge said that if such a course of proceeding was sug-
gested to policemen it could no longer be a matter or
wonder that an ill opinion of them was entertained, and
that their testimony was received with distrust. It must,
however, be obvious to every person of good sense and
good feeling, who might be discharging the duties of a po•
liceman, that such a mode of obtaining evidence against 3,
man accused of crime was most proper. The counsel.
for the prosecution, deferred to the opinion of the judge,
and withdrew the witness. The jury, however, were sa-
tisfied with the other evidence, and found a verdict of
Guilty against the prisoner, who was sentenced to be
transported for ten years.

EDUCATION WANTED.—One of two navigators sen-
tenced at the last Westmorland assizes to transportation
for life for an atrocious crime, has addressed a letter to
Mr. Thwaite, the governor of Appleby gaol, dated Lon-
don, March 7, 1847, of which the following is a literal
copy :—" Dear Friend,-1 take the pleasure of writing
these few lines to you, hoping to find you and all your f -
olth has it leaves me at present, thank God
-iree has gone away above four months

The other t

ago, ana Lam yet. riease to give my
best respects to. John Bridget, and to John Tate, and if
you churl hapen to see my Brother, tell him that I am. in
good health, Bless the Lord for it. And I chud like to
hear from some of them, So that I could write to some of
them for a few shillings, to get a little Prayer Book, to

take away with me when Igo away. This his some of my
own writing, and this his but the second time that I have
writ on paper. And you must make the writing out as well
has you can, and I hope you will send me a letter has soon.

nas you.can, to let me now how you are all getting on, and.
I will send you another letter,—WlLLlAm SMITII.—When,
the writer of this letter, in the summerofl246, was com-
mitted for trial, he did not know the alphabet, and was,

been companions, as teac
lad_ he would. in nil

ler and -pupil, when the

Teen a virl

,uous anc

f society

TUE CUICSTERFIELD MURDER.—On Friday week, John
Platts, twenty-six years of age, a butcher, was tried before
Mr. Justice Patteson, on a charge of having murdered
George Collis, a man about the same age, with whom he
was 'connected in business, at Chesterfield. It appeared
from the evidence that prisoner and deceased had had a
quarrel about.money, and that, on the night of the inur-
ht to the shop, stupified with drink,
`y, and another man unknown, and

.er, Co

is was bl

there killed with a hammer or a cleaver. For w_
after the murder it was supposed that Collis had abscon-
ded; but as some parties were cleaning oat a cess-pool,
they discovered the remains of a human body. which was
ascertained to, be Collihs's, by the clothes. Platts and
Morley were apprehended. Morley, almost immediately
after his appiel,

,e months

ension, was seized 'With brain fever, and
tied raving mad. No trace has yet been found of the
third party, but the guilt of Platts was clearly established
by a long chain of circumstantial evidence. The case was
adjourned to Saturday, on which day the jury found the
the prisoner guilty of murder. Being asked what hi!
_ _ _ _ - •