The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1853-12-13 00:00:00

ARD, AND GENERAL COMMERCIAL ADVERTISER.

THE year which is now fast drawing to a close
has been one of almost unexampled prosperity in
commercial business, extending nearly to every
description of industrial activity. Shipowners,
merchants, brokers, manufacturers, wholesale deal-
ers, and tradesmen have been well and profitably
employed, capital has returned profits in some
cases almost fabulous, and labour has been amply
rewarded. No wonder, then, that towards the
close an extensive strike of operatives occasioned
but little inclination to concede their demands, for
most of their employers could close their books
with a balance to the credit of profit and loss much
greater than they had shown for many years pre-
ceding. This gratifying state of mercantile ledgers
may possibly account for the seeming apathy
which now prevails, and the difficulty experienced
in creating anything like a feeling of excitement
on any subject. The East of Europe is in a state
of active warfare, the diplomatists of Europe are
actively engaged in negotiations upon which may
depend the fate of empires, the Sulina mouth of
the Danube is almost closed by natural impedi-
ments against the navigation required for further
supplies of foreign corn ; each day brings reports
of changes which, whether true or false, might be
supposed to be of some importance ; and yet all
these seem to fall upon the ear as tedious as a
thrice-told tale. There are, however, subjects
which must ultimately prove of interest, and which
ought to receive attention before the time draws
near when the business of legislation will be ac-
tively proceeded with. It will be remembered
that, some time since, a movement was made for
the establishment of commercial tribunals, and
though nothing was done, owing to the opposition
of ancient lawyers, who will never reform them-
selves, or run the risk of losing rich clients, until
they are compelled by the pressure from without,
the subject is of too much importance to be allowed
to let slip. Both in London and Liverpool there
are numerous cases constantly arising which re-
quire the interference of competent parties, in
order to settle disputed points. The only alterna-
tive under the present system is to resort to the
tedious and expensive process of a law-suit, or
submit to apparent injustice, which is more often

the rule than the exception ; but 'even when a
court of law is appealed to, the result is far from
satisfactory, few lawyers understanding commercial
customs, and decisions being often far removed
from justice. The interests of British commerce

are far too important to be left in such a state, and
the evil is the more grievous when the remedy is
easy and practicable. The establishment of a
tribunal, easy of access and inexpen-
sive in process, in which all questions relating to
trade and commerce might be promptly adjudi-
cated, is a concession which the mercantile world
has a right to expect, and which, it is hoped, will be
pressed upon the attention of the legislature until
the object be attained. It will not do, however, to
leave it to the dilatory proceedings and evident
unwillingness of Crown lawyers. The demand for
justice must be made in a tone which will not
brook refusal,—our representatives must force the
subject upon Parliament, backed by the petitions
of the many who are interested in it. and the

commercial

reasonableness of the request will appear so obvious
as to insure its success. There is no want of pre-
cedents, as the Admiralty Court is devoted to
questions concerning shipping, such as salvage,
collisions, &c., and the Stannaries Courts in Corn-
wall and Devon to the disputes about mining, so a
special tribunal might be exclusively devoted to
the many questions which daily arise in commer-
cial affairs, depending, in a great measure, upon
customs and usages, and which could be settled
infinitely better by such means than when incum-
bered with the dry technicalities of common law.
Indeed, the advantage of such a course is so

obvious, that the only wonder is, that it has not
been done long before.

THE inquiry instituted by the Town Council of
Liverpool, into the conduct of one of its own mem-

bers, has resulted in a verdict of condemnation by
the unanimous voice of the committee who con-
ducted the investigation. The only defence which
appears to have been offered by the apologists for
the accused, is a vague assertion upon his not being
alone in the exercise of undue influence for election
purposes. It is said that other members of the
Council are not free from the charge of having
resorted to practices by no means in accordance
with modern notions of purity of election. Such
a specious justification of admitted wrong arises
from an evident misconception of the nature of the
charge, which is in no way answered by any refe-
rence to general accusations about bribery and
treating. Had Mr. BRADLEY been accused of
buying, or attempting to buy, every voter in
Vauxhall Ward, or opening every public-house to
unlimited treating, the retort might have had
some weight ; but the charge against him is for
making use of information and influence, which he
could only possess as a member of the Council, in
order to exercise it to obtain votes. This the
committee have decided to be proved, and for
such alone has he been condemned b 3 the Council.
It will be observed that they have refused to
proceed further, leaving it to his own sense of
propriety to retire from, a position which he is
evidently unworthy to occupy, and it is to be
hoped that reflection will serve to convince him
of the necessity of preserving his own character
from the obloquy which must attach to him, should
he persist in refusing to adopt the only course
which is now left open to him.

THE exposure which has recently taken place
of the treatment of passengers on board emigrant
ships, as in the case of the Melbourne from Au-
stralia, which became the subject of an action at lwa,
and the mortality which has occurred in several ves-
sels owing to want of sufficient and wholesome food,
ventilation, and other means of preserving life, has
shown the existence of a grievance which impera-
tively demands a more efficient remedy than has
yet been applied. Without expressing any opinion
as to the policy of encouraging a kind of whole-
sale emigration, it is evident that some protection
should be afforded to the hapless passengers by
competent authority against the cupidity of ship-
owners and the callous indifference of ship-masters
to the comfort of those entrusted to them. It is
true that the government have appointed officers
whose duty it is to see that a vessel is properly
found in stores and other accommodations for the
number of passengers she is to carry, but such du-
ties are unfortunately too often performed as a

matter of course; and, if they were strictly carried
out, the poor emigrants have no security for their

not prevent bulkheads, erected to separate opposite
g afterwards knocked away, water-closets

sexes, beir

)rovisions.