The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1841-05-25 00:00:00

THE SUGAR DUTIES

On the motion of the CIIANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER
the house went into a committee of ways and means, for the
purpose of passing a resolution for a renewal of the sugar
duties.

Sir ROBERT PEEL said, he could have no objection to a
resolution for renewing the present duties. If necessary he
would second such a resolution. (Loud cheers.) He and
the party with whom he acted had no wish to obstruct the
public service (tremendous cheering) ; and they could not
offer opposition in conformity with their own opinions.
(Cheers.) He had no wish to alter the terms of the resolu-
tion, or limit the period of its operation. (Hear.)
A very animated discussion relatingito the duty on sugar
ensued between Sir Robert Peel, Mr. Hume, and Sir De
Lacy Evans, but from the lateness of the hour at which it
occurred we are not able to give a report until to-morrow.
Lord J. RUSSELL entered into some explanations of the
effect of the duty on sugar as a matter of finance, which was
answered by

Lord STANLEY observing that it was a most singular fact
that during eight inights' debate the noble lord had never
made such a declaration and statement before. (Hear.)
Lord J. RUSSELL.—I had not an opportunity of making
two speeches during the debate. (Hear.—Several members—
" Yes, you made two ; you had in reply.")
Mr. WAIELEY said he was fearful a most serious conflict
was about to take place, and that the country would be agi-
tated from one end to the other. (Hear.) The reason why
the present ministers had lost the confidence of parlia-
ment was, that their measures savoured too much of tory-
ism. (Hear, hear.) He hoped, however, after all, that
the public would come to their rescue, as he saw no
reason for turning out the present ministers to give their
seats to others who would pursue a similar policy. He (Mr.
Wakley) was delighted to hear the noble lord say that night,
that he gave up the Poor-law Bill for the present session, it
would give joy to thousands and hemdrcds of thousands of
his countrymen. (Hear.) If the right hon. baronet would
promise more liberal measures than the present government,
he should have his vote on Thursday night. (Hear.)
Lord J. RUSSELL said, if he bad proceeded with the Poor-
law Bill in the present state of parties, the discussion must
have been a very protracted one, and could not have given
satisfaction, as every gentleman seemed to be under the
impression that he would shortly be called upon to state
his opinions on the hustings. (Long continued cheering.)
With respect to the Poor-law Bill itself he had no hesitation
in saying that his opinion remained unaltered, and on what-
ever side the house he sat when that measure came under
discussion, it would have his support. (Hear, hear.)
At half-past six nearly all the members had left the house.
Left sitting.

INGENIOUS ESCAPE.—During the last two days considera-
ble sensation has been occasioned amongst the sheriff's offi-
cers of the metropolis, particularly those of Surrey, in con-
sequence of an escape being effected by a young female of the
name of Rosa Grady, late landlady of the Griffin public
house, White-street, Borough, from the custody of Coxe,
the sheriff, George-street, Blackfriars-road, which was ef-
fected in the following ingenious manner. It appears that
Miss Grady became indebted to Mr. Henry John Nicholson,
of Vine-street, Westminster, who having been informed that
his debtor was about leaving the kingdom sued out a writ in
the Court of Common Pleas, which being intrusted to Coxe,
he at once made his caption. The defendant immediately
requested to be conveyed to his house, as she intended to
bail the action and bring it into court. The arrest took place
on Tuesday week, and upon the Thursday following Mr.
Nicholson had to attend upon a judge's order before Mr.
Justice Erskine to show cause why the defendant should not
be bailed, upon the ground that she had no intention of
leaving the kingdom. The order was quashed, and Miss
Grady returned back to her old quarters. Coxe allowed the
friends of the defendant to visit her at all hours. On Wed-
nesday or Thursday morning two females called, one of whom
had an infant in her arms, and were, as a matter of course,
admitted ; after being upstairs a short time they descended,
when the child, which one of the females had, suddenly burst
out into a violent fit of crying, upon which the mother put
her face to that of the infant, and in that position they went
out. By some of the neighbours it was observed that the
female who had the infant handed her charge over to her
companion and jumped into a cab, which was standing by the
door, and drove off at a rapid rate. It ought here to be
stated that Mrs. Coxe, the mother of the proprietor, was
what is termed upon the key. After the lapse of some time,
an old woman came down stairs, apparently' from the room
occupied by the debtor, and with a great deal of apparent
simplicity asked Mrs. Coxe if she could tell her where she
could get a gown washed for Miss Grady. A reply was given
in the negative, when the old woman was let out. Immedi-
ately after Mrs. Coxe thought that she had only let in two
females, while three had gone out. She went up stairs, and
found to her great discomfiture that their prisoner bad es-
caped. Coxe immediately took a cab, and proceeded to
Euston-square, anticipating that his late prisoner had gone
by the Birmingham railway, but upon his arrival there no
tidings could be obtained. It has since been ascertained that
Miss Grady acted the part of the mother to the child, and
had disguised her head by a wig; and to perfect the decep-
tion, on reaching the. bottom of the stairs pinched the child,
causing it to cry, and in the act of apparently pacifying it she
hid her face. The worst part of the joke is, that Coxe is
liable for the debt and expenses, the plaintiff having expressed
his determination to come on the sheriff for them.

AN OLD Hoax REVIVED.—One of those stale tricks which
have so frequently been fully exposed through the medium
of the press, took place on Thursday, and the dupe on this
occasion, although a respectable man, declared, to the asto-
nishment of the officer on duty at the Greenwich station-
house, that he had never read or heard of any similar case
before. Richard Smith, captain of the brig Express, of
Whitby, now lying at the platform, London-bridge, was go-
ing over the bridge about half-past twelve o'clock on Thurs-
day, when be was met by a thin, sickly, sallow-complexioned
man, who asked him if. he was not a north country captain;
and on replying that he was, and from Whitby, the stranger
said that would just suit him, as he wished to forward his
son to his home there, finding that a press of business in
London would not permit of his departure for several days.
In answer to other inquiries, Captain Smith said he would
take the stranger's son to Whitby for £l, and agreed to ac-
company the sharper to a public-house, to make arrange-
ments. While there, a tall, stout, sandy-whiskered man
came in, who knew the first sharper, and they entered into
general conversation about politics. The corn laws being a
prominent feature, it gave him an opportunity of enlarging
on the benefit he had recently derived from an accession of
good fortune, be having just had left him a landed estate in
Cornwall, and £lOOO in the funds. He further appeared to
be so enamoured with the conversation of the captain, that,
in a most generous manner, he offered to purchase him a new
brig : however, this was refused, the captain saying he already
had a very good one. The thin man considered the captain
was extremely foolish in not availing himself of so fine an
opportunity of making his fortune, inasmuch as he could
trade with her as he pleased, and pay such interest to his
friend as he might think proper, after handsomely remune-
rating himself. The confederates then said they were per-
fect strangers in London, and wished to see all they could,
and asked the captain if he knew any one at Greenwich. The
captain having replied in the affirmative, a trip to see the
Royal Hospital was then proposed, and as the captai was
not particularly engaged, he agreed to accompany themn . The
stout man refusing to go by coach for fear it might turn over,
the three ultimately went down by the railway, and went to
the King's Arms public-house, in King-street, where, after
having something to drink, the stout man pulled out a roll
of what the captain took to be Bank of England notes, and
placed them in his fob, saying it was the most secure thing
countrymen could do. The captain said he had only five £5
notes in his pocket-book, and thought them safe there ; but
was ultimately persuaded to let the stout man put them into
his fob. The captain said he was quite sober, and saw the
man roll them up on the table, and felt him put them into
his pocket. They then left the house, and proceeded to the
hospital ; but just as they were going in, the stout man ex-
claimed, " By God, I've left my handkerchief at the King's
Arms, and requested, as a particular favour, that Captain
Smith would return for it, as he did not wish to leave his
sick friend, and he was afraid the distance back again would
distress him. Captain Smith returned to the King's Arms,
and asked the landlord if he or his servant had seen a silk
handkerchief. He replied in the negative, and asked the
captain if he had lost anything, as he bad some distant recol-
lection of seeing his stout friend in company with suspicious
characters on a former occasion. The captain's suspicions
for the first time were aroused, and on searching his fob he
discovered that, instead of having five £5 Bank of England
notes, he had a piece of brown paper, wrapped in which were
(oh, cruel joke !) three pieces of Tom spring's Life in Lon-
don. Upon proceeding to the Royal Hospital, the captain
found, to his dismay, that his generous patron and his sick
I friend had been so suddenly recovered by the salubrious air
of Greenwich, as to proceed farther without waiting for the
captain's return.