The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1844-12-31 00:00:00

GENERAL MISCELLANY.

On Saturday, at Leith, the Leith Candle Company's
premises were totally consumed by an accidental fire.
A reprieve has been received for the convict condemned
at York for arson.

His Grace the Duke of Wellington, Commander-in-
Chief of the Army, has promoted several sergeant-majors
to be comets in other regiments, without purchase.

Thomas Staite, the game-keeper, who was so dreadfully
beaten in an affray with poachers at Croome, on the 21st
instant, has since died.

Eight miners were killed on Monday last, in a colliery
at Kingswinford, by the breaking of a rope by which they
were descending.

Wm. Howell, Walter Howell, and Israel Shipley, who
lie under sentence of death, at Ipswich, for murder, have
been respited till the 25th instant.

A pension has been conferred upon Mr. Thomas Hood,
the author of, amongst other things, " The Song of the
Shirt."

The Phoenix, steam-sloop, of about 800 tons, is now in
,he East India Dock, substituting a propeller screw for
,he paddles she has hitherto worked with.

On Thursday week, a young man, 18 years of age,
named Young, met his death, near Bristol, by his gun
going off whilst he was drawing it through a hedge.
On Sunday week, two stoves heated with charred-wood
having been placed in the church at Pollokshaws, Ren-
frewshire, the fumes so overcame the congregation that
about twenty of them fainted.
The Black Boy Pit, near Bishop Auckland, fired on
Monday ; there were upwards of 200 men and boys down
at the time. They were all got out alive, but many of
them very much burnt.
Mr. Griffiths, bootmaker, of Chester, has received from
Windsor Castle a check for £5, in payment of a pair of
beautiful miniature boots, which he forwarded for the ac-
ceptance of the Prince of Wales.
Lord Ashley has transmitted £llO to Scotlawl, to be
distributed among th ose women who have been thrown
out of employment by the operation of the Mines and
Collieries Act.

At Windsor Theatre, on Monday evening, Mrs. Hume,
63 years of age, the wife of a journeyman cutler, residing
at Eton, met with her death by accidentally falling over
the gallery into the pit.
Wm. Oliver and his wife, who lived in a miserable cot-
tage at Ashford, near Staines, being reduced to a state of
almost utt, r destitution, committed suicide on Tuesday
morning last, by taking poison.
THE HEROINE OF MATAGORDA.—The subscription
for this deserving old woman now amounts to a sum suf-
ficient to secure her £3O a-year for life, with a few pounds
over to set up house with.
CONSERVATIVE TRIUMPH.—The nomination for the
borough of Dartmouth took place on Thursday, when
the show of hands was in favour of Mr. Somes, the con-
servative. At the close of the poll, on Friday. Mr. Somes
was returned by a majority of seven, the numbers being
for Mr. Somes, 125, Mr. Moffatt. 118.
OFFICIAL COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE BRITISH
GOVERNMENT AND THE POPE.—The Post of Thursday
announces the following, in a leading article :—" We be-
lieve that, in fact, the official initiative has already been
taken in regard to direct communication with the Council
of his Holiness the Pope,"
There has been an enormous increase in the export of
salt during the present year. The quantity exported du-
ring this year, at Liverpool, Hull, and Gloucester, it is
said, will amount to six hundred thousand tons! The
consumption of salt in London is estimated at five hun-
dred tons weekly.
HORRIBLE ACCIDENT.—On the 11th instant, a mason
was working upon the roof of the forge called the Glynn,
near Hereford, when by some mishap he lost his balance,
and fell through the roof, directly upon the fly-wheel,
which turns round with a resistless velocity. The work
of death was soon completed.
A few days since, a brood sow entered the dwelling of
a farmer near Dumfries, in the absence of the family, who
had imprudently left the door open, and the beast before
their return had seized an infant in the cradle, and so
dreadfully lacerated it that the poor child's life is despaired
of.

THE IRON TRADE.—We are glad to perceive a marked
and steady improvement in this branch of trade. We
learn that the Great North of England Railway Com-
pany's contract for 6000 tons of rails was taken by the
Bishopwearmouth Iron Company, at Sunderland, and
Messrs. Bolckow and Vaughan, of Middlesbro' Iron-
works, at £7 15s. per ton, which is a considerable advance
on the late quotations.—Mining Journal.

REMARKABLE OPERATION FOR THE CURE OF CON-
SU/sIPTION.—The Medical Gazette contains a long article
from the pens of Dr. Hastings and Mr. Robert Storks,
surgeon, descriptive of a remarkable operation for the
cure of consumption, by the perforation of the cavity of
the lungs through the walls of the chest. It consists in
making an opening between the ribs into the cavity which
forms in the lung during the latter stages of consumption.
ALLEGED DEATH OF A CHILD FROM GRIEF.—On
Tuesday evening Mr. Baker held an adjourned inquest at
London, on the body of Elizabeth Sutton, aged ten years.
About a week ago, her father, for whom she had a great
affection, met with an accident, and was removed to the
London Hospital. He kissed her upon being removed
there, which circumstance, it was remarked, excited in her
strong emotion, and from that time she complained of
pains in her head and stomach. She was continually
wishing to go to see them.
DANGER OF LOADED FIRE-ARMS.—On Saturdayweek,
at Kirkham, a respectable tradesman who had been amus-
ing himself shooting small birds, on returning home in-
advertantly laid down the gun loaded with small shot.
Next morning his young shop boy took up the piece,
and having previously found a cap fixed it on, " prevented"
towards the window. The gun went off—to the great
alarm of the poungster, who did not think it loaded—and
demolished four large panes in the shop window, and
seventeen in the window of the shop opposite. Luckily
no one was passing:at the time, otherwise
,the consequen-
ces might have been fatal.
FOG IN GLASGOW.—On Friday week Glasgow was
visited by one of the densest fogs that had been known
for many years. A frost had set in on the previous night,
and it was scarcely possible to see across some of the
streets. The traffic on the river was entirely suspended.
Several vessels left the Bromielaw, but could make little
or no progress. The larger vessels got aground near Go-
van. Three men were drowned at Port Dundas during
the fog. Alexander Bontine, master of a vessel, fell into
the canal, and was soon afterwards taken out dead. On
the same evening Robert Maitland and Collin Campbell
(men employed at a distillery at Port Dundas) fell into
the canal, and were drowned.
A SCENE.—At the Watlington petty sessions, on Sa-
turday. Jane Allen, a wretchedly distressed-looking wo-
man, with an infant at her breast, was charged with hav-
ing stolen, on the 25th of November, a small faggot of
wood, of the value of " one penny." The bench more
than once put it to the prosecutor as to whether he was
determined to press the charge, and he said he was ; he
had lost faggots before. He said, "The faggots were
worth 6s. per hundred "—id. each. It was an affecting
scene. From the prosecutor sternly pressing the charge,
the mother, with the infant in her arms, was committed
to Oxford gaol, to the said faggot, of the value of id.
LONGEVITY.—Died, on Monday last, at the patriarchal
age of 108, Mr. Morris Thurston, of Exeter. The de-
ceased, up to the last seven weeks, enjoyed excellent
health and spirits. He lived for upwards of sixty years
in the house in which he died, and never, till lately,
allowed any one to go into it. He was an herbal doctor,
and as such travelled through Devon, working marvellous
cures. He followed his vocation till within the last two
months, and such was his repute that the people applied
to him for his advice, and received the nostrums, whilst
on his death-bed. He was an alchyrnist, and an adept in
astrology ; and it seems as if these ancient delusions lin-
gered with him alone.—Exeter Times.
DANGEROUS FROLICKING.—A person one day last
week, while viewing Wombwell's menagerie, at Bath,
was foolish enough to tease one of the elephants. The
sagacious animal afterwards watched for a favourable
opportunity of retaliating, and when its tormenter was
standing off his guard, within the grasp of its proboscis,
to his great consternation he found himself suddenly
clutched in a close embrace, and lifted as high as the head-
way of the booth would admit, and then brought to the
ground again. Fortunately, however, the trunk of his
formidable antagonist by this time had loosened its hold ;
but such was the terror with which the man was affected
by the animal's resentment, that he went home ill, and
continued so for several days afterwards.
We learn that it is contemplated by government to send
out another expedition to the Arctic Regions, with the
view of discovering the, or a North-west passage, between
the Atlantic and Pacific ; and the council of the royal so-
ciety having been solicited to give their opinion as to the
desirableness of such an expedition, have stated, that in-
dependent of the great object to be attained, the benefits
that would accrue to the sciences of geography and ter-
restrial magnetism render such an expedition peculiarly
desirable. It appears thut the Erebus and Terror, which
were recently employed at the South Pole, under the
command of Sir James Ross, have returned in such good
order, as to be ready to be made immediately available
for employment on any similar service.—Athenceum.
STAMP OFFICE REDUCTION.—A circular has been
issued from the stamp office to the District Distributors
and Sub-distributors, directing a reduction in the charges
for all blank forms for documents to which stamps are
attached, to take place from and after the sth January,
1845. These reductions will be a source of great saving
to professional and commercial men. For parchment,
such skins as are now charged at Bd. will henceforth be
6d. ; those at Is. Bd., Is. ; those at 25., Is. 6d. ; those at
4s , 3s. 2d.; and the others in proportion. For paper,
folio post is reduced from 2s. to Is. 6d. and Is., accord-
ing to quality ; decoy paper from 2d. to id. per sheet ;
and bonds, birs of 1 ding, marriage-licenses, transfers,
and protests, fr, m lid. to id. and id. per sheet.
IMPORTATION OF WHEAT.—A parliamentary return,
which was pr,cured in September last, on the motion of
Mr. Darby, the member for East Sussex, has just been
printed. showing the quantity of wheat imported from
the United States into Canada from the 11th October to

the 31st July, 1844, both inclusive; also, the quantity of
wheat and wheat flour imported from Canada into Great
Britain and Ireland, distinguishing the quantity into
each, from the same period to the same period. It ap-
pears that the quantity of wheat imported into Canada
from the United States from the 11th October, 1843, to
the sth July last, (to which day the returns received only
extend,) was, by sea, 634 quarters, and by inland naviga-
tion or land carriage, 21,161 quarters. The quantities of
wheat and flour, the produce of Canada, imported (for
home consumption) from the same period to the same
period, being the last period to which the returns have
been received, were, into Great Britain, 18,199 quarters
and 6 bushels of wheat, and 262,506 cwts. 1 qr. and 101bs.
of flour; into Ireland, 4,007 cwts. 1 qr. and 101bs. of
flour; making, in the total, 18,199 qrs. and 6 bushels of
wheat, and 266,513 cwts. 2 qrs. and lllbs. of wheat and
flour.

TnE MALT TAX.—The Central Agricultural Society
have refused to support the repeal of the malt tax. At a
meeting of the farmers of the county of Norfolk, held a
few days since, to take into consideration the repeal of
the malt tax, a letter from the secretary of the above
society, of which the following is an extract, was read,
in consequence of which the meeting separated without
coming to any resolutions on the subject of the tax :
" I will at once state to you that with reference to the
repeal of the malt tax, the committee, having had their
attention called to it some time ago, came to the deter-
mination of not raising that question o❑ their own part,
and of not recommending the agitation of it by any of
the local protection societies. They felt that to begin to
agitate for the repeal of the malt duties so soon after the
formation of the society, on the virtual understanding
that its object was the maintenance of tl•e present scale
of protection to agriculture, under its existing burthens,
would involve an aggressive policy for which they were
not prepared. The prospects, too, of the property tax
being soon deducted from the items of the revenue of the
country, did not seem to justify the remission of so large
a source of income as the malt duties, unless some sub-
stitute were proposed ; of the nature of which, however,
no unanimity appeared to exist either in the committee
or the country."
EXTRAORDINARY EVEN T.—A most extraordinary cir-
c•smstance has just occurred at the Hawick toll-bar,
which is kept by two old women. It appears that they
had a sum of money in the house, and from some cause
or other were extremely alarmed lest they should be
robbed of it. Their fears prevailed to such an extent,
that when a carrier whom they knew was passing by, they
urgently requested him to remain with them all night,
which, however, his duties would not permit him to do;
but in consideration of the alarm of the women, he con-
sented to leave with them a large mastiff dog. When the
carrier star ted the dog became violent, and would not stop,
upon which one of the women ran after the man, who re-
turned and left his coat for the dog to watch, after which
the dog remained quietly at the toll-house. In the night
the women were disturbed by the uneasiness of the dog,
and heard a noise apparently like an attempt to force an
entrance into the premises, upon which they escaped by
the back-door, and ran to a neighbouring-house, which
happened to be a blacksmith's shop. They knocked at
the door, and were answered from within by the smith's
wife. She said her husband was absent, but that she was
willing to accompany the terrified women to their home.
This was agreed to, and on their reaching the house, they
saw the body of a man hanging half in and half out of
their little window, whom the dog had seized by the throat,
and was still worrying. On examination, the man proved
to be their neighbour the blacksmith, dreadfully torn
about the throat, and quite dead.—Carlisle Patriot.
PUBLIC SALARIES,—On Friday a Parliamentary paper
was issued, giving an account of all salaries, &c., held by
all persons between the sth of January, 1843, the total
amount of which exceeded £l,OOO. The whole list em-
braces the names 754 persons. In the first branch of the

return, civil officers, there are 250 names ; in the second,
judicial officers, officers of courts of law, &c., there are
134, and 30 pensioners; in the third, consular and diplo-

matic officers, there are 52, and 22 pensioners ; in the
fourth, naval officers, there are 34 and 1 pensioner ; in
the fifth department, military officers returned by the
War-office, appears the names of 25 individuals ; in the
sixth, ordnance and military officers not returned by the
War-office, there are 30; in the seventh, officers in the
colonies, there are 118; and in the eighth, branch officers
of the House of Commons, only 10 ; making in the ag-
gregate 754 persons whose incomes from the public money
exceed £l,OOO a-year. The highest sum in the list of
civil officers is the allowance to the Lord-Lieutenant of
Ireland of £20,000 and the next, two pensions to the
Duke of Grafton, amounting to £10,584. In the list of
judicial officers Lord Lyndhurst, as Lord Chancellor, is
the highest, namely, £lO,OOO, which is exclusive of his
salary as Speaker of the House of Lords. Among the
military officers the Duke of Wellington receives the
largest amount. His Grace had in the period mentioned
£8,916 16s. 3d., consisting of £3,379 17s. 6d., as Colonel
of the 13th Foot Guards ; £238 15s. 5d., as Colonel-in-
Chief of the Rifle Brigade ; £992 3s. Bd.' as Constable of
the Tower of London ; £305 19s. Bd., as Captain of Do-
ver Castle, £4,000 pension granted by act of Parliament.
The noble duke succeeded Lord Hill as Commander-in-
Chief in December, 1842, who, it appears by the return,
received in the year as Commander-in-Chief £2,281 15s.
10d. The Speaker of the House of Commons has £5,000
a-year, and a house ; and Sir W. Gosset, the Sergeant-
at-Arms, £1,500, besides £320 12s. Ild., as a retired
Colonel of Royal Engineers.

Dec. 31, 1844.

DREADFUL OCCURRENCE.—A few nights since Mr.
Ross, of the Victoria Inn, Bunbury, and Mrs. Sim,
the same village, (between whom it is said an Mire!!!
intimacy existed), left the house of Mr. Ross, for then
pose of taking a walk in a field, in which:a draw-well
lately been sunk. It is supposed that the two individuals
had been groping along the side of the wall, and in ce!l.
sequence of the darkness of the night, they fell into
well together and perished.--Hull Herlad.
CONFESSION.—During the last few days, Win.
drew, the murderer of Mr. Wrn. Inchbald, of Low -uar,
sforth. near Boroughbridge, under the instructions of the
Rev. Thomas Sutton, the Chaplain of York Castle, et
exhibited a greater degree of penitence than might WI
been expected after the indifference he has manifestel
since his conviction. On Thursday last he made a verbs
confession, of which the following is the purport. Ila
stated that a fortnight before the murder, Mr. Inch-
bald had threatened to have him transported for poaching',
before the expiration of three months, in consequence 9'
which, he (Kendrew) on the 28th of September, laid In
wait for Mr. Inchbald, and having arrived at the place de-
' scribed at the trial, he fired and hit him in the back. Mr;
Inchbald then turned round, when Kendrew discharged
the second barrel, and wounded him in the left arm. Not
being satisfied with this, he went up to the unfortunate
man whilst he was lying on the ground, and struck him
on the head with the butt end of the gun. Mr. Inchbald
then, although so seriously wounded, got up and followed
Kendrew, who immediately went into the fields and 58
no more of the deceased.
MAMMOTH STEAM ELECTRICAL MACHINE.----An
hydro-electric machine of the most extraordinary and
unprecedented power is now being constructed for tne
United States. It will be able to produce a spark of 36
inches, to cast 3500 feet of metallic surface, in a battery
of 48 Leyden jars, of 2 feet high by 10 inches in diameter.
This shock would kill a thousand men in an instant, if it
were passed through such a chain ! This machine will be
mere than four times as powerful as the one exhibited at
the Polytechnic Institution in London, whose effects hale
been witnessed by more than 300,000 persons within the
last year, and is now by far the most powerful instrument
in the world. The expense will be nearly 4500 dollars,
with the apparatus for illustration. The name of this
leviathan machine is to be the " Benjamin Franklin";
and, as it will not be shown at all in Europe, America
will possess exclusively this magnificent unequalled in-
strument.
It will leave the manufactory for the United
States early in the year. The action of the hydro•electrie
machine is in no degree influenced by the state of the
weather, and the experiments are astounding in their
nature, both on account of their novelty and grandeur...."
Birmingham Journal.
THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON AND THE ARMY.,--"A
correspondence has been published in the Watchman,
which is highly characteristic of his grace's attention to
everything which concerns the welfare of the army. The
Rev. John Smith, a Wesleyan minister, addressed a letter
to the duke, complaining that he had been refused admis°
sion to an hospital for the purpose of visiting a sergeant,
one of the patients. Mr. Smith immediately received s
communication from Sir John Macdonald, the Adjutant-
General, by his grace's direction, distinctly explaining the
regulations on this head. The letter expresses the duke S
desire that soldiers should have the benefit of the spiritual
assistance of clergymen of their own persuasion, whenever
they might require it; and states the established rule to
be, that every soldier is at liberty to choose its own pas'
tor, with this simple understanding, that he shall notify
his wish, through the regular channel to his commanding
officer, who will give immediate directions for the admis-
sion of the clergyman whom the soldier may have chosen
as his spiritual adviser. Sir J. Macdonald adds, that the
Duke of Wellington had commanded him to enter into
this explanation for Mr. Smith's future guidance, and tO
prevent his being in future subjected to any disappoint..
ment.

CHRISTMAS PANTOMIMES.—At this season of the year,
custom has ordained the production of pantomimes as
the chief feature of the theatrical representations, and an
enumeration of those brought out in London may not
prove unacceptable to the reader:—At Drury Lane,
Puck's Pantomime, or Harlequin Robinson Crusoe, has
been announced ; at Covent-Garden, Harlequin Crotchet
and Quaver, or Music for the Million ; at the Haymar•
ket, Graciosa and Percinet ; at the Adelphi, Cat's Cas-
tle, or Harlequin and the King of the Rats; at the Ly-
ceum, Valentine and Orson ; at the Princess's, Joe Mil-
ler and his Men ; at the Olympic, Old Bogie, or Harle-
quin Lazy Dick ; at Astley's, Harlequin and Johnny
Gilpin's Ride ; at the Surrey, £ s. d. or Harlequin
Pounds, Shillings, and Pence ; at Sadler's Wells, Harle-
quin Robin Hood and Little John ; at the City of Lon-
don, Fairy Gnomes of the Golden Caves, or Harlequin
and the lamp of the Golden Mountains; at the Pavilion,
Harlequin Jack-of-all-Trades, and the Fairy Busy Bee:
at the Strand, the Chinese Exhibition, or the Feast of
Lanterns ; at the Garrick, Smith, Brown, Jones, and
Robinson, the Four Naughty Boys, or Harlequin and Old
Tiddy Kill at the bottom of the Thames ; at the Grecian
Saloon, the Maid and the Magpie, or Harlequin and the
Magic Spoon; at the Victoria, Harlequin and Hot Cod
lies, or the Little Old Woman and the Demon of tli
Metal Mines.
HORRID MURDER.—On Saturday morning week the
peaceful town of Ulverstone was excited by a rumour
(which proved to be true) that an itinerant razor-grinder
had brutally murdered his wife. His name is Donough,
but it apperred that he resided with his wife and two
children in Heart-street Ulverston. On Friday night
week he returned home in a state of intoxication, and a
quarrel ensued between him and his wife, which at length
terminated in blows. The enraged man eventually seized
the poker, and struck his wife a formidable blow with it
on the head, which completely shattered her skull. and
must, it is supposed, have produced instantaneous death.
Not satisfied with what he had done, the enraged muderer
commenced kicking the head of his victim, which he did
with such violence as to force one of her jaws entirely
from its place ; he then brutally kicked her on various
parts of her body, which he dreadfully mutilated. Hav-
ing thus wreaked his savage vengeance upon his victim,
he stripped the poor woman's dead body naked, and
threw it down stairs, after which he burned the whole of
her clothing. Having done this he left the house, and
went to his wife's sister, and coolly told her that he was
afraid that his wife was dead. In the meantime two
children (a boy and a girl) awoke and witnessed the crime,
and the neighbours, who had heard the noise, were first
alarmed by the screams of the boy, who called out to
them that his father had murdered his mother. The
wretched man was secured.

IMPORTATION OF CORN.—The Board of Customs har-
ing had under consideration a representation from one of
the outports, with respect to certain post or second entries,
which have been accepted for sundry quantities of corn►
by which parties have been allowed to pay duty according
to the rate chargeable at the time of passing the prime or
first entry, instead of that payable at the time the second
entry was passed, and also the reports of the practical
officers at this port on the subject, and it appearing that
a diversity of practice prevails in charging the duty oa
foreign corn on prime and post entries and the board
being of opinion that the duties payable upon foreign corn,
under the provisions of the law, are regulated and governed
by the aggregate average prices of British corn at the time
of the entry for home consumption, have ordered that the
duty due at the actual time of each entry of foreign corn
for home use, whether prime or post, only be received of
which the officers in London and at the several outports
of the kingdom have had notice, with directions to govern
themselves in future accordingly. This order is of con-
siderable importance to the importers of foreign corn,
who are obliged in all cases of clearing the article direct
from the importing vessel to pay a sum of duty, by pass-
ing a prime entry, in order to obtain the landing of the
article, and as it is in almost every instance impracticable
to give in the first entry the exact quantity which will
turn out, as it is termed, It of course becomes necessary'
to pass a post or second entry for the remainder, fre-
quently several days after the passing of the original
entry.

HULL, BRISTOL, AND NEWCASTLE—The title to be
considered the third port of the kingdom has been sup-
posed to lie between these ports. Bristol takes the lead
in point of productiveness to the revenue, the amount of
custom duties collected at that port during the year end-
ing January 5, ]844, being £326,750. The customs du-
ties of Hull during the same year were £525,418, the dif-
ference being accounted for by the fact, that the principle
articles of export into Hull are not those on which the
heavy duties are chargeable, such as timber, linseed, &C..
while Bristol contains a considerable portion of her West
India trade, the duties on the sugars, coffee, rum, Sce.t
which swell the revenue. We have reason to suppose
that the customs returns for the year ending Jan. 5,1845,
will exhibit a less preponderating difference between the
two ports in this respect, and will show larger contribu-
tions to the revenue from this port. In the number of
ships and the amount of tonnage for the year ending 18431
Hull has a decided superiority—the number of our ships

which entered our por't being 973 British and 945 foreign►
or 1,918 in all; against 315 British and only 25 foreign,
or 340 in all, which entered the port of Bristol in 1843•
The difference in the total amount of tonnage is very strik-
ing, being, Hull, 307,793; Bristol, 83,609. The amount
of customs duties collected at Newcastle during the year
ending Jan. 5, 1844, is £494,524, being less than either
Hull or Bristol. The number of ships and the amount
of tonnage exceed, however, either those of Bristol or
Hull, being 1,676 British ships, and 1,148 foreign, total►
2,824, with a tonnage of 381,961.—Hu1l Herald.

NEW MEA.CHANT SEAMEN'S ACT.—On `Wednesday
(to. morrow) the New Merchant Seamen's Act will come
into force. From the Ist proximo no seaman can be taken
to sea without the requisite ticket, under a penalty of £lO.
The act is "to amend and consolidate the laws relating te
Merchant Seamen, and for Keeping a Register of Sea-
men." By the preamble it is declared that it is expedient
to promote the increase of the number of seamen, and to
afford them encouragement and protection; and it is
ther declared to be expedient to keep a register of seamen'
Agreements are to be made in " writing between masters
and seamen, stating the situations, wages, and length,T,
service of the men. Parish boys may be sent to sea with
their consult, or boys soliciting alms. No seaman is .
be discharged abroad, nor to be abandoned or left behind'
without the sanction of the consul of the place, as great
mischief has been caused by such proceedings—the poor
men having been reduced to great distress, and have, ac-
cording to the language of the act, been tempted to
be-
come pirates. By the 64th section it is provided, that if
any person being a Malay, Lascar, or native of the tern
torities under the government of the East India Company;
or if any Asiatic or African seaman, having been broug'l,l
to the United Kingdom on board any ship, shall be Win;
to be in the United Kingdom in distress for want of foe,tl,l
clothing, or other necessaries, the commissioners oft
admiralty may supply assistance to every such person nc't
seaman, and maintain him until he shall be sent on board
some ship to be taken to the place from which he shiPPe
The assistance rendered is to become a debt, and may
/34
recovered from the owner or master of the ship on bOs
whereof such person or seaman was brought to the Unite
Kingdom from Asia or Africa."