The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1845-05-13 00:00:00

SELEC I lONS.

• THE IRON De MO—Although no man is more capable
of enjoying the refinements of society than the Duke of
Wrllington, luxury hits not enervated his mind or man-
ners. His dress—his equipage—his habits—all partake
of the same indifference as to effect—all demonstrate the
hardy self-denial of the camp! Constant horse exercise,
—a mattress lyd,—early rising, and remaining up twenty
hours out of ths twenty-tour,—etteeding Divine service
at the Chapel Royal, St. James's, before eight o'clock on
Sundays,—and the habitual use of cold shower baths at all
sea-ons of the year—these contradictions to the ordinary
babes of men, who have attained the ripe age of three
score years and ten, fully illustrate his grace's well-known
determination of purpose, and his utter carelessness of
ease. and the luxuries of life. Well, indeed, has the
Duke of Wellineten been named " I he Iron Duka!"—
Naval and Military S'ketcla ifiak.
GLASS MANUFACTURE OF ANCIENT THESES.—A re-
markable fact connected with the manufacture of ancient
Thebes 4,000 years ago, show, the traditional tenacity.of
ancient custom. It is well known that the oil-jars of the
Levant are precisely similar to those which appear in the
illustrations of Rossellini. So the Egyptian earthen am-
phora, without feet, adopted afterwards for strong wines
by the bon vivants of Reme, retain their original shape
and purpose among the Tuscan farmers. With reference
to glass bottles, there are two classes used at the present
day of equally ancient oriein : these are the Florentine oil-
flasks, holding anout three-quartets of a pint, and the
' turpentine carboys, as they are called. holding four or five
gallons, from Cyprus arid the adjoining chores of the Le-
vant. Both are protected by ma tine, the first of a fine,
the second of a coarser nature. Both are seen, with
slight alterations, in the illustrations of Rossellini. Sir
. G. Wilkinson thinks that glass lanterns were used by
pickets of solders, and give, a specimen of a group of
Egyptian sentinels carrying it I intern en a curved pole. It
is not improbable that an hieroglyphic on the Rosetta
stories, translated manifestation, resembling a magic lan-
tern with a handle, trout which rays of light are issuing,
way be something of the kind. That the glass-manufac-
turers made nnignifying lenses is clear from Plutarch,
(de facie tante.) Diodorus, and Ptolemy, the astronomer,
and is proved be the extant cameos, which could only be
cut by the aid of a microscope.—Pokir chnie Magazine.
ANCIENT AND MODERN AUTHORS.—It is a common
saying, even among persons of cultivated taste, that it is
hopeless to attempt to advance anything new on the beau-
ties of ancient ;miters; that every thing that can be said
ore the roll jest h s already been exhausted, and that it is
in the more recent fields of modern literature that it is
alone possible to avoid repetition. We are decidedly of
opinion that this idea is erroneous, and that its diffusion
has done more than any thing else to degrade criticism to
the low station which, with some honourable exceptions,
it has so long held in the world of letters. But when an-
cient excellence is contemulated with a generous eye, even
when the mind hat sees it is hut slenderly gifted, who
will say that nothing new will occur? When it meets
kindred genius, when it is elevated by a congenial spirit,
what a noble art does criticism became ? What has it
proved in the hands of Dryden and Pope, of Wilson and
Nleceuley ? It is in the coetenaplation of ancient great-
ness. ant its comparison with the parallel efforts of modern
genius, that the highest fliehts of these gifted spirits have
been attained, and the native generosity of real intellec-
tual power most strikingly evinced. Criticism of words
wi;l soon conic to an end ; the notes of scholiasts and an-
notators are easily made, as apothecaries make drugs by
you sing from one phial into another. But criticism of
things, of ideas, of characters, of conceptions, can never
come to an end ; for every successive age is bringing forth
fresh comparisons to make, and fresh combinations to ex-
hibit. It is the outpouring of a heart overburdened with
admiration which Mlle he delivered, and will ever disco-
ver a new tnode of diliveranee. How many subjects of
critical coop rison in this view, hi t Serbs nearly untouched
upon, has th literature of Europe. and even of this age,
afforded ! eEsehiluo Sitskspeare, aid Schiller—Euripi-
des, Alfieri, and Corneide—Sephocles. Metastasio, and
Racine—Pindar, Horace, and 11,av-Ovid, Ariosto, and
Wieland—Lucretia-, Darwin. tied Campbell—Demos_
thenes. Cicero, and Burke—Tbucidides. Tacitus, and Gib-
bon—Thomson. Cowper, and Clewle Lorraine : such are
a few which suggest themselves at fits sight to every one
who reflects on the rich retrospect of departed genius. It
is like looking hack to the Alps throuth the long and rich
vista of Italian landscape ; the scene con, bluntly varies, the
features are ever new, the impression is stantly fresh,
from the variety of intervening objects. though the glit-
tering pinnacles of the inaccessible mountains ever shine
from afar on the azure vault of heaven. Human genius
is ever furnishing new proofs of departed excellence.
Human magnanimity is ever exhibiting fresh examples of
the fidelity of former desct ipiions, or the grandeur of for-
mer conception. What s aid Hector, drawing his sword,
when, betrayed by Minerva in his last conflict with
Achilles. he found himself without his lance in presence
of his fully-armed and heaven -shielded antagonist ?
"Not at least inglorious shell I perish, but after doing
some frest thing that teen may be spoken of in ages to
come."—Bfackuroorl's Magazine.
NATURE AND REVELATION —Nature and Revelation
are hut two volumes of one writing, the one being added
ton ake known what the other could not : the authority
is equal : the subject-rustier differs ; in importance, Oh
how greatly ! No vestiges of creation, no natural evi-
dence of material things, could have disclosed to man, or
ever bave so much a, helped hint to discover the things
that most vitally concern himself: who made him—who
destroyed hint—who redeemed him—and all the history
of the unseen, the morel, spiritual, supernatural, and
eternal, submitted to faith in the inspired pages. By so
much as eternity is greater than time, and the interests of
our immortality more vital than the In id' commodity of
a few passing years—by so much, even now, as our know-
ledge and enjoyment of God and the things of God ex-
ceed in interest and importance all that is sensible and
material—by so much are tl e truths of the Bible dearer
to us than all the truths beside ' • and we do well to be very
jealous of even the shadow of a contradiction, or inter-
ference. or even addition to its testimony in that which is
its subject-matter. But it was not designed to teach us
natural history, nor any history, except as it is connected
with the redemption of mankind—revelation's great ex-
clusive theme. Even God's providential government of
his creatures is exhibited only in relationship with this :
witness the silent dismissal of the heathen nations, recog-
nized solely as they abut upon the narrative of redemp-
tion : while the record of creation stands like the brief
exordium of some great discourse, just needful to the
understanding of the subject : it occupies two chapters
and no more. It is not likely such a book should pause
front its great theme of life and death, to tell us what it
is not essential we should know at all, or may sufficiently
discover by otherwise provided means. Revelation begins
just where all other intelligencers become silent, it takes
us up where all natural evidence leaves us. The proper-
ties of matter, seience could discover—of the immaterial
not so much as the existence : man's animal nature our
senses could discern—generated, supported, perishing
like the brute: nature could never have proved that we
were more. So far from the increasing knowledge of
natural things tendieg to satisfy the enquiring mind with-
out the light of revelation, we should expect such studies
to bring the earnest enquirer to a point at which he could
not possibly be satisfied, could not consent to stop, while
without supernatural help he could proceed no further;
and baffiled intellect would imperiously demand, " Is
there no other record, more commensurate with my ca-
pability to learn, and necessity to know, than this ex-
hausted book of elementary truth? When I have found
the last tiek that connects me with tie brute, and nature
refuses me an answer mote, is there nothing to tell me
wkerelore lam not one ? When 1 have mastered all the
wondrous laws of matter,—generation, electricity, gravi-
tation, and (tete- 'apemen', doing each its own work with
mathematical order and precision,—must I remain igno-
rant for ever of what these cannot tell me—who made
they laws, and set them their t ,sk, and taught them to
perform it ? And when my years are spent and senses
worn, deep taught in all that science can reveal or time
demonstrate. hut unsatisfied, unperfected, and ignorant
to the last.-011, may I not—can I not ask anywhere,
what neat ? To meet this need—this yearning necessity
of the immaterial to know what the material never can
disclose, to speak where all is silent, and not to silence
anything that speaks truth, revelation has been given;
and all we demand for its high authority, is that its su-
pernatural disclosures be not contravened and discredited
by natural discoveries, which we are absolutely sure they
connot be.—Churehman'a Review.

LOWELL AND ITS FACTORIES.—On entering Lowell, a
stranger is naturally struck with the contrast presented
by that place, to an English manufacturing town. Here,
in Bradford, for example, every building is of stone, or
brick, solid, substantial, with little of the freshness that
might be looked for in so rapidly an increasing town :
there, in Lowell, though the mills and boarding-houses
are generally of brick, the chief part of the other buildings,
houses, hotels, and even churches, are of wood, and
nearly the whole are es fresh-looking as if built within a
year. Here, with us, everything, externally, is dis-
coloured with smoke ; buildings, streets, and causeways,
alike bearing a sooty covering; the mud of the streets,
in colour and consistency, like blackish grey paint, and
the air of heaven darkened as by a dense cloud : there,
nothing is discoloured, neither houses, nor mills, nor trees
—the red brick factories and boarding-houses, and the
other edifices of wood painted in light colours, look as
fresh as if just finished ; the streets—dusty enough, in-
deed (for a deep dry covering of dust was on them when
I was in Lowell)—were vet not black like ours; and the
sky, unshrouded by smoke or cloud, was brilliant and
clear—the sun darting down its unobstructed rays with
dazzling and scorching power. '1 here, the trees and
plants which, with us, soon become dingy after their foli-
age bursts out, and wie!), in some places, as in the
churchyard of St. Peter's, being ever leafless, appear like
the black stumps of the forests in America, the residue
and remnants of the fire; there, in Lowell, were fresh
and flourishing ; the trees, with which some streets or
mill precincts are screened and adorned, being verdant in
their summer's foliage, and the neatly-kept gardens, here
and there seen about the factories, being amply adorned
with floral beauty. Hence, as to Lowell, large as it has
grown, it is yet rural in its appearance, and, notwithstand-
ing its being a city of factories, is yet fresh and cleanly.—
American Factories, by the Rev. W. Scoresby.
FARMER'S LEASES.—UnIess farmers had leases, it
could not be expected, nay, it would not be safe for them
to carry on experiments. He had visited East Lothian,
which he bad just heard Liehig, at the Glasgow dinner,
pronounce the first agricultural district in the world.
Well, there the farms were let on nineteen years' leases.
On those farms were steam engines, and every sort of
machinery and implement. There the tenant farmers
originated the proposition to give £6OO a-year to Professor
Johnson, to act as their agricultural chemist. He hoped
it would not be taken amiss it be said thai Scotland was
fifty years in advance of England in agriculture. Why ?
Because the Scotch farmers had leases. (Hear, hear.)
Two-thirds of the land in England was under strict en-
tail or settlement. So it was in Scotland, but that was no
barrier to improvement there. (Hear, hear.) The Duke
of Richmond and himself,oot 'to mention other proprie-
tors, tenants for life, were engaged in improvements on a
range of above fifty miles between the Murray Firth and
the River Don, and were enabled to carry out these im-
provements in Scotland, because they could charge two-
thirds of the expense on the next heir. That system en-
couraged tenants for life to lay out their money freely.
(Hear, hear.) Scotland had enjoyed that act, called the
Montgomery Act, since 1769, and entailed estates were
equally well cultivated, arranged by exchange, and leased
with those in fee. (Hear, hear.) The English landlords
of entailed estates and their farmers were fettered, but the
Scotch not. Hence the latter were able to do great things.
He had heard, " Really you Scotch do things we English
cannot." But why not ? Give Englishmen the same ad-
vantages as the Scotch, the same powers of leasing. and
exchanging, and charging, and then every farmer in Eng-
land would be able to do as much or more than the East
Lothian farmers. (Hear.) When landlords talked of
putting their shoulders to the wheel, it was natural for
them to reply, At least do you M.P. landlords put a lit-
tle legislative grease to the axle, to make it work freely.'
(Hear, hear, and laughter.) He considered the cause.of
agriculture was not best protected by the circulation, or
rather the accumulation of pamphlets, one-half of which
was not believed ; the other never read ;' and that the
money so laid out would be more beneficially employed in
such prizes as were given that day, and useful experi-
ments. Let their representatives in parliament make
good their cause against all comers, by getting sound and
simple laws for drainage, leasing, exchanging, building
farm-houses, steddinss, dykes, walls, planting, roads,
enclosing, and schools, as Scotland had enjoyed for above
seventy years ; by which all the venom of entails had been
extracted, and improvements encouraged in that happy
country ; while here, landlord and farmer were, as it were,
bound in the legal fetters of the unmitigated mortmain of
entail and settlement. Then it would be seen whether
the English farmers were a whit behind their brethren of
the north.—Mr. Gordino's Speech at Tring,—Potytech-
nic Review.

The foot of a Chinese female. from the heel to the great
toe, is only four inches long.

THE MAYNOOTH GRANT.

The clergy of several rural deaneries have sent up
petitions to Parliament against the Maynooth grant, and
also against the uniun of Bangor and St. Asaph.

The member for South Shields, Mr. J. T. Wawn,
yielding to the " pressure from without," has declined to
vote for the further reading of the Maynooth College
Bill, and signified that, if neutrality on his part does not
meet with the wishes of his constituents, he will resign,
and fall back upon private life.

On Friday evening last a meeting was held in the
Town•hall of Lowestoft, to take into consideration what
more could be done to oppo.e the contemplated grant to
Maynooth. It was numerously attended, manifested the
strongest feeling, and concluded by voting a petition to
the House of Lords.

GLOUCESTER.—On Monday the clergy of the arch-
deaconry of Gloucester deliberated on the propriety of
petitioning Parliament against the proposed grant to
Maynooth, and of addressing the Queen, praying her
Majesty to withhold her assent from the bill. The Very
Rev. the Dean presided. The meeting unanimously re-
solved to forward petitions to both Houses of Parliament
against the grant, and to address her Majesty.
PETITIONS AGAINST MAYNOOTlL—NOtWithStailding
the large majorities within the walls of Parliament, by
the mechanical force of which the bill for the endowment
of the Popish seminary at Maynooth has already been
hurried on to nearly the final stage, it is certain, from sta-
tistical facts, duly authenticated by official authority that
the people of England entertain the most decided objec-
tion to the measure. From a parliamentary report, it
appears that there are no less than 7,629 petitions praying
for its rejection, already weighing down the table of that
assembly, signed by 982,862 persons of various religious
persuasions throughout the length and breadth of the
land. To oppose this formidable array of hostility there
are, on the other hand,—absolutely and positively,--46
(forty-six !) parchments in favour of the bill now about
to be pressed for a third reading, signed by no less than
15,483 persons. The public may be curious to ascertain
who these petitioners are. There are 53 merchants
and traders of the town and vicinity of Banbridge ; 9
members of the Presbyterian congregation of Moneyrea,
in the county of Down ; 184 members of the first Pres-
byterian (Unitarian) congregation of Dromore ; 680 ma-
gistrates, manufacturers, &e., of Manchester ; 836 mer-
chants and bankers of Liverpool : 92 merchants and
bankers of Liverpool 92 merchants and traders of Ban-
gor, near Belfast ; 3 ministers and members of a Dis-
senting congregation worshipping at Strand-street, Dub-
lin ; 16 members of the Presbyterian congregation of
Dunmury, Antrim country ; 84 inhabitants of Porto-
bello, near Edinburgh ; and 59 Protestant inhabitants of
Banbury, Neithrop, and the hamlets in Oxford county.
These are in addition to 13,428 brought forward from the
last report. The sense of the nation is very fully and
satisfactorily conveyed by the 982,862 petitioners against
the grant, it being known that the whole of the electors
of Great Britain do not exceed (but are sumewbat under)
that number.