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

LIFE IN A FISHING SMACK.

On Friday the Coroner for West Kent held an inquest
on a boy named Morgan, aged 16, an apprentice on board
one of the Barking (Kent) Smacks. The deceased died
on board of the Dreadnought, Seamens' Hospital ship,
and the surgeon of that vessel said that when brought on
board be was quite insensible and cold. Another profes-
sional man was sent for, and every means was used to
restore him, but he died early on the following morning.
He was incapable of giving any account of himself. The
lad who brought him said he had been much ill-used.
There were marks of violence on his body, and also of
sea-bites, and of apparently blows. It appeared that
deceased had been bound apprentice, from the Marine
Society's ship, to a Mr. Smith, of Barking, and that for
the last month he had been at sea, on the coast of Hol-
land, in the smack Gem. A boy, (Barlett, aged 14) who
bad been similarljt apprenticed, and was on board the
same vessel, said that deceased and he were quite well on
leaving home. There were seven of a crew including
the apprentice. Morgan was taken ill on leaving
Gravesend, and complained of his knees and of ill-usage.
He also said the master had kicked him. Deceased did
his work until he became so ill that he could not walk.
They left Holland on Sunday, the 14th inst., and though
deceased, who had gone below, could then scarcely move,
the captain ordered him on deck again. They had no
bed at all—only a blanket and an old rug to cover them,
and had to sleep on wet worn-out nets. They were, not
undressed all the voyage, being obliged to wear their
clothes ; and sometimes they were kept without food, as
the master said they were lazy. A fisherman, who was
on board, deposed to the miserable state. of the vessel—
without fire or beds—and the extreme cold. The master
has since been discharged by the owner for having caught
so few fish. Witness said the owner could not get chaff
for the boys beds. The coroner remarked they ought to
have some better. The owner, (Smith,) a publican, was
then examined, and said he had fifteen apprentices and
three smacks. There were, he said, chaff beds in the
Gem, and they were changed once a year. He could not
be answerable for what the master bad done. (This wit- •
ness gave his evidence 'in an impertinent manner—accusing
the others of swearing falsely.) The case was adjourned
for further investigation, and we have given the above
compressed particulars, in order that attention may be •
called to the treatmentuf youths in the Barking smacks.

GOLDEN RULES FOR MENDICANTS.

(From(Cruikshank's Comic Almanock.)

1. Always carry a box of locirms in your hand. It is
the )Egis of a beggar's life, and shields him from the in-
vasionof policemen.

2. Never betlame and blind together in the same town.
One infirmity at a time is enough for the coldest sympathy.
3. Run sedulously after Quakers and fat ladies, espe-
cially if youlave with you at the time a wife and a large
family.
4. Never fail to sing out well in cold weather. If you
have tbree,or four little boys and girls of mixed sizes, to
sing with you, all the better. Always choose the middle
of the street to give effect to your voices.
5. You must be " frozen out" regularly every winter,
and mount duty in the streets, with a pitchfork, tipped
with a cabbage, over your shoulder.
6. Your costume in each Belson must'be the opposite
of that usually worn ; that is to say, duringthe winter, a
pair of very thin trousers and a corazza will be all you
require. Shiver violently and chatter your teeth as often
as a persompasses you. A sailor's bat, striped shirt, and
canvas isomers are never badin a country town.
7. Mind, in your orations, -you " haven't tasted food
for threevlays." and make a practice of picking up bones,
or old crusts, out of the gutter, and gnawing them, if
there is any one looking at yoa.
8. Nevestise too modest, if any one has relieved .you, to
ask for "an old coat, or a pair of old shoes." Recollect,
Holywell.etreet is not too proud to purchase the most
worthless of wearing apparel.
9. Taimenre, if you are deaf and dumb, not to answer
any one. Suffer yourself tolbe -taken into custody rather.
than notice the impertinenoauestions an officer of the
Mendicity. Society._

10. Take care of long'crossings, if you are very lame.
It is extremely unpleasant, as well as infra dig., to carry
your crotches and run all of a sudden, if you happen to
have at your heels a mad bull or a racing omnibus.
11. Chalk writing is unprofitable, and belongs to the old
school. 'lf you are driven to it, don't mind about spelling
incorrectly, and be sure. you are "starving." Quiet
spots- like• Gower-street• or Russell-square, are the best
markets for this branch of the profession. In great
thoroughfares you will have your fresco or caligraphy
rubbed out by every unfeeling passer-by,.and be obliged
ultimately-to " walk your chalks."

Lord and Lady Francis Egerton arc entertaining
select circle ,at their seat near Cobham. His lordship gave
his servants & ball and suppercl Christmas.
THE CAMDEN Soci sTir.—The Bishop of Exeter, in
a letter dated,Dee. 26, says :—" So little doi sympathise
with any Papalizing party in the church, that a few weeks
ago I withdrer my name from-the list of members of a
society to which, (on account of its original object and of
its founders) I Ead considered .it an honour to -Lelong—
the " Camden Society" at Cambridge—on discovering
that its zeal exhibited the. Virgin Mary crowned, with the
infant Saviour in her arms, and attended by two saints
.not recognised in her own calendar. This I deemed to be,
4c.t the least, a most injudicious insult to th- feelings of
Protestants at this crisis, againstswhich it was my di_ty to
;protest."

..DR. PUSHY AND.TEIR BISHOP Of x ETER.—Thebishop
in.one of his many/recent letters sKtrs, " I gave no general
liccose to Dr. Posey to preach in this diocese; thatithe
facts; were these :—The ineumbent.of Ilfracombe applied
,to me in the course of the last summer, asking whether I
shot.o object to his availing himself of the occasional as-
sistance of Dr. Pusey in ti,e pulpit dering his temporary
.sojoutn at Ilfracombe. I had no Itesitation in leaving
this clergyman at liberty to act according to his own dis-
cretion—adding that I doubted not, that if Dr. Pusey
should,preach there, his own good feeling and good sense'
,would make him abstain .from preaching on any topic
which would give the slightest offence or excite any alarm."

Twet.rrif NIGHT CAKe.—A reference to an advertise..
ment will show that Feeney Brothers have manufactured
a cake similar to that which last year elicited a flattering
.eulogium from the Liverpool Albion, of which the fol-
lowing is a brief abstract The Cake of Cakes, the
great Leviathan, the Monster 'Cake, which ,was capacious
enough to swallow up all the rest, was exhibited in the
window of .Feeney Brothers, St. James's-street. Having
heard some, as we considered, exaggerated reports about
this prodigious production, we ascertained from the
proprietors that there was no mistake whatever about it,
but that, according to their account, it we,glied one ton,
or, 2201b5., and that it contained twelve solid gold rings,
of the value of half-a-guinea each, which they had pur-
chased from Mr. Bott, jeweller, of 67, St. James's-street.
CONSFAURNCES,OF ENFORCING OBQGLIME REGCLA-
TIONS.—Tbe late Lord Lyttelton, when an under-gradu-
ate, appeared in the High-street of Oxford, wearing a
cauliflower wig. Presently the proctor approached trial
to inquire what he meant by wearing so grotesque a dress?
" Do you mean my peruke, sir?" he replied, with an ap_
parent incredulity; and, producing the statutes, which he
had concealed under his gown, pointed out to the asto-
nished and discomfited proctor the statute which enjoined
it.

A VOTER IN THE UNITED STATES.—A German, who
was unable to speak or understand a word of English, un-
dertook to vote in the upper part! of the city at the late
election. " What is your name ? ' said one of the judges.
'•Polk and Dallas," said the German. '• How long liave
you been in this country ?" said the judge. " Polk and
you
said the German.. " Have you got your natu-
ralization papers ?" said the judge. " Polk and Dallas "
said the German. " You can't vote," said the judge.
" Polk and Dallas," said the German. '• Move him,"
said one of the bystanders. " Polk and Dallas," said the
German.—Louirville Journal.

CURIOUS EXPERIMENTS IN OPTICS.—II is known
that tartaric acid exercises rotary power over the light,
and imparts to it its saline combinations; paratartaric
acid, on the contrary, although of the same ponderal
composition, does not possess this property. M. Mit-
cherlish, a Prussian chemist, has examined whether this
would be the case under circumstances in which the two
bodies would be similar, not only in their chemical com-
position, but in their crystaline form and their physical
properties; the result has confirmed the established prin-
ciple ; and thus )says M. Mitcherlish) we have two bodies
in which the nature and number of the atoms, their ar-
rangement and their distance, are the same, and which
are, nevertheless, distinguished
Magazine. by dlfferept optical pro-
perties,,,-111tChPiP8