The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1848-09-12 00:00:00

Til LIVERPOOL STANDARD.

A pea, which had accidentally taken root among the
cabbages in a garden at Appleby, was found to have pro-
duced 108 full pods, thus giving, at an average of five
peas in each pod, a return of 540 for one.
As a lady was playing on a piano in Roxbury, a canary
bird struck up and sang very loud, as if inspired by the
lady's music. The bird sang with such z2al and force as
to split its windpipe from top to bottom, and immediately
died.

DROWNED IN WlNE.—George Davis, aged 27, in the
employ of Messrs. Bishop and Son, British wine-mer-
chants, Finsbury, was found, on Tuesday last, drowned
in a raisin wine vat. It was supposed that he had com-
mitted suicide in consequence of domestic troubles.
A statue of the late Marquess of Londonderry is now
being executed in marble by Mr. Evan Thomas, the
sculptor, which it is intended to place over the late mar-
quess's tomb in Westminster Abbey by the side of his
great rival and contemporary statesman, Canning.
At a meeting of the Moravian Missionary Society at
Birmingham last week one of the speakers said that two
years ago the field negroes of Antigua contributed, in col-
lections after sermons, no less a sum than £144 sterling
for the relief of the starving Irish.
Mary Flardwicke, a married woman, aged eighteen, de-
scribed as quite a girl in appearance, is in custody at
Leeds, on a charge of having attempted to poison her
husband by taking to him, while at his work a can of

poisoned coffee. -
ESCAPE OF CONVICTS.—On Thursday night, after or
during prayers, six convicts in the York hulk, moored off
Gosport, effected their escape in a boat belonging to that
ship, and got away steering up the harbour, where the
boat was found next morning near Portchester Castle,
about three miles from the dockyard.
The Darlington Times reports the laying of the first
stone of a Roman Catholic chapel, at Wycliffe, (a pretty
village on the Tees-side between Richmond and Greta-
bridge, Yorkshire), the birth-place of Wycliffe, the ear-
liestor at any rate the most famous of the early English

religious reformers.
A fatal accident occurred at University Hall, near
Gower-street, London, on Saturday. Four workmen, by
some defect in the scaffolding, were thrown to the ground.
One was killed on the spot; another was, it is feared,
_ _

fatally injured ; whilst the third and fourth were severely

.
hurt.
At the wedding of Mr. E. B. Roche, M.P., to Miss
Boothby, which was performed last week at Twyford
Abbey, Middlesex, the bridesmaids, in compliance with
an old charm for insuring good luck, threw a farewell
shower of old white satin shoes after the carriage in which
the pair took their departure.
Last week, Mr. Goold and his nephew, Master Gore,
son of Sir R. G. Booth, Bart. Lissadell, went out in a
small row boat to the channel at Boyle, where the boat
upset and Mr. Goold perished. Master Gore struggled in
the element till rescued by a fishing yawl, whose crew
witnessed the catastrophe.
MURDER AND ATTEMPTED SUICIDE.—On Friday night,
as the steam-boat London Pride was passing Brook's-
wharf, on the Thames, a female passenger, named Ann
Tranham, took up her child, apparently about five years
of age, and jumped into the river. A waterman rescued
the woman, but the child was lost.
UNPOPULARITY OF THE POPE.—III the drawing-room
of an Italian gentleman, residing in London, where many
of his countrymen are in the habit of meeting every week,
was a statue of the Pope. At the last meeting of the
Italians the head of this statue was removed, and there

was substituted for it the head of a boar !
DEATR OF COLONEL BAlRD.—Colonel Baird, the gal-
lant officer who was injured at the recent accident on the
London and North-Western Railway at Newton-bridge,
expired on Tuesday morning. At the time of his decease
Colonel Baird was attended by Colonel Nicols, his sister,
and several other attached friends. _

In the parish of St. Clement Danes, London, a num,
ber of humane ladies have generously undertaken to im-
part instruction in reading and writing, every Monday
evening, from seven to nine o'clock, to females upwards
of twenty years of age. The court-room of the vestry-
house has been kindly placed at their disposal for this
purpose.
THE LEEDS SHARE MARKET.—We are informed that
at one meeting on the Leeds Stock Exchange this week,
the whole value of the stock and shares bought and sold
amounted to less than eight pounds. In 1845, when the
members of the Exchange were crowded into a small room,
transactions of more than as many thousand pounds were
daily entered into. What a contrast !—LeedB Mercury.
THE RIOTS AT DONCASTER.—On Saturday, the trial
of the railway labourers who had maltreated some Irish
reapers in the neighbourhood of Doncaster, some time
ago, took place at the 'West Riding sessions, at Sheffield.
After a short hearing, the magistrates, considering the
affair only as a drunken row, discharged several alto-
gether, and passed sentences of three or four months' im-
prisonment on the remainder.
REFUSING INTERMENT.—On Saturday a communica-
tion was received at Lloyd's, stating that one of the crew
of the Helen, Captain Easter, having died from cholera,
on Southweld, Kent, the master took the body ashore for
interment ; the authorities, however, ascertaining that
the man had died of cholera, positively refused to allow
the body to be buried, and the crew consigned their de-
ceased shipmate to the deep.
A Shropshire lady lately went before breakfast to take
a walk, and after proceeding for a considerable distance
along a public road, met one of her husband's labourers,
who astounded her by asking her if she knew that she was
without a bonnet. The lady immediately raised her
hand to her head, and discovered to her confusion that
she had indeed forgotten to put on a bonnet, although she
wore a ruche, and carried a parasol.
One hundred and fifty surgeons, chemists, and druggists
of the eastern and. variPos other localities of the metrnpo
lis, with a view to abridge the general hours of business
on the Sabbath day, commenced on Sunday last between
the hours of eleven in the forenoon and six in the even-
ing, to keep their shops closed, and during that period to
supply nothing but what may be urgently required in case
of sudden indisposition, or under professional direction.
DERBY-SWEEPS ADVERTISEMENTS.—At a petty ses-
sions for the district of St. Anne's, Westminster, on
Saturday, both the magistrates, Mr. Whiskin and Mr.
Rose, whilst disapproving of these lotteries generally,
condemned the Attorney-General's plan of declaring the
publication of advertisements respecting them to be
illegal, while the sweeps themselves were left untouched.
They thought that such an unjust system would rather
aggravate than diminish the evil.
EMIGRATION TO AUSTRALIA.—There were 200 young
women embarked last week in the Shannon steamer for
Plymouth, en route to South Australia, under the charge
of officers appointed by the Poor-Law Commissioners.
They will be sent out free, and are comfortably clothed,
and provided with suitable necessaries for the voyage.
They have been selected from the union workhouses,
principally in the north of Ireland ; and it is intended
to extend this system of emigration.—Plymouth Times.
Mr. Bailey, poulterer in Mount-street, details the large
sums paid annually by London salesmen for poultry. He
states that one salesman alone sold every year £lOO,OOO
worth !—that he had himself paid £Bl,OOO in the course
of the last year, and that £15,000 was received annually
at Aylesbury for young ducklings ; but to this last item
he added the somewhat humiliating fact, " that, in Bucks,
the wives are in the habit of driving the children from the
hearth that the ducklings might get the benefit of the
fire."
A Goon CUSTOMER.—Last week, as Mr. Hylton's
managerie was entering Rhayader, Wales, the elephant
was regaled at a baker's. He carefully " surveyed" the
premises, and about two o'clock the next morning broke
out of his temporary lodging—forced a way into the
baker's shop—and in no time put out of sight fourteen
quartern loaves. He then demolished the bottles con-
taining the sweetmeats ; and, but for the timely appear-
ance of the keeper, it is not known what freaks this huge
beast would have committed before daylight.
HIGH FLOODS.—The river Towy has been much
flooded, in consequence of the very heavy rain that has
recently fallen. The flood has, we are sorry to say, done
considerable damage, as very large quantities of valuable
corn have been swept away, which has proved very ac-
ceptable to many of the fishermen in Carmarthen, who
on Monday last might be seen in all directions collecting
it. Some cattle also have been lost ; two cows and a calf
were drowned, and a number of horses were nearly sac-
rificed close to Abergwilly Bridge. Some of them were
floating about at the time they were extricated.
Although the weather has taken a somewhat more fa-
vourable turn, the agricultural reports from the provinces
continue to be of a satisfactory nature. In the midland
counties the grain crops are all nearly secure, and the
yield of wheat is stated to be much better than was ex-
pected a week ago. The oat crop is abundant, and the
failure of the potato is represented as being only partial.
Of the latter other accounts are not so cheering : but up-
on the whole there is no reason to suppose that the sup-
ply of food this year will not be very nearly equal to the
last.
PROPERTY OF THE EX-ROYAL FAMILY.—The mem-
bers of the Orleans Family have made several attempts to
recover the effects which they left in the Tuilleries in Fe-
bruary. The ex-Queen has demanded a part of her ward-
robe, which was deposited in a private room. It has been
sent to her, with the exception, it is said of some valuable
lace, which has been cut from it and retained. No deci-
sion has yet been come to respecting the revenues of the
Orleans family. The Government desired to sell wood
for the liquidation of a part of the debts, to which Louis
Philippe at first consented, but afterwards retracted.
THE NATIONAL SOCIETY AND THE COMMITTEE of
PRIVY COUNCIL.—The Rev. G. A. Dennison says, it is
generally understood that the negotiations between the
Committee of the National Society and the Committee of
Council have failed principally, if not altogether, upon
this point, that the local founders of schools shall, if they
desire it, have their Bishop for arbiter upon all points
whatsoever connected with the management of their
schools, upon which a difference of opinion may exist
among the members of the managing committee. This,
tt is understood, the Committee of Council have posi-
t
ively refused to accede to.
THE SALE AT STOWE.—The sale of the collection of
plate was continued on Wednesday. Lot 283, an eques-
trian statuette of the Duke of Wellington, designed by
Cotterell, and executed by Gerrard, weighing 160 ounces,
was bought by Mr. Rait, of Glasgow, at 13s. per ounce.
Lot 323 was described as " Napoleon's Supper Tray. It
consisted of a soup tureen, cover, and ewer, four dishes
and covers round it forming a circle, with a classical frieze
chased round the edges. With it were sold eight plates,
and six knives and forks, and the same quantity of spoons,
the whole being described to weigh about 360 ounces.
The lot was put up at Ios. per oz., and sold at 255. per oz.
Lot 326, " a superb chalice and cover," as descnbed
the catalogue—in reality, the christening cup of the pre-
sent Marquis of Chandos. This lot was bought by a gen-
tleman named Harvey at 38s. per ounce, it is understood
with the view of restoring it to the family. The whole of
the plate sold for considerably more than it could have
originally cost, some of the silver gilt articles realising as
much as 40s. and 455. per ounce. The " Chandos
Testimonial" was bought in at the auctioneer valua-
tion, £772, to be re-presented to the duke's family.

ROBBERY OF TWO THOUSAND SOVEREIGNS. On
Tuesday afternoon last a strong deal box, about eight in-
ches square, and iron-bound, containing 2000 sovereigns,
was sent from the firm of Messrs. Praed and Co., Fleet-

street, London, addressed to Tweedy and Co., hankers,
Truro. Cornwall. It was forwarded, in the first instance,
to Chaplin and Horne's offices, Swan with Two Necks,
Lad-lane, to be by them conveyed to the Paddington
station. On the Liext morning a box which was sent by
the mail train, directed as above, was received at the esta-
blishment of Messrs. Tweedy and Co., and, on its being
opened, it was found to contain nothing more than a
quantity of melted pewter and other rubbish. The box
was of somewhat larger dimensions than the one sent
from Praed's, but the address was a very good imitation

of that on the original.
His Grace the Duke of Rutland has been entertaining a
distinguished shooting party at Longshaw Lodge, Derby-
shire. The following is a list of the number of grouse
bagged each day :—Saturday, August 19, Lord Stanley,
39 brace ; Lord Forrester, 26 ; Lord Southampton, 14 ;
Lord George Manners, 24. Monday, 28th, Duke of Rut-
land, 17 ; Lord Granby, 10 ; Lord George Manners, 21.
Saturday, September 2, Lord Granby, 20 ; Lord George
Manners, 25 ' • Mr. P. Grant, 14. Monday 4th, Duke of
Rutland, 9 ; Mr. Drummond, 23 ; Lord Granby 22 ; Lord
George Manners, 21. The birds, we understand, are
strong on the wing, and the above score may be con-

sidere'd good shooting.
A CLEVER CHECKMATE.—In the famous '45 the Bank
of England attempted a mean but unsuccessful trick upon
her rival, Child's, by collecting about half a million of
their receipts, and sending them in at a single blow. The
wary bankers, however, had got scent of the plot, and
were provided with a check upon the enemy for £700,000,
drawn by the celebrated Duchess of Marlborough. When
the notes were presented in a great bag they were examin-
ed singly, to give time for the check to be cashed in
Threadneedle-street, and the malicious old lady was then
paid in her own notes, which chancing at that time to be
at a considerable discount, a large sum was made by
Child's by the transaction.— Globe.
A MODEL LODGING-HOUSE.—On Saturday a lodging-
house for clerks and the superior class of mechanics was

opened under the auspices of the Society for improving
the condition of the labouring classes, in Old Compton-
street, Soho, London. The premises contain 136 sleep-
ing apartments, divided into two distinct classes—the first
class paying 3s, 6d., and the second 2s. 6d. per week—
each having distinct entrances, and separate coffee and
refreshment rooms, baths, and lavatories. The inmates
for the above payment, in addition to all domestic con-
veniences, are supplied with the use of the daily news-
papers, magazines, and a library. It is called the St.
Ann's Lodging-houses.
Worcester Musical Festival opened on Tuesday, with
a brilliant assemblage of rank, fashion, and beauty. The
gates of the cathedral were besieged at an early hour by
eager crowds, and at the opening of the morning service,
the scene in the nave of this beautiful and venerable
cathedral was most imposing. It was found, after col-
lecting the tickets, no money being taken at the doors,
that upwards of 1,500 persons were in attendance. Last
meeting (1845) the attendance on the first morning was
between 800 and 900. On the second day there were
upwards of 1,100 persons in the Cathedral, and the coi-
-1 lection at the doors was £283. The concert in the

evening was attended by upwards of 600 persons.
THREE GUN ACCIDENTS.—We have this week to
record three painful accidents from guns going off, two of
them fatal upon the spot, and the other expected to be
fatal also. The first was that of Mr. John Howell,

farmer, near Cowbridge. whose gun exploded on Saturday,
and who was found sitting under a hedge quite dead. The
second was that of Mr. John Evans, of Penaland Farm,

who was accidentally killed by his gun going off whilst he
was shooting birds in a wheat-piece. He had only been
married for a week. The third was the case of Mrs.

Simpson, the wife of a carpenter at Longford, who walk-
ingtbehind her husband accidentally received the contents
of the gun which he carried. There are slight hopes of
recovery.—Hereford Journal.
SHOCKING TRAGEDY.—During the past week an Oc-
currence of a most tragical character took place at Earith,
Norfolk. A waterman of the name of Metcalf was on
board his barge, and with him his two sons. Being in a
state of intoxication, he quarrelled with both sons, and in
his rage broke the arm of one and severely injured the
hand of the other. Seeing the savage excitement of their
father, they both, to escape his violence. jumped over-
board, when, after some difficulty, one of the sons reached
the shore, and on looking for his brother saw him strug-
gling and apparently drowning. Notwithstanding his
own narrow escape, he threw himself into the water to
attempt his brother's rescue ; but in the heroic effort both
were unhappily drowned.
THE ESSEX POISONINGS.—A verdict of wilful murder
has been returned against Hannah Southgate, charged at
Thorpe with poisoning her first husband, Thomas Ham.
The accused was the intimate friend of Mary May, recently
executed for murder, and the suspicion is that the two
women were engaged in more than one of the poisoning
cases which have disgraced this country. The verdict was
delivered late on Monday evening, and upon hearing it the
prisoner exclaimed, " I am innocent, gentlemen, of the
crime," and exhibited great composure. She was imme-
diately removed, and conveyed by the train to the Chem-
ford county gaol. It is said that application will be made
to the Secretary of State to authorise further examinations
of bodies of parties suspected to have been poisoned in the
neighbourhoods of Dover-court, Bradfield, Tendering,
and Ramsey.
ATROCIOUS CRUELTY.—Some days back at Soham, a
horse harnessed to a waggon heavily laden with wheat,
was unable to remove it. The owner flogged and coaxed
and kicked, but it was all to no purpose, for the poor
beast was unable to pull the load not to ha foiled, how-
ever, the two-legged beast who owned the horse Took two
of the wheat sheaves from the load, placed them under
the horse, and by way of making him move, absolutely,
and with wicked cruelty, set fire to the straw, which in-
stantly blazed up and-caused excruciating pain to the poor
animal, which kicked and plunged in a most desperate
manner, but was totally unable to move the load, and it
was some time before persons could get near to extricate
him because of the flame and smoke, and indeed it re-
quired great efforts to save the waggon and its load from
total destruction. The poor horse, supposed to have been
worth £3O, was shockingly burnt, and although he has
been well attended since lie is never likely to be again
worth as many shillings.—Essex Herald.
NEW REGULATIONS FOR STEAM-BOATS.—The act of
Parliament for the further regulation of steam-navigation,
and for limiting in certain cases the number of passengers
to be carried in steam-vessels (11 and 12 Victoria, cap.
81), is now in force, having received the Royal assent on
the 31st ult. Two certificates must now be forwarded to
the Board of Trade respecting steam-vessels as to their
condition, whether they proceed to sea or not, under the
9th and 10th Victoria, cap. 100. To prevent the over-
crowding of steam-boats the Board of Trade may insert in
a certificate granted by them a notice of the number of
passengers steam-vessels are constructed to carry, and for
every passenger beyond the limit a fine of not exceeding
ss. is to be imposed. A certificate of the number to be
carried is to be exhibited in a conspicuous part of every
vessel under a penalty of £lO ; and persons, having been
refused admission on account of a vessel being full, forcing
their way on board are to be fined a sum not exceeding
55., with a like penalty on persons refusing or neglecting
to pay their fares or to quit a vessel. This act, which
will no doubt prevent a recurrence of the scenes recently
witnessed'on the Thames, is not to affect the privileges of
the city of London. The Board of Trade will limit the
number of passengers to each boat in a short time, as by
the first provision all owners are directed to transmit the
certificates required by the recited act on or before the
20th of September inst.
USEFUL APPLICATION OF DISEASED POTATOES.—
Since the recurrence of the potatoe-disease, those who
visit the cottages of the poor may often see a pan-full of
potatoes, partially decayed, cut up into a small compass,
in preparing for the daily meal, and where no pig is kept,
the refuse thrown away as utterly worthless. It might,
therefore, preserve many a bushel for a useful purpose, if
the visitor would inform the busy housewife that quanti-
ties of arrow-root might be preserved for her winter store
by a simple process, almost as easy as cutting up a large
bucket-full of potatoes into the space of a small boiling
pot, and certainly more profitable. She is doubtless
already provided with a large earthenware pan, and per-
haps a very coarse cloth, of sufficient size to rest on the
rim, and dip, like a bag, into it. The only addition to
the required apparatus is a small sheet of thin iron,
pierced through with a strong nail like a grater ; with the
help of this, she can grate and macerate the diseased
potatoes, previously pared, into a mass of pulp, which the
cloth receives in the pan, nearly full of water. The gluten
will soon pass through, and the water being thrown away,
she will find it in lumps at the bottom of the pan. In
order to render the arrow-root of a fine quality, she should
pour water on it again, and stir it well up. After a quar-
ter of an hour, she must again throw away the water, and
dry the arrow-root in the sun, or by the fire. One pound
of this added to a peck of flour will make an extra loaf.
The pulp, when thoroughly dried, will keep any length of
time, and if ground has the appearance of brown meal,
and would form a valuable adjunct to the wash-trough,
should she be fortunate enough to possess a tenant in the
adjoining stye.—[We have seen specimens both of the
brown meal and the arrow-root, and they appear to be
excellent.]—.Hertford Journal.
DEEP SEA FISHING.—The Aberdeen Herald says—
" We may hope that the devastating storm which visited
this coast on Saturday week will leave other traces besides
wailings for loss of life, and lamentations for wreck of
property. A powerful joint-stock company introducing
decked vessels, paying marked attention to barometrical
indications of foul weather, and enforcing the use of life-
preservers, would soon have their example widely followed ;
and, besides being thus the means of greatly reducing the
risk of life, they might, under judicious mercantile ma-
nagement, and by taking full advantage of the increased
facilities of communication with the interior of the coun-
try, exhibit a degree of activity in their trade, and an
amount of profit on their investments, which, of them-
selves, independent altogether of the inducement offered
to other parties, would prove a great national benefit.
That the attempt to improve the condition of our fishing
population must be made from above or without will be
evident to every person who knows anything of their
situation, character, and disposition. They have not
means to build a better class of sea-boats ; and if they
had, they would not use them. To provide themselves
with life-preservers, or any other contrivance for securing
a chance of escape in case of wreck, they never think of.
Although constantly on the sea, hardly one of them cans
; and it has been remarked, as a piece of increasing
ingenuity, that in the late storm some few of them seized
the bladders used for buoying up the nets, and rode ashore
with them. As for the barometer, so far from consulting
it, they actually dislike it. One of them lately remarked,
in reference to the one at the port of Aberdeen, that there
never had been good weather since it was put up ! In
everything else they are equally prejudiced and bigoted,
and nothing short of coercion, or some influence neariy
approaching to it, is likely to drive them from their self-
injurious and suicidal habits."

EXTENSIVE ROBBERIES. —On Thursday information
was received by the police of the following robberies :
From Mr. B. L. Bitt, 15, Parliament-street, London, a
bill of exchange for £15,000 ; from Mr. Higgins. the Ship
Inn, St. Katharine-hill, Guildford, three bags,. one con-
taining 100 sovereigns, another 15, the third £37 in silver;
from Mr. Lewis, 18, Duke-street, Piccadilly, a box con-
teining jewellery, &c., value £140; from 24, Lloyd's-
square, Clerkenwell, eighteen £5 and one £lO Bank of
England notes, and a quantity of plate, jewellery, &c. ;
from Roberts and Roby, auctioneers, Moorgate-street,
£270 in gold and a £lO note.
ARCTIC EXPEDITION.—We have received some little
information as to the voyage undertaken by Sir James C.
Ross to ascertain, if possible, the fate of Sir J. Franklin
and his party, through the arrival at Stromness, on Tues-
day, of a Hull vessel, the cutter Bee, Captain Weldon,
which went out for cod fish, and has returned with 8,000.
From the log-book of the Bee our correspondent copied
the following intelligence :—" July 16. Spoke the schooner
Mayflower, Smith, who had seen the American whaler
111`Lellan, of New London, Jackson master, with 40 tons
of oil. The American reports Her Majesty's ships, under
Sir J. C. Ross, as having reached Lieveley, Disco Island,
on the 2d inst., all well; and Captain Ross had left de-
spatches for the Admiralty, to be forwarded by the first
Danish vessel for Europe, and that Captain Ross immedi-
ately proceeded in search of his friend Sir John Franklin.
The crews were all well." Slender as this intelligence is,
it is gratifying, as indicating the success which had up to
that time attended the expedition of discovery. Disco
Island lies on the west coast of Greenland, at the entrance
to Baffin's Bay, near 70 degrees of latitude. It is a dreary
spot, with scarcely any vegetation, and inhabited princi-
pally by reindeer. The bay of that name is extensive,
being about 160 miles in circuit. A voyage of five or six
degrees farther north will lead to Barrow's Straits, and
those regions where intelligence of Sir John Franklin is
most likely to be procured. The circumstances under
which Sir James undertook his exploratory adventure
were most favourable. The two ships, the Enterprise, of
470 tons, and the Investigator, of 420, were built as strong
as wood and iron could make them, with due regard to
their sailing qualities. They are larger and more elegant
in appearance than the Erebus and the Terror, which
were fitted with screws, worked by steam under high
pressure. The disadvantages resulting from this plan
were obvious, the most valuable portion of the vessel
being occupied with cumbrous machinery. In the pre-
sent expedition these inconveniences are avoided. To
each ship is attached a launch boat, fitted with a screw
propeller ; and these boats are so constructed as to be
easily stowed amidships ; whilst the steam machinery,
which is light and portable, occupies but little room, and
can be shipped and unshipped in a very short space of
time. The intention of the launches was for the double
purpose of being serviceable in towing the vessels and in
exploring open seas during a dead calm. The ships were
fully provistrmed for three years, and amply supplied with
instruments for magnetical and meteorological observe-
tions.—Edinburgh Advertiser.

LAW INTELLIGENCE.

*

A WEALTnv PETITIONER.-A petition has just been
filed under the Debtor and Creditor Arrangement Act' to
obtain protection of the Court of Bankruptcy, by Mr. J.
Fitzgerald, of Portland-place, Regent's-park. the Oak
Lodge, Leamington, Brighton, and other places. The
debts of the petitioner exceed the enormous sum of
£133,000, and his application to Mr. Commissioner Fane
is attributed to water having got into his mines at Pendle-
ton, in Lancashire, and involved him in very serious
losses. His proposition to creditors, in liquidation of
his debts, is to pay £6,000 per year, secured upon the as-
signment of the Pendleton mines, the machinery, work-
ing utensils, &c., until the whole of his debts are satisfied,
and in case of his death then his widow, Mrs. Mary
Frances Fitzgerald, is to continue an annual payment of
£I,OOO. Several of the creditors' debts average above
£10,000: but upon the first meeting under the petition a
sufficient majority of the creditors acceded to the propo-
sition, and the learned Commissioner awarded Mr. Fitz-
gerald protection from arrest. The petition has been
filed under what is commonly known as Lord Brougham's
Debtor and Creditor Arrangement Act, and before an
applicant to the Court of Bankruptcy can obtain protec-
tion, he must get three-fifths of the creditors present at
the first meeting and nine-tenths of his creditors at the
second meeting before he obtains his final protection.

RAILWAY AFFAIRS.
Mr. George King has resigned the secretaryship of the
Chester and Holyhead Railway.
A guard at the Crewe station was crossing the line on
Saturday morning when a down-train, coming at a great
speed, struck and killed him.
An accident, which providentially was not attended
with any serious consequences, occurred on Wednesday
to Mr. Stephenson, at the Conway station of the Chester
and Holyhead Railway.
THE COLLISION ON THE LANCASTER AND PRESTON
RAILWAY.—The jury in this inquiry, being unable to
agree upon a verdict, were on Wednesday discharged by
the Coroner upon entering into recognisances to appear at
the next General Assizes.
The South Devon Railway Company have determined
to abandon the atmospheric system of traction, after
having expended upwards of £300,000 in the experiments
upon it. The system is too expensive. It costs £lOB to
carry £lOO worth of passengers.
The opening of that portion of the Great Northern
Railway from Doncaster to Reedholme, in connexion with
A..i..a. l>roooia of +h. nr.lepfipla. Ponts‘frapt_ sind
Goole line, a portion of the scheme of the Lancashire
and Yorkshire Company, took place on Thursday last.
The number of passengers, according to the return re-
cently published, who have travelled by railway during
the half-year ending on the 30th of June last, amounted
to 26,330,492,—which is just about the population of
England, Scotland, and Ireland.
The report of the Manchester, Buxton and Matlock,
after adverting feelingly to the death of the engineer of
the company, Mr. G. Stephenson, declared that the di-
rectors would immediately authorize the works on the
Une t 3 Rows'ey, if approved of by the half-yearly meeting.
No turther call is to be made this year, and the arrears
are to be strenuously enforced.
A SAD PROSPECT.—The Irish railways present a me-
lancholy spectacle for the shareholders. At the Water-
ford and Limerick meeting, a resolution was passed to
discontinue the payment of 4 per cent. on anticipated
calls, the chairman sagely observing that the line, when
completed, would only yield 14 per cent.: 10,000 shares
were declared forfeit.— one-fifth of the capital. Lucky
fellows those—too poor to pax! It is said that the total
arrears of unpaid calls, in the kingdom amounts to some
nine millions. a great portion of which may be considered
worth nothing.

LIVERPOOL, MANCHESTER, AND NEWCASTLE JUNC-
TION RAILWAY.—At a meeting of shareholders in Man-
chester last week, a resolution was passed approving of
Mr. Leeman's motion, because it was plain and open ;
while Mr. Parson's was cautious worded and uncertain ;
and a committee, consisting of Mr. John A. Hobson, Mr.
Henry Rawson, and Mr. Peel, was appointed to assist in
carrying the same into effect. A second resolution was
passed to the following effect :—" That this meeting views
with great alarm the proposal of the directors to make
another speculative application to parliament in the en-
suing session, especially considering the great waste of
money already incurred in the recent futile proceedings,
and this meeting pledges itself to use every means in its
power to induce the directors to forego any such applica-
tion." A third resolution besought the shareholders to
co-operate in procuring a division of the funds and pre-
venting any further unnecessary expenditure, and that each
be requested to express his assent to or dissent from Mr.
Leeman's resolutions. The greatest earnestness of pur-
pose marked the proceedings.
MORE RAILWAY COLLISIONS.—On Tuesday morning,
on the London and North Western line, two collisions
took place at Leighton station, by which not less thsn
fifty persons have sustained injuries of a more or
less serious character. Upon the Rugby train reaching
Leighton there stood on the line a number of ballast
trucks, headed by a powerful engine. From some cause
or other, this train was not moved out of the way, and the
engine of the Rugby train struck the hindermost truck,
by which it was smashed, the carriages being forced com-
pletely across the line, and several of them broken to
places. Many of the passengers have been much injured,
some being wedged in the carriages, and others lying
underneath them. The driver of the mail train was
thrown to a considerable distance from the line. Jnst at
this critical juncture (shortly after three o'clock, a.m.)
the Manchester and Liverpool train came up, and from
some cause or other, It wt. uut t,,pi,c,i, .nd the engine
ran into the train lying across the line. The effect of this
second collision was to throw the engine and tender of the
mail trail across the down, and to crush several of the
succeeding carriages. The driver and stoker had a narrow
escape. The former was severely injured, and is now lying
at Leighton ; but the stoker appears to have been thrown
by the concussion completely over the ruins of the broken
carriages and waggons—described by an eye-witness to
have been between twenty and thirty feet high—on to the
embankment on the down line, where he alighted corn-
paritively unhurt. The passengers in the train all suf-
fered more or less, but no injuries beyond a few cuts and
bruises appear to have been sustained.
THE LANCASHIRE AND YORKSHIRE RAILWAY COM-
PANY.—The half-yearly accounts were presented at the
half-yearly meeting on Wednesday. The total amount
received to the capital account, up to the present time, is
£8,448,579 ; the total sum expended is £8,242,627 ;
leaving a balance in band of £205,951. £645,010 have
been expended on capital account in the last half- year,
the principal items in which are £68,692, for stock in land
and works ; £38,488 for locomotive engines, carriages,
waggons, workshop, &c.; £46,715 for the Burnley Branch,
£29,495 for the Heywood Extension • £21,769 for the
Ardwick Junction ; £97,582 for the Wakefield, Pontefract,
and Goole ; £168,625 for the Liverpool and Bury ;
£38,830 for the Huddersfield and Sheffield ; and £108,497
for the West Riding Union Lines. The amounts received
on revenue account during the last half-year were :—For
passengers, parcels, and mails, £77,907 ; goods, £95,540;
live stock, £641 ; carriages, £196 ; rents, £978 ; total,
£175,624. The expenditure was :—For working expenses,
£66,546 ; rates and taxes, £4926 ; duty on passengers,
£2015 ; total, £74,488; leaving a balance on the half-
year, applicable to interest on loans and to dividend, of
£100,775. To this must be added £13,279, the surplus
brought forward for the half-year ending December 31st,
1847 ; and from the total so obtained must be deducted
£20,353, interest on loans for the half-year • leaving a net
sum applicable to the payment of dividend of £91702.
Of this sum, the directors purpose to divide-489,98.57-..->
among the shareholders, at the rate of six:per cent. per
annum, leaving, at the expiration of the:half-year' and
after the payment of dividends, a surplus in the haiadi of _
the company of only £3,716. The report Ivaa,adoSeit ,
.:.....,
#
lass Li,'S),•:/•,:` k
.:i
..'e'Z tw. ,0
s'
•

Grin.

To sail from the 20th to the 25th instant, and encagement will
be given that it shall not be later than the latter date.
For SHANGHAE, Direct,
p The well-known Ship CHARLES JONES,
JAS. COTHAY, Commander;
,
A 1 for twelve years; burthen 333 tons ; coppered;
- well known for her remarkably quick passages to
Shanghae and the NV, st Coast, arid is in all respects a most de-
sirable conveyance I:cth for goods and passengers.—For terms
of freight or passe;e apply to the Captain, on hoard, in the
Prince's Dock, or to W. and J. TY RER.

.