The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1843-03-07 00:00:00

form, with the rest of the deputation, to petition against
the suppression of the Scriptures. (Applause.) They
brought up a petition, signed by 3,600 individuals, against
the National Board, which petition he (Mr. 111`Gliee) had
the honour to read, and a great honour he accounted it.
When the meeting was nearly concluded, he (Mr. Nl`Ghee)
suggested to the secretary that one of the readers should
speak for himself—that he should himself tell the state of
his feelings, and that of his friends 'upon the value of the
Scriptures. After some excuses for want of preparation, and
so on, he came down. He (Mr. M`Gbee) had attended
many public meetings—he had heard some good speakers in
Liverpool—but never in his life had he heard from the lips
of man a more brilliant flow of eloquence in defence of the
Gospel of Christ than from the lips of that poor Irish reader.
There was not an object of nature which he did not press
into some glowing metaphors with which he illustrated the
grace of God in Christ Jesus ; he quoted, too, various pas-
sages of Scripture—and as much as to say to the deputation
his brethren " this is language worth hearing", he always
turrird towards them from the meeting translating the pas-
sages into Irish for their benefit. (Hear.) He (Mr. Itl` Ghee)
would tell the meeting the passage from Scripture with
which this poor reader concluded his speech : " Now," said
he, " I will address this National Board in the words of
Gamaliel, and say to them—Refrain from these men, and
leave them alone; for if this work be of man (namely the
propagation of the Scriptures among the Irish people) it will
come to naught.; but if it be of God, you cannot overthaow
►t." He (Mr. M`Gliee) would now call attention to the
practical working of the Scripture Reading Society. The num-
ber of readers employed was 73, and the number who spoke the
Irish tongue 23. There were, at this moment, before the com-
mittee no less than 150 applications from various parts of the
country for readers. Were they able to supply these wants?
The meeting should hear. The salary of the readers was
from £2B to £3O a year. Last quarter the committee had
been obliged to cut off two readers ; and next quarter they
must cut off two more for want of funds—and this at the
very time when they had 150 applications from different
parts ! (Hear, hear, hear) After this he need not
enlarge upon the utility of the readers in their differ-
ent departments. Mr. M`Gbee then related a series
of facts and circumstance, most of which had occurred
within his own knowlege, but we have not space to print
them, illustrative of the utility of the readers to the ministers
of the church by labouring among their Protestant tneigh-
bours in mitigating the asperity of party feeling by read-
ing the word of God, the blessings which have atten-
ded their labours in bringing the light of salvation to the
Roman Catholic population, and in making known and cir-
culating the word of God. It was, then for the purpose of

entreating assistance, that the Scripture _ Readers' Society

united with the others in the present appeal ; and he trusted
in God, that in a work like this, it would not prove they
appealed in vain. (Hear, heor.) The meeting had read
in the newspapers that the poer Roman Catholics of Ire-
land were beginning to struggle against the exactions of
their priests for the spiritual services -of their church.
(Hear, hear.) He feared, however, that the priests in this
struggle would put down the people, unless the Protestants
of the empire stood up for their vindication. (Hear.) And
how were they to help them ? Not by interfering in the
struggle for the temporal power, but by sending among them
the word of God's truth, by sending out abundance of read-
ers to spew the people this great truth, that forgiveness of
sins is not to be found in the Church of Rome, or in all
her ordinances, but in the blessed Redeemer alone. (Hear,
and cheers.) If the people were not made to know
this, the priests would get the better of them ; but if the
people were brought to this knowledge, then their temporal
struggle would be an instrument of their liberty, and they
would be brought into that glorious freedom which the truth
alone could give, and which made man free for time and free
for eternity. (Loud cheers.)
The resolution was then put and carried.
The Rev. HUGH M`NErnE then rose to move a vote of
thanks to Mr. Hodgson, for his able and impartial con
duct in the chair. In doing so he would make a short expla-
nation of a matter advanced by Mr. M`Ghee, which might,
unless explained, lead to an erroneous impression upon the
minds of some frienes of the various societies now united—he
meant the distinction he (Mr. M`Ghee had drawn between the
agents of the Scripture reading Society, who, he said were
christian men, and the agents of the Irish Society, of whom
he said, rather too generally that they were not so. It was
true that some of them were not: so when they were
first employed. In this work there was a primary act
leading to a more advanced act : the primary act of
the teacher of the Irish Society was to convey to the
Irish people the mechanical power of reading the actnal
word of the Scriptures. How was this to be done, or
by what agency? English speaking men could not do it;
and where were they to get men who spoke Irish to do it, if
they did not employ Roman Catholics? They found then
Roman Catholics willing to be employed in this work, who
thought the Bible was for their religion and not against it ;
and the payment which the society gave was in proportion
to the progress made by the people, the judge of their ad-
vancement being the inspector, who was always a member of
the church, and as far as men could secure it, a Christian,
converted man. Now, whatever the agency was that con
veyed the letter of God's Word to the people—through
their eyes to the mind and understanding—they hailed
it as a primary agency indispensable for the work.
Many of the men so employed, fancied that the teaching of
the Bible to the people would strengthen them in the old
faith as they called it, but which was not the old faith for
the Church of England and Ireland, which held the old faith.
As they taught others to read, they read themselves ; and
eventually they began to find that there was no such
thing as the priests' doctrines; many of them had left the
Church of Rome in consequence of this reading of the Bible,

—so that not ouly the people, hut the teachers had become
converts to the true Gospel. When a teacher became a con-
cert, he was employed not only to teach his own clues, but to
go and talk to the other teachers, so that the Irish Society
then laid hold of the instrumentality then, which it could not
begin with. It took the plough and the harrow before it

sent out the seedsman—every thing in its place: it hat
confidence in the power of the Word of (god; it hat
confidence that wherever that word was read, good wonli
follow, so that what at first sight might, in the mind:

P • SA
of some, appear to be an objection to the Irish society,
which was in reality a commendation of it. (Cheers.) The
Reverend gentleman, after an earnest call upon the mer-
chants of Liverpool tc protect their servants, who, in many
cases, suffered wrong because they inquired after truth
from a Protestant minister, concluded by moving the thanks
of the meeting to Mr. Hodgson for his conduct in the
chair. The motion was carried by acclamation.
Mr. IloncsoN ocknowledged the compliment.
The Doxology, " Praise God from whom all blessings
flow," was then sung; and a collection being made at the
doors, the meeting separated at half-past ten o'clock.

The Earl of Coventry is in Coventry House, gradually
sinking, and not recognising the persons about him.

ENCOURAGEMENTTO YOUNG SURGEONS.—AstIey Cooper
at an early age, had attained a high reputation, but profes-
sional income did not come so quickly. "My receipt," says
he, " for the first year was £5 ss. ; the second, £26 ; the
third, £6l ; the fourth, £96 ; the fifth, £lOO ; the sixth,
£2OO ; the seventh, £-100 ; the eighth, £6OO ; the ninth
(the year he was appointed surgeon to the hospital) £1,100."
He himself appends a remark, which sufficiently shows his
feeling on this subject.—" although 1 was a lecturer all the
time on anatomy and surgery." Theextent of practice which
he subsequently obtained may be inferred from the tact, that
his professional income for the year 1815 exceeded £21,000.

THK BANK OF ENGLAND.—The following notice was
posted up on Thursday at the Bank of England :—The Go-
vernor and Company of the Bank of England are ready,
until further notice, to receive applications for loans upon
the deposit of approved bills of exchange not having more
than six months to run, Exchequer-bills, and East India
Bonds, such loans to be repaid on or before the 19th of April
next, with interest at the tate of £5 per cent. per annum,
and to be for sums of not less than £2,000 each. In every
case of an advance by the Bank of England, in pursuance of
the notice dated this day, a promissory note will be required,
whether the advance be upon bills of exchange, Exchequer-
bills, or India bonds.

On 'Monday, about eleven in the morning, three or four
persons ascended the Column of July, at Paris, and were
followed by a man, about 30 years of age, apparently be-
longing to the working class. Whilst they were examining
the panorama of the city, he amused himself with walking
rapidly round the platform. Presently they descended, and
he, finding himself alone, got over the railing, and, catching
hold of the balustrade, hung suspended, like a person exer-
cising his arms at a gymnastic school. All at once his
muscles seemed to fail, for he uttered a piercing cry, and en-
deavoured to hanl himself up. A second more, and the
weight of his body proved too great for his arms; his hold
gave way, his body curved outwards, and be fell with his
back against one of the angles of the pedestal ; from thence
he tumbled to the ground an inert mass- His limbs were
broken i❑ varions places, and his death must have been in-
stantaneous. No papers were found on him to prove his
identity.

EXPORT ON COAL.—The following statement of the ex-
port of coal and culm during the last nine years, shows that
the trade has been gradually progressing, and that during
the last year year, notwithstanding the imposition of a duty,
the export exceeds that of the preceding year:—
Years. Newcastle. Sunderland. Stockton. Great Britain
1834.... 230,342.... 149,956.... 9,988.... 615,255
1835.... 313,107.... 154,538.... 26,840.... 736,060
1836.... 415,849.... 170,367.... 36,943.... 916,868
1837.... 476,157.... 242,463.... 46,516.... 1,113,610
1838.... 554,175.... 308,178.... 56,689.... 1,313,709
1839.... 558,052.... 370,620.... 111,707.... 1,449,417
1840.... 593,911.... 442,987.... 132,842.... 1,606,313
1841.... 750,585.... 408,515....169,345.... 1,848,294
1842.... 791,981.... 366,451.... 178,342.... 1,852,000

LORD COTTENHAM'S BILL.—We call the attention of our
readers to the Bill of the above-mentioned learned lord, en-
titled " A Bill for the advancement of Justice in certain mat-
ters relating to Creditors and Debtors." We recommend
the timely consideration of the provisions of the proposed
Act of Parliament to tradesmen and professional men. There
is one clause, numbered 49, against which we protest, and we
call upon our brethren engaged in newspaper publication to
unite in procuring an alteration in its terms,—we refer to that
in which the proprietors of public prints are to be required to
insert advertisements under the Act at rates that are clearly
not remunerative. Why, we ask, should those who provide
media of public announcement be called upon to make sacri-
fices that could not be justly required of those engaged i❑ any
other calling?

FATAL ACCIDENTS.—On Wednesday last a marine, named
Beer, fell overboard from the Andromache, and was unfor-
tunately drowned before the least assistance could be ren-
dered him ; and on Monday an accident which terminated
fatally occurred in the dockyard, to a labouring man, named
Blake. It appears that the unfortunate deceased was em-
ployed in clearing chips and rubbish from the deck of the St
George, 120, lying in the new north dock, and that while
descending from the vessel to the ground, in the act of swing-
ing or lifting a basket containing about 30 pounds of rubbish,
to his shoulder, he lost his balance, and being upon a narrow
plank, fell head foremost into the dock ; his head came in
contact with one of the projecting stones, by which he re-
ceived such severe injuries as almost immediately to cause
his death.—Hampshire Telegraph.

A FRENCH JACK SHEPPARD.—A man named Darvi'is was
arrested a few days since for stealing a shawl and some
trinkets from two women of improper character with whom
he had been living for some time past. On being taken to
the Prefecture of Police, he was recognised as an escaped
convict, notorious for his audacity and strength. Darvs
was condemned for forgery, in 1834, by the court of assizes
of the Sarthe, to five years' imprisonment. On hearing hi-
sentence, he very quietly said to the jury, " You might as
well have acquitted me, for to-morrow I shall be tree."
When taken back to prison he was heavily ironed, to prevent
him from carrying his threat into execution, and was con-
fined by himself in a cell. The next morning a man offered
to a locksmith, at Angers, some pieces of iron for sale. It
was the prisoner, who had contrived, during the night, to
get rid of his fetters. and, having taken out some of the iron
bars of the cell, scaled a wall 25 feet high, and made bis es-
cape. Some time afterwards he entered a regiment of the
line, and became a non-commissioned officer. Having de-
serted, he was condemned to seven years' hard labour, and
was taken to Oleron to work out his time. Shortly after, he
seized on a boat and escaped. In 1842 he was recognised at
Paris, and arrested. On his way back to Oleron he pre-
tendeda to be taken ill, and was examined by a medical. nn
i
at Etampes, who was so completely deceived by his
ed
admira-
ble acting, that he pronounced the case one of
danger, and
n
ordered him to the hospital. Three days after, the
aPr;
and
invalid stole the dress of one of the steurs de etzye
escaped thus disguised. Since that period he has been re-
siding at Paris with women of bad character, until arrested,
as above stated.—Galigaanes Messenger.