The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1848-08-01 00:00:00

THE LIVERPOOL HOAX.

England and Ireland have been reciprocating the com-
pliment of monstrously lying about each other. Thurs-
day morning startled the good city of Liverpool out of its
seven, or seventy-times seven, senses, with news that the
rebellion had actually broken out in Ireland ; that the
fighting in Clonmel and other places was terrific; that the
troops had been outmatched, and, which was worse, that
they were exhibiting symptoms of disaffection ! Con-
sternation might well size the inhabitants; and for a
time business was paralysed. Soon, however, those who
were most capable of thinking in this hour of alarm, be-
gan to inquire how this news had come : no history of its
transit from the Irish coast could be ascertained ; the
Dublin papers of the preceding evening had no word about
the alleged outbreak ; the latest arrived travellers knew
nothing of it. But it transpired that there must he some-
thing about a Queen's Messenger in the business; where-
upon the Mayor of Liverpool communicated by electric
telegraph with Sir G. Grey, and received for answer that
no such messenger bad arrived. Hence it was proved
that, at any rate, the report did not come on the authority
it professed ; and, in short, though its rapid course from Li-
verpool to London and to other parts of Great Britain
were discernible enough by the excitement and alarm it
created as it flew, the track of its anterior course was not
to be found ; of the attempt to trace it back to its source,
it might be said, with the learned Dr. O'Toole, "vestiyin
nulla relrorsum :" in fact, there was no finding an end of
the beginning; like that of the Irishman's rope, it was
put off. The arrival of the mail steamer in the evening
put an end to the already pretty well discredited rumour,
which appears to have been fabricated in Liverpool, but
whether for stock-jobbing or political purposes, or as a
"jolly good hoax," remains unknown. The magistrates
are taking stet s to discover, if possible, the mischievous
and heartless authors of the lie.

On Thursday, the subject was alluded to in both the
Houses of Parliament.

But, although the rumour turns out to be a wicked
fabrication, we cannot help agreeing with the Times ;hat
" it is only too vraisemblable," that it "anticipates only
by one little step the daily reports of the Irish papers,"
th►t " the leaders and populace are running a race, each
goading on the other, and goaded in return," and that
"it seems quite a matter of chance whether Messrs. S.
O'Brien and Meagher will be pushed into an overt act of
rebellion, or some furious mob assume the initiative."
An accident may plunge the people into civil war and
wrap the whole country in flames.
As we have hinted, rumour in Ireland was no less busy
and fa!se about England, than on this side the water she
had been about Ireland. At Thurles, where, according
to the Liverpool report, the 'railway station was on fire
and the rails torn up for miles, the only event of any ex-
citing kind was a report that an outbreak had taken place
in Liverpool, and that 500 of the police had been killed !
Similar absurd rumours were hatched and flew about in
other parts of Ireland.

At the Town Council, to morrow, an Alderman will be
appointed to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of
Mr. J. S. Leigh.
It was expected that the bridges for the landing-stage
would have been fixed yesterday. but the operation has
been postponed for a fortnight. . . .

Mr.. Councillor Parker Will submit a motion at the
Council meeting to-morrow, for the return of all the
money expended or to be expended in the Rivington
Pike Scheme.

Messrs. B. Slater and Son, the proprietors of the Saw
Mills, have publicly denied the statement that "pikes"
have been ground at their establishment, and they say
that they have no grinding apparatus on their premises.
The members of the Provident Clerks' Association, the
best of life assurance, benefit, and benevolent societies,
intend dining together on Thursday next, at the Adelphi
Hotel. T. B. Horsfall, Esq., the Mayor, has consented
to preside, and a happy and interesting meeting is anti-
cipated.
The steam-ship Acadia, Captain Stone, sailed on Satur-
day for Halifax and Boston, with the usual North Ameri-
can mails and a fair complement of passengers. The
steamer Caledonia, Captain Leitch, with the homeward
mails, &c., may be expected to arrive in the river on
to-morrow. She would leave New York on the
19th instant, and Halifax on the 22d.
LADY SMUGGLER.—On Wednesday the Tynwald ar•.
rived in port, and was visited by the Custom-house offi-
cers, who arrested a respectably dressed female, on whose
person were found four bladders containing aboutzeven-
eighths of a gallon of spirits On the following morning
the lady was brought before Mr. Rushton, who imposed a
fine of forty shillings.
DEATHS FROM FALLS.—On Saturday week James
Dodd, a mariner, living in Back Parliament-street, went
to bed between eleven and twelve o'clock, leaving his
wife up. He was awoke by hearing moaning, and on
going down found his wife lying there. She had fallen
down stairs and so injured herself that she died on Friday.
—On Saturday, George Gurnell, a man, forty-two years
of age, living in Hawke-street. Brownlow-hill, was stand-
ing in the street, in a state of intoxication, when a man
named Lawrenson, with whom he lodged, gave him a
push and lie fell violently to the ground. His head was
seriously cut, two or three ribs were broken and he died
on Thursday.

POOR Lim REMOVAL—To day (Tuesday), the new act
of parliament to amend the procedure in respect of orders
for the removal of the poor in England and Wales, and
appeals therefrom, will come into operation. It contains
13 clauses. The preamble declares that the communica-
tion now by law required to be made by the overseers or
guardians of any parish seeking to enforce an order for the
removal of a poor person to the overseers or guardians of
the parish to which such poor person is intended to be re-
moved of a copy of the examination upon which such
order has been made, has been found to produce such
expensive and use less litigation upon points of mere form,
so that few cases of appeal against such orders are decided
upon the merits. Instead of the copy of an examination,
the notice shall be accompanied by a statement of the
grounds of the removal. The documents may be amended,
and parties making frivolous or vexatious statements of
the grounds of removal or appeal are liable to pay the
costs of the proceeding. Orders of removal may be
amended, and by the seventh clause decisions of courts of
sessions are to be final, and no writ of certiorari or man-
damus is to be allowed. No appeal allowed, if notice of
the same be not given within 21 days of the chargeability.
The act is to be construed as one with the 4th and sth
William IV., and all other acts amending the same.
COLLEGIATE. INSTITUTION.--111 the course of the pre-
sent week all the school operations at the institution will
have re-commenced. The lending library, we understand,
is being increased by the addition of a thousand volumes,
involving, of course, a very considerable outlay, but one,
we doubt not, which will be fully compensated for by the
increased eagerness with which that department of the in-
stitution will in consequence be resorted to. In the
arrangements for the lecture-hall the same spirit and libe-
rality have been exercised, the syllabus for the session
commencing on Friday evening being peculiarly attractive.
Mr. J. Quincy Wetherby leads the van with six lectures
on musical expression, written expressly for the occasion ;
and among the succeeding courses are six on physiology,
by that most popular of scientific lecturers, Dr. Pettigrew ;
four on knowledge, poetry, and the writings of Shakspere
and Cervantes, by E. N. Dennys, Esq., a man, we have
been given to understand, of very original genius ; four on
the flute, its improvement and capabilities, with illustra-
tions, by R. Carte, Esq., a course which, from its novelty,
as well as the popular nature of the instrument and the
reputation of the player, cannot fail to prove highly inte-
resting; four on the comic writers of England, by C.
Cowden Clarke, Esq. ; and six on popular music, with
vocal illustrations, b) an established favourite in Liver-
pool, George Buckland, Esq.

LOCAL MEETINGS.

LIVERPOOL UNION MILL AND BREAD COMPANY.—
On Tuesday the annual meeting of' this company was held
at the Clarendon-rooms, Mr. Francis Bonk in the chair.
The chairman opened the business of the meeting by
reading the report of the directors, which stated, amongst
other things, that the directors regretted they could not
announce that any progress had been made during the
past year, in the erection of the mill, or otherwise in car-
rying out the designs of the company. Mr. R. Rathbone
moved, and Mr. Jos. Williams seconded, the following
resolution, which was passed unanimously : " That the
directors be instructed to take the most vigorous measures
to collect the first call, and that a special general meeting
be then summoned, to consider what further course shall
be adopted." The accounts showed that the total amount
received for calls, interest, and sundries was £2914 165.,
and disbursements amounted to £lBB6 ss. 4d., including
£5OO deposits on land, and £7OO paid to Mr. Fairburn,
as per special agreement, leaving a balance to the credit
of the company of £lO2B 10s. Bd.
AMALGAMATED GAS COMPANIES.—The first meeting
of the " United " Gas Company was held on Thursday ;
W. Fosberry, Esq., in the chair. The report stated that
file capital of the company already raised and paid up,
and which amounts to £423,750, has been divided, as is
required by the act, into 7140 shares, namely, 3270 shares
of £lOO each and 4870 shares of £25 each, so as to corre-
spond with the shares of the late companies. The Amal-
gamation Act confers no additional benefit on the share-
holders of the late companies as respects the appropria-
tion of shares. The company have now four stations for
the manufacture of gas—the Dale-street, Vauxhall-road,
Athol-street, and Grafton-street. The directors contem-
plate dispensing with the Dale-street station, and dispo-
sing of the entire property in that and the adjoining
streets. They propose also to centralise the offices and
management at Newington. £5OO per annum was voted
for the directors; and Mr. H. Steele was appointed trea-
surer and manager to the new company, at his former
salary. Mr. Carson and Mr. Lloyd were appointed law
clerks, at sakries of £2lO per annum each, but not to be
entitled to charge any legal business except parliamentary.
Mr. L. Mozley stated that the directors had ample means
of paying the ordinary dividends, and they had an im-
mense reserve fund to make up deficiencies.
THE LIVERPOOL BOROUGH BANK.—On Tuesday the
twelfth annual meeting of the shareholders in the Borough
Bank was held at the Clarendon-rooms. There was a
very large body of the proprietary present. John Pen-
nington, Esq., the chairman of the hoard of directors,
presided. Mr. William Cross, the manager, read the re-
port. It commenced by stating, that after a year disas-
trous beyond all parallel or precedent in the commercial
history of the country, it could hardly be expected that
the report to be presented would be of a satisfactory cha-
racter, or that the bank, in common with other establish-
ments, should not have suffered heavy losses. The direc-
tors were glad to be able to make, notwithstanding, a small
dividend out of the profits of the past year. Personally,
they would have preferred to have placed the amount to
the reserved fund, but they had thought it due to those
who looked upon their shares as a part of their income,
that this dividend should be made. The profits of the
past year, after the payment of all expenses, were
£48,168 15s. Bd. ;. to which was added a balance to the
credit of premium account of £575 55., making together
£48,744 Os. Bd. From this there was to be deducted the
losses and had debts during the past year, estimated at
£38,099 12s. 7d., leaving a balance of £10,644 Bs. ld.,
out of which the directors proposed to pay a dividend of
two per cent. upon the paid-up capital of £498,120,
amounting to £9962 Bs., leaving to be placed to the bad
and doubtful debt account, £668 2s. Id. The report was
adopted.
SELECT VESTRY.—On Tuesday, the usual fortnightly
meeting was held. Mr. Churchwarden Ferguson pre-
sided. Mr. Urquhart moved, pursuant to notice, that the
recommendations of the Building Committee, for aban-
doning the Workhouse in Brownlow-hill, except such
portions of it as might be required for Parish-offices, and
erecting a new suburban Workhouse, he adopted. Mr.
Poole seconded the motion. Mr. Wylie opposed it, and
moved as an amendment that the Building Committee be
instructed to proceed with the plans of the workhouse and
offices at Brownlow-hill with all convenient speed. Mr.
Earle.seconded the amendment. Mr. Avison moved an-
other amendment, to the effect that it was desirable that a
fuller statement of facts and reasons for recommending the
new workhouse, than that already submitted, be embo-
died in a report, to be printed and submitted to each mem-
ber of the vestry. Mr. Woodruff seconded Mr. Avison's
amendment. The board then divided on Mr. Avison's
amendment, when there appeared—for it, 18, against it, 4.
The amendment was consequently carried. Mr. Abraham
moved the adoption of the report presented at the last
meeting, relative to the proposed new medical and surgi-
cal arrangements at the 'Workhouse. Mr. Watson se-
conded the motion. The report was adopted, subject to
the approval of the Poor-law Commissioners, and the spe-
cial consideration of Mr. Taylor's case. Government
made a claim of £7OO for the wages of the crews of the
lazarettoes during the fever crisis. The claim is under the
consideration of the Finance Committee. Mr. E. G. Nel-
son having on two recent occasions received sums of mo-
ney be!onging to the parish, amounting to £5, for which
he did not account, and he having admitted the offence,
and that he was before convicted of a similar charge, was
suspended, and ordered to he dismissed forthwith. Upon
the motion of Mr. Woodruff, seconded by Mr. Hodgson,
the churchwt rlens and overseers were ordered to consult
with a legal adviser, and ascertain whether the Vestry had
not power to punish Nelson. The Committee of the In-
dustrial Schools reported that the duties of porter and
bookkeeper at the schools were inefficiently discharged,
and that the religious education of the children was not
properly attended to. They recommended several dis-
missals of officials, and that in future the duties of porter,
bookkeeper, and storekeeper be all discharged by one
individual. It was then agreed to give a bookkeeper and
storekeeper £7O per annum for discharging the duties of
these two offices, and to allow £lO to his wife for attend-
ing as porteress at the gate.