The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1848-02-29 00:00:00

Feb. 29,1845,

THE NEW DOCK BILL.-LOCAL
YESTERDAY.

The preliminary enquiry with regard to this,,-10
held yesterday, before James Abernethy, Esq.,
„,u•
the Sessions House. After the surveyingo tneetriS,
stated the course he would pursue, Mr. Talbott, • rl
(with whom was Mr. Worthington, the dock
opened the case for the promoters. He said that Pea ut
part of the bill which came properly within the Se°,,V
such an inquiry as the present was the 23rd clauset.,"oo
related to the purchase of the land at the north end
the Earl of Derby. All the rest were mere matters
consideration of a committee of the House of Corov;„itb:
and if there was a case at all where such an inquiry
have been dispensed with entirely, it was the presnt'bo
cause all these new works were to be construereuoi.,•
plan which was to be approved of by the Lords Colo ty
sioners of the Admiralty, as well as by Mr. Evarlet„ro,
conservator of the River Mersey. Mr. Talbot th.
ceeded to remark on the inutility of such inqute'o
that, because the whole matter had to be gone into alp
before the committee of the House of Commons.
.r
the late inquiry into the Water Works 13e'
proof of the remark. _of
Mr. Snowball appeared to oppose the bill on betTep,
the warehouse keepers, the master coopers, and P°r
Mr. Waln for the Birkenhead Dock Commissionere'd
Mr. Hull for Mr. Eyre Evans and other gentlemeo,o
respect to that part of the bill which relates to the bort,
ing of dock warehouses round the dock quay of the P°
Mr. Hartley and his son were then examined by es
TALBOT at considerable length with reference to the !'
tent and cost of the proposed works at the north end;
was stated that the extent of the river wall was to he,''V
yards, inside which sea wall it is intended that the Te
docks are to be formed, together with a float of 45
which is to be used for the purpose of water storage'ar,
surrounding which there are to be plots of grooe
yards, sheds, and such other land accommodation we
be required. The entrance to this dock will (as nor/by
posed) be through one of the half-tide basins whica
connected with the present new North Docks, and
.401
into the float. This is an alteration in the plan.
,104
has been made in consequence of the Board of Ore";
having expressed a desire to have the new fort, eeneot•
course of construction, erected north of the PrNir
works, so as to form a protection for the whole of the' ev
ping. The plan, as originally designed, had-
trances to these docks through the proposed eetoi,
The cost of the whole of these works was estilnew
£340,000 ; that is to say, basin, £34,233 ; 041,
£59,268 ; large float, £45,182 • river wall, £ll2'
sewers, £8,500 ; formation '
of land. £80,144 ; ~,,
£340,000.
1. Oil
Alderman Moore, Mr. Rankin, and Mr. Soldt.,.Arr
then examined at considerable length as to the 070
bility of the plan proposed for the accommodation of
timber trade, and all of these gentlemen conelll7, the
pronouncing the north end to be the only place I'oll
vicinity of Liverpool, and the plan proposed as thfLoc•
one yet advanced, capable of affording the requiel",
commodation for this fast increasing branch of 00.1.,a6e
merce. Alderman Moore stated in his evidence, rtYc
was fully borne out in that statement by Mr. Smitgt
in six years the saving to the trade, in carriage, pop"po„cei
&c. would nearly cover the whole expenditure IFL.IIOI
to be incurred in the construction of these doe
being estimated at no less than £60,000 a-year.
Mr. SNOWBALL, on the part of the Master CooPersob ,71
Master Porters, was proceeding to cross-examine ee you
these witnesses, with the view of shewing that theeraft
of warehouses round the dock quays would prove a po'
serious injury to the master tradesmen who were or
connected with these docks, without producing aO,l
responding public good, when he was interrupted a( the
Surveying Officer, who stated that the interest sY
Master Coopers and Porters should be brought boforeA
Legislature, where he was sure every attention wow
paid to them.

Mr. WALN and Mr. Hum. also cross-examined
respective witnesses. After which the Court &IP"
sine die.