The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1846-07-14 00:00:00

NOTES ON THE LAST COUNCIL MEETING. LORD JOHN RUSSELL AND THE COLONIES

That unfortunate St. George's Hall is a perfect cormo- The colonies and colonial government and interests will
rant. It swallows up the income of the Corporation at a be a " great difficulty" to the Whigs, as Ireland was to
truly terrific rate, and with scarcely a sign of ever being Sir Rob,rt Peel.
satisfied. A splendid building, no doubt, it will be when As regards Canada, it will be seen from the following
finished; an ornament to the town—an object which the quotation that Lord John Russell is quite at sea in his
Liverpudlians of the neat generation will point at with information as to the views of the English or farming po-
much the same sort of pride as a Cockney points to the pulation, and it also happens (most unfortunately for the
Monument, or a millowner to his chimney ; but the Whigs) that his lordship is cordially detested among the
thought will intrude upon us, all the while, that a vast French Canadians, as the author of their Coercion Bill of
amount of money hag been uselessly expended upon it, 1835.
which might, with infinitely more advantage, have been We take the following from the Scotch Reformers'
applied elsewhere. Every pillar of this ornamental erec- Gazette, published at Glasgow, on the -ith instant :
tion would have built a church or improved a street. The CANADA NEWS, PER HIBERNIA.
cost of carving and scrollwork would have sufficed to add The following, from the Montreal Gazette of 12,11 Mans
two years to the average life of our population, if devoted which is the leading ministerial print; ." --
to the sanatory improvement of the town. Sensible and ADVOCATE OF FREE TRADE, seems to be most amp._
practical men, who look at and admire our Courts of Law, firmation of the facts as to the state of public feeling in
will undoubtedly tell us that we have begun at the wrong Canada which were promulgated by Mr. Isaac Buchanan,
end, in providing decorations before we have secured the through our paper, list spring.
uaeful and the wholesome. Perhaps, when they look at The Montreal Gazette's view is exactly the same as we
some of our mi=erable and filthy courts and streets, they ourselves (the Scotch Riormers' Gazelle/ took. We
will think us about as sensible as they would a pauper deplored the existence of the Protectionist feelings in
girl, who had found a horde, and spent it in a shewy Canada, but as they exist, we thought it our duty to de-
bonnet, neglecting the repair of her rags, and forgetting dare the fact.
to wash the smut from her face. " Before resuming from our last the, consideration of
We are about, it seems, to spend a little more—only the mu'ual relations of British and Canadian opinion on
£3,soo!—upon what, we observe, is called " a sculpture" each other, we shall correct one most extraordinary error
forth,. south pediment of this building, with cherubs and into which all the British papers which have touched on
emblematical figures, of all meanings or no meaning, ac- the subject have fallen. Copying the New York papers,
cording to the di•cernmentor imagination of the observer. which almost invariably, either intentionally or accident-
We know nothing ourselves of this design. Our con- ally. mi-represent what takes place in this colony, and
temporaries, however, tell us that the following is a des- from which, unhappily, from their earlier and more regular
cription of it : arrival, English journalists are too apt to draw their con-

REY LTO C.

"The model i, a very beautiful piece of workmanship
In the middle sits Britannia enthroned. On her left shy
holds out the olive branch to the four quarters of th
globe. On her right she points the spear, as protecting ing this province ; that after having been rejected by a
her own ag,ricu'tore and arts. At her feet is Neptune. majority of seven in the House of Assembly, it was ulti-
To the left of Britannia, Ceres and Apollo are in a car, mately affirmed, and that this was a great triumph of
the horses controlled by Discretion. Domestic Happi- free-trade principles, and indicated the approbation, by
ness is represented by a labourer holding a plough, and the Provincial Government and the Legislature, of the
his wife a distaff, with a child at her feet. The Manufac- tneazures now under consideration at home! A more ah-
tures, especially metallurgy, are figured by labourers at surd error could not poss+tly be imagined. Mr. Cayley's
the anvil, wt-o nave been employed in the fabrication of resolution was that, conditional on the passing of the
arms, &c. To the right stands Peace. Mercury presents proposed Imperial Acts, the Governor-General should
Europe, America, and Asia, and lastly, Africa, on her have power, by proclamation after that event, to allow the
bended knee, and with a young negro, acknowledges the passing through the Province of American produce
liberty she owes to Britannia. There are other devices under bond duty free. This was the proposition,
which fill up the frontispiece, the number of figures being not one for the repeal of the duty, which was re-
thirty-two in all. jected. It was only carried on another division by
Even from this meagre description of the "sculpture," the Ministers taking their stand on it, mustering their
we must say that, to the connoiseurs in such matters, it supporters. and telling them the assent to it was a sine
is dirt cheap at £3,503. For instance, it must be a sue- qua non of the existence of the Government. And, strange
prising perform oice for a female to be "on her left hold- as it may seem to tell the resolution itself was a mere
ing out the olive branch to the four quarters of the globe."
There must be some other quarters on the right, which
are likely to feel offended ; and especially so, as on the
right she is indulging in a little of what is vulgarly called
gammon. In this direction "she points the s ear, as
protecting her own agriehlture and arts." So, at least,
say our contemporaries. But how pointing a spear at an
object is protecting it, we must leave to the imaginative
to discover. More probably, this pointing the spear
means that Britannia is insanely stabbing her own agri-
culture and arts. She has certainly got rid of the habit
of protecting them. "At her feet is Neptune." Poor
fellow! It is ungrateful of Britannia to trample upon
him, considering all he has done for her. We presume
the object is to show the scurvy way in which she treats
her gallant seamen

clusions, it is generally stated that Mr. Cayley's motion
in tia lotto~ nnri nf A ••••••‘, fnip •h

had ourselves stated some time before, on the au-
dimity of the Customs Department of this port, which
obligingly answered inquiries on a topic of public impor-
tance, American produce could be passed through the
waters of the Province duty free, and shipped on board
British vessels in this port, as a " constructive ware-
housing" had taken place under the Imperial British
Possessions Act. file Ministers could have no possible
motive in in4•ting on the passing of this specious but
barren resolution, unless it were one simply political,
one which we shall not conjecture, or perhaps it were to
smooth the passage for the next resolution, which allowed
the Governor, under the like condition of the British Act
being passed, to allow American grain to be imported and
ground by millers, duty free, under bond of re-export.
This is some small concession to sound principle, but a
very small one, and has provoked much hostility. The
different genius of the Imperial and Provincial Govern-
ments is shown in the mode of dealing with analogous
cases. Sir Bob •rt Peel and the Lords of the Treasury
grant licenses for the free importation of fore'gn produce
for domestic consumption, subj-ct to bond for the pay-
ment of the extant duties, should Parliament refuse the
Bill for their abolition. Lord Cathcart and his Council
allow the import of foreien wheat for grinding in bond
for re-export only, but lake the duties, subject to the
condition of returning them, if the Governor is in a posi-
tion to allow the re-export, under bond, to be effected.
" We now turn to the remarks of a great statesman,
better conversant with the political position, at least, of
this colony, than any other who ever occupied the post of
Colonial Secretary, and whose definition of ' responsible

" Ceres and Apollo in a car, controlled by Discretion,"
we really cannot solve. What Ceres has to do with
Apollo, or either with our Courts of Law, or with Liver-
pool, is past our comprehension. Discretion, however,
we conclude, is a sculpture of the organization of Mr.
Wiliam Earle. the presiding genius of this building, who
might almost claim the title to sit fur the Apollo of this
" sculpture."

The next is another funny groupe. Domestic happi-
ness is thought by the artist, or the reporters, to be re-
presented by "a labourer holding a plough, and his wife
a distaff, with a child at her feet !" The labourer, we
presume, is whistling, and has no fear of the union work-
house before his e►es, and a little more than seven shil-
lings a week to live upon. The distaff carries us back a
century, or so. and is a sly hit of the artist at the way in
which Domestic Ilappif,e44 is, now-a-days, overthrown
by our factory system. The child at her feet is no doubt
intended to show that, in the domestic happiness state,
mothers have no time to nurse their babies. " Mercury
representing Europe, America. aid Asia," must be in a
position of considerable difficulty. We presume he is
nourtra}ed with a copper nose, his Asiatic feature; a
German paunch, or attired, en blouse, to present Europe;
and a chaw in his mouth to point out his American pre-
tensions. No doubt, the large responsibility imposed
upon Mercury is a c.mpliment to his talented namesake
in Lord-street.

government,' in his memorable despatch.
Ben-
ham, has been generally accepted by the constitutional
and British party as its btsis in this province. In the
great debate of the I.sth ultimo, in his reply to Mr.
D'lsraeli, Lord John Russell is reported to have said :
" • The hon. gentleman referred to our colonies, and
asks, are we going to ruin them? Now, I do riot think
that we run any risk with respect to our colonies. (Hear,
hear.) I think that they have great advantages, setting
apart those which they may enjoy from the differential
duties. The law for the colonies, I think, ought to be
proceeded with mote gradually than that with respect to
the people of which tln-y are the representatives; but be-
ing, as they are, united to this great empire, they will not
be sorry to see this restrictive sys'em abolished. (Cheers.)
And, as for Canada, I cannot find in the accounts from
that colony any symptom of that alarm which has been
spoken of. (Hear, hear.) It does not appear, either
from the meeting of the Legislative Assembly, or from
the public meetings, that the people of Canada do enter-
tain those fears, or the se insuperable objections of which
we have heard to the change. (Hear. hear.)
•• NOW, HIS LORDSHIP, IN THIS PARTICU-
LAR, IS VERY ILL-1N FORM ED. There have been
but three public meetings in the province—in Frontenac.
Quebec. and Montreal,—the two first decidedly against
Sir It. Preys measures, the last neutral,—for an amend-
ment pointedly guarded against expressing approbation.
Had it been imagined that condemnation would have been
of any use, there is not a county in Canada that would
not have met to protest. The Legislative Assemblies did
not oppose, only because they thought opposition wes
useless, and might be ungracious, and they trusted to the
representation of their position promised by the Gover-
nor-General. The opinions of the popular branch are
suffic ently indicated by the votes on the address relative
's the drawback on the duties on pt °visions imported for
the use or;.etv's troops. The truth is, the people
of Canada are fifty years uent..a -I,sve of the mother
country in such matters. They are humble w,, of
the United States, and even behind them, for they are
just, with difficulty, approaching the point of free transit
in bond. The people who are the most English in their
feelings, are the most un-English in their reasonings. For
a long time we have, with some labour, and at some risk
of populari•y, endeavoured to introduce what we thought
a more enlightened opinion on commercial and industrial
topics. Until but recently we stood nearly alone, and at
this moment we have but few allies, and those a very
small minority of the provincial press. We cannot con-
ceal from ourselves that we owe the indulgence of the
great mass of our readers much more to their giving us
credit for good motives, than to any recognition of the
soundness of our arguments. We should ill repay to-
lerance, and indifferently di-charge our duty of faithful
journalists, if we were to suffer their opinions. such as
they are, to he misrepresented abroad. THE PEOPLE
(IF CANADA, AS A WHOLE, ARE PROTECTIONISTS.
THEY DREAD AND DEPRECATE THE MEASURES OF THE
' BRITISH GOVERNMENT. THE DIFFICULTY ISTO KEEP
THEM FROM ABSOLUTE DESPONDENCY, AND, AT THIS

It is clear that it will require a most imaginative per-
sonage to understand the whole of the thirty-two figures
which compose this sculpture. If adopted, we should
rec mmend the appointment of an extra official—a kind
of superior showman—to point out to visitors their various
names and significations, otherwise they might be rather

puzzling

We cannot adopt Mr. Birkett's noting as to the sen-
timents to be conveyed by the pediment, instead of this
fanciful groupe of figures. " Our glorious Constitution
in Church and State" is rather too antique for a modern
building. although the idea might easily be pictorially
conveyed. For instance. an old chair with the bottom
out, or a barrel with a hole at both ends, would convey a
very fair representation of that "glorious constitution" as
at present existing. _ _ _

Sculptured sugar hogsheads and cotton hags are objecti-
onable. We have noright totake Überties with the ancestors
of any of our fellow-townsmen. Something appertaining to
law and the lawyers should he hit upon. For instance,
we might adopt Coleridge's picture of "a lawyer killing a
viper in his raffle," which would, by the unima_inative,
be regardrd in its natural sense, whilst it might put the
p.se,;nn of the world in mind of " Cai❑ and his
brother Abel."

CORRIISPONDENCE.

PRINCE ALBERT'S VISIT TO LIVERPOOL

TO THE EDITOR OF THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD.
SIR,—I trust yin will insert the following, through
the medium of your valuable paper.
The cotton brokers, together with many others, having
announced that the two day's visit of Prince Albert to
Liverpool will be observed as holida)s by them, it is to
be hoped the corn merchants will not evince less dis-
position to show their loyalty, by acting similarly; and I
would suggest that the committee of the Corn Exchange
call a meeting of the members, to take the matter into
consi,leration, and have no doubt that they will readily
agree to such an arrangement.
Yours very respectfully,
A CORN MERCHANT.
Brunswick-street, July 13/h, 1816.

FIRE AT ST. JOHN'S, NEWFOUNDLAND

MOMENT, WITH A LARGER AMOUNT OF EXPORTABLE

PRODUCE (THE TRUE TEST OF A NATION'S WEALTH AND

RESOURCES) THAN WAS EVER BEFORE KNOWN IN THE

COLONY, ITS COMMERCE IS IN A STATE OF UNPRECE

DENTED PARALYSIS, PRINCIPALLY FROM THE FEARS
OF THE RESULT. MAY THOSE FEARS BE GROUN LESS;

BUT TO DENY THEM WOULD BE SOMETHING WORSE

THAN A FOLLY