The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1833-11-29 00:00:00

THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD,

Mr. Richard Shiel said that the Rev. Mr. Glover, a Catholic
minister, was present yesterday for the purpose of giving evi-
dence on the subject of the management of the Catholic schools,
but he had not an opportunity of doing so.

Mr. Commissioner Wilkinson here asked the Town-clerk if
he wished to give any answer to the evidence adduced in the
inquiry ?
The Town-clerk stated that he was happy to hear the com-
missioners put that question, as it was a harbinger of the termi-
nation of the inquiry.
Mr. Foster then rose and stated, that the observations he was
about to make would be partly a matter of evidence, and partly
of observations. The commissioners were aware of the resolue
tion that was passed at a special meeting of the council on the
subject of furnishing information upon the present inquiry. It
was the wish of the Common Council, and the instructions given
by them to him were, that they should be put in the fullest and
most entire possession of every matter relating to the Corpora-
tion, which was the unanimous opinion of the Common Coun-
cil, without one solitary exception. He considered this to be
about the termination of the inquiry; and he congratulated the
Common Council upon the resolution they had passed, and the
manner in which the inquiry was terminating. Whatever
might be the result of the inquiry, the Common Council had
acquitted themselves, he was sure, to the satisfaCtion of all. In
a time of no ordinary political excitement, the Corporation had
stood the test of the investigation before the burgesses, their
fellow-townsmen, and in the presence of the King's commis-
sioners. It was not his duty to complain to the commissioners ;
but he was placed in a most peculiar situation, in a court so
constituted, with a power so unlimited. He was bold to say, as
an Englishman, that it did appear to him part of an Enalish-
man's Wahl ight, that, where an offence was charged, the bill
of indictment should be placed in the hands of the court. But
here there was no bill of indictment to which he could plead;
and he thought the principle should be adhered to, that no man
should be put upon his trial without knowing the nature of the
charge, or its end or object. He had not a single word to say
in the way of complaint against the commissioners, but he had,
On his part, to express his feelings upon the very courteous
manner in which they had treated him. The Common Council
had left in his hands the conduct of their case, relying only on
their own cause ; and he could not in stronger terms regret that
the defence, if defence it was called, had not been entrusted
into much abler hands than his own. He had had the honour
of holding the office which he filled for only a short period, and
the only disagreeable part of the inquiry to which he could refer
was in reference to those parts which applied to himself. He
would take the liberty of wasting a little of their time in allusion
to what he thought had been unkindly applied to himself. He
was quite aware, and so would others be, that the chaiacter of
the public press, on all sides of politics in Liverpool, had
been the means of conveying correct accounts of every
thing that had occurred relative to the Corporation; and
he _did not think ethat any gentleman could be so igno-
rant ..of the facts eennected. -with himself and his family
as to need them stated there. With regard to the complaints
that had been made against himself, lie did not intend to say a
Single word ; for he was aware that every man holding a pub-
lic situation was subject, and bound to submit to, every inves-
tigation from the public. He called upon any ineivldual to
come forward and state whether himself or any branch of his
family had ever conducted themselves 'unworthily ; and he was
not aware that the commissioners had any such statement upon
their notes. There was, however, a statement made ibis morn-
ing by Dr. Collins, in which he set forth that the salaries re.:
nerved by himself and his brothers was £9OOO a-year; which
would educate 18,000 children. He lamented that Dr. Collins
was not present, or he would have called upon him to have
substantiated those allegations. He (Mr. Foster) now stated
that they were not only unfounded, but wholly untrue in every
point. With regard to himself, it was already upon the notes
of the commissioners, that he was appointed to the situation
which he now held a year and a half since; and that he was
nominated a member of the Common Council about two
years before that period ; and he could appeal to all pre-
sent whether he owed his election to the Common Chuncil,
or to any relationship in that body. His lamented predecessor
was as likely for life as he was at the time of his (Mr. Foster's)
election to the CounciL His youngest brother, John, at the
time of his own election, had been eight or nine years the sur-
veyor of the Corporation, receiving a salary, and other benefits
from the nature of his situation. At the time of his (the Town-
clerk's) election to the Common Council he had no relative or
interest in that body whatever, excepting so far as his father
having. been fifty years a servant of the Corporation, himself
being, during the whole of that period, a tradesman in the town
of Liverpool. And he ventured to state, that in the discharge
of those duties incumbent upon him in his calling. no man liv-
ing could say any thing in his disparagement. His father re-
tired from the service of the Corporation and the Dock Estate
in 1824, and died in 1827. He was, consequently, at a loss to
conceive in what way his father's name could have been con-
nected with his election to the Common Council, or his subse-
quent appointment to the situation of Town-clerk. The
commissioners had already heard that his brother William
had, since 1812, been in the service of the Dock Com-
mittee; and he was at a loss to know in what way his two
brothers, who, having been deemed worthy of the service of
the Corporation, had been connected in any way with his
appointment as Town-clerk. With regard to his last election,
which he considered to be the highest compliment he could re-
ceive as a professional man in the town of Liverpool, he could
state that the circumstance which had been imputed as the rea-
son for his election was the only reason he had heard from any
individuals adverse to his appointment. He was not without a
competitor for the situation ' • as a gentleman more qualifiedthan
himself, of high professional character in the town, had been a
candidate, but was not put in nomination. At the time of his,
(Mr. Foster's) election the litigation on the town dues had
been going forward a year and a half ; and he attributed to the
anxiety which his predecessor manifested on that subject,, that
complaint from which he never recovered ; and they would hear,
at a later period of his observations, that the cause of the trial of
the town dues question not coming on before February, 1832,
was first on account of the want of special jurymen. On ac-
count of the precarious state of Mr. Statham's health in the
month of March, .1832, he was requested by the Common
Council, with the concurrence of Mr. Statham, to prepare
himself to conduct that cause in the event of Mr. Statham's not
being able to do so. Upon Mr. Statham's death, in August
followingehe,yeas- himself inclined to believe t hateetbeseireasos--
stances of his having conducted the case previously led to his
good fortune in succeeding that gentleman more than any
other cause ; and that he did nut owe his election to the office
to any connexion or other interest in the Common Council than
having acted, to the best of his ability, for fifteen years before
as solicitor to the Dock Estate, from which office he conceived
his present situation was an undoubted promotion. Having
dismissed that part of the business, he need not recal to the
commissioners' recollection the emoluments he received in his
situation. They. were aware that he had no fixed salary beyond
one hundred ;.,sunaeas, for recording the minutes of the-Commoli
Council ; and the fees he received, whether large or small,
were only derived according to the extent of business he trans-
acted. He begged leave to say that he had not the slightest
feeling against any gentleman who, in the course of the 'lives-.
Ligation, might have been led to indulge in any personalities
against himself; as the situation which he filled naturally
exposed him to such remarks. With regard to the salaries of
his brothers,—the Surveyor received a salary of one thousand
pounds per annum ;—and his brother, the Secretary to the
Dock Estate, enjoyed a salary of five hundred pounds per
annum. He gave these statements by
.way of a denial of the
allegations of Dr. Collins, that they received £9OOO per annum
from the Corporation. (Cheers.) With regard to the present
inquiry, he assumed its functions to he directed to the existing
state Of the Common Council; and it might be divided into
three separate heads. The first was as ba the formation of the
Common Council; the second was the patronage they enjoyed;
and the third related to the funds of the Corporation, and their
expenditure. He had endeavoured to recollect all the notes
of the items that had been objected to in the expenditure of
the funds; the principal of which appeared to be in building
churches, subscribing to the King's College, in London; sub-
scriptions towards Mr. Canning's and Mr. Husk;sson's mono_
mentg, the subscription to the races, (objected to by Mr. San_
dars,) the picture of Mr. Case, which was hung in the rooms of
the council, and the expense of the chairs iu those rooms, objecthd
to by Colonel Williams. There had also been complaints made
with regard to the admission of freemen, and to the Wallasey
Pool purchase, upon which he should shortly have to say a few
words. With regard to St. Luke's church, they had had sufficient
explanation from the officers of the Corporatiou. He would
not waste their time with discussions respecting the price of the
chairs of the Corporation, (a laugh,) whatever the price may
.have been ; but he understood that the gallant colonel had
overstated their value. 'With regard to the portrait of Mr.
Case, the gallant colonel had stated that it cost £BOO. Now, he
would state, that Mr. Phillips, an artist of great eminence, for
his time and charge during the period of his stay in Liverpool
—the portrait being taken here, in consequence of the extreme
age of the gentleman—had received a suns which, including .the
splendid frame which the commissioners might have seen, a sum
of £3OO, and not £B9O. (Cheers.) The only. explanation, that
could be given for that curse which, in the opinion of Mr. San-
ders, hid been inflicted, was, that, at the commencement of
the Aintree races, the Common Council had given a sum of
money towards a plate to be run for; but it 'had never been
repeated since, and, for his own part, he hoped it never would.
He trusted the gentlemen he had the honour to address, when,
in fulfilling the duties of their commission they made a report
upon this inquiry, would be careful in alluding to the subject
of the races ;_for his Majesty was in the habit of giving plates
to be run for at all the races in the kingdom (a laugh). With
regard to the next item (Mr. Canidug's monument), as he de-
precated all remarks upon political subjects,—it, being no part
of the question to go into the politics of every one—he would.
content himself with remarking that in the estimation of all'
parties, Mr. Canning had been a faithful representative of the
town (loud cheers), and during that gentleman's stay in Liver-
pool, at the house of Mr. Gladstone, a deputation of gentlemen
of every political sentiment waited on him, on his relin-
quishing the representation of the town, to thank him for
the services rendered to the borough, which he (the Towns
clerk), deemed a sufficient apology for the Corporation
subscribing £5OO towardi his monument. With regard
to the other monument to the memory of the late Mr.
Iluskisson, he presumed that it was generally known that
that gentleman had the misfortune to lose his life, almost, it
might be said, in the service of the town ; as it was on the, oc-
casion of his coming down to the opening of that magnificent'
and unrivalled specimen of mechanical (genius, architectural
skill, and the spirit and enterprise of the inhabitants of Liver-
pool, the railway from hence to Manchester. It was also con-
sidered that the service rendered by Mr. Huskisson to the town
was scarcely second to those of Mr. Canning, and he had also
the satisfaction of receiving the thanks of all political parties-
in the town, which he (Mr. Foster) thought a sufficient apology
for subscribing towards Mr. Huskisson's monument; the sums
so given by the Corporation being, in each of those cases, por-
tions of general subscriptions of between three and four thou-
sand pounds. With regard to the subscription to the King's
College, he hoped that the remarks he might make would not
be taken as intending to convey any opinion upon what was
called the rival University. He was not a member of the Cones
mon Council when that subscription was made; but it was a
'matter of notoriety that that college was supported by the most
eminent prelates, and other distinguished divines and friends of
the Established Church; and he (the Town-clerk) was un-
willing to believe that it would be imputed to the Corporation
as a fault that they had contributed their funds in support of the
established religion of the country. He was not going to make
another remark applicable to the politics of the two universis
ties. The Corporation had subscribed only to one, in :copse-
quence of its connection with the established church of Eng-
land. (Cheers.) Another item in the expenditure objected to
was on the building of churches. The commissioners would be
aware that no money had been expended in that way, except
tinder the aethority of an act passed by the legislature of the
country. Referriug to the government of the borough, the
charter of King Charles, which framed the constitution of the
corporate body of Liverpool, was included in the charter of
William the 'Third. These charters declared that the town of
Liverpool should be a free borough, governed under the title
of the Mayor, Bailiffs, and Burgesses of the town of Liverpool;
and expressed that it should be sufficient in law to render them
capable of receiving dues and making hy-laws;—and that all
the privileges and immunities should become the property of
themselves and their successors in fee and for
power to the Corporation to purchase property. The charter
of William the Third confirmed the before-mentioned charter
of Charles;—and enjoined, that the Mayor, Baiiiffs, and
Burgesses should hold their privileges without hindeence :
the same to descend to their heirs in succession;—and that