The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1850-02-05 00:00:00

BOROUGH SESSIONS

The Quarter Sessions for the Borough were opened
yesterday, by T. Leicester Adolphus, Esq., in the absence
of the Recorder, who is at present suffering from indispo-
sition. The Calendar presents a longer list of criminals
than usual, there being one hundred and twenty-five in-
dictments for felony, and eleven for misdemeanour. The
following gentlemen were sworn of the

GRAND JURY.
Thomas Crichlow Molyneuk, iron merchant, Oxford-street,
Foreman.
John Beckwith, broker, Huskisson-street.
T. R. Bolton, merchant, Brunswick-street.
C. F. Carne, merchant, Everton-road.
E. Humble, gentleman, Blackburn-terrace.
R. Hutchinson, merchant, Old Church-yard.
John Harnett, corn broker, Fenwick-street.
William Imrie, merchant, Rumford-street.
E. T. Kearsley, coal agent, Shaw-street.
Jos. Myers, merchant, Exchange-alley North.
John Stringer, merchant, Tower-buildings.
Horatio J. Webster, broker. Rumford-street.
Thos. Sleigh, the younger, sharebroker, Exchange-alley East.
John Golding, the younger, sharebroker, Exchange-alley East.
John Lilley, merchant, Old Church-yard.
W. A. Keene, broker, Dale-street.
John Hammond Garston, merchant, Rumford-place.
Newman Swainson, broker, Stafford-street.
James Little, rectifier, Vernon-street.
James Gordon, hide broker, Percy-street.
The Learned CHAIRMAN then proceeded to address the
Grand Jury. He said it devolved on him, in the absence
of the Recorder, whom they probably knew was suffering
from illness,-to address to them a few words on the duty
they were about to enter upon. He was sorry to say the
calendar presented a long list of cases, but whether it was
longer in proportion to what was usual he was not able to
say ; though long, it was not one he apprehended that
would cause them much difficulty. It was grievous to see
so many of our fellow-subjects, and fellow-Christians,
continually passing their lives in committing crime, suffer-
ing punishment, returning to their evil course, and again
suffering for their offences. Such a state of things called
upon society, and the whole community, to institute some
means of effectually suppressing the growth of crime at
the outset, but until that could be done, their duty was
to administer the law as it stood. There was not
anything he need dwell upon ; he doubted not some of
them had performed that duty before, indeed if they had not
their intelligence and experience as men of the world and
men of business, would be quite adequate to meet the
cases which would come before them. The great majo-
rity of the cases would be found to turn upon circum-
stantial evidence ; now the law was, that when a person
is found in possession of property, very recently after its
being stolen, and the possessor is not able to give an ac-
count of the way in which he came by it, that person
must be deemed to have become dishonestly by it. There
was one instance in which the driver of a public carriage
was concerned ; goods had been left in his carriage, and
upon search was found in his possession; now, it was the
driver's duty to have found the owner, although if he had
been remiss in doing that, it did not immediately follow
that he was guilty ; but when it was known that after a
time he bad made use of the property, the case became
more serious. There was also a case in which an accom-
plice would be called to give evidence; the law was not
so clear in such cases, and he did not think it necessary
to perplex them with the points for consideration ; the
better course would be, to allow the case to come before
the court where it would be dealt with as the evidence
deserved. There was another case in which from the
depositions, it appeared a woman was charged with having
committed a very barbarous act upon a child while in a
state of intoxication. Intoxication, they knew, was no
excuse for crime ; persons in a state of intoxication were ,
not as might be supposed to be excused on the same plea
as a brute animal, unconscious of consequences ; they
were simply in a state of brutality of their own nature.
With these observations the grand jury were dismissed to
commence their duties

COURT OF PASSAGE.
CHARLES CROMPTON, Esq. the assessor, presided in
the court. There were seventy issues for hearing.

A QUESTION ANSWERED BY ITSELF

In remarking ution the debate on the address, the
Times affects to ridicule the assertion of Mr. Disraeli,
that the difference in prices under the operation of free-
trade has abstracted from the agricultural classes a sum
of £90,000,000, which our contemporary says rivals in
absurdity the complaint of the late Mr. O'Corinell, that
the union had lost to Ireland £60,000,000; and adds,—
" We really did not know that either had so much money
to lose. At all events, so enormous a displacement of
money must be visible. When the crest of a mountain
falls into a valley, it leaves a visible gap, and in its new
place it attracts double attention. Where is the gaping
void left by the £90,000,000 ? Where is its substantial
and palpable presence ?"
We will just remind the Times of the fact that Mr.
Villiers, the mover of the address, claims for free-trade
the credit of having saved for the people this precise
amount of £90,000,000. We repeat, therefore, the ques-
tion of our contemporary,—" Where is its substantial
and palpable presence ?" It is not in the pockets of the
labourers. The shopkeepers do not admit the receipt of
any portion of it. If the agriculturists have not lost it,
other classes cannot have gained it. Where is it then ?
Has it sunk into the earth, or where has it gone !

COMMERCIAL AND MONETARY REPORT,

Monday Night.
The Share Market has been quiet all week, not suffi-
cient business having been done to affect prices : their
tendency, however, has been slightly to recede. The
dealers are quite inactive—at present prices they will not
bear, while the meetings are so near at hand, and the pub-
lic doing so little, that they dare not buy. Our local
stocks are in good demand, a decided preference is now
given to them over railway shares. The meeting of the
Exchange Buildings has passed over satisfactorily, and a
dividend of £8 10s. declared ; Royal Banks are asked for,
both old and preference, at an advance. It is said the
Fire and Life meeting next week will be a very good one,
and that their old dividend of 101. and 7s. 6d. will be
paid ; these shares have advanced, the old to 335. 4d.,
and the new to 4 prem. The market to-day has been
rather unfavourably influenced by the advance in cotton,
and prices generally are lower ; the quotations of the day
are—East Lancashire, ilk ; Great Western, *s 16 ; Lan-
cashire and Yorkshire, 56 ; ditto Fifths, £7 lls. 3d. dis. :
ditto £32 s, 91 dis. • ditto West Ridings, 64- dis. ; Lon-
don Stock, 115 1 1
15 ; ditto Quarters, 11/2 8/9 3/8 6/3
3/8 8/9 1/2 ; ditto C Quarters, I+ : Midland Stock, 431 44
3+; ditto Halves, £23 13s. 9d. 5/8 13/9; Birmingham and
Derby, 21 •, St. Helens Preference, 31 dis. ; Dover No. 4,
61 11/3 ; Newcastle Preference, 5} dis. ; Union Bank, 10/
dis. ; Gas, Quarters, 43; Pacific Steam, 50 1.
The American steamer Canada arrived early this morn-
ing. The accounts by her of the cotton trade, as we fully
expected they would be, are highly exciting. The re-
ceipts for the fortnight were only 110,000 bales, and the
shipments 36,000. Prices were on the advance, and the
estimates of the crop were again reduced. At our market
to-day 10,000 bales have changed hands, half to specu-
lators, at an advance of Ad. to ld. per lb. The letters
were not received in Manchester till late, or, doubtless,
the business would have been much larger. On Saturday
8,000 bales were sold at firm prices.
There has been more inquiry for Produce generally the
last day or two, and since the circular on Friday 150 hhds.
Porto Rico Sugar have been sold at full rates. 3,000 bags
of white Brazil have also been taken by the grocers at rather
easier rates. In Tea little has occurred ; but Coffee has
been in more favour, and native Ceylon is worth 645.
Rice and Saltpetre are flat; 500 bags of the latter sold
to-day at 295. for E. I. refined. Rum is inquired for
at higher prices...

We quote the following remarks on the Silk trade from
the Eatt India circular of Messrs. T. and H. Littledale,
published this morning :—The arrivals of China Silk for
the past month are 2,800 bales, which has produced no
effect on this description of Silk. Prices are very firm,
and a steady demand from our own manufacturers, who
show great caution in all their purchases. In Bengal
Silks there has been more in qniry, and several parcels of
inferior quality (of which the present stock mostly con-
sists) have been disposed of at an advance of 6d. per lb. ;
and where the quality was in any way superior, is per lb.
has been obtained. In Italian, Brussa, and Persia Silk
there is no change in prices, all of which are low in stock.
Waste Silk continues scarce, and finds ready sale. Silk
Piece Goods, both East India and China, are in good de-
mand, and in most transactions at improved prices.
We mentioned, a week or two back, under this head,
the desirableness of modifying the duty on tea, by which
we contended that a two-fold purpose would be served,—
the encouragement of our Chinese trade, and the fur-
therance of a cheaper supply of that article to the large
class of consumers in this country. But we were not
prepared to go " the whole hog," with Messrs. Rathbone
and Co., and, for ourselves, would rather be without such
left-handed assistance as that afforded by these gentlemen
at the meeting, last week, at the Sessions house. What a
medley do they intend to place before the British Legis-
lature ! And while they go no farther than ourselves for
the modification of the duty on tea, they want the entire
duty taken off timber, soap, bricks, paper, and win-
dows. We have not time to enter into the relative
claims of these different items; and we think, when
this petition is laid before Parliament, the conglome-
ration of ideas which such a presentation must suggest
will be quite sufficient to send the useless parchment to
oblivion. Soap and timber ! Bricks and paper ! Tea
and windows ! Heaven help the dullards. A Saturday
contemporary appears to have become unusually
bright on the occasion ; but as he generally uses his pen
as a blind man would a flail, he falls foul of the most
innocent item of the budget with unmitigated violence.
He denounces tea as a " fanciful article," the consump-
tion of which " depends upon fashion," and tells us that,
if you remove the duty, our merchants will import "trash,
rubbish, vegetable manure, the dried leaves of every
hedge and tree in China." That is to say, that those
numerous employes of our merchant houses, who follow
almost exclusively the occupation of judging teas, would
lose their senses, and declare their occupation gone.
Now, we hold that, so far from " trash," &c., being
imported, the comparative cheapness of an article of a
superior quality would render the importation of inferior
descriptions of much rarer occurrence than at the present
time. And with regard to the " fashion " of the thing :
ask the toil-worn sempstress, whose weary hours of labour
are supported by " the cup which cheers," &c., if she
drinks it for fashion sake ; ask the multitudes of the
poorest of our population, whose only luxury consists of
the smallest modicum of tea which their scanty means
can procure, if they drink it because it is the fashion.
The answer need not be recorded.

All parties interested in the Grain markets appear to
have become perfectly resigned to the still predominant
feature of that department of trade, both English and
Irish markets continuing to decline. We have perused a
large collection of circulars, of the latest date, arrived in
Liverpool this morning, and in not one of them is there
to be found anything like a speculative opinion as to fu-
ture prospects. In our local trade, no quotable change in