The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1833-05-28 00:00:00

ABOLITION OF SLAVERY.

The following plan for the immediate extinction of
slavery, so oas to be "safe and satisfactory " to all parties,
has been sent us by an intelligent merchant of this
town, and we have much pleasure in submitting it to our
readers. It is under the consideration of the West India
Committee in London.
"To be satisfactory, the owners of that species of property
must be paid for it.
"To be safe, a certain degree of controul must continue to be
exercised for, say -years over the persons intended to be
benefited.

"Ist.—Let a sum of say £25,000,000 be raised by govern-
ment to reimburse the owners of the slaves.
" 2d.—Let a law be passed making all slaves free on or after
the Ist of January, IK3I, subject to conditions to be detailed
hereafter.

"3d.—Let the slaves be indentured to officers appointed by
government, as apprentices for years, or enrolled for a
given time under regulations somewliat similar to those ex-
isting in our army and navy ;—some of the enactments con-
tained in the vagrant act and poor laws of this country would
be found applicable to the black peasantry.
"Let the different parishes be subdivided into sections, in
each of which a certain number of liegistry-offices shoukl be
established, governed by a Government-officer, and when a
planter requires labourers let him apply to these officers, or con-
tract with them for the supply, paying to the officer a sum per
diem, weekly, or so much for the performance of a certain
quantity of work, what is called the task system.
" It should be obligatory upon government to furnish to the
owners of the soil a certain quantity of labourers for the culti-
vation of it, on receiving a reasonable remuneration for the per-
formance of a reasonable portion of daily labour. Without
labour a freehold is valueless, and the proprietor ruined. With-
out the necessity of labouring, the negro himself would relapse
into a state of *barbarism. A proprietor of one hundred slaves
should be guaranteed the labour of not less than forty and not
exceeding sixty free labourers before selling his slaves.
"The slaves now residing in houses and in possession of lands
upon their masters' estates should be permitted to remain there
on their paying a weekly or monthly sum as rent, provided they
continue to tbork upon that estate.
" A portion of the money received for their labour should be
applied towards a sinking fund for the liquidation of the money
advanced for the redemption of slaves
" Another portion towards a fund for the support of the aged,
infirm, and poor, and the establishment of schools, &c.
"The remainder towards their own support, say for food, cloth-
ing, rent, medical aid, &c. &c., giving money to the careful and
provident negroes only, and exercising a proper and beneficial
control over the expenditure of those who are not so; in short,
behaving as a father of a family would be disposed to do towards
his younger children.
" Such are the heads of my plan. It will not be necessary to
go into details, unless the principles are recognised and seem
acceptable.
Liverpool, 25th May, 1833.

ADJOURNMENT OF THE Assizus.—We trusttharno longtime
will now elapse before the inhabitants of Manchester and Liver-
pool will have justice administered at their own doors instead of
having to seek it at Lancaster, at an enormous cost of time and
money to themselves, their witnesses, and the jurors who try
their causes. The bill " for the aitpointment of convenient
places for the holding of assizes in England and Wales," has
now passed the House of Commons, and we trust will speedily
become the law of the land. We may then be quite sure that
the present ministers will lose no time in carrying it into effect
in Lancashire, where the inconveniences of the present system
are more grievous than in any other county in the kingdom.
The bill, which is very short, enacts that his majesty, with the
advice of his privy council, shall have power to order and direct
at what place or places in any county in England or Wales the
assizes shall be holden for the despatch of civil and criminal bu-
siness; to direct, either that the civil and criminal cases shall
both be tried at more than one place in the same county on the
same circuit; or that the civil cases shall be tried at more than
one place, and the criminal cases at one place only. The se-
cond section gives power to make such regulations respecting
the attendance of jurors, and the alteration of writs, precepts,
and other proceedings, as may be necessary for carrying into
effect the purposes of the act. The third section gives power to
make the necessary changes with respect to the court of com-
mon pleas. at Lancaster. As oue of the first proceedings under
this act will, doubtless, be the holding assizes for the hundred of
Salford, in this town, it is very desirable that public attention
should be turned to providing suitable courts for the transaction
of civil and criminal business. Now we have been informed
that the magistrates for the hundred are making arrangements
for erecting a second court-house at the New Bailey, with the
view of holding two courts during the quarter sessions. If this
statement is correct, we trust the magistrates will not lose sight
of the measure now before Parliament; and that they will take
dare to construct their second court in such a manner, and of
such dimensions, as will make it suitable for the transaction of
one part of the business of the assizes. We are aware that ob-
jections have been felt by some of the magistrates to the appro-
priation of any part of the buildings of the New Bailey to local
purposes; but those objections will not apply in the slightest
degree to the holding of the assizes there. The buildings have
been erected at the expense of the hundred, and will, therefore,
be most properly applied to purposes in which all the inhabi-
tants of the hundred are interested.—Manchester Guardian.
FIRE poracE.—The destructive fire which took place, on
Friday night will, we trust, stimulate the Commissioners of the
Watch to mature the plan they are understood to have under
consideration for the establishment of a fire-police. The engines
belonging to the respective insurance-offices are not so efficient
for the suppression offires as the frequency of such accidents in
this town renders advisable. An establishment at the public
expense would be much more efficient, and it ought to be formed
without delay. The Mayor, who takes a lively interest in the
subject, has, we hear, applied to the prop rietors of the Leeds
and Liverpool Canal, to ascertain how far they would bein-
clined to go in supplying reservoirs in the vicinity of the canal
with water; a point to which public attention was, a few months
ago, forcibly drawn by Mr. Thomas More. The application
will, we understand, be taken into consideration at the next
meeting of the committee.

MEC Hi/ICS' INSTITUTE.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD.

Sin,—I am sorry to observe that you have lent your columns
to the discussion of such a subject as the Liverpool Mechanics'
Institute, when a few lines from your pen would have put an
end to all controversy, by displaying the merits of the In-
stitute in their true light.
The Directors, it seems, ask the Corporation for the grant of
a piece of ground upon which to erect a building;—thus mo-
destly assuming the approval and patronage of the magistracy
of this town in behalf of the undertaking. Who are the Di-
rectors ? What qualifications do they possess for becoming
instructors of the public ; and especially of that portion of the
public most easily deluded, and whose education should, there-
fore, be carefully guarded from any injurious bias either in
science or religion? We are to be sure in some measure ac-
quainted with the learning and scientific attainments of the
heads of the Institute,—the public having been occasionally fa-
voured with some very elaborate and amusing specinacus, said
to have been slelivered from the chair. But withmit meaning
to disparage the' respectability of those gentlemen, I would as
you, sir, to look at the Directors as a body. I say nothing of
theiz being "to fame unknown." but spill any unpreaudiced
man say, that (with two or perhaps three exceptions) it.Pfrom
such persons that the mechanics arid the mechanics' children
of this town are to `receive useful instruction--education-der
from mischievous theories and deistical taint.
Lectures, publicly delivered, are it seems the short cut which
this learned body have discovered for attaining a complete
knowledge of science. Books and elementary study are ex-
ploded to make way for the new system, which fills the mind of
the youthful or adult mechanic with vague and unintelligible
crudities, while self-conceit aids the purpose of the Lecturer in
persuading the pupil that he is becoming a proficient in philoso-
phy. Every body acquainted with the subject knows that most
commonly what arc called " popular lectures " are little else
than mountebank exhibitions.
The system, like the name (Institute) is borrowed from a
neighbouring country, where education, so called, has ,been
made the insidious instrument of demoralizing and degrading
those whom it professed to benefit and exalt. By recent statis-
tical returns it appears that . crime prevails most in the depart-
ments of France, where the Population is said to be most en-
lightened. The instruction of the humbler classes of the com-
munity has already engaged much of public attention, and I
trust that ere long the benefits of education may be dispensed
to the great body of our people by these to whom an object of
such vast importance may be sately entrusted. In the mean-
time, I hope, that the Corporation will at least deliberate before
they decide in favour of .the application from the Directors of
the Mechanics' Institute--I am, &c.
A CONSTANT READER,

It is stated that the Commander-in-Chief in Bengal has re-
signed, and that. Lord William. Bentiuck has assumed the funo;'
tions.of that 'office' with those of Coveruor-General. Some of
the newspapers state that Lord Wellesley held both offices.—
This never could happen. because Lord 'Wellesley is not a mi-
litary man. Lord Hastings did. The Civil Governor-General
of India, by his commission of Captain-General, is always vir-
tually the commander of the army, but not practically so.

LAW AND .POLICE.

COURrOF COMMON PLEAS.
DE BEGNIS T. ARMISTEAD.

.....
This action was brought by the plaintiff, the celebrated opera
singer, to recover £167, the amount of a bill of exchange, given
by the defendant, the proprietor of the amphitheatre at Liver-
pool. Th e cause was tried before Mr. Justice Gaselee at the
London Sittings iu last Term, when a verdict passed for the
plaintiff for the amount of the bill, with £5 15s. 6d. interest.—
The facts of the case' were shortly these :—The plaintiff entered
into an arrangement with Mr. Armistead in the Month of Au-
gust, 18.31, to hire the amphitheatre for a certain number of
nights, for the purpose of performing operas, dancing, &c., he
finding the opera singers and their dresses, and Mr. Armistead
furnishing the dancers and their dresses. The profits.were to be
equally divided, and each party was to have a benefit night.—
The undertaking proved unsuccessful, as also did a similar one
at Manchester. At the conclusion of the arrangement the de-
fendant gave the bill in question, Signor de Begnis agreeing to
represent similar performances in the following autumn. The
Signor, however, afterwards retracted his promise, on the ground
that the theatre. was unlicensed, and that, therefore the per-
formances would be unlawful. The defendent then feeling hurt
at the infringement of the contract, as the plaintiff was aware of
the theatre being Unlicensed then, by a clause in the agreement
to protect him from the penalty, resisted the payment of the bill,
on the ground, that as the performances were unlawful, it was
given for an illegal consideration, and was therefore invalid.
The plaintiff contended that it was not given, as connected
with the performances, but for money actually disbursed; and
on that issue the question went to the jury, who found for the
plaintiff.
On a former day Mr. Serjeant Jones obtained a rule Nisi to
set aside the verdict, or to reduce it to £3O money which had
been laid out in the travelling account of Venefra, one of the
singers' on the ground that the verdict was against evidence,
and also that a bill given for thisillegal performance was in-
valid.
Mr. Serjeant Wilde and Mr. Serjeant Spankie to-day showed
cause, and contended that the hill was given for money actually
expended.
Mr. Serjeant Ludlow, who was with Mr. Serjeant Jones, was
heard in reply.
The Court deferred giving judgment as to the £l2O, which
formed part of the bill, and was connected with the dresses, &c.,
as they had a doubt about it, and there were some cases bearing
upon the point to which they wished to refer.