The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-05-03 00:00:00

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMITTEES

(From the Cambridge Chronicle.)
" Talk of an inquisition under the income tax, indeed !"
says the Standard—and the Standard is right—" Why that
at worst only ascertains what a man has, and stops there.
But the House of Commons committee would go farther;
it would extract also the ' how came lie by it.' ,' The South-
ampton election committee gave occasion for this remark.
Mr. Fleming was examined as a witness on the petition
against the conservative members for Southampton, whose
seats were attacked on the ground of bribery. It appeared
that Mr. Fleming had been applied to on account of an in-
sufficiency of the election fund to cover the expenses in-
curred ; and six weeks after the return was made be col-
lected £5OO amongst his friends and paid it into the bank at
Southampton. The charge against the sitting member was
that of bribery, therefore it is difficult to conceive how the
payment into bank of £5OO six weeks after bribery could
have been committed, could in any way affect the question
at issue. The whole inquiry as to this £5OO seems totally
irrelevant. But the counsel for the petitioners wanted to
carry his inquisition somewhat further. He was not content
with learning that Mr. Fleming had collected £5OO, but he
must needs know •` how he came by it." Mr. Fleming,
however, being a man of honour and a man of spirit, too, as
we can testify, refused to satisfy liberal curiosity. He saw
at once that the question was pressed for party, and not for
legal, purposes. "It would be derogatory," he said, "to
the man of honour and a gentleman to betray the names of
parties from whom he had confidentially received the money ;
and, especially as such betrayal could have nothing whatever
to do with the subject under investigation, he would not, be
the consequences what they might, give up the names of his
friends."
This terrible contumacy was reported to the House ; Mr.
Fleminc, was " had up •" and, after a discussion, the Speaker
informed' the honourable member that he must answer the
question as to the " how he came by" the cash.
The termination of the farce is worth recording, if only to
show the " lame and impotent conclusion" which may at-
tend even House of Commons' anger. We quote from the
report of last wednesday's proceedings before the commit-
tee :
" Mr. Fleming, M.P., was called in. The hon. member
stated that he certainly raised £5OO towards the subscription
for the Conservative candidate, but upon his honour that
sum was raised by him for the express purpose of defraying
the legal and necessary expenses of the election. He did not
receive the money from the Carlton Club.
" Mr. Cockburn said, as the hon. member had stated that
he paid over the subscription for defraying the legal ex-
penses of the election, he would not press for an answer to
the question he put yesterday.
`'The hon. member then left the committee room."
On the same day another damper was put upon the inqui-
sitorial curiosity of the petitioning party. It is amusing
enough to justify us in laying it before our readers :
" Mr. Baring called in and examined.—My name is Henry
Bingham Baring.
" Mr. Serjeant Shee.-1 believe you subscribed £lOO to-
wards the expenses of the late election at Southampton.
" Mr. Baring.—No I did not.
" Mr. Serjeant Shee.—How much did you subscribe ?
" Mr. Baring.— Not one single farthing. (Laughter.)
" Mr. Serjeant Shee.—l think, Sir. we have summoned
the wrong gentleman. (Laughter.) It is Mr. Francis Bar-
ing that we want. (Laughter.)
" Mr. Talbot.—Why Mr. Francis Baring is the ex-Chan-
cellor of the Exchequer. (Laughter.)
" Mr. Cockburn.—lt is not very likely that be would sub-
scribe to a subscription of the kind we are inquiring into.
(Laughter.)
" Mr. Serjeant Shee.—ls there not a gentleman named
Frederick Baring?
" Mr. Baring.—Yes ; and he resides near the seat of Lord
Ashburton, in the neighbourhood of Southampton. Neither
I nor any branch of my family that I am aware contributed
one shilling towards the expenses of the last election at
Southampton.
" Mr. Serjeant Shee.—l shall ask the gentleman no further
questions, and am sorry he should have had the trouble to
attend.
" Mr. Baring (smiling).—Oh, Sir, it has been no trouble.
(A laugh.)"

STATE OF TRADE

LEEDS.—The past has been an extremely dull week as re-
gards trade, though the weather has during the last ten days
been truly splendid for the season. The transactions in the
cloth halls have scarcely equalled those of the previous week,
and there has, if anything, been rather less activity in the
warehouses. Indeed, the general opinion seems to be that
nothing of any moment will be done until the new tariff has
come into operation; and many persons are disposed severely
to censure those members of the opposition in parliament
who have interposed to delay the passing of the ministerial
budget.—Leeds Intelligencer, of Saturday.
BRADFORD MARKET,—The demand for manufactured
goods at this market, on Thursday, was extremely dull. Both
buyers and sellers seemed to anticipate an early improve-
ment, and therefore pi ices underwent little change. In the
yarn market purchases were about the same as last week, and
at similar rates ; but the wool market was flat, except as to
the demand for good super and fine qualities, and there was
little doing in noils and shorts.—lbid.

HOSIERY AND LACE TRADES.—The Derby turn-out has
not yet ended. The Nottingham workmen are more zealous
than ever in the matter, and the amount of subscriptions
sent to Derby last week was increased considerably. We
have cherished the hope that the plain silk hose branch,
once the main support of Nottingham, would further retro-
grade in demand ; this, we are sorry to say, is not the case,
as many of the hands who have hitherto had full work have
got notice that they shall be stinted in their employment.
We are glad to perceive that two very important new manu-
factures have arisen in Nottingham within the few last
months, which, if properly attended to, will have the most
important results. One is to make figured nettings from
both the bobbin and warp machines, in imitation of the net-
work made by the skewers on the principle of fish nets. By
the other new manufacture, laces are made upon an entire
new principle, having the main ground composed of close
linen work and the flower of open work. All hands and all
heads ought to be directed to this new manufacture, which
offers a fresh and important field to the mechanic and manu-
facturer.—lbid.
MANCHESTER.—LittIe or no alteration has taken place in
the goods market since our last report. A fair amount of
business is doing, and prices stationary, as the manufactu-
rers appear determined not to submit to any further reduc-
tion ; and the buyers are equally firm, and refuse to give
even the slightest advance upon the extremely low prices
that have been current for too long a period. The Yarn
market is rather more brisk, and prices are without change.
Some few of the country houses have ben
very busy,
although the drapers buy with great caution, but confess
that stocks in the country are very light. Power-loom prin,-
ters may he quoted, 66's, 27-inch, 4s. 3d. to 4s. 9d. ; and 72 s
4s. 71d. to ss. 3d.—Advertiser, of Saturday.
OLDHAM.—The power-loom weavers of three or more of
the largest cotton manufactories are entirely without work,
solely owing to the depressed state of the trade- At one
increase
in mill the spinners have struck work, to resist an
in labour, unaccompanied by an increase of wages. The
have
been of the spinners at several of the cotton mills
been reduced to the extent of 6d. per 1,000 hanks. The
operative hatters are seriously distressed. owing to the short-
ness of work, and they have been partially subjected to
abatements of wages, &c.—lbid.

There are calculated to be 18.000,000 barrels of oats in
merchants' stores in this city.—Limerick Chronicle.
ORIGIN OF THE WORD " BOTHER•"—The word bother
was first used by a sergeant, who, being exposed to the volu-
bility of two Irishmen, one at each ear, cried, " Don't both
ear me." Hence the verb, to bother.
DEATII OF BUNGAREE, THE PUGILIST.--Intelligence was
received in London on Saturday at the various sporting
houses, that Bungaree, the Australian pugilist, who con-
tended in a pugilistic encounter on Wednesday last at New-
market, with John Broome, for £3OO aside, expired at ten
o'clock on Friday night, at a public-house six miles from the
place of contest, from the effects of the dreadful punishment
he received.

IRON WIRE BRIDGE.—It is strange that the plan of
making bridges of iron wire, so successfully adopted in Swit-
zerland, France, and elsewhere abroad, should not yet have
found favour enough in England to be fairly tried on the
large scale. The noble bridge at Freyburg, in Switzerland, is
301 feet wider than the Menai Bridge, and though it consists
of one span, it is at least equally strong, and cost only a fifth
part of the money. The wire bridge of Freyburg is 870
English feet span ; that of Menai 569. The Menai Bridge
cost £120,000, that of Freyburg, £2s,ooo.—Patchwork, by
Capt. Basil Hall,