The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-12-06 00:00:00

CONCERT AT THE PORTICO.-13y the advertisement else-
where it will he noticed that a concert will be given at the
Portico, on Wednesday, a daughter of Mr. George, onlyfire
years old, will appear as performer on the accordion. We
have been given to understand that she is an extraordinary
player, and as an instrumentalist quite equal to " the Sappho"
as a singer. The bill of fare is attractive.
CHEAP BEEF !-A butcher in Oxford-road, Manchester,
announces this week, that he sells " prime cuts of beef at
4,1 d per lb." Fivepence, we believe, has been the average
price for some weeks past for good joints from well-fed beasts.
How is it, we ask, that we hear of this cheap butcher's meat
in every market round us, whilst in this town we have still to
pay for prime roasting beef, id a lb.

THE INFANT SAPPIIO.—This little lady has bad several
performances since we last noticed her, and various tributes
of admiration have greeted her from all quarters. On Friday
night a gentleman who has witnessed nearly every performance
of the Sappho, paid her the compliment of throwing over her
neck a rich gold medal, bearing the following inscription :
" Presented to the Infant Sappho, L. V., as an humble token
of the admiration created by her extraordinary musical talent,
by J. Cohan, November, 1842."
NEW PATENTS.—Amongst the new patents published in
Newton and Berry's List for December, are the following :
To Matthew Gregson, of Toxteth-park , Liverpool, Esq., for
improvements applicable to the sawing or cutting of veneers,
being a communication. To Richard Bevan, of Liverpool,
wine-merchant, for certain arrangements connected with the
circulation of steam, employed in pipes or tubes, for pro-
ducing heat, and the application of such arrangements to
various purposes. To Thomas Wrigley, of Bridge Hall
Mills, Bury, Lancashire, paper-manufacturer, for certain
improvements in machinery for manufacturing paper.
ROBBERY IN A CELLAR.—A woman, named Catherine
Burke, was placed at the bar of the Police-court, yesterday,
on a charge of having committed a robbery in the cellar of
police-officer Hough, No. 490, who resides in Canning-place,
Clive-street. It appeared that the inmates left the cellar on
Saturday night, about twenty minutes to eight o'clock, and
returned before nine ; in the meantime, the shutter of the
coal cellar had been removed, and the drawers ransacked of
a new cloth cloak, two dresses, and a boy's coat. The thieves
had effected their escape by the coal cellar door, from which
they had entered. The same evening the prisoner pledged
the dresses and the coat with Mr. Aaron, pawnbroker, in
Park-lane, to whom she gave a wrong address. In defence
she said that a man had given the articles to her to pledge.
She was committed for trial at the sessions.

THE FUNDS, SATURDAY EVENING.—The news received
by telegraphic despatch came too late in the city to have any
effect upon the stock markets, though it is viewed ac favour-
able. At the Stock-Exchange there were no operations of
magnitude to notice. The English securities remain steady
at yesterday's currency. Consols for the opening left off 93-,7
to 94 ex, div. ; Exchequer-bills' 50s. to 525. prem. ; Bank
Stock, 171,1 ; Three per Cents. Reduced, 94-',l- to .3 ; Three-
and-a-Half per Cents. Reduced, 1001 to 1 ; Long Annuities,
12 9-16 to ; India Bonds, 45 to 47 prem. ; South Sea Stock,
India Stock, and the New Three-and-a-Half per Cents., are
declared shut, preparatory to the payment of the several half-
yearly dividends. The speculative foreign stocks are very
firm. Although very little business was transacted during
the day, Spanish Actives closed 181 to - ; ditto Three per
Cents., 2:g to 1 ; Portuguese Five, per Cnts., 87!1} to 81 ;
ditto Three per Cents., 224: to 23 ; Brazilian, 661 to 67 ;
Belgian, 102 to -1 ; Colombian, 211 to ; Dutch Txo-and-a-
Half per Cents., 52k to ; ditto Five per Cents., 1011 to k ;
Danish, 83 to 83 ; and Mexican, 301 to 31.
THE COLLISION IN THE RIVER.—On Friday last, an
inquest was held before Mr. Curry, the borough coroner,
touching the death of John Brown, the sailor, who (as stated
in the STANDARD of Friday) was passenger on board the
Royal Victoria when the collision took place between that
vessel and the Prince of Wales, in the Mersey, on Wednesday
night. After evidence had been adduced to prove the facts,
which were precisely as stated in our last, the coroner said,
he had a doubt that the case could legally come within his
jurisdiction at all, as there was a doubt that the part of the
river in which the accident had occurred came within the
jurisdiction of the borough of Liverpool. He would, there-
fore, adjourn the inquest till Monday, and in the meantime
forward the depositions to Sir James Graham, in order to
learn from him if he (the coroner) could act in the matter,
and he would fix upon the above day either to go on with the
evidence, or to state where it would be taken, if it did not
come within his jurisdiction. The case was then accordingly
adjourned.

MATRIMONIAL HOAX.--The whole neighbourhood of
Edge-hill were quite in a state of excitement on Saturday
morning by what now turns out to be a hoax upon two ladies
keeping a school in that neighbourhood,oneofwhom was shortly
to have been married. On Saturday morning, at nine o'clock,
three or four coaches, the postillions in scarlet livery, gal-
loped up to the gates of the house, and there awaited orders
from within. After remaining for some time, much to the
amusement and interest of the gossipers of the neighbour-
hood, orders were sent out that it was a mistake, the lady
was not going to be married. But this was not satisfactory
to the gentlemen in scarlet; they persisted in it that they
were ordered to take a wedding party to St. Jude's, or Ever-
ton, and they must obey orders, thus skewing themselves to
be proper disciplinarians, and fit to command a regiment of
horse. Matters remaining in this position for some time, it
seemed to become almost an absolute necessity that one of
the fair ones (aged 35 and 60,) should be married. But be-
ing imperative, and no gentleman having made his appear-
ance, the coachmen were at last induced to withdraw. We
believe there is some groundwork for the hoax in the fact
that a French lady, one of the parties keeping the school,
was to have been married shortly to a gentleman of high re-
spectability, but from some unaccountable whim or caprice,
for which her countrywomen are rather famed, the lady sud-
denly changed her mind and refused to proceed further in
the matter.

THE LATE ACCIDENT ON THE BIRKENHEAD RAILWAY.
—On Saturday last the prisoner John Mooton, who had been
remanded on a charge of placing a piece of timber on the
Chester and Birkenhead Railway, with a view of throwing
the mail train off the line, and thereby endangering the lives
of her Majesty's subjects, was brought up for final examina-
tion before J. N. Harden, Esq., at the Birkenhead Police
Court. There was some further evidence adduced respecting
the impressions of the boots of the prisoner on the ground
adjoining the spot where the accident happened, and William
Dixon, the driver of the engine at the time of the collision,
gave a more detailed account of the collision, from which it
appeared that the shock to the train had thrown both him
and the fireman down, but without doing them any other in-
, jury. Mr. A. Yarrow, the engineer to the company, also
stated that-the sleeper was placed in such a position that if it
had only been four inches in the ground, it would have stood
at an angle of 45 degrees ; but it would seem, from his state-
ment, that the ground was quite soft in that place, and the
engine had driven the timber four feet into the ground, or
most probably the machinery would have been broken to
pieces, and the fire scattered among the third class passen-
gers, of whom there were about thirty in the train that even-
ing. The prisoner being asked what he had to say, made a
long statement as to where he was that evening, and added,
that he had been at the place the day previous to the acci-
dent, which would account for his footsteps being at the
place. He called one witness, but his testimony did not
materially alter the case against him. He was then commit-
ted for trial.

SUBSCRIPTION CONCERTS.—We perceive that a list for
a series of subscription concerts is about to be commenced.
They are to be held at the Royal Assembly-rooms, under
the able management of Mr. Elliston.
TOXTETII-PARK PROTESTANT OPERATIVE ASSOCIATION.
—The monthly meeting of this association was held on Mon-
day week, in Toxteth-hall, when John Sheppard, Esq., oc-
cupied the chair. After a prayer had been offered up by the
Rev. Mr. Hill, the chairman made some very appropriate ob-
servations, arid the meeting was subsequently addressed by
the Rev. Messrs. Nolan, Falloon, and Butler, and Richard
Harbord, Esq. Resolutions were passed expressive of the
opinion that increased exertions are necessary to obtain a
parliamentary inquiry into Maynooth College, and that a pe-
tition should be adopted by the meeting, and intrusted to the
members for the borough for presentation. The meeting was
a very crowded one ; and we learn that as a larger room can-
not be obtained, it is in contemplation to erect a sufficiently
commodious building for the purposes of these meetings, and
we understand that a subscription is already on foot, and we
hope will be very liberally responded to.
THEATRE-ROYAL.—The following paragraph, which has
appeared in the Manchester Guardian, is, we are informed,
a disgraceful tissue of misstatements : we are requested to
give it an unqualified denial in every particular We re-
gret to learn, that, for the last fortnight, such has been the
state of the treasury' of the Liverpool theatre, that the
performers generally have found themselves, at the close of
the week, sans salary. The theatre closes at the end of this
week, till Christmas, after the worst season ever remembered
in Liverpool, the loss exceeding, it is said, £2,000 ; and the
whole of the company will thus be, during five weeks, with-
out a farthing of salary. For some weeks they have been
dividing the receipts, as we see, by the London papers, is to
be the plan till Christmas at Covent-garden; but the Liver-
pool company have been in the predicament, under this plan,
of having nothing to divide."

LAUNCH OF Two IRON VESSELS.—On Saturday last, two
iron vessels were launched from Mr. Laird's building-yard,
North Birkenhead, the one, a brig of 220 tons measurement,
(appropriately called " The Guide,") constructed for the
Hon. East India Company, as a pilot vessel for the Bay of
Bengal ; and the other a light-ship of 200 tons, named " The
Prince," for the Liverpool Dock Trust. This is the first
application of iron in the construction of vessels for the
above purposes, and, as the East India Company have had
iron vessels at work for the last twelve years, and both they
and the Dock Trustees did not decide on building the pilot
brig and light-ship of iron until the advantage and disad-
vantages of the material had been repeatedly and fully dis-
cussed, there is every reason to expect that they will both
answer the purpose for which they are intended, and open
another and very extensive field for the introduction of iron-
built ships.
SERVANTS' SWEETHEARTS.—OH Friday week, Mr. W.
Hindley, of Nile-street, received an anonymous letter, stating
that his servant girls were in the habit of allowing men to go
into the house through the bacleitcror during the time the fa-
mily were at supper. In consequence of this information he
began to examine his larder, and found that his preserves,
brandy, &c., were disappearing rather more quickly than he
thought they ought to do. O Wednesday evening he ap-
plied at the police-office to have two men stationed near his
house. His request was granted, and the officers had not
waited long before they saw three men enter by the back door.
They went to the front of the house and gave information to
Mr. Hindley, who found Robert Meacock in the kitchen,
and a person, named Owen Jones, fondling the dog, evidently
with the view of keeping it quiet,—The two men were marched
off to brideweil in charge of the police, and on last Thursday
morning, when they were brought up before Mr. Rusbton,
Mr. Hindley, jun., appeared and stated the case. After he
had been heard, Mr. Rushton said, " Where are the maids ?"
Mr. Hindley.—Oh, my father turned all three of them out of
the house this morning. Mr. Rushton.—There is no doubt
the servants let them in. The men must be discharged. Mr.
Hindley.—My father did not wish them to be punished, but
only to give them a night's lodging, and he is desirous of
knowing whether he will be compelled to pay them their
wages. Mr. Rushton.—That will depend upon the contract
with them, and whether they were allowed to see their friends
in the house. Mr. Hindley.—l believe not. Mr. Rushton.
—Well, the learned Commissioner of the Court of Requests
will decide that point for you.

HIGHWAY ROBBERY AND ATTEMPT TO MURDER, NEAR
ST. HELEN'S.—For a few years past, the neighbourhood of
St. Helen's has been infested by a gang of most desperate
ruffians, who place in jeopardy the lives and property of the
inhabitants. They are a very formidable set, consisting of
about forty or fifty, and have received and are well known by,
the cognomen of the " Long Company." It is only about
twelve months ago that Mr. Grayson was waylaid on the
road to his own house at Rainford, and cruelly murdered on
the highway. On Saturday last, a respectable young far-
mer, named Basnett, was on his way from Ecclestou to
Rainford, when two men sprung from behind a hedge, and
struck at him. Being a powerful man he returned the blows,
and was getting the advantage of the fellows, when two
others rushed upon him. He still kept his ground, and
struck out right and left, retreating backwards all the time,
until he fell into a ditch. One of the ruffians then called
out, " Cut the —'s throat." Mr. Basnett then felt one
of the party draw a knife across his neckerchief, and make
several cuts about his neck, whilst another emptied his
pockets of about two pounds in silver and gold. After
otherwise severely handling him, the fellows ran off, and the
young man reached home he knows not how. The robbery
was committed near the residence of the late Mr. Grayson.
It appears also that Mr. Basnett called at Arnold's beer-
house, on his road home, where he saw a number of the
" Long Company," including the parties acquitted on a
charge of murdering Mr. Grayson, and there is no doubt
that after he left the house the fellows followed and waylaid
him. On examining his clothes in the morning, he found a
long cut, as with a sharp instrument, down the right breast
of his coat, and on his left breast there were several stabs.
His neckerchief was also cut in several places, whiph leaves
no doubt of the intention of the villains who attaphed him.
The robbery took place about twelve o'clock.