The Liverpool Standard, and General Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-08-22 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR OF THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD

SIR,—At the meeting

the Health Committee last week,

it was stated that there was a nuisance resulting from the
burial of the dead in St. John's Chas cliyard,. and that the
coffins Nvere not covered with earth to the extent required by
lavt—two•feet six inches. I beg to give to such statement the

most unqualitlsd denial, as ever since the act, stiet. c. 44,
1842, such requirements have been most scrupulously at-
tended to. I beg further to add, that there is a large space
of ground (about-350square yards) in which not a single inter-
taken place, and that ground is now being used.
WM. FOULKES, Sexton of St. Johs'il.

ment has ye

21st Aug. 1854

MUSIC AND THE DRAMA,

AT THE THEATRE-ROYAL, during the past week, the•
performances have been. cleverly supported and well at-
tended. On Tuesday evening, the English version of
Moliere's " Tartuffe" was- repeated ; and, as on the previous
occasion, the fine acting-of Miss Woolgar, Madame Celeste,
Mr. B. Webster, aided by the judiciously-applied talent of
Mr. Baker, rendered the.piece highly effective. The new
and popular melo-drama of " The Thirst for Gold, or the
Sea of Ice," was produced on Wednesday, and repeated on
Saturday. Its effects are broad, startling; and brilliant ;
and 'it was well received on both occasions. On Friday
evening the lively and interesting piece," Green Bushes,"
was produced for the benefit of Madame Celeste. It was
admirably performed, to a crowded and fashionable audi-
ence. The Miami of Madame Celeste was in all respects
a charming and highly-effective piece of acting ; and the
Nelly O'Neil of Miss Woolgar was delightfully merry
and spirited. As Wild Murtagh, Mr. F. L. Villiers
acquitted himself in capital style. From the encourage-
ment this talented company has met with, they have been
induced to continue their engagement for another week.

THE ROYAL AMPMTHEA.TRE has derived its chief
lustre from the clever histrionic representations of Mr.
Barry Sullivan; and, during the week, he has appeared as
Othello, as Claude Melnotte, as Hamlet, as Petruchio,
and as Macbeth,—Hamlet and Petruchio having been
performed for his benefit, on Friday evening, to a crowded
house. He has been ably supported by the exertions of
the resident cotnpany, including Miss Fanny Baker, Mr.
B. Baker, and Mr. T. Lyons. The popularity of this
establishment is well kept up by a succession of interesting
and the acting of a highly-respectable resident
company.

ODD FELLOW'S MONUMENT-INAUGU-
RATION CEREMONY.

YESTERDAY, the ceremony of inaugurating a monu-
ment which has been erected in St. James' Cemetery, to
the memory of Mr. William :Nathan, took place, in the

ie members of
lent Order of Odd Fellows assembled at

s, in Duke-street, and having been duly marshalled,
Laey proceeded, with their insignia displayed, in Pro-
cession to Having arrived at the
base of +'

ales' Cemeter

he dist

Let, delivered

" Gentlemen and .
of Oddlellows.—WE

Lsseinbled her

be exposed to your view

7 uraer
for the

ad which has been erected b's

bers :comprised in' t

istrict of the

independent Order of Oddfellows, 'Manchester Unity, to
perpetuate, so far as in their power, the memory of a dear
departed friend, and a valuable officer of the society. To
you who are not members, it is fitting that we should, in
--asure, explain who and what we, as Oddfellows

Ind why we thus publicly make known to the world
—"lotion of the talents and virtues of our departed
hilst holding that "his virtues be not con-

our appre
brother;

something of those who so prominently claim their atten-
tion.—The Independent Order of Oddfellows of the Man-
chester Unity is an order or society composed chiefly of

;-classes : 1

sts more particular

places
id numbers

the English lan

y in thos,

iguage is spoke':

the 'banners of the Manchester Unity, and about two
hundred thousand under the jurisdiction of the Grand
Lodge of the United States of America, where the order

uted by

was first ins

the present century

ie mancnester unity very early in
_ Its objects—in common with many
s of the same nature—are to relieve the distressed,
the widow and the orphan, and teach man to
s his moral and social position; and whilst dispen-
sing assistance to members requiring it, it inculcates the
doctrine of self-reliance, in showing that it is in the
power of the working classes, by economising their means,
to provide a fund to fall back upon in the event of sick-
ness or death, so as to secure themselves and families
from the degradation of becoming recipients of a pauper's
allowance. or of denendinmr noon the casual charity of

strangers for that which iii their hour of adversity they
may need. To give anything like a detailed account of
the society's operations would, perhaps, under present
circumstances, be considered out of place: it may, how-
ever, be briefly stated that, during the year ending the
Ist of January last, the income of the various lodges of
which the Manchester Unity consists was, for contributions
on account of sickness and death the sum of £242,800, for
entrance money, £6,011, and for interest on invested
capital, £23,600. The payments during the same period
to members who were sick and unable to follow their em-
ployment, amounted to £127,725, and from the various
funeral funds there was paid on account of the death of
members, £27,280, and of members' wives, • £11,910, or a
gross total of £106,915 paid in one year for sickness and
funerals alone, and, of course, independent of the sums
expended for medical aid for our sick brethren. In ad-
dition to these items large sums of money have been paid

children, of our departed brethren, and it is impossible for

The accumu

forethought of the members of the societ
lated funds would receive an addition on'the year's opera
tions alone, of £105,500, as the money subscribed for sick
ness and death must not be appropriated to any othe
purpose. The number of new members admitted during

the year was 16,618, of whom 12,000 were unde

of age, a fact unparalleled in the history of benefit so-
cieties. This vast organisation, the planting and growth
of which is the result of the combined labour of the
artisans and labouring classes of England (assisted oc-
casionally of late years by men whose position in society
makes it their duty to foster benevolent institutions, hav-
ing for their objects the elevation of the minds as well as
the soothing the adversities of their humbler brethren,)

see andother

must of itself show to the world that where men arc
bined extensively for the promotion of benevol
kindred objects, that success will ul

efforts

mit to attain t

le desired end, it will be admitted

by all who are conversant with such matters, that pa-
tience, integrity, much forbearance one with another, and

attention to the duties and requirements of the
society are necessary requisites in those persons whose
duty it becomes to direct and control its operations.
Such a man, my friends, was William 3rlachan, who,
for a number of years, was a valued and efficient
officer of our society. His duties brought him into
frequent intercourse with the brethren, and they enter-
tain but one feeling towards his memory— that of

gratitude for his services to them, and admiration of his
virtues as a man; they have therefore taken the present
means of showing the extent of that feeling. The career
of our deceased friend would aptly illustrate the power of
the working classes to earn for themselves honours and
distinctions amongst their fellows where they are so
minded, having at the same time for their guides integrity
and good feeling towards mankind. The deceased was
essentially one of that class, and his business habits soon
procured for him a respectable position as a master trades-
man amongst his fellow-citizens. He joined the society
of which he was such a valued member in the year 1832,
and the members of the order very soon discovered and
appreciated his worth as an officer; he passed successively
through the highest honuor it was in the power of the
district to bestow. He was grand master of the Liver-
pool district in the year 1837, and again in 1851. He
filled the responsible office of treasurer to the district for
fourteen years previous to his death, passing during that
time many thousands of pounds through his hands with
honour to himself and satisfaction to the members. Other
honours have been earned by him and cordially given by
the brethren. He was one of those elected to represent
the district at the annual meetings of the order, held in
London, Rochdale, York, Isle of Man, Wigan, Bradford,
Glasgow, Bristol, Blackburn, Halifax, Dublin, and Car-
lisle, and never failed on these occasions to perform his
duties honestly, and with credit to himself and advantage
to the order. He was for several years a member of the
board of directors of the Manchester Unity, a body en-
trusted with the executive government of the society, and
has had the high honour of being selected by the unity as
one deserving of 'having his portrait taken, and a copy
engraved for publication, with a memoir in the Oddfellows
Magazine of that day. Much more. might be said, my
brethren and friends, in favour of the deceased, William
Machan's, memory; but we content ourselves with the
reflection that the monument we have raised to him will
itself speak a language to the heart which the tongue
cannot utter ; and we now take leave of the subject,
having so far performed a duty to the memory of one
whose loss we deplore, and whose actions may be worthily
imitated by our fellow members."

[lmmediately on the address having been delivered, the
monument was uncovered,. after which the procession re-
formed, and again marched. to Mr. Crewe's, where they
partook of a substantial and well-served collation.
The visitor, immediately on leaving the archway leading
to the cemetery grounds, cannot fail to be struck with the
excellent position selected for thesite of the monument,
which advantage, 'together with the artistic skill exhibited
in the design, renders it one of the most striking and
conspicuous objects (erected to the memory of departed
worth) the cemetery can produce. The lower portion, to
the height of the cornice, is in accordance with the severe,
but chaste, style of Greek art,, and possesses a pleasing
outline from the judicious introduction of breaks at the
angles, round which an enriched frieze and well-propor-
tioned pediment cornice also returns. On the front panel
is the inscription to the memory of the deceased, of which
the fbilowing is a copy

" In memory of
WILLIAM MACHAN,
Who died 6th July 1853, aged 43 years,

This monument is erected by the members of the Liver-
pool District of the Independent Order of Oddfellows,
Manchester Unity, in grateful remembrance of his valuable
services as their treasurer, during a period of 14 years."
At the two sides, which are similar, is a raised panel, with
a cypress wreath in full relief on each. Above the cornice
the style may be said to verge into the Italian, being
somewhat more ornamental and broken, which relieves
the heavy appearance the monument would otherwise
possess. It consists of a base, on the sides of which is
sculptured a neat wreath, supporting a pyramidal entabla-
ture and cornice, with enriched scrolls at the angles, and
surmounted by a ball, sTmbolioal of the Order of Odd-
fellowship encompassing tle globe. The workmanship is
well executed, and reflects much credit on the sculptors,
Messrs. Stirling and Canavan, of Hope-street. The arciii.
test Uri Robert Duckworth, of Shay(4-incw.