18 NOVEMBER 1848, Page 3

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The Morning Chronicle makes the following announcement, under the head of its Oxford news- " We understand that the Board of Heads of Houses have in contemplation a most comprehensive measure of educational reform, far more extensive than the one recently adopted by the Senate at Cambridge: it is one which will not only affect candidates for honours, but also the general mass of students. The plan is, we hear, in such a state of preparation that it is expected to be brought be- fore Convocation early in the ensuing Lent term."

A large number of members of the Civil service of India, who were students at the East India College at Haileybury at intervals during the thirty years that the Reverend C. W. Le Bart, MA., late of Trinity College Cambridge, was connected with that institution, have proposed to endow a now scholarship in memory of his services. They have raised a fund amounting to about 1,920/. Three per Cent Consols, which they offer to the University of Cambridge for founding an annual prize, to be called, in honour of Mr. Le Bas, the "Le Has Prize," for the best English essay on a subject of general literature; to be occasionally chosen with reference to the history, institutions, and probable destinies and prospects of the Anglo- Indian empire.

A very numerous meeting of delegates and electors of the polling-dis- tricts in West Yorkshire was held a Wakefield on the 10th. Mr. Alderman Carbutt, late Mayor of Leeds, occupied the chair; and recapitulated the

steps which had been taken. The delegates then gave, in turn, an account of the feeling of the district each came from. Mr. James Richardson, of Leeds, moved the following resolution- " That the second address of the Honourable C. W. W. Fitzwilliam is considered by the delegates now present as unsatisfactory, and that they cannot recommend the electors of their several districts to give him their support."

Mr. Richardson spoke at much length, and produced a strong feeling in favour of his proposition; which was seconded by the Mayor of Wakefield. Mr. Alderman Dunn, of Sheffield, defended Mr. Fitzwilliam; and consider- able discussion ensued. Ultimately, the resolution was adopted, only one person dissenting; and a deputation was appointed to wait on Mr. Fitz-. william and request his withdrawal. A subscription was set on foot, and the Leeds Committee of management were intrusted with a watching and. executive power.

On Monday, the deputation obtained an interview with Mr. Fitzwilliam, and discussed the subjects on which his addresses were deemed inexplicit. As regarded three of those subjects, his opinions were found to be in greater sympathy with the deputation than they expected; but on the third ques- tion, that of religious endowment, his opinions were "extremely unsatis- factory."

"While objecting to an endowment of Roman Catholic priests out of the pro- perty or industry of England, he frankly admitted, that were it made out of eccle- siastical or other funds in Ireland, he should approve of it; and as he upon gene- ral grounds was favourable to an endowment of all denominations, (or rather, re- ligions, he said,) in proportion to the numbers of each, he could not promise to oppose such an arrangement if it should be proposed."

Discussion of this point producing no favourable result, the deputation presented a requisition that Mr. Fitzwilliam should withdraw.

In doing this, they "expressed a hope that when his opinions on the endow- ment question became more matured, and, as might be hoped, more in harmony with the opinions of that portion of the constituency which the deputation re- presented, or when, from a change of circumstances, the question was no longer a prominent one in the election, he might unite the suffrages of the whole body of electors, who, in addition to the other grounds of support, would gratefully re- member his consideration in having made a personal sacrifice in order not to cause a split of the party."

Mr. Fitzwilliam replied, that he had taken his stand, and could not re- cede; and the deputation withdrew—feeling that they had been received with the utmost urbanity and kindness, but feeling "a painful sense of disappointment at the result of their interview."

The Leeds Executive Committee have issued a °insular to their sup- porters in the different polling-districts, desiring them to convene meetings of the Liberal electors, in order that the meeting of delegates to be held at Normanton on Friday might be able to decide the question of bringing out an anti-religious-endowment candidate in opposition to Mr. Fitzwilliam.

At a meeting of the Liverpool Select Vestry, on Tuesday, Mr. Hart read a copy of a letter which had been sent to Sir George Grey relative to the renewed and daily increasing immigration of the Irish into the parish of LiverpooL The letter represented the fear entertained by the Vestry that the Irish immigration into Liverpool would be repeated this winter to the extent it occurred last winter: it has already commenced. Frightful con- sequences might be apprehended from the outbreak of cholera among the crowded thousands. Last year, sixteen medical officers perished from fevers caught in attending the sick; and so great a mortality occurred in the permanent local population that districts have been extensively de- serted-4,000 houses have become tenantless from the panic created. The cost imposed upon Liverpool by the immigration already amounts to 40,0001. The fare by the Irish steamers is but le. to Liverpool, while it is 4s. from Liverpool to Ireland. The Vestry addressed Sir George Grey in the hope that some remedy might be devised for the protection of the parish. To this letter Sir George Grey's private secretary rep ied- " While Sir George Grey much regrets the serious inconvenience to which the town of Liverpool is subject, from its situation with regard to Ireland, he is not aware of any legal means by which poor persons can be prevented coming from Ireland to Liverpool; nor is it in the power of the Government to interfere with the rate of fares charged by the owners of vessels carrying passengers between Dublin and Liverpool. As, however, you state that the persons mentioned in your letter have made application to the parish for relief, the remedy provided by the Legis- lature appears to be the power of removal back to Ireland of such persons, under 8 and 9 Viet. c. 117, and 10 and 11 Vic. c. 33."

At the anniversary meeting of the Ashford Agricultural Society, the Re- verend N. Toke, one of the Vice-Presidents, suggested an improvement in the social machinery for supporting the aged poor—

The prizes which they gave could only be considered prizes of honour. Some few were substantial; their great advantage consisting in inducing the recipients to go forward in a virtuous path, by which they derived from their own resources perhaps greater benefits than any of the societies gave them. Merchants and traders subscribed liberally to their various institutions, for the purpose of pen- sioning off their decayed members; and there were those present who had on more than one occasion listened to his suggestion for adopting a similar plan for the relief of poor old farm-labourers who were past work. It had struck him, that if, in the Ashford division of Magistrates, a subscription could be got up for pensioning off some eight, ten, or twenty such persons, more would be done in the way of encouragement than anything they afforded otherwise, and substantial as- sistance would be rendered at a time when most needed, and many a poor old man be saved from falling on the union for support. If only 2001. were raised in that district, they would perhaps be enabled to pension off some eight persons at a rate of something like 8s. a week. (Applause.)

The Reverend William Browne, the young curate of St. Stephen's Snenton, in the vicinity of Nottingham, has destroyed himself, under the excitement produced by the hinderance of a love affair. He had been paying his addresses to the daughter of a clergymen of fortune; but the father sent Mr. Browne a letter re- questing him to discontinue his attentions, on the ground of the lady's youth. Mr. Browne was of an ardent, excitable disposition, and liable to fits of despondency. On receiving the letter, he hurried off to Nottingham; called at a contectionees to pays small account; posted to a gunmakees, bought a pistol, with ammu- nition, and loaded the pistol in the shop; went to the ruins of the castle, and SOMA time after his corpse was discovered—he had discharged the pistol at the upper part of his face, blowing in one of the eyes. The evidence at the inquest respect- ing Mr. Browne's conduct after he received the letter, as well as his behaviour at other times, induced the Jury to give a verdict of " Temporary insanity." It is stated that the young gentleman was generally beloved in his parish.

A long feud produced by competition for work between the Cardiff men and a number of Irishmen working there, has ended in murder. The Irishmen had un- derbid the Welshmen on the works of the South Wales Railway and at the docks; and in the streets the other night there was a disturbance. Lewis, a Welsinniui, asked Conners, an Irishman, what was amiss: an angry answer led to a squabble: as Lewis went away, the other threw a stone at him, hitting him on „the leg:

the Welshman gave chase to his assailant; but on their closing, the Irishman plunged a knife itto his opponent's body four times, causing almost instantaneous death. On the next evening, the exasperated populace attacked the dwellings of the Irish, broke their windows, burst open their doors, and burnt some of their furniture; and had it not been for the interference of the police, a serious riot would have ensued. They also attacked the Catholic chapel, demolished the win- dows, and did considerable damage to the priest's house.

On Sunday morning, some thieves broke into a house at St. Leonard's, near Hastings, while the family were at church. There was only one servant, a cook, in the house; and the ruffians assaulted her to savagely that she has since died. They carried off a good deal of jewellery. A reward of 501. has been offered for their apprehension.

Three convicts escaped from Cardigan Gaol on Tuesday afternoon, by breaking a hole through the wall of the treadmill-room; but as an officer had discovered them while they were getting away, they were immediately pursued. One was captured by a sailor; the other two were successively seized by a carpenter—a little man, who was working in the gaol when the escape occurred: this man— Thomas Jenkins—behaved in the most courageous manner.

An alarming collision happened on the Manchester and Leeds Railway on the afternoon of the 10th. Contrary to orders and signals, the driver of a coal-train moved on to the main line as an express-train came up; the express dashed into the coal-train, smashing tour waggons to pieces; and both engines and the pas- senger.carriages were damaged. The passengers were much bruised and shaken, but none of them dangerously. The author of the mischief, the driver of the coal- train, leaped off his engine and absconded.

At Carlisle, on the 3d, a seaman on board a steam-tug got his leg entangled in a rope which was running out rapidly from the vessel; in an instant his foot was torn off, and thrown against another man's face. It was necessary to amputate the sufferer's limb at the knee.

A man has been killed in an ironstone pit, at WorcIsley in Staffordshire, by a brick which fell down the shaft and struck him on the back. The accident was caused by the loading of a barrow at the mouth of the shaft.

An explosion of fireworks on the 5th of November, at Birmingham, did much damage and seriously hurt three persons. A man, his wife, and son, were busy on the Sunday night in finishing fireworks for the absurdities of the following day; by some means the dangerous collection ignited; the house was shattered, and the three inmates were much burned.

The Gaythorri cotton-works, an immense pile of buildings in Albion Street, Manchester, were destroyed by fire on Wednesday. The works belonged to Mr. James Fernley; and they are said to have been insured to much less than half the amount of their value, which was 50,0001. Eight hundred persons are thrown out of employ by the calamity.