24 APRIL 1841, Page 4

Zbe Metropolis.

At a Court of Aldermen, on Tuesday, a petition was presented from Mr. Scales, whose election as Alderman for Portsoken Ward had been successfully contested at law by the Court, praying either that the costs for which he was liable, amounting to 2791., might not be exacted at present, that the Court would allow him to pay over the amount to Mr. Samuel Dalton as a gift, or that he might be allowed to bring the sub- ject under the consideration of the Court of Common Council. Mr, Scales, who was beard in support of his petition, said that Mr. Dalton had been made relator in the case, in spite of his repudiating the ap- pointment; and he had in consequence been subject to much inconve- nience and injury, being besides in bad circumstances. The Court unanimously resolved upon directing the City Solicitor to stay the pro- ceedings, and to enter into an arrangement with Mr. Scales. The same Court adopted, by a large majority, the report of a Com- mittee recommending the discontinuance of the sittings at the Town- hall in the Borough, which since the passing of the Metropolitan Police Act have become useless.

The anniversary of the establishment of the London Hospital was celebrated on Monday, at the London Tavern. Among the guests was the Duke of Cambridge.

The anniversary dinner of the Marine Society and its friends took place last Wednesday, at the London Tavern. Sir George Cockburn presided ; and among the company were Lord Marsham Lord Rad- stock, and Rear-Admiral Young. The subscriptions amounted to nearly 7001.: 678 young lads have been rescued from poverty by the exertions of the Society, and are now being trained as seamen on board the Iphi- genie frigate, at Greenwich.

A meeting of coffeehouse-keepers was held at Anderton's Hotel, in Fleet Street, on Monday, to consider the means of compelling certain people in the trade, who keep open house all night, to close at an ap- pointed hour. By a recent act of Parliament, coffeehouses are allowed to be kept open throughout the night ; and it was stated at the meeting, that many persons of questionable reputation had entered the trade in consequence of that provision. By conniving at the sale of spirits, if not engaging in it themselves, these persons have illegally invaded the trade of the licensed-victualler. Resolutions were passed affirming the views of the meeting.

A general meeting of the members of the Art-Union took place at Willis's Rooms, St. James's, on Tuesday : it was attended by the Duke of Cambridge, who presided, the Marquis of Northampton, Sir John Swinburne, Mr. Ewart, Mr. Bond Cabbell, and Mr. Tooke, and other amateurs. A report which was read stated that the amount of subscrip- tions for the year had increased from 2,444L to 5,610/. • and a balance remained of 3,650/. to be awarded in prizes, besides 1,3001. for the pro- duction of an engraving, of which every member would receive an Im- pression. The 3,6501. was divided by the Committee into 133 prizes, which had been drawn by lot. It was signified to the members that the Duke of Cambridge had consented to become President of the Society.

Mr. Sidney Smith delivered a lecture on the Corn-laws to a meeting at the British School-room, in Cowper Street, City Road, on Tuesday. A petition for the total and immediate repeal of those laws was very numerously signed before the meeting separated.

At a meeting of the Southwark Protestant Operative Association, on Wednesday, AL% Edward Dalton, who seems to be the apostle of Opera- rative Protestantism, brought forth an improvement upon his opinion last week as to the origin of Papacy— At a meeting, not long ago, he had stated that Cain was the first Papist ;• but he was prepared to show that Papacy was anterior to Cain. (" Hear ! ") The 'first Papist was the Father of Lies himself. (" Hear! ") In tempting Eve he did that which the Papists frequently do, distinguished between mortal and venial sin. When persuading Eve to eat of the forbidden fruit, he said, "Thou shalt not surely die." In showing that this is followed out by the Papists, Mr. Dalton quoted from one of their catechisms, where they say that

stealing an apple or a pin is not a mortal sin, and will not break charity be- tween God and man.

The ninety-eight cases of summons for non-payment of Church-rates in the parish of St. Mary, Stoke Newington, came on for rehearing at Worship Street, on Thursday. Mr. Bevan, a solicitor for several of the defaulters, contested the validity of the rate, which would remove the matter out of the jurisdiction of the Magistrates ; but such cases were postponed for a fortnight, to give the opponents of the rate time for further consideration before they placed themselves within the power of the Ecclesiastical Court. Others of the defaulters, who were so from poverty, were allowed a lengthened time for payment.

The report of the Visiting Justices of the Middlesex House of Cor- rection, which was read at a meeting of the County Magistrates, in Clerkeuwell Sessions-house, on Thursday, divulged a curious circum- stance. The passage in the report runs thus-

" It having been stated to the Visiting Justices, that an offer had been made by a party to a prisoner in the House of Correction to obtain his liberation for the sum of 3,0001., and that the Governor, Chaplain, and the other officers of the prison were aware that such offer had been made, the Visiting Justices im- mediately instituted an inquiry into all the circumstances connected with the rumour; and from the examinations taken in writing of several of the prison- officers, and of the prisoner and his solicitor, it appeared manifest that such offer had been made; and the Visiting Justices then felt it to be their duty to transmit a copy of the statements to the Secretary of State for the Home De- partment, for his information ; and who has intimated his intention to take the opinion of the Law-Officers of the Crown thereon." It was stated at the meeting that the offer had been made by a Ma- gistrate of the Middlesex Bench, and that his name was well known. The Visiting Justices promised not to screen him ; but the name was not mentioned.

The prisoner, who has been thus offered his release for a considera- tion, is said to be Francis Medhurst, who is undergoing the sentence of the law for mortally stabbing a fellow-pupil in a school at Hayes.

Roose, the clerk in the Post-office who was accused of stealing letters at Bow Street last week, was reexamined on Wednesday, and com- mitted for trial on two charges ; but he was ordered to be brought up again in a week, that other charges might be preferred.

Henry Price, a youth in the employ of Mr. Stringer, an Italian ware- houseman and a post receiving-house keeper, in King William Street, was brought up for reexamination, at Bow Street, on Wednesday, with Stevens, an accomplice, charged with abstracting 5/. from a letter. They were both committed on this charge ; and also on the further charges, Price, of stealing some vermicelli and pickles from his master's shop, and Stevens, of feloniously receiving them.

At Worship Street Police-office, on Saturday, William Drake, a Chartist, was charged by John Golding, a quondam Chartist, who called himself a preacher, with putting him in danger of his life. In the absence of Mr. Richard Carlile, who has been attacked by paralysis, his wife delivered a lecture at the Hall of Science in the City Road, on the evening of Sunday week ; and Golding attended. During the lecture, Drake suddenly pointed him out as a Government spy, and said that he had "sold poor Boggis." This caused some disturbance : Golding was surrounded by persons who threatened him ; and one, who seemed nearly drunk, said "I should like to make a hole through you." Drake was held to bail to answer the charge at the Sessions.

The girl who was discovered in disguise as a man among the male prisoners in Tothill Fields prison, bearing the name of George White, was brought by Lieutenant Tracey, the Governor of the prison, before Mr. Burrell, at Queen Square Police-office, on Tuesday, charged with threatening to drown herself on being released. The term of her im- prisonment had expired that day. She is a young girl of about eighteen, and the police-reporters say that her features are regular and her ap- pearance is "interesting." Mr. Burrell asked her if she adhered to her determination to destroy herself? After some hesitation, she replied in a low voice, that she did. He then asked "if she had any objection to state her reason for coming to such a determination ?" She declined answering. Mr. Tracey said that he had no reason to suppose that she was insane ; and she had evidently received a superior education. Letters had been written down to Sussex, and he understood that the editors of several newspapers had received letters on the subject : he himself had one from a clergyman in Sussex. Mr. Burrell could not, under the circumstances, allow the girl to be set at liberty ; and so he ordered her to find sureties for her good behaviour for one month, committing her in default.

Two sailors were fined Ns. each at Union Hall Police-office, on Saturday, for jumping off the Greenwich train whilst going over Bermondsey Bridge at full speed. The fine would have been heavier, but the sailors pleaded ignorance of railway affairs, as they had just landed from Valparaiso, and had never ridden in a train before.

Joseph Lovell, the man who last week slipped under the wheels of the Eastern Counties Railway train, from which he had just alighted, died on Saturday.

Last Sunday evening, the body of a woman was found, with the face downwards, in a very shallow pond, near the Chalk Road, Islington. An inquest was held on Tuesday, before Mr. Wakley ; when the body was identified by James Callaghan, a workman at Portland Town, as that of his wife. She brought him his dinner on Easter Monday : he was not sober at the time, and could not eat ; and she cried very much, saying that it would be a long time before she brought bins his dinner again. He had not seen her since. She told a fellow-lodger, with whom she left some trifles to take care of, that she was going to a friend's house. After some discussion, the Jury being dissatisfied with the evidence, because they could not conceive that the woman could have selected such a spot to drown herself in, they returned a general verdict, merely describing how the deceased was found.

An inquest was held in the Fleet Prison, on Tuesday, before Mr. Payne, on the body of • Zachariah Edwards, formerly a Captain in the Twelfth Lancers. According to the evidence of other prisoners, Mr. Edwards, who once was rich, had latterly been in want of common necessaries. He had sold out of the Army, and engaged in some patent bleaching speculation, which failed. His guardian and other friends, though well able to assist him, refused to do so while he was in prison.

Want of food and misery of mind brought on typhus-fever, of which he died ; and the Jury returned a verdict to that effect. Among the wit- nesses was the well-known Mr. Richard Oastler ; who said that several other persons in the prison were in as miserable a plight as Mr. Ed- wards had been, and were dying of broken hearts.

At noon on Wednesday, Graham's lucifer-match-manufactory, in Bishopsgate, was found to be on fire ; and before the engines could be brought to the spot, the whole building was in flames. The explosive nature of the stores on the premises kept the neighbourhood in a state of great alarm, and made the approach to the blazing pile extremely dangerous. The workmen were very active in attempting to ex- tinguish the fire, and several of them nearly perished from the brim- stone and phosphorus with which the smoke was charged ; they were dragged out in a state of insensibility. Three boys escaped by leaping out of a back-window on to an out-house, and were much hurt. Before half-past one o'clock the roof fell in, carrying with it the floors. The factory has several times been on fire ; and about eight months back there was a very bad explosion. The premises were not insured.