The Tenth Anniversary Meeting- of the Friends of the Newfound-
land and British School Society took place on Wednesday morning, in Exeter Hall ; Lord Bexley in the Chair. From the report it appeared, that the receipts of the Society for the past year amounted to only 2,6291. 9s. 5d. ; whilst its expenses for the same period were 2,750/. 19s. 9d. ; besides which, there is a heavy outstanding debt against the Society. By the last arrivals from Calcutta, information has been received that the great house of Mackintosh and Co. has at least stopped payment. Its debts are estimated at 2,500,0001. Unusual exertions were made to prop tip its falling credit ; and it is said that they paid away upwards of 600,0001. in the course of two or three weeks previously to their stoppage. The native merchants also did all in their power to prevent the calamity ; and the Government was applied to, though without effect, to lend their assistance. Rickards, Mackintosh, and Co., of London, have stopped payment in consequence of this failure. The creditors of Alexander and Co., another great Calcutta house, which failed some time since, have had a second meeting, when a flattering balance-sheet was submitted to them. The distress occasioned by the ruin of the latter concern in India was very extensive ; and many per- sons residing in England, who had deposited large sums in their bands, suffered severely. It is said that the loss of annual income to residents in Cheltenham alone was 70,0001.
Some disturbances had occurred in the Mauritius, but had been put down by the firmness of the Governor, General Nicolay.
Lord Brougham, on taking his seat in the Chancery Court un Tues- day, mentioned, that he had received a later from two of the fishermen
against whom a few days ago he had issued an injunction restraining them -froth dredging for oysters on the Milton banks, belonging to Miss Wickham. These men, on behalf of themselves and forty-eight others, wished to be heard in defence of their conduct. Sir Edward Sugden said, that the fishermen had resisted the order of the Court. and threatened the officers who attempted to execute it, with personal vio- lence; that they had come up to town to plead their cause ; and that about Sixty of them were waiting Lord Brougham's convenience outside the Court. Lord Brougham then directed the doors to be opened at once for their admission ; and in a minute afterwards the Court was quite filled with poor men in their fishing dress—smock frocks and heavy boots. Upon being asked for their defence, one of the men,
William Elson, stepped forward, as spokesinah for the rest, and said--- "My Lord, it is with the greatest reluctance I now come before your Lordship on be- half of myself and others ; but I hope your Lordship will overlook all our imperti,ctions. As respects this proceeding, we have certainly done wrong in going through the injunc- tion ; but we most humbly pray, and I hope it is the feeling of all, that your Lordship will take it within your consideration; and if there is any thing to he done to allevi- ate our distresses, you will undertake our case, and We will throw ourselves ow your mercy. My Lord, we thought we had a right to go and dredge for these oysters upon those grounds. Our fathers had dune so before us ; we have indentures which specify we are free fishermen on these waters of Milton, and at the expiration of our apprenticeships we had to pay a fine of 3/. before we could be admitted to work on these grounds; by paying that tine, we considered we had a right to go there: we always thought that Stangate Creek was considered as our home ; but We are told by Mr. Filial, our opponent, and steward for the lady, that we have no right or claim there. We consider that the lady of the manor, or the lord of the manor, bus no more claim
than ourselves. Between the years 1816 and IRO, part of the Company laid oysters in what we call the Water of Shade, They-laid their oysters and le.axl; when they came to perfection, they then got them, sent them to market, or sold tire, unmolested
and unasked for rent by any our'. A lease was got up in l82,4, when Mr. Hind told us we could not gu to work unless we signed that lease. None of us d. ere capable of un- derstanding the purport of it; it was not mad over to us ; neither oeil,1 we read or write ; but we were positively told, that unle,s we signed it, we vouhl not go to work again there. We knew not What to do ; we with our !hinnies wen, in a slate of starva- tion ; we signed it, and we considered that by signing it our rights would be continued. Instead of that, my Lord, by signing that lease,-our opponents say it was giving them a title; and We tow submit our ease to your Lordship, knowing, and humbly trusting, that your Lordship will do justice to us."
Lord Brougham replied, that lie and the Vice-Chancellor had con- sidered their case very carefully; that he could assure them they were in the wrong; and that they and he were equally bound to obey the law. He said that they were not harshly treated because they were poor, that lie had not long since committed Mr. Long Wellesley, the nephew of the Duke of Wellington, and Member for Essex, to prison, for doing what they had just been doing, namely, disobeying an order of the Court. They might see from this, that rich and poor were treated alike by the laws of England. He also told Elson that what he had said was very becoming and proper, and that the others had been extremely well represented by -him.
Sir Edward Sugden, on behalf of Miss Wickham, said that be would only press the execution of the warrants against three of the more vio- lent among the fishermen,—South, Phillips, and Ackhurst ; and not against them, if they would pledge themselves to offer no further ob- stacle to the protection of Miss Wickham's rights.
Lord Brougham advised the men to promise not to give any more trouble to the lady or her agents. •
Smith said—t' My Lord, there are seven hundred men, women, and children, whose bread depends upon this. What are they to do ? Are they to remain in a state of perfect starvation ? How long will they be able to do su ? " Lord Brougham put the question to them respectively, whether they would hereafter obey the injunction, and be permitted to return home peaceably, or not ?
Phillips said, with considerable warmth-e-" My Lord, as long as thave breath in my body, I intend to get my living from these grounds.". Lord Brougham—" And you intend to break the orders of the Court. Phillips—" No ; I do not ; I do not intend to go on Miss Wickham's grounds, but certainly intend to get my living on these grounds. My Lord, if your Lordship liberatei me now, I shall be dredging there tomorrow."
After some delay, however, all the fishermen promised to obey the injunction of the Court.
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