otibe Artirtropolis.
There is a report that Sir Charles Napier will be opposed in Marylebone by another Liberal candidate, Mr. Gilbert Ainslie.
There was a meeting of Sir Charles's friends of the Marylebone Re- form Registry Association on Monday, at Lawson's Assembly Rooms, in Gower Street. The majority of the meeting were very cordial in their support of the Commodore and Ministers. Major Powell pronounced the present the most important crisis that had ever taken place—greater than the Reform Bill, for the new course which Government had adopted was the first fruits of that Bill. Sir De Lacy Evans attended to give Commodore Napier " a character of thirty yearsk standing." Mr. Kensett made an attempt to in list deserters in the cause of Mr. G. A. Young ; but he merely raised a confusion. There was a general meeting of electors at the Yorkshire Stingo, on Thursday, in support of Commodore Napier; Mr. Hume presiding. Sir Charles attended, and repeated viva voce his declaration in favour of Ballot, Extended Suffrage, Short Parliaments, and Corn-law Repeal. He was shrewdly asked about his views of the Poor-law ; and lie as shrewdly replied, that he did not see that the local law of Marylebone required alteration. Mr. G. A. Young tried to obtain a hearing, appealing espe- - 1-•••• would
malty to the Ann- roor-law senioneme ,
not listen to him. The resolution to support Sir Charles was declared to be carried, amid great uproar.
Public meetings to support the Government plan for altering the Corn-laws have been held in the Metropolis this week, in the yards of Cripplegate Within and Bishopsgate, in the parishes of Marylebone St. Clement Danes, St. George Southwark, Bermondsey, St. Leonard Shoreditch, Clerkenwell. St. Pancras, and St. Luke Chelsea ; in Wands- worth, Islington, and Kentish Town ; besides a general meeting of coffeehouse-keepers at Anderton's Hotel.
Meetings in favour of the proposed Budget arrangements were held in the city of Westminster, by the Finsbury Reform Club, in Aldgate Ward, the parishes of St. James Westminster, St. Martin's-in-the-Fields, and Wandsworth.
The 'Westminster meeting was held in the usual place, the western side of Covent Garden Market ; and the High Bailiff presided. The speakers were Sir De Lacy Evans and Mr. Leader, Mr. O'Connell, Mr. Ewart, Mr. Prout, Dr. Bowring, Dr. Wade, Messrs. Ellis, Trott, and Tyrrell. The resolutions declared against all commercial restric- tions, against class-interests, and against the monopolists who com- bined to thwart the new proposals of Ministers, The chief speakers, however, were careful to avoid any thing like advocacy of Ministers. Mr. O'Connell declared that he did not come to praise the Whigs or abuse the Tories ; and Sir De Lacy Evans exclaimed, on some Anti- Ministerial interruption, " He did not care about any Administration : he would have a Chartist Administration if they wished : let them have this matter of cheap bread at all events." Mr. Henderson, a Chartist, endeavoured to move an amendment, expressing some sus- picion of the Ministerial project ; but the meeting refused to hear him. During the day, a placard was exhibited with the comparative statistics of Lord Melbourne's and the boy Jones's dinners in the Palace : the crowd tore it down.
The proceedings of the meetings in St. George Southwark, Clerk- enwell, and Wandsworth, were interrupted by the Chartists ; but they seem to have mustered in very trifling strength, and were quite set aside.
At the meeting of the coffeehouse- keeepers, a working-man carried a resolution that all monopolies are unjust.
The Corporation of London specially assembled on Tuesday, in Common Council, to petition in' favour of the alteration of the Corn- laws. Mr. Richard Loyd Jones wondered that Mr. Stevens, who moved the first resolution, had not sooner in his life thought of the importance of reducing the Corn-duties ; and then moved as an amendment, " the previous question." After a rambling conversation, the amendment was rejected, by 81 to 64. Mr. Davison then proposed an amended re- solution, declaring generally that the present Corn-laws had not given satisfaction. During the irregular debate on this amendment, several persons left the court ; and an attempt was made to quash further dis- cussion by dissolving the Court, on account of so many having gone ; but ne party would accede to that proposal: Mr. Davison's amendment II as nugatived, and the petition to both Houses was passed. The Home Missionary Society held its annual meeting on Tuesday evening, at Exeter Hall ; Mr. 'Thomas Wilson in the chair. The re- port, which was adopted by the meeting, stated that the number of the Society's stations had increased to 143 ; that there were 149 agents em- ployed, whose labours extended over 550 towns, tillages, and hamlets of England and Wales; and that 168 Sunday-schools had been esta- blished, which afforded gratuitous instruction to 9,500 children ; while the number of gratuitous teachers was 1,100. Four thousand copies of the Scriptures and 250,000 tracts bad been distributed, and 10,000 families visited by the agents. The income amounted to 8,6031., and the expenditure to 8,340/.
The British and Foreign Temperance Society met at the Hanover Square Rooms on Thursday; Lord Teignmouth in the chair. The re- port stated, that under Mr. Pakington's Beer Act 2,814 beer-shops had been closed. Although the population within the circuit of the Metropolitan Police force has increased 267,000 within the year, the number of drunken cases at the Police-offices was less by 4.760 than last year. The total decrease of malt used by brewers in the United Kingdom, in 1840 was 776,000 bushels. The Society's receipts from subscriptions and sale of tracts amounted to 5551.; the expenditure was 8001.
At the recent anniversary in support of the Royal Freemasons School for Female Children, Mr. Bond Cabbell in the chair, the con- siderable sum of 6S01. was collected. The last exertion of the frater- nity, for the present season, will be in favour of the Asylum for Aged and Decayed Masons ; at whose festival Mr. Benjamin Wood, M.P. for Southwark, will preside.
A fancy fair, under the patronage of the Queen Dowager, the Lady Mayoress, and several ladies of fashion, was held at Radley's Hotel, Blackfriars; on Wednesday, in aid of the St. 131 ide's Parochial Schools Building-fund. A large company had assembled in hopes of seeing the Queen Dowager, who had contributed some embroidery towards the stock of fancy commodities. A letter had been received announ- cing the intention of Queen Adelaide to be present in person. Towards the evening, however, it was discovered that the letter was a hoax ; the official seal which was attached to it having been transferred from some other letter. The Reverend Thomas Dale, the Vicar of St. Bride's, and several other clergymen, assisted at the stalls, as vendors of reli- gious publications.
Citations have been served on five or six of the inhabitants of Hack- ney, to compel the payment of church-rates in arrears, amounting alto- gether to something less than thirty shillings. The whole of the parties having a similar defence, they proposed that at the hearing of the eases onv should be selected, by the decision in which the rest should be bound.. This apparently reasonable overture was rejected by the Churchwardens; who, besides having taken these proceedings in the Ecclesiastical Court, have caused a Magistrate's order to be served on five hundred. defaulters in the parish, accompanied by an intimation, that upon continued contumacy distress-warrants shall promptly follow.
Previous page
