lEbt.fetttropolis.

A meeting, convened by the Churchwardens on a requisition, was held in the parish of St. Luke's, on Friday evening, to take into con- sideration the educational clauses of the Factories Bill. The first speaker was Mr. R. Howitt ; who objected to the power given to the Church of England in the composition of the school trusts-

" By the 18th clause, most extraordinary powers were given to the Inspectors; who could dismiss the master of the school if they thought fit, and make what- ever alterations they thought proper, reporting the same to the Committee of Privy Council on education. As a father, he contended that it was most ob- jectionable, and not to be endured, that the Gcivernment should dictate to him how he was to educate his child. That power and liberty was given to him by God ;; and as long as he had breath in his body, he would oppose by every legal and constitutional means such an innovation on the rights and liberties of an Englishman."

The following resolutions were passed-

' That this meeting regard the charge liable under the Factories Bill to be thrown upon the poor-rates by an order of the Privy Council on Education, without either its assessment or its expenditure being submitted in any man- ner to the judgment of the rate-payers, as an infringement of the great consti- tutional principles that Englishmen are not to be taxed without their own con- sent, expressed either by themselves or by their representatives in Parliament : that, in addition to the obnoxious principle of this system of taxation, this meeting deprecate the enormous amount liable to be added to the poor-rate under the bill, as an intolerable augmentation of a burden already oppressive, and in some cases overwhelming : that to charge the poor-rate with a payment for education in the principles of the Established Church, is to make it essen- tially an ecclesiastical exaction, and to render it liable to all the conscien- tious objections and difficulties which have obstructed the collection of church- rates."

" That, in the opinion of this meeting, to require by law to enforce by civil penalty the education of children in the Christian or any other religion, is a violation of the great principle of religious liberty, and of the sacred rights of conscience as recognized by the British Legislature." The resolution, which was very long, then went on to state, that the education of the people ought not to be in either the hands of the Church or the State, as it would inflict an un- warrantable outrage on parental feelings and prerogative.

Meetings have also been held at the Elephant and Castle for Cam- berwell, at Bishopsgate Street chapel, at the Marlborough Street chapel in the Old Kent Road, by the friends of the West London Auxiliary School Union at Craven Chapel near Golden Square, and in Lambeth.

The weekly meetings of the Anti-Corn-law League in Drury Lane Theatre were resumed on Wednesday ; when addresses were delivered by the Reverend Thomas Spencer of Bath, Mr. Ewart, M.P., and Mr. Bright of Rochdale. The most interesting point, however, was the Chairman's report of the progress in the distribution of tracts : tracts had been distributed through 151 borough's and 23 counties ; and so extensive had been the perambulations of the League, that in Lanca- shire alone its tract-distributors had walked over 1,500 miles of ground ja the performance of their office.

At a meeting of the Drury Lane General Committee, on Tuesday, ac- cording to the Post—the Earl of Glengall in the chair, disapprobation was expressed because the theatre had been used for meetings involving discussion upon political subjects. It was intimated to Mr. Macready, that after the two more nights to which it was pledged to the League, it could not again be used for such a purpose ; a resolution in which Mr. Macready readily and fully acquiesced. The Post adds—" The patent under which the proprietary hold their rights, &c., does not permit them to use their theatre for other than dramatic or operatic purposes ; and consequently they consider that they are not justified in allowing their building to be used for meetings assembled to discuss political subjects."

The electors of the Tower Hamlets had a " festival "—" a grand dinner "—" an excellent cold collation," at the Eastern Institution, in the Commercial Road, on Tuesday ; about four hundred gentlemen sitting down to table. Among. them were, Mr. William Coates, (the Chair- man,) Mr. Cobden, M.P., Colonel Thompson, and Mr. James Wilson all of whom made speeches. The Chairman stated, that the meeting was one of electors favourable to the total and immediate repeal of the Corn-laws: to have asked those who entertained different views, would have been indelicate : on a correspondence with the Members for the borough, it was found that they would not go the whole length—(Cries of " Shame 1")—aud therefore they had not been invited. He wished that both the respected Members for the borough should represent it for many years ; but he could only wish them to do so as Total Be- pealers. (Tremendous cheering.) With this preface, Mr. Coates pro- posed " The health of Mr. Villiers, and success to the forthcoming motion for the total and immediate—(Cheers)—and he would add, the unconditional' repeal of the Corn-laws"; which was drank with more " tremendous cheering."

A. meeting of the Free Trade Association of Finsbury was held on Thursday, at the Belvidere Tavern in Pentonville, to take into conside- ration the conduct of the Borough Members in reference to Free Trade. Mr. Thomas Dancombe and Mr. Wattle), were in attendance; not so a Mr. Shaw, who had been their accuser at a former meeting. They were asked, however, why they refused to attend the meetings of the Anti- Corn-law League? Mr. Duncombe, a member of the original Anti- Corn-law Association in London, objected to the proceedings of the League—particularly to their expendi are of money in hiring Drury Lane Theatre, and in travelling about to make speeches. Mr. Wakley said, that the reason why he did not join the League was because its promoters refused to call it a "Free Trade League": by calling it an " Anti-Corn-law League," they concentrated all snades of persons con- nected with the landed interest against the League. Mr. Hodgskin then moved the following resolution ; which was adopted- " That this meeting, having heard the explanation of Thomas Dancombe, Esq., and Thomas Wakley, Esq., and remembering their steady sod consistent conduct on the subject of Free Trade in Parliament, feel fully satisfied with them ; but earnestly. recommend them, considering the vital nature of the Corn- laws, to lend all their exertions, both in Parliament and out of Parliament, to promote the repeal of those laws."

The meeting then separated.

Mr. Alfred Austin, Assistant Poor-law Commissioner for the special purpose, opened an inquiry, on Friday, into the case of John Jones, a man of Colour and a pauper in St. Pancras, who was alleged to have been subjected to some arbitrary treatment. Jones entered the work- house a week before Christmas. About that time, he was removed from a room in which feathers were picked to a shed in which oakum was picked ; which he considered unfair, as the work was hard, and it constituted a sort of punishment; though he had " committed no crime." A wife and five children entered the workhouse with him ; and the youngest, fifteen months old, died after being ill for nine weeks with hooping-cough and measles. Usually he was allowed to see it, only one attempt being made to prevent him by the gate-keeper of the infirmary ; but he forced himself past the man, and he was not subse- quently blamed for it. The child died, and his wife was sent to the Fever Hospital. He obtained a ticket to go to see his child buried. He saw some men about to take his wife to the hospital, and he said he should like to go with them : they replied that they bad no objection, if be could get out of the workhouse; and for that purpose he used the ticket which he had already obtained. On his return, at his own re- quest he was admitted to see the Committee-

" I applied to know whether I could go out of the house once or twice a week to see my wife whilst in the Fever Hospital. The Committee said they did not think it was proper I should go. I asked why I might not ? and they said the reason was, that I might be the cause of bringing the fever into the workhouse. I then asked for two days' leave to go and look for work. They replied no. I asked for a reason ; and I was told it was the Committee's wish. I wanted to speak a little further on the subject, and said I hoped they would allow me. They said they would hear no more, and called out, ' Turn him out '; and one said, I think Mr. Morris, You had better go out.' Some one said,' Lock him up,' and ordered me to be put in the black-bole. I said I would not go out until I was heard. There was more than one voice cried out,

Lock him up.' Mr. Sparkes, the Overseer, then came up to me, as I thought to lock me up; and I told him to keep off, and left the room and walk.'d away to the oakum-room. As 1 was walking along the passage, I saw that I was followed by three or four persons ; and in an excited state I struck a door with my hand as I passed along, and told them nut to follow me. I went into the oakum-room, where we work, and had not been there more than two minutes when the beadles came in after me. My dinner was ready laid for me, and on the entrance of the beadles they said,' Come with us.' I said I should not, and they had better keep off. Two more men then came in, at which time I had sat down to get my dinner; I had taken up my knife. I struck my knife on the table, and it broke."

He afterwards went out again to see his child buried, and then he went to a public-house ; where he was seized by some Policemen, on a charge of refractory conduct. He complained to the Assistant-Com- missioner, that the picking of oakum is confined to refractory patients, and that it is injurious to the health. Other witnesses represented Jones as threatening that he " would be revenged on some of them" because he was not allowed to see his wife. Henry Evans, a pauper and super- intendent of the oakum-picking room, said that it was used for re- fractory persons and persons incapable of getting their livelihood out of doors. The room, [which was said by Jones to be 20 feet long by 15 wide,] had thirteen beds in it ; and it had had as many as forty people sleeping in it at a time, three in a bed : when Jones slept there, there were only thirty-five, and only one person slept with Jones, his son, who had been sent to the place for running away from school. Jones had always been peaceable, and behaved uncommonly well—

William John Sparkes, one of the Assistant-Overseers, described Jones as very violent when refused permission to go out twice a week to seek for work : after he had asked to visit his wife and been refused lest he should bring the fever back, he was so violent towards Mr. Morris, the Director of the Poor, that Mr. Sparkes interposed, fearing a personal attack on the Director. He did not hear any one say " Tarn him out." Subsequently it was variously proposed to confine Jones in the strong-room, or to take him before a Magistrate ; and it was de- termined to take him before a Magistrate. Mr. Sparkes went to seek him, and found that he was in custody at the stationhouse-

" Went there and gave him in charge for creating a disturbance at the workhouse. Did not charge him with the assault, because he did not see it. When he was making the charge, Jones said, ' Let me know who makes the charge, and what it is, that I may know my customer when I come out.' Told him the charge, and that he (Sparkes) was the person making. On the road to the Police-court, Jones several times asked him to stand something to drink; but he made him no answer. Whilst going along, he appeared very wild, and jumped over posts like children do at leap-frog. The Magistrate asked what was wished to be done to Jones? I said the Board wished him to be punished; and added, 'It would be impossible to maintain any thing like order in an establishment where there were 1,200 or 1,400 people, if misconduct were not punished.' Mr. Sparkes afterwards said— "Jones applied on a previous occasion to be allowed to go out to look for work; and on the Committee refusing, he said, in a threatening manner, ' I will give you a month to consider of it.' His tone was decidedly threatening, but his manner more cool than on the recent occasion. The reason Jones was refused to go out to look for work was, that he bad had permission once before, and that it produced no good effect."

Tiffin, the beadle, described Jones's violence when he went to him in the oakum-room-

" He said that he did not wish to hurt any of them, but that he was in that state of mind, if any one came near him he would serve them as he now served that table. He then struck the knife into the table, with such violence that it broke at the shank and cut his knuckles. He had another clasp-knife in his hand at the same time. Mr. Chadborne desired us not to go near Jones whilst so excited. Tiffin sat down by him, and told him he had better go out. He begged of him to keep away, as he should serve his best friend in the manner he had the table if he interfered with him at that moment. During this time there were about twenty oakum-pickers present ; and their observa- tions tended to excite Jones. They commended Jones for his conduct, and exclaimed, 'It was a damned cruel thing he was not allowed to go out to see his child buried, and that it would serve the Committee right if they were to be placed to pick oakum there instead of them."

Mr. W. Lee, the master of the workhouse, stated, that on one of the days when Jones went out to seek work he returned intoxicated ; and he was sent to the oakum-room because he took away two suits of his boys' clothing without permission. Jones denied these charges.

The inquiry closed on Wednesday.

In the Court of Review, on Saturday, the Chief Judge pronounced judgment on a petition presented by Mr. Ford, one of Lord Hunting- tower's creditors, to annul the fiat in his bankruptcy, on the grounds of a fraudulent concert between the bankrupt, the petitioning creditor, and the assignees, and the absence of real trading. The fiat had been admitted by one of the creditors ; whose affidavits had been adduced in

support of the petition to be beneficial to the bona fide creditors, as it protected them from those whose debts would not stand the test of an inquiry under the commission ; and the contingent property was likely to pay those debts in full. With respect to the charge of concert, there was no evidence as against the petitioning creditor and the assignees ; and although there was some as against the bankrupt, it was incon- clusive: a paper signed by Lord Huntingtower and given to the peti- tioner, containing a denial of the trading, was obtained from him while harassed and embarrassed by a professional man, promising him a re- storation to liberty thereby. On the subject of the trading and the bankrupt's conduct, the Chief Judge delivered himself thus— At the time of life when discipline becomes of the most vital importance, this young gentleman was left unchecked, uncontrolled, aitbout education or at least without education of alliaitable description according to his rank and prospects. As appeared by documents produced in the course of the inquiry, his handwriting was unformed, his style uncultivated his spelling not always correct. Re lett Eton, as it appeared, at the age of seventeen ; and within ten months, after a brief residence with his father, the Earl of Dysart, became completely his own master. In consequence of family differences and the separation between his parents, he was lett upon his own hands, with no allow- ance from his father, no means except what he might raise upon his prospects, no money except trifling presents from his mother and maternal grandmother. Yet, notwithstanding all these difficulties, be contrived to live soon afterwards at the rate of 5,0001, per annum. The case presented was certainly singular but not only from the party becoming a horse-dealer, but from an earl's son having become so unfortunately situated. He was self-willed, ungovernable, not adverse to low company., with imperfect rudiments of education, and natural ecentricity; and, his life being what it was, none need be surprised that horse-dealing was included in his pursuits. Looking at his position, and look- ing at his associates, the wonder was not that he was a horse-dealer, but that the effects of the contagion had not been greater—that he had not become hopelessly and irretrievably lost. • •6 In reviewing the whole of the evidence and proceedings, he had not seen or heard anything showing "meanness and baseness " to have been the results of this young man's unfortunate position, though such charges had been heaped upon him. He did not think his ruin irremediable. His abilities appeared such that he might yet obtain a position which rank alone could not give, and without which rank appeared rather a slur and a disadvantage.

The petition was dismissed, with costs.

The inquiry into the affair of the Barbados was resumed at the Man- sionhouse on Saturday. There were present Mr. Taylor, Mr. Henley, and other emigrants with their friends ; Mr. Duncan Campbell, one of the "Commissioners" of the British American Association, Sir Richard Broun, and Dr. Rolph, who had been named in the prospectus as a Commissioner ; Lieutenant J. S. Lean, the Government Emigration Agent; Mr. Metier, counsel to Sir Richard Broun ; Mr. Lloyd, coun- sel, and Mr. Nettleship, solicitor, to the Duke of Argyle ; and several gentlemen who took an interest in the proceedings.

As Mr. Campbell entered the justice-room, he was taken into cus- tody, on a charge of fraudulently obtaining a steam-engine for a saw- mill from Mr. Scott, an engine-manufacturer of the Commercial Road; and that new case was at once entered into. Mr. Scott produced two promissory notes for 3001. each, signed " R. Breen, W. Ogilvie, D. Campbell, Commissioners," payable in October 1844, with 5 per cent interest ; which be had been induced to take in payment for the steam- engines by Mr. Campbell's representation of the flourishing state of the Association. Mr. Campbell now stated, that the notes were two of a set for 4,0001. which he had had from the Association: he had acted entirely bona fide and as the agent of the Association ; gaining no advantage for himself, but actual loss—the loss of the Barbados and its cargo. He also stated that Mr. Andrews, the registrar and managing man of the Company, who was to have 1,000/. a year, was not to be found : he had remained with the Association until December, when there was to be an investigation. The Commissioners were to take stock to the amount of 1,0001. each ; of which 250!. was to be paid up : qualifications were paid for by Mr. Andrews, Sir Richard Broun, and Sir W. Ogilvie; Mr. Campbell's was set against the cargo which he supplied. The Lord Mayor remarked, that the bills were not yet due : they could not be pronounced not to be good bills, since they had Sir Richard Broun's name upon them ; and he could not see that any fraud had been com- mitted on Mr. Scott.

The examination passed to the general case; and a good deal more was said on all sides similar to what has already appeared. Mr. Mellen represented the Association to have been set on foot by persons with the most honourable motives, but without experience in such business. He explained, that the Association originally had land in Prince Ed- ward Island, as had been stated ; but the contracts had been violated. It came out, however, that the Barbados bad been sent out with the emigrants at so late a season, in spite of an admonitory letter from the Government-officers, warning the Association of the danger. Lieuten- ant Lean adverted to a publication issued from the officers of the Asso- ciation, purporting to be official instructions for Sir Allan Macnab, their agent in Canada ; in which, in a note, was the following observation- " These instructions appply to Upper Canada only ; the Association having already acquired estates in Lower Canada to the extent of 366,892 acres, in addition to large estates in Prince Edward Island and other colonies." It appeared from that publication, that the Association sanctioned the unfounded report that they were possessed of estates where they had not an acre. The Lord Mayor made a strong appeal to the noblemen and gentlemen who by lending their names had coun- tenanced the proceedings of the Association, to subscribe 50/. each to indemnify the emigrants. Mr. Nettleship at once agreed to put a check for that amount, from the Duke of Argyll, into the Lord Mayor's hands.. Mr. Leslie, who has a mortgage on the vessel, promised not to disturb the emigrants for a few days ; and he said that he would willingly un- dertake to pay off all the liabilities of the Association for 8,000!. Uhl- mately, it was understood that some effort would be made to carry out the Lord Mayor's suggestion ; and Lieutenant Lean consented, with Dr. Rolph's assistance, to do the emigrants all the service he could.

An inquest was held at Plaistow, on the Essex shore of the Thames, on Thursday, on the body of Mr. Benjamin Ferrand Busfield ; which had been found that morning by four ballastmen, floating in the water, after it had been submerged for more than three weeks. Mr. Busfield was the brother of Mr. Busfield Ferrand the Member for Knares- borough, and the nephew of Mr. Busfield the Member for Bradford.

He was twenty years of age, and an Under Graduate at Cambridge. He had arrived in London on the 3d instant ; and early on the morning of the 4th be was about to embark in the Vulcan revenue-cutter, which lay at Blackwell ; its commander, Lieutenant Crispin, having promised to land him at Weymouth, whither he was proceeding on a visit to his mother. For that purpose, about four o'clock, he came down to the Blackwall pier in a cab ; and he alighted to see if it could pass on to the pier, for it was very dark at the time. He had been there in the day, when a dock-lighter is usually moored close to the pier ; but at night the lighter is moored further out ; and it is supposed that Mr. Busfield stepped inadvertently between the dock and the lighter in approaching the water's edge to hail the cutter. As he fell he cried for help ; and the cabman, with a Policeman, searched for the lost man, but without avail. The Jury returned the following verdict- " That Benjamin Ferrand Busfield was accidentally drowned, by falling from the Blackwall pier into the Thames, on the morning of the 4th April. And the Jury regret that the owners of that pier should be so regardless of the safety of the public as to have allowed the pier to be open at nine o'clock at night, in perfect darkness, and so that any person walking upon it must do so at the imminent risk of his life : and they hope that in future it will be lighted and watched, or that the gates will be constantly kept closed after dark."