Cbt iirobinces.
A meeting of coal-owners, merchants, and manufacturers of Newcastle upon-Tyne, was held on Saturday, at the Turk's Head Inn, to consider the alarming condition into which, as was alleged, the commercial and manufacturing interests of the country had been thrown by the working of the Banking Act. Mr. Bell, M.P., who was in the chair, stated to the meeting, that in the first instance, at the request of the Coal-trade Com- mittee, he had written to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, asking if he would receive a deputation to confer on the subject of the present alarm- ing aspect of affairs. In reply, after saying that he should be very glad to see the deputation, Sir Charles Wood added, with some sharpness- " But I confess I do not see the advantage which can be deriyed from having an interview with me. I am afraid that nothing on my part can prevent the consequence of over-speonlation and mistaken calculations in trading matters; and there is nobody who thinks there is any want of circulation or extraordinary pressure on the money-market for houses in good credit." The proceedings resulted in the appointment of a deputation to wait upon the Chancellor of the Exchequer, at Hickleton, near Doncaster.
Accordingly, on Tuesday, the deputation, headed by Mr. Bell, M.P., had their interview. It was remarkable, however, that the alarmist tone which pervaded the speeches at the Newcastle meeting had subsided; for at the interview the speakers were at great pains to show that the trade of their district was in a sound state, and that they were moved rather by a consideration of the difficulties which might happen if the stringency of the London money-market should increase, than by any actual henry which had been sustained. The deputation admitted that the conduct of the Bank of England towards the commercial interests of Newcastle had been marked by great liberality and judgment. They were only anxious now to inform the Ministry, through the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the consequences would be if a crisis similar to that in April last should be brought about; a contingency which could only be averted by some modification of the Banking Aot.
Sir Charles Wood told the deputation, that, in his opinion, there was no just cause for the apprehensions which they entertained. The Bank of England had not limited its discounts; neither, be believed, had the Di- rectors any intention to limit accommodation as they had done in April. Any relaxation of the Bank Act could only be effooted by Parliament, and was not a question which Ministers could decide; neither was it in the de- partment of the Executive to counsel the Bank as to what amount of paper' they should discount. Sir Charles concluded by a polite expression of his willingness at all times to receive and consider the opinions of the coin meroial world on any question affecting their interests.
The statements of distress amongst the coal-owners, made at the New- castle meeting on Saturday, have brought the Marquis of Londonderry into the field of discussion. In a letter to the Horning Post, the Marquis, as directing one of the oldest and largest collieries in the North of England, declares that he had never heard one word of the deputation, and did not believe in the alleged distress. Of Saturday's meeting he says- " With the exception of the (certainly very respected) chairman, Mr. Bell, I do not find the names of any one large proprietor, only those of viewers and gentle- men who have speculated largely in shares in the numerous small collieries. "In my judgment, the coal-trade was never in a more healthy state: we reap not the same high prices, but those who have large coal-fields, great establishments, and capital embarked in the trade,(which is now happily free of regulation of vend,) meet with fair remuneration, and are content."
Mr. Charles Buller was entertained at a public dinner, on Wednesday, by the electors of Liskeard, to celebrate his reelection. The Mayor pre- sided; and among the principal guests were, Mr. Robartes, M.P., Mr. Ed- mund Turner, M.P., Sir William Trelawney, and several gentlemen of in- fluence. Mr. Buller twice returned thanks—once for " her Majesty's Mi- nisters," and once for himself. In speaking for Ministers, he said-
" They have succeeded to office under such circumstances as deprived them of the power, but at the same time relieved them of the responsibility, of proposing that course under which they deemed the country should be governed: they suc- ceeded to power not by their own strength, but by the weakness and disruption of party; they succeeded to power because no one else would venture to uuder- take to uphold the government of the country. The country did them ample justice; the country gave them credit for their good intentions, and supported them during the period of their weakness. It has now relieved them from that weakness, and placed on them the full responsibility of thegovernment of this country. It is not for me, humble member as I am of that Government, to at- tempt to indicate to you what will be the course adopted by the Government in the coming session: in the policy it will pursue, I am no more than you initiated in their secrets. I know no more than the humblest of my auditors what mea- sures the Government are prepared to bring before the Parliament in the ensuing session. I, like you, must look to the character and past conduct of these men; and, judging from their character and from their past conduct, I am induced to give them my support, and humbly to cooperate with them. I am induced to do so, because I think from our experience of the past we may judge that they will not be loath to use the power they have now got for the benefit of the country, and because I feel you may repose in them the same confidence I unhesitatingly do— the confidence which I ask you to repose in them—the confidence you show you have reposed in them by the manner in which you have drunk the toast proposed by the Mayor, and which rests entirely on the hope you form of their policy, grounded on your recollection of the past. I feel confident that you will not be disappointed in these hopes. I feel confident that when, a few years hence, I may on some occasion of a similar nature have to respond to this toast, I hope I still may have to respond for the same Liberal Government, and be then proud to appeal to their success in having passed a long list of Liberal measures, which I believe it is their intention to propose and their present occupation to prepare." Mr. Buller's second speech amplified the same text—his confidence in Ministers.
The Chartists of Wakefield have voted an address to our neighbour the Duke of Newcastle, in which they profess to be his ardent admirers.— Sheffield Times.
Fourteen ricks of corn have been burnt at Shillingford, the property of a farmer who had lowered wages; and the fire is said to have been wilfuL
On Thursday last week, the village of Needingworth, near St. Ives, was the scene of a great calamity. About noon, an idiot woman threw some live coals on a quantity of straw M a yard; the wind was high, and the blazing straw was blown on the thatch of a cottage, which was soon in a blaze; and in a few minutes ad- joining premises were fired. The upshot was, that six farmsteads were consumed, with the produce of 3,000 acres, together with about ninety houses and cottages.. Though there were insurances in four offices alone for 20,0001., this will cover but a small portion of the loss. Subscriptions have been opened for the poor cottagers, who have lost everything. The contents of a stack-yard at March have been destroyed by fire; a spark from an engine on the adjacent railway having set light to some straw. It in said that the railway officials had warned the owners of the prepay that it was in a dangerous position. A third fire in this neighbourhood occurred on Sunday night. The stack-yard of Trumpington Hall, Colonel Pemberton's seat, near Cambridge, was discovered to be in flames; bet as there was a good supply of water and plenty of assistance, only four stacks out of thirty were consumed. It is supposed that this fire also was wilfuL The accident on the Manchester and Leeds Railway, when the last carriage of the express-train got off the line, appears to have been caused by a broken rail. At the time of the occurrence, a storm of wind and rain prevailed, so that the guards and driver could not by any possibility have beard an alarm. The first to perceive the disaster were the people at the Sowerby Bridge station, who hoisted a red signal; the engine-driver slackened his speed, but the train was still carried forward some distance. At the station, the last carriage was plunged into an ash-pit; but the coupling-iron still holding, the body of the carriage was wrenched from the wheels, and was dragged along the road like a sleelge. The three gentlemen who were dashed out of the carriage were found lying in the road some distance past the ash-pit. The following statement was made to the superintendent of the railway by Mr. Moon, one of the gentlemen thrown out, who fortunately escaped with bruises—" Immediately after passing the Ludden- den Foot station, the oscillation and uneasy motion of the carriage convinced us that we were off the line. The rapid motion, the noise of the wind, and battering 'of the rain, added to the fact that ours was the last carriage, convinced us also that we were too far removed from the guard to enable us to draw attention to our position: and we therefore sat still, waiting tremulously the result. After the lapse of about three minutes, daring which time the carriage was tossing to and fro in a frightful manner, and dragged along at a rate of full thirty miles an hour, we found we were entering the Sowerby Bridge tunnel, which is about a quarter of a mile in length, and which terminates just before reaching the station. In the tunnel lights appeared to be dancing about; and I fancied I could perceive the faces of men, whom I took to be porters holding up lights, and our hopes were that they had seen the predicament our carriage was in. The train, how- ever, proceeded; and, on approaching the Sowerby Bridge station, the deceased Mr. Gillard remarked that he thought the carriage had righted itself upon the rails again; we became conscious that the oscillation was considerably less. I sought this opportunity to seize the straps which passed along the roof of the coupe, and raising my feet out of the window, I thought it the most secure way to escape danger. I advised Mr. Weston and Mr. Gillard to do the same; but whether they did so or not I cannot say, as immediately after a terrible shock rendered me insensible to what was passing around me. I remember nothing further until after I was picked up and conveyed to the Royal Hotel." The inquest was held on Saturday. The evidence satisfied the Jury that no blame was due to the railway servants, the engine-driver and guards having stopped the train as soon as they were aware of the mishap; and a verdict of "Accidental death" was returned, with this addition— "The Jury cannot separate without suggesting the necessity of having a luggage or break van attached to the end of each express-train, as an additional security to the passenger-carriages, and to obviate the dangers arising from the great oscillation of the last carriage; and they would also recommend that some mode of communication should be adopted between each carriage and the guard In charge, as the fatal result of the present accident might have been avoided if such had been the case."
A daring burglary has been committed in the village of Halton, near Brent- wood. Mr. Offin's mansion was attacked by a gang of robbers; four of whom, armed with pistols and bludgeons, and having their faces blackened, entered the house, overpowered the inmates, and carried off plate and other articles worth some 4001. or 5001. This is not the first robbery of the kind that has lately hap- pened in the neighbourhood.
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