Current:

Leader (1850-1860), 23rd September 1854, Edition Town of 2, Page 894, Untitled Article

Page 894
Page 6
6 of 24

On this page

  • Text (7)
  • Transcript

    • Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.

      Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.

      Untitled Article

      ELECTIONS . song's i / tnn . Trifc vacancy in the representation of this 'borough , caased by the death of Lord Jocelyn , has been filled up by the Unopposed election of Mr . J . H . Gurney , of Colton Hall , Norwich , a local magnate . Mr . Gurney ' s politics are , as a whole , ministerial . In returning thanks at his election , Mr . Gurney simply referred to his former speeches for his political opinions . They are contained in one of his speeches , of which the following is a resume . He stated that " His previous political course bad been very much a blank . He had proposed Mr . Peto at the last election for Norwich , bat solely upon commercial grounds , considering him one of those men whose commercial knowledge , standine . and character , are so valuable-that they ought to be in

      Parliament whatever their politics may be . Not anxious for the war at first , he considered it the duty of Parliament to give to the war the first and fullest attention , and , therefore , instead of a continuance of tax-repealing legislation , an increase of taxation must be 'expected . He could conceive few greater evils to the country than a sadden and entire change of ministry during the war , and therefore thought it necessary for Government to abstain from introducing important measures which , if defeated , would render resignation necossary 5 but if a measure of parliamentary reform were brought in , it must be dealt with . With regard t-o coastituencies , it was his opinion that difference in size constituted a very important element of advantage and safety to this country ; but , wi the other hand , he thought it highly desirable that the aggregate number of members returned by h should in the bear fair numerical

      eaccouixty gross a proportion to population . About a reduction of the franchise , he was not very hbfe , having little faith of its doing the good anticipated' by some , and little fear of the harm prognosticated by others ; but he would not oppose a reduction of from 101 . to 51 ., if brought forward by proper men , under proper circumstanc « s , and at a proper time , and extended to counties as well as boroughs , seeing that agricultural constituencies are the main strongholds of Conservative opinion , and that when more sail is hoisted , it is only right to take inore ballast on boa-3 rd . To the ballot he was opposed , considering it' as a machinery , for enabling a man to say one thing and do another . If , however , popular feeling should prove to fce overwhelming in its favour , he vrculd give way with the best grace possible , although , to speak plainly , he should not like it . He Was entirely opposed to thV abolition of the property qualification . He had some faith in the old Norfolk proverb— - ' An empty sack don't stand upright , '

      and did not wish to increase the number of empty sacks m the House of Commons . As an elector , he did not wish to see Jew , Turk , or infidel in the House of Commons , but , as an elector , held it lis right to vote for Jew , Turk , or infidel if he pleased to do so , and that it was barring his constitutional right to prevent { him . "With regard to chur « h and statey he believed it the duty of the state to provide religious services for those yiho , of their own free -will , liked to avail themselves of them . He upheld church rates as just in theory , l ) ut admitted the present mode of collection to bo highly unsatisfactory , still he would not vote for their abolition until ho auv a good and safe substitute , whicli might perhaps be found 5 n a better and more economical administration of existing church property . He was exceedingly jealous of any further legislation upon the subject of education , ami asserted the full right of dissenters to enter the universities . He was opposed to the Maynooth grant as the most anomalous and unreasonable excrescence appended to the British constitution ; state salaries should be reserved for state servants , and tlio . Roman Catholic priest was not the seroint of the state but of the Popo . "

      LORD DUNCAN IN JTORFAIt SHIRK . A meeting was held last week at Dundee , at -which Viscount' l 5 uncatl , who is a candidate to fill the vacancy in the TfepYesentation of the county of If orfar attended , Lord Duncan addressed the assembly . He supported the -war , and eulogised some of tlie measures of the Chancellor of the Exchequer ; he should generally , but not blindly , support the present Government ; all sound reforms would have his voice and vote . His canvass appears to he successful .

      Untitled Article

      DUCAL TENANTRY . Mrs . Stowte , in . her " Sunny Memories , " extols the system pursued on the Duke of Sutherland's estate , The Northern Ensign , therefore , is indignant—denies the facts , and asserts that " The system which Mrs . Stowe lauds is an -utter failuro . What , it asks , is tho present social condition of the county of Sutherland but that of absoluto and universal serfdom ? The whole of its 25 , 000 inhabitants are , with less than 200 honourable but marked exceptions , either the most abject serfs or the uncomplaining and pliable tools of the duke ' s commissioner . Does any tenant or tenant ' s dependant daro to speak louder than in muttered whispers against a single despotic act of Mr . Loch ? We know Mrs . Stowe ' s statements to be baseless , fabulous , and it is truly sad to think that a cause so noble and so well entitled to the support of mankind should

      at lar ^ e Buffer , as that of freedom will now do , from Mrs . Stowe ' s ill-judged and gratuitous defence of what she never personally inquired into . Sutherlandshiro is just Kussia in miniuture—< Kusaia absolutism , tho rale of terror reigns with unchallenged sway . There ia either rolling affluence or wretched poverty . There is tho noblest structure in the north of Scotland , and there arc tho mcanost liuts . Almost within sight of proud Dunrobin's goldonpoaked turrets there are cabins wlioro human beings burrow , in which tlio Good Duke would not allow his dog to live . ' Superior power and wealth' huvo so > far aided * tho struggles of advancing civilisation , ' that in scores of instances , pigs and sheep , and dogs , and cattle , and human creatures live and move and have their being undor the same roof . Daro thoy to complain of their state ? l Th « n , ' say their surly tormentors , * leave tho country ; you lmvo no Imsincss here . ' Do thoy venture to represent to tlio Duke their condition ? Ways and moans are taken to suppress their groanings , generally by tho aid of throat and moimco . And thus 1 ms

      universal fcntlierland become totally paralysed . From head to foot tho wliolo community is ono vast festering sore . Tho wholo charges against tho peopla have been proved to bo malignantly fabulous , and to bo only ndoptoil to afford n pietext for rcinfoofllng proprietorship with supremo sway , and securing tlio prosperity of tho rich by tho ruin of the poor . Tho vast find splendid straths of a noblo county , wholly turned over to sheop farmers , wore to bo tlio oourco of more than oriental opulonco to tho Dunrobin trc «« ury , and the county would speedily become ono vast 151 Dorado . Glod Iiub ordered otherwise ; and while tlio enomios of tho noblo pooplo of Sutherland have eo far got tliuir wish accomplished , an their wreck nnd eviction , their groat uiin has been noutr « lino < l , an . I with tho destruction of tlio finest peasantry under heaven , rumurknblo for nil thoso features of character which dlatingni » h n truly noblo community , hnu como tho uttor annihilation of all those phnaea of material prosperity whicli aocompuny , by tho wiao and moraiful nrrnaflomonts of tlio Divmo lining , « n industrious and free pooplo , Mr . JLochhaa bown the wind , and ho now reanu tho whirlwind . "

      Untitled Article

      INAUGURATION OF ST . GEORGE ' S HALL , LIVERPOOL . The ceremony of opening St . George ' s Hall , at Liverpool , was performed on Monday— -without the Queen or Prince Albert . The Mayor was supposed to be noxt best person to preside , because of Im office , and his being the chairman of the Building Committee . The preparations in the hall were confined to the arrangements for the musical performances ; and the ceremonial was of the slightest . The Mayor and Corporation , with a few local notabilities , marched in soon after eleven o ' clock , the national anthem was sung , a prayer said by the Bishop of Chester , and then the Mayor declared the hall open in the following terms : —

      " In the name of the Mayor , Aldermen , and Burgesses of this ancient and loyal town , I proclaim this hall to be now opened . Hereafter all public meetings whatever convened by the Mayor will be held here ; and the hall will also be used for other public purposes sanctioned by the council of the borough . " The musical part of the affair then commenced , and continued for a day or two ; but they were not by any means satisfactory in their carrying out , although the selection was good .

      There is no doubt that the long talked-of inauguration of tliis fine building was a failure , and reflects little credit on a large and wealthy town like Liverpool .

      Untitled Article

      THE MORMONS . This sect has gained proselytes in Wales , A large number of persona in South Wales ha-vo left , and others arc still preparing to > follow , for the Mortnonito settlements in North America . These persons arc principally from tho counties of Carmarthen and Glamorgan , and many have given up a comfortable homo and subsistence , in order to seek their paradise on the banks of tho Bait Lake . A very largo oxodus of these deluded people has taken place from South Wales , and , if anything , the movement is on tho increase . The emigrants are principally small fanners , mechanics , iron-workers , colliers , &c , with hero and there parsons of a bettor class . They inalec their wny to Liverpool , Bristol , or Plymouth , and thonco start for Now Orleans , where they ascend tlio river to their new settlement .

      Tho domesticity at the capital of Mormonism does not Boom to be enticing . A recent visitor ( Mr . Iforris ) Buys : — ' Polygamy ia introducing a now stylo of building at Suit Lake Uny . A man with lmlf-a-dozen wjvob buildn , if ho o « n , iv long , low dwelling , buying nix entrances from tho outaido ; and whon Jio t « k « H in « now wire , if « iblo to do bo , udda another npurtincnt . Tho objoot ia to koop tho wouion and Imbou ua much na poasiblo' apurt , nnd prevent tUoso torrlblo cut-fights which sometimes occur , with hH tho iie-

      Untitled Article

      THE EARL OF DERBY AT DONCASTER . Thetib were doings at Doncaster races last week which the turfites did not seem to think at all ' chivalrous . " The Earl of Derby had three horses entered for the St . Leger , one of which— " Acrobat "stood high in the betting . In the race the horse did nothing particular , and at the close was " nowhere . " When the Doncaster Stakes were run for , Lhis earne horse beat very easily the horses which came in second and fourth for the St . Leger . Upon this , the belief that the thing was a " cross "

      " . Gave rise to a scene of the greatest uproar and confusion . John Scott , amidst & storm of groans and hisses , was hustled in every direction , and his party had to fight their way through the crowd to rescue him from the Lynch law with which his exasperated assailants threatened him . Great praise is due to Harry Broome for the protection which he promptly and effectually afforded him . Whether Acrobat could have won the St . Leger or not is a problem we are not prepared to solve ; an explanation will now , doub-tless , proceed from the proper quarter . Fortnnately , Lord Derby had left the course before the disgraceful scene took place . " Another account states : —

      " The excitement and confusion which certain proceedings occasioned to-day will be ever talked about in connexion with the Doncaster meeting of 1854 . In the whole course of our long experience of sporting men and sporting 4 doings' we uev « r witnessed a scene similar to that which wsis enacted on thi * the last day of the meeting . Out of . Acrobat ' s success for the Doncaster Stakes grew a riot which has no parallel in the history of the ¦ turf . The style in which this horse defeated Ivan and Scythian seemed to convince the spectators that his performance' for tlie St . Leger was a delusion and a sham . John Scott was Looted andL groaned at ¦ with increasing fury , until his assailants lashed themselves into a frenzy of indignation , and proceeded to acts of personal viujeacc inauii out

      ABDUCTION IN SCOTLAND . T « EitE is etill such a thing as Lochinvaiism , or abduction , even in Scotland , but it takes the curious turn of tho kidnapping a bridegroom by his toother . It will be . remembered , says tho Stirling Journul , that about nino or ten months ago considerable excitement was created in the Bridge of Allan by tho report that a bridegroom had beon abducted on his marriage-day . The story wont—that a paw , but of course eminently handsome , workgirl , of about tliirty years of ago , had hiacinatcd her employer , who was considerably her senior , but as in other cases , " the course of true love novor did run smooth . " After tho marriage-day ha < l beon fixed , tho bridegroom was nowhere to be found . Search was made , nnd messengers

      sent in every direction , hut for a time without success . It now t urns out that tho older , nnd only brother of tho bridegroom had . previous to hip going nmisaing . lodged u notarial protest with the session-clerk ol tho pariah , interdicting his issuing tho uaunl cortittcntos of proclamation , on tlio ground tlint Sis brother , the bridugroom , vm » in " an infirm nnd fucilu state of mind , and to such an 07 ctcnt n » to nffoct hia reason aind judgment ^ whereby ho ia rendered unable to look after Jhia niutlra , nnd in liable to bo imposed upon by designing piuticm -, and further , is not in n ( it condition of lmud to enter into the state of marriage . *' The-bridegroom was , it scorns , confined under legal process , bud avoided it , got married , and brought an action for damages against hia brother , which will shortly como before tho Scottish tribunals .

      . leiiipieiuau a -uiueiy escape , jonn ocou was surrounded and hemmed in by a crowd of yelling and enraged men , ' the . ringleaders' of whom being evidently Yorkshiremen . His clothes were almost stripped from his back , and ' ¦ when rescued from the hands of the ' rioters' his plight was miserable in the extreme . Fright had evidently rendered him . powerless , and but for the rallying of his friends , who struggled violently to keep oif Lis assailants , the consequences to him might have been very serious . HaTry Brodine took up the cudgels valiantly in his behalf , and made such good use of his fists , that John Scott was at length , but with much difficulty , lodged in safety in the saloon of the stand . Just prior to this row , Lord Derby had quitted the course , but his name was shouted ia anything but respectful terms . " Threats of bringing the matter before tbe sporting tribunals are rife .

      Untitled Article

      ARE LOUIS NAPOLEON AND THE SULTAN OF AMERICAN DESCENT ? The Pitsburg Post has a curious legend of facts which will tend no doubt to connect more closely still the alliance between the Emperor of the French and the Porte . The pnst history of the family of Louis Napoleon and the Sultan of Turkey is full of interesting and marvellous incidents , some of which are probably not known to our readers . These two monarchs , now so cordially united in the struggle to maintain the integrity of the Ottoman Empire , aie both grandsons of American ladies . Those ladies were born and raised in- the same noighbourhood , in the island of Martinique , ono of the West Indies . They were of French origin , and companions and intimate friends in childhood and youth . They were Josephine de Tascher and a Miss S . The history of Josephine is generally known . She went to France , and married to M . Beauharnais , by whom she had one son , Eugene , and a daughter , Hortenso . Some time after the death of Beauharnais , Josephine was married to Jfapoleon . Bonaparte , and became Empress of France ; Her daughter Hortense was married to Joseph Bonaparte , then King of Holland , and the present Emperor of France is her son by this marriage . Miss S quitted the Island of Martinique some time before her friend . But the vessel that vas carrying her to France was attacked and taken by the Algerine corsairs , and the crew and passengers were made prisoners . But this corsair ship was in turn attacked and pillaged by Turin pirates , and Miss S was carried by them to ^ Constantinople , and offered forsale as a slave . Her « xtraordiiiary beauty anil accomplishments found her a purchaser in the Sultan himself , and she soon became the chief lady of the seraglio , and Sul . taness of Turkey . SIahmoud . il . was her son , and the present Sultan , Abdul Medjid , is the son of Mahmoud . Thus the two sovereigns who now' oocupy so large a space in the world's eye , are grandsons of American Creole girls , who were playmates in tlieir youth , ai } d were as remarkable for their beauty and excellent dispositions as for their varied and singular fortunes . Both these women , ia the height of their power , remembered all the friends of their youth , and provided munificently for their welfare . Many of the relatives of the Sultancss left the Island of Martinique and settled at Constantinople , where their descendants still reside , and enjoy the favour of the Sultan . The Siiltaness died in 18 tl , the Empress Josephine in 1814 , and their grandsons now rule over two wide and powerful allies in one of the most momentous and sanguinary struggles iii which Europe was ever involved .

      Untitled Article

      894 THE LEADER [ Saturday ,

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), Sept. 23, 1854, page 894, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2057/page/6/