day of according to a list of labourers affixed to an agreement entered into, and bearing date the 1833, and conformably to the Act of the 2nd and 3rd of his present Majesty, William IV. c. 96), comprising the expenditure of the labouring population of the said parish for six weeks, from the day of to the day of 1833. Three days' notice must be given of a meeting under this Act; that is, if notice be given on Sunday, the meeting cannot be held earlier than Thursday. THE WILLINGHAM EMIGRANTS. (From the Cambridge Chronicle, Jan. 4.) THE following letters have been received from one of the emigrants who left Willingham, in this county, in the spring of last year, and from the good character he bore while a resident in this country we have every reason to rely upon their accuracy. "Dear Fathers and Mothers, Brothers and Sisters, and all inquiring Friends, who wish to know where we are and how we are situated.-I, John Desbrow, set down to give as true an account of the country as I or we know of. We are all at Lockport, in the county of Niagara, in the State of New York, except Furbank Desbrow; we left him at Lian, about 500 miles from New York; and we are at Lockport. Joseph Holmes and I, John Desbrow, work for Mr. George Fields, and live together on the farm, in a log-house, and we have bought a cow for 19 dollars, and it runs on the farm, and serves both our families with milk and butter. A house and fuel are found us, and labour is about 68. a day; and the price of provision as follows:-flour about 5 dollars a barrel, the weight of 200lbs., fresh meat, beef, mutton and veal, about 4 or 5 cents per lb. Our master, George Fields, is a banker, and Rebecca Holmes lives in the house; the two boys, John and Joseph, work on the farm. Corn in America is as good as in England, and the price of wheat is from about 78. to 9s. a bushel, and all cattle are as good as in England, as horses, oxen, sheep, and hogs. Pork, in the fall of the year, is about 2.or 3 cents a pound; but chiefly our drink is water. Here is beer and liquor, but not so good as in England; and we work from sun-rising to sun-set, and live pretty well; we have a piece of beef baked over a pudding whenever we please, and if we think good to drink whiskey, we can get as drunk as David's Sow for 2 or 3 cents. Thus I have given as good an account about the country as I know at present; but the cow we bought for 19 dollars amounts to about 41. 108. English money, and such a cow as would cost 127. or 147. in England. Now I am about to write to my brother Moses Desbrow, or any other person that thinks of coming, to consider about it. I tell you, as I told you before, you must drink water, and work from light to dark, but live well. A single man gets from 9 to 12 dollars a month, and is found board, washing, and lodging; but I send for none, but have your own judgment about it; but if any come, you will find us at Lockport, and when we came we had nobody to see that we knew, nor yet where to go. We are all well at present, both men, women and children, except Joseph Day, of Over, who was taken ill going up the canal, and has not been capable of getting a living, but he has been taken to the poorhouse, and is well taken care of. I know not what to write more; but we would wish to know of your affairs, both fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, and all inquiring friends, and whether Mr. Reynolds is at Willingham still. There are at Lockport Baptist and Methodist meetings, but no settled ministers.-James Silk's little girl is very ill; John Few is now with us at Lockport, and is at work. Carpenters and joiners get 10s. or 128. a day. Henry Porter, malster, from Haddenham, is with us at Lockport, and makes himself comfortable, but left all his mates. Lockport is situated upon a canal about 363 miles long, and land about Lockport is about 5 or 6 dollars per acre. Lockport is a place quite lately occupied-ten years ago it was a desolate place. From New York to Albany are 166 miles, and from Albany to Lockport 331 miles. If any person thinks of coming, I'd have you buy but few biscuits, but buy flour and meat, and apply to Mr. Cole, Pitstreet, No. 3, Liverpool, to get your shipping ready; and when you get there get all the money you can, and don't change your gold at Liverpool, it will make much more at New York. We sent a letter when we landed at New York; send us word whether you received it—this was written August 5th, 1832. Rebecca has a very good place, and likes it well; she don't wish to come back to England, but sends her love and respects to Elizabeth and Jane Holmes, and wishes to hear of their affairs. Charlotte Holmes and Sarah Desbrow wish to hear of Sophia Phillips, and all brothers, sisters, and acquaintances, and send their love and respects to their poor old father and mother. With a house rent free, and fuel, also an orchard close to the house, which grows 15 or 16 bushels of apples; and in the woods grows a wonderful quantity of nuts, raspberries, and various other kinds of fruit. If Moses Desbrow or any other person comes to Lockport, in America, please to inquire at Lian for Furbank Desbrow; if you come up the canal, that is about 100 miles before you come to Lockport.' Lockport, in the County of Niagara, in the State of New York, Dear Fathers, Mothers, Brothers, and Sisters, We send to all, and we wish all well, and think that one letter will suffice as well as being at the trouble and expense of three or four. If W— H—, M— D—, and I— F— intend coming to America, they will find us, J— H—, J— D—, S— D—, J— S—, and W- E-, at Lockport. We are all well at present, both men, women, and children, and all at Lockport, except F― D-; we left him at Lian, one hundred miles from Lockport. Labour is about 68. a day; the price of mutton, beef, and pork, 4 or 5 cents a pound. Twelve cents is one shilling, and one shilling in England makes two shillings in America. A STATEMENT OF THE COUNTRY. Lockport, the town where we all live, is a market town. Provisions are plentiful of all kinds. The inhabitants about 3000; and here are three flourmills which go by water, and run eight pair of stones each. From New York to Lockport are 500 miles; from Lockport to the river Ohio are 500 miles; from Lockport to Lake Eric, at the falls of Niagara, the longest falls in America, are 18 miles. In the country, when we first came, things all appeared strange; but with all the strange things that ever we met with, we are never without plenty of eating and drinking: of beef, mutton, and pork, we have plenty. We came from New York to Albany, up the Hudson's river; there we saw mountains above the clouds, but where we are there are no mountains, and misceders are the worst wild beasts we hear of, and they are what you in England call gnats. I give you the best statement of the country I know of, and we want to know the statement of the old country, and how times go with all fathers, and mothers, brothers and sisters, and all inquiring friends, for with us times go pretty well; for we sit smoking our pipes, and drinking of whiskey, whilst you poor men are wandering up Drayton hills, or elsewhere. If any person intends coming to Ameriea, do not fear the journey, for I would not care one cent about coming over the water. If any one intends coming, come at Spring instead of Michaelmas; for if you come at Michaelmas, the canal, I imagine, will be frozen up; then you must come by land, which I suppose will cost about 18 or 20 dollars; and if you come at spring, you will take the steam-boat at New York, and come up the Hudson's river to Albany, and then take the boat and come up the canal. The whole journey from New York to Lockport cost us about 6 dollars each, and half price for children. C-Hand S-D- would like to see their friends, but not to come from a good living at Lockport to Willingham parish, and we would not forget the officers of the parish for helping us to a land of plenty, for we have plenty of bread, beef, mutton, and pork. J-H— and J— D—live together at present, and have got three large hogs in the sty, and not for house rent or shoe bills, but merely for their own eating. Shoemakers here can clear a dollar a day, when board, lodging, and washing are paid, and 1 dollar is 8s. of this money. I would not wish to persuade any person to come to America; but if you would like to live well with work, come to America, whether you be labourers or tradesmen. I have told you the price of labourers, I will now tell you the price of tradesmen : Journeymen carpenters have ten shillings a day, and tailors have seven dollars for making one coat. There is a man at Lockport, a shoemaker, who came since we came, without money, and left his wife and children upon the parish, who now thinks of buying himself a piece of land and building himself a house. We will send our respects to the officers of the parish for helping us out of the land of bondage, into the land of liberty; and we wish to return you many thanks for what you have done for us, and if any think of coming, we hope you will do as much for them. C- H- and S-D-send their respects to all their neighbours, and wish to hear of all, and send to say that they have 20 shillings now, where they had not 1 cent in England: as for feasting, we can feast every day; but in order to remember the feast we kept Over feast, Willingham feast, and Cottenham feast, with beef, mutton, plum puddings, and liquors enough and to spare. Clothing is as much as in England, except caps and ribands, and they are very dear. We would remember our fathers and mothers, sisters and brothers, and neighbours all, and would wish to be remembered: so no more from your absent sons and daughters, brothers and sisters. When you send again, send a little about the state of the country, and direct your letter to J— H— or J— D—. The Rev. Mr. Palliser of Crook, near Passage, has returned 2501., which he received from Government on account of Tithes not paid, to the Treasury, as, being independent in fortune, he did not wish to cause any molestation to the parish. He expends all, or nearly all his receipts, in supplying food and clothing to his poor parishioners.-Waterford Mail. [Yet such a man is robbed without remorse by the followers of Bishop Doyle, the Priests, and Mr. O'Connell.-ED.] The Bishop of Winchester, under the late Augmentation Act, has increased several livings in his gift out of the revenues of the see, and, among others, St. Michael's, St. Lawrence, St. Thomas, and St. John, in and near Winchester. WANT of space and time have compelled the delay of the remaining observations on Church Reform till the next number; and perhaps the brighter light which may then be thrown over the subject will make it easier of treatment. In the mean time, there are two or three observations worth making. Those who have the curiosity to look at the organ of the Benthamites, the Westminster Review, will find in the last number two curious statements,-the one, that the doctrine so long and loudly preached by the radicals, to inflame the minds of the country against the clergy, viz. that tithes are a tax by which the price of corn is raised to the community, is perfectly untenable; or, to use the reviewer's phrase, that it is quite arrierée. In another part of the same number, the folly of the landed interest in expecting any good from the abolition of tithes is as clearly taught. This is the course of things. The radical party holds forth doctrines which it knows to be false, in order to work the people up to exasperation against the clergy, and clamours down, by threats and violence, every one who attempts to expose these practices. But, as soon as the falsehoods have done their work, and produced the desired exasperation, then, to preserve their character as philosophers, this party turns entirely round, and disclaims these very doctrines as false, and long given up by all clear thinkers!* The writer had mentioned his intention of going into the subject of cathedrals more at large; and he had, in that declaration, reference to a former article, in which he stated that proof could be given, by the citation of names, of the eminence of the men who had adorned our cathedrals. But this work has been done most admirably by Mr. Pusey, in his work on Cathedrals; and the reader will find, among the Documents (it is a very valuable one) a list of many most illustrious men who have been members of cathedrals. There is something more dreadful than can be imagined by any but those who read the Westminster Review, in its tone and temper. One shudders in witnessing the horrid displays of cold-blooded and unnatural exultation at what it thinks the certain downfall of every thing which now is, every thing with which the happiness and existence of thousands and thousands of innocent families are connected. Of a truth, the Singe-tigre of England is a more fearful animal than the kindred beast of France. When the French variety is full of blood, it actually turns away from the horrid spectacle, and forgetting its horrors, indulges, with perfect good humour, in the follies of the Boulevards, or the gaieties of the Palais Royal. But the English animal never forgets the taste of blood, and never turns away from the sight; and the only indication which it gives of its monkey propensities is when it grins and jabbers at the prospect of the feast of horrors and blood by which its tiger-half is to be glutted. |