ONLY SIXTY COPIES PRINTED.-TO BE CONTINUED ANNUALLY. Gateshead-on-Tyne: PRINTED BY WILLIAM DOUGLAS, OBSERVER OFFICE. MDCCCXLIII. HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS, 1842. GATESHEAD STREET ACT ASSESSMENT THE owners of property in Gateshead, as are assessed to the Street Act Assessment, to the following clauses "68. Enacts, That one moiety of all and every the rates or assessments hereby ordered to be made shall be allowed by the respective owners of the several lands, tenements and hereditaments hereby made rateable, to the tenants or occupiers thereof respectively who shall pay the same; and such tenants or occupiers are authorised and empowered to deduct and retain out of their respective rents, such sums of money as they shall respectively pay for and on behalf of their respective landlords or owners; and the payment of such moiety by the said tenants or occupiers shall be considered as money actually paid for rent due or to become due to such landlords and owners, who, shall allow the same to their respective tenants out of their rents accordingly, and the other moiety thereof shall be borne and sustained by such occupiers. "69. Enacts, That the said Commissioners shall and may rate or assess the landlord or owner of any houses or buildings, which shall be let to or occupied by two or more tenants, and the same shall be deemed as one house or tenement; and such rates or assessments shall be paid by one or more of the occupiers of any part or parts of such houses or buildings, who is and are hereby required to pay such sum and sums of money as shall be so rated or assessed upon any such landlord or owner in pursuance of this Act, and to deduct the same out of his, her, or their rent; and the occupier or occupiers paying such rates or assessments, or any part thereof, shall be acquitted and discharged of and for so much money as he, she, or they shall have so paid, as if the same had been actually paid to the landlord or owner to whom his, ber, or their rent shall be due and payable; and every such landlord or owner is hereby required to allow such deduction upon the receipt of the residue of his, her, or their rent; but no occupier or occupiers shall at any time pay or be liable to pay any greater sum for or towards the discharge of the said rates or assessments and arrears thereof than the amount of rent due and payable by such occupier or occupiers to the landlord or landlords, owner or owners of the premises occupied by him, her, or them. "70. Enacts, That it shall and may be lawful for the said Commissioners, and they are empowered, upon the complaint of any occupier or owner respectively of a dwelling house or other hereditament subject to the payment of the said rates or assessments, to mitigate, reduce, lessen, remit, or excuse, for or on account of his or their poverty or inability only, the payment of that part of the said rate or assessment, which by this Act is made payable by such owner or occupier for such dwellinghouse or other hereditament, in such manner as the said Commissioners shall in their discretion think just and reasonable; but the respective landlords or occupiers of such dwellinghouses and hereditaments, whose part of the said rate or assessment shall not be mitigated, reduced, lessened, remitted, or excused;, shall nevertheless bear and pay their proportion of such rates or assessments in respect of such premises." I contend that the above clauses give no power whatever to the Commissioners to recover the rates from any other persons than the occupiers of property; and I have refused to pay certain rates which have been demanded of me, by the collectors, as an owner. The clauses, to my comprehension, are quite décisive against the pretensions of the Commissioners to levy rates from the landlord. The Act says that landlords may be assessed, evidently for the sake of more clearly defining the properties; but the occupiers, and the occupiers only, are to pay the rates to the colleetors, and afterwards to deduct the landlord's proportion from the rent. The 70th clause, which permits the Commissioners to reduce, lessen, remit, or excuse the rates on account of poverty, does not alter the question, the meaning of it being clearly this, that if the landlord be poor, and the occupier not, the landlord's portion may be remitted; and, on the other hand, if the occupier be poor, and the landlord not, then the occupier only is to be relieved; but still the rate must be recovered from the occupier upon the premises, as directed by the 69th clause. This I believe to be the law; and so long as it shall continue to be the law, I shall resist any violation of it. Gateshead, Jan. 5, 1842. JAMES HYMERS. GENERAL MEETING OF SHIPOWNERS OF THE PORTS OF NEWCASTLE, SUNDERLAND, AND STOCKTON. AT a GENERAL MEETING of SHIPOWNERS of the ports of Newcastle, Sunderland, and Stockton, and their dependencies, convened by the Newcastle and Gateshead Shipowners' Society, and held in the Hall of the Trinity House of Newcastle, on Tuesday, the 18th of January, 1842, (JOHN RAYNE, JUN., Esq., the Deputy Master of the Trinity House, in the Chair,) it was resolved :— On the motion of J. T. CARR, Esq., Sheriff of Newcastle, On the motion of ROBERT ANDERSON, Esq., of South Seconded by W. ORD, Esq., of Sunderland. 2. That this meeting being convinced, after sixteen years' experience, that the continued and increasing distress to which the shipping interest is reduced, is mainly to be attributed to the encouragement given to the foreign shipping and seamen of the north of Europe by the alteration of the Navigation Laws, is determined to use every exertion to recover the protection of which they have been unjustly deprived; and they therefore consider it essential that a thorough investigation into the effects produced on British navigation by the said alterations should be instituted by Parliament, with a view to the speedy alleviation and ultimate removal of the distress. On the motion of the SHERIFF OE NEWCASTLE, Seconded by GEORGE JOBLING, Esq., of Seaton Sluice. 3. That this meeting cannot, for a moment, doubt, that the legislature of the country will zealously enter upon the investigation of an evil which, if unchecked, would prove, in the end, not only ruinous to the shipowner, but destructive of that proud superiority on the seas, which the commercial marine, by its supply of seamen, has hitherto enabled the navy of England to maintain. On the motion of GEORGE STRAKER, Esq., of New. castle, Seconded by ROBERT ANDERSON, Esq. 4. That the cordial thanks of this meeting be given to the Members of the House of Commons, who have kindly attended on the present occasion, and that they be requested to urge, in their places in Parliament, the necessity of immediately entering upon the inquiry which this meeting recommends. On the motion of W. ORD, Esq., Seconded by WM. RICHMOND, Esq., of North Shields. 5. That the preceding resolutions be advertised, three times, in all the local papers; also, in the Shipping and Mercantile Gazette; and that the expense thereof be defrayed jointly by the Shipowners' Societies of the Tyne and Wear. On the motion of MATTHEW BELL, Esq., M.P., 6. That the best thanks of this meeting be given to the Master and Brethren of the Trinity House, for the use of their Hall on the present occasion. On the motion of WM. RICHMOND, Esq., Seconded by W. ANDERSON, Esq., of Bent House. 7. That a petition, founded on the preceding resolutions, and also praying for an inquiry into the causes of the present depressed state of the shipping interest, be prepared by Messrs. R. Anderson, W. Richmond, and W. Pearson, for signature by the shipowners of the district, and for presentation to the House of Commons; and that Mr. Hinde, M.P., be respectfully requested to present the same, and Mr. Ord, M.P., to support its prayer. JOHN RAYNE, JUN., Chairman. The Chairman having left the chair, it was resolved, That the thanks of the meeting be given to the Chairman, for his able and impartial conduct in the chair. GENERAL MEETING OF SHIPOWNERS. A GENERAL meeting of the shipowners of the ports of Newcastle, Sunderland, and Stockton, with their dependencies, convened by the Newcastle and Gateshead Shipowners' Society, was held on Tuesday last, at mid-day, in the Hall of the Trinity House, Newcastle, (John Rayne, jun., Esq., the Deputy Master of the Trinity House, in the chair). The meeting was very numerously attended, the elegant and capacious hall being completely filled. Among the parties present were-Messrs. M. Bell, M.P., Wm. Hutt, M.P., S. C. H. Ogle, M.P., H. Mitcalfe, M.P., J. H. Hinde, M.P., J. T. Wawn, M.P., Thomas Carr, G. T. Dunn, S. Lowrey, W. Pearson, R. Hodge, E. Graham, G. Palmer, Lindsay, Dale, R. Rayne, C. Rayne, J. Ormston, C. Smith, jun., S. Danson, W. Armstrong, R. P. Philipson, C. Smith, sen., the Sheriff (J. T. Carr), John Jobling, W. H. Brockett, A. Nichol, J. A. Woods, W. N. Greenwell, W. L. Harle, J. Hunter, John Ingo, W. Doeg, A. Parker, G. Straker, J. D. Weatherley, and Matthias Dunn, of Newcastle; Messrs. J. Hymers and Andrew M'Leod, Gateshead; Messrs. J. Tinley, T. Atkinson, M. Forest, W. Brown, G. Guildford, A. Russell. J. Elder, H. Wheatley, John Dale, W. Richmond, A. Bartleman, T. G. Dobinson, Joseph Straker, and R. Peart, of North Shields: Messrs. Robert & Wm. Anderson, Thomas Forsyth, T. Barker, R. Dawson, J. Kirkley, Thomas Bell, R. Geddes, John Eden, John Ness, and T. Adams, of South Shields; Mr. George Jobling, of Seaton Sluice; Mr. Hodgson, of Blyth; and Messrs. W. & R. Ord, W. Nicholson, J. Ridley, J. Storey, Thomas Brown, W. French, John Hay, G. Moon, Lumsdon, John Brunton, and Thomas Simey, of Sunderland. The minutes of the last meeting of the Newcastle and Gateshead Shipowners' Society having been read, the HON. SECRETARY stated that he had received the following letter from the Secretary of the General Shipowners' Society, in reply to a letter which had been sent to Sir James Duke, on the subject of the importation of grain in Prussian vessels from the Elbe: General Shipowners' Society, London, Jan. 14. SIR, Sir James Duke having transmitted to me your letter to him of the 10th inst., requesting him to ascertain the grounds on which Prussian vessels are allowed to bring cargoes into this country from the Elbe," I beg, in reply, to acquaint you, that the Order in Council anthorizing this, was of the 11th of August last, and will be found in the London Gazette of that or the following Gazette day. It is issued under the authority of the 2d section of 3 and 4 Vic., cap. 95, having reference to the late treaty with the King of Prussia, and the other members of the German Union of Commerce, of 2d March last. 1 have the honour to be, Sir, Your obedient Servant, W. H. Brockett, Esq. WILLIAM OVIATT, Secretary. Mr. Brockett also stated, that, in conformity with his instructions, he had addressed a letter to every Member of Parliament of the counties and boroughs of Northumberland, Durham, and Newcastle, requesting the favour of his attendance on the present occasion, and that he had received letters from Matthew Bell, Esq., M.P., Wm. Hutt, Esq., M.P., and S. C. H. Ogle, Esq., M.P., expressing their intention of being present; and from Messrs. Cresswell, Fitzroy, and Lambton, regretting their inability to attend. The following letters, too, had been received from the Hon. H. T. Liddell, Lord Harry Vane, Mr. Ord, and Mr. Barclay : Eslington House, Jan. 9, 1912. SIR, I bave to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 7th of January, giving me notice of a meeting of the shipowners of the northern ports, to be held in Newcastle on the 18th inst. I fear that it will not be in my power to attend this meeting, but I request you to convey to the shipowners then and there assembled the assurance of my warm interest in all matters affecting their trade, and the promise of an attentive consideration of all the facts and circumstances connected with its existing depression. I am, Sir, your obedient Servant, Mr. W. H. Brockett. HENRY T. LIDDELL. Berkeley-square, Jan. 10th, 1842. DEAR SIR,-Your letter of the 7th has just reached me, and I hope my present distance from Newcastle will be a sufficient apology to the Shipowners' Society for my absence from their meeting of the 18th inst. I must, however, request you to explain the cause of my absence, and at the same time to assure the meeting of my regret at not being able to attend, and of my readiness to lend any assistance in my power to the promotion of their interests. I am, dear Sir, Your faithful and obedient Servant, W. H. Brockett, Esq. W. ORD. Cleveland House, St. James's, Jan. 13th, 1842. SIR,-I beg to acknowledge the receipt of your letter, dated Jan. 7th, inviting me to attend a public meeting to be held in the Hall of the Trinity House in Newcastle, on Tuesday, the 18th inst., for the purpose of taking into consideration the present depressed state of the shipping interest. I much regret my inability to be present, from being at this moment unavoidably detained in London, but beg to convey the assur ance of my sincere sympathy in its object, and shall have great pleasure in receiving any suggestions which the Shipowners' Society may offer. I have the honour to be, Sir, Your obedient Servant, W. H. Brockett, Esq. H. VANE Austin Friars, Jan. 15th, 1842. SIR,-The letter which you have done me the favour to address to me having been directed to my private residence in Belgrave-square, which I seldom visit at this season of the year, I only last evening, and then by accident, received your communication on behalf of the NewI should otherwise have castle and Gateshead Shipowners' Society. replied to it immediately. I regret much that it will be quite impossible for me to attend the meeting on Tuesday the 18th, as my engagements will not permit me to leave town. I feel deeply interested in the subject of the meeting, and bound to exert my best endeavours to relieve the shipping interest from the distress under which it now labours; and I shall feel obliged if you will have the goodness to communicate to me the result of the deliberations of the meeting on Tuesday, and any resolutions which may be passed, which shall have my best consideration. I have the honour to be, Sir, Your obedient humble Servant, D. BARCLAY. W. H. Brockett, Esq. The SHERIFF of NEWCASTLE (JOHN THOMAS CARR, Esq.) said that he had been requested to propose a series of resolutions to the meeting, which he would now read. They were as follows: 1. That the shipping interest of the kingdom has been reduced to a state of unprecedented distress. 2. That as considerable difference of opinion prevails as to the causes of this serious decline in the prosperity of our commercial marine, it ap pears to this meeting most important that a thorough investigation of the same should be immediately instituted by Parliament, with a view to its speedy alleviation and ultimate removal. 3. That this meeting cannot for a moment doubt that the Legislature of the country will zealously enter upon the investigation of an evil which, if unchecked, would prove in the end not only ruinous to the shipowner, but destructive of that proud superiority on the seas which the commercial marine, by its supply of seamen, has hitherto enabled the Navy of England to maintain. ROBERT ANDERSON, Esq., of South Shields, having sug. gested that it would be more convenient that the resolutions should be put to the meeting separately, the SHERIFF at once assented; and the first resolution having been seconded by W. NICHOLSON, Esq., of Sunderland, was carried unanimously. The second resolution having been seconded by GEORGE STRAKER, Esq., of Newcastle. Mr. R. ANDERSON rose to express his regret, that, however desirous for unanimity, he could not concur in the resolution He did not approve of the former part in its present shape. of it. That there were differences of opinion entertained in a account. ten per cent. Of this tonnage, however, there were the steam vessels, amounting to 86,731 tons, which ought to be taken into These statements would show that the shipowners could not be accused of having recklessly increased their tonnage, particularly if the trade of the country was taken into consideration. It would be seen that the increase of tonnage had been in the colonial shipping, while British tonnage had So that while the populadecreased to an immense amount. tons. tion of this country had increased 30 per cent. during the last seamen. |