The Sun. — London, England, 1869-01-27 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS. The Times, in commenting upon the hardships of rate. payers, remarks that it is in the metropolis that the grievance of rates compels attention by its bulk and by its rapid increase. It is impossible to say what the metropolitan ratepayer may not expect before long, unless there comes a very great change. It matters not what the object is, all the rates are rising with the steady uniformity of a universal deluge, while it cannot be said that the ordinary services are better performed than heretofore, or that the extraordinary works in progress are near completion. Many changes demanded by the convenience of the general public have contributed to swell the rates. Turnpike gates cannot be removed, the immense mileage of the metropolitan roads cannot be lighted, watered, duly patrolled, and kept tolerably free from mendicants, without growing additions to the rates. Every fresh contribution to the convenience or the luxury of the metropolis and its visitors entails more police, more prisons, more asylums, more work houses. We grow and develope, as we are, with all our virtues, and all our vices, all our facilities, and all our burdens. But the sum total of our social obligations, as expressed in the little slips of printed paper left at our doors by a whole tribe of collectors, tells with serious effect on limited incomes and failing powers. They that have life and the world before them think they can pay everything, give them only time. To the majority of this metropolis rates and taxes rise, not with an increas ing facility of payment, but with declining means and opportunities. The adoption of the huge metropolitan scale might be necessary, and it certainly illustrates itself in some very grand operations; but the cost threatens to be beyond even metropolitan means, and the problem be fore us is to find out how London shall flourish and Lon doners not decay. The Post thinks that the recent judgment pronounced On Ritualism has not been satisfactory. No decision would have satisfied all parties, but this satisfies none. A large section utterly repudiate the right of such a court as the Judicial Committee to deal with such questions as were brought before it in the recent suit. A much larger number, though not unwilling to accept the court as a court of construction simply, yet complain bitterly of the principle on which the law has been construed, and of the animus of the court. A third section—the extreme Evangelicals—represented by such men as Dean Close and Mr. Ryle, consider the judgment perfect in every particular, and construe it as Peing stringently 'operative against the Ritualists, and inoperative against themselves. It is no good sign for the ;Church that none of these parties seem to take a common sense and practical view. Some extreme men have avowed their intention of ignoring the judgment altogether and proceeding with their altar lights, &c., as before, till com pelled to abandon them. Others submit under protest, alleging that a doctrine is impugned, and denying the competency of the court. The atmosphere of the Church is charged with stormy matter, and the skill and modera ;Lion of its leaders are tried to the uttermost. There is no denying that never since the Gorham judgment has there been so much agitation, and this must account for the extraordinary language and hot impatience of some eminent leaders of the High Church party. Mr. Bennett, Mr. Lowder, Mr. Edwards,. and some others, who have either spoken publicly or have written to the papers, have taken up a position from which calm reason and simple justice must utterly dislodge them. They have divided the great High Church party into two dis tinct camps, one of which decides to obey the law how ever hardly it presses them, while the other leaves it an open question whether the law should be obeyed or not. The Daily News refers to the letter which Lord Russell has written to Mr. Chichester Fortescue, and declares that the noble earl does not know his own mind on the Irish questions. His last letter illustrates, we are con strained to say, the infirmity which has partially marred a career which, after every deduction, must be confessed to have been fertile of services to his country. Lord Russell, we fear, does not yet fully know his own mind on the Irish Church question. His first letter to Mr. Chichester Fortescue contained a plan for the ecclesiastical settlement of Ireland. His second letter withdrew that plan. His third letter is a partial re-assertion of it. No. 2 contradicts No. 1, and No. 3 contradicts No. 2, without harmonising with No. 1. What No. 4 will say Mr. Chichester Fortescue will probably !vainly conjecture—Davus est non CEdipus. The faculty of surprise must by this time be exhausted in the mind of the Chief Secretary for Ireland. Lord Russell reverts to his scheme of indiscriminate endowment, and casts aside the conditions under which alone it would be equitable. The application of the revenues of the State to the endow merit of the Roman Catholic Church will be equally offensive to most Protestants, whether the sum amounts to £120,000 or is four-fold that amount. A plan which treats four millions and a half of Roman Catholics as if they were the moral equivalent of less than seven hundred thousand Protestants and of rather more than half a million Presbyterians, and which contemptuously leaves out of account the Wesleyan and other denominations, is not likely to find many friends. It flagrantly violates that religious equality which is the object of legislation ; con tradicts the resolutions of the late House of Commons ; and falsifies the issue on which the appeal to the country was made and answered. Lord Russell defends his pro posal on the ground that the promotion of religion and morality is a primary object of a civilised State; a position which he justifies from Cicero and Polybius, as well as from Plato and the great men of the Athenian Common. wealth. The suppressed premiss of Lord Russell's argu ment, that the promotion of religion and morality depends on State endowments, we leave to the considera tion of the English Nonconformists and the Free Churchmen of Scotland. Enough has been said of a scheme which, with the best intentions on the part of its author, contributes nothing but confusion to a contro versy in which the issue ought to be simple and the pur pose plain. Lord Russell's pamphlet may embarrass Mr. Gladstone ;it may help Mr. Disraeli. The best that can be hoped is that it may be harmless. Mr. Chichester Fortescue may possibly somewhere about the Easter recess be the recipient of a fourth letter from Earl Russell on the State of Ireland, retracting the third. Thee Telegraph makes some remarks upon the sudden death of, the successful candidate for Manchester. In his way the deceased gentleman was a remarkable man. During the Chartist agitation, more than twenty years ago, Mr. Jones was a leader of the extreme party ; he was a" torch and dagger " Chartist, and, thanks to his alliance with Mr. John Frost, he had to pass a considerable time in Coldbath-fields Prison. There he improved the time by writing Chartist verses, and, because the authorities would not give hits ink to note down his effusions, he wrote them with the blood which he drew from his own That incident shews the character of the man. He was extreme, rather " sensational," and fond of doing things in a " loud " fashion. His subsequent career, however, was less open to cri ticism. - If he did not modify his opinions, he chose a less violent mode of expression ; and for some years, indeed, he almost dropped out of sight. When the agita tion for Reform again brought him to the surface, be did not preach the "torch and dagger" policy, but was con tent with more practicable objects. It must also be admitted that, in the interval of his obscurity, the public had been slowly coming up to some of the positions which had been occupied by his party. Two years ago, in London, he dealt with the subject of the land laws in a lecture which would once have been denounced as revolu tionary, if not seditious; but, meanwhile, Mr. Mill and other Radical teachers had been at work ; and, though the arguments were generally combated, they had become too common either to shock or surprise. Nor was the slightest horror excited by the plea for Democracy which Mr. Jones uttered at Edin burgh, in his public discussion with Mr. Blackie, the clever and eccentric Professor of Greek. Indeed, the Chartist's " Democracy " turned out to be what is now rather moderate Liberalism. Perhaps, however, the most signal triumph of his views is seen in the case of the Ballot. Less than a generation ago, be was a " leader of the forlorn hope" which strove to storm the electoral fortress ballot-box in hand. At that time the success of the effort seemed hopeless ; yet the bulk of the nation has come over to the idea that vote by ballot is inevitable ; and, what is still more strange, Mr. Jones was, a few days ago, the victorious candidate in the first English attempt to shew that in election interests the Ballot would work. Radicalism has hid many abler and better leaders ; but, in the records of the struggle for popular power, the name of Ernest Jones will have to be inscribed. arm. The Star affirms that it has seldom had to record an event so painful and so shocking as the sudden death of Mr. Ernest Jones. His illness was not even known to the public, and therefore his unexpected departure from amongst the living will startle those who, whether they were personally acquainted with him or not, were familiar with his name as that of a leider of the people. His death is the more tragical as taking place in less than three days after the ballot which marked him as the . candidate of the Liberal party for ti.e seat which an anticipated vacancy may place at the disposal of the electors of Manchester. Comment is needless on the sadness of thus dying when a career of singular activity and chequered by misfortunes was apps. rently about to be crowned with a triumph which would have compenaated the %eteran Reformer for all his labours and sufferinp. There is something in this aspect of the melancholy occurrence which appeals to the human sympathy of men of all parties; and we can not doubt but that this svmpathy will on all hands be feelingly expressed. To die when a new career of usefulness was opening up to the disinterested and oft-tried man of the people—when his services, which had in years past exposed him to obloquy, comparative penury, and, as many will think, to persecution, were about to receive the honourable reward which he coveted—is about as melancholy a fate as can befall a public man. The only gleam of consolation in it is that Mr. Jones lived - - long enough to know that he had been actually chosen by the Liberal electors of Manchester to be their standard-bearer in the contest which is believed to be impending. • MISCELLANEOUS .NEWS. THE HOME SECRETARY ON GENERAL AFFAIRS. Mr. Bruce will hardly fail in his office from want of appreciation of the duties before him. He certainly sees the task which he has to perform, and this is one very important step towards its performance. His idea of the Home Office is, not that it is a place of mere routine, but he boldly grasps the fact that there are great difficulties to be over come, and that it is his duty to overcome them. In returning thanks for his election for Benfrewshire, on Monday afternoon, he said that on himself there devolved the urgent task of dealing with the criminal classes and rescuing the innocent and young from temptation. His task was to put a mark on the class of men who might be called habi tual criminals, though as yetunconvicted, to put them under supervision and limit their operations. Here came the difficult problem, never yet solved, how should you bring home to a man the fact that he is an habitual criminal without being able to bring home to him the fact that he has committed a crime ? It would be his (Mr. Bruce's) duty to present to Parliament a measure on that subject. This certainly is good news for all who live " decent quiet lives ;" it is very bad news for the criminal. THE REDUCTIONS. Reductions are still being carried out. The Times announces important reforms at Portsmouth, reforms which have long been called for, and will be cavilled at by few. They comprise the abolition of the offices of the Admiral-Superintendent of the dockyard, the Captain-Superintendent of the Naval Hospital at Haslar, and of the Royal Clarence Victualling-yard ; of the Master-Attendant at the Royal Clarence Victualling-yard ; of one out of the two offices of Master-Attendant at the dockyard • the substitution of the three-decked ship Duke of W . ellington for the three ships now employed in the harbour duties the Victory, Duke of Wellington, and Asia; and a general reduction in all military and civil expenditure on all matters in the port that have to be provided for in the Navy Estimates. How such absurd arrangements as now exist could have been made, or how they could be so long toleritted, puzzles one not a little. What, for instance, was the use of putting a sailor, an admiral, superintendent over a factory, except for the purpose of giving him a little education, so that he might give information to his brethren across the walnuts and wine ? For what reason was a captain placed over a purely medical department ? And how possibly could any bright • genius have fixed upon a high salary, ditto position; as the proper remuneration for looking after a small steamer and a few small sailing lighters, who are appointed to carry stores to ships ? ELECTION EXPENSES IN LANCASHIRE. Mr. Gladstone and Mr. Grenfell had to pay dearly for their defeat. The South-West Lancashire elec tion cost them £11,500. Mr. Gladstone has been consoled by a seat elsewhere and the Premiership ; Mr. Grenfell, who left a safe seat at St. Ives to fight the battle of his party in the palatine county, has no such recompense. The expenses of Mr. Massey and Mr. Rathbone, the unsuccessful candidates for Salford, are between £5,000 and £6,000. TTIE MANCHESTER BALLOT. The Ballot at Manchester has raised a discussion on the best plan to be used. It is admitted that, as a matter of fact, all the voters who obtained cards at Manchester did not dispose of them; and this being so, it is not a great stretch of imagination to suppose, in case of a real election, the cards being sold outside to the highest bidder. Mr. Brodfick writes to the Times suggesting that the card and the envelope should be made in some way to correspond. The objection to the " figure system " is patent—it would afford a means of identifying the voter. But if card and envelope could be of the same colour, nobody being allowed to go out without depositing the envelope, a vote given in colours which did not correspond would be instantly detected, and might be pronounced void. Thus Mr. Brodrick solves the difficulty. The objection is that perfect secrecy (without which the Ballot is nothing) would be very difficult to maintain with such a system. It would be difficult to find a different colour for each of the 30,000 electors of our largest boroughs. THE TAXATION OP TIIE KINGDOM. Mr. Dudley Baxter has replied to the strictures of Professor Leone Levi on his estimate of the average in omes of the three classes of the community. Mr. Baxter points out that Professor Levi's criticisms apply with more force to his own book on the sub ject. The Professor complains that Mr. Baxter's estimate of a working man's income is too high at £7O, but he has himself calculated the proportional income of Ze . 4orking classes at £l.O per head, or £B5 per fi.Jtiily of four and a half. Mr. Baxter's estimate applied to a family of four, so that it is actually lower than Professor Levi's. In the pro portion of tea consumed by the working classes, Mr. Baxter finds that his estimate is L 3 per head, while Professor Levi's is only-k 1 per head ; yet he blames Mr. Baxter's estimate as too small. The Professor in his book arrives at the same conclusion as Mr. Baxter. " Our worlAnen," he says, " have no reason to complain of the extent of taxation pressing upon them." Mr Baxter intends shortly to ni , " - "; his paper with an appendix. THE POOR-LAW ACT. What was called the break-down of Mr. Tiardy's Poor-law Act was discovered some time since. The Holborn Union was ordered by the Poor-law Board to provide, in company with the neighbouring union, a sick asylum for the district. The hospital wards of the workhouse had previously been declared too small and inconvenient by the medical officer, who had been called upon to answer for a dying man being placed in one of the ordinary wards. The other workhouse was not better provided. The guardians, however, had a great objection to uniting with any other body, to a separate infirmary, or to expending any money at all. The order was to provide a hos pital with a sufficient number of beds. But the board of guardians declared it would be the imposition of fresh taxation for no purpose. They memorialised the central board two or three times on the subject, receiving only a confirmation of the order. At last they succeeded in getting the Party Papers to take the question up. They again petitioned the Board—this time, it was thought, with some e ff ec t. Th e reply of the Board hasjust been issued, and confirms the order more strenuously than before. Our workhouse infirmaries have long enough been the source of perpetual sensa tional disclosures, of lunatic nurses, and neglected rules. The Act passed by the Legislature was designed to ma k e t h e sick poor—in the large majo rity of cases poor bec ause they are sick—comfortable. To this the guardians object. COUNTY FINANCIAL BOARDS. Mr. Clare Sewell Read, the tenant-farmer Norfolk M.P., writes that h e i s not i n f avour o f county financial boa r d s ; b ut he wishes that reuresentAtivd of the ratepayers should take their places at the quarter sessions, He a dd s th a t, th e Government having det erm i ne d to deal with the qu estion of county financial arrangements, his colleague, Mr. Howes, will postpone his measure. 'ORK POR A NEW DEPARTMENT. The Chamber of Agriculture Journal urges the establishment of a special Government department of Agriculture. At present the only matter relating to agriculture which Government officials are com petent to deal with is statistics. The Journal would have the following subjects handed over to a professionally - informed departinent : Sanitary regulation of the importation of animals and of the home trade and traffic in animals ; national insurance of live stock ; the national food supply ; tenure of land ; arterial drainage ; water storage and irrigation ; utilisation of town sev age ; supply of artificial manures ; public roads ; regulation of markets; weights and measures; statistical returns ; regulation of agricultural labour and education; veterinary education ; agricultural colleges; experimental stations ; poor relief, local. taxation, and county expenditure ; enclosures, tithes, and copyholds. AGRICULTURAL STATIST Mr. Tomline, M.P., who migrated from Shrews bury to Grimsby at the last election, calls him se lf a Liberal, but in respect to agricultural matters would seem to be a Tory of the Tories. As a Suffolk county gentleman he writes to the East Suff o lk Chamber of Agriculture with regard to the recently published agricultural statistics. Ile says that they are worthless, because many freeholders make no return to the Board of Trade, and never will. By way of rendering these statistics more valuable, he adds : "Most of you have threshed your corn and know the statistics of your corn fields, which if you are wise you will keep secret." He goes on to assert that a Statistical ',Department has lately been formed at the Board of Trade, and, having nothing to do, is endeavouring to make work in order to justify its existence. With this object police ,magistrates are ordered to inquire into shipwrecks, and one was sent from London to Liverpool in order to inquire into the loss of a vessel off Yarmouth. With this object inspectors of many things which they are not qualified to inspect are appointed. For the same reason foreshores have been placed under the Board of Trade, after all that is valuable or that belonged to timid proprietors has been sold by the Crown. Happily, Mr. Bright has checked the activity of the department by refusing to appoint an inspec tor for bottle-nosed whales. Mr. 'Tomline con cludes that the taxpayers ought to insist upon the abolition of this department. Economy is the order of the day, and officers, soldiers, and marines who are reduced without hesitation have a claim upon us for impartial reduction. THE MALT TAX. The malt tax is in danger. Some clever farmer has discovered that he can get what he wants out of THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, JANUARY 27, 1869. raw 0. - sfey, Wltll a little =mixture or mait. .c)y varying the common routine of temperatures, times, and stirrings, he has brewed beer from roughly ground barley, mixed with crushed malt, in the pro portion of three bushels of barley to one bushel of malt ; and he affirms that the beer so produced is as strong, sound, and bright, and as good in every respect as the beer he brews from malt alone. He saved 10s. 6d. upon three barrels of beer. The Chamber of _Agriculture Journal, referring to this matter, points out that chemical researches have exploded the old-fashioned idea that in order to obtain the object of malting—the conversion of the starch into sugar—it is necessary to germinat6 every grain of barley. A small portion of malt mixed with a large quantity of unmalted barley will do all that is required, so that the above-mentioned experiment is strictly in accordance with scientific experiments. This being so, there is a waste and destruction of £900,000 a year in obtaining £6,500,000 for the national treasury, a loss equal to nearly one- seventh of the tax, and this is over and above the loss incurred in the collection of the duty. Mr. Lowe must be on the alert, or he will be finding himself bankrupt before he knows it. AUSTRIA. In view of another severe legislative struggle, the Aus trian Government has strengthened its party in the Chamber where the greatest opposition may be ex pected. Seventy new peers have been created, all refor mers, and all of course on the side of the Ministry. Their aid*will be wanted. Two new laws are expected to give great trouble : one ordaining that press prosecutions shall be tried by a jury; the other abolishing all restric tions upon marriage, and especially restrictions of rank or religion. Civil marriage is compulsory, but it may be followed by a religious ceremony. The Prussians seem to have been roused in some degree by the impetuous progress of the hitherto dilatory Austrians. The Berlin Chamber of Deputies has adopted a law abolishing the old statutes which still prevent marriage between nobles and commoners. This measure has to get through the Upper House—decidedly a process dangerous to its existence. REVENUE OF THE UNITED S7ATES. It has been shown that within a period of three years and seven months the revenues, or the re ceipts from all sources of revenue, reached the enormous sum of $1,662,496,062 20, and that $630,431,125 90 were paid on debts which were actually due at the close of the war and for boun ties, which, like the pay of the army, were a part of the expenses of the war. Adding the amount thus paid to the debt as exhibited by the books of the Treasury on the first day of April, 1865, it appears that the debt of the United States at that time was. $2,997,386,203 24, and that the actual reduction his been $470,256,650 42 ; and but for the advances to the Pacific roads and the amount paid for Alaska would have been $519,650,650 42. The Secretary begs to suggest, as he has substantially done before, that alleviation of the burden of the public debt is to be obtained, not in a decrial of the national credit, not in threats of repudiation, not in a fur ther issue of irredeemable notes, not in arguments addressed to the fear of the bondholders, but in a clear and explicit declaration by Congress that the national faith, in letter and spirit, shall be in violably maintained ; that the bonds of the United States intended to be negociated abroad as well as at home are to be paid when the time of payment arises in that currency which is alone recognized as money in the dealings of nation with nation. Let Congress say this promptly, and there can be but little doubt that the credit of the Government will so advance that within the next two years the interest on the larger portion of the debt can be reduced to a satisfactory rate. He therefore earnestly recommends that it be declared, without delay, by joint resolution, that the principle of all bonds of the United States is to be paid iu coin. It is also recommended that the Secretary be autho rized to issue $500,000,000 of bonds, $50,000,000 of which shall matureannually ; the first $50,000,000 to be payable, principal and interest, in lawful money, the principal and interest of the rest in coin, and also such further amount of bonds as may be necessary to take up the outstanding six per cents., and the non-interest bearing debt, payable in coin 30 years after date, and redeemable at any time after ten years, at the pleasure of the Govern ment, the interest to be paid semi-annually in coin, and in no case to exceed the rate of five per cent. Provided, that the Secretary may, in his discretion, make the principal and interest of $500,000,000 of these bonds payable at such city or cities in Europe as he may deem best. The fact that according to the recommendation $50,000,000 of the bonds to be issued are to become due each year for ten conse cutive years (at the expiration of which time all of the bonds would be under the control of the Go vernment) would insure an annual reduction of $50,000,000 of the Public Debt, and impart a credit to the other bonds which would insure the negotia tion of them on favourable terms. Of the expe diency of an issue of bonds corresponding to some extent in amount with those held in Europe, the in terest and principal of which shall be paid in the countries where they are to be negotiated, there can be but little doubt. On this point the Secretary used the following language in bis report of 1866 :—'The question now to be considered is not, how shall our bonds be prevented from going abroad ? for a large amount has already gone, and others will follow, as long as our credit is good and we continue to buy more than we can pay for in any other way ; but how shall they be prevented from being thrown upon the home market to thwart our efforts in re storing the specie standard ? The Secretary sees no practicable method of doing this at an early day but by substituting for them bonds which being pay, able, principal and interest, in Europe, will be less iikely to be returned when their return is the least to be desired. The holders of our securities in Europe are now subject to great inconvenience and not a little expense in collecting their coupons, and it is supposed that 5 per cent., or perhaps 4i per cent., bonds, payable in London or Frankfort. could be substituted for our 6 per cents., without any other expense to the United States than the trifling coin missions to the agents through 'whom the exchange might be made. The saving of interest to be thus effected would be no inconsiderable item, and the advantages of having our bonds i n Europe placed in the hands of actual investors is too important to be disregarded. The Secretary has nothing further to say on this point than that careful reflection has only strengthened his conviction of the correctness of the views expressed in foregoing extract. In recom mending the issue of bonds bearing a lower rate of interest to be exchanged for the outstanding six per cents., the Secretary must not be understood as having changed his opinion in regard to the ex pediency or the wisdom of the recommendation in his last report. Ile refers to what he then said in advocacy of that recommendation, as an expression of his well-considered opinions at the present time, and he is only prevented from repeating the recom mendation by the fac• that it met with little appro val at last session, and has not grown into favour since. He sincerely hopes that the future history of the debt will vindicate the wisdom of those who are unable to approve the proposition. The accompanying report of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue gives the necessary information in regard to the Bureau, and contains many very judicious recommendations and suggestions, which are worthy the careful eonsidt ration of Congress. The internal branch of the Revenue service is the one in which the people feel the deepest interest. The Customs dutits are collected at a few points, and although paid eventually by the consumers, they are felt only by the great mass of the people in the increased cost of the ar ti c l es consumed. Not so with the internal taxes. These are collected in every part of the Union, and their burdens fall, to a large extent, directly upon the tax-payers. Asses sors, collectors, inspectors, detectives, necessary_ instrumt me in the collection of the revenues, are found in every part of the country ; there is no village or rural district *here their faces are not seen, and where collections are not made. The eyes of the whole people are, therefore, directed to this syttern, and it is of the greatest importance that its administration should be such as to entitle it to public respect. Unfortunately this is not the case ; its demoralization is admitted, and the ques tion arises, where is the remedy? The Secretary is of the opinion that it is to be found in such amend ments to the Act as will equalize the burdens of taxa tion and in elevation of the standard of qualification for Revenue offices. Upon the subject of internal taxes the Secretary has already spoken in regard to the charaoter of the Revenue officers : he has only to say that there must be a decided change for the better in this respect if the system is to be rescued from its demoralized condition. After careful re flection the Secretary has come to the conclusion that this change would follow the passage of the bill reported by Mr. Jenckes from the Joint Committee on Retrenchment and Reform on the 14th of May last, entitled A bill to regulate the civil service and promote the efficiency thereof.' fhe Secretary gives to this bill his hearty approval, and refers to the speech which was made upon its introduction by the gentleman who reported it for an able and lucid exposition of its provisions, and for a truthful and graphic de scription of the evils of the present system of ap pointments to office. On the sth day of October last, the day for their regular quarterly reports, the number of National Banks was 1,644, 17 of which were in voluntary liquidation ; their capital was $420,634,511, their discounts $655,87 5 , 277 35, their circulation $295,684,244, their deposits $601,830,278 40. In no other country was so large a capital ever invested in banking under a single system as is now invested in the National Banks. Never before were the interests of a people inter woven with a system of banking as are the interests of the people of the United States with their na tional banking system. It is not strange therefore that the condition and management of the National Banks should be to them and to their representa tives a matter of the deepest concern. That the na tional banking system is a perfect one is not as serted by its friends; that it is a very decided im provement, as far as circulation is regarded, upon the systems which it has superseded, must be ad mitted by its opponents. Before it was established the several States, w h e ther in conformity with the Consti tution or not, jointly with the General Government during the existence of the charter of the United States Bank, and solely after the expiration of that character, exercised the power of issuing bills of credit in the form of bank notes through institu tions of their own creation, and thus controlled the paper money, and thereby in no small degree the business and commerce of the country. In May, 1863, when the national Currency Bureau was established in Washington some 1,500 banks, organized under State laws, furnished the people of the United States with a bank-note currency. In some of the States the banks were compelled to pro tect, partially at least, the holders of their notes against loss, by deposits of securities with the proper authorities. In other States the capital of the banks, that capital being wholly under the control of their managers, was the only security for the Redemption of their notes. In some States there was no limit to the a mount cf notes that might be issued if secured according to the require ments of their statutes, nor any necessary relation of circulation to capital in others, while notes could be issued only in certain proportions to capi tal. There was no restriction upon the number of banks that might be organized, the notes of a few banks being payable or redeemable at commercial centres were current in most of the States, while the notes of other banks, perhaps just as solvent, were uncurrent beyond the limits of the States by whose authority they were issued. How valueless were the notes of many of the State banks is still keenly remembered by the thousands who suffered by their insolvency, the direct losses sustained by the people by an unsecured bank note circulation, and the indirect losses to the country resulting from deranged exchanges, caused by a local cur rency constantly subject to manipulation of money changers, and from the utter unsuitableness of such a currency to the circumstances of the country can be counted by millions. It is only necessary to compare the circulation of the State banks with that furnished by the national banks to vindicate the superiority of the present system. Under the national banking system the Govern ment nhich authorises the issue of bank notes and compels the people to receive them as money as sumes its just responsibility and guarantees their payment. This is the feature which especially dis tinguishes it from others, and gives to it the greatest value. The object of the Secretary, how ever, in referring to the national banks is not to extol them, but to call the attention of Congress to the accompanying instructive report of the Con troller of the Currency, especially to that part of it which exhibits the condition and management of the banks in the commercial metropolis, and to the amendments proposed by him to the Act. On the sth day of October last the loans or discounts of the banks in the city of New York amounted to $163,634,07023; only $90,000,000 of which consisted of commercial paper, the balance being chiefly made up of what are known as loans of call, that is to say of loans of collaterals subject to be called in at the pleasure of the banks. Mer chants or manufacturers cannot, of course, borrow on such terms, and it is understood that these loans are confined merely to persons dealing, or rather speculating in stocks or coin. This statement shows to what extent the business of the banks in New York had been diverted from legitimate channels, and how deeply involved the banks have become in the uncertain and dangerous speculations of the street. The deposits of these institutions on the day mentioned amounted to $226,645,655 80, and of their assets $113,332,689 20 cons i s t e d o f certa i n cashitems, which were in fact mainly certified checks which had been passed to the credit of depo sitors, and constituted a part of the $226,645,655 80 of deposits, although the banks always deduct such checks from their deposits iu making up their statement for the payment of interest and their esti mates for reserves. It is understood to be the practice of a number of the banks—perhaps the practice exists to a limited extent in all—to certify the checks of their customers in advance of the deposits, out of which they are expected to be paid; in otherwords,to certify checks to be good under an agreement be tween the banks and the drawers that the money to protect them shall be deposited during the day, or at least before the checks which go through the Clearing House can be presented for payment. The Secretary has learned with great surprise that a number of banks, generally regarded as being under judicious management, certify in a single day the checks of stock and goll brokers to many times the amount of their capitals, with no money actually on depcsit for the protection of the checks at the time of their certification. A more dangerous practice, or one more inconsistent with prudent—not to say honest—banking, cannot be conceived. It is un authorized by the Act, and should be prohibited by severe penalties. Aside from the risk incurred by this reckless method of banking, the effect of such practices is to foster speculation, by creatinginfla tion. It is, in fact, part and parcel of that fictiti ous credit which is so injurious to the regular busi ness of the city, and to the business of all parts of the country which feel and are affected by the pul sations of the commercial - centre. It is this very dangerous practice, combined with the more general practice of making loans on call, which leads to un safe extension of credits, and makes many of the banks in New York helpless when the money mar ket is stringent. The Commissioner of Internal Revenue states that the largest receipts for internal revenue were in 1866. Reductions in the scale of taxation have since been made at five several times. The aggre gate receip , s from internal revenue, exclusive of the direct tax upon lands and the duty upon the circu lation and deposits of national banks, were-For the year 1866, $310,906,984; 1867, $265,920,474; 1868, $191,180,564; of these there were from banks, trust companies, and savings institutions, $7,650,062 in 1866, $5,815,515 in 1867, $5,489,753 in 1868 ; from railroads $11,076,260 in 1866, $7,507,507 in 1867, $7,024,667 in 1868; from insurance compa nies $1,936,954 in 1866, $1,889,488 in 1867, $1,894,335 in 1868 ; from telegraph compa nies $308,438, in 1866, $239,595 in 1867, $214,699 in 1868 ; from express companies $645,769 in 1866, $558,359 in 1867, $671,590 in 1868; from revenue stamps $15,044,373 in 1866, $16,094,718 in 1867, $14,852,252 i n 1868 ; f rom legacies and successions $1,168,766 in 1866, $1,861,429 in 1867, $2,813,452 in 1868 ; from in comes $60,894,136 in 1866, $57,040,641 in 1867, $32,027,611 in 1868 ; from " articles in ache lule A" $1,692,792 in 1866, $2,116,495 in 1867, $1,134,106 in 1868; from special taxes $18,015,743 in 1866, $18,103,616 in 1867, $15,966,313 in 1868; from cotton $18,409,655 in 1866, $23,762,079 in 1867, $22,500,948 in 1868; from cigars, $3,476,237 in 1866, $3,661,984 in 1867, $2.951,765 in 1868.; from tobacco $12,339,922 in 1866, $15,245,478 in 1867, $14,974,108 in 1868 ; from fermented liquors $1,515,140 in 1860, $5,819,349 in 1867, $5,685,644 in 1868 ; on distilled spirits and brandy $29,482,078 in 1866, $29,164,409 in 1861, and $14,200,731 in 1868. The Commissioner felicitates himself on the increase in receipts from legacies and succes sions. Of distilled spirits he says - " The falling off of receipts in 1 868 resulted in some degree from the general expectation that the duty would be re duced, and the consequent unwillingness to withdraw spirits from bond at the higher rate, but mainly from the frauds which made such reduction indispensably necessary. The amount of spirits in bonded warehouses on the Ist of July, 1866, was 6,081,551 gallons ; in 1867, 17,887,272 gallons ; in 1868 , 27 , 278 , 420 gallons. , ' The expenses of collecting the revenue for 1868 were in detail as follows :-Compensation and ex penses to assessors and assistant assessors, $5,181,179; compensation and expenses to c011ect0r5,52,262,231; superintendents of exports, $20,385 ; revenue age n t s $61,210 ; special agents to this office, $94,600 ; revenue inspectors, $374,518 ; officers and clerks of this bureau, $316,769 ; stamps and cotton tags, $139,365 ; other incidental expenses of this office, $71,349 ; commissions on sale of stamps, $805,638; making a total of $6,327,301, against $8,222,686 for 1867, and $7,689,700 for 1866. The pay of assistant assessors has been increased from $4 to $5 a day. There are also a larger number of special agents. The number of assistant assessors Nov. 1, 1867, was 3,180. There ara now but 2,284. For 1866 the expenses were $2.49 per hundred of net collections, and $2.47 per hundred of gross collec tions ; for 1867, $3.41 per hundred of net, and $3.38 per hundred of gross ; for 1868, $4.94 per hundred of net, and $4.88 per h un d re d o f gross. The commissioner seeks to show that this increase has been unavoidable, the expenses re maining much the same, whil e th e rece i pts h ave been diminished by the reduction of taxation: The amounts deposited bycollectors for four months of the fiscal year 1869 (July 1, 1868, to June 30, 1869), compares as follows with those of previous years :-July, $16,989,650, against $24,734,656 in 1868, and $27,079,103 in 1867; Aug., $13,900,396, against $17,848,051 in 1868, and $38,043,341 in 1867; September, $9,760 , 796 , aga i nst $13,183,607 in 1868, and $33,714,719 in 1867 ; October, $10,092,335, against $14,486,636 iu 1868, and $26,414,430 in 1867. Of the falling off in these four months as between 1869 and 1867 $35,097,838 was on income. There has also been the repeal of the tax on manufactures. Five thousand three hun dred and five suits were brought in Federal courts during 1868, 2,294 being in rem. ; 1,981 indict ments were found and filed, and 1,030 other pro ceedings in personam. Judgments were recovered in 1,261 cases of proceedings for forfeiture, and 749 convictions obtained on indictment (some includ ing more than one person) ; 2,532 suits were de cided for the United States, and 382 against; 624 were settled or dismissed-2,905 still pending ; $741,797 was recovered on judgments. Proceeds of forfeitures paid into court-$1,136,151. The commissioner finds that the rule prohibiting pay ment of expenses incurred by judges sitting outside their own districts has worked ill. He also thinks that district attorneys should be paid more liberally for convictions. The number of cases compromised has been 536. From these parties was received $1,154,027. The remodelling of distilleries to con form to the law and the regulations, and the erec tion of distillery warehouses, have been the occa sion of great expense and delay to their proprietors, while the survey of distilleries, the procurement and distribution of stamps, the preparation of forms and regulations, and the greatly increased corres pondence consequent upon the inauguration of the new law, has occasioned a great amount of labour, from which the results have not yet a pp eare d. The number of distilleries registered is 1,990. The plans of 316 have been received and filed, none of them from the Pacific coast. Distillery ware houses have been established to the number of 459, and 204 distilleries are in operation, with a,n aggregate daily capac i ty of 227,758 gallons. The number of class B warehouses on the 15t day of July last wets 779. At present th e number is 172. "The statute now in opera ion contains many im provements upon that of 1866, is fuller and mere de finite in its exactions, places the distilleries and the;r operations more completely in the hanls of the Go vernment, and is more rigorous in its punishment of offenders, but its successful operation after all must depend upon the vigilance and fidelity of the local ME. EDWARDS. The Times , which did its ut mos t t o p reven t t he prosecution of Overend, Gurney, and Co., now admits that the extraordinary revelations of Friday and Saturday have " amply justified" that prosecution. Our contemporary, in one of its happiest articles, describes the many parts played by that most versa tile of geniuses, Mr. Edward Watkin Edwards. He is official assignee in the Bankruptcy Court ; he is engaged in transactions with the firm of Overend and Gurney, with a single partner of the firm, with the customers of the firm, with his own customers, all which transactions it is of course his duty to keep perfectly disentangled, and to prevent their exerting any influence upon each other. And all this is undertaken by a • gentleman who has " a very bad memory as to dates," and Ends it hard t o reca ll amounts which are reckoned by hundreds of thousands. While the Times is sarcastic, the Daily News is grave. Speaking in the highest terms of the care and patience exer cised by the Lord Mayor and Sir Thomas Gabriel, our contemporary says : "They have turned Mr. Edward Watkin Edwards thoroughly inside out in the witness-box. Such evidence as his is sadly and shamefully conclusive. Rarely has a man occupying a public position for years of equal importance and respectability created a more disastrous impression. What with evasions and constant pleas of defective memory, the feeling throughout the court was that Mr. Edwards's state ments were utterly unreliable. The whole history of this case is miserable enough, but whatever the issue to the directors of Overend, Gurney, and Co., public opinion has already passed a unanimous verdict upon Mr. Edward Watkin Edwards. Judging him out of his own mouth or reticence, that verdict is that he cannot be permitted to remain an official assignee of the Court of Bankruptcy." The conduct of Mr. Edwards was made the subject of severe comment at the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce on Monday. Mr. Macfie, M.P., gave notice that at a future meeting he intended to call attention to some of the disgraceful revelations made in connection with the case of Overend, Gurney, and Co. The honourable gentleman expressed his con viction that a great deal of demoralisation had been caused in commercial circles by the practice of giving double commissions, as in the case of Mr. Edwards. It was incidentally stated that the Commercial Morality Committee of the Council had already taken the subject into consideration. • GIBRALTAR. It has become almost a case of voting between ou: admirals as to whether we shall give up Gibraltar. Rear-Admiral Pearse, writing from Plymouth to the Telegraph, says, very emphatically, " Certainly not." In supporting his decision he quotes the old argu ments, as to the " key of the Mediterranean," coaling depot, and safe, healthy harbour, which, he says, we cannot get at Ceuta. CHURCH QUESTIONS. A correspondent of the Times, in referring to Lord Ebury's letter, expresses a strong desire to see a reduction in the number of dogmas belogging to all the Christian Churches. He quotes the words of Erasmus, who advised the Pope and the prelates of his day to " reduce the dogmas necessary to be believed to the smallest possible number, and on other points leave every one free to believe what he pleases." If such advice had been followed the writer believes that most of the great schisms of the Church might have been avoided, am' he holds it to be fully in accordance with the spirit of the Apostle's teaching, who only insisted on three points —repentance, faith in a Saviour, and a reformed life. If universal adhesion to minor doctrines had been indispensable, St. Paul would not have passed them by without a word. The present age thinks it neces sary to believe more but to do less, and the acerbity of modern religious controversialists is much to be regretted. " A Dorsetshire Incumbent," writing on a simil .r topic, considers that the an t ece d en t s o f Mr. Gladstone, Lord Hatherley, and Sir J. D. Coleridge are suffi cient guarantee of their good intentions towards the English Church. Ile believes the change in Ireland will really strengthen the Church, arid he greatly de plores the mistakes made by English Churchmen. more especially by members .of the University of Oxford, in rejecting men like Mr. Gladstone and Sir Roundell Palmer. WOMAN'S DEGREES. Camb. i' g 3 University h:s very obligingly placed a den Tee r,,t the disrosal of t'le ladies of Enelani. among tne subjects to be read up is French, as found written in C orn eine, Moliere' andehateaubriand. Amongst the works s e l ec t e d are "Horace," "Le verre dEau," " Atala," and " Les Precieuses," all tales of love, and that not always of the purest kind. The two first-named are not perhaps so marked by what is objectionable ; but the mysticism of " Atala" is hardly fit for " gushing e i g h teen, " and " Les Precieuses " contains expressions which would shock the more refined manners of this generation. Altogether it is a pity that the authorities have not made their selections with better judgment. THE *UNIVERSITY BOAT-RACE. If the Cantabs have abandoned the idea of pulling this year between Mortlake and Hammersmith, it is without knowing it. They are in full training, and on Monday went out with Mr. J. R. Selwyn and did good work. Mr. Willan has been coaching Oxford, and has now taken his accustomed place of No. 4. Mr. Darbishire, the victorious " stroke " of last year, has been transferred from 6 to his old position. LORD ZETLAND AND THE FREEMASONS. Mr. Clabon - writes, with reference to Lord Eliot's recent letter about' Lord Zetland and the Freemasons, that Lord Eliot was right in affirming, that the Grand Master would not permit the proposed commemoration to partake of a personal benefit to himself. But it has not yet been decided what form it shall assume. Lord Eliot's proposal to establish university scholarships in connection with the Freehiasons' Boys' School will be considered, together with about twenty other schemes whichhave been. suggested. The Press says :—" The Empress Charlotte has been for the last two months in a calm; state, and has be - come extremely inactive. Often she. does not get up at all, but passes two days in bed. In consequence she is getting extraordinarily stout. When she is urged to get up, she almost invariably replies that as the pictures want to run away she is obliged to watch them." Lieutenant Nolan's instrument for measuring the distance to inaccessible objects, for the use of coast and field batteries, was successfully tried at ShoebuiTness, in comparison with the usual service method of guessing similar distances. FOREIGN NOTES. TIIRS.EY AND GREECE. According to the Independance Beige, the tireek Govern ment is preparing to publish a memorial in defence of its recent policy. This document, which Greece would not lay before the Conference, as the authority of that tribunal was not recognised, is certainly a remarkable speci men of its kind, provided it resembles the sketch given in the Belgian paper. It begins by disposing of the Turkish ultimatum, taking the last point first. The fourth and fifth demands it treats as of no import ance—one of them was to the effect that Greece should respect international law for the future ; the third is admitted without restriction ; but the first and second are opposed to the law of nations. Greece thinks herself the injured party, and demands reparation for injuries inflicted on Greek subjects. Hobart Pasha must be brought to trial for his treatment of the Enosis. These conditions being satisfied, Greece is ready to allow the Cretans to return to their island, to forbid all State officers, military or civil, to take up arms , on behalf of the insurgents, and to put a stop to private-ering. What benefit the Greek Government can reason Ably expect from this publication is by no means clear. The Tinzes Berlin correspondent, a writer at very belli- CO3e temperament, says that Count Stackelin rg at the opening of the Conference announced his inability to sign any minutes or protocol severely censuring Greece; hence the guarded wording of the declaration. Engl4T d, too,seems to have been solicitous that the form given to this final vote should not contain anything that might )e taken as a menace. In the course of the debates an imF .ortant motion introduced by Austria and the Porte was n !jected. These Powers desired the Conference to declare tha tin the event of any future controversies arising between Turkey and Greece neutrality would be observed by the rest of Europe. The motion produced an animated d i !bate, but, other Powers being of opinion that to endorsee h would be tantamount to handing Hellas over to the Ottomans, it was eventually thrown out. It is now beyond don. IA that the summary of the declaration first giveniis correct, GERMANY. The earthquake epidemic paid a slight visit a few days ago to the Grand Duchy of Hesse. Shocks were felt in several places, especially at Darmstadt. One visitation was accompanied with an alarming subterranean noise, and lasted no less than twelve minutes. Bells rang of their own accord, furniture was mysteriously moved about, and mortar fell from the walls. The inhabitants suffered nothing worse than a terrible fright. SPAIN. Pending the official report of the elections, the news from Spain is all rumour. The Times correspondent announces by telegraph that the long-expected decree estab lishing religious freedom and a free Church in a free State will be shortly published. This important resolution seems to have caused infinite disturbance in the Peninsula. There has been a panic on the Stock Exchange; apprehensions of dissension in the Cabinet and of some sudden resolution on the part of the Government prevail; and it is rumoured that the Papal Nuncio will be dismissed. All which, with other signs, goes to prove that the down fall of the Catholic Establishment under an unsettled form of government will be attended with very serious results. A correspondent of the Liberte writes more cheerfully. He says that a great combination has been formed. Many Progressists, Republicans, and Democrats have agreed to bury the hatchet and unite for the good of their country. The existing uncertainty is so ruinous that it must be ter minated at any price. Neither Marshal Prim nor Rivero is a stranger to this noble determination. As to the pro gramme of the Alliance, the writer will endeavour to "announce it in his next." Such combinations have often been announced before, but as so many parties are strongly represented in the Cortes—indeed the union of any two of the three strongest would overpower the third—it is quite possible that the more kindred politicians may seek strength in union. .AMERICA. Liberal Governments are taking up in earnest the cines tion of economical administration. The Republican party in the United States Congress has already shewn its determination to bring down and keep down expenditure ; the chairman of the Appropriation Committee has publicly announced rigid economy as the policy of General Grant's Government, and the figures in the Appropriation Bills contrast remarkably with the items of former years. There was a debate on this great subject on the 6th, during which Mr. E. B. Washburne, the chairman of the Appro priation Committee, made a very important speech. He said the time had come for the country to make a fresh start. The war bad greatly increased the burdens of the nation, but there were other causes of extravagance which might be at once avoided. Incidental to the war was the lavish and unguarded expenditure of public money, the granting of immense contracts, and the inflation of the currency. The base, venal, and unpatriotic hastened to take advantage of the misfortunes of their country. If this jobbery was to cease, Congress must aid the Ministry. The latter was willing to do its share. Coming to the practical, Mr. Washburne said that whilst the expenditure for 1866 had been 520 millions of dollars, the estimates for the current year were 330 millions, and he believed that for next year they might be reduced to 290 millions. Congress met the Ministry in a kindred spirit. Mr. Washburne seems to have excited verygeneral enthusiasm. Mr. Fernando Wood, one of the leading Democrats, said he was certain that he spoke the sentiments of the Demo cratic minority of the House when he said that so far as General Grant would faithfully either initiate or carry out any reform, the minority would give him its feeble support. An attempt was made to economise so far as to strike off the item granted for the support of the fleet engaged in suppressing the slave trade ; but this motion, which would have violated the treaty with England, was rejected. As Mr. Washburne pointed out, money might be saved in every department of the Government. THE EMPRESS EUGENIE. The explorations of the famous correspondent of the Telegraph in high French society have taken a new direc tion. It is impossible to believe that this gentleman is on friendly terms with any femmes de chambre, and the inevit able conclusion therefore is that the übiquitous journalist is admitted to confidential chats in the Empress Eugenie's dressing-room, and, like gentlemen of the time of Addison, pays morning visits during the process of robing. Her Majesty, i t seems, has brought ad vanced science to bear upon the art of dressing. Nothing, we should imagine, would more forcibly illustrate the maxim, ars Tonga, vita brevis, than the process of changing an elaborate toilette several times a day. The French Empress has experienced this difficulty, and, what is more, has met it. She has also solved the diffi cult problem of dressing with wonderful quickness. " The arrangements that have been made to compass this end are very intricate, and resemble the transforma tion scene in a pantomime. When the Empress is about to pass from her apartment to her dressing-room, the first femme de chambre touches an electric bellthat corre sponds with the room over head. Thereupon a trap door in the ceiling of the dressing-room opens, and the toilette the Empress has signified her intention of wearing is lowered from above—petticoats, slip, dress, tunics, all ready to put on, one inside the other, with their trimmings of flowers and ribbons, flounces, and lace. A quarter of an hour after she is dressed, necklace, jewels, and ear-rings are in their places, and then the hairdresser is summoned ; for the Empress, contrary to the usual fashion, leaves her coiffure to the last. The whole process is completed in less than half an hour." It is only to be wished that the blessings 'of this invention be extended, that a cheap form of the apparatus be devised for the public at large, and that a modification be adopted for the suffering stronger sex. The story suggests another con sideration. If half an hour be required for dressing under these favourable circumstances, what amount of torture must have been undergone previously? THE VAR IN PARAGUAY. The French journals have received information that the defeat of Lopez was less serious th an was represente d ; i n fact, he still occupies Villeta. But a private telegram received in Liverpool supports the earlier news. After f-Nvo terrible battles, Villeta was taken by the Allies. UNITED STATES' SIIIPPING.—The following report conf i rms i n a marked way the facts we hare so long urged, and shows the necessity for some important the W cha e ng a e re in oadto Navigation Laws of the United States. see that the American press very generally advocates such a modification as will permit American citizens to purchase, and own as American, foreign-built steamers to be engaged exclusively in the foreign trade of the country. The Treasury Department of the United States Government has published, as a supplement to Secretary lii`Culloch's annual report, a small pamphlet of important statistics on the tonnage of the United States, accompanied with a paper by Mr.Nimmo on the ship building of the Union from 1817 to 1868, showing a tonnage in 1868 but little more than half what it was in 1855, and very little above what it was in 1847. On the 30th of June, 1868, the total tonnage of the United States,incl uding steam and sailing vessels, barges, and canal boats, we are told, was as follows : O n th e Atlantic and Gulf coasts, 2,974,975 tons; Pacific coast, 166,512 tons; Northern Lakes, 695,604 tons; Western Ri vers , 581,217 tons ; making a total of 4,318,309 tons. Th e n umber of vessels which return this tonnage consisted o f 18,189 sailing vessels, 3,619 steam vessels, 1,631 barges, 4,679 canal boats, making a total of 28,118. The tonnage in Jane, 1861, was 5,539,812 ; in June, 1868, only 4,318.309—a decrease of 1,221,503 tons. In the fiscal year 1854-55, the most pros perous year in shipbuilding, 373 ships and barks were built; in 1867-68 only 69. Mr. Nimmo, showing the falling off in the building of large vessels since the war, says : " During the five years from 1853 to 1858 65 per cent. of our seagoing tonnage built on the coast consisted of ships and barks, while during the five years from 1863 to 1868 only 28 per cent. consisted of ships and backs." From 1852 to 1862 the aggregate tonnage of American vessels entered at sea ports of the United States was more than double that of foreign vessels; from 1863 to 1868, instead of being double, it was declined till it has come to be only 26 per cent. The steam marine gave even mare markevl returns. The arrivals of vessels, of which wo have a return for the port of New York, bear out the above statistics. Those coming from foreign ports, in 1368, were 4,861 againct 4,676 in 1857. The class of vessels were as follows : Steamers, 619 ; ships, 331; barks, 1,055 ; beige, 1,499 ; schooners, 1,223. Tho arrivals of American vessels were 2,095 in number, distributed as follows :—Steamers, 204 ships, 223; barks, 359 ; brigs, 535 ; schooners, 774. The arrivals of the British vessels were 2,032, distributed as follows :—steamers, 355 ; ships, 102 ; barks, 378 ; brigs, 771 ; schooners, 426. The North-German vessels were 379 in all, of which 109 were steamers, 49 ships, 152 barks, 63 brigs, and 6 schooners. The French vessels were 29, of which 26 were steamers. THE SALMON FISHERIES.—At a meeting of the Carlisle Angling Association, held on Friday night, it was stated by the committee in their report that the spawning beds in the river Eden are "literally crowded with sal mon," and the oldest watchers on the river never saw so many salmon in the river as there are this year. Similar reports come from the Nal), in Dumfriesshire. officers." The work of supplying regulation tnetirs has been necessarily slow, but is now going for ward satisfactorily. Under the authority of the 14th section of the Act of July 28, 1866, the Secretary of the Treasury suspended until January 1, 1868, the collection of the direct tax in the States hereto fore in insurrection, and a like extension until Jan. 1, 1869, was authorized by the joint resolution of July 23, 1868. The loyal States, with the single exception of Delaware, assumed the amounts ap portioned them, and paid the same from their trea suries. The total amount of tax apportioned to the 11 insurrectionary States was $5,153,981. Of this there have been collected $2,270,608, at an expense of $243,451, exclusive of salaries of Commissioners. The uncollected tax, amounting to n early $3 ,000,000, is a lien upon all the real e,tate upon which the same is assessable. The Commissioner proposes that the assumption by the States be permitted and encouraged by a premium. The Commissioner complains that every session of Congress, since the formation of his bureau, has passed a revenue Act; and that there are already twenty-five of them. Such continual legislation is embarrassing alike to the people and the department. He als° suggests a codification of the enactments now in force. The Commissioner thinks the power given him to refund taxes erroneously assessed ought to be limited as to time. He recommends the period of fifteen months. The Commissioner recommends that the time set when the use of stamps 'on to bacco shall begin (January 1, 1869) should be ex tended, as it will not be possible for dealers to clear off their unstainpel stock by that time, on account of the delay of the Government in not furnishing the stamps until November 23. The Commissioner finds that the attempt to collect taxes on brokers sales by means of stamps is afailure. He recommends a return to the former plan of monthly collectionS• In assessing taxes upon legacies and successions it frequently becomes necessary to determine the value of life estates and annuities for life. In the British laws imposing such taxes one table fixes the expectancy of life. Such a provision ought to be made with us to prevent disputes and litigation. Deputies, when acting as collectors, cannot now receive pay in either office. At the adjournment of Congress, March, 1867, there were 67 deputies acting as collectors. Provision should be made for paying them and for meeting similar exigencies ill future. Mr. Rollins recommends that the Act of July, 1866, providing a summary process for the sale by collectors, without decree or forfeiture, of goods not exceeding $3OO in value, seized for viol' tion of the revenue laws, should be extended to cover goods of a greater value, and to those seized under every revenue law, instead of that of 186 1 only. By law supervisors are to be assigned to districts composed of one or more judicial dis tricts. This arrangement has nothing in it which answers to the necessities of the service and the . Commissioner should be allowed to assign super visors to districts composed of one or more Col lecdon districts, at his discretion. As it is now there is a great waste of force. The Commissione r recommends that receipts given for amounts ove r •- $2O shall no longer require revenue stamps. Th e revenue yielded is small, the vexation great, and the violations innumerable, The Commissioner r enews his urgent appeal fo r th e es t a bli shment o f a service. He also believes that all the great. cities, some of which now consist of several collection districts, could be thrown into single districts, wit h a great &Lying in expense, and with advantag e to the revenue. As it is now the severity of collet' • tors is unequal, and rogues have only to move freni one street to another to get under a different reve nue regime. The same cause embarrasses every process for the enforcement of the penal of the statutes. The districts of New York aid Philadelphia, however, if consolidated, should b a allowed a grade of officers between the present as sessor and assistant assessor. Five deputy assessors in New York and Brooklyn, unde r th e direction 0f the single assessor, would supply the place of eigh t assessors, whose offices would be abolished. D the district of Philadelphia, which i s now divided into five districts, two intermediate officers would be found sufficient. The Commissioner closes hie his report with an urgent recommendation that th e internal revenue be erected into a separate depart ment. This Mr. Rollins urges with the more free dom, as he is himself retiring from the office. THE NAVY. The report of Secretary Welles of the navy give' the total number of vessels of all descriptions no/ r in the service at 206, carrying 1,743 guns, a re . duction during the year of 32 ve s sels and 126 go!. The character of the vessels • is divided—irouela4 52, 199 guns ; screw steamers 95, 938 g u n s ; paddle wheels 28, 199 guns ; and sailin g vesse l s 31, , guns. The number of vessels in cruising service is 35, and laid up, repairing, and fitting for sea, o' The organization of the squadrons remains essef daily the same as whe n th e l as t report was mane' The European squadron of five vessels and 66 gu ll is temporarily in charge of Commodore A. M. pe a " nook, but Admiral William Radford has been all: ur. pointed to its command, in pla ce o f Ad m i ra l P. Earragut, placed on wai t i ng or d ers . Th e Asiati c ci i• squadron, of 9 vessels and 82 gu ns , i s i n cot - 11111 0 j of Admiral S. C. Rowan, in place of Admire Henry 11. Bell, who was drowned at Osaka, JaP ali i January 11. Admiral H. K. Hoff is in commr l ;2 of the North Atlantic squadron of 6 vessels and he guns, in pla ce o f Ad m i ra l J ames S. Palmer, 111. died of yellow fever at St. Thomas, December The South Atlantic squadron of 5 vessels, carrying : 49 guns, is un d er command of Admiral Charles 131, Davis, and of th e N orth and South Pacific scitlau . rons little report is made. The Secretary devot e l much space in his re p ort to an account of Admire Farragut's tour to th e E uropean capitals, and to the 3 " action of the Asiati c squa d ron and the necess i t y ~f a strong force in the Japanese and Chinese watel to protect our citiz ens an d commerce. The n aval force is now in an efficient condition, though r _r i ; duced from last y ear, an d i t i s probable that it w"'" be still further diminished during the year to com e ' as can be done with benefit to the public service. A FRESH LET TER BY M R. L INCOL a re N.—Ther o - many letters wrttten by Mr. Lincoln which are carefu lly preserved by those who nuw hold them. There is on e hi the hands of a mec h an i c o f W as hi ngton, which i ts ovre et prizes as highly a 9 any State paper bearing the same g the nature. This mechanic h e ld th e pl ace o f carpenter a t . • White House. Young Tad Lincoln w as qu it e a gen ius 10 hleo way, and very fond of th e use o f t oo l s . O ne d ay being fa great need of a piece of board, which he did not believe the f carpenter would give hi m , an d h av i ng some k now ledge the influence of his father's name, he went for an o rd° Mr. Lincoln heard Tad' s pl ans o f th e wor k h e was e ngag ed upon, and the necessity for a board to complete it, and thrd wrote on a scrap of paper—" If you have a piece of b ee Thu g to spare, please let Tad have it.—A. L INCOLN ." armed Tad got the board, and the carpenter an order, " 0 " which he now refuses to part. Miss Elwood, the professional skater, is announc e at the Buffalo Rink to give an exhibition, "dressed to 11- present Mercury." il ° L ADVERTISEMEN T.] — Avoid Medicines: they always aggra r iog chronic complaints: but Du Barry's delicious health-res t° i o- Revalenta Arabica Food, which yields three times the not tr ies t ment of the best meat, saves 50 times its cost in other reale d O l and invariably restores perfect digestion, strong nerves, s? ~,0 0 1 lungs, healthy liver, p ure b lood, refreshing sleep, f u nctiv ss r o regularity, anti energy t o th e most disordered or enfeebled. e d extract a few out of 68,000 cures ;—" The Pope's health rest" „r 66 • by Du Barry's Food. Care No. 68,413. "Rome, July 21, 1.8 . —The health of the Holy Fath er i s exce ll ent, espec i a lly sT e ly abandoning all other remedies, h e h as confined himself ent ry e 5 to Du Barry's Revalenta Arabica Food , of which he consu%ve, a plateful at every meal. It has produced a surprisingly 1) .'„e1 ficial effect on his health, and his Holiness cannot praise this 06 .0 lent food too highly." From the "Gazette du Midi, July 25 liver No. 58,216, of the Marchioness de Brehan, of seven years' , ; 100 8 complaint, wasting away, debility, nervousness, with a ner palpitation all over, bad digestion, constant sleepleesnesst r aLl the most intolerable nervous agitation.." Cure No. 1,771; 7, r a' Stuart de Decies, Lord Lieutenant of Waterford, of many ye a dyspepsia. No. 49,832: " Fifty year s ' i n d e scribable age 9 Y, n c" dyspepsia, nervousness, asthma , cough, constipation, flatw-iio. spasms, sickness, and vomiting.—Maria Jo] y. , t_cure a , rf it 46,270: Mr. James Rober t s , o f F rimley, Surrey, of 30 Yeoci diseased lungs, spitting of blood, liver deran„oemen t t.„ o ,si partial deafness. Imp or t ant Caution.—Beware of the :trhout and m more b s et n name sloppy is most imitations audaciouslyw hi cla , d unsavouryiuthority, Baron atta. l vs. In tins, at 1 lb. 2s. 9d ; 2 lbs. 4s. 6d.; 5 lbs, 11a.' 225. ;24 lbs., 40s.—Al so Du BARRY'S REYALENTA ABA st Ca Co n o r 2 4 LATE POWDER is p ac k e d i n tin canisters ; for 12 cups at 25.,„ eye cups at 3s. 61, for 48 cups at tis., for 288 cu p s a t 30 5 ., for 57° 60 1 at 5 58.—being about one penny per cup. The 30s. and 55a fee are sent free o f carr i age in England on receipt of Post,. 1,011- trder. — BAßßY DU BARRY an d C o ., N o . 77, R egen t - s treet, - don; and all Grocers and Chemists. Births. CONSTABLE —On the 22d inst at Wallace Craig stable' o Bedford, the wife of Lieut..-Colonel U. B. Con r, stab -- -- A son WEBBER—On the 24th inst., at Torquay, the lieu' - We' C. Webber, of a son. O° WILSON—On the 24th inst., at 19, Milbank-row, the - of Rd. Wilson, Esq., of a daughter. Marriages. icenti BARCLAY—WYATT —On the 23d inst. , at EMI), , — OOO Livingstone, third son of J. P. Barclay, Esq., W` s i the Market, Suffolk, to Emily, youngest daughter 0 late Charles Wyatt, Esq. TARVER—WORNI7III On the 25th inst. at St. Mart i° „mt. the-Fields, Edward John Tarver, inst. to Edit l i f `" t he • 'let, eldest daughter of R a lph N. W oruum, Esq., °- National Gallery. Deaths. 6° , 13 I.loDGsoN—On the 25th i ns t. , W a l ter Edgar ~,---°,4030 Esq., of South Nor woo d-hill , and the Bank of -r4l3° aged 62. i f o robl' HORNY—On the 2Gth inst., at Dalston, J. NV. ...- Esq., aged 64. SHORT—On the 25th inst., at 64, St. George's-roa d, wick-square, k(ayow Short, Esq., aged6B. „ TOLLEMACHE—O n th e 24 t h i nst., at Tilston Lod e ' f the shire, Lady E mma Tollernache, second daught er - late Earl of G a ll oway, aged 28. London : Printed and Pahliahod by WILLIAM AN l3 t 1 5 Dm of No. 112, Stra n d, P r i nter, at ' SUN affeN 7,4 "- ty ° Strand, in the Precinct of the Se voy, in the ' 2-3 Middlesex,--Wednesday, Janu.az y 27, 18t9. 1,. ,onst, cetebr, korde& Whist also h( numbE of oth( IF The -tiro p, Th o n . Bonus value rende r /ear () i thirty SEA ofl Naticn The £879 1, SUE WiHim the s e , street, Qua' Govan G i The fession weekl3 bined establi This raised and it Lady Carolii All ten or Sub, Treasi Oftlee 13 R A For destitr and o prosp e One atituti( Iner endow assists Sub Stitt its pp, Th e secret om, , Bar, oine ; Di) 'UPI and m city, E Thi Prize Solt the Af Obs han's ADP) hold , thle Form j GEC'] umlor a.m. t R, Eve arid Vile D. Da "afro and a -( Minsti A' Room and c a, l l at, Dance TIH Wry Old Ci Shit Spark Sam bottles E' C Polil Ann Pound The and fu be foul appliet 316, E