The Sun. — London, England, 1852-12-15 00:00:00

'HEA:ERE ROYAL, HAYMARKET. THIS EVENING THEATRE ROYAL ADELPHL Open for the Season. Proprietor, Mr. B. Webster. —Directress, Madame Celesta. THIS EVENING, • The successful new Drama of SLAVE LIFE ; or, Uncle Tom'. Cabin—by Messrs. Alfred Wigan, Emery, 0. Smith, and Cullenford Madame Celeste, Miss Woolgar, Miss Collins, Miss Harding, Miss Laura honey, and Mrs. Keeley. After which, the admired Farce of A MODEL oF A WIFE. To conclude with the Comic Opera of GOOD NIGHT, SIGNOR PANTALON. ROYAL PRINCESS'S THEATRE, OXFORD-STREET. Under the Management of Mr. C. Kean. THIS EVENING Will be performed Shakspilre's Comedy of THE MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR. Principal characters by Messrs. Charles Kean, Bartley, Harley, Meadows, J. Vining, Ryder, and H. Sakz ; ➢irs Daly, Mrs. Wlnstanley, and Mra. Char:ea Kean. After which, A ROLAND FOR AN OLIVER. Principal cha racters by Messrs. Lacy, Meadows, Add:son, and Everett; Misses J. Manton, Vivash, and Leclercq. ROYAL OLYMPIC THEATRE. Lessee and Manager, Mr. Farren. THIS' EVENING Will be produced. MY WIFE'S DAUGHTER. After which, GO TO BED, TOM. To be followed by Tag LADIES' CLUR. To conclude with WAN r ONE T LIOUS AND SPIRITED YOUNG MILLINERS FOR THE GOLD DIGGINGS. Supported by Messrs. Fe.rren, Compton, Hoskins, G. Cooke, Shalders, Kinloch, and Niesd'un s H. Gordon, A. Phillips, Lucy Huffer, Bartlett, &c. Box-office op-n from Eleven till Five, under the superintendence of Mr. Edward Chatterton. ASTLEY'S ROYAL AMPHTTHEATRE. Proprietor and Manager, Mr. IV. Batty. The grmte^t novelty of tha present day is Uncle Tom's Cabin To he witnessed nigttly at this Home. THIS EVENING, Dec. 14, tne performances will commence with the superior Equestrian Drama of UNCLE TOM'S 0 IBIN. To be followed by unparaneled Equestrian and Dramatic Achieve me.nts in the Arana, by the most talented ArtiCes of the age—in cluding M. and Mille. Lalanie, and the Brothers Seigrist, from th Cirque Olymoie, Paris. T^ conclude with the highly amusing Farce of THE DEVIL TO PAY. In consequence of the crowded state of the Theatre. Mr. Batty be to inform his Friends, that Seats cannot be kept after the con. elusion of the First Act. Stage Manager, Mr. W. West. Doors on.n at Half-past SI: o'clock; Box-office open daily from Eleven to Four. HIGH 'WATER AT LOND, 'ON BRIDGE, Tnn DAT —Morning 34 min. after 4 Evening 57 min.aft. 4 To-Ma:mow—Morning 20 min. after 5 Evening 45 min.aft. THE WEATHER.- SUN OFFICE, Dec. 15, THERMOHETER, IN THE SHADE. 54—highest since noon yesterday. 42—lowest this morning and during the night. 48—this day, at noon. BARI:MUTER, 29'12. WIND, S.W.—Fresh breeze, and much rain in morning. Afternoon, fine. THE WELLINGTON SUN. ON THURSDAY THE ISTri ULTIMO, AN EXTRAORDINARY EDITION OF THE SUN WAS PUBLISHED, CONTAINING A SPLENDID PORTRAIT OF THE LATE DUKE OF WELLINGTON WITH 1113 AUTOGRAPH, AND A FULL ACCOUNT Farewell Season or Mr. Benjamin Webster as Lessee and Manager. Will be performed the popular and highly attractive Comedy of MASKS AND FACE-1; or, Before and Behind the Curtain—by Messrs. Benjamin Webster, Leigh Murray, Stuart, and Parselle; Mrs. Stirliar, Miss Rosa Bennett, Mrs. Leigh Murray, and mi ss Fanny Maskell. After which, the Farce of BOX and COX, 31.ARRIED and SETTLED, by Messrs. Buckstone and Keeley. To conclude with the WOMAN I ADORE. ROYAL LYCEUM THEATRE. Under the Management of Madame VestrlS, THIS EVENING Will be performed A HOUSE OUT OF warDows. After which, a new Comic Drama, called LITTLE TODDLE, KTNS. Characters by Messrs. C. Mathews, Baker, Butler, Miss F . Matthews, Miss Oliver, and Miss Ellis. To be followed by (3d time) a new Comic Drama, called a PHE XENON U( A SMOCK•FROCK, Characters by Messrs. C. Ma thews, F. Matthews, and Horncastle ; Miss Baker and Miss C. Mitchell. To which will be added the BALLET from the Chain of Events in which Mi.s RO3lllll Wright will appear. To conclude with In JE.NKENSES. Sole Agent for the Private Boxes, Mr. W. Allcroft, 15, New Band-street. OF THE GRAND NATIONAL FUNERAL, AND IS NOW ON SALE. ORDERS RECEIVED BY ALL NEWS AGENTS, AND AT THE SUN OFFICE, 112, STRAND, LONDON. Mi ~„ ~~ iy, LONDON, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 15, 1852 The debate on the Budget has again been ad journed. It is impossible to deny the propriety of such a course, when, at the termination of the evening's discussion, some doubt appeared to have been entertained as to the real question before the House- a doubt which to this moment has not been altogether removed. The desire of Ministers, and the general intention of all parties, has, un questionably, been to deliberate on the principle of the entire financial scheme, without being in any degree committed to the details. The re solution on which the decision of the House is to be taken, however, applies to only - one portion, and that by far the most ob jectionable of the whole project—the intended al teration in the House-tax. It is,. however, worded so vaguely and uncertainly, that it requires ad ditional explanations as to its objects. The strongest opponent of the Rouse-tax might freely vote in favour of a proposition which would com mit, or bind him to nothing—which is just as consistent with the reduction as with the increase of the impost,—which merely determines that the House Duties payable under the 14th and 15th Victoria, c. 36, wall cease, and determine that, in lieu thereof, there shall be granted and made payable upon all such dwelling houses " certain other duties." These substituted duties might as well be 3d. and 2d. in the pound, or an uniform rate of ld., as ls. 6d., and is. Nor is there anything to show that the exemptions 'are to be diminished, or in any degree varied. It merely authorises a deal ing with the tax. What, then, is really meant by the resolution ? We are obliged to accept the issue tendered by the CHANCELLOR, and that has been variously stated. In the first instance, in answer to the Hon. and Gallant Member for Westminster, he declared that all he asked was, that the House would allow the Government "to bring forward measures of financial reform (not merely with reference to the particu lar plans proposed), which depend upon the coun try being agreed to bear a certain quantity of di rect taxation." The Right Hon. Gentleman added--" Ido not ask any gentleman to be in the least pledged, by the vote he may come to to night, to any details of this resolution. I only ask you to agree to this—that the area of direct taxation should be extended." If this were the only point in dispute, it would be carried by acclamation, at least by an over whelming majority. Every fiscal reformer is pledges on the subject, which has been strenuously advocated for many years, and the opposition to ' which b y Si r of the CHARLES WOOD led to the overthrow `Whig Government. We cannot, indeed, conceive iiov. any person rson who voted in favour either of Ai r. - vi , Luz A ts s resolution, or Lord PAL toMTON's amendment, could refuse his sanction a propositio, essential to the further extension of the wise and Judi u nrestricted policy which, whether it be denominated competition," or by its " Saxon" appellati "Free Trade," has certainly obtained the sanctio n ve of theco and . adhesion of Walla the great majority within as without the unity, as well Westminster. of the P a l ace at But another question then arise s as tothe rti Jar form of direct taxation towbich this r Paesoluti cu ,is on is applicable. We are exceedingly desirous equitable and ICIOIIB syst em of - ua - of the substitution of an direct taxation for many of the indirect i mposts that now fetter the industry and materially d e ., teriorate the prosperity of the country ; but we are strongly o pp ose d t o anythingthat will p ress unequally on different descriptions of property. The Ho use -t ax appears to b e un j us t i n principle, and unfair in practice. If it were simply a tax on occupiers, it might possibly be defended ; but it practically falls upon the proprietors, not per haps of the ground-rents, but of the houses erected thereon, which are, generally speaking, held for limited terms by those who have invested their capital in creating additional house accom modation for the middle classes. It is notorious that persons about to select a dwelling, inquire, not merely the amount of rent, but also of rates, taxes, and other outgoings incident to the occu- A grievance of considerable magnitude, as affecting the civil servants of the Crown, was re cently pointed out in these columns ; and on its more careful consideration we feel ourselves called upon, as among the independent organs of public opinion, to force the matter with increased ear nestness upon the attention of Her MAJESTY'S Government. We feel that an enormous injury is being hourly inflicted upon a large and deserv ing class of the population, and that the removal of that injury is very readily within reach of the Administration. The nature of the evil com plained of, we have in these columns already clearly enough indicated. We have shown that a need less reduction of the restricted salaries of the clerks and other officials in our Government esta blishments, has —ever since the 27th section of the enactment 4 and 5, WILL. IV., cap. 24, came into operation—painfully crippled the means of those civilians, and this merely to swell :the amount of a fund nominally applied to purposes of relief in the way of systematic superannuation. It must be remembered that the number of the servants of the Crown claiming release from the pressure of this intolerable and bootless burthen, reaches an aggregate of no less than 16,353 indi viduals. Upon their exertions are dependent up wards of 70,000 altogether—those 70,000 includ ing, of course, aged parents, women and children. According to a comprehensive estimate formed as to the average of the salaries and emoluments upon which the above-mentioned 16,353 civi lians have to provide for the support of their 70,000 dependent relatives—while with two-thirds it does not exceed 861. per annum, with regard to the whole body of officials collec tively it does not exceed 1411. per annum__ surely no such very exorbitant expenditure as to require the interpOsition of the economic pruning knife by way of retrenchment. Recollect what was said only the other evening by the CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER. Recollect the eulogistic men tion made by the Right Hon. Gentleman in re ference to the unflagging energy and 'indefatigable application of those Civil Servants of the Crown, without whose aid the toils of the Statesman would be ineffectual in carrying on the labours of Go vernment. The tribute was one eminently w e ll deserved. It came gracefully, too, from the lip s of one who must have experienced some solace in his severe and laborious researches, from the as sistance cheerfully accorded, under every emer gency, to the rulers of the British Empire by these obscure but important, and sometimes, and that not unfrequently, highly-gifted move rs o f th e grand and complicated machinery of administra tion. We listened to no portion of the Financial Statement of Mr. DisnAnu with more interest than to the sentences in which he pronounced this merited panegyric on the Civil Servants in the offices of the Government. And our interest in the eulogium was not the less earnest from our re collection of the very bitter injustice of which those same hard-working .and inestimable, but abused and neglected, officials have been recently, with so much reason, complaining to the Members of the Imperial Legislature. It ought particularly to be borne in mind that the Civil Servants of the Crown are asking for no boon or bounty—they are merely demanding their own—they are merely beseeching the Parliament and the Government that the money they earn by their laborious and valuable services may not be diminished yet further, with a view to swell this useless, and worse than useless, fund of superannua tion. In brief, they are seeking justice and not benevolence. Let it be considered, in proof of this, that their salaries are decreased by a deduc tion, made under section 27 of Act 4 and 5 WILL. IV., cap. 24, of 21. 10s. per cent. from salaries not exceeding 1001. per annum, and of 51. per cent. from salaries exceeding 1001. per annum, and that these deductions are made for the purpose of " reducing, prospectively, the charge incurred in providing super annuation allowances." Supposing, for an instant, that the amount thus annually collected by means of these provident deductions from the salaries of civilians in the offices of the Government--proved eff ectually in securing the benefit k in view by the en ac t ment already particularised, ept there could scarcely,weadrait b either th e f act or na'anenaellry causeofcomplainttheseforergulati ons against - sion would only be thereby assured in anticipation of any casualties to the Civil Servants of the Crown, by the interposition of the C rown itself in their behalf. But such a s we have explai ee d w i th all ne cessary minuteness upon a p rev i ous occasion very far indeed from being th e case. The result f that unfortunate Act, 4 and 5 WILL. IV., cap. 4, has been directly the reverse of what, We pro. ROBBERY. BY A CLERK.—Yesterday, at the Mary ;bone Folic:: Court, John Hoskins, clerk to Messrs. Chap in and Hone, the well-known carriers, who have extensive premises at the Camden station of the London and North -IVestern Railway, was placed at the bar, before Mr. Broughton, for re - examination, charged with having car ried on a system of plunder to a considerable extent. Five charges of robbery were clearly substantiated against the prisoner, who thereupon was fully committed for trial at the Middlesex sessions. SUDDEN DEATH OF A GIANT DRATMAN.—Yesterday, Mr. Wakley held an inquest at the Crown, Old Saint Pan cras-road, touching the death of John Sheppard Hardy, a drayman, late in the employ of Messrs. Truman, Hanbury, and Co., the well-known brewers, of Brick -lane. The de ceased was a remarkably fine man, standing six feet seven inches, and weighing 17 stone. The evidence of Mr. Smellie, the surgeon, who perfor me d th e autopsy, went toprove th a t deceased died ofapoplexy, brought on by effusion of blood on the brain. The liver was of an un usual size ; the heart perfectly bloodless. The jury re turned a verdict in accordance with the medical evidence. ACCIDENT AT JULLIEN'S BAL MASQUE.--Yesterday morning, towards one o'clock, when the excit ement of Jullien's m as k e d b all was at its height, considerable alarm was caused by the falling of what was supposed to be the body of a lady from the upper tier of boxes into the pit. It was soon aiscovered that a hoax had been played, and that the Supposed lady was only a " dummy," but of such a weight as to cause considerable injury to a gentleman upon whom it fell, and to render him insensible for some time. Medical aid was obtained, and he was removed in a cab to his residence. The perpetrator of this silly and mischievous joke escaped undetected. FALSE IMPRISONMENT.—In the Queen's Bench yes terday, the case of Isaacs v. Cook was tried. The action was brought for false imprisonment under these circum stances :—On the 27th of July the defendant had an annual sale of goods, and the plaintiff purchased several lots at the sale, among which were two oil-stones, or hones, for setting razors on. He paid for them, and removed them on the morning of the 28th of July. When he got them home he exhibited them outside his door for sale. They continued there about a fortnight. He had written upon them, "Mr. Cook, Old-street." He did so because he did not keep any books. On the 13th of August the defendant stopped at the plaintiff's shop about eleven o'clock in the day. The plaintiff asked him what he was looking at. Cook replied ho had reason to thtshimplliha Ipremises reeewemkm:ew.ihowever, minutes :asaeunrs ts Theplaintiff went into his shop, and in a few aatiauny ,taken thatrelit policeman saose;tatiehhhaytcc.o.( rssio,etntaihaht came, npsemambrdn, oaepecfhthoesstelarthennei and risceagiissgst rtthht; 3 ( t lei dot o . d ohrnne C oabhu o dttaeah o nhetr i endge : empes s t et:snhmt o a llhae t e ibncol tceoedhi d n aumnofitog t aeihorfhglnre. Smithfield, and plain tiff l e toktaa iaoipcdi takinw g to Guildhall, where ho was discharged, the alderman directing the policeman to give the stones to the rightful owner, Mr. Isaacs. Since that time a person with whom Isaacs had previously had large dealings had refused to deal with him. He had the name "Diggins " over the door, which was a nickname his father and grandfather had gone by. The defendant had put a plea on the record that the plaintiff had stolen the articles. The jury found a verdict for the plaintiff; damages 301. LYCEUM THEATRE.—A comic drama from the French was successfully produced here on Monday night, entitled A Phenomenon in a Smock. _Frock ; Mr. Charles Mathews as John Buttercup, the plain-spoken milkman, presented an amusing bit of personation, his rustic gait and provin cial dialect being perfect. The cynical and acrimonious Sowerberry met with a genial representative in Mr. Frank Matthews, who fulminated his tirades against the truth lessness of society with a good savage relish, quite in keeping with the bitter irritability of the monomaniac. The applause at the close was universal. Both the above. named performers were - cordially called for, and greeted ; and on the author being called for, the lessee declared the Ipiece to be by Mr. W. Brough. ADELAIDE STEAMER.—The departure of the Adelaide Australian steamer, which was to have taken place to-day from Plymouth, has been delayed by order of the Admi. ralty until Thursday the 16th, for the purpose, it is pr e . sinned, of enabling dispatches to be sent to the Cape in reply to those just received. Letters will be in time if forwarded by th e L on d on even i ng ma il o f W e d nes d ay. M ICLBOURNE STEAMER.—The intelligence received by the Cape mail regarding the Melbourne Australian steamer ta satisfactory. She left the Tagus on the 21st November, and arrived, it appears, at St. Vincent on the 29th. The sailing distance between the two places is 1,597 miles, and her average speed, therefore, was 200 miles a day. It is stated also that the passengers had expressed satisfaction at the altered state of affairs, and likewise that the crew had behaved well. Sufficient coal would be taken in at St. Vincent for the run to the Cape. SINKING OF A RAILWAY ARCH IN THE WESTMINSTER ROAD.—It has been discovered that the arch of the South Western Railway, spanning the Westminster-road near the Marsh-gate, has sunk, owing to the continued and unusual rain which has fallen for these last ten or twelve weeks. Men were employed yesterday afternoon in placing strong girders under the immense arches on each side, to prevent any serious accident from occurring while the repairs are being carried out. MEETING OF JAMAICA PROPRIETORS. —A meeting of proprietors and merchants connected with the island of Jamaica, was held yesterday afternoon at Willis's Rooms, St. James's, for the purpose of resolving what steps should be taken with respect to that portion of the Chancellor of the . Exchequer's statement bearing reference to this once flourishing colony. A memorial to the Earl of Derby on the subject of the present distress was agreed to, praying for relief. BETHLEHEM HOSPlTAL.—Yesterday, Alderman Fare brother announced, in the Court of Aldermen, that at the next court of the governors of the Bethl e h em Hospital, ho sho u ld move the following resolution :—" That the court do appoint a day to discuss the accusation made against the management of the poor insane persons in Bethlehem Hospital, and to invite the Lunacy Commis sioners to attend, that all the medical officers be required to be present, and that upon that occasion the reporters of the press be_invited to be present." _ Z' 13E SUN, LC panty. They inquire the aggregate amount of sume, was intended. A laud, known generally the various liabilities they will be called upon to as the Superannuation Fund, has been accumu liquidate before they enter into arrangements ; lated since that Act came into operation; hut, as and the necessary result of any increase of taxa- far as any advantage derived from it is concerned, tion, is a corresponding diminution of rent. The only t o the positive detriment of the contributors. tax, therefore, falls on the proprietor who has the The maimed or bed-ridden have been enabled to house to let, and with increased severity, inas- obtain a paltry pittance from it, upon certain Much as he is not suffered to make any conditions, but the orphans and widows of men deduction from the chief rents on account who have spent the best years of their life in the thereof ; and without even that grievance being service of their country have looked in vain for taken as an element into the calculation, he is, as relief from, a source of nominal assistance, to we proved in our impression of Saturday, taxed which their parents or husbaz cds have directly, seven times as much in proportion to the actual year after year, paid in their contributions. value of his property', as the more fortunate p ro - Th ere i s a cruelty in all this that cr i es out to the prietor of green fields. Now, a judicious and Legislature for mitigation. There is not only a well-devised tax on every description of accumu- cruelty, but a positive folly, in the existing ar lated property, real or personal, which would rangements, such as, we believe, in our conscience, compel every man to contribute to the mainten- must extort sympathy from the most phlegmatic, ante of the national establishments and the liqui- and necessitate its complete revision and re-or dation of the national liabilities, secundum status ganisation by order of Parliament. We regard et facultates, according to his position and means, this as inevitable. As inevitable as that a roen would be free from th ese grave an d weighty apple must fall from the bough, in obedience tt to objections, and such we would gladly sup- the law of gravitation. Being so—it were assur port ; and so we have no doubt would edly well and wise to hasten the reform of this the great body of the people, and that to an intolerable system, the amelioration of so much extent sufficient to enable the Right Honour- consequent suffering,—in fact, the total removal of able Gentleman to bring forward these various the grievance insisted upon —so that a source of measures of financial reform referred to in his ex- great blame may be removed from the Legislature, planation, and of great shame from the Government. But for the very same reason that we oppose the impost—viz., that it is practically a tax not on the occupier, but on the owner of houses, an unequal and oppressive Property -tax—we would, if it must indeed be retained, not only extend its area, but eiren remove every exemption. What possible reason can be assigned why the owner of one house worth 1001. per annum should be charged '71.105., while his neighbour, who possesses 10 cottages worth 10/. perannum each, or 20 worth 5/. each should be exempted? The effect is to hold out a premium to persons erecting an inferior class of buildings. It is thus directly opposed to pub lic policy. We have repeatedly seen, since the passing of 14 and 15 Vie., c. 36, houses built for the very purpose of evading the duty, the rent of which was fixed at 191. 195., dwhen an addi tional shilling of rent would have rendered them iiable to 158. duty. This is neither just nor rea sonable. Every exemption on " property" is ob jectionable. If, therefore; the House Duty is to be retained, in any form, we do not object to an " extension of the area of taxation," by rendering it applicable to all houses of every value and every description. " Exemptions" Ire very different things when we come 1-,0 deal with industrial incomes. Then, in leed, they become not only proper, but necessary. Et is, we believe, conceded that there cannot be evied a charge on weekly wages, and perhaps the ')urden may fall with equal, if not greater, severity m those struggling to maintain a respectable ap pearance, which is essential to their very existence —among the class in which, as SIR JAMES GRAHAM 'sappily remarked, "the fustian jacket ceases to be worn, and broad cloth becomes the clothing of the people." PARLIAMENTARY BUSINESS. (From Votes and Proceedings of the House of Commons.) CONTROVERTED ELECTIONS. The SPEAKER acquainted the house that he had re ceived Reports from the Examiner of Recognisances, stating that the recognisance to the election petitions respecting the following places were unobjectionable, viz. : Clonmel. Carlow. Youghal (1). Youghal (2). Kildare. Bolton. Down. COURT CIRCULAR. OSBORNE, TUESDAY. The Queen and Prince, with the Princess Royal and the Prince of Leiningen, drove out in an open carriage yesterday afternoon, attended by the Marchioness of Ely, the Hon. Mary Seymour, and Colonel Bouverie. Lord Raglan arrived on a visit yesterday, and had the honour of joining the royal dinner party. Sir Charles Young (Garter King of Arms) had an in terview with the Earl of Derby yesterday, at his official residence in Downing -street. Sir James Cochrane had an interview yesterday with Sir J. Pakington, at the Colonial-office. Lord Mark Kerr had also an interview with the right hon. baronet. Colonel Conyers had an interview with Mr. Secretary Walpole, y es t er d ay, at the Home-office. Dispatches were received yesterday at the Colonial office from the Governor of the Cape of Good Hope. Dispatches were also received from the Governors of the Falkland Islands, the Mauritius, and Gibraltar. Dispatches were sent yesterday to the Governors of the Australian colonies, the Cape of Good Hope, Mau ritius, and New Zealand. DERBY ELECTION COMIVITTEE-(TLIIS DAY.) The committee re-assembled at half-past eleven o'clock this morning, after arranging with counsel as to the course they intended to pursue with the witnesses about to be examined. The CHAIRMAN asked if the witnesses ordered to attend were in readiness ? Counsel for the petitioners replied in the affirmative. Mr. COPPOCK then left the room, and brought in Mr. Frail, who it will be remembered, was stated to have been too ill to attend during the earlier periods of the inquiry. The witness who walked with assistance of crutches, appeared as if he had been suffering not only for some time, but, indeed, a t th a t moment. Mr. FRAIL been accommodated with a chair, in reply to a preliminary question from the Chairman, observed that he had nothing to fear from speaking the whole truth, as his acts had been governed by the purest motives. We want an inquiry into all these points, and we should regret any course that would pre vent or retard that inquiry. At present, we are only at the very commencement of fiscal reforms. A revision of the entire system of taxation is essential, and before we reject the Minister—who, however mistaken in some portion of his project, has yet shown the ingenuity to plan, and the boldness to propose, extensive al terations—we should desire to know to what extent his opponents would be prepared to go ; we should not be desirous of supplanting the bril liant and efficient DISRAELI by the dull and im practicable Sir CHARLES WOOD. The committee here observed a stranger in the room, and, upon questioning the party, it appeared that the Mayor of Derby, who was in conversation with one of the committee, had had no intention of remaining. The gentleman accordingly withdrew; but, upon gaining the corridor, he informed the three messengers having charge of the doors that some one would be found behind the screens in rear of the committee table. An immediate search was made, but no such obtruder having been discovered, the room was again cleared, and after a few minutes' consultation on the part of the committee, counsel and agents were called in, and the inquiry proceeded under a surveillance that fully equals the closeness of the Spanish Inquisition. MONEY AND COMMERCIAL NEWS. SERIAL PARMA NIENT. CITY, Two O'CLOCK. The sales of cotton at Liverpool yesterday were estimated at 5,000 bales, of which 1,000 American and 400 Egyptian were taken on speculation. The market closed firmly, with but little alteration in prices. The sales comprised 70 Pernam and Maranham at bid. to 6id., 110 Bahia at 6i-d. to 6 d., 500 Egypt ian a t 6d ., 250 Surat at g&d. to i 4 d., and the rema i n d er American. Railway Shares were dull, a t ra th er lower quotations. The advices from the C on ti nen t represent the Money Markets genera l ly as being very easy. The Second Ch am b er in Holland has sancti one d the project for a conversion, and gives power to the Government to convert the present 4 per Cent. debt into n per Cent. stock at 99 or into 3i- at 97. The Conversion of the 5 per Cent. Transferable Loan of the Honourable East India Company to the amount of 3,500,0001., is to be into a 4 per Cent. Stock, without any bonus, or the existing bonds may be paid off 2s. Id. per Sicca rupee, or by bills having one, two, or three years to run, with in terest at 5 per cent. t ts o .oe 2 c6.u 2 2n 3 s..ii Yesterday afternoon there was a decline in the rates of exchange upon the principal continental cities. English Securities are heavy, and the doubts about the passing of the financial scheme have rather increased. It is not, perhaps, that the scheme as a whole is approved, for it would be better liked in the City, if sensibly modified ; but a change of Ministry is not a contingency at any time in favour of public securities. Consols have been 1001 to I for the opening. The New n per Cents. have been 104 to 104. Bank Stock is Exchequer Bills of March are wwoo F rthrth ore G2 ign i2s3. and India Bonds 78s. premium. Securities have been heavy generally. Turkish Scrip is 1i i premium ; and the Swedish Loan 11 discoimt. 8 panish New D e f erre d B onds are worth 401 have been 23 to to C i. Portuguese Four per C en t s . Dutch Four -a 4 ' Mexican h ave been 24,0 to 11. Stuck per ents. are at 99 t o i. E quador is at si-. Brazilian Old Bonds are 103*. Railways are nearly all flat, and the settlement of the account shows a decline in the principal lines of about i per cent. At the present moment, how ever, there is a rally in several of them, and It ap pears that they are rather scarce. This is most conspicuous in Caledonian, the week's traffic being 1,7001. more than in the corresponding period of 1851; and North Western, South Western, Midland and Northern Counties Union are better than they were at the opening of the market this morn ing. The " Contangos " have been rather heavy. arising from the extensive dealings. French shares are flat, and rather lower, in some instances by as much as 10s. per share. Upper India keeps steady, the additional capital of 3,000,000/. being about to be raised, which will be represented by 150,000 new shares, to be given in the proportion of three new for every two of the old shares, fifty thousand being reserved for India. This is done to enable the company to tender for the entire line from Allahabad to Delhi, and to present the scheme in such a form for the decision of the lion. East India Company and of the Board of Control as must insure a favourable result. The proprietary, already considered very strong, will be reinforced no doubt by influential parties connected with the East Indies ; and we believe the present arrangements are undertaken at the sugg es ti on o f persons high in authority and of great experience. Gold mine shares are firm, and Agua Fria have touched 1 premium. ROUSE OF COMMONS (THIS DAY.) o'cloc Th e SPEAKER took th e c h a i r a f ew minutes to 12 k. PETITIONS. Mr. MACAULAY presented a petition from the - s t : Philosophical Society of Edinburgh in favour of the 20 distribution of Parliamentary papers to mechanics' in stitutes. 11 Petitions to the same effect were presented by Mr. COLLIER from Plymouth, and by Lord BROOKE 31 from Warwick. Mr. .1. BUTT presented a petition from Youghal, 27 `i praying for relief from the Irish Consolidated Funds 22 Act. Mr. HATFIELD presente d a petition from Sheffield St. against the financial propositions of the Government. 50 ORDER OF THE POOR-LAW BOARD. 50 In reply t o M r . C OBBETT, 50 Sir J. TROLLOPE sa id t h e order of the Poor-Law 25 Board, of the 25th of April, had been rescinded, and a modified one wou ld b e su b st i tuted. That order was to- 25 25 day in the possession of the printers, and would be transmitted to the boards of guardians to whom it re- 18 lated in the course of the present week. 20 In reply to an HON. MEMBER, 25 Lord NAAS sa id h e hoped er the recess to intro duce some measure for the improvement of the health of 5 „ towns in Ireland, b u t h e wou ld not b ring it forward unless ‘, he saw som e reasona bl e h ope of passing it. St. LAW OF SETTLEMENT . 50 Mr. WISE asked the President of the Poor-Law St. Board whether there was any intention of altering the St. law of settlement, or of proposing any change in the St. mode of charging the rates for the relief of the poor. St. Sir J. TROLLOPE said he had given his attention to St. the important question of the law of settlement, but it required so much consideration that he was not now pre pared to introduce a measure on the subject. As, how- st. ever, no measure could be passed without first receiving 12 the assent of the Government, he had placed before them 50 all the information he possessed on the subject, and he 10 believed they had devoted their anxious consideration to St. the questio n . (H ear. ) 20 LAND OF POOR-LAW GU ARDIANS. 14 50 • Mr. WISE asked the President of the Poor-Law 20 Board whether there was any information in the poor- 11 law office as to the quantity of land which had been 10 hired or purchased by boards of guardians for the pur- St. pose of cultivation by the inmates of union workhouses ; St. and whether any statements had been transmitted to 20 the Poor-Law Board showing the result of the employ- 10 ment of the in ma t es o f wor kh ouses on the land so hired St. or purchased ; and if any such information and state -50 ments had been given or exist, whether the President 25 would place a copy of the same on the table of the house. 25 Sir J. TROLLOPE said he could furnish the hon. St. member with a return of the quantity of land either pur- Si chased or hired for the employment of the poor, but the St. guardians were not in the habit of furnishing informa- St. tion as regarded either the financial or moral results of 50 the plan. All the board were in possession of on those , 25 points was obtai ne d i nc id en t a ll y through the reports of 1 00 inspectors. TENANTS' COMPENSATION (I RELAND) BILL. 50 25 On the order of the day being read for resuming the 20 debate on the second reading of this bill, Mr. J. D. FITZGERALD said, though he dissented from the principle introduced into the Tenants' Compen sation Bill, he would not oppose the second reading. His chief object in rising was to call the attention of the Attorney-General for Ireland to what had taken place in the other House of Parliament, He was surprised to find that the noble earl at the head of the Government had stigmatised the bill brought forward by Mr. Ser geant Shee, as calculated to subvert the rights of pro perty, and as being a communistic measure, and added that the s econ d rea di ng had not passed' with his sanction, and that he believed it would never be agreed to by the house, even though the committee to which it was referred might report in its favour. This course he (Mr. Fitzgerald) felt compelled to denounce as unprecedented, seeing that the Home Secretary had supported the second reading, with. the view to its undergoing a fair investigation be fore on the subject were to be referred. Strange as was that proceeding, it was followed by another still more singular I . on the part of the Irish Attorney-General, who had 1. written a letter to the _Dublin Evening Mail, in • which he said that the assumption that lie had assented to the second reading of Mr. Sergeant Si Shee's bill, was utterly unfounded and untrue. 5( As to the bill of the Attorney-General, he (Mr. Fitz- 2( gerald), as he had already intended, would not object to 20 the second reading, being of opinion that the preamble ... was wide enough to enable the true principle to be de- 25 veloped. He thought that no measure would be satis factory unless it clearly asserted theprineiple of a tenant E having prop er t y i n i mprovements. (Hear.) That was plainly assert e d i n M r. S ergeant Shee ' s bill, but he ad- 5020 mitted that some o f i ts d eta i ls were open to objection. 20 He called on the house to pass an Imperial not an Irish 10 measure on this important subject—not commu- St. nistic in principle, or calculated to subvert the 25 rights of property, but dealing justly with the 25 relations between landlord and tenant, which, in his St. view, was of far greater consequence than the principles of the budget which they had been discussing for the last three nights. (Hear, hear.) Mr. NAPIER d ec l ared that ever since 1848 he had St 5 been labouring incessantly to complete an equitable ad- St. justment of the relations between landlord and tenant in Ireland, which he had always looked upon as a subject 20 of the deepest importance, but it unfortunately happened St that when that question was brought before the house 11: it invariably degenerated into personal abuse and recri mination. (Hear, hear.) The present discussion had divided itself, as others generally did on most subjects, intbthe real and th e p ersona l . (A laugh.) In regard to the latter, his explanation was, that seeing by accident in the newspapers a statement of his having assented to the bill of Mr. Sergeant Shee, he wrote to the journal in question denying its accuracy. When the debate on that bill came on, he was then prepared to state his objections to it in detail, but an adjournment of the debate was moved for, and a division took place on the question. It was then suggested by some hon. member, that on the whole it would be better to let the bill go before a select committee, along with th e Government measures, and that when the house was in possession of the whole subject, the question might be at once and for ever settled. (Hear, hear.) Thereupon the Secretary of State for the Home Depart ment, who was a gentleman of the highest honour and unimpeachable integrity, and for whom he had always entertained the highest esteem, assented to the second reading of the bill, with the view to its being sent to the committee. He was, however, in doing so, actuated by the best of motives, and honest and bona-fide anxiety to facilitate the passing of an useful and perfect measure. (Hear, hear.) Though he (Mr. Napier) would have dissented from that course, he believed that his right hon. friend had adopted it in a spirit of conciliation. As to himself, ho had no feeling towards any particular class or kindred, being only anxious to pass a good code for Ireland. (Hear, hear.) And he appealed confidently to the country whether the step be had taken was not the best, under the circumstances, to obtain, as soon as possible, a goo d co d e to settle finally all the regula tions between landlord and tenant in Ireland. (Hear.) The bill of the right hon. and learned member for Kil kenny was precisely the same as that which was intro duced by Mr. Sharman Crawford, and which was rejected last session by all sections of the house. There was hardly any necessity under these circumstances that he was opposed to the principle and details of the hon. and learned member's bill. So much then with regard to the bill. All that he contended for in favour of his bill was that it was less cumbersome in details, but since they could arrive at a satisfactory conclusion if they took the two bills into committee, he entreated the represen tatives of Ireland, for the sake of their country, to aban don personalities or recrimination, and endeavour to see if they could, not arrive at such a result as would meet the views of all parties. With regard to the principle of tenant right itself, he certainly was far from being opposed to the tenant right of Ulster, but he had yet to learn that his own bill in any way interfered with or destroyed the tenant right of Ulster. (Hear.) He was one of Ulster, and had passed most of his years of pro fessional life in that county, and he should therefore be supposed to know something of its tenant right. Well, then, being con versan t w i t h i t, b oth in principle and de tail, he had no hesitation in saying that his own bill could by any possibility have the effect of destroy ing that right. He must, however, object to the shifting meaning that was constantly being applied 1 to the term tenant right. For his own part, all that he recognised in the term was tenants' improvements, and 1 all that they could legislate for was to secure the tenant a fair compensation for his legitimate improvements. That was the object of his bill ; and he hoped the legis lature would ultimately experience no difficulty in adopt- / ing it, without interfering with the tenant right of Ulster, which was entirely beyond the scope and power 10 of legisl a ti on . T he right hon. gentleman then pro- 25 ceeded to recapitulate and defend the details of his own 10 bill, and concluded this part of his observations by 1.0.( urging the house to allow the bill to go before a select committee to be simplified and improved in its provi- St. sions, if it w as poss ib le to do either. (Hear.) 20 12 • [LEFT SPEAKING.] St. St. St. St. BRITISH FUNDS THIS DAY. (From the Official List.) Bank Stock Ruthless done. 223 -a 3 per Cent. R e d uce d A nnuities .........• lO O 4l 1001 3 per Cent. Consols Annuities 3 per Cent. Annuities, 1726 New 31 per Cent. Annuities..... ..... . ...... 1031 4 New s*per Cent. Annuities shut Long Annuities, Expire sth Jan., 1860 6 7-16 Ditto 30 Years, Expire sth Jan., 18 60 shut India Stock shut India Bonds, £lOOO 7B Consols for Opening 18th Jan.. lOOl 100 ex d Exchequer Bills lid. • March. June. £lOOO. . . £5OO Small 62 59 62 50 62 PRICE OF FOREIGN FUNDS THIS DAY. Brazilian Bonds, 5 per Cent. Ditto 4i per Cent 9Bi i Chilian Bonds, 6 per Cent.. ..... .......... Danish 3 per Cent. Equador Bonds 5- 11 Grenada Ponds, 1h per Cent. Ditto New Deferred, 3 per Cent .........••• 24 1n i i Mexican 3 pe r C ent.. /1 4 Portuguese 4 per Cent. 44 i Peruvian 6 per Cent. Russian Bonds, 5 per Cent. Ditto, 4 per Cent. ................ Sardinian Bonds, 5 per Cent. ..... .... ....... 95 x d Spanish Bonds, 3 per Cent sos 1 504 Ditto Deferred, 3 per Cent. Ditto for the Ac coun t 23 4/ Spanish Committee Cert. of Coup. not fun. 3 a p c Swedish Loan' d 1 Turkish Loan, 6 p er C ent., 1852 1$ i p Austrian Bonds s.per Cent........ . Dutch Exchange 2i per Cent Ditto 4 per Cent. Certificates 99i 9 i i Consols for Opening 18th Janua THREE O'CLOCK. ry ...... 1001 ex div. 10 20 5 2 BANK OF IRELAND.—At the half-yearly meeting of St the directors and proprietors of the Bank of Ireland, held ~„ yesterday, a divide n d o f 4 per cent. for the half-year was nil declared ; and it was es ti mated that the payment of this " dividend would leave a sum of 2,5001. to be added to the rest fund. COURT OF ALDERMEN —Yesterday, at a court held for the dispatch of business. a discussion took place upon the subject of tho directions recently given by the Court of 10040 Common Council f or th e prosecution of non-freemen trail- ing by retail within the city of London. A general feeling , 1 ,,„ 00 was expressed that, if suc h prosecutions were under- luu taken at all, the law officers of the corporation, besides taking care to produce such evidence as would lead to the determination of a model case on its merits, ought fur ther to guard against molesting the poor tradesmen ; and that the parties actually selected should be put to no unne cessary inconvenience. Alderman Sydney gave notice of a motion condemning the principle of these prosecutions. MERTHYR TYDVIL ELECTION.—The election for this borough, consequent on the decease of the late Sir J. J. Guest, Bart., of Dowlais, took place on Tuesday. At 11 o'clock the 13roceedings of the nomination commenced, and after the usual forms had been gone through, /Ir. A. Hill put in nomination. Mr. Henry Austin Bruce. Mr. D. Williams seconded the nomination; and there being no other candidate put in nomination, Mr. Bruce was declared duly elected. REWARD FOR SAVING LIFE FROM SHIPWRECK.— BROADSTAIRS, DEC. 9.—The thanks of the French go vernment and a reward of 121. were this day presented to the crew of the Tartar lugger, for their intrepidity, and at the imminent peril of their own lives, in rescuing six of the crew of th e F renc h b r i g Messenger, wrecked on the Long Sand, in the recent gales in October. 1 40' NINESDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 15, 1852, all Do. Guar. 53 per et all Do. Waveney Valley 5 per cent .00 North British all North Staffordshire, 100 Oxford Worcester & Wolverh. £15,6p. c 9 Do all IShrewsbuly & firm, New Guaranteed all Shrewsby. & Chester (Nor.W.Min),B p. c. 10 Do. 5 per cent.. all South bevon.l:: ...... 14 Do. New ............... all S. Eastern (Reading Ann.,) of £1 Os.6d. 100 Do. 4i per cent....... all S.Yorksh.4p. c. Guar. all Stock.& Hartl. Guar. 6p. c. till 1 Ju1y,1856 3 Waterfd.&Kilk. 6p. c. 100 York Newcastle and Berwick, 4 p.c.Pref. 5 D0....._ _ ................. 10 IYork N.Midland 11. & S. Purch.. ......... THE S.HABE MARKETS. BRITISH RAILWAYS. Pat 1 RAILWAYS. axing Prices) Basini this Day. this 100 Aberdeen ..... . 3ll 32 8, Imbg. Noting. Bost & Eastu. Juuc 6l 6 all Birmng. Wolverh. & Stour Valley lo3 11 28 Birkenhd. Lancsh. & Cheshire Junct 6i 61 d all Do. Chesh. & Birk., £5O & £25 Cons 2l 214 18i Do., £2O 3l 2 a 1 100 Bristol & Exeter lO7 109 107. 1 00 Caledonian - 694 68. all Chester & Holyhead 23 231 23 all Cork and Bandon.... 181 19 45 Dublin&BelfastJunc. 3 2'' I I all Dundee Perth &Abe r deep Nwe Junetion ..... .. all Do . ... all East Anglian (£25 L. I & E. & L. & D.)..... all Do., (£lB E. & H.).. all Eastern Counties..... all . Eastern Union, Clam§ A. late E. U. Sh.. 6 Do., d 0... ... .......... all Do., B. (t C 100 East Lancashire all East & West Ind Dk. & Binning. June.... 58 60 100 Edinburgh & Glasgow 78 80 100 Edinb.Prth.&D un d ee 291 311 100 Glasgow & S.Western 60 62 100 Great Northern Stk.. 82 84 83 100 Do., 4A. Stock , ... 44 46 100 Do., iB. Stock 122 124 all Great Southern and Western (Ireland) lo7l' 1.081 100 Great Western 96 96/ 951 11 Irieh South-Eastern 6i 71 I all Lancaster &Carlisle BB 90 111 Do., Thirds. 100 Lancash. &Yorkshire 841 —B5 84i 4 15 Do., Fifths 3A 3 d 111 111 Do., Wst. Riding Un 24 —2/ d all Leeds Northern-- 17i 18/ 18 17' all Liv.Crsby.&Southpt. . . . . all London & Blackwall .9 94 9/ 3 Lond. Tilb. & Sthend. 1/ 2 p 100 Lond.Bright. &S.Cst. 109 110 109 100 London &N. Western .125 i 1261 125 41i 12 Do. Fifths 4—4l p 1 D0.,101.5h.,M&8,..0 11 —2A p 100 London & S.Western 93 94 92 3 421 Do., £50........ ...... 3/ —21 d 34 Do., £4O 2j 2 d I all Lndndny.&Colcraine 12j 13 all Lndndrry. & Enui s k. 201 211 ' lOO Nlanch.Shef.&Lineln. 31 32 4/ Do., Man. &Lin. Un. 3/ 3 d 100 Ifidland ..... . -.. .... 80 80,1 791 100 Do. Birming. ... Derby 47 49 471 Afidland G. West.(lr.) 171 Do. 1 Shares ... ...... „, all Newcastle &Carlisle.. .. ... 100 Newmarket-. -.. . 52 54 52 14 Newpt.Aberg.&ll . ifd. 31 3 d 7) Newry & Enniskillen 2i 3 all Newry Warrenpoint & Rostrevor st 94 100 Norfolk. all Do., New 7i 84 32 Northn. Counties Un 2t —24 d I f 100 North British ... .. 13 North Devon, No.l 6i —6l d 6), Do., No. 2..... ... _ all - Do., / A Deferred 5 Do., 6 B Guaranteed' 171 North Staffordshire all North Western 81 N. &S. Westrn. une 100 Oxford Worcester & Wolverhampton.. 1 100 • sottish Central - i 100 Scottish Midland ... 100 Shrewsbury &Binrig 100 Do., L. & N. We,stu Guaranteed Stock 8 3hrewsby. & 'forced all Zhrewsby. & Chester (Nor. W. Min.)...... all ,1 0. Halves, do. 20 o. Oswestry . ..... ... 61 hropsbire Union .... 1 ... , 5 0., A.B.C.&D.fully I paid up at p. c...... all ....nth Dev0n.......... 'lOO South Ea5tern......... all South Wales 15 ... Yorksh. River Dun 5 i o ... .. .... ... . ... . 16i .tockion &. Hartlepl 19 Thames Haven Dock and Railway 17 Vale of Neath all Waterfd. & Kilkenny all Waterford&Limerick 13 West C0rnwa11...... all West London. 1 Woodford.. .__ ..... . 100 York Newctl. & Berw. 20 Do. Extensions. ....... 10 Do. G.N.E. Purchase 100 York &N. Midland.. 9 - 10 64- - 6$ 4$ .4 13 - 13,1 13k - 12 I ~....I 8 , .1 - 9,} ..... 76 - 78 - ... 2k -- 23 1 # d 44 31 dl 13i 8t -- 91 3A -- 4i p 53 -- 54 94 -- 98 93 66 -- 67 64A GO -- 68 78 -- 82 d -- 201 94 -- 10 14i -- 15 3 -- 24 d 241 - 251 79X.- 801 39i - 40 - 39 14 -14 A - 4i 2a 2i 21 13 -13 i - 10 27. - 28 ' 9 - 10 •.. 73 74 6;` —64 d 2 —24 d 60 61 594 _ PR , EFERENCE SHARES. 100 Aberdeen ..... all Do., No. 2,7 p. c • 100 Bristol & Exeter 4 p cent. Stock 5 Do. 4p. c. Shares 100 Caledonian £lO all Chester & Holyheac Guar. 54 per cent 34 Cork &Bandon 54 p.c. all Dundee Perth&A i ber• deen Junction all EastA nglian (£3lox) 6 per cent all Do. (25) 7 per cent 2 Do. (17 178) 7p. ct all Eastern Counties Ex tension, 5 p. c. No.l all Do., No. 2 all Do., New 6p. c. St all Eastern Union, Scrip Guar. 6 per cent all Do., £lO Deben. Sh 100 EastLancash. 6 p.cts all East&WestYorkshire Junction, Fifths...;, all Edinb.Prth.&Dundcd 100 Glasgow &S. Western guar. 5 per cent 100 Great Northn. 5 p.c. 'lOO Do. sp. c., Redeem., at 10 p. c. prom all Gt. Southn. &Westn. (Ireland) Eighths... 6 Gt. Westn. (Berks & Hants Ex. 5 p. c.).. 100 Great Western, fixed 44 per cent..... ....., 6 Lancash. & Yorksh., F. £2O. ........ 1.00 Do., 6 p. c., Stock... 13 Leeds Northern, 6p. cent., No. 1 ......... 17 Do., No. 2............. 5 Do., No. 3 9 Do. , Quarters, 1848 1100 London and. Brighton Guaranteed 5 p. c.. 100 Po. Pref., sp. c. St all Do. Convertible, sp. c., 1852 ............ . 100 Do. New Guar. 6 p.c. 100 Lon. &N. Wes t. Cov. & Nun., 5 p. c. Stock 5 London &S. Western Con. Thirds 10 Londonderry& Coler. Shares . all Londndry. & Ennisk Shares....... all Manch.,Shef., &Lin., Shares, No. 1 all Do. New, £lO 3 Do., £6 ........ ..... all Marypt. &Carl. 4p. c. all Do. 44 per cent 84D0.. .00 Mid. Consol. 6 p.c. St. 00 Do. Consol. Bristol & Birm. 6 per cent 5 Do. Pref. 44 per cent all Norfolk Extension JOINT-STOI all 'Australasia all British N. American' 25 Colonial 20 Commercial of Lon don 4 English Scottish and Australian 2i Loud. Chart. Bk. o Australia 20 London and County 10 London Joint Stock 20 Lond. & Westminster 35 National Prov. of Eng. 10 Do. New 24 National of Ireland. all Oriental Bank of Corporation 5 Do. New 25 'Provincial of Ireland all Do. New 1 Royal Australu.Bkg Gold Importing Company all Union of Australia 2;1 Do. Now 10 ,Union of London all Union of Madrid..., MIDDLESEX SESSIONS_ (THIS DAY. Mr. Serjeant Adams, Assistant-Judge, and a full bench of magistrates, sat this morning at the Sessions house, Clerkenwell-green, to hear bail and appeal cases, of which there were seven set down in the paper for hearing. EXTENSIVE ROBBERY BY AN ENGINEER. William, Bolton, who was found guilty yesterday of stealing 16 working tools, and other articles, of the value of 101., the property of Mr. Joseph Boulton, his em ployer, the particulars o f w hi ch were reported in The Sun of yesterday, was this morning brought up for judgment. The learned Assistant-Judge, in passing sentence, said that he had given this case the greatest consideration, for the purpose of finding something slight, so that he might pass a lighter sentence than it was now his inten tion to do. lie had no doubt but that he had been carrying on a wholesale system of robbery, and, not content with that, had the wickedness to charge the son of the prosecutor with the theft. Not satisfied with that, he had brought witnesses into that court, who had com mitted corrupt perjury, and he (the learned judge) had considerable doubt whether Culter was not an accom plice. The sentence of the Court, therefore, was that the prisoner be transported for the term of seven years. Samuel Slatter and George Matson were indicted with stealing a quantity of mutton and beef, the property of Philip Sharp, his master. Mr. Byerly Thomson appeared for the prosecution, and Mr. Metcalfe and Mr. Rebton for the defence. On the 2d December the prosecutor was in his parlour at the back of his shop, and saw Slatter take down some mutton, and take it to the slaughter -house. He went there, and saw Slatter and Matson together, and found in a tub the mutton, some b eef, some pork, and other articles. The prosecutor stated that he kept two shops, and had been robbed to a very large amount. Mr. Rebton and Mr. Metcalfe having addressed the jury for their respective clients, the learned judge summed up, and the jury returned a verdict of guilty against Slatter, and not guilty against Matson. The Assistant-Judge sentenced Slatter to nine calendar months' imprisonment, with hard labour. LOAD PAL3fERSTON, who usually enjoys such con finedexcel- to his room, by, it i s s t ated, gout. His lordship did not p much regret to sa y, t o be --3 own di nner p ar ty, or L a dy Pal nleontahepaelatrh, either continues, at his Pal merston's reception on Saturday evening ; and as time elapses, as to whether considerable a nx i ety and curiosity are expressed ether the nobl e viscount will have recovered so far as to be enabled to take part in the discussion of, or to vote in, the division on the budget. Gout is a complaint with which many of our most eminent statesmen have been afflicted—none more so than the great Earl of Chatham. With him, gout was, however, sometimes assumed to relieve himself from royal or parliamentary embarrass ments.—Daily News. FATAL ACCIDENT AT THE GREAT NORTHERN TER- MlNUS.—Yesterday, a s train, consisting of an engin e and six carriages was on the from eve of starting theliing's.eross terminus, and while it was gently moving the four o'clock p.m. passenger into the station, the buffer struck John Caten, who w as clearing the road between the rails of bricks and other i mpediments. The poor fellow, who was more stunned than injured by the blow, cried "mur der, and endeavou re d to make his escape, but becoming confused, instead of getting out of the way ran under the carriages, the wh ee l s of which passed over him, nearly severing his l severing his hand, an d otherwise dreadfully mutilating him. H and several child ren. who w s a as i n 4 s s t y a ne was t l y of c o a n g v o e , y h e a d s left to t a h the w i d d e o a w d house. Decea se d , FATAL ACCIDENT ON THE SOUTH-WESTERN RAILWAY. —On Monday afternoon a fatal accident took place during the progress of the three o'clock down train on the South- Western Rail way. As the down train, which leaves the Waterloo station at three o'clock, was proceeding at its usual pace, between Basingstoke and Andover-road sta tions, when it had reached near Oakley-park Bridge a man was observed on the up line. The engine-driver instantly blew the whistle, and made every effort to shut off the steam ; but it was, unfortunately, out of his power to pre vent the fatal accident. The engine and train passed over the body of the unfortunate man, which was cut to pieces. His name is Thompson, an d it appears that ho was in the employment of the Telegraph Company, and resided at Basingstoke. ' SHREWSBURY AND CHESTER RAILWAY.—A meeting of shareholders of this company was held in the' Royal Hotel, Chester, yesterday (Tuesday), Mr. W. Gordon Thom son in the chair, when the following resolution was adopted : —" That, inasmuch as certain important legal questions affecting the position and interests of the shareholders are still pending, the daily expected. .judgments on which the committee are advised will be such as shall greatly facili tate their movements in endeavouring to secure for the proprietors 4{ per cent., which has been deferred by the 1 improper opposition of the direct ors, reso l ve d—th a t th e meeting do adjourn to the Ist day of February, 1853," , 5 0 50 los 110 1109 i 105 la 19 19.1' d J 1 8 -• 18, 3 -3, 127 :: 129 112 - 113 11121 8i 1 —l3 p 1093 -t- 1103 par p .52 55 .• -- •.. ~ -- •.. ,• --. ... 4 p' s. - 1 3i -- 14 94 -- 104 11 1 - 11 6 - p -14 p ••• .•• [5O -- 151 23t L I P 6 -- d 3 102 - 101 251 - 26, - 24 pl 113 11i - ii 17 —17 i P 17 18 par p - 2611 26 1 •7, par -- [O2 104 51 i - ipl 14k - 151 4 14i 15 BANKS, • - I 80i • - 63 • •. -.-• . - - ... 14i i . - ... I 5 . L - . ...I 68i LINES LEASED AT FIXED BE Shr. Paid!Ranwe.rs. Compass. This _Cko l s .hi lL ...... .g d Pri ay e . e s >O O3 50 all Bedford and London & Bletchley.... N. West. ... •" 304 all Birm. & O x fd. guarantee ... Gt. Westn. 30 31 304 all Do.withoutgr Do 29a s°3 304 all Birm.Wolv. & 30 31 3° Dudleyguar. Do 304 all Do.wthtguar. Do 29 . 3 . 1 0 St. 100 Buckghamsh. & N.W lO9 _ 50 all Clydesdale Jc. Caledon St. 100 E. Lincoln. gr. 6p. cent..... 151 150 Gt.Notrhn 149 4 25 all Glstr.&Dn.Fr. Gt. Westn. 33 '" 25 all Glas. Barr. & Neilsn.Direct Caledon •'' 25 all Do. Ne w D o ..• 100 all grtlpl. Dk. & Yk. New Railway & Berw.. . . „•• 50 all gull & Selby Y.&N.Md. 113 1 " 95 all Do. a Shares. Do S6A - 571 124 all Do. Shares. Do 27 '1 122 all Lon,&G reenw S . E astern l4 " 20 all Do. Preference Do 2sa 26 ! 20 all Lowestoft gr. 4 per cent... Norfolk 20 all Do. 6 per ct... Do 51 all Hanch.Biton. Lu.&N.W 3l 31 and Matlock & Midld 3 '— 50 all lliddlesbro' & Stekton & Redear . . . . Darlingt. ••, 1 100 all Ilidld.Bradid. Midland 107 k 1 • ° "' 65 50 all Northern and Eastern sp. c. E. Count 64 -- 66 50 all Do. 6 per ct.. Do 50 all Do. Fixed sp.c Do ... . 25 all Prest. & Wyre L. &IN. W. & •• • 121 111 Do. a Shares. Do Ln& Yk St. 100 Roystn.& Hit. Gt.Northn 150 1 5 4 St. 100 Do.Sh ep th . St . D o 149 25 180 Shef. Roth. & Lancash. & • Gooleg.s.p.c Yorksh - • 12 9S. Staffordsh.. M r MCl ean 2 " 50 all WearValleygr Stockt. & 6 per cent ... Darling •••; 25 all Do D o St. 100 Wilts &Somrst Gt.Westn lO5l FOREIGN. - -- "<cio _ 5 i i Shr. Paid RAILWAYS. Closing dagrylces ............... „..., 1 30 0 10' _ - - 5 3 BolgianEastn. Juliet. 1 2 20 all Central of France(Or leans & Vierzon ... ... 20 all Charleroi &Erquelin 14 15 171 all Demerara — ••• 20 6 Dijon and Besanon • 3 -- :34P 20 8 Dutch Rhenish 1 i d 20 all East Indian 9i --94 P 2, 5 all Gt. Indi an P en i nsu l a 28 2;4 P '' 20 4 Gd. Junct. of France 2 —2.!? P 201 1O Gt. Western of Canada Shares par —l. P ... ... Do. Bds. ast i55.)1857 ... • ~. ... Do.Bls. (2d i55.)1862 20 14 Luxembourg 10 10 Do. (Rail wa y) 4l —.5 " 4 5 11 Do. 5 1 4 Do. (Caual) 1 14 20 5' Lyons & M e dit erran 7 .9 P 20 41 Madras 2i .1.i4 P 331 29 Maria Antonia 10 10 Do. Ne w .. -- .... 20 all Namu r & Li ege ( w i th interest) Bl Si 8i 20 all Do. (ex interest) 64 7.1 16 all Northern of France 34,i :35 20 all Do. 201. 3p. c. Bds P . M (fmy.t.&Ams. Shs.) 14i 151 10 all NorwegianTrunkPref ... ... 20 11 Orleans & Bordeaux . -.. 20 10 Paris and Lyons l5 - 1 5 0 40 28 Do. Bonds. — ... 20 all Paris a n d O r l eans 65 67 20 all Paris and Rouen 371 —38 i 20 all Paris and Strasb ourg 32 32 20 4 PaiisCaen & Cherbrg. 41 —44 p 104 2i Quebec &Richmond.. P 20 all Rou en an d H avre.... 2 1 — 21 . I 20 all Samb re an d Meuse... 11! i 12 1 i. "9 ' 20 4 South ern o f France.. ... xn 20 4 St. And. & Quebec(A) ... ... 20 17 Tours and Nantes.... ... 2O 2s. Upper I n di a S cr i p , ,, .. i . 0 i p I 8i all West Fla n d ers ... . .... 54 6 10 4 Do. 54 per c. Pref 4a— i: P 20 9 Western of France... 10 —lO 11 ___--______--''' 2 MINES. ______________4 " i 32 1S 1 all Agua Fria 10s. all Anglo Californian 10 2 Australa s i an s— 6 716 I 20 5 ' ustralian 34 4 3t • 1 all Australian Cordillera id— 1 d 1 all . ustralian Freehold. par p 1 A 1 all Ave Maria Ad—l p 1 1 all Baden (Gd. Du c hy o f) i d p 1 j 1 all British A us t r i n . G o ld $ p 1J 8 20 13.5 British Iron 74 84 35 243 Brazilianlmp. (issued at £5 pm 4 —4s i 30 all Do. Co caes & C u i a d a 2 — 3 r 20 15 Do. St. John Del Rey 30 —3l 1 all Carsons's Creek A— $1 , 411 40 all Cobre Copper 414 424 5 1 Colonial Gold 3 —34 p ... 14 Copiapo 7 —74 5 all English and Austin all Copper Smeltg. Co i —1 d 4.f 20 General.. .... .. . 1 all Golden Mountain.., id. par 3 all Great Polgooth ll —4' p - 1 1 all Lake Bathurst....., Id. par i 0 1 all Liberty i —14 p - 1 all Lond. &Californ. Gold Quartz Crush. Co -- d 1 all Mariquita.. .. . ... 10 9 Nexican&S.Americn 4l -- I li 1 all New Granada .... . 1 all Nouveau Monde._ 14 p 1 all Port Philip li ).4 p 2$ ~ a m. 1 all Qu ar t z R oc k i—a p 14 ; 50 all Rhymme I ron 2l •--23 90 104 Santiago de Cuba lO 11 1 all South Australian I i P 10 7 Tin Cr o ft ... ........... 284 all United M ex i can 8 84 8 4 7 'f 1 all West Mariposa 1 all Yuba .. ........... ~ 4 p 1 a _,.. MISCELLANEOUS. 110 4 Australian Ryl. Mail 32!,' Canada St. ' all Copper Miners of Eng 25 all Do. Preference 5 5 Crystal Palace 4 2 Crystal Palace France 20 1 Eastern Steam 1 1 Electric Teleg. of Ir 15 14 Gen. Steam Navigat 100 50 General Screw Steam Shipping Company 20 2.3 Irish Beetroot Sugar 10 2 Netherlands Land.... 50 all Peninsular& Oriental 50 20 Do 100 60 Royal Mail Steam 5 2 Univeral Emigration and Colonization ••. --- ••. .•• ..-•• . ... -- ... ... '....." . 28} 79 LLOYD'S SHIPPING-(2HIS DAV LONDON, Dec. 15.—Wi n d at Noon, W., wit h spa a~ times. •gly I —4ll DEAL, Dec. 14.—Wi n d , S . W ., fresh. Arrive Ll Jar brig, Berbice ; Ocean Queen, New York. Sailed Grey, Melbourne ; London, New York. 5.V*; LIVERPOOL, Dec. 14.—rrived—J o h n , St. Johns, tom; Kerelaw, Wilson, Singapore ; Isabella Harnett, gro nsl Anglesea, Morrison, Bombay ; Benjamin Boyd, C, liji „, Sept. 27 and Fernando Po, Oct. 5 ; Tyrtung." 3 , — ,tice , Colombo Now Orleans ; Mercury, Mobile ; Con s ii tliete , Guy Mannoring, and Montezuma, New York ; Quebec ; Candidate, Newfoundland. Sailed ; Baltimore ; Manila, Valparaiso ; Waldeman, Fernal n rlv Woodstock and Familia, Charleston; Sarawak , delphia. BIRMINGHAM CATTLE SHOW. —This ha f 4 j". show year been opened to tho public. The number of pens - . 0 . exceeds that of last by 200, and, incredible as it nt,qto pear, the sales yesterday in this department araeu ll " -- 0 , the .wiWtheallmmanigiahtforthtehree purchase e rch su a c s h e o c f r t o h w e i ni ng sg ar r;.:,, °l2 o s ci r th a: cocks. if each of them was the fowl in the fable that 40/. jewel in the d ung hill . Some pairs brought as ninen`' - o ert and 501., and i n th e catalogue prices of 1001- a ll-A ~.nurss 1,0001., ar e p u td own f or special pens, though of — w ho these sums are given practically to protect exhibitor s n for do not wish t o se ll. It seems strange that this passlot poultry should have s l nm b ere d so l ong to find f 01 0 useful develop men t as one of the minor blessings '94the trade. Cheap and abundant supplies of grain aided by the competition at Birmingham, at Baker-street, and.,,j u se en annual shows o f th e R oya l A gr i cu lt ura l S oc i e ty, WI? te a, restore to the farmer a branch of production long negies but neither the least profitable nor tho least agreeable The braced within the proper scope of his occupation• e t new Cochin Chi na var i e ti es of poultry continue in g r S e 4 demand, and the display of them at Birmingham exeesA, that of any other kind. They certainly are splendid in size, and it is not wonderful that this and their pelt s " considered they should be so much run after. amni a DREADFUL Asssum.—Yesterday, a t th e police court, John Gallavin, an Irishman, who keeftet lodging-house for seamen at No. 5, St. John's-hill, rgo t cliff-highway, was brought before Mr. Yardley, cba „, sr, with assaulting and wounding Jame s M urp hy, a o , s i , - 4, 3 4 who got into the witness box divested o f hi s u pp e r, cle'"" rd' for the purpose of exhibiting his shi r t , w hi c h wa s cove r with blood. There was a large gas h on hi s f ore head, s n o , d. . bruises and contusions on his h ea d an d face , and beTte peered to have suffered much from loss of blood. defendant was fined 5/. which he_paid at once. o f ASSAULT AND BATTERY. —Y esterday t h e e ase . 6 Dillon v. Brown was t r i e d i n th e Queen's Bench. The P l l O l tiffand wife sued as paupers, and Mr. Serjeant Thomas 5 "; a their case. H e sa id it was an action for damages 4. alleged assault and battery. The plaintiff was a &J i n n ,. who carried on th e b usiness of a mencer of glass and en;„ articles. The defendant was the keeper of a public - h 0 1! ne ir Gray's-inn-lane. The woman having heard that her husband was at the public-house, went to fetch him bl ry Th . ) defendent thereupon. seized upon her and wss_, v ho r violent, and thereby injured her very much; he hur. l __ ka t thumb, and having thrown her down on the steps, 1 " Zy ee . her when she was there. She was taken to the Fred "' se pital, and two days afterwards she miscarried and was , out-patient for a long period and up to within a shot time since. Mr. Serjeaut Wilkins called witnesssu,? to .., 10 alum that the case was a gross issue of falsehoods beginning to end, and the jury returned a verdict f defendant. tiYilliam DEATH OF MR. BALLANTINE.—Yesterday , Ballantine, Esq., who was for 27 trates of the Thames Police Conrt, died at his resident' in Cadogan.place, Chelsea, after sevaral months' _ ill ness. The deceased gentleman, who was in his 7 s 4F o 3" the was called to the bar in 1813. He for many years Ii force chief control and mSnagement of the river poliV wa s which he left' in a state of great efficiency, wii9, 4 ,4l t ige. placed under the control of the Metropolitan UV years ono of thes.inttoce, omen on the passing of the last Police Acts Less done s Day. p.m I AE