The Sun. — London, England, 1846-01-24 00:00:00

.411 Mt IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT. ROUSE OF COMMONS, Friday, Jan. 23. The SPEAKER took the Chair at Four o'clock. EDINBURGH AND PEEBLES RAILWAY. Mx. ISIACKENZIE presented a petition in favour of a railway from Edinburgh to Peebles. MANCHESTER AND BIRMINGHAM RAILWAY. Mr. ENTWISLE presented petitions in favour of the Blanchester and Birmingham Railway. AGRICULTURAL PROTECTION. Mr. LAWSON presented petitions from Borough bridge, Skelton, and twelve other towns in the West and North Ridings of Yorkshire, in favour of protection to agriculture. CORN-LAWS. Mr. VILLIERS presented a petition praying for the I immediate and total repeal of the corn-laws. THE CONVICT SYSTEM IN VAN DIEM.F:e;'S LAND. Mr. EWART presented a petition - from Var., Diemen's Land, praying for the total abolition of the, present sys tem of making that colony a general reeeptacle of the transported convicts of this teentri. 'The petitioners stated, that this system 117.1 been found to be attended With many evils, and the co lony, from beingin the flourishing condi tion it was in before 184 a, had considerably altered for the worse. In 1844 a change had taken place in the mode of transporta.ion, for the Noble Lord, the la'e Se cretary, had issued an order confining transported con victs to the single colony of Van Diemen's Land. In the last Tour years it appeared that not less than 14,000 convicts had been sent there, and the consequence was that vice had increased, and the morals of the colony generally been greatly deteriorated. The colonists said that they lived in a constant state of dread, and were apprehensive both for themselves and their families, and that looking forward to the probable state of the island, they could not wish to leave their children in the midst of so much vice. There was also another circumstance of a fearful character, and which called for the utmost indignation of the country. It was believed that it was the intention of the Govern.• went to send convicts from Norfolk Island to that colony; and if those were added to the number already there, it would make the place a scene of vice of the most intolerable character. They therefore prayed that the number of convicts sent to that island might be reduced, and the practice gradually discontinued. THE NELSON MONUMENT. Mr. COLLETT wished to ask the Noble Lord, who was at the head of the Commissioners of Woods and Forests, why the Nelson Monument, in Trafalgar square, was not finished, and why its completion had been delayed so long, and whether it was the intention of Government to complete it at all ? The Earl of LINCOLN said that the monument had originally been projected by private individuals, and subscriptions had been raised for its erection. It had remained unfinished so long in consequenoe of a defi• cieney in the subscriptions, and the Government, finding that no more money was likely to be subscribe-I, had undertaken its completion. The Honourable Member would remember that at the close of last session a sum of money was voted for the purpose of finishing the monument. The reason of its delay at present was in consequence of the great difficulty of obtaining granite of the large size required. With regard to the orna ments roand the base, the Government had decided upon employing three or four first-rate artists, and there could be little doubt *fiat the work would be finished in the course of a few months. CORN-LAWS. Mr. ESCOTT presented a petition from a place in the county of Somerset., praying that the House would adopt such measures as would relieve the wants of the country. Mr. MILNES was sorry . that the Hon. Member— (Cries of " Order, order," in the midst of which the Hon. Gentleman resumed his seat). Mr. COLVILE presented a petition from the county of Derby in favour of agricultural protection. Mr. E. WODEHOUSE moved that all papers con nected with the appointment of Mr. Chapman (late as sistant commissioner for the purpose of inquiring into hand-loom weaving ), to the ChiefJusticeship of Welling ton, in New Zealand, be laid upon the table. Dr. BOWRING moved for the correspondence, or extracts of correspondence, on the subject of the Eclair, and of the epidemy which broke out in the said vessel ; with copies of any orders issued from the public depart ments regarding the same. COLLEGES IN IRELAND. Mr. ROSS, seeing the Right Hon. Gentleman, the Secretory for Ireland, in his place, wished to put a ques tion to him on a subject of very great interest in Ireland. The House would be aware that there was in or near Belfast a college being erected by the Government, and he wished to know whether the Government in tended erecting it in the very inconvenient situation an ticipated by the public ? Sir THOMAS FREMANTLE said, that in answer to the Hon. Gentleman, he might say that the subject would meet with the most careful consideration of the Government. Mr. ROSS—Am I to understand that the building will be raised within the precincts of the towers ? Sir T. FREMANTLE—The actual site has not been finally fixed upon. SESSIONAL ORDERS. Mr. CARDWELL moved the usual Sessional Orders. The SPEAKER then read the orders from the chair. Mr. WILLIAMS thought it was of no use to pass such sessional orders, in as far as they related to the election of the Members of that House, as it was noto • rious they could not carry them out. Before these or ders were allowed to pass as a matter of course, they ought to ascertain how far they possessed the power of enforc ing them. It was well known that in a great number of instances the Members of that House were elected under the influence of the Peers. In any county wherever there were three or four Peers possessing large estates, persons acquainted with election matters well know how matters would turn. They could tell that no other per son would be returned, unless he had the sanction of these Peers. Last night, gentlemen who had spoken against the proposition of her Majesty's Govern ment, threw out a challenge to the Ministry to test their measures by a general election. In that case, how did they hope it would turn out ? They .knew. that they would not be able to carry their views without the influence of the Peers; and to that influence they trusted in the event of such an election taking place. They were aware that without the Peers and the other country gentlemen they could not hope to defeat the Ministry; for they knew the measures proposed by the Cabinet would meet with the support of the great mass of the people. For the sake of the character of the House, if they passed such reso lutions, they should be accompanied by proper means to enforce them ; or if they could not give effect to them, they ought not to be passed.—(Hear, hear.) Sir R. INGLIS said the House bad from time to time passed the rules to which the Hon. Gentleman had referred, to prevent a Peer from interfering with the election of Members of Parliament, but the Hon. Gentleman was not content with objecting to the proposition as voted, bet wished to prevent, by more stringent means, the still further inter ference of great men with the election of Members of Parliament. Was he prepared to disfranchise a Peer of that hereditary right which he eajoyed in common with his fellow-subjects, of voting for the election of Members of Parliament? Was he prepared to establish a maximum scale and to say that a large landowner ought not to inter fere with elections, and that this privilege should be left to the 40s. freeholder created by the Reform Bill? He ought te recollect that the privilege which he desired to neutralise, so far as one part of the com munity was concerned, was conferred by that very Act to which the Members of that House owed their seats. He should have sought the abrogation of the principle when the Reform Bill was under discussion. He (Mr. Williams) wished to go much further than the sessional orders, and prevent every landowner from in terfering in any way with elections, a rule which, consi dering their great stake, would be both arbitrary and unjust. He (Sir R. H. Inglis) might not see sufficient reason for retaining the order, but he saw no reason at all why it should now be either abrogated or rendered - more stringent. This, as well as tile other orders, was agreed to. Mr. WILLIAMS again rose to e x p ress a h ope t h at the House would take into their consideration the neces sity of making some arrangement respecting Wednesday sittings ; and complained of having been obliged to wait frequently in that House to see if a I order would come on, aid said that if he happened to leave for a few minutes it might come on. He was of opinion that orders should come on regularly, and such incon veniences would be avoided. He took that opportunity of making an observation which he deemed of much importance to the Members of that House. •15ir ROBERT PEEL replied, and said, her Majesty's Government would be most happy to afford every facility en their power consistent with the arrangements of public business, and he did think some better arrange ment could be made than at present.—(Hear, hear.) Lord J. RUSSELL observed that it would be more convenient, with respect to Wednesday, to select twelve o'clock, for the commencement of business such as was alluded to. Sir ROBERT PEEL remarked that the House was very frequently counted out on Wednesday, and on the whole there was not t m th o g re sa t m hit e n ti tw o or thr e e h ours ide voted to business; a the evening of Wednesday, he wouldm f have they could h ave but he trusted the Hon. Gentleman wouldnonootbjection, put the Government to any inconvenience. Mr. BROTHERTON said that an order with respe c t to Wednesday would be a very useful one, but he wa s not disposed to interfere with the arr angements of the House, or with i:s business ; it was never his will to do so, and he would not on this occasion. Mr. HUME said that at the end of the lsstotsession he suggested to the Government the propriety of making a rule that the House should only sit on Wednesdays between the hours of twelve and one, during the pres sure of private business ; and he trusted his suggestion would be now carried out. Lord .JOHN MANNERS said in all probability there would be an immense number of railway and other Committees sitting, and the proposed arrangement was, therefore, in his opinion highly objectionable. Mr. WAKLEY must say that he thought the arrange • 'Dent most objectionable, and nothing could be more pnwise, or more likely to be detrimental to the public Interest. If he unders tood the arrangement correctly, titelaervlindosenwt hMicebmwbersof the House, who had measures Go e ve re not su p ported by the Government, or in which the were not interested, were to assemble on a Wednesd ay twelve o'clock, and pur sue their labours until six t. :l l ;3 e ve a ning ; and after this . period the Government vrere tio, ric. liberty to bring on . ') Then be was to their measures.—(Cries Of "" wereatix. ties of tel i shat the House would ,SEW s v" ', And the usual dinne r r is s e ~_._,-* ter: tit hottr,— (Hear, bear, and laughtert.3 bee kloyed I c , f-k...r-i--i Sr I G. GREY said, as the order was but imperfectly I' c r .- .understo6d, Perhaps the Right Honourable Bar on F . _,.. times, and thus it was that England, far before ' any of the other nations of the world, had benefited by the advanced spirit of the age. And if the case were otherwise —if they were never to prafit by the lessons of experience, of a hat use would it be to call themselves a deliberative assembly? Now, he would tell the Right Hon. Gentleman, that no man had been more anxious than he had been to pro mote free trade, and put the Church in a proper state, and he challenged the Hon. Gentleman to produce one single motion of his (Mr. Hume's) which was otherwise than to reform the abuses which existed in the Church. He had proposed upwards of twenty years ago the abo lition of the Church of Ireland. If they were to have a Church there, let it be the Church of the majority. From that time, down to the present, they had been trying expedients with regard to Ireland ; and he had stated, upwards of twenty years ago, the t they never could have peace in that country until the Church was put down. That was their remedy now. It Was that dominant Church that had ruined Ireland, and until it vt as put down there would be no peace. The Hon. Geetleman might say what he liked, but it was his (Mr. Hume's) belief, that nine-tenths of the people were in favour of the Right Hon. Baronet. And he bjieved that the course the Right lion. Baronet was ahem to pursue would be productive of the greatest benefit to the country. It was absurd to say that, because the Eight Hon. Baronet sat on the other side of the House, he must be compelled to chime in with all their opinions, and adopt every measure (and no others) of which they might approve. He (Mr. Hume) was of opinion that if he had done so, he would have brought most incalculable injury upon the country. It eppeared to him that one of the most nappy occurrences that could possibly take place (and he hoped that it might take place) would be the carrying out of the intentions of the Right Hon. Baronet with respect to the admission of foreign corn.---1 (Hear, hear.) He could not conceive that any man of'' any sense, or any one who paid any attention to the duty which he owed to his country, could say that because a man was a party man he was bound to con tinue so. The question of the propriety of the Right Honourable Baronet should be left He (Mr. Hume) was not afraidt o the as decision to iti judgment the gm country. ent o nthat head. He felt perfectly satisfied that although the Right lion. Baronet might in the House meet with the scorn and ridicule of a few of the Lion. Members, yet his conduct would meet with the en tire concurrence of the country. He (Mr. Hume) was anxious for a few moments to advert to one of the para graphs in the Speech from the Throne. He might truly say that with the Speech generally he was satisfied ; his only objection was against one paragraph, and the grounds of his objection were the ruinous effect which would be produced to this country by the present system of abolishing slavery.—(Hear.) He felt satisfied that if the Right Honourable Baronet would seek for informa tion from any of the officers which were employed on the coast of Africa, he would find that nineteen out of twenty would at once state that the present system of abolishing slavery there entailed immense ex pense of English money, and an extraordinary loss of English life without any really beneficial effects.— (Hear, hear.) lie did, therefore, think that a con siderable change should be made with regard to the sup pression of slavery in Africa. He was happy to sae that France hi artily co-operated with the country in its attempt to abolish the system of slavery. It would be their duty to see that necessary measures were taken to inure the enforcement of the arrangement come to be tween the two countries; and that the fleets were pro perly mounted and placed along the coast of Africa. Every exertion ought to be employed and provision made, so that the object sought by the two countries might be realised. There was another point in the Ad dress—the latter part of it—which he highly approved ; the principle of which had been shadowed forth for some time past, and a great step towards a complete reformation in their commercial system. From this time they might date a new era in the commercial his tory of the country; and, judging from the experience of the last few years, he had no- doubt that the next three or four years, or any other number of years that might be named, would show in no ordinary degree the benefits of the change. So fur he supported the mea sures of the Government, and he hoped that other coun tries would follow their example.—(Hear, hear.) There was another point to which he would refer—that relat ing to the importance of maintaining a good understand ing between France and England. The value of such a union could not be over estimated, and thus united they were able to maintain the peace of the world. He ,would beg leave to refer to another paragr ph before sitting down—that relating to the state of affairs between the United States and this coun try. Under such circumstancea, it was necessary that the Government showed a firm position. When he saw the people of a country setting at nought all the rules of civilialtion in enforcing their alledged claims, he would be contradicting the whole tenour of his life if he did not support such measures as would enable the Government to maintain the honour and cha racter of the nation. It was necessary, therefore, that measures should be passed to effect this purpose, and therefore he hoped the propositions of her Majesty's Ministry for strengthening their hands at the present crisis would receive the unanimous vote of the House.— (Hear, hear.) He had been accused on former occasions of endeavouring to cripple the finances of the country, and he admitted that he had, and would still use every exertion to put an end to extravagance and waste ; still under existing circumstances he held it to be his duty to give the Government his cordial support in these proposi tions for strenthening the defences of the country. — (Loud cheers.) He had thought it necessary that he should make this explanation on the present occasion. Sir ROBERT PEEL said he never entertained any apprehension that the language which had been used by her Majesty's Government, with reference to the settlement of those unfortunate disputes which still prevailed between this country and the United States, could be mistaken. He never thought that the language used by the Minister of America could be mistaken for that used by him. The Government had no hesitation in avowing their sincere interest in maintaining amicable relations between the United States and this country, and, in fact, with the whole civilised world, and of their desire to make any effort, consistent with the national honour, for the purpose of settling these disputes—(Hear, hear.) They had every desire, by temperate language, and by moral in stead of coercive measures, to peacefully and morally terminate all misunderstandings. He (Sir R. Peel) never believed that either the language or the intentions of the Government would be misapprehended. The speech which the Hon. Gentleman—the uniform and consistent advocate of the strictest economy—had just made, had convinced him that his (Sir R. Peel's) anti cipations would be realised.--(Hear, hear.) He hoped, however, that the measures which the Government would feel it their duty to make would have the effect of promoting a better understanding between the United States and this country. It would be the greatest mis fortune if a contest should ensue between such coun tries. With respect to the speech of the Hon. Gentle man, he wished to tell him and others that he (Sir B. Peel) did not intend to be betrayed into any loss of tem per on that occasion. —(Cheers.) Let him also tell him that the question had become far too important to be disposed of by mere personal recrimination.—(Hear.) He (Sir E. Peel) had thought, after the deliberation which the Hon. Gentleman might have been enabled to give to the speech which he (Sir H. Peel) delivered last night, that he would have offered some reply to the arguments which he had used—(Hear)—that after the lapse of twenty- fi.ur hours he would not have contented himself with passing by those arguments without a single reference to them, instead of a disquisition as to what had been the policy of the Government with re spect to the Church of Scotland. The Church of Scot land could have no bearing on the question with respect to the United States, which must be discussed at a very early period. The Hon. Gentleman charged him with having deserted his principles, and with having used arguments to maintain his present opinions which were totally unsound and inappropriate. If the Hon. Gentle man knew so well what arguments to employ, why had he not supplied him out of the plenitude of his resources with proper and sound reasons. He (Sir R. Peel) said last night that if the Hon. Gentleman the Member fur Wolverhampton were again to bring forward his question of the repeal of the corn-laws he for one could not conscientiously oppose it on the grounds of protection. Under ordinary circumstances, he did did not wish to press any particular course, but the Go vernment felt that the country was threatened with a great calamity, and that delay was no longer possible. A great responsibility was attached to those who were in the administration of affairs, and it was a question of policy whether it were prudent to commit the agri cultural interests to an interminable contest on the sub ject of all protection being abolished. The moment that he had despaired of bringing the question of pro tection to a satisfactory issue, on the same instant he had tendered his resignation. What more, under the circumstances could ho have done ? lie had no desire to retain office on the ground of the necessity of this question being settled. When he gave up any hopes of being able to meet it with effect by a voluntary re solution, he advised her Majesty to call to her counsels those who might possess the ability and power to bring it to a satisfactory termination. He was willing to have done all in his power to have ad justed an equ i ta bl e sett l ement o f the question. The Hon. G ent l eman sa id t h at h e h a d d e serted his prin ciples ; and, by a rat h er un h appy i mage , stated that his fingers wer e i tc hi ng to d estroy pro t ec tion. Other Hon. Gentlemen had charged him wide having departed from the course which, under the circumstances, they would, and he ought to have pursued. He had expected to have heard an answer from the Hon. Gentleman to the argu ments which he had brought forward en the p r e vious night. This question ought not to be treated in the strain of levity which the Hon. Gentleman had indulged n.—(Hear.) He could assure the lion. Gentleman that two months would not elapse ere lie would regret the levity he had shown. When the cold weather had set in he would see the poor man shivering. starved and naked, in the midst of the cold and privations of winter. On a former occasion, the Hon. Gentleman, by a distinct declaration, had seen occasion to compliment him (Sir H. Peel) in a very high degree. Firstly, her Majesty's Government deserved great credit for the course they had pursued with respect to the foreign policy of the country; and secondly, they were entitled to every re spect for their conduct in regard to the finances ; and that his (Sir Robert Peel's) management of the financial department, was marked with great pru dence, great wisdom, and great skill. He would remind the Honourable Gentleman that the whole merit of that financial policy consisted in the reduction of duties to allow of an import of commodities which had formerly been forbidden by the strict maintenance of protection. It could not be the income-tax, which had caused the Hon. Gentleman to consider his Government inerked with great skill, greet wisdom, and great pr's. ‘ deuce, for ta% , );_;!i. :'4.w of revenue. No I the Hoe. Gentleman, remembering his former com merc i a l lib erality, not f orge tf u l of his earlier years, int en d e d to comp li ment hi m (Si r R. Peel) because he had suppli e d th e d e fi c ig tcY in the revenue by the would have no objection to delay its further considera tion till it hae been printed. Sir R. H. INGLIS objected to the proposed arrange ment on many grounds. He understood that from 12 to 6 on Wednesdays was to be devoted to private business, or rather business that was not connected with the Go vernment. Now his Noble Friend had, within the last half-hour, girth notice of one of the most important mo tions whiolti 'could be brou*ht under the consideration of the aO/2VJC ; and if it wasthemtention of Ministers to absent themselves from the House on a Wednesday this important motion with respect to charitable endowments might be brought on and disposed of in their absence, and the question decided when perhaps there would not be more than forty members present. For this and fur other reasons, ait certainly objected to any alterations biting made 4 :.1 the existing sessional order. Sjir ROBERT PEEL said, if the Ministry fonnd the motion, to which the Honourahle Baronet alluded, was to be brought forward on a Wed nesday, they would certainly take ca-e to be present. An HONOURABLE MEMBER wished to know from her Majesty's Ministers whether, in consequence of the large number of Railway Bills before the House this session, making so many more Committees than had been sitting last session of Parliament, the public business would not be postponed till the rising of the Committees, so as to enable Hon. Members to attend the House. Sir ROBERT PEEL said it would be matter of eon sid‘ ration. _ _ had to endure.—(Hear, hear.) And being on this side of forty, he must say that he heartily rejoiced in and admired the conduct of those who, on that (the Oppo sition side of politics), acknowledged the industry and the ability which had characterised the Right Hon. Gentleman. On that point they were entirely agreed. But he remembered when he (Mr. Colquhoun) sat on the other side of the House, they followed the Right Hon. Baronetbecause he professed certain and intelligible principles. And what were those principles? The Right Hon. Baronet professed a, strong attachment to the Church—(Loud cries of " Hear, hear ")—a strong regard for education in connexion with the Church.— (Hear, hear.) Ho professed a strong attachment for that aristocracy on which he now seemed to place such little value.—(Hear, hear.) He professed a very strong attachment to the Crown, and he did not then say that it was a very dacult matter to satisfy an ancient mo narchy, a proud aristocracy and a reforming public. (Hear, hear.) It appeared that the Right Hen. Baron t hai now, however, abandoned a l mos t ever y p r i nc i l l e which he held in common with those who sat on the same side of the House with him. He (Mr. Colquhoun) was himself most anxious for a settlement of the ques tion of the corn-laws on moderate terms. It would be well had they left this question to the di chion of go , country, the proper tribunal —(.lear, hear.) Now it was not for him (Mr. Colquhoun) to say what pledge the Right Hon. Gentleman had made on this question. for he, of course, !mist judge for himself; but those of the agricultural interest had also a right of judging for themselves.--(Clear, hear.) And he would say that the) were not inclined to abandon those principles which they possessed long ago.—(Hear, hear.) Had the Right Hon. Baronet gone to the country on this question, his course would hare been perfectly intelligible.— (Hear.) Was it to be tolerated that because the Right Hon. Baronet had served under four Sovereigns-- (Laughter)—bEcause he was, in his opinion, a most ex p,rienced statesman and debater, he should be allowed to guide the helm of public affairs " unshackled and uncon trolled ?"—(Hear.) They might be thought bigotted' —they might be thought fanatic. Hon. Gentlemen h.d a perfect right, if they pleased, to think so. He thought it too bad, however, that the Right Hon. Baronet should obtain the support of the country on one set of princi ples and then reject all those principles which charac tensed them as a body appealing to the country. The last month bad been particularly fertile in epistles, and, among the rest, was one from the Hon. Member for Montrose, which was characterised by the usual god sense and straightforwardness of that Gentleman.— .(Hear.) That Hon. Gentleman, who never disguised his opinions, said that if it was a personal question they would get a great deal more from Peel than Russell.—(Hear, hear.) Now it - was just possible that the Conservative party might think that they would be fully more safe in the hands of the Noble L than under the former Gen tleman. He was pretty sure that if the Noble Lord to .k any course against them, he would be straightforward in his proceedings, and would not solicit the support of the country on one set of principles, and as soon as he ob tained, it turn his back upon them.—(Cheers.) He would not appeal to the constituencies of England for re ligious principles and agricultural protection, and the n take all those principles one by one, and then, neck and heels, throw them overboard. He could not but think that the memory of immortal ser vices would keep him true to the performances of sacred principles. Now, supposing they were to have the Noble Lord the Member for London at the head of the Government, did they think that the mea sures of that Noble Lord would vary much from the budget that would be opened on Monday night.—(Hear. hear.) He would not say more on that subject; let them wait till then; but he would venture a strong surmise, that on that occasion the Right Hon. Baronet would only pie) , one card, although there would be a world of mystatication.—(Hear, hear.), Although there were many persons ticklish on this question, he was happy to see the way in which the English yeomen `stuck to their text.—(Hear, hear.) Much had been said about the farmers sticking to their text, and he we-, happy to say that they had done so. Now, what h said was, let the Right Hon. Baronet play his own game, and take the consequences.—(Hear, hear.) The farmer on the one side, and the manufacturer on the other, looked with anxiety as to how the question to be discussed next week would affect them. He would say, before he had heard the Right Hon. Baronet's speech, or the speech of the Noble Lord, that he had been convinced that the corn-laws must give way.—(Opposition cheers.) Why, it was the only card the Right Hon. Baronet, had left. He had been shuffling and playing spades for the last four years, and now he had but one card left to play. and that was the Knave of Clubs.—(Cheers and laughter.) As far as the corn-laws were concerned, he could not see that the country was in greater danger in the hands of the Noble Lord than in those of the Right Hon. Gentle man.—(Opposition cheers.) But then he heard it said that the Right Hon. Baronet was a safe man, while the Noble Lord was a rash politician. If he were asked his opinion with regard to the Right Honourable Baronet, judging from his speech of last night, ho should certainly say that with regard to his financial policy and to the manner in which he had conducted foreign affairs, the Right Hon. Baronet was evidently deserving of public confidence. In these he had shown prudence and wisdom, and had succeeded ; but there were other points of policy which touched the heart of the people, on which the Right Hon. Baronet was by no means so safe. They were told that the Right Hon. Baronet was the only pilot who could weather the storm. He would ask them to look back to the past, and by it to judge of the future. The services of the Right Hon. Baronet under four sovereigns, to which he alluded last night, were matters of history, and he would challenge the Members on the Treasury Bench to tell him one single complex interest of the country, including its moral and social condition, of which the Right Hon. Baronet had not been at one time the eminent champion, and had not then abandoned it.— (" Hear, hear," from Colonel Sibthorpe.) lle had beets the eminent champion of the Protestant interest.— ("Hear, hear," from Colonel Sibthorpe, followed by loud laughter from the Opposition, occasioned by the very energetic cheer from the Gallant Officer.) What had become of that interest in the hands of the Right Hon. Baronet.—(Cheers.) In 1835-, the Right Hon. Baronet was the champion of the Church of Scotland. He should like to know to what condition that Church had now been reduced, and how by the delays and the deferrings of measures that Church had been strangled by the hands of the Right Honourable Baronet. The Right Hon. Baronet had been considered the for ward and uncompromising champion of agriculture. He was not going then to ask why the Right Hon. Gentle man upheld that interest, but this he would say, that the Right Hon. Baronet had never, since his return to power in 1842, given that question the slightest chance.— (Hear, hear.) They had been told by the Honourable Member for Stockport that the Right Hon. Baronet was skilful in evasion, and they knew that he had passed a Bill the year before which he had changed the year after.—(Hear, hear.) But the Hon. Member for Stock port said that the Right Hon. Baronet had never met the question; that he had never discussed the question of protection on the ground of political economy, on which alone he could explain it.—(Cheering from the Opposition and the Mintsterial benches.) The Right Hon. Baronet cheered. His opinion then was that the question could not be explained on the ground of political economy. He (Mr. Colquhoun) then would beg to ask that Right Hon. Gentleman, as a man of mature experience and of great ability, if he meant to say, that when he stood on this ground in the years 1839 and 1840 that all his declarations that the inferior lands would be thrown out of cultivation, that the farmers would be ruined and the labourers turned adrift, were unfounded? when he terrified the minds of country gentlemen by his assertions that this question (settle it as they might) would t-nd to disastrous results. did be mean to say, that in his heart he felt all these elaborate arguments were utterly unsound ?—( Hear,hear.) Was that the defence which the Right Hon. Baronet in tended to make for his conduct? If he told him (Mr. Colquhoun) that he was really convinced, then he must say that, able Minister as be might be, and a gentleman of the highest ability, as he undoubtedly was, he would find few to echo the same conviction. If he abandoned this because it was a rotten question, then it was sup ported by the most rotten arguments.—(" Oh, oh," from the Opposition.) He repeated that the arguments he had heard last night were altogether of this character. rhe result had in his (Mr. Colquhoun) opinion been most unsatisfactory, but be that as it might, whatever causes had prompted him to this conclusion, the fact was evident that the agricultural interests in his hands were wrecked.—(Hear, hear.) Every complex interest in the country, that he had interference with, had been strand( d. He could not help suggesting that in an age in which public opinion is so strong, and sitting as they did in a reformed Parliament, he did wonder at the course of thelltight Hon. Gentleman, knowing that he could not maintain any course without bringing forward the real principles on which it was founded. When he (Mr. Colquhoun) heard the Right Hon. Gentleman in 1843, and listened to his speech on the corn-laws, he felt that as far as the Right, Hon. Gentleman was concerned, the corn laws were doomed ; for, if he could not bring for ward arguments in support of them, he was satisfied that they could not staud. He could see, by looking to the past history, that he could place no confidence in the tact and skill of the Right Hon. G, ntleman to maintain the institutions of this country; and he for one was pre pared for the contest for those institutions which was, as they knew, pending, and which was open then. He was prepared to fight the battle with his Honourable Friend by his side, and with an able and gallant oppo nent, rather than submit to be led by one, who might be of the greatest skill, talent, and experience, but was not consistent to his own principles. He could not consent to be led by the Right Hon. Baronet, as the course of his policy would be certainly dangerous to all our insti tutions.—(Hear, hear.) Mr. HUME said that he was sure that any one who heard the speech of the Hon. Member and his reflections on the Right Hon. Baronet, would ask what all that had to do with the question then before the House. He for one approved of the conduct of the Right Hon. Gentle man alluded to. He had heard the speech of the Hon. Gentleman, a part of which was delivered last night, where he asked the House to reflect on the situation in which he stood, and said that with regard to the face of the cottntry as it then was, it was his duty as a public man to alter his opinion when he was in error. The argument of his friend opposite, however, was that let him be conscious that he was in error and that his act would destroy the country, yet he should persevere in it. He would much rather have the simple declaration of the Right Hon. Baronet, who owned that he had been under a mistake ter years, and that he was convinced that the principles on which protection was based were untenable. Why, was it possible that men of common sense could follow such men as they had heard that night? Mr. Canning changed his opinions respectin g the Reform Act, and he (Mr. Hume) recollected when that Right Hen Gerhiccialt ta , ie his ,tand tilt Old Sarum (one of tito Le/14er' boroughs) against any reform. Why, he would tell them that the qualifica tions of that House of Commons, abuse it as they , might, was, that it always followed the spirit of the The sessional order was then read and agreed to. RAILWAY DEPOSITS. Lord JOHN RUSSELL wished to know from the Right Hon. Gentleman the Chancellor of the Exche quer, whether the amount of the deposits on Railway Bills had yet been taken into consideration? Last year the amount paid in was 3,000,0001., but this year it was calculated that 9,000,000 L would be the sum ; and that amount might cause a very great depression in the money market. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said he felt exceedingly obliged to the Noble Lord for having given him an opportunity of removing from the public mind any doubt that might have existed as to the course the Government intended to pursue on this subj• ct. The House was aware that by a resolution of the stand ing orders of this House all parties engaged in railway speculations were bound to pay a deposit equal to three- fourths of the whole expense of the under taking. And by an Act of Parliament passed in a recent session, the parties making the deposit had a right to have the money invested by the Accountant- General in any way they should think fit. About the middle of November last, an application bad been made to him by very respectable parties in London, that a definite answer should be given as to the course the Government intended to pursue in reference to that order; and it was then suggested that the resolution should be so altered, that parties, instead of being corn pelted to invest their deposits in Exchequer-bills or Government Stock or India Bonds, should be allowed to invest in bills of exchange. To the application so made ho gave an answer, which he had resolved upon after due consideration, to the effect that he could not give an assurance of any alteration in the standing order in question. Under these circumstances, he did not feel justified in holding out any hope that any proposal for an alteration of the standing order in question would be held out, or that he would not resist any such proposal if it should be made. He had every reason to believe that the difficulties apprehended from the order as it DOW stood were not founded in fact, and that, therefore, he would not be justified in acceding to an alteration of the erder. Lord JOHN RUSSELL said he had not pat the question with a view to consider what might or might not be the benefits to individuals, but with a view to avoid inconvenience to those who might have misappre hended the order. Mr. MANGLES conceived that the Right Hon. Gen tleman had taken a very one-sided view of the question put by the Noble Lord. The Right Honourable Gentleman the Chancellor of the Ex cheqner seemed to think that this question had nothing to do with any portion of the community, except those who have been engaged in railroad speculations. And I must beg to inform him that the evil has fallen much more heavily upon the general dealers than upon those who were most intimately connected with railways. It has happened within these few days that circumstances have come to my knowledge which evince that great hardship has been endured by individuals engaged in business. who have, through the want occa sioned by this unsettled question of the railway deposits, been deprived of the accommodation which they have usually received from their bankers. Those who have been accustomed to grant that accommodation well know how heavily the pressure has weighed upon those with whom they have to deal. Nor does the evil rest here, for not only is there the deprivation of the means, but the money deposited in the hands of bankers has not only been locked up, but has commanded such prices that those most in need of accommodation are quite unable to obtain it ; and hence business has grievously suffered-. lie spoke in the presence of many gentlemen who were much better acquinted with matters in the City than himself, but he believedlthat he was perfectly right in saying that the mischief was far greater to the general commercial community than to the proprietors of railroad property. Mr. MASTERMAN said, that as he had enjoyed the honour of being the medium of commu nication between the parties referred to and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, he felt it necessary to state that when he went to the Govern ment to obtain some definite understanding respecting the railway deposits, he did so from an impression that the question of the mode in which they were to be received most deeply affected the commercial interests. He must acknowledge that his interview with the Chancellor of the Exchequer was anything but satisfactory. The answer he had received left the matter quite in as much doubt as it was before, and it was of more importance, as he knew that within the last 14 days this matter had oc casioned serious inconvenience to several gentlemen of high repute in commercial circles. Mr. S. CRAWFORD said that it was necessary that the matter should be settled, as it materially affected the interests of the Irish tenantry. Sir R PEEL—As there are measures of equal impor. tance with the railway deposits shortly to be brought under the consideration of the House, I must beg have to say that I must defer giving an answer to the Noble Lord's question till some days hence. THE SUN LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, JANUAttv 24 1846. ttbolition df restrictions which fettered trade.—(Hear.) In speaking of the Aritocfaty df the land, the Hon. Gen tleman had accused him of havitig Made lige of art offen sive expression in conjunction with their name. HQ (Sit R. Peel) wished that he had paver to weigh every ex pression to which he might Five utterance in the hurry of debate. It was true he had made use of the words " proud aristocracy!'' but he could assure the llon, Gen tleman, on his honour, ht 3 intended that epithet as applicable to them on at doutit tif their exalted rank, education, and high Anti tidbit) principles, and had not the slightest referetide to insolence of manner or haughty bearing. From his interpetration of the Hon. Geittlettlan's speech, he felt satisfied that all his objections had been iritendttd.as so many compliments to him (Sir R. Fed ) Ife SI - 115411d make no further observations before setting down than to repeat what he had already stated, that in pursuing the settlement of the great question which now agitates the public mind, on just and equitable teftils t - at people with whose welfare his own wai altogether boiifitl up, he should not allow any p e r so nal considerations or private motives to make him swerve from the principles which he had le.'d ORE) RUSSELL saidU S ' Lord JOHNa question touching th e f ore i gn re l at i ons o f t h e coun t r y he IO wished N. to aLk with respect to the settlement of the Oregon tertitory with the United States. From the message of the Pre sident of the United States, it appeared that they had c ome to a definite res-lution on the subject, but that there was still room for a compromise. The propoiition might or might not be satisfactory, but it did seem to him (Lord John Russell) to require a statement of the terms on which this country would agree to settle the question of the Oregon. He would wish to ask whether any negotiation was pending between the two countries ? If so, he felt strisfied that as the - gfair was in the hands of her Majesty's Government, the issue, however it might result, would not be other wise than satisfactory. He would say one word with respect to what had fallen from the Hon. Member for Montrose with respect to an increased amount for more efficiently maintaining the naval and military forces. — He trusted that this grant was required only for an in creased regiment or so to be stationed at some of the co lonies, or places where troops were already stationed in different parts of the world. He hoped that it was upon these grounds, end not from any expectation of a colli sion with the United States, that her Majesty's Minis ters requested this increase in the supplies for naval and military service. Another question occurred to him with respect to the sanguinary warfare in the South Ameican States, "by which," to quote her Majesty's speech, " the commerce of all nations had been in terrupted, and acts of barbarity had been com mitted unknown to any civilised nation." From what he had heard had taken place in those encounters, there could not he the least doubt that acts of great barbarity had been committed in the place he had mentioned. Now the question he had to put was this, did the Right Hon. Baronet pro pose to lay upon the table all the papers he had re ceived relative to the grounds upon which the Govern ment of this country had interfered with the affairs of the River Plata. Sir R. PEEL would beg leave to say, in answer to the question of the Noble Lord, that he did not think it probable he would, at this early period of the session, have been called on to give answers to those questions. However, he would say, with respect to the Oregon ques tion, that a proposal had been made to the President of the United States, in which it was suggested that a divi sion of that territory should be made ; but the terms that had been proposed for this division were so little likely to be accepted, that Mr. Pakenham had intimated as much as that the proposal might as well be withdrawn. Now, with respect to that gentleman, he would only say, that though he entertained for him the highest respect, it would have been much better had he transmitted to the home Govern ment here the usual accounts of what had come to his knowledge on,this question. Since, then, the offer of this country had been refused on the terms he bad stated, a new course had been adopted, and it had been agreed upon to refer the question to arbitration, but no answer to that offer had yet been received. With respect to the navy estimates, he felt assured that it was impossible for the Noble Lord and the House not to see the neces sity for the proposed increase, particularly when they recollected the Leavy demands that were being made upon the country fr m New Zealand and Hong-Kong. He should say that this country was now in such a position as rendered it not only wise but requisite, that those estimates should be granted, and that no unneces sary anx'ety had existed upon the subject.—(Hear.) Sir H. INGLIS—No person respected more than he did the observations of Hon. Members upon this subject that he had heard, but he could_ not help saying that when the proposal for an increase of those estimates was made last night, it was received with unanimous ap plause from both sides of the House. He would content himself with those observations for the present, reserv ing to himself the right to enter more at length into the subject upon a future occasion. The O'CONNOR DON said, with respect to the coun try with which he was connected, he had seen reference made, in her Majesty's Speech, to the distress which pre vailed in Ireland ; and he, unfortunately, had had sad experience of the correctness of the accounts which the Right Hon. Baronet had received on that subject, and he was glad to perceive that her Majesty had ex pressed her sympathy with her Irish subjects. But he also perceived reference made to the extent of crime in Ireland. He felt grieved to be compelled to admit that there were some parts of Ireland in which crime was prevalent, and he had no words in which to express his horror of the barbarous assassinations that had of late been committed in that country. But he would wish to know whether the Right Hon. Baronet, is proposing a remedy for this state of things, had taken into consider ation the proposal of any measure for the adjustment of the landlord and tenant question. He regretted to hear that the Right Hon. Baronet had stated that no such measure would be introduced this session. —(Here the Right Hon. Baronet was understood to intimate to the Hon. Member across the table that he had made no such statement.) He (the O'Connor Don) had been led to understand that the Right Hon. Baronet had male that statement, but he was gratified he had been mistaken. However, he begged to say that no measure affecting Ireland could be introduced which was deemed of greater importance in that country than the measure for the adjustment of the landlord and tenant question. Sir R. PEEL begged to assure the Hon. Member that that question had been occupying the serious attention of her Majesty's Government, and be hoped the Hon. Member would do him the favour to repeat the question a few days hence.—(Hear, hear.) Mr. BANKES said it now appeared that the Right Hun. Baronet had changed his opinions upon a subject of great moment to this country, but he (Mr. Bankes) was yet at a loss to understand the real cause of that change. He Jcertainly had not informed them of the precise period when that change came over his mind. He had not stated that this change had taken place in consequence of the apprehended famine. Another point which appeared to him to be unexplained and inexplicable, was what was the real necessity for this change, if it was not to prevent the mischief to be ap prehended from a scarcity of food? The Noble Lord opposite had published a letter, and it appeared to him (Mr. Bankes) that this document was really the cause of this change; but why it should be he was really at a loss to understand. He had listened to the Right Hon. Baronet's arguments, and though he did not possess the talent and ability of that Right Hon. Gentleman, yet he did not admit that he would not be able to answer him at the proper time; on the contrary, he felt convinced that he would be able to give many of his facts and statements a positive denial. He (Mr. Bankes) was one of a deputation from twenty-two counties of England who waited upon the Right Hon. Baronet at a period of great distress in this country, when the question of the duty upon wool was introduced. [Here Sir R. Peel made country—but an observation, which was inaudible in the g a ll er y. - 1 There is however one oversight in her whyher li g aj re e a st t y in s t s e p re e s e t c s? h: It was stated that they will endeavour to make these great great interests changes owith they— a s little ntr injury a s possile to the What is to become of the little interests—the farmer—of whom the Hon. Member for Finsbury spoke, wishing thereby to insinuate that they were not the parties in question; they have, however, a very different opinion ; tney consider that it is one in which they are most in terested. There are, however, little interests among the manufacturers of land, as we are now to call them—and I have no objection that it should be so; call if you please the earth one great manufactory on which the farmer toils; but let us have the same bs.nefits which you have; these are terms which you cannot refuse. And there are little interests in your manufactures—the hand•loom weavers, the glove makers and others, among whom there is great distress, struggling against great opposition, and reduced to the lowest possible amount of wages. The Hon. Member then urged upon those in power not to take a step further till they could satisfy him, that not only to those whom they called the great interests of th e na ti o n, the " proud acristocracy, ' or what you will, but also that the lesser interests of the state shall be provided for; that they shall not be left to starve as they certainly will if they carry their pro jects further. He gave the Noble Lord the Member for London joy of his Reform Bill—that here are certain Members of her Majesty's Government frightened into changes of opinion, because they dread the effects of the conflict of the classes in consequence of their conflict of opinion. He viewed with regret the existence of clubs and associations, whose language was equal to anything that proceeded from the old Jacobin clubs, but he viewed with still greater feelings of regret a Neckar at the head of the Government. He did not intend any offence to the Right lion. Baronet; he begged of the Government, to appeal to the country, and said, that he was ready most cheerfnlly to abide by the decision of the country, if they would give it the opportunity of expressing its legitimate opinion. Mr. SHARNIAN CRAWFORD stated, in corrobora tion of the statement of her Majesty's Ministers, that at least half the potato crop of Ireland was destroyed, the price of potatoes was at least double, and the working man who had lost his crop of potatoes had not the means of buying them at the present high prices. The only substitute for potatoes in Ireland was oatmeal, and that was at least one-half higher in price than formerly, and if means should not be taken to provide for the necessities of the people, there will be a large amount of distress and discontent. He thanked her Majesty for the very kind manner in which she had ex pressed her sympathy for the suffering people of Ireland. The report was then brought up, and the address was agreed to. Sir ROBERT PEEL stated that a communication had been made to him from her Majesty, stating that she would receive the Address at half-past two o'clock to morrow. Mr. BROTHERTON said that he hoped Hon. Mem bers w@iilcl :111::1 a:01. I,eep her Ai4j:y . waitiug, as oil .former o'ceasions they had done. EXTENSION AND PROMOTION .OF PUBLIC WORKS IN IRELAND. Sir L IREMANTIA moved for leare to bring in a Bill to amend the Acts for the extension and promotion of public works in Ireland. Mr. HUMS approved of the facility proposed to be given for granting loans of money, to be expended on ptiblid works in Ireland. It would however, he thought, be satisfactory to know how the public money had been expended by the Board of Works in that country. Sir T. FREMANTLE observed that returns would noon be laid before the House, showing the sums of mo ney expended since the passing of the Act 1 and 2 Will. IV. Mr. FITZSTEPHEN FRENCH denied that any publie grant of money was requisite to promote the ob jects to be attained by the Bill for amending the Act;' for the extension aml promotion of public works in Ireland. A grant of 50,000 b had been made upon a fofmer cocasion of national distress in Ireland, but the money had been improperly applied. The grant was renderedlnoperathe because the money had been given to help private individuals to improv,e their estates, and not to promote public works. of lt FERGUSON said the lion. Member. was mistake:, the money was really expended on public worlo. Leave was granted to bring in the Bill, which was frad n first time, and ordered to be read a second time on Wednesday: The House 6107 24journed at Half-past Eight o c ekek until to-morrow. GREAT WELSH CENTRAL RAIL- WAY COMPANY. The adjourned Meeting of the scripholders of this Company was held on Thursday, at the Iting'e Head Tavern, Poultry for the purpose of hearing the report of Vie committee ap pointed at the last meeting to report oti the troecedings of the Provisional Committee. The CHAIRMAN (D. W. Harvey, Esq.). having reed a letter from Mr. Parker, of Aldborough, stating his inability to attend, but expressing his concurrence in the views ex pressed by the Chairman at a former Meeting, said it would be in the recollection of the meeting that en the Bth instant -It committee of five shareholders was appointed to eltamine into the financial circumstances of the Company. As Chairmen of that COnitnittee, it devolved on him to re port to them what hitd passed between them and those gen tlemen on the Provisional Committee of the Company. He regretted to say that what had occurred prompted him to retract the favourable opinion which he had ex pressed en the question. They should bear in mind the dates of the Oetufrences he was about to state. On the 10th it was arranged betvieen him and Mr. Parker that they should meet at the office of the Company, in Clement's-lane, at three o l eloet that day. He met there Mr. W. Ellis, Mr. Parker, and Mr. Doermin, the secretary of the Company, whc concurred In hid expres sion of regret that they lad been so prompt in dealing with the deposits, which they attributed to the desire of the G'as gow holders to divide the money. He requisted to be furnished with a copy of the accounts, and an account of \lrina bills paid was produced—enitmget the rest, one item of 11,000/4, making altogether something less than 40,0001. He requested to be furnished with a copy of the other accounts, but this was refused by Mr. Parker, who said that be meld not do so until the consent of the Committee should have been obtained, but promising, at the same time, to forward him the same. That copy. he had never received. On the Monday after he saw Mr. Stafford, Mid it was agreed that the following Thursday should be appointed for the first Meeting of their Committee. He had, in the meantime, received a letter from Mr. Parker. (The Chairman here read the letter, which inclosed a copy of a letter from Mr. Stafford, stating that ho had examined the accounts, which the writer trusted would prove satis factory.) A reply was given to that letter to the effect that the accounts had not been examined in detail, and that the meeting of those appointed at the former meeting to repre sent the remaining shareholders was merely preliminary. To that an answer had been received, whi3h he would read. [This merely stated that he (Mr. Parker) could not attend the meeting.] He went to the office of the Company, and he there found two other gentlemen who were ready to enter on their duties, But neither Mr. Parker or any other member elf the Committee W 29 present. He then wrote to Mr. Parker, stating that he bad attended, and would require to see all the accounts. [The Learned Chairman continued to read several letters between him and Mr. Parker, the substance of which was, that Mr. Parker would not accede to his wishes in affording him an opportunity of investigating the accounts. He now had placed before them all that passed, and he thought they must all agree with him that more unworthy attempts to evade the object of that Committee were never made, and could scarcely be conceived.]—(Hear, hear.) To come to the conehislon that, because one member of the Committee bad been called to the office that therefore the matter was settled, was indeed an appeal to their in firmity, and was perfectly in unison with the conviction he had entertained that the affairs of the Company had been mismanaged. The law on railways was now clearly elucidated, and that was, that a committee were answerable to the shareholders. —(Pear.) The opinion had been also taken of some of the most eminent law and equity barristers, and that opinion was not less unequivocal than the opinion of the Judge, delivered recently on a case that involved the question. They had also given their opinion as regarded allottees of shares. They said, that persons who applied for shares, and had agreed to pay their deposits, were liable, provided that the scheme was a bond fide one; Moreover, that the provisional committee could not demand more from the allottees who had paid their deposits than 10 per cent. for expenses. It was also clearly laid down that when a Company had failed, and that when a great number of the committee had not paid their money, being more anxious for obtaining premiums for their shares than for the success of the undertaking, that they would be liable for the whole amount. That Company had asked them for 17s. 6d. per share, which was more than, under the circumstances, they had a right to demand. He would propose that they . should give their deposits into the hands of the Protectionist Society, which, fur five shillings a share, would try the matter with the provisional committee. He would conclude by proposing a series of resolutions. (These were deprecating the conduct of the provisional committee, and embodying the views of the chairman.) The resolutions were proposed and seconded, and an amendment also proposed and seconded, which gave rise to an angry and desultory discussion, which terminated in the Chairman vacating the chair. The meeting then separated, without either amendment or resolution being submitted. MARKET INTELLIGENCE. (From the London New Price Current of Jan. 23.) SimAn—The purchases made in raw Sugar for home con sumption have been upon rather a larger scale than they were last week ; prices advanced for West India, but any improvement in Bengal, Mauritius, and Madras, has been prevented by the extensive parCels that importers continue to offer at public sale. REFINED. —There has been more activity in the market this week, and a good demand has prevailed from the town and country trade for Refined sugar : more especially for the low and middling descriptions, the rates paid have been in some instances rather above those previously quoted. This afternoon there were sellers of Mauritius Sugar by pri vate treaty at rather lower rates, still few buyers are to be met with. This afternoon Bengal Sugar met with little attention, and 2,419 bags at auction were only in part sold at a decline on former rates of is to Is 6d per cwt. To-day there was more desire shown to purchase all kinds of Foreign Sugar privately; but business of moment was pre vented by holders insisting upon an advance on former rates of Is per cwt. CorFarc.—This afternoon the market was abundantly sup plied with Mocha Coffee; three parcels, amounting to 1,192 bales, and two half bales, were submitted to public competi tion. The principal part found buyers, the lower kinds at full rates, but the long berry sorts went 2s to 4s. per cwt cheaper. COCOA.—Holders of British Plantation are less inclined to realise, and have refrained from offering any at auction; by private treaty the operations have been upon a more extended scale, but not at better prices. TEA.—lmpontrs have confidence, and still refrain from submitting any to public competition ; there is not a large quantity of black or green offering privately, notwithstand ing the stock is heavy. None has been received since this day week, whereas the deliveries since that time has been upon a large scale. MorAsses.—West Indil are still held with firmness, but the demand has been limited; previous rates are however sustained. SPlRlTS.—lmporters of Jamaica Rum are not inclined to submit to any further decline in prices, but shippers and the home trade have been cautious in their proceedings. Lee ward Island has met with little attention, but cannot be had upon lower terms. Demerara is little wanted, and former rates are with difficulty supported. For Brandy prices rule very firm, and large purchases have been made. SPICES.—To-day Black Pepper was purchased with more freedom, and 250 bags at auction were sold at full rates. Nutmegs are little wanted, and three chests at auction went a little cheaper. COCIIINEAL.—This afternoon at public sale 100 bags of Honduras were all sold—middling to good silvers at 5s .5d to 5s Bd, being from last sale's rates to Id advance; black fetched 6s 3d to 7s 6d, which is rather higher; 51 bags of Mexican silvers sold at 5s 4d to 5s sd, and black 53 6d to 6s 3d per lb. SALTPETRE.—To -day there was little desire shown to pur chase Rough, and 2,559 bags Calcutta at public sale were only in part sold, upon rather lower terms. TAW /W.-This afternoon at public sale 139 pkgs 63 hds South American Tallow were only in part sold at 41s 6d to 42s ; 46 casks North American all sold 39s to 42s ; 440 casks New S. Wales only in part sold at 40s Gd to 42s 9d, and low 38s 6d to 39s 6d; 25 chests East India taken in at 455; 50 casks Petersburgh Yellow Candle sold at 41s 6d for second sort • 46 casks Odessa Sheep 41s 9d to 42s per cwt. INDIGO.—To-day during the progress of the sale 405 chests were withdrawn, and 735 chests have passed the hammer. The biddings were rather more animated, but there is no alteration to notice in the prices. 4,970 chests have now passed the sale, of which 2,917 are sold. Oli.s.—Although there are sellers of Linseed Oil upon further reduced terms, still the operations have been upon a small scale. Rape Seed Oil has been purchased with cau tion, and prices are with difficulty kept up. In Olive Oil only a moderate business has been transacted, but holders are prevented from pressing sales by the smallness of the stock Cocoa Nut has been sparingly dealt in, but not offered to any further decline in prices. Palm is not to be had upon lower terms, but the demand has been small. Lard Oil is heavy of disposal. Although Cod Oil can be obtained at the rate of 261 to 261 10s, still the business transacted has been limited this week. BANK OF ENGLAND. (From last Night's Gazette.) to Account, pursuant to the Act 7th and Bth of Victoria, cap. 32, for the Week ending on Saturday, the 17th day of January, 1846. ISSUE DEPARTMENT. X. Notes issued . 26,573,910 £25,573,119 Dated the 22,1 day of January, JUNI MG D , Proprietors' capital. • 14,333,000 Rest 3,311,777 Public deposits tin eluding Exihhequer, Commasel; of National ;fay—. inns-banks, ZMi vidend accounts). • 4,710,937 Other deposits Seven day and other bills • • 1,009,030 Government debt • • 11,015,100 Other securities •• • • 2,981,9110 Gold coin and bullion 11,025,3. 6 Silver bullion .•• • • • 1,547,954 £26,573,910 MARSIIALL, Chief Cashier. 846. ,EPARTICLIQT. £ 34,669,362 Government sectui- • - ties (including Dead Weight Annuity) • • 13,137,047 Other securities •• • • 15,773,1.24 Notes • 5,393,745 Gold and silver coin.. ,5135,466 £ 34,669,382 M. MARSHALL, Chief Cashier Dated the 22d day of January, 1846. Lord Lyttelton (Under Secretary of State for the Co lonits) hos let town for Brighton. CORN I LAWS. On the motion for bringing up the report on the Address, Mr. COLQUHOUN said that he should crave the indulgence of the House for a few moments, not upon his account, for he felt he had no claim upon them, but he felt that he should express the sentiments of many Hon. Members of that House. He begged to express his opinion upon one of the questions raised last night, and he referred to the question of agricultural protection. He voted last year with the Honourable Member for Wolverhampton, with the opinion that the preserva tion of a moderate protective duty would be desirable for the country. He was most anxious that the adjust ment of the question should be effected with a view to the benefit of all classes of -the country, It was not his intention to enter at length into the questions which had been introduced last night, either by the Honourable Member for South Lancashire, or the Right Honourable Baronet ; his fingers certainly itched last night to be allowed to say a word— (Laughter)—upon some of the subjects advanced by the Noble Lord. He heard also with surprise one statement of the Right Hon. Gentleman at the head of her Majesty's Government, which he considered to be of paramount importance—the subject of wages, and he had often heard much better and more able argumet is upon the question. He only hoped that these distinguised leaders would indoctrinate their disciples with some better arguments. It may be right to repeal the corn-laws, but do not repeal them upon false grounds. Do not repeal them on the maxim that wages have no connexion with the price of provi sions. It was a doctrine which he did nut find in any of those standard political works which were so often quoted by Honourable Members in that House. He could not, he said, find them in any of those works, down from Adam Smith to Senior. And when the Hon. Member for South Lancashire stated that the produce of the soil should be placed upon an equal footing with other manufactures, and that it was entitled to the same protection, he would be able to show th e N o bl e Lord that there was some diffe rence—a great difference, one of which any mind as candid as his would not fail to admit the force and truth. He had read that morning a speech of the Hon. Gentle man the Member for Stockport, who stated at Man chester, that if the ports were to be opened now it would be the best possible time, inasmuch as this country could get scarcel y any provi s i ons f rom abroad, because the whole world was contending for the stock of corn at present for sale in America.— (Hear, hear.) If, therefore, the Right Ho n . B aronet ' s anxiety for the welfare of the population was to be re lieved by the opening of the ports, be (Mr. Colquhoun) would say, that he hoped his anxiety would be relieved by some other mode, as ho did not anticipate the discussion they were to have next week on the subject of the Corn-laws would have that effect. He rose on the previous evening to advert to some remarks which fell from the Right Honourable Baronet the First Minister, but had been anticipated by the Honourable Member for Sh rew sbury . — Gear.) He did not wish, af . er; so able and so eloquent a speech, to occupy the attention of the House, but he felt it necessary to say something on the subject of the appeal made by the Ri g ht Hon. Bart. and to acquaint hi m w i th the views he rtained . con- . nte cerning the relati on ex i st i ng between e a par tyan d the Minister. Sir R. Pe e l h a d evidently reconsidered his v i e with respect to politic a l economy during the last t hree years. —( Hear.) He (Mr. C o l qu h oun ) would, however, go further in the re-consideration s o f t h e Ri ght Hon. Baronet, but not very far. The Right Hon. Baronet had remarked that he did not wish to be bound by the views he entertained in the year 1842, but he could not sfoartg on t, the an opposite benches, and he (Mr. Colquhoun) remembered, when h e and acted with the Ri g ht Hon. Baronet, that he then regarde d him as a very emi nente leader of a political panty.—(Hear.) And here attached he might be allowed to say, that when Sir R. Peel talked to office, no of the burdens and anxieties t h a t man could appreciate those services more than he did. assuming the seals of When he witnessed a Minister &Eon. from cr , -11 , 1:;Lig the Nitric Lord opposite, when in office, all the p , :y.r,:r and honour appertaining to the high position he occupied, he considered the honour. was by no means an adequate equivalent for the crushing anxiety, the toil, and the actual labour that official men ----- LATEST PR.l."'='S OF IN BANKS, ASSURANCE, AND OTHER PANIES' STOCK. From tle Official List, PJBLISIIED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY BONO° LONDON, FRIDAY, JANUARY 23. SOX-NT-STOCK , Di v id en d Amount paid. pi!eil• Name of Company. per of Annum. Share. ....................„,„....---' ----- I d o' 2 6 ),, .lustralasia •••••••• • • V. per cent. 40 0 0 40 0A 0 ' 441 Brash North American 41. per cent. 50 00 5 0 " 217 ' 20 0 0 16., Commercia of London 5/. per cent. 100 0 0 `2olonial.. .. ..... .... 51. per cent. 100 0 0 2 5 ° 0 2 6 7 :,ondii and Westminstr 61. per cent. 100 0 0 20 0 0 i3a :,ondon Joint-Stock .• • 61. per cent. 50 0 0 10 , 43 . 0 Metropolitan - 25 0 0 7iv 0 46 Ili Provincial of Ireland- 81. per cent. 100 0 0 2 5 0 0 ••, Ditto, NeW......... 81. per cent. 10 0 0 10 0A 0 IS National of Ireland .. 51. per cent. 50 0 0 20 36 Nat. Provncial of Eng. 51. per cent. 100 0 0 35 ~.`" 0 Ditto, New... - Union of Australia.. •• i 25 0 0 25 0 ' o ' 11 t - nion or London-- I 51. per cent. i 50 0 0 10 ° INSURANCE C010124A11TZ.755. ----- Dividend Amount paid. I Fri° sure of Company. per of I Annum. Share. _......-- ------ --- ------ , X a. d• X s' I OM 14 . a 0 20 Albion ~ •••••• • • • . .. • 3/. 10.1 .500 0 0 5 - 0 I -,4 Alliance t. and For. 6 per cent. 100 0 0 1 5 1 ° 0 0 i 4 ' 6 -4 .Ditto m an ,76,.....- 61. per cent, 100 0- 0 „ 0 ~u ... 13s. fal. pr sh. 50 0 0 6 ',', 0 ~i' British Commercia.' • • Cierlcl,Med.&Gen.Ll.-.4 7s. per share 50 0 0 6 ,',,' 1 " 1 Si. per cent. 100 0 0 2 '' 0 County ........ „ ~... 31. 100 0010 0 ...,- . I !rown .............. -- ". ~ and i4O 0 0 5 0 3 r / 6/.55. ' 3 . . 0 Eagle 6s. 50 0 0 8 0 Economic Life. j&3os.bs. '0 0 250 0 0 ; 1000 . 2 0 0 9 Eng,kscot. Law - •••• 5/. per cent. 50 0 0 i 0 0 id. European Life ...... 5% per cent. 20 0 0 - 1).- f - 'O a 0 1 38 Freemason? --•• • • • • 51. per cent. 20 0 0 . 4 1 0 Globe •• . • .... „.., , , 61. per cent. Stock. ° 4 0 ., Guardian .... ... ••• • • 51. per cent. 100 0 0 3 6 ',", e , 161 Imperial Fire • 1,2/. per cent. 500 0 0 50 v 0 i , Imperial Life -12 s. 100 0 0 10 0 1 Indemnity Marine •• •• IL sh. & bs. 100 0 0 613 a frl d Law Life Legal and General Life 50 0 0 2 0 0 I °7 . 1/_. as. 100 0 0 10 0 0 6 ,7 London Fire 10s. 25 0012 10 A 10! London Ship •.•• • - • • 10s. 25 00121 0 " 0 07 I Alitrille ••-••• • • • • • 51. per cent. 100 00 15 0 3 0 gii. Med. lyrilid & Oen. Life 0 ~,, O4 National Lean Fund.. 51. per cent. 20 0 0 2 . 0 - 0 ~, 0 ' National Life • • Palladium Lifa 5l. per cent. 50 0 0 2 - 3s• Plicenix .. ' .-, 3/, p. et. & bs. - ....- ll' a 0 n 3 ., l'rotector Life.... .- •• 5/. per cent. 20 0' 0 1 ". 0 ' * Provident Life •••. • • • • 1/. 50. 100 0010 v 4 Rock Life ........ .... 4s. 5 0 o 0 1 ° 0 146 - 00 Royal Exchange • • 51. per cent. Stock. -- 43, Sun Fire 6/. 10s. - - 1 6 Ditto Life - lON /. pr ant. 100 0 `1: ---- 4 ". l" ,•• ' Universal Life ...0 1 / 7 , igZST Or SCOTTISH COMPALNIEO' a - ---- -- -- -- • pro' - - Dividend Amount Fad' i - . Name of Company. ' per, . , of / Annum. S h are. , ill O . Xs. d. X-' ' 6 2 I , Bank of Set:Aland • • ma 0 ° 19 4 ' Royal Bank of Scotland 6/. per cent. - • - ~ 0 ,60 British Linen Company al* per cent. - 100 v 0 . 4 Commercial Bank ••• ••• 6/. per cent. - I °° A ° 0 g 3 , National Bank 6l. per cent. - .10 v 0 0 Union Bank of Scotland 7141. pr cent. -- 50 0 ii 0 1* Western Bank .... - 50 0 0 North of Scotla 61. per cent. - 10 0° 1 1 43 Clydesdale Bank.nd Bank . -• • 61. per cent. - 0 ° ° Eastern 8ank..... •• • al. per cent. - 10 0 iw. Caledonian Bank - 210 0 13 11 t Edint.t.& Glasgow Bank 61. per cent. - 5 15 0 Jity of Glatgow Bank . 51. per cent. - 8 0 j4'* i Scottish Union Ins. Co. 51. per cent. 20 0 0 - 0 10 Hercules Insurance Co. 71. per cent. 100 0 0 10 v oid. ' Instr. Co. of Sceand• • 51. per cent. 10 0 0 An P i , 0 14 North British Incur. • • 5% 1. pr cent. j6 Caledonian Fire lusur. 10/. per cent. 109 0 0 Iv a 0 it Edinburgh Life Insur. 61. per cent. 100 0 0 10 „i' 0 1 9. ?Ain. &Mime. Railway 61. per cent. 50 0 0 50 1 -s ic f, 00 Ditto, 14 Shares • • Min., Leith, & Grantn - 20 0 0 20 v A. Wasps" & Ayrshlr Rail. 5/. per con:. 50 0 0 All 12 . 11 is ' r.r Glasgvr& Greenck BAIL 21. per cent. 25 0 0 .1 11 1 7 1 d, 06 Glsgw& Garnkirk Bail. Si. per cent. 25 0 0 Ali, F -- ,,id, Dundee & Arbroth Bail. 6/. per cent. 25 0 0 An,„P -- 0 Standard Life Assarnee.ls/ per cent. 150 0 0 24 " / DOClC.Ei,________...,< • Dividend Amount i ffr Name ef Company. per ef 1 paid. / Annum. I Share. ,___------ ". .£ s. d. I £ 0* 6.10 Commercial • • _- SI • E and West India 5%1. pr cent. Stock. 110 E Country -- 1 • 1/. per sh. 100 0 0 -- 04 L3ndon ••• . • _.. 3 0 St Katharine ........5 per cent. Stock. ~ 0 0 I Southampton •••• • • • • 41. per cent. 50 0 0 b. CANALS. Di m le • DI Names of 2 Dividend , Names of g per_. Companies. per —"" Companies. ~11 Anna' . Annum.l on 9 0 Ashtn& Oldb 97 51.55. p c 70 Monmouthsh 100 9 q • 1 Ashby-d-la-Z 113 41. 72 Mntgomrysh 100 " • . 4 0 Barnsley 160 12/, 180 Macclesfield . 100 2 46 0 Basingstoke 1 Neath ••• • . 1 00 ? 2 1., Brknk&Abrg 1 50 51. 85 Nottingham l- . 150 Cromford .. • • 100 181. 150 Peak Forest. 78 3 4 Dudley. ••. • . 100 4/. Regent's .. 33 , Derby Ellsmre&CbsShropshire .. 125 1 ,1 Erewash . ••• 100 321. 300 Somrset Coal 150 71. 3. - c. Forth & Clyd 100 4/. Do.L kFdStl2 a P, GrandJunctn 100 71. 100 Stffrd &Worc 140 28 6, ti Grand Union 100 11. 10s. Shrewsbury.. 125 11,1. 7 ', Glamorguyh.,l72 13%1. 210 Stourbridge.. 145 201. Glstr & Wkly. 00 Strtfrdcn AY / 9 it ' 1(39. Grantham • • 150 121. 100 Severn and] 26 11. 8 8 . Huddersfield. 57 --20 Wye Rail. . / Kennt & Avii 39 7s. 6d. 22 Trnt & Mr- 2 50 301. 4 Lancagter .• . 47 I/. 10. 40 aey, 3 sh. LeedS&Lliqp 100 341. 520 Thams &Med 19 —4/ Leicester 140 101. 105 Worcstx & 78 2/. ti Leicstr &Nth! 83 4/. 60 Blrming. 11. Loughborogh 142 701. 850 Wilts &Bzks 67 z .TE: 'OEN.' Dividend Dame of Company. per i Annum. ----_____2.7-------- o, Amoun t rfi or raid' Share. .£ s, d. l ao 1 100 0 • —. 6 fr 46 13 4 q 100 0 0 • p 100 0 • , " 63 12 9 ' —......—.......... ‘, O: ) ant London •••• • • • I 81. Lirand Junction .... • • 1 31. Rent ••• • • • • •• • •• • . 27. 10s. Vauxhall .. 51. per cent. West Middlesex . • 41.165. pr ct: COURSE OF EXCHAI kiraterdam CF. 12 9i Ditto, at sight l2 54 Rotterdam 2U. 12 10 Antwerp 26 15 flamburgh M.B. 13 15 Alton& GE.-(YESTER P ; Gibraltar-- ...•• • 3t lig Leghorn .......• 2 6 Genoa Milan ..... ...... . Venice .... ....... ..... 0 Naples ...... •• 11 Palermo, per 0z...... Lisbon ............ •••• 5 Oporto ..............• 2 4 Rio Janeiro ........... - Bahia -...... Buenos Ayres ...... . ... NewYork,2ldyssie l Philadelphia . ........ rs o PRICES OF G1 10 : 1 17 Foreign Gold, bars•••',, 1/ .6 Portugal Gold ;low 0 New ionboo ns • A 4 111 New Dollars ........ "„ Silver in Bars ..... v Paris, 3 days' sight 25 76 Ditto, 3 months 26 Marseilles Bourdeaux 26 10 Frankfort on :Maine Petersburgh, 3 Us.. Berlin Vienna, effec. flo. Trieste, ditto Madrid B6 Cadiz Bilbao — Barcelona ..... Seville ame a' GAME IN CALIFOR N IA.—The variety 0- f st d this country almost exceeds belief. The elk mai, "1,,10; r y predominate, but there are also many bean, ha le t,ioof, deer, wolves, foxes, minxes, hares, musk-rats , br;, e t antelopes, and Ov.is montana. The . wolf is report e ' frt, Marsh to be the same as the urairie wolf of the pr o ( Mississippi, but not the one described by Say. 141 : 1 1 , in his report, will, probably, assimilate it to the se l . /10, 4 , Oregon, with large ears. The fox is the ga m ' st.ho grey one of the wooded parts of the United al v. According to Mr. Peale, the black-tailed deer "Icititol6 only species found in this country. The °vie f i tlPgi , has been frequently seen by Dr. Marsh ; its e i ,7 o r if t altogether hair, without any admixture of w001,..,,' - bske mens were obtained for the expedition. The re °;rt was seen by Dr. Pickering, who attempted to calP• - tg He found no difficulty in following it, as its movemell ocle, not very rapid. After passing over some bills, fi rie f l ,3 l o stand ; and, as he approached, bristled up, but 1100 Ift other threatening demonstration, and retreated ink , 0 pr ej to its burrow. On his feigning a reti eat, it came &It ' ve ° l 6 and exposed itself to be fired at. Dr. Pickering " b ° o o l ,o it; but not so much as to prevent its reaching it t n ts and so it escaped. He was satit lied by its moven - 40'1:0 its curiosity was the cause that led it to risk deet io ct' o , This seems to be the great and all-powerful je li : passion of these wild animals, and frequently re :14'0 within reach of the deadly rifle. Considering the of game, the su cc e ss a tt en d an t on our t yro b u nters,' t tr ip equal to th e i r an ti c i pat i ons, an d conv i nce d them tm i g oe c a much easier to b r i ng d own an e lk i n an ti c ipation - 00, 0 reality. Th e acc id en t s were f ew , an d on ly o ne ser nt d t ;(1 was experienced in the chase of a skunk, which oblittisitOlie officer to part with his clothes. The wild. fowl sc arce f r attention, the elk and large animals being so abundell,„lbei flesh of the elk was much preferred by the part,' the deer.—United States Exploring Expedition. • 0 RAILWAY REVENUE or 1845.—The rece, ll lo 0 /$1 the first half-year amount to upwards of 3,680,00 a, f i e ies 4 ; increase of 600,0004 on the corresponding h a lf-year ( ! v abli g e Putting out of consideration the London and Birtnits, o f the Grand Junction, and the Midland, whose re j egid t ,,o know, have largely increased, but which are 01 ,00 1 ;4 comparison f wing to the amalgamations, we may °LOOS , large portion of the increase of 600,0001.- to th e 0;6. lines, and in the following proportions :—The East,g;;clo q , ties, 40,0001 ; the Great Western, 47,0001.; the Bt L; ` O , 10,000'. ; the Brighton, 20,000/. ; the Croydon, 2 7, 71/1 • South-Western, 13,0001. ; the Manchester ae" l9 `be y 36,000/. ; the Newcastle and Darlington. ',,;0‘12., the Preston and Wyre, 7,009/. • the Sheffield and k; ter, 23,000/. ; the South-Eastern, 45,000/. ; t 2l,Or d Vale, 6,000/.; and the York and North Midlavd• s.lll,„e'g The total gross receipts of the railways for, the Un! te ,, d bov/1,0 dom for the year 1845 have been almost 6,650,0 00 " - of "5; an increase of 1,100,00 W., or 20 per cent. over those f ift eo year 1844; 1,800,0001. p or 37 per cent. over those„, ° and 2,3000,0001., or 54 per cent. over those of 1844 ' t es`V are most encouraging prospects for future h oe ft s siv 1 1-0 prise. The working railway property of Great 1 31.1 ' en tyl' e t therefore be reckoned as worth from twenty to Wore 0 3 millions more at the present moment than at this not "13 year; in other words, a clear increase of that 01 PA coun trP op e - , been added to the productive capital of the true that some additional lines of railway have •be e A n i s re°,, during that period, but their amount is small, art s " of `- than counterbalanced by the omission of certain ite"-- venue not included above.—Railway Chronicle. o f fsd , BIRTH. 41 1 On the 11th inst., at Flore nce, the lady of John michelb Forcett Hall, Yorkshire, of a daughter. e tjeu tsn' On the 16th inst., at Bishopsteignten, Devon, the lady of or' Lionel Place, 11. N., of a daughter. t he lady On the 20th inst., in New-street, Spring-garden s ' Todd, of a daughter. 1 c,(l' r' o MARRIED. 0 , Ao r mom' ve- - On the. 2d ult., at the Cathedral, ItombaY , _ is,te Tanner, Esq., to Mary Catherine, eldest daugher of the E. Hook, Esq. kt• DIED. r of e ic it's- i,. Oa the 3d inst„ at ('lifter, Anna Monro. 'we ,010 - Munritoii, 7,11i1i,t,r n''',..t. :,!:•,;,'• ar:sil, Trinidad. , ,_ T ien. ~ Ii: its, ttp,:itilatinitisizatti,lisiLrg,,,,tl,(4.j.r ihulithigton the --__-, 11, P , Y at. 6 _ . 0 YOV l4° ' 6 14nden : Printed and. 4 . ....vadistic ---- ci by ItiURD ------ ,,ni tb er Tra -14°-111. 11 11:1 Stiand, Printer, at The Sun Omen, No. 112, Str!l ir dio ii 1 " -- of the 84Yon In the County, of litiddloost • 10 A •34 1140, 1 110 1 . Aan ° ~ of t The I(„li't4'r6 1t144,°, th , 11 11 1' ;. t 4 '. th,;: mo at (lay'kolit , Of Nr, 4, 11 1:14 %I fl Nta 1)e I 330 ./ if / I. 41 1 W „