The Sun. — London, England, 1841-05-11 00:00:00

CORN-LAW CRISIS. (From the Liverpool Albion.) The debate on the issue of which, in till probability, depends whether the Whigs or the Tories shall govern, commenced on Friday evening, in the Hour of Commons. Lord John Russell expounded the Mimsterial policy in a very able and statesman-like speech, and moved the resolution which will be found in our ad stract of the debate. Lord Sandon met the resolu tion by an amendment, which will also be found in its proper place. The representative of this great commercial town, the inhabitants of which are more deeply concerned than those of any other town in the kingdom in the utmost freedom of trade, stood forth the opponent of the greatest mea sure proposed in our time for the establishment of the principle, and the champion of the West India and other oppressive monopolies. We have, in another article, remarked on his Lordship's conduct, which we leave to be dealt with as it ought by those of his supporters whose enlightened and strenuous efforts to promote the principles of free trade he has done his ut most to frustrate. The debate was adjourned until this evening. It is not expected to close before Wednesday morning, when the division will take place. The division, according to the prevalent opinion, will be adverse to Ministers, though the majority against them will not, it is calculated, be large. The Tories to a man will vote for Lord Sandon's amendment, reckless of the consequences which the rejection of the budget may cause to the finances of the country, and merely intent on the acquisition of office for their party. While their assailants are compact and united, the Ministers are doomed to meet them with a weakened force. The proposal to admit sugar the produce of slave labour has frightened from their ranks the party called " saints," headed by Dr. Lushington ; while the project for modifying the Corn-law, by admitting fo reign corn at a fixed duty, has driven away the agricul turists, at the head of whom is Mr. Handley. Both Dr. Lushington and Mr. Handley attempted, on Friday night, to justify their desertion of the Government "at its utmost need," and they were, of course, vocifer ously cheered by the Tories for conduct which is very natural, but not very creditable to their patriotism. Under such circumstances, a miracle will be required to prevent a defeat on the division ; and there is no reason to expect a political miracle on behalf of Ministers at the present moment. Whether, if defeated, they will resign, remains to be seen. Reports differ on the subject. The opinion most prevalent in the political circles is, that they will resign instanter, and give the Tories the long and anxiously desired opportunity of undertaking the direc tion of affairs. Whatever turn things may take,—whether the Govern ment may continue in the hands of the Whigs, or be trans ferred to those of the Tories, the present agitation has made one thing certain,—monopoly is doomed. Like leviathan, when pierced and made desperate by the harpoons of its assailants, it may flounder and plunge, and even,--in—tEe --iiolence of its agony, excite temporary alarm in the breasts of its enemies ; but its fate is sealed : die it must, and that right soon. Should, therefore, Lord Sandon's amendment be carried, the mo nopolists, whether home or colonial, will have little cause to rejoice at his Lordship's success. It will merely give them a brief respite. Against the monopolies of sugar, and timber, and corn, the decree has gone forth, and they will, ere long, share the fate of the once formid able and almost impregnable monopoly of the trade to the East. The Tories, once more in office, could no more save the former from destruction than they could revive the latter. They cannot, any more than the Whigs, resist the force of public opinion, which is decidedly hostile to every system which taxes the many for the benefit of the few ; while the financial necessities of the State, which have their foundation in " the monumental debt of England," the work of Tory hands, will compel them to make altera tions in our fiscal system which shall, without increasing the load of taxation under which the country now staggers, suffice to meet the wants of the times. Soon will the Tories be made to feel the truth of Dry den's couplet— "'Tis easy conduct when exchequers flow, But hard the task to manage well the low." The prospect now presented to the foes of monopoly is encouraging. Their course must continue to be " Agita tion—agitation —agitation." Amidst the strifes and the struggles of party, the good cause is certain to prosper. For our part, we shall not be surprised to see the Tories carrying into effect the very measures of free trade for proposing which they are, according to every appearance, about to turn out the Whigs. (From the Wexford Independent.) The reduction of the sugar duty is such a boon to the poor—a novelty in legislation that almost compels us to deny credence to the evidence of our senses, whilst we read the expose of the Chancellor—that it recommends itself to the support of every wise and benevolent indi vidual in the empire ; and the repeal of the Corn-laws — the great crowning question of all—we cannot designate otherwise than a mighty revolution whose effects on the destinies of these countries time only can develope. (From the Northern Whig.) We think it by no means unlikely, but, on the con trary, exceedingly probable, that the question of the Corn-laws will be the matter chiefly to be decided by a general election, at no remote day ; for we consider it very doubtful whether any wise change will be conceded by the existing Parliament. It, therefore, becomes the more necessary that the public mind should be familiarised with the subject ; and that it should be prepared, as well may be, for coming to a right determination. Men o f Ireland, and especially those of you—the vast mass—who have to toil for your bread, let the fact sink deep into your souls, let it remain there as the goading reply to all the imposition that may be attempted upon you—that the object —ay, and the declared object—of the Corn-laws is, to make your bread dear, thus affording you little to eat, and leaving you little to spar e f or clothing and other necessaries of life. We call, most earnestly and most solemnly, upon every industrious man, from the mer chant to the daily labourer, to consider this state of things. The carpenter, the mason, the shoemaker, in short, every tradesman would have something more to spend upon his wife and children, or for his own com fort, if this cruel law did not step in and snatch a part of his earnings from his hand, by compelling him to pay too much for his daily bread SPIRIT of the PUBLIC JOURNALS. FROM THE DAILY PAPERS OF YESTERDAY. GLOBE.—The period has now arrived for the people of England to show that they can be true to themselves ; for, by a prompt and powerful expression of their senti ments, they have now an opportunity of facilitating the execution of the Ministerial plan for placing on a new foundation the commercial prosperity of the country, and materially ameliorating the condition of the great mass of the community. The proposition of the Go vernment to revise the Corn-laws—even when uncon nected with any other portion of their financial scheme —may be regarded as one of the most important benefits that have occurred from the passing of the Reform Bill. When it is remembered with what anxious energy the adoption of that Bill was demanded and obtained, it may be conceived with what determination the people will insist on securing one of the most desirable of the many advantages that have been expected to result from it. After so much pains to sow the seed, it is not likely that the great body of the nation will feel indifferent about the harvest, and the revision of the Corn-laws will henceforth be the object that will be pursued with the perseverance and energy which no people—least of all the people of this country—can for any length of time unsuccessfully exercise. The wish of a community is one thing ; its determination that the wish shall be ac complished is quite another. While an alteration in the Corn-laws was merely desired, there was no certainty of any change ; but public opinion once being decided that a revision of the law shall take place, it becomes from that moment a matter of imperative necessity. Whatever, therefore, may be the game of the Tories, though they may snatch a temporary advantage from one of those side-moves in which they are so eminently expert, they will encounter ultimate defeat in their tactics on the question of the Corn-laws. STANDARD. THE MINISTERIAL CRISIS. The following is a later view of the crisis than we have given elsewhere. Sir Robert Peel's determination may be relied on :—Ministers are understood to be desirous of protracting the debate upon Lord Sandon's motion, and do not expect a division, it is said, before Wednes day: Why they should prefer this seems odd, unless they desire to provoke a few more speeches like Dr. Lush ington's and Mr. Handley's. The amount of the majority seems uncertain, as it is impossible to t e ll how many of the Ministerial men will vote against them, and how many, in shame and sorrow, may absent themselves. Th e prec i se extent is however indifferent, and whether it be fifteen or fifty the one effect will be the same. It is 'likely to be somewhere between these points, probably twenty five. The inclination of opinion fluctuates as to the probability of dissolution, or resignation without dis solving. In favour of the former there is no one argument beyond the desperate character of Minis ters, and their likelihood to take any plunge that holds out even a shadow of hope. It is possible th a t, ca lculating on their power to dis pose of the troops in Ireland so as t o give all the scope to the violence of the priests and their mobs, and thus to buy the returns by blood shed, and hoping also to embarrass the in-com ing Ministry by forcing them to a second dissolution, they may advise the Queen to that course. There are, however two reasons against ` this . In the first place, it is well understood that Sir R. Peel, on suc ceding to office, will instantly dissolve a second time, and thus annihilate any gains that the Government may hope to get by bribery, influence, or violence. He must have the power of doing so as a matter of course, and do it he will. Thus the Whig gentry will have two general elections within the summer instead of one; the operation being to give the Conservatives the full development of their legitimate force by the second, of which the Ministers think to defraud them by the first. The other reason is, that an instant dissolution by the Whigs will in one way serve the Conservatives iiia terially—it will put them in an instant majority, and thus prevent all chamber plots and back -stairs after trickery. The sooner a general election comes, the sooner will the real strength of constitutional Conserva tism be exhibited, and their tenure of power confirmed. At Bow-street yesterday, Jones, the father of the boy who was committed for three months . for b e i ng f ound in Buckingham Palace, was charged with stealing some lilac from one of the plantations in the enclosure of St. James's Park on Sunday. One of the constables pr ove d seeing him c ome ou t o f t h e pl an tation with the lilac, and then took him into custody. In his defence he said he was very sorry for what he had done. Mr. Hall asked him if he had any money ? He said he had not. Mr. Hall said I know you have a large family to support, and that you are poor, and under all the circumstances you may be discharged, but mind you never do it again. The old man promised lie would not, and WAS liberated. LAW INTELLIGENCE. COURT OF QUEENS BENCH, May 10. THE QUEEN V. THE BRISTOL DOCK COMPANY. The COURT gave judgment in this case. It was an appeal by the defendants from a rate made for the relief of the poor in the parish of Clifton, in which the Com pany were assessed for a certain sum in respect of Cum berland-basin, with the docks, gates, wharfs, quays, &c. It appeared that the Company had been formed under the provisions of an Act 43 George the Third, for theimprovement of the port of Bristol. The Company purchased eleven acres of land in the parish of Clifton, on which they had erected Cumberland-basin. The queltion the Court had to consider was, whether the ap pellants were to be rated in respect of their property in that parish in the same proportion as other land in the vicinity, at its value as pasture or meadow-land, or whe ther they should, in addition, pay the increased value which the land was worth in respect of certain tolls and dues levied by the appellants. The question turned a good deal upon the construction of the 64th section of the Act, which referred to the manner in which the Company were to pay their land and other taxes. After citing the provisions of the section, the Court said that, on the whole, they were of opinion that the assessment should be reduced to the sum of 31. 7s. 6d., being at the rate of ls. in the pound upon 67/. 10s., the value of the Company's property in that parish as pasture or meadow land. COURT OF COMMON PLEAS, May 10. TRIAL AT BAR. Before the LORD CHIEF JUSTICE, Mr. Justice BOSANQUET, Mr. Justice COLTMAN, Mr. Justice ERSKINE, and a Mid dlesex Special Jury. PADDOCK V. FORRESTER AND OTHERS. This action was brought to recover damages for injury done to the plaintiff's property by the defendants pushing a mine and extracting coal from beds lying under the land near Newcastle-under-Lyne, of which the plaintiff is copyholder— the defendants being the agents of the Earl of Granville who holds under the Duchy of Lancaster. The case for the plaintiff is conducted by Mr. Sergeant Talfourd, Mr. Sergeant Channell, Mr. Sergeant Wrangham, and Mr. Sergeant Glove. The defendants' Counsel were the Solicitor-General, Mr. Sergeant Bompas, and Mr. Ellis, who appeared on the part of the Duchy of Lancaster, of which he is Attorney-General. _ _ The Case having occupied the whole of the day was adjourned to this day. CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURT. OLD COURT. Henry Allshorne, 20, was indicted for stealing a quan tity of saddles, value 601., the property of his employer, Mr. Buist, a saddler, in Moorfields, and James Edward Allshorne, 49, the father of the first-mentioned prisoner, was indicted for feloniously receiving the property, knowing it to have been stolen. A lengthened investigation took place, and, at the : close of the evidence Mr. CHARNOCH took an objection, that the charge of receiving was not made out, inasmuch as the elder prisoner had never, except in one instance only, been in possession of the property itself, but merely of the duplicates referring to it. The RECORDER thought the objection valid, and di rected the Jury to acquit the elder prisoner. The Jury found Henry Allshorne Guilty. The prisoner, Henry Allshorne, was then indicted for stealing , one saddle, the property of his employer, an d the elder prisoner with feloniously receiving the same saddle, knowing it to have been stolen. The facts of this case were the same as the last, with the exception that Mr. Tollett proved that he purchased a saddle of the elder prisoner for 1/., and he told him that his son had made the saddle while he was out of work. This saddle was identified by the prosecutor, but upon his being cross-examined, he was unable to state positively that it had not been sold, and the Court directed an acquittal as regarded both prisoners. The prisoner, Henry Allshorne, was then brought up to receive judgment upon the indictment upon which he had been found guilty, and the RECORDER sentenced him to be imprisoned and kept to hard labour for two years ; and at the same time observed that but for a be lief entertained by the Court that he had been induced to commit the offence by his father, he would most cer tainly have been transported for the full term. The Recorder at the same time observed that he had no hesi tation in saying that if the father had been convicted, he should have felt it to be his duty to order him to be transported. Joseph Osborn surrendered to take his trial upon an indictment charging him with unlawfully driving three pigs, infected with a contagious disease, into Smithfield market, whereby the safety of the other cattle in the market was endaigered. Mr. PAYNE appeared for the defence. The prosecutCi; was a butcher, named Townsend, and it appeared that he had purchased the pigs in question of the defendant at Smithfield market, and when he got them home he found they were in a very diseased state, and one of them died soon afterwards and the other two were destroyed. The witnesses caused some merri ment by their description of the character of the malady „with which the pigs were attacked.. One of them said `that they were "broken winded" and had the black fever, and another said that they were " measely," and they expressed their opinion that the disorder was de cidedly an " affectionate" one. There was no ac t ua l proof in support of the allegation that the disease was contagious, and upon this ground the defendant was acquitted. The RECORDER took occasion to observe that although according to the form of the present indictment, the de fendant could not be convicted, yet it must be dearly understood that if parties drove diseased animals into a public market they committed a serious offence, and if this indictment had been framed in a different manner the present defendant might have been subjected to both fine and imprisonment. POLICE INTELLIGENCE. MANSION HOUSE. A young man, named Thomas Ware, was charged, be fore Alderman Pirie, with having stolen a po c k e t-b oo k . containing two Bank of England notes, the one for 201., the other for 101., the property of Mr. Richard Morton ; a merchant, of the Old Swan-stairs, in Thames-street _ _ Mr. Thorton stated, that on the 7th of April, he came from Gravesend to London, in the Mercury steam-ve sse l, in the Company of which he had 200 shares. Soon after landing he missed his pocket-book, in which his name and address were inscribed, and in which were a 20/. note, No. 96,162, date 9th of January, 1841, and a 101. note, No. 35,352, date 11th of January, 1841. He subsequently went into the boat and mentioned his loss, stating, at the same time, that 101 should be given as a reward jupon the restoration of the book. He went again to the boat to inquire whether the property had been found, but could obtain no information about it. To the best of his belief the prisoner was in the cabin at the time he offered the reward. He stopped the notes at the Bank, and after wards traced the 10/. note to Messrs. Whitbread, whose collecting clerk had taken it from a customer. Wilkinson, the mate of the Mercury, stated that he re collected - Mr. Thornton's mention of the loss, and offer of the 101. for its recovery, and that the prisoner was pre sent at the time. A young woman, who was barmaid to Mrs. Duke, of the Francis Rodney's Head, in the Westminster-road, stated that the prisoner brought the 101. note produced, which corresponded with that which the pocket-book had contained, to her mistress's house to be changed, and that the note was accordingly changed. Witness had known the prisoner for some time as a person in the habit of frequenting the house. The prisoner was committed for trial. A lad was brought up for having attempted to obtain money for a forged check from Mr. Wilson, butcher Mason's-alley, Basinghall-street. Mr. Wilson stated that the prisoner said that he came from Mr. Stores, in Cheapside, and produced a note, which asked, with Mr. Storr's compliments, for change. A trick was suspected immediately, and it was found that the boy, who was respectable, had been sent by a person who met him in the street, and who, no doubt, calculated from his appearance of simplicity, that ha could be easily imposed upon to deliver the message. The ALDERMAN discharged the prisoner, with the assu rance that he went from the bar without the slightest stain upon his character. He mentioned that intimation had been made to him that several tradespeople had been imposed upon by persons who, in a hurry, brought to them checks from tradesmen they knew, accompanied with letters requesting cash, as the time was beyond banking hours. The deception succeeded, as the checks belonged to old check books of the bankers to whom they wereaddressed. Daniel Fortester (the officer), begged to be allowed to inform the Alderman, that a lad had lately been sen tenced to transportation for fifteen years, for having pre sented a forged check, and he had every reason to be lieve that the unfortunate young fellow was quite inno cent of criminal knowledge. Alderman PIRIE asked what had become of the boy ? Daniel Forrester said that upon the representation that the lad was believed to be the dupe of others, he had been removed from the vessel in which he was about to sail for Botany Bay, by order of the Secretary of State, until the necessary investigation should take place. He (Daniel Forrester) was perfectly convinced of the innocence of the convicted person. RE _IL VER MINES.--W e derive the fol lowing information from a res p ecta bl e source at Guernse y —The existen ce o f a s il ver m i ne, lik ely to be productive, in : the Island of Sark, appears t o b e no l onger smatter of dotbt. In addition to the high opinion entertained by every expe rienced person who has inspected the Sark Mines, we have with much pleasure read the report of W. J. Bellwood, Esq., F. R. S.,and her Majesty' s un d ergroun d m i ne sur veyor in the uchy of Cornwall, in which he gives a most satisfactory and encouraging account of the undertaking, and which has since been confirmed by the discovery of silver ore in the forty fathom level (the greatest depth yet attained), producing 639 us. of fine silver to the ton of ore. It appears the ore improves both in quality and quantity as the works descend, and although the greatest depth at pre sent attained compared to other mines is but very trifling, upwards of 15,000 oz. of silver have been raised, besides many tons of lead. There is a silver mine now working in Brit tany which has been producing a profit of 50,0001. per an num for some time past, the characters of which are knownt to resemble that of Sark ; and from the direction it bears is not unlikely to be a continuation of the same vein, asinine ral veins have been traced to a much greater distance than that between Sark and Brittany. Mr. Henwood , also speaks favourably of the Herm Copper Mines, an under.' taking which we understand is about to be carried on v t ith increased vigour. As the prosperity of both these under takings will be of great importance to the Channel Is lands, as well as to the proprietors, we hope the opera tions will continue to be crowned with success. —Jersey Times. ( Specimens of the rich ore from the forty fathom level may be seen on application to the Secretary of the Royal Gallery of Practical Science, Adelaide -street, Strand.) The ch a i n -pi er th a t L or d C a d ogan is erecting in Chey ne - wa l k, Chelsea, is in that forward state that hi s Lordship Will open it in person on Whit-Monday. COLOURED POPULATION OF THE UNITED STATES. REPORT OF TEE MANAGEMENT OF THE STATE COLONIZA TION FUND FOR THE REMOVAL OF THE FREE PEOPLE OF COLOCR. Colonization Rooms, Baltimore, Jan. 20, 1841. To his Excellency William Grason, Governor of Maryland. The report of the undersigned, Managers of the State Colonization Fund, under the Act of 1831, eh. 281, respectfully states that during the last year they have drawn from the Treaaury the sum of $lO,OOO, being the amount limited by the Act of the Legislature of the last Session : a part of which has been appropriated through the agency of the Maryland State Colonization Society in the payment of the expenses incurred in the transportation of emigrants to Africa heretofore, and in maintaining them there, as authorised by the Act above-mentioned; and a part is the dissemination of information through the State, as also authorised by the same Act. The number of ma numissions during during the past year has been 128, making the whole number since the passage of the Act 2,300. During the past year no emigrants have been sent from the State to Africa ; the current of feeling among the free coloured population having turned their attention to the British West India Islands, and diverted it wholly for the present for other quarters. The undersigned be lieve, from the events of the last twelve months, that the feeling is increasing among the free coloured people that this is not their appropriate home, and that sooner or later emigration to other lands will be to their happiness end well-being. Hitherto they have remained in the United States with the belief that by preserving here their num bers undiminished, they would ultimately obtain social and political equality with the whites. This has been the abolition doctrine that has spread among them, and by which they have been influenced heretofore. It is be lieved now, however, to have lost its weight in a great measure, and there is a restlessness among the thinking and prudent of the free coloured people which indicates a thorough change in their feelings with reference to re moval. That emigration to the British West Indies will long continue in favour, the undersigned cannot believe, for the persons wanted there are labourers for the sugar crops —a species of toil to which the negroes from Maryland are unaccustomed, and in which they must be brought into competition with the emancipated slaves of the island, whenever these last choose to return to the habits of labour from which their emancipation has released them. The undersigned mention this in no hostility to emigration of the free coloured people to Trinidad and Guiana, but as indi cating a probable result which, under any circumstances, it would be prudent to provide for, and which has been most fully provided for in the establishment of the colony of Maryland in Liberia, whose prosperity and success thus far is believed to be without a parallel in the whole history of colonization. This colony is now capable of receiving all the persons that may choose to emigrate to it ; and when the restless feeling among the coloured population already alluded to, becomes disappointed in the results of the West India scheme, will furnish an alternative by which it can be gratified, in a manner promotive, not only of their best interests, but of the best interests of the people of Maryland from whom they will go forth. In the year 1720 there were 8,043 free negroes in Maryland; the late census shows that there are 17,980 in the city of Baltimore alone, and 61,937 in the State of Maryland. This population, which is among us, but not of us—which has no interest in common with us—which is debarred political and social rights, and which can antici pate no change for the better, may be well dissatisfied with their position, and look abroad for a more congenial home. It is the part of a wise policy to provide one. This has been done ; and, however the free coloured people may for a while vacillate in the selection of their permanent abiding place, there is little doubt that they will ultimately prefer removing to a place where the coloured man fills all the offices in the government rather than to a place where their removal still leaves them under the predominant in fluences of a white population, in which the coloured man is trusted with power not as his right, but as a favour. The condition of the coloured population is of great in terest, and the undersigned see nothing yet to induce them to doubt the policy of the State in relation to it. The undersigned transmit bereaith a copy of the Ninth Annual Report of the Board of Managers of the Marylana State Colonization Society, being the last they have issued, which is fully explanatory of their plans and policy ; and have the honour to be, most respectfully,__ C. HOWARD. W. R. STUART. F. ANDERSON. • BREACH OF PROMISE.—Among the rumours floating here, it is said that the public will be highly amused at the next assizes, by some singular disclosures and the reading of the love epistles between a faithless swain and his " true love," in an action for a breach of promise of marriage between a lady residing not far from one of our celebrated watering places, and a worthy " brother batch " of this city.—Exeter Flying Post. EXTRAORDINARY.—The Cutter Fanny, when on her passage from Port illacquarrie to Sidney, last trip, had a severe encounter with a tiger shark, who laid hold of her mizen boom, and held on for some time with his teeth, until he was frightened off by some of the men at tacking him. Part of his teeth may yet be seen in the boom by any person desirous of inspecting it.—Sydney Paper. _ SLEEP.—The duration of sleep is various Youth and young adults will habitually sleep soundly and uninterruptedly for eight or nine hours. Infants and old people sleep for shorter periods. Some persons are constitutionally sound and long sleepers ; others light and short sleepers. Infants sleep far more in the twenty-four hours than adults ; when very young, having but recently come, into the waking state from the womb, they are awake for but short pe riods ; and for very many months require to go to sleep several times, and for the first two or three years more than once, in the twenty-four hours. Old people sleep lightly and frequently ; and altogether but little, unless lethargic disease comes upon them, which is very com mon. I heard Baxter, the coachmaker, declare he never took more than three hours sleep during the most active period of his life. "The celebrated General Elliot"— ' never slept more than four hours out of the twenty four ; and his food consisted wholly of bread, water, and vegetables." Sir John Sinclair mentions a James Mac kay, " a remarkably robust and healthy man," " who died in Strathnaver in 1797, aged ninety-one, and only slept, on an average, four hours in the twenty-four hour." "Fre deric the Great," as he is called, and the truly great John Hunter, "slept only five hours in the same period." Dr. Maenish, to whom I am indebted for these instances, says, " I know a lady who never sleeps above half an hour at a time, and the whole period of whose sleep does not exceed three or four hours in the twenty-four, and yet she is in the enjoyment of excellent health." Sir Gilbert Blanc states that General Pichegru informed him that, "in the course of his active campaigns, he had for a whole year not more than one hour of sleep, on an ave rage, in twenty-four hours." Sleep varies so much in intensity that a dead sleep of an hour may be an equal repose to any ordinary sleep of many hours. The cele brated De Moivre slept twenty hours out the twenty four ; and Thomas Parr latterly slept away by far the greater part of his existence.—Eiliotson's Human Phy siology. cf p BRUTAL FIGHT, AND DEATH OF ONE THE COMBATANTS.—On Saturday night last, about ten o'clock, a lot of fellows met together at. the White Horse beer shop, at Chelsea New Town, near Leighton Buzzard, and, after drinking for a considerable period, they went into the fields and got up a fight between John Butcher, a shoemaker, and James Webster, a bricklayer, of Leighton Buzzard. The disgracful scene was carried on till two o'clock on Sunday morning, when Butcher hit his antagonist a fatal blow , *ich caused his death. The whole neighbourhood was in ,the greatest excitement, and on Tuesday a Coroner's Jury were sworn. The first witness, John Webster, cousin of the deceased, went to the beer-shop in question. There were se veral men there and a woman. Between ten and eleven o'clock they left the house and had a row in the road, and afterwards in a close, where two fellows, George Fryer and James Paviott:e fought. After the fight, deceased came up and stood talk ing with witness, when Butcher came up and said he w d fight any in the close a few rounds, just to keep his hands in. Deceased said he would fight him ; and asked his brother, William Webster, to see him righted. They then fought for nearly three quarters of an hour. In the last round Butcher struck deceased several times about the head, and he fell from one of the blows. Witness and William Webster picked him up, but he could not stand ; he fell backwards and his hands dropped. He was then carried away upon a gate insensible. There was another fight going on.—William Robinson, of Linslade, came to the fight. They went down on fighting, and when deceased was down on his back, Butcher set his foot on his stomach on purpose. After this fight was over witness went to see the third that was going on. The Jury returned a verdict of " Manslaughter against John Butcher, as princi pal, and against Joseph Hodges and William Webster for aid ing, abetting, and assisting." The prisoners were imme diately conveyed to Bedford gaol.—Hereford Reformer. ELEVENTH HUSSARS. The head-quarters are at Hounslow, under the command of the Earl of Cardigan ; a detachment is stationed at Hampton Court. The Noble Earl is reported to have slept very unsoundly since the issue of the General Order forbidding the infliction of corporal punish ment on the Sabbath. The abolition of such an innocent and laudable amusement as that of lacerating men's backs with the cat-o'•nine-tails on the most sacred day of the week, is highly reprehensible and vexatious. We do not, therefore, wonder at his Lordship feeling uncomfortable and restless in his nightly slumbers. It is true that Lord Rosslyn, Lord Greenock, Lord Sandys, Lord F. Fitz-Clarence, Lord Charles Wellesley, L or d Sussex Lennox, and several other noblemen who have been in command of regiments, never had recourse to such pious and princely Sunday pastimes as those indulged by the Noble Earl ; but then those noblemen are what is vulgarly called " slow coaches" in comparison to Lord Cardigan, and have no con ception of those elegant fancies in which he of the " bottle" delighteth to revel. Surgeon Sandam leaves the regiment and retires to half-pay.— United Service Gazette. RESIGNATION OF THE GOWN OF BASSI snAw BY ALDERMAN WHITE.—On Saturday a good deal of bustle was caused in the Guildhall by the reported resignation of the aldermanic gown of the ward of Bassishaw. Alderman White, having stopped payment, determined on Friday to re sign his gown, and accordingly wrote to the authorities on the subject. A Court of Aldermen will be held, it is believed, on Tuesday, for the purpose of accepting the resignation, and issuing a precept fur the election of an Alderman for the ward. The friends of Mr. Thomas Farncombe, one of the Sheriffs, who is most highly respected in the city, got up a requisition to that gentleman yesterday, signed by the first people in the ward, and it is generally believed that he will accept the invi tation. Mr. Evans, of the house of Seager arid Evans, was also spoken of as a person likely to be a candidate, but he de clined when lie understood that Mr. Farncombe was in the Illr. Tegg, the booksell er , who opposed Mr. White at Ale last elOtion, has, it i s believed, altogether given up the : - ”lttApieh.diP,4lvif: honours as inferior to the " otium cum dig , mrate!' Ise s is enjoying with his family at Norwood. The ot4l4diiidCttrirentioned as the probable opponent of Mr. Firiteembe; : . Wait; Mr. David Salomans, who contested the gfiwn.o:f; - Aldgfte ward with such energy. Mr. Farncombe is a ge s lid!faa,ti , of very large fortune. DIZA,S OF MRS. JENNER, OF LIVERPOOL. — About 'a fortnight since Mr. Jenner, of Everton, near Liver pool, shot his wife and son immediately after breakfast ; the boy died immediately, but his unfortunate wife lingered in great agony up to Saturday last, when she expired. The ball lodged in Mrs. Jenner's head, where it remained up to the time of her death. Mr. Jackson, the late Under Sheriff of the City of London, has started as a candidate for the City Comptrol lership, vacant by the resignation of Mr. Hooky. THE LIBERALITY OF LORD WALDEGRAVE. TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN. Sin,—A paragraph is going the round of the Papers, which states that his Lordship is permitted to promenade with his Lady between the gates, as her Ladyship was so much annoyed by the gaze of the prisoners on her first visit to his Lordship, that she had determined not to enter the prison again. Can you inform me, Sir, whether myself and fellow prisoners are not as much entitled to promenade outside the gates as his Lordship ? And if so, with whom does the authority rest of granting permission ? I should like to be placed on the same footing as his Lordship in respect to locomotion, and I cannot see why every pri soner's wife might not urge the same reason as Lady Waldegrave that she should be allowed to promenade outside the gates with her husband. The paragraph also states that his Lordship has been " very liberal to the poor prisoners." As I know many of them are extremely distressed, and, in fact, often in want of a dinner, it gave me great gratification to hear that his Lordship had kindly administered to their ne cessities. It appears, however, that the person appointed by his Lordship to dispense his bounty to the poor pri soners has neglected his duty, as, upon inquiry, I can not find one recipient of his Lordship's or of her Lady ship's bounty, except that a gentleman in her suite dropped 2s. 6d. into the poor-box on her Ladyship's departure, when she first visited the prison. I am, Sir, your obedient servant, HENRY HETHERINGTON. Queen's Bench, May 10, 1841. IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT. HOUSE OF LORDS, May 10. ROYAL COMMISSION. The Royal Assent was given by Commission this day, at Four o'clock, to the South Australia Bill, the In demnity Bill, the Metropolis Improvements Bill, the Wishaw and Coltness Railway Bill, the London and Blackwall (Commercial) Railway Bill, the North Mid land Railway Bill, the Eastern Counties Railway Bill, the Chard Canal Bill, the Chelsea Poor, &c. Bill, the Annan Fisheries Bill, the Derby Gas Bill, the Harro gate Improvement Bill, the Britannia Life Assurance Company Bill, the Ihninster Roads Bill, the Sturapeross Roads Bill, the Barnstaple Roads Bill, the Christchurch and Lyndhurst Road Bill, the Wimborne and Piddletown Road Bill, the Eccleshill Inclosure (No. 2) Bill, the Do venby and Papcastle Inclosure Bill, and Burgett's Natu ralization Bill. The Commissioners were the Lord Chancellor, the Earl of Clarendon, and the Earl of Shaftesbury. The House then adjourned during pleasure. Their Lordships re-assembled at Five o'Clock. The Bishop of DURHAM presented a petition from Durham against Sunday travelling on railways and canals. The Bishop of CARLISLE presented a petition from his diocese for a better regulation of tithe composition. Lord HATHERTON presented six petitions from merchants, carriers, and boatmen connected with the Birmingham, the Severn, and other canals, against Sun day traffic on canals and railways. CORN-LAWS. The Duke of BUCKINGHAM presented petitions from a great number of places in various counties against alteration of the Corn-laws. _ Lord REDESDALE presented a petition from North ampton against any alteration of the Corn-laws. Lord HATHERTON presented a petition from inha bitants of Newington-causeway, Surrey, for the extinc tion of tolls on the metropolitan bridges. Messengers from the Commons brought up a number of Bills, which were severally read a first time, but their designations were not heard in the gallery. CHURCH-RATES. The Earl FITZWILLIAM presented a petition from a place in Essex for the abolition of Church-rates and of Ecclesiastical Courts. _ The Bishop of LLANDAFF presented a petition from a place in his diocese against the abolition of Church rates. Lord KING presented a number of petitions in favour of the Jews' Declaration Bill, and for the abolition of Church-rates. The Duke of BUCCLETJCH presented petitions from Melrose, Gordon, and other parishes in Scotland, against alteration of the Corn-laws. _ _ _ ----.-- The Earl of RIPON presented a petition from the New-cut, Lambeth, for the abolition of the metropolitan bridges tolls. The Earl of MORLEY presented petitions from Dart ford for the repeal of the Corn-laws, and the abolition of Church-rates. The Earl of ALBEIVIARLE presented a petition from the performers engaged at the Lyceum Theatre praying praying for the extinction of the metropolitan bridge tolls, which they said were a great injury to their theatre. SIR ROBERT STOPFORD. The LORD CHANCELLOR reported to their Lord ships that he had received a letter from Sir Robert Stopford, acknowledging the communication which he had received from his Lordship informing him of the vote of thanks which had been passed to himself, and the officers and men under his command, in which he states that he had communicated the contents of that letter to the offi cers and men, and that they were equally grateful with himself for the distinguished honour which had been con ferred upon them. CORN-LAWS. The Earl of ROSEBERRY rose for the purpose of moving for certain returns with a view of showing the operation of the existing Corn-laws. It had been stated by certain Noble Lords that the present duty was merely for the purpose of regulation, and its operation had been contrasted, he thought, invidiously with the opera tion of a fixed duty. Great misapprehension appeared to exist on the subject of the operation of the pre sent Corn-laws. It had been stated that they imposed no tax on food, while the fixed duty on corn, which had been proposed in another House, had been stigmatised as imposing a tax on the food of the people. For the purpose of affording information on this important subject, he moved that there be laid before the House an account of the quantity of wheat and other grain imported into the United Kingdom and entered for home consumption during the years 1838, 1839, and 1840, with the amount of duty paid thereon in each year respectively. Earl FITZWILLIAM considered the returns moved for by his Noble Friend as of great importance, and cal culated to do away with great misapprehension. Great delusions existed on the subject among both parties, but more particularly did those delusions exist among that, which, for want of a better name, had been designated the agricultural party. If any Noble Lord was then pre sent who had been present on Friday last, he would recol lect that he (Earl Fitzwilliarn) had expressed his opinion that the tenants who were now paying a fair rent as de duced from the averages of the last ten, fifteen, or twenty years, would be able fairly to pay an equal rent during the same term now commencing, under the operation of a fixed duty, as proposed in the other House of Parlia ment. Since that period he had endeavoured to procure facts in support of his opinion, from a consideration of the averages during the period he had mentioned. He had been unable to procure the averages for the last two years ; but from the year 1820 to the year 1838 the average of the averages had amounted to 56s 4d ; and supposing during the last two years the average to amount to 70s, which he considered would turn out to be about the truth, it would make but a small addition to the amount he had mentioned. The effect pro duced by the existing Corn-laws was very singular ; because while during a time of distress and scarcity they raised the price of corn considerably, during a time of abundance they depressed the prices in an equal degree, thus inflicting a positive evil upon the farmer, and forcing him, during those seasons, to accept of a lower price than he would otherwise be enabled to procure. They afforded another example of the in ability of human ingenuity to adapt, a priori, a Ilan to circumstances which it was impossible _ _ for human foresight to foresee. He hail said that under the proposed system the tenant would be able to pay as good a rent for the next 20 years as he had fairly been able to pay under the old law. By far the greater part of the lands of England are held by tenants at will, and the landlords take the time which is most favourable to them for fixing their rents ; and the object of the Corn-laws was to persuade the ten ants that they should have as high an average of prices as that of the period in which the rent was fixed. The law, he conceived, had been mischievous to all parties, but most particularly so as to the occupying tenant. Lord BEAUMONT deprecated the incidental discus sion of so important a measure, upon the presentation of petitions. He denied that this was a question between the landowners and the community at large. The Noble Earl (Fitzwilliam) forgot that there were a great num ber of landowners' who lived on and cultivated their own lands, which they would not do, if the price of wheat was lower than fifty-five shillings a quarter. The effect of the proposed alteration of the Corn-laws would be to throw out of cultivation all the poorer soils, upon which the proprietors had expended large capital, on the faith that the existing protection would be con tinued.—(Hear.) That would lead to the ruin of many, and would drive vast numbers of the agriculturists now employed on those lands into the towns, where they would increase the competition amongst the manufacturing opera tives, whose wages would be at once lowered by the operation of the Bill, even without such additional com petition. Lord ASHBURTON said that the precise object of the Corn-laws was to give a general average price of 555. or 56s.—never under that, and never above 60s. If they had had th a t e ff ec t s the object of those who had introduced them had been attained. Such had actually been the result, except only in two years, in one of which the price fell below that ave rage, and in the other rose above it in consequence of the season. He denied that any large . portion of the landowners of England were guilty of tricking and trap ping their tenants in the way which the Noble Earl op posite supposed. The Earl of RADNOR concurred in what had fallen from his Noble Friend below him (Earl Fitzwilliatn). The Corn-laws had produced fluctuation in the price of tfluectoua course of o f corn, which was the article, of all others, the least liable to fluctuation of state of things. Lord ASHBURTON exp l a i ne d. He had stated that in h p th ri since those l aws were enacte d , t h e price had been re markably ste a dy, except in the ten years to which he had referred. ecetwinentiltye-finavetuyrealar which had passed (Ashburton) s p o k e Lord PORTMAN sa id th a t when the Noble Lord of a remark on the steadiness of price, he seemed not to have l oo ked into the returns, in which it wo u ld b e found that there had been first seven years of an ascending s cale, then seven yeara of a descending sca l e. T hen t h ere had been years of the ascending scale, and now we were in the commencement of the descending scale. In the course of that time, wheat had risen to 905., and had sunk below 405.--(Hear,, hear.) The average supply of wheat grown in England was not sufficient for the subsistence of the inhabitants. If his Noble Friend would compare the last census of the populati on w i t h t h e num b er of acres that could be employed in the wheat cultivation, and the actual quantity of wheat grown in the average of years, he would see that we could not do without the assistance of other countries, to supply our people with food.—(Hear, hear.) As we could not do without that assistance, we ought to take measures for securing it in the most certain and ad vantageous manner, but he did not think the pre sent a fitting time for the discussion of those measures. The Earl - of HADDINGTON said that if the produce of England were not sufficient, the supply from Ireland and Scotland made up the deficiency.—(Hear, hear.) The Earl of RADNOR said that Scotland was not an exporting country of corn ; on the contrary, a large quantity was imported thither.—(Hear, hear.) Ireland did export corn to this country, but for the last eight years in constantly diminishing quantities.—(Hear.) The Earl of FITZWILLIAM thought it was most gratifying that Ireland was gradually ceasing to export corn.—(Hear, hear.) It :was most desirable that all the corn grown there should be consumed at home.—(Hear, hear.) The fact that the quantity exported from Ireland had been diminishing from year to year was evidence of the improving condition and habits of the people. The Earl of WICKLOW would contend that the sup ply of the United Kingdom was sufficient for the supply of the population, unless, indeed, the Noble Earl avowed himself a repealer, and would separate the two countries, and so cut off this country from the supply of Irish corn.— (Hear, and a laugh.) He feared that the falling off in the export of corn from Ireland was not occasioned by an in creased consumption at home, but by the bad harvests of the last few years. After a words from Lord PORTMAN and Earl RADNOR, the petition was laid on the table. The Marquis of NORMANBY presented petitions against Sunday trading on canals, from several places in Derbyshire. The Noble Marquis postponed till to-morrow the Marquis of Lansdowne's motion on the subject of Promissory Notes. Lord MELBOURNE presented petitions from various parts of the country against Church-rates. Lord YARBOROUGH presented several petitions from Linbolnshire against alteration of the Corn-laws. The Earl of MOUNTCASHEL presented a petition from a medical body in Ireland, against the vaccination clauses in the Irish Poor-law Bill. The Earl of FITZWILLIAM presented a petition from Glasgow, Bolton, Hadley, and from several places in the West Riding of Yorkshire for repeal of the Corn-laws. Lord RODEN presented a petition from Presbyterians in the North of Ireland, against lay patronage in the Church of Scotland. The Ecclesiastical Commissioners Act Amendment Bill, went through a Committee ; and the House adjourned at Seven o'clock._ HOUSE OF COMMONS, May 10. The SPEAKER took the Chair at Four o'Clock. Certain returns were presented from the Treasury. Mr. Putman, the Deputy Usher of the Black Rod, summoned the Speaker of the House to the bar of the House of Lords. On his return, the SPEAKER announced that he had been to the House of Peers, where the Royal Assent had been given by Commission to several Bills (for which see Lords' Report.) BRITISH PLATE GLASS COMPANY. Mr. BROTHERTON brought up the Report of the Committee on the British Plate Glass Company. Mr. HODGSON moved that the Report be taken into further consideration that day six months. The Hon. Member contended that as the custom of the House was not to renew private Acts of this description, unless some special circumstances were stated, the House could not consistently renew the Act under consideration. Mr. LOCH, as Chairman of the Committee, sup ported the Bill. After a short discussion, strangers were ordered to withdraw, and the House divided., when there appeared— For the original motion 45 For the amendment 75 Majority in favour of the amendment —3O Mr. MILNES presented a petition from Coventry, praying for the continuation of the Gilbert Act. Mr. GRIMSDITCH presented a petition from Mac clesfield, signed by 8,334 persons, praying for Church Extension. Mr. BROTHERTON presented eight petitions from Salford, and other places in the neighbourhood of Man chester, praying for a reduction of the duty on Sugar. Mr. THORNELY presented petitions to the same effect from the, grocers of Wolverhampton, of Hilston, and of Wraxall ; also a petition from a Baptist congre gation in Staffordshire for the abolition of Church -rates, and the liberation of Mr. Baines. NOTICES OF MOTIONS. Sir C. GREY gave notice of his intention to bring forward a motion relating to the Corporation of New castle-upon-Tyne. Mr. Sergeant JACKSON gave notice of his intention to move for a return of the instructions issued by the Poor-law Commissioners in Ireland, relating to the mode of making valuations. TIMBER DUTIES. Mr. O'CONNELL presented two petitions from the timber merchants of Dublin, and the ship owners of Dublin, deprecating the proposed change of duties upon foreign timber.—(Tory cheers.) Also 25 petitions, praying for a repeal of the Corn-laws. SUGAR DUTIES. Mr. SHEIL presented a petition from the Association of Merchants of the City of London trading.:into the Brazils. They state that they did not coincide with the political opinion of her Majesty's Ministers, but they highly approved of the measure for the reduction of the duties on foreign sugar. They thought a duty of 365. per cwt. would sufficiently protect the colonial interests, and secure the consumers from an excessive price— that the Brazilian Government had adopted several measures from the protection and improvement of the slaves, and they were convinced that the illicit introduc tion of slaves into the Brazils would not be arrested by any differential or protective duties. The petitioners prayed the House to accept the proposal of her Majesty's Government for the reduction of the duty on foreign sugar. Mr. E. TENNENT had a petition to present from a body who coincided with her Majesty's Government. It was from the East India Association of Glasgow, and they stated that, in their opinion, the proposed reduction in the duties on foreign sugar would not realise the ex pectations of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, but be seriously injurious to the West India interest. The ATTORNEY-GENERAL presented a petition signed by 27,000 inhabitants of Edinburgh, praying for a repeal of the Corn-laws, which they considered to be contrary to all moral, commercial, and political principles. Sir G. STRICKLAND presented eighteen petitions from different places, in favour of a repeal of the Corn laws. Petitions were also presented by Mr. Wilbraham, from Westbury ; by Mr. Easthope, from Blackfriars-road, Hounsditch, and the borough of Southwark ; by Mr. Grote, from various places ; and by Mr. Wood, from Kendal and Manchester, against the Corn-laws. Mr. BLACKBURN presented a petition from the county of Lancaster, in favour of the present system of Corn-laws. Sir E. BULLER presented a petition from Chester, in favour of a repeal of the Corn-laws. Petitions, in favour of the Corn-laws, were presented by Mr. G. Palmer, from a parish in Essex, and Mr. Fellows. Petitions praying for the repeal of the Corn-laws were presented—Mr. Busfield, 7, from Bradford ; Mr. C. Wood, 10, from Halifax and neighbourhood ; Mr. Aglionby, 15, from Cumberland, many of them from agricultural districts, and six from metropolitan districts ; by Mr. Labouchere, from a public meeting at Liverpool, presided over by the Mayor ; by Mr. Gisborne, 12 ; and Mr. Hume, 20. Lord SANDON presented a petition from the grocers of Liverpool, praying that the duty on sugar should be further reduced to 30s.—(Loud laughter.) Mr. CHALMERS presented a petition from Mon trose, in favour of the reduction.of the Sugar duties. Mr. O'CONNELL wished to know from the Noble Lord the Secretary for the Colonies whether he had re ceived any despatches relative to a murder, which it ap peared was committed by persons armed with muskets, who fired out on some individuals from an Orange lodge in Canada (as we understood). Lord J. RUSSELL made some reply, with was in audible in the gallery. Mr. O'CONNELL was desirous of knowing whether the Right Hon. Gentleman the Secretary at War had received any commuuication from the East India Com pany with respect to the spiritual wants and instruction of Roman Catholic soldiers in India, and whether the Right Hon. Gentleman had any hopes of procuring a remedy for the evils complained of on this subject. ADJOURNED DEBATE. On the Order of the Day for resuming the debate ad journed from Friday last being read, Mr. EWART rose and said that this question was looked upon by some as a subject of party struggle, and that the measures introduced by her Majesty's Govern ment were attributed, not to financial considerations, but to political motives. For his part, however, he felt that the people of this country would not enter into such questions, but that they would judge of the measures upon their own merits. They would merely ask whether the measures were conducive or not to the prosperity of the country ; he was sure, at least, that that was the only consideration which would have any weight in that great commercial district, which extended from Lancashire to Yorkshire. He believed that the alterations contemplated by the Government would be gladly hailed by the manufacturers of that district of the empire, and that they would not attend to any insinuations as to the motives of Ministers which might emanate from the other side of the House. They would also inquire by what means Hon. Gentlemen would meet the defi ciency in the revenue, which they were the first to reprobate. He should like to know what they had to substitute for the measure before the House. Were they prepared to substite for it a tax upon property ? If not, he should like to know how they proposed to pay the interest on our enormous debt, or to satisfy the commercial wants of the country ? The country expected to hear, from them, or from their leader, some statement of the mea sures by which they were prepared to meet the emer gency, and to protect the country in a crisis they had so vividly described. There was one circumstance in the course of the debate, which Hon. Members had not adverted to, namely, that the Government had drawn a clear distinction between sugar, the production of slave labour, and that produced by-free labour, having imposed upon the former s-duty of 425., but on the latter a duty of only 365. It was right to call the attention of the country to this omission. He (Mr. Ewart) had had I the honour, with the Hon. Member for Beverley, to stand up, through ma n y a l ong d e bate, against the sys tem of West India monopoly, and in claiming the right of equal duties for the continent of India. Since that period a change had come over the spirit of his Hon. Friend, who was now an ardent supporter of the mono polising proposition of the Noble Lord (Lord Sandon). They had been assailed from the beginning of this debate with the constant cry of " protection,"—a cry, in his opi nion, utterly at variance with the interests of the public, and which ought not to be responded to by a majority of ' that House. Some thirty or forty years ago, a similar exclamation was raised on the part of the West Indian interests, when it was proposed to admit foreign cotton into the markets of Great Britain. About the year 1784 American cotton was almost unknown in this country ; and it was t singular fact that the custom-house officers of Liverpool refused to admit the first cargo of cotton which came from the United States, from an idea that in that country it could not be produced. Had the attempt which was then made succeeded, where would have been that colossal fabric, the cotton manufacture, at once the wonder and the envy of the world ? He appealed to them in behalf of the consumers of this country to extend to sugar the same principle which, fortu nately for the interests of the country, had been applied to cotton, in the assurance that as in the one case it was for the interest of the country that the protection should be withdrawn from cotton, it was for the interest of the country, equally in principle if not in degree, that it should be withdrawn from sugar. The Noble Lord the Member for Liverpool, and those who thought with him on this sub ject had asked for further protection. How long was it meant that that protection should be extended ? He believed the longer an approximation towards an equality of duties was delayed the worse would it be for the interests of the country. If they continued to foster and pamper up these interests they would never be able to endure a wholesome exposure to commercial freedom. The longer they maintained those monopolies the less monopolists would be able to meet a vigorous opposition from commerce in other parts of the world. Not only did the West India interests seek to maintain their monopoly, but they were assailed also on the part of the West India interest. He earnestly hoped that as the commercial part of the country at least was resisting the continuance of the West Indian monopoly, that it would equally resist the imposition of any monopoly, on the part of the East Indies which, added to the other, would depress the commercial energies of the country, in a manner that it would never be able to get rid of. The arguments in favour of pro tecting duties were confined to three points-Ist, that the imports would be sufficient for the demands of the country, even continuing the present system of mono poly ; next, that the revenue proposed to be raised by the Chancellor of the Exchequer would be insuf ficient ; and lastly, they endeavoured to show that the price, under the existing system of protection, would be sufficiently low to meet the wants of the consumer. 110,000 tons was the quantity of sugar that was expected from the West Indies ; the West Indians themselves calculated it at 150,000 tons, but he had been informed, upon good authority, that the former calculation was the more correct one. In Demerara the falling off had been considerable, and from the Mauritius no more was to be expected than last year. There was a large stock on hand but that was easily accounted for by the high price which sugar bore of late, which had decreased the consumption. It was calculated that we would get 56,000 tons from the East Indies, making a total of 194,000 tons, which was almost the exact quantity we im ported 12 years ago, although the population had increased, according to the best calculatons,atleast 'l5 per cent. He (Mr. Ewart) was anxious for the good, both of the consumers and merchants, that the duty on sugar should be reduced as low as possible. He was willing to advocate a reduction of the duty on colonial sugar, and always said that he would give to the colonists the advantages arising from three princi ples :—First, the reduction of the duty ; second, immi gration and its consequence, the means of obtaining free labour ; and last and best of all, the advantages of free competition. Great Britain ought to be the natural entrepot for sugar, instead of letting it go to Hamburgh and other towns on the Continent. Brazil was a country of the most gigantic resources, which might be here after developed to the great and lasting advantage of this country ; and he trusted that whatever might be the result of the present debate, the time would come when that fertile land would be opened to the people of Great Britain. But he was aware that on the present occa sion they would have to encounter the interested op position, not only of the West Indian and East In dian bodies, but that they would also have to struggle with the far more formidable phantom of an anti-slavery opposition. He had always been anxious, when the question of the sugar duties was be fore the House, to draw, if possible, some distinction fa vourable to free labour, and adverse to slave labour. The most mature reflection, however, had convinced him that such a distinction Was impossible. He did not believe that any nation could at on such a prin ciple. The international commerce of the world should go on, whatever might be the nature of individual opinions. A few parties might be found who, from conscientious motives, would refuse to use articles which were the produce of a certain species of labour ; but such reasoning could not be applied to nations. He also entertained the firmest conviction that if free labour were admitted into fair competition with slave labour it would vanquish it in any market in the world. He found it to be the result of the inquiries of Mr. Gurney and Mr. Baxter, that the slave-trade was not to be put down by cannon or violence, but by commerce and civilization. Even if we were to make the attempt to maintain freedom and put down slavery by prohibitory duties, it was im possible that we should succeed. The sugars of Brazil and Cuba would still find their way as an exchangeable commodity to Hamburgh, and other Continental ports, and the manufacturers must go there for produce. Knowing, therefore; that it was impossible by fiscal laws to suppress slavery, he could not concur in the opinion which had been expressed by the Hon. Member for the Tower Hamlets. Commerce itself was the great emancipator. He knew not by what means slavery had been more effectually checked in all ages of the world. Had we refused to admit American cotton into this country, the effect would have been to perpetuate slavery in that part of the world. America, confined within her self, would have continued the system without a chance of mitigation.—(Hear, hear.) But what had been the effect of our commercial intercourse with that nation? ' There was a strong anti-slavery confederacy rising up in America, which was shaking that system to its foundation. He thought the proposed reduction of the duties would enable them to make:arrangements for the extinction of slavery in the Brazils—he believed all the people of the Brazils was ready' to meet them on that point, if they would only introduce a more liberal policy with regard to articles the produce of the Brazils. His Right Hon. Friend the Member for the Tower Hamlets, in his vigo rous declamation against slavery the other night, seemed to forget the distresses of the poor of his own country. In no part had that distress been more severely felt than among the inhabitants of the Tower Hamlets. He be- Ilieved that associations had been formed in various parts of the country to provide a substitute for sugar not only , for the dearness of its price, but on account of the injus tice and exclusive nature of the present protective system. The privations caused by the present system fell exclu sively, upon the poor, and his Right Hon. Friend the Member for the Tower Hamlets left them uncared for in his just declamation against slavery. He (Mr. Ewart) was as ardent an enemy to slavery as any one, even as his Right Hon. Friend, but in his enthusiasm in that cause he could not forget the claims of the poor of this country. Surely if the duties were to be reduced at all, that was the time—when commerce was depressed, and did not show its usual elasticity in spring—when our manufacturers were working only half-time, and our commercial towns languishing, and the poor suf fering great hardships.—(Hear, hear.) The time was come when some steps must be aken to re-invigorate the declining commerce of the country. The labouring classes were suffering great privations, and that, too, at a time when their habits had changed materially for the better. These high duties might have been retained when they were consumers of spirits, but they were now consumers of coffee and tea. Twenty-five years ago there was no coffee-house existing in London for the ex clusive purpose of selling coffee, now there were 1,800. In France the protective system had been partially abandoned, with great benefit -to that country. The principles' of free trade were extending themselves all over the world. He deeply felt, that, in i these great commercial changes, Great Britain ought to take the lead ; and, as we had been the first by our navi gation laws, passed under the iron reign of Crom well, to introduce the exclusive system into the commercial world, so he trusted we should be the first to hail the new era, and to enter upon the glorious career which was opening before us. There was a Com .. mittee then sitting 'to consider the subject of the ex portation of machinery, and he trusted that the result of their labours would be to legalize such exportation. Now, if we admitted a free competition in our exports, - in we ought to adopt the same principle our imports, and assert the great doctrine of free trade generally. If we valued our country, if we wished her to be hereafter what she was at present, the first commercial country in the world, we should do so ; if we did not, we should fall victims to a narrow, exclusive, isolated system which had ruined the Dutch, and would ruin the English afterwards. If, on the contrary, we adopted the system of free trade, we should maintain our right position at the head of the commercial nations of the world. Mr. HEATHCOTE could not help thinking that the scope of the debate would be but ill understood through out the country. It appeared to him that there were two debates - going on at the same time. The one intro duced by the Noble Lord the Secretary for the Colonies, who had stated that he intended to propose a fixed duty of Bs. on corn, and entered largely into the general sub ject ; and the other, introduced by his Noble Friend, the Member for Liverpool, who had solely confined himself to the defence of the sugar duties. In the observations which he was about to offer to the House, he trusted he might be permitted to say a few words on the larger and more general question. The Noble Lord the Secretary for the Colonies had proposed this measure as the first step in a new course on which he was about to enter, as the first of a series of alterations affecting our colonial, our agri cultural, and our commercial system. The three great articles which he proposed to touch were corn, timber, and sugar. With regard to corn he had never known a more determined feeling of opposition against any propo sition to exist throughout the country, than existed against the proposition of the Noble Lord—it was par taken of by all ranks, and was entertained by men of every political opinion.—(Cheers.) Representing, as he did, an agricultural interest, he should think himself un- worthy the position which he occupied, if he did not at once declare that he would accept of no compromise.— (Cheers and counter cheers.) The agriculturists gene rally were determined to resist a fixed duty—(Cheers)-- but when the Noble Lord talked of a fixed duty of Bs., he could not but think that the Noble Lord was talking of that which he could never for an instant seriously mean to propose. His Hon. Colleague the other night had said that he would prefer having no duty at all to such a protec tion as would be afforded by a duty of Bs., but he thought his Hon. Colleague might be quite assured that he would never have to make his choice of such sad alternatives, as there was not the slightest chance of the proposition ever being carried.—(Cheers.) Then with regard to revenue, it was utterly impossible that such a duty upon corn could ever realize the expectations of the Chancellor of the Exchequer. If a scarcity happened, with the country, as it must necessarily be, dependent upon fo reign nations for a supply, it would be impossible that such a duty could be maintained ; so that the country .1 would at the same time be afflicted with the two evil s ; a scarcity of corn and a defalcation in the revenue.,,, believed that last year a duty of 1,200,0001. had 7 paid upon corn imported, and now the Chancellor o t Exchequer calculated upon an increase in that reve. n At from the imposition of a fixed duty. Was it r sib to suffer a r evenue o f t wo m illi ons to be ject to the fluctuations which must necessarily occur le times of scarcity ? Some gentlemen said they did not hoed to carry these measures at present, but that they to do so at some future time.—(llear, hear.) fie w°. o 3 at once join issue with them and say, that as long of the Legislature continued, as at present, coinposett,, sensible men such measures never cou ld b e carne •' thit (Hear.) How could th a t w hi c h was j ust to -d a y be un i i re to-morrow, or that whi c h was t rue to - n i g ht be un' oe d a year hence ?—(Cheers an d coun t er cheers.) li e st • st. by the present law becau se d h e believed it to be Po reasonable, and necessary ; and he believed that in , t h i s opinion he was in unison with th e grea t m ajority °f constituency. With regard to ti m b er h e was far T ,l butsaying that when the protection a ff or d e d t o any int o bu t was excessive it would not be right to diminish regard should be had to the time at which such rations were proposed, and when h e reco llected tha t ; had recently suppressed a formid a bl e i ns urrectie n 4 l ,4 our North American colonies he could not but it as impolitic to introduce among the colonists a t h ' eso subject of irritation, and thought it a p oor re turn t b a d loyal colonists by whose exertions the rebellion st been suppressed. Besides, he could not forget the g i : e b, shipping interests of the country, and how bur s :al it was to maintain the navy of the country ' fi e 0 out a large commercial marine. The secur in :o supply of hardy seamen for the navy wa s of Pri e t oe. value and far beyond any pecuniary conside ra ts With regard to the sugar duties, h e cons idered nis s to great and costly experiment, but o ne mos t &rio t o f the honour of the country, was now in the coal b e trial in the West Indies, and one w hi c h he she' or sorry to see abandoned. The Noble Lord, with a , liness which did him honour, had stated that ile,,,,, el) ber not think of attacking the p r ot ec ti ve d u ties on tes te d and on sugar without attacki n g th e grea t e st pro Est, interest of all. So he, as re p resen ti ng th a t would say that they would never think of defer es a themselves alone, but a l so d e f en d th e o ther inte r o , attacked with it.—(Ch eers .) Wh y did no t the rdis,ajo facturing interests, who were so clamorous for free for everybody el se , a b an d on th e i r own protec ti v e &Toe. —(" Hear, hear," f rom M r . H ume .) He k n ew the t io Member for Kilk enn y wou ld say " h ear , h ear ," lt u id wanted something more th an vague d ec l arat i ons . fie smn'ier,/ like to see some one con nec t e d w i t h t h ose i nteres ts e e- ribe forward with a motion to that effect.—(Cheers.) Hon. Member for Wigan had t a lk e d a b out o ur se ' nti l an example of free trade to foreign coun t r i es , but _ w t• be they follow it ? He thought not, and as h e preferre d f e lt substance to the shadow, and practice to theory, he 0, himself with great regret compelled to vote agains, t , ; ,,) nisters on this occasion. —(Cheers from the oppos'," - e d Mr. LASCELLES who was very indistinctly Poo' in the gallery, protested against the Ministers e t he gating to themselves exclusively the credit of being the champions of free trade. Mr. Huskisson had began , t he system, and he had no doubt his Right Hon. Fria' c o l' Member for Tamworth, would be fully prepared t° oo e low up Mr. Huskisson's policy. The question we? dby snrrounded by difficulties, which had been increas e arty the conduct of the Government in making i t a Pride question. With respect to the principl e of free , re , he cordially concurred in it, and thought that ali t i o o strictions might be relaxed, provided such relit° or took place gradually and in a manner consonant T o o present artificial st a t e . H e wou ld no t t aun t ow st i r with having bro ug ht f orwar d th e i r pro p os itions to ot est port a tottering G overnmen t, b u t h e wo uld Pr against their right to go to the country as exclusive advocates of free trade. Ijob Mr. GROTE said he perfectly agreed with the de Member for Lincoln, in considering this as one t tilt series of measures which were intended to dive is s commercial tariff of this'country of a restrictive c0_ 9 41 - ter. The measures proposed by' her Majesty's 01 ",,, i `i t b' meat for relieving the present financial difficulties. out increasing the burdens of the people, met wi t or unqualified approbation. Though there hid been n ° o n' mediate financial distress, he would still have ,„ e at. tended that there was ample space . for improvee w we re The three articles included under these proposition s o s ir articles of comfort, essential in any domestic es,t 3 „ te 'o meat, whether rich or poor, and in his (Mr. " 1.- ett ell opinion the same principle of legislation applied t o of them. The propositions of the Government theoed tent of that protection, and in so doing greatly soft and mitigated its pressure upon the consumers. -ti e fre e, sidered that the trade in corn ought to be pe dectlY if to and he had already more than once expressed hixos e e re that effect. The proposition of the Government, th re' fore, fell short of what he thought justice to the countrla be quired. At the same time a fixed duty of Bs. we ll/ or a great benefit, compared with the system now in e P e ole tion. Amongst the mercantile community a consin e r r ,ir , difference of opinion prevailed as to the propriety o ,', l. T o alt ing protection to the landed interests at all ; some tliv ti f e re a that it should be given, others that it should not ; t to the was no difference of opinion, he believed, as ,g r at• superiority of a fixed over a fluctuating duty. can tile hear.) A fixed duty would be regarded by the mei:vert 'population as a great improvement. It wolild ineii the trade in corn from the irregular and preC 3r l, ° g ; and ratter which it now had, into a regular proceet dot and would prevent the evils ari s i ng f rom th ose sn v oido unforeseen demands which at p resen t cou ld no t be i t tr The Hon. Member for Lincoln had t a lk e d a bout tr e of possibility of maintaining this fixed duty in a ° l en t of scarcity. He contended that the present enhancen a eol lar price arose in a great measure out of the very a ni character of the duty, and that the country wen' d witu case be benefited by the alteration.—(Hear, bea r) e ( 4o respect to the proposition for an alteration of 1. "„., Ives on sugar, there again the principle of protectw_d t he maintained, but it was limited to what he consider 50 50 very substantial protective duty, and difference U ,, f 10 per cent.—(Hear, hear.) Had differential day u. tig o per cent. been maintained in favour of West Indian, s o ws!. over. East Indian, that would have been considere d or if unfair to East Indian interests.—(Hear, hear.) those the United States had imposed a duty of 50 per een' t bose, our manufactures, over and above what it imposed ` 9 _, Tl ts of France, there would have been serious comphu n iii be the disfavour shown to England. It could not, the 0,0 contended that a differential duty of 50 per c erit ;boli G not a substantial protectio n .—(H ear , h ear .) Throu , the whole of this debate great stress had been laid uscre the encouragement which would be given by this ul d a pOt to slave-made p ro d uc ti ons . H e mus t sa y he con' t hi 4 concur in the opinion which had been expressed ou sir subject. There h a d been loud denunciations again st t t ve very, but what was proposed ? Was it proposed th,aooo should remo ns t ra t e w ith slave-holders, or that we s, ll s use force to abolish the system, or that we shoul a ii r the an interdict on certain articles of food ? Why ev e dis. Hon. Member for the Tower Hamlets had distinctlf, not claimed any such intention. If Gentlemen won-Riot, go that length they must be prepared to reason the , ib io ter not as one of conscientious objection but a r o e prudence and policy.—(Hear, hear.) They- deo°11,1„, the slave-holders of Cuba and Brazils, but upon w ily whf reality did the weight of their displeasure fall ? not upon the slave-holders, but upon the consowoo They were punishing the poorest portion of 0 1 5 io e . population, while they were thinking to punish the It holders of _ Cuba and the Brazils.—(Hear, bear') hicli should he remembered that the restrictive policy' v!j en had been adopted for the suppression of slavery ha tirely failed to produce such a result, and had even that the contrary effect.—(Hear.) His own opinion svns ioe y commercial intercourse would have the direct tenu b, by to diminish slavery. By persuasion, by inducenientieo, intercourse much might be done to mitigate the s).s%`eri The Noble Lord who had opened the debate had dwelt ins much on the example of England in inducing other oa' r t o. to abolish slavery. It appeared to him that the line e,' gument adopted by that Noble Lord was calculatc o i an ther to encourage than repress slavery ; for he 1 13 ;4 0 r gued as if the productions of that system were slv e d? to those of free labour.—(Hear, hear.) He beli es however, with his Hon.' Friend the Member for NI 48r a , that that argument was founded on an entire rilitP„r o so hension of the subject. The question before the l' - te r was not whether they should or should not give PT e it tion to colonial interests, but whether they should g' s v er to a greater extent than a differential duty of 5 0 . cent. It appeared to him most unreasonable to claps higher duty. He would not draw- pictures of ells be' which prevailed throughout the country, because he iota lieved that such a course seldom influenced the decT io t of the House. He would, however, remind the Hoos e jo re the aggregate consumption last year was sometbi n g w hich , than 180,000 tons. The addition made to the taxation, Ile pressed upon the people was no less than 1,600,0 00/ • fe d therefore called upon them to pause before they e oncel` t i j o to impose so enormous a burden upon the people, not for. 6 purpose of replenishing the Exchequer or the coon „. lt but for the purpose of protecting a private interest. re , would be much more consistent with their duty, as presentatives of the people, to study in what m anner We f t could best diminish those burdens.----(Hear, hear.) p r few days ago he had presented a petition, numerous it signed by the mercantile community of London —a 111 ,;j, enligb(ened class of men, praying f o r a tu revision of our tariff. He rejoiced that the 111in istr :, had come forward with a measure that went so far to lot complish the wishes of the petitioners—(Cheers) r e he felt quite satisfied that it would lead to a very l fbe extension to the trade of the country.--(Cheers.) , to remission of the duties upon :Agar would tend grea t iv make London the centre of the sugar trade for all itch rope, as Hamburgh now was.—(Cheers.) With. 1 1 of feelings he gave his humble support to the propositio fah the Noble Lord, which, he trusted, would be suc ces cea and would be followed up when the proper time a ri la. by measures directed towards the same end, and v ceived in the same spirit.—(Cheers.) the li H r. ou C s? L to Q t ij he ll a N tha b t e tre ed y w to ere c n all ot dthisecuaststienligtitn°ll-woe, tion for the House to go into a Committee of free t rim but a Committee of Ways and Means to consider of or a scale of sugar duties.—(Hear, hear.) The Noble 14 ,e , on Friday night stated that he appeared there as the cis, presentative of the people of England, but they vox claimed such championship most emphatically, as t i l e shown the other day at Nottingham, where„„ nr Ministry was even more unpopular than the - 1 -,,,:; e 0 laws. The finances of the country had now u or s, under the control of the Government for six e dy and certainly they were in a bad state, but the re' - ne ; proposed by the Noble Lord was not the proper ° of the only real remedy was to place them in othe l r i o better hands.—(Cheers.) There was a party as an - . 1 1)• that the change should take place.—(lronical cheer i o 0 0 Hon. Gentleman might put their own construction be what he said, but he meant by the party to wil ° tea had alluded, that party who were not fitly repre e at by the Noble Lord—the people of England ; that' l4 s and influenti a l p ar ty were most anxious that the should b e re li eve d from all the cares and responsib ite ld, of office ; nay, he believed the constituencies of Sh e lls to Leeds, and every other great town were auxi° mo u. follow the example of their fellow workmen of &Wog" EVENING EDITION THE SUN, LONDON, TUESDAY MAY 11, 1841 VENING h.