The Sun. — London, England, 1842-04-20 00:00:00

I sad ." 1 111 9 LOUfg I , 110 Pcnlement, if carried now; Would be to raise a debate t i 'Pnn Church l e ases. If the question of Church , e ases was to be d e cid e d, let it be decided by a Bill D rought in fur 'the purpose, and nut incidentally by a clause in the Sourawark EnprOvement Bill. The Ilouse make the taw general if it pleased, but he trusted th ey would i.ot, fur the sake of encumbering a reticular rut asure, insert a clause deciding a great Pnbtic prine4le. He felt bound as much to oppose the 741) titm - of his Noble Friend for delaying the subject us rnotion of the Hon. Member for Berkshire for the Ititivhketion of the clause. o ti - the motion that the clause enacting that persons P6ssossing Church property purchased under the Bill, t 9 tdd receive compensation, stand part of the Bill, the or4Le on the Bill was adjourned, on the motion of Lord m Soerset, and the clause ordered to be printed. !4,STON ;SUPER-MARE IMPROVEMENT BILL. On the motion of Mr. MILES the Weston Super- Attire Improvement Bill was read a third time. I'IEL PIER BILL. m lhe Pict Picr Bill was read a second time. COMMITTEES. c ''Mir. LOCKHART move d th a t Mr. Forbes be added `•`!. the Committee on the Inchbally Road Bill. \l r. GREENE opposed the motion as contrary to the Venvral practice of the House. Mr. LABOLCHERE also condemned the motion as departure from established practice. • After a few words from Lord G. SOMERSET, the motion was withdrawn. ELGIN BURGHS ELECTION. The SPEAKER informed the House that he bad re !eived a communication from the agents for the peti !Nine% complaining of the late return of a Member 1 for :Elgin district of Burghs, that it was not their inten te proceed with the petition. riclis OF MOTION—THE CHARTER. Ur. T. DUNCOMBE gave notice that on Monday the 44 of May he would present a national petition, signed 11 3 , tnore than three millions of in e . ndustrious classes, 4, ,M:our of the People's Charter, and that on the fob.- ' dtty he would move that the petition be taken into ;17:Ifilderation, and the petitioners heard by Counsel or :7'their agenta. :Ur. WALLACE gave notice of his intention to 11 ' ( -)ye that the Income-tax should not be proceeded with until the, tariff had been discussed. iir. Hurr gave notice that on this day fortnight llauld call the attention of the House to the borough t°4 l;istracy of the country.—(Loud cheers.) EMIGRATION. r Ur. MAXWELL STEWART wished to put a ques ,Pa to the Noble Lord the Secretary for the Colo "es on the subject of emigration. He had been en sis, tedwith the petitions of many thousand persons who .. , w ere unemployed at home, and who were anxious proceed to the colonies, if they could find em• tovinent there. They had heard that the demand fur bo . ur in the colonies was very great in comparison with 2},t' demand in this country. He hoped that the r able Lord 'would state, first, whether in the e( 'lonies there was a great lack of labour, and . w hether labour received remunerating wages ; and Whether there was any intention on the part of her lajesty's Government to facilitate in any way the means ▪ transport from this country to the various colonies. 4 , 4 t 1 putting these questions, he did so with reference, not * e those who were unwilling to go, but to thousands of ,V olunteers who are anxious to go if they could obtain ell 'Ployment.—(Hear.) He wished also to know .ttliether, in the case of the other colonies, the ( P4 ,,nt„ 'plan would be adopted as had been with 'etfterice to the Australian colonies, namely, that of ap -IYing the proceeds of the sale of land to the purpose of tiefre3ing the expense 'emigration. Lord STANLEY, who spoke with his back to the ''s .4▪ I tere, and in so low a tone of voice that we hardly catch his sentences,, was understood •',7• say that the question of the Honourable Gentleman a mo,t, important one, and he trusted that ~rre Mouse would, in consideration of its importance, al him to give not only a direct answer, but a some ,"hat detailed one. The first question of the lion. Gen ll'emari was, whether there was not, at the present time, !I great demand in the colonies of Great Britain for ex ;:hei ve employment of a large number of emigrants. I.le 1-!I;otild put the West India colonies out of consideration a ltogether, as the question to consider referred to AuS tridie, end the Colonies in North America. For the last vcars the Froduce of the sale of land had been ap riesi to the purposes of emigration, which had principally :en under the superintendence of the Government. HIS 'Oble Friend who had preceded him in the Colonial 'Lltiee• knew that there had been about 40,000 emigrants 71 out since December 1840, at a cost of 900,00 01 . (as tl' Ufiderstood). During the last year the actual amount 2 ,aligTat ion to the colony of New South Wales had been i t 4 ,4). By the last accounts received from the Governor o ePpeared that 12,750 emigrants had arrived, and that I Mmore O were on the road. These 12,750 had in 11:)ived the colony in a debt of 1 1 , 0001 ., and what b e the distress occasioned when they found there . • ere 10,000 more coming out',? The Governor stated Iflat at that time there was no demand for 4 0er in the colony, but that on the contrary ` t here e x isted the greatest difficulty in providing labour ' those immigrants who had recently arrived there. statement Stanley) felt it to be his duty to make this P r esent thus publicly, in order to show that at nesent there was no demand for labour in that and that emigration could not be pushed beyond „ Frain.point, unless capital emigrated likewise, and if 4 1 , ittil did not emigrate, those who emigrated without 1,,' r i TPerty would be exposed to the greatest distress. -- ' e ar( hear.) He did not mean to say that the present 'lat e of distress in New South Wales was likely to be tralanent. On the contrary, he believed it would only land temporary ; that it arose from the cessation of the ; sales for some time past, which had ceased in conse erare of the commercial embarrassments of the , I ",caly. He believed that the colon would be to absorb a continued stream of emigration, vrovided they did not attempt to pour in too many e migrants at once. It was the opinion of the Governor of the colony that the colony was capable of receiving an kially from eight to ten thousand emigrants; the House , nuld, however, perceive that to send out twenty thll'o thousand annually, more than double the num ' 'l• the colony was capable of receiving, must in ;s occasion great distress among those emigrating. , I th respect to the colony of Van Diemen's Land, he at the present moment, in his hand, about 1,500/., Produce of the land sales in the colony, which sum ~:•e:ld be devoted to the purposes of emigration. The ,1 / 4 - Ttly was capable of receiving about 1,500 persons t r ,,•% course of a year, and that number had already s er ,rated thither in the course of the present year. With th"l'd to Western Australia, he ought to beg pardon of e house for going into such details, merely in answering i,,,bestion---(Cries of " Go on")—but it was a most y,ortant question.—(llear, hear.) With regard, then, to :: kl _, e stern Australia, the colony was a very small one, t " was not capable of receiving emigrants to any great ~tw e t lt- He believed, however, that the colony was ::tt, th g on steadily, and that there was a demand for labour capable of absorbing annually about two hundred - I ,, , '"lgrant s , and that number were already on their all there. In consequence of the disastrous state of I; u4 til Australia last year the land sales in that colony , i .kt} entirely ceased, and in consequence of the ration of the large Government expenditure fur Leblie works, the extravagance of which had Z;eatly conduced to produce the existing state distress, -:so many persons had been thrown 4 t of employment, that out of' a population of 15,000 o: 11 s 1,200 were living as paupers, being maintained \v t . of the public funds, from want of employment' bait resp ec t t o th e c olony of New Zealand, he belies , . d - • Mt the Australian colonies it afforded the most reason ht „ ProSpeCts to the He would refrain ILae present moment from expressing any ()pillion as to i li a ` .. 'se settlements which were under the control of the i t tl y Zealand Company, as they had more means of ti ow: what , the resources of those employed there eat be than he had. He had now stated the case of . :1,7 0 Afferent Australian colonies. With respect to the r th American colonies, the case was rather different, th e zluse the Government had no funds there for „ . :th! • purposes of emigration. In those colonies proceeds of the land fund had been paid over `,i•i„ the local legislature ; on the whole, he beleved the 7th American colonies held out a favourable prospect '4A,„ ealployment to emigrants. With respect to Canada, thoughht that experience showed that it N e likely to become a scence of profit employment to the emigrant. It was ;that, in many instances, the emigrants had suffered !ely, but he would earnestly recommend all who emi , (7„ 41ted to place themselves under the Government Agents e diffirent colonies, who were the best calculated , i ti i lltorm them where the greater quantity of empioy tekt't 'was to he found. With respect to the subject of I gtatioll to Canada, although their condition last year favourable, many had suffered from the severity of the l:lther, but those were chiefly weavers and persons who 4 - ce not in the habit of working at out-door employment. i ths k llY of them, who had not found employment, had been VPorted by private contributions. At the same time, f it ,, t tmst say that this class of men, were not likely to form le, t ° ,erable settlers ; they were likely to be exposed to h ( ,,,"bips in ;the early stages of their settling. He tL q,i' ll ed he had fully answered the question of the Hon. -... 4 !leMare—(Hear, hear.) •Ok te P.M. STEWART thanked the Noble Lord for A ti 4l l answer he had given to his question, and on At ri Part of the unemployed weavers of Paisley, lie e ;ht it would tend to remove any prejudice they , 8 "t have on the question. POOR-LAWS. te 4lt • T. DUNCOMBE asked if he might be permittei to 11 , 14 a question to the Right Hon. Baronet, the Secre . ' , Home Department. The Right lion. Baronet 51 1 „ stated, th a t immediately after the Easter recess he 1 , (0 d. 41 introduce the Poor-law Amendment Bill. lie •N t r to ask on what day they might expect to see it eaecd? Aft;' 'T- GRAHAM said he had not fixed immediately ta tt t Easter for. bringing en the subject. The same had been put by another Hon. Gentleman 0p ,1.•%, ? '‘. and he should give the same answer to the pre - V ti (-ete, that as soon as the business of the House had e Some reasonable progress, he should bring in the 14 15 • 41 1 SYRIA. L 'l o t• BOW-RING said, in the interests of humanity, ',4 4 d.a question to put to the Ri g ht Hon. Baronet, as employment of irregular Arnaut troops in Syria rei,rr he Turkish Government. Their former out: !,• t 0 , 1 1 4, had already been the subject of representation ' l / 4 ,S,Ze desp a t c h es o f L o rd I'onsonby, and those who were ) g . it t 7,, lilted with the country could not contemplate their N l ikfi * ed employment without alarm. He therefore 121 ° to know if any despatches had been received ItiAlGovernment on the subject, or if any measures s' -‘'Teri taken by them to avert this great calamity ? ,` IL PEEL said that he was glad to find he had re -1;41 eel ice of the intentions of the Hon. Gentleman, and of ~ ,allant Commodore opposite (Sir C. Napier) to put cer ';e24ipstions to him with respect to the state of affairs of Perhaps, as the Gallant Commodsre had given a dis. rlee on the subject of h.s question, he would allow him, for the—purpose -of saving the trouble of the House, to answer the quesion then, as he was about to answer another question relative to the State affairs in the same country. He could not answer those questions without adverting to the peculiar and anomalous posi tion in which he, as a Minister of the British Crown, stood' nith respect to the condition of affairs in Syria If the situation of affairs in Syria. and the relations of Syria with this country, or the relations of the Porte with this country were of an ordinary kind, he should feel himself compelled to de cline abogether answering the question, because he thought.no thing could be more impolitic than that a British Minister should answer questions with regard to the administration of domestic affairs in another country. One of the questions was, whether or not the Porte intended to employ a certain de scription of soldiery in Syria, and the other was whether the Porte had retuned to remove a certain officer whom they had entreated nith a . special command in that country? He would repeat that if the relations of the Turkish empire and of Syria were of an ordinary character he should decline answering those questions, because, among other rea ons, he felt ►t was utterly impossible for him to undertake the ad ministration of Syria. There was sufficiently enough in undertaking the administration of affairs in England-- (Herr and laughter)—without his undertaking the adminis tration of affairs in a foreign country. With regard to the ap pointment, to which the GallantCotnmodore alluded, he did not hesitate to say that a more objectionable appo ntment could not be made. They had remor, trated with the Porte upon tha subject, and they had received an assurance that that appoint ment should not be affirmed. With regard to the question of the Hon. Gentleman, le regretted to find that the Porte had thought it expedient to send out those troops. The British Government had sent out instructions to Sir S. Can ning, their Ambassador at the Porte, to represent to the Porte, that nothing but evil and confusion could ensue from employing their troops in the interior of Syria. The numbers, he believed, had been considerably overrated, and an assurance had Leen given that they should not be employed in the interior of the country. The justification of their employ. ment was the great loss of life in the case of the Turkish troops employed in Syria, and they were solemnly assured that they would be retained upon the coast. The Eng ish Ambassador had expressed to the Sultan his astonishment and concern a' the Arabian troops being sent to Syria, and warned the Porte of the impression which such a step was likely to produce on the European Governments. He trusted that he had now shown they the scenes which had occurred in Syria had been the object of con.plaint, whether successfully or not, and that. he had convinced the Hon. Gentleman and the House that the Government was not indifferent to a question which so deeply affected the tranquillity of Syria. BOROUGH MAGISTRATES. Mr. HUTT wished to ask the Wght Hon. Baronet oppo site (Sir J. Graham) whether he had, received any statement. as to the manner in which justice had been administered in the boroughs since the recent appointment of Magistrates. Sir J. GRAHAM said the Hon. Gentleman was so kind as to give him a general notice that he intended to ask him certain questions to-day respecting the recent appointment of borough Magistrates, but he had not told him what would be the pre cise questions, so as to enable him to give a specific answer. The Hon. Gentleman had, however, relieved him from any anxiety which he might have felt by giving notice of a motion upon the subject. In that state of things, he must absta:n from entering into any statement at present. Mr. A.GLIONBY begged to ask whether the Right Hon. Baronet had any objections to lay on the table of the House any documents which might be important, Sir J. GRAHAM said that Hon. Gentlemen on the other side were very fond of making complaints, doubtless agreeab e to them, but certainly not vet) , complimentary to him (Sir .1, Graham). Mr. HUTT said, the Right Hon. Baronet had misunder stood his question. He did not ask whether there had been any complaints made of the municipalities ; what he had asked was, whether complaints had been made by the municipality, or other parties, as to the manner in which justice had been administered. Sir JAMES GRAHAM said, he had already stated, that if the Hon. Gentleman had any spetific motion to make, the Hon. Gentleman could do so, and he could also move for auy returns he thought proper. The grounds on which he (Sir J. Graham) had advised Her Majesty to make the appointments, would be explained by him when that motion was before the House. IRISH JUDGES, AND THE INCOME-TAX. Mr. O'CONNELL wished to ask the Right Hon. Baronet, the Member for Tamworth, whether the salaries of the Irish Judges, paid out of the Consolidated Fund, would be liable to the Income'-tax. Sir R. PEEL said, that the arrangements he proposed to make with respect to the salaries of public officers Leing oiable to the Income-tax was:this, that in respect of all appointments in Ireland, the duties of which were permanent and stationary, in these cases they would not be subjected to the operation of the Income-tax. In the case, for instance, of the Commis • sioner of Customs, he would nut be subjected to the operation of the tax. Air. H. WA SON here rose, but was interrupted by The SPEAKER, who said that the motion of the Hon. Member was irregular and unparliamentary, and he was quite sure the House would insist upon his (the Speaker's) rising to stop the Hon. Member from going on with it.—(Loud cheers from the Ministerial benches.) The Hon. Member's notice contained a condemnation of a Committee then sitting. if the Hon. Member persisted in his motion it would arraign the conduct of the Members of the Committee then sitting. That House, according to its rules, wou ld never allow the conduct of any C omm itt ee t o b e a lluded to until that Committee had made its Report. The proceedings of this Committee were still pending; it therefore would be in, the highest degree irregular for any Honourable Member of that House to allude to the conduct of that Committee until its Report had been made. He (the Speaker) put it to the Hon. Member whether, considering the peculiar nature of a Select Committee —considering that it was a tri bunal altogether independent of that House—constituted by Act of Parliament, every Member of which was sworn to try the merits of the case—he put it to the Hon. Member whether it would be right to allude to the conduct of the persons com posing that Committee. Mr. RIGBY WASON said it was his duty to how to the opinion and decision of the Chair, at the same time he had in tended to have avcided adverting to chat had been said by the Members of the . Committee. lie would merely state to the House it had not been his intention to have concluded with any motion.—(Laughter, and cries of " Oh, oh.") Mr. PACKINGTON said that he was sure, from the pecu liar position in which he was placed, the House ould allow him to express his deep regret that the forms of Parliament would not allow the Hon. Gentleman opposite to proceed with the notice he had given, as he was prevent, d from repelling the im putation which had been cast upon the Committee. ;Whatever calumnies he (Mr. R. Wason) might have thought it his duty to cast upon the Committee over which it was his (Mr. P.'s) painful duty to preside, lie would say for the Al embers of that Committee, and for himself, that they courted investigation to its fullest extent.—(Cheers. ) He (Mr. P.) most earnestly hoped, whatever might be the charges which the Hon. Gentle man might think proper to bring ferward—he (Mr. I'.) did most earnestly hope that at some future period the Hon. Gen tleman would, consistently with the forms of the House, bring his accusations a g ainst the Committee under the consideration of the House. Rut there was one fact which he (Mr. P. ) thought ought to be made known to the Hon. Gentleman him self, and which he (Mr. P.) thought it was right to the Com mittee and the House, should be made public. The fact was this, that although he believed the Committee were unanimous with regard to the character of the evidence given by the party now in Newgate, notwithstanding that fact, the Committee were not unanimous as to the manner in which the conduct of that party chould be followed up. Air. Rigby Wason, with Mr. Rennie, rose amid loud cries of 't Greer,' but the former gave way to Mr. RENNIE, who said he felt it to be his duty as a party interested in the subject, to state to the House that he did not agree with the course taken by his Hon. Colleague. Sir R. INGLIS, who spoke amid much confusion, said, he hoped that what had been said by the Speaker would be ex punged. together with the notice of the Hirt. Member, from the journals of the House. It appeared to him as a matter worthy of consideration, whether the same course which had been adopted in 1835, relative to a notice of motion which was considered calumnious and indecorous, and was ordered to be expunged from the journals of the House, should not be adopted new. The SPEAKER made some reply, but there was so much noise in the House that we did not hear it. Mr. COCHRANE postponed his motion for certain papers relative to the diplomatic intercourse between this kingdom and Greece to a future day. FRAUDS IN MANUFACTURES. Mr. FERRAND said, in rising to address the House he felt most deeply the responsibility which attached to him, for he bad net only the prayers of every honest manufacturer for his suc cess but the eyes of the working classes, both of Great Britain and Ireland, were watching him that evening. But when he recollected that he was placed that evening in the position in which he then stood, not by his own seeking—when he remem bered that he had been driven by Hon. Gentlemen opposite to that course—when he considered that it was their duty to take the steps he was taking, he considered he needed no apo'ogy. When he first of all brought forward the charges he was about to attempt to prove to be correct, he was induced to do so, be cause, throughout the country, men were hired to use the most exciting and violent language ; because placards of' the most in flammatory kind were circulated through every town and village, calling on the working classes to look on the landed proprietors as their greatest enemies, as those who kept their food from them, as those who dried up the mother's breast, and caused the death of the infant in the mother's arms, as those who outraged the laws of God and man, and all for selfish motives. He had inquired into. the truth of those charges among the working classes themselves, and they had repudiated any share in making those charges, and that they had been heaped on their heads by the manufacturers themselves. Ho was aware that the first of the resolutioes he had moved was a Standing Order of that House, but he had placed it on the paper to let the people know that if the manufacturers brought forward false evidence, that House had the power of protecting them. The second reso lution he considered absolutely necessary for the .protection of the working classes who might have to attend before the Select Committee, if the House should grant it. the working classes state that they dare not attend and give evidence before any Committee unless they are protected, as they would have nothing but ruin before them. Those who gave evidence • before the Committee obtained by Mr. Sadler were ruined by being denied employment, and this class now hoped that this House, having given twenty millions for the purpose of putting down slavery among the blacks, andgranted 17,0001. to enable the Hon. and learned Member for Bolton to go on the Continent to make inquiries as to the extension of Com merce and Manufactures, would not refuse to grant them pro tection. He thought the Hon. Gent. would agree with him that nothing could be more requisite for extending the trade and commerce of the country than that our manufacturers and merchants should be of unsullied character—that in all their differenttrading transactions with the diff. , rent quarters of the globe they should act with justice, and that they should not practice deceit either as regarded their fellow-countrymen or foreigners He found that our ancestors were of that opinion. They had been jealous of the honour of the natjon, and had passed stringent laws to prevent any attempt at fraud. He found in the preamble of the Act 13 Richard 11. cap. 2, that the Legislature at that time had interfered to prevent fraud in the manufacture and packing of clogs.—( The Hoe. Member here read the preamble of the Act alluded to.) He found that, in the sth and 6th of Edward A . I , on Act cf Par hamen was passed to provide for the due making of woollen cloth.—(The Hon. Member here read a portion of the Act in question, from which it appeared that the cluthiers of that day were not altogether ignorant of she practice of mixing a coin position somewhat analogous to "Devil's Dust." with the wool, since, as the Act expresses it, from "lack of knowledge," and others "from extreme covetousness, and having more respect for their own t rivate advantage than for she advantage of the community.") Again, in the 43d year of the reign of Elizabeth, he found Parliament interfering for the purpose of regulatir,g the manufacture of woollen cloth.—(The 11.c.n. Member here read a passage of the Act of Elizabeth, front which it appeared that the clothiers still continued to disregard 4 . the good and godly enactments" which had been made for the regulation of the wooden manufacture, and that they stretched the fabric of the cloth, filling tip the insterstices with " chalk-flour and other things," which caused the cloth when wetted to shrink. The Hon. Member then referred to an Act passed in the 10th year of the reign of Queen Anne, for the better payment of the poor makers of cloths, and observed that he had read to the House certain Acts of Parliament, passed by their ancestors for the protection of manufacturers and w ork men, and also for the protectition of the public, but about fifty I years ago a new light broke in upon the peoples' rekresenta. tires, and the consequence was that those acts were suspended. s What was the result of that? Why, th - at iiauds of the most gross description were practised by manufacturers in all trades, to 'he great injury of the public, both at home and abroad. I He (lid not mean to deny that there were many manufacturers I who were anxious to be honest and upright men, and who I wished' to carry into the market articles that would de justice, not only to them-elves, but the public ; but when the new principle burst upon the country a new arena was opened to the manufacttirers to cheat and defraud their neighbours both here and abroad. They had been told by Hon. Members that the Corn-laws were the drag chain of the agricultural and manufacturing interests, and they had been told also that they wore the only cause of the present distress. They were told that if the landed interest would only give the manufacture s a free trade in corn there would be no limits to the extension of British commerce. Bet he found that the merchants and manufacturers of this country had been in possession ot the South America market from the year 1807 to the year 1822, or 18t1.3. At that time Mr. Canning declared that we had called a new world into existence ; and it was thought that a boundless &1.1 was thus opened for the commerce of this country. But what was the consequence of the trauds committed by the manufacturers themselves ? They were them,elves the first cause to a great extent of losing the market ot South America. Ile had heard it stated by some Hon. Gen tlemen opposite that the use of flour was indispensibly necessary in making cotton and calico ; but he (Mr. Ferranti) begged leave mo. t distinctly to say, that such a practice was formerly unknown. Flour had never been made use of until the manu facturers haul introduced it for the purpose of cheating and fraud. fie did not utter those expressions merely tin his own authority. In asking for a Committee that night, he wished to say, that he would use the evidence and authority of persons entitled to the highest credit. He would call to his aid manu factureis of the highest respectability and standing in the country, as well as working people, who would come before the Committee if pr'oper protection were given them. He felt so strong its the truth ot his po- it ion, that he fearlessly asserted that if any rule of the House prevented the granting of the second part of his resolution, he would ask for the Committee before whom he would prove every word he had said, upon the authority of manufacturers, merchants, magistrates, trades men, and operatives. There was a work of very great merit, entitled " Baines' History of the Cotton Manufacture," to which he would for a moment refer. The work was a standard book upon the subject; and no person had ever attempted to dispute its assertions. In April, 1835, the work was most ably rev.ewed in Tait's Edinburgh Magazine. The reviewer stated that he should extract one pasage relative to practices which he had heard, were banishing foreigners from our markets, and sending them to countries where these disgraceful practices were unknown. Mr. Baines said, that, to improve the ap pearance of the cloth, it was usually passed through starch made of flour, mixed with porcelain clay and calcined sulphate of lime, by which the c.oth was made thicker, and appeared to have greater substance and strength than previously. l He also stated that it. was a " contrivance originally devised for the purpose of fraud ; and which, though now too generally understood to he regarded as fraudulent, it would be creditabie to the trade to discontinua." Here, then, it was distinctly stated that the practice of using flour paste originated in fraud. He would also read to the House the letter of a gentleman who had paid great attention to the subject. The Hon. Member then read an extract describing the process of applying flour paste in the manufacture of calico. He would take the House with him into South America, that they might see what reception our manufactures had met with in that country. He would quote from Robinson's work on Paraguay, when under the rule of Dr. Francia. It was there stated that not a single piece of linen for the soldier's shirts and trowsers was purchased without previous inspection by his Excellency; that having found that the cloth had wide interstices between the threads, he was in the habis of viewing it with a microscope to ascertain its real texture ' • and that when he found the threads yawning he allowed the owner half price, telling him at the same time that he ought to be punished as a knave. The Jews, said his Excellency, were cheats, but the English were downright swindlers. Nt hat a disgrace was this, said the Hon. Member, to this country that their merchants should he thus considered. When he read it his blood boiled to think that Englishmen should have so traduced their country seven thousand miles from home. Here was the true history of the doe nfall of English commerce. " For," said Dr. Francia from the same authority, " go about your business, and the next time you bring your goods, bring them from honest Ger many." What was the reason they had lost their trade? Be cause their manufacturers had been so hungry after filthy lucre. In Chambers' Edinburgh Journal, ot Feb. 19, in and article, entitled " A few weeks on the Continent," it was stated that !the Swiss supplied themselves with home made clothing, because they had no confidence in the durabi lity of colour of the English printed cottons. He had also received from a respectable shopkeeper in Liverpool a speci • Men of the coarsest sort of white shirting, and he could hardly have believed, on less respectable testimony, that the poor were so plundered by the manufacturers. A sample of that shirting he had sent to the Right Hun. Baronet and the No ble Lord. The lace trade, according to Babbage's " Economy of Manufactures," was reduced to a state of ruin by the frauds racticed in it ; and in the stocking trade, it appeared from evidence, that stockings were made of an uniform width all the way down from the knee to the icicle ' and when they were wet the purchaser could net distinguish the fraud, but when they were dry, he found they hung like a bag round his anodes. (Laughter.) He had heard a great deal of the distress of the country, and of the Corn-laws being the cause of that distress. ( The Hon. Member here read an extract from the Nottingham Joutnal, complaining of the practice of making what are called " choppings off," in that neighbourhood, by means of which a stocking frame was enable to manufacture twice as many stock- ings as it would under a better system, and that consequently there was a great scarcity of employment and considerable distress among the stockingers, who had seldom 'OB.-worth of furniture in their houses, and whose destitution was increased by the fraudulent manner in which they were paid under the truck system.) He would call the particular attention of the Right Hon. Baronet to the last paragraph of that article in the Nottingham Journal, in which the waiter called upon the Government to come forward and protect the stockingers who were a degraded half-starved body-of useful men, who had no means of protecting themselves. They asked through him for a Committee of that House, and he trusted there was no Hon. Member who had heard hien who would not assist him in ob taining that Committee. Gentlemen opposite had said that they would throw no impediment in his way, and he trusted that they would act np to what they had said, that the Government would not object to the apppointment of this Committee. He would now proceed to give them an account of the frauds committed in the ma nufacture of watches, which, when they were carried abroad, would not go for half an hour.—( A laugh.) That had been given in evidence before the House of Commons. It was no case for laughing—( Renewed laughter)—it was rather a reason why the Legislature of the present day should inter free to prevent fraud, and show themselves (said the Ho nourable Gentleman) "as jealous of the British ration as what our ancestors were 500 years ago." lie haul received a letter on the subject. of those frauds, in which the writer had I statue that he had been before aware that many of the prints exported faded on the first washing. He had net been aware that a great proportion of the clothes themselves were only fit for wadding until he had read his ( Mr. Farrand's) speech, and suggested that 'recourse be had to the old plan of stamping ma• nufactured articles previous to exsortation. TI e writer then went on to state, that needles had been exported without eyes ; that until the Tower stamp had been restored, the muskets ex ported had only been dangerous to those who fired them ; and that the axes were such that the American woodsmen could no longer venture to use them. He concluded by reproaching the Legislature with running the risk of ruining the honest and industrious, in preference to adopting measures for restraining a parcel of et amps. He had also brought before the notice of the House the frauds committed in the use ot shoddy cloths. Now he would read a letter he had received from a respectable manufacturer of fifty years' standing, who resided in Yorkshire, who observed, that he (Mr. Farrend) had not overstated what had taken place in his part of the country. The use of shoddy cloths had become so general, that his corrrespondent stated his opinion to be, that unless the Government passed some restrictions to the use of such commodities, the woollen trade of the country would soon be put a stop to. lie had seen woollen cloths stiffened with flour, the effect of which was that it was constantly eaten by moths, and soon became good for nothing. He was sure that restrict - ens to the use of such materials might be made at a very small expense. An other letter that he had received stated that Vie writer knew a manufacturer, who was in the habit of busing up ofd woollen stockings, chopping diem up, and mixing them with the wool. I‘ ow, if he wanted one proof better than another of this, lie would refer to a document issued by Government itself. The manufacturers had been making use of such materials that the Government had been Wined to take up the question to pro tect themselves. 'They had' issued a circular, in which they prohibited the use of such goods; and in that circular it was stated that all cloth was to be made of new wool, and that if it was not the Board would have nothing to do with it, or the manufacture of it. The Board had nothing to do with them ; they had deserted such infamous rascals, and well they might. —(Laughter.) He (Mr. F.) thought the House would agree with him that when he asserted the manufacturers of the coun try had been losing their character, he had substantiated his asset tion. If there were any doubt upon the subject, either on the part of the Government, or of any Member of the House, I he thought he had produced sufficient evidence to • convince them that a Select Committee should be granted. Had he not convinced Hon. Members that it was time fur the Government to step forward and put a atop, by legislative enactments, to their practices? He was convinced, that if a : poor man had committed similar frauds he would be severely punished ; and therepught not to be one law for the rich and another for the poor. In the name of the poor man, and in the name of the honest ma nufacturers of this country, he called on the House to come Jar ward and interfere. He would next, with permission of the House, allude to the truck system. That was a sub j ect. of the greatest importance to the manufactures of the country. The working men were now literally perishing in thousands ; and he believed their miseries had been mainly brought about by the cruel op ' pression of their masters. Ho had reason to know that some manufacturers not only paid their workmen in goods, but that. the goods they gave were of a very inferior description. Those manufacturers sometimes delayed the payment of their labour el s not only for weeks, as he had said, on a former occasion, but for months, and sometimes for twelve months. He had lately received a letter from a highly respectable gentleman, who, in consequence of the part he had taken on the subject in that House, had stated to him that he knew of a case in which an application was made by a labourer of the name of Erwin to the Board of Guardians of Cockermouth ; and it was stated as a reason why relief should be afforded to the unfortunate in; dividual, that in the firm for which he worked it took the t pe ratives six weeks, in consequence of the badness of the materials which were used, to earn as• much as they should have otherwise earned in three weeks.—( Hear.) The inquiries of the Guardians confirmed the man's statement. Such was the thraldom, however, in which these unfortunate creatures were held, that the wife most earnestly intreated that no steps might be taken under the Act of Parliament, lest her husband and a crippled son should be thrown out ot employment, as they could could do nothing but weave. The same gentlemen stated with respect to the truck system, that though the house in question had not adopted it, yet it was adopted by a firm, one member of which had been in town as en Anti-Corn•law Delegate. Now he had told the House that these poor people had their wages paid partly - in goods. He held in his hand a blank form, which was filled up by the hook-keeper, and which every poor man had given to him when he left the mill on Saturday night. 'I 'wee were the items deducted from his wages t— ient, fuel, cash stopped, ditto overpaid—he should say that that es as veiy seldom—tools, fines. Many of these manufacturers bad posted up rules, which he had in his possession ; and he fearlessly asserted that if these poor uneducated men, women, oys, and girls, were to study from Monday morning till Saturday night to avoid breaking the rules, it would be im possible that They should succeed, so stringent were they, and so oppressive to the wen k• eople.—( Hear, hear.) By these fices a large amount was deducted from their wages, to which mist be added in many cases twenty, thirty, or forty per cent. for the profit upon the manufacturer's goods. Now the po r work-people we re robbed also by the system of trucking cot tages. He had this statement from a poor working man, who had begged him not to give his name. It appeared that the manufacturers kept a black book, whieh was circulated through the country, and when a man had once given offence, it wets impossible for him to obtain work unless he applied for it under a feigned name, and men in such circumstances were often compelled to 'steak stones on the road. This poor men stated that the toasters had houses which they compelled their workpeople to rent, and those who did not live in them themselves were obliged to let them to others, in several instances rooms which were hired at 2s. or 3s. a week were let by them for 4d. He also stated that many of the manufacturers who kept cows com- THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY MORNING. APRIL 20, 1842. - - pelted their verkpeople to take two or three quarts of milk per daf, and that when - the cows were killed - they - obliged them to take part of the meat. He then read a letter from a clergyman of the Church of England, stating that the truck system pre vailed in the borough which Mr. 'Villiers represented, and that a member of his Committee, and one of his active partizans, was one of its chief supporters. The men were paid once a month by goods from the " Tommy shop," where the articles of sugar, butter. bacon, and tea, were charged at an enormous profit, it being 50 per cent. on the article of tea alone, while the articles were of a very inferior deser'ption. The truck system also prevailed ia Scotland ; in the Coke-bridge Iron Worse, near Glasgow, the wages of the men were paid with goods, at a profit of 50 per cent. above the retail dealer. At Paisley the same nefarious system prevailed, and he had a letter from a working man at Glasgow, stating that the iron masters' round that district made their own laws, which the men were forced to obey, and they were of the most hideous cast; if they resisted them they were carried before the Magis trate of the district, who never failed to decide against the miner. One of the rules was, that if any miner allowed his father, brother, or son, •to sleep in his cottage. when not employed ;n the same works, he was charged double rent for his cottage. Some industrious men had not received a shilling wages, in money, for the last four yea s. The truck system was pursued in Ireland as well as Scotland ; he should not trouble the House as to its existence in Wales. The !truck system was carried into effect throughout the whole of the manufacturing districts of Anti Corn-law manufacturers England. In some places the had made their work-people pay for Anti Corn-law pamphlets. —( Loud cries of " Hear, hear.") Mr. THORNELY (we believe) expressed his disbelief of this statement. Mr. FERRAND—He had stated nothing that he would not prove before the Select Committee. Nay, if a poor creature was obliged to leave the manufactory to satisfy the calls of nature he was fined. Some manufacturers even made their work-people pay them for their own coffins, for when they applied for a few shillings to pay for the coffin of their relative, they were charged at the rate of Is. a week per pound sterling for the money. One manufacturer at Sheffield bad been fined 101., and others in sma ler sums, under a prosecution for paying a man's wages in cloth ; but though he had moved for a return of the number those convic tions, it was not to show that these laws were in force, but to prove to what extent they were evaded. lie attributed a great part of the distress of the country to the amount of wages in money withdrawn from circulation, the small shopkeepers never touching any of it. He denied that be had charged the manufacturers of Yorkshire with participating in the truck pen expressly uarded against it. Two names to the i ;de ire a htaithat- had been published, in denial of his statement, were forged : and of th e names att ac h e d t o it, s td , n expre one was making 70 per cent. by his cottages, from his workmen. At Idle, in the neighbourhood in which he (Mr. Ferrand) re sided, the truck system was in active operation. He would prove this by the Report of a Government Commissioner.— ( The Hon. Gentleman here read an extract from the Report alluded to, from which it appeared that the truck system was in operation at Wendle, and that the Commissioner had received information on the subject from a weaver, who, however, had requested the Commissioner not to ask any questions, as if it were known that a weaver bad riven testimony on the subject lie would suffer by being turned nut of his employment.) That showed, as the Commissioner said, how impossible it was to enforce obedience to the law where both the employer and the employed united to defeat it—and so over-stocked was the labour market at the present momeut, that the labour ers were compelled to submit to whatever the employer might propose. He would now call the attention of the House to the existence of the truck system in Birmingham, where he be lieved its existence had been denied. He would, however, prove its existence by the testimony of a Gallant Officer there, who in a Report dated Small Arms Depot, Brighton, April 10, 1842, had stated that it was a general complaint among persons employed in the gun-lock trade, that the truck and tommy system was carried to a considerable extent in that trade. '1 hat gentleman, however stated that be had felt it to he his duty to issue directions to all persons engaged on Go vernment contracts—many of whom he felt bound to say, discontinued the truck system—to pay all their lock-fillers their full wages in money. It was not the first time the British Legislature had been asked to interfere for the protection of the working classes. On Feb. 17, 17.95, Mr. Whitehead bad made a motion calling on the House to afford protection to the labouring population, which had been seconded by the late Sir R. Peel, and supported by Fox and Sheridan. On July 5, 1834, Mr. Littleton had brought in the labourers'. wages Bill, on which occasion Mr. Huskisson gave it as his opinion that a great portion of the distress in the manufacturing dis tricts was not so much owing to want of employment as to the existence of the truck system. On the 3d of May in that year, Lord Stanley had presented a petition from Heaton Norris against the truck system, and on that occasion his Lordship said that the truck system was as injurious to the manufacturer who did not adopt it as it was to the labourer who was its victim. On the sth July, 1830, the present Prime Minister of England said that the great evil of the present day was a desire to diminish the comfort< of the poorer classes, and that nothing tended so much to add to that evil as the fact of a manufacturer, =king 8,0001. a year, endea vouring to make 3,0001. a year more out of the wages of his work-people by dealing in bacon and cheese ; and on that oc casion the present Prime Minister told Mr. Hume, who was then the chief opponent, that if it were defeated he (Mr. H.) 'would rest the responsibility. He (Mr. Ferrand) had now, to the best of his ability, done his duty.—(Cheers.) If Hon. Gentlemen opposite npposed his motion, on them would rest the responsibility ; and if Hon. Gentlemen refused to accede to it, then he weuld say to the Right Hon. Baronet, as the Right Hon. Baronet had before said to Mr. Hume, that on his shoulders, and on the shoulders of the Government, would rest responsibility of opposing his motion. e would tel them, also, that a most extensive feeling was abroa H d on this s l ubject ; that not far distant from that place there were many honest manufacturers, who bad come from the North, to give evidence on the Committee he now asked tor, and who came to tell them that they must either be honest themselves, or retire from their trade with the character of dishonest and disreputable men. There was a deputation, also, sent there from the work ing men to appear before the Committee, to ask for jus tice. They had no other means of bringing their mise ries and wants before the Home ; they had not the power of voting for Members, but they had the rower of appealing to that House for justice and protection, and the object of his motion was to give it them. The present motion might be lost.; if it was it would cause heart-rending affliction among the working classes; but he trusted the Government would consider it to be their duty at once to acquiesce in his motion. He asked for the Committee for the sake of common justice— he asked fur it on behalf of the cause of humanity—and last of all, he asked for it in the name of Him who had said " The labourer is worthy of his hire." The Hon. Gentleman con cluded, amid considerable cheering, by proposing the following resolutions :—" That this House considers as highly criminal the conduct of any person or persons who may attempt to in duce others to give false evidence before a Committee of this House and will inflict condign pu n i s h men t on all such per s on s , and will a:so direct them to be prosecuted. That this House will protect and bear harmless every working man who gives true evidence before any Committee which may be appointed to inquire into the frauds committed by manufacturers and others, to the injury of the trade of this country, and of the la bouring classes. Select Committee, to inquire into the exist ence of frauds in the variens manufactures of the United King dom of Great Britain and Ireland ; also, to inquire into the existence of frauds and oppressions, either directly or indirectly committed by certain manufacturers of the United Kingdom of Geeat Within and Ireland, upon the persons employed by them; and also by the workers of mines, collieries, and rail ways, upon the labourers in their employment." An HoN. MEMBER having seconded the resolution, The question was put from the Chair. After a pause of a few moments, Mr. Fl ELDEN rose to address the House, but the Hon. Member was totally inaudible in consequence of the indistinct tone in which he spoke. We understood him to say that he believed there was mush truth in the statements of the Hon. Member for Knaresborough ; but he believed that many of the practices complained of had their origin in bad legislation. 1 hose practices were, at all events,, highly discreditable; and it appeared to him to be the duty of the Government to grant the proposed inquiry. Mr. WALLACE said he was exceedingly desirous the in quiry should be granted. He believed there was a great deal of truth in what had been stated by the Hon. Member for Knaresborough ; and he trusted the ineuiry would be granted in whatever form might be thought most convenient. It was in his opinion, exceedingly unwise to allow a continuance of the truck system under any shape. He thought, therefore, that the Gentlemen would do well if they were sasisfied of the existence of the system, to take care to afford some cheap and easy means by which the aggrieved parties might be enabled to obtain justice agalust the offenders. The great evil of the present law against the truck system, as indeed of all our laws, was that justice, was inaccessible to the poor man. He repeated that he was afraid there was a good deal of truth in the allegations of the Hon. Member ; and as he believed that the truck-system in any form was exceed ingly injurious, he hoped the proposed inquiry would take place, and that the present law which was at least well-intended might be fully enforced. Mr. WAKLEY said that he felt some surprise that no Member of the Government had risen to address the House after the speech of the Hon. Member for Knaresborough. But the Right lion. Baronet was perhaps anxious to ascertain in the first instance the feeling of the House. He thought a motion of this kind could scarcely he granted if there were a swine feeling in the House against ; at the same time he could scarcely believe it possible that the Government would resist the motion if there were a. strong feelin s ' in its favour. Allegations of th a t n a ture were of the most serious character, and effected the interest, com fort, and happiness of millions of their fellow-countrymen. According to the statements made by the Hon. Member the people of this country were the slaves of their employers, and were placed in a state of entire destitution and dependence. In order to do full justice, however, to an inquiry of that ne tore it. must not be levelled against one particular class of em ployers. It much be extended to the occupiers of land.— ( Hear, hear, from the Ministerial benches.) Were Hon. Members aware that in Scotland, and to a very considerable extent in the North of England, the truck system prevailed in farms as well as in manufacturee?—(oh, oh. ) Hon. Mem bers might den . ) , it if they pleased ; but he knew that he was stating the plain, naked truth when he said that the labourers upon farms in Scotland and the ,north England were paid in kind, and not in money wages.—( Hear, hear.) In order, therefore, that the investigation might be introduced to both classes, he would propose to introduce in line 4, after the word manufacturers, "and occupiers of land," and he hoped that the Hen. Gentleman would agree to the amendment. The in quiry would then be general, and they would ascertain who were and were not the oppressors of the poor of this country. —( Hear, hear.) He thanked the Hon. Gentleman for bring ing forward this subject. If in some cases he had expressed himself with a fervour which was not quite prudent, he be lieved it arose from a sincere desire to relieve the people from oppression.—( Hear, hear.) He could himself bear witness to many oppressions • under which they were labouring, and he most cordially supported the motion for their investigation. Colonel SIBTIIORPE in supporting the motion, stated that though he had property in the north of England, he had never met with a single instance in which the truck system had been adopted on farms. He would be most happy that the investigation would be extended to every tenant of his own. Mr. BROTHERTON concurred in the motion, but ob jected to the amendment, because the same act which had ren dered it illagal in the manufacturers to pay wages in kind, had rendered it legal in the farmer. lie believed that unavoidable oppression existed, and he was anxious to see it put down as soon as possible. • Sir J. GRAHAM said, if the motion had contained any thing condemnatory of the manufacturing interest it would not have met with his concurrence. He believed that the ca2,es in which fraud was practised were the exceptions, that the general feeling 01 the manufacturers of this country was that of honest Englishmen, and that the fact that in the long run the fraudulent manufacturer tines not prosper was borne constantly in mind by the majority. He could not therefore con cur in any sweeping charges agoinst the manufacturing interest, and on this account he regretted to see in the resolutioes so frequent a repetition of the word " fraud." —(Hear, hear.) Legislative enactments had been proposed from the earliest pe riod, with a view of remedying the evil, but they had generally proved abortive. With respect to that part of the resolution which related to the giving of evidence, he would remind the House that there was a Sessional Order < n that subject, which provided for all that was required ; and that being the case, . • be thought the first resolution Of the Hon. M em b er was en _ tirely unnecessary.-( Hear, hear.) The question then nar rowed itsell into the payment of wages in goods, and on this subject also the ingenuity of the Legislature had been for the last century almost exhausted. Thirty new statutes had be- n passed with a view of remedying the evil, but without effeetudly removing it. The last was that proposed by his Noble Friend, Lord llatherton, and though he was amongst the supporters of that measure he was not of the number of those who were sanguine of its success. In prosperous times the lababourer was master over his employer, and little difference tnen ex isted between them; but in times which were less prosperous there would always be a strong temptation to the employer to reduce the wages of his work-people. To dismiss his workmen was the last thing which he would resort to, and he was driven to these evasions of the law, in order to retain him in his em ployment, There, indeed, the workmen was no longer the master of his employer, but was dependent upon him ; and he was given to understand, unless he consented to a change, either for rent or for goods, he would no longer be employed. He was perfectly aware of what had been stated by the Hon, Member for Salford, that there were exemptions made under Lyttelton's Act. One of his (Sir J. Graham's) great objec tions to the proposed Committee was, that he thought it would tend to aggravate the hostile feelings which existed between the manufacturing and agricultural population of the country. What he would recommend was,that a motion should be proposed to th's effect, that a Select Committee he appointed to inquire into tl.e operation of the law which prohibits the payment of wages in goods instead of the current coin of the realm, and in direct violation of the existing enactment. ( The Right lion. Baronet here became scarcely audible). tie did not question the advantages that would arise front the institution of the most. rigid in.,uiry. The lion. Member for Salford ex pressed a wish that the Committee should be fairly constituted. Ile ( Sir .1. Graham) for one could not for a moment wish the appointment of the Committee to be concieved in any other spirit. Ile would merely recommend what he had proposed to the consideration of the House. Probably any Hon. Gentle man could suggest a defect in the proposition, ant if so, he should be happy to listen to it. He believed there was an amendment before the House, but he thought it would be regular to submit his pro p osition as an amendment to the motion of his Honourable It iend. He thereforelmoved that a Select Committee be appointed to inquire into the operation of the law, which prohibits the rayment of wages in goods otherwise than the curreat coin of the realm, an indirect vio lation of the existing enactment. Mr. FEIIIIAND wished to ask the Bight Honourable Ba ronet whether his motion would extend to inquiring into the existing frauds. Sir J. GRAHAM'S answer was inaudible in the gallery. air. S. WORTLEY said the Right Baronet hail partly an ticipated what he had to say, as he had intended to have suga giatial a somewhat similar coarse to that of the Bight Hon. Baronet. What he (Mr. S. Wortley) ha I intended to have proposed was, that a Committee should be appointed to exa mine the Ist and t2cl Will. IV., to ascertain how far it was practicable more effectually to protect the labouring population. Ile thought, as the subject had before been inquired into, that it was a tit subject for inquiry, on the part. of the House, at The present moment. He thought his lion. Friend, who had iirought the subject under the notice of the House that night, could in t deny th .t the remedy he (Mr. S. Wortley) had propoed, was calculated to meet the evils com plaiaed of. But, still, he was not so sanguine as its Honourable Friend. Ile thought that his Honourable Friend hail assumed rather more against the manufacturer than he was warranted in doing. To many of the frauds com plained of by the lion. Member, he (Mr. S. Wortley) could not see how it could be applied. In the case of watchmakers, if they made defective watches no one could compel them to make them better. Therefore he could rust help thinking that there was much difficulty in the motion of the lion. Member, and he therefore thought the course he (Mr. S. Wortley) had adopted was the best. MUNTZ said that it was a very extraordinary thing, that after great charges had 1 een made against the manufac turers of the country for three months, that they should end in an abortion at last. He said an abortion, for he confessod that no legislative enactments could possibly prevent the truck sys tem. He felt that it was impracticable, and if the House would allow him, he would explain how it was impracticable. It was not at all necessary for the party who committed this crime, as it was called, and in some instances might be called so—it was not at all necessary that that party should support a shop in the neighbourhood of the manufactory. It was not even necessary for him to name the party in the shop; all that he had to do was in some way, directly or indirectly, to have this person recommended, and those parties who did not buy at the shop very soon found that there was no more work for them. Therefore the motion was as complete an abortion as aould be conceived. He slid hope that the Right Hon. Baronet would extend his motion, and give the Hun. Member for Knaresborough every scope to prove all his charges. He (Mr. Muntz) had never taken any part in that dispute, for he frequently thought the subject unworthy of the time of the House. lie was connected with a large manufacturing dis trict, and he slid not hesitate to tell the Hon. Gentleman that he had been grossly made use of. The Hon. Gentleman sousht. inquiry into the truck system. He (Mr. Muntz) had been connected with one of the largest manufacturing districts, and he only knew of one instance in which that system had been ractised, and it was practised in so easy a manner that benefit seemed in that instance to be the rssult. It was the great distress in the country that made the truck system prevalent. Make the working classes independent. of the master, and he defied any man to truck. It could not be done if the work-people were independent, and could go from one master to another.—(Cries of " Hear, hear.") There was a cause for all this ; and they were looking at the effect, an not the cause. If they appointed this Committee it would be utterly useless in the end, and no benefit would be derived from it ; as he had said before, they could not prevent the truck system. Now, with respect to the inquiry into the frauds carried on, he (Mr. Muntz) had been extensively connected with the export trade, and he must say that the complaint ought not to have been made against the manufacturers, but against the price of the articles. lie had known penknives made of cast iron. The parties to whom they were sold knew that they were made of cast iron, and when he told the house that these knives were sold at a penny each he did not think that any one could expect to see finely polished steel at that price.—(Laughter.) He had bought thousands of gross of scissors at 3s. 6d. a gross, and he did not think any one could expect finely polished scissors at that price? These articles were made to suit certain markets, and it was absolutely necessary to make them. What was the use of their taking good scissors into a country where they could not sell them ? If Hon. Gentlemen had had as much expe rience in selling and manufacturing these articles as he had they would know he was speaking the truth. He hoped the Right lion. Baronet would allow the Hon. Member for Knaresborough an opportunity of proving his charges. Mr. M. PHILIPS said he came not to palliate or defend any sort of fraud committed by the manufacturers ; hut he did think that discussions like the one which had taken place that night would cause great injury to the trade of the coun try, and if au inquiry were entered into before a Committee of the House of Commons it would attract the eyes of feigners, leading them to believe that the subjects to be in• quired into arose from the general condition of the manufac turers of this country. It was upon this ground that he deprecated any inquiry, such as that sought by the Honourable Member for Knaresborough. With re ference to the truck system, he should wish to say a few words. He was not aware whether or not it was practised in his district, but the only circumstances with which he hail either advocated or been concerned with respect to the truck system was, when parties were residing in isolated districts, but when population grew up, and large towns arose, he thought then the trade should be open and free. He did not stand there to justify the truck system, far from it; but to express his regret that the laws which had been passed to put that system down hart not been carried out.—(Hear, hear.) • lie thought if the IL nourable Member for Knaresborough was prepared to carry out his motion with respect to fraud on ma nufactures, it ought not to be of so limited a nature as he had proposed, because there could be no doubt that in manufac tories there were many other articles in which fraud could be practised. Ile thought that many of the observations of the lion. Member, with respect to foreign trade, were misplaced, especially those relative to the Brazils. lie stated that our exports to that country were decreasing; now he (Mr. P. ) could not accede to that. There had been an enormous slave trade carried on between the Brazils and Africa, and he be lieved that many of the articles manufactured in this country and sent to the Brazils, were sent there for the purpose of the traffic in human blood. He had been in the Brazilian trade himself, and he was happy to say that the firm which he joined had never sulks Si its character, honour, or Christian feeling, by supplying articles to the Brazils that were for the African trade. with respect to flour, he would ask the Hon. Member for Knaresborouali whether it was possible to make cotton of cer tain fabrics without flour ? He believed that there was hardly an instance of such a thing. It was true that at one time a large weavin g establishment had been driven by the high pri c e of flour to the use of sago.—( Hear.) The Hoe. Gentleman then referred to the evidence of Mr. Wm. Graham, from which it appeared that flour to the amount of some millions was annu ally used in the thickening of cotton. Ile thought that the Right Hon Baronet opposite had adopted a most discreet course, but he did not think legislative enactments would put down frauds of the description adverted to by the lion. Member for Knaresborough. In conclusion he begged to say, that he cordially concurred with the propriety of the investigation pro ( posed by the Right Hon. Baronet. Mr. LOBDEN did not rise to disturb the harmony of the debate, but he thought it was his duty to call the attention of Hon. Members on that side of the House to the state of the present question. The subject had been mooted by the Hon. Member for Knaresborough, on ho believed the fifth night of the debate on the Corn-law question. The Hon. Member had on that occasion made perhaps one of the strangest speeches that had ever been heard in that House. He was cheered loudly by lion. Members opposite, and by the Right Hon. Baronet, the Member for Dorchester. The Hon. Member for Knaresborough had repeated his charges again that night, but he had taken a wider range. Ile now said that his charges were levelled against the whole mining interest of Lanarkshire Mr. FERRAND —No. Mr. COBDEN had taken down the Hon. Member's words, and he had referred to Glasgow and Ireland. . . Mr. FELIRAND—No, no. Mr. COBDEN must repeat again that he had taken down the words, and he must distinctly state that they were made use of. Now he (Mr. Cobden) would state, that the iron masters of Ireland and Lancashire were not members of the Corn-law League. The line. Member for Knaresborough had even gone further, and taken in the ironmasters of Stafford shire. It appeared, therefore, that a great change haA come over the Hon. Member. He no longer now made it a party question, or an attack upon the manufacturers in a certain dis trict, but he took in the whole miners and irunmasters, and roundly asserted that they were connected with the truck system.—( Hear, hear). The Right Honourable Baronet, the Member for Dorchester, had fairly laid open the cluestion. But why did he not take the same step before ? • Why should he allow the charge to be levelled against a particular party? The Right Honourable Baronet cheered and smiled when the lion. Member for Knaresborough was charging our political party, but when there was no longer occasion for that, when the charge was made general, he adopted a very different course. Now what was the fact ? Why when the lien. Member for Knaresborough made his first attack, upwards of 10,000 copies of his speech were printed in the manufacturing districts of England. He ( Mr. C. ) confessed that he did not attach much importance to the Hon. Member for Knaresborough's statements, because he had made them upon such insufficient evidence, but he looked certainly with surprise at the rapturous applause the speech of the Honourable Member for Knaresborough had met with Ii sin the other side of the House, and partieu lady front the Right Honourable Baronet opposite. The whole of the ironmasters and the mMing interest were now mixed up in this question, Mr. FERRA ND—No. Mr. COBDEN—I presume I am to understand the manu factures are included. Mr. FERNAND—Yes. Mr. COBDEN presumed that the inquiry would embrace all parties. Mr. FERRAND replied in the affirmative. Mr. COBDEN did not think, as sonic lion. Members hal stated, that the inquiry would injure the manufactures in foreign countries. He did not think that it would affect the trade of this country with them, because he thought it was absurd to sup' • suppose foreigners would come to th a t H ouse t o as k th e that - character of British manufactures. If they thought that the manufacturers were snaking inferior articles, let them at once throw open their trade in corn, and there would soon be an end t o it. If they would remedy such an abuse they must widen the sphere for industry.—(Cheers.) In conclusion, ho begged to say, that he cordially supported the motion. Sir R. PEEL—Sir, I am surprised at the tone of the charges made by the Hun. Gentleman, and further at the tone he has adopted with respect to my Hon. Friend, the Member for Dorchester. He did not know what there was that ren dered it incumbent upon his Right Hon. Friend to support the Corn-law League.—( Laughter. ) Mr. COBDEN—I charg,ed him with cheering. Sir R. PEEL—Sir, I think such charges as these are miser able modes of carrying on a debate in the House of Commons. ' —( Hear, hear.) Then it is said that we on this side of the House circulated the speech of the Hon. INlember for Knares borough throughout the country. Now, all I can say upon that is, that I have never heard of the circulation of that speech, and that lam not answerable for it. I think that such charges are really absurd. 1 think it would be much better that these subjects of cheering and smiling and circulating speeches should be disposed of in some other way than in a grave and important debate in the House of Commons.—( Cheers and laughter. ) 1 his is the first motion of which notice has been given by the Hon. Gentleman, and I am now prepared to state what course lam ready to pursue with respect to it. I am now prepared to deal with this question upon the principle on which I think the House of Commons ought to deal with it, and I do not think it would be just. for the House of Corn mons to lend its inquisitorial powers for the purpose of conduct ing such an examination. It that were the case, whenever an Hon. Gentleman on either side of the House had made a charge against some particular party, the House of Commons would be exp: cted to examine into its truth or falsehood. —( Hear.) We are to determine whether the inquiry shall be instituted upon other grounds. Now the first proposal of the Hon. Gen tleman is to inquire into the existence of frauds in the various manufactori , s of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ire- I land. I should be very sorry to be a member of that Committee. Li the first place, I could not acquiesce in such an imputation upon the great body of manufacturers in this country. For the Hou , e of Commons to presuppose that the manufacturers of this country have, without exception, been concerned in the commission of fraud is what I cannot consent to.—( Hear. ) I have not the slightest doubt that there are frauds committed in manufactures—l have not the least doubt of it; and so long as the world exists, there will be fraud, there will be disho nesty, and no laws which you can pass will be sufficient to pre vent it.—( Hear, hear. ) The security you have against fraud is in free competition, and in the preference which, in the long run, the honest dealer will have over the fraudulent. Precau th ns of this kind, when taken against fraud, very often defeat themselves. The party who buys the article relaxes in that natural vigilance and circumspection which he ought al ways to exercise. —( Hear, heass ) When I first went to Ireland I found that there had been frauds in the butter trade. A butter taster was therm appointed ; not a firkin was allowed to go out until It had first been tasted, and there was then a stamp placed upon it to show that it was genuine.—( Laughter.) People then bought the butter, taking its quality for granted, because it had been submitted to the butter taster. The consequence was, that frauds %vers.:prac tised to a greater extent than they had ever been practised before, because there was a genes al absence of that caution and vigilance which had been previously exercised.—(Hear, hear. ) Depend upon it the natural interest of the purchaser is the great security against fraud, and another security is that in tegrity and honesty all in the long run, both with respect to the home consumer and the foreign consumer, ultimately sell tile cheapest article, and secure the greatest profit. It is difficult exactly to determine what fraud is. I'ou call goods manufactured at Glasgow, at Manchester, and at other places in this country by a foreign name ; you imitate articles of foreign manufac tures. Thse may, in one sense, be designated frauds. It is quite clear that the knife which is sold for a penny is, in ono sense, a fraud upon the purchaser; but it is necessary to pro duce this cheap article for the accommodation of those who cannot give a higher price. Therefore, in the frost place, I should object to any imputation on the manufacturing interest of this c untry. I firmly believe that in the main it is exempt from that imputation, and I never could consent to hold out to other nations that th e H ouse o f C ommons h a d I thought it necessary to institute an inquiry into the frauds generally of the manufacturers of this country. Now the inquiry in which we are about to enter, limited as it is by my Right Hon. Friend, is an inquiry of which I think it is very d.fficult to foresee the conclusion. I have had sonic cape rience of inquiries into the effects of the t uck system. It must ! be admitted that it is desirable, prima ,facie, to pass a law that all persons should receive payment for their labour in the cur rent coin of the realm. But you will find that there are many c ses to which that principle can scarcely be applied. I think her Majesty's Government are the largest truck •masters. They undertake to supply both the army and the navy with clothes; that undoubtedly is an exception. Therefore you must put a limitation upon the principle that reward for labour must he in ' the current coin of the realm.—( Hear.) In the course of this inquiry I have no doubt you will find gross frauds; we cannot be free from them in the present state of society. —( Cries of " Hear, hear.") Nosy I cannot conceive anything so bad as the conduct of the master, who in violation of the law abuses the power which he has over his workmen, by com pelling those workmen to buy of him inferior articles at the full price. I believe you will find that that practice exists ; and I must say that I cannot conceive a moue unwarrantable abuse of power. lam very much afraid that the answer is not a complete and satisfactory one that where there is a very full demand for labour, there is an end of fraud. Because, observe, where the master and the workman necessa rily reside in certain localities, the demand for labour may be brisk, and yet the master may have an opportunity of abusing his power over his workmen by the practice of the truck system. If you can expose and prevent that abuse of power, I shall heartily rejoice in that result. But then on the other hand, you will find this : You will find the case of a mine opened in a mountainous dis trict, and far removed from any town, where the workman has no alternative, but to go from four to five miles for his provisions, and has a reduction made on account of his loss of time ; you will find the case of a master,: from a considera tion of the interest of their workmen, consenting, at a loss to themselves, to establish a shop for the purpose of enabling his workmen to purchase his food without going so great a dis tance ; you will find that in some cases the charge for provi sions is fair and reasonable, and that very great advantages arise from the system. If it is contrary to law it ought not to exist, but you must not be too strict in applying the principle that the employers should pay their wages in current coin. Well then, again, with respect to the employers of rural labourers. I believe many people look back with regret to the i eriod when the farm labourer lived in the same house as his em ployer, believing that there was then a better security for the morals and good conduct of the labourer than under the present system. Such persons believed Irons the cessation of that system under whish the labourer was considered as part. of the family of his master,- but that practice necessarily implied the truck system. While, therefore,, no man can reprobate more than I do the abuse of authori;y on the part of that master who compe s his workmen to purchase articles of him, wkether they be good or bad, and still more who passes off inferior aiticles, sod compels his workmen to pay for them an exorbitant price—while 1 do this, I feel it my duty first to notify to those who have had less experience of the matter than myself, that the time when a full and comprehensive report will be made is probably a very distant oto,. and secondly, to warn them against concluding too hastily that they can, with advantage to the working classes, entirely put an end to the practice of paying wages upon what is called the truck system. Mr. PLIJ.NIPTRE had been in many cotton manufac tories, and he believed it was the usual practice to thicken cer tain cotton goods with flour. With respect to the other goods alluded to by the Hon. Member for Knaresborough, such as watches of a very inferior description, and cloths made of dust, he believed that although such inferior articles were manu factured, they were sold at extremely low prices, and therefore there could be no complaint on that subject. Mr. R. YORKE considered the proper form of the resolu tion was that proposed by the Hon. Member fur Knares borough, and he should therefore support it. Sir JOHN GUEST supported the motion, and stated that in the borough of Monmouth, where there was 014 C of the largest works in the world, there was not a single instance in which the truck system was practised. Mr. Ald. COPELAND supported the motion. Mr. E. TURNER said he could state confidently that the whole of the wages in the county of Cornwall were paid in money..._. _ _ Mr: VILLIERS said, that as he had taken upon himself to call upon the Honourable Gentleman opposite t• substantiate the charges he had made, he felt that consistency required him to snpport the present motion.—( Hear, hear.) The Honourable Gentleman had alluded in his speech to the me morial which he (Mr. Villiers) had endeavoured to read to the House from the manufacturers of Yorkshire. Having first presented a petition, which the Hon. Gentleman objected to, because it did not include the parties whom ho had charged, he subsequently received one from the Hon. Gentleman's own district, and that he might knew who the parties were he had published it with their names and residences in a public news paper. He thought, therefore, that the Hon. Gentleman could not consistently withdraw his motion. Mr. hARDY did not know if they were to inquire into frauds in England and Ireland what sort of frauds they should have to investigate, but he was certain, if they once began it there would be no termination. Frauds on foreign purchasers would, in the end, nre itself ; but the other part of the inquiry was certainly very important—that was the frauds said to be committed on the people employed by the manufacturers. If th s were the ca e, it was high time the inquiry should be made ; it was due to those who were not represented in that House. He knew of instances in which masters had established shops, at their own loss, for the accommodation of their workmen, to prevent their being oppressed and cheated by small shopkeepers. In the case of the iron works, that had been mentioned by the worthy Alderman behind him, it would be a great convenience to the workmen. The investigation recommended to the lion. Gen tleman by the Hon. Secretary, would be practicable, and he should vote for such an inquiry. If the lion. Member went beyond that he would certainly fail. Dr. BOWRING said he should not have risen, but for some of the observations that had fallen from the Hon. Mem ber for Knaresborough. Similar observations had already done serious damage to trade and commerce, by representing that the goods of English manufacturers were elan inferior descrip tion. Some statements of the Hon. Member had been widely circulated, anti used to the injury of their manufactures, to an extent of which the Honourable Gentleman might not be aware. lie felt bound to state that the general character of English merchants and manufacturers stood as high as any of the same class in other countries. He had had opportunities of seeing it placed in advantageous contrast with the character of merchants of other countries. The Hon. Member had referred them to the old and absurd legislation with regard to manufactures. The Statute-book wit full of these interferences with the freedom of trade, and in many places manufactures had actually perished in con sequence of that interference. What they wanted was eman cipation from enthralment with regard to manufactures, and to that alone could they trust for safety. Sir C. BURRELL thought the Hon. Member for Knares borough had been completely justified in the course he had taken, and he did not think that he was liable to the taunts that had been thrown out against him. He had done his duty manfully and fearlessly, and with great honour to himself. Mr. PERRAND replied, lie doubted whether the Stand ing Order of the House, whieh was said to render his second resolution unnecessary, would be sufficient to protect the work ing man giving evidence before the Committee. However, he should accept the offer of the Right lion. Baronet with re spect to the truck system, and leave the manufacturers to fight out the question themselves as to the frauds in trade. They might depend on it that this question would not be al lowed to rest, but that from day to day there would be more urgent demands for inquiry. The amendment to the resolutions propsed by Sir James Graham was then put and agreed to. CHINIINAL LAW (IRELAND). Mr. Sergeant JACKSON a oved for leave to bring in a Bill to assimilate the law of Ireland, as to the punishment of death, with the law of England ; to abolish the punishment of death in Ireland, in certain cases ; and to emablish other pun ishments in lieu thereof. The lion and Learned Member stilted that one case, in w!ich it was proposed to abolish the put ishment of death in Ireland, was this : —At a time when they were at w ar wi th F rance an Act was pasted , punishing with death any person, in the service of the French King, who might land in Ireland. lie apprehended that there could be no oljecton to the repeal of that law. Leave was given to bring in the Bill. THE GRINDING ACT. Mr. HUTT moved fir a Select Committee to consider the expediency of renewing any of the p ro visions of the Act of George IV., commonly called the Grinding Act, and and r what modifications.—Agreed to. LOGAN NAVIGATION. Lord ELIOT moved for leave to br ing in a Bill for v es ti ng the Logan Navigation in the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland. IRISH TURNPIKES. The NOBLE LORD brought up the Irish Turnpike Trust Bill, whi c h was raad a first time, and ordered to be read a second time on Monday CIVIL BILL DECREES. The NOBLE Loin then moved for leave to bring m a Bill to amend and explain so much of two Acts, the 6th and 7th of •his late 3lajesty, and the Ist of her present Majest y , as eel rtes to the execution of Civil Decrees for the possession of land in Ireland. After a few words from Mr. MORGAN J. O'CONN'ELL, Leave was given to bring in the 13ill. Th e Bill was s-Abse quently read a first time, end ordered to be read a second time on Monday next. Mr. GREENE brought up the Report of Supply, granting to lier Majesty the sum of 18,293,00 a for the payment of Exchequer Bids, charged in the year 1842, and 68,000/. for defraying the charge of civil contingencies. Sir G. CLERK gave notice, that he would move a rote of Exchequer Bills in Committee of Ways and Means. The punishment of Death Bill (Ireland) was read a first time, and was ordered to be read a second time on Mwiday next. fhe other Orders of the Day were then disposed of, and the House adjourned at a quarter to Keren o'clock. THE WAR IN AFFGHANISTAN. We have received the followiug from a Correspondent, on whose accuracy we can rely : NOTES ON THE MOVEMENT ON AFFGHANISTAN, FROM THE NORTH-WESTERN FRONTIER OF OUR INDIAN TERRITORY, MORE ESYECIALLY Will! REGARD TO THE RELIEF OF JELLALABAD. THE FORCE EMPLOYED. I culled from the last accounts that the following troops (exclusive of Sikhs) are now under the commaied ut 31ajor- General Pollock, fur the relict of JellaLbad and other opera tions in A trghanistan ARTILLERY. One Troop lime Artillery. Detail of Foot ditto, three 9- pounders, one 24-pounder. Howitzer. CAVALRY. Her Majesty's 3d Dragoons. I One Equadron 3d Irregular Ist Cavalry. Cavalry. 1011 Cavalry. 'TRY. Her Majesty's 9th Foot. 30th Native Infantry. Ditto 31st Foot. 33d ditto. Ditto ll‘tachment of recruits 531 ditto. (200). 60th ditto. tilt Regiment Native Infantry. 64th ditto. The above are of the Bengal army, and make together, say 10,000 fighting men, of whom 1 calculate that 250 officers and 2,500 non•commistkned officers and privates are Europeans, and the rest Sepys. I consider that there with these— Followers Iturses ... 2,500 Camels In conjecturing this estimate of followers, &c., 1 am in some degree guided by a ' Return of Month's Supply for ti,e Army tit the Indus," to p. 77 of the Appendix to Major Hough's Campaign in Affghani•tan." The Return is dated " t an dahar, June 1, 1639." From this I find that, for 10,400 fight• tog men, there were 711ustered followers.. 14,620 I bullocks INFA 3licellaueous ditto 1-1,032 I Gun camels llorses 3,450 I Camels ........ 11,582 I calculate on a r e d uce d num b er o f f o ll ower . with General foliock's force, on account of the known ddliculties to be con tended with. Idu not, however, make a corresponding reduc tion in the number of camels, as many must be taken for Sir Robert Sale's brigade; ~nd I apprehend that Fupplees mu.t be carried fur a much longer time titan one month, the time in the " Return" referred to. COMMISSARIAT. From Ferozepore, our extreme north-west frontier station, to the city of Caubul, through Peshawur, the distance is 540 Peshawur is 347 miles from Ferozepore, and 193 miles from Caubul. Jellalabad is 100 miles from Peshawur, and 93 flow Caubul. For about 360 miles from F. rozepore the route lics tin ough the Sikh country; and for this distance there can lre no difficulty as to supplies, the Sikh Government being at present on friendly terms with ours. The point from which I conceive it possible and probable that the army must live on it s stores is Kuddom, 16 miles on the Caubul side of Peshawur, and two miles before the entrance of the Khyber Pass. Having regard to what has already happened. and to th e f, clings and character of the people, I think a General must have the spirit of a gamester who could trust to the Affghans supplies. They may, indeed, be willing to supply us if they tinc! us independent of them ; but will they if we stand in heed of them ? Having regard, moreover, to the passes to be left in the rear of the force as it advances, very great reliance cannot be placed on a succession of supplies from Kuddum. The conclusion which I draw from these considerations is, that the force must at all times have sufficient. supplies to carry it back to Kuddum from any point to which it may have advanced, so that, if Cabool is its ultimate destination, the supplies should be sufficient for reaching that place and returning from it to Kuddum, allowance being made for in termediate stoppages. THE ROUTE TO JELLALABAD. As the Sikhs are friendly I pass over the distance frrm Feroze:tore to Kuddum, merely observing that thirty-seven days or thereabouts are consumed in the march. Two miies from Kuddum the Khyber Pass commences. " The Khyber Pa-s, horn the entrance on the Jellalabad side t.) the de honcho (two miles short of and from Kuddum), is twenty eight miles in length, and, excepting the valley of Lalbeg gurhee, six miles long and one and a quarter broad, there are twenty-two miles of pass, which can be commanded, and in which there are few places where an army advancing could find cover."—llough, p. 313. From the details in Hough's book it appears that the pass is in part " from 100 to 200 yards wide, that "parties, by crowning the bills on both sides would inflict great havoc among troops advancing, for there is no corer ;" that the pars in one place is not above 40 or 50 feet wide, within pistol shot," that " it is for three miles from 200 to 150 yards wide, sometimes only as many feet," &c. Having got through the Khyber Pass, the next march is to Dakka (nine miles). In this march the little Khyber occurs. It is thus described in Hough, p. 306 :—" The defile is very narrow in some places, not admitting of two horsemen going abreast. It is more like a deep narrow ravine, with high banks in some parts. We found the toad through it good, and the descent in it not difficult. lity, if the heights were occupied by troops, it would stop the advance of any torte till the enemy were dislodged." '1 he remaining part of the route to Jellalabad (32 miles) does not present any difficulty deserving notice. It may, how ever, be observed, that for nine miles the route lies through a valley, where, " in the months of April and May, the deadly simoon prevails."—Hough. RESISTANCE IN THE NIIYBER TASSES. " There are of the Khyberees 26,000 armed men."—Hough, page 350. " The native rine, fireel with a rest, will kill at ;300 yards.".-11ough, page 309. To these it may be added that, according to the last accounts, we had lost Ali Musjid, a I,rt about seven miles within the Khyber Pass, on the Kuddum side. Obstructions had been crrated in the passes, and the Atlghan chiefs mere co-operating with the Khyberees. REEI,ECTIONS AN)) CONJECTURES. Can the difficulties here set forth be contemplated without some feeling of anxiety for the fate of the army w hi c h i s f ac i ng t hell, fighting at such disadvantage of ground, and encumbered with the defence of a long line of horses, bullocks, and camels ? At the same time, there can be no question that every effort must he made to relieve our brave fellows at Jellalabad, and the ladies and other prisoners, even at the expense of the less of more lives than the number of those to be rescued. I sup. ose there are political difficulties in the way of buying the Khy ber Pass. If not, surely money could hardly be better be stowed than for such a purpose. According to Hough, " Nadir Shah, in 1739, paid 100,0001. for the passage of his army through this pass." Is it clear that it may not cost as much to force it ? Of course, if the Affghans have the control of the Pass, buying is out of the question. Ii was thought, according to some accounts, that General Pollock would not attempt the business until he was joined by a second European Infantry regiment. Her Maje;ty's 9th Foot,t was with him, and her Majesty's 31st. Foot could not, according to the date of their leaving Meerut, reach Peshawar before the 10th of this month, or thereabouts. Neither c odd the 3d Dragoons or Horse Artillery be with the force b' fore the beginning of this month (the guns the General had with him were drawn by bullocks). Some of the native reg.- ments would also join about the beginning of this month. These are strong arguments for delay, and if they have pre vailed it may be assumed that the General is making his way through the passes about this tone. Some accounts, however, state that the General would move at once, without waiting for the additional force. 11 such has been the case I know not how to escape from the conclusion that the relief of Jellalabad admitted of no delay. The accounts from Jellalabad, by the last mail, are to the 27th of January, and are written in good spirits, and mention that they have three months' provisions. I find that these accounts are credited, and I, therefor e, gladly incline to the opinion that the General has waited for the arrival of the whole force. I say incline to toe &c., because I still feel a difficulty in amounting for Colonel Wild's attempt to force the pass with four regiments of Native Infantry and some useless Sikh guns, except on the supposition that. Jellalabad was in jeopardy. I abstain at present from considering the consequences of an attempt to force the frightful passes between Jellalabad and Ottani!, more frightful now by the remembrance of the tragedy recently enacted in them. The relief of Jellalabad, and the rescue of our countrywomen, is now paramount to all other considerations. If the Khyber Pass is bought, or if, from any other cause, resistance has been withdrawn, or if Gen. Poliock has forced it without wait ing for her Majesty's 31st Foot, then we may expect to hear of the relief of Jellalabad by the mail which lett. Bombay on the Ist instant. lf, on the other hand, the General has waited the arrival of her Majesty's 31st Foot,f we cannot well expect to hear of the relief of Jellalabad before July next. London, April 16, 1842. X. • The native rifle with a fixed rest, it Is said, will kill at 810 yards. The common rifle is only four feet ten inches in the barrel ; the larger juzziels are six or seven feet in the barrel. t Four native regiments arrived at I'eshawur its December, without a gun !: ! Fier Majesty's 9th Foot and two Native Rtgl. mesas and some Artillery would arrive with General Pollock early in February. The rest of the force enumerated would arrive dur. log the first ten days of the present month, or hereabouts. This regiment was in Kurnaul on the 14th of February. Kur naul, by the shortest route, is a sixteen days' march from Feroze pore, and Ferozepore, as I have already said, is a thitty.sever days' match from Kuddum, close to the entrance of the Khyber Pass. Supposing the regiment lett Kurnaul on the 15th of February, and marched without a day's halt, they would reach Kuddum in titty.three days, that is, on the 9th instant. Halts may, perhaps, be set off against forced marches, and probably they would arrive about the 10th instant, as I have above suggested. —3:orniny Paper. DESTRUCTIVE FlRE.—About a quarter lwfore one vesterday morning, a fire broke nut in the counting-house of * Messrs. Siblev and Tozee, coal merchants, Glass-yard, Wool wich ; from the confined nature of the plac e, the flames rapidly extended, and, before the engines from the Duck-yar d arrived, the whole of the premises were on tire , the devour ing element then extended to the adjoining houses, arid the flam es illumi nated the horizon for miles round , the reflection gave th e fi rs t intimation to the fire stations, but, from the strong gl are o f light, the fire was thought to be at Wapping, to which place a i\ at :Messrs. length was Sib subdued,ley t: nd iw o l , m t the .lhe wl fi lo re le "s of . a o , l t d r e r s t a t destruction. that re mises were destroyed.. iii"esterday looming, at two o'clock, a narrow escape from drowning occurred to two policemen who were sleeping, on buarl what is termed the " luve,tigator, - a te:sel (used for the l'urh°'e of coufiniug crimit,als fuund en the river) Ijing Str an i-lane, near Waicrloo-briilge. About the hour men tioned, police constable Teasdale was awoke bv a noi,e which he found out to he the water rushing into the note where they were sleeping; he instantly awoke his companion, and they, with great difficulty, effected the it escaie, having had, as it appears, barely time to put on a portion of their clothes before she filled with water and scent do, n. The ("awe of the ai'el cr-nt is attributed to the Investigator having been struck on a previous occasion by a steam-boat. Fal-tunately no prisoners were on board at the time. petitioner against the 1 I Nitwit: PETITION.—'I sitting Members has, it is said, expressed his determination, in the s vent of his succeeding in his object,to expend 10,0001. in getting a branch of the Eastern Counties ' Railway to Harwich. should rush a project be effected, it will be the meant of re storing Harwich to its former condition of a packet station.— , Ipswich Express. It is u nderstood that Lord _Mahon is to be the new Ainbandor at the Court of Madrid. —John Bull.