The Sun. — London, England, 1833-12-26 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS. In making some observations in Friday's paper on the necessity of improvement in the French Custom-house laws, we stated that the French Minister of Trade, in order to have the support of the country to some projected changes in the tariff, had addressed circulars to the Chambers of Commerce and of Manufactures in the chief towns of the kingdom, requiring their answers to certain given questions on the subject, and had invited the attention of the Councils-General of Agriculture, Manufactures. and Commerce, which met at Paris on the 2tl instant, to the same points. The Chamber of Commerce and the manufacturing bodie , in the chief towne, particularly that of Lyon , (whose memorial has been published), replied in favour of an ultimate unlimited freedom 0 1 trade, respect being had during the transition from one state of commerce to another to those partial interests which had grown up under a si stem of restrictive or protective policy. The Lyons memorial (that from the firs' manufacturing town of France) is particularly hold, explicit, and firm on the subject :—" If the division of labour were established among nations," say the memorialists, " if every coum try consecrated its industry to create, not in at. s'olute manner but by preference, such and such a manufactured commodity, such and such an article of production, it is evident that this combination would be found the most advan tagenua for the whole world, for the amount of exchanges b coming thus as great as it is pos sible to conceive, commerce would be carried to its highest development." " To have an ad vantageous trade (it is afterwards stated) it is necessary to sell much and to buy much, or, in other words, to have numerous exchanges. But how i' it possible to have exchanges, unless we open France to foreign powers ? We applaud our Government for attempting to cement the political alliance between France and England ; but it ought never to be lost sight of, that such an alliance can never acquire solidity unless it he based on commercial interests which offer to the two nations a reciprocal and an equal advan tage. Then the important question presents itself of the exchange of our wines and bran dies for the iron of England, and of our silks and articles of taste for her cottons and wool." This admirable memorial, in continuing to approve of the export of French raw silks for the benefit of the English manufacturers, men tions, that from the manner in which the duty is now levied in England on some sorts of Lyons manufactured silks, the latter are made to pay sometimes 50 instead of 30 per cent. This fact, stated on such authority, deserves to he in quired into and explained, though on Friday we scouted the calumny of the Gazette de France, which aacried it to the perfidy of the English commercial Reformers in their original arrange ments of our tariff. From the official Councils General of the various branches of industry lately convoked in Paris, the Minister of Trade, if he really was disposed to alter extensively the French tariff, has not received such ample encourage ment as from the periodical press or the repre sentatives of the public interests in the great commercial and manufacturing towns. Perhaps such a result was not to he expected from the composition of these assemblies, and the influ ences under which they met and deliberated. Though they receive the magnificent title of " Council -General," their origin, after all, is very dependent or ambiguous, their functions very limited, and their judgment far from being free. They form rather an organ for expressing the prejudices of particular classes, and advo cating the support of partial interests, than of g iving sound and unbiassed advice on questions of general improvement. The Council of Agri culture consists of 30 members, selected en tirely by the Minister of the day from the body of landed proprietors resident at Paris or in the provinces, without any form of popular delega tion whatever; that of manufactures is composed of 60 members, 40 of whom are selected by the same authority, and only 20 returned by the manufacturint interest ; and that of commerce, consisting of 48 members, though the only one of the three over the election of which the Mi nister has no direct control, is elected in so cir cuitous a manner, that it may be fairly doubted whether it represents truly the Chambers of Commerce from which it is supposed to ema rate. These three bodies, which formerly only held their meetings apart, have this year occa sionally been joined in a little commercial Par liament, under the pre'idency of the Minister of Trade, after each of them had assembled for the day in their own apartments, to agree upon their separate opinions on the various points submitted to their deliberation. On the pre sent occasion their meetings do not appear to have given any sanction to the belief of the utility of so heterogeneous a body, convoked under such auspices to deliberate on subjects of general policy, though, in their separate spheres, they might have suggested useful changes with a re fereixe to the class of persons whom they re present. On questions of taxation and Custom house duties, they could not be supposed to combine in a common advice, unless that advice was a concerted compromise against the public. Their opinions must be formed by their interests and they come together with fixed systems,which they must play against each other. In cases where they gave their sanction to a reduction of duties, the tendency or the limits of their advice might have been anticipated beforehand, and its variety, instead of enlightening the judgment, was calculated only to embarrass the choice of the Government. It was, of course, the interest of commerce that no obstacle should be allowed to lie in the way of the most extensive exchanges, j and that the greatest importation and exportation possible should take place without any reference to the situation of the parties who supplied the commodities. It was the interest of the manufacturers, on the other hand, who might suffer by foreign competition, to continue the system of protecting duties, and to see that commercial exchanges should not interfere with their own qualified monopoly ; and it was the interest of the owners of the soil to see that neither foreign trade nor domestic manufactures should benefit by the admission of those articles of produce of which they claimed the exclusive supply. The result was such as might have been anticipated from the nat ure o f t hi ngs an d the warnings of experience: The th ree C ounc ils differed nearly on every point on which they de liberated—though it was evident, both from the alarm that they showed of public notice in dis cussing with closed doors, and from the narrow circle of the changes in which they revolved, that they had formed a general coalition against the opinion and interests of the mass of the nation. The chief points submitted to them this year by the Mi nister was the policy of reducing the existing tariff on the introduction of iron, coals, wool, cotton yarn, cattle, saltpetre, and some other articles, of less importance. Happily, of these only two entered into the domain of the agricultural Councillors,—namely, wool and cattle,—as no complaints are now made of the price of French bread, and no change was proposed in the French corn law, which has been modified since the revolution of 1830. The stand, however, which they made on the protecting duty for these two articles, and the very trifling reduc. tions to which they could be induced to consent. :how how very little benefit can be gained 13.‘ discussions with an exclusive body. Wool, it is well known, is the raw material for the most important branch of French manufacturing in- Idustry. It is not produced at home in sufficient abundance to supply the wants of the French manufacturer. The policy of the State would 'herefore be to admit it duty free, or upon a small duty, in order to encourage the extension of native industry ; but this is not a policy which the French landed proprietors will sanction any more 'ban our own, under the Castlereagh and Van sittart regime. It is calculated that French fleeces supply about 130,000,000 pounds of wool, and that notwithstanding the high duty on foreign wool, about 9,000,000 pounds more are yearly imported. If the duty were lowered there an be no doubt that the consumption would he materially increased, and that the French manufacturers would be enabled to extend their foreign custom for a commodity in which they have attained stich a high degree of perfection. In this country, though our quantity of home grown wool nearly equals that of France, we import about 22,000_000 pounds a year, because the duty is low. In France the duty is 33 per cent. ad valorem, and the Agriculttnal " Coun cillors" would hear of no reduction below 27 or 25 per cent. The Council of Manufactures. on the other hand, proposed a reduction to 22 per cent. immediately, and a further reduction afterwards to 11, while the Council of Com merce proposed a reduction at once to 15 per cent. The Minister is left to choose a juste milieu rate of tariff between these cor.flicting proposi tions. With regard to cattle and animals used for slaughter, the agricultural gentry were equally refractory. At present 2/. 4s. 2d. of duty is levied on every ox, 1/. ls. 2d. on every cow, 2s. 9d. on every calf, and 4s. 7d. on every sheep imported or driven into the French markets. The " councillors" for the landed interest in sisted stoutly on maintaining this tariff, and the modification, which seemed extorted from them, will scarcely appear a favour to their neighbours on their German, Swiss, or Savoy frontier. But the articles in the tariff in which we in this country feel most interested are—iron, coals, and cotton yarn, and in modifying that tariff France is more interested than we. Iron, it has been well remarked in the Lyons memo rial, to which we have alluded, " is more than a raw material"—is a raw material neces- sary for the preparation and manufacture of nearly every other; and when we see in England its extensive employment in tools, implements of husbandry, and machinery,—when we see it converted into pillars for supporting the galleries of our theatres, our churches, and other public buildings,—when we see it forming our fences, balustrades, and gates—when we trace it in the innumerable water and gas-pipes which traverse our towns and cities—when we find it forming our railroads and bridges—in short, when we observe the multiplied purposes of convenience, elegance, and stability to which it is applied, we cannot but admit that its abundance and conse quent cheapness is one of the great causes of our national prosperity, and of our progress in the useful arts. From the facilities of our railroad and canal communications we are enabled to bring to market about 600,000 or 700,000 tons a year, of an average value of perhaps 4,000,0001. sterling, while France, with all her prohibitive duties, has never manufac tured more than 370,000 tons, or little more than one-half of our production. As the population of France is nearly double that of England, and the quantity of iron prepared does not much exceed one-half; it ' follows that we consume iron in a fourfold ratio to the consumption of our neighbours. Yet by prohibitive duties the abundance of one country is not allowed to balance the scanty supply of another. The duty imposed upon the j ton of English iron, if imported into France, is not less than 111., while the article itself in France does not exceed that amount. Thus France pays for the monopoly of the possesors of forests and mines on her supply of less than j 400,000 tons of iron, about 4,500,0001., while England could afford the same quantity of the metal for the half of that sum. Considering, however, the manner in which the coun cils were composed,—considering that the sovereign, ministers, and deputies in France are proprietors of forests, rendered pro fitable mainly by the sale of the wood for smelting iron, we could expect little imme diate reduction in the protecting duties. It was proposed by the Council General of manufac tures that the tariff should be reduced 10 francs, or Bs. a ton for five successive years ; or, in other words, 21. out of 11/. by the year 1839! This will probably he all the extent of the reduction, and yet the French Government has recom mended a great system of railroads, to be con structed at the public expense, of this high priced material. With respect to coal, the French tariff is equally opposed to the national interest. The duty now is 9s. 2d. a ton on Eng lish coal, 2s. 6d. on Belgic, and about I ld. on Prussian. There seemed no dispo,ition in the majority of the " General Councils" to reduce this duty effectually, though they all seemed to agree that coal used for steam navi gation should be permitted to be imported duty free. The duty on the admission of cotton yarn appears to be fixed at 30 per cent., and the prohibition before existing on this article, has been exchanged for a tax to this amount merely because the finer kinds of this yarn, cannot be spun in France, arid, being necessary for some of the finer fabrics, was consequently imported by the smuggler. We cannot object to the amount of the proposed duty while we maintain our foreign silk regulations. The reductions which have been canvassed in the meetings to which we have referred, and the modifications of the tariff' which are likely to be proposed to the Chambers by the Govern ment as the result of their advice, will be far from satisfying the demands of France or the expectations of England ; but they form a good beginning ; they are undeniable relaxations of a bad system, which the progress of knowledge and the power of the press must gradually un dermine, and every successive year we may expect to see a new blow given to monopolies and re strictions. So sensible already are some French writers of their injurious effects, that an able article has appeared in a republican journal proposing to remove the shackles of trade as e e abolished slavery in the West Indies, by indem nifying the parties whose monopoly is cancelled, s.i~ in order to attain the immediate advantages of free industry, without committing injustice towards those who invested their capital in particular branches of business on the faith of continued protection.— Times. We resume our notice of the pamphlet en-1 titled A Rffutation of the Calumnies against the Lord Chancellor contained in the last number of the Quarterly Review in an article upon the pamphlet entitled " The Reform Vinistry and the Reformed Parliament." The next point of the reviewer is somewhat startling—viz., that all the reforms of the Court of Chancery, for which credit has been impro perly given to the Lord Chancellor, are bor rowed;—and from whom ? Lord Eldon ? no. Lord Lyndhurst ?—no ; borrowed from Sir Edward Sugden I—were,1 —were, in fact, all pro. pounded by him in his speech in 1830 !—were all contemplated by the Duke of Wellington's Administration ! Sir Edward Sugden, he it observed, in reference to his claim as a Par liamentary reformer, began his Parliamentary career as the most strenuous opponent of Chancery reform, as any one who reads his speech on Mr. M. A. Taylor's motion may see, though it is true, when Solicitor-General, he had to eat his words, and explain away as well as he could all he had before said, when he brought forward Lord Lyndhurst's Chancery Bills. But the measures of Lord Lyndhurst', were grounded on the recommendations of the Chancery Commission, and were not even his measures. No partisan or admirer of Lord Brougham ever thought of claiming for him the credit of being the original discoverer of the ne cessity of Chancery reform ; he saw with the many the necessity of reform, but it was he alone that made the first effective step to iernove the evil,—it was he that gave the first stunning blow, undismayed by hosts of interested parties on every side : and it is for doing this that he has a claim to the gratitude of the country, and, in spite of the Quarterly Review, will never be called on to share it in common with Sir Edward Sugden. What, however, was thought of the merit of Sir Edward Sudgen's measures ? Whatever may be the reviewer's opinion of them now, they were at the time universally condemned by the bar, by the Master of the Rolls, the Vice Chancellor, and Mr. Bell, out of Parliament, and by Lord Eldon, Sir C. Wetherell, Mr. C. Fergusson, Mr. Spence, Mr. R. Grant, &c., in Parliament. The next charge of the reviewer is, that in the Chancery Bill of last session, whereby, amongst other reforms, the Masters' salaries are reduced from above 4,0001. to 2,5001. per annum, certain compensation clauses were introduced, under which " the Masters, of whom Mr. William Brougham is one, will be entitled to com pensation :" whereas, in the Act for improving the administration of the courts of law, during the Wellington Administration, all extravagant demand for compensation was prevented by the provision that no person who accepted office on condition of relinquishing compensation, or with notice that the office might be abolished, should claim it : indeed, it would have been flat rob bery if they had claimed it, whether the Act had stopped them or not. But is this case similar to the case of the Masters ? As early as 1821 a report of the Committee of the House of Commons recommended the abolition of the Welsh Judge ; and it would have been consi dered monstrous that a judge appointed during the time the Common Law Commission was actually discussing the propriety of the exist ence of the judicature should have claimed compensation, when, perhaps, his office was swept away before he had gone even a single circuit. Again, consider the case of a 'Welsh Judge ; he leaves no profession, whereas a Master abandons his : and again, there was no report against the continuance of master ships, though Lord Lyndhurst, it was known, contemplated the fixing of the income of future Masters at 3,0001. a year ; but the truth is there was no compensation clause whatever in the Bill when it went from the Lords, and was introduced in the Commons on the third reading ; and, after all, what is this compensation clause, whereby the interests of the public have been so wreck lessly neglected ? Why, it gives power to the Treasury to " investigate the claim to compen sation, to inquire whether, from the nature of the office, or the mode of accession thereto, any condition or notice (preventing such claim) could have been properly given." This is the whole case on which the charge rests—viz., that the Treasury (not solely in the case of the Nies ters, but in all cases where the profits of officers will be diminished by that Bill) has power to inquire if any one is entitled to claim compen sation or not, and whether notice that he should not have it could have been properly given to him. The key to the whole attack is that the Chancellor's brother was a Master. We have not a word about the other Masters, two of whom were appointed just before Mr. Brougham. We have a sneer at Mr. Brougham's supposed small professional gains ; but not a word about the gains of Lord Henley, Mr. Cross, Sir Giffin Wilson, and Mr- Trower, all persons appointed by Lord Eldon, whereas any one who has practised in the Court of Chancery must know that Mr. Brougham's practice when he left the bar far exceeded in amount the professional gains of any one of these persons. No complaint is made about the compensation which these gentlemen may claim. We suspect that the reviewer forgot the public interest here, so as by a little dexterity the reader might he led to inter that a " saving clause" had been actually introduced by the Lord Chancellor's own hand in order to favour his brother. We do not discuss the question as to whether all or any arc not entitled to compensa tion. We have referred to the point at this length to rebut the calumny, and to expose the falsehood as regards the " saving clause" and the motive for its introduction.—Times. We have, as often as any occasion has unfor tunately called for it, invariably proclaimed our dislike of the unseemly and impious desecra tion of churches and other places of worship to purposes of secular violence and uproar. We do not envy the man, let his sect or religion be what it may, who can enter any place of worship, from a Christian Cathedral to a Jewish Syna gogue, with any other feelings than those of respect and veneration. They are places on entering which all worldly thoughts should, as far as possible, be laid aside, and, therefore, those where, least of all, the worst and madden ing of passions should find vent. Without En tering into the merits or demerits of the appa rently interminable disputes which have so long divided one of the City wards, who is there, not a party in the scenes himself, who must not have been beyond measure disgusted at the scenes which the attempt to carry on the late elec tion of Common Councilmen for that ward in the parish church has given occasion ? Yet not only does good frequently arise out of evil, but, on some occasions, it has happened that the greater ' the evil the more certain and more speedy the remedy. Such, we trust, may be the case in this instance; and the former being such as ad mits of no doubt or palliation, it is not unrea sonable to hope that speedy measures will be taken to rid the house of God from the scandal of being thus profaned. The instance in ques tion, though we hope unparalleled in violence and indecency, is, in other respects, by no means singular. In another ward, upon the same oc casion, we are credibly assured that those who had to provide for the reception of the presiding Alderman had the bad taste to allow a sort of throne to be constructed for his convenience out of the communion cushions ; while in more than one other party placards, of no very conciliatory nature, were distributed in the pews, and, in one instance, in the pulpit and reading-desk. Now the apology for all this is ancient custom, and the alleged want of other accommodation. As for the plea of ancient custom, like that of bull-baiting or any other brutal custom, the sooner it is abo lished the better; and as for want of other accommodation, its utter unfoundedness only awaits the verification of the old proverb of "Where there's a will there's a way." Though there may be many wards in the City in which there is no place belonging to the inhabitants large enough to be used as a substitute, there is, we are persuaded, no ward in which a tavern or a warehouse might not be found to answer all the purposes of a wardmote. Or, if the diffi culty cannot be got over in this way, why may not Guildhall, and the different Company's Halls, be appropriated to this one annual occa sion ? Having thus pointed out more than one remedy, we have a right, on the part of the public, to expect that our remarks will not be disregarded ; and that another year will not elapse without proper means being taken to obviate the recurrence of the two disgusting scenes which have given occasion for them.— Morning Herald. The speech of the King of the French, on the opening of the Chambers, conveys little information on the subject respecting which most anxiety is felt in this country — namely, the relations with Russia. It merely alludes, in general terms, to the perils with which the Ottoman empire had been threat ened, and to the pacification, called for by the interests of France and the stability of European order. The declaration that the events connected with the Ottoman empire, and especially the situation of the Peninsula, have rendered it his duty to maintain the army on the footing required by the safety of the state, is so vague, that no inference can be drawn from it. If the perfection of a King's speech con sists in appearing to say something, and yet saying nothing, his Majesty has certainly ar rived at tolerable perfection in his craft. It gives us, we must confess, a somewhat strange idea of a constitutional Government—that is, of a Government in which the King is not the proprietor of, but the first magistrate of the nation, that this King should, in an assembly, consisting of the men who represent the people, speak in so vague and unsatisfactory a manner on a subject of such essential importance as the rela tions with foreign powers which involve the con sequences of peace or war to Europe. This may all be according to the most approved diplomacy; but we confess we should be better pleased to see mat ters so deeply interesting to the nations, made not an affair of Courts, but of nations. The time, we trust, is not far distant, when the best security for the preservation of peace will be sought for in the conviction carefully implanted ►n the different nations of the European commonwealth, that they are all deeply interested in the pros perity of each other, and that, consequently, war must always be injurious, and ❑ever beneficial to them. When this conviction once becomes general, it will be found that the greatest publi city, with regard to all affairs of an international character, is the best protection against the machinations of the barbarous Governments, which still deface Europe. It was a conviction of this kind which induced one of the profound and cautious philosophers of Europe to connect the possibility of perpetual peace, with the general existence of representative Government alone ; because, were the conviction general that nations can never have an interest in war, those who represent nations must act on such conviction. We are satisfied that the very best check on the social designs of Russia, would be found in the execration which the publication of them would excite throughout Europe. The other parts of the Speech of the King of the French, relating to the internal affairs of France, are consolatory. The preservation of tranquillity has begot confidence; and from confidence have resulted the employment and comfort of the people. Many of those who were among the most strenuous opponents of the policy of the King will at least allow that it has so far been attended with success. Revolutions may become necessary ; but it should always be borne in mind that they are necessary evils, and that the apprehension of future revolutions is one of the greatest impediments in the way of the general happiness. The habits acquired by the people in times of revolution render it peculiarly difficult to establish any settled system. There are many who think that Louis Philip ought not to have checked the movement of the nation towards social revolution ; but, under all circumstances, his Government has probably chosen the best course for a nation like the French. It is a good sign of a Government, when we find it boasting of the salutary impulse given to popular instruc tion. It is certainly very much wanted both in France and this country.—Morning Chronicle. We this day publish a second letter from Mr. John Foster, on the subject of the notice taken of his former letter in an article of the Leeds Intelli g encer of Saturday last, written by Mr. Sadler himself, in which he has inserted extracts from letters from Mr. Foster. Mr. Foster has deposited with us the original of the letter from i\lr. Sadler, inserted in his letter to us, in which Mr. Sadler's alleged benevolent exertions in his behalf, when in Rothtvell prison, are satisfactorily disproved. We can speak to the g enuineness of the letter, from having compared it with several letters from Mr. Sadler to Mr. Foster, authenticated by his frank and the postmark. Mr. Sadler is now reaping the fruits of the tortuous course he has pursued. No man can serve both God and Mammon_ no man can be a Tory and a Radical at the same time. Mr. Sadler may, perhaps, have plumed himself on the success with which he deceived both Tories and Radicals. When entering Parliament under the patronage of the Duke of Newcastle, he may have assumed high flown Tory principles, just as, when entering Huddersfield with Radical colours, he was only assuming Radical principles. It will always be difficult in the case of a moan of the artificial character of Mr. Sadler, to tell when he is sincere, and when he is speaking from conviction. One thing, however, is sufficiently obvious. Like many other actors he has over-rated his own powers ; and, while supposing that he was using others as his instruments, they may have occasionally been using him as an instrument. Opinion is very much divided with regard to Mr. Sadler. Some suppose that he is a real enthusiast in behalf of the humbler classes of society, and that he is only a hypocrite in politics, having found that lie could only find an entrance into Parliament as the nominee of a high Tory boroughmonger. Others again suppose that his benevolence is on a par with his politics—that he is merely anxious to play a part, and to gratify a morbid vanity. Others main suppose him actuated by a wish to throw society into confusion, by stirring up the labouring classes against their employ ers, and feeding them with hopes which cannot be realized. All these parties may be wrong, for much of what they attribute to design may be the fruit of weakness ofjudgment. Cunning is found more frequently in alliance with weak ness of mind than with strong discernment. We will now, however, dismiss Mr. Sadler, as we are quite satisfied that his political career is closed, and we have no other wish with regard to him, than that he should not be allowed to work mischief. Personally we can have no hostility to wards him, and he is quite mistaken in supposing the existence ofany connection between Mr. Foster and this Journal. Mr. Foster's letters must have been of great use in opening the eyes of both Tories and ultra-Radicals ; and it is ridiculous in Mr. Sadler to pretend, now that an individual is utterly unworthy of credit, as he only ceased to eulogize him when he could no longer further his views. The discovery that a man is unworthy of credit, the moment he is unfortunate and not before, is at least made under very suspicious circums!ances. But all this will be understood at Leeds and Hudders field as well as in London.—Morn. Chronicle. Our readers will see, from the report of the proceedings in the Vice-Chancellor's Court, that his Honour has decided against the Unitarians in the famous case of the Hewley Charity. It was evident, he said, that when Lady Hewley used the terms " godly preachers of Christ's Holy Gospel" in the deed, she intended that the bounty of her charity should be enjoyed only by persons who believed in the Divinity of Christ. He animadverted in severe terms on the version of the Scriptures published by the Unitarian Society at Manchester, in which many passages were falsely and erroneously translated. " A more arbitrary, silly, and false translation of the Scriptures," he said, " he had never met with." This decision, it is understood, will not settle the question, which will be again argued before the Chancellor. It will excite a great sensation throughout the country.—Morning Chronicle. The tocsin of Church revolution, or as it is styled by the adherents and parasites of Minis ters, " Church Reform," has been sounded, and anticipation is fully occupied in contemplating the probable nature and extent of the changes proposed. Admitting for one moment, for the sake of argument, that certain modifications and improvements are necessary or advisable, let us consider into whose hands the task of making such alterations has fallen, and whether they are fitted for a duty requiring, from the solemnity and vital importance of the subject matter, the greatest care. and the most respectful caution. The plan will, of course, originate with the Ad ministration, and it must inspire the greatest confidence in the friends and champions of the Church of England, when they call to mind that the venerable Earl Grey and the temperate Lord Chancellor Brougham occupy distinguished posts in the sapient council called the " Cabinet," whose decrees are laws to the Reformed House of Commons. Who can for one moment suspect that the " illustrious" who bade the Bishops on a certain memorable occasion " set their houses in order," and the " learned " who accused the spiritual Peers of a design "to trip up the Government," will be influenced by any motive but a desire to increase the efficiency and extend the usefulness of the Church of England ? And if a doubt, an unfavourable surmise, spring up for one moment, the doubt will be dissipated, the surmise removed, by the recollection of the external influence of the amiable Earl of Durham, whose affection for the clergy in the north of England is beyond suspicion. The Reform Bill, the Irish Church Bill, and the Municipal Roving Commission must also con vince the most sceptical with what prudence and respect the institutions of the country, whe ther religious or political, are always approached by his Majesty's Ministers. If, indeed, reform be necessary, it may be trusted with perfect security to the good and great men who now occupy the chief places in our admirable Church— to the Howleys, the Van Milderts, the Grays, the Monks, the Phillpotts, and the Sumners— to men who have, both within the sphere of their dioceses, and in their places as Peers of Parliament, promoted, as far as in them lay, the best interests of sound learning and genuine re ligion ; and who have at once deprecated hasty, useless, and dangerous change, and forwarded real and substantial improvement. The Church has reformed itself from within, and is continuing carefully and judiciously the good work. In their hands, then, would a wise and religious Ministry leave it. Alas ! we have but too much reason to fear a contrary course will be adopted by our pre sent rulers. Time alone can show what measure of spoliation will be dealt out with reference to the temporalities of the Church ; how many Eng lish bishoprics will be sacrificed to the cry of the mischievous ; how many privileges surrendered to the demand of the spoiler ; but there is a still more fearful consideration. The Church of England may exist, ay, may bear her head with humble dignity, though her revenues be dimi nished, though her splendour be curtailed ; but it is feared by maan,y,tet text t a wt Gallen thhi which he I ai hasar e n d d s be of impious men are to be directed against the spiritualities for none carefully e ful o ly f rulers ; and if th e y can conc ili a t e o these ihe f et b di Ci s bn , yig' o uso r 'ru' ceri is n disarm for a time their active hostility, the forbearance will be in their eyes cheaply purchased by die surrender of the points in dispute. To one the Thirty-nine Articles of our Church are a stumbling block ; let them be revised and altered, under the care and super intendence of his Lordship of Chichester. To another the services for the sth of November and the 30th of January are rocks of offence. His Grace of Dublin will undertake their removal ; while the Independent, the Baptist, and the Socinian will each clamour loudly for such alterations in the Beok of Common Prayer as may suit their respective views of doctrine and discipline. Men will be found, ay, and to their shame be it spoken, within the pale of the Church, who will be active and busy in the unholy work. What then must we do? We who feel how manifold are the blessings, spiritual and civil, we derive from the Church of England. DIED. On 23(1 inst., at Kidderminster, Sarah, wife of James Morton, Esq. On the 3d inst., Mr. Griffith Jones, of Upper Baker-street, aged 76. On the 21st inst , Lieut. William Freebairn. On the 20th inst., at Rotterdam, Alexander Adrian Ferrier, youngest son of Alexander Ferrier, Esq., Consul to his Bri tannic Majesty. On the 20th inst., aged 87, the Rev. Heneage Elsley, A.M., vicar o: Burneston, Yorkshire, an author of the " Annotation on the Gospels." On the 23d inst., aged 16 months, Rowland, son of David Barclay Chapman, Esq., of York.terrace, Regent's Park. On the 22,1 inst., in Kensington, Henry Penny, Esq., aged 86. On the 16th inst., at Crosby Ravensworth, the Rev. Mr. Briscoe, aged 79. On the 16th inst., at Grove Villa, near Worcester, Thomas Dixon, Esq , M.D. _ On the 2.3..1 inst., aged 16 months, Rowland, son of David Barclay Chapman, Esq., of York-terrace, Regent's.park. On the 18th inst , at Manton Lodge, near Emsworth, Aldham, Esq., Captain, R.N. On the 11th inst., at Omagh, aged 20, Alexander, second son of Doctor Hamilton. __.. __ ____. ............... On the 14th inst., aged 74, Mr. Edward Harri so n , of spom , don, near Derby. Mrs. Maude, relict of On the 19th inst., in Ashbourn, Mr. Joh n D akin, of Crass. low Bank, near I'arwich, Derbyshire, aged 49. On the 11th inst., in his 89th yea r, William Stephens, Esq., Captain in the North Lincoln Militia. On the 21st inst., Elizabet h, sec ond daughter of Wm. Earn shaw, Esq., of Balharn, Su rre y . Th O om n a t s he M l a l u tl d i e i , n E st :q ,.in her 60th yea r, On the 23d inst., Mrs. Sarah Brooks, wife of Benj. Brooks, Esq., of Lincoln's Inn, in Doughty.street, in her 70th year. On the 19th of October, at Demerara, Arend H. Waists!), Esq., in his 63d year. On the 29th ult., Anthony Aufrere, Esq., of Foulsham Old Hall, Norfolk, in his 76th year. i e We must form associations for her de fenes. e 0 / We must show that we are not yet reduced so low as to surrender without a struggle Vessinge whose full extent we shall only feel when dt• prived of them—blessings which each successive Sunday and holy day brings more fully home T. Dart to our h ea rts, es p ec i a ll y at t hi s per i o d o f t he klits year, when we are ca ll e d upon to ce l e b rate hie siraitc.l2 advent whose doctrines that Church tea-heff, P.onViorr; whose exa m pl e th a t Ch urc h en d eavours h um bly to follow.—Morning Post. In then among tilos here, seem the Life 0 arid 30/. Policies, of at the riptil additional, at liberty t lotions, w removing &rmitiesDuellin, Ilia Policy Death will The Pr( or Premiu the Insure( litigations THE MARKETS. COUNTRY CORN MARKETS DURING THE WEEK Wheat. I Barley. Oat.. Beans. Per Quarter. s. to s. s. to s. s. to s. r. to s. Abingdon.--..... 62 81 31 43 22 30 38 Andover 50 61 24 28 —••• Birmingham—.... 56 58 SO 40 16 22 49 nri,lport —. 56 74 32 36 26 30 54 Cirencester 40 56 24 29 18 29 39 Naringdon-- 54 86 36 41) 26 34 46 • Guildford 48 74 23 32 26 35 43 , tenley----.. 54 83 30 35 20 30 40 Hereford . 64 68 32 34 22 28 46 Ilighwortlr --- ---.. 62 80 32 42 28 34 56 Maidenhead 56 68 34 44 22 30 36 97 Nlonmouth--...., 66 68 32 36 24 28 42 Reading 40 66 22 36 14 26 56 Salisbury---..--. 42 54 26 211 20 24 36 54 Southampton 54 58 33 40 28 82 54 Stroud . 64 78 37 38 22 32 54 Tewkesbury 53 37 30 38 46 Uxbridge 48 74 26 34 20 26 49 Wantage...-----.. 58 80 27 32 17 23 34 44 Warminster 48 58 25 31 22 26 34 46 Windsor _ 59 , 21 22 43 I Worcester--..... 50 57 3O 32 24 32 44 LEWES MARKET.—Dee. 24. White Wheat (per quarter)............£2 16 oto 17 0 Red ditto... Barley Oats, New 0 18 0 1 0 0 Pease 1 18 6 0 0 0 Oil Cake, TO pT] A cos aiaker, 1E led at Le aria. tißil ItS 0 to X' 6 0 8 6 18 0 18 6 0 0 per th, 17 0 12 0 11 0 0 0 0 0 iousand. CHELTENHAM . Per Bushel. s, d. to s. d. Wheat Barley 3 0 4 0 Mutton Oats 6 3 3 Veal Beans Pease 5 0 7 0 Lanib Hay 3l. lOs to 3/. 15s. Od. per ton. A RKET.—Dec. 24. Per lb. d. to d. ci 7 O 7 O 7 6 7 O 8 KINI 111; GENTLE In ha ettraoi din keilicine, by way of Period. 1 Sot one of tad in ord khie paper tandem v Passible. Having agent, At that con Conyietioi Probst upon yo Stating t chronic of whicl the med Aille eac After sta toy case a nd pers( ocrimono tit.. M., toe pill weeks I tilting 8 'ration at know ho tt to my r eceived to the at aly instr etch do tiss e d cc to fifty, from the oefore-it depitrtinl tae of Your — M Conenn to the 1 leney, orders, Present All tC and aul 48 Ilea' HULL MARKET.—Dec. 24. Wheat, Old —s. 40s. 50s. New --s. 445. 48i. Foreign —s. 50s. Ms. ln bond... —s. —s. —4. Oats, Poland —s. 18s. 20s. Old —s. --s. —IL Small or Feed.... —s. 16s. 18s —s. -.3......L Foreign —s. 16s. 183 —s. --s. —s. Barley, Norf. & Sut ... —s 30s. 31s. Linc. & Wold —s. 26s 28a. - Foreign - 1..--E. Beans —s. 325. 345. F0reign......... —l. —s. —it. Pease, White —s. 425. 465. Grey ...45. 325. 345. Pares s. —s. —s. Foreign —8.—5...4. Rapeseed. in bond none. DUMFRIES MA a. d. s.d.l s. d. a. d. Wheat, Imp. Bush 5 9 to 6 9ißutter, 16ox. 0 Btoo 9 Barley ... Oats ~... .... 2 0 2 4 Beef, per score 8 0 9 0 Flour, 141 b. 3 0 3 4 Mutton, per lb osi o 5 Oatmeal Potatoes. cwt. RKETS.—Dec. 18. CORK MA RKETS.—Dec. 21. Wheat (per 20st.) Barley (per 16st.) Oats (per 14st.) Flour , per cwt.) 5 0 16 6 Oatmeal (per cwt.) 0 0 10 6 Beef, sd. to lid. ; Mutton, sd. to 6d. ; Veal, 6d. to Bd. ; Pork, 2d. to 21d. ; Fresh Butter, 10d. to 12d. per lb. PRICE OF BUTTER. To the Merchants. To the Country. First Quality 73s. 62s. Second 6B SS Third SS 4B Fourth 4B 3B Fifth Sixth MEETINGS OF CREDITORS AT THE COURT, BASINGHALL-STREET. (From the London Gazette.) TO-MORROW, Dec. 27. K. K. S. Barber, mercer, Drury-lone .............. ........ 1 at 1 DIVIDENDS. ff. IL and S. Ashby, mealmen, Upper Tharnes.street at 11 COURT FOR THE RELIEF OF INSOL- VENT DEBTORS. The Matters of the Petiions and Schedules of the Pri soners, hereinafter named (the same having been filed in the Court) are appointed to be heard at the Court house, in Poriugal•street, Lincoln's lon-Gelds, on Tues day, the ith of January, 1833, at Nine o'clock in the l Virenoon. Jos..ph Jones, gentleman, Barking-side, Essex. Joseph White, commission.agent, Cheltenh a m. Henryt the Six Lewis, s ler o k n s e of of th e th K clerks ing.s o f filch . of roien' Chancery,Eig. King's-row, Knightsbridge. Geootrigee of Richard Amor, greengrocer, Upper Marylehone.strett. Jonathan Knapton, atone-merchant, Canal-bason, Leeds. Thomas Messer, bricklayer, Epsom. Jane Dalson, keeper of a ham and beet shop, Wellington-place, Wandsworth-road. James Passman, commercial traveller, Ashley-crescent, Shep herdess-fields, City.road. Thomas David Turber, tailor, Whiskin.atreet, St. John-street. road, Clerkenwell. Thomas Perkins, victualler, Hunningham, near Coventry. Thomas Mullins, dealer in coals, Warren.atreet, Fitzroy. square. A letter from Berne mentions that the Pre fee, M. Rosehi, had discovered some documents of consi d rable importance, and of a nature to throw great light upon the administration of the late government of that canton. Having occasion to make some search in the hotel where the Secret Council formerly held their meet ings, he found the following papers :-1. The Register of the Secret Council from 1813 to 1816 ; 2. the protocol referring to the use made of the secret funds from 1804 to 1825 ; 3. the instructions given to M. Zeerleder on his departure for the Congress of Vienna in 1814; 4. the correspondence of M. de Haller during his embassy to Paris ; 5. copies of several important papers from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1813 and 1814; 6. ques tions put to M. de Haller when he was at Soleure ; 7. re port of M. de Wildermatt to the head-quarters of the Em peror of Austria in the month of March, 1814; and 8. re port from the same gentleman to Monsieur( Charles Philip). This discovery is net only interesting to Berne and Swit zerland, but to Europe in general, for it will be remembered that the protocols of the Secret Council were in vain looked for, the Members of the late Government having refused to give them, so that now all the secret political intrigues carried on at differ.rnt epochs, particularly in 1814, will be made public, and many events, as yet quite enigmatical, will be elucidated. BIRTHS. On the 19th inst., Mrs. Robert M'Cabe, of a daughter. On the 24th inst., in Upper Gower street, the lady of Thos. Methold Waters, Esq., of a daughter. On the 24th inst., in Upper Grosvenor-street, Mrs. William Marshall, of a son. On the 22d inst., at Scarborough, near Beverley, the lady of James Hall, Esq. of a daughter. MARRIED. On the 24th inst., at St. Leonard's-on. Sea, John P. Fearon Esq., of the Inner Temple, to Jessy, daughter of James Bur.. ton, Esq., of St. Leonard's. FAINTED AND PUBLIPUED DV M RDO YOUNG, AT TEE SUN OFVIIH, 112, STRAND.