The Sun. — London, England, 1831-09-16 00:00:00

'p~r~~. . &Mutest exercise of the deliberative and judicial func ;ions of any constitutional Member of Parliament.—( Hear. ) Lord ALTHORP, in answer to the Hon. and Learned Gentleman's cpiestion, had simply to state, that the reason why Chelsea had not been inserted in schedules C or I) was, that it was not deerneriXpedient to add to the me tropolitanrepresentation mOreihan had been done under the B 11; and that it was thought right that the constituency of Chelsea should helong'to the county of Middlesex at large.—(Hear.) The two places to which he then pro posed to bestow the right of franchise were large and populous manufacturing towns,which otherwise would not be as efficiently represented as the framers of the Bill c to templated. With respect to the Hon. and Learned Gen tleman's taunt of the supporters of the Bill not possessing the freedom of their own judgment on its provisions, it was perhaps enough to remind the House of the fact, that whereas many of these very pledged supporters of the Bill divided on more than one occasion against Ministers, white the—he supposed he must say—unpledged gentlemen op posite moved in such close party alliance that they never by accident voted with Ministers in any of the numerous divisions which had taken place during the progress of the Bill.—(Hear. ) Lord EBRINGTON was one of those who had pledged themselves to their constituents to support the principle .f the Bill, but not therefore its every detail, and who had redeemed that pledge, because it was consonant with his own opinions and convictions. But was it therefore, lie asked, to he borne, that for thus acting consonantly with their own opinion., and in furtherance with the wishes of their constituents and the general weal, they should be taunted, as if so doing- were a crime, and that, too, !iv , an Hon. and Learned Gentleman who had himself no con stituents to pledge himself to—(Loud cries of " hear")--- who was notoriously the mere nominee of a Peer—(Cheers) —and who, as such, was as much, indeed more, fettered and tied down to a particular line of conduct as he would fain insinuate were the pledged supporters of the Bill.— (Coetinued cheers.) et 31r. GOULBURN did not think the warm rebuke of the Noble Lord called for by what had fallen from I i% Hon. and Learned Friend. It was true that his Hon. and Learned Friend did sit for a small corporation; but a sorer for so doing came with a very ill grace from the Noble Lord, who for years was himself the nominee of a Peer, and who had not till very recently the honour of a more extended constituency.—(Hear.) Lord EBRINGTON admitted the fact, but contended that he had never ventured to censure those who hail pledged themselves on the hustings to a free electing constituency. Mr. Strickland, Lord George Lennox, Mr. R. Gur• ney, and Mr. Hodges, severally protested against the justice of the imputations which Sir C. Wetherell had cast upon the Ministerial side of the House, in calling them a pledged majority. They each and all insisted tli,it they had given no pledge to their constituents to support every detail of the Bill—they had only expressed an o, talon favourable to the principle of the Bill, and that opi nion they had found universal among their constituents. Mr. BICKFORD addressed the House as follows :—I do not often trouble the House with any observations of mine, but I feel it quite impossible to refrain replying to the remarks made by the Hon. and Learned Gentleman. I will therefore tell that Hon. and Learned Gentleman, that I am sent to this House by a very numerous body of constituents, nearly 2,000 in number, who had too much good sense to require any pledge from me, and, relying upon my integrity, they left me to follow my own ju&- ment—l was not bound to say " aye, aye," or " no, no," at the will of any Minister ; that I have at all times in eiravoured to discharge my duty honestly and conscienti ously, perfectly regardless from which side of the House the question emanated ; and so long as my constituents think fit to repose their confidence in me, I shall steadily pursue .the same independent line of conduct. Lord G. LENNOX said he had sworn allegiance to the Bill; and what was more, the country had sworn it like wise. The lion. and Learned Gentleman said the Bill, in the opinion of all prudent persons, was a lace : he would tell the Hon. and Learned Gentleman, who was one of Lis constituents, that in the opinion of all the people of Sus. Aex, the opposition to the Bill was a farce.—(Cheers.) Mr. A. TREVOR denied that the country had swcrn allegiance to the Bill, He had been sent into that Hon e pledged to oppose the Bill ; he gloried in having given that pledge, and he gloried still more in having redeemed it. After this conversation had lasted some time longer, Arr. CROKER put it to the House, whether this kind of desultory discussion could be at all conducive to its cha racter.--( Hear. ) Lord J. RUSSELL had risen to make the same sugges tion to the House, because, as they were all agreed to be very angry op the third reading of the Bill, it might be as well if they were good-humoured at present.—The amend ment was then agreed to. On the queseon being put, " That Whitehaven and Workington should sand as one of the boroughs in sche dule D," Mr. CROKER rose to nigive an amendment. The addition of Workington to Whitehaven was such a dere liction of the principle of this Bill, that he felt himself obliged to move to disjoin these two places. The town of Whitehaven contained a population of 16,000 souls, arid the town of Workington was distant eight miles frmu it. It was therefore unnecessary to introduce contributory boroughs into the northern part of England, by adding the town of Workington to the town of Whitehaven, which already contained 16,000 inhabitants. He therefore moved that the town of Workington be struck out of the schedule. _ . . Lord ALTHORP briefly expressed his disapprobation of the amendment. Sir C. WETHERELL declared his intention to sup port it. The amendment was, however, negatived without a ivision. The other schedules were theft agreed to. On the motion of Lord ALTHORP, the Bill with it: amendments was ordered to be engrossed, there being only one dissentient voice against it. The third reading of the Bill was then fixed for Monday next. The Bill, as amended, to be printed. BRIBERY AND CORRUPTION. Lord J. RUSSELL then gave notice, that he wou'd on this day fortnight move for leave to bring in a Bill to amend the laws relative to bribery and corruption in the election of Members to serve in Parliament. CORN LAWS. Mr. HUNT rose to bring forward the motion of which he load given notice on the very first day of his entering that House, respecting the Corn Laws. From that ma ment to the present he had been anxious to bring the sub ject forward; but in consequence of the Reform Bill in tervening, be had, at the request of his Majesty's Mini sters, deferred doing so from day to day. He was glad, however, now to have an opportunity of redeeming the pledge which he had voluntarily given to his constituents en the subject. The political economists, of whom there were many in that House, would doubtless tell them that the landlords would not suffer by the repeal of the Corn Laws. He (Mr. Hunt) said no such thing. He could not deceive them. He knew they must suffer. They must lower their rents—they must reduce the paytnenti, for tithes—and they must diminish taxation. All this they must do the moment the Corn Laws were repealed, before they could hope that the farmers of this country would be able to compete with those of the Continent. In the course of the last forty years tithes had been raised from one hundred to three or four, and rent quite as much. The landlords must prepare to give up at least one-third of this, and it was right they should know it. He had made calculations, which showed that the average price of wheat in the market of Hamburg for the last three years had been 335. 6d. a quarter, while the average in Mark-lane was 61s. 2d. If the Corn Laws had not tseen in operation the people might, 'therefore, have paid just two-fifths Leila for their bread during the whole AA that tie.le, fur at two-fifthe less he was confident foreign grain could he delivered in the ports of this country. Ex tending his calculations still further, and taking, as he be lieved there were, 24,000,000 of people in the three kingdoms, he found that each individual, rich and poor, high and Low, paid now just sixpence a week during each year more than he should do for the bread he consumed. Now this amounted every year to the sum of 31,200,000/. paid by the people as a tax on the article of bread. It avu impossible that the labourers could continue to exist on the sums now paid diem by the farmers, or that the farmers, with such rents, conta give much more. Forty years ago a large estate in Wiltshire that he knew well— the Hon. Member for that county (Etr, Benett) knew it too—that estate paid a tent of 600/. a yea.r to the land lord, and the labourers employed on it received six shillings a week. That same estate had been for many years let at a rent of 1,800/. a year, and what did the labourers on it receive now? Why seven shillings a week ! How could a labourer and his family live on such a sum ? If that state of things did not produce the late distress and all the misfortunes by which its exist ence was marked, be knew not what did produce it. The people, in many cases, were starving—yes, starving in the streets ; and be contended that the C orn Laws were the sole cause of their sufferings. What was in th e ; said Ministerial organ, the Times , on this subjec ts —(Hear.) He repeated that the Paper wh ich was supposed to speak the opinion of the Ministers, howe ver it might garble the accounts of the debates of the House to answer their pur pose, knew better than to support them on the question of the Corn Laws. The briellese barrister who dictated from his closet the course the Government should pursue, did not forget that it was necessary to sell his Paper.— (Oh ! ) What did he say on the Corn Laws ? On the 27th of August the Editor of that Paper said, " that while the produce of the soil of England for many years past had been stationary, if not declining, our lawgivers have been straining every effort to make food inaccessible, instead of more attainable to the poor. Far from inviting bread to the poor man's door, they have been repelling it; first by open prohibitions ; next, and to this moment, by sev , re and pinching duties. They have striven to check popula lion by artifical famine." This was what the Times said ; and there was a great deal of truth in it. If the Government could say it was not so, then he would con tend, that there never was any language used before which so well deserved the notice of the Attorney- General. They had been told that the passing of the Reform Bill would produce an immediate repeal of the Corn Laws. If he eould bring himself to think that, then he would hail the Bill as a great boon to the country. He knew, however, that it would not be so, and that the Government were determined to oppose their repeal, although the public organs under their controul had held that out, among other things, as an inducement to the people to support the Bill. He should like the House to know what were the hopes and expectations founded on the Bill. Tne people of Bolton had announced a few of the pledges they would require from the candidate for their suffrages. The first was, a total repeal of the corn laws ; the next, an equi table adjustment of the debt; then justice brought to every man's door; the abolition of places and pensions ; the abolition of monopolies ; the repeal of all taxes op pressing the middle and the lower classes ; and the repeal of the Law of Primogeniture. The places and pensions would probably last as long as the present King lived ; and as to the repeal of the taxes that pressed on the middle and lower classes, if they were taken away, he should be glad to know how the expences of the State were to be defrayed; but this was a specimen of the pledges which Bolton and some of the new districts were deter mined to exact from their representatives. The corn laws were invented to support the tithes and the taxes; and the plain question now was—whether they could go on as they did last winter, with all the miseries, and suf ferings, and burnings which they had witnessed for so many months ? He regretted much to see that the character of the agricultural population was much deteriorated from the miseries they had suffered, and that so far from think ing, as they used to do, that they never could do too much for their toasters, they now looked on them as their enemies, and were disposed to thwart and oppose them. Bad as the condition of the agricultural labourers was known to be, the manufacturing were in a state of misery which it was almost impossible to describe. The wages they earned with fourteen hours' labour were scarcely enough to sup port life. It was said the Reform Bill would relieve them. He denied that ; and he therefore now called on the House, unsupported although he might be—he called on them, and on the Nobility and landholders of the country, to make a sacrifice at once, and, by repealing the corn laws, preserve the peace and secure the prosperity of the country. After observing that the standing army and the militia were retained purely for the sake of keeping down the com plaints of those whom the corn laws rendered wretched and discontented, and remarking at the same time (amid expressions of dissent) that wheat, in the markets of War minster and Devizes, had been as high as 80s. a quarter during the last two or three months, while at Hamburg it was only 355., the Hon. Member concluded by moving for leave to bring in a Bill for the total repeal of all exist ing Acts tending to prohibit or interfere with the free im port 'thin of corn int the United Kingdom. Mr. JAMES seconded the motion. He was aware that those who advocated the total repeal of the corn laws plunged themselves into a hornet's nest. At the risk, how ever, of being stung, he would do his duty. He thot4irt it was not probable that such a measure should be carried in this Parliament. In his opinion, therefore, the Hon. Member for Preston would have done better to have post poned his motion till the House was reformed—till schedule A and schedule B were become the law of the land. The first act of a reformed Parliament would be, be believed, to abolish the corn laws. He thought no circumstances could justify impeding the people in obtaining a supply of food, but particularly in a country lice ours, in which the climate compelled us to have recourse to importation. All laws prohibiting the importation of corn deprived the in dustrious classes of a market for the produce of their labour, and so raised the price of food that labourers could not pro cure a sufficiency of food without intolerable toil. It also made it the object of foreigners to encourage native manu factures, depriving us of the trade of aripplying them, making them our rivals, and injuring the stripping interest. He bad heard a gentleman say corn was bought with gold, not manufactures; but, in fact, the gold was bought by our manufactured goods in South America. It was said that the agriculturists were so heavily taxed, that they would he ruined if foreign corn were im ported. Corn laws were established, therefore, to pro tect the landed inter est, hut it was notorious that these laws had not protected that interest. When it was .aid that agri culturists were exposed to heavy taxes, he wished to remind them that the property tax, the tax on farm servants, on salt, and many other taxes, had been repealed or abo lished. He did not believe that the repeal could affect the agricultural interests injuriously. It could nor ruin the farmers. Our manufactures would then he demanded to a greater extent abroad, and the manuficturers would then be able to buy animal food, and be much better customers than at present to the farmers. They would pay for the cultivating bad lands as pasturage. Those who saw only the metropolis, were not aware of the miserable condition of the labourers. Let the landlords, then, reduce their rents, and those who drove four horses drive only two, and those who drove two drive only one, and those who drove one go o❑ foot. The vain distinctions of the few sank, in his estimation, into nothing, in comparison to the comfort of millions. He bad visited the dwellings of the poor, and he was of opinion that no picture of their mise ries could be too highly coloured. Those people were without furniture, without clothes, and he had seen chil dren crying for bread, which their parents could not give them. They were worse off than the negro slaves. He hoped before the end of six years, to find as large a ma jority in favour of repealing the Corn Laws, as be now found in favour of a measure for reforming Parliament. Mr. BENETT, as he had been called on to give an ex planation as to the rise of rent on one of his own farms, would say, that fifteen years ago he found it necessary to contradict some statements of the Hon. Member for Pres ton, relative to the farm which the lion. Member then re ferred to. The Hon. Member had not then refuted his statements. The fact was that the farm, sixty years ago, let for six hundred pounds a year, and it was now let for one thousand eight hundred pounds ; but it was formerly a lease on lives. He had, since then, paid 10,0001. for the great tithes of that farm, which now formed part of it ; he had also given another estate of 500/. for the vicarial tithes, and they had been added to the farm, and the whole was let for 1,8001. The advance in forty five years, at the time he published his former statement, and in sixty years, including the fifteen years since, only gave hint 12 per cent. on his money. These statements were before the public. The lion. Member knew ti,e whole p aticulars, and had never contradicted them. The Hon. Member, however, had stated over and over again, that he had raekod up his rent from 600/. to 1,8001. arid never once stated, thought he knew them, any one of ti e facts on which that rise of the rent was justified. He stated the rise of the rent, but nothing of his having pur chased the tithes and attached them to the farm. He was surprised that the Hon. Member should attempt to delude the House in that manner.—(Hear, hear.) He was happy to be able to refuse the lion. Member's statement in that House, as he could not refuse them at Spa-fields or at a meeting of the Livery. The Hon. Member had never contradicted them,—(" I will," said Mr. HUNT) — (Order.) He wished the House to understand that he was able to refute all the Hon. Member's strements.— (Cheers.) Heobjected to discussing the great question of the Corn Laws then, as that would damage the great ques tion of Reform. It was artfully insinuated that Reform would destroy the Corn Laws, in order to turn the farmers against the Bill ; but the farmers knew that a Reliirmed Parliament would do justice to all classes, and they could not be deluded by the Hon. Member. Mr. HUME regretted, on a question of such im portance, the Hon. Member for Wiltshire should have alluded to any personal matters. lie contended that it was not the landlord who fixed the value of a farm, any more than the farmers fixed the value of their stock. 'Why should the landowner be different in this respect from the grocer ?—(Cheers.) He did not fix the price of his article. The price of land was fixed by the gene ral demand. It was a gross fallacy to say that landlords fixed the rent of farms. The Hon. Member said that the landlords must reduce their rents.—(Mr. HUNT said he had not stated that they must, but that they should re duce the rents.) Mr. Hume might have misunderstood the Hon. Member, but he (lid not know the difference in this poi n t b etween s h ould an d must. The Hon. Mem b er might have chosen an .then time to bring forward such an important . motion, r a th er t h an at a t i me when the House was occupied with a matter of so much more importance. He would put it to the constituent. of the Hon. Member, And of the Hon. M em b er f or Carl i sle, of whose sincerity he was well assured—he wo u ld put i t to their constituency if this were the proper time to int er p ose w i t h such a question, when the House was engaged in carrying Re. form into all the institutions of the State? The House was fatigued—(hear)—with the discussion on a most im portant subject, and this was not a time to introduce such a matter as the Corn Laws, which demanded the most mature consideration. The House ought not to be captivated with a motion which would effect, be believed, so much ruin as would a total repeal of the Corn Laws. He was sure that the constituents of the Hon. Member would agree with him, and that they would like a gradual and proper change, instead of jumping to it at once. The Hon. Member for Preston had not brought forward any arguments to justify that change. He had referred merely to the price of corn in Hamburg and London for a few years, which were inaccurate and fallacious, as the only ground for the proposed change. He should take a larger view, and extend his energies over longer periods. The Hon. Member had over-stated the loss too, for if the ports were opened prices would rise in the markets of the Con tinent, and there would not be that difference on which the Hon. Member had calculated the loss to the country. The Hon. Member stated too, that the landlords should he compelled to reduce their rents, but why not leave them to let their lands as they could ? The landlords, in fact, had come down one-third with their rents already. If the Hon. Member had kept up his rents he must be a fortunate man. Was it fair to attribute to the landlords all the distress of the country? Those who hired land would not hire it unless they made a profit by it. The price of land was regulated by competition, and it was unfair in the Hon. Member to attribute the distress to the high rents. Taxes were, undoubtedly, a cause of poverty, but a want of prudence was also a cause. The Hon. Member took no notice of their being a sur plus of hands in the country. . The competition in the market for labour was too great, and it was no longer worth while to bring that commodity to the market. H e wished the Hon. Member to consider the influence which the state of the population had on their prosperity. He must complain of the Hon. Member having introduced several extraneous matters into the discussion, which had no re lation to the motion before the House. He was satisfied that the Corn Laws had injured the agriculturists by throwing the idle on them for support, who would other wise have found employment in our manufactures. At the same time, lie was not prepared to contend for so sudden and material a change as the total abolition of the Corn Laws. He had wished that a tax should be levied on the importation, but that the importation should be left free. That was the extent to which he wished to go. Every change in legislation did harm. The greater the change the greater the evils. Though he was a Re former, he would inflict no unnecessary evil. The pre sent motion would be productive of great evil. He re gretted that the question should have been damaged by such a premature discussion; and he felt himself under the necessity, as he could not negative such a motion, to move the previous question on it. Lord ALTHORP said that the question was of such great importance, and required so much deliberation, that he regretted that the Hon. Gentleman should have brought it forward. The Hon. Member was not to blame for bringing it forward so late in the Session, but at any time during the Sessio❑ the motion must have been inconve nient. He would not enter upon the arguments then. If the question had come before the House for a total repeal of t►te Corn Laws, it must have been met by a direct ne gative, as it was proposed to refer the Corn Laws to a Committee, the previous question was a proper course. Mr. G. LANGTON said a few words, which were in audible in the gallery. Colonel TORRENS did not think this a fit time to dis cuss the question. He, however, retained all his former opinions. GOULBURN considered that this was an im proper time to bring the question forward ; and lie thought that upon the present occasion the question ought to be met by a direct negative, instead of by a motion for the previous question. Lord ALTHORP did not mean to give any pledge to the effect that Ministers would bring forward any motion upon this subject. If it had been a motion for the direct repeal of the Corn Laws, he would have met it by a pointed negative ; but as it was only fir a Committee, and as they ought not to be absolutely rejected, he would sup port the Hon. Member for Middlesex in moving the pre vious question. Mr. HUNT replied, and the gallery was cleared for a division. The House then divided-- For the motion of Mr. Hunt 6 Against it 194 Majority -188 WINE DUTIES' BILL. When the gallery was re-opened for the admission of strangers, Mr. HERRIES was stating his objections to the third reading of the Wine Duties' Bill. He said that, even upon the statement of the Noble Lord himself, no man could know in what way his Majesty's Ministers were jus tified in passing a Bill, the only effect of which seemed to be to place additional taxes of 180,0001. upon the people. It was not as a question of finance alone that he consi dered it important; nor was it so important commercially as politically. As to the Alethuen Treaty, he would ask the Noble Lord whether a continuance of 180 years was not enough to make it so binding upon both parties, that neither could abrogate it without notice or explanation to the other ?—( Hear, hear.) Was it to be considered so little binding upon England, that it could be so terminated by a vote of that House, without even any ground of necessity having been alleged to excuse the violation ? Was that done, then, merely to show our disregard of treaties, and to give warning to other na tions never to rely upon our friendship, or to expect from us an observance of our obligations ? As the case now stood, the conclusion was inevitable that there was some political motive for that proceeding which was not disclosed—(Hear, hear.) Ministers ought to have pur sued a course, not merely consistent with what we owe to Portugal, but also with what Britain owed to her own dignity.—(Hear.) From the unusual and almost unac- ' countable delay in the production of those papers which had been called for respecting our relations with Portugal —from the reluctance manifested to supply information upon that subject—the only conclusion which could be arrived at was, that his Majesty's Ministers had determined upon some new course of policy.—(Hear.) It would seem from their conduct, that they thought it better, for the interest of England, that the Peninsula should be left entirely in the hands of France, than that any part of it should be connected with England, or dependent upon her friendship. He thought, that the consequences to British commerce would be such, as no man could more regret them than the Noble Lord (the Chancellor of the Exchequer) himself. Lord ALTHORP would say a few words on each of the branches into which the Right Hon. Gentleman had divided the question—its political, commercial, and financial operation ; but first he wished to advert very briefly to the remarks made upon the Budget, which he (Lord Althorp) had brought forward iu the last Parlia ment. He admitted, that upon some points it had failed, Parliament not having seconded his views; but, he con tended, that it had succeeded as far as related to the duty on coals, on printed calicoes, and to the future reduction of the tax upon (we believe) candles. These three ob jects had been fully accomplished. The receipts of the revenue, as exhibited at the close of the last quarter, did nor justify him in abandoning the advantage to be derived from this proposed change in the duty on wines; and at present, at least, it was impossible for Government to afford to relinquish any more taxes. Looking at the measure as a commercial regulation, it seemed to him highly desirable, since the effect of it would be to draw closer our bonds of relationship with France, while it did not weaken those with Portugal. The latter Power could have no just ground of offence after the notice that bad been already given. He was sure that it was the policy of this country, and the people in general were beginning to feel it, to keep on terms of po litical friendship wi'h our nearest and most powerful neighbour; and as the Bill before the House would increase our trade with France, without lessening it materially with Portugal, it was called for, if regard only were had to the interests of our merchants and manufacturers. It was indisputably the policy of this country to keep up a commercial connection with a rich kingdom in preference to a poor one, although that policy hitherto had not always been pursued. The state of Europe rendered it peculiarly expedient at the present moment to act upon this prin ciple. As far as Spai❑ was cancer ned, Great Britain cer tainly owed her no peculiar favour; and as far as re garded the linen trade, she hail imposed a prohibitory duty,—in other articles she had given this country no ad vant ige; and, on the whole, there was no reason to ex pect that the exports to Spain and Portugal would be lessened by the passing of this measure. Neither did he think that the sin ill increase iu the duty on Portuguese wines would lessen their consumption, excepting in as far as by lowering the duty on French wines, those might be substituted. Thus an addition of 180,0001. would be gained to the revenue, the trade of the nation would be benefitted, and no country would have a right to com plain of injury inflicted. For many years he had been convinced of the wisdom of the course now taken, and he had availed himself of the earliest opportunity of adopt ing it. Mr. GOULBURN argued that the reduction of the duty on coals, on which the Noble Lord congratulated himself, had not by any means answered the expectations held out to the country : the largest proportion of money had been taken from the revenue, and the smallest propor tion of advantage given to the consumer ; for while the revenue lost at the rate of 6s, per chaldron, the public gained only at the rate of 2s. per chaldron. In the same way the Noble Lord would find that the price of wine to the consumer would be enhanced to double the amount that the revenue was improved. The Noble Lord had not attempted to answer the objection founded on the nature of the trade of Great Britain with Portugal, and it was not the mere delay of this Bill that could be sufficient notice to our ancient ally of the change; hence Portugal would haves reasonable ground of complaint. Neither had the Noble Lord attempted to show that it was necessary to in jure Portugal in order to draw closer the bonds of amity with France. He (Mr. Goulburn) did not blame Minis ters for abandoning the Methuen Treaty so much as for the manner in which they had abandoned it. Mr. BRISCOE, referring to what had been said with respect to the coal tax, expressed much regret that the public were not likely to derive such relief from the dimi nution of the duty as they had a right to expect. In his opinion, the reason why the wise and just intentions f his Majesty's Government were not carried into effect was, that the individual owners of coal mines were enable to preserve a monopoly most injurious to the public. He hoped the public would be alive to all the mischief pro ceeding from that source, and press upon Parliament the necessity of protection from its operation. With respect to the course which he should pursue on that subject, he felt it his duty to state, that if the price were not speedily lowered, he should move that the tax be re-imposed, and some other repealed in its stead. Mr. T. P.COURTENAY contended that the Treaty of Methuen ought not to be departed from except with the consent of Portugal, or in consequence of some injury done to this country, and reartration refused. He hoped the Noble Lord would opposite would soon lay upon the table of the House the papers relating to this matter, for which he had felt it to be his duty to move. Mr. S. WORTLEY admitted that the prices of coals had riot been lowered as much as the diminished duty would seem to warrant ; but the owners of coal mines de rived no advantage from that. As soon as the reduction of duty was made known in the North, the pitmen struck for increased wages. It was quite a mistake to suppose that the coal owners of the North had the power of com bining to raise the prices of coals as the Hon. Member for Surrey seemed to imagine. Lord PALNIERSTON, in reply to what was said by an Hon. Member opposite, relative to the production of papers for which he had moved, begged to assure the Hon. Mem ber that no time should he lost in laying them before the House. As lie had risen, he wished that the proposition the❑ before the House had not been brought forward on the ground of any alleged injury done to this country by Portugal ; the stipulations of the treaty itself warranted such a proceeding—they had full power to adopt such a proceeding without giving any notice whatever to Portu gal. He wished to add, that the papers for o hich the Hon. Gentleman moved had no bearing whatever upon tie present measure—it rested upon the Trewy of Methuen itself. Mr. T. P. COURTENAY understood that the Noble Lord opposite put it on the other ground—namely, the conduct of Portugal. Lord ALTHORP must have been misunderstood. The Bill was then read a third time and passed. The other Orders of the Day were then disposed of, and the House adjourned at a Quarter past Two. LIST OF THE MINORITY Who voted for Mr. Hunt's Motion for the Repeal of the Corn Laws. Bulwer, Henry Coventry I Hughes, H Oxford Calvert, Charles Southwark Langton, Gore Somersetshire Ellis, Wynn Leicester Noel, Sir G Rutland TELLERS—Henry Hunt and William James. LIST OF THE MINORITY Of CA, who voted in favour of Mr. T. Duncombe's Motion to Transfer the Nomination Borough of Aldborough from Sche dule B to Schedule A, in which it originally stood. Acheson, Lord Grattan, James Rochefort, G. Barratt, J. C. Harvey, I). W. Robinson, Sir G. Biddulph, J. M. Hughes, W. H. Ruthven, E. S. Blamire, W. Hutchinson, J. H. Rider, T. Burton, H. Jephson, C. D. 0. Smith, JA. Bulwer, H. L. Jerningham, H.V. S. Smith, M. T. Buller, J. W. Labouchere, H. Stanhope, Capt. R. Bouverie, P. P. Lefevre, C. S. Strutt, E. Campbell, J. Lennox, Lord J. G. Stuart, Lord P. J. H. Clive, Henry Lennox, Lord A. Tomes, J. Currie, J. Lester, B. L Troubridge, Sir E. Chandos, Marquis of Martin, John Vincent, Sir F. Cradock, S. Millbank, M. Watson, Hon. R. Denison, W. J. Mhls, John Wason, W. It. Dundas, J. C. Moreton H. Wilbraham, G. Dundas, T. Ossory, Earl of Williamson, Sir H. F.asthope, J. Paget, T. Westenra, lion. It. F.twall, R. Phillipps, C. M. Williams, Sir J. H. Evans, Col. De Lacy l'rotheroe, E. Wilks, J. Ewart, W. Pryse, P. TELLELIS. Ferguson, Sir R. Ramsbottom, J. Ingilby, Sir W. Grattan, H. Rickfurd. W. Dunconahe, T. S. THE SPANISH REFUGEES. Mr. Otway Cave called yesterday at the Justice-room, for the purpose of paying a subscription to Mr. Nobler fur the service of the unfortunate Spanish refugees, whose me lancholy case he had read in the Times Newspaper a few days ago. He mentioned to the Lord Mayor that he was a member of the Committ e e who s up er i n t en d e d th e f un d s raised for the refugees during the mayoralty of Alderman Thompson, who had by his influence and exertbins accom plished a great deal for the numerous emigrants at that period starving about the town. It occurred to him that it would be possible to revive that Committee with effect, particularly as the Press had taken up the question in a manner which was quite irresistible. The Loan MAYOR said, he apprehended that if a Com mittee were appointed, and a fund raised for the service of the emigrants, the city would be inundated with adven turers from Spain, and the distress would, when the sub scriptions died away, be more extensive. His experience as a magistrate had enabled him to form an opinion of the mass of poverty- all over the metropolis, and many persons to whom he had spoken on the subject of the unfortunate refugees, had always en answer at their fingers' ends, and pointed at the swarms of English and Irish poor in all parts of the town, who had, in their judgment, a much stronger claim upon our sympathies. Mr. Or wa v Cavx said, that in England the distress of the people was no monopolist. Upon any emergency, when strangers laid claim to assistance, they were never refused ; and although many things combined to render the impression weaker at the present moment, and the public mind was so completely engrossed by one paramount subject, lie had no doubt of the success of an experiment upon the humanity of that public in favour of the gallant but destitute men who owed their calamities to so unexcep tionable a cause. The case of the Spaniard was singular. But very few of them were qualified to teach, and where an English or Irish beggar could contrive to live well, a Spanish soldier would lie down and die. Never had he seen human beings more helpless. They were willing to fight, and bail undergone the most dreadful privations with amazing resignation ; and as he understood there were no more than between 30 and 40 of them, a fund might be raised to support them until an expedition should give them an opportunity of leaving this country altogether. Mr. HOBLER said he thought that a public subscription would have the effect of crowding London with persons who were now uncomfortable on the Continent. On the former occasion cargoes came over, and then there was great difficulty in discriminating between the various cases. The charitable feelings of some kind individuals had enabled him to give relief to all the claimants, but if any fresh ones were to come in, the small stock would be immediately expended. Mr. OTWAY CAVE said, that a choice of evils was left— either to see the unfortunate men I , erisli, or to run the hazard of being annoyed by a fresh importation. He thought the latter alternative the least objectionable. It was not very probable that the subscription of a few hun dreds would have the effect of inducin g foreigners to flock to the metropolis ; and if what lie had heard was true, many months would not elapse before an expedition would sail. After sonic further conversation, the Lord Mayor and Mr. Otway Cave agreed to consult some of the most active members of the former Committee, upon the propriety of reviving the Committee. We believe Alderman Wood, Alderman Thompson, and Dr. Bowring, were the members who conducted the last Spanish subscription. The inhabitants of Marylebone are refusing to pay the taxes imposed by the Select Vestry. Al, HUME said, so far from finding fault with them for this refusal, he meant to imitate them himself. It is time an end were put to the robberies of the people, through Select Vestries and other viciously constituted authorities. The whole metropolis is at this moment in a state little short o f anarchy on account of assessments, under the new Church Building Acts, by Select Vestries, This oppres sion must be put an end to.—Morning Chronicle: On Thursday morning the members of the Sheffield Political Union met at the Town-hall, for the purpose of holding their annual meeting, from whence they purposed adjourning to Paradise-square, to vote, in conjunction with the inhababitants, a congratulatory ad dress to the KING. The members afterwards dined toge ther at the Exchange Inn, and various toasts and senti ments were given with suitable addresses.--Sheffleid Iris. DANTZIC, SEPT. s.—The cholera morbus is greatly abated, and every appearance is leaving us altogether. FRENCH PAPERS. (From the Morning Herald.) We have received the Paris Papers of Wednesday and the Messager des Chambres and Gazette de France of yesterday. Their contents are interesting. The Moniteur of Wednesday contains an article importing that Belgium will be evacuated by all the French troops almost imme diately. The cholera is found to be fatal at Berlin, although the number attacked during the first five days was compara tively small. Baron Larrey, the celebrated surgeon, has just published at Paris a pamphlet on this subject, in which he speaks confidently of the power of skill and science over the malady. He admits its contagions property, yet is " persuaded" that France will escape the scourge. The greatest anxiety prevailed at Paris respecting Po. land, from whence no authentic accounts had been re ceived confirmatory or contradictory of the reported suc cesses of the Poles. The insurgents in Hungary are not yet subdued. They have, in some instances, disarmed the troops sent against them, and murdered all the officers. In several districts every Noble hail been a'siissinated. FRENCH FUNDS, PARIS, SEPT. 14.—Five per Cents., SSE 25c. 87f. 80c.; Three per Cents., 60f. 25c. 59f. 60c. ; Bank Actions, 1,540 f. ; Rente de Naples, 69f. 60c. ; Rente d'Espagne, 10 ; Royal Spanish Loan, 64; Rente Perpetuelle d'Espagne, 47%. Exchange on London, one month, paper, 25f. 10c. ; money, 25f. sc. ; three months, paper, 25f. BRUSSELS, SEPT. 13. (PRIVATE CORRESPONDENCE.) The Protocols have at length reached forty, and as yet nothing is positively known respecting the ultimate fate of Belgium, except by the contingent facts of the Germanic Diet corning forward to take possession, as it is said, of Luxemburg, which is to be given to Prince Frederick, the second son of the King of Holland; and of a thousand rumours which are current on all sides, among which the strangest will, no doubt, appear the determination of the Belgians to wage battle with, rather than yield to, Holland, on any of the disputed points. The following is handed about in an unofficial form, to which each attaches credit according to his fancy : " Sir Robert Adair received six days ago, from the Belgain Government, a communication of the utmost inr portance, relative to the demolition of fortresses, of which nothing has as yet transpired. Sir R. Adair, it is said, transmitted this document immediately to his Government. It is us follows : " The King of the Belgians being desirous to give a new pledge of his wish to continue with France relations of the strictest friendship, decrees as follows : " Sole Article—The fortresses of Mons, Charleroi, Ath, Tournay, snd Ypres, are to be demolished. (Signed) " LEOPOLD. (Countersigned) " 31EULENAERE: " This document was communicated, according to report, at the same time to General Belliard ; with this difference, however—that it was more positive in the form than that communicated to Sir R. Adair. POLAND. ADDRESS of the INHABITANTS of RHENISH BAVARIA to the KING of BAVARIA in behalf of POLAND. " It is some years since the children of the ancient Hellenic stock rose up against the yoke of the Crescent, and, despising superiority of forces and the danger of being exterminated, they hoisted the standard of freedom and commenced a deadly combat. Your Majesty was the first of all the European Princes, who, honouring the sen timent ofliberty, even in the bosom of the people, deigned to grant them generous succour, and by thus lending an aid to the sympathy'nf nations provoked the intervention of the great Powers, and gave the first impulse for in clining the balance in their favour. " In our days again, a magnanimous nation has begun a desperate combat to reconquer what is most precious to humanity—liberty and equality. For many months the earth has been steeped with the noble blood of the Poles, shed to recover those rights from their oppressors, which in 1815, Europe had assured to them, and the four greatest Powers guaranteed,—rights which, in contempt of the most solemn treaties, tyranny and despotism have dared to wrest from them. " From all parts the unanimous voice of n itions is raised against the proceedings of the Czar. The belier that with the ruin of Poland the hour of slavery is sounded for the other states of Europe, as well as for their Princes, is profoundly engraven upon all minds, and is justified by the famous declaration of the autocrat, that he believ6l himself called upon to re-establish every where the ancient order of things. Princes will partake of the fate of their people. We have still fresh in memory the disdainful lan guaze which of late time Russia has used towards 1. ss powerful Princes whom she looked upon and treated as her vassals. " Hence this general sympathy of nations, which has increased as it was menaced with hostility, and which hitherto has confined itself to particular succours, and t, personal sacrifices,—a sympathy, however, now exacting a more active and powerful aid, and demanding that Sove reigns shall declare loudly that they have taken the firm resolution to cause respect for the inviolability of treaties. "That they shall pronounce firmly this great word of safety,they have the assurance of their people, who wait with impatience the signal of combatting in favour-of this tru y sacred cause. The northern Colossus has now ceased to be formidable ; a long time has elapsed since the dream of the invincibility of her arms has vanished in the lands of Bulgaria, and the hour has come whets the heroic struggle of the Poles has unveiled all her weakness. " What people besides are more worthy of our sympathy and assistance than this noble nation of the Poles, which a century and a half ago, under the great Sobieski, gene rously poured forth her blood to preserve us from the chains of Alussulmans. Without her valour, witleput her devotion, the yoke of the most hideous barbaria❑ would have been imposed upon Europe : without her aid we should have been the abject slaves of the Sultan. It is, then, to her— it is to her courage that we all, people and princes, are in debted for what we are, and what we have : our arts, our sciences, our civilization, our liberty, and our laws—all, all, are the work of the Poles. " And we are the tranquil spectators of the war of ex termination which savage hordes are this day making, who after having succeeded in breaking down this barrier of civilized Europe, will come to submit us also to the empire of the knout. We wait in inaction until the scourge which precedes and follows their pestilential steps shall have brought its ravages to our own homes, and made our cheerful plains one vast field of death. " Sire,—Tlie ties of gratitude and our own actual pre servatio❑ proclaim imperiously active assistance for the Poles, who have commenced a struggle, not fur the plea- sure of revolt, but in consequence of the most revolting violation of their rights by the most cruel oppression and the most odious treatment. " It is to your Majesty—to the constitutional King of free Bavaria—that belongs now the honour of marching, as you did before in favour of the Hellenists, at the head of civilization. The great example you then gave will pro duce a similar effect now. The proud Sovereign of the north will lend an ear to the words of justice pronounced by a Prince, who, surrounded by the close phalanx of a devoted people, sees himself also aided by the sympathy of all nations who alike partake of our opinions and firm reso lution to perish, rather than bend to the yoke which the northern despot prepares for us. " Sire,—May our voice, the expression of the truest love and the most profound re.pect,—may it nut, we say, perish in the air, but be judged worthy of being listened to. May this occasion of carrying to the highest point the glory of Bavaria, and of acquiring for its sovereign the benedictions of the univ erse , h e turned to profit ; in fine, may the name of your M ajesty, cele b rated in history like that of a Gusta vus Adolphu s an d a Sobieski, b e t h at o f a d ay o f g lory and of pride f or B avar i a. " It is in depositing very respectfully at the feet of the throne of your Majesty these Wishes, and this firm Lope, that we have the honour to be, Sire, " Your Alajesty's humble subjects, " THE INHABITANTS OF RHENISH BAVARIA." VISIT OF HER. MAJESTY THE QUEEN TO THE SURREY ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS.—The new Zoolo gical Gardens, established near Kennington, were yesterday honoured with the presence of her MAJESTY, under whose patronage they have had the good fortune to be placed. Her MAJE ST Y arrived in the afternoon, attended by the Duchess of SAxE WEIMAR, Prince GEORGE of CAM BRIDGE, Lord and Lady BROWNLOW, Lord VALLETORT, and other persons of distinction. After remaining in the grounds a considerable time, the Royal Party drove off amidst the acclamations of the crowd assembled at the outside. It is said that the malt duty this year will amount to five miltions. Last year it was only three and a half tnill►ons. If this should turn out to be a fact, it shover that the consumption of malt liquor has greatly in creased. It is stated that the gin trade is certainly falling off.—Morning Paper. BERLIN, S. 7. i (PRIVATE CORRESPONDENCE.) , The communication with Warsaw is cor n ea ; cut off, but yet some scraps of news reach us and when I state to you that the Poles ble le l i f tempted an operation on the right bank of die tula you may receive it as certain. Accord the studied and sparing accounts from the quarters, the movement consisted of only 1 )$ ,1 rencontres in the vicinity of Milosna, between ,s outposts of Rosen's corps and the rebels. Ni l e htr however, accounts from Cracow, which s tatee i o with some certainty, that the Polish General s berg and Terms, had succeeded in overtaking et , attacking the retreating corps of reserve of Ge n do Tolstoi, before it could reach the Vistula; that o, whole was dispersed ; and that 40 pieces of a quantity of ammunition, many reserve horsese; all the baggage, with the money chest, fell sec their hands. The exact date of this action is stated, but the battle must have taken place tween the 27th and 30th of August. In CO PS ,„ tion with this stands Uminski's march throo,6; Plocz to Schillus, where, according to the Ruro accounts, he failed in his attempt; for the po' l 4 of the Tete de Pont, on the Vistula, and the gazines, the destruction of which he intended'', been previously removed over to the other aid e , the river. It is certain, however, that if the at t° ,, upon Tolstoi's reserve corps really took place, el l) ; as above described, Uminski's manoeuvre mus t considered a clever diversion for the purpose (Tr i o terrupting the communication between Paskewitsev main army and the expected reserve corps, uteil l ,, projected coup was accomplished. General it °s . l , who was before said to have continued his pos it e j i in the neighbourhood of Siedlec, is now adrnit y l by the Russian accounts to be falling back 0 1) , I i 9 . left—an indication whi c h sp ea k s very s t r ong favour of the alleged success of t h e P o l e s on I right bank of the Vistula. , The reported sanguinary victory o f SKrzY.. over Paskewitsch, which I have already states seems to be cut down to a merereconnoisance on' part of the besieged. The Russians pretend to ha v ei had the advantage, but by their own words t b , l i were at first driven ba c k, thou g h th e y subseque nt obliged the Poles to r e t rea t. This, in rui bly ' i d matters, is a thing of course, for whenever ab ° makes a sally from a b es i ege d pl ace it eventuallY re d turns within the walls. However, th e contin ue _ silenc e o f t h e R uss i ans l eave room f or gre ater e e ', pestations. The announced victories obtained ° ` °t Rudiger are a l so re d uce d to s i mp l e s ki rmis hes, b e , which are, notwithstanding, admitted to have P r b , vented the junction of himself with Paskewil c t , But, in a word, the boasted conq ue st s o f the P ° ll , scans are just and no more to be received with cble tion than the Cracow communications, so favour s °e to the Pol es . Th ere i s too muc h b ragga d o cio, both sides. The former claim to assert that 6 1, rieral Rozicki was cut off from the Polish he ° '„ ; quarters, near Cracow (in the Waywodschaft , ri d the republic), and that General Kaminskiovh ° ;l, head-quarters were in Konskie, was also w orste I3oth these Generals cover the most southerly P rc :, vinces, and ar e ac ti ng aga i nst R u di ger, i n or der prevent his junction with Paskewitsch. It is a fact, however, that though exaggere..; or even palely fi ct i t i ous , t h ese accounts o f' victor le o may be, the situation of Paskewitsch is far fr°, enviable. With a strong l y f ort ifi e d cap i ta l, e e r,,i: mending the river, d e f en d e d b y an army yet powerll,-1 amounting—althou g h rat h er over - rate d by t dt Polish accounts from Cracow—to 80,000 reg lll , l , troops, and 50,000 landsturm, before him, arid the midst of the e n em y' s country , w i t h sup plies " Li every description daily ex h aus ti ng; t h e Vi st ula O h , extensive deserts between him and Russia; fro autumn and winter approaching, which seasons 8, deadly in a marshy country like Poland; and, ab ° , o ' all, the cholera in his army—an attempt to sit' r a Warsaw would m os t l i k e ly b e t h e certa in I° , - , of his whole army. Th e l ast revo l ut i on ill t'i capital here deprived him of the hopes t) , being able to surprise it, or to expect anY sistance from within its walls. Under other cumstances, or at anoth er season , i n t h e spring, t'it commencement of summer, a satisfactory re'', might be anticip a t e d, even notw i t h stan di ng ther t difficulties, for he cou ld starve W arsaw ou t ; I ) ; now nothing remains f o r him but a horrible re ° , mere, or a negociation. It is s a id that Prin .,, , Michael Radziwill went to the Russian head-clul i , tern with proposals from the P o l e s, an d the con dons are supposed to b e s imil ar to t h ose demander Chlopieki f rom th e E m p eror b e f o re 111 breaking out of the wa r . Wh et h er P as k ew itsch' , empo erect to accept them is more than doubtful. e Krukowiecki, the Governor, continues to be 0 0 uncontroulled Dictator in Wars a w. H e is said to have already caused 40 of the individuals, who w et most conspicuous in th e l a t e massacre , to b e 5 110 , , , "', Some time a g o h e was hi mse lf di sm i sse d h ,' Skrzynecki, b ut y e t suc h i s hi s patr i ot i sm, t hat " - f is said to have now named him Generalissimo 0 the army. If this was done spontaneously, it 0 1 noble action, and redounds greatly to his c r edit. Zamosc is pressed more closely every day by° Russians under Kaisaroff. The chol era ma k es no great progress here. , 1 : greater part o f th ose attac k e d are persons h a bitua''' , , , addicted to intoxication, or poor wretches who li l t ' in low damp cellars. Hitherto, there has been one known respectable person who has fallen a tim to it. In Stettin the ignorance of the mob has caus e an insurr e cti on . Th e common peop l e b el i eve all cholera patients in the hospitals are poisoned , ' the hopes of preventing the spreading of the sam e, , This fatal error unfortunately receives too W e t countenance from the circumstance that not one ° the chol era p at i ents h as yet b een cured. (?;,Ijr Crown P r i nce h as j ust l e f t f or S tett i n to tratiquil-e the populac e . O ur con di t i on genera ll y i s any OOP , but settled, and the King finds himself compelled - his relation s w i t h R uss i a to adopt a course tow ary the Poles, which he knows is unpalatable to the re ti : jority of hi s su bj ects, an d wh i ch is opposed to 11: own better feeling s an d r i per j u d gment. B ut he' s the victim of kis position. GRAND DINNER TO LORD ALTIIoRP A/ 49 LORD Jorfsl RUSSELL.—On Saturday, the 24th of Sept° those Members of Parli a m en t wh o , f rom th e c ommeoe e i ment, hale stoutly supported Ministers in the House Commons during the progress of the Reform Bill, ba t- determined to give a splendid entertainment to Lord AL. TIIORP iind Lord JOHN R USSELL , as a t es ti mon i a l of di e : unqualified approbation of the measure which these (I' s ' tinguished Noblemen, so far a s it r e l a t es t o th e Cocorn°, ° o , House of Parliament, may be said to have consummated their unwearied perse verance an d i ntegr i ty . K AY , of V' Albion Tavern, i n Ald ersgate - street, w h ose exce ll en t 'Wi t ': and fine dinners are p rover bi a l, h as b een se l ecte d t o prePl c e the feast, and i n consequence o f t h e great room at t'ilo Albion not bein g su ffi c i ent l y capac i ous to accommo date large a company, Stati'iners' Hall has been lent for the a c i casion by the Masters and Wardens of that WorshiPt Company, who, with the Loan MAYOR and Sheriffs, sf; the only addi t i ona l guests that are to be i nv i te d to banquet. Lord M a y or lIARTY received the patent °( his Baro netcy on S atur d ay, w i t h a we l l- d eserve d ac kuae ledgment o f hi s serv i ces to t h e cause o f " K ING, Guyed menr, and Peopl e ," wr i t t en by th e h an d o f L or d Gar'l•7 o In the blindness of their rancour, the unfortunate had succeeded in persuading themselves that no title at as was intended for the LORD MAYOR. We do not 1 0° : t what w i ll become of their little wits wh e n th e y hear tD the patent has actually arrived.—Dublin Morn. Reg; s td ' A clerk in the barking*-hoase of Cuter itoBARTI, and Co., having absconded, with cash to the amount of about 4,0001., w hi c h h e h a d co ll ecte d to pet formance of his ordinary duties, the police were sent all directions to look for th e t hi e f. Si r WILLIAMCuf, P r himself, accompanied by FORRESTER the officer, t Calais with great expediti on , an d se t a most active inqu.ri 0, on foot. He how e v er f a il e d t h ere . H e cou ld ga in Da i t , formation from which h e cou ld d :aw any conc l us ion o ' l , - , the destination or Vie hiding place of CLEW h ; s de r y Letters were sent off to Atoerica to stop the notes 01 the bank. It is believed that CLEW is in London, and a' p. used to be con s t ant l y i n t h e soc i ety of f ema l es , a s har l eye is kept up on th e movements o f some o f his fla ) " . Companions. ,~, PRID AI \T 1 1 4 e arE h Pti bli( rRII 1 '? 1 11 e triti e..._ 1 4 ., ina le , v er .jr, wa s ti A la Ve J 4 sti e Pri n ci rt er la de S 0 beer I ) rit Y 1 1 . e ie h in t)tii liserhs• (34°111 l i rai it ; ' ao sa ge a nd th t , enc h oh it o own ~%, grab at , 1 '", t t o w q) ots l i aol ti s t 4 tds al4