The Sun. — London, England, 1830-02-08 00:00:00

an gain, no private interest can be served, whilst the public surfers from a relaxation of the provisions of the Navigation Act. The The word " retrenchment" calls our attention to that part of his Majesty's speech, in which he in forms his subjects " that he shall be enabled to make a considerable reduction in the amount of the public expenditure, without impairing the efficiency of our naval and military establishments." Thanks, many thanks, on the part of the loyal people of England for this gracious assurance 1 . His Majesty, in forcing his Ministers to fulfill this engagement, will do more towards solving all the difficulties of the pre sent tituatton of the country, than all the writers upon the currency question for the last twenty years. On the subject of the majority and minority, we may add a few wards. There never was any divi sion in which n many mistakes have occurred as to the votes which independent Members have given ; and the cause of this has been, the extreme feeble twss and indecisive manner in 'which they have sided with the Opposition. The Romans had an ex pression for voting on a division, of a curious kind : it was called "ire pedibus be sent enliani." This applies here : some voted against, who reasoned generally in favour of Ministers. Their feet were with the Opposition, but their heads with the Go vernmen t.— Tames. We say it with regret, but under a strong convic tion of its truth, that there is scarcely any instance upon record of a British Administration meeting a British Parliament under such evident signs of weak ness and of ignorance of the real state of things as what the country witnessed on Thursday last.— Nothing bat the most profound ignorance of the real state to 'which the country is reduced can, in the smallest degree, palliate the fact of Ministers put ting into the mouth of the King's Commissioners the apparently heartless allusion to the " partial" nature of the public distress, which does so much discredit the Royal Speech. It is the more unfor tunate that the ignorance or mis-information of Mi nisters should keep the trite state of the country from the Royal ear, as it gives to the highest Per sonage an apparent want of sympathy with the suffer ings of his people, although no Sovereign has a heart more susceptible of the finer emotions of humanity, or a disposition more anxious to relieve distress. What is also very curious and worthy of ebsersation, both the mover and seconder of the Address in the House of Commons, so far from adopting the Mini sterial view of the situation of the country, actually anticipated the very views, and almcst the lan guage of those who moved and supported the amendment. And how do Ministers themselves refute the thrice told-tale of national distress, and justify their own ideas of its mitigated and partial operation ? In the House of Lords we see the Prime Minister singling out the class of retail traders as those who are suffering no distress, while one of the Ministerial Members for the City of London (Mr. Alderman Thompson, the late Lord Mayor) sates, and truly states, that class of his constituents to be suffering, next to the actual poor, the severest hardships--while the Chief Minister, in the House of Commons, whose peculiar office, one should think, would make him peculiarly acquainted with the real state of things, contents himself with asserting the country to be in a prosperous state, because the tonnage upon certain canals has increased; but the accuracy of which statements have since, we see, been openly questioned. As far as Ministers are concerned, it would really seem as if to them " ignorance were bliss ;" and that the real state of things is that, of all others, to which they obstinately shut their eyes. The policy of the Duke of Wel lington seems to be rather to divide, and thereby di minish, the power of his opponents, than to strengthen his own forces ; while, with a hater of public liberty at his beck, he would stifle that free discussion, which some of the warmest of his new adherenti, but a short time ago, described as the very vital breath of the country, " without which we 'die." Instead of giving stability to the Go vernment by the acquisition of that species of talent which is best adapted to the public ser vice, we see stations of minor, but still of much importance, filled up by the class of " walking gen tlemen," whose performances on the political stage mar the scene, aad make the public anxious to see the curtain fall upon so ill-sustained a drama, and one that does so little credit to the manager. We make these observations in no feeling of hostility to the Duke of Wellington's Government, but in that spirit of independence which the public has a right, especially in these times of calamity and danger, to expect from us. Who are the Ministers of the country concerns us very little; but it does concern us, whoever they are, that they should deserve and possess the confidence of the nation, which AO Mi nistry can long do which does not possess that surest foundation of power—knowledge—knowledge of its true situation and interests ; arid also that moral courage which disdains to shrink from unpleasant truths, and scorns to look for security in subterfuge and evasion.;---Morning Hcrald. Next to the important topics• which formed the subject of discussion in both Houses of Parliament on the first day of the Session, the debates are cu rious and important, as showing the state of parties, and the situation of the Duke of Wellington's Go vernment as regards them. From the speech of the Noble Lord who is generally looked upon as the political Mentor of the next heir to the Crown, and the vote of the Duke of,Cumberland, it would seem that the Administration cannot calculate upon the support of either of the King's brothers; and when it is considered how great a share of the Royal con fidence one of those illustrious persons is known to possess, there are those, we imagine, who will be inclined to doubt whether the Duke of Wellington's Government really enjoys a confidence which can not but appear to be thus in some respects divided. Next to this it appears pretty evident, from the speeches of Lords Cainarvon and Holland in the house of Lords, and those of Lord Althorp, Mr. Western, and others, in the Commons, that, though the Duke may have succeeded in dividing the Whigs, he has as yet not made converts of them all. Whether his Grace, adapting military tactics to po litical warfare, means to beat his enemies in detail, remains to be seen. From the speeches of the Mar quis of Clanricarde and Mr. Huskisson, it would seem that every probability of the latter rejoining the Administration, or of the remains of Mr Can ning's party supporting it, is at an end. Indeed, the tone of. Mr. Huskisson and Mr. Peel towards each other was remarked as anything but courteous, and the way in which the latter alternated between terms " Right Honourable Gentleman" and Right Honourable Friend" may be looked upon as some what ominous on the score of cordiality. But the most extraordinary circumstance of all is the small ness of the minority in one House and the largeness of that in the other, upon amendments intrinsically the same.' Amendments pressed to a division on the first day of a Session are, it must be admitted, very unusual; and in the Upper House the small ness of the minority may be in some measure ac counted for by the courtesy which, in that branch of the Legislature especially, is always shown to the Crown on such occasions. In the. Commons, the hugeness of the relative numbers of the minority is not more. remarkable than the actual smallness of the majority. After all the pressing influence which has been used to ensure a full attendance, when we see the Government mustering only 158 Members in its ranks, we should be inclined to look upon it as but a sorry indication of either the popularity or stability of the Duke of Wellington's Administra tion,,,conducted upon its present principles, as re gard the internal policy of the country. It is in vain for his Majesty s Ministers to argue against the existence of the prevalent and general distress while the evidence of its dreadful pressure is under the - eyes of every person who reads their speeches. The Duke of Wellington has not shown much judgment or tact in running his head against testimony of the facts as he had done. There is a certain hardihood of assertion which bespeaks more callousness than moral courage, and we should be sorry to think that it was characteristic of his Grate; but when he endeavours to close the fountains of Royal and Par liamentary sympathy against a suffering people by denying the actual existence of the misery that presses them to the .earth, we cannot avoid saying that he adopts a course which, if honest, betrays gross ignorance, and if otherwise, is as criminal as it will be unavailing. We tell him that, if he would preserve his power, he must change his policy.— Morning Plcrald. The anxiety as to the relative state of parties, which was extensively manifested previously to the opening of the Parliamentary campaign, has been quickly satisfied. From the debates and divisions which have already taken place, it appears evident that the Government has but little to apprehend from its opponents, who are for the most part com prehended in two classes; the first consisting of those who bear ill-will towards the present Ministry on account of the great measure of last Session ; and the second including those who are satisfied to ascribe every evil that oppresses the country to our present system of currency, and insist with un wearied perseverance upon the necessity of a return to a paper circulation. Neither of these parties can prove formidable. However erroneous may have been deemed the line of policy adopted by Ministers on the Catholic Question, however ill-judged the expectation of beneficial results, yet the injustice of striving to make it appear that the opinions of Ministers on this one subject vitiate their whole system of policy is so obvious that there be little strength in opposition resting on such grounds. In order to gain credit for sin cerity, they must attack the measures of Govern. ment openly and fairly, and s►►ffering no other consi. derations to intrude than those legitimately con nected with the immediate subject under discussion. The second class we have alluded to, namely those who consider that nothing but the recurrence to a paper circulation can save the country, want strength, because it is evident that the remedy they propose can never be applied. Though the transition from an unstable to a safe system of currency may hive occasioned temporary inconve nience in the first instance—and even this is extremely doubtful—the important benefits which it has con ferred, and the dangers against which it secures the community, are now almost universally acknow ledged. The trading and commercial part of the nation has accommodated itself to the improved system, any further change in which would, by un settling the standard, g►ve a different value to all money transactions, and once more introduce confu sion, distrust, and extensive ruin. Public opinion is ranged on the side of Ministers; they have not disguised the state of the country; they have not shrunk from the truth, and the count►y will confide in their assurance that every practicable means will be resorted to, for affording relief to the existing dis tresses.—]horning Post. We cannot help thinking that poor Lord Ellen borough has had somewhat hard measure dealt to him in respect of that luckless epistle of his Lord ship's to Sir John Malcolm. The independence of Judges is, no doubt, a fine theme for popular decla mation; but does any one imagine that the practi cability of the men appointed to such stations is not regarded by those who have the filling of them up? It is doubtful' that Ministers, when upon really con fidential terms with each other, talk about such appointments very much after the fashion of the Noble President's communication to the Bombay Governor ? Lord Ellenborough's real delinquency (if any) is, that be has miplaced his confidence; for, though the considerations he let out be things " most powerfully and potently to be believed, yet it is not honesty to have them so set down." In respect of one appointment, indeed, his Lordship's revelations were not so wholly unreserved; he hav ing forgotten to mention, that notwithstanding the high esteem in which Mr. William Seymour was held by the Lord Chancellor, the Attor neys of the Court had given no very frequent testimonies of equal confidence in his talents, they having left him abundant leisure to go abroad in search of health and pleasure ; but that he had recently returned and was about to espouse (as in fact he did a few weeks after) the daughter of an old comrade and favourite Staff officer of the Duke of Wellington These particulars were surely want ing to convey to Sir John Malcolm an intimation who and what the new puisne Jadge was, and of all the considerations, pro and con, which led to his appointment. With respect to the independence of Colonial Judicatures, we think it must be ap parent to all rational persons that the assertion of such independence ought to be confined to a sphere much more circumscribed than that proper for dis play under a well-defined Government and in perfectly policed country. Colonial Judges are not indeed to betray their duties by accommodating their judgments to the pleasure of the local Government ; but where the legislatorial power is not imme diately accessible, the Colonial Government must be permitted, upon its own responsibility, to judge of such peculiar state necessities and emergencies as may arise ; a power indeed essentially belonging to the Executive, and to which all subordinate authorities owe submission under every form and variety of Constitution. When, therefore, as at Bombay, the Government intimates to the Judi cial Authorities the existence of a state necessity, limiting the exercise of their functions, it is not for those authorities to fly in the face of the Governor and his Council, to denounce them from the Bench, anti finally to suspend in a pet all the functions of the Court; but to appeal against the decision of the local authorities to the supreme power at home, and meantime to render a ready submission to the Exe cutive of the Colony. In every community there must be a power, somewhere vested, for the con servation of the public safety in moments of extra ordinary and sudden emergency; and the whole question is, whether such power is to be attributed to the Governor of a Colony, or to its Judges; or, at all events, whether such power is to remain inert in the hands of the Governor, unless sanctioned by the judicial authority ; a doctrine which we do not think at all tenable. Lord Ellenborough may have been a little careless in betraying so much of his mind; but his Lordship was wise in looking out for those who :bad right notions on the subject - of the rela tions between the Executive Government and the judicial authority of a colony.-11 , 10/ning Chronicle. When we hear a man like Mr. Huskisson voting against Ministers because the Address did not de scribe the whole nation to be in a state of distress, we can make allowance for the nonsense talked by the mob of Members. Partial distress we can un derstand, but universal distress seems to us to in volve an impossibility. The capital of the nation is not diminished, and the whole population may be said to be producing. The idea of universal distress is, therefore, ridiculous. We allow that too much is taken by the unproductive from the productive part of the population ; but this would rather ac count for the slowness of the progress of the country in wealth than for the existence of general distress. In short, with all deference to Mr. Huskisson, we maintain that, though there may be overtrading in particular branches of industry, it is utterly impos sible that all branches of industry can be suffering at the same time. He may as well say that it is hot and cold at the same time. We have been much astonished at the readiness with which the assertions of those who ascribe such mar vellous effects to Mr. Peel's Bill are allowed. Mr. Peel's Bill produced little or no affect; for the best of all reasons, because the effect had been produced before. When Mr. Attwood and Mr. B►►ring talk of the error in the estimate of Mr. Ricardo of the effect likely to be produced by a return to cash pay ments, they forget that Mr. Ricardo did not speak of the currency when in its most depreciated state, but when it was nearly as valuable as after the pass ing of the Bill. If the price of gold was not the measure of the depreciation at the period of Mr. Peel's Bill, it could not be the measure before the peace. The evidence for the extent of the depre ciation in 1814 is the very same which we have for the extent in 1819—namely, the price of gold. As this part of the effect produced by the Bill of Mr. Peel is strangely exaggerated, we cannot do better than lay before our readers the following impartial account of the matter from the Edinburgh Courant of Wednesday last : " The effect of the Act of 1797 was to consign the re gulation of the currency to the discretion of the Bank Directors. It put in their power, by contracting or en larging their issues, to raise or to diminish the value of their paper; and there was no remedy against this evil, because the Bank was closed against any r e turn of its de preciated notes. It was not till about the year 1801 that the Bank Directors enlarged their issues beyond the de mands of trade, and that the paper fell proportionably in its value. It is an extremely delicate point to ascertain the variations which may take place in the value of money ; because, while it is itself the standard of value, we have no standard by which its own value can be mea sured. In the case of paper, however, we have gold as a sure standard by which to ascertain its value. In 1801 the price of gold had not varied in the European market ; but in this country it rose from 31. 17s. 101 d. per ounce to 41. and 41. ss. when purchased with paper, which proved that it was not the gold which had risen, but the paper which had fallen in value ; in consequence of which it required more of it than formerly to purchase the same quantity of gold. The effect of this depre ciation was to alter all pecuniary contracts, to raise the prices of all commodities, and to defraud all creditors to the exact extent of the depreciation. But this was the utmost extent of the evil. The Bank con tinued to make a liberal use of its privilege, and to increase its issues to such an extent, that the price of gold rose in 1813 and 1814, to 51. Is. and 51. 4s. per ounce, making a depreciation of 22 and 25 per cent. ; to which amount all creditors, who had lent in the good and were paid in the bad currency, were certainly injured. This is the sure effect of all changes in the value of the currency, which are therefore earnestly to be deprecated, as fraught with manifest injustice to individuals, and with ill conse quences to the community at large. In 1816, the value of the currency began to take an opposite course ; it began to rise; and this change was equally injurious, though it reversed the situation of the debtor and the creditor, as it injured the former and benefitted the latter. In this man ner it increased the burden of the national debt, which was contracted in a depreciated currency, and had to be paid in a currency of greater value. All those evils we readily admit to have arisen from the great fluctuations which took place in the value of our currency from the year 1810 to 1816. In the beginning of 1816 the value of the paper had greatly risen ; an'l gold was at 4/. 2s. per ounce. It only required 4s. lid. more in paper than in coin to purchase an ounce of gold, which marks a depreciation of about 5 per cent. In 1816, 1817, and 1818, gold continued fluctuating in its value, from 41. 25., 4/. Is., to 3/. 19s. per ounce ; and in February, 1817, it was as low as Si. 13s. 6d., marking the deprecia tion of the paper at 5,3, 1, and even one-half per cent. In 1819, the memorable year when Mr. Peel's Bill passed, ordaining the Bank to pay specie for their notes, the price of gold was 41. ls., which marked a depreciation of less than 4 per cent. ; and to this amount, and no more, it must be admitted that Mr. Peel's Bill raised the value of the currency, and so far benefitted all creditors at the expense of their debtors. Every debtor who had 1001. to pay must have lost by Mr. Peel's Bill 3/. 10s., which his creditor must have gained. But however unjust this may be in principle, the practical evil, at the time, of adaing three and a half per cent. to all debts, could not be very great. Such a change is quite trifling compared with the changes which are daily made in the ordinary course of commerce, and of which we hear no complaint, and to ascribe the existingdistress, the universal depression of trade, which occurred ten years after, to this trifling alteration in the value of our curreacy, is such a wild ex aggeration, that to use Burke's expression, " it is scarcely worth powder and shot." Those who ascribe such im portant consequences to Mr. Peel's Bill do not consider that all the great fluctuations in our currency took place prior to 1819, when Mr. Peel's Bill was passed. These were the consequences of the original measure of 1797, and not of Mr. Peel's Act, which made no change that at the time could occasion any serious consequence, much less could its effects be felt after the lapse of ten years. We had various other topics to touch upon, but we have already exceeded our limits.—lbid. The ministerial prints which are devoted to the support of the Government, through thick and thin, are particularly strong in their expression of delight at the firmness and wisdom displayed by the Pre mier and his colleagues, with respect to the currency and the state of the country generally. We shall not copy into our columns the laudatory expressions employed by the papers to which we allude; but we are bound in justice to ourselvel, as well as from respect to our readers, to show that the argu ments which have been put forth, both by: the Pre• mier and his supporters, are based on the most fal lacious principles, and that those which we have uniformly advocated have reason and experience for their proof. In commenting on . the causes alleged for the present distressed state of the country, the Duke of Wellington observed, that certain noble Lords attributed it to a deficient circulation; but added, that he held in his hand a document which would show how very erroneous that opinion was. The document in question was, first, a statement of the amount of the largest circulation ever known in this country during the existence of the Bank re striction ; and, secondly, of the amount of the pre sent circulation. The circulation during the first period was made up as follows i B ink of England notes £30,000,000 Country bank-notes 23,000,000 Cold 4,000,600 Silver Making in all £64,000,000 The circulation now amounted to 6.5,100,000/. and the sum was thus made up Balk of England notes £19,900,000 Country bank-notes . 9,200,000 Gold 28,000,000 Silver Making i❑ all £ 65,100,000 Now, added the Premier, it is clearly demonstrable from these documents that the distress is not justly to be attributed to a deficient circulation, for there is now a million of more circulating medium than there was during the former period ! In this con clusion, however, there is a gross fallacy.' There may be in the country abundance of circulating me (bum, and yet the medium never circulate at all— there may be abundance of gold, coined and un coined, in the coffers of the Bank, and yet there may be but a very small portion of it circulated through the commercial and manufacturing commu nity. His Grace does not, in fact, which is no ground of wonder to us, seem to understand the difference between a circulating medium and the circulation of money—bet Ween the existence of wealth in particular quarters, and the communica tion of its use to others where it does not exist in such plenty ; and yet the very accounts whiCh he submit:ed in proof of the abundance of a circulating medium, support the distinction which we have made in the strongest possible manner. At the pe riod quoted by the Duke of Wellington there were in actual circulation twenty-three millions of country bank-notes; at the present moment there are, ac cording to his statement, only a little more than nine millions ! But, responds his Grace, there is now gold to the extent of twenty-eight millions, whereas dur ing the time of the bank restriction there were only four millions; but we reply what does it signify to the country whether there be twenty millions or one hun dred millions,unless the sums in question are in actual use. During the period of the Bank Restriction Act there was little or no unemployed capital in the coun try—the country bankers gave their money freely, not only whrn good bills were presented to them—we mean bills based on property of some kind or other —but when bills were presented which were based on invariable integrity and good character, without much reference to the moneyed ability of the par- ties. The case is now altogether altered. The country hankers having merely the profit on their discounts, and their business by the destruction of the one-pound note circulation being otherwise ham pered, have been under the necessity of contracting their issues and narrowing their discounts ; and hence neither the farmer, the manufacturer, or the retail dealer, can receive from them the same accom modation which they formerly enjoyed. The Bank of England has, in fact, got a monopoly of the cir culating medium—the country bankers, who kIIOW best the circumstances of the country, and the re liatice:that is to be placed on the various applicants ftyr discounts in their neighbourhood, have been thrown out of the field ; and the consequence is, that while there is plenty of gold and plenty of notes in the possession of the former, those who are most in need of it, and who would have had the us e of it, had not the currency and its issuers been so prejudicially interfered with, can procure none of it. The' time, in fact, is past, when cha racter went for any thing in insuring payment of a bill—gold—solid gold, is the security wanted— and we need not add, that as none of the produc tive classes can afford to give this to any great extent, they are obliged to be content with re ceiving accommodation to the extent of 504, where they would otherwise have received 100/. To conclude, the Duke of Wellington, in speak ing of the taxes, commits a similar error to that which we have now exposed. Taxes have been taken off; but they have been more productive in consequence ; and although, perhaps, the amount taken off might be found to square pretty accurately with the increased value of the currency in which those which now exist are paid, yet it ought to be remembered, that there was great commercial acti vity when the country was saddled with nearly 70 millions of taxes—that profits were high—wages high—and abundance of employment for all classes of the community—in a word, that owing to the prosperous condition of the country, and the absence of foreign rivalry, the taxes were easily paid—and that now the community is called upon to meet the same burthens, under circumstances of diminished power to bear them. Ministers may say, in fact, what they please about the circumstances of the country, and the necessity of being consistent in support of a golden standard—and their thick-and thin supporters echo the wisdom which dictated their speeches, in direct contradiction of what they bad previously declared to be " a rash and mistaken policy"—but their efforts will not succeed—the sense of the country is against them, and we repeat, that either its means must be raised to a level with its burthens, or its burthens diminished to a level with its means.—Morning Advertiser. NAVAL INTELLIGENCE. PLYMOUTH, FEB. 6.—A report was very current yesterday in the naval circles that the Druid frigate, Captain Hamilton, was ordered to sea immediately, in search of a pirate which had been committing depredations in the South American Ocean, and that this pirate was the Martin sloop of war, be- lieved to have been lost on her voyage from the Cape of Good Hope to India, about four years since. The story was mentioned in so many quar ters that we deem it necessary to say that no orders of the kind have been received here, nor has any in telligence respecting the Martin reached the autho rities at this port. Mr. John Allen, Mate of the Victory, is ap pointed Chief Mate of the Fox revenue cruiser. The Pandora, 18, Commander —, is ordered to be paid off at this port. The Sparrow cutter, 10, Lieutenant J. Moffatt, arrived on Saturday from Portsmouth, with the detachment of Royal Marines lately serving in the Java, and sailed yesterday to return to Portsmouth. he Vigilant ketch, Lieutenant Loney, sailed on Tuesday for Fahnouth, whence it is supposed she will take out the Lisbon mail on Friday next. The Meteor steam-Yessel, Lieutenant W. 11. Symons, sailed on Monday for Falmouth, from whence she will take out the Mediterranean mails. Dr. Harrower, Assistant-Surgeon of the St. Vin cent, is appointed Assistant-Surgeon of the Renard packet-brig, at Falmouth, and Mr. John Kirk is appointed Supernumerary Assistant-Surgeon of the St. Vincent, vice Harrower. The preventive boat at Yealm crept up 90 tubs of spirits last week. His Majesty's ship Magnet arrived at Lisbon, from Falmouth, 13th ult. The Kingfisher arrived at Monte Video, from Falmouth and Rio Janeiro, pre vious to 19th November. The Athol sailed from the River Gambia, for Sierra Leone, 27th Sept. The Dartmouth arrived at Cadiz, from Gibraltar, 31st December. The Blossom arrived at Jamaica, from Portsmouth, Madeira, and Nassau, 29th Nov. The Victor, from Trinidad de Cuba, and the Harpy, from Campeachy, arrived at Jamaica Ist December. The Tweed arrived at the Mauritius, from the Cape of Good Hope, 3d Oct. The Falcon sailed from the Mauritius 9th Oct. Remain in liamoaze.—St. Vincent, Kent, Druid, Ariadne, Pandora, and Reindeer packet. At the Island— Bramble. Lightning conductors, upon the plan recommended by W. S. Harris, Esq., are to be fitted generally to the ships of his Majesty's Navy. No discharge of the Ordinary has yet taken place, orders having been received to postpone the con templated reductions on the 15th instant.—Devon port Telegraph. PORTSMOUTH, FEB. 6.—By the arrival at Ply rr“-uth yesterday se'nnight of his Majesty's ship Pandora, Commander the Hon. J. F. Gordon, ac counts have been received from Calcutta to the 13th September. His Excellency the Governor-General and Lady William Bentinck were enjoying excel lent health, making every preparation for a departure of many months up the country the latter end of October or beginning of November. The Go vernor of Madras, Mr. Lushington and suite, re turned to the Presidency on the 4th of September, after an absence of seven ►months, greatly benefited by the salubrious air of the Nilgherry-hills. The gaieties at Government-house had commenced, is the gratification of the society of Madras. The whole continent was in a perfect state of tranquillity and free from cholera or any other violent disease. Rear-Admiral Sic Edward Owen shifted his flag, at Trincomalee, to the Cruizer, Commander Col poys. The Southampton, Captain Fisher, arrived at Madras September 21st, for provisions, to return immediately, when it was expected the Admiral and family would embark for Bombay. The Crocodile, Captain Montague, left Madras on the 15th of Aug. for the New Settlement, Swan River, Port Jackson, &c. to be absent twelve months. The Success, Captain Jervoise, was expected from New South Wales in November, to refit, on his return to Eng land, being relieved by the Challenger, Captain Fremantle, hourly expected from the Swan River. The Comet, Commander Sandilands, left Madras on the 24th of August, for Penang, Manilla, and Batavia. The Satellite, Commander Laws, arrived at Ma dras on the 16th of September, from New South Wales, Friendly Islands, &c., after an absence of fourteen months from India. The Admiral and family were all well, awl the squadron was healthy. The Pandora left Madras the 23d of September, for the Isle of France. On the 30th of October the Governor, Sir Charles Colville, and family, had re tired to their country residence, Riduir, during the hurricane months; the entertainments and great hospitality of his Excellency and her Ladyship have been without bounds. The Maidstone, Commodore Schomberg, and 3,FialatclorintiusCndoonmtmhaelesrt ofC N ol o p r oys, ernbewer r ' r e or t t o he le c av a a pe the of Good Hope. The Tweed, Captain Lord J. S. Churchill, and Jaieur, Commander Lyons, were at the Mauritius; Espoir and Chanticleer at the Cape of Good Hope, all well. The ahi eie left great a r d St.OO exe r tionsf officers Helena On Monday arrived the Echo steam-vessel, from Plymouth ; Arrow cutter, from a cruise; and the Highfiyer tender, from Newhaven. A French squadron, of one first-class frigate, one 28, and three brigs, had arrived off Madagascar; their intentions unknown, but supposed with a view to form a settlement; numerous disturbances had taken place with the inhabitants, and many lives had been lost. eiiresi r 4; dto o ht nf n . et nit the or e , fc ttolihiOmeet Command nut, R o yal latteraD nde- De cember, eu Island,, nti:b Captain r a , pu a tna r d t i d ne r A s cens i on bt Marines, above ninety acres of arable land were in the highest state of cultivation, and vegetables . 1,, any quantity may be procured there. Good soil, on land about the mountain (nearly 3000 feet above the level of the sea) has been found capable of great production, and tanks to contain nearly 2000 tons of water, were in a forward state. The Madagascar, Musquito, and Etna, were struck by lightning in the channel of Corfu, on the sth January, but we have authority for stwing, that no person on board either ship was seriously hurt. The storm of lightning must have been tremendous, the Madagascar having been struck five different times in one hour and a half. The Winchester, 52, Captain C. J. Austen, with the flag of Vice-Admiral Griffith Colpoys, dropped down to St. Helen's this morning, where she came to anchor. She will proceed to-morrow to Barba does (touching at Teneriffe), where the Vice-Ad miral contemplates falling in with the Barham. The Talbot, it is said, will be commissioned by Captain Charles Hope. Ships in Harbour—Victory, Royal George, Ganges, Galatea, and North Star. Sailed on Sunday the Prince Regent, Scott, for St. Michael's. Arrived on Monday the Forth, Ro• bertson, and the Maria, Palmer, from the Mauri tius ; the Catherine, Bowman, from New York, bound to Hull; and the Maria, Lowry, from the Cape of Good Hope, left the 24th October, and St. Helena •on the 24th November. On Tuesday ar rived the Ninus, Crathern, from Rio de Janeiro, last from Falmouth ; and the Sandwich, M‘Govvan, from London, for St. Lucia, and proceeded to Ply. mouth. On Wednesday arrived the Hickman, Fletcher, from Seville, for London. Off the Wight the Gebroeders, Poots, 120 days from Batavia, bound to Antwerp; and the Juliana, O'Kienil, 101 days from Rio Grande, bound to Antwerp. On Thursday arrived the Corinthian, Chadwick, from London, with loss of an anchor, and about 12 fathoms of chain-cable, and sailed the same day for New York. On Friday arrived the Greenwich, Dunn, from the South Seas, last from Falmouth ; and the Maria Johanes, Breanes, from Palermo to Antwerp, and passed to Cowes. The Iris, Rampe, and Continencinea, Wyberg, bound to Antwerp, are come into barbour to win ter, on account of the ice. A Court of Inquiry has been this week held on board his Majesty's ship Hyperion, by Capt. John Hayes, C. B. of the Ganges, and Captain the Hon. G. Elliot, of the Victory, on Lieut. George Percy Rosenberg, by order of the Admiralty, in conse quence of the unexpected termination of the trial of John O'Dare, who was acquitted of intent to murder him. The Court declared itself perfectly satisfied with Lieut. Rosenberg's conduct, and entirely ac quitted him of any imputation of oppression or harsh ness towards O'Dare. Mr. Anderson, Master Painter of this Dock-yard, is superannuated, after a service of twenty-seven years, and has been succeeded by Mr. Smith, Master Painter of Chatham yard. Mr. Parkin, builder of Chatham Dock-yard, is superannuated, and is to be suceeeded by Mr. Stone, from Deptford. The Officers of the Royal Marines are ordered to comply with the regulations lately issued from the Horse Guards, relative to the dress and undress of the Army, and the military cloaks are in future to be made of blue cloth only, with the uniform button and plain clasp.—Hampshire Telegraph. POLICE INTELLIGENCE. LAMBETH-STREET. Almost immediately after the pauper applicants were disposed of and their cases investigated, and just as the afternoon business of Wednesday was about terminating, a carriage drove up to the outer door of the office, from which stepped a lady of ma tronly appearance, still preserving much of the air distinguie of high life, and a young gentleman of rather fashionable address. They had a short inter view with Miller, the principal officer, in the ante room, who announced to the Magistrates their ar rival, saying that they were friends, as be under stood, of Mr. Const, the chairman of the Middlesex Sessions, and wished to have some private conversa tion with their worships on a subject of rather a sin gular and delicate nature. Christian, the constable of the hamlet of Mile-end Old-town, accompanied them; the lady having, when she heard that so grave a charge as that of burglary and robbery was preferred against her, called upon him to take herpro forma into custody, in order that she might have an opportunity of ex culpating herself from the groundless accusations which were in circulation, and explaining the teal circumstances out of which they arose. So much of her request as to privacy of communication was granted as the giving a permission to impart the business to the magistrates on the bench. This she did in a low subdued tone, which, thinking the con versation private, we did not conceive ourselves au thorised even in attempting to listen to. The sub ject, however, tran s p ired in the p ublic examination which subsequently took place. The lady, whose na me it is unnecessary t o mention, asit would give her unmerited pain, especially as the result proves her to have been actuated by the most praiseworthy motives, is, it appears, a gentlewoman of rank and consideration, having her town residence in Burton crescent, and her country villa at Hampstead. After waiting some time to meet her accusers, Mr. HARDWICK called upon Christian to state the circumstances under which he had taken the lady into custody ?—Christian replied, that he did so on a charge of burglary preferred by a person named Anderson, and a Mrs. Watson, and hand-bills II hich were circulated, offering rewards for the apprehen sion of the parties implicated. Mr. WYATT—And had you no other grounds to go upon than these mere assertions ! You appear to have acted rather hastily? Christian—You will find not, Sir. I was aware that the charge was a groundless one, and arising out of family quarrels, and it was for the purpose of giving the lady an op portunity of accomplishing what she wished for, namely, meeting her sister (Mrs. Watson) here, who has formed a connection with Anderson , which she disapproves of and is endeavouring to break it off, that I brought ber before you. The lady did not deny this. Mr. WYATT asked who it was that then charged the lady ?—Christian replied, it was John Anderson, who accused her of h avin g stolen some of his pro perty. Ilaotowtor—ls he or any one present to substantiate the complaint ?—lnquiry was made about the office, and no one appearing the lady was informed that she was at liberty to depart, the Ma gistrates telling her that in their opinion there was r e not the most distantaicr‘rohblr,eaeeiyarmef charge ee e st ;h e r n.soehNodj:, office,u n horf seher f ininl o meo r anrt v i even dnel breathless supposing Norsvleouiaaznsstal tyblat ehbetdseo Elizabeth eo: lraamse t rten h ee existence of the offence. Wat son,s. t i tr d en taring rtaeloi that dressed ehh e d i eenl accompanied Justice-roam, u y .) h asn d t d e t h r ce e ep c d to prefer against the lady who had just departed. She fortunately had not left the vicinity of the office, and imme diately returned to it, when the following singular scene took place : Mrs. Watson, in a very violent tone, deposed that she was a widow for about two months past, and lived in North -street, Stepney. Her house had been broken into and robbed of all her property. Mr. WYATT—WeII, Madam, who do sqm accuse ? Mrs. Watson-7 hat person, Sir , (pointing to the lady, who turns out to be her sister). Mr. WYATT—Have you any proof, or is it only mere supposition ? Anderson—l can explain the entire, Sir. Mr. WYATT—What are you, Sir—are you an attorney ? Anderson—l am not. She has al so stolen some of my property which was in Mrs. Wat son's T yAlwN—aos,llo building came i v udirihgaavbeab y by o e- trr ehnou p ss r le o e.e p i( e )Li r i t ia y gug t t h ihit e te r rr e e.) ? ; scrn's house. lan a A n n d Tl‘dl i her t r' Wes is to break this connection that I am anxious. Some disclosures, not very creditable to the mo rality of either Mrs. Watson or Anderson, wt re proceeding with, when the Magistrates interpose d, observing- that the business evidently arose out of a family quarrel, and that if goods had been removed. it was clearly not with any felonious intent, but with the desire of dissolving a very discreditable intimacy. If the parties felt aggrieved, their proper course would be by an action of trover, for as the case then 'toad they could not think of detaining the lady for one moment. The lady returned the Bench thanks for the pro per appreciation which they gave to her feelings and, returning to her carriage, departed With the gentleman by whom she was accompanied. LAW INTELLIGENCE. COURT OF CHANCERY, Fut. 6. CHANCERY PRACTICE.—GRAY V. CAMPBELL. Mr. ELDERTON—My Lord, in the cause of Gray' and Campbell, Mr. Campbell is brought up again' before the Court. I must move that the return be read. Mr. Campbell has not put in his answer, and unless he gives a satisfactory reason for not figiag it, he must be remanded. After a lengthened and animated discussion ott tfie subject of the answer between the Lord Chancejgoi and Mr. Duncan Campbell, the latter was re= mended. HAWES V. JOHANNINGS, Mr. H. Marschner is a musical composer, livin% in Germany, and had composed a favourite opera' called the Tempter of the Jewess. The copyrig . h 4 of this opera he sold to Mr. Hoffmeister, a nittsicd seller, living in Leipzic; and the assignment, *Well was regularly made in the German language, rrt'a' Mr. Hoffmeister the property for " printing, eelift' ing, and selling," reserving a few copies, whiebi were to be applied to a particular purpose. Mr. Hoffmeister, so possessed of the (Tara, sells the copyright to the defendant, Johannings, a neatie seller, in August in the last year. In the meantime the plaintiff, Mr. Hawes, another music-seller, is London, has dealings with the original composer , Mr. Marschner, in Germany, and the latter agreed, for a sum of 12/. 125., to sell two songs to. the plaintiff, for publication " within the kingdom of Great Britain." Counter-injunctions were then applied for ex-parte by the defendant against t he plaintiff, and by the plaintiff against the defendant, and both were obtained. The motions now made were for the dissolution of those injunctions. The SOLICITOR-GENERAL appeared for the de fendant to dissolve the plaintiff's injunction, on several grounds. Mr. TINNEY, Counsel for the plaintiff, contended that the copyright of Hoffmeister was local (accord ink to the custom in Germany), and was intended to extend no farther than Leipzic, where the us , " signee resided. The LORD CHANCELLOR decided that the plain tiff's injunction must be dissolved. Mr. TINNEY and Mr. BoNe then, as Counsel for the plaintiff Hawes, moved to dissolve the injunc tion which had been obtained by the defendant, a nd for this purpose read the answer of Mr. Hawect showing that, by the law of " the empire o f Ger many,' the copyright was local, and confined to per' titular districts. The LORD CHANCELLOR said he would read the answer before he gave his final opinion. This be would endeavour to do on Monday next. SINGULAR CIRCUNISTANCE.-A few day s ago, Mrs. PRIESTLEY, of Whitwell, was seized with sud— den illness, which terminated, as was supposed, in death she was laid out and arrangements were made for the fu neral, such as ordering the coffin, &c. ; after remaining that state for upwards of nine hours, a neighbour her pening to go into the house observed a moisture directly opposite her mouth, which induced her to remove O. sheet, when she percived signs of life manifest themselves by the trembling of her eye-lids : immediate assistance was procured, and she is now perfectly recovered.--Ne t "‘ tingham Review. The weather continues so intensely cold Oa the distress amongst the poorer classes in this city is be come truly alarming, and should the frost continue the consequences must be dreadful, as hundreds of the ildle; bitants in the town" have no coals' left. The coal whet has at this time as much the appearance of a timber yard as that of a wharf, and what few coals there are for sale are retailed out at ss. and bad billet wood at 2s. 6d. P er cwt. ! The coal merchants are under contract to suPP l i the respective colleges, and, to enable them to do so, have drained the neighbouring wharfs ; and we were informed that on Thursday evening a number of teams were de spatched to the pits below Birmingham to bring coals ell by land carriage. The colleges hare adopted the plan of putting two of the junior members into one roam, for the purpose of saving fuel, and every other system of economy is used to make the stock hold out.— Oxford Journal. TOTAL DESTRUCTION OF RENDLESIIAg HOUSE, SUFFOLK, EY FIRE.-About half past ten o'clock, on Tuesday night a fire broke out in the conservatory et this princely mansion, which quickly extended to the elegant suite of rooms, and the whole of the basemene story. The conservatory is warmed by flues which pee under the suite of rooms, and to this circumstance the sad catastrophe t M a ro a p d h j e a m is ityo arebe attributed. iph Paris, and Lord the and asteward w L a a r d d y Rannr three female servants were the only persons in the house; the former had retired to rest, having previously looked round the premises, and the fire was discovered by the housemaid as she was going to her chamber; she instantly alarmed the steward, and the great bell in the tower was snag , which brought the gamekeepers together, but such was the intensity of the flames that it was immediately apparent that to preserve any portion of the mansion was imprae' ticable, and the efforts of all were directed to remove whatever was portable. By pleat exertions the massive plate, a box of deeds, and jewels, some of the costly books, and furniture, were taken out, although much injured. Two fire-engines arrived from Wickharo , but from the severity of the weather water coul d not be procured in sufficient quantity to be of service' In about two hours the roof and the tower the blaze was mast terrific, and when morning dawned , nothing but bare walls, and half -consumed beams an d rafters remained of this splendid mansion. The damage . we are told, is computed at 100,0001 ., no p ar t o f whic h is insured. BIRTHS. On the sth inst. at Brighton, the Lady Elizabeth Dickins, of a son and heir. At Funtington, on the sth ine. the lady of J. Duff, Esq. of a daughter. On the 3d inst. at Hampstead, the lady of Mr. Henri Hammond, of Furnival's-inn, of a son. On the Ist inst. at Alcester, Warwickshire, the.lady of M. Purton, Esq. of Havannab, of a son. On the 3d inst. in Upper Harley-street, the lady of B. Goad, Esq., of a daughter. MARRIED. On the 4th inst. at St. George's, Hanover-square, Ts Hankey, Esq , jun. eldest son of T. Hankey, Esq. of DO' ton, to Miss Apolline Agatha Alexander, late of Philadel• phia, United States, and half sister to the Lord Chief Baron. On the 3d inst. at Islington, Joseph Kent, E s q. of Chelmsford, to Miss Caroline Williams, fourth daughter of J. Williams, Esq., Islington. On the 2d inst. at St. Andrew's, Holborn, by the Ref' Dr. Beresford, the Rev. Henry Filthess, of Cholmondiso ton, Suffolk, to Miss Hester Price, of St. Andrew% Holborn. DIED. On the sth inst. at St. Alban's, John Harrison, Esq.' late Commissioner of the Victualling Board, aged 72 year!' On the 20th ulr. Mr. Wm. Thornhill, of Great Chapel' street, Westminster, in the 60th year of his age, sincere l l regretted by his numerous friends. On the 2d inst. at Kenilworth, Sarah Vernon, f o urth daughter of the late Bayes Cotton, Esq. On the SOth ult. in Hampstead-road, of apoi)l,xy;M r. T. P. Spackman, aged 37. On the 31st ult. at Darlington-place, Vauxhall, I%lis s Haward, aged 76. On the 31st ult. at Martock, Somersetshire, Nary, the third !laughter of W. C. Wood, Esq., aged 23 ; and on the following day at Coate, in the same county, in her of v 301. R. w Elizabeththyear,arryEsq. Cole, his eldest daughter, and wife On the 20th ult. at Tarbolton-Manse, Wm. Rivhier D.D., Professor of Divinity in the University of Elio' burgh, and Minister of the High Church of that city. PAINTED AND PUBLISHED BY MUHDO YOUNG; db / THE SUN OFFICE, 112, STRAND. UMW* AL h ensuin g lutist ho in the after sv The in the 1 Aeadeir Ti Notice, upon T Light 0 the 29t1 after, fr the retu The 1 Lii Tarbi martyel long. 3 the enti house b and the Hallimc IsT.N.w NV. v by B.d The to W. level of at the d aestordil By houses, Edini This di Ti l eoen t , Practice and othi Autho r Lond Ind Q l'Crehrt: Ind co. A p and N A eimpiif Ti me , tr a c ed v nevi Lima c Circles HMIS ANI LOF Al d e :s o t: a wl lees, th sistanct Establii such d lorn et, tion. bergen luornin and ha' ing, wi ducted duties I minds 1 calamil the ens fleeted nourial tician. to an t he eel :ffeetu ...,a igu Th e , ti in the Nol4 ( 'roue °lfor( —l Nri Itt n i S karriN ~2 , C, 43 , I -113 . Pi