The Sun. — London, England, 1850-07-30 00:00:00

el e h re .. e , -- Y not leia thee sixteen. He would move that the :Nm report progress and ask !woulde sit eg 1 . • , ihZi bTRELAWNY th'oueht it twrer if ne s to which he b e „ e allovred to 1:130V8 for the return T. ha.auded reletive t o the duchy of Cornwall. itl hie CHAIRMAN esked Mr. Hume, would . he persiat ual motion• and the Hon• Member having replied tkratiliVely, ' . visi on 'were then ordered to withdraw, but a di a, , 4 dill not take place. On our return to the gallery ' e , bond kr, lir, ' ualE ob'e t . to their then creating etateeisitpe___. a I a i ng . ser l 1 hat woula Old, b e m ' eu t ror the Prince of ry a es. establishing a ~e encouraging e xtravagance, and e a separate . }Tr:cement for a set of idle individuals. They would then 16: 1 4 4 ease similar to the occupation of Kensington e tla ace bY persons who bad no more right to be la e e be ha& tlr 131) the Noble tore, "WELT said, the reason assigned by not the peel' for the proposal was, that it was desirable ekteltette T hoth be made aware that the wasbuildmigt_evar.. asenently devoted to the purposes of h Bright) that thetrY. But it appeared to as seeti at lam might easily be made kn b o i . ai wn ( without their consideration. eco_De_to the motion then under their . e n sot':',D!.l SIBTHORP objected to t . hei d rthen creating no necessity ebt:teZlernsiltnent for which there existed Th e nr r , Ii tenANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said, e n e s e . . as s tecielte a mistake to suppose that any great m e o x s p t e ij r ,,,u De incurred by that proposal. It was 4.7..u1e that the line of buildings forming Cariciton•ter -47:11lotild h e I should completed, and that the att er tea b enefit of the new rents, which w pu ou b ld in be e p rd a e id r tolLe adoption of that arrangement. teat 2 3 titat end they should remove the s ß ta h u b e t les at pre the o'iritaeed to Marlborough House; and t in their 1441.14 Proposal was to erect other stables establishment object of 8 40.4 , 1 wae proposed that any d what -be k House beyond leeee ePt snotpat Marlborough 44 'ender ordinary circumstances, ei4 tlerPoses of preserving the premises from wa y an necessary for ente.ut seem to him that the proposal was in any 117.1" able o ne. be injury. It Ilse : litrtlE said, it appeared from the statement they tete_Jie't heard that the object of the motion adoptedr i a S the 4 4 4 20 a of Carlton -terrace. But before theyhow the IN: Proposal they ought to know exactly he saaekent was to be carried into effect. Besides, liettemecki observe, that there could be no reason to O4ettetielng the Dame of the Prince of Wales with such ft 1 4 1. ' 1 , aloe; r,--seNIEY said he heard no reason weiy_t y ha a t r eee e de the Crown should hamper nine 'e e l e e with respect is what was to happen . d of that themselves b tee euence.--(Hear, hear.) Before the !teit,l" Night be found desirable to adopt discretion keoeZa!ent, and they would then find their e s n ome other 91'41lids, .tnently fettered b the proposal un er 0 _ • e ° ,l. If the stables were its officers from gesh e ' `4lere was nothing to prevent the property ftn litterhWth then) ati they might think proper4 was quite resehit'UtELAWNY thought the proposal S tr enre under preseht circumstances. was any iliht 'II•REW said that as long as there ~_tieeeiyetaYftvr,ith respect to the income derived from the .. any prO irotai f Vornwall he felt it his duty to resist, q ttitor,,e Rreet to the Prince, the ei?,, e llY who enjoyed the revenues ekteethe,''ACAN said it struck hint that there must be N o b ,',,1 underhand in that matter. The stables !ti er that had h d m'eht surely be built at so . me el:terthtletl• L Thee N ar oble - I l .ord, in unneces . sa .e ri r l y y tl "e (i e "'lie money, was doing vast lot tete et"entaent. t v e o t i h n i g s trate ~' 41-TSSELL said he was not asking for any were to ektilee'e the Prince of Wales. But if they he s44l,4l4B:leelonarchy, nnd - to have a Princ h e av o e f :V h a e l n e s s e , to e l i de in Abe' that Prince should not sie h a ,' ade tolltepr 4 P , maid he did not wish to opposethaenNoble re eeNion for the Royal Family. But ' Old e-ellld not expect that the House of Commonst hay e Se 'ete Money furthe Prince of W to k til bat ascertained how the property which belonged ,lleeteett(ifbeell rnataged. They could not, • Wales without ho at itte l .;:‘ it detirahle that they p should unnecessarily 7°t tiliCl'attli any -i ti dgrneßt - II on that subject.weivieerdid krine discretion of future Parliaments. ‘'eta.t4lchtnaati SIDIsTEY said that if tee Noble Lord e iteieAtest° farce the Committee to a division, those s w a b - w`vith him (Mr. Alderman Sidney) upon the h e It4'l e el d be plac ed very ungracious position e . ,aa lt ry ioebilee leteetien of refusieg to make every th t a th at i/ I , s t the Princ e of Wales. Bunt it 4,4 e -'t Was then t premature to discuss years appeared nec theiu t O . 1 "ab lith " most only nine age After Ment 0 a child who was se e a t • a grant, which out r k i. oopo hadi eying recently made . est) been thought so appeared t o c-t o it th , th at aleraber of the Royal Family, extras agent - (flea , othin te -I to t tee 4 t by their adoption ' of the presentproposal e' do %,,-74'Y Would be led to infer that they '4e4 tte s ttil their surplus revenue but to foun h d a a d d n ditional The eetleil Pelaces for the Royal Family. l 'er t re e tilit tee then divided, and the number 4 s 6 were— Ageksiet.rttingpropress 68 % e tu;i: 3r . i .. ............... —22 - kikettelelatiott WasYthen agreed to, and the House re T e C tier, r i me te e ,:ee , op BARON ROTHSCHILD. 4 '04444;1'4°n that the House should resolve itself into VI% te ie,ef S uPPly having been put, from Mr. ghee,tiotilr'2ab. eaid, in reply questiontoa tee t lf. 4 0 1 1 1 t!cLe was informed.. of London to pre toeeeltasela et I,4ember for the city o'clock thatitwas the inten tiler:row t h is ede table of the bear.) at twelve With respect i t s ! . ll ado a ee 'si ova, sY).---(lleart he had bean m ... ey es, )o t i i n e discussion, he feared t 4 th at at what he had stated. - question before b e ° lloese Preserit there was only one observations What he had said le kl .tht 4 a ttla d that he should reserve any stage in the rieeditto.°fto make until nome future stage Itiel:' k s IST E . e . e nY such stage should occur.the Hon. Gen -es ell to 4 k wished to know whether . tfate)te ember for North Warwickshire (Mr. New -es east t o §0 info tetsi),,t'enew the et his leeeltoatiefdtiATE said he had p had been much dita,"enienee"e",of several Members who question for - "'t kettea," DY the irregularity of the proceeding* tioZ °l l el It u i l li e ri ,ag the last few days. fixed the considera i r the ter'"cios,ELL said he had he should not, o e f fl atle t ,: to.ezerrew aetiihradneents on the Irish Franchise 'i ll tY s /I : ei r l e e t B o B pthreest.. buttiso tion da if ); theHon. Member for th that 1)0- %11 44 wO R .:IIt himself to take the oaths. tat t o es ALLY said it did not follow o ea.neo,,the,.eitteitees othschild ptesented himself at the table t ril l ' ' any discuesion should take place upon the Pler lee iip otet 8 --eet-OSED EXHIBITION OF 1851.. mo. u ti lto ii. lirrac, - 414 •ae he ell' roSQ to submit the following will be tttei e to th e ctre le•-•" That an humble address be pre tllet b i Ne pie 4en; praying that her Majesty _ d juror- Ste', II ai t ,„,,ted to direct the Attorney General to fte.Z."?la to the filing of the proposed ihitiette,-' 'DjUnction to restrain the erection of any e lid h e ll of irlY part of Hyde -park for the intended le illi iilloole1851." The Hon. and Gallant Gentle ho p r tqe 4 , 4 Put it to the Hon. and Learned mode Member l/ e tatlceedi ‘tetileY-General himselt whether the hea-ahle n it he 1 1 ri - 8 e . 1 , tte adopted was fair, of begg.ing" ik 4 40 111 ' was a grt at shame that a set f 1. bel ow db e e . • .. the highest e l , m e 0, Arnett round by persons o straightforward, extracting 4 ta . POor bat Sovereigia, for the purpose of -, on th e Nee, r'eraons the money necessary for carryi g l to thiltlatereittant woulcl necessarily be most prejudicia it Doti of this country. He had heard that day or, ti le .eB4 than -Oeb evto ee ,-an 1,500 foreigners had disembarked , 0 pro to tO t i; 1. • 14 3 , On our shores, as a preparatory sfte_rp,th a ° Vett exieltlurveying the ground destined De % e 4.1,4121,1te,10n•--(Laughter.) rounds ‘l4 witleedin "EY-GENERAL said, that as he had the he tel t t ie g_ .ocacssion stated very t t it e t i ou t s e eed thileoo truedtspaisns that aey matter, leng f ü b l e l ydid the grounds think th on the time of d kst th e H o Zile lion. and Gallant Member proposed %etty, he should then present an address to - lat : P al, letre"Ying her Majesty to direct the Attorm INesesidereawas her own law officer, to violate what a 44 4 414 t hs e lle t° b e his duty to the Crown. He wa 0 so t ' l O 4 O a pee lse would not give its sanction ' b r i e fft; Jess.% and that lion. Members must .at tl t 4 „Li " 131".P.i.11eRd of its unreasonable character et e i e o. wo,evtuee,) (l e lillist, flaps It 1,44 t 4)14, expresso R ope to a a Qeer,„' ambe r would not press his motion d h that the HOD. o -Nei c,, "4 hiIetaTRORLI . kr. 1 „ tlty i said, that he bad at all events tt, tveeevzie bringing the subject before the Hou e iatt tlletere objected to the withdrawal of the motion... keltpl,Zere then ordered to withdraw, but no dir , ~,, and the motion was at once negative eo tte • S, wo -(1.1P; II AII ItIAGE BILL. kerlet.l% ateteltlLEY said he wished to correct an ern ,4 44,44:44 which was reported to Reitza 'at t b e ! Plac e b y a Right R o y. Prelate on th Pessettpoeteae alarriage Bill • have bee e The Right Rev. Prelat d e di visi e 11 44 t e have said that although the Bill ha kajerae, of et the House of Commons after several ha tho se sty e r . t, he had been informed that an aggregate on %s s alon Who of the Members who had voted p ile fat fro (1113 were opposed to the measure. Now th at s th e Ilay) h.._tri havin3 been the case, that he (Mr., of. Iteh,qikviajoeT_tteoertained from a careful examination __., iiitlatiplter lit totalzas,9 23-71.1tra 1 , 1 4 0 ' 4 , le that House that the total number of fitee Whii„ te v ,; any time , v t d against the Bill was the e vi number of o th e os w ho had vote_ , d i i . n . Theklaietet,e`' 4; sh owing on the whole of tatabi,of 71 in its fevour.—(Hear, hear.) I.he: l•---TIIE NAVY ESTIMATES. Slf-eply h e : t h , • ,„ f A ;k r „, en resolvea itself into a Committee u Vete • '4z'qt. in t nt' 7 ai 2 he chair. all / e 4 Y oe efii , 6/. having been proposed for the s' cer s of the Navy and of the Royal he ,r.',liteeee, tet"Dleee i"v4 said that es 0 kee et before they adopted that vote, Ce iee l of Barr muw how far the Government bad gone in aeo-tilin.,ittee tig out the recommendation of the tet oi'ibLered,,e:l9, that the number of our admirals e t thi t Zee lee ad NM 150 to 100. He believed that Fietile e wee en ac tussle there were not more than twelve rleteette4eistive service. He should move that the eal'e ItAlereeY,e• t utu of 3 000/. ,14 4,'.Uiti n ot ....':1/41. Said he was sure that his Horn ' t i,Dt ii * , e l Pt of hash that th e r. , °ulcers who were at present !Ibl e t fa t sours aeould not continue to receive it. Ne e e Ta r e -- were not adopted, it would be impos tetterrnoed byT,at present the rduction which had Ne il the clOesiinis 1.1)0. Friend. They could not con theeee Mello, thl,l:rith reference to the number of ad 15f 14%Wei4 "4'4-44 look a little further, and see that *le e k , e lacy, tie -o.Proreotion to keep the service in a state I%ehtLr'jtkeleyhhe..r.,reeertuligebltillis Islo riend' mould act an ,* ~ 4 Rea r °use to a vote upon his motion aw e e l . ked 4 41 , _ etlY had time to see how the alteration netette!t.tie d ie se ti ort ti .ele ainee a. ti tat' ur 14 the °t th illk it 'Ou . present Id work. For his N at Ytar th e aervi ee _ poSsible with the . 141 PrOnr. •• LC ' do with fewer promotions. ftee_ of _.,,, i .. , ....OLlort e wig %tn.. ' l it Were e'la trona the rank of captain to -4414104 to " la ntlraber, or about one in 33 ; eaPt4ine, 12; from lieutenants to THE SUN, commanders, 33. It was not by the pay that officers were kept in the service, but by the hopes of obtaining those rewards and distinctions to which they looked for ward throughout, the whole of their lives.—(Cheers.) A comparison had been made between the Itritish and the American servic"; but the half-pay in the latter was higher than in the former. He would not veetuie any crude suggestions on the subject. He did not mean to say, as the lower class officers had been reduced, that it might not be right to reduce the higher class also; but it was not advisable at the present moment to press such an arrangement, and the more he considered the subject the more he felt convinced that it would be a most un wise economy to adopt the recommendation of the Com mittee in this respect. He apprehended his Hon. Friend would not divide on the question in its present shape; but he thought it nevertheless right to state that he w not prepared to make any alteration at present. Captain PELHAM thought an sequiescence in the motion of the Hon. Member for Montrose would be equivalent tc a breach of faith. The best remedy would be to practise economy in the naval expenditure. Great reductions had already been made in the establishments of our dockyards, and he believed they might be carried much farther, especially by adopting the system of build ing the smaller vessels by contract. Great reductions might also be made in the number of seamen employed in the fleet. He would disfranchise every man employed in the dockyards, and would not have au many of the Admiralty sitting in Parliament. Mr. COBDEN observed that it was said out of doors that whenever retrenchment was the order of the day they always began with the weaker parties, but it would now be known whether the House was influenced by aristocratic prejudices, or not. The report of the Com mittee recommended that the number of admirals should be gradually reduced from 150 to 100, not by dismissing any of them, or depriving any existing admiral of his flag, or his rank, or his pay. They would ;now see if equal justice was to be done. But they were told that even ander existing circumstances there was little chance enough of promotion. Now, it ap peared to him that the navy was kept up for the pur poses of war, and officers who entered the service in times of peace must not look to promotion to the same extent as in time of war. The service ought not to be made the means of providing offices to serve the interests of individuals, but should be regulated with reference to the public requirements, otherwise they would be sub stituting principles of charity and benevolence in the place of justice to the interests of the commuuity at large. For these reasons he would support the motion of his Hon. Friend the Member for Montrose. Admiral DUNDAS said the number of admirals had been diminished. In 1816 there were 2:20, and now only 150, which was not too large a number for the re quirements of the service. Mr. HUME maintained that the naval service, in its present condition, was more like a pension list than anything designed to carry out the legitimate objects of the public service. Captain BERKELEY said there could not be a greater mistake than to suppose that the navy was main tained for the sake of providing places for the aris tocracy, for most of those who had attained the highest rank had entered the service perfectly friendless. He knew instances in which men had served twenty-seven years, and had ultimately arrived at the rank of rear. admiral, with the pay of 4501. a year. Now, he should like to see any man after the same period of service in any public office ashore who would not be in a better position. Let them make a just bargain with the ser vice if they pleased, but he protested against the breach of faith which was involved in the motion of the Lion Member for Montrose. Mr. BRIGHT denied the existence of any . bargain - - - that a man o❑ entering the service should be made an admiral at some period of his life.—(Hear, hear.) It was the strangest idea of the public service he hal ever heard. The only contract with a man on entering the service was, that upon certain princip!es laid down, either according to seniority or merit, they should have promotion to reach such a stage as their services and length of life would permit. Colonel THOMPSON could not help saying that he was obliged to agree with the Hon. Member for Man chester that there could not by possibitity be any such principle as officers claiming promotion beyond that which wa; necessary far the service. He never heard such a principle spoken of in the service to which he had the honour to belong. He was sure that a cornet did not expect to be a lieutenant till a lieutenant was wanted, or a lieutenant expect to be a captain till there was a troop for him. He, therefore, felt under the necessity of voting with the Hon. Member for Manchester. Admiral BO WLES supported the vote. Mr. HUME remarked that it was the Admiralty itself that proposed in 1830 that only one should be promoted to the rank of admiral for every three vacancies, till the number was reduced to 100; but the Admiralty did not act up to that. Sir F. T. BARING said it was his firm conviction, that if they carried out the recommendation of the Com mittee, it would at first be attended with an increase of expense. He did not mean to say but that by a well considered scheme they could rkduce the number of ad mirals, and effect a saving thereby. Mr. CORRY supported the vote on the ground that not to make the promotion would be to commit a Welch of faith. Captain PECHELL complained that Captain Sir Henry Hart, the hydrographer of the navy, and another officer who held another appointment, had been com pelled to agree to their names being placed on the re tired list, being informed that they must either do this or give up their appointments, while a junior officer had been permitted to hold the situation of Commissioner of Greenwich Hospital, and was nut required to place him self on the retired list. Sir T. ACLAND said it was true there was a majo rity of the Committee in favour of the recommendation, but the Chairman, who did not vote, was against it, and that made it equal. The saving by carrying out the recommendation would only be 10,0301. a 3 ear, and in a great maritime country like this he did not think that was an object to put iu comparison with the just expec • tations of the gallant man who were waiting for their promotion. Sir J. G RA lIAM said he was not in the House when the discussion commenced, and therefore he was not aware what was the precise form of the motion, but he imagined that in point of form it was not a reduction in the number of admirals that was proposed by the Hon. Member for Montrose, but that he had raised that ques tion by proposing some small diminution in the vote. In point of substance, the Hon. Member wished to raise in this Committee the question that was discussed in the Naval Committee, where the proposition was carried for which he (Sir J. Graham) held himself responsible, that there should be a reduction in the number of admirals from 150 to 100. The Hon. Gentleman the Member for Devon said that reduction would not be of any great use, but still they ought to consider that it was a saving; and the right poiat to which the House of Commons ought to come was, that in the state service there ought to be no unnecessary expense. Now he was bound to say that his Hon. Friend the Member for Tyrone was equally right in the assertion that the gradual re duction of the number of officers on half-pay in the navy, so far as admirals were concerned, ha l not yet been carried into effict by only permitting one promo tion in three vaeacaacies. The real question was whether the time had arrived for making the rule which p evaded all other ranks apply to admirals. Now, it appeared in evidence that at no time during the sar was there a greater number of admirals employed by this country than 32, and that the number employed at the present time did not exceed 12. Now, he was decidedly of opi nion that although the admiral.' lift must be cArsidered more or less as a reward for past services, yet it was a question of degree. and they must bear in maid what were the real wants of the service. It would not do to main tain either in the army or navy a very large number of admirals or generals merely with a view to the reward for past services, without any regard to the wants of the public. He hcped that his Right Honourable Friend Vie Chancellor of the Exchequer had not been misled by a pamphlet recently published by a banker, in which it was stated that the people of this country were amongst the most lightly taxed of any people—that di rect taxation might be carried out much further, and in direct taxation also extended. He hoped the Right Hon. Gentleman had not been misled by any of these arguments. He (Sir J. Graham) questioned whether the people of this country were lightly taxed. At all events he was sure that taxation in time of peaco had arrived at its maximum, and the Right Hon. Gentleman must be aware that either with direct or indirect taxation there was considerable difficulty in maintaining the bur dens that now existed. He was satisfied the time had arrived when every practicable economy must be carried out in every branch of the public service.—(Hear, hear.) With respect to the army and navy, there were points where that economy must commence; and it must com mence, not with the lower, but with the higher ranks of the protessiona.--(Hear.) He would be the last man to desire that that principle should be carried into effect rashly, suddenly, or to the injury of those who had a just claim for immediate promotion, but gradually some better system might be introduced into the higher ranks of both services. In time of peace 150 admirals and 270 generals were a larger number than were required.— ' me h elpsroo numberp to s : o t o i o o f, n thbae admiralstf, as s e u p t hoen shouldtSh Select e d e b e t o atgraduallyh o Committeefth three e e reducedav( n as ea t r h a ) t f tr The proposition before the Select Committee was that the number of admirals should bo gradually reduced fro cans stbo ,r p etoaeni commanders,thet h d ey ea o t h n l o y promoted theythr eoe a one, ndlmyi ra and as o promoted s only n ly one thenne eshould death e lieutenant at h b of e, promoted, till . the number was re d uced to 100 —(Hea bear.) It might be said that, cons id er i ng the age of th r e , post-captams,. the probability w as , if t h at rule were a dopted, that in a short time there would be no admirals sufficiently young and active to undertake the important duties of naval commanders. But th e C omm i ttee had also proposed, in order to give vigour and activity to the higher branches of the service, that ono out 'of every three promotions should not go by seniority, b u t t h at, on the responsibility of the Admiralty, officers of distinguished merit, without reference to seniority, should be raised to the rank of admiral; whereby the list would derive the benefit of both vigour and seni or ity. Having propounded that view in the Committee, and having since reflected on it attentively and maintained it, he did not hesitate to support it now, both by his speech and his vote.—(Hear, hear.) Ile was decidedly of opinion that this measure should be adopted, both with reference to the efficiency of the service, and to the just claims of the public, for the commencement of some economy in this branch of the service; and that it ought also to be extended to the army, as a feasible and safe proposition. The army stood on better grounds than the navy; ?tor though the number of generals was 270, a very large reduction had been effected within a short period, the non-::ffective charge having been reduced nearly 90,000/. a year sinca 1846; while in tl.e navy the charge for the non-effective service was 88,000 i. a year more than it was in 1846. Since the termination of the war, the reduction or' the dead weight in the army had been progressive and great, while in the navy it had been almost stationary and comparatively nothing. It was absolutely necessary that a beginning should be made in reducing the non-effective portion of this service, and that beginning ought to Le with the higher ranks. The First Lord of the Admiralty would probably say that whin a vacancy occurred the command was ivatantiy taken ; but he was to! I that when a vacancy occurred in the East India and China statioa thero w"s great dilZi culty in tilling it up; that three or four refused it; that the officer who had gone out there was nearly seventy years of age; and that there had been some arrangement whereby he took the command.—[Sir F. T. BARING was understood to deny this ] If this were the case in time of peace, what would be the condition of the ser vice if unhappily we were involved in war? It was in dispensable to have youth and vigour on the admirals' list; and that could only he attained by promoting by merit, as well as by seniority, to the extent of one in three. Ho considered this point the most important which had been brought before the Select Committee, and ho could not hesitate now to support the view he had there advocated. S:r F. BARING wished that his Right Hon. Friend would show, rather by figures than by general phrasal, what he meant by enforcing economy. He did not re gard this as a question of economy at all. The entire saving, even if you could reduce the number of admirals from 150 to 100, would scarcely exceed 10,0001.; and it was no question with him whether this would be a real saving to the country, while it would be a great injustice to a noble service. Even if the Government were to adopt the principle of appointing admirals on the ground of merit alone, those officers would grow old, and they did not require merit only in their admirals, but also youth and activity. If, however, the Government were to pass over the senior officers and select as admirals officers low in the list and young in the service, they might disregard merit to obtain the services of youth, and he feared such a course would occasion great dissatisfaction and discontent. That was not a new suggestion, for ou one occasion the power of the Crown had been exercised, and with great impar tiality, in favour of a young officer, but that step created great dissatisfaction, and if his recollection was correct, the House interfered so harshly that the practice was abandoned. He begged to say, in reply to the Right Hon. Baronet opposite, that no arrangement of the nature be had alluded to had been made with the gallant admiral in command on the East India station. The Right Hon. Baronet bad also asked whether it was true that that command had been offered to two officer:: before it was accepted by the gallant admiral by whom it was now held. It was perfectly true that the appoint ment had been declined by two admirals, on the ground that their health would not enable them to undertake the duties, and he (Sir F. Baring) thought those gallant officers had acted most conscientiously in declining the offer on that ground. He was far from saying that if the present arrangement did not work well, the whole subject ought not to be considered, but he did not think it would be advisable to consider the case of the admirals apart from that of the service generally. Sir J. GRAHAM observed, Ithat the Right Hon. Ba ronet called upon him to state the precise amount of saving he proposed to effect by reducing the list of admirals from 150 to 100. He could only say that if the reduction of one-third in the number of admirals would effect no material saving in the half-pay of admi als it was a case of despair.—(Hear, hear.) The Right Hon. Baronet appeared to think that it would not be possib!e to add any fresh youth, vigour, and activity to the list by means of selection. If then they could neither reduco the expense, nor render this class of officers more c fficicnt by infusing health and vigour into it, he (Sir J. Graham) thought the cue of the admirals was desperate.—(Hear, hear.) Mr. HENLEY said this was a very important ques tion, for it appeared that while the amount expended in pay and wages for the effective force of the navy was ,322,000 L, the cost of the non-effective s.!rvice was 1,221,0001. —(Hear, hear.) He was satisfied this was a state of things the country would not allow to be confi rmed. For thirty-five years since the peace the system had gone on without alteration, and they were now pay ing the same number of officers for doing nothing that they were maintaining when they had a.large naval force all .at. He was glad this question had been raised, for he considered the non-Jfeetive force cf the navy ought to be kept within more reasor able bounds, and he would cordially support the amendment. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER wished to say a few words on this subject, as it was one with regard to which he had had somo Admiralty exp,rience. He must say he deprecated more than anything the in terference of the Howe of Commons iu these mutters.— (Oh, oh, and a laugh.) He did not mean as to what was to be done, but ai to how it was to be done.— (Laughter.) When he became S,aretary to the Ad miralty a system of reduction was in active operation. It was going on rapidly, and what stopped it? What was the cause of that increaso of deadweight in the navy, of which Hob. Gentlemen now complained ? It was the interference of the House of Cotnnaous.— (A cry of "No," and a laugh.) Yes, it was the inter ference of the House with the reductions then in pro gress. Several motions, as the Hon. Member for Mon- hose might remember, were made and carried with a view to accelerate the promotions, which the House thought were not rapid enough, and the consequence was a great addition to the retired list. It must not be said, then, that the Government had been anxious to continue the present system. He conscientiously believed that the Government was far better able than the House of Com mons to form a judgment as to the mode in which re ductions might be effected. Captain HARRIS observed that officers, whether admirals, captains, or lieutenants, were not made in a day, and it was necessary to keep up the half-pay system that they might have efficient men upon the list who would be available in case of emergency. He did not concur in the opinion of the Chancellor of the Exche quer that the Executive Government could conduct changes in these matters most advantageously without the interference of that House, for the House of Com mons was bound to take care that there was no extrava gant outlay of the public money. The Committee then divided, when there appeared— For the amendment ... 72 Against it ... 128 Majority ...-56 Sir G. PECHEIL made some remarks:upon the mode in which the allowance for bringing specie from abroad was appropriated. Sir F. BARING said a few words in justification of the system. Captain BOLDERO reminded the Right Hon. Gen tleman that this vote included surgeons and assistant surgeons, with respect to whom there was a recent vote of the ouse ;ho believed some regulation was to be made for their benefit. Sir F. BARING had already explained t 3 the Hon. and Gallant Member the course intended to be pursued; a memorandum had been drawn up, and the arrangement would be carried into affect. The vote was agreed to. The following votes were also agreed to:— . 493,345/. for military pensions and allowances. 167,086/. for civil pensions and allowanca. 135,7004 for freight of ships for conveyance of troops, &c. 21,1311. for extra pay, &c., of seamen and marines, in lieu of spirits, and for extra pay, &c., for the Arctic Searching Expedition. 8,4801 for extra provisions for the ships employed in the Arctic Searching Expedition. The next vote was 764,236 L for the Post-office packet service. Mr. SCOTT moved to reduce the vote by 50,000/., charg,d for the conveyance of the India mails by the East India Company's vesels. Sir F. BARING reminded the Hon. Member that the pat went must be made as long as the contract with the company subsisted. Lord NAAS thought that after the contradictory statements they had heard from the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Hon. Member for Honiton (Sir J. W. Hogg), it was understood the vote fir the Indian mail service would be postponed till the House had had an opportunity of judging what was the real state of the case by the production of the correspondence between the Government and the East India Company. The CHANCE LLOR of the EXCHEQUER observed, that the production of the correspondence could have no effoct on a contract which had been already completed. Whatever opinion the House might have a 3 to any future arrangement, it was evident that whit had been entered into by Government must be carried out. Mr. HUME suggested, that in future an account should be laid before Parliament of the several contracts, of the number of ships, of the distances, and of the ex• cease on one side; and of the profits, by passengers and from other sources, on the other. No vote required a closer scrutiny, and the opinion of competent persons out of doors was, that many of our mail contracts were ex tremely extravagant. The House ought to have some intimation► when stew contracts were to be made. Mr. SCOTT agreed with the Hon. Member that the votes for the mail service required very close observa tion. It was rumoured that a certain company, who were disappointed in getting the contract for the mails to the Brazils, were likely to obtain the contract for the Cape mails, by way of making up for their disappoint ment. The vote ought not to be passed without some explanation, though no Hon. Member connected with Government had yet condescended to give any. Sir F. BARING observed that the statements to which the Hon. Member referred were, like many others brought against the Admiralty, quite without foundation. There was no truth in them; and it could not be ex pected that the time of the House was to be taken up in noticing every story that might be rumoured abroad. Tho Hon. Member (Mr. Hume) could have every infor mation he desired as to the mail contracts. Sir J. GRAHAM inquired what arrangements had been made for the conveyance of the mails between Holyhead and Dublin ? It had been strongly recom mended by the Committee that the same company who had carried the mails between Liverpool and Dublin should become the lessees of the establishment, which had cost the country a very considerable sum; and he observed that the expenses had increased since 1849. Sir F. BARING was understood to reply that ar rangements had been made for carrying the mails by contract, which would be carried into effect as soon as possible. There were charges against the Admiralty on this poi n t a l so , b ut t h ey re f erre d no t t o th e Admiralty having done b a dly to th e pu bli c , b u t t o th eir having taken the lowest contract, which was said to be so low that it could not be worked. In reply to a question from Lord NAAS, Sir F. BARING stated that the tenders for the mail contracts to the Cape would be returnable on the 13th of August; and in reply to Mr. Scott, said that the ser vice would be taken by screw -steamers. In reply to Mr. T. EGERTON, The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER stated that the Government intended to make the inner har bour at Holyhead at the public expense. It would be, he considered, rather hard, under all the circumstances, to call on the railway company to contribute 9 00,000/., as originally agreed upon, but they wou ld b e d epr i ved of any cxcluslve advantages which were contingent on that c natribution. Lard J. MANNERS said he regretted to be obliged by the condued of her Majesty's Government to move LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, JULY 3O, 1850. that the Chairman report progress, ant ask leave to sit again. —(why? why ?) It was necessary for him to cell the et:endon of the Houze, to the cuurss pursued by TI ot. Gentlemen Opposite in a inneter p,rsenal to him- About three o'clock in the day he had cros.ed over to tie Ministerial benches and asked the Right, Hen. Gentleman the Presiclaw of the Board of Trade (Mr. Labouchere) when he would take the third reading of the Mercantile Marine Bill? The Right Honourable Gentlemen informed him at twelve o'clock te-morrow, when the Right Honourable Baronet the Secretary of State, who was sitting beside him, sa;J, " You must mistake—the amendiarenis on the Irish Franchise Bill are to coma on at twelve o'clock t,-morrow, to which their consideration is adjourned; you mean twelve o'clock to-night." To which the President of the Board of Trade replied, " Yes, I mean twelve o'clock to-night, and I hope you (Lord J. Manners) will have no objection to the third rea ling or the Mercantile Marine Bill being moved after all the other orders." He replied, "Certa'nly not; and that having an amendment to move, he would offer no obatructiou to the third read ing, whenever it came on." I3oth the Right Hon. Gen tlemen seemed perfectly satisfied with that arrangement, and expressed themselves more or less pleased at the co operation he gave to them in proceeding with the Bill. With that understanding he left the House; and on his return, found the third reading of the Mercantile Marine Bill had actually been moved—whether by either of the Right Hon. Gentlemen he did not know, at half-past seven o'clock that evening, and had been carried.—([Lear, hoar.) All he knew was, the engagement entered into by those Right Honourable Gentlemen, as members of Government, had not been kept.—(Sir GEORGE GREY— " There was not the smallest approach to an engage ment.")—(Hear, hear.") The Right Hon. Baronet might say so, but if that sort of quibbling was al lowed no engagement would be entered upon between Hon. Members and the Government. He would ask the President of the Board of Trade whether, in all the transactions relating to the Bill, he had not shown the greatest anxiety to consult his convenience, and whether he had exhibited the least wish to offer to it a factious opposition? He had then a right to complain, and he did complain, of that sort of conduct, and all those ar rangements which tended so much to the mutual conve niencs of the members of the Government mutt in fu ture be disregarded; and it would be the duty of Hon. Gentlemen on this side of the House to exort every sort of opposition to Government. and to disregard all state ment: of Ministers except those made publicly in their places. Had it not been for the declaration of the Right lion. Gentleman, he (Lord J. Manners) would have been in his place ready to propose the amendment which stood in his name on the paper, and ho appealed to the House whether the Right Hon. Gentleman bad acted on this occasion in the way in whieh he had acted hitherto, or if his conduct had been what he (Lord J. Manners) bad a right to expect.—((lear, hear.) Mr. LABOUCHERE said be should be very sorry indeed if any conduct on his part could have rendered him justly liable to the imputation of having acted in any way but with tho most scrupulous fidelity in any engagements ho might have made with any Honour able Member. He felt very deeply the important cha racter of those engagements, and how much the conve nience of the House and the dispatch of business de pendel on their being adhered to with the most invio lable fidelity. But he hoped, before he eat down, to remove from the mind of the Noble Lord the false im pression under which he seemed to labour. It was quite true, both as to the Noble Lord and as to other Members, that he (Mr. Labouchere) had stated, if the discussion which had occupied the greater part of the day should be brought to a close at any time before twelve c'cleck at night, that he should move the third reading of the Mercantile Marine Bill, for he felt it to be of great importance that that measure should be sent up to the other House of Parliament with as little delay as pos sible, but he never for a single moment contemplated any thing so very extraordinary as letting tle most conve nient opportunities peas by and keeping back that or any other measure till 12 o'clock. Every one knew that the discussion respecting the Baron de Rothschild had ended much sooner than was expected, and if the Noble Lord had been taken by surprise, so also was he (Mr. Labouchere), for ho was himself not in the House when the Bill was read a third time, his Noble Friend at the bead of the Government being the Member who then to,k charge of it, and by whom it was successfully r as!.ed through its last stage, at which time the amend ment that the Noble Lord had intended to propose was moved by another Member. Having made this short statement, he trusted the House would do him the justice to believe that he never intended to take the Noble Lord by surprise. in rptitahat Househo pede.Hehe n during thet ed ten anyye rsresohuebe which adhad a could justify an imputation of any unfairness. He was sorry that any misapprehension should have occurred, but he begged the House to observe that not only the Noble Lord, but the lion. Member for Liverpool, was also absent when the Bill was read a third time. There could not be a greater mistake than to suppose that he had ever made any such arrangement as the Noble Lord had supposed him t i make, for it would be so mani• festly against the course of order in that House that the Speaker would have interfered to prevent its being carried into effect. He should conclude by repeating an expression of regret that any misapprehension had arisen, and by,hoping that the House would acquit him of intending to take any one by surprise. Lord J. MANNERS said that no doubt the Right HOD. Gentleman did not mean to take him by surprise, but he must be permitted to say that the Right Hon. Gentleman had distinctly told him that he intended to take the Mercantile Marine Bill at twelve o'clock, after the other orders of the day were disposed of, and he dis tinctly remembered the Home Secretary observing that they could not proceed with the Bill at twelve o'clock tomorrow. The Right Hon; Gentleman the President of the Board of Trade might have meant that he would proceed with the measure before twelve, but be said that he should not do so till twelve—he certainly fell into some mistake, and deceived not only himself but him (Lord J. Manners). Sir G. GREY observed, that as he had been appealed to he felt it due to himself to say, that he entered into no engagement whatever, but contented himself with ob serving that twelve o'clock to-morrow was a time already occupied. Beyond that he had not opened hia lips, but he was bound now to state that be certainly understood his Right Hon. Friend to say that after the debate which then occupied the attention of the House was concluded he should move the third reading of the Mercantile Ma rine Bill; but certainly no one expected that that debate would have been so soon over. Admiral BOWLES stated, that the Right Hon. Gen tleman the President of the Board of Trade told him, not that he would wait till 12 o'clock, but that he would proceed with the Mercantile Marine Bill, even if no op portunity of moving it occurred before 12 o'clock; that, if necessary, he should go on with it as late as 12 o'clock. __ Lord J. MANNERS said, that if the Right Hon. Gentleman bad told that to him he should not have been taken by surprise, but he never said an) thing of the sort. Mr. ANDERSON rose to say that he had spoken to the Bight Hon. President of the Board of Trade in the lobby on the subject, when his reply to an inquiry was, that it would probably be late that night, and, as he in tended to second the clause of the Noble Lord, he took the liberty of moving it in his absence. The vote was then agreed to. On the question that a sum of 211,139/, be granted for excess of naval expenditure, Sir H. WILLOUGHBY rose to call attention to a sum of 29,534/. expended upon iron steamers. They did not derive that sure from any surplus, nor had they ex pended it with the consent of the Treasury. Farther, it was in clear violation of the Appropriation Act. At the same time he was bound to admit that the Board of Audit had exercised all fitting vigilance upon the occa sion, Upon these grounds he should propose that the proposed grant be reduced by the sum of 29,5341. Sir F. BARING explainel the circumstances under which the payment on account of the iron stea mers was made. The year before last money was taken to pay for these iron stearners. The estimates cf the expenditure for the next year were framed in the month of October, and presented in 1849. But he found that the contracts, which were expected to terminate before the termination of the financial year, did not fall within that financial year, and thereto -0 the payments ran actually a few weeks beyond the financial year. He made a payment on account, though not legally comrellable; and he had stated the excess, on the principle that Parliament ought to know how it had occurred. Mr. HENLEY thought the matter was not yet clearly before the House. The Right Hon. Baronet seemed to say he had committed the fault of having an excess, but had shown it to Parliament, and that he might havecar ried it to another year, without their knowing anything of it. There was a third alternative—that of notspend ing in excess at all. The statement was not satisfactory as to how the excess arose. _ Sir F. BARING had stated, in opening the estimates, the ground of that excess, which occurred before he came into office. A good deal of it arose from the number of men being carried beyond the vote, and from the pay of the men being taken on a wrong calculation. Mr. HUME did not believe they would get rid of these excesses until they came to a resolution that the Lords of the Admiralty should pay the excess themselves.—(A laugh.) He was quite ready to make the Right Hon. Baronet pay it himself. Sir J. GRAIIA &I observed that the excess was not incurred under the a dministration of the First Lord of the Admiralty, and no one more agreed with the position laid down by the Hon. Member for Montrose than the First Lord himself, that these excesses were to be care fully avoided. It might be confidently anticipated that under his administration, though it was difficult to know how excesses could always be avoided,Parliament would to the utmost see an end put to these grants. There was one principle to which the Right Hon. Baronet had not adverted, that when any such unexpected expendi ture was incurred, it was most desirable - to have it brought under the cognizance of the Treasury. Mr. REYNOLDS complained that, while 700,000 gallons of rum were consumed in the Royal Navy, home made spirits were not advertised to be taken under the contracts, though there was no Parliamentary resolution I.P'Pheseilmber to be giving a preference to rum. Mr. FRENCH observed, that at the Admiralty the interests of Ireland were not represented. There was no Iriah Lord of the Admiralty. Such Via 3 not the case . s su for Tyrone (Mr. Corry) was then Secretary for the Ad mi notrheealdavteerseAtdowtihneisituratetrienst's wofhlierholawnda miraliy. Colonel SIBTHORF wouldvc to with the t wo Hon. oipe n y in a di their is ew u h, i cpublicthhe he Hon. :: a wasp pcil Gentlemanat opacity than ha 2ed. u t o He Gentlemen who had just spoken in favour o f consuming Irish whisky in the It . ya l Nav y rather than rum ; b u t h e could not understand how, with their vi ews, they sup ported her NI ajesty'a Minn%terfi, of whom n o man enter. did l t e u a i fl y - - —u e j ( t Aa h theworse b opinionc .) ia should remember thatevil communications corrupted good manners; and, if he remained longer amongst his inadvisable to call up the remaining 2L (reserved f the completion of the line into Cambridge) until they cou'd show to the proprietors some proqwet of a return, aria have reluctantly resorted to the alteroative, of which they had give a preliminary intimstion—viz., of ceasing to carry traffic. " The directors stow that, in taking this step, they had a confident belief that consequences so far benefi cial would arise es that the Eastern Counties Railway Company, who must derive a large income from the passage of the Newmarket Company's traffic over their hoe, would at last have acquiesced in some arrange ment by which, without any sacrifice on their part, justice might have been done to this company's line, and the proprietors have seen, immediately or remotely, some prospect of return for their capital expended. It is, however, obvious that any such conse quence can alone result from union among the New market shareholders, and perfect accordance in the measures adopted by their directors, far so long as the Eastern Counties Rail ay Company can entertain a hope that the policy adopted by this board would be re. versed by the proprietors, or that that policy would not be steadily persevered in, no offers of a more liberal cha racter are likely to be made by them. The directors, therefore, earnestly recommend the proprietors now to determine definitively on their future course of action, and if they see reason to differ from the views of the present board of directors, or have altered the opinion expressed by them at the last half-yearly meeting, re commend that the services of others, more in unison with their own, be obtained—your directors desiring only the general welfare of the company. "The directors have to add that since the intimation of ceasing to carry traffic was given by this company the Eastern Counties Railway Company have made an equitable proposal to relieve this company from .their stock of pima, and consequently from the debt claimed to be due to the Eastern Counties Railway Company; to this extent, therefore, the position of this company has been improved by the course pursued; and as very shortly the Great Northern and Royston and lichen lines will be opened, and a new (though imperfect) route from London to Newmarket, and the east of England, be thereby obtained, your directors are not without hope that, with union among those interested in the Newmarket Company's property, means may yet be found to obtain for the districts proposed to be served the benefits for which the Newmarket Railway was intended, and is cal cnlated to confer." The balance-sheet showed that there had been re ceived on capital account (including 136,3201. 7s. 9d. on loan), 431,2981.11 x., and the expenditure 427,5821.75. Bd. leaving a balance in hand of 3,7161. 3s. 4d. There was also a balance on revenue account. The above two ba lances, together with outstanding accounts, amount to 6,5814 7s. 3d., as assets against similar liabilities. The CHAIRMAN said that Mr. Farm having informed the directors that it was his intention to propose a reso lution relative to the Management of the line, it had been considered better that the motion should come on as an amendment on the adoption of the report. He should, therefore, propose formally the adoption of the report. Mr. C. FANE beggei to propose that the shareholders disapproved of the conduct c f the directors in closing the line without a meeting of the shareholders being called on the subject. In proposing that, resolution, he wished by it to express the opinion of the shareholders on the subject, and pass a direct vote of want of confi dence in the direction. He had great pain in bringing forward that resolution, having been on terms of inti macy with many of the directors. They were all aware that the line had been closed since the 30th of June, and what they had now to consider wag, the position of the company while the line was closed as compared to what it would be if the line wits continued to be worked. In order to arrive at a conclu'ion upon the subject, he had entered upon some calculations which he weal lay betore the proprietors. He contended that whilst the 1 ne was closed there would be an accumulating loss chargeable against the shareholders of 5,381/.. whilst, if worked, there would probably be a net profit to the shareholders of 2211., per annum, and valuable prospects for the future. With the line closed there would be no revenue, but there would be regular outgoings of 5,3811. per annum.—(Hear, hear.) With the line worked it was estimated that the revenue would amount to 9,325/., and the cutgoiugs (based on the working contract offered in March List by Mr. Jackson, and on the offer cf the two largest debenture holders to take 31 per cent. on their debentures, instead cf 5 per cent., until after the shareholders had received 1 per cent.) to 7,1071., leaving a balance of profit cf 221/. He bad based his calculations on what had been done on their own line in 1848, when ►ha railway was worked by theinselvm He had calcu lated that during seven weeks of races, and six weeks influenced thereby, there would be 3,361/., and that the remaining thirty-nice weeks would produce 81. 10;. per mile per week, or s,967l.—ntaktuz a total of 9,328/. lie founded that calculation on the fact that the average revenue on all the lines opened in England for the last six months was 471. per mile. As their line was situated in the eastern counties, perhaps they ought to see what was done in that district. The Eastern Counties line produced 511. per mile per week; the Eastern Union line, 26/. per mile; and the East An- I glian, which had to contend throughout with a navig able river, 121. per mile per week. The Hon. Gentle man then went on to show that according to the offer of Mr. Jackson to work the line for 4,6501., with 45 per cent, on all traffic above 8,3001. to 11,0001., and adding the fixed charges to the amount to be received from Mr. Jackson, supposing the revenue to be what he had stated, 9,3281. it would give them a profit of 2211., Mr. Jackson and Mr. Wright offering, if it was accepted, to reduce the interest on their debentures 5 to 3i per cent. He be lieved that, properly worked, the line would produce 11,0004 per annum. lie contended that the directors made a most grievous and ridiculous mistake in making the line from Newmarket to Cliesterford, on the line to Thetford, instead of making the line from Newmarket to Cambridge, which would have brought them into friendly communication with a much larger 'population; and the Eastern Counties Railway, being a feeder to the latter company, that line would have placed them in connexion with Cambridge; and by an extension from the further end they would have been ultimately placed in connexion with Bury St. Edmund's, Ipswich, Norwich, &c., containing to gether a population of 235,000. He had no doubt that those lines would ultimately be made by some one, and what he wanted was, that they should not throw away the certainty of making even 2211. in the meantime. He considered that the directors had from the commence ment made a series of mistakes, by which they had ruined the property.—(Hear.) In 1846 the Eastern Counties offered them 5 per cent. on their outlay, and contingent advantages; but they split upon a difference as to whether the Eastern Counties shares, in taking their proportion of the dividend, should be calculated at 161 or 20/.—(llear.) He might be told that the share holders had sanctioned the proceedings of the directors; but he contended th a t th e directors ought to act on their own responsibility in completing such affairs.—(Cheers.) He also complained of the directors having ordered too much stock; of having, after the mania had com menced, curvejed a new line to Royston, at a time when only one party could be obtained to sign the subscription deed ; and also of the directors hav ing allowed a number of lawsuits to go on, which he no sooner took in hand than he was enabled to see the plaintiffs and obtain a settlement.—(Hear.) Then there had been two other occasions when there was a chance of coming to a favourable conclusion with the Eastera Counties Company, viz., on the Norfolk Amal gamation Bill being before Parliament, but the directors asked so much that the practical result was, that they got nothing--(Bear, hear)—and in the spring of this year, when the Eastern Counties Company were fright ened lest the Shepreth Extension, projected by Mx. Jackson, should be carried, the directors of this company had refused to originate any negotiations with the Eas tern Counties Company.—(Hear, hear.) He complained that Mr. Jackson had been most unfairly used. The substance of terms having been agreed to, the directors had endeavoured to introduce further terms into the deed, of a most extraordinary nature, which he could not ac cent, as Mr. Jackson and Mr. Wright would be thereby called upon to pay all manner of expenses, and lose all advantage to be obtained from the contract.—(!Tear.) It was in consequence of the treatment of Mr. Jackson that he (Mr. Fane) had resigned the direction, and he called upon the shareholders to support his resolution as a distinct vote of want of confidence in the beard. At the sug,gostion of Mr. MOXHAY, Mr. FANE asked Mr. Jackson whether ho had not in March lust, offered to work the line on the terms stated by him; and if offered, whether Le was prepared still to enter into that contract with a new board ? Mr. JACKSON replied in the affirmative with regard to the first question, but declined to answer the second. In reply to Mr. SHEPHERD, Mr. JACKSON stated that there had been no difference of opinion as to the terms of contract, but there had been a difference on the deed for currying it out. Mr. ALEXANDER seconded the amendment. The CHAIRMAN said that, as the motion was brought forward as a direct vote of want of confidence in the di rectioa, he would beg to call the attention of the pro prietors to what was the constitution of the board. There were olily himself and two other members of the board who could be inculpated by the greater por tion of what had been said by Mr. Face, the remainder of the directors having been recently appointed by the shareholders themselves. Some conversation here took place, which resulted in its being understood that the ouly subjects to be entered int,) were the closing of the line and the declining of Mr. JAekson's contract. The Cuainistasr stated that the directors were still willing to sign a contract with Mr. Jackson, but he did not think it wou ld b e a d vantageous to the shareholders that he should enter into minute details to show why they had not done so—the conditions complained of having been added to the contract to ensure its being fairly carried out, under legal advice. At the same time, he might state that there was a contractor ready to take the working of the line on the terms proposed, with all the conditions, if Mr. Jackson would not have consented to reduce his debenture interest from 5 to 3i per cent. After considerable irregular conversation as to the way in which the contract was drawn up, Mr. MoRTIMER (a director) stated that Mr. Fane had said that the directors had askeJ too much for their line from the Eastern Counties Company at the time of the Norfolk amalgamation. Now, having been the party who had made a provisional agreement with the Eastern Counties Comfany, he begged to state that the terms were to be for the shareholders 1 per cent., and the in terest reduced on the debentures from 5 to 3 per cent. The debenture holders declined to do so, and the result was that the negotiation fe 1 to the ground, Mr. Face himself saying that, as an individual, be would not con sent to it. With regar d t o t h e c o nditions complained of, as put into the contract, they were only for the purpose of protecting the shar e holders from a contingency which might arise at the close of four years, by which, without express conditions to the contrary, Mr. Jackson, as a debenture holder, might become the sole possessor of the line. At the same time another contractor would have leased the line if Mr. Judson would have re- duced the interest on his debenture debt from 5 to 31 per cent., but that gentleman would not do so. The contrae or might, vi•it.hout that condition, have had his plant seized by the d:-beLture Thererore they saw th at if they closed the line they would be stalijected to n charge of about 5,0001. rer annum—while, :t they continued it open, there was only 7,3001. tamed upon it. (it that sum the Eastern Counties Company charged 6,0004 for working, and declined to hand them the balance. on the ground that they had a further claim against them, so that the debenture debt and other expenses still remained against the company, without any profit to meet Some other conversation Laving ensued, in wbiuh It was stated that th e li ne h a d b een c l ose d i u accordance with a promise given to the proprietors at the last half. yearly meeting, and that the whole of the directors were willing to retire if it was the wish of the proprietors, Mr. Goktuat, as a large creditor, suggested that all the creltors should consent to a reduction of the inte rest on the debts to 3i per cent., and then leave the directors to do the best they could with the lino. Mr. JACKSON contended that under proper management the line would produce much more than any estimates that had been laid bi tore them, as, there bins no traffic either by land or by water uhieh could oppose them, they could take better tolls than any other line. Had he bad the working of the line, he should have gone to the chairman of the Eastern Counties Company, and called np him to assist in developing the traffic by al ering the running of the trains, so that parties wishing to travel on the line might be fairly accommodated at rea sonable hours. By the contract he had Oft red be could have only made a profit by a co-operation with the Eastern Counties Company, or some other party coming into the district, which he hoped would be shortly the case. On the question being put to a vote, the amend ment was carried by a majority of about three to one. Mr. MORTIMER, having been requested to join the new dirk ction, that gentleman said most distinctly be would never join any board to carry Out the policy of Mr. Fane, or enter into further negotiations with Mr. Jackson. • The CHAIRMAN said, that though only a few of the shareholders were present, the directors would decline going to a poll; and they now only held office until they had an opportunity of electing successors, to be nominated by the proprietors. After a vote of thanks to the Chairman for the im plrtial discharge of his duties in the chair, the meeting separated. CAMERON'S STEAM COAL AND SWANSEA AND LOUGHOR RAILWAY. The annual meeting of this company was held yester day at the office, Moorgate-street ; Mr. Winthrop in the chair. The report stated that the directcrs had carried out the resolutions of the proprietors, which were passed at former meetings. Th e dir ec t ors had succeeded in satis fying the pressing claims upon the company, and had made arrangements for the construction of the railway from the colliery to a place of shipment, by which they would obtain a cheap and expeditious transit for their coals. The line was to cost about 5,0001., to meet which they had called up the remaining 41. per share in two in stalments. Arrangements have also been made with several landowners and tenants on the line for the use of the land required for the railway; and a contract had been entered into on advantageous terms for the cempletion of the works with a highly respectable contractor, wbo has engaged to complete tee railway early in October next. The operations at the colliery are progressing also si multaneously with the works on the line ; so that the directors may be fully prepared to meet the demand fur coal when the line shall have been opened. These ar rangements will enable the company to deliver 60,000 tons of coals per annum for a period of three or four years, and by means a further operations, the coal held being very extensive, will enable them to supply 1,000 tons per day if required. On the completion of tie present works the sweeter' will take immeilate steps to ship the coals, which are said is be excellent for steam purposes. A large return from the mines must entirely depend upon the hearty co-operation of the shareholders in supplying the requisite funds. The directors have incurred heavy responsibilities on the faith of the shareholders paying up the calls and arrears, and they hope that all strife stud contention amongst the proprietors will shortly cease. The directors regret that the solicitor has again disappointed them by not pre senting his bill of costs. Tne report with regard to the Swansea and Loughor Ruile ay states that the powers of the Act will expire in 1851, and that it may be neces sary next session to apply to Parliatnest for an extension of time in consequence of the improvements at Swansea harbour, and the advantages likely to result flow a connexion with the South Wales Railway and the port of Swansea. The balance-sheet fur the year ending the 30th of June last showed that 152,5751. had been received on shares; that 13,3271. was due to sundry creditors; that 42,5824 was claimed by Mr. W. B. J. P. Cameron on purchase account, several items of which were disputed, making 208,4851. On the other aide of the account appeared cost of mining property 148,0001., works 16,8801., and cash 3801. leaving a balance of debit of profit and loss 43,6351. Mr. ELDERTON, the solicitor, begged to apologise for the delay which had occurred in preparing and deliver. ing his bills of costs. He could assure them that it was unavoidable. The period over which they extended was five years, and they had taken a long time to make them out; the bills were now nearly ready, and would be delivered in the course of the day. The CHAIRMAN said, he believed the balance-sheet contained everything, with the exception of the solici tor's account, which they were all so anxious to receive. It was particularly necessary that the bhareholders should give the directors their unanimous support to get the company out of its difficulties and enable them to make the undertaking productive. The coal existed in very large quantities, and they bad only to provide a cheap and rapid mode of transit and shipment to obtain an immeliato return. They had already orders for a large quantity when they here in a poattion to supply the demand. Mr. GREEN did not consider the balance-sheet perfect without the solicitor's bills of costs being included. Mr. STRELLEY, one of the auditors, said, he had en deavoured as much as possible to induce the solicitor to send in his bill, so that it may be included in the present balance-sheet, but although he had promised to send in his bill be had not done se. Mr. ELDERTON said, it was his intention at the time he promised to send in the bill, but circumstances had rendered_ it impossible. With regard to the balance sheet, be did not think it included all the liabilities. Messrs. Cooper and Strelley (the auditors) and the Secretary were perfectly satisfied that everything was included, with the exception of the solicitor's bills of costs, which they could not obtain. Tile CHAIRMAN said, he had no doubt the meeting would come to the conclusion that the balance•sheet was so far correct, Lnd concluded by moving, that the report and accounts be receivt d and adopted. Mr. GRLEN, in seconding the motion, said, that the shareholders had every reason to be pleased with the report. The resolution was then put and carried unanimously, when, ♦ Mr. W. B. J. P. CAMERON said he dissented from the resolution, and would required the votes to be taken. The CHAIRMAN said he was extremely sorry that Mr. Cameron should have expressed his dissent, particularly when it was considered how hard the directors worked every day to get the company out of its difficulties, and to make the undertaking productive. It was very clear that Colonel Cameron and his family would participate in the benefit of these exertions, and he was surprised that Mr. Cameron should have expressed his dissent.— (§hame.) It' they were to permit him to vote in respect of the shares he came to represent he would swamp the votes of the meeting; but they had a protest against that gentleman's vote, which would show he had no right to represent a single share of the company. ECLIETARY read the protest, which stated that the shares in question bad been illegally transferred, and the party who transferred them had no power to do so; that no money had bEen paid on them; that Mr. W. B. J. 1. Cameron had no right to claim them, and that his interests were totally adverse to the interests of the company. _ _ _ The Meeting. having received the protest, Mr. SIIIALLIIONE said, there could be no doubt that Mr. Cameron had no right to vote at the meeting, and that the resolution was carried unanimously. The retiring directors, Captain Norcott, R.N., Cap tain Erle, and Mr. Barham are re-elected, as wero tie retiring auditors, Messrs. Cooper and Strelly. On the motion of Captain NOItCOTT, Mr. Green was elected an auditor. A conversation ensued, in the course of which it was stated that the directors were not only anxious to place the company in a good position, but to enable the Curae ron family to get out of their difficulties, and there could be no doubt that it was the interest of the vendor and the shareholders to pull together and assist the di - rectors to render the undertaking profitable. The proceedings concluded with a vote cf thanks to the chairman and directors for their indefatigable exer tions in promoting the interests of the company. COURT CIRCULAR. OSB 0 R NE, MONDAY. The Queen and Prince, accompanied by their illustrious relatives, walked early this morning in Os borne Park and grounds. Their Royal Highnesses the Prince of Wales, the Princess Royal, and younger branches of the Royal Family, took their accustomed walks and drives, Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Gloucester visited her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge and her Royal Highness the Hereditary Grand Duchess of Mecklenburgh-Strelitz, yesterday, at Cambridge House. The Prince of Oldenburgh paid a visit to their Royal Highnesses on Sunday. The Bishop of Montreal had an interview with Earl Grey yesterday at the Colonial•bffice. Mr. B. Bond Cabbell had an interview with Sir George Grey yesterday at the Home-office. Dispatches were received yesterday at the Colonial office from the Governors of the North American Provit. c -a. IRELAND. MAYO ELECTION. DunurT, JULY 29.—At the close of the poll on Sa :tally evening the numbers stood as follows: Biggens Butt.. : 94 _ - Majority for Iliggens ... —46 Thus the cobtetit was virtually over, although the polling booths would he kept open for this day (Monday). A few days since a scorpion was found in a saw.. pit in Chatham Dockyard. It was taken out of a piece of Italian oak, alive, and is of the species of a blackish colour, described by naturalists as one whose sting caura edd mo tions of the limbs, and a laughter like Out of fools. I ' , resent associates, ho would become inoculated with their i•ug. Mr. REYNOLDS said, that ehhough ha disapproved ~f many of the acts of the Grivernment, he did not bp lieve that another Administration would pursue a dif ferent pulley. Only a choice of evils was before him, and he took the least. If, however, the Hon. and Gal lant Colonel would form an Administration which would tql4.e Ireland under its protection, it should receive his support.—(Hear, and laughter.) Colonel SIBTHORP crossed over the House and held some conversation with the Lord Mayor of Dublin, amidst much cheering and laughter. Sir. F. BARING said, in reference to what had fallen from the Right Hon. Member for Ripon, that communi cations should be made to the Treasury with respect to every ease of excess. Sir 11. WILLOUGHBY said, that in consequence of the Right Hon. Baronet's explanation, he would with draw his amendment. The vote was then agreed to, as were the following:— 453,8911, for the commissariat department; 45,791/. for the half-pay, pension, and allowances of the commis sariat department. A vote of 5,2501. was then proposed to defray the ex pense of erecting a monument to the memory of the late Sir. R. Peel. Lord J. MANNERS thought nothing could be more becoming a great nation than to place memorials of individuals who had distinguished themselves by the good done to their country in a suitable building. An opinion, however, prevailed, and was extending itself, that Westminster Abbey was not a proper place for containing such memorials. No one would for a moment think of objecting to the monument to the memory of Sir R. Peel being erected in the Abbey, but he gave notice that, if a similar proposition should be made hereafter, he should oppose it. Lord J. RUSSELL was understood to say that there was no building more suitable than Westminster Abbey for containing public monuments. The vote was agreed to, as was one of 50,0001. for civil contingencies. The House resumed. Mr. BERNAL reported progress, and the Committee of Supply was ordered t.) sit again on Thursday. The Duke of Cambridge's Auratity Bill was read a second time. The Navy Pay Bill was read a,_third time and pissed CUSTOMS ACTS. The House went into Commit:ee — on the Customs Acts. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, moved the repeal of the last remains of the duties upon coal, which, he said, only brought in a revenue of 2,500/. If the House should agree to these resolutions they would get rid of the last shred of the export duties. Certain resolutions were then agreed to, and the House resumed. AUSTRALIAN COLONIES GOVERNMENT BILL. In answer to Lord J. MANNERS, Lord J. RUSSELL said that on Thursday next at 12 o'clock he should move that the House agree to the Lords' amendments to this Bill. FEES (COURT OF CHANCERY) BILL. In answer io the ATTORNEY-GENERAL, Sir J. GRAHAM said be should certainly not advise the passing of this Bill during the present session. The Bill did nothing to remedy the great abuses of the Court of Chancery arising from the excessive amount of emoluments, and the number of officers. The Bill only changed the mode of collecting the fees, although the Committee which lately sat upon this subject was of opinion that the fees ought to be reduced, and that officers of the court should be paid by salary, and not by fees. The public would not lose anything by the withdrawal of the Bill for the present session, in order to the introduction of a more comprehensive and ttfi cient measure next year. Mr. HENLEY concurred. The Bill would rather impede than assist the wholesome changes required in the Court of Chancery. The ATTORNEY• GENERAL, under these circum stances, would not press the Bill. The Bill was then ordered to be committed that day six months. Mr. BROTHERTON moved the third reading of the Public Lib' aties and Museum Bili. Colonel SIBTHORP was surprised that such a motion should have come from the lion. Member for Salford, who was always redly to prevent business after twelve o'clock, when it came from a different side of the House from his own. He objected altogether to the present Bil l , and would thereforomove that it be read a third time that day three months. Lord J. MANNERS wished the House t 3 understand that this Bill would repeal all the statutes of mortrnsio. Sir G. GREY observed that the Bill would only repeal the statutes of mortmain in so far as libraries and mu seums were concerned. The Huuse divided, when there appeared— Fur the third reading ... ... 64 Against it ... Majority ... •.• -49 The Bill was accordingly read a third time. Colonel CHATTERTON moved that the Bill do not extend to Ireland. Colonel SIBTHORP supported the motion. Mr. G. A. HAMILTON hoped the Hon. and Gallant Colonel would not press his motion. They had taken care that the people of Ireland should be taught to read; but, hating done so, no libraries were established horn which proper books could be got; and he believed that was the reason why they were driven to read inflamma tory publications.—(Hear, hear.) Colonel RAWDON hoped Lis Hon. and Gallant Friend would not press his motion, seeing what was the sense of the House in respect te. the Bill extending to Ireland. Colonel CHATTERTON said, that as he conceived great injury would be done to Ireland by this Bill, he could not withdraw his motion. The House divided, when ti are appeared— For Col. Chatterton's motion ... 13 Against it ... 56 Majority ... The Bill was then passed. The other business on the paper was then disposed of, and the House adjourned at a Quarter to Two o'clock. ... -43 RAIL WAY INTELLIGENCE. NEWMARKET RAILW AY COMPANY. On Saturday the half-yearly niceting of this company was held at the London Tavern; Lord George Manners in the chair. The meeting was also made special, to consider the propriety of the decision come to by the directors for closing the railway. The usual preliminaries having been gone through, Mr. BROWN, the secretary, read the following report:— " The proprietors have been called together for the double purpose of transacting the ordinary business of the half-year, and considering, as. desired by the requi sition of a certain number of the'tr co•shureholders, the propriety of the company ceasin r; to carry traffic over their line of railway. The only business for the half yearly general meeting is that of taking the accounts into consideration, and of receiving any information from the directors which they can furnish, or of dis cussing any suggestions which the propriet)rs may wish to make. The accounts of revenue not having listen completed by the clearing-house,, 'nave not yet been fur nished by the Eastern Counties 311-silway Company, but they cannot present any new fe.mtures materially vary ing from former returns, or lik dy to suggest any new b ier va Lion. ,‘ With reference to the topics to be discussed at the special meeting, as it is next to impossible to deal with each in a separate report, the a irector's think it best briefly to communicate such inf ., armation as they pos sess. The proprietors are aware That the line betwt.en Chesterford and Newmarket was closed for traffic (so far as this company as carriers stee concerned) on the 30th of June; and after what passed at the last meeting of the company, the proprietors will neither be surprised at that re,ult, nor altogether in Lae dark as to the cir cumstances which have induced it. At that meeting the directors, after adverting to the fai7ure of their attempts, either to conclude a fair and equitable arrangement with the Eastern Counties Railway Co mpany, or of the not less important negotiation with Mr. Jackson for the working of the line, and which at that period had occu pied so much of their attention, i. 13 Unlaced that if on the one hand the Eastern Counti es Railway Company could not be induced to see their oevn interest in dealing more liberally with the Newmarket Company, and cn the other such terms for working the traffic by the agency of an individual could not be carried out, they saw no alternative other than that of ceasing to tear the useless and un profitable burden of working the line; for it must be ob vious that, with the traffic in the hands of the Eastern Counties Railway Company, the receipts must inevit ably be reduced, it not being to their interest to de velop the traffic to the fullest extent; while at the same time the more extravagant the charges the greater would be their profit. Even the same balance left has not been handed over to this company, being retained to meet a certain alleged claim of the Eastern Counties Railway Company; whilst the expense of maintaining the permanent way and stations has been left for this company to defray out of capital. The dirt eters therefore felt, and still feel, that it is expedient that the line should be closed; they stated, however, their reluc tance to adopt this final measure, and that they would attempt one more appeal to the Eastern Counties Rail way Company. That appeal was made without loss of time by the chairman of this company to the chairman of the Eastern Counties Railway Company—resulting in propositions holding out not even a remote prospect of benefit to the Newmarket shareholders ; and which could not consequently have been accepted, even if their mortgagees (whose concurrence was required and refused) had put it in the power of your directors so to do. " Subsequently an overture was made f rom another quarter, for a working arrangement, on precisely the same basis as that which the directors had failed at the oa l last s a t ti hn,e mom itr ner e a n nt t ;n t so o efn e t i o nn m tte p r l te e hs t et e bwwn was stdhha necessary d l e e r e r . e ss j s t a ao r c y ak s p illo r no e l d i ;i m fib i cu n a a tt i r oa y ns , and the principal mortgagee, Mr. Jackson, refused Theto a d g i r r e e e n t n t r o s a such d r e e s d i ruee tot ' raw thu a t tte li n e t g iL ti4 o " the la tailed.rg and unfair assessments made upon them for poor and other parish rates, and the heavy law charges imposed upon them in resisting these unjust claims, and also to vexatious actions brought against the company by certain parties locally interested. Under alt these circumstances, finding it i mposs ibl e to e ff ect a satis factory arrangement w ith i n di v id ua l s , al d finding that the Eastern Counties Railway Company, although . deriving a l arge revenue through the me d ium o f the Newmarket Railway, were not disposed to make such terms as would develop the traffic, and thus serve the Newmarket Company, there own share atn. couldtnat holders, and the p u bli c; see i ng a l so , th a t heavy charges t w h e o r a e in b o e r i t i g ig a incurred t b for e in u g p hroeltdaiinnge retained sworks, n e d not be met, even if the balance arising from the work ing by the Eastern Counties Railway Company wore paid over to this company, the directors have thought it _,