The Sun. — London, England, 1853-05-14 00:00:00

which furnished very valuable information with respect to the opinions of members of that house, that the hon. gentleman held opinions of this mature—he was in favour of sueh a course of legislation with regard to agriculture as would keep wheat at I;4s. per quarter, new milk cheese., at from 525. to 60s. per cwt., wool and butter at ls. p a lb. each, and other produce in proportion. With respect co the main proposition of the Chancellor of the Exchequer of ex tending the succession-tax to all descriptions of prop() Iy, he believed to be wise, just, and beneficial. There was probably no matter of taxation in which the people of this country, especially the town population, were so much interested as in this question of the legacy duty; and the Chancellor of the Exchequer had adopted a very sagacious mode of carry ing the unpalateablo income tax through Parliament by tying it up with this proposition of the legacy duty. (Hear, hear, and a laugh.) Though lie agreed in the proposal to extend the legacy duty, yet ho thought the right hon. gentleman was in danger of introducing a prin ciple almost as unjust and difficult to defend as that which ho bad undertaken to overthrow, for ho proposed to extend the legacy duty in such a manner as afforded a confirmation which ho (Mr. Bright) never expected to come from that (the Ministerial) side of the house, to all the statements made on the other side with respect to the excessive bur dens on land. As to the income tax, the Chancellor of the Exchequer had not exerted his powers of mind to carry out some discriminating mode of assessment such as the coun try required ; but when ho came to the legacy duty, all the powers of his mind were bent in that direction, to show that, while the country was in the expectation of seeing all kinds of property equally subjected to the duty, one-half of the laud ought to be, and was to be, exempted. The right hon, gentl eman h a d not ventured to touch the probate duty, and he (Mr. Bright) did not blame him for that, be cause he knew a Chancellor of the Exchequer could not do everything at once ; but he took it for granted that at some future time the probate duty must either be taken off the property that now paid it, or be extended to that class of property which was now exempted from it. (Hear, hear.) He rose, principally, however, to enter his protest against the general principle of the Chancellor of the Ex chequer, in charging rateable property only one-half of the legacy duty ; and he wished it to be distinctly understood that he was not to be foreclosed in future from urging his views upon that subject. He had asked a question last night as to which side of the line, with regard to this tax, railway property would be ranked—whether it would be taken as rateable or non-rateable property ; and, though the Chancellor of the Exchequer could not at the time answer the question, he thought he rather intimated that it was a description of property which should be charged with the whole duty and not one-half only. Now, railways paid a larger share of local burdens than any other description of property in the country, and it would be scan dalously unjust to say that railway property should pay a larger sum to the succession tax than rateable property. (Hear, hear.) The Chancellor of the Exchequer said nothing about mines. He believed mining property was not rated to the poor, and they would require to know on which side of the line that property was to be placed. There was also the property of growing timber. On which side of the line would that be placed ? He mentioned these things, first, to call the attention of the Chancellor of the Exchequer to them ; and second, to show him the line he proposed to draw between rateable and non-rate able property was one that would involve him in consider able difficulty.. (Hear.) The principle of a life interest adopted by the Chancellor of the Exchequer did not seem to him to be just, because he thought the amount only of the property, and not the age of the person succeeding to it, should be taken in the imposition of the tax. (Hear.) He might refer to the property of corporations as also bear ing upon this question. There was the property of the London companies in the north of Ireland ; there was also the property of the Church, and various others that might be named.: They paid income tax, and were secured by law and rendered safe by the protection of the State, and it ap peared to him that, unless they adopted the monstrous principle that they should pay no tax whatever, they had no excuse for exempting them from the tax en successions. (Hear.) It might be said that property of this kind did not pass into new possession by death. In one sense this was true; but last night the Chancellor of the Exchequer took 30 years as the time at which property was, generally speaking, in the hand of one generation ; and, upon that principle, he (Mr. Bright) did not see why, every 25 or 30 years, a cer tain percentage should not be taken from this description of property for the purposes of the State. (Hear, hear.) In the case of bishops and rectors succession really came by death. The property went into the hands of the state, and the state, through the Lord Chancellor or the Prime Mi nister, put some bishop or rector in possession of the pro perty for life. Now, that was a property which ought to pay its fair share of taxation. (Hear, hear.) There was no property which required more the defence of statute law to maintain it in its present position than that pro perty. (Hear, hear.) The hon. b a ronet below him (Sir R. Inglis) would not object, he was sure, to his referring to the opinions of Vattel on this subject, who observed that there was no property which could be more fitly de voted to the service of the State than church property, because such an appropriation must be highly acceptable to God. (Hear, hear.) In conclusion, he gave the Chan cellor of the xchequer credit for the courage he had manifested, but, at the same time, he believed that the country, from one end to the other, was of opinion that this tax on succession should be imposed equally on every description of property. (Hear.) There were loud calls of " Withdraw," and the gallery was cleared, but no division took place. Mr. DISRAELI said, it was of the utmost importance that the subject matter of this resolution should be fully discussed, and he wished it to be understood that the dis cussion had only as yet commenced. At the same time lie should be sorry to move the adjournment of the debate, and had therefore advised his friends not to oppose the resolution, in order that the Government might be enabled to bring in their bill. His object in doing so was, that an ample discussion might be taken on the second reading of the bill. (Hear, hear.) The resolution was then agreed to, and the house resumed. thority of Adam Smith and other great political econo mists was opposed to the imposition of a tax on successions. Now the very reverse of this was the fact, for the doctrine of Adam Smith was that every subject of tho State ought to . .be made to contribute towards the support of the Go . — vernmeist in proportion to his ability and to the amount of . ' the reeetitue he enjoyed under its protection ; and that in ehserva.nce or the neglect of that maxim consisted what ;was called equality or inequality of taxation. Now, what ' • 153 the amount of the burden of this tax upon land? an estate yielding 1001. a-yeer. This at 33 years' pur e *As .09e would give a capitol worth 3,3001. A succession tax ' of 1 per cent. upon that ()ante of 3,3001. would amount to lee., or something less that one-third of the first years' rental ; whilst for all the remainder of his life the owner would be secured by the State in the enjoyment of an in come obtained without the least exercise of industry le • o i l skill. That being the amoun t of the burden in t vase of a small estate, the position of the large proprietor would be one that ho could not jus tl y com p lain of. So far from praying the Chancellor of the Exc he q uer to exempt himself himself from a tax paid by his nei g hbours be inclined to pray him to add th e probate duties he to those already existing. He feared tha t the Chancellor of the Exchequer was not going to carry out measure he •so fully s his speech had seemed to indicate, and that was going to place the gentleman who succeeded to a landed estate in a better position than the labourer who received a legacy of 101. No poor person could now escape without paying at the lowest two and a half per cent. probate duty, and one per cent. legacy duty. A difference of one degree of consanguinity farther off would increase the legacy duty to 3 per cent. Now in the case of real estate, the Chan cellor of the Exchequer proposed to impose on the first degree of consanguinity only 1 per cent.-1,0001., viz., on success ion to 100,003/. ; and for the payment of this paltry sum he gave a period of five years, which he considered equivalent to taking 20 per cent. off the amount. But he would advise the right hon. gentleman to take half per cent., for ready money, because, before the first five years were expired, there would in all probability be one hun dred thousand accounts to keep against the landed estates of the kingdom, and the expense attaching to such arrange ment would be inordinate. Besides, he did not see th e morality of giving five years' credit to a rich man, and to a poor man not a single day. It was also a very extraor dinary thing that °rely poor people could be got hold of for the payment of these duties ; but the registers demon strated the fact. Mr. AGLIONBY had no intention to oppose the proposal of the Chancellor of the Exchequer. He did not always agree with the present Government, but he would support them on this occasion, because ho could see no possibility of forming a Government to replace them with advantage to the country. The honourable member who had just sat down proposed to go beyond the proposition of the right hon. gentleman, and he inclined to agree with him : for the same reason which convinced him of the propriety of extending the legacy duty to land would induce him to impose the probate duties also. If there existed any in equality at all between the real and pe r sonal property in respect of taxes, th a t i nequa lit y ought to be removed. But there were peculiar burdens on lend which he thought ought to be removed before the measure was carried. The poor rates he believed to be oppressive upon landed pro perty, and he wished to revert to the principle of the statute of Elizabeth, which decreed that the poor of the country should be maintained by the wealth of the country, and bring in personal property for a share of The local burdens. Mr. LIDDELL was opposed to the addition of any new burden en the already heavily-burdened landed interests of the country. He looked upon the retention of the income tax as a great injustice. It was originally imposed for the especial purpose of providing the means by which indirect taxation might be remitted for the benefit of the labouring classes. These remissions had doubtlessly fulfilled the ob ject for which they were proposed, but the landed interest had derived no benefit whatever from them, and it was a great injustioe to make still further remissions now, and to call upon the real property of the country to make good the deficit in more ways than one. He believed, too, that this addition to the taxation on real property must eventually work disadvantageously to the labouring classes, since it would cripple the means at the command of the landowner for the employment of labour. It was stated by the Chancellor of the Exchequer that the tax on succession would be equivalent for the inequalities of the income tax; but in his opinion it would operate still more unequally than the latter. With regard to the probable amount which it would produce, he had the authority of persons well able to judge for believing that it would produce very much more than 400,0001. He should resist this tax, be cause he thought it had been brought forward in a spirit—a spirit with which the First Commissioner of Works (Sir W. Molesworth) confessed he sympathised— againse which it would ever be his duty and his pride, as a member of the great party to which he belonged, invariably and strenuously, though he feared successfully, to contend. (Hear, hear.) Lord GODERICH said, as the chief ground of objection to the proposition to the Chancellor of the Exchequer had been that it would bear with peculiar pressure on the land, and AS hon. gentlemen on the other (the Opposition) side of the house were not the only persons whose interests were entirely bound up in the land, he was anxious to state the reasons why he should vote to-night in favour of the motion of the Chancellor of the Exchequer. His hon. friend who had just sat down must admit that, in principle and in theory, there could be no objection to that proposition, because decidedly it was desirable that every tax should be levied, as far as possible, equally upon all ; and that, unless some special case could be shown to justify an exception, such exception would be unjust. The noble lord, the mem ber for Northumberland, the other night, when speaking of the budget, warned the committee how they proceeded to break down the aristocracy of the country ; and called upon hon. members to look to the history of France before the first revolution He told the house it was by the im position of taxes of this nature that the French aristocracy fell to the ground. But he (Lord Goderich) ventured to tome to a different conclusion. If he read history aright, the fall of the nobility of France was from other causes; it was, that they claimed for themselves exemptions from an equal share in the burdens which were imposed upon their, eountrymen, and resisted the timely and salutary measures recommended by the wisest and best men of their age—by Turgot, Necker, andfothers of equal eminence. He would, therefore, ask the committee to pause before they rejected this resolution upon the special ground on which it had as yet been argued, and thereby strengthened the feeling already prevailing in the minds of the people, -that the landed proprietors of England were desirous of shielding themselves from the burdens which were imposed upon their fellow-countrymen. (Cheers.) Mr. CAYLEY said he had heard with satisfaction, which he was sure was also felt by the house, the speech of the noble lord who had just clown—a speech so full of promise and ability, and so worthy of the distinguished name he bore. (Hear, hear.) The noble lord, however, /seemed to imagine that the landed interest of the country desired to shelter itself from the due weight of taxation ; bat if he had considered for a moment he would have seen that the landed interest was just the property that could not so shield itself, for it was always there, open to taxa tion, while personal property was only evanescent. (Hear, hear.) One of the great difficulties of the income tax, as was stated by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, was that although it was laid equally on personalty as upon realty, yet, in nine cases out of ten, it did not only not pay its full share, but, in fact, did not pay more than one-sixth as compared with land. The right hon. gentleman the Chan cellor of the Exchequer had embarrassed the question be fore the house, which was, indeed, not one as between skill and intelligence and property, but as between realty and personalty. Skill and intelligence escaped taxation, and in that way trades and professions paid less than land. The noble lord had referred to a tax which had been very much alluded to in the course of these debates—the land-tax. That was one of the grievances under which they really suffered, as compared with personalty. It was not im posed as the noble lord supposed ; it was a tax upon land, and upon all other kinds of property—upon means and substance, and that was what those who were connected with land complained of. Both that tax and the poor-rates ought to fall equally on personalty, and it was only be cause they did not do so that the legacy duty had been im posed on that description of property ; whereas now, in consequence of clamour, not from its injustice, but as he feared from some other peculiar motive, because that tax now rested upon personalty, which had for so many years evaded the land tax and the poor rates, it was to be im posed upon land. Before this country was more accommo dated to the change in our commercial policy, he was not prepared to assent to the imposition of any more taxes. He had given his support to the budget of the right hon. gentleman the member for Buckinghamshire, because he thought the right hon. gentleman had entered into a com prehensive view of the wants of the community as re garded taxation, and that the principle of his budget was wended upon financial justice—justice to all persons, not only to the landed interest, but to shareholders, traders, and professional men. He had no strong personal feeling, but was determined, as far as he could, to see justice done to those interests which he thought had been hardly dealt with in the changes that had taken place ; and, thinking there was still a very undue share of burdens upon land—that virtu ally it paid four or five income-taxes or legacy taxes for one paid by personalty—he would not give his assent to the imposition of the legacy tax on land. All he asked was, that the lauded interest should ho put in the same cate gory with that the manufactories. (Hear, hear.) If ll' C 011993 were good for malt and hops, they were as good for calicoes and yarns ; if Excise duties were good for malt and hops, they were just as good for hardwares and cottons. He asked for nothing more than justice to the interest with which he was connected. Mr. VETO, after adverting to the advantages which the holders of laud had gained from the new tinyncial sys tem of the country in consequence of its having raised the wages of the poor man, made labour more abundant, and emptied the workhouses, observed, with respect to the pre sent budget, that it would receive his support because it appeared to him to deal more equally and fairly with all the interests of the nation, as a whole ; than any other scheme that he had hoard suggested. They had been told a good sisal about land being encumbered ; but the house had no thing to do with that, its sole duty being to see that there was no inequality in the taxation of the country. (Hear.) The hon. member for South Northumberland had referred to the impolicy of further dealing with indirect taxation, and regarded the land as injured by any tax being placed on it in order to diminish the former. Had the hon, gentleman ever made a calculation of the taxes paid by •the labourer as compared with the landowner? He (Mr. Peto) know thousands of men who had—and it would be wise in that house not to give them ground to point out anything done for the protection of the rich to the injury of the poor. (Hear, hear.) The general feeling in th e country with regard to the present budget was that, though the income tax was not liked, that evil would be endured for the sake of the good w hi c h accom p an i e d it ; and it was matter of rejoicing in the country that the taxes or, soap, tea-0 • and wore to be reduced. n necessaries com f o r ts of life— that every coraf u o cAd Let the landowners bear in mind those already they gave the poor man, in addition to ellioYed, rendered their own possessions more secure. (Hear, h ) Mr. NEWDEGATE e m. a s id . ', that as the Chancellor of the Exchequer had carri e d insured against for the income tax, ho was, therefore, rod the the possibility of a de ficiency, if he inana with any prudence ; consequently the right lien.h gentfinalteweevreaßedt had no right to ex pect those sitting in Di e , house., who in some degree repre property, presented realises! part o f the to consent to the imposition of another tax, under which, all the exigencies of the war, had never yet lie vi e as extended to real property. The tax might been now, but, once placed on, who could say it veoulrcrdeerat: moderate, especially as, by the reduction of indirectrtamxaeie they narrowed the sphere of taxation, while by a new l ie' form Bill they proposed to extend the political franchise, thus diminishing the po wer of those paying the taxes t „; protect their proper t y ? This ho declared, was a poli cy tending rapidly towards confiscation. (Hear.) Mr. BRIGHT referred to the speech of the hon. mem ber for the North Riding (Mr. Cayley), and observed that his opinion ought to be regarded with a good deal of sus picion on matters like the one under consideration, as the hon, member had held some very heterodox notions on the question of land, and what oug ht to done by .. Parliament . for the land. It appeared from a statement which appeared some yes* Iwo Li) Mr, pod's parlialnotary Coopanivn, THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, MAY 14, 1853, ROYAL SURREY ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS.—Open for the season Whit-Monday ani fair following days.—The Zoo'ogical uorecti,n contains a variety of in teresting specimens, and the Gardens throngbout have been Improved and beautified. The Pictorial Represerlation is an extensive 'VIEW of the BAY and FORT 3 of C[iLT painted by Messrs. Danson, and at dusk is represented the attaik of tlia Chines:3 fin3-rafts on the Br tish fleet, explosion-eh N. Ste. inapt Voc d nod Instrument,l oncert. Ervagewent of the eminent vocalist, iMi,s Cicely Nott. Conductor, Mr. Godfrey.— May-day Gaines and Rustic Sports, May pole and Morris Dances. " Pop goes tic Weasel," by 25 coupe, con ducted by Mr Flexmorc.—An extra Mdltary Band durinu the day time ; and at dusk a grand d:s;ilay of Fireworks, combined with the Feast of Lanterns and other displays. —Doers open front 9 in the morning. Admiss:on, is. THEATRE ROYAL, HAYMARKET. tinder the managamont of Mr. Buckstone. THIS EVENIY(7„ M&y 14, _ _ Will be produced (first time, TILE MOUSETRAP. Characters by Messrs. Tilbury, Chippondale, lto,;ers, Buckstone. W. Farren, and Edward , :; Mrs. Poynter, Misses A. Woulds, Louisa Ilcward, MIs.F which, i:un, and e o Mrs.i ll s S i tenl7 2 . After 8 ASCENT OF IiOUST PAR !LASS. To conclude with DEAF AS A POST. EN ROYAL PRINCESS'S THEATRE, OXFORD-STREET. Under the Management of Mr. Charles Kean. THIS EVENING, MAT 14, Will be performed the new and original Comedy, in three acts, by Douglas Jerrold, entitled ST. CUPID; or, Dorothy's Fortune. Principal characters by MOssrs. w right, W. Lacy, Harley, J. Vin ing, Terry, F. Cooke, Everett, and Chester; Mrs. W. Lacy and Miss Murray. To conclude with the new Drama, adapted front the French of %tons. Scribe, by Mr. Paigrave '.linipson, called MARCO SPADA. Principal characters by Messrs. W. Lacy, J. Vining, Ryder, Grattan., and Ever.:tt ; Misses Heath and C. Lecler.:q. ROYAL LYCEUM THEATRE. Under the Management of Madame Veatris. THIS EVENING, MAY 1 i, Will be performed A.S.S. Characters by Messrs. F. Mathews, Suter, and liosiere; Mrs. Macnanriara and Miss Wyndham. After which, A FAST TRAIN —HIGII PRESSURE EXPRESS. Characters by Messrs. C. Mathews, Baker, and Suter. To be followed by TRYING IT OX. Principal character by Mr. C. Mathews. To which will be added a DIVERTISSEMENT, in which Miss Itosina Wright will appear. To conclude with THE CRITIC. Characters by Messrs. C. Ma thews, F. Matthews, and K. ltoxby ; Miss St. George, and Mrs. Maenamara. TIIEATRE ROYAL ADELPIII. Preprieter, Ur. B. Webster. —Directress, Madame Celeste. TIIIS EVENING, MAY 14, be performed MASK AND FACES; or, Before and Behind the Cuttaiu—by Mersrs. B. Webster, L. Murray, Honey, P. Bedford, and Cullenford ; Madame Celeste, and Miss Woolgar. After which. A DESPERATE GAME. To be followed by THE PRETTY GIRLS OF .STILSBERG. To conclude with TUE DA.NCING SCOTCHMAN. ROYAL OLYMPIC THEATRE. Lessee and Manager Mr. Farren. THIS EVENING, MAT 14, WIN be performed THE MILLER OF DERWENT WATE/t. Characters by 3lessrs. H. Farren, F. Robson, Shaldera, G. Cooke, and Charles; Mesdames Anderton and E. Turner. After which, UNCLE CROTCHET. Supported by Mr. Far run, &c. To be followed by MACBETII. Supported by Mr. Samuel Mac beth and Mr. F. Robson ; Mrs. Sarah Macbeth and Mrs. A. Phillips. To conclude with THE SWISS COTTAGE. Lisette, Miss H. oordtict. ASTLRY'S ROYAL AMPIIITHEATRE. . Sole Lessee and Manager, Mr. W. Cooke. In oortibliance with a generally•expressed wish, Mr. W. Cooke has the honour of announcing that A GRAND JUVENILE MORNING PERFORMANCE Will take place on WHIT-TUESDAY, May 17, commencing at Two o'clock. By Permission of the Commandant Col. Clark, R.H., and by special Invitation from Mr. W. Cooke, the Boys of the Duke I York's School, with their Band, will attend. LAST FIVE NIGHTS of THE KAFIR WARFARE, which must be Withdrawn for the entirely new sporting Hippo Drama, illustrat ing LIFE ON THE TURF, to be produced for the WHITSUN HOLIDAYS, THIS EVENING, MIT 14, The entertainments will, as during the week, commence 'with the grand spectacle of AMAKOSA; or, Scenes of Kafir Warfare. To be followed by a display of Equestrian Scenes in the ARENA, inroducing Mr. Cooke's highly-trained steeds. The infant Victor Claude Cooke and his pet Drawing-room Pony. The Entertain ments supported by the eminent Artistes of the Establishment. To conclude with Hugo 'Vamp, Esq.'s, new Comic Drama, entitled IN FOR A DJG; or, Life at the Diggings. Box-oftice open daily from Eleven to Four. Stage Manager, Mr. W. West. HIGH WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE. raIS DAY —Morning 2:2 min. after 5 1 Evening 45 min.aft. 5 To-Moar.ow—Morning 7 min. after 6 Evening 33 min.aft. 6 THE WEATHER.—Strx OFFICE, MAY 14. THERMOMETER, IN TEEN SHADE. 57—highest since noon yesterday. 47—lowest this morr;ng and during the night. 59 this day at noon. BAROMETER, 30'10. WIND, E.—Light, pleasant breeze, and fine, clear weather. b_ ft _,. _ CIVIL CONTINGENCIES. The house then went into Committee of Supply, when a vote of 50,0001. was taken on account of civil contingen cies, and the house again resumed. CUSTOMS, &c., ACTS. The CHANCELLOR of the , EXCHEQUER said he wishod tho house to go into committee on tho Customs as well as tho. Assessed Duties Act. His object was to give effect to the intention he had stated of passing the resolu tions relating to the assessed taxes in a general form, in order that he might bo enabled to bring in a bill and place the plan before the house in a more complete shape than could be done in the form of resolutions. The resolutions having been put from the chair, Mr. C. BERKELEY wished the Chancellor of the Ex chequer to explain the manner in which the clog tax was to apply to packs of hounds. (Laughter.) Would a master of hounds be assessed 12s. for each hound, or would he be permitted to compound for his pack, as heretofore? The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER stated, in roply, that when the bill came before the house, the hon. gentleman would find that it did not alter the existing system as regarded the assessments for packs of hounds. (Hear, hear.) _ _ Sir F. KELLY wished it to be distinctly understood, that members on the Opposition side allowed the resolu tions to pass unquestioned merely to facilitate the progress of public business, and that they would feel themselves at liberty to oppose the bills founded upon them when they should be introduced. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER took that opportunity of stating that he had that evening placed on the table an amended copy of the Customs resolutions, which would be printed and circulated to-morrow. _ _ Mr. BRIGHT hoped the right hon. gentleman would consider the propriety of getting rid of the absurd duties upon armorial bearings and hair powder. (Laughter.) Of course, he could have no personal interest in the matter— (a laugh)—but the duties in question were not unfrequently the cause 'of annoyance and vexation to individuals. A person would sometimes seal a letter with a seal bearing the impress of some animal which could not be found in the earth or out of tho earth, and forthwith he was called on by the surveyor to pay the tax on armorial bearings. When we were levying taxes to the amount of 50,000,0001. or 60,000,0001. a-year we ought to discard paltry items, which tended to make our financial system ridiculous. (Hear.) Colonel SIBTHORP rose from the front Opposition bench, and was received with cheers. He rose to suggest to the Chancellor of the Exchequer that he might confer great benefit upon native industry by imposing a heavy duty on foreigners. (Great laughter.) It was lamentable to see the large sums of money which were carried out of this country by opera dancers and opera singers. These persons were encouraged too much to the great detriment of native talent. (Laughter, and hear, hear.) It mattered little whether these foreigners had characters or not, they obtained large sums of money, which they carried home with them, and then they laughed at the English for being such fools. (Hear, hear.) The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER hoped ho might be excused for abstaininc , at present from stating anything definite with respect to the suggestions which had proceeded from the hon. member for Manchester and the gallant colonel. The resolutions were agreed to. The house then resumed. The Whichwood Forest Bill was read a third time and passed. EXPENSES OF ELECTIONS BILL. Mr. C. BERKELEY moved the second reading of this bill. Colonel SIBTHORP thought that this measure partook of a low and mean chP.racter. It was a portion of the " cheap and nasty" system, so much in vogue at present. (A laugh.) All these so-called reform measures were brought forward from a professed regard to purity ; but ho believed, if the truth could be known, that they originated in a desire on the part of hon. members to save their own pockets. Expenses at elections! Ho wished elections were more expensive, and then there would be better company in the house. (Cheers and laughter.) Pass what bills they pleased, he would not bo deterred from exercising old English hospitality. There was much truth in the old saying, in vino veritas, for when a man opened a bottle he usually opened his heart along with it. (Laughter and hear.) The bill was then read a second time. RYE ELECTION WRIT. The adjourned debate upon the issue of the writ for a new election for the borough of Ryo was then resumed. To the question that the writ be issued, an amendment had been moved for postponing the writ to the 27th of May. Lord PALMERSTON said, there was no objection on the part of the Government to the issue of the writ, but it was for the house to decide. The evidence did not appear sufficient to lead to the disfranchisement of the borough, and if the writ were further postponed it must be with the view of bringing in some measure for that purpose. There had been no notice of any such intention on the part of any hon. member, and he should accordingly offer no op position to the issue of the writ. Mr. BASS rose, amid loud cries of " Spoke !" and " Chair." The SPEAKER asked if the hon. member had moved the adjournment of the debate when the debate was last adjourned? Mr. BASS replied in the negative. The SPEAKER therexpon stated that the hon. mem ber, having before addressed the house upon the point at issue, was not now entitled to speak. Mr. BASS again rose for the purpose of making a re mark, but was met by loud cries of " Chair," and resumed his seat. Sir d: V. SIIELLEY, in order to give fair play to the hon. member for Derby, moved that the house do now adjourn. (Oh !) Mr. BASS, rising, said—" I second the motion," and immediately resumed his seat amid the laughter of the house. Being th p e m ar apently rem y made to enable b some hon. friend near him that motion was him to make his statement, the hon. member sprung to his legs ; but— conMdred Gth°oTjinLoßtiljonit,ll said, and havi ng res d the hon. gen tl eman h av i ng se now entitled t o r i se and address th tl e m h e ouse s ag se a a i hi n t, . w r;du n c o h t laughter.) Mr. BASS, who again rose amid cries of " Spoke," " Chair," and, laughter, said that all he 41;444 was to give notice that he shonld ask for leave to introduce a bill for the disfranchisement of the borough of Rye. (Hear.) Sir J. V. SHELLEY—I withdraw soy amendment for the adjournment cf the house. (Cries of "No !" and " Divide !") The house divided— For the adjournment of the house 52 Against it lO3 Majority against the ad j ourn mit ... 141 On our readmission to the gallery, we found Mr. FREWEN addressing the house. He said the evi dence taken before the committee was very voluminous, and hon. members had notyet had an opportunity of read ing it. He was therefore in favour of the postponement of the writ. Lord P.A.LATERSTON said, lie had been misunderstood in what had fallen from him on the subject of the new writ. What he had said was that, on the part of the Go vernment, ho was not prepared to oppose the issue of the writ. He had stated that, in the general course of pro ceeding, writs were not postponed, except with a view to ulterior proceedings ; but the house would recollect that all the members of the committee stated that there was no ground for disfranchisement. There appeared, therefore, no ground for postponing the writ. Mr. MILES supported the issue of the writ. Colonel KNOX, as a member of the committee which had inquired into the case, was sorry to differ from the right hon. gentleman who presided over that committee on this subject. It had been proved that a most vicious sys tem of loans had been carried on for years in the borough, and it was notorious that the borough was treated for sale in the market. If the writ were allowed to issue after the strong report of the committee, the house might as well state they would issue the writ in every case that came before them. (Hear, hear.) Mr. J. PHILLIMORE entirely concurred with the lion. and gallant member who had last spoken. If this writ were allowed to issue, the house would expose itself to the charge of hypocrisy in the measures they had taken for the repression of corrupt practices. Mr. TUFNELL considered that the only safe course was to go by the opinion of the committee. The majority of the constituency of Rye appeared to be as pure as any constituency could be, and, as it was idle to suppose that there was any chance of passing a bill for disfranchising the borough, he was decidedly of opinion that it was the bounden duty of the house not to keep the constituency any longer from the exercise of their electoral privileges. (Hear, hear.) Sir F. KELLY had always been of opinion, and Must always act upon that opinion, that it was neither constitu tional nor just in this house to suspend the issue of a writ unless with a view to some ulterior measure, which might end in the disfranchisement of the borough. The LORD-ADVOCATE, as a member of the committee, entirely concurred in the opinion which had been ex pressed by the right lion. gentleman who had acted as its chairman, and should support the motion for the issue of the writ. After a few words of explanation from Mr. BASS, amid loud cries of "Order" and calls for a division, Lord A. VANE must say that a great many debates on these subjects might have been avoided if the Government had brought forward a measure laying down some rule upon which the house might proceed upon these occasions. (Hear, hear, and cries of " Divide.") He meant to move the adjournment of the debate. (Oh, oh !) He thought it was too late an hour to discuss the question of the issue of the writ. He considered this was a case in which the writ ought not to issue, for the evidence of corrupt prac tices taken before the committee had been as strong, if not stronger than in any other case which had been inquired into. (Hear, hear.) He begged to move the adjournment of the debate. (Oh, oh !) On the question that this debate be now adjourned, Sir J. PAKINGTON expressed a hope that the noble lord would not divide the house. (Hear, hear.) He looked on it as a simple question of justice ; and as he thought there were no grounds for disfranchising the borough he must vote for issuing the writ. Lord SEAHAM always made it a point on former occa sions to vote with the chairman of the committee reporting the case to the house, but on this occasion he must vote on a different principle. Mr. BASS was authorised to state, that not only had Mr. Jeremiah Smith the borough of Rye in his hands, but that he had offered it for sale on several occasions. The house divided — For the motion llB Against it Majority The writ was accordingly ordered to be issued. MERCHANT SHIPPING BILL. On the motion of Mr. CARD WELL, the house - went into committee on this bill. Mr. CARDWELL stated that his object was to get that portion of the bill through committee to which no objec tion was to be made, in order that public business might advance. Sir F. KELLY was quite willing to assent to the pro posal of the right honourable gentleman by allowing the bill to be committed pro fornui, that it might facilitate the dispatch of public business. Captain SCOBELL said, he had an amendment to pro pose which would take much time to explain, and he con sidered the bill of too much importance to begin a dis cussion upon it at half-past twelve o'clock ; he, therefore, moved that the house adjourn. Mr. CARDWELL thought it would be for the conve nience of honourable members who had amendments to propose that those portions of the bill which were not objected to should pass through committee. Mr. DIGBY SEYMOUR had amendments to propose, and objected to the bill being proceeded with ; he, there fore, moved that the chairman report progress, and ask leave to sit again on Thursday next. After a short conversation between Mr. CAUDWELL and Mr. HUDSON, _ . The House' resumed, the Chairman reported progress, and obtained leave to sit again on Thursday. BOROUGH OF MALDON. Mr. T. CHAMBERS moved that the Speaker do issue his warrant to make out a new writ for the electing of two burgesses to serve in the present Parliament for the bo rough of Maldon, in the room of Charles Ducane, Esq., and Taverner John Miller, Esq., whose election had been determined to be void. Lord It. GROSVENOR said, that an address to her Majesty praying that a eommisP,ion should be issued to inquire into the proceedin g s at the late election for Maldon having been agreed to by the House of Commons, and having been sent up to the House of Lords, he thought it would not be right that the house should agree to issue a new writ for that borough. Lord PALMERSTON thought that, under the circum stances, it was impossible for the house to agree to .the motion for the issuing of a writ, there being an address to her Majesty at • this moment before the other House of Parliament on the subject of the election at this borough. Mr. T. CHAMBERS consented to withdraw the motion. The motion was withdiawn. INCOME TAX BILL. The bill was brought up and read a first time. Second reading on Friday. CUSTOMS' DUTIES BILL. This bill was read a first time. Second reading on Thursday. PLYMOUTH ELECTION. On the motion of Mr. AGLIONBY, the evidence taken before the committee was ordered to be printed. The house adjourned at a quarter to 1 o'clock. PARLIAMENTARY DIVISION. HOUSE OF COMMONS.-MAT 13. (From the Votes and Proceedings of the House of Concur 011.8. ) RYE WRIT. Question proposed, " That Mr. Speaker do issue his warrant to the Clerk of the Crown to make out a now writ for the electing of a Baron to serve in this present Parlia ment for the town and port of Rye, in the room of Wm. Alexander Mackinnon, Esq., whose election has been de termined to be void." Amendment put, "To leave out from the word ' That' to the end of the question, in order add the words no new writ be issued for the town and port of Rye until Friday, the 27th of May,' instead thereof." Qr_estion put, " That the words proposed to be left out stand part of the question." Ayes, 118; Noes, 99. MAJORITY-AYES, 118 A'Court, C. Gladstone, William Palmerston, Viscount A dair, 11. Gladstone, Captain Pechell, Sir George Aglionhy, IL A. Goodman, Sir G. Peel, F. Atherton, Wm. Gc.ailburn, H. Pennant, Col. Baring, Sir F. Gregson, Samuel Phillips, John Henry Berkeley , Hon. C. F. Grenfell, C. l'hinie Thomas Boyle, Col. Grosvenor, Lord R. Pir.ott, Francis Brandame T. W. Hayter, W. G. Pilkington, Jame, Bread, H. Herbert, 11. A. Ponsonby, lin.A..G J. Broeklehurst, John Hervey, Lord Alfred Power, N. Brockman, E. L. Heywood, James Price, Sir R. Browne, V. Hindley, Charles Price, W. I'. Bruce, Lord E. Hughes, W. 11. Itussal, F. C. huller, Sir J. Y. Ingham, h obert Russell, F. W . Burrell, Sir C. M. Keating, Robert Sachet% J. Cairns, EL M`Caluiont Kelly, Sir F. Sawle, C. B. G. Cardwell, E. Klugscote, H. N. F. Smith, lit. 11n. R. Cavendish, C. C. Langston, J. B. Smith, J. Chambers, Thomas Langton, W. G. Stnollett, A Charteris, F. Lowe, R. Stafford, Marquis Clinton, Lord It. Macgregor, James Strutt, Edward Cobbett, J 31. M'Taggart, Sir J. Tancred, 11. W. Cockburn. Sir Alex. Mathis, Richard Towneley, C. Collier, Robert P. Manners, Lord G. Tudway, R. Corry, H. L. 3lasterman, John Turner, C. Cowper, W. Miles, W. Tyler, Sir George Crcok, J, Mills, T. Vernoti.G. E. 11. Crowder, R. Michell, W. Wells, W. 1/a rymplo, Vie. Moffatt, G Whit bread.'Samuel Davies, D. 31onck, Lord Williams, W. Duckworth, SirJ. lioncrieff, J. Wilson, James buncombe. Hn. A. Molise% W. Wilmington, Sir T. E Egerton, Edward 3lostyli, E. 31. Wise. A. Elliot, John 11l ulgrave, Earl Woodd, B. Esmonde, J. Norm eye, Lord Wynne, W. Ewer% William Norreys, Sir D. J. Young, Sir F. Fagan, W. O'Brien, Cornelius Feilden, M Oliveira, Br:Wanda TELLERS. Fitzroy, Hon. H. Paget, Lord Alfred Forster, C. Paget Lord George Berkeley, Grenville Freestun, Colonel Pakington, Sir J. Tufnell, H. MINORITY—NOES, 99. Alcoek, Thomas Ferguson. Joseph Phillimore, J. Anson, General Fitzgerald, W. It. S. Ricardo, 0. Archdall, Captain M. Forbes, W. Sanders, G. 13agge, W. Forester, Col. Scobell, Capt. Bathes, M. T. Fox, R. Seaham, Lord Baldock, E. H. Gench, Charles Seymour, W. D. Barrington, Viscount Greene, John Shelley, Sir J. V. Bags, M. T. Gwyn, Bowel Sheridan, R. 11. Bellew, Captain Hall, Sir Benjamin Sinljth, Sir W. lientinck, Geo. P. Bristle, Alexander Somerset,Captain Bidduiph, R. M. Beard, J. I. Stafford, A. Riggs. W illiam Heys orth, L. Stanhope, James B Blair, Colonel Hudson, George Stuai t, Lord D. Booth, Sir R. Jackson, William Stet t, H. G. /3zotherton, Joseph Keating, H. S. Sell:van, M. Burghley, Lord Kershaw, James Talbot, C. R. 31. Byng, G. H. C. Kinnaird, A. F. Tbicknesse, It. A. Cavendish, George Knatchbull, W. F. Thornely, T. Chambers, M. Knox, Col. Tr ollope. sir J. Cheetham, John Knox, W. S. Tyrell, Sir J. I'. Christy, samuel Langton, H. G. Vane, Lo d A. Clinton, Lord C. Lowther, Captain Vansittart, G. 11. Coles, H. Beaumont 3lacarteney, G. Whalley, G. H. Colville, C. It. March, Hurl of Whatman, J. Cowan, Charles Massey, W. N. Whitmore, H. Craufurd, E. Maxwell, Hon. J. P. Wyndham, ben. Crossley. F. Milligan, Robert Wynn, Sir W. Davie, Sir H. 311 nor, W. 31. E. Wyeill, M. Drax, J. S. W. S. E. Morris, D. Torte, Eliut T. Duncan, G. Mullings J. Randolph Landes, F. Mundy, W, Dunne, Col. Murrough, J. P. TZLLEZ.9. East, Sir J. B. Neeld, John Ev .11s, W. Oakes, J. 11. P. Vyse, Capt. Farrel', James Pellatt, A Frewen, Charles Hay A letter from Copenhagen of the Bth say :—" A seri ous conflict has just taken place between the workmen en the works of the railway of Roeskild in consequence of one of the contractors having engaged about a hun dred German labourers, although a great number of labourers, Danes and others, had.been waiting for some time without being able to get occupation. The civic guard interfered, but were not able to quell the disturb ance. Detachments of hussar Kaye been sent off from Copenhagen to restore order." LONDON, SATURDAY, MAY 14, 1853. Mr. GLADSTONE has raised a perfectly distinct and intelligible issue. He has fairly and explicitly placed before Parliament the questions that must be decided. Ho has proved clearly and unanswer ably that it is impossible to maintain the Probate and Legacy Duties in their present condition, that the removal of "an anomaly, which is un just in its nature, which is galling to the public feeling, and which becomes more and more gall ing from year to year," has become imperative— and that real estate, settled or unsettled, and also unsettled personalty, must for fiscal purposes be placed on the same foundation as unsettled per sonalty. The duties on all these descriptions of property must be equalised, and, as the Right Hon. Gentleman truly stated, the question is whether " that Equality is to be established by exempting from the tax the property that now pays it, or by subjecting to the tax property which is now exempted." If the former branch of the alternative were adopted, a substitute should be provided for the 2,500,000/. of direct taxa tion that would be lost to the Exchequer, and that serious deficiency would render essential the perpetuation, and probably the increase, of the Property and Income Tax. The option—if in deed there be any option, and that there is a reasonable prospect of the abolition of the income Tax in 1860, of the too-flattering tale of the Chancellor of the Exchequer being realised—lies between a Property and Income Tax on the one hand, and Probate Duties and Legacy Duties—or rather duties on succession, on a very enlarged foundation, pressing much more severely on every description of property than they have hitherto done—on the other. At present the option is even less favourable,—it is between the certainty of these additional duties imposed immediately on the one side, and the more than doubtful contin gency that the Financial Minister in 1860 may find himself unable or indisposed to part with so productive a source of revenue as the Property and Income Tax. There is this in addition, that for seven years certainly both burdens must be sustained, and that no compensation will be afforded to those who succeed to settled or real property previously to 1860. These considera tions may be of some importance in determining the branch of the alternative finally to be adopted. Mr. GLADSTONE lays down the rule broadly in favour of the duty on successions as opposed to a fixed tax on property. He declares his opinion, that " there are objections to taxes on property ; but he does not consider that they aro so likely to attach to a tax upon successions, occurring once in a generation, as they would if we were to attempt to lay a tax upon property, which was to recur again and again upon tin.) same property from year to year." Now, on this we join issue with the Right Hon. Gentleman. We dispute the principle he has so fairly and unequi ocally put forward. We conceive that. if the national exigencies require that a certain sum should be annually contributed by the oN vners of accumu lated and realised property, that it would be far more equitable, and far more texpedient, to levy the amount by small annual payments charged upon all kinds of property without exception, according to its capitalised val ue, than by com paratively large and uncertain payments, which may fall ten times more heav, ily on one estate ' than on another, and five or six . times as often. But this great and striking inequality consti tutes by no means the worst feature of the case. The Constitutional principle is , that every man should contribute according to his means. Any degree of inequality of charge, particularly so great as between one and te: a per cent. on the capitalised property, and that : probably recurring much cftener, would alone furni: di an unanswerable argument against the impost. But this tax, so x h pro e a v t y in a n te a d n u i n o t i inis theh s a a m t tax amount tn of capitaltheh n t he a r t i t a m n u e e s t . An annual charge will be paid out of income. One falling every ten, twenty, or ti iirty years, will be paid out of capital, inasmuch as few, if any, will have the prudence to lay by a c3rtain sum annu ally to meet the charge. ...In. case of land, a mortgage must probably be e:;ecuted, for few will be able, out of the rernts,, to appropriate the sums required for the liquidation of the amount by half-yearly ire Italments. This will create a necessity for a tedi, nis and expensive investigation of title ; and, as it is by no means impossible that the inheritor may require further money, he will encumber his estate for a still larger sum than would be required to liquidate the n ew duties on successions. This encourage ment to mortgagees is very unwise and impolitic. It will speedily reduce England to the condition of Ireland, and render the introduction of an Encumbered Estates Court, or some analogous tribunal, into England an imperative necessity, and occasion the most serious embarrassment to families, the demands coining at the most incon venient times. We have not as yet touched on the many ob jections to the details of the proposition —some of which were alluded to in the discussion last night. At present we have merely attempted to show the superiority of a direct annual tax on property according to its value to an unequal and uncertain amount falling at unknown inter vals. There is another and no less cogent objection to the charge, viz., that it is an attempt to transfer the burdens from our own shoulders to those of our children, to get rid of a tax which we ourselves should liquidate, by compelling our successors to pay a very large sum together, equi valent to the value of the average payments that would otherwise have been made. This is directly in opposition to the provident habits which it is the duty of the State to encourage by every pos sible means, but which our fiscal system is calcu lated to repress. Let both imposts be fairly weighed in the balance, and we venture to assert, that on every principle of justice and expediency, of equity and sound policy, the preference will be given to a judicious and fairly apportioned Pro perty Tax, freed from the objections that can so justly be preferred against the existing system. And that such an arrangement is practicable is apparent from the mode by which it is shown that the duties on successions may be equitably assessed. As will have been perceived from yesterday's report of the proceedings of the Court of Common Council on Thursday, the settlement of the long vexed question of the bridge accommodation over the Thames, between London-bridge and the Houses of Parliament, at Westminster, has again been adjourned. Extraordinary differences of opinion are still observable among the members of the Corporation. Several are in favour of simply purchasing and throwing open the iron bridge at Southwark, regarding that as all that is requisite under the circumstances. Several others, on the contrary dissenting from the views entertained upon the subject by Alder man SALO➢iONS, and agreeing with those cherished by Deputy BENNOCH—continue to insist upon the advisability of building one new bridge, if not a series of new bridges, at points of the river which we ourselves have before now more than once indicated. Between these two propositions we do not waver for one moment in a state of indecision or embarrassment. Like the ambitious ecclesiastic, who, according to the old "Joe Miller," obtained two bishoprics instead of one, because when asked which he would prefer, " Bath or Wells ?" he answered, " Both" (whether from thickness of utterance, or from greed, or from drollery, de ponent saith not) we, too, would welcome both, instead of having any preference, or making any selection. We would say " ditto" to Alderman SALOMONS, when he proposes that the iron bridge at Southwark should be purchased and thrown open to the public. And we would say "ditto" likewise to Deputy BEN- Noon, when he suggests that an entirely new bridge should be constructed. Hitherto London has shown itself altogether too niggardly in regard to its bridge acommodati on. Its bridges are too few, and the few there are, are either " tolled" or dilapidated. Now we maintain that everybridge, without exception, ought, in a ea pital lik.e this, to bc free to the whole population. We maintain that the .ricketty bridges now disgracing the Thames ought to be removed and recon structed. We maintain, moreover, that additional bridges should be raised on other sites, in -the intervals between those already in existence. 'We agree cordially with Alderman LAWRENCE, in the noble declaration made by him on Thursday last, in the Court of Common Council, that " he should glory in seeing the City in debt five millions of money, as the municipal authorities in France were, the money having been laid out in public improvements, stretched over a period of years as to payment." Any one, indeed, who has recently traversed the French capital, must there again ad emit that as STERNE said long ago, in the first paragraph of his " Sentimental Journey," "they manage these things better in France." For it is really something , wonderful to observe the magnitude of the altera tions now being made in Paris, the splendour of the new streets being built, the grandeur of the palatial renovations going forward—the re sults of a daring and munificence which will be remembered among the chief glories of the reign of the Emperor NAPOLEON 111. It is true that the merit of the whole of this magnificent move ment belongs of right to his Imperial MAJESTY as its originator. But it is also true that the municipal authorities of Paris have nobly responded to the proposals of the Emperor from the moment of their first suggestion. Insomuch that they have not shrunk from incurring a debt of five millions of francs. Not so with our London Corporation. Its members are many of them quite alarmed at the notion of building even one more bridge ! They are half frightened out of their wits at the idea of having to pay 350,0001. for rebuilding the bridge at Blackfriars ! They don't know how to express their dismay at the notion of all the ' expense certain to be incurred in pulling down and building up in remodelling and re-arranging ! And so the matter is again adjourned. Really, it is to be hoped, that when the question is brought under the notice of the Legislature by Mr. OLIVEIRA, some spur may be administered to that " galled jade," whose " withers" have long been wrung—the London Municipality. INDIA.—The General Screw Steamer Calcutta, which leaves Southampton this day for India, rid the Cape and Mauritius, takes out about 20,0001. in specie, sixty passengers, and a full cargo. THE LATE LIEUT. - COLONEL SIR HARRY FRANCIS COLVILLE DARELL, BART.—The mortal remains of this gallant and deeply-lamented officer having arrived from Cagliari, in the island of Sardinia, where his premature death took place on the 6th of January last, were yes terday consigned to their last resting-place, at Richmond, Surrey, where many members of his family lie interred. The funeral, which was strictly private, was attended by his only brother, the Rev. Sir Lionel Darell, Bart., and other relatives and connxtions of the family. Cap tain Philip Payne Galiwey was also present. THE ALLEGED DUEL. —The account given in the Essex herald, and copied thence into most of the daily papers, of a duel said to have taken place a fortnight ago between Sir Robert Peel and Mr. Bernal Osborne, is, we are assured by a competent authority, entirely destitute of foundation.—Morning Advertiser. MODEL FIREARMS.—A Moulton patent rifle has ar rived from the continent, in a package directed to the Earl of Chirendon, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. This rifle is intended for Lord Hardinge, th General Commanding-in-Chief, for the use of the public service, and has been sent to her Majesty's Government, through the Earl of Clarendon, by the British Minister at Brussels. ANOTHER SOUP KITCHEN DEFUNCT. —Yesterday, a poor woman, lately employed at the City Soup Kitchen, applied at Guildhall for relief, as the breaking up of that concern had left her destitute. The applicant said she had been waiting in expectation of receiving another ap pointmentKitAchledn Alderman but utn tthat establishment in sh in the n t Leicester-squarew asalso Wilson inquired what was the cause of that place being shut up, and the woman replied that it had been closed broken Soup u u p p . ever since Mr. Cochrane left this country. Alderman Wilson then ordered the applicant a little temporary re lief and dismissed her. _ PROBATE DUTY.—A return has been made to a motion of Mr. Alcock, M.P., of the number of stamps sold since 1815 for grants of probate, charged with the high est amount of probate duty. The return is " eight." THE GREENWICH AND NORTH KENT RAILWAY BILL. —A Parliamentary paper published yesterday contains the report of the Admiralty on the Greenwich and North Kent Railway Bill, which proposes to make a railway from the North Kent line, near Charlton, to Blackwell Point, on the Greenwich side of the Thames, whence it is proposed to run out a floating pier or jetty into the river. This jetty, as planned by the company, is to extend into the river to a distance of 120 feet below high water mark, for the purpose of establishing a ferry across the river, so as to form a communication with the railways on the north side of the Thames. The Admiralty objet, to the plan. They believe that such a protrusion into the Thames would prove very inconve nient to small craft navigating the river, while it might is some degree deflect the current ; but they suggest that the formation of a dock or recess in the land, cut out to receive the floating jetty, would equally serve the purpose of the company and prove unobjectionable in the eyes 9f the Lora 9f the Admiralty. MONEY MARKET AND COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE--(THIS DAY.) CITY, TWO O'CLOCK. The sales of Cotton at Liverpool yesterday were estimated at 7,000 bales, of which 1,500 were taken for export and on speculation. The market was flat, but at steady prices. Railway Shares were quiet at rather lower prices. The stocks of produce in the principal European cities were, on the Ist insaut, as follows : SUGAR COFFEE. 1852. 1853. '1853. 1852. Tons. Tons. Tons. Tons. Great Britain 85,353 114,961 16,800 15,332 Hamburg]] 1,750 3,500 8,500 8,500 Bremen Holland Antwerp 4,160 1,395 4,716 5,545 Total The Bank of England weekly return to the 7th inst., shows a further reduction of bullion, proving that the Australian gold lately received has not come into its coffers. The Bank holds less specie now than for many months. Compared with the previous week, the changes are as follows : Active circulation £23,469,845 Increase 345,290 Bullion 18,225,221 Decrease 129,873 Rest Increase 25,822 Public Deposits 4,265,469 Increase 330,947 Other Deposits Decrease 721,006 Seven-day and other Bills 1,418,032 Decrease 9,705 Government Securities No change Other Securities 13,608,166 Increase 101,421 Notes unemployed 8,274,395 Decrease 410,015 The negotiation of bills of exchange was effected yesterday afternoon at rather fuller rates on Paris and Amsterdam, but Trieste was lower. Hamburgh improved a shade. The exports of gold from London direct, during the week to Thursday last, were 24,785 ounces, and of silver 32,7001. and 6,510 ounces. The official notices in last night's Gazette respect ing the period for which Exchequer Bonds aro to be issued, have removed uncertainty on that head, and has so far afforded satis faction, but Stocks have not improved, and the premium on the floating debt has not risen above 2s. and 6s. Consols are 100-} to 100 k for Transfer, and 100 k / for Account. The New 3f per Cents. have been marked 1021 to and the 3 per Cents. 99/ Bank Stock has been firm at 2281. South Sea New Annuities have improved to 99-i I. Foreign stocks have been fluctuating. The Red Greek Bonds have advanced to 9 1 and the Blue to N. Mexican have been dull at 261. Buenos Ayres are up to 72i. Peruvian Deferred, after being 65g, have declined to 64k, a preference being shown for the 4 per Cents. Spanish 3 per Cents. have realised 48k. Dutch 2 per Cents. are at 66, being firm. Railway Shares are rather unsteady. Caledonian have been higher, and Lancashire and Yorkshire in more request. York and North Midland are firm. North-Western are heavy. French shares are dull. The Gold Mines are quite nominal ; only one bargain is officially noted. Joint-stock Banks are dull, and also Land Com panies. BRITISH FUNDS THIS DAY. ( From the Official List.) Business done. Bank Stock 3 per Cent. Reduced Annuities 991 -1 3 per Cent. Consols Annuities New 31 per Cent. Annuities Long Annuities, Expire sth Jan., 1860 India Bonds, £lOOO Ditto, under £lOOO 3O p South Sea Old Annuities 99,1 South Sea New Annuities Consols for Account Ist Juno Exchequer Bills lid. June. March. £1000..... 2 6 p 2p £5OO Small — PRICE OF FOREIGN FUNDS THIS DAY. Brazilian Neu-Bonds, 1829 dr 39, 5 per Cent. Ditto Small Ditto New, 1852, 4i per Cent lOOl Buenos Ayres Bonds, 6 per Cent 72; Grenada Bonds, Ex. Dec., 1849, Coupon 22 Grenada Bonds, Deferred Greek Bonds, Red Ditto, Blue • H Mexican 3 per Cent. Ditto for the A At _ ,ccoun -"" .4)1 Peruvian Deferred 3 per Cent. Sardinian Bonds, 5 per 980 Spanish Bonds 3 per Cent 4 BB Spanish 3 per Cent., New Deferred 23i Ditto Passive (Converted) Venezuela Bonds, 34 per Cent. Dividends on the above payable in London. French Rentes, 4.# per Cent. Dutch Exchange, 2A per Cent. 12 Guil. ... 66 Consols Ditto June Account TWO O'CLOCK. 100 Vi 1004 EXCHEQUER BILLS. Notice has been issued that all Exchequer bills, whether dated in June or March, may be converted into Exchequer bonds, bearing 2i per cent. interest from the Bth of June next until the Ist September, 1864 ; and 2i per cent, thereafter until the Ist September, 1894, upon application being made on or b e f ore th e 25 t h inst. This measure, it may be presumed, is based upon the suppo sition that only such an amount will be exchanged as will be sufficient to relieve the Exchequer bill market from its present flatness, and enable the bills falling due in June next to be renewed at the rate of those dated in March—namely one penny per day. Under any other view it would appear highly inexpe dient to offer to change the floating debt, which at its present amount is not in the slightest degree excessive, into a form of security involving a loss to the country of the difference between 11. 10s. sd. per cent., the existing rate of the March bills, and 21. 15s. per cent., the proposed rate for the Exchequer Bonds. It is true that, in the present state of the money mar ket, there might be a difficulty in keeping Exchequer Bills in circulation at a penny a-day, but at all events they would float at five farthings ; and in that case their annual interest would still be only 11. 18s. per cent. On the 18,000,0001. of Exchequer Bills in circulation the difference between this rate and 21. 15s. would amount to 153,0001. Notice has also been issued that the Exchequer Bonds to be offered to the holders of the South-Sea and other Annuities about to be paid off, as well as to the pro prietors of Consols and Reduced, are to bear interest at the rate of 21 per cent. until the Ist of September, 1864, and 21 per cent. thereafter until Ist September 1894, when the Government are to have the power, if they shall see fit, to redeem at par. The coupons are to be payable on the Ist of March and the Ist of September in each year. It appears that the voluntary applications for the various new securities offered in exchange for Consols and Reduced amount at present to 29,7731. for the Three-and-a-Half per Cents., 1,135,3561. for the Two and-a-Half per Cents., and 3,5001. for the Exchequer Bonds. The closing quotations for the New Two-and-a- Half per Cent. Stock (or " Assented Threes") was 91f to 92f. Times. THE NORTH OF SCOTLAND STEAM-PACKET COMPANY.— The half-yearly meeting of the sharehollers of this com pany was held at Inverness on• Thursday last ; George France, Esq., in the chair. The chief business before the meeting related to the proposal to purchase an addi tional steamer for the carrying trade between the Moray Firth and Leith. The manager (Mr. Henderson) sub mitted to the meeting a balance-sheet, showing a profit for the last six months equal to a dividend of 6 per cent. on the paid-up capital of the company. In considera tion of the dividend ordered last meeting, the whole of the sum was reserved to meet contingencies. It was intimated that a vessel admirably suited for the purpose —the " Marteilo,",of Leith —was now in the market, and a resolution was agreed to pledging those present to use their best endeavours in procuring a subscription for new capital adequate to her purchase.—lnvernese Courier. THE MARKET GARDENERS ROUND LONDON.—The extent of gardens round London required to supply the two millions and a quarter of eaters there, will hardly be credited. Within a radius of fifteen miles of London there are 200,000 acres of land in the hands of market gardeners, all labouring for the London market. Ten thousand loads of turnips, 100,000 sacks of peas, 20,000,000 heads of celery, 40,000,000 cabbages, and 100 tons of w a t er - tresses are sa id t o be s o ld annually in Covent-garden market alone, to say nothing of the pota toes, carrots, beets, onions, herbs of all kinds, &c., which are sold in immense quantities. FATAL ACCIDENT AT SomEasET-HousE.—Yesterday morning, a fatal accident occurred to a man of the name of William Dillon, labourer, aged 35 years, who resided in Hercules-buildings, near the Hercules Tavern, Lambeth, under the following circumstances :—lt ap pears that a heavy piece of timber was being hoisted by a crane, when the men lost control of the handle, which fell, on the head of the unfortunate man. He was picked up in a state of insensibility, bleeding profusely from the back of the head, by his fellow-workmen, when the foreman had him conveyed to the Albert Ward, King's College Hospital, Carey-street, Lincoln's-inn fields, where Mr. Hulke, the house surgeon, attended by the medical staff of that valuable institution, rendered every assistance that medical skill could suggest, when, notwithstanding their united exertions, the unfortunate man expired, shortly after his admission, in the ward. Mr. Baker, the summoning officer, has forwarded the information to Mr. Charles Bedford, the coroner ; but no day is yet Axed for the inquest. AYTOUN ON POETRY• LECTURE THE THIRD. c le• During the interval which elapsed betwee n the f livery of his second and third lectures, th e toast ° /` " Professor Aytoun . and the Poets"—prop osed by f member of the House of Commons on the occasion °f the banquet at Freemasons'-hall in commemorati°n° the sixty-fourth anniversary of the Royal Lite ra n t , Fund—was received by the assembled literati of V don with well-merited acclamations. We would 116'%1 particularly notify this circumstance, because it affe ru .: s new evidence that the men of letters in our metroVoilt are anything but indifferent to the presence arnen'tlio them of the gifted author of the " Lays °f Scottish Cavaliers." It indicates rather that they 01' eager; where opportunity offers to accord him the.,, come due to one of the most accomplished of the 1 0 ;4 writers of Scotland. Another attestation of that rt,1014.% ness to hail his presence amongst us at this inornehiii visible yesterday in that crowded apartment at 1 11 _ 0 Rooms, in which the third of Professor Aytoun's s'oo of lectures was delivered to perhaps the most mime': ye t and certainly the most attentive, audience he h as p addressed. It should be remarked that a c hange roe , been made since last Monday in the position of th e r da trum, if we may so call it, from which the Profese_4. livers his dissertation. And we would particularly no tion this alteration, because we look upon it as bY re by means a judicious arrangement. The lecture r is the,,,o, unfortunately too far removed from many of his 10 '0 who, consequently, find it impossible to catch tbs!„ o6 l of the discourse, losing some of the more 8111A4 and delicately-modulated of his intonations. fed to Yesterday, the lecture was exclusively dedicaes the consideration of the various merits and peelle of of our Ballad Literature. Especial reference I"'tba course, made—now to the National Ballad, now tA°llO Pathetic Ballad, now to the Humorous Ballad, e n " t ios majority of the specimens given by way o iillustrao were selected from the rich store of the fine 0 1 d,„ b3 rrir of Bonnie Caledonia. If we might presume p ee nonce any opinion upon the subject, we should ve il dii• to acknowledge at once, that altogether we we r . B s oo appointed in ; the selection. Several of the sp e d too/ declaimed by Professor Aytoun—and declainleins e uf' most admirably with the broad burr of the poor tish dialect—appeared to us rather too long , Arlfi too rugged, and rather too monotonou s. ,„4:0 11 this we make bOld t o con f ess was our irel„ v po; in their regard ; although we did .not fail t°, 1 7 0 , 4 ciate, we hope and believe, the exquisite P a 7, o ro " Fair Ellen," or the yet more exquisite het c ilia "Kinmont Willie," or the noble and mostiote,h"te trumpet-tones of the "Battle of Otterbourne." Professor Aytoun was peculiarly anxious to disci ° to ° such intention on his part, he did nevertheless_ ails to imply somewhat markedly the fault of ping' V discoverable in the "Oriana" of Mr. Tennyrl'oter's ourselves, we cannot but think that the 1 7 assumption, that the Poet Laureate " must" h a—, 10, 1 , " Fair Ellen" before writing " Oriana," No g . 1 : 0 9; gratuitous, Now, for our part, we can quite ,e" o ef i the idea as rational, that Mr. Tennyson h nu,, oa once read, or even heard of, "Fair Ell e r t sr long after " Oriana" was completed. ject of the two ballads cannot be 7, 0 0 0° ," we conceive, as in any way identical, and the e,. 0 1 09" of them is, to our thinking at least, altogether c nPs ti f In " Oriana" the heroine has been killed inadveP; ob by the lamenting lover himself. In "Fair Ells ofha t has sacrificed her own life willingly to shield that betrothed. The lover who bewails. his, love in ltla~ Ellen," therefore, speaks from the profound butrdt", anguish of one who only recognises in the dean' 0' departed her sublime and unselfish tendernessioe lover who lifts up his voice and weeps over his c iA "Oriana," on the contrary, does so with a gr ie f ened by remorse to absolute agony . and desP 3 ;jg sides, even the manner in which the two ball d)v ier written must b e v i ewe d by th e genera lity, 1 1 f o r , e ture, as dissimil ar . "F a i r Ell en " i s rhymed' forte ample, in triplets, with interrupting rhymes in wenotoo: and eighth ; whil e " O r i ana " h as th e musical 11: 1 - 1 ) of five recurring rhymes in each stan follow e der first, second, fourth, and fifth by the name of the m , Jief as though her shade w ere perpe t ua ll y a ddressed 70 • lover in impassioned apostrophe or adjuration. , we are speaking of these tw o no bl e e ffusions j e ctr t trasted by Professor Aytoun in the course of h i t yesterday, we must.not omit an ac k n owledg Abee l. we are decidedly among those who would yield of preference to the modern over the ancie nt i peot't writer. It is a meed of praise, to our mind , due to the Poet Laureate. For, although our n°'ia V 4 is unstinted in regard to the pathos throbbing ~,o;', metre of "Fair Ellen," particularly iii that . 15 , 1 7, 0 4 4 . which her lover pines to be reposing by her siu;er the green turf, with the " shroud drawn n° at een," there is nothing, as far as we can see, oc", t ef to the woe and passion audible' in almost every Oriana;" as, for example, in the following " I cry aloud : none hear my cries, Oriana. Thou corned atween me and the s kies, Oriana. I feel the tears of blood arise, . Up from my heart unto my eyes, Oriana. Within thy heart my arrow lies, ()liana." Or, again , --- " The bitter arrow wont aside, The false, ° f r a ia le n e a Lrow went aside, Oriana : The damned arrow glanced aside, And pierced thy heart, my love, my brid e ' Oriana ! Thy heart, my love, my life, my bride, Oriana. * * * * * They should have stabb'd me where 11s/' Oriana ! How could I rise and come away, Orions? How could I look upon the day ? They should have stabb'd me where I lug , Oriana— They should have trod me into clay, Oriana.* ** * Oh/ breaking heart that will not break , Oriana ; Oh ! pale, Sale face so sweet and meek, Oriana. Thou smilest, but thou dost not speak, And then the tears run down my elm' Oriana seek' 4 What wantest tho u ? w h om d os t thou ki Oriana ?" From the first syll a bl e , i n f ac t , to th e l a st, `.` ce , o °l4Ai :oli le to us—has al wa y s been to us—a ma,stere 11° the loveliest treasures of our ballad literatur:At t: s it° ing, however, from this subject—one ever frnut,opp with fascination—and referring to one of a „v, e i r i l a bit, te to, character, we must observe that it breathed n " irony when Professor Aytoun simply ment' ° " r ella i l i lad of " wasli "—apologising for no t o jort, ho .# because it se obviously inferior to the il vio g ; e ; the productions of Mr. Wordsworth. il e e irr e liii ° ; who had never perused it, and who bore in ' h a her o re' brance a painful knowledge of Betty FoY 31 , 1 .0 dcler 0° boy, and other kindred monstrosities, to the reflection of how horribly bad it mil s loll° programme of the third lecture a ppears ° 0 1: 0°11 the printed syllabus : r l4, "National Ballads—The Character and la te il soli c tS i ; of Scotland— Circumstances of their Traci' 0 1 •iy, nervation—Their Simplicity, Power, Pathlo,stet'Apir resqueness—lllustrations of National e° 11 . 4 0/Pii,v l Artificial Expression--Specimen of the 11 ist' • e i 3 . 4 ,e 0 " The Battle of Otterbourne"—The th Pa e ' l l° ' Specimen: " Fair Ellen," con t ras ted mr, it t r io''''Z o tti, °ll , " Oriana," and W or d swor th' s " Ellen 11. " of "Marie Hamilton"—Picturesqueness ° f e h fro' S Ballads— The Fairy Mythology—Scottish ituratiosecg Queen of Elphen' —Anecdotes, and Ill° 5 , -- 1 "i0 0 10 Tamlane—The Ballad of " True Th ° , ll/ „ 3 tt to or ° Diction of these Ballads —lmitations ---- ''-4 9 10 of the Harlaw"—The Border Ballad----", 04° 0 Character—Specimen: " Kinniont wa s 0 , 1! .i From this it will be perceived that th e og .th e i e ' 1 ,7 enough in yesterday's dissertation. -A t io attended the third lecture, we o bserved lan d, th, tib Duchess of Argyll, the Duchess of Cle ve ofleg h l orV' of Montrose, the Earl and Countess of 1 1 , co l P . ti so Countess of Wilton, Lord and LadY. l g l 3 iw ay, i &os t "ol meny, Lord and Lady Blantyre, Lady the l ,rl Lady DynevoF, Lord and Lady J. 3 1 an ne „bhy, "cle 0 .„11' Powis, Lady Emily Foley, Lady Willou,, : of 0 , 1,1 Countess Mandeville, Countess of Jere3l;,l:;ess r 44 r, tina Villiers, Lady Agnes Duff, the t)!,.., olcliegjeb field, Lady Harriet Filmer, Lady Borosui'Af Hope, Lady Eastlake, Lady Antrobu Lord Forrester, Lady Amherst, the -n r ( !, nes , the Hon. Mr. Rouse Mr. Monckton icon,"'e and Mrs. Fraser Tytler, Mr. Evely n ge n e f 313 guson, Mr. Ellis, Miss Williams, Mr'' Reed, and Mr. 00 11 to t he toa NOVA SCOTIA MINING COIIPAh • 1 .• stb submitted yesterday by Mr. Adam 3 1 t u i r ic r ` j e ireir t ; Scotia Mining Company, regarding the vii i t or k r ° connected with his erroneous report 0 ° A ft. 3, r ich ip ti mines proposed to be leased by them- „ en s 1 ?„ Vole timates that at first visit abundant specTlnd s 4 er' were found strewn along the beachonue se enL t f oto which were subsequently nowhere t _ 4 "l ere ci J e no. 4( mentions a severe accident be encottutt'repres_:'," wards, which, together with some u e r e ge_! sit y of from interested parties, as to the ee' in order itso. 6rbogt diate determination being come d' mines, seems also to have ope%' ver , t he l , judgment. These explanations, w` m isled- A d cletl to!, allowed himself to be grievously en to 1° ;irt :19 are ue as Lis time, whieh t t h h e ey ge a n r e e ra a l eteoeninepaoef ie t a hern i . 0e0:t conclusion that the rnisrepresent.ntl,o4rnaveos. A g eo entirely from a want of caution n , °_,: ro v. . t •7 O e l 3. A f u th M e froln the ' 011 , 9 ‘ , / ss 1 ; ; , me N et ° in lj g vE o Paris on TuesdaONyx,:uwEvheealViiNrAellNilrdts-eLd'a-niPalhil "fiera:'111111 from the London agents (Messr• , rl' _ a n Y s i° h r erng h e ' t ee t icin o rt tl ii° read and adopted, some modifies ray f tatutes t ll time made in the original s ts we ll e 0 balance-sheet, are to be re Copies of the report of th ad e y a f g o e r n de 'live ' l t° hoAldGeruslinFtindconomopnAtlibye. _l9Ttlhi ei is from the Agua Fria Comp .7 n d arif ic :„ini fj o `piS le i Gold - Mining Company have receive .l __ o h3 d. u _ b ie of March, stating that IVIr. Att v . %„ fay° S p ieg.gca. Agua Fria Mine, and formed vein tlittitri;eo of it from the appearance of r ein , so The us d made along its course. , arr ive ha from the Gold-hill Mine bad notlist from the communicatio ns with the stopped by recent floods.",