The Sun. — London, England, 1840-04-24 00:00:00

EVEN IN 6- EDITION . POSTAGE. i CQ}y OF TREASURY MINUTE DATED 1 APRIL 22, 1840. My Lords refer to their Minutes of the 26th Dec., 20th of Feb., and 2d inst., regarding the pre , i parati on an d sa l e of P ostage stamps . IMy Lords read a letter from the Commissioners 1 of Stamps and Taxes, naming the day on which they will be ready to issue stamped covers, enve lopes, and labels in London, and that on which the 1 ' 1 application of such stamps to letters may, in their 1 opinion commence ; but adding that they are unable at present to state when the preparations will be ready f or stamp i ng th e paper which the public may Isend in for that purpose. Having communicated on the subject with the authorities of the Post-office, my Lords are pleased to direct as follows : That the issue of postage stamps for sale to the_ pub lie be commenced as early as practicable ; that such issue be, in the first instance, confined to London ; and that it be extended first to Dublin and Edinburgh, f t 'and afterwards to other parts of the kingdom in $ such order as the Commissioners of Stamps and Taxes may determine, and as rapidly as the neces sary sup-1- p y can be obtained. Also, that the Com missioners of Stamps and Taxes be instructed to give due notice to the public as soon as they are ready to stamp the paper which may be sent in for that purpose. That on and after the 6th of May next, letters written on stamped paper, or enclosed in stamped Covers, or having a stamp or stamps affixed thereto (th e stamp or stamps in every such case being of the same value or amount as the rates of postage now charged on such letters if pre-paid), shall, if within the limitation of weight fixed under the Provisions of the 2d and 3d Victoria, c.. 52, and if the stamp or stamps have not been used before, Pass by the post free of postage in whatever part of toe kingdom they may be posted. That as many parts of the kingdom cannot be supplied with postage stamps by the said 6th of • May, pre-payment by money as well as by stamps be continued until further directions are issued. That unstamped letter's (unless pre-paid by money as at present), be charged double postage on delivery. That letters insufficiently stamped or insufficiently 'cite-paid, be charged on delivery double the amount of such insufficiency. p _ Transmit a co py o f t hi s Mi nute o ffi c i a ll y to t h e Commissioners of Stamps and Taxes, and to the P ostmaster -General, and desire that the Postmaster- General will direct the Solicitor of the Post-office, I after conferring with the Solicitor of the Stamps and Taxes, to prepare the necessary warrant for Athorising the use of stamps, as proposed in this Minute, such warrant to be inserted in the Gazette, pursuant to the provisions of the Act. COVENT-GARDEN THEATRE. Arthur Murphy's enmedy of Know your own Mind, first ",ierforraed at Covent-Garden in 1777, was re 7ived with tolerable success at this theatre last night. r .lf eighteen dramatic pieces, tragical, comical, and farcical, which the fertile pen of Murphy gave to the world, Know your own Mind is the last, and with the exception of The Way to Keep Him, one of the most agreeable in variety of incident and the development of character. But Murphy, with talents which commanded the respect of Dr. Johnsen, wrote too variously and too hastily to write for 'posterity, and even now he is better known as the trridislator of Tacitus, and the author of an essay on the ." Life and Genius of Fielding," than as a dramatist, 1 -11 Poet, a politician, or a lawyer, in which variou s walks he in his day acquired some distinction. Some of his fames, as his Apprentice, ridiculing the spouting-clubs of a by-gone period in our domestic his tory ; and his Upholsterer, levelled at the low-born politicians who flourished in the early part of the "good old George the Third's" reign, now only interest us in the closet by the contrast which they exhibit in the state of political feeling now, and the time in which they were written. In the perform ance last night, Charles Mathews, as the gay, light hearted, witty Dashwould ; Mr. Wigan as the good natured, simple, and weakminded Sir Harry Lovewit ; Mr. Anderson as the fickle Millamour ; Madame Ves trig as the arch, lively Lady Bell ; and Mrs. Orger as the tyrannical, husband-bunting Widow Bromley, were more than respectable. Charles Mathews's Dashwould was particularly good. Mr. Cooper Played the part of Malvil, but he failed to realize our idea of a charecter as well conceived, and as fully delineated, as that of Dr. Cantwell in the Hy- P.:Trite, or rather as Aloliere's prototype of that very sanctified personage. Murphy drew but imper fectly the line between comedy and farce ; and our Principal objection to the performance last night was, that the imperfect line was OViteratl d, as in the scene where young Millamour makes love at the same time to the two sisters. The curtain, however, descended amidst shouts of applause from a full, but not inconve niently crowded audience. The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood followed, and was hailed with delight by the ju venile auditors. The P r i nce an d P r i ncess o f C a pua, with their f a ThilY, leave Mivart . 's Hotel to-day, for Brighton, where they Purpose sojourning a few weeks. At the late Kirton-in-Lindsay Sessions, a jury round a man, charged with stealing iron, guilty of " man 'laughter," and afterwards altered their verdict to " six months fon the wheel," and ultimately to simple "guilty." ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY.—The breeding de- Partment of the Zoological Society it is likely will eventually prove lucrative, as in the present year upwards of 2001. has been received from this source. The animals which are bred, as Well as the surplus ones presented to the Society, meet a ready aide to supply the private men ageries and public gardens in the country, which are much on toe increase. An experimental trip, preparatory to the opening on the 11th of May, was made on the Shoreham Railway last Monday. Two of the luggage waggons, fitted up with seats, and covered with an awning, were occupied by T. Robinson, Esq. (one of the Resident Directors), and a party, consisting of his family and friends, chiefly ladies. The distance from New England to Shoreham is about six miles, which was done in 13 minutes and a half. A mile of perfectly straight road between the Copperas Gap station afid Southwick was traversed in one minute and a half, which is at the rate of 40 miles an hour.—Brighton Gazette. The great attraction at present for the lovers of the picturesque :s the bridge over the valley of the South Esk, which is to connect the Dalkeith coalfield with the railway. It consists of five arches, of 120 feet span each, which are con structed of built beams of timber, abutted upon stone piers of the most tasteful architecture. It is believed to be the second of the kind that has ever been built; and of all the fine works ttndertaken by the Duke of Buccleuch, no one bears stronger Proof of his taste and magnificence. The bridge is within ten Minutes' walk of the railway station in Dalkeith. COMMUNITY CART.—Considerable curiosity Iran manifested in this town on Thursday morning, in conse quence of a very handsome new cart, containing a plough and other agricultUral implements, starting from the George Inn, Where it arrived the previous evening from Sheffield, on its ‘ 0 47 to the community in Hampshire. The words " Queen wood Community," are painted en the side of the cart, and it is said t o b e a present front the Socialists of Sheffield.—Leicester Herald. The centenary festival of the London Hospital will be celebrated on Thursday next, the 30th of April, when a sermon will be preached in the Chapel of the Institution by the Lord Bishop of Norwich, before his Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge, the President, who will afterwards take the chair at the dinner, at the London Tavern. THE ASYLUM FOR HOUSELESS POOR.— Since the opening of this Asylum , wh ich took p lace on the have of January last, and closed on Mo nda y , 4,530 p ersons nave be en sheltered, many have been relieved by p ecuniar y aid, and great n um b ers s ettled in their different parishes. SACRILEGE.—In the course of last week the parish church of Brent Eleigh in Suffolk, was broken into, and several valuable books stolen from the library. A cure of cancer on the lip is recorded in a Scot , tish Pape r , by the use of a pas'e made of the as hes of white ash bark, mixed with pure water. The disease was in an early s tage, and the cure was completed in a fortnight. LORD LYNDHURST.— A correspondent at Brighton writes—" Lord Lyndhurst will be in town by the 2d of next month, if not before. The Noble and Learned Lord is rather weak, but in other respects is quite recovered front his severe illness." A recent letter from Lord Brougham says that he will not fail attending the House on the day that Parliament r e - oornmences its sittings. Sir Robert Fitzwygram, Bart., has arrived at C onnaught -place, from Tusmore-park. MARRIAGE IN HIGH LIFE.--Lady Louisa ( Cadogan, sister of the Earl of Cadegan and Marchioness of tit_ s e,ey was mart it'd s'l^.y last to th e R ev . Wra. Marsh, ".1). Her Ladyship is in her 53d year. DINNER TO THE HONO€rRAILE E. J. STANLEY, M.P„ SICORETARY TO THE TREASURY, BY THE REFORMERS OF NORTH CHESHIRE. STocr(Poirr, Tricks-13ov Wi:tlo —The Reformers of North Cheshire took advantage of the Easter Parlia mentary recess, to give their liberal representative, the Hon. E. 1, Stanley, a public testimonial of approval for his spirited conduct, both in and out of Parliament, in opposing the River Weaver Church building robbery scheme, by inviting him to a public dinner, which took place last evening at the Court-house, in this town. The cir cumstance or Mr. Cornwall Legh having been engaged in a secret eau ass, in opposition to Mr. Stanley, served as a strong reason why the electors should exhibit this *lark of confidence in their Hon. Representative, not QC conduct has been most industriously misrepresented by the Tories during the last few months, On the doors being opened, the room was speedily tilled by some hundreds of gentle men, amongst whom were nearly all the gentlemen of wealth and respectability in the Stockport polling district. Fkotscrs BAKER, Esq., Mayor of the borough of Stock port, took the chair. On the right he was supported by the Hon. E. J Stanley, M.P., Thomas Ashton, Esq., of Hyde, John Cheetham, Esq., of Stalybridge, Potter, Esq., Hol brook Gaskell. Esq., of Warrington, George Andrew, Esq., P. E. Marsland, Esq., R. Mattley, Esq., Jonathan Thornhill, Esq., Rev. R. B. Apsland, of Dukenfield, &c. On his left were Henry Marsland, Esq., M.P., Charles Hindley, Esq., M. P., J. Brocklehurst, Esq., H. P., Rev. E. Howell, S. Ashton, Esq., John Howard, Esq., M. Hadfield, Esq., J. Swinburne, Esq., H. Long, Esq., Thomas Ashworth, Esq., Samuel Robinson, Esq., J. Coppock, Esq., &c. &c. Henry Coppock, Esq., town-clerk of Stockport, officiated as Vice President. The 'cloth having been withdrawn, " Non Nohis Domine " was sung by the glee singers. The CualgtatAN rose, and after a few preliminary re marks, said, as loyal subjects their first duty was to drink the health of the Queen.—(Cheers.) The Queen had ascended the throne of this country with sentiments more in accordance with those of the great bulk of the people than any other Sovereign who had preceded her. He begged to propose the " Health of the Queen, and God bless her."—( Loud cheers.) " God save the Queen" was then suns, the corrina74 standing and joining chorus. The CHATRAIAN next ga ve " health of his R o y a l Highness Prince Albert , " whin was drank with three times three cheers, The CHAIRMAN then gave " His Royal Highness the Duke of Sussex."—.4Loud chem.) CHARLES UINDGET iri the absence of M r . Daven,;,art threesgh illness, proposed " The People, the lefTLomates.l;ource of power." The CHAIRMAN'S next toast was " The of her Majesty's Ministers."—( Prolonged cheering.) S ome persons were apt to blame her Majesty's Ministers, inas much as they tbteght the Ministry had Lot acted with suffieicet etergy of purpose and Lsign,bet had acted too much in the spirit of coneillation sets Aids their opponents. They (the meeting) ought to (elect whether tonic blame did not attach to thottselVes.- - --(oear.) bid they give the Ministry that Support o'6t spoors that they ought to do ? They had giare'e the h - anchise to the people of Stock port, Macclesfield ; the Potteries, and other large towns; and what retUti had the people made for this? They had sent ete Member to support the Government, and the other to thwart them, Instead of blaming the Ministry, he tought they ought to lock at home. The trumpet of agitation had, however, gone from one end of the country to the other, and the people would not rest satisfied till they received the fuil measure of justice. In coocludine, he expressed his conviction that they would never have had the measure of Reform which they already possessed, had not the Liberal Ministry been in office. The toast was drank with immense cheering. The Hon. E. J. STANLEY, in rising to acknowledge the toast, was received with loud cheers. He said, the approbation in which the health of her Majesty's Ministers had been received, must be the best reward that could be given them. He believed he might fairly state that hardly one great measure for the amelioration of the country, had been passed in Parliament which had not had the sup port of the Whigs and the hostility of the Tories.—(Hear, hear.) There was a time when this little band of patriots, many of whom are now in the Ministry, were night after night unceasingly advocating those opinions, and bringing forward those measures of reform and improvement which at last they have seen carried out. Time after time they were laughed at, but still they persevered, and the first of those measures they forced on their reluctant adversaries was the repeal of the Test and Corporation Act, which had so long disgraced the Statute-book. The next mea sure was Catholic emancipation, restoring to their poli tical privileges one-third of the inhabitants of the British empire, but at last the voice of the people called for Reform in such a manner that they frightened the then Ministers from their post, and Lord Grey, who had all his life advo cated Reform, at last saw the Reform Bill carried. That measure in itself carried with it the great measures of emancipation of the slaves, municipal Reform, retrench ment and economy, the Registration Bill, and many other measures which I could name if it were necessary. One of these measures was a mitigation of the penal code, erasing some of the bloodiest statutes that ever were known in any country, and this, be it remembered, was by the exertions of one of the wisest and best of men ever in Parliament, Sir Samuel Romilly, though Sir Samuel Ro milly did not live to see the day when his exertions were attended with success. Who, then, were the party who denounced this ministry ? They were the party who for forty years had unlimited sway in Parliament, perfect control over their Sovereign, and having no opposition in the House of Commons which would prevent them carrying out any measure they thought proper. And yet he confi dently asked them to point out one thing they had done for the extension of civil and religious liberty, or for improving the condition of the people.—( Cheers.) This was the party who when in power did nothing for the people, who, now that they were in opposition, did not promise any course different from that pursued by the present Govern ment, who seemed contented to think that tha duty of the opposition was to obstruct the march of improve ment, and to impede the affairs of the nation. Those Were the parties who called upon the country to put them into place, but he asked them to pause. On what principle did these gentlemen act, if principle they had ; it was that they were determined to refuse all changes. They must bear in mind the principle that "non progredi est re gredi," you must advance, or you must recede. If there was one fact which it appeared to him was more calculated to be deduced from history than another, it was this—that the danger which was to be apprehended to property and to society, and to the institutions of the country during a popular movement in those great changes of the human mihd, depended not on the original concessions made to the people by the princes and the aristocracy ; but on the conduct of those princes and that aristocracy, who, having been compelled to yield, not from a sense of justice, but from circumstances, seek the first opportunity to retrace their steps, and to filch from the people the charters they have given to them, or to render them a dead letter. This bad faith on the one side produced corresponding feelings on the other. Why did he mention these things? Be cause he saw indications in the party opposed that they were prepared to take these steps. Two instances only would he adduce of this. The first was, their conduct with respect to Catholic Emancipation. The second in stance was, the Conservatives, notsatisfied with attempting to exclude the Catholics from all share of power, were attempting to wrest from them the fran chise by the Bill for the Amendment of the Re gistration in Ireland. Of all the atrocious bills, as far as he understood the nature of that Bill, it was the worst. The motive of the Tories for bringing in this Bill was to bring them back to power. There was a letter from the worthy secretary of a Tory association in Cork, in which he says, " Our only possibility of returning a Conserva tive Member depends upon this Bill being passed." They might perhaps think that this was not their case, that they had nothing to do with Ireland ; but the battle of English freedom was to be fought on Irish ground. If it succeded there, it might not be long before it was their turn. A successful fight against the franchises of Ireland would lead to a successful fight against the franchises of England. It was not unfrequcntly hinted that the electors in a town, the freeholders in a town, ought not to have votes for the county. In Parliament the feeling of a great majority was that the Corn-laws were absolutely necessary for the prosperity of England, and it might seem very desirous to them to pass a law disfranchising those voters who were of a contrary opinion, and they would call it merely reverting to the original intention of the Reform Bill. Let them make a short comparison between the two parties. The one was disposed to view the people with confidence, the other to view them with apprehension and fear. Which body of men were the most qualified to conduct the affairs of this nation with safety to the empire against the foreign and domestic foe ?—(Hear.) The Hon. Gentleman proceeded to state that the Tories, who were in all things retrogressive, were alike powerless and insincere. The policy pursued by the present Go vernment towards Ireland was hateful to them, and the will was not wanting in them to impeach her Majesty's Ministers for their conduct to that country. The Tories would goad Ireland till troop would be required to pre serve tranquillity there. In allusion to the warlike mea sures adopted, it was to be deeply regretted that any ne cessity for them existed. But lie felt great confidence that our differences might be fairly settled, and the chief difficulty lie entertained depended on the conduct of the party ojposed to Governme;a, who sought on every occa sion to justify the conduct of our opponents, and who seemed to have a syxpathy for the enemies of our country. The other two points which he had mentioned might be shortly passed over. The first was—was a Tory Govern ment likely to obtain a greater majority ? They tried a vote of confidence at the beginning of the Session, and were defeated. They tried again la the end of the Ses sion, and seemed not more likely of success than before. Had they the confidence of her Majesty? They seemed to think that of no consequence just now. There seemed to be no proripect of a change in the Government. He be lieved that the opinions entertained by her Majesty's Xi nisters were the opinions of the great majority of eeople, and he believed and trusted that the people of this country would not withdraw their support.—(Cheers.) The CHAIRMAN next gave, " The Clergy," which was responded to by the Rev. T. Howell. The CHAIRMAN then gave, " The health of the Hon. E. J. Stanley, and thanks to him for his highly valuable services to the Liberal interests of North Cheshire." The toast was drunk with three times three, and one cheer more. The Hon. E. J. STANLEY, in returning thanks, said he was told in London that it was useless for him to offer himself again to his constituents ; but in every part of the county he found that be had not lost a friend, but had gained additional ones, The Hon. Gentleman then re ferred to the outcry which had been raised against him on account of Mr. Tollemache having been appointed She riff, and said, the fact wa s , he was the second on the list returned by the Judges, and the first excused himself on account of being past age, and they therefore appointed the second. The Hon. Gentleman then referred to the Corn-laws, of which he gave an history. He contended that they were both injurious; to our manufacturing and C:,lllTr.,;:c:-, ~ • The Honnurp.hlP G'cutlernAn . then referred to the speech of Sir Robert Peel. Who, he said, had abandoned all the old argumei,ti in fay* tht Corn-laws, and bad referred to etieo4.4let of Mr. S. Jones Loyd, attributing the blame of tne late depression to the Bank. Sir R. Peel now asked that the statements of the manefactWrirs be proved, and he would then r en*.Pct.e.t to a l fte'r iVe w. He (Mr. Stanley? tho'..th't It *as the duty of a Statesman not to tvact till the ruin of the country was accomplished, but to apply a remedy in time. He was not in fat , onr of a total and unconditional repeal. He thosight it would be unjust to reduce those who had been depending on the Corn-laws to a free trade its horn all at once; bet a was for a moderate Axed duty, ijle‘lghl; Vvould be suf ficient for the pu'rposek luti in view. The Hon. Gen tleman the referred to the conduct of the Opposition with regard to China and Canada, which he said had been for the sole purpose of obstruction, and t (deluded by thanking his constituents for Appt'rt. The CHAIRMAN lI'CX.t OMNI npOn thomas Vircieldehurst, Esq., M. P%—(Cheers)-..t0 pro:pt'st tlle nek't twit, lkoteennuest roae tad etrte'ted 't Commerce and Agriculture t and may PaYlia men t never allow the one to be advantaged to the detriment of the other." He should like to see the agricultural interest abating its prtposterous claims to monopoly, and the commercial interest i•enotnicing its claims to a total abolition: In the year be i( Mr. Brocklehurst) entered Parliameat a total hakger of any alteration in the Corn-laws t but a little time, and the reading of is great many pamphlets, caused him to think that he had taken a wrong view of the question. Having voted on one side of the question, latterly lit he'd %.7'etSd on tne other ; and whenever this qtestio% Cate again before the House of Commons he ( Mr. Brockleliurst) would be found supporting the views he had just expressed. The Corn-laws must be altered ; and God grant !hal those who opposed the alteration might foresee that ruin which the Hon. Member for North Cheshire had stated Sir R. Peel wished to sec explained. God grant that he and those who sat around him might foresee and thus be enabled to prevent that ruin. The CHAIRMAN next proposed the health of tlenfy Marsland, Esq., M. P. for Stockport, eitpressing his belief that a more holiest man could not be found Within the walls of St. Stephen's.—(Loud cheers.) Mr. MARSLAND rose, and. wag feii.ao.e`r.i, isittt loud cheers. He said with respett Corn-laws, h e was not for total and imrne•" —Lae repeal, but, at the same time, saw 00 7. - ason why the repeal should not be total at some future time. The Hon. Gentleman eneeluded a speech, embracing a liberal onsidttatiOn of almost all.the public question* of tide day, by saying the meeting had drunk tha`6ening the toast of the Sovereign Power of the People. He believed that power was far too much cir cumscribed ; and, although he had said he was averse to change for the sake of change, he was of opinion that the franchise must be moll extended before they could hope for the Hdrebs of the wrongs of which the people so justly and So loudly complained, and before they could obtain from the privileged classes that power which was already in their possession, and which they had used to the detri ment of those who depended on their industry alone.— (Loud cheers.) The Hon. E. J. STANLEY rose and proposed the health of their respected Chairman, the Mayor of the borough of Stockport, passing an culogium on his worship, and pay ing a similar compliment to the late Mayor of the borough, for the activity which he exhibited in the apprehension of the Chartist leaders at Stockport about seven months ago. The toast was drunk with lively demonstrations of ap plause. The MAYOR returned thanks in an appropriate speech. Having concluded, he immediately proposed the health of Charles Hindley, Esq., and the electors of Ashton-under- Lyne.—( Drank with tumultuous cheering.) Mr. HINDLEY rose amidst loud applause, and after thank ing the meeting, proceeded to eulogize his Hon. Friend Mr. Stanley. If (said Mr. Hindley) I had the power of selecting any individual from the whole of England, Wales, Ire land, and Scotland, I do not know that we could be bet ter represented than by that gentleman. The Hon. Gen tleman then adverted to the impolicy of at present trying to bring in two Reformers for North Cheshire. If you try to do this (said he) you will lose both. My earnest advice to all my brother electors of this division of the county is, let us be satisfied if we can only return Mr. Stanley. At the conclusion of Mr. Hindley's address a great por tion of the company left. The Chairman remained in the chair till about half-past ten o'clock, when another Chair man was appointed. The meeting was subsequently ad dressed by Holbrooke Gask ell, Esq., of Warrington, Henry Coppock, Esq., town clerk of Stockport, and other geetlemen, after which the meeting broke up. friiE L sVX.LoND()N, 24,.JP40. COURT CIRCULAR. WINDSOR, THURSDAY.-Her Majesty and Prince Al bert, the Duchess of Kent, and the Hereditary Prince of Saxe Cobourg Gotha, rode to-day by the New Lodgo and Ascot Heath, accompanied and attended by most of the visitors and suite at the Castle, including Viscount Mel. bourne, Lord Kinnaird, Hon. Miss Pitt and Hon. Miss Anson ; the Ladies Eleonora and Constance Paget, and Hon. Miss Paget, Lord Byron, &c. The Hon. Colonel Grey and Colonel Bouveric, the Equerries in Waiting on the Queen and his Royal Highness Prince Albert,• attended the Royal party. Mr. George E. Anson has left the Castle, for town. The Royal dinner party this evening, will be composed of the same company as yesterday. Her Majesty the Queen Dowager and her Serene Highness the Duchess Ida of Saxe Weimar, visited the Princess Augusta at Clarence-house, St. James's, yester day morning, and the Duchess of Gloucester, at Glou cester-house. In the afternoon her Majesty rode out on horseback, attended by her Suite; and the Duchess Ida and the Princes and Princesses •f Saxe Weimar, took an airing in open carriages. The Duke of Cambridge arrived in town shortly before two o'clock yesterday afternoon from a visit to the Duke of Wellington, at his seat Strathfieldsaye, Hants. His Royal Highness visited the Princess Augusta and the Duchess of Gloucester in the afternoon. The Marquis of Lansdowne arrived at his residence at Richmond, on Wednesday, from Bowood Park, Wilts. Loi'd Adolphus Fitzelarence left town on a visit to Lord Southampton, at his scat near Northampton. Despatches from Governor Light, at British Guiana, were received yesterday at the Colonial-office. SPORTING INTELLIGENCE. NEWMARKET CRAVEN MEETlNG.—(TiznasnAr.) Handicap Sweepstakes of 20 sovs. each, for four yrs old and upwards. A.F. (5 Subs.) Duke of Rutland's Flambeau, 4 yrs, Bst 101 b ...(Robinson) 1 Mr. Thornhill's Mendizabel, aged 9 , 4 2 General Grosvenor's Dredalus, 5 yrs, Bst 31b Mr. Thornhill's Merganser, 4 yrs, Bst Ilb Betting-11 to 8 agst Flambeau, 5 to 2 agst Mendizabel, and 4to 1 agst Daedalus (taken). Won by half a length. The Claret Stakes of 200 sovs. each, h ft ; for four yrs old colts, Bst 71b ; and fillies, Bst 21b. D.I. (4 Subs.) Mr. Thornhill's Euclid (Conolly) 1 Lord Lichfield's The Corsair 2 Betting-10 to 6on Euclid.—Won cleverly. • Lord Chesterfield's fby Priam, out of Katherina, received from Mr. Thornhill's Empress, Bst 71 each, R.M., 1,000, h ft. Newmarket, Wednesday Night. The following match was run after our list was sent from the heath :-501., h ft T. Y. C.—Hon. G. S. Byng's Garryowen, Bst 21b. (Nat), beat Mr. Ford's Ten-pound Note, Bst 71b. Betting-11 to Bon Garryowen, who made all the running, and won by a length and a half. Match, 500, h. ft., Bst 71b each, A.F.—Lord Lichfield's Firefly received from Mr. Thornhill's Lantern. Match, 200, h. ft., Bst 51b each, D.M.—Lord Exeter's Si listria received from Mr. Greville's Trojana. The following are a few additional particulars of the principal races:— High Ash Stakes.--Perseus made play, followed by Helles pont into the bottom, where Dreadnought joined them, and they ran together into the cords. Dreadnought then headed them, and won cleverly by a length. Column Stakes.—Janus cut out the work, followed by Ple nary and the Tragedy colt, the others lying close up. At the Bushes-hill the first and second dropped tjff. The velvet colt went on with the running, attended by Tragedy, Molineux, Assassin, and the favourite following them. Just before reach ing the bottom, Assassin went in front, was never after headed, and won easy by a length. Angelica was overpaced, but ran a game horse, and made a capital race for seeond with the Velvet colt, losing it by a neck only. The Tragedy colt could not have been more than a neck from him. Molineux was a bad fifth, Janus sixth, and Plenary last. Fifty Soya. Stakes.—Diploma made all the running, was never headed, and won easily by a length. The winner visa ridden by Wakefield, and not by Nat, as stated in the hurry of sending off our list. Plate.—Scroggins made strong 'play into the cords, where Epirus challenged, and they ran a splendid vace, Scroggins winning by a head only. The following list of the prices for the Two Thousand Gui neas Stakes, Derby, and Oaks will show two or three highly important changes TWO THOUSAND GUINEAS STAKES. 2 to 1 agst Mr. Houldsworth's Confederate 3 to 1 agst Lord G. Bentinck's Crucifix 8 to 1 agst Lord Exeter's lot 10 to 1 agst Mr. Wreford's Wardan—taken THE DERBY. 5 to 1 agst Lord Westminster's Launcelot—taken, and off. 7 to 1 agst Duke of Cleveland's Theon— tak., and offered Bto 1 agst Mr. Houldsworth's Confederate—take 9to 1 11 to 1 agst Lord Albemarle's Assassin—taken 18 to 1 agst Lord Jersey's Muley Ishmael—take 20 to 1 22 to 1 agst Mr. Etwall's Melody colt—take 25 to 1 25 to 1 agst Captain Gardnor's Monops 25 to 1 agst Lord Orford's Angelica colt 35 to 1 agst Mr. Robinson's St. Andrew—take 40 to 1 40 to 1 agst Colonel Anson's Black Bess—taken 40 to 1 agst Lord Chesterfield's Gambia—taken 50 to 1 agst Lord Westminster's Maroon—taken and offer. 1000 to 10 agst Mr. Fowler's Cormorant—taken 1000 to 10 agst Mr. Eddison's The Ruler—taken 1000 to 10 agst Duke of Rutland's Crazy Boy usn —taken —difitraext f k wkn e_oenrtDa;k 500 n 4 3to 1 agst Scott's lot — taken; 1000 to 20 agst Little Wonder and Solace—tali en ; 600 to 400 on stAo6no4goteooli2coo a Angelica colt Ag agst ot n a To g pit s st eonagst a Blacknd St. B C Ar e a and Oaks. THE OAKS. 301/ to 100 agst Lord George Bentinck's Crucifix—ta. 3 times 12 to 1 agst Mr. Wigram's 'feleto—taken Offers to take 8 to 1 about Black Bess. We understand that the Rev. Dr. Wolff has been appointed Vice-President of the African Institution of Paris, of which many of the most eminent men in France are members. • Lady Ward and the Hon. Miss Ward arrived at Mivait's Hotel, ye sterday, from a tour in the South o f France and Italy. Her ladyship and daughter have been ab sent nearly twelve months. The Duchess of Gordon has returned to town, from visits to the Duke and Duchess of Richmond, at Good wood Park, and the Count ess of Newbur g h, at Sil don House, Sussex. Her Grace has be en sta y in g a short time a t Brighton. Ladyßodney have arrived in to wn from c onsequence of the death of his Lordship' s L c o h rd elt a en n h d am,in mother, the Dowager Lady Rodney. We understand the de ceased lady's second son, the Hon. Thomas James Harley Rodney, comes into possession of her ladyship's scat, Barring ton, Herefordshire. The Dowager Countess of Clarendon left Cj a , rendo n House, yesterday, for Richmond, on a visit to Lord and Lady Maryborough. SPIRIT of the PUBLIC JOURNALS. • 4 I FROM THE MORNINti FAPERt OF THIS DAT. i `rofri the I Lnes. 5 The " eipeament," as it has been called, upon the moral and physical natures of the lower classes of thi country, has now been tHed for nsarly sit years. Mow than five hundred thousand pounds have been spent in the fruitless endeavour .to persuade the rieli that the pool have no.blaibv oh, their for, vi-pteetion that all their old assoeiaiions Peat' be sorely bt'oken theit feelings trampled upon ; and to reduce the I bor to that degraded condition in which they are assumed tp be alrea4v—a bur den to their countiy—citii ens not of Englane; but of the workhovsse ,,, ,:ub.leett. not a the En g lish taws, not even of the Boards of Guardians; but of their high mighti nesses the Poor=lakv Commissioners.. 'Yes} this precious lesson has been ts..titht 1 ,11; as a Ample of the en liglittned benevolence of the 19th century. Like other Utopian scheines; it was to bb a panacea fcr afl the evils of improvidenbe nnsl faisfortunb. Happi nes.; and e , rhteniment were promised as its result. Have they followed ? Ask the clergy, the natural, and, as we must believe, tbe Divinely Appointed guai-difins of the poo p r , i , tlitisC Of litchi bgliv Mitttjebit at tirt2t Slght &nine° ny tne sophistries Of thiS new system ; and the; will tell you, that wherever the New Poor-law has been carried out, the ties Whibh band together, the wealthy and poorer 'elaffros bk, - Qn thk latter, hate L',',nme Alienated f rom t h e l ormer , and hare learned to regard them were to hate been indSt benefited, and no.lohger as prcit c etors, but, as enemies. Ask the fairrnelk "'e they enrintit neN.y CM.! th6L y 11 beeii ffi!kiably disap pointed. Ask the manufdettirer he, indeed, can hardly be supposed capable of judging of a teitiedy which its au thorn hate bet TO dared to apViy °ls6. ,( From the jio - rtz . ing Pest) A sort of derrih-official article appeared in a morning paper of 'ester i diik; coolly endeavouring to persuade the public ibat all their apprehension of wat with the United States of America was merely the result of Tury machina tions; and that there was in fact no sort of ground for any such aPtirehention. We retognise in this article the flippant impud enc e an d careless contempt of truth b 3 which the Foreign Department under its present direction is distinguished. Th e apprehension entertained by the public is founded on official documents communicated to the Congress of the United States by the President, and since the publication of these documents in this country politicians of all parties have felt that there was at least a great danger of war. Whatever may be the result of submitting the principal question in dispute to another award, the pres..ing and immediately dangerous point is the preservation of the terms upon which it was agreed that both parties should stand while the disputed point re mained unsettled. It seems that a violation of the agree. ments which were made last year is likely to lead to military interference, and if it do, how then is war to be averted ? (From the Morning Herald.) The ,question of the abolition of neyro slavery should not be mane a party question. It is a question of morals, of social improvement, of humanity. Yet how often is it treated as a question of mere party politics, in which L spirit of zealous partisanship is far more apparent than any dispassionate and impartial consideration of the real merits of the case. The Morning Herald was the first of the daiiy journals of London that raised its voice in behalf of the emancipation of the black slaves of our sugar islands. It did so because it looked at the subject not as a mere Whig or Tory one, but as a question of Christian ethics, which ought not to be argued or decided upon mere party considerations. Surely a ques tion involving the personal freedom or slavery of 800,000 of the human race—about the number of captive Africans at that time in our sugar islands—was of too high and sa cred a nature to be made the mere foot-ball of party con fl'et. Whether within the limits of the British dominions, and under the sceptre of a free monarchy, man should con tinue to have a property, a freehold interest as it were, in the person of his fellowman, we took to be a question which a Christian people ought not to determine on any other grounds than those of a moral and religious nature. The people of England have determined that perEonel slavery is immoral, unchristian, and impolitic. We are glad they have so determined. (From the Morning Chronicle.) It was a heavy blow to the established religion of the country which: the Tories gave when they determined, as a master stroke of party tactics, to make every question a Church question. They have thus contrived to put the Church religion in an antagonistic position towards the civil rights of Dissenters, the municipal and political liber ties of Ireland, the safety of our reMaining colonies across the Atlantic, and. the prospect of a national education, at a time when itstseed and urgency have become universally felt. . In such an unprincipled game, whoever gains, the Church religion is sure to be damaged. Hitherto, the trick has net served the party. They are where they were when they begun to, play it. Not so the Church. Toryism may be strong enough to prevent any reform in its temporalities. Its incumbents may still have their ave rage receipts of five hundred pounds per annum, and its working clergy be still kept down to their seventy or eighty pounds,per annum. Its estates may still be jobbed, for the enrichp;ent of individuals, at the expense of the body. Its taxation of Dissenters may still be kept up, with all the concomitants of parochial animosity. But it has suffered, and does suffer from day to day, in its spiritual character and influences. It has lost the power of making any material p►ogress, amongst the poorer classes. Tory politics have crippled, its principle of extension. The spiritual has been sacrificed to the sordid. The true re ceipt for Church Extension is to abandon all attempts upon the public purse, to release the Church-rate pri soner, and forego the Church-rate impost ; to pay its idle clergy less, and its labouring clergy more, and to throw down the abominable barrier it has raised against the edu cation of the people. Then will its prospects revive, and not till then. MONEY MARKET and CITY NEWS (THURSDAY EVENING.) TIMES.—'An order came down to the Bank this morn ing that no powers of attorney shall be acted on in future on which the stamp duty has not been paid. Heretofore suebinstruments bave been freely used with no other tax than a fee of is. 6d. to the clerk by whom they were made out at the Bank; but it is now discovered that such exemption ftom stamp duty is contrary to law, and so rigidly is the new order to be acted on, that it will take effect upon all the old powers for receiving dividends, however distant the period at which they were granted. The parties presenting such powers hereafter will be required to pay th e stamp duty on each, which amounts, it is said, to 205., so that where the dividend to be trken is a small one it will operate as 'a heavy tax. What excites surprise is, that the discovery should now be made for the first time after so many years of the existence of an illegal practice in regard to transfers and dividends of stock, in which so important a public body as the Bank has been the instrument and the Government the sufferer by it. Undoubtedly the circurmitance ;hat Govern ment securities were held to be subject to no such tax has been an inducement with many persons to invest in them, and the-alteration will he felt by many holders as a great hardship, among foreigners especially, who nave no alter native but to effect all their transactions of the kind by powers of attorney. The sum to be produced by it can scarcely be compensated by the annoyance and disagree able feeling which it will produce universally. There have been no fluctuations of importance in the English stock-market. Consols have remained all day at the closing prices of yesterday—viz., so to for Money, and 91 to k for the Account. Money has not been greatly , in demand, and Exchequer Bills are at 21s. to 3s. prem. which has now been their price for several days. In the Foreign House but little has been done. The last news of the fail of Aliaga still seems to hltve an in-' fluence in keeping up the price of Spanish securities, which are firm, although they have not advanced since yes terday. The ruling price throughout the day for the Active Stock 'has been 29k, and the closing quotation is 29} to I. C H RON IC LE. —The Consul Market is scarcely so good as yesterday, having closed at 9O to for money, and 91 buyers for the account, having been, however, at one time sellers at the last mentioned price. The cause of this slight depression is the reports which we noticed yes terday as to the settlement fa the question of the Maine boundary not being fully cootresi and that several sales were effected in consequenee.of of' ' being afloat on the Stock Exchange that the Cbasqlkitor of the Exchequer was about to issue notice for a Iowa; and that it might be expected to be sent down this week. Exchequer Bills continue at 21s. to 235. preen. In the Foreign House the business transacted was prin cipally confined to a few operations in Spanish Actives, which remained firm at the advanced quotation of yesterday. SUN.—The Funds closed steadily. Consols for Money at 901 8, And for Time at 91 to ; Excheque r Bills were 21s. to 235. premium ; and India Bonds ss. premium. Bank Stock was dull at 175 ; but India Stock rallied from 2491 to 250. Business was not animated in the Foreign Securi ties, and prices varie d to no extent this aftea rnooghtn. Spanish Active Bonds were marked 29i, b e i ng improvement ; Portug uese New Five p er C ents . 3 5 4 ; Mexican Stock 28 i ; Brazilian 76 ; and Fren c h Fi ve per Cents. 112. There was a brisk demand for Railway Shares at fully previous rates. THE LATE MAJOR•GENERAL SIR ALEX ANIMIL J. DicKsoN.—The death of this Gallant Officer, took place on Wednesday., after a c) n Illness of several weeks. The allant officer, who was in his 6-cl year, entered the artillery as ,Second Lieutenant, the 6th of November, 1794, and during ' the forty-five years he was in the service had gone t h rough all in tie intermediate gra des, and June, 18.37, was gazetted as a Major-General. The following record of his serv i ces i s ex tracted from Lieuten ant Harts " New Annual Army List ": " Sir Alexander Dickson was at the capture of Minorca in 1798; blockade of Malta and surrender of La Valetta, IX OO ; siege and c a pture of Monte Video, and attack on Buenos Ay res, 1807 ; served thro ughout the campaigns of the Peninsula, France,and Fla n d ers, in cluding, in 1809, the affair at Grigo, capture of Oporto and expulsion of Marshal Soult from Portugal ; 1810, battle of Basaco and lines of Lisbon ; in 1811, af fair at 'Campo° Mayor, siege and capture of Olivenca, first and second siege of Badajoz, attack and capture of the forts at Almarez, siege and capture of the forts a n d b att l e of Sala manca, capture of the Retire, .Madrid, and siege of Bur gos ; in 1813, battle of Vittoria, siege and pa ssage of Adour, and battle of Toulouse; served n the last A mer i can war, ' i in cluding the attack on New Orleans, and siege and capture of Fort. Bowyer, Mobile; pres. nt in the battl es of Quatre Bras and Waterloo: command in g battering train in aid of the Prus sian army in the sieges of,Mauberg, Land rec i es, Philippeville, Marienberg, and Rocroy. He was director-general and de puty-adjutant-general of the royal artillery, a G.C.B. and IC. C. H. We learne d that the fun eral of the deceased officer is fixed for Tuesday next, wh en h e w ill b e i nterr ed at Plumpstead, rear oolwich, with military horours. Lord Bloomfield, colonel-commandant; Sir Hussey Vivian. master-general of the ordnance ; Colonel Sir A. Wilson, and a great number of the officers of the royal artillery, intend at tending the obsequies. WOODEN PAI'EMENT. TO THE EDII OR OF THE SUN. tt—ilaviug observed an article in your paper this evening headed" Wooden Pavernett, 'ellw,v for information, to observe I have had considerable experience in the formation of foundations, and I consider that the pavement cai - ;L'elt Possibly stand onliss there is a stratum of concrete formed of Thames or Slagle, with a proportionate quantity of Dorking lime, not than six inches deep, to withstand . , the superincumbent weight that must be expected on the roads of the metropolis sencrally I ath, Plif f l'our's, most respeethinv f HENRY NIXON. Islington, April 93,,,18.10. TO TIE EDIT OP OP 11 - 1 E SUN. SIR—In consequence of several statements con tained in a r . ;pliesll ilfili4efeig by Mr. Smith, one the Anti-Corn-law delegates froth B'tirling i at a meeting of the Corn-law Convention, which ap peared in a late number* of your valuable and liberal paper, Eitti rt:s Oft of the same as reported went to place the Chartist catige. th thk; in a light thr most unfavourable, I therefore fed it a duty, at+ it is also in accordance with the anxious wish of a numerous pottion of the friends of the Charter liere, to request your insertion of this com municatitm, with the following brief report of a meeting, for the purpose of counteracting the evil effects which those statements were doubtle;s in tended to produce. By so doing, you will much oblige, Sir, Your's, respectfully, JOHN YOUL. Sti-ling, April 20, 1840. A public meeting, called at the instance of the Anti-Corn-law Association, was held in the Jus• ticiary Court-house here, on : Friday evening last, the 17th current ; on which occasion all friendly to a repeal of the Corn-laws were invited to attend. Shorly after the hour of meeting (7 o'clock) seve ral hundreds had assembled, and the business of he evening was commenced by the President of the Association, one of the Delegates to the Corn law Convention, giving an account of his steward ship. Subsequent on his delivery of a long train of circumstances connected with that assembly, and the reading of numerous and copious extracts in re lation to the repeal movement, &c., which seemed not much to, gratify the meeting, a vote of thanks to the elegates for their conduct, was moved and seconded, but an objection to the motion having been taken, on the ground of non attendance of one of the Delegates, the Chairman did not deem it prudent to take the sense of the meeting on the subject. The reason why is easily defined. A member of the Association having at considerable length addressed the meeting on the evil effects of the Corn-law, a number of Chartists then severally claimed to be heard, on the nround of their being also favourable to a repeal of b that obnoxious law, who, satisfactorily to the majority of the meeting, at all events, exposed the true cause •ilienee those effects originated, namely, in exclu sive legislation, and successfully substantiated that the true, the shortest, and best way to arrive at a cure of the evils complained of was, by the removal of the cause, which could only be done by reforming effectually the Legislature, and which it is extremely probable will only be attained by the united ex ertions of the middle and working classes taking their stand on the broad principle of Universal Suffrage. It was ultimately moved that the best means to obtain a repeal of the Corn-law was by Universal Suffrage. The motion was carried without .a This defeat notwithstanding, was noto riously apparent. _ _ _ [We Wave omitted one or two passages of Mr. Yours, letter.] TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN. EDITOR,--.4s I consider The Sun to be one.,of the most impartial of the daily Journals, as well as that which represents the opinions of the great bulk of Reformers—l mean of that party which prefers renovation and improvement to rash destruction, or, what is nearly as bad, to suffer de cay to creep on without any attempt to repair the constitutional edifice. I would, through this me ilium, exhort all classes of Reformers to merge their differences into a general union, and strive to obtain the following propositions, the necessity ,of which, I believe, all real. Reformers are now persuaded of :—I. Household Suffrage, with such a modification of the rate-paying clauses as will en able every man to give his vote. 2. Vote by Bal lot. 3. Abolition of the Corn-laws. And let full and equal justice be done to Ireland ; she has as much right as England to Municipal and Elective ,Reform carried to its fullest extent. One word to your Correspondent of Saturday. Let him be assured that no right-minded man will blame you for your strictures on Church abuses, but will rather estimate rightly that generosity of feeling which induces you to merge sectarian feel ing. as a Churchman, into a desire to see it stripped of its corruptions, and to see it deal honestly with other sects of Christians. But the hi , h Church party are the last who ought to be offended by your strictures, for their Tory organs continually teem with offensive matter and attacks on those who differ from them. Thus Fraser, with characteristic insolence, in his last ' number not only caricatures several most able and Christian Dissenting ministers, but withholds, what common courtesy ought to have induced him to prefix to their names, " Reverend." With quite as much propriety might the Queen's hair dresser refuse to call those hairdressers who only dressed the heads of her Majesty's lieges. This I display of sectarian bigotry and insolence. is la- I mentable. I am persuaded if the Editors of Fraser's, Quarterly Review, the Times, Standard, and other High Church and Tory publications, and those who think with them, had happened to have lived in the time of our Savicur, they would, with ,the Jews, have cried out " Crucify him, crucify :hien !" or bawled out with the multitude " Great is Diana of the Ephesians I" Or would, with the Athenians, have put Socrates to an unjust death. Or, with the Bishops and Priests of the Romish Church, have hurried the first Protestant Martyrs to the flames. Or, with Parker and Laud, impri soned and persecuted, even unto death, the Puri tans. For thcy show themselves to partake of the same spirit of persecution, by molesting, as far as the law will allow them, those who choose to think for themselves, in opposition to a State Church and a State Creed. These High Church and Tory writers overdo the thing, and convince the world .‘ that they love their own sect better than Christianity."—l am, Mr. Editor, Your's obediently, A CONSTANT READER. Bath, April 22, 1840. PRICE OF SUGAR. EFFECT OF MONOPOLY. Table showing the ex-duty price of West India Sugai in Mincing-lane, and comparing the same against that o foreign Sugars:— _ _ London, April 24, 1840. The Gnzette of this evening will quote the average price of British Plantation Muscovado Per Cwt. Sugar, exclusive of duty, at ... 41s. lid. The actual quantity of West India Sugar sold on account of the importers, in the week ending the 21st instant, ac cording to the returns made upon oath, by the West India Sugar Brokers, in conformity with the Act of Par liament, and on which quantity the above price is corn putod, consisted of 1,219 hhds. 45'trs. and 221 barrels. The amount of duty on West India Sugar, received at the Custom-house of this port, from the Ilth to the 16th of April, both days inclusive, was 26,553/. 12s. There has been little or no demand for Foreign Sugars this week : those which arc quality for quality similar to West India Sugar, may be bought at about 19s. per cwt. less than the latter description, that is to say, British con. sinners have to pay over and above the Foreign Market value of the Sugar, and the 245. per cwt. imposed as duty on it, an indirect tax of 193. per cwt., which 19s. the Su gar Monopoly a bstracts from their p ockets to enrich that highly favoured class, the West India Proprietors. Refined Sugar equal in every respec to the Standard Double Leaf, manufactured from Foreign Muscovadoes by those Sugar 'Houses in London which work for exporta tion only, has n bee sold this week, deducting slipping c harges, at 335. per cwt., being 83 per cwt. less than the price of dirty moist Sugar, imported from the West In. dies. With a view to show in what manner moist Sugar is occasionally c ontaminated, our readers are requested to peruse an extract from a. ond of v Lincoln NPaepsetr,lnpdiunblsisohgendr,iinf The Sun of y paidthe2 2t f l o i r n t eachant .p u outlniCi rilem on Foreign Sugar, would, besides the e p t o k u se n un d pa l Sugar, purc has o a- p ound of bread. The a nnual o lion of Sugar may , on an average of years, be taken m 450 millions of pounds — the nation, cons equently, eve ry year, through excess of prices, throw s away in the pur chase of British Plantation Muscovado Sugar as much • money as would buj 112 millions of (In.irtc:ii loaves. GENERAL REFORT OF COMMIS SIONERS FOR INQUIItt .INTO NAVAL AN kfIL/TARY PROMOTION AND TIREMENT, (Continued from The gun'of Yesterday.) THE NAVY. As we have tetleay,oured to show the present State I of efficiency of the officers of your Majesty's navy, aed have described carefully the course of promotion adopted throughout,. we propose to refer to cads Separate ran k in detail, pointed; out the peculiar disadvantages aneler which we consider some Of them to labour, and to sug gest such remedies as, consistently with a due regard to econottlYs may present themselves to our minds. We shall take the classet in their order, beginning with those through which the natal candidate must pass before he can take his position on the quarter-deck of a shipeofewar in the highly responsible office of com manding officer. It does not occur to us to offer any suggestion to your Majesty with respect to the naval officer while he is fielding the situation of volunteer or midshipman ; he may, while in that position, be described as a cadet for the sea service merely. His connection with the navy may terminate with a single voyage. His inch nation, tar the state of his health, may induce him to direct himself ta other pursuits ; and even at the ex piration of the whole petio4 of his service as such he will still have before him all the prospects that may be open to any young man of seventeen or' eighteen years of age and certainly under the new and improved system of neeal instruction, he will not be deprived of those advantages of education, the loss of which might have resulted from sea service in periods :remote from the present time . . It is, how ever, certain diet a very considerable number of naval candidates do relinquifilf the sea-service in this their no vitiate, as may be in!erred front the number of admis sions into the class exceeding the annual average of those who pass their examination for the rank of lieute nant to an extent which the ordinary casualties of the service Would not account for. It was, indeed, stated to us in evidence that a considerable number of volun teers leave the service in the course of their two years' probation to .be midshipmen and an inference was drawn from this circumstance that the chances of pro motion for yceng gentlemen now entering the navy are better than might tie sepposed from the average annual promotion from the mates to be commission officers. When the midshipman has passed his examination, and maintained his qualification to be a lieutenant on an opportunity offering Itself, his value as a serviceable of ficer of the navy becomes more apparent. his abilities in seamanship and navigation have been tested bya rigid examination, and hie conduct must have been good, or his eating as a mate would, according to the evidence before us, heve been withheld from him. In our opi nion it would be highly expedient to attach this valuable class of officers definitely le the service by the grant of some warrant or commission from the Board of Admi ralty, and to give them a permanent position in the navy. At present they have neither rank (when paid off), half pay, nor retirement. It they are paid off from one ship they mast seek an appointment to another, and failing that, they Co longer form a part of the service, and have no tie to it whatever, It is our unanimous opinion that this state of things requires,oa publicgrounds,amend ment, and that both justice and sound policy render it of importance 'to secure to the service those who have passed through their probationary course, and slim have shown that they are qualified to take their position as commissioned officers. There is no witness examined by us who has not borne ready testimony to the merits and value of Chic officers ; and such of us whom your Majesty has been pleased to assemble for the purpose of this inquiry as have had the opportunity of observ ing the conduct of these. young men in the course of our service, would desire to add our own testimony in support of their strong claims to consideration. As a general question we should have felt some hesi tation in entering upon any consideration of the rates of pay assigned to the officers in the different branches of the service, unless it had been shown to us that the efficiency of the service was exposed to detriment from an insufficient scale of remuneration to those employed therein. We have, on this account, already suggested an increase of pay to the adjutants of the army, and the same reason will induce us to offer a recommenda tion that an increase of pay should be given to the mates of the navy. We certainly do not consider that the present scale, which fixes their pay at about all. a year, is sufficiently remunerative to encourage these gentlemen to continue to afford their valuable services in a profession where proficiency can only be acquired by great practical experience ; and, as we propose to attach this class to the navy by a warrant or commis sion, and by half-pay, we should consider it highly ex pedient to elevate the rank by the establishment of a scale of pay more nearly commensurate with their sta tion and duties than exists at present. The recommendations we offer in this respect to your Majesty are First, that the sea pay of the metes should he fixed at 3s. 7d. a day, or 51. per lunar month ; and, second, that after three years' actual sea service as mate, and when unable to obtain employment in your Majesty's service, mates should be entitled to half-pay at the rate of 2s. 6(1. a day. With regard to retirement we have to observe, that we should consider it expedient to assign a limit to their • liability to service, and to fix a period at which it should be within the power of the Board of Admiralty to allow a mate to retire altogether with a pension. We con sidered and discussed this point very fully, desiring to guard ourselves, on the one hand, from the possibility of recommending that serviceable men should be encou raged to relinquish employment in the navy, and, on the other hand, quite disposed to recognise the claims of such as might be entitled to that indulgence to a permanent provision from the public, on a scale propor tioned to their pay for employment. We propose to re commend to your Majesty to invest the Board of Ad miralty with a discretion is this respect, merely prescrib ing a given period of service as an essential condition of eligibility for the pension. We see no reason to fix this retired half-pay at a higher rate than the half-pay which is held under the liability to service, viz , 2s. 6d. a day ; and the term of service upon which we would propose that the Board of Admiralty may be left to de cide the title of a mate to retired hall-pay should be twenty years' actual sea service, during ten of which he shall have heel rating as a mate. _ _ _ As we desire to examine the conditioa of the several ranks of officers in the course which they would follow on promotions, we shall proceed to the lieutenants, deferring for the present our observations upon some other classes. Our examination of the evidence in regard to the rank of naval lieutenant, has led to the conviction that a very large number must be considered as having obtained this commission as a provision from the public for service in an inferick station. They did not, of course, obtain lieutenancies exempted from a liabii:ty to be recalled to employment ; but to many it must have been apparent that this contingency was remote, and they must have viewed the position they obtained as the ultimate station they would hold in the navy. The promotion of more than one thousand officers to be lieutenants, in one year, at the close of the last war, would in itself furnish a sufficient proof of this. Nor can we overlook the fact exhibited to us in the returns of services procured from the Admiralty, that a large number of the class have done very little sea-duty since their advancement to that rank. We have no doubt, however, that this deficiency of service, and unwilling ness to he employed, as shown in the evidence before us, has arisen in many cases from the little inducement to lieutenants to remove from half-pay to full-pay. One return in the Navy Appendix shows that -5:30 have never set ved as lieutenants. 386 less than one year as such. 6.56 from one to three year's as such. Another return shows that, 1,467, or rather more than one-half of the whole class of lieutenants, have not served afloat for more than fifteen years, and that of this number 375 have never served at sea as lieutenants at all ; and of the next 354, who have not been afloat for more than ten years, it is shown that 109 have not served in that rank at sea. We should, indeed, say that the rates of half-pay provided for lieutenants have been framed upon a scale which would place the senior 1,100 of the number almost in the position of receiving retied full-pay. Under the Order in Council of the 30th January, 1816, 100 of the lieutenants taken by seniority are placed on a retired list (if they desire it) with the rank of commander, and a . pension of Bs. 6d. a day. The re mainder of the rank arc allowed half-pay at the following rates, viz. ;—The first 300, 7s. a day ; the next 700, 6s. a-day ; the remainder, ss. a day. Any one of the first 800 receiving 7s. a day, may have the rank of retired commander, on foregoing all claim to further promotion ; but he obtains no increased pay, and the lieutenants' list is not affected by his acceptance of that rank, Accord ing to the existing scale of sea-pay, the highest rate any lieutenant could receive w ou ld b e t h at allowed to the first-lieutenant in a flag-I,hip, something less" than 159/. a year ; and the minimum rate for any other lieutenant in a sea-going ship would be about 1201. a year. These being the extreme rates of sea-pay allowed to lieute nants, it appear s unreasona bl e to expect that an officer of that rank amon gs t t h e fi rst 300, rece i v i ng 7s. a d ay (127/. 15s. a year) ; or that many among the next 700, receiving 6s. a day (1091. 10s. a year), would be candidates for service, when the advantages to be gained by it would be, under any circumstances, so moderate as not even to repay the necessary cost of outfit. A lieutenant taken from the 7s. list could only ob tain an increase to that which he receives as half-pay by appointment to be first lieutenant. If in a flag-ship he would receive for his service about :301. a year ; if not employed in a flag-ship, about 201. a year. As other than first lieutenant, he would re ceive about 2os. a year in a flag-ship, and be a positive loser by service in any other position than first lieutenant in a sea-going ship. A lieutenant taken from the Gs. list would of course receive for employment 181. ss. a year more in any ix , sition as compared with his half-pay, than one taken from the 75.. list hut it is impossible to consider this increase, which, in the toast favourable position, would net exceed 48/. a year, and as a lieutenant on ordinary E 147. Nr INT CI P.. ;1 ; (). N. duty would not exceed 10/. a year, as a sufficient ea couragement to any cffieer willingly to incur the ex pense of an outfit, which has been stated sons in denee might be fairly estimated at 1.50/., .-od to take service fer about three years, as these are te. hiclt would not reimburse him even for the necessary lhaeges attending his equipment. The small number employed of the two senior cla,'se, of the lieutenants, and tIAC very close approximeti,n their rates of half-pay to the full-pay they would re ceive for sea-service, ate, in our opinion, almost con clusive to the establishment of they fact, that the lieute nants on the 7s. and 6s. list are to be considered vir tually more in the light of retired officers. than as di cers generally available for service ; a!though the prin ciples of the service do not admit of this construction. We are here led to the consideration - of the anomaly peculiar to the naval service, that by me... 0 seniority on the list, without any the slightest reference to service per formed, an officer acquires a right to an into-else fo his halt pay. In the army, the ordnance, and ti , e inars.ies, no regulation exists which would give al.y half-pay officer an increase of his half-pay without any advance of conk, or which would aliow standing upon half-pay ani se niority to count as equivaicnt to servitor. It was, indeed, specially provided in the regulatie tos for the increase of the half-pay of the cfficers of tic army and marines which it:crease was granted of 1814, in consideratien of iii it services duri, 44: the wa r. that the benefits of the advanced rates of should be strictly limited to those officers vvho shoald be ril duccd on the formation of a peace establishment, or who) should have been placed upon half-pay, during tint course of the war, in consequence of wounds or ;rale , - mitics contracted cn service. In the navy, on the other hand, the increased rates' of half-pay have been invariably given to the acniors of the rank, without any reference to the length of ser vice performed, or the period when that Eervice was rendered. _ _ This principle of increasing half-pay for seniority, without reference to service, we should think it expe dient to qualify in some degree, as far as regards the lieutenants. We consider, therefore, that for the future it would be highly expedient to establish a minimum rate of half-pay for the lieutenant, front which he should only be removed after a certain term of sea service in that rank, and which shall approach less nearly to the sea-pay than the present rates, so as to make service more remunerative than it can be under the present system. We would beg to suggest to yoar Majesty that the half-pay of lieutenants hereafter pro moted to that rank should be fixed at 4s. a day, to be increased to ss. a day, after three years' sea-suvies as lieutenant. We should desire, however, to make an exception in favour of those lieutenants who, front ill health contracted on service, might not be able to com plete their three years at sea ; and we think this might be accomplished by reserving- to the Board of Admiralty a power to place any lieutenant on the ss. list who shall have been incapacitated for service under circumstances giving him a claim to such retirement. This advantage, to be acquired by service, we should consider calculated to remove some of the embarrass ments that at present result from the general disinclina tion of the lieutenants to resume service, except, as is stated in the evidence, on the part of those who itra deficient in the term of sea-service required to quoin . ) , them for the next rank. But it is our duty to submit to your Majesty our opinion that an increase of half-pay to be gained by service is not the only change we should recommend In the condition of the lieutenants of the navy. 1 The sea-pay of this class of officers we consider too be insufficient, either as a compensation for the respon sibilities of their duty, or as an encouragement to the exertion of those energies which the character of the naval service demands, and upon which its efficiency en tirely depends. According to the present scale of sea-pay a lieu":,en• ant will scarcely be reimbursed those expenses vrhicit must attend his outfit for service. This is neither just nor politic, and the conviction that some improvers-tent of the condition of the serving officer was essential has been most strongly impressed upon us in the case of the naval lieutenant. We cannot suppose that an up ' pointment to full pay will be an object of anxiety to the lieutenant, when all he would gain by it would be about 28/. a-year, at a considerable expense for outfit. Carefully weighing the u:gent reasons that exist for a rigidly economical administration of the politic revccues on the one hand, and on the other the no less impera tive necessiry of keeping the limited naval establish ment employed in time of peace, energetic, and there- ! fore useful—contented, and therefore efficient—we have DO hesitation in earnestlyaddressing our unanimous re- commendation to your Majesty that there should be a considerable increase to the rates of sea-pay allowed to the navy lieutenants. The suggestion we have to offer in this respect is, • that the full-pay of all lieutenants of seven years' stand ing in that rank, and being first lieutenants of sea-going rated shps, or in command of any of your Majeaty'a ships, other than those employed on the packet or sur veying establishment, should be fixed at 11 s. a day, or 131. Bs. per lunar month ; and that the full-pay for ell other lieutenants should be fixed at 10s. a day, or 141. per lunar month. We should, however, recommend to your Majesty that, if this increased scale of pay should be adopted, the extra pay of 6d. a day, at present allowed to all lieu tenants in flag-ships, should be discontinued. After two years' service at sea as a lieutenant, an ' officer is eligible for promotion to the rank of C0111111i11: - • der, the. condition of which class we shall now proceed to examine. Tire sec-pay of a commander, which is about 3001. a year, offers a better inducement to officers of that rank, who would be taken from the half-pay, to serve, than can be found for the lieutenants according to the exist ing scale -, there is not, therefore, that unwillingners to resume service which, we have been informed, is mani fested by the lieutenants, and no complaint has been presented to cs of the full-pay being insufficient. Under these circumstances, we do not consider that we are called upon to recommend any change in the comman ders' rate of sea-pay. The grievances under which the officers of this rank consider themselves to labour have reference to those points we are more particularly instructed to in vestigate, viz.--promotion and retirement : their com plaint in regard to promotion being directed egainirt the adoption of the principle of selection in the advancemeat of commanders to he captains ; and it was suegested to us that the promotions from the commanders' list should he made according to seniority. This, however, is a suggestion which we are not i . at all disposed to adopt. It is obvious, that if senonty promotion is . made to commence in a lower rank than it does at present, the age at which it may be pos sible for any officer, however distinguisncd, to reach his poi t of flag rank must he much greater, to the infinite detriment of the public service ; and we do not think that the preliminary division of the commanders into an effective and a non-efficient list, which was proposed, would be sufficient to remedy the evils that must result ' from a system of seniority promotion so extended. Upon a full consideration of the whoie subject, we are by no means prepared to recommend any deviation from the existing rule in respect to the prqpotion of commanders to captains' rank. With regard to retirement, the commanders have some exclusive ground of complaint. They urge that there is no pi-elision in the establishreent of Greenwich Hospital for any officers of their rink ; and farther, that there is no retired list for the 'tetiihr of their ..11ass similar to the rank of retired resti-idmirel as opened to the captains, or to that of the retirees commander as opened to the lieutenants. For both or these grievances we should consider it expedient that red. - ess should be afforded. The advantages of Greenwich Hospital should he opened to commanders as they are to cap tains and lieutenants ; and we would, therefore, recorn mend that four commanders should be added to the establishment of that institution. With respect to a rate of retired :pay for com manders, we would suggest to your Majesty that the principle adopted in regard to the first 100 lieutenants should be applied to the commanders. These iOO lieu tenants have the option of retirement as com manders, with the lowest rate of half-pay of ' that rank, viz., Bs. 6d. a-day, we would recommend that a precisely similar indulgence should be extended to a limited number of the senior commanders ; and we should consider that it would be fair to allow 30 of the seniors of that rank the option of receiving the retired rank of captain, with the lowest rate of lull& pay allowed to a captain, viz., 10s. 6d. a-day. It i: not in our view to reduce the numbers entitled to the half-pay of 10s. a-day as commanders by the proposed boon. We contemplate the institution of a class of 50 retired captains, with 10s. 6d. a-day, to be followed by the same number of commanders, viz., 150 at 10s. a-clay 1 -as are at present allowed. We pass now to the rank of captain, for which the commander is eligible after one year's service completed o atsea. of selecting for this rank is, in u r opinion Th epo t,nrqupry e s ie ti t onable. The responsibilities in volved in the exercise of a captain's command, viewed either in relation to the public, or to those placed under his immediate authority and control, are so great, and the interests that may be entrusted to his charge arc so important, that we could not, with satlsfaction to our selves, neglect to express our entire conviction that the promotion to this high office should be made under the direct authority of the Minister of the Crown, upon a selection to be governed altogether by his discretion, under the usual liabilities for the exercise of this power. One grievance alleged on behalf of this claes, and to which cur attention was most strongly directed, was the treat expense to which captains of the navy were sub jected on commissioning a ship. The cost of the out fit, calculated upon a scale sufficient to enable the cap tain to maintain a table, was shown to us to be consi derable, and the difference between half and full pay was, in many cases, scarcely sufficient to reimburse the captain these expenses, or at all events, was not such compensation as he was entitled to for the advantages which we are satisfied must result from the establish ment of a separate table. Our view of the matter, therefore, is, that erticles of table equipment should, upon application of the captain , it I 1