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

n N ING EDITION va.•:4 0, _.here be a vast extent of capital destroyer', 'out i - .... mass of population would be thrown into a I greatest misery. They should also recollect eat F,eee, settlements and arrangements had been made e ee e s ie::11 of the existing law, and when they recollected eee•e;eus confusion and injustice would be produced 1 . lai -iree of the law, they ought not to make any el- I es: a . .e,c., eelesa it was imperatively required. In 1815 there was a far greater eutcry among the working clasees than there was at present against the Corn-law, end he world venture to say there had not been that distress which was preleted at that time. Another reason why he opposed any change in the existing law was, because he was convinced it would tend very materially to dis turb the balance of the Constitution with reference to King, Leeds, end Commons, and he thought that such a change would operate very prejudicially, is degrading the other branch of the Legislature. Ha,knew it had been said that if the Coin-laws were re pealed this country would place itself' in the hands o' P:ussia and Russia, and that the port of Dantz:c and *Wove could easily be closed against them. He was not one of those who had joined in the err about Russia—so far from treating s'-ussia as our natural enemy, he thought we ought to cultivate every amicable arrangement with her; but he was not certain that if that sort of language was iedulged in which had been held in that and the other House for a year or two, that Russia would not one day make them repent of the haughty language that had been leald by their diplomatists. He would conclude by iiiinfly observing, that in his opinion they ought not to place tinernselves at the mercy of any foreign potentat es for food, which they would do if they made any altera tihn in thae corn-laws.--( Hear. ) Mr. R. HYDE GREG said it was scarcely possible to adduce any new argument in favour of the repeal of the Corn- aw, and it appeared to him, from the determination expressed on the part of that small but very powerful body, the landed alistocracy of this country, that every argu ment would fail of effect, except it was the argument of agitation. He was afraid the repeal of the Corn dews would be yielded to no other argument. 'That was the ar gument which carried the abolition of slavery, which car ried the Reform Bill, and which carried Catholic Emanci pation, and he had no doubt that by the time it was a little older it would be equally successful, and would effect a total repeal of the Corn-laws ; but if there was oee thing that would make it fail of success, it would be a .orer sition made in good faith and good spirit by the hire 4 interest, tomeet them by a compromise, and give limn a moderate fixed duty, in which case he was confident dr-union would be thrown into the ranks of the agitators, and their forces would be paralysed. It was not his inten tion to weary the House with detail as to the severe and prolonged suffering that has been experienced in the ma nufacturing districts; neither was it his intention to allude to the three years of constant loss in manufacture, during which time they had seen their capital gradually wasted away before their eyes. The manufacturers had never said, nor did the Hen. Member for Wolverhampton, in ' advocating their cause, state that the whole of their dis tress was offing to the operation of the Corn-laws ; but they did sta a that a very great portion of it was to be traced to that source : that if a repeal of the Corn laws were to take place, there would be an abatement, if not a total cessation, of that distress ; and, finally, that the Corn-laws compromised the permanent prosperity of their maraufacturea. He would appeal to the admirable Report of Dr. Boering, in proof of these statement, which he Mr. Greg) and others were anxious to have laid before the House at their bar, about twelve months ago.—( Hear.) In that admirable Report would be found proof of these See facts :-Ist. The very great increase of Foreign p manufactures, particularly in the countries connected by ; tse Prussian League. 2:11y. The gradual exclusion of 1 English manufactures from that union. 3dly. That that exchision was to be traced to the operation of our Corn laws. 4thly. That the cure for those growing mischiefs Ivebuld be found in the repeal of the Corn-laws. And, Elthly. That the Government of Prussia had expressed itself ready to enter into negotiations with this country the moment those laws were altered.—( Hear, hear.) (The . Hon. Gentleman then read extracts from Dr. Bowring's . Report, showing the progress of manufactures in the Gouritries, within the Prussian League.) Dr. Bowring 1 stairsil that the tariffs of Great Britain mu st be modified l i pa ri Inman with tho tariffs of the Prussian League. The master manufacturers had been accused of seeking a re peal of the Corn-laws, in order to reduce the wages of their workmen. That was not the fact. He O,id not believe that opening the ports would re duce the wages of the operatives, or the wages of 1 the agricultural labourers. He believed the demand for manufactures would be so increased that both ! would be alike benefited. They sought by means of the f t se interchange of their manufactured productions for the I pre: im:tie° of other countries a fair remuneration for their 1 labour; and an increase of food and comfort to the people t b ey eee eloyed..—( Hear.) The result of opening the ports would be that they would give the operatives of this coun try the meeus sot only of purchasing foreign corn, but that they would also enable them to purchase a larger share of the home produce. The present law pressed on manufacture; with a degree of malignity which it was im peeesible to conceive. It compelled the manufacturer to give his labour for food grown in the United Kingdom only. Slinu,Vtures, however, increased in a more rapid propor tion there agricultural produce, the improvement in which was slow .and gradual. Tho result of this was that 1 manufacturers ;veld not get a return proportioned to their industry and exertions.—(Hear, hear.) He believed that there were many occupiers of land in one half of Scotland, in parts of Ireand, and in the high grounds of England, which were turne.:, into pasturage, who were not opposed to a change in the .7 xisting law.—(lronical cries of " Hear, hear," from the 00osition Benches.) It was the owners of arable land alone :vho claimed any iprotection. Let them give a free trade in eorn, and he was persuaded they would find that the best means of im- p eoving and stimulating agriculture. It had been advanced ( as a justification of the Corn-laws, that a protecting duty was „,:aced on foreign silk manufactures. But that was the o n* article on which such a duty was placed ; and he still contended that we should have a free trade in corn. The only objection to flint free trade which he thought worth a moment's consideration was founded on the argu . went that they should not render this country dependent k/in other nations for its supply of food. The argument eras a specious one, but it had already been so repeatedly e tieestissed that he would not enter into an examination f' io f f i t then.—( Hear, hear.) He would ask, however, i was to be admitted as a principle that the pope ! li tt i sia ( ef ehe country should be limited to the supply o f e ase s w ,tdeb its own agriculturists might produce. He would unhes,''lltinglY state thet though the present laws game as i nesea eed. value to land, it was not intended that she monopoly_shoOci be confined to the landlord alone ; and if w sum Zi' 20,0e'10,0001. a-year was created by these I artificial means, he thot: eht that the state mid ht take t hese 20,000,000/ from the hang e of those by whom ;hey were now enjoyed.—( Hear, hear, d the Opposition benj i ie s.) He held that to be incontrovertiiele. Before concluding . , he wished to make one observation on the sliding scale. He behoved that such a measure would be more injurious to the country than even a high protecting duty. The ef fect of such a scale would be, that before prices had risen I it would be of no avail, and when prices had been raised, 1 . it would throw on the market too large a supply. Another evil of such a system would be, that it could not meet the case of a harvest in which the quality of the crop was bad. ; It would be but a clumsy expedient for meeting a scarcity iof quactity, while it afforded no remedy when the quality was bad. An additional objection to it was that it would resider the trade in corn hazardous and uncertain, whi..ll was an evil attended with the worst results. 'What right, 1 he would adt, had a few thousand landholders to say to ; 93,000,000 cf consumers that they should bear an undue I burden? What right had they to say to the manufacturer, I the cperative, or the shopkeeper, that they demanded a I prefe re nce above them? Whet right had they to destroy the resource 3 of the country, and to prevent the growth of iits prosperity ? He was persuaded that those miteralde I jaws aggravated the fluctuations in prices, and that they Irendered f.rod artificially and unnecessarily sca r ce —that 1 they curtailed our rommrrce arid deranged our currency— that they materially compromised the prosperity of cur manufactures, and he would therefore, with the greatest pleasure. agree to the motion then before the House. Sir. ORMSBY GORE was not disposed to look on the presere question as of a temporary impartance , as h e considered it was intimately connected with the welfare of this country, and her rank among the nations of Europe. i-Ic believed that agriculture was the basis of our prosperity and the superstructure on le hid) our manufacturing in. terests should depend. He regretted the tone which many had taken upon the present question. Ho regretted to find that fie violence and improper conduct of a small por ,i lion of the inhabitants of this country had ken supported by the speech of an Hon. Member, who was a Member of 1 her M jesty's Cab riot. The Noble Lord the Member for Sli opshire bad lately given a very proper description of those newspapers and authorised organs of what was called tele Ann-Corn-law League in thin country'. He would not quote the words of that Nobly Lord, but he would give A quetatieu fro m o r e o f those papers to which be had re ' .. :erred, stud he wo u ld as k if the opinions it contained could be supported by say Members of that House' , (The Hon. is proce.eleu to r ea d t h e passage without . — stating tire rper in which it was contained.) " The accursed Corn_ t i a i e et : ci v i ro es u . l hes TheyrFpeal ed."— cannot ( sloe i..) " Christian men, C b hcers from the Ministerial petition —( Renewed ;; net any longer be permitted to defile ' o e u opposite cheer that r to el e av e lnld's. 'lf" must R Would lion. Gentlemen etheAs and cries of " Hear, hear," from • N — lr ( Hume.) rile was surprised to hear the head of the ' poriti e cel e wailrmiste of the house cheer such sentiments as I Do*. He would pass to the merits of the question and be sheeld say he was as anxious as any Hon. Gentle matu*Vposite for the prospel it y of our manufactures. He should oven add that if her Majesty's Ministers had brought a measure :or instituting an inquiry into the ex isting laws, he might be disposed to give them his support, but to the measure, brought forward as it now was, im should meet strenuously object. He begged to deny, as was supposed by some persons, that all the valuable land tin fie country was in the highest state of cultivation. He Ipoked on agriculture to be in its infancy (he spoke at a ogluer): !here was not a year in which they were not neekicg improvements in agriculture, and this being the sire!', be asked whether his position was not borne out, but sic would not rest there. What was the area of this kingdom? He held in his hand a return of statistical do ts 'lO, from which it appeared that the cultivated land le En:della was—without giving the fractions-23 GOO 000 acres ' ,of emeultivated l an d, b ut capa bl e o f improvement t h ere ~,,,e. 3,400,000, and besides this there was of uncul tivated land: 1 . 200,000 more. 'late of cultivation.Bo that there still remained 4.400,000 cap , Another EL Ri Member there the any manufactures aitioufatheteurreestuwrinanss andn this used was that protec tion afforded to try but Ellis; but he tkan also, for he saw Raw cotton was t s hat c° m begged a l' n n many i to dissent from that pos. worked, 20 reteste d i other ieterests were protee s ' 44 : l * e e p f er 2o cent. Iby a duty of 10 per cant. t‘ptly ' Fancy make 314 per cent. B,'" i 'it en average per cant. (Mr. Greg intimated that h: ,oid effectually tectcd.) He was not speaking of CA. eet4 " 4l . , but actual poprro teesion. Then woollen manufactures were Aretected.-: 'pistil), by a duty of 15 per cent., made up' 7 1 a du.tif ef 20 per cent. Iron, of three-quarters square ar_ upwards, k y l i i , A duty of 30s. per ton ; under that, 5/, per ton, °lad hoop ___ iron by a duty of 23/. per ton. A protection of upwards of 100 per cent After this to talk of no protection to the manufactures of the country ! He was 'lever so astonished S when he heard the Hon. Gentleman's assertion. Fur iber, glass was protects d by a duty of trent 20 to ) per cent. ; pewtes, of 20 per cent. ; end silk, from 2:. to 225. Gd. We were not the only people in the wort I who thought it necessary to protect our manufactures, and be it understood he did not quarrel with this protection. He thought it quite right manufactures should be protected. ! He only begged in return that agriculture might be pro tected also, the foundation on which trade existed. He would not go into details respecting the iron trade, because they did not complain so much as others, but , in ten years the several exports of iron increased from 20 to 43 millions—the cotton experts from 10 1 , to near 17 millions. He would read en extract from a commercial paper, alluding to this question, of June 7, 1839 to show what wore the opinions of the manufacturers themselves resuecting it :—" It is difficult to point out a period of five months' duration in the last twenty years, when the state of business in Lancashire was so gloomy mid languishing as since let January last. We might refer to years when the prices had greatly fallen cif, and were lower than this ear, and marked by more signal failures ; but to no period when such general gloom and despon dency prevailed among all classes. It is curious this re markable state of things immediately succeeded the open_ ing of the British ports for the introduction of foreign corn, the direct consequence of free trade in corn. This should make us cautious in adopting theories in grave matters of commercial legislation, in oppcsition to the result of ex perience; and the large impart of corn, including the quantity out of bond in this country, is accompanied and succeeded by an unprecedented had state of things in Lancashire. So much for free trade in cerri."_ ( Hear.) In these remarks he most fully concurred, for these reasons, that in the history of the averages of im ports and experts of corn, he found when, the ports were open the greatest distress in the manufacturing districts uniformly prevailed. He had tried it, and found the result perfectly coincident. This brought him to consider the policy of our ancestors. The Hon. Member far Maidstone had gone into the history of ancient times, and he might assist his arguments by remarking that so far back as the reign of Edward the Fourth, in consequence of a very great dearth of provisions in this country, resulting from the wars of the Roses, that Kin , had found it necessary to import wheat, but in the second year of his reign he passed an Act preventing the importation of corn, thus forcing the agri culture of the country. Again in William the Third's reign, he was obliged to put a large bonus on the exporta non of wheat, thereby also forcing the agriculture of the country. He (Mr. 0. Gore) was confident that instead of advocating high prices for a most necessary article of life he was advocating the means of reducing these to the lowest price; as a proof of it he took the average since this law was established, and he found that the average of the last twelve years was 575. ; of the twelve years preced ing that 653., and of the twelve years preceding the latter 84s. The opinion of Mr. Huskieson was much insisted on, but he changed his opinion before he died, and declared pub licly that he was mistaken, addine that if free trade could be established to the extent he wished," the last thing which should he made free from protection was the lane. He was sure he need make no apology for quoting some ex tracts from so high an authority, and one so versed in the history of the country. They were in his own hand writing in May, 1814. (The Hon. Gentlemen then read a long extract in support of his opinions, and proceeded) —He thought if there were a weak point in the speech of the Hon. Member for Wolverhampton, that weak point was Ireland ; but he should come to that by and bye. One statement of the Hon. Gentleman's speech was, he thought, the most extraordinary statement he ever heard. It was, that the labourers in Wiltshire only received 6s. a week. He hoped the Hon. Member for that county would have given some explanation, for it could not be, it was impossible, this could be the general wages of the labourers in that county. He had understood it to be 12s. or 14s. For himself he gave 113. to his waggoners, and 10s. to his common day-labourers, which were the com mon wages in that part of the country in which he resided. It had been said that if we threw open our ports England would become the workshop of the world. They who fancied they could make England the workshop of the world must fancy they could make laws for all the world. Now much stress had been laid upon the evidence of Dr. Bow ring, but he would read the translation of an extract from the Augsburg Gazette of December 28, 1829, to show what was thought in Germany of the reports and speeches of Dr. Bowring. (The Hon. Gentleman then read the extract, which was to the effect that it was very natural that Dr. Bowring should persuade the respective manufac turers of Manchester and Leeds, and " our cousin John Bull in general," that Germany desired nothing better than that they should be allowed to receive the manufactures of Great Britain in exchange for her agricultural produce ; but that, in fact, the object of the German League was to unite Germany in the spirit of nationality, and to encourage her infant manufactures, so that there was no desire upon her part to return to the bondage of her old rela tive, England.) He said that so far was Prussia from being likely to supply us with cheap corn in a time of scarcity, that in 1801 the Prussian King put a duty upon the export of corn, and said that it must be increased or diminished according to the wants of the British nation.—( Hear, hear, from the Opposition.) We could not compel the King of Prussia, in time of bad seasons, to relax these duties. He then referred to the prices of rape, and other agricultural produce, at different periods, for the purpose of showing that, although the lowering of the import duties of this country, caused a tem porary reduction, of price, yet that was followed by a scar city of the home production, and a consequent rise of prices. He thanked the Hon. Member for Manchester `for putting the question on the right bails, or, as it, was understood out of doors, as a question between the agricul turist and the manufacturer. It was true that the in terest of the agriculturist and the manufacturer must rise and fall together. If the manufacturer was depressed the agriculturist had no market for his grain. If the agri culturist were depressed, the manufacturer had no maret for his productions. The question was so understood throughout the country, and it was only a few individuals who had no interest in it who went about working upon the minds of people, who did not think for themselves, by a system of violent and disgraceful agitation—(Cheers)— ho would say disgraceful, because he thought any thing disgraceful which appealed to brute force, as had recently been done at a meeting on the subject, when the ques tion ought to be discussed by the calmest and most delibe rate reasoning. It had been charged upon the agricultu rists that they agitated in a similar way for the repeal of the malt-tax. But the charge was untrue. The agri culturist never encouraged appeals to force ; on the con trary, they never encouraged agitation. He looked upon a fixed duty as a humbug, proposed only to deceive the people, affording no protection of any kind.—( Cries of t• Oh, oh," and " Hear, hear.") For his own part, he would greatly prefer the total and immediate repeal of the Corn-laws.—( Cheers.) But if they were repealed, it -cold not be denied that a great portion of the land would be tii -own out of cultivation. That would , of necessity , re duce, in a p i.oportional dsgree,the number of hands employed, _rich lands, which woula still remain in col would not be able to support so many tivaticn, the farmers. •of that distress among the agri as at present. The effect '' e employment of the ma culturists must be to diminish ~ld nufacturers, and the workhouses wow. Session crowded. He , Session on the had heard a great deal of discussion lash +. q question. What would you do for recruits , it t.. were to go to war? and it had been said that when - re cruits were wanted, it was only necessary to go into the manufacturing districts. To that a Gallant Friend of his, who fought under " our glorious Duke," replied, that five out of every ten recruits from the manufacturing districts were rejceed, whereas not one in ten of the agricultural recruits were rejected. The Hon. Member then quoted the well-known lines : " lit fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, Where wealth accumulates and men decay ; Princes and peers may flourish or may fade— A breath can make them, as a breath has made ; Put a bold peasantry, their coentry's pride, When once destroyed, can never be supplied." The Honourable Gentleman then read extracts from various Returns, to show that the ex port; from Ireland to this country had increased during the protection of the Corn-laws. In 1834 the ex ports of gram from Ireland to this country were three mil lions of quarters ; in the last year they were upwards of four mullions of quarters.—( Flear, hear.) To raise that four millions required the labour of 23.350 families. What :vas to be done with those families, if they were thrown out of employment by the repeal of the born-laws ? ( 'leer, hear. ) He heard much of "Justice to Ireland," but it was only from the lips of those who had not justice in their hearts. Ireland was poor, misguided, and mis governed, but it was a country :-here loyalty was a crime, and agitation a virtue.— (Cheers from both sides of the House.) It had been said that Ireland was not a corn growing country, but he ventured to say that there was I riot a country in the world better adapted to the growing of wheat. He felt bound to say, and he did it with all respect, that many of the statements of the Hon. Member for Wolverhampton had no foundation in truth. Before he dismissed the subject of Ireland, ho would re vert to an authority that would not be disputed— lie meant the Roman Catholic Archbishop Tuam, Dr. M' Hale, who had stated, with respect to the labourers of Ireland, that they ought to he employed in That wou w or ki ng th e m ines of wealth which were hiddledn a h in riets uthe cultivat e s; lend.—( Hear, hea r.)_ effect d o c fa cause rea that,int i o c n h thewasrincohsresourcesr y o f w n a a s t t u e e, to o at h erl e covered with a cheerful peasa ntry. He shou ld have con cluded without further remark, had not her Majesty's Ministers made the subject an open qu estion. Upon what ground th e y h a d adopted that course he could not tell, and be r the oi ).1 f t o io r n hi o s c o p w e n .ac p:rt lie should as soon have expected the ques tion made open questions have ar, se ht. b What cooru l w d monarchy eaestosn e o vis r n ays o i atmonarchy,foair thetim e pp rue : to their names in tl e pose of increasing the finance for ha t t h c e ou p l u d rp n7t e b o e ,f ti c L ou li n • of lt the 'ader of the Ministry was that of taking into consideratornre the Corn laws. He had declared last tehnet inreomti yeas that i o s n sion viz ei it was madness to contemplate such a thing. Was it that they wished to attach that party to therno . had al ways scoffed at them and users them, as they them selves, as squeezable materials ? All ho ldsal alas that if those with whom he was associated' were change tI:ICCS with the present Ministry to- morrow .rc ar t l were to bring forward the question of the repeal Of the Corn-laws, if they did net melee it a Cabinet question, they never should have his support. Mr. B V NETT felt compelled to ellsedt to some statements that had been made by the Hon. Menke; for Wolverhampton. He had said that the wages in Wiltshire we re only 6e• a we: k. Such was not the fact. The in Wiltshire were 9s. a week; en some occasions wages they had been as low as 8s but that very seldom the - had taken place ; as to the statement that . farmerstheir had met together for the purpose of paying , laboltrers I • Id give up his defence of the Corn,- Bs. 6d, a -weeks, he WOU laws - could show him that any ten altogether, if his friene -hieCt in view, fj e farmers in Wiltshire had ever such an te e sufficient, would not say that the wages in Wiltshire were `see Ira whiled that they were very much higher, and that L.... were enabled to obtain the luxuries of beer and tobacco. With respect to one of the viila ; 7 ,, s ti, which his friend had alluded, where he had stsedttiat The non had only s s , r.-week, 'ilia was the fact? NN'y these very young men, if they only chose to go nil work at the rail roads, might have earned 18t. a-wuck, but they pr4erred the Lay life they led at home. When his friend talked of wages, he only wished that he would go with him into Wiltshire, a county with which he (Mr. Beaett) was well acquainted. lie would take him to the houses of the labourers there, sod he might then go to those in the manufacturing districts. and he would venture to say, after having done so, he would he obliged to admit that the labourers in Wiltshire had far greater comforts than those in the manufacturing districts. He was ready to admit that great distress prevailed in the manufacturing districts, but what was the cause of that distress? His Friend had said that it was to be found in the Corn-laws. He denied that statement, and would assert positively the Corn•laws had nutl,int.,F to do with the distress in the manufacturing districts. He 'had ,fore told this distress twenty years ago. He had theta stated that this country would be rivalled by others, which was now the case, and which was !he cause of the present dis tress. Those who came forward to agitate this question stated that they were anxious for free-trade. lie (Mr. Benett) was not to be deceived by that assertion, for he was old enough to recollect that inaay of those who now came forward to agitate th•. repeal of the Corn-laws years back had argued against free-trade. If they were so anxious for free trade why had they not come far• ward and asked for the experiment to be tried on some of the articles which they manufacturol, and not upon such a commodity as corn. There was a gre it diii,rence between making experiments in corn and cottoa. It was dangerous to tamper with corn, and in or•:er to show that he would quote a work used by his Friend the Hoc. Member for Wolverhampton, viz. that of Mr. Wilson. The statement was as follows: CORN ORrAVN- Home Corn. Foreign Corn. 1834 36,933,000 qrs 1835 34,000 000 1836 38,800,000 1837 44,600,000 1838 51,660,000 . 4 594,000 1839 56,513,000 7 515 000 This last was 3-17ths of the cane consumption, with the greatest exertion that could be made to bring foreign corn to the country. What then would be the result if one sixth were required ? Why, it could not be supplied. What would be the effect of the repeal? Te check the growth of corn at seed-time more than one-fourth. The immediate effect would be to lower the price of corn, but the next effect would be to check the production of corn. Vast capital, vast interests depended upon the qiiestion— interests much greater than those of the 30,000 land owners—as if they alone were concerned, and as if they had not dependent upon them hundreds of thousands of traders, shopkeepers, and artisans —( Hear. hear.) Tne average price of wheat for the last year was 525. a quarter. What did the manufacturers want more? lie recellected , all the arguments of Mr. Ricardo, the political economist, and he recollected that they used to contend that it was bad to force poor lands into (l:Ovation. and that doing so we could not supply sufficient wheat for the population. But the fact was, that we had supported a ' population, not only at that time, but .661 a great subse quent increase, The improvements in agriculture hod been, and would be, proportioned to the increase of popu lation. Some gentlemen talked about poor lands without knowing what they meant. The fact was that land might be poor this year, and rich the next. By draining. and other improvements, poor land would be greatly enriched, and its produce increased, and thus the fee simple of the soil was added to, and permanent add tional property created ; whereas the manufacturers, when they built factories (for though they said they were poor, they managed to erect factories—if their labourers were poor they were not), only erect buildings which were useless the moment they were abandoned; but a new value given to land was a per manent investment, of which the State could never be de prived again, and which was available at once for taxa tion.—( Hear, hear.) The Hon. Member went on to de clare that he felt as anxious for the prosperity of the ma nufacturers as for that of the agriculturists ; and he solemnly affirmed, that if he thought the sacrifice of his land would benefit his country, he would gladly consent to it, but he did feel persuaded that it would not be for the be nefit of the country to open the trade in corn to foreign competition, until, at least, it was proved that we could not make provision for our own population. Mr. WILBRAHAM rose for the purpose of stating his reasons for voting against the motion 'of the lion. Member for Wolverhampton. The question had hitherto been argued merely as it affected the manufacturing and the agricultural interests, but it ought not to be looked upon in that narrow point of view. The proper made of considering; this question was, what were the best means of averting from this country the calamity of scarcity—whether it was better to protect aeri culture at home than to look to foreign markets for a suppry— er whether it would be best to throw themselves into the market of the world, and depend upon foreigners for the supply of food; that was the greet question, and in resolving that, they ought to lay aside all minor considerations. He had no wish to see the price of bread high; he should like to gee the quar tern loaf at half its present price, but if he could obtain that only by running the chance of great future calamities, he must pause before he consented to it. The result of removing all protection from agriculture might be at first Os give a-great stimulus to manufactures—wages would rise, and _there would be every external symptom oeprosperity, but how long would this last. If scarcities, such as had before occurred, should happen, from what part of the world could we obtain a sufficient supply of food? A reference to the snap would show how small was the space—within how few degrees of latitude contained, from which we could hope to obtain a supply. 11 we looked to Rus sia her rivers were shut up duritt.l the winter, and the hard wheat of Odessa was unfit for the 1!loglih market; besides, during the voyage through the warm climate of the Alediter--1 ranean it would probably seat, 'and by the time it arrived in this country be unfit for food. Spain, Portugal, and France would, in years of scarcity, be importing awl not exporting countries. lie remembered tly. years 1709 and ieoo, when every quarter of the world was ransacked for food; when boun ties were offered on the importation, not only of earn, but of rice, and of every species of food, without a sufficient supply being obtained. No country could be looked upon as really independent that depended upon foreign countries for a supply of food. It was not a question of profit and loss merely, it was a question of subsistence. He looked upon the additional price upon corn in consequence of the Corn-lags, as an insurance against famine. It had been said that the soil of this country was not adapted for the growth of corn. Now there was no country in the world where wheat was grown so good as in England. But notwithstanding he should vote against the mo tion he could not agree with those who contended that the pre sent law had answered its purpose.—( Hear, hear, hear.) It was intended to guard a, , ,:iitist fluctuations, and • to keep the price of wheat always about sixty shillings, in this it had signally failed. Ile thought it would have been better at the conclusion of the war to have imposed a fixed duty of 10s. or 12s. a quarter. Hail we done so, we should have pre vented foreigners from competing with us in manufactures. We had made the great manufacturers, and if by 'doing away with the Corn-laws we made the great agriculturists,- what would become of the pre-eminence of this country ? ' He thought a fixed duty imposed then would have been better than a fluctuating scale, but he thought it would be dangerous now to make the experiment. Knowing that the purpose of that party agitating the question of the repeal of the Corn-laws was to build up their own fortunes upon the ruin of that class to which he belonged, he should give lie most decided op position to the motion of the lion. Memb r for Wolverhampton. Mr. J. PARKER then rose, and addressed di.) House, but amidst such a buzzing of conversation. inter: - nitigled with cries of .' Divide," and" Order," that not taco consecutive sentences could possibly be heard in the. faller y. We understood him to say that for eight years he had given a silent vole upon this question, but under the present eircuiestances, and considering tai: constituency he had the honour to represent, he trusted the I-louse t ri;2 l d bear with him for a few moments. As all that was salted by the motion of the Hon. Member for Wolter hateptee esa.l a Committee of Inquiry lie tholight it ought to be granted, eviseo they took into consideration the present excee di n g distress Keeeilieg, in the manufacturing districts. To his constituents' an insieury Nets, pf f.e very highest import tance, for the present laws reyeeeed ,itaws f t our exchanging their manufactures, which tbey egulq. 1^ ; ,ii 3-. : ::,) of in this 491,1ntry, to fortigncrs, who had nothing enee It? ifkit thpa i n ~,,i,m i r, but their corn. There were many Gentlem e e on tr i at ' ( t e e Slke s t iet ; 4 l) side of the House, belonging to the very c e;.; f i est order of 4, , -; li t ;stied aristocracy, who viewed an altera tion of die Corn-laws v%4, lep lses,d than many Hon. Gentle men opposite. The . agricultora: i;-,,,,:d, n t fleir nded very greatly upon the roauttfactui:ng districts, for totl;s;t.4 aiss,ie ,q r s;etiele of their crops aud herds ; therefor e it became there seri'deslFe to consider whether, injestice to the manufacturing t enetsinet, tliese laws, which were tending ir) rein their ititerests, o n jus +4 the rnimufacturers wanted tice or policy to be kept up. was a fair scope, fair play, and PO ,f;t,?ibis ti 77 wanted only to be put upon the sew footing as other chaises. Sir R. PEEL then nese, etieLlst the cliesring ef his friends. lie said the Heir. Gentleman wins n e m; e..st - , sat down had mis taken the cheers of Ogritlemen of his . (itilse ((Nose:Vent ) side of the House as to one sentimeee tittered by hint, audlie 1 , - , 1,e,'.V . :7 to find the lion, Gentleman, the aiitbor of the sentiment; was I u naware of its appropriateness. His Sir U r i'prl's , ) friends had supposed that he was alluding to a dissolution, or f i'. - t :he!..ling of that nature, when he said the periwi had arrived - when ttree who were responsible for Qin gOYeit4rnent anti legiSlation, , od cc iii is e ti at s: na,p4aon should seriously apply tltensaelvea to 4,e ! .. 1 ,,,,..:j.j.0 I, in or:ler i 1, 4 1 , t a a Governmentn enitotlie p a r g e tt s a c ti ri o b n e , t d h o e u o t, te an a d of anxiety it."—(Cheers.) If those appealed to by the Hon: entdepii9.,n were in favonr of a repeal of the Corn-Taws, they should com pose that agitation by assenting to tilts pr,akostftoss ,ar is , (.list?' vernment; if they were in favour of a modificatiou, th,e.yaio,yl4 convey to the country the sense of a united Government with respect to a question which wits teer bee nning more and more difficult ; and that ditlcogy a.j4t.11 by the apparent discordance between those holding the meat ir e ,v,, , !lw. ptuations in the Go vernment.—(Cheers.) The Hon. t;ensl,„ - ug.aii. , t;: beniavk was a perfectly just one, and at the time he thought tire . 116;;;, .Cip.• tleman was reading an intentional lecture to his friend's around. teaching them the important truth that unity wan most important. The period had indeed arrived when the Government as a (e9verlM4sOS meglit to state their opinions, because it very much added Se ei e e ailteeitsiti e of the puestion when the Right Hon. Member, tlo! I r ics;tesit ,O . qe• 49ff4 4 Trade, declared it to be neeeseary ter alas extertei9e 9VOne manufactures to the Continent, that we sh e i z e4 . tle A o, pens if 'on please, but I doubt whether grown there ; yet on the . same day the Prime. Ministek said— " Alter your Corn-laws, ) 1 _ o. the . Commermal Depart foreign countries will take anyiime of your manufactures." the Financial i, Department , entertained one 3 Ny ie lt w er l i th t s; 4 ,e ll;: e d ,ti o 9 f i?, ..t.!:14 tiß),.bpac. (L.ctnkr(le'Ciltitell , rattan stit,Keulttes ertenti "Ill'CO , .Fee it to be won dered at th at the agitatio n . ti tl , i -4 1 4'i r .1 n , , , 4: e .,.L& ? ..: ir ii ii ing the soden-lea of file gig? 4 ,, __: Y _ _ ~,,,, .. ,/ . iti: :oiisiee e ment ontertained opt rid was the statement which hail . 1) PP . "f' c ' , %' , X, l , 3 : , • k•''' question in no ether spiri's PT wished to discuss thet gre a t . ni tortance. Ile agreed with temper than that befitting its ho i d, appealed to the pas. approbation on his (Sir R. Peel ',. s"!''' . ' i °•'" ti g"' e, . Ile lirecuted the unfiir and ms. those Hon. Frientls of his w b worthy artifices resorted to r clamours.— hared in leer feelin e s, but (11Car, hear, ie.Sr e r• ) 1- 1° s ! , ,t :e nersons iden -lat the same time He din n c 4 .`,' :.:" ,c,„,,...,,i' . lie 6 4 4 rot sires 9f the multitude aYntdholseex:iitt.:(l t _ ; _ 0. lifted with the great manufactatog tn. . .. , . t. , which the artifices of those who, instead of pronto . tiog. were, lie n should beved, injuring the cause—no indignath.n :: forget their importance or numbers, aod no indi;.,na ion si I ra of the eotinfry were involved, that calm anti SeI'IOUS 1011. t l ,y tratiileil, lie th ought the b est Preeerie his giving to a sul jest, in whet' the f ;" ll :' o t st si vi t tal: ( interests tion to which 'it Wag n s'o' full course he could pursue for th'e . pur`isiiS of I iLit ing as lie as pos sible the observations with which he hiiil tti' triithi6 tiia llouse t. He wished to avoid Tithing ; but at t he same }Would be to consider what were the main argtialeufs chiefly gashed 99 in the course of the debate in favour of t he re p eal of ehe Corn-l a y s Mime, fallow ing ' the - desultory tli cessiet; iiiat had now Fseniriu.ed for three 1414; Would led•'itirie far t,eyOthl he iiiiiAtZ 4e ''s l 4e(l to prescribe to himself. ' Ile 'lveuhr et ate' what h''' e 4 n 4 ictel . 4 *Le m ' relied ' .' ' 'd if were . . p 451 argoments Aro, ais , it , e i suggested that he had omitted anything, he should be ready to correct it. 13ut he did not think that he stated the arguments unfairly, when he represented their general sum and purpo.t to be—first, that the operation of the Corn-lass had led to a great drain of ballion and a derangement of the monetary sys tem : secondly, that there had been a great fluctuation in the price of corn, caused by their operati n, in discouraging com mercial speculations, varying the price of labour, and having therefore a tendency to derange manufacturing industry ; thirdly, that the experience of the la: t year had shown a great depre;sion in the manufacturing industry of the country, and a great decline in the internal consumption, and that that depres.ion of manufac turing industry, and the decline of internal consumption, w ere to be attributed to the operation of the Corn-laws. He thought these were the three leading arguments, and he hoped he had omitted nothing of importance, as he had no wish to avoid any of the difficulties of the question. Now, first, with resrct ~..,.._. . . to the derangement of the monetary system, it was said that the sudden demand for corn had been increased importation, and in consequence of the suddenness of the demand, there had not been a consequent exportation of manufactured artich s— that it was necessary to pay for the corn in gold, and conse quently the stock of bullion had been diminished. Now it could not be denied that, in the course of 1838 and 1839, that derangement had taken place, but it was assumed that was a necessary consequence of the Corn-laws. He denied that in ference—he denied that the demand for corn had necessarily caused a derang e ment of the monetary system, and a drain of specie. In the first place, lie contended that a similar derange ment had taken place in other countries, where it was impossible that those causes could operate. That derangement took place in France, where the circulation was chiefly metallic, and where the demand for corn could not possibly have existed. The same derangement of the monetary system, and the same drain of bullion, involving the neces-ity of the suspension of cash pay ments, would take place in the United States, and under cir cumstances where it was perfectly impossible that any cause like the operation of the Corn-laws could have occasioned it. It was therefore perfectly clear that that derangement might take place from other causes than the operation of the Corn laws. The same derangement had taken place in England, when it was quite impossible the Corn-laws could have had any effect. In 1825 there was an immense drain of bullion, and great derangement of the monetary system. They ap peared to be approaching a period when a suspension of cash payments would occur, the drain of s p ec i e f rom th e Bank being so great, a nd he (Sir R. Peel) was one c f th ose who had advised the Ba nk to p a y awa y ev ery guinea before they suspended cash payments, and he believed the determina tion ts act upon that advice obviated tie necessity of resorting to a measure so fatal to t he credit of the Bank. Still in 1825 the state of bullion in the Bank led to g reat ala rm , and in that year it was utterly impossible that the operation of the Corn laws could have contributed to produce it. In 18 1 5 there was no importation of foreign corn to produce the slightest effect— for in 1823, 1824, and 1825 the whole amount did not exceed 200,000 quarters. The derangement of the currency and the drain of specie arose from causes perfectly uncon nected with the operation of the Corn-laws.—(Hear.) In 1836 the same circumstances took place, and from July to December the bullion in the Bank was lessened from 7,362,0001. to 4,545,000/. —could the Corn-laws have operated to cause that drain ? In 1836 there had been no import of foreign corn whatever, and the total consumption of foreign corn for home consumption in 1833, 1834, and 1835, was 200,000 quarters ; the average price in the latter year not ex ceeding 50s. But then it must be admitted that in 1838 and 1839, there was a derangement of the currency, and a drain of specie ; and at the same tune there was an immense sudden import of foreign corn. It was impossible to deny that the two events were simultaneous. Possibly that might have been the cause of the drain.—( Hear, hear, from the Ministerial benches.) it was easy to assume that it must be so, but he would be glad to hear the arguments in proof of it. It would be impossible to deny that a great and sudden de mand for gold had probably some effect on the derangement of the currency. But the question was whether that suddenness of demand was an evil against which they could have any se curity. That was the question. It was impossible to deny the partial effect of the Corn-laws, but was it not true that the nrice of corn, and the quantity of it, depending, as they did, on the vicissitude of the seasons, were things against which they could not take any precaution by human providence, or human legislation ? These were necessities which must follow from the very nature of things—( Hear, hear)—and he could only say, when Right Hon. Gentlemen took it for granted that the Corn-laws were the cause of the evils, that he had read with very great attention the writings of those who had put them selves most prominently forward, both with regard to the Cur rency and the Corn-laws, and lie certainly found that they did not attribute to the operation of those laws exclusively the de rangement of the currency or the drain of specie. On the con trary, they distinctly assigned other causes as having a material influence on those fluctuations. Of course, the parties on whom lie should chiefly rely in a matter of this kind were those who now put themselves forward as the opponents of the Corn-laws, and the most strenuous advocates for their repeal. If he found the same parties, by appealing to the public on the subject of the currency, offered a most impartial testimony on the matter, and if he found them assigning other causes than the operation of the Corn-laws for the derangement he had refer red to, he had a right on such unquestionableauthority to doubt whether these causes might not have great weight on the occa sion, independent of those laws. The parties to whom he should appeal, were those who were now chiefly leading what was called the agitation on the Cnrn-laws, and he would men tion, in particular, the President of the Chamber of Commerce at Manchester. He was about to mention the very individual who had supplanted the Hon. Member for Kendal on account of the unsatisfactcry character of the speeches which that Hon. Member had delivered.—(Hear, hear.) Surely Hon. Gentle men opposite would not protest against the authority of the President of the Chamber of Commerce, and the authority of the commercial body of the greatest manufacturing city and dis trict in the empire. The President of the Chamber of Com merce was now, he believed, a gentleman of the name of Smith, who was one of the most active opponents of the Corn-laws, and the President, he believed, of the Convention which was • now sitting in London. But in the course of this very year • the body over whom that gentleman had presided had come forward, at the same time that they were agitating against the Corn-laws, to assignthe specific causefor the monetary derange- ment in this country. He wanted to show that whatever might be shown of the operation of the Corn-laws, the chief agitators against their continuance had assigned per fectly different and distinct reasons, combined certainly with the laws in question, for our monetary derangements. If he attempted to give a summary of the minifesto he had referred to, which was a report from the Chamber of Commerce, it might be said that in giving that summary he entered into an unfair statement of the arguments, and he would rather rely on the summary which was given by a gentleman who was also an opponent of the Corn-laws, and one who had written with the greatest ability on the subject of currency and banking—a gentleman whose opinions were entitled to the greatest weight from his intelligence, and the respectability of his private cha racter, he meant Mr. Jones Lloyd. He held in his hand the account which Mr. Jones Lloyd gave of the grounds on which the Chamber of Commerce of Manchester had impeached the conduct of the Bank of England, and the reason they assigned for the great derangement of the currency and the drain of bullion. The arguments which the Report contained consisted of three main prapositions. The first was that the alterations in our monetary system and the depreciation in trade, and especially those events which had occurred during the years 1838 and 1839, were to be attributed c*liely to the mismanagement of the circulation. That was the 'gta,minent of the report which Mr. Jones was discussing The second pro position of that report was that the mismanagement of the circu lation was altogether the result of the improper measures adopted by the Bank of England. The third proposition was that the cause of the misconduct of the Bank of England was to be found in the undue privileges which it possessed, in wanting a sufficient capital, which rendered it impossible that it could conduct its affairs with advantage to the interests of the commercial and manufacturing community. It was al .o stated that too great a power was vested in the hands of a few indi viduals. That was Sir. Jones's summary of the reasons alleged by the Chamber of Commerce for our late monetary derangements and the drain of specie. Tho e parties had assigned a perfectly dis tinct cause from the Corn-laws as the most important source of the derangement in question, and they did not concur in think ing that these laws were responsible for it. 3lr. Jones says, ii) his pamphlet, " that the Corn-laws had increased the evil," but there are other circumstances, also, not mentioned by the Chamber of Commerce of Manchester, which had materially • increased the evil, and the principal of those was that the Bank did not and could not exercise over the issues of joint stock banks of the country a sufficient control in respect to the circulation. Mr. Junes said that when the Bank of England contracted its issues there was a tendency on the part of private banks to i icrease their issues ; he sod that the fluctuations in the paper of country banks did not .correspond with the Bank of England. He therefore observed that the Chamber of Corn merce had committed an error 41 not noticing the want of a sufficient control on the part of the Bank of England. Mr. Jones, thought that the princi pal sinner was not the Corn-laws, but the issuers of country banks. Be also considers tits mixture in the saute bank of the functions of a bank of deposit with tlie'llitic 7 tisip c s t a I..ii.y, i 4 issue were incoiroatil , le. ?Jul t„,„lit to be separated. That, w. another re4iOq'' t iti his s i r iiiisii . fdr • . i ,) ) • the d fangement of the currency. Ile thought'' that persons whose authority was enthled to the greatest respect, thought that though the Corn-laws might have been in some measure the cause of the evils complained of, yet there had been other an'frsers) powerful causes in operation, and nothing could lie mere"Piierite'lliiii4inis, firs flimise should take any consse with respect to these laws on the i'irsiiriptidn' Olaf thdy hal iett to the inconveniences in question. That was the answer he would give to the Hoe. Gentleman opposite who had made an eimeal to him on the subject last night. He was trying to .J.fisti s t i t a; I!.ssisi. Member not only on his authority assumptions, or ieo(itriligiVdt Oil the a ettiositt ef those who bld talceh a most active part Will dgaAn'iCtle i Npn=laW's'lnd 'flieli.ar: O'Ct;na . - land.— (Ilear, hear. ) He had shown, oil the authority of Mr. on,. `,..;;:vd, that there had been other and most powerful 6.l.fies 'ln 'Oeratioe, a.))4 `;:ii.'; they should seek for a remedy against fidtird'etei . ailgAtt , ii r t; not ticfusively In apy 4 aii.eration ', the Corn-laws but a'riankelner!fi 414111't h ecrri; Arlen' ~, . .i d .t. e e.,,,y, , r .r the bank of issue. Me.' Cl 4 aid 4 "'a it';'"7 4 i . " - - • e d tnat there We - re oilier Sir ROUST PEEL was glad to get , that F!,oiwkl - , ; i.,si ~..„,,,-,...-, i,,pwever, the Cetri=l)iws mere die eilqr.”",k:-41 - P4r, 3,ie - ar.) The iic::,, Member now - admitt caries besides the 'ariV4aws i,. :-.K.-tiOti, and lie (Sir Robert - 1 .0) had no doubt t ilial irhe Vast anii , d . °". l `l ° }loY 111atPNI 91 operation was question. ' 'fie `e ,iii ' s i e ,l N i cii sit _s . s ts s i s isk , ) . .1 ? ! , corn I4'l,heWnfin.r, and the necetsity of impor'thi,e7iadsimie o i nerailen s a, i:ggra, e denied that that eating the de • t alluded to i but 1 44at 4,i 4 - 44,',41e'dOin4'Avra Would hove very' ltttle'tO do . wit'n he i angernen .. , ..,_ not satisfied cause, on the occasion ; and he was was impossible to regulate the supPlY ili.4 an Oteratien in the Can-lawi would afford any remedy ,or the dil: 'ie ;144 ~.;;• 4 a edit' saiie'!stiii)n cry4i4 k,ei pi! overcome by any legislationa igr, eke subject . He .said thei it the exclusive eitf3e, or use n . lain feet or excess of which depended on the dispensations of iro vidence, over which they - bad not the slightest contro .-- I , Rem, ) He doubted whether, if they discouraged the pro of a commodity, p t tint pi' cot , 4. * tt . id c,044 , y, a nd if they became dependent °F F'i!.l . lipties l ini UtliciefiationsL4o doMil - yfl'ietlrt , il ‘'‘; that caae a time s or ueil eisi s , 4re ity'should aerie; e, if there should be a succe ss i on of bad seasons or of deficient produce, het merely in this country, but in other co untries of Europe, wlhch are subject t o the same influence of seasons which affect this country—he doubted whether in that case they might not repent of their di scouragement o f the home produce , arid of the !imited supply a t h ome. Suppose they frigh nations, and that no hostility should arise between their, t frOse natiOni'rnikrii 14 oPige'ti . tl4' prinsidti for th0r0, ,,, 4, wiiiiis• lie feared that in that 'ease there Might be more sn'tiden de s r6a4(l 't 1114 ill" ere Sufficient sipistiei, tiil ilAt t il e " il s fluctua tions in the price of corn, thereby were dependent on of the derangement of the currency and a drain of bullion, might come upon them with a force greatly aggravated over the degree in which it existed at present. The next objection was, that the Corn-laws produced in our traffic, and derangement of our commercial intercourse with foreii - sn nations, Here. t vrain, he was compelled to admit tliat there.bhd been animus:tintsl, much greater trap could be wished. But what 'he deubted w'a's, Whether there hail not producing great uncertainty been greater steadiness of prices upon the whole under'. the sliding scale, th an would otherwise be found.—( Hear, hear.) Now, as to this article of food, there were causes in operation which materially affected the value and the price at different He would quote on this 'Mint or deficieneY''iss the sul s ply' periods. authorities' On 'flie'sutseCt, AV Tooke, one or tine greatqt ‘,l - 16 Said i` that excess ''F acorn,' eo consumption, was attended With reater difference of price that on most ether commodities_ i awl therefore the flucteaSinns on corn had been such as not to be corn Pared with fhase is i n race inpalbed 'te rth tli'e a . vitaige articles." The Hight' tion:' ihronct 'stdd: lie , would compare the fluctuations which had occurred since the operation of the present Corn-law system, with those at form er p eriods. In *. -' ri TEIE S , c was all very well for the opponents of the Corn-law, to take the I highest and the lowest points in the scale, and say these in dicated the extent of fluctuation. The proper method of calculation was to take the variations, at periods since 182 S, and compare them with periods—not about 1815 (considered snore defective by these Gentlemen)—but period, when this was an exporting country ; and when, therefore, the influence of the Corn-laws, as producing smitten influx of imports, could not have been felt.—( Flear, hear.) And on this comparison he must say that he was wholly at a loss to see what justification would be alleged for the strong condemnation .of the present system. Let him first remark, that this system had for seven years afforded an average price of 525. a quarter. He admit ted this was not conclusive as to the point of fluctuation, still it was important to show what had been the average price of corn during the operation of this law.—( Hear, li'ar.) Now, the annual average variations (and the account was of course correct, as it issued from Anti-Corn-law documents) were as follow : In 1829 1830 1831 1:32 1833 1834 Mr. LA BO UCH ERE here interrupted. in a low tone, across the table, but his observation, being an arithmetical statement (always difficult to catch), was, moreover, delivered in so low a tone that we could barely collect the purport of it to be, that for a number of months the price was between 655. and 705., and for forty-four months of the period between 555. and 655. Sir R. PEEL—But it would not be denied that for upwards of ninety months the price was below 655.—( Hear, hear) below the price fixed by Mr. Canning's maximum (and it ap peared he con idered that low prices were essential to prosperity ), though it need not at all be denied that for feurty-four months the price was between 555. and 65s.—for that period included below 655.—( Hear, hear)—and thus, for 100 nearly out of 143 months (he believed that. to be the number) the price of corn had been below 655.—( Hear, hear.) Well now, he would state the averages of variations in periods previous to 1784 and 1765, when this was an exporting country. The price of wheat was— In 1728 ... 484. sd. a quarter. In 1750 ... 28s. 10d. a quarter. 1732 ... Mt. Bd. 1757 ... 535. 4d. 1740 ... 455. Od. 1761 ... 265. 3d. 1743 ... 225. Od. Thus, then, it would be found that there had been fluctua tions far greater in those periods when we exported corn, than under the existing Corn-law.—(Hear, hear. ). In these seven years five were years of excess of export over import. It was clear, therefore, that the fluctuations could not have arisen from sudden importations of corn.—( Hear, hear.) He re ferred to these statements to confirm his argument, that the price of corn, more than of any other article, depended on the defect of supply, or the excess, and that neither the one nor the other could be foreseen or provided against.—( Hear, hear. ) The fluctuations referred to had not been the result of varia- tions in the currency, nor agitation of political questions; they showed that the effect of changes in supply had upon prices an influence in a much greater ratio than in any other article. Now, though he admitted certain fluctuations under the pre sent system, he believed they could not be said to be so great as those which occurred without a Corn-law.—( Hear, hear.) What would have been the effect if there had been a fixed duty—if, as in 1533, 1834, and 1835, there had been a succes sion of good seasons in this country, and at the same time a succession of good seasons upon the Continent--and, in conse quence of the immense production of foreign corn, a corre- sponding reduction of foreign prices? On the principle of a fixed duty, the foreign grower would have a right to import into this country. Was it not possible that the reduction of ahe price on the Continent, where there was no demand for corn, would induce you to undersell the home producer of this coun try?—( Hear, hear.) There might thsn be a great discourage ment of the home grower, and land would be thrown out of cultivation. Thus great productiveness of home cora for three or four years might discourage the home grower, and lead to the same alternation, so as to limit the supply for some sea sons. He now came to the third head. He knew that it was tiresome to reiterate the same arguments on one side, and to repeat the same statements on the other side, for the purpose of refutation ; it must be tedious in so large a political assem bly, but it was the only way in which such a question could be dealt with. The Hon. Member for Wolverhampton said that if those who took part in the discussion in favour of the Corn-laws last year could foresee that so great a falsification of their arguments was to follow, they would have paused be fore they came to the decision to which they arrived. Those who followed the Hon. Member took it for granted from his statements of manufactures for export and for home consump tion. Now, for his part, he regarded every thing connected with commerce and manufactures with great anxiety. He thought, after all, that to maintain the position of this country in the scale of nations depended mainly upon the prosperity of its commerce and manufactures, and he would tell the agricultur ists that the best friend they had was the manufacturer.— (Loud cheers.) Therefore when the Honourable Gentle man told him that the manufactures of the country were on the decline, and that there had been a great and rapid dimi nution of consumption he listened with the utmost respect and attention, and he endeavoured to ascertain whether a statement so important and melancholy was well founded.— ( Hear, hear.) He had there the official statement of the foreign trade of the country—of the imports and exports.— (Hear, hear.) When he heard that confident statement—that there had been such an immense depression of the foreign trade, he looked with anxiety to the official report, and he found that the gloomy anticipations of failure and distress were not alto gether borne out.—( Cheers.) He had the satisfaction of find ing that there did appear to be a considerable increase in the export of manufactures last year.—(Cheers.) He did not know whether his Hon. Friend the Member for Kendal was in his place. If he were, he would remind him that last year when he (Sir R. Peel) proved, or rather when the Hon. Mem ber admitted to him that there had been a great increase in the export of; manufactured goods—the argument with which the Hon. Member met him was that, although there was an increase in the total amount of exports in 1838, compared with 1837, or of the four preceding years—although there had been an in crease in the declared value of the articles exported, yet the in crease in the perfectly wrought articles was exceedingly small, and the increase had been principally in those articles scarcely removed from the raw produce, and which were the elements of manufacture for other countries.—( Hear. ) Mr. WOOD—I am the individual who made that state ment.—(Hear, and a laugh.) Sir R. PEEL—Truly the Hon. Gentleman could not think that he (Sir R. Peel) could possibly forget that, in seconding the address. The Coin-law agitators (as we understood) had not forgotten it—( A laugh)—and he (Sir R. Peel) did not wish to deprive him of his honours.—(A laugh.) The Hon. Gentleman was the very person who said that there was every indication of prosperity in the returns of the imports and ex ports.—(Cheers ) He (Sir R. Peel) could never forget the faces of those who relied on the President of the Chamber of Commerce for proving the depression of trade, and the neces sity of reps aling the Corn-laws.—(Hear, hear, and a laugh.) But on another occasion, when the increase of the exports was referred to, the Hon. Member said that the increase was only on the articles in the rudest state. In the average of the four years preceding 1838 the declared value of the exports was 25,757,0001., in 1838 it was increased to 26,129,000/. That was an increase of only one and a half per cent. on the whole of the exports, whilst the increase in the export of the raw material in the same period was from 6,599,0001. to 8,452,0001., being an increase of twenty-eight per cent. He then turned to the return of the present year, and he looked to the exports of the wrought fabric in the cases to which the Gentlemen had referred. He looked first of all to the cotton manufactures generally, and he compared the years 1838 and 1839, and 1839 was the year when the great depression of the manufactures took place. The declared value of cotton manu factures exported in 1838 was 16,785,0001., and in 1839 they were 17,694,0901.—( Hear, hear.) In linen manufactures there was increase ; in 1838 it was 2,730,0001., and in 1839 3,453,000/. In silk manufactures there was an increase from 777,0001. to 86,0001.: and in the woollen manufaieures there was an increase trorn 5,795,0001. to 6,270,0001. He was nqt saying that there was conclusive proof of manufacteriew prospe rity ; he was only saying that so far as official documents went it could not be said there had been any decline in manufactures. He relied upon the official documents, and the) showed thet there had been an increase of the exports in the linen, silk, and woollen manufactures. So far es the foreign exports were concerned, there was all ins j atjAn of an increase in the manufactures, he would nit say in the prosperity of the country. The total increase, combining all those sepa rate articles or perfectly wrought fabrics, was, from 1838 to 1839, from 23,170,000/. to 28,220,0001. In the result of the last year the lion. Gentleman had said there bad only been an in , crease of per cent. on the value of the eeperted articles in the perfectly wrought material. During the present year there had been an increase of 8 per cent. on th., perfectly wrought fabric, But thee, perhaps, the Gentlemen would meet him by saying, Yes, but there has been an immense increase in particular article of * manufacture, marnely, yarn ; i k ark perhaps they bad been exporting those art;i.W.e , tf\at esseblest the foreigner to compete wit theft Now \iv, tiass ale pleaeure to state, that while wgc.a,§,c tii;e Wrought Lbrip there, had ben iff . cr4se t o of yarn.— ( flear, experi or cotton yasti in 1838 was i,466,000/.; while in 1839 it was 6,857,000/. ; in linen yarn in 183 e it was 836,000/., while in 1839 it was 814,0001„ ; and in woollen yarn there had been a similar decre ase . , fi „ ketal decrease in the export of yarn 1709 ..?11 t 3 1,41,00/.. to 8,072,000/. Last yer thaye. vat au itscirease. of l 4 per cent. nn tl-..p s.ireesstl4 1-ajtatitl Vihile there was a decreas e of 23 p er dent. on yarn. Wow, what was the argument upon this sub ject—it was one certainly of some ingenuity. i here was a complete admission of the increase in the exports of tha wrought article—that would be an indication, yis appre hend, of prosperous manufaeturec cisen s it was decovered, tliat Io f ig fre,e that an indication of prosperity, it a'proeftif . complete decline in trade, and it was ac counted for in this way—the foreign trade had been forced, and the consequence of that was the total inability of tilt: him Fn sumer to make the article, aftd therafw se . farysßsupppeing Ate increisFd tle tie a symptom ofmspe - cifk,i was cold efclpeey.. `llovf supostig ths t t" Ise hailloirtidit great falling off in the for eige trade, 'apt Supposin4 be iii d sa,id that the. cop i ed tov vo ,,;:. proof of prosperity—that the Olin c : iff tya.; fr o Te,,isielrade arose from !I'l 4-- ft 11 0 e, elimense increase of house eon stitni;lien, itl`therelore that instead of repining at that falling i.frof the trade they ought to rejoice at it, 'or it was an indica tion of groat prosperity, what would have been eaid tc.lAir l / 4 ), if hu had rat forth such an argument ? '(et ',ltrit i t result of ogle ,irgement that we pri tor a, s` ' r t. ' . Clin o el f Y ihe tdtecta‘ increase o the df 'lia fbfefell fi'este via an indication iiiimisifedtUrese 11e would as); whether that was not t he argu ment ? BAINES—No. Sir R. PEEL rioter liked to qdrinol mut. thing hi that House for the p•aviiifili gaiii4ig a temporary triumph which (irnetirne's Was ',lone, but he had seen a paper purporting to contain a speech of the son of the Hon. Member opposite. It was entitled, " The Corn-law National Distress proved by in, creased exports, combined with diminished production?," gad there he found that that Gentleman stated tt That Otelt 0 1 . e advocates of free importation of nom arge that the eoantr/ heTn suffering 4 the 401 yev end ahalf front the high price of tiread ; that trade is stagnant t that oar merchants and manu facturers are in deep embarrassment ; and that the working classes are enduring the combined evils of want of employ ment and dear food ; they are met, in many quarters—and those respectable and influential quarters—by a denial of their premises; for there are gentemen who contelid . that trade, so far from being crippled, it yigor.traarffid nourishing; and they prodnoe an Acial rei.n e rw, 410 pri(disied, of the ex tipyts pritoo# ittin4aetares for the years 1838 and =t4 w ligh seeing to hear out their assertion. X perc,eive, that this official warn was Ra)ted the other day ip tho (}ham per of Commerce at Manchester, over which you so ably pre side, by Mr. George Sandars, to show that the complaints made by yourself and others of the state of trade were not well founded ; and I have no doubt that it will be quoted in both Howes of Parliament for the same purpose. That official document shows that a larger amount of British manufactures was exported in the year ending January 5,11340, than in lhF year ending January 5, 1839 • the i,PeTeasc-' ttlillions PP the cleclaeed i'4l. l. 4ll'shorlly pi nye, from the'4ey'i;forlainent'tl - usldrii'ed,"k case, not of extending, bat . de6liiiing trade antimann`faCture;" that (obSeryed the Right Hon. Baronet) is e recisely . Whail have stated. Mr. BAINES arose here amidst . cries" made some nhservatio.na vklitch we r. heart in gailery, 4 . R. VEV,I. :=.aid"that al lie had S ateirira, t gen leman, of' Thae l patieit: apon the incNciao cxpoi t§ undeftlid peculiar eirenniktances, ?N951: 2/. **At ins trak. ' = ' 6 lr I have read his own words ! He (Sir R. Peel), on the same ground, would be justified in arguing from a diminished foreign trade, and he had seen an ine.reasv A consumption at home. The foundation of the =4;•iiiningtAwas J. • • that a decreased demand at home had led to the exports. It was exceedingly difficult to ascertain what was the home_ con- sumption. It'was almost impossible to ascertain it. It was matter of mere speculation, but there were other indications of . , . the state of the country to which it was possible for them to re vert. He looked to the revenue of 1838, and compared it wi'l that of 1639. The customs of 1838 were 22,236,000/., while, in 1839, they ware 23,081,000/. In the foreign trade there had been an increase in the 'vessels em- ployed in 1839, as compared with those employed in 1838. In 1836 the number of vessels employed inward was 19,639 ; in 1839, 22,140. The number employed outward was, 1836, 17,204 ; in 1839, 18,423. He did not exactly see why there should be a great incrtase in the coasting trade of the country, if there was a decline in its consumption. If the exports were a reason of the declining internal consumption, why should there have been an increase in the coasting trade, but there was an increase of the coasting trade in 1839, as compared with 1838 ? Well, there must be a great increase of the capacity to answer, or there would be a falling off of the Excise duties ; how could an increase in these be reconciled with a greatly diminished consumption and inability to purchase articles of luxury ? (Hear, hear, hear.) But there had been a gradual increase, though a small one, in the Excise duties, in 1837-8-9. Now, if a diminution in the consumption of those manufactured articles were a test of consumption, ought there not also to be a diminution of those articles which were of general consumption? Yet there was a lesser reduction in these than in those articles of absolute necessity. If there was a greatly diminished capacity of consumption, why was there a . l increase in the quantity of coffee ? The articles of general consumption entered for 1838 were—coffee, 25,818,000 lbs. ; in 1839, 26,832,000 lbs. Tea, an increase of from 32,000,000 lbs. to 35,000,000 lbs., in 1839, as compared with 1838. There appeared at first sight a diminution of the quantity of sugar. If we took the amount of drawbacks on refined suga r exported in 1838 as compared with 1839, we should find, if there was any diminution in the home consumption of sugar, it was extremely small. He had received, from a house greatly connected with the trade, an estimate of the comparative con sumption in 1838 and 1839, and that showed that on the horns consumption there was a small increase, and therefore he could not admit the assertion that the foreign trade of the country must be considered as a conclusive indicator of declining prosperity at home, and increased inability to consume articles of luxury. He knew perfectly well great stress was laid on the argument that the great articles of consumption employed in manufactures, cotton, indigo, &c., had declined in consump tion; but at the comm e ncement of tis year, the Ist of January, 1339, as compared with the Ist of January, 1838, there had been an increase in cotton during the present year taken out of the home consumption. It would be said that increase arose from laying in stocks for future supply. Why were these varia tions in the price of co' ton ? Because it was one of the articles which depended on the seasons. The duty on cotton was fixed, yet the returns showed a variation in the price to a much larger extent than the variations in any other article. He had heard with the utmost pain the statements of distress in the manufacturing districts, with still greater pain of the privations to which the working classes in some par s were exposed • but he could not come to the melancholy conclusion to which some had come, or see in these official do cuments certain indication of the decline of this great country; arid on these grounds, having paid the greatest attention to the subject, and being fully ready to re-consider any opinions he might have entertained, and to abandon them if he found them to be ill-founded, he might say he could not conceive there had been or was any indication of decay or decline in this country, and that the opinions he had expressed last year on the general subject of the Corn-laws were the opinions which in the present year he was perfectly ready to defend. It was in vain to disguise it; the real question which they were discussing was not whether they would adopt any modification in the state of the scale of duties—the real question which the Hon. Gen tleman called upon them to discuss was whether or not they should be totally repealed.—( Hear, hear.) At the same time the Right Hon. Gentleman, who was entitled to his respect as well from his general character as the official situation which he held, had in the course of the debate declared as his intention, in case the House should go into Committee, to submit some thing to their consideration, but declared it to be his indi vidual opinion. He (Sir R. P.) doubted whether the Right Hon. Gentleman was, on the whole, favourable either to the total re peal, or the present sliding scale. The Right Hon. Gentle man's opinion was not so far formed that he would pledge himself to retain it in Committee ; but in stating that he thought the Right lion. Gentleman could not answer for any other Members of the • Government.—(Hear.) And he had also understood two other Members of the Government, who had spoken, differed completely from the opinion expressed by the Right Hon. Hon. Gentleman. He would shortly consider the merits of the proposition of the Right Hon. Gentleman. He should have preferred a fixed duty to a sliding scale, and on being asked the amount, answered about 7s. or Bs. Then the Right Hon. Gentleman being aware of the objection to a fixed duty, said that when the price of corn became so high it might be difficult to maintain a fixed duty in the case of rising prices. To obviate that objection he would eropose that when corn should arrive at 70s. (he did not wish it,) that corn should be admitted free, and that was the only prop°, sition submitted to their consideration by her Majesty's, Goe vernment. Now let him .observe to the Right Hon, Gentle• man that his proposition would hardly remove one objection made to the present law. Would it tend to promote a final settlement? Not in the opinion of the Right Hon. Gentleman, because his whole speech went to show that the landed in terest was entitled to no protection. He even said that, so far from the landed interest being .abject to any specisd duty, there were some burdens from which it was exempt s All the arguments which applied to the protection of oorn for the pur pose of increasing the value of land, would apply to a fixed duty. All the argumente about injustice, and un-Christian principles--( Hear, hear)—and irreligious principles of " tax ing the staff of life," would apply to a fixed duty equally with the present—they perhaps would be increased, for when we came to look at the average amount of duty levied on foreign corn, for a considerable number of years, since the Corn-law came into operation, if foreign ,wheat was imported into this coun try for home consumption at no less a quantity than 9,297,000 qrs. the average amount of duty paid upon this immense nye, portation did not exceed ss. sd. a quarter.—( Cheers. tie was not saying that there might not be great objectic io the shifting scale. Undoubtedly the suddenness of tho importation might operate very detrimentally ; all lie was saying was, that the average amount of duty levied upon the corn imported un der the operation of the shifting scale was only ss, tsd. per quarter, and that, therefore, the ignorant man Nstlom could not understand the nature of the objection to the kkAckieness of the importation, but looked only to the arttow4 etduty, would feel no satisfaction that a duty of ss, N. should be changed for a duty of as. per quarter.—(cheers.) He did not mean to say but that there was a great difference bet.wpon tt-,a c.. 0 prorost tions ; but the plan of the Right Hon. Gentleman would he equally available to those who excited the passions of the people against the imposition of any tax on the staff of life. It would be equally effectual for their purposes, and the Honourable Member for Salford must join in the cry, because a fixed duty would be equally irreligious.-..( Hear, hear.) He now came to that part of the Right Hon. Gentle man's plan which provided for the extirtotitm of the duty when % .4 the price of corn should reach 70s. Cl.l.lArter. He w ou ld re mind the Right Hon. Gentle RIR tt. 7 t his plan must necessa rily fail to give satisfactiq i9e those who thought th at t h e landed interest was ntittle4 to no protection, neither would his plan get rid of any one of the objections to the present sys tem. He must retain the whole system of averages; he did not propose a free trade in corn dependent solely on the will of the importer, who, when he lodged his Bs. was at any time entitled to import his quartos' of corn. No, the system of ave rages must be retained; or how could it be ascertained if the price of wheat had reached 70s. or not ? The objection of the American merchant urged in the case alluded to the other night, could not be got rid of, that a great quantity of corn of au inferior quality was in the market, asd affecting the ave rages materially ; that objection would still remain. —(Cheers.) The bad corn would still have to be taken into the account.— But vs,klee corn was found to be rising in price to his. or 685., what precaution would they take alpinist all the tricks and de vices which it was stated were now had recourse to for the purpose of affecting the averages.—( Cheers. ) When corn reached the price of 695. 6d. a cleaner, the duty would be Bs., but if it rose in price only an additional shilling it might be imported iluty free,—( Cheers.) What, then, would be the temptation to those who wished to secure a free importation to practise in every possible manner upon the averagee?. They would withhold their corn from the market gaol the price should reach 705., and then they would pour into the market the whole of the quantity previously accumulate:'. The excess thus suddenly poured in would bring down the market to ea undue state of depression, but the importer would have the advantage of the whole interval which must elapse before the next return of averages. How far would the objection of the American mer chant be met, of the diavAity of cocopeting with the merchants on the Baltic, on account of the great distance at which he was situated tte• tniglst receive intelligence that the price of wh,e4, \vita We. s on the faith of this he might make a large itnpottatiou, on Its arrival in this country the price might have &ellen to 695., and instead of importing his corn duty free it would be liable to a (Roy oaf' Bs. pee gwarter.—( Hear, hear.) He merely mentioneet thee(' c4Caeinstances for the purpose of showin4 tk‘aLti the• imposition of the Right Honowrahle Gentle%:9; Wei. Wale to many of the objections which were now ii i rged against the sliding scale. Ile thouglq that in years 4 peat abundance here, and an unexpectes,l Supply abroad, a lived duty of Bs. would not prevent e. iereat excess of foreign corn from being imported; white en the contrary, if corn was at a high price, it would be difficult, if not impossible, tor any Government to ItaeiMstin it, and if once remoxt , d, he greatly doubted whether it would be even possihie to re-impose it. ce.naidering these objections to his plaw, he was not anrprised that that Right Hon. Gentlematt s'eould declare it was not his intention to propose it in cwognittee, more espeeially when his colleagues, who hid spoken on the subject, had declared that they could trtkupport him.—(Cheers and laughter.) But if he dad no, intention of making any proposition to the Commit tee, what was the object of going into Committee ?—(Cheers.) It was distinctly stated that no member of her Majoates Go vereesio.at was prepared with any propositiosas---090ers.) tersie Gentlemen had said that they hiapett to see his (Sir Robert Peel's) plan of modification, Nom, he would not say that he would not pleckp '3,;naself always to main tam the present late, asit.leOut modification or alteratieses He thsught tligvi.wat nothing so absurd as for a public. eastri to 1v fx4 tiitt'ils4 . ' to the details of a measure of tlita nature—to say t sat all the decals of this Bill were perkiMion, and that it was and wonld be impossible. whatex:es eontingences might arise, to amend or to modify tbermseeCheers)--hut he, had no intention at the present of proposing any sn4 modifica tions • and even if ! 4 ,...1 bad entertai ne d s u c h au i n t en ti on , h e slie k s E l k e A t ,e prai . nt the worst possible t'sete for making any seehliroposition. The propositiok\ ee the lion. Gesitleman was a plain and intelligible me, was for a total and imme diate repeal of the Cort:,-.;au:s. lie contended that the landlords were entitled tit, -4,4 protection. Now, nothing could be ino,e preposteeao,s after such a declarations thau to enter into a dis eassion as to the details of any pl i ao, cif modification ; and if he hail entertained any such idea, the experience of what had occiseeed to the Hon. Aleinieer for Cambridge, would have been a von, in to him. That Hon. Gentleman was the friml ekthe Hon. Mover, and generally agreed with hem kis politics, a n d from his position, was certainly entitle So speak with authority on this subject. —(Cheers. 3 / 4 -Ao intimated his intention, if the House went intq Coatinittee, of proposing some nacelilica tion of the la\(. He was not in favour of a fixed ditty, and yet that Gentleman complained, and with ileatice, • that the only instance in which the Hon. MeMher to t Woleterhampten deviated from the calm and philesallaiell niatmer in which he had introduced this question % was when he came across his un fortunate prOp9AttiAtt, He complained of having been accused, in langeage almost approaching to the character of violence, of his being an insidious betrayer of the cause. So little hope had he of hearing any plan calmly discussed, that MA had he been prepared with one, he should not have Istunght it forward, after seeing the injustice with whjeh the tlo nourable Gentleman had treated ktp. Aormatable Friend, who had avowed his, inteut.on of mpesing some alteratip A ist 'corn _law. Why he pesAtively disclaimed Wel, end 'said Mott would prefer the open esonity of the Hon. Member for Lincoln, to the ieeidioals proposition of the Hon. Memher for Cambeidge. He would remind the House that if they went intq Csie f errittee, the plain and only que s ti on th e y wottkd helt to consider would be the total rep ea l, of the Coen, laws, To, that proposal he could net essieed-esaod he ap eb ae*.:4 Government WM44O--a% least Right k,t.9Ps. tieqlfVP 0 1 ,t P4'4i:tieut of the Board of Trade, whit tl?o,ugh,t tip Intt&il interest entitled some protection, e' qlc} slot 4Wnt Ito an y such -":" T osition.—(Cheers. ) He over the , teem ask t h em weetner , Ale ' Gentleman who preside d interests of the country, entertain ed bpinion, for the concurrence in which he w e e, not prepar e d t o answer for his colleagues, h e woeld i ask l whet would be for the public 01 , 040ge that ztl> leis opipioraii he should coos. ono to go into C ommittee in the vague and unsatisfactory hope that some prop osa l might be made which would be to the advantage of all parties. The principle of total repeal was by far too theoretical. He doubted the possibility of applying that principle to this country, in its artificial state, with such enormous interests at stake, and under a state of law which gave protection to the landed inte rest. If the principle were good for the regulation of the corn trade, it was goad for any other ; if it was good as affecting corn, it was also good as affecting labour. Then let them look at the Navigation-laws. If the principle were good as affected corn, it ought to be the privilege of every person to employ labour at the cheapest rate he could possibly get it.—( Hear, hear.) Merchants ought to have the privilege of em ploying any seamen which they might find it convenient to employ; bur no, the House stepped in, and said that we must encourage our own marine in order to take security that the maritime superiority and independence of this country should be maintained.—( Cheers.) If the principle is to be applied generally, then the whole of our colonial system must be aban doned.—( Hear, hear.) Foreign sugars must be entitled to admission on terms equally free to that from our own Colo nies—( Hear, hear) —and again the same principle applies to cur timber trade; and every protecting duty upon our manu factures, imposed, for the best of purposes, upon the same prin ciple, must be extinguished ; and if they must not in the case of corn take an insurance against the caprice of foreign countries — against the vicissitude of seasons, neither could they take a security for the marine, or give a preference to the Colonies, er any pro tection at all to manufactures. The proposition of the Hon. Member for Wolverhampton might, theoretically, look very well, but when they looked at the great interests which had grown up under the protective system—when they found that whether theoretically applied to the system or not, still large establishments had been formed that could not be disturbed without great and evil consequences. How , ever imperfect the system might be, still it must be remembered that the country, considering its population, had acquired the greatest colonial empire, the largest Indian empire, the greatest influence among nations, and also, simultaneously, this country presented the spectacle of a country, limited in its extent, who were carrying on the greatest marufacturing interest in the world. Under all these circumstances, he would not go the length of the Prime Minister, and say that he who introduced a scheme E.r the repeal of the Corn-laws was the maddest of men ; but this he would say, that he could not consent Feed" tally to give away those great advantages for the purpose of supporting that principle which would be theoretically destruc tive, fearing that the confusion and distress must greatly countervail any advantage which we might have, and that any change would be at the expence of practice over theory. The Hen. - Baronet sat down amidst loud cheering. Mr. WARBURTON rose amidst loud cries of " Adjourn," " Divide," "Go on," which lasted for some time. We under stood the Hon. Member to say that, considering the number of gentlemen who were anxious to speak upon the subject, he . must move the adjournment of the debate till Monday.--. ( Cries of " No, no," and " Divide," " Monday week," and great confusion.) The SPEAKER having put the question, " That the debate be adjourned," an Hon. Member on the Opposition Benches exclaimed, " 'Till next Session."—( Laughter and cheer..) Strangers were then ordered to withdraw, but no division took place, and on our re-admission to the gallery we found— Lord J. RUSSELL on his legs, stating, that after the speoth of the Right Hon. Baronet he thought it would not be fP:ir to go to a division; and, therefore, he hoped the debate would be adjourned till Monday.—(Cries of " No, no," %. Adjourn, adjourn," ) Strangers were again ordered to withdraw, and the House divided, when the numbers were— For the adjournment of the debate 129 Against the adjournment Majority --116 Mr. WARBURTON then moved that the House should then adjourn. The question was put and carried without a division. (The result was bided with loud cheers and laughter on the Opposition Benches. ) The House adjourned at Half-pat One. MARKET INTELLIGENCE. Ptt or• The highest price of Bread in thi Loaf. Good Bread niay be had at BRZAD. le Metropolis is 10,co1 for the 41b. PRICES 0 F SEEDS. Per quarter. St. Foin, Rye Grass -s. 235. 611 s Macey Grass s. 455. 609 Linseed, for feeding -s. 4as. 52s Ditto, for sewing -a. 545. 50 0 Ditto, for crushing -s 425. Vis Canary -s 100 s. 105 s Hemp 33s 401 Per Bushel White Mustard...lls O4. 143. Od. Brown Ditto los, Od, 21s. OJ Tares Os. 0.1. 9s. Oil. ist) 241.261. Foreign 211. 251. )} HOPS. 01 Os. 01. Os. to 01. Os. .... 41 10s. 51. 15s. to 61. Os. ▪ 31.195. 01. - Os. to 41. 4e. 31. 10s. 4/..105. to 5/. 12 , . 51. 10s. 01. 0.. Os. • 31. Os. 01. Os. to 3/. 5 5 . • 01. Os. 31. 3s. to 3/. ▪ 01. Os. 11. 15s. to 21. 10;. Per Cwt. New English lied Clover...sos. 984 Old Ditto Ditto — s. —3. —s. Now Foreign Ditto 60s. 90s. Old Ditto Ditto .... —s. —s. —l. New White Clover 5OO. 60s. 70s. Old Ditto Ditto s —s. —s. New Trefoil ...... 341. Old Ditto 4.—s. 16s. gas. Tref°limn .—s. Xs. 365. English Carraway —s. 435. 525. Foreign Ditto —s. 50s. 565. Coriander —s. 14t. 2Os. , Rapeseed, English tine (per Li PRICES C 'Farnham Pockets (per cwt.)... iSlasl Ki.sit Pockets._ I )itto Bags Mid Kent Pockets Jitto Bags S issex aearlings Old (lids PRICES OF LEATHER Per lb. d. to d. Per 11*. d. tad. CropHldes,3llto4olb.each 11 131 Horse llides, (;erman ... 12 2 2 ---40 50 12 16 ----- Spanish ... 13 '24 —_--50 60 ..... l3 18 CzillSkins,3o to 40 itx,doz) 15 ' 22 Bull Hides • Butts, V.triol ... ..... ...... 17 IS -----50 CO Eng1i5h............. 15 24 --70 100 Foreign . Foreign Hides .... ..... 10 12 -- small 2O '2J Dress Hides .......... 11 14 Kips -...--------Skaved... 13 17 Basils ll Best Saddlers' Hides...... 15 161 Bellies Horse Hides, English .. 11 15 Shoulders ~ 1 0 15 Call Skins , it' rounded 2d. to 4d. por b. more. - PRICE OF OIL. Rapooll,brown, per ton, 361. Os.—Refin ed, 371.10 s Linseed 0 11, 2 41 • Libseed Oil Cake at the Mill (1000), 131.138.—Rape 1 - ake, per tott, 74 PRICE OF TALLOW, SOAP, &c. per 1121 b. Town Tallow 533. 6d. rellow Soap _. 0d . Yellow Russia s3s. tkl. Mottled _s. t ia . White —s. Od. Curd . Soap Ditto .... Melting Stuff ..... ...... 38g. V& Good Dregs'. ls. y,- Ditto Rough ........... 25s Od.l PRICE OF RAW FAT, per stone of 8117. Price of Tallow (as stated by the Tallow Melters) 30., PRICE OF CANDLES. The price eA good Store Candles in the Retail Shops is as yollowS:.. Candles, per dozen, Ss. Od. ; inferior, 7s. od. ; Moulds, Os. Bd. Sixpence per dozen discount for cash. COAL MARKET. d • Buddle's West Hartley l9' 9 Original Windsor's Pon top 18 6 Picton Tanfield Moor 29 Wylain Walls End Bell and Brown 26 1, Walls End Gosforth ... 2l 1' Walls Ynd Heaton 2l Walls End Hilda 2O 6 Walls End Killingworth 20 Walls End Riddell's Eden Main 2l C Walls End Belmont Walls Endßraddyll'sHetton 25 6 Ships arrived since) s. d. Walls End Hetton" .. 23 9 Weis End Lambten 0 3 9 Walls End Pemberton l9 0 Walls End Russell's Hetton 23 6 Walls End Stewart's 24 0 Walls End Whltwell 22 9 Walls End Hartlepool 23 9 Pennant's Hartlepool 23 0 . WP.siEnd Ade Lade: .... ' Walls End Barrett Walls End Evenwood li 0 w 'V‘ a a l l i t s .:E E n n d d S i r s our Tee. 3 Walls End Wendleston 2 A ) last market-day. 71. It has been remarked by some experienced Agri culturists, that the present season has been particularly destruo" Live to weeds, although the corn is less injured than it has been in preceding years, when weeds have appeared comparativelY unatietted by the weather. The corn-rose, or red-weed, is stated to be completely destroyed in some fields by the late frosts. HANOVER, MARCH 26.—The King has again suffered from indisposition within these few days, which has been considered rather serious since. Her Majesty the Queen, it is said, sat up a whole night by his bedside. HANOVER, MA non 29.—His Majesty the King has now happily recovered from his indisposition. Re secting the draft of a n ew C ons tit ut i on, we learn, in respect to Chapter V., which treats of the Estates, that the First Cham ber require the full right of assenting to all the laws of S'.fe kingdom. and that chapter will scarcely pass. The same it the ease with the chapter on the finances. We hear that the elec tors of Cello have again been called upon to elect a Depr.ty, a" that in consequence the citizens will meet to-morrow to choose electors. It is said that another attempt will be made in the capital to obtain an election.—Hantburgli Paper. It is said that in case of the rejection of gr. Villiers' motion, a number of influential gentlemen have deter mined to lay down a broad basis for future political operations , with a view of establishing a union between the working, ma nufacturing, and mercantile classes of the community. THE NEW PORTABLE ALARUM size of a small Snuff Box, can be placed on the Dressing_table an t i set to ring at any hour that may be required. Price Three and a half Guineas. T. COX SAVO , Goldsmith, Watchmaker, &e., ornhill (Seven doors from Graceehu -street), London. A Pamphlet, conja'fig a list of the Priees of Silver Spot?" and Forks, Tei.aslif Coffee Services, and other Silver Plate, Plated Ware, Plated on White Metal Spoons and Forks, Watches, Clocks, &c.. with Drawings of the Articles, will be forwarded gratis and post free, ►n answer to a post-pall application, SHEFFIELD MADE PLATED DISH CO VERS.—A. B. SAVORY and SONS, Goldsmiths, No. 1 4 . Cornhill, London, opposite th England, s ubmit for .- selection, in their show s, a very lar e variety of SHEF FIELD siLvEig ATED DISH COVERS, from Fir; teen Guineas set ; they have silver edges and handles, V ° silver shieWfor engraving the crest or coat of arms. Double Dome Pattern. The Melon Pattern. a. Size. £ s. 11. s• 0 1 Plated Dish Pavers, 21) in. 3 13 F 1 - 4 7 . - :ated Dish Cover, 20 in. 5 17 0 „ Dish Cover, IS in. 4 7(I 1 „ Dish Cover, IS in. .1 I, 2 u Dish Covers, 14 in. 512 0 „ Dish Covers, i 4 in. Li " Per Set £ls 13 • Per 5et......X1i 17 (5 Plated Currie or Hash Dishes Seven Guineas the Set. Price Current, Stamped as a Non spaper, containing drawingt . and every informatio n relative t o th e purc h ase o f s il ver or Sher field plate, may be had on application, or will be sent into th e country, free of postage, in answer to a paid letter. BIRTHS. On the 23d ult., the lady of Frederick John Pigott, FA" o f a daughter. On the 29th ult., at Vin e L o d ge, S even Oaks, the la dy of John Rogers, Esq., jun., of a son. On the 30th ult., the lady of S. H. Day, Esq., of Bec kin f h • Essex, of a daughter. On the 2d inst., Mrs. Clement Tudway, of a daughter. On the 2d inst., in Bectford•square, the rife of Edward lasis, Esq., Barrister-at-law, of a daughter. On the. 3cl lust., in Park-square, the lady of W. Neale, of a daughter. te , On the 29th ult., at Blackheath, Lady Barbara Newd i g i of a son. In Hertford-street, May-fair, the Hon. Mrs. Scat, o9°ll. 1644 RR lE D. On the 4th inst., at Hampton Church, by the Rev. DTs: Goodenough, Frederick, second son of W. Blakesly. Egg . ' Lombard-street, to Sarah, youngest (laughter of the late J. 7 Pepperday, Usti., of Hampton , _ Middlesex. On tho 2d inst., at St. Pancras Church, Euston-sqr,arep William Coulson, Esq., of Frederick's-place, Old Jer,,y, to Maria, daughter of John Thomas Bartram, Esq., euf u p per Fitzroy-street, Fitzroy-square. At Altona, Mr. Alfred Ainger, of Doughty-strer ,t, London', to Isabella, youngest daughter o f the late 11Ir. J ag ger, 0. Liverpool. DIED. On the 31st nit., at St. Alphage-kate. Canterbury, Mr' Edward Weekes. aged 24. Oh, the : 3th ult., Charles Barber, Palmer, Esq., late o f Cal cutta, aged 40. On the 30th 'ult., at Fyfield, Rect or y, E ese x, the Rev. Robot Gibson, aged 75. On the 30 th ult. , at, Bourn , Lincolnshire, Augustus Plinke, Esq., aged 61. On the 31st Wk„ at Lee, Kent, Mr. Stephen De gole , aged 45, Mrs. IC °l- (I kA tt alt., in Vauxhall-pl a ce, Lambeth, 1 , seater, widow Colchester, of the late Tho mas Esq., aged London: Printed and Published by MIJRDO YOUNGn or No. 112, Strand, at The Sun Office, No. 112, S I ;strand 131 county of Aliddlesex.—Saturday, April 4, 1840. #f . 7 d c,t9