The Express.
London, England, 1852-04-13 00:00:00

TUESDAY EVENING, APRIL 18, 1852.

et the Prussian with the Ilano-
• • calshilea \litsion, and will direct its efforts
tinnioeting a renewal of the Zollvereiui
crithem 'oft sight. however, of the 4=,,, el I
a conventies on matoois duties and • No. '
tween the Zeilvereln and Austria." The:sisoting of
ironmasters wee attended by about ooe-thW of the ,
members older trade. The split between the pro-
ducers of pig-iron and bar-iron was averted. liht J
content with a protective duty of H. per ton for pig,
and 41. 10& per ton for bar-iron, they made a joint
resolution for urging on the government the neces-
sity of increased proteetion, especially the abolition
of the differential duty in favour of Belgium. This
is good. The more exorbitant the protectionists be-
come, the sooner will the reaction =public opinion
against them show itself.
The sugar question is also occupying much atten-
tion. The increase of the manufacture of beet-root
sugar is enormous. Within the last two years it has
almost doubled. The quantity of roots pressed since
last autumn is said to exceed a million tons; the
quantity of raw sugar gained therefrom being 70,000
tons. And, as the excise on beet-root sugar is 114
per ton less than the import duty on cane sugar, the
lees to the exchequer is about three-quarters of a
million sterling. The Zollverein's revenue, which of
late years has averaged about three millions and a
half, cannot afford to let such a falling off proceed.
The Hamburg free traders are violently agitating
against the junction of Hanover with the Zonverein,
because their particular commercial interests are
thereby injured, and they fear that Hamburg itself
may at length have no alternative but also to join
the Zollverein. They have lately put forth a pam-
phlet, wherein after depicting the damage which the
junction must do to the members of the Steuerversin,
they implore the Oldenburg chambers not to consent
to the raising of the import duties in March 1853, as
provided in the eleventh article of the treaty with
Prussia. Hanover being bound to Oldenburg till 1854,
would then not be able to make the necessary prepa-
ration for the junction with Prussia. If the Hanoverian
customs duties remained at their present low rate up
to the very moment of junction, immense quantities
of merchandise would be entered, and cause importa-
tion almost to cease for some time after the procla-
mation of the higher Zollrerein's rates; and this, the
pamphlet calculates, would give such a blow to the
Hanoverian exchequer, that the Hanoverian govern-
ment might be obliged' to recede from the treaty of
7th September. It is evident, however, that the
damage would be done to the Zollverein's revenue,
while the Hanoverian exchequer would greatly gain.
The amount of duty on the immense stores entered,
even at the present low retest would give
far larger customs returns to Hanover than
its average share from the Zollverein's chest.
Nevertheless, the Prussian ministerial papers
are very indignant at this demonstration; and, on
the whole, the Hamburg free traders have done the
cause much harm by drawing into their hands the
largo funds of the party, and making aver), bungling
use of them • they follow up the local interests of
their own trade without the capacity for viewing the
free-trade question in its wider bearings and deeper
principles.