The Express.
London, England, 1864-02-24 00:00:00

REPEAL OF THE MALT DUTY.

A numerously-attended and influential deputa-
lion waited on the Chancellor of the Exchequer yesterday
afternoon to urge upon him to devote any portion of the
surplus he might have to repealing or reducing the malt tax.
The deputation intended the following' members of
parliament : Colonel Barthlot, Colonel Cartwright, Colonel
Faro, Mr. Barrow, Lord H. Thymus, Mr. Beach,
Soltter-Booth,' Colonel North, Sir H. Cholmondeley, Mr.
Goddard, Mr. Banks Stanhope, Mr. Watlingtou, Mr. Dol.
son, Colonel Packs, Captain Wyndham, Mr. Airlock, Major
Parker, Mr. Hill, Colonel Start, Mr. Dowse, Sir F. Kelly,
Mr. On Pre, Colonel Bathurst, Sir E. B. Lytton, Lord
Holmesdale, Mr. Hodgkinacm, Sir E. Palmer, Mr. Adderley,
Lord Amenity, Mr. Abel Smith, ka., and it was attended
by farmers and landowsers reprobating thirty counties.
Mr. Biers attended as worebuy.
Sir F. Blur having briefly introdoeed the deputation,
Mr. linirna proceeded to read a memorial, which called
attention to the anomaly of a high duty on malt surviving
the repeal of the corn laws, end submitted the claims of the
English labourer and adman to census* thatere osesseiry of
life, boor, free of thistles. The ONIOXISiaido decidedly
of opinion that nothing short of the total repeal of the molt
duty would afford them relief, and submitted that they had
a prior claim over all other hawed. for the application of
surplus revenue to this object They claimed topsider:aim
for the produce of our native mil, but did not think that
untaxed beer would necessarily take the place of wine, or
supersede the oonshintly increasing consumption of MI.
Above all, they considered the tar to be monist all princeple!
of free trade, a greet interheinee with the as of ths beat
quality of barley and an oppreedve and injurious tax to the
woortzlipopulation.
Botta* Mr. Baldwin, of Birmingham, Mr. Lat-
timore, Mr. Danielle, of Colchester, mad Mr. Tumid sup-
ported the memorial.
The Caancrttos of the EICIIZQUXI add that it wouldnot
Weems him to eater into details, but it was his duty to give
a respectful astintiosi to all that had been urged, and to
reserve for the coaddiwation of his own mind and the own-
meta of the t what cause ought to be pursued.
What be , thefllolll. ea this subject must not be takes
as his conclusive view, bat simply for what it wee with.
He disclaimed ell !beldam' whatever beyond the simple
and humble one of aimpartrK the two sides of the na-
tional ace:anat. A nrptus had been hinted at, and DO
doubt, as eleven months./ the fthancial year had elapsed,
sufficient results had bees shown to lead him to cowhide
that there might be some surplus, the mouth of
which he would not defies. On the other hand,
he warned them aphid supposing that bemuse
there was a cartain amount of surdas distaff the
past year there would be an equal amount in the easing
year. The last had been a reniarkable malting ewes, and
the daty would probably be larger than in any former year.
It would not be at all Ws to calculate apes suck as amount
next year. Thee, again, a considerable reduction of the
income tax took place last year, the fall effect of which
upon the revenue had not boa yet felt, becalms three-
fourths of that tax only was timid within the financial year.
If the deputation maid parastes that there would be an
equal surplus available for the reduction of taxation next year
the circumstances might be different. Complaints bad bola
made that is the reesuesioe et taxation the agricultural O-
boist bad not received its due attention. He quite agreed
that when moms extracedithry grievances were shown to re-
sult from the Umbria of a pardmlar production It formed
• fair ground for its remies, but at the some time it was
his duty to consider what the general interests of the country
required. The remission sad imposition of taxation wee a
sacred duty, placed in the hands of parliament, sad the
mode of dining with the competing claims of different in.
tared' did act &spied so much on the Chamomile' of the
Exchequer as apes public opinion out of doom, and very
ohms more upon the opals's:ion of those by whom their
rimisrice was desired than oa the value el the stemmata
urged against the particular duty. They could net fail to
see that many chime had been urged with greater plea-
malty and penerwanes than those which had bees made
for the repast of the malt ten. He did Dot urge this ss
reason why they should depart from their duty is remitting
such taxes as would he mod advantageous to the country,
and the statement that this tax deranged the system of culti-
vation was pai.imilarly worthy of, and should remit% his
most serious attention. It had been urged that it was his
duty to defend taxes in the House of Cornmeal, bat he
ansured the deputation that he sliver defended any tax—he
should be very glad toget rid of them all ; it was simply his
heatless to weigh the comparative ineosivesieues of wh-
eeler uses, sad to promos the renamsion of those
which pressed with peculiar hardship apes the coca-
mshy at large. It might be mead to have been
for many years part of the fixed policy of
the government to miss a considerable portion of revenue
from strong &Oki, but so government or parliament had
seen its way to tondo the taxation from the raw nottrirl
of which Wee( drinks were composed to the fully manu-
factured article, though be admitted that it would be a
great advantage if that mold be dons. The estimate given
that the oast to the emiatry of prododmg the 6,C00.0C31.
obtained from the malt tax was 20,000,0 M. was a startling
one, but the gentleman who made it seemed thoroughly
conversant with the point, and he (the Chancellor of the
Exchequer) should be gild to see the figures from which
that result had been obtained, and to have some further
communication with him. (Hear.) With respect to the main
haus, he could only say that he should be happy indeed to
and himself in poossoon of sufficient reeoerese to Minh the
duty. Every ccousideration should be given to the case laid
before him, and it would be his duty to consider in what way
he could best dispose of the surplus cud submit the
matter to the consideration of parliament.
Colonel Norris, in thanking the Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer for the courtesy with which he had received the
deputation, and the attention which he had paid to the
statements made, assured him that no blame for want of
pertinacity or perseverance would rest opal' the fano"
who would very soon merinos him that, with a reasonable
hope of swoon held out to them, they could be as alive to
their own interest as any other class of the community
(Hear. hear.)
The deputation then withdrew.

THE OPPORITIOM DEPPTIPB AND THE EMPEROR',
Drearmut.—A Paris letter in the indemendarem of Brumels
says :—" The first mod dinner given by the Emperor to
the deputies, at the Tuileries, included, as has been men-
tioned, several repremetatime of the opposition. M.
Palletise, if. 01Hoke, lg. Hanes, R. Our Such, If. Elam,
and 11. Buffet, bad received invitations for that dinner.
IL Pollster refused, alleging his habits of absolute
retirement. If. °Dialer, in a very courteous letter,
excemed his almenos by a recent lose in his family. I am
sot aware what amuse K. Flavin made. He has been erf.
faring front indisposition for some time, and probably lad
no choice. M. Gu4roult and Y. Buffet accepted the Invi-
tation. No undenitanding of any kind was mane to by
the opposition member ea to the reply to be given to the
imperial invitations. It was decided that each should act
according to hie ewe feelings. The Emperor was mated
at table between the Hammes and the Primer of Healing."
Tan GOTRIAND RAILWAY AOCIDEMT.—The
fifth day's inquiry at Whitby has resulted In a verdict of
" Accidentally killed by the breaking of the wire rope,
which was insufficient for the ;impair of the Make, with
a censure on the conipury."

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IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.-(THIS DAY.)

The house met at 12 o'clock, but it was 20 minutes alter
12 before there were 40 members limiest.
The Dublin and Baltinglre Junction Railway Bill, and
theses= Valley Railway Bill, were read a mooed time.
RENTS (IRELLND) BILL
Mr. LONGFIELD, is moving that the order of the day for
the second reading of thin bill be discharged, meted that
4.;1 chief meson for doing so was that a similar bill was
likely to be introduced in the Rouse of Lards.
Motion agreed to.
LANDED-PROPERTY IMPROVEMMNT (IRELAND)
ACT AMENDMENT BILL
Ibe order of the day for the esoond reading of this bill
postPoLed•
MALT FOR CATTLE BILL.
Ou the order of the dny for going into committee on
t1_1601,. . . .

-111. Ass said so far sa he could judge people were very
little xatinied with this bill, It was not the sort of measure
that they wanted. end he bad received letters in which the
words " humbug" and "nonsense" were applied to it.
(Liughter.) Even for the purpose for which it was designed
the bill was open to objection, the machinery provided not
being such as was required to ensure freedom from excise re-
strictions. Farmers were placed in a most disadvantageous
position by the malt tax, the duty on every article with
which malt came in competition having been reduced, while
the duty on malt was higher now than it was in 1816. The
bon. gentleman was entering into this comparison when
Colonel PACK E rose to order. The hoe. gentleman had
no right to refer to the repeal of the malt tax.
The SPEAKER said the whole subject was under discus-
sion in that debate. (Cheers.)
Mr. BASS maintained that the wine dation were not as
high ss the Chancellor of the Exchequer had represented
them to be. The average price of French wines imported
into this country wee 6a. 6d., and the arcing* duty not
more than Is. 9d.. and he had come to the 000clusion that
the Winn duty, instead of being from 50 to 100 per cent. ois
the Chancellor of the Exchequer estimated, was only about
j per cent. If. believed that the malt tax might be re-
ducal by one-half without the state's losing a quarter of the
revenue derived from it. So unfair, so unjust, and so im-
politic did he consider the malt tax that he would vole for
a remission of half of it to-morrow. Since this bill was
proposel he had tried the experiment of malting linseed,
sad in order that the quality of beer in the manufacture of
which linseed wee used as well se malt might he judged of,
he had had two casks of the liquor sent to that house, and
they were now awaiting a trial outside. (Laughter.)
Mr. DC CANE said, having carrespeoded with many of
his constituents sines the bill was introduced, he found that
their opinion might be summed up by stating that the ma
nthey looked at the bill the less they liked it. (Rear, hear.)
The bill was so fettered and claimed by wales restrictions
that very few farmers would avail themselves
of its provisions. It would place the farmer,
as regarded cattle-feeding, entirely in the hands
of the mister and the exciseman. If scything could con-
vert that honest body of men, the masters, into rogues,
this bill would do so, holding out as it would a premium to
sinhastioe. The mind of the farmer was now fully
groused in reference to the malt ten, and any Chancellor of
the Exchequer would now have to anoonster an agitation
like that spinet the hop duty. (Opposition chests.) Re
hoped that that quaition would be well considered before
the introduction of the badge&
Colonel PACES thought that the bill would maim
amendment in committee.

Mr. BAGWELL believed it would be impossible under
the bill to prevent malt from getting into the bands of illicit
dutillera and that would be a most serious evil On that
ground he should oppose the mamma and he hoped it would
be withdrawn. (Cheers.)
Mr. B. STANHOPE approved of the object, but thought
the masers would prove impracticable, inesnach as Meant
farmers mold net afford to Seer the imputes of ereeting
malting house and providing machinery.
Fn. obit dimension followed, in which Mr. Cobbett, Mr.
Newdegate, Sir F. Kelly, Mr. Dodson, Col. Dickson, Mr.
P. rrpthart, Mr. Beach, and Mr. Healey took part, and
the bons was

[Left sitting.]

LAW INTELLICHINCE.
(THIS DAY.)

COURT OF PROBATE AND DIVORCE.
(Before the Judge Ordinary.)
0810111111 r. 04110R111 A/CD
This is.. was ocesusenosd oo klaterday last, and it has
already been partially reported. It was the suit of the
husband for a divorce cm amount of his wile's adultery with
a French dramatic critic named Martell& It will be rumen-
btred that in 1846 the petitioser, a evil engineer, had
married the remoadmit, a Freedwomen, who /Aged alone
in the seighbourhocl of Be. Sassis'e-street. The marriage
was not a happy me, and Km Osborne was in the habit of
making frequent and lorig visas to Paris ; daring white the
adultery complained of cm eommitted.
Mr. Hoddleston, Q.C., Lad Mr. A. & Hill for
the petitioner ; Mr. Kinglake, Q. 0., sad Dr. for the
nraditos omeisted of counter pleas of adultery,
cruelty, and =donation. In sapped of the Ina of them
allegatioes several witamies were called on thumbs', who
proved that in 1862 Mr. Osborne had an English lady living
with him.

Ach ins Geanty, the reepoodeat's brother, said that is 1862
he lived with his sister in Broadlythrram, and watched
Mr. Othorth's house with her. He had wen a woamn at
breakfast with the petitioner ; sad he had ego ems him
walking and driving oat with ►er. One morning the re.
ththdent west into the house. The other lady was then.
Heard cries, and saw his sister pushed into the street.
This morning an arrangement for a plicate deed of sem.
ration was come to between the parties, and the came was
adjourned till the end of Trinity Term to allow time for
carrying this agreement into effect.