The Express.
London, England, 1853-03-29 00:00:00

ght er,prtoo.

Tt) ItitifSPON •k N le.
itaa,u4l Ultima at " Ty. hayrem." r. ar • he ..as rraisiara
oatatte." u pAb...tlxot zy. ry ant. *Today WO; is Una
M Part
♦tteruacsaat.taurated !kr "ne [Ayres," Wails analog paper.
W.:- be at 01. 41144, IJ. 11 myligid6ou.#l, by Tea Oita* aa the
day uf pabiaatioa.

HIGH WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE.
Tim thor—Kaniste. Oa. Altrrasea. 70.
16'.04,03W—wry. A. SI..

THE GREAT BIFFIN CASE.
TUE "Miss" AND THE INNKEEPERS.

day last. Scoundrehem has taken the hint, and left Mr. Breach was multiplied into a thousand
off its former disguise. Ole roguery has ripened Breeches, and the whole landlord community exhi-
into sanguinary ruffianism. The private purchase of i Wad in as unfavourable a light as the monsters in
' individual voters has given place to costly and con- the drop of water.
prehensivc levite of bludgeon men and vagabonds of I "Toeurjudgment,"saysthe Mies, "thewhole chap-
every description. Tippling in doors is no longer ! ter of hotel prices in England imperatively requires re-
noticeable in the roar of drunkenness .lad blasphemy form. There is no part of civilised Europe—and by the
in the public streets. In a word, corruption, ni!kfe we of that term we would simply exclude the northern
bold by impunity, has called in the aid of pliye'leal and eastern districts and the Spanish peninsula ge-
nerally —in which the accommodation at hotels is not
force, and amid scenes or violence and silkily rarely
equalled, the mandate of the House of Commons has it:fiat!elp. superior and infinitely more economical
been complied with, and a new election has been than in lengland. Even while we write, recollections
held for Blackburn. It would be farcical to affect of luxurieue evenings in France, Belgium, on the
ignorance as to the means whereby this matchless Rhine, and in the larger towns of Germany and Italy,
illustration of our present electoral system has and on the Swiss lalfes, rise before our memory,
been brought about. We know not, and we and we turn with a shudder to oar own villainous
care not to know, which side in the contest was first English caravansaries, with their dingy rooms, their
or must to blame. The question is not one of party, ' stuffy' beds, their tough half-done mutton, their
but of national importance, and in this light we are half raw or sodden vegetable', their noisy, dirty,
bound to view the transaction as a whole, and to' greedy servants, and their enormous charges."
express a belief which the public at. large will un- ' This is the slashing way in which the whole class
doubtedly entertain, that no each exhibitions of; of British innkeepers are dealt with on account of an
brutality and violence, as those which it has been our equivocal statement made by the unknown " Biffin "
duty to record at the recent election, mule ever have i and the
.equally unknown "Pippin." We have a
takes place without a prodigal and proffigs to expen- , perfect right to call the statements equivocal, because
diture of money by the partisans of one side, if not I no endeavour has been made in the way of proof.
on both. We do not say that the candidet es were Mr. Breach, in a letter published yesterday, sug-
personally involved in the iniquities thus ergs nised, ! gests that "The Biffin" might have paid for
and enacted. We take for granted, that, indi- a breakfast with meat, the tariff price of
vidually, they may have been kept in the .dark which is two shillings. Of "The Pippin's" case he
as to what was doing, until it was dr, ne. can make nothing at all. Ile offers, however, on the
But what then ? Ie the shame and dem o- production of the bill, or on information of the time
'ululation of such transactions less, became tie when the circumstance took place, to have a
old trick of corruption has once more been played thorough investigation, and in the event of its being
by keeping the principals in ignorance, while the proved that there has been an accidental overcharge,
accessories bully and bribe in their name ? No man to return the money with an apology. Ile then en-
of common sense will believe,—no man of common .ten into the general question of hotel charges, in
honesty will say,—that gangs of ruffians, armed with e hich he show., what was evident enough before,
bludgeons and other weapons, could be organised in th at the 2'itnes and "The Biffin" decide upon incor-
an ordinarily peaceable town, or brought from the nee t grounds on the subject of exorbitant prices.
neighbouring villages to overawe and intercept voters Bat, `i these authorities consider their case
on the day of polling, at a time when no great clues- made • out, when they can show that the
tion of creed, party, or class excites the community, prico paid for an article at an hotel exceeds
or affords any colourable motive for spontaneous very g neatly that paid for it uncooked at a retail
ebullitions, unless somebody paid them. It is plain dealers • But does that accurate calculator " The
enough that force was the result of fraud, and that niffie e 'eally believe that his cup of tea costs him no
fraud did not fear to resort to force. more tha n what was given to the grocer and the
We shall be exceedingly curious to see what the next milkman for the articles which produced it ? Did
step of the present House of Commons will be in the the tea set 'vice and the spoons cost nothing ? Does
gradual development of this system. Other writs he pay not, 'ling to the cook down below for boiling
remain in suspense, and it would hardly be fair to the water, t, his housemaid or footman for bringing
the bribing agents, treating-house-keepers, and it into the . dralrielg•YOOM? Was the water swede
bludgeon men of the other convicted towns, to with- hot without an expenditure of fuel ? Does he
hold from them the opportunities of a harvest which live in the Min ea rent free ? And film is obliged to
their fellows at Blackburn have been enabled, to incur all these t 'apnoea before hie cup of tea is pre-
realise. Besides there will thus arise many occasions seated to him, .does elm erudite friend ever expect
for exercising the army scattered in country quarters to find an innket per who will make lane a present
throughout tho kingdom. By way of amendment of all these ?
we would suggest, however, that it might save Unconscionable Bifffiti. be thought as, doubtless.
bloodshed and money if burlesque elections He chooses to take his tsa.ai a mansion which cost
were conducted directly and exclusively by 60,0001. in erecting, for which the lessee pays 3,0001.
her MAJESTY'S troops in their own barrack-yard in rents and taxes. He his on entenag all the
instead of by means or through the instrumentality privileges of the house, whittle are many. He may
of bribing agents and debauched or intimidated enter into the rooms provided with the linden
voters. Poor Mr. WALPOLE was very properly I t ournals and magazines, and see his last letter io the
very mercilessly quizzed by her biAJESTY'S present Tunes for nothing. Fires sod lavatories an at his
Ministers and their friends for proposing to give disposal. All this, however, he cannot or will sot
votes to the Militia ; but it probably never occurred see, and is intent upon nothing but getting liens at
to his ingenuous mind that we so soon should come to the rate of as. the pound, and his bread and buttes
a time in which, without the help of drawn swords at the usual market pike. Shortsighted Barn
and fixed bayonets, some elections could hardly be " I desire to know," says Cowley, the poet, "nher
held at all. And what is to become of the peaceable the honest innkeeper who provides a public table fw
population in places, remote from military depots, his profit, should be but of a mean profession, and he
should the House of Commons persist in directing who does it for his honour, a munificent prince ?"
writs to be issued indiscriminately to places like If the pout were alive now, he would sand
Blackburn ? but a poor chance of on answer from the " gnat
On the other hand, surely such cases as this public instructor." The Times which looks so
riotous Lancashire Election will serve to stag- complacently at Austria crushing out Bor-
ger the most obstinate in their objections to secret tionalities, or Russia preparing to swallow up
voting. With secret voting, such scenes as Turkey, or Americans flogging their slaves, feels a
those at Blackburn could scarcely have occurred. It spasm of horror when an innkeeper includes in the
appears by the records of the day that the successful price of the articles which he sells the due remune-
candidate was ahead early in the morning, and ration for the capital he has Invested. It assumes,
that, upen this being made known, the organisation without hesitation, the truth of a doubtful charge,
of mercenaries, whose business was to intercept and and comes down with a heavy blow upon a whole
influence voters still unpolled, was at once put into class of men for the presumed crime of one. There
requisition ; in addition to ehich, it is asserted con- is an evident injustice in :this which cannot be too
fidently that the usual mechanism of corrupt induce- strongly reprobated. The power of the press can
went began to be felt, and that both continued to be never, indeed, be better employed than in correcting
exerted with increasing tecklessness as the announce- public grievances. But, in proportion to the in-
meats were published from hour to hour of the state fluence which the press exerts should be the care
of the voting. It is, indeed, notorious that, in most taken that it is exerted on due grounds. Unless this
instances, bribery bargains are completed during the is done its influence, however great, must in time
last three or four hours of the polling. The indepen- vanish, and what was first admired for its useful-
dent electors are then generally exhausted, and the news will become hateful for its tyranny and in-
auction begins for the corrupt minority, with whom justice.
lies the fortune of the day. If it had no other good
effect, secret voting would put an end to this iejne-
ticc and iniquity.

TO THE EDITOR OF TI! TIMES.

Sir,—Will you permit me to appeal to your *ewe ofjus-
flee so much as to be allowed a few lines in the Tunes, in
. .

consequence of the importance to me of the remarks made
in a leading article of to-day en the charges made at this
hotel ? I would first expisin that, with regard to the ac-
count enclosed to you by " WAD," he hay paid 'tariff price
for a breakfast of tea or coffee, with cold meat or eggs ;
without these the charge is Is. 6d. In the letter of " Pippin"
lamat a loss to understand the ease he speaks of. Himself,
three servant., and three little children, if they went into
the coffee-room, the proper tariff charge was Is. Gd. for each
adult, and he would have been charged the half of that
pries for children under seven years of age.
My tariff is printed and posted in every room in this
Muse, and in the cabin of every steamboat sailing from
Folkestone it is constantly advestised, and either I or my
mensger, Mr. Giovennini, are here ready and willing at
alines to attend to any complaint that travellers may
he,. occasion to make ; and if they are too careless to do
ss or too dull to understand the plainest language, to which
lint greatest publicity is given, I appeal with confidence to
pea whether lam te blame. In the case of " Pippin," if
M will do me the favour to produce his bill, or inform me
when the circumstance occurred to which he alludes, I offer
him every possible inquiry, and if, by accident, there has
beepan overcharge, the return of the money with my
apologies for a mistake. On the general argument whisk
you have raised on this occurrence, will you permit me to
say that your correspondents have misled you. At the
steam-boat station them is, adjoining the begin, ware-
house, a refreshment room open on the arrival of every
boat, where " Balls " might have had as excellent • cup et
tea or coffee, with • roll and butter, as he got at Amines,
the chug. for which is Is., and no attendance charged as
permitted to be taken. My charge at this hotel is 6d. he
a large cop of tea or coffee; for a plain tea or breakfast,
with bread and butter, Is. 6d.; either with meat, 2e.; and
Bd. attendance for tea or breakfast. Two ehildrea under
seven years of age are considered as one adult, and charged
he accordingly, except for attendance, which is not charged
Wen served in private apartments.
To make comparisons between the charges at a railway/
station, when everything is served @Wading, and where,
generally, namely five minutes' time is permitted, and the
accommodation and comfort with which them things ass
served at an hotel, I would suggest to your eorrespondast
"Biala" is most unjust. Here is as hotel which mat
nearly 60,0001. in erecting, for which I pay, in rent, rates,
and taxes, rather over 3,0001. per anniam—here an large
rooms of various kinds for the MeilmOodolim of the
which are provided with the loading Leman journals and
other periodicals of the day ; to them apartments the tea
yeller has free seems ; he warms and he dries himself, ar .61
in many COW, his clothes being wet, they are old • tar
him. • lavatory is provided for him, with every scam' pip.
dation mossemy, sad all tree et any charge. IDeny • avail
themselves of these amommodatioss, and take met 4g in
the sham of refreshment, but merely walk into the as caking
roses and smoke the cigar whirl they kayo bronglth ',a their
pocket. Still lam glad to see old faces, and kaps.•ta make
new [Ands.

That this accommodative—that the earellenc e of the
viands here served—and eat the charges made al e not only
not egesesive, but modeled', is appreciated tiv; thousands
who use this hotel, and)," the protracted stay of not only
the Seat families in the eimatry, but by those whose more
limited means render thesakeenly alive se excess. All this
is scresably ascertained by me, by the great increase of my
liminess and by visits often repeated by enetomen.
I trust that you will do me the greet favour to publi sh
this letter. I regret its extreme length, but lem natur
:
most anxious neither to lose the patronage of the Wilk, our
the confidence and respect of my friends.
I am, Sir, your obedient servant, J. G. ill/4CH.
Pavilion Hotel, Folkestone, Hareh 25.

REPORTED DESTRUCTION OF THE SIIIF AMERICA.
—The following was Posted yes.crday in the underwriters'
room, Liverpool: "A telegraffi from New Orleans men-
tions that the America, as well es the Belmont, was burnt
on the 7th inst. The cargoes of both wore 6,000 bales.
There may be some mistake in this, u the owners of the
America here have received no information of it. It my
refer to the American ship Maine, which lay beside the
Belmont at the time of the burning, as the America lay at
Point."

- -----
AIISTRALTA.—The total number of vessels pre-
paring to sail hence for Australia is 61, and the total amount
of registered tonnage is 34,761. The fleet contains some of
the largest and fastest sailing ships in the world.—Liverpool
Albion.

TILE BREAKDOWN OF THE AUSTRALIAN.—The
last mail from Australia contained several thousand
registered letters; nearly a thousand of them were for Ire-
land. There were some for almost every town in the king-
dom. About 40 were for Manchester. The mail disem-
barked from the steamer Australian, which put back into
Plymouth, contained nearly 30,000 newspapers for Aus-
tralia. The whole of these bass been sent out by private
ships at sn expense of above 1001.
LETTERS FOR SYDNEY AN PORT PHILLIP.—
Ths Post-office authorities have advertised that ship letter
bags will be made up fur Port Phillip chid Sydney, to be
dnpatched by the screw steamer Argo, on the 4th of May