The Express.
London, England, 1853-05-17 00:00:00

THE EXPRESS, TUESDAY EVENING, MAY 17, 1853.

FRANCE.

Plink MONDAY 'EVADING.
ID gfeseqveice of yesterday being. observed ta
the fig, of Pentecost, the journals hitt have not
appeared to-day.
It was stakdiry Mr, Audri, in his speech against
the civil pensions bill, that the number of fun&
tionaries paid by the state, which in 1831 was
138,830, increased to 174,261 in 1848, and now has
swelled to 230,005. If to this formidable army of
officials there be added the 29,727 existing civil pen-
sions on the treasury list, and the military pensioners,
it will be found that, besides the standing army,
about 300,000 persons, or 1 in 25 of the whole male
population from 21 to 60 years of age, are quartered
upon the budget. Such a state of things, M. Andre
said, tends towards the realization of the socialist
dream—every citizen a functionary, every thing in
common for distribution among all. The predomi-
nant apprehension manifested by the opposition
during a debate of six consecutive days, is that the
bill will afford fatal facilities to the govern-
ment to increase the pension list. Four
councillors of state argued in turn that the
objection to making the pensioner a direct
creditor of the state was one of words merely, be-
cause in practice the treasury invariably made up the
deficiencies in the funds, arising from the deductions
from salaries to pay pensions. It was generally,
though not universally admitted to be right in prin-
ciple, that retiring pensions should be granted as a
reward for long and meritorious services, and that it
was not possible, with the present scale of salaries,
to provide sufficient funds by deductions; but the
opposition persisted that there was an important
practical distinction between an annual subvention in
aid, granted voluntarily by parliament as an act of
benevolence, and a recognition of a legal right in
retired functionaries to receive an income from
the state. In the first case, it was contended, the
knowledge that it was competent to the legislative
body to refuse the grant, w ould have a tendency to
keep the amount within reasonable bounds, but in
the latter the government would be under a constant
temptation to encourage premature retirements, to en-
able them to reward new adherents, and there was
no security that proper deductions would in all eases
be made from salaries. The official orators, indeed,
affected to rely greatly upon a clause in the bill that
no pensions beyond a certain number should be defi-
nitive without confirmation by the Corps Leeislaiff,
but this guarantee was justly described by several
speakers as wholly illusory, because it must always
be practically impossible for the house to refu=
funds necessary to pay individuals who had fulfilled the
conditions imposed upon them by law for obtaining
pensions. The Council of State obstinately
refused to adopt the suggestion of the com-
mittee that a tabular schedule should be ap-
pended to the bill, showing what categorise of
functionaries were to be entitled to pensions. This
is to bo left to the government to settle. Therefore,
although the bill upon the face of it proposes to add
only 80,000 functionaries to the pension hat, it was
emphatically asserted by M. Andre, Viscount de
Kerveguen, and others, that there was no security
whatever that this sufficiently alarming number
would bo the limit. N. Baroche made extraordinary
efforts to obtain a favourable vote. He dragged the
name of the Emperor into the debate, assuring the
house that the government, " in the highest sense of
the word," had carefully studied the measure;
he " implored" them to vote it, averred that it would
be to their honour to do so, and concluded
by solemnly assuring them that they were the "best
councillors and the firmest pillars" of the state.
When this mixture of menaces and cajolery obtained
a mere majority of 132 against 100 in a house
generally so subserviert, it is pretty evident that the
public treasury must be considered very seriously in
asiger.
I stated above that the principle of pensions was
generally throughout the course of the debate ad-
mitted to be a good one. M. Levavasaeur, however,
made some striking observations in an opposite point
of view. He said that when the middle and
waiting classes made habitual sacrifices to ac-
oneenhito savings in the savings banks and
lamb for old age, ho could not see the policy of
exempting one particular class of society from the
necessity of such a salutary practice. He objected
too, that the pension system took away, in the shape
of deduction from salary, the proper patrimony of
the functionary's family, to dole it out again to him-
self for his life only, while after his death his widow
and children received nothing or next to nothing.
The subvention from the state was in reality nothing
else than an addition to salaries. He should be very
glad to see salaries raised if the state of the public
Seances would admit of it, but then he would desire
to as functionaries completely masters of their own
imam, like other people, and not treated as if in
Oat of morality and prudence they were not on a
level with their fellow citizens. M. Levamuiseur,
moreover, thought it a dangerous thing in a social
point of view to create a pensioned "caste" embracing,
les it would in time assuredly do, the humblest agent
of authority in every village. The relative ease and
comfort which these pensioners would enjoy as com-
pared with their neighbours, would be calculated to
engender feelings of envy and hatred.
General !tendon left Algiers on the 10th, on board
the Berthollet, for Bougie, where the troops destined
for the Kabylia expedition are assembled. Several
regiments have left Toulon for Africa, to supply the
places of the corps engaged in the expedition.
An attempted strike among the working bronze
manufacturers at Paris has just been quelled with a
strong hand. The workmen of M. Mericean, 20,
Rue de la Cerisaie, demanded a diminution of one
hour in their working time, which has hitherto been
twelve hours, inclusive of the time allowed for meals.
Their ultimatum not being accepted, they left work,
and went round to other manfactories, attempting
to induce the workmen to strike, in some instances
with success. The masters having complained to
the police, thirteen men were arrested. All but four
have since been released, and the men generally
have returned to their work without conditions.
There was a panic at the Bourse to-day. The
opening prices were firm, at Saturday's quotations,
but at about half-past 1 o'clock the Three per Cents.
suddenly dropped a full i per cent. The only ex-
planation given is a rumour of a telegraphic des-
patch front Constantinople with bad news. " Wolf"
has been cried so often with regard to the eastern
question, that it is astonishing that people should
allow themselves to be frightened by anything of so
small authority as a private telegraphic despatch
from that quarter. It is generally disbelieved in
political circles that any serious compliostioe his
arisen. Nevertheless the rents closed at nearly the
lowest price of the day, and railway shares followed
the movement.
The Prase, in its weeklycommercial review, says :
The situation of trade continues to improve, and business
would have already become exceedingly active were it not
for the extraordinary dearness of raw materiels, which of
course raises the price of manufactured articles. This cir-
cumstance is probably the true cause of the long dead season
we have bad. There is, however, no probability of any
meat reduction in prices for some time to come. Had there
boss any tendency :towards a fall, it would certainly have
Marred in January, ;when production as well as demand
was slack. The country agents mast how peedily make
for the summer fairs, especially for Beauciure fair
Cilitry,7ind when they find they cannot do better, must
submit to the prices asked. The jewellery trade complains
Ohm than any other at the present moment.
A moderate amount of business only was trans-
its:led to-day at the Bourse, at a general decline in
q.es' compared with those of Saturday. The dos-
prices were :—For Cash : Three per Cents.-
81 7oc. ; Four-and-a-Half per Cents., 104 f. For
the end of the month, Three per Cents., 81f. 50c. ;
Four-and-a-Half per Cents., 104 f. 10e. Bank Stock,
2,725.
In the railway share market, most of the principal
iliues experienced a general decline in price. Strati-
lboargs fell Of., Northerns7f., and the remainder from
If. to sf. each, with the exception of Paris and
Orleans. Final quotations :—Northerns, 928 f. ; Paris
1 ea Orleans, 1,120 f.; Paris and Strasbourg, 944 f. 750.;
Paris and J,yoes, 967 f. 50c. ; Paris and Rouen, 1,165 f. ;
Lyons to the Mediterranean, 857 f. ale. ; Western of
France, 790 f. 50c.; Rouen and Havre, 550 f. ; Bor-
deaux and Cette, 672 f. 75c.; Caen and Cherbourg,
645 f. 50e.; Dijon and Besancon, 578 f.; Dieppe and
Fecamp, 363 f. 75c.

THE LATE SULTANA.—The mother of the Sultan
died on the Ist. inst., of suppuration of the knee joint fol-
lowing an attack of acute rheumatism ; her age was about
:A. She has always been known as a moat amiable woman,
and was greatly beloved by her son. She was originally a
Circassian slave.

SPAIN:

Lord Howdeu, the English Ambassador, gave on
the 9th a grand dinner to the new Ambassador of
France, the Marquis de Turgot, and to the Milliliter*
present in Madrid. Among the guests were oitiergt
,tundi, President of the Council; M. Egan!,
Minister of the Interior; M. Bermudez de. Castro,
Minister of Finance ; the Duke of Veraguss, the Mar-
quis de Santa Cruz, the Marquis de Yerales, M. Ri-
queltne, Under Secretary of State of the Department
of Foreign Affairs, and the Sardinian Minister.
According to the Clamor Publico, one of the
daughters of the Infante Don Francisco de Paula had
been demanded in marriage by Prince Adalbert of
Bavaria, heir of the King of Greece.