The Express.
London, England, 1853-05-19 00:00:00

PERU.

The political minister from this state to Bolivia,
after being warned to quit that country in 21 hours,
and not having complied with the order, was ex-
pelled by military force ; but it was tho impression
that the affair would be settled without recourse to
war.

HAYTI.

Fanstin the First's coronation has been cele-
brated with great festivities, and a large expenditure
of powder in salutes.

(fur Corernerelal Intelligens*. see page 4.)

AMERICA.

(BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.)
ARRIVAL OF THE HUMBOLDT.

SOUTHAMPTON, THVILSDAY MORNING.
The Humboldt has arrived off Cowes, on her way
to Havre. She brings 180 passengers, and specie to
the value of live hundred thousand dollars, eighteen
thousand of which are for the Colon sank, London ;
the rest for Havre. She left New York on the
ith inst.

A train of passenger cars on the New Haven Rail-
way was precipitated into the Norwalk River, and
43 persons lost their lives.
The Asia had arrived.

The markets generally were flat ; cotton down. Ex-
change 1091 to 1091. Freights dull.

CALIFORNIA.

The Alta California of April 1 supplies the follow-
ing news:
Mining operations are in the highest degree prosperous.
Nearly all the principal placers, old as well as new, have
been yielding handsomely through the past month, while
the low prices of provisions and the increased facilities for
transportation have turned the advantages and profits to
the miner. A month ago the merchant and the trader
reaped the larger proportion of the fruits of the mining
labour by the enormous prices paid for provisions and other
necessanes of life. The proceeds of hard labour in the
placers were in many instances more than counterbalanced
by tho cost of living, and nothing left at the end of a month
to the credit of the miner. A different state of things exists
at present.
The Foreign Miners' Tax Bill for the levying and collect-
ing of taxes upon foreigners working the mince of this
state parsed the legislature on the 19th.
The inhabitants on the frontier of Sonora are about emi-
grating to the arable lands on the banks of the Gila, near
its junction with the Colorado.
Accounts from Lower California represent that state, like
all the rest of the Mexican confederacy, as in a state of
hopeless anarchy and confusion.
The news from the Sandwich Islands down to the 26th
ult., offers nothing of striking interest. Improvements in
the port of Honolulu were to be made, and all habour dues
and restrictions to be removed. Agricultural enterprises
were on foot. . .

A terrible steam-boat explosion occurred on the 23rd
inst. on the Sacramento River, by which several persons
lost their lives. The steamer, a small one, named the
N. K. Page, was on her trip from Marysville to Sacra-
mento.

The tows of Weaverville, recently destroyed by fire, is
fast rising from its ashes.
Intelligence received last night from the northern part
of the State is of a painful character. The Indians in the
neighbourhood of Shasta, Colusa, and Trinity have again
become troublesome, committing the most savage depreda-
tions wherever an opportunity oilers.
Lieut. Edward Russell, of the 4th Infantry, was killed
by the Indians on the 25th inst., near the head waters of
Thom's Creek, near Colusa. lie was ordered by Colonel
Wright to that :portion of the county for the purpose of
protecting the ranch-men and others from the torments of
the Indians, and was murdered while on this duty.
A perfect mania exists in the mining towns for routs and
balls. Our interior exchanges teem with the accounts of
tho pleasures enjoyed at these places of amusement.
' Mire Hayes has given her allotted number of concerts in
this city, but remains here for the present.

_
JAMAICA.
Oa the lath April the Council rejected the Im-
port Duty Bill (the principal revenue of the colony)
in consequence of the House 'of Assembly having
inserted clauses of appropriation, binding the Re-
ceiver-General to the payment of the salaries of one
class of public servants in preference to the judges
and clergy.
The Governor prorogued the house until the 23th
April, in a speech condemnatory of its proceedings.
On its re-assembling an address was voted to the
Governor, to bo presented tho morning the steamer
sailed, said to be so offensive in its language that a
dissolution of the legislature was expected.
As the Import Duty and Rum Duty Bills would
expire on the 30th April, the principal revenues The San Francisco papers contain particulars of a
would be cut off. terrible catastrophe : the wrecking and burning of the
The withdrawal of the government supervision of American steam-ship Independence, and the consequent
the customs revenue of the island is viewed with loss of one hundred and twenty lives. The following is the
considerable distrust. captain's statement, as given in the San Francisco Daily
Herald:
Copper has been discovered in various parts of ~ lam under the painful necessity of reporting the loss of
the island. Several passengers in the Orinoco bring the steamer Independence, lately under my command, on
excellent samples of copper ore. The prospects of her passage from San Juan del Sul to this port, and about
pimento growers were encouraging. la Trelaw- one hundred and twenty-five lives, consisting of the pas-
ney and St. Ann's the sugar crop will be above sengers and fifteen of the crew. She was lost n the
Island of Margarita, off the coast of Lower California.ithe average. After leaving Acapulco, we experienced strong breezes
Influenza prevailed on the north side. Yellow- from N.W. to N. Passed Cape St. Lucas on the morning
fever of a most malignant type at Kingston, and of the 15th February. At twelve o'clock, M. of the
extensively among the shipping. It was also raging 15th, we were in lat. 23.04 N., long. 110.42 W. ;steered
at St. Lucia and at Trinidad. The coffee fields about N.W. by W.W.i 11" c°l7".. intending to go
to the westward of argarita Island. On the morning
Port Royal were in full blossom. of the 16th, at one o'clock, a.m. made the main
SPANISH MAIN. lead to the eastward of the Island, having been set
Affairs at Grey Town were quiet. Her Majesty's in-shore by the current. Altered the course to S.W.
totarinali.mbadestherlosolanm d of. Torngaarltioter,optehosouth point t
ship Alban and United States steamer Cyane were
lying there. At Colon houses were rising fetidly. W. 6.4. I in S.
to I;ive 'the point a berthwergreoe
The railroad to Panama had been completed or 25 miles, but owing to a haze over the land I was deceived in
miles to Barbacoa, ou the banks of the river Chagres, the distance. At fifteen minues past five, just as day was
where the piers are finished for the bridge, but un- beginning to break, she struck on a sunken reef, extending
fortunately the framework for laying the bridge has shore.i from the routeoe.j:so point of
smootht he i island dt;iieb about
time,
milenot fromrook the
n
been washed awey, which will cost 12.0001. to re- on the reef at all. Backed the engine, and came NJ;
place from America, and delay the' completion of the examined the hold and found that she was filling rapidly ;
road in some degree, although they are pushing on know that I should have to beach her to keep her from
energetically with the embankment for the rails be- sinking ; got a sail ever the bow (under her) to try to stop
tween the west end of the bridge and Panama.
the leak, and set a gang of men at work at each hatchway
The construction of this enter rising work has cost bailicg, and ran along the west side of the island, close is,
p
5,000 lives, but the line is at present tolerably healthy, to find a good place to put her ashore. Told the engineer
to let mo know five minutes before the water would be up
and the portion most fatal to human life was finished. high enough to put out the fires. When we had run
Much competition exists for the conveyance of about four miles, the engineer came up and reported the
pamengers to California. Four steamers from two ter 'extinguishediunp
ato
ftohwe
inifirnesn,d that they would be
totr
Put the helm hard
different companies in America rival each other in &lion. sad ran her ashore in a small cove on the S.W.
speed and reduction of fares. site of the island, head on. Lowered a boat, and sent the
PANAMA. mate and two men in her to run a line ashore to the beach,
On the 13th April arrived her Majesty's ship
swamped Lag
es
sdutan , bnuot
r? 1
nit
Ibedalus, Capt. G. 0. Wellesley, R.N., from :Mexican ;rrhoiacchh:vda;oaabon and
was
their boat, and sent three men in her 'with another line,
ports, and landed 931,544 dols. in specie and bullion, which they succeeded in getting ashore. I now ascertained
for transit to Itoyal Mail steamer, at Navy Bay, to that the ship was on fire. Told the engineer to take his
England. Left on the 16th inst. for Valparaiso and men, and put out the fire if possible. Ordered the other
two boats to be lowered, and to come forward,
England, having still over a million on board. The wo-
men
and children to come to the forward gangwayand the
; loaded
purser lost his life in one of the Mexican ports. both boats with women and children and sent them ashore.
On the 15th arrived tho Cortes, from San Fran- The ship had now swung round broadside on. The mate
CisCo, with a largo number of passengers and 100,000 and two men came off with the boat that took the line
dole. on freight in gold dust. ashore, and she was immediately loaded with women and
On the pith arrived the Pacific Mail Steamship children, and went ashore with them. The fire origina-
ted from the furnaces. It was necessary, after the
company's steamer California, from San Francisco, steamer struck on the reef, to use wood end boards for
with United States mails, a largo number of pas- fuel, in order to keep up steam until she struck on
senors, and 2,306,970 dole. 04e. in gold dust, of which the beach, when the water was so high as to stop the draught
238,377 dols. arc for England. Brings 110 news of from the lower flues, which forced open the furnace doors,
importance, except the total loss of the United States and the flames rushed out and caught the woodwork in the
fire-room, and also around the smoke-stack, thence spread-
steamer Independence. ing very rapidly. Every effort was made to get the fire
On the 19th, at 74 p.m., arrived the Pacific Steam under' but of no avail. The flames were new coming up
Navigation Company's steamer Bogota, Hall, from from the hatchways, fire-room, engine-room, ventilators,
zoominnepsnletTelhyobeswooinldoewreasd,
paenrd.
iwom women, and children
Valparaiso, Callao, &c., with mails, 33 passengers, and around the smoke-stack: everything was consternation
and 238,577 dohs. in treasure for England.
;andreee7
jumpingdismay;horrible t haenl people
e.wr overboard
a rsdreiebmia,
tedidooe
Business [is dull, the weekly line of snail steamers
between New 'York and California, which is now screeYching, crying, and drowning. ordered the spars,
running, makes no improvement. batches, tables, and everything that would float to be thrown
The merchant ship Lady Gough, which has been overboard, which was done, and they were immediately
at anchor in our bay some 18 months or more, sailed covered with people. About an hour after the ship struck
the she
bin a t of e w..s
on the 19th lust., for the l'earl Islands under charter' no on each,
e on board of her rfect
exceptshet flame, one ut the and
coalther -pardcrs,
to load pearl shells, named Beaumont, and myself. The smoke-stack had fallen,
On the 7th instant the resident merchants of this and the promenade deck forward bad tumbled in; the

WRECK AND BURNING OF A S
GREAT LOSS OF LIFE.

dames were coming out of the side I.ghts, and it was inop4
Bible to stay on board any longer. A boat came off from the
shore with two of the deck hands in her. Beaumont, wee
was near the fore rigging, jumped into her, and 1 jamptd
overboard, swam to her, and commenced picking up rhea
who were afloat. After picking up three bad loads, Toc,„
was Herren, the steward, succeeded in launching auother
boat and saving some of the people. When all that sem,
alive had been picked up and some of the baggage, 1 landed
and had the spars which had drifted ashore hauled tip into
a ravine and with one old sail that had washed ashore,
made a tent large enough to shelter the women
and children. The ship was still in flames, so that
was impossible for any one to board hcr. 1 gave doe
mato and engineer orders to have the dead taken up above
high water mirk and buried, and to beard the wreck as
soon as possible, and to save all the provisions and watcr
that they could. I then took a boat and four men, and
started to pull round the north end of the island to %gay.
lens Bay, in search of assistance, expecting to find some
ships there. We pulled until 10 o'clock that night; when,
not being able to see any vessels, and not knowing iu what
direction to pull, I landed on the north shore of the ea.
trance to Magdalena Bay, hauled up the boat, and waited
until daylight, when I started again to pull across the bay,
After pulling aa hour and a half, I diserm.red a vend
close in to the main land, pulled for and reached her at 11
o'clock cm. ; found her to be the schooner A. Emery,
Captain Gordon. The captain and most of the crew were
ashore looking for water ; set a signal, an.. they Came o,
hoard.
" Capt. Gordon said that he had been in the bay five dap,
and that there were no other vessels in the bly. After
stating the circumstances of the wreck to him he clammed
to get under way (although he had but sixty Redoes at
water on board at the time), and take the survivors to sal
Jose or Cape St. Lucas, where they could get ike access.
ries of life, until other assist:meo could be rendered them
—and he immediately g et under way and commenced besu
ing out. At daylight of the U;tb, it being calm, and the
schooner being a long dietauce from the wreck, I took 4
gallons of water and a sack of bread in the boat acd.
started for the camp, expecting to find the people sat.
faring for water, as there was none on the island tit to
drink. Arrived abreast of the wrack at 2 rm,
ing been gone from there 51 hours. The Rut
was breaking very heavily, making it daeacroao to
land. The mate came down on the bench anti said tt,,t
the passengers had gone across the fdand, ud
that I had btter pull round the south end of the island!,
the other aide, which I did, and found the boats and
crews from the whale ships Omega, James Maury, Meteor,
and bark Clement, busily at work taking the passengen Da
board the ships, which lay about twelve miles distant from
the point of embarkation in the lower bay. While leas
away in the boat the mate and engineer had gone acmes me
island, seen the ships and boats, and signalised to them,
and so obtained relief. I then took a boat and crew and
started cif to meet the schooner and take her back into the
bay, where we arrived on the morning of the twentieth.
I then went on board tho ships and mustered a parry of
men and went across the island to the wreck, to save and
bring over all the provisions we could find.
" While at work getting provisions from the wreck, we
saw a steamer hound down the coast, about six miles Ma.
tant. We made signals for her, but she did not notice them.
Launched a boat and took two men is and atemptcd to get
off to speak her, but the surf, which was bre Hang very 11.6,
vily at the time, swamped the boat and broke on: of the
oars, and when I reached the shore again, 1 was so made
exhausted that I could not make another attempt.
"After getting all the provisions
that had been saved,
which occupied two days, I chartered the ship Metear,
Captain Jeffiies, to take us all to San Francisco, to sail at
soon as the vessel could be made ready. While the ship
was being fitted I took a boat and crew from the ship Owe.
go, and lay off and on the island on the look out for a
steamer, hoping to speak one on her ;image up and get
some assistance from hoe, hut none came in sight of us.
"On the 3rd of March, everything being ready, and the
passengers all on board (except a few who chose to co to
the Sandwich Islands in the other ships), we sailed for this
port.
" I was on the larboard paddlebox when the steamer
struck, and had been on deck the whole night. If tee
steamer had not taken fire, not a Foul would have been hat.
for they could all have been landed safely if there Lad bees
time.

' The reef on which the steamer struck is about two
miles long. making off in a south-easterly direction, aal
is not laid down in any of the charts that I have ent
seen."

INDIA MAIL.

SOUTHAMPTON, WT:DNV.FDAY EVENI`;,:.
The Oriental Company's steam-packet Indus, Car,
Soy, has arrived, and landed her mails under the
charge of Lieut. John Bro-,vn, 11. N., Admiralty
agent.
Iler dates arc t Alexandria, May 6; Malta, 10;
Gibraltar, 11; Bombay, April 11; Madras, 14; Cal-
cutta, 7 ; Singapore, 4 ; Penang, 6 ; Hong-Kong,
March 2S; Ceylon, April 17; Aden, 26; Costs,
May 6.
Her cargo consists of 110 bales cotton, 11 wool, 64
flax, 367 salt, G cases silk, 10 corals, 111 shawls, 30
boxes lemons, 11 boxes blood-stones, 210 packages
sundries.

Her news has been anticipated by our overland
express.
H.M.'s ships Britannia, Ceylon, Trafalgar, Rodney,
Albion, Bellerophon, Vengeance, Arethusa, RetriLu-
tion, Sampson, Wasp, Oberon, Caradoc, Niger, and
Inflexible were at Malta. The Furious and the
Antelope were at Gibraltar.
The United States corvette, St. Louis, 20 guts,
and the United States steamer, St. Jacinto, guns;
and the Dutch frigate Doggersbank, 61 guns, were
at Alexandria.

The Oriental Company's packet Sultan left Malts
fur Marseilles at 9 r.m. on the 9th May, with the
Indian mails.

The Madrid and Haddington were at Gibraltar on
the 11th May.

CV: court.

OSBORNE, WEDNESDAY.
Prince Albert, accompanied by Sir James Graham
And attended by Lieut.-Col. the llon. A. Gordon, embarked
in the Royal 'Yacht Fairy, yesterday morning, and pro-
ceeded towards the Needles. The Prince married about
half-past one o'clock.
The Queen and Prince, with the Princess Helena aad
Princess Louisa, attendid by the Hon. Col. Grey, drove oat
in the afternoon.
Sir James Graham nod Captain Shepherd, who arrived
from Landon, had the honour of dining with her Majesty
yesteruay.
The Duchess of Kent and the Princess Adelaide of
Hohenlohe, arc expected to-day on a visit.

The Duchess of Kent and the Princess Adelaide of
Hohenlolie, left town yesterday morning by the London and
South Western Railway, for Osborne, Isle of Wight, us,
visit to the Queen. The Royal Duchess was attended by
Lady Anna Maria Dawson and Lieut.-Col. F. Seymour. The French Ambassador transacted business yesterday at
the Foreign office.
The Earl of Clarendon hu arrived in town from his scab
the Grove, Watford, Herts.

Mr. Layard, M.P., was to leaTe Constantinople for
England on the sth init.

A MAN KILLED BY HIS WIFE.

Early on Tuesday the inhabitants of St Leonard's-
on-Sea were thrown into a state of excitement by the
I report which was circulated that during the night t
man named Stephen Smith had lost his life in an
altercation with his wife. From inquiries it appears that
the deceased man was a shoemaker, living with his wife, in
a room, forming one of a suite of rooms over some coach-
houses in Harold-mews, St. Leonard's-en-Sea. On Tues-
day evening, about nino o'clock, deceased and his wife
went into ]listings ; at eleven o'clock they were seen in a
beer shop iu West-street, known as the Queen Adelaide ;
they then appeared to be on friendly terms, and thiniong
part of a pot of porter. They left in about a quarter of an
hour, and were seen returning towards tit. Leonard's
shortly before 12 o'clock ; this was the last time the parties
were seen together. In twenty minutes after this the wo-
man (Sarah Smith) was proved to have fetched a pin: of
beer which she did not take home. Shortly after one
o'clock the woman called a neighbour, named Mary
Cope, stating that she bad stabbed her husband ; this person
ran for Mr. R. C. Gardiner, a surgeon, who was quickly on
the spot. On entering, the wife exclaimed, " I have kilted
my husband—l knew it would come to this." She further
said that the deceased was always jealous of her ; they had
been out together to Hastings, and in coming home sha
" gave him the slip," and did not get home until after him;
that he spoke to her, and she threatened to "do for him,"
upon which he opened kit waistcoat, and said " Do it," and
she took up a knife having a very sharp point from thi de-
ceased's work-seat, and stabbed him in the chest, throwing
the knife out of the window on a dung heap. From this
wound the unfortunate man ilkd in about a quarter of an
hour.
The woman was at once removed in custody to Hastings
gaol.
At 10 o'clock yesterday morning the accused wa.ex-
amined before the Mayorllickes, Esq.) and T.1.1;c"
hunt, Esq., and remanded until the following day.
Yesterday afternoon a coroner's inquest took :Ave at th
Horse and Groom Inn, when a verdict of " Wilful minder'
against Sarah Smith was returned.
The accused woman has been of a loose character, of
drinking habits, and possessing an ungovernable temper.

DUBLIN AND DROGHEDA RAILWAT.—EXTENSIOIE
TO KBLLs.—On Tuesday the chairman, J. W. Mur
laadr
Esq. ; Evans, Esq., Manchester, deputy chairman;
Alderman Hoyt, Thos. Hutton, Esct.., Thomas F. Gresham,
Esq., W. I'. Eckersicy, Esq., It. NN ight, Ely , and J. I'.
Culverwell, Esq., secretary, inspected the Extension works
Nof the hue from avan to fleas, now approaching to com-
pletion under the direction of Mr. Harty, resident engineer,
and iu the hands of Messrs. K Ik it and Moore as contractors.
The works are in a very forward state, awl the line 60 fir is
got up in a very creditable manner.

THE NEW TARIFF.

MLETING OF WHOLESALE AND RETAIL
GROCERS.
in Consequence, of the change annoanced by the
Chaneeltor of the Exchequer in his intentions, with respect
to the Cuetuoi, re; ulatidns si regards tea, and also of the
',their:asset et the Is. reduction in the duty on raisin►. •
numerous meeting of wholesale and retnil tea-sealers
e,agrocers was held yesterday, at the London Tavern;
it, W. Cita:serum., Esq., in the P.,ch. There were ale*
present. Messrs. diverge Moffitt, M. Twining, T
Iluberheld, W. 6. Hall, R. Iliirirousu, A. Ttavers, Locoek,
Ithuttleworth, Potts, Ho:, Smith, &c.
The C that am AN in opening the proceeding., said that as
be sod/net:eel the question, the object of the present meet-
ing was, toeetuider what would probably be the eff.ct on
the interests of the tea-dealers and grocers of the United
Ring.lom of the changes intro luced by the Chancellor of
the Exchequer into kis scheme for the settlement of
certaint;ustucis duties. It would be recollected that in the
budget of the 11th April last, certain scales of amended
elute. were proposed, and he might add that thine emended
scales were received with very general favour throughout
the country. (Hear, hear.) '1 hey now (curd that a second
eme.aled scheme had been published, invulviog several inn-
tvrial change. from the original plan, some of which would
materially affect the interests of trade. (Hear, hear.) He
believed that the object of that meeting was to take these
matters into consideration, and to prepare a memorial to
the Chancellor of the Exchequer with a view of inducing
him, if possible, to give to the subject a little more careful
consideration than ho appeared to have done. (Hear, hear.)
Judging from what he (the Chairman) himself bad seen the
right hon. gentleman must have been listening to some em-
pirical advice, and had thus been placed in a difficulty from
whist lie could only be released by taking the advice of the
trade. '1 he chairman concluded by stating that Mr. Travers
would state mere in detail the objects of the meeting.
MT. THAVLIti said that bison', rearm for interfering was
the extreme urgency of the case, and the exercised wishes
of members of the trade. Whit was everybouy's business
was nobody's business, and therefore he should be glad to
see some organisation attempted, and a select body ap-
pointed, whole duty it should be to look after the general
bite frets of the trade on occasions like the present. (Hear,
hear.) As a beginning, ho should recommend the appoint.
ment of a committee to represent to the government the
opinioes of the t: ade on the matter now under discussion.
1 hey had met t s consider two points : one was the retrac-
tation of the Chancellor of the Exchequer's promise, as re-
garded the duty en raisins ; and the other the question of
the draught allowed by the Customs in estimating the duty
on tea. At the preliminary meeting of that morning it
had been decided to separate these two questions, • course
in which he did not quite concur, but he thought the point im-
mat.:l t 11,•.) :nog as they obtained committees to represent teeth
v. ws. Ile thought the question with regard to raisins im-
portant, because it was OA first instance of a government
basing proposed a great reduction, and thus influenced all
the operations of trade, and then, without previous notice,
or apology, refusing to carry their plan into execution. I
(Hear. hear.) This was the more especially to be repre-
hended, seeing that the public had acquiesced in the impo-
salon of new taxce, of which this remission was to have
been to some extent the equivalent. (Hear, hear.) lle
thought that the public and the trade should keep the
Chancellor of the Exchequer to his bargain, as it he were
allowed to promise and retract in this way, no branch of,
trade Of tOrOlflefee would be safe. (Hear, hear.) With
reisect to tea, their cause of complaint was equally
portant, the present proposal of the Chancellor being M
withdrew the round draught which was now allowed lel
merchants in estimating the duty. The allowance was ese
gain to the wholesale dealers, who passed it to the
retailers, nor, he believed, to the retailer', who,
he believed, generally lost on the tares of tea.
(Hear, bear.) This proposal of the Chancellor
of the Exchequer came peculiarly unfavourable at a
time when the public were expecting to get the full
value of the trifling reduction in the duty. A strong repre-
sentation must be made, and he believed the proper course
would be to appoint a small committee to represent to the
Chancellor of the Lechequer the feelings of the trade, but
giving them powers beyond that, to take what steps they
might think fit in case they should be met with a distinct
refusal. Ile held that they were bound as wholesale and
retail dealers to press this matter on the: right hon. gentle-
man, and, in case be should be obstinate, on the House of
Commons. Were he a member of the House of Commons
he should deride the house on the question, and, as it
was, he was quite prepared to ask their members to do so.
(Hear, hear.)
Mr. More Art, M.P., having thanked Mr. Travers for his
promptitude in convening the u.eeting, proceeded to say
that two subiecte were under consideration, raisins and tea,
but in his opinion they stood on different grounds. (Hear,
hear.) The reduction of the duty ea raisins was spoken of
as a promise from the Chancellor of the Exchequor, bat he
did not look upon it in that light. It was only • peopmal
to the House of Commons to redoes certain dudes. mid Is
levy certain others as an equivalent. The feature of sash
an arrangement was no novelty, as it had happened to Bir
C. Wood in the case of clover seed. la the case of raisins,
he believed the difficulty with the right hon. gentleman to
be, that he could not reduce the duty without also dealing
with currants.
Mr. TuAreas—Why did he promise it? (Hear, hear.)
Mr. MOVFATT did not think the right hon. gentleman
had promised it. He had promised to allow a farthing a
pound instead of the draught. But he would pass by
raisins, as he believed that if the Chancellor of the Exam-
quer were appealed to on that subject, he could give very
good reasons why they should not be dealt with separate
from currants, and proceed to the tea question, which was
more important, and which, if allowed to be settled
as proposed by government, would entail on the trade
an additional tax to the amount of 70,0001. annually.
(Hear, hear.) The difference between the two questions
was so vast that he feared they would only weaken their
ease by mixing them together. He should proceed, there-
fore, to discuss the tea question in the first instance, and
they could discuss the raisins afterwards. When they came
under discussion he should be prepared to show that the
alteration would be as unjust to purchasers as was the other
point to teadealers. The draught at present allowed on
tea had lasted for two centuries; but when the tea trade
passed from the East India Company into the hands of
private individuals, a searching revision of weights and
tares was made by the Excise B,ard, who thought that the
company had been far too liberal, and the trade was placed
on • much less liberal footing than before. The allowance
was then 2 or. in favour of the trade, which came to much
more than the pound draught, but that was disallowed by
the Customs and the import merchant ,• and the practice now
was to take a given number of chests out of a
break of tea, say 10 out of 600, and if the
weights averaged 23 lb. 7 ox., the Customs only allowed on
23 lbs. tare. The merchants said at the time of the settle-
ment it was unfair, illiberal, and unjust, but the Customs
were inexorable, and the tare remained 23 lb'. to the pre-
sent day. The argument in defence of this injustice had
always been, " You have the pound draught to cover say
inequalities in the tare." (Hear, hear.) He believed it
did no more, and therefore its retention was only an act of
common justice. He had on the previous day examined a
parcel of teas landing from the Kremlin, and found that the
tares varied 3 lbs. in 10 or 12 chests, one being 24 lbs , and
the other 27 lbs. In this case, the customs tare being 26 lbs.,
there would on the 27 lb. chests be a loss of 2 lbs. (Hear,
bear.) The settlement had, however, worked satisfactorily
up to this time, and, although complaints had oresti
been made, parties in general looked upol
as an equitable settlement of the question. Es
believed, with respect to the Chancellor of the
Exchequer, that something was floetiog in that
gentleman's mind as to this llb. taro being a present to the
wholesale dealer, but he (Mr. Moffatt) being then in the
presence of nearly all the wholesale dealers in the trades
asked them whether the pound was not invariably given to
the vendor who broke bulk to the public. (Hear, hear.)
The question, therefore, pressed entirely on the vendor and
the public. The vendor, as they knew, did not sell paper
or string, but gave the public the full nett weight, and they
knew also that every chid of tea was weighed out on the
average in quarter pounds, so that there were 360 to 400
turns of the scale in every chest of tea. (Hear, hear.) It
appeared to him, then, to be nothing more than just and
equitable that the Chancellor of the Exchequer should share
the loss with the wholesale and retail dealers, as he believed
the latter made nothing by the present allowance. (Hear.)
If the Chancellor of the Exchequer's plan of disallowing the
pound draught came into operation, the retailer might
evade it by weighing paper and string, but it would be
very unwise to disturb the present arrangement under
such pretexts. (Haar.) The merchant now often_ paid
gibs. duty on weed and had, as the chests for which 241bs.
were allowed often weighed Nibs.; and Is. 10d. a pound
was too much to pay an mad and lead. He did sot know
what could have pet thisierstehet into the Chancellor of the
Exchequer's head except that tea was the only article epee
which this one pound draught was adowed ; but he should
also recollect that it was also an article of great value, upon
which the precise tare could not lee ascertained without
opening each chest. (dear, hear.) The right hon. gen-
tleman knew that they could not open each chest and re.
pack it. Tea was, in fact, an exceptional article, not only
as regarded the tax, but as to the mode of ascertaining the
tare. It was done by a sort of rough " rule of thumb" cal-
culation ; but to his mind that calculation was as good for
the Chancellor of the Exchequer as it was for the dealers or
the public. For these reasons, and seeing the mode in
which the &Hemlines had been brought forward-4min,
that Mr. Gladstone had en Friday night last laid his
amended resolutions cm the tabs of the house
quietly, he would not say stealthily, without an-
nouncing to the House of Commons that he had found
oat a new source of revenue worth 70,0001. a year.
be (Mr. Moffatt) could not but think that the whole thing
was a crotchet heady adopted, and that on hearing Emile
and reasons the tight boo. gentleman would be Se
ahead= it as bawdy. (Har, hear.) He mid as 11•1
that the right lea. geollemes had medial elf_ air at
authority in these mattes% bat he suggested that the eight
bon. gentleman on looking through his tariff feast ins
with a pound draught, and so other article with the WNW
privilege, and determined upon striking it out in ignorant,
of the reason why the privilege had been granted. (Hear.
hear) He (Mr. Moffatt) held in his hand a paper whisk he
had received from a highly respectable dealer, matallieg
the results of 71 packages of tea, not singled out to melte •
OM against the Chancellor of the Exchequer, but taken
according to date from the Ist May to the 12th. The result
was a low on tare of 12(1b5., of gain 10lbs. irrespective
of draught, so that if draught had been excluded he
would have peel duty on 3:llhs. for nothing but wood
and lead. (Hear, hear) What would be said of •
shopkeeper who pre short weight, but here was the Chas-
(cline of the Exchequer doing something very similar In
character. They could not bring him to the treadmill, bet
they could prevent him by ezpoetulatioa from talking MN',

so great an injustice. They bat duties to fulfil and rights
to contend for, and these rights were to obtain just and
equitable conditions in their dealings with the government.
(Rear, bear.) The course ho intended to take was to put
a notice on the books of the House of Commons to-
morrow (this) evening, contesting this point, as he would
rather the duty remained unsettled for weeks than that"
injustice should be perpetrated. (tiro.) Ile thought
at right also that a deputation should oe appointed to wait
on the Chancellor of the Exche'itter, to induce him, if pos-
sible, to alter his dete:;ainition. Resolutions with this
object would be submitted to the meeting.
Mr. Loweockx (Miller and Lowcocke), as a tea-dealer,
protested against the injustice of the proposed alteration.
Mr. PAYEE (Rege it-street), as a retailer, complained of
the variable weights of chests of tea, sad the losses that
were sustained in consequence. lie had himself lost ex-
tensively on the weight of a chest sent to a noble lord a
member of parliament. Mr. Payne was diverging into a
general lament over the hardships of retailers in tea, spice,
and other articles, but was interrupted by general cries of
Question." He was anxious for the appointment of a
permanent committee to look alter the interests of the
trade. . .

Mr. Rows (Clarke and Rowe) said that the draught was
given by legislation in 17 J 9 and confirmed in 18:13, and was
hardly sufficient to meet the escape of tea between the wood
and the lead and its consequent loss and damage. There
was in fact great injustice in taring, for ',elicit the only
compensation was this allowance of a pound draught. He
was ready to show that the chest itself often weighed mere
than the tare and draught included. (Hear.) He thought
that as regarded both tea and fruit they should have
a committee to watch the proceedings of the government.
Mr. SUCITLIWORTM (Shuttles orth and Co.) pointed out
another source of lees in the mode in which lead was run
in China. It appeared it was dune on atone, another stone
being placed over it to reduce it to the requisite thinness.
This last stone, when it became cold towards the latter end
of the smelting, made the sheet (bicker than at first, and
whoever got the cheat packed with these lasting' was so
much the worse off in his tare. He held in his band docu-
ments to show that on 36 packages of tea opened from the
Ist to the Bth of January there was a loss of 261 be., and
another opened from the lit to the 12th of May, of 19
packages, with a loss of 1271 be. (Hear, hear.) This
showed that they wanted a further allowance instead of a
reduction—indeed, the old company had allowed trett as
well as tare. (Cheers.) The present course was to take 6
chests out of 100 to ascertain the tare, and the consequence
of the alteration would be a considerable loss.
Mr. TWINING tendered his full cooperation towards
removing or preventing what he felt to be a hardship on the
trade. (Hear, hear.) He looked, however, upon the
Chancellor of the Exchequer as a man of such high charac-
ter, as to be incapable of promising anything he did not
mean to perform, and he felt sure that if the case were
fairly stated, the threatened hardship would be prevented.
He (:dr. Twining) saw no difficulty in showing the right
bon. gentleman that this pound draught was no boon, but
an act of simple and positive justice. (Hear, hear.) lie
could, if necesawy. furnish a list of tares, in which the ave-
rage was against the trade, and in which the case had been
brought before the government, but the answer had always
been, " The pound draught is intended to meet all inequa-
lities." (Hear, hear.) lie mentioned this to show that the
allowance had never been looked upon as a boon. (Hear,
hear.) He was, therefore, ready to c s-operate most
cordially in the objects of the meeting. (Cheers.)
Mr. TOISLYX, who spoke to the raisin question, said that
nobody knew why the intentions of government with re-
spect to this reduction of ditty on this article had been
altered. It was said that no production was expected next
year, but that calculation might be fallacious, while the
reduction of duty would have enabled the dealers to work
off their old stock before the new fruit came in. Already
contracts had been entered into on the faith of the pro-
posed change, and correspondence commenced with all the
fruit countries. Letters were in town showing that the new
crop would be large,:and all these circumstances made
the raisin question as important as that relatieg
to tea. (Hear, hear.) He thought at least that, as ge-
vernment had submitted to • temporary reduction in the'
case of plums to remedy their own mists e, they ought to
do the same in the case of raisins, in order that parties who
had entered into contracts on the faith of the charge ahould
sustain no loss. (Hear, hear.)
Resolutions were then proposed appointing a committee
and a deputation, and some discussion arose on the point of
whether retailers should be on the committee, or whether it
should be exclusively confined to wholesale merchants.
Ultimately it was arranged to be a mixed committee, and
the resolutions were agreed to.