The Express.
London, England, 1851-12-25 00:00:00

THE EXPRESS, THURSDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 25, 1851.

Commons. It was computed that out of the 658
members, there were at that time 338 interested
in land, and it was said that that was
a .proportion far too large. Now, my . lord,
omitting all reference to the constituencies of
Wales, of Scotland or of Ireland, numbering 187 in
the whole, I give you here a list, which shows that
nearly 300 of the English members alone must be of
the class whose power was thought so extravagantly
represented in 1832. There can be very little
doubt that nearly 100 out of the 187 Scotch and
Irish members arc landowners also. And if this be
so, the preponderance in 1817 is far greater than it
was before the Reform Act passed.
During the twenty years which have elapsed since
that measure was brought forward, the trade and
manufactures of this country have made the most
gigantic strides. Many branches of industry have
doubled themselves. The increase in the cotton,
woollen, silk, linen, and hardware trades, as shown
by the declared value of our exports, has been quite
enormous. Allow me to throw some of the results
into the convenient form of a small tabular state-
ment.

DECLAUED VALVES OF MUTI3II EXPORTS'IB49. 1832.
Cotton goods £17,300,000 '6,77.5,000
Woollcu goods 4,728.000 7,342,000
Silk goods
Linen goods (1831)
Hardware and cutlery
Ilrass and copper good+
This enormous increase of production could not
have becu effected witlicut great additional em-
ployment of labour. Hence we find that the ten-
dency of the population of Eng!and during the last
quarter of a century has b..en to relinquish agricul-
tural for manufacturing occupations. Your lord-
ship is, doubtless, aware that between 1811 and 1811
the eentcsiinal proportion of families employed in
agriculture in Great Brit:in declined from 33.2 to
Zit The decline was marked in Scotland; it was
still more so in England. That it was a progressive
decrease is shown by the following statement of the
centesimal proportions in 1831 and 1841 :
ENGLAND AND WALES.

1831. 1811.
Employed in agriculture
Employed in rminufactures, &c.
Employed otherwise 2) 90 31.27

The results thus exhibitedwill doubtless be marked
still more strongly in the census returns of the present
year. Those returns are not yet published in a shape
that suits toy purpose, but the foregoing tables prove,
stronger than words can speak, that throughout
England, Wales, and Scotland, manufacturing in-
dustry in all its branches has been rapidly develop-
ing itself since the peace, whilst agriculture has
remained stationary or has undergone decline.
On the other hand, my lord, what has been the
course of legislation ? It has been to increase the
influence of the land in parliament. You have
diminished by 79 the representatives of towns,
and have increased by 64 the representatives
of counties. You have given to 89 comparatively
small agricultural towns a representation of 118,
and you have only given to 10 large manufac-
turing towns a representation of 65! And this
has been done in the face of the fact that the
capital of England was daily investing itself more
and more in its manufacturing industry; and that
the labour of the country was gradually withdraw-
ing
itself from agricultural occupations in order to
engage in manufacturing and commercial occupa-
tions. It was in the face of these facts, I say, that
you increased the legislative power of the land-
owners. 'Will it excite your surprise, then, if I tell
you that the commerce and the manufactures of
England, despite their rapid development and
growth, arc at this time no better represented in the
House of Commons than they were before the pass-
ing of the Itetbrm Bill? If I prove that position, I
think I add something to the argument in favour of
a redistribution of the borough members; and 1
promise you to prove it in the next letter I have the
honour to address to you.
I am, my lord, your obedient servant,

ItUNSYMEDE.

METIIOFOLITAN COMMISSION OF BEWERS.—Ycs-
terday a special court of this commission was held at their
principal office, in Greek-street, Soho. The members pre-
sent were Mr. Lewes (the chairman), Sir J. !Ragtime,
Major Dawson, Captain Vetch, and Mr. T. Allison. The
following gentlemen were appointed to the undermen-
tioned offices under the commission : Mr. E. H. Woolrych,
secretary, salary 8001., allowance in lieu of apartments,
1001.; Mr. J. Pollard, clerk of minutes, 110!.; Mr. G. S.
Hatton, accountant, 3501.; Mr. Win. Lavers, clerk of sur-
veyors' and contractors' accounts, 3001. ; Mr. I'. Coggin,
clerk of rates, 2501.; Mr. Frank Forster, engineer, 1,000!.,
allowance for travelling expenses, 2001. ; Mr. Lovick, sur-
veyor of the Fulham and Hammersmith district, 3101.;
Mr. Bazalgette, surveyor of the Eastern and Western divi-
sion of Weetininster, &e., MI.; Mr. Rue, surveyor of the
Finsbury and Tower Hamlets district, 300/. ; Mr. Creasy,
surveyor of thu Eastern division of the Surrey and Kent
district, 2501.: end Mr. Grant, surveyor of the Western
division of the same district, 3001. The Secretary
stated that the blouse in the hands of the treasurer to
the Commission on the 20th of December instant
was 4,4161. Ga. On the report of the chief engineer, the
following sewage works of urgent necessity were ordered
to be proceeded with:—St. James's-street, Lie-on-grove,
lowering of the sewers, estimated cost, 2/71.; Clarendon-
street, Finchley-ruad, cost 46/., of which 111. 10s. had been
contributed by owners of property in the locality ; Tothill-
street, Westminster, a new sewer, cost' 36/. ; Sussex-street,
outlet, cost tidS/.; Kerr_ish-town-road, outfall sewer in con-
tinuation of the Fleet, cost 1,8821. ; Kentish-
town, a diversion of the Fleet, cost 7911., of which 4111.
will be contributed by owners of property iu the locality ;
Hyds-hill Vale, Croom's-hill, Greenwich, estimated cost
1,3121., two-thirds of which to be provided by the commis-
sioners of Greenwich Hrspital ; and the Lee sewer, at an
estimated cost of 1,8731. After the transaction of certain
business of a formal character the court adjourned.
COMMERCIAL DOCKS.—The directors of this com-
pany propose to determine on the best way for dealing
with their rest, or surplus, and concerning the purchase of
new works.
THE GERMAN NEW YEAR'S EVE.—The very night
which sees MC all lone and drew y on the pavement of Pic-
cadilly is a great " ball-night " with high and low, young
and old, in my country. People must dance from the old
into the new year, and consequently there are balls in the
great hotels of the towns, and bailout the second-class inns,
and balls in every village public-house ; in low smoky tap-
rooms on the first floor, where the stairs, which, as at
fashionable balls and routs in this metropolis, servo as
salle do conversation," and flirting-places, are so
crowded that even the " Herr Biirgermeister " and the
" Herr Pastor " find some difficulty in gaining the top and
the entrance to the ball-rom. These two dignitaries of
every village make it a point to visit all the dancing places,
and to exhort to enjoyment and moderation. Their
good advice is always followed to the letter while they are
present, but when they are gone the tr,mpool the waltz be-
comes more rapid, brown sunburnt women rush violently
onward in their giddy career, and stout, blue, brass-but-
toned coats are doffed and flung into the corner by peasant
boys, carriers, and stonemasons, who, pipe iu mouth, and
with their hats on, dance with a devotion which many
countries emulate, but which none can surpass. And as
MeaghtwmnonMwards morning, and the musicians
drop off from sheer exhaustion, the melody of the last
waltz is taken up by the girls, who sing it in inarticulate
sounds, loud and low by turns, and alternately advancing
and receding, as if swayed by the modulations of their primi-
tive music. This is the ancient " ballare," the singing of
snatches of verses to the dance ; and here it is that the cu-
rious in the history of poetry must look for the origin and
the last remains of the ballalL—Dickens's Howe/dad
Words. _ •

VW Ler ••••
RARE BOOKS RELATING TO A.MERICA.—The library
of the late Count Mondidier, extending over nine days'
sale, has just been dispersed by auction, by Messrs. Put-
tick and Simpson, of Piccadilly. We scarcely remember to
have seen a more extensive assemblage of voyages and tra-
vels in any sale, particularly of those in foreign languages.
A notice of • few of the lots will perhaps be interesting.
Lot 539, the rare collection of tracts by Las Cases, though
imperfect, sold for 101. Lot 671, the original Spanish edi-
tion of Cortes' Letters on the Discovery of America, sold
for 231.: this copy had a fac-simile leaf. Lot 836, a tract
by John Eliot, entitled the Christian Commonwealth, sold
for 51. Is.: this rare little piece was condemned by the
Council of Massachusetts in 1600, se being " full of sedi-
tion." Lot 1,171, liackluyt's Divers Voyages, his first
publication, though but a fragment, produced 81. Lot 1,203,
Harlot's Account of Virginia, sold for 411.: this rare book
was the first executed by the celebrated De Brys, and
formed the basis of their future fame. The next lot, the
French version of the same work, sold for 181.10 s. Lot 1,872,
• tract by Dionysius Riche', bearing the imprint of Mexico,
1644, sold for 341. ; and a second and imperfect copy, form-I
ing the next lot, sold for 271. 10s. Lot 1,874, the Doctrina
Christiana of Pedro de Cordova, with the same date as the
preceding work, cold for 501. This tract, the existence of
which is known but to few, has been supposed to be the
first work printed in America; but the inference of the
auctioneer, as stated in the illustrative note in the catalogue,
would seem to assign priority of a few months only to the
preceding tract. The tract of Dionysius Richel has been
hitherto undescribed by any hiograper. Lot 1,908, the
Spanish and Mexican Vocabulary of Molina, an undescribed
edition in quarto, dated 1566, produced 411. Lot 2,201, a
i copy of Purelias's Pilgrims, in poor condition, sold for 211.
Let 2,414, Roberts' Sketches in Egypt and India, sold for
281. 10s. There were also many curious books in the Eng-
lish language connected with American history which sold
at high prices. It was stated that • very large proportion
of the sale was purchased foe public and private libraries
is America.