The Express.
London, England, 1853-07-06 00:00:00

PUBLIC BUSINESS.
METROPOLITAN BRIDGES.

Mr. ouvi BA paepoaediii aotiao 7. Pos. the Metro-
pohtea Bridges till this day week, la consequence of the
absence, from indisposition, of the First Cosmaireioser of
Works.

-SOUTH STA

RAILWAY.

Os the motion for the third Wadies of this bill,
Mr. F. FRENCH 'moved that the bill should be read a
third time that day six menthe. There was no instance in
which a railway company had sated as this company had.
Six years bad elapsed since the company bad obtained
powers under their act, and the y bad not yet done any-
thing they bad contracted for. Us was not connected with
the eompaay, and he had been requested to oppose the
third swadiag_of the bill.
sir J. HAFT supported the bill, and said that the powers
glees under the act of 1847 had not yet expired. He
iieettore hoped the amendment would not be pressed.
Alter a conversation, the amendment wee withdrawn, and
the bill was read a third time and passed.
MERCHANT SHIPPING BILL.
The house then went into committee on this bill.

The clauses up to clause 29 were agreed to with mom or
less discussion.
Oa clause 29, which provides that British vessels might
be navigated wholly by foreigners,
Capt. SCOBELL moved that the clause be negatived, on
the ground that it would tend to denationalise the British
seasson. He looked upon this as a national and not as a
party question. The merchant shipping owners were
themselves interested in opposing this clause, because it
would create a feeling amongst British seamen that they
were sot trusted; and in addition to this, nothing was
more dangerous in • gale than to have a ship's crew con-
sist of meows of different nations. lie had received state-
ments from British seamen, to the effect that if this clause
they would go and tender their services to the
trit:
d States. (Hear, hear.) If this were so, the house
should pause before they passed the clause,
Mr. LABOUCHERE was anxious to say a few
words in reference to this clause. His main objection
was, that for the sake of securing to the shipowner
advantages scarcely appreciable, they were about to take
a step which might wound the susceptibilities of British
seamen, and involve the country in serious difficulties use
regarded the national character of British vessels. He
would be glad to hear whether the learned Judge of the
Admiralty Court had been consulted with regard to this
clause.
Mr. CARDWELL was happy to inform the right
honourable gentleman that the clause had aot Men
bowed in the bill without the authority of the
learned judge to whom he had referred. The
last year was the year in which the greatest Dumber
of British seaman had been employed it was the 'ear

in which the greatest amount of shipping had been added
to the mercantile navy of this country ; it was the year in
which there had been the greatest entry of British ships
outwards and inward., and consequently it was the year in
which the mercantile navy had been the greatest nursery
for naval defence. (Heir, hear.) Oa turning to the
coastino trade, he found that in 1851 the entries inwards in
that trade amounted to 12,391,000 tens ;in 1352 it rose to
12,175,000 tons. lie had the returns fur the
first five months of this year, and although
wages bad risen and competition increased, whereas
•in the first five months of 18.52 the amount was
5,420,000 tons, in the first five months of 18.53 it was
.5,490,000 tone. With regard to the coal trade, he found
that the coal imported :nto London by railroad in 15.51 was
247,000 tons, and that it increased in 1852 to 377,000 tons.
Notwithstanding the railway competition, however, the
tonnage of coals in the coasting trade increased from
3,2341,000 tons in 1851, to 3,3.30,000 tons in 1852. In the
first Ws months of this fear tho tonnage again rose more
than 27,000 tons, as compared with the corresponding
Iperiod of last year. In the tare of railway competition
freights had risen from ss. 4d. to 5..10d., to 75. 63., to Si, 6d.
I(Hear, hear.) Surely this did not show that there was any
cause for apprehension. (Hear, hear.) Tney had been told
I that there was a falling off in the number of apprentices.
so doubt the number of apprentices in the merchant navy
had at one time diminished, but it was now increasing
•
seam. The standing order of the house and the clock re-
' minded him that he must conclude. The right hon. gentle-
man was proceeding to make some further observations,
when, it being four o'clock, the Chairman left his seat, and
TLe house adjourned till sin o'clock.
The house resumed et 6 o'clock.

-
JAMAICA.
Sir J. PAK INOTON begged to put a question to the
noble lord the member for London with regard to the
Afairs of Jamaica. He had put a question to the noble lord
en the subject a little time ago, and the noble lord's answer
was, that the noble duke, the Secretary for the Colonies,
would shortly make a statement in another place, and he
uodentood the noble lord that he also would make a state-
ment in that house. lie (Sir J. Pakington) also
asked the noble lord if ho bad any objection
to lay any papers re'ating to the circumstances
in which Jamaica was placed on the table, to which the
noble lord replied that he would not undertake to do so
until after the statement referred to had been made. That
statement had now bean made by the noble duke in another
place, and he should be glad to be informed when the
nob:c lord proposed to make a communication on the subject
to this house, and when he would lay the papers on the
table. lie should also like to know whether those papers
would contain a full statement of the present financial
affairs of Jamaica.
Lord J. RUSSELL bad delayed making any statement
solely on account of the pressure of public business, but he
would do so on an early day on the government moving
the house to go into committee of supply. The papers
should be laid before the house, and be thought that they
contained sufficient information of the state of the finances
of Jamaica.
THE CAMP AT CHOBHAM.
Mr. HUME wished to ask the noble lord whether any
estimate would be laid on the table ,f the expenses atten-
dant on the military msnieuvres going on at Chobham, as
some persons thought they would be considerable, althou,th,
if they would not be large, it would be scarcely worth while
to hare an estimate.
Lord J. RUSSELL—The Secretary at War had stated
on a former occasion that the army estimates included all
the sums required for the operations at Chobhadi. If at
any future period, when the monmurres were over, the
hon. gentleman made a motion on the subject, there would
be no objection to lay an estimate on the table.
THE BOARD OF CONTROL AND THE EAST