The Express.
London, England, 1851-12-13 00:00:00

TIIIS DAY.

Two o'CLocK.

There has been a marked reaction in the English
stock market toalay, quotations having experienced a
heavy fall. Prices opened with a buoyant ap-
pearance, and at an advance of about 1,
per cent. on the last rates of yesterday, but heavy
sales for the opening in January, commenced by an
influential broker, quickly gave the market a de
cided turn the other way, and the quotation
hos gone down nearly 4 per ccut. As
to the grounds of the sudden fall nothing certain
has as vet reached us. Rumours of all descrip-
tion are *flying about, sonic referring to unfavourable
Austrian news, others having reference to an al-
leged general vote of the 1 much navy against
the President (a report which our telegraphic des-
patches quite refute), whilst in sonic parts of the
I City reports of Louis Napoleon having been
shot are freely current. At a period like the pre-
sent, when the aspect of continental politics is so
earnestly watched, we would merely observe, un-
founded sinister rumours are rather the rule than
the exception among many classes of City men. As
we-write the tone is decidedly flat, with an uneasy
feeling prevalent.
Consols opened 97 to }cx div. for the January
opening, or equivalent, with the. divi,leud on, to 99
to 14, being an improvement of = as compared
with yesterday's last rate of 9'} to 1.
They then fell to 96!„ at %hi& there were
large sales, and after a slight rally arc now flat at 96
to ex div. for the 16th proximo. The official
business list comprises :—'lhree per Cent. Consols
(shut), with div. for money, 9al, 971 ; ditto for ac-
count, 97, 961' ex dir. Three per Cent. Re-
duced, 971, 97 ; New Three-and-a-Quarter per Cents.,
981, 971.
Exchequer Bills arc rather flat, at 475. to 50s.
Irem., being a reduction of Is. since yesterday.
ndia Bonds arc nominally unaltered.
In the foreign market operations have been re
strictcd by the arrangements for the account. Mexi-
cans continue to advance, it being supposed that
some of those in the secret have had intelligence by
tho late mails of a favourable nature, the more
particularly as the communications of the committee
was rather depressing. Mexicans were dealt in as
high as 251, so that the bear operators who have
been obliged to buy in will suffer. The official
report of the tra'sactions is:—Belgian Bonds, Two-
and-a-llalf per Cent., 59. Buenos Ayres Six per
Cents., 50; Chilian ix per Cents., ;tit!, French
Five per Cent. ]tenter, :kik. at an exchange of
25fr. 23e. Mexican Bonds, 23,1, ; ditto for ac-
count, 23.1. Portuguese Four per *Ciita., 32, 3221;
ditto small, 33; Russian Bonds, Five per Cent., 111.
Sardinian Five per Cents., 82, 81. i. Spanish Actives,
2011. 21.
The Californian gold mining shares are neglected
to-day, and rather flat. Agua Fries are quoted .1 to
I prem.; West Mariposa, 1,, dis. to par; Golden
re Mountain, par to 4 pm. • Nouveau Monde, 1 to
prem.; Ave Maria, to 1- die. ; Anglo Californian,
to 4 prem.
hether any parties have operated for political
purposes is not known, but the new plan of
the Portuguese Minister of Finance does not
meet with ready acquiescence. It involves two
=dine considerations. The first is, that on the
dividends proposed to be treated of, the iniqui-
tous deduction of 25 per cent. is proposed to be
applied; and the second is, that the claims of the
bondholders are to be disposed by the action of the
Port.iguese government without their consent.
Setting, these considerations aside,the avowed motive
of tic., minister is laudable enough, to provide for
arrears, to keep up cash payments at the fixed periods,
and by getting rid of the Lisbon jobbers and usurers
to prevent the dissipation of the national resources.
The minister proposes in June, 1832, instead of pay-
ing ono arrear dividend to tender four per cent. stock
for the four arrear dividends, appropriating the divi-
dend money to get rid of the Lisbon jobbers, and
paying the dividend in December, 1832, as of that
period, instead of December, 1850. One calculation
made on the Stock Exchange is that the operation
stands thus:

Four half years' dividends £B
Le.s 25 per cent 2

Four per Cent. Stock
Value of ditto at 30 1 16
It is consequently treated as a commutation of 87.
for 1/. 16s. This, however, is not a fair comparison,
because under no circumstances can such assumed
market value represent the real value to a holder. It
must be remembered that these arrears cannot he
paid off in cash; no ono is sanguine enough to be-
lieve it, and a conversion sooner or later is all that is
to be expected. In Juuc, 1852, the sum of 1/. 10s.
in cash would be receivable(2/.,less 25 per cent.), and
if stock should be given instead, a needy holder
driven to sell would, at the above rate of calculation,
receive V. 16s. instead of 11. 10s. It will be for the
bondholders to determine whether the arrear coupons
should be funded, and on what terms, and whether a
dividend should he given up or not in consideration
of such funding, but the Portuguese government
know well enough that if the bondholders met to
consider such a proposition, they would demand
the restitution of the 23 per cent. deducted
on so many occasions. If the government were
honest, it would be most desirable to get rid of
the Lisbon jobbers, and of the appearance of arrear
coupons, as the dividends would be better paid and
the stock bear a higher price; but the bondholders
must take care how they authorise Peninsular arro-
gance to tamper with their rights.
The business transacted in foreign exchanges yester-
day was not considerable, but the quotations were
lower for Amsterdam, and particularly so for Vienna
and Trieste, which were in great demand. Short
Paris was done at 25.174 to 20. It was rather offered;
parties having to draw against railway shares sold iu
the Paris market: ditto three months, was quoted
25.35 to 40. Amsterdam, coming lower from the
other side, receded to 11.17 to 1, but purchasers re-
frained from buying, and the amount negotiated was
not considerable. Hamburg remained 13.10 to
with but little doing. Frankfort found few takers,
and looked a shade higher at 120; to 121. No
change worthy of particular notice occurred in
the rate on Italy, Sicily, Spain, and Portugal,
but a very considerable fall took place in
the exchanges for Vienna and Trieste, which were
doue as low as low as 12.40, in consequence of spe-
culative purchases by parties who anticipate an im-
provement in the Austrian prices from the events in
France. The prices negotiated are as follows :
. .

itaas; Moen negotiated.
Prom To
Amsterdam perS Short lilt. Wats. ... WI. letstr.
Ditto
. ,
„ „ lift. liietv. . . 111. 184 v.
and Altana 13ruea.10,chl: 13mos. Wised

iitiiinbak ...
Hamburg and ,
Franlifest-on.tbe.Maide per £lO,, ißif.--fiti:77. I;to.okr.
Vienna pert „ 122. 400. ... 120. 30Lr.
Trieste
1 Antwerp
*V Pt 25fr. 40c. ... 25tr. 45e.
Brussels
Meta ... 0 0
. “ 23fr. 4.e. ... 251 r. 43e.
Paris „ Short 25fr. Inc. ... 23fr.1121.
Ditto „. ,, 3 Moothe2sfr. 35e. ... 25fr. Ma
Dane
Bordeaux. " „ 25fr. Vic. ... 25fr. 421 e..
Lyons " „ 231 r. 371 c. ... 25fr. 421 e.
garAdlee „ „ 251 r. Vie. ... 251 r. 4210.
Genoa
Leghorn
= per ducat „ 40 pence ... 401 pesos
per ounce „ 119 pence ... 1191 pence
Melee
WW2 ler dollar „ 491 pence ... 49 pesos
Qty, „ „ 49 pence ... 49 pea
Niles . 49 pence ... 1 peace
Gibraltar „ „ 49 penes ... 49 pence
ses,:le ...... 99 ” 49 pence ... 49 pence
Barcelona. . „ 49 pence ... 491 pence
Loon
O orto per aidrel „
52 pence 3LI pence .. - pence
i ... 321 pence
fit. Petersburg per ruble „ 36 pence ... 301 pence
The price of gold, on Thursday, at Paris, was
about 5 p. mille prem. (new tariff rate), which, at the
English mint price of 31. 17s. 101 d. per ounce for stan-
dard gold, gives an exchango of 25.29 i ; and the ex-
change at Paris on London at short. being 25.20, it
follows that gold is about 0.377 per cent. dearer in
Paris than in London.