The Express.
London, England, 1851-08-11 00:00:00

still
still unknown to public scrutiny had not the general
summary been pirated by some peeping devil of one
of the Dublin journals, and thus the confession of the
terrible truth been precipitated. And now the im-
portant complement thereto is put forth when
all instruction or suggestion derivable from its
details must be adjourned until another agri-
cultural year has in effect revolved, and until
the good or evil that might have been observed, and
either checked or developed in its progress, might
have at least- been considered by those who arc nomi-
nally the guardians of the destinies of the nation.
Better late, nevertheless, than never: and chequered
though the facts and figures are which the tables of
agricultural labour and capital in Ireland for 1850
display, we are glad to have them even now. They
tend to fortify many convictions of deep moment to
both England and Ireland. It must be owned that
in many things they exhibit a state of things far
from satisfactory.
First of all we note that the total breadth of fil-
Inge, far from having declined, has considerably in-
creased. In 1819 the extent of land under crops in
the entire country was 5,513,718 acres ; in 1850 it
was 3,758,292; slowing an increase of 214,541. The
elements of this comparison are simple and striking.
In wheat there appears a diminution of 82,779
acres, against which is to be set an increase
in oats of 81,411. In barley and rye the falling off
is stated at 32,171 ; while the increase in peas
and beans amounts to 8,671. The total cultivated
average under white crops in 1819, was 3,171,421 ;
in 1850, it was 3,119,550, thus making a diminution
of 21,888. This, out of a total of 3,174,421 acres de-
voted to cereal cultivation, would hardly in itself im-
ply any permanent or important decrease in the em-
ployment of land or labour. But happily it is more
than counterbalanced by the augmentation that we
find in the flax crop.
'this great and growing source of national im-
provement andprosperity, deserveerather to be classed
with those of which we have been speaking than
a ith what are usually designated green crops. The
latter arc the means whereby food in the greatest
quantity may, it is true, be produced in a humid
climate for human sustenance or that of rattle ; and
as such it is most desirable to see their growth
expand, as every year it bids fair to do,
in the sister kingaom. There were 1241,001 acres
more under green crops in 18.50 than in 1819 ;
besides an increase of 38,753 of clover and other arti-
ficial grasses. As compared with the comparatively
trifling contraction of the space devoted to corn, tins
is indeed most gratifying. The cultivation of wheat
and barley, for which the climate must ever render
Ireland less suited, and which an absurd and unjust
law long stimulated for the sake of high rents
to the exhaustion of the soil, and the
still more fatal exhaustion of the tenant-
farmers capital, is gradually giving place
in same degree to the more natural and safe cultiva-
tion of outs and beans on the one hand, and, what is
still better, of flax on the other. We say better,
' because when the wheat is cut, and thrashed, and
poem!, there is an end to the labour it affords. No
flintier value can be imparted to it; while a serious
depreeiation, from a great variety of causes, may
take place before its price is finally paid by the
consumer. Flax, on the contrary, passes from
hand to hand with constantly enhanced value
imparted to it by successive processes of
skill and industry. It yields many profits
by creating ninny employnients ; and once carefully
saved, it is, comparatively speaking, insusceptible of
depreciation or decay). Above all, it is the material
of Ireland's best and must lucrative manufacture—
nee which has steadily improved and expanded
during the last century, and which seas never at any
former period so healthy or so vigorous as at the
present hour. In this aspect it is cheering to oh-
serve that while in 1819 the surface tilled for flax
WUS 00.311 acres, in isao it was not less than
141,4)14), being an increase of more than 511 per cent.
We could wish that the potato occupied a some-
what leas conspicuous place in the list of green
crops. Out of 2,308.000 acres cultivated otherwise
than with cereals, a third in round numbers (emu-
rattly 873,337) were last year sewn with the capri-
cious root. Il'e are not going to re-enter upon the
oft-debated question whether it is possible that other
diet should be substituted to any great extent fur
the potato during the present generation : but
without paying too much attention to rumours
already rile of the re-appearance of the old blight
during the present season, wo may lie permitted to
express our milgiriogn at all that scents to indicate
a return to (tori:dams: on an esculent which, what-
ever its advantages when abundant, it is manifest
. can nu more be relied on.

FRANCE.

PARIS, SATURDAY EVE:4INO,

Up to the present momenethe only result of the
effort-4 which parties of every shade of politics are
making to attain to unity of purpose has been to split
them up into more numerous fractions. The close
secresy which has been observed by the republican
opposition with respect to their great meeting in the
Rue Richelieu on Thursday evening naturally leads
to the suspicion that the proceedings were rut very
harmonious. The declared object of that meeting
W 3.4 to elect a democratic committee to sit in Paris
during the prorogation as a cheek upon the committee
of permanence, to organise electoral committees in
the departments, and to settle a proclamation to the
electors, giving an account of the parliamentary con-
duct of the republican members. The total silence of all
the deinoemlic journals gives an air of probability to
an account of the meeting contained to the t //ion
this morning. According to the Cajon, the meeting
got no further than to resolve that in electing the
committee a preference should be given to those
members who desired to remain in Paris during the
sweets. M. Colfavru then expressed a wish to be
upon the committee. M. Mut, a Nlontagnard of the
reddest dye, made a violent attack upon NI. Colfavru,
whom he accused of having absented himself from an
important meeting of a committee when the election
of the committee of revision was in question. A
violent scene followed, which ended in a vote of ex-
pulsion from the room against M. Colfavru. The
latter left immediately, accompanied by MM. Aims,
Baum, Baudin, and some other members of the
revolutionary committee of 25, of which M.
Michel (de tourgcs) is president. The meeting
then broke up in confusion. It would appear
from this that the ultra reds, who arc now commonly
called the Thaborites, must have been the stronger
party, for it is well known that since the compara-
tively moderate speech of M. Michel (de Bourges) on
the revision they repudiate his chiefship. M. Odilon
Ilarrot yesterday held a parliamentary levee at his
house. Resolutions were agreed upon that the Ob-
ject of the vocation campaign should be to stimulate
the councils-general to pronounce for revision, to
encourage the people to continue to petition, and
under the influence of the feeling in favour of the
revision to prepare the way for the next general
elections. These resolutions are nearly identical
with those which were voted the other day by M.
Berryer's club, in the Rue Rivoli. The main
difference is that M. Odilon Barrot's followers

speak of revision simply and not oftiat---:total
revision- which is the consecrated phrase in
which the revision-legitimists express their real
hopes and wishes. Mere revision is under-
stood to mean nothing more than that Louis Napo-
leon should be made re-eligible and in this sense
the resolutions of the Odilon Barret meeting are
interpreted by the Patric, who claims all the mem-
bers who attended it as partisans of the Elysiv. A
further resolution of considerable importance was ,
voted unanimously, to the effect that the Assembly
should proceed to its own re-election at a time suf-
ficientiv distant from that of the executive power to
enable the government to provide effectually for the
maintenance of the public peace. This must of course
mean tkat the Assembly should shorten its own man-
date, for it has no power to prolong it. Whether the
patriotism of honourable members who receive 23
francs per day can be wrought upon so as to in-
duce them to dissolve themselves and encounter the
uncertainties of the ballot-box before the appointed
hour must be at least very doubtful. M. Alfred
Ncttement, of the Opinion reibliyue, writes in high
spirits this morning. He says, that on taking his
seat in the Assembly yesterday he was surrounded
by a crowd of legitimists of all shades of opinion,
who expressed to him their regrets and affectionate
sympathy on the occasion of the letter of MM. de
lltteesasseegmer and do Chaulieu which I sent to you
yesterday. But what must be still more consoling,
the leading columns of the Opinion Publigne contain
12 letters, most of them from legitimist represents.-