The Express.
London, England, 1860-02-24 00:00:00

I. "6".

EN I N : E AA

after that negotiations were entered into between diatinaubbed
pawns In Francs and XI. Cohdat, with a view to the
sdopttoo of the treaty. As to the argument tout the
treaty Wll/5 a eubmission to Frame, there was a potty in
that country which declared that it involved a submission
to England. Oo the bee of the treaty, looting to
eurrounding circamatamm, Franco coacediel Ave times as
much as England did. If from absolute' prohibition the
French reduced their dudes oa the snicks we export, which
amounted to 95,000,0001. • year, lewes an theivalent for the
I redactions we coooeded, eve, if the duties fanged from 10
is SO per mat. The walla Poulos will be Morel as that
of the United Stem, to which we expelled Isla year over
twenty-two millions' worth, and it was odly rearkemble to
suppose that the bade with Prams, which die now nil,
i would rise is something of a like proportion. Alluding to
p Me'. Dierasil, Mr. Bright maimed—There wee a time
, when the rigist bon. gentleman wee not the leader of a great
petty. He wee a giant then in another field. He vented
a lofty position there to ustone one which is more labs-
, rious. I know not whether the line which he has now taken
is to any extent more useful than the line be abandosed. But
in those very admirable books, published partly tor the edit-
cation, and partly, end perhaps rather more, for the amuse-
ment of his countrymen, he hu described the node of living
of en English nobleman of great wealth at Pans. Be says:
I " Lord M onmouth's d inners at Paris were 4:slab rated," and after
describing the luxury of these eotartainments, he proceeds:
• But the effect was destroyed by the mere circumstance
I that every one of these Preach dinners wee served upon cold
plates. The lesson of the custom or the necessity which a
nation so celebrated for its patronornio tastes would gladly
remove, is that originally Preach porcelain is so briitie that
it cannot endure the proper amount of heat." The right
hen, gentleman with an instinct which I cannot too much
admire brought his political sagacity to bear on this subject.
I " Now if," he said, •• we only had that treaty of commerce
with France--(cheap and laughter)—such as hes so oft ea been
on the point of completion, to give our unrivalled poroelain in
exchange fix the wines of France-- la dinners
of both nations would be improved. The English would
pin a delightful beverage, and the French, for the first time
in their lives, would dine off hot plates"—(laughter),-and
he concludes with an srgnroent, or rather en expression,
which I recommend to the hen. gentleman'. supporters :
"An irresistible argement to prove the advantages of a com-
mercial reciprocity. (Cheers and laughter.) One other of
those horrid phantoms which has been raised to alarm simple
traders throughout the country has been based—if • phantom
can be based—upon the question of opals; and there is run-
ning in the minds of some honest people this notion, that we
can do exactly as we like with regard to contraband
of war, and all thou subjects over which England
was supposed to be paramount as Empress of
the Bees. But only lest summer, during the
war in Italy, a dimusel.a was curled on in the English
paper, particularly those which supported the government
of which the right hon. gentleman wu a distinguished
member, as to the propriety of declaring coal to be °entre-
bud of war. At that time hon. gentlemen may recollect in
the English newspapers statements made that the French
government were building a great number of flat-bot:orosi
boats, which were said to be particularly wanted for the coo-
wysoce of coals, but were admirably adapted for landing
soldiers upon a sandy beech. Weil, it did happen that
while these discussions were going on, and government
papers supposed not to be very favourable to France were
discussing the question, the French government did order boats
for the conveying of coals to their amen:ale, lest the English
government should adopt so hostile a step as prohibiting
them. But there arrived at Marseilles two Tomsk from toe
United States laden with wale; and do you suppose your
notion of what is contraband of war, and your notion of
England being miefreas of the seas, coati very long prevent
the United States from supplying either France or Austria
with coals P (Hear, hear.) Bat this question of coals, with
reference to the revenue of France, is a mere bagatelle. A
statement the been made dating the last few days in the
newspapers on this subject. The whole quantity of coal im-
ported into France is 160,000 toss. The extreme oast,
therefore, to the French government, if you were to
prohibit the export of coals, would be not more than
an additional 6s. or 10s. a ton; and the extreme
cost would be 80,0001, sot vary much to a government which
wee is the exigency a war. And, therefore, for any man to
raise this question of coals chows how contracted must be
his views and how smell his Information. But another
point which has been raised is, that the benefits to Francs
are Immediate, whilst the conousions to this country from
France are prospective. All I can say is, that if I were •
Frenchman I should say it is a great pity my government
dos not follow the example of its English neighbour.
Surely, if both countries have been greatly in error, that
which soonest escapes from its error will gain the mint.
But it is clear that the Emperor of the French cannot act in
this question without some preparation. He does not ob-
ject to reduce the duty in July of this year, from
any doubt of the good seams or the justice of the policy he
proposing. But be knows that great changes cannot be
made too tepidly in the face of many prejudices, and some
time must be given to reconcile public opinion at large. It
has also been said that we are allowing ourselves to act
according to the convenience of the French Emperor, who
takes this opportunity of escaping a diecueion on this sub-
ject with his own subjects. But, sir, we are not responsible
for the French constitution, and have quite enough to do to
repair the breaches in our own. But very likely in Femme
there were difficulties such as we experienced in 1848, when
Sir R. Peel proposed to repeal the cora-laws. This is,
in fact, one of the concessions which the Freocsh govern-
ment is bound to make in any great change of
policy. No doubt in France there are now just the same
symptoms of opposition as prevailed here upon the question
of the repeal of the can laws. They all remembered that
Mr. Chowler—(hear)—who said that the farmers had more
horses than any other clue of men in the country, and that
they knew bow to ride then—(laughter)—end he added, he
believed, they weakt much rather ride upon Menchester than
upon Paris. I hope Mr. Chowler is now penitent and OM-
verted—(laughter) ; bat there were men of this clam in
France ; and what do the French Chowlere say P (Hear,
hear.) Why, that this treaty would have to he
sent by cannon shot. (Hear, hear.) That is much
the same sentiment in shorter and severer lan-
guage.
The right bon. gentleman the member
for Bucks did not. I think, speak with quite the fairnees he
should have done, when, In discussing this treaty, he spoke of
my hon, friend the member for Beata . as a secret nego-
tiator ; as if there wits anything not perfectly honest and cre-
ditable in the course my hon. friend has taken. Now,
negotiations between nations are not generally, so far as my
reading extends, conducted in the market-place. It was
necessary and most desirable that these negotiations, until
they oame to be financial conclusion', should be left unknown
to the world. But that uegotlatiou, if secret, was at
least stiocesefal ; foe I think, never in the his-
tory of commerce was a treaty of snob magni-
tude, and involving each important interests, concluded
in so short a period of time. (Hear, hear.) The Chancellor
of the Exchequer spoke in much more graceful lupine of
my hon. friend. Hs feels grateful to him, as I do, and as I
undertake to say the great majority of the people of this
country do. (Cheers.) He spoke of him as the benefactor
of his country, though undecorated and unrewarded ; and
although he is undecorated so far as stars and crosses go,
nothing will, I think, be a greeter reward to
him than the approbation and recognition of his
services by his country and by the world. (Cheers.)
He is honouree by the confidence of two governments end
by the affections of the great body of the people of this
country, and as for reward le is rich in the consciousness
that his public life has been devoted to the public. good, and
that in whatever part of the world la to be found an Intel-
ligent humanity, there are to be found hearts ready to Ideas
the beneficence of the labour in which he has been employed.
So much for the treaty. It seems a work of superero-
gation to speak in its favour after the rump of ap-
probation which has been placed upon it, but I thought
it right to say this much, bemuse my hon. friend who has
been the main negotiator of it on the part of this country Is
not present. lam unwilling to loin an opportunity of saying
how much I feel myself indebted to his for the labour be
hes given, and for the euooeee which hat attended It. But
(Mr. Bright continued) the treaty *mud only a part
of the plan of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, inasmuch
as it swept away much of that compHowed nuisance a
customs taziff, beyond the duties involved in the convention,
while he had struck at the obnoxious excise duty on paper.
Mr.Oladstone had pursued now exactly that course which Sir
R. Peel took when he attempted to meet the deficit left by
Sir F. Baring, adding to the deficiency by reducing
duties, and then imposing the income tax to fill it
up. Pointing out the advantages to the country
in general and the agricultural interest, in particular,
which the policy then Inaugurated had produced, he asked
why gentlemen oppoeite could not comprehend this system.
Be must not be supposed to be blind to the foul blot in the
policy of the government, the scandalous expenditure which
they had incurred, especially that for military purposes; and
preparations which could be aimed only at France. From
1853, through good and evil, there had been a close alliance
between this country and Prance, and at last
we negotiated the present treaty, and yet with
pll this, why was there the gross inconsistency
of these large estimates ? If a motion had been
mule to the effect that in the opinion of the houtr there was
no nacerity for an imams of the naval and military esti-
mates beyond those of last year, It would have been patriotic
end jut. Judging from the treaty on the oats hand, and
the 30 millions of military expenditure, there must be two
contending principles in the cabinet, which must is no long
time lead to its &enaction. The mode of removing the
income tax could only be attained by the reduction of the
justed.
estimates. He agreed that the income tax as now levied was
becoming intolerable, and must he mire equitabl ad
You will not again (continued the noble member Lgo back to
excise
or custom house duties. (Cheers.) T principle
has been Irrevocably I.id down that the vast expenditure
which you incur, sot for the sake of the working people, for
they are much the same in all conitries—bnt for the de4aos,
es
you think, of your own property—that vast expenditure
must be defrayed by the property and not by the indirect
taxation of the country. (Loud sheers.) The present expos-
dinars and income tax are inseparable, and the sooner the
boos. makes up its mind to that the better. (Hear, bear.)
Let it not be supposed however.that I am speaking in favour
of the inoome tax es it now exists. I believe with the hoe.
member for Badmen= (Mr. Hubbard), whose speech to-
night every the has heard with great pleasure-..(bear, her)
—that the income tax as it now exists has bemuse Widening.
I judge that hem the number of letters which—l dare say
fa common with every other member—l receive every day on
the subject. I judge it also from whet I see in the columns
of newspapers, and from what I hear from those amour
whom I mix. Bat lam la favour of the incense tax thus
far—it is a direct tax, and it is • tax upon means. I support
it now, objectionable as it is, hecaose we have at present a
computation for it. • time will come—it nay coos