The Express.
London, England, 1860-03-12 00:00:00

TDB TIMBER DUTIES.

The following letter has been addressed by_ the
Chancellor of the Exchequer to Mr. Thomas M'Avity, Mayor
of the City of St. John, New Brunswick, In reply to one re-
ceived from him on the subject of the aquaheetion of the
timber duties:

° Downing-street, Marsh 6, 1860.
"Sir,—l feel some difflaalty to ieylying to your We: of
the 3rd, which I received yesterday afternoon on returning to
tows,
_ _

"In that letter you 'protest,' as well as remonstrate,
against any cbenge in the dads' levied in this country and
paid by the English people upon wood from the colonies and
from foreign °atomise respectively, until the inhabitant. of
New Brunswick shall have had an opportunity of stating
their views upon the subject.
" Were Ito atomise our language criSoally I could not
admit your title, even ly, to protest against any
legislation which parliament they thick It right to adopt for
the equalisation of the duties as foreign and colonial wood.
And when yon desire to rematetraie 'on WWI of the inha-
bitants of a colony, I mast observe that such remonetranom
ought to be addressed to the Secretary of State for the Co/o-
nion, who would curets hie discretion ea to bringing them
before the Minister of Finance.

hoirever,PoWare about to quit England withoutdelay,
I waive all regard to them considerations, and I must beg
leave to apprise you that I am aware of no dircunistance sr
t which could have led say pence interested in the
:=a
timber trade, and asecistag ordinary prudence, to
mama on the permanence of a law which charges differential
ditties upon timber the produce of foreign countries.
"At the former periods when them differential duties have
bee. reduced, I ma aware of no pledge that has been given
that In this particular case say duty of any kind should be
tly mainiabled. If no each expectation could be
fund from a distinct pledge of the British government
WU las could It be founded on the general policy and lista:,
laibin of this country.
The legislation has for a long series of years been founded
upon the policy of abstlag, and then destroying, or of de-
stroying at owe, differential dudes; It wee applied with great
striageney to some came of colonial produce, even ender
peculiar circumstances; it has been applied in the owe of
wood from British North America with much more caution,
and by degrees so slow that the wonder is, not that parlia-
ment should now decline, without a dissentient voice, to
sanction the continuance of the differential duties, but rather
that It should, for so long a time, here permitted thaw to
continue.

"iott describe this change is destructive of the trade and
of the property el the ootonists. If so, it own only be so-
became the rufferenlial duty exacts from the people of keg-
land, who provide for the military cad naval defence of new
Brunswick at their own charge, en artificial priori for its
produce; and the demand for the permanent maintenance of
that artificial pries would thus be a demand, in effect, for the
permanent payment of a tribute trim the soother country,
not, indeed, to the colony at large, but to a portion of its in-
habitants.
" lam not, however, prepared to admit that the change
deserves the character which you give it.
" The prediotioas of ruin which you end some others now
tender to the government are not new. They have many
times been repeated, aced were much more loudly uttered is
1842 than they now are, by much more numerous wit-
amass, not lees informed of the circumstances, sad with not
LNG unquestionable good faith. Yet the resale has been at
a character totally opposite to what was saticipated; and the
very stalemate which are now sent in to deprecate the pre-
sent change are based upon allegations of facts with refer-
ence or the peewit state of the colony that themeless bear
violent.) the fallacy otheir sinister prophecies.
" To place the colonies in any respect under the pressure
of legal inequality would Le repugnant to every feeling of the
British government. To give them the beat& of freedom
hole Ina bees their early end anxious desire; but they
eased &ohne to make proposals upon a proper opportunity,
which will at Mork extend these benefits to ethers, sad
among them to the people of England.
" es this letter, with your ewe touches on a matter of
public interest, it BIOS perhaps le es
that they
should be published; but I shall Nike so each step as to
your letter. ill am given to understand that you dlaspprove
have the honour to be, air, your obedient aervant,
"J. N'Avlty, " W. GLADSTOIII."