The Express.
London, England, 1850-02-13 00:00:00

DEPUTATION TO LORD JOHN RUSSELL
ON THE PAPER DUTIES.

Yesterday a deputation *atesthma, reptessating
paper tuckers, publisher., sad sn, Is England sad Boor
bra, bad se Interview with Jobs Rummell, Is Doss.
twee:sm. Ammo*thus. peasant were Mr. Conks Coosa,
M.P. ; Mr. T. I. Crompica, of Fulmar* Lsasscliss ;
Kr. Baldwin Si Bbraboarms Yql, B mimeos ; Mr.
Timms Wrimfoyies2mry, licurambies ; Mr. halo Durham,
sod Kr. Roomy ; Kr. Robert Cham-
bray, of Edisbaryb ; Mirr=ehileisiiilit sad Mr. W. B.
Orr, of Icamlos. sominocalod by Kr.
Hens, N.I•. sod by MI. iclisicial mollr. Bask tire
members rierwithety Mr Miramloglimmi
Kr. COWAN Istrodased Mks Argatidlos, and suds m
pascal obsetwasioas.
. . -

Mr. CROMPTON maid—My lard, I sea emu you, with
groat slam ity, that I have eeme hither with ma elk rehouses
I have been Impelled by what I feel to be the semelty of the
res. I bar been upwards of forty years sa extensive
essaufeetuer of paper, and during all that period I have
sever hems the brae* of hider say in question as IMMO-
assatin as it is now. I will endeavour, es concisely as I
eas. to uptain to year lordship some of the more palpable
mum end rumens ire Ibis state of things, and I will twirl
eat the seer lasiesheelsies which exist, and of which we ere
Wteelemork. lee Is it rermable that a taw arterial
orst werlisoulherester —I mean the very WWI* which
is erred Ira mem and liars, in the MONS of man
factuting theme gebeliteses into cleat—should bear the impost
of a duty .mantling M ISO per seat upon its cost prier,
when made late peiper,whilel the settee manafacterers have
seesseded in remerag a les dealt !re-sloths of one penny
per lb. woos rags= isle this country, the g
sent having bees that that very small proportion—
oertainly not MIN *la five par out. upon its value—was
prejudicial to the lalsomes or the marry t I oak agar .
How can it be Isedlel that the very refer of the sane
articles should le budesed with a tax of 600 per ams upon
their vales I, Mew, my lad, I will earisavour to bring soder
year mein sews dre ..menus kaniships to which paper
magiestarees hew bees *bilged to submit in coaseqaemes of
the Marry sad ressigegt ties of the mho. Here
are speermse of summer istisks brought iato the market as
sabstitates tarpaper. sod in appraises, so idestrally the
same with tics ark& that eves I, my lord, without mink-
fag this., seek net distinguish between the real commodity
sad Its iehaeleg, end I will defy my other man to eels et
tbs w keen the ether. (Here the has. gentleman pre-
dated a nembor at specimens of what appeared to be paper
et various qualities.) Now, at the mere caprice of the ell.
sere of excise, the real or the fictitious production is pro-
gramed to be paper. Oir hundred for cent. is accordingly
levied upon the cost value of the one, while the other goes
here, and it may be interesting to your lordship, and to the
rah at lugs, to know why. The bare assertion of the fact,
diode would scaresly be credible without the eerrobora-
ties of detail. By a decision of the Board of Parse,
la order to constitute paper, the material mast have
been pulverised end worked in water. It occurred to a
maanimeggee to take adirautase r this *Medal definitios.
He reser premier, and sesstrected machinery for the pee-
per of fabeisating the very some materiels in a dry state.
He sueseded, and challenged the Board of Excise to mere
the goodeorkich, &wording to their euthoritative description,
could not be paper. A seizure wen made ; but • colefro-
miss took plats. The manufacture was allowed to proceed
for a given time, on the distinct understanding this, miter
its expiration, he should discontinue his process, or sabret
hie product to the same duty with that paid upon paper
menfactured in the usual way. I believe it was &sem-
tinged accordingly ; but it was subsequently revived, end is
at this moment carried on—the good. being sold under the
we
of felt, extensively substituted for paper, and distr.
gahbable from that manufacture by no perceptible differ-
ence except by being slightly darker in colour. I must err-
elude by observing that the immoral tendency of this tax is
such that I fear it is encouraging the most iniquitous prac-
tices, aod rapidly brushing down the probity of the mew
facture Lewis trade. For we see daily in the markst paper
sold at prices at, which no honest trader can produce It,
trammelled as he is by this most oppressive and obnoxious
law.

Mr. JAMES BALDWIN, from Birmingham, rid—lily
lord, I had the honour about a year and a half ago of ad-
dressing a letter to your lordship on these unjust
laws, and the answer I got from your lordship was that you
would take the matter into your serious counderation. 1
now some with this deputation to ofier a low additional
reasons for their abolition. I perceive that your lordship's
government is aware that the genie laws are becoming ex-
ceedieely obnoxious, for I observe you now call all the ex-
cess offices " inland revenue silicas." This convinces me
that your lordship is aware of the feeling of the esethery an
this matter. Now, my lord, a few of the additional rumens
are thee", that I find that Birmingham, the town I mime
from, according to its population, uses more paper ie
waid re-wrappingrapping its manufactured than
almost any other in the kingdom; and to ow how
this acts, before I left home I called on a few of the mer-
chants and manufacturers, each, for instance, as Memrs.
Stholefieli, Messrs. Vanwart & Cu , Harrold', Mr. R.
W. Wiefleld, J. Palmer and others. In one of these
houses I found that nearly 20 tons of wrapping
paper, paying 151. per ton had been used in a year, the
manufacturers of these goods having used 30 tons pre-
viously in making the same goods ; the merchant dealing
with them used 30 tons additional for the same goods ; so
that, reckoning 30 per cent. put on in America, this paper
duty alone made a difference of neatly 1,0604 per
annum in the dealings of one house. Under such
circumstances, how was it ramble the Eng'.ish merchant
and manufacturer could compete with the foreign
merchant and manufacturer, who did not pay duty en the
paper in which their goods were peeked ? My lord, I du hope,
as you cannot say now you cannot spare the money, that you
will relieve the country of this unjust and improper tax. Before
I sit down, allow me just to say that, in exporting the com-
moner kind of paper, the trouble and expense we are put to
in packing for exports amounts to from 12 to 15 per sent.,
while to send the same paper to Australia the carriage does
not amount to more than about 5 par cent.
Mr. DURHAM adverted to the circumstance that the
excise duties proved a bar to the applications of science in
this bench of manufacture, and illustrated this by ob-
serving that beautiful papers of certain descriptions, such
as paper hangings, &c , hare been made in France from
straw ( several samples of straw paper having been laid on
the table by Mr. Cowan), and the wonder of course is, how
such an article manufac•ured is France cannot be also done
in England, where there is so much skill, enterprise, and
capital. He said the excise duty must be held chargeable
with this marvellous state of thinsa.
Mr. CHAMBERS said, the pressure of the paper duty
upon the business of publishing is chiefly felt in the mat
popular clam of publications—those addressed to the gnat
body of the people. Oa a newspaper of large circulation
it is very heavy. I know a provincial journal which
shows great enterprise, and upon it the paper duty
is about 6001. per annum, which would be a profit
failing all other. On cheap literary journals, I can
speak more definitely. There was one called a " Miscellany
of Tracts," which my brother and I published. It met a
large sale, and, I believe, was in the way of doing some
good amongst the humbler slams. It returned, however,
so slight a profit that we gays it up, while selling to the
extent of 80,000 copies. 0.. the whole amount of this work
printed the duty was 6,2201. Now, this would have been
a very ample profit in itself, though a mere shade upon
each copy. The amount of duty paid for our publications
per annum is, at an avenge, close upon 3,0001., which must
be considered as a gnat burden on what is, to all intents sad
purposes, • branch of the educational means of the country.
In a cheap publication, the value of paper may be set down
at nearly one-fourth of the selling price, and considerably
above one third of the price to the retailer.
Mr. C. KNIGHT would not detain his lordship by add-
leg anything to the general argument which had been urged
by Mr. Chamber, as to the dithoursgem.nt of popular lite-
rature hints exhumes of the duty on paper. He would
confine his observations to one point. The paper tax ope-
rated injurious) y against all literature, but met* especially
so in the case of cheap publications for which high-priced
skilled authorship was paid. He had been able to show that
the duty had been a positive burden upon the " Penny
Cynosisestia " to the extent of 16,5001. That work was
undertaken under the auspices of his lordship himself,
amongst other eminent persons ; but the coat had been
borne by Mr. Knight. It had never been remunerative; for
the net was largely increseed by the natural operation of
the tax upon the pries of paper.
The remarks of the deputation were followed up by a
short bat lucid mad forciole address bona Mr. BUYS. on
the social, moral, and commercial questions involved in
the subject; after which the gentlemen, who had been
received with the greatest courtesy by his lordship with-
drew.

LA PLATa.—nere are a few chys later data from
Buenos Ayres, but quite 'patchy of news.
FRENCH BENEVOLENT SOCIETY.—The aminsl ball
of this society, which aims at distributing charity among
French residents in London, irrespective of political opinions
or creeds, took place on Monday evening Ft the Hanover-
equate Rooms. It was ext-emely well attended.
STAG MINT EITHAORDINART.—About 2 o'clock
yesterday afternoon the inhabitants sf Camden-town were
astonished et the lumina' sight ot a fine stag, or red deer,
relining at full spud in the direction of Sausermtown, with
five hounds in full cry at Lis heel., followed by QUO cdiiary
rider and the baptism's, on horses that had evidently done
a hard daf_s work. The meet of Mr. Besn's hounds had
been at HoLdon, from whence, in a circuitous route,
the Meg broke away for F.ACllley C 00101313, skirt-
ing Coles& Wood, and passed Highgate, on to the
metropolis. Ile entered Sinters town by Basweestreet, and
through Meant-street, end Wilsteail-
m ethe
Nee .hr"ere made a holt at the insd. with the five hounds
deLet, flatlyastb h
gate, hailing throutth blobletlem place into Burton crescent ;
but, being headed by two of the hounds, an terrified at the
number of eoliths pou.iug tne Ncw r.add ,he dashed in at
the gateisof the hens, 01 Messrs. Prior's Move grate
minufam• or 7, te in whence, seeing the stscp door open,
he Jolted in o the house, and was thin sreedily
severed. Tke unesucl sight attramed some thou-
sands of parses, and it required the assistance
of about a doseo pulls, men to preserve !Seim Prior's rail-
ings from debt& act‘on. Such %lathe curiosity excited en the
°erasion that 'mashers of women and children paid a penny
each for allesinden to the yvrd to ice so straage a %leiter.
Toe run, from first to last, was ever not lets than 35 miles of
ground ; end slthough a strong field had mustered in the
morning, dogs and horses were all fairly ',eaten incept tlm,
small reisseat who cams up at the mks. The stag we
carted off from his resti 18 place about sin o'clock amid the
cheers of many baudreds of spectators.