The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1853-10-18 00:00:00

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kirtlitra

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 18, 1853

AFTER all the hopes entertained to the contrary

War seems not only inevitable but imminent

The Manifesto of the PORTE (which we give in.

extenso in another column) has just reached St

Petersburgh. •It is said that the CZAR upon
receiving the same, declared that he withdrew

all his fonher concession

and observed, that

nothing now remained but " war to the knife."

guerre a toutrance.): A pyiYate t91.tZ14034C mes

sage from Marseilles announces the arrival of the
sailed from- Constantinople

steamer which

Besika Bay, preparing to enter the Dardanelles

armahient of several frigates

arrived in Paris

Cabinets

places of others. now serving in the Mediterranean

Thee PORTE has addressed a Manifesto to the

Foqr Powers

ing to the interpretation put upon, .it by the Ma-
homedan priesthood, signifies, that during the year
1270, a terrible ,war Will Occur, in which, however,
the Turks Will be victorious. On the 9th instant

began the first day of this eventful INTali6inedan

Conflicting rumours still largely prevail as to the

issue of the " Eastern question." Some affirming

that a pacific solution is absolutely impossible

Others again, that actual hotilities will not be

entered upon. There can be no doubt but, that
during the short time allowed by the PORTE for the

evacuation of the Principalities, much might, and
will, be done by the Western Powers to effect a

peaceful settlement of the Russio-Turkish difficulty,

even at the eleventh hour. Their decision we await

with considerable anxiety

AMONG the reforms to be introduced to the next
Session of Parliament, is a Decimal Coinage. The

measure has been thoroughly investigated by a
select committee of the House of Commons, and
favourably reported upon. That committee bor
rowed light from some of the most experienced
practical men, and the best financial scholars in
the kingdom; among whom was the learned Dr.

BOWRING, fresh from the heart of the Chinese

Empire

Strange, indeed, that England, justly boasting of
so many improvements in the material and intellec-
tual world, should have been so slow in adopting
this common sense measure, when most of the
countries on the Continent, the United States of
America, and 400;000,000 people of the' Eastern
world had a long time ago adopted it. Such a thing
as heading the Journal, the Cash-book, or Leger,
in most of those countries, with X. s. d., has been

unknown for half a century ; and the greates
imaginable convenience has been experienced b;
the Decimal Coinage. In the United States till
coins of their mint originally were Cents, Dimes
and Eagles, progressing upwards in Nalue„ deci
mally, from the lowest to the highest denomination

For convenience Ofehange, these coins have becii
halved and quartered ; though all •accounts and
financial calculations are done in the decimals

above specified

Critical book-keeping, where the accounts are
multiform and domplicated, is at best, a nice opera-
tion ; but those unaccustomed to keep books and
do business in this way, can scarcely conceive the
convenience thereof, both, in the ease of reckon-
ing, and the saving of time.

Some short-sighted people have expressed fears,
that great difficulties will arise in the matter of
tolls, as fixed by law, and in the post-office stamps,
should the change go into operation. We fear
nothing of the kind. The same Act of Parliament
which establishes the pecimal Coinage; can regu-
late all these matters. Say, that the Turnpike
Company are entitled to one penny toll for. horse
and rider, let it be fixed by law, that the toll-
gatherers receive five mils thereof. :during the
first three quarters of the year, and but four mils
for the last quarter ; and so on year after year.

This would in the end be precisely the average

penny as-now received

In regard to postage, should it be reduced a
trifle, to four mils the single letter, we doubt not
that the increase of letters would fully keep up the

present [Revenue

But .we have further thoughts upon the subject
of this decimal reform. When the hand of Govern-
ment is .in the matter, why_ should we not make a
bold sweep, and a clear dedk, of the artificial, non-
sensical, and most inconvenient syStem of com-
pound arithmetic ? . Here we have our weights and
Avordupoise, Troy, and Apothecary, of
the one, and Long, Square, Solid, and Liquid, of
All these rise from lower to higher de-
nominations by arbitrary proportions, based on no

measures--,=..

the others

common sense, and most inconvenient and vex-
atious in practice. Why, in all that is sensible, is
the pound weight divided into sixteen or twelve

just according to the commodity to be

weighed, rather than into any other numbers ?
And why are our measures of every kind split up
into denominations having no .relation to nature
or to science ?

Whether arithmetical progression by Decimals,
be a fixed principle' in nature, or whether it has
only received the sanction of 3,000 years, as the

basis of calculation, is of no earthly consequence
to determine. It is enough to say, that from the
earliest dawn of science, it has been adopted as
the basis of figures by all nations, both barbarous
and civilized;. and ,this is reason enough why we
should apportion things, to be bought .or sold, on
this model. We say, therefore, that' not only the
coin, but weights and measures of all kinds, and
of all commodities, should be decimalized at once ;.
and then it will be seen that we have arrived to a
state of common. sense.

This :reform may meet with its opposition. by
an old-fashioned people, wedded to their absurdi-
ties, and John Bull may kick up a row for a short
time about it, but it will be found; in the end, that
a more beneficial reform has not been effected in
this kingdom, for years lastpast. Where the pro-
cess of simple addition will cast up the Most-- long
and complicated' 'accounts ; and where : all the
weights and measures shall be decimalized to
agree-with the current coin, the liabilities to error
will be obviated, and
~men will do business'in a

much more pleasant and expeditious manner than

heretofore,

We have often reflected upon this subject, pre-
vious to its recent agitation, and have wondered
that England, so wide-awake in money matters,
should, in this, so far lag behind the intelligence
of the age. Now that she is awake, we hope her
eyes will be turned to the weights and measures, as
well as to the coins, and then she will be able to
count up her immense treasures without spectales.

PROSPERITY is sometimes as difficult to deal with
as adversity. Nation's surrounded by all the ele-
ments of vitality, have more than once proved their
Thus is it often with indi-

lon the sth Instant. She met .with two fleets in

Orders have, been given for the immediate

Iskender Bey, Omer Pasha's aide-de-camp, has

It is said that he is deputed on

an important mission to the English and French

The Labrador steam-frigate has left Toulon with

nearly 800 sailors on board, who are to take the

There is a passage in the Koran, which, accord-