The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-02-17 00:00:00

to the two official warnings, in virtue of which

. • .
suspension fur two months at most may be
pronounced by a ministerial decree. This analo-
gous interpretation is not warranted by the law,
and cannot be admitted in principle. Differing
from suppression, an extreme measure, which a
second condemnation within the period of time
intimated legitimately entails, the temporary sus-
pension is ony faculative. Even after two warnings,
if the facts do not require a more severe decision,
a fresh warning may still be given, and the govern-
ment which uses with great moderation the powers
conferred on it with respect to the press, in the
interest of order and public tranquillity, always
takes into its most serious consideration the date
as well as the gravity of the facts which occasioned
the previous warnings."
From Berne we learn that it ir, believed there
that France will not convene the conferences on
the Neufchatel question until Prussia has agreed to
renounce all pretensions hitherto insisted upon
by the King. On the other hand the inde-
pendence says that the opening of the confer-
ences is fixed for the Ist of March ; but this
is again denied. It appears to be confirmed that
the Swiss envoy was either deceived by the French
government or misunderstood what was told him
when he went away from Paris with the notion
that France was prepstred absolutely to guarantee
the renunciation of 1-7eufehatel by Prussia. The
Swiss Confederation was induced to release the
prisoners by representations which it is now pain-
t fully believed at Berne were not altogether war-
` ranted.,

The question of the Danubian principalities as.
sumes increased importance as the opening of the
national divans draws near. The French press
continues vigorously to support the formation of a
united Rouman state, should the divans express a
wish for it, It will be sennewhat curious if, on the
first occasion on which the wishes of a whole

people concerning its future are consulted, Eng-
land should be discovered to oppose, and France to
support those wishes.
Our Russian advices give a very melancholy
picture of the continued general distress and want
—bordering upon positive famine existing
throughout the Grand Duchy of Finland, and
which promises to become daily worse,
notwithstanding the amounts subscribed in
St. Petersburg, Helsingfors, and other places
for the alleviation of the existing evil. The
Emperor and Empress have subscribed 10 000
silver roubles and 5,000 silver roubles respec-
tively for the purpose ; and large supplies from
the military magazines in Finland have been placed
at the disposal of the poorer classes, at very low
prices, to aid them ; but this aid is of a temporary
character, The population in many parts are
perishing of hunger and cold. The merchants
and other monied men have subscribed in the
capital about 28,000 roubles ; among them Baron
Stieglitz's name is down for 10,000. The authorities
are at their wits' ends in Finland to meet the great
distress.

From Spain we learn that the ministry is in an un-
settled state, and said to be on the eve of Medifiea-
tions, which are perhaps already decided on. The te-
legi•aph now refuses to convey any intelligence of a
political character sent by private individuals,
unless it has already appeared in the Gazette. The
government is determined to prosecute with vigour
the operations against Mexico, and with this view,
vessels of war are immediately to proceed from
Spain to Cuba. General Narvaez is indispsed.
The latest accounts received from Naples
announce that the convention concluded between

the Neapolitan Government and the Argentine
Republic cannot be carried into effect, inasmuch
as only six of the political prisoners have agreed to
expatriate themselves, and they are too few to form
a colony. The state of Naples is at present very
alarming. Almost every public place is closed—
arrests are continally made—the police pay domi-
ciliary visits by night—terrible shrieks are heard
through the darkness fom the prisons of St. Maria
Apparente, where men and women are flogged and
tortured—incendiary manifestoes are circulated as
if by megie, and, when a partial amnesty is pro-
elaimed, numbers of the individuals " pardoned,"
are never released from the damp cells of St. Elmo
or the foetid dungeons of Ischia.
• Two days later news horn the East is to hand,
by way of Marseilles, but it is without particular
importance. A new railway from Illyria all the
way down to Adrianople, where it would join Mr.
Layard's proposed lice from the Dardapelles to
the Danube, has been proposed to the Porte
it is not stated who the adventurous people are
who speak of such an undertaking, A union has
been effected between the Russian passenger
steamers, from the Black Sea ports, an I the French
steamers plying between the Levantine ports and
Marseilles ; and a reciprocal service has been
established.
The world wide celebrated screw steamship
Great Britain, Captain Grey, took her departure
.for Melbourne yesterday afternoon, with a heavy
mail, about 500 passengers, and a large cargo of
British and Continental manufactured goods.
From the extensive alterations that have been
made, and the improvements adapted in her
machinery and rigging, it is confidently expected
that she will make the passage to Australia in
something like 55 days.
The Clonmel election took place yesterday, and
resulted in the return of Bagwell by a majority of
154. The numbers polled were—For Bagwell, 183 ;
Parefoy, 49; and Murray, 29.

THE Palmerston Budget was designed evi-
dently to please every body, and therefore em-
bodies the prevailing policy of a party who are
resolved to retain office, and at all hazards. To
the Income Tax agitators it gives more than was
anticipated, but still its favours fall very far short
of what the country expected. A precipitate
change in its entire financial policy, and a most
dangerous reduction in the revenue of the State,
is made, to avoid the question of an equitable
re-adjustment of direct taxation ; and we are now
promised a speedy release from this mode of
raising revenue. Property is not to be bur-
dened, and Income is to go free. Indirect im-
posts are to supply Income, and deficiencies in
receipts of the Excise are, as a matter of course,
to be made good from Customs' Duties. This
is fiscal retrogression in its worst form, and the
Protectionists may well be satisfied with the
triumph it gives them, which, when added to the
boon bestowed on the landed interest, in the
shape of a reduction of 2,000,0001. Malt Tax,
ought to b..: quite enough to silence the Derby-
ites and Mr. DISRAELI for the remainder of the
Session. To relieve all descriptions of property
of the War 9d., and bestow the 2,000,0001, on
one particular description of inheritance, was
bidding high for place and power. The large
sum taken from the Army and Navy Estimates
gives a colour of justification to the lavish in-
dulgences presented to the troublesome; but,
when we consider that the proposed reduction of
expenditure is confined to paper, and that no
corresponding decrease is to be made in the
strength of the Army, or the number of ships in
commission, there appears to be a want of con-
sistency in the whole of the CHANCELLOR of the
EXCHEQUER'S plans, which are likely to become
exceedingly embarrassing to the public.
If we keep up our present land and naval
armaments, the estimated revenue for the current
fiscal year will not supply the wants of the
Exchequer, and the Government have evidently
placed a very large share of confidence on the
elasticity of trade and a flourishing Money Mar-

ket, for supplies to make up deficiencies. Ex-
chequer paper will be resorted t') to'make good
deficits in the quarterly receipts, and some mil-
lions of deficiency bills will be thrown upon the
Money Market to absorb the available means of
trade. Hence financial and party difficulties
assume the character of commercial embarrass-
ments, leading to aggravated social evils, of
which the lo'ises of the few bear no proportion
to the sufferings of the multitude. Had
the PALMERSTON Ministry commenced with
a reduction in the numerical strength of all our
war establishments, the e'Aitnated revenue for
the present year would be largely in excess of

the wants of the State. Sir CORNEWALL Lr.wis
calculates on receiving no less than 66,365,0001.
within the financial year, which iS 15,000,000/.
over the limit the Financial Reformers have
fixed as sufficient for the liberal and progres-
sive government of the country. Arid suppose
we could effect such a reduction as this in the
Customs, and bring Sir CORNEWALL LEWIS'S
23,850,000/. down to 8,850,0001., what an
approximation to perfect Free Trade we should
be able to arrive at. The impetus such a
change would give to industry and trade
would double our 650,000,0001. of industrial
income, and supply our financiers with a basis
of taxation never before dreamt of. The
Financial Reformers and Free Traders have
little reason, therefore, to be satisfied with the
" compromise" Budget.
It is plainly a hurried make-shift, without
any pretensions whatever to a bold and well-
defined policy. It betrays a strong desire to
get rid of direct taxation altogether, and a
fixed determination to keep the military and
naval estimates up to a war standard in time
of peace; and this, as We have already observed,
is opening the road to that party who do not
despair of seeing us driven to the necessity of
returning to prohibitive tariffs for revenue. It
remains, then, to be seen how Financial Reform-