The Sun.
London, England, 1864-07-12 00:00:00

Liverpool Cotton Market—This Day.

Market opens very firm, bat with less doing.
Sales probably 12,000 or 15,000 bales.

SPORTING INTELLIGENCE.

PONTEFRACT AND WEST RIDING RACES.-

M ONDAY.

The Speculation Plate of 25 sovs, added to a Sweepstakes
of 5 sovs each; weight for age, with selling allowances.
T.Y.C.

Mr Jackson's nondoletia, 2 yrs (1'20) sst,7lb (car. sst 91b)
Mr Clayton's Brother Sam, 4 yrs (£2O), S(J. Grimaw) 1
it (car. Bstsh 11b)

- No batting. Won by a head. (Doyle) 2
The winner was bought by Mr Reynolds for 29 guineas.
The Great West Riding Handicap of 10 sovs each, 5 ft,
and 2 if declared, with 100 added; winners extra; se.
cond to save his stake. One mile and a half. 25 subs,,
13 declared.
Mr Cliff's Wildman, 3 yrs, Est 81b (J. Grimshaw) 1
Mr Bowes's Early Purl, 4 yrs, Bst 4lb (Doyle) 2
Mr Temperley's Alice, 4 yrs, 7st 101 b (Snowden) 3
Mr J. Osborne's Dr. Rooke, 3 yrs, 7st 41b (Whiteley) 4
Mr T. H. Masterman's Royal John, 3 yrs, Est 81);
5
Mr Bowes's Old Orange Girl, 4 yrs, Bst 101 b (Cradd.oek
(As'amall) 6
Hon. S. Hawke's Armouter, 3 yrs, Est 111b....'Sayers) 0
Betting-7 to 4 agst Wildman, 3to 1 aget Early Purl,
4 to 1 agst Alice, 5 to 1 agst Dr Rooke.

Won by a neck ; four lengths between second and third;
a bad third.

The Londesborough Stakes of 5 BOVP, each, with 60 added,
for two-yr-olds ; colts, Bst 101 b; fillies, Bst 6lb ; winners
extra; second. to save his state. T.Y.C. 10 subs.
Mr T. Warters's Foxholes, Bst 71b (Withington) 1
Mr Meroue's Terroz, Bst 131 b (Merone, jun.) 2
Mr JrTh.nstone's War Whoop, Bst 131 b (Doyle) 3
Mr Fobert's Commodore, Bst 101 b (.T. Marson) 4
Betting-6 to 4on War Whoop, sto 2 agst Foxholes, 4
to 1 agst Terror, 20 to 1 agst Commodore.
Won by four lengths; same between second and third ;
a bad fourth.

The Castle Plate (Handicap) of 30 Boys ; winners extra ;
the winner tc, be sold for 30 sovs, &c. T.Y.C.
Mr J. Osborne's Brother to Stockton, 3 yrs, Bst 51b (inc
51b extra)....,
Mr Mastermau's Black Duchess, 2 yrs, 7st 31b (in 51b ex)
(Craddock) 2
Betting-10 to lon Brother to Stockton (offered)
Won in a canter by three lengths.
The winner was bought by Mr Clarke for 30 guineas.
The Leeds Borough Cup (Handicap), a piece of plate value
100 sovs, added to a Sweepstakls of 15 sovs each, 10
ft, and 5 if declared; second to save his stake; winners
extra. One mile and three-quarters. 16 subs, 7 de-
clared.
Mr Bowes's Welcome, 5 yrs, Sat 121 b ( &shmall) 1
Mr Watt's Newmarket, 4 yrs, Bst 31b (Snowden) 2
Mr T. Cliff's Sandford, 4 yrs, 7st 91b (H. Taylor) 3
Mr R. Chilton's Little Duchess, 3 yrs, Est 111 b (Carroll) 4
Bettitg—Even. on Welcome, 3 to 1 agst Sandford, 5 to 1
each agst Newmarket and Little Duchess.
Won by a length; six lengths between second and third;
Little Duchess beaten off.
The Yorkshire Welter Cup (Handicap), by subscription
of 10 sovs each, 5 ft; winners extra; jockeys extra,
T.Y.C.
Mr Brodie's Kilkenny, 4 yrs, lOst lib (Howey) 1
Mr Watt's National Guard, 4 yrs, list 51b..(Snowden) 2
Mr Spence's Ess Bouquet, 3 yrs, 9st..(Mr Spence, jun.) 3
Mr Handley's Sea Boy, 3 yrs, 9st 71b (H. Taylor) 4
Betting—Even on National Guard, 5 to 2 agst Kilkenny,
4 to 1 agst Sea Boy.
Won by four lengths; same between second and third ; a
bad fourth.

New Silver Coinage for Great Britain and

Ireland,
(From the !Mechanic's Magazine.)
We have excellent authority for announcing the
fact that it is intended ere many months shall hays
passed away, to recall the whole of the silver coins
now circulating throughout the United Kingdom,
end to replace them by an entirely new coinage of
that metal. There can be very little doubt that the
remarkable degree of sueeeas which has attended
the recent reformation of the copper currency, and
of which reformation this journal gave the earliest
intimation to the public, has prompted the
Government to take this important step. There
exists as little doubt that a judicious re-
modelling of the silver coinage will be pro-
ductive of satisfaction and advantage to the
community at least equal in amount to that which
has followed the introduction of the bronze money.
It must be patent to every person that the time has
arrived when a new coinage of silver would be
highly acceptable, for all must have experienced
more or less of inconvenience from the dilapidated
and used-up state of that which now circulates.
Our crowns and half-crowns, many millions of
which came into existence as far back al 1816, and
none of which are of more recent date than 1849,
are miserably deteriorated, having lost by abrasion
the greater part of their original impressions, and
many of them 15 per cent, of their original weight.
Our shillings are in as bad a plight, whilst the
sixpenny coinage is in a much worse condition
than either, and individual pieces are frequently
met with which weigh only two-thirds of the
standard weight at which they were issued from the
Mint. Threepenny pieces are rapidly following in
the wake of their richer relatives, and fourpenny
pieces are dying an unnatural death, for their issue
has ceased for many years. We say nothing of the
florin, because it is the youngest member of the
British family of coins, and it has been subjected to
less wear and tear in consequence.
The loss of weight among our silver coins is a great
evil no doubt, but the consequent defacement of
their impressions is of yet more serious consequence,
for it facilitates largely the operations of counterfeit
coiners. Such manipulators find it a comparatively
easy task to producejae similes in base metal of half-
, worn-out coins, and they avail themselves too freely
of the privilege thus afforded them.

Mere loss of weight is of the less importance,
because at the best silver coins are simply national
tokens representing certain amounts; that is to say,
their nominal and their intrinsic value, when newly
minted, are unequal, and abrasion and sweating
only widen the ratio of inequality. A pound
weight of standard silver costs—subject to slight
fluctuations resulting from the action of the law of
supply and demand—in the bullion market, sixty
shillings ; but after conversion into coins of either
of the denominations named, its value is nominally
raised to 665, thus leaving a margin or seiguiorage,
as the ancient term stands, for covering the cost of
coining operations, of 6s upon each pound
weight passed under the Mint presses. A
shilling at its birth therefore is not intrinsi.
cally worth a shilling; it only represents that
sum. So of all other coins in the silver series.
Diminution of weight, therefore, as has been stated,
is of less consequence than defacement.
This fact,admitted, there is no reason, as it seems
to us, why the pound weight of silver should not,
in the projected new coinage, be converted into
seventy shillings or even eighty shillings, and its
companion moneys in like proportions. The ex-
pense of the entire operation of recasting and re-
coining the silver moneys would thus be met, with-
out drawing a farthing from the public treasury
for the purpose; and, instead of having a miser-
able, and easily imitated mass of coins, grown
light by wear, tear, and ill usage in circulation,
we should :possess a perfect token coinage.—
light, elegant, portable. and not to be counterfeited
without the exercise of great skill. If light silver
coins, which simply bear shadows of their former
impressions, now pa©s from hand to hand unques-
tioned, surely light coins upon which the full and
complete devices of the Mint dies stood out in
minute elaboration, ought also to circulate freely—
and so, no doubt, they would !
It may also become a question of interest for the
Mint authorities as to whether a harder composi•
tion than standard silver might not be discovered
and employed. Frequently the slightest variation
in the mixture of metals—take gun and bell metals
for illustration—makes a wondrous difference in
their hardness. At all events, the durability of the
new silver coinage is a point only second in import•
ante to that of its speedy introduction.

''BIRKENHEAD.—It is generally reported (says the
Liverpool dellbion) that the eldest son of Mr. William Jack-
son, M.P., will contest Birkenhead at the next election, in
opposition to Mr. Laird, the present member.

SUN OFFICE, SEVEN O'CLOCK.

frEPERIAL PARLIAMENT

HOUSE OF LORDS—Last Evening,
The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack at
five o'clock.

PRIVATE BUSINESS.
The following bills were read a third time and passed :
Kington and Eardesley Railway, Southern Railway, Bris-
tol Port and Channel Docks, Exmouth and Budleigh Sal-
tertort Water, Great Western Railway (No. 3), Great
Northern Railway (No. 2) (Lincoln to Boston).
TUE BARBARITIES BY PRUSSIAN SO.i.,DIERS.

In reply to the Earl of SuArrEssruY,
Earl RUSSELL stated in reference to the rumour that
400 Swedish soldiers had been massacred in cold blood by
the Prussians—that there were about six or seven Swedish
officers present
.in the Danish army. They wore the
Danish uniform, and therefore were not to be distinguished
from the Danes, He had since received information from
the Prussian Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs to the
effect that there was not more than seventy Swedes alto-
gether in the Danish army. All they knew was that
five Swedish officers were taken prisoners, and that there
were 400 soldiers altogether attacked. The reports there
fore that came with the telegram were quite untrue.
Ia reply to further questions from the Earl of &UTES •

Earl RUSSELL said that he knew nothing of the
particular case of reported cruolty to the brother of a British
officer.