The Sun.
London, England, 1837-08-29 00:00:00

furiously on the funds of these roads, because the ss. pe-
nalty had been virtually a dead-letter law, as to revenue,
being so enormous as never to have been levied, or in any
way beneficial, unless to protect the monopoly, and never
could nor ever did apply to mail-coaches.
No revenue appears to have been or is at present actually
collected by Messrs. Taylor from any description of car-
riage under either Act, while the Messrs. Bourne run their
stage-coaches and mail-coaches constantly along that road
without the lessees enforcing the payment of this additional
4d., although they (the Messrs. Bourne) demand and charge
the 4d. under the very same law against any kind of carriagi
plying for hire on their own road.*
Messrs. Bourne being proprietors of stage-coaches, as
well as lessees of the road from Naas to Limerick, the
right to charge an additional toll of 4d. a horse has virtually
given them a complete monopoly of the coach business on
this road.
In consequence of this monopoly they became and con-
tinued the unopposed contractors for conveying the mail be-
tween the cities of Dublin and Limerick.
The Messrs. Bourne became indebted to Government
for a considerable sum of money, against which they charged,
as a set-off, the 4d. additional toll on every horse drawing
mail-coaches along the line of road they held as lessees and
mail-coach contractors.
This claim was always resisted by the Postmasters-Ge-
neral and Post-offices of Ireland and England, but at last
was submitted to by the Treasury in 1835, on the showing
of the opinions of Counsel taken by Messrs. Bourne ; but
the Messrs. Taylor have never succeeded in enforcing a
similar claim, although fortified by numerous legal opinions.
The liability of mail-coaches to the payment of tolls in
Ireland commenced in 1790, and depended on Acts passed
for one year only, for the exaction of Post-office taxes ;
and was never sanctioned, until the Act of 1793, by any
other than an annual Act. The toll was imposed on the
plea of bad roads, and the Act, being passed yearly, was
liable to cease whenever the cause was removed which
brought it into existence. In this view of the matter, no
contractor or lessee had a right to calculate on the perma-
nence of the tolls, or find fault with their removal.
The revenue of the Post-office has been deeply affected
by the monopoly of the Messrs. Bourne ; for, in addition
to the penal toll of 4d. per horse, they have received
1,0851. 17s. 6d. yearly for carrying the mail between Dublin
and Limerick. The latter sum has been saved to the
public on the contract commencing on the sth of July cur-
rent ; for the Messrs. Bourne have agreed to carry the
mail without any remuneration whatever from the Post-
office, rather than allow a new contractor to establish him-
self on the road. This likewise proves the effect of this
monopoly to the public.
Reports furnished to your Committee by Sir Edward
Lees, at present Secretary to the Post-office of Scotland,
and who filled that department in the Irish Post-office pre-
vious to its consolidation with that of England, having been
of essential service to your Committee, and having saved
them very considerable labour and time, and certainly
much expense to the public, in bringing their investigation
to a close, your Committee conceive themselves bound to
express their approbation of the ability and zeal displayed
by Sir Edward Lees in this matter while Secretary to the
Irish Post-office, and of the praiseworthy continuance of
the interest he took in the economical management of that
department even after his removal from it to Scotland, and
which conduct appears to your Committee so proper in an
officer holding the high and responsible situation which he
filled during so many years in the Post-office of Dublin.
These Reports appear to contain the opinions he held and
endeavoured to enforce while Secretary to the Post-office
in Ireland, as to the non-liability of mail-coaches to pay
any penal or additional tolls whatever ; and your Com-
mittee have ordered them to be printed in full, as valuable
and convincing documents, which your Committee can
confidently recommend to the especial attention of the
House and the Government, as affording strong grounds,
as your Committee conceive, for the immediate adoption of
the recommendations they have felt it to be their duty to

submit.
Your Committee having carefully considered the Docu-
mentary Evidence laid before them, and evidence given by
the witnesses, are of opinion,
That it appears to Your Committee no just right exists
to levy tolls on more than two divisions of the road between
Kilcullen and Dublin, and on nine divisions of the road
from Naas to Limerick ; and, further, that additional gates
on these roads, erected for the convenience or security of
the lessees, does not warrant any additional cherge for a
passage through, even although a change of horses may
take place, or additional gates be erected, it being evident
from the Act that a certain amount only should be levied
as a whole on each line of road, to increase which, under
any pretext, does not appear to be justified by the spirit of
the Act ; and that this view of the case and rule is appli-
cable to earri,ges of every description.
That penalties acting as prohibitions on the use of stage-
coaches on Turnpike Roads, are highly inexpedient and
detrimental.
That the 4d. additional toll has been a dead letter as re-
gards Messrs. Taylor, and equally so as regards Messrs.
Bourne, with the exception of its being a protection to
their monopoly and paid by the Post-office, under an order
from the Treasury, on legal advice obtained by the private
parties on an exparte case, and therefore should be put an
end te.

Your Committee therefore recommend that the mono-
poly enjoyed by the Messrs. Bourne should be done away
with as soon as possible.
1. Because it is highly injurious to, and subversive of, a
free intercourse between Dublin and Limerick, and would
have been at an end so long ago as in the year 1823 ; so
that the lessees have already enjoyed all the large profits
arising from the extension beyond the period contemplated
by the original Act, being now no less than about 14 years.
Because no satisfactory grounds have been made ap-
pear for the Act of 1811, which granted the 4d. additional
toll ; that the said Act has been virtually nearly in-
operative against everything but mail-coaches, for its
application to which your Committee see no good rea-
son whatsoever, and therefore recommend its being re-
pealed ; and that care be taken that it shall not be
permitted to affect the second mail from Dublin to L'me-
rick, and the districts branching from or connected with
that portion of the country, when the benefits of frequent
and uninterrupted conveyance of mails by the Railway from
Birmingham to Liverpool are communicated to Ireland, as
they have already been to the North of England and the
whole of Scotland.
That the Post-office should discontinue the payment of
the additional 4d. per horse, until the whole case has been
submitted to a thorough and searching inquiry.
That your Committee are so strongly impressed with
the necessity of putting an end to the monopolies of
roads and toils from Dublin to Kilcullen, from Naas toLime—
r:ck, from Dublin to Ashbourne, and from Cork to Kil-
worth Mountain, so as to induce them to recommend that
the whole case of the part of the public, the Post-office,
and the Treasury, should be left to the decision of a com-
petent tribunal with as little delay as possible ; and that
compensation should be made to the parties, as that tribu-
nal shall adjudicate, previous to the repeal of the Acts
under which they respectively hold their interests.
*. The Committee think it right to observe that since the
above was drawn up, Mr. F. Bourne has stated that he did
actually pay the 4d. for a time, and ceased paying it in conse-
quence of a private arrangement with Messrs. Taylor.

A curious scene took place at Hamilton on Tuesday
last, viz., the marriage of an old man, ninety-four to a
young woman nineteen years of age. On the evening the
ceremony was to be performed no fewer than 1,500 persons
turned out to witness the procession.—Glasgow New Libe-
rator.

TUNBRIDGE WELLS, AUG. 26.—The arrivals
within the week have been very numerous, and include—
Viscount Neville, Count de Arno, Sir Thomas and Lady
Montresor, Sir Charles Des Vceux, Sir Lewis and Lady
Grant, Lady Wigram, Sir William and Lady Russell, Sir
George and Lady M‘Gregor, Sir Alexander and Lady
Childwell, Hon. Mr. and Lady Capel, Colonel and Mrs.
Lloyd, J. A. Smith, Esq. ; Rev. Robert Gream, Lieut.-
Colonel Chester, Dr. and Mrs. Browning, Captain and
Mrs. Cowles, Captain Knox, Captain and Mrs. Cotton,
Captain Shoe, &c. _

CHURCH-RATES.—On the 18th instant, Richard
Harris, Esq., of Kislingbury, was summoned before the
County Magistrates for non-payment of a Church-rate of
one penny. With what shadow of justice the Church-
wardens could demand this rate we are at a loss to imagine,
as no meeting to consider a rate has been held since June
23, 1836, when the rate was refused by a majority of nearly
two to one. About six or seven years ago, a debt of from
800/, to 9001. was incurred in repairing the parish church.
Mr. Harris, by various parochial assessments, has contri-
buted at least one hundred pounds towards the liquidation
of that debt. This year a subscription was entered into
towards defraying the remainder of the debt. Not satisfied
with this, the Churchwardens, in the plenitude of their
wisdom, hit upon the peace-disturbing expedient of a rate
for incidental expenses, which Mr. Harris refusing to pay,
he was summoned as before stated. If the Church-rate
battle must be fought at Kislingbury, the Dissenters could
not wish for a better leader than Mr. Harris. He is not
only a gentleman of property and influence, but a man of
unflinching eourage and resolution in a good cause.
.The
Churchwardens talk of appealing to the Ecclesiastical
Court—let them do so. If they wish to make the Esta-
blished Church detestable, persecution for money is the
most certain method of obtaining their object.—Northanzp-
ton Chrouick.

A quaint old author denounces oysters as being un-
godly, uncharitable, and unprofitable meat ; ungodly, be-
cause they are eaten without grace ; uncharitable because
they leave nothing but shells ; and unprofitable, because
they must swim in wine.