The Sun.
London, England, 1830-02-20 00:00:00

Lard ALTHoRP should lie Ti.,ry willing to vote for a
reduction of 5,000 men, but he could not concur with
his Hon. Friend in thinking so many as 10,000 could be
reduced.

Mr. FERGUSON concurred with the Noble Lord in
thinking that 5,000 men might he spared ; but if the
amendment was prreeerl to the extent of 10,000, he alionid
vote against it,
_ .

Sir H. lIARDINGE observed, that although the
Hon. Member for Aberdeen had stated that the number
of men in 1822 was only 68,000, if he had reooursc to
his arithmetic, and added the veteran establishment and
the Colonial corps, which were not included in the esti-
mates for that year, I.e would probably find the number
in 1822 was upwards of 75,000.
Mr. HUME consented to alter his amendment again,
by substituting 76,164/. instead of 71,1641.
A division then took place, when the numbers were—
for the amend:ncnt, 57 ; against it, 167. Majority against
the amendment, 110.

The original resolution was then agreed to.
Sir H. HATIDINGE suggested, that as the numbers of
men were agreed ta, probably the Hon. Member for Mon-
tro..e would have no oljQetion to go on with the. other
resolutions.

Mr. HUME and Mr. Manaatr objected,—whereupon
the Chairman was ordered to report progress, and the
House resumed.

The Orders of the Day were then disposed of, and the
House adjourned at Half-past Twelve.

COMMONS—THURSDAY.
(034ITTID YESTERDAY 7011. WANT OF ROOM.)
Mr. PROTHEROE, in presenting a petition front the
Ladies and other female inhabitants of Aleaster, praying
ror the abolition of the practice of Burning the Widows of
[Undoes in India, took the opportunity of asking an Hon.
Gentleman opposite whether any measure was in contem-
plation for the abolition of that barbarous usage?
Mr. G. BANKES replied, that although the statement
which had appeared in the newspapers of a proclamation
having been issued by the Governor-General of India to
put down the practice had not been confirmed, there was,
in the opinion of persons competent to speak of the senti-
ments of the people of India, a change in tl.e feelings of
the native inhabitant, of Bengal upon this subject, which
might possibly, at no distance of time, lead to the aboli-
tion of the rite.
The petition was ordered to be printed.
Sir EDWARD KNATCHBULL presented a petition
complaining of rneral distress, from Romney Marsh ; and
similar ones from several parishes in the County of Kent.
Mr. STANLEY brought in a Bill to amend the Laws
respecting the Leasing Powers of Ecclesiastical Bodies in
Ireland.—Read a first time, and ordered to be read a se-
cond time on Friday, the 26th instant, and to be printed.
Mr. WODEHOUSE presented a petition from the city
of Norwich, complaining of the hardships which they
suffered from the Duties on Sea-borne Coal, and praying
for their repeal.
After a few words from Lord ALTHORP and Mr. W.
SMITH, the latter of whom spoke to the great respecta-
bility of the petitioners, and supported the prayer of the
petition, it was read and ordered to be printed.
Mr. O'CONNELL presented a petition from several
parishes in Dublin, against the Sub-letting Act. The
Sub-letting Act had the most pernicious effect on the pau-
per population of Ireland. It bad been said that the po-
pulation of Ireland was a demoralized population. That
he denied. It was a pau:,er population, but not a demo-
ralizAl population. On the contrary, it was the most
moral population in Europe. Ile ine.anced the last Com-
mis:sion for the city and county of Dublin, when only
eleven persons were tried for felony, and the last Quarter
Scssion for the county of Dublin, when not one person was
so tried. Ordered to be printed.
Mr. O'CONNELL presented a petition from the Roman
Catholic inhabitants of the parish of St. Peter's, in Dub-
lin, praying that those parishes in Ireland, where there
was neither a Protestant Church nor a single residen
Protestant, should not be subject to the payment 6
Tithes.—Ordered to be printed.
Mr. STEWART presented a petition from a gentle.
man of the name of Anderton, complaining of the we'll
of accommodation in the Law Courts at Westminster.
PAYMENT OF LABOURERS' WAGES BY
GOODS.

Sir J. WROTTESLEY, in presenting a petition from
Bilston against the practice of paying- labourers' wages by
goods, requested the patience of the house while be stated
the nature of the grievance, and offered a few observa-
tions upon it. The petitioners first stated, that in the
town of Bilston, where there were large iron works, the
practice of paying wages by goods was very prevalent—
that if any labourer attemptd to seek redress, he war dis.
charged from his employment—that the masters had re-
course to various expedients to evade the laws on the sub-
jeet—that some of the masters furnished goods themselves
to the labourers at a profit of twenty or thirty per cent.—
that others gave their labourers promissory notes, nod re-
commended to them certain shots, with the owners of
which they were connected—that these practices materi-
ally affected the fair trader, who sais thereby rendered un-
able to pay his taxes or his poor rate—and that they en-
treated the House to put an end to the practice. He (Sir
John Wrottesley) would add, that he was perfectly con-
vinced that the statements of the petitioners were true, and
in no part exaggerated. The practice of paying wages by
goods had in that part of England become almost univer-
sal. Previously to 1826 payment by money was the ge-
neral rule, and payment by goods was the exception ; but
now he was sorry to say that payment by goods was the
general rule, and payment by money was the exception.
11c was quite aware that the currency was not a popular
subject in that House ; he should therefore confine him-
self to a very few rematke upon it. It was a subject
which ought to be divided into four parts, all distinct
from one another. The first related to the 13ank Restric-
tion ; the second to the Standard of Value ; the third to
the alteration in 1826 ; and the last, to the influence of
the Bank of England. He was by no means adverse to
the return to cash payments in 1818. The standard of
value being settled at that time, it appeared to him that
much greater difficulties would result from altering that
standard than by persevering in it. The alteration of
1826, however, stood on very different grounds. He was
convinced that our currency could not he in a healthy state,
while am oil notes were allowed to circulate only in Irelinad
and Scotland. To bins it appeared very extraordinary
that we were prepared to trust bankers with the lassos 0:
five, ten, twenty, and hundred pound notes, bait not with
the issue of one pound notes. Much had been said of the
calamities attendant on the extensive failures of country-
bankers
~,,boNfoawiledtl,atet fact
that
per the
that of the seventy
country
iOl,
the average di-
visional was 17s. 6al. an the pound. It was impossible,
therefore, to impute dishonesty to them. The Right Hon.
Gent. opposite had, on a late occasion, alluded to gospel
2
alterations in the banking system, and had stated that is
1
might he advisable to allow Joint Stock Companies. But 1
if those Companies issued paper in the country, without I
•
corresponding establishments in London where that Iraper
could be converted into gold, they would be rui-chievoo.
rather than beneficial. A great many country banks!,

, nisfers would this evening have come down with some
satisfactory measures of reduction of expenditure and
taxation. A reduction of expenditure bad been brought
leeward, end be was thankful fir it. As to a reduction of
tax •tion, there been an ninieeiiin which, he feared,
s',ould lie railer called an admissieu that no taxes were to
be reduced. Tiiis would Le a grievous and cruel disap-
pointment to the mine Feoele of this country. They
would be mortified and irritated beyond measure. The
Hon. Member for Gillington (Mr. Barin) had talked of
preserving a sinking fund. It was the first hu-iness of the
House to sustain a sinking people. To save trey asood
thing, but to starve was a eery bad ene; and if the
House were disposed to go on, night after night,
without passing some strong vote, the Session would
pass over and nothing would be done. Let those
who supported such a system look to its consequences.
It had been said, let close who wanted reduction of
taxation point cut the mode of meeting the exigencies of
the country. He (Mr. Palltner) would net presume to
financial knowledge, but he could not IrWp thinking that
there were many modes of relief which hod strong recom-
mendations. Let the taxes which pressed unequally upon
the poor and the rich be removed. Since the Member for
Aberdeen had stated that the post-office revenue had not
advanced, let the House begin with themselves, and throw
into the Revenue the profits arising from the absurd privi-
lege of franking,--let a portion of the enormous sum ex-
'tended in the collection of the Revenue be thrown into
the public purse, and let the burden whirls must be borne
be lightened by a more eipisl ,listribirien of its pressure,
by a well-arranged scheme fir taxing all the proferty ul
the country to pay far its exigencies.
Mr. HUME, observing Celt the real number the Com-
mittee was called upon to v.,* for was 81,161 men only,
altered his amendment to 71,164.. He said that in 1821,
he had divided the Commit- ee 75 times on the army esti-
mates, as the Noble Lord (Palmerston) well knew, for it
had interrupted his parties; loft at the end of the session
not one farthing of the expenditure was reduced. But
an address to his Majesty was carried, and in two months
after 13,000 men were reduced ; and in the following
year, 1822, the number was only 68.200. Now, how-
ever the number was 3,000 mere. He held this oat to
the House as a precedent.
_ _