The Sun.
London, England, 1853-07-29 00:00:00

MINES.

IMPERIAL PARL EA ME NT.

1 all `A.gua. Fria
1 all Anglo Austrin. Gold Id par
10s. all Anglo Californian 4 Ipm
10 2 Australasian 1(1 par
20 5 Australian -
1 all Australian Cordillera 4d par
1 all Australian Freehold
1 all Ave Maria A
1 all Ba,den (Gd. Duchy of) 4d p
1 all British Austrin. Gold gd
20 13.5 British Iron
35 24 Brazilianlmp.(issued
at .£5 pm 34 - 44
30 all Do. Cocaos & Cuiada 3 4
20 15 Do. St. John Del Rey 32 34
1 1 Carson's Creek
40 all Cobre Copper 474 —4B
5 1 Colonial
15 Copiapo
St. all Copper Mill. of Eng 65 -- 75
25 all Do. Pref. 7.1 p. cent 7l
5 all English and Austrin
Copper Smeltg. Co 2 lid
20 all General
2 all Great Nugget Vein... a - 1 p
2 all Do. Registered
3 all Great Folgooth
I all Lake Bathurst
I all . Liberty
3 all Linares
I all Lend .&Californ.Gold
Quartz Crush. Co. !!
1 all llariquita,
10 9 11exican&S.Ammien 6,1 - 74
1 all New Granada,
1 all Nouveau Monde
10 5 Nova Scotia Mining
and Copper Smeltg
5 1 Port Philip id par 1
1 all Quartz Rock
50 all Blymney Iron - 23 —25
15 15 Do. New 64 74
30 104 Santiago de Cuba 4
1 all South Australian id par
10 7 Tin Croft
281 all United Mexican 3' if
1 all Waller — d
1 all West Granada d
1 all West Mariposa
1 all Yuba
JOINT-STOCK BANKS.
40 all Australasia 'Bl 82 811 21
50 all British N. American ...
i2O 2 Chrtd. Bnk. of India,
Australia, & China —11 p
100 25 Colonial — 181 19
100 20 Commercial of Lond.
20 10 English Scottish and •
Australian — p 10i
20 15 Lond. Chart. Bk. of
Australia 3 —34 p
50 20 London and County
50 10 London Joint Stock — 26
100 20 Lond. & Westminster ...
20 2 London Bank of Aus-
tralia and India
50 22A National of Ireland ...
25 all Oriental Bank of
Corporation 4Bl 491 48i
25 5 Do. New —
100 25 Provincial of Ireland
10 all Do. New —
5 1 Royal Australn.Bkg
& Gold Imp Co 1 dig— par
25 all South Australia 45 47
25 all Union of Australia 74 75xd
... 24 Do. New B4 8i 84
50 10 Union of London 191 a d
40 all Union of —

HOUSE OF LORDS-(YESTERDAY.)

The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the woolsack
at five o'clock.

Lord BEAUMONT presented a petition from the
Leeds Chamber of Commerce, praying for the establish-
ment of tribunals of commerce.

Lord BERNERS presented petitions from several
places against the sale of spirits on Sundays.
Lord BROUGHAM presented petitions from Bangor
and other places in favour of the County Courts Exten-
sion Bill.

COUNTY COURTS FURTHER EXTENSION
BILL.

Lord BROUGHAM moved the second reading of
this bill, and in doing so, the noble lord dwelt at some
length upon the great benefit which the establishment
of county courts had conferred upon society at large.
The 'experience of these courts during the last six years
proved that they might be judiciously extended, and the
object of this bill was to increase their jurisdiction, and
render them still more efficient in many other respects, so
that their usefulness might be made equal to that of the
superior courts of law and equity: A 11, however, that ho
wanted their lordships to do was to affirm the principle of
the bill, and leave it to be passed in a future session. The
noble lord at the same time announced his intention to lay
upon the table another bill for amending and improving
the law of arbitration, which he should also ask their
lordships to read a second time with a view to its being
taken up again at the continent:elm:tit of next session.
The LORD CHANCELLOR said as his no7-•le and
learned friend had not informed him beforehand of the
course which he intended to take, he could not then
promise anything beyond an assent to the first reading.
With respect to the county court jurisdiction, he should
have little
.to- -say until their lordships were placed in
possession of the result of an inquiry which was about to
be instituted. It was designed to ascertain, by means of
a commission, not merely whether the county courts
adequately discharged the duties entrusted to them, but
whether any additional duties could usefully be devolved
upon them. He had no doubt the commission would
pursue its labours with a determination to ascertain what
was the actual state of the county courts—whether or
not they adequately discharged their duties, how far the
mode of transacting business was susceptible of improve-
ment, and whether any additional functions might be
usefully exercised. In short, he believed the report of
the commission would enable their lordships to legislate
much better on the subject than they could do before it
was presented.
After a few words from Lord BROUGHAM, the bill was
.
read a first time.

THE SUN, LONDON, 'F:RIDrAY-EVEMINGI'J,Ur:LY 29, 1853.

proposed to omit. the words, "the title deeds relating
to land." A more dangerous power could not be given
to the commissioners. Some of the greatest losses ever
heard of in this country had been caused through letting
unauthorised persons get hold of title-deeds. Lord
.Kenyon once told an attorney who had been summoned
to produce title-deeds, and appeared in court with a
box containing them to sit down on the box, and not
to stir for anybody. (Laughter.) In section 52, he
proposed to omit the words " of which he shall not have
had notice at the time of the purchase." He had never seen
any bill more calculated than this to embarrass the trans-
fer of property, by making the duties under the act a
first charge upon all property. The effect would be to
make every man a crown debtor so long as the period
for the payment of the duties continued. Nothing.
could be more dangerous than to transfer this liability
to a bona fide purchaser. In section 54, lie proposed to
add words to make it consistent with the preamble as
amended, confining the operation of the act to the 19th
of May, 1858. It would then be a very fair subject of
consideration whether the act should be renewed or
amended. He would also propose to omit some words
in the schedule respecting the mode of valuing long an-
nuities, which had no meaning as they stood. In con-
clusion he would remark that the severe liabilities and
penalties imposed by this bill on trustees would cause
every prudent man to pause before accepting such a
trust. Nothing could be more dangerous to a matt ; he
would become himself a crown debtor ; and if he paid in
ig-norance, lie would have no remedy. His object had
been to amend the bill, if it were possible ; but seeing
the spirit which prevailed in the Innise on Monday, . he
had abstained from taking part in the discussion in com-
mittee, and he now only proposed his amendments that
the public might see the grounds on which the opposi-
tion had acted. _ _

Lord BEAUMONT said he cordially approved of one
of the amendments—that which made the sett'or the
predecessor in all cases, and not the party immediately
before in possession. Were the bill otherwise, it would
be a tax not merely on succession, but on settlement
generally. Were this amendment adopted, there would
be no ground for charging the bill with a retrospective
operation, as it would merely tax existing settlements
after they became the subjects of succession. The pro-
vision as it stood had been justified by reference to as
analagous provision in the legacy acts ; but the cases
were not at all parallel, as money left intrust, and pass-
ing from one person to another, only paid the legacy
duty once. The imposition of the succession duty in
the case referred to involved an entirely new principle.
The LORD CHANCELLOR—It is exactly the same
as it is under the legacy duty.
Lord BEAUMONT doubted this ; but there was one
advantage in the clause—it cut both ways ; a man suc-
ceeding his brother in property left by their father would
only pay duty as a son. Still, as it was contrary to the
principle of the bill, and had a retrospective operation,
he thought it would have been better in all cases to
regulate the duty by the relationship of the immediate
predecessor. It would also have had the effect of obvi-
ating the necessity of looking into deeds. No evil could
result from the adoption of the amendment, except some
little delay in the passing of the bill. He entertained
some other objections to the measure, but did not think
them of sufficient weight to dwell upon. He was glad
to see real and personal property placed on the same
footing in reference to succession ; but he should hay.
preferred a much more sweeping measure. He would
have repealed the present legacy duties, done away with
the graduated scale, and have made all property pay
alike-2 or 2/ per cent. on succession. Where a stranger
succeeded to property, and had to pay 10 per cent., the
burden was most grievous, and he probably might be
less prepared to meet it than a son succeeding to his
father.

Lord BERNERS referred to the evidence given before
their lordships' committee on the burdens on land, and
contended that real property was already unjustly bur-
dened. He instanced the stamp duties and the land-
tax ; the latter of which was most unequal in different
parts of the country. Originally, by the statute of Wil-
liam and Mary, it was 4s. in the pound on all land ; in
those cases where it had not been redeemed, the burden
was now very unequal. The noble lord enumerated
some other "special burdens" on land, which by a pecu-
liar mode of calculation he made to amount to 19 mil-
lions sterling per annum.
Earl GRANVILLE said the subject of burdens on
land was too large a question to be discussed on that
occasion. It had been assumed all along by the opposi-
tion that this bill would impose as large a duty on land
as on personalty ; but it appeared that the amount de-
rived from land would only be about 50 per cent. of that
from personal property. He did not think that the pro-
posal of Lord Beaumont for a uniform rate of 2 per cent.
would be very favourably received by those who com-
plained of the special burdens on land. It was a fair
estimate that two-thirds of the lan led property would
only pay 1 per cent. under this bill. On the other points
the noble lord had answered his own objections. (Hear.)

In framing a measure of this kind it was necessary to
adopt one of two principles—either to make each suc-
cessor pay according to the relationship of his immediate
predecessor, or of the person from whom he derived the
property by deed. Whatever nay be the merits of the
two principles, it was certain that more money would
have been derived had the Government adopted the for-
mer one ; and though the principle adhered to in the
bill might in one or two cases act hardly upon indivi-
duals, it was most favourable to the great majority of
persons possessing land. Instead of paying 2 per cent.
as succeeding to one another, brothers would only pay 1
per cent. as deriving from their father ; and that was an
immense advantage to the landed interest. (Hear.)
Whatever hardships might occur under this bill, the
same existed, but to a much more severe extent, under
the Legacy Duty Acts.
The Earl of WICKLOW said it was quite clear that
the object of the noble lord opposite had been to defeat
the bill altogether, or many of these amendments would
have been proposed in committee at the proper time.
He admitted that this was a most complicated measure,
full of contradictory and oppressive provisions, and he
was satisfied that iu a subsequent session a bill would
have to be brought in to remove its defects and render it
more palatable to the community.
The Marquis of SALISBURY denied that the object
of the opponents of the measure had been to defeat it.
All that they wanted was to remove many of its glaring
inconsistencies, and their lordships were decidedly to
blame for not entertaining many of the reasonable amend-
ments that had been proposed to them;
The bill was then passed.
BILLS ADVANCED A STAGE.

The Registrar of Meetings Bill and the Stamp Duties
Bill were read a second time, and ordered to be com-
mitted.

The Spitalfields and Shoreditch Improvement Bill and
the Missionary Bishops Bill were read a third time, and
passed.
The Parish Vestries (No. 2) Bill, the Entails (Scot-
land) Bill, the Custom Duties Bill, and the Dublin Par-
liamentary Registration Bill, were passed through com-
mittee.