The Sun.
London, England, 1854-05-12 00:00:00

BILLS OF EXCITANaE.

Mr. Digby Seymour, on Tuesday v
leave to bring in a bill for the purpose
criminal courts jurisdiction as regards the fraudulent
transfer of bills of exchange ; and, from the remarks of
the Attorney-General, we have no doubt, if the measure
eening,
of obtainedgiving
be well shaped, and carefully drawn, it will have the
support of the Government. Having stated our view!
on this subject, in commenting on the case of Sherwood
v. Meiklam, a few days ago, we forbear further observa-
tions until we see the bill.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer has laid upon thcei
table of the house his resolutions respecting inlay
and foreign bills of exchange. We have no doulA
that, if adopted, their effect will be to multipll.
exceedingly the smaller mercantile operations of
which bills of exchange are to a very considerable_
extent the representatives. The maximum rate of
duty on a bill of exchange for 251. at present is
and-sixpence—under the proposed plan it will '-
only three-pence. When we say maximum rate, we
mean, of course, bills of longer date than two
months. There is no distinction as to bills of long
or short date in the Chancellor's plan. A bill of
•
1001. now pays a maximum, rate of duty of four slid
lings and sixpence • under the new plan it will Pal
only one shilling. It is only on the larger class of bill°
the duty under the new scale will press. On
bill of 2,0001. the maximum, duty at present 13,ef
able is fifteen shillings ; under the new Plau
it will be twenty shillings. 3,0001. present duty:
11. ss. ; proposed duty, 1/. 10s., &c. Foreign bills o.f
exchange, if drawn in, but payable out of, the United
Kingdom, will, if drawn singly and not in sets °i.
more than two, be liable to the same rate of duties
as inland bills • but if drawn in sets of three or more,
as, they generally are, there will be a very coneider:,
able difference ;—the duty will in that..case. be less h
two-thirds than upon inland bills—that is to sal'
where an inland bill for 4,0301. will pay a stamp duty of
21., a foreign bill drawn in the United Kingdom, tin"'
the circumstances we have stated, will be subject to 0,
duty of only 13s. 4d.
Hitherto, foreign bills of Exchange drawn out 0
the United Kingdom were not subjected to any stem
duty„ and the consequence was, that a large n meals
tion, pseudo foreign bills of exchange got into c irculs
tion, the holders of which, though peradventur e wha
the law terms innocent holders—that is to say,
rant that the bills were not what they purported
be—suffered very serious detriment. We had occasion
more than once to call the attention of the Govern"
ment to the hardships thus inflicted, and the Chancellor.
of the Exchequer has supplied the remedy, by taking
away the exemption that class of bills enjoyed. 'Uncle::
the new scheme, foreign bills of exchange drawn out
of the United Kingdom, and payable within it,
will be
liable to the same duties as inland bills of the same amount
and tenor ; and a foreign bill drawn and payable at,
of the United Kingdom, but indorsed or negotiateu
within it, will be liable to the same duty as a foreign,
hill drawn within, and payable out of, the Unite('
Kingdom.
Such are the main features of the Government echelon
respecting bills of exchange. It is expected that owe
siderable opposition will be offered to the increase o',
duty on the larger bills, but, upon the whole, we are
of opinion that the plan is a sound one, and will be
generally concurred in.—Morning Post.

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE•'

CUSTOM-HOUSE, Max 11.

. -
. ENTERED INWARDS. —The Martin, from Rostock ; C°l"
rier, do. ; Jan Visper, Salonica ; Geranche, Teneriffe•
&c. ; George, Seville ; Terpsichore, Cavalla; Sisters,
Swinetnunde ; Wilhelmine, Dantzic ; Spencer, Antwerp
Reliance, Alexandria ; Delhi, Oran ; Gateshead Park'
Alexandria ; Ripa, Buenos Ayres ; Aurora, Cienfuegos;
Annette, Oporto ; Wodan, Batavia ; Sutcliffe, Antwerp;Vriendschap, Worcum ; Isabella, Acra ; Warthy, Herta'
sand ; Citizen, Bordeaux ; Vissery, Worcum ; Anna, Sr
villa ; Neeolaso, Porto Rico; Secret, Rotterdam : Monarch,
Calcutta; Punjaub, do. ; Vriendschap, Seville;
Peel, Menial,- Clementine, Seville; Clyde, Shanghai
ENTERED OUTWARDS FOR LOADING.—The Burgomeister
Rader, for Hamburgh ; Electra, Grenada • Petra Bilbos;
Robert Passenger, Port Philip and Madras ; Petra,
Portland Bay; Elizabeth, Demerara; Countess of Seafieldt ,
Sidney ; Aurora, St. Paul de Loando ; Canoe Rio de ev
neiro ; Citizen, Bordeaux ; Emma, Malta and Alexandria;
Jane Ellis, Montreal • William Prowse, Adelaide and Ma'
dras ; Sarah Lacy, Hong Kong; Franke, Leer; Carleton,
Herradura Bay.
CLEARED OUTWARDS WITH CARGO.—The Diamond,. ,fbr
the Cape of Good Hope ; J. D., Antigua ; John Lag':
Swan River ; Stratford, Mauritius; Vrouvw Maria, Leer
Hilding, Rio Janeiro ; Charlotte, Altona ; Glenorchir
Calcutta; Maria, St. Vincent -Ursula Oporto; EhnsirP
St. Thomas's ; Balder, Calcutta ; Meteor, Adelaide ; Wv.
Liam Prowse, Adelaide and Madras • /EA., Bermuda Kingston, Hobart Town ; Acasta, Sydney.

PARIS, May 11.—The Alfred, from Marseilles to Mau'
ritius, was stranded, 27th April, to the N.W. of Algesiras;
as the vessel struck upon the sand, she has not received
much damage, and it is hoped that she may be floated o
by the help of a steamer. The Margaretta (Oldenburg
brig), from Marseilles to New York, was stranded 26th-
April, on the coast of Spain, to N.E. of Gibraltar, and was'
full of water—master and one man drowned—a small por-
tion only of the cargo was landed.
CUXHAVEN, May 7.—The Shamrock (s.), which left her*
to-day, has been towed back this afternoon by the Shan-
non (s.), with machinery damaged.
Nnw YORK, April 26.—The H. M. Johnson (schooner),
was passed on Mar ch 28th, in lat. 40, long. 47 W. full of
water and abandoned, by the W. H. Safford, arrived here.
The. Humboldt, which arrived here on April 19th, front
Hamburg, shipped a heavy sea on March 14th, during Is
S.W. gale, which stove bulwarks, swept decks, and filled
between decks full of water.
May 11.— The Beaufort, from Honduras to the United.
Kingdom, having experienced a severe gale in lat. 38 N.,
long. 63 W., on April 17th, was thrown on her beam end.
became waterlogged, and was abandoned in a sinking
state, three of the crew drowned.

VESSELS SPOKEN WITH.
The Bahiana, from Bahia to Queenstown, April 19, lat.
27 N., long. 46 W.
The Vestal, from Cadiz to St. John's, April 29, lat.
N., long. 35 W.
The Albinos, from Callao to Queenstown, May 4, 1111•
47 N., long. 23 W.
The Cariboo (French ship), May 6, lat. 50 N., long•
16 W.
The Druant, from Workington to Quebec, April 28, 1111•
48 N., long. 40 W.
The Polly (ship), of Glasgow, bound East.