The Sun.
London, England, 1822-05-23 00:00:00

SHIP-OWNERS OF YARMOUTH.

To the Hon. the COMMONS of the UNITED KINGDOM,
in Parliament assembled, the Humble PETITION of the
SHIP-OWNERS of the PORT of GREAT YAR-
MOUTH, in the County of Norfolk,
SHEWETH—fhat your Petitioners observe, with much
alarm, the Bill • introduced to your Honourable House, enti-
tuled—" A -Bill to explain and amend the several Acts for the
" encouragement and increasing of Shipping and Navigation,
" and to regulate the importation of Goods and Merchandize
" into Great Britain, so far as relates to the Countries from
" whence, and the ships in which such importation shall be
" made," contains a clause—" That certain enumerated Euro-

" pean goods shall be imported in British Ships, or in Ships of
" the Country or Port of Export in Europe," which clause,
your Petitioners conceive, is such a relaxation of the British
Navigation Laws, as they fear will be extremely injurious
the British Ship-Owners, by rendering Holland and the Nether-
lands (where warehouse-rent and other charges are so extremely
low) the emporium of the trade of Europe, and give to their
Shipping the benefit of the largest proportion of the carrying
Trade from the distant parts of Europe, so long enjoyed by
British Shipping; and as at those English ports, where a full
cargo of any. commodities are not usually imported, but where
the supplies are drawn from London in small quantities, the
Ships of your Petitioners' port in particular, from the proxi-
mity to Holland and the Netherlands, will be only occasionally
employed in bringing small supplies of goods, part of the full
cargoes which may have been deposited there.
Your Petitioners humbly submit, that from the very heavy
charges of building and repairing Ships, the duties and ex-
pences attending the outfit and equipment of them in this tour_.
try, together with the much higher wages which British Seamen
are paid, and the manner in which they are fed and provided
Lr, compared with the Dutch, Swedish, Danish, or other fo-
r ign Ships and Seamen, it is impossible for British 'Ships to
take freights on the same terms ; and therefore your Petitioners
entreat that your Honourable House will not sanction the
measure in question.
That the employment of the Shipping of your Petitioners
for the laAt three years, has been a great loss to them, and
they see no prospect of improvement; added to which, they
have to regret the depreciation in value, and that it is a perish-
able, and at this time, an unsaleable description of property.
That your Petitioners humbly submit to your Honourable
House, that the present heavy Lights, and Trinity Dues,
should be immediately 'educed, as they conceive the mainte-
nance of them cannot equal, by a very considerable amount,
the charges paid by the Ship-owners.
That the present charge of Pilotage bears extremely hard en
the Ships belonging to your Petitioners' port, which are a
small class of ships, and pay more'in proportion than the larger
vessels ; and they humbly pray that the rates may be reduced
to what they were during the peace, previous to the year 1793 ;
and that all Vessels in Ballast should be relieved from the ne-
cessity of taking a Pilot; and that the charge of Five Guineas,
boarding Money (paid alike by the Vessel of seventy tons, and
by the one of twelve hundred tons), may be altogether taken
off; and they further submit, that as Vessels of sixty tons are not
obliged, under the present Act, to take a Pilot when laden,
that this exemption might, with safety, be extended to all
Vessels not exceeding the draft of ten feet water.

Your Petitioners also beg leave to represent, that the charges
made by British Consuls and their Deputies in foreign ports,
is a serious grievance, and much felt by them during the pre-
sent low freight, and difficulty of employing their ships ; and
they humbly submit, that his Majesty's Government should
be empowered to pay the Consuls an adequate salary, and that
their fees and charges should be entirely abolished.
Your Petitioners also beg to observe, that the Tonnage Duty,
originally imposed as a War Duty, operates very grteviously
and unequally, inasmuch as a Vessel only one-third, or halt:
laden, pays as much as if she was fully laden ; and that the
London Port Dues, and Dock Charges, press very heavily on
Shipping entering the port (If London ; and with the numerous
Imposts on British Shipping, they submit to your Honourable
House, are preper sulljects for consideration and reduction.
And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray.

CHlNA.—Extract of a letter from Canton,
dated Dee. 28. :—" 'We have had a sad fracas here between
Capt. BLACKWOOD, of his Britannic Majesty's frigate Topaz,
and the native Chinese. It appears that Capt. B. had sent the
frigate's boats on shore to water,when a dispute arose between the
boat's crew and the Chinese inhabitants of the village of Linton,
near which they had landed. The natives attacked the sailors
with bamboos, &c. and the men, it is said, were in imminent
danger from the immense superiority and the violence evinced
by their antagonists. Captain BLACKWOOD, observing the
peril of his seamen in the, unegnal combat, opened a fire
upon the village to cover their retreat to the boats, and it is
said,nine Chinese were killed and four wounded, although, no
accurate or positive account has yet been obtained. Since this
the frigate and a Urge English country ship were lying off' Lin..
ton with their boarding netting up. Daily consultations have
been held with each other by the chief men of this place and
the officers of Government, and every idea is entertained here
that the trade between Great Britain and China will be sus-
pended by order of the Chinese Government.
The 58th Regiment, which landed at Portsmouth about three
weeks since from Jamaica, arrived at Maidstone on Saturday,
and, on Monday, marched for Chatham, where they are to be
stationed.

MAIDSTONE, MAY 420.—Upon cur highly cultivated lads
the bine has grown within the last three or four days ; still
its appearance, generally, is feeble and unkindly ; fly is to
be found in every garden, and in some situations the increase
is very considerable. The grape bine is still very yellow and
much checked in its growth ; upon that which is short and
backward, the flea has much increased. 'With reference to
the Golding and Canterbury plant, about one hill in five are
dead, and not one hill in ten has the appearance of a sufficiency
of bine to furnish each pole.

THE LONDON JOURNALS.

TRACTS FROM THE DAILY 'MORNING PAPERS,

May 23, 1822.

[MORNING POST.]
We have frequently remarked that stupidity ,
or ignorance does more mischief in the world
than the worst perversion of intellect or know-
ledge. The drawling sincerity of the one be-
numbs a reader into a'sort of dozing acquiescence,
but the other always ..keeps our faculties awake,
and still strikes out some sparks which enable us
to perceive the bad motives that are lurking in
the back ground. A notable instance in point
has been• afforded of late by the Chancellor of
the Exchequer's plan for commuting the annual
charge of pensions anti half-pay. Several dull
persons, during a day or so after the plan was
first unfolded; assumed, in direct contradiction
of Mr. Vansittart's words, a variety of things'
which the Right Hon. Gentleman never thought,
of. They would have it, that by adopting the
measure, the Half-pay List and the Pensions be-
came fixed, and withdrawn from the controul of
Parliament. It was also insisted that the con-
tractors for an invariable annuity of forty-five
• Tears duration, took into their bargain all the risks
and fluctuations, from death or other causes, in the
amount of the yearly decreasing annuity which
they were to pay in return:These two odd notidns,
of course, combined in the brains of a third class'
of speculators, and formed ,their idea of the plan.
We believe, however, that all such idle fancies
have entirely vanished for a fortnight, or three
weeks back; at least it is about that length of
time since a burst of surprise from the whole
Houie of Commons enlightened the last Honour-
able Member who evinced any misconception on
the subject: As, however, some erroneous opi-
nions seem still to prevail oat of doors, and as
the Chancellor of the Exchequer informed Mr.
Crenfell on Tuesday night that negociations are
still pending on the subject, we must be excused
for noticing the fallacies to which we allude.

tTHE TIMES.]
We present the following as a somewhat cu-
rious document at the 0-resent time :
" THE HAGUE, MAY I I.—Tilp following is an extract
from a very remarkable Petition, *seined by a great number
of proprietors of land, relative too the embarrassment of t.,e
agricultural class:—
For a long time past the current prices of the produce of
land, and of live stock, or, itr other words, of corn or grain, of
cheese, of beef, of veal and pigs, of milk, and, cusequently,
of young animals, as likewise the prices of horses, and, in
short, of every thing which compose the revenue of the culti-
Vator of thelsoil, with the exception of butter, which may still
be exchanged at a reasonable rate of profit, are continually
falling.; so _that, independently of the rents paid by the farmer,
or the interest of capital invested in land, the produce is not
sufficient to cover the expences of cultivation or the other daily
charges of the farmer. There are even a great number of ar-
ticles which cannot find purchasers at whatever price they may
be offeredlof sale. _

" This progressive fall in price, must be ascribed to the im-
mense supply of such commodities, and particularly to the
abundance of grain, with which the kingdom is presently in-
undatedovithuut the probability that any sale of it can effect a
diminution, because in proportion as it is consumed or disposed
of, the void is more than filled up by- fresh arrivals froth abroad.
" It is not possible to hope for a demand capable of effecting
an exhaustion of the abundance of corn with which our grana-
ries, our magazines, and our vessels, are choked up, especially
if we consider the existing state of our commerce with all parts
of the world. In England they have long adopted the princi-
ple of prohibiting, for home-consumption, the importation of
corn and grain from abroad till the price reaches a certain point.
Hence it happens, that in that couutry the cultivator feels no
anxiety about the means of subsisting his family, or about the
fate of a profession so important to society, while the proprie-
tor is assured of the payment of his rents ; and consequently
the value of property is kept as before, and the Exchequer can
reckon on the payment of its taxes without being obliged to al-
low arrears. In France nearly the same system has. been adop-
ted. Spain likewise refuses to admit foreign corn. All the
south of Europe draws its supplies from Odessa, which has de-
prived the Netherlands of an important branch 'of commerce.—
Russia cannot be ,consiated• as under any necessity to draw
from us her supplies of corn. Sweden, by improving her agri-
culture, has been rendered independent of her neighbours and
Ilr.s forbidden tile importation of foreign corn. Demnarl has
followed the same policy. She even receives grain in payment
of her land-4x, and this- grain is sent to-the Netherlands.
Anierica furnishes corn to Europe when the price is not too
low; but there does not appear sufficient evidence that of late
years European merchants have been ,able to sell her corn or
four. The southern promontory ofalfrica may become, in the
hinds of its present possessors, a granary whence England may
afterwards draw supplies of corn and grain, as she now does
from Ireland."

His Majesty of the Netherlands, .the article
adds, appointed a Commission to consider mea-
sures for the benefit of agriculture.

[NEW TIMES.]
We have received Paris Papers and Letters of
Sunday last. They inform us of the progress of
the Elections, which upon the whole continue
faVonrable to the Royalists. Our Readers are
aware that a fifth of the Chamber is-annually re-
newed, and of that fifth nearly two-thirds are
chosen by the electors of the lower assessment,
and about one-third by the electors of the higher
assessment. The former, who vote in. the Col-
leges of Arrondissement, had some. days ago
completed their elections, and, out of thirty-four
Members, eighteen were Royalists. The elec-
tors of the higher assessment, who vote in the
Colleges of Department, are now preceeding
with their nominations. 'ln Paris there were four
to be chosen, and the Revolutionary Party car-
ried the whole ; but in the Provinces the case is.
widely different.. the Oise, two Royalists have
been chosen, Messrs. Florian de Kergorlay, and•
Botel de Bretizel ; in the Loire, two, MesSrs.
Henri de LongueVe and Rocheplatte ; in the
Rhone, Messrs. Pavrand Gillet.. In the Upper
Rhine two Revolutionists have been chosen,
Messrs. La Fayette and Koechlin ; so that adding
:these two latter to .the four chosen in Paris, there
are six on each side in the greater Colleges
already knOwn, and, consequently, the majority
still remains with the Royalists. The triumph.
or the • Parisia'n Radicals is not at all won-
derfal: Have we not seen Sir Francis Burdett,

Sir Robert Wilson, Alderman Wood, Alderman
Waithnian, and Mr. Hobhouse representing- vari-
• ous parts of our own Metropolis ? The head-
quarters of revolutionary. principles are generally
in, great cities. Paris has peculiarly to boast of
6.bl:honour ; and there are some other circum-
stances in its situation which help to explain the
turn taken by the 'Electiolls there: The Ex-
Ministers LOnis, Pasquier, and Roy have all
thrown their weight into the' radical scale. They
have considerable influence, particularly Louis and
Roy, from having made considei.able fortunes,
Partly by stock-jobbing, and'partly.by buyingna-
tibrial domains. /There are many men' at Paris
who in like manner have made their fortunes in

the Revolution, and who,. therefore, are attached
to its principles. In the Provinces, on the con-
trary, the Landholders of the greatest influence
are, generally speaking, Royalists. From this
circumstance we may augur, that, notwithstand-
ing the Parisian Elections, the general 'result
will be as favourable to the Royalists in the
greater, as they have been in the smaller Col-
leges ; and as they have a large majority in the
other four fifths of the Chamber, their power may
be said to be placed on a firm basis.

[BRITISH PRESS.]
The debates and decisions of the House of
Commons are assuming every day a more inte-
resting complexion; but the interest is painful.
Time was when the financial arrangements of
Government were considered merely as they
affected the liberty of the subject ; now they are
important as they touch his comfo,ts ; nay more,
his very existence. It is impossible to conceal,
and no one attempts to deny the fact of national
embarrassment; to get rid of the burden is im-
practicable, and all that could be done by -the
wisest Legislature is so to modify and arrange its
pressure that it he not absolutely ruinous. Much
as we are absorbed with our own difficulties,
we cannot help turning- some thoughts of corn-
passion to the lonian islanders, who are, by a pe-
culiar phraseology, said to be placed under our
protection. It is somewhat difficult, we confess,
to discern in this case the difference between .a
protected and a conquered country. We should
like to knew, if now they are protected, how
they would be situated if that protection were
oithdrawn ? We do not wish to see our country
extend its protection as Rome in the last days
of its glory, to its proconsular provinces. But
we may ask, what sort of Christian protection is
that which punishes a people for aiding their- op-
pressed fellow Christians ?

[MORNING CHRONICLE.]
The Archbishopric of Armagh has been given
to Lord John George Beresford ; and the Arch-
bishopric of Cashel to Dr. Alexander,, the near
relation of the Earl of Caledon. Thus has the
apostolical family of Beresford, after picking and
chusing every valuable see, as it has become vacant
for the last 20 years, and after having had, at one
time, three of its members upon the Benc-h, accom-
plished one of the great objects of its avarice and
ambition, in the attainment of the Primacy of Ire-
land. It only remains, that the Marcßess of Water-
ford be made a Duke, and nothing further can be
asked. They already possess among themselves,
their connexions, and dependents, one-fourth of
the whole patronage of Ireland ! The Earl of
Caledon, whose relation has got the other
Archiepiscopal Mitre, is one of the most consi-
derable Parliamentary. Patrons in the service
of Ministers. In no other character is he or
any of his family known. The Member for Old
Sarum is never absent from the House. When
it is considered how many eminent scholars and
distinguished divines have gone to their graves
unrewarded for the important benefits they have
conferred upon mankind, and how many such
now living are neglected, the promotion of such
insignificant persons' as these excites feelings of
no common indignation. The public are not so
blind as not to notice that the occasional eleva-
tion of men of a certain moderate respectability
of professional character to the poorest dioceses
in both England and Ireland, is intended as a
contemptible set offagainst the filling the chairs of
all the wealthy Sees, with the inefficient Members
of the Families, who barter their support of Ad.
ministration for the public patronage. The haste
with which these promotions have been made in
Ireland has, doubtless, been, occasioned by a well
grounded apprehension, that the nation, with the
facts now before it, would not have been slow in
calling for the reformation of an abuse that can-
not fail of continuing to be productive of incal-
culable evil, as is evidenced in every division in
either House of Parliament, and as experience,
during the last thirty years, has lamentably
shown.