The Sun.
London, England, 1849-03-15 00:00:00

ECCLESIASTICAL COMMISSION.

Mr. HORSEMAN said, in the present state of public
business, he could not expect the Noble Lord at the
head of the Government to name a particular day when
he would take the discussion on the Ecclesiastical Corn.
mission Bill, but as the Bill had been prepared
and printed, perhaps the Noble Lord would have no ob-
jection to lay it on the table at once, reserving any dis-
cussion or statement for the second reading.—(Hear.)
Lord J. RUSSELL promised to lay the Bill on the
table some day before Easter.—(Hear, hear.)
AGRIC ULTURAL DISTRESS.—ADJOURNED
DEB ATE.

On the question for resuming the adjourned debate on
this question,
Mr. M. GIBSON rose, and said he would endeavour
to explain briefly to the House the grounds for
the vote which he should feel it to be his
duty to give upon the motion now under the
consideration of the House, and knowing as he did
that the House was desirous of coming to a decision
to-night upon this question, he would set the example,
as far as he was concerned, of brevity, for there were
many gentlemen on both sides of the House who, he did
not doubt, would be anxious to express their views
upon this question.—(Hear, hear.) They had two pro-
posals before them, the one moved by the Hon. Member
for Buckinghamshire, the other submitted by his
Honourable Friend the Member for Montrose.—(Hear.)
Those two- proposals involved entirely different princi-
ples. The one was founded on leaving the whole
amount of the public burdens, and the public taxation,
as it stood at present, merely transferring a por-
tion of the taxation from one class to another,
the other proposal, which was that of his Hon. Friend
the Member for Montrose, was founded on the principle
of giving relief to all classes alike—agricultural and
commercial—(Hear, hear)—by, first, a reduction of
the expenditure, in order that the claims of
cwdt honhrecidtionn
nga
lt
pyi
oorien
stabhslyee
dcearxpe
expenditure
nyt tor rani
gtgurmri
teei
hug
telhot t be duly
ust
ruherep
surplus
sd
repealpre regardedoocomufmr
teh ;
commercial
cbs
ieya
taxes
a xair
in-
dustry.—(Bear,
dustry.—(Hear, near.) Now, he said, those two
proposals that the House had before them were
founded on different principles, and he drew the atten-
tion of the House to that matter, because he wanted
Gentlemen to consider strictly speakihg what was the
immediate vote which the House should be called
on to give. The immediate vote was nothing more
than this—which, upon the whole, was the. House de-
sirous should be put in order that the sense of the House
might be taken upon it, naming whether the proposi-
tion of the Honourable Member for Buckingham-
shire, or that of his Honourable Friend the
Member for Montrose. The first vote the House came
to did not involve any Gentleman in the general prin-
ciple eitheprroproposition; buti
F
t. a Gentleman
ti
saw involvedwas,there in
in the ior (i his Hon.
Member for Montrose, a principle which he thought was
d the
more in unison with his views than the principle in-
volved in the proposition of the Hon. Mercber for
Buckinghamshire. He said at least he would vote
for the amendment, in order to
give the motion
of his Honourable Friend at least the opportunity

of being put to the House. The House had
to choose between the two—would they seek relief by
the reduction of expenditure, or by tra❑sferring a por-
tion of the local taxes to the consolidated fund. There
were gentlemen who might think the House might
select a better instance than the malt-tax for repeal—
for instance, those on paper and on windows; but a
Gentleman who was for the repeal of any one of
those taxes might consistently vote at least tor the
amendment of his Honourable Friend the Member
for Montrose. Now he would state his reasons for
preferring the amendment of his Right Hon. Friend the
Member for Montrose to that of the Hon. Member for
Buckinghamshire. He invited the House to go into
Committee for the purpose of agreeing to a resolution
which should transfer a charge of 6,000,0001. sterling
upon the consolidated fund. That he imagined would
be the resolution that the Honourable Gentleman would
submit to a Committee of the whole House
if they were to agree to this proposal. He ima-
gined that resolution was the foundation of a Bill, and
that he merely submitted his proposal in its present orer
in compliance with Parliamentary usage ; but a m

of that kind should be submitted to Parliament
in a Committee of the whole House. But he
offered the House no security, whether if
it agreed to transfer those 6,000/. to the consolidated
fund, that he would be able to prevail on P arlia-
ment to argree in other taxation which would
be necessary if he should carry his resolutions.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer had last night disposed
of the question of unequal local taxation in a mos t able
speech.—(Hear, hear.) He thought there never was a
more able or logical speech delivered in that Holuse than
that of the Chancellor of the Exchequer las t nig ht
it completely answered all the arguments of he Hon.
Member for Buckinghamshire, and placed the saddle on
the right horse. The Right Hon. Gentleman*e hen pro-
ceeded to show with great ingenuity that local taxation
was much less upon land than upon any ()thee species of
property. The Hon. Gentleman had assert d that real
property ought not to bear the great weight of
the local taxation, and if he was goi "g to begin
at the commencement he was not sue that he
should adopt the plan of local taxati on which now
existed. It was an acknowledged prinerp'e that a man
ought to pay his share to the support o fthe poor, accord-
ing to his means. What better means were there of as-
certaining the condition of any man . Caen by taking the
house in which he lived. But then it wa s said that the
institution o f a poor-rate was for local purposes, and
that in order to equalise the burden throughovt the
country there ought to be a rate-in-aid from the
Consolidated Fund.—(Hear.) Why all the portions
of the public impositions to which this country was
subject, there was no one whatever more completely
and entirely unjust in its character than those
through which the Consolidated Fund was realised—
none which pressed so heavily upon the means
and exertions of the inclustrisl classes. They had at-
tempted to levy an assessment on stock in t rade, and if
it could have been accomplished—if they could
rely upon the asset .ion of a high authority, that
the stock in trade of the country amounted
to 200,000,000/.—it would have been of immense
importance, but it had entirely failed. Well it might,
for it would be utterly impossible to use any machinery
for accomplishing such an object. Were they aware
that there are at the present moment ne less
th in fifty-four species of Government official
comprising no less than 180,000 individuals engaged in
the collection of the Government taxes. It was an utter
impossibility to enter into every little village
shop, and take an account of its stock in trade.
And it should be further recollected that
if ordinary stock in trade were to be taxed, so also must
the sleek of farmers pay its assessment.—(Hear, hear.)
He had given much and laborious attention to this
subject, and he did not hesitate to say that any such
etlort as that must surely and completely fail.—(Hear.)
He would now beg to draw the attention of the
Honourable Member for Buckinghamshire, and all his
agricultural friends, to two particular points. They
should remember that since the passing of the Bill for
the repeal c f the Corn laws the members of the agricul-
tural community had been made to assume an entirely
new political status.
(LEFT SPEAKING.)

EXTRAORDINARY SCENE AT A
RAILWAY JUNCTION.
(From the Manchester Examiner.)
A most extraordinary and unprecedented scene oc-
curred yesterday morning at Clifton station, about five
miles from Manchester, and the point where the East
Lancashire line, midway between Bury and Manchester,
forms a junction with the Lancashire and York-
shire Company's lines of rails from Manchester
to Bolton, Preston, and Liverpool. The East
Lancashire Company pass over the Lancashire and
Yorkshire Company's rails between Clifton and Man-
chester, paying toll, and it appears that some misunder-
standing has arisen between the two companies as to
the means of ascertaining the proper amount of toll.
The East Lancashire are in the habit of running
several up trains to Manchester, past the Clifton
junction, without stopping, and afterwards making
a declaration to the Lancashire and Yorkshire
Company of the number of passengers the trains con-
tained, and for whom they would have to pay toll. The
Lancashire and Yorkshire Company object to this plan,
and demand that the trains shall stop at Clifton, so that
the number of passengers can be counted, and give up
their tickets. The East Lancashire Company say, that
in addition to their declaration, the other parties have
access to all their books, and to the returns of their
(the East Lancashire Company's) servants ; and that
the demand to take tickets, or to count, is only
one of annoyance and detention, adopted since
the two companies have become competitors for the
traffic to Bradford. Towards the close of last week the
dispute assumed a serious aspect, by one of the Lanca-
shire and Yorkshire Company's agents at Manchester
(Mr. Blackmore) threatening that he would blocked e or
stop up the Esst Lancashire line, at the point of junc Lion,
with a large balk of timber. The East Lancashire
Company got out a summons against Mr. Blackmore on
Saturday; but, notwithstanding this course, the Lanca-
shire and Yorkshire Company's managers proses ded,
yesterday morning, to carry the threat into execu ion,
and despite also the presence of a large body of the
county police from Bury, and of a second body from the
Pendleton county police-station, near Manchester.
From ten to twelve o'clock in the morning in addition
to the police, bodies of the directors and servants of
both companies arrived at Clifton. The immediate
neighbourhood is far from populous, but as the lines of
railway from this point pass over rather lofty embank-
ments, it could be seen from seme distance around that
there was an unusual commotion, and numbers of people
were attracted to watch the proceedings. The East Lan-
cashire early trains were allowed to pass upon the
Lancashire and Yorkshire line without obstruction,
and run to Manchester ; but at half past ten in the
ing, as the next East Lancashire train to Manchester
was one which would not stop at Clifton, but attempt is
pass on to Manchester, so as not to allow the Lanca-
shire
the latter
hegCompany'sa servants to count the
passengers, 5k
to take active measures to
stop up the East Lancashire line, and raise a sufficient
and
obstruction to the passage of trains to their own line.
A number of labourers were set at work for this pur-
pose under the direction of Captain Laws, maaaging
director of the Lancashire and Yorkshire line ; Mr.
Blackmore, superintendent of the traffic on the
Button line; Mr. flinmers, superintendent of the goods
traffic; and Mr. Hurst, superintendent of the locomotive
department. Their first step was to lay down across the
Lancashire and Yorkshire Company's down-liue of rails to
Manchester an immense balk of timber—laying it close
to the points of the East Lancashire Company's rails
forming the junction, and opposite the Semaphore signal-
house of the East Lancashire Company. Behind this balk
of timber, at either end, were driven down into the bed of
the railway two heavy, long iron crow-bars, to hold it to its
position. Then again, behind this balk of timber, the
Lancashire and Yorkshire Company brought up a train
of six empty carriages, withits engine at the Manches-
ter end; and this may be said up to this time to hay e
completed the blockading scheme. The train of empty
carriages was understood to have been for the double
purpose of blockading the line, and of carrying forward
to Manchester any of the passengers from the East Lan
casshire train who might choose to leave it and go for
ward, over the Bolton line, to Manchester.
The East Lancashire train was due in Manchester
about 10 40, but it was nearly that time before it came
up to Clifton, and when it came in sight it was signalled
to stop, of course, rather than allow the engineer to
break his own and the passengers' necks by running
upon the obstruction. Immediately the East Lanca-
shire train stopped, the Lancashire and Yorkshire Com-
pany's servanis went and demanded the tickets from the
passengers. This demand, however, was fruitless, in-
asmuch as the East Lancashire parties had taken the
tickets from their passengers at the previous station—
Ringley—a course which they are said to have now fol-
lowed for three months past.
This was the signal for retaliatory measures by the
East Lancashire party, who had till now walked in silence
on either side their own line, as the servants of the other
company had done on their own property. The police,
meantime, looking on at both, from the window of the
railway station-house, situated in the cleft of the fork
formed by the two railways branching off. to Bury and
Bolton. The first act of the East Lancashire Company's
servants was to remove the balk of timber, and this they
did without hindrance.
The next proceeding of the East Lancashire party
was to run forward their train and attempt to force
.be-
fore them the Lancashire and Yorkshire blockading
train. This, however, the others appeared to have anti-
cipated, and having put on their breaks. and brought
another engine up in front of their train, which they
had detached from an express train from Manchester,
that bad come up while the previous proceedings
were going on, they were able to maintain their ground.
The East Lancashire Company by this time having
brought up a heavy:train laden with stone, on their
other line now caused it to run forward and take up a
position on the shunt across the Lancashire and York-
shire's up line to Manchester, exactly abreast of the
blockading train on the other line of rails. Thus the
Lancashire and Yorkshire Company's double line of
rails was now completely blocked up—one line by
their own train, and the other by the stone train Of
the East Lancashire Company. In this position mat-
ters remained till near twelve o'clock ; and in the mean-
time the affair every moment assumed a more serious
aspect. The Lancashire and Yorkshire Company's trains,
either way, as they came up, kept accumulating the
means of blockade; and added to these were the trains
coming to the spot belonging to the East Lancashire
Company, and those belonging to the Blackburn and
Darwen Company, which come upon the Lancashire and
Yorkshire rails at Bolton. By a little before twelve
o'clock there were altogether eight trains on the double
lines of rails of the two companies' extending side by
side for more than half a mile. Many of the passengt rs,
,n some alarm, got out of the trains to remonstrate with
the companies' servants, and one party are said to have

sent to Pendle t on for a postchaise, threatening an action
fir detention. What occurred to break up the blockade
we have not a c,curately learnt; but we are informed that
the Lancashire , and Yorkshire blockading train having
been lett in a u i sole charge of Mr. Blackinore, at a li 31e
before twelve o 'clock he withdrew the obstruction, paid
the various tr s Sins were allowed to pass onwards, fortu-
nately witho, ut accident or injury to the passenge
though it mu ',e.t be confessed to have been a dangerous
experiment.

No doubt tl 5 e ultimate decision of the matter will, 'licit
most other s u ch disputes, have to come before a civil
tribunal, and furnit•h employment and fends for the
" gentlemen ff the long robe."
It is but fa-i r to say that the servants of the various;
companies LIL I laved with admirable temper and coolnt ;ss,
and that ther a was no necessity for the interference of
the police.
FLTRTIE. LER HOSTILE PROCEEDINGS.

(From a Sec a nd Edition of the Manchester Examiner.

In our fife. a page we give an account of some novel
proceedings 't .etween the managers of these two com-
panies, yest sirday, at the Clifton Junction. We had
supposed the acts of hostility had ended here,
but we fi ad that in the evening of yesterday
the East L roricashire Company proceeded to obtain
forcible poss s scion of a hoist belonging to the other com-
pany, at the. Salford.station, and this led to another
scene of a ,r. ery exciting and strange character. The
Lancashire ;wad Yorkshire Company sent a message.
soon after f our o'clock, to the Salford police-stati,.n,
stating that the East Lancashire Company had broug hf
up a great nJimber of navvies from a .distance, armed
with pickax es, crowbars, shovels, &c., and that they
appreheadet 1 a breach of the peace, and desired pro-
tection.

Mr. Neal se, chief constable, finding there was truth
in this state unenth, and that there were sixty or seventy
navvies down at Salford station, belonging to the Eas.it
Lancashire Company, and an equal number of the nav-
vies or ser' rants of the other company, sent down a large
holy
of the- police, under Superintendent Taylor, to pre-
serve the peace. He also communicated with Captain
Willis, of the Manchester force, to obtain a reinforce-
ment if net wssary.

The brief facts of this portion of the dispute are
these:—Tin, Lancashire and Yorkshire Company balm
an immetwe yard for goods in Irwell-street, Salford,

on a level below the railway, where the goods are
first put in to the railway waggons, and then hoisted
waggons auc 1 all upon the railway. In this yard the East
Lancashire,. on payment of toll, have an accommodation
for loading: and hoisting their goods on to the line.
It has bee n customary for the East Lancashire Corn-
pany to as ,eigh their goods before passing them for-
ward town rds the hoist, and then passing wiih them
a declarat ion of particulars. The Lancashire and
Yorkshire then pass the goods over a weighing
machine to test the declaration, and proceed to hoist
the goods. Latterly, however, the East Lancashire
Company have refused to make the declaration until
their goods have been hoisted on the line. With this
refusal, we have nothing to do; we can only presume, as
parties urn nixed up with either of the companies, that
they have, or suppose they have, some legal warrant for
this tours a of proceeding. Yesterday, however, the
Lancashire and Yorkshire Company having given them
notice that they would not hoist their goods, unless
aecompanie d with the declaration, the East Lancashire
proceeded to enforce the hoisting vi et armis, by their
own servile its ; force being necessary in order to remove
the Lances hire and Yorkshire Company's servants, who
had possession of the hoist, or at least the goods and
waggons t he latter had in the way of such a proceeding.
It was u ruler these circumstances the servants of the
companies were collected in something like hostile
array, and that the police were culled in. The
E tst Lancashire Company proceeded to run their car-
riages up towards the hoist, and to block up the ap-
proaches, at d it was necessary for the Lancashire and
Yorkshire Company's servants to remove these obstruc -
lions before they could proceed with their own work.
For a time the latter suspended operations, but a
little before six o'olock they set to woe k, at the
commanp of Captain Laws, managing director of
the Lancash ire and Yorkshire Railway, to clear away
the obstrucltion. In doing so, they were resisted by
the East Lancashire Company's havvies. A scene of
great exciter aent followed, each party using their crow-
bars as levers to move or prevent the moving of the
waggons. The police, under the direction of chief con-
stable Neale, looked on until they feared that blows
were likely to ensue, one of the East Lancashire
men having wielded his weapon or implement
round his head, so that it came rather roughly in
contact with the superintendent of police's arm (though,
it is believed, accidentally, and through the excitement)
and then he gave orders for four of the East Lancashire
men to be taken into custody. These men were locked
up, and here, so far, ended the contest. An amusing
scene occurred on the line above, subseqbently ; the
East Lancashire party having brought an engine and
goods train and backed it against the top of the hoist,
leaving it there, with breaks on and engines reversed.
The other party then brought three engines and hooked
them to, dragging away the obstructing engines. The
men here, however, on both sides, exhibited great for-
bearance, and the polio did not interfere.
The four " navvies" were brought before Mr. Trafford,
and the Mayor of Salford, this morning, when the
former commented in strong language on the conduct of
the parties, who, he said, ought to have been brought
before him; but said he must make those who suffered
themselves to be made their tools responsible, it they
proceeded to a breach of the peace. He discharged three
of the men, however, binding only one of them, Taylor,
over to keep the peace for three months.

RETURNS of the BOARD of TRADE.
The returns of the Board of Trade for the month
ending the sth of February were issued this morning.
As regards exports, they do not maintain the increase
of the preceding three months, the total being 216,5991
below that of the corresponding period of last year.
Compared with February, 1847, the deficiency, however,
is only 67,371/. It will be observed that the falling-off
has been principally in iron and steel, which, as well as
machinery, have now for several months been largely on
the adverse side:—