The Sun.
London, England, 1822-04-02 00:00:00

THE LONDON JOURNALS.

VITRA:CM PROM THE DAILY MORNING PAPERS,
April 2, 1822.

[BRITISH PRESS.]
The Report of the Agricultural Committee
was laid last night upon the table of the House
of Commons. The Report was not read, nor
was any intimation given of its general character
or tendency. It was ordered to be printed im-
mediately, and our readers may depend upon
the early publication of so important a document.
The Marquis of Londonderry gave notice that
on the 9.2 d of this month he would move for a
Committee of the whole House to take the Re-
port into its consideration, with a view to the
adoption of some measure which he should then
propose for the relief of the agricultural interests.
The necessity of repealing the salt tax was again
noticed-, and Mr. Calcraft stated, that if the
Ministers did not propose some extensive and
effectual measure of relief, he should even in
this Session move for its -repeal. The seeming
unanimity of the agricultural Members upon the
expediency of such a measure, promises a moral
assurance of success to the promised motion.—
It is not unimportant to know in the mean time
that the Government have resolved, as was last
night stated by the Chancellor of the Exchequer,
to submit a measure to Parliament for facilitating
the transfer of mortgages, by allowing the en-
dorsement of deeds by one party to another on
paying the simple duty on the deed stamp, in-
stead of paying the ad valorem duty. The enor-
mous weight of the stamp duties in England has
proved a most pernicious impediment to the easy
and rapid transfer of property. The necessities
of a commercial country require more than any
other perfect freedom and facility in this par-
ticular, yet in no part of the world has the in-
judicious avidity of the Government imposed
such severe restraints as in great Britain.
The magnitude of the stamp duties is a great
evil, and calls loudly for the revision of the
Legislature : as a'measure of policy the imposi-
tion of our stamp duties militates against every
principle of political wisdom, and even as a
fiscal arrangement their magnitude defeats the
purposes of the Government.—Mr. Robinson
submitted his promised motion to the House re-
lative to the Trade of the West India Colonies,
and obtained leave to bring in a Bill for opening
a direct communication between certain ports in
our West India Colonies and the Continents of
Europe and America. The terms and conditions
of this communication are such as we have already
communicated to our readers. This measure must
be considered as a great relaxation in our Co-
lonial System, and a wide departure from the
ordinary principles which have governed all Eu-
ropean nations in regulating the trade of their
foreign Colonies. It is undoubtedly a great
boon to the Colonists, but we lament to find that
if some decisive measure of this nature were not
adopted for affording relief to the Colonists,
there was a danger that the Colonies would to
all useful purposes be neglected or abandoned.
The last few years have operated a frightful
change in the value of colonial property, and
even in the best cultivated and most fruitful of
the West Indian Islands, the estates, instead of
relieving any portion of their burdens, have been
unequal to the discharge of their ordinary ex-
peaces of management. To extend this contem-
plated relief to them is therefore not less a mea-
sure of sound policy than of humanity. No op-
position was offered to Mr. Robinson's motion
for leave to bring in the Bill, but objections are
seldom started in this preliminary stage of any
measure. We are given to understand that the
British shipping interests are apprehensive of
being prejudiced by this measure, and threaten
to give it their utmost opposition.

[MORNING CHRONICLE.]

Government have, it seems, determined on
uniting Upper and Lower Canada, with a view,
as it is given out, to save the expenditure in-
curred by the present double administration.
The measure, however, will not be carried into
effect without great opposition in the country ;
and Mr. Robinson, Attorney-General in Upper
Canada, has been sent over with a Memorial and
Remonstrance against it, and may be daily ex-
pected in England from New York. The Ad-
ministration of the two Canadas costs this coun-
try nearly five hundred thousand a year, without
producinc, to us any equivalent advantage. But
this is altogether the fault of the system ; and
very different reforms are necessary than merely
uniting the two Provinces to rectify the matter.
However, as this project may be considered an
invitation to discussion, we will take an early
opportunity of entering on the subject.

Our readers will see from our Parliamentary
proceedings, that the Agricultural Report was
presented last night by Mr. Gooch, and that
it is to be taken into consideration on the
21st of April. Several questions were put with
a view to obtain possession of the leading features
of this production ; but nothing could be elicited
either from Mr. Gooch or Lord Londonderry,
who gave this notice of the motion for the 21st.
_His Lordship wished, it, seems, to protect the
Report " from the premature publicity which
often led to erroneous impressions," and from its
conciseness, he informed us it may be printed
and circulated in 48 hours. There is one thing
to be said,—the curiosity of the country is not
likely to be so very ardent on this subject as to
feel the disappointment very keenly.—Mr.
llus-
kisson read a very important lecture to the Banks
of England and Ireland, last night, which they
will do well to profit by. The public are cer-
tainly much indebted to this Gentleman, for
the hints he occasionally throws out, and
the principles he lays down, which in fact point
to' more important conclusions than he himself
chooses' to draw. If is certainly no easy matter to
understand how the Bank should be able to lend
money to Government at Three per Cent., and
yet unable to lend it to individuals at less than
Five. But this is the curse of monopoly—that is
made discretionary with the Bank from their
monopoly; which otherwise would be imperative