The Sun.
London, England, 1849-11-20 00:00:00

Tuesday; a party of marines, under command of
Captain Fleming, joined her the same day. Her com-
plement of seamen is not yet complete.
The masts of the Portland frigate were sent into the
yard on Tuesday, and she has been placed at her
moorings.

A party of caulkers went into the Sound yesterday
to caulk the topsides of the Serpent steamer.
Mr. George Turner, formerly master-shipwright
in the service of her Majesty in the East Indies, has
commenced duty as master shipwright's assistant in
the Devonport Dockyard, vice Mr. Aylward, super-
annuated.
Ninety labourers, who have been employed in the
survey of the stores of the yard, have been dis-
charged this day.
Wind northerly, light air.

IRELAND.
LETTER IV.
TO THE RIGHT HON. LORD JOHN RUSSELL, M.P.
My Lord,—The Government proposal of a maximum
rate having:most fortunately been rejected by the House
of Lords, there is little occasion to say much about
it, for its errors were clearly pointed out—a more ill-
advised or injudicious measure it would be difficult to
imagine.
My proposal drew a broad distinction between the
enterprising and industrious landlord and tenant,
desirous of employing the people, and the idle, who
would not move if the Government had adopted it ; the
drone would have been left no worse than at present,
but he would not have been permitted to plunder the
bee. The Government proposal made no such wise
distinction. Industrious and idle, enterprising and
apathetic—huddled together in one common fate, and
told in so many words—your poor-rates are 93. in the
pound ; never mind, be as neglectful of your duty as
you choose, become absentees from your native land,
we will reduce your poor-rate
_to Bs. in the polled,
and the precedent once established, perhaps we shall
be able again to reduce them, at the expense of the
industry of the country.
Wise and salutary doctrine at any time, and under
any circumstances, but, in the present condition of
Ireland, it should confer an immortal . . . . on
the brow of Sir Wm. Somerville.
Then, its twin brother—the rate in aid. Who stood
gcdtather to this baptismal fraud ?—for that is the
proper epithet for applying a name of good repute to
a measure widely different. The English rat- in aid
is worthy of the sagacity of its authors; it declares
that when a parish is unable to provide for its poor, a
rate in aid shall be made on the adjoining parishes.
Hence it became not only the duty, but the
obvious interest, of every locality to prevent, if pos-
sible, the distress of any neighbouring parish pro-
ceeding to such an extreme length as to require a
rate in aid; and in this, as in everything else, a little
timely assistance will, at much less cost, produce
better effects than larger efforts at a later
period ; and nothing could have worked better than
the English rate in aid, for I am not aware of its
having been resorted to except in the case of
Cholesbury.
But your misnamed bantling, the Irish rate in aid,
proceeds on a totally different principle it holds out
no inducement to an union to endeavour to prevent
extreme destitution in its neighbourhood—it taxes
the industrious tenant in Antrim to relieve the pau-
perism in Cork.
I know it will be said that the distress in some
districts was so great that it would have been impossible
for the neighbouring ones to have relieved it. But,
then, act fairly; do not call your measure a rate in
aid, as if it was similar to the English law ; but make
the case an imperial one, and do not commit the
legislative robbery of taxing the province of Ulster for
the support of the poor in Connaught. The wit of
man never yet devised a stronger argument for a
" Repeal of the Union" than this law of One-eyed
Men.

Then came Mr. Scrope's proposal, of the benevo-
lence of whose intention it is impossible to speak too
highly, but his forced peasant proprietorship, the
leading feature of his measure, was pregnant with
the same evil which it is now sought to alleviate.
Last is Mr. Bright's proposal—how different from
the wise and comprehensive view he took of the cause
of the present condition of Ireland I place them in
juata-position, and the distinction is palpable. He
said he believed he could point out the cause and its
remedy.

Cause—The true cause of the present condition of
Ireland was to be found in the crimes and blunders of
legislation.

-Remedy—That he would sell the estate of every
proprietor who could not pay his debts.
The ink which propounded this remedy was scarcely
dry when its inutility was proved by a fact. The
Connemara estate, the scene of Sir Robert Peel's
phantom plantation, was offered for sale under the
most favourable auspices—a wealthy assurance com-
pany, whose affluence enabled them to give every
encouragement to would-be purchasers in the pay-
ment of the price, were the sellers. The land would
have been sold in cumulo, or in lots of every possible
size, to suit the supposed wants of the public, and
there were no purchasers, and the estate remains
unsold.

But then it has been said, by those whose inge-
nuity is never at at a loss for an excuse, " Oh, there
should have been a Parliamentary title"--a Parlia-
mentary fiddlestick. No Parliamentary title would
give greater confidence to a would-be purchaser than
a title which had been approved of by the sagacious
solicitor to the Law Life Assurance Company.
By all means adopt Mr. Bright's advice, and render
the transfer of land as expeditious, as cheap, and as
secure as possible; but do not fancy that when you
have done this you have done everything, and that
purchasers will be found for Connemara and similar
properties.

Small properties scattered over the country vc ill be
probably sold to the neighbouring proprietors, or to
strangers, but of estates as Connemara, and others
of nearly similar extent, and of greater value, who
are likely to become the purchasers ? I entertain
great respect for your Lordship's sagacity, yet believe
that you are incapable of giving an answer to this
question which would be satisfactory to your own
judgment ; and yet upon its proper solution depends
the prosperity of Ireland.
Who is likely to become the purchaser ? If sold in
ennallo what capitalists would venture a quarter of a
million in such speculation ? Ask that most bene-
volent of men, Samuel Gurney. He would prefer
making you a present of the money if it would re-
lieve Ireland from her difficulties, but he would de-
cline becoming the purchaser.
But, then, suppose the land to be offered for sale,
as Connemara was, in small lots. What man, how-
ever desirous of becoming the proprietor and improver
of a farm, would settle down in a district without
knowing who were to be his neighbours, or whether
years might not elapse before he had any ?
None my Lord ; for such properties, it will indeed
be difficult, if not impossihle, to find purchasers in the
usual course; but then another excuse has been offered
by an anonymous writer in the Daily News of the
10th inst.—He says, upon his own knowledge, that
the reserved price was far too high.
I also am acquainted with the property, and
should know something of the value of laud, and its
capabilities; and I was surprised to find the upset
prices so low. Bidders, for the reasons I have given,
I never expected, but I prefer facts to opinions—and
the fact is that many lots were bought in at a price
only a trifle more than the price of land in the wilds
of Australia and New Zealand ; for instance, I find
four consecutive lots (12 to 15 inclusive), consisting of
7,477 acres, the reserved price of which was 7,510/.
four other consecutive lots, 27 to 31, except 30 for
which there was no bidding, containing 20,298 acres,
bought in at 23,100/.
But I venture to think that the observations of the
correspondent in the Daily News were not within
the bounds of legitimate public discussion, for they
impugned the judgment of the directors of the Law
Life Assurance Company, one of the very best ma-
naged institutions in the kingdom. They were de-
sirous of selling the property, not throwing it away,
and they exercised what they considered a sound
discretion.

I have now carefully, I hope fairly, gone over each
remedy which has been proposed ; my next letter will
compare them with the one I have suggested, and
show, I think, conclusively, how Mr. Bright's bene-
volent wishes may be accomplished—" that men
would hold land in proportion to their means, to cul-
tivate it and turn it to their advantage, from the man
who held his freehold acre of land to those who held
their 10,000 or '20,000 acres;, and praise be to him
who publicly scorned the doctrine that either the
Catholic or the Celt are unable to perform their duties
to society.