The Sun.
London, England, 1822-01-15 00:00:00

[BRITISH PRESS.]

We are not a little surprised to find it seriously
proposed by a gentleman of liberal education to
repeal the law which has so happily achieved the
restoration of the old metallic currency of the
country. Mr. Thurtell would throw us back
again to a variable paper currency, and subject
the property of the kingdom to the changes and
chances which may arise from eternal fluctuations
in the amount of the circulating medium. We
trust that there are very few gentlemen in the
empire who would desire to see a renewal of the
Bauk Restriction Act; for although it cannot be
doubted that much of the sufferings which have
oppressed the industry of the country in all its
branches have flowed from the operation of reduc-
ing the currency to its ancient standard, yet as the
country has now laboured through the difficulty,
who would desire that all this labour should
have been endured in vain, and compel the
country at some future day to work again through
the same sea of distress and peril? The ominous
presence of so wild a scheme in Mr. Thurtell's
series of Resolutions induced Lord Albermarle
to substitute another series, complaining of the
grievous burden of taxation, and proposing a Pe-
tition to Parliament for the repeal or reduction
of certain taxes therein specified. This series
of Resolutions was finally adopted, and a Pe-
tition to Parliament founded upon them was
submitted to the meeting, and ordered to
be presented. We hope that the example
of the county of Norfolk will be very generally
followed .throughout the country. The notion
that Parliament has the power of granting any
relief to the farmers but by the reduction of taxes
is dangerously fallacious. Much more has been
done under the pretence of protecting the pro-
duce of our own soil than ought to have been
done, but it has shewn that the utmost power of
Parliament is unequal to the task of adding one
shilling to the present prices. Parliament, how-
ever, can effect a great deal for the general wel-
fare, by compelling the Ministers to reduce their
present enormous establishment, by simplify-
ing the general system of our finances, and by
repealing taxes to a considerable amount. No
expenditure ought to be endured by Parliament
that exceeded 12,000,q00/. beyond the charges
upon the Consolidated Fund. We .night then
have an operative Sinking Fund of about eight
millions annually, and an immediate
,relief might
be extended to the country by a remission of the
taxes upon ailicles of primary necessity.

[NEW TIMES.
The Paris Papers contain no more details of
the conspiracies of Saumur and Belfort ; and
indeed they appear in themselves to have been
of very trivial import. They may, however, be
taken as an evidence of the existence of a cen-
tral point of unio❑ connecting the movements of
the disaffected in the various parts of France.
The people of France are weary of Revolu-
tions; but there are a few evil-disposed indi-
viduals who are never weary of ill-doing, and
whose rage must be particularly excited by see-
ing the Throne at length surrounded with
Royalists. The correct remark of M. Fievee, in
January 1815, should never be forgotten—" In
whatever way the Revolution may have been
modified, there has been for the last six and
twenty years, only one conspiracy, going always
to the same mark, with a perseverance that no-
thing can fatigue, and an address that nothing

can disconcert. " It is more skilful and
stronger now than it was in 1789—more skil-
ful, because it has had more experience—and
stronger on account of the extreme weakness of
those who should destroy it, but who do not
even know what destroying it means." The 20th
of March soon came to confirm this remark in
1815, and no one could doubt the weakness
of so disunited a Ministry as that which thew
existed ; but the case is widely different now.
At least, we trust, that if a new 20th of March
should be attempted, the Royalist Ministry
would be found as vigilant as they are firm
and united. They have abundant force at
their disposal; for in addition to a fine, and, we
believe, with few exceptions, a loyal army,
Vendee alone would, at a stamp of the foot,
send forth 80,000 melt in arms. Those brave
men most wisely resisted the treacherous pro-
posal for disarming them, which was made two
or three years ago, although those who laid the
scheme had the further art to persuade a Bour-
bon Prince to make the demand—" No, my
Prince," was in substance the answer ; " we
took up our arms for you, and we will retain them
for ourselves."