The Sun.
London, England, 1841-12-24 00:00:00

SUMMARY OF NEWS

AND
Vtibltt optittott.

" Who runs may read."

FOREIGN. •
The Paris Papers of Wednesday report that M. B—,
a banker at Mons, has stopped payment and absconded.
It is supposed that he fled to England.
In the absence of more stirring topics, the reduction
of the French Marine occupies the Paris Journals of
Wednesday. The _Debuts approves of the reduction of
the navy in time of peace, in order to facilitate the opera-
tions of merchants and ship-owners. The Constitutionnel,
on the contrary, contends that the navy ought never to
be reduced, as seamen in merchant vessels lose the habit
of discipline, and are subsequently useless for Govern-
ment ships. The history of every naval war proves the
fallacy of this assertion.

The Spanish Government, finding that the number of
churches within the kingdom is too numerous and un-
suited to the condition of the inhabitants, has issued a
decree enjoining the Bishops to make snch unions of
parishes within their dioceses, as may be consistent with
the population and the due administration of divine ser-
vice. This measure is to be carried into execution in
the course of two months after the observations on this
subject of the provincial deputations and the Ayunta-
mientos shall have been heard, Of course the Pope will
oppose this salutary measure of reform, and thus the
breach between Espartero and the Holy See will be
widened. Here is a new theme for O'Connell vituperation.

PUBLIC OPINION.
The Morning Advertiser thus refers to the successful
struggle for the Ward of Farringdon Within :—" It will
be seen that this ward has nobly done its duty. Every
man returned will support the ward in calling for the
abolition of the Corn-laws. There were four new can-

didates, all Corn-law repeaters ; two of them succeeded,
and the other two only tailed in consequence of previous
members who had wavered, or claimed the right to
consider the case when brought before them,' having
found it expedient to make up their minds, aye,' or
no.' They said, aye' for the repeal. Mr. Hartley, to
prevent mistake, it seems, was not only required to say
aye, if he wished those votes which alone gained him
his re-election, but to put that pledge in black and
white ;' whereupon he got the deciding, votes of the good
men and true of Blackfriars. It was added that such
document was at any moment forthcoming I As to men
talking about their taking matters into consideration
when they are brought forward, that is only a cloak for
deception ; as Mr. Ashurst said, every Common Coun-
cilman's vote was the ward's, and the ward had a right
to it. Mr. Hartley was not the only man, who, during the
ward elections, found it right to recognise such doctrine."
In a leading article suggested by Mr. Christopher's
address to his constituents at Lincoln, the Morning
Chronicle remarks as follows :—" It is plain, at first
sight, that one part of this plan bears more hardly on
the consumer than even the present system. The far-
mer's price of wheat is substituted for the salesman's in
taking the averages. At present, whatever the middle-
men obtain in the shape of profit, augments the con-
sumer's chance of open ports and subsequently reduced
prices. If the averages be fradulently raised; the cost to
the consumer is not proportionally enhanced ; and when
foreign corn is thereby let into the market, the consumer
enjoys a proportionate reduction. Of all this benefit Mr.
Christopher proposes to deprive the public. We shall
probably not overrate the effect by assuming that it will
add five per cent. to the averages. His scale is, by that
difference, higher than it seems as compared with the
present scale. This is a quiet mode of giving the screw a
twist harder, while pretending to relax its pressure. 0,
Christopher° Sly !' "
The Times says :—" In no department of the public
service has the unscrupulous partisanship of the -Whigs
been more disgracefully and injuriously exercised than
in the hallowed temple of justice. From the highest
offices of the bench, one of which they offered to
O'Connell, down to the humbler provincial Magistracy,
among whom they associated such violent demagogues
as Frost, all the judicial patronage at their disposal,-ir-
respective of the station, character, or qualifications of
nominees, was conferred exclusively upon their own po-
litical creatures. Forgetful of the example set them by
the successive Administrations of Mr. Canning, Lord Go-
derich, and the Duke of Wellington, during which several
Whig barristers, especially in Scotland, were promoted to
the highest legal stations—the late Government, inca-
pable of such laudable impartiality, not only sacrificed
the interests of public justice to the advancement of their
electioneering hacks (as in the sheriffships of Banff
and Selkirk), but, while incessantly active in dis-
missing ConservativeLord-Lieutenants, and in excluding
every Conservative gentleman from the Commission of
the Peace, infested the boroughs and cities of the em-
pire with a swarm of Liberal Magistrates after their own
heart."—When the Times talks of the temple of justice
having been profaned by the Whigs, it seems to forget
how that august temple was profaned by the Tories
during their long misgovernment of Ireland, when
Judges were notorious partisans, and justice was made
subservient to the purposes of faction. The less the
Times says on this subject the better.
The Herald refers in the following terms to Mr.
Christopher's recent speech to his Lincolnshire consti-
tuents :—" The speech delivered by Mr. Christopher,
M.P. for Lincolnshire, to his constituents, on Friday last,
which we gave in yesterday's Herald, is chiefly valuable
as demonstrative of the willingness of the landed interest
to make reasonable concessions in the amendment of the
law regulatine• the importation of foreign grain, to which
the House of Commons stands pledged. The suggested
alterations are doubtless in themselves important, but the
supposition that they are to be accepted as indications of
what may be expected from the Conservative Govern-
ment, is ridiculous. Mr. Christopher most cautiously
guarded against such an inference being drawn from the
connection which exists between himself and the Duke
of Buckingham ; he denounced the insinuation that he
acted as pilot balloon' to Sir Robert Peel as ' base and
unworthy.' "
We quote the following from the Leeds Mercury :
" We perceive that there is great activity in various offi-
cial departments in London, in the preparation of re-
turns to prove the national prosperity; it is therefore the
more desirable that facts should be supplied from the
manufacturing and commercial districts, showing the
forms in which that prosperity displays itself here, such
as unoccupied mills, unemployed workmen, insolvent'
tradesmen, depreciated machinery, low wages, and a
greatly diminished consumption of the necessaries and
comforts of life !"

Speaking of an approaching repeal demonstration at
Kells, the Dublin Pilot remarks: —" As to the extent of
the sentiment in favour of repeal, its character and de-
gree, a wise Government, knowing that to coerce public
opinion is dangerous, and to despise it weak, will itself
study the public voice, that, ascertaining the depth, and
intensity of the sentiment, it may wisely give it a direc-
tion through justice, less congenial, perhaps, to tke peo-
ple, but mare comfortable to the dispositions of its rulers.
Insane Governments resist public opinion, while wise
Governments modify it."
The Nottingham Review thus alludes in general terms
to the present state of the country :—" How gladly
should we advert to some other topic than that of the
distress of the times, but we hear the cry from every
side, and being convinced that unless the public voice
can reach the marble hearts of our aristocratical rulers,
one common ruin will speedily pervade this great em-
pire, we feel it our duty again and again to call the at-
tention of every class of our readers to the calamities
which are impending over our beloved country, in one
determined effort to turn aside the fatal blow."
The Plymouth Journal observes, in an article suggested
by the late great commercial meetings:—" The great
meeting of the cotton trade at Manchester was, as might
be expected, an important one, and exhibited a sad state
of diminished trade and prevailing distress. The con-
sumption of cotton wool has much declined, and is les-
sening. It is stated to be 150,000 bales less this year
than the past. Profits absolutely gone. The single fact,
that during the last twenty years we have doubled the
quantity of our exports, without increasing their value,
shows at once that the sources of manufacturing wealth
have been indeed exported from our shores."
MONMIT—TRADE—COMMERCE.

Last night a public meeting of the skein silk dye trade
was held in Whitechapel, to devise the means of relieving
the alarining distress that prevails in that branch of the
silk trade. A Committee of seven was appointed to col-
lect funds, and to co-operate with the weavers generally.
The exportation to London of rabbits from France
amounts to some thousands weekly, but they are in-
ferior to the English. American venison has also
become an artiale of importation to this country.
At the close of the poll yesterday for the Ward of
Farringdon Within, it was announced that all the suc-
cessful candidates (fourteen in number), had declared
against the Corn-laws. In several other Wards the same
strong feeling prevailed respecting this obnoxious tax.
By a letter from one of the largest iron-masters in
Wales, it seems that they consider the worst period of
depression is past, and that an improvement in the iron
trade may be shortly expected.
COMMERCIAL razroßm.

At a meeting held on Wednesday, at Stoke-Newing-
ton, Mr. Scoble, the Secretary to the Anti-Slavery
Society, in the course of his lepture showed that the
Duke of Buckingham, the Right Hon. Henry Goulburn,
and other Corn-law upholders, were slave-owners prior
to the abolition of the nefarious traffic of slavery.
PUBLXC IMPROVEMENTS. _ _

A petition wasyesterday iresented to her Majesty'
numerously signed by the most respectable inhabitants
of the metropolis, praying for a commutation of the im-
posts on Waterloo, Southwark, and Vauxhall-bridges,
for the benefit of the public.
ECCLESZASTZCAL.

Two additionaldo;;;;;;;;;;;;; erected an the
outside of the massy doors under the portico-entrance of
the north end of St. Paul's Cathedral, in order to pre-
vent the disturbance formerly occasioned to the service
by the opening and shutting of the old doors.

NAVAL AND MIZITATLY.
The whole number of vessels now in commission ai
Portsmouth is 259, which are all to be distributed at dif-
ferent stations abroad.

_ ___
LAW AND POLICE,
Sir Herbert Jenner gave judgment yesterday at the
Prerogative Court in the case of Godrich v. Jones, which

turned upon the assumed invalidity of a will, dated Feb.
13, 1836, which Mr. Godrich was stated to have obtained
by undue influence over Mrs. Harriet Lloyd, a maiden
lady of large property. The conduct of Mr. Godrich
was, for the most part, free from blame ; the Court.
however, in pronouncing for the will, refrained from
giving an order as to costs.
Mr. Laurie, who is candidate for the City Pleader-
ship, is author of treatises on the use and abuse of grand
juries, and on prison discipline. As a Middlesex Ma-
gistrate, he co-operated in urging the adoption of the
non-restraint system at the Hanwell Lunatic Asylum.
This morning William Hagger, a young man, respect-

able in appearance, hilt who has been tried five times
before at the Central Criminal Court for felony, was
again charged at Marlborough-street, with having a dress
coat in his possession for which he could give' no ac-
count. He was remanded.

J. A. Hoffstacott, a bankrupt, who had refused, at his
last examinafion, to be sworn, alleging that he was a
Roman Catholic, was again brought up, to state his rea-
sons for so doing. He still tenaciously refused, upon
scripture grouncs to swear, upon which the Commis-
sioner re-committed him to the Queen's Bench prison,
remarking that when he altered his opinioi he might
apply to the Court again.