The Sun.
London, England, 1847-04-22 00:00:00

VAN DIEMEN'S LAND.

Some of the Van Diemen's Land press are indignant
at the descriptions with which the Sydney papers teem
of the condition of society, and particularly at the con-
victs in the island.

At Ross the police and the military have come into
serious though accidental collision. Three of each had
been sent in separate parties into the woods to seek for
three armed bushrangers, and meeting each other in
the dark, mutually supposed they had come across the
thieves. The consequence was that one of the soldiers
was shot through the brain, but the flash from the po-
liceman's piece afforded sufficient light to convince both
parties of their mistake, and the lives of the remainder
were preserved.

HOBART TOWN MARKETS, Nov. 20.—Wheat, 4s. 6d.
to 4s. 9d., few purchasers ; fine flour, 11/. per ton ; best
bread, 3d. the 21b. loaf. Ewes, 10s. 6d. to 135., a mixed
lot of 470 just sold at 75., 500 imported sheep sold at
1 ls. 6d. cash. Working bullocks 141. 10s. per pair. Stall-
fed cattle unsaleable. Horses in little demand.
LAUNCESTON, Nov. 23.—N0 buyers of wheat beyond
4s.per bushel, and then only for immediate consumption.

ALARMING FIRE IN GREEK-STREET, SOIIO.-
Tuesday night, about ten o'clock, a fire that created considera-
ble alarm broke out in the extensive pile of buildings situate
at 59, Greek-street, Soho-square, occupied by Mr. Rogers,
a carver and gilder; Mr. Pierson, a cabinet-maker; Mr.
James Walby, a boilerand steam-apparatus manufacturer, and
Mr. W. Joelman, a schoolmaster; the Jews' Indigent School
was also held on one of the floors. It appears that the
fire was first perceived by one of the neighbours raging in
the fourth floor, tenanted by Mr. Rogers. An instant
alarm was spread, and intelligence was sent to the engine-
stations; but before a single engine bad time to arrive the
flames had penetrated to the roof, and they were ascending a
considerable height. The various engines of the London
brigade, St. Ann's parish, the County, and West of England
office, arrived at the scene in rapid succession, and plenty
of water being at hand, about half-a- dozen of the machines
were called into acquisition, but owing to the immense size
of the premises, it was with great difficulty that the firemen
could find out the exact seat of the flames, meanwhile the
fire continued to progress, and very speedily it travelled
round the whole of the floor, doing serious damage to a vast
number of valuable frames and pieces of ancient carving.
Some of the latter articles were stated, by one of the work-
men, to belong to Lord Erskine and ether noblemen. The
firemen, by dint of great exertions, succeeded in getting tk‘ t
flatne3 subdued by half-past eleven o'clock, but not until
very serious damage was done to Mr. Roger's stock in trade
by fire and water. The roof is likewise partially burned off,
and the whole of the lower floors are saturated with water.
The stock of Mr. Pierson is likewise extensively damaged,
and so are the Jews' school, and Mr. Joelman's academy.
It could not be ascertained how the fire originated ; the
workmen all left their employment at nine o'clock, at which
hour the building was locked up, when it appeared per-
fectly free from fire. None of the parties, it is believed, are
insured.

THE GOVERNMENT MEASURE OF E
transpiredp ucA io rrt .h7t
INCONSISTENCY OF ITS OPPONENTS.—It
an attempt is being made to coerce
with his con-
the view of causing him to vote at variancell;Prs Ord, M.P., with
A few of the dissent-
victions upon the education question.
seems, about to assure that
ing voters of the town are, it
gentleman that unless he votes to please them, they will not
be answerable for the consequences. In other words, they
very politely inform
t,lmt ho is to vote on this
question solely as their delegate, delegate, not as the responsi-
ble representative of a great community. Such is
the idea of duty and tolerance which the parties
to whom we refer seek to realise. They denounce
domination in religious matters, yet strive to be tyrannical.
They profess to be the friends of freedom of conscience, and
yet presume to trample upon it in their dealings with others.
They talk loudly of right and liberty, and despise both to
accomplish a purpose. They arraign the inquisition of former
times, and themselves become ingnisitors. They detest dic-
tation, and would become dictators. Are these the repre-
sentatives of modern Nonconformity—the champions of right
against might—the enemies of State interference—the advo-
cates of freedom of thought andunshackled action ? Alas! no.
In the name of the principles they violate, and the profes-
sions they disgrace, we protest against them being considered
types of the Dissenters of Newcastle. They are exceptions,
few end weak, and must not be confounded with the body
from which they spring.—Newcastle Advertiser.
GLASGOW COTTON MARKET.—APRIL 16.—The
trade have been buying to a fair extent this week, and
prices have been gradually on the advance. To-day the
American accounts have been received, and from the low es-
timates of the crop, &c., holders have raised their prices from
}I to i itt American and 6arat...Naiionalddvertiser•

Mr. Bromneil, of Liverpool, was the next witness,
lie was examined by Mr. Ricardo—Witness was a
member of the firm of Brownell and Co., South
America merchants. lie had experienced consider•
able inconvenience in the South American trade re-
sulting from the navigation-laws ; especially in the
importation of copper ore, from the difficulty
of meeting with vessels to bring the ore home, and
also from the differential duties, and in consequence of
their not being allowed to employ foreign vessels to
bring the ore to England, which vessels took the ore to
the United States, liamburgh, Sweden, and France, and
other p 1 ices, there to smelt it, thereby diminishing our
means of getting returns for British manufactures. Before
the alteration in the custom-house arrangements, the
copper ore was brought to England in foreign ships in
the great majority of cases. In one year, of eleven
vessels his firm employed to bring copper ore to Eng-
land, ten were foreigners. The following was a state-
ment of the importation of copper ore since 1839. In
1839, it was 12,193 tons; in 1840, 9,133 tons ; in 1841,
10,819 tons ; in 1842, 10,186 tons ; in 1543, 12,693 tons;
in 1844, 19,363 tons ; in 1805, 10,302 tons ; in 1846,
10,824 tons. The great increase apparent in the years
1844 and 1845 he ace,unteci for by the great efforts made
in those years by the miners to repay the loans advanced
by the English merchants. The system under which
the mines were worked in that country for years had
been, that the merchants advanced large sums of money
for the purpose, which were repaid in produce. The
repayment of those loans had necessarily been a very
tedious operation. As soon as those loans were repaid,
no more copper ore would be imported into this country
from Chili. It would be smelted in Chili for England.
From his experience ho believed that the trade would fail
altogether. It was falling off in► the importation of ore,
and increasing in the copper. In 1842, it amounted to
309 tons, in 1843, to 127 tons ; in this year most of the
furnaces in Chili were allowed to go to ruin, and the ore
was brought to England to smelt. In 1814, when the
duty began to take effect, the importation of copper
amounted to 1,401 tons, and it was now greatly on the
Increase ; so much so, that a sale was held very lately in
Liverpool, of 130 tons of copper in one lot, a circum-
stance never heard of before. The Chilian authorities
had done everything to increase the smelting trade in
Chili. They had admitted coal duty free, they admitted
British vessels into their minor ports, allowed the export
of manufactured copper free of duty, and had altered
their navigation laws as respected the coasting trade.
He thought that the trade in guano, bark, wool, dye
woods, and nitrate of soda, the chiet articles of trade
from Chili, would be affected the same way as the copper
ore. He considered that our merchants were very much
hindered by the navigation laws. The Chiliaus gave
every possible facility to our trade.
By Sir Robert Peel—The increase in the importation
of ore in the two years imme:liately after the operation
of the change was in consequence of the increased ex-
ertions made by the miners to repay the loans advanced
by the British merchants. The copper ore imported in
those years was not in the natural course of trade.

By Sir George Clerk—The average rate of freights in
1840 was 41 16s. a ton, in 1842 it was 5/. Os. 6d., in
1843 it was 4/. 45., and in 1844, though exclusively con-
fined to British ships, it was only 2/. 19s. 9d.; in 1845
it was about the same, and during the last year the
average had been very nearly 5/.
By Sir R. Peel—Copper ore was imported also from
Cuba and Australia. The quantity imported from
South America did not amount to half the whole im-
portation. _

The next witness called was Mr. Budd, a gentleman
engaged in the smelting trade. Ile was exanined
By Mr. Ricardo—He was a merchant engaged in the
smelting trade in Swansea. His trade had fallen off
very considerably since the alteration in the Custom-
house regulations with regard to the importation of
copper ore. The consumption of copper had increased
very largely indeed. The smelting trade had been
drawn away from this country. There had been no
falling off in the produce of British ore. This country
produced more copper ore than it consumed. For-
merly, the smelting trade, with the exception of a few
works in Germany, one in Norway, and one in Sweden,
was confined entirely to this country. Since 1842, the
smelting had been carried on to a great extent in the
United States, in South America, in France, and in
Hamburg. In the two latter places they used English
coal for the purpose of smelting. Coal from Newcastle
wonld not be so dear in Hamburgh as in the neighbour-
hood of London. At this moment there was not a suffi-
cient supply of copper to meet the demand. The con-
sumption had increased of late years, while the im-
portation had decreased. Occasionally freights from
South America had been very high, but last year they
were very low, in consequence of a glut of ships that
had been enticed there from other ports by the prospect
of high freights. It was better to have a moderate
supply of shipping at fair rates, than to have a large
quantity at low freights at one time, and a small quan-
tity at high freights at another. The injury be expe-
rienced by the navigation l,.ws was, that they were pre-
vented from employing foreign ships to bring home the
copper ore at lower freights than the English vessels,
which had enabled foreign countries, France, Hamburg,
atmuch lower freights
17d 1
nt Sweden,
foitur o'clock k
to receiveh
could
Iboec retcevedeoipapr oretehscountry.
committee adjourned.

The Cologne Gazette gives as follows the obser-
vations addressed by the King of Prussia, on the 12th, to
the different States of the Diet, before the party sat down
to dinner :—" Ist. To the Deputies of the Province of Pru's's,
—.' Your province bears in a double sense the name of
Prussia. You are the root of the monarchy, the country
in which my ancestors have always found devotedness
and affection. Your influence over the United Diet
will serve as an example for others. What you
will do will have a double importance ; if you sup-
port the Crown it will be invulnerable ; if you shake
the throne it will be in danger. Great responsibility
falls on you. My confidence in you is not weakened, and
you will justify it.' 2d. To the beputies 9firrearafidelity
• The Pomeranians have always had for their
this decisive
e They will now in this
worthy of eulogium.
anda Governor,o
the Prince of
mo-
mentofcournesmela,iniffayiotuhfuhlavtoe tahneyir threasdititino.nso.,
lc(
refer
ru
youh have et 0 needmy
friend and brother, your Dukes
ofPosen,_
' Your province
Prussia.' 3d. To the Deputies
and to
uponyou
t3h,
om4et
ti nhhtc.
eoh
aTrduot
rnyotefhautesphi uneasiness, much
kingdom,
deuos cmohf,
ed
depend the ears
unhappiness—it m
has'caused both to me
: —' Your province
and is also nearest my heart. The unique and traditionalre-
c Brandenburg many of your fe 1I o wl-cit ize s
is. '
jTeowetlheefSimie3s,iacnrso:Z.slYt).
lation between you and me has never been disturbed. You
have always been good and dear children to me. lam con-
fident that you will now be what you have ever been.' sth.
preponderant
:t)tleNth.
heeiirsgoi
risiavgt
.ghyprtoeeluaasrtresiela:roll
scale.'
roYour::l\soNr
e,n seek
aPkeer provincen:f3
balancetmhaa int e i manyt3,
your
uokuli
rinagdvdtelotamy yourselves
intoand richer
precious
tt r iii c.
will
the Saxons : —' You, Saxons, never gave me any cause
of uneasiness. You have been always faithful and devoted.
You will be so again this time.' 7th. To the Westphalians :
--` Your province is proud to form the finest and most noble
race of Germany: the most noble primitive quality of the
Germans is fidelity. i hope that you will prove that you are
the true children of :your fathers.' Bth. To the Rhenish
provinces :—' Now to you, my dear Rhenish provinces, a cor-
dial word. You are aware that for a long time past I have
loved to see myself amongst you. You are nearest to my
heart ; I count particularly on you in the great work that
we are about to undertake. Hitherto all our deliberations
give proof of a great Parliamentary act, and an unalterable
sentiment of propriety. You have surpassed in political
education my other states. I count firmly on you ; your
good example points out to them the real path. All my
heart is attached to the Rhine ; near you I am at home, and
I am firmly convinced that you will justify my confidence."
GLASGOW PIG IRON TRADE.—To-day prices still
advanced, and although quotations cannot be given much
higher, we nevertheless believe that the beginning of a con-
siderable rise has taken place. The accounts received to-day
per the Hibernia, are very satisfactory; as also the favour-
able prospects of an increased trade with France. Prices we
would quote for tomorrow at 725. mixed Nos., and from
appearances little offering. Indeed, the late exportation!
have made pig iron scarce in the market; and at praseat
there are more buyers than sellers.—.Natioosal Advertiser.