The Sun.
London, England, 1841-06-14 00:00:00

FRENCH COD FISHERY.

The following statistical account of the cod fishery of
France, is given in the Constitutionnel :—" The cod-
fishery employs annually 400 French ships, measuring
together 50,000 tons, and manned by 11,000 sailors;
also 200 transports or coasting vessels, -.vith 2,000 sailors;
so that it maintains 600 ships, and 13,000 men. France
possesses 305• inyriametres, or about 450 leagues, of
r coast; and there wawa time when the French fishery on
the banki'et NeWfoundland was sufficiently extensive
'to supply nearly the wants of all Europe, and for manning:
the7whole of the:French navy. But in consequenCe of
the treaty of Utrecht. in 1713, that of Vervins in 1783,
and thetession- of Canada, France was reduced to..,the
Confined right of .fishing on the eastern and western
coasts of the island, of Newfoundland, vithout the power
of eStablishing•Any npen,
except- such huts and scaffolding as are absolutely neces-
I.Sary for drying and curing the fish. Under such circum-
stances, it iscvident that Frinice can,neyer eonne.P wigt.
the .English fishermen, who have fixettresidencespn the
(w with these; of America, wh& haVe'theladvaif-
ta:ge of being Clese to their own shores.As sh.rlrers
•f•ot, her ships; she possesses only the mill islands of St
Pierre and Miquelon, presenting lint hare reeks, which
. .
;must be constantly supplied from ,witheut • with every'
:necessary, even fire-wood. Thel.inahitenance of the
French fishery, therefore, depends upon. the e.neouritge-.
inent itteceives from!' the Government. otherwise it would
almost cease to exist, and a nursery .for 13,000 sailorS
would be obliterated: In 1793 the French lists-of, able sea-
men contained 100,000 men. In 1815 the number was re-
duced to 83,000. In 1836 it increased to 90,511, and in
1840 to 98,706. This augmentation has been derived
chiefly from the expansion of the cod-fishery, which in
consequence of the encouragement it has received, in-
creased from 30,584 tons and 8,108 men, in 1816, to
54,995 tons and 11,499 men in 1839. Besides the ships
expressly fitted out for the fishery, there are between 60
and 80 other vessels employed in conveying. cargoes of
cod from the banks to the colonies. There is likewise
a number of transports engaged in carrying between
25,000,000 and 30,000,000 kilogrammes (50,000,000
and 60,000,0001 b.) of salt, and also pitch, flour, and'
all the other necessary provisions for 13,000 men
during eight months of the year. 'This keeps an-
nually employed about 50,000 tons of shipping. It
may be said, therefore, without exaggeration, that the
cod fisheries furnish France with 12,030 able seamen,
being nearly one-fourth of the whole number required
for her navy, but at the same time insufficient to man her
fleets in time of war. No other part •of her sea-going
trade could produce a similar result, as it would require
170,003 tons of colonial merchantmen to supply the.
12,000 sailors furnished by the cod fishery. The loss of
St. Domingo deprived France of the employment of
' 167,665 tons of shipping: and still her trade with that
island engaged no more than 9,8.55 men."

SPORTING INTELLIGENCE.
LATEST BETTING AT MANCHESTER-(FRIDAY).

THE NORTHUMBERLAND PLATS.

sto 2 agst tyro V Isto I agst Galaor—taken
4tol on the field I 6-to 1 agst Neptune—t. freely
20 to I agst Chantilly—taken.
DONCASTER ST. LEGER.
2 to 1 agtit Coronation 17. to 1 agst Van Amburgh

Several changes will take place at the close of the
session among the subordinate Government functiona-
ries. It is understood that the Hon. E. J. Stanley will
vacate the post of one of the Secretaries to the Trea-
sury, in which he will be succeeded by D. Le Marchant,
Esq., of the Board of Trade. Mr. J. Parker, M.P. for
Sheffield, now one of the Lords of the Treasury, will
take the place of R. More O'Ferrall, Esq., as Secretary
to the Admiralty, who succeeds Mr. 1.. Gordon, ALP.,
for Windsor, in the office of Financial Secretary to the
Treasury. A vacancy in the numbcr of the Lords of the
Treasury is thus occasioned. Some other changes ark,
we hear, contemplated, which include the Hon. E. J.
Stanley's introduction to a higher post in the Govern-
ment.