The Sun.
London, England, 1841-12-31 00:00:00

- GREENWICH POLICE.
Wednesday Mr. Walford, the medical attendant of Mrs.
Maria Robinson, attended before Mr. Jeremy, agreeably
to the Magistrate's desire, to give evidence in the charge
made against W. Robinson of having administered poison
to his wife.

The prisoner was not placed at the bar, the Magistrate
remanding the case until Monday, but in consequence of
the low state in which Mrs. Robinson was described to
be, Mr. Jeremy proceeded to the house of the unfortunate
woman, in North Pole-place, Greenwich. In answer to
the question of the Magistrate, she stated that her hus-
band had made her some gin and water on the Sunday,
telling her it would compose her. He boiled the water
in a saucepan on the fire, and put the gin in afterwards.
As soon as she tasted it she discovered a singular taste
in the mixture, which caused her to inquire, " What is
this ?" The prisoner made no answer, but shortly left
the room, when she contrived to get up and lock the
liquid in a drawer. It was afterwards shown by her sister
to Mr. Riches.

Mr. JEREMY inquired who took the cup to Mr. Riches.
Mrs. Robinson, who answered with great difficulty,
replied that Mr. Whetherhall, the landlord of the house,
emptied the contents of the saucepan into a cup, and sent
his daughter with it to Mr. Riches.
Mrs. Robinson further declared, that she believed she
should not recover from her illness, and with this con-
viction upon her mind, and the knowledge that she must
soon appear before God, she could affirm with truth that
what she had stated of the matter was correct.
Mr. JEREMY told her he did not wish unnecessarily
to distress her, but it would be necessary for the ends of
justice that she should swear to the truth of her state-
ment in the presence of the prisoner. The Magistrate
then left the house, postponing the further examination
of the case until Monday.

CORONER'S INQUEST.
An inquest was held yesterday at the Globe, New
Compton-street, Soho, on the body of Milanie Excof-
fon, aged 14 years.
Francois Excoffon, joiner, of 20, St. Martin's.court,
Leicester-square, a native of Switzerland, was exa-
mined through the medium of an interpreter, and
stated that the deceased was his daughter. She went
with him, about three o'clock on Sunday afternoon, to
73, New Compton-street, for some of his tools which
he bad left in the kitchen. Whilst he was collecting
his tools the deceased drank something out of a bottle
which she had taken out of a drawer, and immediately
after complained of a burning pain in her stomach.
He gave her some water, and she became sick and fell
on the floor. He then tasted what was in the bottle,
and shortly afterwards fell down in a state of insensibi-
lity. He had since been informed that the bottle con-
tained essential oil of bitter almonds.
Francois Gravies, of 12, John-street, Hackney-fields,
gardener, stated that he called at 73, New Compton-
street, about half-past three o'clock on Sunday after-
noon, and after having tappet twice at the window, ho
looked into the kitchen, and saw the last witness craw-
ing on his bands and knees towards the door, which
was opened by a young woman. On going into the
kitchen he sass the deceased lying on the floor. She
was quite dead, and her father was lying near her in a
state of insensibility. He was immediately taken to
Charing-cross Hospital, and did not recover his sense:
until Monday evening. Verdict—" Died from having
incautiously taken essential oil of bitter almonds."

MANUFACTURERS VERSUS LAND
0 WNERS.

Mr. Cobden has addressed a letter to the manufac-
urers, mill-owners, and other capitalists, of every shade
of political opinion, engaged in the various branches of
the cotton trade, in the district of which Manchester is
the eentre, of which the following is a copious extract:—
" You have been compelled to adjust the price of la-
bour to the market price of its products ; in other
words, you have reduced the wages of your operatives,
in consequence of the diminished value of your manufac-
tures. However deeply to be regretted, this is not to
me an unexpected occurrence ; for when I look around
and find that many employers are ruined, and that
the remainder have been carrying on their business for
some years at a sacrifice, I know that great privations
and sufferings must in consequence fall upon the
working population. Still, you have had to per-
form an irksome and distressing task—one, too, that
always entails, however undeservedly, a large amount
of odium on a master. Through your agency
the incomes of your dependants have been curtailed,
a diminution of their comforts must follow, even a
restriction in the quantity of their food will in some
cases be the consequence ; whilst young children, de-
prived of education, will be forced to labour still more
prematurely to eke out the pittance of their parents.
Contentment and cheerfulness will, thus be banished
fr. m your industrious neighbours' homes, and they will
ba filled with sorrow and disaffeetjoatt.. I -kaow that
you are not the willing, or. tbe interested authors .of
these evils. I know that, as a class, your sufferings
are as severe as those of the working population, and
that the interests of both are indissoluble. So far from
low wages being the concomitant of high profits, your
greatest prosperity has always been accompanied with
the most liberal and satisfactory remuneration of your
workpeople. Since 1835, the scale of earnings has
been considerably reduced ; would you not gladly ex-
change your present trade for the business and wages
of the above year ?
But, still, let me press upon your attention the fact
that you are made the involuntary instruments of in-
dicting great privations and sufferings upon your work-
people ; and itis on this ground that I venture to en-
treat you to institute an inquiry, in the same calm,
business-like spirit, and the same absence of partisan-
ship with which you regulate the wages of your opera-
tives, into the remote causes which force you to a re-
duction of wages. I beg that you will analyze the
meaning of this word "protection ;" and the two ques-
tions which I would in the first place submit for your
consideration are—What protection have the cotton
spinners and manufacturers by law for the prices of
their productions? and what legal protection have the
operatives for the value of their labour? Your whole
case depends upon the answers to these questions ; and
Lord Stanley answered them at Lancaster, by admit-
ting that you have no protection. He added, more-
over, that " the cotton trade required no protection."
There his Lordship was in error.; for you will find that
it requires to be protected against that system of legis-
lation which cripples it with restrictions and prohibi-
tions, and taxes the food of its operatives, for the pro-
tection of the proprietors of farming land. It needs
only this protection to ensure its prosperity.
During the last four years, bread and provisions have
been dearer than for any similar consecutive period for
a quarter of a century, and, whilst the value of agri-
cultural lands and rents have been rising in proportion,
your fixed capital has depreciated in value nearly one
half, the wages of labour have suffered a diminution,
and great numbers of the operatives are now unem-
ployed. Take an individual instance of the depre-
ciation in the value of property in Stockport. I
allude to the case of Mr. ----, with which some
of you are familiar. After thirty years of incessant
industry, ho had accumulated property in mills,
machinery, houses, cottages, and building land, esti-
mated six years ago at tl,e value of upwards of 100,0001.
He is now penniless. The property had been ,mort-
gaged for 1.5,000/., and such is its depreciation, that it
is doubtful if the mortgagee could at this moment be
fully repaid. Had that capital been invested in farm-
ing land, its value would have been sustained by Act of
Parliament. But I put it to you, gentlemen, in the face
of these facts, what protection has the manufacturer or
spinner ?

do not expect that the advocates of the food mono-
poly will in future urge the argument, that land is ex-
clusively and unduly taxed, for-it has led to the develop-
ment of facts which they would have done wisely to
have concealed. Let me, however, recommend one item
for your consideration. The land-tax* in England, the
only direct and exclusive impost paid by our landowners,
amounts to about 1,200,0001. per annum, and, including
the amount redeemed, it forms only a thirtieth of our
whole taxation ; whilst in France, Austria, Prussia, and
Italy the land contributes one-half of the entire reve-
nue, and if the landowners of this kingdom were the
proprietors of oblates of equal value in either of those
countries, they would be taxed at least twenty millions
sterling a year for the service of the State. You will
find, on investigation, that, so far from the landed pro-
prietors of England being more heavily taxed than the
manufacturing population, "no other country in Eu-
rope," to quote the words of Mr. Huskissoo, " has so
large a proportion Of its taxation bearing directly upon
the incomes of labour and productive capital." Why,
thee, should not the British agriculturist be equally
able now, as seventy years ago, to compete with the
foreigner, provided his rent should be fully adjusted ?
Why should it not be as much in,his power as yours to
meet competition abroad, seeing that you are the more
heavily taxed of the two ?
But be is no longer called upon to seek his customers
abroad. Recollect that the owners of farming land in
this country have the enviable advantage of possessing
a market for their produce at their own doors, whereas
their foreign competitors must.pay, on an average, 10g.
a quarter for freight and expenses, before they can land
their grain upon our shores..
On the other hand, bear in mind that you are
obliged to send abroad -three-fourths of the cotton spun
and inanufactured, because you cannot find a market for
it at home. You are compelled to meet your foreign
rivals at their own doors, after paying freight, expenses,
and their import duty.
Again, do not forget that the goods you sell in the
home market are purchased by the landowners at the

* Properly speaking, there is no tax upon the land of
this country. Ihe land-tax, so called, is merely a rent-
charge payable to the State, in commutation of services
previously rendered to the Crown. The land-tax is a
condition of the tenure of land in this country.

the pony, and without provocation on the poor animal's
part, suddenly commenced belabouring it with the besom •
handle, nor did he cease until one of those blows de-
prived the poor animal of part of its sight by bursting
the ball of the left eye.
Mr. Avis said he would not take 100 guineas for the
pony ; the defendant knew his extreme partiality for the
animal, and he thought he must have done it to spite him.
Mr. PAYNTER fined him 20s. and costs.—The fine was
immediately paid. _ _