The Sun.
London, England, 1841-08-18 00:00:00

LONDON, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 16, 1841.

TO NEWSPAPER PROPRIETORS.
AGENTLEMAN who has for the last Four
Years conducted a Liberal Provincial Newspaper with
much success, wishes to form a fresh Engagement on any
Newspaper where he could make his services available. The
highest references as to character and ability can be given.
Address 7, 801,1-place, Liverpool.

ririfiE GENERAL STEAM NAVIGA-
TION COMPANY'S splendid and powerful First-class
STEAM SHIPS are appointed to SAIL from off the Custom
House, for
HAMBURG, ROTTERDAM, and OSTEND—every
Wednesday and Saturday Morning.
ANTWERP and HAVRE—every Thursday" Morning.
From Bteren's Wharf Poplar, for
EDINBURGH—every Saturday, and every alternate Wed-
nesday Evening—next Saturday, 21st, 25th, and 28th.
From Downe's Wharf, for
NEWCASTLE—every Wednesday and Saturday Evening,
at Eight.
SUNDERLAND—every Tuesday Evening, at Seven.
From London Bridge Wharf, for
CAL AlS—every Tumlay, Thursday, Saturday, and Sutday.
BOULOGNE—every Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday.
YARMOUTH—every Saturday Evening, at Six.
IPSWlCH—every Wednesday. and Saturday Morning, at
Eight.
R A MSGATE—DaiIy, at Nine Morning.
GRAVESEND—DaiIy, at. Twelve.
Between BRIGHTON and DIEPPE—Twice per week.
To secure Berths, and for all info-mation, apply at the
Offices of the Company, 69, Lombard-street ;. and 37, Re.
gent-circus.

FREEMASONS' and GENERAL LIFE
ASSURANCE, LOAN, ANNUITY, and. REVER-
SIONARY- INTEREST COMPANY, -
11, WATERLOO-PLACE, PALL MALL, LONDON.
This Office unites the benefit of a mutual association with
the security of a proprietary company, and offers to the assured,
amongst others, the following advantages :
I. Credit until death, with privilege of pahnent at any
time previously, for one half of the premiums for the first five
years upon assurances for the whole of life ; a plan peculiarly
advantageous for securing Loons.
2. Sums may be assured to become payable at given ages.
3. Policies not forfeited immediately if the premium remain
overdue; and fraud alone, not error, vitiates them.
4. Officers in the Army and Navy, and other persons resid-
ing abroad, assured upon equitable terms.
5. Immediate, Survivorship, and Deferred Annuities.
All the rates will be found to have been made upon the
lowest possible computation consistent with security.
JOSEPH BERRIDGE, Secretary.

NATIONAL LOAN FUND SOCIETY
FOR GRANTING
LIFE ASSURANCES, DEFERRED ANNUITIES, &c.
No. 2t;, CORNHILL.

Czpital £500,000.
Empowered by Act of Parliament.
EIRECTORS.
T. LAMIE MURRAY, Esq.,'Chairman.
J. Elliotnon, M.D., F. R.S. John Rawson, Esq.
John Griffith Frith, Esq. Jehn Riddell Stodart, Esq.
Hunter Gordon, Esq. Clement Tabor,, Esq.
George Langley, Esq. Joseph Thempsan, Esq.

AUDITORS.
Professor Wheatstone, F.R. S. I Professor Graves, A.M. F.R. S.
ACV/A RY---W. S. B. Weolhouse, Esq., F. R. A. S
SOLICITORS—Messrs. Sweet, Sotto'', Ew ens, and Omman-
ney, 6, Basinghall-street.

LIFE ASSURANCE.
Besides the perfect security to the policy. holder of a large
paid up capital, and accumulating funds, the following is one
amongst many of the advantages which belong exclusively to
the principles of Life Assurance and Deferred Annuities ori-
ginated by t h. Society, viz.—rower to borrow ( without de-
lay, expense, or forfeiture) Two-thirds of all premiums paid
upon a Polk}, of Assurance.

The annexed is a short Table, showing the Annual Premium
cur assuring £lOO on the Whole Life, or for a Term

FOR LIFE.
A. B.
Age. Without With For One For Five
P Mits. Profit,. Year only. Years only
- -- --- ----
£. s. d. Z. s. J. £. s. J. £. s. d.
20 1 13 7 1 1 7 4 0 17 0 0 17 6
30 2 4 4 2 9 3 0 19 6 1 0 0
40 2 13 3 3 5 3 ' 1 3.10 1 6 0
50 4 4 2 1 4 3 6 1 13 0 1 16 6
60 6 3 6 I 7 8 4 1 3 0 0 3 9 6

NAVAL GUNNERY. •
TO THE EDITOR OF 7'HE SUN.
Stn,—May I request that you will favoai:me by in-
serting in the next publication of your paper th'e enclosed
letter, addressed by me to -the Editor of the Morning
Post, at the close of last weak.
I am induced to hope you will comply with my re-
quest, because I have no other object than that of cor-
recting the erroneous impre.;ision which a part of my
speech (as reported in the Morning Post) at the dinner
given by the Navy and Marines at Portsmouth on the Gth
of August to Sir Robert' Stopford, is calculated to
produce.—l am, Sir, your obedient servant,
THOMAS HASTINGS, Captain, R.N.
Excellent, Portsmouth, Aug. 16, 1841.
TO THE EDITOR OP THE MORNING POST.
STR,—The speech I made at the dinner given to Ad-
miral Sir Robert Stopford by the Navy and Marines at
Portsmouth, on the 6th of August, 1841, on proposing
the health of Sir Charles Napier, the Captains. Officers,
Seamen, and Marines, who, so nobly supported him on
the coast of Syria, has not been correctly reported, and
there has been so entire an omission of a most important
part of it, that I feel myself called on to request that
you will publish some explanatory remarks. As head of
the gunneryestablishment, which has received such con-
stant support and liberal encouragement from the Lords
of. the Admiralty, I feel it incumbent on me to correct
this omission, and to do justice to the utmost of my
power.

I must premise that I only reached Portsmouth an
hour before the dinner on flip 6th took place ; that I did
not know I should be callcOn to propose any toast, till
I took M)% seat at table,--fttir§eLiound a -printed list of
toasts, from which it appeared that Colonel Jones, the
Commandant of the Portsmouth div Won of Royal Ma-
rines, was to have proposed the before-named toast, but,
as he was ill, his name had been erased, and mine writ-
ten down instead. I was, therefore, taken by surprise,
and if any thing in my speech can be construed to im-
ply that I meant to give Sir Howard Douglas a priority
over Sir John Pechell, in the introduction of the present
gunnery system, my words must have borne a meaning I
never intended them to convey. What I stated was that
" Sir Howard's publication, printed in 1819, introduced
the question of gunnery more generally to the notice of
the Navy."
A reference to dates will prove that the view I take of
this question is correct. In the year 1814, Sir John Pe-
chell printed a pamphlet, entitled, "Observations upon
fitting Guns on board her Majesty's Ships." It contains
full and minute instructions for doing so. The greater
part of these suggestions have • been adopted. The pam-
phlet is dated March the 6th, 1814, Bermuda, and was
officially transmitted to the Admiralty by Admiral Sir
John Borlase Warren. These papers were finally. re-
ferred to the proper Board, but were not acted upon.
On the return of the San Domingo, under the command
of Sir John Pechell to Spithead in the same year, 1814,
she was inspected by Rear-Admiral Foote, assisted by
four Captains. The official Report made by them to
Admiral Sir Richard Bickerton, the Commander-in-
Chief at Portsmouth, stated that the gunnery equipments
and training of the San Domingo were so superior to
those of her Majesty's ships in general, that they were
induced to recommend them for general adoption in the
Navy, stating that their value and efficiency had been
proved by the celerity with which the San Domingo had
been cleared for action, and the extraordinary rapidity
and precision of her lire. The Admiralty of that year
(1814,) expressed their approbation, in replying to this
official Report, through the Commander-in-Chief. 'lt is
merely an act of justice to
.record that tangent sights,
similar in principle to'those which have since been esta-
blished in the. Navy, were then fitted to the San
Domingo's guns by SirJohnPechell; that he had adopted
a planfor obtaining horizontal fire, the efficacy of
which had been shown in the actions of the Plicebe
and Shannon ; and many other methods for instruct-
ing officers and seamen in a thorough knowledge of
the management_ of their guns, which are detailed in
the pamphlet.
I shall not enter further into
.details, nor shall I
touch on what has since been done by others, because
that part of the question is fully' discussed in the
United Service Journal, for the month of September,
1839.

Shortly after Sir John Pechell's return, in the com-
mand of the San Domingo, in 1814, he proposed that one
of the guard-ships should be made a scho4l of gunnery
instruction for training officers, gunners, and seamen—
this proposal was not acceded to. In 1817 Sir Howard
Douglas transmitted his work on Naval Gunnery to the
Admiralty in MS., and in Nov:' 1819 he was authorised
to publish it. •In that work he alludes to the assistance

heh4d derived from communications on naval gunnery'
with those distinguished oilleers, Sir Philip Broke and
Sir John Peehell ; and I know and feel that both Sir

John Pechell and Sir lloward Douglas will both rejoice
to see this question fairly stated.
In 1825, Sir John I'cchell, when in command of the
Sybille, printed a second pamphlet, on the fitting of
ships' guns. In 1827 he again brought forward a pro-
posal for establishing a floating depot, or school of naval
gunnery, and presented a minute to the Lord High Ad-
miral on the necessity of extending the gunnery training,
improving the equipments, and rendering the gun exer-
cise more definite and uniform.

In 1832 he prepared and arranged the present esta-
blished exercise fur great guns in our;navy, and, finally,
in that year drew up the minute which established the
Excellent, during the administration of Sir James Graham.
In that minute he adopted some things from Sir How-
ard's book, but there can be no doubt, from a reference to
dates, that to Sir John Pechell is due the claim of priority
as well as of unwearied perseverance in working out this
great national question; though it cannot be denied, that
the good seed sown in the minds of the naval world by
'Sir Howard Douglas's publication, between the years
1819 and 1832, prepared the way for the adoption of the
important measure, which Sir John Pechell finally car-
ried in 1832.

I cannot close my remarks without stating that the
establishment of the Excellent, which was formed during
Sir James Graham's administration, has been doubled as
to the number of its officers and men, by Lord Minto
and the present Board of Admiralty, and expressing my
deep sense of the warm interest and solicitude his Lord-
ship and the Board hare constantly evinced for the effi-
ciency and success of every part of the establishment.
I am, Sir, your obedient servant,
THOMAS HASTINGS, Captain, R.N.
Portsmouth, Aug. 14, 1841.

CHARTIST MEETING AT BATH.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.
SlR—From the great interest taken in the above pro-
ceedings, your insertion of the inclosed abridged report
in The Sun will much oblige
Your's very respectfully,
C. CLARKE.

highly respectable meeting of the middle and work-
ing classes took place last evening, in the large room,
Kingmead-square, for the purpose of hearing an address
from Mr. Henry Vincent, on the present position of
affairs, and in defence of the principles of which he is
the well-known advocate.

At eight o'clock Mr. Vincent, Mr. Alderman Crisp,
and Mr. Oliver, temperance lecturer, entered the room
and were received with loud cheers, Mr. Alderman
Crisp was unanimoasly called to the chair, and opened
the proceedings by observing that they seemed to have
less objection to his taking the chair than the parsons
had to friend Bolwill some time since at the upper room.
It is a pity these clerical gentry do not come amongst
us and endeavour to enlighten our understandings, for
they say we wander in darkness. God knows, in the
estimation of some ,of Mother Church's sons, I have been
wandering from the dear old lady long enough, yet none
of her faithful shepherds endeavour to call me back again
by convincing me of my error.—(Laughter and cheers.)
Mr. Crisp, at some length, dilated on the probable re-
sults of the Tories being in office, and the necessity of the
people improving in knowledge and virtue, and uniting
for the attainment of further organic changes.—(Cheers.)
The Chairman then introduced Mr. VINCENT, who
said—Ladies and Gentlemen. in a country possessed of
good institutions, and amongst a people in the enjoy-
ment of social happiness, the interference of a humble
citizen like myself in its . public affairs might be consi-
dered to require an apology; but in a country like ours,
where the aristocratic principle reigns supreme—where
civil distinctions and honours are showered upon the
wealthy and high-born—where the mass of the
people are politically slaves, and are reduced to a state
of social destitution ; the only explanation necessary is
the public exigence, which calls upon the meanest man
to use the power God has endowed him with to aid in
Working out his country's regeneration. Such, Gentlemen,
is my position—a novel one, I admit ; but warmly as I
have been attached to the principles of liberty from
boyhood—fervent as. have been my aspirations for the
good of my fellow-creatures in times when public excite-
ment ran high, and we had advanced, as it were, to the
very threshold of victory, I should consider myself a
pigmy in soul if I did not rise above my usual enthusiasm
now that the cloud of oppression thickens around us.—
(Loud
cheers.) I meet you to-night for a variety of rea-
sons—to speak of principles lasting as nature—to rouse
the sluggard—to spur on the intelligent—to
whisper hope , in the ear of despair—and '
to shake the virtue and intelligence of the
city, in the quivering features of our cowardly oppres-
sors.—(Loud cheers.) Mr. Vincent, at some length,
proceeded to show the causes that led to the defeat of
the Whigs at the late election. He said that four years
ago the Chartists had clearly pointed out, that unless the
Whigs took their stand with the people, another elec-
tion would be their total ruin. He ridiculed the notion
of Conservatism having triumphed, and illustrated seve-
ral propositions to show that the democratic principle
ptroin schiopllves the on
end i
flourished as vigorouslynilicl
ti as ever. He proceeded to explain
the
ought
to be founded,
and
hap-
piness of the governed. He had been prosecuted for
n egeogsh-etrn to government
have in view is the
as-
serting that our Government did not exist for the benefit
of the governed. Nearly two years of correctional im-
prisonment had been inflicted upon him, but he now felt it
to be his duty to declare, before a more intelligent jury.
that the British system of government existe only to
uphold the power and wealth of the few, and to enslave
and degrade the many.—(Loud alters.) Mr. Vincent
proceeded to show that the full measure of justice con-
tained in the People's Charter could be as easily ob-
tained as the smallest organic change.. He showed that
the aristocracy would never yield .to the popular will

unless compelled by a strong unity of virtue, intelli-
gence, and courage.
Here a gentleman in the room forwarded a note to
Mr. Vincent, asking, if the Charter could not be obtained
at once, if it would not be better to contend for a single
point ?__

Mr. VINCENT, in reply, enforced with considerable
effect his former proposition,—that the Charter can be
as easily carried as any one of its points. He said,
—Perhaps the gentleman who forwarded the note
is in favour of the Ballot, and thinks that
obtained, all other good measures would follow ;
but my experience teaches me, that unless the consti-
tuencies are made too large to be purchased, fatal acts
of bribery could be resorted to in all small constitu-
enbies.(Cheers.) .I am not opposed to the Ballot, but
I wish to see the suffrage extended with it. Mr. Vin-
cent then enforced the necessity of knowledge and vir-
tue amongst the people. He hoped the. middle climes
would join.the working men for the attainment of their
rights. He said he felt nothing but a kindly feeling to-
wards all classes of the community. He wished to see
his fellow-creatures in the enjoyment of the highest
amount of happiness. He prophesied serious events—
to Peel and the aristocracy—and made • a vigorous
and eloquent appeal to the assembly to unite in
defence of their rights. He made a beautiful allusidn
to the confidence intelligent men have in the onward
march, and concluded a very powerful speech, of which
the above is a mere outline, with the following appeal.
" Who are they who despair !—the ignorant ? Raise
them, then. Brighten their minds, you who have, caught
a spark of the divine light. Intelligence never despairs ;
it believes-in • the 'progression of humanity:—it places
firm reliance upon the decrees of Providence—it bears
with fortitude the sneer of folly and the chill of apathy
—it penetrates through the gloom of the age it which it
lives, and beholds the future arranged in the full blaze
of triumphant glory."—(Loud cheering.)
After a few observations from Mr. Cleave, cheers were
kiven for the Chairman and Mr. Vincent, and. the As-
sembly dispersed,
The above is the first of a series of meetings intended
to be held in the various parishes of Bath.

STATE of TRADE and COMMERCE

The following melancholy' accounts of the state of
,rade and the prospects of the harvest are taken from the
Liverpool Times of yesterday, and we fear contain too
much truth :
Nothing has occurred since our last to arrest the
downward course of prices in the raw material of the
staple manufacture of Lancashire, or to check the ad-
vance of prices in grain. The improvement in the wea-
ther, until Sunday, was very slight. The close, cloudy
weather, accompanied by frequent rain, which prevailed
during the last week, did little to ripen the corn ; whilst
the continued pressure of pecuniary difficulties, and
the unparalleled dulness of the demand for goods in
the manufacturing districts, has still further forced
down the price of cotton. The decline last week
was a farthing a pound on some descriptions of
cotton, and an eighth on all. A respectable house
holding a considerable quantity of cotton, stopped pay-
ment here on. Friday, it is said, rather than sacrifice its
stock at the present prices. 'We are sorry to say that
there is nothing in the state of the manufacturing dis-
tricts, or of-the country generally, to encourage the hope
of higher prices for some time. It is painful to have to
give, week after week, such unfavourable accounts of
the state of trade, but nothing else can be said of it with
truth, and it is absolutely necessary that the real state of
things should be known, especially now that Parliament
is about to assemble for the purpose of discussing several
most important questions connected with the industry.
and prosperity of the country.
Since our last, the average price of wheat for the whole
kingdom has risen to 70s. sd. for the week, and 665. 4d.
for the six weeks which regulate duty. These, however,
are the prices of the week before last. The average price
of the wheat sold in London last week, was 765. 9d., in
Wakefield, 745. 6d., and in Liverpool, 735. As all the
of her markets throughout the kingdom are also rising,
the average of Friday next will probably be at least 735. ;
but a lower average than that will release all-the Cana-
dian wheat and flour in bond on Friday next, at the
lowest rate, namely, Gd. per quarter, and 3d. per barrel.
as the average price of the six weeks is already within Bd.
of 675. a quarter, at which the liberation takes place, and
the week's duty which ceases to be computed, is
only 635., whilst that which begins to be com-
puted must be nearer 735. than 70s. The total quantity
of Canadian wheat and flour, &c. imported into Liver-
pool up to the 13th inst. and of which a good deal has
already been. liberated, is 12,078 quarters of wheat,
72,045 barrels of flour, 3,584 quarters of peas, and S5B
barrels of oatmeal, which is only a few days' consump-
tion for the 28 millions of persons who are now depend-
ing on the scanty supplies of free grain and flour.
The speculators in foreign grain will make a rich har-
vest this year, and in addition to the ordinary profits
arising out of a rise in price, they confidently expect to
pocket seven out of the eight shillings duty which they
would have had to pay the Government, if the mea-
sure, of last session had passed. The expectation of the
shilling duty on foreign grain becomes more con-
fident every week as the supplies of free grain
disappear, the harvest is retarded by the weather, and
the accounts from the Continent become less favourable.
Much uncertainty exists as to the amount of the sup-
plies which we are likely to receive from America and
the continent of Europe, but the general belief is, that
nothing but extravagantly high prices can produce any
considerable supply from the Continent.
The prospects in the United States and Canada are
more favourable, though it will be seen by the accounts
brought by the Caledonia, that flour was rising in the
New York market. From private letters from respect-
able houses in America, as well as from the accounts in
the public papers, we believe that the wheat crop in the
western part of the State of New York and in Virginia
and Maryland will be found defidient, that it will be very
good in Michigan and some other parts of the Union,
and that the crop, as a whole, will be an average one.
Amongst the causes which have reduced our supplies
of grain, and especially of wheat, to so low a, point, a
very principal one is the extraordinary decrease of the
supply from Ireland. In 1832, this country received
not less than 790,293 quarters of wheat and flour from
Ireland ; in 1833, not less than 244,211 quarters ; and
in 1834, not less than 779,505 quarters ; whilst in 1839,
the whole quantity furnished by Ireland was 258,131
quarters ; and in 1840, not more than 93,633 quarters.
These figures show a decline of nearly seven hundred
thousand quarters per annum in the supply of free
wheat, during a period in which the population of Eng-
land and Scotland has increased from two to three
millions. Supposing, that there has been an increase
in the production of wheat in England and Scotland,
during the last eight years, equal to the increase in the
population, still it would require a regular importation
of nearly a million of quarters of foreign wheat to place
us in a favourable position, with regard to the chief ar-
ticle of food, as we were when Ireland supplied us with
800,000 quarters of wheat, more especially as the quan-
tity imported into Ireland is now much greater than the
quantity exported from it.
Great anxiety is beginning to be felt lest the specula- ,
tion in foreign wheat shottld again create a serious de
mand for bullion from the Bank of England. The only
security against this is the smallness of the supplies in
the European markets, and which will probably occasion
.a still greater rise of prices on the Continent, and thus
turn the attention of speculators to the American and
Canadian markets, where all the wheat and flour that
can be spared may be purchased without producing any
derangement of monetary matters. For some time, hoW-
ever, it is probable that there will be a severe pull on the
Bank.

WELLINGTON FESTIVAL.—SO it seems the
tradesmen to whom large balances have been due for the
last two years for food and trappings for this mighty
affair, are being paid up their arrears. The publicans who
supplied the dinner were last week squared off ; and
as far as Dover is concerned, 3001. more, or thereabouts,
will settle the whole concern. The cash so far has been
raised by the Committees in the respective ports after
a good deal of delay, and the disbursement of some-
thing " pretty considerable" in law expenses ; but had
it not been for these forcible measures, the tradesmen
might have gone whistle for their accounts. The
arrears that have lain over for this length of time,"i.n..
oluding costs, amounted to 1,000/., 630/. or which fell
to the share of the Dover Committee. During the last
week a begging circular has been sent from door to door
in Dover, calling on the inhabitants and visitors to come
forward with their mite, "to aid in liquidating the seri-
ous sum of 630/." What a compliment is this to the Noble
Duke ! How high in his estimation must the Tories of
those parts stand, seeing that after inviting him to a ban-
quet they must go a begging to pay the piper. Had the
Dover Tories wanted 6,000/. to expend in bribery, it
could easily have been raised without an appeal tp the
inhabitants; could they not have managed to have
scraped together 600/. to pay this shabby score without
making a public exposure of themselves ! This transac-
tion altogether is a disgrace to the Cinque Ports, and we
sincerely regret that a man like the Duke of Wellington
should have been so insulted by these sycophants. He
would have paid the expenses ten times over rather than
have seen such exhibitions in Tory newspapers.

Y~
MORMONISM:—Phis newfangled swindle will
we hope now receive its death-blow in this neighbour-
hood. We have just seen the wife of a small farmer who
sailed with her husbAnd and six children last February
from Liverpool. They, and about 100 others, landed at
New Orleans, went se ieral hundred miles up the country,
past St. Louis, and ar:ived safe at the " promised laud,"
—the New Jerusalem —on the Ist of May last ,• a three
week's residence was s efficient to let them into the secret,
and they arrived safe back in the old country about a
fortnight ago. They had frequent communications
while on the banks of tie Mississippi with the renowned
prophet, Joe Smith, and his brother impostors, who took
every means in their pow N.- to get hold of our informants'
money, by offering to ser them large plots of land, take
them into partnership, &.!. but the Gloucestershire
yeoman was proof against their wiles, and used his little
capital in bringing his family back again. What, most
staggered the faith of the party was, that this great pro-
phet, Mr. Joseph Smiti, could not show them the
,4 plates of gold" on which it was pretenadd the Book of
Mormon was written ; Jo .y evaded the question by say-
ing the angel merely showed them to him, and after he
had taken a fair copy, took them back again !--:Cheiten-
am Journal. •