The Sun.
London, England, 1841-12-21 00:00:00

FRENCH COMMERCE.

The three Councils-General of Commerce, Agricul-
tore, and Manufactures, commenced their Session on
Thursday morning in one united body at the Ministry
of Commerce, under the Presidency of M. Cunin-Gri-
daine, the Minister of Commerce and Agriculture. The
meeting was very numerous. The Minister, after having
announced that the duration of the Session would be
one month, addressed the Councils in a long speech, the
first part of which was a retrospective view of the laws
which had been passed, and the measures which had
been adopted for the encouragement and protection of
the three great branches of industry represented by the
Council. The Minister then said :—" All these interests
had been the objects of the most earnest solicitude on
the part of the Government. He alluded particularly to
the law for the definitive establishment of the metrical
system, the encouragement of fisheries, the law relative to
the responsibility of owners of vessels, the ordonnance
respecting quarantine, and the law relative to public
sales. Alluding to the important law for the better re-
gulation of child-labour in factories, the speaker said that
nothing could exceed the sympathy and zeal which had
been manifested in all the departments, in order that this
measure might be carried out in the spirit in which it
had been conceived, and he had consequently been able
to choose from amongst the most respectable men the
inspectors who were to see the law executed. The Mi-
nister then announced that a bill for the protection of new
inventions had been carefully prepared, and would be
brought forward next Session—and remarked on the
appointment of new professorships at the Conservatoire
des Arts et Metiers for mechanics, descriptive geography,
chemistry, and agriculture. The want of scientific
schools in the south of France was next noticed by the Mi-
nister, and he observed that something must be done for
that purpose. M. Cudin Gridaine then noticed the cattle
and sugar questions, at which, however, he merely
glanced, as subjects of deep importance, which the
Councils would have to take into their most serious con-
sideration. He next enumerated the various measures
which the Councils would have to discuss, and said that,
with a view to the increase of the commercial relations
with foreign countries, they would be led to inquire what
modifications could be made in the tariffs, particularly as
regards iron, woollen, and cotton manufactures, glass, &c.
The Minister then proceeded to say that, as a general
means of enlightening the Councils in their examination
of the French customs tariff, and the commercial
relations of France with foreign countries, he
would call their attention to the commercial situation
of France during the last few years. At no epoch had
the foreign trade of the country become so much de-
veloped as at the present moment; since, in 1840, the
total amount was 2,063,000,000 f., which was the largest
sum hitherto attained, and surpassed by 331 per
cent. the average of the 10 years from 1830 to 1839 in-
clusive ; out of the above total, foreign produce con-
sumed in France, and French produce or manufactures
exported, amounted to the sum of 1,442,000,000 f.
This was to be divided as follows :—lmports: natural
products and raw materials, 697,000,000 f. ; manufac-
tured goods, 50,000,000 f. Exports: natura products,
184,000,0001.; manufactured goods, 511,000,000 E These
facts were sufficient to show the increased occupation
given to France by the extension of her trade. Trans-
ports by sea entered icto the total system of interchanges
of goods for 1,481,000,000 E, or about 71 per cent., and
this occupied ships, the burthen of which was measured
by 2,896,000 tons, a figure which would have been
increased to 3,330,000 tons, if the old system of measure-
ment had been adhered to :—thus giving an increase of
43 per cent. over the tonnage of the years from 1830 to
1839. This result included the tonnage of ships of all
nations employed in this branch of French trade; but
the augmentation of French tonnage alone was 422,000
tons, or 49 per cent., all branches of French maritime
trade had not, it was true, been so prosperous. Thus the.
navigation between France and her colonies had lost 11
per cent. compared with 1831 ; 13 per cent. com-
pared with 1836, and 20 per cent. compared with 1838.
This formed one of the subjects connected with the
Sugar question, which the councils would have to
examine. In some particular markets, such as those
of North America, Egypt, Portugal, and the China Seas,
the total of French commercial interchanges bad
shown a slight falling off as compared with preceding
years ; but this was compensated by the increase in
other quarters. Government was watching these vicis-
situdes with care, and was on the look-out for applying
effectual remedies and improvements. The general
amount of exports had exceeded by 25 per cent. the
average amount from 1830 to 1839 ; but this had not
held true, for all branches of French manufactures ; thus
jewellery, watches, clocks, articles of modes, and worked
skins, had fallen off in exportation. The Government,
wishing to facilitate and encourage the export trade as
much as possible, had been occupied with the question of
directing commerce into as wide and liberal a path as
possible. Thus treaties of commerce had been formed with
several nations, and the Customs tariff had been revised ;
useless prohibitions had been abolished ; two heavy
duties had been reduced ; and others had been modified.
Government, with a view to facilitate international com-
munication, had ordered the building of steamers for
Transatlantic expeditions, and was, at this moment,
diligently occupied with the preliminary measures for
establishing a line of steamers between Suez and the
island of Bourbon. The Minister concluded by stating
that, charged as he was by the King with the direction
of duck great interests, in which sometimes there ap-
peared fh be differences as to the degree of encourage-
ment and protection to be given to each, it was neces-
sary for him earnestly to solicit them to cultivate con-
ciliatory feelings amongst themselves, and so to facilitate
the important task imposed upon the Government,
which had need of assistance and support from the re-
presentatives of the three interests. It was only by their
coming to a cordial understanding with each other on
the great questions which they would have to discuss,
that they could enable the Government to give due deve.
lopment to the productive and commercial resources of
the country. When the Minister had concluded, the
members of the three Councils retired to their respective
Committee-rooms to select their Presidents and Vice
Presidents. The result was announced as follows :

Ccuncil-General of Commerce, M. Legentil, President
(no Vice-President) ; Council-General of Manufactures,
M. Mimerel, President, M. Berard, Vice-President ;

Council-General of Agriculture, the Duke Decazes,
President, M. de Gasperiu, Vice-President.

MONOPOLY OF QUICKSILVER.
(From the Bankers' Circular.)
Admitting the expediency and necessity of regulating
a paper currency by the supply of gold and silver, that
supply must, as far as the mines are concerned, be unob-
structed, equable, and adequate to the annual absorp-
tion or destruction of those metals by manufacture, wear
and tear, or loss ; and, if it be not so, the regulating
power is a cheat, and gives out fraudulent results. Again,
if a standard of value in the precious metals be esta-
blished by law— taking a certain quantity of gold or sil-
-1 ver of a certain fineness, and stamping it at the Royal
Mint—on the calculation of certainty and equability in
the supply, and if
ly, from any cause the supply becomes
. materiallyand permanently diminished, the standard
ceases to be a just one ; and it must be re-adjusted to
prevent oppression to the people in paying an undimi-
nished amount of taxes, unreduced rents, and other fixed
pecuniary obligations. Further, if, under such circum-
stances, an equitable adjustment of the standard of value,
or an equitable reduction of rents, taxes, &c., do not take
place, the Government that permits the injustice to con-
tinue, causes an ever-springing motive to arise in the
breasts of the people to rebel against the oppression.
n thatm t o
none the testbut otfhe experience.richest
These proofs we could enforce by citing the highest au-
thorities on public law in our language to confirm them.
Now
It is letw usell t ores
and
will
bkrinnogwth e
yield pure metalwis productithoutth in
the use of quicksilver,iehea
that the price
of this
groat measure deter-
mines the quantity of silver coins
into and bars that shall be
annnually poured from the mines
the civilized world.
The
The mines of quicksilver are _ not iolow
in worked to any
extent in any part of the world_except Germany and
trwiig thenn the
po
latterimcrotuann terey. .
of
this
Spanish, Spain
commodity to the production of silver—and_ being dis-
posed to do justice to the people—have always, while
they had the p
40 dollars per quintal. possession of the mines, kept the price mo-
derately low, viz., at about That
Government ha; sometimes at former periods farmed
42 dollars per
out these mines, but the price, we believe, never rose in
the hands of the contractors above 41 or
welfare of the
quintal. Unhappily, however, for the interests of the
commerce of the world, unhappily for the
heavily taxed people of poor old England,
Mr. Roths-
child about seven or eight years ago got possession of the
silver mines of Spain, making a clear profit by working
them, it is said, of 80,000/. per annum. How did he
accomplish this ? He trebled the price of quicksilver,
which now sells for 120 dollars per quintal, instead of
the old, just, and almost uniform price of 40 dollars; and
through the medium of his great power and influence in
Germany, he induced the proprietor of the only other
important source of supply in the whole world simulta-
neously to do the same.
Extract of a letter fro R. Thornton, Chairman