The Sun.
London, England, 1841-02-22 00:00:00

mote public demoralization. No community can
exist, much less flourish, with a completely de-
moralized population; and when men begin to
see that the bread tax, which begins in plunder
by law, leads to much plunder in opposition to
the law—that, in fact, it makes roguery the prin-
ciple of the community, it is impossible that they
should, for their own safety, tolerate such a per-
verse and ruinous system.

At the meeting the Report of the proceedings
of the League for the last year was read and
agreed to. Resolutions were passed approving
of what has already been done, and pledging the
League to continue the same exertions in future
for the abolition of the Corn-law. The members
of the League have a'ready done much, yet a
little longer struggle and victory will be their own.
They will be honoured by this generation, and
blessed in ages to come for their noble exertions,
when our distant posterity shall trace up to the
League the zealous and consistent advocacy of
those great principles of freedom for industry, to
which nations hereafter will owe their prosperity.

Lord JOHN RUSSELL'S speech on the Danish
claims, like that of his colleague the CHAN-
CELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, shows how the facts
of a case may be wrongfully assumed, for the
purpose of giving clap-trap answers to them.
His Lordship asserted that the seizure of British
property by the Danes was simply a case of ordi-
nary capture, and that it had been argued for the
claimants that the public money ought to be paid
to them in compensation. Now he well knows
that the real question is whether a Government
is to seize on the private property of foreign in-
dividuals trading in our ports, and trusting to our
good faith, without any provocation or cause for
war on their part, or on that of their Go-
vernment, and appropriate the proceeds to its
own purposes or that of the public, while the
property of its own subjects is to be left unpro-
tected, to be sacrificed in reprisals for that act,
without any compensation, out of the confiscated
fbreign property, which occasioned the loss of the
British sufferers. Lord JOHN will never be able
to persuade the British nation, still less the
world at large, that the seizure of the private
property of the Danes in our harbours in 1807,
without any cause for tear on their part, was
"in accordance with the law of nations," or " the
usages of war;" apd yet he must prove that
first before he can assert that the consequences of
that Act, namely, the seizure of British ships in
Danish waters during the period of reprisals, can
be designated the " occurrences of ordinary war-
fare." The claimants had strong grounds to pro-
test against the legality of captures in the Neu-
tral Baltic Sea; for its neutrality, even in case of
war, had been recognised by the Danes in trea-
ties and conventions, but they were debarred
from this plea by the antecedent illegal conduct
of their own Government. This is very distinctly
stated by Sir FREDERICK POLLOCK in his written
opinion. " I think it quite clear," says this
high legal authority, " that the circumstances
under which the losses in question were
sustained, do not in any respect bear
the construction given to them in the reply to
the memorial of January last—viz., that the
losses were i❑ conformity to the practice and usage
of war prevailing among the nations of Europe ;"
but that, on the contrary, all " ordinary prac-
tice and usage was violated." In this opinion
Sir F. POLLOCK, Sir W. FOLLETT, and Dr.
.LUSHINGTON coincided. It agrees also with that
expressed by Lord SIDMOUTH, in 1810. Lord
JOHN knows that the nation is not called upon to
pay money out of its own pocket without value
received, and that the question is simply that of
refunding what has been unjustly withheld from
the claimants.

The Paris Papers of Thursday have all reachea
us, but their contents are unimportant. The
Committee of the Peers on the Fortifications
Bill, after adopting, by a majority of six votes to
one, the principle of the Bill, proceeded, with
singular inconsistency, to appoint the only dis-
sentient, Count MOLE, reporter of the Commit-
tee, and named as secretary Baron MOUNIER,
one of the most lukewarm advocates of the mea-
sure ! Still that the Bill would be adopted by
the Chamber was doubted by nobody. The fol-
lowing paragraphs from the Siecle show the ac-
tivity with which"the Court engages in promot-
ing the passing of the Bill by a large majority :
The Ministry is rather anxious as to the fate of the discus-
sion about to begin in the Chamber of Peers. It is said
that a!1 the agents of Government who are members of the
Peerage, have received the order to come to I aris to vote.
Even the Ambassadors are not exempted from this order.
The arrival of M. Bresson, Ambassador at Berlin, is expected,
and that of M. de St. Aulaire, who is destined to the embassy
of London.

The Duke of Orleans, expected at St. Omer, has delayed
his departure in order to assist at the discussion of the bureaux
on the project of law of the fortiEcation —a discussion in w hiLh
he has taken a very active part. The Duke was present at the
discussion at the opening of the session of the Chamber of
Peers, and voted for the nomination of General Firlet.

The Presse has joined the Commerce in oppo-
sing the Fortifications' Bill. The following is an
extract from that Journal of Thursday on the.
subject :

" Count Mole has been three times Minister for the last ten
years. lie has closely examined men and affairs, the passions
which agitate us, the predilections which lead us astray, the
parties which divide us, the Governments which observe us,
and he fears, as we do, the project to fortify Paris, which
with difficulty obtained •?07 votes in the Deputies, thanks to
the condescension of M. "Guizot, the interested zeal of M.
Thiers, the scandalous tergiversation of .11. Barrot and the
Left party, and, finally, the coalition formed by all the
Journals—from the National at the head, and the De-
bats at the tail, Count Mole fears that the fortifying
of Paris is the abandonment of the policy of the
last ten years, and is the inroad of a system fatal to peace, to
our political preponderance, to our national independence, to
our institutions, and to: ourj dynasty, and these apprehen-
sions of Count Mole are shared by the most eminent, the
most experienced, and most cautious colleagues in the
Chamber of Peers. If the majority of the Commission pro-
poses an amendment, and it should be rejected by the Cham-
ber, Count Mole, like M. de Lamartine, would at least have
proved, that they are not the servile followers of the Court,
as calumniously charged on the Cabinet of the 15th of April.
If the Peers adopt the amendment, and the Deputies then
reject the Bill, it will establish that the former vote arose
from a surprise, a complaisance, or want of reflection. It
the Bill is thrown out Count Mole will have rendered
the country and the tax-payers a real service."
The Moniteur Algerien of the 9th inst. contains the follow-
ing report ;

THE GOVERNOR. OF SIEHEAH TO THE GOVERNOR-CENERAL.

" On the sth inst. 3 3) Arabs of the regular army were ob-
served in the East, and a reunion of several hostile tribes was
discovered in the south. The garrison hastened to beat to
arms, and marched against the enemy, who have been routed,
and much injury inflicted upon them by the mountain artillery.
We had one man kil.ed and sixteen wounded ; our success has
been complete."
'1 he following is the copy of a despatch from the Minister of
Marine and Colonies to the Maritime Prefect of Toulon,
dated the 27th of January last :
" have the honour to send you herewith the copy of
an anonymous letter, without any date, which has been re-
ceived at the Department of the Interior, and which desig-
nates Joaquim Vicira-dos-Santos, a Portuguese, as being on
the point of proceeding to France with the intention of pur-
chasing a ship, and then going to the coast of Africa for the
purpose of carrying on the slave trade under French colours.
This letter does not indicate either the port in which the ship
is to be fitted out, or the time when the person in question will
arrive.

" Conformably to the instructions contained in the Ministe-
rial circular of Bth April, 1831, relative to the execution in
the parts of the law of the 4th of March preceding, for the
suppre-sion of the slave trade, I invite you to transmit the
news of this project to the proper Ministerial department, that
it may be able to prevent the execution of it, should it be at-
tempted in one of the five ports of the :sth division. You
will also have the goodness to communicate to the shipowners,
through the aamber of Commerce, the name and the project
of the individual in question."
The English journals have not yet arrived.—Le Commerce.
BOURSE.--PARD, THURSDAY, FRB. 18.
lint Highest Lowest Last
Price Price. Price. Price
Fre:oh 5 per Cents ll2 30 ... 112 30 ... 112 15 ... i 1221
434 per Cents 102 102 ... 102 ... 102
4 per Cents 99 ... 99 ... 99 •. 99
... 3 per Cents 76 10 76 1075 95 •75 95
Rink of France ...... 3225 ...Me ...3220
Lattitte Bank N.VOL snares 51N0 ...5150 ...5150 „my,
is-riven Bank
New Loan 99 ... 9) 99 ... 09
Spanish Active.........
?Milne ...a.m. 6% see ... 614 gi
New Deferred
Portuguese 3 per Coins 2O . 211... '2O ... 20
Neapolitan ••••••«•••••••••••••••• 1(11 60 101 60 101 GO ... ,01 60
101 ... 101 ... 101 ... 1(11
St Germain RAILW AY SHARES,
Ve
120 722 50 720 ... 722 50
•saittes,tt.
L.8.4:15 50 435 ... 431 50 ... 4:15
Or leans .
Str...tiiirg to irate 487 50 487 50 ... 487 G 0 ... 487 50
'bourn .lB 50 ... 59 ... 248 30 .. 248 50
455 ...455 ...455 ~.4)5
Tl.- Nei-

Ae . ew Zealand Company have, it is said,
absolution
having. with them
ig,iivi-eerethaern-ei
Let !on it seems that
contracted for a Bishop.a
various sorts of Bishops
they set out resolved to sin.them, however,
now in the market, and if they hold of a
Puseyite he will prefer his dogmas to
and make the sailors,like the -Spaniao
r s, saytheir
prayers when. a. storm is coming on instead of
making their ship. snug. The Puseyite Bishop
too, is quite convinced that a knowledge of the
Fathers is far better than a knowledge of airri_
culture, and he will insist. on their leaving ri i
ataPkeerse:e7
lea.
barren lands untilled till they have learned the
holy mysteries which he says are the basis of
happiness here and hope hereafter. The New
Zealand Company seems to us in this predica-
ment. If they get a Puseyite Bishop they will