The Sun.
London, England, 1824-06-02 00:00:00

MR. BARING AND M. SARTORIS.

A slight misunderstanding has, it would ap-
pear, taken place between these two bankers, respecting a re-
presentation sent by the latter to a Commission appointed by
the Chamber of Peers to examine the project for the conversion
of the rentes. Jr.. Baring is known to be the head and represen-
tative of one of the three •united Companies who have entered
into the contract for enabling the French Minister of Finance to
effect this grand operation. The heads and representatives of
the other two Companies are Baron James Rothschild and M.
Lafitte. The names of the parties and the conditions of the
contract have been disclosed earlier than they were originally in-
tended,and sooner than the Minister had promised,in consequence
of the obstacles which the commission of the Peers opposed to the
project,and the hope entertained by many, that in consequence of
those obstacles the measure might he lost. The great popu.
gar topic of declamation, levelled with success against the
ministerial plan, was the ruin which the reduction of the
Rentes would entail on the small annuitants, and the influence
of such a cause may be easily guessed from the circumstance
that nearly 50,000 annuitants are holders of inscriptions of
less than 4/. sterling. Were it possible, therefore, to con-
sult the interest of those persons as distinguished from the
other fundholders, without effectually crippling the great
plan of conversion, one objection would be removed. The
Commission of the Chamber of Peers was just about to re-
port the result of its labours, when the Chairman received
a letter purporting to come from the chief of the united
companies, offering to modify their contract, so as to ad-
mit of the accomplishment of the object above alluded to.—
' The Minister of Finance had not. been consulted on this
have called
modification ; he knew nothing of its origin or authority ; no
signature was attached to the letter, though its authenticity
uponthe
the Government.contractors
was asserted from a respectable quarter; the whole affair
called
ap-
peared a mystery both to the commission, the contractors, and
31.fdore Va
pub-
lished
in our Paper of yesterday was accordingly signed by
11
sty
disavowal,
would
anal the
disavowalt l
contractors, and transmitted to the Reporter of the Peers'
Commission. The author of the letter then appeared in
the person of M. Sartoris, who is interested in the contract as
the head of a house included in the company of which M. La-
fiue is the representative; and this gentleman, in a letter address-
ed to the editor of the Journal des Debuts on Thursday last,
charges Mr. Baring with having disavowed, in his public letter
to the Commission of the Chamber of Peers what he had allowed
in
kis private communication with him. Mr. Baring replies in
a letter addressed to the editor of the same paper on Saturday.
He admits that M. Sartoris mentioned to him at different
times his project for postponing the reduction of the rentes be-
longing to small annuitants, and that he laaerly stated that,
as one of Me contractors, he had no objection to its adop-
tion ; but added, that it seemed unworthy of the attention
of a great Government—that it would introduce complication
into a measure which ought necessarily to be simple ; and by ;ts
details would give occasion to great gambling and jobbing. The
other two contractors had confessedly no part with this admis-
sioa, as they both objected to it, though on different grounds.
Such is the charge, and such the answer, M. Sartoris has evi-
dently done an act perfectly unauthorized by the contractors, in
whose name he addressed the Peers commission. That truth is on
the side of our countrymen, may be presumed from the considera-
tion-Ist, that Mr. Baring would not do an act to which his two
fellow-contractors were opposed ; 2d, that he would have ad-
dressed his letter, in the first instance, not to the reporter of
the Chamber of Peers, but to thelMinister, if he had intended
to allow any modification in his contract; and 3d, that neither
he nor the other contractors would have employed 111. Sartoris
as their agent, when both the Minister and the Commission
were so accessible by direct communication—M. Sartoris, in
his own defence, is obliged to plead the private and modified
approval of one of them as a justification of his pretensions
to represent the sense and wishes of them all.—(Morning
Paper.)

DUKE OF YORK'S LEVEE.—Yesterday after-
noon, at four o'clock, the Duke of Yoau held a
Levee as Commander-in-Chief, at his Office, in
the Horse Guards, which was attended by
Lieut.-Generals Sir M. Nightingall and Bart—
Major-Generals Sir A. l3eckworth, Turner, Hep-
burne, Macquarie, and Reynardson, and Sir M.
Somerville.
The Duchesses of CLAR ENCE and KENT visited
Prince Leopold yesterday.—On Monday the
Duchess of Clarence dined with the Duke of
Sussex, at his residence, at the King's Palace,
liensing.on.—The Duchess of Kent, the Prince
of Leiningen, and the Princess Feodore, visited
the Duchess of Clarence yesterday.—Yesterday
the Duchess of Clarence rode out in an open car-
riagewintheTtekTitr._rih
gent:sParke.
liG,s
Opera of Tancredi
was attended last night, as usual, by a numerous
audience. We have nothing to add to our last
report of the performance of this Opera, except
that last night, towards the end of the first ace,
the scene that was lowered came upon the head
of Signora RONZI ns BEGNIF, in the part of
Amenaide, with such force as to stun her for a
moment; but as soon as she recovered from the
shock, rather than disappoint the audience, she
resumed her part. The effect, however, render-
ed it necessary that an apology should be made
for her non-appearance in the second act, and was
readily accepted by the audience, who evidently
felt a strong interest in the welfare of this charm-
ing actress. The second act, of course, was
unavoidably curtailed, but received with liberal
toleration.

Surcxnr..—Yesterday morning a most distress-
ing scene threw the neighbourhood of Hall's-
place, Lisson-grove, into a state of the greatest
alarm and sympathy. A very aged and respect-
able lady, named HERMAN, who had resided in
Hall's-place for a number of years, and who had
latterly been subject to sudden aberrations of
mind, was found, early in the morning, suspend-
ed from the beam of her room : it seemed the
unfortunate lady had so firmly resolved upon
her own destruction, that she had let loose a
large mastiff dog which was fastened in the yard,
and which was remarkably attached to her, and
was called " her protector," and indeed the ani-
mal very forcibly evinced his claim to the title,
as, when search was made after her, she
was found as before described ; and on
a man approaching her, with the view of cutting
her down, the dog flew at him, and furiously tore
the calf of one of his legs ; however, the animal
was secured ; and the lady being cut down,
every assistance, both medical and otherwise,
was rendered her, but of no avail, as the vital
spark was completely extinct. Mrs. Herman was
attended by a nurse, who having left her to pre-
pare some refreshment, she seized the moment to
carry into execution the resolution which for a
long time she had contemplated, and in attempt-
ing which she was determined not to be foiled,
as the dog, she knew, would prevent any persons
approaching her, either to check the desperate
attempt, or render her the slightest assistance.—
The body awaits the decision of the Coroner's
Jury.
Another man serving in CARLILE'S shop was
taken before the Sitting Alderman at Guildhall
yesterday, for selling a blasphemous publication.
lie was committed in default of bail.
SraiNG had a benefit yesterday at the Fives'
Court. It was excessively crowded. After the
sparring, the stakes between Spring and Langan
were made good at Belcher's.