The Sun.
London, England, 1847-02-01 00:00:00

FEBRUARY 1 1847.
ritr)

THE NAVIGATION LAWS.

As the navigadon laws are suspended for the present
by an Act which, although only introduced to the House
of Commons on Wednesday week, received the royal
assent on Tuesday last, the following brief history of
their first institution, and of the purposes for which
they were framed, may be of some interest to our
readers :
_ .

The navigation laws form (formed) an important
branch of maritime law. In this country they are un-
derstood to comprise the various Acts that have been
passed defining British ships, the way in which such
ships are to be manned, the peculiar privileges enjoyed
by them, and the conditions under which foreign ships
shall-be allowed to engage in the trade of the country,
either as importers or exporters of commodities, or as
carriers of commodities from one part of the country to
the other:

The Origin of the navigation laws may. be traced to
the reign of Richard 11., or, perhaps, to a still more
remote period ; but as no intelligible account of the
vaaying and contradictory enactments framed at so
distant an epoch could be compressed within ony
reasonable space, it is sufficient to observe,
that in the reign of Henry VII., two of the
leading principles of the navigation laws were dis-
tinctly recognised in the prohibition of the importation of
certain commodities unless imported in ships belonging
to English owners, and manned by English seamen. In
the early part of the reign of Elizabeth, foreign ships
were excluded from our fisheries and coasting trade.
The republican Parliament gave a great extension to
the navigation laws; by the Act of 1650, which prohi-
bited all ships of all foreign nations whatever from
trading with the plantations in America without having
obtained a licence. These Acts were, however, rather
intended to regulate the trade between the different
ports and dependencies of the empire, than to regulate
our intercourse with foreigners. . In the following year
(1651) the-republican Parliament passed the famous
Act of Navigation. This Act had a double object It
4v;s-j4-10.941ed not, only to,Promote -our own navigation,

the PligL,;4lllo4 ,i; WM' eUgfle..... —- -
carrying, tats42de.of ‘tana:ntprldi and egidast.'Wlicidetars.,—
circumstankat.fiact- tratispired4o„incepapaikalEtiVials'.
The Act in question 'declared that-asp:goods or c4rats
pities Whateveil of the growth, production,:or anautil
facture of lASttrAifricti,L.-Or Arderica should he -'1&;
'ported. either-.--iistO ..Etitland.nr Ireland, or. any, &the
plantatious, ateeat,in ships belonging to,Britith sub-
jects; aild :Or which -Cho , master .and
'the- greater
number of .the -Crew -Were . also 'English.. ' Hitiing
thus .Socuted.the.infort,trade-of Asia; 'Africa, or:Aine-
rice to the English'shijowner, „the, Act went oh. to se--
cureto then] as far as that was possible the import trade
of Europe: 'For thiapurpese it further enaCted that no
goods Of the groWtli,,prOtluction; 'Or - manufacture-of any-
coin*. in Eurpape.shotdd,be imported:into Great Bri-,
twin. except in Brit.iiii ships, pr in such ships, as were
_the
real property' or.tlate; pbtsle
.of the 'country' Or place in
which the goods weres'proffuced. 'or ,from which they
could, otilsOse.ox moat; usually, were. exported: The lat-
ter part orthe clause. was entirely levelled
_against, the
Dutch,..whe had Init little native produce tdsuppart, and
whose shipOitiaeb -pAtieiptilly employed in carrying the
produce of .other countries 'to foreign -markets:, Such
were the leadinurovisions .of- this' famous. Act.' They
:were 'adoptectbyahe regal Government which succeeded
-Crorawell,'aiid-forms thebasls :of the. Act 12th Cann
• .
r, 18, which eontinned,t6 a very, recent period to be the
rule by which our naval intercourse with,other countries
Was maiftly regidated, and .has _been, pompbusly desig-
.nated the Chaita Maratimci of England. '
These laws `continued.in'lorce till the beginning of the
present century. 'Considerable changes were effected in
them by Mr.-Wallace, in 1821, and by Mr. Huskisson,
in 1825;and partly' by the adoption of what has been
called the • reciprocity ' System. Under the Act 6th
George IV., cap. 109; the intercourse of all European
countries in amity with Great Britain'svas placed on the
same footing. The memorials of our former animosity,
and of our jealousy of.. the prosperity of certain of our
nog.' hbOtirs were abOlished. k This uniformity, besides
giving greater - iceae to mercantile;' operations, and ex-
tending ourliaffic .with seme of our most opulent neigh- '
botirs,:reraiived' a
_gregt !scurce.„cf
.embarrassment and
litigation I ii(-the = same _time it detracted considerably
frohi7thise.itethti 'character which had' been believed on
thd corltifietitrand:not4yithotitOontiderable reason, to be
,the animating. grniciple of our commercial system.
• The:, diStincti.on between, enumerated and non- enume-
rated articles wiiitill kept - up ITT:ide'r',the. new.rekelit'-
tions;- btit,7iiiited Of:Corifining Ithe-iniPoitatiOn oF the
:former ihte:Atii.,:linVd.Kingddra4--either , to British
ships, -or,slii.ps4helbagt,ng to the country or place where.
the .goods *ire;produee,d; or -from.,whiCh they were
.origitilitlie4oitted•lL-111efiew iegullidtia p triiitted 'that
they might be :inipbrted.:'eitheri in
,BrOtish . shipS or_ the
,ships of ,t)reettiitiy-fit'vohith the ig9pcls_, are the pro-
duce, or in 'shiPs_ of the cdiantry_or_place from Which
4-n6y. are' imported' into" England. '-Miler the old laW,,
• ,l-when . a nunibar, of articles, ;the product of different
centuries, but all of them suitable for;impprtatiou into
t ikland, Were fiinifiliz'fA‘ -foreign port; thpY coua.W.
136. notkirteii except inll latitlab7shiP; ineee.....=r±tplA itv
snips belonging-to—the (WA.... eo,
duce they were. This was obviously a very great
hardship on the foreigner, without being of any real
advantage to the shipowners. When the foreign mer-
' chant had yei;sels of his own, it was not very probable
that he would permit them to remain unoccupied, and
freight a British vessel; and there were very few ports
of any importance in which foreign bottoms might not
be found, in which the articles could be legally im-
ported.
Besides'the restrictive regulations already alluded to,
it had been a part of our policy to.enchoiur haegre the ens
ployment of our shipping by imposing $ duties on
commodities imported into our harbours in foreign ves-
sels than were imposed on them
customary
nimported in British
vessels, and it had also been
d lighthouse duties. This
system was always loudlyport
a
n to charge foreign
vessels with higher
complained of by foreigners ;
but we had little difficulty in maintaining it, so long as
manufactures enabled us to disregard
the state of our
the retaliatory measuree of other powers. But the ex•
traordintiry increase that took place since the com-
mencement of the late war in our manufactories for
foreign consumption, and the necessity under which we
were in consequence placed of conciliating our cus-
tomers abroad, led to the adoption of the reciprocity sys-
tem. This system was first introduced into the trade
with the United States. After the North American Co-
lonies bad succeeded in establishing their independence,
they set about framing a code of navigation laws on
the model of those of this country. Among other regu-
lations of a restrictive character it was enacted that all fo •
reign vessels trading to the United states should pay half a
dollar, which was afterwards raised to a dollar per ton duty
beyond what was paid by American ships, and further that
goods imported in foreign vessels should pay a duty of 10
per cent., over and above what was payable on the same
description of goods imported in American vessels. The
law. was avowedly directed against the navigation laws
of Great Britain, though, as it was bottomed upon the
very same principles as our navigation laws, we could
not openly complain of its operation. Various devices
were fallen upon to counteract the navigation system of
the Americans, but they all failed in their object. In
consequence, the conviction of the necessity of making
concessions gained ground progressively ; and it was
ultimately fixed by the commercial treaty agreed upon
between Great Britain and the United States in 1815,
that in future equal charges should be imposed on the
ships of either country in the ports of the other, and
that equal duties should be laid upon all articles the pro-
duce of the one country imported into the other, whether
such importation were effected in the ships of the one or
the other. The principle of the reciprocity system having
been thus conceded in the case of the intercourse with
the United States, whose commercial marine is second
only to that of Great Britain, it was not possible to re-
fuse acting on the same principle in the case of such
other European countries as might choose to admit our
ships into their ports on a footing of equality. Accord-
ingly, after more protracted diplomatic negotiations, a
commercial treaty, based on the reciprocity system, was'
made with Prussia, Denmark, and Sweden. On that
occasion (12th of May, 1826) Mr. Huskisson, in his
speech, said—
" By others, it may be said your duty was to retaliate
by increasing your own port charges, and discriminating
duties on British shipping. I have already stated gene-
rally my reasons against the policy of this latter course.
We were not prepared to begin a system of commercial
hostility, which, if followed up on both sides to its legi-
timate consequences, could only tend to reciprocal pros-
titution. In this state of things, more prudently, as I
contend, we entered upon an amicable negotiation with
the Prussian Government, upon the principle of our
treaty with the United States—that of abolishing on
both sides all discriminating duties on the ships and
goods of the respective countries in the ports of the
other."
With respect to the general policy of the navigation
laws, Adam Smith, in his " Wealth of Nations," vol. ii.
p. 29, says—
" When the Act of Navigation was made, though
England and Holland were not actually at
the twoat war, the
most violent animosity subsisted b
nations. It had begun during the Government of the
long Parliament, which first framed wringc and it
broke out soon afterthe in Dutch wars,.moaaihthlea,tofthe
Protector and Charles 11.
there-
fore, that some of the regullattijosnsnanoutfimithoiapsuyf.amTouhseyAarcet
may have proceeded from national
as wise, however, as if they hadbeaeinaaulilmdoicstiatytedatbyththaet
most deliberate wisdom. Nation
particular time arrived at the same
reoebojmecmt
ewuhdil
the
most deliberate wisdom would have
diminution of the naval powerdo oefreldlotllhaenda,eetuhreityonloyf
power which could have e
England. The Act of navigation
opulencetiaongisnowt
hfaievhoueraaublaeri3toe
foreign commerce, or. to.
hAs defence,
them mhowe Acte rever, is of
from it. * # *
much more importance than opulence,lhte commercial
rneagvui--
gation is perhaps the wisest of al
lations of England."

MAN'S GTJARDIAN SOCIETY.—In conse-
POOR
quence of the alarming amount of suffering created among
the labouring classes from the present high prices of provi-
sion, and the fact of many thousands being thrown out of
employment in the metropolis, the cOmmitteemore have suppliedtwo
bread and soup to the poor, y, to th an
hundred persons. They used the benevolent aid of the
public.

IVIARYLEBONE VESTRY.

TILE REGENT'S CANAL RAILWAY.-At the Mstryle-
bone Vestry, on Saturday, the committee appointed to
oppose the formation of this railway brought up their
report, by which it was stated that the property in
Marylebone to be tunnelled under and removed, would
amount to 3,8891!, and the rental of the property im-
mediately affected by the proposed railway amounted to
6,4001., besides the injury that would be done to the
chapel in Aberdeen-place. The report also contained a
statement that a deputation, consisting of Crown tenants
and others, waited upon the Right Honourable Lord
Morpeth, and his Lordship, after hearing the various
complaints, informed the deputation that he would con-
sider the application, both legally and morally, and then
decide upon the principles of justice.' The following
communication was read from Mr. Edwin Landseer :
My Lords and Gentlensen,—Having been informed
that the projected railway from Euston-square to Pad-
dington has claimed your attention, I beg respect-
fully to represent to you the injury which I am
likely to sustain if such project should be carried
into effect. The house in which I reside was built
by myself at a great expense, and as my professional
pursuits require studious and other accommodation not
to be met with in ordinary houses, no compensation which
a railway company will be likely to give would be an
equivalent for the loss I should sustain in the event of a
railway, or any other nuisance, obliging me to quit the
neighbourhood. I selected this locality for my residence
on account of the quiet retirement which it affords, and
which is to me of great importance. Aecording to the
plan contemplated I understand that the opening of a
tunnel will be at the bottom of my garden, and I shall
be continually annoyed by the noise of the engine and
railway whistle, besides losing a portion of my garden,
and a plantation now forming the boundary of my pre-
mises. I fully anticipate that this annoyance would
oblige me to leave the neighbourhood, in which case I
should be under the necessity of building myself another
house, an undertaking which would involve a very great
expense, as well as a serious sacrifice of time. My
SALWTIAMIsepr,
_wbo, rcNides in Cunning-

• _
on which Iv has built 4 studio at considerable ex:pet:a-0,
as the proposed railway, if constructed, will pass under,
his house, - which it will destroy. I, therefore, on his
behalf, as as on my own, make this appeal to the
vestry„.‘in support of -the opposition to the_ pr)posed
honoui to lie, iny. Lords and Gen-
tlenien,l▪
our obedient humble servant,
• . E. LANDSEER.
After a few words.frona.Sir P. DATTRIE and others, the
report was-put and.carriAts

BILLi,XOR TEMPORARY RELIEF
OF DESTUUTE'PERS'ONS IN IRELAND..
This Bill, which Will be dismissed' in the I-Rinse of
Commons this eliening, contains the following clauses,
viz.:—That "certain Commissioners shall be aipointed
by the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, to be called Relief,
Commissioners, to superintend the, execution of the'ACt;
that Relief Committees, end- Finance Committees, shall
also be appointed in the electelid "diviSions of unions to
be formed for the relief of the poor, and that such coin-
mittees shall appoint Officers for. the execution of
orders ; that in every union the several relief commit;
tees shall make . out lists of persons entitled. to relief.
under the:Act:according to the directions to be issued
by the Relief Commissioners; with •an estimate 'of the
sum which shall appear to them to be required ; that
the Finance Committee shall examine such lists; and shall'
report the amount to the Lord-Lieutenant, who shall,'
thereupon, issue a warrant for the amount thereof to
the guardians of the poor, requiring them to
pay the same out of the moneys to be: col-.,
lected under: the Poor-law Act ; and further, that
it shall be lawful for the Commissioners of her Majesty's
Treasury to advance from time to tune before the Ist
of October, 'out of the Consolidated Fund, 'any RIMS 'of
money by wafof •imprest; 'to the Relief CommissiOners,
for the execution Of the Act,- td• be:applied by them by
way of loan on 'the- security{. of the. rates, provided for
the purpose of, the-Act : all sublilurns' t,o be repaid t,';,
the Consolidated'Fund in stich'mariner as the'TreasuiY
may direet2out.'of the: rates to be levied in the union ;
and that on the application of the_Relief Commisstoriers,
the CoininissiOners of the.Trensuri may issue from time
to time out of the Consolidated Fl 4 any sums of
money in aid. of the rates to be made under the' A.tt , or
of voluntary contributions ; and all moneys, so granted
shall be paid over to the finance committee
.of thwinion,
.to e'dpplieetind accounted for by them, in like manner
as the moneys 'paid'purstiafit to any warrant les afore-
saia ::That no , person to-be appointed under,OistAct
I,m concerned in applying; for. his' own benefit ally
of the provisions to be distributed under the'Act,; anti
that no warrants, grants,' or loans under the Act shall
be made by the Commissioners of the Treasury, in aid
of any rates to ba levied under the Act after the Ist of
October, in this year,

RAILWAY SHARE 'MARKETS.•
LIVERPOOL, JANUARY 30.
.STOCK EXCHANGE.—The sales, axe —Ambergate, Nottingham, an
Roston, 3s. 9(l2—Birkenhead, Lancashire, and CheshiFe, 8s: p.—
Rini' • ham.. • ' "
.• I-, and Oxford, 914 p

3d. p.—Cheater and Birkenhead, llulves, 23t(-Ditto,
par—Eastern Counties. 2234 —East Lancashire, New, 2,4 p.—East
Lincolnshire, 2.54 p.—Hudderstleld and Manchester, 3 p.—Leeds and
Thlrsk, dis.—Ditto, New, dis.—Ditto, Preference, Itq p
Liverpool, Crosby, and Southport, 2 p. —Ditto, New (late West Lan-
cashire), 2 p.—London and North-Western, 193 —Ditto, Quarters,
New, 125,( p.—London, Manchester, slid Birmingham, Quarters,
New (C), 654 p.—London and South-Western, New (scrip), p.—
London and York (Direct Northern), p.—Manchester and Leeds,
Fifths, b% p.—Manchester, Matlock and Midland, % p.—Man-
chester, Sheffield, and Lincoln, Quarters (late Great Grimsby and
Sheffield), dis.—Midland Stock, 401. Shares, 6 p.—Ditto, New,
44p p.— Ditto (Birmingham and Derby), 101—North British, Quar-
ters, 2% p.—Ditto, New, Quarters (scrip), 16s. 3d. p.—North Staf-
fordshire, 3% p.—Preston and Wyre, 31—Ditto, Half Shares (B), 9,
p.—Sheffield, Rotherham, and Doncaster, 3s. 9d. p.—Shrewsbury,
Oswestry, and Chester, 17 dis.—Shrewsbury and Chester, New, Is.
3d. dis.—Shrewsbury and Birmingham (A), 1% p.—Ditto (B), j¢ p.
—Shropshire Union Railway and Canal, % dis. ex int.—South-East-
ern and Dover, (No. 4), Thirds, % p.— West Riding Union, V. 16s.
3d. p.—York and Newcastle, Preference, 5% p.—Newry and War-
renpoint, 1% p.—Demerara, % p.—Dutch Rhenish, 2% dis.
. MANCHESTER, JANUARY 30.

STocK Excaaanz.—The sales aie—Ambergite, Nottingham, and
Boston, % dis.— Birkenhead, Lancashire, and Cheshire, % p.—Bir-
mingham and Oxford Junction, 9 5-16—Blackburn, Clitheroe, &c.,
11-16 dis.—Buckinghamshire, % p.—East Lancashire, 1% p.—Ditto,
2 p.— Ditto, New (scrip), 114 p.—Huddersfied and Manchester
Railway and Canal, PA p.--Ditto,l Thirds, 1% p.—Lancaster and
Preston, 91.6 p.—Liverpool, Manchester, and Newcastle Junction, %
dis.—Londoa and North-Western, Quarters (A), 7 p.—Manchester,
Buxton, Matlock, and Midland, % p.—Manchester and Leeds, Fifths,
5% p.—Manchester and Southampton, 1( dis.—North Staffordshire,
3 3-16 p.—North-Western, % p.—Northern Counties Union, 1% dis.
—Oldham Alliance, )4 p.—Shropshire Union, 7-16 dis.—South-East-
em and Dover, No. 4, 7-16 p.—West Riding Union, 1 12-16 p.—
Wkarfdale, % dis.