The Sun.
London, England, 1846-10-03 00:00:00

MEASURES OF RELIEF.

Amidst a host of letters which appear day after day
in the public prints upon the all-engrossing topic of the
Labour-rate Act, as applicable to the present crisis, the
following extract from a communication, bearing the
signature of " A Member of the Legislature," and pub-
lished in the Mail of this evening, is, perhaps, worthy
of notice, as the writer starts some suggestions which
have at least the advantage of originality to distinguish
them from the general run of essays upon the same
subject :
" Tax Ireland on the principle of the Ist of Victoria,
viz., by granting her as a gift one-half the sum required,
and charge Ireland with the other half. Expend these
moneys by improving the country and the land. Let it
be done by the parishes or towulands which pay the tax,
receiving the benefit of it, according very much to Mr.
Monsell's system. Aid railways which can give security,
and thus relieve the districts through which they will pass.
Cut down no more paltry hills; demoralise the labourers
no further ; improve the land at present in tillage be-
fore you undertake the drainage of vast bogs and the
reclamation of mountains, which will consume years be-
fore they give a return ; drain what you have in hand ;
liberate estates from entails ; pass an Act to determine
titles to estates, and no longer allow lawyers and attor-
neys to fatten, while, by quirks and chicane, they pre-
vent the transfer of property, and the advances of money
on good security. The repeal of the usury laws should
be considered; that Act has created hordes of great and
small blood.suckers, who are consuming the vitals of the
land. Tax all persons, having charges on the land, on
the same principle as the income-tax.
" Prevent, by a simple Act, the subdivision of land,
which is the foundation of the misery of Ireland. I re-
gret to say, I am c3nvinced that, until the priests are
paid, you cannot effect this object. Their power and
their interest is hourly exercised to subdivide the land
for their own emolument. To what a condition has this
system brought the country! However unpalatable, this
is a truism. Stop perjury, as Lord Westmeath says, in
the courts, by appointing officers to take down evidence,
and prosecute when necessary.
" I should wish to see agricultural schools established,
by grand jury taxation, in every barony. I firmly be-
lieve they would be essentially reproductive, by instruct-
ing the farmers. Enable landowners, by loans, to do
more than merely drain—enable them to erect sound
dwellings and offices for the tenantry, which the late
Drainage Act does not comprehend, and thus improve
the habits of the people. Establish at once depots of
Indian corn all over the country as soon as possible—no
time is to be lost.

" So much for the present moment •,_for the future I
respectfully recommend emigration. The potato, as a
food, I consider is lost ; it will take five years before a
substitute can be found, and generally used. We have,
therefore, to provide, to a great extent, food for the
people for five years. It would be truly advantageous
to expend a considerable portion of the taxation you are
about to impose, and must inflict, on a comprehensive
system of emigration ; thus you relieve the land of its
superabundant population, and probably place the pea-
santry who emigrate in a far superior position than they
could ever expect at home. The expense of feeding
them for five years would be greater than finding them
the means of emigrating ;—a family can be located in a
colony for 45/. ; you coud not feed the same family for
that sum, under existing circumstancas."
A baronial sessions was held in Bin. on Monday last,
at which the Earl of Rosse presided, and delivered an
extremely sensible speech upon the working of the
Labour-rate Act, expressing his determination to see it
carried out both in the letter and spirit of its provisions.
His Lordship also took occasion to dissent from the
statements put forward by the gentry of Cork with re-
spect to the embarrassed position of the landed pro-
priet('rs. The Noble Earl's words are
" There have been one or two meetings held in Cork
lately, at which there had been said, in my opinion, I
respectfully say, a great deal foolishly. I don't think
that the present position of the landed proprietors of
Ireland has one iota to do with the practiced operation of
this Act. I can say, with respect to this barony and
county, that 20 or 30 years ago there was a larger
amount of encumbered property in it than there is at
present, and which has passed into other hands since

then. . . . : . . . . . .
I am sure that this barony is as well able to bear taxa-
tion as any other county or barony in Ireland. But we
should see the tendency to which this Act leads—we
should all exert ourselves to have some return of useful
public and productive work for this money which we will
thus expend. In certain districts in England the
Labour-rate Act was practically in force for a consider-
able time. The old English Poor Law, as it existed 15
years ago in several localities in that country, but par-
ticularly in Sussex, was made so as to be a Labour-
rate Act, similar to this: Act, but different from it
in this respect, that this Act is temporary in its na-
ture, whereas the other could be kept in force for any
number of years.—(Hear, hear, and cheers.) And what
was the fact T There was no pariah in England where
it was in operation but was greatly impoverished by it ;
each year became worse and worse through its means ;
and in various places many persons were found to be in
a state of bankruptcy by its operations.—(Hear, hear.)
Now,lsay that the result of the operation of the Labour- i
rate Act in England bears sufficient testimony to the
course that we ought to pursue in reference to employ-
ing the funds raised for the employment of the people on
works of public utility, and, if that be not done, I verily
believe that many parishes in Ireland must very soon be
inevitably brought to the same condition as that parish
in England which I have given you as an illustration."
Of the reckless—but perhaps generous—manner in
which money is voted away without regard to the future,
the Mayo Constitution furnishes the following illustra-
tion, and this is by no means a solitary case :
" Let us now sum up the confiscations that have taken
place in this country, and we venture to say that any-
thing so monstrous—so uncalled for—has not been per-
petrated in any other part of the kingdom :
Ordnance Valuation. Sums presented.

Carrea 439,156 , £75,350
Burrishoole... 22,597
Murrisk
Clanmorris
Erris
Tyrawly 59,386
Gallen 34,158
Costello
Kilmain

£293,282

£403,466

"It will thus bo seen that the enormous sum of
403,466/. has been presented on this poor and wretched
county."
STATE OF TRADE IN BELFAST.
The Northern Whig has the following unsatisfactory
report—
" For some time the state of trade has been such,
that the mill-owners of Belfast have felt that they would
most probably be under the necessity of working short
time ; and we are sorry we have now to state that a re-
solution to that effect has been come to. It was pro-
posed to reduce the time one- half ; but, from an anxiety
for the workers, it was finally determined to work two-
thirds of the usual time ; this change to commence in
the beginning of November. It is with pain, for the
sake of the large body of workers concerned, that we
make this announcement ; but we believe the step taken
to be one of necessary caution. It is understood that
the Drogheda mill-owners, also, are, or will soon be, on
short time."

OPENING OF THE MEDICAL SCHOOLS.—Thursday
being the first day of October, several of the medical
schools of the metropolis commenced the business of the
session. Introductory lectures were delivered in the
course of the day at Guy's Hospital, by Dr. Golding
Bird; at St. George's, by Sir Benjamin Brodie; at St.
Thomas's, by Dr. Barker; at University Collige, by
Dr. Murphy; and at the Theatre of Anatomy and Medi-
cines Grosvenor-place, by Dr. Theophilus Thompson.

" That accordingly, in. all land grants issued by the
colonisation commissioners under the authority of that
Act, the lands, with all the timber, minerals,' &c., were
conveyed in fee simple to the purchasers.
" That by the existing Act (5 and 6 Vic., c. 36) re-
gulating the sale of public lands, no alteration was
made or contemplated to be made in the full and perfect
right to the lands to be sold under its authority.
" That, by the regulations of the local Government,
issued under the authority of the existing Act, it was
declared that the grants of land sold would convey to
the purchaser all that was above and all that was be-
neath the surface,' and that, save in particular cases,
where reservations of and of access to water have been
made, as provided by the clause just quoted, the deeds
of grant of the whole land of the province hitherto sold
under the authority of the existing Act have conveyed
to the purchasers, according to the true intent and
meaning of the Act, all that was above and all that was
beneath the surface.'

" That a Bill was submitted toyour Honourable House
during the last session of Parliament, with the intent to
authorise, amongst other provisions, the reservations of
minerals from future grants of the waste lands of this
province, and the imposition of certain royalties thereon.
" That this measure did not receive the sanction of
your Honourable House.
" That on the Bth day of August last, at the close of
the then session of Parliament, another Bill was intro-
duced to your Lordships, for the express purpose of
giving authority to reserve and lease the minerals, and
to impose royalties thereon ; and that the introduction
of such a bill at that period was stated to your Honour-
able House, as your petitioners have been credibly in-
formed, to be for the purpose of affording your peti-
tioners, and other colonists interested, time for the con-
sideration thereof.

" That notwithstanding the provisions of the existing
Act, the refusal of the Imperial Legislature to authorise
the reservation and leisings of minerals, and the im-
position of royalties, and during the period allowed to
your petitioners for considering these measures, the fol-
lowing regulations by the local Government were offi-
cially promulgated on the sth day of this present month
of March."

The petitioners then proceed to quote in full the re-
gulations in question, which have already appeared in
our columns. The tenor of these regulations, our
readers will remember, was to reserve to the Crown
certain proportions of all minerals, &c., "lying upon, in,
or under all waste lands hereafter, to be alienated or
conveyed" to private purchasers.
" That your petitioners most humbly and respect-
fully submit to your honourable House that these regu-
lations are wholly unauthorised by law, and that reser-
vations of minerals or imposition of royalties within this
province are illegal.
" Your petitioners respectfully but firmly maintain
that the Crown possesses over the public lands of the
province no rights but such as are comprised in the Act
of the Imperial Legislature, regulatieg their disposal,
and the application of the proceeds arising from the sale
thereof.
" That not only is the right to impose royalties
assumed by the local Government, but the right to let
upon lease for a term of years all minerals under the
public lands of the colony is equally assumed.
" That your petitioners most humbly submit to your
Honourable House the injustice, impolicy, and the illega-
lity of those assumptions by the local government.
" That all the public lands of the colony having hi-
therto been sold in fee-simple, without reservation of
minerals, andlfree from the charge of royalties, the altera-
tions contemplated will create an unfair distinction in the
tenure of lands to be subsequently sold, and will more-
over destroy one of the most important principles which
has hitherto guided the land sales of the province,
namely, that of leaving the freehold of the land pur-
chased altogether unfettered by restrictions or reserva-
tions.

" That by adopting this illegal intention the sales of
all mineral lands and the emigration provided law, to
support which the proceeds of such sales are to be de-
voted, may be totally stopped, irrespective of the demand
of the colonists for labour, and the control established by
Parliament over the appropriation of all moneys received
for the waste lands of the province.
" That the reservation of minerals is an uncalled for
and impolitic interference with that enterprise which
has marked the character of the colonists of South Aus-
tralia, and fatal to the continued and increasing pros-
perity of the province, which your petitioners were
otherwise entitled to regard as certain, and which, if
untrammelled, promised to render South Australia, at no
distant period, one of the most important colonial pos-
sessions of Great Britain.
" And your petitioners, although bearing the entire
expenses of their own government, being deprived of
the privileges of British subjects, inasmuch as a
representative assembly is still withheld from them ;
but, nevertheless, appealing with confidence to their past
peaceable and orderly conduct, in proof of their loyalty
to the Crown, and of their deep attachment to the laws
and constitution of their country, make their present
most earnest petition to your Honourable House, in the
confident hope that your Honourable House will continue
to refuse your sanction to any alteration in the mode, as
regulated by law, of disposing of the waste lands of the
province, to the reservation of minerals, to the imposition
of royalties, and to all proposals for altering or impair-
ing the tenure of the waste lands of South Australia.
" And inasmuch as measures deeply affecting and
inimical to the interests of your petitioners, in the par-
ticulars before mentioned may have been adopted before
an appeal from so distant a province may reach your
Honourable House, your petitioner further most earnestly
and humbly pray your Honourable House, in that event,
to take such steps as may in your wisdom appear requi-
site and necessary to protect your petitioners from the
effects of the impolitic and obnoxious measures attempted
to be forced upon them.
"And your petitioners will ever pray."

FITE PERSONS DROWNED. A correspondent of
the Limerick Chronicle, writing from Kilkee, on the coas
of Clare, says :—" Two melancholy accidents have oc-
curred here, which elicited very general sympathy. A
respectable young woman, Bridget Hanrahan, front
Croom, whilst preparing to stand under a cascade, or
natural shower-bath, which falls at low water amongst
the rocks, was taken out to sea, on Tuesday, by an im
pending wave, and drowned. All efforts to save the un-
fortunate girl were unavailing. The body was brought
in yesterday by an intrepid fisherman, John Daveen,
who, with three others, Edward Hickie, Pat Russell,
and Pat Robinson, have since met a watery grave by
venturing out to sea, to set their nets, early this morn-
ing. Over twenty nets, belonging to other fishermen,
were carried away or rendered useless by the unex-
pected gale and great swell of the sea on Tuesday and
feoern
aa and his
moment partners
only,
n regainingconsidered
ththemeir-
nets entire, but a greater loss awaited their poor families,
consisting of twenty-six individuals, who are now re-
rYiunaptea:
duced to the greatest distress by the loss of all four out-
side the Duggenah Reef. A subscription has been opened
here for the four widows and children."

DERBY GREAT CHEESE FAIR —This three days
cheese fair terminated on Wednesday. Business was
brisk, and the prices obtained were good. There was a
large amount of cheeses pitched for sale. New cheese
sold at 455. to 50s. per cwt. ; old cheese varied in price
from 48s to 555. per cwt., and some choice old cheeses
were bought up by London dealers at 565. to 60s. per cwt.
ABOLITION OF FLOGGING.—READING, THURSDAX.
—An influential and crowded meeting of the inhabitants
of Reading and the vicinity was held last evening, at the
New-hall. London-street, for the purpose of adopting
measures to promote the entire abolition of punishment
in the army and navy, and to sustain the recently formed
" Flogging Abolition Society" in their efforts to achieve
that object. The Rev. John Statham was called to the
chair at seven o'clock, and resolutions in accordance
with the object of the meeting were unanimously adopted.
COURT OP EXCHEQUER, GUILDHALL.—The new
City Court of Exchequer is nearly completed, and will
be opened for the transaction of business at the ensuing
sittings, Michaelmas term.
The marriage of Lady Mary Grey, sister of the
Earl of Stamford and Warrington, with Mr. Milbank.
nephew of the Duke of Cleveland, is to be solemnised OD
Monday next.