The Sun.
London, England, 1870-02-25 00:00:00

PILOTAGE BILL.

On the motion for the second reading of this bill, Mr.
LEFEVRE said after full consideration it had been deter-
mined after his measure had passed the second reading to
to refer the bill to a select committee.

Mr. GOURLEY was glad such a course had been
adopted, as he was sure they could do as well without
pilots as with them. *

Mr. GRAVES also felt pleased at the determination
of the Government. A larger question was involved in
the matter, much larger than was generally suspected.
Mr. JESSEL, also expressed his satisfaction at the
course that was to be adopted with respect to the bill.
Mr. CANDLISH, Mr. T. SMITH, and Major
DICKSON having spoken on the subject,
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER ex-
pressed his decided objection to adopt the suggestion of
the hon. member for Sunderland to separate the financial
part from the rest of the bill, and refer it to a Select Com-
mittee. It would be adopting a mischievous precedent.
Mr. CRAWFORD esid he was instructed by the
chairman of the Shipowners' Society, whom he had seen
that day, to say that he was perfectly satisfied with the
principle of the bill, and did not think there was any
necessity to refer it to a select committee.
Mr. GRIEVE having made a few remarks
Mr. S. CAVE said he strongly supported the refereno
of the bill to a select committee.

Mr. RATIIBONE also supported. that course.
Mr. MAGUIRE vas opposed to it.

Mr. WINGFIELD, on the ground that the bill in-
fringed the privileges of the unlicensed pilots, who were
mi exceedingly usetul class of men, supported the propo-
sition of a select committee.
Mr. KNATCHBULL-HUGESSEN. r.nd Mr. SHAW-

LEFEVRE, on the part of the Government, gave an
assurance that their desire was not to do an injustice to
any person. Therefore, they had no objection to the bill
being referred to a select committee.
The bill was referred accordingly.
WAR OFFICE BILL.
On the Inotio4 for the second reading of this bill.

Mr. MUNDELLA obzeived that there was no depart-
meat so badly managed as the purchasing department of
the War Mice. There was gross mismanagement, gross
corruption, and gross bungling, and it was impossible for
the Secretary of War to keep such a system in check.
Therefore, it was necessary that the Clerk of Ordnance,
who would have the control and superintendence of the
largest manufacturing and purchasing department in the
world, should be the right sort of man. Any men man
would save his salary a hundred times over.

After a few words in further explanation of the duties
of the heads of department created under the bill, the
second reading was carried.
COINAGE BILL.

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, in defer-
ence to the wish of the right hon. member for North North-
amptonshire, who as yet had not had time to give his
attention to the subject, postponed the second reading of
this bill to a future day.
FEUDAL AND BURGAGE TENURE IN
SCOTLAND.

The LORD ADVOCATE then rose to ask leave
to bring in a bill, the object of which was
to abolish feudal and burgage tenure n Scotland.
He would just make a few observations on the present
position of the question of land right in Scotland. The
land rights of both England and Scotland were
originally the same, but time and other circum-
stances had altered them, yet this still showed
that they both came from the same parentage. In both
countries the right was based on the feudal tenure, and it
was that system which embarrassed the conveyance of

property in both countries. In Scotland all the
land held by the real substantial holder was
held by him simply as a vassal, and then
there were certain dues, such as feu dues,
casual dues, and other peculiarities ; but it appeared to
him that the time had now arrived when the feudal
system of land tenure should be abolished altogether,
and that from the passing of the bill it should altogether
.ease and determine. The effect of the House agreeing
to give its sanction to the present bill would be to reduce
the expense of the transfer of land, and one of the most im-
portant points in it was that it removed the objection-
able system without interfering with any substantial
interests now in existance. The right lion. gentleman ex-
plained the principle clauses of the bill, which lie said
would give the grealest relief to all those who might for
the future inherit property in Scotland, and complete
relief in certain cases where land paseed
from heir to heir, and it also shortened the period
of prescription from forty to seven years, after which the
title should be unchallengeable, except in the case of
fraud, and, as he had said before, it abolished the feudal
system. It also abolished the burgage tenure, which was
tenure within the royal burghs, and the measure was ac-
companied by a set of short forms of conveyance that
would, lie felt certain be found to be a great improvement
in the old and cumbrous process which had been so long in
existence.

Leave was then given to bring in the bill, aad the bill
was subsequently brought in and read a first film.
DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR SERVICES.

On the motion of Mr. OT WAY, it was ordered that the
select committee on Diplomatic and Consular Services do
consist of twenty-one members—Mr. Bouverie, Mr.
William H. Gladstone, Mr. Rylands. Mr, R Shaw, Sir
Henry Lytton Buiwer, Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke,
Mr. Kinnaird, Mr. Holmes Mr. William Cartright, Mr.
Arthur Russell, Mr. Sclater-Booth, Viscount Sandon,
Mr. Bostwick, Mr. Baring, Mr. William Lowther.
Mr. Cameron, Mr. Frederick Stanley, Mr. Butler-
Johnstone, Viscount Barrington, Mr. Frederick Walpole,
and Mr. Otway.
The House then adjourned at seven o'clock.

LONDON, C lIITHAM, AND DOVER 11 AI LAVA Y.
The haf-yearly general meeting of the shareholders of
this company was held at the Victoria Station, London,
oa Thursday. The, report, which was presented and
taken as read, stated that the result of the half year's
working gave the gross receipts at 1:388,751 12s. Cd., being
an increase of £29,064 ls. The gross expenses were
1;213,256 18s. 5d., shewing an increase of £1,778
9s. 4d. And the net result of the half
year's traffic was a balance of £175,494 13s. 11d.
In moving the adoption of the report, the Chairman, Mr.
G. Hodgkinson, M.P., said it Was impossible to cuter
fully into most matters connected with the company, as
they were under arbitration, and, therefore, according to
the wholesome rule, could not be made the topic of talk.
He congratulated the shareholders on the position of the
company. The net income for the last half-year
exceeded by £27,285 that of the corresponding half-year of
the previous year (1868). During the past four years the
income had risen from £163,000 to £281,000. This result
had been obtained under adserse circumstances, for they
had been working with a divided board, and they had been
thwarted in their endeavours to increase the mineral and
goods traffic. The somewhat high fares which the com-
pany had thought it necessary to make some time since,
had been reduced since the Ist January ; and though
they had carried a larger number of passengers at
£l,OOO less money than previously, they expected this
would soon be improved, and the system work well.
They had made arrangements with the Metropolitan
Railway Company to run trains through to Moorgate-
street, and they had also been in communication with the
authorities in France with respect to the alteration of
Calais Harbour, and the improvement of communication
between France and England. He then proceeded to rebut
certain charges which the three mortgage directors
had made against the Board in a special report.—
Mr. Hilliard seconded the adoption of the report. The
general feeling of the meeting was condemnatory of the
Mort age Directors, and a hope was expressed that they
would withdraw their charges.—ln answer to questions,
the Chairman said the Board was anxious, and would do
their best, to reduce the expenditure ; that they were
making efforts to obtain at least a reduction in the pas-
senger duties ; that Lord Clarendon, having been commu-
nicated with upon the question of improving Calais Harbour,
had instructed our Ambassador in France to urge the matter
upon the consideration of the French Government, and
that the compensation the company was to receive for the
telegraph was £lOO,OOO. The report was then unani-
mously adopted, and a vote was passed expressing full
confidence in the board of directors; who were struggling
with unusual difficulties.

111. E JUTE MANUFACTORY WORKS.—Several of
our contemporaries, after reporting the case of the " last"
girl at the jute factory who received the daily penalty of
fifteen lashes on the hand with a leathern cat-o'-nine-
tails, had to contradict the report, and the authoritative
request of the manager of the only jute factory at
Barking " was accepted by the public and ourselves as
exploding the entire story. But further inquiry into the
circumstances has led us to the discovery that the facts
were accurately reported except that Barking " was
improperly waitten for " Stratford." The Ilford bench
of magistrates did have before them undoubted and uncon-
tradicted evidence that a girl of 131 years was subjected
to this cruel treatment, which the little sufferer said was
a daily occurrence, always inflicted upon the last girl ;"
adding that " if the girls did not hold their hands to have
the stripes, they were discharged ; that was understood at
the hiring."—Echo,
THE NONCONFORMISTS AND THE EDUCATION
BILL.—The Rev. R. W. Dale, of Birmingham, in writing
to the English Independent, says "that the objectionable
provisions of Mr. Forster's Bill are easily separable from
the general scheme. He trusts that the Nonconformistraem-
berg of the House of Commons will not let the religious clauses
pass without protest. The Government solution of this
difficulty is absolutely intolerable to the dissenting bodies.
Local vestries will have power to make a parish school de-
nominational, to entrust religious teaching to the clergy-
man, and to levy a rate upon all ratepayers, so that the
school may be an appendage to the parish church
although supported partly by Dissenters. What
is this, it is asked, but a new Church-rate ?In
determining what the religion of a school will
be, the whole advantage will fall to the Esta-
blished Church and to Roman Catholicism, because
the Nonconformists are restrained by ecclesiastical and
political principles from taking advantage of their strength.
In schools founded by rates there should be no denomina-
tional teaching whatever. Nonconformists would not
object to the Bible being read, but it should be either
after or before the regular school work, and no child
should be compelled to be present at the reading.
UOMPENSATION UASES.-6everal railway compensation
oases have been tried in the law courts. In the Court of
Exchequer, Mr. and Mrs. Metcalfe, who belong to the
theatrical profession, and have managed a provincial
opera troupe, have received £B5O for injuries
received by Mrs. Metcalfe on the Lancashire
and Yorkshire Railway. Mrs. Metcalfe, who plays under
the name of Miss Beauclerk, was thought by Sir W. Fer-
guson and Dr. Partridge to 'have suffered more mentally
than physically, and the defendants contended that
she had injured herself by performing instead
of taking rent at the time of the accident. A
Custom-house officer, named Wheeler, sued the
Southampton Dock Company in the same court for
damages for an injury received from a tramway in the
docks, but the jury could not agree and were discharged.
At Nisi Prius, before Lord Chief Justice Bovill and a
a
special jury, licensed victualler at Kentish Town obi.
tamed £6OO from the Midland Railway for injuries
ceived at a collision in Moorgate-street.
The expected settlement of the miners' strike itt
the Worsley district has not been arrived at. A deputation !
of the men had an interview yesterday with Mr. fertday
Smith, agent for the Bridgwater trustees, who stated the
determination of the employers not to increase their off, r. 2.
If, however, ho said, the miners would return to wot I‘,
trustees would be willing to receive a deputation, and would
listen to any statement they might have t 3 make regarding
their grievances. A meeting was held yesterday, and it
was agreed to continuo the strike until the full rise iP
coixecied. _ .. •