The Sun.
London, England, 1848-07-10 00:00:00

UNIVERSITY INTELLIGENCE.

OXFORD, JULY B.—ln a Convocation, holden this
day, permission was granted to the Rev. Dr. Bandinel,
the Principal Librarian of the Bodleian, to extend his
absence from the University beyond the period pre-
scribed by statute.
In a Congregation holden at the same time the fol-
lowing degrees were conferred :
Doctor in Civil Law—John Williams, Wadham.
Bachelor in Civil Law—Paul Parnell, Fellow of St.
John's.

Masters of Arts—George John Thomas, Trinity,
Grand Compounder ; Rev. Charles Henry Hutchinson,
Exeter ; Henry Salusbury Milman, Fellow of All
Soul's ; James. Thomas Below, Christ Church ; Rev.
Ganael Jebb, Lincoln; Rev. James Bush, St. Mary Hall;
Rev. Charles Jeston Homfray, Oriel ; Rev. John
Swayne, Magdalen Hall; Rev. Frederick Thomas Wood-
man, Magdalen Hall.

Bachelors of Arts—Philip Utred Shuttleworth, Stu-
dent of Christ Church ; Robert Hay Murray, Christ
Church ; Henry Edward Fowler Garnsey, Demy of
Magdalen ; Henry Day Ingilby, Demy of Magdalen.
Bachelor in Music—Thomas lons, Magdalen Hall,
organist of Newcastle.
The Vice-Chancellor has nominated the Rev. Osborne
Gordon, student of Christ Church, to be a public exami-
ner in Literis Humanioribus.

Tim AUSTRIAN EMBASSY.—We learn, on what
we conceive to be good authority, that his Excellency
Count Dietrichstein is about to relinquish his appoint-.
meat as Ambassador to the British Court from Austria.
It will be recollected that the noble Count had made ar-
rangements last February to leave England in the fol-
lowing month, in company with the Countess, for Vienna,
as was then stated on " private business," but circum-
stances arose which demanded the presence of his Excel-
lency in London. The Countess and her brother, Count
Potocki, however, left Chandos louse for Germany,
and, as we announced a few days back, the Countess has
since returned to town, and has altogether abstained
from mixing in society. His Excellency has given
notice to the whole of the retainers in his household
that their services in his establishment will not be re-
quired longer than the close of the present month, when
his Excellency and the Countess are expected to leave
England.
YARMOUTH ELECTION.—The following was the
state of the poll at its close on Saturday, at four o'clock:
—Sanders, 414 ; Rupabold, 384 ; Bagelaw, 300.

Sir,—On Wednesday, the 4th, the Sites for Places
of Worship (Scotland) Bill was discussed in Com-
mittee. A movement for cutting down the applica-
tion to the quantity actually concerned, by limiting
it to the Free Church of Scotland, was lost only by
55 to 58. The preamble of the Bill is a curiosity.
It begins by setting forth, that "according to the
laws and policy of this kingdom, her Majesty's sub-
jects enjoy the rights of religious toleration ;" and
jumps to the conclusion that toleration means having
tile power to take men's lands without their consent.
When the French Constitution is criticised-for its in-
terpretation of the rights of labour, this British
version of the rights of toleration ought to be remem-
bered as a parallel.
"' rsday came on Mr. Hume's adjourned mo-
r Reform. The principal argument advanced
against it, was that there was no popular demand.
So if anybody wants it, they must only say so. The
point round which influential support seems easiest to
be gathered, is the inequality of the electoral division.
The principle coolly put forward by the agricultural
and protectionist benches, is that it is fitting, desir-
able, and to be maintained as long as the possibility
exists, that an agriculturist shall have forty votes in
the House of Commons for the manufacturer's one ;
or which comes to the same thing, three hundred
agriculturists shall have as many voices in
Parliament as twelve thousand manufacturers.
This is stated to be the thing as it is and as it ought
to be ; and it is added that the agriculturists would
be oppressed and ruined men if it were altered. Now
what manner of men are they, and what do they sup-
port, who can only maintain their ground by having
forty votes to one of other people's ? The planters in
the West Indies were hardly under a more desperate
necessity. There is no doubt of the manufacturing
interest having been a long way behind the agri-
cultural in the elements of power, or so strange
a state of things could not at this time
have existed. But it is not in that condition
now ; and moreover it is rapidly advancing, while the
other is standing still. The nature of the final solu-
tion of the problem is therefore not difficult to be
divined.

If the agricultural interest set up a claim to being
paid with twenty shillings in the pound, while the
manufacturing should be paid with sixpence, there
would be something so ludicrously absurd as to make
it difficult to lead men to understand the proposition.
Yet the proportion of injustice is only the same as in
the other case. We shall see how long the manufac-
turers go on taking sixpence in the pound.
It was understood that the policy of the Conserva-
tives was to be, not to reply. The war was ably car-
ried into their quarters by the Member for Middlesex
(Mr. Osborne) ; and the support of the Member for
the West Riding (Mr. Cobden) was most earnest and
impressive.

`:he number that voted for the motion was encou-
raging. It is but a few weeks since the Members of
the House of Commons who could be found in favour
iof t went by the title of "the fifty-one ;" and now
they are swelled into 86. It can hardly be doubted
that fourteen more would have been found willing to
join, if they had known the division would have been
so strong, and had been presented with a vision of the
questions which will be asked them by constituents.
So that there is nothing extravagant in considering-
the party as of the respectable dimensions of a hun-
dred, which is an amount that carries with it parti-
cular ideas in parliamentary calculation.
A point or two to clarify, may usefully be noted.
In the debate there appeared to be some puzzle,
whether the electoral repartition ought to be based
on population, or on property, or how. The answer
to which appears to be, that it ought to be based on
the number of voters as from time to time arising
out of the law upon the suffrage. First settle your
suffrage, and then give Members in proportion to the
number of suffragists. This seems to be what Mrs.
Glasse or any other sensible person would direct. A
great difficulty is taken out of the way, by establish-
ing that equability and not equality of division is the
thing essential. Whether a re-adjustment may not
in fifty years be wanted, may be left to those that
see the case. Something was heard in the debate, on
the old dispute upon the meaning of a right, and
whether the suffrage is a right. The original mean-
ing of right (rectum) and droit (directum) is some.
thing that is ruled or laid down by authority ; and
to this sense lawyers are fond of confining it. But
the laity have always had a propensity to apply the
term to things which are not laid down, but onl.)
ought to be. And in this sense it is that suffrage is
claimed as a right for those that have it not. It i,
claimed on the same grounds as equality before the
law ; and equality before the law, the lawyers would
tell us, is only a right when a man has got it. It is
plain that theyare meaning one thing, and we another.
On Friday went on the eternal debate on Sugar.
The Government has once already given an intima-
tion, that if the West Indians persist in opposition, it
would be practicable to leave things as they are. If,
all things considered, there is about as much to be
said against the Ministerial alterations as for them,
it follows that if an absolute demand for settling
the question should arise, it would be for general
convenience that the Act of 1846 be let alone.

I am, Sir, your obedient servant,
T. PEKRONET THOMPSON.
Blackheath, London, July 10, 1848.

NATIONAL DEFENCE.
PROTECTION OF OUR COASTS.

Many months since, when the outcry of " invasion"
was ringing in everybody's ears, and it was proposed to
turn the wale population of the entire kingdom into
militia regiments, we strongly impressed upon the Go-
vernment, as a substitute for re-organizing the militia,
and as a more effectual means of protection from inva-
sion—first, the equipment of a strong Channel squadron;
secondly, the re-organization of the Coast Guard, so as
to be available for service at sea, as recommended by
Sir George Cockburn and the Hon. Captain Berkeley;
thirdly, the establishment of batteries at certain points
of the coast, especially at Newhaven, Brighton, &c.; and
fourthly, the enrolment of the fishermen and boating
population, and the training of them to the use of the
musket and to serve at the coast batteries.

We are much pleased to find that some of the above
suggestions have been carried into effect. We have a
Channel squadron, which, we trust, will not be
strengthened at the expense of our forces on foreign
stations, but will be permanently kept up for home
service.

The Coast Guard has been re-organized to some ex-
tent. Younger naval officers have been appointed to
this force ; the men entered are available for service at
sea on an emergency, and during the past year, from the
mouth of the Thames to the Land a End, they have,
under the personal superintendence of Captain Houston
Stewart, C. 8., the gallant Comptroller-General, been in
active training to the use of small arms, and at the exer-
cise of the great guns; and now, at the request of Cap-
tain Stewart, the Admiralty have ordered small parties
of Coast Guard men to be removed on board the Excel-
)cot, gunnery-ship, at Portsmouth, for a limited time, to
perfect themselves in the system of gunnery taught in
that establishment ; their Lordships have also ordered
the Benbow, 72, at Sheerness, to be appropriated for a
similar purpose; and the Commandant of the Portsmouth
division of Roy al Marines has been directed to permit the
Coast Guard in the neighbourhood to exercise at the sea
batteries of the artillery companies, as well as at those of
the divisional companies. The whole Coast Guard force is
thus to be rendered as important body of armed and disci-
plined men, as well for the protection of the country as
of the revenue; but to make the department perfect, and
insure for the measures now being taken with respect to
it permanent success, the Coast Guard should at once
be turned wholly over to the control of the Admiralty,
as recommended by these distinguished officers, who are
most competent to give sound advice, as to the regula-
tion and disposition of our naval resources. With re-
ference to works of defence we may state that one or
two batteries have already been established on the coast,
and more are in course of construction; their position
being selected as well for the means of defence, as for
the convenience of training the coast-guard men.
Finally, we believe it is in contemplation so to organise
ma
our coast population, that whenever hostilities may
break out, should an enemy be so unfortunate a
the vigilance of our fleet, or so reckless of hislsatteo eas to
make a " dash" suddenly at any point of our
wbeillohvned
island, he will find a watchful, loyal
ready,Our cOntr
hardy, and efficiently-trained body of
men
quite ready and able to deal him that destructiony to
which he has devoted himself.
We may add that the dockyard brigades (11,000
men). regularly drilled, are already, with their im
park of artillery, available for the protection of
the great
establishments to which they are attach ed; and the new
regulations lately issued for providing in our dockyards
a reserved force of " seamen, will soon come 111L0 effec-
tive operation.—Morning paper.

FIRES.---
Yesterday morning three serious fires
occurred in the metropolis. One broke out between
one and two o'clock upon the premises belonging to Mr.
F. Jocelin, a hatter, No. 14, Fenchurch-street, City.
Two escapes, with several engines of the London brigade
and that of the West of England, quickly attended, but
the fire had gained too fierce a hold to be easily extin-
guished. The damage is considerable, but Mr. Jocelin
was insured in the County Fire-office. Shortly after the
above fire was extinguished, another one occurred in
the lucifer match manufactory of Mr. Miller, No. 3,
Sugarloaf- court, Bethnal-green. Owing to the timely
aid afforded, the flames were soon extinguished. The
third fire happened at No. 5, Dockhead, belonging to
Mr. Ilernley, a china dealer, &c. Mr. Hernley's stock
was insured in the Sun Fire office.