The Sun.
London, England, 1870-05-23 00:00:00

French Trade and Commerce.

The parliamentary inquiry into all branches of the
commerce and industry of France has elicited
some interesting . and important facts.. It
appears, for instance, that the tonnage
of French commercial shipping has increased
from 129,000 tons in 1827, to 4,284,000 in 1869. It
was in 1831 only 30 per cent. of that of England,
while the proportion is now about 34 per cent.
Timber ships are, it is stated, constructed
in France at about the same cost as
in England. Iron ships are not practically
dearer in France. Raw materials are cheaper in
England, but manual labour, wages, &c., are dearer,
and create on the average an equilibrium. The cost
of a marine steam-engine varies in France between
£4O and £52 per nominal horse-power, and in
England from £2B to £4B.
Vandalism at Oxford.

The Law Journal is kind enough to inform the re-
latives and friends of the Vandals who recently com-
mitted the outrage at Christ Church of the penalty
which awaits them in case of conviction. By an
act passed a few years ago, it is provided that any
person who wilfully injures a statue or other
article kept for the purposes of art, science,
or literature, or as an object of curiosity
in any library, which library is from
time to time open for the admission of any
considerable number of persons to view the same by
the permission of, the proprietor thereof, or any pic-
ture, statue, monument, or other ornament or work
of art in any building belonging to any college of
any university, shall be guilty of a misdemeanour,
and being convicted thereof, shall be liable
to he imprisoned for any term not exceeding
sis months with or without hard labour.
The section also provides that damages may be reco-
vered in addition to the imprisonment.

Costly Cabbages.
Our. country magistrates are certainly somewhat
eccentric in their decisions occasionally. We have
scarcely heard the laFt about the stolen ducks
when we find a man sent to prison for
seven days for transplanting cabbages bought
and planted by himself. The martyr to
this curious construction of the law of meum and
teum was a labourer named James Webb. He was
charr°ed by a widow, with whom he had lodged,
with stealinc, some cabbage plants, value 2s.
It seemed from the evidence that Webb had
lodged with the widow for eighteen months, and
put what lie liked in the garden, giving her half the
produce. He bought the cabbage plants, and put
them in, but as he left a few days after, he took them
up, and took them away with him, thinking he had
full right to do so. The widow admitted that
this version of the story was true, but, strange
to say, the bench found the defendant guilty, and sent
him to prison for seven days, as he was unable to pay
a fine of 10s. There was apparently some animus in
the matter on account of the departing lodger, but as
the Bench were not specially affected by the loss
of rent, it is difficult to understand how
it was they did not recognise the fact that the point
in dispute came under civil, • not criminal law.
Perhaps, however, they were apprehensive of
the consequences of displeasing the fair widow,
who subsequently summoned another man, also
implicated in the cabbage transaction, for using
abusive language to her about those unlucky
vegetables.