The Sun.
London, England, 1841-03-01 00:00:00

SOUND DUTIES,

( From the IlferM"t;lr—tg Chronicle) dal,
That crying grievance on the Baltic trade—the Soloed
is :stout to be brought under the consideration of the sires
Commons, Mr. Hutt, the Member for Hull, WI trberl
notice of a motion on the subject for the 9th of 3!ereteasits
is no question ol m•we pressing importance to the in, for 110
European commerce, nor any which calls more 1 unltia the
interference of Parlian ent. How it hss happenedetl,Look
twenty-sixth year of peace, a fifth-rate power 11 'r:obotss,
should be permitted to extort from shipping passing t'ssrit(s,
tolls to the amount of more than 200,0001. sterling In".4.ltab
upon of oe,
which from 70,000/. to 80,000/. rer annum falls up. ""
shipping alone), whilst its right t 3 such a revenue Is site
in dispute, but in great part nototious s
ly unfounded, " r
unaccountable. The banish Government n,ut'das
ever, have long sines been prepared for a, t. 4 It
retribution, and that day is probably not very far LO-Otitta•
is impossible for the European Powers to permit The
n
ance of the Sound dues on their present footing. Th iinsi'orcal
ment hich these dues form to the extension of ourcosarlookol
relations with the Baltic ports is toe serious to be
markets ere
by the British Government, at a time when our Inar'ssafle•
threatened with the active competition of continental On or
tures. Prussia is deeply interested in the abatement o!):_te
sauce sshich almost precludt s commercial intercourse 1.,,71,0
her Rhenish dominions and her provinces on the PO7Ol
Sweden, ancientl exempt from the burden, is now unabich o
severest sufferers} though, inch ed, it is hard to say ritatir
the States bordering on the Baltic has sustained there'
jury by Danish exactions under the Castle of CroaenberPooli
That a shi toll has been levied in the Cattegat flyer
times is true, but it is out of the power of the Kings° es
Sste
mark to show thatwarrants
either custom or treaty warra toe_ tboo
ing dues, or mode of collecti in. Without going back
good old days when Vas Sound duty did not affect were
en or
at all, but consisted in the simple tribute of a gn
noble for every sail, it is sufficient to remark that the P,nti
r
title is understood to rest mainly upon the Christiano Tea.
of 1645, and upon a subsequent treaty, or convention,
penhagen, in 1701. The Chrictianople treaty contaistV?
of duties, said to be the groundwork of the Fres° sea
and provides that non-enumerated goods shall bed
'This t
according to the usage of merchants. •-•1- sea'
explained by the Copenhagen treaty to he one Peroster
art valorem on the goods of favoured nations wool
which category Great Britain and all the Tr tae.si'
trading powers now stand), leaving 1* per cent. the oish
mum to be required from nations not so favoured. 111_,at
were understood to be the leaitimate dues during a an,saitss
of the last century is weeknown, though at Wab rtdir
period the present abuses began it may not be so PAYd
cover. In " Busching's Geography" (a German cosi pctear
reputation in its day), it is stated that in 1752, Eagisis,h,,' Sero4,
Swedish and French ships were not searched at ''"; Is IP'
arid paid only one per cent• for goods not specifieu t.' satl
tariff ; but that other nations paid 1* Per eellnass'oo4l
must submit to be searched. What, therefi re, .."-
must do as the very first st towards the sir
blishment of a legal right, is to show that the II
t
tern of usances which she has latterly . trek
within the limits of the rates sanctioned by
How she is to make out this we eannot Ott tatbs
for, in "mint of fact, the usances exceed the legal re;aottis
extent of 2,4, and even 6 per cent. Sugar, e'ffee' ansoasa
articles of colonial produce, being unenumerated, are nor r-
the goods the most heavily charged by the utances;._, oft
these usanees established even in the form of an Ofge"' ir
so that, for aught we know, an attempt may be Inedueaultlael,
crease the tolls still further, if foreign interposition s"-ug tosi
speedily take place. Whether the Danish
not fairly be called upon to refund such sums as :tort
proved to have been levied in contravention of the leg st Pr.
is a point which deserves consideration • and wes:shtruebiesti
Palmerston will not overlook the just of Briu— s
claims
Goverinne si
.b.
"00'
in this particular.
We are aware that his Danish Majesty expends S",--a eCsis.tst
portion of his Sound revenues upon lighthouses in ",-Aso sun;
gat ; but this portion is' ver inconsiderable, r:oinPar7,
for which the public gets nothing whatever in retufLb ti:t
mitting that Denmark has a right to some toll, it is 1:."„ RC'
that the present exactions should be reduced wit"l-ntirel
if not e.
lunits ; and that the Sound dues should be,
abolished, at least placed on a footin not absolutelY toes
not sig
to the commercial Interests of Europe These al e Ps:
of Hanover in the waters of the Elbe, can be
when either the Icing of Denmark in the Sound, or tristaas.
permitt !ware.
struct the course of navigation at their free 014Y_, to er
We say nothing here of the Stade duties, further tr"cefa sr
press our hope that the commission understood tohace results'
pointed for their adjustment will lead to satisfactorl 04ses
But wo wish to impress upon those who are exerting 01e, 900
for the reform of our tariff, that an alteration in tisthe
dues is one of the indispensable preliminaries towart7.oo sri"
largement of our commercial policy. Mr. Hutt 's ei°J;sisteri
we have no doubt, be well supported. Let the Legit-114,7.
only supply the favouring gale, and we venture tlf e.
Palmerston will find speedy means of applying a rear
abuses we have noticed.