The Sun.
London, England, 1834-02-22 00:00:00

THE FUNDS.

The information from Madrid is not of importance.
The news from Lisbon, of the 9th inst., has somewhat sur-
prised our City speculators, as they positively expected very
favourable information from the Queen's armies, in which they
have been disappointed. Portuguese Stock fell yesterday after-
noon 3/ per cent. It appears that some further intrigues and
dissensions have taken place between Saldanha and Terceira,
the two Commanders-in-Chief of Don Pedro's army. But the
most important account is, that Don Miguel has reinforced
himself with 7,000 men, and still occupies the important posi-
tion of Santarem, to the entire astonishment of our City specu-
lators.

Consols are at present 90-1 1 for the account ; not so good as
yesterday, owing to Ministers being in the minority last night.
Portuguese, 721 73 ; Spanish 36 I.

HALF-PAST ONE.
During the whole of the week the mania of speculation in the
Foreign Market, in Portuguese and Spanish Stocks, have been
carried to an extraordinary height, and the infatuation was so
great, that scarce a seller could be found in the above Stocks.
This morning it is to the contrary effect, and it appears that the
life and spirit of the market have taken their departure. The
speculators are acting with snore prudence and caution, as it is
expected that Don Miguel, having received considerable rein-
forcements, will give battle to the army before Santarem. Por-
tuguese Stock 794 to 73 ; Spanish 35 to s.
Consols have been during the morning at 901 for the Ac.
count, with little doing.
The private letters from Lisbon confirm the accounts already
published.

THREE O'CLOCK.

Couols for the Account, 90

CLOSING PRICES..
Bank Stock 2171
3 per Cent. Red. OO4
3 pet Con. Cons
per Cent, 99t
31 per Cent. Red 9S4
New 3i per Cent 974
4 per Cc nt 1041-
Long. Ann. to expire
Jan. 1860 ;7 7-16
17 5-16
Jae.lB6o l7 1-16

FOREIG
Austrian, 5 per cent lOl
Belgiano.s per cent 971
Brazilian Bonds
Buenos Ayres, 6 per cent 26
Chilian, 6 per cent. 2B
Columbian, 6 per cent 24
Ditto, 1824 271
Danish 74f
Greek, 5 per cent 24
Mexican 5 per Cents, 1825 31k
Ditto 6 per Cent., 1825 4li
Peruvian 6 pet Cent. 23

LONDON,
SAT URDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 22, 1834.

We can see no reason why Lord ALTHO RP
should not have agreed to the motion of the
Marquis of C HANDOS, relative to agricultural
distress. It imputed no blame to Ministers,
and pledged them to nothing unreasonable, but
simply to the proposition that, in the remission
of taxes, due regard should be paid to the ne-
cessity of relieving agricultural distress. We
believe Ministers admit the general proposition
in the fullest sense, and are ready to apply. it
to agricultural distress, as well as to dß-
tress of every other kind ; and what harm
then could have been done by acceding to it ?
If, on inquiry, it were found that other interests
required relief more imperatively than the landed
interest, then would have been the time to op-
pose Lord CHANDOS and the country gentry,
but in the present state of the question, the
opposition was uncalled for—it was worse than
useless. It brought the power of Ministers to
a test without any necessity—it exhibited them
as virtually defeated in a measure on which no trial
of strength ought to have taken place, and thereby
tended to impair the confidence both of Members
and the public in their good sense and discretion.
A double defeat in one night is rather too bad
on any questions, but still more so on questions
which might have been settled—which ought to
have been settled without a contest. Defeat
disheartens friends and encourages enemies, and
should never be unnecessarily hazarded. A
number of Members on many subjects must
naturally be guided by the Ministerial leaders.
This was the case particularly in the affair of
Baron SMITH, and there can be no doubt
that, but for the countenance given to the charge,
first by Mr. LITTLETON and then by Mr.
STANLEY, the House would never have come
to a vote which a week after they found neces-
sary to rescind. These gentlemen ought to be
much better acquainted with Irish affairs than
the greater part of English Members, and every
one believed there must be something egre-

giously bad in the Judges conduct, else the
Secretary for Ireland and his predecessor
would not have recommended a measure of such
solemnity and rare occurrence. Mr. LITTLE-
TON and Lord ALTHORP are both excellent
men, and before they came into office might be
regarded as the best specimens of county repre-
sentatives ; but they are deficient in some of the
first qualities of Statesmen, and allow themselves
too often, through good nature and an unsus-
pecting turn of mind, to be led away by the
Insidious designs of others. The cases of Mr.
SHELL and Baron SMITH bear us out in the
remark. As to the claims of the agriculturists,
we cannot agree with Lord CHANDOS, either
that the Government can grant them any
sensible relief by remission of taxes, or that
they have stronger claims than other classes.
The taxes on farmers are not more se-
vere than on shopmen and manufacturers.
The smaller tenants are exempted from
house and window taxes, and the larger tenants
will share in the relief proposed by the reduction
of the house duty. A number of taxes which
affected them peculiarly were remitted or les-
sened last session. The whole of the beer duty
--no trifling boon—has ceased, and they have
what almost approaches to a monopoly in the corn
market. A proper revision of the poor rates would
benefit them more than the remission of any
taxes which the present state of the Exchequer
can admit. The poor rates atnount to about
seven millions, and out of that nearly two mil-
lions are paid for law expenses. Some judicious
law on the subject, might do away with all this
unnecessary outlay, and thereby benefit the
landed interest as much as the abolition of the
malt tax.

We learn, by intelligence from Paris, under
date of Thursday, that the project of law respect-
ing the staff of the army in time of peace, was
passed in the Chamber of Deputies on the 19th,
after several amendments had been proposed by
General DEMARCAY and others, and a singu-
lar altercation had take❑ place between the
President and the Minister of Commerce, in
consequence of the latter attempting to interrupt
the progress of discussion, by laying before the
Chamber a communication from Government,
and insisting on its being instantly attended to,
by virtue of what he called the " Royal Prero-
gative." The numbers in favour of the project
of law on the military staff were 185, against it,
120.

FRENCH FUNDS.—PARts, FEB. 20
Five per Cents., 1051: 95.:. 85c.
Three per Cents., 76f. sc. 76f.
National Loan, lost: SOc.
Bank Actions, 1,7951:
Rente de Naples, 911. 25c.
Roman Five per Cents., 9234.
Rente d'Espagne, Five per Cents., 30
Rente d'Espagne, Three per Cents., :3914.
Royal Spanish Loan, 73%.
dente Perpet. d'Espagne, Five per Cents., 6134.
Belgian Loan, 1831, Five per Cent., 98%.
Haitian Loan, 2701.

EXCHANGE ON LONDON.
One month, paper, 25f. 2734 c. ; money, 25f. `2se.
hree months, paper, 2.5 f. 12yic. ; money, 20f. 10e.
—Cours Autlientique.

Brussels papers mention that the Queen of
the FRENCH, with the Princesses MARIE and
CLEMENTINE, had arrived in that capital on
the 18th instant ; and that the Chamber of
Representatives had agreed on a strong address
to King LEOPOLD, complaining of the late
seizure of M. HANNO by the Governor of
the fortress of Luxemburg. The Augsburg
Gazette of the 16th states that much discontent
has been excited among the middle and lower
classes, in consequence of the adherence of
that free town to the Germanic Treaty of
Customs :

VIENNA, FEE. 11.—Five per Cent. Metalliques, 96 % ;
Bank Shares, 1,2301.

News from Portugal to the 12th inst. men-

tious that the Duke of TERCEIRA had been
recalled from the command of the Pedroite
army, and that Sir THOMAS STUBBS had been
appointed to succeed him. This recall is reported
to have been occasioned by some jealousy be-
tween the Duke anti Count SALDANHA, the
latter of whom refused to serve with the former,
unless he were allowed to exercise the chief
command. It was said at Lisbon that a Ali-
guelite force of 4,000 men was preparing to
march on St. Übes ; but it was not supposed
that they would venture to attack that town,
as all possible precaution had been taken to
put it in a state of complete defence. The
Royal William and the City of Edinburgh
steamers had arrived in the neighbourhood of
Lisbon, with a battalion of Belgians, upwards
of 850 strong, who are to set forward at once
to the army. The following is the official ac-
count of SALDANHA'S late affair at Pernes
(Supplement to the Chronica No. 29, Feb. 4.—Official.}
" LEFT WING OF THE ARMY OF OPERATIONS.

" Sir—On the 28th, being at the bridge of Alviella, I was

informed that the enemy had marched the greater part of his
forces on the road of Pernes, after having been reviewed by the
Usurper. I immediately ordered Lieutenant-Colonel Miranda,
commanding the first light regiment of the Queen, and a bat..
talion of the 10th regiment of infantry, to join Colonel Romao,
who occupied Pernes, and I returned to Torres Novas. The
rebels approached Pernes on the 29th, and in the evening made
a reconnoisance in force. Their dispositions left no doubt in
Colonel Romao's mind that they intended to attack him on the
following day, which he immediately communicated to me,
stating tnatfrom all the information he had received thc enemy's
force amounted to 4,560 men of all arms.
" Your Excellency knows that the greatest difficulty that we
have to encounter, in order to obtain the victory, consists in
obtaining for our brave men opportunities to come to blows with
the enemy. At midnight I put in motion the troops which oc-
cupied Torres Novas, and arrived at Pernes a little before day-
break. At eight o'clock, seeing that the enemy, whose videttes
were in sight, did not resolve to attack us, I put the troops un-
der my immediate command in motion, on the road to Santarem.
Generals Caruarro and Bressaget, who commanded the rebel
force, had ordeffd the attack for ten o'clock in the morning,
and were not a little surprised when they saw their pickets cut
off by our cavalry. The enemy having taken their arms, the
brave Lieutenant-Colonel Simao da Costa Pessoa, with the
brave 10th regiment of cavalry, fell upon the Ist, 17th, and
00th regiments of infantry, which were already in motion,
" CoL Balthazar d'Almeida Pimental, who, with a squadron
two
cut off some of the enemy's pickets on our left, was in the
otfohfrmeanvgalr squares, which were immediately surrounded by
Lancers, under the command of Captain Wakefield, had
mean time charged by'a body of cavalry at least twice as nu-
merous as his own, and the conflict was for some moments
terrible, till the enemy fled, fearing to be cut off by the 10th
Regiment, which Lieutenant Colonel Pessoa detached along the
road, in order to intercept their retreat. Captain Luciano
Pimental, commanding the first company of the second battalion
of Caeadores, which formed the vanguard, was conducted by
Captain Guerreiro, who served as brigadier-major of the column,
under the command of Colonel Romao, to a small eminence
very near to the place where the enemy had formed their
squares. The fire of that company, at a very small distance,
occasioned some confusion in the square formed by the 17th
Regiment. Lieutenant-Colonel Pessoa, with the brave 10th
Regiment of Cavalry, and with the detachment of the 11th,
commanded by Major Trigueiros, profited by this opportunity,
charged and broke the square, and immediately at the same
time the Lancers fell upon the other square, which shared the
same fate as the first.

" From that moment We had nothing more to do. the

enemy was to full Yetreat, and wvae pursued till we obliged him
to enter Santarem.

" The colours of the Ist battalion, both pair of colours of
the 17th Regiment, 709 prisoners, including 21 officers, all
of the troops of the Line, a great quantity of arms and effects,
and 10 horses of the Regiment of Chaves, besides many killed ;
such was the loss of the enemy. Ours consists in 3 soldiers
and 8 horses killed, and 4 officers, 13 soldiers, and 2 horses
wounded."

(Here follow the commendations of the officers.)
" Head-quarters at Pernes, 31st of January,
" Conde de SALDANHA
" To his Excellency A. Jose Freire."

COURT OF EXCHEQUER.-(THIS DAY.

The LORD CHIEF BARON sat with a London Common Jury,
and disposed of four actions upon bills of exchange; in none of
which was there any point of public interest. His Lordship
rose at half-past one o'clock, in order to attend as one of the
Lords of the Privy Council.

FASHIONABLE INTELLIGENCE.