The Sun.
London, England, 1851-06-11 00:00:00

On Saturday, one of the judges hLring become India-
pcsed, aU adjourn:nen?, took place to Mo,;(ley.

• -

SP ANISII AMER] CAIV 80. DIIO Lagß,
The following, relating to the ft reign debt and all'
the Customs' law of Vener.:cla, is from the Ce'
of Spanish American Bondholders:—
.

- " Committee of Spanish Atneric.th am.,
8, Broad-street-butldings, June 9, ISSI.
" The committee have received this rnutning oi-fol-
lowing letter from their agent, 'Mr. LA d, dated Li
Gusyra, May 9, 1851:
" ' Sir,--I have now the pleasure to wait upon the
committee with the enclosed extraordinary Gazette of
the sth inst., that contains the legislative decree of the
23d ult., continuing
the extraordinary contribution to
which I have made reference in my late letters. Arts.
1,6, and 7 are those that merit especial attention, the
remaining ones, Nos. 2 to 5, being confined to the retell
of duty to be levied on imports and exports.
" ' It is in Art. 1 that the Senate made an alteration,
amplifying still more its usefulness; thus the duration of
the contribution is to be " as long as it may be necessary
to meet the engagements of the public credit."
" ' Art. 6 is a very important one, prohibiting, as it
does, upon any pretext whatevetr, implication of this
iignAedrt.ex7cleuss
fund to other than the object for wbiElEt is decreed, viz.,
in satisfaction of the obligations of public credit.
taivbelliyshteos
ploys* concerned,
Although this contribution is not by the decree
the em-
us' as was pro-
posed by the Lower Chamber, that which is almost tan-
tahesalfuotrareigny chdecekbt,upon
tan-
tamount to it is, that in the law of " ways and means"
for the economical year that will commence on July Ist
next, there is a sum assigned as part payment of the four
years' interest due to Ist of April last of 500,000 dolls.,
and another for the current interest, at 3 i per cent., in
the same year of 371,711 dolls.; that is to say, in this
form the project of law left the Chamber of Representa-
tives, and I believe the Senate confirmed it; but as their
debates are not given to the public, and that the law
itself has not been promulgated, I cannot speak positively
on the subject. It will interest the committee to know
that the domestic debt, upon which interest is payable,
amounts at present to a trifle more than 1,000,e00 dolls.,
which will next year be increased to perhaps 1,500,6 a
dollars, or thereabouts, and this will form the maximum
of the home debt. Upon the first named amount io per
cent. for interest and redemption (5 per cent. for each
object) is assigned in the budget of 1851 and 1852.
" ' The promised reply of the Minister has not yet
reached me: that he has his hands full at present I know.
" ' The sessions of Congress closed on the 4th inst. A
Minister Plenipotentiary has not yet been appointed.—l
remain, &c.,

(Signed) if 6 IL J. LORD.'
".The fullowing is the decree mentioned in the above
letter:—

LEGISLATIVE DECREE ORDERING THE CONTINUATION

OF THE EXTRAORDINARY CONTRIBUTION.
" The Senate and Chamber of Representatives of the
Republic of Venezuela, assembled in Congress, decree,—
" 'Art. 1. There shall continue to be paid, from the Ist
of July of this year, and thenceforward, the extraordi-
nary contribution which was established by the decree
of 2d May, 1849, as long as will,be necessary to meet
the engagements of the public credit.
" Art. 2. The merchandise and effects which may
be imported from foreign countries through any of the
customhouses of the Republic will have to pay an ad-
ditional duty of twenty per cent. over and above the
previous duty, and fifteen per cent. ad valorem on all
goods which were hitherto duty free, excepting gold
and silver in coin, bars, bullion or dust, printed books,
and machinery, and other goods which were made duty
free by the decree of 22d February of this year, in fa-
vour of public works.

6" § 1. The amount of this duty is to be paid in cash
if not exceeding 700 dolls., or within thirty days if
above that amount.

4, §2. In the payment of this duty there shall be ob-
served the formalities and rules established by the law.
on the administration of customs.

" § 3. The duties levied by this article will come into
opsration from the Ist June with regard to the com-
merce with the Antilles, and from the Ist July with re-
gard to the United States and Europe.
•" Art. 3. The productions and national manufactures
which will be exported to foreign countries through any
of the ports of the Republic, after the publication of this
law, will pay a duty of 4 per cent. ad. valorem.
•" (Only §.) The following aro excepted from the
operations of this article:—
•° let, Coffee, cotton, and the produce of the sugar
cane, which will only pay 3 per cent. ad valorem.
" 2d, Gold coin, which will only pay 1 per cent., and
silver coin, which will only pay 2 per cent.
•' • 3d, Cattle and pickled meat.
" ' Art. 4. The administrators of the Customs will fix
at the doors of their offices, on the last days of each
month, a list of the current prices of their place, of the
productions and exportable manufactures affected by this
decree. This list is to be signed and sworn to by two
merchants and three landed proprietors of known in-
tegrity, named by the administrators of the Customs.
" ' A copy of the said list, authenticated by the party
who drew it up, is to be transmitted to the Department
of Accounts.

" Art. 5. On the valuation resulting from the list
mentioned in the foregoing article the duties of exporta-
tion will be calculated.

" Art. G. The total produce of this contribution will
be applied exclusively to the public credit; and on no
pretext whatsoever, not even on the plea of reimburse-
ment, is the least part of it to be applied to any other
purpose.

"-‘ Art. 7. The civil authorities appointed to preside
at the monthly accounts of the financial offices will re-
fuse their signatures whenever they find that there has
been a contravention with regard to the foregoing
article, and they have to report the case immediately to
the Executive power, in order, on having the fact certi-
fied, that they may discharge the functionary or func-
tionaries.
" ' Caracas, April 19th, 18.51: "

COURT CIRCULAR.
Her Majesty
and his Royal Highness Prince Albert,
with the Princess Royal, the Princess Alice, and the
Princess Helena,
accompanied by their Royal High-
nesses the Duke and Duchess of Saxe Coburg Goths,
and Duke Ernest of Wurtemberg, visited the Zoological
Gardens in the Regent spark yesterday mornings In
attendance on her Majesty and the Royal party were--
General Wemyss, Colonel Bouverie, and M. B. de
Treskow.
Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Saxe Coburg
Gotha visited her Royal Highness the Duchess of Kant
yesterday, at Clarence House, St. James's.
His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, attended
by Mr. Birch, took a carriage drive yesterday morning.
Their Royal Highnesses Prince Alfred, the Princess
Louisa, and Prince Arthur, took their usual exercise
lone
enis
eit ;au
Isis
di3i at
coy,
uy
rt
Highness ghaornd oe
unir, oer fdi n te
she
rAe Pl
Edwinba e ace,
e,
. a t
dd
se
ed r by
witChos
visit yesterday at his residence, in St. John's Wood.
-
llis
eePrine
highnessßoyal H i gthhne
ellssucthhss of Saxe Gviosithteadybeerg.
RoyaleofCoWbuarsga
terday, at Buckingham Palace.
The Queen and Prince Albert, accompanied :by the
Duke and Duchess of Saxe Coburg Gotha and Duke
Ernest of Wurtemberg, honoured the Royal Italian
Opera with their presence yesterday evening. The royal
suite consisted of the Countess of Charlemont, the Hon.
Mary Seymour, the Baroness de Wangenheim, Lord
Camoys, General Wemyss, Colonel Bouverie, and M. B.
de Treskow.
Lord Camoys has relieved Lord Dufferin in his duties
' as Lord in Waiting to her Majesty. Lieutenant-Colonel.
the Hon. N. Hood has relieved Sir Frederick Stem in
his duties as Groom in Waiting to her Majesty.
Her Royal Highness
the Duchesi of Kent,
.ingen,accom.
panied by his Serene Highness the Prince of Lem
a
and attended by Lady Fanny Howard nd L ord James
Murray, honoured her Majesty's Theatre with her pre-
sence yesterday evening.

MERCHANT TRADERS' Stair LOAN AND INSURANCE
COMFANY.—Yesterday a point of considerable importance
was raised in this matter before the Master in Chancery Sir
William Home, on the application of Mr. Roxburgh, counsel
for Mr. Harding, the official manager of this company, to
proof of debts, amounting
no et
hlleank allegationruptcy. the to 80,0001, allowed by
application in goes'
n was
foundedCommissionershe
o
con-
tracted la. ed between the provision that these debts were con-
and complete registration of
expungettihoe t
the company, and that, consequently, the directors or pro-
moters, and not the shareholders, were liable in respect of
them. Messrs. Maples and Pearce, who were solicitors to
the assignees under the bankruptcy, opposed the application
under the 7th section of the Joint Stock Companies Winding-
up Act. his Honour the Master declined to accede to the
application, being of opinion that he had no Jurisdiction to do
so under the Act, the debts having already been admitted by
the Commissioner in bankruptcy. Mr. Roxburgh said that
as the point was of very great importance, and ay the Bank-
ruptcy Law Consolidation Act expressly saved the jurisdic-
tion of the Joint Stock Companies Winding-up Act, the ques •
tion could not be allowed to rest there.

SPARLINGS.—Within the last few days a numerous
and novel colony of fish have appeared on various parts of
the Hampshire coast, particularly in the mouths of the fresh'
water rivers conununicating with the sea. They literally
swarm in numbers, and are pronounced, by those who have
witnessed them, to be smelts, which latter fish they closely
resemble, but en old angler, who has, in years gone by,
cast his line into the Dye, in Cheshire, determines them to
be sparlings. They will bite at a rag-worm very greedily,
and a person with a single rod and line, on Saturday,
caught eight dozen and upwards of these diminutive
tenants of the ti )oil during one tide. They are closely fol-
lowed up by large bodies of that voracious fish, the mackerel
guard, which latter makes sad havoc among the above feeble
colony. These fish are very rare, visiting our coasts only
now and then, nor does it appear that they have ever been
i recognised n the London markets.