The Sun.
London, England, 1834-03-24 00:00:00

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LONDON,
MONDAY EVENING, MARCH 24, 1834.

While the University of Cambridge is ad-
vancing in the cause of religious toleration and
an impartial distribution of academic honours,
her twin-sister is receding, and improving even
on the bigotry of the pedantic JAMES I. We
use the word university, because, from the re-
spectability, the number, and the learning of
the men who subscribed the petition to the
Lords and Commons, as well as from the
fact that no counter petition has been
got up, we may take it for granted that
the petitioners express the feeling of the general
body. Taking into account the numbers that
are neutral and passive, or favourable to the
measure, but silent from prudential motives,
sixty_two subscribers, out of a body consisting
of 180 members, may be regarded as decisive
of the question. Oxford, however, has prepared a
petition, not to Parliament, but to the KING,
and, not content with excluding the Dissenters
from that University, calls on his MAJESTY to
refuse a charter to any other similar institution
which may interfere with their monopoly of
degrees. Bigotted and blind, as most recluses
are, we could hardly conceive it possible that the
light of the age should have been so completely
excluded from this abode of learning. While
more than one-half of the population—
a great majority of the House of Commons
—and a respectable proportion of the
Upper House, are calling out for the
admission of dissenters into the Universities,
the resident members of Oxford seem utterly
ignorant of the fact, and are as devoted to the
exclusive system as they possibly could have been
had they, in the shape of monks, inhabited these
places in the 15th century. The very extrava-
gance of the illiberality, however, disarms it of
half its force. It can have few abettors, and
if the dissenters only act with prudence, and
obey the injunction of the poet," orandum est"
&c., they may count upon speedy relief.

The Leeds Mercury says Earl FITZWII,
LIAM is favourable to the redress of the Dis-
senters, grievances, except on two points—
exemption froin church rates and the admission
to graduate at the Universities. To make the
thing complete it ought to have added, " and
reform in the ceremonies of baptism, marriage,
and burial." The editor of the Mercury must
be very ill inflnaed to impute such absurdity
and bigotted opinions to a nobleman who, in
the House of Commons, was ever the foremost
in the cause of liberty and justice, but if the
atmosphere of the House of Lords can produce
such a change, that branch of the Legislature
should be abolished by acclamation.

Brussels papers, of Saturday's date, say that
the health of the PRINCE-ROYAL was better ;
but we understand, from private accounts, that
such is not the fact. It will be seen by the
following paragraph that our Belgian neighbours
feel little or no disposition to reciprocate with
us in the spirit of free trade, which feeling is
unfortunately too generally entertained through-
out the continent. A Belgian paper says :—" In
order to dispel the fears manifested by a
~c,leharnlierc:of Commerce and other persons, on
c.,--the iiientiort-s:of the government to obtain iron
7_,---. 'frOmiEnglind;for the construction of the in-
(4'
'----(::.-. - tend4xo adt'tfict Minister of the Interior gave,

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in the sitting of the 17th, detailed statements
proving that we ourselves have iron in abund-
ance. The quantity which the several farmers,
&c., in Belgium can produce in a year is
18,700 tons. Of this quantity there is a re-
gular demand for 9,700 tons, leaving 9,000
tons to be disposed of annually. There will,
therefore, be much more than will be required
for the iron rail-road. As for the locomotive
machines, waggons, &c., there will be found in
the country mechanics as well able to make them
as in England ; however, by way of precaution,
we shall procure from that country the most
perfect models."

BELGIAN FUNDS.—BaussELs, MARCH 9.1.
Actual Debt, 9.y, per Cent.
Rothschild's Loan, 5 per Cent 978
Loan of the City, 1834, 4 per Cent 94:-

German Papers of the 17th instant have been
received this morning, but their contents are
not worth extracting, being chiefly an address
from the Bavarian Chamber, in answer to the
KING'S speech, of which it is merely an echo.

The French Papers are chiefly filled with re-
ports of the discussions in the Chamber of De-
puties on the subject of the law of associations,
which, though at every step of its progress it
encounters the determined hostility of the oppo-
sition, yet bids fair to pass the Chamber by a
large majority. Considering the arbitrary na-
ture of this law; that it is virtually a bill of pains
and penalties against all freedom of discussion:;

that it strikes at the root of the dub mania,
which France of late years has had so much
at heart, and which has been the means of
producing so many momentous alterations in
her institutions ;—considering all this, two
things have struck us with surprise, first, that

the Ministry have had the hardihood to propose
such a measure; secondly, that the Parisian
Liberals have submitted to it so philoso-
phically. We should have imagined that
they would have fired up at the bare idea
of such a project, justifying their opposition
by the fact that it is nearly, if not quite, as tyranni-
cal as any thing ever projected by the Villele
or Polignac administrations. But instead of
this, they submit to the gag—so far at least as
we can perceive at present—with as much indif-
ference as if it were a matter of course. M.
PERSIL, who spoke in favour of the association
law, and expressly asserted that it was levelled at

the " Societe des Droits de l'Homme," and
such other refractory institutions, got up a
" shocking story" for the occasion, touching the
recent clandestine manufacture of cannon-balls in
Paris, evidently for the purpose of frightening
the Chamber into acquiescence. We have no
means of ascertaining the truth or falsehood of
the learned Deputy's statement, but we must
confess we are not altogether without our sus-
picions on the subject. The cannon-balls have
been manufactured at such a convenient junc-
ture ; the detection of them is so exceedingly
apropos; and furnishes the Ministry with such a
capital, clinching argument, that we are strongly
disposed to think that the whole affair is
neither more nor less than a Sidmouth old-
stocking, or a Castlereagh blue-bag job.
But granting that " within the last ten days
more than 80,00 t) ball-cartridges have been
clandestinely got ready in Paris," and that " last
Sunday a distribution of 'arms took place in all
the sections of the Societe des Droits de
l'Homme," still it is far from improbable that the
ministry, who have already proved themselves
such adepts at all sorts of tricks and contrivances,
know more about the manufacturers of the car-
tridges and the distributors of the arms, than they
deem it prudent to acknowledge. Of one thing at
least, we are well aware. Louis PHILIP knows
well the precarious tenure by which he holds the
throne of the barricades, and is not the man to
stick at a trifle in order to maintain himself in

power. But if he imagine that his Associations
Law will effect the desired end, he will find
himself miserably deceived ; for so far from
being a measure likely to give him additional
security, its immediate result will be to relax
still more the weak hold he already has on the
affections of his subjects ; its ultimate one, to
set him out once again on his travels.

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE-(THIS DAY)

FROM LLOYD'S.

DEAL, MAttct► 23.—Wind N.W.—Arrived the Water-
loo, Blakeley, from China—sailed Oct. 19, and from St.
Helena, Jan. 27 ; and the Lord John Russell,from the Me-
diterranean. Arrived from the River and remain the
H. and M. brig, Laws, for St. Kitts; the Florence,
Lundy, for Constantinople; the Thomas Lawrie, Lang-
don, for Van Diemen's Land ; the Woodman, Bayne, for
Bristol ; and the Brothers, Patterson, from Newcastle to
Demerara.

PORTSMOUTH, MARCH 23.—Wind S. to W.—Sailed
his ALijesty's ship Belvidera, for Birbadoes.

PLYMOiITH, MARCH 22.—Wind W.—Arrived the
Mitchel, Riass, from Charente. Off port the Maria,
Assander, from New Orleans.

FA LMOUTII, MARCH 21. —Wind E. toE. S. E. , moderate.
22.—Wind W.S.W. to W., fresh.—Arrived the William,
Jordan, from Matanzas. Off port the Brilliant, Gad,by,
from Lisbon. Sailed his Majesty's ship Pike, for Oporto
and Lisbon ; Renard packet, for St. Domingo, Jamiica,
Mexico, and Havannah ; and Pandora packet, for Leeward
blonde.

LIVERPOOL, MARCH 22.—Arrived the Integrity, John,
from Jamaica ; Palestine, Settlefield, from New Orleans ;
Catherine, Durnison, from Savannah : Aris, Thompson,
from Mobile ; Dependant, Gallilee, from Charleston ;
Victoria, from New York ; Diligent, from St. Michael's ;
and Broad Axe, Garey, from Rieboo. Off port the Har-
mony, from Sierra Leone.
The Swallow packet arrived at Jamaica on the 4,th ult.,
and was to sail on the 9th, on her return.