The Sun.
London, England, 1860-02-28 00:00:00

shire.

THE CORPORATION REFORM BILL.

A special meeting of the Court of Common Coun-
cil was held yesterday at Guildhall, the Lord Mayor
presiding, " to consider, the Bill in Parliament for
the better regulation Of the corporation of the City
of London."

It having been resolved that the clauses of the
bill should be read and discussed seriatim, clauses
1 and 2 were agreed to as they stood.
On clause 3, fixing the municipal franchise at
£lO,

Mr. W. Cox (late M.P. for Finsbury) moved
that the franchise should be extended to X 5 house-
holders, upon the ground that it was generally
understood that the parliamentary franchise was
about to be reduced below £lO.

In the discussion which followed up3n this
amendment, various suggestions were made for
amending the clause, but it seemed to be generally
considered that a £lO franchise would in the City
be almost equivalent to universal suffrage, mare
especially as occupiers of offices, chambers, ware-
houses, wharfs, &c., may as the bill stands, claim to
be rated the police rate, and so acquire the vote,
and a strong desire was evinced that the e:ause
should be agreed to intact. Mr. Cox, however, per-
sisted in pressing his motion to a show of hands,
when not more than a dozen hands were held up in
its favour; and it was, therefore, negatived by an
overwhelming majority.
On the same clause,

Mr. Alderman MECHI moved the omission of
certain words, with the object of preserving the
rights of the livery as participatqrs in the election
of the Lord Mayor.
Mr. Alderman SIDNEY strongly opposed the
amendment, urging that the livery had only ob-
tained what they call their rights by the abominable
act 2 George 1., which was obtained for political
purposes, and that they had no claim to the franChise
except upon the common basis of being house-
holders or occupiers within the City to the amount
of £lO.

Other motions were submitted on the same point,
and the result of a continued discussion was the
adoption of the following, moved by Mr. Alderman
Lawrence, viz. :—" That the rights of the livery be
preserved in the election of Lord Mayor and
Sheriffs conjointly with the ratepayers, and that
the clauses of the bill be altered accordingly."
On the same clause,

Mr. Cox again vindicated his title to be con-
sidered an "advanced liberal" by moving that in
th© municipal elections votes should be taken by
ballot.

After some discussion, on a show of hands, the
" previous question" was declared to be carried, a
decision which was affirmed on a division by 81
votes to 26—majority 55.
The motion was therefore lost ; the announcement
of the munAtrB being received with loud cheers.
Clauses frio 17 wore then agreed to.

On clause 18, appointing the number of represen-
tatives to be returned by the different wards of the
Common Council,

Mr. H. TAYLOR objected to the appointment, as
not fairly representing the wealth and property of
the different wards, and moved a resolution, assert-
ing theopinion of the court that .a maximum number
of representatives for any ward should be eight, and
that in the distribution regard should be paid to
the present representation of the existing wards.
After a protracted discussion and several divisions
an various amendments, which were negatived, the
court adjourned, leaving the remaining clauses of
the bill for discussion at a future court.

,4NOTHER PIER A P GRAVESEND.
THAMES CONSERVANCY,

The Court of Conservators met yesterday to hear
the objections of the Corporation of Gravesend and
of Mr. Quaife, the receiver, under the; Court of
Chancery, of tolls of the Town Pier, Gravesend, to
the Court granting a license to the London and
Tilbury Railway Company to construct a pier for
landing their passengers at West-street, Gravesend.
The members present were—Jonathan Thorp,
Esq. (chairman), Joseph Turnley, Esq., Commo-
dore Drummond, C. 8., Admiral Autin, C. 8., and
T. H. Fry, Esq.
Mr. Matthews, on behalf of the receiver, objected
to a license being granted for the purposes intended
—lst, because it would be of no advantage to the
public ; and, 'idly, it was not necessary for the con-
venience of the public—both of which requirements,
he said, were essential within the spirit and mean-
ing of the Conservancy Act, and he quoted clauses
57 and 59 as in point. Mr. Matthews stated that
the object of the application by the railway com-
pany was to divert the pier tolls, -id. per passenger
(now applied towards paying interest to those who
advanced the money to build it) into the coffers of
the railway company, and that too at a sacrifice of
the comfort of their passengers, who would, if the
licence were granted, be landed into a narrow
street, where a carriage could not turn. The
existing piers were most ample, and her Most
Gracious Majesty had been pleased to use them, and
express her satisfaction at the great accommodation
they gave the public.
Mr. Sharland, town clerk of Gravesend, stated
that if the licence would only go so far as to a

landing for cattle and bona Alie ferry passengers
from Tilbury Fort, he could not oppose ; but if it
was the intention of the company to construct a
pier for passengers generally, he was instructed to
object; the corporation having given bonds to the
mortgagees of the tolls to guarantee them the inte-
rest of the moneys advanced. He also submitted
that it would be monstrous for the court to enable
the railway company to get from it by a side wind
what they had not dared to ask when the Railway
Act was on its passage through Parliament.
The Chairman observed that the objections of
Mr. Matthews and Mr. Sharland were very fair and
pertinent, and should be considered by the court.

TIM REPORTED TREATY BETWEEN

AUSTRIA AND RUSSIA.

The Independance Beige publishes the following
at the head of its political summary
" Tbe Morning Chronicle publishes a strange
piece of news. It announces that Russia has con-
cluded, or is about to conclude, an alliance with
Austria, by which the latter Power would receive a
guarantee for all her possessions at home and
abroad, including Hungary and Venetia. The Eng-
lish journal does not say upon what conditions
Austria has succeeded in procuring such extensive
advantages ; it confines itself to saying that the
guarantee will be given by Prussia, and that Aus-
tria has herself engaged to conform her policy to
the interests of Russia on the Danube, in the Roman
Principalities, and in Servia. In other words, Aus-
tria and Russia would derive the benefits, and
Prussia pay the cost. •
" We will not simply say that this announcement
is improbable ; it is radically false. It suffices to
read it to be convinced of this. It is but another
version of a report already mentioned by us yester-
day, according to which Russia had threatened
Piedmont with a rupture of diplomatic relations if
the annexation should take place.
"All these reports emanate from sources inte-
rested in spreading them, to act in some way or
other upon public opinion. What is true is, that
Russia, and even Prussia, in their last diplomatic
declarations on Italian affairs, thought fit to make
some significant reserves on the theories of the
English Government upon popular sovereignty,
and to shield the principles of their own organisa-
tion and. the rights of their dynasties.
"This attitude has necessarily caused great satis-
faction at Vienna ; but, as will be seen from our
Berlin correspondence, its importance must not be
exaggerated. Even at St. Petersburg, the Govern-
ment—allowance being made for its manner of
viewing questions on pure theoretical grounds, and
perhaps protesting at the same time against accom-
plished facts—is, nevertheless, not disposed to take
int-) account the necessities of time and place. It
is in this respect that its policy differs essentially
from that of the Austrian Government, and this is
why we do not believe in the famous piece of news
of the Morning Chronicle."