The Sun.
London, England, 1858-11-08 00:00:00

THE SUN!, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, NOVEMBER 8, 1858

really remarkable imymveni.ent according to
the report of the Work 3 Committee, it is
not to be dreamt of far a moment—it is
positively monstrous, acco-rding to Mr. WRIGHT,
to dream of such extras ragance. It would be
such simple prodigality to spend in this way
three thousand two hum idred and odd pounds
out of the funds of so very impoverished
a city as London ; so the r ',Tort aforesaid suggests
that it should be dropped, at once by the Metropo-
litan Board of Works., .as something wholly pre-
posterous. Nevertheless, it must be observed
with some satisfaction that the Board, with a certain
degree of inconsistency; i esolved at the very same
meeting at which the Ne wgate-street improvement
was suggested to be thrown aside that ar-
rangements much more expensive should be
completed as speedily as possible, for the
purchase of old Berl celey-house, Spring -gar-
dens, to the end, of course, that it shall, imme-
diately upon the completion of that purchase, be
razed to the ground, and so open a fitting com-
munication at the south-east. corner of Cock-
spur-street by mean!: of a thoroughfare
running between DENT'S, the clockmaker's, and
FARRANCE,Ihe confectioners—connecting Trafalgar-
square and St. James's•park. A very remarkable
improvement this will undoubtedly be, and for the
ready adoption of the idea of it the Metropolitan
Board of Works is highly to be commended.
Let us hope that its completion will be almost
simultaneous with the substitution of noble foun-
tains in the midst of the finest site in Europe, in
lieu of those two wretched little squirts upon the
d.umb-waiters—with the depositing at last of the
four colossal granite lions at the base of the Nelson
Column—above all, with the commencement of a
new National Gallery worthy of containing the
art treasures of England, in place of the stone
criet stand so long our architectural disgrace
and laughingstock.

LATEST NEWS

INDIA AND CHINA.

The following telegram, dated Malta, from Mr.
Acting Agent and Consul-General Green, was re-
ceived at the Foreign-office on Sunday, November
7, at 5.45 p.m..—

,‘ ALEXANDRIA, Nov. 4,
" The steamer Ima arrived at Suez from Cal
cutta on the 2d inst.

" Dates—Calcutta, 9th October ; Madras, 15th
October ; Shanghai, 20th September ; Hong Kong,
38th:September ; Singapore, 7th October.

There is no news of the slightest importance

from India.

" Lord Elgin awaited at Shanghai the Commis•
sioners for arranging the tariff, &c., who were ex•
petted from Pekin at the beginning of October.

" All quiet at Canton, and trade recommencing.
The Chinese are returning to Hong Kong.
" The Dutch expedition against Jambe has been
successful. The landing took place on the 6th of
September, and Jambe is in the possession of the
Dutch. The loss of the natives was considerable;
on the side of the Dutch 4 killed and 34 wounded.

" The French and Spanish forces have landed at
Touran, a port of Cochin China. The place was
taken without the loss of a man. The bay and
river of Touran are held in a state of effective
blockade by the forces under Admiral de Genouilly
from the Ist of September.
" Mr. Loch is proceeding home by this mail
with the Japan Treaty.
" This telegram arrived at Alexandria by the
contract ftteamilacket Ceylon at 11.30 a.m. on the
7th 'of November.

AUSTRALIA.

By the arrival of the European we have received

our private correspondence and files of papers from
Melbourne to the 15th September, and from Syd-

ney to the 10th of September.
(From the Melbourne Herald, Sept. 15.)

The dreary parliamentary recess is approaching

its close. Ministers have issued their mandate,
summoning parliament to re-assemble on the ith
October. It is fully understood that the business

of the coming session—which will be, in any case,

:he last session of the present Assembly—will be

restricted to the passing of the estimates for the en-

suing year in the lower house, and to the passing
of the Reform Bill in the upper. But even if the

Council should reject the Reform Bill a second
time, there will be a speedy dissolution of the As-

sembly, a general election, and the early convoca-
tion of a reformed house. Not till then will the
present government bring forward their grand pro-
gramme of leading measures ; so that, although we
have had a partial revelation of the character of
these measures, it would be premature to subject
them to detailed criticism. There may be a few
minor measures of a pressing nature introduced
during the coming session, but nothing, we believe
to indicate definitely the broad policy of the go-
vernment. At least it is satisfactory to know that
they have such a policy; for it has really seemed for
sometime back as if they had not yet wakened up
to the necessity of anything of the kind. But
they are now speaking out with some frankness,
and, naturally enough, they appear to be pro-
portionately rising in popular estimation. In these
democratic communities the strength of a Govern-
ment lies in its free intercourse with the public.
Everything in relation to its administrative action.

and its prospective policy must lie open to public
view ; or else distrust,. suspicion, and thence de-
clared opposition, are certain to result. As regards
their conduct of the administration, it must be
avowed that the present Cabinet are rising in
•
popular favour. At first, many even of their own
supporters had strong misgivings touching their
ability to carry on the business of government, and
especially as to their impartiality in the distribu-
tion of patronage ; and doubtless there were some
grounds shown in the character of a few of their
first appointments, for distrust on the latter point ;
but we think the feeling is now dying out, and
that the Ministry have now before them as fair a
field for the exhibition of whatever statesmanlike
qualities they possess as men could possibly desire.
There is, at bottom, a strong sentiment of justice
pervading the mind of this community, which all
public men may turn to good advantage, if they
choose.
The Chief Secretary has seized the opportunity
afforded by the long recess to visit the interior, for
the purpose of personally noting the requirements,
both material and political, of the people, and
particularly of the mining population. At
Bendigo, the feeling in his favour was raised almost
to enthusiasm by a speech which he made at a
large public meeting, held in the open air, in the
course of which he indicated the main points of his
future policy.
We are glad to be able to state that Mr. Gavan
Duffy has quite recovered from his recent severe
and protracted illness, sufficiently at least to resume
his official duties.
Meantime the elections for the upper house, con-
sequent upon the termination of the first period of
two years—when, according to the Constitution
Act, one-fifth of the members retire by rotation,—
are proceeding. In addition to the six vacancies
so created, two others have fallen in by resigna-
tions ; so that there are no less than eight new
members wanted for the council.
Perhaps the most significant political incident of
the month has been the defeat of Mr. W. Nicholson,
who has recently returned from Great Britain, at
the election for the district of South Melbourne.
Mr. Nicholson will be remembered in England as
the feted hero of the ballot, and although the result
of the election was certainly not in the least affected
by any change in public feeling with respect to the
new mode of voting, it was, no doubt, tar a con-
siderable extent by the " hero worship" alluded to,
The electors of a Victorian constituency are very
sciitive in their independence, and have a particular
objection to be patronised even by the friend
and associate of the magnates with whom Mr. W.
Nicholson hob-nobbed. The successful candidate,
Mr. Anderson, is the Chairman of the Municipal
Council of Emerald Hill, and a gentleman of very
respectable mental qualifications into the bargain.
The ballot showed the following result :—For Mr.
Anderson, 921 ; and for Mr. Nicholson, 891, giving
the former a majority of 33. Mr. Nicholson's inde-
cisive views on the land settlement question ope-
rated greatly to his prejudice ; his opponent
swallowed the whole programme of the Convention,
and was rewarded by the support of the adherents
of that bay.

the men to "knock off" as they came up to them.
Mr. :obertson, the superintendent of the works'
was insulted, and, his horse severely kicked, and
affairs at one time looked so threatening, that it
was found advisable to despatch a strong police
force from Melbourne to protect the officials, and
those of the men who were willing to work. The
demands of the men on this occasion were to be
paid at the rate of 10s. a yard for ballast, or 12s. a
day, and a proviso that there should be no sub-con-
tracting. We believe that the disturbances have
since entirely ceased, and that work has been gene-
rally resumed.
The Hobson's Bay Company'continue their course
of success, and the Melbourne and Suburban Com-
pany are pushing on the works of the line with re-
markable vigour.

MONETARY AND COMMERCIAL,
Contrary to general expectation, the mail steamer
Australasian, with the English July mails, has

utterly failed to accomplish the passage from Suez
to this port up to this date ; and there now appears
to be every probability that the European, with the
outward mails, will take her departure before the
arrival of the first named steamer. The immediate
effect of this delay in the receipt of later advices
has been to increase the dulness which has of late
prevailed in mercantile circles, and to entail serious
inconvenience and loss upon importers, as well as
upon the commercial community at large. On the
3d inst. the members of the Chamber of Commerce
held a meeting for the purpose of taking into con-
sideration the present unsatisfactory aspect of the
postal question, and after some discussion it was
decided to appoint a special committee to delibe-
rate upon the subject. A special general meeting
of the chamber was held on the 10th inst., when
the report of the committee in question was sub-
mitted, as,also the report of the committee with
reference to a river and harbour trust, H. W.
Varrar, Esq., occupied the chair.
'The minutes of the previous meeting *Orb read
and confirmed.

The CHAIRMAN then read the circular convening

the meeting, and requested Mr. Hammill, as chair-
man of the committee on steam postal communica-
tion, to read the report of the committee.
Mr. HAMMILL then read the report, which was
as follows :

Report of the Special Committee of the Melbourne
Chamber of Commerce appointed at a special
general meeting of the chamber, held on the 3d
instant, to consider and report on the best means
of efficiently carrying out a mail service with
-England.
As the result of their consideration of the sub-
ject assigned to them, your committee 'have to
report :-
Ist. That they are of opinion that the time has
not yet arrived for the Australian colonies to un-
dertake the conveyance of the mails, either for the
whole, or a part of the distance to England.
2d. That the interests of this colony demand the
establishment of a thorough line of communication
via Suez to England.
3d. That in the altered position of the postal ques-
tion in these colonies, your committee are of opinion
that the chamber should urge upon the Govern-
ment the desirableness of this colony undertaking
to pay a moiety of the subsidy requisite for the
monthly conveyance of the mails via Suez, reserv-
ing power to recover from the governments of the
udjacent colonies payment of their proportions rate-
ably with the advantages they derive from a parti-
cipation in the same.
4th. That in any contract for the postal-service,
it should be stipulated that the company under-
taking it should make provision for spare vessels at
the termini; and your committee believing that
the length of the voyage between Melbourne and
Suez renders it impossible to maintain thexerfect
efficiency. of the vessels throughout, recommend that
a steamer should be kept in readiness at Galle to
which the inward and outward mails and pas-
sengers should be transhipped.
sth. That an alteration should be made in the
dates at.present fixed for the departure of the home-
ward mail, in order to afford the neighbouring
colonies sufficient interval to reply to the inward
correspondence.
W. HAMMILL, Chairman of Committee.
Melbourne, 9th September, 1858.
This report was adopted by the chamber, but the
consideration of that relating to a harbour trust
was postponed. We may observe that the govern-
ment of New South Wales have determined to
place a sum of £50,000 per annum, for a period of
seven years, on the estimates, as a subsidy for a lin e
of small steamers, via the Isthmus of Panama.
In the local money market capital. is freely offer-
ing for investment, at rates ranging from 10 per
cent., but the scarcity of first-class securities is so
great that few negotiations have been completed.
Business in .the Stock and Share Market has been
well sustained during the past month, and prices
have in some instances slightly risen. Colonial
Bank shares have recently changed hands at £6 25.,
and sellers arc unwilling to realise at less than
£6 2s. 6d. Bank of Victoria are held for £39, but
sales have been effected at £37 10s. Victoria In-
suran se are quoted at £55, and Colonial Insurance
at 355. The further issue of Australasian Fire
Insurance shares has necessarily affected quotations,
and they cannot at present be valued at a
higher figure than 305., at which rate, however,
there are not -many sellers in the market. Mel-
bourne Fire Insurance are generally held for 145.,
although sales at 12s. 6d. are reported. Melbourne
Gas Company's first issue, have been done at 35
per cent. premium, and new at £4. Is. 6d. The
half-yearly meeting of the Studley Park Bridge
Company was held on the 26th, and a dividend at
the rate of 12 per cent. per annum was declared.
The report and financial statement were highly
satisfactory. Melbourne and Hobson's Bay Rail-
way shares (old) have been purchased at £l7, and
the company's debentures, due 1868, have been done
at £lO5. It is stated that a Melbourne company
will be formed to carry out the objects contem-
plated by the promoters of the Ovens Gold-fields
Water Company. The cost of completing the
scheme is estimated at £36,000.
The demand in the local markets for imports has
not been well maintained, -in consequence of the
extreme anxiety with which intending buyers
have been looking for the receipt of later advises
from England. The intelligence received by the
June mail was not calculated to restore the confi-
den-ee- of buyersi as it was only too apparent that
honie shippers were again entering with singular
activity into the Australian trade. We are not in
a position, owing to the non-appearance of the over-
due steamer Australasian, to form any estimate
whatever of the nature and extent of the exports
from the United Kingdom to this colony in all
June ; but we would again emphatically declare
that unless the transactions of exporting houses
are very materially restricted, an exceedingly low
ranger of prices will rule in these- markets for
nearly all descriptions of imported goods. The
simple truth is that we are fully capable of pro-
viding for our own requirements, and of calculating
the limit of our wants so accurately, that the pro-
ceedings of speculative shippers only tend to pro-
duce mischievous results, and to reduce our markets
to a state of depression.

IMMIGRATION AND THE LABOUR
MARKET.

We have prepared the following statement,
showing the extent of colonial immigration and
emigration during the current year. The returns
are made up to the 11th instant. Those for August
and the present month representing the arrivals
and departures taken at the port of Melbourne
only :

Arrived. Departed
January 2,650 . •
February
March 3,884 .... 2,529
April ' 3,744 .• .. 1,762
May
June ...... .
July .. .
...
*Septegumber (to ....... .. •

26,716 13,444
13,444

duct de]

Nett immigration 13,342
* Melbourne only.
The following vessels hate also arriyed within

the last two days :—lnvincible, with 169 passen-
gers ; John Owens, 273 ; Albion, 164 ; Conflict, 36;
total, 642 arrivals.
With reference to the labour market, matters arc
gradually assuming a more satisfactory state.