The Sun.
London, England, 1867-12-06 00:00:00

THE SUN, LO:\DuN, FRIDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 6, 1867.

ports unity to call the attention of the House to the
charges brought against an official holding a recog-
nised position in the British Gove:nment. The
charges against Mr. MURRAY were indignantly do-
nned on both sides of the House, and there seemed
to, be but one opinion of his honour and integrity.
Lord STANLEY denied in strong terms the hints of
maFversation and extortion, which seem indeed to
hav,o had no foundation but the rumoured careless-
ness. referred as much to the heads of the Cabinet as
to their Under-Secretaries. We can hardly suppose
that Lord RUSSELL would have written a minute
on. a letter he had not read, and the affairs of
Abyssinia have been for some time past so pressing
that it is not likely so little heed would have been
paid them. At any rate King THEODORE'S conduct
must have produced war if we would save our coun-
trymen from his power, and, therefore, there is little
need to trouble ourselves about minor matters.

The Atlantic Telegraph is likely to be busy just
now recording the action of Congress and the
changes of the political situation. 'We learn by the
news from New York yesterday that the House of
Representatives has passed a bill for the repeal of
the tax on cotton grown after the present year.
This is a step in the right direction, and we hope
it will prove the inauguration of a freer system of
commercial policy in the United States. It refers,
indeed, only to internal taxation, but the mis-
chievous effect of such burdens on trade has only
to be thoroughly realised by the commercial classes
to secure a reform. The Americans, strange to
say, are more retrograde in their commercial
policy than many other nations far behind them in
general intelligence and in other branches of poli-
tical economy.• They seem seldom or never to ap-
preciate the actual position of their commerce, and
their first idea of vengeance against those who have
offended them is to impose commercial burdens.
Because they took offence at England's refusal to
acknowledge the Alabama claims, they must needs
put an end to the Reciprocity Treaty with Canada,
although a little reflection would have shown its
most violent opponents that the real loss of its ter-
mination fell upon American traders. The mer-
chants of Detroit published a forcible remonstrance,
showing how injurious were the probable
consequences of such rash legislation. The
tariff on foreign goods has for some time past
been almost prohibitory, and the cotton tax has
been for some time past the subject of complaint.
The agitation which has been going on has proved
successful, and the House of Representatives has,
as we see, taken active measures.

lIORACE GREELEY has refused his appointment
as Minister at the Court of Vienna, for what rea-
son is not stated, as the unusul harmony of the
Senate and the PRESIDENT has been ineffective.
Congress, however, has not surrendered its deter-
mination to interfere as much as possible with the
Executive, and yesterday the Committee of Way s
and Means reported a bill to suspend the authority
of Secretary M'Cum.ocu further to contract the
currency. The public, however, have good reason
for doubting the financial wisdom of the Radical
party, and they will probably find their interference
with the national exchequer less welcome than
formerly.
An important though not unexpected item of
news comes to U 3 from New York. At a mass
meeting held there, and called by bankers and mer-
chants of the city, General GRANT was nominated
national candidate for the Presidency. New York's
influence in this matter far outweighs that of any
other State, and the nomination of GRANT by its
leading men is probably the first step towards the
General's installation at the White House.

THE judicious attempt which was made during
the last session of Parliament to check the disas-
trous speculation then going on in bank shares has
been eminently successful, and it is now proposed
to extend the principle to the shares of railway
and gas companies. A bill has been brought
into Parliament to enact that " contracts for
" the sale and purchase of shares shall be void,
" unless the numbers by which such shares are
" distinguished are set forth in the contract."
When it was proposed to apply this principle to the
sale of bank shares, numerous forebodings were
indulged in as to the restriction of business which
it would cause. These anticipations have not
been realised. Bank shares appear as often as
before in the share list, under the head of
" business done," and it is well known
that these shares have increased in favour as
an investment since they have been removed
from the range of unsound speculation. Investors
are more willing to purchase when they know that
their property is not at the mercy of destructives
who can deprive them of its value by selling what
they do not possess for the purpose of creating a
panic. That railway shareholders require the pro-
tection which has been extended to banks is obvious
from events which have recently taken place. Enor-
mous sales of Caledonian stock have lately been
made by those who have no interest in the line,
and whose chance of profit in the transaction lies
in the hope of creating distrust. If these men
could not have sold what they did not possess,
the owners of Caledonian stock would have
been able to deal with their own property
in accordance with the merits of the case,
and they would probably have manifested
sufficient fortitude to prevent the fall of forty per
cent. which has taken place. Before the passing of
the Act respecting bank shares, banking companies !
were subjected to the same system of terrorism
which is now being successfully adopted against
railways. The limitation of the sales to
bona fide transactions has completely stopped
the violent fluctuations which formerly oc-
curred in bank shares. There is clearly the
same necessity for regulating the sale of shares
in-other companies, and the only fault to be found
with the short bill now introduced is, that it does
not go further and include other shares as well as
those of railway and gas companies.

DEATH of-111. B ENAZET. —Th e news reached
Paris on Tuesday evening that M. Benazot, the celebrated
lessee of the gaming tables at Baden-Baden, died on the
2d inst. Ho was very commonly called King Benazet, and
in reality for many years reigned as King of Badon-Baden.
His house, the Villa Benazet, placed on an eminence com-
manding the town, was famous for its good dinners and
pleasant soirees dansantes at Baden. A very slight in-
troduction indeed sufficed to command M. Bonaze's hos-
pitality, and many a quiet English family who after dinner
played whist at penny points with his wife and daughter
never dreamt that they were passing a delightful evening
at the expense of that never-failing crop of gamblers who
pay tribute to the greatest " hell" in Europe.
A PROBABLE VICTIM TO " FINANCING."--The
Liverpool newspapers yesterday announced the death, at
Allerton Hall, near that town, ci Mrs. Molyneux, widow of
the late Mr. Edmund Molyneux, who was one of the
wealthiest of the Liverpool " merchant princes." A large
portion of Mrs. Molyneux's property was invested in the
Royal Bank of Liverpool, she being by far the largest
shareholder in that unlucky concern, in which she was
also a depositor to the extent of about £30,000. The liqui-
dators of the Royal Bank recently made a call of £lO per
sharp, and, in the case of Mrs. Molyneux, this necessitated
the prompt payment of about £20,000. There can be
little doubt but that the Royal Bank and its disastrous
crash hastened the death of at least one of its vlethns.

It is with pleasure that we refer our sporting and
miscellaneous readers to the advertisement of 26Lusos
DOREE, which appears in our advertising columns of this
day. A spirited Englishman has had the lucky idea of
endowing London with a MAISON DOREE on the same
plan as the Paris one ; and why not ? Wo live in an age
of imitation and competition, as the late Grand Universal
Exhibition has proved, and out of which England has
come with golden honours. Why, then, should not a
MAISON DOREE succeed in London, the city of all nations,
since its homonyms holds such a high standing in Paris?
Wo see no reason—the more so, as the London MAISON
Donna is under the able direction of an English manager,
who, as wo aro inforan,l, spent limny years in Paris in
the spacial line of caterer for the CJi!liop idt.ll pepu:aLioa
of that gay city. Allow, (brio et la Allison DOREE.
e

CORRESPONDENCE FROM PARIS.

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(REUTER'S TELEGRAMS.)