The Sun.
London, England, 1860-03-01 00:00:00

storm.

The Kangaroo arrived out on the 17th, and the
Borussia on the 18th.

The accounts from Mexico exhibit a frightful
state of anarchy in that country. Miramon was
expected to reach Vera Cruz on the Ist of March.
The city was well fortified. Miramon was without
artillery. The entire foreign population of Chi-
huahua had been forced to quit the country. The
Americans left a million dollars' worth of property
behind. A desperate battle had been fought, in
which the Liberals suffered a disastrous defeat.
At Havannah, on the 15th, the sugar-market was
steady. Stock, 40,000 boxes. Freights dull.
San Francisco, Jan. 28.—Markets inactive.

At New York on the 18th the exchange on Lon-
don was quoted 1081 to 109. Money and stocks
we unaltered.

Cotton firm on receipt of Arabia's advices. Sales,
1,500 bales.

Flour, corn, provisions, and ashes unchanged

LIVERPOOL, FEB. 29.
The mail steamer North Briton, Captain Bor-
land, which touched at Queenstown yesterday, and
landed the Irish portion of the Canadian mail,
arrived here to-day. Her advices are devoid of
interest.

THE COAL FIELDS AND COAL TRADE

OF FRANCE.

The Minister of Agriculture and Commerce has
just addressed a report to the Emperor on what
may be called " The Coal Question." The follow-
ing is an analysis of its contents :
After stating that the Emperor, in his letter of
the sth of January, indicated the opening of roads,
&c., for the conveyance of coal, as one of the
great material improvements projected, and after
remarking on the importance of cheap coal to
manufactures, the report says that French coal fields
are numerous; but that only a few of them
are calculated, by their extent or the quality of
their coal, to be developed on a great scale ; and,
moreover, most of them are situated in mountainous
districts which are difficult of access, and in which
there are few roads. These circumstances cause
coal to be much dearer at the place of consumption
than it is at the mouth of the pits. An official docu-
ment shows, for example, that in 1850 coal, which
was sold to consumers at 2f. the quintal (22111b5.),
only cost at the pits 0 933 f., and at that price the
consumption amounted to 72,252,700 quintals ; in
1857, the average price of coal at the pits was 1.253 f.,
and the price at the places of consumption 2.536 f.
These last figures show that the cost of conveyance
more than doubled the price of coal consumed ; and
if it be taken into account that in that year (1837)
the consumption of native and foreign coal was
131,494,700 quintals, it will appear that the supple-
mentary charge on the consumer for conveyance
exceeded 160,000,000 f.
The report goes on to say, that from investiga-
tions made by his Majesty's orders, it appears that
of 62 coal fields in France more than half cannot
have the pretension to export their productions,
owing either to the small extent of the fields or the
cost of extraction ; still good roads and railways
(the latter cheaply constructed) would enable them
to find local markets. Among the other fields some
are of great importance as regards number, extent,
the thickness of the beds, or the quality of the coal.
The first of these fields is that of the Loire, the next
that of Valenciennes (Nord and Pas-de-Calais), and
the next in order are Alais (Gard), Blanzy (Saone-
et-Loire), Commentry (Allier), and Aubin (Avey-
ron). Out of a total production of 79,000,000
quintals for all France in 1857, 22,426,000 were
from the Lo're, 19,600,000 from Valencien-
nes, 7,540,000 from Alais, 5,806,000 from Blanzy,
4,845,000 from Commentry, and 4,635,000 from
Aubin. Eleven other fields produced quan-
tities not exceeding from 400,000 to 2,000,000 quin-
tals, and they sent to a distance part of their coal
for consumption. Two others (Ahun in the Creuse,
and La Sarre in the Moselle), though at present
supplying only local wants, may be made to assume
a considerable development.
The report then goes on to detail at great length
the roads, railways, canals, and rivers by which
the different fields are able to send away their pro-
ductions ; and it points out what new means of
communication are required. Thus for the Loire
field, which already possesses communication by
land and water, engineers recommended a road
from Rive-de-Gier to Givors, and a railway from
St. Etienne to St. Rambert, the latter principally
destined to reduce the distance to the lower
districts of the Rhone and the Mediterranean by
25 miles. For the Valenciennes field, which already
exports 35,000,000 quintals, which is 25 miles long
by nearly 5 wide, and in which 11 new concessions
have recently been accorded, the report proposes
that in addition to a railway from Hazebrouck Via
Bethune to the Northern line, with branches to.
wards Douai and Arras, which has been granted
to the Northern Railway Company, and to other
the Northern
put
ion
conceded to the Bully Grenay Company,
the pits in direct communicat
twenty railways and four canonalNss,itdbestined
Railway, or with adjacentcanals,
be con-
structed—the expense being estimated at 7,200,000 f.
shall
The Blanzy and Creuzot field is to have rail-
way embranchments from Nevers Moulins, and
Chalons-sur-Saone to the Paris and Mediter-
ranean line; the Commentry field, a railway from
Montlugon to La Soutenaine,
After setting forth what is proposed to be dune
for the different coal fields, the report states in
general terms that in order to assure to the coal
fields in different parts of the empire the means of
communication, and the developments which they
require, what must be done is To form certain
roads and to improve others to execute or improve
construct different
railwaysdiffntere dneasvaigneadbletowuanyitse;
pittos to the railways al-
ready executed or in course of execution ; to con-
cede new lines of railway in
ff
territory ; and, lastly, to hastend different
the
tcompletion
tloi ef
lines already conceded. The report next declares
that the expense of
roads must be borne
partly by the State, partly by departments or com-
munes; the expense of navigable ways by the
State ; and that of the branch railways from pits
by the companies to whom the pits belong." The
report says further that measures will be taken for
causing the railways projected to be commenced as
quickly as possible, and that negotiations have been
opened with railway companies to obtain the com-
pletion of lines already conceded within shorter
periods than originally fixed, also to obtain from
them reductions in their tariffs.
The document concludes by announcing that a
subsequent report will detail the measures which
may be considered desirable for facilitating the sup-
ply of fuel and ore to the principal iron works.

REPRESENTATION OF GREAT YAR3IOUTIL—In
anticipation of the unseating of the present Conservative
members for Great Yarmouth, several gentlemen are men-
tioned as probable candidates in the Liberal interest.
Among them are Mr. Torrens M'Cullagh, late M.P. for
Dundalk, and Mr. E. W. Watkin, of the Manchester, Shef-
field, and Lincolnshire Railway, who sat for the borough a
few months in 1857. The Liberals are not, however, very
harmonious on the subject. The evidence given before the
committee of the House of Commons is exciting a profound
sensation in the neighbourhood. At the last general cicc-
tion the return of two COnservatives at Yarmouth was
loudly boasted of as a signal triumph by the adherents of
Lord Derby; but the disclosures of the last few days were
fully anticipated by those conversant with the manner in
which the election was conducted.