The Sun.
London, England, 1866-03-17 00:00:00

SEPTEMBER.

C arragh 4, 5, 6
OCTOBER.

Curragh l6, 17 18

A WORD ABOUT SKITTLE-SHARPERS.—My im-
pression is that those who fall victims to this class
of men are generally self-conceited persons who have an
exaggerated idea of their own acuteness—an over-confident
belief that they cannot be imposed upon. " Young men
from the country " are famous for this kind of foolish pre-
sumption, and they are, of course, the easiest prey. Yet,
within the circle of my own acquaintance, I knew a sensi-
ble young man, born and bred in London, who allowed
himself to be duped iu this manner. He was standing
looking in at a shop window, when a stranger, of about hie
own age, soft-spoken and plausible, joined him, entered
into a conversation, walked on with him, and finally asked
him if he had ever played at skittles. The sensible young
man replied in the negative. How curious ! The stranger
had never plated either. What fun it would be to see
what sort of a game it was. To be brief, they went to a
skittle-ground, played for some little time with varying
success, the sensible young man ultimately losing the ten
or fifteen shillings he had about him, and actually agree-
ing to go home to get some more money. While the ex-
citement of the game lasted he had no suspicion he was
being robbed. It was not until half-an-hour's walking in
the fresh air had somewhat cooled him that he recognised
the fact.—Once a Week.

AMERICAN FINANCE.—The internal revenue for
the fiscal years ending the 30th June, 1864 and
1865, was £23,430,000 and £42,225,000 respectively;
and, calculating according to the average of the offi-
cial returns for the first 33 weeks, the aggregate
this year will reach the vast sum of £65,000,000.
It is even believed in America that the 19 weeks of
the fiscal year still remaining will show a conside-
rable increase over the average of the preceding
weeks, and that the total internal revenue will
approach £67,000,000. The Customs revenue is
equally elastic. It is calculated, on the basis of
the official returns for about two-thirds of the year
that have already expired, at £36,000,000. If
these anticipations be realised, of which there seems
now little doubt, the result wiil be astounding ;
since the revenue will exceed by £12,000,000 the
estimates which its Finance Minister made up after
five months of the year had passed. The expendi-
ture of the Government, including the charge for
the public debt, is not placed by any competent
authority at more than £60,000,000 in gold; and,
after reducing the internal revenue to a gold
value, we find that the receipts would exceed
£84,000,000, leaving a surplus of £24,000,000
for the reduction of debt or taxation. This is
an ample margin for substantial relief, and if poli-
tical convulsions can be avoided, there seems
scarcely a limit to the capacity of the country
for meeting the public needs. In the face
of deficient value in the exports, the commercial
returns present the prominent fact of constantly
increasing rates of duty. Thus, in 1864, goods
were thrown on the New York market to the
amount of £36,846,000, at an average duty of 36fr
per cent. ; while, in 1865, the amount was still
greater, being £43,882,000, at an average duty of
peace months from July
1 6tin per
December thethe sales of foreign goods
4e cent.
1, 1865,
in New York . were £26,925,000, on which were
levied the enormous Customs of £13,015,000, or
the increase, the returns for the week end-
nearly 49 per cent. The swollen tide seems to be
isntg ill
Februaryell 17, in the great commercial city,
showing an importation of $8,133,295 against
$3,772,661 for the same week of the preceding
year; while the Customs received for the month of
January at the same port alone amoant to
£2,500,000. Now, when we consider that, in
specie value, the exports have not much exceeded
three-fourths of the imports—that there is a large
falling off in gold remittances—and that, notwith-
standing these facts, the exchanges are not adverse
to New York—we have some elements for appre-
ciating the great amount of American Stocks which
must have been purchased in Europe. The result
seems to be that America is buyingon credit in this
country and others some of the
supplies rendered
but that credit
ex-
haustion of four years of
war, the Government.l3
profitable for
absolutely necessary by the consumption and
civen not to the merchant, but to
eOnsaalfeciarneudinstances, the
Theas; baunsdi n,
paying greater rates than
United States are not
e sus!) doeurghetx et eoP tbi
to
they can readily bear. The trade between America
and ourselves is profitable
is an additional guarantee for peace and cordiality
in our mutual relations. It is therefore a subject
for congratulation instead of alarm.
Tile wuree of exchange at New York on London for bills at
60 sight is about 1071 per cent. At these rates theserofft on the Importation of go tr,:m the tj uitcl
days'
(I
nois
States