The Sun.
London, England, 1866-07-27 00:00:00

Our Coal Supply,

(From the Builder.)
On the main point a general accord is now haPKilp
arrived at. The coal supplies of Great Britain 1334 ;
hitherto given her, together with other advantBge:
the foremost place among producing and inanufav;
turing people. This supply has its limits ; first, those
of actual quantity; second, those of available Vail;
tity. The quantity available depends on the expe°
of working, an expense which, to a great extent, irfzi,o'
creases with the depth at which the coal is won. 10
ascertain, as far as may be done, the probable nater
of these limits, to collect and verify information ireio
all existing sources; and to satisfy the public mind ae
a subject of such vital national interest, the Govere-
ment, with the general assent of the House of C°'ll.,
mons, have agreed to the appointment of a convlll,oo
sion as moved for by Mr. Vivian. It only renl3.loo
that the person selected to serve on that comraissi
should be such as fully to carry out in the best n 304,110
this important duty. On one point, we trust, h
Government will be on their guard. It is too mum
the fashion of the present day to overtax the IV" to
of any human brain that is known, or thought, e
be of more than ordinary capacity. In inedleillfe,
in law, in different departments of business life'
the first effort is made to secure the first, that i 3 of
say the most busy, man. The subject matter
inquiry lies for the most part within the Prel)er
,
metier of the civil engineer. The geological clues d
tions of formation, the surveyor's mensuration
area, the mining surveyor's delineation of seams 3Da
me
beds, the direction of the miner as to the Inev
economic mode of working the coal in the most eO,
haustive manner, the mechanism of shafts, and gin ot
and pumps, and steam-engines, the whole treatine
of the coal until it is placed on the salesman's who
0 p,,
or on board the merchant vessel, all this is his roil
per province. The great question of labour, Wu/. 0
directly constitutes 60 per cent., and indirectly
much larger proportion of the price of coal, tea
which will most directly and sensitively be affec o"
on
by any increase of difficulty in its winning, is
ry
engineering question. The sole parts of the inati.oo
that lie outside the proper province of the profess! h
are the commercial questions, as to export, on Iv
and
direct information will be supplied in evideneevaa
such questions of general policy, or internatlutho
relation, as may fall beneath the cognisance e
le,
statesman or the diplomatist. Such, for el:3111Po)
is the question, how far the mineral needed for
e,
propulsion of ships of war should be treated di
too
rently from the minerals needed for the proP oja,
of projectiles ; or, in other words, why coal alwwor,
or should not, be regarded as contraband of
cow
Above all, the result to be hoped for from the ort,
mission is a full, clear, and unprejudiced
.regent
based on a lucid précis of the evidence, bringing
by
in brief, incisive lines the great lessons learnieeforo
the commission, and placing them so plainly
either near
3111
the public that further legislation will
visio.
totally unnecessary, or that its course and pr° rood
will be made so evidently requisite as to on/ ith
ri
general assent. Let the commission thus dealoecl
this great subject, and Mr. Vivian will have ear
Se-
the gratitude of the country, and the lattegeSetiog,
cretary will have added another to is
claims on our respect.

The Duke of Hamilton left town yesterdaY
our of visits. Lord Charles Hamilton Douglas erobilr-
yesterday for India.
The Duchess of Buccleuch and Lady Marg.- ill
fro-
Scott have returned to Montagu House, Whitehall' ilAar
visiting Lord and Lac Henry Scott, at Beaulieu' fo-ai
Southampton. The duke returns to town to-dal
Hants. ,and
The Marquis and Marchioness of Salisbull
family are staying at Iltitfield House, near Herts.