The Sun.
London, England, 1832-11-01 00:00:00

undergone. The local assessors, men of wealth and probity,
the least likely to be affected by the question, had declared,
after a careful survey, that a reduction should be made ;
and the Deputation prayed relief from the Lords Commis-
sioners of his Majesty's Treasury. The gentleman who
addressed his Lordship begged to mention one fact that
must speak strongly in the:r behalf, namely, that the Duke
of Bedford, who was proprietor of the greater part of the
parish, had lowered his rents in many inst Jnees 30 per cent.
Lord ALTHORY, who received the Deputation with
great politeness and attention, said he much feared the
Government could afford ❑o relief, although be was aware
that there was great inequality in the assessments through-
out the country.
Mr. MITFORD, the Chairman of the Board of Taxes,
was of opinion that, as the law at present stood, no relief
could be afforded. The assessments were regulated by
Act of Parliament, and until that law was altered, the
King's Surveyor was bound to enbirce the collection.
Sir F. ButtbErr —But surely in a case of such peculiar
hardship as that complained of by the Deputation, the
Lords of the Treasury have at least the power to mitigate
the claims.

Lord Alain:mr said he was afraid not ; but the best
consideration should certainly be given to the subject; and
in the meantime he requested that the Deputation would
be good enough to furnish him with the particulars of a
few of the most striking instances of hardship arising out
of the alteration that had taken place in the value
of property. "I am aware, said his Lordship, " that
there is a great inequality in this species of taxation
throughout the country ; and I know also that the
system ought to be placed upon a much broader scale.
The parishioners, however, may rely upon the matter being
very seriously considered by his Majesty's Government."

A Gentleman of the Deputation observed, that the pa-
rishioners had come to a determination not to pay the
house-tax until a decisive answer was given to their Me-
morial ; and he respectfully hoped the answer would be
given as speedily as possible.
Lord ALTHORr asked, if the parishioners had not a re-
medy, by appeal to the local commissioners?

Mr. YOCKNEY, one of the Deputation, said—" My
Lord, I beg to observe, as one of the local commissioners
of Lind and Assessed Taxes, that, however desirous we
might lie to afford relief, we are prevented, as the law
stands, from doing so—at least in several cases. Many of
the parties aggrieved hold leases of their houses, who,
when those leases were originally granted, were in a pros-
perous state, and able to pay high rents, and until those
Lases have expired, we cannot reduce the amount of the
assessment below the original rental, although the houses
may be, and I believe are not, worth half the rent at that
they are paying for them."
Another Gentleman of the Deputation observed—that it
was an extraordinary fact, that gentlemen living in the
country, and occupying large mansions worth in rental
3001. or 4001. a year, were assessed at the comparatively
small suns of 401., while the average amount of assessment
of houses in Covent-garden parish was 751.
Lord ALTHORP said, he knew that such was the fact,
and he could only repeat, that the subject should meet with
immediate attention, and an early answer should be for-
warded to the parishioners.

MEMOIRS OF WOMEN CELEBRATED BY
TOE POETS.-This very curious work from the same
elegant pen as the " Beauties of the Court of Charles II."
and the " Memoirs of Female Sovereigns," is equally rich
in illustrious names, as in bright and deep reminiscences—
for example, Peirarch's Laura, Dante's Beatrice, Chaucer's
Philippa Picard, the Earl of Surrey's fair Geraldine (the
object of Horace Walpole's ingenious researches), Spencer's
Rosalind and Elizabeth, Shakspeare's beautiful enslaver,
known by her attributes, though not by her name, Sir
Philip Sidney'. Stella, Mary of Scots, Diana of Poictiers,
Milton's Wives, Waller's Sacharissa, Swift's Stella and '
Vanessa, Pope's Martha Blount (the theme of the Bowles
and Byron controversy), Voltaire's Madame du Chacelet,
Burns' " Highland Mary," &c.—not to mention the
names of ladies whom our living poets, as Campbell,
Wordsworth, Wilson, &c. have " delighted to honour,"
and to whom graceful and delicate allusio❑ is made in the
pages of Mrs. Jameson's work.

AFrAIR OF HONOUR.—On Tuesday morn-
ing, the 23d inst., a hostile meeting took place in a field
at Irishtown, near Mountmelick, between a knight of
the pestle and mortar and a knight of the goose-quill.
The former, we understand, felt quite sick of the affair ere
he came to the turf—in a word, he had a great distaste
for the powder and bull likely to be administered by his
opponent; and it was not until he was fully convinced by
his second, that the dose would be prepared without any
metallic property, that he submitted to come to the
scratch. His opponent, however, was determined to cor-
rect his errors, and threatened to post his antagonist if
the account was not closed forthwith in au honourable
way; but on the before-mentioned assurance to 011apod
the ground was measured at twelve paces—they fired, and
the affair ended in—smokel The seconds (two arch Wags
who got up the matter quite in a harmless way), then
interfered, and the parties left the ground. We understand
the dispute arose about a lady.—Leinster Express.

DREADFUL SUICIDE.—Last night an In-
quest was held in Willis's Poor-house, Lombard-street,
Southwark, on the body of Was. BunGIN, aged 60, an
inmate of the above institution. On Tuesday morning
the deceased got out of a window at the top of the build-
ing, under pretence of searching for something he had
dropped in the gutter. He, however, got upon the pa-
rapet, and was walking along it, when another man, see-
ing him in this perilous situation, asked him where he
was going to ? He made no reply, but smiled, and went
on for a few paces, and then suddenly precipitated himself
from the wa►l, and fell with great violence into the paved
yard beneath, striking with his fret a pauper who hap-
pened to be walking at the spot. On examination he was
found to be so dreadfully injured, that he died almost in-
stantly. The unfortunate man, who was much addicted
to drinking, had been indisposed for some time prior to the
dreadful occurrence. The Jury returned a verdict of