The Sun.
London, England, 1859-03-30 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, MARCH 30, 1859,

Sir BOYLE RocHE might say, to extend in
round numbers over fourteen square miles. As
to the wealth of the metropolis—that, certainly,
as the phrase is, "may be more easily imagined
than described." It is questionable whether Lon-
don is really the most populous city in the world.
If the urban statistics of China and Japan are in any
way to be relied upon it undeniably is not the most
populous. But without one shadow of question it
is beyond all others, either of ancient or of modern
times, the largest and the wealthiest. That is
admitted. That is indisputable. It were simply
ridiculous, therefore, to talk of even a total of
£20,000,000 as in any way extravagant as the gross
cost of all these projected metropolitan improve-
mets. But when it is remembered that the
aggregate of the net cost, according to the calcula-
tions of the Board of Works, would be not much
more than fifteen millions (exactly £15,674,951),
spread over years, we may confidently regard
as most reasonable the scheme now put before the
public for approval or condemnation.

LATEST NEWS.

The following telegram has been received at
Mr. Reuter's office :

PARIS, TUESDAY.

The Patrie states that Government has decided
upon adding a fourth battalion to each of the
hundred infantry regiments of the line. The new
battalions are to be formed out of the third and
sixth companies of the already existing battalions.
The Emperor received Count Cavour to-day at
two o'clock p.m. The Cotnt will probably quit
Paris to-morrow for Turin.

FRANCE.

PARIS, TUESDAY.

PARIS BOURSE, March 29.—The market has con-
tinued heavy, and prices have declined. Threes,
after having been done at 68f., declined to 67f. 85c. ;
Mobilier varied from 772 f. 50c. to 767 f. 50c. ; Aus-
trian, 540 f. to 537 f. 50c. ; Orleans, 1,350 f. to 1,345 f.
Lyons, 840 f. to 837 f. 50c. ; Lombardo-Venetian,
517 f. 50c. to 515 f. The following are the last quo-
ta tions

41 per Cents. 95 50 Credit Fonder.... 640
Do. end montk 95 40 , Belgian 42 . —
3 per Cents 6B 10 Piedmontese (5) .. 79 25
Do. end month 6B 05 Roman B6 50
Bank Shares
Credit Mobilier .. 770 -- Spanish Threes , 44 50
Do. Account ..... 773 75
,Ilome Debt 4l

viding for the main part of the extraordinary war charges,
which, of course, had to be disbursed in India, and for the
barrack accommodation of many thousand additional Euro-
peans, as also for the restoration of the treasure which has
been plundered ; and this it had to do when nearly all the
revenues of one of the local Governments had been swept
away.

" The Five per Cent. Loan, which would have been
adequate for ordinary wants and in ordinary times, was
found to be inadequate at this time of extreme pressure.
Accordingly, it was necessary to induce capitalists to come
to the assistance of the State by an enhancement of the
terms ; and the Governor-General in Council resolved to
borrow at six per cent.
" He was aware that this could not be done without in
some degree affecting injuriously those holders of the paper
of former loans who had not purchased for purposes of
permanent investment; but this is the condition of all such
holders of Government stock in all countries whenever a
great exigency forces upon the State the necessity of rais-
ing a large sum in a limited time. The Governor-General
in Council, however, was desirous to save such holders
from loss, as far as that could be done consistently with the
paramount object in view. Therefore, instead of simply
opening a Six per Cent. Loan, which would have brought
down the price of four and five per cent. paper to a low
point, he threw open the existing Five per Cent. Loan to
subscriptions half in cash and half in four per cent. paper.
This arrangement for many months answered the purpose ;
the market price of the paper of former loans was but little
affected by the operation, and the expectations of Govern-
ment were fully met by large and regular subscriptions
through the medium of the then existing holders of Four
per Cent. Stock, or those who purchased of them for the
express purpose of subscribing to the loan. From the open-
ing of this conversion loan to the present time upwards of
eight crores have been paid in cash.
" Latterly, however, whether from the partial exhaustion
of such holders of four per cent. paper as are able and
ling to convert it, or to sell at such a price as will induce the
capitalist to buy it for the purposes of conversion, or from
some other cause, this conversion process has failed to afford
the income which in the present temporary exigency is ne-
cessary for public service. For many weeks past the sub-
scriptions to the conversion loan have fallen to less than
half what they were, and they have shown no prospect of
improvement.
" In this state of things, the Government of India,
having the public service to provide for, had no choice but
to adopt some change of measure by which it could hope
to obtain the requisite funds before the cash balances
should become exhausted. The Governor-General in
Council did not doubt that the rate of 6 per cent. which
Government was paying was ample interest to induce the
capitalist to subscribe. But it was apparent that, from some
cause or other, the requisite funds, even at that rate, could
no longer be procured exclusively through the medium of
holders of Four per Cent. Stock. There was, therefore, no-
thing to be done but look for subscriptions either through
the medium of some other class, or from capitalists gene-
rally.

" In this state of things the Governor-General in
Council resolved, on the 26th of January last, to adopt a
new arrangement in respect to the open loan, from the
commennment of the approaching financial year. Accor J-
ingly, he gave notice of the closing on the 30th April next
of the fcur per cent. conversion arrangement. By this
warning all remaining holders of that stock for whose benefit
it may be to take advantage of that arrangement will still
have full opportunity of so doing. Up to the end of the
current commercial year holders of four per cent. paper
will still have it in their power, on subscribing .to the open
loan, to obtain six per cent. for the cash subscribed.
" In order to throw open the door, in some manner to
the general capitalist, Treasury-bills, bearing a somewhat
lower rate of interest, -were issued; and the Governor-
General in Council, rooking to the very large extraordinary
expenditure which must still remain to be incurred in the
coming year, made application to the Right Hon. the
Secretary of State for India for assistance in the way of
bullion remittances from home to The extent of 3,000,000
sterling.

" It had been the wish of the Governor General in Coun-
cil to wait the answer of the Secretary of State, which may
be expected by the Ist of May, as also to allow time to show
practically ghat may be expected as the result of the above-
mentioned neasures, before determining upon the course to
be adopted on the Ist of May for the service of the coming
year. But the late flactuation in the stock market, though
the manifest result of an unfounded, and, happily, short-lived
panic, and the representations of the mercantile community,
who are of opinion that in the present state of the market
uncertainty as to the future financial operations of
Government would be a great evil, have induced his Excel-
lency in Council to anticipate the determination of this ques-
tion, and to announce at once the arrangement which it is
his intention to make in India for the service of the year
1859-60.

" Reductions in the present enormous war charges will
be made as early and to as great an extent as may be safe.
Measures will be taken for the permanent increase of the
Indian revenues as largely as may be consistent with sound
policy. But the full benefit of these operations will not be
felt in 1859-60.