The Sun.
London, England, 1861-04-06 00:00:00

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EWSPAPER

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v 1
,f.,,,,:.. ~14
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to those appeals. With their skeletons .US ', is'
~.,ks,l—.ll. .
s., ~- :44;
covered by skin hanging in thick wrin Ids, thIAL
famished are, brought in, some to struggle into ALfe, II S
most to die from the mere effort at eating. The
hideous and repulsive aspect of these cases is utterly
lost in the unboundedu sympathy felt, as well as the
regret that more eannot be done to arrest the scythe
of the destroyer. All the arrangements are ad-
mirably conducted by the respected assistant of the
treasury, Mr. De Gruythers. Many hundred im-
ploring beings owe their lives to the humane and
disinterested exertions of one who had to flee from
the infuriated mob at the first mutiny, aid for
weeks suffered every privation and misery with his
family in the jungles.

CITY COAL DUES.

Last night a public meeting was held in the
London Tavern for the purpose of organising an
opposition to the bill now before Parliament for the
renewal of the coal dues levied. by the city. The
chair was taken by Mr. Nicholay.
The CHAIRMAN condemned the tax as impolitic
and unjust, and charged the Government with
breach of faith in attempting to renew it. (Hear.)
It was monstrous that places like Staines, at a dis-
tance many miles from the city, should be compelled
to pay for metropolitan improvements. The Go-
vernment, aware of the impossibility of continuing
the tax on its present footing, had endeavoured to
render it more palatable by limiting it to the metro-
politan area. Butwhy should large manufacturers
be driven from London on account of the dues on
the fuel which they consumed ? And if a draw-
back were allowed to manufacturers, it would be an
obvious injustice to private consumers. (Hear.)
Tlie embankment of the Thames was very desirable,
but funds ought to be provided for it in some other
way. He had beard that a private company had
offered to undertake it. The Metropolitan Board
of Works was not, as a 'body, in favour of the tax.
As a member of the Board, himself, he felt that he
would not properly represent the great constituency
of Marylebone unless he opposed those dues. (Hear.)
He believed the decision of the meeting would have
much weight with the Board.
Mr. LAURENCE objected to the tax, chiefly on
the ground that it pressed heavily and unjustly
on the poorer classes of the metropolis, and limited
their supply of one of the prime necessaries
of life. (Hear, hear.) Although he was an ad-
vocate for a reform of the Corporation of London,
he gave that body credit for having surrendered a
great portion of the dues. lie dwelt upon the im-
policy of transferring such• a fund to an irrespon-
sible body like the Metropolitan Board of Works.
(Hear, hear.) He anticipated that the present
meeting would be only the first of many others
which would be held to protest against that most
unfair impost. He moved the following resolution :

" That it is inexpedient and inconsistent with the policy
of the day to levy enormous dues on an article of necessary
consumption, and that, considering the state of the Lon-
don poor last winter, and the price of fuel, a tax on coal
entering London is a grievous burden, and ought not to be
entertained."

(Hear, hear.)
Mr. ALFRED RICHARDS, in seconding the reso-
lution, reviewed the history of the tax, and pro-
nounced it illegal and unjust from its commence-
ment. Sir John Trevor was ignominiously dis-
missed from the office of Speaker of the House of
Commons for having taken a bribe of £l,OOO from
the corporation to pass the bill in an underhand
manner; and the charter 'which the King had
granted to the city was one which he had no right
to issue. It appeared to him singularly inconsis-
tent that at the time when we were supplying
France with untaxed coals an oppressive tax
should be renewed upon all coals entering our own
metropolis. (Hear.) The Thames embankment
scheme had no more 'earnest supporter than him-
self; but he desired to see money procured for it
either by a general rate, by a grant from the Con-
solidated Fund, or by private enterprise. A com-
mittee of the House of Commons now sitting was
about to investigate the whole question of these
dues, and no measure ahould be passed until that
committee had reported.
Mr. CHARLES COLWELL and Mr. BIICKTON sup-
ported the resolution.
Mr. GEORGE BROOK regarded the coal dues with
disfavour, but feared that there was not the slightest
chance of getting rid of them. Under that impres-
sion he therefore moved as an amendment—
" That this meeting is desirous of inducing the Govern-
ment not to continue the tax on coals, but holds, that if
the Bill for levying the tax be carried, a portion of the
money so collected should be applied for the purpose of
doing away with the bridge and road tolls in and near the
metropolis. _ _

The CHAIRMAN pronounced the amendment in.,
competent, as the question was whether or not there
should be a coal tax, and not how it should •be
applied.
. _

1
Mr. PEARCE maintained that the coal tax was an
advantage to the labouring classes of the metropolis,
as it was the means of providing them with em-
ployment in the construction of public works. (A
voice—" You're a servant of the Commissioners of
Sewers.") He denied that the Metropolitan Board
of Works was an irresponsible body, because the
members had to render an account of their proceed-
ings to their constituents. There must be some fund
for paying the expense of public improvements,
and he supported the coal dues until a good sub-
stitute was proposed. (Hear.)
Mr. J. It. TAYLOR supported the resolution.
Great confusion and disorder arose on the resolu-
tion being put to the meeting. The Chairman
professed himself unable to decide whether the
show of hands was in favour of or against the
continuance of the tax, and each side loudly claimed
the majority. At length tellers were appointed,
and the vote was declared to be against the resolu-
tion, and in favour of the tax.
The meeting then broke up, after a vote of thanks
to the Chairman.

DESTRUCTIVE FIRE IN CANN ON-.ROW,

WESTMINSTER.

Last night, about a quarter past 10 o'clock, a
fire of a most destructive character broke out on
the premises belonging to Messrs. Hills and Mat-
thams, hay and straw salesmen, of Cannon-wharf,
Cannon-row, Parliament-street.

Cannon-wharf, although occupying a large area
of ground, extending from Cannon-row to the river,
is entered by a sort of blind thoroughfare, in itself
so retired that, after the usual business of the day,
no passers by would be likely to observe the pre-
mises. It was probably owing to this circumstance
that the fire had attained a considerable height
before any discovery of its outbreak. The first alarm
appears to have been given by a police officer on
duty in Cannon-row, who, while making his rounds,
observed a bright reflection inside the entrance
gates of Messrs. Hills and Matthams' premises.
On looking further, he at once saw that a fire was
raging on the wharf, where an immense quantity
of hay and straw, and other combustible materials
were stored. Without a moment's loss of time he
raised an alarm, and Mr. Hills, whose residence is
) in Cannon-row, and who at the time was entertain-
ing a party of friends, was instantly on the spot.
Summoning to his aid several of his employes who
resided in the neighbourhood, their united efforts
were first directed to an attempt to save a stud of
17 horses standing in two stables on the south side
of the wharf. Owing to the rapidity with which
the flames spread this proved to be impossible; and
notwithstanding every exertion was made by the
head carman (who was himself severely burnt in
the attempt) and others, only two of their number
were rescued.
The engines arrived in rapid succession soon after
the alarm was given, and under the judicious direc-
tion of Inspector Bradstock, of the A division, a
large body of police officers were stationed along
Parliament-street and in the adjoining thorough.
fares, so as to preVent the crowd from interfering
with the operations of the firemen. But no exer-
tions on their part, however well directed, availed
to save any portion of the premises where the fire
broke out. These were utterly destroyed, and be-
fore the fire had spent itself the rear of three or four
houses in Cannon-row bad been seriously damaged.
In the alarm and
storey of
confusion, when the flames had
caught the upper One of the houses in
Cannon-row, and the tiled root came clattering in,
mout from an upper win-
dow, bystander upon the head,
wounding
d
him so severely as to render it necessary
sou
some furnitureingwhich
struck was
a
to convey him upon a ,stretcher to Westminster
Hospital.

AcorgENT ON THE LANCASHIRE AND YORK-
SHIRE LINE. --An accident, involving destruction of pro-
perty to a considerable amount, occurred on this line at the
Halifax Junction, near Sowerby-bridge, on Wednesday. A
luggage train started from Sowerby-bridge for Leeds about
half-past 10 in the forenoon, but by some means not yet satis-
factorily explained, as soon as the train left the main line
for the junction, the engine got off the rails, dragging with
it the tender, the transit •van, and three trucks loaded with
iron. The engine ran about 100 yards in this way, plough-
ing up the line, breaking the sleepers into matchwood, and
smashing the rails. Ultimately the engine, the tender, and
the van were overturned. The driver and stoker escaped_
with comparatively little hurt, but the guard, named John.
Littlewood, of Holmfirth, but lodging at Sowerby Bridge,
had his ancle fractured by falling out of the van when it
was overturning. He is now at the Halifax Infirmary..
The line was blocked up several hours, and the trains had
to go round by North Dean Junction.