The Sun.
London, England, 1868-03-21 00:00:00

MARKETS—(This Day.)

POTATOES, &c.
Supplies by land and water. continue good, and trade
steady at the late decline.

Green -stuffs were in good demand, and fair supplies
were cleared off briskly, prices ruling firm, at Monday's
quotations.
HAY AND STRAW.

Supplies at Smithfield and Whitechapel were moderate,
and trade dull. Meadow hay, 60s to 84s ; clover, 80s to
100 s; second cut, 50s to 84s ; straw, 30s to 34s per load.

TALLOW.

The market continues firm. Y.C. on the spot, 44s ;
April to June, 44s ; June, 44s to 44s 6d ; last throe months,
44s 9d to 455.

COTTON.
LIVERPOOL, March 21. —Market slightly firmer. Sales
probably 10,000 bales.

COURSE OF EXCHANGE—Last Evening.

Amsterdam Short ... 11 18 ... 11 181
Ditto
Rotterdam — ... 11 191 ... 12 A.
Antwerp — ... 25 321 ... 25 371
Brussels
Hatuburgh — ... 13 91 ... 13 101
Paris Short ... 25 121 ... 25 22:1
Ditto 3 Ms. ... 2) 3tt ... 25 35
Marseilles....
Frankfort-on-the-Main ... ... 1201 ... 12
Vienna — ... 11 80 ... 11 85
Trieste — ... 11 80 ... 11 85
Petersburg — ... 32 ... ii2f
Berlin ... ... 6 261 ... 6 271
Madrid — ... 481 ... 481
Cadiz
Leghorn — ... 28 75 ... 28 85
Milan._
Genoa — ... '2B 75 ... 28 85
Naples
Palermo — ... 28 75 ... 28 85
Messina
Lisbon
Oporto

THE FOREIGN AND COLONIAL GOVERNMENT TRUST has
excited a great deal of attention in financial circles. The
idea is novel and ingenious, and is universally recognized
as meeting a public want. It is, in fact, the application
to foreign investments of the principle of mutual in-
surance, and diminishing risks by arranging them over a
wide area, which has proved so fruitful in the case of
marine and life assurances. At the present day there is
a large number of persons who desire to increase their
incomes by investing in securities bearing a high rate of
interest, to whom such an investment may bo perfectly
consistent with prudence, provided the risk run be not
excessive. But if a I •:son thus circumstanced invest his
whole surplus capital in any foreign stock, such, for
instance, as Turkish or Italian, there is no denying that
the investment becomes speculation, and that in staking
everything on the continued solvency of any one State,
he runs a considerable risk. 'But if the same investment
had been spread over fifteen or twenty different stocks,
the temporary stoppage of even two or three of the Go-
vernments would not endanger the loss of his capital, or
reduce the benefit of his investment to a level with that
'afforded by such securities as railway debentures or
mortgages on land. In addition to the high rate of
interest, the advantage of repayment at par by drawings
of stocks purchased at a discount; is very considerable,
and of itself replaces with a large profit the greater part
of the original capital within the period of the trust. The
combined effect of the sinking fund and drawings is such
that after yielding an annual interest of 7 per cent. the
whole of the original capital is repaid, with a bonus of 15
per cent. in 24 years, and there remains £900,000 of stock as
a reversion divisible among the subscribers. By the issue
of £lOO certificates a pro rata share of this investment is
secured to the small investor on the same terms as to the
large capitalist. A man who has a single £lOO to invest
may become a holder of 15 of the principal foreign and
colonial stocks, currently quoted on the Stock Exchange,
and have his investment managed for him without trouble,
and at a comparatively small cost, on a system which
gives him the same pro rata advantage as the holder of
£lOO,OOO, both in spreading the risk over a wide area and
in realising the average effect of drawings, and securing
the regular action of a sinking fund, which, in a short
period, repays the original capital, and leaves him a holder
of stocks which have cost nothing.

MUSICAL ITEMS.—Auber is at work at another opera.
Verdi's Don Carlos has been produced at Brussels. M.
Hector Berlioz has left St. Petersburg, and is at present
staying at Monaco. The degree of Bachelor in Music has
been taken by Mr. John Frederick Bridge, of Queen's
College, Oxford. It is said that Mdlle. Nillson is a
charming violin player, and that Rossini has promised to
write some music for her. Rubinstein's playing is
exciting great enthusiasm in Brussels ; some of his own
compositions have been very favourably received. The
result of the endless bickerings among the musical pro-
fessors of Leeds has been to exclude "native talent "
from the musical arrangements of a forthcoming Fine Art
Exhibition to be held in that town. At Paris a gentle-
man of the name of Michotte gave a performance at M.
Gustave Dore's last soiree on an instrument called the
"matauphono." It consists of graduated glasses filled
with water, on which it is said he executes fantasias,
overtures, and every species of musical composition.—
Musical Standard.

PRESENTATION BY NAPOLEON FOR SAVING LIFE.—At
the recent meeting of the Loc.tl Marine Bond of the Port of
London, Mr. John Hubbart, the second mate of the General
Steam Navigation Company's steamer Triton, and John Rose,
rireman on board that vessel, were presented each with a
very handsome silver medal of the first class and diploma,
awarded by his Imperial Majesty the Emperor of the French,
for having at the risk of their own lives attempted the
rescue of the crew of the French ship Trois &ears,
wrecked off Calais pier-bead last year, after an unsuccessful
attempt had been made by some French mariners, whose
boat was capsized, together with that also of the British sea-,
men when they made an effort to save life. It may be
remembered that the ship was cast ashore close to Calais,
and the lifeboat, first manned by the Frenchmen, went off
to the relief of the crew of the shipwrecked vessel.
They did not reach her, and then some Englishmen volun.
teered to take the English lifeboat out ' • but on getting near
to the wreck a tremendous sea caught the boat and she
filled, and several of the men were washed away. Another
effort was made to rescue the crew, and eventually some of
them were saved. Hubbart and Rose are stated to have
Performed the most meritorious service.
THE ALABAMA CLAIMS AND THE CONFEDERATE COTTON
LOAN.—The last advices from the United States mention a
fact which may be interesting to the holders of the Confede-
rate Cotton Bonds issued by Messrs. J. H. Schroder and
Co. It appears that the Government of the United States
admit that they have cotton in their hands which belonged
to the Confederate Government to the amount of 30,000,000
dole., and they have directed that the proceeds of this cotton
shall be paid into the United States Treasury, there to await
the claims that may be made against it. The United States
Government by this measure may almost be said to consti-
tute itself a trustee for the claimants. We are informed
that the committee of cotton bondholders have directed a case
to be submitted to counsel in order to ascertain the best means
by which they may obtain their share of the proceeds of this
cotton. The ordering of those proceeds to be paid into the
Treasury seems to be a preliminary on the part of the
United States Government to admitting the principle that
" they who seek equity must do equity," and that they are
prepared to admit the counter claims on the part of British
subjects alluded to by Lord Stanley in bis speech on the
Alabama claims, and are setting aside funds to meet their
liabilities.—Money Market Review.
THE MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE PACIFIC SLOPE..--•
Mr. Browne (of the United States) estimates the yield of the
different States and territories of the Union as follows :
California, £5,000,000 ; Nevada, £4,000,000 ; Montana,
£2,400,000 ; Idaho, £1,300,000 ; Washington, £200,000 ;
Oregon, £400,000; Colorado, £500,000; New Mexico,
£lOO,OOO ; Arizona, £100,000; and miscellaneous,
£1,000,000, making a total of £15,000,000. The
entire product of the precious metals from this
region in the twenty years from 1848 to 1867
is estimated to have been £233,000,000, or at the rate
of £11,650,000 per annum, of which £180,000,000 was
from California, the riches of the other districts being of
comparatively recent discovery. Although the return of last
year was considerably in excess of the average return of the
past twenty years, which include the early times when the
population was relatively small, it appears that,
compared with the immediately preceding years,
1867 shows a decline. According to Mr. Browne,
the population actually engaged in mining has greatly
diminished in the past few years, and does not now exceed
50,000. Agriculture, manufactures, and commerce are
assuming the preponderance over the mining interest.
Important mining results are anticipated from the com-
pletion of the Pacific Railway, which will touch a point
within 100 miles of a new locality where, according to
some reports, extremely rich and vitenairo diagavtrics
11.M.9 bitc4 idt4 awe.