The Sun.
London, England, 1857-05-05 00:00:00

VICTO It lA.

The Melbourne'Age of March 14 bars wattles= :
—" DUring the last lour months the building trade
of Melb mrne has been brisker than at. any for ner
period. The activity has not at all cliatin's.hrd up
to the present time, and judging from the l irge
number of first-class building now in progress, both
in town and subu bs, it will be a long tim.• ere ih re
is a cry of no work. This state of things ha-, cans d
considerable demand for skill- d labour ; arid ITV-
4:kudos generally ar' now rec-iving 25 rwr cent
higher .wages fir the day of eight hews than they
rtc dyed twelve months since for the day of t'n
hours. The following may be qu ,ted as a fair
average of the wages now ruing in and about
bourne :—Bricklayers, 18s. per day of eight hours;
carpenters, 15s. ditto ' • stone carvers, 18s. to-20s.
ditto ; stone cutterA, 16s. ditto ; masons, 16s. do. ;
labourers, 10s. to 12$. ditto • sawyers 16s. per
100 fect: As regards agricul-ural lab ur, there
is a good:demand iu every part of the c par-
ticularly in the remote districts, such as GippsLan. 1
and the extreme western , counties. A lar-,;e
number of Government contracts are also in ope a-
ion, and this tends to keep up the price of tuiskill-d
labour. On many of the &pings laboure-s c‘n
st 11 command a Riund and in some instances eren
255. a day. It must, howeyer, b bone in mirod
that they are not what would be called labourers
in the:old country. The ,are men who can use the
.ax r, the ma 1, and wedges. then lz. and cross-
cut-saw. They can go int the fore-1 and turn out
slabs fur " a claim ou the goldfields. They can
furnish pal ng for a hut, and build it and fuini-h
t the satisfact'on of the most fa-tidions of digg-rs'
wives. We must not be un'lerstoo las stating that
there is at present anything like a positive sc-ireity
of lab .ur throughout the colony, however. It is a
long time since there was such an approach to an
equilibrium between the demand and supply. The
days of rapid fortune making seem ti be over at
most of the diggings, and m'ning promi-,es to be
come for the future amenable to the ordinary vicis--
situdes of comtnerce. At some of the diggings
indeed labour has b 'en so slatitily rewarded th tt
the people have deserted en masse. It is quite
possible, too, that a very deserving and industz Rios
person may reside in this busy c ty for weeks
out obtaining suitable work. Vic'otia is still the
Paradise of hard handed labour ; but there is a
plethora of professional men, surveyors, c!erks, &c.
Those who cannot positively "rough it" a little,

had better stay at
Of the state of trade and shipping the Melbourne
Age, of March 14, says
Already we are feeling the benefi's of regular
steam communica.ion with the old country, simul-
taneously with the last traces of.injury arising from
excessive and ill-timed shipments. The rapid and
regular comcnunitiationwith the home country will
douhtles work wonders in reforming the syst-m
which h s hitherto prevailed among British com-
mercial boos s, but it is a pity that, at the moment
of the establishment of s earn postal service, our
markets should once more hdve lean swamped
with goods in such inam- nse quantities that it is
&most utterly impossible for our populatiou to cot-
flume tl'etn. At no period since the memorable
crisis of 1854 have our merchants felt such difficulty
in eff.-cting ail outlet for their goods. The trade
has passed ont of the hands of those who forme, ly
held it—a new compe'ing claws has arisen—and
those who were once the hest custom-rs of the ori-
ginal imprters are now found keenly contesting
the market with them on almost equal ground,.
Extensive re ail dealers now find it w..rtli while to
commission buyers visiting E ugl and to purchas., for
cash in the home markets such articles in their

line as Australian burn know will suit the colonial
market. Melbourne traders willingly pay an ad-
vance of 2. per cent. on the ordinary commission
for the execution of their orders by parries s ► wel I up
to what will suit the local trade. The more rapid
stesmer int-Tcommunicsoion between Vic- oria and
England is likely to lead to qui. e a commercial re-
volution in purchasing from wholetals houses. The
moneyed shopkeeper no longer depends for r. cruit-
ing or supplying his stock upon English houses,
nor on thy selections and pric s of colonial impor-
ters, when he c+n avail himself of the services of
one of ha own class, who fi,rds it worth while to
hecome a soec'al or general buyer fir a g god pt'r
certige. No d 'uht these sf.e.rmer s will b ex en-
siyely used in this way in future, and our mot--
chants should bestir themselves hat they b 3 cut
out of the market.

Our imports continue to present a large excess
upon our exports, amounting flora J'snu-ry 1 to
March 7 to 174,0001. One of the chief points at
present is the exceedingly d pro-sett k.ttte of the
flour market, but, as prices are now thought to
have reached their minimum, and as there is a dis-
position to store goods, in anticipation of a better
demand, the market is likely to take a start in the
right d rection. Already there se ems &me im-
provement ; as we have heard of some offers wt 141.
10S. fur the three fine Adelaide hrands, which wt ro
refused. Horse food is very scarce, and seems to
be the only class of article in whic!l he market.
displays anything like activity• Colonial oats are
in gre,t demand at 93. for good samples ; main-,
9s. ; bran, 2s. to 2s. id. Fur the latter sales have
b-en effected at ls. 11d., but only in order to save
storage.

NEW SOUTH WALES.
The political intelligence from this Colony is of
inferior interest. The Min's ry was ex.: edin..Jy

weak, and it was thought, wh-'n the European left,
that a few days ra.ght seal its fate.
The Assembly had voted 300,0001. to be ex-
pended on making rail, ays. Mr. Donaldson, the
colonial treasurer, had int.tiduced a hill authorising
the government t borrow the Honey.
On the '23d of February a putilT meeting was
held in Sydney for the form it on of an Election
Reform League. At present the repr,sentative
system, by which the Legislative Astembly iy
elected, giver great dissatisfaction to a large num-
ber of the inhal itanis, as throwing a. pi eporideran:e
of power into the hands of the pastoral occupants
and a limited nomber of pet-ions wh-) are connected
with them in interest. Tha chief objects of tte
League are to obtain a larger numher of members
for Sydney and the populous constitnercies, andto
limit the tight of suffrage in etch elector' to ote
electoral dixtrict. The a tendauce was Vey lat
and the feeling of the meeting decided.
•
"Colonisation," says the Midney Empire, it is
steadily advancing. Land is falling more generally
into the hands of working capitalists ; now pursuits
of industry are daily opening ; our power of pro-
du.ition is gaining strength, and the elemen.s of
prosperity at ound us are constantly becoming mote
Liealthy and s cure."
On coinme-cial aff,irs the same authoity reports,
under date March 14 : _ _

For s )me time past business in Sydney has been in
a state of inactivity without being positively de-
pressed. Many articles are commanding, at first hand,
good paying prices,, but scarcelyany commodity ha.
beAn rusta•necl at a really high figuie. Extravag n•.
profits may be considere at an end. The subsid-
ing process seems to have reached the sage of com-
mercial healthfulness, and tra I) sa.3tious are be-
ginning_ to adjust themselves to tile ltws
of supply and demand, something after the condi-
tion of older countries. Our external commerce is
connecting its with ports and conntries with which,
mit 1 a recent date, we had little jut erconr.re. The
ship Maria Magdalena, a fine Dutch barque, clea el
out this ray for Antwerp with a full cargo of colo-
nial produce, yalu-d at nearly 40,0 ,01., and shipped
tey Mvssrs. Mullendorff and C This is the first
vessel teat took a cargo of Australian produce to
Belgium, and we are glad to see our trade w ith
that industrious country thus opening.
"The following are the quoted prices of golil at
Sydney :—Meroo, 3/. 15s. 61. per oz. ; Adelc
31. 145., per oz. ; Stoney Ore, k, 31. 14s. 6d. per oz. ;
&fah and Turon, 3/. 13s. per oz. ; Braidw&od.
3/. 12s. 6d. per oz ; Hanging Rock, 3/, 125.: 6d.
per cz. ; Rocky River, 3/. 7s. 6d. per oz. ;
Rocky Rver (clean), 3/. 12.. 6d. per oz ; Omeo,
3/. ss. 6.1. per oz. English sot ereigns ; per
cent, premium. American coins at a premiiraln.
Chili= coins at a discount. Fren.l gold and
silver coin at a discount.
In the Sydney Morning Herald, March 10, TWO
read :
-
"The amount of gold dust imported into i the
Sydney branch of the Ro3al Mint, for ,he purp, >se
of coinage, during the mouths of January a' td
February, 1857, has been alynir 23,442 mine, 3s.
The amount of gold coin issued has been 84,0 DO
sovereigns and 60,000 hallsovereiglis : total Ira]) le,
114,0001. The revenue, e=xcl nsive of the gold du iy,
which is now in force, and which is deducted on all
gold sent to the Mint for coinage, would then efr )rf,
e powething like 1,1001. to 1,200/. During tilt-
first week of - March 20,000 ha ft-sovereigns rave
issued,
been
[ _ . •and 1,643 ounces of gold dust rerjeiy.,4l