The Sun.
London, England, 1868-03-27 00:00:00

Cuba, 6 per Cent. —
Conan 6 per Cent lO3
Do. 41 per Cent —
Do. 6 per Cent., 13 —
Do., 1867
Do., 7 per ,Cent., 1866

. .
Do., Scrip £32 paid
C )E' rnbian, 6 per Cent.
Danish 3 per Cent., 1823
D.Lnubian Principalities, 7 per Cent —
Do 8 per Cent., 1867
n:quador New Consolidated, 1 per Cent...
Egyptian, 7 per Cent —
Do. Second Issue B2}
Do. 1500 Bonds
Do. 110 C Bonds B7}
Do. 1864
Do. 15'10 Bonds —

Do. £lOO Bonds ..... 884 4
Government Railway Debentures .... 904 it
Greek, 5 per Cent., 182415, ox Coups —
Do. Account
Du. Coupons
Do. Account
_.. --
Glateinala 5 per Cent .. —
Honduras Gov. Rail. Loan., 10p. Ct., £23p
It ,ian pc! C'er!, 1:s,
Do, Account •
Do. Al aretuniaua 1W w.l:,
J 1 ,xicaT, :; per Cent
Ditto for Accour t
Do. • 1864 —
Do 6 per Cent. Anglo-French —
Ilonmvidean C per Cent. . —
Itoorish Imperial 5 per Cent
New Granada —
Do 3 per Cen —
Do. Deferred
Do Leon Warrants (liectares) - -
Peruvian 5 per Cent. 1865 —
Du Account 7Bl I
Do 41 per Cont. (Uribarren)
Do 41 per Cent.. 1862
Do Account
Portuguese 3 per et, 185,76,'7,79,760,72,' 391
Do. do., 1 67
Do. do., Scrip, £lO paid — pin
Russian 5 per Cent., 1822, £ St —
Do 41 per Cent. 1850
Do 41 per Cent., 1860
Do 3 per Cent., 1859
Do 5 por Cent., 1862
Do. Anglo-Dutch, 1864, £lOO Bonds —
Do. do. £B4 15s. do —
Do., 1866, £lOO Bonds - 874 I
Do. • do. £B4 15s. do 854
Sardinian, 5 per Cent
Spanish 3 per Con . —
Do Account
Do New Deferred

Do Account
Do Passive
Do Account
Do Com. Cert. of Coup. not funded
Do Account
Turkish 6 per Cent.
Do Account
Do 6 per. Cent. 1858
Do Account
Do £lOO Bonds
Do 6 per Cent., 1862
Do Account
Do £lOO Bonds 64 (3
Do. 1863
--
Do 5 per Cent., 1865
Do Account
Do 6 per Cent, 1865 561
Do 4 por Cent.' Guaranteed .... 1011
Venezuela, 3 per Cent.
Do 6 per Cent, 1862
Do 6 per Cent. 1864
Do. 4 per Cent. Certificates ..... —
Divideuds on the above payable in London.
French Rentes, 3 per Cent., Ex. 25f.
Austrusu o per Cent. Ex 10 Florins
Belgian, 41 per cent., Ex. 25f.
Dutch 2* per Cent. Ex. 12 Gull., 541
Do Account
Italiro. 5 per Cent. 1851, Ex. 25f.
Do. Account 471 1
TWO O'CLOCK.

Consols, Money 1
93
Do. Account, March .. 93

= -
COTTON STATISTICS.

Yesterday afternoon a numerous deputation
waited upon the Duke of Richmond at the offices of
the Board of Trade, for the purpose of again re-
questing the Government to introduce into Parlia-
ment a bill to enable the collection and periodical
publication of the statistics of the imports, exports,
consumption, and stock of cotton in the United
Kingdom. Mr. Bazley, M.P., introduced the
deputation, stating that it represented almost the
whole of the cotton trade of the country. Mr.
Watkin, M.P., reminded the duke that when
the deputation waited upon him last November
his Grace desired that a draught bill should be
drawn up for consideration. This had been done,
and the Statistical Department of the Board of
Trade had been consulted. That department stated
that there was no reason in principle why the
companies which purchase and forward the cotton
should not be compelled to give the required infor-
mation, as already the owners of ships were com-
pelled to give particulars respecting importation
and exportation, although the knowledge thus
gained was not used for the purposes affecting
taxation. The bill suggested simply gave power to
the Board of Trade, by order in Council, to collect
the required statistics under such regulations as they
might see fit to impose. If statistics were to be
prepared they must be reliable, and be issued by a
public department. At present the statistics col-
ected by brokers' associations were of necessity im-
perfect, and all parties now agreed that nothing
short of a compulsory system would answer the
purpose. The Cotton Brokers' Associations of
Liverpool and London were represented on the
deptation, and those gentlemen would state that
so early as 1851 they tried to obtain informa-
tion by voluntary returns, but that the attempt
utterly failed. He had carefully studied the sub-
ject, and he was quite convinced that reliable
returns could be made by the Customs' officers,
under the orders of the Board of Trade, with a very
trifling expense, and that such returns would be of
infinite value to the trade, which greatly needed ac-
curate information in this matter in order to secure
steadiness of price. The errors which had been
made in returns of estimated stock had led to
serious irregularities and loss. The brokers, who, it
had been assumed, wero interested in these fluctua-
tions, were as anxious as consumers of cotton to
procure the object the deputation had in view.
He trusted that, should her Majesty's Govern-
ment decide to deal with this matter effectually,
the Government of the United States would be
appealed to to follow the example. When these
things were done, the important interest of the
cotton manufacture—the largest industrial interest
in the country—would be placed upon a sounder
basis as regarded its purchase of the raw material.
Mr. Hugh Mason, chairman of the Cotton Spin-
ners' Association, said that the deputation them-
selves manufactured one-fifth of the cotton con-
sumed in Lancashire, and paid in wages above
£50,000 per week. The whole trade was in cordial
union on this question, and all parties were fully
convinced that nothing but a compulsory system,
and the rendering of the returns at short periods
by the Board of Trade, would meet the require-
ments of the case. Mr. Bolt, chairman of the
Cotton Brokers' Association at Liverpool, ex-
plained the mode in which the statistics were at
present collected, and showed how erro-
neous they must be from time to time. He
quoted the returns of stock for the last 11 quar-
ters, in which, on every occasion, there was a serious
error. In one of the returns the estimate was
wrong by no fewer than 90,000 bales, representing
£1,500,000. Mr. Roulth, chairman of the Cotton
Brokers' Association of London supported the
views of the last speaker. Mr. Milner Gibson,
ALP., expressed a strong opinion that as the Board
of Trade now published returns of imports and
exports collected under compulsion by the Cus-
toms, in order to make the information at present
obtained useful and reliable, it was absolutely ne-
cessary to give the fact instead of the estimated
stocks. Mr. Hornby, M.P., who believed that
correct statistics were extremely important,
said that they could only be secured by a com-
pulsory measure. In answer to various ques-
tions put by the Duke of Richmond, a
series of returns and statements were handed iu,
and his Grace was reminded that the Liverpool
brokers present alone dealt in cotton to the extent
of £40,000,000 per annum at the current prices,
and that the fluctuations in price had ranged during
the period of the American war between the figures
of 6d. and half-a•crown, showing an advance of
500 per cent., on many occasions seriously aggra-
vated by the want of a correct knowledge of avail-
able stock. The Duke of Richmond concurred in
the opinion that the subject was one of great im-
portance, and intimated his intention to bring the
subject before the Cabinet, with whom the matter
must rest. The deputation thanked his Grace for
granting the interview, and then retired.

A change for the better has taken place iu the
condition of the venerable Earl of Roden, and hopes are
now entertained, advancing in age though he is, that his
lordship will recover.

,c6f Ai:tit:MUG di:tali:s., AND srocKs
London and North-Western, 5 per cent., 109
London and S.-Western 11 per cent., vi
LIVES LEASED AT:FIXED_RENTAL S.
London and Blackwall, 67 a
FORNIGIN RALLWAYP.
Pahl& and San Francisouall.n., gua. 7 perCenL,
Great Luxembourg, 91
San Paulo, lien., gua. ti per.cent.,l7f
South Austrian and Lombardo Venetian, 15 11/

FOICEIGN hiLINKb.
Din Pedro. North Del Hey, 2 1
Perstnrena United Gold, Ihn., 21
St. John del 147,1th:1,21i
BAN!. S.

Agra, Ilm., A, 10
A mrlo. Austrian, 4
Anglo Egyptian, lira., 111
Australasia, 59
Consolidated, lira., 44
Imperial Ottoman, 10
Land Mortgage Bank of India, Jim., I_l-10
London and County,

Ditto, new, 34
London Joint Stock, 31
London and South African. 101
London and r% estminster, 671 8
Ditto, Scrip. 466
Provincial of Ireland, 89
Union of London, 311 2
MISCELLANZO 05;
Atlantic Telegraph, 55
Credit Funcier 01 England. lint, 3
Credit Foncier of Mauritius, 1im.,7
Crystal Palace, 223/4 3
Egyptian!Last ln d
perlr
Cent..atandionViceroy Canal,Loa a.
u by:Egypt. Gov. 88;'
Electric and International Telegraph, 164
Vore-street Warehouse, 11m., lot
Nucleon's Bay, HI
Madras Irr,gation and; Canal (guaranteed 5 per cent. by
Government), 103
Upper Aselm Tea, lim , 41
Viceroy of Egypt 7 per cent. (Mortgage) Loan, 721 &

Foreign Mail Packet List,

MAILS DUE.

tinstralls and New Zealand, via donthampton.....March 29.

Ditto, via Marseilles ..............April lg.
Ditto, vie Plasma ....... .......... ........... March
Brazil, Baen3s Ayres, and Monte Vidao . April 6.
Ditto, by French paotot ...... April 22.
()ape Voris. by Brazil paotet A,,ril 6.
espe ot• Good Liopo, Ascension. and St. Helena dlaroh 23
Üblna, Penang, and Singapore. via Southampton March 23.
Ditto, via Mar5ei11e5.....••••..... April 3.
Paitland Islands
Gibraltar, via Southampton
india.via Southampton
Ditto, via Marseilles
Malta, Egypt, Jzo. March 25

Ditto, Marseilles... March 2J
Mauritius, Cape of Good Hope, and Natal, via

Southampton

Diu Mar:Jellies , April 18
.Newlowadla nd ..............April
Pqrtuol