The Sun.
London, England, 1850-09-27 00:00:00

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LONDON, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 1850.

A lamentable proof has ju st been afforded of the truth
of the old saying, " more haste, worse speed"—any such
ill-judged precipitancy being peculiarly perilous in
regard'to navigation. By a singular coincidence the
Superb steam-vessel has perished on the same sunken
rocks lying midway between St. Malo and St. Heliers,
called the Minquiers, off which only a few days pre-
viously the steamer Polka had foundered—a mariner
of the name of PRIAIILI having acted as captain on
both occasions. From the scanty particulars already
furnished in reference to this melancholy catastrophe,
it appears that eleven lives have been destroyed in con-
sequence of the most culpable negligence, the most re-
prehensible temerity, and the most perverse blundering
-on the part of those entrusted with the safety of the
vessel and her passengers. Until more detailed ac-
counts have been furnished by the survivors it
would,. of course, be invidious to condemn by name
any particular individual. When it is considered,
however, that the Superb, on leaving St. Malo to
proceed across the intervening portion of the channel
to the island of Jersey, was purposely directed out
of the ordinary line of navigation—whether to abbre-
viate the time occupied in the passage by a shorter
cut than usual; or to enable the captain to gratify the
curiosity of his passengers, by pointing out to them
the exact locality of his recent misfortune, it
would be difficult to conjecture—there cannot
remaid a doubt but that the steamer was most shame-
fully and unnecessarily placed in a position of obvious
and extraordinary jeopardy. After running thus, as
it were, prepense into the very jaws of destruction,
no wonder the Superb met with her last and fatal
catastrophe. In fair weather, in broad noon-day,
with scarcely a breath of air stirring, the Superb
struck violently upon one of the crags of the Min-
quiers and began filling immediately. Considering
the suddenness of the calamity, it is by no means sur-
prising that thereupon a panic manifested itself among
the passengers. Orders being forthwith given by the
captain to lower the two boats belonging to the
steamer, another accident shortly afterwards added to
the agOnies already experienced. In consequence of
a by no mans unfrequent oversight, one of the boats,
unprovided with the usual plug, on being hurriedly
pushed off from the Superb with eight men and three
women in it, slowly filled with water, and in the
presence of those still' remaining on the steamer
gradually sunk, the sea all the while shining as
smoothly as a mirror. Besides the eleven un-
fortunate creatures who were thus drowned in con-
sequence of a petty act of forgetfulness (the recur-
rence of which might be readily obviated in
future by attaching the plug to each boat by a small
piece of chain), two children were thrown overboard
by the first shock of the vessel striking on the
Minquiers. Otherwise the crew and passengers re-
mained uninjured by the calamity, the steamer being
1€ ft upon the rocks by the falling tide, until by sig-
nals of distress another steamer, called the Collier, at
length came to their assistance.
One deplorable incident occurring prior to the
rescue of those whose lives were endangered by this
misfortune, must not be allowed to pass altogether
unnoticed. Our allusion is made to the circumstance
of the commander of the Superb having attempted to
save his own existence by deserting the ship under
his charge in her most perilous predicament. For-
tunately for his .repute as a sailor, he was induced,
before. it was too late, to return on board his steamer,
and - there to await the arrival of the ,

gallant captain of the Collier, to whose gene-
rous promptitude the survival of so many
of our fellow-creatures is, humanly speaking,
attributable. Previously, however, to the arrival
of the Collier, then running between Jersey and
Shoreham, a cutter, called the Jupiter, had, after
considerable exertions, taken all the survivors from the
wreck, and was herself again ultimately relieved of
her human cargo on the appearance of Captain DOKE
on board the steamer Collier. By one of those startling
reiterations of alarm which sometimes occur to our
astonishment, the Collier, in her turn, on entering the
harbour of St. Heliers, struck upon the oyster rock,
which, it will not be forgotten, was recently the scene of
the destruction of her MAJESTY'S steam-ship Cuckoo,
All things, in short, appeared to unite in demonstrat-
ing the necessity, the absolute and imperative neces-
sity, of employing every care and precaution in
the midst of such a peculiarly treacherous and danger-
ous navigation. With sunken rocks sown abundantly
In that portion of the Channel—a portion so shallow
at low water that the old legend of its having been at
one time fordable is scarcely beyond the reach of
credence—it must be manifest that any course like
that adopted by the captain of the Superb is little
short of being absolutely suicidal. It must be re-
membered that the scene of the late catas-
trophe, the Minquiers, is a perilous spot, well
known to all mariners aecustomed to the
Channel, and that consequently, in running
his vessel directly upon those sunken rocks, a seaman
is, with his eyes open, dedicating his charge to
inevitable destruction. Such was the danger tempted
in the instance of the Superb, and this merely for
the chance of making the passage more speedily, or,
mayhap, with a view to gratify an idle and morbid
inquisitiveness. Notwithstanding that the science of
navigation has been carried, therefore, to its present
high state of perfection, it would appear that ships
may be lost, that ships are actually lost, through the
rashness of their commanders, through a shameful
neglect of those precautions which common sense
and experience alike demonstrate to be requisite.
Until this most culpable temerity be obviated by the
rigorous punishment of all 'similar offenders, we shall
still be compelled at intervals to recount the recur-
rence of some such melancholy catastrophe.

It would be impossible to find a better or more un-
questionable security than would be afforded by the
"national taxation money" suggested by Mr. DUN-
CAN, and to which we directed the public attention on
Wednesday. The most cautious and fastidious capi-
talist, who is contented with a low rate of interest,
provided he incurs the least possible risk of losing or
diminishing the amount of his principal money, could
scarcely demand an additional guarantee. Such
a person will make no speculative invest-
ment. He eschews railways and shudders at
any description of real security. Rank shares have
no charms for him. Anything approaching to spe
culation be avoids with a holy horror. Fares may be
reduced, rents may fall, or titles prove defective ; a
commercial crisis may set in, destructive to the inte-
rests of the shareholders in joint-stock undertakings,
but the Three per Cents. never fail. They are safe at
all times and all seasons, and undek all circumstances.
Nothing but a revolution could affect their sta-
bility. With these he is perfectly satisfied,
and invests all his property in the public
funds. This confidence, which maintains the price of
Consols at a high rate, is fully merited ; for they are
based on all the property iu the country of every
nature and kind whatsoever, real or personal. The
broad acres of the landowner, the stock in trade of the
merchant or tradesman, the goods and chattels of
every individual throughout the length and breadth
of the land, are responsible for the amount of the na-
tional debt, and the security is unquestioned and un-
questionable. But the very person who thus places
his all in the public funds, and would think
it an act of heresy, even for a moment,
to doubt their perfect stability, will chatter, with a
ludicrous affectation of wisdom, of "worthless rags,"
of the absurdity of supposing that the butcher or the
baker would part with his property in exchange for
inconvertible paper; and with profound solemnity
utter all the pompous platitudes, the glaring fallacies
of the bullionists.

Can it be possible that his perceptions are so obtuse
that he cannot perceive that the " national note"
would be based on the same security as the
national debt, that it would possess every
guarantee, while it would have some additional
advantages not attached to the latter. Like the funds,
it would be founded on all the property of the king-
dom. The five or six thousand of millions of pounds
sterling at which that property has been estimated,
would be ample security not only for the 800,000,0001.
of debt, but also for the 50,000,0001. or 60,000,0001.
of notes. The holder of the one should be satisfied
as well as the holder of the other. If the national
faith is to be preserved intact and inviolate, each
would be equally the public creditor, and would have
a claim of equal degree with the other. Their demands
would in some degree be analogous to those of the
holders of notes and depositors in a bank of issue,
who, in case of failure, would participate equally in
the dividend.

This view is the most favourable that can be taken.
to the fundholder ; it even goes too far in some re-
spects, for it assumes that he could claim the amount
of his principal, which it is notorious that he cannot
do. But it sustains our argument to the fullest ex-
tent, that the "national taxation money" would be at
least as well and fully secured, and possesses every
guarantee belonging to the Consolidated Fund.
Even the bullion itself—the gold and silver—in the
country would be responsible, although in different
degrees. It would be liable for the "interest" of the
Consols, and for the " principal" of the national note.
One advantage possessed by the national note over
Consols is so obvious that it must be palpable to the
most superficial observer. In case of any commer-
cial crisis, or public emergency, by which the rate of
interest may be increased, the price or value of Con-
sols will be materially depreciated. The per-
son who bought in at 96 or 97 may have
to sell out at 88 or 89. He may lose the
entire interest he had received during two
or three years, or even more ; but the bolder of the
note runs no such risk. He is certain that it must
be taken from him, at its full nominal value, not only
in satisfaction of his liabilities to the Exchequer, but
that be can liquidate every other claim, public or
private, that could by any possibility be made upon
him.

This national note would possess two qualities that
would be of the greatest importance in a circulating
medium. First, it could not by any possibility be
issued in excess. The amount would be strictly limited
to the taxation that was to be collected from the
people. There would, therefore, be a demand for every
single note that was issued, which would require to
be paid in within the year or a certain specified
period ; and, secondly, the mischievous practice of
hoarding, which so materially aggravates the pressure
during
a time of emergency, wouli in a great degree,
if not altogether, be removed. There would be no
temptation to secrete paper not possessing intrinsic
value and bearing no interest. On the contrary,
r every holder would have a stake in the country, and
would by every meansin his power be in-
clined to support and maintain the public
credit at the highest point, Which would thus be
sustained on the broad foundation which bas proved
so exceedingly beneficial in the Scottish system of
banking.
This species of note is no new or untried experi-
ment. We have it already in existence to a certain
extent. Yes, the postage stamps in daily use are no-
thing but notes for a penny or upwards, as the case
may be, payable in one species of taxation only,
and by their means the Post-office revenue
is chiefly collected. The stamp is intrinsi-
cally without value, but as it will bear
a letter from one end of the kingdom to the other, it
is freely accepted for any small payment; and, as
Mr. DUNCAN pertinently inquires, " if we can raise
2,000,000/. a year fiscally, through these intrinsi-
cally valueless stamps, why could we not raise
4,000,0001., and if four why not forty ?" The
Learned Gentleman added—" It was clear that the
principle of symbolic money was proved experimen-
tally by these stamps, and this was nothing more
than one of the forms or modes through which such
money might be used beneficially, without the intro-
duction of bullionism."

AN ESCAPE TOE TUB RHlNE.—General Baron
Hayaau Rai 1101 ducked at Cologne.—Punch.

THE FRENCH REPUBLIC.

We have received the Paris journals of yesterday.
It is a curious fact, that the official Moniteur is the
first of the journals which has violated the new press-
law, requiring-journalists to attach their signatures to
the articles they write ; and that too while warning
other journals against committing an infraction of
the law. We find on this matter the following pithy
remarks from the pen of M. LEOPOLD DURAS in the
National :

"The Moniteur in this note, which is intended pre-
cisely to point out to the journals some of the dangers to
which certain forms of signature expose them, is the first
to violate the text and spirit of the law of which it gives
us the interpretation. - The note, in fact, is not signed.
The word communique' cannot supply the name of the
author as required by Art. 3. It is, therefore, the Mo-
niteur itself which violates the law at the moment when
it is recommending its execution; it is taken in fiagrante
delicto of contravention. We require no other proof of
the insurmountable difficulties which attend the applica-
tion of the law of July 23." .

The most important of the revelations yet made,
in consequence of this signing system, is that
M. DB CORMENIN, the far-famed Timon, is a contri-
butor to a provincial journal. The Journal du Loiret
publishes an article signed by that gentleman, in
which he strongly urges all the friends of order and
society to remain firm to the'existing Constitution,
and to permit no alteration in it, inasmuch as it is
impossible to substitute for it any arrangement which
would not have more enemies than the present. The
Journal des Debats has at length published a political
article, it is signed Louis ALLOURY, and is on the
subject of the recommendations of the Councils• Ge-
neral of Departments. It is a very lengthy affair,
extending over nearly four columns ; M. Louis AL-
LOURY, however, is not nearly so long-winded as M.
BoinAir, who signs himself Redactur en chef
of the Constitutionnel, and who spreads a dull and
wearisome article over five mortal columns.

The Journal des Debats publishes
,the circular of
General ST. PRIEST, which we gave yesterday, and
prefaces it by the following observations :
" One of the persons named in the Wiesbaden cir-
cular, General de St. Priest, has addressed a letter to the
Union, which we copy. If the language of the circular
was unfortunately too clea, that of M. de St. Priest is
not clear enough. It is assuredly very far from consti-
tuting a disavowal, while it does not amount to an ap-
probation. M. do St. Priest wishes to avoid irritating
mitten It is an example which we mean to follow.
We have not courted disputation: we have simply con-
fit.ed ourselves to an expression of the painful and dis-
couraging sentiment with which we were inspired by an
act which others have not hesitated to designate as de-
plorable, disastrous, and insensate."
The National has the following on the disavowal
of the supposed Presidential manifesto by the journals
of the Elysee :
"An article has appeared in the journals, intituled
Ce que vent le President,' and it positively states that
the President wishes for an immediate revision, that is
to say, a violation of the Constitution. The Constitu-
tionnel says that it is authorised to declare that the cor-
respondence from whence the article in question ema-
nated receives no official communication. We must be
allowed to mistrust a little this authorisation of which
this Constitutionnel boasts. It is scarcely two months
since M. Baroche had our journal seized for having put
faith in the authenticity of the confidential articles of
the Cosstitutionnel; but, admitting what it says, it is un-
derstood that the Bulletin de Paris has no official cha-
racter, it has founded its article on information, on ideas,
and on reasonings which are its own. The intentions
which are attributed to the President of the Republic
are nothing but a calumny. M. Bonaparte has sworn to
respect the Constitution, and he must be very indignant
at the projects attributed to him by men who call them-
selves his friends. It suits him not to contradict them;
he thinks it useless to declare that the article Ce que
veut le President' is false in every point ; he considers
that silence is the best reply to such inventions. The
President is the best judge of what his honour requires;
we have nothing to say to what concerns him personally,
but unfortunately the article has made some noise.
There are people who are always ready to make use of
a calumny with a view to agitation ; there are people
who do not understand that the first magistrate of the
Republic resigns himself loyally to descend at the fixed
day from his elevated position; the article has been
hawked about and commented on ; uneasiness has been
caused, mistrust has been raised, and the public mind
alarmed. What ! the Prefect of Police every day sends
to the journals long rectifications on very secondary facts
which scarcely occupy public attention, and when the
President is calumniated, when the quiet of the whole
country is disturbed bis pen remains inactive!"
We have to record another name among those of
the writers in the National, that of M. ALEXANDRE
REY, who, in an article on the Wiesbaden circular,
demands of the Legitimatists—" Do you approve of
all the principles laid down in that circular ? Aye or
no ?''

The Legitimatist leaders, finding that the greater
number of their supporters are inclined to join M. DE
LAROCHEJAQUELIN in his secession, have sent off to
Froshdorff to endeavour to obtain from the Count DE
CHAMBORD some modification of the Da BARTHELEMY
circular.

It is rumoured that in consequence of the determi-
nation of the PRESIDENT to hold several more reviews,
to be followed by champagne suppers to the non-
commissioned officers, the Parliamentary Commission
will, at its next sitting, convoke the Assembly.
The Society of the 10th December made no at-
tempt at a demonstration, either at the review at
Versailles or on the PRESIDENT'S return.

The Governor•Gsneral of Algeria announced, on
the 15th instant, that cholera had again broken out
in Algeria.
The Socialist journal Le Peuple has been sup-
pressed by the sentence of the Correctional Court of
the Seine, and the director condemned to a fine of
3,000 f., for having made a false and fraudulent decla-
ration on the subject of the caution money.
Two more regiments marched on Wednesday even-
ing from St. Cloud to Versailles, for the purpose of
joining the camp at the latter place. The whole of
the regiments of the garrison of Paris will in turn
form part of the camp, and be reviewed by the PRE-
SIDENT of the Republic.
PARIS BOURSE, SEPT. 26 —Latest Prices—
Five per Cents., 92f. 80c.; Three per Cents.,
57f. 60c. ; Bank of France, 2,270 f.

BUSINESS DONE IN FOREIGN RAILWAYS AT THE
LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE, SEPT. 26.
Boulogne and Amiens, 7:-Yi ex div.—Dutch Rhenish, 3
—Namur and Liege, 7 Northern of France, 141,1—Or-
leans and Bourdeaux, 2541—Rouen and Havre, 9%—West
Flanders, 1%.