The Sun.
London, England, 1868-03-25 00:00:00

IRISH REFORM BILL.

Colonel FRENCH gave notice that in committee on this
bill he should move the reduction of the qualification from
£l2 to £3.

UNIVERSITY TEST BILL.

Mr. BOUVERIE gave notice that he intended to post-
pone the proceeding with this bill until the 13th of May.

TEE BOUNDARY 00111SIISSION.

Mr. Sergeant GASELEE asked the First Lord of the
Treasury what instructions were given to the Assistant
Boundary Commissioners for the borough of Portsmouth,
and whether he had any objection to lay them upon the
bible of the house, and also their report to the Boundary
Commissioner; recommending for Parliamentary elec-

tions the annexation of the town of Gosport to the borough
of Portsmouth, contrary to tho wishes of both.
Mr. DItiIiAELL 1;44 with respect to the roport of the

instruction given to the assistant boundary commissioners
it was unnecessary to produce them as they were already
on the table With respect to the reports of the assistant
bbundary commissioners, these dicurnents were of a con-
fidential character, and therefore they could on no account
be produced.

THE LICENCING SYSTEM.
Mr. MARSH celled the attoatiou of the house to the
subject of those licences which restrict the trade and com-
merce of the country, with a view to their abolition,
and, in case of a finauciel necessity, a transfer of the
charges to make or sell any article to a direct tax ou the
article itself; and moved, That, in the opinion of the house,
it was desirable that all licences injuriously affecting the in-
dustry and commerce of the country should be ab dished.
The hon. gentleman said there were no less than 121 dif-
ferent licences, but he did not intend to touc'i upon then
all, but these to which he wished to draw particular notice
were those that were very smell in amount, yet vary irk-
some to trade. The first was a licence to make soap; it
wasa very foolish tax, and ought at once to be repealed.
There was a tax for carrying on the business of vinegar
makers: there ought to be no such trade as a vinegar
maker, because vinegar made itself —it was merely wine
which had become sonp•. Then there was the licensing
for carrying on the tra le of paper making, selling tea
and coffee, but as no tax was placed on the draper,
he thought the tea dealer had good reason to complain.
Tobacco also was taxed and so was the trade in wine, but
the quality of wine sold in retail over the counter was
generally very inferior, a-id he MIS till it could be got
for about 16s. a dozen. Now, he thought the license to
sell wine of that quality ought to be abolished, so that it
might be sold as free as small beer. There was a license
required to deal in sweets, to sell gold or silver, to carry
on the trade of a pawnbroker, but as the latter were liable
to take in stolen goods he thought they ought to be regis-
tered, so that they ought to become known to the police.
There was the tax on malt and beer, but the
tax on the former was, in fact, an additional
tax on the latter. Not content with this, there was
also a tax upon the retailers of beer, so that the dealer in
this necessary article was compelled to sell the arTirde
to the consumer at a higher price than it was worth,
in order to enable trim, the retailer, to pay the
heavy taxes imposed on him. The hon. gentleman
then wont on to refer to the taxes levied on private
brewers, makers of spirits, chemists using stills, hackney
carriages and cabs ; the drivers of the latter he con-
sidered a very illused body of mon. The taxation
of the hackney carriages produced about £20,000,
and an additional 3 per cent. on the assessed duty
would enable tho whole of the irksome licenses to
be abolished. There was a license enforced upon
auctioneers of £lO per annum, and why a man should
have to pay for the permission to carry on such
a trade as that was quite beyond his comprehension. He
thought if the licences were abolished in most of the trades
he had mentioned, the loss would be more than replaced
by the increased consumption of the article sold.
Mr. P. URQUHART seconded the motion.
Mr. LABOUCHERE dilated on the grievance of the
London brewers, who only made about 8 per cent. profit,
and on whom Mr. Gladstone had imposed a duty of 15 per
cent. on their trade profits; and Mr. Bass argued that,
while any licence system must be bad unless it were
general, the tax on brewers was positively iniquitous.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, in a short
reply, admitted that Mr. Marsh had made out a good case
against the licence duties in some instances, but pointed
out the difficulty of dealing piecemeal with the question,
and promised to take Mr. Marsh's representations into con-
sideration.
Mr. GLADSTONE agreed that nothing could be more
anomalous than our present system of licences, though any
change would be surrounded with difficulties; and, while
he was in favour of getting as much as possible out of the
spirit trade, both in the shape of indirect taxes and licence
duty, he admitted that the licence duties on the sale of
such articles as tea produced a very insignificant amount
of revenue and interposed great obstacles to trade. He
defended his share in the imposition of the brewers' li-
cences.
After some observations from Mr. Pollard-Urquhart and
Mr. Greene, the motion was withdrawn.
SCIENTIFIC INSTRUCTION.
Mr. SAMUELSON moved for a select committee to in-
quire into the provisions for giving instruction in theo-
retical and applied science to the industrial classes. In
an interesting speech he canvassed the working of the
schools under the science and art department, showing
that the results were unsatisfactory, and that a great im-
provement in scientific education was necessary for the
development of our manufacturing prosperity ; and he
held out a strong hope that it would, at the same time,
promote the literary and general education of the working

classes.
The motion was seconded by Mr. DIxoN and supported
by Mr. BAINES, who held that a strong case for inquiry
had been made cut, but preferred that it blioald be by a
Royal Commission.
Mr. BAZLEY was inclined to trust for our manufac-
turing progress to the inventive genius, enterprise, and
self-education of our manufacturers, rather than to tech-
nical education, and exhorted them to put their own
shoulders to the wheel, instead of appealing to the State
for help. The duty of the State, he insisted, was to give
a good primary education, and with that we need not de-
spair that the English workman would keep pace with the
world. Ile denied that we were retrograding in any
branch of manufactures, and he deprecated the interfer-
ence of the State in the education of the workshop. •
Mr. E. POTTER. took entirely the same view as Mr.
Bazley, and denied that it was the duty of the Govern-
ment to supply a kind of education which the manufac-
turers themselves had done so little to promote; and Mr.
BAGNALL argued that technical education was more needed
for the class of managers and overlookers than for the

working men.
Lord R. MONTAGTJ held it to be proved beyond doubt
that in many branches our manufacturers were being
closely pressed by foreign competition, though this did not
arise so much from the deterioration of our processes as
from the improvement and increase of continental manu-
factures, and the completion of the foreign lines of rail-
ways. He mentioned numerous cases within his own
knowledge in which foreign manufacturers had success-
fully competed with us even in our own markets, and the
cause he held to be that though we had iron, coal, cheap
transit, intAligent, industrious, and tasteful workmen, we
wanted technical education. After an elaborate discussion
of the meaning and objects of technical education, he laid
it down that the duty of the State did not go beyond giv-
ing the workman such knowledge of the natural laws ap-
plicarde to his calling as would enable him to exercise it
with the greatest effect. The State had to (11 with the
brain, the workship must perfect the hands. He traced
the improvements effected in many branches of our ma-
nufactures by the educational movement which was the
result of the Exhibition of 1851, and he argued that the
chief things to be avoided were the establishment of spe-
cial schools and of State manufactures for the encourage-
ment of trade. The recent minute of council for the crea-

tion of industrial schools, he explained, had been very
successful, and he concluded by acceding to the motion
for a committee.
Mr. IL A. BRUCE dwelt on the importance of elemen-
tary education, and
Mr. HENLEY defended the working classes from the
imputations of ignorance recently made against them, the
motive of which, he hinted, was not altogether dis-
interested, inasmuch as he had noticed in the report that
these highly-educated foreign workmen invariably worked
longer hours and for less money. He ridiculed the sug
gestion that a trade could be taught in school ; the work-
shop was the only training school.
The committee was agreed to after some observations
from Mr. PAGET and Mr. ACLAND.
TAXES ON LOCOMOTION.
Mr. Alderman LAWRENCE moved a resolution for
the revision and equalisation of the Post Horses and Car-
riage Licences Duties, by means of a scheme which he ex-
plained in detail, and the broad feature of which was to
substitute for the present duties a tax of £1 on every horse
and £2 on every vehicle.
Mr. AYRTON argued in favour of a total remission.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER pointed out
the impossibility of sacrificing so large au item of revenue,
and, after some remarks from Mr. Alderman Lusk, Mr.
Alderman Lawrence withdrew his motion.

Mr. HARDY brought in the Boundaries Bill, which he
explained was exactly in the shape of the report of th. 3
Parliamentary Commission.
A bill was brought in by Mr. Monk to relieve customs
and excise officers from their present disability to vote at
Parliamentary elections.
The committal of the London Coal and Wine Duties
Continuance Bill was opposed by Mr. Candlish, Mr. Pease,
and Mr. Watkin in the interest of the coal-producing dis-
tricts ; by Ur. Samuds for the shipbuilders ; and the bill
was defended by Lord J. Manners, Mr. Goschen, Colonel
Hogg, and others. On a division the stage was carried
by 147 to 33. A clause prepared by Mr. Ayrton to
exempt all factories within the Metropolitan Police area
was negatived by 146 to 36, and the bill passed through
committee.

Shortly after one o'clock Mr. Gladstone's Church-rate
Abolition Bill came on for a third reading, but Mr. New-
degate and Mr. Henley objected, on account of the late-
ness of the hour. A motion to adjourn the debate was
defeated by 131 to 28, and the bill was then read a third
time and passed, amid considerable cheering.
Tho house adjourned at half-past ono o'clock.

TILE TEA DUTY IS REDUCED. —Horniman's Pure Tea is
sold Bd. per pound Cheaper. This interesting fact will, when
fully known, even further increase the demand for these
Choke, long-approved Teas. They aro not sold loose, but
Only in Packets, signed " Horniman," London.

RATIAT OF CHARITIES.

DEPUTATION TO THE PRIME MINISTER.
A large and influential deputation waited upon Mr.
Disraeli, at his official residence in Downing-street, at
three o'clock yesterday afternoon, on the subject of the
exemption from parochial rating of the various public
charitable institutions throughout the country.
The deputation consisted of the representatives of the prin.
cipal charities in the metropolis, Bristol, Buxton, Brighton,
Chichester, Cambridge, Derby, Gloucester, Hertford,
Liverpool, Leeds, Sheffield, Taunton, Lincoln, Worcester,
Winchester, Southampton, Leicester, Hull, Manchester,
Newcastle, Truro, Stockport, and Wolverhampton.
Amongst the members of Parliament present were
Viscount Curzon, Mr. Baines, !Ir. Beecroft, Mr. Seely,
Mr. Banks Stanhope, Mr. J. W. Malcolm, Mr. J. 0.
Harris, Colonel Packe, Mr. E. Heneage, Mr. Michael
Bass, the Hon. W. Egerton, Major Cornwall Legh, Mr.
C. Gilpin, Professor Fawcett, and Mr. Roebuck.
The deputation was introduced by the Earl of Hag•
rowby.
It was arranged that Mr. Baines should speak on
behalf of the hospitals and infirmaries, the Rev. Mr.
Champneys on ecclesiastical institutions, Mr. Charles
Reed on Sunday schools, Archbishop Manning on Catholic
institutions, and Dr. Johnson and Alderman Salomons cn
behalf of other institutions.
The Earl of HARROWBT remarked that the deputation
represented nearly all the charities in England and Soot-
land. He pointed out how detrimental to those
charities was the present system of rating. In
one case as much as 000 a-year was taken, and
. _ _

in all the usefulness of the institutions was materially and
injuriously affected. What the deputation asked was
a return to the old principle of the law which
by the decision of the Lords in the case of the
Mersey. docks, had been altered. What was needed,
he thought, was the introduction of a bill which would
allow charitable buildings, in accordance with the wish of
ratepayers, to remain unrated.

His Royal Highness the Duke of CAMBRIDGE, as Presi-
dent of Christ's hospital, pointed out that the rating of
that charity would materially work adversely to that
institution. All they asked was to be left as they were.
He fully felt for the case of all institutions both large and
small, and heartily endorsed all that had been
urged in favour of exemption for charities.

Mr. BAINES, M.P., 'referred to the Leeds Infirmary,
which, he said, had not been assessed to the poor rates,
for it was felt that such a course would greatly reduce its use-
fulness. That institution was about to be much enlarged, and
as it existed entirely for the benefit of the poor, there was a
very strong conviction that it would be a great calamity
if the rating principle were applied. Many of the schools
in Leeds, he was informed by the vicar, would have
to be closed if they had to pay rates. He trusted
that the Government would see their way to
pass an Act in accordance with the wish of thet
deputation, which would be the most popular Act they'
could pass, and one that would be hailed with satisfaction
throughout the country.
Mr. HOARE, treasurer of Guy's Hospital, pointed , our;
the immense share of relief afforded to the poor by thet
hospital, and earnestly trusted that this would not be
diminished by the curtailment of its funds in consequence
of the rates that had to be paid.
The Rev. Mr. LINGHAM, rector of Lambeth, having
urged the case of national schools,
Archbishop MANNING stated that the exemption es
charities from rates would not only be an act of kindness,
but also one of political wisdom. Representing as he did
so many unendowed charities, he could say of six of
them that they were called upon to pay £5O a year
each, which proved a great burden. Those who wero
relieved and cared for by these institutions would other.
wise be chargeable to the parish. He thought it would
be possible to frame a bill which provided for proper
examination of the charities claiming exemption--a coarse
which would prevent any injury being done to the
revenue.

The Rev. Dr. Johnson, the Rev. Dr. Sale, of Sheffield,,
the Rev. Dr. Yorke, Alderman Salomons, and AIL Thomas,.
'of Bristol, having supported the prayer of the deputation,
Others desired to speak, but stopped at the request of
.uord Ifarrowby.

Mr. DISRAELI said the subject was deeply interesting to
the Government, and he was sure also to every person ii
the country. He had listened with great interest to the
st-tetnents those around him had made in illustration of
the principles they would enforce ; but he had other dutie4
to perform in an assembly not always so agreeable as this
and in another place, where his presence was greatly lookedt
for. (A laugh.) Before he went. however, he would say
that he thanked those who had attended for drawing the,
attention of the Government to a social question un-
doubtedly of great importance. It was true this was not
the first deputation which had represented the subject to
those who were members of the Government; but it was
not by any neglect of Lord Derby that the question had
not been brought publicly forward, for his lordship brought
it under the notice of his colleagues and took means for its
still further consideration in the autumn. The unhappy
illness of his lordship, however, commenced, and though
it was not out of the memory of the Government, there
had not been a moment since he had been at the heal
of the Government to give to the consideration of the

question. The statements which had been made that dap
should, however, be considered in a spirit adequate to
the occasion and to the importance of that assemblage.
(Cheers.)

The deputation thanked the right hon. gentleman ma
retired.

BAD MEAT IN LONDON MARXETS. —At a meet-
ing of the City Commissioners of Sewers it was stated that
in the preceding fortnight the market inspectors had con-
demned 0,1351 b. of meat as unfit for human food. It con-
sisted of 83 sheep, 12 pigs, 10 calves, 14 quarters of beef,
and 49 joints of meat; 5,4611 b. of it was diseased, 5001 b.
was putrid, and 1741 b. was from animals who had died
from accident or disease, all of which bad been destroyed
in the usual manner.

REDUCTION OF MINERS' WAGES IN CUMBERLAND.
—The wages of the miners employed at Lord Lonsdale's
collieries in and around Whitehaven have been reduced ten
per cent. A deputation from the miners recently waited
upon his lordship's agents, and notified theirwillingness to
be reduced five per cent. The deputation, however, were
informed that the depressed state of the coal trade ren-
dered further reduction absolutely necessary, but were
assured that as soon as the trade revived their wages
would be advanced. The men are now, therefore, work:.
ing under the ten per cent. reduction.—Leeds Evening
Express.

DRUNKENNESS.—The number of persons pro-
ceeded against for drunkenness and disorderly conduct per
each 1,000 of the population in 1866-67 was : At Cambridge,
2'09 ; at Colchester, P 81; at Coventry, 317 ; at Derby,
9'04; at Great Yarmouth, 3.79; at Ipswich, 2.70; at Lin•
coin, 2.91; at Northampton, 2'43 ; at Shrewsbury, 917 ; at
Walsall, 216 ; at Worcester, 7'65 ; at Birmingham, 419;
at Leicester, 4'62 ; at Norwich, 1.25 ; at Nottingham, 213 ;
and at Wolverhampton, 414. Norwich would thus appear
to have been of these sixteen towns the least disgraced ha
1866-67 by outrageous drunkenness, while the most up.
favourable figure„ stand against Shrewsbury.

• -APE
THE idiv FOPTiriOrN
.f.
The Herald, in glancing at-Mrs./DifirtieWsiAreWption 1174
connection with the opening of.
ttac-, otEstiz,
gives the following description of
ejrailding:+t It was We
thousand pities that Lord •Palmersn'Chatred
of Gvtliib,
marred the construction of a work whiei would-hav"
monised so fully with the Abbey and ate midi Pace.
But the sheer force of his genius has made Mr. Scott at
home in the unaccustomed lines of the classic style. The
exterior of the building has a certain not altogether dis-
pleating severity of aspect, but the interior by rich decora-
tion has been made even beautiful. The-long corridor is
. paved with Minton's mosaic tiles, the walls are decorated in
chrome and gold, but the full beauty of the building's pro.
portions does not strike the visitor until he reaches the
grand staircase, which divides to right and left, and
which is a marvel of elegance and richness. Tho
steps, of Portland stone, are flanked on either side
by the richest marbles, -in the most tasteful com-
binations. The bases of the. pedestals and the string
courses are of black marble, the pedestals themselves
of Devonshire marble, the balusters of alabaster,
and the handrails of dove marble. The panelling of
the staircase is in marbles of various colours, and
the great pillars supporting the upper corridor are of rich
polished Peterhead granite. A fine arc :ding at the top of
the staircase is supported by columns of Devonshire
marble, and an entablature in gold and chrome sets off not
a little the beauties of the whole conception. The roof,
which is wa,ggon-shaped, and filled with panels of gold and
colours, will be relieved by a dome in the centre ; but this
portion of the work is as yet hardly finished. The panels of
the walls are highly decorated in green and gold, while the
ceiling also is relieved withgold. Turning to the left, the com-
pany will reach the grand reception-rooms in the north-west
angle of the building, one of which will afterwards be the
Secretary of State's audience-room. These rooms are well
proportioned and highly ornamented, but there is a rich
softness, as well as a vast variety, about the decoration;
which prevents the possibility of adequate description.
Five rooms in the western corridor are reserved for recep-
tion
and sniper rooms, and five other rooms on the north
side—at the top of the staircase—will be used as reception
and refreshment rooms. The west corridor is very elabo- •
rate in its decorations, the prevailing colours being claret-
brown, pink, and gold on the walls, and light blue, picked
out with gold, in the groining of the roof. Everywhere
rich carpets are spread ; and in every available comer
great banks of flowers are piled." -