The Sun.
London, England, 1844-06-29 00:00:00

MARKET INTELLIGENCE.

(From the London New Price Current of June 28.)
BloLAssEs.—This afternoon there was little business done
in West India, and at public sale 110 puns of Trinidad Mo-
lasses were all taken at 25s per cwt for good quality.
Cocos.—West India at former rates ; Trinidad were
bought in at 42a per cwt for middling red. Foreign cannot
be quoted lower.
SPICES.—With Cassia Lignea the market has been better
supplied this week. This afternoon 1,106 bags of Sumatra
Pepper were offered at public sale ; sound, all taken in rather
above the value, common quality at 2/d ; sea damaged, first
class at 2/c1 to 2ad, second and third class 2/d to 2/d per lb.
40 cases bold Malabar Ginger went at 89s to 91s for good
bold, being very full rates.
RICE.—The operations in Bengal have been upon a large
scale this week ; good white fetched 12s to 12s 6d, good mid-
dling lls to lls 6d, low middling yellowish white lOs 6d to
its, small broken white lOs to lOs 6d, and sea damaged
8s 6d to lls 6d per cwt. Madras has been in better demand.
Ordinary bold yellow Madagascar sold at 8s to Es fid, low
white 8s 6d to 9s, and sea damaged 6s to 8s 6d per cwt. Java
upon former terms. Cleaned Rice at 13s to 16s for Patna,
and 21s to 26s per cwt for Carolina.
Rum, BRANDT, AND HOLLANDS.—Jamaica Rum at very
full rates ; good and fine qualities are most in request, fair
quality 33 to 36 per cent 0 P at 3s 6d to 3s 9d, good 32 to 35
0 P 4s to 4s 6d, and fine 32 to 36 0 P 4s 9d to 5s per gallon.
Leewards sold at 2s 2d to 2s 2/d proof strength, and good
brown do 2s 3d per gallon. Demerara 3s to 3s 4d for good
and: fine descriptions. Calcutta at Is ltd to is 11/d proof,
with certificate ; the chief holders will not sell under 2s per
gallon. Brandy is attracting but little attention, the
prices being low ; we quote Cognac, best brands of
the vintage of Isas, hhds 5s sd, puns 5s 3d ; ditto 1839, hhds
5s 3d, puns 5s ld ; ditto 1840, hhds 5s 2d, puns 5s ; ditto
1841, hhds 5s ld, puns 4s Ild ; ditto 1842, hhds 4s 10d,
puns 4s 8d ; mid to good mid of other brands 3s to 4s 6d, and
low 2s 8d to 2s lld per gallon. Geneva for exportation at
Is 9d to is 10d; and fine, fit for duty, is fetching 3s to 3s 4d
per gallon.
_

SAGO upon rather lower terms ; fine small white Pearl
taken in at 20s to 23s per cwt. Sago Flour is in demand
privately at 19s to 20s ; lOs 6d to 15s for sea damaged, and
6s 6d per cwt for ditto and repacked. Bermuda Arrowroot at
lld to is ld ; St. Vincent's 50 to 103 d ; Jamaica 8d to 10d;
other sorts West India ls to I s 2id ; East India 2id to 3d ;
South Sea 2id ; East India Tamarinds very low, 15s to 17s
per cwt.
IsniGo.—Prices lower for East India. For Spanish there
are still few purchasers, but holders are not pressing sales.
OlLS.—Southern Oil fine quality at 321t0 33/, good 30/ 13s
to 311155, and middling dark 301 to 3015 s per tun. Seal Oil,
pale at. fiat to W lOs. anti some merchants will not sell under
361 per tun. Cod at 331 lOs to 34/ per tun. Sperm at
801 to 83/ 10s. Linseed Oil at 25s 6d to 25s 9d
per cwt on the spot. Rape Oil 38s to 38s 6d for pale, and
37s to 37s 6d per cwt t'or brown. In Cocoa Nut Oil little has
been done. Palm fine is fetching 28s to 28s 6d per cwt.
Olive is not much wanted. Gallipoli at 481 to 491; Spanish
47/ to 47/ lOs ; and Barbary 46/ per tun. This afternoon,
Ceylon Cocoa Nut taken in at 30s ; Southern sold at 30/ lOs
to 33/ lOs; Sea Elephant Oil, in bond for exportation, 2615 s
to 271.

TAuow.—For Russian Tallow on the spot prices are still
on the advance; P Y Candle at 41s 3d to 41s 6d per cwt; for
delivery in the last three months of the year at 42s 6d to
42s 9d. Town Tallow at 40s 6d to 41s per cwt, nett cash.
This afternoon New South Wales Tallow sold at 34s 6d to
11s 9d, Cape 44s to 455, Odessa 40s to 40s 6d, south American
34s to 41s per cwt.

THE S If Loxpoitt SATItitPAY EVEPTINGs,

letters had been opened, or whether this one gentleman
had been injured. That gentleman complained that his
letters had been continually opened for four consecutive
months. That was the question on which he (the Earl
of Radnor) grounded his motion for a Committee of
Inquiry, as to whether this gentleman had been griev-
ously injured or not. His Noble and Learned Friend
said that if the Secretary of State for the Home Depart-
ment was informed by one foreign Minister abroad that
a certain foreigner living in this country was a danger-
ous person, that person ought to be watched. He (the
Earl of Radnor) said that a man ought only to be watched
when he was supposed to be plotting against the realm
of England. They were not to play the part of spies to
foreign Governments. What excited his surprise was
that although this proceeding with respect to this gen-
tleman had been going on for four months, and
been the subject of debate twice in that House,
and three times in the House of Commons, yet all
the six Cabinet Ministers on the other side of the House
haj not thought it their duty to inquire from the Secre-
tary or State of the Home Department—their colleague
—into the circumstances. That was what he must say
was most ex traorainary. He should endeavour—feeble
an advocate as he knew himself to be—to see justice
done in the case, and for this purpose he now begged
leave to give notice that on Thursday next he should
move for a Select Committee to inquire into the subject.
The Duke of WELLINGTON said, after the notice
thus given, when the motion of the Noble Lord came
on, it would of course be regularly debated. At that
moment he would only say if the Right Hon. Secretary
for the Home Department had issued a warrant with re-
spect to the letters of any person, he was authorised to
say it had been done in the form usual in the office; and
that the Right Hon. Gentleman had done no more than
every Secretary of State had done since the days of
Queen Anne.—(Ministerial cheers.)
Lord KINNAIRD wished to ask the Noble Duke
(Wellington) if there was any secret board at the Post-
office, to whom such letters, when ordered to be opened,
were assigned?
The Duke of WELLINGTON said the Noble Lord
could not suppose he had any knowledge upon the sub-
ject; but if the Noble Lord would give notice of a ques-
tion on the subject, he (the Duke of Wellington) would
endeavour to get such information as would enable him
to answer it.

The subject was then dropped.
PUBLIC GRANARIES—CORN.

The Earl of WINCHILSEA said he wished to oc-
cupy their Lordships' time for a very few minutes, in
pointing out to them the expediency and sound policy of
establishing public granaries of corn in various districts
of the country, under the control of the Government. It
was well known to their Lordships that, at a certain
period of the year, when the great bulk of the corn
grown was out of the hands of the farmers, that the
market became under the control of a small number of
men, and that these men could, and did, effect a great
and serious rise in the article of wheat, by which they
not only gathered a great individual profit on the home-
grown wheat in their possession, but realised also a fur-
ther larger profit by the import of great quantities of
foreign corn. Now, in his (Lord Winchilsea's) opinion,
if any measure could be arranged by which a fair quan-
tity of corn could always be ready at a fair price
for the poor man, they would be conferring on the
country a great public benefit. He had often contem-
plated, with feelings of intense anxiety, what the state
of things would be in this country if there should be a
failure in the harvest. And what man could say there
would not be a bad harvest—nay, no harvest at all, for
the produce of the land was in the hands of the Lord?
And then, if they looked abroad, and found the same
state of things to exist there as in this coun-
try, the consequences might be such as it was, indeed,
awful to contemplate. The plan, then, he had to
suggest was that a number of national public granaries
say five or six—should be established, each to contain
from 300,000 to 500,000 quarters, and that they should
be situated in the most appropriate parts, such as Man-
chester, Hull, Liverpool, Bristol, or, in such parts as
might, by competetent judges, be deemed most advisable.
As to the agriculturists, he should say to them, so long
as you can supply the market at say 555. the quarter,
we will not interfere with you ; but, the moment wheat
rose above that price, he proposed that Parliament
should have the power to open the granaries, and so
keep down the price to the sum agreed upon. For the
purpose of supplying these granaries, he would allow to
Parliament the power of buying corn abroad at the
lowest price they could get it at. When he looked at
the state of the manufacturing districts, and the vast
increase of population, he was of opinion there should be
an ample supply of food, at a fair and fixed rate, always
at their command. He had exactly the same solicitude
for the agricultural population, who equally merited the
consideration of their Lordships. The great body of
agriculturists never obtained the advantage of high
prices. The price of corn was generally at the highest
between the month of March and the commencement of
harvest, at which time the corn was generally in the
hands of speculators. Such a measure as he proposed
would be of great benefit to the agricultural labourers,
for the rate of wages was regulated by the price of corn.
He said this, speaking from experience as a practical agri-
culturist. This measure would at all events secure one
great benefit to the agricultural interest, namely, fixity
of price.—(Cheers.) It would also, in a great degree,
put an end to the agitation on the subject of the corn-
laws, which was at present producing such an injurious
effect to the country, and during the course of which
the gentry and aristocracy of England were held up to
the hatred of the people as sordid persons, wishing to
enrich themselves at the expense of the community.
Ire had brought forward this question from no party
feelings, and there were many persons, for whose opinion
lie entertained the highest respect, who approved of his
views on the subject, and he trusted that he should some
day have the happiness of seeing this plan tried.
Lord MONTEAGLE thought the speech of the
Noble Lord a most important one, and if his high cha-
racter were not sufficient to acquit him of the charge of
being actuated by party spirit in bringing forward this
proposition, the calm and logical tone of his speech
would at once negative such a supposition. It was quite
true that the corn trade was in few hands. Some of
those in whose hands it was were great capitalists some-
times, but there were others who were mere speculators
trading upon the capital of others. It was true also that
the increase of price benefited the speculator and not
the agriculturist; but, why was this? The trade was
open to any man—there was no license required to em-
bark in it. Why, therefore, was the trade in few hands?
Because by their artificial laws, they made the trade in
corn so gambling that no man of prudence would em-
bark in it.—(Hear, hear.) By the law the speculator
had every inducement to withhold his wheat from the
market at the time prices were rising, when it was most
wanted—he had the double motive of profiting by a
rise in price and a fall in duty—and when the price
was raised so high that the duty fell to
a shilling, then the market was at once glutted,
and such would ever be the case under the sliding scale.
—(Hear, hear.) He now came to the remedy which the
Noble Earl proposed for these evils, and there was cer-
tainly no inconsistency in his proposition, and much
might be said in favour of some remedy as long as they
continued the sliding scale. If they had adhered tJ an
unnatural system, they must apply an unnatural remedy
to the evils arising out of it.—(Hear, hear.) But al-
though the Noble Earl might be logically right, yet he
thought that practically he was wrong. The scheme was
no novelty, and he would quote the opinion of Mr.
Burke on the subject, from his tract en scarcity, which
lie bad written at the desire of Mr. Pitt. Mr. Burke
said that he feared some such measure had been proposed
as the establishment of public granaries. If such a
scheme were adopted, he should not like to answer for
the safety of the granary, or of its agents, or ofthe town
in which it was situated, in the first storm of popular
phrenzy which fell on it. The construction of those
granaries would be attended by an expense beyond cal-
culation, the purchase of grain would be enormous, and
the loss by waste and corruption of the grain would be
incalculable. He thought the arguments of the Noble
Earl were some of the strongest arguments he had ever
heard against the sliding scale.
The Duke of RICHMOND, in opposing the views
taken by the Noble Earl with respect to the establish-
ment of public granaries, said that it was not the sliding
scale which caused fluctuations in price. It was the
weather which caused fluctuations. The best way to pre-
vent a scarcity in this country was to keep a majority,
such as that which had occurred in another place the
other night, against a repeal of the corn-laws.—(Laughter.:
The Earl of WINCHILSEA replied, and the subjec
dropped.