The Sun.
London, England, 1844-12-12 00:00:00

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LONDON, TIIIIRSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1844.

The LEAGUE, whose death the monopolist journals
had announced with great joy and exultation, re-
appeared, in more than its pristine vigour, at Covent-
garden Theatre last evening. COBDEN, and WILSON,
and VILLIERS, and BRIGHT, are all alive, and, as the
farmers' friends will find to their cost, kicking too.
There is no appearance of mortality about them, or
the army that supports them. Tile house was crowded
to excess—not with females who, at Exeter Hall and
soma other places, are mustered to make a show—
but with men evidently intent on a purpose, intent to
destroy every incubus on trade, and deprive the land-
owners of a tax raised on the rest of the community,
which, as regards its oppression, and especially
the mode of levying it; has nothing like it in the Sta-
tute-book. It stands alone. To no other tax but
the landlords' tax is the sliding-scale applied. When
our misguided Contemporaries pronounced the League
defunct, they mistook silence for death, and seemed
more ignorant than our Gallic neighbours, who could
always judge of the terrible onset which was to follow
the death-like silence of the brave !

If the enemies of the corn-laws have been quiet,
they have not been idle. They have been arranging
plans for a new campaign, collecting statistical
details of registrations and elections which will
make an impression in higher quarters than Stowe
or Goodwood, and realise in right earnest the
memorable saying of Sir R. PHaL, that the battle of
the Constitution is to be fought in the registration
.courts. On this subject the speech of Mr. WILSON
is replete with important facts—facts as cheering for
the present, as pregnant with promise for the future.
Already ninety-eight boroughs, out of one hundred
and eight, have been shaken to their foundations, and
the Monopolists are quaking in the terrors of corrup-
tion ; and should a general election take place to-
morrow, thirty-two seats which now support the
corn-laws would be changed into free traders, making
a difference of sixty four votes ! This is a fair be-
ginning, and time and perseverance will work the rest.
As with the boroughs, so will it be with the coun-
ties—the strongholds of the landlords. 'What the
CHANDOS clause has done to fortify the aristocracy in
their domination over the connties, the forty-shilling
freehold will speedily neutralise, and eventually
destroy. The Monopolists have presumed so long on
the patience of the people, that they fancied they
might go on for ever. But the exertions of the
League will soon convince them of their error. As
Mr. Vimassts truly observed, they will find that the
"enormous wrong" of the corn-laws has at length
roused the country not only to think, but to
act too. Endurance has had its limit, and
now oppression must give place to justice.
The voice of reason has gone forth, and
finds a ready echo in every unprejudiced mind.
i i This s the true secret of the success of the League ;
and it is their conviction of that truth which makes
the Moaepolists tremble.
We will not discuss the merits of the several
speeches here—to be fully appreciated,must be
read. We never heard more soul-stir' they
soul-stirring
and the vast assemblage seemed to fge:lenciet's
force by their mute attention for the naomeut—and

their simultaneous bursts of hearty enthusiasm when
the chord of feeling wave touched. It was altogether
a scene to be witnessed—not described. Sir ROBERT
PEEL will do wisely to take heed in time. Such
meetings as that of last evening must eventually
carry the purpose for which they assemble—
that purpose being, not for the advantage of a class,
but for the general good. How much better, then,
would it be for him to yield, while conces-
sion were grace, rather than be com-
pelled to grant that emancipation to commerce
which he formerly did to conscience I The very
tendency of his acts points to free trade—why then
does he hesitate—when a prompt avowal would so
much redound to his own fame, and conduce to the
permanent prosperity of the country ?

A meeting of the Association for Promoting the
Health of Towns was held yesterday in Exeter Hall.
At this meeting men of all parties were present,
Whigs, Tories, and Radicals ; and Sir R. INGLIS and
Mr. SIIEIL, though wide as the poles asunder on
most public questions, yet vied with each other in
the heartiness with which they supported the impor-
tant objects which the Association has at heart. But
indeed there was not an individual present who did
not speak as if his heart were in the cause which he
was advocating ; and we do hope and believe that this
Exeter Hall meeting—far different in its tone from
the falsely-styled religious ones so often held
there prove the commencement of a spirited
and comprehensive practical movement for improving
the condition of the humbler classes of society, that
will at no remote period effect quite a revolutionary
change in the thoughts, habits, and feelings of the
classes in question. At present there is no gainsay-
ing the fact that vast masses of them are in the very
lowest state of physical and moral degradation, and
this abject state has for the last ten years and upwards
been slowly and surely on the increase. While the
commercial resources of the country have been more
and more developed, and the comforts and luxuries of
the upper and middle orders have been multiplied in
proportion, no improvement has reached the lower
classes, who have been left to carry on, from day
to day, the painful and difficult struggle for
the bare necessaries of existence, with scarcely
any aid from those who should have been their friends
and guardians, and have devoted a portion of their
own superfluous means to better their condition. The
last returns of the Income-tax show a prodigious in-
crease in the pecuniary resources of the middle classes,
but the published reports of the destitute state of the
poor too plainly demonstrate that they have in no re-
spect been bettered thereby. Even the crumbs that
fall from Ditv.es' table have not yet fallen to the
share of LAZARUS, But, thank Heaven, society
seems at length to be roused to a full consciousness
of the evils with which it is beset. A kindlier
and more generous tone of feeling than has
ever yet been exhibited towards the poor is
now springing up in the hearts of their superiors
in station ; and the latter will benefit not less than
the former by this improved state of feeling. The
allotment system—the proposals for public walks and
parks, and public bathing-houses, together with many
other projected remedial measures that do not just
now occur to us—all these are signs and tokens un-
equivocally that an excellent spirit is at work in the
right direction. But, though individuals may do
much, when formed into institutions and associations,
towards ameliorating the condition of the destitute
poor, yet the evil cannot be fully remedied with-
out the powerful aid of the Legislature. Govern-
ment must come promptly forward and testify
by its acts that the humble operative and labourer
are as much the objects of its friendly and provident
consideration as the wealthy manufacturer or the
aristocratic landowner. One of its first efforts should
be directed to furnishingthe poor with the means of
obtaining a cheap, rational, practical education, such
as may in some degree—as education always does

compensate them for the want of fortune and con-
nexion, and enable them, by conduct and industry,
to elevate themselves in the social scale. This will

be at once laying the axe to the root of the evil, for
nearly one-half the sufferings which the labouring
poor experience—their uniform poverty, their pe-
riodically recurring seasons of absolute destitu-
tion, their dirt, their immorality, and the
want of self-respect that too often marks their
character ; all these evils may be traced to
their eiceeding ignorance, which prevails among
them to an extent that no one would believe who had
not read the recently published Parliamentary Re-
ports on the subject. From the speeches lately made
by Lord WitaaxcurrE at Leeds and elsewhere, we
infer that Government will take an early opportunity,
next session, of turning its attention to this important

question of national education, which can no longer be
postponed with safety to the interests of the community.

Madrid journals of the 4th instant, announce that

the discussion on the Reform Bill had closed, and the
Bill passed by a majority of 124 to 46. The follow-
ing are the other Bills to be introduced during the
present session :—A Bill for the maintenance of the
clergy and public worship. Another respecting the
support of nuns. A third respecting church property,
which proposes that all which formerly belonged to
the Church, and which remains unsold, shall be re-
stored to the Church. The salesialready made are
not to be disturbed. A fourth Bill is for the con-
version of the Floating debt, contracts,[4scc., into Three
per Cent stock.

Nothing certain was known respecting the retreat
of ZURBANO. He was said, according to some reports,
to be within a few leagues of the Portuguese frontier,
and, according to others, concealed in Madrid. A
letter from Herce, of the 28th ult., gives the follow-
ing particulars of the return of his wife and daughter-
in-law, from their fruitless visit to Madrid :
" Yesterday, at seven in the evening, the wife of Zur-
bano and the wife of her son Benito entered the olive-
grove near Armedillo. They were accompanied by a
priest. The wife of Zurbano was on foot, and her
daughter-in-law, who is in the last month of her preg-
nancy, was on an ass. During the preceding two nights,
which bad been dreadfully cold, these poor women
crossed the mountains. The Alcalde of Armedillo, being
informed that the ladies desired to speak to him, went
immediately to the grove, and being informed by them
that they were anxious to proceed as rapidly as possible
to Logrono, he hastened to place at their disposal two of
the best mules of the town, and at the same time pro-
vided them with everything necessary. He also sent
some of the inhabitants armed to protect them. At the
little village of St. Vincent they were no longer able to
bear up against the cold, and took shelter in a house,
where a good fire was made for them, and refreshments
were provided, but they were in such a state of ex-
haustion that they could not partake of them. On the
following day they arrived at Logrono. The wife of
I)on Benito had heard that her husband was taken near
the inn of Tamarices, and that he was to be shot at Lo-
grono. It appears that Don Benito had been three days
without food, and that in venturing forth to obtain some
he was captured."

MADRID BOURSE, DEC. 4.—Three per: Cents., for
cash, 31 ; for account, 31i. Five per Cents., fur
account, 21k.

The new loan forms almost the only topic of dis-
cussion in the Paris papers ; and it is curious to see
the different views taken of the subject by the Minis-
terial and Opposition journals. The former express
the utmost surprise and delight at the high price
given by the ROTHSCHILD!' ; while the latter say there
is nothing surprising in the matter, and the price is
much below what might have been expected. There

may be some truth in the remark, but the writers
in these journals can claim no merit for this
marked rise in the credit of the country.
They have been eternally stirring up the
French people against " perfidious Albion," and had
their purposes been carried into effect, or France
placed in the situation she was when M. Taunts was
Minister, we doubt much if the Three per Cents.
would have stood even at 65f., or about 20f. lower
than they are at present. Such has been the effect
of the rational policy of the Kix°, and his Minister.
The .Messager consequently may be allowed thus to
boast of the result :—" This is a new proof of the
confidence inspired by the KING'S Government. It
is shown, we think, not merely in the price at which
the adjudication was made, but also in the offer of the
other company which tendered, and which is alike
composed of honourable men, whose experience and
caution are well known. This is certainly a double
proof of general confidence, and the progress of pub-
lic credit. The adjudication of the loan, under ,such
conditions, is an important fact in the administration
of M. LAPLAGNE, and the country which has
long acknowledged his experience and prudent
skill, will preserve the remembrance of it."
‘ "To form a clearer idea," says the Journal des Debats,
‘,
of the advantage resulting to the State from this

negotiation, its rate must be compared with that of
the loan of 150 millions issued in 1841. That was
effected at 78f. 5211 c., and there was besides almost
the whole gain of a coupon of six months' interest,
or lf. 50c. It is therefore 77f. that ought to be placed
in comparison with 84f. 86c. But thikhigh quotation
of French stock in no way surprises us. It is not
alone on account of the prudence of the French Go-
vernment, and the excellent policy of order and peace
to which it adheres more and more firmly, that it is
to be attributed. French stock has not been, up to
the present time, at its natural level. The difference
of ISt, which existed even some days back, between
the prices of French and English stock, is not justified.
When the English Threes are above par, the French
Threes cannot remain about 80.

The following extract from the Commerce will
afford a fair specimen of the dissatisfaction expressed
at the result by the Opposition press :
___

" We have been told that the Minister of Finances
was quite elated when he proclaimed the price at which
the loan was taken. He reminded the company present
that the 150,000,000 f. last issued was only at 76f. 75c.,
while the 200,000,000 f. then called for had found takers
at the real price of 82f. 45c., a profit to the public of
sf. 70c., of which the present Government claimed the
honour. It would have been quite enough to impose
silence on the Ministerial vanity to have called to his
recollection, that previous to 1840 the Three per Cents.
of France were at 86, while the same stock of England
was at 92 ; and that yesterday the French Stock was
under 84, while in England the Three per Cents. had
reached par, without the dividend. What could our
statesman have answered to this comparison, which
shows a difference in the prices of the French and Eng-
lish Funds to have been formerly 6f. per cent., and at
the present day 141, At all events, the duration of the
Minister's satisfaction can have been only very transi-
tory, and be must have felt some shame on seeing the
new loan immediately up at nearly three francs higher
than he had obtained."

According to the New Zurich Gazette of the 7th,
great excitement prevailed among the rural popula-
tion of Basle against the Jesuits, and that the people
have held a meeting, at which they resolved to march
to Lucerne if the admisston of the Jesuits should be
finally decided on. The authorities of Berne have
marched a considerable force towards the frontier, as
a measure of precaution, in consequence of the excite-
ment at Lucerne.

The French Three per Cents. closed on Tuesday at
85f. 15c. for cash, and 85f. 40c. for account. The
new loan was quoted at 86f. 90c.

THE BOURSE—Tuzsatz, Dzc. 10.

First Highest Lowest Last

Price. Price. Price. Price.
French FivsperCenta.. •• 121 3.5 121 51 .. 121 30 121 80
Four-and-a-Half.. 113 25 .. 113 25 .. 113 25 .. 113 28
Three per Cents 85 40 .• Si 40 .. $5 .. 85 15
New Loan •••••••• 56 75 .. 56 80 .. 86 55. .. 86 80
Bank of Frauee• 3265 ••3265 ••3265 ..3265
Laffitte Bank,ll ,000 f. Shareelloo ..1100 .• 1100 ..1100
5,000 f. ShareesoBs ..5090 ..5085 5090
Belgian FiTee,lß3l.
1840 •••••... 1031 .. 1031 .. 1031 .. 1031
1842 •••••••• 107 .. 107 .. 107 .. 107
Two-and-a-half.... 62 75 .. 62 75 .. 62 75 .. 62 75
Dutch Two and-a-Ha1f..... 631 .. 631 .. 631 . 631

Spanish Threee•• •—• •. •. •. 36} .. 36i .. 36 .. 36i
A.ctiye . ....... 321 .. 321 • • 321 .. 321

Passive - -.
... .. 6 .. 6 .. 51 .. 51
Portuguese Five per Cents•• b 6 .. 561 • • 56 .. 561
Neapolitan... ..... •• . •• 98 50 .. 98 50 .. 98 50 .. 98 50
Ronan ... ..... .......... 1041 .. 1041 .. 1041 .. 1041

RAILWAY SHARES.
St. Clermainl•• •• .• •• 980 .. 580 .• 980 .• 980
Versailles,R.E.
L.B.•••••• •••• •• 335 .. 340 .. 333 75 .. 340
Rotten .•

Orleans 75 "1672 50 —lO5B 75..-.10-7-0

Strasburg to Ea1e....•••.•• 290 .. 292 50 .. 290 . 252 50
Avignon to Marseilles 925 .. 925 .. 925 .. 925
RAILWAYS FOR THE ACCOUNT, Dzo 16.
St. Germain:. 981 25 .. 981 25 .. 981 25 .. 951 35
Versa!Bee, R.B 427 50 .. 475 .. 457 50 .. 472 50
L.B.
Rouen ••
Rouen to Havre. •
Orleans ......... •. •• •• —1073 75 ..1075 ..1070 —1072 50
Strasburg to Bale— •••••• 292 10 .. 293 75 .. 292 50 .. 293 75
Avignon to Marsoilles• :928 7$ 92$ 75 .. 925 .. 926 25

MORTALITY IN THE METROPOLIS.—The number
of deaths during the week ending Saturday, Dec. 7,
was 988, that of the preceding week being 1,075,
showing a decrease of 87, and the average for five
years being 942. In the first class, including epidemic
and contagious diseases, there is a considerable de-
crease, particularly in small-pox and scarlatina. There
is an increase, however, in complaints caused by cold
weather. Bronchitis is marked 30, while the average
is 12 ; and pnuemonia (inflammation of the lungs),
127, average 79. The deaths from small-pox oc-
curred at the following ages :—Eleven under 1 year;
four, 1-3 ; four, 3-5 ; six, 5-10 ; one, 10 years ; one,
17 ; and four, 20-30 years. Among the violent deaths
are six cases. The unfortunate victims, with one ex-
ception, being very young children, were burnt to
death from their clothes taking fire. There are only
two suicides recorded.

THIS DAY'S NEWS

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT

(THIS DAY.)

HOUSE OF LORDS.

This being the day to which Parliament stood pro-
rogued, both Houses met pro forma.
The Lord Chancellor, the Earl of Haddington, and
the Earl of Dalhousie, at a quarter-past two o'clock took
their seats as Lords Commissioners in front of the
Throne, when

The LORD CHANCELLOR directed the Deputy
Usher of the Black Rod to summon the House of Com-
moms to hear her Majesty's Commission read for the
further prorogation of Parliament.

In a few minutes Mr. Ley, jun., attended by several
officers of the House of Commons, appeared at the bar,
upon which her Majesty's Commission for the further
prorogation of Parliament was read by one of the clerks
at the table.

The LORD CHANCELLOR then, in the usual form,
declared that it was her Majesty's royal will and plea-
sure that her Parliament should be further prorogued
to Tuesday, the 4th of February next, then to meet for
the dispatch of business, and the Parliament was pro-
rogued to that day accordingly.
The Lords Commissioners then withdrew, as did also
the officers of the Mouse of Commons.

PRIVY COUNCIL.—(THIS DAY.)
The Committee of the Privy Council for the affairs of
Guernsey and Jersey sat to•dsy again. The Lords
present were—the Lord Chancellor, Mr. Baron Parke,
Sir James Graham, the Chancellor of the Duchy of
Cornwall, and the Judge of the Admiralty Court. Their
Lordships sat at ten o'clock instead of eleven o'clock, as
on the former occasion.