The Sun.
London, England, 1829-04-27 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF TIM LONDON JOURNALS.

. _. M THE TIMES.)
Every day brie as letters indicative of the
powerful and spr g hostility to the continuance
- • of the-India Corn y s Charter in its present form.
,cr.' We are ourselvevwell pleased to learn, that Liver-
'---,-, pool, Glasgow, Bristol, and other great commercial
emporia throughout the kingdom, are proceeding
with energy and unanimity, to concentrate their
efforts for the general release of this industrious and
over-burdened empire from the grievous weight of
the monopoly imposed upon it by the charter of
1813. At Liverpool a meeting took place on the
20th instant, where most satisfactory communica-
tions were made from several manufacturing and
trading districts. At the close of it a deputation to
London was resolved upon, and the early period
chmen for the adoption of this decided measure was
justified by the following reasons :-
1. That it is most desirable to secure the attention of
his Majesty's Ministers to the subject, in time for in-
quiring and obtaining full information, as well at home as
from the proper quarters in India and Chia:a, prior to
th it period when the three years' notice of an intention to
discontinue the charter ought to be given.
2. That such promptitude will be the best means of
satisfying the merchants of London, the great built of
whom are very, anxious upon this question, that the
country is determined effectually to co-operate with them,
if they will take a manly and steadfast part against the
renewal of the monopoly.
3. That it will facilitate the establishment of a central
London Committee, in correspondence with the respective
provincial Committees, and aided in its exertions by- the
intelligence and activity of Mr. Cranford, who represents,
in thiscotantrv, the interests and feelings of the affluent
commercial inhabitants of Calcutta.
The merchants of Liverpool, comprising gentle-
men of every class and shade of politics, who are in
perfect harmony on this grave national question,
have combined their measures with those of their
near neighbours at Manchester, and possess a power-
ful support in both Houses of the Legislature, for
the overthrow of so oppressive an incubus upon the
country, a; is the system of exclusive privileges,
which the Company has abused eves since it was
permitted to enjoy them. We publish a letter,
.signed " Nler:!ator,;' which enumerates a series of
Detailed disadvantages and vexations which are in-
flicted upon the London merchant by improper
practices of the Company itself, or of its oificers.
If it be true that India Directors at a also Directors
(and therefore Proprietors) of the East India-docks
at Black wall, and have hired, in their character of
East India Directors, warehouses front themselves
1n their cap'ieity of Blackwall proprietors, at prices
most improvident for the India Company, and there-
fore most profitable for the Blackwall-docks, why it
is time for Leadenhall-street to look about it, and be
on the watch for collusions.

We deem it necessary to draw public attention
once more to the very serious subject of the water
companies. Some active Members of Parliament, if
those who represent the two great divisions of the
metropolis (viz. Westminster and London) should
fail to do their duty, will, we trust, be ready to re-
vive and proceed with that most important and lir-
geut question before the close of the present Ses-
sion of Parliament. Against the manoeuvres and
insatiable cupidity of one or more of the above com-
panies it now, in an especial manner, behoves the
public to be well on their guard : it comes within
our own knowledge that one of them, not a thou-
sand miles from Chelsea, has made an attempt to
raise the price of water to their customers not less
than seventeen per cent.;- and in the teeth, too, of a
positive agreement, the charge, if acquiesced in,
would be made to have an ex post facto operation.
On being questioned as to the pretence or excuse
for such conduct—which some people might term
fraud, but which we describe only as extortion—the
collector's answer was, that the company had " put
themselves to great expence by filtering" the putrid
paddle from the Thames, with which they have
hitherto supplied the inhabitants of the west end of the
capital. Now this bare-faced and most impudent pro-
ceeding ought to be resisted at the outset by every
housekeeper who knows his own rights, and feels for
those of his neighbours. The extra charge mani-
festly assumes it as a principle, that any given com-
p.iny, havng wormed itself into a monopoly over an
entire district—containing, perhaps, two or three
hundred thousand people—is privileged, as a matter
rf course, Ist, to supply dirty and unwholesome
water, loaded, as the official record proves, with
every species of impurity, which no process of filter-
ing can get rid of, because of its being in chymical
combination with the stream w;hich feeds the Dol-
phin; and 2d, to represent as a favour and bounty
to the public, for which an immense additional
charge ought to be made, whatever humbugging
demonstration the company's engineers or agents
may exhibit, as means of rendering salubrious by
the filter that which nothing but the retort, or other
chymical power, can duly qualify for the beneficial
use of man. Even if the filtering process were
effectual towards the amelioration of that shocking
liquid (miscalled Thames water) which has been
above referred to, the company would have no
shadow of right to lay on a single extra penny
by way of indemnification to themselves. Their
original undertaking is to supply clear and whole-
same wafer; if they do not, they ought to be
severely punished; and in fret some description of
medical police might with great justice be esta-
blished for the superintendence and coercion by fine
and penalty of these monopolists, on the same prin-
ciple which has long been recognized for the punish-
ment of butchers who sell diseased and pestiferous
Meat; though we ought to demand a more stern
application of the principle against the dealers in
the water-nuisance, because a customer is at liberty
to turn away from poisoned meat, to the next shop
or stall, where good may be purchased, whereas the
filthy water is forced upon us by a dealer who takes
care to have no rival, and from whom there is no
escape. Even, however, in appearance, the water
furnished by this modest company has-slot been sen-
sibly improved, as we have been 'assured on compe-
tent authority ; and if it had, we repeat, it would
not alter the merits of the question. Whether a
Committee has been appointed to do more than re-
port upon the state of the water consumed by the
population of the capital, without suggesting effec-
tutl measures for replacing it by same less injurious
liquid, and breaking up the present insupportable
monopoly, we cannot positively say ; but we know
that the Legislature will not have done its duty, if
this session should be suffered to expire in irreso-
lute and empty discussion upon a -subject on which
the public safety points out the necessity of imme-
diate action.