The Sun.
London, England, 1829-01-15 00:00:00

FLRES BY INCENDIARIES.

Anothet instance of those wicked, malicious, and
higidy penal offences has occurred in the vicinity of
Stratford-upon-Avon, which have 30 often alarmed
and terrified the inhabitants of that town and the
adjoining country. About a quarter past one o'clock
on Sunday afternoon, alarm was given that the
s.tacir-yard and premises of Mr. Thomas Lowe,
farmer, of Binton, about three miles from Stratford,
were on fire. The flames were first seen by one of
'the servant girls in a rick of loose straw. The barn,
which was thatched, and not above five yards off,
I''B immediately afterwards in flames. The alarm
r,apidly spread in all directions, and the engines from
tratford were sent for with all possible haste. The
promptitude of those who conveyed them to the
premises deserves the highest praise; and the towns
o.t
Stratford, Alcester, and surrounding country,
'l°nred forth their population to give their assistance
n",,stoPping the progress of the frightful cal.:nu:y.—
14:e Wind was up, and during this time the flames
spread rapidly, and were making prodigious
devastation. The fire in the barn had communi-
cated itself so quickly to the stables, that it Via& with
great difficulty the .orses were got out in time to
save them. There was fortunately plenty of water,
and the engines, which are very effective, were
Pla
heyed incessantly. By half-past eight o'clock
t. fire was got under, and then, with all their ex-
;amps, they had been able te save only the dwelling-
t °use, and three large wheat ricks; and it was by
continual labour and judicious management that
these were preserved. The barn contained 80 bags
of thrashed
corn, winnowed and put up, a bay of
urnlithrashed wheat, a thrashing machine, a chaff-
and areat number of other implements.. The
Whole wereg destroyed, and the building reduced to
1' mere shell ; nothing but the bare walls were left
c Standing The stable and storehouse, with their
ontets,
were burnt to the ground. The straw
rick, where the fire was. first discovered, a large bean
rich, and a rick of hay of about 20 tons, were eon-
rr!lnled to a heap of smoking ashes ; part of a clover
iek Was also burnt.
Mr. Lowe was fortunately insured in the County
office for a greater sum than will cover his loss,
Which may be estimated by a rude guess at between'
4001. and 5001. About half-past 12 on Sunday
rimming Mr. Lowe and his family were disturbed
oY the barking of the dogs, and they got up, but no
lie Was to be seen, yet it is supposed some one
hid then been upon the premises. It is dee to
be lamented that none of the perpetrators ofpl thy ese
diabolical acts have yet been brought to justice.
Some opinion may be formed of the state of alarm
which the neighbourhood has been kept, when
it is stated that the are-bell at Stratford has been
mug six times within the last twelve months. The
County Fire-office have offered a reward of 1001. on
the conviction of the incendiaries.
Another piece of unfeeling villany was committed
on the same night after the fire was extinguished.
The Rev. Mr. Rufford has a fish-pond very near
I%lt. Lowe's premises, and that gentleman, with a
I"mptitude and goodness of heart that cannot be
much commended, permitted his pond, which
was stoelted with valuable fish, to be nearly emp-
tied, to supply the engine with water. In the dead
of the night: some ruffianly miscreants let out the
remainder of the water, and stole almost every fish
th:it the loud contained.—Birmingham Gazelle.

At .a meeting at Leicester on the 2d inst., it
t,a,:nret'"lved to form a public banking company in that
divided The capital proposed to be subscribed is 500,000/.,
into 5,000 shares of 1001. each; and the company
4 t
b. to be considered as formed so soon as 2,000 shares are
..erihtd for,—Birmingitaln Paper.

MARQUIS OF ANGLESEA.

TO THE EDI FOR OF THE SUN.

SlR—The opinnals expressed 011 the conduct of
the Marquis of Aw„,:11-:,ea, in the extract from the
Morning Herald, in your Paper of the 9th inst., ap-
pear to me perfectly just and reasonable, and I
agree entirely with it in thinking that the Marquis
was, to say the least, highly injudicious in the ex-
pressiou of his sentiments in his uncalled-for letter to
Dr. Curtis, however founded in reason those senti-
ments might be; especially if he knew himself to be
recalled at the time when he wrote the letter, in
which case he might at least to have given his opi-
nion as a private individual (if he might then have
done it), and not as still holding an official situation.
But I believe the Noble Marquis, with all his eleva-
tion of character, is known to have that rashness in
his military, which may have accompanied him in his
civil capacity ; and therefore I am inclined to place
his recall more to that account than to any absolute
disapprobation of the Duke of Wellington of his opi-
nion on the Catholic question, especially as it appears
that Lord Leveson Gower, who holds similar
opinions, is to be continued in his situa-
tion. We may then, I think, consider the
question as still sub judice, if not sub lite; and
we may hope that it will ultimately be terminated
(indecisive as I must think the Duke of Wellington's
letter to Dr. Curtis was, though not altogether
" halting between two opinions") to the acquies-
cence, at least, if not the perfect satisfaction of the
parties on each side of the question, and to the
maintenance of the peace and tranquillity of these
countries, as well as to the gradual increase of union
in religious opinion, which may be far more reason-
ably expected from peaceable, than from hostile mea-
sures. I will only add, that I think Dr. Curtis's
communication of the Duke's letter, was much
more defensible than tire Anti-Catholic papers
are willing to allow, as his receipt of it must have
been known, and therefore the contents of it,
indecisive as I have said they were, if not known,
would probably have been misrepresented. But this
is not the light in which party zeal views a question.
I remain, Sir, your's, &c.
AN ENGLISH PROTESTANT.

Jan. 12, 1829.

MONOPOLY IN COALS.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

SlR,—Your correspondent, Nauticus, in his letter
which appeared in The Sun of the 3d inst. considers
it singular that the monopoly of the Northern coal-
owners, andthe evils of high prices, inadequate sup-
plies, and inferior coal, which naturally flow from
that monopoly, should have attracted so little of the
public attention.
I suppose the public to be, for the most part,
ignorant of the fact that the coal-owners, by private
arrangement, limit the quantity of coals to be sold,
in order, not as a certain Baronet and M.P. is re-
ported to have stated, that London might be sup-
plied with coals of the best quality, for the contrary
is the effect produced,—but that they may get what
they are pleased to consider a remunerating price ;
just as the East India Company limit the supply of
tea, and the Landlords, by their corn-laws, limit the
supply of wheat and other grain ; and all for the
same object, their own advantage.
But the question is—what enables the coal-owners
to keep up this combination against the public is The
law, with anxious solicitude for our naval supremacy,
has virtually prohibited the introduction into London
of all inland coal, the proportion of the latter actually
consumed there being trifling; and as the coal dis-
tricts which supply London by sea are not extensive,
nor the proprietors numerous, the competition of
producers (by which alone the natural price of any
commodity call be secured to the consumers) is only
partial, and the monopoly is easily maintained.
It is some consolation, however, to see that this
conspiracy against the public, is not attended with
all the advantages to the conspirators which they
alight have hoped to derive; the high price of the
monopoly coal has afforded to some enterprising
persons in the neighbourhood of Stockton, both
the means and the inducement to construct a rail-
road from the coal dl-,,trict lying inland from that
port, by which considerable quantities of very good
coal are now sent from thence, superseding, in many
places, the coal formerly procured from the Tyne and
the Wear. It may happen that the coal-owners on
these two rivers, unwilling to encounter the odium
which a full exposure of their measures by the press
would bring upon :hcm, will forego their practice
upon being denounced; but the only certain way of
destroying the combination is to repeal the laws
which afford the occasion for it. The pretence fur
those laws is, that the colliers (ships which carry
coals) are nurseries for seamen; but in this there is
an assumption which I consider a fallacy, viz. that
under a free competition between sea-borne and in-
land coal, less of the former would be used, and there-
fore fewer ships would be required to convey it. We
must remember that the lowering of the price of any
article of general consumption is attended with an
increasing demand for it; and there seems no ground
for excepting coals from the operation of this ge-
neral principle. But even if it could lie proved that
the number of colliers would be diminished, it does
not follow that the seamen would not find employ-
ment in some other of our nurseries, that is, in the
general trade of the country : en the contrary, it is
almost demonstrable, that the number of seamen
would not suffer the smallest decrease. .

But as the consideration of this subject would in-
volve us in an investigation of those circumstances
upon which the commerce of a nation depends,
and would occupy too much space, I must finish
by expressing a hope that this coal conspiracy may
not be allowed quietly to work out its deeds of
darkness, nor an interested person be suffered, un-
challenged, to throw dust in the eyes of the com-
munity by an affectation of regard for their interests,
which, to use a homely but expressive phrase, is no
better than humbug, if it be Nothing worse.
I am, Sir, your's,
London, Jan. 14, 1829. PIIILO-NAUTICUS.

The Duke and Duchess of Clarence will give
a juvenile ball at their residence in Bushy-park on Monday
rest, at which it is expected the young Queen of Portugal
will be present. The youthful portion of some of the fami-
lies of the foreign Ambassadors and Ministers, and of a
great many of the nobility and gentry, have received invi-
tations.

The Duke and Duchess of Clarence left their
residence in Rushy-park yesterday morning for the King's
Palace at Kervington, where the Duchess alighted to pay
a visit to the Duchess of Kent, with whom, and the
Princess Sophia, her Royal Highness remained during
the day.

A Committee of the Lords of his Majesty's
most Honourable Privy Counoil assembled at two o'clock
yesterday afternoon at the Council Office. The Lords
present were—the Vice-Chancellor, the Lord Chief Baron,
the Judge of the Admiralty, the Judge Advocate-General,
and the Master of the Mint. Their Lordships remained
in deliberation about an hour.

Lord Hill and Sir Edward Codrington trans-
acted business yesterday at the Colonial Office, Downing-
street.