The Sun.
London, England, 1842-11-04 00:00:00

letter of Captain Claxton's, and there the -matter would
possibly have rested, Captain Claxton's object having
probably been to disseminate, as quickly as possible
through the United States, an antidote to the poison
taken out by the mail-boat, through that widely-cir-
culating and far-spreading journal. .The Liverpool
Albion, whose editor is the agent of the Times, has
since come forward to eulogise that journal, and
somewhat coarsely to attack Captain Claxton, and
hence it is that we are induced to say a few words if
only for our local readers, and particularly such as are
in the habit of reading the Times.
That paper tells us that " a Shareholder," believing
the whole concern to be going to the dogs, furnished
his agent with the article. A wise measure, truly,
of advancing his interest, unless the said "Share-
holder" were paid more for the article than his stake
in the Company was worth, from the small amount of
that interest.... The Times is greatly praised by the
Liverpool Albion, and its remarks called " complete."
We wonder whether that "completeness" applies to
the following,passage, which we extract under the
hope that some one may help us to its meaning—" If
the Great 'Western lost passengers by the inference of
the Shareholders, that she would not probably sail
again to New York, there was not and could not be
the slightest wish to injure the Great Western !! !"
We do not understand it, notwithstanding it is so clear
to our Contemporary of Liverpool.
We wrote (says the Albion) as historians, not as
partisans. We tell him the simple comparison of a
place off Liverpool " equal to the run to Bristol"
proves the case to have been otherwise, or lets out the
secret. Captain Claxton, if he takes our 'advice, will
not attempt to argue the matter further. He can
have no chance against a principal.in London and a
Contemporary at Liverpool, the one commanding a
daily (and such a daily!) and the other a weekly
journal. The Great Western's performances speak
for themselves, and we sincerely hope a good round
sum may be obtained for her through her excellen-
cies, which this very attack has rendered more appa-
rent. We 'cannot conclude our remarks without
stating that this is the third time that inferences
favourable to competing vessels, and at the expense of
the Great -Western, have been drawn through the
London journals, and that it is, in our opinion, the
duty of Captain Claxton to be watchful. It is cer-

tainly extremely hard that the only Atlantic steamer
and that, too, the one whose success led the way to
the establishment of the several lines now steaming),
which up to t:►is moment is ploughing the Atlantic
unsupplied by public money in the form of Govern-
ment grants, should not meet with fair support from
the p:►blic Press.

DEA TII OF Mn. SERG CANT SPANKIE.—Mr. Spankie
has long been known as one of the leading barristers
in the Court of Common Pleas. He commenced his
career on the Morning Chronicle (then the property
of Mr. Perry) nearly half a century since, and was
consideiad one of the best Parliamentary reporters of
his day. He was for some years the editor of the
Morninz Chronicle, and in that capacity wrote some
of the most masterly articles which ever appeared in
the columns of a newspaper. He resigned that situa-
tion on his being called to the bar in 1808. Having
strong interest at the India House (through his mar-
riage) he was appointed Attorney-General of Bengal,
and repaired to India, where he Practised with the
greatest success, and was rapidly making a fortune,
when he was seized with an affection of the liver, and
compelled to return to England to save his life.
Having recovered his health at home he was appointed
standing-counsel to the East India Company, a situa-
tion of a very lucrative nature. lie was a powerful
and clever speaker, but though his elocution was clear
and distinct, his Scotch accent was disagreeably harsh.
As a lawyer he was not considered of the first order.
On the passing of the Reform Bill, Mr. Spankie con-
tested the representation of Finsbury, on which occa-
sion he was returned with the Right Hon. R. Grant,
the unsuccessful, candidates being Messrs. Babbage,
IVakley, and Temple. Mr. Spankie wrote one of the
very best pamphlets in favour of ParliaMentary Re-
form, and entered the House of Commons as a Re-
former, but occasionally voted with the Opposition.
On the dissolution, in 1835, he was ejected by the
present Member, T. S. Duncombe, Esq. The deceased
married a daughter of Mr. Manning, a London mer-
chant, by whom he has left a large family. Mr.
Spankie possessed strong natural abilities, and in
every situation of life must have distinguished him
self. IVhen a Parliamentary reporter he possessed
the greatest influence with his associates, and displayed
a strong leaning towards Conservatism.—Morning
Chronicle.
THE AMERICAN TARIFF.—The Government of the
United States is beginning to feel the effects of the
anti-commercial tariff which the friends of " protec-
tion to domestic industry" have forced upon it. That
measure, introduced and passed under the pretence of
providing for an alarming deficiency in the revenue,
seems likely enough to cut up the customs' revenue
by the roots. At the date of the recent advices, im-
ports of all those articles on which heavy duties had
been laid, were entirely at a stand ; and it seemed
highly probable that the deficiency in the revenue,
instead of being made up by the. new duties, would
be greatly increased. How, under these circum-
stances, and in the present state of, its credit, at home
and abroad, the American Government is to provide
for the payment of its annual expenses, is a ques-
tion not easily answered ; and, unless we are very
greatly mistaken, the proceedings of the next ses-
sion of Congress will evince a considerable change
of opinion in reference to this subject. Even
those American writers who had most warmly
advocated the tariff, seem to admit its failure
as a measure of revenue ; and they now suggest that
the deficiency in the public income shall be made up
by additional taxes op the import of tea, coffee,
sugar, and other necessaries of life; and, if necessary,
by internal taxation. We have reason to know that
preparations have already been made for carrying on
a considerable smuggling trade through Canada; and
nothing but the great probability of an early modi-
fication of the tariff prevents those preparations from
being very greatly extended. Men will not readily
embark in a business which may be very soon broken
up by a change of circumstances. But once let it
be generally believed that the tariff is likely to be
permanent, and smugglers 'will beset the country on
all sides, and in every possible way. To protect
such a frontier and such a coast against their opera-
tions, is utterly beyond the power of the American
Government; indeed, we may say, would be alto-
gether impossible for any Government.—Manchester
Paper.
Mu. CRONIN'S TREATMENT OF ASTHMA AND
CONSUMPTION BY TRACTION.—A Correspondent,
who on several occasions witnessed Mr. Cronin's new
method of treating the above disease; informs us, that
some of the most distressing forms of these diseases
have been successfully treated at No. 9, Craven-street,
Strand, within the last fortnight. We are gratified
to hear that many members of the medical profession
who have doubted the-efficacy of traction in relieving
consumption and asthma, have become so far converts,
that they.are adopting the treatment recommended by
Mr. Cronin, with decided success, in their own practice
THE ......
ivtONUMENT.
—The workmen employed in con-
structing the iron protection on the top of the Monu-
ment, completed their labours yesterday. The gallery
is now covered in with strong bars of iron, rising
from the old railing, sufficiently high to allow persons
to stand upright, and of a width apart so as not to ob-
struct the view, and has the, appearance of a large
iron cage. The bars are painted white, so that the
addition is scarcely perceptible in the distance.

FRANKFORT, OCT. 23.—The meeting of the Stand-
ing Com:nittees of the Prussian Provincial Estates at
Berlin could not but excite the serious attention of
neighbouring lands, more especially if it assumed the
form, for which the nation has long been clamorous, of
a virtual representation of the people. Such a step
taken on the part Of the King of Prussia would raise
the power of the nation, by the necessary infusion of
public spirit which it Would cause, to a height formi-
dable for all rivals, but especially for those who retain
despotic forms. indeed, as a consequence of the ne-
cessity Austria would be under to follow,if not to an-
ticipate, such a measure, it is worthy of remark that
this year, for the first time, the fact of the assembling
of the Austrian provincial diets (which meet for one
day to hear the list of taxes decreed by the Crown
read to them, and then dissolve without making com-
ment) was pompously announced in the newspapers.
It would seem from this, that if the great Chancellor
did not think it necessary to take any more decided
step to counteract the innovations at Berlin, he yet
thought it advisable to be prepared for consequences
which those innovations, however, unexpectedly, might
bring with them or lead to.
The Committees have been Assembled since the
18th inst. Their meeting was not opened by the
King in person, and although the rescript ordering
them to be summoned is couched in terms of con-
siderable latitude, yet it neither fixes a right nor pro-
mises a periodical term for their assembling in future.
The King declares his wish to consult them when the
opinions of the provincial Diets differ on points of ge-
neral interest; when in the drawing up of laws new
points of difficulty occur that were not submitted to
the provincial Diets in the original discussions ; further,
when new laws are projected, the opinion of the Com-
mittees will be taken on their necessity and tendency;
and, lastly, measures of general interest, which were
hitherto not submitted to the provincial Diets, will
be laid before them. This declaration atibrds a wide
scope for the operations of a body of Representatives,
if the whole were not neutralized by the condition
that they are only to be consulted on these points
when the King shall think it necessary, which, of
course, means that they will only be assembled as long
as they behave well, and give the Crown no trouble.
The introduction of such a clause, and the strict pre-
scription of the subjeets to which they are to confine their
discussions, or rather deliberations, were naturally
sufficient guarantees both to Russia and Austria, that
little or no .moral influence would be gained by this
mode of developing the representative institutions of
Prussia. It is notorious that although the late King
bound himself by the most sacred promises not to
break his compact with the Provincial Estates re-
specting the enlargement of the national debt, as
guardians to which men in high office were sworn in
1820, no scruple was felt at adopting the subterfuge
of the " sea company," in whose name a loan was con-
tracted of a large amount. It has recently been
shown that the :mount of crown lands soldsannually
far exceeded the sum which it was then agreed should
be appropriated to the yearly redemption of the na-
tional debt; while the budgets published by the Mi-
nistry of the Finances have been shown to be falsified
for the purpose of concealing these and other prac-
tices from the nation. Lastly, the want of an effi-
cient control has been glaringly• evinced by the
detection of most extensive frauds committed on
the State by the public servants in certain depart-
ments, which were carried on through a series of
years without detection, and in which men of rank
and of high standing in the service are said to be im-
plicated. That under these circumstances a mere
promise to consult such a boiy as is now assembled at
the convenience of the Crown should be considered
as an empty show of liberality, of as little advantage
to the King as to the nation, is natural, and I am
sorry to say that this is here the general opinion.
The manner in which the Assembly is constituted
iianbistrfd‘m%say'ejir:ei.ttsarlelsnedytaomor,giii:nt,ehealilntbetoidellgevtetnlenies: destiny. The commons are re-
oegbigeneral
ellandlegislative
discussion.
hauimsensiteiiroayons
fu.
rceo measures districts
torN,sf.eettghNiNieN:rielihislieegt(iiiceielmasilst
impost are in progress, of which nothing is said in the
rescript by which they are assembled. The new law of
ceniorship, the law of divorce, which I mentioned in
former letters, arc on the eve of promulgation, but
the representatives of the. national diet are not
expected to express an opinion on matters of•
such moment. Even the fact of whether the re-
venue can . bear the reduction in taxation which
the King proposes to make next
year, and the
distribution of which this Assembly is called upon
to 0-prove of, is not submitted to their ap-
proval, nor will a single member leave Berlin
Informed of the real amount of the revenue of the
country, unless a very different spirit should happen
to animate the majority from that which the Crown
evidently expects to meet. The sore feeling of the
Germans at thus being held up to their neighbours to
be scoffed at cannot be described, but of course will
have its due influence in encouraging the French to
pursue their intriguing aggressive commercial policy
towards Belgium, which, although the violent advo-
cates of commercial policy in the German press first
chalked out the proceeding, is felt now to be virtually
a move upon the Rhine. Russia, too, will of course
use littleceremony with a rival so circumstanced ;
and a report is already abroad that orders have been
given on the Polish frOntier to act as if no cartel
Convention had been concluded, and to refuse re-ad-
mission into the empire to all deserters or criminals
who might be seized and sent back by the Prussian
police. Prussia has long been in the position of being
obliged to go forward if it, would stand. The crisis
has been hastened by the acts of the present King.
He must throw himself into the arms of his people,
or await a direful alternative.

AGRICULTURAL REPORT FOR

OCTOBER.

(From the Farmer's Magazine.)
This has proved one of the finest months for farm
labours recollected at any corresponding period of the
year. In its early part, and up to the 20th, scarcely
any rain fell in England, which gave the farmers
b
excellente
sown
with m
opportunityforautunwheat, while,
ploughing th
in
some
the land
to instan-
ces,an thep i
rocess of seeding was much retarded in high
situations, in consequence of the soil becoming too dry
for that purpose. However, the fine rains which have
fallen since the above day, have enabled our whea
growersniayNve toth
ipnrko proceed
fairlyeedrapid_lpreyNsvuitmhetdh, that at
and it
at least three-
fourths of the winter wheats have been already sown
under the most favourable auspices, and no doubt ap-
pears to be entertained that a general conclusion will
be arrived at in the course of the next fortnight. The
plants which have appeared above ground exhibit a
very strong and healthy appearance, and we hail the
present position of things—i.e. in relation to culture—
the harbinger of good crops for the ensuing season. So
much time having been occupied in the fields, the flail
and thrashing-machine have not been in quite so much
requisition as on some previous occasions, yet the
quantity of wheat, barley, and oats thrashed out has
been sufficiently large to enable us to form
something like an adequate opinion of the
actual produce of this years' crops. We
have all along given our statement to the
effect that those of wheat have amounted to nearly a
fair average ; and that those of other kinds of
grain have proved great, and now we see no reason
whatever to alter that which we have before ad-
vanced. Of course, it will be understood that we are
speaking in reference to the whole of England, since,
otherwise, two or three counties might be pointed out
in which a considerable defficiency of supply is found
to exist. Eor instance, in Essex, the yield of wheat is
much less than usual; but take England as a whole
we think it will be found about equal to what we have
stated. As to the quality of the grain, this is fine in
the extreme, which circumstance cannot fail to be of
vast importance to our growers.:
The early time at w hich harvest commenced this
year having prevented the total exhaustion of the
stocks of old grain,, samples of it are still to be met
with not only at Mark-lane, but also in most of our
large country markets, the quality of which is repre-
sented as fine, yet we do not consider there is
we any
abundance of it, and that it will be wortkimedeso,ffin thepretty
ensuingof
certain.
the
uh
di
u appears
the
pressure
esNw tat
un-
derstanduointgimttlhosenbreadth of land under wheat culture
thatthis_
season, is much larger, on- a comparison, than
of last year ; and the fortunate circumstance, wasof get
ting it finished early, and in the best possible condi-
tion, renders future pros*ts, in this particular,
cheering.
gh the turnip crop this season is large, we
Althoa
find the quality to be unusually'inferior, caused, in a
of
great measure, by the dryness the summer months.
As to the other available supplies
id of winter food for
fattening stock we learn that . it is good, with the ex-
ception of hay. The e
to some extent in oitntrtPho epidemic has been again raging
g
The potato crop roafzing districts, yet the losses
sustained have not been
any great moment.
e United Kingdom, including
the Channel Islands,
is represented as great almost be-