The Sun.
London, England, 1845-11-21 00:00:00

THAMES.

Samuel Branscombe, master of the Countess of Malmsbury,
appeared to a summons charging him with having broke bulk
of a cargo of coals, on the 21st of October, without paying
City dues.
Mr. Pearson attended on the part of the City, and Mr. Bal-
lantine, a barrister, attended for the defence.
The case was a curious one. The fact of breaking bulk was
admitted; but it was contended that the article upon which
the dues were sought to be collected did not come within the
operation of the Act, being neither cinders, culm, nor coal. A
large square brick-shaped- mass was here placed on the table
by Mr. Ballantine, whilst Mr. Pearson produced a smaller
piece of the same substance, atd a long discussion ensued, as
to whether it was or was not coal.

7 -
Mr. Rose, inspector of the City coal-dues, said the article
produced was no other than coal reduced to powder, and then
by some process of mixture, with drying by heat or other-
wise, moulded to the present form.
Being cross-examined by Mr. Ballantine, the witness ex-
pressed as his opinion that no heat to which the coal could
be subjected would totally disengage the sulphuric acid gas,
which formed one of its inherents.

Mr. Ballantine said his client had been served with three
separate summonses, describing the article in three different
ways, a fact which implied a doubt even on the part of those
who issued them. When dues of this kind were sought to be
exacted, it should be shown affirmatively that the article
came within the meaning:of the Act; but, in this instance,
persons mix t conversant with coals hesitated to denominate
it by that name. Mr. Rose, though not a practical chemist,
yet having' great experience as to coals, refused to admit
that the sulphuric acid could be wholly evolved from them.
Why did he refuse to make the admission? Because he was
aware that, if sulphuric acid gas were wholly evolved, the
coal, losing one of its elements, would become another sub-
stance, as one of the ingredients which constituted coal would
be absent. It could be shown that the "fuel" (Wyam's
patent), though principally composed of coal in the first in-
stance, was so changed by the process through which it went
—had been so changed by abstraction of one of the elements
—that it became another substance, to which, if a minera-
logist chanced to alight on it, he must, to preserve scientific
distinctions, assign another designation. From any substance
composed of several elements, extract one of the elements,
and it is no longer the same substance.
Mr. BALLANTINE (the Magistrate) having viewed the mass
of "fuel," which looked like a block of blackened granite,
and having also examined the lesser piece produced by Mr.
Pearson, said that in his opinion the substance was coal,
and would present all the phenomena of that body to the
mineralogist. Even the chemist, though discovering the ab-
sence of sulphuric acid gas, which was not one of the pri-
mary elements of coal, would call it by the same name.
Mr. Ballantine—Why, you may as well call it wood.
MAGISTRATE—SO I should, if it assumed the appearance
and qualities.—(Laughter.) If we are rightly infarmed, coal
beds were originally deposit& of wood, but being subject to
certain influences, assumed another form.
Mr. Ballantine—That is what I contend for. The coal
here has undergone a change.
The MAGISTRATE—But not to an extent which changes it
as a generic substance. It has not been deprived of an
pensable ingredient. I casnot consider that substar ice any
giao;ae nbecestat
other than coal. If you have a power of appeal you ‘:.an
aVacascidtoentthael sinuglpheduireinctg.
,bat
Zll your
case, but all the writers on identity ue Am* nu.
as,l-loucc)ansreidderoinit