The Sun.
London, England, 1842-01-19 00:00:00

RUMOURS OF THE DAY.

Not fewer than seven candidates for the vacant see of
Chichester, are mentioned. They are Dr. French, the
Master of Jesus College, Cambridge, an electioneering
friend of Lord Lyndhurst, Mr. Anderson, Dr. Hook,
an ardent Puseyite, Dr. Wordsworth, Mr. Arch-
deacon Wilberforce, Archdeacon Lyall, and the Rev.
John Peel, a canon of Canterbury and a brother of the
Premier.

LETTER TO SIR R. PEEL.

Chateau de Talhouet, Pres de L'Orient, France.
Sir Francis Mackenzie presents his compliments to
Sir Robert Peel, and takes the liberty of addressing him
on the subject of an alteration in our 13ritish postmge, from
Id. to 3d., which Sir Francis, before I, ' ilingiNngland,
was assured by one who believed hiin'S apfilmesrEl ,of
true information, would be proposed on . vitl .R.pkuutig of
Parliament. Mixing as Sir Francis ipalys.tli:,:every
variety of society, in both . Scotland an England, he
begs to assure Sir. Robert of the unpopularityy of such a
'measure, and th 4 the. public opinion is decidedly favour-
able to a4d.postage, which, without being so high as
.to chAeKrittlie , present amount of correspondence,
would at 'once - double the Post-office revenue now re-
ceived ;. whilst a 3d. pOsfage would be most unpopular,
and deemed oppression by the lower classes, thus pre-
vented by the triple postage . from continuing that
friendly communication between distant friends and re-
latives so deserving of encouragement, as, producing the
best and kindest feelings of human nature.
Sir Francis also takes the liberty of asking Sir Robert
Peel if he is aware that a combination 'exists amongst
the master manufacturers to continue, if not increase, the
dissipated and vicious habits of their operatives.? Sir
Francis has more than once heard it asserted by them,
that if temperance habits prevailed to any extent
amongst the working classes of our manufacturing towns
the ruin of England must follow. It is scarcely six
weeks ago that Sir Francis met, when travelling in the
• railway from Nottingham to. Leicester, an extremely
respectable and intelligent • manufacturer, who paid, he
'said, above 1,0001. every Saturday evening to his wurk-
men; every shilling of which he believed was spent in
debauch or unnecessary- expense before Tuesday morn-
ing, when they were compelled to return again to work,
only from the craving-desire to repeat the same indul-
gence of the grossest appetites. This gentleman had ab-
stained from all fermented liquors for the last six years,
on account of his health; and Sir Francis and his family
having happily embraced the principles of total abstinence
above two years ago, with the best effects, in all the
towns and villages near his country residence, thought
it a duty, as President of all the Northern Societies, to
press this gentleman to sign the abstinence pledge--
powerful as his example would be amongst his people,
and not requiring any sacrifice of taste or habits on his
part, but no arguments had any effect. His reply was,
that it was his wish, and the interest of all master ma-
nufacturers, to conceal rather than make known his tem-
perance habits ; for this reason, that so soon as an ope-
rative became converted from habits of vice, and drunk-
enness, so common to their class, they immediately com-
menced saving money;.' which, after a few years accu-
mulation, was invested in manufacturing operations, in
conjunction with their reformed brethren—that the
union of such Working reformed men enabled them to
manufacture goods of a better quality and at a cheaper
rate than master manufacturers and large capitahsts
could do—who were thus in danger of ruin, caused
wholly by the reformed habits of those men, who, whilst
degraded by intemperance, were the sole source of those
immense fortunes often realised bymaster manufacturers
of large capital. Ho also said that he feared temperance
and good habits were creeping on too fast already,
and that unless checked, and an alteration should take
place, twenty years would not elapse ere the investment
of large capitals and the-making of large fortunes would
be at an end. How different is the treatment of their
labourers by landed proprietors, who always take the
strongest interest in the - encouragement of sobriety,
savings' banks, provident societies, and every other means
in their power to render them independent and virtu-
ou3. 'Which population, therefore, deserves the greater
encouragement, the manufacturing or the agricul-
tural? Which is fittest, from their habits, to defend our
country if called on to oppose a foreign enemy? Yet,
any one who has within the last twenty years travelled
frequently through Britain, must see even now, at this
time of general complaint, the immense increase of build-
ings in all the manufacturing districts over those which
are agricultural. Sir F. can, for instance well remember
the picturesque town of Lancaster wholly devoid, but a
few years ago, of a single tall smoking chimney-top--
observe it now, despite the continual cry of distress, and
examine the changed state of its population, debased
by those vices which ever accompany manufactures.
Does the same misery and vice accompany an increase
in agricultural population. even 'if it were doubled in
number to what it now is in Britain? Belgium,'Jersey,
and Guernsey, answer the 9uestion and speak for them-
selves, and at once decide in favour of the agricultural
population. Is then that" betiter race of men to be at
once sacrificed by the enormous change, the sudden, un-
avoidable ruin, which would accompany the admission
of foreign corn at a duty of eight shillings? Sir F. has
ever been, and hopes ever whilst life remains, a Re-
former of all abuses where they are proved to exist, but
at the same time he knows the danger of even the best
reforms if too suddenly made. The introduction of fo-
reign corn at once on a duty of only Bs. would, is well
known to all men whoioii
i'lira(ireed
Poland; al
i .
agriculturalcregouo ivajirenitatoenprddso,
pi 1
ivbuialut
population.
ig.cortahnur_ery.
sc
vos
zarinclny.d:
Pp renderraorad
paralyse
el one-halflgthed ilss,theipel toesuorof of
not, then, try a gradual decrease on the duty for admis--
sion of foreign grain? Why not lay on at first a higher
duty than Bs., and gradually reduce that . duty by
one shilling yearly? There would then be time and
facts by which the question of such difficulty as that of
our Corn-laws could be truly and well decided. The re-
duction of one shilling duty annually would soon
show what was best for the greatest interests of our coun-
try, and we could proceed or retrace our steps as might be
proved most advantageous to the nation without that vio-
lent contention which at present disturbs Britain. Sir
Francis has always stated in society his opinion to be in
favour of a gradually falling duty on foreign corn, and
seldom has that opinion been opposed, which induces him
the more willingly to intrude his ideas on the much occu-
pied and valuable time of Sir R. Peel, who will, however,
he trusts, forgive the intrusion, perhaps, when he knows
it to emanate solely from the sincere desire he entertains
for the virtue and happiness of his country.
To the Right Hon. Sir Robert Peel. &c. &c.

A good deal of laughter was excited by a joke
which Lord Stanley passed while the Earl of Ripon
was speaking. The latter, when about to make the
quotation from the Scotch song cf " The Boatie Rows,"
it will be recollected said, " I beg pardon of the Lord
Mayor if I should not read the words with the proper ac-
cent." "Why don't you sing them ?" cried Lord Stan-
ley, to the great delight of the Aldermen opposite to him.
ACCOUNT OF THE COINS DEPOSITED IN
TiiE STONE sovereign, 1 half-sovereign, 1 half-
crown, 1 shilling, 1 sixpence, 1 fourpence, 1 fourpence
Maunday money, 1 threepence Maunday money, 1 two-
pence Maunday money, 1 penny Maunday money, 1
three-halfpence (silver), 1 penny, 1 halfpenny (silver),
1 farthing, and 3 coins (copper) States of. Jersey, 1
quarter farthing, 1 half ditto, 1 small Roman coin.
MORE CONVERTS TO CATHOLICITY.—On
Thursday last, the Feast of the Epiphany, the two eldest
daughters of Thomas Tennison, Esq., of Inistiogue, late of
Rock Hall, were publicly received into the bosom of the
Mother Church by the Rev. Ur, Butler, C.C.—Kilkenny
Journal,

EVENING SUN