The Sun.
London, England, 1829-11-17 00:00:00

narrdw streets dlParis, where carriages so con-
structed can be turned with facility on a piece of
ground not broader than that occupied by the
four wheels of the vehicle; and I am sure that

the disadvantage of the English form of the
coach-pole, must often he felt in the crowded
thoroughfares of the city, since I have m)self
repeatedly experienced it in streets as wide
as Craven-street, Strand, and Fludyer-street,
Westminster, which being cuts de sac, make
turnings indispensable.
" In the absence of anything like news, I
may just direct your attention to an odd ques-
tion said by the Constitationnel to have been
sent to him from the Lower Rhine. It is whe-

ther the Cure of a parish is entitled to confine
his flock in church as long as he pleases after
the conclusion of Divine Service, in order to

finder them from going to dance ? No, cer

thinly, says the Constitutionnel, with his wonted
gravity, M. le Cure has no such right—dancing
is not forbidden ; for David danced before the
Ark, and—the French Cardinals before Louis
the Twelfth !
" The inhabitants of the Low Countries are,

I observe, making great complaints of the negli-
gence of their Deputies in attending to their
legislative functions. They think that because
they pay them at the rate of 2001. a-year they
are entitled to a more punctual attendance on
their duties than is expected in England or

France, where the Members of the House oi

Commons and the Chamber of Deputies have
so much further to travel in proceeding from
their private residences to the seat of Govern-
ment. They say that the 430 Deputies of
France, and the 658 English Members, have
on an average 150 leagues to travel, and a great
expence to support during the sitting of Parlia-
ment, while the whole of the 110 Deputies of
the Netherlands may easily return home in four
and twenty Lours. Another complaint is made
which is not quite so reasonable, at least as re-
gards individuals, that the parties in their
Chamber are so nicely balanced, that on any
question of general interest it is impossible to
arrive at a satisfactory conclusion."

A correspondent informs us that during tl►e
past Year the amount of duties upon beer having
fallen off considerably, and the consumption
continuing apparently the same, suspicion was
lately excited among the officers of the Excise

that adulteration must have been practised to a
great extent, and steps were accordingly taken to
discover the fraud. With this view several of
the most vigilant Excise Officers have been on
the alert for some days, and we are assured that
one general surveyor has detected, within his
own district, upwards of fifty publicans, on
whose premises he has discovered the most dele-
terious compositions used for adulterating beer.

From the number of active officers engaged on
the look out, it is anticipated that 5130 publicans
will be subjected to the heavy penalties attached
to such reprehensible practices.
While we enter our protest against such dis-
graceful practices, we cannot but think that were
the duties which press so heavily on beer re-

duced, there would be no inducement to re-
sort to these nefarious tricks. Adulteration is
only another word for smuggling, and experience

proves that when the duty is low, no smug-
gler will engage in a traffic fraught with loss.
Let the Government but meet the public

half way, and the increased consumption will
amply repay the Revenue for mitigated duty,
while the health and comfort of the people at
large will be consulted and benefited without
temptations being held out to any particular class
to endeavonr merely to live by such de-
moralizing pursuits as we have now occasion to
reprobate.