Star.
London, England, 1830-03-17 00:00:00

mondsey.
Mr. DICKINSON-presented a petition from Frome, againct the
renewal of the East India Company's charter.

DISTRESSED STATE OF THE COUNTRY.
Mr. EDWARD D. DAVENPORT, in bringing un•
der the consideration of the House a motion for a Corn•

mittee to inquire into the distressed state of the country
at the present moment expressed a determination not to
shrink from the task he had imposed on himself, although
the statement elicited from the Chancellor of the Exche-
quer last night, by the repeated calls of the people, had
probably afforded some of his (Mr. Davenport's) friends—
his lukewarm friends—an opportunity of blinking the pre-
sent question, and given them an apology for abandoning
an inquiry into the distresses of the people, from a sup-
position that they would receive relief, in consequence of
the measures the Government proposed to adopt. He
trusted, however, by the vote of that evening, to ascer-
tain how far they were disposed to exert themselves to obtain
the means of giving employment to thousands who were,
as he would presently show, not only living on the
bread, but the roots of charity (a laugh), from the pressure
of distress. It would be seen whether they were desir-
ous of giving relief to those who demanded it, and whe-
ther they were determined to persevere in giving a Mi-
nisterial or patriotic vote. He could not understand how
that House could continue as it did to disregard the
prayers of the people, who were now suffering a distress
which might be truly stated as unprecedented in the his-
tory of the country. He doubted, indeed, whether in
any country whose interests were entrusted to Repre-
sentatives of the people, there ever was an instance of
that people being placed in such a state of deprivation
and distress as they were now suffering, and yet, at the
same time, being refused by their own Representatives
all means or opportunities of proving their case and
real condition ; and still more, he believed there was
no instance in the history of any country possessing Re-
presentatives, who displayed no disposition to relieve that
distress, or even to inquire into its cause. In proof
of that distress, he would call in the evidence of one of
the largest of the central towns in the kingdom—he al-
luded to the town of Birmingham—and he would also
call in the evidence of the Petition from the town of"
Leicester, presented that evening, as a proof that he had'
not been guilty of exaggeration of the facts ; but the pe-
titions were disregarded. Those to whom they were ad-
dressed seemed to be deaf to the prayers and blind to the
misfortunes of the people. They seemed, indeed, to
come truly under the description of those who
" Made the measure snail and the coin great,
Falsifying the balance by deceit."
Some Petitions, it was singular to saw were not addressed
to the House f Commons, to the gouse of Lords, nor
even to the King ; for the Father of his People in these
times was no more heard of than if he was not a member
of the family. (bear, and a laugh.) The petitions were
addressed to the Most Noble Arthur Duke of Wellington,
who was generally supposed to be a kind of fourth estate
in the country, and to unite in his person the .other three
put together. (Hear.) The people seemed to think,
with some reason, that it was better to address the person
from whom all power emanated, and they hoped that he
would show more solicitude for his countrymen, who had
showered on him such boundless favours, than they bad
received from those representatives to whom they bad
entrusted their interests. He could not blame them for
this. The fault lay with that House, which refused to
hear the complaints of the people : but this he would say,
that an innovation of that kind, coming in a petition
from no less than three counties, would have made their'
forefathers start from their graves with horror, to reproach
them for their degeneracy, and to incite them to recover
their independence. A country placed in such a situa-
tion was a thing scarcely to be believed. The shipping
interests, the trading, the manufacturing, the agncul-
titral, every class in the country, came before the House
with petitions, complaining of distress • but when they
ventured to allude to the cause of that distress or called
on the members to inquire into the cause, they were
tieeted with indifference, or silenced by clamour and
contempt. He did not overstate this. It was but too
true; and if any one presumed to mist his voice in their
defence, or dared to interfere between the spoliators and
their victims, they were opposed by a conspiracy of per-
sons interested in a continuance of the abuses., and anx-
ious to prevent the voices of the people being heard in
that House, or even to allow what was said in their favour
being beard beyond . its walls. Government, however,
seemed just now to have !lightly altered their tone, and
.to be determined, if he was to judge from the reductions

announced last night, and the explanations connected
with them, to give a kind of Dutch concert, in which
there would be an ample number of bass voices. He
would ask them, however, to extend their candour and
their entertainment a little farther, and grant him a com-
mittee to inquire freely and fairly into the cause of the
sufferings of the people. Why was it, indeed, that
such an inquiry should be refused ? It was never re-
sisted in the case of a turnpike or a road bill ; and
why it was that they should refuse to look into the abyss
of misery in which they were plunged, and reject all ex
amination into the method of alleviating their condition,
it was impossible to conceive. If they rejected all in-
quiry, it might end in locking up the House of Commons.
He did not venture to predict that which was said of the
House elsewhere ; but he really did think that they might
be very properly disposed of by such a fate.—(A laugh.)
He only suggested the possibility of such a catastrophe.
Another danger to be apprehended was, that the people
would begin to suspect there was a distinction drawn be-
tween the rich and the poor—between the capitalist and
the producers of capital—between the payers and the re-
ceivers of taxes. Of course, there was no such thing in

that House as a preference of their own interests ; but
then there was a danger that the people might not be
aware of the wisdom of the House, or of its excellence

and probity ; and at all events there was prudence in not
calling on them to take these things too much on asser-
tion. He did not attribute to others that which he was

not willing to confess applicable to himself. He had a
personal interest in the discussion of the question. He
was not one of those who had amassed a large fortune
through the means of laws made for the protection of
themselves. He had not made a fortune by usury, or by
taking advantage of favourable changes to turn over his
property in the Money Market. He was one of those
whose estates had descended to him from his forefathers

—one of' that unfortunate class to whom belonged almost
the whole of the land in the country ; and in the name of
that class, and of every other class suffering in common
with it, he solicited an inquiry into the nature of the
evils which produced their distress. He knew well that
the Government were determined to oppose whatever
course he might think proper to adopt, but he hoped, at
the same time, that there might be some Members who
were now sensible of the cajoleries attempted to be prac-
tised on them, and who would join with him in compet-
ing the House to do justice to the people. He did not
mean by the motion to turn the Ministry out.—(A laugh.)
—He did not understand the laugh. He knew that it
would be madness to hope for such a result, and that he
might as well say he would pull the House down, as at-
tempt to remove a Government supported by such ma-
jorities. For two-and-thirty years all contracts had been
framed, all taxes imposed, in one currency. That cur-
rency had been altered; and yet his Majesty's Ministers
said that the currency question had nothing to do with
the distress, that the currency question had nothing to
do with the want of currency! He knew, however,
that they would endeavour to shut the eyes of the House
to the present state of the country, by painting flatter-
ing pictures, in the most glowing colours, of the state
in which it would be next year. The fallacy of such
a prediction would be best exposed by a reference
to the fallacy of similar predictions in former years.—
The noble duke at the head of his majesty's government
had adopted a very convenient method of answering all
the arguments and statements on the subject. In the
first place, the noble duke directly denied the existence
of any distress ; but afterwards, abandoning that direct
denial, behind which he was as impregnable as behind
the lines of Torres Vedras, he admitted that the situation
of some of the retail traders was an exception to the
general prosperity. That was certainly true ; for a peti-
tion had been presented from Manchester, signed by
almost every retail dealer in the place, stating that the
distress was never so great on any former occasion. The
noble duke then talked of the great quantity of business
done on the canals. He carefully abstained, however,
from saying any thing of the present value of the shares,
most of which were at a discount of thirty-five per cent.
To that the noble duke added, that wood and meat still
produced remunerating prices ; the fact being, that wood
had fallen a half, and meat five and twenty per cent. in
one year. After all this it was evident that the noble
duke ought not to meddle with calculation ; but that he
should content himself with silence, or, like Lord Bur-

leigh, with shaking his bead. Reverting to the question
of the currency, the noble duke had stated that the
amount in circulation was 28,000,0001. ; the Chancellor
of the Exchequer stated that in 1828 the amount of
sovereigns in circulation was twenty-two millions, and
that there having been since issued 4,800,0001., the
amount now was twenty-six millions. But from that
must be deducted what had been exported for the pay-
ment of corn. He had reason to believe that 11,000
quarters of foreign corn had been so purchased ; and
therefore that the amount of sovereigns at present in
circulation did not exceed twenty-five millions. The
noble duke had made several other discoveries of equal
value ; for all which he supposed it was that his grace
received so large a salary from the public. The right
hon. the Chancellor of the Exchequer said in May, 1828,
that the amount of one-pound notes in circulation
2,400,0001. He (Mr. Davenport) impugned that state-
ment on grounds the accuracy of which had been proved
by the result ;* and had maintained that the amount
was nearer six millions. The right hon. gentleman bad
said, that if the one-pound notes were withdrawn from the
circulation, they would be replaced first by a small issue
of sovereigns, and then by an increase of ten and five.
pound notes. What was the fact? That although there
had been issued 800,000 sovereigns, instead of 400,000,
yet that there had been a diminution of above four mil-
lions in the circulation of five-pound notes ; which, added
to the six millions one-pound notes, made the quantity of
paper withdrawn from circulation in one year nearly ten
millions. Was it surprising, after this, that so much dis-
tress had shown itself ? Many of the friends of his Majes-
ty's government endeavourid to screen them on the Word
of their ignorance. He should be deficient in candour if
he did not give them the benefit of that plea. But it could
not go beyond a certain extent. How could it be pleaded,
after they saw the havoc which their measures were pro-
ducing in the country ? They saw that the country was
filling with pauperism and misery, and yet they adhered
to the measures by which those evils had been occasioned.
He rather accused them, therefore, of tenacity of purpose
than of ignorance—between culpable ignorance and cul-
pable obstinacy he believed that they had chosen the
latter. How had the Chancellor of the Exchequer's
statements of last year been borne out by the results ?
The price of wheat had fallen in May and June last
five and twenty per cent. and if the last harvest had
not been so bad, he had no doubt that the present pried
Would have been 4s. 6d. a bushel. The graziers had
fared still worse than the farmers. RAM* to the
prices at Ballinasloe fair, as compared with preceding
years the prise of cattle had fallen considerably. At
Dumfries they had been told at a loss. In Warwick-
shire the price had fallen twenty-five per cent. It would
be said that this was good for the consumer. But it was
no great consolation to the firmer that the value of his

commodities was thus to be converted through the
consumer into three per cents. Cheese shad fallen
thirty per cent. in nine months. Cheshire alone pro-
ducedl2,ooo tons of cheese, so that by that fall no less a
sum than 240,000/. was lost to one county. In the value
of pigs a similar reduction had taken place. Was it
not high time, therefore, for the legislature to interfere
While all this confiscation of property was going on, the
government papers kept talking of improvement and of
' changes. Changes there certainly had been, but they
were changes for the worse rather than for the better.
What must be the feelings of the poor farmers who were
rendered unable to fulfil their contracts ? The moneyed

interest were very liberal in their advice to the landed
interest to reduce their rents. " Reduce your rents,"
they exclaimed, " and all will be well." But it was
the turn of the moneyed interest now to make sacrifices.
The agricultural interest had already reduced their
rents. The confiscation of property should, in justice,
be made to affect equally all classes. In the downhill
race, all ought to start fair. The question had suffered
from the indisposition of the land-owners of England to

. _
speak out. He w•as sorry to say that their servility, their
love of titles and distinction, and still more, their disposi-
tion to provide for their families in various professions, pre-

vented them from speaking out, and denying the statements
of his Majesty's Ministers. The commercial interest did
not speak their minds freely on the question, from appre-
hension of personal results. It was far better that a mer
chant should have his honour suspected than his wealth.
With the merchant, respectability and wealth were con-
vertible terms. When the matter was put to them, "Oh
dear," they answered, " there are some sufferers, certainly,
but persons of credit and capital are doing vastly well ; •
and at the very moment they themselves were probably
on the verge of bankruptcy. Out of a hundred great
foreign merchants in Birmingham five and twenty years
I ago, only five now remained; and of the internal merchant.,
in the same place three -fourths had disappeared. There
had been 1677 bankruptcies within the year, a greater
number than in any preceding year except one. The hon.
member here read a letter from a respectable merchant of
Manchester, a man of the highest character, to show how
much the trade of that town had suffered ; and how inef-
fectual the precautions which up to 1828 had been success-
ful in preventing bad debts had lately proved. The insol-
vencies were as numerous as the bankruptcies. There was
no money circulating. The consequence was that in many
cases people were obliged to revert to the old system of
barter. The miller and the ironmaster interchanged their

commodities. The manufacturing districts were struggling
with absolute want. At Coventry alone, a short time ago,
a charitable subscription having been raised, there were
12,000 applicants for relief on the first day. Macclesfield
was equally distressed. At Huddersfield, 13,000 people had
been working through the winter at 2? d. a day. Leeds,
Blackburn, Norwich, and a variety of other places, were
all experiencing the greatest misery. He had reason to
know that at Barnsley, Settle, and Skipton, half the po-
pulation were maintained out of the poor rates. At
Barnsley, the impatience of the people broke out into
riot.
.(Hear, hear.) He would call the attention of the
house to the state of the Bullion Market. He had
stated three years ago, upon the authority of a Mi•
nieter of Finance in Spain, that the supply of the pre-
cious metals would cease as soon as the South American
Colonies were independent of the Mother Country.--
The Government, therefore, had chosen a wrong period
to call in the paper, and to revert to a metallic medium.
He objected to depriving the people of the option of pay-
ing in gold or silver, and he had to complain of the repeal
of the laws against exporting the current coin of the
realm. The Honourable Member went through numer-
ous statements respecting the currency, which it was im-
possible to hear in the gallery ; and he concluded by
moving :
“ That all the Petitions sent to that House by various parties.
and complaining of distress, be referred to a Committee of the whole
House, with a view of inquiring into the Distress, and its Causes.
and to report upon the Remedies."
Colonel SIBTHORP seconded the motion.
The question having been put from the Chair,
Mr. IRVING expected, from the picture of distress
which the hon. member had painted in glowing colours.
that the hon. member would propose a remedy ; but ho
did not ; he left it as it was. The hon. member at-
tributed the distress principally to a change in the cur-
rency. Though he (Mr. Irving) had opposed the mea-
sure in 1819, yet he would not now advocate a re-
turn to the same system. He felt satisfied that no
good would result from it. There was plenty of money
in circulation to answer the purpose of the country ;
there were five or six millions of bank-notes in the hands of
the bankers at present, for which there was no demand.
The Bank of England, he felt sure, would do anything in
their power to increase the circulation if necessity re-
quired it, but they felt it difficult at present to keep the
gold at home, and prevent it from being exported. Ile
believed that there was an impetus given now to trade,
and that there was room to hope for a growing prosperity
throughout the manufacturing districts. The hon. mem-
ber here read an extract from a letter from a gentleman
in Manchester, stating that there was much activity in the
trade of that town at present, and that very high wages
were given. The letter further stated that there were
large exportations of silk and cotton from that town to
France and America. The hon. member hoped that this
letter would satisfy the house that distress is not so general
in the manufacturing districts as some members would
fain to represent. The produce of the manufactures
had doubled since the year 1819, and there was room to
conclude that the profits had doubled also. No class had
suffered more than the shipping interest ; yet ships were
so cheap, and the fitting-out so easily accomplished, that
he believed that even that was not unprofitable. The ex-
changes had been in our favour for some years, for we
had been importing gold, which was indicative of the
excess of our exportations. Distress was not so general
as it was represented, even at this period of the year.
which was generally the most inactive ; there was abun-
dance of employment in the agricultural districts. He
found an increase of consumption in several articles con-
nected with the trade and manufactures of the country
since the first of January last above that of a similar
period in the last year : which induced him to entertain
sanguine hopes of the growing prosperity of the country.
There is nothing in our condition which ought to exclude
hope, or create despair : (hear, heir.) From all the ac-
counts which he had received from Ireland and Scotland,
he believed that distress was not so extensive in those
countries as in this ; he thought that the distress was
correctly described in his majesty's speech.
Mr. WARD begged to correct a mistake which had
been made in reporting his speech on the night 9f the
moving the address. He did not say that distress was
general, or that it was only partial; he merely said that
it was of a peculiar kind ; he was not one of those who
would wish to lessen the importance-of landlords in the
eyes of their tenants, but he believed that before long the
rents should be lowered. He looked on rents in the same
light as capital In the hands of the manufacturer; and
as the manufacture declined, so should the proat of the
Capital, and so in like manner the rents. The hon. aim-
, bar here entered into a statement of the currency, and

ahe issues from the Bank for several years, with a view to
show that it was not capital or a circulating medium that
was wanted, but a want of confidence. He, for one, thought
that the present state of the currency was preferable to
any other that had been proposed. lie wondered to hear
many members propose a double currency ; some wished
for a silver standard, some for another standard. In
his opinion, any attempt to deviate from the present sys-
tem would only make us worse. The agricultural distress
he attributed to bad harvests ; di: want of an abundant
return from the land was the chief cause.
Mr. SADLER wished to know if the house would not
credit the representations of some members, whether they
would not pay attention to the numerous petitions sent iu
from various parts of the country, complaining of distress.
Letters from individuals, representing the state of the
country as favourable, were mischievous, and ought not
to distract tho consideration of the house from the peti-
tions on the table.

Mr. IRVING here endeavoured to explain the nature
of his letter, but was called to order.
Mr. SADLER resumed, observing that he knew that
labourers were employed in different parts of the country,
but they were employed in doing the work of brutes.—
The Honourable Member here gave a glowing descrip-
tion of the distress which pervaded all classes of the
community, notwithstanding that our industry and dis-
position for enterprise exceeded those of any other na-
tion. Ho had heard many reasons for the present dis-
tress. The Honourable Member who spoke last had
attributed the distress of the agriculturists to want of
sufficient production. Lord Liverpool had attributed it
to an over-production. Some persons attributed it to
a wet season, as in 1828 ; others to a dry season, as
in 1827. Some people attributed it to the Irish bog-
trotters.—(Laughter.)--There was nothing too absurd
to be represented as the cause of our miseries. When
there was such a variety of opinions, did it not behove
the House to take the subject into consideration, and
try to find out the real cause, and administer a remedy ?
With respect to free trade, the advocates for that sys-
tem recommended it on the grounds of competition. But
he would ask what competition did they give to the Eng-
lish labourer ? Did they put hint in the same condition
as the foreign labourer was—was he not subject to many
imposts which the labourers of any other country were
not exposed to—could that be called a fair competition?
He (Mr. Sadler) was not averse to free trade, if con-
ducted fairly, if the British manufacturer was placed
in as advantageous a situation as the foreign manufac-
turer. The honourable member here entered into a la-
boured statement respecting the circulating medium.
He would ask political economists what was capital ;
was it not an accumulation of the produce of labour?
What was debt but an engagement to give so much
labour or the produce of it; then in proportion as the cir-
culating medium was contracted, was the value of labour
lessened. Had not the value of manufactures declined
one half since 1819 ? What was the consequence ? why,
that the public creditor required double the amount of
labour and manufactures than he did in 1819 ; did not
this operate hard on the labouring classes ? The hon.
gentleman here alluded to an expression which had fallen
from the Chancellor of the Exchequer yesterday, that
the issue of a one-pound note was an invasion of the
King's prerogative. (Hear, hear.) He (Mr. Sadler)
would ask, was not the issue of a five-pound note as
great an invasion? He did not know why a gold me-
dium should be fixed on as the only standard to guide
the value of all other commodities. The early transac-
tions of tho people of North America had been through a
paper medium. It was said that it would be a safeguard
from a panic :he denied it. Was this country secured
from a panic in the last century through a gold medium,
when thousands had been ruined ? He would not object to
a paper medium, if the person who issued it had sufficient
property to afford a security to the public. The measure
of 1819 was putting the cart before the horse. It was
said that there was an impetus given to agriculture, as
there was a greater number employed now than had been
for some time back, but when could the agricultural labourer get
employment if he did not get it in March ? He contended that
it was the duty of the house to grant the proposed inquiry, and in-
vestigate the real condition of the community. He had heard with
pleasure the reductions proposed by the Chancellor of the Exche-
quer, but he did not go far enough. The repeal of these duties will
atiind but little relief. Some means should be adopted to relieve
the labouring classes ; a large reduction in taxation should be made,
as also a large reduction in the expenditure, and a more sound cir-
eulating medium should be adopted.
Lord HOWICIC was rather surprised at the severe language used
by the hon. member for Coventry against those who disagreed
with him. He (Lord Howick) would not resist the motion,
to order to blink the question, as the hon. member stated,
but he would resist it because he did not sec what good could arise
from submitting so many subjects as the honourable member
proposed to a committee of the whole house. He (Lord
ovick) was of the same opinion now that he expressed towards
his majesty's ministers on the first night of their meeting.
He thought that they were entitled to the thanks of the house
for their general policy, panictthrly their domestic policy, though
he
differed from them in many respects ; still they were In a great
measure entitled to the confidence of the country. The noble
lord then 'took a view of the several arguments advanced re-
specting the currency. He would ask what would be the con-
sequence if the house granted the committee to inquire into the
state of the country, and also of the currency. He felt sure that
a run would be made on all the banks in the country immedi.
ately. He thought that there was a difference between a depre-
ciation of the currency, and a diminution in its value. In 1826 the
Bank of England was saved from stopping only by a restoration of
confidence. Ho recommended inquiry into the banking system
as warmly as into a useless tax. He also advised a return to ge-
neral confidence, as one of the chief means of benefiting the public.
lllr. HEREIES felt, from the turn the debate had taken, re-
lieved from a great bunhen. The hon. mover had abstained from
giving the government the least hint as to what course he intended to take. He must confess that no little surprise bad come over him
when, at the termivation of the hon. gentleman's speech, he had
proposed tbat the whole house should go into committee, to take into, consideration the whole of the points which had been set forth in
every one of the petitions which had been laid upon the table of that
house, upon the subject of the existing distress. He did not wish to
shrink from investigation, but the house did not appear to be dis-
posed to pay attention to him at that late hour—half-past 11 o'clock :
He maintained that every petition which was presented to that
house, ought to be, and was received with the greatest respect and
consideration. lie contended that the peaces the investigation
which had been made since the delivery of the speech by his hla-
jesty's commissioners, the greater was the conviction that the terms
of that speech, as related to the distress, were correct, Thu inquiry lead proved that the state of the country_ was not sd unsatisfactory
as was by many persons believed. [The confusion which had
been increasing from the commencement of tbe right honourable
genaitleinan's address, here arose to such a height, that there ;rata loud cry of bar, bar, bar. ] The tight honourable u mian, as soon as he could obtain attesting, said that the house
,appeared so to have made up its mind, as to the course it would
(loin on this occasion, that it would not attend to him: (loud cries
of no, no ; yes, yes hear, hear, hear.) The right hon. gentleman
then read eltraets from communications he had received, allsitet7
that the distress was not nearly so bad 'as had been as
and that in most places trade, as well as the agricultural branch,
was in a more flourishing condition than it had been for many
Years' The communications were from the East and North of
Scotian
sbire (1, from Glasgow, several from Leeds, and from Stafford-
, (one of the latter' confessed that the wei did think
business *O.. being carried on at a profit): (st sarthis these";
were that
cries
cheaer,
frotrteargirruhtiarn,"' from the opposition benches); from Man-
glum, and boss Wolverhampton and WelielL
The right honourable gentleman then contended that what distress
there WYn was very partial H
Joint Stock Ranks would be of advantage considered theesiablishm"
the of
°thing was more likely to assist the external 11)
trl, benefit the currency than such estalsemaneee ThotelenT-
es certainly not very far distant when their cetablistmest
be expected. He was opposed to the mationthag
itofceukithe ansoltithed
to
any
°ember oPposite, because he did net think good.

Sir C. BURRELL was opposed to the motion, as it would give
rise to great expectation on the part of the people, without any real
good being produced 'thereby. He thought, however, that an In.
quirt' ought to be made into .the distress under which the country
laboured, but that that inquiry should be made by a select COM.
mittee. The hon. member proposed an amendment to that effect.
The SPEAKER then read the original motion, and amendment.
A cry of adjourn' was geherally raised, and upon the motion of
an hon. member, the further consideration was postponed until
Thursday next.
In answer to a question from Mr. Bright, the Right Hon. the
Chancellor of the Exchequer said that he intended to give every
opportunity for the understanding of the bill in which he was about
to bring to regulate stamp duties.
The other orders of the day were then disposed of, and ehe house
adjourned at a Quarter to One o'Clock.

THE EVENING STAR.

LONDON.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 17.
PRICE OF STOCKS AT FOUR O'CLOCK.
Bank Stock shut Do. Do. Jul.& Jan. 19 1-16th
4 per Cent. Red. shut India Bonds 76 6
3 per Ct. Cons. 921 3 per Cent. 1751,
31 per Ct. 1818, shut £lOOO Exch.Bilis 78 9
31 per Ct. Red. shut £5OO Ditto 78 9 7
4 per Cent. 1021 1 £lOO and £2OO Do. 78 9 7
4 per Ct. 1826, shut Bank for Acc.
Long Ann. shut India for Acct.
Do. 30 Years, shut Cons. for Acc. 92/ 1 1

Last night Mr. EDWARD DAVENPORT brought
forward his long-promised motion on the distresses
of the Country. As the debate was adjourned
till Thursday, we shall reserve our general re-
marks for its conclusion. It is right, however,
to say, that Mr. DAVENPORT—aIbeit tartly to
appear on the stage, as the public accuser of a profligate
and incapable government—has not blinked the mo-
mentous considerations which he undertook to dis-
cuss. His picture of the universal ruin is not less
correct in its details, than it is melancholy and
appalling to contemplate. His picture of the base
degeneracy and moral prostitution of the public
mind is equally exact and humiliating. When—at any
anterior epoch of our history—cries Mr..DAVEN PORT,
has the astounding spectacle been ever presented, of
three counties humbling themselves in abject atti-
tude before a fellow-subject, to supplicate a redress
of grievances, which it belongs alone to the constituted
Authorities to redress ? Does, then, all tho constituted
power inhere in the Duke of WELLINGTON—or whence
comes it, that the whole population of this great
empire should all at once become so enthralled and
fascinated, as to imagine it all concentered in him ?
For they seem to regard him—says the Honourable
MEMBER—as the strong man of the government :
the most Noble ARTHUR, Duke of WELLINGTON,
FOURTH ESTATE OF THE REALM--a sort of consolida-
tion of lIIDISELF and the other three."

We have no heart, nor leisure to-day, to go
into the question of the Noble Duxes insolent con-
, duct of the public affairs, and of his utter unfitness—
whether by reason of his military predilections, or inca-
pacity in civil matters—to reconduct to prosperity this
backsliding and subverted kingdom. What we have
said of that renowned and gallant commander remains
on record ; nor do we entertain one gleam of hope—
from any demonstration of the noble minister in the
present session—that he will falsify one syllable of our
predictions. He is an anomaly in the State : when he
was nominated to the government, the Constitution of
England was superseded.
The Speech of Mr. DAVENPORT will be read with
great interest all over the kingdom. It is eloquent,
able, and convincing; a fearless exposition of a sys-
tem, which the mind almost recoils from examining-
-a system of wicked and corrupt administration, with
all its natural results of wide-spread misery, degradation,
and crime. We congratulate the Honourable Member for
Shaftesbury on the power with which he has redeemed
his pledges ; and we congratulate the PEOPLE, not less
sincerely, on their now certain possession of so staunch
and incorruptible a friend. The servile generalities
of Mr. Ia v two—and other ministerial satellites, as they
may follow—will make no impression upon the adamantine
truths of Mr. DAVENPORT.

We have this day seen a letter from a highly respect-
able partner of a calico-printing establishment in Man-
chester, of which we cannot refrain from giving the sub-
stance. The house with which he is connected has been
in business for twenty-eight years. For the first eight
or ten years, their chief transactions were in the country
trade, selling 9-10ths of their prints to wholesale and re-
tail dealers. They then began to increase their business to
a much larger extent, and began to ship a part of
their goods—still, however, giving a preference to
the country trade ; which, up to the year 1828, was
never less than two-thirds of the whole. In the latter
part of the year, finding the prospect of this department
in all quarters to be very bad, it was necessary for the
partners to act with the greatest caution. They accord-
ingly were obliged to give instructions to their travellers
to collect all the money they could; but not to take or-
ders except from those in whom they could place the
greatest confidence. In addition to this precaution, the
partners had recourse invariably to the current account of
every man, before they could comply with the orders even
of their own travellers ; the consequence of which was
that their country trade was suddenly reduced to one-
third. But notwithstanding all their foresight and care,
their bad debts for the year 1829, in fifty-three towns,
amounted to the enormous sum of eleven thousand one
hundred and eighty pounds, five shillings, and nine-
pence. We have a list before us of every man of them,
and the sum due by each. They are 139 in number-11
of whom only have appeared in the Gazette—the others
having arranged matters with their creditors, either by com-
position, deed of assignment, or some other less expensive
mode of patching. Besides the respectable house in Man-
chester of which we are now speaking, we know that there
are others in the same town much in the same predicament;
but they refrain from stating their sufferings, either at
public meetings, or otherwise, lest by so doing they might
injure their credit. They have not fortitude publicly to
avow their real condition. Up to the 23d of February in
the present year the party whose affairs we have now de-
scribed have unfortunately made twenty-two bad debts-its
sixteen towns, amounting to sins hundred and eighty-
one pounds, eleven shillings, and ten pence 1 We give
these facts for the present without any comment.

CITY, TwELvt. o'Ci.ocit.
MAILS ARRIVED AND DUE THIS MORNING.
•• D. A.
1 Dublin ... 0 1 Frauce ..... .... 0 0 Liibon ..... .. 0
1 Waterford..... 0 0 Flander,
O Guern. at Jersey 0 2 Holland 0 0 Sweden i
O Leeward Islands 0 0 Hamburgh .. . 2 0 Mexico . 1
We have no artivals this morning M ship letters, consequently
we are void of information. The debates of last night, and the
express from Paris, engross the public attention. The latter is
looked on with some Interest, and particularly that part of the
hostile address which says,

" That a just uneasiness troubles the security which France has
begun to enjoy, injures the sources of her prosperity, and, if it were
Ito be prolonged, would become fatal to her repose. Great doubt
still prevails if Poligoac will be able to hold his situation, as it ap-
pears that his opponents are becoming numerous."
Consols which left off yesterday at 92f f. for the Account, opened
at 92j, but the moment it was ascertained in the House that the ex-
press from Paris was of an unfavourable nature to the French mi-
nisters, with the fall of the rentes of about one per cent, the
Consol Market immediately gave way, and reczded to 92 to for
the account, but at present they are 92 to 1, and 924 for money.
The market has still a heavy appearance.
In the Foreign Market little doing as yet; Spanish Bonds arc not
so good as yesterday.
LIVERPOOL, NIARCH 13.—There has been a fair business
transacted this week in British Plantation Sugar ; the sales
amounting to EIZIO hhds. at steady prices. The demand for Coron
in the early part of the week was limited, but subsequently there
has been a very animated inquiry for that article. The demand for
Pine Timber has been very limited during the week, and dealers
seem more desirous to make sales than to purchase cargoes. One
cargo of St. John's, of superior quality, was sold at Is. 10d. per
foot; inferior is very difficult of sale. We have no alteration to
notice in Baltic timber : prices as before.

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